12109/15 Fears: A View From Beyond

15 Fears: A View From Beyond
Date of Scene:	21 July 2022
Location:	A Prison Between Worlds
Synopsis:	Rien is visisted by the ultimate servitor of I Do Not Know You and gains some insight into what the NotRien is doing to her life and what the true goal of these entities happens to be.
Cast of Characters:	Chas Chandler, Rien D'Arqueness

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Chas Chandler has posed:
    Rien's stay in the featureless, formless prison has been uneventuful. Bordeom was as much a torture as anything else. The view beyond the arrowslits shows a cloudy expanse of darkness. No stars dot the sky to give evidence to navigate, no celestial bodies of any sort give any indication of where she happens to be. It is, for all intents and purposes, nowhere.

    A few things are probably noticable by now. While her healing factor is not based on caloric intake, she still can eat. She still feels the occasional hunger: but not here. It has been at least a day (it sure feels like it) but she hasn't felt the smallest pinch of hunger. Or thirst. Or fatigue. In fact, all her bodily functions have seemed to be suspended in this place. Small favors. Very small.

    So it might come as a surprise when the pitch black portal splits the air of the the white void and a figure steps out. They are of average height. But that is by far the -only- average thing about them. It's gender is ambiguous, having qualities that are associated with both male and female norms; short hair in what might be a pixie cut, strong shoulders, a slight curve in the chest to emphasize a bust of some sort, but no true curve to the hips.

    It's clothing is decidedly more feminine though: a black and red sequined liotard with a bright red tailcoat. Black stockings that stop at the thigh and equally high black patent leather heeled boots. A black tophat completes the piece and rounds it out as a ringmaster's outfit from a circus.

    From there the details are more confusing. There are segmented joints at movement points on the body and a very doll like stiffness to their motion. The face is more painted on. Rosy cheeks, bright red lipstick, heavy dark eyeshadow and mascara. When they smile it's all wrong, a twitchy sort of movement that seems unnatural on the plastic-looking face. And their voice is also, strange. The cadence stilted and wobbly in pitch. "Hello dearie. How are you finding our accomodations?" it asks in a freidnly tone that suggests anything but friendship.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
Rien is used to being alone, that's not the problem. The lack of anything to DO... that's becoming an issue. With no real features or landmarks to chart by, she's spent much of her time searching over every inch of the room, looking for any sort of secret door or hidden triggers. Anything that might open or provoke a response. When that doesn't work, she starts testing her magic, seeing what she can and cannot do while here.

There's a bedroll on the floor now. A desk nearby, a desk lamp on one corner. And a small three tier booshelf that has books on it. Half-eaten plate of ratatouille and a mostly empty glass of deep red wine.

And on the wall, over the bedroll, a single scratchmark made by a boneclaw.

When the entity steps through, she's doing exercises, pushing herself, her muscles, to the point where they will snap and reform and snap again, trying to make herself stronger. Push herself harder.

The being has her cocking her head, however, manifesting a small towel around her shoulders as she watches it. The question asked has her snorting and rolling her eyes, "Not my first time in captivity. Hope you don't mind that I did some redecorating. I needed something to occupy my tiem with." Looking it over, she lifts a brow, "You're not the one that caught me. Are you just.. doing that one a favor? Checking in on me?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    The being that is visiting continues to smile that strange painted on smile. "Oh no. I am much more of sound mind and faculty than the NotThem. Allow me to introduce myself" it beings. "My name is Nikola. Nikola Orsinov and I am the lead servitor of I Do Not Know You."

    Its head twitches erratically and then pops back into place, its eyes blinking out of synch. "You can think of me as the boss of the NotThem. Or I suppose given it's masking as you, the NotRien." Again the smile falters and then snaps back into place. It gestures to the changes made in the room. "Redecorate all you like... the room was left bare for your amusement as much for lack of care."

    "As for checking on you?" It makes an exaggerated pantomime of shaking its head. "No no no. I'm afraid my purpose here is much more sinister than that" it laughs a tinny, little laugh that is equal parts silver bells and nails on a chalkboard.

    "No. I am here to help facilitate the dispensation of information. Particularly, what you are doing up there" it gestures to the ceiling of the room, "while you are down here." The hand gestures to the room without any movement of the arm; just a simple rotation with everything else in perfect stillness.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
Rien lifts a brow at that claim, then rolls her eyes once more. Moving back to the desk, she takes a seat and turns to face Nikola, picking up her plate and starting to eat again. Between bites, she asks, "What makes you special? How do you have such a human-sounding name when the rest don't?"

One brow lifts again at the mention of 'sinister intent' and she motions with her fork, "Well then, by all means. If there's a purpose to the visit, don't let me slow you down." Not that she seems overly concerned. Her features arranged into a neutral mask, though the bravado surely can't mask her trepidation or nervousness from this creature.

She forks up another bite and offers, "But you know that that's going to be pointless. Whatever your... NotThing is doing now, my friends will figure it out. They'll come for me. And then you and I will be having words of a different sort." Rien flashes a very sharp smile devoid of any sort of friendliness or warmth at all.

"But then, that's why you like me. I'm already nothing, in a manner of speaking. But I imagine it's tough, knowing that I get to have all your ambition and desire and power... but I also get to exist in the real world. That must be /excrutiating/ for you."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Nikola gasps at the question. "I suppose I have a name because I have a father. Some of the others are... more or less made the way they are," it replies. "But I guess, when it comes down to it, I was made the way I am too. Aside from my voice, my father gave me everything else. I managed to get the voice from a very kind lady who was more than willing to help someone out. Erica? Eric? Carie?" it waves a hand in that same still rotation.

    "It's so hard to keep names straight sometimes. It's not like she's using it anymore. What with the fact that I tore out her throat to get it." Again its head flutters erractically before locking in place.

    "But if you are so keen to get on with the show... then we shall begin?" It clas its hands, the sound coming out hollow and artificial more than anything from human flesh joining together, and a screen appears in the air before Rien. Nikola steps around the bedroll and sits down. There is no chair under it but it is clear that it is sitting, the positioning and posture exactly as it should be if there a chair beneath it.

    "Oh, dearie, I exist very well in the world. I am a conduit for I Do Not Know You, not truly the body of it. Then again..." It puts a finger to its painted lips and taps it. "Well, no matter." There is definitely something more to it but it seems that the creature is willing to keep secrets for now. "Oh! It's starting!" it says sounding excited.

    The visiual simply appears on the screen. It's a first person view seen through the eyes of someone standing before a mirror. A buxom and curvy dark skinned woman with green eyes and black straight hair. The room is familiar to Rien: her bathroom. She had covered that mirror, but it seems the woman in the visual unconvered it. The stranger rifles through Rien's things before finding a brush. Rien's hairbrush, but with multiple strands of black hair in the bristles. Not Rien's hair. The hair of woman in the visual.

    "Not a terribly effective facsimile, is it? But I don't know that it's going to matter that much, in the end. It never does," Nikola says, looking at Rien.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
Rien stares at the creature for a long moment, "A father... but no mother? You're a creation born of will, then. Interesting. But also ultimately of no consequence. The time of you and your ilk has passed, this fleeting grab for power or position is just that. Fleeting." She forks up another bite, then turns to watch the screen as it appears.

"You're going to have to try harder to discomfit me, Nikola. I deal in demons, throat-ripping is just another day at the office for me," Rien tries to keep her voice steady, even dry, as if the attempts to scare her are having the opposite effect. Schooling her features even as she swallows hard and drops her gaze to the floor, a frown appearing briefly.

Then she's looking up at the screen again and sighs, "Well you can hardly be a stranger when you have a name. On that count, I think I have more call to run the NotThem than you do. At least my existence is tenuous and hard to pin down. I could summon you with the right ritual." She flicks that sharp smile once more, "Perhaps that's daddy's plan.. for me to kill you and take your place."

Then the show has begun and Rien watches it with a disgusted cluck of her tongue over the creature's appearance. Watching it go about her usual morning routine with a shake of her head, "Oh yes. Utterly terrifying. You've torn me away from making breakfast and brushing my teeth. The complete unending horror." The dry tone is back, even as the corner of her eye twitches.

Her grip tightens on the fork when Robbie appears in the visual, the first-person perspective letting her see the 'good morning kiss', the familiar touches, the teasing and smiles and light groping. A growl starts at the back of her throat before she cuts it off physically and turns instead to watch Nikola.

"Yes, I suppose a convincing facsimile is unnecessary when you just enspell everyone anyways. Seems somewhat pointless to me to have attempted the look-alike in the first place, but I do agree with you there. It really won't matter in the end. That thing is going die a horrible, gruesome death. I'm looking forward to it. Do it bleed? I vastly prefer it when they bleed, more satisfying, in a visceral sort of way." Rien flashes that quick, pointed grin once more.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Nikola blinks at Rien. "I hope my father has no plans at all. What with his neck being broken and his body burned to ashes after he tried to destroy me upon the true realization of what he created" it says cheerily enough. "But if you want to become a servitor of I Do Not Know You that is up to you to decide. It certainly has an interest in you. All of them do really. You and the rest of your little group."

    Nikola shrugs at the mention of enspelling the others. "Oh no... this isn't a spell. This is an augmentation. Reality has shifted. You were always as that is. The you here..." it gestures to Rien's form, "That never existed in that world. The you you see before us..." a gesture to the screen, "that has been and, as far as reality is concerned, always will be you. The connections made, the powers acquired, all of it is the same for her as it was for you. Minor differences are easily accounted for but with the right nudges reality can be very accomodating in seeing that one error is scattered across untold eons."

    More of Rien's life and morning routine moves along. Her interactions with Gabe are quite different from Rien's own--kind but with that strangeness that the NotThem infuses everything it touches.

    "What it decides to do with your life after is the true problem. A shattering of connections, a destruction of those around it. It's rather thorough in ensuring those it touches are destabilized and weakened to the point of uselessness. And with your little Puppetted Hunter already on the verge of collapse?" It makes a tsking sound before retuning to the painted smile of before, "Things do look dire, indeed."

    At the question of it bleeding, Nikola puts a finger to its lips. "I do not know. It's never been truly hurt before. I suppose if you do manage to somehow find a way out of here, we will see. But that is predicated on a very small chance of your escape. I would never presume such an unlikely scenario. I like to see things as they are, not as they -might be-."

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
"I've come back from worse. You can never truly be certain until you see the soul in the afterlife. Even then, there are ways. You didn't unmake him, after all." Rien lifts a shrug and glances towards Nikola. "Eh, I'm not much for following. I prefer to lead. I'll leave the servitude to you."

Rien watches the scene unfolding on the screen, forcing herself to watch, to note, to remember. Every touch, every warped smile, every uncomfortable moment is a debt to be repaid. And the NotRien is racking up quite the bill. "Hmmmmmmmmmm, interesting, since technically I'm not even from that world. Rien, as she's supposed to be, in that world, was never born. So how can you take over for someone who never was?" Shaking her head, she glances sidelong to Nikola, "Really, you should all do your homework better if you're going to try and replicate someone."

Looking back to the screen, she waves a hand, "Wouldn't matter. In the end, they're human. They'll die, and I'll still be here. Welcome to immortality. If you think I haven't long since made peace with the fact that I'm going to lose those I'm close to, you really haven't been paying attention." Another scene as RObbie heads to work and the lingering kiss good-bye has her wincing, her jaw tightening hard enough that it would crack bone were she not what she is.

"Funny, since you've predicated this whole charade based on a 'what might be'. But I'll be sure to remind you you said that later. When my friends and I are knocking on your door." Rien offers a thin, humorless smile.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Nikola smiles. "But you see... we haven't..." it says. "A number of things have already happened for I Do Not Know You" it says rising from it's pantomime of sitting. "And that is the beauty of it. We're just actors on a stage. Players in a game. Pawns on a board. The Justice League Dark, the billions of people, the Fifteen, all of it is a great cosmic game that's already being played years from now and here at the same time."

    It's clearly very excited as its voice grows more and more animated. "For the Fifteen, this is all just set pieces. Eventually, the Justice League Dark will take over the Castle of the Unconscious Mind" it starts. "That has already happened. You have the castle. When you learn its purpose you will move to find out what you must do and it will start a war for reality. That is what the Fifteen know. They are soldiers in that war. Just as all of us are. Warriors for a cause."

    Nikola continues, starting to pace as the NotRien goes about it's daily routine. It's shifted to a night between Robbie and the creature in bed. "But even that is past for the true master." She smiles even wider, her teeth abnormally straight and perfect. "Don't you see? All of this is simply a means for The Crawling Chaos, Lord Nyarlathotep, to overthrow the Keeper of Unconsciousness--" it cuts off abruptly as if it realizes a grave error in it's discourse.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
Rien turns from the screen, not wanting to watch the scene any longer, not when that thing is claiming intimacy with Robbie. Instead she pushes to her feet, pacing around. Darting glances towards the screen with certain sounds, then immediately away again. She listens, she hears, but her mind is already working.

She looks past the screen, towards Nikola, snarling briefly at it's glee, then pacing closer even as her range widens. Rien lets out a low growl for a part from the scene, drawing closer still. Brushing past Nikola in her pcing, grumbling, shouldering it aside as she moves.

"Then you should also know that nothing is set in stone. Just because something has been seen doesn't mean it happens. So you're still basing this on a 'maybe'." She frowns, then shakes her head. "There's still one thing you're forgetting... your slip of the tongue aside..."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Nicola looks mildly uncomfortable. "What slip of the tongue?" it says its tone attempting to regain the composure of before. The certainty of its position of power. "There was no... no slip of the tongue.. besides... what's this thing I've forgotten?"

    It moves a bit, looking around in apprehension as if expecting an attack from some unseen force. Clearly mentioning something in her monologue of their power was a mistake and she's more than acutely aware of it and the retalitory blow that is likely to come for her.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
"Ohhhhhhhhhhh, Nikola... you're going to be in such trouble now... this is what gloating gets you. This is why you never celebrate victory before it's a fait accompli.." Rien all but purrs at her now, that smug satisfaction just ROLLING off the woman in a way that the French have turned into an art form. She strolls in closer, all but swishing a tail that doesn't exist. A cat with a mouse. A very creepy, weird-looking mouse.

Stepping in close, very close, Rien grips the lapel of the ringmaster's jacket in one fist, tugging the creature in closer even as the other hand balls into a fist. "But here, I'll tell you what you've forgotten..." That fist puches up, right under the ribcage and those foot-long magical claws slice right up and into Nikola's chest cavity as Rien whispers, "Don't /fuck/ with a Howlett... we're stronger than you could ever imagine." She gives that balled up hand a twist, expecting the sickening yet satisfying purr of separating skin and sloshy spill of innards. Perhaps hoping for it.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Nikola did not expect Rien to directly attack it but when she does its face retains that smile. The punch is received with an exhalation of breath and then the claws enter it. There is a jerking and stiffening as agony fills its features, the smile turning to a grimace which turns to something even more horrified as Rien turns and tears out what is inside.

    But the sounds... the sounds are wrong. Instead of the slow separation of skin from muscle with a soft slick purr, there is a tearing sound as of fabric being rent by hand. The claw exits Nicola's back with only some difficulty and when Rien moves to disembowl it, what falls out is gogs and gears and a stream of something thick, viscous, and shiny black: oil.

    With surprising speed and more agility than should be possible, given the injury, Nikola frees itself and leaps back. Landing with a tinkle of cogs, springs, and gears as it rights itself and more pieces of its insides fall out. "Better than I imagined. But we're not ready to have our little war dearie. We--we--we--we" it stutters over the first word and there is a scratching sound to its voice as if a record finding purchase over the music once more.

    "We will meet again soon enough. I will leave you with the enterainment of your life being torn assunder by the NotRien. Enjoy it... learn from it and when I am done with my appointment. I-I-I will re-re-re-re-re..." A portal opens behind her and she steps through both her and the entrance to wherever she came from fading from view.