TERRACE Draft - Day 1

[lucetimods]

Who: All Draftees
What: Arrival at TERRACE
When: The first day, from 8AM to the wee hours of the night
Where: TERRACE!
Summary: Information post here
Rating: Varies on thread, please mark explicit material.

This post covers the first day, before the attack. Remember, characters here are not expecting an attack and are under the impression they will be going to Region 1 to fight. During this day, draftees will be restricted to T6 and T7 and not permitted access to other areas.

Be sure to tag this post appropriately: [canon] character name

Comments

[deathsdoctor]

"No problem."

He lets her adjust and breathe and get her bearings as best she can, before laying a gentle hand on her shoulder, careful not to startle her.

"Are you going to be okay alone for a little bit while I get Itachi? I promise I will be back with him as soon as possible."

He's already mentally reaching for his lover's presence, shifting through the bright sea to find his soul.

[fleurdesel]

She starts all the same, shoulders curling in as she hunches back against the wall. Just Law, she knows it is just Law, but she can't help it.

"...I'll. I'll manage." She can't see the sky, and it's quiet enough for her to focus on her breathing. She'll be fine. She has to be.

[deathsdoctor]

He nods slowly, having found Itachi. She'll... cope. It'll have to do.

"Alright. I'll be fast." Promising that again, but she needs to hear it. And with that, he swiftly slips from the room and into the crowds.

The ninja was not too far...

[yourhatred]

The ninja was indeed not far, and in fact when Law came to meet him he hardly seemed surprised by his arrival. The pirate wasn't all that difficult to pick out with his Sharingan activated, after all. They spent enough time in each other's company that he could almost sense the man's searching without it.

He would be swift in following, once the situation was explained. Dealing with this sort of thing isn't generally what he uses his abilities for, but he doesn't believe it to be an impossibility, and the last thing they need at this point is a shortage among their healing staff.

Itachi even entered the room slowly, so as not to cause undue stress on the woman.

[fleurdesel]

She was leaning against the far wall still when Law and Itachi arrived. Still trembling, still counting under her breath to steady her breathing, and despite her best efforts she did flinch a little when the door opened. Habit that she thought she'd gotten over months ago.

Apparently not.

[deathsdoctor]

Law frowns a little as he lets himself and Itachi in. No one's come in yet aside from them - and that's a fact he's grateful for. He doesn't want gawkers, especially after seeing that flinch, and as soon as Itachi gets started, he'll stand guard by the door to keep anyone else out.

For now he goes to kneel by her side.

"Adele? It's Law. I've brought Itachi for you."

[yourhatred]

Itachi kept the same slow pace as he approached her, but didn't yet join Law in kneeling. He didn't want to crowd her, and he stood back so that he wasn't towering over her either. Here she could get a good look at him before he began.

"I'm sure you remember me. We've met before." He kept his hands at his side, voice even, Sharingan not yet activated. "I can try to help you if you want it, but I need your permission. This is a relatively harmless illusionary technique, but I won't force it upon you."

[fleurdesel]

"I can't work like this." She murmurs, frustrated and furious at herself and thoroughly ashamed. This, more than anything else, is what she considers to be her largest flaw and it's open and available for her superior and Itachi to see.

At least they won't hold it against her. At least she's not crying anymore.

"If it'll help- please. I can't. I can't do anything like this."

[deathsdoctor]

Law nods. This is Itachi's show now, and it's time for him to back off and let his partner take command.

He does lay his hand briefly on Adele's shoulder and squeeze gently. It will be fine.

[yourhatred]

With Law backing away, Itachi took his spot in front of the woman, placing himself on one knee.

"My clan is both gifted and cursed with the ability to use the Sharingan - a shift in the eyes that allows for many various techniques. I only have it in one eye now, so when just that eye turns red do not be alarmed." As he said this, his right eye shifted to a bright red. "Now, in a moment a dark pinwheel will form in the center. I want you to stare straight at it. Will you do that for me?"

He didn't wait before allowing it to change to the Mangekyo, but he sat still, letting her take it in. It was important that he speak her through each step until he activated the illusion. The safer she felt, the better.

[fleurdesel]

Hypnotic eyes. She'd never heard of such a thing- but after her association with Law, Luke, and Saori Adele had learned to not be so surprised or skeptical of what she is told. Especially when it was being used to help her. Despite the warning her eyes widen at the abrupt shift- but nothing else.

She couldn't be bothered to speak, but she did nod, the entirety of her focus bent on Itachi's odd eye. It was odd, it was almost frightening, but this was a man that meant to help her, brought by a man that she had chosen to trust.

Feel free to skip this guy the next few rounds

[deathsdoctor]

Law's quietly taking up his position at the door. Mangekyo, huh? Itachi's going to pull out all the stops.

He has nothing to say. This will be done soon. All he needs to do is make sure they aren't disturbed.

[yourhatred]

The moment Adele looked into the ninja's eyes, she was drawn into his illusion. The Sharingan worked quickly that way.

The two of them suddenly stood alone in a darkened expanse, nothing above or below them. Despite this, it felt solid and stable. Here, both of Itachi's eyes were normal and dark but focused on her all the same. He wore clothes suited to her world - comfortable, everyday work clothes.

"This is a place within your mind," he began calmly. "Any amount of time we spend here will be a mere second on the outside. Let me put you a little more at ease."

The darkness brightened, the area becoming a wide open field that spread out for miles around them.

[fleurdesel]

For a breath she's reminded of that same, weightless void involved in Helios' teleportations. Were it not for Itachi's presence and the rather sturdy sensation of ground underfoot she might have gone off in another fit. But there's a sense of ground, of gravity, of stability, and that keeps her settled.

Over the years she's had quite a few individuals rifle around in her mind. Jedi, gods good and evil, the malnosso. And this is the first time it's at all seemed normal- as though she's not entirely out of control. That more than anything else eases her mind. The almost familiar field that makes her think of home also helps. "It's brighter than I thought it would be."

[yourhatred]

"This is only temporary. Well, unless it really suits you. Unfortunately, only I can create things here, or I would allow you to imagine all you wanted." A chair appeared behind each of them, and he took a seat. "It would usually be darker. The Tsukuyomi is a technique forced upon an opponent - a world where I could put them through innumerable tortures until I achieved the desired result, often causing a fair amount of mental trauma."

He gestured to the surrounding countryside. "That is not the case here. You have let me into your mind willingly, and as such this will be a simple, calming genjutsu that I perform. I want you to be aware of the difference.

"Now, Ms. Adele, what place makes you feel the safest? If you had to go anywhere in any world to hide from what you fear, where would that be?"

[fleurdesel]

"...At any other time I would find that more disconcerting than I would informative." It was well and good to be upfront with the extent of his abilities, yes, and she did appreciate it. Later she might think back on this, if she remembered it, and worry. But for the moment she sat as she was bid and looked out to the fields. Found solace in them.

The question had an immediate answer, one she elaborated upon as soon as she was able to sort out her thoughts.

"The cottage." She said. "In Normandy, not far from the coast. It has been in my family for generations and is modest. Comfortable. Safe."

[yourhatred]

He was aware of the effect his words might have, and it would be smart of her to worry despite the fact that he meant no harm. But she had allowed him into her headspace, and he felt it only fair that she be aware of exactly how dangerous he could be in a similar situation.

"Good. I would like you to think of that place now, and I will pull from your mind what I can to recreate that setting for you here. Will you do that for me?" This was her mind, and thus he wasn't limited to his own memories, but he also wasn't going to pry into anything she didn't first offer herself.

[fleurdesel]

As he asked, she did, allowing her eyes to slip closed and her mind to wander to the simple stone building that held so many fond memories for her as a child. It wasn't a large or particularly ornate structure, weathered from wind and rain and time, nestled in a messy thicket of bushes and ivy that needed tending. A gravel drive to a wooden overhang for cars, a cobblestone path down through a treeline to the crash of the ocean- every detail she could put into place, she did.

[yourhatred]

It didn't need to be a perfect mental image, as every detail was stored somewhere in her memory whether she could bring it up directly or not. Thinking about it just greatly eased the process.

As she did, the world around them shifted, the cottage coming into focus until they were sitting in the middle of it. Every detail was perfect, every nook and cranny just as she was familiar with. Outside, the view expanded as far as the eye could see, but no further. It was a few square miles of her own personal world.

"There. Now, Ms. Adele, this place exists here in your mind. The genjutsu should hold until our power limitations are put back into place. If the heights cause you to panic, you should instantly feel as though you are back here in the safest place in the world, even if the outside view doesn't change." He was pleased with the outcome, honestly. He'd never done this before.