Player Plot: The Mysidian Tower!

[jadethenecromancer]

Who: Everyone who signed up for the plot!
What: Jade is taking a team to explore the Mysidian Tower before it'd swallowed by the Calamity.
When: February 8th-12th
Where: The Mysidian Tower on the Continent of Ruin.
Warning: Everything that can be expected of surprise monster encounters. Beyond that, whatever people bring with them.

The Enterprise brings everyone involved to the tower on the afternoon of February 8th. Thankfully the early floors have already been cleared by previous explorers, making the initial entry easy and relatively safe. Once the Heroes start reaching the upper floors, however... Who knows?

All threads will be linked here for easy access:
OOC info post
Ground Floor - Campsite
Friendly Monster
Floors 30-39
Floors 40-49
Floors 50-59
Floors 60-69
Floors 70-79
Floors 80-89
Floors 90-99
Floors 100-101 will be open at a later date.

Comments

[wickedone]

Sephiroth was beginning to look a little worn around the edges and Albel had noticed. He'd noticed the changes in the man for awhile after the vision he'd had, though he hadn't approached the SOLDIER before. He'd felt too guilty. After all, in this supposed soon-to-be-coming future, Albel had let Sephiroth die and then he'd become involved with Terra! Terra, who was living with Sephiroth; Terra, who was very obviously romantically involved with Sephiroth. Albel had stepped into that. Even though Sephiroth had been absent (and in the vision, Albel had felt... well, comfortable with Terra, in love even), he felt guilty now for "stealing" Terra.

So he'd avoided Sephiroth. And the two women he'd somehow become involved with in the "future," though less successfully. Except that, besides the guilt, the feelings of loss that followed that vision, the grief of losing Sephiroth, still remained as well. And, while Albel didn't want to believe that that "future" he'd seen was necessarily coming, it didn't sit right with him to waste the time he still had with a man he so respected. Three months wasn't a long time. If Sephiroth did die, again, then Albel would hate himself for doing nothing in the meantime and knowing the possibility was there.

"How are you holding up?" he asked quietly when he finally did talk to the other man, taking advantage of a moment where Sephiroth was alone.

[shinrasfinest]

It was yet another failed attempt at a nap which had just turned into a mild ache. At the front of his head and the small of his back; a symptom, no doubt of the extended period he'd spent sleeping in not-so-comfortable circumstances. With the work he'd put into his Custom Job sometimes causing inexplicable fatigue, Sephiroth had been hopeful that the day of rest he'd taken prior to coming on this expedition would have been enough; clearly that had been short-lived relief.

Sephiroth had shrugged the thermal blanket off himself and tucked his jacket back around his shoulders while sitting back up, pushing the heel of his palm into the space just above and between his eyes as if he might be able to will the headache away. It could simply be the wrong time for him to sleep; being as it was probably the middle of the day still.

"Hm." Clearly, and perhaps a little unusually, Sephiroth hadn't noticed that Albel were there. He brought his hand away from the front of his head and blinked heavily before turning his gaze up towards the other man nearby.

"I'll be fine." Dismissive, as usual. Probably not in all that good of a mood, either.

[wickedone]

Albel crossed his arms and shook his head. "Rest. Even if you can't sleep, don't get up. I'll handle things. And if not me, then Jade, or Tear."

Sephiroth was running himself into the ground, and a leader worn ragged was just about as useful as no leader at all. Potentially worse, if he made a poor decision because he was tired or stressed or otherwise distracted.

"And if you can't sleep, but want to... I'm sure someone around here has some status magic, if you're desperate," he suggested softly.

[shinrasfinest]

"I might ask around...when it's a more appropriate time for me to sleep."

Next moment and he was up onto his feet, if with a little of a wobble backwards, before pushing arms through into his jacket and followed with a single deep-squat movement. The motion helped to ground him immensely but the knot of a growing migraine would be around for a few hours yet. Taking the metal canteen from down by the side of his bunk, Sephiroth took a small sip of water. It would need a refill soon; just the reason to venture into the outside world for a walk.

"My apologies. It's no excuse that there has been a lot on recently, but bad timing for it all to start wearing now."

[wickedone]

"Sephiroth."

Now Albel was getting annoyed. He held a hand out to stop the other man from leaving.

"You don't need to apologize," he said with some exasperation. "You can't do everything yourself! You're only human."

It was advice he realized was ironic, coming from him. When he'd worked himself to exhaustion, training, beating himself down until he felt he deserved to exist again. It was advice that sounded more like something Fayt would say.

"Going out there impaired is worse than giving yourself a break," he grumbled.

[shinrasfinest]

He blinked at the hand that came up in front of him just as he'd felt about ready to take a step towards the exit flap of the tent. On a second blink, Sephiroth followed the arm to eventually meet eye contact with Albel, not seeming to be very impressed with the way the other man had addressed him. He wasn't a child, and being spoken to like that was just as like to encourage him to do exactly the opposite from what was being suggested, just to prove that he was -as he said- fine.

"I'm hardly running all of this myself." He forced his tone to at least sound a little lighter than his expression was, where the latter had started to drop into a deeper frown and a telltale tightening of his jaw. Still, it was clearly an attempt at a brush off.

"We all need to put in to make this expedition a success. I've had a break, trust me it'll be worse if I now don't try to do something."

[wickedone]

"You only lay down for all of three minutes!" Albel exclaimed. "I only followed you in here because I assumed you'd still be standing!"

Like he'd purposely interrupt a man's sleep.

"Since you weren't standing, I'm only more convinced you shouldn't be," he continued. "I don't see how it'll be so much worse to take another five minutes."

Or more.

[shinrasfinest]

Had it really only been three minutes? That had to have been a gross underestimation. The outside edges of Sephiroth's eyes widen a fraction just for a second and then he immediately looks away, and down to the ground, from Albel. There was a phrase wasn't there, about friends not just being there to agree with you all of the time? He wasn't sure if Albel really had any grounds to level such a judgment in his direction.

Why did he care -was one of the thoughts which had caused him to look away. Sephiroth remained stood in silence...but at least he wasn't taking another step towards the door flap of the tent just yet?

"It's easier said than done. There is a lot going on."

[wickedone]

Albel sighed and the tension in his shoulders relented slightly. He did understand, truly -- perhaps more than Sephiroth thought. He was very much the same way, pushing himself further, harder, always more. There was always more that needed to be done, there was always another challenge he needed to accept and conquer, there was always another way he needed to be the best. He had to prove that to everyone, most of all to himself. And pushing himself so hard to be best brought some of the worst out of him.

"I know," he said. "Which is why we have to take advantage of the downtime when we get it. It's brief enough as it is."

He gestured to the tent flap. "We're not going anywhere for a little while, not while people are still setting up camp and setting their plans. Besides, there's that... machine that can take people to the other floors." His hand moved loosely in the general depiction of an elevator.

"We can go up and down as we like. So, while we have the time now..."

[shinrasfinest]

Such was an ethos that Sephiroth had pretty much forced himself into from an early age without very much encouragement. Aside from the several months in 'adjustment' to Crystallis when he'd first been brought here, soon enough -inevitably- the old habits found their way back into his lifestyle. If there ever came a time where there was no challenge left, then Sephiroth would make one.

He followed Albel's gesture towards the tent flap but then sighed. It seemed as if hot air deflated from his shoulders as Sephiroth stepped backwards and then allowed himself to sink back into sitting on the camp bed. It felt like a lot more than just getting his weight off his feet, and for that reason -alongside the near throbbing migraine starting really to pound- Sephiroth decided to stay put. He didn't like submitting to anyone but he found himself agreeing with Albel for the most part; his logic would be to blame for that.

"I suppose the others can form to take the next trip up. There is certainly enough backup to take if needed."

[wickedone]

[Albel was relieved and he even managed a small smile.]

Indeed. I'll watch over Spencer, so you'll be fully informed when we return.

[shinrasfinest]

[Even in that smallest of meantimes Sephiroth has already started to hold his temples between his thumb and forefinger. Nope, probably shouldn't have got up at all. It seems, to him at least that there is an overlong pause in the time it takes him to lower his hand and look up at the other man again as if drowsiness takes the hint and rears up to prove Albel's point.]

Spencer would probably get lost up there; he's best down here keeping the books straight.

If you would be so kind to relay the orders to one of the captains...

[wickedone]

[Albel smirked. Yeah, that sounded like Spencer. And with everything else -- and everyone else -- maybe it would be best to have one less person to watch.]

Yes, sir. Of course.

[He nodded and saw himself out of the tent, letting Sephiroth finally get some rest.]