lingeringhope | ic inbox

Thank you too. I certainly appreciate all that you have done.

[This is definitely not the wisest decision Nate has ever made, and neither is is arguably the worst, yet it ranks up way there in terms of legitimate stupidity, riskiness, and danger: not necessarily on-par with throwing yourself off a building for fun, but still bad.

Okay, extremely bad.

Ironic that the only god in this place anyone might trust to give half a shit about what went on over at Rage's temple is the one god that Nate has pissed off back when he just wanted to have a fun, shark-free diving trip. The salad days.

Hat metaphorically in hand, Nate knows better than to approach the sacred ground of a (to be fair, parasitical) deity without something to offer, particularly when said deity is probably still recovering from everything that happened with the Null. What he rests on a stone outcrop is a recently-completed sketchbook, filled with drawings of the city, its residents, the alien architecture and landscapes. The best that a simple man can do.]

Uh...I'm not...really great at this, and um, haven't really been to church in- God, years, but. There's kind of a problem, down here? [He casts a look over one shoulder, back at the city.] Not like the expected ones, not like the Door, but a person.

[In his current state he knows he didn't have much of a chance against someone who could fly, pull abominations out of thin air, and likely catch bullets with her bare hands. Nate barely got away from that pale demon who attacked him in the alley, and it kills him that he was, effectively, useless in both circumstances. Watching it happen from a distance and knowing there was nothing he could do.]

She's down now, I think, a bunch of powered people managed to do something, so...you got any advice on how to hold someone that seems to be able to anticipate every move and can probably rip people apart like wet tissue paper? I've got a gut feeling she's gonna be really ticked off when she wakes up.

[He pauses, for a moment, looking around. It's quiet still. Back to the wall Nate slides all the way down to the floor, knees up and arms dangling over top of them. He waves at nothing.]

That's okay. I'll wait.

[It does take longer than it might normally for Hope to appear, but when he does he looks completely normal. But of course he would - this isn't his true form, it wouldn't show any of the things he's been through recently. He doesn't look happy, but does Hope ever look happy?]

My apologies for making you wait.

[He does not sound that sorry.]

We've been able to contain Delight - next to that, any of you would be simple. However, my strength isn't in fighting.

[Arms folded and braced on his knees, Nate is about halfway to dozing off for a nap when Hope appears. He starts awake, taking a moment to get his bearings again, looking up at the slim, pale figure wearing a dubious expression.

Right, he came here for- right.]

Gotta be honest, I'm kind of surprised you came.

[In the sense that he wouldn't have blamed Hope if he didn't. Easing himself to his feet, Nate processes the information a little sluggishly, trying to remember what he'd left off with.]

But I don't know that fighting will be necessary. [This, coming from Nathan Drake. Please contain your shock.] She, uh- she was just too powerful. I think she was talked down, but who's to say she won't just turn around and try to gut everybody again, for fun? You could-

[This isn't his wheelhouse and it shows. Trying to articulate magic - real magic - as a purely normal, average human with a love of theatrical illusions is more difficult than he anticipated. Vehicular terms it is, then.]

...drain her battery, a little?

[He thinks it over for a moment.]

I could. Is that what you all want?

[After all, he needs to be sure that this isn't just a request from one angry person. As a rule, the gods try not to get involved in squabbles between residents.]

And who would be affected?

Uh- yeah.

[What is more surprising than Hope's arrival is his apparent magnanimity, given the circumstances. Nate blinks at him for a long moment, impressed that he's gotten this far with so very little - which is about par for his course.]

Yeah, it- I mean, everyone. Everyone would be a lot safer for it.

Edited 2018-04-07 19:27 (UTC)

[It takes him a moment to remember there was a question in there, as well. Rumors pass quickly in this place, which is both a blessing and a curse.]

I think her name is Kay-something. Ka...ren? Shit, no- Caedra.

In general, it falls to me to ensure the safety of those of you who have been brought here. That's why I force the monsters that arrive outside the city, and it's why I supply food and other necessities.

[Of course, that doesn't mean they're ever really safe, especially from the other gods, but... well. It's something.]

If you all believe she is truly a threat to the safety of the city, then I will take care of this as well.

[She is a threat, and the kind of risk that even Nate doesn't mind mitigating. Ten years ago he might have relished the challenges she presents, but since she seems effectively impervious to just about everything...well, this could do a lot of good in the long-term.

Make her think twice about summoning eldritch abominations again, anyway.]

I- yeah, definitely. Thank you. [Nate can hardly believe that this has gone so well, and it shows.] This is really gonna help.

I have a vested interested in keeping all of you alive and well, even if I am not always able to do so.

[He definitely throws hissy fits when the other gods run events that end in lots of deaths. They're used to him, though. They just pretend to be sorry and do it again a couple months later.]

In this case, I believe I can.

Fair enough.

[One of Nate's reasons for not putting too much stock in the gods in the first place is because he isn't entirely convinced that a force so unrepentantly divided will do any of them any good. Disagreements between deities is only fun in theory, when you can crack jokes about Zeus sticking his dick into anyone that stands still long enough.

He rocks on the balls of his feet for a moment, thinking. Better safe than sorry, in this case.]

Just...do me a favor and don't tell anyone I came to you? If it gets out, I'm first on the hit list.

[With his record of accidentally demolishing buildings while running from bad guys, he doesn't think Hope wants to rebuild half the city. Again.]

I won't tell anyone. People do not usually come to me for gossip, in any case.

[Who would he tell? But he'll keep it confidential if requested.]

「Whilst he's probably still eating them...」

thanks
srsly
thank you

hey
quick q
did you put merle up to the dumb shit hes about to do for all of your asses
just wondering

Maybe they should.

[There is a certain edge of loneliness there, at the tail end of Hope's statement, for which Nate tries to scrounge up a modicum of understanding. It's hard for him to empathize with everything they've done.

He lifts his shoulders in a tired shrug.]

Let me know if there's anything I can do.

You're welcome. Thank you for your assistance while I was weak.

What are you talking about?

Thank you. I will keep you in mind if anything needs to be done.

np it wasnt so bad
are you any better now?

great
wonderful
another thing i gotta do here

merle highchurch ok
dwarf dude
hes got magic that lets him communicate across like literally anything in an enclosed space
thing is
he cant do shit to them
but they can kill his ass
and hes about to go to bat for you fuckers against those robot things that mauled us last winter

anyway
my point here is
hes doing you a massive favor
so you better bring him back right

Yes, thanks to the efforts of many.

im glad
you seem to have a lot of friends in here

That is extremely foolish of him. The Null have no interest in communicating. Why would he do that?

I don't believe that I am well loved. I think people are looking out for their own wellbeing, as they should.

everything he does is "extremely foolish"
thats how he is
and idk it worked for the last thing trying to kill us across time in space
besides
hes one of those guys thats really into peace

anyway the point here is its going to fucking kill him
and i know youve been fucking up on the people coming back from the dead thing lately
so
dont do it wrong buddy

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4/1 [action] oh my god

4/1 [action]!

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text, morning of 4/20

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