A Whole New World? DDDX
Characters: Fugue (fugue_angel) and Drake (onyx_drake)
Date/Time: Starting bright and early on July 23
Location: Various places in Square Zero and The City Without Walls
Rating: TBA?
Summary: Drake's such a busy guy, but Fugue has quite a bit of explaining to do since the last time he'd done a greeting. So Fugue (in his 'true form') finally takes Drake on a tour of The ( Read more... )
Date/Time: Starting bright and early on July 23
Location: Various places in Square Zero and The City Without Walls
Rating: TBA?
Summary: Drake's such a busy guy, but Fugue has quite a bit of explaining to do since the last time he'd done a greeting. So Fugue (in his 'true form') finally takes Drake on a tour of The ( Read more... )
The man was somewhat fascinated at how easily Drake attached to floating. Not that it should have been fascinating, although part of that emotion lay in the fact that it took a lot of time to suit up and finally be affected by gravity. Meanwhile, whatever ability that was just... seemingly worked with ease and was probably similarly easy to undo for that matter.
"In that case, let's get going." For a moment, he tugged at a little pouch at his side, whipping out his map of the second floor. Pointing at a little smudge of an island mapped on the bottom, about center-right, Fugue continued, "There. I'll show you the library first. After I was born, that was the first place I went to--I just knew it was there. It was as if the place was calling to me, and so I went to learn more."
Scanning about the branches, his eyes narrowed while he tried to calculate the quickest means of reaching that island. "Ah, and the miracle--I suppose that would be the butterfly. I saw it in my dream, and that boy named Sora tamed one... and this was also just like my dream as far as can be inferred. But I thought it was a miracle, though why I would call it that..." He shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure."
Having completed that explanation, he finally determined some route and began heading that way.
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He was always a little surprised at just how simple it was to engage and disengage that particular ability. It was as if he just had to think 'okay I don't want to do this anymore' and he wasn't. Strange yet true, however very very useful on a lot of levels. He floated over to look at Fugue's map, pursing his lips at the little smudge. "The library, huh?" This had just skewed way into the realm of the fascinating -- both that it was there at all, and that Fugue really had lost everything. This was getting even more enlightening, even more fascinating.
"...a butterfly, huh?" A miracle, a butterfly. He filed those into the giant rolodex that was his mind, putting them away for further study later. Everything ended up in the rolodex eventually, little tidbits of information seemingly unrelated until things crystallized and the whole picture came into view. "Butterflies are strange things, I guess you could consider them miraculous."
As Fugue found the route he let himself float away from the branch, following the other along the chosen route. This was going to be one heck of a day.
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As they floated, it looked like small pebbles were growing, slowly taking new formations as they grew larger. However, it seemed that Fugue was far too focused to really take any notice. Instead, he swam out further and further from the tree, more toward what looked like an island right beside a giant glass wall with a slight inward curve as it extended upward--it was likely this wall composed the 'sphere' part of Edensphere. (Although one would argue about where the 'Eden' part was located.)
Some may argue that they'd been flying forever, but it was actually done in very good record time. There was the island. And on this island was a building, overrun with weeds and ivy. One of the walls had crumbled, revealing endless shelves and bookcases lined with journals. Rows and rows of journals extended far into the back recesses. Journals. Somewhat dusty, torn and weathered. An overwhelming amount of journals.
Fugue grabbed at one of the walls and ducked into the building. From there, he held on one of the shelves while turning to Drake. "This is the library, otherwise known as the archives."
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Fugue might have been focused, but Drake saw that. Dark eyes widened as he watched the 'pebbles' growing and taking new formations. The islands just randomly appeared...? The sphere seemed to have a mind of its own, or at least it seemed that way. They had only just barely started on their expedition and already Drake had had a lot of things about his personal picture of Edensphere altered. He'd had part of it sorted out but suddenly the puzzle had just unfolded even more; it seemed like he only had one corner and was staring at a vast array of pieces that needed arranging. Somehow he got the feeling that this was only the tip of the iceberg of information he was going to get today.
He squinted at the island, squinted more at the building -- and then his eyes popped wide open when he realized just what he was looking at. When they were close enough to the building to grab things he snagged a wall, using it to pull himself down to the ground. A bit of concentration and he was walking along the ground normally again, looking around in stunned fascination. How many journals...how many people had been through the Sphere? There were scads of the things here, more than he'd ever thought even remotely possible. He reached up to the nearest shelf, picking up a journal and brushing the dust off it.
"The archives...so these are the writings of previous residents, I presume." More a statement than a question. He opened up the book, leafing through it absently. "How many people have been through here?" This was mindboggling, though from the way he was behaving you would never know just how floored he really was. That was one of the pluses of being Drake -- he came with the most upgraded version of Poker Face(tm).
"So you come here to refresh your memory. Interesting...how do you know where to start looking in all these volumes?" There were so many here that it boggled even the most rational mind.
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Clinging to the shelves, he moved further down before adding, "I suppose it'd be most logical to start from the ones here--they seem less dusty, so I assume they're more recent. Although whether or not they arrange themselves or arrive here all mixed up, I'm still uncertain. Often enough, I try to read as many as I can, but... well, of course there are so many. Some with strikeouts or ink blots, others with faded colors. I can only learn so much in so little time."
Indeed, the journals were in various degrees of wear and tear; some were in such disrepair that it probably would be impossible to read them. Even in the less dusty, more recent ones, words were already starting to bleed or fade as if they'd been sitting for a very long time. But there was one journal that would clearly stand out to Drake--he'd seen that one before. Come to think of it, Sight hadn't written in the longest time... and yet that journal, though somewhat beaten and dirty... could it be?
[ooc: The journal that stands out IS the journal that Sight lost a couple weeks ago. However, he does have a new one at this point in time.]
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...hmmmmmm.
"Faded colors and strikeouts, hm?" The strikeouts were Fugue's own work, of course, and the colors usually Thirty-Eight's, but you never knew. All of it fading into itself over time. He looked through the journals and lit on the one that stood out; his eyes widened a touch when he realized what he was looking at and he reached up to pull it out and flip it open. His expression didn't betray that his stomach was sinking just a touch as he leafed through it. But hadn't someone mentioned that he was looking for his journal and he'd gone to get a new one...?
He'd better. Drake didn't want his associate -- teacher, his mind interjected -- to have vanished.
He paged through the journal, looking over the entries that had been pointed out to him and ones from well before he'd arrived, noting how the words were starting to fade as though the Sphere was trying to reabsorb them. "This one's recent," he affirmed as he paged through it, though after a moment his eyes flicked up to give the shelf a quick once-over. Maybe Throne's old journal was in here somewhere too...interesting on all counts, and it distracted him from the lead weight in his gut. He wasn't going to be completely at ease until he knew Sight was still amongst the living.
"You definitely should have taken more time off to at least read up before you came back to work," he said offhandedly as he turned the pages. "That's a lot to absorb in a very little amount of time." After a bit he looked up, eyebrows arching in Fugue's direction.
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He already began to make his way back to exit the building. "Perhaps I will take more time off and refresh myself, then." Although how much time he should take off, he wasn't really certain. How long would it take to get himself re-oriented? Would it take long, and would it be a major brain strain? He hoped not--the very idea of being rattled over his forgotten past was quite unpleasant.
Reaching the broken wall and still clinging while floating just outside the building, he called, "We've spent enough time--I believe we should get going. There are many other places that we could visit... aside from the Marketplace and Park, of course. Since you've already seen Crystala at least once, I suppose there's not much point in visiting there unless you feel like it."
Fugue had decided that visiting all these places would not only be beneficial for the captain of the guard, but for himself as well. Perhaps something would just click, something to his knowledge and understanding.
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"One of many things that are normal for you, though to be honest I think Throne and I do more of that right now than you do. Then again, neither one of us have social lives." He carefully put the journal back into place, looking at it for a moment. "I can understand a desire to return to normalcy, and it isn't like any of us expected that particular disaster to crop up, but maybe just a little more time would have been better. Then again, it's hard to say. Situations are weird sometimes."
He let his feet detach from the floor, floating up and out of the building as Fugue decided to move on. "I saw enough of Crystala to satisfy me for a while," he said dryly. "Let's go see something else that hasn't been on my heretofore very limited explorations list." Time to go see something new. He was definitely looking forward to this, there was a lot out here that he knew was just going to baffle him.
"So how do you get to that place when we're not all floating around?" he asked as they started heading to wherever it was they were going next.
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Considering that Drake had also frequented the park, Fugue figured the next best stop would be the State Aquarium... which meant they might see Bernard again. At least Drake was the captain of the guard, so if Bernard escaped, something could still be done about it. Although the man would rather be spared those thoughts altogether.
"Next, we'll stop at the State Aquarium," he announced.
And still, as they flew, rocks were like popcorn in some distance overhead; the formations were still building up, forming, changing, and merging as they swam toward their next destination. Again, Fugue seemed to take absolutely no notice of it whatsoever.
While the islands seemed fairly distanced, thankfully their flight toward the aquarium was not nearly as long as the descent to the library. Fugue floated over the glass domes, opting to stay a 'safe distance' from the enclosures. The aquarium could be considered a rather curious place with its glass tunnels for further underwater observation or exploration... without actually being in the water at all.
"My... erm, date... was arranged so that we'd both meet here." Pausing to think about it for a moment, he continued, "I suppose that went... well enough. But I don't believe I know much about this island."
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"That works." He soared over the islands with Fugue, watching intently as the rocks formed and merged and created formations that were definitely not there before. Now he had something new to chew on. Fugue seemed totally oblivious to it...but was he really? Drake had no doubt that the man really had blanked on his previous knowledge of his time here, he wasn't a good enough actor to dissemble that well, but was he really oblivious to this?
Questions, questions.
As they came to a stop in midair, floating over the aquarium, Drake blinked. How...completely odd, that didn't make much sense, weren't those supposed to be submerged? He glanced over, then snorted softly. "Good. She seems harmless, if enthusiastic. Maybe she's just lonely. Are we going to explore it?"
After a moment, he shook his head a bit. "That all looks like it should be underwater, not on dry land."
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--anyway. He looked at the domes, studying them for a little bit and noting how the gradient blue as the water deepened. Then Fugue wondered if Drake had ever seen an aquarium before. "Essentially, this island is a giant, strangely shaped fish tank. There are different kinds of aquatic creatures within that glass container, which is arranged in such a manner to allow a visitor to see the creatures in their underwater habitat."
He gave a fairly soft and warm smile. "People could feed them if only the domes weren't in the way, I think." Naturally, Fugue wasn't quite feeling that friendly, though; yanking out his map, he scanned it, preparing for their next destination.
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"...huh. I'm definitely going to have to go explore a bit, that's a fascinating concept." Giant fish tanks? So totally odd. The smile didn't escape Drake's notice though; his eyes slid over and one eyebrow quirked just a touch. That was interesting, and not something he ever would have expected to see. Totally fascinating. "I hope they do get enough to eat. Where to now?"
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"We could float over to the workshops, where the trades-smiths and such workers repair and rebuild objects that could be of good use. Scavengers often take things over there. On our way over, we could point out the housekeeping headquarters and paper factory on passing. Housekeeping does an amazing job, and the paper factory supplies the journals that hatchlings first receive."
These were probably really interesting things to note.
"Then we could make our way to the farmland--en route, we could easily point out the clinic on the medical island." A pause, then a glance at Drake before continuing, "Although I was pretty sure you'd be familiar with that place, too." He closed his eyes and thought for a brief moment, like he was processing some important information. "Ah, and then we could head out to the racetrack."
At this, he nodded to himself in confirmation of their route.
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"I have been to the hot springs, albeit only once," he admitted as they floated their way over things. That had been an interesting trip, for any number of reasons. "So we're just generally making a circuit of everything, then?" Workshops and housekeeping, while useful to note the presence of, were not exactly the most scintillating of things. The paper factory, though..."That has to be some kind of special paper factory, I'd assume, since those journals are something quite different from 'normal'." He'd left his at home. He never took his journal with him if he was going beyond Square Zero; he had some kind of paranoia about losing it, so it seemed best to make sure that he wouldn't.
"I'm aware of the clinic thanks to Gungnir though I haven't had to spend any time there -- thank god." So far, at least. He'd prefer to keep up that streak of luck, if he had the option. He paused though, tilting his head to the side and blinking at Fugue. "Wait...racetrack?"
That was a totally new one there. He looked down as they floated, squinting at the islands. He could identify some from up here, and now he was trying to put a name to the others -- including anything that was forming or had formed, or that Fugue hadn't mentioned yet.
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Noting Drake's pause, Fugue replied, "Ah, yes. There's a racetrack for chocobo racing and such." Again, another nod in confirmation as if he was the one who'd originally questioned it. As they continued, one of the islands had begun to become fully detailed with... bedrooms of all sorts, furnished in a manner of ways. Desks, chairs... and further down, an entire open showroom of sofas, loveseats, and couches. Another way down, there were a number of kitchen countertops and cabinets. In essence, everything on that island had everything to do with household furnishings.
So there was a slight change en route, and the man pointed out the workshop island in the distance as they arrived at a small island littered with rocks and trees--the paper factory. It wasn't particularly cleared out, like whoever first arrived there prioritized setting up their equipment and working on pounding out paper rather than cleaning up the island for use. Various overgrowths surrounded the small clearing of machinery and tables for journal construction.
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"Choco--oh, like that thing that Gungnir has." He would have absolutely no clue what a chocobo even was if not for Ruby. Useful thing to know. As they soared over the new island he blinked and just stared. It was a giant furniture store that had just cropped up out of nowhere. No, more than that, it was a huge household store and he could see gadgets and all kinds of other things. Unbelievable. On a totally flippant note he made sure to mentally tag that and go get himself a new sofa. Maybe one of those nifty sectional kinds.
He noted where the workshop island was before they came to a stop at the island where the press was. A little creative 'swimming' and they were much nearer the ground and the equipment. "Wow...so how does this all work? The paper and the journals and all."
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