5223/Astral Flux: Smoke Signals

Astral Flux: Smoke Signals
Date of Scene:	22 August 2018
Location:	Xavier's School
Synopsis:	Souvenir investigates Emma Frost with some cigarettes. Julian and Laura are perturbed by the revelations and methods.
Cast of Characters:	Souvenir, Smart Alek, Hellion, X-23

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Souvenir has posed:
A hand fills the screen and is pulled away to reveal Erika Kristasdottir, in her usual band shirt (Black, Halestorm, this time), a faded blue denim jacket worn open, skin tight black jeggings, cross body black shoulder bag, and heavy dark eyeliner, long wavy hair low over her eyes. One of her hands is uncharacteristically bare, in which she is holding a cigarette and a lighter. She steps back away from the camera, which is apparently propped against the stone wall beside a secluded set of benches behind the school.

She waves at the camera. "Hi, Souvenir here! I don't know if this is going to work, and I don't want to get in trouble if it doesn't do anything, so I'm recording this so I won't forget. I forget things like this, usually."

She looks down and pulls out a small paper bag. "Miss Emma has been acting super weird lately, and I followed her around a lit. She didn't used to smoke, now she smokes all the time. It's a certain brand nobody else here likes, I couldn't get one but it probably doesn't matter. Here's a few of them. I have others."

"Anyways, then the school shook, I had screaming nightmares, something about a psychic getting eaten, so I am super worried. I have some of her old cigarette butts and I'm going to read them and see if I get anything important."

"Sometimes I have to be doing the thing to get anything good, and the only skill I know she was doing was smoking." She makes a face. "Ew. The things I do for you guys."

Smart Alek has posed:
Alek is on the edge of the camera vision, he has his hands stuffed in his pockets and he rocks back and forth on his heels, "Nightmares are odd.. What can I do to help in this endeavour? You can learn from cigarette butts right?"

Souvenir has posed:
Erika Kristasdottir looks back, "Yeah. And other stuff. Anyways! One, just make sure I don't like, pass out and bang my head, or start screaming in tongues and blowing everything up with pink lightning or something. I don't know! It's MISS FROST'S souvenir. I haven't messed with her stuff before. And two? Keep any teachers away till I find stuff out. And, I don't know, whatever else seems helpful, okay? I'm winging it here."

She reaches in the top of her shirt and pulls her bra away from herself, then pours a few cigarette butts in the top. Because how else do you make sure to touch the things? She jerks and hisses, eyes fluttering for a couple seconds while she gets her senses back. "..Okay. Am I still here? I think I'm still here. Ugh! I need a better way to stash souvenirs, seriously. I was worried that I would touch one of those and start channeling Miss Frost or just have my head blow up or something." She takes a deep breath and releases it shakily. "Okay, there's a lot of tension in this."

Smart Alek has posed:
Alek eyes glow a bit more blue, "I'll keep us off the cameras, my contribution I guess. And I'll.. do something if you do start to turn into a pink nuclear cloud. I guess."

Souvenir has posed:
Erika Kristasdottir nods, "Well, not off of MY camera, anyways. Okay, I'm tapping this thing now." She breathes faster, tense, breathing with her shoulders. "Oh God, it feels like something is trying to get into my brain with its little bitty finger... Thingies.." She swallows, biting her lip nervously and smoothly lighting one of the cigarettes. "Dark, spiky... Thingies..." She shivers hard and sucks in a puff.

Smart Alek has posed:
Alek says, "Squid Brain things? Creepy. Why couldn't it just be plain old nightmares huh?""

Hellion has posed:
     Off-camera, some footfalls can be heard, and a huff before a familiar voice is heard. "Sorry, has to ditch a tail. Did I miss the fun?" Julian Keller had arrived, also out of concern for his mentor. "I just hope Miss Frost doesn't make us think we are 60 year old Jewish retirees after this is said and done." Some more steps before he comments again. "Oh, a camera." His face comes into view. "Helloooo, handsome!" He says to himself, adjusting his hair a little.

Souvenir has posed:
Erika Kristasdottir sucks on the cigarette rapidly, with Emma's mannerisms, much different from Erika's. "So far, I just feel like I am having a panic attack with spiky squiddles trying to chew my brain. I should have grabbed some matchbooks. I want to light the matches and let them burn down to my fingers."

She mimes the motion anyways with her gloved hand, holding an imaginary match in her fingers then shaking it out, then curses and lights the next cigarette, crushing the first one underfoot. "...Oh god."

Hellion has posed:
     Julian watches as Erika does her thing. "Can you be more specific? Like what the hell is a squiddle?"

X-23 has posed:
    X-23 starts to make her way through. The smell of the smoke makes her wrinkle her nose up, unpleasantly. "What is going on?" she asks, as she approaches.

Souvenir has posed:
Erika Kristasdottir whimpers and closes her eyes tightly, trembling as her voice trends rapidly toward Emma Frost's vocal accenting and intonation. "I can't let him in.. Don't let him see, don't let him see, he can't see.. He sees I know he sees.. ShutupshutupshutupSHUTUP!"

She hugs herself tightly, eyes tearing up. She stumbles away from the first crumpled cigarette and holds her breath, teetering and on the verge of falling, not doing anything to right herself. Julian's question goes unanswered for now under the.. whatever.

Hellion has posed:
     Julian looks to X-23 as she makes herself known. "She's trying to figure out what is going on with Miss Frost. As to what she's seeing...I have no idea."

X-23 has posed:
    X-23 walks over, and reaches out to grab Erika by her upper arm, making sure to grab where her shirt covers. "Get up." She'll pull, surprisingly strong.

Souvenir has posed:
Erika Kristasdottir is caught, not doing anything effective to stay balanced. "Wallswallswalls I can't breathe..." After a few seconds, she gasps in a breath. "They're in my head.. Wallswalls.." She takes a step, righting herself shakily. "Oh god the spiky thingies again..."

She panics and desperately sucks in a puff off the cigarette, holding her breath and relaxing a bit for a few seconds After a few, she blows out the smoke slowly and looks increasingly alarmed, sucking in another puff.

"..The smoke helps somehow.. It feels like some things with spiky finger things are trying to break into my brain.. I can't see them with my eyes, they're.. like THINGS oh god-" She sucks in more smoke in alarm. "..I don't have the words. They're.. trying.. to.. hack.. in." Exhale, quick inhale, the last cigarette is lit and she throws the second one down, crushing it out.

Hellion has posed:
     Julian's cobalt eyes widen at the clearer verbal picture of this thing. "What the hell? This thing is getting at her?!"

  Hellion's teeth grit at the thought. His eyes glowing green. The gravel at his feet rises a bit in the air before he leaps up and hurtles himself towards the lake.

X-23 has posed:
    X-23 frowns. She'll reach out to forcibly take the cigarette away. "Stop. Now." she says, determined. "Or I will knock you out."

Souvenir has posed:
Erika Kristasdottir swallows. "I think this is just looping. He.. HE is ALREADY WATCHING.. I don't want him to be.. get him out, get him out.. And.. the THINGS.." She swallows hard and nods at Laura in tears, sucking in one last puff of smoke, putting the cigarette to the side on the stone ledge.

Then, she starts trying to fish all the little bits of cigarette out of her bra. This turns out to be harder than planned, so there's some frantic messing around with her shirt involved to get the last one out, flailing around in an embarrassing sort of fashion. "Gaah, oh GOD that sucked.. I'm getting this to Jean and Charles." She taps the screen once.

X-23 has posed:
    The dark-haired living weapon looks over to Erika, and frowns. "Don't do that again." She's actually concerned, but she doesn't know how to express it, other than to tell her not to put herself in danger again. Finally, she turns. She has someone she wants to talk to about this.

Souvenir has posed:
Erika Kristasdottir bites her lip and straightens herself. "..Thank you, Laura." She sighs, watching her go, then reaches her hand toward the camera to retrieve it and turn it off. She needs to show this to some people...