IC Contact

[aidreamofsenpai]

[Any form of IC contact can go here! Text, video, voice, etc.]

I missed you! I'm really sorry, but I'll contact you as soon as I can!

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[PUZZLE PIECE] During the wraith boss battle:

[xenolalia]

While being attacked by the wraith of Duo Maxwell, Aiichiro will inadvertently make eye contact with him. Aiichiro will receive a memory from the wraith via event mechanics (how mysterious). Aiichiro can share a memory with the wraith, too, but that's an optional exchange. If Aiichiro does share a memory with the wraith, please reply to this comment with a description of it.

The wraith will be temporarily stunned due to this memory transfer, but not for too long.

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The memory that Aiichiro receives from the wraith is expressed via stream-of-consciousness and limited audio/visual feedback:

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Dark. Dark. It's dark. Never any light in the caves. Hate the light. Dark. It's dark. It's boring. Boring boring boring. Boredom. Nothing ever changes down here. When nothing ever changes, it's so boring. I'm bored. Who am I? I'm bored. I wish I could have something to drink. A drink of what? I don't remember. I don't know. I'm bored. It's dark.

The twin thrones are empty. Why are the thrones empty? I'm in the throne room. It's dark. The throne room is dark. The caves are dark. It's boring. Andrew said he wanted to claim the throne for himself, but Naira laughed at him. I laughed at him, too. Andrew is stupid. I'm bored. Boring. Boring. The throne room is dark. Stira says we're going to have a visitor soon. Stira says they must have a death wish. Maybe they're just bored. Maybe they'd rather be bored with us. I'm bored. I am so bored that I feel like crying. What is crying? What is feeling? I don't remember. Quarantine.

Now there is light. There is light. I see the light. Everyone else can see the light. It's coming from the entrance of the throne room. The doors are opening. The doors are open and letting the light in. I'm not bored anymore. I want to know who is responsible for the light. Who is that? Smells like a human. Humans are boring. Light hurts me, but I'm not bored anymore. It's not dark anymore. Who is that? Smells like a human: blood, sweat, flesh, anxiety. Smells like dinner.

One of the thrones isn't empty anymore. The old one is sitting on the throne, speaking to the human. I'm trying to listen to what they're saying. I'm sitting in the shadows. I am what is left behind. I have seen something great and terrible. Don't inject that into me. Please. I'm sorry.

"You were forbidden from returning to this place." That is what the old one says. That is what the king says. That is my king. The wraith king. He saw something great and terrible, too.

"But our situation has taken quite a turn, so old rivalries are largely irrelevant." The human is sweating a lot. He is nervous. Sweating. Blood, sweat, flesh, anxiety. Smells like dinner. "You know that as well as I do, Wraith King. I'm here to find out what you're planning to do next."

"That sounds like you're making a demand, Chase Proietti." The king is unamused. His subjects are unamused. Hiss. Hiss. We're hissing at the human. Go away, human. You aren't wanted here. You're ruining the darkness.

I have seen something great and terrible. The human hasn't seen it yet, but he will see it one day. "I know that we're naturally prone to disagreement, but I'm willing to reopen negotiations with you and your kind. I wish to make genuine, lasting peace with you."

The king is laughing. His subjects are laughing. I'm not laughing, but I feel like laughing. What is laughing? What is feeling? "You wish to save your own hide, you mean."

"Regardless of the reasons why, you should know that I'm a man of my word."

Where is the queen? What is a queen? I don't know. Smells like dinner. I'm thirsty.

"You already know what it is I want. I want to be acknowledged again. If you refuse to acknowledge me, or my contributions, then what good are you to me?"

The human hesitates. The human stutters. "Of all possible requests, you know that's the most difficult one to--"

"I don't care about what is or isn't difficult to you!" The king is roaring at the human. His subjects are retreating into the darkness. Scary. Scary. Scary, but not boring. What is he going to do to the human? "You've stolen everything important to me, rewriting history as you see fit, assigning credit to Scylla or--or to Belenus, for stars' sake. You've turned me into little more than a ghost story that you use to frighten your tiny children into behaving. I was one of the city's core founders, Chase Proietti, and you should tell your masters that I won't be satisfied until I'm fully restored to the annals of history."

"But even speaking your name too loudly can lead to re-education--"

What is re-education? It's painful. It's pleasurable. What is pain? What is pleasure? I don't remember.

"That's a problem for you to solve, then. I eagerly await the good news." The king is standing up from the throne. "If you cannot manage such a simple thing, then I won't be so merciful this time around."

I'm hungry. Smells like dinner.

"You're willing to declare war, Wraith King?"

Quarantine. Don't inject that into me. I'm hungry.

"I'm willing to take back what is mine. By force, if necessary."

--

Including Anger, Sadness, and Confusion, there are several NPCs that would be interested in this information: Gordias, Kierra Kennedy, Mikros Beck, and others. Aiichiro can investigate Ariel's history on his own if he goes to the public library or the history museum after the storm, where he'll receive positive NPC responses. If he wants to confront Chase Proietti later on, he can do that, too. He can also share this information with other Newcomers and decide how to approach it with them.