futurology | video; un: white

[The magitek's pulled back far enough to feature not one, but two members of Audentes... or, rather, one of them striving vainly to nudge his teammate out of the feed. It's the tail end of the struggle, though, and Kung Jin is fighting a losing battle. It takes half a second for Asher Millstone to shove his way into view, taking up half of the screen and speaking up before Jin can truly get a word in.

The law student looks more excited than ever when he starts speaking, and even lifts his arms above his head in a “raise the roof” sort of gesture.]

It’s time to get wiggity wiggity whack, yo!

Don't. [He nearly slaps a hand over his friend's mouth, but reconsiders, elbowing him back instead.] So, Audentes. Since we're almost all set to leave on our next assignment, it's come to our attention that not everyone here is from a world that people like Asher or I consider "modern day".

Whoa, you? Wait a minute. Last I checked, there was nothing normal about you, man. People in your world, like, rip dudes’ spines out through their mouths and crap!

[After he says this, Asher immediately turns from Jin back to the camera, and waves his hands emphatically in its general direction.]

Don’t try that.

[Jin casts a dubious glance at Asher and moves right along in spite of all the interruptions.]

Even if you look the part, you’ve still got to play the part, too. If you're looking for any advice or tips to blend in properly on-planet, we’re pretty much experts-- so let us know if you need a hand.

[The paler of the two pops up right behind him, leaning on the other’s shoulder.]

That’s right, baby! We’ll teach you how to be 90s.

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That's not what I mean, homeboy.

[Koltira may be dangerous, but Asher is far more concerned for the other's mental health.

He of all people knows what it's like to be lonely.]

I'm talkin' about you.

[ Well, he might be having a slight existential crisis over this conversation!! Compounded with others like it, anyway. With Meallan gone, he is the only elf on the team--and to everyone else, his people are not only absent from their worlds, they are apparently an outright fiction. It wears on the soul. ]

Not everyone on this team is human. But nearly all of you look it, at least.

[ Automatons, Papyrus, and fish people aside. ]

And none of you look like me.

[ Elf, undead, or otherwise. ]

I suppose I had not really considered that before now.

[Asher thinks back to his own experiences on the team, and save for a few robots and one skeleton, he can't quite say he's seen too many people who aren't vaguely humanoid. Some of them may be gods, but they still look like they could have come from Earth, that is, if they wore less tacky outfits.

His brows furrow considerably, eyes intense with sincere worry.]

ALASTAIR's got you covered though, right?

[At least, in the disguise department.]

You don't have to sweat the appearance thing.

I'm sure they will have.

[ But that's not the full problem. ]

I've no doubt whatever illusion they craft will be impeccable, and hold 'til we've finished our business. But it won't change the truth of things.

[Asher can't say he and Koltira have had the same experiences, not by a long shot..

His jaw jiggles from side to side as he considers his words carefully, wanting to say something kind and oddly heartfelt, but he recognizes that they're on a public feed.]

I feel you dude, I really do.

[Informal language may mask the great degree of sincerity in his words.

If anyone knows what it's like to feel unloved and like an outcast, it's Asher Millstone, try as he might to mask it. He's visited by an unpleasant memory, wincing slightly as he hears the gunshot again, remembering the way that bandit's body fell onto the ground, bloody and immovable.

One death had been enough for him, one little accident. He can't imagine what it's like to be responsible for so many.]

But you're not the only one who gets this way, yeah?

[Because Asher feels this way all the time.]

If you want to talk about it, there are people who're willing to listen. Maybe I don't know what it's like, exactly, being you...

But I do know that feeling like you don't belong, it's-

[A hollow laugh.]

It's the worst, I swear.

[ He is not quite so sure that Asher does 'feel' him (whatever that means). Pain, loneliness, rejection--these things and worse are part of most people's lives. Koltira would never deny that. But his experience goes beyond life. Goes into things worse than death. No one here can possibly understand it--or, from what he's gathered, even imagine it.

So he makes a disbelieving noise in his throat. ]

An ocean could fill the space between our circumstances.

[And this is one of Asher's greatest vices, assuming that he actually understands how other people feel. Assuming that their differences are far more similar than they really are, when in reality they could not be more different.]

How do you know?

[ Is that a serious question? Koltira's patience is not robust on the best of days, and recent weeks have worn him just about threadbare. He scowls outright, leaning forward. ]

Have you died, Asher? Have you suffered the pain of resurrection? Of necromancy? Have you been forced to take a blade and turn it on your own people? To cut them apart, gut them like fish, watch them bleed slow into the soil of your homeland. Have you then raised the corpses? Turned the half-broken body of a son against his still-living mother?

[ Well, he's just going full extra now. ]

Have you been strapped to a rack, Asher? Tortured for days, weeks, years? Have you ever begged to die while already being dead? Has your will ever been leashed to someone else's, so thoroughly and completely that you cannot even consider breaking free of the enslavement?

[ The lichfire in his eyes blazes. ]

Does your body betray you, Asher? Does it demand violence--and worse--towards everyone you speak to? Are you in pain right now? Does it wrack your body, seize your muscles, muddle your thinking? Is your joy muted? Does it run from you like a skittish animal, or can you grasp it, even a little, even for a while.

You do not know me. You are not like me. Do not speak to me with such arrogance.

[Okay, so the first give questions were enough to make him regret whatever came out of his dumb mouth, but Koltira continues talking, and the expression on his face changes to one of abject horror.]

Whoa, whoa, whoa, hey-

[Frantically, Asher waves his hands in front of his face, in an attempt to stop it. Not just because it is difficult to here, but also because he's getting worried now, as bringing up bad memories may only make Koltira's worry for the mission even worse.]

Okay. Okay!

Maybe we aren't alike. At all.

[Jesus. He rubs the back of his neck with one hand, considering his next few words carefully. For a change.]

But I-

I was worried about you, dude. And this? This is making me extra concerned.

[Shutting his eyes tight, Asher thinks for a moment. This kind of pain, this kind of tragedy, is not something that can be healed or fixed or wished away.]

There are people here who do make you happy though, right?

[don't worry he's going somewhere with this, and it is not the stupid "love fixes everything and erases all problems" mess]

[ Koltira doesn't typically lay things out so bare as he's just done. He prefers, on the whole, not to speak much at all. But his position here demands explanation. Near constant explanation, insofar as he's concerned. No one knows the what and the why of him, and while he tries to avoid the worst of the details, sometimes he's pushed. Sometimes his temper gets the better of him.

He settles down, just a bit, his expression still sour. Ears still folded back. At least Asher had conceded that they were not, in fact, alike. ]

Yes.

[ Several people, really.

(Though Fate comes up foremost in his mind, of course.) ]

[Asher's voice softens, here.

Despite the scowl he can see on the other end.]

I hope you're planning on keepin' 'em close.

We're here for you, man. Some of us, at least.

[He knows that Koltira isn't quite as popular with other members of the team.]

I know we're not best bros or anything, but...

Give me a buzz if you've got any more questions for me. I'd be happy to help ya out.

video; un: white_lotus

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i laughed so hard this is so good, god bless u

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