[He's pretty unaware of what Jim is feeling, but he does hear something might be up. He lets it go the moment Jim starts asking.]
That's right. I was adopted by my parents and moved to Balamb. It's a town by the sea famous for it's fish. [There is a pause here.] Eventually it wound up being just Ma and me.
[How many aches can Jim's heart take?
He shakes his head, even if Jim can't see.] They keep that part of Garden a secret. I joined because I want to be like my Grandpa. He was a hero that played a big part in the last war. He wasn't just strong, but he knew how to keep his cool on the battlefield. He lived a life full of battles and died protecting those he cared for. That's what I wanted to do. [And how he imagines his life will end.]
[ -Oh. Jim clutches the tablet a little tighter; he hadn't known. Zell seemed so much more together than he is; maybe he just dealt with it better. He had other problems, apparently. ]
I think -
[ He hesitates, unsure if it'd be welcome, if he's assuming too much, but: ]
-I think he'd be proud of you. Rank-A, saving the world...
[Thump-thump. No one really said that to him. Usually he gets told that his grandpa sounds the complete opposite from him. He's quiet as he stares at the tablet with Jim's username on the screen. Then he slowly smiles big.]
Thanks, Jim. That-[A pause.]That means a lot. [Warmth and fondness seeps into his tone. Why couldn't they get to Jim faster?] I can't take all the credit. I had help from my friends. [Just like here with Jim and everyone else.]
It's just the truth. [ Jim shrugs, but he's got that faint little almost-smile again. ] You grandpa wasn't in the army by himself either, was he? He's still a hero.
[ And so is Zell, if he really did save a planet from witches of all things. ]
So you joined the Garden and became a mercenary...
why am I trying tags now the world may never know- hi i'm a seed want a little seed in you ;D
[Nodding, even if the other can't see. Getting used to him being blind is going to take a while.
People tend not to hear about the other guys in a war. You just hear about the ones who died in combat.
He'll be Jim's hero] Right. I joined Garden and became a mercenary. It hasn't been that long since I became one, you know. [Feels much longer. Like a year ago but it's only been a few months.]
We had our first mission helping out a resistance group. This mission was to follow the client's orders until Timber gained it's independence. It wound up going south and we had to lay low in Galbadia Garden until things cool down. [Going south was putting it lightly.]
It was there we were asked to go to the Galabadia city to assassinate Sorceress Edea.
a little SeeD? is the giant hotdog compensating for something?
[ Good, since Jim's holding out for a hero in the hospital.
Anyway, Jim can't see the nodding, but he hopes Zell took his point anyway. he's leaning a little closer to the tablet to listen, interested in the story. It's a little shocking to hear Zell talk about assassinating someone - his eyebrows shoot up - but he doesn't comment. He's not naive, he knows what a mercenary is, and Zell told him he was one before they even met in person. Anyway, it seems like Sorceresses are bad people and this is all so distant.
So he doesn't comment on that, just nods for Zell to continue. ]
[Complicated might be an understatement. Zell was on gate duty, while their leader and the sharpshooter were on take out duty. He remembers the tang of magic in the air as the bullet was blocked. Remembers seeing the fight and Squall falling...
He makes a slight sound as his voice drops a bit.] You could say that. She was much stronger than any of us could really handle. The mission failed. Our leader was hit and we didn't know if he was alive until after we were locked up.
[Not only assassinations but jail time. Good times, right?
He's going to skip the getting the crap kicked out of him because it wasn't important.] We broke out and learned that the Sorceress ordered an attack on all the Gardens. They shot missiles to one, and had Balamb as their next target. [He stalls a moment.] The youngest you can enroll at Garden is five years old. We had to split up to stop the missiles and warn Garden before it was to late
[ Jail time is at least old hat to Jim! ...the police brutality not so much, but clearly he doesn't need to know about that. He's already worried enough by the drop in Zell's voice, and... ]
She was jut going to kill a bunch of little kids? [ Yeah, assassinations, fine, but murdering a school full of children not so much. ] You got there in time, right?
She wanted to eliminate all SeeDs, which included future SeeDs.
[He's going to skip the chaos they came back to.]
We got there, but didn't have enough time to organize an evacuation. The Headmaster did share another way to save everyone. You see, the Gardens used to be evacuation ships from Centra. A school the size of a frickin small town can actually fly. We had to rush around to get it operational, but we did it, baby! We managed to move it just in time to avoid the missiles. [They were very close to not making it.]
We were left alone after that. They probably thought they took care of us and turned their attention to finding Ellone. [Rubbing the back of his head.] This is where it gets pretty weird. Ellone has the ability to send people's consciousness back in the past. It only works for people she knows. Before she came to the orphanage, she was kidnapped by a different Sorceress and used to make a machine that copied her powers. A sorceress in the future found the machine and used to it control other Sorceress' in the past.
WHOOPS DIDN'T THINK THIS ONE THROUGH DID I? it's all good
[ Jim can't help but grin at Zell's excitement over having moved the entire school. He's proud on his friend's behalf - it sounds like they saved a lot of people, and doing it by flying their school doesn't sound all that strange to Jim.
The rest of it, though... he feels like his brain may be melting out his ears, because none that made any sense. He goes quiet for a minute, in fact, a look of concentration creasing his face. Finally, slowly, he says: ] ...so the witch from the future was making all the other witches evil? She was the one controlling the witch attacking SeeD?
[Sorry Jim, even Zell thinks it's pretty nuts.] Yeah, that's pretty much it.
[There was another evil one, but he's not going to get into that.] She was pretty crazy, man. She wanted to basically end everything until she's the only thing left. She was hoping to fine Sis to use her powers in order to do this. We came up with a plan to let her find Ellone and let her start time compression. Then we'll send her back to her own time and follow her back to kick her butt.
[ Him has so many questions. What's time compression? Is Ellone actually Zell's sister, not his friend? Adopted or ...? Would you be really bored all the time if you ended everything except yourself? Would she actually have ended everything or just the one planet?
Okay, sure, Time Compression was probably more important to the story, but Jim wants to know about Zell. ]
[Some crazy people just don't think about bringing entertainment with them.]
Ellone. She was the oldest in our group, so we call her our sis. [Even if he can't remember much of it, it still feels normal to call her that.] Yeah, it worked. We kicked Sorceress butt and came back.
Yeah. It sounds pretty nuts when you think about it.
[At the time he didn't think about it. He was WAY MORE focused on kicking ass and saving the day.]
When I woke up here, I thought that maybe all the stuff happened afterwards was my mind playing tricks on me. That maybe I was still stuck in time compression. Seeing actual people on the network helped with that.
[Seeing Jim's and Hiro's shenanigans really helped the initial panic of oh fuck I'm stuck in time compression alone.]
Yeah, I'm pretty sure. We can actually talk to each other and touch each other here. You couldn't in time compression.
[Which is terrible for someone who really likes touching and talking. Making a bit of a noise at thinking about it. It's done and over with. He reminds himself to think of the here and now. They are going to get Jim, kick butt of whatever is responsible, and get out of here.]
That's probably true. [Which is both a relief and a little depressing.] What's your mom like?
[ It's not a direct question, but an invitation. If Zell wants to talk about it, Jim's listening. The question about his mom brings up mixed feelings and he hums wordlessly as he thinks. ]
She's ... it's just me and her, you know? And she runs - ran - the inn all by herself, too. So she's pretty amazing to do all that and put up with a kid like me.
[Jim is blind and alone at a creepy hospital. He does not need to hear how crappy it was to wander alone in a place that messes with your memories and how you have to keep in mind your destination or get lost forever.
So, he'll concentrate on the talk of his mom.]
She was running an inn alone? Whoa. That's impressive. [The raising a rowdy kid on their own is something he's seen. Adding that to running an inn?] She sounds amazing.
[Though the whole correction doesn't go unnoticed.] What do you mean by ran?
[ He really doesn't, but he still wants to. Because it's Zell. ]
She is. My dad was a spacer so she was doing it by herself even before he ran off. She's gonna kill me if she thinks I ran way, though, she was pretty sick of my crap when I left home a few months ago. [ He rubs his face. IN all honesty, he'd do just about anything to hear her fussing at him just then. ] That was when the inn burned down. Three months before I came here. I've got the money to fix it, I've just got to get home.
That's where I was when they took me - I'd been out in space for three months. We were in sight of home. [ Home, in this case, being an entire planet - but close enough for Jim to count. And as cool as space might be to Zell, it's not where Jim's focus is. He misses the boring ball of mud that he came from more than just about anything, right then. ] Mom was going to be waiting for me at the port.
[He's super excited about his bright friend going to space. However, even he can pick up enough of where Jim's mind might be.]
You miss her a lot. [His voice is going soft as he says that. It's not a question, and it's something he can get too. Even if he tries not to think about what his Ma might be up to or if she's wondering where he is. If time slowing down or stalling isn't a thing, she's most likely assuming he's out on missions. Jim was almost home when he was pulled here. There was probably a guess on when he'll be back and it hurts to think of someone's mom waiting for them. Jim's mom waiting for him.]
I'd like to meet her. If you're great, then she must be as well, right? [If they were all brought here from different worlds, times, and universes, then there has to be a way to visit all of the places, right?]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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That's right. I was adopted by my parents and moved to Balamb. It's a town by the sea famous for it's fish. [There is a pause here.] Eventually it wound up being just Ma and me.
[How many aches can Jim's heart take?
He shakes his head, even if Jim can't see.] They keep that part of Garden a secret. I joined because I want to be like my Grandpa. He was a hero that played a big part in the last war. He wasn't just strong, but he knew how to keep his cool on the battlefield. He lived a life full of battles and died protecting those he cared for. That's what I wanted to do. [And how he imagines his life will end.]
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I think -
[ He hesitates, unsure if it'd be welcome, if he's assuming too much, but: ]
-I think he'd be proud of you. Rank-A, saving the world...
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Thanks, Jim. That-[A pause.]That means a lot. [Warmth and fondness seeps into his tone. Why couldn't they get to Jim faster?] I can't take all the credit. I had help from my friends. [Just like here with Jim and everyone else.]
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[ And so is Zell, if he really did save a planet from witches of all things. ]
So you joined the Garden and became a mercenary...
why am I trying tags now the world may never know- hi i'm a seed want a little seed in you ;D
People tend not to hear about the other guys in a war. You just hear about the ones who died in combat.
He'll be Jim's hero]Right. I joined Garden and became a mercenary. It hasn't been that long since I became one, you know. [Feels much longer. Like a year ago but it's only been a few months.]
We had our first mission helping out a resistance group. This mission was to follow the client's orders until Timber gained it's independence. It wound up going south and we had to lay low in Galbadia Garden until things cool down. [Going south was putting it lightly.]
It was there we were asked to go to the Galabadia city to assassinate Sorceress Edea.
a little SeeD? is the giant hotdog compensating for something?
Good, since Jim's holding out for a hero in the hospital.Anyway, Jim can't see the nodding, but he hopes Zell took his point anyway. he's leaning a little closer to the tablet to listen, interested in the story. It's a little shocking to hear Zell talk about assassinating someone - his eyebrows shoot up - but he doesn't comment. He's not naive, he knows what a mercenary is, and Zell told him he was one before they even met in person. Anyway, it seems like Sorceresses are bad people and this is all so distant.
So he doesn't comment on that, just nods for Zell to continue. ]
Guessing it got complicated?
want to find out
He makes a slight sound as his voice drops a bit.] You could say that. She was much stronger than any of us could really handle. The mission failed. Our leader was hit and we didn't know if he was alive until after we were locked up.
[Not only assassinations but jail time. Good times, right?
He's going to skip the getting the crap kicked out of him because it wasn't important.] We broke out and learned that the Sorceress ordered an attack on all the Gardens. They shot missiles to one, and had Balamb as their next target. [He stalls a moment.] The youngest you can enroll at Garden is five years old. We had to split up to stop the missiles and warn Garden before it was to late
you know it
She was jut going to kill a bunch of little kids? [ Yeah, assassinations, fine, but murdering a school full of children not so much. ] You got there in time, right?
SOBS INFO DUMP SPOILERS
[He's going to skip the chaos they came back to.]
We got there, but didn't have enough time to organize an evacuation. The Headmaster did share another way to save everyone. You see, the Gardens used to be evacuation ships from Centra. A school the size of a frickin small town can actually fly. We had to rush around to get it operational, but we did it, baby! We managed to move it just in time to avoid the missiles. [They were very close to not making it.]
We were left alone after that. They probably thought they took care of us and turned their attention to finding Ellone. [Rubbing the back of his head.] This is where it gets pretty weird. Ellone has the ability to send people's consciousness back in the past. It only works for people she knows. Before she came to the orphanage, she was kidnapped by a different Sorceress and used to make a machine that copied her powers. A sorceress in the future found the machine and used to it control other Sorceress' in the past.
WHOOPS DIDN'T THINK THIS ONE THROUGH DID I? it's all good
The rest of it, though... he feels like his brain may be melting out his ears, because none that made any sense. He goes quiet for a minute, in fact, a look of concentration creasing his face. Finally, slowly, he says: ] ...so the witch from the future was making all the other witches evil? She was the one controlling the witch attacking SeeD?
/makes ears bleed more
[There was another evil one, but he's not going to get into that.] She was pretty crazy, man. She wanted to basically end everything until she's the only thing left. She was hoping to fine Sis to use her powers in order to do this. We came up with a plan to let her find Ellone and let her start time compression. Then we'll send her back to her own time and follow her back to kick her butt.
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Okay, sure, Time Compression was probably more important to the story, but Jim wants to know about Zell. ]
So your sister...? Her plan worked?
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Ellone. She was the oldest in our group, so we call her our sis. [Even if he can't remember much of it, it still feels normal to call her that.] Yeah, it worked. We kicked Sorceress butt and came back.
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-Oh.
[ Not a sister, then, but that's less important than: ]
So you really did save the world from time traveling witches. Not bad, man.
[ The tone's a lot more impressed than the words imply. ]
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Yeah. It sounds pretty nuts when you think about it.
[At the time he didn't think about it. He was WAY MORE focused on kicking ass and saving the day.]
When I woke up here, I thought that maybe all the stuff happened afterwards was my mind playing tricks on me. That maybe I was still stuck in time compression. Seeing actual people on the network helped with that.
[Seeing Jim's and Hiro's shenanigans really helped the initial panic of oh fuck I'm stuck in time compression alone.]
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[ Jim's question is hushed, but he has to ask. ]
This girl was telling me about how this place makes time pass strangely back home. She thinks maybe my mom doesn't even know I'm gone.
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[Which is terrible for someone who really likes touching and talking. Making a bit of a noise at thinking about it. It's done and over with. He reminds himself to think of the here and now. They are going to get Jim, kick butt of whatever is responsible, and get out of here.]
That's probably true. [Which is both a relief and a little depressing.] What's your mom like?
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[ It's not a direct question, but an invitation. If Zell wants to talk about it, Jim's listening. The question about his mom brings up mixed feelings and he hums wordlessly as he thinks. ]
She's ... it's just me and her, you know? And she runs - ran - the inn all by herself, too. So she's pretty amazing to do all that and put up with a kid like me.
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So, he'll concentrate on the talk of his mom.]
She was running an inn alone? Whoa. That's impressive. [The raising a rowdy kid on their own is something he's seen. Adding that to running an inn?] She sounds amazing.
[Though the whole correction doesn't go unnoticed.] What do you mean by ran?
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She is. My dad was a spacer so she was doing it by herself even before he ran off. She's gonna kill me if she thinks I ran way, though, she was pretty sick of my crap when I left home a few months ago. [ He rubs his face. IN all honesty, he'd do just about anything to hear her fussing at him just then. ] That was when the inn burned down. Three months before I came here. I've got the money to fix it, I've just got to get home.
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Sorry, Jim.
[Was a spacer and he ran off.] Spacer? As in outer space?
[Is that a thing or is this spacer as in someone who finds space for people in their homes or businesses?]
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[ To Jim, it's a minor detail, so it's a confused moment before he gets what Zell's asking about. ]
-Yeah. He worked on merchant ships, mostly. Works, I guess.
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[Spaaaaaaaaaaaaaaace.]
What do ships look like where you're from? Have you been in space?
[When he can see again, Jim is going to have to draw Zell ALL THE SCHEMATICS and stuff.]
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You miss her a lot. [His voice is going soft as he says that. It's not a question, and it's something he can get too. Even if he tries not to think about what his Ma might be up to or if she's wondering where he is. If time slowing down or stalling isn't a thing, she's most likely assuming he's out on missions. Jim was almost home when he was pulled here. There was probably a guess on when he'll be back and it hurts to think of someone's mom waiting for them. Jim's mom waiting for him.]
I'd like to meet her. If you're great, then she must be as well, right? [If they were all brought here from different worlds, times, and universes, then there has to be a way to visit all of the places, right?]
(no subject)
/rolls
i think maybe this one is good here?
YEAH- additional dumb though
no YOU hang up the phone
no U