WARNING! WARNING!

He continues to sing a child’s lullably, one he had always played on the piano but never put to words until now. The song repeats, but this time he can feels a presence approaching and wrapping around them as the seaborne approaches. No mind is payed, only wishing to sing his griefs out before willing to confront her.

Yet he finds his hand interwoven with hers, forced to come face to face with Skadi. His attention diverted, eyes locking with the one who sealed them away in this private bubble. She’s leaning in closer to him, lips tantalizing close. He doesn’t know if he’s ready, but it comes nonetheless. He can’t muster up the will to resist, hand gently clasping hers as he returns the kiss. He doesn’t know if this is right or wrong. Right now it doesn’t matter.

She breaks off and starts singing his daughter’s lullaby, only after hearing it once she’s memorized it. This wasn’t a song of Aegir or Seaborne, but one he created with all of his sorrow when things fell apart. This song was the proof of Jester’s existence in it’s purest form, the bond of parent and child so long seperated. He sings along with her, eyes stinging along the way.

The song loops once, twice, even a third time before it slowly trails off. It was an infinite song, an infinite prayer cut short as he takes a step away. Everything is so blurry, he can’t make out the child in his arms or the woman that had been standing beside him. Just what exactly was going on here? Why was she even here right now?

     “What… What exactly are we… are we doing…-”

It starts spilling out and he can’t understand why. Tears overflow and he can’t make out if he’s happy, sad, grieving, or confused. Everything is so confusing that he can’t choke back the tears any longer or the whirlpool of emtions clenching at his heart. Why was she doing this? Why was she making him remember all this? He said he was at peace, so why is he always yearning whenever he sees a child? What part of him was missing and would let him rest?

“You are spilling your emotions, unable to figure what is washing you over.” Skadi advises, pulling him into a comfort grace, with their ‘child’ becoming large, appearing to be what an seaborn is, their true appearance, coiling around the pair, &  protecting them from any danger. Crimson eyes soften, teal glove hands, one comforting,  petting Jester’s back, one intertwining with his human-like hand,  wanting to do more, yet... This is something only he can do while she’ll supports him. 

She doesn’t know what he went though. His tale.  His whole story. What he has committed.   Yet, she will not refuse to extend a hand towards him, offering aid whenever possible. 

She buries herself onto his shoulder, whispering into his ear, an unfamiliar tongue, yet it’s easy to know if you are seaborn.

aquatic barrier will hide from the eyes of others. 

“You are grieving. You believe that you are at peace, but that never went away with time, hasn’t it?  But here we are, assisting each other, kin to kin.”

 Even if that song wasn’t created by Aegirians, or seaborns, she’s not called the songstress for nothing, with tears pecking within ruby orbs. 

She’s not the one who lost a child, but she grieves along with Jester. It’s been difficult, hasn’t it, seaborn?  All this time... You carried such a burden, with no one to speak about, until now. 

“It’s okay.  I’ll be here with you all the way, until those tears are dried up, everything out of your system.”

skadi: thanks it’s the trauma

“Yup! I’ve never seen either before.” Unbelievable as it may seem, she’s wholly unfamiliar with animals of any kind. UMP9 is thankfully rather lax despite seeming so curious about them, hands stuffed in the pockets of her jacket and leg swinging back and forth gently. “I’ve heard of dragons, though…I think there’s a helicopter named after one back where I’m from.” Her swinging leg calms, and now she regards Azura with a similarly curious look.

“I’m surprised it’s friendly. Aren’t they supposed to be ferocious and ginormous?”

“Most are, if trained from birth.” Azura responds, guiding UMP9 down onto royal stables, wishing such a guest for a chance to pet & feed dragons & bird mounts, up to her of course. Of course, what confuses songstress is... ‘Dragon’ = helicopter? Is that another term for a creature, or something else...? Afraid to say that machines in her world don’t exist very commonly. Some regions do, but they were used for war, than peace. 

Dead reploid walking, huh? Well, at least that could be the same. The faux X’s grimace gives away his perspective on the matter. “You and me both,” is quipped lightly, but he still seemed rather uncomfortable with the whole ordeal. 

Phantom… No, his Phantom had been long dead, life taken like a martyr when he’d been aiming to take out the Crimson Wraith, and the two Neo Arcadian Guardians. It was true the black and white reploid had failed, but Seraph had never blamed him for the loss, instead frustrated with the fact he hadn’t been able to save his brother either.

It’s… still disorienting. He sighs, rubbing his temples. “My name? It’s… Seraph.”

Harden violet eyes narrows, hand reaches for their own grey strands, rubbing. Their head aches. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Seraph.” An odd, & eeriely fitted name, considering his aesthetic. “Just refer me as Phantom. Better that way.” Too blunt? Eh, it is what it is, foot steps against the ground, crossing their arms, as if to examine him. 

The moment that she saw the other approaching, she felt her lips curl up into that iconic look of hers. The oh so innocent yet dangerous oWo, as her loved ones seemed to say about it. The fact that it took so long for the girl to notice her being made it much more amusing than she supposed it should’ve been. 

It took a lot out of her to not burst out laughing at the fact that this girl actually fell on her butt like that, cheeks puffing out but never quite letting out any true laughter. Though, there was chuckling that escaped after a moment of restraining herself from yelling laughter. “Hey now, hey now, calm down. I didn’t think I’d scare someone that bad today.”

She didn’t think it would happen, but it felt so perfect to her.

Flipping down and landing on her feat, she wiped her mouth clean as she kept her attention on the other. “It’s just a prank, no need to get so riled up. And to think I didn’t even use my scary face…” To Chara, that was indeed impressive to her. Smile soon back of her face, her head once again cocked to the side. “So, what was the part that caught your attention? The eye, the tune? I gotta know for future reference.”

oval red eyes blink. Hand pressing against chalked ground ( ugh dirty ), making sure to give support, brush off any dust & grim off of her tights, & shirt. Hopefully, her appearance doesn’t look too bad for someone who needs to be picture prefect. “Hm. If I had to say, it was the tune, then appearance.” It felt as if she heard that song before, but where... Maybe binging on y*utu*e? Hand raises under her chin, still looking at Chara. 

“Most urban horror myths tend to come in a form of horror, but never one accompanied by a song.” Kasumi points out, tilting head lightly. “Some have chants you need to do, similar to Bloody Mary.” The one where you chant her name three names, & she appears in a mirror. Most teens tend to use it for sleepovers. 

“Thank you, Neo.” A nod was given in response as Reni started to collect the nearby ores while Neo was on the lookout. Despite his ally was a mute, he still appreciated her for accompanying him during this expedition. 

If it wasn’t for the possible lurking danger within the underground temple, its interior was breathtaking; the water constantly covering its open walls, essentially giving them the view of the lake from the inside. 

“Alright, there would be enough to do it on one go.” Reni stated to her, almost being finished filling his material bag.

However it wouldn’t take for very long that some aquatic eyes eventually spotted the two inside the temple. 

‘Good because we got guests here wanting to welcome us!’ Neo warns him, already grabbing him, pulling man so tenderly close, only to stab what seems to be a poison frog, using her blade, hidden in her umbella, croaking at them, obviously bothered that, * gasps * two humans dared step foot in them. 

A small “I see…” escaped his lips on being informed that they were not needed, though the request caught him off guard.

“People don’t normally ask that of me…” Not that he really played in front of people. “I’ll try, though playing for others is difficult, to say the least.”

A pause as he turned back to the piano.

“My name is Cain, by the way. Only the knights that I used to train call me ‘Sir’!” a small yet awkward laugh came out of him, he was trying to lighten the mood.

“Right…” He whispered to himself before resting his fingers on the keys. He couldn’t remember where he left off, so he started from the beginning.

This felt very awkward indeed, being watched playing…He was normally being watched fighting.

The young woman was clearly anxious, expressions he’d only seen faked on his own creator’s face, especially around Zero. The only issue here was that Crimson was nowhere to be seen, back within the walls of the so-called city of humanity. He can’t help but look away, a grimace returning to his lips.

I don’t know what to do with you. 

If her name was Ciel, what did that mean, exactly? His knowledge of Ciel was limited to the damaged documents he’d found. A scientist, young, a prodigy… But there had never been a description of her appearance, just her… theories of renewable energy sources and studies of the damaged areas of the planet. It was because of those archives that he’d managed to come up with the method to make Zion.

When she breaks the silence, it’s a question he should have seen coming, his face twisting into a scowl.

“Cial…” It’s a name he practically grinds out through his teeth, a borderline growl in his tone. Just thinking about her pisses him off, shown in his fists clenching at his sides. “Cial Freesia. Current ruler of Neo Arcadia and the resident plague upon reploid survival.”

He hates her. Wasn’t even aware he could feel that level of contempt for a human, but the mere thought of the woman who’d made him causes his core to steam and his blood to boil. If Ciel was indeed Cial, he would hardly pass up a chance to throw scorn upon her name. 

“If you really aren’t her, good. I wouldn’t have hesitated to strike you down otherwise. The amount of reploid lives she’s taken for her own benefit is…” Unfathomable. He takes a cooling breath, fire in his eyes. “Zero and the two brainwashed Guardians are the only of my kind she allows to walk Neo Arcadia freely.”

Ciel right away, shakes her head, eyebrows meeting each other, anxiety skyrockets, but what comes out of her isn’t emotional, rather very same leader demeanor she believed was stashed away for too long, eons even. “Seraph-- I can assure you that I am not her. I’ll never take away free will,  of others, regardless of they are human or reploid.” Hell, she just goes by ‘Ciel’, no last name unless you want to count a test subject’s ID number. Is there even a way to show disgust? Possibly not. Shock? Perhaps even speechless. 

Now, now there’s some understanding, why this reploid is so wary of her, & ready to attack if she were to shoot at him. Laws & morals be thrown out, if your life is on a line of living or joining the dead. 

She sighs, realizing that they are from two different timelines, worlds? Gosh, this a little complex, but one can bear with it, shoulders being straight, keeping her voice being tactless... Mostly. “I can say that Zero... Was the one who helped us, when we needed assistance, he was always there to assist. If it wasn’t for him, our future would be much dire state. Four guardians? Only two are alive. Everyone else is...” Gone. Destroyed. 

What else can she say? ‘I am sorry this stranger who looks like me is causing havoc & I am so planning to pull a heroic move out of nowhere to assist?’ but she can’t do much. She’s someone living on limited time, having to explore for her mission too. 

“Neo Arcadia?”

Itachi frowned. This was the first time he had heard of this place. Was it on the continent, or in places Itachi hadn’t been to yet? How did he get here? It was genjutsu, or he really went through some kind of portal and found himself in a completely new world. How can he get back?

“Perhaps. I’ve never heard of Neo Arcadia before. Have you heard anything about Konoha and the Land of Fire? I was there and I don’t know how I got here. And no, I didn’t hurt my head. My name is Uchiha Itachi. And you? ”

“It’s Ciel, Mister Itachi.” The leader, creator behind of the resistance responds, tilting her head, soft azure eyes blinking, with her mouth lightly gap... She’s confused, & it shows without much hiding, nor denial, shaking ‘a no’. “I am afraid I never heard of ‘konoha & the land of fire’.” It sounds like an fictional place, made for those wanting to escape from reality for a bit.