plot The Cosmic Battle to Save the Thread

[BringerofShadows she/her]

Heather sat up, facing away from Ember, but turned around slightly to grab the jar. She undid the lid and lifted up her bloody and tattered tank top, rubbing the gel around her spikes. Her eye spikes were last. When she was done, she laid back down and stared at the ceiling with her spikes. 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Ember watched her curiously. "Does it... feel better?" she asked hesitantly. She did not want to get yelled at again. 

[BringerofShadows she/her]

“Sure.” She whispered. 

[Jaywalk he/him]

23 minutes ago, Shard of Thought said:

"I'm trying," Star said. She tried to push herself to her feet again. This time she was actually able to stand for a moment before, feeling wobbly, she grabbed onto Jay's arm for support. She breathed in and out. Okay, okay, we've got this...

He lifted her up and looked around. “Which way?”

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Just now, BringerofShadows said:

“Sure.” She whispered. 

"Good," Ember said. Her voice was hardly audible. She felt small. For a moment, she considered putting her hand on her shoulder, then dismissed the idea. She did not want to anger her. That was scary. 

1 minute ago, Jaywalk said:

He lifted her up and looked around. “Which way?”

Star resisted rolling her eyes. She did not like to be carried. But there wasn't much else that could be done. She was grudgingly grateful. "I don't think it matters," she said. "I doubt we can run from these, whatever they are."

[BringerofShadows she/her]

“Ember…” Heather whispered. “I am so sorry.” The sobbing started up again. 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Ember furrowed her brow in concern. This time... she was a bit more acceptable of an apology. It felt good. She put her hand on Heather's shoulder, her fingers pleasantly warm through the armor. "I forgive you," she said. 

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Wow, this was a fantastic 5,500th post. 

 

Edited April 2, 2020 by Shard of Thought

[BringerofShadows she/her]

Heather slowly stopped crying, then fell asleep. 

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Ember sat and watched her. It was a lot less scary when she was asleep. She sighed, fascinated. Ember knew that sleep was restorative, so it was a good thing. And it would be a lot less awkward now. Star would be proud of her. She brightened. Oh, that would be wonderful. For a moment she contemplated getting up to go help Star herself, but that would be bad to leave Heather alone. Asleep or not, her friend needed her. 

[xinoehp512 he/him]

23 hours ago, Shard of Thought said:

"Good," Ember said. Her voice was hardly audible. She felt small. For a moment, she considered putting her hand on her shoulder, then dismissed the idea. She did not want to anger her. That was scary. 

Star resisted rolling her eyes. She did not like to be carried. But there wasn't much else that could be done. She was grudgingly grateful. "I don't think it matters," she said. "I doubt we can run from these, whatever they are."

Xino's swords flashed, sending blasts of red energy into the waves of enemies rising from the ground.

"What then?" he called. "We can't stay here forever."

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

5 minutes ago, xinoehp512 said:

Xino's swords flashed, sending blasts of red energy into the waves of enemies rising from the ground.

"What then?" he called. "We can't stay here forever."

"I don't know!" Star cried. "All I know is, my daughter is in trouble!" Star didn't bother to correct herself. She knew Heather wasn't hers, but she might as well have been. 

[xinoehp512 he/him]

Pheonix stared at the waves of tattered demons.

"W-w-we have to get out of here," he gasped. "The things- if we die..." He trailed off into a whimper.

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star glanced over at Pheo. The poor thing had gone completely white - though that wasn't much of a change from his normal skin tone. She grimaced. A soft-hearted boy like him didn't belong here. "So we fight, I suppose," Star said grimly. "I don't know how much of a help I'll be though..."

[xinoehp512 he/him]

4 minutes ago, Shard of Thought said:

Star glanced over at Pheo. The poor thing had gone completely white - though that wasn't much of a change from his normal skin tone. She grimaced. A soft-hearted boy like him didn't belong here. "So we fight, I suppose," Star said grimly. "I don't know how much of a help I'll be though..."

Xino's features became set. He paused in his blasting for a moment to materialize his armor, then went back at it.

"We can't fight forever, either," he said, voice partially muffled by his helm. "There are too many. We need to at least try to make our way back out of here."

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

"I don't care how we do it," Star said. "We all want out of here, so we might as well-" Star cried out in pain. Author above, what an awful time for this to be happening. 

[xinoehp512 he/him]

Xino made a movement with his hand. Nothing happened.

"Wither and Ruin," he hissed. "It's not responding to me any more. Can one of you make a traveling vessel?"

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star focused, remaking the disc they had used to get here with her mind. Hopefully that would wok. 

[xinoehp512 he/him]

Xino grabbed one of the railings and vaulted over the side.

@Jaywalk

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Suddenly feeling immensely curious, Ember got up off of the bed and walked around so that she could sit on the side facing Heather. She studied the sleeping Inquisitor’s face. Ever since she had gotten that new pair of eyes, Ember had desperately wanted to touch them. Surely, unconscious as she was, she wouldn’t mind? Ember blinked a few times, itching to just reach out… But something held her back. Go on, she thought. You won’t get another chance. Ember squared her shoulders. She might as well. 

Ember stretched out her shelled fingers and touched the tip of her middle and pointer finger very lightly on Heather’s right eyespike. Her sense of touch could travel through her shell, allowing her to feel the smooth metal. Ember pulled her hand away, utterly intrigued. She was glad she had been brave enough to do it. Still, she should probably go sit on the other side, just in case. She got up and walked back over to her original seat, her curiosity sated. For now, at least. 

@Jaywalk

Edited April 3, 2020 by Shard of Thought

[Jaywalk he/him]

23 hours ago, xinoehp512 said:

Xino grabbed one of the railings and vaulted over the side.

@Jaywalk

Jaywalk lifted Star up, then jumped onto the disk next to Xino. “Let’s get out of here.”

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Ember looked around the room as she waited, taping her fingers on her knee. She was not bored in the traditional sense, no. She was not capable of boredom. But… waiting was becoming rather tedious, though she was glad Heather was asleep. Heather had not been very nice lately. She’d complained about being in pain. That was probably why. Ember sighed. She felt bad that Heather felt the way she did and she felt even worse about her inability to help her feel better. “I am sorry, Heather,” she said. She knew her friend couldn’t hear her, but she didn’t care. It was nice to speak aloud. Ember began picking at her nails again, humming a single sustained note. Since she didn’t need to breathe, she could technically hold it indefinitely. She felt the note vibrating within her. It was rather comforting and it reminded her of a few days ago, when she had heard Heather singing. Heather had a pretty voice. It would be nice to hear her sing again. 

Ember stopped humming, suddenly feeling oddly self-conscious. What if Heather woke up all of a sudden and heard her? That would be scary… Her voice was wrong sounding anyway. Ember adjusted her position, pulling her legs into her chest and resting her head on her knees. She looked down at Heather for a few minutes, unblinking as she watched her back rise and fall with breath. Such an odd existence, so different from her own. Suddenly, Ember began to think about something she’d never wondered before. Why did nobody else look like her? Why were they all so fleshy and needy? Wouldn’t it be easier to be indestructible, without the need for sleep or food? It just didn’t make sense. Still, there was a kind of beauty in humanity, she supposed. The imperfect normal. 

Once again, Ember shifted her position slightly, putting one leg out straight in front of her. She kept her right arm on her knee, but reached out with her left hand to finger Heather’s hair for a moment. Then, she lifted her fingers to her own hair. Heather’s was much softer, lighter. Which made sense. Hers was made of organic material while Ember’s was made of tiny metal strands. It had to be, otherwise it’d burn up. Ember wondered for a moment why she even had to have a stand-in for hair anyway. She supposed it was there to make her look more like the creatures she was modeled after. That was fine. She didn’t really care all that much. But she still liked Heather’s hair better. 

[xinoehp512 he/him]

1 hour ago, Jaywalk said:

Jaywalk lifted Star up, then jumped onto the disk next to Xino. “Let’s get out of here.”

Pheonix hopped on as the platform began to move up and into the air, gripping the railing as tightly as he could. Was it just him, or did was the platform more unstable now?

[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

Star suddenly realized that her pain was beginning to dim. But did that mean Ember had arrived and healed her or... or... She deepened her breath. She shouldn't think that way. Soon enough, the pain had faded completely. "Let her be safe," Star muttered. "Please let her be safe..."

@xinoehp512

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Xiiiiiiiiinooooooooo

Ember silently returned her fingers to Heather’s hair, the sensation of the Inquisitor’s silky locks rubbing against her armored fingers calming her and giving her something to focus on. Her expression brightened slightly as she twirled Heather’s hair around her fingers. 

@BringerofShadows

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I am tagging you not because I expect a response, but because I want you to know that this edit exists. 

 

Edited April 16, 2020 by Shard of Thought

[BringerofShadows she/her]

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[Zephrun’s Imperium they/he]

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Xino, please  I am begging you.

@xinoehp512