melodiesoflife | Event || The Enemy Within

Entry tags:

Event || The Enemy Within

Characters: All characters who signed-up for the event.
Where: In their heads.
When: January 15th.
Summary: The Heroes of Light have a vision-- They are living through a hypothetical future where the Sage share his knowledge with them, and things went horribly wrong as some Heroes of Light became the villains in this timeline. Maybe they'll revise their thoughts on getting all of that knowledge.
Warning: The apocalypse, deaths, tragedies, overall a lot of very bad things.

Mingle Threads: The Antagonists || The Protagonists || The Others || General
Free Open Threads: The Two Years || Other Events

#01 Attempts at Negotiations || Trano Golsaucia
#02 Tactical Espionage Action || Aqures Ixen
#03 Judgmental Glares || Aerilon
#04 The Fight for the Crystallized Bodies || Aqures Tosf
#05 The Dusk of the Heroes || Mysidia
#06 The Fight for the Moon || Lunar Gate
#07 Conflict Above the Stars || Moon Base
#08 The Birth of a God || Crystal Life Tree
#09 The Death of a World || Moon Base
#10 Where Everything Ends || Pandaemonium

Conclusion || The Sage in Mysidia

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For a while after the Rift accident, Jade had avoided the lab. The sterile rooms, though long since cleaned of the blood and damage of that day, served as a bitter reminder of his failure, and the loss of their last hope for survival. But in the end... Running didn't change reality. And so he had returned to work.

Eventually the pain had dulled. So had everything else.

Jade turned the Black Crystal idly in his hand, wondering whether it had been like this for the Heroes of the last cycle when they'd made the same choice. Well, it didn't really matter. Jade didn't care to feel one way or another about it anymore -- there was still work left to do. He'd need to make sure Garland survived until it was time to restart the cycle. More pressingly, they needed to locate the crystallized Heroes soon, before some of his "allies" could enact their own plans.

After all, it wasn't as though he wanted to see Crystallis destroyed. Jade had nothing but the preservation of mankind in mind.

The Black Crystal slipped into his pocket to join his white one. Hopefully he would never have to use it, but if it became necessary... No one could accuse him of being unprepared. He had done as much research as humanly possible. Finished with the lab for now, Jade turned to stride towards the exit with nary a glance at the rest of the staff. He should visit the castle, see if there was any news of the crystallized Heroes...

Edited 2016-01-23 20:53 (UTC)

Ib had been assigned to protect the lab from invasion or attack, so she's been there a lot recently. She's near the doorway when he strides by.

"You look like you have places to be. Is something happening soon?"

"Yes." Jade flashes her a smile that doesn't reach his eyes. "All we need is one last bit of intel. Then we can finally bring this to an end."

It's not an ideal end, but he knows it's the correct one. Lesser evil and all that.

"Good."

Ib doesn't smile at all, but there is a sense of relief and satisfaction her voice.

"I'm so tired of fighting. I'll be glad when this is finally over."

"Hmm." Jade lets his fake smile fade quickly. He's had less patience for keeping up appearances lately. It's not as though it'll matter much longer.

"It's a shame we won't live to see the period of calm. Nevertheless, we'll have done our duty to those who come after."

While Cloud had taken it upon himself to be Terra's bodyguard, that didn't mean he was doing so to the exclusion of the other Heroes. While it was assured the lab was now safe, it made sense to have someone with you in case another incident occurred. After all, in a world like this who knew what random small occurrence could potentially lead to many deaths?

"Did you find what you were looking for?" He pushed himself from the wall he was leaning against as Jade turned to make his exit. Cloud was not thrilled with the current plan to deal with the Calamity, but lacking anything better to offer he had been sticking to his bodyguard duties as his main drive.

Jade ignored the wave of irritation passing through his mind. It wasn't that he disliked Cloud himself in any way -- just that it was always difficult to be around the younger man without being reminded of his failure.

It wouldn't matter much longer, anyway. Guilt and regret had no place in his plan.

"We know everything we need to, except for where the Heroes in crystal stasis are hidden." He glanced around the lab without much feeling. "This place has served its purpose."

Edited 2016-02-04 20:26 (UTC)

What Jade might feel in seeing Cloud never crossed the blonde warrior's mind, even as he blithely carried around Sephiroth's sword and Job. He'd become far too narrowly focused in what he was now doing and had closed himself off to the hearts and minds of others in the process.

But he never blamed Jade for what happened to Sephiroth, or to Ace. He'd tried his hardest to save them and there was no way that they could have known that their crystal protection would have failed.

He looked around the lab, the memory of the fateful battle echoing in his mind. He shook his head, refusing to let himself linger on it, a fear itching in the back of his mind that he'd come to regret his decisions.

"It's a shame we couldn't find another way. There was a time I really thought we could have saved this world."

It wasn't so long ago that the sight of Masamune, too, had brought up bitter memories. Just another reason to stop caring so much about individual Heroes when such sentimentality hadn't made a difference. Now, it was just another blade.

"We've gone through every alternative and searched everywhere on the planet. There is no other way." Jade gave Cloud a sharp look. "It's too late to look back now."

Even if the remaining resistance of the other Heroes -- amazing, that they could still call themselves that -- continued to cling to their senseless hopes. Jade might not agree with every single person on his own side, but at least they had all faced reality in their own ways. He had no respect for those who refused to make difficult choices, all to spare themselves from a guilty conscience.

The disappointment was clear on Cloud's face at the finality of Jade's judgement. While he had wound up siding with the Heroes who were at least coming up with solutions to deal with the Calamity, he couldn't deny that he found some of what they were doing to be unpalatable. But it had reached the point where they had to make a decision, even if it was bitter medicine.

Just hoping for a better future wouldn't bring that about. That hope had died with Sephiroth did. All the hopes he had that day did nothing to save the First Class.

"I don't think the others will agree with you on that. Whatever we try to do they'll probably show up." He sighed and shook his head, "Everything they won't do to stop the Calamity you can probably count on them trying to stop us."

"I'd be surprised if they didn't. Apparently heroic last stands are more important than ensuring life will continue after we're gone."

Jade didn't even try to hide his scorn. He would never claim his methods were humane or noble, but at least the end result, should he succeed, would serve the greater good. The opposing Heroes, meanwhile, couldn't see past their inflated egos. Or perhaps it was simple naivete. Some people really did think that "good" actions would inevitably lead to a happy ending, no matter what. Things were nice and easy when you convinced yourself that the other side was the evil one.

Oh well. Jade wasn't really opposed to playing the "evil" part, in all honesty. It got results.

Tear wasn't waiting for him right outside the entrance when he emerged. Rather, she was quite a distance away from the lab, but still within view when it came down to it. It was a habit she had developed over the past two years, more so than she had had before; to place herself close enough to intervene and take part, but far enough to slip away if necessary and hopefully with ass few noticing as possible.

However, he was ultimately one of the few she still allowed herself to be close enough to since parting ways from the other Heroes, though she had no way of knowing for sure if it made her a hindrance to him or not. The most she could hope for was that she had helped him in one manner or another through the information she had been able to deliver, in playing whatever role she was assigned as he came close enough to merit her turning around.

"Colonel." Her simple greeting is punctuated with a respectful nod, turning on her heel to face him properly. It seemed that even now, some habits had yet to change completely.

"Tear." Jade walked on, expecting her to fall in step with him. If there was anyone among the Heroes he could say he still trusted, it would be Tear and Anise. Friendships had lost much of their meaning over the years, most of them either claimed by death or broken apart by sheer despair. Jade saw no purpose in maintaining or repairing bonds now, when the end would come for them all soon anyway.

Nevertheless, knowing those two wouldn't falter served as an assurance that his plan had a chance to succeed. It was the closest thing to hope he had felt in a long time.

"It won't be much longer now."

"We can't afford for it to be much longer anymore." As expected she fell into step with him, gaze focused on the distant horizon before them. Any day now they would be unable to avoid seeing the effects of the Calamity, and then they would be swallowed up in its greed.

Though a part of her still wonders if she should have perhaps delayed her decision to support this plan; had she done so, maybe they would have accomplished their goal that much sooner. "All we're waiting for is confirming the final location, correct? With all the preparations, they wouldn't have enough time or resources to move them all once we know for sure."

Jade nodded. "At the very least, the operation shouldn't take long once we know where to go. Most of our enemies will be defending Mysidia, and I expect some will be acting out some short-sighted plan to stop Garland. That would be just like them."

Of all the asinine ideas that had been thrown around by the other Heroes, killing Garland had to be the most ridiculous. The guardian was, and had always been, their final defense. If all else went wrong, at least his presence guaranteed another cycle of existence for the universe. Losing Garland would cost everything, and yet the idealistic fools were so desperate for a villain to fight that they gave no thought to the repercussions.

"In any case, I doubt they can spare too many people to protect the crystallized Heroes."

Jade's foresight lined up with hers, reassuring her that the plans and preparations they had put in place so far were correct. Though she had never uttered it out loud, there was little doubt in her mind that they wouold have progressed as far as they had if not for Jade. True, she still had some trouble with stomaching a few of their proposals, but when it came down to it it was all about guaranteeing the survival of the universe, one way or another.

So Tear starts with a nod, despite still being focused on the horizon. Somewhere out there was the final piece they needed... "To be honest, I have some hesitations about our own numbers as well. But if you think we'll be fine with just us, I'll do my part to ensure our success."

Though she seldom sang anymore, Tear knew she had powerful melodies to aid them when it came down to it.

"It is unfortunate we're spread so thin, but it can't be helped. Besides..." Jade straightened his glasses, smiling grimly. "We can't be deterred by the possibility of failure now. We know what must be done."

And he did know. Jade had weighed every alternative, thought through every possible plan of action, and after all that... this was where they had arrived. It wasn't a happy solution, or even a right one -- there weren't any viable options left that could be called right -- but it was the only logical choice.

Once he had made the decision, there had been no going back. Regardless of Jade's personal feelings, or how many lives he had to take -- the memory of Cid, Biggs and Wedge flickered through his mind and vanished -- his resolve would not falter.

"I'll be counting on you, Tear."

"If we succeed with this one task, numbers won't matter all that much anymore." Because there would be still be numbers to continue forward regardless, which in the long run mattered more to Tear than allowing for the Calamity to consume this world and every other one they represented, without end to its hunger.

Though with his last words, she couldn't stop the ghost of a smile from touching her lips. She knew it to be the truth, even if it was just as likely that he could still manage on his own without her help. He might encounter some difficulties, but her faith in him had been one of the few constants over the past two years since all of this had been set into motion.

It was oddly bittersweet, and lacked the comfort it otherwise might have provided. "Counting on me... In a way, it's as if nothing has changed."

"Hmm. It seems to me that everything has changed... but I understand what you mean." Jade gave what was almost a chuckle, a fleeting reminder of his old sense of humor. "After all this time, here we are once again deciding the fate of the world... Perhaps our journey to save Auldrant was merely to prepare us for the real battle."

That was something to hold onto, at the end of everything. All the struggle and growth they had gone through on Auldrant -- it hadn't been completely meaningless. After all, their choices had brought them here, and the strength they had gained along the way would allow the universe to keep going. There was some satisfaction to be found in that.

Of course he would have preferred for the others to make it to the end as well... though on the other hand, maybe this was for the best. The gravity of what they had to do would have crushed Luke, and it was unlikely Guy or Natalia would have fared much better. It would be hard on Anise, too. Tear, however... In the end, Jade was glad she had been the one to stay with him through all this.

"... Perhaps it was." It was a strange way to think about it in such a light, and her thoughts are in line with Jade's. All the struggles and sacrifices they had undergone in their efforts to save Auldrant... Maybe they weren't meant to return, but if they could save this world, then surely their home would be saved as well. "

Or so she would like to believe. If only it could be all of them here, standing together in the face of what was coming just as they had against her brother. But this was all they had left, and it was for the better that it be them two, the experienced soldiers, to do it in their place.

"If only they could understand just what it means if we allow the Calamity to continue like this, undeterred." They could talk about other solutions all they wanted, but they were just out of time.

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Event || The Enemy Within

Jade Curtiss | Palitutu's Lab

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Re: Jade Curtiss | Palitutu's Lab

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Up to you if you want to keep doing this, but as for me no tag left behind

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