Be brave enough to burn

[notsogreedy]

Who: All the Alices (and Ankh, his name is Ankh)
What: Just a mysterious castle built on top of a restaurant. What could possibly go wrong?
Where: World Two – Wings to the Sky
Warnings: Who even knows? Will update as necessary.



Ankh wakes up at the edge of the water, his arm draped over a rock and his face cushioned by a bed of sand and seaweed as the edges of waves wash over his body. The first thing he notices upon waking is that it's uncomfortable. The second, upon lifting his head and starting to pull himself out of the water is that it's familiar. Awareness dawning, he scrambles to his feet and looks around wide-eyed half expecting Eiji to be there somewhere. Of course he isn't.

But this... this is his last memory. For a moment he wonders if somehow this whole thing came to an end and he wound up back home, but that's wishful thinking. No, this is just his world. His heart, as the guides like to call it. It's only more obvious that this isn't real as he scans the horizon and finds Cous Coussier where it shouldn't be. And then on top of it... that's-

His eyes widen, and then narrow. He's not sure what to expect out of this other than nothing good.

But, after wringing the water out of his clothes as best he can, he makes his way to the restaurant and curiously to the freezer, where he finds the ice pops he expects to be there. Pulling one out, he gives it a skeptical look for a moment—does he dare assume it's really the same or even safe to eat?--but ultimately pops it into his mouth and discovers it tastes exactly like he expects. That much is something he can appreciate. But as for the rest of this...

With popsicle in hand, he continues exploring.

Comments

[notsogreedy]

[Another room, and again he's found the person who's on the windows also looking at them. Unfortunately, he seems confused, and that means he's unlikely to be any help.]

I was hoping you could tell me that.

[mearry]

[ Well, Ankh, it seems that it's two confused guys looking at windows.

C-ta looks at him, and then back to the stained glass, but now...something is off. No, everything is off. Everything seems so realistic now, so possible. The feelings of dread and disgust are still there, but now he can't pinpoint them to any of the artworks.

Great. ] I...I don't really know. Could something be behind one of these?

[notsogreedy]

[He gets closer, peering at the windows to try to see anything through them. They all seem to be normal windows to the outside.]

It doesn't look like it. But that doesn't mean they aren't hiding something.

[mearry]

Well, I remember being able to know right before you came in. [ The smile he gives Ankh is a tight one, unsure. ] Seems like you brought some bad luck with you.

[ C-ta then looks back at the stained glass, teeth biting into his lower lip in unease. ] These are...things about me, I think. Maybe like a two truths and a lie kind of game. Except I don't know the lie anymore. What a crappy game.

[notsogreedy]

[And he scowls back. Some help you are. Though he's not surprised given that the one person he's talked to so far couldn't tell him which window was right, even though she knew the answer.

He looks at the pictures. More creepy rabbits. What's up with that? After a second, he gestures toward the ones with the girls in them.]

Who are they? [He should be able to answer that much, right?]

[mearry]

[ With his hand in his pockets, he points to the girl with the short brown hair. ] Her name is B-ko. She's one of the most popular girls in my school-- she's smart and pretty enough to do so. She's an amazing actress; you wouldn't believe her true nature unless you saw it herself.

[ He chuckles quietly, as if making fun of her...and he is. In fact, C-ta feels some sort of resentment while he talks about her, as if she he had done something to him. However, whatever she's done, he can't remember.

Then, he turns towards the other girl, and his smile turns empty. ] She's D-ne. Uhm...I don't really know much about her, actually. [ He does. He knows a lot about her, but he's not going to say anything. ] She's quiet and has a pessimistic air to her, but you could always see her with B-ko. She's like her little lap dog.

[notsogreedy]

[He doesn't say anything back to that for a moment, just processing the information. He's not sure any of it helps, really. After a moment, his eyes fall on the rabbit in the one picture. Really, does everything around here have something to do with rabbits?]

What's the pink rabbit about?

[mearry]

[ Oh, he knows that one! His smile brightens again, and he begins talking: ]

It used to be mine. My parents bought it when I was young, but I gave it away to some...one...? [ Or maybe...he doesn't know the answer to this. C-ta once again feels troubled, trying to reach into a pool of memories that...he just can't find.

He gave that rabbit away, no? Didn't he? That rabbit is important to him, C-ta knows this, but he doesn't know why. Why has he forgotten about such a special thing? Why had he given it away? To who had he given it away?!

With eyes wide in shock, he stares at the stained glass, distraught. ] ....that thing stole my memories...

[notsogreedy]

[He watches as C-ta's internal crisis is written all over his face. He makes a quiet sound that's half derisive, half amused.] You're only just now figuring out something's missing?

[He's seen enough here to guess by now that all of them lost something. His, at least, was obvious from the start.]

[mearry]

Shut up. [ C-ta's voice is tight, as he does his best to try and control himself. ] Of course I knew that that...thing took something from me but--!!

[ But it was someone...someone like that. Someone important to him. How dare him, how dare him, how dare him--!! ]

I don't know. I can't help you.

[notsogreedy]

[He just makes some vague sound of acknowledgement in reply. He's not likely to get any more useful information from C-ta, and the turmoil over whatever memories are missing really isn't his problem. Instead, he looks around the room for something to use to break a window. The thought seems reckless, and until now he's hesitated to act on any such thought, but by now, he's looked around the whole place and he doesn't think there are any other clues. Just windows and games about which one is right. Maybe there's some validity to the idea that something might be behind them.]

[mearry]

[ Between his thoughts ( each one walking further into violent territories ), C-ta manages to glance over whatever Ankh is doing. He's not exactly interested, but there's a sense of urgency to get this stupid thing over with. The faster this finishes, the faster he can get his memories back, right?

He needs this to finish quickly. C-ta draws in a shaky breath, and steadies himself. ]

... I would never talk to B-ko willingly. She's too...too dangerous. Too popular. Just being around her makes you the target for any school rumor and I never want to deal with those.

[ And then...D-ne. He glares. ] D-ne doesn't like anyone that isn't B-ko. And we don't like each other either. I annoy her, or something like that. [ And she annoys him back, but he has to keep some things to himself, no?

He's going to kill that stupid cat when he gets the chance to. ]

[notsogreedy]

[Ankh listens to what he's saying, but doesn't respond. The words only confirm the guess he'd already made. It's obvious, isn't it? The window that caused that strong of a reaction would have to be the relevant one.

After a moment of searching, he finds a pair of metal cuffs that seem like they might have been chained to a wall at some point. They're heavy, but not so much that they're hard to carry. Perfect for breaking a window.

He moves closer, only hesitating a second to wonder whether this is really a good idea. It might not be, but he's already tried everything else he can think of that wasn't as drastic. There's no point in just waiting around for clues that aren't there.]

Let's see if there's anything behind here, then.

[He throws the cuffs at the window with the rabbit and the blood. He's not sure what to expect out of this. He only hopes it's something useful.]

Puzzle: Solved

[worldkeys]

[ The window shatters easily, although there is nothing behind it aside from outside. But in the same moment that the window shatters, so, too, does C-ta. As if the boy were made of glass, he breaks into pieces and then dust. On the ground, left from his remains, Ankh will find a medal. Along with this medal, a small chunk of Ankh's missing memories will return--and he will find that he no longer has a sense of touch. Meanwhile, one of the lights on the mysterious lock will light up.

C-ta will awaken in the hub moments later, aware he died a rather painless and sudden death, but none the worse for wear. The Rabbit will usher him back through the Door, complaining loudly, within moments. ]

[notsogreedy]

[Ankh's eyes widen as he he watches the window shatter in front of him and hears something else shatter off to his side. He whips around in time to see the pieces of C-ta fall to the ground. Interesting.

The medal immediately catches his attention, and he moves closer to find it's a Peacock core, clearly one of his. Also interesting. With the way this place had made him something more human, he couldn't tell whether he already had any of his medals or not. He leans down to pick it up, and as he does, he's struck with a sudden memory. He knows now that he wasn't immediately destroyed when his core was cracked, that he made his way through a forest bleeding out cell medals until he collapsed against a tree. When he comes back to reality, he looks at the medal in his hand... and realises he can't feel it there. There's no texture when he runs his thumb over it, like his hand has gone numb.

His eyes go wide and he throws the medal across the room, watching it bounce off the wall with a small clinking sound. He can see and hear fine, at least, but... but. He looks at his hand, clenching it into a fist, trying to feel where his fingernails scratch against his skin. Throwing away the medal didn't help at all. ...so this is how this is going to go, is it? Slowly, he goes and picks up the medal from where it landed on the ground, stashing it in a pocket, and then he makes his way back to the restaurant. He wants another popsicle.]