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GARRETT » 「 ɟǝᴉɥʇ ɹǝʇsɐɯ ǝɥʇ 」 ([personal profile] blackhand) wrote in [community profile] kaisou2023-03-18 07:09 pm
Entry tags:

open | i'm only human, after all

WHO: Garrett and whoever is around
WHERE: His labyrinth and eventual rooftops of some of the smaller buildings in Kaisou
WHEN: Mid-February!
WHAT: Someone got dragged into Kaisou unwillingly right after saving home, and he's really not happy about it
WARNINGS: Body horror, spooks, ghost stuff

[labyrinth

a. The void

He shouldn't be here.

Garrett is no stranger to odd and terrible things back home. Within a city that's a vile cesspit and has no intentions of ever getting better, you learn to cope with what you have and make the most of it. At least, normal people do. Not him. He's made a living being a thief, and thrived because of it.

That all is a moot point as he feels like the ground gets suddenly pulled out from under him, toppling headfirst into a place that's all too familiar- the Primal's inbetween. He'd just finished trying to help Erin at the docks, the last thing he remembers is trusting her with the Claw to climb back up... which is with him now, even in this. But Erin shouldn't have any control over this anymore, so what is–

A (cw: body horror) humanoid figure coos in the corner of his vision, and he whirls, finding himself tensing even as nothing comes across except shadows. Right eye flaring, he sees nothing in the darkness, which doesn't make him feel any less paranoid overall. Another figure darts from behind him, and he again misses it- how? He'd usually be able to see these things, or at least note them with his Focus- and he can't even do that here.

The void itself is mesh of twisted stone blocks and wooden beams, reminiscent of the homes he'd steal from almost every night. Finding his way out is worse than he's ever remembered- the routes end abruptly, openings showing where there shouldn't be openings, sounds that come to him from places they shouldn't. More than once Garrett gets turned around, irritation apparent, unable to see where the end lies.

How could it be so hard to find the exit? Off he goes again, a set of black against the aqua and green, quiet footsteps still audible despite his best efforts.]

b. moira asylum]


No-

[This isn't right, he'd found his answers here from Erin a while ago, how is it he ended up back here, in the asylum? Things shouldn't be this connected, there's always a clear distinction between being in the Primal's space versus being in the real world. And yet here he is, back in the place Erin called "Hell."

Floors creak with every step, and the doors swing open and closed if passed by. Glass lies broken on the floor, beds strewn in rooms and parts of walls missing, old Victorian era doctor's tools are on metal trays on tables, and written notes line the walls. One in particular is eye-catching enough because of how short it is.

"Night Warden On Duty!

NO loitering in the halls.
NO noisemaking in the rooms.
Keep doors CLOSED."

Garrett knows how this ends, he knows how this thing is. As soon as the words are traced over, a door creaks open, and the sound of stomping and clanking begins to fill in the halls. There's no one in sight, even after turning corners- save for the slight detail of a shimmering aura that passes by every so often. Coming close to it gets the distinct roar of something inhuman and twisted beyond what it should be, like a creature stalking prey.

The Night Warden has come alive, and now the hunt begins.

the aftermath, rooftops.

Now that he's out...

Well, he already hates a lot about this place. It's not home, for starters, and too bright. It has things he's never seen before, and any sort of fire or lamp doesn't even seem to exist. In some ways, Garrett feels like he's watching something from a dream, rather than actually being somewhere. And climbing up here was a trial, compared to back home, his Claw and arrows practically useless to much of the environment of this new place.]


Usually I'm not one to back down from a challenge...

[But this city is something entirely new to him, down to the streets and the wires in between- but it's not unlearnable. Garrett has survived worse, learned from it, and grown a reputation as a result. He'll have to study how things are done here, how people react, what can effect the world around him, and how he can be just as much of a ghost here as he was back at home. It'll take some time, but now that he doesn't seem to have to face the issues of the City disappearing back home, or Erin spreading the Gloom, it might even be a new kind of fun he hasn't had in quite some time.

Of course, he surely isn't going to draw any suspicion being up here, black leather, hooded and a half mask all attached. Clearly, he means no harm with such a getup, not at all. Especially since he carries so many pouches with him and seems to be almost too familiar with being up high for some reason. Definitely not a troublemaker whatsoever.]
doubledollar: (149)

b. , night warden

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-03-19 04:40 am (UTC)(link)
[ was it a smart thing to go diving into other peoples' labyrinths after experiencing the hell that was his own? no. but would that also stop him? also no, because he can't help but to want to play the hero.

that'll get you killed one day, needle-noggin, a grumpy voice echoed in his ears as Vash quietly strafes through one of the dark and dingy hallways of this... place he's found himself in. He doesn't recognise the structure at all; the structure is made of wood and stone--materials that simply don't exist back home. It sort of reminds him of the top floors of an inn--but far larger, with far more doors and many more windows. It was dark; hazy and cold.

He's trying to be quiet with his steps--he still hasn't found the person who was lost inside this labyrinth yet, after all, and he was getting a really profoundly wrong feeling the longer he lingered in these halls. His heightened senses gave him an advantage here--and while he couldn't see the creature that Garett was being hunted by, Vash could nearly feel it. Its footsteps were noisy, but the energy it gave off was rancid, and every time it came near, Vash was quick to duck inside the closest room he could, closing the door and waiting for the foul-smelling thing to pass before peeking out again.

It's about the third time that he comes creeping out of hiding, his gun in hand as if it'd do anything to stop a creature that was neither visible or even had a body, as far as he knew--that he finally caught a glimpse of what he assumed (hoped) was the guy responsible for this horrifying place.

Man, he's got some Questions for you. But first was getting the hell out of here. He silently points at the man, then gestures over to himself--then puts a finger to his lips.

quiet, follow me, I know the way out. ]
doubledollar: (67)

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-03-19 09:04 pm (UTC)(link)
[ vash absolutely isnt any sort of master thief, and he's never been in a situation that called for stealth--so he's about as eye-catching as they get with his overly-colourful ensemble. Maybe it's a good thing in this one specific situation, as he's hard to miss by the very person he's here to 'fetch', so to speak.

He doesn't need the guy to trust him, so to speak--he could run off by the time they're out, so far as vash is concerned. his #1 priority was getting the man out, and that's what he's determined to do.

He takes just a moment to eye the other, and that... odd whisp that lifts off of the man's face, the starting point of it in his eye--but he can ask questions later. Magic exists in this world. other worlds. he's still getting used to that fact, this is no different, he reminds himself, as he will absolutely take the lead.

Turning his head to try to remind himself where that rancid-tasting energy had last turned a corner, he's sliding gently across the floor, quiet as one can in steel-bottomed boots.

there's no rhyme or reason to the place at all. It's a literal maze, and he leads garrett down a hallway, two corridors--before clicking open a door of some sort of office and shooing the man inside.

he closes the door quietly behind him, and that telltale stomping is so close, he can feel it in his teeth.
He's gonna cast his buddy-in-hiding a glance, muttering quietly. ]


Real mess this is.
doubledollar: (22)

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-03-20 03:16 am (UTC)(link)
[ he arrived here via a black portal, and thanks to his not-exactly-human brain he's got the path memorized. But that doesn't mean the path won't move or something; he's still completely convinced that magic doesn't play fair, and the labyrinth isn't any some great exception to that mental rule.

a minute to breathe inside the closed room is well-needed, and vash takes the time to check his colt revolver to make sure he's loaded it (today) as if it'll do any good against a monster they can't goddamn see. Before turning to the guy he's set to rescue with a sort of tired, but determined look. ]


Thing'll just keep going in circles until we're outta here. Great.
Here I was hoping it'd get tired and just go away.

[ But... to that question, vash actually brightens up. Just an inch. ]

Not the time to boast. But my aim's second to none.
You got a plan?
doubledollar: [all UNCREDITED manga caps done by ME] (112)

[tristam icon bc none of my trimax ones fit]

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-03-26 03:26 am (UTC)(link)
I know all about people using things they shouldn't due to greed.

[ that's how a lot of the troubles back home tended to happen, anyway. He doesn't seem too surprised that this... thing stalking them down the halls was something caused by someone who didn't know the meaning of being humble.

He'll tip his head to look at the glass bottle in Garrett's hand, and then to the man's somewhat covered face as he explains how this creature works. Sound-based. Of course, that would be the case.

He's picking up what you're putting down at least, as he looks over his gun, pressing down on the release at the back to check his bullets. He's got six shots, and while he probably could hit both the glass bottle and the window in one shot... ]


I could, yeah. That's not an issue. Thing about it is, I'll have to make sure that the window and glass make more noise than my revolver does.

He gives a little cuckle, clicking the revolver back together, hefting it up as his hand moves to slowly open the door, just a crack. ]

Ready on your count. Toss it, I'll shoot. Then we run.
doubledollar: (143)

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-03-27 03:13 am (UTC)(link)
[ Garrett doesn't have to ask for his trust--he already has it. The gunman is a bit of a fool that way. They're in this hellish labyrinth together, and while Vash HAD come in with the singular aim to get Garrett out, they were both being stalked by the beast that haunted it now. Teamwork came easy.

He nods his head sharply as he quickly makes his way to the other side of the hallway, following the thief's lead. His gun up and at the ready, he's aiming down the simple sights of it the moment Garrett's hand loosens the bottle from it. Watching it arc high and wide, he pulls the trigger, two times in a lighting-fast succession. The gun does make a noise, certainly--but it's a dull roar compared to the sound the bullet makes as it crashes through the bottle.

Hitting it on an angle that damn well makes the thing explode upon impact--the .44 caliber bullet continuing through to hit the window behind. The second bullet he'd fired being aimed ever so slightly above the first, to hit the windowframe to shatter another section of it.

Moments later, that arrow from Garrett's arm crossbow follows, and the sound is damn well explosive. Vash's mouth falling open in disbelief, but also, because there's another sound, a rushing of something through the air--and Vash can only assume the sound they made was enough to do exactly what Garrett planned. The warden was diving towards that sound, the broken glass, the shattered window.

Vash mouths the word run at his current partner-in-fleeing, and he's taking off down the hall. His steps are damn near silent despite how quick he moves--dashing down hallways through twists and turns--until it can be seen ahead: a twisted, black cloudy tear in reality. Maybe not much unlike the one that Garrett had originally come through to get to this place.

Vash is pointing desperately to it as the sound of the creature chasing them changes, the air tastes like ozone. Did the thing already realise it was a distraction? Shit shit shit-- ]
doubledollar: [all UNCREDITED manga caps done by ME] (14)

1/2

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-03-28 10:59 am (UTC)(link)
[ that sound, that smell--it was getting close and there wasn't any time for vash to give his new friend the, "say goodbye, you'll not see this place again" speech he himself had been given when he was saved from his own labyrinth. He doubts it matters, though, who the hell would want to stay in a place like that? who would even miss it? he assumes Garrett was normal and didn't want to be there at all.

There's that moment where the air feels stuck in your lungs when they jump through the tear, and Vash is at least awash with relief when he hits that beautiful grassy green stretch of land, the cloudy black tear in reality hissing slightly as it all but evaporates from the air, truly locking the pair in this new green world.

Vash takes a moment. Breathes. Checks his gun for how many bullets he has left. Holsters it. Takes a long, deep breath and then turns to his confused new companion with an unreadable expression. ]
doubledollar: [all UNCREDITED manga caps done by ME] (27)

2/2

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-03-28 10:59 am (UTC)(link)
[ he raises a hand up to yank those snazzy orange glasses off, so they wont get wet when tears start pouring from his eyes. his expression going from steely and determined to that of a blubbering fool as the first sob rips out of his throat, and hes grabbing at Garrett's foot. giving it a shake, as if to reprimand the other for how he's feeling. ]

Okay, I've--I've been in my fair share of dangers, man, but wh, what the hell was that!!!

[ he exclaims with a whiny, high-timbre voice; sniffling as he raises one of his gloved hands to rub tears out from under the eye that sports a beauty mark under it. ]

I seriously, seriously, seriously thought I was going to die! Like! Usually when you fight monsters or horrors beyond human imagination, you c, can at least SEE them!?

That thing was a serious nightmare, what the hell kind of place do you come from, man!?
doubledollar: (47)

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-04-02 03:27 am (UTC)(link)
[ listen, garrett. buddy. he's dealt with a Lot of things in his life that cross the line of existential and eldritch horror, but the difference here is, at least everything horrid and terrifying he's had to combat with in his (admittedly very long) life so far, they could at least be seen. hit over the head, knocked out--even if he didn't like killing, there was always a SOLUTION to it that his brain could muster out.

against a being he can't see and could really only taste in the air when it got close? it was terrifying, even for the humanoid typhoon. Maybe he IS playing up the over-emotional response a LITTLE, but. That's just how he is, as a person. Old habits die hard or something like that. And he really is crying! He really was scared!!! Just... man. Labyrinths sure are scary. ]


Ghosts aren't real where I come from, so excuse me for being a little freaked out, okay? [he'll allow himself to be shooed, but he's shuffling back a bit, sitting crosslegged and sniffling, taking his gun out to count how many bullets he had left. He spins the barrel, clicking it closed, putting it back into its holster before reaching a hand up to rub under his eyes, pushing his snazzy orange sunglasses up onto his forehead.]

Well, whatever!!! You're outta there now and in a better place. Probably. If your whole home is freaky like that, you're in a WAY better place now.

[ from experience, at least, this was better than some! haunted! building!!! ]

What's your name, anyway.
I guess now that we're out I should explain the situation to you.
doubledollar: [please do not use without my credit] (3)

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-04-02 05:19 am (UTC)(link)
[ 'this might as well happen' is a huge mood. going with the flow is easy when you've experienced pretty much everything there is to experience, or something like that. WITH THE EXCEPTION OF GHOSTS. Man, he's just learned what his least favorite thing in the world is, it's official.

He eyes the other when that... whispy thing happens to his eye, and it clicks for him that he's seen the other do it before, back in the labyrinth? But he was too busy trying to get them both out alive to question it. No time like the present, he guessed. ]


Garrett, huh. I'm Vash. Vash the Stampede. But no, definitely not. I came here in the same way you did. Freaky black rip in the air back in your own home, right? Dragged you in, then you woke up in a place you almost recognised but wasn't ... how you remembered it?
It was the same for me. Except, you know. My labyrinth wasn't terrifying. Just broken and falling apart, it was a breeze in comparison to yours.

[ He sighs, heavily. ]

Your eye is glowing. Are you part ghost too.
doubledollar: (72)

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-04-02 07:09 pm (UTC)(link)
Sssssomeone else who's really cool, flashy, and always ready to save the day, I hope? [ usually his name either gets reactions of confusion or people don't comment on its strangeness at all--he's never gotten a 'sounds familiar' before and it's throwing him off, oh god. ]

Didn't notice it, huh. That sounds twice as uncomfortable, then. Just winding up there without any notice?? Talk about scary.
I opened the door to the inn I was staying at, and boom, no hallway. Tear in time. I admittedly didn't get much time to think about it before I got dragged in, though....

And yeah. No connection. Once the portal closes, you're stuck here. It's called Kaisou, also. A place that's wrapped in magic, on a planet called Earth.

Whatever weird thing is going on with your eye, at least, will be considered pretty normal by the people who live here. Even if there are people like me who have never dealt with magic before. Seriously, it's all wild stuff, I'm so out of my element here.
But.

Yanno.
Ever since learning people get stuck in their personal labyrinths, I ah. Well. I can't just sit still and let people stay stuck?
doubledollar: (151)

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-04-07 11:40 pm (UTC)(link)
Thief-Taker General? Aw, come on, that name is totally lame. And it doesn't even explain anything. Where's he taking thieves? My name's better.

[ because that's the argument that needs to be made here. Not that Garrett was telling him about some fiend from his home world or anything, but just another guy with an overly strange name.

Vash is getting up, from where he'd been sitting on the ground--grassy, green. The sky starting to get dark, those green lights dancing overhead as the sun starts to wane. He points up at it. ]


You can't see it great right now--it's much clearer during the day, but the sky is pretty much the best example of magic I can give you.

I'm just an ordinary gunslinger from a planet that's all sand and rock, so I don't really have any fancy tricks to show you, you know? Sorry about that.

[ he raises a hand and gives his new friend a goofy grin. ]
doubledollar: (34)

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-04-11 05:51 pm (UTC)(link)
Just to spite you in particular, huh.
Either you did something to really get his goat, or you've got those skills for a reason. [ he's at least not accusing or pressing Garrett for information--rather just suggesting that he has a feeling the man looks the way he does with purpose.

outlaw recognises outlaw and all that.
Vash knows plenty of people who are bandits and thieves--and honestly, he doesn't disparage any of them. that blind faith for humanity, even the dregs of society, it seems, are still people he's willing to befriend.
sorry garrett. ]


Industrial, huh. Kinda sad to see humans push back the nature in the world for progress, but. Hopefully you'll be more comfortable here, for the time being.

I come from a planet that's all sand, stone, and bleak desert, so. It's pretty much heaven, here.

You'll get used to it.
Maybe?
doubledollar: (39)

[personal profile] doubledollar 2023-05-09 12:58 pm (UTC)(link)
Well, here's hoping the guy never turns up in the city so your sore spot can just heal over and go ignored for now, yeah?

[ listen vash is a forgive sort of person, he isnt a forget kind of person. you always remember how people wronged you, but you just have to learn how to forgive. that doesn't mean you don't expect shitty people not to be shitty. that's just stupidity and vash isnt about that. ]

Hm.

I'm guessing you at least know what sand is?
Imagine a place thats nothing but sand, rock, and sky. No trees, no grass, no lakes or rivers, nothing.

Just stone and sand, with cities made out of stone and metal dotting the surface here and there.

That's home.
schrodingersghost: (pic#6326414)

Aftermath

[personal profile] schrodingersghost 2023-03-19 02:15 pm (UTC)(link)
[It had been a while since Danny had been out at night. The events of the last few weeks had thrown him for a loop for a while, and he'd avoided being alone. Just in case. But tonight he'd had trouble sleeping, and he'd decided to risk it.

He wasn't exactly expecting to see anyone else up here on the rooftops. He holds back for a moment, observing, before landing softly on the rooftop. In the darkness the silvery glow that always surrounded him in this form was more obvious than ever.]


Hey. You need directions or something?
schrodingersghost: (pic#6326421)

[personal profile] schrodingersghost 2023-03-21 12:25 am (UTC)(link)
Danny leans forward in concern at this.

"Are you okay?"

At the question he pauses a moment in thought.

"Well, this is Kaisou. Did you come here from another world?" Even though Danny had grown up here, most of his friends had come from other worlds. He was more than familiar with the idea.