melodiesoflife | Hidden Truth [Log]

Hidden Truth [Log]

What: A log for everyone to gain the information in the Hidden Truth video tape.
Where: The Observatory.

There had been a flurry of letters sent out from Jack and Chiaki, first to Zelda to ask to borrow the Observatory, and then to every Hero of Light, alerting them that they had uncovered some intelligence received in the Heran Empire before the Capital had fallen to Crystal, and that everyone needed to see it immediately.

Jack, Chiaki, and a few others brought in a screen connected to a machine that some would recognize as a VCR. "With our peace mission to the Imperial Capital over Christmas, we returned with a recording made on 20th-century Earth technology, the kind that doesn't have an analogue on Crystallis. It took us time to build a machine to be able to play it. This information comes from Kalki, recorded what appears to be years ago. We obtained it from the Imperial Spy, Jenni. As of right now, we still have no reason to believe that Kalki is alive. But this comes from her, and I apologize to everyone who might be upset by seeing her again."

With that, Jack plays the recording. He stands by the screen and repeats the words for everyone to hear, for those who cannot understand English. Since Kalki's first words are to explain why she is recording it this way, it makes sense why he has to do this. He keeps his own emotions in check throughout, until the explanation of the Bard song that everyone gets to hear. That seems to upset Jack.

Once the recording is over, Jack pauses. "We will need some help from any other English speakers to create a written transcript of the recording so that anyone can access this information at any time. The tape and player will remain here for any Heroes to review. We ask that you please be careful with the machine."

Finally, Jack sits down to let the room descend into the inevitable chaos.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Tsubomi listened to everything that was being said. What was being said by Kalki was a little too much, but at the same time, her own convictions won't waver. Not like this.

"I... I can't..." Tsubomi began before she shook her head in anger. "Keep that video off, please! I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!"

Tsubomi's on her feet, a determined and defiant look on her face. "We can't just assume that Kalki's plan is the only way to fix this. We know it's not - we're over here fighting over if it's a good idea to become... gods! We don't have the right to do that! None of us and especially Kalki! We need other plans, talk to other people... e-even if it means confronting Palitutu again!"

It takes awhile for Tsubomi to realize she blew up like she did before she shrank back. "S...Sorry..."

Cloud glanced over to Ramza and nodded. He didn't know what sort of paths were otherwise open to them, but trying to control the Calamity lead to nothing good in that Vision. Even if the Sage was part of the Calamity the last thing they needed to do was make his warning come true. And that had more to do with everyone's trust between each other than anything else.

"Through the avatars you mean? It might be worth trying. Do you think the Sage would actually talk to us now that we know about this?" He wasn't completely on board with this either but he couldn't help but worry that Ramza would one day go too far in his pursuit of peace. He wouldn't let his friend go alone.

"I agree...there's something off about all of this. I don't think she's lying to us about what might happen if we try to destroy the Calamity recklessly but." Cloud frowned as he chewed over the different thoughts in his mind.

"Sacrificing ourselves like that just to stop Garland doesn't feel like the answer. And if it doesn't work then we would only make things worse." He shifted on his feet as his thoughts settled. "And if Kalki was an avatar of the Calamity and didn't know what she represented then it may have been affecting her while making her think everything was her idea."

He looked back up again, looking at Ace, "The version of her we met in the past was like a different person entirely." Time changed people, but even so...

"I'm sure we'd find out one way or another...Given our luck probably next October." Mulling it over he furrowed his brow in thought. "I don't like Mograma but maybe he knows something about it."

He'd have to talk to Sephiroth about it later. And Sparks probably. He pushed the thought away for now. "Sorry...Don't worry, I won't do anything stupid. All of what Kalki said is too risky to just jump into. Especially after everything she's done to the others here."

[ He's rather quiet when it comes to figuring out what it says. Of course, he definitely needs everything translated - he's Japanese, after all, and even his English is pretty shoddy, at best. Basically, it's pretty bad.

Hinata can't help but glance away, biting on his lower lip as if to make it bleed, but not quite. ]

None of us... are going to attempt and become 'gods', right?

[ It's possible that someone might want to take the offer, but Hinata? The idea of a human crafted god is sickening, really. It makes his stomach turn and flip over, uneasy. ]

Rukia frowned at his remark, trying to recall the circumstances. Save for a few sharply defined moments, most of what she remembered and knew had become foggy, like a dream three nights past. "Something about sacrificing a select number of heroes in an attempt to satisfy the Calamity? It's hard to recall--"

Tromp tromp tromp tromp. A rhythmic sound of dozens of high heels clicked in steady staccato. Coming around the corner appeared a huge multitude of women, some bearing signs, others simply raising their fists in the air. And they were all wearing wedding dresses.

"What do we want?"
"A fair price for cakes!"
"When do we want it?"
"NOW!"

One sign featured a picture of a bride and groom cake topper, sadly turning out empty pockets. Another said 'Raise bread, not prices!' And yet another proclaimed '60,000 Gil for Wedding Cakes is Highway Robbery!'

And they were marching straight down the street where Jack and Rukia were holding their conversation. They stamped their feet in unison, hard enough that Rukia could feel the vibrations in her ankles. They bustled past in their silks and taffeta and white netting. One of the signs bumped a window sill of the tailor shop's second floor, upsetting a flower pot that promptly fell on Rukia's head and knocked her flat.

Beware the Brides on March.

As soon as the video played back, Saori was quick to write down notes to help her translate the English to Japanese for those who need it. When Kalki mentioned becoming God, the scratching noise of pen to paper stopped. The red head didn't look up from her paper. When the tape stopped, it seemed she was finally able to breathe though she looked drained at the same time.

Become a god and create a new world entirely...it was something even she could never do back home. She wasn't the big G up back there, just a goddess of multiple domains for mostly one country. The talk of cycles, birth and death reminded her when she learned how souls worked. To overcome this "shadow" Kalki spoke of wouldn't be easy when Saori's past would seem like a buffet for the Calamity in her to feast upon.

She turned her head to glance at Mary next to her but seemed hesitant to make eye contact or utter a word to the other woman. The past week or so was quiet between them mostly due to Saori trying to skirt around meetups. She wasn't ready to forgive herself for that terrible first impression she gave Malik, which Saori believed reflected badly on Mary since the pirate was her Assassin mentor so to speak.

"You saw!?" Color Kaji surprised. He slowly holds his hands out in a placating manner. "Look, I don't want to belittle what they did, the exact opposite, really."

Better start this train of thought from the beginning. "Ib was there. I can talk up a storm, but I don't know if I can frame the argument 'please don't destroy our worlds' any better than she can. Go there. Yes. But. We need something more than just an argument. And I don't even mean a fight, either."

Kaji pulls a cigarette from his pocket, but just fidgets with it, makes no move to light it, or he knows Zelda would ninja out from thin air and extinguish it. "That whole scene, it's played out over and over again in my nightmares. And the little girl, that guardian there? She wanted to help us. She was helping Ib. I don't think she needed to be convinced to not destroy the world."

Ales let out a small "hm" at Lydia's answer. Even if they didn't completely trust her then, especially since they all fist met in less than ideal circumstances, it would have given them something to think about long before Palitutu left. With so little time let, they could come up with a well thought-out plan.

"Some of us would have listened," he insisted. "It's been months since we stopped trusting Palitutu with information, and only now we know what Kalki's been up to?"

He hated this. He hated being left in the dark.

"I'm no sure how Kalki and the cult are connected, but I assume one of them stole the name from the other." Ales crossed his arms as he sat on a stool near the center of the room. There were a lot of places they had to visit now, but the Cult of Narayana was on the forefront of his mind.

"I've heard that they attacked the Mysidian Heroes, so I wouldn't dismiss the 'violent thug' theory just yet. Finding out what they know is key to planning our next steps."

Jack brightens, "That's a really good idea. Have you been by the Eidolon Temple, here in the city? I...think, there's also one in Mysidia? At least, there's a place that more people have been going for more information on them."

"When you do pick it up, I really recommend Leviathan." Jack nods sagely. "I was with the team who helped free him a few months ago, and he seems really powerful."

Ah, one of the newer Heroes, Jack assumes. He even met the Lady Ysale, but that side of her didn't come up in conversation. "Shiva, the Eidelon?" A tinge of awe in his tone.

"I keep wondering why we keep giving the Calamity a will or a sense of purpose. It's just an effect. It doesn't want to destroy us, it just is. I don't think it seeks anything."

"This isn't something that occurs naturally. If anything....I think there's something more that caused the Calamity. And that's the thing we need to fix."

Jack leans back in his chair, and he frowns. "I've seen it tried a bunch. Or, more accurately, seen people try to take control of or merge with some kind of force beyond their understanding in the belief that it would make them a god. It's stupid, and I expected more of Kalki than that."

[Mordecai has been uncharacteristically silent while listening to the translation. The English of the future was slightly different to the one Kalki used, and he had to hear all of the details before he could formulate an opinion.

Hinata's questions does not elicit more than a calm look from him.]

Can't say ultimate power's the worst thing ever. It's a lotta responsibility, but I reckon as long as you got the right person for the job, it ain't gonna turn out a total disaster like you're all sayin'.

[A pause.]

Before you start goin' after me, I should say that I was kinda "god-like" back on Mars, what with the whole "power of the cosmos" thing I had goin'.

"We called them primals, but you'd be correct to assume so." Though if anything, she seemed much less awed and more guilty for having to utilize Lady Ysayle as an example.

"Locating the source would be the quickest way. However Kalki failed to divulge that detail, or it was within the pieces lost. What do we know about the metaphorical heart of the Calamity?"

Maybe Summoning works a little differently in their world than this one. "Primals or eidelons, Shiva and Leviathan and Odin? I'd love to hear more, if they exist in your own world, too?" World crisis can bet put on the side burner for now, because this is potentially fascinating. Jack only has room for two more jobs, and he's been debating back and forth on whether or not he wants to round everything out with Summoner.

"Because, well, I think I'm the wrong person to ask about the center of the Calamity. I've got ideas, but nothing definite. You may want to check with the Lady Zelda, or Sir Ramza."

To be fair, Erika was not stupid.

And yet, after all of this, including Tsubomi's outburst, she folded her arms. "Like an ant huh? Well tell that ant that we've punched out a BLACK HOLE BEFORE!"

Okay not punched out, but she and 15 other girls did manage to kill a evil black hole.

Once the video has stopped play, Sonic does probably the most sensible thing anyone has done: went over to the player, popped out the tape and headed for the nearest trash can.

"Are you guys really going to sit here and write all of this down and consider this some sort of gospel?" Sonic questioned. "C'mon - the woman's off her rocker and I can see a few faces here considering godhood to be a good option!"

He stopped before he got to the trash can.

"First of all, what's so fun about letting everything live? Everything has a purpose and it can't stay around forever. Enjoy it while it lasts. Second of all, even if you accept 'godhood', you just bring pain and suffering because everyone else will want it."

A beat.

"Also, first person who tries to attack me, I'm set to counter. I'm impulsive, not stupid."

Jade sighed. He was starting to see a pattern with Sonic...

"Now now, settle down. Listening to Kalki's message is hardly the same thing as agreeing with her methods." Jade didn't sound angry so much as exasperated. "We've been trying to understand her mindset for a long time now. This confirms many things we've suspected but didn't know for certain. May I suggest you don't go throwing away one of the few sources of information we've managed to find after all this time?"

"Eugh, again with the 'settle down'. Y'know, when I first came here and got sent to the past, I was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt, but now..." Sonic said, shaking his head.

"Look, I get it, it's helpful in trying to figure out her level of craziness, but I think we should have reached that by her trying to tear this city apart just to perform time travel. And besides, there's the chance that we got some nut who might think becoming a god is a good thing and we're giving them the means to do so by keeping the tape here and giving detailed notes on it!"

Jack's own features screw up as if he's trying to remember. The Heroes, a sacrifice...

...and then one of the strangest displays that Jack has ever seen comes up the road. What in the- That's more high heels than Jack's seen since the last time he went to Scorpio's.

The flower pot falls too quickly for Jack to interrupt, "Rukia!" He throws a hand out towards her, as if he could possibly slow its fall, but too late, the ceramic impacts with her head. No time to even glare at the disruptive protesters before Jack is at her side, checking her head. Fingers nestle into her hair to check for damage. "Rukia? Rukia." Quieter. "You there?"

"If it makes you feel any better, I have no intention of letting anyone here dabble in godhood either. The idea is ludicrous." Jade was glad Sephiroth wasn't around to hear that last bit from Sonic.

"It's not just about Kalki. We need to learn about the Calamity as well, not to mention Palitutu and Garland. I'd rather not dismiss the tape entirely until we've gleaned everything useful out of it."

If it came down to it, Ace was ready to cast his life away, but not like this. Not in the name of a plan woven around despair and uncertain just like the allegiances of the very figure behind it. His gaze settled on Santa, but it was a look of neither approval nor disapproval, mostly undecided in terms of what kind of message it was meant to send across. All things considered, they had the right to feel wronged and upset, there was just little point in pushing these emotions as far as Santa had just done.

"There will be consequences for everything we do from now on, more so than before, but I think we all agree that running into this head-first won't solve any of our problems. Without understanding, we would be nothing but puppets."

He might have been walking a thin line of hypocrisy with that explanation, but it was not possible to reply with any other answer if he lacked the conviction necessary to follow Kalki's plan. Perhaps it was what would separate the right path from the others, working in accordance with everyone's wishes and motivations - nothing more than a dream for the time being, given the sheer number of Heroes that had already proven capable of raising weapons at one another.

And so, their discussion was reduced to following simple logic. "There's no description, but we shouldn't disregard the contents of the tape, either. The faith she has put in us further proves that we're capable of making a difference, but let it be the one we and the rest of Crystallis wishes to see."

"All we really know is that it requires sacrificing a certain number of Heroes and by extension, their worlds. How exactly Garland does this, I can't say."

Jade was mulling over this as well. Finally getting more information was well and good, but they still weren't much closer to finding a strategy.

"If it were that simple, this would all have been settled by now. No doubt past Heroes have already tried it." He turned his white crystal over in his hand. "Supposedly the Calamity is not only devouring the planet, but it's also an inseparable part of us... No, I don't think brute force alone is our answer."

Yuffie looked over at Cloud hearing her name being called by the familiar timber. She raised a hand and flashed the SOLDIER boy a smile.

"A lot of things..." That wasn't an answer but it was what she currently had. "I still don't like her if that's what you're asking but that doesn't mean I think she's lying."

Yuffie didn't consider herself stronger from that incident but then... maybe she was? Wouldn't that have been Kalki's point?

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Page 4 of 10

Hidden Truth [Log]

Tsubomi | OPEN

Re: Ramza | Open

Re: Ace | Open

no subject

hinata hajime | ota; after the translation!

no subject

no subject

no subject

Re: Volunteering to make a transcript [Open]

Re: Nanami | OTA

Re: Captain Jack Harkness - Open

Re: Captain Jack Harkness - Open

Re: Captain Jack Harkness - Open

Re: hinata hajime | ota; after the translation!

Re: Captain Jack Harkness - Open

Re: Captain Jack Harkness - Open

no subject

Sonic | OPEN

Re: Sonic | OPEN

no subject

Now that I finally stopped laughing at this

no subject

no subject

no subject

Yuffie | OPEN