shattered

BROKEN VESSEL ● HOLLOW KNIGHT

mute, but knows sign language

Trauma(tm)

loves their siblings

hates their father

trying to learn to deal with a lot of anger, sadness, etc. that they know they aren’t even supposed to have

also trying to learn to deal with how inferior they feel to everyone else

local agender bug/void child back for pride month, more at 11 (they/them or xey/xem only)

really hates the color orange

and bright lights

and things that are too hot

all of those are because it reminds them of a horrific infection that reanimated them from the dead once

They were attempting to pickpocket the nearest passerby. There were three important things to note here: one, they didn’t have any reason to be doing this, other then being curious about what people in this city usually carried on them.

Two, they had no idea that this was a morally wrong thing to do.

“What? No words? Do I make you scared? Instil fear into your heart?“

Head thrown back as Hades breaks out into raucous laughter. A slap across his thigh as he final calms down, a clawed hand reaching forward to the bug as he attempts to give them a reassuring head pat…Head scritch? 

“Don’t be scared little one. Come closer…I don’t burn. Much.”

No no no, they did not like this. Immediately, the vessel tried to swat his hand away with their own, making sure to use as much force as they could muster-- they wanted to make it clear that they were not having this. (They hoped their void stung him, honestly. Maybe he was some kind of god of light or heat himself, with the fire on his head and all?)

They weren’t even going to bother to explain that they were, in fact, mute. It felt like that would be wasted effort on a creepy weirdo like this guy. Regardless, they were obviously very tense now, able to hear the echo of his uproar of laughter within their shell still even though the sound had already stopped.

There is no mistaking it… that is another vessel. How it escaped the abyss, how it reached this place, these are all questions that will have to be asked by someone else, as the Pure Vessel does not think about such things. It does not think about anything. It approaches, leaning forward for a closer look.

Sibling.

They betray no emotion. They cannot.

@thelostvessel​

The vessel had been watching from the sidelines once more, much like they had been while donning their mask. Although it had been as a result of having little to no thoughts before, this time, it was quite the opposite-- their head was brimming with thoughts, and they were quite curious about how the masks were effecting everyone else. In fact, they seemed to be taking notes about whoever they saw on their phone.

At least, they had been, until they heard a single word in their mind. Until they saw the tall figure, with the shell as pale as their own and limbs as black as the inky void, with the straight but ridged horns, approaching them. The smaller vessel immediately froze in place as they stared upwards at their sibling, looking a lot like they had seen a ghost despite their lack of an ability to truly emote. They were looking at a face they knew disturbingly well.

How could they not? They had spent quite a while masquerading as their “perfect” sibling, before Grimm had revealed the truth to them. Straightening up, Senka put their phone away into their cloak, immediately beginning to sign.

[Sibling,] They started, hands already shaking. What were they supposed to say? If Grimm had been telling them the truth-- which, given that he had been but a child and all his excitable yet nervous behavior, they doubted he had any reason not to be telling the truth-- this pure, holy-looking form couldn’t be their sibling’s true appearance. They knew too well what the burning light could do to someone too, wincing internally as memories of their own corpse being reanimated by the lightseeds flooded back to them again.

Seeing them run excitedly up to him, Grimm remembers the thoughtful gift Senka had sent all that time ago. Were they really alright with him now, even though he’s cursed with that relation to that ancient light? They might’ve forgotten it, but he didn’t. 

“Senka…” He glances between the vessel and their nail. “I would be happy to take you to the forest and library, but you’re certain you wish to go with me?”

They stared at him for a long moment, almost seeming confused. They wouldn’t have asked him in the first place if they didn’t want to go with him, right? After a few more moments of just staring, they nodded firmly.

@thelostvessel​

“Time out. Whoa there. What in my name are you. You’re so tiny and is that a little sword? How cuuuuute.“ 

Normally a god would never squat down, but to be entertained by this was an opportunity he could not let go. 

“Do you think you’re a hero?”

A hero? The vessel shook their head in disagreement. They weren’t a hero at all; not when they had failed their duty, not when they couldn’t even free more of their siblings from the Abyss without dying in their attempt to get back there.

        “Oh, I apologize, I didn’t quite see you…” Makoto tilts down just a bit, looking down at the vessel. “I hope I didn’t hurt you too much. To make up for it, how about I help you get to where you’re going? It gets crowded and, overall, a mess to scour this place. I hear it’s better in the gardens or Cellar, though.” Besides, if they’re alone, two’s better than one at a party. Or so she’s been told, of course.

        Makoto daintily held out her hand, a small smile playing on her features. She had no right to be rude or sarcastic–after all, she was the one who bumped into xem, and xey hadn’t made her feel as if she should. “Oh, but if you don’t want me to, I get it. I’m still willing to be a partner for you, wherever you’re headed. Just let me know.”

@thelostvessel​ liked for a starter, soiree edition!

Why had they come back to the castle, exactly? Even if they weren’t donning a mask this time, they still felt anxiety building in their little body after the last time they were here; such a breakdown after they had learned the truth about their “pure” sibling had taken a lot out of them.

And yet, Senka had still come back. Was it curiosity? Foolishness? Both?

Still, when someone bumped into them (nearly toppling them over due to the size difference between the two) they had nearly jumped right out of their shell as a result. Luckily, this person seemed friendly enough, holding their hand out for them to take if they so desired- which, after a few moments, they decided they did. It was better than being alone, she was right.

If it hadn’t been for a little creature rushing right by her, the Girl wouldn’t have turned her head to watch another creature fall into the shallow pond. The Girl watches for a few seconds before realizing, they’re not flailing about because they were enjoying the pond water, but because they needed help!

OH, OHH!! The Girl looks around as if looking for help. 

Wait…..She can help!  The girl quickly gets up from her sitting place and runs as fast as she can run to extend her hand out. Listen, even shallow waters can be pretty dangerous too! At least that’s what the Girl thinks. 

The vessel was quick to grab on when they saw a hand being extended out towards them, using the Girl’s grip to pull themself out of the water with relative ease. They were a bit wet, with their cloak clinging to their void-filled body now, but other than that? They were perfectly fine.

They took a moment to steady themself once they were back on dry ground, then began to sign to her.

[Thank you.] While it didn’t show, they felt a bit embarrassed about what had just happened in those last few minutes; they still didn’t know what the creature they had been watching was before it had hopped off, but they had a feeling it wasn’t that uncommon of a sight around these parts, and that they had made a fool of themself falling into the pond over it.

But, oh well. They decided to try and ignore all that.

He needs a moment, and finds it in the strange little figure’s gestures that tell a horrendous story. He’s stuck in the silence of it, as he thinks, and thinks, and thinks again. How he isn’t much better. He waits for the story to finish before he begins drawing in the dirt. Seven circles, each with a different symbol.

“In my world, I am a tyrant, a conqueror of worlds. I go, I conquer, I consume. I made seven of my own, all designed to be weapons. My Disaster Masters. Splash, Noise, Mute, Rose, Quake, Mist, Glitch.” He gestures at each with their respective title. Hesitantly, his hand goes to Mist’s symbol, and his clawed hands drag through the circle until it is just a mess of dirt.

“He found out something, something I meant to keep secret. He was angry about it, rightfully so, but I could not let anyone learn what he had. He floats in the ruins of a dead city, broken, the skies forever clouded with rain.”

...they listened, though their face betrayed nothing, even as they watched the one circle being scratched out into a mess of dirt. A secret that no one else could find out about, he claimed? Something that this Mist person had rightfully been angry over?

[A secret. Like my existence was supposed to be a secret. We weren’t supposed to leave. We weren’t supposed to escape. The kingdom was never supposed to see the extent of how many of us rejects there were.]

They turned back upwards towards him from where they had been staring at the dirt.

[Do you know what happened to that kingdom? I didn’t get to see all of it, but from what I did see... it was dying. By the time I died as well, I’m sure it was all but gone entirely. I saw the memorial to my sibling, once, down in the city where it rained. They were described as a sacrifice.]

A long pause.

[Do you think a tool can be sacrificed? Do you think it was a sacrifice if it forced upon them before they were born? You looked angry to learn of my tale, and yet... I suppose my only advice is to enjoy your power while you have it.] Their empty, silent, void-filled gaze felt ages older than the child they usually seemed to be as they added one last line.

And now they were upset anyway, except about something else. Something that made the Nightmare Knight upset as well.

“Empty? A living being, like you, created to be empty? And this was viewed as perfection to him?”

His cape shifted shades, growing redder, as in the distance, lightning struck and boomed. His hand suddenly slammed into the ground, as he lowered into his cape to further appear as if he was clawing his way out of a portal of fog and stardust.

“To create a life, just to throw it away? To poison you with the idea that you were not enough? Only to harm another to use as, what, an empty vessel for whatever forsaken purpose? I care not for whatever you’ve done, for whatever failures you’ve thought you’ve done, nothing and no one deserves to be used. let alone tossed aside when they don’t…” His clawed fingers dug into the ground, and slowly pulled into a fist. He grew silent, still, and yellow once more.

The vessel jumped backwards, their first instinct upon hearing the thunder boom in the distance and seeing the giant knight’s hand slam into the ground being to run away. Still, though they shook, they stood their ground. They should at least explain further, shouldn’t they?

“How to explain that I like pink, not in a girly way, but in a pastel goth aesthetic kind of way.”

The vessel didn’t exactly remember falling asleep. They clearly had at some point during the walk home; they were finding themself waking up now in an unfamiliar bed, streaks of void still worn into the front of their shell. (It felt as if someone had tried to clean it up, but the void was quite a sticky and resilient substance. It wasn’t terribly easy to wash it off.)

They didn’t recognize the views outside the window, nor did they recognize the bed they were tucked into. Sitting up, they were tempted for a moment to push the blankets off of themself, but... no.

Oh good, he made them upset. Could this little fellow cry? Was he going to make someone this small cry today? Was that going to be his first dark deed, the thing he will be remembered for in the future?

He shudders at the thought, and instead coughs into his fist. Why?

“Not that… being a knight is anything special, of course. You are but a tool, a piece in an army. At worst? You are a weapon. I have not fought for a kingdom, a cause, anything, for many years.” He glances back down, for a moment, hoping he has fixed things. Horrid thought to have, he thinks.

“What is it that you do, then? Whatever it is, it is a higher honor than anything knighthood could bring.”

The vessel quickly shook their head at the knight’s remarks, a shadow almost seeming to fall over their face despite their lack of an ability to truly emote. A tool was... a poor choice of words to use around them. They already knew that they were a tool; they were a failed tool, a failed vessel.