Post by Helena Sawyer on Jul 24, 2017 4:59:19 GMT
We open on Helena, hanging by her ankles from a tree branch. She smiles, waving at the camera, and lets her arms lazily droop down as she chirps to the viewing audience.
"Hello there, everyone! Wow, we've got some high stakes this week, don't we? A shot at the biggest, brightest, top of the table. Three women in the way. A ghost, a shadow, and a demon. Well, that's what the rumors say. I've never been one for rumors, blasphemous or otherwise. I want to see. I want to be where the creepers are, I want to make you all dance the only dance I know. The wicked waltz, the trauma two-step, that good old masochism tango!"
She grins, flipping out of the tree and landing in a kneeling crouch. A sly grin spreads across her face as she stands back up, smile stretching too-wide for a moment before snapping back to form. She begins slinking forward through a shadowed meadow, the faint patter of raindrops beginning to fall around her.
"Let's take this in turn, shall we? Brooklyn Madrox. The nameless one, the formless one. Where HAVE you been? Have you been waiting for this moment just to shock us all? You've certainly lowered expectations enough, haven't you? Silly girl, tough when the time's for talk and soft when the time's for war. You're just as two-faced as any of us here, Brooklyn...you put up a front, and you pray none will call your bluff when it's time to collect."
Helena waves her finger tauntingly, continuing to stalk through the field as the raindrops begin to fall on her face. Her makeup doesn't run, though, staying perfectly fixed despite its environment, and Helena tuts her tongue, voice becoming almost saccharine in its condescension.
"But I know a liar when I see one, Brooklyn, and your strength is a LIE. You haven't been tested, IT hasn't been tested, and untested strength is as good as worthless. You're a paper tiger, ready to roar as loud as you can and hope nobody makes you crumple. Too bad for you...there's plenty of tested strength here. We all want this, and some of us have actually bled for it. What have you done lately? Maxine Valentine made pretty swift work of you, and..."
Helena chuckles darkly, wiggling her eyebrows into the camera as the wind begins to slowly pick up.
"...we all saw what became of her, right? She hasn't been seen since. Just like her, your light will be snuffed out...leaving only darkness. Which leads me to the shadow. Sara Garcia. Always doomed to play catch-up to your sister, aren't you? You're a double act, one of a pair of faces that promise nothing but loathing and lies. Not even the fun lies. The kind of lies that cut corners, the kind of lies that take the coward's path. I don't want to cut corners, I want to cut people! We're not contractors out here, we're supposed to be fighting...and in this game, it's all about pain and who's going to take it, right?"
She winks into the camera, rain and wind beginning to pick up more. In a distant cloudbank, a momentary flash can be seen, and Helena looks up briefly with a smile.
"But shadows are perfect for you, Sara. You've always been best there, skulking, slinking along, waiting for your moment to cut someone else off. But now it's your chance. It's All About You. Not Paige, you. What's that like for you? What's it like for the shadow to be thrust into the light? I know what happens to shadows in the light...they vanish. They scurry as far away as they can, because shadows can't stand the light. And the light is blinding at the top. I've seen glimpses of it for myself, in dragonfire and agony. I have seen revelations and apocalypses tumbling in my dreams, and do you know what? Not once have I seen you at the vanguard. Because that's not who you are. You don't lead charges...you follow. You're the sideline. And once more...you'll be the sideline here."
The lightning strike we saw finally rolls through, a booming thunderclap echoing through the field as both the rain and wind begin to intensify. Helena laughs, outstretching her arms and spinning about in joy. When she speaks, though, her voice seems to cut through the wind, almost as if piercing into the mind of the listener.
"And then we have the true monster here...the demon queen herself. Hello there, Rowan. I've been so curious about you. I saw you from afar, and...I was so angry that I couldn't be there. You are a MASTER at the craft. Each time I see you, you teach in new and exciting ways, stripping away whatever defenses they thought they could cling to until they're laid tattered and bare, raw and ready to be molded...it's impressive stuff. Really...gets a girl interested, y'know?"
Helena winks again, lightning flashing again behind her as she speaks, completely unconcerned with her place in things. She winds her way slowly back towards the tree she started in, voice still unnervingly calm.
"You see, you're just like my forget-me-not. You're different. You're special, Rowan. And maybe that's because you're REALLY not like other girls. Maybe you've got something extra inside you, refusing to pay rent and occasionally kicking your ass into gear. That's alright. The best people do. You've learned a lesson that so many refuse to learn. You learned to listen when the little voice whispers in your ear. You learned that people...people can't be saved by mercy. They're not deserving of pity, or compassion, or grace, not the way they know it. They need to be taught lessons the harsh way. The way that sticks, that leaves its mark...words can come and go, but scars? Scars are forever."
Helena flops back against the trunk, the tree providing absolutely no shelter from the howling, pounding elements. She laughs again, shaking her head, and blinks away a bit of the rain from her eyes, smiling that too-wide smile again.
"I want to dance with you most of all, Rowan. I want to see those golden glories staring me in the face, and I want to look right back into that abyss and I want to LAUGH. I want to laugh because while Pandora...while my forget-me-not brings out the best in me, it would make me so happy to bring out the WORST in me again. We've got to indulge ourselves every once in a while, right? So let's dance. Let's dance the spiral, you and I, hand in hand, cheek to cheek...and when we get to the middle?"
Helena grins again, her eyes flashing that same sickly yellow-and-red as previously.
"I wanna see what's under the mask."
Another lightning strike booms out, and this one strikes the tree dead-center, detonating it with a thundering crack of an explosion. Shards of wood fly in all directions, and Helena throws her head back, letting out peals of unhinged, gleeful laughter as the flames roil from the shattered trunk. Her laugh slowly winds down to a contented chuckle, and Helena looks back into the camera, eyes normal for one more moment.
"See you soon, ladies. I just...can't...wait."
We fade on Helena staring into the camera, haloed by the fire as it's whipped by the wind.
Michelle sat bolt upright, sweating heavily. Another nightmare. She kept seeing those eyes every time she fell asleep. Why? Was she that afraid of her? "This never happened with Eternity..." she mumbled to herself, trying to force herself to her feet.
There. Another mirror. Maybe this time she'd see what she wanted to see. Michelle staggered over, breath quickening as she approached...and saw her own face. No trace of her paint on it. Just the face she knew was hers...thought she knew was hers. "It's something..." Michelle muttered. "Now to find out where we are..."
Michelle walked over to the door, seeming to find strength in her legs with every step. She grabbed at the handle,
a long iron thing, and pulled back with all her might. It groaned, slowly inching towards open, and Michelle let out a cry of defiant anger, wrenching all of her body weight into the pull. Finally, slowly, the iron door began to swing open, and Michelle staggered back, gritting her teeth. "Who's out there..."
When the door swung open, though, Michelle was shocked to see Helena standing on the other side. She looked up in confusion at Michelle, a frown crossing her face. "I didn't say you could come out yet. Get back in there!" With a snap of her fingers, the door swung shut with unnatural speed, and Michelle let out an angry scream of defiance, rushing the door and pounding on it uselessly as we smash to black.
"Hello there, everyone! Wow, we've got some high stakes this week, don't we? A shot at the biggest, brightest, top of the table. Three women in the way. A ghost, a shadow, and a demon. Well, that's what the rumors say. I've never been one for rumors, blasphemous or otherwise. I want to see. I want to be where the creepers are, I want to make you all dance the only dance I know. The wicked waltz, the trauma two-step, that good old masochism tango!"
She grins, flipping out of the tree and landing in a kneeling crouch. A sly grin spreads across her face as she stands back up, smile stretching too-wide for a moment before snapping back to form. She begins slinking forward through a shadowed meadow, the faint patter of raindrops beginning to fall around her.
"Let's take this in turn, shall we? Brooklyn Madrox. The nameless one, the formless one. Where HAVE you been? Have you been waiting for this moment just to shock us all? You've certainly lowered expectations enough, haven't you? Silly girl, tough when the time's for talk and soft when the time's for war. You're just as two-faced as any of us here, Brooklyn...you put up a front, and you pray none will call your bluff when it's time to collect."
Helena waves her finger tauntingly, continuing to stalk through the field as the raindrops begin to fall on her face. Her makeup doesn't run, though, staying perfectly fixed despite its environment, and Helena tuts her tongue, voice becoming almost saccharine in its condescension.
"But I know a liar when I see one, Brooklyn, and your strength is a LIE. You haven't been tested, IT hasn't been tested, and untested strength is as good as worthless. You're a paper tiger, ready to roar as loud as you can and hope nobody makes you crumple. Too bad for you...there's plenty of tested strength here. We all want this, and some of us have actually bled for it. What have you done lately? Maxine Valentine made pretty swift work of you, and..."
Helena chuckles darkly, wiggling her eyebrows into the camera as the wind begins to slowly pick up.
"...we all saw what became of her, right? She hasn't been seen since. Just like her, your light will be snuffed out...leaving only darkness. Which leads me to the shadow. Sara Garcia. Always doomed to play catch-up to your sister, aren't you? You're a double act, one of a pair of faces that promise nothing but loathing and lies. Not even the fun lies. The kind of lies that cut corners, the kind of lies that take the coward's path. I don't want to cut corners, I want to cut people! We're not contractors out here, we're supposed to be fighting...and in this game, it's all about pain and who's going to take it, right?"
She winks into the camera, rain and wind beginning to pick up more. In a distant cloudbank, a momentary flash can be seen, and Helena looks up briefly with a smile.
"But shadows are perfect for you, Sara. You've always been best there, skulking, slinking along, waiting for your moment to cut someone else off. But now it's your chance. It's All About You. Not Paige, you. What's that like for you? What's it like for the shadow to be thrust into the light? I know what happens to shadows in the light...they vanish. They scurry as far away as they can, because shadows can't stand the light. And the light is blinding at the top. I've seen glimpses of it for myself, in dragonfire and agony. I have seen revelations and apocalypses tumbling in my dreams, and do you know what? Not once have I seen you at the vanguard. Because that's not who you are. You don't lead charges...you follow. You're the sideline. And once more...you'll be the sideline here."
The lightning strike we saw finally rolls through, a booming thunderclap echoing through the field as both the rain and wind begin to intensify. Helena laughs, outstretching her arms and spinning about in joy. When she speaks, though, her voice seems to cut through the wind, almost as if piercing into the mind of the listener.
"And then we have the true monster here...the demon queen herself. Hello there, Rowan. I've been so curious about you. I saw you from afar, and...I was so angry that I couldn't be there. You are a MASTER at the craft. Each time I see you, you teach in new and exciting ways, stripping away whatever defenses they thought they could cling to until they're laid tattered and bare, raw and ready to be molded...it's impressive stuff. Really...gets a girl interested, y'know?"
Helena winks again, lightning flashing again behind her as she speaks, completely unconcerned with her place in things. She winds her way slowly back towards the tree she started in, voice still unnervingly calm.
"You see, you're just like my forget-me-not. You're different. You're special, Rowan. And maybe that's because you're REALLY not like other girls. Maybe you've got something extra inside you, refusing to pay rent and occasionally kicking your ass into gear. That's alright. The best people do. You've learned a lesson that so many refuse to learn. You learned to listen when the little voice whispers in your ear. You learned that people...people can't be saved by mercy. They're not deserving of pity, or compassion, or grace, not the way they know it. They need to be taught lessons the harsh way. The way that sticks, that leaves its mark...words can come and go, but scars? Scars are forever."
Helena flops back against the trunk, the tree providing absolutely no shelter from the howling, pounding elements. She laughs again, shaking her head, and blinks away a bit of the rain from her eyes, smiling that too-wide smile again.
"I want to dance with you most of all, Rowan. I want to see those golden glories staring me in the face, and I want to look right back into that abyss and I want to LAUGH. I want to laugh because while Pandora...while my forget-me-not brings out the best in me, it would make me so happy to bring out the WORST in me again. We've got to indulge ourselves every once in a while, right? So let's dance. Let's dance the spiral, you and I, hand in hand, cheek to cheek...and when we get to the middle?"
Helena grins again, her eyes flashing that same sickly yellow-and-red as previously.
"I wanna see what's under the mask."
Another lightning strike booms out, and this one strikes the tree dead-center, detonating it with a thundering crack of an explosion. Shards of wood fly in all directions, and Helena throws her head back, letting out peals of unhinged, gleeful laughter as the flames roil from the shattered trunk. Her laugh slowly winds down to a contented chuckle, and Helena looks back into the camera, eyes normal for one more moment.
"See you soon, ladies. I just...can't...wait."
We fade on Helena staring into the camera, haloed by the fire as it's whipped by the wind.
Michelle sat bolt upright, sweating heavily. Another nightmare. She kept seeing those eyes every time she fell asleep. Why? Was she that afraid of her? "This never happened with Eternity..." she mumbled to herself, trying to force herself to her feet.
There. Another mirror. Maybe this time she'd see what she wanted to see. Michelle staggered over, breath quickening as she approached...and saw her own face. No trace of her paint on it. Just the face she knew was hers...thought she knew was hers. "It's something..." Michelle muttered. "Now to find out where we are..."
Michelle walked over to the door, seeming to find strength in her legs with every step. She grabbed at the handle,
a long iron thing, and pulled back with all her might. It groaned, slowly inching towards open, and Michelle let out a cry of defiant anger, wrenching all of her body weight into the pull. Finally, slowly, the iron door began to swing open, and Michelle staggered back, gritting her teeth. "Who's out there..."
When the door swung open, though, Michelle was shocked to see Helena standing on the other side. She looked up in confusion at Michelle, a frown crossing her face. "I didn't say you could come out yet. Get back in there!" With a snap of her fingers, the door swung shut with unnatural speed, and Michelle let out an angry scream of defiance, rushing the door and pounding on it uselessly as we smash to black.
Well howdy there pardner.