PatientBean

BANISHER: a Sword-and-Sandal Dark Fantasy

Hello, this seems very cool and right up my alley, provided you are accepting peeps. If so, let me know :D

Strange Academy: Journey into Mystery

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Location: ??? -> Mikkail's Sitting Room
Grimoire: N/A
Skills: N/A
Current Outfit

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Warmth trickled into the space, the lingering warmth of a hot summer's day fading in the face of encroaching night. It eyed Cassie's approach somberly. Cassie knew it had been waiting for a long, long time. A meeting, a moment delayed over and over and over by each reflection in the flowers. It was wild and powerful, but dangerously fragile. It had called, it had beckoned, it had offered fate and destiny into her hands - what reason did it have to offer such power now, denied so thoroughly over and over again.

Cassie could feel it, the voice the butterfly before her did not have. And in it she knew it had been waiting for her. Was it the sheer power she had unleashed before finally awakening it? Had it known her all her life, always slightly out of view as she was denied opportunities? Why had it not stepped up before during those moments when she needed power the most?

”What are you? Why have you called me here?” She was worried about the answer, but she knew, somehow, she needed to hear it.

Magic, chaotic and wild, exploded in the void beyond the field. An electric symphony drowning the world in blinding light before it settled into a gentle aurora that shimmering in swirling colors. The glass flowers caught the light and reflected it a million times, memories fading away beneath their brilliance. The flower clinked together and a soft, yearning song wrapped around the space. It was an old song - never sung but always playing, a constant melody beckoning those who could hear. It never stopped playing, a song that always was, always has been, and always will be. It has been calling for an eternity - the question was why did she ignore it for so long?

”Because I was scared,” she said without thinking, as if the essence had vocalized a question. The brilliance around her had swirled into a question she yearned to answer. ”Because they made me scared. They made me worried about what I could do. They never let me explore or work on what I could do.” Her mind raced to the mysterious man who all but said he would keep an eye on her and, if the worst came to be, take care of the problem. Her parents locked her away so often she never felt at home. And yet, all the while, there was a voice that was in the shadows. Always calling. She knew she heard it multiple times in her life. When she was crying on her bed after being locked in yet again, when she was put on a pedestal in front of guests and auctioned off, when she was forced to choke down a belief she never could grasp because of all the inconsistencies she faced.

Was she ready to answer now?

”I am sorry we never got to meet before, but I am glad to meet you now. Please, what would you have of me?”

Vines of shimmering magic sprouted at her feet, following her legs up and up until it grew past her hip and curled around her back to follow the slope of her shoulder down to the wrist where it pooled in her palm and another stained glass flower bloomed. The purpose of all life was to grow, to survive, to flourish, to stain reality with irrefutable proof that it existed. What greater purpose was there to simply be? To choose a fate beyond what those around you would shackle you to? To break the mold of expectation and live wild and free forevermore?

The flower beat like a heart and the same rippling sunlight poured out of it. It was Cassie's and Cassie's alone to determine what purpose there was - no greater power ought lie beyond one's own will. The creature had only one last lingering concern.

Cassie stared at the flower in her hand and felt the pulsing of it on beat with her own. It was her’s to choose. It was her decision in what to do with her powers. She was no longer controlled by others, those who would fear her. Instead, she was like the butterfly, once coccooned, now spreading her wings and going where she wanted to.

”I still feel concern. What troubles you still?” Was it uncertainty in her abilities? Was it forces beyond her control that wanted what she had?

A crack ran through the butterfly. The glass flowers wilted and turned to sand. The aurora fades way as if chased by the wind and as more cracks spread through its body, one question lingered in the dying melody:

Why would one escape a cage only to walk into another?

The butterfly shattered.

Cassie stood there, transfixed for a moment. The words echoed inside her head. Was she walking back into a cage? Was the school the cage? Was it her coven? Her peers? Or was she finally inside a place that would allow her to soar? These were questions she would need to answer on her own, at her own time.

For now, she needed to wake up.

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Cassie's eyes fluttered open slowly. She took the immediate scene around her. She spotted Connie first, the girl concentrating on something. Then the others. She felt...there was no word she could immediately grasp. It was both wrong and right. The message still fresh in her mind.

"What...happened?"

Château de La Lune

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Millicent

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Location: Château de La Lune: Bar
Skills: N/A

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Millicent debated on briging everyone into the conversation, but what could she do? She didn't fully trust the others outside of Brendan, but it wasn't as if everyone was a murderer. Or were they? Her money was still on someone in the family being connected to, at least, Renee's death. Miguel's was still up in the air. For all she knew, Miguel knew one of their secrets and was planning on blackmailing them which lead to his death.

And could Millicent say she wouldn't do what she could to protect her own reputation? "All right, we can go into someone's room to talk and get ready for tonight. Sam and my adjoining rooms could work, if everyone is okay with that." She waited to see if the others agreed.

Strange Academy: Journey into Mystery

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Location: ???
Grimoire: N/A
Skills: N/A
Current Outfit

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Cassie woke up in darkness. It wasn’t so much that it was dark for darkness’ sake, but it was an absence of light. As if it was withheld on purpose. Cassie looked around her to no avail. The last thing she remembered was being in the room with her coven, looking at the journal and attempting to speak to it, to understand it. And then…..

The room, if it could be called that, switched then. Cassie saw before her a large house, her home, and in the backyard, she noticed a little girl, around age 7, playing with some toys while three figures stood on the back porch, nursing what looked to be varying degrees of alcohol. She knew two of them to be her parents, though Cassie didn’t need to know it was her mother as she held a wine glass filled nearly to the brim with a dark, red liquid.

Cassie recalled this memory a little bit, though she only understood it from her point of view. She knew she was playing house with her dolls, acting out the various stages of life from birth to wedding to….huh, it never occurred to her that her make-believe dolls never died.

Cassie stood near the three others in the scene as they looked at the young girl.

“What do we do with her?” her father had asked. His tone was both filled with concern and..fear.

Her mother remained silent, but her face spoke more than words ever could. It was as if it said, ‘I know a solution,’ but couldn’t get it out.

The other person standing there was a man. He was taller than her father with light tan skin and dark eyes, almost a deep black. The man grunted as if it were a response. “We’ll keep an eye on her. Gods know we don’t need another one of them wrecking reality.”

Cassie noted her parents didn’t correct the man on his use of multiple gods. Either they were allowing him his belief, which wasn’t their nature, or the man made them wary.

Cassie’s mother finally spoke. “What did we do to deserve this?”

The man chuckled. “You think this a punishment?”

Her father turned to face the man. “What else do you call……..that?” he asked, gesturing in the direction of young Cassie.

“Call it whatever makes you sleep at night, but the fact is she is yours and, thus, your responsibility.”

“What do we do?” her mother asked, more gently than her father.

“Contain her. Observe her. If you notice anything unusual, call us. If things get darker, well….let’s hope you have good insurance on your home.”

Her mother drank her wine and drained nearly half the glass. Her father clenched his fist, but remained silent.

Meanwhile, young Cassie was oblivious to the dark conversation happening a few feet from her.

Before she could react, the scene warped again, this time they were inside the home in the kitchen. Cassie saw that she was here again, this time age 12, with her parents standing on one side and her on the other, as if at war. In their hands was a book Cassie recognized, though she didn’t remember the name of it. It was some young adult book she had managed to get her hands on. The recalled the story was about a young girl who discovered she had magic powers and was sent to a school in Europe to learn how to control her powers. She also recalled the young girl had developed feelings for both her roommate, another young girl, as well as a young boy who teased her, but secretly liked her. It was filled with magic and romance and talk of powerful beings who controlled the world.

It was obviously not on her parent’s reading list.

“What is this?” her father had asked, though it was clear in his tone he knew exactly what it was.

”A book..” Cassie had responded just as her father slammed it on the marble counter, causing young Cassie to jerk.

“And why do you have this?”

Young Cassie remained silent, Cassie knowing no answer would be sufficient.

Her mother looked at if she wanted to respond to her father, but didn’t quite know the words to quell the anger. “You know how we feel about this filth!”

”I was just reading it for fun..” she responded, but her father slammed the book again. “Fun? This garbage is poisoning young people! Filling their minds with ideas of witchcraft and belief in other gods. That goes against God.”

Young Cassie looked as if she wanted to fall into herself, and Cassie tried to reach out for comfort, but found herself grounded in place.

“Go to your room and read your Bible. I don’t want to hear from you until dinner,” her father said, an undertone of rage. Young Cassie turned and walked to her room. Again, Cassie was in a place where she only knew the scene from her point of view. How scared she was at what would happen to her. And then she remembered.

“Lock her door,” her father has told her mother.

“Lionel…”
“Do as I say! Lock her door.”

Her mother stood for a second before she followed Cassie. Cassie knew that she would read her Bible for a bit and then try to leave, only to find her door locked. Again.

And it remained locked for seven days.

The scene warped again and Cassie found herself standing in the darkness again.

Scenes fell around her like glass, shards broken and reflected over and over again into an endless abyss where neither sound nor warmth offered her any respite from the memories of her parents, of a life of solitude and isolation, of hurt and harm until one touched the ground and sprouted. The flower, shimmering with pinpricks of magic, reflected Cassie’s face in a myriad of emotions and its petals opened to offer an orb of power beating in tandem with her heart. Another scene touched down and yet another flower bloomed, yet another time of Cassie reflected over and over and a blooming of potential. Her life rained down in pieces around her and a field in the strange darkness bloomed in full around her. They bent and swayed in an intangible breeze and the shifts and shimmers of magic drifted off their flowers and swirled on the wind about Casie before coalescing into a single creature.

A butterfly.

It was the size of Cassie and settled on the flowers as easily as walking on ground. Its wings shimmered like stained glass in a setting sun, each beat of its wings sending a cascade of color across the void. It contemplated Cassie for a long while, as if waiting for her.

Cassie stared in awe at the creature, wondering and waiting, before she took a tentative step forward.

RP Rules & Preferences - What do we look for nowadays?

I started roleplaying in MMO games so the rules and so on were a bit more lax. Didn't have Discord back then, so we either only talked in-game or we had a dedicated RP forum. Now that I am doing it on the Guild my preferences have changed.

First, I look at how a person puts out the Interest Check. I don't need fancy headers or stark images or anything big, but it does tell me that when some effort is put in, they will put effort into the RP. Not saying that those who don't aren't engaged or excited.

Second, I prefer realistic-looking images for characters. Either in real life or art, but I struggle playing a game like something superhero-related and seeing someone post an anime-style image. I understand why some people don't enjoy that, but with the rise of AI technology, I am now hesitant to use art. Unless you commissioned the art yourself, you are likely still stealing from someone (unless you give credit, and even then, that's a tricky thing). If that's fine with the GM, then great, but I will likely not go into that RP.

Third, I think having deadlines helps, but I am fine with it being more lax than strict. And obviously, the understanding that real-life comes first, every time. But I have been in some RPs where there's no deadline, and the game drags on with no one doing anything and nothing getting done.

Fourth, I think 1-2 characters is more than enough for me. Even for an RP I am super excited for. Any more and I struggle with getting posts out promptly.

Fifth, I only GMd one RP and it was a learning experience. You definitely have to balance being a fun person who listens to their players while also ensuring things move along and the story is engaging and entertaining, and it can be incredibly frustrating (I will likely never GM again).

And bonus: I prefer using color codes for dialogue for characters. It helps me keep track of things, at least, than just staring at a screen of white text

Avengers Academy: X of Swords ⚔️

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Location: Margaret Carter - Dorm Room
Magic Items: None
First Day Fit: Twisted School Girl

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After separating from the others, Millicent went off on her own. She was still debating between what Danni requested and what she felt. She knew Danni’s fathers could be overprotective, understandable given what had happened to the group with Arcade, but surely they still deserved to know what they intended to do. It was a superhero school, danger was inherent, wasn’t it?

And Millicent knew her aunts and uncles could be protective too. But they had recommended she come here after she was attacked and trained up. She didn’t feel right lying to them. And not admitting she intended to follow the others into the Otherworld to save a beloved teacher, who turned out to be future Percy, was lying.

She needed to talk to Val. Out of all of her family, Val was the one she felt the closest to in terms of her powers and her abilities. If she were venturing into some music fest or an eternal concert-type world, she’d rope in Harry. No, this needed Val’s input. And she could tell the others.

She made her way to her dorm room and was alone for the time being. She pulled out her phone and called her aunt.

“Allô?”

”Aunt Val? It’s Millie. Is this a good time?”

There was the sound of soft conversation in the background and the clinking of flatware. “Is something wrong?”

I mean, was there? ”Well, not really no, unless you count a teacher being trapped in another world, who was thought dead but was apparently only kidnapped, then maybe something is wrong. I don’t suppose you knew Ser Nemo?”

“Is there construction happening where you are? Millie, I can’t understand what you’re saying - can you repeat that?”

That was weird. She was alone in her dorm, no construction in sight. ”I said, do you know a professor here named Ser Nemo?” She said it a bit louder, in case the error was on her end.

“Millie, can you hear me? I can’t understand you. Are you there?”

As far as she knew, her connection was fine? And while Canada had some not-so-great things about it, cell service wasn’t terrible. What was going on?

It took her a bit, meanwhile she said ”Yes Aunt Val, I’m here. Sorry, hit some spotty service. Give me a second.” Something weird was going on. She knew from conversations with the others that Ser Nemo was some weird, old dude who did some time BS, and given that him and Percy were the same person, it stood to reason that they shared similar abilities. Was it the Otherworld playing up on her ability to share with others? The group talked about it with each other, no issue. Or was it some time-bending nonsense on Nemo’s part? How did she share without sharing?

”I wanted to share that I am going to be going on a trip with the others. Team Excelsior and a couple other classmates. We’ll be going somewhere far away and I wanted to let you and the others know I may be incommunicado for a little bit.”

There was a slight, frustrated laugh on the other end of the line. “If this is a Snikt challenge where you call your aunt and go silent, it’s very funny. Be safe, kid.” And then there was a click as the call disconnected.

Millicent sat there, flabbers all agasted. But it also confirmed what she assumed, that whatever forces were at work were preventing them from telling others. Did that mean they couldn't talk about it with each other? That couldn't be right since they had been doing so.

So she compiled a group chat of everyone and sent a message.

Team Otherworld

-hey guys.....
-so interesting update
-seems we can't talk to anyone outside our little cohort about our upcoming trip
-tried to talk to my aunt and all she heard was static and/or silence
-so if you try talking to your rents or any other parental unit about it? not gonna happen
-so we ar on our own. which, duh, course we would be
-see y'all laterrrr!

Millicent set her phone down and finally took a look at her room. Two things of note hit her that she had missed when she entered: there was a hole in the wall and there was leftover Chinese food on the other bed. This was likely Chase's doing, which concerned her. A man angry enough to put a hole in the wall wasn't the best roommate. Not to mention just leaving food out in a shared space.

But she also did not judge immediately. Perhaps there were outliers as to this behavior. Still, it was concerning.

She opted to get ready for their trip. She would need a few things to take. If she couldn't tell her family about it, she would at least ensure they were prepared.

Château de La Lune

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Millicent

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Location: Château de La Lune: Bar
Skills: N/A

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With their task done and them all to themselves save for the bartender who appeared like they wanted to be anywhere else, it was a good time to share what they found out. However, Millicent didn't want to share the big stuff just yet until they were all alone. "I would say it's fairly easy, especially now. Even those who don't have social media accounts are still plastered on the Internet. All it takes is someone sharing a picture of you or your name being put out there. Not to mention how much the Internet is connected to everyday things like banks or school or jobs."

"Plus, what's the rule people say about the Internet? Nothing is truly gone, even if you delete something. So it's understandable that someone could gather information about everyone. And the deeper you dive, the more you can find out."

She also wondered what the slideshow could be about. Was it for their benefit or the family's? "Me and Brandon found out something, but wandering ears and all that. Maybe we can all gather somewhere safe and discuss?"

Strange Academy: Journey into Mystery

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Location: Dorm Room -> Professor Mikkail's Room
Grimoire: Tiara of Jagged Glass
Skills: N/A
Current Outfit

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Cassie was pleased with Nick's response. It seemed he had mellowed. Or, at least, he wasn't being an active asshole. Beggars couldn't be choosers. Willow had entered and the coven was all here.

Cassie was still unsure if she should even attempt anything with the journal, but the others had all tried. Surely she needed to give it her all, too?

Cassie stood up and walked to a space in the room. She looked at the others. "All right, I am going to give this a shot. Please be careful and, if need be, get me out of it should things get dangerous." Cassie looked at the journal and summoned her magic. Her eyes glowed a bright, ethereal pink as she summoned her chaos magic. As soon as he did so, her magic seemed to pour into the journal like water. It was like the journal was thirsty, like it hadn't drunk anything in so long. The journal began to tremble and shake in her hands, and, on the surface, an assortment of eyes opened and began blinking at the light. Each eye would grow and shrink, change color, and each one seemed to tell something different and convey an emotion. Fear, frustration, confusion, rage....

Cassie stared at each one, willing herself to stop, but it was as if the journal had latched on and was taking its fill of her magic. Faster and faster. Cassie attempted to slow, to gain back some semblance of control, but the journal would not release. Each eye was lookign as if it wanted more, more than Cassie had within her.

Cassie knew this was a mistake. But it was too late now. Something had taken hold of her, and she needed to get back control. She moved her other hand and latched on to the cover of the journal and ripped it open. As she did so she summoned one of her spells, the Tiara of Jagged Glass that she had used upon coming to this school. As the journal was wrenched open, shards of reality exploded from the page. Walls, furniture, and the poor, unfortunate souls in the room would be torn into as her tiara landed on the page. And Cassie could only stare in horror as the journal tore open and sliced her left hand off, falling onto the pages and dissolving into the ink.

TW: Icky

Blood splurting from her now dissolved wrist.

And yet, the magic stopped. The glass on the page, soaked in Cassie's blood, but passive, controlled, and contained. At her will.

Cassie could only say, "I did it...." before she fell backward to the hard ground below.

Château de La Lune

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Millicent

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Location: Château de La Lune: Bar
Skills: N/A

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Would Eleanore kill to maintain the status quo?

It was a good question and one that couldn't be easily answered. Millicent didn't know much about the matriarch apart from the history she knew before coming here on top of everything she had been told. But surely it wasn't out of the realm of possibility.

"I mean, would a wealthy person kill someone if it meant being able to maintain the life you enjoyed? I'd think so. I mean, hell, billionaires have done worse for less. She's on my list, but she isn't the only one. Any of the family members could have done it to maintain the life they grew up with. And as much as I am glad we're all working together, I don't fully trust anyone else apart from you. One of them could have killed Miguel while someone else killed Renee. Things aren't adding up nicely."

Once they entered the bar, she saw Lena talking to the others and heard some of the qwuestions they asked. Millicent was happy to see them prodding for answers. She, too, was still curious about the selection process. "Pardon my interruption, but Lena, Eleanore wanted us to ask you to check on the slideshow and make sure it was up to par." She nodded to the others, smiling, though her eyes said "We have some updates."

Avengers Academy: X of Swords ⚔️

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Location: Margaret Carter - Winter Carnival
Magic Items: None
First Day Fit: Twisted School Girl

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Everyone was in various stages of freaking out. Some were handling it better than others, but collectively, things were getting wild. Millie figured it wasn't so much the vision that Sabine shared as it was the aftereffects and what it meant. Nemo was being held captive, alive thankfully. And Percy was Nemo? Did that make sense? Not really, but Millie had long since accepted this group making any semblance of sense.

Percy seemed fine, though. So no nurse was needed. They still had to get everyone else sorted. April wasn't feeling the vibes, Leah was trying to control, and Dorian was attaching himself to Percy as if the boy was about to float away.

"Okay, everyone needs to take a beat." She stood up and took a few deep breaths, an activity she learned from one of her vocal coaches. It was good for her vocal cords, but she knew it helped with panic. "That was a lot of information at once, and I, for one, need a minute to process it. So let's all just....take a minute. No words, just breathing."

She took a beat. This group needed a serious case of R&R stat. But that wasn't likely to happen in the next few minutes, so they did the best with what they could. "I know I am new to this group so take my words with a grain of salt, but you all work well together. You have each other's backs, unlike anything I have seen before. So you will get through this moment also. But you all also need to know when it's time to...take a minute."

"We'll prep, we'll plan, and we will find this dude in the Otherworld and we will come back heroes and celebrate. But until then, breathe."

She noted that Sabine had taken off and Marlena had followed. She wondered if her message was falling on the wrong minds.

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Location: Margaret Carter - Winter Carnival
Magic Items: None
First Day Fit: Plum Top, Black Fluffy Jacket with Gold Embellishments, Dark Blue Jeans, Dark Purple Boots

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Sabine felt herself shake as she walked, fearing she would fall as Percy did. Was that her fault? She gave them an option to back out, to not let her invade their mind. She knew...she knew...

The vision itself wasn't bothering her. It was clear each of them was a Tarot card and it meant something to them. Ser Nemo was alive. The shadow army presented a unique problem, considering Chase was not most of their favorite, but Sabine knew, deep down, Chase wasn't a bad guy. Or, more likely, he was trying to be better. And she knew what it was like to have people hate you for your past or for things outside of your control.

No, what rocked her and continued to do so was the woman. Her own mother. She was there. Which meant she knew Ser Nemo was there. She was alive. Sabine's dreams were starting to make sense. Were they dreams? Or visions?

She heard someone behind her and turned, expecting to see Leah or April or Danni. Instead, she saw Marlena. It was not accurate to say she was disappointed. She didn't dislike Marlena. She was cool. But Sabine had wanted someone else to be there. Why didn't Leah check on her? Or April or Danni or Dorian?

But someone had and Sabine felt some warmth within herself knowing someone noted her panic.

Did she lie? How often had she said she was fine when she wasn't? How often did she push down her own feelings so that others felt better? How many times had she pushed back her own wants for the betterment of the team? Would this be another instance of her putting on a smile when she really wanted to scream?

"It's.....my mom.."

No holding back now.

"The vision we saw. There was a woman who looked like me. To the others, it may have just been a coincidence. But I recognized her. That was my mother. She died when I was really young. Or so I was told. We were so close. When she passed, it was just my father and me, and he didn't know how to raise me other than throwing money at me and hoping it fixed everything. I think a part of him died with my mom. And now I come to find out she is not only alive, but she has been so the whole time and never reached out to me. And I know the cliche. Oh, she probably had a good reason; it was for my protection, it would have caused more trouble. And yet, she is there, wherever Ser Nemo is being held. And she has a part in it. Did she take him? Is she holding him captive? And all the while I have been living with the pain of her death still on me, and I find out she is alive. And I'm happy? Angry? Sad? Afraid? I can't pinpoint anything, and my mind is working overtime to make sense of it all. Because I have had dreams of her. Her with another man. Her in front of some regal-looking woman. And all of it is like a kaleidoscope in my mind, and I can't...I can't figure it out. And I am supposed to be the one to figure it out."

There was too much going on. "What if I can't?"