Alpha Session/Meteor – Moment of Arrival
The seven heroes and their Carapaced hitchhiker stood ready on the roof of the Meteor. The light from Skaia just starting to make itself visible as they approached the edge of the Session. Rose and Terezi shared a glance as the seconds ticked down, their respective Seer powers letting them know the exact moment they'd enter.
As the moment approached Rose counted down aloud, the others tensing as she started. "Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, NOW!"
Nothing happened.
The Meteor continued streaking deeper into the session, it's momentum undisturbed as everyone looked around wearily, having expected some great catastrophe to occur. But nothing happened, and nothing continued to happen for several minutes. Eventually they grew lax, feeling a sense of foolishness despite the dangers they knew abounded. Wondering if they'd all been just a little too paranoid.
Rose spoke up again in an attempt to cut the tension. "Ok. At our current speed we should reach The Veil in ten minutes and the inner planets in about… twenty?.\ Does that sound about right to you Kanaya?" She said, looking for confirmation from their resident Space player.
Kanaya developed a far-off look in her eyes as she ran the calculation in her head; logic and instinct double-checking each other. "Yes. That sounds about right to me." She said, confirmed.
The rest let out a collective sigh at that, their nerves still primed but their stances slackening further with nothing to do. Dave spoke up, asking the question on everyone's mind. "Ok cool. So I guess we'll meet up with Jade on one of the planets then? I mean, know we're kind of winging it right now with all the unknowns, but does anyone know how exactly we're going to find her and our pseudo-grandparents? Like… is anyone getting bars on their phone or…"
A sudden green flash enveloped the meteor, the whole group shielding their eyes from the light and heat. When they could finally see again, the Meteor was no longer at the edge of the Session rushing inwards, but instead hung lazily in a stable orbit as part of the Veil; one industrialized space-rock among thousands.
Dave shrugged at the development. "Or I guess Jade can use her God-dog powers and do that. That works too. Great job team." He gave himself a high-five as Karkat rolled his eyes.
With the sky now cluttered with nearby objects, everyone scanned the sky for either Jade or some potential threat, but it was John who first spotted his sister hovering high above them.
"There she is!" He said joyously, pointing for all to see. Eight sets of eyes turning to look at the flying woman.
"How about that." Said Dave, skipping a few beats before asking, "But… what's she wearing?" The odd red outfit throwing him for a loop.
Rose just smirked. "Maybe she decided to spiff herself up for our reunion. Right Kanaya?" She mirthed, but no response came. "Kanaya?" she repeated, bringing her gaze back down to look at the Trolls.
The four aliens had their eyes locked upon Jade. Abject horror etched upon their faces. They knew that shade of red, that cut of uniform. It was Kanaya who recovered first, whirling to face Vriska and shouting in panic; "Shut her down! NOW!"
The shout shook Vriska out of her own state of shock and she thrust her hand to her head, focusing intensely. But it was almost too late; as at the same moment green fire flared around Jade and she dived down at the group, the other humans gasping in dawning shock and fear.
Upon entering Jade's mind Vriska could tell that she wasn't the only one in there. There was a presence, and whoever it was they were certainly more powerful than herself. They were using a variation of her own put-humans-to-sleep trick, in conjunction with what had to be Tavros's control-animals trick, to effecively sleepwalk Jade into doing whatever they wanted. It was a combination of mental abilities that made Vriska blanche, but there looked to be a small reprieve. Jade was still technically awake through all this; with the sleeping-trick expertly throttled to keep her a hair above unconsciousness but in a state of incoherency. That would be the key to stopping her. As while Vriska couldn't jolt her awake, she could put her all the way to sleep. So that's exactly what she did.
She only had to use a fraction of her own power to get the result she wanted, the other's efforts at forced sleep combining with her own. Vriska could sense the shock and confusion radiating from the other's thoughts as they hastily cut back on their own usage of the sleep command, but for as much as they let up Vriska took up the slack. Eventually there was nothing the other could do as they were locked out of controlling Jade. Hatred and frustration radiated through the link, the mental shout of "NO!" echoing through Vriska's mind.
In the physical world all this passed in mere seconds; Jade's fire suddenly going out and her fall becoming uncontrolled. Reacting quickly, John whipped up a gust of wind to soften her fall. Setting her down a few yards away.
Everyone except Vriska crowded around Jade. Karkat being the first to speak.
"That's a fucking Threshecutioner uniform! Where did she get that?"
The three Human's eyes went wide, recognizing the term from their time with the Trolls. "Whoa, whoa, whoa… hold-up. The space-SS? That doesn't make sense." Replied Dave, his mind still reeling from the fact that Jade had just tried to kill them.
"It doesn't make sense but it's the only explanation." Said Kanaya. She had an eye for this sort of thing and could tell that the uniform was genuine, this was no cheap imitation. "The Condesce of Alternia is here."
Derse – Control Room
The Condesce glared at the monitor in fury, having given up on her attempts to regain control of the girl. Jack stood off to the side behind her, glaring at her in disapproval of her complete mishandling of the situation, but not yet cleared to end her. They both watched as the gaggle of Humans and Trolls milled around their captured prize, clearly animated in their discussion.
Without a word the Condesce rose from her chair, trident in hand and her body beginning to glow with telekinetic energy as she stormed out of the door; her rage spilling over. She would not be trifled with. She would not be showed up by a bunch of children. She would show these… these aliens and heretics why she had been the ruler of the Alternian Empire, and no one else.
The Veil – Meteor
"I'm telling you, I can't just let her wake back up." Stressed Vriska. "I'm inside her head. Whoever we're dealing with has extremely potent psionics. The second I back off that person will be back in control and I guarantee you the first thing they'll do is have Jade tele-frag me."
"Shit." Swore Rose under her breath. The situation having gone wrong beyond even her wildest predictions.
They'd all been bickering for minutes, everyone having their own ideas on how to proceed next. And they might have continued to argue; had Kanaya not noticed a flickering light out of the corner of her eye.
She turned to look, and for the second time that hour her heart seized in fear. Out loud, all she could manage to say was "oh no" as the others also caught sight of the rapidly approaching object.
The Condesce was on them before they could even begin to formulate a plan. Arriving at the edge of the roof with a sudden burst of deceleration and stepping down onto the platform with deadly grace. Her breathing was ragged and cold sweat rolled down her neck from the breakneck maneuver she'd pulled to arrive so quickly. But the hatred on her face and the readiness in her posture were all clear indicators she was still looking for a fight.
The heroes stood nervously at the ready; weapons out but them completely out of position. Terezi gripped her cane-sword tightly, its white steel quivering in her hands. In a low voice she declared their battle plan. "Keep her away from Vriska and Jade. Nothing else matters." Then they all surged forwards, with three exceptions.
Vriska sat locked in place, stuck with the duty of keeping Jade asleep. The Carapacian Vagabond stood there dumbfounded, having nothing to add to the fight. And finally Dave was stopped from joining in by the appearance of one of his future selves. The future Dave taking only a moment to bark an order at the Present one before joining in the fray with the others, saying "Move Jade out of the way and wait for it."
"Wait for what?" The Present Dave called out, only for it to be lost in the din of battle. He rolled his eyes and grumbled at his own vague directions as he and the Vagabond worked to carry Jade away from the fight; Vriska wheeling close behind.
In the twenty second it took them to relocate to the other side of the roof the battle had gone from bad to worse; the lopsidedness of the affair clear. There were six of them, veterans, throwing everything that had at the Condesce, and it was all they could do to avoid being skewered.
John tried to go in from behind, dispersing into the wind and reforming to strike with his hammer, but the Condesce noticed him at the last second; jabbing backwards with the second head of her trident and almost impaling him. John backpedaling out of the way in a clumsy dodge.
With her opponent open, but a quick and lethal blow not possible, the Condesce simply brought the broad edge of the trident head whiling around, smashing it into his forehead. The impact sending John flying away, where he landed crumpled on the roof and out of the fight. The fight now down to five-on-one.
Watching him get struck, Vriska cried out while the Present Dave felt a chill. He didn't know what to do, whether to join in on the fight and risk screwing up the time loop or to take the safe bet and go back to become the Future Dave.
Vriska's panic also grew. She could tell that they'd already lost. They'd been on the back ropes since they'd entered and now they were starting to lose their numbers advantage. It was hopeless; even if she chose to use the Ring of Life right then and tried to pull some eleventh-hour bullshit it wouldn't be enough; she'd just get smacked around herself, Jade would wake up, and they'd all be done for. If they could just get her out from under the witch's control then they could make their escape. But it was no good; she knew how mind-connections worked, the only way to get the Condesce out would be for her to leave willingly or for Jade to…
Her eyes went wide as a plan formed in her head. It was shitty, but it could work. But she'd also need one of the others in on it or it'd fall apart. Her eyes darted to the Dave standing next to her, tensed and ready to throw himself into battle.
She grabber his shirt sleeve to get his attention, whispering forcefully "Wait. Stop. I have a plan." Dave and the Vagabond turned their attentions to her as she explained as quickly as she could.
"This is the Ring of Life." She said, pulling the artifact out of her sylladex. "It can bring back the dead. I'm going to kill Jade to get the Condesce out of her head and then draw the Condesce away. Once we're out of sight, use the Ring to revive Jade and use her to get out of here. Forget about me, I'll manage."
Dave hesitated. Clearly confused but also knowing that there was no time to question this. He asked only one thing, eyebrows narrowing. "How are you going to draw her away?"
"I'll figure something out." She said distractedly, watching as the fighting devolved further. "Just remember what I told you... and go back so you can clue the others in on the plan."
With no other options presenting themselves; Dave just frowned, muttered out a "Damn it.", and disappeared in a flash of red energy.
Taking a breath to steel herself, Vriska slid the Ring of Life onto her left hand, and then she stood up.
John's awareness came back in steps. The clash of weapons reverberating from nearby. He struggled to rise, knowing he had to get back into the fight and help. He finally got to his feet only to belatedly realize he was missing his hammer. He placed a hand to his head as he looked around to it, finding no sign of his weapon. Abandoning that he turned his attention to survey the situation.
The Condesce was twenty feet away from him, her face livid; while beyond her Karkat lay on the ground, cherry-red blood seeping from an arm wound as Dave stood interposed between him and the Condesce. Rose was off to the side, looking worn ragged and barely standing upright herself. Kanaya and Terezi were circling slowly around the Troll-Queen on either side, trying to box her in in conjuncture with the others. But the Condesce looked unfazed at her odds. Just as it looked like they were going to try for one final rush against the dictator, a voice rang out from behind him and to the right.
"HEY!" Said Vriska, her voice carrying more authority and assurance than he'd ever heard out of her before. At first he was too winded to turn, but the Condesce and Kanaya both snuck glances and reacted; Kanaya doing a double-take while the Condesce reoriented as if expecting an attack from Vriska's direction. Confused, John turned his head to see what going on, and his eyes went wide at what he saw.
There on the other end of the roof, clearly standing on her own two feet, was Vriska. With no wings in sight to support her. More alarming than that though was the fact she was holding Jade uprights by the hair, her left hand buried in the long locks, and her right holding a simple sailor's knife against Jade's neck. The Vagabond lay unmoving on the ground nearby.
After half a second everyone reacted in shock and confusion all at once.
Kanaya swore some alien curse. Karkat raged in confusion. The Humans just stared in silent incomprehension.
The Condesce meanwhile, made a sound of disgust before addressing the interruption. "Tch. What is this? Some kind of ploy? A trick? Do you stupid brats think this is some kind of game or something?"
In response Vriska simply flipped off the whole roof with her right middle finger, a shiny golden ring sitting on the offending digit, which was wagged around before being curled back around the knife's grip with the rest.
"It's called the Ring of Life." Called out Vriska. "It heals all wounds. Lovely little thing isn't it? I haven't gotten to stretch my legs in ages."
Rose called out, her voice almost pleading. "Vriska. What are you doing with Jade?"
Vriska simply closed her eyes for a moment and chuckled darkly. "Well… with you plebs having softened the Condesce up for me, I figure it's my time to finally shine again. And while I'm pretty sure I could keep Jade asleep while I fought…" She said, shaking her by the hair for emphasis. "Better safe than sorry, am I right? We can always bring her back later with the ring now, can't we?
Her friends expressed shock and dismay while the Condesce simply strode forward, the others forgotten with this new annoyance. "You ignorant child! Do you think I don't know how God-Tiers work? You can't kill her unless it's Heroic or Just. So why don't you stop wasting my time and…"
Her words cut off as Vriska cleanly slit Jade's throat; a river of red blood pouring down her neck before disappearing into the red of the uniform. Rose let out a scream of horror and John felt his stomach drop, unable to process what was happening.
The Condesce stopped in her tracks, face twitching as Vriska slowly lowered Jade's dying body to the ground. Vriska sat kneeling on one knee, her left-hand still resting in Jade's hair as she spoke; "Well she was stuck working for you wasn't she? I'd say dying like this is pretty Heroic… or Just… depending how you look at it. But hey, why take my word for it? You're in her mind too, you should be able to tell if she's dying. Tell me I'm wrong."
Vriska's wings flared out, her lurching forwards before they caught air and propelled her backwards into the sky. She smiled arrogantly as she spread her arms wide; inviting the tyrant to come and get her for breaking her toy.
The Condesce screamed in impotent rage as she launched herself forwards in a burst of telekinetic fury. The younger Troll dodging out of the way with ecstatic laughter and a psychotic grin on her face. "Is that all you've got? Come on… let's see what you can really do."
Vriska made a beeline away from the Meteor, light and glitter trailing in her wake as she plunged deeper into the Veil. The Condesce taking after in close pursuit, the others forgotten as she chased down Vriska.
John sank to the ground as they receded, his heart broken in two. He couldn't bring himself to look at Jade's corpse and acknowledge… that; so he swept his gaze over his living friends instead. Rose was sobbing, some dam having burst. Kanaya held her, trying to console but equally as shocked. Karkat struggled to get to his feet while cursing up a storm, threatening to do terrible things. Terezi was looking straight at him in mute horror, her blind eyes piercing his soul. Dave…
Dave just stood there, watching the as the two Trolls faded into the distance, emotions warring on his usually stoic face.
After a few moments silent of waiting, he began striding purposefully across the roof, depositing his sword into his Strife Deck as he went. His deliberate movements catching everyone's attention. S their eyes were on him as he reached Jade and kneeled down, pulling the Ring of Life out from where it was hidden in Jade's long hair. Dave taking great care as he slid it onto one of Jade's fingers.
Instantly the cut to her throat disappeared, healing as if it had never been. Her eyes snapped open and she bolted into a sitting position with a strangled gasp, looking around in fear and confusion before Dave set a hand on her shoulder, looking her straight in the eyes as her attention snapped to him.
"Get us out of here." He said, his voice betraying nothing.
Her eyes darted around a few moments more before she closed them and slowed her breathing. Then they all disappeared in a green flash. The Meteor empty.
Vriska raced through the Veil, dodging rocks of all sizes as she flew faster than she ever had before; limp legs dragging uselessly behind her.
She had to admit, for a brief moment, with the Ring's power coursing through her, she'd almost relapsed. It would have been easy too, rolling the dice, taking all the luck she could snag, and abandoning the plan to go take a swing at the worst dictator she and her friends had ever known. She might of even won. But she hadn't done that, she was going to let the others have the glory, and she felt a faint sense of pride at her own self-control.
She came shooting out of the edge of the Veil, slowing to a halt as she decided that this was far enough. It wouldn't do if the Condesce gave up the chase in search of easier prey. Turning around she prepared herself for a final stand; only to find the space behind her empty with no one in sight. Her heart froze. Where was the Condesce? Had the plan failed? What was she going to…
"Are you done running?" An unamused voice asked from behind her. She attempted to whirl around and face the threat but was leagues too slow, the trident's points plunging into her back before she could even finish turning her head.
"Too bad for you then."
Vriska screamed in pain, her arms spasming and the knife falling out of her hand. Coughing and gagging as her lungs began to fill with blood, the rest of it floating around her in globules.
Using the trident, Condesce hauled Vriska towards her. She made a grab for the younger Troll's hand once she was close enough and ripped Rose's wedding ring from the middle finger.
The ring now in her possession, she slid it onto her own finger, admiring it on her own hand for a few moments as she let Vriska float there impaled and impaired. She smiled, her gaze flickering coyly back over to Vriska. "You shouldn't have done that you know. There might have been a place for you and your friends in my new empire, those of you that survived. You would have made entertaining slaves. But now… I'm thinking that you're all more trouble than you're worth."
Planting both of her feet on Vriska's back for leverage she pulled the trident out, more blood flowing from the open wound.
The dictator just watched as Vriska gurgled and curled up on herself, letting out a dark chuckle before saying. "So… God-Teir huh. Thought that would save you? Because I'd say dying like this is pretty Heroic… or Just… depending how you look at it. But why don't you tell me?" She chuckled some more before leaving, sure that death would take hold of Vriska in this circumstance. And she'd be right.
But she'd have been less enthused if she'd known Vriska's final thoughts. About how at least her friends were safe, and how her dying here didn't matter. Because she knew that they didn't need her to win.
Then her thoughts cut off as she took one last attempt at breath… and died. Heroic
END OF PART 3
Cue Moonsetter.