Seele Quest: 2.8
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
This just leaves the corpses, and you don't think you want to deal with them right now. You've had enough of this horrid place for one day.
The two of you head back out of the reactor, and you should be heading back to Tesla, but... You just lean against the wall, sliding down to the ground and curling up, trying not to think.
Vel sits down next to you, putting an arm around your shoulder. She doesn't say anything, but you can definitely feel her concern.
"I'm glad I've got you here," you tell her. She smiles.
"So am I," she replies softly.
Vel is the only person you completely trust. Her and Bronya, of course Bronya, but Bronya's not here right now and you're not sure when you'll see her again. You lean into Vel, and she hugs you tightly, letting you cry into her shoulder.
"It's OK," she whispers to you. "You did good. We all did good. We're alive, aren't we? We'll all make it out of this."
You've made friends with most of the other valkyries. They even seem to respect you, but Vel is the only one you trust. Vel is the only one who really understands what you're going through. Vel is the only one you'd trust with your life.
Vel is also a demon from beyond the stars, sent here to consume your world and others.
...maybe.
Truthfully, you never made your mind up about that. There's been enough madness that you almost think a superpowered evil side is *required* for all valkyries, but Velonia isn't... well, she isn't evil. She's snarky, and protective to a fault, and awkward, and sometimes a living nightmare to anyone you'd describe as an enemy, but she's not... well, she's not all that demonic.
You've seen the way she acts around monsters, and how the monsters react to her. The way her eyes glow when she's angry. The way she can make herself seem more monstrous, all sharp teeth and red eyes and tentacles of blackest night. The way she can make you feel fear, and pain, just by looking at you.
You've seen all of that, but you've also seen her kindness. She supported you at the lowest point of your life, after Bronya sacrificed herself for you. She's making sure you're safe even now, as she holds you in her arms. Mei called her a 'tsundere' when you described her, but she's not...
Vel is a lot of things, but maybe... just maybe... she isn't what you thought she was.
Well, but...
Mei wasn't wrong.
Mei never is wrong.
You've seen what Vel has done to people. She tortured Sin for hurting Bronya, making you feel sad, and she's hardly ever *nice*. Even when she helps you, it's more paternalistic than sisterly. It's only lately, only since you woke up in the dream, that she's been more...
Human?
Is that the word you're looking for?
Vel isn't human. She introduced herself as something else, and so she can't be. Right?
You sigh, leaning into her warmth. Her arms wrap around you, and you feel a faint wetness in your hair.
"Vel..." You murmur. "I want to trust you... I really do."
You reach up, touching her face. Her eyes widen, then she lets out a content sigh as you gently touch her cheek.
Vel, answer me... please. Tell me the truth.
She doesn't, of course. She doesn't read your mind.
You sigh, lying against her as you stare up at the ceiling. The engineering space is brighter now, the big arc-lamps in the ceiling flickering to life one at a time. You hear heavy thuds, off in the distance; you think that's the other reactors firing up. It's that sort of sound. Tesla's giant science experiment in the centre of the room isn't doing much, but you see a few lights flickering on and off, every now and then.
The dull metal walls around you are clean, but a light patina of dust lays undisturbed. The floors are swept clean of any cobwebs or dust, though, and there's a general sense of being well-used. Of course there is. The Hyperion is... how many years old, now?
You're not sure that question has a proper answer anymore. Not for you, and not for the ship.
Sighing, you sit up and lean against the cold metal wall. You can feel the faint thrum of the ship's engines through it, a kind of percussive pounding that's transmitted through into your shoulderblades. On, and off, and on again. You aren't going anywhere -- there's nowhere to go -- but Tesla must be testing the engines. Or maybe the captain is, if she has contact with the bridge. You wonder who's acting as captain now, exactly, but...
It's not very important.
"Let's get back to Tesla," you tell Vel. You let out a long sigh. You don't move, though. You just stay there, slumped against the wall. "We need to see if we can help her fix this..." You wave upwards. "If we do that, then maybe things'll go back to... normal, I guess?"
You laugh at yourself. Of course, you find the situation to be a bit funny. It's so absurd! You should be doing something about it. You let out a groan as you push yourself up to stand.
"What's so funny?" Vel asks, curious.
"Nothing," you say, shaking your head. "Just the situation we're in. Come on..."
You head back to Tesla, with Veliona trailing behind you.
ooOOoo
"Oh, you're back," the red-haired woman says as you enter the room. "I need to calibrate this thing." She points to a large machine, with a large metal disk that seems to be struggling to contain a blue ball of energy. "Hold this thing still, would you?"
"Uh..." You look at the metal disk, wondering if you should touch it. The woman notices your discomfort.
"It's perfectly safe," she says. "There's a protective field here that will prevent you from getting hurt."
You nod, slowly stepping towards the disk. You place your hands on the mettle, and as promised, nothing happens.
"Okay," she says. "Now just hold still, this might tingle a bit."
You nod once again, and brace yourself. The red-haired woman begins to mess with a few of the dials on the machine, and the blue ball of energy on the disk brightens considerably. It begins to tingle, as you feel a static-like sensation run through your body. You grit your teeth, trying not to move a muscle. You know, somehow, that moving will cause something very bad to happen.
"This might take a while," the woman says, fussing with the machine. "We need to calibrate this just right. Hold still..."
It's five whole minutes before she tells you to let go. You slowly drop your arms to your side, working the feeling back into them.
"That's all?" you ask.
"Yes," she sighs. "That's got the balancer stabilized. We should be good for, oh, three or four days before it burns out now, plenty of time... probably." She draws the word out, and you can tell she doesn't believe her own words.
"Okay," you say. "What now?"
"Now?" She looks around the room, then sits down on a chair. "We wait. I'm going to get some sleep, I've been up for long enough that I'm nearly hallucinating."
She says that authoritatively, with the air of a woman who's done it before. You know, because you've seen her do it. She opens up a leather satchel she's been carrying, pulling out some old, worn blankets and a pillow. She makes herself a bed on the floor, and lies down on it.
"I'll be up in a few hours. Try not to touch anything. You should get some sleep yourself, or if you want to do something useful, you could, I dunno, check what's going on with the rest of the ship. Or with that meteor. Or I dunno. Whatever." Her eyes shut tightly the second she hit the ground, and she's slurring the words. "Turn off the light before yo- hnggn. Before you leave."
= = =
It's been a long day. Longer for Tesla than you, actually.
[ ] End the day here, bunk with Tesla
[ ] Tell Tesla first
- [ ] About the fire extinguisher
- [ ] About the corpses
[ ] Go looking for others
[ ] Go looking at the meteor
[ ] Write-in
While write-ins are always welcome, they're extra welcome here. You can pick more than one option, but if you decide to go to sleep then I'd like a few ideas for what to do afterwards. Otherwise the next update will be super short; you're not getting another dream adventure. Too easy to get lost.
The two of you head back out of the reactor, and you should be heading back to Tesla, but... You just lean against the wall, sliding down to the ground and curling up, trying not to think.
Vel sits down next to you, putting an arm around your shoulder. She doesn't say anything, but you can definitely feel her concern.
"I'm glad I've got you here," you tell her. She smiles.
"So am I," she replies softly.
Vel is the only person you completely trust. Her and Bronya, of course Bronya, but Bronya's not here right now and you're not sure when you'll see her again. You lean into Vel, and she hugs you tightly, letting you cry into her shoulder.
"It's OK," she whispers to you. "You did good. We all did good. We're alive, aren't we? We'll all make it out of this."
You've made friends with most of the other valkyries. They even seem to respect you, but Vel is the only one you trust. Vel is the only one who really understands what you're going through. Vel is the only one you'd trust with your life.
Vel is also a demon from beyond the stars, sent here to consume your world and others.
...maybe.
Truthfully, you never made your mind up about that. There's been enough madness that you almost think a superpowered evil side is *required* for all valkyries, but Velonia isn't... well, she isn't evil. She's snarky, and protective to a fault, and awkward, and sometimes a living nightmare to anyone you'd describe as an enemy, but she's not... well, she's not all that demonic.
You've seen the way she acts around monsters, and how the monsters react to her. The way her eyes glow when she's angry. The way she can make herself seem more monstrous, all sharp teeth and red eyes and tentacles of blackest night. The way she can make you feel fear, and pain, just by looking at you.
You've seen all of that, but you've also seen her kindness. She supported you at the lowest point of your life, after Bronya sacrificed herself for you. She's making sure you're safe even now, as she holds you in her arms. Mei called her a 'tsundere' when you described her, but she's not...
Vel is a lot of things, but maybe... just maybe... she isn't what you thought she was.
Well, but...
Mei wasn't wrong.
Mei never is wrong.
You've seen what Vel has done to people. She tortured Sin for hurting Bronya, making you feel sad, and she's hardly ever *nice*. Even when she helps you, it's more paternalistic than sisterly. It's only lately, only since you woke up in the dream, that she's been more...
Human?
Is that the word you're looking for?
Vel isn't human. She introduced herself as something else, and so she can't be. Right?
You sigh, leaning into her warmth. Her arms wrap around you, and you feel a faint wetness in your hair.
"Vel..." You murmur. "I want to trust you... I really do."
You reach up, touching her face. Her eyes widen, then she lets out a content sigh as you gently touch her cheek.
Vel, answer me... please. Tell me the truth.
She doesn't, of course. She doesn't read your mind.
You sigh, lying against her as you stare up at the ceiling. The engineering space is brighter now, the big arc-lamps in the ceiling flickering to life one at a time. You hear heavy thuds, off in the distance; you think that's the other reactors firing up. It's that sort of sound. Tesla's giant science experiment in the centre of the room isn't doing much, but you see a few lights flickering on and off, every now and then.
The dull metal walls around you are clean, but a light patina of dust lays undisturbed. The floors are swept clean of any cobwebs or dust, though, and there's a general sense of being well-used. Of course there is. The Hyperion is... how many years old, now?
You're not sure that question has a proper answer anymore. Not for you, and not for the ship.
Sighing, you sit up and lean against the cold metal wall. You can feel the faint thrum of the ship's engines through it, a kind of percussive pounding that's transmitted through into your shoulderblades. On, and off, and on again. You aren't going anywhere -- there's nowhere to go -- but Tesla must be testing the engines. Or maybe the captain is, if she has contact with the bridge. You wonder who's acting as captain now, exactly, but...
It's not very important.
"Let's get back to Tesla," you tell Vel. You let out a long sigh. You don't move, though. You just stay there, slumped against the wall. "We need to see if we can help her fix this..." You wave upwards. "If we do that, then maybe things'll go back to... normal, I guess?"
You laugh at yourself. Of course, you find the situation to be a bit funny. It's so absurd! You should be doing something about it. You let out a groan as you push yourself up to stand.
"What's so funny?" Vel asks, curious.
"Nothing," you say, shaking your head. "Just the situation we're in. Come on..."
You head back to Tesla, with Veliona trailing behind you.
ooOOoo
"Oh, you're back," the red-haired woman says as you enter the room. "I need to calibrate this thing." She points to a large machine, with a large metal disk that seems to be struggling to contain a blue ball of energy. "Hold this thing still, would you?"
"Uh..." You look at the metal disk, wondering if you should touch it. The woman notices your discomfort.
"It's perfectly safe," she says. "There's a protective field here that will prevent you from getting hurt."
You nod, slowly stepping towards the disk. You place your hands on the mettle, and as promised, nothing happens.
"Okay," she says. "Now just hold still, this might tingle a bit."
You nod once again, and brace yourself. The red-haired woman begins to mess with a few of the dials on the machine, and the blue ball of energy on the disk brightens considerably. It begins to tingle, as you feel a static-like sensation run through your body. You grit your teeth, trying not to move a muscle. You know, somehow, that moving will cause something very bad to happen.
"This might take a while," the woman says, fussing with the machine. "We need to calibrate this just right. Hold still..."
It's five whole minutes before she tells you to let go. You slowly drop your arms to your side, working the feeling back into them.
"That's all?" you ask.
"Yes," she sighs. "That's got the balancer stabilized. We should be good for, oh, three or four days before it burns out now, plenty of time... probably." She draws the word out, and you can tell she doesn't believe her own words.
"Okay," you say. "What now?"
"Now?" She looks around the room, then sits down on a chair. "We wait. I'm going to get some sleep, I've been up for long enough that I'm nearly hallucinating."
She says that authoritatively, with the air of a woman who's done it before. You know, because you've seen her do it. She opens up a leather satchel she's been carrying, pulling out some old, worn blankets and a pillow. She makes herself a bed on the floor, and lies down on it.
"I'll be up in a few hours. Try not to touch anything. You should get some sleep yourself, or if you want to do something useful, you could, I dunno, check what's going on with the rest of the ship. Or with that meteor. Or I dunno. Whatever." Her eyes shut tightly the second she hit the ground, and she's slurring the words. "Turn off the light before yo- hnggn. Before you leave."
= = =
It's been a long day. Longer for Tesla than you, actually.
[ ] End the day here, bunk with Tesla
[ ] Tell Tesla first
- [ ] About the fire extinguisher
- [ ] About the corpses
[ ] Go looking for others
[ ] Go looking at the meteor
[ ] Write-in
While write-ins are always welcome, they're extra welcome here. You can pick more than one option, but if you decide to go to sleep then I'd like a few ideas for what to do afterwards. Otherwise the next update will be super short; you're not getting another dream adventure. Too easy to get lost.
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