Always Just A Survivor

Pressure/Regretevator/Forsaken OC ask/roleplay blog! Yes, in that order chronologically. She/they but in a weird way

[phos-saken]

Just let me get through this...

Rules and general info!

We're gonna start off with the obvious: This is a Pressure OC. In order she goes from Pressure, to Regretevator, to Forsaken. Obviously this is pretty canon divergent from all three.

This blog is run by a fictive! IC behavior =/= the fictive's actions and intent, as expected! Be as invasive, abrasive, rude, etc while in character. Normal askblog activity is both expected and wanted

Asks, pings, dms, and mentions in dash commentary are all welcomed!!!

Flirty asks/behavior are okay, but we're not doing NSFW here. Yes we're bodily an adult, but I don't trust this site to not show shit to minors.

Crossover, multiversal, and AU stuff is all expected and heavily welcomed!

M!As are allowed!

Advanced warning for blood, violence, death, suicidal ideation/actions, experimentation... Any trigger warning you can find for the three games Phos has history in. We may not write a whole lot of gore here as I can only stomach so much of it!

Syscourse won't even be so much as acknowledged much less tolerated. We don't do that here.

Divider is made by a friend of ours, don't use it.

May add more to this as time goes on! If a rule is new, it'll be pink for about a week so you know what's new. If I remember to change it back to normal that is,

Going to link a tag dump here as this post is already too fucking long

Current inventory

Single coin from The Regretevator

Roll of paper, estimated a meter long

Character details!

(Pressure reference by @stardustrabbitsgallery, the first of hopefully three and also the blog's icon!)

Phosphate, better known as Phos, was designed to be one of many follow-up experiments to Sebastian Solace. While she maintained a mostly human figure, her ears, tail, fins, bioluminescence, armored skin, and other various features meant she wasn't exactly what Urbanshade wanted. She's been on practically every side of the universe ever since. Now let's do some assorted facts!

Below a cut because I talk a lot, actually.

(Forsaken reference by @slimeslimeslimeslime, second of hopefully three)

Phos' pronouns are she/they! Please only use one per sentence or line break, as additional funkiness.

The list of creature DNA is as follows: blue whale, nurse shark, mutated anglerfish, silver spinyfin, dunkleosteus, payara, and sea pen. Yes several of those are from Sebastian's list, that's how good experimentation works. No, not all of them are completely reflective in her design.

Their hair, ears, and other fins do all glow with that bright green bioluminescence. Hair is always glowing, fins only when triggered by an emotional response.

While she could potentially be described as "cold" or even "cruel" Phos is not a particularly unfriendly person. She'll never go out of her way to harm anyone in any way unless she deems it absolutely necessary for her own survival. She's lived most of her life by a "put on your own oxygen mask first" mentality.

It may take multiple asks to get a full answer out of them for anything! Not to break their walls down, mostly they just don't know how much information is enough. This will be reflected in replies as well. Feel free to carry on a line of questioning from another ask or a thread, even if you're not the one that started it! Repeating certain questions is going to be the only way to get certain answers.

She is almost monstrously tall, measuring in at an estimated 8'5. This is predictably pretty awkward for her.

Phos actually has centralized heterochromia! You can see it if you zoom in really closely on their Pressure reference- Their eyes are green, but around the pupil they're grey!

This list will be added to over time as well!

[phos-saken]

Who’s the person you keep talking to? On the docks?? They seem very interested in John, any guess why???

"Oh, hm. Don't know, never actually finished introductions. I was planning to ask Builderman for a name, but I don't care to guess or find out why." Still unsteady from their previous encounter, they're loitering outside of the main cabin for no particular reason. "Most people, regardless of the role they're shoved into, seem to know each other here. Know of each other, minimum." Her clawed foot scrapes the porch as she kicks away a rock. "I don't, almost like I'm separate from this whole thing." After a moment of silence, she shrugs. "We cross paths after rounds on occasion, that's it. Though that pink hair really is a rarity these days."

[a-forsaken-memory]

Just another round... Shaking out their hands and feet, they braced themselves for another round of this. The words of two people fresh in their mind, it's time to try something new. Well, that's not quite right. They've already jumped through all the necessary hoops to justify this to themselves, this is an investigative round. The only goal is to find out if this will even work, much more if it's even worth it. If they can handle it.

Once she knows that countdown is running, she's off and looking around. Find out who they're up against, any means necessary. The familiar growling is a good sign, followed by spikes erupting from the ground. Maybe the latter is less of a good sign. But she knows John, or hopefully enough to make some educated guesses. He is, luckily, easy enough for them to predict. At least until he learns better- It's not difficult for them to pull his attention off some other poor survivor. Then it's just a game of keeping up with the chase...

Namely, stamina. They're fantastic at pacing themselves, but he's typically rather relentless unless an easier target presents itself. Trying to keep his attention on purpose on top of that? A perfect recipe for disaster, as they slam their shoulder into a corner, the momentum turning them to face him head on!- ??? A gunshot from nowhere. The unmistakable sound of a sword connecting with it's target. Maybe it was right, these people would protect her when needed. For now they've got bigger problems to deal with, hurrying off to look for a method to get themselves patched up. He won't give up on coming after her for long, and she knows it. @phos-saken (hope you wanted to FUCKING READ.)

A fun round, this one was. Plenty of resistance to push through. The familiar hum and ding of his abilities, the reveal of where people were… That new face. No one else was that tall. Had such a distinct look. And no one else on this particular team was quite so fresh. Easy pickings?

The hunt was on.

John roars as he’s stunned, and hit once more, seemingly for good measure. But it doesn’t matter. There’s someone that is far more interesting to take after. With a burst of speed, he’s off after her without faltering. Those pesky sentinels couldn’t get in the way on the other side of the arena.

Well, she has what she wants. John’s undivided attention, as he charges after her, rather consistently barely missing his swings. He growls at her as he misses another swing, mad enough to drop the chase to slam his arm into the ground, aiming to hit her with a wall of familiar spikes.

Whatever they’re planning, this better be worth it.

[phos-saken]

(cut from here) Now that's a bad sign! They were just talking, he seemed fine enough. What the hell just happened? Maybe if she'd been able to speak with him before now, she'd have a better read on what's going through his head. As if. That was never going to be an opportunity, and they've been improvising this entire time. Shifting how they're sitting with a matching scowl, his rather violent reaction is a good reminder of their roles here. If he's threatening to snap, they need to be ready for that to happen. But they're nothing if not patient. His words seem to physically hurt their ears, and they can barely make out anything he's saying. They're listening nonetheless. "Are you done?"

Patient in practice, maybe. With a dramatic huff, she pops her neck again. Ever ready... "Because I think I get the gist." Keeping careful watch of both of his arms, she needs to figure out some way to keep this civil. Not that she's ever been good at calming others down. "What I do with my own time is my goddamn business, whether you think It's pointless or not. I didn't ask your opinion on it." "Loud and clear, I mean exactly what I say. You are not the worst I've seen." Slowly but surely, each fin begins to glow. Starting close to the skin, spreading outwards... She doesn't seem to notice. "You don't need to do anything. Fall into that influence entirely for all I care. But if, and I mean fucking if there is a way out for everyone?" "You're coming with us. Willingly or otherwise."

[a-forsaken-memory]

“Y̸o̶u̶ ̷j̸u̴s̷t̶ ̵d̶o̸n̶’̶t̸ ̸g̵e̷t̸ ̵i̷t̴,̷ ̸d̶o̸ ̷y̶o̵u̵?̷ ̷I̶’̴m̶ ̸t̵r̴y̴i̵n̶g̸ ̶t̷o̷ ̴w̷a̵r̵n̸ ̴y̴o̷u̷.̸”

He growls his response, clearly struggling to compose himself. Of course. Now. He only begged to have the chain snap. Of course it would actually do so now, when he wanted instead to explain. To talk and understand and be understood.

Like someone turned off a light, the intelligence behind his eyes almost vanishes entirely. Almost. With a sharp growl, he lunges at Phos, permanent grin practically snapping back into place as he does, claws aimed for their chest.

He did try to hold himself back. Truly, he did. But he was bound to lose eventually.

He can’t pull himself away. Can’t back down from the lunge. The man that they were just talking to is gone. For now, at least. Looks like that window of opportunity closed.

[phos-saken]

Squinting at his face as though that's going to make her hear his words better, the clown of a fish does catch the word 'warn' somewhere in there. Perhaps thankfully for them both, that's enough to set off all kinds of alarm bells. Can't blame her, really- It isn't as though she's used to a heads up over blatant threats or mocking. Already lifting themselves off the ground when it all finally processes, they practically leap out of his way. Nearly slamming their back into the building beside them, but that would obviously never happen to them. "Alright." They pant, backing away from him. Back towards the cliff edge is a bad idea if he's got any memory of this whole encounter... There's nowhere else to go. With this ample warning time, they could absolutely outrun him. But not forever. Never forever. Still no timer, no other survivors, no obvious way out. Unless this counts as the circumstances changing? Of course they had to go and jinx it, so much as thinking their conversation couldn't last forever. They should've known better than to even dare to broach the topic of time. Running for their life still seems like a good choice, for the time being. Phos considers herself to be a very logical person. She isn't. Yet in her mind, if them conversing was their only reason for being here... Well, it would line up that this little aside should be over, she just needs a way out. Scientific method, if something changes, so do the results! Her stomach bubbles in visceral discomfort with each footfall. And there's this unnatural, pounding headache. It isn't exactly like John is known for being merciful or quick about these kinds of things. ... Unless he's particularly pissed off. They had several rounds and a bonus death that taught them exactly how to do just that. "Alright!" Calling out behind them, knowing he couldn't be far. "Not personal, swear it." Taking the corner into the abandoned building tightly, he's a fair bit shorter than them. They're no sentinel, but if they can catch him off guard and punch down... Learn from example, eh?

[a-forsaken-memory]

It’s them moving out of the way that gets him going. He lets out an outraged roar as they take off. The time it takes him to stand buys them a few moments of freedom to move. He watches them go, and veers sharply away from their tail.

He’s not falling for it twice. Once he’s content, he slams his corrupted arm into the ground. If the resulting wall doesn’t clip her, it’ll block off one of her exits. Aiming directly for the corner next to the door she entered, the spikes charge forth.

While they might have learned something last time, so did he. And he’s not letting them do it again. So he’s not going to get so much as close to them, opting to choke them out one way or the other.

The lights weren’t off up there. Just dimmed, but still bright enough to be brutally sharp.

[phos-saken]

Time well spent! While attempting to catch their breath, the telltale sound of "Jesus fucking Christ that's twenty-something spikes shooting out of the ground" keeps them on their feet. Ears flicking as they bounce in place, their only way of telling where it's coming from is by sound. Not trying to repeat the very start of this foolish endeavor and get slashed again! With the position she put herself in, she winds up having to full-body dive out of the way as the wall slices upwards and destroys her only plan. Rolling back onto her feet, she practically climbs the side of the stairs to get up them faster. Any time she's not moving is time he's getting closer to her, and now those steps are her only way out. Okay!!! Okay. Adaptability is the name of the game! Luckily that's a skill they're exceptionally practiced in, unluckily they're as out of options as when they started. All they have to do is hit him once or twice, just die and get this over with... Jumping down from the shoddy 'balcony' would only extend the chase, though. ... Carefully positioning themselves at the top of the stairs, they carefully half-coil their tail and brace it against the wall. One heel where the same wall meets the floor, the other foot keeping them balanced... He has no other option but to follow them up, right? Good a choke point as any.

[a-forsaken-memory]

John slows as she nears the building, making sure to count things out, it seems. He growls quietly, and keeps watch for a few moments. When he can, he wastes no time in positioning himself at the open door. He drops a footprint, then steps back, shoving his arm into the ground as he rather meticulously ensures the resulting wall of spikes would catch Phos entirely in a corral, if she jumped down.

There's a tinge of regret in his mind, one that is very swiftly shaken off as he growls again, reason overcome by... Whatever one might call this. Instinct, perhaps, but that's still not right, according to something still lingering in the back of his mind. With another beat of hesitation, of pushing back against himself, he's off up the stairs after them.

Claws forward, he lunges. He’s half expecting to be slammed into, or swung at, or punched, or shot. So he braces for the worst, still trying to swing for her as he goes, hoping maybe, just maybe, his claws will connect before whatever she has planned.

[phos-saken]

Listening to his footsteps as he moves about, they readjust their position. Balancing on one foot above a full staircase would make anyone nervous! Though, perhaps the unrest comes from what they're planning. Spikes tear through the ground nearby and they shuffle a little more. It's not like they plan on running much longer, but helpful to take note of. And finally, the star of the hour! Growing swiftly closer to them as he ascends the stairs, then ever closer... Even as he lunges for her, she doesn't move. Those claws connect, and she grabs for his wrist, or forearm, or whatever she can dig her own claws into. Her other arm floundering for what's left of his shoulder around that spike, rapidly attaching herself to whatever parts of him she can grab as she lifts her foot off the ground, planting both against the wall. With both legs and tail, she springboards off the wall, still attempting to dig into and cling on whatever she can get at. With any luck she slams into his chest, and both of them go flying down the stairs at top speed. She's no sentinel, but a good fall... It might be enough to kill them both. There's no frame of reference for how much of a hit John can take before dying though, so she's finding out the worst way.

[a-forsaken-memory]

There’s a moment of pure, unfiltered panic in him as he process what she’s doing. She’s taking him down with her. A sane man might try to break apart from her. At the moment, John is not a sane man. But everything in him wants to live. He struggles, trying to do something- anything to ensure he doesn’t hit something vital on the way down.

With any other survivor, this wouldn’t have happened. No one else is big enough to overpower him. But they are, apparently. And it lights some sort of fire in him. He shoves his claws into her more as they tumble, trying to use the fact they’re heavier than him to his advantage, growling directly into their face.

There’s a moment where something in his mind shrieks bite them! But he refrains. It’s not going to help. He struggles, but luck isn’t on his side. Pointedly not, in fact.

Slamming into the stairs again, his vision blurs. The weight of a whole person enough to really, truly hurt his exposed spine on the way down. He howls in pain, and tries to stop things, but it’s no use.

Phos gets her wish.

No one makes it out of her maneuver alive.

[phos-saken]

Pain shoots through them- From where he's stabbing into them, them clutching at his corrupted arm, of course launching two people off of a single wall, and most predictably, however many impacts there really were. It was a blur of sharp pain and overwhelming sound, above it all the dread that this really isn't the best way to go.

As if their momentum had carried post mortem, Phosphate is thrown onto her stomach. Sharp grass and gravel dig into her arms as she skids, only stopping when her frantic hands find wood. Everything still hurt; Her now scratched to hell hands and arms, the feeling of being stabbed by something frantic, the almost indescribable sensation in one palm and that raging headache. But lifting their head, they see forest. Dark skies, gravel paths, and cabins. Their chuckle comes out more as a strained cough as they rest their forehead on the ground. "How's that for interesting..."

[a-forsaken-memory]

The sudden motion of another person catches ████ off guard, ███ practically jumps to ███ feet, spinning on ███ heel to look at what had happened. ███ walks over, and crouches down next to them.

“You… Alright? Need or want a hand up?”

███ voice is gentle, if measured. Almost as if worried ███ might upset her by even asking.

[phos-saken]

"Innaminutemaybe." She wheezes, finally just coughing onto the ground. Something still feels like it's attempting to stab through her ribs. She shifts her weight to the side and digs around with one hand- Rock. Relaxing back down... Nope, still feels like being skewered. Okay. "I don't think," They cough again, finally lifting their eyes to ███ when it stops. "The panic has set in yet. It's supposed to. We should be terrified. Might've gotten stuck in traffic."

[a-forsaken-memory]

That earns a soft laugh, an almost musical noise that seems out of place in a hellhole like this one. ███ nods, though, and smiles faintly, though ███ gaze is hidden ██ ███ ██████ ██ ███ ███. ████ shifts back a small ways, and sits cross-legged on the pier. ███ fidgets with ███ ███, messing with the ████ of it in an attempt to keep ███ mind from wandering.

"No luck in making it out of that one alive, I take it?"

███ asks, voice still measured. Then it clicks. WE should be terrified. Did they mean the group?

"Or- Wait, terrified over what this time?"

This time. ███ hates that it's this time. Because they can never have a fucking break here, can they?

[phos-saken]

"Haaaaahhhh no. Rusty silver lining, he didn't either!" Their fingers find gaps in the gravel and dig into the earth. If they don't need help stumbling to their feet, they'll avoid it. "Uh, John, so the usual." Grunting as they pull themselves to their knees, it'll do for the moment. "I need to talk to Builderman- After that I don't know. It won't be my problem to tell anyone else what happened, he's the only person I figure needs to know." Breathing heavily, she sniffs as she attempts to move off of her knees. The phantom smell of blood moves through her senses. "Being indirect on purpose."

[a-forsaken-memory]

John? ███ gaze snaps over, very clear despite everything. ███ gaze is entirely focused on Phos, and ███ smile drops to a small, deeply pained ghost of a frown. When ███ speaks, ███ voice isn't measured. But it is... Fearful? Worried? Both?

"... What did you learn about him? Builderman.. Should know. But I..."

███ takes a breath, as if trying to steady ███self. What about him could have ███ so worried?

"If you're not willing to share, I'll.. Go find him later, but..."

████ trails off, hands shaky as ███ shifts. ███ voice is barely audible when ███ speaks again

"Please?"

[phos-saken]

As shocking at it was for ███ to hear, they don't seem to have noticed ███ reaction. They do notice ███ tone, but they're trying to get to their feet first. "Plenty of things I'm sure, it was a long conversation." A low wheeze as they suck in air, they manage to get to one foot. Just sitting there propped up on one knee now, but they quickly boost themselves to their feet. It is not steady. Standing there as if precariously balanced, she gives herself a moment for once. Hands buried in her pockets without a second thought. "Had a conversation, for one. Him being conscious is new- I'm hoping as few people as possible will find out." But she heard ███, and that tone, and ███ slight weirdness from earlier. This place is an ever-interconnected web of external relationships, give or take an exception. She doesn't have to recognize ███ to know there's something going on there. "It's fine, he makes himself easy to find. Real question is where I'm going to find enough time to fill him in."

[a-forsaken-memory]

████ claps a hand over ███ mouth, and just... nods. ███ shoulders slump, and ███ turns ███ head away entirely.

"He was in the main cabin, last I saw..."

███ voice is weak. Full of... Something. It's hard to place.

"I'll... Keep quiet on it. With any luck, he'll... Probably keep it to the admin team. Though Shedletsky always has a chance to run his mouth..."

████ sighs, hand falling away from ███ mouth entirely now, and ███ gently waves Phos off.

"It's... Thank you, for telling me. And.. Good luck, yeah? This place is... Sure something.."

[phos-saken]

Their eyes zero in on ███ reaction, staring at ███ for what feels like several minutes. On one hand they're not heartless- They know this kind of reaction, even if they hadn't experienced it themselves. Even still, ███'s waving them off, cementing that it isn't their place. "Easy, I avoid Shedletsky at every opportunity." Yet that doesn't feel like a proper send off. "Keep your luck and well-wishes. At this rate you're going to need them for yourself- Talk to someone, if this place eats you alive it's going create more dead weight." She's not great at comforting people. Worse when she can't allow herself to try, and she doesn't know ███. But she can always encourage seeking that comfort, finding help in someone else. Phosphate stalks off towards the rows of cabins, her investigation proving to have been far more than she ever cared to learn.

[a-forsaken-memory]

Just another round... Shaking out their hands and feet, they braced themselves for another round of this. The words of two people fresh in their mind, it's time to try something new. Well, that's not quite right. They've already jumped through all the necessary hoops to justify this to themselves, this is an investigative round. The only goal is to find out if this will even work, much more if it's even worth it. If they can handle it.

Once she knows that countdown is running, she's off and looking around. Find out who they're up against, any means necessary. The familiar growling is a good sign, followed by spikes erupting from the ground. Maybe the latter is less of a good sign. But she knows John, or hopefully enough to make some educated guesses. He is, luckily, easy enough for them to predict. At least until he learns better- It's not difficult for them to pull his attention off some other poor survivor. Then it's just a game of keeping up with the chase...

Namely, stamina. They're fantastic at pacing themselves, but he's typically rather relentless unless an easier target presents itself. Trying to keep his attention on purpose on top of that? A perfect recipe for disaster, as they slam their shoulder into a corner, the momentum turning them to face him head on!- ??? A gunshot from nowhere. The unmistakable sound of a sword connecting with it's target. Maybe it was right, these people would protect her when needed. For now they've got bigger problems to deal with, hurrying off to look for a method to get themselves patched up. He won't give up on coming after her for long, and she knows it. @phos-saken (hope you wanted to FUCKING READ.)

A fun round, this one was. Plenty of resistance to push through. The familiar hum and ding of his abilities, the reveal of where people were… That new face. No one else was that tall. Had such a distinct look. And no one else on this particular team was quite so fresh. Easy pickings?

The hunt was on.

John roars as he’s stunned, and hit once more, seemingly for good measure. But it doesn’t matter. There’s someone that is far more interesting to take after. With a burst of speed, he’s off after her without faltering. Those pesky sentinels couldn’t get in the way on the other side of the arena.

Well, she has what she wants. John’s undivided attention, as he charges after her, rather consistently barely missing his swings. He growls at her as he misses another swing, mad enough to drop the chase to slam his arm into the ground, aiming to hit her with a wall of familiar spikes.

Whatever they’re planning, this better be worth it.

[phos-saken]

(cut from here) Now that's a bad sign! They were just talking, he seemed fine enough. What the hell just happened? Maybe if she'd been able to speak with him before now, she'd have a better read on what's going through his head. As if. That was never going to be an opportunity, and they've been improvising this entire time. Shifting how they're sitting with a matching scowl, his rather violent reaction is a good reminder of their roles here. If he's threatening to snap, they need to be ready for that to happen. But they're nothing if not patient. His words seem to physically hurt their ears, and they can barely make out anything he's saying. They're listening nonetheless. "Are you done?"

Patient in practice, maybe. With a dramatic huff, she pops her neck again. Ever ready... "Because I think I get the gist." Keeping careful watch of both of his arms, she needs to figure out some way to keep this civil. Not that she's ever been good at calming others down. "What I do with my own time is my goddamn business, whether you think It's pointless or not. I didn't ask your opinion on it." "Loud and clear, I mean exactly what I say. You are not the worst I've seen." Slowly but surely, each fin begins to glow. Starting close to the skin, spreading outwards... She doesn't seem to notice. "You don't need to do anything. Fall into that influence entirely for all I care. But if, and I mean fucking if there is a way out for everyone?" "You're coming with us. Willingly or otherwise."

[a-forsaken-memory]

“Y̸o̶u̶ ̷j̸u̴s̷t̶ ̵d̶o̸n̶’̶t̸ ̸g̵e̷t̸ ̵i̷t̴,̷ ̸d̶o̸ ̷y̶o̵u̵?̷ ̷I̶’̴m̶ ̸t̵r̴y̴i̵n̶g̸ ̶t̷o̷ ̴w̷a̵r̵n̸ ̴y̴o̷u̷.̸”

He growls his response, clearly struggling to compose himself. Of course. Now. He only begged to have the chain snap. Of course it would actually do so now, when he wanted instead to explain. To talk and understand and be understood.

Like someone turned off a light, the intelligence behind his eyes almost vanishes entirely. Almost. With a sharp growl, he lunges at Phos, permanent grin practically snapping back into place as he does, claws aimed for their chest.

He did try to hold himself back. Truly, he did. But he was bound to lose eventually.

He can’t pull himself away. Can’t back down from the lunge. The man that they were just talking to is gone. For now, at least. Looks like that window of opportunity closed.

[phos-saken]

Squinting at his face as though that's going to make her hear his words better, the clown of a fish does catch the word 'warn' somewhere in there. Perhaps thankfully for them both, that's enough to set off all kinds of alarm bells. Can't blame her, really- It isn't as though she's used to a heads up over blatant threats or mocking. Already lifting themselves off the ground when it all finally processes, they practically leap out of his way. Nearly slamming their back into the building beside them, but that would obviously never happen to them. "Alright." They pant, backing away from him. Back towards the cliff edge is a bad idea if he's got any memory of this whole encounter... There's nowhere else to go. With this ample warning time, they could absolutely outrun him. But not forever. Never forever. Still no timer, no other survivors, no obvious way out. Unless this counts as the circumstances changing? Of course they had to go and jinx it, so much as thinking their conversation couldn't last forever. They should've known better than to even dare to broach the topic of time. Running for their life still seems like a good choice, for the time being. Phos considers herself to be a very logical person. She isn't. Yet in her mind, if them conversing was their only reason for being here... Well, it would line up that this little aside should be over, she just needs a way out. Scientific method, if something changes, so do the results! Her stomach bubbles in visceral discomfort with each footfall. And there's this unnatural, pounding headache. It isn't exactly like John is known for being merciful or quick about these kinds of things. ... Unless he's particularly pissed off. They had several rounds and a bonus death that taught them exactly how to do just that. "Alright!" Calling out behind them, knowing he couldn't be far. "Not personal, swear it." Taking the corner into the abandoned building tightly, he's a fair bit shorter than them. They're no sentinel, but if they can catch him off guard and punch down... Learn from example, eh?

[a-forsaken-memory]

It’s them moving out of the way that gets him going. He lets out an outraged roar as they take off. The time it takes him to stand buys them a few moments of freedom to move. He watches them go, and veers sharply away from their tail.

He’s not falling for it twice. Once he’s content, he slams his corrupted arm into the ground. If the resulting wall doesn’t clip her, it’ll block off one of her exits. Aiming directly for the corner next to the door she entered, the spikes charge forth.

While they might have learned something last time, so did he. And he’s not letting them do it again. So he’s not going to get so much as close to them, opting to choke them out one way or the other.

The lights weren’t off up there. Just dimmed, but still bright enough to be brutally sharp.

[phos-saken]

Time well spent! While attempting to catch their breath, the telltale sound of "Jesus fucking Christ that's twenty-something spikes shooting out of the ground" keeps them on their feet. Ears flicking as they bounce in place, their only way of telling where it's coming from is by sound. Not trying to repeat the very start of this foolish endeavor and get slashed again! With the position she put herself in, she winds up having to full-body dive out of the way as the wall slices upwards and destroys her only plan. Rolling back onto her feet, she practically climbs the side of the stairs to get up them faster. Any time she's not moving is time he's getting closer to her, and now those steps are her only way out. Okay!!! Okay. Adaptability is the name of the game! Luckily that's a skill they're exceptionally practiced in, unluckily they're as out of options as when they started. All they have to do is hit him once or twice, just die and get this over with... Jumping down from the shoddy 'balcony' would only extend the chase, though. ... Carefully positioning themselves at the top of the stairs, they carefully half-coil their tail and brace it against the wall. One heel where the same wall meets the floor, the other foot keeping them balanced... He has no other option but to follow them up, right? Good a choke point as any.

[a-forsaken-memory]

John slows as she nears the building, making sure to count things out, it seems. He growls quietly, and keeps watch for a few moments. When he can, he wastes no time in positioning himself at the open door. He drops a footprint, then steps back, shoving his arm into the ground as he rather meticulously ensures the resulting wall of spikes would catch Phos entirely in a corral, if she jumped down.

There's a tinge of regret in his mind, one that is very swiftly shaken off as he growls again, reason overcome by... Whatever one might call this. Instinct, perhaps, but that's still not right, according to something still lingering in the back of his mind. With another beat of hesitation, of pushing back against himself, he's off up the stairs after them.

Claws forward, he lunges. He’s half expecting to be slammed into, or swung at, or punched, or shot. So he braces for the worst, still trying to swing for her as he goes, hoping maybe, just maybe, his claws will connect before whatever she has planned.

[phos-saken]

Listening to his footsteps as he moves about, they readjust their position. Balancing on one foot above a full staircase would make anyone nervous! Though, perhaps the unrest comes from what they're planning. Spikes tear through the ground nearby and they shuffle a little more. It's not like they plan on running much longer, but helpful to take note of. And finally, the star of the hour! Growing swiftly closer to them as he ascends the stairs, then ever closer... Even as he lunges for her, she doesn't move. Those claws connect, and she grabs for his wrist, or forearm, or whatever she can dig her own claws into. Her other arm floundering for what's left of his shoulder around that spike, rapidly attaching herself to whatever parts of him she can grab as she lifts her foot off the ground, planting both against the wall. With both legs and tail, she springboards off the wall, still attempting to dig into and cling on whatever she can get at. With any luck she slams into his chest, and both of them go flying down the stairs at top speed. She's no sentinel, but a good fall... It might be enough to kill them both. There's no frame of reference for how much of a hit John can take before dying though, so she's finding out the worst way.

[a-forsaken-memory]

There’s a moment of pure, unfiltered panic in him as he process what she’s doing. She’s taking him down with her. A sane man might try to break apart from her. At the moment, John is not a sane man. But everything in him wants to live. He struggles, trying to do something- anything to ensure he doesn’t hit something vital on the way down.

With any other survivor, this wouldn’t have happened. No one else is big enough to overpower him. But they are, apparently. And it lights some sort of fire in him. He shoves his claws into her more as they tumble, trying to use the fact they’re heavier than him to his advantage, growling directly into their face.

There’s a moment where something in his mind shrieks bite them! But he refrains. It’s not going to help. He struggles, but luck isn’t on his side. Pointedly not, in fact.

Slamming into the stairs again, his vision blurs. The weight of a whole person enough to really, truly hurt his exposed spine on the way down. He howls in pain, and tries to stop things, but it’s no use.

Phos gets her wish.

No one makes it out of her maneuver alive.

[phos-saken]

Pain shoots through them- From where he's stabbing into them, them clutching at his corrupted arm, of course launching two people off of a single wall, and most predictably, however many impacts there really were. It was a blur of sharp pain and overwhelming sound, above it all the dread that this really isn't the best way to go.

As if their momentum had carried post mortem, Phosphate is thrown onto her stomach. Sharp grass and gravel dig into her arms as she skids, only stopping when her frantic hands find wood. Everything still hurt; Her now scratched to hell hands and arms, the feeling of being stabbed by something frantic, the almost indescribable sensation in one palm and that raging headache. But lifting their head, they see forest. Dark skies, gravel paths, and cabins. Their chuckle comes out more as a strained cough as they rest their forehead on the ground. "How's that for interesting..."

[a-forsaken-memory]

The sudden motion of another person catches ████ off guard, ███ practically jumps to ███ feet, spinning on ███ heel to look at what had happened. ███ walks over, and crouches down next to them.

“You… Alright? Need or want a hand up?”

███ voice is gentle, if measured. Almost as if worried ███ might upset her by even asking.

[phos-saken]

"Innaminutemaybe." She wheezes, finally just coughing onto the ground. Something still feels like it's attempting to stab through her ribs. She shifts her weight to the side and digs around with one hand- Rock. Relaxing back down... Nope, still feels like being skewered. Okay. "I don't think," They cough again, finally lifting their eyes to ███ when it stops. "The panic has set in yet. It's supposed to. We should be terrified. Might've gotten stuck in traffic."

[a-forsaken-memory]

That earns a soft laugh, an almost musical noise that seems out of place in a hellhole like this one. ███ nods, though, and smiles faintly, though ███ gaze is hidden ██ ███ ██████ ██ ███ ███. ████ shifts back a small ways, and sits cross-legged on the pier. ███ fidgets with ███ ███, messing with the ████ of it in an attempt to keep ███ mind from wandering.

"No luck in making it out of that one alive, I take it?"

███ asks, voice still measured. Then it clicks. WE should be terrified. Did they mean the group?

"Or- Wait, terrified over what this time?"

This time. ███ hates that it's this time. Because they can never have a fucking break here, can they?

[phos-saken]

"Haaaaahhhh no. Rusty silver lining, he didn't either!" Their fingers find gaps in the gravel and dig into the earth. If they don't need help stumbling to their feet, they'll avoid it. "Uh, John, so the usual." Grunting as they pull themselves to their knees, it'll do for the moment. "I need to talk to Builderman- After that I don't know. It won't be my problem to tell anyone else what happened, he's the only person I figure needs to know." Breathing heavily, she sniffs as she attempts to move off of her knees. The phantom smell of blood moves through her senses. "Being indirect on purpose."

[a-forsaken-memory]

John? ███ gaze snaps over, very clear despite everything. ███ gaze is entirely focused on Phos, and ███ smile drops to a small, deeply pained ghost of a frown. When ███ speaks, ███ voice isn't measured. But it is... Fearful? Worried? Both?

"... What did you learn about him? Builderman.. Should know. But I..."

███ takes a breath, as if trying to steady ███self. What about him could have ███ so worried?

"If you're not willing to share, I'll.. Go find him later, but..."

████ trails off, hands shaky as ███ shifts. ███ voice is barely audible when ███ speaks again

"Please?"

[phos-saken]

As shocking at it was for ███ to hear, they don't seem to have noticed ███ reaction. They do notice ███ tone, but they're trying to get to their feet first. "Plenty of things I'm sure, it was a long conversation." A low wheeze as they suck in air, they manage to get to one foot. Just sitting there propped up on one knee now, but they quickly boost themselves to their feet. It is not steady. Standing there as if precariously balanced, she gives herself a moment for once. Hands buried in her pockets without a second thought. "Had a conversation, for one. Him being conscious is new- I'm hoping as few people as possible will find out." But she heard ███, and that tone, and ███ slight weirdness from earlier. This place is an ever-interconnected web of external relationships, give or take an exception. She doesn't have to recognize ███ to know there's something going on there. "It's fine, he makes himself easy to find. Real question is where I'm going to find enough time to fill him in."

[a-forsaken-memory]

Just another round... Shaking out their hands and feet, they braced themselves for another round of this. The words of two people fresh in their mind, it's time to try something new. Well, that's not quite right. They've already jumped through all the necessary hoops to justify this to themselves, this is an investigative round. The only goal is to find out if this will even work, much more if it's even worth it. If they can handle it.

Once she knows that countdown is running, she's off and looking around. Find out who they're up against, any means necessary. The familiar growling is a good sign, followed by spikes erupting from the ground. Maybe the latter is less of a good sign. But she knows John, or hopefully enough to make some educated guesses. He is, luckily, easy enough for them to predict. At least until he learns better- It's not difficult for them to pull his attention off some other poor survivor. Then it's just a game of keeping up with the chase...

Namely, stamina. They're fantastic at pacing themselves, but he's typically rather relentless unless an easier target presents itself. Trying to keep his attention on purpose on top of that? A perfect recipe for disaster, as they slam their shoulder into a corner, the momentum turning them to face him head on!- ??? A gunshot from nowhere. The unmistakable sound of a sword connecting with it's target. Maybe it was right, these people would protect her when needed. For now they've got bigger problems to deal with, hurrying off to look for a method to get themselves patched up. He won't give up on coming after her for long, and she knows it. @phos-saken (hope you wanted to FUCKING READ.)

A fun round, this one was. Plenty of resistance to push through. The familiar hum and ding of his abilities, the reveal of where people were… That new face. No one else was that tall. Had such a distinct look. And no one else on this particular team was quite so fresh. Easy pickings?

The hunt was on.

John roars as he’s stunned, and hit once more, seemingly for good measure. But it doesn’t matter. There’s someone that is far more interesting to take after. With a burst of speed, he’s off after her without faltering. Those pesky sentinels couldn’t get in the way on the other side of the arena.

Well, she has what she wants. John’s undivided attention, as he charges after her, rather consistently barely missing his swings. He growls at her as he misses another swing, mad enough to drop the chase to slam his arm into the ground, aiming to hit her with a wall of familiar spikes.

Whatever they’re planning, this better be worth it.

[phos-saken]

(cut from here) Now that's a bad sign! They were just talking, he seemed fine enough. What the hell just happened? Maybe if she'd been able to speak with him before now, she'd have a better read on what's going through his head. As if. That was never going to be an opportunity, and they've been improvising this entire time. Shifting how they're sitting with a matching scowl, his rather violent reaction is a good reminder of their roles here. If he's threatening to snap, they need to be ready for that to happen. But they're nothing if not patient. His words seem to physically hurt their ears, and they can barely make out anything he's saying. They're listening nonetheless. "Are you done?"

Patient in practice, maybe. With a dramatic huff, she pops her neck again. Ever ready... "Because I think I get the gist." Keeping careful watch of both of his arms, she needs to figure out some way to keep this civil. Not that she's ever been good at calming others down. "What I do with my own time is my goddamn business, whether you think It's pointless or not. I didn't ask your opinion on it." "Loud and clear, I mean exactly what I say. You are not the worst I've seen." Slowly but surely, each fin begins to glow. Starting close to the skin, spreading outwards... She doesn't seem to notice. "You don't need to do anything. Fall into that influence entirely for all I care. But if, and I mean fucking if there is a way out for everyone?" "You're coming with us. Willingly or otherwise."

[a-forsaken-memory]

“Y̸o̶u̶ ̷j̸u̴s̷t̶ ̵d̶o̸n̶’̶t̸ ̸g̵e̷t̸ ̵i̷t̴,̷ ̸d̶o̸ ̷y̶o̵u̵?̷ ̷I̶’̴m̶ ̸t̵r̴y̴i̵n̶g̸ ̶t̷o̷ ̴w̷a̵r̵n̸ ̴y̴o̷u̷.̸”

He growls his response, clearly struggling to compose himself. Of course. Now. He only begged to have the chain snap. Of course it would actually do so now, when he wanted instead to explain. To talk and understand and be understood.

Like someone turned off a light, the intelligence behind his eyes almost vanishes entirely. Almost. With a sharp growl, he lunges at Phos, permanent grin practically snapping back into place as he does, claws aimed for their chest.

He did try to hold himself back. Truly, he did. But he was bound to lose eventually.

He can’t pull himself away. Can’t back down from the lunge. The man that they were just talking to is gone. For now, at least. Looks like that window of opportunity closed.

[phos-saken]

Squinting at his face as though that's going to make her hear his words better, the clown of a fish does catch the word 'warn' somewhere in there. Perhaps thankfully for them both, that's enough to set off all kinds of alarm bells. Can't blame her, really- It isn't as though she's used to a heads up over blatant threats or mocking. Already lifting themselves off the ground when it all finally processes, they practically leap out of his way. Nearly slamming their back into the building beside them, but that would obviously never happen to them. "Alright." They pant, backing away from him. Back towards the cliff edge is a bad idea if he's got any memory of this whole encounter... There's nowhere else to go. With this ample warning time, they could absolutely outrun him. But not forever. Never forever. Still no timer, no other survivors, no obvious way out. Unless this counts as the circumstances changing? Of course they had to go and jinx it, so much as thinking their conversation couldn't last forever. They should've known better than to even dare to broach the topic of time. Running for their life still seems like a good choice, for the time being. Phos considers herself to be a very logical person. She isn't. Yet in her mind, if them conversing was their only reason for being here... Well, it would line up that this little aside should be over, she just needs a way out. Scientific method, if something changes, so do the results! Her stomach bubbles in visceral discomfort with each footfall. And there's this unnatural, pounding headache. It isn't exactly like John is known for being merciful or quick about these kinds of things. ... Unless he's particularly pissed off. They had several rounds and a bonus death that taught them exactly how to do just that. "Alright!" Calling out behind them, knowing he couldn't be far. "Not personal, swear it." Taking the corner into the abandoned building tightly, he's a fair bit shorter than them. They're no sentinel, but if they can catch him off guard and punch down... Learn from example, eh?

[a-forsaken-memory]

It’s them moving out of the way that gets him going. He lets out an outraged roar as they take off. The time it takes him to stand buys them a few moments of freedom to move. He watches them go, and veers sharply away from their tail.

He’s not falling for it twice. Once he’s content, he slams his corrupted arm into the ground. If the resulting wall doesn’t clip her, it’ll block off one of her exits. Aiming directly for the corner next to the door she entered, the spikes charge forth.

While they might have learned something last time, so did he. And he’s not letting them do it again. So he’s not going to get so much as close to them, opting to choke them out one way or the other.

The lights weren’t off up there. Just dimmed, but still bright enough to be brutally sharp.

[phos-saken]

Time well spent! While attempting to catch their breath, the telltale sound of "Jesus fucking Christ that's twenty-something spikes shooting out of the ground" keeps them on their feet. Ears flicking as they bounce in place, their only way of telling where it's coming from is by sound. Not trying to repeat the very start of this foolish endeavor and get slashed again! With the position she put herself in, she winds up having to full-body dive out of the way as the wall slices upwards and destroys her only plan. Rolling back onto her feet, she practically climbs the side of the stairs to get up them faster. Any time she's not moving is time he's getting closer to her, and now those steps are her only way out. Okay!!! Okay. Adaptability is the name of the game! Luckily that's a skill they're exceptionally practiced in, unluckily they're as out of options as when they started. All they have to do is hit him once or twice, just die and get this over with... Jumping down from the shoddy 'balcony' would only extend the chase, though. ... Carefully positioning themselves at the top of the stairs, they carefully half-coil their tail and brace it against the wall. One heel where the same wall meets the floor, the other foot keeping them balanced... He has no other option but to follow them up, right? Good a choke point as any.

[a-forsaken-memory]

John slows as she nears the building, making sure to count things out, it seems. He growls quietly, and keeps watch for a few moments. When he can, he wastes no time in positioning himself at the open door. He drops a footprint, then steps back, shoving his arm into the ground as he rather meticulously ensures the resulting wall of spikes would catch Phos entirely in a corral, if she jumped down.

There's a tinge of regret in his mind, one that is very swiftly shaken off as he growls again, reason overcome by... Whatever one might call this. Instinct, perhaps, but that's still not right, according to something still lingering in the back of his mind. With another beat of hesitation, of pushing back against himself, he's off up the stairs after them.

Claws forward, he lunges. He’s half expecting to be slammed into, or swung at, or punched, or shot. So he braces for the worst, still trying to swing for her as he goes, hoping maybe, just maybe, his claws will connect before whatever she has planned.

[phos-saken]

Listening to his footsteps as he moves about, they readjust their position. Balancing on one foot above a full staircase would make anyone nervous! Though, perhaps the unrest comes from what they're planning. Spikes tear through the ground nearby and they shuffle a little more. It's not like they plan on running much longer, but helpful to take note of. And finally, the star of the hour! Growing swiftly closer to them as he ascends the stairs, then ever closer... Even as he lunges for her, she doesn't move. Those claws connect, and she grabs for his wrist, or forearm, or whatever she can dig her own claws into. Her other arm floundering for what's left of his shoulder around that spike, rapidly attaching herself to whatever parts of him she can grab as she lifts her foot off the ground, planting both against the wall. With both legs and tail, she springboards off the wall, still attempting to dig into and cling on whatever she can get at. With any luck she slams into his chest, and both of them go flying down the stairs at top speed. She's no sentinel, but a good fall... It might be enough to kill them both. There's no frame of reference for how much of a hit John can take before dying though, so she's finding out the worst way.

[a-forsaken-memory]

There’s a moment of pure, unfiltered panic in him as he process what she’s doing. She’s taking him down with her. A sane man might try to break apart from her. At the moment, John is not a sane man. But everything in him wants to live. He struggles, trying to do something- anything to ensure he doesn’t hit something vital on the way down.

With any other survivor, this wouldn’t have happened. No one else is big enough to overpower him. But they are, apparently. And it lights some sort of fire in him. He shoves his claws into her more as they tumble, trying to use the fact they’re heavier than him to his advantage, growling directly into their face.

There’s a moment where something in his mind shrieks bite them! But he refrains. It’s not going to help. He struggles, but luck isn’t on his side. Pointedly not, in fact.

Slamming into the stairs again, his vision blurs. The weight of a whole person enough to really, truly hurt his exposed spine on the way down. He howls in pain, and tries to stop things, but it’s no use.

Phos gets her wish.

No one makes it out of her maneuver alive.

[phos-saken]

Pain shoots through them- From where he's stabbing into them, them clutching at his corrupted arm, of course launching two people off of a single wall, and most predictably, however many impacts there really were. It was a blur of sharp pain and overwhelming sound, above it all the dread that this really isn't the best way to go.

As if their momentum had carried post mortem, Phosphate is thrown onto her stomach. Sharp grass and gravel dig into her arms as she skids, only stopping when her frantic hands find wood. Everything still hurt; Her now scratched to hell hands and arms, the feeling of being stabbed by something frantic, the almost indescribable sensation in one palm and that raging headache. But lifting their head, they see forest. Dark skies, gravel paths, and cabins. Their chuckle comes out more as a strained cough as they rest their forehead on the ground. "How's that for interesting..."

[a-forsaken-memory]

The sudden motion of another person catches ████ off guard, ███ practically jumps to ███ feet, spinning on ███ heel to look at what had happened. ███ walks over, and crouches down next to them.

“You… Alright? Need or want a hand up?”

███ voice is gentle, if measured. Almost as if worried ███ might upset her by even asking.

[phos-saken]

"Innaminutemaybe." She wheezes, finally just coughing onto the ground. Something still feels like it's attempting to stab through her ribs. She shifts her weight to the side and digs around with one hand- Rock. Relaxing back down... Nope, still feels like being skewered. Okay. "I don't think," They cough again, finally lifting their eyes to ███ when it stops. "The panic has set in yet. It's supposed to. We should be terrified. Might've gotten stuck in traffic."

[a-forsaken-memory]

That earns a soft laugh, an almost musical noise that seems out of place in a hellhole like this one. ███ nods, though, and smiles faintly, though ███ gaze is hidden ██ ███ ██████ ██ ███ ███. ████ shifts back a small ways, and sits cross-legged on the pier. ███ fidgets with ███ ███, messing with the ████ of it in an attempt to keep ███ mind from wandering.

"No luck in making it out of that one alive, I take it?"

███ asks, voice still measured. Then it clicks. WE should be terrified. Did they mean the group?

"Or- Wait, terrified over what this time?"

This time. ███ hates that it's this time. Because they can never have a fucking break here, can they?

[phos-saken]

"Haaaaahhhh no. Rusty silver lining, he didn't either!" Their fingers find gaps in the gravel and dig into the earth. If they don't need help stumbling to their feet, they'll avoid it. "Uh, John, so the usual." Grunting as they pull themselves to their knees, it'll do for the moment. "I need to talk to Builderman- After that I don't know. It won't be my problem to tell anyone else what happened, he's the only person I figure needs to know." Breathing heavily, she sniffs as she attempts to move off of her knees. The phantom smell of blood moves through her senses. "Being indirect on purpose."

[a-forsaken-memory]

Just another round... Shaking out their hands and feet, they braced themselves for another round of this. The words of two people fresh in their mind, it's time to try something new. Well, that's not quite right. They've already jumped through all the necessary hoops to justify this to themselves, this is an investigative round. The only goal is to find out if this will even work, much more if it's even worth it. If they can handle it.

Once she knows that countdown is running, she's off and looking around. Find out who they're up against, any means necessary. The familiar growling is a good sign, followed by spikes erupting from the ground. Maybe the latter is less of a good sign. But she knows John, or hopefully enough to make some educated guesses. He is, luckily, easy enough for them to predict. At least until he learns better- It's not difficult for them to pull his attention off some other poor survivor. Then it's just a game of keeping up with the chase...

Namely, stamina. They're fantastic at pacing themselves, but he's typically rather relentless unless an easier target presents itself. Trying to keep his attention on purpose on top of that? A perfect recipe for disaster, as they slam their shoulder into a corner, the momentum turning them to face him head on!- ??? A gunshot from nowhere. The unmistakable sound of a sword connecting with it's target. Maybe it was right, these people would protect her when needed. For now they've got bigger problems to deal with, hurrying off to look for a method to get themselves patched up. He won't give up on coming after her for long, and she knows it. @phos-saken (hope you wanted to FUCKING READ.)

A fun round, this one was. Plenty of resistance to push through. The familiar hum and ding of his abilities, the reveal of where people were… That new face. No one else was that tall. Had such a distinct look. And no one else on this particular team was quite so fresh. Easy pickings?

The hunt was on.

John roars as he’s stunned, and hit once more, seemingly for good measure. But it doesn’t matter. There’s someone that is far more interesting to take after. With a burst of speed, he’s off after her without faltering. Those pesky sentinels couldn’t get in the way on the other side of the arena.

Well, she has what she wants. John’s undivided attention, as he charges after her, rather consistently barely missing his swings. He growls at her as he misses another swing, mad enough to drop the chase to slam his arm into the ground, aiming to hit her with a wall of familiar spikes.

Whatever they’re planning, this better be worth it.

[phos-saken]

(cut from here) Now that's a bad sign! They were just talking, he seemed fine enough. What the hell just happened? Maybe if she'd been able to speak with him before now, she'd have a better read on what's going through his head. As if. That was never going to be an opportunity, and they've been improvising this entire time. Shifting how they're sitting with a matching scowl, his rather violent reaction is a good reminder of their roles here. If he's threatening to snap, they need to be ready for that to happen. But they're nothing if not patient. His words seem to physically hurt their ears, and they can barely make out anything he's saying. They're listening nonetheless. "Are you done?"

Patient in practice, maybe. With a dramatic huff, she pops her neck again. Ever ready... "Because I think I get the gist." Keeping careful watch of both of his arms, she needs to figure out some way to keep this civil. Not that she's ever been good at calming others down. "What I do with my own time is my goddamn business, whether you think It's pointless or not. I didn't ask your opinion on it." "Loud and clear, I mean exactly what I say. You are not the worst I've seen." Slowly but surely, each fin begins to glow. Starting close to the skin, spreading outwards... She doesn't seem to notice. "You don't need to do anything. Fall into that influence entirely for all I care. But if, and I mean fucking if there is a way out for everyone?" "You're coming with us. Willingly or otherwise."

[a-forsaken-memory]

“Y̸o̶u̶ ̷j̸u̴s̷t̶ ̵d̶o̸n̶’̶t̸ ̸g̵e̷t̸ ̵i̷t̴,̷ ̸d̶o̸ ̷y̶o̵u̵?̷ ̷I̶’̴m̶ ̸t̵r̴y̴i̵n̶g̸ ̶t̷o̷ ̴w̷a̵r̵n̸ ̴y̴o̷u̷.̸”

He growls his response, clearly struggling to compose himself. Of course. Now. He only begged to have the chain snap. Of course it would actually do so now, when he wanted instead to explain. To talk and understand and be understood.

Like someone turned off a light, the intelligence behind his eyes almost vanishes entirely. Almost. With a sharp growl, he lunges at Phos, permanent grin practically snapping back into place as he does, claws aimed for their chest.

He did try to hold himself back. Truly, he did. But he was bound to lose eventually.

He can’t pull himself away. Can’t back down from the lunge. The man that they were just talking to is gone. For now, at least. Looks like that window of opportunity closed.

[phos-saken]

Squinting at his face as though that's going to make her hear his words better, the clown of a fish does catch the word 'warn' somewhere in there. Perhaps thankfully for them both, that's enough to set off all kinds of alarm bells. Can't blame her, really- It isn't as though she's used to a heads up over blatant threats or mocking. Already lifting themselves off the ground when it all finally processes, they practically leap out of his way. Nearly slamming their back into the building beside them, but that would obviously never happen to them. "Alright." They pant, backing away from him. Back towards the cliff edge is a bad idea if he's got any memory of this whole encounter... There's nowhere else to go. With this ample warning time, they could absolutely outrun him. But not forever. Never forever. Still no timer, no other survivors, no obvious way out. Unless this counts as the circumstances changing? Of course they had to go and jinx it, so much as thinking their conversation couldn't last forever. They should've known better than to even dare to broach the topic of time. Running for their life still seems like a good choice, for the time being. Phos considers herself to be a very logical person. She isn't. Yet in her mind, if them conversing was their only reason for being here... Well, it would line up that this little aside should be over, she just needs a way out. Scientific method, if something changes, so do the results! Her stomach bubbles in visceral discomfort with each footfall. And there's this unnatural, pounding headache. It isn't exactly like John is known for being merciful or quick about these kinds of things. ... Unless he's particularly pissed off. They had several rounds and a bonus death that taught them exactly how to do just that. "Alright!" Calling out behind them, knowing he couldn't be far. "Not personal, swear it." Taking the corner into the abandoned building tightly, he's a fair bit shorter than them. They're no sentinel, but if they can catch him off guard and punch down... Learn from example, eh?

[a-forsaken-memory]

It’s them moving out of the way that gets him going. He lets out an outraged roar as they take off. The time it takes him to stand buys them a few moments of freedom to move. He watches them go, and veers sharply away from their tail.

He’s not falling for it twice. Once he’s content, he slams his corrupted arm into the ground. If the resulting wall doesn’t clip her, it’ll block off one of her exits. Aiming directly for the corner next to the door she entered, the spikes charge forth.

While they might have learned something last time, so did he. And he’s not letting them do it again. So he’s not going to get so much as close to them, opting to choke them out one way or the other.

The lights weren’t off up there. Just dimmed, but still bright enough to be brutally sharp.

[phos-saken]

Time well spent! While attempting to catch their breath, the telltale sound of "Jesus fucking Christ that's twenty-something spikes shooting out of the ground" keeps them on their feet. Ears flicking as they bounce in place, their only way of telling where it's coming from is by sound. Not trying to repeat the very start of this foolish endeavor and get slashed again! With the position she put herself in, she winds up having to full-body dive out of the way as the wall slices upwards and destroys her only plan. Rolling back onto her feet, she practically climbs the side of the stairs to get up them faster. Any time she's not moving is time he's getting closer to her, and now those steps are her only way out. Okay!!! Okay. Adaptability is the name of the game! Luckily that's a skill they're exceptionally practiced in, unluckily they're as out of options as when they started. All they have to do is hit him once or twice, just die and get this over with... Jumping down from the shoddy 'balcony' would only extend the chase, though. ... Carefully positioning themselves at the top of the stairs, they carefully half-coil their tail and brace it against the wall. One heel where the same wall meets the floor, the other foot keeping them balanced... He has no other option but to follow them up, right? Good a choke point as any.

[a-forsaken-memory]

John slows as she nears the building, making sure to count things out, it seems. He growls quietly, and keeps watch for a few moments. When he can, he wastes no time in positioning himself at the open door. He drops a footprint, then steps back, shoving his arm into the ground as he rather meticulously ensures the resulting wall of spikes would catch Phos entirely in a corral, if she jumped down.

There's a tinge of regret in his mind, one that is very swiftly shaken off as he growls again, reason overcome by... Whatever one might call this. Instinct, perhaps, but that's still not right, according to something still lingering in the back of his mind. With another beat of hesitation, of pushing back against himself, he's off up the stairs after them.

Claws forward, he lunges. He’s half expecting to be slammed into, or swung at, or punched, or shot. So he braces for the worst, still trying to swing for her as he goes, hoping maybe, just maybe, his claws will connect before whatever she has planned.

[phos-saken]

Listening to his footsteps as he moves about, they readjust their position. Balancing on one foot above a full staircase would make anyone nervous! Though, perhaps the unrest comes from what they're planning. Spikes tear through the ground nearby and they shuffle a little more. It's not like they plan on running much longer, but helpful to take note of. And finally, the star of the hour! Growing swiftly closer to them as he ascends the stairs, then ever closer... Even as he lunges for her, she doesn't move. Those claws connect, and she grabs for his wrist, or forearm, or whatever she can dig her own claws into. Her other arm floundering for what's left of his shoulder around that spike, rapidly attaching herself to whatever parts of him she can grab as she lifts her foot off the ground, planting both against the wall. With both legs and tail, she springboards off the wall, still attempting to dig into and cling on whatever she can get at. With any luck she slams into his chest, and both of them go flying down the stairs at top speed. She's no sentinel, but a good fall... It might be enough to kill them both. There's no frame of reference for how much of a hit John can take before dying though, so she's finding out the worst way.

[a-forsaken-memory]

There’s a moment of pure, unfiltered panic in him as he process what she’s doing. She’s taking him down with her. A sane man might try to break apart from her. At the moment, John is not a sane man. But everything in him wants to live. He struggles, trying to do something- anything to ensure he doesn’t hit something vital on the way down.

With any other survivor, this wouldn’t have happened. No one else is big enough to overpower him. But they are, apparently. And it lights some sort of fire in him. He shoves his claws into her more as they tumble, trying to use the fact they’re heavier than him to his advantage, growling directly into their face.

There’s a moment where something in his mind shrieks bite them! But he refrains. It’s not going to help. He struggles, but luck isn’t on his side. Pointedly not, in fact.

Slamming into the stairs again, his vision blurs. The weight of a whole person enough to really, truly hurt his exposed spine on the way down. He howls in pain, and tries to stop things, but it’s no use.

Phos gets her wish.

No one makes it out of her maneuver alive.

[phos-saken]

Pain shoots through them- From where he's stabbing into them, them clutching at his corrupted arm, of course launching two people off of a single wall, and most predictably, however many impacts there really were. It was a blur of sharp pain and overwhelming sound, above it all the dread that this really isn't the best way to go.

As if their momentum had carried post mortem, Phosphate is thrown onto her stomach. Sharp grass and gravel dig into her arms as she skids, only stopping when her frantic hands find wood. Everything still hurt; Her now scratched to hell hands and arms, the feeling of being stabbed by something frantic, the almost indescribable sensation in one palm and that raging headache. But lifting their head, they see forest. Dark skies, gravel paths, and cabins. Their chuckle comes out more as a strained cough as they rest their forehead on the ground. "How's that for interesting..."

[a-forsaken-memory]

The sudden motion of another person catches ████ off guard, ███ practically jumps to ███ feet, spinning on ███ heel to look at what had happened. ███ walks over, and crouches down next to them.

“You… Alright? Need or want a hand up?”

███ voice is gentle, if measured. Almost as if worried ███ might upset her by even asking.

[phos-saken]

"Innaminutemaybe." She wheezes, finally just coughing onto the ground. Something still feels like it's attempting to stab through her ribs. She shifts her weight to the side and digs around with one hand- Rock. Relaxing back down... Nope, still feels like being skewered. Okay. "I don't think," They cough again, finally lifting their eyes to ███ when it stops. "The panic has set in yet. It's supposed to. We should be terrified. Might've gotten stuck in traffic."

[a-forsaken-memory]

Just another round... Shaking out their hands and feet, they braced themselves for another round of this. The words of two people fresh in their mind, it's time to try something new. Well, that's not quite right. They've already jumped through all the necessary hoops to justify this to themselves, this is an investigative round. The only goal is to find out if this will even work, much more if it's even worth it. If they can handle it.

Once she knows that countdown is running, she's off and looking around. Find out who they're up against, any means necessary. The familiar growling is a good sign, followed by spikes erupting from the ground. Maybe the latter is less of a good sign. But she knows John, or hopefully enough to make some educated guesses. He is, luckily, easy enough for them to predict. At least until he learns better- It's not difficult for them to pull his attention off some other poor survivor. Then it's just a game of keeping up with the chase...

Namely, stamina. They're fantastic at pacing themselves, but he's typically rather relentless unless an easier target presents itself. Trying to keep his attention on purpose on top of that? A perfect recipe for disaster, as they slam their shoulder into a corner, the momentum turning them to face him head on!- ??? A gunshot from nowhere. The unmistakable sound of a sword connecting with it's target. Maybe it was right, these people would protect her when needed. For now they've got bigger problems to deal with, hurrying off to look for a method to get themselves patched up. He won't give up on coming after her for long, and she knows it. @phos-saken (hope you wanted to FUCKING READ.)

A fun round, this one was. Plenty of resistance to push through. The familiar hum and ding of his abilities, the reveal of where people were… That new face. No one else was that tall. Had such a distinct look. And no one else on this particular team was quite so fresh. Easy pickings?

The hunt was on.

John roars as he’s stunned, and hit once more, seemingly for good measure. But it doesn’t matter. There’s someone that is far more interesting to take after. With a burst of speed, he’s off after her without faltering. Those pesky sentinels couldn’t get in the way on the other side of the arena.

Well, she has what she wants. John’s undivided attention, as he charges after her, rather consistently barely missing his swings. He growls at her as he misses another swing, mad enough to drop the chase to slam his arm into the ground, aiming to hit her with a wall of familiar spikes.

Whatever they’re planning, this better be worth it.

[phos-saken]

(cut from here) Now that's a bad sign! They were just talking, he seemed fine enough. What the hell just happened? Maybe if she'd been able to speak with him before now, she'd have a better read on what's going through his head. As if. That was never going to be an opportunity, and they've been improvising this entire time. Shifting how they're sitting with a matching scowl, his rather violent reaction is a good reminder of their roles here. If he's threatening to snap, they need to be ready for that to happen. But they're nothing if not patient. His words seem to physically hurt their ears, and they can barely make out anything he's saying. They're listening nonetheless. "Are you done?"

Patient in practice, maybe. With a dramatic huff, she pops her neck again. Ever ready... "Because I think I get the gist." Keeping careful watch of both of his arms, she needs to figure out some way to keep this civil. Not that she's ever been good at calming others down. "What I do with my own time is my goddamn business, whether you think It's pointless or not. I didn't ask your opinion on it." "Loud and clear, I mean exactly what I say. You are not the worst I've seen." Slowly but surely, each fin begins to glow. Starting close to the skin, spreading outwards... She doesn't seem to notice. "You don't need to do anything. Fall into that influence entirely for all I care. But if, and I mean fucking if there is a way out for everyone?" "You're coming with us. Willingly or otherwise."

[a-forsaken-memory]

“Y̸o̶u̶ ̷j̸u̴s̷t̶ ̵d̶o̸n̶’̶t̸ ̸g̵e̷t̸ ̵i̷t̴,̷ ̸d̶o̸ ̷y̶o̵u̵?̷ ̷I̶’̴m̶ ̸t̵r̴y̴i̵n̶g̸ ̶t̷o̷ ̴w̷a̵r̵n̸ ̴y̴o̷u̷.̸”

He growls his response, clearly struggling to compose himself. Of course. Now. He only begged to have the chain snap. Of course it would actually do so now, when he wanted instead to explain. To talk and understand and be understood.

Like someone turned off a light, the intelligence behind his eyes almost vanishes entirely. Almost. With a sharp growl, he lunges at Phos, permanent grin practically snapping back into place as he does, claws aimed for their chest.

He did try to hold himself back. Truly, he did. But he was bound to lose eventually.

He can’t pull himself away. Can’t back down from the lunge. The man that they were just talking to is gone. For now, at least. Looks like that window of opportunity closed.

[phos-saken]

Squinting at his face as though that's going to make her hear his words better, the clown of a fish does catch the word 'warn' somewhere in there. Perhaps thankfully for them both, that's enough to set off all kinds of alarm bells. Can't blame her, really- It isn't as though she's used to a heads up over blatant threats or mocking. Already lifting themselves off the ground when it all finally processes, they practically leap out of his way. Nearly slamming their back into the building beside them, but that would obviously never happen to them. "Alright." They pant, backing away from him. Back towards the cliff edge is a bad idea if he's got any memory of this whole encounter... There's nowhere else to go. With this ample warning time, they could absolutely outrun him. But not forever. Never forever. Still no timer, no other survivors, no obvious way out. Unless this counts as the circumstances changing? Of course they had to go and jinx it, so much as thinking their conversation couldn't last forever. They should've known better than to even dare to broach the topic of time. Running for their life still seems like a good choice, for the time being. Phos considers herself to be a very logical person. She isn't. Yet in her mind, if them conversing was their only reason for being here... Well, it would line up that this little aside should be over, she just needs a way out. Scientific method, if something changes, so do the results! Her stomach bubbles in visceral discomfort with each footfall. And there's this unnatural, pounding headache. It isn't exactly like John is known for being merciful or quick about these kinds of things. ... Unless he's particularly pissed off. They had several rounds and a bonus death that taught them exactly how to do just that. "Alright!" Calling out behind them, knowing he couldn't be far. "Not personal, swear it." Taking the corner into the abandoned building tightly, he's a fair bit shorter than them. They're no sentinel, but if they can catch him off guard and punch down... Learn from example, eh?

[a-forsaken-memory]

It’s them moving out of the way that gets him going. He lets out an outraged roar as they take off. The time it takes him to stand buys them a few moments of freedom to move. He watches them go, and veers sharply away from their tail.

He’s not falling for it twice. Once he’s content, he slams his corrupted arm into the ground. If the resulting wall doesn’t clip her, it’ll block off one of her exits. Aiming directly for the corner next to the door she entered, the spikes charge forth.

While they might have learned something last time, so did he. And he’s not letting them do it again. So he’s not going to get so much as close to them, opting to choke them out one way or the other.

The lights weren’t off up there. Just dimmed, but still bright enough to be brutally sharp.

[phos-saken]

Time well spent! While attempting to catch their breath, the telltale sound of "Jesus fucking Christ that's twenty-something spikes shooting out of the ground" keeps them on their feet. Ears flicking as they bounce in place, their only way of telling where it's coming from is by sound. Not trying to repeat the very start of this foolish endeavor and get slashed again! With the position she put herself in, she winds up having to full-body dive out of the way as the wall slices upwards and destroys her only plan. Rolling back onto her feet, she practically climbs the side of the stairs to get up them faster. Any time she's not moving is time he's getting closer to her, and now those steps are her only way out. Okay!!! Okay. Adaptability is the name of the game! Luckily that's a skill they're exceptionally practiced in, unluckily they're as out of options as when they started. All they have to do is hit him once or twice, just die and get this over with... Jumping down from the shoddy 'balcony' would only extend the chase, though. ... Carefully positioning themselves at the top of the stairs, they carefully half-coil their tail and brace it against the wall. One heel where the same wall meets the floor, the other foot keeping them balanced... He has no other option but to follow them up, right? Good a choke point as any.

[a-forsaken-memory]

John slows as she nears the building, making sure to count things out, it seems. He growls quietly, and keeps watch for a few moments. When he can, he wastes no time in positioning himself at the open door. He drops a footprint, then steps back, shoving his arm into the ground as he rather meticulously ensures the resulting wall of spikes would catch Phos entirely in a corral, if she jumped down.

There's a tinge of regret in his mind, one that is very swiftly shaken off as he growls again, reason overcome by... Whatever one might call this. Instinct, perhaps, but that's still not right, according to something still lingering in the back of his mind. With another beat of hesitation, of pushing back against himself, he's off up the stairs after them.

Claws forward, he lunges. He’s half expecting to be slammed into, or swung at, or punched, or shot. So he braces for the worst, still trying to swing for her as he goes, hoping maybe, just maybe, his claws will connect before whatever she has planned.

[phos-saken]

Listening to his footsteps as he moves about, they readjust their position. Balancing on one foot above a full staircase would make anyone nervous! Though, perhaps the unrest comes from what they're planning. Spikes tear through the ground nearby and they shuffle a little more. It's not like they plan on running much longer, but helpful to take note of. And finally, the star of the hour! Growing swiftly closer to them as he ascends the stairs, then ever closer... Even as he lunges for her, she doesn't move. Those claws connect, and she grabs for his wrist, or forearm, or whatever she can dig her own claws into. Her other arm floundering for what's left of his shoulder around that spike, rapidly attaching herself to whatever parts of him she can grab as she lifts her foot off the ground, planting both against the wall. With both legs and tail, she springboards off the wall, still attempting to dig into and cling on whatever she can get at. With any luck she slams into his chest, and both of them go flying down the stairs at top speed. She's no sentinel, but a good fall... It might be enough to kill them both. There's no frame of reference for how much of a hit John can take before dying though, so she's finding out the worst way.

[a-forsaken-memory]

There’s a moment of pure, unfiltered panic in him as he process what she’s doing. She’s taking him down with her. A sane man might try to break apart from her. At the moment, John is not a sane man. But everything in him wants to live. He struggles, trying to do something- anything to ensure he doesn’t hit something vital on the way down.

With any other survivor, this wouldn’t have happened. No one else is big enough to overpower him. But they are, apparently. And it lights some sort of fire in him. He shoves his claws into her more as they tumble, trying to use the fact they’re heavier than him to his advantage, growling directly into their face.

There’s a moment where something in his mind shrieks bite them! But he refrains. It’s not going to help. He struggles, but luck isn’t on his side. Pointedly not, in fact.

Slamming into the stairs again, his vision blurs. The weight of a whole person enough to really, truly hurt his exposed spine on the way down. He howls in pain, and tries to stop things, but it’s no use.

Phos gets her wish.

No one makes it out of her maneuver alive.

[phos-saken]

Pain shoots through them- From where he's stabbing into them, them clutching at his corrupted arm, of course launching two people off of a single wall, and most predictably, however many impacts there really were. It was a blur of sharp pain and overwhelming sound, above it all the dread that this really isn't the best way to go.

As if their momentum had carried post mortem, Phosphate is thrown onto her stomach. Sharp grass and gravel dig into her arms as she skids, only stopping when her frantic hands find wood. Everything still hurt; Her now scratched to hell hands and arms, the feeling of being stabbed by something frantic, the almost indescribable sensation in one palm and that raging headache. But lifting their head, they see forest. Dark skies, gravel paths, and cabins. Their chuckle comes out more as a strained cough as they rest their forehead on the ground. "How's that for interesting..."

[phos-saken]

★ two time

Send me ★ + a name of another muse / character in my muse's canon and they'll talk about their relationship with them

"Two Time? I've mentioned them once before, not much has changed. Though, it depends on which one you're asking about- They seem to have the most variation. Some are fine to be around for a while, then others that look the exact same are full cult freak." "Soooo we don't talk much. It's hard to know what I'm signing up for, I tend to steer clear."

[a-forsaken-memory]

Just another round... Shaking out their hands and feet, they braced themselves for another round of this. The words of two people fresh in their mind, it's time to try something new. Well, that's not quite right. They've already jumped through all the necessary hoops to justify this to themselves, this is an investigative round. The only goal is to find out if this will even work, much more if it's even worth it. If they can handle it.

Once she knows that countdown is running, she's off and looking around. Find out who they're up against, any means necessary. The familiar growling is a good sign, followed by spikes erupting from the ground. Maybe the latter is less of a good sign. But she knows John, or hopefully enough to make some educated guesses. He is, luckily, easy enough for them to predict. At least until he learns better- It's not difficult for them to pull his attention off some other poor survivor. Then it's just a game of keeping up with the chase...

Namely, stamina. They're fantastic at pacing themselves, but he's typically rather relentless unless an easier target presents itself. Trying to keep his attention on purpose on top of that? A perfect recipe for disaster, as they slam their shoulder into a corner, the momentum turning them to face him head on!- ??? A gunshot from nowhere. The unmistakable sound of a sword connecting with it's target. Maybe it was right, these people would protect her when needed. For now they've got bigger problems to deal with, hurrying off to look for a method to get themselves patched up. He won't give up on coming after her for long, and she knows it. @phos-saken (hope you wanted to FUCKING READ.)

A fun round, this one was. Plenty of resistance to push through. The familiar hum and ding of his abilities, the reveal of where people were… That new face. No one else was that tall. Had such a distinct look. And no one else on this particular team was quite so fresh. Easy pickings?

The hunt was on.

John roars as he’s stunned, and hit once more, seemingly for good measure. But it doesn’t matter. There’s someone that is far more interesting to take after. With a burst of speed, he’s off after her without faltering. Those pesky sentinels couldn’t get in the way on the other side of the arena.

Well, she has what she wants. John’s undivided attention, as he charges after her, rather consistently barely missing his swings. He growls at her as he misses another swing, mad enough to drop the chase to slam his arm into the ground, aiming to hit her with a wall of familiar spikes.

Whatever they’re planning, this better be worth it.

[phos-saken]

(cut from here) Now that's a bad sign! They were just talking, he seemed fine enough. What the hell just happened? Maybe if she'd been able to speak with him before now, she'd have a better read on what's going through his head. As if. That was never going to be an opportunity, and they've been improvising this entire time. Shifting how they're sitting with a matching scowl, his rather violent reaction is a good reminder of their roles here. If he's threatening to snap, they need to be ready for that to happen. But they're nothing if not patient. His words seem to physically hurt their ears, and they can barely make out anything he's saying. They're listening nonetheless. "Are you done?"

Patient in practice, maybe. With a dramatic huff, she pops her neck again. Ever ready... "Because I think I get the gist." Keeping careful watch of both of his arms, she needs to figure out some way to keep this civil. Not that she's ever been good at calming others down. "What I do with my own time is my goddamn business, whether you think It's pointless or not. I didn't ask your opinion on it." "Loud and clear, I mean exactly what I say. You are not the worst I've seen." Slowly but surely, each fin begins to glow. Starting close to the skin, spreading outwards... She doesn't seem to notice. "You don't need to do anything. Fall into that influence entirely for all I care. But if, and I mean fucking if there is a way out for everyone?" "You're coming with us. Willingly or otherwise."

[a-forsaken-memory]

“Y̸o̶u̶ ̷j̸u̴s̷t̶ ̵d̶o̸n̶’̶t̸ ̸g̵e̷t̸ ̵i̷t̴,̷ ̸d̶o̸ ̷y̶o̵u̵?̷ ̷I̶’̴m̶ ̸t̵r̴y̴i̵n̶g̸ ̶t̷o̷ ̴w̷a̵r̵n̸ ̴y̴o̷u̷.̸”

He growls his response, clearly struggling to compose himself. Of course. Now. He only begged to have the chain snap. Of course it would actually do so now, when he wanted instead to explain. To talk and understand and be understood.

Like someone turned off a light, the intelligence behind his eyes almost vanishes entirely. Almost. With a sharp growl, he lunges at Phos, permanent grin practically snapping back into place as he does, claws aimed for their chest.

He did try to hold himself back. Truly, he did. But he was bound to lose eventually.

He can’t pull himself away. Can’t back down from the lunge. The man that they were just talking to is gone. For now, at least. Looks like that window of opportunity closed.

[phos-saken]

Squinting at his face as though that's going to make her hear his words better, the clown of a fish does catch the word 'warn' somewhere in there. Perhaps thankfully for them both, that's enough to set off all kinds of alarm bells. Can't blame her, really- It isn't as though she's used to a heads up over blatant threats or mocking. Already lifting themselves off the ground when it all finally processes, they practically leap out of his way. Nearly slamming their back into the building beside them, but that would obviously never happen to them. "Alright." They pant, backing away from him. Back towards the cliff edge is a bad idea if he's got any memory of this whole encounter... There's nowhere else to go. With this ample warning time, they could absolutely outrun him. But not forever. Never forever. Still no timer, no other survivors, no obvious way out. Unless this counts as the circumstances changing? Of course they had to go and jinx it, so much as thinking their conversation couldn't last forever. They should've known better than to even dare to broach the topic of time. Running for their life still seems like a good choice, for the time being. Phos considers herself to be a very logical person. She isn't. Yet in her mind, if them conversing was their only reason for being here... Well, it would line up that this little aside should be over, she just needs a way out. Scientific method, if something changes, so do the results! Her stomach bubbles in visceral discomfort with each footfall. And there's this unnatural, pounding headache. It isn't exactly like John is known for being merciful or quick about these kinds of things. ... Unless he's particularly pissed off. They had several rounds and a bonus death that taught them exactly how to do just that. "Alright!" Calling out behind them, knowing he couldn't be far. "Not personal, swear it." Taking the corner into the abandoned building tightly, he's a fair bit shorter than them. They're no sentinel, but if they can catch him off guard and punch down... Learn from example, eh?

[a-forsaken-memory]

It’s them moving out of the way that gets him going. He lets out an outraged roar as they take off. The time it takes him to stand buys them a few moments of freedom to move. He watches them go, and veers sharply away from their tail.

He’s not falling for it twice. Once he’s content, he slams his corrupted arm into the ground. If the resulting wall doesn’t clip her, it’ll block off one of her exits. Aiming directly for the corner next to the door she entered, the spikes charge forth.

While they might have learned something last time, so did he. And he’s not letting them do it again. So he’s not going to get so much as close to them, opting to choke them out one way or the other.

The lights weren’t off up there. Just dimmed, but still bright enough to be brutally sharp.

[phos-saken]

Time well spent! While attempting to catch their breath, the telltale sound of "Jesus fucking Christ that's twenty-something spikes shooting out of the ground" keeps them on their feet. Ears flicking as they bounce in place, their only way of telling where it's coming from is by sound. Not trying to repeat the very start of this foolish endeavor and get slashed again! With the position she put herself in, she winds up having to full-body dive out of the way as the wall slices upwards and destroys her only plan. Rolling back onto her feet, she practically climbs the side of the stairs to get up them faster. Any time she's not moving is time he's getting closer to her, and now those steps are her only way out. Okay!!! Okay. Adaptability is the name of the game! Luckily that's a skill they're exceptionally practiced in, unluckily they're as out of options as when they started. All they have to do is hit him once or twice, just die and get this over with... Jumping down from the shoddy 'balcony' would only extend the chase, though. ... Carefully positioning themselves at the top of the stairs, they carefully half-coil their tail and brace it against the wall. One heel where the same wall meets the floor, the other foot keeping them balanced... He has no other option but to follow them up, right? Good a choke point as any.

[a-forsaken-memory]

John slows as she nears the building, making sure to count things out, it seems. He growls quietly, and keeps watch for a few moments. When he can, he wastes no time in positioning himself at the open door. He drops a footprint, then steps back, shoving his arm into the ground as he rather meticulously ensures the resulting wall of spikes would catch Phos entirely in a corral, if she jumped down.

There's a tinge of regret in his mind, one that is very swiftly shaken off as he growls again, reason overcome by... Whatever one might call this. Instinct, perhaps, but that's still not right, according to something still lingering in the back of his mind. With another beat of hesitation, of pushing back against himself, he's off up the stairs after them.

Claws forward, he lunges. He’s half expecting to be slammed into, or swung at, or punched, or shot. So he braces for the worst, still trying to swing for her as he goes, hoping maybe, just maybe, his claws will connect before whatever she has planned.

[phos-saken]

Listening to his footsteps as he moves about, they readjust their position. Balancing on one foot above a full staircase would make anyone nervous! Though, perhaps the unrest comes from what they're planning. Spikes tear through the ground nearby and they shuffle a little more. It's not like they plan on running much longer, but helpful to take note of. And finally, the star of the hour! Growing swiftly closer to them as he ascends the stairs, then ever closer... Even as he lunges for her, she doesn't move. Those claws connect, and she grabs for his wrist, or forearm, or whatever she can dig her own claws into. Her other arm floundering for what's left of his shoulder around that spike, rapidly attaching herself to whatever parts of him she can grab as she lifts her foot off the ground, planting both against the wall. With both legs and tail, she springboards off the wall, still attempting to dig into and cling on whatever she can get at. With any luck she slams into his chest, and both of them go flying down the stairs at top speed. She's no sentinel, but a good fall... It might be enough to kill them both. There's no frame of reference for how much of a hit John can take before dying though, so she's finding out the worst way.

[phos-saken]

He never knew he could physically get tired- but here he was, exhausted.

Owh leaned heavily against a tree, his sword hanging off of his waist, breathing fake breaths in and out. He'd been running too much. Stamina- fuck, yeah, that's what that was. Whatever seemed to be affecting everyone's stamina had extended its graces to him, too.

Finally.

Owh shook his head, recovering surprisingly quickly and starting his Pathfinding up again. He closed his eyes as he walked, making his way to Apollo's cabin-

He walked into something full force, sending him stumbling back. A tree, probably... but he'd usually just get stopped where he was, right? It's almost. As if. The tree was moving...

"Fu-"

Owh opened his eyes- only to be greeted with the tallest person he ever saw.

"...Ah."

[hi hi hello it's me @cloneontheloose haha hehe haha explodes]

Always rushing around, these break times were always unknown. Maybe it would be five minutes, maybe fifteen. Maybe the next round would skip her entirely and she'd be free to do what she wanted in the empty area. All that uncertainty meant she moves like a bat out of hell whenever there's a task in mind. Predictably, this causes her a great deal of issues. Not watching where they were going, of course they'd run into someone. Or was this the other person's fault? Actually, who cares. Stumbling slightly to not continue running him down, they don't look particularly remorseful. "Shit, sorry... Seven? Little busy. You good?" Normally they'd never check up on someone else, not here, but this could've been their fault.

[phos-saken]

(cut from here)

Frowning deeply, you can see one of their canines catch a bit of skin on their chin. Not that she notices... "Greeeaaat, as if our lives aren't difficult enough." Ears flicking as he continues on, it seems as if she's paying rapt attention- Hanging onto every word, noting specific phrasing... However quiet, she'll certainly pick it up. "Catch me up on who those 'certain people' are later, I try to stay up-to-date on who to watch out for.""Believe it when I see it." They shrug. All they're going to say on the matter, evidently.

Looking around their surroundings again, none of it exactly registers as familiar. "That's fine, I don't know where we're going. One of us will see it based off general location, right?" No comment on a mention of code, or the apology, or much else.

[phos-saken]

They’re Administrators. They know things, very clearly things that they shouldn’t.

They know. I wouldn’t be surprised if they all know.

You’re lying to yourself if you think you’re going under the radar.

As much as they claim to not believe those who question them, everyone is effected by the words of others. Without any way to confirm what they're being told... Well, those whispers influence them little by little by little. Yet Phos believes herself to be a rational person. "I don't think they do. You've seen how they treat him, right? What was it, Seven?" While she hasn't yet spoken to any variation of 007n7, there's certainly a few of him running around. "That's a criminal people knew about. That people did something about, still feel something about his actions. I haven't gotten anything like that." That's not what you asked. That's nowhere near what you implied! She's aware of this fact, being willfully obtuse.

[phos-saken]

He knows! And I’m sure he’s not the only one! Even Dusekkar seems to. Though sharing that knowledge might count as cheating, whoops!

"And what good faith have you built for me to believe you?" They can't know. "Builderman, Dusekkar, any of them. I'm well practiced in how guilty people behave." They couldn't have known. "Haven't said anything, haven't implied it." None of them could have possibly known.

"Nothing has changed." They can't know. There's not a reality where that's happened. "Truthfully, I doubt anything will change before the end of this." She still has to work with these people long enough to escape, so that can't be the truth. She can't work with that.

[phos-saken]

Builderman himself knows about Urbanshade, you know.

He’s bad at lying about it.

Opening their mouth to respond, they instead take a deep breath. An active choice to gather themselves. "Say for a moment I believe you." Head tilted towards their asker, they're still avoiding eye contact. "What, pray tell, do you expect me to do about that?" If she's going to treat this like it mirrors the rest of her life, she needs to do it properly. She's out of the panic, now... Data. The information gathering stage. Learn how everything works. Obviously she needs to talk to Builderman directly, but after their last conversation...

"He's got no reason to tie me to it, just like Mach. My criminal record, whatever that was, is gone. I checked on that personally." Unable to identify any danger to her own person, she physically relaxes. Though when she speaks, her voice shakes ever so slightly "It's fine. Whether or not he knows, I'm alright."

[phos-saken]

So if you’re certain she knows about Urbanshade… aren’t you upset she didn’t help? I mean, she’s more than capable of it, you’ve seen her, right?

Their resigned tone and slumped body language continue. "Ever so often, Mach reminds us she's powerful, not invincible. Maybe I learned that from eavesdropping on her phone calls. Whatever. Shouldn't have them in front of a giant plate window." "No." She states plainly. "I'm not upset about it. Unlike certain figures around here, Mach's never been deified. Somewhere there's a limit to her power, it ends. She's powerful, but... I've seen the things Urbanshade's chained down. Heard of the weapons they'll make just to keep things quiet." "Maybe she could've done more for us. But I don't waste my time on what-ifs."

[phos-saken]

Do you think Mach knows about Urbanshade?

Seconds stretch into a minute, then two. Phosphate stares at the ground they're sitting on, rolling the words over in their head. Talking about a certain AI was a lovely break from this line of questioning... But it never ends. Her shoulders slump as she sighs. "Probably." Sounding as if the exhaustion is setting in! "Sebastian's hideout was a stop on the Elevator- Not that it was the Sebastian I'd met, mind you. Between her management of the Regretevator and all the shit she's mixed up in, it'd be stupid to think she doesn't know." Pausing for a moment, she picks at the patch on her jumpsuit. "But she'd have no reason to think I have any connection to it, and it isn't as though Mach is an admin. She's just powerful in some other way."

[phos-saken]

★ Painter

Send me ★ + a name of another muse / character in my muse's canon and they'll talk about their relationship with them

"P.AI.nter..." For once their voice is soft, and thoughtful. They readjust how they're sitting before answering, getting more uncomfortable. This must be familiar by now? Not knowing how to answer, but not being resistant to doing so... You must be rather sick of them.

"I had less issues with him than I had with Sebastian." She finally says. "Sure he was a little unstable, didn't stop him from being the best of us. And who wasn't a touch bloodlusted down there..." However difficult it is to get an answer out of them normally, this question seems to have found a different vein. "We were all just trying to survive, he just happened to have more help on the ground."

"... Little ironic, that the actual machine had a more human response than anything else involved. That he was the most able to express any kind of remorse for the things he did- Surviving was a guilt on whatever conscience he had." Successfully working themselves up, they shake their head and sigh. "I never held anything against him- I just couldn't. Of everything that happened, he was the least deserving. He was the true innocent of all of us."

"Dock two, one, eight..." She subconsciously repeats.

[phos-saken]

Would you ever walk up to dear P.AI.nter and put your fist right through his smug screen? Let's say HQ told you to.

Their expression morphs into one of disgust. With you, with your question, with the thought of the scenario itself. Shifting their weight and beginning to gesture as if they're about to speak, their mouth twitches shut. If your goal was to piss them off, you've finally succeeded. "HQ could blow my head off to their heart's content if they wanted to give me an order like that." She finally answers, incompletely. Try again?