[Halloween-R]Prompt 3 - Like a sore thumb[Maya x Diesel]

[Shanyume]

Prompt: Trees stretch in every direction, tall and dark and full of unfriendly shadows. Nothing about the area seems safe, and there is a darkness in the forest. If you travel into the forest, you will find that no matter what path you take, the village is always within sight behind you. Any direction, any distance, any time you spend--the village will always be within sight. There is no barrier to stop you, just a strange, infinitely looping forest. Within the forest you find no recognizable trees or landmarks.  

[Shanyume]

October was finally here! The one month out of the entire year that Piper looked forward to the most.

For as active as she was through the other eleven months, this was the time where she plopped down in front of her large screen TV and binge-watched horror films, mostly classics but a few of the newer ones were usually tossed in as long as they were free on Netflix or Amazon Prime. At least, that was what she was planning on doing this evening. Unfortunately, it seemed that Darya was busy, or perhaps she was not in the mood this time around which inadvertently put Piper in quite a funk.

There were going to be several types of snacks including BBQ Lit’l Smokies, but eating and watching movies alone just didn’t sound all that fun and so she decided to do something she hadn’t done in well over a year… Look for real monsters instead.

Things were going well enough until the fog rolled in. It seemed like a slow creep at first but then it was all around. The dense moisture made it difficult to see more than a few blocks away but the way it moved, like tendrils seeking… grabbing onto whatever it could onto. Cold swept over her bare skin like Jack Frost’s tender kiss and before she could so much as jump away the cityscape turned into a forest full of trees, and there… in the near distance was a weathered town that appeared to have several buildings that had toppled over either from age or a rough storm.

“Well, s**t…” Maya crossed her arms under her chest and just stood there a moment looking around. It had been a hot minute since she last powered up so it took a little bit of time for her to remember the rules and logistics of running around as a Page of Ganymede as opposed to being a civilian. It wasn’t like she had really anticipated running into anyone this evening and yet she could sense several powered individuals not all that far away.

“Might as well see where this road leads.”

Minutes felt like hours and it seemed no matter how far she walked, the village always remained within view. It was a strange sensation, to feel like she was trapped in some odd loop of some sort, like a horse on a tether she could only go so far but it wasn’t like there was a barrier keeping her here either.

Huh, I wonder if I could escape by going to my wonder…It was a thought, and once she was inclined to try until she saw something, or rather someone, out wandering the perimeter as she was.

Their aura was chaos, not that it mattered because from where she stood they appeared as lost as she was. And so, without any hesitation, Maya approached the young man. “Here I thought I stood out in this dreary place.” She smiled up at him with a glimmer of amusement in her pale purple eyes. “Name’s Maya!” The Page of Ganymede thrust her black-gloved hand out towards him in a friendly greeting.

Indigo_Plateau

 

[Indigo_Plateau]

Shanyume

He wasn't thrilled about being left alone, but then, even under normal circumstances, Diesel had always preferred to be among others. He'd started awake as more light filtered through the shelter window, only to find that Nat and Narci had already departed to do-

Well, he didn't really know what. The amount of things to do here seemed pretty minimal. No school, no car, no computer, no cell phone, and everyone seemed in a rank mood all the time: not really up for going exploring or playing games. Diesel expected it was at least in part because of what he was. "Corrupt," the other side, someone not to be trusted by the bulk of White Moon people that had gotten dumped here with him.

Fine, he guessed, but it wasn't like he'd ever done anything to anyone. He'd only been Diesel for like a day before all this had happened. No reason to be mean about it.

He grumbled as he sat up, scrubbing at his eyes with the heels of his palms only to be reminded with a faint burning that he was still wearing his one-day contacts. ******** great. Just another typically minor inconvenience that suddenly felt like an inescapable weight in this world. With a groan, Diesel slid from beneath Rakovanite's coat that he was using as a blanket and was met with chilly air. DC wasn't usually too bad about cold at this time of year, but this forest village just never seemed to get warm.

Buh.

He didn't want to catch the foul mood, but man, it just seemed like there was no winning in a place like this... For anyone.

With nothing to do inside, Diesel headed out. Maybe he could catch his brother or Narcissus hanging around and see if they'd found anything worth thinking about since they'd been gone... Or maybe he could go nab some twigs from the forest and get a fire going. Even if he didn't have any survivalist skills on "How to Keep Warm," he was sure his magic could help with that much.

He blearily started wandering toward the direction of the woods when-

A girl was there.

He blinked dumbly in confusion. "Say huh?" He asked articulately, squinting at the girl in the... the uh... lingerie... Heat rose to his cheeks, obscured mostly by the darkness of his skin as he stared not-inconspicuously at the girl's chest. And then sharply up to her face, and then down again. "Uh, I'm Diesel," he answered as he reached for her outstretched hand. "And I wouldn't worry. You stand out plenty."  

[Shanyume]

As someone who was in the process of making a career out of extreme modeling, Maya actually found his double-take to be quite flattering. She smirked when his gaze met hers then fell back to her chest.

“I’m going to take that as a compliment.” Her haughty reply was punctuated by a shift in posture, one that exuded confidence with a hint of pride in how she looked.

At least her uniform was crafted well enough to now let him see how cold she actually was, a blessing for sure because that would be hella awkward. “Not exactly the warmest outfit, but I’ve been in worse situations.” Probably not the most eloquent thing to say when meeting someone for the first time and while it would likely just be taken as a joke, it was in fact the truth.

Back in January she had done a bathing suit shot on a snowbike back when the winter storm swept through Destiny City. Why? people often ask her. And her reply each time was, Why not? The cold only lasted for a week but the photos she got from it were worth it.

Nonetheless, a long coat or a blanket would be greatly appreciated but she suspected that finding one that hadn’t already been claimed would be a next to impossible feat.

“So, Corrupt…” she said with pause since he still hadn’t offered up his name in return. “What brings you out here? Looking for something specific or just simply exploring?”

Indigo_Plateau

 

[Indigo_Plateau]

Shanyume

"I guess this being powered thing kinda really equips everyone for more provocative circumstances, rather than practical ones, hm?" Diesel observed as he pinched his fingers into the tight leather over his thigh and plucked at it. Not his preferred wear, for sure. But he'd be lying if he said he hated it. He disliked it a little more in the chilly weather of this bizarre world, but still couldn't quite complain too much.

It helped that his magic was decent at keeping him warm.

He'd assumed the whole "mostly-scantily-clad" thing was reserved for senshi. While he and Narcissus were stuck in their short-sleeved shirts and tight pants, Rakovanite was dressed in about six layers already. Diesel's knowledge of all these factions and whatnot was relatively limited with how fresh to the field he was, but... He squinted at the girl and the way she called him "corrupt." He didn't think she was a senshi.

Just something on "the other side," he supposed. So she was probably doing that whole bit where people judged before they knew who they were talking to. He shrugged. "Come on, don't be that way. I said it's Diesel."

"And I'm pretty new at this, sooo... What are you, exactly?"

Definitely nothing on his side of the tracks, and probably not a senshi, though he didn't have the practice differentiating auras to be sure. Diesel had to assume she was some kind of knight, but he definitely didn't know any more about it than that.

He scratched the back of his head, tipping his gaze up toward the sky as he combed his fingers through long, highlighter-vibrant hair. "I guess I was hoping my brother would be close by, but no surprise he ran off somewhere without me. Maybe all of you are used to this kind of magic teleportation and whatnot, but I have to admit, I'm not crazy about it. What are you supposed to do in a place like this?"  

[Shanyume]

"Honestly, I wish I had an answer for you, Diesel." This time she said his name out loud as a conscious effort to actually remember it rather than offend him again by calling him a corrupt.

Maya stretched her arms above her head and was greeted with a satisfying pop from between her shoulder blades. The beds they had to sleep on were significantly better than having to sleep on the floor, however, they were still much more firm than she would have liked.

"I'm used to them coming to us, not the other way around. I'm just as new to this whole being whisked away as y'all are. Fortunately, you're not alone, you at least have family here with you." Well, perhaps not at this very moment but somewhere within the village or foggy veil he had a brother wandering around. She was just glad that Darya hadn't been brought here too, it had been a long while since either of them had powered up that Maya wasn't sure how well she'd fare in a place like this.

"To answer your other question. Name's Maya," She thrust her hand out towards him in a way of an asertive yet formal greeting. "I'm a knight, a Page of Ganymede to be precise." Similar to their agents, even they had ranks and hers was an equivalent to their lieutenants. Given that this wasn't exactly her first rodeo, it should come as at least a little bit of surprise that she wasn't at least a Squire yet. But that would require taking a hiatus from both extreme modeling and racing; however, she enjoyed that part of her life far more than running around at night looking for trouble, or having trouble find her.

"What do you say we go try to find your brother? Make sure he ain't lost out here." They could still chat while walking and at least this way nobody would think the two of them were fighting if they were casually moving around rather than staying stationary.

Indigo_Plateau

 

[Indigo_Plateau]

Shanyume

Ganymede, huh? It wasn't any planet he'd ever heard of, but then neither was Diesel. The knight didn't exactly look like what he expected a knight would look like, either, but he didn't have too many references to base it off of, besides storybooks and movies. So, he shrugged it away. Stuff like recognizing knights and their planets would come in time, probably. No need to stress over it now. The girl seemed nice enough to not take advantage of his ignorance.

"Nice ta meet'cha," Diesel said, taking her proffered hand with a crooked grin of his own. "Sucks to meet ya here." Or, like, maybe not? He still didn't really know what it would be like to meet an 'enemy' face-to-face back in Destiny City.

He didn't know what to say about his "fortune," either. Having Nat with him was... good, of course! He didn't know where he'd be in terms of survival without his big brother looking out for him. But it was stressful in its own way. Nat was difficult to please on a good day, so for Diesel to be stuck with his grouchy brother as pretty much his only source of comradery was less than ideal. He couldn't really complain. It was better than having no one. But not by much.

And that seemed too much to explain to this nice girl. "Yeeeah, let's do it," Diesel agreed with a shrug.

Nat was probably in the village, maybe looking for food or other supplies or whatever. Even if Diesel had been looking for him, now that he'd found someone else, that seemed good enough. He notched his head away from the village and back toward the trees. "Maybe in there?"  

[Shanyume]

"Hmm" Maya nodded her head decisively "We can check o'er there if you'd like" Probably wasn't the wisest idea to head away from the village. But they were scouting the area together so it should be ok, right?

"Ya know. It's probably best we'd met out here. At least everyone's as confused and lost as we are." Better to have the first encounter with someone when the two of them shared a common unknown enemy than on the streets of Destiny City when the enemy would be the other person looking their way. As confusing as all that may sound, it made more sense in her head at the time. "Curious, does your brother often ditch you like this?" She would have assumed that siblings would try to stick together in situations like this.

Indigo_Plateau

 

[Indigo_Plateau]

Shanyume

Diesel glanced from the village, back out to the forest, and then to the girl with him. "Might as well," he said with a careless little shrug. "Seen the rest of the place a dozen time over already, huh?" And he was totally fine with doing anything with just about anyone, anywhere. He could completely forget about Nat as long as something was occupying him. Might as well go where he couldn't- or wouldn't- otherwise.

The forest was dark and inhospitable and dangerous in that it could obscure how much longer they had until night fell. No one wanted to be hanging around outside once the sun set, and the trees made it especially difficult to tell, what with the already-constant cloud cover.

But he'd just woken up. There was probably plenty of day left. Nothing to worry about.

"Less taboo, I guess?" He offered. "I don't feel like I'll be hunted down for talking to you here, or anything. I'm pretty sure that's just a rumor, though. No one would actually do that I'm sure." She didn't seem worried that he'd get her, or anything. Maybe all the Order/Chaos hubaloo was just grossly overplayed, scaring everyone involved for no actual reason.

"It, uh..." Diesel rubbed the back of his head, tousling long, rainbowy strands as he kicked a branch with his boot. "It's kinda complicated," he admitted uncertainly. Nataniel had never been interested in him as Ellian. Hard to 'ditch' someone you never spent time with to begin with. "We're like eight years apart, so we've never been close. I wanted us to be, y'know, since we're both like this now." He gave a little twitch of his hip to flare his long, vibrant hip drape, and gestured to his fuku. "He is- was- looking out for me, sort of, I think, when we got brought here? This pace just doesn't really bring out the best in everyone. It's alright, though. NOt like he's got anywhere better to be, til we get out of here."  

[Shanyume]

Maya kind of envied the corrupt. Even though he and his brother weren't necessairly on great terms, at least they weren't here alone. Couldn't say the same for herself and to be honest she wasn't entirely sure if that was a good or bad thing.

On one hand, it meant that she didn't have to worry about someone she cares about getting hurt; no reason to jump in the line of fire to protect someone. But it also meant that there wasn't anyone here to care if she was snatched away by the fog or this creature thing, nobody to come search for her to make sure she escaped with them if someone managed to find a way back home.

A double-edged sword and unless she could find a way to make a connection with someone, or become relevant in some way, she might never make it back to Destiny City.

"I think everyone's just feelin a bit antsy. A lot of questions and not enough answers. I heard rumor that some people found a few things out here; talismins and such." She hadn't seen what they looked like to know what to keep an eye out for but it was somewhat promising , or so she hoped.

Indigo_Plateau

 

[Indigo_Plateau]

Shanyume

He folded his arms behind his head, and they were immediately tangled in the bright waves of his hair like it was a living entity. Diesel didn't seem bothered by this, he just glanced up toward the shadowy canopy, where tiny pinpricks of faded light were filtering through the leaves. "It's dreary here," he muttered, so not really a wonder anyone was antsy. Place wasn't home. Even if there was just one monster to contend with, instead of countless cross-faction human enemies.

"Kinda boring, kinda dreary, kinda stuck with a bunch of people you probably wouldn't interact with otherwise. Sucks, for sure." He shrugged. "But y'know, won't be forever, one way or another. I don't hate doing something different. Just wish it was a little more... I don't know, exciting?"

Which was crazy, since they were all being effectively hunted every night, but when they weren't being hunted, they were just being depressed. So. Not great.

"Like, right now? You and me? There's probably all kinds of cool s**t we could do in a forest in DC. I bet there's a wicked game of hide and seek to be played with these powers." Though probably not for him. His magic was a loud giveaway. "But here? More important to be quiet and unobtrusive, I guess." Not Diesel's favorite thing, at all. "So, uh, anyway, those talisman things. They do anything?"  

[Shanyume]

Maya laughed at how her own thoughts were reflected in his open musings.

"Trust me, I feel the same way," Diesel was right on many accounts. It was boring as balls out here and she too felt that everyone, not only the two of them, could use some excitement for a change. Something to give everyone a measure of motivation because this damned dense gloomy fog combined with lack of good sleep was draining to the point of near depression.

His suggestion of hide-and-seek had her consider suggesting a spar or some sort of relay. However, she wasn't entirely inclined to give the monster reason to come out of hiding nor give his brother an excuse to put her in her place or god forbid kill her if things between them got a bit out of hand. Probably best not to instigate things when one small mishap could turn this makeshift-powered community situation into a fight between factions simply because she was bored.

"As for the talismans, I have no idea. Saw one of the mauvians lookin' at one earlier. I think she was as lost on it as everyone else." No idea if it had anything to do with the fog or played some part in keeping the night prowler monstery thing at bay until evening hours.

Maya found herself wishing that someone had left a journal in one of the homes, something that had documented what had happened in the past and what to expect going forward. Also, a note on how to get out would be helpful as well but that was reaching pretty far even for her.

"So, back home. What kinda things do ya do for fun or excitement?"

Indigo_Plateau

 

[Indigo_Plateau]

Shanyume

He glanced back to the village. Despite walking out into the swath of trees that surrounded it, the myriad of crumbling shelters was still easily in sight, a handful of yards away. "You think everyone does?" He asked more quietly as she agreed to sharing his sentiments. "Like, if we were home, and this many people were lumped together, it'd be a whole thing, right? Big fight. Buckets of blood. A whole gory affair of everyone trying to like, murder everyone else." Which is how he imagined it when Rakovanite used words like "war" and "enemies" and "battles." They had full-blown weapons to bludgeon people with.

Still seemed kind of excessive to him, but he was pretty new at this. What did he know? He was kind of just along for the ride in all this.

But the whole "war" thing- He'd lived in Destiny City his whole life, and even if weird s**t happened sometimes, it wasn't that bad, as far as he was concerned. But this... "Is a fight really worse than what we're getting here? Presumably we're all basically dead to everyone back home. It's been days. The disenchanted, apathetic, somber looks everyone's shooting one another seem way worse than just having a fight about it. That'd at least be exciting. All the passion."

Doing something was better than doing nothing, even if Diesel was totally fine with the white-wearers not coming at him for donning black.

"Mauvians here too, huh? Haven't seen any, yet. Kinda figured it was just a 'people' thing. Guess that's not surprising, though. They're as involved as any one, and if something can figure out how to get back, it'd probably be the hyper intelligent alien cats."

That was like they're job to know about all those weird space worlds, right? Maybe this was just someone's homeworld. If it was, a Mauvian could figure it out.

Diesel gave a little shrug. "I dunno, the usual, I guess? I go to the lake, graffiti, parties. Been doing the senshi thing some, checking out if anyone else is around. Sometimes just like to drive around. Have gotten into a couple races at night, but my car's not built for them, or anything. How 'bout you? Anything like, really good?"  

[Shanyume]

At the mention of car racing, Maya's eyes lit up with a measure of excitement that could only really be related to someone who had long since searched for a kindred spirit and had finally found them.

"I've never raced cars. However," paused for dramatic effect. "I do race dirt bikes and motorcycles." The weather hasn't been great for it lately so recently it's just been going to the track for a bit of fun. But once the snow season ends and things clear up, she'll definitely be out there with the best of them soon enough.

It is such a shame that she met Diesel while powered. Maya mentally pouted at the missed opportunity to ask if she could ride shotgun with him sometime. "Tell me! What's it like drifting around a corner? Is it as exciting as it looks?"

Indigo_Plateau

 

[Indigo_Plateau]

Shanyume

Diesel felt her excitement more than he even saw it, and even though he'd been wishing they weren't here, at the thought of what he could be doing, he felt a stab of longing. A day or two in the dreary village was fine. He didn't actually hate anyone here and would say that he might even like the strange, awkward predicament for being something unexpected and unexplored.

But he could be in his car, down the alleys of the depo district with other idiot high schoolers thinking they were out doing something cool. He could be tearing into his mother's cooking or snuggling with his cat, or...

Just not wandering around looking for his brother who was probably too busy boning the Dark Mirror boy to worry about how lonely Diesel felt.

"Uh, hah-" A snort (that may have been a disguised sniffle) erupted from his throat, and he gave a shrug. "Like I said, my car's not built for it. It's an automatic, so there's pretty much no drifting. I've definitely swerved hard enough to mash myself up against the door, and I think it's probably equivalent to that. Kinda a long shot from getting any lift off a dirt bike track, though. You pro'lly got it better than me. Anyway..."

He glanced back toward the village, right exactly the same distance away as it had been the last time he'd checked. It was like they were on a treadmill and the scenery on pulleys. Things were moving, but they weren't going anywhere. And if they weren't going anywhere, they probably wouldn't find anyone they were looking for. "Guess we should head back," he grumbled, jerking his thumb over his shoulder and back toward the village. "Got a feeling there's not much else to find out here."