Kent/Feldspar

[videointhenoise]

"Just once more," they had said when Ellie's team petitioned for it. She was busy with Palmer, falling in love with science while he fell in love with God, and Kent was left to pick up the pieces. He wanted another damn go at it. The Machine had a pricetag in the billions; it was begging to be used again.

But they wouldn't let Ellie go. They wouldn't let just anyone go. They wanted someone who knew how it worked, who had been there from the beginning, but someone who isn't completely taken in by Ellie's words.

That leads them to a dozen people and they end up with Kent. He's blind, but that's not what decides it. They claim that he wouldn't hallucinate the way Ellie did. That he has a unique perspective.

And, he's already proven himself steady and loyal.

He experiences it all the way that Ellie does, but something goes wrong on the other end. Maybe another terrorist attack. Maybe not. All he knows is that he's in the sphere and then, suddenly, he's floating, unable to find his footing until a great crash and he slams into the bottom of the machine.

He groans, pulling his helmet on with a grunt and a wince.

"Fuck this," he mutters, finding the edge of the sphere with his hands. There was a door there somewhere. He just - has to find it.

Comments

[getfeldsparred]

They take his arm with ease, used to walking with him in this way now. "You don't mind that we're leaving the campfire early, do you? We can wait until tomorrow if you want to stay."

[videointhenoise]

"There's always the next one. And I'm taking it out tomorrow night to listen and take notes," he explains softly, slipping into a comfortable walk with him.

"I'd rather do this with you," he adds, then realizes he sounds like a fucking crazy person.

"I mean, you make it fun."

[getfeldsparred]

They grin again, this time a little more bashful than the outright cheek of their earlier back-and-forth. "I'd rather listen to space with you too," they admit. "Don't get me wrong, campfires are nice and all, but sometimes I just want a little peace and quiet."

Everyone always wants a story, their attention. Kent must know how that feels by now, to have someone always want a piece of you.

[videointhenoise]

"Yeah. It's - hard. I was never the celebrity. That's what Ellie was for. She liked to showboat a little. But me? I would rather just do my listening."

He smiles. "What do you do to escape?"

[getfeldsparred]

“You‘ve been hearing it.” Those nightly trips to the top of the waterfalls to watch the stars do a lot to ease some of the pressures they’re facing. Being the first to orbit Timber Hearth and the first to land on the Attlerock and then Brittle Hollow…

It’s hokey, but they weren’t doing any of this for the notoriety. They just wanted to explore the stars.

“And when I can I go to space.”

[videointhenoise]

Kent can appreciate that. The music, the stargazing, the flights. It's a rush, yes, but there's something serene in it. When he lost gravity in the sphere, he could feel it.

"I get it. If you ever want company, I'm on the way, you know," he ventures.

[getfeldsparred]

They believe him. If anyone was going to understand what it’s like to be in the spotlight constantly, it’d be Kent.

“I’d never turn down your company,” they tell him honestly, sincerely. “You mean just the waterfall though, right? Because of the seat belts?”

Feldspar laughs.

[videointhenoise]

He laughs and it's warm and bright and true. "Yeah. Because of the seat belts. But I think I'm getting Slate to come around to the idea."

[getfeldsparred]

“You just gotta keep nagging at them, you’ll get there. I’m hoping that getting ejected from the window will help argue in favor of them too, but Slate is nuts so.”

They lean against Kent playfully.

[videointhenoise]

Kent leans back against them before they reach his cabin. "Let's go inside. I'll let you listen. And you let me worry about Slate."

[getfeldsparred]

It’s been some time since they’ve been back in Kent’s cabin - not since they’ve gained more independence and ease in navigating the village. It’s not an open cabin anymore, it’s his cabin, and Feldspar steps in searching for changes, signs that he’s started to make it home.

“Oh, I don’t worry about Slate. That’s Gossan and Hornfels’ job…and yours too now, huh?

[videointhenoise]

Kent lets them inside and immediately takes off his shoes. He's placed small rugs along the sink and bathroom, his feet feeling for different important places. He has markings carved into the wooden cabinets and shelves in Braille.

The bed has a nice, warm blanket, made by one of the villagers, and even an embroidered little pillow.

"Come on this way," he tells him, navigating through.

[getfeldsparred]

Feldspar pauses a moment, wondering if they should take off their shoes as well before they realize it’s to help Kent see. It’s brilliant, actually.

They walk through and notice the little notches here and there, markings they don’t recognize, obvious labeling marks for Kent.

“It’s cozy in here,” they murmur.

[videointhenoise]

Kent leaves his stick at the door as well, walking and navigating his house without it.

"It's- home," he says with weight. He takes him back to the desk and lifts the rudimentary radio up. It looks like a long tube with dials, which Kent has marked for himself.

"Giant's Deep should be rising in a few minutes. Come here. I'll show you."

[getfeldsparred]

Home.

It’s not really home, but he’s made it homey. That’s all he can really do right now.

They walk to the desk with the radio, very much looking like a Hearthian invention, and steps close enough to Kent to listen.

“Looks complicated.”

[videointhenoise]

"The blind guy can handle it. I think you'll be fine," he laughs, handing him the long tube. "Alright, one day I'll get headphones or sync it to the suit or something, but for now, it's just loud. So open the window and point it towards the planet. It's already configured to Giant's Deep."

[getfeldsparred]

“Point tube at sky, got it. Think I can handle that much.”

Feldspar brings the tube to the window, tucking it underneath his armpit as he lifts up the pain and props it open with a stick, then sticks their arm outside towards the vague direction of Giant’s Deep.

“Got it!”

[videointhenoise]

Kent puts a hand on their shoulder, sliding the other hand down to Feldspar's hand, just near the dial. He turns it a couple of notches, hearing the clicks with a decisive nod.

As soon as Giant's Deep rises, the sounds start. They're soft at first, though as Kent leans closer to the dial and fiddles with it slightly, they become louder and more pronounced. Great waves crash against a shore in a way that Kent can't parse. Winds at speeds faster than the storms on Timber Heart could ever be.

"There she is," Kent says softly, close to their shoulder still to keep a hand on the dial. "She's beautiful, huh?"

[getfeldsparred]

At first all Feldspar hears is the static as Kent fiddles with the dials, squinting as slowly something starts to appear through the white noise. It’s not clear at first, but Kent makes a final adjustment and they heard the crashing of a powerful wave.

“Water,” they whisper, awed. “I can hear the water.”

Oh, they want to see this place for themselves! There are waves, and wild-sounding winds, almost like storms - it makes it all so much more concrete than just a green-looking orb in the sky. They have to fly there, they just have to, it’s calling to them -

“Beautiful,” they echo.

[videointhenoise]

Kent steps back, letting them listen for themselves as the sound fills the living room. "How long until you take a ship that way?" he murmurs softly, as if he knows them so well already.

[getfeldsparred]

They pause long enough to look up at Kent as he walks around the room. “Has to be after Brittle Hollow. I don’t know how long…Slate’ll have to prepare for that wind.”

It pains them to be realistic, but it’s the truth of the matter.

[videointhenoise]

"And the water. And any number of things."

He shoves his hands in his pockets. "Brittle Hollow will be soon, though. I heard Slate talking about final preps."

[getfeldsparred]

They’re reluctant to pull away from the sounds of Giant’s Deep, but what Kent’s saying directly impacts their ability to go back into space.

“Yeah? That’s good news.”

[videointhenoise]

"I know you're excited." He comes back to them and puts a friendly hand on their shoulder. "You can come by and listen any time you want."

[getfeldsparred]

Feldspar brings their hand up to touch Kent’s. “Careful. If you invite me into your home I might never leave,” they laugh quietly.