002 | text

[relinquishing]

[It takes him all day to muster himself out of his bed to make this post in the dormitory levels. Had he not been slammed with a message about his new "job", he would have kindly stayed in his room for a day or two just to... he wasn't even sure what the right word was. He didn't need to relax. He needed to detox. His journey home had been short, but he hoped and prayed it was just a dream. Only a dream, please just let it be that. But he'd seen the barren landscape, inhaled the putrid, acidic smell of miasma leaking out of every crack and crevice, seas of purple mud and poison all that remained of his world.

Of course he wanted it to be a dream.

...]

Two questions. Feel free to answer or not.

First: How many of you have been back home? As in: how many have returned to what used to be their home, only to come back? What did you see, and did it... feel real?

[...]

Second: What are we left with if the worlds we all know are really gone? Is it just us, this Tower, countless years and a few grim expectations?

I really am starting to wonder.

Comments

text;

[hellacious]

not saying it's either honestly
at this point they're keeping us so far in the dark about what really happens that we can't see our own noses
but here's the thing about sending us back to worlds that are still surviving
that means there's still another you there who hasn't been taken
because there hasn't been a need to
and that means that if you just show up to all your old haunts and shit you might run into yourself
and how do you think that's gonna end?

text;

[relinquishing]

[...]

Well. Confusingly, I guess.

But adapting to live an alternate life, even... wouldn't that be better than just sitting here, or not existing entirely?

text;

[hellacious]

most people would flip the fuck off the handle dude
no matter how cool and collected they think they are, no one handles someone with their face popping up out of nowhere


it might be
but it might also just be a constant reminder of everything you've already lost once

text;

[relinquishing]

Well sure, yeah. But if you're running that risk anyways, wouldn't it be better just to let yourself assume a different identity as best as you could? If it were possible, I mean...

...

[There's a short delay in the rest of his response.]

You get pretty used to old reminders after a while. Loss happens. Some people might deal with it badly, sure. It's never easy.

But it's not exactly new for everyone.