♤ Like Moths to a Flame

[deal_me_in]

WHO: Cayde-6, Jonathan Sims, and Tony Stark
WHERE: The Green Quadrant
WHAT: ...IS THAT BLINKY LIGHT
WHEN: Sometime this weekish
WARNINGS: N/A - Will update as necessary


It had been a mystery that had consistently nagged at the Exo ever since he'd first noticed it. Taking up residence in the clocktower had only verified that he hadn't just been seeing things one evening, and every time he looked off in that particular direction of the city, the blue, intermittent glow beckoned, or perhaps taunted was the better term. He'd get to it, he promised himself.

Naturally he'd had it in his head that he'd try checking it out alone at first. That was back then, and being without his Ghost, he supposed it would be better to exercise maybe a little more caution than he tended to. He was sure that if he'd left a note saying where he'd gone, certain people might be upset with him. Clearly the answer then was to invite them along, and he'd be in good company. They had the time now, hopefully, and Cayde fully intended to make use of it before they found themselves suddenly on another extended space voyage. Jon had wanted to check out some places, and Tony, well surely he'd been curious about the light's source as well.

His message was pretty cut and dry so far as one could expect by way of invitations and intentions. He even hand-wrote them because he thought it'd be cute, and left them where he'd hoped his buddies might find them.

𝒮ℴ 𝓌𝒽ℴ'𝓈 𝓊𝓅 𝒻ℴ𝓇 𝒶 𝓁𝒾𝓉𝓉𝓁ℯ 𝒶𝒹𝓋ℯ𝓃𝓉𝓊𝓇𝒾𝓃ℊ? ℬℯ𝒸𝒶𝓊𝓈ℯ 𝓉𝒽ℯ𝓇ℯ'𝓈 𝒶 𝓅ℯ𝓇𝓈𝒾𝓈𝓉ℯ𝓃𝓉𝓁𝓎 ℊ𝓁ℴ𝓌𝒾𝓃ℊ 𝒷𝓁𝓊ℯ 𝓁𝒾ℊ𝒽𝓉 ℴ𝓊𝓉 𝓉𝒽ℯ𝓇ℯ 𝒿𝓊𝓈𝓉 𝓈𝒸𝓇ℯ𝒶𝓂𝒾𝓃ℊ 𝒮ℰ𝒞ℛℰ𝒯𝒮.
𝒫𝓇ℯ𝓉𝓉𝓎 𝓅𝓁ℯ𝒶𝓈ℯ ℛ𝒮𝒱𝒫 𝒶𝓉 𝓎ℴ𝓊𝓇 ℯ𝒶𝓇𝓁𝒾ℯ𝓈𝓉 𝒸ℴ𝓃𝓋ℯ𝓃𝒾ℯ𝓃𝒸ℯ. 𝒳𝒪𝒳𝒪 𝒞𝒶𝓎𝒹ℯ

Like as there would be some light planning at best, although the Exo wasn't very big on plans, but Jon and Tony might have otherwise to say, especially considering their previous exploration endeavor. Cayde packed the essentials, which amounted to his trademark hand cannon, a few knives, and one of the guns that he'd claimed from the Graq. At least those didn't blow up in his face when he tried shooting them.

They'd met up in front of Cal's workshop and then made their way out towards the far northeastern corner of the city, well beyond its main roads.

Comments

[in_extremis]

A handwritten invitation was the kind of behaviour expected from decent society, or that sounded like the kind of thing Tony's mom would say to him, and the communication was posted with glee on Tony's workbench where he could see it out of the corner of his eye while he fabricated a few more flares for the trip. The intention could very well have been sarcastic, he figured, after busting Cayde's balls for his last walkabout, but that certainly didn't make it any less effective. Maybe these flares should have been more explosive.

The rest of Tony's gear equally tended to the less offensive than Cayde's, though gathered just as swiftly and only involved Tony grabbing the heavy gauntlet from the loosely assembled pieces of the armor, and a brief detour by vast hole to retrieve a few lengths of rope that he carried looped around his shoulder. At the very least, they would probably have to use it to put a leash on Jon, which, if asked, was his excuse for keeping an arm around the easily-lured Archivist's shoulders after greeting, "Gentlemen, you're welcome," as he sauntered up to the workshop.

[beholding_archivist]

"I'm just saying that xoxo may not be the most appropriate way to end such a message." Jon muses towards the Exo while checking the recorder in his hands, providing at least an idea of what the current conversation has been about so far.

Aside from his recorder, Jon has brought his little messenger bag packed with the usual mystery of items he deems potentially useful for their little adventure. Unfortunately, he can't offer any weaponry himself, if only for the fact that he doesn't exactly own anything of that sort. And that small knife he owns hardly counts.

Hearing the greeting in a not merely familiar, but also very welcome voice draws Jon's attention away from the recorder and he returns the greeting with a warm smile. "Hey." There is a small pause before he shifts his attention from Tony back to Cayde, both eyebrows raised. "That's everyone, then?"

[deal_me_in]

"Why not? I thought it was clever. XOs from an Exo," the Hunter grinned. "Should I have used SWAK? -do people still use that one?"

It sufficed as a greeting from Cayde as he turned his head towards Tony, giving him a nod. "Yep, looks like the gang's all here! I feel underpacked. Should I have brought snacks?"

He wasn't waiting for a response on that one, for as soon as everyone looked set and ready, the Exo turned to head off for the nearest corner of the city. That would at least be his intention unless someone suggested otherwise.

[in_extremis]

While Tony usually made sure he wasn't the one arriving early and forced to make the small talk when he could have been doing something useful, like anything else, he did feel like he might have missed something and was mouthing to Jon, 'Swak?,' as Cayde lead them on. Out loud, he said lightly, "I thought it was a promise. I was looking forward to those XO's. What do you think this rope is for? Honestly, I've been mislead, I feel like you're taking advantage of me and now you're telling me I can't even count on you to keep the engines full. Absolute disaster, this whole production, pack it in."

This wasn't an area of the city Tony had been to at all, well outside of his typical range between the Forge and the core, so he moved slowly as he peered curiously around, lagging noticeably as they passed a large arrangement of stones and lifting his sunglasses to squint at the instalment.

[beholding_archivist]

"I don't think sealed with a kiss is still current." Jon replies in Cayde's general direction, but with an added little shrug towards Tony before settling with a small sigh. "The hugs and kisses might still have it - But I don't believe anyone above the age of maybe- Fourteen? Uses those? Or anyone old enough to send emails or text messages rather than handwritten little notes meant to keep secret from their teacher."

Unlike Tony, Jon is rather familiar with this part of the city - And has, indeed, noticed the light they are about to seek out before. But given that the structure of the former library doesn't offer a direct line of sight to it, it hasn't been tempting him in a way it may have taunted the Exo.

Noticing one member of their small group already distracted by what Jon has come to assume to be some sort of Agrii graveyard, he pauses to allow Tony his closer look. There may not be much information about this particular area that he knows of yet, but he isn't going to deny anyone to at least look at something that has caught their interest.

[deal_me_in]

"Yeah, uh-huh. The moment I give you more line who's gonna take advantage of who, hm?"

From Tony, Cayde then looked back to Jon and nodded thoughtfully as he stroked his chin. "Figured as much. Fourteen though, really?"

He was still in plenty good spirits either way, and once the two had started after him, the Exo forged ahead. The stone mounds hadn't really drawn his interest, and with his sights already set on whatever the source of that light was beyond, he hadn't spared more than a glance at it in passing. Rock formations or graves, they'd be there later, surely. Continuing along, he didn't realize that the other two of his party had already gotten sidetracked in their adventure.

[in_extremis]

Fourteen was a bit harsh, Tony had to agree, making him snort as Cayde soldiered on and shoot Jon a sidelong look before asking very innocently, "You don't appreciate secret hugs and kisses?" His cheeky grin was slow enough to be startled away again when he finally looked back to Cayde, finding he had gained some distance in his focus while Tony was dallying with the local culture and teasing Jon. He urged Jon on to catch up with a nudge before Tony regretted not bringing a leash for each of them, glancing once more at the strange stones as he sauntered more easily down the muddy road. Cal would probably be the one with more answers about that kind of thing, anyway.

The whole area felt bleak enough, moreso than some other parts of the city as Tony had discovered them well after the others had begun to build their lives and structure out of crumbling architecture, that the transition to what was quickly revealing itself to be a stark desolation was subtle at first. The grass was already muddy and tattered from the long storm, barely in recovery, so as the last valiant tufts peaked through the cracked road, Tony hardly noticed their scraggled thinning. It was only when he threw a look over his shoulder, back the way they had come, that he considered the foliage that he had noticed taking over that rock sculpture hadn't migrated this far up the road. It was as though the wind had never blown the weeds this way.

[beholding_archivist]

To Jon, fourteen is reasonable enough. That's when children start turning into adults and such childish behavior tends to be left behind, right? Though he's not one to argue much further, especially not after Tony's comment leaves him flustered for a moment. A moment that lasts long enough to have his muttered response be equally parts too late as barely audible. "I'm not a big fan of secrets in general..."

But again, this may not be worth arguing about. Not at this moment anyway, given that they are leaving the stone structures behind already and are about to leave the road for a short trek through the cold remains of buildings that at one point were large structures filled with life. Jon has been climbing through a few of them already, hoping to find something- anything, really, to give him a better idea of who the Agrii were and how they lived.

But that was back when he still doubted to ever be able to talk to them.

"Right, so... Do we know if what we're headed to is still within the city itself or outside and just close?" Jon asks, the question primarily directed at Cayde, who easily has had the best view on their target from where he lives.

[deal_me_in]

By the time Sundance internally pointed out that he'd almost lost his makeshift Fireteam, they'd caught up again once Cayde glanced back. Things were weird out here, the considerable barrenness in comparison to the rest of the overgrown areas of ruin definitely providing a strange whiplash when you looked between directions.

"Within," he replied, head tilted as he consulted the rough mental map he'd envisioned. "I think. Kind of hard to tell, but if it isn't, I don't think it's that much farther outside of it. There's like...a huge building near it." Which at this point wasn't too difficult to spot. The daylight made it a little more challenging to pinpoint the light winking on and off on the spindly tower that sat beyond in a space of its own, the lack of vegetation and other buildings cementing the isolated imagery.

"There, that thingy!" Perhaps not the most memorable nor professional words for some kind of exploration mission to be quoted, but the Exo points regardless. The tower's framework and design didn't make it very noticeable from a distance, tall and slender as it was, but now that they were within a closer range, it was that much more obvious.

[in_extremis]

Jon's relative comfort with the area made it easy to navigate quickly, where Tony might have lingered and second guess a sinkhole, making him frown at Jon's back as he followed, not enamoured with the revelation that Jon was probably out here doing this on his own. At least Cayde could fly if he got stuck; Jon could hardly lift his own bodyweight. As they caught up with Cayde at what was starting to feel like the edge of the world, Tony touched Jon's back again, hooking one finger gently in his shirt to tug meaningfully as Tony glanced around back at the abandoned buildings, then at the barren expanse before them.

"It's a radio tower," Tony decided for them, or had decided a very long time ago, really, as he raised a hand to shade his eyes and try to squint through his glasses up at the light. That kind of blinking light in the sky wouldn't really be anything else on Earth, and their communication network was working somehow. It would make sense that it was the only place around here with functional power. Either that power source or the radio itself was looking unstable, though, and maybe always had been, for the narrow building to have been set back from the rest of the city so far; there wasn't a single shrub that Tony could see between them and the light. It wasn't clear how much of that the others had noticed, and Tony asked vaguely, "How much experience do you have with radiation poisoning?" If they came away from this picnic with nothing else, it might be the source of all of the glowing around here.

[beholding_archivist]

It's true that the general daylight makes it harder to actually spot the light, but it does get more noticeable as they get nearer.

Jon is, in fact, rather inclined to keep moving forward. To reach the structure that has been beckoning them with its presence and finally figure out what exactly it does. But that little tug has him pause and looks up over his shoulder and at Tony in time to see the man looking from what's behind them to what lies ahead.

Taken that way, the difference is clear.

Pausing for a moment to process Tony's assumption and combine it with his question, Jon takes half a step backwards to bring him right next to Tony again and lightly nudge him with his own shoulder. A wordless gesture of reassurance. But before he gives a verbal response, he also sighs. "I keep saying that Temba reminds me a lot of Pripyat, but usually in reference to its state of decay. Now I- I haven't been there myself. But I'm aware that guided tours into that area are being done and it's been roughly three decades since the accident. Christ, I wasn't even born back then..." He trails off for a moment, but then picks back up. "Wha- What I'm trying to say is- We'll be fine." Another pause, and Jon adds: "Also I always thought the tower with the Communication Data Point would be a radio tower? It has the broadcasting equipment and everything... You think there may be two?"

Which is an honest question. Jon knows remarkably little about how such technology would have to be efficiently set up to work properly.

[deal_me_in]

"Sundance'd let us know if anything starts going off the radars," Cayde assured, which really isn't a direct answer to Tony's question, but an answer nonetheless. "Prr...Pre..Pripyap? Wha? Name don't ring a bell." He could figure it was some allusion to some catastrophic, likely nuclear event, at the very least.

Swinging his gaze back towards the radio tower, he folded his arms, perhaps sizing it up in his mind. "Who can guarantee this thing'd be strictly for communications though?" he posited. He was a little disappointed but he wasn't about to show it, although he hoped their adventure wasn't to be wrapped up so quickly due to the mysterious source of blinky lightness being something so mundane.

Which was exactly why he grinned at the two and then forged ahead. There was still ground to cover, after all.

[in_extremis]

Pripyat was hardly the only abandoned city Tony had seen in his life, so it wasn't the first comparison he had made, especially without the soviet aesthetic, but he pouted thoughtfully and could see how--"You weren't?" he asked in Jon's lull as he gathered his thoughts, not exactly looking for an answer but looking baffled nonetheless. He had worked out with some confidence that he must have been born before Jon, but that Jon hadn't been alive for any longer than three decades was more of a surprise. Clearly, it wasn't the time to make this discovery, because Cayde was soldiering on again and Tony had to trail after him despite the clearly hostile environment to explain, "The Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Did that not happen for you? The whole city was evacuated after the plant meltdown, probably still isn't livable by the year Cayde-1. Except for a few, uh, heroes. The power here isn't nuclear, but..."

What the power actually was remained a mystery. Without those answers, Tony was happy to quickly transition, "That other tower, that's observation. Air traffic control, maybe, shortwave. There's no active communications coming out of there, as far as I can tell--not on our network." It would have been nice to have that kind of information about this structure to relay, too, but trying to pick apart the noise to find the source was getting difficult, like everyone was suddenly sending each other massive files all at once. It made Tony squint behind his glasses again and give a scratch to the back of his neck, which didn't help when Jon zapped him, either, but he still did compulsively.

for Dr. Billy

[in_extremis]

By the time they reached the hospital, Tony would say he was getting used to the pain, hardly noticed it anymore, and very much did not want anyone else witnessing him like this if he could help it, and would insist that he had Jon and Cayde very nearly convinced that it was just a bruise and he would get better. It obviously should have been Jon swinging his legs on this uncomfortably familiar hospital bed, waiting to receive his misadventure diagnosis while the other two went looking for Billy, but instead it was Tony tapping out his impatience and searching for the shiniest nearby surface to try to make himself look less like he got into a fight with a bus. The blood on his face was dried by then, and flaked off onto his sleeve as he scrubbed at it, and Tony grumbled with irritation as the move revealed scabs. This made him pull the sleeve over his hand with his teeth to hold against the welling red as he tried to blurrily peer around the pilling fabric for another quick solution, only to be confronted by this insistently useless room. He was never coming back here again. Maybe he could just sneak out.

[wearingthestars]

Like Billy was going to allow Tony to flee.

As soon as Jon and Cayde found him Billy hurried to find him, eyes a little wide when he first took him him, though he tried to adopt a more appropriate bed-side-manner expression.

"Why is it always you?" he asked, teasing softly as he approached. "You want to tell me where it hurts, or am I doing a full examination?"

[in_extremis]

The hurt was approximately everywhere, but Tony was barely willing to submit to finding out what actually happened to his arm, never mind what Billy might have considered a full examination. "That depends on how warm your hands are, Doc," he replied, straight faced and already out of the energy it would take to flirt any more without the incentive of Jon near enough to get a reaction out of. Hopefully, that was just enough to dissuade Billy of pursuing any further. Instead, Tony sighed and unstuck his sweater from his face with a grimace at the stain on his sleeve, to gesture limply at the sling Cayde had made for him. "Can't move it," seemed about all he was willing to admit to. Other than this mild inconvenience, he was the picture of health, obviously.

[wearingthestars]

Well at least it was an obvious starting point. Billy gave nod, hoping he didn't look as worried as he felt.

"Okay. Like at all at all?" he tried to clarify, moving to gingerly check the limb while still in its sling first, watching for which parts were the most tender before moving to untie. "How did this happen?" he pressed.

[in_extremis]

The whole situation could be described as tender, but Tony mostly raised an irritated lip at Billy's prodding at him until he sucked in a sharp breath at a touch too close to his shoulder and glared at Billy to dissuade him from acknowledging that. "I mean, a little, so it's fine," he replied, because he had certainly still moved it when he had to, he just didn't really want to right this second, for personal reasons. He did at least lean forward to help Billy manage the sling, curling his other arm under the troublemaker to continue to support it and catch the strip of Cayde's cape before Billy could make away with it, hoping that by being so accommodating Billy wouldn't pursue much further when he explained, "Walked into traffic." As far as Tony could tell, Billy didn't really need to know exactly what happened, and minimizing the details would keep Cayde out of this. It was Tony's fault.

[wearingthestars]

"Tsk, right, traffic's a real problem around here," he agreed. Still, Billy didn't press, for now. The specifics of how didn't matter too much, and getting Tony to give up anything was going to be more trouble than it was worth.

He took the injured arm and lightly attempted pull his elbow away from his body to confirm what he expected, wincing in anticipation of the reaction he was sure to provoke.

"You want the good new first, or the bad news?"

[in_extremis]

There was absolutely no reason for Billy to assault Tony like this, making him hiss and draw back, twisting away from Billy to put an end to his cruel harassment, hunching defensively over his arm. "Hold on, let me guess," he insisted. "The good news is, I can and will be suing you for malpractice, that's one of the few still standing institutions around here, it was incredibly important to Agrii culture. The bad news is, there's not going to be a doctor left here, which I think I can live with."

[wearingthestars]

"Yeah? You going to represent yourself?" Billy asked, releasing with an apologetic smile, "Bad news- for starters- your shoulder is definitely completely out of place. Good news- I can fix that up real quick if you'll let me." He gestured with his fingers to indicate a magical fix, "Or...less quick if you won't."

[in_extremis]

Turns out, it was possible for Tony to look even more hunted and harassed, shoulder hunching in further at that threatening gesture of Billy's. "I thought this was a hospital, not the Vegas strip," he said with a warning glare. Billy should have already been very familiar with his particular care requirements. "Is that how you're fixing everybody that comes through here, 'real quick'? It's bad enough that this place is run by someone who hasn't even gone through puberty yet, don't tell me the primary care here is prayer, this is ridiculous."

[wearingthestars]

"Is that how you think my powers work?" Billy frowned, but did his best to deflect Tony's snark. "So...the hard way." He nodded, mentally reviewing and trying not to look as nervous as he felt.

"I'm going to need you to lay back," he instructed, moving to help him into position.

[in_extremis]

"Do you have a better explanation?" Tony challenged, and maybe it wasn't the best time for that line of questioning when Tony's energy was already mostly occupied with the hard work of holding himself together. So he breathed, "Finally, I thought you'd never ask," without more pushback than keeping one foot stubbornly on the floor as he incrementally worked himself back onto the bed with an uncomfortable snarl. It wasn't any more comfortable in this position, just a new pressure on Tony's shoulder that he had to try to awkwardly keep off of the mattress with a grimace, only making the rest of his chest throb in protest at the strain. He should have gone for more pushback.

[wearingthestars]

"Not one you'd understand," he muttered in return, giving a small smirk, but too preoccupied to get into it.

"...This going to hurt. And it takes a bit so, don't uh- ...hit me, okay?" he warned, taking hold of Tony's wrist and guiding it into the starting position, down by his side and out just a small amount before he began moving it in a handshake motion.