I'm the ghost of roads untaken

[belegwen]

Who: Medrau and Voices
When: a few nights after Medrau was violently assaulted by Song
Where: A place that is not a place
Note: I'm not making a second lj. I'm too lazy.

Darkness snaked outward from the Stone. It had waited too long for its purpose to be fulfilled. Many of those who once had linked it it were gone, out of its reach. Only two thread remained. The dominant one had waned recently, and the Stone's power reached out to it, seeking the servant who had gone astray.

It found her deep within her other self and injured gravely.

"Weak." "Poor child, whatever have you done to yourself?" "Pathetic." "No worse than you deserve, traitor child." "Go away." "The heart has taken substantial damage, likely from a psychic wound of an internal source." The voices came all at once, overlapping and strange. Only the first voice was strong, the others scarcely more than echoes.

Comments

[fallingdream]

Song's Shadow cowered and quivered under the cruel onslaught, but mad as she might be, she knew it was not of her own making. She knew the taste of the cornerstone's Darkness.

"If I'm so weak, then help me. Free me. You know I'll give you the worlds."

[belegwen]

(Yeah, I'm totally too lazy to get a second account.)

(Also, I didn't realize I wouldn't have options to easily color-code when replying, so my original intention of making it easy for you has fallen by the wayside.)

"Weak," it repeated. "She isn't strong enough." "We should tend her wounds at least." "We can't trust her." "The impulse for survival is still strong, so the construct attempts bargaining behaviors." "You could have easily delivered on that promise if you had obeyed orders."

[fallingdream]

"This way was more fun," she snapped at the last voice, bearing her teeth in an ugly grin.

"Besides, I think loyalty counts as a trait of the Light-hearted, and Song kept all of those. Perhaps... you ought to bind me to your will." It sounded almost like a genuine offer.

[belegwen]

"Fool." "Now she attempts logical fallacies to excuse her behavior.""She lies." "I already have." "She may not last long." "Let her die."

[fallingdream]

Medrau grimaced sharply at the last two, suddenly furious.

"What do you want of me, then?!" she shouted at the sky of her little mental world. "What, exactly, will convince you to assist me?"
She'd get herself out of this mess if she had to - had been working on it before this intrusion, even - but the Cornerstone would make it all immensely easier and less painful, if she could just coerce it into helping.
Unfortunately she was in a few too many pieces to concentrate on negotiations right now.

[belegwen]

"Power." "It is not too late to uphold your end of the bargain." "Now her desperation has transformed to more rational questioning and reasoning behaviors." "Die." "Don't trust her." "There's no need for this. She clearly needs help."

[fallingdream]

She continued to glower upward, projecting enough disdain to twist knots in her own belly.

"Then stop beating around the bush and tell me what to do. Much as I love dragging things out, now isn't the best time," she hissed.

[belegwen]

"Perhaps." "She's dangerous." "She's hurt." "She's useless." "She demonstrates impatience in accordance with her mental pain and distress." "I believe I already answered that question."

[fallingdream]

Anger and fear were steadily being replaced by impatience and irritability.

"In case the lot of you haven't noticed, I can't do anything at the moment. Put me back in control, or tell me how to get there myself, and I'll owe you. Nice little debt to make me feel obligated not to betray you and such. Sounds like a sweet deal to me," she grumbled.

[belegwen]

"Weak." "Don't trust her." "Little bitch deserves to die. I'd do it myself." "She needs help." "You could swear an oath. Something binding." "She transitions to further attempts at bargaining with the support of somewhat faulty logic."

[fallingdream]

Medrau sighed heavily and buried her face in her hands - for all that face and hands both were merely projections of the subconscious in this place.

"Can we just get on with this?" she asked wearily. "I don't have many options here."

[belegwen]

"No." "Why not? She's in trouble." "Impatience ultimately leads to despair." "Let her die. She's useless anyway." "It does seems as if your lighter half has proven stronger than you. How much use do you think you are, if that is the case?" "Make her promise."

[fallingdream]

"I didn't know she could do that," Medrau argued petulantly. "Now I know... and now I might be able to do the same thing. Or manipulate the Darkness she took from me. I imagine you could make that easier... what might I do to her, with that control?" She smiled at the thought. "It's worth finding out."

[belegwen]

"Darkness." "She speculates an interesting theory." "She lies." "As entertaining a possibility as that is, Tinuviel, even should you be able to subvert your Brighter Half, what can you do? You have one ally left, and a poor one at that." "Do it then and stop this endless talking." "What a devious little min she has."

[fallingdream]

"I can't." She sounded grouchy, more than anything else. "I'm too weak right now." Wrinkling her nose at that admission, she rose shakily to her feet.

"So, either you help me, or you wait for me to recover on my own. All bargains and lies aside, I'd prefer the first option if I were you. Waiting is just a bore."

[belegwen]

The first voice does not respond in words, just with a sense of patience that could wait forever and, in fact, already has.

"I wouldn't mind being bored." "In spite of immortality, the shadow shows no indication of patience." "I don't care." "It would be so little effort to help her." "I might even be willing to help you, but you seem to have chosen to ignore me."

[fallingdream]

This was becoming ridiculous.
Did the Cornerstone ever make up its mind? (Well, with so many, perhaps not.)

Medrau threw up her hands and considered turning and storming away, but it seemed like too much effort, subconscious projection or not.

"Fine, alright, if you all can't decide, then I will. I am done. You are dismissed. I'd sooner deal with this on my own than risk being driven to new heights of madness by the voices in my head."

[belegwen]

"Proud." "She's a fool." "Poor thing." "Her comment does lead to the question of madness. Should this unity be considered in insane?" "Do as she says and go!"

Maleficent's voice cut through the babble of the others. "Would all of you be silent?"

ooc

[seolearo]

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