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 Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2012 8:32 pm
 It finally occurred to him, after days had passed, that in all the rush of confusion and changes that accompanied his growth, that he'd forgotten something.
The library.
Whoops.
Sure, he didn't have to pop in there everyday, and knew he wasn't expected to, but... still ! There was still so much to do ! He'd gathered his supplies and some fruit for snacking on as he often did, and finally headed toward the library.
"Endi ?" It was a different voice that called for Silence, through, and gave it's owner pause. He still wasn't used to the deeper sound of his own voice, and couldn't help but wonder when he wouldn't be surprised every time he spoke.
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Posted: Sun Feb 05, 2012 10:43 pm
Akakios had not, for a short while, been as constant a presense in the library as he had been in the beginning when he had first offered his aid to Endiovar. While it was absolutely not expected that young Lament pour his every day into scribing old books or shelving the books that had been saved by the combined efforts of god and mortal alike, he had been there often. So much so that it felt very strange when he didn't show up, but Endiovar and company figured that Kios had found something else to spend his time on.
The clean-up was nearing completion after months spent doggedly battling dirt, dust and decay; as many books, tomes and scrolls as possible had been infused with mana and/or rescribed to preserve the information within. It wasn't nearly what the Library had once held - Gianfar would surely have wept at the massive losses suffered within the newly-cleaned space - but that they had managed to save so much at all was amazing progress. And they weren't done yet, oh no. There were still small sections needing work...knowledge to be saved and rewritten with fresh ink, so the Library still held a good number of bodies at any time of the day.
When a familiar-but-not voice called for the God of Silence, he paused in his task and moved swiftly back to the open foyer-style entrance of the library. "A moment, if you will." Endiovar's words carried to Akakios' ears only because the man willed it so; the palid owner appearing with a soft smile shortly after to greet this new arrival.
Endiovar looked over the violet-haired youth before him, expression curious and thoughtful. "Akakios?" Oh yes, he could read familiarity in the lines of Kios' new body, in the way the boy tilted and moved...in the bright eyes and aura of mana. 'Do my eyes see true? Have you grown so much, my young friend, that I scarce believe it to be true?' Silence reached out to put both hands on the youth's shoulders, a sort of fatherly gesture, ' It is very well suited to you, the mantle of power you've grown into...your parents must be overjoyed.'
"It is very good to see you, Kios."
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Posted: Mon Feb 06, 2012 8:44 am
Really, Silence's reaction wasn't surprising. Hell, he'd barely recognized himself when he did finally get to a mirror. He was the same, and yet so different that it was probably hard to relate the young child he had been to the young man he was now.
"It seems like I have." was Lament's response to Silence's not-words. "Mother was a bit saddened, I could tell..." Echo would have liked been perfectly happy for her children to remain children forever, most likely.
His father, well... His father didn't know yet. "Hopefully that explains why I was so scarce..." He offered, a shy, almost embarrassed smile forming itself behind the lace veil.
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Posted: Sun Feb 12, 2012 4:38 am
'Your mother probably wished for you to remain a small child forever...no doubt but that she will continue to see you as such even as you grow in power and stature. Such is the nature of parents, I believe.' Having no experience with this himself, Endiovar had to reach back into the memories of his former host, Colin, to see if his mother had treated Colin in a like manner - and it did seem to be the norm.
"Of course." 'Kios, you are welcome to come and go as you please. Your help has been key in returning the Library to a useable state, but you need not worry if you stay away for some time, nor that you are shackled to the desk.' Here Silence returned the shy smile peeking out from behind Akakios' ornate lace veil. "Now that you are grown, I am certain you will find many more...interesting ways to pass your time."
Like a girlfriend or boyfriend...or perhaps gathering followers all his own? Who knew.
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Posted: Sun Feb 12, 2012 8:38 am
A part of him certainly hoped that it wouldn't be the case - he could understand her acting a little more strangely due to the newness of it, but he didn't want to have to remain a little kid in Echo's eyes forever ! That'd be... well. Annoying.
Interesting ways... ? No, Akakios had no idea what Endiovar was talking about. He liked coming here, to the library, and certainly couldn't think of anything else he'd rather be doing.
Grown up but not quite grown up, indeed.
"How has things been going ?" He asked, idly, trying (and failing) to conceal his confusion.
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2012 5:59 pm
Ah, so young even when grown! But Akakios had grown up handsome, no doubt that he would begin to find mortals and immortals alike vying for his attention, his affection. Reading that Kios really had no idea about what he'd alluded to with his previous statements, Endiovar easily took the topic change offered, preferring to not explain things that weren't his to explain. If Echo or Nergal wished to explain such things, that was their right. as Kios' parents - not his as friend or mentor.
'Quite well. We're very nearly done with the tasks that can be finished. When Gianfar returns, we will be able to refill the shelves with what was lost.' The Silence god told his newly-grown companion about how they had finally gotten the Library cleaned up properly, shelving rebuilt, beams replaced...globes fixed as they could be. It wasn't as glorious as it had been in it's heyday, but...the Library wasn't a wreck anymore. A little more could be done, but for the most part...they were 'caught up'.
Finally.
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2012 6:51 pm
It also did not occur to him that, well, Endi could read him like an open book. It never had, really - and he had yet to even learn to keep his body language more closely-guarded.
"That is good..." Really, they'd been working for so long, through it certainly had not felt like working, to him. To see all their joint effort come to fruition in an united whole was amazing.
"Walk with me ?" He asked, suddenly a little nostalgic. "I would like to see."
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2012 7:23 pm
As much as he could read any person that was not conciously trying to keep from being read (mortals far moreso than other gods), Endiovar tended to try to respect people's privacy as much as possible. But with those he cared for...well, reading them could make his ability to aid or succor them that much easier.
"Yes. It's been quite the endeavour...a good one to have completed."
Akakios requested that Endiovar walk with him and the god of Silence nodded and smiled; he was happy to walk with his youthful companion. To point out things they could remember together - the way this or that shelf had been destroyed...the book or globe or other artifact within the Library they had worked together to fix...it was quite nice to take some time and just walk.
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2012 8:38 pm
Lament was eager to do just that - to walk, and see, and look inward in remembrance, even if it hadn't been this long, really. He now looked much, much older than he truly was, even compared to the reborn gods.
He remembered struggling to reach a book perched on top of this one shelf and smiled - now, his hand all too easily seemed to reach and pluck a book from the topmost shelving, and he did so if only to be pleased in the fact that he could.
"There's really been so much work done..." Not just by them, but by everyone that had been involved.
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Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2012 6:05 pm
There had been a great deal accomplished within the Library by all those involved, mortal and immortal alike. Certainly the project had started with Endiovar and Revei as a sort of gift to their mutual lover, but it had grown far beyond that; a labor of love and friendship for Silence, Dream, Lunar's host Idhren and yes, the young god of Lament, the strengthening ties of friendship or collection of favors...and, of course, an exploration of knowledge by others.
Whatever the reasons behind each individual's involvement in the restoration of Gianfar's domain, the result was the same: an incredible transformation from ruin and the restoration of many precious works. Perhaps when Gianfar returned he would fill in the blanks, fixing what they had not been able to; but at the very least, his task would be much reduced from where it stood before.
'It is strange and wonderful to see you here and now, Akakios...last we walked this space together you scarce could reach mid-shelf.' Was it strange that Endiovar felt a sort of kinship with the young God? Gianfar had taken the boy under his wings as a student and Silence had done near the same as they worked on the restoration...Endi knew that his mate had been extremely fond of Kios, but was uncertain whether he had felt something akin to the fatherly bond that he himself did.
Kios was Nergal's son, not his...and yet the feelings held within Silence's breast were of the same ilk - as far as he knew.
"We could not have gotten this far without so much help from so many corners. Your aid was particularly helpful." 'I am very proud of you, Akakios. Very few children would have put in such work.'
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Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2012 5:28 pm
Well, even if it was strange, the fact was that Lament did feel something similar. He did not look at Endiovar like a father, no, but he did look up to Silence as a guiding path, as someone he could trust wholly and completely, with things that he might not be comfortable asking his parents about, even.
"I know... It is very strange. And it does put things in perspective, at the same time." He admitted. And yet he did not feel too different, really, through his thoughts now wandered along lines that had not really occurred before. Thoughts like worshipers, and impressing mortals. That... was important, was it not ?
And yet, he did not even have the slightest idea where to start. It felt like there were now so many doors and pathways he could take that he was uncertain which one to open and follow first.
"It was not any trouble." He had liked coming here, day after day, even if his siblings would have found it boring work. It was not so for him. He enjoyed the quiet atmosphere, enjoyed having so much information at his fingertips. He just hoped that Gianfar would be proud of them, and happy at the restoration, whenever he returned.
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Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 11:21 am
'Believe me, my young friend, the renovation project would have been a great deal harder without you...and I do not think we would have enjoyed it so much without you.' Having the young god there had been a refreshing breath of cool air - even with his seemingly endless supply of questions for any and all adults within a ten foot radius! "Besides, with you there, we had an excuse to keep sweets around." And so many of those that had volunteered (or been railroaded into volunteering) had a sweet-tooth, but wouldn't admit it (including Endiovar himself). Akakios allowed them to indulge without too much guilt.
That the boy - no, he was no boy now, but a youth and one coming into his own with understanding and power in his own right - that Lament looked up to Silence at all pleased Endiovar to no end. HE did so try his hardest to reign in his 'reading' ability on people's body language, etc. Akakios held him in a higher regard and so Endi felt that much; felt and sensed and knew the way that he sometimes did - Kios' felt of him an advisor of sort. One to be trusted and listened to, relied upon and the platinum-haired God would not let him down.
'My young friend, it is of more import than you could dream....and much, much less than you will know. The changes in state and stature we Gods know may well be the source of our continued longevity.' May well be? Perhaps his beloved Revei was rubbing off on him moreso than he'd thought; speaking in cryptics and half-riddles...twisting and twining thoughts, words and phrases, emotions and dreamscapes into one another in such a way that one could scarce get a straight answer or thought!
As much as Silence adored the Dreamer's Guide, he knew better than to merge into that self-same void-tainted tangle. "Once we were different, young Lament. Each of Us bound to Self and Stature, unbending as Underworld's rule of the Dead. In so many ways, that was what brought about the Fading - we overstepped ourselves, lost touch with worship." To any that did not know of Endiovar's abilities at "reading" the unspoken, it might have seemed that this turn in their conversation was wholly off the wall, but he had noted Akakios' slight foundering with where to start on the "road" to being a grown Godling.
"You know that if you ever have questions...I am more than happy to answer them for you. As far as I can, at least." He certainly wasn't Knowledge, but there were things that he did know - great stretches of information that he'd either learned from his host, from the time spent in the Pantheon, or just from his own experiences since his rebirth.
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Posted: Fri May 18, 2012 5:47 pm
That Endiovar had picked up on his uncertainty came to no surprise to him, as this was something he had grown to both know, and then get used to.
He had been told of this, of course. Of the old times, of the fading. Of how every god save for the Twin Crown fell, one by one, due to the mortal races withdrawing their belief. Falling out of touch, as Silence said. He had not really understood back then, and really, he was not certain he understood it now. It was hard to feel like he related to any of this. "But I am... Not the same, am I not ?" He had not been reborn through a stone, through a host. He had come to be because his parents willed it, wanted it, even if by now he had come to know that his birth, and the birth of his siblings, had been both oddly-timed and unplanned.
Odd for one to more or less owe their existence to the near-end of All, but that was more or less it.
"I mean..." He hesitated, pondering how to word himself in a way that made sense - hesitating not out of any sense of wanting to hold back, but of wanting to make sure he expressed himself clearly. Lament found himself leaning against one of the sturdier bookshelves, eyes half-closed. "I was not... There. Before the fading. At least I do not feel like I was. I do not remember anything. The ancient past... It is hard for me to feel connected to it." Lament admitted.
"There was probably a Lament before me... Was there ? Did you know him ?" Or her... "...And what do I do if the other one comes back ?" After all, there were two of Love... Would there be two of Lament ?
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Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2012 7:25 pm
Sometimes he really appreciated the ease of familiarity between himself and various deities; those that were unused or perhaps unaware of his distinct abilities tended to be phenomenally distressed by unspeak or his ability to 'read' the intent of thought, word and phrase beyond what was expressed in plainer terms. Things like that could be really disturbing and Endiovar tried very hard to keep his abilities in check just so that he didn't do something like that...when he didn't have to do so, it was really nice.
"No Kios, you are not the same. Your parents and I were reborn through the combination of gem and host...you and your siblings born from your parent's mana, whole and hale and without the need of another being's life-force." And they were infinitely precious and beautiful to all of the reborn gods for those very reasons; ever more so because of the hope that the new sparks of their lives represented both during Gehenna and now.
Endi smiled gently at the young godling, understanding his quandary and wanting to help as best he could, knowing well how troubling such thoughts could be - and were - for the pale haired Lament. Harmodius or perhaps Gianfar would have been better able to field such questions of course, but Akakios didn't have Harmodius or Gianfar available. He had the platinum-haired god of Silence, who would likely have a similar answer set purely due to the sheer amount of time spent in either god's company. 'There surely were Gods Lament previously, for I can recall being acquaintances and offering each other aid and support...but I do not remember well the Lord and Lady Lament.' Here he paused, frowning just so, mouth drawn into a thin line momentarily; thinking back to days long past was not an activity that Endiovar indulged often. His Lord had spoken plainly that doing such things did little good for the present and mainly served as warning or to sadden.
What he recalled most was being a party to Gianfar's clandestine meetings, shielding Knowledge and his companions in their discussions of dissent and plans for the end to the deific monarchy. A coup that was ended before Gianfar's group had even truly begun it, thanks to Grigori-spawned treachery...so similar to the events that had happened more recently thanks to Illumin and Eammon and Lady Gaia's arm. Silence recalled clearly the hurt that came of being party to - no matter how small or large his role - Harmodius' beloved Dragon Kings being injured; Harmodius being injured. The sorrow and hurt, great and terrible like nightmarish creatures were terrible, that came to the Twin Crown after Samyaza and her companions broke rank and launched the attack that was repelled at such a dear cost...the punishments handed out while Creation bade Lament's reigning deities weave his heartbreak into whole cloth to drape over those ugly wounds.
Of all the Dragon Kings, it had been Yu Five Claw that had been injured most and it had been he that stood at Creation's side with coldest gaze, wounds bare save for his Lord's tears and touch. Endiovar knew such things for he had been there too, a removed party, but still party to all that had transpired. Though Gianfar had stood trial with no friend at his side, he and Tranquility had waited outside Harmodius' throne room for their trials, their punishments; the others had not been so brave, wanting to avoid the merciless gaze of Destruction, the searching eyes of Creation.
Endiovar shook his head slightly, knowing that Akakios would find the story interesting but also knowing that the story did not make the youth's questions any more answered than before.
"The past is far, far less useful than the Present and what is being taught, learned and lived now. Harmodius himself told me this as I now tell you. Being disconnected may well be a strength, my young friend. And there will be no replacing you...should another Lament god appear, you would combine strengths and rule your realm together."
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Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2012 1:31 pm
The non-verbal was something he had learned to look for and decode - in great part thanks to all this time passed with Silence, actually. It was a good things - people who suffered often tried to hide their pain, but the small gestures and mannerisms that they could not truly control would betray them.
Silence seemed distant for a moment - clearly thinking about something or other, and Akakios said nothing to disturb his companion - one of his mentors, in a way - until Silence would speak again. "Lament is remembrance." To remember the departed, to remember and cherish the good just as one let go of the pain. At least, that was what he felt. That was what he thought.
Was it the right way ? He would not know. Probably would not know for a long while, either.
"I figure it is just strange to me. As far as I know.... I am the first." He - Music's youngest, the wide-eyed baby boy, had been the first. Neither of his siblings had grown into their own. He knew of others - other gods born of parents rather than gems - but had never met them. Well, beside one - the purple-skinned child that had showed up at the ritual, and then later. After that, he had never seen the little girl again.
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