the first soldier

[sefirot]

Who: Sephiroth and you
Which: Dream (open)
What: A much younger Sephiroth that should have been long forgotten
Warnings: Death, blood, some monsters

A - Among the Dead

[Those who enter will find themselves on an island riddled with ruins once belonging to a people forgotten to time. Currently it seems to have become a battlefield with the remnants of bullets, broken machinery and explosive weapons.

Along one of the ruins is a group of bodies, dressed in ragged cloaks and some sort of armor with swords and guns scattered about them. Upon closer inspection these look less like the bodies of soldiers, but more like children and the elderly. Though they were clearly prepared to fight.

And in the middle of that carnage is Sephiroth though he appears much much younger than before. His height, his hair, even the katana in his hand all much tinier.

He's looking down at the blood pooled in his gloved hand, though it's hard to say if that blood is from the bodies or himself.]

I'm not a cyborg ... I'm not.

[It's almost as though he's saying that to someone, but those people are not here.]

B - Monsters

[Another part of the island is very beautiful with cherry blossoms all around, but also holds great danger. Roaring sounds and a terrible creature who wants nothing more than to eat anyone who's decided to wander through.

But don't worry before it even thinks about getting the chance, the creature gets blown away in an explosion of fire ... that might also scorch the land around it. But hey, at least the thing is gone. Or at least one of them, there are probably more.

Meanwhile the source of the fire magic is younger Sephiroth who looks a little smug at his show of power.]

I'm glad I made it in time.

C - Wildcard

[Don't like either of those? Feel free to make up another reason to run into him here.]

Comments

B

[crystalized_hope]

[The sounds of terrifying creatures were -- unfortunately -- not uncommon for him. So the moment its piercing shrieks cut the silence for him, he hurried to the scene. If someone was in danger, he needed to find them in time. He was just about there and ready to defend when the explosion kept him from stepping forward. What power... Glancing to who it seemed to come from, he cocked his head to the side.]

Is aught alright? What happened? [And then a moment to realize.] Wicked white... Was there a bystander?

[Are they going to be okay after that blast?]

[OOC: By the way, the last link (?) HTML isn't working.]

A

[beshackled]

[Erichthonios has been dreaming for some time, and after so long, it seems a matter of course that he would eventually cross over into the dream of another.

The scenery is... confusing; the machinery, the weapons, the bullets unknown to him. Yet though this first leads him to proceed with bewildered caution, that changes as soon as he sees the people.

Steps hastening, the towering man rushes towards the prone forms, to see if any are yet alive.]

What has happened here...?!

[Unaware of the nature of the altercation, Erichthonios looks upon all with equal concern.

Only one seems to have survived -- the boy standing in the middle of it all; a boy that, though he cannot place him, seems oddly familiar.]

A

[noblegarnet]

[It's a hard thing to look at. And if Ferran is honest, the singular figure standing in the midst of it... it's hard to not make an assumption of who's responsible.

He doesn't quite recognize Sephiroth, only having that brief meeting once before, but his response probably wouldn't have been much different. His hands in his pockets, he stands a safe distance away, both for himself when it comes to that blade, and for the sake of the young man not feeling threatened by an approach. His posture almost seems casual, but there's a wariness in his gaze, and his tone isn't entirely soft, either.]

This doesn't seem like a good place to ponder your humanity.

A

[soughtrevenge]

[ The scene is jarring, reminding Estinien of many a scene that he bore witness to as he navigates the Final Days, the death and destruction across Etheirys. The images are still fresh in his mind, much like the young man standing amidst the bodies, and his reaction is just as it would be were he back in Thavnair or Garlemald. He has no plans to stand by and let a child - one who may be hurt if the blood in his hand is any indication - deal with this own his own.

He approaches cautiously, not wanting to alarm the boy, for he knows that things can quickly go awry in a tense situation like this. ]

Are you hurt?

a

[oathkeeper]

[Sora has done his fair share of dreaming walking these days. But waking up to one that feels ... eerily familiar? Is always the weirdest. Seeing the destruction, and the carnage all puts a bad vibe up Sora's shoulders.

When he sees the colour of silver-white hair Sora does freeze up for a second. He stares in disbelief because it looks like riku jk because what he sees before him is a much smaller looking...]

... Sephiroth?!

[No way? Why is he so short? And what happened here?]

A

[10billionpercent]

[ Nothing here is familiar, but there is someone who looks young, covered in blood and looking traumatized.

Man, Senku is not good at this, but he can't unsee it.

Senku moves over to his side, offering a bit of a frown. ]

Are you alright?

A

[amnesiadragon]

[The scene in front of him is... well, like from a nightmare. Machines he doesn't recognize, weapons he doesn't recognize. He looks up at the young man and then back at the children. The children. T̴̮̳̕ĥ̵̦̊͠e̶̅͂͜ ̴͖͉̌c̶̭̣̦͌̑̾h̵͉̖̏i̸͎͎̞̊̅l̴̢̟̚ḏ̷͋͐̊ṙ̴̬͑̄é̵̘̜̲͆ṇ̴̡̟̆...]

[Anger rises in the back of his throat and he darts forward, grabbing at Sephiroth's shoulder to try to make the man face him. He can't - the children - he can't -]

What did you do?!

[It's hard to make Ryu angry. It's even harder to make him take action on that anger. But this - this he cannot abide. Children, the elderly... they're not soldiers!]

B

[empyreancatastrophe]

[He's not well-versed in dreamwalking, yet, so of course Joshua would wind up accidentally stepping into a landscape peppered with creatures ready and willing to kill him. At the sound of the first roar, he readies his own fire magicks. He may not enjoy fighting, and this may be a dream, but he's not about to go down easily.]

[With hand outstretched, he eyes the monster and its gaping maw, lined with teeth ready to rip him apart. He'll have to make this quick--]

[--except not. Surprise flickers across his features as he takes the split second to comprehend that the flames that just dispatched the beast weren't his own.]

[Joshua turns to face the accompanying voice and relaxes, fading tongues of dreamotion fire licking at his forearm until they ebb away.]

I am indebted to you.

a

[spikyheaded]

[Cloud hadn't expected the opportunity to dreamwalk to arise so soon after discussing it with someone. But if he were to truly help people while he was in the dream world, he best understand and learn the intricacies of it.

But what he didn't expect was the carnage he was stepping into. Bodies littered the ground at his feet, strewn in every which way. It causes Cloud to take a step back in surprise, whipping around to survey the area.

For the briefest of moments, he hears the crackling of wood as it is eaten through by fire. Screams are drowned out by the sound of the flames ranging around him, as his foot kicks against the body.

How is he— He can't be here.

With a shake his head, the vision, the memory dissipates as quickly as it had come. Cloud pulls his eyes away from the bodies to find a man donned in black and of stature similar to his.

A gasp escapes his lips.

Even if he looked younger, Cloud knew exactly who it was.

He takes a tentative step forward, then another, then another. His face twists, brows furrowing, mouth pressed thinly together. Once within earshot, he catches the words Sephiroth utter and he stops in his tracks.]

What are you supposed to be then?

[His arms fold in front of him, his tone stern. Despite what he was experiencing, he remained on guard, not wanting to be caught in surprise. It didn't matter if this was a dream or otherwise. At the end of the day, it was still Sephiroth.]