aionpcs: (regent)
Aion Teleos NPCs ([personal profile] aionpcs) wrote in [community profile] aionchat2022-07-10 02:52 pm
Entry tags:

THE REGENT'S ADDRESS [OPEN TO ALL]

[It comes on fast, once the Regent has your spirit in their hold. Around you, you may see other Aions stumble in the same moment, as if shaken by the same tectonic motion. An inexorable darkness claws at your senses, and you have only a few moments, hard fought, to reposition yourself so that you don't simply drop to the ground when it overtakes you. It has similarities to Communion, to the way another entity's thoughts and words reach out to your mind, but by the same token it's entirely foreign.

This presence is not like another person, it is like a raging, screaming cacophony that drowns out everything else in its path. Whether you be Kenoma or Pleroma, the Regent's presence in this metaphysical realm is staggering. To the Pleroma, though, it also feels caustic, as if the movement of their aura is enough to erode your own, with time.

Gradually, a new world forms. Unlike other Communions, where you are ultimately grounded in reality, here you can been dragged to what seems to be its own distinct psychic realm. A vast, void-filled courtroom, where only the throne at its front has a defined form. Around you, you see shadows of other people, other Aions, that have summoned along with you... but for the moment they seem spectral and unclear, their identities obscured by the realm's aggressive focus on its master.

The Regent sits at their throne, their body swathed in dark fabrics that drift and flutter like smoke. They have no face to be seen, only a faceted silver mask, without any markings or the barest indication of what might be beneath it. Their size is indistinct, maybe a bit taller than you are. They at first sit reclined, but straight up as their 'guests' arrive.]


It's been a long time coming, my subjects.

[At first, they are the only one that can be heard. Though you feel as if you have some physical presence here, a shadowy body of your own, if you attempt to speak no sound emerges.]

To the Pleroma: well done surviving thus far. Granted, I feel as if my Kenoma have made things easy for you. How strange, that most of you were allowed to wander a city within my empire without recourse. Able to summon that wretched creature to your side, even.

I hope you've enjoyed yourself, in the time you've had, because this will be no more. You've spread your infection in Venera, in Godsblood, and it is only necessary that these wounds be cleansed by the touch of the Kenoma. Your presence gives the people ideas... ideas that would disrupt the fragile peace they've come to enjoy, after so many years of suffering. As a kindness, I will only trim the vine, rather than burn the vineyard. What Venerans have taken up your cause, I will see shorn from my empire. And in Godsblood... an example will be made, as of the Sovereign's moon.

My Kenoma will do this for me. Fight them, if you want. But know that I am no longer asking for your fealty. I am demanding it.

[As if opening their court for questions, you will find yourself more able to act. Those that speak or take action will find their physical forms taking shape, standing in the court as people rather than shadows. If you want to question the Regent, now is the time to do so.

OOC: This post is a free for all! We will try to response as the Regent to people who directly engage with them, but you are also allowed to threadjack and interact with each other if you like. Please note that we will not be responding to tag ins done later than the 12th.]
locumstudentesquire: (>:()

[personal profile] locumstudentesquire 2022-07-12 05:28 pm (UTC)(link)
[Unfortunately for them, Ryunosuke isn't tired of needling for answers. Life really IS unfair!]

I'm not asking you to convince me, your Excellency. I'm simply asking for a glimpse of this future you have in mind. Or is that not within your power to provide at the moment? You're the architect of this effort, are you not? You must have a blueprint to share.
Edited (bluh bluh wording) 2022-07-12 17:31 (UTC)
hippocarnival: (✮ 099 ✮)

[personal profile] hippocarnival 2022-07-12 05:31 pm (UTC)(link)
[Yuya's expression twists as he grits his teeth in frustration. That seems... patronizing? Asc if Amos doesn't really believe he did as much damage as he said, that he didn't come to this conclusion through experience.

He looks away to the side.]
... You heard the Regent, right? If we're not with them we're against them. It's not going to matter if I do anything.

[His existence is the problem. So if Amos really believes that's how he'll get a better world...

He better be ready to snuff Yuya out.]
lachtara: (Pensive)

[personal profile] lachtara 2022-07-12 06:01 pm (UTC)(link)
That would be the one reason why this strategem would be of value. That, or trying to reevaluate our skills and their improvement since we first arrived.

[ Making things purposefully more difficult without a reason is certainly not his favorite means by which to go about conducting business. ]
baltimores: (088; an eye out)

[personal profile] baltimores 2022-07-12 06:39 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Amos meets his gaze head-on, and after a moment, nods. This is what Rand thinks he's supposed to do, he recalls. Destroy people like him. (He won't entertain the thought of Rand destroying the Regent, because... come on.)

Well, at least Amos can now say for certain that Rand'll actually back up his words. There's a sense of respect for him in the moment.

And then he turns away, elsewhere, because he's still free to do as he pleases in this space. ]
lachtara: (Fleeting)

[personal profile] lachtara 2022-07-12 06:43 pm (UTC)(link)
[ His eyes narrow ever-so-slightly. That response seems somewhat... strange coming from Howl. He can't quite put his finger on why. Is it nerves? Or does he truly separate himself from battle as some do? Hm.

It makes his own response somewhat clipped. ]

See that you are.
perfectlygoodbird: (your sorry eyes out)

[personal profile] perfectlygoodbird 2022-07-12 06:45 pm (UTC)(link)
I will be. They're just...very overwhelming. [Clearly, Meteion means the Regent. That should come as no surprise whatsoever. She takes a deep breath and attempts to steel herself, to offer the man--Barnaby? She'd heard about him in passing, and a bit more from Gray--a weak smile.]

Are you all right?

[To those who know her, that the next question is about him and he feels should come as no surprise, either. Meteion's smile broadens a little, and she tentatively tries to get to her feet, though she's still unsteady. The Regent hasn't left, after all.]
subsist: (pic#15697825)

love me

[personal profile] subsist 2022-07-12 06:55 pm (UTC)(link)
[ it is nothing more than a distraction, that's true, but it's not as though it entirely works. himeka is too perceptive. maybe he should have accounted for that. he only lingers on this particular topic just long enough to respond with something simple: ]

He's made a name for himself amongst our ranks. [ ain't that the truth. ] I'm sure he'll be fine once all this is over.

[ when she points out how he's doing though... ]

Just feeling the pressure, that's all. I've got a terrifying boss.
semicharmed: (018)

[personal profile] semicharmed 2022-07-12 07:05 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Matt definitely gets the ping, a psychic frisson he's growing accustomed to. It's not quite as familiar as a ringtone, and probably never will be, but the nudge of communion from without is getting somewhere close to normal.

He knows he should answer.

He really should.

Instead, he keeps wandering the streets, his feet leading him to a part of the city he seldom visits. It's populated with rundown book and curio shops, most shuttered for the night--or possibly for good.

It's another hour before the pressure of politeness overwhelms Matt's foreboding. ]


Hey.
hundredpower: (008)

[personal profile] hundredpower 2022-07-12 07:22 pm (UTC)(link)
[He doesn't know her at all, so he does look surprised to have the question reflected back at him. He gives her some space as she gets to her feet but remains close, should she need to lean on him for support.]

I am. [Which is a lie, he has a thousand thoughts racing through his head about his next move, but he's used to displaying nothing but a veneer of calm friendliness when others are in distress. It was his job, after all.] And I understand. Their Excellency's presence is certainly... commanding.

[Like the Regent or hate them, Barnaby can't deny even the Pleroma have been commandeered into dancing to the Regent's tune. It's a little hard to watch, honestly.]
locumstudentesquire: (Hm??)

Just listening.

[personal profile] locumstudentesquire 2022-07-12 07:23 pm (UTC)(link)
[She handles the whole situation so calmly... Ryunosuke is super impressed, honestly? You're incredible, Caitlyn. He's beaming emotional support.]
killandrecycle: (Default)

[personal profile] killandrecycle 2022-07-12 07:55 pm (UTC)(link)
[Easily lost in the crowd is a tiny figure. When her features come into view, she looks remarkably out of place. Small and weak looking, the type who looks like she could just be snapped over someone's knee, she SHOULD be afraid in a crowd of such powerful looking people, with so many of them being her enemy.

Instead, she's laughing. Laughing with a wide, wild grin on her face. She looks around at the unfamiliar faces of the Pleroma with bloodlust in her eyes. She doesn't seem to concerned for her safety at all. If anything, she seems to be all too eager.]

Yes. Yes. Finally. FINALLY! I've held myself back for so long. And now.....

[She instantly turns to the Regent, lowering her head in an act of deference she would show no one else.]

I will trim as many 'vines' as you wish. Just say the word, and I will follow any command you give me.

[And then, she turns towards the gathered Pleroma.]

And as for you, rebels, if you try and stop me, I'll kill you. Don't worry, I'll spare your shard. What happens to it isn't my choice to make, after all.
inutilis: (✞ booming voices.)

[personal profile] inutilis 2022-07-12 08:38 pm (UTC)(link)
But there's an important distinction to be made, don't you think so...?

[ Abel will not press Paul on the manner of his... complicated... circumstances - not here, at least. it sounds personal, and this conversation isn't exactly a private one. maybe there might be opportunities down the line; Abel thinks he would like that.

instead... he focuses on the larger subject at hand. ]


There's a difference between shepherding a life to its end... and to wiping it out. How can you be sure that the 'end' the Regent offers is a peaceful one?

What if it isn't...? And... even if it were-- who are we to judge whether or not all those lives should come to know it this way?
vivificantem: (089. to be understood as to understand)

[personal profile] vivificantem 2022-07-12 09:21 pm (UTC)(link)
[Any opportunities that arise to discuss things privately would be welcomed; he sees no real reason to feel otherwise. This is suprisingly civil, after all.]

Your assuming that it's different is the fear I'm talking about. And I understand if you can't let go of that. For a long time, I couldn't let go of that. I couldn't let go of a lot of things.

But the Kenoma...helps. It gives whatever you experience a purpose. Life isn't arbitrary, and it isn't meaningless. Some of you assume that we're saying that, but we aren't. It's the opposite, actually. Knowing that you're working toward healing the suffering the world experiences on a constant basis is one of the highest purposes that one can work toward.
locumstudentesquire: (GRRR BARK BARK)

[personal profile] locumstudentesquire 2022-07-12 09:33 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm not asking to give you my opinion, I'm--

[It's no use. He can't get them to even glance his direction.

WELL... FINE THEN >:T

He could stand here and continue to make himself a nuisance for as long as it takes to provoke a reaction, but he can't see that ending in him getting any actual answers.

To be clear: even if the Regent is viewing this exchange in a transactional sense, that's not Ryunosuke's take on the situation. A leader with a grand vision should have no problem making at least an attempt at explaining it, if only to increase buy-in among those who already follow them. By refusing to provide even a single compelling reason for their silence beyond just 'not feeling like explaining', they've all but solidified Ryunosuke's suspicion that the Regent doesn't actually know what they want, past an end of all things. They don't have a single clue how to actually improve the world, do they? They just want to tear it all down and be done.

It's always a risk, choosing to maintain silence. In many situations, it can be an admission of guilt. If the Regent didn't want that to be Ryunosuke's takeaway from this, well... Maybe they shouldn't have summoned them all to a goddamned courtroom.

He'll just be standing here. Glaring. Listening for a moment to cut in again. Like a dog with a bone, he's not letting this thing go.]
perfectlygoodbird: (you're too old enough to cry)

[personal profile] perfectlygoodbird 2022-07-12 09:35 pm (UTC)(link)
[That might work, were Meteion not an empath. However, she's not about to question him here--that could only lead to danger for the both of them. Were the two of them not in the Regent's mindscape, she might interrogate him, but not now. Still, Meteion gives him a look of clear concern.]

It is. On an empathic level, they're quite overwhelming. [She can't help but quirk a smile, then, as she looks up (way up) at him.]

This is Their place. The Pleroma should know better than to challenge Them. [Still, some of those Pleroma are Meteion's friends, and she isn't terribly happy to see what has befallen them, here.]
inutilis: (✞ observe.)

[personal profile] inutilis 2022-07-12 09:35 pm (UTC)(link)
[ ...this is enlightening, if nothing else. it's the first time anyone has been able to articulate things this way for him in quite this manner, and for a long beat--

Abel goes quiet to give it a momentary thought. he doesn't want to make light of this, after all - to make light of Paul's beliefs and his way of thinking, and he appreciates the open dialogue in this place of all places.

...but even so, perhaps theirs are two viewpoints that might never meet. it doesn't hurt, though, does it? talking like this, sharing how they feel bereft of judgment... ]


Do you believe the suffering man feels now is meaningless? That it's without purpose?

[ an earnest question. does the Kenoma give it additional meaning in Paul's eyes?

or does he feel that the trials of life are simply senseless to begin with, bereft of that purpose?

maybe it's neither. Abel would like to know. ]
vivificantem: (042. there in my savior's love)

[personal profile] vivificantem 2022-07-12 09:48 pm (UTC)(link)
[He actually has to take a moment to consider that; as always, he doesn't seem shaken by the question - whether he's just even-tempered to a fault or someone that's very, very good at poker is difficult to tell for the time being. But he does want to give the question due consideration; he owes this individual that much, at least.]

I wouldn't say it's meaningless, not with the way the world is now. Not with the way everything ties together, the way everything works. It shapes us, doesn't it? That's the point that's usually meant to be made when questions like this are asked, and I get it. I know know things like that have shaped me, at least.

As for without purpose... That's not exactly it, either.

[Mm.]

What we believe is that it doesn't have to be this way. Suffering doesn't have to be a part of the eternal plan that's laid out for us. We deserve better. So do you.

I think the word we're looking for is "needless", rather than "meaningless."
hundredpower: (010)

[personal profile] hundredpower 2022-07-12 10:24 pm (UTC)(link)
[They should know better, yes, particularly after Estinien was immediately stopped in his tracks, but what she says before that interests him more.]

An "empathic level"? You mean their presence in a room...? [It's his first guess more than some ability she might be referring to-- he's never come across that kind of power before, even amongst NEXTs back home.]
sageguidance: (pic#15711578)

[personal profile] sageguidance 2022-07-12 11:06 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Such an impassive response comes as a shock to Alphinaud. His impressions of the Regent thus far have always been one of a tyrant, but to care so little for the lives of people... It's unforgiveable. ]

No—beliefs are not meaningless. But there are people out there with their own hopes and dreams for the world they live in, and you would extinguish that simply because you disagree.

'Tis because of the cruel methods you employ that we retaliate against you! If you had any compassion at all—any desire to work together with the people of this land, any willingness to compromise—then this would not need to happen!
sageguidance: (pic#15665109)

[personal profile] sageguidance 2022-07-12 11:16 pm (UTC)(link)
... So you care not for the thoughts and wishes of others. You only think of what you desire.
superbshot: <user name=malagraphic> (Pondering)

[personal profile] superbshot 2022-07-12 11:32 pm (UTC)(link)
I'll spare you what you'd probably call moral grandstanding, then. How long will this farcical courtroom continue?

[And answer or no, she leans back and waits quietly for it to end. No further questions, your (dis)honor.]

Page 18 of 24