abraxaslogs | 𝑓𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑒𝑙𝑙 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

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𝑓𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑒𝑙𝑙 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

Who: Jack Townsend & Friends(?)
When: November
Where: Castle Thorne; Nocwich
What: A Monthly Catch-All (post canon update)
Warnings: canon-typical violence & mental health issues

𝑃𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑒, 𝐼'𝑙𝑙 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝐼 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑎

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( It happens in the only place it ever should: in a dream. This is not just true for Jack, this is the way it usually happens for all Summoned, though it is especially appropriate where he's concerned. It is also not even remotely how things unfolded for him the last time he had a personal little time skip, so maybe he can't be blamed for the way he reacts.

The room is quiet. Kyle is either asleep, or on the cusp of sleep. Jack's been breathing that slow, steady rhythm that indicates a rare, deep slumber himself — the kind he only manages once or twice a week for three or four hours at a time, if he's lucky. Even Rita is snoring softly, curled up underneath Kyle's bed, on her very best behavior for once.

In other words: it's quiet... too quiet. It's practically inevitable that something must disrupt this peace, and this time, it's him.

Jack sits bolt upright with a sudden audible gasp, and before his mind can even fully comprehend where he is, what he's doing, what just happened, he's already panic-scrambling out of the blankets in a graceless tangle of limbs that somehow does not wind up with him face-planting onto the floor this time, even though he's still prosthetic-less and balancing on one leg. Rita, alarmed by this sudden flurry of movement, scampers out to post up on one of the spare beds, her hair standing on end and a very catlike hiss escaping her bared teeth. )

Fuck, fuck, fuck- oh shit- oh, fuck-

( As the swears wear on, they begin to sync up with a very, very precarious hopping, and he gropes for the nearest wall to re-establish his balance before he can careen any harder. )

Edited 2024-11-08 23:06 (UTC)

( The tremors feel ominous, they feel new, and they feel-- distinctly other in a way he can't explain. Nobody else seems to have an answer for it either, and so here he is — in the Horizon, not at the Gas Station, but instead standing quiet and still at the foot of the Singularity itself, palm outstretched and resting faintly on the surface of the rock.

This is where Yennefer will find him when she gracefully slips in some time later — minutes? Hours? He won't know, and he won't notice her until she wants him to. In the time that passes between, she'll have time to look at him properly, if she wants to, and draw a few conclusions.

First: he looks older than he did the last time they saw one another. This is not a change that reflects outside of the Horizon, his body did not age to match his mind out there, but in here... he's a psychic representation of himself, and he wears an additional couple of years pretty well. He's put on some weight. He stands differently, holds himself a little differently, like he's more comfortable on his own two (one and a half?) legs, or in his own skin.

Second: even though his eyes are open, he's clearly not seeing what's in front of him. Maybe she can even see the reflection of it in his eyes, shapes and colors that are not actually present in the stone but that are mirrored in the reflection of his irises — he's seeing an aisle in his store. Specifically, the... energy drink aisle? The frosted glass of a cold drink case harboring Monster and Red Bull and Starbucks Doubleshot Espresso cans.

That's... weird? What the hell does that mean?

Whatever it is, he's got a vested and proactive interest in figuring it out — which isn't something that would've been true his first year in Abraxas, but that slowly became less bizarre over the second. Now, it feels immediate and natural in a brand new way. )

Edited 2024-11-12 00:36 (UTC)

[ Kyle is actually sleeping, unfortunately for him. He's also a light sleeper (maybe also unfortunately for him) and so Jack's initial movements are enough to wake him up even before the scampering, hissing raccoon and the subsequent shouting. And one-legged hopping.

He's up and out of bed much more gracefully, alert and with a knife in his hand, in nothing but his underwear as is usual. He quickly takes in the lack of immediate danger and relaxes slightly, lowering her weapon as he approaches Jack to give him a shoulder to lean on instead of the wall. ]

Bad dream? [ he half-jokes, wondering what hour it even is right now. ]

( He's always had kind of a skewed (read: fucked up) sense of the passage of time. The product of having memory issues while also being just a tiny bit prescient slapped on top of a sleep disorder leads to a very disorienting overlap of past and present and future. He feels that very, very much right now — he saw Kyle two hours ago, he saw Kyle two years ago, both of these are equally true.

But it's two-hours-ago instinct that has him clamping a hand down on his friend's shoulder for stability. It's two-years-ago instinct that has him leveling wide, panicked eyes on Kyle and demanding: )

How long was I gone? Fuck- what did I miss? How long?! Did you keep my leg?! Please tell me you kept it for, like, sentimental reasons or something-

( The fact that he isn't waking up naked in a pool of water should probably clue him in to the fact that this isn't exactly like the last time he got a home world timeline update, but seeing as he only has the one time to use as an example, his bleary brain is automatically assuming it happened again.

His leg is, of course, right by the edge of his bed. Just like it always is at night. )

[ This is equally bewildering for Kyle, who hasn't experienced any of what's happening to Jack - directly or indirectly. He puts a hand at the middle of his friend's back to help keep him steady, frowning at him, then at the leg near the bed. ]

If you disappear, I promise to keep your leg - [ he starts, if that will calm Jack down. He nudges him on the back, indicating that they're going to start walking back to his bed. ]

- but you didn't. You were... sleeping, I guess.

[ Which, sure. That might be a little weird. But Kyle likely would have heard Jack if he'd gone sleep-wandering again. ]

( He probably shouldn't feel relieved (or a little touched) that Kyle swears to keep his leg, but you know what? He kinda does. It's sweet, in an admittedly absurd kind of way. But also- not really the point, and not exactly what he'd been after. )

No, I wasn't, I- I was gone, I was home.

( Despite his protests, he allows himself to be guided back toward the bed, where he slips down to a seated position only so that he can start shoving his prosthetic leg on without even thinking about it. )

For- like, a really long time. Or- I mean... I think I was? I definitely was, I remember it.

( But he also remembers going to sleep here last night, in a way that feels like last night. What the fuck, dude? )

Gone home.

[ He repeats as they hobble together to the bed. Kyle doesn't immediately sit down next to Jack as he puts his leg back on, standing over him with his arms crossed instead. His expression isn't skeptical, exactly, but his eyes narrow as he tries to parse that explanation. ]

So... you had a dream. A vision of being home.

[ Not exactly unheard of. He uncrosses his arms. ]

What happened?

( A dream — he opens his mouth immediately to correct that he knows the difference between dreams and reality, thank you very much — only to stop himself, and close it again. No, actually, most of the time he doesn't, and those two things are actually the same for him. But still. It didn't feel like a normal... imaginary, fictional dream, or a hallucination, or a story his own mind conjured up to tell him. )

A lot.

( He answers instead, finally standing up once his leg's secured on. It's only so that he can start pacing, an absent, thoughtless back-and-forth across the short floor space of their room. )

Like, a lot a lot. It was two years. I remember two years of stuff. We've been living on the road, we've been- oh shit! My fucking dog is gone! Aw, man... that's- that's so not cool.

[ Once Jack starts pacing, Kyle decides to sit down on the bed instead, watching and listening thoughtfully. ]

A dog? [ He raises an eyebrow, glancing over at where Rita had scampered up the post, or wherever he'd last seen her. Probably for the best that they don't have any more animals in the room.

He shifts his attention to Jack again, still frowning. ]

Do you remember leaving here? [ His frown deepens even more. ] Do you feel... different? Physically?

[ If it's something the Singularity has done to him... ]

( There's a faltering pause, and he stops his fluid pacing to take stock of himself for a moment. )

I... not really? Maybe a little?

( He feels more comfortable, maybe? He can't quite put his finger on what it is, but his balance feels a little better. His awareness of his own body feels- more than it was before, but other than that? Not really. )

Do I look any different?

( Probably not, unless Kyle's exceptionally observant. There are a few new scars here and there, some hidden beneath his t-shirt, but not all. One or two on his forearms, on his knuckles. One on his bare left knee. Subtle enough that they could slip by unnoticed. )

[ At the question he frowns, then shrugs - not particularly, not from where he's sitting. Though - ]

Come here.

[ If he moves forward, Kyle'll reach for one of his hands and gently turn them over - eyeing the new scars where they're visible and not hidden beneath his clothes. His brow furrows again. ]

Why were you living on the road?

( He goes, holding an arm out absently, allowing himself to be subjected to Kyle's scrutiny without even really paying attention to what he's finding along the way. The truth is, Jack barely even remembers his own scars, if Kyle knows them better than he does it wouldn't shock him. )

We're- well, after we got rid of Roger and the pain deity of eternal suffering and then blew up the gas station, we didn't really have much of a reason to stick around that shitty little town. We started traveling, and then we realized we're... actually kind of good at dealing with crazy shit like that? So we started helping people.

( He shrugs a shoulder. )

It kind of became our job, I guess, although we... don't actually get paid, and we're super, super fucking broke.

[ Even if they hadn't lived in close quarters for so long, he's needed to be good at spotting physical details like this. His eyebrows raise when Jack tells him about the gas station blowing up - had he told him that before?

They raise even higher when Jack mentions being super, super fucking broke, and he laughs - surprising himself. He lets go of Jack's hand, running a hand through his hair. ]

Sorry - that sounds... good? Helping people. I can see you and Jerry being good at that.

[ Crazy shit. He smiles fondly.]

And Rosa. I-

( He starts, then falters and stops himself — just a touch disheartened. He'd been able to repress it over time, the longer he's spent here, but getting those memories last night has been a deep and painful reminder of exactly how much he misses her. )

I wish you could meet her one day. You'd love her. She'd love you.

( Honestly, he thinks introducing the two of them would make a combined care-taking force of terrifying proportions. Just... so, so scary. )

Anyway. I'm- sorry I woke you up, it was just- really weird, and unexpected, and a lot to process, but it's fine. You can go back to bed.

[ He gives Jack a curious look. Sometimes, he thinks about what it must mean that in the two years he's lived in Abraxas he hasn't had one of these future visions like Jack and so many others have experienced.

The answer is fairly obvious, which is also why he doesn't actually think about it too often.

He smiles when Jack insists that he and Rosa would like each other. Jerry might not have been the best roommate, but he liked him. He would like to be able to meet Rosa too. ]

I'm awake now. [ He shakes his head and shrugs, not moving from where he's seated. ] Tell me more about her - and your adventures.

[ He'd like to hear about it. ]

( He can do that. Of course he can do that — telling stories is one of his favorite things to do, and maybe taking a little time to reminisce about Rosa will help him feel a little better about her absence.

He nods, and slowly settles himself back down onto his bed. )

Rosa Vasquez is an absolute badass, ( He starts, because that seems like the introduction she deserves. And so comes the flow of details about how she's caring, about how she can shame someone with just a look, about how smart she is, about how motivated, about how sweet. About all the ways she keeps him and Jerry in line.

About how the strange and inhuman things that frequent their lives are terrified of her, and about how she's sort of a walking vacuum cleaner for wayward spirits and gods looking for a host body, unfortunately — followed by the long, long search to find a way to get them out of her again, and all the people they helped along their journey for a solution.

And at some point during all of this, the sun comes up, and the words go dry, and they each manage to snag a few more minutes of sleep. )

[ something is indeed happening, and yennefer is at just as much of a loss as everyone else. the reaction to the tremors in nott have been more of a slowly building uncertainty, versus whatever reaction she can assume the mages in the castle are having. no one in the city seems to care about the why, so much as they are focused on making sure their homes won't topple over, that the ancient structures and stone buildings will hold firm. there's a kind of ominous presence over the whole of the town, something yennefer finds distinctly unpleasant.

so, really, she should probably be prepared for further unexpected events. she's not even entirely sure what's drawn her here, now that she thinks about it. why she's been brought towards the singularity in the center of the horizon, rather than to her own small slice of the illusionary plane. it isn't until she sees the figure, hand pressed to the stone, that a part of her starts to understand, while a larger, more curious part is even more unsure.

she approaches quietly, though not in any real attempt to sneak up on him. rather - she's interested in what it is he's doing, why he's standing so still, and- well. as soon as she's close enough to confirm for herself, she's also thoroughly interested in just how different he appears.

aging has always been a complicated matter for mages - their ascension, their magic, holding them in time, physically. it makes the aging of others both a curious art, and also something that seems very distant, very... alien, almost. and jack does look older, look different, in a way she is still trying to brings words to as she steps up next to him, watches the reflection of his eyes, the shapes and colors that are... not what is in front of him. ]

Jack? [ she asks, reaching a hand out to place at his elbow of the arm he has outstretched. her eyes go from his, to the stone. the singularity. and then back to him. he is older, distinctly so, and suddenly her thoughts are spinning through the possibilities as to why. how. what it means. it hasn't been long enough for him to have aged this rapidly since they last saw each other. of that much she's certain.

she'll give him a moment to respond, first, before she reacts a little more firmly. ]

( Despite what some people might think (and despite how he... acts, and talks, and is, sometimes), Jack is not an idiot. He understands metaphors especially well — he'd make for a pretty shitty writer otherwise, and while he has many flaws, being a bad writer isn't one of them. He gets that the energy drink aisle isn't literally about Monster Zero Ultra or Venom, or any other 5000% of your daily recommended caffeine intake branded beverages.

The Singularity is excited, caffeinated, and highly awake. Which should absolutely not be the case right before the Dimming. That's the revelation he's coming to when he distantly processes the sound of his name, coming from some thirty feet behind him, back at-

Back at his body, where he stands with his hand outstretched. Where Yennefer stands next to him. For a moment, he watches on, disoriented, seeing both himself and her from an outside perspective.

And then suddenly, like a snapped rubber band, he's back in his own skin again and letting his hand fall away from the stone. It's dizzying, the sudden mental relocation, and so it takes him a few confused blinks to steady himself again. )

Oh- hey. Sorry, I was just... having a psychic communion with an ancient rock?

( As one does. Apparently. )

[ she can feel it too, though not in the same way he was just processing. she doesn't need to have the contact, doesn't need to see it like he is, but the energy in the air is enough. it's supposed to be calm, it's supposed to be quiet. she remembers the first time she pressed her own palm to the singularity back on land, two dimmings ago, and now?

her eyes go to the stone, to the sheer height of it, like she expects something to happen. like, maybe, jack's hand there had been the only thinking keeping it solid. but nothing happens, and yennefer's attention is back on him.

he's not there at first - distant, disconnected, but then with a kind of snap he is. it's not all that dissimilar to watching some spells, how some sorcerers back on the continent were able to dig into memories, into the minds of others. still, seeing him have to blink, have to come back to himself, has her brows lifting. curious, a little worried, too. her hand squeezes where it sits at his elbow. ]

Were you? [ another pause, and then she finally pulls her hand away. she can almost see it more clearly now, the differences in his face, his body language. it's not what they're currently talking about, maybe, but she doesn't let that notice slip away from her entirely. ] And? Learn any secrets?

( His connection to it will never be like what Julie's had been. Like Rhy's had been. But now both of them are gone, and he can't help but wonder if anyone among them communicates with this thing nearly as well as they had. Maybe the two of them were keeping stuff like this contained. He doesn't know, and he can't exactly ask — and even if he could, he wouldn't be the right person for the job. Someone else, maybe. Someone like her.

She looks him over; he forgets that he's any different from the last time she saw him, so the only thing he thinks is, odd before moving directly on. His thoughts are usually train tracks, one direction, moving in a straight line unless it's made clear there's a crossing. He'll catch up eventually, it's just not his default to think laterally.

A fleeting glance back at unfathomable sentient nexus rock, and then a sigh levelled back at her. )

Not really. Nothing we didn't already know, mostly, I think.

( Anything he heard, anything he felt, wasn't really revelatory.

But he's glad to see her, aside from all the Singularity stuff, so this trip wasn't a total waste of time. )

What're you doing here? Are you- getting anything from it?

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𝑓𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑒𝑙𝑙 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

→ 𝑘𝑦𝑙𝑒

→ 𝑦𝑒𝑛𝑛𝑒𝑓𝑒𝑟

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wrappy wrap;

i'm coming back to this because i'd love to continue but also if ur rather drop, totally fine too!

im totally still down hombre

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