Confirmation that two separate men had been attacked was concerning, but that they provided an informative sample set for the charms was... good? Blake was surprised at the news that they seemed to actually work, but also relieved by it. She made a mental note to update on what she thought of Xavier; the lieutenant might share some of his captain's obnoxious tendencies, though certainly not all, and if nothing else, it seemed he at least had access to some traditions worth respecting, and she was grateful to him for sharing this one with their camp. She wasn't sure she'd act on any sort of desire to thank him, but nonetheless, impression was updated.
She waited quietly for Mizu and Elaine to finish debriefing, her expression a little less irritated-looking than usual.
Part 1 (Start Reading Here)
Moderator: On Dreams And Desire
Re: Part 1
The more Mizu thought about the charms, the more she grew hopeful. She did only tell the Shel'ti she would stop the attacks, though treating the symptom rather than the root cause did bother her. Those men would assumedly need to wear the charms for the rest of their lives for fear of never fully waking up, which would not appeal to Mizu herself if she were ruling as a long-term solution, though it certainly worked for now. If it was possible, she would do more for the Shel'ti, if only to get further into their good graces, but if no other methods came to the surface quickly, they should offer the charms to the Shel'ti before the week was out.
In the meantime, they had a crone to visit.
"Thank you for all your diligence, Elaine. I'll take back over from here," Mizu said with a slight nod. Turning toward Blake, Mizu said, "Let's go before it gets too much darker." Mizu led the way toward the forest path where the old woman had retreated after her unsuccessful attempt to convince Mizu the first time. It was a ways across the field, and she hoped the rest of the army would not think too much about why she was headed over there. The fact that she was indulging all these supernatural possibilities was intensely frustrating and embarrassing to her, but she had to do it. Denying all this was no longer an option.
As they approached the narrow path, Mizu started to doubt herself. Did she really think she was going to just run into the crone? She couldn’t live that far from here, though, right? But her thoughts were interrupted by noisy stomping in the forest. She braced herself and put a hand on her sword in preparation, wondering if the crone was coming out to meet them, somehow knowing Mizu had had a change of heart, but then she saw two of her own soldiers stumble out of the forest. They were disheveled and one of them was bleeding. She recognized Xavier but did not know the other soldier. Both of their faces were deeply, intensely red even before they saw Mizu and Blake, but they both quickly drained of color when they did see.
Xavier stopped at the edge of the forest path, completely unprepared for this turn of events. Had he had more time to think about it, maybe he could have played it off like Seth and he were taking a tumble in the woods, but his brain wasn’t functioning that fast, and everything in him wanted to run and cover his face. This was… awful. For a moment, he was angry at Evan, though it was a quick flare that didn’t last for long.
“Hi, Mizu!” Xavier said with far too much enthusiasm, one arm behind his head. “Hi, Blake!”
Mizu looked from one soldier to the other, her own color rising slightly. She tried not to let her mind make uncouth assumptions, but… wait, weren’t both of them Evan’s men? That immediately made her suspicious.
Instead of addressing the soldiers directly, Mizu turned to Blake.
“You didn’t happen to talk to Evan, did you?”
In the meantime, they had a crone to visit.
"Thank you for all your diligence, Elaine. I'll take back over from here," Mizu said with a slight nod. Turning toward Blake, Mizu said, "Let's go before it gets too much darker." Mizu led the way toward the forest path where the old woman had retreated after her unsuccessful attempt to convince Mizu the first time. It was a ways across the field, and she hoped the rest of the army would not think too much about why she was headed over there. The fact that she was indulging all these supernatural possibilities was intensely frustrating and embarrassing to her, but she had to do it. Denying all this was no longer an option.
As they approached the narrow path, Mizu started to doubt herself. Did she really think she was going to just run into the crone? She couldn’t live that far from here, though, right? But her thoughts were interrupted by noisy stomping in the forest. She braced herself and put a hand on her sword in preparation, wondering if the crone was coming out to meet them, somehow knowing Mizu had had a change of heart, but then she saw two of her own soldiers stumble out of the forest. They were disheveled and one of them was bleeding. She recognized Xavier but did not know the other soldier. Both of their faces were deeply, intensely red even before they saw Mizu and Blake, but they both quickly drained of color when they did see.
Xavier stopped at the edge of the forest path, completely unprepared for this turn of events. Had he had more time to think about it, maybe he could have played it off like Seth and he were taking a tumble in the woods, but his brain wasn’t functioning that fast, and everything in him wanted to run and cover his face. This was… awful. For a moment, he was angry at Evan, though it was a quick flare that didn’t last for long.
“Hi, Mizu!” Xavier said with far too much enthusiasm, one arm behind his head. “Hi, Blake!”
Mizu looked from one soldier to the other, her own color rising slightly. She tried not to let her mind make uncouth assumptions, but… wait, weren’t both of them Evan’s men? That immediately made her suspicious.
Instead of addressing the soldiers directly, Mizu turned to Blake.
“You didn’t happen to talk to Evan, did you?”
Re: Part 1
Blake reacted similarly to Mizu at the sound of footsteps, and honestly wasn't exactly relieved to see Xavier in this context. Gods, here she'd just given the boy some mental props, and he stumbles out of the woods looking like that? She could practically smell shame on both of the men, and her eyes narrowed in what was, for her, a relatively unrestrained display of disgust - she did not go out of her way to avoid uncouth assumptions here. Xavier's over-enthusiastic greeting of her and the commander absolutely did not help.
Blake kept her eyes on Xavier as Mizu addressed her, and she placed Seth's face once Mizu said Evan's name. Of fucking course.
"...No."
Good fuckin gods did Blake hope that Evan wasn't about to come stumbling out after his men in a similar state. She might actually feel nauseous if he did.
Blake kept her eyes on Xavier as Mizu addressed her, and she placed Seth's face once Mizu said Evan's name. Of fucking course.
"...No."
Good fuckin gods did Blake hope that Evan wasn't about to come stumbling out after his men in a similar state. She might actually feel nauseous if he did.
Re: Part 1
Xavier's mind raced quickly, scrambling for some way to get them out of this awkward situation. He really didn't like the look on Blake's face, and he could almost hear Mizu's stomach turning. As his shame threatened to take a deep, deep dive, Xavier took a long inhale, held up his hands, and said, "This was all Evan's idea." Part of him felt bad about throwing Evan under the horse (heh), but he didn't particularly enjoy the thought of his commander judging his behavior. So what if he fucked Seth? What did it matter? Except it did, and he would rather not have Mizu and Blake think less of him as a result. "And it's not what it looks like," he added as he grabbed Seth's shirt and attempted to sidestep Mizu and Blake to head back to camp.
Mizu turned to grab the back of Xavier's collar and pull him back in front of her.
"What was Evan's idea?" she said, her face uncannily stoic, which somehow had the effect of being even more intimidating.
"Hey, so, like, well, none of our soldiers are going to get attacked anymore! Yaaaaaaaay," Xavier said with half-hearted enthusiasm and a shrug.
Seth rolled his eyes at Xavier and said, "Evan summoned the goddess, Dehaljadrun." Mizu took a moment to reassess the situation. If she understood correctly... her anger built behind her eyes steadily until it nearly blinded her.
"Where is Evan?" she said, her voice level in a terrifying way. At this Xavier and Seth both looked at the ground.
Xavier started with, "He probably won't be back until tomorrow..."
Seth said at the same time, "He's a bit preoccupied at the moment." Mizu raised her eyebrow, and Xavier broke down almost immediately.
"He made a deal with the goddess and he has to spend five nights with her but like things got out of hand because Seth is an idiot and he crossed the line and now Evan is kidnapped but like he's probably okay because he has this talisman thing even though he probably doesn't know how to use it and now the goddess is gone but she's not going to attack us anymore and I feel like I should remind you that my charms work don't hurt me." He put his arms in front of his face but that didn't help when Seth cuffed his head from behind.
Mizu tried to decipher Xavier's stream of consciousness, but a lot of it did not make sense to her.
"Wait, gods, stop," she said as he was talking. Once he was finished, she said, "Okay, slow down and start from the beginning." She was livid but needed to get the whole story. Xavier told her most things: the summoning, the deal, the result, but he left out all the things the goddess had tried to persuade them with and, obviously, Evan's displays. He also made sure to avoid describing the goddess at all because he didn't think he could keep the lust out of his voice.
Mizu put one hand on her forehead as she thought about what to do. If Evan wasn't coming back, she couldn't currently find it in herself to think that was a bad thing, though she might have other feelings later. He got himself into this situation. But, also, some part of her couldn't help but hope that Evan now knew some way to give the Shel'ti men back? Xavier hadn't mentioned anything about the Shel'ti, but maybe Evan had more knowledge about that. From the way Xavier was trembling, she didn't think she would get much more out of him tonight.
"Go back to your tents, men," Mizu said with disdain. "We'll see if Evan makes it back in the morning. If he's not back, I'll have more questions for you." Mizu was now even more determined to go visit the crone. There were more things to know; she was certain of it, and though she knew she should probably try to calm down before she went forward, she trudged forward down the narrow path after the men scrambled away.
Mizu turned to grab the back of Xavier's collar and pull him back in front of her.
"What was Evan's idea?" she said, her face uncannily stoic, which somehow had the effect of being even more intimidating.
"Hey, so, like, well, none of our soldiers are going to get attacked anymore! Yaaaaaaaay," Xavier said with half-hearted enthusiasm and a shrug.
Seth rolled his eyes at Xavier and said, "Evan summoned the goddess, Dehaljadrun." Mizu took a moment to reassess the situation. If she understood correctly... her anger built behind her eyes steadily until it nearly blinded her.
"Where is Evan?" she said, her voice level in a terrifying way. At this Xavier and Seth both looked at the ground.
Xavier started with, "He probably won't be back until tomorrow..."
Seth said at the same time, "He's a bit preoccupied at the moment." Mizu raised her eyebrow, and Xavier broke down almost immediately.
"He made a deal with the goddess and he has to spend five nights with her but like things got out of hand because Seth is an idiot and he crossed the line and now Evan is kidnapped but like he's probably okay because he has this talisman thing even though he probably doesn't know how to use it and now the goddess is gone but she's not going to attack us anymore and I feel like I should remind you that my charms work don't hurt me." He put his arms in front of his face but that didn't help when Seth cuffed his head from behind.
Mizu tried to decipher Xavier's stream of consciousness, but a lot of it did not make sense to her.
"Wait, gods, stop," she said as he was talking. Once he was finished, she said, "Okay, slow down and start from the beginning." She was livid but needed to get the whole story. Xavier told her most things: the summoning, the deal, the result, but he left out all the things the goddess had tried to persuade them with and, obviously, Evan's displays. He also made sure to avoid describing the goddess at all because he didn't think he could keep the lust out of his voice.
Mizu put one hand on her forehead as she thought about what to do. If Evan wasn't coming back, she couldn't currently find it in herself to think that was a bad thing, though she might have other feelings later. He got himself into this situation. But, also, some part of her couldn't help but hope that Evan now knew some way to give the Shel'ti men back? Xavier hadn't mentioned anything about the Shel'ti, but maybe Evan had more knowledge about that. From the way Xavier was trembling, she didn't think she would get much more out of him tonight.
"Go back to your tents, men," Mizu said with disdain. "We'll see if Evan makes it back in the morning. If he's not back, I'll have more questions for you." Mizu was now even more determined to go visit the crone. There were more things to know; she was certain of it, and though she knew she should probably try to calm down before she went forward, she trudged forward down the narrow path after the men scrambled away.
Re: Part 1
... Blake could fucking murder Evan. In that sense it was probably good for everyone that Evan was... preoccupied. Ugh. She wished she didn't have any notions of what that might mean; the stories were bad enough when Blake thought they were just folk tales. A very large part of her sincerely hoped the captain simply wouldn't be coming back. It'd serve him the fuck right, and honestly might ultimately help their cause. A lot of the men liked and looked up to Evan, but he was such an insufferable fucking wildcard, Blake sincerely saw him as more of a detriment than a help. Today just served to prove her right - he couldn't wait for his commander to finish a simple as fuck negotiation before diving headfirst into fucking blasphemy? Of course not. Fuck, she hated him so much.
She was visibly livid all throughout Xavier's explanations, but remained silent for the duration, satisfied with Mizu's probes and clarifications. She was torn on how angry to be with the men before her. Some part of her wanted to shake them and scream, why the fuck did they go along with this? But by the sounds of it they were indeed just following their captain's lead, and she of all people wasn't about to chew anyone out for that. She could still wonder whether they gave him enough push-back to truly absolve themselves, but that wasn't a detail worth digging into right now - or, really, probably ever, as far as Blake was concerned. It was Mizu's business how to handle these men, and for now, she was dismissing them.
Blake's eyes followed Xavier and Seth as they left, her gaze still certainly rife with anger and judgement, and finally she turned to follow Mizu.
"Gods willing, maybe we're rid of him, at least." Blake couldn't quite stop herself from grumbling through gritted teeth. It wasn't quite loud enough to sound purposefully said to Mizu, but Blake was well aware her commander could have heard it. At minimum, the captain grumbling anything to no one in particular certainly hinted at just how livid she currently was.
She was visibly livid all throughout Xavier's explanations, but remained silent for the duration, satisfied with Mizu's probes and clarifications. She was torn on how angry to be with the men before her. Some part of her wanted to shake them and scream, why the fuck did they go along with this? But by the sounds of it they were indeed just following their captain's lead, and she of all people wasn't about to chew anyone out for that. She could still wonder whether they gave him enough push-back to truly absolve themselves, but that wasn't a detail worth digging into right now - or, really, probably ever, as far as Blake was concerned. It was Mizu's business how to handle these men, and for now, she was dismissing them.
Blake's eyes followed Xavier and Seth as they left, her gaze still certainly rife with anger and judgement, and finally she turned to follow Mizu.
"Gods willing, maybe we're rid of him, at least." Blake couldn't quite stop herself from grumbling through gritted teeth. It wasn't quite loud enough to sound purposefully said to Mizu, but Blake was well aware her commander could have heard it. At minimum, the captain grumbling anything to no one in particular certainly hinted at just how livid she currently was.
Re: Part 1
The place Evan found himself in was decidedly chillier than where he had been in Asphodel. The meadow of the crone's house had transformed into something that only vaguely resembled the place he had been. The crone's house was gone, but the clearing was approximately the same size, and the flames around the edges of the outer circle remained. The trees were bare and dark, almost as though they had been burned, and a wispy purple-white fog weaved in and out of everything Evan could see, but there was nowhere to hide. If there was a sun behind the clouded sky, it did not make itself apparent.
As the red portal opened, the flames disappeared. Dehaljadrun stepped back through the portal, redressing herself so that, when she reappeared to Evan, she was now wearing a very tight, short black dress. She immediately put one band of lightning around his ankle, which she knew would send a small shock of electricity through his leg if he tried to struggle, and walked over to him with a neutral expression. The relief flooding through her body from the removal of the pain allowed her to ground and gather more control over herself. When she was close enough to Evan, she grabbed some of his black hair and said, "Now, I believe you promised to say my name."
As the red portal opened, the flames disappeared. Dehaljadrun stepped back through the portal, redressing herself so that, when she reappeared to Evan, she was now wearing a very tight, short black dress. She immediately put one band of lightning around his ankle, which she knew would send a small shock of electricity through his leg if he tried to struggle, and walked over to him with a neutral expression. The relief flooding through her body from the removal of the pain allowed her to ground and gather more control over herself. When she was close enough to Evan, she grabbed some of his black hair and said, "Now, I believe you promised to say my name."
Re: Part 1
Huh. Evan had really not expected chilly, for some reason, though he supposed mist and chilly did make sense. He cast his gaze around him, assessing the surroundings. He didn't particularly like the fact that the flames still encircled him, though that was more just a visceral response than anything else; he didn't expect the flames were cutting off any options he'd actually take just then. He briefly regarded the talisman in his hand, part of him still frustrated and scared that the goddess had gotten the jump on him, and wanting to go ahead and use it-- ... however he was supposed to do that. Fuck. But, even if he could figure it out right now, he shouldn't; if the goddess took that as him backing out, that wouldn't do him any fucking good.
He swallowed and stood at attention when the portal opened again, his expression a wild mixture of irritation, fear, and excitement.
The captain instinctively tried to step back when his eyes caught the flash of the lightning band on his ankle, as though he could step out of it or avoid it altogether. The shock caught him off-guard, and he inhaled sharply as he settled back into his current footing, accepting that for now he'd be staying put. That added something else into his expression - actually, two things, as the shade of frustration it added to his eyes seemed to be accompanied by a slightly upturned grin, albeit with gritted teeth.
He kept his eyes locked with the goddess' as she approached, and his chin held high as she reached out to grab his hair. And ahhhh, yes, the name. Yeah, he had promised that, but he felt a little push-back was really deserved, all things considered.
"I'd expected to say it to you in parting, but someone got impatient."
His eyes narrowed slightly, and his grin widened just a touch, all but daring the goddess to make him.
He swallowed and stood at attention when the portal opened again, his expression a wild mixture of irritation, fear, and excitement.
The captain instinctively tried to step back when his eyes caught the flash of the lightning band on his ankle, as though he could step out of it or avoid it altogether. The shock caught him off-guard, and he inhaled sharply as he settled back into his current footing, accepting that for now he'd be staying put. That added something else into his expression - actually, two things, as the shade of frustration it added to his eyes seemed to be accompanied by a slightly upturned grin, albeit with gritted teeth.
He kept his eyes locked with the goddess' as she approached, and his chin held high as she reached out to grab his hair. And ahhhh, yes, the name. Yeah, he had promised that, but he felt a little push-back was really deserved, all things considered.
"I'd expected to say it to you in parting, but someone got impatient."
His eyes narrowed slightly, and his grin widened just a touch, all but daring the goddess to make him.
Re: Part 1
"That's what you get for having expectations," the goddess said as she pushed him, hard. Whether he actually fell over or not, she knew that his ankle binding would send a shock up his leg either way, and she relished in the thought, her eyes closing briefly as the edges of her lips curled upward slightly, before she steeled her face again.
Re: Part 1
The captain yielded to the push, not bothering to put up the resistance it would've taken to stay on his feet. Partly, he figured that shock was coming, and while he was sure he could have stood through it with enough expended effort, he wasn't keen on putting in that effort upfront right now, while he was still assessing what this was even going to look like. This way he could step back with his free foot and lower himself to the ground a little more gracefully than if he'd put up resistance and went down anyway. He landed on his ass with his arms leaning against the ground behind him. The shock had hit him in the middle of that, and his eyes certainly flinched when the pain shot up from his ankle, but this time instead of a sharp inhale he breathed smoothly through it, and let out a soft sigh as it subsided. His eyes returned to the goddess, his expression now a bit darker.
"Can I at least expect that my men are safe?" If he could shake the worry of what might have happened to Seth and Xavier while he'd been alone in this place, that'd at least be something.
"Can I at least expect that my men are safe?" If he could shake the worry of what might have happened to Seth and Xavier while he'd been alone in this place, that'd at least be something.
Re: Part 1
Dehaljadrun watched both the captain's fall and his pain with something akin to glee, and her desire for the captain rose ever further. The sounds of his breath intrigued her, and she wanted more of them.
"I fully released the affected soldier you brought with you, and the other one is free to leave. They are safe from me, at least. For now, I am thoroughly enjoying myself with my newest distraction." The goddess knelt down beside the captain and slowly ran her left index finger down his cheek...his throat...his chest...trailing all the way down to his left hip, where she dug that single nail into him but not quite enough to cause him pain.
"I fully released the affected soldier you brought with you, and the other one is free to leave. They are safe from me, at least. For now, I am thoroughly enjoying myself with my newest distraction." The goddess knelt down beside the captain and slowly ran her left index finger down his cheek...his throat...his chest...trailing all the way down to his left hip, where she dug that single nail into him but not quite enough to cause him pain.