TEST DRIVE MEME ( 001 )

[lifeaftr_mods]

Test Drive Meme #1

Hello, and welcome to our very first test drive! We’re pleased that you’re expressing an interest in the game. Here, you can test the waters, gauge how your character may fare in the world of LifeAftr, and even gain some in-game incentives, if you so choose.

Remember that Reserves will open on July 17th and that Applications will open on July 24th, in preparation for the game’s official opening on August 3rd!

But first, two important notes!

1. The island of Mu exists apart from the real world and possesses a dream-like quality that characters are innately aware of from the moment they appear on its shores. No need to panic or fret. Dreams are odd things, after all - and anything can happen in them. Why would anyone question where their mind chooses to wander in its sleep?

2. Due to the nature of Mu, threads in our test drive can not only be accepted as thread samples in your application, but can be accepted as game canon as well. In fact, certain choices your character makes in Mu have the potential to bear in-game consequences.

Shipwrecked
The white sand of the beach ridges the island’s edge, even if the clear water soon becomes murky the further out you look across the horizon until the turquoise gleam of the tide disappears in a coil of surrounding fog. Indeed, your best prospects may very well be to strike out among the trees or the crags looming out over the foam-capped waves. There’s lumber to be found and made from the palm-like trees, potentially fruit or edible tubers of some kind if you forage about some. The further you travel, however, the more of your surroundings will reveal themselves in a steady unspooling of curiosities.

One corner of Mu’s current construct drops away into a sheer cliff, initially too dangerous to brave for all but the more daredevilish, but if one starts to scan the sharp rocks below, you might catch sight of what appears to be sodden planks of wood - a wreckage tossed up against the rocks. And a little further...a bobbing, shattered wreck of a lifeboat’s remains, potentially bearing supplies that might yet be salvageable.

Fashion what you can from the wood and stone around you or scavenge from the ruin of the land, if you like. But you can’t simply stand around and wait forever. It’s going to get dark sometime - and if a creature of unknown terror doesn’t catch you, the elements surely will.

Storytime

There’s a sense of camaraderie in this cove, you think. As the sun hangs low over the horizon, the world cast into orange hues, long shadows dispersed by roaring fires that dot across the beach.

That’s right, folks: it’s storytime.

There’s no one to preside over this meeting of the minds in Mu. Call it a vague recreation of things to come, if you like, some vaguely fatidic dreamlike state where you may find yourself drawn to the heat and company that awaits you by the fire. And from there, compelled to default to that old instinct that most of intelligent civilization has revered since they were advanced enough to paint geometric shapes on cave walls.

You tell a story.

Perhaps it’s a tragedy, a tale of woe and of personal loss. Perhaps it’s the sort of thing you’d break out after a few rounds of your alcoholic beverage of choice, clapping hands to your knees as you try to bite back your mirth long enough to spill the punchline. Perhaps it’s an adventure of some sort, some unbelievable rendition of your past exploits. The only common thread to be had, as those gathered around the fire share their tales, is the fundamental rule of a ritualistic sharing of stories such as this: its truth.

But how one chooses to define "truth" is, in its own way, another story entirely...

Dance, Sucker, Dance!
The beat of your heart in your chest is difficult to ignore. It judders with a pulsing, rhythmic quality. If you’re one of those that lacks a heart, the beat is still omnipresent and all-encompassing, until your entire body is unwittingly bobbing in time to a metronomic tune that seems ingrained into your very soul. It’s inescapable. You can’t seem to move unless it’s in time to the rhythm that’s now singing in every atom of your being.

But rest assured, you’re not alone in this musical curse. Everything, from the swaying trees to the waves against the beach, jumps in time to the music. And so do the monsters approaching you, that - wait a minute.

Monsters?

Oh, yes. Did we mention those?


It seems you’ve encountered the wrath of the Boogieman, who curses you to only dance to his infernal beat. If you wish to best him, you’ll have to either evade or destroy the blobs of greenish slime that serve as his minions, all in time to the hard beat of the tune in your head. Clear the radius of his curse or risk an open confrontation, if you dare. Don’t worry if you look foolish; chances are anyone else caught in the Boogieman’s thrall feels just the same.

Mu isn’t pulling any punches to start with. It is a flighty creation, after all, and seems to revel in displacing people into new and uncomfortable situations.

---

LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

Prompto | Final Fantasy XV | OTA

[want_to_belong]

Initial Arrival - Closed to Ignis

Prompto awoke to the bobbing of a raft. The last thing he remembered was getting on his snowmobile to head back to the guys, then everything had gone dark. He blinked up, shading his eyes from the sun with his arm and wincing at the bright sky. Where...? How...? Groggily, he turned his head to the side to see the snowmobile sitting on a raft with him. He still had his winter gear covering up his normal clothes, but the weather had completely changed.

With wobbly movements he rolled over onto his side and forced himself up. It looked like he was bobbing towards some sort of tropical bay or something, but how he got there he didn't know. This didn't look like the freezing lands of Niflheim at all.

For a bit it looked like he would drift uneventfully to the shore, until suddenly with one sway of the raft he heard the snowmobile scrape across it. All of its weight shifted more and more to one side of the raft. Prompto scrambled to his feet, but before he had a chance to grab the snowmobile it slid off the side into the water. He lost his balance and plunged in after. Cold water soaked through his clothes in an instant, bogging him down with its weight. It was just fortunate that he seemed to be able to stand, water chest height to him.

Still, he grabbed onto the handles of the snowmobile and pulled against the undercurrent trying to drag it and himself back out. He couldn't afford to lose it, he had nothing else to use! Digging his heels into the wet muck, he heaved with all of his might. If only he had Gladio's muscles this would be a lot easier. He flopped around in the water, stubbornly dragging the snowmobile along inch by inch as it lugged through the mud and water tried to knock him off of his feet.

By the time he got it to shore he was panting and out of breath. His coat was waterlogged and weighing him down. His boots squished with each step. He felt like he'd carried out half of the ocean with him.

He took a momentary break to look around the empty beach. Nearby the raft had drifted to the shore safely on its own. Waves were rolling in and sliding under his feet. Nothing looked familiar to him. He checked his supplies. His gun, his cell-phone, his camera... Already he was assessing what the damage would be. He pulled out his camera first, shaking it dry quickly and making sure that it still turned on. A sense of relief filled him when it clicked. He wasn't sure what he'd do if he lost that, too.

His handgun... The water wouldn't be good for it and he only had so many bullets. Maybe he could check it once it had dried. Cell-phone. Amazingly, it still seemed to turn on, but he didn't have time to check everything on it. He couldn't seem to summon anything. Wherever Noctis was, he must have been too far? He stripped off the coat and set it down on the snowmobile. Back down to his vest, he packed everything onto the snowmobile before he grabbed the handles and began pushing again.

Shipwrecked - OPEN

The ship looked like the perfect place to gather some resources. They needed firewood, and hopefully some sort of weapons and food. Scavenging around these jagged rocks wasn't going to be safe for him, much less for Ignis, so Prompto had been determined to come alone. He hated to do it, but it seemed necessary.

Lumber was the easy part. He snapped and carried away anything in easy reached, making a pile for himself on a dry part of the shore. It was when he wanted to search for other supplies that it became challenging. He climbed up the rocks, edging along them towards the deck of the boat, and dropped down as soon as he was over it. He stumbled and fell back onto the deck with a thud that knocked his breath out, sitting there for a moment.

"Eat your heart out, Noct," he mumbled to himself sadly, wishing that his friend was there to joke with.

Glancing both directions, he took a deep breath and finally pushed himself up, heading towards the cabin.

Storytime - OPEN

Evening came too fast when he was desperate to survive, and the glow of a fire on the horizon attracted his attention. Prompto was wary of who else might be there, but hopeful, and they needed warmth. He didn't have the endurance to set a fire as easily as Gladio did.

The fire was a welcome sight indeed. He had a hand on Ignis' arm and another on his back as he led the newly injured man towards the roaring fire. He was quick to help him find a spot upwind, and happy to plop down beside him and start pulling off his boots. He was sore from the day and his socks were still wet. He tugged them off and set his boots and socks near the fire to dry, leaning back on his arms. It felt like he could finally take a breath.

After a moment he tried to speak nonchalantly, strained as it was, "Hey, Iggy. We're by a campfire again."

He was happy to relax there for a while, but should any approach them he would be protective of his friend, keeping a watchful eye on them for anything that would be out of place. He might have usually been a trusting person, but times had been tough and he had a very precious friend here to defend. The small wave he would give would be less cheery than normal, but he would hold back and refrain from judgment.

Initial Arrival - Closed to Ignis

[shatteredlenses]

For a moment, the fact that he can hear waves, is soaking wet, and can still smell the sea almost convinces Ignis he's in Altissia. Pain--dull in some places, sharp and stabbing in others--wraps around him as he fights back the urge to shiver. His hand closes against where it's pressed to the ground and that is when he starts to realize he's not where he thought he was. Sand? Why is he laying in sand when he'd last been pinned to a cold, hard street?

Unconsciously, he rolls away from whatever he is laying half on and half off. Such a small movement, but it causes all his aches and pains to roar back to life. Ignis face is wet, but he's half afraid to reach up. Is it water or blood that is causing the dampness? Most of the pain he's feeling is focused behind and across his eyes, that pain stronger and sharper than the fading pain in a once dislocated shoulder and shattered knee.

Ignis knows he should pull himself up and take stock of his location, but he finds even raising one arm beyond him at the moment. He winces at his own weakness, fingers tightening in the sand once more as the memory of Chancellor Izunia's mocking face slinks through his mind. Wasn't blinding him enough? What in the name of the Six is going on? Where is Noctis? Was the covenant successfully forced? What of the Oracle?

There are a million questions he needs answers to, but trying to approach them all at once isn't possible. With a deep breath, Ignis starts to sort them into order of importance. It's calming, feeding his need to reclaim control over something. How he's going to start finding answers with his vision gone is just one more question on the pile.

Once he's calmer, Ignis reaches toward the armory hoping to pull the familiar weight of his daggers to hand. His heart freezes when there is no response. Perhaps, he's just too tired. Focusing harder, he tries to pull something smaller--a simple potion bottle. There is still no answer and he swears his heart stops in his chest as he finally manages to raise his right arm, pressing the wet leather of his gloved hand to an equally wet face.

As soon as he'd been taken down, he'd written off Altissia as an unmitigated disaster. Now?

A soft, bitter, and broken laugh slips from his mouth.

"Bloody hell..."

[want_to_belong]

Prompto wasn't making a ton of noise. As far as he knew there was no one to talk to. So it was only when he'd pushed the snowmobile up the beach and glanced to the side that he even noticed another body.

Even from a distance, something familiar about it struck him immediately. He froze in place, sure he must be hallucinating. There was no way the guys could be where he was. They were on the train, a million miles ahead of him.

Or where they? He didn't even know where this was to begin with. He started running before he'd fully convinced himself that what he was seeing was real. If it was, after all, then Ignis needed help and he couldn't sit there and stare.

"Iggy!" he called out while on his way. By the Six, was Iggy hurt? He was lying on the beach. It wasn't like him to be like that. He kicked up some sand as he slowed to a stop, instantly coming down to his knees by Ignis' body and reaching for his shoulders. "Iggy, are you okay? How did you get here?"

Ignis looked hurt. He should have been healed since their time in Altissia, which meant something else must have happened. First things first, he needed to help him sit up and make sure he wasn't too seriously injured. "Come on, I got you buddy."

[shatteredlenses]

When Ignis hears Prompto's voice, he flinches. The familiar voice should be calming, but it isn't. Instead, he can't help but think he's hallucinating. The last time he saw the blonde he was commandeering an Imperial flyer to help Noctis. If he is here, what does that mean for the Prince?

Ignis grits his teeth, turning his head when sand suddenly flies up and over him. Okay, it's hard to deny the over-enthusiastic nature as anything or anyone but Prompto. He raises his head, hissing when the blonde starts to move him into a sitting position. The healing wounds are one thing, but the sudden motion causes the world to spin around him. Ignis isn't sure how the world can spin when he can't even see it, but it does and it rapidly is causing nausea to rise in his stomach.

"Slowly. Slow..." His voice is shaky and raspy, hurting his own ears. Ignis wouldn't even be trying to talk at the moment if it wasn't for the fact he also doesn't want to throw up all over his friend.

Closer to a sitting position now, Ignis finds himself listing toward Prompto for support. He can hear Ardyn laughing, mocking his weakness and Ignis can't help but mock himself for the very same thing.

There's nothing he hates more than being helpless and that is exactly how he feels right now.

Taking a closer look at the advisor's face, Prompto will notice the wounds around his eyes look much fresher and more painful than he will remember them being. The top buttons of his shirt are open--one missing entirely--making it clear he was struggling with someone or something not long before he was brought here. There is blood staining his clothes, though it's hard to see it, dark red bleeding into wet dark blue.

When Ignis finally has the nausea under control, he speaks again one hand blindly reaching for the blonde. Once it finds his friend's arm, he wraps his fingers around it, clinging tighter than he will ever admit to, "Are you all right, Prompto?"

[want_to_belong]

It was just like him to try and move too fast. He slowed on command, forcing his aching muscles to support Ignis at an angle.

Something happened. Ignis looked hurt all over again. All of those wounds should have been well healed over by now. He could only imagine what happened to the guys on the train. His eyes scoured the ocean for signs of the other two to no avail. Please tell him they weren't in the water.

"I'm fine. I was just making my way back to you guys. But what happened to you? Where are Noct and Gladio?"

They should have been together. Did the train fall into the ocean somehow? If anything happened to them...

He needed to hope for the best. Maybe he didn't see them because they weren't in the water. It was hard to imagine them abandoning Ignis, but something could have happened that separated them. He tucked his arm under Ignis' armpit, ready to help him stand up.

"Can you stand? Do you need me to carry you?" Prompto, of course, couldn't really carry Ignis around much. The size difference was too much. He could, however, make use of that raft if he needed to. Or maybe he could sit on the snowmobile. Whatever he had to do.

[shatteredlenses]

"Prompto! Prompto, stop. Please. I need a moment.." Perhaps more than anything, that admission--that pleading tone--tells just how badly off Ignis is. The world has begun to spin again and he knows there is no way he's going to be able to stand. If Prompto tries, they are just going to fall and he can't risk the blonde being hurt too. Not because of him.

Ignis swallows hard, trying to force whatever may be in his stomach to remain there. As he does, he attempts to process Prompto's questions, worry creasing his brow when he turns his head in his friend's direction.

"You were suppose to be with Noctis. You were going to fly him closer to the Tidemother," Ignis doesn't try to explain where Gladio was. He had no idea. They were all split up to evacuate as many as possible. He hadn't seen the Shield since they parted and considering how things went for Ignis, that was probably a good thing.

The hand on Prompto's arm tightens as Ignis leans closer to him, ignoring the pain that shoots through his shoulder and down his arm. Ah, that was the previously dislocated one.

"You must tell me. Did something happen to Noct?"

[want_to_belong]

He stopped, relaxing his muscles and letting Ignis rest back on the sand. Okay, if Ignis needed a moment he could do that. He was tired anyway from lugging the snowmobile around. He plopped down next to Ignis to give his weary bones a rest.

"The Tidemother...? That was weeks ago. Did you hit your head?" Prompto cautiously reached out, lightly gliding his fingers around Ignis' skull to check for bumps. He obviously had other injuries, so it wouldn't be out of the question for him to have taken a smack to the noggin. "You should have still been on the train with Noct and Gladio, remember?"

He figured Ignis was just confused. He should remember everything soon enough. "We were going to stop in Tenebrae, but I... The Empire attacked, and I..."

He didn't want to say it. Noct pushed him. He didn't fully understand the entire situation yet. Noct had chased him down, yelled at him, then knocked him off the train. Something had to be wrong. He desperately hoped that it wasn't how Noct really felt. He knew he'd seen Noct again when he was out in the snow. Saw himself as one of those things. It had to be some sort of illusion. It couldn't be what he thought it was.

Taking a deep breath, he dropped that and continued on. "Did something happen to the train after I fell off? How did you end up back here?"

[shatteredlenses]

"Weeks?" Something far too close to panic cracks Ignis' voice. After all he's lost--his vision, access to his weapons, his magic, and even Noctis and Gladio--he can't...he can't...lose trust in his own mind too. What will he have left then? Was it really possible he'd woke up with amnesia after such a horrible wounding?

Yes, yes it was.

Prompto's gentle fingers searching his head for injury pull him back out of that troubling line of thought, but as soon as the blonde draws away, the thoughts return, and he suddenly feels like the Regalia is sitting on his chest. Ignis leans forward, resting his arms across his knees and hanging his head, hoping it will make breathing easier.

"I don't remember a train," his words are soft and probably hard to hear, but he can't make himself speak any louder. "The last thing I remember is Altissia, and the invasion, and them taking my..."

He can't say it. Another weakness. ...them taking my vision. Why can't he just say it? It's a fact. Just like any other, and yet it sticks in his throat and won't come out. As long as he doesn't say it, it's not real. There is hope. His left eye is gone, but the right. Maybe, maybe at some point...

Trembling hands lace their way into his hair. He needs to stop. If he has amnesia, then he's already been through all this and moved forward. There's no time to do it again. He has to pull himself together, fill in what he's missing, and then focus on getting himself and Prompto back to Noctis and Gladio.

Ignis takes a deep breath and sits back. His body's shaking slightly, but his voice is finally steadier, "Tell me what I'm missing, Prompto. I don't know if my injury in Altissia is responsible for this or if something else happened, but I need to fill in as many blanks as I can. We'll move forward from there."

[want_to_belong]

"Yeah, no problem. I'll tell you everything I can remember..." He didn't mind filling Ignis in, and started describing everything he could recall. How they had found Noct but not Luna, leaving on the train, going into the mines. He did his best to soften his description of everything that happened. He left out Ignis tripping and falling, and when he thought of camping there it still hurt when Noct refused to look at his photos. Such a little thing, but he'd felt so helpless at the time. Instead he glossed over the details of making it through the mine and told Iggy about how Gladio and Noct had been having a spat, but after Ignis set the malboro on fire he sorted them out.

Then they were going to stop in Tenebrae, but the Empire had attacked. He squeezed the wet fabric of his pants as he got to the last thing he remembered on the train.

As he spoke he really sounded like he was holding himself together with some bubblegum and duct tape, "So Noct... I was looking out the window, and he came after me. I wasn't sure what he was trying to do at first, but he was really coming after me. He was trying to kill me." His fingers tried to dig into the taut fabric but failed. He hated telling Ignis this. He knew how much Iggy cared about Noct, and he already had so much to worry about. "I managed to get away from him. I thought... something had to be wrong. Then the Empire attacked and was trying to blow up the train. I found Ardyn on the roof, and just when I had him at gun point I heard Noct yell for me. He warped in and he..." Prompto hung his head. "He pushed me off the train."

The surprise and disbelief in his voice were palpable. He was just barely keeping his voice from breaking. It had happened so recently, and he could still remember looking up at Noct's face as he fell. The absolute shock it had been. Hitting the ground and having the wind knocked out of him were nothing in comparison.

And everything he'd gone through since they left. He wasn't sure if right now was the time to talk about that. He would admit what he was to Iggy just as soon as they had a safe place to settle down. Instead, he skipped over everything. "I was taking the snowmobile to go find all of you again. Oh, and I ran into Aranea. She said she saw you guys in Tenebrae, so you must have made it there." That was as far as he knew about what had happened with them since falling.

"She said you guys were asking about me." And somehow his tone seemed to indicate that was a surprise from him. It was something small that he could cling to, a sign that they wanted him back. At the same time it was almost left open, like Ignis could confirm or deny it. His gaze flicked nervously Ignis' way, his breath shaky.

Shipwrecked

[noctanotheroneout]

Noctis had been been below deck - in through a hole in the haul - when he heard the loud thumb. As if something, someone fell. He had started a small pile of wood and scraps just outside on the beach. His sword manifested in his hand as he crept towards the stairs, lightly on his toes. Was that his name he heard?

Even if this was a dream, it was a hard to not be weary of everything - not after all that had happened. When he finally was able to peer over and out he took notice of the the familiar spiky blond haired boy heading towards the cabin. He felt his gut dropped. Was it really? Was this real?

"Prompto?" he called out, enough for the other boy to hear, as he emerged to stand on the deck.

[want_to_belong]

Prompto completely froze. It couldn't be...? Was that Noct's voice? No, he had to be hallucinating again. How could Noct be here? He'd found Iggy on the beach but hadn't seen anyone else. He'd been terrified, actually, that they were out there somewhere on the water, but what could he do? He searched and didn't find anyone.

He hadn't seen the real Noct since being pushed off of the train. His stomach twisted and he slowly turned around, as if he was afraid he would look back and no one would really be there.

"Noct...?" he answered in an mousey squeak.

Oh God he actually saw him. He wanted to run towards Noct, but the last time he'd seen him, out in the snow, he'd had to flee. It wasn't going to be the same, was it?

"Is it really you?" He could barely speak above a whisper. One foot went back like he was ready to run, but he stayed put in place, waiting to see what Noct did.

[noctanotheroneout]

"Last I checked," Noctis replied, his voice cracked with nerves. "What about you, are you real?" Noctis took note of Prompto's body language. Why did he seem so afraid of him? Even though this place didn't feel like anything Ardyn cooked up, he still couldn't put it past the man. He couldn't put anything past The Crystal either, where he thought he was stuck.

His sword demanifested from his hand. If something was wrong with his friend, Noctis didn't want to seem threatening.

[want_to_belong]

The laugh he gave in response sounded like he was about to have a nervous breakdown, but somehow he managed to hold it together. Was he the real him? He almost didn't know anymore. But he knew he wanted to be with the guys again.

"I think so," he said weakly. He noted the sword disappearing, and Noct seeming... normal.

Finally, with a few huffs, he darted over to Noctis to practically jump on him. Damn did he miss him. Arms wrapped around Noctis in a close embrace and head tucked over his shoulder, it was hard to miss how breathless he sounded as he spoke, "Do you know where Gladio is? I didn't see him anywhere."

Hopefully he and Noct had washed up in the same spot.

[noctanotheroneout]

Noctis accepted Prompto's embrace and gladly returned it. It felt like he had been gone forever. For all he knew he had been. He pulled away at arm's length to answer his friend's question. "No. I honestly didn't expect anyone to be here. I thought this was something manifested by The Crystal."

Sure, everything felt like a dream, except for Prompto's hug. That felt real enough to him. "I'm starting to think this doesn't have anything to do with it at all, though."

[want_to_belong]

That hug felt so good. He really needed one after all he'd been through. Even if he was a super cool guy who totally didn't need hugs.

All he could do was quirk an eyebrow at Noctis. "The crystal?"

They were still on their way to get the crystal. Well, the other three were, and Prompto was trying to catch up. "Did something happen to it while I was gone? What happened on the train?"

Must have been something big. First Iggy with amnesia, now Noctis and something about the crystal.

[noctanotheroneout]

The pupil in Noctis's eyes dilated. "What? You don't remember?"

Maybe this was really a trick. "Wait. You asked if Gladios was with me. Does that mean Ignis is here?" What exactly was going on here?

[want_to_belong]

"Remember what?"

Last thing he knew from being with the guys was falling off the train. He couldn't think of anything that involved the crystal.

Speaking of which.

"Yeah, Iggy washed up near me. But I think he hit his head or something. He doesn't remember the train or the mines or anything, and he's all beat up. I told him everything I could think of."

Glossing over a few of the unpleasant things and concentrating more on them making up and moving on. "It was too dangerous for him to try and climb around on all this stuff, so I left him back further on the island with all our stuff." He pursed his lips and stepped back, arms going limp. He didn't like leaving Ignis alone. "'Was hoping I could find some supplies here for us."

He bounced nervously on his feet.

Storytime

[achievementhunter]

An injured man is bound to gain a few looks.

The biggest surprise was the fact that he was one of few. Suddenly appearing on an island, indications of a shipwreck- it speaks of some sort of misfortune, some desperate moment lost to near everyone here that should have led to more than a few wet shirts and sand covered faces.

It's also a dream. Realism need not apply. Chara's passed by their fire three times, now.

On the fourth, they finally decide to act.

"Greetings." To the blond, since he appears to be the one in charge, at the moment. Is the appearance of a child disarming enough, or will they be shooed away regardless?

[want_to_belong]

[What was with all the kids here? It was bad enough being dragged here as an adult - if you could call Prompto that, plenty probably wouldn't - much less as a kid. In any other situation he would probably be more pro-active about doing something about them, but as it was he was already buried in problems and he was concentrating on protecting Iggy. Even if Iggy was reluctant to accept all the help.

That didn't mean Prompto was going to be particularly rude to any kids or anything, though. He was just lost in his own thoughts. They'd mostly been staying quiet by the fire.

Why did this kid keep walking by? Were they lost or something? And what kind of way to say 'hi' was that. He glanced up from the fire, attempting to be friendly but still feeling kind of reserved.]

Hey.

[He fidgeted, like he had restless leg syndrome.]

...You doing all right, kiddo?

[Astrals, if he was supposed to be the adult here they were all doomed. They wouldn't even let him drive anymore at home.]

[OOC: Received permission from Iggy's mun to assume he's being silent. If something seems like it needs his input, I'll poke them.]

[achievementhunter]

[Not so much lost as making a decision. If anything, Chara would be more inclined to say these men look lost- they have the inclination to be so, unlike them.]

Perfectly fine, thank you. Unlike your friend.

[There is a moment of pause- hesitation on their part, really, as Chara looks to the other man, clearly wounded. This is no castle; there is no infirmary. They're certainly no doctor, but without some sort of assistance, he's not going to get better, is he.

A roll of bandages isn't exactly going to help all that much, but it may be some of the only medical supplies around. They hold them out willingly enough.]

I'm afraid I have nothing else to offer. At the least, they're clean.


[OOC: np! However you guys want to do it, I'm easy!]

Iggy next

[want_to_belong]

[This kid kind of reminded him of the one in Lestallum. At the mention of Ignis, Prompto placed a hand on the man's shoulder instinctively. The emotional scars were just as fresh and he knew Ignis' pride had taken a blow.]

We'll be okay. You don't have to worry about that.

[He squeezed his shoulder.

But he leaned towards Ignis to explain what was going on.]

She's got some bandages. Do you want them?

Got tracking on this now. Just let me know if the Igster is needed. :-)

[shatteredlenses]

[Since he can't see, it's only when Prompto calls out to the child that Ignis realizes anything odd is going on. Ignis knows he should be listening to the conversation closer, but at the moment, he can only gather enough energy to half pay attention to it. Pain and exhaustion are closing in again no matter how he tries to shake them off now that he's mostly dried out by the fire.

It's only when Prompto puts his hand on his shoulder that Ignis is able to fully focus on the conversation. He turns toward the child--Prompto called them 'kiddo,' so Ignis assumes that they are a child anyway--and gives them a tired look.]

I thank you for your kindness, but are you certain you wish to give them up? I can manage.

[He says the last sentence a little slower than the first as if he is not sure that he won't be called on the lie by Prompto at least. But, it's not exactly a lie. Ignis could manage; bandages would just be helpful.

Of course, someone would have to make sure he actually uses them for himself instead of squirreling them away for later, but that's a different issue all together.]

Apologies! I'm now tracking this as well!

[achievementhunter]

[Pride has no place when it comes to survival. He looks to them- and it hardly takes a professional to see the pain etched into his expression, the offset tone of his skin.

He will undoubtedly get worse without assistance. They have nothing to lose by providing it.]

I am certain, though I would appreciate not being referred to as 'she'.

[A mild enough correction; he likely has other concerns.]

You should utilize these as best you can, sir.

I'm jealous of your tracking abilities

[want_to_belong]

[He floundered. Of course he would make some sort of mistake. It was hard to tell with the haircut and sweater.]

Ah, sorry, little dude. Didn't mean any offense by it.

[He pushed to his feet, adding a small amount of pressure to Ignis' shoulder, and closed the gap between them to accept the bandages. He stood bent down to lower himself closer to Frisk's level as he held out a hand.]

We could always give them back if we don't need them. Where'd you find them?

[Hopefully Ignis wouldn't be too upset. He wasn't usually one to go against him, or even make the decisions at all, but Ignis was putting himself last again. If they never used stuff when they needed them, then what point would there be to keeping it around just to look at it?]

No worries! \o/

[shatteredlenses]

[Of course, he's putting himself last. There's not much else Ignis can do right now to help. Still, it seems the choice is taken from him, and it's probably for the best. Unwilling to argue on this point at least, he nods his head in the child's direction.]

We are in your debt.

[Concern crosses his face, the expression given away not by his damaged eyes, but by the wrinkling of his brow.]

Are you alone out here?