[Training] {SE} Know the words? Sing it then!

and anyone who knows our name says that we ain't ever gonna change
they say we're born to die young, but we're trying to find a better way

The sickness seemed to grip him in waves, stronger now that Nate had admitted he was clasped tightly in its grip. Knowing what caused these visions and nightmares did nothing to soothe their grip as they ravaged him, sent him out of Sunjata's arms, out of the Slagveld, in the middle of the night. Fear, and guilt, and all manner of shades following him as he fled to the sands.

He had to be a sight, on the sands, arms flailing at invisible assailants, at his own shadow when he caught sight of it. Never before had he felt so helpless, so overwhelmed, or at, never before had he been so affected by his helplessness. Nothing rolled off him, it simply stuck, continued to grow and grow until he was so weighed down he could barely think, until he couldn't escape the haze of worry and guilt.

Everything comes to a breaking point though, even the ill, and Nate finds himself screaming, falling to his knees. "Leave me alone!" He growls, roars at nothing, at the empty beach.

NATE

saiden

Saiden had just dropped off a package down the coast. After washing the sand off his hands from burying the chest, he'd wandered back towards Haulani. Whistling a tune, he took periodic sips from a flask, humming as the burn of rum slid down his throat.

The cry in the night startled the cook. Picking up his pace, he smirked as he saw Nate flailing around. "Alright. If that's what ye want."

Then the Hali's eyes narrowed. "Hang on. I remember you. Nathaniel, right?" Chuckling, he winked at the other man. "Long time no see mate. What've ye been up to?" Saiden took another swig from his flask as he waited for the response.

and anyone who knows our name says that we ain't ever gonna change
they say we're born to die young, but we're trying to find a better way

Worse than dealing with delusions is when the delusions intersect with real-life when he can't tell what's real and what isn't. Nate is hunched over in the sand, staring up at the sailor from behind dark hair, one eye glinting in the dark. There is no recognition on his face, though this stranger seemed to know him, knew his name.

Slowly, Nate rises to his feet, a touch unsteady, his arms limp at his sides. "I've been sick." He offers, sounding almost uncertain. His chin rose, jaw set in a hard line as his gaze drops, just for a moment, down Saiden's body. "Thirsty, mostly." Fingers twitch, the only tell that he's going to strike, hands rising in a sudden blur, reaching for the other man desperately, a leg coming out to try and trip him, take him down to the ground.

NATE

saiden

As Nathaniel spoke, Saiden looked the other man over. The cook's lips curled into a smirk. "Aye, I can see that." Scratching at his bare chest, he arched an eyebrow. "Right, the water doesn't work for you Ascended. The guv'n'r was worried about that when we found the springs." Shrugging, he took another pull from his flask.

Which he held out for Nate when the other man mentioned he needed a drink. "Didn't think yer kind got thirsty, but this should quench yer thirst, yeah?" The Hali chuckled and glanced out at the waves lapping at the shore. "Only other option is salt water, which I wouldn't recommend."

Not expecting the attack, Nate was easily able to take Saiden down, sending the flask flying. As the cook fell, though, he twisted slightly, managing to face the other man properly. "Get off, man." Landing in the sand, the Hali's breath was knocked out of him.

Still, he attempted to kick out at the Ascended. Saiden used his air magic to push against the other man as well. The Hali hoped that between his physical and magical strength he could put some space between himself and Nate.

and anyone who knows our name says that we ain't ever gonna change
they say we're born to die young, but we're trying to find a better way

A wordless howl leaves Nate as the men both fall into the sands, his teeth bared and his fingers desperate. A flask won’t slake this thirst, nor the ocean. If he can take out two birds with one stone, if he can drink deeply of this shade, if he can weaken it, then why wouldn’t he take the chance?

The magic, more than the kick, sends him sprawling back, already off balance and now buffeted. Another growl rips through the ascended as he struggles to right himself, glassy eye glaring at Saiden. ”Is that it?” Nate is back on his feet, but still low, wary of another blast, but still wanting to attack while he has the chance. ”That’s al you’ve got?” With a laugh, Nate scrabbles forwards, hands reaching for shoulders, leg kicking out to try and straddle the Hali, to hold him down.

NATE

saiden

Saiden's kick and his magic was enough to get Nathaniel away from the cook for a few moments. Scrambling backwards, the cook tried to get up. However, the Ascended pounced before the Hali could get back to his feet.

Helpless to stop the other man, Saiden was indeed straddled by Nathaniel. "What the fuck is wrong with ye, mate?" However, even as the Ascended tried to pin the cook he bucked. Using every ounce of force at his disposal, he turned his body and shoved, trying to toss the other man aside.

The Hali deliberately tried to throw Nathaniel into the ocean. Saiden's water magic reached out for the waves, and they came at his call. Tendrils rose from the ocean and tried to assist the cook's physical efforts by yanking the Ascended off the cook.

and anyone who knows our name says that we ain't ever gonna change
they say we're born to die young, but we're trying to find a better way

”What’s wrong with me?!” The words are hissed, a sharp inhale punctuating the disbelief. For the moment Nate had the upper hand, a moment long enough to snarl while he leaned in. ”You ignore me in that fucking cathedral, and now you don’t leave me alone?” where else could a shade have come from, if not that deep void?

The chance to bite, to steal the power of his enemy never came, not as the Hali bucked and shoved at him, Nate surprisingly easy to displace, but stubborn enough to not be shaken off entirely. Water solves that problem, though perhaps not in the way the cook expected. As soon as those hateful tendrils touch him, and understanding dawns on him, Nate throws himself away, horrified.

As if on reflex, a change sweeps painfully over him, scales appearing over the parts of him that are visible, before a leathery wing wraps around him, trying to cut off the flow of water. After a moment spent on the defensive, Nate struggles to his feet again, wings too big for his half shifted form spreading wide. It’s almost impossible to tell which blue is brighter, his single wide, slitted eye, or the growing glow in the back of his throat, neighing with it the scent of ozone.

NATE

saiden

Saiden's eyes narrowed at Nathaniel. "Mate, I saw ye on Apopo once. I have no fucking idea what ye're talking about." When the water drove the other man away, the Hali rolled to his feet.

As the Ascended began to shift and morph, the cook blanched. He backed away, hands coming up in a defensive position. Letting go of the water magic, the tendrils dropped back into the ocean.

However, Saiden grasped for his air magic again. It sprung up, a swift breeze that swept up from the ground, bringing sand with it. He aimed it for the other man's remaining eye, open mouth, and the wings, hoping to blind, choke, and overbalance the half-shifted man.

and anyone who knows our name says that we ain't ever gonna change
they say we're born to die young, but we're trying to find a better way

There's the slightest bit of confusion, a flinch almost, pulling at the ascendeds face. A flash of recognition, lending truth to the Hali's words. But he's worked himself up too much now, beyond sense, beyond reason, beyond any kind of plan.

Wind and grit replace the tendrils of water, wings that he doesn't know hwo to use working against him, his one eye easily blinded. Worst of all of it though, is the sand that finds it's way down his throat, to the rising electricity. There's a popping sound, Nate falling forward as the blue fizzles out, spitting out glassy bit of fused together sand and fluid.

Perhaps he can't get tired, can't grow exhauseted, but there is still a point where he pushes his body too far, and the partial shift has done it. Alarm bells that had been going off in his head for some time now finally fizzle away, Nate shifting to look up at Saidan, trying to force himself to his feet.

"You were... you were..." The words fall away into confused silence, the shadowy veil finally lifting from Nate's eye. "You were there when Apopo blew up."

NATE

saiden

The wind had the intended effect. Even more than Saiden had hoped for: he blinked as Nathaniel coughed out bits of glass. However, the cook wasn't done yet. Water lifted from the ocean again and he sent it to trip and hamper the Ascended's attempts to get to his feet.

Nodding at the other man's question, the Hali scowled. "Aye, I was." Then he groaned. "Oh fuck, yer still sick aren't ye?"

Shaking his head he put his hands on his hips. "Sorry the water didn't work for ye. We were worried that might be the case when we brought it back." Frowning, he backed up, putting more space between himself and the "doctor"

and anyone who knows our name says that we ain't ever gonna change
they say we're born to die young, but we're trying to find a better way

His attempts to stand are stymied, smothered in the crib by yet more water, and finally the shift begins to retract, his shape growing more human, less crazed. Arms and legs are pulled in close to his chest, Nate trying to protect himself, from the water, from retaliation.

Those attempts don't stop him from snapping, not understanding the groan as what it's meant to be. "Obviously." Far past the point now of trying to deny his sickness, all Nate can do is glare weakly, head tilted at an uncomfortable angle so he can keep the Hali in sight.

"There's nothing for us there." There's a note of sorrow behind these words, a whine low in Nate's throat. He still hasn't moved from where he's curled up on the beach, doesn't look like he'll be capable of moving any time soon. "Not in the pools, not in the church. Not anywhere. It's just fire and poison." His two least favourite things.

NATE

saiden

Saiden cut off his magic and the water both when he saw that Nathaniel was well and fully cowed. Scowling, the cook folded his arms across his chest. "Not obviously, mate." Shaking his head, he backed away from the fallen "doctor" putting a good amount of distance between the two of them.

Arching an eyebrow, the Hali grunted. "The Climb? What church? What's fire and poison? Are ye babbling again?" Squatting down, he peered at the other man. However, in the dark, with clouds covering the moon and the stars, Saiden couldn't see Nathaniel clearly. The cook scratched his head, clearly perplexed by both the attack and the conversation.

and anyone who knows our name says that we ain't ever gonna change
they say we're born to die young, but we're trying to find a better way

”Obviously.” Nate repeats insistently, a low hiss. It’s not his fault Saiden can’t see the coiling confusion, the heat burning him up inside and out. Not his fault either that Saiden had appeared like a shadow, and Nate had reacted as such.

His one eye shines in the moonlight as explanation rattled out of him his words as certain and cryptic as a fate. ”The Church, with the endless dark. It should be ours. Will be ours.” The last sentence is an aside, meant only for himself, Nate’s voice rising again. ”Frey’s tears are poison! The rest of the Climb is fire! It’s a place that hates us...”

NATE

saiden

Holding up his hands in a placating gesture, Saiden grumbled inaudibly under his breath. "Alright, whatever ye say." He dropped his hands to his sides and shook his head.

Scratching under his chin, he shrugged at Nathaniel's babbling. "Church? What church." Then the cook rolled his eyes. "Dunno why I'm expecting 'im to make sense all o' a sudden."

Meeting the other man's eye, the Hali smirked. "Then stay away from it. The hot springs seemed plenty pleasant to me. But no one's asking ye to visit." The cook stepped into the waves. He began to wade through them, giving the Ascended a wide berth while making sure not to go too far into the ocean.