001 | video

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

[To anyone who met the other Lightning, this one might be a surprise. She's wearing torn and bloody clothing. She's also still covered in her own blood, though any signs of actual injury is gone.]

I thought I made it clear the last time..

I'm done doing another God's, or Gods, bidding.

[Been there, done that. Ended up dead because Cosmos refused to do anything productive. Died for the sake of others surviving the supposed next Cycle of the Conflict. Got herself killed for the sake of hoping the next Cycle ends the Conflict. For Good.]

Guess they didn't get the memo. Tch.

[She shakes her head before glancing at her bracelet.]

Does anyone here know if... Kain, Yuna, Laguna, Vaan or Tifa are here? [If she's here, they had to be here, too. Right? Right?]

Comments

[video]

[metaleyedgirl.livejournal.com]

....One, how do you know Yunie and two, I thought you were with Snow?

[Yeah, guess who's talked to the other Lightning already?]

video;

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

[She eyes the blonde warily, distrust settling on her face. How did she know Yuna's nickname? Better yet--]

How do I know Yuna? How do you know her?

[Could this person be from... Yuna's world? It's possible. They knew they were summoned from their homes to fight in the Conflict... But Yuna never mentioned a blonde girl. Just that blond guy who fought on Chaos's side...]

And whose 'Snow'?

video;

[metaleyedgirl.livejournal.com]

She's my cousin. Snow's the big guy? With the bandana? Kind of derpy, blond?

video;

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

[A cousin? She stares at the blonde for a moment, trying to find the resemblance. It could be a bluff except she knows that who ever is in charge here... It can't be Chaos or Cosmos. The letter implied that much.]

The only blond and big guy I know is Kain. 'Derpy Blond'? Vaan. Firion's the one with the bandanna and he don't have blond hair.

[broduil]

There are many who feel the same way, though their efforts have amounted to little so far.

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

If they didn't get far, then they should try harder.

[broduil]

Then perhaps you could provide a better example.

[ not that he's trying actively to escape, but he vaguely supports those who are. ]

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

Have they tried fighting a first hand?

[Not that she actually fought Chaos by herself, or ever. It was always his warriors or those manikins...]

[video]

[dontneedplans.livejournal.com]

Whuh—?

Sis!?

[Oh my god why is she all bloody he just saw you at breakfast what the fuck!!!

Sounds of crashing in the background...]

video;

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

Just who are you calling 'Sis'?

[There's no recognition in her eyes, absolutely nothing that implies she knows him at all. Instead, there's only open suspicion.]

Do I know you?

[You weren't in the Conflict. She knows that much. At least not in the Cycle she remembers...]

video;

[dontneedplans.livejournal.com]

[He's not even sure how to answer that when he responds a moment later— considering the last time he saw someone important to him that wasn't all that met the eye? Yeah, didn't turn out so well. Hot rage courses through Snow's veins.]

Yeah?! Think I'm gonna buy another one of your tricks when Lightning's right here!? Well, think again!

Re: video;

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

What tricks?

[At the mention of her name, her head shoots up. Her eyes narrow further at the implication that there's another.]

A Manikin here? [That can't be right. They destroyed the portal. She closed it! She knows she did. She watched it close.]

[pyritic.livejournal.com]

[ ... What. ]

You didn't say you were from Gaia.

What happened?

video;

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

You!

What are you doing here?!

[And why are you dressed so differently, Warrior of Chaos?!]

And don't you already know? You were on His side after all.

1/2

[pyritic.livejournal.com]

Wha--

[ That kind of anger from her is throwing him off. Not that they'd got along so well when talking, but nothing happened to explain this. ]

video;

[pyritic.livejournal.com]

[ And then he snaps out of it, narrowing his eyes. ] Hey. Lookin' like that I wouldn't be surprised if you cracked your head, so let's clear things up.

One, I'm on no one's side. Two, I was kidnapped. Like everyone else. So I don't know what you're yelling at me for.

Three--[ And most important of all to him]--how do you know Tifa? Tifa Lockhart?

video;

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

[Not on anyone's side, huh? Yeah, right. Although she can't recall ever seeing him after those first few encounters during the Conflict. Definitely not near the end. He wasn't there with Golbez or ExDeath or any of the other Warriors...]

So you say. I still remember you and Sephiroth standing with the other Warriors of Chaos that one time.

[...So there was a connection between you and Tifa, she always wondered about that...]

Why wouldn't I know her? We fought together. [And more or less died together, along with the others.]

[histories]

[equipped with Healing, her very first reaction at seeing all that blood is... well. panicky, mostly. without even looking closer to see if she's actually injured.]

Oh my...! Are you alright?! Where are you? I can patch you up right away!

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

[The surroundings behind her indicate she's somewhere outside the Castle Plaza, heading toward Thor District...]

Alright? [Is she alright? No, she isn't alright. She just found herself alive. Tired, covered in grim and blood but most of all alive.

[Not that anyone should know about that. Yet, if ever.]

...I'm fine. Just need a shower. And some new clothes.

[histories]

You don't look fine at all! Aren't you injured? [yeah, because clearly it looks like it...]

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

I'm fine. [She stresses harder on that last word, hoping that the girl would get the message.]

I only need to clean up.

video;

[thestormishere]

[ After this little run-in with Snow in Heimdall House's dining room? Lightning's fighting-game counterpart is getting absolutely no preamble to a whole lot of anger suddenly getting thrown around over the bracelet comms. She doesn't even bother to watch through that first video, beyond the short glimpse she got when Snow turned his own screen toward her.

And yes, she uses video herself too, because she wants it made very clear that there's been a grave mistake in trying to use her appearance like that. ]

Who are you?

video;

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

[Her eyes widen only fraction, not long enough for anyone without a keen eye to even spot the action. The angry outburst is more than a knee jerk reaction than anything else.]

I should be asking you that.

[She returns the glare as thoughts race through her mind. It's not crystal. The image in front of her, the projection from her bracelet, it's flesh. Human-looking. More human than any of those other Manikins she faced during the Conflict. It's not crystal.

[And it's talking with coherency. None of the Manikins did that. They only attacked and fought, they cared nothing but battle. They were mindless so, why...? Unless, this is a new version, a better (presumably stronger) version of the Manikins.

[She swallows back a snarl of outrage]

Re: video;

[thestormishere]

[ Seriously? Disgust seeps through her body- strengthening the edge of her anger and reflected in her tone of voice. ]

-- Let me rephrase: what are you? Fal'Cie? AI?

[ Of course, even if the answer is either of those things, it seems unlikely she'll be lucky enough to hear the truth; when was the last time anyone ever got a projection character to admit their making? There has to be some particular reason for this-- the appearance, the blood...

It also frustrates her to think she might be falling for it if the goal here is to upset her, but she also can't help some righteous indignation. On top of being trapped here in general, this is way too much. ]

video;

[destinytofall.livejournal.com]

[Fal-what? AI? The first word meant nothing to her, had no meaning and she didn’t give a thought to the second. It was the entire sentence, the questioning in general. All of it proving that this isn’t just some ordinary Manikin.]

Human, what else would I be?

[She snaps back with a harsher tone. Her eyes flash with anger as she doesn’t bother to hold back the growl. The more this ‘Manikin’ talked, the more disgust (and fear) she felt. If this is supposed to be the next generation of Manikins, then…

The other Warriors of Cosmos wouldn’t stand a chance. Not if their enemies could easily blend in and taken them out behind their backs. Using the same tactics Kain and that Warrior used, only with more devious purposes.]