completelycrazy | week 2 - undine - saturday, post-trial

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week 2 - undine - saturday, post-trial

[Newt! is! trying to burn off some nervous energy by doing laps around Shibuya!! It's not going well!

Because, wow, that trial was upsetting. They've all been upsetting, but this one really takes the cake. So he's not exactly in the mood for a conversation when he runs into Undine, but, well. Here they are.]

So are you still prioritizing #NotAllReapers or what?

[He's pissy.]

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[Undine is well past being sad at this point, and now she's gone on to being mad. Mad at people for killing, mad at Junko for being a shitty person, and mad at herself for not being able to make things right here.

Right now she's in an open area of Shibuya, practicing her Psyche in what might seem like a strange way. She keeps trying to hit the same spot over and over with fast jets of water, but whatever she's going for isn't happening.

She does pause when Newt says something to her, though.]

I'm going to save everyone here, reapers or no.

[There goes another jet of water against the wall. Still no real results.]

[On some level, he's aware that he should go easy on her. She's a kid. She's probably scared. She's clearly upset.

But, he's him.]

Don't you think that's reaching? That'd be nice, getting a happy ending for the whole gang, but what if that's not possible?

[He's watching her work with her psych, though. It's... admittedly impressive.]

If it's not, then I'll deal with that when I get to it.

[Splat. There goes another jet of water. Still no damage.]

"Save them all. When you start picking who to save and who to let die, that's when you go from a hero to a villain."

[That line is definitely something she's quoting, not her own words.]

[He just watches her water jets splat against the wall for a moment.]

Listen, I'm sure your mentor or whoever said that to you meant well, but that's a load of crap. Speaking from experience, you don't always have the luxury of avoiding that choice. [...] And why do you have to be a hero, anyway? All of us start trying to play hero and we end up with more bloodbaths down the road.

[Undine goes to shoot another jet of water at the wall, but she pauses mid-motion. The water freezes in place, still rippling with the force she put into it but also staying frozen in place.]

What do you know about magical girls?

[It's a relevant question I promise.]

[Newt doesn't bother trying to hide his amazement at her neat psych tricks. She's so much better at this than he is, wow. It's hypnotizing to watch.

The question totally throws him, however.]

Uh. It's a genre that I'm not really into. Why?

Because where I'm from, they're real. And they're the only ones who can stop monsters from invading towns and eating the residents.

[Undine finally finishes her hand movement, letting the water hit the building. Still no damage.]

They told us we were heroes. They told us that we were the last line of defense, that we were all that stood between humanity and utter annihilation. They told us to be proper young ladies, and to save everyone, regardless of who they were or what they had done. Because the moment we start to say 'maybe that person doesn't deserve to be saved', we're not heroes anymore. Then we're just people. Flawed, normal people, but with the power to make others we don't like suffer.

When you have power, you can't be a normal person. You have to be a hero. Because when you have power, you're either a hero or a villain. And I'm not a villain.

[This explains why Undine is better at this, though. For her, it's not so much 'learning magic' as it is 'adapting what she used for years into this new method of magic'. That makes it much faster to learn.]

[Newt can extrapolate that this is why Undine has mad skillz, at least. As for the rest, hm... Maybe she has a point. It sounds awfully anime to him, but, well. He's from a world where Godzilla-style aliens are invading the planet and mankind is fighting back with giant robots. Sometimes anime imitates life.]

What about here, though? No offense, but it doesn't seem to me like you're any different from anyone else. [He gestures at the water uselessly spurting against the wall.]

Unless you're a Reaper, I guess. [Is he joking??]

[WELL THAT DOES GET HER TO SMILE A BIT so good job there?]

If I was a reaper, maybe I wouldn't be so scared of everyone here.

[That genuinely catches him off guard.]

Scared of everyone? Really?

Well not everyone, I guess.

[She is not afraid of Chiyo or Mary alright? And Setz is alright too. And probably Alex. Newt's got her more 'nervous' than 'afraid' as well.]

I'm...I'm not that strong, alright? I'm here alone, when before I always fought as part of a team. Even then, my powers were more 'utility' than 'damage output'. Most of the people here are bigger than me, have more useful psychs, and more than a few of them seem a little unhinged. Who wouldn't be afraid in that situation?

Hm. Well, for starters, I think you need to reevaluate your definition of strength. Why are you so focused on damage output? I don't know what you get up to at home, but I don't think hitting harder is going to matter much here. Not if a Reaper decides to go after you.

[Which... is probably not comforting? He's never been great at being a shoulder to cry on. He's going somewhere with this, though.]

Brute force isn't going to win this game for us, and it's sure as hell not going to do a lick of good against the Reapers. They have a massive advantage here. The only way to bypass that is to be smart. Intelligence will get you way further than, I don't know. Punching stuff with abandon.

[NOT NAMING ANY NAMES...]

[Dude she hears you. Her partner tried to put out fire by shooting it.]

But that's what I mean: even if I make plans for defending myself, a lot of what I can actually do is limited to who I can partner up with.

[Like getting someone wet and then a lightning-user fries them. Or spreading water everywhere for an ice-user to freeze into icicles.]

I guess I do have an advantage for running away, it's pretty easy to make people slip and fall. But that doesn't help much if I'm cornered.

[He bites his lip, considering this. She does have a point, but...]

Sounds to me like you just need to get creative. Is that why you're out here doing this? [He waves a hand at the wall that she's been soaking through their entire conversation.] Trying to turn water into bullets or something? That's never gonna work. [As awesome as that would be.]

Water can do plenty of damage to people, but its most dangerous in large quantities. Couldn't you conjure a bubble of water around someone's head, or something? Drown them? [...] If you had to, I mean. We're talking defense.

[Sobs is she really that obvious.]

It was something Sylvia had mentioned, back when we were alive. But I guess it's not possible, I've been at it for a while and I think I just made the wall wet.

And I probably could drown someone, but I'd rather not. I don't want to kill anyone, just stop them if they're trying to kill me. That was my thought with the water: if I could make it strong enough of a hit to sting at least, maybe it would startle them.

Well, the drowning could be temporary. Just a distraction. You wouldn't have to follow through, just... Hold 'em hostage long enough to get away. But, hm. [He's thinking. It feels nice to put his smarts toward something more mundane than solving murders...]

A well-aimed spurt of water can do some damage. Like, one of those jets, but straight in the eyes? That'd stun anyone. Can you change the temperature of the water? That'd do the trick, too.

I don't think I can change the temperature of water, but I can move water that's already hot.

[She's tried that in the bath before.]

Maybe I'll just carry a cup of coffee with me everywhere.

[That gets a chuckle out of him.]

Hey, there you go. With that kind of creativity, you should be just fine if anyone comes after you.

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week 2 - undine - saturday, post-trial

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