Night 47: Main Hallway, 1-Center

[tyki_pon]

[From here]Tyki moved further down the hallway at an easy pace, noticing the lack of other patients around here but he didn't really care much about it. Perhaps it meant no one would snag any smokes away from under his nose this time, but then again, that may have been too optimistic. Eh, but that hardly meant that another person would get away

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[dreadofthegrave]

"Oh? I'm supposed to block something even a witch couldn't evade?" Battler returned on a light note of sarcasm. It did sound like something he might try, or maybe more accurately, something he might think of. In fairytales, the knight often protected the princess even with his own back. He probably would have, if given the chance, but those kind of stories were named such because they never quite fit into reality. He wasn't a knight, nor she a princess. Unequal footing wouldn't necessarily work in his favor; his strength wasn't automatically guaranteed solely by the color of his pieces. When facing a stronger opponent, it was inevitable that white might end up in check. Right now, it was more appropriate to at least be glad it hadn't ended in mate.

He cast a weary expression over his shoulder just before exiting. ... It was only natural. There was no sense of joy of exposing weak points to enemies. The difference was obvious enough facing towards each other, but turning around decreased his chances to an almost certain zero. However, Battler ignored that sense, and stepped out into the hallway with his gaze remaining completely forward. Perhaps it was recklessness, false confidence, or maybe something as simple as pride. There was just something about of all this.... He'd be back one night, and prepared that time.

Battler couldn't help but shake his head at what she was saying. Magic toxin? He'd heard the explanation before, and it always sounded like something cheap and evasive. A clever way of giving truth to lies. "And who's going to believe that crap?" he asked. Something was making her weaker, but Battler couldn't imagine it to be something like that. After the last state she'd been in, he could only think that it had something to do with their last fight. She might have recovered some, but there was no way of knowing whether it was complete, especially in a person like this.

"If you're trying that North Wind and the Sun strategy again, you can just stop now. It's not a funny joke, you know? People get pretty pissed off when you repeat a bad prank. ... You might just end up like the boy who cried wolf." He was half-joking, in part to cover up the uneasy feeling he was getting from this. He knew too well how much pain she'd been in, and the thought that it might not be completely gone wasn't a pleasant feeling. Maybe it was true that it was his goal to kill her, but that didn't mean she had to suffer. It wasn't like he unconditionally trusted her or expected something from her. He believed in her in the sense that he believed that her mystery was something that could be solved; their love was as rivals, and nothing else. Besides, she'd pitied him once, hadn't she? ..... Battler didn't believe in unpaid debts.

That particular question didn't help things. He'd had a feeling that she didn't remember anything, but not even that promise?

"Before that, what's the last thing you remember?" he asked carefully. What she knew and what she didn't could change a lot about his answer.

[goldenroulette]

"...Tch." She tried to fold her arms over her chest, turning away just a bit to again try and hide the worst of that blow, but she couldn't. Blood stained her lips, though it wasn't visible in the dim light. The first thoughts that came to her mind were teasing, but she kept them to herself for the moment, for the most part. "I wouldn't have put it past you to try to do so. It runs in your family, Battler."

She laughed for a moment, then continued. "But I am not repeating that strategy. If you must have it, I'll say it in that red you demand so much from me: I am not repeating a prank. Only someone truly inferior would do something on that level. It wouldn't do to repeat a trick knowing that you know just how to see through it."

She fell silent, then, realizing instantly that it had gone wrong. Beatrice had certainly intended to wield her red, then, but even that had failed. "Is it that bad, then?", she murmured, looking off into the darkness. "Is the level that high, that even something such as that, which should be no problem, fails?" She laughed bitterly, choosing to answer the last question first - even if she could only go so far in her assurances. She turned away as she explained.

"I remember pulling out each of your blue stakes, save one. That one was stubborn; I wouldn't be surprised if it left a scar. That, after telling me I was giving up too soon." Beatrice paused for just a moment, chewing her lower lip and considering her words before her lips curled into something not unlike a smirk.

"I had planned - no. Hoped to have gone against you one last time, and if you hadn't succeeded in it...I shouldn't have fallen into something such as unconsciousness or the like just from that blue of yours, but perhaps the strain was too much after all." An equally bitter laugh rang out, one that was almost a curse in and of itself. "So you howled and threatened that you would have my life, but that was it. I had intended to ask a question, but...I suppose that question doesn't matter now."

With that, she finally met Battler's eyes again, looking almost as if she had been blinking back tears before, but she showed no sign of it now. "I'm surprised that you don't understand that toxin. Most humans have some amount, but in all my thousand years, I can't say I've encountered it in this level. With this level of it in the air, it's no wonder I couldn't even use a simple barrier."

[dreadofthegrave]

.... So, the use of red was prohibited? Or maybe just restricted. Considering where they were, that could mean a lot of things. There was something blocking it, the rules were different here, or she was intentionally leading him astray. The last actually seemed the least likely at this point; they were past the stage of petty tricks. Perhaps the reason didn't even matter so much as the fact it was denied; in the world of the gameboard, of conflicting truths, where witches and demons roamed freely, it was the only real guarantee of anything. In other words, without that red, nothing was going to be confirmed or denied.

Maybe the real question was how much that mattered. From his first conversation with Rika, he couldn't say that it seemed like he'd been placed in a world within the confines of reality. Wasn't this more like a new board? A different one, separate from the mysteries on Rokkenjima. From that perspective, it was easy to feel like there was something he needed to prove; there were already two conflicting truths present here. Mystery vs. fantasy meant completely a completely different thing. Rather than witches and magic, it was a question of identity and origin.

However... hoping to unravel this place or prove his own sanity was already mistaking his goal. In a sense, what happened here was irrelevant. It was only natural to question the circumstances and the things that conflicted and contradicted, but the objective, the true mystery, lay inside Beatrice's gameboard. There was no obligation to prove or disprove anything here, because this was completely outside of their argument. To goal here wasn't to reclaim his reality, it was to return to the original board.

Of course, couldn't that just be naive, wishful thinking on his part? At the start of the fifth game, Battler had childishly declined his part, not wishing to continue if it meant a new opponent. It wasn't like he didn't realize. Here, it might even be the same thing. Perhaps he was rebelling because the premise of the game had changed. A new board, a new mystery, different pieces, a different opponent. It was natural to want to rebel against that. However, there was no guarantee about what finding their way back entailed. One thing could be said, however. Whoever was in charge of this, whoever had brought them here--that was the true enemy.

Battler was silent as Beatrice spoke. .... He didn't like it, the direction she was going in. Hadn't she given up after all? Because it was too painful. Because his truth still wasn't enough.

"...It matters," he said quietly. "Your final mystery. I'll definitely solve it."

That final mystery, the one that would finally end up destroying her. He'd definitely promised that, and even though there was probably no way to realize that promise here, he intended to keep it. Actually, even between the two boards, didn't one goal remain exactly the same?

"You asked about this earlier, right?" he asked, holding up his ring. "I solved it. Your epitaph. Well, I never thought I'd get a fake for it, but that doesn't really matter. But you know, I still don't get it. What is your mystery, what are you trying to show me...? I don't get it at all." The admission was almost comical, in a way; he was clearly admitting that he was losing, but there was no discomfort in his words. Instead, they were filled with confidence and that familiar will to fight.

"... It's not over. I already accepted that mystery. Even if we're here, I won't throw away that board you worked so hard to create. I guess you couldn't have heard me clearly that time, so... Just watch me, Beato. ... I'm taking it back! I'm reclaiming that gameboard, and we're finally ending everything! Just a little longer...!"

Yeah, that was right. No matter what kind of question and answers piled up here, that was what he needed to do. That was the real goal.

[goldenroulette]

She had turned away for a moment, trying to think that through herself. Beatrice had accepted at some point in the blur that was the sedation she'd taken that morning that she couldn't blame this on either of those two meddling Voyagers, nor could she blame it on herself. She had, perhaps, given up too soon, but it was too late to blame herself for that; it was an action she wouldn't and couldn't regret. Not now, not on this board, and not ever.

Those words shook her out of her thoughts - the things she hadn't had the chance to ask, but were being stated as clearly as if she had.

Who...am I?

Her vision blurred for just a moment, but if he wasn't going to show weakness right now, then she certainly couldn't - no. It wasn't that she couldn't show that weakness, it was that she didn't want to do it. She had perhaps shown her hand too much in this short time, gotten her hopes up a bit more than she should have, but she wouldn't do that again.

This is why you're my opponent. This determination is why you're the only one who will finish this.

When she looked up, the tears were gone from her eyes, replaced with a genuine smile that hid how much physical pain she was in. She murmured an almost inaudible "Thank you." before trying to draw herself back up to her full height. That was a more painful endeavor than she had anticipated, but she managed that while trying to keep a modicum of grace. That done, her lips turned up a bit more, in a subdued smirk.

"You didn't get a fake for it, unless someone tampered with the board's rules. If that's the case, then I'll rectify that now." She held up her own hand, with the identical ring on it, before slipping it off her finger and handing it to him with that same smirk on her face. Something flickered in her eyes for just a moment, but she said nothing else, instead laughing brightly for a moment despite the pain and the injuries.

"I wouldn't expect anything less from you. I like it, I like your determination. But I won't give you any clues, or go easy on you, just because we happen to be on the same board again. All riiiiiiiiiiiiight?"

[dreadofthegrave]

Was that confidence real? Was his own? They weren't questions that needed answers. Just moments before, he'd wondered if she still might secretly be suffering, but even a fake, forced confidence eliminated the need to do so. Showing that kind of face meant only one thing, right? Perseverance. The will not to give in. He'd been asked once how he could tell that Beatrice was putting everything into her fight, ad he found that the answer was still exactly the same: I can tell just by looking. Therefore, neither could waver. They may have possessed similar goals here, but those were only temporary. Before all else, they were opponents, and he'd already swore that he would never lose sight of that. Hard feelings might still remain and may never be absolved, but the rules of good sportsmanship forbade that from coming into play. In other words, they'd fight with everything, not holding back, and there would be no bitter tears at the end. Only a kid hated the victor, when they should instead be using that loss to come back even stronger. That was the mark of maturity, although he hardly felt mature for thinking that. Maybe that meant he'd finally grown up some.

Battler watched in silent curiosity as she handed him her ring, and found himself holding it out next to the one he was wearing. ..... They really were the same. Even right next to each other, it was hard to tell that there were two of them rather than some strange mirror trick. He almost considered handing it back to her, but even though she had no reason to, Beato always adhered to rules behind the epitaph. Therefore, he would too.

"Well, I'm not really sure what I'm supposed to do with two of them, but if that's what you want, sure." It wasn't like he could wear both of them, so the one on his hand was slipped into his pocket, Beatrice's replacing it. Visually, there was no difference, but there was no question about the significance of the action. This was her ring, after all. It meant a victory, if only a small one, and was the proof of what could be brought about if he didn't stop thinking.

"The same goes for you. Before, I may have stopped thinking a little, or given in when things got too weird. I realize now that was wrong. I'm not going easy on you, either! I'll uncover that truth, I'll gouge right through the cracks in your red! Prepare yourself, alright? The next game, this finally ends!" Of course, it was a promise he wasn't sure that he could keep, but he didn't want it to be a bold-faced lie, either. ..... The sooner a checkmate was reached, the sooner all the suffering could end.

"Come on. I think I have an idea that should help us out, but there's something I need to take care of for it." He started to make his way around the corner, seemingly oblivious to Beatrice's pain, but anyone who knew him well would notice that his steps were a little more deliberate. It was about the best he could do. He wasn't stupid enough to think that she hadn't been injured from that attack, and it felt strange to leave her on her own if only because she was a woman, but if she was fighting so hard against it, then out of respect for that, he could spare her pride.

[ to hurr ]

[goldenroulette]

[to derp]