Homeworld Visit: 5th November 2020
A familiar sight by now, Athalia had become rather fond of his home and the echoes of what he had once been. Setting down upon the planet, his sandals touching the soft soil, brought a welcome warmth to his very chore. This world was his and one that he was born to protect, though its denizens had long departed, over the course of several months he had come to realise that while the 'Hive' had taken their leave for reasons beyond him, it still wanted to thrive. As each rune lit up and each monolith sprung to life, casting out energy into the atmosphere, the colours that had been lost before had begun to return.
Every breath of wind rustled and disturbed the jungle, and with every quiver, the clay fell off to reveal the healthy foliage underneath. It was a sense of pride he couldn't quite put into words, but as he stopped to press his finger tips to the leaves, it always brought a smile to his lips. It was safe to say that while his original visits to this world had been less than fruitful and his bond with it had been far from impressive, the efforts taken to find common ground were beginning to pay off.
...Conveniently, his magic now worked seamlessly.
And it seemed that by extension of learning to commune to the planet, it had found a greater strength or unlocked a missing 'memory' of what had once made it whole. It certainly wasn't perfect by any means, if one were to try and claim it was anywhere near finished, they would have been lying... But in a roundabout way it was perfect to him. While not a child, it was still his and he would see that it came to no harm. Perhaps in time he would manage to do more than bring plants to the world, perhaps as the years went by he would find a means to spur the miracle of other life.
Idealistic perhaps.
No, it was most definitely idealistic.
Even he knew that and with all the magic in the world he sincerely doubted that once life was 'gone', it was quite so easily returned. Nevertheless the plant life that remained and the memory of what and who had once been there was something that he sought to preserve. At the very least he hoped that as his planet grew and its 'memories' returned, it would see fit to tell him more of its story and in time he might learn of what had happened.
Had they died, had they fled?
There were no guarantees such things would ever been revealed to him and he knew better than to dream that much. Instead, he sought to work on what he could control, and that included bettering himself. He didn't know if his idea would work, but he'd had some success before and perhaps he wouldn't knock himself out this time. It was with this in mind that the man wandered towards the pyramid, gazing up at the structure with a thoughtful expression before he was swallowed by the shadows and entered the warrens.
His destination? The very same place where he had seen himself as he had matured from child to adult. It was a region he assumed was a place of learning, one that was regarded with great importance, and that seemed as good a place as any to try and learn something new. Granted he had been warned by more than one person that one couldn't will these visions to happen, but he had come to terms with this. Even if nothing happened, he would at least meditate upon the world that graced him with its power - only a senshi might understand it, but it felt different here and there was still value in this.
It wasn't long before he found the room that he sought, the same pillows still lay in wait and the same murals remained on the wall. The fallen trinkets he had left behind in his former accident remained in their dishevelled state and it was with a sigh that he finally picked them up and replaced them to their spots.
An eerie quiet lingered here for no life lurked this deep beneath the surface, but he settled himself on the ground and closed his eyes. A few measured and experimental breaths and he began to try and empty his mind. All things considered this was a little harder than most people let on, particularly for an individual who had several opinions such as himself! But eventually he began to calm, his pulse began to quieten, and then he promptly fell asleep...
--
Was he under water?
No that peculiar thing he was hearing, that cacophany of noise was in his head. Whispers of the entertained, grumblings of the frustrated, elation of those who had found happiness in the day. It was an overwhelming mixture of thoughts, feelings, opinions. Everything and everyone had things to say, and yet as he came to he found himself in line with his peers. Ah, he knew this place, could feel the sensation of the thick carapace around his waist and the tightening of hardening skin on his calves. He wasn;t him anymore, not really, and yet he was.
An quick look ahead and there he saw someone, an instructor, a drill sergeant? He wasn't sure, but in quick flick of his wrist and a snap of his fingers, he summoned several hundreds glimmering insects to him and in a mere instant they had swept on to his body and 'clicked' into place. An armour formed across his body and the man turned to him.
He turned to his peers.
"Now you." He heard it rumble through his head.
--
He woke up, still in an unright position, which quite frankly impressed him.
Interesting, so they didn't build armour so much as they were the armour. More intriguing was the fact that the man he had seen seemed to have had the ability to speak to the bugs. Did that mean his species had more than just himself in it, or did they possess the ability to converse with others on the planet? He hadn't quite gotten his answers, but as he rose to his feet and stretched he did afford the time to humour himself.
Yes...even he could be a child on occasions.
He mimicked the man's pose, hand outstretched, and then gave the same fluid flick of his wrist and snap of his fingers. He knew better than to expect several hundred gold bugs to sweep out from some hidden crevace in the wall, it had simply been for fun. Yet in that instance he felt something sweep across his skin, a warmth descended upon him and he began to shimmer.
"Holy s**t," he uttered, fortunate that no one could hear him.
All right, so it didn't appear to do anything but that was certainly one way to connect to the past. He could appreciate that, and while it may not have been much, it was still something new that the planet had deemed fit to bestow upon him. It would have gratitude where it was due and eventually he would try again, however for the time being he knew better than to push his luck.
He had no proof whatsoever but he did have to wonder if the planet had some manner of sentience. Things seemed to move at its pace rather than his, and while it had frustrated him in the beginning, perhaps there was a method to the madness.
Perhaps he was only entitled to power he could handle, and when he was ready, he would receive the rest...
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