๏ผ he does not answer immediately. he is sitting on the floor of his hotel room in the dark, between the wall and the bed, and when the earpiece alerts him with the notification. he dismisses it without looking at the sender, not especially caring —
it's very likely wei wuxian, trying to ascertain his whereabouts or wellbeing. and itachi, who has never flinched away from anything unpleasant, finds he does not wish to speak to the man.
but at length, the fact that they are on a mission, that it could be a teammate in need — any number of things begin to needle at him. it is still a considerable time before he pulls up the mailbox, but when he does he sees the message is not from who he suspected, but from shang-chi.
his mouth immediately turns down at one corner, because — perhaps absurdly — the specificity of the question makes him wonder if wei wuxian had told him something had happened. as far as he knows, the two men are not close enough to warrant it, but the frown lingers as he responds: ๏ผ
Yes.
๏ผ leaving it at that would likely arouse no suspicion. he is known for being succinct. but after a moment: ๏ผ
๏ผ the school. his teeth click together, there is a tension to his jaw that is unmistakable as dislike. yet, he has never shied away from anything unpleasant in his life, so — ๏ผ
[ Well, he's no The Flash, but a healthy diet and plenty of exercise and a strict training regimen means that Shang-chi is in excellent shape. He heads back into town where he'd left his pinged location without delay in search of the familiar face of his friend.
Yeah.
Itachi said it first, so Shang-chi's absolutely taking it to heart and beyond. They're friends. ๐
And the location itself is a gazebo nestled in a spot where several roads converge on each other before breaking apart again, one direction leading towards the residential neighbourhood, and the other down Main Street, another towards the mayoral hall and fire station, and so on. He'd been here last to participate in a little pumpkin carving. It hadn't felt so creepy then. Far from it, in fact.
It feels ... a little different now, especially as the day grows later. ]
๏ผ long fingers of twilight extend their grip across the city, lengthening shadows, causing streetlights to flicker on in a dissonant, industrial hum.
itachi is waiting when shang-chi arrives, seated in the gazebo. he is dressed casually in the local style, his hair drawn back. his eyes are black, the sharp blades of the sharingan blunted by the necessity of subterfuge. he is thumbing through a local magazine, whiling away the time, and when shang-chi approaches it he sets it down and stands. ๏ผ
[ Even now, Shang-chi is getting the sense that there's a different weight in the air, something he can't quite put his finger on. It doesn't feel quite wrong yet, and truth be told, he can't even be sure this isn't all in his head โ just the memory of the spectre that resembled the worst parts of him; the opposite parts.
He rolls his shoulders and jogs up to the gazebo just as Itachi puts his magazine down and gets to his feet. ]
Hey. [ Shang-chi offers a quick wave. ] Yeah. Let's see if this creepy whatever-it-is can be summoned again.
[ And not even by doing anything special either. ]
๏ผ he does not respond immediately. this place has no impact on his chakra, nor can said chakra affect it at all, and no sensory ability in his arsenal has been much assistance at all.
but the neighborhood is quiet. there is almost no ambient noise. no birds, no insects.
it is a species of unusual, but perhaps not what shang-chi notices or cares for. ๏ผ
Nothing yet. ๏ผ a pause. then: ๏ผ Have you been to the school?
[ Yeah, there is definitely a disturbing lack of ambient sound. Shang-chi's got a bad feeling about this. Even the thought of looking over his shoulder right now is giving him a feeling akin to one of those cheesy American horror movies. ]
Yeah. I left it earlier today but I didn't think whatever was there would literally follow me out.
Difficult to say. The orbs do not care about abiding by superstitions, so if it is the cause of this place's difficulties I do not expect it would adhere to established rules about spirits or other such malignant energy.
๏ผ but he sets off in that direction regardless. ๏ผ
The school seems to be a focal point for much of this strife.
[ Aaaand, Shang-chi will just quicken his pace to keep up and follow Itachi towards the direction of the school once again.
It was kind of eerie after-hours the first go around, but now that it's later in the day he's going to assume whatever orb activity might increase โ in the spirit of Halloween and all. ]
Whatever I might have felt earlier will probably only get stronger, the emptier the school and darker the day gets. It'll probably know I'm coming back too. With back-up.
๏ผ if itachi knew what a gen z'er was, he'd attribute that unfortunate statement to a steady diet of saturday morning cartoons casting a pallor over one's sense of theatrical judgment, but as it stands shang-chi just gets a rather curious sideways look. as they arrive to the front doors of the school, and itachi sets his hand on it, he pauses before he tugs it open. ๏ผ
Are you afraid?
๏ผ it is not said derisively or with judgment. fear is essential to survival. fearlessness is hubris wrapped in apathy. it is acting in spite of fear from whence comes courage. ๏ผ
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
text โ un: hotel.california ; (the voice in the dark mission)
but you okay?
just a quick check-in would suffice
no subject
it's very likely wei wuxian, trying to ascertain his whereabouts or wellbeing. and itachi, who has never flinched away from anything unpleasant, finds he does not wish to speak to the man.
but at length, the fact that they are on a mission, that it could be a teammate in need — any number of things begin to needle at him. it is still a considerable time before he pulls up the mailbox, but when he does he sees the message is not from who he suspected, but from shang-chi.
his mouth immediately turns down at one corner, because — perhaps absurdly — the specificity of the question makes him wonder if wei wuxian had told him something had happened. as far as he knows, the two men are not close enough to warrant it, but the frown lingers as he responds: ๏ผ
Yes.
๏ผ leaving it at that would likely arouse no suspicion. he is known for being succinct. but after a moment: ๏ผ
Why?
no subject
something weird just happened in town
i needed to make sure no one else was affected by it
no subject
no subject
but he was a lot like my dad
[ ... an anti-Shang-chi. Which sounds so stupid he can hardly find the words to even spell it out. ]
no subject
It's very clear this place is altering our perceptions of reality.
Was this version of you corporeal or was it an apparition?
no subject
like he was clearly in front of me but as soon as i tried to step closer to him
[ ... maybe to fight him you don't know his life. ]
he just disappeared
gave off a really bad vibe though and i don't want anyone i know to meet him
no subject
Where did you encounter it?
no subject
it was at the school but i swear it followed me into main street
this place is unnerving
no subject
We can return together, if you are concerned.
no subject
haha
[ He's joking, but also. ]
no subject
What I am suggesting is the presence of a friend.
the way my heart just burst
i could definitely use one of those
GOOD
no subject
hold on
[ It takes a little less than a second before there's a ping with an exact location. As for the time? Well, there's nothing like the present, right? ]
no subject
๏ผ better act fast, buddy. ๏ผ
action โ??;
Yeah.
Itachi said it first, so Shang-chi's absolutely taking it to heart and beyond. They're friends. ๐
And the location itself is a gazebo nestled in a spot where several roads converge on each other before breaking apart again, one direction leading towards the residential neighbourhood, and the other down Main Street, another towards the mayoral hall and fire station, and so on. He'd been here last to participate in a little pumpkin carving. It hadn't felt so creepy then. Far from it, in fact.
It feels ... a little different now, especially as the day grows later. ]
no subject
itachi is waiting when shang-chi arrives, seated in the gazebo. he is dressed casually in the local style, his hair drawn back. his eyes are black, the sharp blades of the sharingan blunted by the necessity of subterfuge. he is thumbing through a local magazine, whiling away the time, and when shang-chi approaches it he sets it down and stands. ๏ผ
Shall we?
no subject
He rolls his shoulders and jogs up to the gazebo just as Itachi puts his magazine down and gets to his feet. ]
Hey. [ Shang-chi offers a quick wave. ] Yeah. Let's see if this creepy whatever-it-is can be summoned again.
[ And not even by doing anything special either. ]
Do you feel anything?
no subject
but the neighborhood is quiet. there is almost no ambient noise. no birds, no insects.
it is a species of unusual, but perhaps not what shang-chi notices or cares for. ๏ผ
Nothing yet. ๏ผ a pause. then: ๏ผ Have you been to the school?
no subject
Yeah. I left it earlier today but I didn't think whatever was there would literally follow me out.
Could it?
no subject
๏ผ but he sets off in that direction regardless. ๏ผ
The school seems to be a focal point for much of this strife.
no subject
[ Aaaand, Shang-chi will just quicken his pace to keep up and follow Itachi towards the direction of the school once again.
It was kind of eerie after-hours the first go around, but now that it's later in the day he's going to assume whatever orb activity might increase โ in the spirit of Halloween and all. ]
Whatever I might have felt earlier will probably only get stronger, the emptier the school and darker the day gets. It'll probably know I'm coming back too. With back-up.
no subject
Are you afraid?
๏ผ it is not said derisively or with judgment. fear is essential to survival. fearlessness is hubris wrapped in apathy. it is acting in spite of fear from whence comes courage. ๏ผ
no subject
Shang-chi pauses for a moment, considering the question, and gives Itachi a nod. ]
I think it'd be stupid not to be a little bit afraid.
(no subject)