Zelos Wilder (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
redsnowangel) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
genessia2015-04-11 09:05 pm
redsnowangel) wrote in genessia2015-04-11 09:05 pm
007: And Then The Walls Fell Down [Action/Video]
[Action]
[It was not difficult to notice that the bay had mysteriously disappeared, as he walked past it fairly regularly on his way to work. Normally, Zelos would avoid something odd like this entirely, dismissing it as too much effort to investigate, or just 'someone else's problem'. However...it looked harmless enough, and soon his curiosity got the better of him.
Wandering over to the where the old bay was, he slipped off his shoes and socks, pulled up his trousers past his knees, and headed into the cool water. He wasn't stupid enough to stray into the giant hole in the middle, of course, for now focusing on the small lights glittering around him.
Huh.
Tentatively, he reached into the water and scooped two of them into his hands to get a closer look. Before he could work out what they were, the two stars shattered, one after the other...]
[First Memory, Semi-open*]
A flurry of snow fell steadily past the windows of the Wilder mansion. Zelos - only a young child of 10 or so - bounced on the balls of his feet, staring up with wide eyes at the sky and across the city rooftops, the city square and the trees, all covered in a steadily growing blanket of white. Nothing like this had ever happened before.
Of course, when he finally tore his eyes away from the strange sight, the first person he ran to was his mother, racing past the family butler as he did so. To say the least, the friendly warnings of "Master Zelos, please do not race around the halls in such a manner..." were left entirely unheard by the excited child.
He found her drinking tea in the drawing room, dressed in an ornate, pale red gown fit for the noblewoman she was, long blonde hair done up in a tidy bun. She gave Zelos a tired look, a small, despairing sigh escaping her that he did not notice as he ran to her side, pestering his mother to come out and play in the snow with him.
To his absolute delight and surprise, she finally got to her feet, following her son as he dragged her as fast as he could into the gardens. Zelos was barely able to hide the bright smile filling his face and spring in his step.
The feeling of snow under his feet, the crunching sound that came with it, the little twinges of cold as the flakes melted onto his outstretched hands fascinated him. For a while, his mother just waited by the wide doorway, watching her son play with a bored disinterest. Eventually, though, she walked over to him and crouched down, starting to roll a large ball of snow. Zelos soon got the hint, starting on one of his own until it was big enough to make a snowman's head. Together, they carefully rolled the head onto the body, and Zelos gathered some twigs and stones to give it arms and a face, before standing on his tiptoes to drape his own scarf around it's shoulders.
But then, in a flash, the snowman fell apart. A deep red splatter hit what remained of it's body.
Zelos froze, only able to stare as his mother staggered from the spell's impact. She fell, grabbing onto her son's shoulder to try and support herself. The boy couldn't find his voice, his mouth just forming the word 'Mother' but no words escaped him. With her last, rasping breaths, she spoke to him for the last time:
"You should never have been born,"
Her hand slipped from his shoulder, and she fell to the ground. The snow around them slowly turned red with blood.
[*OOC: Because of how much of an impact this memory has on Zelos, I'd rather not too many people see it. If you're curious though and we haven't discussed it already, feel free to drop me a PM!]
[Second Memory, OPEN]
So, the group were getting ready to fight the angel Yggdrasil once and for all. Despite the tension and drive that filled the air that morning, Zelos felt strangely…empty. He released a long breath, that formed into mist in the cold air. He kept a bit of a distance from the others - just enough so that it wouldn't look suspicious. Knowing them, they'd assume he was mentally preparing himself for the fight.
Despite his efforts, though, Lloyd caught him as they prepared to leave town, brow furrowed as concern wrote itself into his usually kind and sure expresson.
"…Zelos, can I really trust you?"
That was it, then. Of all the people he hoped might, somehow learn to believe in him…in the end, it was all for nothing? Lloyd, the most forgiving, open-hearted person he'd ever met, even he couldn't bring himself to put his faith in him?
"What are you saying?" he replied, a fake smile and lighthearted tone easily slipping into place once again, "Of course you can trust me! I’m the type that responds to people’s trust."
"Really?" Lloyd still wasn't convinced? That only twisted the knife deeper. He really wasn't worthy of anyone's trust, he knew that.
"Really! Really, really, come on, let's go!" Zelos replied. He just wanted out of this talk.
Luckily, Lloyd was soon distracted by the others, and that gave him plenty of time to excuse himself. The journey to the Tower of Salvation was a quiet one, each member of the party lost in their respective thoughts. Soon enough… the massive building grew closer. Their journey was nearly over. Just as they ran to the entrance, it became apparent that the angels - winged beings with expressionless faces, armour and wings, were ready to get in their way. The lifeless beings kept coming, threatening to block both their route in and their route out.
"Lloyd! This way!" Huh. So Yuan had come to help them after all. Before the angels could make their strike, their former enemy ushered the small party into a secret passage.
"Why are you helping us?" Lloyd asked.
Yuan shrugged off the question, focusing on the path ahead. "Now that the truth about me is known to Yggdrasil, the only way left to save Martel is to work with you. Don’t think that I want to be your friend or anything."
Wow, talk about sour, but at least he was honest.
"You have a real negative attitude, you know that?" Lloyd said with a sigh, "Well, whatever. Thanks for helping us. Let’s go everyone!"
It wouldn't be long now. As Lloyd and Yuan chatted, Zelos hung at the back of the party, focusing on Colette. This shouldn't be too hard. At least he'd finally, finally get out of this nightmare.
[The betrayal, part 1]
[The betrayal, part 2 - if you want to skip the fight, jump to 8:15]
[Zelos staggered back, hand clasped over his mouth as all the colour drained from his face. For now, he just focused on swallowing back the nausea rising up his throat, he had to make sure he didn't throw up right in the middle of this place. Don't be sick. Don't be sick.
His other hand clutched at his stomach and his side, just to make sure the wounds hadn't somehow returned. It was all so painfully real. As if he was right there, fighting his former friends again, dying a second time.
And his mother...That memory was somehow worst of all.]
[Video, a few hours after the memory-sharing mess, OPEN]
[Zelos wouldn't normally give a PSA to help everyone else in town, but for now…he really didn't want to chance anyone else finding out about his history.
Those who had spoken to Zelos before might notice that he looked a little agitated - something he tried to mask with a bored expression.]
…Guys, quick word of advice. Might want to avoid where the Bay used to be. It's pulling some really screwy stuff right now.
[With the message out the way, the feed abruptly ends.]
[It was not difficult to notice that the bay had mysteriously disappeared, as he walked past it fairly regularly on his way to work. Normally, Zelos would avoid something odd like this entirely, dismissing it as too much effort to investigate, or just 'someone else's problem'. However...it looked harmless enough, and soon his curiosity got the better of him.
Wandering over to the where the old bay was, he slipped off his shoes and socks, pulled up his trousers past his knees, and headed into the cool water. He wasn't stupid enough to stray into the giant hole in the middle, of course, for now focusing on the small lights glittering around him.
Huh.
Tentatively, he reached into the water and scooped two of them into his hands to get a closer look. Before he could work out what they were, the two stars shattered, one after the other...]
[First Memory, Semi-open*]
A flurry of snow fell steadily past the windows of the Wilder mansion. Zelos - only a young child of 10 or so - bounced on the balls of his feet, staring up with wide eyes at the sky and across the city rooftops, the city square and the trees, all covered in a steadily growing blanket of white. Nothing like this had ever happened before.
Of course, when he finally tore his eyes away from the strange sight, the first person he ran to was his mother, racing past the family butler as he did so. To say the least, the friendly warnings of "Master Zelos, please do not race around the halls in such a manner..." were left entirely unheard by the excited child.
He found her drinking tea in the drawing room, dressed in an ornate, pale red gown fit for the noblewoman she was, long blonde hair done up in a tidy bun. She gave Zelos a tired look, a small, despairing sigh escaping her that he did not notice as he ran to her side, pestering his mother to come out and play in the snow with him.
To his absolute delight and surprise, she finally got to her feet, following her son as he dragged her as fast as he could into the gardens. Zelos was barely able to hide the bright smile filling his face and spring in his step.
The feeling of snow under his feet, the crunching sound that came with it, the little twinges of cold as the flakes melted onto his outstretched hands fascinated him. For a while, his mother just waited by the wide doorway, watching her son play with a bored disinterest. Eventually, though, she walked over to him and crouched down, starting to roll a large ball of snow. Zelos soon got the hint, starting on one of his own until it was big enough to make a snowman's head. Together, they carefully rolled the head onto the body, and Zelos gathered some twigs and stones to give it arms and a face, before standing on his tiptoes to drape his own scarf around it's shoulders.
But then, in a flash, the snowman fell apart. A deep red splatter hit what remained of it's body.
Zelos froze, only able to stare as his mother staggered from the spell's impact. She fell, grabbing onto her son's shoulder to try and support herself. The boy couldn't find his voice, his mouth just forming the word 'Mother' but no words escaped him. With her last, rasping breaths, she spoke to him for the last time:
"You should never have been born,"
Her hand slipped from his shoulder, and she fell to the ground. The snow around them slowly turned red with blood.
[*OOC: Because of how much of an impact this memory has on Zelos, I'd rather not too many people see it. If you're curious though and we haven't discussed it already, feel free to drop me a PM!]
[Second Memory, OPEN]
So, the group were getting ready to fight the angel Yggdrasil once and for all. Despite the tension and drive that filled the air that morning, Zelos felt strangely…empty. He released a long breath, that formed into mist in the cold air. He kept a bit of a distance from the others - just enough so that it wouldn't look suspicious. Knowing them, they'd assume he was mentally preparing himself for the fight.
Despite his efforts, though, Lloyd caught him as they prepared to leave town, brow furrowed as concern wrote itself into his usually kind and sure expresson.
"…Zelos, can I really trust you?"
That was it, then. Of all the people he hoped might, somehow learn to believe in him…in the end, it was all for nothing? Lloyd, the most forgiving, open-hearted person he'd ever met, even he couldn't bring himself to put his faith in him?
"What are you saying?" he replied, a fake smile and lighthearted tone easily slipping into place once again, "Of course you can trust me! I’m the type that responds to people’s trust."
"Really?" Lloyd still wasn't convinced? That only twisted the knife deeper. He really wasn't worthy of anyone's trust, he knew that.
"Really! Really, really, come on, let's go!" Zelos replied. He just wanted out of this talk.
Luckily, Lloyd was soon distracted by the others, and that gave him plenty of time to excuse himself. The journey to the Tower of Salvation was a quiet one, each member of the party lost in their respective thoughts. Soon enough… the massive building grew closer. Their journey was nearly over. Just as they ran to the entrance, it became apparent that the angels - winged beings with expressionless faces, armour and wings, were ready to get in their way. The lifeless beings kept coming, threatening to block both their route in and their route out.
"Lloyd! This way!" Huh. So Yuan had come to help them after all. Before the angels could make their strike, their former enemy ushered the small party into a secret passage.
"Why are you helping us?" Lloyd asked.
Yuan shrugged off the question, focusing on the path ahead. "Now that the truth about me is known to Yggdrasil, the only way left to save Martel is to work with you. Don’t think that I want to be your friend or anything."
Wow, talk about sour, but at least he was honest.
"You have a real negative attitude, you know that?" Lloyd said with a sigh, "Well, whatever. Thanks for helping us. Let’s go everyone!"
It wouldn't be long now. As Lloyd and Yuan chatted, Zelos hung at the back of the party, focusing on Colette. This shouldn't be too hard. At least he'd finally, finally get out of this nightmare.
[The betrayal, part 1]
[The betrayal, part 2 - if you want to skip the fight, jump to 8:15]
[Zelos staggered back, hand clasped over his mouth as all the colour drained from his face. For now, he just focused on swallowing back the nausea rising up his throat, he had to make sure he didn't throw up right in the middle of this place. Don't be sick. Don't be sick.
His other hand clutched at his stomach and his side, just to make sure the wounds hadn't somehow returned. It was all so painfully real. As if he was right there, fighting his former friends again, dying a second time.
And his mother...That memory was somehow worst of all.]
[Video, a few hours after the memory-sharing mess, OPEN]
[Zelos wouldn't normally give a PSA to help everyone else in town, but for now…he really didn't want to chance anyone else finding out about his history.
Those who had spoken to Zelos before might notice that he looked a little agitated - something he tried to mask with a bored expression.]
…Guys, quick word of advice. Might want to avoid where the Bay used to be. It's pulling some really screwy stuff right now.
[With the message out the way, the feed abruptly ends.]
action: #1 Memory
He recognised Ishtar's voice immediately. And he recognised Duzell...but not the other person in the vision. Whoever they were, he could tell immediately they weren't an ally. That spell though, what was it? Why would Ishtar get so upset?
The memory faded before he could get an answer, but he could make a guess. Had Duzell died, as well?
When he finally came to his senses, he slowly wondered across the bay, moving very carefully around the stars this time. If Ishtar was here, then...
Zelos saw her soon enough, and just made his way over to her. She was probably the only one he didn't feel the need to hide how shaken up he was around. Instead, he just pulled Ishtar into a hug. It looked as if she'd seen something horrible here as well. His voice, when it finally emerged, was smaller than he hoped.]
...Hey.
action: #1 Memory
She didn't want to think about the horrible death that Duzell had to face due to her own carelessness and the reminder that she was unable to protect the things that were precious to her. It was hard to stop herself from crying again. She felt like she had no tears to cry before, but now, it seemed like they were endless. ]
...Z-Zelos...?
[ After a few minutes, she snapped out of her daze, acknowledging the person's quiet voice that emerged. He was shaking, just as she was shaking. That kind of feeling that people with mutual understanding would know. Somehow, she was relieved it was him and not someone else. ]
...Ah...
action: #1 Memory
[Words didn't feel right, just now. She was crying, shaking in his arms, so for now he just held her - like she had done for him not too long ago. Truth be told, he probably needed this as much as she did right now. Just holding onto someone else for stability was...that was enough to drive away the nausea.
What was this place doing? Why was it dragging up all these memories?
...What had happened to Duzell, back in her world? From that reaction, he got the sneaking suspicion that he may've died back there, just as he'd done.]
action: #1 Memory
It was hard to think about anything when she tried to put it on the back of her mind, but it was much harder when she couldn't do that and it was vividly right in her face. She would tell Zelos about it if he wanted to ask, but right now she wanted to just stay comforted, and be a little selfish.
She was sure he needed it as well. ]
action: #1 Memory
He hated seeing Ishtar hurt, hearing her screaming and that agony in her expression when Duzell cast that magic, seeing her crying now. It wasn't his fault, he knew that, but he still felt a sinking guilt in his stomach all the same. Feeling Ishtar squeeze him a little tighter was at least enough to drive that back for now, and he responded by gently running a hand through her hair in what he hoped was a reassuring gesture.
Perhaps comforting her - hugging her like this and making sure she was alright, and her holding onto him like this - that was enough. They both needed this.]
action: #1 Memory
It's hard to relate to people here and it was hard to connect with them, even for Ishtar, because of what happened to her in the past. Yet, somehow she felt fine letting someone else comfort her. They didn't know each other long, but they had wounds that they understood about the other. It was comforting to know that she could find someone kind to rely on. ]
...
[ After a moment, she rested her head on his shoulder, keeping her sobs minimal, after burying her face into his chest. ]
I'm sorry. Zelos.
[ She replied, her voice somewhat shaky but much better nonetheless. ]
action: #1 Memory
Like Ishtar, Zelos found it difficult to connect to others. People came, people went, and even in his own world, no one had reached out to trust him in the end. It was hard to think anyone here would be any different, so reaching out to them was a scary thing for sure.
Ishtar...he trusted her. Maybe. Well, as close as he had ever gotten. That was...okay, wasn't it?
He felt her bury her face in her chest, just near to the red jewel - his Cruxis Crystal - that was embedded there.]
...Think...I should be the one apologising...Pretty sure you didn't want me seeing that junk, huh?
[Zelos' own voice was a little shaky still, but it had gained some strength, even if he did still sound in a dazed state.]
action: #1 Memory
It was perfectly okay and Ishtar would do what she could to to help him trust her more than he had right now. It was comfortable, another person's warmth. It's always something that she seemed to be lacking of. She never once asked about the red jewel on his chest, but she assumed it had something to with what he mentioned briefly to her before. ]
...It's not that. Rather, I wished I could have heard it from you. It's not really nice to see things like that without someone else controlling it.
[ He replied softly. ]
You too. I'm sorry you didn't need to see that.
action: #1 Memory
Zelos'd happily explain the crystal, if she asked, but otherwise never really planned to bring it up. Unlike most of the stuff from home he would probably get around to explaining, that seemed fairly low on the priority list.
Right now though, that was deep in the back of his mind. Her warmth was...comforting. It helped a little, at least, gave him something to focus on instead of all the memories he had seen.]
Yeah...pretty git move of this place to drag all that out for people to see...
[On that subject, what had Ishtar seen? For that matter, did she even know what memory he'd seen of her's?]
...Guessing that's not something you wanted me to see at all, right? Sorry.
action: #1 Memory
For now, it did not seem appropriate to ask about the crystal. She felt a lot better, comfortable, without dragging anymore wounds down the people she cared about. ]
Yeah...it's frustrating.
[ She mumbled to his words. She's not sure she wants to tell him, but she knows he has the right to know what she ended up seeing. ]
...No...it's okay. It's not like you wanted to. Same to you. I'm sorry. I'm not sure if I was suppose to even see that or anything.
action: #1 Memory
For now? Not talking about it was the best plan, in his mind.]
Tell me about it...what a pain...
[He tried to make it sound like he wasn't phased, but instead he just sounded exhausted.]
...what did you see, anyway?
action: #1 Memory
Yeah....
[ A pain, yeah. She supposed that's what it is. ]
...
[ She closed her eyes, feeling exhausted herself. ]
...I saw your past....
action: #1 Memory
My...past, huh?
[Zelos winced. He had a feeling he knew exactly which memory she'd seen if she phrased it like that.]
...red snow, right?
action: #1 Memory
Yeah, and lots of red...
I saw your mother as well.
[ She closed her eyes. ]
I'm sorry.