(no subject)

[nerdeology]

Who: Sorey, Mikleo, & visitors
Broadcast: N/A
Action: On the Huntress, elsewhere as needed
When: today!


The SS Hotmess has been sans a captain or first mate for a few weeks now, and they've had some fascinating dreams of home. Suffice to say, it's reunion time.

Comments

[nerdeology]

[Being asleep - or rather, the process of waking up - has felt strange for the last several months. There's a sudden surreality to it, of how unusual it is compared to what he's used to; a new vessel, a face missing at the breakfast table, a different morning ritual. Rose always kicks them out - him and Zaveid, anyway - when she's getting ready, and she wakes up earlier than Sorey used to. Lailah's gently scolded him already for not dwelling in her enough, citing that he'll tire her out if he pushes her to expand her domain too much. Rose laughed it off, but he tried harder from then on to deal with it. It's a selfish complaint, not really a good excuse for forcing another burden their new Shepherd. It's just-

He's never liked how it doesn't feel like Sorey. The others seem to have adapted- or maybe they're better at hiding it than he is. They've probably known enough seraphim who've fallen asleep and not woken up until hundreds of years later.

He's... definitely still not used to that. Maybe he will be one day.

Zaveid had noticed; for all his flippancy he notices a lot of things. When the need arose to split the group, Zaveid had volunteered the two of them. Mikleo's expertise with ruins and seals had been a factor, of course - they're still professionals, here - but Mikleo had been so obviously itching at a chance to be a part of the expedition, for reasons other than what anyone who knew him might expect. The thought of Camlann, more importantly of Sorey being in danger had left him too panicked and distracted to be much use to anyone. Rose had some business with Alisha to deal with, so off they went. Honestly, even though Zaveid's distraction had been a welcome thing while he'd had it, and even with all the malevolence in the Elaine ruins making it hard to endure without a Shepherd's protection, it had been good to be alone for a while. His thoughts had been more clear, his goals refocused, and it... hadn't hurt as much as he'd expected, to explore a ruin without Sorey. He hasn't really deconstructed that one, but Sorey probably would've approved, even if he can't share the sentiment, yet.

And then they'd re-sealed Camlann, camped for the night, and now, here he is.

The first thing that greets his opened eyes is a familiar staff hanging elegantly on the wall, with its intricate design, the emerald accents, the feathers. He knows it instantly, as sure as he knows the circlet on his brow, a wave of confused nostalgia passing through him. He'd sealed it within himself months ago, after watching Muse sacrifice herself. It hadn't been especially powerful, but if he couldn't have his mother, he could at least carry a part of her with him. It's more than most had. But if he's carrying it, then what is it doing--

--on the wall of his--

His heart seizes, and he bolts upright, casting his gaze around the room. A bookshelf full to bursting, a desk covered with too many projects to count, scraps of fabric and scattered notes, star charts and lingering textual signs of a recent debate, a dozing pengyon in a feather basket in the corner. And finally, at his side on the bed--

Sorey. Here, right here. Sleeping, as he'd done when they last left him, when he joined with Maotelus to purify the world. There's no light, no glowing energy stretched to the ceiling, no miles and miles of distance between them. He could reach right out and touch him.

Mikleo stops breathing, his fingers clenching around the blanket beneath him. He doesn't move. He doesn't dare.]

Sorey...

[monolike]

[From one dreamlike existence to another.

So much happens in so little time; they spend months rifling through swamps, through dusty ruins, traversing the moor trying to find the rest of the gems. They learn about Mayvin, they learn about Camlann. Mikleo, gods, Mikleo used to be human, he was the last Shepherd's nephew and that- and Muse, and Sorey's own mother, what Heldalf had done...

What Michael had done.

The Age of Chaos began with the fury of a vengeful Shepherd.

It was so much to swallow and then after that, what Mayvin had demanded of him; the resolve not just to kill Heldalf to save him, but to use his friends to do it. He died, and then they'd scrambled to stop a second war, to save Rose's friends, to save Alisha from the truth of Maltran's loyalties. Tiamat, Symonne, Eizen, so much suffering, it was all so much and then-

Gramps.

Sorey's heart can barely hold everything. He feels like he'll crumble apart beneath the strain, but with Mikleo on his right and Rose on his left, with Lailah's gentle strength holding him up, with Zaveid's invigorating confidence and Edna's unyielding stubbornness, he manages to to stay on his feet until the very end. And though they have to push him into it, though he would rather tear out his own heart than do it, he uses them in the battle against Heldalf and Maotelus, and he shoves Rose back to safety, and he ends it.

Please, please let them all be okay.

So Sorey finally meets with Maotelus, a brilliant, shining light in the shape of a dragon, of all things, and as Maotelus brightens and shines and sinks into his body Sorey wonders at how young he feels, like he's not actually an ancient being who put together the world as they know it. And as he sleeps, he wonders when he'll wake up, how much will have changed, if his friends will be there when he opens his eyes. It's something to look forward to, isn't it? And Maotelus agrees wordlessly, Sorey knows it, as he succumbs to sleep.

A new adventure awaits.

And then, Sorey wakes up.

But it's not in the crater of Artorius's throne (Velvet), and it's not in his bed in Elysia. It's not anywhere he remembers, until his eyes open and he turns to see Mikleo staring down at him, eyes wide and face stricken. There's a staff on the wall just past his shoulder. A bookcase crammed with texts, Mikleo's sewing projects spilling over the desk just beyond. Has it been so long? Has he been moved? He remembers so much more, as if he'd just been dreaming while asleep; Stefan, Clay, Allen, Nightingale, a hellion, a dragon, everyone, everything- was it all a dream? Was it real?

Mikleo...he's okay. And he-]

You, [Sorey mumbles sleepily, reaching up to touch Mikleo's face, fingers tracing down his cheek,] you look the same. [Same hair, eyes, skin. So beautiful Sorey's heart aches with it, sometimes.] Has it been very long...?

[nerdeology]

[When Sorey's eyes open, Mikleo doesn't move, staring blithely for a long moment as if frozen in time, as if the words can't reach him. It's too good to be true. It's too good to be real, for he and Sorey to be here and together again so soon after they were separated, when he'd fully expected it to be years, centuries, far beyond a human's lifespan. A part of him wonders what's happening back home without Sorey, if Maotelus is alright, if their timelines are skewed the way they'd been with all the others- if Sorey is waking up and it has been centuries, and their long separation is blessedly over.

A part of him, bigger than the other, shamefully so, just does not care. Sorey lifts a hand to touch his face and all his doubt vanishes in the midst of a wave of sheer relief: he's here, he's okay, he's back. Even if this is temporary, he'll take it.

It's slow and shaky, but at last he manages to smile, tentatively reaching his own hand up to press over Sorey's.]

No... not long.

[It's amazing how three months can feel like three centuries, but the reality of it is far more cruel.]

You woke up early for once.

[At last, at last.]

W-welcome-

[That's as far as he can get; all the careful restraint he'd been forcing upon himself, all the misery and loneliness and pain he's buried since that awful, awful day- he stops fighting against it and closes the distance between them, tugging Sorey upright just enough to wrap his arms around him. That one small touch isn't enough, after months of missing him, worrying about him, glancing off to the side looking for him and finding nothing but an empty space. The familiar warmth of his domain - similar, but different from Rose - is nothing compared to the tactile warmth of his body. Too much contact used to bother him, invading his space and embarrassing him, but any hesitation he might've had is brushed aside by the memory of sitting alone on the edge of a cliff for hours and hours, watching that light crawl gently towards the sky, and wishing with all his heart and soul that he could just reach out and--

Stupid. He's so stupid.

His grip tightens, and he knows it's going to be very, very hard to let go for a while.]

[airily]

[ Waking up back on the Fleet had been interesting, to say the least.

First and foremost, Zaveid knew he had to find Eizen; the loss of someone so close to him a second time had driven something aching and painful home into his chest and he had to reach out to his friend, to embrace a moment before he lost himself completely. He didn't bother going too far in his check on Mikleo and Sorey; he woke up and they were still asleep and he had no idea what they'd know when they'd woken up, what they'd see, what they'd think. All he knew was that he was going to be there when they finally opened their eyes.

He finds Eizen and they talk and it's fine, in its own way, and he comes back and he waits.

It's been a long time since he saw Sorey, and looking at the kid's face again... It aches, somewhere deep in his gut. He can remember taking the lovely lady Alisha to see him, hearing her words, he can remember decades of being tethered to someone and it not being the same, and he can remember waking up on the Fleet and having all the bad memories come flooding back. He needs Sorey, Zaveid thinks, needs him to open his eyes, needs him to laugh and smile and say it's all going to be okay.

He can feel their bond. It's as strong as ever, and Zaveid hovers outside their door, hand against his chest, just basking in it for a moment.

They're all okay. ]

[monolike]

[The reunion with Mikleo is emotional, to say the least, but that doesn't stop Sorey from seeking out the others once he's finally gotten his bearings (Zaveid, thank goodness, he's still here and Dezel, oh gods, Dezel). In fact, he can feel Zaveid hovering just outside, probably trying to collect himself before bursting in uninvited but you know what? He has a standing invitation and Sorey isn't going to let him collect himself.

He opens the door, takes in the sight of him for all of a second before throwing his arms around Zaveid (Sorey, you helped me fulfill my promise. Thank you.) and holding onto him tight. He'd made it out of there okay, and then he proceeded to take care of Mikleo. Sorey couldn't ask for more.]

[airily]

[ There's a sweet kind of joy that comes from knowing that Sorey is back with them; he can feel it, in his chest, burning gently, a soft reminder of what it felt like to come home. His bond with Rose had been great, of course, and he loved her - just like he loved everyone in their party, and misses them fiercely - but it's not the same as the intensity he feels when he's around Sorey. His first proper Shepherd, after all, and his first real bond after everything that had gone down with the Exorcists so many years ago.

He doesn't have to wait long. His chest seems to buzz and his heart seems to clench and Sorey moves and steps out of the room, probably leaving to give Mikleo a few moments - with everything that happened after Sorey faced Maotelus... He can't blame him.

Arms are around him and Zaveid breathes out a quiet noise, wrapping his own back around the man in his arms, holding onto him with a tenderness that he can't hide, not even a little. He feels something like tears prick at his senses, but he forces them back, focussing on the relief and the happiness he feels instead. ]

Welcome back.

[nerdeology]

[Mikleo takes a little bit longer to come out- it's been less time since he'd last seen Zaveid, for one, and he'd wanted to give Sorey some space to visit the others before getting involved. He'd given himself a bit of privacy to catch up, see what they'd missed, check on the pengyon. ...He really ought to get around to naming it, actually.

It doesn't take him long to get antsy, though, particularly since separating from Sorey has gotten him anxious all over again, so soon he heads out to find other distractions, and when he spots Zaveid he heads right over without hesitation. He doesn't know what's happened on Zaveid's end, but this can't have been easy for him either.]

Hey.

[airily]

[ He's more than happy to wait for Mikleo, to see the other seraph come out and see him. They'd both been missing Sorey, after all, some more intensely than others, but he's glad to see him all the same. There's something warm and gentle in his heart, something that softens when he sees Mikleo standing there, looking at him. It's not been so long since he saw him, and that... It makes it easier.

Breathing out, he lifts his hand and ruffles Mikleo's hair quickly, offering him a sharp, cheeky grin. ]

Hi there, Meebo.

[sylphystia]

[Dezel feels it less with his heart and more on the wind. He's kept silent vigil over his friends as they slept, doing what he can (even invisibly) to keep the ship going. But in truth there isn't a whole lot he can do but wait, so he did. He kept Sora out of trouble, fixed the meals, did a lot of things that perhaps weren't that unusual at all. Yet, no one could say the ship wasn't quieter for their absence.

When he picks up stirring and movement again he knows they're awake. He waits outside in the hall for Zaveid to finish, for Sorey and Mikleo to gather themselves. He wonders if it was simply one of those random sleeps or if they'll come back different. He can't really tell from out here, and he's afraid to ask.

The realm of the living is no place for the dead. He's known that from the very beginning.]

[airily]

[ Zaveid had slept and he had woken up and he had wondered, absently, if he could take going to see Dezel again. He wanted to, of course he did, but his heart was heavy and thick with his emotions and he feels an intense moment of doubt and uncertainty, wondering what the other seraph might say, and his eyes close as he tries to consider what he's doing. The freshest memory in his mind is a gravestone and heartache and... And it's too much.

He gets around to it, though, because he misses him. It's a fierce, painful thing, and it's been a desperate, awful, painful period of time, waking up and remembering and thinking and wondering. Now he's here, and he's back, all he can do is walk over and shift close, leaning over Dezel and resting an arm around his shoulder, beaming. ]

Yo. You busy?

[sylphystia]

[Dezel looks up as Zaveid approaches, following him not with his eyes but by the sound of his footsteps, the way the wind turns around Zaveid like it caresses a bird in flight. There are cookies cooling in the kitchen, the soft clunk-clunk-clunk of the machinery inside the ship's walls. There's no indication, none at all, that something is out of the ordinary.

He breathes out a sigh, low and quiet, and then he leans right back. It's followed by the lightest elbow to Zaveid's side.]

About damn time. If you're not hiding from everyone, you're taking a hundred year nap.

[nerdeology]

[Mikleo hadn't known for certain if Dezel was still on the Huntress - it'd been too long - so once he finally manages to drag himself away from Sorey, that's another person on his shortlist to track down. It's one thing to feel Lailah's sub lord tether, connecting him to Sorey and, in turn, the other seraphim, but it's not enough.

When he finally finds who he's looking for, the relief on his expression is palatable. Thank goodness. He sure as hell isn't ready to feel that separation again, especially in light of everything else.]

Dezel...

[sylphystia]

[Dezel is still wearing the hat that Mikleo made him after his original one had been lost. It looks the same as always, just like his rumpled shirt and the lingering scent of baked sweets mixed with leather. He's relieved to see Mikleo is all right, his expression softening the tiniest bit.]

It's been a couple weeks.

[monolike]

[Yeah, Sorey really doesn't want to cry all over Dezel when he sees him, but it's still hard to contain himself. Dezel hadn't been with them back home; he'd been dead, and Sorey hadn't remembered a thing about his promise.

Dezel finds his way over eventually, and when he does Sorey is there to greet him, waiting against the wall for Dezel to show up. And he looks the same as ever, even the replica had Mikleo had made in the same place. Sorey just saw him days ago, but it's also been months, and the sting of his death is just as fresh as it was when he'd first arrived.]

...hi, [Sorey manages, though he can't hide the fact that his face looks like he's seen a ghost.] You- you looked after Mikleo's pengyon, right?

[sylphystia]

[Dezel can't see the specifics of Sorey's expression, but he's familiar enough with him to know it. It's the same face Sorey had when he met up with Dezel again. Like he's seen the dead walk.

Not too far from the mark, really.]

Hey. [As casual as ever, but he knows that Sorey only brings up the pengyon because he doesn't want to talk about obvious state of everyone being alive and Dezel being dead.] 'Course I did.

[He reaches out after a moment and sets a hand on Sorey's head, ruffles his hair a little.]

... It's all right. You don't have to make that face.

[searingedgelord]

[Velvet hadn't heard from Sorey since their initial meeting and she wasn't sure if he'd contact her again. Honestly, she wouldn't have been insulted if he hadn't. She's a daemon, after all. As long as she's not eating people, he probably doesn't have a reason to approach her.

So she is maybe a little surprised when he leaves a message for her, asking her to come to the Huntress. She complies willingly enough. She doesn't have much else to do besides hang out on the asteroids, but she's grown a little tired of that. Besides, maybe she'll run into Zaveid. She's been wanting to talk to him again.

She figures out which ship is the Huntress and shuttles over. She's still not great at docking. Her augment gives her knowledge but not talent, apparently she has to work for that.

She manages, though and then takes out her communicator to announce herself.]

Okay. I'm here.

[She feels a bit awkward, though she's trying to hide it. This is a little like coming to someone's house for the first time. Except that house is a space ship and that someone is a Shepherd.]

[nerdeology]

[Well, here goes.

He hadn't really been sure what to expect- her presence, that feeling of incredible malevolence had been overwhelming the first time, enough that he'd had to stay within Sorey in order to endure it. Now, with the battles in Camlann and days of wandering malevolence-filled ruins on his own without a Shepherd's protective domain, he's better equipped to handle her, and it shows as he steps into the docking area without so much as a stumble, though there is a momentary wince in his expression at first. He doesn't allow himself to stop. He's wanted to meet her properly ever since that day Sorey went to see her, and this is a good opportunity.

Having faced off a Lord of Calamity fueled by the power of a malevolent Maotelus... a daemon, hellion, whatever- it's not so terrible.]

You're Velvet, right? Thanks for coming.

[searingedgelord]

[She is a little surprised. This isn't who she was expecting. She tilts her head, curious. She can tell he's a malak, and he seems a little uncomfortable, but it doesn't slow him down. She has no idea who he is though.]

Yeah. Who are you?

[She's nothing if not blunt.]

[airily]

You didn't even bring a present.

[ Zaveid appears not too long after her announcement, arms crossed behind his back as he watches her. Really, he's not entirely shocked that Velvet has come looking, especially given what he knows about who she's been talking to, but all the same... All he can do is shake his head, stepping around the hallway to lift a hand in greeting.

It's still a bit awkward, being around her and knowing and trying to push it off, but he gets through it. It's not as hard as being around Eizen is, after all. ]

How's it goin', Velvet?

[searingedgelord]

[She's not really aware that Zaveid feels awkward. Though it's not like she'd go easy on him even if she did. She huffs when he appears, crossing her arms and giving him a flat look.]

Maybe if you're good I'll buy you a pet rock next time I'm on one of those asteroids. Where have you been?

[sylphystia]

[Velvet ought to be accustomed to the sensation of being watched considering she sticks out like a sore thumb among humans and daemons-- and yet, this is different. Someone is following her. Dezel doesn't make a sound, but the signs are there: the way the wind brushes her shoulder in a place devoid of natural air, as if testing her, and of course... the unmistakable feeling of a malak in her domain.

She was invited, that much is obvious, but that doesn't mean Dezel likes having that kind of malevolence on his ship. He's not about to trust someone who looks like one thing and feels like another.]

[rockily]

[ It wasn't that he had been keeping an eye on them (he was), waiting for the Shepherd to wake from his sudden slumber, it had been pure coincidence that he happened to visit the Huntress the same day they woke. Eizen doesn't bother to ask when it happens, he feels a slight shift in the ship as a whole, the domain that encompasses it, and simply knows.

Briefly he thinks about going to find them but quickly decides against it, if their sleep was anything like Zaveid's they'd have some things to catch up on and he isn't so cruel as to insert himself into the middle of it. Instead Eizen waits patiently, taking up position on one of the Huntress' hallways, for seraphs and Shepherd to have their reunions.

He doesn't need to see the Shepherd now, he can wait a while. ]

[monolike]

[The reunions are messy and filled with tears and desperate hugs, but as necessary as Eizen assumes and Sorey drinks in their company like a man starved. Mikleo, Zaveid, Dezel... Mikleo and Zaveid more for their benefit than his, because they'd gone without him as he slept and though he was terrified for them he'd seen them safely escape, knew that they would be alive when he woke. Dezel had been harder to pull away from; Sorey clung tight to the thread that connected them when they'd finally parted, reassuring himself of his presence.

Now to turn his attention elsewhere. It was kind of him to wait; Sorey had felt Eizen enter his domain the moment he'd docked. Eizen is an old, powerful seraph, with a curiously dark domain of his own; though Sorey had never felt it before he can feel the echoes of earth inside of it. Edna isn't here so that leaves only one explanation.]

Coming? [he asks Mikleo lightly, to which he receives a flat look before Mikleo disappears inside of him and they head out to finally meet the man who was- is Edna's brother. The man they'd helped Zaveid kill.]

[airily]

[ Zaveid doesn't exactly feel when Eizen appears, but there's... Something. Something different about the Huntress, and it's not just that Sorey and Mikleo are back - he knows when Eizen is around. He recognises the other man better than anyone in the world, and there's no point playing off that he hadn't noticed him. Eizen'll bring it up and then Zaveid will be in no end of trouble - it'll never come to an end.

So, he grabs the coat, wraps it in a blanket and makes his way out of his room.

It's almost funny to see him hanging around in a hallway, and when he does all Zaveid can do is laugh, tilting his head. ]

Look a little lost.

[sylphystia]

[Eizen might not be able to see Dezel from where he's sitting, but he can surely feel someone staring. And judging. After the excitement of everyone waking up, it's probably not a surprise that Zaveid's former companion (and Edna's brother, he reminds himself) has come knocking.

Dezel still remembers what he said, though, about not trusting Sorey and the others. And that means Dezel can't afford to trust him, either.

Though the true test of Eizen's morality is probably whether he swipes cookies off the kitchen counter or not.]