voyagers | [party post] come sail away with me

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[party post] come sail away with me

You've come through a door, and you are on a boat. Specifically, you're on a cruise ship in the middle of some giant body of water. You've come through the door behind you which is attached to nothing and may now be locked. It's relatively empty as giant as it appears to be. The only other passengers that are here appear to also have come through the door for the most part and it is not nearly enough to fill up this entire cruise ship.

Also, who knows who the hell is driving this thing since all of the employees appear to be either ghosts or holograms...

Is this your first time here or your hundredth time here? Do you want a drink or a dip in the pool? Is it day or night? Do you stumble on your room or some other situation either fun or painful within its many rooms, shops, and facilities? Do you run into someone you know or a complete stranger?

The possibilities are unlimited!

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Chicago was burning. It was disappearing before her eyes, burning and dissolving into nothing. In a way, Cassie felt glad she was leaving Chicago behind.

She had lived in the city for over three years, and while it was her home, it was a home of hurt and bad memories. She’d been through so much, too much. She had been almost killed at the hands of a man she thought could be a friend, tortured by an angel when she found herself a guinea pig for his experiments, been caught up in various disasters and then there had been so many people she’d lost. There were countless that had simply disappeared, but some of them she wouldn’t forget. Sometimes it was easier when they disappeared, it still hurt – but maybe it hurt less when she remembered the violence that fell upon her other friends: Robin, Dan, Iris, Elizabeth.
Chicago had been a city that had worn her down, pushed her to breaking point time and time again. Cassie knew she wasn’t the girl she was three years ago any more, but she knew she was still just a girl and there was only so much she could take.

The end of the world meant a new beginning.

But when she finds herself on the deck of a huge ship, she's left panicking. She's alone. She didn't realise it would happen so fast, she thought she had a little more time.

She spends over an hour pacing that deck, lugging what little possessions she has on her up and down - not really sure what to do with herself. When she can't pace any more, she sits down on by the edge of the ship, legs dangling over and her arms and chin resting on the railings. She really wants some booze, but she doesn't think she can drink.

Her stomach's starting to churn a bit too. Cassie's not sure if it's the shock of what's just happened, or if she has sea-sickness. She's never even been on a boat before.

Mark does not know how he ended up staring at the end of the world, staring at science at work. He has been studying Rifts for so long, and while he may be a marshmallow about some things, there was always this dread and fear in the back of his mind. He knew the world ending this way was a possibility, but he never thought it would happen so soon or even in his lifetime. The increase in the Rift activity across the world was impossible to predict until-- until the end which they all knew was coming. He still hasn't-- There is still a certain level of shock that spreads over his chest in those final moments. It's like being in the aftermath of something to terrible to wrap his head around (it is exactly what it is, and he knows people are dying out in the city, maybe people he loves even, which is scary and makes him want to fight), and then... then he is on a cruise ship.

He recognizes it immediately for what it is by the long deck that he steps out on even if he is completely confused as to how or why. Mark turns back behind him to see a door, and not a Rift, if he were at wherever he's supposed to go, he'd-- there would be a Rift behind him and not a door. He shouldn't be alone here. This isn't the world he fell into, is it? Is it the afterlife? Did he die without realizing it? Mark swallows thickly past the lump of emotion in his throat. He starts down the deck on one side as if searching-- searching for the people he was trying to go through the Rifts with, the Crowbar when he catches sight of familiar blond hair that has him stopping in his tracks completely.

A part of him doesn't want to say her name out loud in case it turns out to not be her, and his chest aches a bit as he swallows thickly, moving forward as he finally manages words-- a word. Somehow. Her name, and his tone is filled with the emotion of it.

He never thought he'd see her again. Never, and it was one of the most heartbreaking things to him about the end of the world.

"Cassie?"

Cassie's not sure how long she's sat there for. The churning in her stomach continues, but it's the shock that's eating away at her. It's a hot, hollow feeling in her chest and she feels like she can't breathe and she's aware of the tears dribbling down her face. The end came so quickly, just as quickly as the way she first stumbled into Chicago.

She said her goodbyes, tried to see as many people as possible. And then there was Aaron. Aaron had crash landed into her life with as much grace as a ten ton truck. The one night stand that came back to bite her in arse. She didn’t like it, hell; she near-on hated him. He was rude, cold, cocky and he just didn’t seem to care. He didn’t want to be her Guardian just as much as she didn’t want to be his Ward. But the end of the world told Cassie something else: life was too short. She had already lost so much. Maybe she wasn’t supposed to lose Aaron, maybe he was the one who was meant to stay around. Maybe they were meant to be something good, they could start again somewhere as friends. Cassie extended the olive branch, if he wanted to go with her, he could – she wouldn’t force him either way. And he’d agreed in the end.

But she's sat on this deck alone, Aaron isn't here with her and she doesn't know what to do about that. The feeling in her chest continues and she feels like she's burning just like the city was. She doesn't know if she's going to see anyone from Chicago again, doesn't know what will happen to her now. It's terrifying, and it's suffocating her.

The sound of a familiar voice uttering her name feels like fate is allowing her to take a breath. In a way, she's scared of turning around in case it's only her mind playing tricks on her. But she does anyway, because it sounds like Mark and it has to be Mark and surely the world isn't that cruel all the time. Surely there has to be some mercy.

Cassie wipes at her eyes, her breath catching in her throat at the sight of him. She says his name, but it doesn't come out right and she half-chokes on it, the noise sounding more like a sob than anything else. Her face crumples in relief and joy and more emotions she can't pick at because there's just so many. Before she can think of anything else, she's clambering to her feet and almost throwing herself at him in what is quite possibly the hardest hug she's ever given.

"You're here. It's y-you and you're here and I thought I'd--" she chokes out another sob. "God, I'm just so happy to see you. It's really you, Mark."

The end always comes so quickly, too quickly.

Mark doesn't think there was any way that they could have prepared for it though they tried. There was time, but it was never going to be enough time. Saying goodbye to her was never not going to tear his heart out of his chest like so many of the goodbyes did that week. It is not easy saying goodbye to the people that-- Without knowing where they'll go or if they'll be safe, there's no guarantee, and he knows in his mind that there are endless possibilities of universes that people could have fallen into including ones that had no sustainable organic life or ones where anyone that fell through Rifts were automatically killed or tortured--

Sometimes knowing so much can be-- Sometimes he wishes he could unknow things, but in all his knowing, Mark never imagined he would ever be able to see Cassie again. It is why he is standing here almost uncertainly like he isn't sure if this moment is even real or if he is imagining it, but then she responds to his voice. She is turning toward him and seeing him, but it is not until her arms wrap around him in that hard, tight hug that he knows this is real.

"You're real," Mark says against her hair, hugging her tightly to him as he lifts her up a bit in that hug because he's hugging her so tightly. "I'm really, really happy to see you too, Cassie. It is. It's me, and it's you, and--"

His voice cracks, and he shakes his head a bit as he tries to wrap his brain around it and sort his emotions out at the same time. His brain is still going a thousand miles a minute with all these possibilities and theories and-- His chest burns as he hugs her tighter to him. "I really thought I'd never see you again. The possibility was so minuscule that it was almost impossible, and I don't even know where we are, but-- I don't really care right now."

The tightness of the hug keeps her grounded, lets her know that this really is happening. Mark's hugs are almost like his trademark and she could never imagine this, never mistake it for anything else but real. She can feel his heart beat in his chest and that angel-coolness of his skin and it can't be a lie, it can't be imaginary. She still feels Chicago's decay on her, the smell of fire and ash in her nose and throat and the tremor of the world giving way in her feet. The presence of her friend being here both keeps those things inside her and pushes them away all at once, and she doesn't know how else to react but babble away and keep on crying.

"I'm real, you're real." she utters, stammering over her words. The echoes of Chicago's destruction drum on in her ears, but she can still hear his voice over it and to her, she's never heard a more beautiful sound.

To say she's happy to see him would do her feelings enough justice, so she doesn't say it. She can't describe her joy and relief. "Oh god, oh god, I just-- it's gone, it's all gone, and--"

She swallows a lump in her throat, hugs him just as tightly back, breathing him in and letting it and the relief wash over her. "We made it," she murmurs, her voice pained. "It's gone, but we're here. It wasn't goodbye in the end."

Cassie lets out a small laugh, her voice still cracking. "Bloody boat, we're on a bloody boat. I haven't been on a boat before, but we're on one--what even is--"

Mark smiles despite the emotion in his chest. There is a lot of pain in it, but he knows this is real too, because of the way she hugs him back, the way she feels in his arms like she always has. He is so happy to see her even as his heart breaks with it too. His expression crumples a bit as he nods when she stammers the words, and he lifts up a hand to wipe the tears from her face as reassuringly as he can. Even when he's fighting tears of his own, and he swallows thickly as his hand moves down to rest his hand against her arm.

"One hundred percent," he says in agreement, nodding in confirmation as he looks at her. There really aren't words to describe everything that he feels, how happy he feels to see her and how relieved he is that she is okay. "I know. I know. It's-- It happened so fast. We had warning, and it still... happened really, really fast."

And he moves in to hug her tightly again so she knows he is real. He is real and so is she. Mark nods against her with a tiny laugh. "It wasn't. Which is really, really good, because saying goodbye to you--" Mark shakes his head. It's-- It's really, really hard.

Mark laughs too, shaking his head a bit as he looks back, pulling back enough to have a look at their surroundings. "I haven't ever been on one before either, but I always wanted to go?" Tiny, lopsided smile, and he's already letting his brain work to try to think up the possibilities. His eyes still bloodshot from emotion. "Things keep looking up! Maybe."

Cassie nods in agreement, pulling away and gently putting a hand to his face for a moment. “I know.” Because he is so dear to her. And to let go of those you’re dear to… well, she has no words for it. She’s been through it so many times in so many different ways, and she still hasn’t got the words.

She smiles and tilts her head to the side for a moment. “Personally, I don’t think I’ve ever thought about being on a boat before.” It’s never really been in her priorities. “I wonder how many people are even on this thing, it looks like a pretty big boat.”

And then she remembers, the smile slips from her face. Is there anyone else here from Chicago? Or are they the lucky ones? And what about--

“I lost my Guardian.” She says softly. She can’t even remember if she even told Mark about Aaron. He appeared in her life a little while before they made the announcement about the Rifts. There was much time for anything, she barely had a chance to process the fact that she had a guardian, let alone tell everyone she knew about it. “We were planning on leaving together. I wanted to start again, we never really got off to a good start and so I thought… maybe we could have a chance to build a better bridge.”
The universes had other plans.

“I don’t know what’s happened to him, what’ll happen to him now we’re—“ he could be worlds away and she doesn’t know what that would do to him, so be separated from his Ward like that. As much as they didn’t get on, the thought terrifies her.

There aren't any words for it at all. Mark leans into her touch instinctively with that want and that love in his heart that he has for her (and that other level of it too, he feels so much for her that he never got to say before the world ended).

He shakes his head at that question. There could be hundreds of people here, but it seems so quiet really. So, so quiet.

"...you had a Guardian? I'm sorry-- so, so sorry you lost him," he says, and he reaches his hand out to touch her arm. Mark swallows a bit as he shifts closer to her, turning to look at her face. He can't even imagine how that must feel to be here without him. "The first bridge that you built was bad then?"

He winces, and then his arms wind around her again as he tugs her in close to his chest to hug her tightly. "I know. It'll be okay. The Rifts usually-- They'll do something to make it easier to deal with that. I've seen it happen so many times. Don't you worry about him," Mark says softly. He's seen guardian's lose their wards to Rifts in Chicago, and they-- they were given other things to help them survive that loss.

Like the Rift somehow knew what they needed.

Cassie shakes her head, "We.. we didn't exactly meet very well the first time. Bit of a car-crash, really." She can't help but outwardly cringe. It was the one night stand that lead to more than they both bargained for. Cassie barely remembers the night. "I wanted to start again, I wanted us to get along, to be friends."

And now she might never get that chance.

"He avoided me for a long time, until.. I don't know, I guess he couldn't do it any more," she says gently. "He didn't want to be my Guardian and I don't think I wanted to be his Ward. I-I don't know.." She closes her eyes and rests against him, even thinking about it was exhausting. But still, the worry in her chest remains.

"He'll be okay, yeah?" Surely Mark will know. He's the smartest, brightest person she knows. He always seems to have a lot of answers, ones for things she doesn't. "It... it won't have hurt him?" She knows a little about Guardian and Ward relationships, but nowhere as near she wishes she did.

"Is anyone else from the Crowbar here?" she asks hopefully.

Mark frowns at what she says and how she explains it. It sounds like a really complicated way for it all to start out, and he swallows a bit before he reaches his hand out to rest on her arm.

"He'll be okay. The Rifts have made wards disappear before on... their guardians, there's this protection that happens so they don't feel the loss of it. They can go on and be okay so yeah, he definitely will," he says at least when it comes to not being near his ward. There's a lot the Rifts do wrong, and it's terrible that the Rifts separate people and like... destroy the world to start with, but the Rifts also make sure that the bond isn't going to be an issue too.

Mark shakes his head at the question. "If... they are, I haven't seen them. I came in alone. Maybe they'll show up later? Or if they don't, maybe I'll end up wherever... they went."

He's heard that people can come and go off of this ship.

Look out, Cassie, you're about to be puppy-tackled.

Castiel and Jo had gone through the rift together, intending to continue on together. Saying goodbye to all of his friends in Chicago is one of the hardest things he ever had to do, but in the end it was the right thing. He began in Chicago with Jo, he felt it was only right it should end there too.

However this ship is not where he expected to land, and he has yet to find Jo, but Gabriel is at his side - up until the moment that he isn't. He catches the scent of something and goes bounding after it too quickly for Castiel to stop him. He huffs, annoyed, before quickly disappearing from view.

Gabriel comes first, bounding down the deck and barking excitedly, coming to a bouncy stop when he finds Cassie. He pushes up on his paws, spinning in circles, just is generally the most excited adorable dog in the universe because he did it, he found her, he found her.

The flutter of wings comes soon after and if she was looking behind her at the moment, she could see that he was smiling.

"Hello, Cassie."

At first, Cassie doesn't register the sound of a dog barking in the near distance, the roar of the ocean below and the crashing of Chicago rings in her ears and leaves her with little room for anything else. With a shaking hand, she wipes at her face, the tear tracks marking lines through the dust on her face. She doesn't know where she is, she doesn't know where Aaron is and--- why does that dog sound so familiar?

She turns her head just in time to find a very familiar puppy coming to a quick stop beside her and bonding and spinning with excitement. She stares for a few seconds, mouth hung open in shock. She knows this puppy, she knows him very well.

"Gabriel?"

And then that achingly familiar flutter of wings, the blur of trench coat in the corner of her eye. Her heart skips in her chest and she suddenly feel like she can't breathe. She almost doesn't want to turn round in case it's not real, that she's imagining it, that it's just a cruel trick.

She doesn't want it to be a trick.

Moving her head, she looks round and up - a fresh bout of tears forming in her eyes. It's him, he's there and there's that smile. She lets out a breath, feeling it catch in her throat and she gives a little shudder of relief. "Cas."

She scrambles to her feet, stumbles toward him and quickly wraps her arms around him and buries her face into his trench coat without another word. She's still for a few moments before she utters a small sob. "You're here, Cas."

His arms come around her easily - one of the few people in all the worlds he can hug with ease. It's hard to know what to do with hugs, when all is said and done, but here, he knows exactly what's needed. He slips his arms around her, pulling her tightly to him, and letting her hold on for as long as she wants.

"It is good to see you again."

Which is an understatement, considering he thought he never would. When all is said and done, it's good to have his best friend back.

Cassie knows Castiel has found it hard with human interactions. She tries to teach him things when she can, but she feels that his hugs are something that she doesn't care about if they ever change - they're perfect. They're the best hugs. And each and every one of them she's grateful for.

She lets out a sound that's a mix of a sob and a laugh. "I never thought I'd be able to see you again," she mumbles into his trench coat. "And you're here."

She's quiet for a while, because she can't still take it all in. Chicago is gone, she's somewhere else, Cas is here and she's lost--

Aaron isn't here.

She stiffens, her breath hitching in her throat. Oh, god, what does she do?

He can catch the hitch of her breath, and he's been around enough humans to know that it isn't a good one. He pulls back, just slightly so that he can look down at her and frowns.

"Is there something wrong?"

Cassie takes a long time to answer, she can feel a panic rise in her chest. Aaron isn't here. They were supposed to leave together, start anew, try to change this and maybe... just maybe, they could've been friends.

But her Guardian... he could be anywhere. Worlds away, and Cassie doesn't know what that'll mean, for him, for their bond.

"I've lost my Guardian." she says, worry sinking in her face when she looks up at him. She doesn't even know if Cas found out about Aaron, she barely had time to process it herself with it being so close to the end of days. "He should be here with me. I think the Rift took him away."

This is really bad.

That is very bad. Castiel met a few guardians in Chicago, and while he doesn't understand how the bond works completely, he knows enough to know that being separated from your ward is not a pleasant experience. He nods, acknowledging her concern, before glancing to the rest of the boat.

"Perhaps this place functions differently than Chicago did."

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[party post] come sail away with me

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if this is not allowed rizzy can yell at me later

sob im sorry this is so late

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