EXTERIOR
It’s nighttime, and the building before you is impossibly tall, made of dark steel dotted with exterior lights, illuminating the green glowing haze lingering in the air. Military vehicles pass along the street, unearthing themselves from an underground parking garage nearby, though their drivers appear faceless through the glass. The main entrance does not eschew visitors — the interior lights shine brightest through expansive glass doors, which will open for any who wander in.
LOBBY
Corporate clean and modern, the lobby is shining, straight-edged, and ambient lit. It is a space that was clearly designed to comfortably host many people, though it is currently (and always) empty. Even the front desk is bulwarked by shining walls of security lights, with no one seated to greet newcomers. A massive set of stairs, one on each side, will lead a visitor upward. It is the epitome of subliminal space, and obviously meant to be traveled through, not loitered in.
CAFETERIA
A half-formed cafe adjoining the lobby. You can sit, if you like, but there’s not much else to do. No food and drink being served, no ambient music to fill the space. Very little effort has been put into the creation of this area beyond functional construction, though the spotlit foliage is a nice addition.
STAIRWELLOne way or another, there’s a stairwell that loops up, and up, and up— for as far as the eye can see. The floors are numbered, and maybe those numbers climb higher; maybe they jump round, maybe they repeat themselves. Footsteps clang on metal, and resonate with each step. Surely, at some point, there’ll be an exit — and sometimes there is, a door appearing on one story or another, providing freedom. Sometimes, you just have to keep climbing.
You could go back down the other way, but even that feels like a feat of its own, depending on how far you’ve already journeyed.
VR TRAINING ROOMA training room with wide flooring and nondescript walls, made for sparring. There isn’t much here until, with a flicker of light, the scene erupts in a distinctly different palette of color. Atop the long length of an impossibly large
cannon, or the square of a foreign city in a foreign
nation, couched by trees. Sometimes it’s not a scene at all; sometimes, a
monster greets you, instead.
PERSONAL QUARTERSLocked to all who find it, for the time being.
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supersoldier) wrote2022-02-11 11:01 am
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[To him, it seems like a ridiculous idea, adding people for the sake of background noise. If he wanted to feign company, or the concept of it swirling around him, wouldn't he just wander about a busy Cadens square?
Sephiroth seems to believe that's an acceptable enough answer, because now it's his turn for a question. He ambles close enough to stand a respectable distance away, yet still next to the glass enclosure housing the tree within. The glass itself produces a glossy sheen; so remarkably clean that it would not be visible at all if not for the ambient lighting. His arms cross.]
These flowers... Was that magic?
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it's curious, she thinks, but does not further her thoughts aloud. perhaps she really is unfamiliar with having a place as this as her core of familiarity.
wanda is hesitant to answer the question that follows, not because she does not want to let him in on the fact that yes, she does use magic, but because she tries to gauge what his attitude is about her creating the flowers in the first place. in the end, he has really given her no reason to feel concerned for his reaction, whatever it may be.]
Yes. I can remove them if you want them gone.
[though he probably could do the same, it being his space and all.]
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You can leave them.
[Here, he glances at her again, sidelong.]
I don't care to recreate Shinra exactly. [Confirmation of the name, apparently. She would've made that connection via the signage in the front lobby, as she already has.] Flowers like these don't grow in the city.
[Dry-] The company could use your magic for interior landscaping. Proof that it's able to make plants thrive.
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[she knows that the words they speak regarding landscaping are nothing but vapid assumptions, considering none of them will likely ever get to see the world the other belongs to. she appreciates the sentiment, though, a smile having formed at the man's willingness to keep whatever she whimed into existence.]
—next time I'll ask.
[lest he thinks that she goes about disrupting the order of other people's imaginings as a hobby of sorts.]
What kind of company is Shinra, in any case? [with its grand ceilings and polished floors. she looks around the empty cafeteria for a moment before turning to face him—and really look at him, his demeanor and posture.] I can't imagine you work in a fancy office.
[something about him is just different but similar to others she's met before, though she can't quite put her finger on it.]
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It’s in the business of energy. Shinra Electric Power Company.
[He gestures, then, in the far direction of the lobby, where stairs on either side lead upwards to access the rest of the building. Or where it would be if this were reality and not Sephiroth’s own creation.]
There are several departments. But I don’t work in administration. I’m a part of their army, protecting company assets when necessary.
[An electric company with an army…… said so mundanely that one can assume this has been the reality for many on his Planet for some time now.]
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I'm sure there is nothing worrying about that.
[company assets... like what? the buildings? electric posts? sounds fishy as all hell — but wanda is not here to judge, even if her words show her skepticism.
a soldier, then.]
I almost worked for the government one time, to be told when and who to fight. It was not for me. [a shrug] I'm sure there are perks to your job.
[if the company one works for has... this much luxury.]
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Everything one might expect an army to protect; and naturally, to fight against those who would oppose its policies in the loudest ways possible.]
It has its detractors. That’s to be expected of all institutions in power.
[As though Sephiroth is aware of a time where Shinra was not in power. The reality is simple: this is all he knows. This hollow building with its empty floors is what he recreated because there is little else to draw upon.]
So you were a soldier, too? [One wielding magic? It wouldn’t be too far-fetched, given how things work at home.]
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I am hardly a soldier. I would not be much use in an active battle.
[even if she has, in fact, been very useful in an active battle—more than one, in fact. it is not something she wishes to be boastful about, though. she lost pietro in her very first real battle, caused destruction and death in another, and lost vision in the most recent one.
the sound of her heels on the floor echo as she makes her way to the doorway, pausing to look back at him as she points over to the new area, indicating that she'll go through out of curiosity alone—]
In my world, I worked with other "super heroes", but I've always been considered weird because of my powers. Magic is not all too common.
[—and she steps through, only to find.......
stairs...
wanda stands at the bottom, looking upwards and making circles with her feet, confused at the sudden change of polished floors and tall ceilings to what feels like the emergency stairs. she turns to look at him, her face an amused expression bordering on confused.]
I was not expecting this.
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An so, here they are. At the bottom of the ever intimidating stairwell, climbed by himself many times over the years.]
In case the elevator doesn’t work.
[Why there are a multitude of stairs. So many stairs. To Sephiroth, they represent an escape from the workings of Shinra corporate where the lifts are potential traps to ensnare himself in them.]
I’ll walk with you if you explain to me your world and its… superheroes.
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You can will an elevator that never breaks down.
[an observation—but she's amused, for it's almost like he doesn't notice how strange it is. the offer to walk with, as if there is absolutely nothing wrong about these eternal-looking stairs. wanda moves towards the first step, hand on the railing, and looks up—is unable to see how far up it goes.
oh, well. if it gets too tiring, she can always use her magic to fly.
she starts climbing upwards.]
How many floors is it?
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[Simply. But maybe there’s a hint of something dry in that retort—barely there, ghost-like—as the arch of pale brow plays across his expression. He walks up the stairwell two steps behind her, and the echo of metal begins to reverberate through the cold, dark space.]
More floors than most care to walk. Why? Do you see it as a challenge?
[The roof would afford a good view. In his domain, he needn’t worry about bypassing security past the President’s office; not that he even thought to make it.]
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she reaches the landing at the halfway point, stops to look at him—finally, momentarily, at a more advantageous height. it will not last for long should he catch up with her.
the man is clearly reserved. 'i can climb these' indicates that he is not looking for the comfort of others, nor has he planned for others visiting. wanda can understand the sentiment.]
Keep the stairs the way you want them. [not that he needs be told that. she offers her hand, abruptly, the red shawl falling from her forearm at the action, resting comfortably at her elbow.] My name is Wanda.
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Rarely does he engage in even these straightforward civilities, but Sephiroth will not turn down a handshake; they're relatively painless, all thing considered.]
Sephiroth.
[His gloved handshake is brief but steady. No last name given (none to give), but she's only provided hers, as well.]
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the handshake is firm and curt, to the point. once done, she wraps her arms around herself and continues heading up the stairs, her back to him.]
You wanted to know about my world.
[it's an allowance for his questions.]
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Since she’s willing to entertain his questions, he takes advantage of it for now. Never let it be said that he doesn’t have a searching, seeking mind behind the stoicism.]
You said you come from a world with superheroes. That implies something has defined you as heroes.
[He carries the title, too. A war hero, guiding Shinra’s armies to victory. A very one-sided label, considering he doubts Wutai feels much the same.]
Is that true?
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[why would i lie about it? is what the question, quite generously, implies. she does not turn back to look at him, for she does not play by the rules that a hurt look can get her places. cold is the value of her posture, her words harsh.
in any case, she takes no real insult from whatever assumption she could take from his question.
only after she reaches the next floor and continues further up does she continue to explain.]
There are always wars, small and little. Every side wants to be stronger than the other. Soldiers are made a symbol of hope, an armor of iron flies in the skies, and gods come to our world to fight for us. Fools allow themselves to be experimented on for a chance to save their home.
Heroes come in many shapes and forms where I come from, Sephiroth.
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[He is sometimes cold, and sometimes does not bother to parse his words, but he would not call her a liar on account of her stories sounding fantastical. He only lacks giving clarification, and so he makes an attempt at doing so now whilst walking up the steps. Considering, quietly, the manner of heroes that she's described.]
I'm called a hero, too. For my participation in a war that turned the tide against those who'd rebel against Shinra. But I was only doing what I was trained for.
[And war is ugly, unkind. He's watched life drain from bodies that were bright with anger only moments prior. Very rarely does anyone laud warfare's inherent violence as heroic, and yet he carries the title all the same.]
I'm asking what you did to earn the honor.
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if she has any questions about either his tone or the newer revelation of 'shinra', she does not voice them.
instead, continuing upwards and with a sigh, she clarifies for his sake.]
I have powers unlike the other people in my world, and I was willing enough to fight for the higher good. Redeem myself from past mistakes. It was hardly an honor.
[she reaches the landing for the second floor. boy, this is going to be a long trip upwards. she glances at him from over her shoulder just briefly, before putting her hand on the railing to help herself.
and on their journey up continues.]
But, mostly, I think I just got the title because of the good people around me.
[war he said. she knows war, as one of the helpless civilians tossed and turned by the tide of the forces that wage it.]
Did you kill many?
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More so because she credits the title to those around her — not her own actions to make right what she believed was wrong.
He follows quietly, not surprised by her question, but uncertain how to reply. How does one qualify “many” in a war? Has his blade ended more lives than Shinra’s machines, its sprawling army? Does the blood spilled by a man on the frontlines—a “hero”—count for more than the rest? Less?
Does it matter?]
Yes. I have.
[He was trained for it.]
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perhaps she is too close to the circumstances of an unfair battlefield, as a child and growing up. too close to it to ever see sympathetically without further exposition from the man's end.
instead, she keeps walking up, silent, not even a sniff to show acknowledgement to his answer. the echo of the metal stairs under her shoes bounce about the large, open area, on the walls, where up and down is no longer discernible.]
What is at the top, anyway?
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And so, a few more steps up, and—]
The roof.
[Obviously. A pause.]
Many have unflattering things to say about the city of Midgar. But even I will admit that the view is nice from above.
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[she repeats, a quiet mutter, walking to the end of the landing on the 7th floor (—what a slow trek—), peering over the railing and hearing the lasting comment about an exceptional view should the top be reached.
well, wanda has never been given anything in her life. maybe, just this once, she can cheat a little.
with the same red magic that pulsed from her fingers now encasing her hands, she lifts from the stairs and hovers on the edge, taking an insurmountable less amount of time to get to the 12th floor.]
Do you mind if I do it this way? [sephiroth likes his stairs. sephiroth can go up the stairs. she just hovers a few levels over him, but does not force herself to go any further than the twelfth floor.] I hope you have imagined this view you speak of into your domain.
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I don't mind. But are you getting impatient?
[He wonders. The 12th floor is still long departed from the top, innumerable stairs between here and the roof. She will make better time hovering to the top, but he will undoubtedly lag behind.
Or will he?]
If you're in a rush to see the sights, I can run.
[Up x amount of floors??? He says it as though it would be nothing, and it's hard to tell from his even tone if it's a joke or otherwise.]
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[his offer though, it sounds a tad... ridiculous...? wanda peers down at him from between the metal steps, and soars in easy circles towards the next floor, following the stair's set path.
pietro would have reached the top in a blink of an eye. tommy, too. she can't help her smile.]
Are you suggesting a race?
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He replies as he walks, though perhaps his steps grow a little faster.]
You want to reach the top faster, don’t you?
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