avalononline | video; UN: firstfallen

They're better than any humans I know.

[Chara says that practically automatically, as if it should be common knowledge.]

Yeah — they can be.

[ Alberto's unfazed, like that is common knowledge. ]

What kind of monsters were they? Sea monsters or, uh—...?

[ Actually, he doesn't know any other kind of monsters. His world has been pretty small until recently. ]

No, they're called Boss Monsters, but they look like goat people.

[The most basic way of explaining the Dreemurrs, really.]

There are other monsters though, none that I would call sea monsters though...

Oh. I, uh— I only know sea monsters.

[ He says this with an odd sheepishness, glancing away, but he's feeling his oats again pretty quickly. ]

Hah, but a Boss Monster sounds cool, though! Were they like— the bosses of all the other kinds of monsters?

[ He sounds pretty excited about this, not put off at all now. Learning about other kinds of monsters is just as interesting as learning about land monsters and even more novel. He's not even all that interested in alien sea monsters, frankly, so... Boss Monster has a nice ring to it. ]

I've never met one, a sea monster.

[And Chara knows a lot of Monsters, so admitting that is something.]

And yeah, mom and dad are the Queen and King of Monsters back home! So they kind of were in a way the boss.

[Chara puffs up in pride, they like talking about their monster family so this is a good subject.]

Woah! So you're like— monster royalty or something?!

[ Chara should puff up with pride! And it's well-received. Alberto's... far from monster royalty. And feels a lot less inclined to brag about his family lately. ]

I'm not, I'm just a human. But my brother is, he's a prince.

[Chara doesn't consider themselves anything special, but the Dreemurrs are.]

But they're your family — so kind of, right?! Ha!

[ He's a little bit delighted by this. ]

Man, that's so cool~ Sea monsters can't take humans in where I'm from. Y'know. Water. Air.

[ He waves a hand at the camera limply, gesturing to... everything. But his tone remains nonchalant as he asks even more probing questions, fascinated by Chara now. And clearly they didn't react much to his previous probing questions, so... It's fine. ]

Do humans hunt monsters where you're from? Is that why they were trapped underground?

Not really.

[Heh, the excitement is contagious.]

Yeah I get you, and no. They didn't hunt monsters, but there was a war and the monsters lost so that's why they were put underground.

Woah— a human-monster war... And the humans won? Eh. Kind of not surprised.

[ He shrugs. At first it seems like he's not surprised because, well, humans are better or whatever, assuming he's as human as he looks. But then he drops an important clue about himself, maybe filling in a gap here indirectly: ]

Everyone where I'm from just associates humans with murder, and like, kidnapping, and stuff — mostly murder, though. But there was never any sea monster-land monster war... Most sea monsters just hide from them.

[ He waves a hand dismissively. He's not "most." ]

Yeah, they won.

[Chara doesn't sound happy about that bit of history. And if they catch that slip they don't show it.]

Well, that's mostly what humans are good at. They're not the most compassionate creatures, after all, humans. But I guess that might actually change since the Monsters are out of the Underground now, or were before I ended up here.

Really? Then they made it out after all? And there's no war now?

[ He's smiling at that. A genuine, warm, bright-eyed smile — not the cockeyed smirk he's worn half the conversation. ]

Heh. That's great. Y'know, I think things are going the same direction where I'm from — I mean between the land monsters and the sea monsters. There are definitely some compassionate humans, though — at least in Portorosso. That's the human town where I lived. Fishing village. Long tradition of hunting sea monsters there...! But— I think that's changing now...

No war that I'm aware of.

[Chara just seems kind of flat now, this is a subject they don't tend to dwell on.]

Uh huh... So, did you have any part in this change? As a sea monster, that is.

[What with how Alberto is talking and saying a human town and other slips, Chara is going to take a wild guess that this kid isn't human at all.]

[ Alberto's smile falters, looking at the camera with wide eyes, brain sputtering for a split second before deciding that, yeah, he can drop his cover with this kid. They don't seem to be as fond of humans as they are of monsters. And would... probably understand Alberto's hesitance to reveal himself as a monster to everyone here, given his description of humans in his world? So that second of deliberation ends with another smirk, but somehow... less smug than before, more proud now. Less of a front. ]

...Yeah. I did. Me and my best friend Luca.

[Oh boy, what Alberto doesn't know in regards to Chara and their thoughts on humans. But thankfully that's not the subject right now, they're just going to grin at being right. It's always great to be right.]

Cool, it's always nice when best friends work together to make things better.

Yeah. But that wasn't our goal. We were just trying to get a Vespa, go see the world together~

[ He's smiling lightly, but pauses, and then tags on another probably more important detail, his brow furrowing a bit as his smile fades. ]

Oh, and Luca's parents were gonna send him to the Deep, so yeah, he ran away, and I ran away with him to the human town, cuz we thought they wouldn't look for him there, even though they did... Buuut also we wanted a Vespa.

So... It was an accident?

[They are curious as to what this Deep thing is, must be a sea monster punishment or something.]

And is a vespa really that cool or something?

Ehhh, kind of — it's a long story. But yeah, an accident. We met this human girl — Giulia [ Is there a hint of disdain in his voice? Hard to say. ] — and her big scary dad who hunted sea monsters, and there was this huge race thing going on, and we kind of won, but the sky was leaking and so the town almost attacked us, then the dad-human saved us, sort of, and Luca's parents were there, then the town didn't attack us... It was a whole big thing.

[ He waves his hand at the camera again. Long enough story. He's reenergized about the mention of their Vespa, though. He'd much rather talk about that. ]

But! We won a ton of soldi and bought a Vespa! I mean— we had it for like. A night. I sold it... But we're gonna buy another when Luca's done with school! It's only the best thing humans ever invented...! Do they have Vespas where you're from? Do you know what one is?

[ Yeah, no, he'd clearly rather talk about the Vespa, he's so excited still, undeterred about this dream even in this place. ]

So it rained and you got found out, and that's how it happened... Or something.

[They're mostly speaking to themselves here, trying to figure out Alberto's story from what he's told them. But the subject of the vespa is brought up and they shake their head.]

Never heard of it, but they might have them? I don't know everything after all.

Basically how it happened, yeah.

[ Nonchalant as always. The camera shifts, though, a quick pan of Alberto's inn room, still a bit empty for his liking... Hard to see much, though, for how fast he moves it, shakily holding it out until he gets a good shot of this poster hanging on his wall. ]

But look— that's a Vespa~!

[ He says it breathily with such dazzlement and awe that he can only assume is contagious, because, uh, why wouldn't it be, it's a Vespa. ]

"Vespa is freedom~" You just sit on it, and it goes — anywhere you wanna go! Luca and I are gonna see the whole world together someday~! I sold our Vespa, but I'm gonna save all the money Massimo gives me from working in the pescheria and buy an even better Vespa than the one we had before! We'll thank Massimo and Giulia and everyone, then... We're out of there~

[ The camera lowers a bit, cutting off the text unintentionally, as if his hands just drooped. His face can't be seen, but... the energy in his voice fizzles a bit. ]

I mean— that was the plan. I guess...

[ Now he's here. ]

Oh, it's a scooter.

[Chara at least knows what a scooter is, even if they've never seen one in person. They nod as Alberto talks, listening and all that good stuff and but then that "I guess" and trailing off.]

Well, now you can say you've seen a completely different world once you get back. That's way better than just seeing the regular old world.

Yeah. That's true. I've been taking photographs. I figure if they can send entire people from other worlds here... Maybe there's a way to send stuff back, right? When Luca went to school in Genova, we started writing letters. Sooo— maybe I can send him my photographs from this place! Even if he can't respond...

[ Nope, slightly too sad a thought, bittersweet, moving on. He shifts the camera slightly to the side, bringing it closer — something about the way it moves has a bounce to it, like maybe he's just crawled up on his mattress to get nearer to the wall, just to show a much smaller paper taped up beside the poster. It's a drawing — and not a very good one. It looks quite worn, and it's taped down the center, like obviously it'd been ripped in half at some point. But it's displayed proudly next to the Vespa poster — probably something sent from home that was found in the Shitbox upon his arrival, rather than a new drawing he's done here, it seems. ]

See? That's me and Luca on our Vespa someday with everything we're gonna need for our trip. While I'm here I'll probably figure out some more stuff we'll need, but... y'know. For starters~

[ The blind hopefulness in his voice is pretty clearly what's keeping him going in this place. Don't pop his bubble, Chara...! It's the first time he's telling anyone in this world about any of this, even showing off his drawing. He's half-aware it's just a fantasy; he doesn't care to dwell on that, though. This Luca kid is clearly the most important person to him; he's scarcely mentioned anyone else, after all. Even if he can't send the photos... He's gonna keep taking them, in case he can bring them back when he goes home. He's not letting himself say if he goes home or invite any seeds of doubt; if he doesn't act totally certain... No, no. He's not acting, he is certain. That's the point. Right. ]

Maybe.

[Is all they can say on the subject of sending pictures back home, not like having anything to do with home matters to Chara much. Or at all.

And they catch onto the hopefulness in Alberto's voice as he talks and shows them the picture and such. Which with the picture makes Chara wonder if he really is as old as he says he is, because that's a pretty childish drawing.

Anyway, they listen and are silent for a moment too long their face scrunched up in thought as they consider their options. Be nice and not pop the poor kid's bubble or pop the bubble hard. Luckily for Alberto he's a non-human and Chara likes non-humans, so he'll get to keep his little bubble of hope.]

I'm sure your friend will enjoy anything extra you end up thinking up while you're here once you get home.

Yeah, and I'll get to learn about even more weird human stuff! Like this Everything Machine~!

[ He shakes the phone slightly, but eventually flips the camera around to face himself again as he comes crashing down in his bed now, wearing a brighter smile than he'd worn this whole time. ]

Maybe I can even get another one to bring back to Luca. He'd probably love it. I kinda wanna take it apart... Do you have these things in your world?

[ The cell phone. He's talking about their cell phones. Not only is he coming from under the sea, but... also from the 1960s. The devices are completely novel to him, even more than a gramophone had been. He's not even figured out that the "Everything Machine" can play music yet! He'll lose his mind when he does. He's as old as he says he is — he's just immature. A bit stunted. But indeed full to the brim of childish wonder, regardless. ]

Do you mean the cell phone? Yeah, we have them back home.

[Both above and underground, so Chara isn't too bothered by the device. Although they do find it funny that Alberto calls it an Everything Machine.]

And I wouldn't take it apart if you don't know how to put it back together.

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