driftfleet | 'cause it's better than nothing

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'cause it's better than nothing

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Otono-Tachibana Makie

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(last updated: 1/25/19)

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Nope, Sugar Glider Guy's how I know you. Red Robin sounds like a burger joint or something.

[Turning back to the cutting board, Taako wipes his knife off on the towel, then spins it in his fingers.]

So, you're here then. Does that mean you've finished the onesies or are they on hold?

Can't Robin just work? or even Red, at least they're parts of my name or code name.

I don't actually know where here is. It's obviously not the Fleet and no the uniforms aren't finished. They're.. a work in progress.

{He seems to consider that, tapping a finger against his bottom lip with a low hum.]

Mmmmnope. SGG, Sugar Glider, Suga' or Suge at the least. Especially until you finish the onesies.

Also, technically this is and isn't Glamour Springs. Welcome to a glimpse of my homeworld.

[Tim sighs and just gives up on the name, he feels like the more of a big deal he makes, the longer the awful nickname will stick]

Your set up here seems very cozy [He goes back to the doorway to look out at more of this Glamour Springs]

[From here most of what Tim can see is the empty amphitheatre, chairs and benches awaiting people who will never come. The town is quaint though, like a modern suburb with buildings that never reach more than two or three stories all made of wood and stone. It's eerily silent though. No animals, no breeze in the trees, no sounds of life anywhere.]

Used to be, yeah, sure.

[Taako mutters that under his breath and slips the knife back into its block. He goes back to the pot and starts stirring it, eyes down.]

It's a good little operation - traveling show so we-- I had to manage my space well.

I did expect more people I guess.

When you said you were a tv chef, I didn't quite expect it to be so cozy? quaint?
You said we though? who else is usually with you?

[He stiffens when Tim catches his slip-up and stirs the pot a little more vigorously.]

Traveling Vehicle show - TV.

[Is that actually what the acronym stands for? Maybe? Maybe not, but it's a nice little distraction from having to answer that second half of the question.]

I was a pretty big draw - some of the best entertainment that came through any town I graced with my presence. Brand name, merch, the whole shebang.

Oh. [Tim laughs] You and I have a very different idea of what TV stands for.

What was your show called? and who else travelled with you? was it the boy that I saw earlier? Angus?

Pfft, gullible.

[Taako snorts and then completely ignores everything Tim is asking except that last one.]

And as if I'd let Ango cook. He can get the form just fine, but there's no flavor to anything he makes. It's atrocious.

How am I gullible?

There is a form to cooking? Don't you just follow a recipe and if you do that right the flavour should just happen right?

Look it up, m'dude. You'll figure it out.

[He honestly has no idea what TV stands for. It's just a thing he's said nearly all his life and no one questioned him.

But at the question, Taako gives Tim a look that could melt solid steel.]

If that were true, everyone could be a chef. Oh my gods, why do people think this shit is that easy? Do you have any idea how much technique and skill goes into cooking properly? Texture aside, if you don't balance the flavors correctly, ensure ingredient quality, time and measure everything perfectly, the end result is just bland. And no food should ever be bland. It's a- a fucking atrocity to your stomach and taste buds.

I didn't say that was it was easy, just that I didn't know there was a form to it? God knows I can't cook anything.

You're very passionate about this. I'm really going to have to taste your food at some point.

What did you just put into the oven anyway? You said earlier you weren't sure?
[Tim goes over to the berries he noticed before and picks them up]

Well duh there is. It's why they call it the "culinary arts," homie. And if you wanna try my food, you just have to come by the Melting Pot. I run i-

[He can't finish his sentence between the questions and Tim touching the berries. There's a flash of fear when he realizes what Tim is reaching for, but he can't stop him from picking them up.

---

Picking up the berries feels heavy, like a weight has dropped upon Tim's shoulders, pulling him, dragging down into the memory. The wagon fritzes like static and suddenly there's a crowd of people outside, forty of them, buzzing with excitement in the previously empty seats. There's a mix of people in the audience - mostly humans, but even a few elves and halflings. The ages tend toward the elderly, groups of older women gossiping about this or that sitting together while older men chat and try to conceal their equal excitement to the news. There are some young mothers with children and some youth who had nothing else to do. They take their seats in the ampitheatre in front of the wagon, which is where Tim suddenly finds himself.

Applause erupts around them and in the wagon a familiar elf appears - sans wizard's hat. Taako appears in front of the wagon and takes a grandiose bow.

"Gooood morning, Glamour Springs!! You know who I am. Say it with me! I'm??"

Most of the people in the audience call back, "Taako!"

"From?"

"TV!"

"That's right, folks. Are you ready for one hell of a meal?" The crowd cheers and Taako spins some magic effortlessly around him, sparks flying out from behind him as he disappears and reappears inside the wagon. The cooking show is electric. Taako knows how to put on a show and he transmutes ingredients from one thing to another, calling out the recipe as he does so, making a big show of pouring ingredients into his hand before pouring them back into measuring cups to show that he did it precisely without any help. He skins a chicken and then taps it and the skin's back on, spiced this time. In the background, a larger looking fellow is passing Taako ingredients as he calls for them. He crushes a few cloves of garlic with the heel of his hand and then tells the man behind him to finish it up, leaving the rest of the 30 cloves to him. Once everything is ready, he slides the chicken into the oven and comes out front again, talking with the audience and selling t-shirts and merch, answering questions.

After some time has passed, the assistant comes back and whispers something into his ear. Taako turns to the audience and shouts out. "Who's ready for some samples?"

He goes back into the wagon and pulls the chicken out, garnishing it with the black berries Tim had been holding earlier. Then he calls people forward and starts serving the food up. He's all smiles as young and old alike come forward and take plate after plate from him, humming with approval at the delicious taste. There's a sense of pride and glory that hangs over this memory like a warm yellow glow. The glow radiates from Taako and rather than his usual prideful, arrogrant expression, the smile on his face is softened by sort of satisfaction that only comes from a job well done and a job well loved. He's truly in his element here, entertaining and being loved albeit at the arm's length that all celebrities maintain. He's chatting with the audience congenially as they compliment his cooking, asking for tips and tricks for their own recipes. Taako's about to take the last sample for himself, because every good chef eats their own food even if they know it's amazing, when a child reaches for it, asking for seconds. He's a cute little kid, untamed curls under a hat to keep off the sun, freckles on his cheeks and pretty green eyes that see wonder everywhere. After a moment's hemming and hawing, he relents and hands the plate to the kid with a smile and a pat on the head.

And then like a crack through a mirror, someone starts coughing and wheezing. The color drains from the memory like ink slowly leeching away. Someone else starts coughing. And then another. And another. Someone yells for help and Taako's head whips around as a young mother clutches his arm, grasping her chest as both she and her child start suffocating. The uneaten plate crashes to the ground as the boy from earlier starts to choke next to Taako. The cry for help turns into a wail and then screaming as everyone in the audience starts to wheeze and retch, their bodies convulsing, people clutching at their throats.

Taako steps back and pulls out of everyone's grip, confusion turning to horror and horror to panic as the audience reaches toward him, crying for help. He stares at the for a moment, eyes darting over everyone's faces, hands up as his mouth tries to form words - then he turns and flees into the wagon, banging on the secondary car off the back.

"Sazed!! Sazed! We have to go! We have to go now!"

The larger man from before bursts from the car and jumps into the driver's seat. Without even asking why, he gathers up the reigns and they're off, Taako hiding out in the back of the wagon as it disappears down the road. Tim is pulled along with the memory, and finds himself in the back of the wagon now, too, looking down at Taako as he's jostled around where he's curled up on the floor, clutching his head. Behind him the haunting screams and moans of people dying follow like they're right outside, and he squeezes his eyes shut, pulling at his hair as Sazed thunders the wagon down the road.

"...What the fuck just happened? How? How? What went wrong? What did I do wrong?" The memory fades as Taako screams at himself in the back of the wagon, leaving Tim standing back in the original unmoving wagon holding a bunch of withering berries in his hand.

---

The door to the back of the wagon is opens and it's now nighttime outside, the quiet sound of crickets humming in the air. On the floor of the wagon is Taako, sitting with his knees pulled to his chest, arms wrapped around them and looking dejected. He doesn't look up when he talks, voice shuddering with effort.]

...I r-really wish you hadn't touched those.

[Tim puts down the withered up berries gingerly before stepping over to Taako and crouching down in front of him]

I'm sorry. I won't touch anything else.

[He has so many questions about what happened as well. Did Taako ever find out that it was definitely the berries or is that just what he believed? Why did he run? Did he ever go back? but instead, he just keeps his mouth shut and waits for Taako awkwardly to calm down enough to talk]

Y-yeah, probably be good. Y'know, good for uh... [Taako's clearly rattled, rambling and refusing to look Tim in the eyes.] ..y'know, it'd be good.

[He knows it isn't his fault that those people died, but having that memory replayed again is like reliving it all over again. Every moment crystal clear and just as painful as the day it happened. He's gotten over it, he's moved on, but that fear is still rooted deep within him, dragged out of the swamp of his myriad coping mechanisms kicking and screaming, rearing its ugly head.

Taako shrinks away from Tim when he kneels down, trying to make it absolutely clear he doesn't want to be touched right now.]

If you're wondering - they, uh, they all died. I'm technically on the hook for the murders, so I guess if you're gonna vigilante beat my ass, you should know that.

And know that I'll blast you backwards outta this wagon if I have to.

I'm not going to beat you up Taako, not just because of the threat of magic. For one, we're not anywhere near any kind of authority from your world but more importantly. I could tell that it was not your intention to hurt those people. I experienced the memory as you did, I felt your surprise and horror.

This was not your fault.

[He lets out a bitter, broken huff of a laugh, turning his face away.]

That's the thing, isn't it? I thought it was. I've thought it was for- [He breathes out heavily.] -years. It ended my career. I went into hiding. Had to give up everything and I quit cookin'.

And now I know it's not really my fault at all, so it's, well, better, sure, but--

[Taako frowns and flexes his fingers against his arms.]

Still hard to get past, y'know?

I would be worried if it wasn't hard to get past. At least now you know that, even if sometimes it is going to feel like you only know it logically instead of emotionally.

I wouldn't want to see what kind of spell you'd hit me with if I tried to shake some sense into you. If you still were under the impression it was your fault.

I'm sorry I kept intruding on your memories.

Oh, I could still show you.

[Taako suddenly climbs to his feet, rubbing his arms as if to ward off any lingering feelings. He hates being this raw and open with anyone, least of all someone he's only just recently met. Promise of some bangin' onesies or no, he isn't emotionally mature enough to handle this shit.]

I have a shitload of fun ones - Thunderwave, Banishment, all kinds. You wanna give the magic wheel a spin?

[Tim will stay on the ground for the moment, just let Taako get comfortable again after all that]

What about Magic Missile? [He giggles to himself]

Well yeah, if you wanna die.

[He says with a complete deadpan. The others wouldn't really hurt Tim, but Magic Missile? That's three bolts of 1d4+1 of force damage right at his face.]

I didn't mean for you to aim it at me! I just thought a demonstration of the ability would be interesting.

Besides, we're in a dream right? so no real lasting effects.

Didn't you hear? When you die in a dream, you die in real life, my dude.

[But demonstrations? Sure.

He unfolds from where he'd wedged himself in the wagon and pushes past Tim, glad for the distraction. Thinking about what Tim saw, the deaths, the fact that they're literally standing in the skeleton of Glamour Springs right now? Not what Taako wants to focus on. Magic though, magic he can do. No transmutation, naturally, but other things? Sure.

Taako hops out of the wagon and pulls a wand from his pocket.]

But Magic Missile, huh? You don't want something more, I dunno, spectacular?

[Tim will get up and follow Taako although maintaining a small distance behind him]

You don't have to do it. I just thought it would be nifty to see it in person. You can choose something else?

Naw, I can do it. I just wasn't sure how much you knew about our magic system.

[Here we go. He points the wand forward and easy as pie, casts Magic Missile. Three bolts of energy split off from the tip of his wand and streak through the empty amphitheater, striking three different chairs and pummeling them into oblivion.

Then he turns and flicks his wrist, a pool of black spreading out along the ground in front of him. It spreads into a square and from the depths black tentacles shoot up, grasping at nothing in particular until they find a few chairs from the front row. The tendrils grab them, dragging them into the writhing mess and Taako snorts, turning back to look at Tim.]

Since this is and isn't real, I basically got unlimited spell slots in here.

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cw: death

Re: cw: death

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