Blood in the Cathedral

[Avis]

A short, curt shake of the head answered him.

"You're not going to be trying to kill a target, you're going to be trying to kill a person. So you're not going to be looking at a target, you're going to be looking at a person. When it comes time for you to do more than just imagine it, though, then I'll give you something to practice on. So focus up."

Her voice sounded more petulant than it did flat and hard, but that was the effect she was going for.

"And your problem is that you're limiting yourself. It's not just head, heart, and throat. Anywhere there's arteries is vulnerable, like armpits or groin. Plus the kidneys and liver. But, sure, keep going with what you were saying. Because of my height, you would use the knife to what?"

This was the crucial moment, in her mind. The moment when Star's imagination caused him to become the knife, rather than just showing him wielding one. Maybe it wouldn't happen. Maybe he was right, and she should have him start in motion, in action, and let his mind catch up, but he was the one who'd said he took a slow burn.

[Star]

The wheel spun, slowed, spun, stopped.

"Ummmm."

Eyes closed, and brows furrowed.

"Overhand. I was thinking, overhand. Underhand, because of our height difference, means i get less of a, uh, up swing, and you'll stop it sooner." Torque, yo. Baseball pitchers know. Golfers, too. If raw power is lacking, put the entire machine in motion.

Somewhere in there was a protest. Nobody here lacks resolve. But maybe everyone wasn't understanding because they didn't understand. Listen, and focus. Maybe catching the resolve in the moment is how thought translates into rapid action.

Every Illusion begins with something you know. Or someone.

Fingers shifted on the metal slightly.

"From the right."

The right side. It's important.

[Avis]

"Alright. Great. Let's put it into practice. But, first, allow me to introduce you to your new training partner. Turn around," Avis ordered, nodding past the Mop.

As soon as he turned, she began to chant in Atlantean, summoning the waking dream, drawing an image not out of her mind, but rather out of his. It would be more than image though. It would look like a person, sound like a person, and most importantly, feel like a person. Not even bones inside ballistics gel would match what she could create in his mind. It was a true training partner. Reactive, realistic, and most importantly, immune to consequences.

Assuming he wouldn't fight the dream away, however...

The Hallucination

...As Star turns, he sees the flash of a knife lashing by, just inches from his eyes, a knife held by a doppleganger of Avis, dressed just as she was, but with a rictus of anger plastered across its face...

  3 successes to hallucination

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2015-09-12 04:47:29		Avis! rolls 9 to make star trip with the best training partner (gnos3+mind4+HS2) (10 Again)		3, 3, 1, 9, 2, 2, 10, 5, 9, 3		3 successes

Star gets to resist with resolve+gnosis. Avis is attempting to affect sight, sound, and touch.

[Star]

At least there was a warning this time.

Had they ever talked about that? Probably should, after Einstein. Don't scratch. Pinpricks rippled over skin as the Chanting and weaving began. Shoulders hunched slightly at the pressure, almost fighting it, but letting it settle. What...

whoah.

Sneakers barked out a squeak on the cathedral floor as he lurched backward.

ting

Always sure fingers managed to let the knife slip in surprise, it's tinny clatter swallowed by the open space. Okay, that's just Not Cool. Lips pursed and a lower lip disappeared between teeth as he bent down to pick it up. Still Not Cool. Not getting any cooler, either. That Avis? She's not a stranger. And part of loving someone is accepting every bit of them. Nobody's denying they're the same.

But they're not.

"Change it."

The words were soft, cracking on the plea. Don't make it go away, just change it. Nobody's giving up on The Lesson. But We don't stab each other. We laugh at dumb things, fumble with other things, and Look at things together.

We...

"Change it..."

The warble firmed up; still soft, but hardening.

"...to Striker."

[Avis]

Striker. Yes. A smile curved upon Avis lips.

She began to chant, spelling out another dream, weaving it out of Star's mind into the shape she desired it...

A sudden spray of blood arced out of the Doppleganger's mouth, warm, wet droplets spattering onto Star as the phantom-Avis fell to the ground. A knife stuck out of its back, and standing behind the corpse was Striker, laughing and licking drops of blood off his hand.

"G'day, Mate," the Striker mocked, in that accent of his. He dropped his hand away from his mouth, then twitched his fingers towards himself, beckoning Star to attack him. "Le's see what ya got, ya pansie ass lagger."

Just like this...but with one arm.

  3 successes for hallucination 2

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2015-09-13 23:36:51		Avis rolls 9 to premeditation for striker (hallucination: gnos3+mind4+HS 2) (10 Again)		6, 7, 10, 3, 7, 9, 3, 1, 9, 2		3 successes

[Star]

A knife accidentally loosed by outstretched fingers, slowly spinning through the air and reflecting blinding light.

A river of white-hot fire, clean pure Fire from the Heavens themselves, crashing into and through the illusion like a tsunami.

ting

Threads burnt up into Fire as the sound of the knife on the floor again rang the bell of a boxing round's end. No one is listening. There's nothing but roaring in the ears, nothing to See but one thing framed by the outer edged darkness of absolute focus.


Somewhere between rage and panic is... nothing. A cold void where nothing exists because letting it exist would consume you.

But eventually, it does.

The mop spun, whipping against wide eyes.

"THAT WAS SO, SO FUCKING ... FUCKED UP AND, AND UNNECESSARY! WHAT. IS. WRONG. WITH YOU!"

It pours through into shaking hands, and the shiver of adrenaline.

"I'm done. We're done. Here. With this." An arm reached back and finger speared outward to the phantom. "I can't. Not like this. This is over."

  Burn, Baby, Burn

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2015-09-14 19:24:12		Star rolls 13 to BURN IT WITH FIRE (Celestial Fire, Rote) (10 Again, WillPower)		9, 2, 2, 1, 10, 7, 6, 2, 5, 6, 5, 10, 9, 4, 9		5 successes
2015-09-14 19:22:56		Star rolls 1 to Paradox! Mana spent to Mitigate! (10 Again, Chance)		1		Dramatic Failure!

[Avis]

With a frown, she let the spells go. The hallucinations faded, leaving just her and Star in the training hall, with only each other and the gentle hum of ventilated air for company.

"You wanted to learn to do what I do," she explained, fighting down a sigh. She wasn't surprised by his freak out. She'd been expecting it. She'd known what she was doing, tearing away at his sense of comfort, grating on his emotions. She'd known he might snap at her. She just...wished he hadn't.

A hand half heartedly rose, echoing the gesture behind him, where she'd summoned the phantoms for him.

"That was how I learned," she offered, not quite willing to explain more. If he truly saw her, he would know. That she'd leaned to fight like she did by being forced to hurt those she'd loved, watching them die, and then being confronted by those responsible for it. But, for him, it wasn't real. She thought he would've handled it, but what she didn't think of was that she'd had a decade in a hospital to help her come to terms with it. He hadn't had any time, yet, to deal with it.

She was just glad, now, that she hadn't shown him what she'd first thought of. A woman that looked like her, but with his nose, and his eyes.

[Star]

Shoes scuffed and squeaked on the floor.

Pacing? All that... that... energy... has to go somewhere, yo. Muscles and nerves primed for action by adrenaline, painfully bled out through a release valve of something mundane and insignificant. Arms, too. Flapping, until fingers clenched into a fist. Tap, tap. On the forehead, near where a finger had speared.

"I know. I know. I know it because we're the same, except, except you took in all that, that anger, and violence in and it's part of you just like lying and deceit is part of me, just like right now I am fighting, fighting so hard to not just give you a stupid fucking smile and mumble and apology and make this all go away." Words trickled out, then flowed in a rush. It's not word salad. They're important words. They might seem trivial, but lies can kill, too.

And it's the same because one day you wake up and realize that part of Who You Are is Really Awful.

"But I didn't. I didn't get it, I didn't get that," hands fluttered outward. "This. This isn't just Arrow Shit for you. I just, just thought I needed help and I didn't know who else to ask." Not Striker. "That was dumb. I'm sorry. Sorry I yelled. This isn't your fault, it's mine."

And nobody is Just Saying That.

Feet squeaked to a stop and then marched over to stand in front of Avis. "I get it, I get it now. That it isn't just, like, target practice and sparring gloves, but, but," A hand wafted out toward her, "Something inside, you call up, let out, and it hurts." Lips twisted into a grimace and an exhale rasped out. "And, you know, you know it's dumb but ever since the bridge, I want to protect you and I know I can't, but I don't want to let you down, either, so I'm chasing that and here we are and now I did this, and I made you do that, and now I hurt you."

Hands reached out, latching on into a hug that was nothing tender, but needful and fierce.

"I'm sorry, so sorry. I'm not you, I'm not strong. You can't show me something like that, I can't see that."

It would happen. Some day. No one's naive. But not yet.

Everyone needs Illusions.

[Avis]

For a second, Avis was just being hugged, but not participating in it. It was something she wanted, but not something that she really felt at that moment. Just like he couldn't flip the switch from calm to conflict, she couldn't flip it back. She tried, though. Tried to give him what he needed, her arms rising to fold around him in return.

"I didn't want to teach you," she breathed in his ear. "I didn't want to bring this between us, but its here, now. We just need to find the way to become comfortable with it."

A way to smile across the dining table as the crocodile brought them dripping pieces of heart steak. A way to cuddle in bed, with the crocodile in their heads. But that could never exist, and as their bodies pressed together as warm fleshy shells, she began to understand why. The crocodile was just what lived in her head. Not in his. There was something else behind eyes. Perhaps something that lived on a web, or...or maybe it wasn't anything like that at all. Perhaps it wasn't instinct, but something invented. Constructed inside his mind. She would have to learn what it was. That was how they would come to accept it.

Carefully, she let go of the hug, her hands going to his chest, lightly pushing them apart, giving them distance to converse again.

"I think that what we need to do is find something else for you. A technique that suits you, rather than forcing yourself into this technique."

[Star]

Sometimes a hug isn't a hug.

It's just holding on. An affirmation. Everything has a time and place. Sometimes, it's a blue glow. Sometimes, it's solid warmth. For a moment, at the press of separating hands, fingers tightened on fabric before letting go. A sleeve dragged across damp eyes. It's just stress. Really. Because it's still there. The sight. The sound of words. Smell of blood.

The taste of fear.

"There's, ummmm. There's something else." Stop. Just. Shut. Up. "Between us."

Air rasped inward. Silence? It's a Lie, too.

"I'm okay with it, now. But I was, I've been, kind of, I don't know." A hand spiraled outward, to where the phantoms had been. "Mad? Hurt? I don't know. You promised, Avis. You promised me."

The Deal is The Deal.

"You promised me you would handle Striker. That there would be... justice."

Because Everything Changes the First Time a Promise is Broken.