rey (firststeps) wrote in noexits, @ 2021-08-08 10:56:00 |
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Entry tags: | marvel (comics): loki laufeyson, ₴ inactive: rey dameron, → week 018 (a quiet place) |
A Quiet Place - Day 1 (backdated)
BB-8 spun around, leaned back and tried to focus in on his surroundings. Every couple of seconds, he spun in a different direction, trying to take the lay of the land. He'd been on plenty of missions in the past and could assess, without much difficulty, that he was no longer in Texas. It was as clear as day after having lived there with the Dameron's for years. But concern washed over him. He had no recollection of arriving here and though this had happened far too many times for BB-8 to be comfortable, he'd always found himself around others he recognized. But this wasn't a ship like he'd been aboard or described by others. This didn't feel like a cruise.
It reminded him of the community college but without the backdrop of the local shops or the parking lot on either side of the campus. Pivoting his circular body to the side, trying to peer between buildings, he could have swore he saw a town out in the distance. A shrill beep escaped from him, a call out, hoping to be responded to. If Rey or Chewbacca were near, certainly, they'd hear him and come, wouldn't they? If not them, well, perhaps Artoo or Threepio?
Beginning to spin down a path, he kept calling out for his friends. He'd never been left behind before. Or, at least, didn't recall being left behind. He knew Rey had told him of some adventures that he'd not been able to be a part of. Nevermind how he felt about not having memory of his friends being gone. That had been discussed long ago as something he was uncomfortable with and, unfortunately, something none of his friends could do much about.
Someone had to be here.
Turning a corner, finally, he recognized the outline of someone. A high pitched squeal was given and even though BB-8 was certain the man didn't understand him, it didn't matter. Beebee wasn't alone! Increasing his speed, he spun towards Ikol; completely oblivious at the moment to the danger that lurked around the campus.
It felt almost logical to get out of Butler Hall, even if that maybe wasn’t the instinctive thing to do when monsters were threatening to claw inwards and things like walls were useful in preventing such an event from transpiring. Ikol took a glance behind him at the residence hall, mouth worked into a contemplative line.
He’d been warned of this possibility. A first week where the worst occurrences were that the cereal had been placed too high in the kitchen and the squirrels gone on a quick rampage didn’t actually lull Ikol into any false sense of security, but it seemed now like misleading warm-up. Dangers, he’d been told. They lurked, they hunted, they scuttled up buildings and made him think that safety in numbers perhaps wasn’t safety at all.
If monsters were trying to break in to Butler Hall, then sneaking out and trying to get a handle on the situation from a less frazzled state was plausibly a good idea. Well, ‘good’ might be overselling it. He wasn’t much for the idea of a bunch of heroics flexing impressively, and as he’d told someone recently… he trusted himself. Himself and his own mind. His own eyes. More than that, he trusted his careful nature when it came to sneaking, such that he’d been able to get soundlessly away from the residence hall and out towards the Green without so much as a sound. The Seven-League boots on his feet tracked on thin air, practically. He’d never been more grateful to have them.
And in that moment of pride in how all the pieces fell into place for this plan to get away from what had effectively become Ground Zero…
Something squealed. Ikol pivoted, feet gliding on an invisible surface, his face stricken with panic. It wasn’t the noise of those creatures, which provided only a brief sense of relief for now. However, that barely soothed his frayed nerves as he spotted something metallic rolling nearer. He thrust his hands out at it, imploring it to stop.
Beebee came to a screeching halt, with it's dome and sphere of his body turning casually to the side, as if to implore 'what is wrong?' as an actual question at Loki. "BB-8?" He whistled out at Loki, to emphasize the need to understand, as his spherical body rolled in place.
Did Loki not recognize him?
Meanwhile, Rey had ventured out from Butler Hall, being purposefully quiet with her steps and intent to get some grasp of understanding, with her saber hilt in hand so it would not clank against her leg with each step. The blaster was, thankfully, holstered in place and wouldn't make much in the way of sound.
She'd been trying to get a good glimpse of the creature without gathering it's attention while also making note of possible escape routes, though tactically she knew these routes could change at any time. Lessons of meditation came rushing back to her, with a control on her breathing being implemented, each step being cautious and delicate.
However, the loud squeal had her head snap in the direction the sound had emitted from. There was no mistaking it for anything else for Rey. Questions could come later, and they most certainly would, but she knew the squeal to belong to her eldest friend. Still focused on trying to maintain quiet on her own, she broke off into a run towards the noise.
Coming around the side of a building, she came to a halt. A hand flew up to her face, finger at her lips to gesture for silence, before she cast a look to Ikol for one split second before a very different screech made her eyes snap off to the distance.
At the droid’s second attempt to communicate, Ikol resorted to waving his hands more frantically. It was then that he realized the futility of trying to plead for silence which actually being able to vocalize it. The first piercing call had to have been enough to sell their location, and that second probably was confirming it. He was braced for a solo plan, not a team effort. And having to rework that plan still rested on getting out of here alone. Apologies to the sentient roomba.
He had been coiled to spring off, poised to bolt, and ready to throw on a cover of invisibility just on the off-chance that it helped at all for sightless predators. Instead, he half-teetered upon the arrival of someone else. His expression was flustered, annoyed. He caught Rey’s gesture to keep quiet and returned it with an accusing hand sweep towards BB-8.
And then the rattled call, something unnatural. Ikol’s attention whipped in sync with Rey’s in the direction it came. This…
This would be a good moment to cast some spell. A distraction. A diversion. Anything. He balled his fists, quickly sending a searching glance towards Rey. If she moved first, he might not have to.
Beebee tilted once more in confusion from the waving that Loki was doing in his direction. What was Beebee doing wrong? The question hung in his processor and he was considering moving closer to Loki, to truly drive home the question of 'what is going on?' when his attention was pulled to the side.
Rey!
Beebee teetered, ready to start zooming in her direction with no notice at all, but the way her hand shot up kept him glued to the spot. Questions still were present and running rampant in his processor but they were placed on hold. Rey was saying to be silent. He looked between both her and Loki for a moment, before he heard the screech and zipped around to look in the direction the sound had come from.
Rey had been prepared to give Ikol an apologetic look, fully prepared to take ownership of Beebee's behavior, but her focus was now off to the distance. She'd not had time to fully observe the creatures. She didn't know how fast they were or how lethal. She did know that they were every bit of a threat as they could imagine.
Casting a glance to the side, and not able to think of a better plan, she let her gaze move to Loki to lock eyes. One quick nudge of her head in the direction and she was bolting. A second later? BB-8 took note of Rey's movements and started zooming in the same direction as her.
All told, Ikol knew that there wasn’t much time to hatch a plan or even mouth out some instructions for deliberation, but as Rey took off running -- and as he faltered on the spot after being interrupted from doing the same mere seconds ago -- he found himself scrambling up in the rear. His footfalls were quiet, luckily, and he shot his arms out to find the flapping edges of his coat to tether it closer to his body.
In retrospect, that nod was probably the most instruction and/or deliberation they could spare. His longer legs afforded him a chance to break past BB-8 and catch up to Rey, but the creatures had already arrived on the scene. Gnashing, tearing forward… Ikol looked behind as one began to descend on the noisy little droid.
Surely if they did anything, he could be hammered back into shape? Like a car. Easy.
Rey was listening to everything around them. She could hear the creatures gaining on them and she could hear the roll of BB-8's mechanical body thumping against the pavement once he was off of the grassy patch. It was a steady sound that typically brought comfort to her, knowing he was close to her side, but it made her cringe now as she considered the implications.
Casting a glance behind her to ensure Ikol was running too, with a hope that he had followed suit so she wouldn't have to turn round to go into an offensive stance against the creatures, she was pleased to see that he'd done so. A quick glance over her other side and there was a flash of visible panic on her features as the creature descended upon BB-8.
A moment later, anger whipped across Rey's face. Her hand flung out behind her, fingers seeming to clench at nothing but air, with visible strain presenting. Then, a moment later, she yanked her arm back towards her form and flung it out ahead of her.
BB-8 was lifted from the ground, yanked with such force away from the creature, and sent sailing as fast Rey could toss him with the Force. Her hand slashed through the air once more, fingers splayed and palm open in doing so, to have the doors of the nearest building fly open.
Hand flying downwards now to the ground, she made BB-8 come down from the air, with a sense of gentleness that was aimed at being as quiet as possible. It wasn't entirely silent but it was far more quiet than one ought to have thought given the mechanical droid being thrown ahead of the two running humanoids.
Moments later, she rushed into the building and quickly spun round to ensure Ikol made it in the doors, hand already lifted and ready to brace the doors shut.
Ikol was quick in behind Rey, not even concerning himself with which building had been the choice of shelter. He bolted in, reversing his footing sharply once inside the threshold and reaching for the doors to help push them shut as quietly and quickly as they could. It was no sooner than the last shred of daylight had vanished into a mere sliver before the sound of bodily impacts started, beating against the wooden planes of the door and threatening to unhinge it.
He looked over to Rey, the urge to ask something rising, but he kept his tongue at bay. With any luck, remaining braced here and silent would eventually win out. Maybe.
He'd reached the inside and he'd secured the door. She felt her posture relax, if even only briefly, with her hands moving to rest on her thighs as she reminded herself of breathing exercises with Leia. It was imperative she didn't try to take in erratic gulps of air just because of fear and excursion.
But a moment later, she remembered BB-8 and she whipped around. A finger went up as a silent command of 'Stay!!' And then she shifted, moving to pull out her device. A quick swipe of words across it before she held them up to the droid.
Attacked. Drawn to noise. Be quiet.
Watching BB-8 carefully, she noted his response as a subtle nod of his domed head, before she looked to Ikol. She quickly typed another message, with the font blown up wide.
You ok?
The doors rattled again under impact, but Ikol held them shut behind him, bracing his full weight as leverage. Then, it stopped. Maybe they heard something else. He was still, head tilted to strain his hearing for any hint of movement on the other side. He didn’t budge, not for nearly a full minute.
Then, he finally reached for his own device and tapped out a quick response.
Peachy. Having a great time.
His focus shifted to the droid, then, with the sort of regard usually saved for a misbehaving toddler. All that trouble because of this little robot?
Ikol nodded towards it then pointed towards Rey. He mouthed a few silent words. Yours, then?
She gave a nod in response to his answer. Good. If he could quip then he mustn't have any injuries she was unaware of. She pressed the lock button and slid the phone away into her pocket.
She watched as his gaze shifted over to BB-8 and quietly hoped he didn't feel any ill will towards the droid. It wasn't his fault he'd arrived with no knowledge of what was occurring. As for whether BB-8 was hers?
Well, that got complicated and there wasn't time to delve into a lengthy explanation. Lifting her hand, she did a 'so-so' gesture before moving towards Ikol.
She pivoted on her foot, pressed her back to the doors he was still bracing, then slid down them. This allowed her to keep weight against them but take a break. Her gaze turned upwards to look at him in a silent invitation.
Ikol’s focus sauntered from droid to Rey and back. The droid, for all its factory settings and crisp, immobile metal facial panel, seemed to be looking back with as much skepticism as it was receiving. Ikol shrugged, grasping at a universal understanding that he wasn't one to cast stones in glass houses.
It was quiet still. As Rey took a seat against the door and looked up, Ikol found himself crimping his knees to sink down beside her. By the look of the interior of this building, they weren't in Bulter Hall. Which meant they'd have to muster and tackle one more leg back to what was loosely assumed to be safety. He looked over at her, brows lifted then turned his phone out to jot a quick note.
15 min break then go?
Fifteen minutes seemed as good as any amount to start with. She gave a stark nod in agreement before casting her eyes over towards BB-8. Her mind was turning over the possibilities of how to handle his arrival. Potentially, BB-8 could stay here until the reset, but that felt cruel to Rey. He was being patient now but he'd want an explanation and unless he came with her, he'd be out of one until she could connect with him again.
Carrying him behind her seemed the best bet. It also meant she'd have to be focused when they left.
She wanted to sigh but just gave a shake of her head to herself before glancing to Ikol. She dug out her device again. Which floor you on? Her head then sort of motioned in the general direction of Butler Hall.
Ikol drew one leg up, knee crooked, and slung an arm overtop. Fifteen minutes meant getting cautiously comfortable. Fifteen minutes was going to stretch on because silence generally wasn’t a Loki-variety skill set when there was nothing better to do than wait. And when he had some questions.
He eyed the droid, who seemed to be eyeing him back with that one optical sensor. Was it recognition? Rey had said he -- or at least someone who looked and sounded like him -- had been part of the community she’d just come from. It was hard to not wonder about that. Another Loki, one that supposedly had some sway in this Tumbleweed place. She had to be measuring him up to them, then. How was that the inescapable outcome he met anywhere he was?
Five fingers were held up. Top floor. He raised his brows to her, asking silently the same question.
She tried to recall the last time she'd had to wait in anticipation like this. Had it been when she'd been locked out of Tumbleweed due to the excess of thorns surrounding the town? When she'd spent the night in her airplane with Eliot Waugh and cold fast food, desperately waiting to see if any sort of breach became evident? That seemed the most likely.
It felt incredibly reminiscent of that night as she pushed her hand up to brush loose strands from her braids out of her face.
When the response was given, Rey gave a nod and mouthed the word 'same' to him. As far as she saw? This was good. She wouldn't need to worry as much about whether Ikol made it from the stairwell to his room as she would have if he were on a separate floor. They had the same ultimate destination and would only be several doors apart.
He gave a nod, his own mental roadmap shaping up similarly to Rey’s. Common goal. And, really, as much as he could ditch right now to get himself back to safety and leave her and her telekinetic abilities to sort everything out with the droid… that sounded like an old Loki decision. Of all the Lokis to be compared with, the self-serving one of old -- the one who generally helped only when it helped him -- was the one he truly wanted to avoid.
But, then, what did altruism in its purest form look like? Surely not hanging back under the guise of offering his help when the end goal was also trying to get a foot in the door with someone that had useful skills, powers, and knowledge. One side step to avoid a pitfall, and the floor still gave out beneath him. He grimaced, then recalled that Rey was still looking at him and waved it off with a dismissive hand sweep.
It was quiet. Worse, it was quiet and there was little that could be done to pass the time without risking drawing the monsters back in. He looked at Rey, then gave her the universal gestures to invite a game of rock, paper, scissors. Failing all else, maybe they could get a few solid minutes out of it.
There was a slight brow raise at the hand sweep but she didn't make any move to properly question it. Silence prevented the immediate desire to ask, after all. She was just about to lean her head back against the frame once again, possibly turn her phone round and round between her fingers as a way of distraction, when she noted he was still looking to her.
Both brows came down together in a sense of confusion.
Five years around Earth and there were still some cultural aspects she just hadn't clued into. Whatever the gesture truly meant, unfortunately, appeared to be one of them. To make it clear she didn't truly understand, she raised a brow as she mimicked the gesture, with her fist extended as a sort of 'huh' vibe.
But she'd always been a quick learner and with one or two examples, felt as if she understood well enough. Though her eyes lit up in hope, a questioning of 'did I win? at one point where she'd done a flat gesture against a V gesture, during the first attempt.
The fifteen minutes seemed to fly once they’d gotten into the rhythm of the game, even if there were a few pauses to articulate with some word miming and mouthing instructions. The score hadn’t been tracked, which wasn’t a thing Ikol realized until he checked his phone’s screen to count the minutes lapsed. Maybe it was the fact that Rey wasn’t perceived as someone to better. Probably. A Thor, any Avenger, or any other Loki would have been met with a level of competitive spirit that tended to stem from needing to be the smarter, wittier, and more clever one.
Maybe it was also that BB-8 had rolled in progressively closer with each round, reading the outcomes and trying to dissect the system as well. It turned from a typical two-person game to a three-party affair, and then turned a corner again with the introduction of flamethrower compliments of the droid.
Ikol awarded Rey a final point for overtaking his scissors with a rock and also smothering the flamethrower with the same, then gave a gesture towards the residence hall. They could stay here longer, but the coast seemed clear. He shifted to his feet and resisted the urge to stretch a bit lest he forget himself and accidentally hit something or drop something in the movement. He held a hand out to Rey, offering her a handhold to rise to her own feet.
Rey found herself enjoying the game as she got into the rhythm of it. When they were able in the future, she would have to ask what it was called. It occurred to her that all her years of waiting would have been marginally improved if she'd had a companion to share activities such as this with. Of course, that wasn't to mean she hadn't found ways to entertain herself over the years. Waiting, after all, was something she had been fairly adept at all of her life.
There'd been a crack of a smile over to BB-8 as he joined their affair. There was a half thought of how she imagined he'd want to show the game to Poe if ever given the chance, but this was shoved aside. Best not to consider in the current circumstances.
When the hand was offered, she took it readily and gave Ikol an appreciative smile. Then her eyes cast down to BB-8. The trek back to Butler Hall was going to be trying but there was simply no way she was leaving behind the droid. With a shift, she braced herself for the task of lifting him once again in the Force, giving a directive reminder of silence, before glancing to Ikol with a sort of 'I'm ready' look.