[center][h2]Lobby Loitering[/h2]
[b][color=989898]Wordage:[/color][/b] [i]1,490 words (+3 points)[/i]
[b][color=989898]Location:[/color][/b] [i](The Under) Pizza Tower[/i]
[sup][b][u][color=989898]Participants[/color][/u][/b][/sup]
[sup]Rubick's [@Scarifar], and Jesse’s [@Zoey Boey][/sup][/center]

Jesse had been feeling a little down since her encounter with the brainwashed kids and Rotty. Nadia, though, broke the silence, and Jesse chuckled. “Sorry. Tired.”

Sectonia went first, kinda. Jesse pretended to consider her request. “Thanks, but, I’ll pass, for now. Until we get that mirror.” She said with a wink.

Bowser went second, and Jesse gave an impress frown. “Wooow. Good stuff, good stuff. Entertaining, informative…” She counted off her fingers. “Some other third thing.”

“Craziest thing I ever been through, I mean I fought a monster made of paintings, but we’ve all fought monsters so it’s not that crazy. The weirdest thing was how I got the Tool Gun. It was just some random balding kooky old guy trying to do a museum heist. I stopped him with help from, what I gather, is a bunch of plucky teenagers with attitudes. The Phantom Thieves? I mean this thing-” She indicated her Tool Gun. “-is nuts. And he’s using it to plunder modern art. Paracriminals, man, I just don’t get ‘em sometimes.” 

—

A short distance away, the silence was stiffened now and again by the crackle and pop of the slowly fading embers of the fire, reminiscent to something the knight wouldn’t have ever been familiar with when in the Age of Fire, glowing embers danced in the air for he was always in the shadows away from the warmth of day.

Artorias grasped at the air, entranced by the embers drifting softly in the dark and yet the outstretched hand wavered, what good would holding onto such a small glimmer of light do? With a sigh, the knight's hand dropped, crestfallen and unsure of what to hold onto as he bathed in the dim glow of the open flame. And so the once great knight sat on hands and knees staring deep into a fire that held no answers to the questions that plagued his troubled mind. 

Stoking the flames with his very hand the wood hissed and popped, the steel of his gauntlet blackened and smoked as he withdrew it from the flames. But he showed no signs of pain or discomfort, just staring at his hand consumed by his own thoughts.

Rubick stood nearby, his back turned towards Artorias. He was focusing on his Puzzle of Perplex, trying for the upteenth time to comprehend its many complexities. After a brief period, though, Rubick merely sighed and put it away. His heart wasn’t in it right now, anyway. Instead, he turned to Artorias, who seemed to be lost in his own inner thoughts. Rubick said nothing though, letting the silence stick around.

“You okay there, buddy?” Jesse asked, walking up beside him. She noticed him off by himself, and felt obligated to check up on him. He definitely seemed like the dramatic sort but there was a real melancholy to staring at a hand you just plunged into some fire. 

"[color=376877]Sleep evades me,[/color]" Artorias almost sounded reluctant, almost weighing his words as he spoke them "[color=376877]And my mind tis clouded by…this terrible light, that in my dreams it burnt everything…my being, my soul and my very existence.[/color]" a sad chuckle escaped him, the knight shook his head "[color=376877]Surely tis cruel fate that the light I believed nurtured instead burns all in it's sight?[/color]" the vision he had of a great celestial being had in more ways than one caused the knight to question his own beliefs, something he hadn't had the pleasure of in his time serving a king who fostered the hatred of the dark.

And so the knight described his vision to Jesse, of him climbing out the earth to the surface where a being of light resided. Though he seemed more and more reluctant to share more.

Jesse furrowed her brow, an uneasy smirk flashed across her face for a moment as she rolled her shoulder. “Um…are you talking about Galeem?” She asked. The knight tilted his head to the lobby roof, for a moment before nodding without word.

Jesse nodded back. “Well, that’s not on you, if that’s what you’re worried about. Probably two different lights, y’know. It’s a big multiverse.” She said. 

The knight looked to Jesse with a confused expression on his face "[color=376877]What is this thing you call a 'multiverse'?[/color]" Artorias asked obviously not very familiar with such things, or such strange terms.

“Oh, uh, right.” Jesse scratched her head. “Well, you know. It’s the word for the place all the different worlds exist in. So you’re from one universe, I’m from another universe. All the universes together make the multiverse. Right now we’re all squished together. By Galeem” She mashed her hands and fingers together to demonstrate. 

“So unless Galeem is from your universe, I don’t see how it’s your fault. The big light got pretty much everyone, from what I can tell.” Jesse said.

Rubick chuckled at Jesse’s words, then sighed himself. He twirled his staff around in his hands, starting absentmindedly at its goopy head. “[color=limegreen]This ‘Galeem’ entity is certainly very powerful. I pride myself on being an accomplished Magus, and the rest of my world has beings of similar or even greater powers than my own. And yet Galeem tore through it with ease. I still remember the day those beams of light eliminated every combatant on the battlefield, myself included.[/color]” 

Evidently so too did Artorias "[color=376877]The light…Tore through the sheer darkness beneath the grave of which I wish I had never disturbed.[/color]" the knight spoke solemnly, reflexively touching his arm as if to check if it were injured "[color=376877]It twas when I had been ready to die, and had this Galeem not interfered…I fear my fate would have been much different.[/color]"

Jesse nodded over at Rubick when he spoke about Galeem’s burst of power. As Artorias spoke, Jesse shrugged good-naturedly, throwing up her hands. “Oh, there we go, see..? Silver lining. Without you here, I might be injured or worse.” She said.

“Sorry, I’m a little new at this whole optimism thing.” She said. “Galeem snagged me after I’d, well, kind of figured everything out.” Jesse explained. “I imagine there’s a rhyme and reason to it. It all kind of makes sense, doesn’t it?” 

“All I know is, things aren’t supposed to be this way. A lot of people are dead, dying, missing, worse. It’s a catastrophe of the biggest proportions. The whole world, if I’m understanding the Flame Clocks correctly, quite literally runs on suffering. So obviously we need to shut this shit down ASAP. I think we’re the ones to do it. We’re still here, aren’t we?” Jesse said. 

The knight didn't know a whit about what these Flame Clocks she mentioned but the chivalrous side of him fully understood that no matter if he was without king or kingdom he would uphold his duty to serve others in need, he stood and looked down.

"[color=376877]Your words hath given me hope.[/color]" the knight for almost a moment had the sliver of a smile on his otherwise stoic face, Jesse had quite a point for had he not been found or brought here he would never have come to her aid or be able to see through eyes unclouded by the veil this 'Galeem' had blinded him with.

Jesse rotated her wrist and bowed a little. “Glad I could be of service.” She said, with a little more flair than usual. 

Unfortunately his wordy musings and quiet brooding had mostly spared him the pleasure of fully listening to the others when they arrived with food and tales to tell but now he was more willing to open up to these strange and diverse folk.

Slowly he brought himself along with Jesse where he stood at the edge of the firelight where he stood resting his hands on the handle of his weapon that upright was as tall as the feral whom was wolfing down a strange kind of food he.

"[color=376877]Forgive my lack of manners, might I beg a slice of this strange bread that thou arte devouring in such an unsightly manner?[/color]" the knight asked coughing into his hand awkwardly as he inserted himself into the conversation.

"[color=376877]And salutations unto all whomst I am unfamiliar with. I am Artorias, the Abysswalker and one of the Four Lordran Knights.[/color]" the knight bent his knees slightly and bowed, one hand upon his sword and the other to his side. All rather unnecessary and dramatic, but so far it was par for the course with the antiquated and ye olde' fashioned Artorias.