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

[nothingsodivine]

You really haven't figured out how this all works yet, have you? If I knew where he was, I'd do something about it, and it would give Heaven a huge blank check to cash. My hands are tied here, Buffy. It's not about what I want. If it were, he'd be back with you by now.

So I didn't know. I never knew until now, because I couldn't stand to see him like that anymore.

[slay]

If you have something to say about Rafael, say it. But don't you dare lecture me on how this works.

[nothingsodivine]

I'm not lecturing you, Buffy. I am telling you that I can give you the information- I'll even go with you so you know it's good, if that'll make you more comfortable. But it's give and take. Even the angels do it this way, whether you've realized it or not.

Rafael's location, back-up so you don't have to take anyone you actually care about getting hurt- whatever you want. And all I want is for you to make sure that no one comes after me or Elena until Blade is defeated. You guys are gonna want our information, but Dean and Rose have made their feelings pretty clear. I don't want to wander into a trap.

You might have done it anyway, for Christ's sake. Do you really want them to kill us or worse?

[slay]

Why?

Why offer it now? Why help any of us? This isn't just to cover your own ass, either, so don't tell me it is. That's not all you get out of this. That's what Hell gets out of this.

[nothingsodivine]

Because if I had told you I could find Rafael no problem before now, you wouldn't be making a deal with me, you'd be making it with Azrael, and it would've been a whole freakin' production number. This? Is not me covering my ass.

I want Rafael to be safe and sound, and not where he is. I'm helping you because I do, in fact,
care about all of you. I realize that might be hard to believe, but it's true. If I didn't want to help you- if I didn't care- I wouldn't even be here.

You know me well enough to know that. This isn't Hell's problem. I'm here because I want to be, and I wanna make sure no one fucks with me so bad I can't see it through.

[slay]

I believe you.

I'll use all the power I have to make sure you walk away from this if you can help me find him.

We're leaving today. I don't know where for. When I find out, I'll tell you where to meet me. We go out quietly. No one else knows about this.

But Des? You're going to have a lot of explaining to do.

[nothingsodivine]

It's a deal, then.

There's not a whole lot I can talk about in detail. It's not my place- you've met Michael. He's not vague because it's part of his personality- he's vague because he has to be. But... I'll try my best.
You just might not like the answers.

And... thank you, Buffy. We'll get him back. It'll be like Rome again.

[slay]

It really won't.

Des, you lied to me. You betrayed me. Played me like an idiot. You proved you have no respect for my calling, for what I do, for the choices that I make. There isn't a version of this where we get the band back together and things are like before.

I'm agreeing to this because Rafael is more important to me than any of it; because I believe that in whatever twisted way, you really do care about him; because I think you really do want to stop the same bad guys we do; because I think there's some part of you in there that might just be able to get yourself out of this. But it's not because I forgive you.

[nothingsodivine]

I don't expect you to forgive me, and there's no getting me out of this. I'm here because a long time ago, people made a choice for me, and millenniums later, I had a chance to make my own choices about how I felt about the whole truth of how it all went down.

But the rest of it is true. That's just gonna have to be enough until we finish this. After that, it's anyone's game.

[slay]

We'll see.

I'll be in touch.