These days I've been taking that heavy so lightly [Group text; action for Arcrion]

[photoshooter]

[The good news first: Prompto has a job!

The not-so-great news: They're still trapped in another world with no idea where they are, why they're there, or how to get back--or whether there will be anything left of the world if they do. Every time he thinks about his talk with Stella, dread churns uncomfortably in Prompto's stomach, and he can't let go of his worry for Noct, for Ignis, for Eos. For himself. What's happening back home, if Noct's springing Ardyn's trap only to find Prompto not there? Will he be okay? Will Prompto be okay, out here, with no idea how to support this other Noctis by himself?

There's also the fact that Noct appears to be turning into some kind of lion cat, and Prompto doesn't know where to even begin wrestling with that. He's choosing to pretend it isn't happening, as much as he can. As long as it isn't bothering Noct, he can deal.

So Prompto's trying to focus on the positive, for now, and he really does love his new part-time work walking dogs in the city. They're really great dogs, different kinds, big ones and little curly ones and all of them his new best friends. Dogs are so good. Mankind doesn't deserve them. And they leave him plenty of time to take photos and explore his surroundings, though he hasn't had much luck finding out more about those weird cultists who brought them to Eludalsia.

Part of the problem is he's been tired. Taking care of the city's cute puppies isn't really strenuous, but it's like the sun itself boils the life out of him; but then at night, when he could rest, he feels fine. So it's not like he's sick or anything. Reasonably, it must be stress, but he's got to keep it together. He's one of the grown-ups. And he's tired of not pulling his weight.

That said, most of his research has been limited to trawling the weirdly official-like information he can find online on his retooled phone (thanks, Yuusei!), and he hasn't found much.

Today, when the light of the noontime sun is just too much, he retreats to his favorite off-leash dog park, lies down on a bench in the shade, and sends a group text to everyone who took a phone and gave him their number:]

anybody find out anything about some group called the joyous???
when i described the people who summoned us, that's the answer i got. "that sounds like the joyous order." but the coffee guy didn't know much more than that. just that they're a cult and he doesn't think they're ""dangerous.""
if you've got any other intel pls share with the class! thnx!
- prompto a.

[Anyone visiting the park in Arcrion this fine day may come across a familiar blond supine on a bench, one freckled arm thrown over his face, looking a little washed out as a Maltese, a Dalmatian, and a big, fluffy mutt frolic nearby.]

Comments

[txt]

[maximumest]

What is a cult

[lostcompany]

Organization that's REALLY devoted to a god or mission and does dangerous things because of it.

[According to him.]

[soft_focus]

I thought that was an army.

[photoshooter]

armies don't have to believe in anything
they just have to follow orders
also cults aren't usually trained for combat

[soft_focus]

Armies follow someone's instructions.

And strong armies believe something. That's what Academia did-all the soldiers believed one thing, so they fought for it.

[lostcompany]

Can be both!

[soft_focus]

An army cult?

[photoshooter]

i guess that's true




wait what's academia
isn't that just another word for school??

[soft_focus]

Duel Academia are the soldiers for the Fusion dimension.

They destroyed the XYZ dimension.

[photoshooter]

they destroyed a whole other dimension?

- prompto a.

[soft_focus]

Yeah.

I think it's fixed now. It should be, since they started merging, and then I split them again, and that's supposed to fix it.

[photoshooter]

iiiii don't know what that means, but i guess, if it's fixed now
good???
no army should have that much power anyway

- prompto a.

[planetary_bonds]

Not usually.

It happens.

[Guess who had to FIGHT CULTISTS not with fisticuffs mind you BUT IT WAS A WAR REGARDLESS IT COUNTS]

[photoshooter]

true
guess there could be overlap sometimes

[maximumest]

And the person you spoke to said they're not dangerous

[That someone NOT Prompto is responding hasn't occurred to him yet, texting is a weird thing.]

[photoshooter]

well sometimes cults are just weird
and also sometimes people don't think cults are cults they just think they're like
i dunno
nerd conventions or something

[maximumest]

If they're not being dangerous and cults are dangerous then nerd convention might be the beter words to use

From what I've seen of this place I'm surprised they even believed you got summoned

as opposed to being on a variety of interesting forest mushrooms

[photoshooter]

dude lol!!
you've got a point buddy
i don't remember a lot about them but they did NOT look like they knew what they were doing

[lostcompany]

Well, who they're dangerous to is up in the air. Sometimes just themselves. Sometimes they're just SOCIALLY dangerous to themselves.

I'm not an expert

[maximumest]

Can you stop doing that it's getting hard to keep track of what you're writing when you keep doing that

[lostcompany]

Doing what?

[maximumest]

talking to yourself

writing, whatever

[photoshooter]

ah
broly
you know this is a group message right

[maximumest]

Every response is the same jumble of numbers

Just stick to one it'll be easier

[planetary_bonds]

There's more than one of us talking.

It's a group chat.

[and to prove his point SURPRISE IT'S A TOTALLY UNRELATED PERSON]