And for a family, I guess that makes me some kind of space uncle?

[somekindofspaceuncle]

 

[Thread continuations. To avoid unnecessary captchas. And for new threads, too. Feel free to hit up with anything if we already threaded. Or even if we didn't, I'll reply if I've seen you around./ ]

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[beyondthenorms]

Yeah, and it was good that I wasn't alone on agreeing with Squall to meet him and Zell, at the place I used to work. My own flower shop place of business. [Mari smiles a bit sadly when mentioning that, and the further about how Crystal used to be.] This a while ago, when Crystal was her former, more normal self.

I'll eventually summarize what happened to her. For now, I'm just going over how all this started. [She says this mostly for herself, in confidence. Talking about her usually causes her to feel sorry and sympathetic for her. She'd feel sad, and somewhat guilty about her current mental and emotional condition.]

The next day was when I first met both Squall and Zell in person. I remember that they had briefly explained to me that they first discovered my world, through a mysterious portal that appeared outside within theirs...

[Again, by habit, she omits all the details the three of them had discussed and looked over, concerning the FF8 game. She could never really look back at those specifics of that day without feeling discomfort. This, in addition to stopping herself from dwelling over first finding out about Kuja Tribal and his dragon making their appearance at her Earth.]

What I remember about their background is quite a bit. The place they call home is basically a school and military type of training camp in one. Squall and Zell had been trained to gain careers as, um, freelance type of mercenaries. Along with some of their other friends.

When that portal showed up in their world, they took it upon themselves to investigate into what was going on.

As for Seifer, I... don't exactly remember how he eventually joined up with them. He, um, always had treated Squall like a rival of his, and he picked on Zell. He gave him a hard time. [Mari shakes her head slightly as she fondly recalls of having met that rebellious free-spirit at least once.]

They weren't always on good terms. But he and I got along fine. I met his younger sister, sometime after she went through the portal that temporarily connected to our worlds--looking for him. [A grin comes to her lips.] Sophia and her brother Seifer are close, and sort of alike in personality...

I just hope Seif's learned to be more responsible with his actions and decisions by now. Wherever he and the others are. [She takes a moment to just breathe. She doesn't want to think back on that horrible day the sudden and mass disappearances occurred. A flashback of that might just bring her to tears.] Maybe they're all back in their world now. I'm not sure. [Never am. But I think something terrible still happened. I still should try to find out what.]

[somekindofspaceuncle]

...you've all been through a lot, haven't you?

I hope they are, too.

[beyondthenorms]

A whole lot, in such a brief time.

More individuals from their worlds eventually appeared, against their consent. Both good, and bad. Including some monsters... It wasn't just through portals either.

At first, we didn't know how or why this was happening. Until... sometime after my friends from home started having some really strange and scary things happening to them. Crystal, Lia, Timo, Paul, and Tasha.

[She lowers her eyes as she grimly adds;] I never saw the damn creeps. The ones who called themselves Mind Wraiths. We speculated a little, but never really found out why... [Discomfort appears on her expression.] Almost everything I can say about them is based from what was explained to me.

[somekindofspaceuncle]

You've never encountered them? That's a relief at least, it all sounds terrifying.

[beyondthenorms]

I said I did not see them. One of them showed me this really disturbing, messed up dream. Unlike any other dream I experienced.

Not that I was the only one who got such a nightmare. Lia had them as well, and she, unfortunately met one of them... She and the others said that each one differs in appearance. And personality.

Most of Wraiths had been nasty and scary, except one. [Right, can't forget about that.] The one who met my friend Tasha. She even told me he looked like a big cat, and introduced himself as Bast. [She nods, and is glad and relieved her memory remains clear about him.] Tasha said he was friendly.

[somekindofspaceuncle]

An exception? Are you certain it's not just a trick?

[his tone of voice might say that he's not quite sure whate he'd want to think about this, or what he'd consider the right opinion, in such case... it's almost like a little distrustful, a little pensive, a little... angry?]

[beyondthenorms]

[She's a bit surprised at Shiro's tone, but at the same time--she'd understand about his pensiveness, and skepticism.

Her response is honest as she remembers clearly on what she was told about Bast.]

I'm actually not a hundred percent sure about that.

I believe my good friend, and I knew she wouldn't be lying, or making any of that up. She was so certain that Bast was harmless. I didn't hear any doubting from her at all when she talked about him... [There's a pause as her eyes lower.] However, he did leave as abruptly as the other Wraiths did. Not a single one of them revealed much of anything to us.

[Distress starts to show in her eyes. She doesn't even think of hiding it, as she says the following.] All the other-worlders had suddenly disappeared that same day, without warning. All at once. And... I saw it happen to some of those friends I had briefly come to know.

There was no time for saying goodbyes at all. We never had the chance to... It just happened.

[Mari manages to tell Shiro this without thinking back to that horrible day those disappearances occurred. She doesn't want to at all dwell on the memory, on how much she freaked out. That would lead to a repeat of one of the worst flashbacks she's ever had.]

[somekindofspaceuncle]

[He opens his mouth to say something, then closes it. Visibly distressed.]

I don't know, I can't judge the situation, I just don't know enough, I-

[He seems anxious. As if thinking back to something else, wondering about similarities or differences.]

I--

][yes, if one looks, Hiroki definitely seems ready to work himself into some kind of anxiety.]

[beyondthenorms]

Shiro?

[Concern for him is instant. She's quick to notice him stressing out. It's out of instinct and the right thing to do to touch Shiro's shoulder with a calming hand. True, she doesn't know nearly enough about Bast, but she knows Tasha well enough to not want to put anybody in danger.

Mari doesn't know what thoughts are going in Shiro's mind exactly, but she believes she can attempt to guide him to reason, and understanding on who Tasha is... Her tone is leveled and calm.]

None of us know enough to really put a stop to the creeps yet. So, for now, I believe in my friend, when it comes to the one that's different. It's all I can go on.

Tasha Johnson is someone who built herself a stable career, and a very good reputation as a nurse for the past four years. She's very good with people. Very caring, optimistic, and puts her all into her full time job.

When off work, she takes care of eight cats at home, including a few strays...

With all this in mind, and having known her for almost that long, I can't imagine her as someone who'd willingly put anyone in danger.

[Please calm down. Mari has her own anxiety issues, and it wouldn't at all be good if he'd start to freak out, or go into a panic attack. That might cause her to freak out.]

[somekindofspaceuncle]

[nod] Believing in your friends is a good thing. And I hope-- I hope all goes well.

[beyondthenorms]

[A sigh in a bit of relief. She's very glad she was able to help calm him.]

Yeah. I hope to find my Earth--which won't be easy. There's a lot of them, and I got them all listed in this world travel device I have.

[Maybe she should summarize how she got that.]

I met someone nice, not long after... that first time I experienced world displacement. [She pauses, and recollects her thoughts to evade from having to say anything about that really bad panic attack she had.]

After talking with him, and finding out that his world had wraith enemies--but weaker. That did things like, uh, draining batteries and making people feel bad.

Peter Burrows, this kind and sympathetic goblin I first met, felt bad for me. He gave me the world traveling device he carried. Before he had to go, he showed me a bit on how to use it.

[She'll pull it out of her pants pocket, and show him. The gadget looks basically like a cell phone--both size and shape. However, the lit up home screen has not only a photo-realistic background of stars in space, but also a list of names in the center. World names. At the top is a tab that reads as "Galaxies".]

This has some search functions, and you can bookmark certain names and information of worlds on a separate list that is shorter from this really long list here.

[somekindofspaceuncle]

That many alternate realities, huh? I get it. I probably wouldn't really understand if not for the witch.

Draining batteries? Huh.

I see.

[beyondthenorms]

[As Shiro mentions the alien witch again, Mari pauses. She's not sure if she wants to know, for she had just calmed down her friend. From what happened earlier, she's understood very well that he has his own anxiety to deal with.]

Alternate reality related stuff often confuses the heck out of me, but I still took notes on what I remembered some newer other-worlder friends have said. Two of them are way more experienced with world traveling than I'd ever be...

[She nods about what he said on the kind goblin's world's Wraiths.] I don't think I'll be going to Peter's world, even though they are much weaker--from what he described.

[Looking back over her device, she navigates on the touch screen to show him a significantly shorter list of world names.] There's two on this list I've already been to, more than once. I'm not entirely sure if I've gone back in time, to way before Cloud, Tifa, Reno, and some of their friends showed up in my world, but... it seems that way. Or, this could be just an alternate Seventh Gaia.

[There's just not enough about that for her to know and be sure on.]

[somekindofspaceuncle]

I- I'm not sure I can help.

[beyondthenorms]

I doubt you could help me with the most complicated stuff, in what I'm going through. [She never believed he could in the first place. It's just always gonna be a pain in the ass, huh...]

[Mari becomes quiet for another minute, her expression a mixture of seriousness and concern as she has to think. There's a lot she's been concerned about. Make Shiro one more additional concern to the lengthy list.

She thought back to fact that he said he's navigating this ship they're in to somewhere in space. Just how many planets has he been to? She had to wonder just how experienced he was with matters that concerned worlds outside of his own.

I could share the plan Reno and I first came up with. Her mind then shifted to another thought in the next split second; on keeping in touch with Shiro as another part to this. There's determination in her brown eyes.

If I can bookmark locations on worlds on the device--would I be able to bookmark his ship?

Hold on. One thing at a time, she tells herself, and then looks to her friend.]

You've probably been to a lot of places in space, right Shiro? There's something you could try to do. Not just for me, but for everyone else in all worlds. Because when it comes to the Mind Wraith creeps, nowhere is safe from them.

[somekindofspaceuncle]

[The young man looks at Mari. He seems intense, ready for action. Certainly focused. In some ways, he seems more steady than just a moment ago.]

What can I do? Tell me. And it's fine if it's dangerous - you see, I haven't told you much yet, but I'm a soldier.
What can I do to help?

[beyondthenorms]

[She's serious, and determined on what needs to be said and done about these nasty, sadistic, and unpredictable enemies. As soon as Shiro asks what he could do to help, she knows to go right into the plan her (unexpected) ally and friend had first agreed with each other on.

He's a soldier too? That makes sense, in a way. And it's common for soldiers to get PTSD- She stops her almost automatic train of thought right there.]

I don't know if you would be able to fight them. No one knows what their weaknesses are--at least not yet.

[She keeps calm as she continues.]

That's what some other friends and I are hoping to find... There's a guy I helped and friended when returning him to his world.

I know he's doing his part to research for anything that has been documented about them.

If you could help on that too, I'd really appreciate it.

[somekindofspaceuncle]

[nod] I'd like to help. Just tell me how.

Ah, have you ever heard of Voltron?

[He's not just a soldier anymore. He's also a Voltron Paladin. But he's not sure if he's heard of Voltron and if not, he can tell her.]

[beyondthenorms]

I can write down a list of some things the Wraiths are capable of. If you come across anything exact or similar from my list in a book, computer records, or whatever--you keep the info safe. Hold onto that for me.

Also, look for anything about what could be their weaknesses.

[She has a tote bag, with a spiral notebook and pen inside. She places the world traveling device down on a nearby counter before reaching into her bag. As Shiro mentions about a Voltron, she has to mull it over a moment. Even though some of her memories tend to get fuzzy or blacked out, she's certain she hasn't heard of this.]

I haven't heard of a Voltron at all. And I think this is my first time being in your universe.

[Mari wonders why he's asking her about this. Wait... Didn't he say something about a black lion, a while back?]

I remember you mentioning about a black lion earlier. Is that what you mean?

[somekindofspaceuncle]

[Find their weaknesses. Gotcha. He and other Paladins definitely can, he's sure-]

[Voltron. How to put it shortly what Voltron is, without unnecessary confusion-?]

Partly. The Black Lion is the head of Voltron. Uhm- ages ago, there was a show called Transformers. I think I watched some old discs as a child, once. I don't really remember it, but I've just remembered it now. Have you ever watched Transformers? It's completely fictional, but-

The Voltron lions are a little like 'Transformers', in a way. And Voltron is</> as real as you and me. Voltron can fight those wraighths, I'm certain.

[Almost certain.]

[beyondthenorms]

[Just as she flips to a blank lined page in the back of her notebook, she listens to Shiro's description about Voltron. That old cartoon exists in this universe too?

She's a bit surprised as she fumbles for the blue inked pen in her bag. A flurry of past and more present memories begin to surface... She knows she must take her time in replying, and explaining a little.

Cheetor. Rattrap. Dinobot... Where did they--]

I honestly remember very little of the 80's Transformers toon. There were these two kids I used to babysit for. They liked it.

[Mari pauses a beat as she looks to him. Her current smile looks somewhat sad as it becomes a bit hard for her to speak.]

This may be shocking to you. Probably hard to believe, but... I first discovered in my past that Transformers actually exist. Well, the few who were very briefly in my world--they were descendants of Autobots, and Decepticons.

Maximals, and Predacons. Their alternate forms were different animals, rather than vehicles.

[She understands that Shiro believes this Voltron could help defeat the very worst of her enemies. She heard him say so, crystal clearly. However, her eyes lower as her mind lingers on those memories of the two Maximals and formerly bad Predacon. Petting, and talking to Cheetor in his cheetah form. Talking with Dinobot. And there was that time Rattrap had brought a certain young mutant girl to her family's house...

There are emotions of sadness and worry showing.

Would Voltron really defeat those creeps? They caused Cheetor, Rattrap, and Dinobot to disappear so damn fast-

Mari's not aware of how firmly she's gripping onto her pen.]

[somekindofspaceuncle]

Mari.

I can't say--

[He shakes his head. Let's take this slow.]

Well, I should be more shocked about Transformers, but I believe you. So, please, believe me as well.

[beyondthenorms]

[Mari wipes away a tear from her cheek.]

I do believe you.

But I wouldn't be sure at all if any power from Voltron would be...able to counter the power they have.

[She holds her pen over the blank page of the notebook, pressing herself to focus on what she said she would do, so Shiro would know what information to look for.]

One of the most difficult and scary things I know about those damn creeps is... No one knows how to predict whatever it is they're planning. Or what they're doing.

[She writes this down as the first thing on the list she'll give to Shiro.]

[somekindofspaceuncle]

[A bit forcefully] Please, give us Paladins of Voltron a chance. We often fight monsters. Trust us.

[Small, shy smile] You can trust my friends to do what's right. We will help you. Just tell us more, if that's alright.

[Frown] I will find out- no, we can find out what they're planning. They can't be worse than the Galra Empire.

[beyondthenorms]

[If she didn't trust Shiro, then she wouldn't have stayed around him this long. She wouldn't have started writing a list of her experiences, along with some of her friends' experiences against the damn creeps.

Mari briefly pauses in the middle of writing down the next very important thing to know about the Wraiths. She frowns in hearing Shiro mention his enemies. No, she won't be assuming anything about these Galra aliens. But could they be as bad as the nasty, evil parasite slug aliens in her friend Jake's universe?

She honestly doesn't want to know. It's best not to think further. There are plenty enough problems and worries she has.]

If the Galra are the big bads in this universe, then we better hope they and the wraiths don't ever form an alliance.

'Cause... [She looks away from the lined notebook page to Shiro.] The wraiths can take whoever they want, whenever they want, and put them someplace else. Without warning. That's basically how the first several other-worlder friends I met had appeared at my Earth.

One moment, you're where you know you should be. Then...

[Mari pauses, and glances down at where she had stopped writing.] I'm well aware by now that the wraiths had worldly displaced me; from my Earth to another world... I lucked out. A huge relief that was. The place I call sanctuary, and safe base--it's not bad. It's a lot safer than certain other worlds I know of. I found this out, sometime after the panicking had gone away.

[Gotta stay focused. She'll write down about the wraiths being able to snatch whoever, and whenever. She'll further write that it's sudden. So sudden, and nothing anyone could expect, or predict.]