Discontinued Story Quest Isulus Serenity Missteps

[Ash Vargold]

Ash had logged in with plans. Plans to help patch things up around the camp, maybe. Or to find a way to get properly clean, so he stopped feeling grimy every time he logged in.

Oi, what are you doing-!

What he hadn't planned was for someone to grab him mere minutes after he'd logged and drag him into the mushroom house. His startled protests received no answers, and the burly human was apparently much stronger than he was. He gave up resisting eventually, and soon he was brought into a small room with a circle of chairs in it. The man, apparently a part of the MIT, all but dropped him in one of the chairs before taking a spot next to the door.

Burly MIT Councilor
"You got into quite the spat back during the research project, y'know. Don't think we didn't notice you and that Magia girl going at each other."

Look, if this is what that's about, we haven't fought since-

Burly MIT Councilor
"Yeah, because you've been avoidin' her like the plague. Don't think I don't know what beef look likes, kid.

So here's what's going to happen. You and the girl are gonna sit here in this room until you talk out your differences, got it? We've got some people ready to help with the mediation. Gotta make sure everything's sorted after the Fever, see?"

That was what this was about? Ash exhaled, tail lashing with frustration. He could just log out here, but something told him that would just delay the problem.

...ugh. Fine. Let's just get this over with, I guess...

@Tristaria

 

[Tristaria]

The room was quiet for a while, the silence only broken by the sounds of repairs going on outside, muffled by the half-organic walls. Hammering, sawing, and various magical noises that all served as a reminder that Ash was uselessly sitting in the room waiting for...

"He's in here?" Tristaria's voice finally came from the other side of the door, moments before it opened and she was "led" in, much as he was.

Immediately, it was clear something was different about her. Her eyes were a more calm form of blue, her face emotionless, and more importantly, she wasn't screaming death-threats. Then again, Red Fever had more-or-less made those sorts of changes to everyone, so that wasn't surprising.

"Hi," she offered a short greeting, wandering up and taking the seat across from him.

...

And that was pretty much it. No more words. No acknowledging what'd happened. Just staring straight ahead with the perfect deadpan face. After that unbearable awkwardness, she finally addressed the situation. "I believe he's waiting for you to apologize for your outburst. Don't worry, I won't hold it against you. Organic creatures are easily unhinged; you can't help it, I understand."


@Ash Vargold

 

[Kakao]

He'd gotten far more lost than ever before. The small Magia was following his compass North. The problem was, he forgot to turn at any point, leading him into the Tangleweaves, a mysterious place with a lot of weird creatures, or so he'd been told. While he was wandering around outside, he overheard a counselor complaining about two people with a considerable beef with each other. It took Kakao a moment to realize, but this man was saying they needed help!

"If I can mediate between five-year-olds, surely I can mediate for adults, right?"

The small boy hammered the counselor with questions when the counselor caught on that he wanted to help. He got no real answers, but was at least told about "Red Fever" and its effects. Knowing about all this, Kakao was sure he'd be able to help- and if not, they could use him as a punching bag! He had infinite lives, didn't he?

And so, pushing the door open a bit too hard, the small Magia entered the room of a Magia around his age and size, and an oddly familiar Beastfolk. Kakao put his hands together with surprise. "I didn't expect to see a friendly face! I remember you, mister!"

With a nervous laugh, he pat his chest. "My name is Kakao. I've been asked to help mediate between you two. I wasn't given a whole lot of information about what's wrong though. So... Do you guys mind filling me in? The counselor outside was pretty lazy about it. All he told me was you were sufferers of Red Fever."

@Ash Vargold
@Tristaria

 

[Ash Vargold]

Ah, there she was.

She was certainly more calm looking. It was night and day from before, and for a moment Ash felt the hope that maybe this really would be a simple misunderstanding, something where they could shake hands and go their separate ways.

Then Tristaria opened her mouth.

Ash narrowed his eyes as his tail began to lash as she talked in that monotone voice. Was she being serious? Trying to pin the blame on him, as if she wasn't the one who was shouting at everyone within arm's reach, as if she hadn't electrocuted him?

Look, first of all-

Ash's retort was interrupted as the door opened and Kakao walked in.

Burly MIT Councilor
And there they are. I'm going to wait outside the door so you can get to work.

Kakao, if you ever feel like you're in danger, just shout and I'll jump in, alright?

The man nodded, then stepped out the open door and closed it. There was a quiet click as the door locked behind him.

Ash took a deep breath. He had to stay calm, no matter how much his heart rattled. The small Magia was... familiar, but he couldn't place just where they'd met, and it wasn't enough to ease his DA. Nonetheless, he nodded politely, if tensely.

Sorry you got dragged into this. I'm Ash, by the way.

The two of us were working on the Serenity Mist project, and because of the Red Fever things got a little... heated.

He glanced Tristaria's way, pinching at the fabric of his pants.

Tristaria got aggressive and started barking orders at people. I tried to calm her down, but it... didn't go well.

@Tristaria @Kakao

 

[Tristaria]

Tris didn't like that familiarity the newcomer was showing one bit. That was like the very definition of a biased jury, wasn't it? Very suspicious. Still, she'd assume the best from this newcomer. He looked friendly enough, and from the eyes, Tristaria guessed he was also the same race. At least in that sense, he could understand the situation.

"Cacao like the chocolate plant...?" Shrugging, she offered a short little wave of her hand in greeting. A friendly attitude which would quickly turn...... well, she still looked the exact same, but her words were getting a bit spicier.

"Yes, of course, the machine was the one 'barking' over the wolf," she rolled her eyes in sarcasm. "What you call 'aggression' I call 'fulfilling the role I was given' as Fixer. And one of those roles, was clearly stated to be, and I quote: 'Keep the unruly or uncooperative members from causing trouble.' If you had a problem with my methods, you shouldn't have been unruly and uncooperative. Of course, you can be forgiven for such mistakes, considering the circumstances."

Closing her eyes, she raised a finger, "And I object to the insinuation that I was in need of 'calming down.' Magia control their emotions far more effectively than other races." Her eyes reopened to glance over at Kakao. "I'm sure you're aware of this, aren't you, Mr. Chocolate?"


@Kakao

 

[Kakao]

Kakao smiled to the councilor. "I'm sure I'll be fine, but I'll keep that in mind." To him, this was no different than mediating for his daughter and her friends. If anything, since both parties were older than the kids he was used to dealing with, surely this would be easier. And if not... Well, it still had to be simpler than flying a plane. People were far more flexible than machinery, weren't they?

Putting his finger to his chin, he took a moment to inhale all of the information given to him at the start, especially from Tristaria, who'd had a lot to say. He had to say, he was amused by her preference to call him 'Mr. Chocolate'. It reminded him of his first friend in the game that called him 'Cake' for some reason. But this was no time to be amused. These two were struggling, after all... And something told him, from what he was listening to, this was going to be a bit harder than he thought.

"Miss Tristaria, you are correct. Many if not most Magia have the ability to control their emotions better... But there are two things you need to keep in mind. For starters, not all Magia are like that. I know I'm certainly not. My curiosity still runs as rampant here as it does at home. Also... You were, shall we say, under the influence of something powerful- possibly more powerful than your self-control. I don't know what emotions were heightened, but it doesn't change your emotions were powerful. But..."

He turned to Ash. "To her, she wasn't being aggressive- even if it felt aggressive to you. I don't know how you tried to 'calm her down', but trying to calm someone who is unaware they are hyped up on emotions they're generally not used to being hyped up by... That's not always the best answer. Did you try asking Miss Tristaria at the time how she was feeling by any chance? Or did you simply try to tell her to 'calm down'? The two methods are very different... And while neither will always work, one often works better than the other."

 

[Ash Vargold]

Ash's tail continued to thump with frustration as he listened to Tristaria. It was tough not to interrupt her - foggy as his memory of that chaos was, he still had the confidence that what he did wasn't wrong.

...well, most of it. He probably shouldn't have sicced a ghost on her, but at that point it was self-defense.

...I'll admit, I don't think I asked how she felt. By the time I noticed her it was because of all the shouting. She'd driven someone to tears at that point and kept going, so I made some assumptions.

He glanced Tristaria's way, though he avoided eye contact. It was surreal, seeing her looking so calm now. So very different from the cyclone of fury she'd been the first time he'd met her. In the end, though... her personality was apparently no different.

By that point we had a pretty good idea that Red Fever was something that turned up emotional responses. I was hoping to remind her of that, in case it would get her to push past whatever games Terrasphere was playing with her perception. Or at the very least, get her to focus her abuse one someone else.

Ash crossed his arms, foot tapping along with the erratic rhythm of his heart. It was tough, filing through those fever-tinged memories. He'd never fallen to anger like the others, but the memory of that overwhelming fear still made him shiver today. He unconsciously rubbed his chest, half-remembering what had happened after the confrontation, half-worried about his DA flaring up even further.

... I might not have been particularly delicate about it. I was infected too, though at the time I thought it was just anxiety about the whole situation.

...but whatever I said, I don't think it warranted the electric shock.

@Tristaria @Kakao

 

[Tristaria]

"Do my emotions look powerful to you...?" Tristaria answered Kakao swiftly, with a look that proved her point perfectly. "Maybe you don't have that trait, but I do. If anything, that simply means it was all the more important I took the role."

This guy was annoying, but at the very least, he was less annoying than most obligatory councilors, so that was something. Not that she'd let her irritation show: especially after a claim like that.

... And yet, as ghostyboi kept on speaking, her eyes narrowed slightly. She'd let him finish for the fake of sounding calm and controlled, but the moment he took a break to breathe, she was correcting the record.

"Now hold on just a minute, it's awfully rude of you to assume I was the reason people were crying when we now know there was a disease making people emotional. They could've just been remembering a dead pet or something."

Offering a quick shrug, Tris sighed. "Just to show you how humble and controlled I am, I'll even apologize first. Sorry you got zapped. It looked painful. It's also good to know you're not always the emotionally-wracked halfwit you appeared to be back then."

Standing from her seat, she glanced between the door and Kakao. "Now that that's handled, can I go?"


@Ash Vargold @Kakao