holyspirits | W5 CYOA - Zhongli, Akihiko, Laurence, Ali Zoph

[ this is such a perfectly normal day at school. after school? such as it is. nothing is out of the ordinary here, except -

laurence stops short when he sees akihiko head out, after class, wondering for a second if he's hallucinating. maybe the past week finally made him snap. it was a lot, to see a friend die, be forced to kill another, and then wait for news of someone else's death the same day. anyone would be traumatized by that, wouldn't they?

but then there's ali, and... and...

he hardly feels the pain from his injuries as he's swept up into a hug, too shocked by the fact that zhongli is here. he only hugs back on pure instinct as tears make his eyes sting. ]

Z-Zhongli...?

[ this isn't how the school day was supposed to go? ]

[Takes a while for Akihiko to come back with his bag full of typical shopping, but when he does, he looks towards Laurence and Zhongli. It wasn't that long since Laurence had to execute him, which is awkward, really. He's just letting them take their time and enjoy their reunion, Akihiko standing to a side.

He's not a very touchy-feely person when it comes to affection, really, so he doesn't go to offer a hug even if he thought he'd be welcomed by Laurence. Instead, at a later point when Zhongli and Ali had their moment with Laurence, he takes out a bottle of water and tosses it at Laurence. He's not going to take for granted that Laurence will be all that happy to see him so soon, so he avoided approaching earlier and only afterwards he's trying to make some slight inroads, see how Laurence is feeling.

And if turns out he wants Akihiko to scram, hey, he has a convenient water bottle to throw at Akihiko's head. Works either way, he's sure]

[ probably a good thing that this takes place during not emotionshare week, actually, because zhongli would be furious about this. ali and akihiko barely get time to settle in, after their own deaths, and - the only ways that laurence would be seeing the three of them again are facing his own death, them all being reunited at the end of all this, and...

a trip. (but they go to the same school? they're in C&C together?) ]

It's alright, Laurence. [ he gentles his hold, just in case. sorry that he just kind of holds him for a little while before actually saying anything else. ] But it is, fortunate and unfortunate as it is, very real.

[ but after a long beat he'll look at ali and akihiko, then around. he'll let the two of them have their respective moments with laurence, as well, while he takes stock of the school around them after he gives laurence a second to compose himself. ]

[Imagine seeing all of your dead friends but it's at school so you have to do school stuff too.

Once Zhongli drops the hug Ali will clear his throat and step over. He gives a nervous smile, happy to see Laurence but afraid of rejection.]

Long time no see?

[He doesn't go in for a hug immediately, but he pats Laurence on the shoulder instead. Hey there, he missed you.]

[ yeah sorry he's just

he needs several moments why is he surrounded by dead people?? except they're classmates?? but they're dead?? help??

laurence isn't going to reject the others, but he's not going for a hug, either. he almost always holds back from that unless he's not given a choice. so a shoulder pat is fine, but those words make glance at akihiko, a little anxiously but just in time to nearly fumble catching that water bottle. ]

...Not that long. [ ... ] You guys are really okay? Is, um, school normal for you?

[ why does it feel normal for him, too? his school is in the tower. ]

[ JUST A REGULAR STUDENT HANGOUT OVER HERE!!!! Campus is beginning to empty out as girls why are they all girls wander off to their clubs or part time jobs or start heading home for the day.

As you idle around have a touching reunion and/or crisis, however, your phones all go off in unison, and you each receive the following text: ]

FROM: Noa
TO: C&C
SUBJECT: Commission

MESSAGE: Hello, Cleaning & Clearing! Don't worry, this isn't about the shootout at the arcade yesterday. That's handled already! :) But Seminar has a different job for you if you wouldn't mind meeting us at Millennium Tower ASAP.

[Akihiko reads the text in his phone, and looks up, sighing and deciding to leave behind his recently-obtained provisions. Damn it. Putting it to a side, he just takes as much ammo as he can to have it available for later]

There's nothing normal about this school or anything out there. I took a look outside, and I think the fact bullets are sold in a convenience store alongside the teabags and the candy bars is highly abnormal.

[At least for a guy who comes from Japan. He knows he did, even though he also remembers attending to this school for a while. Akihiko is taking the arrival to this weird place calmly, though. He's wary, but generally he's more focused on getting through this than in asking too many questions]

But it seems us four are okay?

Edited 2025-03-17 03:56 (UTC)

[ hand settled between laurence's shoulders, zhongli... blinks, at what akihiko says. the simultaneous "well, that's normal?" and "oh, that's not supposed to be normal" about all of this...

still, he'll take his phone out in his other hand. ]

We're alright. [ no burn scars on his head, and his beautiful hair is intact! ] And, ideally, we will stay that way. Although I suppose we should go and see what this message is all about - I doubt that we will be able to leave school if we don't.

I don't think we'll be leaving until we finish whatever needs to be accomplished here, so we have some time.

[He's not eager to say goodbye again, so he's fine if the group takes their time solving these problems. But they do have to walk in that direction, so.]

It looks like I have a long-range weapon, so I'll be providing cover for all of you.

[ laurence, having never seen a convenience store in his life before heaven, looks between all of them like no? bullets aren't normally sold there? he definitely thought it was 100% normal. why would it not be.

looking at the text... ]

Arcade shootout? [ that is also definitely a normal thing that always happens. ] Do we have to deal with whatever this is?

[ he is so tired of things involving guns. no offense akihiko.

(but why would he be, this is his gun, the gun that was made for him, laurence's gun) ]

[Laurence probably already had enough of guns, and fire, and paint, and electricity, for his entire life, but hey, with some luck the tower and its happenings will have only one of those things]

If we don't, someone else will have to. We should at least find out more, anyway.

[In theory, they should be able to bail from anything even after going to the tower, because it seems this is only to get something assigned to them. Worth going to figure out why he remembers such a trigger-happy life that somehow feels so natural and at the same time so unusual. ]

[ he's a little bemused by the arcade shootout, but clearly it's been taken care of! so it's fine.

except he shakes his head after thinking that, sighing and pocketing his phone again in... his apron... ]

Let us at least head in that direction, assuming that we will know where to go, and see what's going on here. If we decide to leave or not take up the assignment, or simply not make it to the meeting place, then we'll make that decision if need be.

It couldn't hurt to look. We can also decide to just leave if we don't like what we see.

[Like. He doesn't want to progress through this too much, he's not racing to say goodbye to Laurence again. But they do need to at least pretend to do something. He's seen how people come out of these adventures, and he doesn't want to tempt anyone to smack them down.]

It beats going to class at least, right?

[ well. he is hesitant, but not enough to argue against everyone else. besides, they're right. they can always leave. that's always an option that surely won't lead to further trouble. why would it?

so he gives a reluctant nod. ]

Okay. We can go to the Tower.

[ millennium tower. not his tower. he has to think hard about that part. ]

[ The four of you make your way to the center of campus, where Millennium Tower looms high. It's a beautiful day outside. The sky is blue, the grass is green, and you can hear the distant sound of various girls enjoying their afternoon. This is a science school, so it's common for girls to shut themselves in dark rooms to work on their projects, but the engineering club are tinkering with a machine on the lawn, and the Game Development Club are running around looking for inspiration for their latest project. A few girls jog past you, towards the track and field.

Like the rest of the buildings on campus, Millennium Tower has a very high-tech aesthetic. Everything is metallic, or smooth blues and whites. Floor to ceiling windows cover every wall, and you make your way to the meeting room. It's a few floors up by elevator. You know exactly where to go!

In an auditorium, a girl is waiting for you with a veneer of patience. You recognize her as Noa, the secretary of Seminar. And Seminar, of course, is is what functions as the student council of Millennium. It is therefor the highest authority you can think of in the whole world. ]

"Ah! C&C. Good, you're all here. And right on time! But of course I expected no less. You may be known for needless property damage and consistently exceeding budget, but at least you're always punctual.

On that note, I'm afraid I do have that commission for you."

Edited 2025-03-17 04:53 (UTC)

[Good grief, needless property damage and exceding the budget...Akihiko hopes that if anything happens, paying the financial costs of everything won't be part of the tasks to do before returning to where they came from is possible]

...we strive to excel.

[He glances at the rest of the team. Akihiko doesn't really have any questions before hearing about the commission, but hey, maybe someone else here does]

[ this is all so strange to zhongli, yet also - so right? is this what people have had to deal with on these trips? foreign, toppling structures of sleek designs, all of these haloed girls... at least the latter doesn't seem out of place in either set of memories.

he stays close to the other three, but his hand finds its place between laurence's shoulders once they're in front of noa. familiarity is one thing, but the knowledge of who she is - and what seminar is - is another thing entirely. ]

Apologies. I hope that the arcade incident was resolved with little issue, in that case. Are there certain parameters that you would have us maintain during this commission, to better... alleviate the property damage?

[ he'll leave asking about the commission to one of the others. ]

[Quietly to Laurence as they all head that way:]

It's okay. We're all here with you.

[He knows about that tower trauma so.

But when they get to the Millennium Tower and find Noa, he feels personally offended at the description of their unit. "Consistently exceeding budget"? Excuse me? Somehow Ali is an accountant on top of being a student, he knows all about being in budget!!!

...but she IS the highest authority he can think of in the world...maybe he's been slipping in recent years?]

We'll try better to avoid the damage and costs. What is the commission you have for us?

[ who says it's trauma,

the millennium tower is not unlike home - a tall, sleek building, all brightly lit and pristine, with tall windows to look out over the world. but of course, why wouldn't it be? this is where they're supposed to be.

and, of course, laurence is familiar with the concept of absolute authority, too. he doesn't even question it. he only glances briefly at zhongli with the touch and lets the others do the talking. what is happening here. ]

"... It was handled. But yes - so. Approximately thirty seven hours ago, a student by the codename 'The Idol' escaped the self-reflection room. They slipped out of range of Seminar's surveillance network before we realized the situation. They've only been free a brief time, but their crimes are already beyond the usual.

Unfortunately, retrieving them is a more complicated task than usual... Our intel suggests they've fled to the Odyssey Maritime School district. While we do have decent relations with Odyssey, in practice that means that we can't be caught violating the rules and sending a drone over their territory.

So what we need... is a stealth capture."

[Something about listening to this kind of directive is just so natural to Akihiko. He should stop getting into these extracurricular activities. How does he have time for his life between this group and S.E.E.S]

Shouldn't be too hard.

[Stealth isn't really his forte, but hey, that doesn't mean it'll be a tough task]

Why was this Idol in the self-reflection room in the first place? What did they do to deserve being there?

Edited 2025-03-17 16:33 (UTC)

[ "shouldn't be too hard," akihiko says, and zhongli takes a moment to look at the group gathered for this task. he's... not sure about that. this is a simultaneous memory thought, between excessive property damage and simply knowing some parties involved in the group.

he'll just sigh softly. ]

And there is no means of communicating with Odyssey, to come to an agreement regarding this student, if our relations are so decent? Are they dangerous to the population of the schools?

[ once they understand their situation, they can decide what they want to do about it. they could just leave! they could just hit da bricks! but better to know everything they can, first. ]

[Well. Two of them can turn into dragons (can they actually turn into dragons here) so stealth might be possible.]

If nothing else, I don't think any of us have met the Idol before. We would have an easier time of being stealthy than anyone else.

[Boys? In an all-girl game? Clearly they must be side characters! Nobody will suspect them.]

[ wow laurence's powers are totally made for stealth how dare you

(laurence himself is not made for stealth) ]

I don't know any "Idol"... [ hmm. ] What does a stealth capture mean, exactly? How are we supposed to blend in or whatever?

[ Listen, judging by your reputation as C&C, stealth may not really be what you're known for. but times are desperate, as you can probably presume by the way Noa's smile stays tight. ]

"The Idol was initially in the self-reflection room for hacking our school database and changing their own attendance records... as well as those of many others... so that they could go to karaoke during class hours. Which might not have been quite so bad had they not also billed it to the school itself, then changed all of their school grades to reflect their karaoke grades.

I think you would remember if you had ever met them before. They are a constant headache. As for their capture, we'll leave your methods up to you. You are the fixers, after all. But I'll answer anything I can to help you formulate a plan."

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