CHAPTER FINALE ♔ cause it's always raining in my head

[narcosynthesis]

♬ oceano - josh groban

WHO || Keijen Blade, Nadia Reichenov, Rafael Giovanni, Buffy Summers, Alainn O'Rourke, Myrilandel Odair, Finnick Odair, Desmond Descant, Elena Gilbert, Rose Hathaway, Fredrick Jr., Jack Chessing, Kat Samcelot, Jeanne Gar, Spike, Sterling Archer, Violet Reedhym, Burt Becksworth, Isabella Alessandro
WHAT || Failboat does the Grammy's, tries to stop Keijen Blade's performance from reaching the masses, and aspires to save Nadia
WHERE || Staples Center, Los Angeles
WHEN || Feb 8th, 2015
HOW || Actionspam. Single thread.

The day has finally arrived: the 2015 Grammy's gather together musical talent at the top of the food chain, which means that NOVA Records will be well represented at this year's ceremony. Unfortunately, this includes performances from Keijen Blade's band, Heatless Passion, and Nadia Reichenov's, Derere, both of whom are working for "Chad Becksworth", aka Draken Crombe, head of the Shadowkind-hating cult, the Church of the Lord's Humanity.  Equipped with some sort of ability to hypnotize large crowds with subliminal messages, Wynn fears what lies beneath Keijen's intended performance, and is sending his Knights to shut down the broadcast, to prevent that message from being spread to millions of viewers worldwide.

Meanwhile, the gang finally has a chance to see Rafael Giovanni again - but what he's been up to in the months since they last saw him, and how his reunion with Buffy will go, remains to be seen.

Several of the Knights have decided that this is their last chance as well to try and break Nadia free from Keijen's influence, now that they've learned the truth about him - that Keijen is in fact Kel'in'hrae, sadistic son of the Nightmare God Malaak'a, likely working to free his father from the prison Sehanine had created for him.  The prison sealed by the relic that the team has been chasing for years, believing it to be an immortality-granting talisman of great power.

The truth, it seems, was worse than they could have imagined.  

One step at a time, however, and stopping the signal is first priority on Failboat's to do list for now.  With an actual plan under their belts this time, maybe this is the turning point they've been waiting for...    

Comments

[dragonsclaw]

[ jack glances over, offering her a small smile from across the aisle when she meets his eye. ] You'll do fine. We all will. If we go into this expecting everything to go wrong, we might just prove ourselves right. Things have to turn around somewhere.

[doubletake]

[She gives him a small smile.]

One would hope, right? [S-so optimistic.] It's less expecting things to go wrong and more remembering the ways it already has.

[It wouldn't be so bad if these weren't the same fucking people. If 'Chad' is there, then so is the Mind Master.]

[dragonsclaw]

The two tend to go hand in hand. [ he frowns slightly, looking down for a moment.

thomas was his bff after all. ]

[doubletake]

I thought I'd shaken it with time, but I guess not.

[She shrugs her shoulders, trying to play like she knows it's just all in her head (bluff 40).]

It'll be fine. I can do this.

[chessing]

[ there's a bit of relief in his eyes that makes it clear he's bought her confidence, at least ] I'll certainly be glad to have you with us.

[doubletake]

[She doesn't bother to hide the fact that she...really appreciates that statement.]

You have no idea what a relief it is to hear you say that.

[If anything, it makes her more confident, because he's another person that she hadn't been sure would...maybe not want her here.]

[dragonsclaw]

[ he looks at her carefully for a moment, before saying: ] I don't commend your actions in choosing to do what you did, Elena. But I understand your reasons for them, and I believe that makes all the difference.

[doubletake]

[She just nods her head. She didn't expect anyone to commend her, okay, so she's not put out about that at all. She doesn't commend the things she's done, but she didn't do them for herself.

Well, maybe in the end she'd needed it for herself, and she'd had a selfish motive or two, but she wouldn't have done it for those reasons alone.]

I just didn't want you to think you need to...keep an eye on me, if you catch my drift.

[chessing]

[ he seems surprised by that, honestly ] Did you think I expected you to run off? Or something worse?

[doubletake]

I think that everyone needs to be completely focused on the mission with zero distractions.

[And that includes her.]

You wouldn't be the first person to think the worst of me, Sir Chessing. I didn't think you'd be one of those people, but better to find out if I was wrong now rather than later.

[It's the easy answer, though. There's more to it, like how she failed to save his friend, that maybe unconsciously he might blame her for that. She sure used to. Sometimes she still does.]

[chessing]

You can count me in your corner, Elena. You're still a Knight, and you didn't have to choose to stay one.

[doubletake]

Thanks. [She gives him a small smile.] As far as I was concerned, I never stopped being one. I'm just glad Wynn felt the same way.

[dragonsclaw]

Wynn had the benefit of time to consider how he was going to react. When it first occurred... I don't think any of us dared to guess his mind.

[doubletake]

That only makes it sound like it's a good thing I avoided capture during those months.

[She shifts uncomfortably in her seat, even if her voice seems nonchalant about it.]

[chessing]

Perhaps there's a reason things worked out as they did.

[doubletake]

I'm not really a big fan of 'fate.'

[There was no good reasons Thomas died. There never would be.]

All I wish is that I'd gotten there earlier.

[dragonsclaw]

Fate needn't feel like a trap. To some, it's a way of finding comfort. Perhaps we can't see how things fit together now, but that doesn't mean we won't in time.

[doubletake]

That sounds an awful lot like faith.

[chessing]

I suppose that's because it is.

[doubletake]

[She smiles a little easier this time.]

Fortunately, I do at least have a little of that.

[dragonsclaw]

I'm glad to hear it. Finding somewhere to place faith is one of the constant challenges of any life.

[doubletake]

Well, then it's good that I found it sooner rather than later.

[chessing]

That it is. [ and he'll get up to excuse himself ] Good luck tonight, Elena.

[doubletake]

Hopefully we won't need it. [She smiles, though.] But thanks. You too.

[dragonsclaw]

[ with a nod, he gets up and goes back to his seat ]