realityshifted | ✭ mission oo1;;

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final fantasy vii (d1) zack fair

✭ mission oo1;;

[ he's already taken care of one of these things. this one's gonna be a piece of cake!

( because it totally doesn't matter that he only has five minutes before the place goes up in flames. he's got this in the bag and he's going to show director lazard that not only is his dream of becoming a hero not unattainable, it's just within his reach. )

he takes a swing at the thing – man, you're ugly! – and it goes down just as the one before it had. with a heavy thud and a settling of even heavier limbs, and zack thinks he's pretty well-deserved in the way he strides up to the body, swinging his sword back into place over his shoulder. ] Gotcha, didn't I, you –

[ smack!

a heavy hand comes up, catches him right across his front and sends him flying backward. oh, crap, not good. so not good –

and where he expects to get up close and personal with one of the pillars that circle the outermost space of the room he'd been in, the impact doesn't come. he ends up sprawled on his back, arms and legs akimbo, and ow okay sword digging into my back ow ow ow. he sits up, shakes his head and winces when a sharp little stab of pain forms right behind his eyes, looks around to see just what on gaia had happened. ] … Huh? Wait, this isn't – [ this isn't fort tamblin.

this isn't wutai at all.

unless wutai had always had a floor made up of stars and he just hadn't noticed. maybe he'd been too busy taking out their soldiers, or something, because that has to make a bit of sense, doesn't it? ( no, it doesn't. it doesn't have to make any amount of sense, zack fair. ) ] Where … hellooo? Angeal? [ he pulls himself up to his knees, wincing again as that pain behind his eyes creeps up on him a second time. ]

Director? [ nope. nothin'. ] Jeez, that thing must've hit me harder than I thought. [ he finally manages to get to his feet, rolling his shoulders and reaching behind him to ensure that his sword is securely in place, stretching himself out with a couple of squats just to be sure – because you never know, he's pretty much convinced that there's always going to be time for squats – and he takes a few steps forward, still peering down at the floor like he's never seen stars before.

which. he has, naturally. it's just that they're usually in the sky and not on the ground and how is that supposed to make sense. ( here's the thing, zack … stop trying to make sense of things already. you'll save yourself a lot of headaches along the way if you just go with it. ) ] Hey, uh … Anybody here?

… At all? [ no? :| ]

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Probably more people 'ere than you'd expect. [there's a woman in a blouse and slacks approaching from behind him, arms crossed over her chest and a belt of police equipment around her waist. if you look her in the face, there's a very weary look in her eyes, but from her stiff posture and expression you'd never know it] You all right? That looked like quite a fall.

[ !!

so maybe there are people around here. they're just selective about when they show up and make themselves known. got it.

zack notes that weary look in the woman's eyes, but doesn't comment on it. ( not yet, anyway. ) he's still too concerned with figuring out just where he is, how he'd gotten here, and what it's gonna take to get back to where he needs to be.

there are important things happening, you know. he's making a name for himself in SOLDIER. he needs to make sure lazard is watching his performance!

he grins sheepishly and rubs at the back of his head, which still smarts a bit from having been smacked around. ] Ahh, I've been through worse. S'gonna take more than that to keep me down, though!

[ and so it begins. ]

[oh look, it's another teenager! just what she wanted. her expression at that absolutely goofy response is very, very unimpressed] All right, Batman, but if you need an aspirin, let me know, all right?

I take it you're new 'ere? [because he definitely has that look about him]

[ hey. that wasn't a goofy response! it's the response of an aspiring hero!

but … ] Uh … I don't know about this Batman guy – [ is he really a bat? why would someone's parents actually name their kid something like that? ] – but my name's Zack.

[ now that we've got that cleared up. ]

Oh, yeah. I was in the middle of a mission in Wutai when I got knocked around and ended up here. Where … is here, exactly?

[she ignores the indirect question about Batman because, no, she is not explaining] Zack, then.

[but at his explanation, she quirks an eyebrow] Which isn't on Earth, I take it? [it's nowhere she's heard of, anyway--certainly not a famous combat zone. and she's really not sure what that getup he's wearing is either]

Welcome to the Astral Plane! It's a bit like a bad sci-fi film in action. Basics are, you can come and go as you please--most of the time--but you can't control the mad things that 'appen 'ere. If you want to know more, there's a brochure somewhere over that way. [she gestures] I could take you, if you want.

[ hey, don't go around calling a guy something that he doesn't understand and then not explain it to him.

( okay so york never got explanations of why she calls him every state under the sun but what he's been designated, but he'd never really asked for one.

whatever. go on ahead.

he shakes his head. ] Never heard of Earth, so I'm guessing not. [ smart cookie, this one!

and while he's sure she knows what she's talking about as far as this place is concerned, he doesn't want to take her out of her way just to show him a brochure. so he ends up waving a hand dismissively, shaking his head with a small smile. ] I'm sure I can find it on my own – er. [ names. what are those. ] A pretty girl like you's gotta have a name, right?

[ zack. ]

… You said we can come and go as much as we want? Like, I could go back home right now if I wanted?

So what's this Wutai like, then? [don't mind her--she collects information like some people do stamps. ironically, this is after she failed to answer his Batman question, but who's counting, right?]

[that offer is considerate, and admittedly she probably looks about dead on her feet at the moment, as hard as she's trying to hide it. she might protest since the lack of a brochure is likely to cause more questions, but right now? that might just be easier, so she shrugs instead] If you say so.

[...and she just snorts at that because did Zack not notice that she is at least twice his age? yeah, she doesn't believe him for a minute, so don't even try it] DI Menzies. [because bad flirting doesn't get him a first name] And yeah--if you think about your 'ome, you'll go back there. As a bonus, time won't 'ave passed without you. [thinking of his entrance, though, she wrinkles her nose] Though, ah, in your case, that might mean you're gonna end up in the air again.

[ you can't expect to get information without giving some, you know.

but.

he's never been the type to keep from answering a question just by dint of not getting his own answered first. ( that's kind of rude, isn't it? yeah. yeah it is. so his knowledge of batman will have to remain zilch for the moment.

but he'll find out eventually! ] Lot of shrines. [ he doesn't know what else to say about it, honestly. the mission with angeal had been his first trip. ] Not that I got to sight-see. I was kinda busy getting shot at.

[ well. it's true.

zack notes, not for the first time, that menzies doesn't look like she's too stable on her feet – and instead of taking the information she's already given him and running with it, what's a SOLDIER to do? offer help, of course. ( he'll focus on the idea of being able to get back to where he belongs in a second. when he thinks someone might need his help, he's not just going to abandon them to pursue his own avenues. ) ] I've gone through worse in sim training, honestly. [ no you have not. ] Thanks for the info – but if you don't mind me asking, are you okay? 'Cause you kinda look like a stiff breeze might knock you over.

[ completely forgetting about bad flirting, he's just happy to have a name! he'll get your first one eventually.

even if it takes him as long as it did york. ] Menzies … that a first or a last name?

[you'd be surprised what you can get out of people if you know how! also, does she strike him as a person who is worried about being rude?]

So I take it that's where you are but not where you're from, then? [that mention of Zack being shot at is also a surprise to her. she wouldn't have expected it because really, who goes up against people with guns wielding a sword, anyway? nevermind she never carries a gun herself, of course. still, it's her turn to be concerned about him] You gonna be all right?

[she flinches at his aforementioned concern, though, and waves a hand to brush it off, her posture still rigid as she refuses to show her exhaustion any more than she has to] It's all right, I'm just tired. It's been a hell of a week--I got shot at, too. [well, shot, actually. but that involves getting shot at before it connects]

It's a surname. [and since he's obviously not from her world, she actually treats him to a bit of elaboration] DI's a title--I'm a Detective Inspector. And you're, what, a soldier, I take it? [and no, she doesn't have any idea about the double meaning inherent in that statement]

[ not really. and he's pretty much surrounded by those types. his life …

oh, and ask shinra why all SOLDIERs are equipped with swords but the actual freaking army get guns. he hasn't really thought about it, but should she ever raise question verbally, it might just get him thinking of how little sense it makes. as it stands, he doesn't think anything at all of it. go figure. ] Yep! I was on a mission with a friend. It was pretty much over when I wound up here. [ and then he's waving his hands like her worrying about him getting shot at is literally not an issue at all. ] Doing what I do, I get shot at a lot. No big deal. I can dodge pretty well.

[ sigh, zack.

he blinks a bit at the admittance that she'd been shot at, too, and though he doesn't know the situation, it doesn't make it any less dire. ] Whoa, and you're wandering around like this? Don't you think you need to be taking it easy? [ future mother chocobo here. ~~he's just training for when he has to take care of a mako-poisoned cloud.~~

but look at him puffing up at that question. ] Literal SOLDIER. Second Class. [ don't worry, he'll explain the SOLDIER program to you eventually, menzies. he's too proud of being a member of it not to … ]

If you say so... [she considers asking him more about where he's from but decides to wait until she has a slightly better idea about his job description first]

[at his protests, though, she scoffs, giving him a look] That's rich, coming from you. [because which of the two of them just hit their head? and that's apparently as much of an answer he's going to get, but she did actually come to the Plane to take a nap. she just...hasn't worked out how to get herself to sleep yet. too much on her mind--hence the wandering, in fact]

[and she can't possibly miss how proud he looks in reaction to that question, though the terminology seems a bit odd to her. wouldn't calling a certain group of soldiers SOLDIER cause a lot of confusion? but rather than criticising, she just asks:] That's...a military group, then, I take it?

[ dude you are more then welcome to ask him all sorts of things about where he's from – he and jacqli are currently trading information about gaia and ar ciel respectively, and if it means he can learn more about others and where they're from? talk about a chance he's not going to pass up!

he makes a face at her second comment, though, tilting his head to the side. ] Hey, I just hit my head. That happens a lot more than I'm willing to admit. [ so does getting shot at, but hey! again. military. it's part of the job description. ] Plus, it's not like getting shot at. Last time I checked, there was a huge difference. [ zack. stop. she'll run you into the ground.

but! then she's asking about SOLDIER, and really, he doesn't know what all to say about it other than – ] Not just a military group. Shinra's got its army, with regular soldiers and stuff, and then there's us – we're special. Elite. [ preen~ ] We get treated with mako, and it makes us stronger. Better than your average infantryman.

[oh, she's bound to get to that at some point, don't worry. Menzies does enjoy asking questions, after all]

[she snorts because wow, that's a pretty telling response. not that she hasn't suffered head injuries and concussions on several occasions herself, but...well, let's just say she wouldn't put it like that] Mmm. No, getting shot at and then a head injury is obviously different. [the irony here being that she almost died of gunshot wounds, so he has more of a point than she's willing to admit. but she's at least had recovery time?] Look, I'm fine. All right? [her tone is forceful, inviting no arguments]

The elite, huh? [that might have sounded like skepticism] So what's "mako" when it's at 'ome?

[ wouldn't be a good detective if you didn't like asking questions~

hey, he's tall. he might just hit his head on things a lot, you never know. he hadn't made SOLDIER by being a klutz, that's for sure, but as angeal would say he's still a bit wet behind the ears and has a lot to learn before he gets to be that full-fledged hero he wants to be.

he also knows the end of an argument when he hears one, and while he's been pretty much programmed to fight back when he thinks he might have a chance of winning, he doesn't go that route this time. making a decent first impression on people is pretty important to him, and he doesn't want menzies to end up disliking him for whatever reason. ] Fine, fine. [ waving his hands like they're the proverbial white flag. ] I'll leave it alone.

Mako is where we get all of our magic from. Shinra has reactors all over the world to extract it, use it for energy and make it into stuff like materia. It's … [ good grief how do you explain this to somebody that doesn't know what the lifestream is? ] It's the Planet's energy source, basically.

[she's relieved when he finally backs down. since she's completely unwilling to describe to this new kid about what's been going on in her world lately, she was hoping he would catch her drift eventually. now, she gives him a nod and moves on gladly]

[but she's curious at that description. what he's saying reminds her of fossil fuels--at least, in terms of it being an energy source from the planet. admittedly, she doubts there's anything like magic based on petrol in her universe] All right, an energy source. But what sort of magic?

[she hopes he'll know what she means by that question because the entire concept of magic is still very unfamiliar to her, so talking about it is always a bit tricky. that's also what makes it interesting, though. and from what he's said so far, she's starting to wonder if she should have called him the Hulk instead of Batman]

[ it's none of his business what's been going on with her in her own world – he's only just met her, and doesn't have any reason to pry into matters that aren't any of his concern. ( even if under any normal circumstances it wouldn't have stopped him asking questions just to more fully understand the situation. he can tell she doesn't want to talk about it, and hey, if she ever changes her mind and comes around, he'll listen.

he really doesn't need to start off meeting new people on the wrong foot. even if he is occasionally possessed of two wrong feet.

hurrhurr. )

if zack fair should be likened to any superhero, it needs to be robin. boy wonder over here. except no one likes robin and he's not exactly the best detective on the planet SO maybe not.

zack smash? anyway. ] Any kind of magic. Elemental, restorative … you can even equip some materia that helps to make spells more effective. Or summons …

[ not that he has any yet. but one of these days! ]

[she would like to point out that he already did a pretty good job of failing at meeting her on the right foot. but he's improving, so points for that]

[she tilts her head thoughtfully at his description, trying to work out what to make of his words] So materia...gives people magic, basically? Do you have magic without it because of this mako stuff?

[because she can see how that could make soldiers elite--even if they are showy, nosy, and wet behind the ears]

[ no one's perfect, okay. but yay points for improvement!

he shakes his head at her question. ] Nobody that I've seen has magic without it. It's like … [ wow he's thinking really hard, here. ] Materia allows us to use it, and it channels our focus into whatever spell we're trying to use. [ and it helps having the right materia equipped.

he doesn't want to talk about what that might imply.

… he hasn't even begun to be showy yet. nosy, maybe. wet behind the ears, definitely – but he's been in training since he was thirteen, and even though he's still kind of new to what being in SOLDIER means, he's trying his hardest to prove himself with every chance he's given. ]

Right... [she's still not sure she understands, but she figures she's probably about as close as she's going to get for the moment. and if the most confusing part is how this "mako" makes a kid like this into an elite soldier, well, that's probably a win. because she has a feeling she'd be confused about that no matter what]

[still, since Zack seems to be perfectly happy answering her questions without throwing in any of his own, she decides to see if she can learn a bit more at least] So can anybody use materia in your world? It's not like...some ability only certain people 'ave got?

[ we're really sorry that he isn't as good at explaining things as he could be. :\ this is why he could never be the mentor type – well, at the very least, he'd be the very unlikely mentor type. and probably use all sorts of unconventional teaching methods. but that's either here nor there.

mako infusions are just … ~~unfortunately it's not like there's a wiki page on the entire process for someone to look up and write out but THANKFULLY ZACK WOULDN'T KNOW THE WHOLE OF THE PROCESS, ANYWAY.~~ they are what they are. he isn't sure how they work, how the whole thing ends up molding soldiers into something more than they could be otherwise, but. hey. 8D

( what is this tag even i'm so sorry it's almost midnight and i just woke up from the worst nap in existence. i shouldn't be tagging. )

he gets the feeling that she still doesn't understand, but finding himself at a loss for how to properly explain something that even he doesn't know all of the ins and outs of, he just. decides to drop it. maybe he can try to pick it up again later. maybe he'll even try to find things out for her so she won't be so confused! that would be nice, right? ]

Oh, yeah, definitely. Everybody has it. [ and sometimes they've stingy about it, too. ]

[Menzies should probably be sorry for her endless curiosity but isn't. in any case, mako is simply a foreign concept in the first place, and she'd probably be questioning his elite status anyway, so she's happy to let that go]

[...especially since he's given her an idea. she gives a thoughtful hum] If it's item-based, I wonder if that only works for people from your world or if anybody could use it.

[realising that she has completely derailed letting him know what the Plane is like, however, she at least has the decency to ask:] Anyway, was there anything else you wanted to know about this place?

[ don't ever be sorry about endless curiosity. it isn't all that often that he gets to explain things to this extent – and while he might not be the best at it, he's really kind of enjoying it. someone actually wants to listen to him. they're not trying to get him to shut up, shoo him away … this is a completely new concept. one that he could really get used to, given the right circumstances.

… but now she's raising an interesting question. hm. only one way to find out … ] You could always try using some of my materia sometime, if you wanted. Start out with something small, like Cure … see what happens. That should be pretty harmless.

[ and he has no idea if it would even actually work, but he's willing to give it a shot! because it sounds interesting, and he really can't resist poking where he probably shouldn't poke in the first place.

but! ] Oh! Uh … [ scratching his head a bit, now. ] I dunno.

[ good job, zack. ]

[she raises an eyebrow, curious] Yeah? I might take you up on that sometime. [preferably when she's more awake, though. she has a feeling magic isn't the sort of thing you toy with on very little sleep. still, she might--dare we say it?--be a little excited about this prospect]

[but she snorts at his response to her question] If you say so. Maybe you should take a look around, then.

[ he nods! ] Sure. It could be fun – and a learning experience for both of us. [ angeal would be proud of him if he could see this. surely he would be.

unless he would just end up shaking his head, wondering what's gotten into him thinking about giving lessons on using materia … it could really go either way ]

I think I'm gonna … it's always better to figure stuff out for yourself, right? [ besides, he really doesn't want to be a bother. ]

[as she doesn't have another option for a materia instructor, she just nods] All right, we'll do that.

Usually. Good luck. [she gives him a wave as she turns to head off on her way, ready to find somewhere to get some sleep] Ta-ra.

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classed - 2014-09-18 00:17 (UTC) - Expand

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✭ mission oo1;;

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there's a 'then' instead of 'than' in that last tag and it's making me twitch I'M SORRY.

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