aefenglom | 002

Entry tags:

002 | Video

Name: Rich Goranski
Date: Backdated to Oct 14
Format: Video for initial post; various in comments

[Without so much as an introduction, a video plays. It's a little shaky with the recorder's nerves, and occasionally, a long talon partly covers the view of the scene, but it still shows what it needs to quite clearly.

Eventually, even with the struggle still continuing, the camera is turned away from the action, towards Rich. He has to hope what he just got will be enough to get the Coven to actually believe him this time, but right now, he doesn't have time to wait around. Direct action is needed, so he pings the friends he trusted: Michael Mell, Myr, and Niles. The message is still sent to everyone, however, so everyone can view the video and the panic in Rich's eyes when the camera is turned back to him.]

The SQUIP has lost it. It's going full villain again and I need back up. Meet me near the inn, I think it's trying to take Heere there.

[Without an explanation of what entails the SQUIP going full villain or who 'Heere' may be, he continues.]

Everyone else, please stay safe and-[He's cut off by something happening off screen, which makes him swear and stuff his watch into his pocket. There's about a minute more of muffled yelling and darkness before the recording eventually ends.]

~*~

[Hours later, there's another video tacked on to the earlier one, once the mist has finally started to fade away. Rich is back inside, his changes from before calming down enough that he isn't at risk of burning down Justine's whole cottage. He looks tired and worn, a few nasty scrapes on his face, but... there is a sort of relief in his expression, some sort of certainty that, no matter what happens next, he did what was right.]

Hey everyone. Sorry about that... I know I promised to be less of a downer the next time I posted on here, but... shit happens.

I'm just letting everyone know the SQUIP is knocked out. It had been using magic to charm and mind control several people, including someone I was bonded to, Justine, and a friend from home, Jeremy Heere.

Two of the people it was Bonded with, Linden Tailor and Connor, are also unconscious... guess some sort of trauma went through the connection when we stopped it. Since it was actively using mind control magic, I used Mountain Dew Red to deactivate... the part of it that was still a supercomputer, I guess. It should recover fine, and while it's passed out, I'm going to bring the recording to the Coven so they can see I wasn't lying when I told them what it did in my world.

If any of you were being controlled by it, let me know. It got to quite a few people when I saw it, but its powers should have worn off by now. It can be... a little traumatic, though, so my door's open if you wanna talk. Hopefully now that the SQUIP was... de-SQUIPped, somehow, this shouldn't happen again.

[With another tired wave, Rich signs off. He'd love to stay and chat but... he's pretty sure his roommates are still going to need a little more help in the fallout.]

((Everyone is free to respond! Rich will respond when he's done dealing with his roomies, who are likely either a) dealing with mind control withdrawal or b) having panic attacks over the SQUIP. Other players on Team Anti-Bastard Computer Man will also be responding a few hours after the events of the battle, providing information on what went down and vouching that yes, Shit Was Bad.))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Ah.

[Jeremy goes where Rich leaves space for him, sitting on the bed with the pillow over his lap.]

You got a lot of people to come. To help.

[He smiles. It's soft and very intentional in that SQUIP-trained way, but that doesn't make it duplicitous.]

Naturally. I was worried about you, man. And I had been trying to deal with the SQUIP forever here, so I had been trying to come up with plans. I ended up finding a lot of people who wanted to help keep people safe here.

[He smiles back, wide and toothy and sideways. There's perhaps a bit of the SQUIP's influence in that manic energy... but Rich still hopes not.]

Even if I hadn't, I wouldn't have given up until I got you out of there.

[Jeremy can't help but look a little sad. He doesn't say what he's thinking, about how Rich isn't the one to blame at all.]

Yeah? I don't know how you could stand it so long. I would think that the first time you saw it and realized what it was, you'd haul off and punch him in the face.

[He scuffs the floor with the flat of his foot.]

How long have you had these plans going?

[Rich keeps the subject of blame firmly on lockdown. He knows if he mentions it, Jeremy will fall into blaming himself in an attempt to allieve Rich of the guilt. Better to just... pretend it's no one's fault, even if Rich holds onto the idea that he could have done better.]

Of course I wanted to punch it. It drove me insane to wait... I don't know, I felt like I was crazy just for thinking it was awful, when everyone else was saying it wasn't.

[He doesn't know where to even start, with the way the SQUIP chose to torture him in this world. How it always stayed one step ahead, how it pushed its influence just to the brink of suspicion, never over.

The way Connor had talked to him when Rich had come out about the SQUIP's abuse hurt him enough to make him want to switch his plans to just taking himself out of the picture, but Jeremy definitely shouldn't be told that. Rich focuses on the question instead.]

Probably two months ago. It took some time to figure out that it actually was the SQUIP... it gave me a fake name when it showed up. Then when I knew, Connor tried to convince me to just keep my distance.

Obviously, that didn't work.

You're a fucking Cassandra, aren't you? You're around so we can all realize how stupid we are once it's too late.

[He nudges Rich with an elbow.]

Now everyone else is gonna realize that if you say something's a problem, it's probably an actual problem. Why are you always stuck playing the Only Sane Person? Let some of the rest of us be the hero next time.

[He's joking. Jeremy, at least, isn't that hero.]

Hey! You were the one doing creepy prophecy bullshit when that mist was around! If anyone' the Cassandra here, it's probably you.

[He rolls his eyes. Sane definitely isn't a word he thought anyone would ever use to describe him.]

Ugh, I mean, I guess I can hope they'll figure out it's a problem, but who knows. They might find some other reason to doubt me next time.

Creepy prophecies? I was talking?

[...That explains a bit of how people had been reacting to him, he guesses.]

No. They won't. There's two of us now!

You definitely were. Apparently you had a lot to say about me.

[It's a little funny now in hindsight, if only because Jeremy still has no idea what he was up to. Rich can't help but laugh softly, leaning forward to nudge Jeremy's shoulder.]

Yeah. We can tell the rest of this weird-ass place to shove it, hey?

[Something in Jeremy relaxes almost imperceptibly. His grip on the pillow loosens; his smile gets more crooked; his shoulders slump. He doesn't laugh right away, but when he does, it's real.]

Honestly. Have I complained to you yet about how I almost died of blood loss? And I don't think anyone noticed except for Justine making me change clothes?

Jesus, is that what happened? I saw the blood, but I didn't know what it was from, and I mean, I was kinda preoccupied. I'm glad you're okay, man. Yell for me next time that happens, okay?

[He is not about to have a Jeremy death on his watch. Michael would kill him, for one thing, and he'd be pretty misterable without their connection.]

By the way, you don't look bad in those at all. Justine made a good choice.

[He tries to be gentle with the compliment. Gentle and cautious. He knows that's a touchy subject, but he wants to encourage the two of them to trust each other.]

[It's a good effort, Rich, but Jeremy's intent on ignoring his physical body for a while. It's not a trigger if you ignore it, right?]

That's the thing. I hate saying this over and over but I don't remember.

[He tugs at a lock of hair.]

That guy who's getting married to the SQUIP--I was talking with him outside, and I don't know how I got there, and then we were on the ground. I thought he was making out with me at first, but I... He took me to this hospital place. I was on the way back from there the next morning when I saw the SQUIP.

[He stares at the pillow in his hands, tugging at a loose thread and winding it around his finger like the hair.]

I should have called you on the watch, but I didn't think of that until two seconds ago. I was kinda out of it, anyway.

Wait. Wait, what the fuck?

[Even with the disjointed story Jeremy provides, there's enough there to paint a pretty damning picture, and Rich doesn't think very highly of L in the best of circumstances anyways.]

Linden fucking attacked you?

[It was probably due to the mist... even when he and Linden have butt heads, it never got to a point like that, but...]

Jesus christ. I can't believe that asshole. He should have been more careful, it was obvious something was wrong!

[Rich tried to keep his distance from everyone. Why the hell couldn't Linden manage the same if he's so smart? Rich grits his teeth, running a hand through his hair.]

God, I'm so sorry, Jeremy. I wish I had kept a better eye out for you.

[Linden. Lin-den. The guy has a name and Jeremy's got to memorize it, since it's not likely that he'll hear it again.]

It's not your fault I wound up here. You don't need to babysit me.

[He tries to smile but it'a a grimace.]

It seems like most people here are like that. This isn't a safe place to be.

I'm not babysitting. I'm looking out for a friend, since I know more about this place than you do. C'mon man, just accept it and let me help.

[His brow furrows and he reaches out to put an arm around Jeremy.]

Hey... I know it seems like it sucks balls here, but it's really not awful when you get to know people. You're just... unlucky, so you keep finding the bad ones.

I have a few friends here though. Can introduce you if you want.

Don't do the reacharound while you're talking about balls.

[He nudges Rich, but he doesn't brush his arm off.]

Yeah. Maybe sometime. I dunno, maybe the sight of me makes people turn evil. Flips on attack mode. Nature made me irresistibly punchable.

Wow, way to make everything pervy as usual, Heere.

[Rich gives him a little smirk, nudging back, but carefully. His dragon strength is... slightly unpredictable sometimes.]

Hey, hey! Don't talk like that! You know that's not true. You're just trying to come up with excuses so you don't put yourself out there. Linden is an exception, not the rule.

...Besides, if anyone's inherently punchable, it's his creepy face and smug ass personality. You're actually trying to get along with people, so you're in an entirely different league.

[Jeremy scoffs with a little smile. He expects Rich to be rough, so he won't notice anything awry unless he's knocked off the bed entirely.]

I'm not sure the math on that one would shake out, but I appreciate the effort.

[He watches Rich's face intently.]

So who around here is actually decent, then?

[At least he doesn't manage that much this time around! And there's definitely an eagerness in Rich's eyes when he gets the chance to answer about his friends.]

Well, you already met Justine! Myr, too, though probably not officially... they're both really awesome. There's this really cool dragon lady named Toby who seems really smart. Aziraphale too... he's kind of stuffy, but nice and gentle. I mean, I could go on. I can count on one hand the number of people who rubbed me the wrong way.

Oh come on. You can't say a line like that if you don't want my brain in the gutter.

Seriously, go on. I bet you've had all kinds of crazy adventures since the time-travel-teleportation thing.

God, Heere! Everything's a sexcapade with you, isn't it? I promise I wasn't rubbing one out whenever I met a new person.

But geez, uh... I mean, I've met a lot of people once or twice. Crazy adventures are definitely a thing though... never mentioned the SQUIP fucking tried to buy me from a slave auction, did I?

[Jeremy starts in place]

What the fuck?! Wha, how in, what di--what the fuck?!

[Rich sighs and rubs a hand over his face.]

Yeah, what the fuck pretty much covers it. I don't know if you remember that dream you had before coming here, but lots of people have similar ones here. A while ago, we all had this... sort of dream, sort of real thing, where we got transported to this city where they keep monsters as slaves.

Someone caught on I was a dragon - [Like it wasn't instantly obvious.] - and dragged me over there to auction off. The SQUIP found out and bought me. He bought Connor too... half of the time, it kept trying to brainwash me to shut up about what it did in our world so Connor would still find it super sexy or some bullshit.

[It's taking everything Jeremy has to not keep repeating What the fuck over and over again.]

It wasn't a dream-dream? The SQUIP and Connor remember it? Like, it basically really happened?!

[He keeps shaking his head.]

Okay. Okay. This place is a hellhole and the SQUIP somehow got even more controlling and evil?! Rich, we--we've gotta get out of here.

Didn't fucking ask the SQUIP, but Connor definitely remembers it. Obviously I'm not going to go talk to it after that, like, "hey non-bro, how about that buying me as your slave thing?"

[He groans softly and shakes his head. This is about what he was expecting them to get to eventually, but it doesn't mean he likes it.]

I wish we could get out of here. I kind of both wanted and didn't want you guys here, because as far as I can tell, no one ever leaves here because they wanted to. It happens occasionally, but otherwise, we're stuck.

If it happens occasionally, we can make it happen, can't we? We've just got to ask around, and--I mean, you don't remember me disappearing junior year, so I must have gotten back somehow. It's the only thing that makes sense.

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