[SE] supernovas singing

Melita

they should have checked the ashes
of the women they burned alive

Melita and her ‘laying low’ exercise had landed her simply back at her own home – which was perhaps, the safest option. Not out lurking amidst Stormbreak and starting water balloon fights. Not screeching about the Hollowed Grounds and implementing duck hunts. Not springing chaos into the world for the moment – because even if that was her lot in life now, her name across the broadcast shone even more light on the very flaws and plights of audacity, courage, and conviction.

And while she mused and stewed and mulled over just what they were supposed to do as the world wanted to set itself on fire, she took to her yard, feeling the wind billow from the eaves and sea, careening around the rocky crag. Settling amidst her modest little campfire, she opted to cook over the open flames, comfortable around the sea breeze, salty air, and lack of void creatures. She could probably unfurl some sausages and let them spit and roast enough for whatever festival they had coming up – and then contemplate life choices from there. Sila and Fangorn hung around on her makeshift log, utilizing the soft driftwood to wait opportunities for their upcoming meal as well.

because it takes a single wild ember
to bring a whole wildfire to life

SUNJATA

the flood

with every breath and every intake
tip toe further away

He arrives unannounced, though it shouldn’t be a surprise for her. He’s said he’d meet her again when they parted, specifically because of the whole clusterfuck out on the Tundra. And now? Now her name was broadcast to the world, to those in Caido. She was an enemy to them, much like he was now, and fuck if the panic wasn’t setting in to let that hit him a touch harder than expected.

It’s the draconic shift that comes out with his protectiveness. It’s also the one that brings him back to Torchline because he can’t seem to get a moment of rest. Reaching her door, his hand lifts, knocking in a tone that suggests it’s him, and he waits, scanning outside for any sense of lingering dread or anyone wishing untoward things to his niece lurking in the shadows.

further away from this mistake
i'm no savior, i'm no saint

Melita

they should have checked the ashes
of the women they burned alive

The fire crackled and she rotated the spit for a little while, content with the outcomes. At least the food was easy to roast and understand; far much more than everything else diminishing and flickering upon them.

Over all those foundations though, she didn’t hear her uncle arriving at her door – not when she was far, far away from it and enjoying the refreshing air. But luckily her companions did, and Sila immediately perked up, rushing off and upwards, to hover over the house and towards the front. Landing upon one of the eaves, she called out to Sunjata, an eager little screech of recognition, before meandering amidst the air again and circling backwards, indicating where the Honeybee and Fangorn lingered.

because it takes a single wild ember
to bring a whole wildfire to life

SUNJATA

the flood

with every breath and every intake
tip toe further away

It’s the movement of Sila that captures Sunjata’s attention – his gaze flitting up toward the dragon and the little screech of recognition. She circles back, giving him the idea that Melita isn’t in her home, but back behind it, beyond the confines of it out in the open and he curses a little under his breath to come to that realization. Shifting from human to bat, flitting through the skies to follow the little dragon, the Flood shifts back before Melita can hear the rapid wing beats, to announce his presence before it becomes a moment of panic.

“What’re you making?” He asks by way of greeting, stepping up to join her at the little bonfire, peering at it curiously before looking toward her. He looks better than he had the last time they’d met – cleaned up and put together, having gotten some amount of sleep, but stress lingers in the wrinkles and panes of his face and through the grey flitting through his hair.

further away from this mistake
i'm no savior, i'm no saint

Melita

they should have checked the ashes
of the women they burned alive

The wingbeats of Sila, and her own bonded assortments, notices within companion thoughts, were telltale signs of Sunjata’s approach. Melita granted and gave a long, illustrious sigh, uncertain how to feel with her uncle’s arrival – relieved, probably, that it wasn’t someone else, and encased with dread elsewhere, down to the tips of her fingers.

Showing none of that at his greeting, she tipped her head upwards from her log perch and lean across her knees, poking at the rotating spit again. “Hey. I’m making some sausages. Figured I could bring some to whatever festival we’re doing this time.” Fangorn made a viney wave, tendrils whipping about in the light breeze, before the Hooneybee’s gaze landed back on the Flood. “How are things?” Presuming there hadn’t been any more detrimental nuances; but she’d be doing her best to stay tucked within Torchline.

because it takes a single wild ember
to bring a whole wildfire to life

SUNJATA

the flood

with every breath and every intake
tip toe further away

“That sounds good.” He hums, and indeed it does as he focuses on the scent from the fire that infiltrates his senses, of all the meaty goodness of the sausages as she rotates them on the little spit they’re sitting on. He sees Fanghorns wave and he offers a smile and a small wave to the pumpkin as he sits in the dirt and short dune grasses, drawing his long legs in.

How are things? Well, not bad and not great, admittedly. But he doesn’t really want to dwell on all of that. “Better. Still shitty, but.” He shrugs a little before he sighs and flits a hand through his hair, looking over to his niece. “Zavien’s healing and I ran into Sohalia back in Halo. But.. How are you doing?” He asks before he decides just how to delve into figuring out what the fuck happened and how it went so wrong so quickly.

further away from this mistake
i'm no savior, i'm no saint

Melita

they should have checked the ashes
of the women they burned alive

She poked at the spit again and the metal arm twirled around, unfurling under her ministrations. It kept some restless edges at bay, and maybe didn’t allow her to betray the stoking of emotions as Sunjata explained the latest news. “Oh, that’s good. Was Soh all right?” She’d managed to escape, but gods, she’d been close to some shit too.

And not sitting on the what if possibilities of the Luminary maybe being rendered completely undone too, her eyes flickered back to her uncle, then down at the fire, wishing she could feel like the flames in the moment. Potent. Powerful. Brutal. Instead she just felt like a listless piece of shit. “I’m all right. Just laying low.” She shrugged; figuring that was the best motion for now, given the broadcast.

because it takes a single wild ember
to bring a whole wildfire to life

SUNJATA

the flood

with every breath and every intake
tip toe further away

Whether or not Sohalia had admitted to much of anything at all didn’t mean that Sunjata couldn’t already tell — after all, he’d been in a similar position to the young woman time and time again, and so it’s to his niece’s question that the Flood flashes a small smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “She’s… okay. It’ll take time.” He murmurs softly, watching as she rotates the metal again.

His attention flits to her as she answers the next question, nodding in her peripheral vision. Laying low was good, was better than what had happened, which brings him to the next point. “What happened? Why didn’t you or anyone else let us know?” He asks quietly, his upset intermixing with the protectiveness that comes out almost sad, sorrowful in the face of a life lost and brought back with the only feather he had.

And with Ronin and Remi unable to help with anything void related, they were fucked if anything terrible did end up happening.

further away from this mistake
i'm no savior, i'm no saint

Melita

they should have checked the ashes
of the women they burned alive

Time sometimes ended up no longer in their possession; so she didn’t say anything on that note, opting to stare at the fire again – at the rush of bristling coals underneath, then to the flames themselves. She wasn’t certain if she expected the question – and her resolve steeled, something akin to an abrasive, unyielding little force. Collected and curled upon her log, she might not have been anyone at all; but inwards, she was a dagger, a knife, a chaotic bramble always ready to show her thorns. All fangs and serrated edges, all sedition and audacity; her brazenness likely wouldn’t surprise her uncle at all, nor the reason.

“We all showed up there,” she hastened, shrugging for a moment, before ceasing the movement. It wasn’t that she didn’t care that happened – but they’d all corresponded to the same daunting threat. “I didn’t think to let anyone know. It just needed to be dealt with.” Like all the other occasions and occurrences. “I’m just so fucking sick of them,” she eventually hissed between her teeth. She could hear his quietude, his sorrowful tones, but her anger took root, took hold, festered and brewed. “If Halo was cut off, no one could be healed. And then what?” Her fingers held tightly to the wooden log, her eyes narrowed to dangerous, gilded slits. “We keep letting them consume us? Fuck the Family.”

because it takes a single wild ember
to bring a whole wildfire to life

SUNJATA

the flood

with every breath and every intake
tip toe further away

He expects her fiery response, the way her body language changes, but rather than shy away from it as he always had previously – he meets her with the calmness of the magic under his skin. The water to her fire. “I get that.” He says easily, because if anyone gets it he does. He’d been fucked with by the Family more than enough times to count, but the timing of it…?

He shakes his head, huffing out a soft little sigh before fingers flit through greying hair. “But it didn’t have to be right that second. And with the Family, as shitty as they are, you can’t just gut respond to them. They’re meticulous. They’re focused. They’re in for the long game and if we keep killing ourselves in small batches, we’re not gonna get anywhere anyway.” He tries to explain the best he can – but they both know he’s shit with words, but gods if he isn’t trying his hardest right now.

“Dahlia threatened Remi and Ronin. They can’t participate in anything against the Family now. And I used my last feather, so. We have to think about these things before we do them. This whole impulsive shit isn’t going to help us and we’re running out of chances to bring people back.” His steel gaze is unwavering as he focuses on his niece, trying to get the point across in an easier way and less like a disappointed father, but the two overlap despite his attempts.

further away from this mistake
i'm no savior, i'm no saint

Melita

they should have checked the ashes
of the women they burned alive

She clenched her jaw, feeling the rise and fall of infernal aggravation pulsing and pervading through her veins. The anger was white-hot, piercing just behind her eyes, evolving from all the multitudes they’d experienced over the years. Impulsivity, audacity, and boldness came easy to her – far more so than anything pragmatic, plausible, or patient, and she nearly couldn’t believe the way he painted the impetuous agency – like he hadn’t done the same reckless, foolhardy shit. “I didn’t mean for anyone to go get themselves killed. They just kept launching at the gods damned thing - ,” and then she ceased, because it sounded like victim blaming, even though she’d been shouting at them repeatedly to stop doing dumb shit. “I could’ve done it on my own,” she added mulishly, as if that somehow made the actions better.

She folded her arms across her chest, still leaning forward and watching the flames, not daring to look his way. “If we all just fucking sit around, they take over too. Look at what they did to the Wilds. I’m sick of them being bullying dicks.” Eventually, she turned her gilded and haughty gaze back to her uncle. “What’s the game plan then? Hope and pray we find some fucking flowers? Stare at Starfall? Let them do whatever they please?”

The news about Remi and Ronin had her mouth snapping shut. Flora and Jack’s mutual deaths had clearly cost more than just their lives and resurgence – they’d lost some of the most powerful of their world.

because it takes a single wild ember
to bring a whole wildfire to life

SUNJATA

the flood

with every breath and every intake
tip toe further away

He has done it before, been reckless and stupid and gotten himself into so many situations it took gods and wars to change enough to bring him out of it. And now? Now he likes to think that he’s learned better. He’s learned from those mistakes of getting too close to the fire and being burned time and time again. So he takes his time, careful, thoughtful as he can be, just as he is now when he listens to her, to the anger and upset and the mulish response that really wouldn’t have made things better. “You shouldn’t have to, though.” He counters, jaw setting as the muscles feather at his temples.

He quiets to hear her response, though, specifically regarding the Family, and Sunjata watches the side of her face when she refuses to look at him. “Yeah, but we got the wilds back.” He admits once she meets his gaze again. “The plan is that we talk to one another before we make big decisions like that. It’s harder for them to get us when we’re all on the same front rather than letting them pick us off one by one. At least, if nothing else, let the leader know who’s region you’re stepping into.” He sighs and averts his gaze to the fire, brushing his scarred hand over his tattooed arm. “I get that you all wanted to help. Trust me. I’ve been there. But if we keep doing it so disorganized they’re going to find our weak points and they’re going to aim for that. I was infected for over a year. I know how enough about how Dahlia thinks.” He knows enough to know she’s cunning and cruel when given the chance to be.

further away from this mistake
i'm no savior, i'm no saint

Melita

they should have checked the ashes
of the women they burned alive

She still sat stubbornly, a headstrong and bullheaded fixture of red and gold, pulled into herself while he lectured. And while now she might be able to agree, her actions had resounded across the Tundra, and Caido-wide with the broadcast, and by now it was far too late to do much of anything except dig her heels in and watch the flames erupt.

In parts, she knew he was right. What they’d done was a foolish and emboldened front that did nearly nothing except get almost everyone killed. The only success had been the yeti’s damnation, and even then the victory had been hollow. “I know,” she sighed and relinquished eventually, though it was difficult and came through clenched jaws and molten viewpoints. “Do we have a big plan now?” Because they still felt disorganized – on semblances of trying to find their stakes while others refused to participate any longer. “We can’t even fucking meet without someone listening in.”

because it takes a single wild ember
to bring a whole wildfire to life

SUNJATA

the flood

with every breath and every intake
tip toe further away

Evidently he’s either made enough good points that she’s given up, or her opinion with him has grown, because she doesn’t argue back with him. A surprise he keeps hidden in his chest, but is pleased to see. “Yeah, that’s the problem.” He says with a quiet huff of a sigh, jaw working slightly as he works his thoughts together in a way that makes sense.

“Keeping information out of letters is probably a good start. But I think I need to talk to Remi and Ronin again so Deimos and I can make plans.” Likely without the other demigods. For now, though, it remains the same as it had been.. Something Sunjata’s actively a part of now. “For now, I guess we just keep up on our training and what not until we get the rest of it planned out.” He says with a small frown, reaching out to twist the spit for her while she mulls over it.

He already knows it probably isn’t the answer she wants to hear.

further away from this mistake
i'm no savior, i'm no saint