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 Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2023 6:49 pm
Follows New DiscoveriesTakes place late January, 2023.
“I’m used to us appearing in the Hall,” Sessrumnir admitted when they arrived on Alastor. Instead of inside the Hall of the Ancients, they appeared a little down the road in a grassy area just north of the Hall.
From where they were, they could see the giant Oak reaching well above the already tall wall. The weather seemed fair, although the softness of the ground implied that it had rained recently. Not so much that they were walking in mud, at least.
“So the plan is to just… stick the coins into the Core and hope they work after that?” he asked, a little skeptical of the process, if only because it seemed a little irreverent. But if Alastor wanted to grant them the magic they needed, then Sessrumnir wasn’t going to complain.
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Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2023 8:07 pm
Alastor laughed almost immediately. “Weren’t you the one suggesting just tossing things in? I think it’s a fine plan. Trust me.” He gestured towards Sessrumnir’s neck out of habit, just because he was so used to seeing the necklace there. “That’s how I made that. I have faith in the Core. And now, it’s just as healthy as ever. If we need power, it’s a good place to start. You don’t mind the walk, do you? I thought I’d show you a bit more of my world. There’s a lot for you to see. I’d like to take you to Arista, soon. But…”
His voice trailed off a bit; he’d spoken about how much work he had yet to put into Arista before he thought it was safe for the boys, though he trusted that Michael could have held his own just fine.
But, that wasn’t really what seemed to catch his interest.
To his right, the forest was growing–dense and thick and healthy.
To the left, the grass was a rich green–well hydrated, and trimmed low to the ground. He seemed to be contemplating that more than anything else.
His pace slowed just slightly but he continued towards the Hall. The light of the sun caught the gold of the tree with more vibrancy than during his last trip, but he didn’t look up.
The grass was almost completely even here, in stark contrast to the overgrowth he’d left during his last trip. On the worn path leading towards the Hall, a keen eye could make out visible tracks of something.
Multiple somethings.
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Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2023 8:13 pm
Sessrumnir sputtered a little, his face flushing a little with embarrassment, but he could help the smile that pulled at his lips as Alastor laughed.
“I was joking,” he let out a breath of mock exasperation, but lifted his hand to the necklace around his neck when Alastor gestured to it.
He watched Alastor as he spoke, ready to tell him that he didn’t mind walking, and that he did want to see more of his world, but he was keeping an eye on his expression and what caught his attention.
Sessrumnir seemed to notice what was pulling Alastor’s attention soon after, and crouched down so he could brush his hand over the low trimmed grass. It was definitely nothing like what it used to be. Not just vibrant and healthy, but almost as if someone had taken a lawn mower or farming scythe to trim it short.
And there were tracks.
He looked up at Alastor with surprise, hoping he wasn’t wrong in assuming that Alastor had been pretty devoid of life. Just as much as Sessrumnir or any other place but…
Sessrumnir had moths. And birds, although he didn’t see them. They definitely heard them.
“Do you recognize these tracks?” he finally asked, straightening back up so he could reach for Devyn’s hand.
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Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2023 8:20 pm
Alastor was quiet for a moment as he examined the tracks from a distance. He slid his hand into Sessrumnir’s instinctively.
“No,” he answered. “That’s not familiar to me.”
He didn’t want to get ahead of himself, but the necklace was moving quicker. He was interested and curious, but careful. There were too many things it could be–including a fluke.
“But I didn’t trim this grass recently, the ground was too wet the last time I was clearing the path.”
He half turned to look into the forest behind him. “I moved some debris blocking the path to Arista, but that was the extent of it.”
Alastor began walking again at a normal speed again, gently tugging Sessrumnir along with him. He was alert and scanned the area as they moved. “But I’d be interested to find out what made them.”
There was nothing visible to him between here and the Hall, or the river in the distance. He couldn’t quite see around the bend of the forest to their right, but he was clearly looking for something. Someone, probably.
He hadn’t given up on finding others, but lawn care was fairly low on the list of things he thought they’d be interested in.
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 4:45 am
Sessrumnir could feel the way the orb pulsed quicker, and he gave Alastor’s hand a gentle squeeze as though to remind him to breathe.
“Did you want to look for… whatever they were?” he offered, his voice quiet so as not to startle Alastor out of his thoughts. They were supposed to be trying to get the tokens to work, but if there was something wandering around Alastor, well… he would like to know what they were, too.
“Could it be something that eats grass?” he suggested. Cautiously. He didn’t want to give Devyn too much hope, but if there was something or someone trimming grass… And the tracks looked like they were some kind of hooved animal. He didn’t know how fresh they were though. Fresh enough that it made an indent in the ground.
“Dev,” Sessrumnir tried, this time wanting to pull his attention to him. “Have you seen anything since you’ve been working on fixing things up? Since we got rid of the shadows?” Surely Alastor would have told him, but just in case…
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 6:16 am
Oh, breathing. Right. He drew in a deep, calming breath. Sessrumnir’s hand squeeze had been reassuring and grounding, and he rolled his shoulders just slightly as if that would ease the tension in them.
“No. I’d let you know if I had,” he promised. “The only changes I’ve seen were the crops in the garden, and some of the flowers. Nothing from Arista to here, to about a mile down the road past the Hall. There’s a lot of area I haven’t visited yet, but I wanted to fortify the Hall first and work my way out.”
He stroked the back of Sessrumnir’s hand as he walked. “There used to be farms nearby. A bit down the road. Horses, cows. The forest used to have all sorts of creatures–rabbits, deer. But I haven’t seen any of those, either. The forest’s still quiet. Not even crickets or birds.”
Alastor fell quiet for a moment so they could make sure, but the only sounds around them were the distant sounds of the river, or the wind rustling in the trees, or the sound of dirt crunching beneath their feet.
And then, around the bend and behind the thick bushes and trees encircling the forest, the sound of shuffling, chewing, and soft, deep bleating.
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 6:30 am
Sessrumnir continued to watch Devyn as they walked. Did his best to monitor the orb against his chest as well. He wasn’t necessarily worried about him, but there was always the chance that his heart would be broken by what they found. Or didn’t find. He’d suffered so much already. Sessrumnir didn’t want him to have to experience any more heartache.
But there was a change in the sounds he’d gotten used to hearing while on Alastor. And while at Sessrumnir. Something was shifting, changing.
He slowed his steps, not wanting to startle whatever was around the bend. Wanted to give Alastor a chance to see what was there on his World, enjoying the lush greenery that had only recently been revitalized.
Thanks to everyone’s efforts in getting rid of the Chaos from Alastor.
“Well, I guess we know what’s been eating the grass,” Sessrumnir said quietly to Alastor as they got closer.
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 6:39 am
“Goats?” Alastor said, with disbelief and surprise. He didn’t sound upset, just incredulous. And a bit louder than he’d meant.
He’d spotted them just before they came into view for Sessrumnir; a herd of nine bulky, gray-furred goats. They were clearly muscular beneath their fur, and while some looked like they were smaller than others, most of them were visibly well fed.
Their hooves were thick and sharp–and a clear match for the tracks in the road.
They didn’t look like domestic goats; their coats looked like they could use a good brush, and they had massive horns that arced over their back. Some of them seemed to be two feet tall before they started curling over the goat’s back. The largest of them had horns so long they’d just slightly begun to curl back up again, but it was still far from a complete circle.
None of them had beards, though some of their horns seemed thinner than others. It was difficult to tell the male from female, but two of the goats seemed to be juveniles and had significantly smaller horns that had only just begun to start arcing.
Of the herd, half of them turned to look at the two. Within a few seconds, half of them turned back to the dense bushes they’d been chewing on. Within a few more seconds, all but one were grazing again.
They didn’t seem particularly intimidated by them. The largest of them watched for a moment longer, did something of an angry stomp, and then tore off a mouthful of leaves. He chewed loudly while he watched them.
“They’re not from around here,” Alastor said after a second, like he felt the need to explain. He might have been disappointed that they weren’t people if he didn’t get to be excited to have unusual animals around. “They’re from the mountains. A good bit North of Arista is the closest I can think. But that’s a long way to come to get down here. Although–”
He looked over his shoulder as if he’d have an answer, but turned back to Sessrumnir still with visible excitement. “I wondered if my world was healing in waves. The Core’s the strongest, of course the land would be best here. And every time I go out a little further, it looks a little better. They must have just figured out the best food’s down here.”
Except, now he was visibly thinking about all the other things that might be around here, because goats–mountain goats–that meant that other things could come back, too? Maybe they’d all migrate here. And people too, if they were smart. He squeezed Sessrumnir’s hand.
“We’ll have to come back and look around, maybe there are more hiding. I really want to go pet one. I won’t,” he said, before Sessrumnir could worry. “I’ve only seen them a handful of times. They like the apples from the trees up North, they’ll headbutt them until they fall down. I’ll have to bring some from Earth.”
He was supposed to be focusing–they’d come here to charge the tokens. The Hall wasn’t so far away, they could make it there in a few moments if they needed to.
Alastor just couldn’t stop staring at them–at how comfortable they were. They didn’t seem afraid of him, they just seemed glad to eat. Their stubby little tails wagged occasionally, often when they found a cluster of hidden berries or some of the weedy flowers in the grass.
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 7:52 am
Sessrumnir kept his eyes on the goats for as long as it seemed necessary to make sure there wasn’t any immediate danger. They could likely do some significant damage with their horns if they decided to ram them. But it seemed like they were more interested in eating.
“Makes sense,” he agreed after a moment, looking from the goat to over where he knew the wall and large Oak was. “It probably helps that you’ve got a beacon,” he nodded in that direction. Devyn did suggest that they stay and see what the tree looked like at night, after all.
“Maybe not pet them,” he agreed, but pursed his lips together thoughtfully. “But it would be a good idea to make sure they’re used to you. If they need help, it’ll probably be good for them to know that you won’t hurt them. They’re beautiful. For goats, I mean.”
He happened to like their coloring.
He knew it was probably not a good idea to pet wild animals, but this was Devyn’s world. If they were drawn to the Core, then they should know who the Senshi was as well.
“You okay?” he asked after a moment. He could feel the way the orb was fluttering with excitement, but he wanted to make sure there wasn’t anything he was missing.
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 8:26 am
Alastor really wanted to pet them. He pursed his lips together and had to force down the urge to make his way over and try to befriend them now.
Realistically, he knew it wasn’t a clever idea. He knew he’d win them over better by letting them get used to him, and by making sure they had everything they needed to feel safe here.
It didn’t diminish the desire any less, though.
Thankfully, he at least had restraint enough to listen to reason.
And there was Michael, always so kind and thoughtful. Alastor looked away from the goats so he could meet Sessrumnir’s gaze. There was always so much love there, and his smile softened as he took in his expression. “I’m okay. It’s good to have company. Not that you aren’t my favorite, but it’s just been a long time since I’ve seen anything else here.”
The plot of land sprouting new crops really didn’t count; he could talk to them, but they couldn’t do anything about it but grow.
“I’ll leave them be. For now. They might not choose to stick around. The weather’s good now, but I think they like it a little cooler. It makes me want to go into the forest and see if I can’t find anything else. I’ll have to keep an eye out. If I find anything else here, I’ll tell you about it.”
He lingered for a moment more, as if he really did want to walk over and introduce himself, but his smile settled, and the necklace calmed. He squeezed Sessrumnir’s hand. “We should make sure they can’t get into any of my gardens, though. I’d be very upset with them.” He didn’t sound like it, though; he could always just plant more.
“Maybe I’ll put up a fence today, if we have time. I have the materials to do it. I wanted to check on the Tree, too. I wanted to show you all the buds coming in.”
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 9:00 am
“We’ll order some feed from a local farm supply store on Earth. Try to see if they’ll eat anything we can offer them. Apples of course is a good idea. We can check with Soleiyu before bringing anything here. I don’t want to potentially contaminate your world with stuff from Earth. Maybe Soleiyu can come with us. Oh, if that’s okay with you,” he added quickly, because he was already getting ahead of himself in his excitement, which was clearly rubbing off on him from Alastor.
“We can absolutely get the fence put up. It’ll be easier while I’m here. You don’t have to do all the heavy lifting by yourself any more, you know,” Sessrumnir gently reminded him. He knew Alastor liked doing things on his own. He was used to doing things on his own. But he had people he could rely on now.
“One day we should bring the boys with us and teach them how to do all the maintenance. It’ll be good for them to know how to put up a fence and tend to a garden and approach goats to pet them,” he teased, but he tugged at Alastor’s hand to encourage him to step a bit closer so he could press a quick kiss to his lips.
“But I would like to see the tree first. I think this one and the tree back at Sessrumnir are about the same with their budding.”
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 9:12 am
Alastor accepted the kiss to his lips, and that was what finally broke the spell. For as much as he wanted to observe the goats, they came here with a purpose, and he had to have faith that they’d still be around when they finished. Maybe they could sit and watch them during lunch or something.
He drew Sessrumnir’s hand to his lips and kissed it afterwards before he turned away from the goats and–with one last look–turned his attention back to the Hall.
“I’d like to bring the boys up here. Not just for the help, though I’d appreciate it. I wanted it to be a bit cleaner, but I think it’s doing well enough. Maybe next week, if we don’t have plans?”
He mulled it over briefly, but shrugged; the gate wasn’t too far now, and the closer they got, the more radiant the tree looked. Glowing orbs of pure energy sometimes floated from the ground, or the tree itself, before slowly dimming as they rose into the air.
“I think the apples will be fine. Their stomachs are probably just as durable as mine. Some of the plants they eat are pure poison. But we can check with Soleiyu, too. Do you think there will be anything left for the boys to learn how to do if you help me today? I’ve no doubt we could finish up a fence in no time. Well–no. I think I’ll get distracted watching you work for a bit, so we might not be as productive as I’m planning.”
They could, if they put their mind to it. He just had to remind himself that he didn’t need to just work, constantly. He was allowed to enjoy the little things.
He was allowed to enjoy his time with Michael.
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 9:15 am
“Oh?” Sessrumnir hummed with interest. “Should I take my shirt off while we work?” He paused to look down at his outfit and laughed. “I might need some help getting all of these layers off,” he teased, flashing Alastor a charming smile.
It was cute the way Alastor expected to be distracted already. That was fine, he would just have to work hard to keep his attention.
“We could give the boys something to do. We’ll knock down the finished fence if they want to learn and we don’t have somewhere else to put up a fence. Uh, but we might want to warn the boys not to eat any plants while they’re here. And it might be good if you point out the ones that are poison to me too,” he added with only a small breath of exasperation.
He knew Alastor had trained himself to tolerate an incredible number of poisons, but now he couldn’t help but think about how Elliot liked to pick berries from bushes and eat them without washing them.
But it was easy to be distracted by the sight of the tree, especially once they were through the gate. There was always a strange pull he felt toward it, but he assumed that was just because it was directly connected to Alastor’s Core and was drawing him to it like it drew the goats.
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 9:28 am
Once inside the walls, it was almost impossible not to be overwhelmed by the sight of the tree. It had stood tall and strong and beautiful before, but now it was different. Now, it was thriving.
It was even more beautiful, even though it looked like it still had a ways to go. It was in the process of new growth, but its glow was visible even in the bright sunlight.
“Oh, please. You don’t have that many layers. Probably wouldn’t take me more than a minute to get them off of you. You can time me.”
He swung Sessrumnir’s hand playfully. “You think I’d let you eat something poisonous? Don’t go running off without me. I’ll bring some books back and get them translated. It’ll be a good project while you’re all at school, maybe. I’ll take you all on a walk around, we can go into the forest and if I can find anything edible I’ll show you.”
He felt a pull towards the tree–not uncommon, given that he always seemed drawn to it. In a way, it was like visiting Percy. It wasn’t unlike visiting his Core; he felt the same closeness to it, and there was an air of reverence about it.
The closer they got to it, the more little golden orbs seemed to manifest.
It felt like a greeting, like the way his Core might glow a bit when he went down to visit it.
He liked to think it was some part of Percy saying hello, and he couldn’t help but smile as he guided Sessrumnir close.
The bark looked healthier now, though there were visible golden lines still pulsing its way up the tree. On the distant branches, the leaves were a few colors–pale white and yellow, some with specks of gold and some that had already grown to be covered with it. There was a fresh fragrance in the air–flowers, and earth, and life.
It was a warm welcome for the both of them.
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2023 9:46 am
“No, I don’t think you’d let me eat something poisonous on purpose,” he let out a quiet sigh. “But I think you’re so used to surviving here that you might forget that we don’t all have stomachs of rock like you.”
And for that, Sessrumnir reached over to press his hand against Alastor’s stomach. But he didn’t stop there. He took a quick step in front of Alastor, not to slow him down, but to reach for his other hand as he walked backwards.
“Having a book would be nice. It’ll be good if the boys know what to look for and what not to eat if they were ever separated from us. Although I’m sure they could just go back to Earth if they were in danger, or to the Moon, but just in case.”
The air of reverence was not lost on him. He felt like this was hallowed ground and deserved care and respect, but he also wanted to see Alastor’s expression as he looked up at the tree and how it had grown healthier.
He could see the orbs of light dancing around them as they got closer, and Sessrumnir didn’t have to worry about tripping as he carefully walked backwards because he knew Alastor wouldn’t let him fall.
“Tell me what you’re feeling,” he requested, his voice quiet. He could see it on his face and feel it in the gentle pulse of the orb at his neck, but he wanted to hear Alastor say it.
And maybe it wasn’t even just for him, but for his world, for the Oak, to hear it too.
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