The Demons You Keep (Sovereign x Apollogy8)

[Sovereign]

@Apollogy8


@Sovereign


In the modern world, people don't quite believe in anything that extends beyond the reaches of what science can reproduce. Religion is for sheep, superstition is for schizophrenics, and magic is the remnants of an age without scholars. Everything that happens has an explanation, and because modern science cannot prove the existence of something, it does not exist. Funny how that works; just a couple hundred years ago the earth sat at the center of the universe, the globe was flat, and flight was impossible for man to achieve. Science still has much to learn.


Delsin Morrow for example, suffered what people in the old age might have considered demonic possession. Though of course, in the modern age we refer to these demons as 'mental health disorders', Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder the flavor with which Delsin found himself afflicted. A former soldier, Morrow's memories haunted him invasively --intruding into his waking thoughts like nightmares to a dream. These episodes caused panic and nervous ticks, sometimes sweating and hallucination.


Anxiety often overwhelmed him in crowds, and though the stoic former warrior could usually wear a mask of measured calm, he preferred to remain in the comfort of his own home without companionship. Ironically, companionship might be the most effective method of slaying his demons. To further the irony, one might recognize the parallels of an eccentric recluse now to that of the witches and warlocks burned in olden times. Funny how we go from hunting down those different from us when we do not understand them, to leaving them behind and ostracized when we realize they're not a threat to our way of life.


So, Delsin stuck to that which he felt actually helped him cope: video games. They provided him vast, open worlds where he did not need to be himself, he could find strength in being someone else --at least for a short while. Hunkered down in his apartment, he'd stick to a regimented schedule of exercise before gaming until he could no longer stay awake; intermittent meals dotted the timeline of his day. His current game of choice? Fire Emblem: Awakening. The strategy made him feel useful, and the roleplay aspect sated his craving to be someone else.


As humans, our power for denial is strong. We don't want to believe in what exists beyond the veil, so we work to disprove it. What we fail to realize is that while it may no longer haunt under the same name, some old evils remain. In a world guided by rationale and science, the most dangerous forces are the demons you keep.

 

[Apollo]

In a realm with knights, princesses, and dragons, nothing should have been too shocking for the young group of Shepherds who protected the land. Except for today. Chrom, prince of Ylisse and leader of the Shepherds, found a bright glowing portal. The things the undead have been using to find their way to Ylisse. It was also the portal similar to that of the ones Lucina and the other children had found and used to get to the past.


"You mean not only do these things bring people from the future to the past....it can also take people between dimensions?" A shocked voice from Cordelia spoke to a young light haired man. "It's true. From what I could research and also from what I could gather from Morgan, it's possible that these things don't just time travel. They can travel between dimensions." Robin answered her, "Morgan is actually from a different dimension that Lucina and the others. From what I could gather, she's from another future. Like a future that doesn't exactly have a bad ending like Lucina's."


Chrom's hand was placed upon his chin as he heard Robin's words. "How are they appearing...and how can we close them? Robin, I fear that if Morgan found her way here....so can others. And not all of them are good." He spoke which gained him a shaking head from the tactician. "But Chrom, we don't even know what's out there. There could be something we could use to help us win this war. I think we should investigate this thing more before deciding to close it." Robin defended it. "Hehe, I think that's a great idea." Stated Henry, the Shepherd's dark mage. "If we could explore it, then we might be able to find something we could use to crush our enemy's bones! I suggest that we send someone in to this...portal to try it out."


A sigh escaped Chrom's mouth at that suggestion. "I'm sorry, but I say no. It's not safe. Something could happen in between the dimensions." He advised. "Actually, Father, me and my friends all made it through. Traveling there is safe, but what's on the other side might not be as safe..." Lucina remarked. "With all due respect Sir, I would like to volunteer to enter that portal. If it helps you win the war, I'll do my best." The red head spoke once more. It took a lot of convincing from Robin and Lucina before Chrom finally agreed to let the girl go. Robin took her through all the safety measures just before allowing her to enter the portal.


--


A blinding blue light shined in Delsin's apartment, blinding anyone who looked directly at the light. With in a matter of seconds, the light vanished from the room leaving only a young woman dressed in armor in the center of the room. Her eyes scanned her surroundings, trying to figure out where she was. But everything here was totally new and foreign to her. "Where am I...?" She pondered, not even seeing Deslin there.

 

[Sovereign]

Daggers of light shot into Delsin's eyes, and his head jerked back in surprise and pain --dilated pupils not responding well to the sudden burst of brightness. Dropping his 3DS to the couch, he shielded his face and rubbed the sting away from his eyes, which watered from the sudden sensory overload. As the light began to fade, he noticed a figure standing in the middle of his living room. A spike of adrenaline ripped through his blood and he rolled off the couch to pull a handgun out of the holster he mounted under his coffee table. Paranoia was a strong motivator for leaving ways to protect oneself.


Drawing back the slide on the weapon, a fresh round slipped from the full magazine into the chamber with an audible click-clack. From his position on the floor, Delsin leveled the weapon at the interloper, face contorted with a mix of hypertension and assertiveness.


"Who are you, and how did you get into my apartment?" he demanded. The defining features of the woman should have made her identity quite obvious to the avid Fire Emblem player, but denial had always been one of the most potent forces in human history. The small rational voice at the back of his brain warned him that this might be a PTSD hallucination --that he might be waving a gun around an empty apartment and yelling at ghosts.


He could not bring himself to lower the weapon though, could not bring himself to force the image away. It felt real --to real-- usually when he accused something of being a hallucination, it wavered and faded; hallucinations could not hold up when you recognized them for what they truly were. However, the very real possibility dawned on him that he could finally have snapped and lost his mind completely. A psychotic break they called it, it happened to plenty of PTSD sufferers, especially soldiers. The suicide rate for veterans of war was high for a reason.


Delsin lay immobile, waiting for an answer as he aimed the weapon at the strange woman.

 

[Apollo]

Dark eyes stared at the man who aimed a metal object before her. Cordelia wasn't too sure what it was, but something said it wasn't a good thing. She knew he would most likely use that thing on her if she couldn't think of a legit answer to give him. But really, what was she suppose to say? Oh yeah, I just teleported to your world...I'm actually from a different one! Anyone in their right mind would never believe it, no matter how true it was. So no matter what she said, she was at a disadvantage.


"Woa, let's calm down here for a second." She spoke to him in a calm, collective tone. Her eyes still fixed on him, examining his expressions and movements. There was no telling what this guy was capable of. "Just lower your-" She paused and began thinking of what exactly it was she was telling him to drop. The device he held was nothing like the red head had seen before. It could be deadly, or it could be just as powerful as a metal object.


She bit the bottom of her lip while her mind raced for the right words to say. "I am terribly sorry that I barged into your...home...with out your permission. But please, sir, lay down the weapon. I'm not here to harm you. I'm just kinda lost." She began to say. "I come from a far land and I'm not exactly sure where I am or what's going on. So if you could lend a hand, that would be great."

 

[Sovereign]

Realization did not quite dawn on Delsin, rather it slowly trickled into his panicked mind like a leak in a dam. The red hair, the armor, the posture, it all screamed the identity of the Pegasus Knight. Still, the ex-soldier aimed down the sight of his weapon with a twitchy trigger finger. Paranoia bounced around inside his skull like a flock of frightened bats, still he couldn't bring himself to his senses; if this really was a hallucination, it refused to go away even with measurable effort.


Think. His subconscious told him. Look at her. You know her.





Delsin narrowed his eyes at the woman, details filtering into his observations now --coming together like pieces of a puzzle. Finally recognition played across his features, but it did little to ease his paranoia. Video game characters didn't just step into your living room. Lowering his weapon, he removed his finger from the trigger.


"Cordelia? Pegasus Knight Cordelia, Shepherd of Yilesse?" he asked, hesitant and confused. Scrambling to his feet, he studied her from a normal angle. The tumblers in his brain rolled and clicked, but the answer was the same --Cordelia of the Fire Emblem universe. "No, you can't be here. You're not real." The ex-soldier rubbed his eyes and shook his head. "You're a hallucination, I've finally lost my damn mind," he cursed, turning his back on the woman and trying to look away.


"Why can't I snap out of it?"


At the redhead's feet rested the 3DS and the case of Fire Emblem: Awakening, featuring her and all of her friends. The description on the case described a game, and depending on how deeply she read into it, that the player of the game --Delsin-- was Robin, in one way or another.