city mouse forest mouse

[numinousname]

WHO: E-Soul & Tristan
WHEN: early March prior to mission things
WHERE: Charronway & Lakewell
WHAT: commercial/rural living practice for fun and bonding
NOTES\WARNINGS: no warnings in the opener; cws to be marked as needed in subject lines


After the agreement to ready up and spend some time learning wilderness survival tricks, Tristan does a brief study of the maps available to them (they really need to find out about that mysterious doctor with the paper maps!) and realizes, with some relief, that the distance is truly nothing! Well, nothing to a person who is used to trekking for miles and miles on foot; would a city-bred sort have the stamina to walk a couple miles? Time to find out!

By contrast, could a mild-mannered elf find the stamina to face the shiny, echoing linoleum and aggressive assault of advertising inherent to the mall where supplies were to be found? That sensory assault may shave a few miles off their projected output...

...but that isn't what Tristan is thinking about in that initial, flinching immersion into contemporary shopping paradise (or hell? it's all a matter of perspective, especially when one considers how eerily empty it is of much but machines and an errant Etrayan minding their own business). At least they're braced for the shock of climate control - many such buildings have it.

"Goodness..." This place is an excursion in of itself, isn't it? They're glad they won't be trying to navigate it alone.

And speaking of: Their ears catch the sound of the automatic doors yards behind them, turning and perking up at the sight of an increasingly familiar helmet shape.

Comments

[neonrain]

The last time E-Soul stepped into a mall outside of Etraya, it was to do promotional work for Energy Charge sports drink — one of those unavoidable requirements of being a top hero. It's a relief to step inside with none of the obligation. Actually, he's looking forward to this small adventure.

Though as he gives his surroundings a cursory glance, it occurs to him that small might not be the right word.

Spotting Tristan, E-Soul heads their way. He lifts his hand in a little wave.

"Taking it in?"

[numinousname]

They smile crookedly, holding the thought until E-Soul's drawn near.

"Trying to," they affirm, a little laugh in their voice. With a shake of their head, they look around once more. "I was worried for a moment that I had walked into a palace of sorts, for how...vast and opulent it is."

It is one of the rare times tchotckhe shops and a legally distinct Bath and Body Works will likely be considered opulent without a shred of irony.

[neonrain]

E-Soul breathes an almost-laugh in turn. All of this must seem a little insane from an outsider's perspective. He's never really thought about where Etraya's bias towards modernity leaves those from other kinds of worlds.

"Most malls aren't this big. It must have come from a large city. Luckily for us, we can narrow our search by finding a directory."

He walks forward, and with a quick sideways glance, adds, "We can go in any shop you like."

Though they have a goal, part of him is curious about what might catch Tristan's attention.

[numinousname]

"Well..." To that point, Tristan unfolds a piece of loose-leaf paper. "I thought about the things I often took with me afield and made a list of what seemed appropriate. So if there are no pre-made traveler's kits to be found, we can salvage things item by item. If not all of them, at least the ones I've noted with an arrow."

They tilt the page for E-Soul's inspection.

-> bed roll
->salt
->flint
->hunting knife
->6-strand rope
->metal pan
->canteen
twine
hand mirror
hand spade
torchwood
bandage cloth

"My concern," they say, while the list is being reviewed, "is that there are things that may be overlooked simply because I am not familiar with the tools or technologies here. I've not seen flint around at all, but I think that's because all the light and heat comes from wires and machines, you see..."

[neonrain]

E-Soul leans in to read, and considers for a moment.

"If it puts you at ease, before I was a hero, I studied engineering. My speciality was electronics and tech — those wires and machines. I'll point out anything that seems relevant based on your list. You can have final say." Given that nothing here costs anything, and everything exists for their convenience, he sees no reason they can't demo items in store. "As for starting a fire, I can make my own spark, but..."

He reaches into a pocket, and pulls out a flint. He offers it to Tristan with a little flourish. "A man who's gone now, Gladio, gave me this. I figured it would be useful. Take it."

[numinousname]

Tristan's eyebrows lift, first impressed by E-Soul's expertise and then delighted by the flint-with-fanfare.

"Ah, perfect!" they cry, accepting the gift with a smile - one that softens a bit. "Someone who's gone... Then... The risks here are genuine, aren't they."

Not that they assumed they weren't! Only... no one speaks of training. Of combat. But surely, if there are trials, there are consequences, no? Fatal ones at that.

So it seems to go with any adventure they partake in.

[neonrain]

Behind his mask, E-Soul blinks, and quickly shakes his head.

"Ah... sorry. Gone home."

But he thinks of how difficult it was to find someone willing to talk about past missions, after being ghosted multiple times when he tried, and then that one comment on the network... it was around Halloween, but even so.

"They are." The monsters lurking in the darkness of Mesa were proof enough of the risk they faced. Somberly, frowning to himself, E-Soul continues, "...This sounds impossible. I don't know how trustworthy they were, or what to make of it. But I was told that death is... impermanent here, and returning to life comes at a cost. One we don't get to choose."

[numinousname]

“Like a spiral.”

The confusion over gone home is swiftly dashed aside for this new notion - one uncanny in its familiarity. Even in saying ‘spiral,’ Tristan grows rigid, expression tight as they seemingly brace for…something. Something that does not come, for seconds later they turn their head and look about.

Yoen…freed from your yoke of endless rebirths and hunts for the bearers of my name, now sequestered in that glaive… Do you even recognize my absence? Can you sense time passing?

I hope you do not suffer.

“Such miracles will always come at cost,” they reply softly, gaze cloudy. “If not the survivor, then the caster. If not the caster, then the very nature of living itself.”

They look back up at E-Soul.

“I hope neither you nor none of those here consider their lives cheaper for that revelation.”

[neonrain]

The whole sequence is a startling change in behaviour. E-Soul knows that Tristan has magic, but it's the first time that they've been overtly mystical. He watches those eyes, waiting for them to clear again with muted alarm.

...The caster? Tristan knows about resurrection magic? And it's in the reach of mere mortals?

Don't even think it.

"I don't," he assures, even as he forces his mind not to race with wild, desperate hope. "And I'm not sure I believe any of us trust Echo enough to risk it."

E-Soul bites his lip beneath his mask, then asks carefully, "What was that?"

[numinousname]

They exhale, reassured. Then Tristan blinks, their focus bright and present once again.

"What was...what was what, E-Soul?"

[neonrain]

"You..."

E-Soul trails off. Should he say anything? An old urge to retreat flares. That settles it.

"For a moment, I thought you were... expecting something."

[numinousname]

"Ah--" Tristan's expression for a moment mirrors the worry they can pick up in E-Soul's tone, but then flickers into a soft, apologetic smile.

"I...suppose I was. Yes. But that something may have no influence here." They nod, adding quickly: "Which is a good thing. Forgive me, I am misusing our time. We should look and see what items we can find here, yes? You...mentioned a directory?"

[neonrain]

It's neater than his old redirections, which were physically leaving the room in a fluster, head down and shoulders hunched, before anyone could stop him. So not that neat at all. Mercifully, E-Soul puts a mental pin in that 'influential bad thing' and lets the matter go.

"I'd expect a holo... a touchscreen somewhere ahead."

Peering around he does spot one, and points it out, leading them there. A few taps and a quick search later, they have a list of outdoors stores.

[numinousname]

No Spiral, but the manipulation of death? Maybe it is a revivify... Or something else entirely. Something not of magic.

So much to consider. So many pins. Tristan pushes them out of the way to focus on studying the map graphics E-Soul conjures up for them to refer to. It takes a moment to even process what they're looking at, another to realize... This place is massive! This must be what Junpei was talking about when he mentioned miles of shops...

Miles indeed!

Still, E-Soul does get that glimpse he was looking for, when Tristan's attention gets pulled by shops along their way...to an extent. They won't divert from their course just because some scarf or arrangement of wall-ready art prints gives them cause to breathe a curious note!

The most emphatic reaction actually comes at one of those outdoorsy shops, wherein Tristan pulls a hiker's pack over their shoulders and laughs a little.

"I think I missed the weight of travel gear! Which is...strange to think, given how heavy it can be. But...it's almost like...the sense of being rooted in place, if that makes sense."