[SE] Scouring the Evidence

Sah

Sah led Noah to where Morgan had been set up. Her wounds were in the process of being cleaned and documented by a few local healers. Laid out on the bed, partially covered by the sheet, she looked incredibly small, almost frail to the younger Abandoned. He stepped back and let his friend see the damage. It was extreme in its severity. Clear claw and teeth marks covered the former Warden.

Sah sighed, "At the site there were claw marks and feathers." He reached over and picked up a piece of paper from the desk beside the bed. Unwrapping it, he presented it to Noah. Inside was the feather that had been found.

I think there for I am,
But what if all I do is bleed?

Noah

Moving from the main part of the Council Hall to where Morgan's shattered body resided was not a pleasant walk. The Sentinel stayed quiet until they reached the former Warden. The healers around gave nods to Noah and Sah, quietly stepping back from their work. He recognized a few of the healers to have worked with his mother, and to each of them Noah gave a firm nod of respect.

Noah's eyes trailed over the wounds that ravaged the woman's body. There wasn't much left of it, to be honest. She was pale and small in a way she had never been in life, and the deep lashes and stabbing wounds were overwhelming. As Sah spoke, breaking the focus the hunter had on examining her body, Noah stepped towards him. "A feather?" His brows crashed together and he reached out to take it from the hunter, holding it in the palm of his calloused hand.

"I didn't think it was a dragon. They don't leave bodies. I thought ursur, or even frost giant, or wolves...but none of those add up to this." He lifted the feather again, turning it over in two fingers in the torchlight.

Am I a prisoner to instincts or do my thoughts just live as free
And detached as boats to the dock?

Sah

It was as the feather was tinged in the light of the torch that the familiarity of it struck Sah. "Fuck." The Abandoned glanced at the feather again, trying to see if he was imagining things. "Noah... doesn't this look like..." He almost didn't want to say it. Gritting his teeth he continued, "It looks like Remi's."

But that didn't add up to him. Why would Remi kill Morgan? She was neutral yes, but Halo was hardly a threat to the Greatwood being on the other side of Caido. Sah glanced at Noah, "Do you know if anyone bit him recently? Or if there are other manticores around?" There were multiple possibilities that needed to be considered.

I think there for I am,
But what if all I do is bleed?

Noah

"I'm not sure. I've never seen Remi in the shift that would have these feathers." As for a bite? He was confident (even if he was wrong), that Remi would not allow an ascended to take away one of his shifts from a drink. Noah shook his head, but looked to Sah. "Can I keep this?" He asked, but was already moving to place the feather in the pocket of his Frey-made jacket. If Sah suspected Remi, then Noah needed to confront him. He needed to talk to him before anyone else could and get to the bottom of the truth.

"She didn't deserve this." Noah finally said, having turned away from Sah and back towards Morgan. Though his rage towards the woman had been strong, and he believed she was making all of the right decisions, this was not how her death should have gone. "We will hold her funeral tomorrow." Noah looked to the healers, giving them the instructions and directions to initiate the preparations for her funeral pyre.

"The last fallen Warden did not get the honor of getting a funeral." He sighed, rubbing his hand over his forehead.

Am I a prisoner to instincts or do my thoughts just live as free
And detached as boats to the dock?

Sah

"Go ahead." Sah had no issues with Noah keeping the feather. "If you get the chance, definitely ask Remi. It matches his manticore shift. Maybe he knows if there are any other manticores somewhere or why one might come to the tundra."

The Abandoned shook his head, "I seriously doubt the culprit was Remi himself though. It doesn't fit any of the little I know about him. That and the prints I saw didn't seem to be missing any digits."

From what Sah could tell, the Demi-god was very protective of his territory and people. He was also incredibly powerful. Him leaving the Greatwood to come all the way here to messily murder Morgan just didn't add up. That and as per his recent letter, Remi had made it clear he was missing fingers. A fact that should have shown up in the evidence if it had been him.

Sah turned back to Morgan as Noah spoke, "She didn't. Despite her flaws, she truly cared for Halo in her own way. She loved her people." Even when her actions often contradicted it, there was no denying how important Halo had been to the fallen Warden. It was why the Outlander had found himself respecting Morgan to a degree, even when he didn't fully trust her. "Tomorow," he agreed.

Noah's last words however had Sah glancing at him with curiosity. "The last Warden?" The question was stated cautiously, wary of opening up old wounds that his friend wasn't willing to bare at the moment.

I think there for I am,
But what if all I do is bleed?

Noah

Noah sighed as he put the feather in his pocket. He nodded along to Sah's words, though he couldn't, with confidence, say what he thought. While he believed the demigod to be in support of him, Noah also knew that his duty was to Ludo (second only to Ronin). If Ludo had called for Morgan's soul, then Remi would not hesitate to bring it to them.

Noah gave a few more instructions to those around them about the funeral arrangements, and answered the questions they had. Turning his full attention back to Sah, he nodded again. "Do you remember Korbin? He had an older sister named Weaver. She was voted in as Warden after the cultist attack on the Citadel, when we dethroned Neron." He started, the memories of the raven haired woman flooding back to him in an instant. "Not long after, though, there was a dragon that came too close to the Citadel. Weaver went to confront the dragon, to fight it off and protect the people, and the dragon killed her and took her."

"She was my oldest friend. Her family and mine had been close. After her death, Korbin was a mess. I tried to help him through his grief, but eventually it overtook him and he lived on the tundra in his raven shift for well over a year."

Am I a prisoner to instincts or do my thoughts just live as free
And detached as boats to the dock?

Sah

Sah paused when Korbin's name was unexpectedly brought up, "I do." The two words were tinged with grief. He'd barely known the Attuned, but they had understood each other in a way not many could. In terms of preferring their non-human forms. Hearing of his death had hurt.

The fallen Attuned had never told Sah his story but as Noah painted it, many small factors added up. He must have met Korbin soon after he'd come back from the tundra then. It was clear from his words that Noah had cared deeply for both Korbin and Weaver. Their losses must have been horrific for the Sentinel.

Saying 'sorry for your loss' seemed insignificant in the face of such grief. "I think they'd be proud of you." Sah settled on. "You looked out for Korbin when Weaver was gone and you've never stopped looking out for Halo, even when you were banished." He couldn't speak for people he barely or never knew. But he had a feeling he was right about this.

The thought however of old friends sent a pang through Sah. He sighed and glanced out the window, his own memories rearing their heads. "Back in my world...I had a small group of friends who I held dear. Alev, Estini, and Taz. We'd known each other for years. Taz was my best friend and my partner in crime as the saying goes. A rival, brother, and more all rolled into one. A real trickster that one. Alev and Estini were mates, er.. married? Where Alev was all fire and recklessness, Estini was the opposite. She was so loving and always kept the three of us in check."

Sah chuckled, "The four of us got into all kinds of trouble growing up. We once stole a dragon's egg from a human and attempted to bring it back to its mother. Started a whole cat and mouse game with those human hunters that went on for nearly a week. We eventually got it back to its mom thankfully, but I think that was the one and only time I ever saw Estini get truly made at anyone. She was infuriated at the hunters."

The Outlander exhaled shakily, "Fuck I miss them."

I think there for I am,
But what if all I do is bleed?

Noah

Noah listened as Sah explained the loss of his own loved ones. Noah's eyes softened on his friend as he rolled the details of his life before Caido. There was a fond smile that just barely touched the edge of Noah's lips as Sah finished. "Have you ever made a lantern for them for the festival of lights?" He wasn't sure if their souls could be touched by Mort, or if Ludo knew of them in any capacity, but to honor their memory in the home he was in now was important.

Noah reached over and clasped his hand supportively to Sah's shoulder. "After my parents and my sister passed, I made lanterns for them for a long time. But the heralds weren't here, and eventually more and more people stopped making lanterns. It was like we had better things to do. But when the barrier broke and the heralds returned to us, we started again. I am going to make a lantern this year to honor all of the loved ones I have lost."

Am I a prisoner to instincts or do my thoughts just live as free
And detached as boats to the dock?

Sah

The hand on his shoulder was appreciated, grounding as it was. "For the last festival, yes. I haven't made one for this season yet. I plan to." Sah explained. He wasn't sure if you were supposed to make lanterns for the same people every year or not, but it seemed fitting. Even if he too had no idea if those, he lost in his prior world would ever receive them. The sentiment was still there and the closer it gave was undeniable.

As Noah continued, it was clear that such a practice was completely normal. That was a relief, Sah didn't really want to be the one to disrespect such an important festival by doing it wrong. "I had no idea that the practice had stopped for a time there. I know the heralds were behind the barrier but weren't the other Gods still out in the world?" He'd thought that Vi, Rae, and Mort had been around still and receiving prayers.

I think there for I am,
But what if all I do is bleed?

Noah

Noah squeezed Sah's shoulder before letting his arm drop again. "Yes, they were around. They didn't seem to answer and appear to us as easily as the heralds, though. Their roles in continuing to make sure Caido remains as it should is great. But they did come to us when we wanted to pledge ourselves to them--Vi attuned me when I was very, very young." He said, moving his body more towards the door they had entered through.

"Halo has always been a people who want to be self sufficient, but without having the heralds and with the head gods having such a large role in the world, we had to look for other means to help us when we needed it. Halo wasn't always this frozen place that we know it to be." Of course it was always colder and different than the other lands, being so far north compared to everything else. Once upon a time they had regular seasons, however, and times where there was no snow to cover the ground. "We reached to the Eirachi too often for help, and she slowly brought her hand down heavier and heavier on us. I think that is why we as a people moved so far away from the gods, until those of us that turned back to them upon their release from the barrier."

Noah opened the door and stepped into the torchlit hallway, leading them back up towards the main part of the Citadel. ”One more thing, Sah — if I am voted in as Warden, I would like to keep you as a part of my council. If the people choose you, I ask the same.”

Am I a prisoner to instincts or do my thoughts just live as free
And detached as boats to the dock?

Sah

Sah hummed in thought as Noah explained more about Halo's history. He hadn't heard of the details of Halo's relationship with Eirachi but it did explain a bit. And it made sense given what little he knew of the deity. From what he had heard she was as relentless and merciless as the Deepfrost she represented. "Halo's history becomes more complicated the more I learn", The Outlander chuckled lightly.

Sah followed Noah, a grin forming at the other man's question. "I would be honored." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "I was actually trying to figure out how to ask you that. I've enjoyed being on the council and how much more room it gives me to help Halo." As they made their way back to the others, Sah nodded sharply, "I won't disappoint you. Or Halo."


-{FIN}

I think there for I am,
But what if all I do is bleed?