1/? [Action]

[seedprodigy]

((OOC: Internet issues are fixed, so let's get this party started))[Quistis wakes slowly, curled up with her knees almost to her chin, as if to conserve body heat. She looks surprisingly peaceful - at least until she opens her eyes, only to see branches and leaves above her and feel a breeze she certainly shouldn't if she was indoors

Comments

[Action]

[eidolon_soul]

['Cagnazzo' is lumbering through the forest, grumbling under its breath. This hardly has the joy of one of her usual hikes through nature, but what else can Rydia do? Returning to town like this is not an option.]

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[seedprodigy]

[And that sight causes Quistis to jump to her feet and scramble back, not noticing the wings or her clothing for a moment, grabbing for her whip and realizing... problem of problems, it's not there. That's really bad news when something that size is right in front of her! She prepares a Firaga in desperation when...]

[Action]

[eidolon_soul]

[...when the beast turns into a woman. A very scantily clad blond woman that's floating above the ground. She jumps and stares at herself in revulsion.]

Not again!

[Action]

[seedprodigy]

[Unfortunately Quistis has seen a few monsters that change shape - though not normally so radically. That alone wouldn't stop her from casting, but the voice, or specifically the words, cause her to pause. After all, not everything big and scary is evil... mostly.]

Not again what?

[She's still a snap away from casting, though, just in case.]

[Action]

[eidolon_soul]

I keep changing and I can't stop! I hate this experiment!

[Frustrated tears formed. She was a bit too distraught to realize that the person before her was a newcomer.]

[Action]

[seedprodigy]

This what?

[Experiment? What experiment? Quistis lowers her arms a little as she realizes that this probably isn't what it looks like. It... almost couldn't be what it looks like.]

[Action]

[eidolon_soul]

[She turns away and lets out an angry scream. A moment and a few deep breaths later, she calmed a little.]

...that's better.

Experiment. You know, forced transformation into monsters or whatever foes we fought. It's been happening all over town! This is their payback for last month, I know it....

[Action]

[seedprodigy]

[Apparently this 'experiment' is bad. And Quistis responds to 'bad' the way she normally does - she has to fix it. And for that she needs information.]

That's happening in Balamb?! Who's doing it?! Why?! For Hyne's sake how?!

[Action]

[eidolon_soul]

Balamb? What are you talking about? This is Luceti!

[She stared at the woman incredulously, then paused to look her over and--groan.]

You're new, aren't you. Welcome to hell.

[Action]

[seedprodigy]

Hell? This isn't Hell, this is-

[Stop being so literal, Quistis. Clearly this is a place you know nothing about, so stop reacting and think. Finally finally her arms drop entirely from their casting position as she eyes ...the thing.]

Are you going to become that... creature again?

[Action]

[eidolon_soul]

It might as well be!

[She crossed her arms and floated some more.]

I will, in body. My mind is still my own. It's the same way with this form. It's already happened several times, and will likely last until the end of the week. That's the length of most of these experiments. You'll see what I mean.

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[seedprodigy]

This has a time limit? Wait. Please.

[Taking a deep breath, she shook her head a couple of times, one hand pressed to her forehead, concentrating. Once she could think more clearly, she looked at the creature in front of her again.]

You seem to know what's going on here, could you explain? Nothing makes sense.

[Action]

[eidolon_soul]

[Under different circumstances, Rydia would have been much more helpful and sympathetic. It was much more difficult to play the welcoming committee now when she could barely focus, knowing that she could revert to that monster at any moment. She sighed and rubbed her forehead, trying to think.]

You were kidnapped from your world and placed in this realm, called Luceti. The people who kidnapped you are called the Malnosso. I can't tell you what they look like, because I've never seen them. They have hundreds of people from many worlds here and every month, they toss a new experiment at us--something that changes our personality or appearance or....well, the list goes on. Oh, and you can't leave. The barrier has never been breached, so far.

[Action]

[seedprodigy]

[That... as brief as that was, it did still help. It gave Quistis most of the essential information in a way she could understand. Though she didn't like any of it.

She took a deep breath. Time Compression had taught her the hard way how to deal with some difficult concepts, even if this was weirder than anything else she'd heard of.]

...Malnosso. Barrier. Luceti. Do you have any idea when they plan on releasing us? Or even on how they get us here in the first place?

[Action]

[eidolon_soul]

[Rydia hmphed and floated around restlessly.]

It's entirely up to their whim as to whether or not they'll release us, and it varies widely. Some people have been here more a year, others we barely see before they're never heard from again. It doesn't help that they kidnap random people from time to time, either. As for how...who knows? Magic beyond our understanding, is my best guess. I've never heard anything that could reach beyond time and space in this manner.

[Action]

[seedprodigy]

Neither have I. And while I'm sure they have their reasons for doing as they do, it makes absolutely no sense to me.

[It probably never would, either, but she didn't know that yet. To her, with enough effort, anything was possible - but she didn't think she could wrap her head about all this new information yet.]

When you aren't... trapped in this experiment... who are you?