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+---- Thread: [RA] gasping for air (/showthread.php?tid=10793)
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gasping for air - Deimos - 03-03-2025
Each day in Flowerbirth, rather than bringing renewal, light, and hope, seemed to harpoon a harsher outline. An impending, encroaching doom and damnation that they might’ve noticed on the horizon ages before, and thought would never come much closer. But as the news passed through his senses, as information collected, gathered, and whittled, the threshold burned along the corner of his eyes, and with it, the certainty of pending circumstances and actions.
And then, the overwhelming burdens – pressed so firmly across his shoulders again and again and again, and he found himself tripping, stumbling, incapable of seeing the lines until they were already slashed in front of them. Negotiations heaped in warnings, and then spelled out in Luka’s blood. Abhorrence laced doldrums spiraled across Deepfrost, until it could only end in their broken, beaten, and destroyed springs. Attacks and assaults across regions – death in numbers. Ronin infested. In the back of his mind, and for all his calculations, he couldn’t help but wonder if the opportunities had been there, but they just hadn’t looked closely enough. And now it was too late.
A long, long sigh filtered through, and he closed his eyes, rubbed his hand across his temple as he could feel all the intertwining pieces smoldering and smothering. Sometimes he was all steel and resolve, the sharp-edged determination slated and molded from primeval flames. And other days, all he wanted to do was disappear into the ether, stand amidst the chaos and watch it dissipate around him; sheltered only by nothingness and nonchalance.
The latter was there today, present all around him as Erebos slumbered in the next room, as he unfurled all the wakes of days before to the Evergreen. It was horrible to lance every single item to her as well – for the encompassing, encroaching possibilities. But neither she, nor any of them, would be better off in ignorance; the world was far too steeped in foolishness already. And even then, he didn’t want to lean too heavily, find that even the most stalwart and staunch of his beloveds could bend and break under a strain he didn’t intend to grant. But maybe he was already unleashing his own too, head hanging as another sigh filtered through, meandered around the warm puffs of air in the bath, wondering if all his collective errors were the reasons so many of these denizens were making their marks within Halo. His eyes found hers across the expanse, as he tested the waters, as he turned off the faucet and left the ripples to still for half a moment. [say]“Have I been doing enough?”[/say] For them? For her? For anyone?
RE: gasping for air - Evie - 03-12-2025
Flowerbirth strips away the illusion of LongNight's comfort; long days inside their family home, the world beyond their door a vague notion that could be put on a shelf to gather dust for a while. She spends more time in the Infirmary than she has in seasons, hands shaking between sure and practiced motions when bodies fall under them. Doubt creeps in like sucking tendrils, threatening to drag her down into depths so murky and thick she can't see an escape even from the surface.
These watery depths are not nearly so clouded, and the steam that rises is reminiscent to the springs they so recently lost. Still, here at least there is the frail illusion of safety once more. Their home, their family, her beloved at her side. Fragile though that feeling may be it is all that sustains her in these early days of spring.
Sitting perched on the edge of the tub while Deimos tests the waters, Evie's robe-covered arms tighten briefly around her own stomach in a spasm of what she can only call grief at hearing his quiet question. Rising, her bare feet cross the cool tiles to reach for his hand, still damp from the bathwater. Lifts it to her face and kisses the droplets off each knuckle as her blue eyes cast up to find his own through auburn lashes. [say]"You have done more, now and always, than most people can claim to have even imagined doing for their people."[/say] Threading their fingers together, the Evergreen squeezes his hand and presses their joined knuckles into her freckled cheek, eyes closing and brows furrowing as she leans into their tangled hands. [say]"It's why they came. Halo did too much, we threatened their spread too greatly. A poor man's reward, but a backhanded compliment all the same."[/say] Evie has tasted enough of them in her girlhood years to see it plain, even when cloaked in such violent shades.
RE: gasping for air - Deimos - 03-12-2025
The comfort arrived with having to believe it; ready to refute at a moment’s notice in the abrupt wakes of his honesty. That actions, striving to heal for the entirety of Halo, had come with so much devastation and ruin ate away at him, but he leaned into the threading fingers and knuckles upon cheeks, strength in words and bonds, even if everything else bit into his bones. He couldn’t help but laugh; a quiet rumble deep in his chest, not echoing beyond the tub, or the here and now. [say]“Quite a repayment.”[/say] And he trusted Evie to know where it would all lead – into the depths of Starfall, clutching at crystals and flowers, danger and lethality; the poise of further consequences a dire and vicious trait. But they really didn’t have any other options – for the Sword did not often lay down and wait for the world to take him over – even if there were temptations some days.
From there, with their joined hands, he invited her further – to step out of cloth and fabric and into the water, their own version of some relaxing hot springs, not battered and wrecked into stone and ash. He’d already compiled necessities upon benches and within reach: towels, favored soaps and oils; leagues of rest and repose, rather than the layers of strife barreling its way down his bones. [say]“I think we need to relocate the springs,”[/say] he mentioned, head tilting, clearly miring through hundreds upon hundreds of collected and contorted thoughts.[say] “To the Citadel.”[/say] He waited for her considerations, ministrations within the warm and calm water, before he began to remove the rest of his clothes.[say] “How was the infirmary?”[/say]
RE: gasping for air - Evie - 03-12-2025
Evie's grin is a faint thing from where it emerges over their knuckles, but she'd rather try and smile than give into the despair the Family so easily sows. [say]"They're not from around here, of course they're poor guests. Decorum isn't their thing."[/say] Like a feral cat bringing dead rats to their doorstep and expecting praise. If only the Family were half as harmless as an angry alley-cat.
She keeps their hands threaded as long as she can, dropping her robe and stepping into the tub with a mindless hum of appreciation for the perfect temperature that immediately swells to embrace her. Taking up her normal side of the tub, she hangs one arm halfway over the edge and props her chin onto her folded elbow to watch Deimos as he undresses.
[say]"Do you think that will just invite them to attack a space where there will be more bystanders?"[/say] And would that not put far more blood on their hands? Gods, but they had been the only cure for any of the infected. And the infected had so far largely included demigods, who can wreak just as much if not more havoc and bloodshed on their own might. It makes her think of the infirmary easily enough, for what it's worth. [say]"I think I needed them more than they needed me. It wasn't too busy - mostly hunting injuries."[/say] Reckless young newbies trying to impress their families, hunters who startled the wrong prey, even the simplest of twisted ankles from Halovians vying to see the sun and the first motions of spring not giving their feet enough care.
RE: gasping for air - Deimos - 03-12-2025
The conversation invited more of the thoughts flooding through his brain; parsing amidst the things he hadn’t quite uttered out loud yet, uncertain how they’d be received. But here was where they could have their vulnerability and pieces juxtapositioned without the fierce scrutiny of judgement. [say]“I was thinking that it could be protected more,”[/say] instead of the isolation – but everything invited and initiated onslaughts nowadays. And then the second half unfurled, weighing out the pros and cons from his mind, peeling away his shirt and tossing it aside, then his pants. [say]“And I worry about putting the void cleansing parts back into it. If it remained a normal mending area, it may not be targeted.”[/say] And Halo wouldn’t be either.
But there was the crux of the problem – because then how would the remaining infected be cured, and for how long would everyone rely upon Halo for the answers…without striving to do it themselves first?
A long breath filtered from his lungs once more, gauging everything, unfurling the semantics. [say]“I guess it comes down to if we want our region to stay subjected to their cruelty over and over again.”[/say] Or would it matter – once they’d all gone back to Starfall? Would it just always be a piece of the dangerous ambitions? Removing the rest of his layers, he cast far more admiring eyes upon the Evergreen, before settling into his side of the tub and water as well, not even bothering to disguise the unfiltered sigh as the perfected temperature reached his muscles, leaning back against the portions of the rim. [say]“That is a relief.”[/say] Good news, in short supply. Already the soothing balms of the bath urged him onward, to be obnoxious and tear away all the other melancholic lacquer, granting a light splash towards her.
RE: gasping for air - Evie - 03-13-2025
She hums her understanding as assumptions fall away, replaced with clarity. [say]“I think that’s what we have to do. We don’t have the resources to pursue and defend the void cleansing - the chance of immediate retaliation or early intervention…”[/say] she shrugs limply, eyes briefly dipping to watch the ripples in the water from the tempo of her breathing. The Family didn’t need darkness to accomplish the harm they’d deliver. And none of them could be everywhere at once. [say]“Healing is still important even if it can’t cleanse people.”[/say] Evie has a feeling they’ll need it in the near future.
It’s a challenge to be serious when he is distractingly nude, but Evie is rather good at multitasking. As if she has much more to do than relax, ogle, and talk right now. [say]“We aren’t the only region. We can only be expected to do so much in pursuit of the greater good when the backlash isn’t equally shared.”[/say] Even if willing hearts and minds existed, what use was it when they were so far away and incapable of coming to Halo’s aid? Of all the protections being pursued by other leaders, only Halo’s had been ubiquitous in its benefits. They couldn’t keep weathering the retaliations levied upon them - so they had to step back for a moment, lest their forces become weakened and useless in any future offensive efforts. [say]“You know my motto: we can’t fight if we aren’t rested and bandaged. There are no bonus points for suffering or martyrdom.”[/say]
Admiring eyes are equally returned, and Evie adjusts her limbs to allow his entry. It’s an impressively large bath (they’d chosen it intentionally given Deimos’ bulk alone) so it’s an easy feat that ends in Deimos joining her in relaxation at last. Wrinkling her nose at the immediate splash, the Evergreen puffs her cheeks and blows a stream of air - assisted by magic - to ruffle his hair and dance on his cheeks. [say]“Two seconds of relaxation isn’t enough for you, sit still. You’re as bad as your son.”[/say] Giving in to the grin, she extends her leg and pokes her toes into his ribs. [say]“Correction: he clearly got it from you.”[/say]
RE: gasping for air - Deimos - 03-13-2025
And perhaps that’s where they’d gone awry initially; thinking to protect and salvage the world, instead of their own region first. And it had worked for a while; until ultimately the Family had been eradicated from Sunjata and Ru alike. The consequences were rendered in dilapidated and disheveled stone, and it would take a while before the likenesses could be created and mended back together again – with or without the void erasing properties. [say]“That is what I was thinking too.”[/say] Cleansing and healing, close by, without having to venture towards the Fangs and the isolation – nor a sudden onslaught of a blizzard – to keep them from accessing life-saving qualities.
A long sigh unfurled again, and maybe after a few more iterations he’d be able to spell them all out from his lungs. That age-old sentiment of ‘you cannot save them all’ rang through his head, and perhaps he bitterly swallowed down the proclamations again, hoping that at some point others would stop putting themselves in the line of fire. He couldn’t say much, given their upcoming plans towards Starfall – but that too was for the greater good. [say]“It always seems to be a fine line,”[/say] he uttered, wrinkling his nose, every bit the boyish interludes when he could surround himself in fond company, rather than putting up the fortifications and fronts. [say]“I doubt any other region is going to try for such things now.”[/say] And he couldn’t say that he blamed them – not when the backlash was so imminent, rapid, and treacherous.
He arched a brow at the suffering and martyrdom portions of her speech, pretending that it might not have been aimed specifically at him. But then he was much more languid in the contents of the bath, pulling himself nearby, to settle in front of her, clearly in her space, eyes upon hers; her toes in his ribs moments later anyway. [say]“That is quite an accusation,”[/say] of which he began to cup some water in his palms, intent clear on orchestrating something. [say]“Have you seen how social he is?”[/say] He shuddered, as if it was a frightening expanse. [say]“Undoubtedly from you.”[/say]
RE: gasping for air - Evie - 03-13-2025
Simplicity is a rare commodity these days, decisiveness more so, but Evie knows the weight they can take off so she smiles and taps her palm twice against the side of the tub like a stamp of approval. [say]“Then it’s settled. We’ll move the springs to the Citadel. Even better business for the city too, right?”[/say] Who could have guessed that Halo would unintentionally become a tourist destination instead of a wasteland full of cannibals and spontaneous death?
[say]“Things like this are entirely built on fine lines,”[/say] she agrees on a sigh that comes out strained. ‘Things like this’ is a poor way to word it, but she can’t bear to call it an invasion or a war. Not yet. [say]“We tried one route. The others likely won’t try to do the same, but we still had an impact. A big one. That still matters.”[/say] Two demigods regained is as good an outcome as they could have hoped for even if the lifespan of the springs was not what they’d hoped for or counted on.
He maneuvers closer and she sinks further down into the bath, eyes narrowing at the same rate as they flicker between his palm and his face. Just deep enough for the water to hit her chin as she’s not capable of speaking to him in any other way. [say]“Accusation? No no, educated inference.”[/say] She sniffs haughtily and tilts her nose to the ceiling in classic Wordsworth snottiness. Wet hair doesn’t flip nearly so neatly but some sacrifices have to be made. [say]“Social and unable to sit still, what sort of horror are we going to unleash on the world when he can speak in full sentences?”[/say] Moaning dramatically she sinks deeper until only her nose is above water, wary of his antics and hoping to reduce his power by getting the rest of herself wet anyway.
RE: gasping for air - Deimos - 03-13-2025
He couldn’t help but laugh at that, and while the reverberation stayed closed and within their sanction, it still echoed off the tub; a better sound than his grumblings and melancholy. It did give him an ounce of reflection time – to see, to realize, the amount of growth the expanse had under their thresholds. While they’d lost a key component, there were still hordes of other necessities, improvements to quality of life, and coordinated efforts that had gone leaps and bounds across the frigid lanes. And there would be more to come, should they have their way.
Huffing another breath at the veracity and heart of the matter, he nodded. War, in all previous circumstances, had lingered around these horrific ramparts until one side crossed the line – though, he wondered now, if it had already occurred, and the maelstroms were just brewing in the aftermath until finality swung. [say]“True. It was not an entire failure.”[/say] Sunjata and Ru had been cured. They’d added allies and kin back into their threshold. Losing Ronin was a hit and punch to the gut; but he had no doubt that Remi would be able to think of something. Or they’d clamber together, back again, to ensure the demigod was without the horrific imbalance of disease.
But she’s keen on his trickery, maneuvering underneath so that even if he bothered to lacquer and pelt her with the warm water, it wouldn’t do much good. Snorting, the juvenile glint of his eyes stirred again, mind clearly conjuring another scheme. [say]“I saw him talk Belial into sitting in that wagon of his. Pushed him around the house.”[/say] It was easy to tease about their son; but the glint of pride was there all the same – seemingly very unbothered by this incoming ‘horror’.
All of this was an intended distraction regardless, as he leaned forward, and instead of his palm cupping the water any longer, his large hands went for her cheeks, her face, intending to raise her features upwards to meet his. His mouth descended upon hers easily, softly, tenderly, if only to embody every nuance and encouragement of his love – of the sanctity and shelter they shared.
RE: gasping for air - Evie - 03-13-2025
The Evergreen's expression warms and softens all at once at the sound of his mirth, no matter its brevity. There you are, she thinks fondly. There is no doubting the stress they're under but it makes it easy to forget all they've done. The work of many hands over many years, efforts united only by the desire for things to be better. The same thread that pulls them through war times such as these.
[say]"You only say that because one of them was Sunjata,"[/say] she teases, though it's entirely untrue. She doesn't see the destruction of the springs as a failure - merely an unavoidable outmaneuver. But there are still so many pieces left on the board, and the Evergreen has never been short on hope. You couldn't afford to be in the Grounds of her youth.
Just enough of her lips touch the water that it vibrates when her expression melts and she utters an, [say]"Awwww! I wish I'd seen it!"[/say] Perhaps he'll be inclined to do it again after swaying Belial once? Though the thought perishes as his hands come to embrace her, and she is helpless but to follow where he leads her, sinking blissfully into his kiss as her own hands find their place around his forearms to hold him as surely as he holds her. There is no Attunement to let her share how she feels, but the overly-gentle pressure of her lips and the slow path of her fingers around his wrists says it for her. Even so, she thinks it as hard as she can; I love you.
RE: gasping for air - Deimos - 03-14-2025
Perhaps it said much about the staying, healing, or assuaging powers Evie contained; for it’d taken him far less time drowning in his own melancholies and shadows, than to be pulled into the respite and riches of their lives. Each and every overwhelming boundary could’ve, would’ve, eaten him alive or pushed him further into the brink – the cusp of war upon them again. But maybe he’d learned to cherish what he had, when he had it, and those intricate moments made up for a lifetimes of heartaches and hardships. [say]“Must you remind me,”[/say] he snorted, but laughed once more just the same – unwilling to admit the bizarre role of allies the Sword and Flood shared now.
As for their son’s antics, he shook his head, grinned. [say]“I am certain it will happen again. Both seemed delighted."[/say] He wouldn’t be surprised if Micah was the next victim. But then all those thoughts blurred and melted anyway; entirely focused on his wife and the heedless ministrations she orchestrated; enraptured and incensed all over again with gentle fires and coaxing, kindling aspirations. Sometimes their shared love was really the only shelter he needed, and it unfurled in the easy, sensual lull, his mouth conforming to hers in the besotted entanglements, for her and for her and for her. Those instances said I love you and thank you a thousand times over –
As did his next maneuver, full of boyish mischief – gently coaxing motions of air until her dampened and sodden hair stood on end. Pulling away, simply to stare down at her and pretend he wasn't the one coordinating the motions, he inclined his head towards the rows and bottles of shampoos nearby. [say]"All right, pick one."[/say]
RE: gasping for air - Evie - 03-28-2025
She grins, though her relaxed posture is a conceding one. [say]"Only sometimes, I wouldn't torture you unnecessarily."[/say] And pointing out his growing tolerance - for lack of a kinder phrase, for it would be less accurate for its kindness - is more of a compliment to Deimos, though he develops hives if they come in excess.
They have a lifetime to experience more of those precious moments, the both of them. Not just theirs but their son's lifetime too. As they linger in their kiss and the certainty of their embrace, she holds tight to that vision of a long, happy future. Perhaps never boring. Likely always a little dangerous. But Gods willing let it be long and happy. If they heed any of her worthless prayers, let it be this one.
The roots of her hair tell her of his mischief even when his hands and the look in his eyes distract her. She keeps her serene smile by her very fingertips to resist giving him the satisfaction for a moment longer. [say]"The mint one please. Think you're skilled enough to apply it with my new hairdo?"[/say] She lifts a hand to frame it as if it's a stylish choice, a doubtful moue pursing her lips as her eyes flicker between the shampoo and Deimos' hands.
RE: gasping for air - Deimos - 03-28-2025
[say]“Of course not,”[/say] he snorted, but the extension was full of gratitude regardless. Evie was a comfort and a blessing in a myriad of ways, but being capable of vulnerability, of knocking away walls, with someone he wholly trusted – regardless of circumstances and conversations – was a boon all on its own. Whether or not the Flood and the Sword would tolerate one another long enough to see multitudes through would only be highlighted in the future; so he segmented away and concentrated solely on her.
He took in her serene, but still mischievous, devious, and lovely grin, matching the spectacle with one of his boyish and Cheshire ones – and the challenge alongside. [say]“I have many skills,”[/say] came along with a scoff – self-deprecating in its own affects, before snagging at the mint shampoo. [say]“Bet I can make it look even better too,”[/say] by way of teasing – placing a meager sized amount of it into his hands, the cool aroma permeating and pervading into the room. From there he gently coaxed it into suds in his palms, and then began to carefully, lightly, massage it into her temple, amidst water contorted from his elements then through the length of the crimson threads, all the way to the bottom portions. [say]“Noah came to see me the other day,”[/say] he started; the uncertainty still lingering in those moments.
RE: gasping for air - Evie - 04-07-2025
Her laughter creates a froth of bubbles before she straightens, glad for the heat and steam of the room as it doesn’t leave her shoulders chilled when she does. [say] “I’ve seen your sculptures, I don’t doubt that. Though I don’t think hair is half as malleable.”[/say] Luckily the Evergreen has it in spades, so he could certainly try if he truly desired. Though what he ends up doing instead is far better, and she tilts her head into his palms with a soft croon of relief and pleasure.
The drip of water off his arms and into the tub is a quiet symphony that joins their shared breathing and the quiet muted sound of his fingers in her hair. Noah’s name is a discordant note amidst that music, and tension crawls against her conscious will up her spine to settle strangely in her nape. Her eyes open - though she didn’t remember closing them - but she keeps her head still and finds herself staring at the suds floating on top of the water. [say]“I see,”[/say] she vaguely airs, uncertain herself. [say]“It’s been a while. Was it business or…?”[/say] She hesitates to even call it pleasure, phrase or not, because of the strange lack of closure the two men had forged unsteadily between them and the way it did not resemble friendship for all it kept them together in some difficult measure.