Harlock's Palace - The Endless Orbit of Solitude

[freearcadia]

Who: Lechter, Zenkichi, Stoat, Moon
What: Harlock's Palace Part one
When:
Content Warnings: Death, Dead Things, Death Wish/Passive Suicide stuff, Alcoholism and scars/grevious injuries may come up

When the teams enters the Pirate's heart, there is a moment of choking darkness, threatening to strangle the life out of people, but it soon ebbs and a wailing wind shatters the silence.

You find yourselves on a vast, dry rubble-strewn wasteland being battered by winds that alternated between needle-sharp, wet cold and dry, furnace-like blasts of heat. There's a sense despite how extremely unpleasant it is that it will not harm the group, but it is trying to discourage them from exploring too thoroughly within the heart.

Above the wasteland is a dark sky utterly devoid of celestial bodies, and of such a uniform blackness that it strains the eyes to stare too long, and would no doubt incite artists into feuds over it's unnatural hue.

The only thing that broke the stark black sky is a long, ash-gray ship with a skull upon it's bow, bristling with cannons that swivel and pivot, searching for something.

The wind changes again, the lilting sound of music coming from one direction, and the sound of creaking from another.

Comments

[eggstinction]

[Moon helpfully chimes in with a GREAT BIG ROAR]

[it's a friendly call if anyone understands big predator animal calls, but for anybody else it at least carries for a very long distance]

[freearcadia]

[He rubs his ear, closing his good eye]

Well there is no way she'd not hear -

[The bushes rustle, and the strange woman appears, walking unsteadily towards them, looking right at Moon with golden eyes, giving a satisfied nod]

Come on, let's get out of here, this is no place to be left alone -

[The vision warps, and fades - and returns to the room, a ghostly outline of the same woman appears before Moon, cradling the lyre]

Thank you...

[eggstinction]

[chirps at the setting change]

You are welcome. I am glad he could remember you again. Things have gone very strange.

[freearcadia]

It has... Something is keeping people he knows out of his memories and erasing us from here.

[eggstinction]

We are not sure what has caused that, but that is what we are here to fix.

[freearcadia]

Even being here is helping, be careful - he'll realize you're here.

[eggstinction]

“He?” Harlock?

[freearcadia]

Yes... and no.

[the woman cranes her neck, peering into the starless void outside]

[eggstinction]

A Harlock that could have been?

[freearcadia]

I suppose it is one way of putting it.

[eggstinction]

[follows her glance out the window and lashes his tail]

We will set him right.

What is your name?

[freearcadia]

I am Miime - or his perception of Miime.

Other than Himerope and yourselves everything in this world is part of him in one shape or form.

[eggstinction]

[he gives her a small polite bow, though he doesn't fold any of his arms like he did to Himerope. some sort of dragon etiquette.]

I am Moon, Lord of Oceans, though you may already know that. Has he stifled any other parts of himself that I might find?

[freearcadia]

I do know of you and Yes - so much has been stifled and twisted, including the much of our crew, the Arcadia should never be this quiet.

[eggstinction]

[nods]

Then I shall continue on and see who else I can find.

[freearcadia]

Be careful, Harlock and the Arcadia is one and the same.

[eggstinction]

Ah... I will be very careful.

[freearcadia]

[She shrinks into a small mote of light, and follows after Moon, while the others seem to have the other available rooms in hand, there is still the elevator]

[eggstinction]

[what's an elevator]




[feels around the elevator door for a way to pry it open...]

[freearcadia]

[It slowly starts opening, but there's sounds of footfalls approaching - echoing in the empty hall]

[eggstinction]

[UH OH]

[scuttles up onto the ceiling until the door is wide enough for him to slip inside]

[freearcadia]

[The pace of those footfalls continued at a steady pace, as the door seem to take a long time to open - opening fully when a man in deep black rounds the corner having spotted Moon, drawing a weapon from his hip]

Vermin on my ship...?

[As if in response, the doors start to close, the chance to get inside is slipping fast but it is possible]

[eggstinction]

[making a scramble into the elevator YEP]

Moon: 9 vs ???: 17

[freearcadia]

[As the doors close, the man in black raises his weapon - and a deafening thunderclap fills the air.

Moon was struck by something small, sharp and hot right before the doors shut - this may be inside Harlock's heart but the pain was all too real, as is the newly acquired bullet wound -

thankfully he seems unfamiliar with dragon anatomy, or it might've been worse]

[eggstinction]

[SNARLS SOMETHING VERY RUDE IN DRAGON

sits down on the floor and just sticks his claws into the wound to ferret out the bullet]