[ The bright of Springstar hurts his eyes at the moment. He'd never been overly-sensitive to the light, although it always took Silco longer to adjust to a too-bright sun. He had to shade his eyes, to keep from the bright burning his retinae, and if it weren't for the reason he'd drug Jinx out of Highstorm and into Springstar of all places -- did he look over his shoulder often now? -- he wouldn't be here. It had been pretty easy, to promise Jinx something exciting, and when she asked where, he'd just said it was a surprise -- normally that's a great way to interest his daughter, and preserve the actual surprise for when they got down there.
He had even promised that Kaeya -- the ice boy -- would be coming along with them.
Had he already confirmed that Kaeya would be there? Probably not, but he had sent the ping, with a relative location to where they would be waiting. It's next to a dive bar, in the alley, which at least shades them from the worst of the brightness, but even still... He blinked his eyes against the sun, his one already black sclera matched by the other -- something that had happened after he'd been regrown -- and looked around.
At the far end of the alley was a grated sewer pipe. A keen eye -- like a Zaunite used to slipping into the sump pipes to escape enforcers -- would notice that there was no lock on the grate, or that the hinges looked unusually worn for a sewer pipe. ]
We'll give it a few more moments, and then we'll go inside. I promise it's worth the wait.
[ He'd kept it all very hush hush, but then again, he'd only learned of its existence days earlier, and he'd only given it a quick trip, to get a sense for it. This was time for a much more in-depth, lengthy visit. ]
[ Jinx has been busy as of late. busy, busy, busy, keeping busy to avoid thinking about all the Things she doesn't want to think about but whisper in her ear unbidden anyway. she's basically lived in Silco's shadow since his revival, haunting him like a ghost; she has to make sure that Vander doesn't finish what he started. that he doesn't try and come back for Silco.
part of her hopes he does.
she's cooked up some new pretties, a few shinies; she's tinkered herself a modified pistol, too. it isn't entirely hers, either, but one makes due when they have to. she needs time and resources and half of Silco's room has been turned into a make-shift workshop, his desk commandeered and bits and bobs scattered across the floor around it. he knows better than to argue about it.
so it's their first excursion since The Bad Days, and Jinx hangs tight to Silco's side as they approach their destination. none of the usual whimsy, bouncing off to return later; none of the usual irritable eagerness to get to where they're going until they're there. a 'surprise' is good, though; she's been getting restless, pent-up with unspent energy, ready to blow. maybe she just needed some enrichment.
so she's already meandered over to the sewer grate, leaning over to peer inside, one way and then the other. ]
Think there are any really big rats down there? [ and then, suddenly standing up straighter to look at Silco in earnest-- ] What if we tamed them and trained them to wander around and deliver presents to people? Cute little collars, it'll blow their socks off!
[ yeah, Silco, why haven't they simply created an army of rats to deliver payloads of explosives bc this idea is absolutely sane and entirely possible?? smh, her creative genius knows no bounds. ]
[ Silco has gone and promised many things, didn't he? What would he do if Kaeya didn't show up? He likely would have found a way to blame it on the ice boy instead of himself, and it wouldn't even surprise Kaeya if that were the case. It just seems like the sort of thing Silco would do instead of promising Jinx that he would come.
Well, whatever. It's an outcome that doesn't have to come to fruition because lo and behold, Kaeya arrives not a moment sooner, just in time to hear Jinx proclaim the name of her future army of big rats. ]
Squeakers?
[ Mild amusement colours his expression, a brow raised as he looks at Jinx and then guides his gaze toward Silco. The sewer pipe is something he takes note of while he observes the other two, because Silco's communion made a point of focusing on it when the invitation was sent. ]
Is that the name of a new friend?
[ He makes the final approach and stands not too far from where Silco is. Whatever this is about, it can wait until he hears about what Jinx is cooking up. ]
[ Silco tipped his head toward the entrance of the alley, when Kaeya made it. He hadn't been concerned that he might not show -- but maybe, if he'd been better with people, he should have been -- and his lip curled in a slight half-smile. He was glad Kaeya was here, not just because of having someone to promise Jinx, but... being exposed meant he wanted someone else who he could depend on to watch his back.
He didn't trust that there was no chance of exposure, given...
No matter. ]
Apparently it will be several. Rats with explosives, although how they're going to be trained...
[ He shrugged. He was used to Jinx coming up with all kinds of ideas, but he nodded toward the sewer pipe, and moved toward it, and started to fiddle with the locking mechanism. ]
Not that I don't think it would be very funny to watch all sorts of people deal with exploding rats. [ VANDER... ]
[ Jinx hears Kaeya behind her, turns on a heel excitedly - and abruptly launches herself to steal his arm in an arm-hug, leaning into his side. ]
Frosty'll help me! Right, Frosty?
[ apparently Kaeya is getting signed up for assisting in being a Menace To Society, because Lord knows Jinx is cooking up plans for her next Thing. a rat thing, supposedly.
his... forte...?? not sure what he is going to be expected to do, but she seems confident he will help!! for now, he can just be satisfied in getting some huggies while she waits for Silco to unlock the sewer grate. ]
[ It seems Kaeya has accepted that this is how things are going to be whenever he's around Jinx, because he bends his arm by the elbow in an attempt to return her arm-hug. He smiles at her and simply nods his head, not at all certain what he's agreeing to, but sure. Why not. ]
Whatever you need, Jinx. Just say the word.
[ Then, he looks back at Silco, amusement dripping in every syllable. ]
I must say, it is funny to hear you talk about exploding rats with such a serious look on your face.
[ It's all casual talk until Silco reveals what this is all about. ]
[ Honestly, Silco isn't entirely surprised, that Kaeya can handle Jinx -- but on the other hand, it still surprised him, that the man was easy to let her whimsy and ever-shifting attentions pass him by without a note of protest. It's...odd. Different. He hadn't known what to expect, when his daughter met him, or if there would be a violent burst of jealousy -- something else? He'd worried that she would leave at the prospect that there had been someone else Silco kept around -- but it's easier, for him, because he'd given Kaeya an insight into who he was -- that he would understand a part of who made him who he was, made him want to keep him close.
He breathed out at the comment, and closed an eye for the moment, if just to hold what small shreds of dignity he had left close. ]
I'm imagining an enemy, being overrun by them as they explode. It makes even exploding rats a nice thought.
[ He says it seriously, but it is still comical.
He pushed the grate of the sewer open, and gestured for the two of them to step in.
It's large enough that a human can fit -- a large sump pipe, but it's bone-dry from lack of use -- and before the pipe "T's" a few meters in, there's another grate, that covered a ladder. ]
Don't go too far yet, I've been told it's dangerous.
[ He will wait for them to enter, before he'll tug the grate back into place. ]
[ and Jinx, pleased by Kaeya's acquiescence, lets him go to begin heading inside the opened sewer grate and tossing the pair a look over her shoulder. ]
Did you hear that, Frosty? It's dangerous. [ she holds her hands up, wiggling her fingers in the universal gesture for Spooky Things before she continues walking backward into the pipe. ]
Can I go down? I'm going down.
[ yeah, if you tell her it's dangerous,
...she will be even more highly motivated to Do The Thing, so she's working at moving the grate that leads to the ladder. impatiently. and enthusiastically.
[ Kaeya laughs at Jinx's display with her fingers, mimicking it with an amused smile without saying a word, but he does give Silco a particular Look. If it's dangerous, then he can't exactly allow Jinx to go ahead by herself so he stands right next to her, helping to move the grate along. ]
Would you like to go first?
[ He isn't about to stand in the way of what Jinx wants to see. Of course, he'd be right behind her. Even though he isn't saying anything, he's likely just as curious as Jinx is regarding what this is all about.
Silco called them both over here for a reason, and he's determined to find out what it is. ]
[ He says, with a roll of two blackened eyes. He can already feel the tug, toward Highstorm. It's weak, it has really only been less than an hour, but that pull of Discord makes him want to return quicker. The twin draw, of course, is to head deeper in, toward what he thought both Jinx and Kaeya might find interesting.
It is, after all, a curiosity. He snapped the last of the grate's mechanisms back into place, locking it for all but those who know. ] We need to take a specific path, is all. Down first, though.
[ Silco would go after them, obviously. And as long as Jinx didn't immediately scamper off ahead, there was no danger at the end of the... actually very long ladder. ]
[ surprisingly enough, Jinx isn't in a huge rush to go and ditch Silco to his own devices; there's no Sevika here, and if she goes and steals Kaeya - is he like, new, better Sevika?? hm, she'll have to contemplate this - then Silco remains unprotected somewhere potentially dangerous.
yeah, can't allow that when they're in Springstar and heading somewhere potentially dangerous.
...despite this train of thought, soon as the grate is dragged open with a whiny creak of metal, Jinx is leaning over to look down the ladder, and then promptly begins descending at a rapid and agile pace,
only to pop her head back out a second later, pointing at Kaeya. ]
You're on babysitting duty, so don't let him out of your sight, young man!
[ Ah, so he's on babysitting duty now? That's fine.
With an amused look tossed down Silco's way, Kaeya gestures for the other man to right ahead with a sweep of his hand. He isn't about to disregard Jinx's request since who knows what punishment she'll deem appropriate if something happens to Silco... ]
After you. I'll be right behind.
[ This way, he can protect them both from anyone that might be tailing them. He glances at the now-closed grate, as if expecting it to open all of a sudden, but when it doesn't, he goes back to waiting for Silco to head down the ladder. He'll do the same once it's his turn. ]
[ Silco protested, but like, he had just died recently, so it's only with a soft sniff of indignation. He eyed the closed grate, for just a moment, just to make sure there was nobody behind one last time, before he started to descend after Jinx -- and it's not a short go. Even straight down, it opened into a large sewer pipe -- something that could fit several human beings wide -- and it's dry enough that there's only the faint whiff of ancient, crusted mustiness.
Honestly, to people from Zaun, it's practically nothing.
Oddly, it's lit. Not frequently, but enough that the three of them won't be stumbling.
Silco waited for Kaeya to follow, before he nudged his head in one direction, and led them on, his hands in his pockets, itching to get moving. Time outside of Highstorm was precious, after all. ]
[ it's probably for the best that Jinx is descending at a slide along the side rails of the ladder, and thus Silco won't quite hear her quip about yeah, he's capable of getting her CENSORED up his CENSORED CENSORED ...CENSORED,
anyway, when they reach the bottom, she has (thankfully) lingered nearby and hasn't gone far, waiting for both Silco and Kaeya to make it before she lets Mr. Itchy Fingers take the lead. she's walking close to his right shoulder and eying their surroundings curiously. ]
We're underneath Springstar.
[ yeah, isn't that ironic? strange how this feels far more like home than either of the lavish cities above-ground ever could... and they're simply navigating dank and musty sewer pipes and tunnels. ]
How did you find this, anyway? [ her eyes momentarily slide to Kaeya as if to check if he had heard anything about this little excursion, too. ]
[ It doesn't take Kaeya much longer to reach the bottom either. Once he's firmly on his feet, he catches the look Jinx tosses his way, prompting him to shake his head. He hadn't heard anything about this place at all, but the fact that it's underneath Springstar is an interesting thing to note. ]
I wouldn't be surprised if Silco managed to ask the right people.
[ The man has an affinity for the Shadier Side of life, after all, so it's to be expected.
Well, then. Time to commit this path to memory since he's sure wherever they're headed, it's going to be just as confusing to get the heck out of it. ]
Do we get any more hints about where you're taking us now that we're down here?
[ Silco looked at the two of them with a half-smile, something a little proud of himself for finding. It's the kind of thing he's well suited for, Kaeya is right. Being the boss of a literal underworld was certainly the kind of thing that would lead him to rifling through enough conversations to find word of it. ]
Hm, we're currently in the Below. Springstar has a series of tunnels underneath it.
[ It really is like being home, honestly. Like walking through narrow passageways and old sump pipes and catacombs. There's a network of them spread out from them, like spiderwebs, and he started forward, making sure the two of them were close. He had a pathway that he was going to follow, as he explained. ] Technically, all of these pipes underneath are the Below, but there's a good deal of... dangerous elements in some of these tunnels. I'd even heard of wild beasts roaming them.
[ That had been an interesting discovery. Good thing Silco had Kaeya and Jinx with him. ]
I'd heard whisper of this place, but... Kathova was the one who gave me directions through here.
Apparently coming down without directions will probably end in a final wrong turn.
[Vander has been turning this decision over and over in his head for the past hour.
One daughter is gone. Missing, just like that. And any attempt at reaching out just finds… nothing. There’s a lot of terrible ‘what-ifs’ running through his mind, some of which whisper in the back of his thoughts, sowing the seeds of potential foul play and urging him to leap into action. He’s got just enough composure to quiet them, though it’s close. And there’s still another daughter to check on, one who he hasn’t seen in weeks either.
But, like all things in his life, it’s complicated.
Their last exchange made it clear she’d likely respond with hostility to any attempt at contacting her, if she even responded at all. But he’s got to try.
So late one evening, she’ll find herself receiving a Communion attempt from Vander. A very hesitant one, with the undeniable undercurrent of worry lingering beneath it.]
[ Communion with Jinx is generally an unpleasant experience for all involved.
Opening a connection with someone whose thoughts and feelings are ever erratic and sometimes nonsensical means getting heavily dosed with fuzzy, chaotic feedback, a sort that greets Vander with relative quickness at his offer for communication. Immediately, he would feel a wave of contempt - of suspicion, of wariness, of paranoia and rage all swirling like paints mixed together. ]
Oh, been here, there... I'm all over!
[ The cheery tone she answers with is laced with bitterness. ]
Where are you, silly? You want another happy family reunion? Had a blast, last time.
[It’s a chaotic bombardment alright, some of it immediately expected while the rest doesn’t really click into place until he thinks about how both of their previous meetings played out. And yet despite all of that, what Jinx will feel in return is a brief, but powerful, flash of relief when he first hears her voice. Hostility be damned.]
I just wanted to know that you’re alright. Still hanging around this place. Because…
[A slight pause, some of that worry thrumming to life again.]
Well, you mention family—have you heard from your sister? Seen any sign of her? Because I think she might be gone.
[ It really isn't fair, this whole thing Vander's got going on - all steadiness and patience and kindness, even in this place where his emotions should be easier to read. It's confusing. (No, it isn't, because some part of her knows exactly why he's like that - why he'll always be like that, because it's who he is--)
So, naturally, she doubles down on the vitriol and venom, a seething, unstable mania riding the high of her anger - but it doesn't last long. ]
Gone?
[ 'Gone'? A shivery, shuddery flicker of nonsense, and then: ]
Then go and find her. You two are real buddy buddy, aren't you? Trouble in paradise?
[ Vi. Vi, Vi, Vi and Vander. Having a grand ol' time playing house, she's sure of it. ]
Did you check with the Enforcer? [ That word couldn't be spat out with any more disdain despite the faux cheerful tone. ] Yeah, she's all nice and cozy with one of them now, if you didn't hear!
[All that venom and anger—it hurts, it really does. And all he can really do is try to weather it, do his best to keep it from slipping through this shared connection. He’s not exactly a master at this mental communication, though.]
Gone gone. Like she’s not anywhere in Kenos anymore.
[The topic of the Enforcer girl feels as glaring as a landmine sprayed with neon graffiti. It’s an argument they don’t need, not right now, so he tries to sidestep it as carefully as he can.]
No one has seen her, Jinx. And if you try to reach her to talk like this, there’s just… nothing there.
Vander wouldn't be able to see it, but he would feel the rush of fear - abandonment - that rises to meet those words and quickly finds itself swallowed by the comfort of anger. She's already on her feet, ensuring she's armed as she sprints out the door of Silco's chambers in Yima's manor. ]
She can't be-- [ a blip, a waver, ] gone gone. [ It comes quickly and reeks of denial. ]
[The protective instinct it draws from him is almost knee-jerk.]
Just— promise me you’ll be careful around here, alright? I don’t know if there was trouble involved or…
[A pause and a bit of anxious frustration as he shakes his head. She couldn’t have simply up and vanished, right? Right?]
You haven’t seen any sign of her lately? Heard anyone say anything?
[The question’s a little more pointed than he rightfully means for it to be, but he’s on edge and the storm of emotional feedback doesn’t help matters.]
[ The words are spoken aloud and spat through Communion simultaneously, carrying with them a white-hot hiss of that instability. (She's getting a look from someone as she runs down the hall; she doesn't see it or care.) ]
She has to be here. She HAS to be here, you--
[ 'You have to find her.' Is that really what she was about to say? She can't trust him with shit, never mind something as important as Vi. (She knows she can.) People don't just disappear unless you make them disappear. Did someone kill her? No, no, there's no way. Vi wouldn't go down without a fight, and Jinx would know. She would know, she--
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
➔ action (early Takiltu??)
Date: 2022-11-01 05:29 am (UTC)He had even promised that Kaeya -- the ice boy -- would be coming along with them.
Had he already confirmed that Kaeya would be there? Probably not, but he had sent the ping, with a relative location to where they would be waiting. It's next to a dive bar, in the alley, which at least shades them from the worst of the brightness, but even still... He blinked his eyes against the sun, his one already black sclera matched by the other -- something that had happened after he'd been regrown -- and looked around.
At the far end of the alley was a grated sewer pipe. A keen eye -- like a Zaunite used to slipping into the sump pipes to escape enforcers -- would notice that there was no lock on the grate, or that the hinges looked unusually worn for a sewer pipe. ]
We'll give it a few more moments, and then we'll go inside. I promise it's worth the wait.
[ He'd kept it all very hush hush, but then again, he'd only learned of its existence days earlier, and he'd only given it a quick trip, to get a sense for it. This was time for a much more in-depth, lengthy visit. ]
rams back into this at top speed now dad is un-deaded; 1/2
Date: 2022-11-14 11:04 pm (UTC)part of her hopes he does.
she's cooked up some new pretties, a few shinies; she's tinkered herself a modified pistol, too. it isn't entirely hers, either, but one makes due when they have to. she needs time and resources and half of Silco's room has been turned into a make-shift workshop, his desk commandeered and bits and bobs scattered across the floor around it. he knows better than to argue about it.
so it's their first excursion since The Bad Days, and Jinx hangs tight to Silco's side as they approach their destination. none of the usual whimsy, bouncing off to return later; none of the usual irritable eagerness to get to where they're going until they're there. a 'surprise' is good, though; she's been getting restless, pent-up with unspent energy, ready to blow. maybe she just needed some enrichment.
so she's already meandered over to the sewer grate, leaning over to peer inside, one way and then the other. ]
Think there are any really big rats down there? [ and then, suddenly standing up straighter to look at Silco in earnest-- ] What if we tamed them and trained them to wander around and deliver presents to people? Cute little collars, it'll blow their socks off!
[ yeah, Silco, why haven't they simply created an army of rats to deliver payloads of explosives bc this idea is absolutely sane and entirely possible?? smh, her creative genius knows no bounds. ]
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Date: 2022-11-14 11:05 pm (UTC)Squeakers!
[ is she thinking about making mechanical rats that blow up? maybe.
maybe she is. ]
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Date: 2022-11-15 04:28 am (UTC)Well, whatever. It's an outcome that doesn't have to come to fruition because lo and behold, Kaeya arrives not a moment sooner, just in time to hear Jinx proclaim the name of her future army of big rats. ]
Squeakers?
[ Mild amusement colours his expression, a brow raised as he looks at Jinx and then guides his gaze toward Silco. The sewer pipe is something he takes note of while he observes the other two, because Silco's communion made a point of focusing on it when the invitation was sent. ]
Is that the name of a new friend?
[ He makes the final approach and stands not too far from where Silco is. Whatever this is about, it can wait until he hears about what Jinx is cooking up. ]
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Date: 2022-11-16 04:56 am (UTC)He didn't trust that there was no chance of exposure, given...
No matter. ]
Apparently it will be several. Rats with explosives, although how they're going to be trained...
[ He shrugged. He was used to Jinx coming up with all kinds of ideas, but he nodded toward the sewer pipe, and moved toward it, and started to fiddle with the locking mechanism. ]
Not that I don't think it would be very funny to watch all sorts of people deal with exploding rats. [ VANDER... ]
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Date: 2022-11-16 06:32 am (UTC)Frosty'll help me! Right, Frosty?
[ apparently Kaeya is getting signed up for assisting in being a Menace To Society, because Lord knows Jinx is cooking up plans for her next Thing. a rat thing, supposedly.
his... forte...?? not sure what he is going to be expected to do, but she seems confident he will help!! for now, he can just be satisfied in getting some huggies while she waits for Silco to unlock the sewer grate. ]
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Date: 2022-11-17 04:09 am (UTC)Whatever you need, Jinx. Just say the word.
[ Then, he looks back at Silco, amusement dripping in every syllable. ]
I must say, it is funny to hear you talk about exploding rats with such a serious look on your face.
[ It's all casual talk until Silco reveals what this is all about. ]
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Date: 2022-11-17 07:03 am (UTC)He breathed out at the comment, and closed an eye for the moment, if just to hold what small shreds of dignity he had left close. ]
I'm imagining an enemy, being overrun by them as they explode. It makes even exploding rats a nice thought.
[ He says it seriously, but it is still comical.
He pushed the grate of the sewer open, and gestured for the two of them to step in.
It's large enough that a human can fit -- a large sump pipe, but it's bone-dry from lack of use -- and before the pipe "T's" a few meters in, there's another grate, that covered a ladder. ]
Don't go too far yet, I've been told it's dangerous.
[ He will wait for them to enter, before he'll tug the grate back into place. ]
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Date: 2022-11-18 04:15 am (UTC)Did you hear that, Frosty? It's dangerous. [ she holds her hands up, wiggling her fingers in the universal gesture for Spooky Things before she continues walking backward into the pipe. ]
Can I go down? I'm going down.
[ yeah, if you tell her it's dangerous,
...she will be even more highly motivated to Do The Thing, so she's working at moving the grate that leads to the ladder. impatiently. and enthusiastically.
COME ON, LADIES, let's go go go, ]
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Date: 2022-11-20 02:35 am (UTC)Would you like to go first?
[ He isn't about to stand in the way of what Jinx wants to see. Of course, he'd be right behind her. Even though he isn't saying anything, he's likely just as curious as Jinx is regarding what this is all about.
Silco called them both over here for a reason, and he's determined to find out what it is. ]
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Date: 2022-11-20 04:25 am (UTC)[ He says, with a roll of two blackened eyes. He can already feel the tug, toward Highstorm. It's weak, it has really only been less than an hour, but that pull of Discord makes him want to return quicker. The twin draw, of course, is to head deeper in, toward what he thought both Jinx and Kaeya might find interesting.
It is, after all, a curiosity. He snapped the last of the grate's mechanisms back into place, locking it for all but those who know. ] We need to take a specific path, is all. Down first, though.
[ Silco would go after them, obviously. And as long as Jinx didn't immediately scamper off ahead, there was no danger at the end of the... actually very long ladder. ]
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Date: 2022-11-20 01:55 pm (UTC)yeah, can't allow that when they're in Springstar and heading somewhere potentially dangerous.
...despite this train of thought, soon as the grate is dragged open with a whiny creak of metal, Jinx is leaning over to look down the ladder, and then promptly begins descending at a rapid and agile pace,
only to pop her head back out a second later, pointing at Kaeya. ]
You're on babysitting duty, so don't let him out of your sight, young man!
[ that's right.
Kaeya is babysitting
Silco, ]
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Date: 2022-11-20 11:50 pm (UTC)With an amused look tossed down Silco's way, Kaeya gestures for the other man to right ahead with a sweep of his hand. He isn't about to disregard Jinx's request since who knows what punishment she'll deem appropriate if something happens to Silco... ]
After you. I'll be right behind.
[ This way, he can protect them both from anyone that might be tailing them. He glances at the now-closed grate, as if expecting it to open all of a sudden, but when it doesn't, he goes back to waiting for Silco to head down the ladder. He'll do the same once it's his turn. ]
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Date: 2022-11-22 03:59 am (UTC)[ Silco protested, but like, he had just died recently, so it's only with a soft sniff of indignation. He eyed the closed grate, for just a moment, just to make sure there was nobody behind one last time, before he started to descend after Jinx -- and it's not a short go. Even straight down, it opened into a large sewer pipe -- something that could fit several human beings wide -- and it's dry enough that there's only the faint whiff of ancient, crusted mustiness.
Honestly, to people from Zaun, it's practically nothing.
Oddly, it's lit. Not frequently, but enough that the three of them won't be stumbling.
Silco waited for Kaeya to follow, before he nudged his head in one direction, and led them on, his hands in his pockets, itching to get moving. Time outside of Highstorm was precious, after all. ]
It's a bit of a walk, let's get moving.
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Date: 2022-11-22 04:28 am (UTC)anyway, when they reach the bottom, she has (thankfully) lingered nearby and hasn't gone far, waiting for both Silco and Kaeya to make it before she lets Mr. Itchy Fingers take the lead. she's walking close to his right shoulder and eying their surroundings curiously. ]
We're underneath Springstar.
[ yeah, isn't that ironic? strange how this feels far more like home than either of the lavish cities above-ground ever could... and they're simply navigating dank and musty sewer pipes and tunnels. ]
How did you find this, anyway? [ her eyes momentarily slide to Kaeya as if to check if he had heard anything about this little excursion, too. ]
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Date: 2022-11-22 04:39 am (UTC)I wouldn't be surprised if Silco managed to ask the right people.
[ The man has an affinity for the Shadier Side of life, after all, so it's to be expected.
Well, then. Time to commit this path to memory since he's sure wherever they're headed, it's going to be just as confusing to get the heck out of it. ]
Do we get any more hints about where you're taking us now that we're down here?
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Date: 2022-11-22 06:13 am (UTC)Hm, we're currently in the Below. Springstar has a series of tunnels underneath it.
[ It really is like being home, honestly. Like walking through narrow passageways and old sump pipes and catacombs. There's a network of them spread out from them, like spiderwebs, and he started forward, making sure the two of them were close. He had a pathway that he was going to follow, as he explained. ] Technically, all of these pipes underneath are the Below, but there's a good deal of... dangerous elements in some of these tunnels. I'd even heard of wild beasts roaming them.
[ That had been an interesting discovery. Good thing Silco had Kaeya and Jinx with him. ]
I'd heard whisper of this place, but... Kathova was the one who gave me directions through here.
Apparently coming down without directions will probably end in a final wrong turn.
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From:Communion;mid-Takiltu
Date: 2022-12-04 07:01 am (UTC)One daughter is gone. Missing, just like that. And any attempt at reaching out just finds… nothing. There’s a lot of terrible ‘what-ifs’ running through his mind, some of which whisper in the back of his thoughts, sowing the seeds of potential foul play and urging him to leap into action. He’s got just enough composure to quiet them, though it’s close. And there’s still another daughter to check on, one who he hasn’t seen in weeks either.
But, like all things in his life, it’s complicated.
Their last exchange made it clear she’d likely respond with hostility to any attempt at contacting her, if she even responded at all. But he’s got to try.
So late one evening, she’ll find herself receiving a Communion attempt from Vander. A very hesitant one, with the undeniable undercurrent of worry lingering beneath it.]
Jinx. Are you there?
dad 🥺
Date: 2022-12-05 09:12 am (UTC)Opening a connection with someone whose thoughts and feelings are ever erratic and sometimes nonsensical means getting heavily dosed with fuzzy, chaotic feedback, a sort that greets Vander with relative quickness at his offer for communication. Immediately, he would feel a wave of contempt - of suspicion, of wariness, of paranoia and rage all swirling like paints mixed together. ]
Oh, been here, there... I'm all over!
[ The cheery tone she answers with is laced with bitterness. ]
Where are you, silly? You want another happy family reunion? Had a blast, last time.
🥺
Date: 2022-12-06 05:24 am (UTC)I just wanted to know that you’re alright. Still hanging around this place. Because…
[A slight pause, some of that worry thrumming to life again.]
Well, you mention family—have you heard from your sister? Seen any sign of her? Because I think she might be gone.
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Date: 2022-12-06 07:34 pm (UTC)So, naturally, she doubles down on the vitriol and venom, a seething, unstable mania riding the high of her anger - but it doesn't last long. ]
Gone?
[ 'Gone'? A shivery, shuddery flicker of nonsense, and then: ]
Then go and find her. You two are real buddy buddy, aren't you? Trouble in paradise?
[ Vi. Vi, Vi, Vi and Vander. Having a grand ol' time playing house, she's sure of it. ]
Did you check with the Enforcer? [ That word couldn't be spat out with any more disdain despite the faux cheerful tone. ] Yeah, she's all nice and cozy with one of them now, if you didn't hear!
no subject
Date: 2022-12-06 11:29 pm (UTC)Gone gone. Like she’s not anywhere in Kenos anymore.
[The topic of the Enforcer girl feels as glaring as a landmine sprayed with neon graffiti. It’s an argument they don’t need, not right now, so he tries to sidestep it as carefully as he can.]
No one has seen her, Jinx. And if you try to reach her to talk like this, there’s just… nothing there.
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Date: 2022-12-07 12:26 am (UTC)GONE gone.
Vander wouldn't be able to see it, but he would feel the rush of fear - abandonment - that rises to meet those words and quickly finds itself swallowed by the comfort of anger. She's already on her feet, ensuring she's armed as she sprints out the door of Silco's chambers in Yima's manor. ]
She can't be-- [ a blip, a waver, ] gone gone. [ It comes quickly and reeks of denial. ]
no subject
Date: 2022-12-07 03:28 am (UTC)Just— promise me you’ll be careful around here, alright? I don’t know if there was trouble involved or…
[A pause and a bit of anxious frustration as he shakes his head. She couldn’t have simply up and vanished, right? Right?]
You haven’t seen any sign of her lately? Heard anyone say anything?
[The question’s a little more pointed than he rightfully means for it to be, but he’s on edge and the storm of emotional feedback doesn’t help matters.]
no subject
Date: 2022-12-07 04:55 am (UTC)[ The words are spoken aloud and spat through Communion simultaneously, carrying with them a white-hot hiss of that instability. (She's getting a look from someone as she runs down the hall; she doesn't see it or care.) ]
She has to be here. She HAS to be here, you--
[ 'You have to find her.' Is that really what she was about to say? She can't trust him with shit, never mind something as important as Vi. (She knows she can.) People don't just disappear unless you make them disappear. Did someone kill her? No, no, there's no way. Vi wouldn't go down without a fight, and Jinx would know. She would know, she--
she promised. ]
I'LL find her.