[IC] ANKL Chapter II: A Truly Wonderful World

[Sutoratosu]

Arya

Arya had kept going a few feet further before she finally noticed Layla's abscence. Giving a glance back to the way they'd came, she found the goddess standing in place, attention apparently drawn by some random girl; the thought of going back crossed her mind as she heard them beginning to talk, but receded soon enough once she saw just how intent Layla seemed on questioning the girl... and given her usually withdrawn nature, chances were that it had to be something important, if she were so willing to literally stop in her tracks to do it. Arya honestly doubted she could break her away from the conversation even if she tried.

"Maybe we should just let her catch up to us later," She said, picking her own pace back up "whatever they're talking about, I've got the feeling it might take a while."

[Chevaleresse]

oh my god this is all just so fucking insane and i'm scared and have no idea what the hell is going on and i might be dead so

you know what? fuck it, just keep going along with it.

Arturia, through a rapidly thickening fog of anxiety, did as Trick instructed. She tried to imagine her as somebody more, well, coherent? Reasonable? Someone that it wouldn't be even more mentally exhausting to try and understand. At least that's what I think 'be a different me' means. Hopefully. I'm already goddamn sick of magic.

[Shamitako]

Trick (sort of)

The ghost's ability to switch to the personality of one of the souls inside it was a wild and uncontrollable one, but Arturia's wish for reason was enough of an anchor for a specific mind to push its way through. Latching onto the concept of reason, she tugged her way to the surface, forcing herself to be in control.

"I sensed a call for reason." Said Trick, or rather the being that possessed Trick's body, "That was once my duty to provide, I like to think I'm well versed in the art. However the ghost will resume control in a short while and there is no guarantee I can force myself forward again, so you best make haste. What is it you need to know? I shall do everything in my remaining power to explain it."

[Chevaleresse]

Fuck. I don't have time to think of everything, I need to figure out what I need to figure out, shitshitshit goddamnit why is this happening - focus for a moment, you can freak out and cry later - "Uhm, okay, I guess, what just happened to me and what does it mean? And like, how do ghosts even work? A-am I really dead? I'm sorry, it's just..." She forced herself to stop talking for her own benefit. This is what you get for thinking all that shit, you knew your life was just fine...

[Shamitako]

Reasonable Trick

Trick didn't waste time trying to think up answers, she responded immediately with as much detail as she could manage.

"You tried to heal a ghost, which basically resulted in you giving up your state of living to make the ghost alive instead. There's not too much difference, you'll just feel cold and empty. You shouldn't be able to die and pain will be a bit numb, whether that's good or not depends on how you feel about the value of pain. Most of the time ghosts burn up every few hours and reappear somewhere else, you self-heal so it should anchor you in place." She explained, "Ghosts themselves are a conglomeration of souls from people who died en masse, they appear at locations relevant to the dead for a short while before moving to a new location at random. They possess a unique personality, usually a very odd one, but can switch to the personalities of the souls within them for a short while. They also contain a large mass of power, which grants them a special ability when controlling an element. This one, "Trick," has power over the Soul or mind, allowing her to do anything that could be perceived as "destruction of the Soul." Without proper guidance she is likely to cause many deaths with what seem to her to be harmless pranks.

"As for whether you are dead or not, that's really up to you. If death is a matter of the physical, then yes, you are dead. However your soul is still perfectly alive, it's just not in your body anymore. You're not even really a ghost, almost the exact opposite. Rather than a bundle of souls that have left their bodies, you are a single body that has given up her soul. It's a rare case for the soul, which also represents the mind, to be separate from a fully conscious body. The way I see it, you are half alive, and a couple dozen dead girls are also half alive. That's a net gain from the one alive girl and several dead girls that you started with. I doubt that comforts you, but comfort isn't exactly my thing, my apologies."

Though her explanation was finished, Trick still had more to say. "I'd like to ask you a question myself, you needn't answer if you don't wish to. Have you encountered any other supernatural beings besides this ghost? I'm looking for someone, but since I'm almost never in control of this body it's hard to do much searching. Attaching this fragment to a ghost was a poor idea, but it was also my only option to survive as anything close to myself."

[Chevaleresse]

Oh, that's just great, just fucking fantastic. . . I can't even. . .! No what the fuck this is not the time to think about that. Okay. Well, you did do something helpful, I guess. Possibly stopped people from dying. That's good. Grab that. Alright, focus. "Um, I ran across a few magical people, I guess, but I don't think I ran into anyone like you." There was a hint of a questioning tone at the end of her sentence; collective entities were always a little odd to speak to and about. You're you, but not-you... maybe I was being a little hard on the confusing one? "If I tell a different personality about meeting one will you know? And... yeah, that does make me feel a little better."