singillatim | (closed)

Who: Hickey & Lanfear
What: girl... what were YOU doing at the devil's sacrament
When: near the end of April
Where: the church

Content Warnings: will edit as needed

Hickey's not exactly been subtle about his interest in the Darkwalker. He's moved out to try and track the thing after La'an's death, as well as after those four in the church died. He's definitely tried to find it, to gather information, to learn and find out as much about that thing, that god as possible.

Today's excursion involves poking around the church, trying to see if he can find anything that others might have missed. Yeah, Vash and the others were dead for a few months, but it's not like anyone lives in the church now. It's probably been relatively calm and quiet—perfect for poking around.

He's found jack shit. And Hickey's not bothering to hide his irritation when he leaves the church, closing the door behind him. He turns to spot Lanfear—a woman he doesn't really know, but it's not like he knows everybody here. He gives her a little nod before an, "Evening."

In his trying not to seem suspicious, he looks very suspicious.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I'm sure others might be a little more nervous to venture in after what happened," Lanfear admits, drawing her shawl a little more tightly around herself as if sympathizing with their trepidation — but then she leans in slightly, giving every indication that she intends to offer her own confession.

"But is it strange that I mostly find myself curious about what might have occurred?" she asks, in a hushed tone of voice that implies she's divulging something she shouldn't be.

It's not that she anticipating censure, and she'll certainly retreat from the subject if he seems like he'd rather not discuss it, but it does seem worth mentioning, especially given where they're standing.

Hickey's eyes are shining with a worrying brightness. He too is curious about what might have occurred. He too wants to learn the ins and outs of what precisely happened.

"There was a creature we dealt with back home. It could tear you to shreds but it also could reach into a man and suck out his soul. Makes me wonder if the Darkwalker does the same thing."

After all, there aren't any wounds on the corpses. They're just that. Corpses. However the Darkwalker killed them, it killed them in ways yet to be explained.

Lanfear knows how she should respond — how it would be less suspicious to react with some form of muted horror, and perhaps that drives her initial expression, brows knitted together in concern as her lips subtly part.

"How horrible," she muses aloud, even as she inclines herself closer to him, visibly seeking more details in a way that seems to spite her own alarm.

"Have you seen evidence of anything like that here?" She hadn't been able to examine the bodies herself, encountering Lalo and shifting to the proposal of an alliance to make herself seem more helpless than she was, but from what she'd been able to see from a distance, they'd appeared largely untouched.

"I didn't get a chance to look at them myself," Hickey muses. "But that first one who died, the La'an girl. Her body was autopsied. As far as I can remember, they didn't find anything useful. She simply...died. Almost of fright."

Which as far as Hickey's concerned, is another sign that the Darkwalker might be like tuunbaq back home, that it's a god who doesn't want them here, who's trying to drive them out at any opportunity. Who'll take their souls as food.

Autopsy. It's a word from another Age, one that holds meaning for Lanfear but wouldn't be familiar to anyone who was born much later, after the Breaking, when all that had been invented and created was destroyed. Eventually, memories that such things had even once existed faded, and now, all who still possess an awareness were sealed away, like she was.

There's no reason for her to not be aware of such things, no one here who would balk at her having greater awareness, so Lanfear merely hums. She won't hide her curiosity, not here, not while it's merely the two of them speaking in relative privacy.

"Almost as if she didn't even have time to fully comprehend what was there beforehand?" It does make efforts to communicate with the Darkwalker somewhat difficult, if its power is such that it overwhelms someone before they can even attempt conversation.

"Possibly," Hickey shrugs. That does sound possible, though. She died before realizing what she was seeing. Or she died because of what she saw. All they've got right now is guesses. Aggravating and yet interesting all at the same time.

"She might have been scared to death. She might have looked on something she couldn't comprehend. After all, it's not like any of us have actually seen the Darkwalker ourselves, just it's effects. Or maybe it did something we simply don't know about yet."

"And the truth that seems to remain unspoken is that none of us likely will know, unless we ever stand in a position to lay eyes on it ourselves without meeting death so swiftly."

Are any of them strong enough to stand before the Darkwalker in such a manner on their own? For this reason among many, Lanfear stands in frustration that she does not have the ability to embrace the One Power. If she did, she might be able to shield herself long enough to not only look at the Darkwalker directly, but assert herself as someone worthy of being allied with.

"What is it you feel, when it comes?" In any other context, her words could be considered gentle, compassionate, but there is a glint of keener interest in her gaze that can't fully be dulled.

The question is...interesting. Hickey frowns for a moment, thinking to himself, before he answers,

"I feel scared. But I feel power at the same time. That thing has power behind it. I don't know what it is or what it can do, but I know that much. It's got power in order to make us feel that way."

(closed)

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