A Strange Afterlife

[ginger_firebird]

 It had to be impossible. He could feel his skin. A pulse beat under his neck. He stood in front of a store window and regarded his reflection in the glass. Same black leather outfit. Same brown trench-coat. The fabric weight down on him and he rubbed his arms as he tried to figure out what was going on. A wandering spirit had doors to enter and exit when it came to the world of the living, but he'd never achieved something like this. It was alien and wrong and he had no idea where anyone was.

Mantis sighed, marveling quietly at the way his chest rose and fell with his breathing. It didn't matter. He'd keep moving and hope for the best. If this was some punishment for a misstep, he knew exactly who to take it up with.

"Sorrow!" Even his voice carried an echo. Mantis pointed himself into a new direction and began to walk. "What did I do this time, old man?"

Comments

[ginger_firebird]

"People are bad at keeping the peace. It's how things are." The descriptions of the different worlds catch his attention, though. Robots, maybe, but aliens? "Everyone needs their escapism when they can't handle reality. I was fine where I was. I don't need this place."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"It helped me. But to each their own." Ben's met people like this stranger before, but no one had openly talked about going back. "Some worlds are more violent than others." He's also a creature of violence in a peaceful place - though Ben tries to deal with his remaining aggression in more productive ways now. Dealing with monsters, working on self-control, sparring in the Viper's Pit.

[ginger_firebird]

"That assumes I can even find a way out. There's no real topography here. Everything is constantly moving." Mantis rubs his hands together. "What things stay the same in this place? If I can't get out soon, I'll need a place to stay."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"The inhabited areas are more stable than the Wilds. Finding a place to live shouldn't be too hard - there are apartments and inns that people use. But you'll need a PINpoint to help you. I can lead you to one, if you want." Ben wishes to get to know this other man a little better.

[ginger_firebird]

"A...PINpoint?" You're going to lose him with all these words. "Can you show me one? I don't want to get lost."

[chiaro_oscuro]

Ben considers the question, then nods. "Yes, I can. There's a vending machine in the Plaza. Do you have any money with you? They're dirt cheap, and the machine takes any currency as far as I know. If you don't have any I can pay."

[ginger_firebird]

Mantis pats at his pockets and fumbles through the inner and outer pockets on his jacket. There's quite a few of them, but it all turns up empty. "I'll pay you back somehow. I can't imagine how people earn money or find it in a place like this."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"People take on jobs here. That's how I earn my living, for example. I do repairs for people. Sometimes I sell artwork - sketches, drawings, sometimes commissions." Ben rummages in a pocket and offers Mantis a few coins. "It's in the center of town. Not too far away."

[ginger_firebird]

"All I can really do is read minds and move heavy objects..." He takes the coins, trying to guess where they're from. "Then again, someone will have a use for any kind of skill. I'm not an artist like you seem to be."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"I'm sure you can find something." Honestly, Ben isn't sure where the coins came from, either. There's not much way of knowing for sure here. "Your skills - aside from the drawing - are a lot like mine."

[ginger_firebird]

"Desperation is the mother of invention." Mantis gestures for Ben to lead the way. "I could try becoming a therapist here. Telepathy would make it easier to find out what ruined people enough that they need help."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"That's not a bad idea. I'm not sure we have any therapists - there are enough people who could use that here." Ben leads the stranger deeper into the Plaza. "The telepathy would be new, definitely."

[ginger_firebird]

"You're not inclined to use your own abilities? It's strong enough that you could throw up mental defenses against me. That's more powerful than the few others like myself back home." Mantis puts his hands in his pockets as he walks. He clinks the coins together in his pocket, feeling the shapes with his thumb.

[chiaro_oscuro]

"I prefer to keep a low profile about my abilities, most of the time. It's a matter of habit. There are people here considerably more powerful than me." Ben looks over to the stranger. "There are others like you, where you're from?"

[ginger_firebird]

Mantis can understand wanting to keep out of the public eye, but he was never inclined to do that either. If he could make a name and get paid to do what he did naturally, why hide it? "Not many. It's a rare ability, so we stand out a lot when we're found out."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"There are some people with similar abilities to us here, I think. So there isn't really any need to hide that power." As far as Ben can tell, nobody in the Nexus really goes through the effort to keep their powers secret.

[ginger_firebird]

There's a moment of silence on Mantis's part. Other psychics and weird powers? It inspires curiosity more than anything. "I'll be sure to put on my best face when meeting them. So far, the people here seem to be peaceful."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"In the inhabited part of the Nexus, yes. But some of the people and creatures out in the Wilds aren't so pleasant, and are best avoided." Ben hasn't met many hostile people and wants to keep things that way. He tries not to look for trouble. "But it's easy enough to avoid trouble with them."

[ginger_firebird]

"I wouldn't mind trying my hand at the Wilds. No animal is so dangerous that they cannot be dealt with." He's envisioning crocodiles and lions, but given the haphazard nature of the Nexus, there may very well be beasts only found in stories. "Seems like my first priority is going to be a residence and then food and clothes. It almost makes me feel young again."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"I was in the same place you were not so long ago. Fresh out of my world, not sure what to do with myself." Ben figures they aren't far from the vending machine now. "I hunted in the Wilds for a little while, so I'll help you if you ned a guide. There's some hostile territory there we avoid because we don't want to start a war, but the people who live there marked it."

[ginger_firebird]

"Then wouldn't it make sense to find it so I can avoid it properly?" He jokes, for the most part, but as smart as he is, there's a certain part of him that always wants to toe the line. "Keep away. For now. If there's money in this place, there's a chance I can find things I can make some real use of."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"Money's not the only currency in the Nexus. People here trade in favors, too." Ben finally catches sight of the vending machine. "Here we are - just put the coins in the slot and you'll have a PINpoint. They're a lot like a phone, if you have those in your world."

[ginger_firebird]

"I've used plenty of phones." Mantis leans in to peer at the vending machine and mutters quietly as he takes it in. The coins float out of his pocket and slip into the corresponding slot. After a brief rumble, he sees the device fall out and picks it up. "Not much different at all."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"They aren't hard to figure out, but they're very useful to have. The Nexus is, ah, chaotic." A pause. Ben has mixed feelings on the chaos, but he's never seen it go bad himself. "I'll give you my number, if you'd like to keep in touch with me."

[ginger_firebird]

Mantis is going to mess around with the device. Some of the icons are intuitive and he pulls up what looks like an alphabet. Forgive him, young Ben. He's a bit of an old man with these kinds of things. "That will help. How do I find mine on this thing?"