[open] a day in the life of a ghost

[theforgottenboy]

Who: Cole & you
What: A somewhat belated catch-all for August
Where: Various
When: August-ish, mainly after the most recent imprints
Content Warnings: Not actual drowning but like, a close call


prompts below
image source here

Comments

[theforgottenboy]

[They were harrowing events at the time, but he's more detached from that now. Now that he knows what he is, it's easier to be more like that, instead of what he was. What happened then may as well have happened to someone else- some of it quite literally. Though it's not always easy to keep it that way.]

It's usually a tower, I think. The White Spire is. There's more of them... or there were.

The Rite of Tranquility isn't removing magic. It's... [Describing the Tranquil is difficult, when they can't feel.] It takes away more than that. It locks away every part of you that lets you touch the Fade. Tranquil can't use magic, or dream, or feel anything at all. No more fear, despair, or loneliness... or joy, or desire.

[He'd thought that didn't sound so bad, once upon a time.]

[Akechi's second question hits a sore spot, one he usually tries to forget. The bitterness leaks into his voice.]

No. I don't remember which one did it, or I think I would have.

[Even if he remembered more, his memories from that time aren't all clear. As he was then, he's sure he would have killed whoever personally left Cole there. Now... he tries not to think about it. It doesn't help to think about it.]

[simulatio]

Hm. That's too bad.

[Regarding killing the men in question, that is. Making those that made you suffer is something that Akechi would never quite be willing to give up, not for any cost. He'd die to exact vengeance.

But being made Tranquil... there's a deep-seated revulsion to the idea, some of his from his own Personas reacting to the very idea.]

Removing a human's desires is to destroy who they are as a person.

[His hands grip the almost-empty glass of water more tightly as he stares at Cole, obviously disturbed at the very idea. If he didn't like the concept of stealing hearts, this is indescribably worse.]

This was a common punishment in your world? I can think of few fates worse than death, but that is certainly one of them.

[theforgottenboy]

[Maybe. He was able to stop Lambert from hurting mages like Rhys anymore, at least. But he didn't have anything to do with Cole.]

[Desire. He'd said something about that before, hadn't he?]

Yes. There are a lot of people who feel that way, too. There was a Tranquil who found out how to fix himself, but a demon took him and killed everyone. The Templars wanted to make him tranquil again. He wanted to die instead.

[In otherwords, even the Tranquil might prefer death, if they were capable of it.]

I don't think it's as common anymore, now that the mages rebelled and the Elder One turned the Templars red.

[Medieval fantasy life is wild.]

[simulatio]

[Akechi hums again, quiet as he digests that information, processing it into terms he's more familiar with. Even if the vocabulary isn't something he's accustomed to, the concepts are nothing new or beyond his comprehension.]

And I'm sure after he was possessed by a demon, these Templars were only too happy to oblige his dying wish.

[He taps a fingernail against his water glass, still turning over the concept.]

To paraphrase Jefferson, the tree of liberty must be watered with the blood of patriots and tyrants. "Freedom" is a curious concept in our world, most people bound by chains invisible and figurative, but no less binding than those you speak of.

What do you think about all this, Cole-san? Being a spirit yourself, I'm sure mages must be of special interest to you.

[theforgottenboy]

The Templars didn't kill him. He asked me to, but I didn't. I knew that it would make Rhys unhappy. Someone else did.

[The Jefferson stuff goes almost completely over his head. The part about chains sounds right, though.]

[What does he think? He's not sure if "special interest" is how he would say it, but...]

Being a spirit doesn't matter. I don't want to possess anyone. Knowing I'm a spirit helped me to be more like one, but I'm still me.

I think that forcing someone to be Tranquil if they don't want it is wrong. It takes away the pain, but it takes more than that, too much. There should be some other way to help.

[Whatever that may be. He takes these things on a case by case basis.]