turbo heaven 🌼 ali

[outdistanced]

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[outdistanced]

Every time. We should've kept the maps the angels had.

[smokeandglasses]

Alas, hindsight is 20/20. Let's look for an exit, shall we?

[Though even now the mirrors are starting to change. Ali looks calm, if a bit off-put by the situation, but his reflection looks enraged.]

[outdistanced]

[ he's following along, but pauses with apprehension, looking between Ali and his reflection. ]

Uh, what's up with these mirrors...?

[smokeandglasses]

[He turns to look into the mirror too to see what's up, and that's when a memory happens!]


Concord is easily a foot taller than Ali, and twice his weight too, and yet Ali goes toe-to-toe with him in any argument. Both glaring, yelling, and most of all not listening to each other's points. It's not an unusual sight for them, they have fights often enough. But this one is different. This one is more important than squabbles over vacations or working hours.

"Why are you being so stubborn about this? I found a way to fix things!"

"There is nothing to fix, Ali. I was just sick, that's all."

"Don't give me that nonsense! You're dying! And you shouldn't be dying when I have a way to stop it!"

"I'm not dying, I was just sick!"

"Bullshit, we all can see it! Even the kids can! Chance came home from college last week when you were in the hospital, and he was crying! Why are you making all of us suffer through this when I can fix everything?!"

"Because you can't!" They had been going back and forth for some time, but this is the first time where Concord steps forward and tries to use his physical size to make his point stick more in Ali's mind. "I know what your 'fix' involves. If you go down that path, you won't be able to come back from it. Sure, it starts with using your fire to cleanse the land, but soon enough you'll turn to the factories and commercial waste that make that pollution in the first place. And you'll work yourself to the bone, all before giving up and just burning down the factories!"

Ali tries to protest, but Concord talks right over him. "Don't even try to deny it! I know you, and I know what you're capable of if left unchecked. You always told me to stop you when you were going too far, so this is me telling you you're going too far."

As much as Ali wants to keep yelling, he feels a bitterness rising in his throat. So he turns and stomps away, deciding to stay elsewhere until Concord took his head out of his ass and realized there were better options than letting himself keep getting sick from pollution.


[Wow. Seeing this argument from the outside sure is something.]

[outdistanced]

[ what a memory. it stirs up a lot of complicated, unhappy emotions in laurence's heart, makes him think of all those times he'd fought with someone dear.

and he remembers the talk he and ali had before - about the danger of demiflora or dragons. so he doesn't say anything yet, just. looks at ali to see how he'll respond first. ]

[smokeandglasses]

[Honestly, he looks so sad as he watches the memory play out. Like he's peering in on the turning point of his life and he's upset with how things had gone after this.]

I should have just done it regardless and not told him about it.

[Probably not the healthiest response, but.]

[outdistanced]

[ looks at this tag. looks at our saturday thread.

s w e a t s

laurence's expression darkens. ]

...And you really think it's not dangerous, having abilities like that?

[smokeandglasses]

[WHEEZE]

There is always a risk, but going out in the middle of nowhere to burn up pollution doesn't sound that bad.

[outdistanced]

And you don't care about who else would get hurt because of it? You might call it the middle of nowhere, but don't things like that still need people to run it? You'd just be killing them and who knows however many others when they try to stop a fire!

This is why they hate people like us - people with powers like this!

[smokeandglasses]

[He just. Stops. And turns to stare at Laurence for a moment.

He's honestly kind of speechless at that rant. Has Laurence been taught to hate powers?]

[outdistanced]

[ has he? ]

Don't just stare at me! What the hell?

[smokeandglasses]

...

[...]

I don't think just being born with an ability is wrong. But you're right, I shouldn't use it in such a way.

[outdistanced]

But you clearly still don't see an issue with it.

[smokeandglasses]

[Frowning.]

Feelings and actions are two very different things. I didn't go burning pollution in the countryside after that argument, even though I thought it might help.

[outdistanced]

It's still pretty important. And you just said you should've done it anyway.

[ there's another scene starting to play on a different mirror - a stage, with children of all ages gathering before it, waiting for something. ]

[smokeandglasses]

I'm allowed to lament the-

[He stops suddenly though, as he sees the change in the mirror. Is this Laurence's memory?]

[outdistanced]

Lamenting and thinking of doing something that could kill a ton of people are two different things!

[ he hasn't noticed yet, but yes. a memory. ]

[smokeandglasses]

[Oh. Oh that memory. That's pretty scary. And this is how Laurence grew up?]

Oh, Laurence... that had to be terrifying.

[outdistanced]

[ uggghhhh he hates this ]

Stuff like that are why powers are dangerous.