monday's child is fair of face (2/2)

[palfriday]

CW: death, probably gore, possibly more TBA

[and that’s what you missed on glee.

and so, there “Friday” is, standing on the roof of the bar. the attention of the party has surely turned to her by this point, but she doesn’t care about that. she just needs one person to still be a little too distracted to stop what was coming next.

Monday snaps her fingers, and Jenny disappears from wherever she was standing before, reappearing directly in front of Monday, who embraces her from behind, an arm wrapped firmly around her middle. those with enhanced senses might catch what she whispers, seconds before she snaps Jenny’s neck so hard it hangs at a 90 degree angle as Monday kicks her, her corpse toppling forward onto the deck below.]

Surprise, bitch.

[well, there. unfinished business settled. onto more pertinent matters.]

Let’s get a little more comfortable first, hm? Can’t waste too much of her magic, but audiences love a quick change.

[she snaps her fingers, and Monday finds herself in an outfit that is far more to her taste. now. time for her grand performance.]

Greetings, foolish mortals! You may or may not have noticed that things have been a little bit different this month. While the Captain is off having a good old bitch cry about whatever it is he’s so upset about, poor little Friday was running herself ragged keeping this shitheap floating! She was so distracted, in fact, that she happened to have a little accident, while fixing something in the elevator shaft! [a laugh] I guess even clay bitches can break their necks! And there I was, sitting in Fucking Nowhere, doing Fucking Nothing, feeling Fucking. Nothing! And I saw her empty shell. And I was, like, hey, free real estate!

Whatever tear in the veil that your whiny little Captain just didn’t feel like fixing? I ripped that fucker right open. And you’ve all met a few of the sorry little fuckers that fell out already, hm? [another snap] Not all of them, but, hey, that’s what now is for, right? Because, see, we all kinda got together a little bit, and we were like… You know, just borrowing some shitty bodies to have some fun for a few weeks? What a waste! And we still have a lot of bitches we need to spring from jail!

And that! Is where you assholes come in! And, trust me, you are all assholes. Have you even seen some of the psychotic shit you people have said and done to us? Like, yeah, Mary is legitimately insane, but she’s still a kid! Even I’m not gonna call a fucking nine year old a bitch!

You can try to run, but I fucking hate running in heels, so I made that a little bit… difficult. So. Why don’t you nice people just lay down and let us kill you. I’ll be gentle. Promise.

[perhaps people have tried to flee already. they likely have. and they’ve found that the entire party area has been blocked off by the same sort of barrier that surrounds the realm, an invisible orb holding them captive.]

Now. Let’s get the actual party started!

Comments

[firewalled]

There is someone familiar in amidst all the smoke and fog. Someone young, or younger than he even appears. Omori isn't attacking yet, but there's blood on his costume suggesting he already has.

When he sees Dimitri, he raises his blade up, even though his eyes are welling up with tears.

"This time... this time for sure."

[prince_of_beasts]

Much as he knows, much as the wrongness of his friend's face and posture makes his gut wrench, for a moment Dimitri thinks -- Rich?!

"Omori," he says, not a growl or a shout, with hardly any menace at all, just disappointed betrayal. "You knew this would happen."

[firewalled]

"I did..." He nods shortly, though it stings to hear Dimitri sound so... defeated. "I tried to warn César. I hoped he'd get people out. But he failed. I guess like we both did."

He shakes his head. "There's no bodies for us on this ship. We don't have a choice. If there was another option for you, I'd take it." He looks Dimitri in the eyes, trying to smile, but he was never good at that. He never really looked like Rich.

Not that he's trying to anymore.

"I know you don't like all this violence, Hero."

[prince_of_beasts]

"I'm not Hero. Nor am I a hero."

("No shit. Couldn't save him or me, could you?")

Dimitri jerks his head, shaking off Rich's voice. His blood is hot, his head loud, his lungs flooded with smoke.

"There is another option," he says. The edge in his voice lacks any real heart or steel. "Stop this. Fight with us or step aside. Your comrades have made their choices," his voice cracks, hoarse, "but I don't want to send you back."

[firewalled]

"But you could be. He was... always such a good big brother. I was jealous of Kel, a lot of the time... but I can have him back now, can't I? If I fight... I can get them all back."

That's what he wanted, isn't it? And it's not like he can stay...

"You don't want to, but... you still want Rich. I'm the one between you getting him back. If you sent me back... then Rich would probably come take his place. So... we're on different sides, aren't we?"

Omori wants to stay alive, but Dimitri wants Rich to. There's no way to remedy this.

[prince_of_beasts]

"We will find another way! I swore it to you and I will do so again -- "

("And leave me stuck like this?! Some fucking friend -- ") "I'm trying!" Dimitri cries, to a spot a few feet to the left of Omori.

"You want to bring them to this? With them? How can you trust them? What's stopping any of them from deciding their family gets a turn in Rich's body? In mine, whoever lands in it? César's? They'll take Kel and Hero and Mari from you again as easily as they're killing us!"

Dimitri shakes his head and steps forward. Blood drips from the knife in Rich's hands. His blood boils, screaming that Omori is a killer and a traitor who deserves only death in kind, at war with his so-familiar image of a frightened, lonely child in a hostile world, with the terror of consigning a desperate ghost to the frozen purgatory Dimitri knows so well.

"There has to be another way. Just -- just give me the knife, Omori. Find someplace to hide."

[firewalled]

Omori jumps back a bit, startled by Dimitri's outburst, but even then, there's not much he can protest to. He knows he's right. The people here... a lot of them are not good. He's not really all that good either, and he knows that.

"I-I just... wanted to save the people who are good."

He reaches up with one bloody hand to wipe away his tears.

"I didn't have time to wait for another way... i-it was the only thing I could do. I don't want to die again.

Again, and again, and again... really, he doesn't know why he's scared of it. What's one more death? What's another hundred years feeling and seeing nothing? Why is he clinging so hard to a life he was never meant to live in the first place?

"I'm so sorry," he whispers. He feels his knees start to give out. What does he do? What can he...

He looks up at Dimitri.

"Do you... do you promise you'll get me later? If I go now?" If he gives him the knife and hides away like instructed?

[prince_of_beasts]

"I promise." Dimitri takes another step, sword lowered, hand outstretched and trembling. He'd screwed up their first interaction so badly; he won't repeat the mistake, even with the screaming in his skull, with the beast frothing in his chest. "Give me the knife. We can fix this, we'll find a way, I -- I promise."

He doesn't know how he'll follow through; only that he will. He has to.

cw attempted suicide

[firewalled]

Omori smiles softly at him, turning the knife around so he's brandishing the handle towards Dimitri, waiting for him to take it. "I believe you. You... do remind me of him, a little. Trying so hard for someone like me... even when I made things so much worse."

That may be why neither of them can hate him... but neither of them can forgive him either. He breathes out slowly, steadying his heartbeat.

See? No need to be afraid, Omori. It's not as scary as you think.

"I'll go now, then. Make sure you take care of Rich when he's back, okay?"

He's still smiling as he guides the knife's blade towards his heart. His thrust is quick, but he watches it heading towards him in slow motion.

[prince_of_beasts]

It's not Rich who moves the knife. But it's Rich's hand, and Rich's voice, and Rich's heart. So when Omori drives the knife in and up, when Dimitri realizes what's happening and lunges to stop him, the name he cries is --

"RICH!"

[firewalled]

Suddenly, there's a hand trying to halt his. It's covering the hilt of his knife, part of the blade. There's a hand on his wrist too, trying to pull him back.

In his daze, he's unsure what happened. He was so sure this was it, that he'd go back to that endless abyss, where he'd wait and pray for Dimitri to find him. He didn't have time for hesitation. What's stopping him now?

"No!" He yells out instinctively, angry for reasons he can't even comprehend right now. "Don't... give it back!" He pulls hard on the hilt, tries to twist to make it too uncomfortable for the other man to restrain him. Instinctively, in the struggle, he tilts the blade further up. After all, he wouldn't want to cut himself accidentally...

cw: stabbing, arm/hand trauma

[prince_of_beasts]

If this were an enemy, it would be easy. But Rich is a friend, and Omori is -- someone Dimitri is trying very hard not to let his mind list as an enemy. If the situation were less hectic, it would be easier, but they're surrounded by battle, and Dimitri is already primed for fighting. So he's struggling with himself even more than Omori to avoid breaking Rich's arm or crushing his wrist.

He yanks Omori closer for leverage. Omori's wrist twists in his other hand, the manacle grip he's used to avoid clamping down, and the knife buries itself in Dimitri's side. He jerks and grits his teeth. Bone snaps in Rich's arm. Too late, Dimitri recoils; the bloodied blade slices across his fingers, scraping bone, as he clutches at it, and the ship's translator fails as he spits a curse in his mother tongue.

[firewalled]

Omori staggers forward with a yell, Dimitri's inhuman strength too much for him to combat, and- suddenly there's red. There's red staining Dimitri's clothes, and the knife in Omori's hands, and all he can see is red when something cracks in his wrist. He lets out a howl, knees threatening to buckle, and he recoils back along with Dimitri, one hand still holding the knife, the other hanging limply as he assesses the damage.

"N-No... Why did you...?"

There's so much blood... If he hit anything major, than Dimitri is doomed.

"We have to..." Omori's eyes go wide with horror. "We have to stop them coming. They'll take you too if I don't..."

And he can't do this again. He can't make any of his friends deal with the struggle of wanting to live, but knowing they don't belong. He raises his blade, the one still dripping blood, threatening to drive it into his chest...

The floor rumbles and gives him pause.