[closed-ish] if the clouds don't clear

[darkinferno]

WHO: Dante + MANY PEOPLE
WHERE: All over the city + dreamscapes
WHEN: Between 10/3 and 10/13
WHAT: Nightmares and fog encounters!
WARNINGS: Mentions of character death, an NPC on a noose, murder. LOOK FAMILY FEUD WAS A THING, OKAY.

Comments

[darkinferno]

[A 360 view won't help him. Portals seem to open up all around the perimeter of their "arena," and "Dante" is hurtling through them at top speed, his sword braced for impact. It seems as though the point of this attack isn't so much accuracy or skill as it is brute force.

After a few seconds of rapid-fire runs, he'll come out of nowhere, slamming his blade into the ground and sending out a series of shockwaves that are almost impossible to avoid. But as long as James doesn't let that stop him, he'll be wide open, arms spread to either side and leaving a clear shot directly at his chest.]

[frostythehitman]

[ Suddenly everything is happening all at once and James can't keep track of what's going on. Dante is moving almost faster than he can see, and the next thing he knows, some sort of vibration has thrown him off balance, sending him falling to the ground where the shockwaves continue to rattle him.

It's only after the second or third wave that he finally manages to open his eyes and realizes he's right in Dante's path. He's got a clear view of him, a clear shot. And once again, his arms raise automatically--even as he wills himself not to. But his hands are on autopilot, and almost before he can grasp what he's done, James pulls the trigger, sending a bullet soaring right for his heart. ]

[darkinferno]

[It happens almost exactly the same way it did before--Dante realizes that he's suddenly in control of his body again a split-second before the bullet hits him, but this time it's not just a shot to the knee that he's taking in Ansem's place. This time it's a bullet to the heart, a punch that makes his shoulders collapse and his expression freeze in place, a choked gasp escaping him before he drops to his knees.

His eyes are aqua again, and he should be more concerned with the blood that's coming from the wound, staining the front of his clothes and bubbling up beneath his fingers as he tries to staunch the flow, but Dante's staring at James instead, eyes wide. It hurts, a voice whispers inside his mind, and although he's dreaming his mind is convinced he can feel the pain, white-hot and arcing out from his heart throughout his entire body. And yet, he has to make sure James gets to safety...]

James... [He tries to say it, his body refusing to support him any longer and dumping him the rest of the way to the ground. In reality, it actually comes out as more of a wheeze, an attempt to voice a word when there's no air behind it to give it sound.] Get... get out of here...!

[This is it. This is how he's going to die, face-down in a puddle of blood from a bullet wound trapped in this world of his other self, his...

His other self?

James's time in this world is limited now, because Dante snaps awake a moment later, gasping as he sits upright and claps a hand over his heart.

His very whole, very real, beating heart.]

Oh man. [He tips forward, face meeting the blanket.] Just a dream.

[It was just a dream.]