awashlogs | catch all for august!

[ The library is a place for books, not weaponry, but that doesn't stop either of them from bringing the glowing trident to the building and setting it upon one of the reading tables. If nothing else, it makes for a nice ambient lantern as afternoon light wanes through the windows.

Mythra picks up another one of the restored books, opening up its heavy leather-bound cover. Logs about harvests and farming, inaccurate and archaic "science" books, details about various fauna found within the forest.... she's not too interested in those, at least not right at this moment. Instead she's reading upon one of the anthologies of the people that had lived within the town-- in particular, for those who were fishermen and merchants. ] If there is an underwater city so close to this place... you'd think that would be some mention of it by the people here coming in contact with that city. Or trading with it.

[ Casually, she flips through the pages with gloved fingers. ] Unless this underwater city appeared afterward the residents left. [ Her lips purse, and she lifts her head to look at her companion. ]

Did you just happen to discover it? Or was there something leading to its discovery, like those cursed thorns leading back to the thorn-castle?

[ One morning she invites him over private message to meet her at his shrine she had built months ago, still standing strong today. How the cursed trees have not overrun it is anyone's guess, but the added shade from the branches above give the structure a much more mysterious look, as if it had been a sanctuary of the forest the entire time.

When he arrives, he'll find the incense already lit and Pyra standing just at the beside the statue. She holds a long parcel warped in cloth and bound with a cord, and as she sees him, she greets him with a soft, welcoming smile. ]

You made it. We have something for you.

[ Form bonds with the others in the Town.

Only one quest, one single quest, whereas all the others before it had seemed to only increase in intensive and severity-- up to requesting one kills another. But now it is only that the people form bonds.

And as she thinks of her bonds, both past and present, she wonders if she's done any of them justice, what with who she has hurt, what with the mistakes she made, and she wonders if she's somehow contributed to how terrible the forest has gotten to taking over the town.

To this day, the town waits for someone to break the curse, to restore color and to demonstrate once more the true strength of bonds.

It's foreboding...Even after all of this time-- what is supposedly the true strength of bonds? But she wants to help. She wants to try to help. She realizes that she's become scared of helping, that what she's doing is only making matters worse, but if it's for the good of the town and bonds-- perhaps she can do something.

She can apologize again-- this time to Somnus.

She has just been thinking about how when the opportunity simply presents itself: one evening as she's at the harbor, tweaking the bolts of the shaft that connects the generator to the propeller, she spots a familiar figure approaching from not too far away. Straightening up, she greets him with a nod, a smile. ] Your Majesty.

Enjoying an evening walk, I hope?

[ There is no tide in Chroma, no change water, no wind to ripple its surface. Long ago, this place must have been industrious with the fishermen reeling in their hand-woven nets and bounty of the depths for the day. Now, the harbor remains as quiet as cemetery, the houseboats like gavemarkers. ]

[He doesn't know what to expect when arriving at the shrine - is it another quest? A friendly meetup? Or--

The shape of the parcel in her hands is hard to miss, bringing to mind a promise he remembers from some time back. Is this it? It isn't, is it? It feels safer to confirm before jumping to conclusions, anyway.]

Hello...what's this? It's, ah. Rather large for an offering.

An offering....?

[ She repeates the word lightly-- honestly, she hadn't considered making it a formal offering.... but wouldn't that mean he'd need to give something in return as a god? Like incense in exchange for a prayer being granted?

No... no. ] Mm-mm. [ She shakes her head. ]

It's a gift. [ Meaning, she's giving it to him freely, offering it to him. ] Go on. Open it.

[ In spite of everything, Somnus feels a burden has been lifted from his shoulders. The Chosen King has returned to their world, likely without the note Noctis was hoping to bring with him. That isn't surprising. History will unfold as it is meant to, even as those left behind here continue to serve this world.

But here he finds himself at an impasse. Doing his part by completing quests has become something of an issue now that he's being made to do what he turned away from before. Someone like him isn't suited for bonding with others; he's only ever excelled at breaking them for his gain, and he knows all too well how damaging that can be.

It's going to be a difficult month. ]

Hail, Pyra.

[ Slowing to a stop before her, Somnus gives their immediate surroundings the once-over. It is heartening, in a way, to see her back on her feet and busy. This is how they should be: alive and productive. ]

A new project of yours?

Mm. So many have explored the forest already... and only a few have explored these waters. Apparently, there was once an entire city down below, but it had collapsed as soon as someone removed a trident they found there. Then, two others had taken a boat out together, but after a certain point they were transported right back to the town.

With this... [ Her fingers brush over the face of the propeller. It had taken many sleepless nights to obtain the right angle when forging it. ] and Duo's generator, we hope to explore this area more thoroughly, and quickly.

[ The forest is even worse now, they're running out of time. Perhaps they can find some other land they might reach, or-- or maybe there is no point to exploring the waters. The answers might all be in the town, really.

...Explaining this is a distraction, however, and soon her expression falls. ]

Your Majesty.

[ Her hand leaves the propeller to clasp at her opposite, upper arm. ]

I wish to apologize for... [ Turning into a tree. ] ...burdening you, that you went so far as to find someone to help me.

[ Now that the forest has been tried, she means to take to the waters. He wonders how much time they'll have to explore them in depth before the forest consumes the town in its entirety. Freshly arrived though he may be, Somnus can plainly see that Chroma has little time left.

His gaze strays from the propeller to settle on Pyra's face. An apology? Such an unnecessary thing. ]

Your apology means nothing. You would have been a burden if you had remained in that state.

[ One more accursed leaves one less soul capable of fixing this world. Their numbers are too few. Knowing of a possible cure, it would have been foolish of him to leave her there for too long. ]

[ From the way she abruptly looks up at him, wide eyes blinking, it's clear that she hadn't thought of her being a burden as a tree. And she was so, so very tired then; being a tree-- she had sank back into Elysium, she had remained alone. It was as it should be. ]

....I....

[ She falters, but her words come out rushed, ]

What do you mean?

[ Staying as a tree-- it would have been better, perhaps. She would not have the opportunity to hurt others, and others would remain safe if she was away. Sure, she wants to do what she can with forming bonds and whatnot now, but it would be so much safer if... ]

[ She didn't see it the way he did. Even now, she doesn't. Few seem to ever share his vision, and so he answers bluntly. ]

Sparing the tears of another, only to bequeath the burden of your task to those left behind. Which bears a greater weight? Your consideration was shortsighted.

[ Feelings are fleeting, immaterial. Tears can be forced easily enough. But the restoration of an entire world is not a task to be treated lightly. ]

[ An apology almost escapes her again, before she recalls that moments before he had said they were meaningless.

Pyra draws a breath, but it is not steadying. ]

.....You did not need to lead someone to me. [ She whispers. Hasn't she said, she wouldn't want anyone to cry for her? No friends-- no one. That feels... like so much more of a burden. ]

If I had not, would you be here?

[ If he hadn't parked a woman in front of a strangely colored tree and watched her pull on her hair until tears sprang from those soulful eyes, would Pyra have ever returned? Perhaps. ]

It might have taken you a day longer. A week, perhaps.

[ And she, being as informed and involved as she is, can't possibly consider that an acceptable passage of time. ]

[ Would you be here-- ]

We're not supposed to be here!

[ The words are out of her mouth before she can stop them, and she realizes her mistake too late.

[ Thankfully-- thankfully... she had used we. A "we" that he can take as meaning the otherworlders as a whole, that they are not supposed to be here. Her statement can come off as immature and brash for all she cares, so long as he doesn't question. ]

....I'm sorry. That was out of line.

[ He doesn't. Somnus takes her outburst in stride, even as he adopts a cross expression. ]

Not a single soul here belongs. If not for this world, do what you must so you might return to yours.

[ The outburst, to her, shows exactly how lost she's become in this world. Months ago, she wouldn't have raised her voice-- let alone even dared to mention anything of her purpose. So many things have happened, and she's struggling to make her way through it all.

She feels like a child lost in a sunflower field, far too small to see over the tops of the blooms, not knowing where they point towards the sky.

She's grateful, that he doesn't know better to question. It's safer this way. ] No... No. You are right.

Now that I have returned... I'm doing what I can. [ Her eyes drop to the generator. ] To help out, and hope that no-one becomes hurt. [ She says this as if it's guaranteed someone will be, now that she's actually here and not a tree. ]

You speak of yourself as if you were a malady. What is it that you fear inflicting upon these people?

[ She might not answer. For a woman who speaks liberally about others, she's frugal and vague where herself is concerned. Still, he asks. This apprehension of hers is a palpable weight on her shoulders; left precariously positioned, it could cause actual damage and have a ripple effect on the future. ]

[ Her eyes open, misty as she blinks, but she can't look at him for a second longer. What is it that she fears?

Losing everyone, losing the world, seeing everything she's grown to love and care being destroyed. Hurting them, when they should be... happy.

Bonds-- she fears them too, if only because they will hurt when they are gone. But she had told someone else already, that not knowing love is a small price to pay for knowing those she loves are safe. And she loves the world, because those she loves are in it. ]

[ Within the void of her mindscape, Mythra watches the conversation, jaw set and eyes narrowed as she watches Somnus.

He was right to the word fear; perhaps she's underestimated him. ]

[ She can do one of two things. She can actually answer his question... or leave it.

Would the quest be fulfilled if she didn't? They might "bond" over talking about this generator and engine, or they might not. And if she fulfilled this quest, that would be helping this world. And she wishes to help this world, doesn't she?

(She wants someone, someone to talk to, even if it's a stranger.) ]

I fear.... hurting others. [ It's a simple enough fear, she supposes, that doesn't give away too much. ] And I've hurt... many people in my world, and a few here.

I could end up hurting you, Your Majesty. That is what I fear.

[ Is this not a good person? Certainly, that isn't him.

A good person fears the harm that may be wrought by her hands. He remembers another who was just like this, once. But if she has hurt others and admits to this, she's not so far gone in her love to be unreasonable. ]

All things come at a cost. A bit of harm is a worthy price for the salvation of a world and its people.

[ And in all these years, he hasn't changed. Perhaps she will disagree with him, but he has ever looked at the bigger picture. She fears hurting him? If it will benefit the world in the long run, she can strike him and he won't begrudge her for it. ]

[ To be honest, they're glad someone else takes interest in the spear - they weren't sure what to make of it, exactly, which is why they hadn't brought it up to anyone else all this time. Thye'd keep restoring the books and bring it up if it became relevant, had been their plan of action - which is what is leading them to search these new ones for some sort of hint. ]

Well... we had to break into the room to get it, so I wouldn't say we just happened upon it. [ They explain, with slight chagrin. ] My partner thought that since everything else in the city was left in the open, something that was guarded so heavily might be something worthwhile.

[ They, too, flip through their own texts, scouring the pages of the books they've already read since restoring them with eyes focusing for hints about this specific topic as opposed to just new information. ]

There wasn't anything that really led us to that room specifically, like those thorns... the only thing I can think of is that we found the room it was in in the center of the city.

[ She disagrees. It's not worth it-- the only harm that should befall anyone is her. There are plenty here who will help this world, who are far more capable to help this world besides her... who can help others without hurting them.

Pyra, Mythra.... they are not among them. Especially not among those who may bring salvation to this world, try as she might. ]

...You overestimate what I could contribute to... helping this world. [ And here, it finally occurs to her that after all of this time-- after first arriving here and wanting to be sealed, after then having a period of time where she had allowed herself to be selfish and admitted to want to stay, that now she's... taking a step back. ]

I would do anything, [ She says this, her hand leaving the generator. ] to ensure that I do not harm another again.

[ An understandable wish, but not a reasonable one. Spending a lifetime without hurting another is an unattainable dream for most. More than that, it ties a person down.

Her regret is immense. He knows how it chokes, how it can drown someone without ever allowing for an intake of blessed air. But he also knows this: ]

So long as you remain a slave to the past, your contributions to this world will suffer.

catch all for august!

for cairngorm!

For Xie Lian

For Somnus

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