psychoshenanigans | GRATIA // PSL

Entry tags:

GRATIA // PSL

The first thing he feels is the cold.

It permeates everything down here on the lower levels. What little warmth humans have made for themselves is greedily gobbled up by the stone walls that surround them on all sides. Despite the stirring of people in the streets, in their homes, and around corners, this place feels like a grave. A similar sense seems to loom over the heads of most who make their way through this deep, dark part of the world, hovering around them like a cloud of inevitability. No one has been outright sentenced to death, but they may as well be.

Upon waking, Tek will have found himself in a dark, wet alleyway. Attempts to orient himself reveal that he has been brought, somehow, to an impressively large network of tunnels that all lead, more or less, to three or four larger chambers. There is far more vibrant life above him somewhere, far, far above the layer of caves he's in now, and there is also a very deep, sluggish form of life somewhere far below his feet.

No one is coming to get him. No one follows him in his immediate vicinity--the few stragglers hanging around doorsteps and windows don't give him a second glance, or even a first one. The place is crowded, but not busy. Everyone keeps their heads down. The people are all dressed poorly, in rags and robes and bundles that suggest a certain level of consistent poverty all throughout the level. The buildings in these tunnels look man-made, either built from scrap or carved straight out of the rock of the cave, but the majority of the actual roads and cave walls seem to have been formed with very little help from human hands.

The place is lit with lanterns and dirty-looking florescents suspended high above in the cave ceiling. The air is thick and stuffy, the smell of mold and mud prevalent over even the smell of human stagnation. It would not be hard to drag someone off, and he gets the immediate feeling that if he did, it's unlikely that anyone would come looking for them.

What does he do?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[the fact that he looks like he's enjoying himself is reassuring. he could have seemed vindictive about it, but they're all still having fun--somehow.

so, Tek is quite at ease undoing the remainder of his shirt and sitting up straight so he can pull the thing over his head without too much struggle.

and if Tonic has any interest in pale, absurdly-flawless skin, then he has plenty to look at as Tek strips down to his last few articles of clothing. his lodasphere and another fancy pendant jingle together onto his chest, and he takes a moment to fold up his shirt so that it can neatly be set aside with the rest.]

[well, Tonic seems to be enjoying the view, openly admiring the statuesque form of the person in front of him, eyes now looking for scars or track marks or basically any sign that this person has ever been in danger their entire lives.

it's strange to find nothing. very pretty, but strange. he sighs, still perched on his own hand, wistful and appreciative.]

And you have a perfect complexion, too. It's just not fair.

[hopefully Tonic won't mind watching Tek lounge and get comfortable like this. especially now that he's less clothed, the call of soft pillows are much harder to resist.

he hardly pauses to answer, though.]

Oh, don't put too much stock into it--it's just more lies.

[he folds his arms behind his head once he's found the perfect spot, much like he'd started at the beginning of this questionable game.]

You could say that keeping up appearances is one of my passions.

[Tonic likes this answer a lot. he seems wholly satisfied again, watching Tek settling down while his smile spreads from one side of his face to the other.]

That does make me feel a little better. Still, you do good work.

[and after a moment, he tilts his head thoughtfully, presenting his next question curiously:]

What do you want?

[perfectly comfortable there, as if he'd been in his own home and not half-dressed at some crazy party in a city that isn't his, he lets his eyes close for a few moments.]

Do you mean here, or in the world at large?

[it takes Tonic a moment to decide which he would rather hear about. at first he thinks he only wants to know about the here and now... but then he thinks about hearing of, perhaps, Tek's deeper motivations for everything.

...ultimately, though, he decides it isn't worth it. they can play this game another time, perhaps, but for now, he's enjoying that they've both gone back to being content again.]

Here, for now.

[Tek also takes a moment to think, considering his answer here and idly wondering if he'll have a chance later on to share the other part of it. he's not in a hurry to finish the round. he's sure their game will end soon, one way or another, and he's not in a particular rush to end the better part of his night.

eventually, he opens his eyes again to fix an easy stare on his companion.]

I wanted someone who would play with me.

[he shrugs one shoulder and folded elbow.]

I'd been so bored, cooped up with him all the time. I don't exactly have any other contacts in the city or places to go; I was going crazy. Robin decided to bring me to this place so I could get out, make a mess.

[then he unfolds one of his arms from behind his head so he can gesture to Tonic and the nest that they've been spilling secrets in, filling in the rest of the story.]

I just wanted to blow off steam and get into a little bit of trouble while I could. Before I have to go back to polite society in a city [--and whole world--] that I don't know.

[he stops himself there, before he rambles down any of the other restless side-roads in his head, and laughs a little bit.]

...I hope you weren't expecting something more exciting than that.

[Tonic takes all of these words in, measuring them against what he knows and deciding that it is very, very unlikely to be some kind of elaborate lie, especially this late in their game.]

The truth is good enough for me, babe.

[and after a moment or two, he uncurls from where he has been sitting, slithering forward so that he can rest on his stomach, propped up on his elbows, resting his face in his hands. he even kicks his feet up, a wooden one and a real one, like a teenage girl at a sleepover.]

So what's your necklace made of? [a sly smile.] This one's not for the game.

[Tek likes this shift a lot. after all of the convoluted turns in their strange little game, the fact that his new friend is settling down like this, instead of looking for the nearest polite exit, is a wonderful sign. he can't help but gravitate toward it. it shows in subtle ways--moving his shoulders so he can slink an inch or two lower on the pillows, turning just a little closer toward Tonic.

the question isn't one he expects, though. he picks up the much more valuable of his two necklaces, to look at it himself.]

This one? I assume you mean the pendant, as there's nothing special about the metal. It's just gold.

It's just gold...

[Tonic rolls his eyes at that profoundly priviledged statement, but he doesn't let it sit for long. he really is more interested in the pendant, eyeing it as well.]

Yes, I mean the pendant. I'm not a gem expert, but it's very pretty.

[Tek chuckles a little bit; he had tried to warn him about the whole being-enormously-privileged thing. and he gazes at the stone, rubbing a thumb over the surface to clear any smudges. it has been a very long time since he's bothered even looking at the thing.]

You won't find anything like it around here, I can tell you that much.

[for as beautiful as the gem is, and it being the only piece of jewelry he's wearing tonight, he doesn't seem to be looking a it with a whole lot of fondness. it's a mixed expression; if anything, it's somewhat similar to how Tonic had been looking at the false leg strapped to his own body.]

It's sort of a family symbol. The type of stone doesn't have a name, but there's a local legend about them being the petrified, fallen tears of some ancient creature. The stone has many colloquial names, and they all have to do with that.

Ooh, interesting...

[he tilts his head a little, watching the way the stone catches the light. he was being honest about his lack of knowledge of gems; unless they've got some sort of medicinal property (and they rarely actually do), they're mostly all just fancy rocks to him.

he doesn't find Tek's jaded opinion of the stone all that strange, especially after hearing that it's got some connection to that "family" of his. after a beat of silence, and then another, he looks back up at Tek.]

I really couldn't think of anything else to say about it. It's just pretty.

[he shrugs. he's not about to put more effort into it than that.]

[really, after being so used to the way that Robin gets all over every single thing in his vicinity, Tonic's aloof attitude is refreshing. he doesn't need to dig in deeper with everything. Tek has always liked the way that Robin always needs to touch things, but a break from it is nice.

and he always appreciates blatant honesty. it makes him laugh, and he drops the necklace back onto his chest without care.]

It is pretty; they wouldn't have it any other way. And it does make it easy to put outfits together when you always have a unifying color palette to work with.

[at the laugh, he smirks just enough to show some teeth. it's nice to know that their honesty can continue for a little while.]

A good point; imagine being stuck with a big emerald, clashing with everything.

[gazing out at nothing, where he can clearly picture the image that Tonic is summoning forth, Tek wrinkles his nose.]

Can you even imagine how that would look with my skin tone? Awful. [he would look even more dead than he already does.

and then there is another one of those pauses in conversation--a juncture where he must decide whether to continue the casual back-and-forth line that they happen to be on, or veer off down some other path. Tonic will at least have the hanging momens of silence and visible way that Tek is mulling something over in his head as a warning.

they seem to be on a little kick of honesty, right? he should probably leave well enough alone, but there is one thing that is still eating away at his curiosity. so, he makes a leap. first glancing over at Tonic's augmented arm, and then up to his face.]

What happened to your body?

Just terrible...

[Tonic agrees about the idea of an emerald, sticking out his tongue a little again. but beyond that playful expression, he has nothing else to say, and so lounges quietly while Tek mulls something over.

the period of thoughtful silence is plenty of warning, so he is well and truly prepared for a personal question as soon as Tek decides to speak again. as such, his answer comes with a raised eyebrow and a quick, twirling gesture of his hands.]

Which part?

[what hasn't happened to his body, man.]

I don't know.

[without an obvious complaint before him, he forges on. he at least makes sure to remain looking as neutral as possible about it. he's morbidly curious, but he doesn't want to be rude.]

Things seem to be somewhat... unilateral. So, I'd wondered what the story was behind it.

[why is your whole left side fucked up, friend?]

[oh, yes... he considers lying about it, coming up with some fantastical story to keep from having to take off another piece of clothing... but his physical malformations are something he really doesn't mind talking about. honestly, he sometimes wishes he got more chances to complain, without making the people around him nervous.]

Acid. [he nods his head.] Believe it or not, someone tried to dunk me into a vat of it. The leg thing came later, ironically.

[the words are delivered rather matter-of-factly, so it is up to Tek to decide whether they are the truth or not.]

[funny, the middle point there is the part that shocks him the most. Acid is interesting, but Tek's neutral expression is blinked away for one of surprise at what comes after. being a creature that uses it as a weapon in a few very specific ways, it never would have occurred that someone could be dunked into the stuff.

and then, when he tries to actually imagine it, the image becomes even more absurd. before he can really think about it, he incredibly blurts out--]

--Sideways?

[oh, that causes Tonic to burst into laughter, deeper than usual as he's propped up on his stomach. he's got a big half-grin on his face now.]

You don't believe me?

[Tek's hand is on his forehead, obviously struggling to imagine this scenario. Tonic's laughter only encourages him to not bother trying to hide his incredulity.]

...How does that even happen? Were you attacked by some kind of giant?

Well...

[he laughs again, moving his arms to do his best to illustrate the general motions that led to his unfortunate state.]

Fairly large for a man, yes. And I was a little smaller, at the time. And the vat was probably, oh, half the size of this chamber? And not very tall.

[he should really be holding Tek to admitting whether or not he thinks that he's lying--per the game--but seeing the other man incredulous for once is too good a treat to pass up.]

Picked me up and tried to dunk me in head-first. I tried to twist in the other direction-- [he turns his head, now bad-side out, to illustrate that hitting the surface first.] --Stuck my whole arm in to try and keep the rest of me from going further down.

[he wiggles his bad fingers, too, turning back to face Tek normally.]

Could have been a lot worse.

[Tonic even gives him a little bit of a story--Tek's very favorite thing. he nods in avid agreement, because... yeah, he knows very well that it could have been a lot worse. he himself has caused a lot worse.]

Incredible... I do hope something very bad happened to that man.

I kicked his face in.

[and oh, the look that comes over Tonic's face suggests that it was the kind of face-kicking that people don't get up from, and that he thoroughly enjoys the memory of doing so.]

[oh, how Tek is so instantly and utterly charmed. he almost looks proud, with the way he grins with all his sharp teeth, the expression easily lighting all the way up to his eyes.

he must be able to imagine it well and love what he sees in his mind's eye--vengeance looks good on his fascinating new friend. in his glee, he even extends his fingers and reaches like he wants to touch Tonic's face, but catches the reflex before it can go very far.]

At least there's a happy ending, then.

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject