thebastion | Day 174 | [CLOSED] The pictures in his mind arose and began to breathe.

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Day 174 | [CLOSED] The pictures in his mind arose and began to breathe.

Who: Yukio and Rin Okumura. Possibly Bon later?
Open: Closed
When: Day 174
Where: The Skyway, in that convenient chunk of True Cross that's still lingering.
What: Siblings are reunited. Put on your hard hats, this can't possibly end well.
Format: Action
Warnings: Hurting of the brain meats. Probably language. And, of course, Rin.

[This was impossible. Completely unthinkable.

Yukio closed his eyes for a moment and took several deep breaths, trying to still the trembling in his hands and block out the unbelievable world around him by focusing on the things he knew to be true. The things he remembered. Falling down the funnel and into the darkness below, hearing the snarls of approaching zombies and the frightened shouts of his team (his students, his brother), and then... nothing.

He opened his eyes again, but nothing had changed. Those unreliable organs were insisting that he'd fallen through the floor of a shopping center and into... another shopping center. But there was no ceiling above, not even the pipe he'd fallen through. Only sky, and all around scattered chunks of rock and concrete leading to a street that Yukio had once known like the back of his hand. A street that should have been hundreds of miles from Inari. Not that something so trivial as distance would matter in a place there the ground was not actually the ground, but pieces of land suspended in mid-air by nothing.

He shook his head. Impossible.

He tucked his flashlight away, but kept his gun at the ready as he carefully ventured toward shops that were both familiar and strange at the same time. Where was his team? Where was he? If this was supposed to be True Cross (no, it couldn't be), where was everyone? What sort of trick was this?]

... Is anyone there?

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[Good, because even if she's healing on her own more or less, she's probably going to need some tending to after whatever explanation she can get out.

She nods to Yukio question, worrying her lower lip with a fang.]

Mhm... it is. And... there's no easy way to tell you this, but. Our world? It's... gone. What we found out there, that's all that's left of it. The Calamity - the thing that destroyed this world also destroyed a bunch of others.

[Yukio stopped halfway through trying to climb to his feet, staring hard at the ground for several long seconds before looking up at Rin again.

Hopefully Rin wasn't expecting immediate acceptance, because her brother from another world looked ready to call bullshit.]

... I don't know how I got here or who you're really supposed to be, but this isn't funny.

Edited 2014-04-04 02:39 (UTC)

It's not a joke!

[Oops, there goes her voice raising. And it's still fairly early in the Bastion, so the relative quiet does a lot to make her voice carry.]

I wouldn't joke about this, Yuki...

[She knew that wasn't his proper name, but she couldn't quite convince her brain to fully recognize the disconnect between the two. Dropping "-chan" at least made it slightly less abnormal, but there was a halt in the way she said it that held just how much she wasn't ready to accept this version of her sibling.

And considering just how much he wasn't ready to accept any of this it made sense. It had only been a few minutes after all.]

I've been here for months. Months hoping that my sister was still alive out there. Instead I found...

[You.]

Then what the hell is it?!

[Yukio got to his feet with a snarl and took a step away from Rin, not particularly concerned about how his voice might be carrying. Given more time Yukio might be able to wrap his mind around what was happening, but with the desperation associated with his certain failure of a mission coupled with the pure insanity of the multiverse apocalypse scenario that was being presented, well...

Now just wasn't a good time.]

... I don't have a sister. I have a brother and a team that needs me and I don't have time for this!

I know that!

[Rin's response matched Yukio's in raising volume, though the tone was much more shrill in how upset she was. He was angry, and she was just... heart broken. Months of waiting, just like she had said. Months of hoping, praying that maybe just maybe her sister really was still out there somewhere only to be given...

the exact opposite. The one from Bon's version of things, not hers.

Another reminder that she was the odd one out, that she shouldn't have been the one that survived.]

I know that because Ry-- Bon told me! Because everyone I've ever met that thinks they know me decides to tell me that I'm the weird one! Why the fuck would I joke about ANY of this?! I lost my home, too!

[She was already at her tipping point, and had been ever since seeing Yukio on the Skyway, when the realization slammed in to her like a semi going 60 that this wasn't the person she had been holding out for. This was pushing her even further, testing her shaky control. She could feel heat rising off her skin, threatening to become wisps of flames any second.

She pulled in a shaky breath, chest puffing out as her fists balled at her sides next to her swords, trembling visibly.]

... forget it. You ain't gonna listen to me so get some one else to explain it to you.

[She wheeled around, intending to hobble off towards the hospital to bandage her wounds herself.]

[Guess who comes running up at that exact moment. Just guess.

To be fair, Bon had been heading towards the Skyway entrance for other reasons besides Rin and Yukio's arguments. When he had woken up that morning, Rin had been gone from the apartment, which wasn't actually that odd. But when Bon had gone to the distillery looking for her, Mireille had told him she hadn't shown up that morning, which was what made him worry. Rin's not at home? Meh, no biggie. But Rin's not cooking? Oh god something is wrong!

He has all his gear for the Skyway with him, because he was fully expecting to have to run after Rin and drag her back. But when he sees her standing there, arguing with someone, he skids to a halt. He still bumps into her, though, because stopping Rin from running off is his job.]

Rin! Don't scare me like that, I thought you had-

[That's when he realizes that Rin is talking to Yukio.

The Yukio Bon remembers, even. This isn't some female-Yukio, like the one Rin was expecting, this was the Yukio from Bon's world.

And somehow, Rin and Yukio are already fighting. Bon isn't entirely sure how he should go about finding out what's going on.

By the way, Yukio: Bon's hair is cut short, and isn't dyed anymore. So he looks a bit different from the last time Yukio would have seen him.]

Edited (CODEEEEEEEE) 2014-04-04 04:08 (UTC)

[Is the fact that they're already fighting really a surprise?

Yukio's about to give chase after Rin when Bon appears... not that he registers just who the newcomer is right away. Not when he looks so different from the Bon that Yukio saw last. When he does recognize his student and classmate, the relief he felt was enough to distract from the little things that were wrong. His hair, his clothing, the use of Rin's given name...]

Suguro-kun? Are you alright? Do you know what's happening?

[The fact that he was there at all was probably a bigger surprise.

Rin stumbled back from Bon when he knocked in to her, but she didn't fall even when her steps were so uncertain. She looked at him, startled for a second with tears in her eyes, but the second Yukio spoke it was like having his voice slap her out of her daze.]

I-- ... sorry...

[was all she managed to get out before making a b-line for the hospital, moving too fast for Bon to stop her.]

[Damnit Rin

Bon watches Rin run off, and then he looks back to Yukio. He's about as confused about this whole mess as Yukio is, though for entirely different reasons.]

Sure, I can tell you what you want to know. But first-

[He jabs a thumb in the direction Rin ran.]

What's got her so upset?

[He's not riled up here mostly because he's relieved that Rin didn't go off and disappear onto the Skyway or anything. And the fact that Yukio is both alive and here is still sinking in.]

[Bon, you are way too calm for the current situation. Not that calm is a bad thing usually, but it's definitely not what Yukio's expecting.]

She's upset because I don't believe her crazy story about the world ending. [It's far too early for the apocalypse. He scowls, finally holstering the weapon he hadn't even realized was still clutched in his hand.] Who is she, really? Do you know where the others are?

[Sorry, Bon, but someone's still operating under the belief that he's not in an entirely new world where his last mission doesn't mean bupkis.]

Edited 2014-04-04 04:55 (UTC)

[Wait until he hears that Bon doesn't even remember the mission. Or that Izumo was even kidnapped.

Also, Bon has to think for a moment to come up with the best way to explain this. Yukio definitely must have said something upsetting to Rin, but Bon figures he should make the peace here, and at least get Yukio to realize that shit has gone down. Then he can go calm down his girlfriend.]

You saw it for yourself, didn't you? What it looks like outside the Bastion.

That's what it's like everywhere. Everything's in pieces, and all mixed up. We're still learning the 'why' and 'how,' but what we know so far is that someone tried to use a very dangerous weapon, and it tore several worlds to pieces.

[Jeez, Bon, not you too.

The other boy actually confirming the crazy end-of-the-world story comes as a surprise, and Yukio's mouth opens and closes several times before he comes up with a response.]

We were just-... That's not possible.

[Alright, not the most original response, but to be fair, he's currently living out the most confusing ten minutes of his life.]

Trust me, I've got no reason to lie about this. I know it's a lot to hear, I didn't believe it at first either, but it's the truth. And even if you find it hard to believe my words, you can just go look for yourself and find what's left of the world.

[He's hoping Yukio will believe him without having to do some stupid trust tests or whatever.]

Also, I haven't seen the others, besides the Rin that just ran off. She's not our Rin, but a Rin from a parallel world or something like that. I wasn't kidding when I said several worlds got destroyed.

Besides the three of us, there's about fifty survivors we've found over the last six months or so.

[It's a lot to ask someone to deal with so quickly. Even being able to see it himself, having experienced the Skyway and its crazy winds, he doesn't want to accept it. It's too much, too fast.

Yukio reaches for his own face, pushing his glasses up and letting his hand linger for a few seconds.]

... Let me get this straight. The world ended. We were somehow transported to this floating piece of rock. And that was my sister from an alternate universe.

[This is probably the slowest on the uptake Bon will ever see Yukio.]

[Slow on the uptake, but at least it's during a moment where it's very reasonable to be slow.

Bon nods at Yukio, and he moves on to explain things a bit more.]

Most people died in the blast, either from getting incinerated or by the monsters that followed after. But people keep showing up sometimes, so there's survivors out there still.

[Bon hesitates for a moment before sharing the next part, but ultimately he decides that Yukio needs to know it.]

Rin found her sister- the you from her world- she found her body a couple months ago. I don't know what was said between you and her, but if she was acting strange, that's probably why.

[Incinerated or killed by monsters. If that's true, then that means... that means everyone Yukio's ever known is most likely dead. The priests back home, his students, his brother-...

Nope. Not going there. Not yet.]

How could something like that happen without us remembering it...? It doesn't make sense! [His voice lowers and he glances in the direction Rin fled, caught somewhere between anger, confusion, and growing sense of guilt that he can't explain or control. He shouldn't feel guilty, should he?]

... I told her I don't have a sister.

[Because he doesn't. Or didn't.]

[Bon is definitely frowning now. Weren't you listening to him, Yukio?]

Of course you don't. The Rin we know is your brother. But that Rin is a girl, and the Yukio from her world is a girl too. And there's probably more people who got switched like that too, we haven't exactly gotten around to discussing it yet.

And as for no remembering the Calamity, well, time gets distorted out on the Skyway. That's about the best answer we have for that.

[Well he can't exactly change what he said now. :\

Haven't gotten around to it?] How long have you been here?

[Because if he's judging by Bon's hair, then it's definitely been a while.]

[Give him a moment, he has to think about that.]

About...four-ish months ago. Maybe just over four months.

[Yeah that sounds about right, it was right before they found that one core.]

Four months...

[Four months on a floating rock after the end of the world and all Yukio can remember is falling down a hole.]

How can we be sure this really isn't some sort of trick? Or a hallucination?

[Because he really wouldn't put it past the Illuminati. He can't imagine what they could accomplish with it either, but it's not as if their motives make any sense anyway.]

[He understands why Yukio would be hesitant to believe him. There are so many demons out there that can cast illusions, that can change how people perceive the world. If Yukio couldn't remember any of the last six months, or somehow ended up on a warped piece of the Skyway that didn't experience time the same way others did, then of course he wouldn't trust what Bon was saying.

Proof should be enough though, right?

Wordlessly, Bon unbuttons the cuffs at his wrists, and then rolls up the sleeves of his shirt, all the way up to his elbows. At a first glance it might be hard to tell what he's trying to show Yukio, since those particular injuries are almost entirely healed, but if Yukio looks closely he'll see patches of skin that are a slightly different color from the rest of Bon's skin, running from his wrists up his forearms in a pattern like spreading fire would take.]

I got these about a month ago. They're not from anything that happened back at the academy, they're from something that happened here, out on the Skyway.

[Yukio is a Doctor, so Bon is hoping that seeing injuries which are in-line with what Bon is describing will be enough to convince him.]

[Yukio moves closer to get a better look at the marks Bon's showing him, eyebrows furrowing in concern. They look like burns. Or what were burns, and they're fairly convincing evidence... or they would be if Yukio wasn't still toying with the idea of this all being some sort of trick of his own mind. If this was all a dream or something similar, anything could happen, right? Bon could be green with yellow polka dots if his subconscious felt the whim, so why not burned?

But he's not going to press the issue again. At least not out loud, not right now. His initial burst of anger has passed and, real or not, they're not going to get anywhere by standing here arguing all day.]

... So what happens now?

[That's good enough for him. He rolls his sleeves back down once Yukio is done inspecting his arms.]

We survive. There's monsters everywhere outside the Bastion, and we're still trying to repair this place and get it back to how it's supposed to be. The guy in charge of repairing this place, he said that something should happen once it's completely fixed, but he didn't go into details.

So until we get there, we keep ourselves alive, and try to find others who lived too.

[Just "something"? That's so vague that Yukio can already feel irritation rising at the idea. He can't seem to go anywhere without people withholding information, but finding and questioning the guy in charge can be left for another time for now.

He glances in the direction Rin fled once more.]

... What about her?

[Because he sure did bunk things up with Rin immediately, and he's still not really sure what to do about it or where to go from here.]

[Bon looks in the direction of the hospital.]

...I can go talk to her. When she's calm you two should probably talk again too.

[AKA apologize and try to get along.]

She'll probably want you to stay at our place, there's one more free bedroom there if you decide you want it.

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