03 - [Action/Video]

[primordial]

[Action- in front of Daemoniac Inc. Cancer District]

[Walk through the Cancer Ward, and you will probably spot the large building in the middle of it, a state-of-the-art structure that reflects the technological wizardry of the area. One might marvel at it, and the locals do seem to be doing so as their eyes wander over it, but there is one person who does not seem to be marveling at it at all.]

[You might look over this young man sitting on a chair outside an internet cafe, with his disheveled appearance and general unkempt hair that scream "possibly homeless or worse", but his gaze, strangely enough, never seems to leave the building. Look closer, and you'll see that the knuckles on his hand grasping the cup of water before him are white, he's grasping the thing so tightly. And his stare holds a level of malice that contrasts harshly with his general harmless appearance...]

[This is not the image of a man who is happy about what he is looking at, at all.]

[Video]

[Sam Erstwhile appears on screen, frowning sadly- while everyone is busy with the hubbub of the tournament coming up, it seems like he'll be the only person who will always be miserable, no matter what.]

Look, um...I hate to ask this, because it's totally unrelated to anything about the tournament, but I felt I really needed a answer to the question as soon as possible.

[He lets out a sigh as he scratches his shaggy head.]

W-what's the best way to get rid of nightmares?

Comments

DONE

[primordial]

A-are you sure? You're not just pulling my leg, right?

Re: DONE

[acapriciousthing]

Divider of life from all that comes before and all that comes after. And, uh, not on duty here.

[primordial]

And I'm supposed to believe that, how? I mean, it's not like Death can just go and take a vacation...

[acapriciousthing]

Well, I can be in more than one place at a time. But I was as surprised to end up here as anyone.

[primordial]

[How...interesting.]

You're trapped like everyone else, aren't you?

[acapriciousthing]

Yeah. The implications are... disturbing.

[primordial]

How does it feel? Being like the rest of us.

[acapriciousthing]

Well, it's not the first time but mostly, being alive is a ton of fun. Other than wishing I could do more when things get dangerous.

[primordial]

Wait, so...you were Death, and you were dead before? Like, how does that make sense? Are you mortal, now?

[acapriciousthing]

I spend a day out of every century mortal, so I've died thousands of times. Right now I'm somewhere between mortal and my full self.

[primordial]

Huh. I guess dying yourself...would just be like killing yourself, huh?

But you still do the whole collecting souls business?

[acapriciousthing]

I don't kill, I collect the dead.

But yes, the general point of the excercise was to meet myself.

[primordial]

So you collect yourself?

[THIS IS SO CONFUSING HELP]

What...why? Another version of yourself? I mean, you are you, I don't know why you would go to all that trouble to just shake your own hand.

[acapriciousthing]

The simple answer is... someone once asked how I'd like it if it happened to me.

[So long ago]

Turns out, not that much.

[primordial]

So...you succeeded?

What did that feel like?

[acapriciousthing]

It was terrifying.

[primordial]

[A long pause. That's almost poetic, in a way.]

So, even Death is afraid of herself...that's reassuring.

[acapriciousthing]

Dying is scary. Realizing that made me change how I do a lot of things.

[primordial]

So...what does that mean, are you nicer now towards people, when you collect their souls?

[acapriciousthing]

Yeah. I used to be a bit of a bitch.

[primordial]

Oh.

[Well, that's one way of talking about yourself.]

well, I'm glad that you aren't one now...

[acapriciousthing]

Me too. Existence is a lot more fun this way.

[primordial]

What's your favorite thing about being alive, then?

[acapriciousthing]

Definitely all the great people I get to meet.

[primordial]

...

Even the bad ones?