maskormenacelogs | [closed]

WHO: Cassandra (

queenofseers) and Inanna (

purple_reign)
WHERE: Somewhere deep in Hades
WHEN: Forward-dated to July 16th
WHAT: Cass and Inanna do some divining and uncover (thunder crashes, lightning crackles) ...plot!
WARNINGS: Will be added if needed.

[ There's a number of things Cassandra Igarashi wishes would get done around here, and none moreso than actual, genuine research. There's a few of them doing it, but do they ever get anything done? Not really, unless something from the outside is encroaching. She'd like to change that, and luckily, she's got the power to. She hasn't been able to divine a lot here, especially without the other Norns, but there's plenty of avenues she hasn't gone down yet.

In particular: from what they know, Lachesis..."fused" with a native, or something like that. Where is this person? Who are they? That's something she could find with her powers, but Lachesis is nearly an actual god. It won't be easy.

Lucky for her, she's not the only one with that power. Inanna is also here, and their own abilities are thankfully similar. With the two of them together...maybe there's a chance.

Maybe. She can't afford to get too hung up on the possibilities, so she's in Hades, here to make it happen. ]

Inanna? Are you here?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Inanna laughs softly, a little caught off guard by it. They understand her gratitude, but it isn't often they get thanks so directly. Then again, it isn't often that they take such a direct approach to solving mysteries. ]

I think a lot of people have trouble knowing where to start. It helps to have someone who knows what she's doing around.

[ They definitely give her a pointed look for that last line, quickly turning their attention back to the stars. There's a section of the starscape that they're beginning to zoom in on, frowning at it while they try to make sense of what the stars are saying. ]

[ Dang, Inanna, when you talk like that she kind of gets why everyone and their mother is enamored with you. It's hard not to appreciate the genuine pride that statement gives her. She's smiling- for once!- but she still can't completely take the compliment. It feels strange. ]

We'll know if I'm actually onto something if this works...

[ But turning to them to talk, she notices the frown on their face. ] What's up? Do you see something?

Maybe? It's more of a feeling right now...

[ That was always the trouble with their own divination. So much of it was the suggestion of things or ideas, up for interpretation. This, however, feels distinctly unpleasant, whatever it's going to turn out to be. ]

Any luck on your end?

[ Ugh, don't ask that. ] Not really, no. Maybe it just takes time, or...we both have to hit on the right thing. It's not like we've used our powers together before. That's something to study after this, honestly. I'm betting we're onto something, but...

[ She's not quite sure. It hasn't worked that way, for her. ]

Do you really get hunches? I always have to be certain about this stuff.

[ That said, she sounds a bit distracted as she speaks. She likes the thread she's going down. ]

Hunches, whispers... Sometimes it's like the stars speak directly on a good day.

[ If they were really lucky, they might even get an image. ]

It's more of a guide for me. Pointing the way to answers.

[ A part of her wants to say that sounds bogus, but Inanna was always one of those gods who felt a special connection to what was going on. A believer. Maybe this is how it manifests for them? Full-blown trust...she'd be jealous if she didn't know that just isn't who she is. ]

I have to dig when I'm divining. Find connections. See where the threads meet...I was a journalists. Old habits die hard, I guess.

[ She grimaces at her divining. ] I thought I had something, but...I'm not sure it's right. It's close, just not- there.

[ If they were being honest, her method doesn't sound that bad either. Maybe the rest of the Pantheon would even find it more trustworthy. Who wanted to listen to what Inanna insisted the stars were gossiping about, after all? ]

[ They glance away from the stars again, beginning to look vaguely concerned. ]

Like it's off somehow?

Yeah. Yeah, that's a good way to put it. Maybe...

[ Does she simply have to move in closer? It's like pulling a thread, like she moves in, in her head; jumping on a lead. Are they on the right track or an adjacent one?

She turns back to them. ] That feeling you had. Did you think you were onto something? Or was it something else?

It's hard to say...

[ It felt like looking in the right direction, but there was something else to it. An unsettling something. ]

I think I'm definitely on the edge of something, whatever this is.

[ She bites the inside of her lip, a bit. What if they're not following the right thing? But at the same time... ]

We've got nothing about Lachesis...but we've got nothing on so much else about this place, too. [ This could be worth it. ]

We need to keep going. See what you can find, I'm going to see what I've got here. Even if this isn't about Lachesis, it's better than getting jack shit.

[ And she turns back to her own divining, more focused than she was before. ]

[ Inanna nods a quick agreement. It could be nothing, or it could be...well. Like Cassandra thought, anything helps at this point.

They expand the section of stars they've been focusing on, stretching it out to encompass the room for closer inspection. There's a change in their posture as the new display settles into place; tense, but otherwise unreadable. They've found something, though it's impossible to tell what just from looking at them. ]

[ Is it possible for everything to be right and everything to be wrong at the same time? Because that's how she's starting to feel, looking at her own divination. She was right (thank fuck); this isn't nothing.

But what is it? That's what she's starting to get anxious about. She doesn't think she strayed too far from the path of Lachesis, but this isn't her. But what else could it be?

She glances back at Inanna, and notices the change in them- they're usually so confident about things like this, it's hard not to tell. ]

Hey. Are you...

[ But she gets cut off as she speaks. Something feels...wrong. Different. ]

[ And there it is—a woman in red, blood spilling from her mouth while she cackles around it creating
an unsettling gurgling noise. Inanna can feel their knees buckling, heart pounding painfully with the force of the vision, unable to look away. Is Cass seeing this too? ]

Cassandra...

[ And she is. She yelps when it happens, and then- for once- goes quiet with the shock of it.

Her head fucking hurts. That's not abnormal. But it's the first thing she can properly process. She covers her face. ]

Fuck. Fuuuuuck. That was-

[ She knows it's Lachesis' sister. She can feel it. Who else would it be? ]

It...has to be Atropos. Right? Who the fuck else would that be? It was Atropos and she knows we were looking. Shit.

[ Oh, she feels like throwing something. Not in front of Inanna, not right now, but- ] Shit shit shit.

It... It had to be her.

[ There's a moment where Inanna's relieved someone saw the same thing they did, and in the next moment they're filled with the sting of regret. It hadn't been a pleasant vision at all. Maybe it would've been better if she hadn't seen it. ]

...We have to tell people, don't we?

[ Oh, they do. If Inanna hadn't suggested it, she would have jumped to it. What else is she but the person who tells the truth, right?

But she's still shaking, a bit, in a way she hadn't even processed at first. She takes a deep breath, exhales. ]

...Yeah, we really fucking do. ASAP. This isn't the kind of shit that can wait, this is...fucking end of the world-level.

[ She whips out her communicator, but despite all her anxiousness to get it done, she doesn't look very pleased. Even she sometimes wants to bury this shit deep. ]

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