61 - Phone

[ceasetoexist]

[Well, after having a wonderful meeting with his old boss, Pokey spent the next hour or so being productive by wandering around aimlessly in a stupid daze. He was somewhere between a weird sense of calm and a sense of completely flipping out entirely. After a bit had passed, he finally evened out, having found his way home.

And being entirely logical at this point, of course, went straight to the phone.]

[Phone - Filtered from Giegue....and from Picky]

Alright morons. I know everyone's just excited about how the town decided to shave three days time off for us, great grand terrific it's the town messing with us again, but now you all need to shut up because I have something important to talk about. I have to tell you something that could save your stupid lives.

So we're at the time where new people are coming in, and what's just wonderful about that this time is that a creature from my world came in with them. A very, very dangerous creature. It's name is Giegue, and it looks like the biggest, meanest cat you've ever seen, and is currently living at 726 Anderson. I have no clue how it's behaving in front of people, but what he actually is is an alien warlord who wants to dominate and conquer mankind and any other race in his way. He's a powerful psychic, and even though he doesn't have that crap back, don't worry! He's also a lot stronger than most people are without it anyway, which is just great for him!

So, my advice is that if you see what looks like a giant cat? Leave it alone. Don't try and talk to it, don't engage, don't piss it off. Giegue doesn't have any problems with hurting or crushing or killing anything that it thinks is getting in its way, and if you aren't him and you don't work for him? You're in his way. So just...leave him alone. I'll take care of this. I can.

Which brings me to a second point: for those of you who know me? Yeah, how about you don't anymore? Things are going to get bad regardless, but how about you save yourself some trouble and possible pain and decide to stay out of this breaking ties, yeah? I'm sure some of you are dumb enough to fight me on this instead of doing the smart thing, but really? If you don't know me, you're less likely to have to deal with this crap. So how about you do me that favor.

[Filtered to Slugger]

[It's a moment or so after the initial call, but yeah, you're getting a call of your own, Slugger. And his voice? Is almost a whisper, hushed and rapid.]

We need to talk. Now.

Comments

[a_gentle_boy]

Giegue...

[Lucas doesn't speak so much as he breathes. Judging from his tone of voice, he is eminently aware of what this means and what it might entail. If the destruction of his islands was Porky's fault, Porky was Giegue's fault. He pauses for a moment or two before he responds quietly.]

I'm not going to let you deal with him alone, Pokey. And I don't think Ness will, either. There's more than one psychic in this town.

[ceasetoexist]

You're an idiot if you think you can actually "deal" with Giegue in any way here.

[a_gentle_boy]

You saw him defeated once. No matter how many times he comes back here, we won't let him win.

...And maybe... he doesn't even have to be defeated.

[ceasetoexist]

The way he was defeated back home won't work here. He isn't a mindless evil yet!

....Fine. Go ahead and try. And fail. I'm not getting into this conversation with you.

[a_gentle_boy]

How do you know what's true about him if he's coming from a time before you met?

[ceasetoexist]

He comes from a time when we've met before. The first few times we met.

He's already told me he plans to subjugate the people in the town.

[a_gentle_boy]

We've had a lot of people planning to subjugate the town, Pokey. I don't think I've been subjugated yet.

How did he become a... mindless evil, then?

[ceasetoexist]

Giegue hasn't been here yet.

[He's trying, as hard as he can, to keep the terror out of his voice. He isn't doing a particularly good job.]

...Because of the Devil's Machine. It's a device meant to amplify psychic power, stripping any constraints from a person that would inhibit their power from reaching it's highest potential. Even going so far as to strip physical body away entirely, transforming someone into an amalgamation of raw psychic power and emotion. Invincible. Omnipotent.

But the trade off is that whoever goes through with it loses themselves entirely, as well. They become mindless, destroying whatever's in their path without a second thought. It's all they CAN do.

[a_gentle_boy]

So he's not invincible. Here. And if he gets the machine back and he makes himself invincible... You know how to beat him.

[Hope was one of those things that just went hand in hand with love.]

Maybe there's always going to be someone planning to subjugate the world... But there's always going to be someone to defend it, too. It doesn't matter whose story it is. Ness's, mine. We wouldn't have gotten this far if we just thought it was hopeless.

Maybe it's time for yours.

[ceasetoexist]

...He's invincible like this, too. As far as I know, nothing can hurt him. Or whatever can hurt him, I have no clue what it is. Far as I know, he was just greedy when he wanted the machine.

...We'd need the entire world to pray to beat him, if he gets the machine. The entire world.






I can't defend crap.

[a_gentle_boy]

[Oh, Pokey! How can he say what he's thinking? So many thoughts rushing through his mind, and yet each conviction as clear as a mote in the grand stream of light blossoming towards the sky. Muster not fear or anger or even adrenaline in response to the threat that lies before, but justice, hope, willpower, compassion, love... All that must define what is meaningful in this life.

There was an invincible enemy, once, one with the ability to cross time and space as easily as one might cross a river, one with the power to commit inexplicable acts, one who made himself king of a destroyed world... Yes, this enemy had been flawed. Yes, the flaw had been his undoing. Delusional, once human, now lost, mad in his self-assured grip on a reality only he could desire or understand. But was that not the face of evil? Selfishness. Arrogance. Destruction. All aspects of that twisted corruption of what man had been meant to become. How much more flawed must the embodiment of evil be! Evil could not understand good. Good could not understand evil. And so in the end, the invincible enemy had not been defeated. No. He would live, forever. Invincible as his heart's desire had led him to become. Absolutely Safe. Safe from the world he despised. Safe from himself.

There was an enemy, once, who would one day become invincible. There was an enemy who now was no enemy at all, flawed and fractured, becoming whole. And in knowing this enemy, he had come to understand, even more, the truths with which he had always strived to live his life. Love your enemy. How could it be? Love the demon. Love the destroyer. Love the corrupter. Love the twisted being who could not understand. ...Love the selfish child. Love the lonely child. Love what you despise, the only thing left in the world you have yet to conquer, the antipathy of your convictions, the last bastion of darkness that still lay within your heart.

Love Pokey Minch.

He did.

The speech had done it. He had listened and he had been horrified and he had been... proud. I will not let you fight alone. We will fight together. It had been simple, before. He loved the world. He loved all that lay in it. Pokey Minch was not of the world. Simple. Clean. A lie that had served its purpose. What had been needed was strength. He had found it. Strength to continue on, strength to press forward in the face of all despair. That was all that was required of him, for the enemy had destroyed itself. Now to face this enemy, who was so much stronger...

Giegue! Giygas! If you are of this world, then let your heart be opened to its beauty! If you reject it... then so we shall reject you!

Pokey Minch! You who are loved! Seek not redemption. Seek strength for the sake of strength. Accept the world, accept what you have gained, and you shall not be disappointed. This is your battle. This is your song.

Remember how your adventures began...
Remember how your adventures have ended.
Pokey. Ness. Lucas. Your stories are one. Your paths, entwined. Your melody, complete. You came together not for this purpose, but it shall be together that you overcome.

Believe in yourself. Believe in your friends.

Good luck.]




[Lucas wonders when exactly he had accidentally drank the weird coffee as he quietly contemplates what Pokey has said.]

I believe you can.

...I know you can.

[ceasetoexist]

[There's just silence for a moment, and if it wasn't for the short, drawing breath on the other end. He can't hear your thoughts, Lucas, but those eight simple words say so much more. His breath sharpens a minute, as if he means to respond, then stops.

Another few seconds of silence, and when he responds his voice is unimaginably weak.]

How can you say that to me?

[a_gentle_boy]

If it weren't you... if I didn't know what I know about you, I wouldn't be able to say that. Maybe you don't understand.

But you can. And... that's that.

[ceasetoexist]

[He isn't going to cry from that. That doesn't mean anything. That's nothing. He just...he just-

He can't help it. He sniffles, pathetically, and tries to move to put the phone down. And just can't.]

But what if I fail....

[a_gentle_boy]

Then you can pick yourself up and try again.

[Lucas's voice is soft, even for him.]

Don't worry too much about failing. You have no idea how many times I had to be revived.

[ceasetoexist]

But it's all I've ever done I just....

What if I never get up?

[a_gentle_boy]

Then I'll poke you until you do.

...[a slight pause]

If you're really worried... I can tell you one thing. Don't ask me any more. But if it comes down to the end, and there's nothing else. There's something you have that can absolutely, positively, no matter what happens or if Giegue regains all his power... It will stop him.

If you need it.

I'll tell you what to ask the town for.

[ceasetoexist]

.....I can't ask that of you.

Not before it's gotten that bad.

Maybe that's stupid of me but I just-

I just can't.

[a_gentle_boy]

Pokey...

It's not something that might hurt me.

[Lucas pauses.]

Anyway. It's not going to come to that.

[ceasetoexist]

....Yeah.

Alright.








I'll try.

[a_gentle_boy]

That's all you have to do.

...Well.

Be careful, OK? Let me know whenever you need help.

[ceasetoexist]

I will.




Thank you.