Welcome to Gaia! ::

Luke paused with Asch for the moment's respite, catching his breath in slow, even draws. There was still a ways to go, and there was no point in getting tired already. Sensing the effect Asch's building ire had on his physical condition, Luke kept a low volume and a steady, passive tone. He hadn't brought it up to argue, after all, and he hadn't brought it up to piss off his brother needlessly.

"Did you speak to Mother and Father when you came back? Did they tell you you'd been replaced and send you away?" He trained his gaze into the inky darkness ahead, his expression almost lethargic. "I didn't 'replace' anyone. I just got tacked on as a cheap substitute. They probably would have just sent me back to wherever I came from if you'd shown them you were alive." But damn was this ever depressing.

"You don't have to tell them." Not that Luke distinctly encouraged this whole life of crime deal, but he doubted his parents would pry further than Asch allowed. "It's not like I can force you to go back or anything, though... I just think it would make them happy to know you're all right." Even if it meant Luke losing his place - though apparently it wasn't his place to begin with. Knowing that, it seemed only natural to set things right.

He felt the slouching weight in his grip and knew the situation was growing dire before the Zoroark's alarm alerted the same. "Hey, come on!" He jostled his brother in an attempt to rouse him, "It's not that much further!"

Luke allowed himself to indulge in only a slight sense of relief. They weren't out of the woods yet, and the task of putting one put in front of the other clearly wasn't enough to sustain Asch's consciousness anymore. Some kind of conversation would probably help, but what was he supposed to talk about that wasn't all questions or wouldn't just make one of them angry?

"...Hey, do you know that song? The one Mother always sang?" He gave voice to the first verse of it in demonstration. It wasn't really the sort of situation he had room to be embarrassed in, and he couldn't think of anything else to say.

Luke frowned. "Sorry. Just trying to keep you at least marginally aware here... It's not like I can carry you the rest of the way if you up and stop walking." He could talk about their surroundings, he supposed. Ooh, look how dark it is. And oh-- Rocks. Rocks and dirt. Truly fascinating.

The uppermost layer of ground softened only slightly, and the scent of damp earth accompanied the shift. They really weren't much further, it seemed, and the conclusion steeled Luke's resolve. Only a little further. Only a little further...

Thoughts of his mother were always a bittersweet amalgam of nostalgia and guilt. "She's doing well," he replied. "She worries a lot over little things," and big things too, "but I guess you probably know that as well as me." The gentle melody of running water mingled with his words, and the reflection of sunlight from further on shed a dim light into the tunnel.

A nod, "Yeah." He raised his free arm to point to the cave's opening but quickly recoiled from the cruel reminder of his injury. "It's not that far out, right? Leste should be able to carry us if it's only a little ways." Carrying two for the sharp ascent out of the pit proper would have been beyond the Pidgeot's capabilities, but if it was only to the safe land on the other side of the river, Luke was certain she would manage. Or he hoped she would manage - there just wasn't room for any less.