chapter five ♔ it'll be a day like this one when the sky falls down

[eldritchweaver]

the blues - switchfoot

WHO || The Knights
WHAT || Failboat returns from the disaster in LA as the Knighthood goes on lockdown
WHERE || The castle, London
WHEN || Directly after this, Fall 2017
HOW || Actionspam

Hasmed's announcement does not brook any rebuttal: all Knights are recalled to the Castle, where they must remain until the Section Heads and Jack Chessing have spoken about the events in Los Angeles that have left the Knighthood without their usual leader.  

The entire Los Angeles area is now covered with a dark miasma that has interfered with any signals that might be sent out from phones, etc., leaving the whole world wondering what exactly is happening down there.  Final images showed horrendous monsters, a panic of citizens, looting and violence from humans and Shadowkind alike.  

Hasmed has warned of extra magical wards on the castle, and anyone arriving will immediately take notice of one very prominent one: above the entire roof of the excessively large building hovers a black and red sigil in the air, a pentagram in a circle surrounded by runes or words in an unknown language, stretching for miles.  

[ This is the social log for post-LA lockdown.  Failboat must complete the top log before being allowed to tag outside of it. ]

Comments

[refusestofall]

[being the new kid in the castle, he's still learning his way around and what to do. But with the tragedy happening and all the pain, Hal is having a hard time blocking it all out even with the skills he's learning.

So it's the sound of music that lures him. It's soothing and not filled with the pain that the rest of the castle has.

Grieving isn't even something Hal's let himself do. He knows Alice died, and she was such a major part of helping save him. But what he can do about it is pretty much zilch. He is relieved though to see Sweets after not being able to find the doctor in the last day.

So Hal will just wander in, keeping himself quiet and just going to lean against the piano as he closes his eyes and listens, letting the music push the edges of the voices he can't really hear but are there out.]

[likeababyduck]

[It's mostly the Beatles, because those were Alice's favorites. He doesn't even stop when he sees Hal come in, focusing on making it through to the end, but once he hits the end of the album, he looks up with a small smile.]

How're you doing?

[refusestofall]

Well, I'm hearing music because you're playing it, and not just because it's in your head.

[likeababyduck]

That's always a good step in a right direction.

[There's a beat.]

Though I meant more with everything that happened in LA.

[refusestofall]

[and he'll sigh, rubbing the back of his neck]

You mean about what happened to Alice?

[because he barely knows anyone here as well as he knows the three people who saved him]

[likeababyduck]

[He nods with a small smile.]

Loss in a small social circle can be incredibly devastating.

[refusestofall]

Especially when you're still dealing with the fact you've lost your entire family with no chance of getting it back?

[gallows humor]

Yeah, it sucks. But it's not the first time I've lost someone, and I'm sure it won't be the last.

[likeababyduck]

[He nods slowly.]

Yeah. Unfortunately, I don't think it will be either.

[refusestofall]

I take it this kind of mass casualty doesn't happen often from how people are reacting to it.

[likeababyduck]

[He shakes his head.]

The last one was when the castle was attacked a few years ago, but we managed to revive everyone who was killed. I don't think we'll be able to get their bodies back to resurrect them this time.

[refusestofall]

That's kinda sad. I mean, you get sucked here from your own reality, cut off and unable to go home, and then you die apart from them and they'll never know what happened to you.

[likeababyduck]

[Sweets nods a bit.]

It is. But unfortunately that's not something we can control.