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Post by Valentin Richter on Sept 6, 2012 22:51:37 GMT -5
He'd thought, hoped, that he would never set foot in this place again. And yet, here it was. All this time later, and still his breaths were still unconsciously shallowed by the oppressive metal walls surrounding him. At least the undulating sea that seemed to make up one side of the building did something to ease away the cold sweat that was threatening to build on his hackles. This place could have been one of beauty, but for him...? No amount of mental preparation could reduce the effect that the Deep Sea Research Center was having on him. Ghosts of his past seemed to leer out at him from the empty rooms, and he couldn't help but start when his tail brushed a long-forgotten pen off of a nearby desk.
"Damn it all! What am I, a scared little child!?"
One lash at the grimy desk the offending item had been sitting on was all it took to leave behind a noticeable claw marking on its surface. Catching himself getting riled up, Valentin slowly returned his rigid arms to a relaxed position at his side before slowly taking in and releasing a breath. Brushing a non-existent lock of electric blue hair out of his face, he composed himself as if for the benefit of an equally non-existent audience before moving on. His objective would take him deeper into the facility; deeper than he had ever seen during his stay there. Ironically, he realized, the unfamiliarity of it might actually do something to diminish his sense of unease. Moving ever-downward, the half-breed's mind began to turn to the task on hand.
"Sources tell of the possibility of hidden weapons incredible power in your home world. In fact, you are quite familiar with where they may lie. The readings coming from that particular region of your world are too interesting to simply ignore. Something is hidden there. You are to find out what. If it's anything useful, feel free to take it for a test run and let me know how it works, hmm?" His l'cie patron had told him. Originally he had assumed that she was talking about his homeland of Esthar, another experience that he had no desire to relive. But this... He had never expected to end up in this place.
Somewhere in this facility was something... or somethings giving off a powerful magical aura. He could feel it clearly, but it permeated the air around him in such a way that it was entirely impossible to tell where it was coming from. All he could do was cover as much ground as possible while investigating anything that seemed suspicious. After all, it was a secret, underwater laboratory. If that didn't scream super-weapons research, what did? Opening yet another door into yet another hallway full of -what else?-, doors, he was rewarded by the sight of card readers lining the walls. People had once required security clearance to access these rooms, though the system of magnetic locks keeping the doors shut had long since failed.
Walking to the nearest door on his left, he examined the placard which like so many before it simply bore a nonsensical designation made up of letters and numbers.
"So what's behind door number... 52QN?" He grandstanded in an imitation of the 'funny man' he had once watched on the TV in his childhood. With one florid motion, he unsheathed his sword and jammed it into the frame of the door with a twist to destroy the physical lock before giving it a swift kick. He was rewarded with the door clattering extremely loudly against the surface of the wall behind it and nearly rebounding into his face. "Hey, anybody home? Hope I'm not interrupting anything?"
But of course, no, there was not a soul in sight. Instead he saw filing cabinets. Row upon row of dingy silver monstrosities glared back at him as if upset that he had disturbed their slumber. Absentmindedly blowing the dust motes that floated around his face as he took a cursory look at the room, he noted morbidly that even the spider webs were abandoned in this place. Definitely not what he was looking for, but maybe... Maybe these cabinets hid not files, but some sort of dark, terrible secret just waiting to see the light of day? ... Or maybe background checks for researchers, he decided as he inspected the contents of the nearest container. That was certainly anticlimactic. Couldn't there at least have been the plans for some sort of doomsday weapon in there?
He was beginning to feel the twinges of boredom when he stopped cold and stood straight up, nostrils flaring subconsciously. Something had changed. Something was out there somewhere that had not been there a few minutes ago. Something living. Mind starting to race, Valentin couldn't help but wonder if this could be what he was looking for. Had something made a home in the facility and gone out only to return? Doubt clawed at him, and while he made up his mind whether to pursue the new source of magic, he made his way into the room across the hall in a much less grandiose fashion. Stopping dead for the second time in the space of a minute, the yellow-eyed teen found himself staring into a laboratory, finally. And what was in the glass case at the far end of the expansive room but a large object that was nearly his size, reeked of magic, and looked suspiciously like a bomb. Perhaps something to the tune of a really big, ludicrously destructive bomb developed in a secret evil laboratory?
The grin that split his face was Cheshire.
Words: 939
Muse: Tentative?
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Post by moogles on Sept 10, 2012 14:48:43 GMT -5
 Hadn’t she learned already that portals never led to good things? With a small sigh of distress, the blonde haired half-esper sat on the ground of the room she was in. It was best not to wander in such a closed area, especially when you didn’t know what would be turning the corner. She kept her bright blue eyes on the ground, looking at her tights and her boots as her hands pulled at the sash around her waist. All Terra could do now was sit and wait, wait for what, though? She wasn’t sure. There was something that told her to sit and in due time someone would have to come down here, to wherever ‘here’ was and they’d find her. She simply hoped whoever came across her was friendly…or at least not crazy enough to think she’d intruded or anything. She hadn’t meant to, it was all a big mistake…and she’d gladly explain that until her face turned blue.
Terra hadn’t wanted to go near the portal when she came across it, accidents happened, didn’t they? This was simply one of those. She’d been wandering away from Figaro, she’d seen Sabin and Edgar and it was time to move on, maybe to go see Celes wherever she was hanging out these days, or Locke who was sure to be in tow of the other blonde, but…it seemed the portal had other plans. It’d started to drag her in by her cape, pulling her and as much strength as Terra had used to try and run or walk away from the portal, it’d simply taken her prisoner. At least it didn’t spit her out like a canon or anything, it’d gently rolled her out of the portal and into this room, this very strange and almost creepy feeling room. It was cold sitting here on the floor, but…she was going to stay put for the time being. If after a...oh, a half hour or so, she was going to go exploring.
Curling her knees close to her chest and wrapping her arms around them, Terra clasped her hands together as she rested them against and around her legs, letting her eyes finally wander, but not finding anything that really stuck out to her. Well, that wasn’t necessarily true, everything was different in her eyes, but there wasn’t anyone she could ask about them. All she wanted to do was go back to her own world…to lay around in the grass and be surrounded by moogles or something, she wanted to be someplace less cold. Terra had finally had enough of sitting out in the middle of the floor. Very carefully she scooted herself towards a wall, maybe to help stop a draft from hitting her back or something, but she remained curled up with her knees close to her chest, not resting her head on her knees as she closed her eyes, feeling a bit warmer as she was pretty much out of sight now…just…trying to relax a little bit.
A few minutes had passed by, Terra was convinced that she’d started to doze off, but hearing a silent sound, her bright blue eyes fluttered open. It was a sound so quiet she wasn’t sure exactly what it was. All she did was have her eyes open, her position still the same as her eyes moved to the center of the room where she had once been. Hearing the door to the room open, Terra’s position immediately shifted as she stretched out her legs and began to move to her feet, but she stayed low to the ground, seeing the young man have his eyes on something within the room. Raising her eyebrows in curiosity, her gaze followed his towards the glass case, but she still wasn’t sure what was so fascinating. As rude as it was to interrupt someone while they were doing something, she finally got to her feet completely and clasped her hands together, her silent tone breaking through the silence of the room. “Pardon me, I am in need of a bit of…assistance, please.”  [/color] 817 Muse:[/color] Good! Tagged:[/color] Valentin Wearing:[/color] >> Click<< Listening To:[/color] Terra's Theme  Notes:[/color] Hope this is okay! |
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Post by Valentin Richter on Sept 10, 2012 22:20:13 GMT -5
It was with almost childish glee that Valentin crossed the room to examine the object up-close. Egglike, perfectly smooth, and made of some transparent green plastic-like material that allowed one to see all of the colorful wires crisscrossing within it, some sort of control panel faced outwards towards the half-breed. The LED screen was, predictably, off and it didn't seem to show any signs of life. He was about to smash the glass to take an even closer look when he paused and withdrew his hand. Perhaps he should leave his new little toy well preserved within its case while he attempted to find some sort of documentation of what exactly it was. Even if there weren't paper files somewhere within the lab, he should be able to forcefully remove the hard drives from the computers and take them with him to analyze elsewhere. His doomsday fantasies might have continued further had he not been rather politely interrupted by a small voice.
"Pardon me, I am in need of a bit of…assistance, please.”
Surprise. Panic! In the space of only a couple seconds, Valentin’s mind went through several one-eighties. Whirling at the voice, a spell already crackling at his fingertips, the electric-blue haired teen caught sight of a rather strangely-dressed human. ’Is that the latest fashion in Esthar? Wait, a human?’ Human. Anger! His hand continued its original trajectory as a fierce scowl took over his features. How dare they ask him for… wait!? ’Not human! I can feel it!’[/color] But he had already conjured the magic, deciding too late that it wouldn’t be needed. Whirling his hand towards the ceiling with a now panicked expression, his gaze followed to watch the dark gravity field of his Demi spell explode into existence harmlessly above their heads. Releasing the breath he had taken in his worry, he lowered his arm as he felt the breeze of the now expanding air brush through his hair. ”That was damn close, you know that? It’s a bad idea to go sneaking up on people like that.” He chastised.
Finally taking a moment to really take in the sight of his mysterious guest, something clicked in his mind. ’She’s the one I felt just a few minutes ago… She was in the next room over and I didn’t know? I guess this place’s aura is more disruptive than I thought…’[/color] She was… beautiful, he would give her that. Well, for looking like a human, anyway. Wavy blonde hair held in place by an orchid-like hair ornament complimented a bedazzling red top like something out of a fashion magazine back home. The tights, cape, and stiletto boots threw him off a bit, though. What was she, some sort of wandering princess-bard-mad fashion designer? ’I mean, it actually kind of works but...[/color] His musings were cut off when he recalled that this was not a human that he was looking at. She was, in some way, like him. Was this an Esper? Her aura didn’t seem anywhere near strong enough, but maybe his earlier theory about a guardian held some truth to it? Then again, she seemed quite meek and that ‘I am a puppy that has just been kicked’ expression combined with those clasped hands raised some serious doubts as to whether or not this mystery girl would fight anything.
Realizing that he had come a hair’s breadth from attacking the non-hume, scolded them, and then sat there staring as he took in her appearance, he caught himself and turned on his charm as best he could. After all, she’d startled him. If she’d wanted to attack him she could have done so quite effectively already. Then again, maybe she was waiting to see what he would do? Time would tell. ”I’m sorry about that, you startled me.” He said, flashing a charming smile that managed to reach his eyes, ”You’re no dirty hume, so that’s a relief. I get the feeling that you’re something like me, though I can’t tell exactly how. Are you a guardian of this place? If that’s the case, you’re long free of your enslavement. Unless you need my help to destroy whatever’s holding you here? Are you trapped? My name is Valentin, by the way. Valentin Richter. I’m a rather low class Esper myself.” He relayed comfortably, as he returned himself to a relaxed posture with one hand in his pocket. Giving her time to respond, he slowly walked over to a nearby desk and began to rifle through the drawers in search of anything signifigant.[/size]
Words: 756
Mood: Curious
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Post by moogles on Sept 12, 2012 22:05:57 GMT -5
Terra was a quiet person, naturally, unless there was a moogle in sight or something, but she was especially shy in a new world. She knew of no one and nothing around here, it was understandable for her to be so quiet and almost fearful as to what she would run into, if anything at all. Speaking up though when a man with electrifying blue hair stepped into the room – seeming like a child in a candy store as he was looking at something she didn’t understand – Terra had flinched back at the near attack. Pulling her head down and her hands up towards her face to shield herself should the attack actually go through. She squeaked a bit as she closed her eyes tightly, waiting for the impact of an attack…but nothing hit her. Nothing harmed her whatsoever, which caused her to open her eyes and peek out from behind her shielding arms to see the attack being directed elsewhere.
Phew. That was a close one!
Shifting herself around slowly, dropping her arms to her sides and lifting her head some, she was instantly ridiculed and scolded. Feeling like a sad child, she let her eyes drift to the ground again, putting her hands together and almost nervously tapping her fingers around and together as she stood there silently, pretty much feeling as if she should’ve remained quiet. “Sorry.” She piped up a bit as she continued to stare at the ground, staring at the tips of her boots, wishing she was home…fluffing moogles, or even just hanging around someplace where her friends were. It wasn’t nice to be alone all the time, wandering from place to place just to see those you cared for…and not even having that safety net was comforting at all. Celes wasn’t on this world. Edgar and Sabin weren’t either, not even little Relm! Terra, for all she knew, was completely and hopelessly lost with no way to get home…it was a scary thought, and that’s what struck the most fear into her heart, that she’d never be able to get home again. She’d be stuck traveling through those horrible vortexes forever and never see her friends again.
Looking up at the sound of this man’s voice again, Terra felt her worries sort of…float away for a moment. At least her worries about being scolded again or attacked. He sounded much nicer than before, and that brought her eyes up from the floor as an apologetic look came across her face, clutching her hands together and putting them close to the elaborate band that kept her cape on, she gave the stranger a small nod. “I…am sorry.” She commented, wiping away her fears and sorrows for now. She could be polite from here, no more startling people and being rude, if she was nice…then people would be nice in return, would they not? Listening to him speak some more, Terra could tell instantly that he was definitely not a hume lover, he was something different, something like she was. But did more half-espers exist? He was talking rather quickly and Terra let him finish his lines of speech before even attempting to say anything just yet.
Once the man was done speaking, Terra took in a deep breath and began to explain. “I am no guardian, nor am I from this…place, whatever it may be. I am her by accident, I swear. It’s an honest mistake. My name is…Terra, and I plead to you for help. I wish to return home…but I’m not sure how.” She explained as best as she could through few words, hoping that another line of questions wouldn’t be asked, and she hoped there was some way this fellow could help her out, getting home…that’s all she wanted, she wasn’t going to ask for any more than that. Heck, Terra shouldn’t even be here in the first place. [/color] 772 Muse:[/color] Great! Tagged:[/color] Valentin Wearing:[/color] Already linked. Listening To:[/color] Something calm and soothing...idk why. Notes:[/color] Nada! |
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Post by Valentin Richter on Sept 14, 2012 23:19:15 GMT -5
”When you say you don’t know where you are and you want to get home, are you saying that you’re from this world and you’re lost? Or are you from another world altogether? I’m, uh, aware of the portals opening between the worlds.”
Glancing through the papers, brow furled, the half-breed attempted to make some sort of sense of what he was reading. Now he didn’t think of himself as a dumb person, but the sketches and formulas smattered across the pages left him feeling totally clueless. There was no way that someone with his knowledge base was going to make any headway trying to decode the science-speak, so instead he began to skim for any details that seemed helpful. If context clues were any indication, the project was codenamed “Pandemona” and was indeed some sort of high-yield explosive device. How, exactly, it was operated and what it actually did remained a mystery for the moment being. By the looks of things, this lab was focused on building the chassis for the explosive, and had little-to-nothing to do with whatever powered it. It was a handwritten note in the margins of one of the sheets that caught his attention. ’90-ZR? If the earlier pattern of nomenclature follows, that would be pretty close to the base of the facility. I’d have to go straight past those caverns guarded by powerful monsters I’d heard about to get down there. It’d be too easy if they were all gone by now; they probably have their own little ecosystem set up.’
It was hardly a guarantee, but it was a lead and it was all he had. With any luck, more detailed notes and a power source would await him there. Turning back to Terra, he folded the stacks of paper he had been looking at and stuffed them in a pocket. They’d more than likely have to fool around with the steam systems to get down there, and with any luck those more old-fashioned machines would still be workable. If not, then they’d have to search out some sort of maintenance tunnels. No doubt there was some sort of manual access to the lower levels in case of an event like this where power was lost. Any area like that would probably be overrun by monsters now that they were no longer being maintained, though. Maybe a second pair of eyes would be useful, and he couldn’t just leave her all alone now that she had asked for his help. He wasn’t sure if this stranger would even care if she knew what she was helping him look for, but just in case it wasn’t necessary for her to know at the moment.
"I’m sort of wrapped up on business of my own right now, so I can’t just up and leave at the moment. I’d like to help you if I can, though, so maybe you’d like to come along with me for now? The faster I finish here, the faster I can see about doing something about your situation. Although, where I’m headed there are sure to be monsters; possibly powerful ones. I get the feeling that you can probably fight, if you’re anything like me, but if you don’t think you can handle it you can always stay behind here. I promise that I’ll come back for you and see what I can do when I’m done.”
Words: 787 Mood: Content |
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Post by moogles on Sept 21, 2012 16:05:05 GMT -5
To say Terra was a bit on the shy side was like…saying the sun was hot. It was a definite yes, especially now with the way she had such a hushed tone, her hands clasped together and she just wasn’t comfortable where she was. Despite the fact that SHE of all people had startled someone almost into attacking her, things were…going fairly well. At least this man hadn’t attacked her and had given her a moment to speak instead of dismissing her altogether. Shaking her head slightly, she looked towards the funky hair colored man. “I do believe I am not of this world. It all seems so different. I have never seen a portal that took me to a different location on my world.” She admitted quietly, but hey, it was the truth was it not? She’d been thrown around very little, but the times she was tossed through portals…it never led to other parts of her own world.
With a bit of silence, letting her eyes wander ever so slightly around the room, the blonde girl simply remained quiet. There was no need to say anymore aside from pleading for assistance if this…Valentin could afford the time. She would completely understand if he had other things to worry about, but even still…wandering around a place like this by herself wasn’t exactly a smart idea now was it? She could easily get lost, get into trouble or worse…get attacked for real by someone without the ability to stop themselves from aiming any sort of magic or attack at her. Listening to him speak up again confirmed her thoughts. He was doing something else at the moment, but that was okay, she’d been offered to tag along. That was awfully nice as well, especially since she was merely a stranger to this fellow, she probably knew nothing of what he was doing, yet he asked her to tag along? It sounded much better than sitting here and waiting for lord only knows how long. Someone else might come across her and not be quite as friendly.
“I will tag along, it’d probably be the better option.” Terra nodded to confirm her choice, her hands still together as she gave Valentin a sincere smile of appreciation, it was very nice of him to even acknowledge her problem instead of sending her off, you simply didn’t find nice people anymore…and even though he did make the comment about her not being a hume – in a less friendly way – she could still say he was a nice being, and of course her thanks would go out to him in due time. “I can fight too.” She added in after a few seconds before removing her hands from being intertwined, placing her left hand on the hilt of her short sword that was strapped to her waist, she also had a dagger on her as well, not to mention she excelled greatly in magical attacks…as well as her Esper form….which she never wanted anything to come to that.
With a few moments of silence passing by, Terra became curious, of course being on a new world would do that to someone, but she still didn’t want to pry as it was. Her main concern was getting home as it was, getting back to the land she knew and could easily tell where she was. “If you don’t mind my asking, what is it you’re needing to do? If there’s any way I can help, please feel free to ask. It’s the least I can do after such kindness has been bestowed, willing to help a lost one.” She smiled sincerely towards Valentin, hoping to make herself even more polite, the nicer you were, the more likely someone was to help you even faster, right? [/color] 760 Muse:[/color] Good! Tagged:[/color] Valentin Wearing:[/color] Already linked. Listening To:[/color] School stuffs? Notes:[/color] Sorry I didn’t get this up earlier x.x I was so tired… |
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