[ sebastian also turns to look at cloud with wide eyes. he hadn't really understood the situation when he ran out here hoping he could somehow just stop their friends from dying and save everyone, but hearing it put that way, he remembers what both cloud and ren had said about the cure for the corruption and goes pale.
he looks back to ben. ]
Hey, um— I-I'll tell you how we can save them, come on.
[ assuming ben's new form allows for it, sebastian's going to take his hand and try to hide them both somewhere nearby for a minute so they can talk through this while cloud... hopefully manages to deal with the others. ]
[ great thank you sebastian he might be good at banter during fights but he is not here for being stuck with the job of expositioning "how do you feel about suicide for the greater good" to a guy they just met. SO glad this is now sebastian's job.
Cloud manages to kick Bradley off and jump back up to his feet. He's still not exactly keen on using his giant murder sword on either of them, but it does have a wide blunt side. Cloud's never used it like that (unlike--what? who? this is not the time for headaches dismiss the thought) but he doesn't need to defeat either Bradley or Jason, he just needs to stall.
So he takes it out as a kind of blocker between himself and Jason, using it as a makeshift shield-- it's good for protecting his general body, but as I have experienced numerously while playing ff7r, completely shit when you are being multi-targeted by enemies who are trying to gnaw on you. They are usually dogs, but in this instance Bradley is not that far from it.
which is to say he regrets not wearing sleeves right now so much when bradley chomps down on his forearm RIGHT ON THE HEALING BITE FROM HIS FIRST CYOA? OH COME ON ]
Shit-- [ it hurts and he reflexively tries to knee bradley anywhere he can reach so he can shove him off without either stabbing him or letting go of the sword with either hand, because he's pretty sure if he goes one handed in defense position with jason right there it will go badly ] Snap out of it!
[ they won't, there's only one cure, but he kind of has to at least try to not advocate for death of a teen spirit even if said death would also nicely prevent the apocalypse, because the stupid spirit said they were family and he is not a monster ]
[The sword is still effective at keeping Jason’s big ass self mostly away. He grapples it with one, but has the other to reach out and dig into Cloud’s neck and shoulder. Good thing he has a single pauldron on the correct side.
For a brief moment, there is a second of clarity in Jason’s black eyes, then it’s snatch away as quickly as it had come. He hates his teeth. He’s… hungry, but it isn’t even that he wants to eat Cloud.
He wants to destroy him? There is an immeasurable desire in the pit of him to obliterate, and for what? Where did these come from and why did he become like them?]
[He bites and then he recoils. Both at the kneeing and because uncooked human flesh is not delicious. It's weird and it tastes weird, and he has just enough of himself to realize that biting into a living person is fucked up and gross.
Cloud's not even rocked shaped, why did he put him in his mouth?
But the recognition and the disgust go away in an instant as he just does it again.]
Uh... these other spirits told us the only way to make the cure for what's happening to them is by... destroying a, um... material... spirit? But it only works early on, s-so... if we don't do something fast...
I don't want to ask you to do this, but— it's either this or you lose them and keep living with that.
[ he... does not really want to tell him that he's going to ruin the whole world if he doesn't do it and add that guilt on top of the rest of this... ]
[ sebastian is having his own crisis, but cloud's also like, could you hurry up with the cure please
he does not say it out loud, he's busy. i think it's very funny of anna to aim for a shoulder when cloud has a bunch of wounds on one and i'm evil, so jason's fingers dig into the wounds there. between that and the CONTINUED BITING, BRADLEY, WHY, on the same arm, he has to let go of the sword with that hand reflexively. he wrenches his arm away and smacks bradley on the face with his now freed hand. no. bad kitty. ]
Seriously, biting?
[ he doesn't Want to give jason the sword but just wrestling him for it is not a great idea when he's cornered by two of them. so he instead attempts to slam it upwards, trying to hit him in the face with the handle so jason lets it go for two seconds. if he does, cloud will use the momentum to slam the blunt (ANNA) side of the blade against his side and try to take a fucking step away from both of them. ]
This is exactly what Jason tries to do before Cloud clocks him in the face with the handle of the sword. Even if it busts his nose, he doesn't particularly seem to care...? Since he tries to go for Cloud again after the initial recoil. But he gets the blunt (tch) edge of it against the side. He has old wounds here? It's fine.
He careens back and falls in the unbalance, but lands on his hands. He flips around and up again. Poor Cloud. Jason is relentless in the frenzied pursuit. He charges again to try to close the distance. But he's bent low? It looks like he's trying to football tackle Cloud at the waist. They really could ruin Sebastian's day, but here they are, fighting the tank stupidly.]
[Ben just kind of stares at Sebastian in horror because, um. What? His hand grips Sebastian's more tightly.]
That's... the only way?
[Frankly, Ben looks like he doesn't really want to die! That seems bad! But he looks over at Cloud fighting Jason and Bradley, closing his eyes for a moment.]
I-If they're not cured, then... they have to die, right?
[And if Cloud and Sebastian hadn't come along, it'd probably be him fighting Bradley and Jason instead—probably him who would've had to kill them.
It's as Sebastian says. The choice, ultimately, comes down to which is worse: death or living on with loss.
Opening his eyes, he looks towards Marshmallow is hiding. They should probably, like, get him back to Albamanny somehow? Not that Sebastian would know this, having no idea who this cat or his snowman owner are. But still, Ben murmurs,]
... No one ever really wants to be alone, huh...
[It seems like he's made up his mind, however, as he turns back to Sebastian.]
... Okay. I've... I've lived long enough— [even though his voice shakes] —so... whatever has to be done.
[... But he will probably need help? I'm not saying it HAS to be Sebastian who kills him as so much he took this duty upon himself while Cloud is busy, but Ben apparently does not come with an auto-suicide function, so. Please provide assistance...]
[ god... sebastian knows nothing about this spirit. he doesn't even know his name; he showed up too late to the scene to hear bradley or jason say it, and whatever name everyone kept saying when they spoke about the calamity was never anything but static to him. but the way he talks and reacts to things makes him feel like maybe they're kind of similar. he hates this.
he squeezes his hand harder, tears already starting to spill over, and looks over to where cloud is still fending off both of the others. he's really going to have to do this himself, isn't he. ]
I-I've never had to do this before, but... I'll try to make it fast, okay?
[ he wishes they could take the time to work out the best way to do this, but they can't, and if he takes too long then he'll be doing this for nothing. so... he lets go of ben's hand and moves to wrap him in a hug from behind as he takes sen's kitchen knife from his pocket, hoping like hell that it's sharp enough to do this.
he closes his eyes for a second, trying to remember exactly where the wound had been on that bodyguard's neck, and what it looked like. the autopsy report had said his death had been almost instant, right? s-so all he needs to do is try to recreate that. yeah.
opening his eyes again, he raises the knife to ben's throat, to what he hopes is the right spot and the right angle. ]
You guys were really lucky to have each other as a family.
[ those are nice last words to hear, right? though he's crying so much now that he doesn't know how well ben will even be able to hear them.
he takes a deep breath, presses in the tip of the knife...
[ cloud gets the impression that somewhere else, not too far away, sebastian is having a bad time.
but he is busy having his own bad time, because jason tackles him at the waist to the ground. he has a waist wound. i'd forgotten but he does have that. SO that SUCKS, and there goes the sword because he was only holding it one handed anyway. it lands somewhere out of reach. ]
Jason-- [ it's an objection, and maybe a bit of an apology, as once he hits the ground with jason on top of him he reaches in his pocket for the razor blade he carries and tries to stab him somewhere that will hurt enough so he gets out but not anywhere near actual wounds.
unfortunately he did not account for the fact that bradley is also here ready for a good time, not a long time, and that jostles his attack so woops there's now a razor blade stab in jason's chest instead.
bradley is getting elbowed for his efforts. probably in the face. i want jason and bradley to have matching busted noses for all the sibling jokes?
anyway cloud's on the ground sebastian please gather your sad pixie dust faster ]
[Sorry for Cloud being on the ground, Jason is a big dude. There's too little coherency there for him bothering knowing how to, like, grab and pin though, so Cloud lucks out in that regard.
Basically the most he can think to do is bite and rip and destroy? Cloud is really out here being bitten by two feral, fiendish dudes? Using his weight, he dives in to bite down into Cloud's neck. Sadly, not a sexy bite, and sadly not a sexy vampire bite either.
The stab to the chest, though, reels him back and away. He reaches up to grab over the warm wave of blood soaking through the clothes.] ...Cl...oud...? [Nothing better than having clarity during the worst possible moment.
Why is there a metallic taste in his mouth? AAAA.]
[This is neither a good or a long time, and in fact, is a very stressful time. Wizards usually retain some amount of themselves until they get fucking eaten so being human shaped and not himself is terrible.
Bradley, however, is once again lost to the corruption. Getting elbowed in the face and breaking a nose isn't enough to shock him back to himself.
He digs his nails into Cloud's arm, tearing down.]
[Ben lets himself be wrapped into the hug, trembling. With that, he closes his eyes again, and waits for the end to come. Thankfully, the knife is sharp enough as Sebastian slashes into his neck, blood splattering from the wound. A wave of energy—almost sharp like electricity—will force Sebastian back, before Ben slumps to the ground.
Then, after a few moments, Ben's body disintegrates into blue dust, until that's the only trace of him left.
Should probably do something with that now! If Sebastian does, in fact, do anything like take the dust and throw it at Jason and Bradley, then they'll find their bodies absorbing the dust into themselves. Their minds will slowly return to normal, the black fading from their sclera.
From inside the bush, Marshmallow, who definitely saw all this happen, lets out a pitiful meow.]
[ oh god... he looks guiltily at the cat and chokes back a sob, whispering i'm sorry as he shakily takes a handkerchief out of his pocket and tries to gather up all the dust. he doesn't even know what he's supposed to do with it, no one ever told him how this works, and it ends up wet in a few spots from where his tears fell on it.
once it's collected, he scrambles to his feet and runs back to where the fighting is happening; and without any better ideas, he takes some in his hand and blows it in each of their faces — jason first since he's actually staying still enough at the moment to be approachable, then at bradley. ]
[ jason moves off after his bite and cloud lets go of the razor blade still stuck in jason's chest (his bad.) to slap that hand against his throat with a noise of mild panic. blood seeps between his fingers at a worrying rate.
he did not need the added scratching up, so while cloud's just moving harshly to get jason fully off him, bradley is getting a kick to the chest that might break ribs. if mira wants that.
and then sebastian shows up with the powder and tears and wow!!! he sure hopes this works because he's kind of dazedly sitting there putting pressure on his UNSEXY THROAT BITE. he watches the change on both of them with wide eyes
wow instant cure just add the souls of your tiny clock friends ]
[It's fine, he can join Rupert in the coming out with something sharp stuck in a body part.
Sebastian's return startles him, and he snaps his head up. The feral, ravenous nature comes back at someone new, but he gets a face full of dead clock spirit friend ashes. He chokes and reaches up to swat at the dust around his face. NO, HE CAN'T... see?
As the dust absorbs into him, the hunger and the crave for violence slowly dissipates. He's left... so fucking tired. It feels like he's run a marathon sure, but worse, it feels like his insides are heavy. The black recedes from his eyes. Slowly, his hands lower, and he looks up. Every damn ache and pain hits him at once, and he bends over to put a hand on the ground. Groans.]
[There's the particular, sickening crunch of a rib breaking when Cloud kicks him off.
The blue dust works it's magic, slowly returning him to coherency. Everything feels heavier than it should. He flexes his hands and makes a face at the taste in his mouth. ]
... Marshmallow?
[ Jason can cover their clock, what happened to their cat? ]
[Slowly, Marshmallow leaves the bush, approaching Jason and Bradley; sorry, Cloud and Sebastian, but you're strangers to him and also one of you just killed his friend?
After a few moments, he runs back to the cavern. Presumably, they should follow once they're ready. But for now, everything is calm once more.]
[ cloud would explain the murder spirit lore but SOMEONE tore at his throat with their MOUTH, so he's just holding onto that and thinking the prospect of getting back up from the ground sucks
also he needs to pick up his sword. this sucks too.
anyway he's absolutely attempting that now so they can go in a cave, it's fine, everyone looks like they need a trauma moment or two so he can just do that in the background while they are very sad ]
[Sorry, he looks sort of mortified at the idea of Ben saving them by being murdered. In any other situation, he might have killed Sebastian on the spot for this, but it’s fine. Trauma! It had to be done! They were feral raccoons with rabies trying the kill.
He squeezes his hands into fists and grits his teeth. Does it mean Ben’s life was any less when they went through all that trouble and time… for this to be the fate that awaited?] Dammit, Ben… Marshmallow, wait! [The frustrated sorrow fades as Cloud starts to get up. STOP! He gets up too! Very unsteadily, but it’s fine.
He has a whole ass knife sticking out of him but he says,] Don’t move around too much. [He can’t pull this thing out, or he’ll bleed worse, so he just holds around it.]
[He looks, somehow, even more tired. He got corrupted and almost turned into a fiend, but having people dying on him is really the worst news. Especially after weeks of having people die.
Getting up, slowly, gingerly, mindful of his broken rib.]
[They follow Marshmallow, and once more, they end up in the Time Channel. This time, their path takes them to the year 10XX, back to Jason and Bradley's home. At the very least, while Ben won't be returning, Marshmallow can reunite with Albamanny before Albamanny melts and passes onto the afterlife.
When that happens, the four of them make their way back to the Time Channel. Cloud and Sebastian have succeeded in their mission, in changing history and averting the apocalypse. They're not here to go back to their original time, though.
The four of them have somewhere else to return to, don't they?]
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guestservices) wrote2022-07-10 05:39 pm
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he looks back to ben. ]
Hey, um— I-I'll tell you how we can save them, come on.
[ assuming ben's new form allows for it, sebastian's going to take his hand and try to hide them both somewhere nearby for a minute so they can talk through this while cloud... hopefully manages to deal with the others. ]
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Cloud manages to kick Bradley off and jump back up to his feet. He's still not exactly keen on using his giant murder sword on either of them, but it does have a wide blunt side. Cloud's never used it like that (unlike--what? who? this is not the time for headaches dismiss the thought) but he doesn't need to defeat either Bradley or Jason, he just needs to stall.
So he takes it out as a kind of blocker between himself and Jason, using it as a makeshift shield-- it's good for protecting his general body, but as I have experienced numerously while playing ff7r, completely shit when you are being multi-targeted by enemies who are trying to gnaw on you. They are usually dogs, but in this instance Bradley is not that far from it.
which is to say he regrets not wearing sleeves right now so much when bradley chomps down on his forearm RIGHT ON THE HEALING BITE FROM HIS FIRST CYOA? OH COME ON ]
Shit-- [ it hurts and he reflexively tries to knee bradley anywhere he can reach so he can shove him off without either stabbing him or letting go of the sword with either hand, because he's pretty sure if he goes one handed in defense position with jason right there it will go badly ] Snap out of it!
[ they won't, there's only one cure, but he kind of has to at least try to not advocate for death of a teen spirit even if said death would also nicely prevent the apocalypse, because the stupid spirit said they were family and he is not a monster ]
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For a brief moment, there is a second of clarity in Jason’s black eyes, then it’s snatch away as quickly as it had come. He hates his teeth. He’s… hungry, but it isn’t even that he wants to eat Cloud.
He wants to destroy him? There is an immeasurable desire in the pit of him to obliterate, and for what? Where did these come from and why did he become like them?]
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Cloud's not even rocked shaped, why did he put him in his mouth?
But the recognition and the disgust go away in an instant as he just does it again.]
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W-What...?
[Anyway, explain away.]
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Uh... these other spirits told us the only way to make the cure for what's happening to them is by... destroying a, um... material... spirit? But it only works early on, s-so... if we don't do something fast...
I don't want to ask you to do this, but— it's either this or you lose them and keep living with that.
[ he... does not really want to tell him that he's going to ruin the whole world if he doesn't do it and add that guilt on top of the rest of this... ]
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he does not say it out loud, he's busy. i think it's very funny of anna to aim for a shoulder when cloud has a bunch of wounds on one and i'm evil, so jason's fingers dig into the wounds there. between that and the CONTINUED BITING, BRADLEY, WHY, on the same arm, he has to let go of the sword with that hand reflexively. he wrenches his arm away and smacks bradley on the face with his now freed hand. no. bad kitty. ]
Seriously, biting?
[ he doesn't Want to give jason the sword but just wrestling him for it is not a great idea when he's cornered by two of them. so he instead attempts to slam it upwards, trying to hit him in the face with the handle so jason lets it go for two seconds. if he does, cloud will use the momentum to slam the blunt (ANNA) side of the blade against his side and try to take a fucking step away from both of them. ]
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This is exactly what Jason tries to do before Cloud clocks him in the face with the handle of the sword. Even if it busts his nose, he doesn't particularly seem to care...? Since he tries to go for Cloud again after the initial recoil. But he gets the blunt (tch) edge of it against the side. He has old wounds here? It's fine.
He careens back and falls in the unbalance, but lands on his hands. He flips around and up again. Poor Cloud. Jason is relentless in the frenzied pursuit. He charges again to try to close the distance. But he's bent low? It looks like he's trying to football tackle Cloud at the waist. They really could ruin Sebastian's day, but here they are, fighting the tank stupidly.]
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The smack to his face brings him back for a moment-]
Grrr...oss...
[Biting. Ew.
It doesn't last long enough. He charges at Cloud with a hand outstretched, like he wants to cut at his arm.]
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That's... the only way?
[Frankly, Ben looks like he doesn't really want to die! That seems bad! But he looks over at Cloud fighting Jason and Bradley, closing his eyes for a moment.]
I-If they're not cured, then... they have to die, right?
[And if Cloud and Sebastian hadn't come along, it'd probably be him fighting Bradley and Jason instead—probably him who would've had to kill them.
It's as Sebastian says. The choice, ultimately, comes down to which is worse: death or living on with loss.
Opening his eyes, he looks towards Marshmallow is hiding. They should probably, like, get him back to Albamanny somehow? Not that Sebastian would know this, having no idea who this cat or his snowman owner are. But still, Ben murmurs,]
... No one ever really wants to be alone, huh...
[It seems like he's made up his mind, however, as he turns back to Sebastian.]
... Okay. I've... I've lived long enough— [even though his voice shakes] —so... whatever has to be done.
[... But he will probably need help? I'm not saying it HAS to be Sebastian who kills him as so much he took this duty upon himself while Cloud is busy, but Ben apparently does not come with an auto-suicide function, so. Please provide assistance...]
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[ god... sebastian knows nothing about this spirit. he doesn't even know his name; he showed up too late to the scene to hear bradley or jason say it, and whatever name everyone kept saying when they spoke about the calamity was never anything but static to him. but the way he talks and reacts to things makes him feel like maybe they're kind of similar. he hates this.
he squeezes his hand harder, tears already starting to spill over, and looks over to where cloud is still fending off both of the others. he's really going to have to do this himself, isn't he. ]
I-I've never had to do this before, but... I'll try to make it fast, okay?
[ he wishes they could take the time to work out the best way to do this, but they can't, and if he takes too long then he'll be doing this for nothing. so... he lets go of ben's hand and moves to wrap him in a hug from behind as he takes sen's kitchen knife from his pocket, hoping like hell that it's sharp enough to do this.
he closes his eyes for a second, trying to remember exactly where the wound had been on that bodyguard's neck, and what it looked like. the autopsy report had said his death had been almost instant, right? s-so all he needs to do is try to recreate that. yeah.
opening his eyes again, he raises the knife to ben's throat, to what he hopes is the right spot and the right angle. ]
You guys were really lucky to have each other as a family.
[ those are nice last words to hear, right? though he's crying so much now that he doesn't know how well ben will even be able to hear them.
he takes a deep breath, presses in the tip of the knife...
and cuts, as fast and deep as he can manage. ]
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but he is busy having his own bad time, because jason tackles him at the waist to the ground. he has a waist wound. i'd forgotten but he does have that. SO that SUCKS, and there goes the sword because he was only holding it one handed anyway. it lands somewhere out of reach. ]
Jason-- [ it's an objection, and maybe a bit of an apology, as once he hits the ground with jason on top of him he reaches in his pocket for the razor blade he carries and tries to stab him somewhere that will hurt enough so he gets out but not anywhere near actual wounds.
unfortunately he did not account for the fact that bradley is also here ready for a good time, not a long time, and that jostles his attack so woops there's now a razor blade stab in jason's chest instead.
bradley is getting elbowed for his efforts. probably in the face. i want jason and bradley to have matching busted noses for all the sibling jokes?
anyway cloud's on the ground sebastian please gather your sad pixie dust faster ]
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Basically the most he can think to do is bite and rip and destroy? Cloud is really out here being bitten by two feral, fiendish dudes? Using his weight, he dives in to bite down into Cloud's neck. Sadly, not a sexy bite, and sadly not a sexy vampire bite either.
The stab to the chest, though, reels him back and away. He reaches up to grab over the warm wave of blood soaking through the clothes.] ...Cl...oud...? [Nothing better than having clarity during the worst possible moment.
Why is there a metallic taste in his mouth? AAAA.]
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Bradley, however, is once again lost to the corruption. Getting elbowed in the face and breaking a nose isn't enough to shock him back to himself.
He digs his nails into Cloud's arm, tearing down.]
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Then, after a few moments, Ben's body disintegrates into blue dust, until that's the only trace of him left.
Should probably do something with that now! If Sebastian does, in fact, do anything like take the dust and throw it at Jason and Bradley, then they'll find their bodies absorbing the dust into themselves. Their minds will slowly return to normal, the black fading from their sclera.
From inside the bush, Marshmallow, who definitely saw all this happen, lets out a pitiful meow.]
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once it's collected, he scrambles to his feet and runs back to where the fighting is happening; and without any better ideas, he takes some in his hand and blows it in each of their faces — jason first since he's actually staying still enough at the moment to be approachable, then at bradley. ]
Please, please, please work...
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he did not need the added scratching up, so while cloud's just moving harshly to get jason fully off him, bradley is getting a kick to the chest that might break ribs. if mira wants that.
and then sebastian shows up with the powder and tears and wow!!! he sure hopes this works because he's kind of dazedly sitting there putting pressure on his UNSEXY THROAT BITE. he watches the change on both of them with wide eyes
wow instant cure just add the souls of your tiny clock friends ]
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Sebastian's return startles him, and he snaps his head up. The feral, ravenous nature comes back at someone new, but he gets a face full of dead clock spirit friend ashes. He chokes and reaches up to swat at the dust around his face. NO, HE CAN'T... see?
As the dust absorbs into him, the hunger and the crave for violence slowly dissipates. He's left... so fucking tired. It feels like he's run a marathon sure, but worse, it feels like his insides are heavy. The black recedes from his eyes. Slowly, his hands lower, and he looks up. Every damn ache and pain hits him at once, and he bends over to put a hand on the ground. Groans.]
What...? Cloud...? Sebastian? [oh n] Where's... Ben?
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The blue dust works it's magic, slowly returning him to coherency. Everything feels heavier than it should. He flexes his hands and makes a face at the taste in his mouth. ]
... Marshmallow?
[ Jason can cover their clock, what happened to their cat? ]
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After a few moments, he runs back to the cavern. Presumably, they should follow once they're ready. But for now, everything is calm once more.]
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I had to...
[ he already dropped the knife when he went to collect the dust, but there's still blood on his gloves and sleeve when he looks down at them. ]
...He saved you.
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also he needs to pick up his sword. this sucks too.
anyway he's absolutely attempting that now so they can go in a cave, it's fine, everyone looks like they need a trauma moment or two so he can just do that in the background while they are very sad ]
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He squeezes his hands into fists and grits his teeth. Does it mean Ben’s life was any less when they went through all that trouble and time… for this to be the fate that awaited?] Dammit, Ben… Marshmallow, wait! [The frustrated sorrow fades as Cloud starts to get up. STOP! He gets up too! Very unsteadily, but it’s fine.
He has a whole ass knife sticking out of him but he says,] Don’t move around too much. [He can’t pull this thing out, or he’ll bleed worse, so he just holds around it.]
We can’t leave the cat…
[To the cave it is.]
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Getting up, slowly, gingerly, mindful of his broken rib.]
... Was it his choice?
[A slow walk back to where Marshmallow ran.]
[1/2]
When that happens, the four of them make their way back to the Time Channel. Cloud and Sebastian have succeeded in their mission, in changing history and averting the apocalypse. They're not here to go back to their original time, though.
The four of them have somewhere else to return to, don't they?]
EXCURSION COMPLETE.