Event || Revelations

[melodiesmods]

Characters: All the Heroes of Light and their Moogles.
Where: Order's Sanctuary, The Interdimensional Rift and their Homeworlds.
When: August 03rd - August 30th

Summary: Following the battle against Palitutu, all the Heroes of Light were transported into the Interdimensional Rift. They were told by Palitutu they would have to find her to prove they can break the cycle-- But before they could reach their destination, a malevolent entity from the Rift stripped them from their immortality...

And now, they woke up in a decaying and dying world, most specifically in a place called Order's Sanctuary. From there they are ready to jump... Into their homeworlds! Feel free to use this post for the Mingle at Order's Sanctuary and should your homeworld be the stage for the Heroes of Lights' next adventures, feel free to make a thread for it and as many sub-thread as necessary! Please refer to the OOC Post for questions and plotting.

Warning: Whatever you come up with.

Comments

[iknowtheconsequences]

Job's done, Kaji has what he wants. Artemicion's in custody. He scoops up the sleeping moogle and makes for the portal.

But. Since Artemicion didn't answer his question, Kaji will have to check for himself. He tips the moogle's hat, tries to look for the Black Crystal without touching, because he wants to see what it is shaped like. He only knows what one of the four looks like. But that's the one he most wants to find.

[scriptrix]

Levy's been listening to the debate, thinking everything over as everyone offers up their opinions. She hasn't offered her own yet, but something has just occurred to her, and it seems like it's now or never.

"...Actually, there might be a way we can let Palitutu live and keep her from escaping," she says, piping up suddenly. "Artemicion changed her job to Black Mage before we took her down. Assuming she needs a moogle to change jobs just like the rest of us, it's fair to assume he was the one she was using to do that. Which means she's stuck in Black Mage as long as we can keep them separated, because Crystallis natives can only have one active job at a time. And we know that one doesn't have any teleporting abilities, since several of us have it mastered. As long as we can keep her silenced to shut down her spellcasting ability, we should be able to hold her."

There's a short pause.

"...If I'm right, anyway."

[shinrasfinest]

There wasn't an opinion being presented that Sephiroth didn't resonate in some way with. The ridge that had formed between his eyebrows just creased up even more as he eventually dropped his gaze to the fallen tarutaru in the middle of the group. Words like uncomfortable prickly thorns scratching along the surface as he tried to come to a judgment he could call his own. If only they'd just killed her already, there wouldn't be any need for all of this-

-but was that the right thing to do?

He blinked up to consider Saori as she put her justification forwards, found that where empathy had started to wink out of him, her words reinforced that cold, hard reality that he knew to be the truth. The truth that had burned when Biggs' message had scolded them for holding morality before what had to be done. How many more people needed to die?

Aang and then Duster drew a harder look from Sephiroth. He didn't seem quite so troubled by their comments but perhaps too easily it turned his considerations inwards. Somewhere within all of this, his resolve had softened where he had been the very picture of the executioner -he knew- in the eyes of Shinra's enemies before.

Not so far off the monster to all, that he'd later become. Not so very different at all to Palitutu, or Narayana, point of fact. To condemn Palitutu to death would stink of the vengeance he'd come to bear against humanity one day, yet to save her reeked of the weakness of resolve that none of them could afford. Sephiroth couldn't, as a result, have a voice in this.

"Hmph." He shot a quick look to Cloud, specifically, before turning quite abruptly back from the group and in the direction of the portal home.

[damn_juicebox]

Rukia blinked at Levy's suggestion. She preferred to remain neutral on the matter, but had no wish to execute the living. Shinigami only dealt with ferrying the dead to their place of rest.

But that was an excellent point.

Still kneeling beside Palitutu, and across from Ramza, she lowered her sword slightly. "It seems we're heavily divided on the issue. If we do indeed have the means to keep her subdued, it may be best to heal her for now and decide on her punishment later. The matter of one's life is one that should be considered very carefully, and not in mere minutes."

She rose to her feet, and after a moment, she sheathed her katana. "I suggest we heal her at least for now, so we can discuss the matter calmly at a later point. Our emotions are running high, understandably so after all of our ordeals, and we are weary."

[jadethenecromancer]

Jade crossed his arms in thought. Levy's suggestion had given him a pause. Although his instincts told him to be done with Palitutu for good, Rukia was correct -- getting impatient would do them no good. Now that he looked back, he had almost gotten unproductively hot-headed earlier.

Putting aside his personal feelings for the moment, thinking about it rationally...

"It may be possible," he conceded. "There are rare individuals who can equip two Jobs, like our old friends the imperial spies. I can't say whether Palitutu can, but if she can't, then you're right -- she'd be stuck as a Black Mage."

If she did have two Jobs equipped, she probably wouldn't have needed to switch them mid-battle, come to think of it. Still, if there was even a small chance she could, they had to consider the precautions.

"We don't know what kind of a Job her abilities are tied to. It could be a special one like the Onion Knight that's always partially active. However..." He rubbed his chin. "Even if I were to stabilize her, she won't be recovering any time soon. If I could enlist help from the lab and pinpoint what Jobs she currently has active while she's still out of commission, we could assess the risk of her escaping and make a decision based on that."

Nothing in Jade's tone gave away whether he considered this the right choice or not. Right now, he was there to give facts and nothing more.

"...Of course, this all depends on Cid and the others agreeing. If they decide Palitutu is too dangerous to keep alive, as the heads of the country they have the right to make the final call."

[zodiac_brave]

Ramza nodded at Aang. "It is rare to find such wisdom in one so young."

"We can surrender her unto the judgement of this world, or we can help keep her under guard until the Calamity has been vanquished. What we cannot do is appoint ourselves the judges of this world, killing for revenge, or for what we believe is for the common good, when bloodshed could have been avoided. That path leads unto more bloodshed, more sins committed with good intention, until we have become the very evil we should be protecting this world from."

He has no doubt in this conviction. Those who compromise themselves to further their cause end up becoming monsters, sometimes literally. He knows his sister Alma would choose to save Palitutu, to have faith that such an act of mercy would be rewarded in time, even though she could not see how. And so he knew that stating their hands was the right thing to do.

"We are not judges, nor executioners. Let us be Heroes, for that is what we were called to be."

He placed the Phoenix Down on the ground near where Palitutu lay, and hoped the other Heroes would use it to further the cause of the light, instead of giving into darkness.

[unalive_them]

And while they're doing that, Deadpool's fashioned a necklace with grenades and shows it off to everyone.

"Don't you think she'd look great with this? Especially with the pins pulled!"

[confidentia]

"What if there is no later?"

Ace could hardly believe that the discussion had reached such heights. He'd been trying to keep an eye on Tear's efforts - in case she was able to shed some light on the potential consequences of their choice, though mostly, it was out of concern for her own well-being. After all, the longer he had listened to the discussion, the less likely it seemed that the Heroes were capable of shouldering the weight of the solutions they offered.

"So much might go wrong before we even arrive at the point such a decision could be made. Letting her die isn't merely a precaution - nor it is an act of malevolence like some of you have grown to see it." There were many Heroes who he wanted to direct his words to, but it so happened that he looked at Ramza in particular. The entire concept of holding Palitutu hostage seemed no less cruel than what she had been subjecting them to, all these months. Calling the solution merciful smelled of hypocrisy, at best. "It means we're able to embrace this reality and move forward."

"I don't think revenge is on anyone's mind right now...," there was a short pause, "... at least those acknowledging the gravity of the situation." Nothing about it felt like victory, even if the likes of Deadpool evidently thought otherwise.

[umslay]

Three months ago, Ales would have shot Deadpool the moment he opened his big mouth. They Heroes didn't need a loose canon like him on their team, but after seeing just how weak some of the members were, Ales grew to like the mercenary. He may not be "Hero" material, but every organization needed a hitman, right? Someone to give orders to, and one that would not question them.

Ales made no move to stop him throwing the grenades. He held out a welcoming arm and stepped back, closer to Ace and the others who didn't have their morality strip them of their decision-making. They all had their Jobs; they would kill Palitutu once more if someone didn't care about the consequences of healing her. That Hero would be hated and hunted down. Biggs would not see to letting those who spared her go free.

"And if you're done arguing, it's about time we all left, don't we?" Leave her to die, or take her back to face the punishment she deserved. She knew what she got into, and those that disrupted the peace and safety of the world had to be eradicated.

[line_piece]

Chiaki bites her lip as the conversation continues. She's still convinced it would be better in the long run to simply let Palitutu die, but if her theory about her motives is right, maybe there's another option. It's not a plan she particularly wanted to have to use, but in true Chiaki fashion, it's one she has prepared just in case.

"...If we resuscitate Palitutu, and it will be a while before she fully wakes up, I have something that might help. I think."

It's not a glowing endorsement, but she genuinely doesn't know if this is something that will work. Even still, as long as they're discussing options, it's one she feels everyone should know about.

"I have the program for the Neo World Simulation with me. I brought it back from my world, along with another AI like me. We can keep Palitutu connected to it while she's recovering, and we'll be able to monitor her progress directly. Maybe even interact with her safely inside the simulation. That is, if we can figure out how to get it working on the systems in the lab."

There's a little more to it than that, but she'll save that for later. She does shoot Jade a momentary look as she finishes, though, hoping he'll pick up on it.

[cantante]

... Now. Inhaling sharply, Tear's eyes fluttered open and she immediately sought Ace's hand without even pausing to think about it. Gaze still unfocused and her face paler, the melodist tentatively reached up to touch her brow as she struggled to even comprehend what she had just seen, how to put it into words they could all understand. Before there had been no question about where she stood regarding their opponent's fate, but after the vision she had willingly brought onto herself... she wasn't so sure.

Focusing her attention on the fallen Tarutaru, her expression still did not hold much sympathy, yet it couldn't be any more clear that hesitation was beginning to bloom.

"Jade." Silently cursing the faint tremor that had managed to escape her control, the look she fixed on him was nonetheless fierce. If there was anyone she could speak to, it was him, and ultimately it would come down to his decision as the only one with the capability of healing Palitutu. "She'll wake up. If we spare her now, then she will wake up and while we might find an ally in her, it could be because of a catastrophe that will center in Aqures Tosf."

Again, again she had been bestowed a vision involving the remains of a castle and dark energy. Did that mean it was unavoidable, no matter what they did? The girl shook her head to clear that thought—in this moment her focus had to be in delivering those details, however much she was struggling to piece them together as she went.

"Everyone... Everyone will be there, our enemies and allies alike united against this." Or so she had understood it, why couldn't she have seen more? "I don't know what plan she had conceived or what will happen to cause it, nor what would allow all four Black Crystals into our possession only to hand them over to known Avatars."

It was hardly all the details, only what she perceived to be important to share now. There was also another crucial message to deliver alongside it, too.

"It's only a possibility." Breaking her gaze away from her companion, she looked to the Heroes still remaining, lingering just a few seconds longer on those who were so earnestly advocating to spare their enemy. "The future isn't set, we all know that."

However, even as she said the words she couldn't stop her grip from tightening around her partner's hand, pressing past the unpleasant memories such words might rekindle.

"The future... is still ours to make. It starts here."

Because the fact of the matter was, they were running out of time to make that decision. The girl found herself longing to have been able to hear what the Tarutaru was about to say, closing her eyes as if she were tempted to try again, just to know what could have happened to unite them.

[im_pancake]

And among the frustrations and ideas and concerns, Twilight's eyes grow wide and shimmer as an idea hits her. "That's it! Oh, I'm such a stupid pony for not thinking of this sooner! We need to keep Artemicion away from her, but we need to use the Phoenix Down NOW!"

Before they can question, Twilight continues. "Listen, Palitutu's one rule was that we need to kill her. Mission Accomplished. Nothing in there says we can't kill her THEN bring her back to life. Loophole Abuse! It's so simple that I wish I had thought of this sooner!"

[jadethenecromancer]

Jade's gaze hadn't left Tear since the moment she spoke up. It didn't even occur to him to doubt her words. Of all Heroes of Light, she was perhaps the only one he had absolute faith in.

But where did that leave them? What could make Palitutu agree to work with not only them, but with the Avatars of the Calamity? There were so many details missing he wanted to ask about and no time for Tear to elaborate. A glance at Palitutu told him she was practically gone. But with the Phoenix Down, a Life spell, and the rest of his white magic skills, maybe...

One more look back at Tear. Jade didn't have to ask why she stressed the uncertainty of the future she'd seen. The two of them knew exactly just how easily fate could be changed.

"...Very well." He gave a small nod and turned to the others. "I can't say I wholly approve, but Tear's vision changes things. This needs to be investigated and that'd be pointless with Palitutu dead."

The ones who had been calling for mercy received a sharp look. "But I want to be clear on this -- if we can't reliably contain her, or if Cid deems her too much of a threat even after we explain the situation, that'll be the end of her and we'll say no more about it. Agreed?"

He caught Chiaki's eye briefly, having not missed the pointed look she'd given him. They'd talk later.

[melodiesmods]

Should Jade the spell or phoenix down on Palitutu, the characters will be able see the signature light and visual signs of a life spell being used. While nothing visible will happen besides that, if they are to check the Heroes of Light will be able confirm her life signs are stabilized. Indeed, her heartbeat and breathing will both be there.

Yet, it doesn't seem as though the Tarutaru will wake up anytime soon. With everything that’s happened, even with a life spell it might take weeks, months or maybe even years for her to wake up, if ever. Only time will tell.

[damn_juicebox]

"Agreed," Rukia replied with a solemn nod at Jade. It was a risk, she wasn't about to claim otherwise. But it was a risk as well to eliminate an important piece of their potential future, especially given Tear's vision.

Besides, she was still a little worried about what that woman had said about not expecting mercy if they weren't willing to show it themselves.

So be it. Once it seemed that Jade's healing was in the clear, she took a step back, gauging up Palitutu's size...then stooping to take her arms and pull her onto Rukia's back. She was such a little thing that even the vertically-challenged Rukia could probably carry her with little effort.

"Let's return home, and rest."