Event Log: Dreamwalker the Second

[hadrielmods]

Who: All characters participating in the event
What: The event log for the Dreamwalker part 2 event
Where: In your dreams
When: October 14th-20th (the second log will go up on Oct 23rd, please keep the two weeks of the event separate!)
Warnings: All different kinds of dreams falling under the umbrella of Delight, Rage, Sorrow, and Hope.

This time, the weird stuff doesn't happen when you're awake- as a matter of fact, your waking hours are the normal ones. That's because you're forced to sleep by some unknown entity, getting more and more exhausted by the moment as night falls. Better make sure you're always around a soft pillow.

Once asleep, it doesn't get any less weird- your dreams will be influenced by one of the four gods that make up the first week. Something to make you smile, something to make you angry- or something that reminds you of your deepest regret or most vulnerable hope, they're all things that you're dreaming about now for some reason, no matter how hard you may try to pull away from them.

To make matters more complicated, there are others intruding on your dreams who definitely don't belong there, and while they may seem like manifestations at first, it becomes clear that these others are actually the consciousness of other members of Hadriel, getting some top quality exposure to your angriest, happiest, most sorrowful moments. Hope it doesn't get awkward when you see them tomorrow...

► This log covers October 14th-20th.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you die in dreams you don't die in real life, but if you somehow die in real life anyway, please let us know here.

Comments

[evocation]

Hi.

[Kyna has her jacket on again, zipped all the way up, although it's not nearly cold enough to make that necessary. Her fingers go to her necklace automatically even as she forces a smile.]

No armor, huh? It's a miracle.

[And that's a desperate attempt at a lame joke.]

[hardwearing]

It's not. Feel special.

Unless you want to go anywhere, I'm not leaving here without it.

[evocation]

[She wrinkles her nose at him.]

So I'm only a little special. Got it.

[This is fine. If she sticks to the sarcasm, it's not so bad.]

[hardwearing]

That's special enough.

Are you hungry?

[ He is. He crosses back to the stove and serves himself a bowl of whatever it is he made. ]

[evocation]

Sure.

[Not really, but it gives her something to do. She trails along behind him a little awkwardly.]

[hardwearing]

[ She gets a bowl, too, then, and Wash leads her back to the living area to eat. His armor and weapons are taking up the kitchen table and it's more comfortable on the couch anyway.

The doors to both bedrooms are still open, and both beds are mussed.

Wash settles himself, stirring his stew to cool it down a little. Trying to think how to approach this. ]

[evocation]

[Kyna sits, and this time she's desperate enough for a distraction to peek into the bedrooms as she follows.]

Is someone else staying here, or do you just like swapping beds?

[hardwearing]

[ Oh. Wash glances at the room on the right, nods a little. ]

There's this little girl... I ran into her on my first day. She kinda comes and goes, I think she's having trouble accepting that she's here now? But she deserves to have a safe place.

[evocation]

Oh. Cute.

[It's sweet of him, but she doesn't know how to say that, so she just chews on her lip. She's totally shutting down here, and she knows exactly what Harlan would have to say about that, but she can't quite snap out of it.]

[hardwearing]

It's kinda sad, actually, I think someone was experimenting on her. She's got an ID tattoo and just goes by the number eleven.

[ But she seems to trust him, so Wash is doing what he can. ]

I just wish I was better with kids.

[evocation]

Oh, Jesus.

[That's legitimately awful, and for a second, she doesn't know how to respond.]

I mean... I bet you're doing okay. Maybe you should just... listen to her or something, you know?

[hardwearing]

She's not big on talking.

[ He glances at Kyna, approaching this as gently as he knows how. ]

Neither are you, today.

[evocation]

[She ducks her head a little, stirring her soup absently.]

I'm not good at this stuff.

[hardwearing]

You don't have to tell me, then. I just need to know if it was real?

[evocation]

I think so. I have a lot of dreams about my dad, but... No one else is ever in them. And then I had a dream about you, too.

[hardwearing]

...I know. Out of all the dreams of mine you could have seen, you got a good one, at least. Which... isn't normal for me.

[ It must be something to do with this place. ]

You should know, it was a lie. Maine's gone.

I've seen other things, too, the past couple nights. Something strange is happening.

[evocation]

Oh.

[There's definitely something weird happening, but that revelation catches her off guard enough to distract her from it, and she reaches for his arm.]

I'm sorry, Wash.

[hardwearing]

[ He lets her reach out, slowly adjusting to being touched. As long as he can see it coming, it's okay. ]

I did use the EMP, back home. Killed Sigma. He just wasn't in there anymore.

[ Just one more thing Wash loved that Freelancer destroyed. He doesn't mention that he missed it happening, that he might have been able to save Maine if he'd caught on faster. Questioned the Project more, like York and North had. Wash had just gone along with everything, he'd been so naive... he'll never make that mistake again. ]

I think I wound up in Sharkface's head the other night, too.

[evocation]

[She almost probes further about what that means, but she's not sure if that's crossing a line, so she bites back the question. Then he brings up Sharkface, and she sighs.]

Ugh. Me too. It's totally the gods fucking with us again.

[hardwearing]

...you saw Chica?

That's not how it happened, either.

[evocation]

[Ah. They're discovering a theme here, aren't they?]

Did she die, too?

[hardwearing]

Yeah, she's dead. Maine's fault, actually. Back when he was still Maine.

[evocation]

[He's bringing it up of his own volition again, which means she thinks it might be safe to ask.]

What was that thing? In your dream, I mean.

[hardwearing]

[ Oh. This... might be a complicated explanation. At least it's something that Wash is comfortable talking about, these days, after they destroyed what was left of Freelancer.

It would always follow them, it seemed. Always haunt them. But he got some closure, can discuss it now at least in broad strokes, so he considers how to tell Kyna. Whether or not he'll be comfortable talking about his role, what they did to him, remains to be seen. ]

The program we were a part of, it put fragments of an artificial intelligence inside our heads to help us run our equipment. Maine wound up with Sigma, and it... took over. It thought it could collect everyone else's AI fragments, and become a whole person again.

[evocation]

[He doesn't seem too upset, so Kyna relaxes.]

So it was like... alive or something? Sort of?

[Guess who doesn't know anything about artificial intelligence?]