#does that make sense? very heavy but so gritty i feel everything crunching when i breathe

[cimeret]

So, I'm a die-hard Cyan fan. Myst has been very influential to me as a child and kinda defined my whole idea of what a good game should be able to achieve in terms of immersion and atmosphere. I've been hyped for Firmament ever since I heard Rand say the words "callbacks to Myst" and "steampunk magic vibe" and "cool machinery". But now that I've spent a sleepless weekend playing the game, I'm not quite sure how I feel about it. Because the Cyan fan in me really, really wants to love this game and there's so much good stuff, but some of the decisions in gameplay and storytelling don't work for me and I just know Cyan can do better.

Spoilers for the game under the cut. Also, this post is going be image-heavy because, yeah, it's a Cyan game.

And first of all, YES, there's no absolutely doubt that this game was made by Cyan. Everything feels very Cyan. They just know how to build worlds. Beautiful abandoned places that fill you with a sense of melancholy and nostalgia and spark your imagination. Even on my old potato laptop with abysmal frame rates, I felt like I WAS in the world of Firmament. Sometimes I just stood there and looked around, enjoying the view. All buildings and machines are designed in Cyan's typical style between slightly fantastic and nitty-gritty steampunk realism, and fit seamlessly into the beautiful nature. For the architecture, this time they've opted for a heavily Art Decor inspired style. It makes everything seem very epic and grand, but also a bit austere, and goes very well with the many old and deserted factories we explore in the game. Where Obduction had worlds that felt like a small, close-knit community where people used literal junk to craft their homes and environments, in Firmament everything feels monumental and larger-than-life. The giant arches that span the skies of the worlds are visible from almost everywhere. You handle huge blocks of ice, dump tons of red acid into the sea (yuck), and raise large towers from the ground and open them. This feels like the stuff the D'ni might have constructed at the height of their power. And all of that fits right in with the theme and backstory of Firmament, that megalomaniac multi-generational plan to set off for a new world.

Much of what you would expect from a Cyan game is there. Three very different, atmospheric worlds + a smaller hub world. Epic maglev rides. Turn-on-the-power puzzles. A great visionary tale of hubris and enslavement. An underwater area that is the reincarnation of the selentic maze puzzle. Yeah, even the last one made me roll my eyes in fondness.

(The way the frozen waterfall reflects in the ice ... so gorgeous ...)

(You know it‘s a Cyan game if a puzzle looks like a something out of an amusement park)

(Look at the pretty! I was blown away by the beauty of the whole conservatory area. Just wanted to grab my things and move in.)

The great sound design also does so much to immerse you in the worlds. Headphones recommended! The crunching of ice, the singing of birds, the hissing when you open doors, the grinding of machine parts — I'm quite an auditory person and a big part of the charm of the Myst series for me were the very realistic noises when you turn rusty valves or some heavy door closes and locks behind you. The soundtrack itself left me a bit disappointed. It's mostly ambient and rather unobtrusive, creating a suitable atmosphere, but there were few pieces that stood out for me. One can certainly argue that this should be the point of an immersive soundtrack. Personally, I prefer Robyn Miller's haunting, simple melodies. Still, there were a few songs that I liked, such as Batteries Casting Shadows or Power Station.

(The most beautiful chill disco)

(Firmament also has its own "linking books". Never change, Cyan. <3)

The puzzles were integrated well into the environment. I found them all quite easy. For the most part, I figured out what I needed to do fairly quickly, and it was just a matter of getting it done.  A lot of the puzzles dealt with finding your way through an area and navigating the space, so they were puzzles that challenged spatial intelligence. And I love that kind of stuff so I was never really bored, but still a little more variety would have been nice. I would have liked to see some puzzles where you have to take notes or collect clues at different locations in the worlds.

The best puzzles were the ones where you had to learn how to first power and then operate huge machines that required multiple steps. Those kind of puzzles are a staple of Cyan games and always a lot of fun. My favorite puzzle in that regard was the sulfur processing factory. Just staring at the schematics of the huge mixer and the pipelines and figuring out what to do, then moving machinery parts and twiddling with them until it finally clicked — easily the best part of the gameplay for me. I just wish we could have had a bit more of this.

(That whole area gave me so many flashback to the original Myst .)

(YES just give me some huge, unnecessarily complicated, creaking machinery I can rotate and break!)

All the interaction happened via the adjunct only, so you just searched for sockets and operated them. In fact, everything was operated via the adjunct: doors, elevators, the maglevs, everything. And while handling the adjunct itself was very intuitive and the gameplay felt engaging and satisfactory, it did feel a bit monotonous in the long run. I miss my levers and buttons and valves. Interacting only via a blue glowing string that connects to the same socket model all the time made me feel very detached from the environment. As a direct consequence of the adjunct-focused gameplay, there were also no items outside of puzzles to interact with (aside from the few lore documents). No small, seemingly pointless toys that secretly taught you the mechanics of a larger puzzle. No drawers that you could pull open. I remember the creepy little projector in Achenar's room in Myst where a rose turned into a skull. All of this helped so much to make the worlds feel alive but there wasn't anything like this in Firmament. The decision for the adjunct was probably influenced a lot by the fact that the game is designed for VR, I get that. But when I look at the old kickstarter vids for Firmament where the little floating device is combined with "manual" actions like pulling a lever or pushing a button, I can't help but think the gameplay could have could have been more diverse and still applicable for VR.

(I loved taking a bath in sulfuric acid. But even the suit mechanic was getting a bit repetitive by the second time ...)

Speaking of worlds that feel alive ... here, too, I would have liked to see a bit more scenic storytelling to support the plot, which is largely carried by the monologues of the mentor. This is definitely something I know Cyan do better! The worlds they design are always very special in that they are deserted and contain hardly any NPCs, but at the same time so much life and story is conveyed through the setting. And I'm not just talking about the countless journals Myst is infamous for. The characters in Obduction, for example, had personalities — C.W., Caroline Farley, Mayor Josef, they felt real. Walking into the classroom in Riven, or Gehn's temple, you learned so much about him and how he presented himself. You slowly put together a picture of what had happened, of who these people were and who you could trust. And Firmament also makes some promising approaches in this direction. The constant unsettling brainwashing of the Keepers on the one hand. But on the other hand, everything we see presents a picture of a small community that lived very much in peace and simple happiness. There are things that don't add up, vaguely foreshadowing the twist at the end. All of those little bits and pieces are really great and inspire so much intrigue and mystery.

(Totally normal to have all those banners and doctrines on the walls of your workplace. Not creepy at all.)

(Who were those people? Wish we could've get to know them more ...)

But ultimately, at some point, the mentor decides to just tell you the truth and that's it. Most of the plot is covered in fifteen minutes of gameplay at the very end, through her monologues and the newspaper clippings and documents in the spaceship's control room. But at this point the game is already over, because there are no more puzzles to solve, no more decisions to make. The ending plays out like a visual novel. A beautiful one, no doubt — I loved the resolution and the kinda open, but hopeful ending. But I still I think the game would have worked better if Cyan hadn't been so bent on the spectacular effect of that plot twist at the very end. During the game I had already considered whether the mentor would turn out to be Turner, or maybe me? I was coming up with theories on where Turner really came from, and what he did to those people. And what the real purpose of this cycle of Sleeping and Awakening might be. I don't know, I think it would have been so much more exciting to discover clues for theories while exploring the worlds (via lore documents and setting), and not just through the mentor's monologues. The big twist at the end would have been less surprising, but I think the plot would have unfolded more organically and it would have felt more rewarding to come up with the truth on your own.

I am definitely going to replay the game (after buying a new laptop) and I'm curious to see if it changes my opinion. I've heard that Firmament runs very buggy for a lot of people and apparently, VR is broken. I'm not going to talk about bugs, because yes, while the game crashed numerous times during my playthrough and some parts played really janky, I'm not sure how much of that was due to my hopelessly outdated hardware. But all these things — buggy gameplay (I wonder how much playtesting was done?), poor VR implementation, a story that feels a bit lackluster in its presentation, lack of all those little loving details in the scenery that I usually appreciate Cyan for — all of it feels like some things were rushed during the development of this game. It might have needed just another round of polishing.

The basis for another Cyan classic is definitely there, but I'm afraid Firmament won't leave the same long-lasting impression on me as Obduction and certainly not the Myst series. And I'm a bit scared of what that might mean for the future of Cyan Worlds.      

[maraeffect]

ohhhh my god i feel like SHITTTTTTT agh i could never survive working a 9-5

[inquisitorextraordinaire]

Approaching Shadows

Special gift for @caezsucksdangs, based off of this post!

The heavy thump of their ship landing had Caez jolting from their sleep on the vessel, them grunting uncomfortably and rolling their shoulders as the bounty hunter stretched, looking around the shuttle with bleary eyes as the other passengers began to bustle and prepare to exit the craft. They knew very little about the mission this time, but that was also due to Kylo withholding and demanding their other companions stay silent on the matter, Caez grumbling as they got up from their seat and shuffled tiredly towards the weapons shelf, collecting their things just as Kylo made his way towards them, his mask obscuring the expression on his face as he asked diligently, "I assume you're ready. Rhell and her elites, as well as Kii and the rest of her troupe are prepared to move out." He commented, not really expecting an answer as his tone implied that he wanted Caez to hurry their ass up, the bounty hunter shooting the knight a hard glare as they checked their blaster to make sure it was calibrated.

Toning coldly, Caez growled back, "I'd be damned ready and gearing to go already if you had kept me from falling asleep in that shitty flight seat. Hell, you might as well misalign my back with a scrapping compress, at least then my ass wouldn’t hurt.” They snapped, turning and pivoting on their heels as they stormed off towards the exit of the ship, leaving Kylo sighing and shaking his head before following behind the rogue. Stepping out and looking around the planet, Caez couldn’t deny that Mandalore was a stunning planet - trees black and tall like towers on Christophsis, the lightest layer of snow on the ground just being enough to keep the earth hard under their feet - and could possibly warrant a nice vacation to if they ever had the time or the means to actually have a vacation.

Turning back and looking at Kylo as if to say something, Caez was quickly cut off as a small ball of fire clad in a thick white jacket ran up and tackled them, the bounty hunter just barely catching the Inquisitor in their arms as Rhell laughed and charmed, cupping her own face in her hands, “Ooh-la-la how romantic is this region?! Kriff, this is the perfect weather! Not too windy, not too cold, the sky is overcast so there isn’t snow-glare! It’s like living in a snow globe!” She charmed brightly, Caez rolling their eyes at the Lior as the Inquisitor’s guard walked over and grunted at them, taking Rhell out of Caez’s hands and heading off towards the edge of the tree line where everyone else was converging before they continued to complete their task.

Huffing and rolling their eyes at how stuck-up and stern Stix was being, Caez sighed and got into a light lope as they began towards everyone else, Kylo begrudgingly following suit and taking a standing placement behind Caez once they made it to the group, Kii in front of everyone as she addressed the crowd loudly, “Okay, this mission can not end in failure, understand? The target we are hunting is highly dangerous and has information on two known criminals, Zignatious and Mojingo Bingo, also referred to by the galaxy as The Bingo Brothers. We need to fi-” Kii had tried to continue, only for Caez coughing to cut her off, the Chiss looking over at the bounty hunter and raising an eyebrow.

Clearing their throat, Caez looked at Kii incredulously before asking, “Okay, wait, are you fuckin’ kidding us here? You want to find Ziggy and Moji Bingo?! You realize that’s a death wish, right? Moji is known throughout Hutt space as a sociopathic hellbent murder machine, and I’ve crossed paths with Ziggy enough to know he isn’t any better when he’s cornered. There’s no way in hell that those two fuckholes will ever work with us even if we were able to catch them!” Caez defended, recalling the single time that their shit luck a few years back had barely saved their ass from getting blown to bits by Mojingo, the memory sending an involuntary shiver up their spine as Kylo’s hand came up to rest lightly on the small of their back, as if assuring Caez that the objective was more important than their concerns.

Still staring at Caez, Kii sighed and toned dully, “We aren’t hunting down both Bingos yet, Caez. We’re hunting our informant for them, who should also, if cooperation is found in her, be able to give us some assistance in catching these brothers.” Kii assured, turning her gaze away from the bounty hunter and continuing to address the crowd, “Who we are looking for is a Zygerrian woman named Tigelle Criddar, who is a known mobster kingpin and a slave trader. Our Inquisitor has located her most recent hideout to be somewhere in this region, and we’re going to smoke her out and drag her back to the Finalizer for questioning.” Kii commented blandly, a few murmurs amongst the crowd of commandos making something uneasy settle in the pit of Caez’s stomach like a rock.

It’s not even that Caez was against hunting down people like Tigelle or the Bingos, but something wrong was leaving pins and needles in their shoulders as everyone else prepared to enter the forested area, Rhell taking her holsters from Stix and loading everything before walking over to Caez with a scowl, her asking, “You aren’t usually the person objecting to capture and contain missions like this. Any reason why, or are you just afraid your poor gross beef-friend is gonna get his ugly mug blasted off?” She teased, the mild concern in her gaze enough to tell the bounty hunter that their Inquisitor was actually worried about what issues they had with the mission, but airing that out loud would probably get both of them yelled at.

Shrugging, Caez crossed their arms over their chest and glanced away as their voice lowered, them toning coldly, “... I just have a bad feeling about this. Something is wrong, but I don’t know what, y’know?” They commented with a scowl, looking down at their boots and scuffing their toe against the gritty snow while Rhell nodded, looking around to see where everyone was and making sure they wouldn’t be heard before toning back.

“... I get you. It might be your Force intuition, Caez. I mean, everyone else seems on edge too, but I’m not about to bring up anything like that in case we need to forfeit and regroup. We don’t have the time to do that now, we need to try and get to Tigelle before someone from The Rebellion does.” Rhell stated firmly, brows knitting together while muttering, “If there was a better option I would’ve posed that first, but with how much Tigelle knows about The Bingo Brothers we really don’t have the time to pass this up.” she quipped, turning her gaze up to meet Caez’s and reaching a gloved hand up to cup their cheek while giving a weak smile, assuring, “Look, out there I’ll have your back, okay? And besides, we should be used to shit getting dicey when we-”

“-Are you two done gossiping so we can get this over with?” Kylo snapped briskly, interrupting Rhell and making her soft expression go cold and snide while he trudged towards the bounty hunter and Inquisitor, the knight removing his helmet and shooting the friends a glare while grunting, “We don’t have time to be playing around, so I’d suggest you two hurry up whatever stupid shit you’re doing and get ready to head off.” He growled, pulling his helmet back on and turning on his heel to get back to where everyone else was standing at the edge of the clearing. Raising an eyebrow and letting her hand fall from Caez’s cheek, Rhell’s eyes narrowed as she yelled back at Kylo meanly, “Oh, you’re just jealous because you’re a shoddy second to me, oh dear Knight of Ren! Truly, I feel sorry for Caez! With all that dick in your personality I doubt there’s anything substantial left in your pants!” She snapped, earning a snort from Caez before Rhell shot the bounty hunter a wink and trotted off, giving Kylo a hard boot to the ass as she ran past him before finding her personal guard. Snickering and rolling their eyes, Caez sighed and pulled out their blaster as they ran over to where everyone else had converged, Kii giving the signal to head into the forest as Caez trudged up and took Rhell’s left flank, the Inquisitor staying quiet as they moved. Aside from the audible crunching of boots, the area was silent and calm, the white-grey skies looking like the sun never shone on this part of Mandalore as they thought about how nice it’d be to visit here on a trip. Caez could easily picture them having a hideout on a planet like this - they could make a treehouse to live in far away from everyone and just enjoy the solitude - but knew better than to really consider it. There was work to be done, and when people like Rhell and Kylo were around there wasn’t much of a chance of Caez being able to get any sense of vacation time. Ah well, it was a nice thought at least. A thought for someday in the future if they ever left The Order. Still trudging amongst the large black trees, Rhell led the way as she used her Force skills to hone in on their target, the troupe coming up to a shabby looking treehouse aloft high in the air as Kylo circled the hidden alcove, him giving the signal that he was sure that their target was holed up in there. Nodding back at the knight, Caez quickly began clamouring up the ladder with Kylo following suit, them getting onto the balcony of the run-down fort and kicking open the tired wooden door as the bounty hunter raised their blaster, yelling into the darkness of the space, “Tigelle Criddar, you are to be taken into the custody of the First Order for questioning. Come quietly and we won’t need to resort t-” Caez started, before stopping suddenly and lowering their blaster from the lone figure sitting in the darkness, the stranger standing up and closing the glowing holocron of Tigelle that Caez had been trained on before stepping into the light coming through the doorway. Eyes going wide, Caez looked at the familiar Mandalorian in confusion as they recognized the electric greens and purples of their armour, the Mandalorian raising a trigger in their hand and flipping the switch, explosives going off underneath the tree fort as Caez and Kylo listened to their companions yelling in surprise. Not taking the time to question their assailant, Caez raised their blaster again and began to pull the trigger just as the tree started to lurch and fall, the Mandalorian running and crashing through a window as they made their escape, leaving Caez and Kylo to fall and be crushed by their devious diversion. Turning back and looking at Kylo as the tree they were in began to fall, Caez wrapped their arms around the knight and closed their eyes tightly as their feet lifted off of the floor, the sickening feeling of what they didn’t doubt would be a very painful death lingering in their stomach just as the tree ceased falling, Caez screaming as themself and Kylo slammed hard against the wall of the fort abruptly, fall suddenly halted and pain radiating from the back of Caez’s skull leaving them in a daze while they tried to recuperate from the shock. Gasping and slumping for a moment, Caez listened to Kylo groan behind his mask as he clamoured over them and shattered the window to their left, him sticking his head out of the hole before calling back to the bounty hunter, “Rhell is holding the tree up! C’mon, you idiot! We have to move before she drops us!” He barked, climbing out of the small window - which, for a big guy like Kylo, it took a bit of effort to achieve - and falling nimbly to the snowy ground, Caez exhaling deeply and following suit, stumbling as they hit the ground before following Kylo as he yelled out orders, “Our target has conspirators and they are extremely dangerous! Do not hesitate in taking out these assailants, but remember we need Tigelle alive!” Everyone murmuring agreements to Kylo’s words, he waved everyone off as they all dispersed, Rhell walking over and brushing her gloved hand against Caez’s still-shaking shoulder for a moment, tuning tiredly, “See? I got your back, Caez.” Before following Kylo and the bounty hunter, Stix taking up the back and keeping his blaster raised while they trekked through the trees trying to find where their target could’ve run off to. Now the silence seemed sinister, almost like every pitch black tree and shadow was about to jump out and attack as Caez felt their fingers shake against the trigger of their blaster, eyes flitting from side to side and ears trying to hear any sort of irregularity just as the steady tmp tmp tmp of something approaching them from the left had Caez raising their blaster and reeling, them screaming, “Watch the fuck out!” Just as a wild Strill bounded down from a tree and leapt at them, Caez letting off a few shots and watching the monster fall to the ground with a heavy thud as they gasped and tried to regain their composure. Rhell kneeling down and holding Caez’ shoulders as their chest heaved - Caez not even remembering how they had fallen on their ass during the attack - Kylo stalked over to the Strill and started to investigate the large corpse, Rhell calling back darkly, “Fuck, Kylo! Leave the poor nasty thing alo-” Before shutting herself up as the Knight of Ren ripped off a control-collar, holding the stolen Order tech up for his three companions to see as Rhell scowled and hissed, “... Those are still prototypes... How... How did these people get them? How did they know about them?” She asked, hands tensing on Caez’s shoulders as she helped the bounty hunter to their feet. Shrugging and pocketing the item, Kylo gritted out darkly, “Doesn’t matter now, we’ll get answers from Tigelle once we catch her. FN-6106, comm everyone and alert them of this. Everyone be on the watch for any approaching creatures that seem hostile. We can’t risk that they aren’t being controlled too.” He stated firmly, Kylo’s hand brushing snow off of Caez’s shoulder as he walked by them before taking up the lead again and pulling out his lightsaber, Rhell’s mouth going into a stern line as she pulled her own lightsaber out as well, the familiar hum of the Kyber weapons putting Caez at slight ease while they followed suit. Still trudging forward for a bit longer, Caez wasn’t sure what to expect as Rhell suddenly ran ahead of everyone, them yelling out, “Hey! Rhell?! Fuck, come back!” Before running off after her, Kylo and Stix about to follow suit just as two more Strill leapt out and began to circle the two men, Caez looking back and halting for a moment - unsure of what to do - before heaving a sigh and continuing to chase Rhell so she wasn’t alone, them trusting that Kylo and Stix could hold their own as they sprinted through the trees to try and catch up to the Inquisitor. Only catching glimpses of Rhell as she dove between the trees, Caez felt their chest begin to ache from exertion just as a blaster shot rang out around them, both themself and Rhell halting in their tracks as they looked back and spotted their target - Tigelle - just as a painful twinge radiating from Caez’ side caught their attention. Looking down, the bounty hunter was shocked as they touched their glove against their side and it came up slick with blood, the realization that they had just been shot only being cut off as Rhell suddenly yelled out, “Cam?! Camren!” Before hastily running off in the other direction, leaving Caez alone with their target as Tigelle glared at them. Unsure of what to do - and far too panicked to want to risk jumping at the Zygerrian with their lightsaber - Caez kept a hand placed firmly over their wound as they called out shakily, “... Tigelle Criddar, you are under arrest by the Order, and will be taken into custody. Come quietly and avoid making this messier than it needs t-” Before diving and dodging another shot let off by the woman, Tigelle snarling at Caez as they got up from the ground slowly. “You... You demons! You’ll have to kill me and skin me before I come with you anywhere!” Tigelle screamed, barring her teeth menacingly and taking a few steps towards Caez just as they got to their feet, the bounty hunter starting to feel sweat accumulate on the back of their neck while they tried to figure out what to do. Looking around and finding no one from their group in the vicinity, Caez thought for a moment before finally acting once Tigelle was close, them kicking up a pile of dirty snow at the woman and spinning to make a run for it as they dove in between the trees, the pain from the wound on their side a lot more noticeable now that they were trying to run for their life. Not hearing Tigelle giving chase, Caez didn’t trust themself to stop running until they found someone they knew to help as backup, the almost-permanent pain radiating from their chest only intensifying as they sprinted between tar-coloured trees, every single one of them looking like they might jump out and try to kill the bounty hunter as they kept running. They had to keep running, otherwise they might not get the chance to keep moving afterwards. Muscles of their strong thighs protesting as they ran on uneven terrain, Caez only came to a stop as the ground ran out before them, heels of their heavy regulation boots grinding against dirty snow as they tried to right themself and not topple off the cliff’s edge, the sound of their own heartbeat slamming in their eardrums as they looked down and took observation of the waterfall and clear lake underneath them, the fall looking too steep to survive without injury, but Caez really didn’t feel like if it came down to either jumping or getting shot full of holes that they’d be too picky about breaking an arm if it meant surviving. Still trying to figure out where to turn next, a rustling in the bushes had Caez whipping their head back around to the tree line, Tigelle stalking out slowly and giving the bounty hunter a merciless look as she gritted her teeth and raised her blaster again, fear response overtaking flight as Caez stood there while the Zygerrian growled out, “You stupid Order puppets... Always think you can just take anyone and they’ll obey. That you can burn down any world and we will all kneel for you! You all disgust me!” She snapped, face contorting into an animal-like snarl as she screeched, “You child-murderers! You thieves! You all deserve to burn!” Not sure what to even do, Caez tried to buy their time for a bit longer until someone maybe found their location, their hands shaking at their sides while they asked, “...Child murderers? Lady, you’ve got the wrong fuckers if you’re tryna blame us for that one! I-I mean, sure we’re bad and shitty and do other bad stuff, but kid killers? Seems a little-” “-Shut the fuck up you rat!” Tigelle cut off, voice tight and cruel and causing Caez to jump slightly before looking back and trying to keep rom accidentally falling off the ledge they were cornered on, the Zygerrian slave-seller growling and raising her blaster finger tensing on the trigger while she hissed, “... Any last words, rat?” She asked, as if to mock Caez or expect them to give her a reason to shoot them just as a voice behind Tigelle grunted out. “... Yeah. Fuck you, bitch.” Kylo gritted out behind Tigelle, both the slave-trader and bounty hunter looking over at the knight as he limped over - Kylo’s shoulder sustaining a large bite on it, his helmet long discarded and dark hair sticky with sweat, plastered to his high cheekbones - and raised a hand-blaster, shooting Tigelle in the arm and forcing her to drop her weapon as her ears pinned back in anger, the Zygerrian looking ready to pounce and rip Kylo’s throat out just as the fast running of another intruder cut through the silence, the same Mandalorian from before - from the tree house, from the attack on Takodana - running and jumping through the crowd, them tackling Tigelle and launching the both of them over the ledge and going into a fall just as a large enemy ship flew by and up, the Mandalorian holding onto their target and escaping on a rope dangling from the vessel as Caez and Kylo stood and watched uselessly. Turning and walking over to help Kylo, Caez let him lean on them as they both limped back to the clearing where their own ship was stationed, Kii taking Kylo and inquiring as to what had happened to them as Caez shifted away from the knight and walked over to Rhell and Stix, both of which looked rather shaken up while Rhell mumbled under her breath, “... She escaped, didn’t she.” Pausing and taken aback by the sudden question, Caez went solemn as they nodded, muttering, “Yeah. She got taken by the same anarchist that set up the treehouse diversion. Kylo seems to b-” They started, before gasping and jolting in surprise as Rhell reached out a hand and pressed it to their wounded side, Caez relaxing as they felt Force-healing magic start to mend their wound as Rhell muttered. “... It’s okay. We’ll get them next time. But for now, you should let me heal you up a bit, then go see Ren. According to Stix the ugly fuck tried to chase after you and almost got his head ripped off by a Strill.” Rhell commented, giving Caez a crooked smirk before pulling her hand away from their newly mended side, her turning and walking off towards the ship with Stix and giving the bounty hunter a casual wave as Caez stood there for a moment, finally mumbling under their breath. “... Yeah. I’ll remember to do that.”

(Caez and Stix belong to @caezsucksdangs, Kii belongs to @fef-x-kan, Cam belongs to @kalamitis, and Ziggy, Moji, Tigelle, Delmire, and Rhell belong to myself.)