So Familiar a Gleam: Conclusion

[voidtreckermods]

Time to leave!

There is not much of the city left, but the park is holding together as those anchoring help those who are not voidtreckers through back to where they belong. Monsters continue to attack and a little further out there is a battle of hearts and minds being fought with the mass of colours and chaos.

Eventually, after the bulk of citizens had been evacuated everyone with SCA's on would hear Jin-Roh's voice after a few frantic beeps, as Chiff aligned everyone's SCA's. "We are almost done here, if you are with anyone not tethered to a voidcraft get them to the evacuation point, as quickly as possible."

Anan pulls out of the anchoring point to call out to any defenders in the park. "Come on! Anyone who isn't a voidtrecker! It's time to go."

Luckily those off fighting the entity headed the message and made their way to the park as Jin Roh spoke again.

"Everyone else get ready. When we call it you need to leave. If you don't have your SCA on then get to someone who does."

As the last people rushed to the park Anan calls out again, through her SCA and outloud to the park. "You need to unanchor, before you can evacuate. Everyone be ready."

She goes in again though, because there are some last people, those from the large battle, getting through as another message was called.

"Almost there. Be ready. On my command..."

Anan unanchored again. "Quick everyone unanchor."

"NOW" Jin Roh's voice came through strong on their SCA's. Hopefully those with SCA's would grab those without.

There is some outside help as well, the train pulls anyone who is unconscious or still under the entity's control, forcibly evacuating them. This includes Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji and Zagreus.

Luggage Carriage

There has been a mass evacuation before and that was crazy enough but since then the population of the train has almost doubled and now it is an extremely tight squeeze as everyone crashes into the luggage carriage at the same time.

The train jerks and rolls as they enter into the void at breakneck speed and again as they seem to slow, rather than speeding off though the void.

There's a crackling from their SCA's. "Voidtreckers? Voidtreckers come in!" Anan's voice. "Please tell me you made it..."

There's only a few moments of signal and soon they are flying though the void again, away from the strange non-world, the entity sealed for now. To new adventures, but first hopefully some time to recover from all that has happened.

Comments

[agathokakological]

Crowley shakes his head, "I think I realized some time ago that there's really no such thing as good and bad. Just people."

Maybe that's easy for a demon to say, but he feels it. The things that he'd seen done in the name of good were repulsive. And here he is, supposedly evil, concerned over the safety of those around him.

"I do." he replies as Yondu continues, "More than you realize."

Now on the other side of the train, Crowley points out his room as they approach it. "This is the one." he mutters, gesturing to the door with an elegant curtain obscuring the view inside. From the outside, this is the only thing that sets it apart from the others, but as Crowley opens the door, the interior is impossibly large, the size of the entire train car. It's decorated elegantly with wood paneling and red velvet drapes, all of the furniture equally ornate. There are lofts inside, each of which having a closed off room beneath them, but the floorplan is otherwise open. It smells distinctly of fresh baked goods, a tray of assorted items sitting on the counter of a small kitchenette.

"Make yourself at home."

[yondu]

He wants to believe that's true. But sometimes he really hates what he's done as a person. Sometimes. It depends on which shitty thing he's been a part of. Somehow there are other shitty things he's right proud of.

But he'll accept it because, fuck it, he needs someone to think the best of him.

He follows him into the room and... yup, has to look outside and back inside and back outside of it again. Once he's satisfied that, yup, that is strange, he goes fully in to start investigating all this finery that should not fit in here yet does.

He's never actually seen this kind of thing in practice. He's seen portals lead to larger spaces? But not stretched dimensions, and even if he's heard of them he ends up looking around and muttering a soft 'holy shit'.

[agathokakological]

Crowley beelines it to a small cart amidst a seating arrangement made of a sofa and a couple plush chairs. The cart has a decanter of scotch, among other things, and a few glasses. He picks two glasses from the shelf, barely turning behind him to talk to Yondu.

"You want a scotch? I'm having one." he says, pouring two before Yondu even answers.

"Help yourself to any of Aziraphale’s baking experiments..." he offers, "They're over in the kitchen."

[yondu]

"Oh... oh right..." He's still taking it all in as he fumbles his way to the kitchen and picks up a muffin. Then comes over to get the scotch, still obviously trying to get his bearings.

After a moment of silence, he abruptly flinches a grin.

"You're probably gettin' a kick outa this, ain't ya?" Because he sure as shit would.

[agathokakological]

Crowley turns, two glasses in hand. and offers one to Yondu before finding the closest plush chair to sit incorrectly on.

There's a sofa too, should Yondu need to recline a bit. Crowley's also made a spare bedroom behind them where Alice often spends time, but it's empty at the moment in case his guest wants a place to sleep uninterrupted.

"I'm not sure what you mean." he replies deadpan, taking a sip of his drink. If there's anything he's learned how to do over the last several millennia, it's keep a straight face. Honestly though, he's just content to ensure the comfort of someone he cares about. There's nothing flashy about that.

[yondu]

He plops into the chair indicated, the look of bewilderment ebbing to something that he can enjoy. He has to pick at the muffin to eat it, but he doesn't mind. It's a hell of a lot better than what he was eating out of desperation.

"So how much work does somethin' like this take? You just will it to happen or does it tire ya out?"

He knows Crowley might have been too busy for such things, but goddamn if this kinda trick couldn't have been useful in his line of work. He really does miss having a team, he realizes. And he can't be faulted for fantasizing a little.

[agathokakological]

Crowley shrugs, taking a sip of his drink. "We spent a day or two on it. I'm not sure... I've always just... done it."

He snaps his finger to demonstrate, and there's a plate with a much more appetizing sandwich on the table between them. You know, in case Yondu wants more than a muffin. The sandwich looks gourmet and fresh, Crowley didn't skimp on the details.

He's never used it for anything too major. Fixing a dent in his car or magicing it into running without gas, miracling a lock open, those sorts of things. Of course, there would frequently be drawbacks. With the car, enough magic had been pumped into it over the years that it took on a bit of a personality of its own, and leaving any tape or cd in it for over a fortnight turned it into a Best of Queen album, which frankly, he was tired of hearing.

[yondu]

"I don't know how long it takes Celestials to work themselves out, but they gotta make themselves outa dust 'n' stuff. Y'all had a helpin' hand." And what? He's mid chew on the muffin when he sees the sandwich. So now he realizes he's going to look a little like a classless clod in juggling food items but he manages to put the plucked at muffin on the plate to exchange for the sandwich.

"So y'all can only do a little bit at a time. You couldn't whoosh up somethin' big." And he wants to be a decent soul with the good scotch, he really does, so he gets up to go get some water to wash down the sandwich bites 'cause it feels inappropriate to waste it with a spicy chug.

[agathokakological]

Crowley doesn't think Yondu is classless in any way, he's very familiar with the concept of different cultures and just because he chooses to confirm to the posh British sort, doesn't mean he's easily offended.

"I guess-- not really tried. If I extend a tremendous amount of energy, I could create a pocket dimension-- but I've only really done that a handful of times when situations were dire."

His eyes follow Yondu across the room, not that he's concerned, just curious. Realizing what he'd gotten up for makes him groan, realizing he's not a tremendous host. "Augh... sorry. Didn't think that one through."

Typical.

[yondu]

"S'fine. I got legs and can cart myself over there. I just didn't wanna waste somethin' good."

Oh, Yondu is thoroughly classless by most universe's standards and he knows it. But for some reason he wants to try a little harder around them. A little harder, not too much harder, though. Not enough to bury the bulk of his shining personality.

"You got somethin' that can help with dreams? Real bad ones?"

Maybe he's pushing his luck, here. It's still worth asking, he figures, as he takes another bite.

[agathokakological]

Crowley sniffs, leaning back in his seat to look over his shoulder in case Yondu needs help locating anything. The demon is actually rather used to lack of manners, gruff personalities, the dark underbelly of London where he could set up heists in the backs of smokey bars. Aziraphale is the other side of the coin, which Crowley appreciates equally, slotting himself easily into both kinds of society like a true chameleon.

"Mn, that's Aziraphale’s favored trick. I'd give it a shot, but don't trust myself not to hide within it weird images of your superiors naked." he cackles, his thumb tracing the rim of his glass. "Ask him sometime, though. He'd be thrilled."

[yondu]

Yondu had done business with all kinds of brokers like that. You could usually tell the difference between the ones that were actually genuine and the ones that just wanted to look like they had some sort of authority. Crowley and Aziraphale have always come off as utterly genuine.

But he makes note of what Crowley says with a nod, wolfing down that sandwich as he does because he's so damn hungry after sleeping for so long. Finishing it with the water and then picking up that scotch.

He probably should have taken longer to enjoy it but his stomach had been making conversation with him for a while.

"I already dreamed of my old superior naked all on my own. Didn't need your help for that one." God help him, he hopes said superior never shows up here. "Been a while, though. I'll ask 'im." He lifts the scotch in a vague toast appreciatively.

[agathokakological]

No offense taken by the way Yondu eats the sandwich, of course. That's why it was given to him. He chuckles lightly at the response, but the truth is both he and Aziraphale have their specialties. Crowley may not be well-versed in sweet dreams, but he has, on occasion, stopped time.

"Of course." he replies easily, mirroring the toast before taking another sip. "If there's another way I can be of service, let me know."