#the baron’s family and co are sorta in a body that resembles these ancient beings but they don’t have any powers

[idv-ask-the-empath]

Kotaro lead them to the edge of the town, having reached a decorative iron gate that was painted red. There was a bridge that extended out into a lake of some sort, where lanterns floated and lead up to something akin to a pagoda of sorts. She watched as Kotaro made his way under the gate- though Delara found it curious that the gage refused to open when she pushed against it. There was no lock in sight- yet the metal had a seam that made it clear it was meant to be pushed open. Even when she leaned over to the other side to see the view of it, it hadn’t been welded shut or anything. Even more curious was the fact that as soon as even a part of her crossed over the iron gate, she felt a tugging sensation… like something was warning her to turn back. But who, or what was that…? And in what way was the warning meant…? Did it mean to threaten harm, or did it mean to protect her…? She doesn’t know if she wanted to know the answer… still… Kotaro was leading them. And she trusted Kotaro. So, she took off her cloak, and folded it carefully. Before she hung it on the gate, which was only a few feet tall. Her dress was already cumbersome, and she hadn’t wanted her cloak to tear… so she stepped up on some of the spaces in the decorative swirls of the metal, and then climbed over, finding that once she properly crossed, she didn’t feel anything but… cold on this side of the gate. It was icy on her end, and the fear, and the warning… it had disappeared the moment her feet landed, as though whatever was trying to warn her decided that she had gone too far… that it wasn’t worth the trouble if she was willing to cross into the unknown.

After curiously pressing her hands against the cold metal, she found that she could open the gate from her side which was… strange. But she couldn’t dwell on it any longer. Kotaro moved towards the pagoda, and despite how beautiful the scenery was, what with the soft warm glow of the lanterns on the water… it was unsettling in a way she couldn’t put her finger on. She grabbed her cloak, and carefully pulled it towards her before she donned it again, and began walking across the wooden bridge to the pagoda. Her mildly anxious expression widens when she realized why it was so… off. There was nothing beyond the pagoda. No other side of the lake, no land, no trees, not even the light of the lanterns. It didn’t even look like there was water beyond the last lantern. It was just… a black void. Endless and stretching. She watched as Kotaro looks at Delara, and then at Bane… before he leapt towards the water. On instinct, Delara gasps, reaching out to grab him, but she stumbles in her steps once she saw that Kotaro was standing on the water… and he seemed to be beckoning the two of them to follow suit. Delara, hesitantly tapped her shoe against the water, finding it to be… solid…? She stepped on to the water, noting that it did in fact, not fail her, and held her weight- if only rippling the waters and causing the nearby lanterns to bob slightly. She walked behind the cat, only sparing Bane a glance of mild unease before she followed Kotaro towards the abyss, where the lights of the lanterns couldn’t reach… which gave her pause. She picked up a lantern, and held it carefully in her hands… feeling childish in how it’s light comforted her. Even though she knew it wouldn’t have done any good at all, she carries it with her.

Time began to lose any sense of meaning the deeper Kotaro lead them. From behind, she could hear the crows and their ominous caws, as if trying to call them back- yet she notes that they wouldn’t, or rather… couldn’t pass beyond the pagoda. Delara anxiously bites her lip as she sighs, inhaling deep and slow while Kotaro leads them to… wherever it was he wanted to lead them to. Soon enough, the light of lanterns on the water disappear… and they had nothing but Delara’s lantern for light. It was strange though, that she could still see Kotaro, as though having a light source wouldn’t have actually mattered. It was strange how much it felt like they were just moving images on a black background. As they grew closer and closer to Koraro’s destination, Delara couldn’t help but become more curious and intrigued, as much as she was… anxious and afraid- which she also found rather strange… in a situation like this, she was more likely to be scared more than anything. There were always other people who were braver for her, so it evened her fear out. Not trusting herself to be even a bit courageous enough to bear curiosity, she finds herself unnerved by the possibility that something was lurking… close enough that she could feel it’s emotions. At some point, Kotaro stops and simply sits as he stared at the void. At first, she thinks they’ve stopped at a wall of sorts that somehow felt… deeper and darker than the abyss that surrounded them. But then the wall splits horizontally, and… an eye, opens. Large and almost fish-like. Almost as if on cue. Other eyes follow suit, and it’s only then does she understand the magnitude of… whatever it was. At first, she feels… on edge, but not so far into the belief that this creature would hurt her, or the gameskeeper, or even Kotaro. The pupils of the eyes look at Kotaro, almost dilating- like it was seeing an old friend that it missed and loved. For a moment, she lets her guard down… the moment soft and even… warm from what she could feel from… this creature. Kotaro even meows a greeting, purring with affection towards whatever this eldritch horror was. The undeniable bond they shared, and all the positive aspects of it made the whiplash of what happened next so… so much stronger. It begins to shriek as it finally registers the two of them… the horror setting inside Delara as voices fill the silence. Voices... so, many voices… but there were few voices that were more.. prominent. They weren’t familiar to her… but they’d definitely be more familiar to the hunter behind her… the voices of children, and a woman…

She felt like she was going to throw up.

The raw desperation… the pain she felt from the creature couldn’t be ignored. She could feel its rage, the feelings of betrayal… its… sorrow. And when it actually spoke…? It was so, quiet. Like a whisper in their heads. Yet it felt so sharp in their minds- it was giving Delara a headache. These feelings alone were too familiar- things she felt and seen in other people… people so young… it didn’t help that she could hear it… sobbing in spite of the lack of actual tears. All the while, Kotaro’s hair was standing on end- the poor cat likely didn’t even know this was going to happen at all… perhaps… it just wanted to help…?

“LET US GO.”

Is all the creature managed out before the world around them began shaking. Delara could feel her feet beginning to slowly sink, as if the water was no longer willing to hold their weight. They had to run. With not even a second to spare, she ran forward and picked up Kotaro before she began sprinting as hard as she could, feeling her feet beginning to sink ever further in the turbulent ground. She doesn’t know where she’s running, but she knows she’s turning back, and running in a straight line… hopefully the ground wouldn’t disorient them too much.

Duo matches always made her nervous. She typically never played in them for the sole fact that so much could happen at once. She hated feeling the distress of it all, not only from her powers but also herself. And as most duo matches tend to be, they were short a player, so she had went ahead and filled in. Who were the hunters for this round again…? It was… Bonbon and Bane, wasn’t it…?

This felt like it’d be a difficult match.

In search of a cipher, she wandered the Eversleeping Town- or at least, the recreation of it. She isn’t sure how “real” it is. Nothing at the manor felt real.

@idv-ask-the-empath

Now, Bane did not like to go friendly. It was something everybody was sure to have realised by now, with how mercilessly he went about his matches. Really, why would he go friendly in the first place? The Baron had assigned him this role and he refused to fail the man twice. He’d learned his lesson about kindness long ago… Of course, sometimes his friends would try to convince him to go easy on the survivors, or to just go friendly. If it was because they themselves weren’t feeling up to the match then of course he’d understand. He’d gladly just try to play well enough for the both of them to win while he let his friend rest. Convincing him to go friendly as well though…

It took a while, Bonbon relentlessly using every tactic they could in order to try and convince him. For a moment he was tempted to simply walk off to hunt the survivors himself! The robot was damn lucky he felt to be in a more agreeable mood… So it was with a sigh that he reluctantly gave in to the robot he knew wouldn’t have given up in their quest. Hey, he’d thought, at least he could spend some time with Bonbon, right?

Wrong, apparently. Rather than hide away within a corner of the map like Bane would prefer, Bonbon was insistent that it would be more fun interacting with survivors. He’d have to tell Burke to schedule another maintenance check because there must’ve been a few screws loose for Bonbon to think he was even remotely willing to interact with survivors in a more positive way… Still, the robot continued their attempts, beginning to push him forwards and forcing him to stumble along lest he fall over. Tch… who cared if the survivors were left unaware that they were going friendly this round? So what if they were to be tense and uneasy the whole time just waiting and expecting an attack? It wasn’t his damn fault and besides, if they didn’t know then they’d continue on to escape as quickly as possible and thus allowing him to leave as soon as possible!

Yet alas, the robot didn’t seem to care, simply making sure he walked through the surprisingly empty streets with him until eventually they found a survivor further down trying to decode one of the cypher machines. Instantly Bonbon ran after them as they bolted away, trying to show that they were friendly and calling for their attention as they did.

This just left Bane to wander on alone…. He’d just find some corner of the map to hide in, now that his pushy companion was gone. So onwards he went, wandering the streets in the search for somewhere nice to relax, gait more slowed than when hunting and hook still firmly attached to his belt. His head was tilted high, simply surveying his surroundings in a manner more suited for taking in the details rather than scrutinizing any and every shadow for a survivor. Silently he noted the details, forming a mental map within his mind as he went along.

Despite the current situation though, he hadn’t quite expected to see any more survivors, taking pause when he turned the corner and found none other than that ‘empath’ walking along. For a moment he froze, fingers twitching and barely resisting the instinctual urge to send out his hook. He was friendly, no hunting survivors… A quiet sigh escaped him as he tried to force the alarm bells in his head to silence and the tension to escape him. What was it friendly hunters were supposed to do? Spin…? … No way he was doing that. Huffing, he considered simply turning around and leaving while he could.

@idv-ask-the-empath