bluescreenwhitedragon | Imeeji: IC Continuations

[Continued from here]

Not quite.

It means you only get one shot to prove yourself. No second chances.

Losing means death. And not the half-baked version they have here. It should actually mean something.

What about everyone who isn't stupid enough to come at you?

Do they get tortured forever? Go into the void? Will you make them a paradise and house them comfortably for eternity?

Paradises and false hopes are C's domain. And I take no interest in the torment of others unless I'm crushing them under my heel personally.

...

Why this particularly line of questioning?

Having second thoughts?

More like...

In that game where we went into people's hearts, I talked to a version of you that represented you as the king of hell. And even that idealized version of you, with all the power in all the worlds, wasn't happy.

So if you aren't happy about it even in your wildest fantasies, some other part of it must be worth it to you. What is the ideal world that you want to create so badly that you'd be miserable for it?

The. one. that no one touches what's mine.

And then my question's the same as in the beginning: what do you do with it once it's yours and nobody's touching it? What's your organizational structure? What are the logistics? That kind of thing.

If you don't want to talk about it on camera, that's fine. I think I just get points for learning something new, anyway. Tell me something I don't know about you and then we can go get you a point for watching me torment myself over a plant.

Then puzzle this out.

What's mine is not the empire. That's just a means to a end.

What's yours is the power to control your own life?

[. . .

He doesn't say anything, but that seems to be not the right answer]

If we do it outside the dorm, you won't get credit for the game.

So something you don't know?

. . .

I fucking hate weapons. But they - like everything else - are a tool that shouldn't be discarded just because it's an unpleasant one.

[Oh darn, he guessed wrong. ...But I guess they both get dopamine anyway.

Cobalt nods, and gestures for Intensity to follow him outside]

Alright. Come watch me be unhappy.

At least it's unhappy with a purpose.

HAHAHA I guess so! Gotta get 'em points!

[This laughter has a tight edge to it, and sounds forced for some reason!]

—Just kidding, it's cause I hate being terrified of something I used to love.

[taking a deep breath and letting it out as they leave the lobby.

Did you know there are multiple exits from the lobby? And the back exit leads out to a little patio with a small garden. There are trees here, but they're small. Across the street is an actual park, though, full of real-ass plants and everything. So there should be plenty around here to work with.]

[He steps onto the patio, waiting to see if Cobalt will go for the smaller plants or venture toward the park]

So what exactly did the tree do to you?

[He takes one look at the trees on the patio and his eyes skid right off them again. Hey what if he ignores these and starts walking to the park instead? That will buy him at least one and half more minutes of not having to deal with this. That seems worth it!!

So he starts leading the way across the pedestrian bridge that goes over the empty highway, connecting the patio to the park. He's trying very hard to be cool about this but the color in his face is already starting to drain, and his skin looks a little clammy.]

...

In the House—

I was alone and badly injured, trying to find medical supplies to help a unitmate. I got caught by someone who'd lost their sanity.

I fought back, but she got me on the ground and stabbed me in the chest with a spear, then pushed this... seed, into the wound.

The—

...

—The seed started growing inside me and a tree burst out of my ribs. I was paralysed and all I could do was lay there and watch as it grew branches and leaves that were edged with my blood. I died terrified and weeping and suffocating on the roots that were growing in my throat.

[taking a couple of unsteady breaths.

He smiles, but his eyes are a little too wide, mouth a little too tight.]

Ever since then, whenever I look at a tree or touch anything that looks like branches, I panic and throw up.

It is such bullshit.

[

Oh.]

[If you had asked Intensity what he should have been expecting, that certainly wasn't it.

And it's not like being pinned down and being torn apart while you're still alive is something he is unfamiliar with, but---

What do you even say to that?

"Actually, turns out it never leaves you!"

"Deal with it!"

Retorts that are too awful even for Intensity too immediately blurt out.]

And you think exposure therapy is the best way to get around that?

The avoidance therapy sure isn't working, anyway.

[a tight, forced laugh.]

Did you know I can't even deal with gardening any more? That was one of the things I did to calm myself after bad games and now I can't.

The nightmare I got from the tournament game was a vision of myself and everyone I loved being ripped apart by trees.

And now I have a "tree" objective in even this game.

[he clutches his phone like he's ready to spike it onto the ground]

This phobia is a liability and I need to get it under control by whatever means necessary.

Edited 2020-04-08 20:53 (UTC)

. . .

[Grabs the crook of Cobalt's elbow and drags him farther into the park]

[thanks, he hates it]

[The tug on his arm sends sharp spike of panic straight into his lungs. His instinct is to dig in his heels and punch Intensity squarely in the face, and he probably would have if this were any other person -- It's only the fact that Intensity's never hurt him before that keeps him from reflexively tearing his arm completely off.

He does go very rigid, though, stumbling along with considerable resistance.]

Stop- stop it.

I'm going already, don't pull me.

[He stops about six steps forward then]

They're not going to hurt you.

I won't allow it.

[He stops for a moment, taking sharp, deep breaths, trying to calm the fuck down and pull himself together.

He looks at Intensity... swallows, then looks away. His heart is pounding.

Gods dammit, he feels like he's about to cry already. This is so fucking stupid. He's so mad about all of this -- not at Intensity, just about the situation. The game. Having this reaction to fucking plants.

He swallows again, and takes a deep breath. Steels himself. Looks Intensity in the eyes.]

Yeah.

[He sets his jaw and starts walking again, heading into the park with the biggest air of confidence he can muster.]

[If Intensity notices the reactions, it doesn't show on his face. Just a slight nod of his head when Cobalt acknowledges him.

And keeping one hand in the crook of Cobalt's elbow, he walks alongside him - a little off the path himself (when they use it), so Cobalt can be equidistant from the trees on both sides.]

[His gaze is fixed on the path. He's white as a sheet and covered in a cold sweat, keeping his breathing deliberately even in an effort to keep the panic from creeping back in.

Unfortunately, walking around under the trees isn't doing anything for his goal, so he'll have to do something else.

When they get to a lawn area with a couple scattered trees, he pauses for a moment, considering it... then sets his jaw and starts heading over toward one.]

Cobalt

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