supermassive black hole

WESSEX

“Sunjata?” Wessex raises her hand to hail the Flood from across the market. Easily the friendliest tone she’s used towards him in years, the Wraith finds herself pleasantly surprised and curious to see him in the Grounds. It takes her a moment to finish up with the merchant and deposit a small parcel in her sack, but soon the General is turning and heading towards the towering man - it’s easy to spot him, honestly.

“How’s your back?” she asks, once she’s cleared the not-very-big-crowd. “I hope Nate doesn’t want my head for it.” Her imaginary debt to her brother is growing with every encounter, it seems, and one day she wouldn’t be surprised to find a thunderously dark Wrenzoak at her door.

there was a time that we were kind, but now
don't write me, you're not fooling anyone

we keep on doing this again and again
the same old things expecting something different

He doesn’t expect to be called out to as he’s gathering a few more things from the Grounds markets. Acknowledgements are one thing, the comments of ‘wow it’s been a while since we’ve seen your face around.’ Or the typical comments on his height. And yet all Sunjata can offer are little hums of agreements, small talk to make the exchange go quicker.

But the most familiar voice of them all calls out to him and he finishes offering up the payment for the items as he turns to look, gathers the bag with a few essentials in it and heads over toward Wessex to meet her somewhere in the middle. “Much better.” He offers, a small smile twitching at the corners of his lips.

Wessex would likely notice something a bit off, the way one of his sleeve tattoos is completely missing from under the shirt sleeve he wears. The other remaining but no longer do the stars within them move. “Nate’s fine. There was a bit bigger news that drowned it out. And besides, I’m considering it an accident seeing as I shot first.” Flashing her a traditional Sunjata Cheshire smirk and a wink, he settles in beside her. “Was that an upgrade or something?” He asks, meaning the double attack he felt the second his lightning had struck her.

but by now we know it's never gonna change
i'm not trying to complain, i'm just saying it's a waste

WESSEX

Wessex does not notice that something is a bit off on Sunjata - physically, that is - she’s never paid much attention to his tattoos. Not in a bad way, mind, she’s just one of the few in Caido who hasn’t swooned over a shirtless Flood at one point or another. She keeps her eyes on his face. Unless he’s bleeding.

“Good.” Her efforts to get him back to Nate before too much damage was done apparently paid off. “Bigger news?” she echoes, looking up at him and wondering more or less what could possibly be bigger than almost bleeding out in a cave at the Leap of Faith? It piques her curiosity, but the next question has her making a hard conversational left turn in. “What do you mean?” Feigning ignorance about what he’s talking about, the Wraith finds she actually quite loathe to reveal that - even to him. Even with how far they’ve come over the past two seasons.

He’s still Safrin’s man.

there was a time that we were kind, but now
don't write me, you're not fooling anyone

we keep on doing this again and again
the same old things expecting something different

“Thank you, by the way. I’m not sure if I said it before.” He offers her as his gaze finds hers looking up toward him. As for the bigger news, he hums a soft laugh, a nod, an almost awkward tilt of his head and the edge of a wince that creases the edge of one of his eyes. “Oh yes.” Much bigger news. And there’s comfort in telling Wessex of this now because Frey has given him no reason to worry of it. So he flashes her a slightly brighter grin, straightening up his posture, shoulders back in a far more relaxed version of himself than he’d ever been prior.

He’s not sure how to bring it up rather than so outwardly, so he hears her confusion on his question. “When I shot you with my lightning, it was like it came back to me? It’s never happened before.” To him, but he hadn’t shot at her before. Perhaps it wasn’t an upgrade, perhaps it was a perk of the metallic bird shift. Perhaps he’d just been unlucky and cast himself as a lightning rod for the second time.

“Anyway, uh, I’m not with Safrin anymore.” He cuts to the chase, offering her an awkward smile. “I figured you’d probably want to know.” Given that argument they’d had when Wessex had berated him on his doorstep about choosing sides.

And he’d certainly chosen something now.

but by now we know it's never gonna change
i'm not trying to complain, i'm just saying it's a waste

WESSEX

Wessex still hesitates to confirm anything in that moment, pretending to be surprised by what Jata felt up there in the sky. Going through the motions of doing an ‘internal scan’ (and he might know what that far-away look in her eyes means because of Nate, but he might not), she ends up frowning to herself. However, before she can say anything, the Flood announces his change of allegiance - or rather, a lack of an old one.

If Wessex’s eyebrows could have leapt off her face and hit the sun, they would have.

“You… left her?” she asks, phrasing it that way because it seemed like the herald’s claws were pretty fucking deep into him. It didn’t seem like there was any other way to describe it. “For who? And you’re still alive?” Ten other questions leap to the tip of her tongue, but she manages to snap her mouth shut and wait for an explanation. What bargains or deals or spine of fucking vibranium had he found, to finally say no to the cunt he’d said yes to for years?

there was a time that we were kind, but now
don't write me, you're not fooling anyone

we keep on doing this again and again
the same old things expecting something different

He does recognize that far away look in her eyes and he imagines that means he’s not going to get an answer on that subject. Which is fine, if everything goes according to plan he won’t need to prepare to face Wessex on the battlefield. He won’t need to worry about any of her upgrades. So the least he can do is offer her the information he thinks she’ll appreciate hearing — but her initial reaction isn’t one he expects.

Her surprise is so bright that he can’t help the small crooked tilt of his lips in a small smile, hand rising to rub at the back of his neck as he huffs a small sigh of a laugh. He was still alive, yes, but if it weren’t for Frey he wonders if it would have killed him. “I went to Frey… To try and get a gift for Nate and our anniversary.” He pauses because surely she can fill in the blanks. “And while I got the quest for that, they offered me an incredible deal if I became their demigod.” And so he had.

He straightens up a bit to actually look at Wessex, some hidden relief and excitement sparking through the steel of his gaze. “They burned her out of me.” And thus explaining the missing tattoos… and the missing stars in the sky the night he had.

but by now we know it's never gonna change
i'm not trying to complain, i'm just saying it's a waste

WESSEX

Defection (of a sorts) is certainly a twist she never expected; hoped for, but never anything more than a distant ‘come to your senses’ type of thing, the kind one hopes for a cousin who’s dating a terrible person.

Frey. She’d often heard the Flood called Caido’s ride (cause everyone gets a turn), but without knowing if he means the sex side or the nature side, she bites her tongue. Well, no, if it’s for their anniversary, it’s likely to be sex!Frey, which is a very different feeling indeed. And the burning sounds painful, but how else do you get rid of an insidious parasite? Wessex huhs in the back of her throat and then tilts her head a bit, still curious. “I hope it didn’t hurt too much. What kind of deal? If you don’t mind me asking? And what does that mean for…” Trailing off, she gestures vaguely to the world around them, as if to say, everything?

there was a time that we were kind, but now
don't write me, you're not fooling anyone

we keep on doing this again and again
the same old things expecting something different

He’s not sure he’s ever captured the Wraiths attention as well as he has in this moment – a part of it is invigorating and another part of it is equally terrifying. After all, he is a fresh demigod, he’s weak and if she really wanted to take out all the past transgressions against him, now would be the prime time. It’s the huh and the follow-up question that has him breathing a small sigh of relief, has a bit of that hopeful glimmer flickering back in his gaze.

“I’d say it was pretty close to the worst pain I’ve ever experienced.” He shudders just thinking about it. “Like my bones were on fire and trying to escape but couldn’t.” This is said a bit quieter, imagining that for a split second before Wessex had Ascended she may have felt something similar – if Nate’s own experience was one to go off of.

Does he mind her asking about it? Not really, not when he imagines he’s supposed to be some kind of middleman. “Being their demigod, I might be able to be… Some kind of middleman between the Ascended and Old Gods in a roundabout way.” He pauses, making sure he’s scanning her face the entire time, trying to read her. “Safety and protection, the ability to talk to your goddess without issue, and the possibility of getting her to work with Frey on making it so you all don’t need the room…” This is said with a bounce of his brow, a wink, but certainly not the main point.

Just a happy, hopeful addition.

but by now we know it's never gonna change
i'm not trying to complain, i'm just saying it's a waste

WESSEX

He’s right, she could take him out in a blow or two, and that is no small thing. Fortunately for Sunjata, there are several things, or people, rather, working in his favor - Nate, Aurelia, and Frey. So Wessex could, but she wouldn’t, unless it came down to  an Ascended’s life or his. Maybe Sunjata can tell (that’s stupid, of course he can tell) that something has suddenly shifted inside the Wraith - or has at least begun to.

Had their relationship really been that… dour?

She grimaces in sympathy, not missing the ability to feel pain at all. She’s forgotten that there was pain at her Ascension, so rosy has that part of her origin story become. The weakness during the day, the problems with sunlight, they were both always worth it. Much like the Flood’s burning.

“... Okay.” Finally, she nods and finds some kind of acceptance in his new position. Acceptance for now and the rest can come later. “Thanks for telling me. I hope this change is everything you and Nate need it to be.” For Nate's sake. He’s still ultimately l for the Old Gods, she needs to remember that, and it’s why she doesn’t circle back to earlier parts of their conversation, just offers him a small smile. “The three of us should fly together some time.”

there was a time that we were kind, but now
don't write me, you're not fooling anyone

we keep on doing this again and again
the same old things expecting something different

Forgive him for being a bit paranoid, given how many times things go wrong time and time again. A bit of hope is granted, a bit of a flame, before it tends to get snuffed out shortly after. In this moment, he’s got the flame, he’s got the hope, and he has the small bit of relief as she accepts it – as she knows that he won’t make a move against the Ascended, that he’s aligned himself with the god that was least likely to start a move between them.

At least as far as he’s aware. For now, though, her okay and the nod is all he needs to flash her a brighter smile, nodding himself – the feather tipped earrings from Nate scraping by his neck as he nods and they move. “So far it has.” He agrees softly – in fact, Nate had taken it so much better than he could have ever imagined.

“We should.” He hums with a brighter smile now, letting the tension fade from the air. “At least I’ll know what your shift is so I don’t go all out with the lightning this time.” A soft laugh passes his lips and he draws back his posture a bit, far more at ease and albeit a bit more confident now.

but by now we know it's never gonna change
i'm not trying to complain, i'm just saying it's a waste

WESSEX

“Good.” She is genuinely glad - the two of them could use a little bit of luck and fair fortune on their side. Plus anything that makes Nate less worried and able to focus on the family is good for Team Ascended. Wessex’s motives are purely selfish; for all that she’s coming round to Sunjata… well, everyone knows where her priorities truly lie.

“Great, I’ll try to pop by in Longheat.” Then a little wince at the comment. “Yeah, being a flying lightning rod isn’t exactly the most ideal. Literally any other attack would have been better. Sorry, again.” At that point, someone yells across the marketplace, “Wessex!” and the General turns to see a woman and a child trying to get her attention. “Ah, I think I need to take care of something. See you soon, Sunjata.” And with a parting, friendly touch to his arm, she turns to the Grounders to give them her full attention.

{Fin}

there was a time that we were kind, but now
don't write me, you're not fooling anyone