Written Wonderland

Though her feet still held stride the way they had during the trek to the Shel’ti, Mizu was thoroughly off balance. No, it really should not have surprised her that Evan would go running off to magic means the second she turned her back on him. It really, really shouldn’t have. I mean, he did kneel in front of me while talking about this “goddess.” That should have been a big red flag. But, the truth was, she had trusted Evan, does trust Evan, if she’s being honest, even though she had plenty of examples of why she shouldn’t. Maybe it was the incredibly frustrating and uncanny way that many of his risky plans worked to some degree, though they inevitably created a mess for Mizu to clean up. She wondered how big this one would be.

It probably did not help that she could practically feel Blake fuming beside her. Mizu knew that, if she were not careful, she would start agreeing with Blake, and in the event that Evan did make it back somehow, Mizu didn’t want to cause some sort of schism within her own army. That was the last thing they needed.

Mizu ran through what Xavier had told her again, trying to decipher the boy’s all-too-fast speech yet again. If their men wouldn’t be attacked anymore, that was good, but did she trust that that had really happened? And even if it had, did it mean there was some way to help the Shel’ti?

Finally, before the final approach to the crone’s house, Mizu decided there was no reason to continue to spin up on this before she had more information.

Crossing into the meadow, Mizu saw an enormous circular burn mark, and though something about it made her want to avoid it altogether, she stubbornly walked over the line without ceremony and immediately felt an intense, electric shiver down her spine, but she stifled it completely so it did not show. It happened again when she stepped over the line once more, but it was less potent this time, and whether or not that was related to the fact that Mizu expected it, she did not know. Regardless, Mizu continued without displaying any perturbance and knocked on the crone’s door. 

The old woman answered the door, having recently changed out of her priestess robes and into her more disheveled attire, but her long, gray hair was still tied up as it was for the summoning, and she hadn’t removed the dark lines around her lids.

At first, the crone was briefly surprised, but her expression quickly settled to a knowing glance.

“Ah, come in, then. I’m supposing you have questions.” Before Mizu could say anything, the crone moved out of the way of the doorway and gestured for the two of them to come inside.

There was very little space around the old table in the cottage, but before long, Mizu uncovered a seat and looked at Blake as though expecting her to follow suit, and the crone deposited a thick, wooden mug full of something steaming in front of each of the two women. When Mizu looked at it with very slight skepticism, the crone said simply, “it’s lavender and chrysanthemum tea. The flowers grow wild around here.”

Mizu lightly sniffed the tea and decided to have a small sip, figuring a little of the substance would not hurt, and those were ingredients she had at least heard of before. Besides, a little gratitude might go a long way in this conversation. It did, indeed, taste a little flowery.

After putting the mug down, Mizu decided to get to the point. “Several of my men were here for your summoning. Where’s Evan gone?”

The crone took a moment to answer, finding her own seat at the table. “He’s with the goddess still. Will likely be there until the very early morning.” Mizu thought, well, at least the information we’re getting is matching up.

“But he’ll make it back?” Mizu asked, far more out of desire to slap the shit out of him currently than wanting to guarantee his safety.

“Since Evan has agreed to unbind the goddess, I very much doubt she will enthrall him, but there is always a chance he simply will not be able to withstand her.” Mizu looked unwaveringly at the crone before putting her fingers to her forehead.

“Wait, what do you mean ‘unbind the goddess’?” She remembered Xavier saying something about that, but it hadn’t been clear.

The crone looked questioningly at Mizu before smiling slightly. “Don’t tell me your men did this without consulting you.” The crone shook her head, and Mizu could not tell if it was out of disappointment in her or in Evan. She decided she did not care, though Mizu had to pause to rein in all the snarky thoughts that initially came to mind. The crone carried on without waiting. 

“Evan agreed to visit the underworld to release the bindings that prevent her from travelling to this world and other realms.”

“And in exchange, she’s not going to attack our soldiers anymore, right? What about the Shel’ti?”

“Evan told her she could keep the Shel’ti men. He did not seem concerned about them.” Mizu took in this new information, and some core part of her burned and fumed redder and hotter. Rather than address that, she pressed forward. 

“If this goddess is causing all these problems while she’s bound, why does anyone think it’s a good idea to set her free?” Mizu wanted to question the existence of the goddess altogether, but between Evan’s genuine disappearance and figuring it would not be polite timing to mock the crone’s beliefs, she decided against it.

“After the king’s dead, she has more interest in the upper realms, so I don’t anticipate any more than some minor chaos before she departs.” Mizu’s patience was waning quickly. Maybe it was time to start pushing back.

“I don’t mean any disrespect,” Mizu said unconvincingly, “but I don’t know how you expect me to believe any of that.”

The crone reached for her mug of tea and sipped from it before raising her eyes to meet Mizu’s again. “Without speaking to the goddess directly, I don’t expect you to know or understand her motives.” Mizu’s eyes narrowed, and she had the distinct impression that the crone was talking down to her, which she did not in the least appreciate. Rather than lash out at the old woman, though, Mizu attempted to shift the conversation to her initial purpose. 

“The Shel’ti have only agreed to grant us reinforcements if we determine how to stop the attacks, and I would like to cover our bases by finding some kind of a cure for the men who are currently affected. The charms seem to work well enough, but…”

“Those charms make it easier for her to invade a body, even if they prevent the incoherency afterward. They are not going to solve the Shel’ti’s problems.” Mizu could not help a sliver of disappointment from crossing over her face. Should she tell everyone to take the charms off? Was it still worth the soldiers’ false hope? She didn’t have time to think about that; she would need to process it later. The crone continued shortly after her statement. “Supposing you still want the reinforcements, your best option at this point is to get Evan to work as your mouthpiece to the goddess. Perhaps there is something further you can offer her that will make her ease up on the Shel’ti.”

The idea of negotiating through Evan was horrifying, but Mizu didn’t really see any other choices.

“So we just have to wait until Evan returns?” Mizu said with slight frustration in her voice.

“I’m afraid so.”

Mizu couldn’t believe she was saying this, but, “Would it be possible to do another summoning so we could talk to her?”

“No,” the crone said simply. Then, seeing Mizu cock her eyebrow, the crone added, “I’m not sure she would even respond to a summons while she is… distracted with Evan.”

Though she was certain she didn’t want to know the answer, Mizu found herself asking, “What is she doing to him?”

The crone smiled a little bit as she replied, “Whatever she wants.” Mizu pursed her lips, but some part of her hoped he was receiving all the retribution he deserved. She let out a short sigh before turning to Blake.

“Wait outside for me for a few minutes.”

Blake was indeed fuming as she walked alongside her commander, in her usual understated yet potent way. She paused when they entered the clearing, the whole scene admittedly somewhat unsettling to her. She followed after Mizu shortly, though when they reached the inner circle, Blake went around, and was admittedly unnerved by Mizu’s decision to walk through it. She made no indication, though, and sped up her stride to compensate for her slightly less linear approach.

The captain’s eyes narrowed just slightly as they fell upon the crone. She felt decidedly awkward in the cabin, but followed Mizu’s lead and found a place to sit. She also regarded the tea skeptically, but felt obligated to take a sip. She certainly didn’t dislike tea, and didn’t even feel particularly paranoid about what was in it, just… was in a bristly mood, to say the least, and in a somewhat constant battle with herself over manners here. As much as she disapproved of what had transpired under the woman’s guidance, being rude over it would be childish. Ughhh.

And that was before conversation started in earnest.

Blake’s hands gripped tightly at the mug in front of her, nearly trembling when the crone asked whether Mizu had been consulted in a tone the captain didn’t much care for. Maybe she was just projecting, but then again, no, she was pretty damn convinced the crone knew full well that’d be a sore spot and chose to say something anyway rather than just continue on. Oh, Blake did not like her at all. Especially not when she started pretty fucking explicitly, as far as Blake was concerned, talking down to Mizu. The captain was managing to keep her anger purely in the grasp of her hands and the glare in her eyes, but gods she could feel it all throughout her body. She could at least understand the way that Evan would go for runs to burn off steam, but Blake disapproved of showcasing his emotions like that; she’d find her own way to decompress in private, later.

Or, maybe sooner. Just as conversation was getting nearly unbearable for Blake - why, gods why did Mizu inquire about what the goddess was doing with Evan??? - Mizu dismissed her, and Blake had to admit she was pretty fucking deeply relieved. The captain finally released her grip on her mug and pushed herself to her feet, before giving Mizu a brief bow and slipping outside, merely sparing the crone a brief glance along the way.

Once the door shut behind her she let out a sigh of relief, though her attention settling back onto the circles in the clearing made her bristle again. She walked around to the side of the cabin and sat down with her back against it and her attention aimed out into the woods, although shortly after she settled in she let her eyes slide shut and began focusing on her breathing, deciding to take this opportunity to try to expel some of her own pent-up angst about the situation.

Mizu waited until Blake left and tried not to regret her decision as she gathered her thoughts. Engaging with the crone's superstition at this point did not seem intelligent, but Mizu at least wanted the crone's answers, mystic though they were going to be, and she didn't trust herself to take the crone even remotely seriously with Blake in earshot. 

Still, she couldn't believe she was about to ask this. "How did you know my full name?"

The crone looked at Mizu and smiled, stalling for a moment before answering. 

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." 

"Try me," Mizu said as lightly as she could through gritted teeth. The crone looked away from Mizu toward one of the many hand-drawn charts hanging up on back wall. Though there was no way the crone could see the small writing from where she was sitting, it jogged her memory regardless. 

"You've already been written into history." 

"What do you mean?" 

"I know who you are and where you've come from. I know what you've done and what you will do. I know the full circle of your past and your future. It has already been written into history." 

"And your goddess tells you that?" Mizu asked, her voice heavy with disbelief. 

"She gives me the pieces sometimes, yes. But the pattern is there regardless." 

"So it's done and decided, then? All of it?" Mizu had never appreciated fatalistic ideals and wasn't about to start accepting them now. 

"With new information, the pattern will rearrange itself and become what was there all along." 

"You're not making any sense." 

"I never expected you to believe me." Frustrated that the crone seemed to be proving herself right by Mizu's skepticism, she stood up from the table and stared at the crone. 

"I'm coming back if Evan does not return by tomorrow," Mizu said pointedly.

"Do what you will, but he has the ability to return on his own, and I have no power over what she does to him since one of the men crossed the line. That was a risk he was aware of and took anyway." Goddamnit, Evan. Of course he did. Mizu was at a loss regarding what to say and so reverted to her mannered behavior, giving the crone a nod at the very least before taking her leave from the cabin, beckoning Blake, and crossing once more over the ritual circle to head back toward camp and dilemmas she still had control over.