[Endgame: rise or DROWN]

[warpweft]

[How long have you been exploring Nessa's palace now? You've met her family, viewed her memories, learned how to fight as a witch and tried to find the source of her power and the Treasure of her palace: the Voidheart. And along the way, you've tired your best, with mixed success, to avoid the incarnation of her eldest cousin and the representation of her trauma and fear, the Nightmare of Esmau.]

[Wherever you are in the Palace right now, you feel the ground briefly shake under your feet. Little shakes here and there haven't been out of the ordinary - Esmau is trying to blow the place down to the studs, after all. But that felt different. That felt....worse.]

[Your phone beeps as you receive a message.]

Comments

Re: ???

[voidhearts]

[You touch the ground on your hand and feet. A dense haze surrounds you, limiting your visibility. You're still...somewhere in the forest, you think, but, definitely somewhere different.

Your allies are nowhere to be found. You can't see Esmau anymore either, which, hey at least she's not attacking you anymore, so, bonus? You can only see one other person through the haze.

They look like they're...muttering to themselves?]

@MINATO

[voidhearts]

[You see Nell standing a short distance away from you. She's breathing in and out, anxiously, staring at her own hands. She has a black hole in her chest, just above her collar.]

I can't...I can't...I'm not even...if I try, she'll make me...I can't...

[messianic]

[ ... ?!?!

He's immediately rushing over, brow furrowed. ]

Nell-san? Nell-san, are you okay?

[voidhearts]

[Nell brings her hands up and shoves Minato away, stumbling back herself.]

G-get away! Get away! I'll hurt you!

[messianic]

[ he stumbles with the shove, but manages to keep his feet, and definitely doesn't go far. ]

What... what do you mean?

[voidhearts]

I'm not...

I'm not really Nell!

I'm just something Grandmother Lilith made that has Nell's memories!

Which means if I don't do what she says...she'll just make me hurt Nessa!

[Tears have started spilling, she's basically sobbing at this point.]

She'll make me hurt you!

You have to stay away from me!

[messianic]

[ nell...... ]

But I... I don't want to just leave you alone like this.

What can I do? Can... can I do anything to help you?

@SPREZZATURA

[voidhearts]

[You see Dimitri a short distance away from you, kneeling on the ground. He's staring at the ground, almost unmoving, like a statue. He has a black hole in his chest, just above his collar.]

You can't go against her. You can't fight her. She's too strong. Why even try. Why fight at all.

[velluminous]

[ Sprezzatura alone is, at her core, Sprezzatura without trust nor calm. she's jittery as she walks, muttering to herself and clutching her spellbook as her tail lashes... and when Dimitri appears as the sole living being in the haze, rather than anyone else she travelled here with...

she 1) jumps out of her skin
2) freezes where she stands ]

Dimitri?

[voidhearts]

[He very briefly looks up at Sprezzatura. Then goes back to staring at the ground.]

You were wrong.

You can't stand against her.

Nobody can.

So why should I even try.

[velluminous]

[ she forces her body to move, at a careful semi-circle around him. saying these sorts of things... ]

What are you doing here, Dimitri?

[voidhearts]

Nothing.

I'm not fighting.

I'm not doing anything.

I'm giving up.

[velluminous]

What! [ sharply, ] Why?

@AKIRA

[gravitonn]

[You see CAESAR standing a short distance away from you. He's clutching his head in his hands. He looks extremely distressed. After a few seconds, he starts punching himself in the chest. He has a black hole in his chest, just above his collar.]

Wake up...!

Wake up!

WAKE UP, YOU IDIOT!

She's going to die if you DON'T WAKE UP!

Re: @AKIRA

[survivaltricks]

Wh— whoa! Hey!

[darting towards him, immediately reaching for his wrists so he stops hitting himself]

Easy, there!

Re: @AKIRA

[gravitonn]

[He doesn't respond well to being grabbed. He just throws his head at Akira in a headbutt.]

Why...why doesn't anything work...why can't I just wake up, even though she's right here?!

[survivaltricks]

[oh jesus-- with a surprised noise, Akira jerks away, just in time to avoid getting headbutted in the nose]

-- Caesar!

[gravitonn]

[Caesar is struggling for all he's worth in Akira's grip, but....he seems pretty despondent. So all he's worth isn't much right now.]

Why...

Why are you awake and I'm not?!

Why do I keep leaving her behind like this...

[survivaltricks]

[. . .]

[sorry, Caesar]

[but Akira is punching you in the face now]

@TSUMUGI

[voidhearts]

[You see Agnis standing a short distance away from you. She's slumped over on the ground, exhausted, desperate, tears in her eyes, hands on her head. She has a black hole in her chest, just above her collar.]

I can't protect her...I can't protect her...

[cosplayed_out]

Agnis!!

[her eyes dart side to side in paranoia before approaching and kneeling down]

Hey... stay with me...!

[voidhearts]

I can't...

I couldn't keep her Heart safe...

I can't keep her safe...

I let her down....

[cosplayed_out]

... [reaching for that black hole]

[voidhearts]

[Your hand reaches into the hole and you feel a depth of pain. Regret. A sense of profound failure. An inability to protect someone incredibly dear to you.

Do you have anything that can fill the hole...?]

[cosplayed_out]

Agnis... there's still hope! Nothing's happened yet!

[there's a mental tug that she shouldn't be saying this while cosplaying a despair sister, but she ignores that.]

And... if you can't keep her safe... you can make it better! I know how much the time you spent with Nessa meant to her...

...so, forgive yourself too... please get up!