week 1

[airlockedmods]

Week 1

[After the reveal of their handsome and well-dressed but stern-looking Overseer on Sunday, the Champions were left to their own devices in investigating the mall to their hearts' content. At around 10 pm every night the lights in all the shops will go down and the sturdy metal grates over the doors of the restaurants will go down. The stores will remain unlocked, though.

On Monday morning, a buzzing alarm chirps at them again from their PIPs at 7 am on the dot. There's also a pop-up message waiting for them: a notice announcing Xander will be holding office hours

Enjoy your week, Champions.]

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

Comments

[burninglight]

[literally, junpei]

I’d not expected anyone else to be here. [Ardyn sounded dazed, like he wasn’t entirely there himself.] I couldn’t sleep. That’s all.

[misanthropicprinciple]

So you're... taking apart half the store?

[Junpei squints, then moves to ostensibly browse the contents of the computer station. His attention's still on Ardyn.]

Tell me you're not making another bomb.

[burninglight]

I’ll put it back together. I simply find working with machinery helps me think. Usually.

[misanthropicprinciple]

Not so much tonight, huh?

[He does finally look away, reading over the computers' specs.]

Guess I get that. That sure was something.

[burninglight]

Quite the understatement, but yes.

[misanthropicprinciple]

...I owe you an apology, I think.

[burninglight]

[The screwdriver in Ardyn's hand slipped, nearly scratching the panel he was trying to remove.]

I'm...excuse me, what?

[misanthropicprinciple]

For giving you so much shit about being a supervillain and everything else. Which, don't get me wrong, your profile is still shady as hell. But you did a lot today. So... sorry for being an asshole. And thanks for your help.

[burninglight]

[Ardyn blinked at Junpei like he'd never heard something so ridiculous in his life and didn't know what to make of it.]

...You weren't incorrect. I am not a good person, to say the least. What happened today...I'm not certain who that was, but I don't think that it was me.

[misanthropicprinciple]

What, you think you were possessed?

[It's asked much more mildly than one might expect. Like it's a genuine possibility to consider.]

[burninglight]

What--not literally, no. Don't be ridiculous.

[jUNPEI]

I meant more to the effect of...instincts I'd forgotten I had, those of a person I've not been in centuries.

[misanthropicprinciple]

And the person you are now would've... what? Stood there? Enjoyed it? Even though it was as much a show of his power over us as his power over Church and Nari? I'm not sure a supervillain would put up with that, either. Maybe it depends on the supervillain.

[He glances over his shoulder at Ardyn before shrugging and returning to his perusal of the wares.]

You don't have to be a good person to do good things. It's all subjective, anyway. You helped my friend, so I'm thanking you.

[burninglight]

...Fine. I don't quite care enough to tell you that's ridiculous, so I'll save my breath. Apparently I actually need that now.

[misanthropicprinciple]

Did you not need to as an immortal supervillain? Bet that came in handy at some point.

[burninglight]

Conditionally. I could still be killed all sorts of gruesome and unappealing ways, but I would just come back from them. Drowning and the like tends to take a bit longer than they should; quite annoying, to tell the truth.

[misanthropicprinciple]

Ah. Uhh, can't say I relate. Most of my deaths happened a lot faster than I wanted them to.

1/2

[burninglight]

Oh, the vast majority of mine have admittedly been rather sudden, I-

[burninglight]

What do you mean 'most'?!

[misanthropicprinciple]

I mean, the time I drowned I'd already been stabbed in the back, so that went pretty quickly. Suffocating took a while, but, you know, I had the woman I loved in my arms, so I could've stood a couple more minutes of that, probably. But spirit willing, body weak, et cetera.

[burninglight]

Please do no tell me there's more than one immortal in this disaster.

[misanthropicprinciple]

Oh, no, I'm ridiculous levels of mortal. Seriously, I don't know if it's my personality or I'm just damn unlucky, but I'm all sorts of killable.

Which I probably shouldn't be telling you, but, ugh, whatever. No, I'm not immortal.

[burninglight]

[???????????????????]

Then...what?

[misanthropicprinciple]

...It's really hard to explain without sounding like a crazy person.

[burninglight]

I think I've had enough of crazy and impossible things for a few days, haven't you?

[misanthropicprinciple]

Let's put it this way. I'm psychic, and I'm the kind of psychic whose powers are triggered partially by the danger of my own death, which then lets me... uh... psychically... time travel? To make better choices and not die. Dahhh, that's not really how it works but it's been enough of a day I'm just going to call the explanation there.