(open) rough seas will be calm

[scythegun]

WHO: Jaeger (eventually) and you!
WHERE: Dreamscapes.
WHEN: 8/25.
WHAT: Dreamdives!
WARNINGS: Suicidal implications, threads are warned accordingly.

[You find yourself on a grassy plain. It's nighttime, and while this whole thing is probably incredibly surreal, the scenery is at least peaceful. You can see a dark building ahead of you.

If you look behind you, you'll notice that there's a large, thick forest. Listening for a moment will tell you that there's plenty of wildlife there, and it doesn't sound happy to see you. It's probably not a good idea to head that direction. But hey, if you really want to, there's nothing stopping you.

If you choose to approach the building, you'll hear the distant sound of waves crashing, but otherwise all is silent. It would almost be serene, if not for the ominous look of the building. It appears to be a very large manor. There are plenty of lights on inside despite the late hour, which gives you a little more light to see the building itself. For some reason there are massive chains decorating the left side of the building that don't actually seem to be there for any specific purpose, and above that are flags for... some reason. The whole thing is kind of an experience, and the gloomy atmosphere and isolated nature of the house probably aren't doing much to make you feel at ease.

Since the manor is most likely where you're headed, you might want to get a bit closer to the front door to check it out. Be careful, though - you won't be able to get too close without two guards spotting you. They're dressed in yellow uniforms complete with masks that hide the upper halves of their faces. They don't exactly look friendly; one of them has a crossbow in hand and the other has some kind of large daggers that look like they're attached to the back of his hands.

You'll find that there's a solid wall around the perimeter of the manor; you can hide here for a moment if you'd like. Climbing over the wall seems to be out of the question given the height of it and the spikes on top.

How do you want to proceed?]

Comments

[scythegun]

[Thankfully, touching it will not trigger any emotions, so at least there's that.

Touching it will get the center to light up suddenly, though. Somewhere ahead of you a section of the floor will slide back, revealing a spiral staircase that slowly rises up and connects to an opening in the ceiling with a click.]

[manufactured]

[Unlike the heart stone and Jaeger's phone, this is something he doesn't feel right bringing with him.

He'll set it down near the staircase; he can come back for it later, if he needs it. But he'll move upstairs if he isn't hindered from doing so further.]

[scythegun]

[You're not hindered at all, so go ahead!

You'll arrive on the second floor of the manor, like nothing just happened. The decor is pretty much exactly the same as downstairs, with more boxes and pots with swords in them, as you do (apparently). There's also a giant painting of Yeager near the stairs?? Who does that.

Like before, the hallway bends further down and heads further back in the manor. Proceed?]

[manufactured]

[Well, he's certainly not turning back.]

[scythegun]

[Once again you'll find that the hallway is lined with doors, but this time there are more of them. There's also a door in the very back that looks more ornate than the others.

Slightly more pressing are the two guards here, though. Like before, they're both dressed in yellow and one's carrying a crossbow while the other has the knives.]

[manufactured]

[...Are they the same guards as before, because so fucking help him if he has to drop Captain Knives again, he's going to do that.

That said, he's just going to make his way toward that more ornate door at the end of the hallway like he fucking belongs here, and if he gets stopped then, uh. God help whomever stops him.]

[scythegun]

[That's a good question, it's hard to tell? They look exactly the same, but the other guard who was hanging out downstairs also looked exactly the same so uh. Who knows.

Anyway, they'll absolutely stop you, though they aren't readying their weapons.]

What are you doing here? You're supposed to be at your post. And where's the rest of your uniform? You know the boss doesn't want us showing our faces.

[manufactured]

[Great. Just- ]

Haven't you heard? We've got more company, as though we haven't had enough difficulty tonight.

I was sent to get backup. You'd better get downstairs. Now.

[scythegun]

I don't know who you think you are, but you can't order us around. We were told to keep an eye on things here. Unlike you, neither of us are leaving our positions.

[The guy with the crossbow is raising it while his buddy speaks.]

[manufactured]

[He shrugs a bit at that.]

Don't say I didn't give you a chance to leave peacefully.

[...So is this going to be another very one-sided fight, because he is not here for these guys, um.]

[scythegun]

[Absolutely. This is what you get when you're a mid-game boss and your minions are all pretty weak.

Unlike last time, both guards will absolutely try to fight you, but uh. Again, they're pretty weak, so you won't have any difficulty with them.]

[manufactured]

[...Don't worry, he'll keep it non-lethal again. Definitely winding them and knocking them out, but not killing them.

Once that door is unimpeded, though, that's where he's going.]

[scythegun]

[The door opens into a large bedroom, there's a bed beneath a massive window, a bookshelf, and probably more interesting are the weapons arranged in patterns on the walls. Who does that.

Slightly more pressing than that are the two girls who approach you as soon as you've opened the door. They're the red and green-haired girls from the painting downstairs, and they don't look pleased to see you. Both of them have swords and while they're not immediately launching into a fight, they look like they're going to get in your way if you try to get any closer.

Behind them are two more people - the white-haired giant from one of the paintings, and Jaeger. Yeager? It's difficult to tell. He's wearing Yeager's outfit, anyway. Both men turn toward you and while it's obvious the girls and the giant have no idea who the hell you're supposed to be, Jaeger's expression is slightly amused but otherwise practically unreadable.]

Who are you? What do you want? [That's the red-haired girl.]

Go away! Can't you see we're kind of busy right now!? [The green-haired girl.]

[manufactured]

Gauche and Droite, isn't it? Your boss has told me a fair amount about you.

[...That's either going to go over well or not at all, isn't it. Moving on...]

Let's say that I'm a friend of his; I'm here to assist you.

[scythegun]

[Droite - the green-haired girl - glances at her sister, but Gauche's expression remains unchanged.]

No one is allowed to interfere. We have strict orders not to let anyone in.

How'd you even get past the guards anyway? [That's Droite, though she's not moving from her position to go check on said guards.]

[manufactured]

[Oh, um.]

I fought them.

[...Yep.]

[scythegun]

You... fought them. [Gauche repeats that carefully while she tries to process it. Wow.]

And you think we're just going to let you in? We're way tougher than those guards! [Droite seems pretty confident in that.]

[manufactured]

I'm well aware that you are; I doubt Yeager would keep you so close if you weren't competent. As it stands, I have no desire to fight you.

[scythegun]

Then turn around and leave. We're not letting anyone interfere. [That's Gauche again.]

[manufactured]

Unfortunately, that isn't an option until I've spoken to him personally.

Are you really that opposed to allowing assistance? It's only going to benefit you.

[scythegun]

Those are our orders.

[Droite glances back over her shoulder; it looks like the giant and Jaeger have started fighting again, and that seems to have put her on edge.]

Yeah, Yeager ordered us to make sure no one gets in the way. This is between him and the Don.

[manufactured]

And if something happens to him...? What good will it have done? You'll be able to say you followed orders well, but how much good will it have done any of you?

[scythegun]

[Both of them freeze at that. Gauche is the first to recover.]

He can take care of himself. Nothing's going to happen to him.

[Droite, on the other hand...]

...We always do what we're told. That's just... That's just how things work. So... So even if he's walking into something dangerous, if we're told not to interfere...

[Her sister glances over at her; it looks like Droite's trying very hard to remember something.]

[manufactured]

Of course he can take care of himself. He's a strong person like that. But that doesn't mean he's invincible - you can be worried about him, you know. That doesn't mean you doubt him.

[He's. Trying.]

And it seems you do worry about him. Don't you?

[scythegun]

Of course we do!

[That's Droite, and her sister gives her an exasperated look. Before she can interrupt, Droite continues:] We're always nearby to help look out for him, even though he probably doesn't need it. But... sometimes he just prefers to do things on his own. He never really tells us why.

[Gauche sighs before speaking up.] We know he can handle himself against the Don. It'll be fine.