Twisting Paths of the Dungeon, Somewhere, Thursday

[makemyownway.livejournal.com]

The pathways of the dungeon had changed overnight. Anyone who had stayed in a room beyond their welcome had found themselves booted out back onto the hallways that belonged to their camp and feeling pressed down by the sudden increase in gravity. The doors of yesterday had closed. Other doors had now opened.

And other routes.

[ pathways | gremlins | space battles | room of the past | flooded room | free space | strange vault | ooc NOTE: room doors not belonging to your camp will lock when you enter. so please designate whether you're from camp 1 or the joint camp 2/ camp 3 ]

Comments

Re: An Aged Door

[lockestheway]

"Because I don't have those moments the way you do," Peter said. He had a lifetime of insults and snide comments from his mother and father, sure. A lifetime where his brother and sister ignored him. But nothing that had made him cry that hard. He was used to it. He found his own ways to get by.

"Peter, we're children, don't you understand that? We're going to school, we're growing up-"

"If I believe that, if I accept that, then I've got to sit back and watch while all the opportunities vanish, and then when I'm old enough it's too late. Val, listen to me. I know how you feel about me, you always have. I was a vicious, nasty brother. I was cruel to you and crueler to Ender before they took him. But I didn't hate you. I loved you both, I just had to be-had to have control, do you understand that? It's the most important thing to me, it's my greatest gift, I can see where the weak points are, I can see how to get in and use them, I just see those things without even trying."

He took a deep breath. "I could become a businessman and run some big corporation, I'd scramble and maneuver until I was at the top of everything and what would I have? Nothing. I'm going to rule, Val, I'm going to have control of something. But I want it to be something worth ruling. I want to accomplish something worthwhile. A Pax Americana through the whole world. So that when somebody else comes, after we beat the buggers, when somebody else comes here to defeat us, they'll find we've already spread over a thousand worlds, we're at peace with ourselves and impossible to destroy." He dropped his eyes again, but this time to hers, imploring. "Do you understand? I want to save mankind from self-destruction."

Re: An Aged Door

[whenshewasnice]

"I don't understand what it's like to be you," Natalie commented. Folded arms moving more just to holding herself, without her really deciding to do that. Her control had to give out on some things because this was a stressful day. Week. "But I'd be lying if I said I didn't envy some of it."

Just not most of it.

Re: An Aged Door

[lockestheway]

"I don't believe what you did to those squirrels was part of an act. I think you did it because you love to do it."

Feeling too-exposed, thinking about his aggression, about his fear that he might be doing things just to assuage it, Peter wept into his hands. His cheeks were wet when he took his hands away, his eyes rimmed in red. "I know," he said. "It's what I'm most afraid of. That I really am a monster. I don't want to be a killer but I just can't help it."

"Val, if you don't help me, I don't know what I'll become. But if you're there, my partner in everything, you can keep me from becoming-- like that. Like the bad ones."

His eyes were still wet when he looked up and caught hers. Her head gave a little bob, a nod.

"I will. I'll help you."

Peter watched as the memory faded away to make room for a doorway. "You should be able to understand it," he said. "You're one of the sharpest women I've ever met. There really is absolutely no reason why you should let some guy rule your life, you know."

But now that the door was there, he was going to walk towards it.

Re: An Aged Door

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie swallowed her objections. This was really no time to get into... well, anything, more than they already had.

So she just followed him towards the door, and asked, "Do you remember the way back to your camp?"

Re: An Aged Door

[lockestheway]

"I think so," Peter agreed. He glanced at her face. "You know the way back to yours?"

Re: An Aged Door

[whenshewasnice]

"Probably." Well, sometimes her memory actually worked in her favour, unlike in the last however long it had been. "The seeming foolishness of splitting up not withstanding."

Re: An Aged Door

[lockestheway]

"If you need me to walk you back to your camp, I will," Peter said.

Ahahah. It'd be more like the other way around; Peter was perpetually the weakest person in a room full of strong women.

Re: An Aged Door

[whenshewasnice]

Yeah, Natalie was not so tired and shut down as not to give him a mild look for that. "Peter," she said, "I took on an exceptionally intelligent vampire the other day, and lived."

It didn't feel like a good time to mention who it had been.

"I don't think I need to be walked home. But yes, I'd like you to come with me."

Re: An Aged Door

[lockestheway]

"Fine, fine," Peter said, rolling his eyes. "Whatever you want to call it, sure."

He wasn't going to argue with it. He was very well aware he was likely to be the physically weakest person in a room for a very long time.

Re: An Aged Door

[whenshewasnice]

"Making sure you don't die."

That was what she called it. That covered nicely all the other wordings for it she could have come up with, most more personal than that.

"Agreed."

She finally reached for the door, not looking forward to being back out in stupidly heavy gravity. But it was definitely preferable to staying in here.