Open; Tonight Tonight Tonight

[asheaveniswide]

Who: Zenos viator Galvus, Gabumon, Mystery Guests
What: Catch-all/intro/etc
Where: Access City
When: Early May
Warnings: Some behavior may be deemed offensive, violent or inciting. Do not use as a projectile. Sudden acceleration to dangerous speeds may cause injury. This Garlean is not designed to sustain gross weight exceeding 12,000 lbs. May contain the following: gore, mayhem, swords, scythes, violence, obsession, Gabumon, speeches, ennui, Endwalker spoilers and a lack of morals. Do not eat. Mis-use may adversely affect your health. Store in a cool, dry place.



In The Dark Of The Night

It's late. Very late; dawn might only be a handful of hours away, and the shadows are deep and all-consuming, the halos of streetlights and the glow from windows comforting pools of light in an otherwise dark and gloomy night.

And in the dark is the sound of something heavy being dragged. And rather slowly at that. There's much that could be getting towed about in Access City, but this ... also has the metallic scent of blood with it, and sharp eyes might note a long path through the patches of darkness where lamp and street light don't touch, marked in drying red. The generalized path, if one were to follow it for any length of time, seems to be headed towards where the arrived Tamers have been offered homes, albeit in a route that seems maximized to try to stay hidden.

But not much can be hidden forever, and as the persistent efforts of dragging rasp through the space between two buildings, it stops for a time - just long enough for a lone black-pelted Gabumon to peek out, eyes bright and alert, to see if anyone might have noticed, then disappear back into the alley in a Completely Unsuspicious Way. Nothing at all is happening here, surely!

In the shadows between buildings, a blond man lay in the ground, blood-speckled fingers neatly folded across his belly, eyes closed. The blood's either his or on something he's wearing, the coat rather fancy to quick glance but awfully ragged about the shoulders, full of tears and punctures, and he himself not moving. Definitely breathing, and there's a twitch now and again as Gabumon once more seizes the shoulder of his jacket in sharp teeth and begins hauling him backwards along the ground bit by bit by bit. He must be rather heavy, by the way the small digimon has to dig in all four sets of claws to get enough purchase to move his considerable bulk.

That digimon has been at it for quite a long time now by the trail. Persistence pays off, surely, sooner or later!!

The Stale Cold Smell Of Morning

With sunrise and some Adventures at night, Gabumon has ventured out presumably on his own! What's one more Gabumon, really? Sure, he's got black fur instead of white, but that's not that uncommon!

What might be more uncommon is the way he's weighing the morning crowds, looking, listening, searching for -- Aha!

What he needs is humans. Or what looks enough like humans; any will do, and as soon as he spots one that doesn't look particularly dangerous, he approaches with all apparent boldness. A tap on an elbow, or tug on a hem - anything he needs to do to get some attention will do!

"Excuse me! You're a human, right?" It's never wise to assume! There's some awfully human looking digimon.

Comments

[asheaveniswide]

"Pride's not a bad thing." Since there's talking going on, Gabumon's not going to use his teeth, instead he digs his claws into the rather ragged-at-the-shoulders jacket and works on trying to pull in this fashion. Leverage is very much obviously harder, and now it's a REAL struggle. In the dark and gloom, he does his best, and bit by bit, inch by struggling inch, works on getting Zenos moving again. It's hard to spot the faint, very brief smile that flickers across the downed man's face. Amusement? "I guess you really aren't a digimon. You'd know going looking for fights is how we get stronger if you were."

That's ... inaccurate, but not from his perspective!

Which means maybe Nara really is a tamer, which would make the wooden-sword weilding digimon his partner? But if he's a tamer, then he's not likely to try to steal Zenos, they're already paired up. That's ... a little soothing. There's some hesitance when Nara offers to look around, burnt orange eyes sweeping the area briefly as if fully expecting some Virus to appear and attack, but nothing of the sort happens. "...Okay."

Tug. It's slow going, he's going to have to use his teeth again. "We should fight, later. Not ... trying to erase your data level, or anything like that, but we do get stronger that way." He LEAAAANS with all his weight, and Zenos moves another inch. This is going to take all night. "And I could really use it, this is tough. I wonder if it goes faster if I fought both of you? Then he'd be easier to move." That is NOT how it works, not even a little.

There's a soft huff from Zenos. Not a laugh, even a muffled one.

[aetherweaver]

He walks a little ahead, but not out of conversation range. "We can, if you want. I've noticed my attacks aren't as strong as they usually are here... it's a little frustrating." His ears flick back in annoyance for a moment before returning to their normal state. "I don't know if that's how it works. I mean, I'm not a Digimon, but..."

Oh, he heard that. He chooses to ignore it. Zenos has decided not to be a part of this conversation, so he won't be. "Botamon digivolved when he and I had a sort of... connection. I think you have to do something like that. At least, from my experience." He's not all that experienced, though, so he could be wrong.

[asheaveniswide]

Gabumon's paying a lot of attention to their surroundings; his concern about suddenly being ambushed by the unethical does seem to be legitimate at least, whether or not a digimon IS lurking out there waiting for opportunity. He drops back down onto all fours and grabs on with his teeth again, this method seeming to make far better headway as soon as he can use four limbs instead of two.

Downside: it interrupts talking, and a couple feet of dragging later he pauses and straightens back up. "Maybe it's because you're in a new place, so everything got left behind somehow. And if your attacks aren't as strong then I have a better chance of winning!" Especially against two of them, though nothing in Gabumon's voice or bearing suggests he's interested in a serious fight. Most people would call it 'sparring', probably.

And then he buckles back down to hauling a good two hundred and fifty pounds of deliberately dead weight. There probably are easier ways to do it, and probably it would be much faster if he just accepted help, but then that'd just prove he couldn't do it! But Botamon is being eyed speculatively as he works, carefully still trying to keep Zenos out of the pools of light. A fresh evolution? "What.. ..what does a connection feel like? Is it different from how it feels to just know you found your human? Or, uh, your digimon?"

[aetherweaver]

Kotemon looks over at Gabumon and tilts his head. "It feels like... a strong surge of emotion. It feels like you can feel what they're feeling and you respond to it. It's hard to describe, but you can feel it in your core. I'm sorry it's not that helpful..." "No, you did fine." Nara'a responds, using the glow of his focus to help cut through the gloom.

"In my world we'd say that your aether connects, but in this world it would be... data? I believe, at least. Emotions are powerful and can influence a lot of things. Determination, friendship, love, protectiveness... these are all feelings that you can share with someone else and that can be used to connect with them." There doesn't seem to be anything coming, so he drops back and keeps his ears up. As much as he's not fond of the act of hunting, he still has a hunter's instincts and senses.

"I think it's a similar feeling, just with different emotions."

[asheaveniswide]

By such an implication of how Nara and Kotemon did it, Gabumon's efforts may be completely in vain. Did Zenos even experience friendship, love, protectiveness, or anything else beyond obsession? Would any such connection even be possible? Gabumon considers this for a long quiet few moments, dragging away at Zenos' uncooperatively still form, his hands still neatly folded as the only real sign he's not completely unconscious.

Maybe the Garlean is enjoying seeing something so small struggle so pointlessly.

"I think fighting might be easier,"the black and white digimon concludes morosely, eventually. "We only just met, I don't think a lot of that applies yet." Clearly, Nara and Kotemon have been working together for a long time for that sort of thing to develop!"I don't know how long we have before ALIAS gets us all in trouble. We might not have long enough, like you two did."

"There is always time." Zenos' addition is quiet, as dry as ever, and without inflection. "So long as there is a goal worth pursuing."

"Saving the world is a goal worth pursuing," Gabumon says confidently.

"Is it."

He pauses, glancing down. "Of course it is. You agreed to help, didn't you?"

[aetherweaver]

"We can try. And -" Oh. He speaks. Nara'a takes a deep breath and pushes his feelings aside. It's like when he's controlling aether - one wrong emotion can get him in trouble. If he thinks of it that way, it's easier. Easier to look at him as a person and not... whatever he'd thrown away everything to become.

"It is. And as I recall, this wasn't the only world you volunteered to help - even if you only did so for a chance to fight."

He isn't above pushing a few buttons if he has to. "We all agreed to help. Even if you didn't mean to, you've agreed to it."

[asheaveniswide]

"Your recollection errs." Fairly true to habit, he doesn't seem bothered by any of it, but very little ever seemed to evoke a reaction to begin with. If there are buttons to push, that one doesn't seem to have gotten a rise out of him. "I swore no oaths to this place or its creatures, not that any oath would mean more than air had I done so."

Some things truly never change.

Gabumon's expression turns troubled for a few moments, one hand reaching up to pull absently on a long false ear as if the action was somehow soothing. "Well, I'm going to do what I can. And I have to be stronger to do that." And surely Zenos was, if nothing else, good at being strong ... and thus surely could show him how to be!

Or he just needs to get into enough fights. "We're partners. ...Will you help me with being stronger, if nothing else?" Anyone might be moved by the plaintive, unhappy note in the digimon's voice, who might, might be coming to the realization that his destined partner isn't quite what he'd hoped. The addition is even quieter. "Either of you?" It's shameful, shameful to even suggest some OTHER tamer might be able to help when his will not--

Zenos opens his eyes again to regard the darkened sky, silent for a time. Then: "We will see if you prove worthy of such an investment." No, that's not fair, and not accurate. Zenos has, indeed, already made his choice, betrayed by simply allowing himself to be dragged like so much meat through back alleys and hells-knew-what by a little alien animal.

[aetherweaver]

"I'll help. If you want." He reaches down towards Gabumon, but then stops. Maybe the other Digimon doesn't want to be comforted, not by another Tamer. "I'm going to do what I can to help this place, and the people in it." Digimon are definitely people, by his standards. They're a Spoken race that's organized and complex. They have to be!

Kotemon toddles forward, handing his weapon to Nara'a and reaching out towards Zenos. He doesn't approach too close, not yet, but looks over at Gabumon. "I can help carry him, if you want. I'm a lot stronger now than I used to be." The miqo'te winces slightly, tail twitching and ears flicking back. He's pretty sure Gabumon doesn't want help with that, but he'll let the other Digimon speak for himself.

"... We're all going to have to help each other. Whether you participate or not, you're one of us Tamers now."

[asheaveniswide]

Another Tamer, no, that might somehow suggest he wanted to change Tamers, if that was somehow possible, and leave Kotemon in the same position he was worried he'd be in when the two first appeared. But there were more categories people could be put in besides 'tamer' and 'digimon'. He doesn't recoil from Nara's hand. "That's good." ALIAS was a scary thing to think about for long. Saving a world is a big task. "Every way that could work ... should be tried, right?"

Be it getting help or fighting each other, or alongside each other or ... any other way. What mattered was saving every world, the Digital and every one attached to it.

He does reach a paw up to try to grasp Nara's arm though, and pull him down to head-height. Not with claws, and not hard enough where should Nara resist it would be difficult to do, escape would be easy. His small voice is very, very quiet, as if he doesn't think ANYONE will overhear them, even with Zenos and Kotemon RIGHT THERE. "I don't think saying things like that makes anyone cooperate. We'll figure it out, don't worry."

It's certain EVERYONE heard that.

Allowing Kotemon to help would just prove he's not worth the time and effort, wouldn't it? But then they'd be somewhere safer faster, and he could make up for it later. It's a real struggle for him to come to any kind of a conclusion, shifting from foot to foot and wringing his paws together in an all too human gesture of uncertainty. "...I think if we can lever him up a little I can get underneath and carry him that way," he concludes eventually. "Then I can stop eating his coat."

It seems right about then that Zenos' patience has expired, for he places one hand on the ground and shoves himself into a seated position in one sudden movement. The earlier vercure has stemmed some of whatever had ailed him, but he doesn't move with ease or swiftness. Probably for the best.

[aetherweaver]

Kotemon goes to help pick up Zenos, but stops when the man sits up. Nara'a opens his mouth, but he's not sure what he'd even say. He stops and takes another breath, watching Zenos cautiously. A moment passes, and then another.

"... Good to see you up." Is it? He's not sure. He'd like to think that even Zenos can change, but he's not sure of that, either. "Are you going to be okay?" His tone is carefully neutral, trying to keep his emotions out of it. It won't do to get mad right now. Zenos doesn't care about him, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't have a lot of emotions connected to Zenos.

"... Your partner was worried about you." Not that Zenos probably can't tell. Whether he cares or not is another matter.

[asheaveniswide]

With Zenos sitting up, Gabumon takes this as a clear sign that he should work on seeing if he can push the Garlean all the way upright, pulling and tugging and getting absolutely nowhere with someone who probably outweighs him four times over. Out of Zenos' line of sight, there is a careful little motion to Kotemon to join in. Between the two of them, surely!

Is it still on the same scale of proving himself worthy if Zenos is already moving on his own? Gabumon's willing to take a chance, they're halfway to up.

The scent of blood is still there. It's sharpened now that he's shifted position, but there's no telltale runnels of crimson onto the ground to betray where, if any, such wound might be. Given it's Zenos, it might be a minor annoyance at best. The glance Nara is cast at the first two comments is the only response there is. Would it be comforting that Nara is very clearly not the focus of terrible obsession anymore? Or would it be somehow worse, knowing his focus must therefore be on someone else?

"I wasn't that worried," Gabumon says defensively, somewhat muffled by a curtain of blond hair getting in his way as he works on finding a better way to grab on and try to lift. "I mean, he breathed and made noises sometimes."

Zenos' gaze shifts away, as he weighs whether or not he should entertain the little black furred creature's efforts to get him to rise, or simply stay where he is again. "Why do you not seek to take advantage of a foe's supposed weakness? Surely there is some courage to be found among Eorzea's rabble."

There's no heat to it, no fire that suggests it's more than idle musing. "Well it's a good thing they're not, because I want my fight to be in a better spot than this alley. And maybe when it's daytime!"

The one thing he could appreciate.. "The battlefield matters less than the opponent."

[aetherweaver]

Kotemon nods and moves over, trying to help Gabumon lift and shove. He's going to do his very best to help Gabumon - they're friends now!

... Maybe. At least he hopes they are. But then again, Kotemon wants to make friends with most people. It's a little silly of him, and he knows it... but friends can't be a bad thing, right? Right.

The goad - even if it was unintentional - has Nara'a clenching his fists hard enough for his claws to leave indents on his palms. He can't say that he 'owes' Zenos - despite his world's Zenos definitely helping to save the world it still doesn't add up. There's nothing that can excuse the slaughter he's seen. It's past a 'score' of any measure, and he can't truly say that he believes Zenos can change. He's not sure the former prince is capable of change.

His feelings are complex and hard to name at the moment. A sense of curiosity mixed with anger mixed with shame mixed with... a score and more of feelings. He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly, ignoring the Look of concern Kotemon is giving his partner. "It's not for lack of courage that I'm refusing to fight you. It's because you chose to come here, whim or not. There's things you can do here - and besides, I prefer to fight fair."

It's tempting to switch to Warrior, to let his inner beast shine through and channel it in the way that he knows how, but he resists. He resists despite his hand moving to his pocket, resting just above the opening. He wants to take advantage of the situation, but he... can't. Not in this place. If he's pushed, he will... but right now Zenos isn't doing anything. There'd be no way to justify it to any of the Tamers or Digimon besides Taiki. "If I'm going to fight you, I want it to be when you're not half-dead. There's no challenge against a weakened opponent."

As much as he tries to deny it, Zenos was right about a few things. He does seek to push himself harder and harder, dancing on the edge and hoping one will finally prove worthy. He's a hero, but his curiosity still has the better of him - and he can't help but wonder where his limit is. And he does seek out thrills for their own sake - going after a wounded opponent isn't a thrill - it's just a slaughter.

[asheaveniswide]

"It would be the only way to make such a confrontation 'fair'." It's not said mockingly, it's said as if it were simple fact. The sky is blue, the ground has rocks in it, Zenos would murder whatever uppity Eorzean this was without him being severely hampered in the process.

There was, on some other star, some other time, a different Eorzean, one that would have garnered very different reactions. Different words, different confrontations, a person he had called friend and meant it even through the course of intending to kill them -- That person is not Nara'a. A thousand variations of the Warrior of Light, but ever only one type of Zenos, reflecting the same troubles and suffering and trail of destruction over and over and over. Instigating the same fights, pursuing the same hunts.

With two of them now pushing on the Garlean, it seems the giant of a man is actually going to allow himself to be hauled upright; even Gabumon is small next to the full height of Zenos, but he keeps steadying paws on the man regardless, as if doing so might somehow, impossibly, actually keep him there. Surely between him and Kotemon this can be achieved! They got this far! "Besides which," the dark-furred digi says brightly, completely unphased by the darker undertones that are as clear as blood in the water, "I'd have to fight too, and then so would Kotemon, we're all partners now and we DON'T leave our own to fight alone. I don't know about any of you three, but I think it would be the most fun for everyone if we're all nice and rested and healed up, and then find a fun looking spot to fight at. Like a beach! Then we can have a swim and a snack after."

Zenos sways in place a little, hair a blond curtain over his eyes. What a strange little creature. It seemed to enjoy the idea of fighting but was treating it like it was a game.

But wasn't fighting a game, in the end? Just for the thrill of it and naught more?

"Combat is about winning, not about having a swim and a snack. If your foe can rise again, then you did not defeat them." This advice is just a touch weary.

Gabumon considers it, studying Kotemon for a moment, then Nara. "Yeah, but that's only for the ones you need to stop forever. The ones you don't need to stop forever, if you fight them and they can't get back up, then you can't ever fight them again later. And that's just sad. Not every fight needs to be a very serious fight, they can be fun fights too. Who's going to be left, if everyone's defeated and gone?"

Silence, at that. Someone had made a vaguely similar argument before.

The little digimon pats one leg lightly. "But first you have to get better. Kotemon and his partner won't mind waiting. Right?"

[aetherweaver]

"Exactly! It'd be fun, wouldn't it?" Kotemon looks at his tamer, but looks away when he senses the emotion coming from Nara'a. His tamer is really upset about this even if he's not showing it - he really needs to ask about it later and figure out exactly what the issue is. Maybe he can ask Taiki and Gazimon? Nara'a seems to trust them, at least.

'Fun'. Right. "... Right. I don't mind waiting." He'll take Zenos on at any time if he feels the need to - but right now he owes the Garlean at least one shot at proving he's not going to cause mass chaos. There's plenty here to help stop him if need be, and at least their abilities seem to be weakened so there's less of a worry.

Of course a sword or a scythe can still cut, no matter how strong the force behind it... but he can't think about that now. Think of the positives... maybe this place will be good for othe ex-prince. There's a possibility, at least - and he has to hold on to hope wherever he can. He watches as Kotemon helps push Gabumon's partner upright, stepping back to give Zenos some measure of space.

"... There's housing not too far from here. If you get up you can rest there - there's places of all different sizes so I'm sure there's one that will fit you." No sense in giving him a tiny bed, as funny as it would be to watch him try to squeeze into one.

I feel like I should be apologizing for Zenos' ... zenosness.

[asheaveniswide]

"Anything can be fun with the right people and the right place," is Gabumon's instant, thoroughly confident response. He sounds so utterly sure of himself that maybe it'll go a little way to convincing everyone else! Carefully he lets go of his partner, keeping sharp watch for any sign of Zenos toppling over again.

Gabumon at least seems to be exactly what's expected of a digimon partner. Obstinately loyal and determined to help ... and paired with a mass murderer who's only ability to feel seems tied to more murder. What a fate.

For a moment, the gaze Zenos turns on Nara'a is distinctly measuring, certainly weighing him against a certain absent Friend. A shining beacon of ferocity and determination ... and ... a stranger who can only be found wanting in the comparison. He doesn't have his grandfather's eye for souls. If he did... this would be a very different situation altogether, wouldn't it? "I did not abandon the ends of reality alongside my friend to waste my time with mediocre prey." The comment is not a whisper, but it's meant mostly for Gabumon as his gaze shifts away, towards the direction Gabumon had been so carefully working on getting him to go. "Test yourself as you please against them."

This is, as far as Gabumon seems to be concerned, implicit agreement by the way he perks up and gives Kotemon what looks awfully like a quick thumbs-up. There's gonna be fun! They just have to wait! "Thank you for your help." Both of them! "I don't know how long it takes a tamer to heal up, but give us a couple days, and then we can work on getting stronger!" He can tell Nara is less than pleased by all of this but surely once they actually had time to practice and stretch their claws and have some fun, that would change. Carefully he tugs on Zenos' hem, encouraging the Garlean to move - and with slow deliberation, he actually does so.

No rush. But Zenos never did rush about.