lifeaftr | October Aftermath: Crystal Clear

Who: All!
What: You're back, for better or worse. Time to recover.
When: Backdated to the 24th and beyond.
Where: The Monkey Compound, Islets, etc.
Warnings: Mark as you go.

No matter where you are on the morning of the 24th, things will very abruptly go dark.

Unless you're dead. In which case, things are already dark. And you do not see this.

For the rest of you, however, the Storyteller appears only briefly. Gone is their seemingly indifferent nature; as the rabbit hops too and throe, the pages of their tome flick back and forth in an erratic pattern, stopping on a blank page for only a moment, before continuing on. Despite the pages always turning in the one direction, there seems to be no end to them, not at all.

"I'll keep this brief, for the moment. All of you have now been removed from the caverns below," A haggard sigh- and a reluctant addition. "Those of you still alive.

"Your efforts have allowed me access to what lies below. I have sealed off the entrances- from now, the responsibility of cleaning up the mess is upon me."

And that appears to be it. Darkness returns, along with the sensation of lying upon the sand. Birds call out from the jungle, joining the rhythmic shift of the waves. No matter where you were on the island; underground, or above, you awaken upon the shoreline near the Storyteller's temple, along with the rest of the survivors.

"For what it is worth, I am truly sorry."

[[If you have yet to do so, make sure you confirm your character's death here!]]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[And catch him they do, even if they don't particularly want to. Their pack is filled with dirt- small shoots and roots tucked safely between the damp soil as they stare at his back from a distance, considering.

Was it worth it, to even attempt an approach?

Eventually, the sound of their footsteps in the sand grow ever closer, ceasing several feet away.]

So you're back then.

[There was some irony to be had, being killed by a child, if the Batter had the emotional range to appreciate it.

However at the same time there wasn't much choice. Even if a cure had been found he would have taken the same option he did. "The Batter" wouldn't have allowed himself to exist if he was infected. So the choices were limited: either the infection killed him, Ed or Chara did or he did it himself.

Disturbingly simple. But it's probably due to a mindset that's a combination of things he couldn't and didn't want to talk about. So the Batter just turns around a little to face Chara. He's not thankful for what happened or angry.

He's not anything.]

I am.

[Yet again.]

[It's not fair.

It's not fair that someone like him has come back so easily- and yet, Frisk is nowhere to be seen. Their heart should be leaping. He should be the last thing on their mind. They should be scouring the islands right now, refusing to stop until their Partner is by their side. Until they can hold their hand. Until they can bring them home.

Chara doesn't go anywhere.]

Was it worth it, then?

To be killed.

[You really seem to have a knack for asking questions that are difficult to answer Chara.

Was it worth it? Yes and no. Yes because he was infected so he should die. That was the Batter's mentality anyways. What he was created to do was wipe out impurity and he counted if he ever became corrupt. Even if the option to save him was there...Chara would still find the Batter in this spot, at this time.

No....well, it didn't stick. He doesn't want to explain any farther then that.]

I don't know. It isn't the first time.

[You should know that already Bird.]

[So he too has at least some vague understanding of what it is to be killed, and to refuse. Despite everything.

There really should be something in them capable of surprise, but currently, they can't find the feeling.]

Let me rephrase, then.

Is it worth it, when you know it has not been the first, and clearly won't be the last?

[Breaking the fourth wall in white text is rude, AB.]

[They should have realized it, back when they gave their warning and the Batter's response was to state his own death was inconsequential. That had to come from somewhere.

And now they know. It wasn't as frequent or with much variety as their own experiences but the Batter knew what it was like to die. The one before he came here should have been the last, but apparently not.

It was a different experience when you were not the one refusing to die.]

It does not matter what I think. I was going to die.

[If Chara didn't kill him, Ed would. If Ed didn't, the Batter would take matters into his own hands and continue using his Competences to kill himself. Those three options only avoided the worse outcome of being taken by that infection.

There was no point in debating if it was worth it or not. It happened and it was time to move on.]

Thinking it does not matter is an opinion in of itself, you realize.

[One that says more than he may have meant. To Chara, at least, it's worth considering that perhaps he is not used to making clear his own values or opinions- or valuing his own opinions, at all.

That isn't their problem. They aren't here to bolster his self confidence or ram some sense of self-perception into his brain like, haha, a knife. He may be moderately less... tension inducing than prior, but that was simply a fact of having acted against him in his most vulnerable moment.

It was impossible to be terrified of someone, once you had witnessed such a thing.]

I know.

[It's a strange thing to think of, when he actually stops to think about it. Chara is right on the money - while a few tidbits on his preferences or values leaked in, the Batter kept it to a minimum on purpose. His thoughts weren't worth getting into and his mind was his alone. The only thing that mattered at the time was the purification of the world and he would cease to exist once the switch was flipped OFF along with everyone else. So his thoughts and values were so very pointless.

But Chara is also correct. They aren't here to babysit him and it would be a notion the Batter would reject on the spot if the sheer irony didn't kill him first. They didn't have to care about each other. The Batter wasn't "here", so it didn't matter.]

I highly doubt you do.

[I, your humble servant

When one is trapped in a constant loop of those thoughts, there is never any need to know anything. If he ever had the chance to remove himself from such a mindset, they don't doubt that the world would be more surprisingly a place than he ever considered.

But again, it is not their problem. And they are done, here.]

Good day, sir.

October Aftermath: Crystal Clear

yes here we go thanks for waiting for me my guy ;u;///

no problem! :D

<3

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