Hear those bells ring deep in the soul
Chiming away for a moment
Chiming away for a moment
There's a reason. Fear grips Koa's heart, cold fingers squeezing cruelly as possibilities plague his mind. Is Anju lost, too? Is Everest? He hasn't seen Mateo, or Anna, or anyone, and then there's his family... He swallows back the rising bile, clenches his jaw against his fears. It isn't time for all of that. He has a job to do.
Zavien might be ready to settle down with a plate of food, but Koa continues to pace like a hunted thing, pressure rising steadily in his stomach and throat as the other two talk. He doesn't know how to tell them the truth - not without revealing his part, his failures, the gaping wound of inadequacy that threatens to swallow him whole. It's only when Zavien talks about storming the tower that Koa finally snaps, spinning sharply on his heel to face the other two.
"No." His hands hit the table, punctuating his word, shockingly sharp for the good-natured Dragoon. He can feel his pulse pounding in his ears, but it's too late to regain his cool. "If they storm the tower, they'll die. They're too strong."
Wild eyed with the floodgates open, Koa continues to speak. "Sohalia didn't leave- she was taken, snatched by a man. By one of them." He looks between them, knuckles white on the tabletop. "I was there. I-- I tried to stop him, but---" Voice cracking, Koa looks away. "I couldn't. He was so fucking fast, and I tried, I swear on Mort's name I tried, but then I was gone, stuck in the wilds for weeks while Soh---"
He shoves off the table, turning away. He's shaking, hands clenched into painful fists, copper eyes gleaming with rage and shame. "She's gone," he whispers, not caring if they can hear. "But she didn't abandon Stormbreak. She would never do such a thing."
Zavien might be ready to settle down with a plate of food, but Koa continues to pace like a hunted thing, pressure rising steadily in his stomach and throat as the other two talk. He doesn't know how to tell them the truth - not without revealing his part, his failures, the gaping wound of inadequacy that threatens to swallow him whole. It's only when Zavien talks about storming the tower that Koa finally snaps, spinning sharply on his heel to face the other two.
"No." His hands hit the table, punctuating his word, shockingly sharp for the good-natured Dragoon. He can feel his pulse pounding in his ears, but it's too late to regain his cool. "If they storm the tower, they'll die. They're too strong."
Wild eyed with the floodgates open, Koa continues to speak. "Sohalia didn't leave- she was taken, snatched by a man. By one of them." He looks between them, knuckles white on the tabletop. "I was there. I-- I tried to stop him, but---" Voice cracking, Koa looks away. "I couldn't. He was so fucking fast, and I tried, I swear on Mort's name I tried, but then I was gone, stuck in the wilds for weeks while Soh---"
He shoves off the table, turning away. He's shaking, hands clenched into painful fists, copper eyes gleaming with rage and shame. "She's gone," he whispers, not caring if they can hear. "But she didn't abandon Stormbreak. She would never do such a thing."
Koa Carpenter
Feel your breath course frankly below
And see life as a worthy opponent
And see life as a worthy opponent
