realityshifted | Chloe Saunders 001

Th-this… c-can’t be happening… [Chloe stumbles slightly, eyes wide as she stares up at the stars above her head—the surrounding area of the plane that looks as though it should be something out of a sci-fi movie. First the nightmare—which she was used to, though not to this caliber—then the shop keeper, that Sault woman, finding herself here. Her throat constricted.]

D-Derek?! [If he was anywhere nearby, he’d hear her, right?] Simon? Tori? A-Aunt Lauren?

Oh, no. No, no, no. [Panic seized in her chest. Her stomach twisted into knots. She would not panic. This had to be the St. Cloud Cabal’s doing: Sorcerer magic. She wouldn’t let them get to her.]

Okay, you found me. [She didn’t stutter. Good.] .] I know who you are, so you don’t need to pull this. The bad guys always go for the seemingly helpless girl, right? Where are the others? Where is my Aunt Lauren? Wh-where are Simon and Derek and Tori?

[Then she remembered. Derek. Werewolf. Expendable. She might be expendable.] I-I promise to c-cooperate so long as you don’t harm any of the others! [Did that sound too desperate? She didn’t care. If this was as bad as she assumed it was, she wasn’t taking any chances on the safety of her friends and family.

[She took a step forward. Then another. ‘Welcome to The Machine?’ What was this, more experimentation? She shuddered, lungs seizing in her chest.]

You can’t do this… [The words were whispered, horror in her tone. Then a fist clenched, and she glared at the general landscape. They wouldn’t win. They could never win. Alright, she was captured. Now it looked like she needed to find the others—and get answers. With a stride full of purpose, she stepped forward, anger lashing her tone as she warned whoever was behind this.]

You picked the wrong heroine to mess with, Sorcerer. [Damned if the others weren’t looking for her right now.]

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[Startled at the voice, Chloe jumps quite visibly before focusing her attention on the young man before her. Noting his tone and mannerisms, Chloe finds her skyrocketing nerves slow slightly, though her heart still thundered in her chest.]

Not a sorcerer?

[Satoshi, used to terrifying rabbit-like redheads, doesn't really comment on the jumping.] It seems mostly science based.

[...That wasn't any better.]

Do doctors run this place? Nurses? Do they shove incorrect analyses down innocent people's throats? [So there was a bit of tight anger lacing her tone, but after what she had been through, few should blame her.]

No. [There is just the slightest hint of a frown behind the glasses, but nothing more.] One of them is a woman in a cloak. There were clockwork twins, but now they're gone. Now the person in the shop is [very weird] apparently human.

[Angered thoughts stuttered to a halt, and Chloe unconsciously began to relax.] Oh.

... [That was quite a bit of information to take in. She frowned, tilting her head somewhat as she puzzled through this.] Clockwork twins? What do you mean by that? And what was the person in the shop before?

[For a moment, Satoshi doesn't say anything. It really isn't in him to answer a lot of questions, so he goes for another option.] There's a paper that explains a lot of it. Do you want it?

[Chloe rubs one of her temples, sure she is about to get a headache with all her unanswered questions. Still, she feels bad for asking someone with such a quiet demeanor, who talks less than Derek does.]

Yes, thank you. If it'll help. Wh-what's your name?

[a pause] Hiwatari. [And then, in all of his laconic glory, he puts his hands into her pocket and walks towards the information kiosk, which isn't too far away. He picks out the more informative brochure for her and hands it out to her.] Here.

Edited 2011-07-24 20:09 (UTC)

[Was that Japanese?] I'm Chloe.

[She quietly follows him to the kiosk, numbly accepting the brochure.] Thanks. [She begins to flip through it, eyes going wide at the more information she took in.] Do you believe in all of this?

[He watches her as she reads (a bad habit) but answers calmly enough.] I've known some of it, first-hand.

Edited 2011-07-27 02:06 (UTC)

[She stops. Stares.]

F-first hand? [Her eyes suddenly go back to the brochure, then lift hesitantly to Hiwatari's face.] Wh-which parts?

The experiments. [After a moment] Moving between worlds and mergers, too.

...

What have you seen?

It isn't any more than anyone else has. [He's terrible with people, with talking to them generally and with giving them information. The boy's hands are in his pocket, and his voice is level emotionlessness, a soft and practiced monotone.]

[Chloe pulled a face. Seeking any answer from this guy was almost worse than asking something of Derek.]

What I mean is...what should I expect? Do you have any advice?

Find someone here you trust. And stick to them. Things will happen that you can't control. Allies will help you pick up the pieces.

[It's not quite 'friends,' but he has come a long way since he has been here. He has been changed.]

[Chloe nods at those words, already thinking of what would need to be done here. It all seemed too familiar. Eerily familiar. At least she'd had experience in this regard.]

All right. Looks like I have my work cut out for me.

[Glances at him, considering.]

Do you feel comfortable here? Do you have allies? People you can trust?

I'm fine. [A non-answer. He is not the most open of kids.] Be careful if you end up in another world. You'll usually turn up near someone from the Plane.

[Why did he remind her so much of when she first met Derek?] If you say so.

Wait. I can't just end up in another world at random, can I? Should I be wary or thankful that I end up near someone from the Plane?

That's your choice. The Machine seems to take people between worlds on its own sometimes. Why it does it or what the pattern is is its own secret.

Hmm. A faulty Machine, or one that likes to tamper, I wonder...

The scientists don't control it completely, so it's likely that it has a mind of its own.

[If Chloe wasn't worried earlier, she was definitely worried now.]

That's...not good. [There is slight horror in her tone.] Have you ever been injured here? Has this place been a danger to anyone?

People have died. [His voice is very unemotional, very unfeeling. She's already worried, but she needs to know the truth.] Some experiments are designed for danger.

Died...?

[Yep, he's right. She's already worried, and going through a bad bout of deja vu.]

...Great.

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