photonicfighter | Chapter 7 - Pray, for "DAKKI" the distorted

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Chapter 7 - Pray, for "DAKKI" the distorted

[Action A - 458 Stone Street]

[Encouraged by her successes in producing reasonably tasty pancakes and perfectly acceptable sandwiches, Dakki decided to move on to something new. Something different. Something that, according to the instructions in the recipe book, didn't look all that difficult. She was going to make spaghetti with meat sauce.

So onions were chopped (poorly), garlic was minced (sortakinda), ground beef was browned, cans of tomatoes and tomato paste were emptied into a heavy-bottomed pot, and... wait. Wait, the recipe called for mushrooms. Where had that can of mushrooms gone? But how convenient that the front garden had such lovely, tempting-looking mushrooms growing in it...

And of course, she had to taste the sauce, after it had been simmering for a while. And then taste a little more, because it was quite good.

And then she set the spoon down, and stared at her hands with bewildered fascination.]

...These aren't mine.

No, no, they are, but...

Gat? Chen? Look, look! I have my first body back! Isn't that strange?

[Nothing of the sort has actually happened. She's still human. But she's quite convinced that she's a HUCaseal again.]

[Action B - Around Town, late afternoon]

♪ BGM: The nearest place to heaven part 1 (Repeat)

[Having wandered off with the intention of showing all of her new friends her old body, Dakki was soon distracted from this task. Mayfield's streets were no longer Mayfield's streets. To her, she was wandering the halls and shops of Pioneer 2, or the woods and fields around the Central Dome, or the warm caverns beneath Ragol's surface.]

...it's you? Oh! It's you! It's been so long!

[And everyone she comes across (and a few inanimate objects, for good measure) are being recognized as old friends and acquaintances and rivals.]

Don't you remember me? You... you do, don't you?

[But none of them have anything good to say, it seems. And she's rapidly growing more and more upset.]

[Action C - Around Town, evening]

♪ BGM: Pray, for "IDOLA" the distorted (Repeat)

[Dakki's magical mushroom hallucinatory voyage has moved into much choppier waters. She's back in the ruins beneath Ragol, reliving every traumatic moment she once experienced there. Which is manifesting outwardly as, for example, her rushing in to "save" someone from a nearby encroaching mailbox, slicing it into chunks with her photon saber. Or her tackling them out of the way of absolutely nothing. She hasn't attacked anyone, but some serious property damage is being racked up.]

Get away! Go! GO! RUN!

[Action D - Park, late evening]

♪ BGM: After the story 2 (Repeat)

[Physically exhausted from the late hour of the evening and the out-of-her gourd stressed-out exertion of the day, Dakki has collapsed. She has nothing more to give, but hallucinations still grip her. She can be found curled up in a ball, cowering behind a park bench, weeping horribly.]

Please... I can't do this, not anymore, I... I'm sorry... It's my fault...

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[Gat hasn't touched any of the mushrooms yet; he's seen then growing around town, but aside from noting how they seem to have sprung up literally overnight, he's been too busy to succumb to any curiosity.]

[While Dakki's making spaghetti, for instance, Gat's been dusting and wiping down some of the living room furniture. When Dakki calls out that she has her "first body back," Gat perks up, standing up from what he was doing and leaning back to look into the kitchen.]

Did they send you back somethin' today?

[He also hasn't seen Dakki's photon saber yet. Gat stands up, leaning back slightly to peek into the kitchen to see what Dakki looks like now—though he freezes momentarily in an incredulous stare to see that she looks exactly the same.]

Oh no, they didn't send me anything, although I did get my Murasamera back yesterday! This is.... look, look!

[Already, Dakki seems unable to read Gat's expression. If he's apprehensive or confused, she shows no signs of it. Her hands are held towards him. And then she gestures upwards over her head, feeling about, and her delight only increases.]

...I have extra antenna again!

[No, no Dakki, no you don't....]

[From Gat's body language, he's definitely looking confused now, especially when Dakki starts feeling about her head.]

Dakki, uh—you sure you're feelin' alright? You still look human to me.

I feel fine! Gat, quit teasing. I know what... I...

[Then she's back to staring at her hands. First the palms, then the backs... then her gaze fixes on Gat. She reaches out and pokes him. To her, his surface just rippled like water. Or maybe those strange slimes back in the caves on Ragol.]

Ooooooh...

... Dakki, I think you're comin' down with somethin'. You ain't actin' right.

[He gets a few more pokes in the chest, as though she's trying to replicate what she did. The last one, apparently, wasn't any good at all. She backs away with a little yelp.]

I'm... okay, maybe I'm not fine. But I feel...

[She holds out her hands again. Then she glances back to the stove, and the sauce.]

...oh, oh, it's going to burn! [And she zips to the stove, picks up the spoon, gives it a good stir... then samples a bit more, because hey, it tasted very nice...

Then she stares at the spoon, screams, throws it away, and recoils.]

[After seeing how strange she reacted to touching him, Gat glances back toward Chen and the two drones. He can't help but wonder if the town is doing something to her—but Dakki's scream catches his attention.]

Dakki—!

[Gat hurries into the kitchen. She doesn't look like she burned or hurt herself ... He glances down at the spoon for a moment, then back to Dakki.]

What's th' matter? What're you seein'?

D-Delsaber...

[She's backing towards the exit to the kitchen, wanting to put as much space between it and herself as she can. She brushes against Gat along the way, and stares at him with a similar sort of shock.

He's Gat. He's not Gat. He's a RAcast. He's dirty. There are... things floating in the air...

She scrabbles all the way back out of the kitchen, to the living room. And she's heading for the front door, panic rising.]

Delsaber? Dakki—wait, there ain't no—!

[He's saying that even as Dakki makes a sudden move for the front door. Gat turns and starts to follow her, a hand extended outward in an attempt to stop Dakki ...]

[One of the pedestrians she comes across seems to also be in a world of his own, meandering down the street in wide, lazy arcs and humming pleasantly to himself. Occasionally, he salutes a creature or a bush or a passerby; his cheerful expression growing a fraction flatter each and every time.

By the time he crosses Dakki's path, he's switched the trash can lid from its role as jaunty hat to being brandished like a weapon. His other hand is still empty, but the smile on his face is somewhat colder than when it started.]

Of course I remember you. I also remember what you said about me. Maybe I'm the one who should refresh your memory?

[It's said in the most pleasant of tones, but there's threat in there, too, mostly idle.]

...Carter? Oh! Carter!

[Apparently delighted at recognizing an old acquaintance, Dakki stops, takes a moment, and gives a polite bow. The face she's seeing and the voice she's hearing is that of a FOnewm she once helped train.

Her delight is quickly fading, because something's not right... she can't really put her finger on it, though.]

Haven't you been keeping up on your training? Didn't you use what I gave you? ...didn't you?

[Dakki is not the first lost person Thor has seen today. But she is one of the first he recognizes. He approaches, warily, his hammer at the ready - reportedly, she can hold her own against him, after all.]

Hail, Dakki! Tell me - are you afflicted?

[Dakki seems slightly unsteady on her feet, but the day hasn't gone entirely to ruins yet. She's unarmed and apparently very happy to see him.]

Ash! You, too! How's Malicia? Is she here?

[...well. Happy to see whoever's standing in for him, at least.]

[Wha-- Ash? Thor glances over his shoulder, but there is no one else here. He frowns in consternation.]

I know not this Malicia! What you see is not truth, Dakki!

[Suddenly, Dakki turns away with a delighted sound, and goes to hug a mailbox.]

Malicia! You too! I'm sorry you have to be here, but...

[Then she casts a startled look back at Thor, as if actually registering what he said. Sort of. Kind of.]

...don't be silly. Don't you remember? How we almost didn't make it out of the Ruins that time? How we hit the teleporter with three seconds to spare?

[She withdraws from the mailbox with a jolt, as though it had pushed her away.]

[There are several words in that sentence that Thor has never even heard before. He moves toward her warily, hammer at the ready - this particular madness doesn't seem violent, but he's taking no chances.]

I know nothing about this teleporter! I tell you-- what you see is not truth!

...you didn't die down there. You weren't even... they didn't assign you to that squad, Malicia...

[She's staring at the mailbox, backing away from it slowly, growing upset little by little.]

I... I sent them away. You know that. I told them to run. They... they had to make it. They had to! Th... ah!

[Her backing up took her precariously close to bumping into Thor. She caught herself, spun around, and then looked at him with a look of wide-eyed shock.]

...Baal! Baal, please tell him! Please tell him you're okay!

Tell me you're okay.

[Thor cautiously rests a hand on her shoulder - both a gesture of comfort, and a precursor to restraining her, if need be.]

I am unharmed, Dakki, but I am not who you say I am! It is I-- Thor, the son of Odin! What you see before you is not truth!

You're... you're really alright.

[Touch seemed to be getting through the fog, somehow. She reached out to Thor, put a hand on his shoulder, then another upon his cheek. Her panicky horror was giving way to happiness.]

Not a scratch on you. You're right. I've... really missed you. You and Kanone. You'd both love Gurhal. It's a pity we're here, instead.

I am unharmed. What is Gurhal, Dakki?

[He takes her wrist and tugs her hand away from his face - perhaps if he keeps her talking...]

[She was hearing Thor's words, even if they were in Baal's voice and coming from Baal's lips. And how silly of her, to not even explain herself...]

It's a star system in a completely new universe. It's beautiful. There are three planets! Three of them! All full of people. Humans, and Newmans, and CASTs, so many free CASTs... they let me do what I want, Baal! I... I had the chance to choose...

[Oh, now she's getting really emotional. She just tries to haul Thor into a hug. (This is probably more like pressing herself to him, seeing as he's a hard man to budge...)]

I was alright, after you left me in the ruins. Those ruins were linked to similar ones on a planet in the Gurhal system. So that's where I ended up. I was safe. You... you don't have to feel bad, okay?

Please?

[...YUP, THIS IS OFFICIALLY AWKWARD. Thor makes an attempt at disentangling himself. He's not going to indulge these hallucinations any more than he has to.

He is, listening, though. And even what little he can understand is strange. He gives her an awkward pat on the back. All he can do is be honest.]

I... have never seen this Gurhal. But I believe you, if you say that it was beautiful.

[Aw, no long reunion hug? Well, Baal was never very huggy. An awkward pat on the back seems appropriate. She steps away, and wipes her eyes on the back of her hand.]

You'd... you'd have loved Neudaiz.

[She takes another step back, then another, expression changing to an uncertain one. Without something solid to keep her hallucinations on track, they're starting to whirl negatively out of control again.]

You didn't die. You didn't. No! NO!

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Chapter 7 - Pray, for "DAKKI" the distorted

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