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TEST DRIVE ∞ May 2025
Test Drive ∞ May 2025
The First Collision
The Diadem is an invite-only panfandom game set in a retro-futuristic world where uprooted souls find themselves deep within an eerie wasteland of roads and highways frequently assailed by cosmic storms. Three united strongholds keep the population. Its capital is Panorama, a large metropolis at the planet's center.
Soon, you realize you aren't alone. Calling themselves fluxdrifts, the "locals" have similar stories to you, either for themselves or their ancestry. You speak to an old woman who claims she hailed from another star. You meet a young man who says his great-great-grandfather knew a strange language everybody spoke "back home." As you explore, you stumble across a coin you recognize or your sister's locket. How did it get here? What does this mean? That's for you to discover.
But first, you need to find a ride.
Soon, you realize you aren't alone. Calling themselves fluxdrifts, the "locals" have similar stories to you, either for themselves or their ancestry. You speak to an old woman who claims she hailed from another star. You meet a young man who says his great-great-grandfather knew a strange language everybody spoke "back home." As you explore, you stumble across a coin you recognize or your sister's locket. How did it get here? What does this mean? That's for you to discover.
But first, you need to find a ride.
No invites needed to play on the TDM. Everyone's welcome! Use the Invite Request thread below to request an invite from another player.
∞ Summary ∞
IC-wise, arrivals are scattered throughout the month. Events described on the TDM are also ongoing throughout the month. If you'd rather jump right into the action, you're free to begin in media res with your character having already been on the planet for several days.
Post-impact, characters will wake up in a med tent by the Scrapyard. From there, they must accept a vehicle on loan and make the 2-hour drive to the nearest city, Panorama. If they refuse the car because they don't want the loan, they'll be in debt for medical bills instead...so just take the car. It'll come in handy.
Some things to keep in mind when bringing in your character:
TDM threads can be canon if characters are accepted. Top-levels made to the TDM should be open to all.
Post-impact, characters will wake up in a med tent by the Scrapyard. From there, they must accept a vehicle on loan and make the 2-hour drive to the nearest city, Panorama. If they refuse the car because they don't want the loan, they'll be in debt for medical bills instead...so just take the car. It'll come in handy.
Some things to keep in mind when bringing in your character:
- Pick an injury. At minimum, they got knocked out; at most, whatever they can recover from. Medicine is decently advanced so they'll heal faster if not painlessly.
- Decide items kept. Reasonable items on their person only: photos, keys, clothes, costumes. No pets or animal companions. Wildly out-of-place tech and personal cell phones will be damaged beyond repair.
- Select a weapon. Do this only if eligible. Guidelines about weapons and powers are on the FAQ.
- Choose a vehicle. Decide whether your character gets 2-3 options or if they're stuck with something they hate. Players can pick directly from our collection or source their own images. Anything under a similar aesthetic will work. If your character needs accommodations for driving, they can have them. Ask us for details.
- Get a phone. Characters have to obtain a phone (and a SIM card) themselves. If they've got one from home, it's damaged beyond repair. Phones are cheap. It'll only take a couple of weeks to afford one. You need to know the number before you text or call anyone. Read about phones and the Forum before you hop on it.
TDM threads can be canon if characters are accepted. Top-levels made to the TDM should be open to all.
Fluxdrift
Arrival & Introduction
Date: Throughout May
You've tumbled over a cliff. You were fighting for your life. You're on the cusp of death. You slipped in the shower. Whatever the catalyst, you struggle to cling to consciousness. As darkness overtakes you, a swirling vortex warps light and shadow in a way that defies all physics. A dark wail etches into your very bones. You couldn't describe it if you tried. You can barely comprehend what it is.
Then you open your eyes.
Through the figure's mask ©, you swear the face is grinning down at you. The tent you're in smells of antiseptic, and scratchy blankets line your cot. Injuries you've sustained have been bandaged. In the corner, you spot a MedBot that's fixed you up. Depending on the extent of your injuries, the doctor on duty might give you some painkillers before you go. Thankfully, your belongings are by the exit. Sorry if anything's damaged. Your landing was pretty rough.
You follow the figure outside. They are Yom Crook, here to lend a hand to fellow fluxdrifts like yourself. Their car's parked beside them. Actually, there are lots of cars around, but Yom Crook's stands out with its painted shark mouth. They explain they found you, unconscious, in a diffusion zone and brought you here. The nearest city is a 2-hour drive northeast. Forget about walking. You'll never make it. Also, you owe the doctor a lot of money for patching you up. But you're in luck: they've got some wheels for you and if you accept the vehicle on loan, Yom Crook will cover your medical bills. That's a good deal, right? It's not the shiniest car or motorcycle, but it'll do. If fortune favors, you'll get to choose between two or three options. Plus, if you need accommodations to drive—like adjustments to your seat height or modified controls—you'll receive all that for free.
Take the vehicle. (And the loan.) Yom Crook assures you that you'll have six months before collectors come around. Any time you're ready to pay a part of it down, return here to the Scrapyard. You'll get a receipt and everything. Paying off the loan in six months isn't impossible, but it will take a lot of work. Just don't get too lax. There's a good chance you'll be juggling multiple loans as you try to get by.
You either know how to drive, or you'll have a bare-bones manual to get you started. Road rules are more a suggestion than enforced, so just hit the pedal and go. The car has some basic features. The built-in compass will help you navigate.
Through the figure's mask ©, you swear the face is grinning down at you. The tent you're in smells of antiseptic, and scratchy blankets line your cot. Injuries you've sustained have been bandaged. In the corner, you spot a MedBot that's fixed you up. Depending on the extent of your injuries, the doctor on duty might give you some painkillers before you go. Thankfully, your belongings are by the exit. Sorry if anything's damaged. Your landing was pretty rough.
You follow the figure outside. They are Yom Crook, here to lend a hand to fellow fluxdrifts like yourself. Their car's parked beside them. Actually, there are lots of cars around, but Yom Crook's stands out with its painted shark mouth. They explain they found you, unconscious, in a diffusion zone and brought you here. The nearest city is a 2-hour drive northeast. Forget about walking. You'll never make it. Also, you owe the doctor a lot of money for patching you up. But you're in luck: they've got some wheels for you and if you accept the vehicle on loan, Yom Crook will cover your medical bills. That's a good deal, right? It's not the shiniest car or motorcycle, but it'll do. If fortune favors, you'll get to choose between two or three options. Plus, if you need accommodations to drive—like adjustments to your seat height or modified controls—you'll receive all that for free.
Take the vehicle. (And the loan.) Yom Crook assures you that you'll have six months before collectors come around. Any time you're ready to pay a part of it down, return here to the Scrapyard. You'll get a receipt and everything. Paying off the loan in six months isn't impossible, but it will take a lot of work. Just don't get too lax. There's a good chance you'll be juggling multiple loans as you try to get by.
You either know how to drive, or you'll have a bare-bones manual to get you started. Road rules are more a suggestion than enforced, so just hit the pedal and go. The car has some basic features. The built-in compass will help you navigate.
OPTIONAL PROMPTS: a flat tire; a body on the road (is it a trap?); a fender bender
Panorama
Explore & Settle In
Conditions: Warm spring temperatures, light showers
After 2 hours on the road, you find civilization. The largest of the strongholds, Panorama is where the economy thrives. Massive power plants glowing red make it visible from a distance. The city is divided into three districts. For now, you can access the Pavilion and the Blocks. Don't worry about the Sanctum; they're not letting you in.
You only need to know two things about Panorama: 1) it's big, the size of a modern metropolis, and you'll need your car to get around; 2) anything goes as long as you don't pick a fight with the wrong person. Street smarts will get you far. Despite its geographical size, the population isn't huge. With roughly a million people in a city designed for over twice that number, Panorama is far from deserted, but nor is it overcrowded. It's a good thing. Resources are limited as it is.
You only need to know two things about Panorama: 1) it's big, the size of a modern metropolis, and you'll need your car to get around; 2) anything goes as long as you don't pick a fight with the wrong person. Street smarts will get you far. Despite its geographical size, the population isn't huge. With roughly a million people in a city designed for over twice that number, Panorama is far from deserted, but nor is it overcrowded. It's a good thing. Resources are limited as it is.
The Pavilion: Free Samples
Like any large city, Panorama features a couple of supermarkets. The stock's not as consistent as a proper supermarket. On occasion, shelves can remain cleaned out for a week or two. Regardless, the long tradition of free samples remains. If you're not already shopping, you'll notice the crowded parking lot and clusters of lines inside.
Try samples, push through the crowds as you shop, or give yourself a five-finger discount. If you're cautious, you can pocket a few small items without consequences. The Pavillion doesn't have the infrastructure for surveillance; unless someone sees you, you won't be caught. Steal from the store or pilfer someone's wallet. Maybe you even make a new friend if you bump into another fluxdrift. Or, start a fight with somebody who cut you off in the cheese line. Don't make too much of a ruckus, or you'll be thrown out.
As you look around, you'll see posters advertising temporary positions for the cash register or graveyard shifts in the warehouse. Seems they might've lost several employees recently (how'd that happen?), which is good for you! It's just a 6-week position, but it'll get you on your feet. The city has temporary positions like this all over. Permanent ones are harder to come by when you're new.
Try samples, push through the crowds as you shop, or give yourself a five-finger discount. If you're cautious, you can pocket a few small items without consequences. The Pavillion doesn't have the infrastructure for surveillance; unless someone sees you, you won't be caught. Steal from the store or pilfer someone's wallet. Maybe you even make a new friend if you bump into another fluxdrift. Or, start a fight with somebody who cut you off in the cheese line. Don't make too much of a ruckus, or you'll be thrown out.
As you look around, you'll see posters advertising temporary positions for the cash register or graveyard shifts in the warehouse. Seems they might've lost several employees recently (how'd that happen?), which is good for you! It's just a 6-week position, but it'll get you on your feet. The city has temporary positions like this all over. Permanent ones are harder to come by when you're new.
Samples include: steamed cabbage dumplings, synthetic cherry juice, cheddar cheese, and chocolate-covered alien eggs (it's crunchy and weirdly tasty). They're served in the usual throwaway paper cups with little toothpicks.
The Blocks: Power Outage
Power's finicky in Panorama, especially in the Blocks. Saint Margery's Hospital, located in the same area, has priority for power so the first to go are the motels. Maybe you've been in your room for a couple of weeks, maybe you just got here—and by the way, every motel desk is happy to put the fee on your tab if you don't have the money upfront—but all the motels on the east side are in a blackout, leaving only the west side motels up and running.
What do you do? You have three choices:
What do you do? You have three choices:
- Risk leaving your room and head to the other side where there's power. Knock on some doors and negotiate with another to share the room. They might shut the door in your face, ask for a favor in return, or be nice enough to help you with no strings attached. There's no guarantee your unattended room will be untouched, though, and you'll be on the hook for any damages an intruder causes.
- Sit in the dark and deal. It's not the worst idea, but the TV's down, the vending machines are powered down, and with the entire place plunged into darkness, you risk getting robbed. If you struggle with defending yourself, you might want to find some trustworthy company. You can also sneak out of there and let them take your leftover pizza. It's not like you've got a ton of valuables, right? Plus, clobbering someone in the face with a frying pan sounds great until you realize you've gotta do something with the body. And what if this person's got a friend waiting?
- Get in your car and drive (or grab a friend for a road trip). If you scroll the Forum, you might notice reports on diffusion zones southward. Besides, these motels are hardly your forever home. The city can only provide so much. Why not go for a ride and see what you can find out there?
OPTIONAL PROMPTS: clean up on aisle 3 (what is that goo?); a knock at your door but no one's there; you hear screaming or a commotion down the hall
The Fringes
Quad 3: Lockdown
Conditions: Stormy, with flooding roads
Felix Bjurstrom
> Date: 125-05-17
> Time: 02:15:57
> Emergency road lights have been reported in Quadrant 3! Please, can someone go see what's there? When last we chasers investigated emergency lights, a whole truck filled with sour candy had tipped over. Our stores were stocked for weeks! Oh, be careful - reception looks bad in that zone.
> Date: 125-05-17
> Time: 02:15:57
> Emergency road lights have been reported in Quadrant 3! Please, can someone go see what's there? When last we chasers investigated emergency lights, a whole truck filled with sour candy had tipped over. Our stores were stocked for weeks! Oh, be careful - reception looks bad in that zone.
Through the open windows, a computer awakens and displays a cheerful smile. The lights inside switch on.
Pick your scenario role below. Your thread partner doesn't need to take the opposite role! They can join you in the same scenario (i.e. trapped together). Players are also free to create a generic NPC for the other side to facilitate the thread.
After characters escape, they'll find one bottle of antibiotics in their pocket or car, whether they remember taking it or not.
After characters escape, they'll find one bottle of antibiotics in their pocket or car, whether they remember taking it or not.
A: Sealed In
As you peer through the windows, you see crates of medicine floating around. Antibiotics in the diadem are valuable. Hospitals and doctors are always buying. You can keep it for yourself or make a quick buck. Or maybe you're compelled to help somebody back in the city who's in need. Whatever the reason, you decide to take the risk and step inside.
Water splashes around your ankles. The lock buzzes behind you. If you try to break the windows, you discover they're unnaturally resistant to shattering. With the whole place locked tight, the water begins to churn. Then the computer lights up again.
Warning, it flashes in large, bold text. Quarantine in progress. Release code required for exit.
- To find the code, you'll have to search. Duck under the water, go through sopping envelopes and sticky notes or pick the locks on the filing cabinets and desk drawers. You can also try hacking the computers. Use your computer knowledge or fall back on the age-old trick of seeing who wrote down their password.
- The files, notepads, and emails start innocuous, but as you look through them, disturbing phrases jump out at you—a dark thought you've had or a cruel taunt from someone in your past. The longer you're fixed on the terrible words, the higher the water begins to rise. Only another can break you out of your trance.
- With the rising water comes fear. And the more you're afraid, the more the water also rises. You begin to see faces in the water, bobbing like balloon heads. Do you recognize them? If you move to take a closer look, they will sink back beneath the surface as if never there.
- If you manage to swallow your panic, you can eventually find a triple-laminated binder with the release code and instructions. Bad news: you need someone on the outside to punch in the 6 strange symbols in order. The instructions explain that the code panel is located at the back of the building.
B: Set Free
As you peer through the windows, you see not just the crates of medicine but someone trapped inside. They look like they might be in trouble, and from your vantage point, you notice that the water is bubbling strangely. It's definitely not normal rainwater. As you watch, the water rises unnaturally, stopping and starting. It's as if the water level is responding to an external stimulus.
- The glass is soundproof. You can't hear what the person inside is saying, so you'll have to communicate with each other another way. Try charades, typing on your phone, or whatever you think of. Eventually, you determine that they're stuck and that you need to enter some sort of code onto a pad located—according to your trapped partner—at the back of the building.
- Around the back, shadows swallow your surroundings. The panel must be pried open, but a slippery substance makes it hard to get a good grip. Each time the substance touches you, you grow uneasy. You swear you see eyes watching you, though when you turn around, nothing's there.
- You can't seem to keep the instructions in your mind. And those symbols...they burn into your retinas. Through them, you glimpse an incomprehensibly massive figure unfurling in the darkness, pulsing as if in a deep sleep. When you snap back to reality, you realize you've injured yourself, slicing your hand on a sharp edge or a bruise you can't remember getting.
- Once you manage to release the doors, the water inside the office drains upward into the sky as though sucked out by a giant hose. The darkness spreads. Get out of there fast before the shadows drag you or your partner into the void.
Main Navigation ::: ⇅
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iv (two of them)
She speeds up.
It isn't until the motorbike nears significantly that the recognition hits like a punch to the gut. This isn't the first time she's seen this creature.
The scene flashes behind her eyes. The empty look on Vander's face, so far removed from not only the man, but even the beast they'd been fighting to free him from. Clawed hands reaching for her and Jinx as gravity itself failed around them. And in that moment: this, with Jayce close behind. If it weren't so fucking crazy-looking, maybe she wouldn't have had time to notice.
Unfortunately for Viktor, though, Vi remembers all too well. It's everything else she forgets: the truck, the other person, her own injuries.
The engine revs explosively, exhaust coughing from the tailpipe. The bike shoots forward at full throttle.
She absolutely intends to hit him. ]
no subject
Still, he doesn't want to be distracted while that happens (just in case), and he urges Jayce out from under their on truck so that he can set it down. The bicycle is closer, now, and it still isn't slowing. In fact, it seems to be doing the opposite, while altering its trajectory in exactly their direction.
He understands what's about to happen. Though he's confident enough in his own impervious nature, even to something like a vehicular crash, he can't say the same for whoever is riding the bike. They must not realize--or they must have some kind of death wish.
Viktor does the first thing he can think of. He steps in front of Jayce, ostensibly to protect him, but the Hexclaw is what goes to work, arcing over his head and cycling through a blindingly-quick series of runes. The motorcycle closes the distance but no actual impact comes. Instead, she'll be jerked forward into a sudden halt as Viktor alters the motorcycle's personal gravity.
He suspends it, and its rider, several inches above the ground, its wheels spinning uselessly with no traction against the dirt.]
no subject
Or, not passing them.
There's not much he could've done except dove out of the way, but Viktor's reaction time is obviously quicker as the Hexclaw lifts and lights up the space with runes, the motorcycle suspended in the air before it can do any harm to anyone. As he steps around Viktor his first thought is that the rider had to have lost control, because who would - ]
Vi?
[ He's struck with relief that she survived the battle that was only a less than a week ago for him.
Give him a half second to connect the dots as to why she'd try to run (one of) them over. ]
no subject
Maybe it won't matter, but Vi doesn't seem deterred for long by the sudden weightlessness of her ride. She leaps off the side closest to Viktor, possibly intending to just go at him bare-handed.
But that's when she finally catches sight of Jayce as he speaks her name. Her ire shifts targets. ]
You--
What the fuck is going on?!
no subject
Violet--
[The Hexclaw ceases its activity, and the motorcycle crashes six inches to the ground. Viktor himself holds up a hand, placating, even though he knows it will do no good. He's seen Violet's heart, through her father's memories. She is angry, and rightfully so. He just needs to make sure it's steered in the right direction.]
Please. It isn't his fault.
[It's not him she wants. Viktor is unrecognizable, he knows. He's not sure how much Jayce told them, before they mounted a defense at the Hexgates, but hopefully Violet will find his voice familiar, distorted as it is.]
no subject
Vi, listen to me - it's over. Alright? He's not going to hurt anyone -
[ She can beat her knuckles bloody on Viktor and he'd probably just stand there. Jayce isn't going to stand and watch her try. ]
no subject
Here, in the middle of fucking nowhere, away from anything that could have made her feel at peace again, even if that peace would always be a long time coming.
Here, where none of the grieving or healing she's managed in the scant time she's gotten to attempt it matters anymore. The wounds are ripped open, raw and jagged, the weight of the loss fresh all over again. She sees them slipping through her fingers every time she blinks. Vander. Powder.
Gone.
When Jayce never came back, he had been added to the long, long list of the perished, too.
What the fuck had Caitlyn wasted her grief on?
Vi's gaze lands on him, the way he touches Viktor's arm. It's a look heavy with accusation. Betrayal. Her fists shake at her sides. ]
Fuck you.
[ She spits the words like they hurt coming out. It doesn't even sound angry anymore; she doesn't raise her fists or try to move closer. The tears sting and ache behind her eyes, head pounding, the air feeling too thin to breathe.
Why is she always two steps behind? ]
The next words out of your mouth better be a good goddamn explanation.
no subject
But this is not Jayce's defense to give, even if Viktor isn't entirely sure how to explain himself. He understands, now, that he was not in his right mind, but to blame everything on the Hexcore's influence feels disingenuous. The last thing he wants, faced with someone he directly harmed, is to shirk responsibility. They were his own desires, in the end, even if they were twisted beyond recognition.]
I was deluded. I thought--
[All he'd ever wanted was to take pain away--to make sure no one would need to suffer the way he did. Given the power to do so, why wouldn't he act on it? Betrayed by Jayce and wandering his own mind, he'd forgotten what it was to exist in the real world.]
--I believed that I could save all of us from ourselves. I thought I had found the way to do it.
[All he'd seen was the beauty of his evolution--the promise of an end to suffering. It had been poisoned from the start.]
Jayce showed me what that really meant. He ended it.
no subject
Some days ago, right before he awoke here, Jayce was moments away from being atomized - and at peace with the oblivion that should have followed. Viktor had arrived here from relatively the same point.
He talks Jayce up like he's the hero, and shame flashes through him.
It doesn't occur to Jayce that Vi could be that much further ahead in the timeline, though it should, considering everything he's personally experience by now.
Jayce has thought about the people back home a lot. About Mel, about Cait, about his mother, about everyone he rallied to that fight, people he barely knew and some he would never know. He's started to accept that he might not ever know what happened to them, who survived the battle and who was lost. ]
We broke the hold on everyone. Took the anomaly out of the equation. We - [ he shakes his head, features twisting up: ] - the two of us shouldn't be here at all.
[ He finally looks up, hopelessly searching for some understanding from her, of all people. ]
It's just Viktor in there now.
no subject
Vi's eyes flick between the two of them -- man and decidedly no longer man -- with the agitated tension of a cornered animal. She tries to make the pieces fit into the half-puzzle still missing all its edges.
We broke the hold on everyone.
It is difficult to truly remember what she'd seen then, and impossible to know how long they'd been held suspended. A great, collective held breath.
Then, they fell.
And she couldn't hold on. ]
They're dead because of you. [ The words come out slowly, barely above a whisper. ]
Don't talk to me about saving the fucking world.
Do you have any idea how many people ended up collateral damage in your psycho ego trip?
no subject
[She doesn't need to tell him that. Vander, and so many others. It was never what he wanted, and it isn't lost on him that his commune was largely composed of Zaunites who came to him for help. To know this, now, is immeasurably painful, especially given where he's come from, and what he set out to do. Viktor never asked for this power--but he'd tried to make the best of it, not realizing the full implications of it, or too wrapped up in finally having the ability to help to really understand.
This form does him no favors, his voice impassive and detached, the depth of his remorse obfuscated by his own lack of expression. The way his body filters his emotions is strange. Numb, almost, though he knows if he pulls back into his psychic plane he'll bear the full brunt of it, unfiltered.]
I knew every single one of them. Their lives, their dreams. I saw their minds. They came to me for help and I...extinguished them.
[Like so many candles. The souls are freed, now, but he still doesn't really know what that means. It's likely he'll never find out.]
To understand what I've done is torturous. It is still much less than what I deserve.
no subject
His hand hasn't left Viktor's forearm.
(there's no version of this where he doesn't forgive him, where he doesn't love him unconditionally)
Quietly: ]
We can't undo what happened to them, Vi. [ You can't punish him more than he's punishing himself ]
We can't go back. [ He gives her that imploring look again. ]
But you shouldn't be here. [ There's a flicker of confusion now. They had thought the rune and the anomaly had blasted them to this desolate part of the universe. Were there others caught up in it? ]
Is Cait - ? [ His gaze slips up the road behind her. ]
no subject
Jayce's explanation had been vague, and parts of it just didn't make sense to her. Back then, they'd all been caught up in the urgency of battle.
The worst part is, he really does sound sorry, despite the inhuman quality of his voice. He sounds like the Viktor they'd met in that impossible garden in the depths of the undercity. It wasn't that long ago that Vi had honestly considered believing in him.
And then there's Jayce. To Vi, it seems he's done a complete about-face. It's disorienting. Infuriating. And she's fucking exhausted. ]
Yeah. Well. Maybe you should've stayed dead too. Another thing for you to half-ass, huh? [ She snaps, but there's not as much bite to it as there was earlier.
The mention of Caitlyn makes her wince. ]
She isn't with me, if that's what you're asking.
[ I'm alone. ]
cw: canon typical suicidal ideation
[Viktor has more clarity in the matter, now. Jayce should have died in the snow, on the ledge of his ruined apartment. Viktor should have succumbed to his illness, or to his injuries from the attack on the council. Everything they wrought on the world was only because they could not help but to save each other, again and again. Choosing each other over and over in defiance of the overarching hand of fate. An anomaly in and of itself.
He knows, now, that there is no world with him--any version of him--in it that isn't eventually destroyed by his wish to live.
Viktor turns away, slightly, knowing an apology is useless. The aftermath of the battle is unknown to him, and Violet's presence here blows a hole in his theory that it was the rune that catapulted him and Jayce to some far-flung universe. That she's here too is...troubling, to say the least, on top of everything else. He offers Jayce a concerned glance, imploring him to ask what happened.]
assume here on out cw: suicidal ideation
Vi's suffering is on display in front of them.
He can't argue that they deserve a second chance either.
It's takes him a minute to recover, if he hadn't already been staring at Viktor he might've missed that look. Jayce turns back to Vi, racked with guilt. ]
When did you last see her? What's the last thing you remember before waking up here?
:')
Neither of them is blameless in that (at least... the first part; she still has no idea how their displacement happened, but now there's a nagging suspicion that Viktor might have been involved in that, too, intended or not).
Vi's mouth twists. She swallows hard, trying to cover the crack in her voice with a cough. ]
It was a few days after the ceremony seeing off the dead.
We were just... [ Home. It had almost been home. It could have been.
Vi's fists ball up at her sides again. She looks down somewhere beyond Jayce to the stretch of dirt. ]
I was in her house. I went to bed. She had work to do.
I think I had a nightmare. [ She remembers starting awake, falling. Maybe she'd hit her head. ]
And then I woke up here.
[ The anger seems to have been sapped from her by the end, voice tired and low. ]
...did you have anything to do with that?
no subject
Love and legacy. Well. He can’t say he wasn’t warned.
The idea that Piltover will move on without them—that Viktor might be forgotten, all of his work for nothing—is more painful than he might have expected, given the purpose of this body and the way it dulls his ability to feel such things. He reminds himself this is what he deserves.
It does not, however, explain how and why Violet is here. When he answers, he sounds genuinely confused.]
No. I don’t know what might have brought you here. It could not have been the rune.
[That vanished with himself, and Jayce.]