it's gonna rain - and it never ends

[thespaceopera]

[ It's midday, or close enough to it that the sun is blazing red hot above the planet. Everything seems ordinary - for disturbing, red-tinted values of ordinary, anyway. But the normalcy doesn't last for long.

Without warning, an explosive sound shocks through the jungle. It doesn't come from any one central point, but rather several points, scattered throughout, strategically placed to the advantage of someone. And from those massive shocks rises a wave of missiles - large, fast, and apparently, freely flying. They're guided, and they've locked onto their target: any foreign ship that is currently within Lato'li's atmosphere.

There's no way to mistake it. They're headed right for the Fleet.

The first wave feels a bit sporadic - timings might be off, but the missiles are still deadly, and if they hit, they hit hard. Shields might withstand this wave, but ships without shields will take direct hits. The ability to stay airborn is very, very quickly lost.

The second wave is much more precise, expertly timed and executed by whomever is firing from below. Even smaller shuttles get caught in the crosshairs, and those ships that lasted through the first volley will take a few more shots. If shields saved you before, they will fail here, giving out under the strain.

And the third wave comes, a little bit longer after, to finish the job. There are more of them, and they are far more advanced - they make the previous two volleys look like warning shots. This time, it's all missiles launched, all targets acquired.

Seven Fleet ships - and many, many shuttles - fall out of the sky, headed straight for the surface at alarming speed. Only four ships manage to escape the assault and exit the planet's atmosphere, retreating to orbit as fast as possible. Those lucky enough to have been in orbit can only watch as all of this happens.

But the missiles aren't the only thing up their sleeve. Just when the dust settles, while the network is surely lighting up with activity, attempts to contact one another and check on the status of fellow ships and crew, A loud, quick, terrible screeching noise shocks the network. It drowns out all communications on any connected devices - ship or personal. Ships in orbit will see all on-board systems flicker, then fizzle out, all non-emergency systems have gone completely down.

And with that.. there's silence. Perhaps too much silence. No matter what you do, no matter which buttons you press, which channels you try, there is no connection. Those who have dropped to the surface are entirely radio silent, and those in orbit have been reduced to the barest of abilities and life-support, with the bare minimum of contact.

So... What can you do now? ]


(( ooc: Feel free to use this post as a mingle for all your crashy or missile-dodgy needs!

• The following ships have been shot down: Bishop, Bloodsport, Blue Fish, Goldstone, Heron, Tourist, Twin Roses.
• The following ships are now in orbit: Blameless, Caprine, First Breath, Huntress, Iskaulit, Red Fish, Starstruck, Vanquish, Wonderduck

Good luck, Dear Fleet...~ ♪ ))

Comments

[moseyin]

[Cloud's about to argue, ask Zack what that's supposed to mean when he snaps his mouth shut. All the times he'd sat farther from Zack, or shaken off his hand, or just clapped his shoulder when Zack had gone in for a hug.

That's what Zack means.]

...no, [Cloud says finally. He scoots up a little, pulls Zack into the crook of his shoulder stubbornly.] There. That okay?

[wingenvy]

[colour him surprised. Zack is quiet for a moment, surprised and genuinely touched, and truth is even if he wanted to fight it he doesn't have the strength. too cold, too tired, too sore. a shiver passes through his body, brief but telling, and he tucks in as close as he can get, his eyes closing. he's warm- warmer than any blanket, that's probably true.]

Yeah... yeah, it's okay. Thanks.

[it's comfortable. familiar, actually. how many times had he done this? wrapped himself around a half-starved, unmoving body, rubbing his arms up and down chilled limbs until the goosebumps fade, mumbling reassurances into soft straw-shaded hair, listening for any sound but their own heartbeats on nights too cold to sleep alone but too dangerous to risk a fire.

"we'll be okay. we'll fix you right up, buddy, so just rest as much as you need. once we get there--"

he sure as hell doesn't miss the circumstances but the closeness... sometimes, he misses that.]

[moseyin]

[Cloud shifts just enough to pull the blanket over them both, tucking it around Zack. It's not particularly cold, and Zack does have SOLDIER toughness even if he's suffering blood loss, so there's really no reason to be worried.

Still, this kind of...it's...well, after a whole day of fighting and terror and worry, maybe something like this is just what he needed. More than a Cure, more than a drink. Just a moment when it feels like there's nothing in this jungle that could lay a hand on either of them.]

We did this, [Cloud says suddenly, arm around Zack's shoulders, chin atop his hair.] Or- you did this, I guess. I think. I remember this...we were moving. In a truck or something.

[wingenvy]

...Mm.

[there's a faint smile on Zack's face, lips curving upwards as he recalls it himself. if he concentrates hard enough he can still feel the crunching tires, the bump and shake of that beaten country road, the slow final crawl towards Midgar after their bike had finally died on them.]

We did. A few times, on the road, but that was one. I didn't really need to... it was so hot that day. Humid- there was a storm rolling in, but we were outrunning it. The old guy driving us home kept yelling at me to sit down, so I went over to you, and...

[he lifts his shoulders in a small shrug. he's got no real excuse, nor will he apologize for it. he gets the impression Cloud isn't looking for that, though.]

I had a good feeling, I guess. That you were gonna be okay. But I didn't want you to think I was gonna leave you alone because we were finally there... my voice wouldn't reach you, so I figured I'd just keep close for a while.

[moseyin]

[Cloud hums, shoving his head back against the pillow a couple times. It sounds familiar, but more in a way that it's a story he's been told before. Those flashes he'd gotten in the basement were just that, flashes, but there's one thing he remembers with startling clarity.

The heat of the sun on his arms, the smell of dust and sweat in the air. The stickiness of warmth and then, after, the chill of rain, of mud. The stench of blood almost nonexistent until he was there, right there.

There's so little of Zack Cloud remembers that isn't tied up in agony and loss.]

...it's not a macho thing, [Cloud murmurs into Zack's hair, closing his eyes as well. Zack's a big, solid weight against him, and Cloud circles his shoulders with his arms.]

[wingenvy]

No? I'm glad, then... it wasn't like you. Or old-you, anyway.

[Cloud had been quiet, shy and unsure, and he'd craved strength but had never given Zack the jockish no-homo impression before, so the sudden resistance to touch had taken some adjusting to. Not the biggest of deals, but still awkward.]

You don't have to get into it if you don't want to. 'm not gonna push.

[...but he'll listen if he does want to, just saying.]

[moseyin]

[There is literally no way to say this without hurting Zack's feelings, so...]

Don't...like people I don't know touching me, sometimes. ...is all.

[wingenvy]

[...oof. It's not so much an issue of hurt feelings- because this is something that Zack can understand, to an extent. He hadn't left Nibelheim with any physical scars, not really, but there'd been plenty of lingering issues; the memory of Hojo's cold, clinical hands examining the both of them isn't something he'll ever forget. Is that what Cloud remembers? Is that where it started? Maybe it's something else. Maybe Sephiroth, maybe all of it. He wants to ask, but he doesn't.

Instead, he asks quietly,]

Want me to stop?

[There's no judgment, no anger in his voice. Regret, maybe; he doesn't like the thought of his touch hurting someone he cares about. And even if he remembers everything between them, Cloud doesn't. He can't keep on pretending that isn't the case.]

[moseyin]

No, [Cloud says immediately, squeezing Zack a little as if to keep him from leaving. Not that he'd really have anywhere to go...or would. He's pretty sure Zack's not like that, after the time they've spent together.] I don't want- I don't want this to rule me.

And the more we talk and stuff, the more I remember. I just need that jump start. I don't want to go back to not remembering who you are, I can't.

[wingenvy]

Hey, don't get me wrong, I don't want that any more than you do. If I've got any say in it, you'll get back all the important stuff and then some.

[he's not pulling away, at least- there's no resistance to Cloud's hold on him, and it's even returned in kind, albeit weaker.]

I just don't wanna be the cause of any misery, even if neither of us mean for it. You've had to deal with enough of that already.

[moseyin]

You've never caused me any misery. [Maybe he doesn't remember a lot; maybe everything that Zack has that makes it easy for him to swing an arm around Cloud, for him to make jokes and nudge him and pry out of him answers and smiles and laughter, maybe Cloud's missing that. But he can still say with absolute confidence that with all the pain he's suffered, a good deal of it self-inflicted, Zack has never, ever been the caused. Not with something he'd done. Never.]

Zack, I- I told Aerith this already, but I mean this for you too... Even if the opportunity comes up, I'm not goin' back home. Not unless I can bring you guys back with me, alive.

[wingenvy]

[...oof, that's heavy. Zack's not sure what to say at first, so he licks his lips and weighs his words first.]

There's no guarantee that'll ever happen, you know... you'd be giving up a lot.

[because yeah, their planet isn't the greatest ever, and he does love Aerith, no doubt there. but surely there's a lot more to live for than two people.]

[moseyin]

I know. I've thought about it. [Aerith had pretty much the same protests, trying to argue before finally giving in almost tearfully.] I know it's cruel to- to Tifa, and to everyone I'd be leaving back home, but... But they don't need me, not really. [They might honestly be better off without him, though he's at least smart enough to know he shouldn't say that aloud.] They've gotten along fine without me, and they can do it again. But I don't think I can go back to getting along fine without you.

[wingenvy]

...Well, I'm not gonna argue with you about it. I'd hate to not have you here.

[even if he disagrees on a fundamental level with so much of that, he can't really force self-worth on Cloud. it's just something they'll all need to work on over time, much as he dislikes hearing it.]

Okay, then- that's the goal! Find a way for all of us to get back home safe and sound.

[moseyin]

[That'd be ideal, for sure, but with Aerith being so concerned about returning to the Lifestream...]

You're somethin' else, y'know that? I dunno how you do it.

[wingenvy]

What, stay positive? Ingrained, man! When you're born in a craphole like Gongaga you learn how to focus on the shiny side of the outhouse. Dad used to say, "Life ain't fair so that's why we are."

[dumb puns run in the family, probably.]

[moseyin]

Well, I think it's amazing. [Cloud shakes his head slowly, sighing and facing the ceiling as he closes his eyes. He smooths a hand down Zack's back, over and over, finding comfort in the repetitiveness of it.] You should go back to sleep. I'll still be here when you wake up.

[wingenvy]

...Much as I'm digging this, you're probably right. Feel like I got hit by a dozen trucks one after the other.

[That hand on his back is nice, soft and soothing. He doesn't even mind that it's Cloud- which is still a surprise, but not so much now, not at this point. For all the changes and lost memories, there's still plenty of traces to find of the old Cloud, and plenty more to like about who he's become now. It's all too easy to cozy up and close his eyes, murmuring a final thanks before he lets himself start to drift off. It's been a while, but like this he actually feels safe, for once.]