Last Straw

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

She went straight to the Sensoriums. Her feelings were all over the place, and she had to get away from people right now. She remembered all too well what happened to Alex when he lost Luna: she knew she had to find a way to take her aggression out. There was pain and self loathing and unspeakable things she was sorting through, but right now it was nothing but anger she was feeding on. She closed her eyes when she entered, concentrating on the enemies she;s fought while she'd been on the ship.

The Terminators. The T-Rex. The Nightmare King's monster minions. The traps Hal had laid for them. They came one at a time but Katara was ready, steeling herself to calmly maneuver out of the traps, to find a way to take down the terminator most efficiently, and those alone took more than a few hours. It was when she got to the nightmare King's minions, however, that Katara stopped being cautious. Now she ripped into them, stabbing at them with ice shards and freezing them on the spot before blowing through them, and slowly her determined face gave away to that of rage. As she started to remember their fights, their hugs, their talks, she switched to the Bene Gesserit fighting style, her hits were starting to get more serious, leaving many injured in her wake, though she received a few cuts herself. When she was done an hour later, it faded, all of it, and she was left in water, where she had heard Sokka once talk to Toph about how she'd been like a mother to her, and she couldn't stand it anymore. She let out a scream, primal and pained.

"WHY?! WHY BRING HIM HERE JUST TO TAKE HIM AWAY?! ALL THIS TIME, JUST TO TAKE HIM AND NOT HAVE AANG HERE AND MAKE ZUKO FORGET WHAT WE ALL DID?? WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME!?"

And she dissolved into tears here, the sun sinking into the clouds and leaving a dark, lonely pond.

Comments

[changelingdude.livejournal.com]

Beastboy was silent for the longest time watching Katara work through her anger.

It was always difficult to figure out just how to respond to a woman crying. Beastboy was almost sure that every man that ever was had a secret panic button that was instantly pressed when a woman started to cry.

Would it be better if he just left her alone? Raven always insisted on being alone when she was upset. Starfire was usually the opposite though and if she had to be upset she would let it all out.

Finally as quietly as he could he slipped into the water as a fish and slid up behind her shifting back and gently placing a hand on her back to let her know she wasn't alone.

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Katara had noticed the fish: she hadn't designed the water for anything else to come in at the moment, and knew that Beastboy might arrive here anyway. When he did come by and place his hand on her back, she closed her eyes and leaned into the touch. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, and she didn't say a word at the moment: she was just glad her co-leader was there, and she sobbed quietly.

[changelingdude.livejournal.com]

Going with gut instincts Beastboy slid down to his knees gently and put his arm around Katara in a hug giving her the silent support he thought she needed. He'd been an only child all his life so he'd never lost a brother or sister, but he'd lost his parents, and his family, and people he'd loved.

He knew sometimes words were just filler when you felt like life had ripped your heart out.

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Right now, that was all Katara needed. She didn't know how girls on the ship got along with guys: usually, she just thought of them as hormone driven mostly. Despite this, she'd always found a few really good guys that looked out for her and cared without wanting something, and Beastboy was like that. He was a good friend and an even better co-teammate.

"Thanks for coming," she finally said, releasing him. "I know you might have had other things to do."

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"There isn't a reason," said an entirely-too-familiar voice from nearby.

No, of course Zetta hadn't come to comfort her immediately on hearing of her loss. Don't suggest stupid things like that! That's just... stupid. He's a demon. And an Overlord. He doesn't do that.

Still, there's the book, standing at the edge of the water, looking at her. "And there's nothing anyone wants of you to make it stop. You know that. It's a stupid, crappy thing that just happened."

At least she wasn't attacking the pod cavern...

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Katara knew it was the voice of Overlord Zetta, and though it seemed strange to have him there at all, she knew that there was a part of him that was watching her. She wouldn't mention it: he had a reputation to maintain or whatever, but she was grateful even if she felt incredibly lousy at the moment.

"I don't see why they brought him here to take him away," she finally said. "It's so stupid! Sokka is smart, a great swordsman, always has a way of making everyone laugh. The Avatar gang would never have been the same without him. I just don't understand. It's like they brought us all here just to mess with us."

She sighed, shaking her head. "Don't you wish Stacy could at least have brought you here in your own form, not as a book?"

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"I did this to myself," he said quietly. "The Sacred Tome is the keystone of my Netherworld. The Ohm tampered with it... " He skipped the part where he set it on fire. "Long story short, I had to bind my soul to it to save my life. But my Netherworld was destroyed, and I ended up... here.

"Stupid crap happens. My castle, my brothers, my Netherworld, my body... all gone. But I'm still alive, and so long as THAT's true, there's a way to pull out of this damn mess. Your brother may be back in the pods, but he's still alive. So are you. Even if the people you care about are crammed in the pods, they're still alive, and so are you. That means in the end it can still all be turned around."

[bluebrassmonkey.livejournal.com]

The sound. The very feel of a bombardment assailed him. He'd been studying, listening to try to improve his English again when his mind wasn't wandering to fanciful dreams on its own. Alas, that searing thing shatters any concentration he had.

And he cried out for the intensity of it.

Renne has insanely good ears but with him, there are things somehow between the lines of senses. Heard but not, felt but not, smelled but not and all of them in between. This is pain, he knows. Pain is an all-too-familiar companion even if a reviled one. Except, it isn't his pain.
He stills himself.
The pain lances through his Being again and in a shot, he's down into his crawl, blazing to find the source of it.

On the way, he lets out his own primeval cry, a warning to any and all that might hear this screaming desperation within.

"Bee! Bee! Pain. Tar-Tar! Pain!"

[morphitudinous]

Once he'd responded to Katara's earlier message, Billy knew that the grief would swell up soon enough. He'd finished up loose ends at work, changed into comfortable clothes, and found something small to work on while he waited for her to summon him. It would keep his fright-magnifying imagination at bay and let him focus on reality, calming enough to help when needed.

The call came a short while later, both of his Bondeds calling at once. Setting his work aside, he sprinted over to the epicenter of this feeling.

Silently, he bent to remove his socks and shoes and offer Renne a ride on his shoulder. But even that was taking too long. They needed to be together now.

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Of the people that Katara knew might come down here, she knew her bonded would be here: they heard each other, and when he screamed, she felt Renne stir, and knew that Billy would be following soon. She closed her eyes, exhaling and sinking into the water again. She thought of Billy and Renne as her bonded, but had never called them brothers for a reason: she HAD her brother here, on the ship.

But that wasn't so anymore.

When she saw them approach, she barely managed to give them a smile. "Hey,: she said softly, her eyes downcast.

[darknight-ren.livejournal.com]

Ren had been on his way to the Sensoriums to try to feed Darkwing when he saw Katara's rampage. It was the kind of thing he'd seen a lot, from himself and Shinji. Fight to take away the pain.

"If you're going to fight," he said, hands in pockets, "don't do it because you don't know what else to do."

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Katara turned, trying her best to compose herself, because quite honestly it wasn't like he knew what was going on.

"I have plenty of reasons to fight," she said, composing herself. "I was doing this so I could get rid of some aggression. I've had some bad news, and I needed to get the anger out."

[darknight-ren.livejournal.com]

"That helps," Ren admitted. "But what are you fighting for?"

He looked out over the wreckage of imagined enemies. "It's true we're in a situation where if we don't fight, we won't survive. But if you don't have that reason, then you'll burn out. It can't be as general as saving the worlds, otherwise you can just leave it to everyone else. It has to be yours and yours alone."

There was a little bit of a distant look on his face as he said this, thinking over his own causes.

[lackofdarkwings.livejournal.com]

Matt stood at the entrance, having been drawn by the strong emotions Katara was putting out. He leaned on a cane, just simple support since the fight but he was doing much better now.

Tap tap tap went the end of the wood against the floor as he made his way over.

Tap.

"What do you do, when the horse and the rider are gone, and the darkest part of the dawn has finally shown itself." murmured Matt as he carefully knelt down next to her.

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Katara was completely surprised Matt was here, actually, and seeing him walking around with a cane was a bit of a shock. She actually jumped out of the water, still dressed only in her undergarments, and looked over at him.

"A cane? When did you get a cane? Are you all right?" She ignored the question at first, since she was a little mystified at the meaning and she was still concerned about his health. "I mean...um, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be recuperating?"

[lackofdarkwings.livejournal.com]

"Just a little limpy but I'll survive," replied Matt soothingly as he sat down with his legs folded underneath him and his cane rest to the side. "I need to walk around a little more and get some strength into my legs."

After a moments pause, he sighed. "I felt your emotion from the bus, so I hurried over. I take it another one of your friends has been returned to the pods."

/needs sad icons

[sanguineroyal.livejournal.com]

Nanashi stood back and watched as her pupil fought. She really was a fantastic fighter, but that wasn't what Nanashi was focusing on at the moment. What she was concerned with was the rage that contorted Katara's face.

She let Katara take it out on various enemies, watching silently. It wasn't until she began crying that Nanashi moved.

She came forward and pulled Katara into her arms, stroking the girl's hair. She made a soft hushing sound and gently kissed Katara's forehead. She didn't know who was gone, but clearly he must have meant a lot to Katara.

Re: /needs sad icons

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Katara expected a lot of things from Nanashi. As her pupil, she knew she was supposed to be light on her feet, questioning everything and able to adapt her fighting style when needed. If Nanashi had come in here and scolded her for being weak, it would have slightly angered Katara but she would have understood.

What she hadn't expected was the soft touch, the reassurance, the gentleness that made Katara cry harder. She associated that with a mother, and thinking of THAT opened up a can of worms in Katara: her mother gone, her father at war, her brother repodded. This insane cycle that ended with her alone, grasping for a kind of normalcy that the ship took fr5om her at will.

Without meaning to, she hugged her teacher tight, very grateful for her presence right now.

[sanguineroyal.livejournal.com]

Nanashi had considered scolding Katara for allowing her emotions control over his form, and if it had been Ed here she would have. But Katara never seemed like she would be the sort to respond well to such harshness.

She was a little surprised that Katara responded by hugging her tight, but she only smiled sadly and whispered, "Everything will be all right little one. It is okay to cry, do not be afraid."

and now for something completely different.

[hasnoteefs.livejournal.com]

Toothless spent most of his time on the ship somewhere in the Sensoriums. It seemed safest, it was closest to home, and it gave him plenty to do that didn't involve bothering his boy and the teenager's love interest. Because well-meaning or not, Toothless was something of a wretched cockblock to teenagers trying to get to know each other better.

He didn't know Katara, but he recognized the signs of a distressed human when he saw them. The Sensorium shifted around her and he watched, interested and possibly concerned in his curiosity, eventually raising himself up off the ground where he had been lazing and plodding silently over to her. The only indication of his presence were ripples across the pond as he stepped into it until he stopped some handful of feet behind her, when he craned his neck forward and voiced his curiosity in the form of a wordless, throat-born clicking sound.

Re: and now for something completely different.

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Katara had been feeling pretty rotten, and was for that reason completely startled by the presence of something in the Sensorium not human. It was the feeling someone was there, yet there were no footfalls she could recognize, no looming or anything and so she turned, ready in case someone was going to attack her.

When she saw the dragon however, she stopped cold. Was this another one of Overlord Zetta's tricks? She had already faced a dragon, but it was nothing like this one: it seemed to be questioning what she was doing, why she was there. It looked a lot different from the malevolent creature she'd faced a few days ago too. In her world, after all, dragons weren't angry vicious creatures but the first firebenders, who taught the art to the fire nation.

She took a step toward it, her hands out so he wouldn't think she was out to harm him.

[hasnoteefs.livejournal.com]

He had expected her alarm-- most humans startled when he first approached. He had not, however, expected her to overcome it so quickly, to have it replaced with curiosity and to have her make a gesture the dragon was familiar with in nearly no time at all. The actual act of smiling like a human did was an expression largely lost on Toothless-- it was awkward and it made the muscles in his face hurt --but he perked his ears and widened his eyes in a way that was vaguely reminiscent of the same gesture.

He knew the motion of an extended hand. It had been how Hiccup had first gained the dragon's trust-- it meant she intended him no harm. Toothless had never expected that she did, but the gesture was pleasant and he appreciated it. With a soft, pleased croon, he craned his neck forward and tapped her palm with his nose, gently.

[behaemmert.livejournal.com]

As Vita saw Katara, she...retreated a bit, and let the other people comfort her. She really wasn't good at that, although she understood what Katara was getting at. Granted, she herself hadn't felt exactly like that, but ... it had been somewhat similar enough.

"You feeling better?" She asked some time later, while slowly walking towards the waterbender, of course after Katara had had her time. Vita really didn't want to intrude or anything, but on the other hand, talking helped sometimes, she had learned that one herself. And maybe Katara wanted to talk some more. Or maybe not.

She wasn't really feeling protective of people or anything, she was just checking. Sheesh-

[kaya-waterwave.livejournal.com]

Katara swallowed, and looked at who had approached: one of those who'd come to the second meeting of the Outsiders. She felt vaguely embarrassed to be seen like this, but at the same time, it was her brother, so the shame didn't override the pain.

"A little," she admitted, but didn't feel that great either. "I just needed to be away from people. I didn't want them to see me lose control like this until it was all out of my system. My brother and I...we're close. He's been a close, annoying rock to me. I still can't really believe he's gone."

Yes, it's Stacy, I know.

[behaemmert.livejournal.com]

Vita nodded. Should she apologize for intruding? She was really bad with things like this...

"Yeah, I get that." She finally said, and nodded. "I'd probably feel the same if the others from my world that I'm close to were put back into the stupid pods."

...

"In fact ...someone like my sister was around earlier, and got podded again before I came out. Not sure how I should feel about that."

She looked as if that did peeve her a bit, in fact. "Really not sure what Stace is all about or if we can really trust her."

But then, she was new and Stacy was kinda suspicious.