Main Event Right Hand of the Magic God

[Ver]

Venturing deeper into the Command Center, it looked as expected; just as run-down and beaten as the rest of the station. Still, they had to keep going to find something -- anything. Touma didn't exactly know what he expected to find here, but exploring was at least still better than just waiting for Othinus to come back after she recovered.

As Touma moved forward, subconsciously following the source of the strange disturbance in the air, the search quickly led everyone to it. And rather than some sinister force, it was only... Wanda. Her body was impaled to the wall, two small metal beams lodged in her side practically keeping her in place, but it was her. As the Scarlet Witch came into sight, Touma's expression softened and turned to sympathy rather than apprehension.

"You...?"

"Ah... I-It's... It's you people... Well, only some of you, but... Ngh... Just as well..." Wanda said with a soft tone. Certainly, with her gentle voice, she was far from the different version of herself, from the multiverse in which everyone who had opposed the evil Othinus was, in fact, the real evil. Wanda's voice was gentle, yet also familiar, as though she knew of everyone just as well as she did in the first multiverse, her breathing heavy as though it was difficult for her to keep on.

"I... I managed to resist Othinus's power, just this once, but I don't have a lot of time," she said heavily, "Next time she wipes everything away, I won't have any memory of the previous multiverses. Just like everyone else..."

@Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter​

 

[Crow]

Venturing deeper into the Command Center, it looked as expected; just as run-down and beaten as the rest of the station. Still, they had to keep going to find something -- anything. Touma didn't exactly know what he expected to find here, but exploring was at least still better than just waiting for Othinus to come back after she recovered.

As Touma moved forward, subconsciously following the source of the strange disturbance in the air, the search quickly led everyone to it. And rather than some sinister force, it was only... Wanda. Her body was impaled to the wall, two small metal beams lodged in her side practically keeping her in place, but it was her. As the Scarlet Witch came into sight, Touma's expression softened and turned to sympathy rather than apprehension.

"You...?"

"Ah... I-It's... It's you people... Well, only some of you, but... Ngh... Just as well..." Wanda said with a soft tone. Certainly, with her gentle voice, she was far from the different version of herself, from the multiverse in which everyone who had opposed the evil Othinus was, in fact, the real evil. Wanda's voice was gentle, yet also familiar, as though she knew of everyone just as well as she did in the first multiverse, her breathing heavy as though it was difficult for her to keep on.

"I... I managed to resist Othinus's power, just this once, but I don't have a lot of time," she said heavily, "Next time she wipes everything away, I won't have any memory of the previous multiverses. Just like everyone else..."

@Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter​

"I find that part a tad bit hard to believe, especially with our last encounter in the previous reality. If you truly are an ally, if you're telling the truth, then let me see it..." Ben says, smacking his Omnitrix down to assume a transformation. A flash of green light occured...

"Prrrr~ Pesky Dust~" the Transformation, Pesky Dust, purred. "Sorrrrry Missus, but pleease understand..."

Pesky Dust unleashes a veil of powder around Wanda, allowing him to gaze into her dreams and a good extent of her memories. Hopefully this would help him find out if Wanda was telling the truth.

@Ver @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter​

 

[Yun Lee]

"Oh my Gawds!" Severa exclaimed, seeing the injured woman. "We need a healer in here, stat!" She watched Ben work his weird...powers. "The fairy is cute, but do you have a transformation that can HEAL?"

@Ver @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva@CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow@CommandCenter​

 

[Ver]

Indeed, it appeared that Wanda was telling the truth from what Ben was able to see. The earliest memories began with her traveling along with the rest of the group in the flooded Academy City to stop Othinus, only for everything to disappear once she'd gained her power, and then everything went black when she was killed at the same time as Gaius. Then the memories came back and recounted her when the multiverse had shifted to be that which involved everyone being the true villains, accurate to the tee, and everything went black again. Once the new multiverse had been created, she was there, awakening to the sensation of being impaled in the wall.

As the reading concluded, Wanda gave a weak, almost sheepish smile. "So then, am I guilty, judge?" She asked light-heartedly, as if to lighten the mood, before breaking into a small cough, getting blood on the ground as she did so. "Ngh... If you did that to anyone else in this multiverse, or even myself in the last one, you would have seen a whole, fabricated set of memories recounting a fictitious history. But... Like I said, I don't have a lot of time. Please... You can grant an old witch a request like that, can't you?" Wanda went on, reaching out her hand, as if asking anyone around her to take it.

"There's no need for healing... It won't matter when she resets the multiverse again."

"What? How would you know that she intends to do this again?"

"Ah... You all still haven't figured it out yet...? It's a bit of a pattern, you know..."

@Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter​

 

[Hahli Nuva]

Indeed, it appeared that Wanda was telling the truth from what Ben was able to see. The earliest memories began with her traveling along with the rest of the group in the flooded Academy City to stop Othinus, only for everything to disappear once she'd gained her power, and then everything went black when she was killed at the same time as Gaius. Then the memories came back and recounted her when the multiverse had shifted to be that which involved everyone being the true villains, accurate to the tee, and everything went black again. Once the new multiverse had been created, she was there, awakening to the sensation of being impaled in the wall.

As the reading concluded, Wanda gave a weak, almost sheepish smile. "So then, am I guilty, judge?" She asked light-heartedly, as if to lighten the mood, before breaking into a small cough, getting blood on the ground as she did so. "Ngh... If you did that to anyone else in this multiverse, or even myself in the last one, you would have seen a whole, fabricated set of memories recounting a fictitious history. But... Like I said, I don't have a lot of time. Please... You can grant an old witch a request like that, can't you?" Wanda went on, reaching out her hand, as if asking anyone around her to take it.

"There's no need for healing... It won't matter when she resets the multiverse again."

"What? How would you know that she intends to do this again?"

"Ah... You all still haven't figured it out yet...?"

@Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter​

Will walked over to sooth Wanda's wounds with Quintessence. The former X Man would feel her energies return, and the pain subside.

"There. That should hold you. But what do you know that we don't? Anything you have could help."

Will made a mental note to talk to Ben later about abusing his powers.

"Abuse is a strong word, Keeper."

"I know that. But does he really have to transform every time?"

"Do you?"

"I don't need 100 aliens to get something done."

"Neither does he. In fact I'd say he's just as versatile as we are."

"Someone's a fan. Maybe I'll introduce you."

"Indeed. But now is not the time for plesantries. Wanda knows something. We should pay very close attention to what she says."

@Ver @Kaykay @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Yun Lee @Crow @CommandCenter

 

[Yun Lee]

Wanda found her hand immediately clasped by Severa, which surprised the mercenary herself. There was just something so...motherly about Wanda, yknow? And she was the first person Severa had talked to here...to see her like this, it was...

...

"Hold on, pattern? What pattern?" Severa raised an eyebrow. "Does it have to do with her annoying monologues about betrayal and guilt and everything?"

@Ver @Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter​

 

[Crow]

"Oh my Gawds!" Severa exclaimed, seeing the injured woman. "We need a healer in here, stat!" She watched Ben work his weird...powers. "The fairy is cute, but do you have a transformation that can HEAL?"

@Ver @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva@CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow@CommandCenter​

Indeed, it appeared that Wanda was telling the truth from what Ben was able to see. The earliest memories began with her traveling along with the rest of the group in the flooded Academy City to stop Othinus, only for everything to disappear once she'd gained her power, and then everything went black when she was killed at the same time as Gaius. Then the memories came back and recounted her when the multiverse had shifted to be that which involved everyone being the true villains, accurate to the tee, and everything went black again. Once the new multiverse had been created, she was there, awakening to the sensation of being impaled in the wall.

As the reading concluded, Wanda gave a weak, almost sheepish smile. "So then, am I guilty, judge?" She asked light-heartedly, as if to lighten the mood, before breaking into a small cough, getting blood on the ground as she did so. "Ngh... If you did that to anyone else in this multiverse, or even myself in the last one, you would have seen a whole, fabricated set of memories recounting a fictitious history. But... Like I said, I don't have a lot of time. Please... You can grant an old witch a request like that, can't you?" Wanda went on, reaching out her hand, as if asking anyone around her to take it.

"There's no need for healing... It won't matter when she resets the multiverse again."

"What? How would you know that she intends to do this again?"

"Ah... You all still haven't figured it out yet...?"

@Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter​

"Not guilty," Pesky Dust purred as the Omnitrix beeped, turning him back into Ben.

"Well," Ben says to Severa, "I don't have too much confidence in any healing abilities my transformations might have, but if no one else is there to heal, then I guess I'll have to step up."

Wanda denied the need to heal.

"No, Ms Maximoff, we're gonna make sure it does matter. We're gonna stop her. If you tell us what you know before you get wiped, maybe we can do something even if we fail this round."

He watches Will heal Wanda, then looks into Wanda's eyes, looking distraught.

"We're all ears, Ms Maximoff. Tell us what we need to know... we have to do it, one way or another, eventually, we're going to make this normal again, you included...

... I can't bear to see my friends or her go through this anymore..."

@Ver @Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter​

 

[Crunch]

Indeed, it appeared that Wanda was telling the truth from what Ben was able to see. The earliest memories began with her traveling along with the rest of the group in the flooded Academy City to stop Othinus, only for everything to disappear once she'd gained her power, and then everything went black when she was killed at the same time as Gaius. Then the memories came back and recounted her when the multiverse had shifted to be that which involved everyone being the true villains, accurate to the tee, and everything went black again. Once the new multiverse had been created, she was there, awakening to the sensation of being impaled in the wall.

As the reading concluded, Wanda gave a weak, almost sheepish smile. "So then, am I guilty, judge?" She asked light-heartedly, as if to lighten the mood, before breaking into a small cough, getting blood on the ground as she did so. "Ngh... If you did that to anyone else in this multiverse, or even myself in the last one, you would have seen a whole, fabricated set of memories recounting a fictitious history. But... Like I said, I don't have a lot of time. Please... You can grant an old witch a request like that, can't you?" Wanda went on, reaching out her hand, as if asking anyone around her to take it.

"There's no need for healing... It won't matter when she resets the multiverse again."

"What? How would you know that she intends to do this again?"

"Ah... You all still haven't figured it out yet...?"

@Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter

'Wanda...!"

Giorno wasted no time in rushing to the Scarlet Witch's side, looking over her injures with a sharp wince. There was no point in tearing her from the beams since she had already lost copious amounts of blood just sitting there. The don rest a hand on Wanda's shoulder, simply shaking his head at her doubts.

"No version of you is allowed to die in a place like this."

As Will rushed over to do her thing, Giorno's eyes gradually defocused from Wanda's face, narrowing as he replayed her words a few times in his head just by instinct. After a few moments of silent thinking from both him and Jotaro, who promptly shared a look of confusion with the don, Giorno realized it.

"Wait... resetting the multiverse again? What do you mean by again?"

"...Tch, can't believe she'd have enough power to do something like that."

"Do what?"

Wanda found her hand immediately clasped by Severa, which surprised the mercenary herself. There was just something so...motherly about Wanda, yknow? And she was the first person Severa had talked to here...to see her like this, it was...

...

"Hold on, pattern? What pattern?" Severa raised an eyebrow. "Does it have to do with her annoying monologues about betrayal and guilt and everything?"

@Ver @Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter

"Not guilty," Pesky Dust purred as the Omnitrix beeped, turning him back into Ben.

"Well," Ben says to Severa, "I don't have too much confidence in any healing abilities my transformations might have, but if no one else is there to heal, then I guess I'll have to step up."

Wanda denied the need to heal.

"No, Ms Maximoff, we're gonna make sure it does matter. We're gonna stop her. If you tell us what you know before you get wiped, maybe we can do something even if we fail this round."

He watches Will heal Wanda, then looks into Wanda's eyes, looking distraught.

"We're all ears, Ms Maximoff. Tell us what we need to know... we have to do it, one way or another, eventually...

... I can't bear to see my friends or her suffer anymore..."

@Ver @Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter

Jotaro began to pace around the empty command center, shaking his head at both Severa's and Ben's questions. "I don't think Wanda needs to explain it... if what we've already been through is any indication, we might already have an idea of what Othinus has done. Try to remember Morioh. What did we figure out from Yoshikage Kira and the Coalition's reports after he used Bites the Dust?"

Jotaro's prompt was met with a pensive look from Giorno. After a few ticks, he blurted out the answer straight from his mind. "The loop in which we defeated Kira wasn't the first. We'd already been through a number of loops through Bites The Dust, and in one particular loop, our memories remained consistent. In that loop, we were actually aware that we were re-living the same day."

"...Does that mean... Othinus resetting the multiverse is like Bites The Dust?"

The marine biologist just shrugged. "Who knows? Besides Othinus herself, only those who had memories of another 'instance' of the multiverse could prove that theory. If it was true, why would she need to remake the multiverse multiple times over?"

The question rang out to every individual in the room. It was a wide shot, and a spur-of-the-moment theory on Jotaro's part, but Giorno wasn't the type to shoot down an earnest attempt at digging up the 'truth', even if it was a baseless shot in the dark at this point. There was only one way to confirm it; Giorno's gaze met with Wanda's again.

"Wanda, is that true? Has Othinus remade the multiverse multiple times over?"

@Ver @Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter​

 

[Crow]

'Wanda...!"

Giorno wasted no time in rushing to the Scarlet Witch's side, looking over her injures with a sharp wince. There was no point in tearing her from the beams since she had already lost copious amounts of blood just sitting there. The don rest a hand on Wanda's shoulder, simply shaking his head at her doubts.

"No version of you is allowed to die in a place like this."

As Will rushed over to do her thing, Giorno's eyes gradually defocused from Wanda's face, narrowing as he replayed her words a few times in his head just by instinct. After a few moments of silent thinking from both him and Jotaro, who promptly shared a look of confusion with the don, Giorno realized it.

"Wait... resetting the multiverse again? What do you mean by again?"

"...Tch, can't believe she'd have enough power to do something like that."

"Do what?"




Jotaro began to pace around the empty command center, shaking his head at both Severa's and Ben's questions. "I don't think Wanda needs to explain it... if what we've already been through is any indication, we might already have an idea of what Othinus has done. Try to remember Morioh. What did we figure out from Yoshikage Kira and the Coalition's reports after he used Bites the Dust?"

Jotaro's prompt was met with a pensive look from Giorno. After a few ticks, he blurted out the answer straight from his mind. "The loop in which we defeated Kira wasn't the first. We'd already been through a number of loops through Bites The Dust, and in one particular loop, our memories remained consistent. In that loop, we were actually aware that we were re-living the same day."

"...Does that mean... Othinus resetting the multiverse is like Bites The Dust?"

The marine biologist just shrugged. "Who knows? Besides Othinus herself, only those who had memories of another 'instance' of the multiverse could prove that theory. If it was true, why would she need to remake the multiverse multiple times over?"

The question rang out to every individual in the room. It was a wide shot, and a spur-of-the-moment theory on Jotaro's part, but Giorno wasn't the type to shoot down an earnest attempt at digging up the 'truth', even if it was a baseless shot in the dark at this point. There was only one way to confirm it; Giorno's gaze met with Wanda's again.

"Wanda, is that true? Has Othinus remade the multiverse multiple times over?"

@Ver @Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter​

They might have some kind of point, even if it felt a bit stretchy, Ben felt.

"So you're saying we need to find the trigger...

... Gungnir. It's safer to guard in one's hands than out of them."

@Ver @Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter​

 

[Jeremi]

'Wanda...!"

Giorno wasted no time in rushing to the Scarlet Witch's side, looking over her injures with a sharp wince. There was no point in tearing her from the beams since she had already lost copious amounts of blood just sitting there. The don rest a hand on Wanda's shoulder, simply shaking his head at her doubts.

"No version of you is allowed to die in a place like this."

As Will rushed over to do her thing, Giorno's eyes gradually defocused from Wanda's face, narrowing as he replayed her words a few times in his head just by instinct. After a few moments of silent thinking from both him and Jotaro, who promptly shared a look of confusion with the don, Giorno realized it.

"Wait... resetting the multiverse again? What do you mean by again?"

"...Tch, can't believe she'd have enough power to do something like that."

"Do what?"




Jotaro began to pace around the empty command center, shaking his head at both Severa's and Ben's questions. "I don't think Wanda needs to explain it... if what we've already been through is any indication, we might already have an idea of what Othinus has done. Try to remember Morioh. What did we figure out from Yoshikage Kira and the Coalition's reports after he used Bites the Dust?"

Jotaro's prompt was met with a pensive look from Giorno. After a few ticks, he blurted out the answer straight from his mind. "The loop in which we defeated Kira wasn't the first. We'd already been through a number of loops through Bites The Dust, and in one particular loop, our memories remained consistent. In that loop, we were actually aware that we were re-living the same day."

"...Does that mean... Othinus resetting the multiverse is like Bites The Dust?"

The marine biologist just shrugged. "Who knows? Besides Othinus herself, only those who had memories of another 'instance' of the multiverse could prove that theory. If it was true, why would she need to remake the multiverse multiple times over?"

The question rang out to every individual in the room. It was a wide shot, and a spur-of-the-moment theory on Jotaro's part, but Giorno wasn't the type to shoot down an earnest attempt at digging up the 'truth', even if it was a baseless shot in the dark at this point. There was only one way to confirm it; Giorno's gaze met with Wanda's again.

"Wanda, is that true? Has Othinus remade the multiverse multiple times over?"

@Ver @Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter​

"Good grief, what a headache." Jolyne didn't seem very happy with the news set before them. "This is why we never should meet God. Because nine times out of ten, they're going to be huge colossal dicks."

Ermes as well seemed to be down in the dumps despite the brave face earlier. "Is there really nothing we can do to stop this?"

@Ver @Crow @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @CommandCenter

 

[Ver]

As Wanda managed to push herself out of the bars as Will healed her, the Scarlet Witch let out a soft sigh, her hand trailing over the place on her body where there was once puncture wounds on instinct while the other held Severa's gently. "The help wasn't needed, at least in the long run, but... thank you."

As Jotaro and Giorno speculated amongst themselves the nature of Othinus's actions, Wanda merely shook her head. "I can't say for sure, or else I'd be able to stand up to her myself. All I can give are my own two cents," she said calmly, taking a breath, before going on. Even if she was healed, the witch was still pressed for time regardless, all things considered. "Take it from another witch who rewrote the world around her, that kind of power that could do unimaginable things... and it's used to serve one's own personal self-interest," she said with a soft, almost self-deprecating laugh, casually referencing her past as though she'd done something similar to Othinus before, at least on a much smaller scale. Before, she had been so averse to talking about her own past, but considering the situation, she knew it was necessary to walk past that line.

"This is all just speculation, but... Think about it. If someone had the power to do anything they'd want, the first thing they'd do is create something that was lost to them. In a way, like a return to the past..." She said, before looking at everyone intently. "I could hear her voice even from here when she first took you all here. That pain was something anyone could easily give another person, and then asked what was something that one could never truly give another person. If you can answer that riddle she gave out, maybe you can get that much closer to what her true intentions are."

As the two Stand users inquired about what Othinus had been doing further, Wanda shrugged. "A reset like a loop? I wouldn't know. Shouldn't you ask the people who know her best?" She asked, gesturing toward Touma and Leivinia, the only two people remaining who were from the same world as Othinus, to which Touma scratched the back of his head uncomfortably.

"... Well, don't look at me. Ollerus and Fiamma of the Right often talked about stuff like the Phases of the World, but it's not like I could follow that kind of talk easily," he pursed his lips, before sighing, "But I guess, from what I could tell you... The world -- or the multiverse, even -- is like... uh, an easel. Someone like Othinus can create something out of the blank canvas, or she can overwrite it with a layer on top of it to create something new. But... I'm not sure how she'd go about going back to a previous Phase..."

@Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter​

 

[Crow]

As Wanda managed to push herself out of the bars as Will healed her, the Scarlet Witch let out a soft sigh, her hand trailing over the place on her body where there was once puncture wounds on instinct while the other held Severa's gently. "The help wasn't needed, at least in the long run, but... thank you."

As Jotaro and Giorno speculated amongst themselves the nature of Othinus's actions, Wanda merely shook her head. "I can't say for sure, or else I'd be able to stand up to her myself. All I can give are my own two cents," she said calmly, taking a breath, before going on. Even if she was healed, the witch was still pressed for time regardless, all things considered. "Take it from another witch who rewrote the world around her, that kind of power that could do unimaginable things... and it's used to serve one's own personal self-interest," she said with a soft, almost self-deprecating laugh, casually referencing her past as though she'd done something similar to Othinus before, at least on a much smaller scale. Before, she had been so averse to talking about her own past, but considering the situation, she knew it was necessary to walk past that line.

"This is all just speculation, but... Think about it. If someone had the power to do anything they'd want, the first thing they'd do is create something that was lost to them. In a way, like a return to the past..." She said, before looking at everyone intently. "I could hear her voice even from here when she first took you all here. That pain was something anyone could easily give another person, and then asked what was something that one could never truly give another person. If you can answer that riddle she gave out, maybe you can get that much closer to what her true intentions are."

As the two Stand users inquired about what Othinus had been doing further, Wanda shrugged. "A reset like a loop? I wouldn't know. Shouldn't you ask the people who know her best?" She asked, gesturing toward Touma and Leivinia, the only two people remaining who were from the same world as Othinus, to which Touma scratched the back of his head uncomfortably.

"... Well, don't look at me. Ollerus and Fiamma of the Right often talked about stuff like the Phases of the World, but it's not like I could follow that kind of talk easily," he pursed his lips, before sighing, "But I guess, from what I could tell you... The world -- or the multiverse, even -- is like... uh, an easel. Someone like Othinus can create something out of the blank canvas, or she can overwrite it with a layer on top of it to create something new. But... I'm not sure how she'd go about going back to a previous Phase..."

@Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter​

"But why isn't she creating that which she lost in a physical form? Unless she already did... or she will... or it's already there... I'm not good at riddles, maybe Brainstorm can-"

Ben prepares to dial his Omnitrix, before halting his actions as he deactivates his fancy pop-up holograms.

"... No, this isn't a matter of the brain, but rather, a matter of the heart. I'm going to need a good balance to figure this out. Let's gather the pieces first, then we can decipher them."

@Ver @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter​

 

[Yun Lee]

"Oh Gawds, I HATE riddles! But if it gets us out of this mess, then...um..." Severa furrowed her bow, tapping her foot as she tried to figure that out. "Well, the opposite of pain is healing, right? But people can heal wounds pretty easy-look at how you got patched up!" Somwthing seemed to click in her mind, the metaphorical lightbulb flickering on. "But I guess...emotional wounds can't be healed? Like, something SUPER traumatic happens to you, but you can't go around acting on it, because if you do, it's considered a weakness. So you try to be all, 'Hey, look at me, I'm totally fine!' But in reality, you're, well...NOT. And you wanna just go back and undo everything that messed you up, because then MAYBE, things would turn out better, and you wouldn't have to go through what you did. Unless of course you somehow screw THAT up..."

Beat.

"N-Not like I know from firsthand experience! But...yeah. Maybe Miss All-Powerful Magic God has some kind of, I dunno...baggage?"

@Ver @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter​

 

[Crow]

"Not a bad start, Severa," Ben compliments, subtlely reading her like a book, "but we'll need to go deeper."

Ben shares the various points he caught in the conversations with the group, doing his best Othinus impression while he was at it, his voice sounding more like his regular voice with a rather villainous tone and aura. He captured the emotion so well, it was legitimately disturbing.
​

Spoiler: Stuff

"How telling it is for humans to reject what they are not familiar with. To so easily look at something they once knew, something that had changed, and to label it as "fake." Not the "real" one that they knew. And when presented with that difference, you cannot accept it, so you lash out with violence. You seek to destroy what you reject in order to preserve the image of what you believed was "true" in your mind. What a boring reaction."
​

"Perhaps you are right. Perhaps the truth is what will always come out in the end. But you are forgetting one thing, Giorno Giovanna. Truth is dictated by the victors, not the ones locked in a cage,"
​

"And I am the one who decides what is the truth now. And so long as I hold your Arrow in my possession, you are utterly powerless. Like an ant fighting the sun. Anything you do will be... What was it your father would say​

"Hmm. Perhaps. What sort of game would you like to play, then? After all, I've got all sorts of ideas for other scenarios in which to see you respond. One where everyone you've ever loved has been hurt, one where you've been completely forgotten by everyone. Testaments to the futility of how easily your life has been swept away in the greater scheme of things."
​

"A good person's worst enemy is the guilt that they cannot become a better person. I wonder, hero, will you crumple under the weight of your failures before long?"​

"Tell me, what would you find more painful? The thought of everyone you've ever cared for hating you, cursing you for everything you've done to them? Or the thought that you couldn't save any of them, unable to protect them from their untimely fates that await them?"​

"I think something's missing... something more at-the-source..."

Ben turns to Touma & Leivinia with a wink and an idea.

"You two by any chance homesick? I'd like to propose a little educational field trip."

@Ver @Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter​

 

[Hahli Nuva]

As Wanda managed to push herself out of the bars as Will healed her, the Scarlet Witch let out a soft sigh, her hand trailing over the place on her body where there was once puncture wounds on instinct while the other held Severa's gently. "The help wasn't needed, at least in the long run, but... thank you."

As Jotaro and Giorno speculated amongst themselves the nature of Othinus's actions, Wanda merely shook her head. "I can't say for sure, or else I'd be able to stand up to her myself. All I can give are my own two cents," she said calmly, taking a breath, before going on. Even if she was healed, the witch was still pressed for time regardless, all things considered. "Take it from another witch who rewrote the world around her, that kind of power that could do unimaginable things... and it's used to serve one's own personal self-interest," she said with a soft, almost self-deprecating laugh, casually referencing her past as though she'd done something similar to Othinus before, at least on a much smaller scale. Before, she had been so averse to talking about her own past, but considering the situation, she knew it was necessary to walk past that line.

"This is all just speculation, but... Think about it. If someone had the power to do anything they'd want, the first thing they'd do is create something that was lost to them. In a way, like a return to the past..." She said, before looking at everyone intently. "I could hear her voice even from here when she first took you all here. That pain was something anyone could easily give another person, and then asked what was something that one could never truly give another person. If you can answer that riddle she gave out, maybe you can get that much closer to what her true intentions are."

As the two Stand users inquired about what Othinus had been doing further, Wanda shrugged. "A reset like a loop? I wouldn't know. Shouldn't you ask the people who know her best?" She asked, gesturing toward Touma and Leivinia, the only two people remaining who were from the same world as Othinus, to which Touma scratched the back of his head uncomfortably.

"... Well, don't look at me. Ollerus and Fiamma of the Right often talked about stuff like the Phases of the World, but it's not like I could follow that kind of talk easily," he pursed his lips, before sighing, "But I guess, from what I could tell you... The world -- or the multiverse, even -- is like... uh, an easel. Someone like Othinus can create something out of the blank canvas, or she can overwrite it with a layer on top of it to create something new. But... I'm not sure how she'd go about going back to a previous Phase..."

@Yun Lee @Kaykay @Hahli Nuva @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter​

"I'm no therapist. And I'm certinaly not going to try and 'save' Othinus after everything she's done. Whatever her reasons, whatever her methods, she literally destroyed all life as we know it three times over. You guys can sit around and play tewnty questions but I'm not."

"Perhaps Wanda is correct, Will."

"Maybe she is. But I'm not giving Othinus a second chance.I don't care if she had to take over the world to save he rhusand or father or anything like that. We've seen this kind of megalomaniac before in Nerissa, and I am not going to go through that again."

"I nunderstand your skepticism, Will. Truly, I do. But... maybe it's worth looking into. What really do we have to lose?"

"..."

Will put her hands on her hips and fixed the group with a disapproving look. This whole 'Maybe Othinus is just an emotional wreck' idea seemed a bit farfetched and frankly, Will would rather put her down than try a three hour long history lesson.

@Ver @Yun Lee @Kaykay @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Crow @CommandCenter

 

[Ver]

"... Do you need someone to talk to, Severa?" Touma only said to the girl with a furrowed brow.

To Ben, he shook his head. "No... I don't think we could find anything back home. Besides, if it's anything like how things are here in Knowhere, then... I'd really rather not see the state of the people there."

"You... might be over-thinking it a little," a familiar voice spoke weakly from behind.

Turning around, the group would be able to see Kyoko, lying in a prone position on her stomach while her lower half was completely buried under rubble and debris, unable to move from where she was. Her skin might have been blemished with grim and bruises, but her eyes were the same as they once were, calm and reasonable, unlike the hysterical Kyoko Kirigiri in the previous multiverse.

"You all... ngh... wouldn't mind, would you?" She inquired, asking for some help.

"Kirigiri?! So you're also...?"

@Jeremi @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Kaykay @Yun Lee @Crow @Hahli Nuva @CommandCenter​

 

[Yun Lee]

"Ugh, NO. I SAID I'm fine!" Oh thank Gods, Kyoko! The perfect distraction. "But SHE isn't!" Severa didn't miss a beat and began hastily digging Kyoko out. "So you managed to survive this mess too, huh?"

@Ver @Jeremi @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Kaykay @Yun Lee @Crow @Hahli Nuva @CommandCenter​

 

[Kaykay]

Leivinia's gaze fell upon Touma's right hand as he gave his explanation of the Phases. A serious expression took over her features as she found herself thinking about what the witch and Touma had just said.

"That's right, the Phases are simply extra layers painted on the canvas we call the world. Magic exists in tandem with religions, which paint these Phases upon the world. Othinus 'destroys' and 'recreates' the world by manipulating them. But there's nothing saying even a Magic God can just go back to a Phase. They can accomplish the same effect by just overlaying an old Phase upon the world, but to actually return to the past..."

She pointed at that right hand.

"...She would need a reference. How well could you effectively recreate a drawing you only saw once ten years ago? Twenty years ago? Lifetimes ago? You could get really close, but can you say it'd be exactly the same? Of course not, it wouldn't be absolutely perfect. That hand is the reference for our world, before what we call magic and religion layered these Phases upon our world," her stare shifting to Ben as he mentioned their home world. "Speaking of which, if you have any questions about our world pertaining to magic, I have all the education we'll need."

Leivinia looked a little worried for a moment, as if she were thinking about someone back in her world in the current Phase's circumstances, but quickly shook it off and resumed speaking.

"As I was saying, Othinus would need a reference to return to any previous world. Assuming this witch is right about our witch's intentions, she must be searching for that reference. But..."

She fell silent. But what was that reference? Leivinia had no idea if it wasn't Imagine Breaker. If it was Imagine Breaker, though, then that meant her aim this whole time was no one else but him. Breaking from her thoughts as Kyoko made herself known, she moved to help the girl out of the rubble.

@Ver @Jeremi @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Kaykay @Yun Lee @Crow @Hahli Nuva @CommandCenter​

 

[Crunch]

"... Do you need someone to talk to, Severa?" Touma only said to the girl with a furrowed brow.

To Ben, he shook his head. "No... I don't think we could find anything back home. Besides, if it's anything like how things are here in Knowhere, then... I'd really rather not see the state of the people there."

"You... might be over-thinking it a little," a familiar voice spoke weakly from behind.

Turning around, the group would be able to see Kyoko, lying in a prone position on her stomach while her lower half was completely buried under rubble and debris, unable to move from where she was. Her skin might have been blemished with grim and bruises, but her eyes were the same as they once were, calm and reasonable, unlike the hysterical Kyoko Kirigiri in the previous multiverse.

"You all... ngh... wouldn't mind, would you?" She inquired, asking for some help.

"Kirigiri?! So you're also...?"

@Jeremi @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Kaykay @Yun Lee @Crow @Hahli Nuva @CommandCenter​

"Star Platinum."

Star Platinum's muscled form emerged from Jotaro's shoulders as he pointed in her direction. It lunged ahead and dug its hand into the front end of the debris, heaving the rock upwards off of the Ultimate Detective while its other arm grabbed her by the hand and gently slid her out from under the crushing rubble. As soon as she was out and comfortable, the debris dropped to the ground with a loud thud as the Stand vanished into thin air.

The towering man offered a hand to the detective.

"I'm assuming my little theory is wrong."

@Ver @Jeremi @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Kaykay @Yun Lee @Crow @Hahli Nuva @CommandCenter​

 

[Gummi Bunnies]

❝ So if that's the case, I take it that whatever Othinus actually wants, it'll take awhile if it's to return to a previous Phase. ❞ Willard paraphrased for himself to better understand the scope of the situation. At his side, Dlanor was only silently standing there, not moping around like earlier. Suppose that Willard's talk with her managed to keep her in usual behavior for now.

@Ver @Jeremi @CrunchyCHEEZIT @Kaykay @Yun Lee @Crow @Hahli Nuva @CommandCenter​