Ritual of Destruction

[hearnoplague]

[ So, Kallamar was going to just burn the conques Lobelia left behind in the Seagull cabana, but apparently that's a bad idea.

So instead, he just brought them all in a drawstring backpack and invited people to do as they wished with them. Happy destroying! ]

(OOC Note: The shells will release whatever sound was stored in them upon destruction. Have fun with that. )

Comments

[butcherspice]

[Thanks, Kallamar. Billy definitely isn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth if it's the chance to destroy Lobelia's property. Especially given certain people wouldn't let him do the same to the man himself.

Billy tosses one in the air as if it's a baseball, and then swings his crowbar into it, shattering the shell into a million pieces and leaving Haruka's singing voice lingering on the air.

He's gonna grab a few more for smashing purposes, actually. If nobody else comes he's completely willing to take it on himself to break every last one of these.]

[hearnoplague]

[ Kallamar hesitantly approaches... And stops just far enough away to not get whacked by a crowbar. ]

...

[ He simply watches Billy smash the shells with a tired look in his eyes... ]

[butcherspice]

[Billy pauses when he notices Kallamar show up. Frankly he looks more like a wet kitten than a squid like that.]

...you the one who brought these?

[hearnoplague]

[ He feels pathetic, really. If he only had his crown, he would have easily cursed Lobelia with some crippling disease before anything got crazier...

Billy snaps him from his thoughts. ]

Y-Yes! [ He clears his throat. ] I was. I had the displeasure of sharing a cabana with him.

[butcherspice]

How 'bout that.

[There's approval in his voice.]

Blimey. How'd you lot manage? I'd've ended up smashin' his face against a bedpost before the first week ended meself.

[dupiety]

[While Temenos spends very little time at this gathering, he does briefly appear to see if he can find a particular person.]

Billy. May I have a word?

[He may as well give the man the option after what went down earlier. If now isn't the right time, then he'll seek Billy out later.]

[butcherspice]

[Temenos gets a suspicious lowering of the eyebrows in response to the question.]

What for? Y’made your stances clear already, didn’t ya?

[He lightly tosses the shell currently in his hand like he’s considering where to pitch it.]

[dupiety]

[He wouldn't even try to block it if Billy decided he was a perfect target right about now.]

I did, and it was a selfish stance. You had every right to be angry- Vergilius was your friend, and I stood between you and his killer in order to, quite frankly, make matters worse.

[Because everything that unfolded after was a fucking nightmare. Lobelia may have deserved to speak his truth, but was it really worth it in the end?]

For that, I owe you my deepest apology.

[butcherspice]

You sure did. Who knows, maybe the nutter woulda gotten a quicker death at my hands instead of goin' through a thousand of 'em if you hadn't picked then to start caring about what rights murderers do and don't have, eh? How's that feel, Father?

[A humorless smirk stands on his face for a moment, as if waiting to strike.

It falters a bit at getting a genuine apology, though.]

...are y'now? Must be a bit of a twist for you to be the bloke needin' forgiveness.

[dakicover]

[ crea doesn't have much more in him to go destroying conch shells, but he can't help but feel a sense of bitter enjoyment as he watches billy go to town on those conch shells.

with a snicker, he calls out for him. ]

'ey Billy! Ya mind lending me the bat for a sec? I wanna see if it's as fun for me as it seems to be for you.

[butcherspice]

[Oh. Well, Crea was someone who was on a similar page about "we need to beat the shit out of Lobelia Right Now", so he's not particularly egregious company.]

Decent placebo, I'd say. You're welcome to take a swing if that ain't just banter.

[dakicover]

It ain’t just banter. I already smashed mine, but I think we got more than enough to go around.

[ he holds his hand out for the bat, smiling in a manner that doesn’t reach his eyes. ]

Figured I might as well try your method, just for the hell of it.

[butcherspice]

Shithead had way too many of these, eh? Knock yourself out.

[Billy hands a bat to Crea. Kill! That! Shell!]

[finalmix]

[ he's just passing by, but.

slow claps. ]

Nice swing.

[butcherspice]

Figured I'd get the practice in.

[He's matter-of-fact with his tone, grabbing another conch shell.]

Murder comes like fuckin' clockwork here.

[finalmix]

You don't say.

[ dryly, like he's stating the obvious. ]

I'd figured we'd be off the clock now though~ [ his smile, however, is catlike. ] I'll be sure to take note if someone shows up next week with their face smashed in.

[butcherspice]

Pretty big jump to assume I'm the only bloke who can smash a face right. But flattered y'think so.

[As if emphasizing that point, he tosses one more conch shell in the air. Haruka yelling indignantly blends in with the shattered shell.]

[stilllovesyou]

[Nona inclines her head at this display of destructive posthumous violence.

She hasn't spoken to William before, but maybe that's her fault.]

You like smashing things. [It's an observation, not a question and not an accusation.]

[butcherspice]

[Oh, it's Nona. The way she observes the very obvious fact that Billy is a bit of a violent person who enjoys breaking stuff is disarming somehow, and has him much less angry-looking than he has been. Also helps that he's still half convinced that she's younger than her profile claims.]

It's therapeutic. Y'oughta try hittin' things sometime, might keep your head on straight if one of those episodes sneaks up on you.

[Half joke, half genuine suggestion. Hitting something has a way of grounding a person in reality.]

[stilllovesyou]

Oh, you noticed that.

[Apparently she hadn't realized anyone other than Crea even saw her lose it.]

I'm not normally like that, I promise. How embarrassing. [She groans like a parent has just told her she has to go to school or is showing off embarrassing baby photos. Except she loves school and also she works there and she never was a baby.]

I don't think hitting things would help though. I don't really like doing it, unless I'm already really upset, and then hitting things just makes me even more cross.

[butcherspice]

A bit. Lotta people were screamin' so you ain't alone on that. And well, I've seen plenty of folks go off the rocker for a bit under pressure.

[He lowers the crowbar since he's now more committed to having a conversation.]

You got a right to be cross sometimes. Proves you ain't about to let some bastard walk all over you.

[plunges]

[ On his way back from talking with Lacus, Xiao catches Billy smashing the conches. He watches for a few moments, before he decides to approach. He should have considered bringing his own conch from Lobelia here before he set out on his stroll.

He lets out a quiet, dry scoff, and folds his arms over his chest. It's not meant to be condescending. He's actually amused, though the sound of Haruka's singing voice manages to send a chill down his spine. Regardless... ]

If you would like to break the one in my possession, I can give it to you later on.

[butcherspice]

If you weren't plannin' on smashin' it yourself, I'll take it off your hands.

[Billy responds simply, giving Xiao an approving little nod.]

You and Haru still in one piece? Y'came back right at the tailend of that goddamn horror show.

...least now there's one less person to prey on the lad.

[plunges]

No. I was planning on handing it off to someone who would make better use of it than I would, anyway.

[ He was considering handing it over to Lacus, but the anger he feels towards Lobelia ultimately triumphs over anything else right now. He'll make good on his promise and hand it over later. ]

And...we're okay. Baizhu tended to Haruka's wound, and I recovered fairly quickly. Psyche was stubborn about that.

[ He sounds like he's got regrets, when he says it. Still, though -- ]

I am sorry for your loss.

[butcherspice]

Good. Lad ain't seen the kind of grisly shite a lot of us were exposed to. Might not've made it out without ya.

[He looks slightly surprised at the condolences, almost unsure what to do with it.]

Mm. Verg was a good man--ain't the type who'd kick it easy, so of course it was a mess around there. Just didn't imagine he'd actually get taken down.

[He was Billy's friend, too. Billy had assumed it would be safe to think that since Vergilius didn't seem like he would die here. Of course he was wrong.]