driftfleet | In like a Tourist, out like a lamb

[Fenris notices the twitch. He doesn't press it, he's seen what it can do first hand. It was terrible, merciless. ]

Hm. We had to time travel into the future just to arrive back onto solid ground again. By then, the land was living under a nuclear winter. Nothing grew there. It was...awful.

_{[ He nodded. ]}

A long time ago in Earth's history, there was a place called Chernobyl. It had a nuclear power plant, but it exploded. It was only recently in my era that it had been deemed capable of safely supporting life, but so much of the flora and fauna were mutated that it's been left alone.

_{[ Or so he had read, but it was one of those things used as a horror
story in his time, a reminder of the failures of their ancestors in the
past. ]}

It's not all bad though. My ship ran on nuclear energy. I'm willing to bet these ships run on something similar. Normal methods of fueling just can't sustain a ship during space travel.

I see. It seems Earth's troubles are never quite over.

That would not surprise me. Though I admit, I have no desire to go poking about in the engines to find out.

Yeah, I'm not to eager to go poking around myself. Last time didn't work out so well for me. Luckily, I kept all my hair.

_{[ He smiled and ran a hand through those fluffy gold locks of his.
]}

So, mind if I ask what has you up so late?

_{[ Since they've run into each other so often, he had become curious,
but never asked before. Fenris had always seemed to want his solitude and
Kirk was happy to oblige. But since the other had started talking to him...
]}

[Good for you, dude. Fenris doesn't look that impressed.

Still, Kirk had asked, and Fenris is not one to hide his past from anyone. He exhales, looking down at the markings weaving across his arms. ]

Nightmares. Mostly of getting my markings. The pain of them lingers and only gets worse when the memory of getting them is brought back to the forefront.

_{[ Ah. He had wondered about the marks, curious as to their purpose,
though from that explanation he determined they weren't marks of pride or
culture. You didn't have nightmares about something you were proud of
getting, after all. At the same time he felt a flowering of comradery with
the other. Nightmares were no easy thing, as he had found. ]}

How did you get them? I can't imagine it was willingly or pleasantly if they cause you nightmares.

_{[ He tries to put some understanding his voice, at least in the
understanding that some shadows you could never quite cast off. ]}

[When Fenris speaks, it's with a flat, matter-of-fact tone. There's anger, flowing underneath it all, but it's not aimed at Kirk. ]

They are made of lyrium. It is a...magical substance in our world, very dangerous but very powerful. My former master had them burned into my skin in order to make a living weapon.

[There's a pause, then with no small degree of bitterness: ]

I lost my memory of my life before then in the process, but I am told I fought for them in order to free my mother and sister.

_{[ He listens quietly, letting Fenris get it out in his own time. The
story horrifies him, wondering how it is that people can do such cruel
things to each other. Worse that Fenris had suffered consequences beyond
just becoming a weapon. It explained some of his surliness. Kirk wasn't
sure if he could have kept up being an optimist after all of that.}

_{He fights the urge to say 'I'm sorry'. It was the sort of response one
might expect, but it was a platitude he did not think the other would
appreciate. He certainly had not when he had died and during his recovery.
He hated those words more than anything now, especially when no one had
anything to be sorry for but him. No, sorry wasn't the right word, the
right concept to encompass what it was Fenris deserved for suffering that.
]}

Did you get your justice?

[Kirk would be right in that. People saying they were sorry tended to set him off. Like they had any idea what he'd been through. It was a wise choice on his part. ]

Yes. It was some time after my escape, but he eventually tracked me down.

[Evenly: because in his mind it was absolutely deserved. It was a job that had to be done, like beating in the head of an animal gone rabid. ]

I tore out his throat with the very power he forced upon me.

_{[ That was a harsh justice, but he wasn't in a position to argue it. He had felt the need for the same kind when Khan had killed Pike. He was glad he had not. He did not want that on his soul, he had enough guilt and shadows twisting around him as it was. ]}

I hope it brought you some measure of peace, then.

_{[ He didn't precisely agree with it, true, but maybe he would have if he wore the brands. ]}

[Fenris has far too much blood on his hands to notice any more. The Maker will have to take him as he is, or not at all. ]

It freed me from being hunted any more, but a measure of peace would be asking too much. That is something I can never truly attain, and I have come to accept that.

[Danarius made a monster, and a monster he will stay. One that had learned how to play nice on occasion, but dangerous killer all the same. ]

_{[ Well, that was a bit pessimistic, wasn't it? But he figured he had
pressed the other enough for one night, and he didn't want to unsettle
whatever deeper understanding they might have just gained of each other.
]}

Then I'm at least glad you got justice.

[Wise move, on his part. ]

Yes. There is that, at least. I can only hope with his death, it means what happened to me cannot happen to anyone else, that his research died with him.

Sounds like you got more than justice, you did your world a service. Someone like that shouldn't be allowed to roam free and carry on.

_{[ He didn't say dead, per say, but he agreed that he could not abide
someone like that simply doing as they pleased. Though Fenris had as much
admitted for doing what he did for selfish reasons, he could get behind the
wider ranging effects of his actions. ]}

[It was absolutely for selfish reasons. Danarius was a monster who needed to be put down. He was doing what had to be done, in his mind. ]

My home country is full of men like him. It would be better for everyone if the entirety of Tevinter were razed off the map.

_{[ Well that seemed a bit extreme to him. He didn't think you should
judge an entire race off once person's actions, but something in his gut
told him that would be a loosing battle, and Fenris was not someone he
wanted to be on the entirely bad side of if he could help it in the long
run. ]}

I'll have to trust your opinion on that, never having been to your world. But at the least your country is now down one man of that sort.

_{[ It was the most he could make himself agree to aloud. ]}

[Dorian was...good. Fenris will admit that much. They had a tumultuous relationship here, but even he would admit Dorian was a good thing to come out of Tevinter. Quite possibly the only good thing. And now he was likely throwing himself into that viper pit once more, like the fool he is. ]

That is one thing we can be glad for, yes.

_{[ Well, he'd have good company in the fool department. Kirk had something of a reputation for that, doing the fool thing when another path might have been easier and within regulations (to say the least).

For a brief moment there was quiet, because there didn't seem any good way to move down this particular conversation path. So, time for a change of subject. ]}

You know, we're both security officers. We should train together from time to time. I'm sure there's things we can teach each other, and never hurts to keep our skills sharp.

[A long time ago, back in Thedas, Fenris would have declined such an offer, refusing to train with anyone but himself. But after his time in Exsilium, he has learned the important of training with others, sharing skills, leaning from one another. ]

I could use to learn a little more about gun use. I am more used to using a sword than the weapons we are given as part of our job here.

_{[ He nodded. ]}

I can do that. We use phasers where I'm from, a type of gun, if small, but powerful. So, I trade gun knowledge in return for a hand-to-hand sparring partner?

_{[ He raised his brows, offer on the table. ]}

I think that's a fair trade.

[Oh look, he's almost smiling. ]

It's a deal then.

_{[ He held out his hand to seal it with a shake. ]}

I don't have anything slated for tomorrow... or any day really, so whenever you're free we can get together for that first weapons lesson.

[He inclines his head in agreement to that. ]

That would be agreeable, my day is free also.

Excellent. Then I'll... see you in the morning?

_{[ He squinted at the clock, reading the digits and chuffing. ]}

Okay, more like later today.

[There's a huff of laughter as he starts towards the door. ]

Yes. Good luck, I hope you get some rest.

(no subject)

universal_charm - 2016-04-05 05:42 (UTC) - Expand