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i'd rather you not be here for this - Ronin - 12-02-2024
It's ironic, though Ronin doesn't yet know why, that he's just recently returned from the Greatwood after his meeting with Deimos and Remi. Sleep doesn't come as easily as it should, and he rises early to go for a run, as is his custom at Leafchange. Returning having burned off far too little of the pent up energy that electrifies his bones and dulls common sense, the Knight nonetheless showers, puts on a pot of coffee, and heads out to survey the early morning as it cascades golden light across Torchline's shores.
His mind ticks over various plans and possibilities; how they get Sunjata to Halo's hotsprings; what they might do about the void now that the infection has been cleared from formerly ruined regions; how to talk to Flora about her recent choicees and their political implications. You know what he isn't thinking about, though? Death.
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Remi - 12-02-2024
As a demigod of Mort's Remi is rarely not thinking about death, but it's safe to say that as he reels in a fish from one of the three rods set up on the back of the Northaven, he's certainly not thinking about Flora's death.
Heyyyyyyyyyyy, it's me. Good news bad news type of situation. The bad news is that I died...obviously. So did Jack. The good news is that if you and Ronin bring us both back, I'll forgive the pair of you being jackasses lately. And considering that it was your stupid death sword that killed us, I feel like you owe me. We're in the Eyes of Vi in the Greatwood, so uh, maybe leave now?
Like right now would be good.
Also, now that I'm dead, I can totally see and hear what you and Ronin are doing, so keep that in mind.
The rod clatters from Remi's fingers as the Bastion immediately heads for the sliding door. No doubt Ronin will feel panic and surprise flaring in equal portions through the bond before Remi is calling out for him, his voice tight. [say]"Ronin--"[/say] Glancing around and wondering what, if anything they'd need before they depart, the Bastion's jaw feathers as he gives his head a stiff shake.
[say]"We have to go now. Flora..."[/say] Though the Knight can bring her back, the words feel impossible to say.
Aoife had died.
Enzo had died.
Flora had died.
[say]"We have to get to the Greatwood. Now."[/say]
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Ronin - 12-02-2024
Feeling his husband's presence even before the sliding door opens, Ronin is half turned towards Remi, dragonscale glittering down his throat and across his bare shoulders. Flora is all he needs to hear paired with the panic that thunders down the bond from his husband, and with a brief shrug of his shoulders - and no thought at all to what they might need to bring with them - the Knight's wings spread wide.
[say]"You can tell me the details on the way,"[/say] he says quickly, drawing close enough to Remi to lean in and press a brief kiss to his forehead that's as much to ground him as it is for the other man.
[say]"Let's go."[/say] Already turning to hoist himself onto the railing of the Northaven, it's with a powerful jump into the air and a swift beat of his wings that Ronin gets himself aloft, spearing up and up until he finds a thermal to catch, then turning to propel himself inland to fly towards the woods in question.
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Remi - 12-02-2024
Unable to do little more that nod, Remi fights against the tension that builds across his shoulders as he watches his husband unfurl his wings. Not the best mathematician in the most optimal of scenarios, nevertheless he huffs out a quiet breath as Ronin's lips press against his forehead. However far it is and however fast they can fly, it needs to be enough. Following the Knight out of the Houseboat without bothering to lock up behind them, Remi leaps off of the railing, his own wings spreading to catch the warm thermals rising off of the ocean.
[say]She said they're in the Eyes of Vi.[/say] Remi thinks, already pouring on the speed such that he had no capacity for speech given the way he was dragging air into his lungs and then forcing it out again. [say]She and Jack, she said..[/say] The flicker of annoyance and fury freezes, the bond between them suddenly growing taut as if being stretched too hard from both ends. [say]...she said whoever did this had the rapier. That he killed them both with it.[/say] Gods it wasn't what Ronin would want to hear, not when it came to his daughter and certainly not during Leafchange, but nor was Remi willing to let his husband fly into a situation unwares.
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Ronin - 12-02-2024
It absolutely isn't what Ronin wants to hear, and the burst of harsh and radiant light from his body will make him seem as though a shooting star is crossing the sky at mid-morning, such is its glare. [say]The Eyes of Vi,[/say] he manages to grate down along the bond, having to reduce the information down to the bare facts; emotions will waste his energy right now, and Ronin has to be fast - faster, perhaps, than he has been in a very long time.
So he condenses the situation into location, people, circumstance and potential dangers, and then leaves it at that. Even so, it's with the majority of his torso flecked with pale dragonscale and his hands warped into claws that he pushes his already considerable agility to its limits, offering little more than a pulse of apology to Remi if it should take him beyond his husband in terms of their arrival.
With his lungs and muscles burning, the Knight races the sun across the sky, and no sooner does he see the spray of amber and gold that heralds the Greatwood in the distance, he turns to swoop lower, fully intending to fly through the trees - to carve through them if necessary. Already his mind screams the location he needs and the necessity of getting there urgently, and so help him, if the forest plays games today, Ronin will set the whole thing ablaze.
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Remi - 12-02-2024
Ronin is as beautiful when he is angry as he has ever been when charming, though precious few have lived to see that side of him and fewer still who'd likely agree with Remi on that point. Even so, what little air Remi has to offer is stolen by the fierceness with which his husband acts.
Given that Ronin has always been the faster of the two, though the Bastion pushes himself to keep pace, no part of him ever believes himself capable of matching the Knight. Instead he just silently offers reassurances that he'll catch up. [say]Flora said from where she is that she can see us, so...if we go off track, I will let you know.[/say]
Having ensured that his revivify feather was with him, and of course having no knowledge about the one on Jack's person, that fact that he even debates whether or not to use it on Flora's beau likely says more than it does about Remi than Jack. Then again, as Mort's demigod, it really isn't his place to be bringing people back. [say]We....I suppose we can't just leave Jack, can we?[/say]
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Ronin - 12-02-2024
[say]Appreciate it,[/say] Ronin says, and though even his mental voice is necessarily clipped given the circumstances, he does his best to pulse warmth and affection back through the bond to Remi. Descending lower until he can clip his way through the trees, swerving and tilting on the wing, the Knight does slow down somewhat - but not much.
[say]Who would know,[/say] he almost whispers back to his husband as he goes, his thoughts uncharacteristically dark and selfish despite his position as a literal demigod of life. Leafchange is renowned for bringing out the worst in him, and whilst he (probably) wouldn't really leave Jack pale and broken for the crows, the man had died and so had his daughter, and he'll correlate those two pieces of information in whatever unfavourable light he deems fit.
As the first of the strange and glassy surfaces appear in his periphery, Ronin's wings flare enough to take him to the ground, where his feet are ready to catch him in a run. [say]"Am I close?"[/say] he calls out, trusting his husband to respond either mentally or out loud.
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Remi - 12-02-2024
[say]"Flora, can you see Ronin? Can you see me?"[/say] Remi calls, still a touch breathless despite having considerably slowed his pace. Flying overhead and away from Ronin in order to cover more ground, he'd have to hope that Flora wasn't just teasing him by saying she could see and hear him from wherever she currently was.
[say]Mort, if you can hear me...don't take her. We're coming.[/say] Jack, he could have. In agreement with all his husband hadn't said, Remi decided they'd cross that bridge when they came to it. Who knew, perhaps Mort would have claimed the good captain by now, or perhaps his body would have been pulled away by wolves.
I see you! I see you! Down, to your left; Flora's voice was far softer than it had been hours ago, and whether or not that meant something or not, Remi wasn't willing to waste time trying to figure it out. [say]"RONIN—this way."[/say] Diving down without concern at all for how the trees tried to ensnare him, not unlike his husband, the Bastion would have bulldozed the entire area if that's what it took.
Despite having encountered death more than anyone else in his tenure as Ludo's demigod, seeing his daughter's body crumpled against Jack's with her lifeless arms wrapped around him had a strangled moan leaving Remi's lips as he dove swiftly toward the pair.
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Ronin - 12-02-2024
Dismissing his wings that he might move more swiftly through the woods on two feet, it's a miracle that Ronin hasn't resorted to his luxere shift to get the job done - only the focus on his husband's voice and directions keep him tethered to his humanity. [say]"I'm with you--"[/say] he calls out, heedless of how his fingers have grown numb or how he can taste copper from how horrifically dry his throat has become.
He races after the flash of tawny wings and the crackle of emotion Remi sends his way, but good gods as he finally comes across their daughter, it's near enough to trip him and send him sprawling. [say]"Remi--"[/say] he rasps out, for no other reason than because he's at risk of running headlong into the other man. Forcing already cramping legs to slow their steps, Ronin skids beside Flora to avoid the Bastion mid-dive, already dragging - snatching, not reaching - for the golden tether of his most elusive magic.
Not knowing what he'd have done if he'd not been able to locate the shining thread of Flora's lifeline, the fact that he does has a breath shuddering from his chest, Ronin reuniting body and soul and this time - gods, this time - managing to weave his daughter back to life.
Magic: Second Chance | Twice per IC year, Ronin may bring a character back from the dead, provided the ability is used within 24 hours of the character’s death (measured both in site time and real time).
Type: Light | Rank: Upgraded
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Flora - 12-02-2024
The world had narrowed to just her and Jack. Flora could feel the life slipping away from him, her heart splintering with every second that passed. She held him close, her hands pressed against his wound, her tears mixing with his blood, staining everything in a shade of red that would forever haunt her dreams. Despite the way it felt like an ending, Flora knew it wasn't. Knew she could fix this—could bring Jack back. But Pierce had other plans. The glint of his blade, the cold indifference in his eyes—it all blurred together as Flora's world teetered on the edge of oblivion. She thought he would leave, that she would be able to depress her compass and return back to Torchline. But then the blade found her, slipping through flesh and bone with a terrible finality.
In those last few moments, her thoughts scattered like fallen leaves on a Leafchange breeze. She thought of Jack, of his pirate's smile and the way his eyes crinkled when he let himself laugh, of the spray of flowers on his arm and how the last word he'd ever said to her was love. She thought of Torchline, of the golden beaches and the nights spent beneath an endless blanket of stars. She thought of Mateo who now she might only see on special occasions, and of Enzo who'd she'd be reunited with much sooner than expected. She felt herself slipping, the edges of her consciousness unraveling like a thread pulled loose from a seam, too frayed to be of any use to anyone.
And then, darkness.
When Flora opened her eyes again, it felt like coming up for air after being underwater too long—her chest aching, her body weak, the world around her hazy and unfamiliar. Her limbs felt leaden, her head pounding with every heartbeat. She blinked, her vision swimming as she tried to understand, tried to remember where she was and why her shoulder hurt so badly.
Jack. The thought struck her like a lightning bolt, and she willed herself to move, managing only a slow turn of her head as her fingers trembled, able to make out only the strange shape of Ronin above her. She could still feel the warmth of the captain in her arms, the weight of him as he collapsed, the silence that followed. It was all still there, in the corners of her mind, like a place she could walk through if she dared to close her eyes; a house with shattered windows and doors left open, the wind howling through the empty spaces. Jack's presence was there, lingering, like a shadow that refused to fade. She could almost see him, standing in the doorway of her thoughts, a part of her that was lost but not entirely gone. She wanted to reach out, to find him in the echoes of her mind, but everything was too fractured, too broken.
With every ounce of strength she had left, Flora took a shaky breath, her gaze unfocused as she tried to hold onto that single thought—[say]"—Jack—"[/say]
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Remi - 12-02-2024
Stretching out a hand for Ronin, Remi is already gingerly peeling Flora away from Jack. The blood between them—and gods but there was so much of it—had nearly glued their clothing together, with Flora's hair having grown so matted that he could hardly see the fatal wound her golden curls were covering. [say]"Hurry."[/say] Having no idea how long they'd been flying for, all the Bastion could do was hold his breath and cling tenderly to the bond between he and his husband in order to deduce what was going on without interrupting the Knight.
He could feel as if it was his own hands the way that Ronin reached out for the thin strand of gold, tugging at it as if it was no stronger than gossamer. Only as he felt that thread pulse with a heartbeat that was still far too faint, did the Bastion release the breath he'd been holding, reaching out a hand to tightly clasp his husband's arm. [say]"Gods I love you,"[/say] he pants, having to quickly sip in another breath, and then another.
Watching their daughter stir, Remi immediately leans forward, reaching out to brush the back of his fingers against her cheek. [say]"You're okay Flora, we're here."[/say] That her first word was Jack said about as much as the Bastion needed to hear on the subject of whether or not he was obligated to bring the captain back to life as well. Glancing up as if expecting to see Vai peering through whatever pathway to Mort's realm that Ronin had reached through, her hands on her hips and a brow pointedly arched, Remi sighs softly as he looks to Ronin. [say]She said she would forgive us,[/say] he thinks. Given that Flora had been able to see them from above when she'd still been dead, it stood to reason that Jack could as well, and the last thing Remi needed was to have his final moments waffling about bringing the captain back to life used against him.
Reaching into his pocket Remi pulls out a crimson feather gilded in gold. The longer it remained in the light the more it seemed to shine and shimmer, until it practically glowed as Remi laid it over Jack's chest.
Remi has (reluctantly) used his revivify feather on Jack!
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Jack - 12-03-2024
Wherever Jack goes, wherever what's left of him exists currently, he certainly isn't staring down at Remi to watch him dither over sewing his soul back into his body. Not everyone flirts with death and speaks to ghosts on the regular, you know, and for the captain, this is an unpleasant first that cements itself right against the marrow of his bones. Jack dies without magic, without the strength to even spit in the face of his killer. He dies alone in his head. He dies afraid.
And he rages against it.
If there's peace to be found in Mort's halls, the captain wants no part in it, turning his back on the smell of the sea and the sound of a woman's sweet singing voice, as if he might shred the barrier between life and death by virtue of willpower alone. Heat flares against his chest and, though it's distant, he thinks he can hear voices. One takes the shape of his name, and he chases it like a man possessed, throwing the essence of himself into the ether to seek it out.
Gods, but he hasn't accounted for the lack of pain in death, or the way it returns tenfold as he rakes in a gasp of air, one that catches on all the blood in his throat. Gagging immediately and curling in on himself, the magic that detonates around him is entirely involuntary; frost shrieks out of Jack's body in an uneven ring, coating the forest floor and driving jagged spikes of ice into air that grows fiercely cold.
But the flare of power vanishes almost as soon as it appears (that's probably no bad thing), and though the ice and snow remain, there is nothing left in Jack to sustain it. He reels towards unconsciousness, all impotent fury and raw panic, but thoughts start to patter along the delicate strands of his telepathy. Ambivalence from the Bastion, protectiveness from the Knight, and Flora, all of Flora is there, and if that's the last thing he can grasp before he passes out, it's more than enough.
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Ronin - 12-03-2024
[say]I love you too,[/say] Ronin whispers through the bond, the words sounding far away even in his mind as he works to painstakingly draw their daughter's essence back into her body. The instant she opens her eyes, at least, he releases the breath that has been caged in his throat, reaching to take her bloody hand between both of his own and giving it a warm squeeze. [say]"You'll be alright now--"[/say] he begins, but already the Doubletake is looking for the still form of the captain beside them, and gods help Ronin for glancing towards his husband for just a split-second of doubt.
But Remi is already moving, withdrawing the gold-edged feather from his pocket, and the moment passes; as much of a bastard as he might be, particularly at this time of year, he's called the White Knight for a reason. It's that very same reason that has him curling protectively over Flora as ice and bitter cold erupts through the ground around them, Ronin taking any nick or cut (or anything worse) that might accidentally catch their daughter.
Having expended a revivify feather and all the chances he thinks he has, he isn't risking Flora's fragile hold on life for anything. [say]"Her compass,"[/say] he says quickly to Remi. [say]"Send her to Torchline with it, and you follow. I'll make my own way."[/say]
RE: i'd rather you not be here for this - Flora - 12-03-2024
The air burned her lungs as Flora tried again to say Jack's name, only to find her body shivering uncontrollably. The cold wrapped around her like a shroud, the chill sinking into her bones until she thought her heart might stop from the sheer emptiness of it. The cold seemed to seep from somewhere beyond herself, touching the edges of her thoughts, making her feel like she was standing in a garden at the height of Deepfrost, everything barren and lifeless. But there was blue in it, and it was too early in the season for snow in the Greatwood, and--
Jack. Her mind clung to that single name, trying to find him in the haze, to reach him through the fog of her confusion. Somewhere beyond the blinding cold, she heard her father's voice—calm, firm, an anchor in the chaos. He was saying something, the words muffled, distant. Her compass. Send her back to Torchline with it. Flora blinked, her vision swimming as she tried to make sense of it, her thoughts tangling like vines twisted in desperation and dread.
Torchline.
They were leaving.
Leaving Jack.
No. The word echoed in her mind, a plea, a demand. Her thoughts twisted, the landscape of her mind turning into a storm, waves crashing against rocks, thorny vines coiling around her as she fought to stay afloat. Ronin might have been an anchor, but he was keeping her somewhere she didn't want to be. But her body was weak, her mind a shattered reflection, petals floating on a dark pond, and all she could do was reach out, her hand trembling as it brushed against empty air, her heart crying out for the one person who didn't seem to be there.