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 Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2019 6:48 pm
He sat in the enclosed sunroom area of the cafe. Even from here, he could hear traffic, the flutter of pigeons, and the general honks and shouts of people on the street. He could feel the corner of sun over his table as he sat. He just had spent the entire morning at the specialist four doors down and was taking a moment to gather what little composite he still had left these days before calling up his pickup to go home.
His bag was on the floor beside him, and he had his phone and cup of coffee on the table. Cap on. He was especially careful. His one glazed eye looked out into the blurred shapes of Destiny city and he could feel his head ache from the strain of trying to focus and getting nowhere.
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Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2019 6:48 pm
At first, Elzo thought he was mistaken.It wasn’t like they spent any real length of time with each other as civilians, and when they did cross paths, they played ignorant. Yet the man in the window of the cafe was exactly the same as Toren. There was a very noticeable difference however- this man was clearly blind. The milky eye stood out and a part of his stomach dropped. He was responsible for one but not the other. Whatever had happened-
He didn’t bother ordering anything instead without so much as a hello, he pulled up a seat, making sure to have the chair rake across the ground.
“So- what’s cookin good lookin?” He said, trying to be funny. “At least, that’s what I would say if you did look good to start with.”
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Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2019 6:49 pm
Being unable to see made him a lot jumpier. So much easily startled him because it felt like it came out of nowhere. Someone would move their chair behind him or pass by and he’d jolt wondering what was happening and who it was before realizing it was just a stranger passing by on their way to the door or to another table.
When he heard the chair, he first looked up to think someone was taking a extra chair for their table, but the figure moved towards him. When they talked, he had a hard time placing it at first. He didn’t know too many people in real life and had even fewer people he considered friends, but the way the guy talked wasn’t like most people. Most people didn’t call him good lookin. That was usually just Wyatt, but there was something that tried to poke at a past memory.
He squinted as if somehow he’d magically just be able to see again if he did this one simple trick, but it did little to make him figure out who the ******** it was.
“Uh………..Hi?”
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Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2019 6:50 pm
Elzo was bad at social norms at times, but he was even worse when it came to realizing maybe he shouldn’t do something to antagonize a person he wasn’t on great terms with.
“Aw come on now- one night and you’ve forgotten me already?” He wasn’t meaning to be rude, it was just easier, especially with Toren, or his alterself. (Alterselves? They’d never gotten along, not really).
“I’ll give you a hint, we tried to play a game of gay chicken and while we both won, we also both lost. Now- if you still need a hint I’ll give you one- how about in the form of a kiss?”
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Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2019 6:51 pm
There wasn’t much Toren had to figure out to put 1 and 1 together, and consider they did the 1 and 1 together already, and that list being very, very short, he went to the conclusion very quickly.
“SHHH! What is wrong with you?! We’re in public! I swear - “ He had to stop as he glanced around, paused, then realized he couldn’t even SEE anyone anyways so what the hell was even the point. He brought a hand to his face to breath a second, knowing he felt a lot warmer in the span of a few seconds but couldn’t check the window’s reflection if he was beet red or not.
“What are you even doing here Ca - uh… Elzo.” He had to catch himself. It was hard to not associate the man in the chair as anyone other than the Royal (Royal pain in his a** - and NO that wasn’t in reference to any one night either.)
Once he had some composure, he realized just what kind of situation he was in, and had not wanted to see Elzo here of all placed in the current state he was in. Sure, his arm cast was hidden under his hoodie sleep and thanks to Seung, he now knew how to use foundation to hide the bruise under his eye, but outside of that, his eye was still clearly ruined. Elzo had seen him with at least one good eye and one very fake eye. The guy had enough sense to know one of the green eyes was fake. Now he had one good eye and one milky eye. That said something else.
“Why are you here of all places? I don’t want you here.” He hissed back.
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2019 5:40 pm
He almost choked on his laughter as Toren gave him the exact sort of reaction he wanted. "Well, I mean nothing wrong with me, I just have a very very low sense of shame when it comes to what I've done." Not that he didn't have shame- just that in this particular instance he had bar none. Still, it was a bit mean to pick on the guy, especially now that he was actually full stop blind. "And I'm doing nothing, well, nothing in particular. I saw you and wellll-" He trailed off, motioning to the face not that the hand waving about could be seen. "You look like s**t, and I'm not the cause of it." He huffed, leaning back in his seat. "And unlike the most of those who call themselves knights, you're actually capable. Just why I'm wondering what happened or, who happened."
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iStoleYurVamps
iStoleYurVamps
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2019 6:29 pm
Toren narrowed his eyes in a way someone might try to make out something far off in the horizon, but whatever gesture Elzo was doing, he didn't know what it was aside from movement.
"Yeah, someone else beat you to it. Is that why you are here? Pissed you didn't get to take out the other one?" He grumbled back, but slowly was crossing his arms and pulling them close to himself as he sat there, not at all wanting to have this conversation with anyone, let alone Castor. The man was someone he only wanted to show what he was capable of when he was at his best. They always had a push and pull degree of competition, climbing upon whatever game they were doing in order to win and mark another tally mark on their side of the board regardless of how immature or insignificant it was.
Now he was going to loose out of a severe handicap he was unable to do anything about.
He was quiet as he thought of what to say. Castor didn't need long details. The man didn't even know what had all happened with him. Did he know about the torture to Tanzanite ages ago? They had been close in a weird way. Did she ever mention that time to him? Would he know what the DMC had done?
"It's a long story. I just.....have been after the Dark Moon Court for a long time." He said, keeping his voice low as to not be overheard that easily.
"And....I made a move. In the end, this is what happened." He said, gesturing to his face.
"it doesn't matter anyways. None of it does." He was probably considered dead anyways and since he couldn't fight, he might as well be.
"What do you even care anyways? You can see what this means. No more dumb s**t like we used to do. I can't -" He had to stop. This was stupid. He hated everyone for coming here. For asking these things. For somehow finding him now of all the times. They weren't here to ask before. Before he did what he did. But they had to be here now? When it was too late.
"- The war's over for me." He whispered, even lower than before. "I don't know what else you want from me."
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2019 8:52 pm
Castor didn't like speaking of some of the things of the past, some of which would include the darker actions of some senshi. He was a murderer true enough, but there was a line he drew when it came to the enemy. Torture was below him as far as he was concerned. So in knowing Wolframite's past with the Blood Moon Court- he couldn't say he was entire surprised with the man's want to hunt down Ares's dark mirror court. To hear Toren say he acted and in some capacity lost- "s**t." He didn't know how to properly comfort him since well, they weren't friends "Look." He sucked in a breath. "I was more worried something else was around that had the power to take you out." Fingers tapped on the table as Elzo looked to the man he considered a rival. "Sounds like you've given up if we're being honest. You lost your eye. It's not the end unless you make it your end." Toren was hurt and he was bad at comfort. "I mean, it's not that I care in a way, but I also do? You're a good fighter- and if you're out of the fight- then I'm down someone I can depend on to fight to the bitter end. Someone who's willing to do what needs to be done and understands why." Blue eyes looked to one that couldn't see him. "You're too stubborn to just give up like this."
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iStoleYurVamps
iStoleYurVamps
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2019 9:13 pm
"Just - stop." The tone was sharp but the strength wavering.
"You know nothing about what I've been through. When you took my eye, I spent months getting back to where I was, and my aim was never the same." He said, his eyes staring at the tabletop of the space between them.
"You have never lost an eye. You have't lost any part of you. What do you even know about what it's like. What this is like. Do you think I want to stop? Do you think I like I like it ending this way? I wanted to die with a throat in my mouth tearing out blood. Not....not this ******** mess."
His white and fake green eye looked up through him. "Be honest. Really be ******** honest here. I'm a death wish waiting to happen if anyone thinks I'm capable of going out there in uniform and fighting anyone now. There isn't time like I had before. There isn't another eye to rely on. There aren't other people to rely on and I just ******** with the Royal of a major faction. So you look. Don't do that inspirational bullshit every damn nurse and counselors has been feeding me for days on end."
"I. Can't. See. I can't throw a weapon. I can't predict a enemies actions. I can't see a fist be thrown. A change in a body about to kick or pivot. A youma summoned. A friend called in. A hand going for my chest. I can't see any of that s**t. I can't even make it down the ******** sidewalk without almost tripping. I'd be a burden to anyone around me and a easy kill. So don't you dare come in here and start this - this shitty pep talk. You never EVER did that bullshit before so don't even do that now. Now when it's already done."
His hands were shaking and he gripped them together as he glared down.
"Stupid inspirational hope isn't going to fix my eyes. There is only so much - so much I can handle here." He choked, turning his head sideways to look away.
"Why did you have to show up." He whispered.
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Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2019 5:16 pm
Though Toren couldn't see it, Elzo scowled right on back. No, he did not know- but to that he also found he didn't care about those particulars. "And I haven't lost something in this life- and you'd do well to remember that." He'd had his fair share of nightmares on his homeworld, his fair share of remembering his own death a dozen different times. Yet those were memories. They were no longer his reality. "I never died peacefully. Not that I can remember. I lived from one lifetime of wars into the next- the commander of conquerors, and each time I did I embraced that end- because like you said, living without being able to fight was a life I couldn't think to live." He was terrible at this but, Toren, Gevauden, Wolframite, was not a man that would accept platitudes. "You're like me- we live to fight, to feel that rush of blood in our eardrums, the sound of war a song in very marrow. This- what you are? I would imagine I'd hate it too- but I'd kill myself before I gave up. Your eyes are gone- you have two hands, two legs, a mind trained to adapt to best react to an enemy. But if you want to give up to stop trying then at least do us both a favor and die with dignity. Not like a coward." He hissed under his breath. "I can't tell you why I'm here. Why fate and luck likes to s**t on us both but maybe I'm here so I know you've given up. That I shouldn't expect anything from you anymore. Maybe I'm here to drive you to the end- but for ******** sake Toren." His hand lifted in exasperation. "We have mauvians, magic- even then, you could try to adapt, use your skills in other ways. Giving up- You just give Leto the satisfaction of beating you one final time." Remarque was not one he could see as a man for torture. But Leto? He knew the history, and she was a woman who was rather willing to do what needed to be done.
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iStoleYurVamps
iStoleYurVamps
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Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2019 8:05 pm
"Then I'll ******** kill myself." He shot back, growling out what Castor seemed to have stated was the most fit ending for him. "You don't think I haven't thought about that. Just powering up and waiting for the next piece of s**t to come kill me, but would YOU be happy with any nobody killing you? Someone who didn't even make any effort in this war to just waltz in and kill you in whatever sloppy, piss-poor way they manage." The very idea of some green agent coming over and delivering the blow felt inherently wrong to him to the very core of himself. It was one thing to want to die in battle, but he wanted the person to do it to actually be worth their salt.
"You want the cats to give me magic eyes? I think you're playing a lot on what magic can even do. They're techies. Not magicians. No one is going to Harry Potter me a set of eyeballs. If we had that technology, a lot more senshi would be coming around for miracle cures for themselves."
"I already thought over and over about this. If I'm not fighting, then I'm just sitting around offering advice and you saw how that knight meeting went. No one wants to listen to anyone else even when you know what the hell you are talking about. No one is going to listen to some blind guy who is a traitor who with each passing month gets more and more removed from what's even happening in the war. I can't train anyone either. I don't have any other skills than that. It's the only thing I spent all my time doing."
"I don't care about Leto anymore. I took and took from her to make up for what she took from me, and at the end of it I finally realized that there is nothing that will fix anything or make things even feel remotely right again. If Leto wants to kill me, at least that's something I feel is fit and deserves to do it. Better than some nobody off the street."
He leaned back in his chair, exhausted and frustrated.
"Maybe I'll just let you do it. One last fight. Maybe that's why you're here."
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Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2019 10:59 pm
He snorted, resisting the urge to get up and get a coffee for some ability to keep his mind from wandering. But, Elzo knew that he was likely talking to a brick wall. Nothing would change so much as simply make Toren mad. Yet, wasn't that in a way what he wanted? "Maybe. I admit, being killed by a green horn would be annoying, but it wouldn't make it easy for them. I'd want to go out fighting in the end- as long as I go out defying those who took everything I once loved and served, then I think I could be reborn at peace with that. But- that's me. For you-" He smiled. "How about it then Wolfy? One final match. I'll even stick to my eternal form and wear a blindfold if you want." He reached out to pick up an unused knife from the table. "Now that I think about it, letting you get killed by some nobody does piss me off. If Leto doesn't get to kill you, I want to. You're one of the few that I think I would have fun fighting to the death. Or-" He tapped the blunt knife on Toren's hand. "You tell me what you want, and your prince goes and sees what he can do for you."
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iStoleYurVamps
iStoleYurVamps
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Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2019 7:54 am
He turn d his hand over to touch the plastic knife, finding it comical. Castor and him had played with deadly weapons and we're use to such viciousness. A plastic knife felt like being a civilian. Dull, fragile, and commerical. Barely efficient in doing the simple tasks of buttering a bagel.
He couldn't turn into that. It made his skin crawl.
"I don't know what I want now." He confessed, but couldn't help the amused smile at Castor offering his help. He was offering him an honorable out.
"Alright princess. Here." He reached in his pocket and slide the phone to him across the table.
"If I figure it out and decide on it, then let me call you to set up this final fight. And don't pity me with a damn blindfold and eternal form. If I'm going to die at your hands, I expect nothing but your best. At least give me that."
He wouldn't tell Wyatt. He didn't need that or him in his life.
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Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2019 11:07 am
There he was- there was the man Elzo -Castor- held a twisted respect and admiration for. "Alright Wolfy." Putting the dull knife back he set it down to pick up the phone. The click of numbers was louder to him, perhaps a mental after effect of the awareness of Toren's new state that made him notice such. "I put my contact in as Princess. Just for you of course. But if you make a decision- all out. No crutches, I'll come at you like I always have." He pushed back away from the table the rake of the chair on the floor loud. "You're too good to roll over and die Toren. I have a feeling you'll find a way to adapt and fight again." The thought came like a joke but he smiled, moving to the man's side. "Besides, I'd want to see you one last time before out final goodbye." He was mean, pecking the man's cheek before laughing and walking away. "Ciao piccolo lupo."
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iStoleYurVamps
iStoleYurVamps
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Posted: Mon Feb 11, 2019 7:30 pm
"Princess? I'm glad you've accepted your title." He said, reaching out on the table to feel around for the phone before finding it and taking it back into his pocket.
He turned his head when he heard the chair move and guessed it was time to say goodbye and he was glad for it. He didn't want to have Elzo see him struggle to leave the building and struggle to get into the back seat of a taxi.
Then, just as he thought Elzo was moving past him to leave, he tensed as he felt the man right by his face and the warmth of his lips against his cheek. The reaction was instantaneous as he tensed, bristling at the contact as it rushed a wave of repressed memories between them as he went red.
Just as he turned to say something, Elzo was already too far away that he'd have to shot to be heard. Gritting his teeth, he stared in the direction he heard his voice. "That little s**t." He grumbled before settling back into his seat.
He reached back into his pocket for his phone and let the weight of it settle in his hand along with the decision he could now make.
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