[if april showers bring may flowers, then july showers bring. . .?]

[sevenhorrorsmods]

Who: everyone!
When: July 31st throughout the day
Where: outside, but also wherever you want to be!
What: a general all-purpose mingle with flavor
Warnings: nada

[Today, for the first time since your arrival, dark and angry clouds gather in the sky above to block out the sun. It is sweltering outside, so when those clouds eventually open up in the early afternoon, showering everyone with cool rain, rolling thunder, and a few flashes of lightning. . . it probably feels good!]

[It seems to be normal rain, for the most part. Look at it from the wrong angle and some if it may seem to be tinted red, like blood. And sometimes, when a drop spatters against the ground, a spider lily suddenly blossoms in its place. The flower dies almost immediately upon springing to life, its petals dissolving into dust that is quickly washed away by the rest of the water]

[dwbi]

[. . . things have been awfully quiet since your arrival. It feels almost a bit like the calm before the storm, doesn't it? Are you still waiting for that other shoe to drop. . .?]

[What else are you up to today!]

Comments

[presgarddihellis]

The constellations match those of 21st century Earth, northern hemisphere.

... it doesn't confirm that this is an illusion or not, but...

[pauses.]

Well. Miss Star was with me at the time, so I think I handled it better than I might have otherwise.

[ordimame]

[. . . ah]

[quiet for a moment, his features softening in understanding, even as his gaze flickers towards the rain-covered window]

. . . how does it feel? To be back after so long.

[to return to an Earth so far removed from the one he left behind]

[presgarddihellis]

... like I'm not really here to appreciate it.

Like if I think about it too much, I'll go mad from the fact that I'm only mere hours away from home.

Assuming, of course. Any of it is real.

[ordimame]

[mmm. . .]

Would it not being real change any of that?

[genuine question!!]

[presgarddihellis]

The first sentiment would still apply.

[says it mildly but y'know.]

[ordimame]

[. . . yeah. they aren't here to appreciate anything, are they?]

[. . .]

Do you have any hobbies?

[holy non-sequitur, batman]

[presgarddihellis]

[wow, he just.

laughs.]

I think you're taking my words not the way I was meaning.

[it's cute that Puck is trying so hard for normalcy but there is no normal answer here. "Taming unruly Beyonder artifacts by threatening them with the True Creators' ravings"? does that count as a "hobby" these days?]

... actually, this is appropriate weather for explaining something like the Marionettist's capabilities.

[ordimame]

[. . . mildly exasperated huff!!]

Hey, far be it from me to try and encourage you to do something mundane to get your mind off of things. Even the most boring of tasks can be grounding.

[or so they are for him!!]

. . . and I'm not going to ask you to talk about that, if you don't want to.

cw: WE LOVE BEING TURNED INTO PUPPET HORROR

[presgarddihellis]

[we're going to ignore this "want" business and continue, closing the book he'd almost forgotten he had.]

The Marionettist's capabilities are simple.

They have the capability of turning any living thing into a marionette. That is, a puppet that they can control. Every living thing has these... "strings", you could say. Parts of their souls that tie in with others and their surroundings. A Marionettist can take these strings and bring them under their control.

At first, the would-be puppet wouldn't notice. But then, everything slows down. Their thoughts, their movements. After a few minutes--the time varies with experience and digestion of that Sequence's potion--they can't move at all. Can't think.

And then they die.

Their soul remains in the body, under the Marionettist's control, but there is nothing of consciousness there anymore save for lingering memories the Marionettist can access.

The Marionettist can also have their own consciousness switch places between their real body and the puppet's. Though, at higher levels, there's no need for "switching". The Marionettist is both conscious of his real body and his puppet body.

1/2 CLOSES MY EYES

[ordimame]

[. . . . . . . . . . . . . CHRIST]

[Puck is quiet for a very, very long moment, taking in this information and comparing it to everything Smith has said thus far. his features are completely unreadable, shuttered by a well-practiced mask that doesn't let a flicker of emotion through]

[. . .]

[ordimame]

[. . . and then he speaks, tone perfectly even]

. . . why?

[what is the purpose of doing something so terrible to another being?]

[presgarddihellis]

[smiles. he's been smiling this whole while. it's been the same sort of smile he's been smiling in most of their conversations, even.]

Seer. Clown. Magician. Faceless. Marionettist.

What do these have in common?

[ordimame]

[it's this conversation that has him seeing that smile in a brand new light]

. . . trickery. Right? Sleight-of-hand. Subterfuge.

Some kind of element of falsity.

[presgarddihellis]

Performance, also.

An act is no good if there isn't anyone to observe the show. Or to acknowledge the one performing.

[ordimame]

[. . .]

Are your marionettes used to confound your audience, then?

[presgarddihellis]

They can be.

Sometimes they're convenient when the Marionettist can't go too far in their real body. At the lower Sequences, there's a limit to the distance. But the higher one gets, the less that factors into it.

[ordimame]

[. . . . . .]

[quietly, but with feeling]

. . . that's pretty fucked up, Smith.

[but at the very least. . . he also knows that Smith understands that]

Why are you telling me this now. . .?

[presgarddihellis]

Because.

You seem to think I'm being metaphorical when I say "it feels like I'm not really here to appreciate it".

I'm not.

And... I need someone. To understand that.

I don't see any strings. I can't hear the prayers. I've been limited, and I can't... tell. Which it is. And it's dangerous... when a Marionettist can't keep track of if he's the master or the puppet.

The act is that I am myself, of course, but...

[ahaha Beyonder dangers all the time 24/7 welcome to the reality of What Is Going On Inside His Head even just a LITTLE BIT.]

[ordimame]

[that]

[actually kind of takes him off guard, his shuttered features cracking just a little bit with a slight raise of his brows and parting of his lips]

You need someone to understand, and you chose. . . me?

[presgarddihellis]

A Spectator would be most ideal.

... but that type of person is difficult to come across.

Besides... you understand this Pathway intrinsically.

1/2

[ordimame]

[. . . . . . . . again]

[he feels his hackles raise, the hairs at the back of his neck standing on end, gaze narrowing. again, Smith pokes and prods, as though trying to dip his fingers underneath Edamura's public-facing persona. to peel it aside and reveal that which lies underneath. it's gentler than his ribbing back at Katsumori, and yet. . .]

[. . . Edamura is silent for a few long, inscrutable moments]

[ordimame]

[and Puck's reply is deceptively casual]

You don't know me well enough to say that.

[which is the only response he gives before moving on--]

What makes a "Spectator?" And. . . why is it so important for someone to understand?

[presgarddihellis]

... the Spectator is another Pathway. It's one which specializes in observation... not interference. Or not interference perceived by others. They're subtle.

Psychiatrist is one of the Sequences of the Spectator Pathway.

[ordimame]

[. . . so his psychiatrist is a lot more than just a listening ear. a grounding force, maybe? he can only imagine how adrift Smith feels without her at his side. a little bit like--]

[. . .]

[no. he is not going there. to compare their experiences would be conceding to Smith's point. and doing that would mean revealing more about himself than he wants. more than he is comfortable with, at this point in time]

[quiet again, gaze dipping down, staring at a puddle of water forming in front of the lobby's entryway]

. . . I want to help, you know. [that sentiment, at least, is very genuine] So I don't mind. . . "spectating," if that's what you need.

But I still don't get why it's necessary. Why it's so important for you to have someone-- see you?

[why the puppeteer needs to be certain he is still in control, and not guided by someone else's strings]

[presgarddihellis]

[he was almost there...]

You asked "Why?" earlier, right?

The answer is "because the more inhumane the acts, the less of a grasp of humanity one has". When one is going down the path of the divine, there are certain balances to strike. Humanity. Divinity. The scope of the divine is too large for humans, for the most part.

... but... there are ways. To get around it. If one's clever enough, if one's determined enough, holding onto humanity, that difficult wire act...

I've only made marionettes of insects, animals, monsters, murderous pirates and other unsavory types.

[pauses, looks down at the book in his lap.]

An old colleague. She would have lost control. Lost her humanity before she died. So I...