ic contact;

[psycholawgy]

You've reached Athena Cykes. I'm currently unavailable, but leave a message and I'll get back to you pronto. Danke! (voice/call → text → video → action)

Comments

[psycholawgy]

[ she shifts a bit and draws up her feet, folding them and embracing them. ]

I wish I could do everything.

[ there's a reason why she asked ardeo if he could give her superpowers. ]

[faithfulflame]

[Rei keeps leaning, but does let go. Thanks for being a comfortable person, Athena.]

And I wish I could be able to do everything too. But it's not possible, even though I'm immortal. And there's nothing wrong with that.

[She did offer to teach you things...]

[psycholawgy]

... sorry, this is getting depressing, isn't it?

[faithfulflame]

Only if you dwell on it. I didn't come here to see you and be sad, though.

[Sips tea.]

I came to apologize for worrying you. I knew you'd know, so when I woke up I came right here after getting changed.

[It's perfectly acceptable for Rei to worry about other people, but being worried about bothers her.]

[psycholawgy]

It's- It's fine. I'm just glad you're back.

I'm so tired of losing people.

[faithfulflame]

I am too. But seriously. Is there anything I can do to make up missing drinks with you?

[She's dead serious.]

[psycholawgy]

It's okay, there's nothing I want. [ she faces rei and gives a soft smile. ] I'm just glad you're fine now.

[faithfulflame]

Alright. Though I'm going to insist that drinks? Happen soon.

[And not the tea kind.]

Did something happen to you?

[psycholawgy]

[ she shakes her head slowly. ]

Not in the same way that happened to you. I was taken, too, but nothing bad happened.

[faithfulflame]

Where did you go? And what happened?

[She knows a lot of people were taken. And one in particular makes her blood boil. Her voice is more clipped, businesslike now.]

[psycholawgy]

We were taken below ground... It was dark at first, and we were falling from a pretty great height. And then we found a library. It turns out we were at the bottom of the CERES tower.

[ her story is a bit jumbled up, but after hearing that rei had died, she's become rather frazzled. ]

[faithfulflame]

[A fact that Rei picks up on, and she very patiently sits and waits for Athena to finish before reaching out a hand to her shoulder and squeezing it.]

Athena. Slow down. I know a lot of things happened, but let's start at the beginning, okay?

Who took you below ground? Or did you just appear?

[psycholawgy]

The robot... the one who posted on the network a couple of weeks ago.

[faithfulflame]

What did you find in the library?

[psycholawgy]

Books about the Flamines. There was a ledger, too. Touching it -- it made people disappear, though.

[faithfulflame]

Books about the Flamines? What do they say? [A beat, and then she stops. That's not good.]

Who disappeared, Athena?

[psycholawgy]

Their history... that kind of stuff--

[ a deep breath. ]

Miss Maya Fey. Do you know her?

[faithfulflame]

[Okay. Rei's palm slams down on the table.]

Maya-chan? Oh...no.

[psycholawgy]

It's-- It's fine!

I was so scared, and I thought she died... but we found her later on. She was sent to the Nexus for about ten minutes. She's back now.

[faithfulflame]

OH. Oh...wait.

A ledger sent her into the Nexus? Did...what?!

[psycholawgy]

I think it was haunted... I don't know for sure. I didn't want to touch it after what happened.

[ even now, she's still scared. ]

[faithfulflame]

It probably wasn't haunted. Maya-chan would have probably sensed that. [Mystic Maya and all.] It was probably technology.

I'll have to find her later and check on her. But...what was in those books? Anything of use?

[psycholawgy]

I don't think they're helpful enough... some of the authors said that nobody should try fighting them, though.

[ which makes things difficult for everybody in cerealia, really. ]

[faithfulflame]

No? Did they offer any insight on how to engender goodwill, then? Because the more I hear about this, the more I feel like they may be our best option for escape.

[psycholawgy]

No!

[ it's a jerk reaction, but she calms herself down afterwards. ]

No... Not them.