Epilogue

[cartesio]

Welcome to Cartesio!

You open your eyes and see the ceiling of the lodge. There is no real sensation of having slept, but you're still feeling rested. Sitting up, you can see that the building around you is in ruins. Dust and dirt dominate your environment. Around you, there are familiar people - some of them you've been with up until now, some of them you have been brutally forced to part with weeks ago. They all look alright, a little confusion aside.

From a corner of the room, you can hear the soft whirring of a machine. Upon examination, you can see that it's 3D-printing more gelatinous bodies like you've seen earlier today. Every body that is dispensed from the machine is a safe haven for another mind from the simulation, another mind to join your ranks as real people.

After you've adjusted to the new situation and left the lodge, you find yourself greeted with perfect sunshine. There's a town welcoming you, friendly and peaceful. Though it is more modern than what you are used to, there is no mistaking it.

Cartesio, Nevada, welcomes you.

You're new people, in a new world. Every chance it has to offer is open for you.

Comments

THE LODGE

[cartesio]

[The machines are working, and the quantum computer is in a room not too far away.

It's time for your final decision: Will you destroy the computer?]

[marmoron]

[And here's Keith staring at this quantum computer, frowning. He's awake alright, but Cosmo's no longer there and even though the real space wolf is out there at home... it's still a loss that he wasn't entirely prepared for.

He's going to see if there's something that can still be done about this before sticking to his word there.]

[theserpentsmiles]

[...]




[Kicks the computer.]

[pecker]

[Well, this sure is a nice town and a good place to start a new life away from murder---

Too bad that Niwatori hasn't even thought about doing that. She's here in the lodge, seeing what she can find as far as going home.]

[kingbomber]

Idiots can't even finish the damn job.

[ Bakugou comes back to the computer after noticing the note, after everyone's done having their fun with that, and he raises a hand, before releasing a giant explosion right onto towards the quantum computer.

A hero's work is never done. ]

[quickpersuader]

[Awakening]

[Kino's a little distracted because she now has little wing thingies, excuse her while she focuses on those.

But if she sees the others, she'll probably look up with a bit of a wry grin.]

Looks like we made it.

[Much later]

[Eventually, Kino can be found accompanied by a motorcycle. Oddly, there's a voice other than Kino's to be heard, and she... is definitely chatting with it as she wheels it around.]

Huuuuuuuuh?! I mean... we've gotten into some pretty crazy situations before, but this is a new level!

[It sounds almost like a young boy. The intonation is correct, but there's an almost bored quality to it, like a child reading off lines without much heart. Kino, however, seems used to it.]

Yeah. As a matter of fact, I even managed to get wings. That means I don't even need to ride you from country to country anymore, Hermes.

And so Kino achieves her dreams! ...But still, it's not very nice to leave me behind like that. Who's going to ride me instead?

That's a good question... [Kino hums thoughtfully.] I suppose I could still take you places, since flying for too long might be troublesome. But that means getting up early...

No can do! I guess I'll have to find a new rider.

[And so on.]

later

[robitussin]

[She watches the exchange go on for a while before saying anything, eyes widened.]

...I didn't think you were lying, but - wow.

[odasaku]

A talking motorcycle.

[ oda’s impressed, even if he doesn’t show it. ]

[relieable]

I) waking up

[Osomatsu pushes himself up to a sitting position. he feels... stronger somehow, but he still looks like the same Osomatsu. too bad he didn't get a perfect body to go with these new powers.

but it's fine. he's more interested in peering around at everyone in the room]

We're... we're okay, right?

II) around town

[Osomatsu stretches his arms over his head with a yawn. he's wondering about how long it will take for the hostages to be printed. if they'll be printed. that's all right, he's got time to wait for his family.

so. this is it, huh? the real Cartesio. he decides to look around at everything, see if it's all in the same place. the bakery, the casino... the diner?

maybe he should check out his new powers, too. for those passing by the junkyard, you'll see this dumbass trying to lift an entire car. it's not working well. he can move it a little bit! but he seems to think he should be able to pump it over his head by now.

guess he needs to practice more, get in shape........... but he's so lazy. he wants instant gratification!]

What the hell?! Rrrgh! Move, damn you!

[robitussin]

[After she wakes up, she just stays there, looking at the ceiling for a few moments. It's gradually that she sits up, moving off the ground. She looks at her hands, looks at everyone around her... And smiles, despite everything that's happened. There's a mix of surprise, uncertainty, and relief in her voice as she speaks.]

It worked. Is... everyone okay?

[kingbomber]

...Yeah.

[ Hi Natalie, it's been awhile, hasn't it? ]

You guys actually fucking didn't screw everything up. Good job.

[ That deserves to be said, even by him, because now there's a whole new road in front of them. One he's still figuring out, but still one nonetheless due to what the others have done. ]

[goturshit]

Well, I have all my limbs, so. That's a pretty good start.

[amburere]

[ Surprisingly or not, it's a while before Dabi approaches Natalie. His posture is casual and familiar, both hands in his pockets, but there's something rigid about how he's holding himself. ]

Guess I should say nice to meet you again.

[clearities]

Is everyone alright...? [ hopefully everyone is -- Sakura herself seems to be the same as always. if anybody else decided to get any powers that deal with sensing things? they'll notice that Sakura's abilities are really powerful and deal with "star magic". anyway! she wants to test something out real quick, so she's actually going to go out and take out the card for Flight and actually use it. and up, up in the air she goes! and this time she isn't going to actually fall after five minutes this time so she might stay in the air for a while, but it seems that she's having a lot of fun with this, although if there are other people besides them in Cartesio, they might be shocked. oops. ]

[kingbomber]

[ After getting used to everything that this is, Bakugou will kind of watch her do her thing, flying up and all that. ]

Keep fucking around with that and you're bound to fly into some of the birds around here.

[ "Death" seems to have not changed him much at least. ]

[silvertongueheir]

[Franciscus wakes up, blinking as he looks around. Well, at least it looks like they're not in the middle of an apocalypse anymore.]

Well, it's certainly good to have the full extent of my abilities back...let me see.

[And he casually leans against a wall and activates his supernatural charisma.

(OOC: It's meant to be similar to the Infatuation effect, but for humans of any gender. Feel free to have it not work, of course, or have it just be admiration/not wanting to hurt him instead of actual attraction.)]

tags now because i cannot sleep

[relieable]

[fortunately... or, perhaps unfortunately... for Franciscus, Osomatsu is easily influenced. so, as he’s looking around the room, he finally spots the other man and, well, he is compelled to go to him. though, even without Franciscus’ supernatural charisma, Osomatsu would have sought him out. probably]

...Have fun on the other side? [wherever it was that the “dead” went. Osomatsu has got some questions about that]

[integratedsoul]

a) Waking Up

[ Cian wakes and sits dazedly where she plopped into existence for a moment. A body. Her body. Her first body it seems. Funny how she has all these vivid memories about what being alive means, yet this is the first time she's living.

After a few minutes, she gets up and just loosely addresses everyone around: ]

Congratulations!

b) Outside

[ Cian stands outdoors and breathes in deeply, looking very content. ]

I can't believe I got used to how busy this era is.

[ She's so so proud of herself for that. Though Miach doesn't know her, though she's a person who was only just now born... The memories of Cian Reikado still reside within her. Getting to live a new life, unchained from lifeism, in the era Miach made them dream of... That's incredible. She'll miss people from home, for sure, but in the face of that... ]

I'll show my courage now.

a

[amburere]

[ In a way, Dabi's used to this. He's cloned himself before with Twice, even if that was more temporary. There's a lot he has to deal with sure, but he'll get hung up on the details later. ]

You said that already, office lady.

[marmoron]

[Keith's silent for a moment. Don't ask him how he feels, he doesn't know. He's just going to sit up, do a quick scan of the room to check who is and who isn't there, then immediately get to his feet because the space wolf isn't there and that makes him ill.

He'll be hanging out by the printer until that's taken care of.]

[integratedsoul]

[ Hey Keith? How do you feel about hug attacks? Because that's what you're getting. ]

[kingbomber]

[ So, they're "alive" again.

There's a lot Bakugou still needs to think about. He's...well, himself now, but Bakugou also knows that being a "copy" means that he probably can't just return home, and that's still an upsetting thing for him. But, there's probably some catching up to be done.

Right after waking up, he'll turn to anyone nearby, or who comes nearby - there's a lot of familiar faces but he was curious as to what people's plans were. ]

Hey, you. What the hell are you going to be up to now, huh?

[ Then as takes a walk around, Bakugou looks contemplative, and also has taken a distance away from the others. Whatever he does now...he plans on sticking with one certain someone. But there are still questions on his mind--ones he still hopes will be answered or he's going to blow shit to kingdom come. ]

[linearcrash]

[ S'up baby. After meet and greets, Nine is just going to wrap his arms around him from behind. Just nuzzling against his hair. ]

Hey, about that shower...

Niner Niner

[linearcrash]

Huh? What the hell just happened?!

[ Here he is, waking up. His first thought is to immediately locate Bakugou and then Millium.

After that, he can be found summoning his spear. Just going to be playing with it because it's been FOREVER.

Or he'll be checking in with the others. S'up. ]

Yo.

[integratedsoul]

[ Bright smiles! ]

Hey, Nine-kun! Life really is inescapable.

[ She's not sure how Nine himself may feel about that, but Cian's... unreasonably happy that he gets a shot at it now. ]

[doublelammy]

waking up

[Millium sits up slowly, pushing herself up with her hands before lifting one to examine it, stretching her fingers.

They curl in, then splay out, then in once more. After a moment of doing this in silence, she looks up and smiles at the nearest person.]

...Hiya. Guess we all made it, huh?


outside, I

[Eventually, Millium makes her way outside, and bless her for using some of the very little common sense she has because she makes her way to an open area before lifting her hand to the sky.]

Let's go, Lammy~!

[And with a series of beedle-dee-boops, it appears. Anyone who saw Airgetlam during the short time Millium had it back will notice something different now – namely, that the thing is a solid foot and a half to two feet taller than her, now, where it used to be roughly her height.

Him big. Him big, and him scoop Millium up into one arm before zipping up into the air, Millium's laughter echoing like bells through the sky.]


outside, II

[Later on, Millium can be in the park at the edge of the pond, Lammy safely tucked away wherever she hides the thing. She's holding the bear half as large as she is, hugging it as close to her as she feasibly can while looking out thoughtfully.

It's interesting, this newfound freedom she has. Certainly, this is almost easier than the alternative she had in mind prior to her death, and the idea of being a whole new life is probably a lot easier for her to stomach than for some people here. Still, there's still some mulling over that needs to be done.

Eventually, she looks down at the bear, speaking softly to it.]

...Hey. You better serve her well, okay? Make sure that she n' everyone else make it out of whatever comes next.

But as for me... hey. Lammy?

[Beedle-dee-boop. Her "friend" appears beside her, and she holds out the bear. It fires a single small laser at the bear, hitting its belly and only going long enough to start the "fur" burning.

She sets the bear on its back so that it floats in the pond water, and then pushes the burning bear out.

She watches it for a moment, then turns away with a smile and heads off to find her new family and begin this new life of hers.]

waking up

[robitussin]

[It's unexpected, the wave of emotion that hits her when she sees Millium again, alive and safe. It means that, despite her best efforts, her voice comes out a bit choked.]

...Yeah, I guess we did.

[carbide]

[Upon awakening, Olympia takes the time to run a system diagnostic, then stretches... and by stretch I actually mean unfold, forming her arms into some scary-looking claws. Just to confirm with her own eyes that she's finally back to normal.

With that established, though, she folds them back up. She doesn't expect to be needing them anytime soon.

On her own, she doesn't do much, after that. King Seyfried is beyond her reach, this time seemingly for good. For the first time in her existence she has no particular goals, and she isn't sure what to do with herself.]

[integratedsoul]

[ WHOA?? Olympia's true form is... something to behold. ]

That's impressive!!

[theserpentsmiles]

[Nagisa is pretty quiet, so maybe you don't quite notice him at first. After all, he isn't one of the thirty people who woke up in Cartesio two months ago, wasn't in the guest book - there's very little reuniting to be done with him.]

Geez... Good job, guys. And thank you.

[After he's fully awake and has made sure his body is fully functional, he might. Start playing expertly with a knife. Testing his dexterity, mostly.

And a bit later, once everyone's gotten the bulk of the emotional reunions out of the way...]

...! I guess we need to eat again now... Who wants pancakes?

[With that he'll be marching off to see what can be done to make pancakes happen. There are kitchens in town, surely there's ingredients. Nobody will be going hungry on Nagisa's watch.]

[quickpersuader]

[Hello fellow androgynous kid. She spends a moment staring at him with that knife before the proverbial lightbulb goes off over her head.]

The cassette player?

[pursuitofdeath]

(waking up)

[It feels strange. No grogginess. No pain. He can just get up and move-- yet he lies there for a long while and just stares at the ceiling. There's no just... going back. Which means...

...what?

In what direction is he supposed to move? What is his purpose now? For what's probably about an hour he lies there blankly studying the ceiling as he contemplated the impossible. The possibilities were limitless and yet he doesn't have a single idea what to do with himself. Desires, function, purpose-- he's always gone where he's been pointed. Now it's up to him to decide for himself.

But not once does he consider death.]

(outside)

[Eventually he emerges. Late. Very late. But he stretches and smiles. And to whomever he passes, he waves casually.]

waking up

[robitussin]

...You're going to have to move from the floor eventually, you know.

[When she comes across him, her voice is teasing, almost fond. She offers him a hand.]

gee gray why does your mom let you make two toplevels

[silvertongueheir]

[Well...after seeing this, Franciscus has to step out for a bit. It takes him quite a while to find somewhere actually secluded enough for him to mope, which ends up being the roof of one of the stores on the outskirts of town. Gerard perches next to him, looking worried but curious. He slowly strokes the Archeops' feathers as he talks.]

I was hopeful, when I learned that we were just in a simulation, that I might see Shaun again after all. But right now-it would just be painful, to see him and not be able to approach. That life belongs to the other me...the other us.

let gray have all the toplevels

[relieable]

[Osomatsu was hassling Keith and Natalie with Nine, but as he turns his head, he notices Franciscus leave the room. hm?

he follows from a safe distance behind, not really trying to bother him, but wanting to see what was wrong. he can tell something is off by his demeanor. perhaps Gerard notices Osomatsu first when he climbs up to the roof after him, watching curiously from a bit away.

he doesn't hear Franciscus' words clearly, but he can make out a few things]

...