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 Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2023 7:45 am
“They’re just kids,” Michael said in a hushed, pained voice. Maybe to Devyn. Maybe just to himself. He left Princess to stand guard at the door to the medical room where Elliot and Atticus were resting, although how much sleep they would be getting was unknown.
He was still worked up from having to rush in, and he was relieved that they didn’t have to face Faustite for any longer than they had, but it had been long enough. Still, if Faustite had continued to fight, would it have been too late to actually save either of the boys, who had been in the direct line of fire? Quite literally.
Once upon a time, he warned Devyn to be careful when he fought the Negaverse. Not so much that they were dangerous to the point where Devyn couldn’t handle himself, but because they were often just teenagers.
But over the year and a half since then, Michael wasn’t so such about how he felt about all of that any more.
His dad was dead. Jet was a General King. Faustite as well. They had a few new Princesses, but what good would that do when the Negaverse was still willing to kill, but most Knights and Senshi would rather try to work things out.
Like the story of the scorpion and the fox, it was the scorpion’s nature to attack and kill and no matter what good deed the fox did, it would still drown as well.
Michael didn’t know where he was going when he left the room where the boys were. He wasn’t as familiar with this place of Sessrumnir, but it seemed as though someone else had been. He felt his feet being pulled -- or maybe it was his imagination -- and could have sworn faint glowing lights indicating the way to go along the floor and walls. If anything, Michael needed to walk off his frustration and anger.
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Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2023 8:00 am
“I know,” Devyn tried to reassure. He kept his voice quiet, soft and steady for Michael more than anything else. He knew that the boys would be too exhausted or too busy fussing over each other to be eavesdropping, anyway. He followed next to Michael, perfectly in step with him. He didn’t need to lead; he could have paced down any hallway.
Maybe Michael was just burning off some of his energy, or maybe his feet knew where they were going. Devyn didn’t question it; the halls were not unknown to him, but he hadn’t seen them in some time. Now wasn’t a good time to inspect them, but he knew there would be other opportunities, later.
Sessrumnir was very in tune with its Knight. Devyn had noticed the faint glow of the lights but didn’t point them out. What purpose was there? Either Sessrumnir was leading Michael, or was trying to help him on his travels.
Whatever the case, they were safe here. The boys were, too.
The important thing was that Michael knew he was here. To listen to him, to support him. He didn’t know if he had any guidance or advice, but if the purpose of this trek was to blow off some steam, he was going to make sure he stayed close to Michael.
…Just in case he was bottling up his emotions and denying himself any chance to work through them.
“Good kids. I know they wouldn’t have tried to antagonize him. This was uncalled for. But they’re okay. They did good. You did good.”
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Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2023 8:04 am
“They’re okay because we happened to be there. Because we decided to stay on Earth. Because we were close to where they were,” he heard himself growl, but it felt like it was distanced. Like it wasn’t really his voice.
He turned on his heel to head back down the hall. The lights didn’t follow him. Not all of them at least. They seemed a little hesitant when Michael turned, but a couple ripples of glowing light still lit up where they were walking. The rest of the shimmering lights that seemed to be embedded in the rocks pulsed with gentle uncertainty at the place in the hall where Michael had turned around.
Michael noticed that there weren’t as many glowing lights on their way back towards the infirmary where they’d left the boys, but he didn’t take the time to investigate.
He was too worked up.
“If we’d killed Jet when we had the chance, Dad would still be alive. What mistakes are we making now? Letting Faustite live…? What’s the point? He’s clearly an unstable, unknown entity.”
He didn’t even know what to call Faustite. But it bothered him immensely that so many people turned their back on the atrocities he’d committed. And yet everyone at that failed purification still seemed to defend Faustite over those in the Court.
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Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2023 8:38 am
Devyn knew Michael wasn’t mad at him. He knew it was the situation. He knew he was worried about the boys. Briefly, his eyes drifted to the lights they seemed to leave behind, but Michael was his primary focus right now. He walked a little faster to catch up.
Killing people was not ideal, not if there were other options. Devyn had always trusted the people of Earth when it came to such opinions. He was here to help, not demand they do things his way. He didn’t even like killing.
Sometimes it wasn’t just the best option, it was the only option.
He felt no remorse or guilt or shame at the idea.
Faustite had attacked children. Well, teenagers. He knew their boys cared more about helping people than they did about picking fights, and between Elliot’s sense of justice and Atticus’ compassion, he had no doubt that if they thought they could have helped Faustite, they would have.
Sometimes, Michael talked in a way that reminded Devyn that he was probably still finding ways to blame himself for things well out of his control.
“He’s dangerous, they all are.” Maybe they were getting worse. “I don’t see any good in him. I wouldn’t let him live if I had the chance to take him out.”
Any of them, probably. He’d kill Jet, just for peace of mind. So Michael wouldn't have to have nightmares of him coming after anyone else in his family. Practically speaking, he’d do it so Jet couldn't scheme or plot or propel the Negaverse forward in any capacity. He’d heard enough stories about him to know he was too deep-rooted in their lies to be pulled out. A General? Maybe you could save a few of them. A General King?
Why bother? How much time and energy would they waste trying? Was there even a way to purge that must Chaos from a starseed, willingly or otherwise?
No, it wasn’t worth it. And Faustite seemed to have it worse. How much of his humanity had been burned away by Chaos or flames?
Death would have been a kindness to this world and their starseeds. Let the Cauldron cleanse them and try again in the next life.
Maybe Devyn was waiting for permission to do any permanent damage here. Michael knew this world and this war far better than he did, and he trusted his guidance. Devyn had been holding back for much of his time here. He knew sometimes people needed a chance to change. He knew that sometimes they could be saved.
He also knew that there was a point of no return, and if the options were to save someone who wanted to do good or someone only capable of doing evil, it was an easy choice. In black and white, at least. Devyn could work with that.
He could do what he wouldn’t ask or expect of others.
Blood on his hands meant nothing. It wasn’t like the old days when he had to prove that he wasn’t a monster. Maybe he was just a well behaved one, anyway.
He’d have done anything to make Atticus or Michael feel safe, though. That was more important than any legacy he could leave behind.
Devyn placed a gentle hand on Michael’s back.
“What do you want to do?”
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Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2023 1:31 pm
Michael didn’t jump when Devyn placed a hand on his back, but it felt as though he was suddenly pulled back from stepping into another reality. Somewhere that was moving steadily out of reach. He’d heard everything Devyn said. He’d processed it. But it was as though he was listening to something as distant as his own voice.
He didn’t like the idea of killing anyone. But he also knew the very real threats of leaving dangerous people free to do as they please. They couldn’t exactly lock anyone up when they could just teleport.
His hands weren’t clean. He’d killed before. Whether it was out of duty or obligation or to protect his family and friends and country, he’d made that choice.
But he would also rather have his hands dirty than make anyone else have to something that they should never have to.
“I don’t know,” he admitted, frustration and helplessness in his voice. “Everyone is so scattered. No one is being trained to work together. People don’t want to work together. I’ve been guilty of that too.”
It probably wasn’t even a surprising confession. Michael tended to keep to himself. It was safer for everyone that way. Or so he thought. But with the building threat over the last decade, this wasn’t the first time he thought about how they would do better if they had more allies to work closely with. But who could they trust?
“In the past, the Knights had the Academy to learn everything they needed to. Or at least the basics. Senshi… you just had to learn as you went, didn’t you? I can’t imagine that was very easy.”
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Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2023 2:04 pm
“I had my Council. I wasn’t all on my own.” Sometimes it felt like he was, if only because he didn’t share the same opinions of his Council. It took a while to get them to understand and believe in him and let him try things his way.
Worst case scenario, he died, tried again in the next life.
All things considered, Devyn didn’t think things had worked out too poorly for him. He’d succeeded in outliving every other Senshi of Alastor. Although, that was complicated and a bit less simple than he tended to make it out to be.
“I had mentors. Atrius was always there for me.” There were others, but he’d wound up gravitating towards the mayor of the city next door when he needed someone to help butter up his Council.
“I learned a lot by myself, I suppose. I didn’t have any Senshi mentors. Even if there were some passing through, it isn’t like they wanted to be associated with me when I might have needed their help.” He shrugged; if it had bothered him in the past, it was so long ago that he’d moved on.
“I can’t imagine trying to do it now, with no one. If I’d been born now, with you, instead of with my past life? I’d have been lost, I think.” The memories he’d gotten as a child, of the last Senshi of Alastor? They didn’t paint him in a good light. The stories might not have done him justice, but he couldn't imagine what his opinion would have been if he hadn’t lived his life or had the people he had to support him.
“Knights and Senshi seem in the same boat now. There’s not a lot of guidance. Everyone seems like they had to start out on their own. If they were lucky, they found people to help them, but.”
Another shrug. He rubbed Michael’s back gently to soothe him, and watched him thoughtfully.
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Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2023 10:30 am
Michael frowned as he listened to Devyn. He crossed his arms over his chest and glared down at the shimmering glow at his feet.
There was a lot to consider. Lucien was already making efforts by trying to connect people to each other while they are just civilians, but if he had no one out there to support him? If they were just going to sequester themselves away for their own protection?
“We should keep working on getting Alastor fixed up,” he said after a few long moments. He took another pause to give Devyn a somewhat hopeless look. He felt lost, even if he had everything he needed right in front of him. He felt like he was letting people down, like he was going through the motions without actually planning for the future.
It was easier that way. For him, at least. He’d spent so long focusing on getting by, one day at a time, that really planning for a physical future rather than just devoting himself to the emotional support his family gave him, that he wasn’t even sure he knew where to start.
He wondered if Devyn could read his mind, even without the earrings Devyn had inherited from Atrius. He wondered if Devyn knew that Alastor could very well be a chance for people to escape to, should the worst happen. Others would have to join together. They would have to see how Ganymede felt about preparing her world for taking in refugees. They needed to see if there was a way to connect their worlds to Jupiter -- Sessrumnir and Valhalla were close enough to each other that they could easily make them places people could stay as well.
Michael didn’t want to think about evacuating Earth, but if people like Faustite and Jet continued to wreak havoc, then they needed a backup plan.
“And… maybe see if people want to… I don’t know. Team up,” he shrugged as he mumbled, and eventually felt awkward just standing there that he sighed and turned once more to head back towards the waiting glow of lights in the stone.
“You’d probably have better luck than me,” he admitted. Devyn tended to be less, ah… distant than Michael, after all.
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Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2023 10:46 am
It had been a longstanding goal of Devyn’s to rebuild Alastor, to restore it to its full glory. While the intention had been to make sure that anyone still in hiding had somewhere safe to start over, of course he’d have opened his doors for anyone.
He’d already put so much effort into the Hall and no one from Alastor had yet to make their way there. There were many towns and cities in various stages of disrepair across Alastor; he had more than enough space for anyone who might need refuge there.
He had no intention of turning anyone away if they needed help–and he was already making more updates and advancements. Soleiyu had helped him with improving technology and security, and with Lucien here he knew they could get even more done.
When Michael moved, Devyn moved, and he never let a large gap grow between them. “We’ll keep working on Alastor,” he promised. He might slow down a little bit just to make sure the boys were all right after this, but with school starting he had plenty of opportunity to spend extra time up there on his world.
“I wanted to get started fixing Arista up a bit more, but it’s looking better now than it did a few months ago and I’ve done little more than visit.” He knew there was a deep, old magic in his world. He couldn’t understand what it meant, but he thought it must mean Alastor was trying to help him put things back together.
Michael looked unsure of himself. Lost. Overwhelmed.
It had been a traumatic evening, maybe everything was just weighing down on him, too.
He could have returned his hand to Michael’s back but instead he laced his fingers with his husband’s.
“Alastor is safe,” he reassured softly. “Maybe I can find some people to help me get a bit more cleared up. You and the boys have been immeasurable help, but it might be nice to have a larger space available. Just in case.” It was hardly a daunting task; Devyn had been passionate about cleaning up Alastor since before he’d even arrived on Earth, and he’d spent a lot of time and effort since the storms had cleared making sure he did just that.
“I’ve got things I’ll want to give them. Maybe things for you, too. I don’t want something like this to happen again, I’ll go through my collections and see if there’s any tools I can pass onto them.” Of all the magical artifacts he’d amassed, some of them must still work. There had to be something more he could do for the boys.
For Michael, too.
“What type of team are you imagining?” he asked, squeezing Michael’s hand gently as they walked. He could ask people for help, he could suggest teaming up with someone. He had a good number of people he’d met while here on Earth, he thought there must be some among them that could be convinced to help him, especially if it meant also helping achieve some goal of Michael’s, too.
He could see how much of this was weighing on him; if he could take any amount of stress off of Michael’s shoulders, he would.
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Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2023 12:39 pm
Michael glanced down at his hand when Devyn took hold of it. And it was as though that gesture alone gave him permission to relax a little. He could feel the tension in his shoulders lessen, and he gave Devyn’s hand a squeeze in return.
“Hopefully a team that can work together. There have been really aggressive teams in the past, but they didn’t turn out so well. I’ll have to tell you what I know about the Blood Moon court later. There’s so much I need to tell you, and I don’t want to overwhelm you, but I think you should know.”
It was important for Devyn to know as much as possible. He could make better informed decisions when faced against Chaos that way. He wouldn’t be caught off guard if something came up or others tried to use his newness to Earth against him.
“We’ll get Arista fixed up. And we can go through your hoard,” he gently teased. But Devyn did have a habit of picking up a lot of things. He was grateful for Devyn’s patience and kindness, but instead of telling him, he would just have to show him his appreciation once they were able to rest.
Michael came to a stop in front of the door where the glowing was strongest, sighed, and reached for the handle.
He could hear the lock click as he pulled, and inside was--
“It’s a storage closet,” he let out a laugh, surprised that the lights of Sessrumnir were all worked up about showing him to a closet.
But he knew there must have been more than that. It was a large closet, one that he and Devyn could both step into. Along the walls were boxes and jars. Unknowing of what he was trying to find, he reached out his hand to brush along the shelf where the light still seemed strongest and…
“Gross…” he grimaced as he pulled out what seemed to be a bone from some dead animal. It must have perished on the shelf or… maybe not. It didn’t take long after picking it up to feel the latent energy within the bone.
“What do you think? Some kind of magic?” he asked Devyn, holding the bone out for him to see and take if he wished.
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Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2023 1:01 pm
Devyn liked stories. He’d listen to any of them that Michael wanted to tell. Devyn also liked strange things, so when Michael offered him the bone, of course he picked it up. He held it to his eyes and wiggled it a little, mindful not to rough it up too much given its probable age.
“Witchcraft, maybe,” he deduced, with no seriousness. He didn’t always understand everything at Sessrumnir, but he knew that if something had been stashed here it probably wasn’t unintentional. He looked around and took stock of what they had to work with, but there wasn’t much he recognized. Now probably wasn’t the time to poke around, anyway.
He passed the bone back to Michael. “If Sessrumnir wanted us here, I’m sure there was a reason.” If the bone was the first thing he’d seen, Devyn had heavy suspicion that there was a reason for that, too.
Michael was right, Devyn did have a bit of a hoard. He wasn’t ashamed of it, he was a good collector. Not everything was useful, some things were just there to make him happy. But his artifacts…
He’d talked about it before. Been driven to sort through them before.
When the boys were all right, he would make a very serious plan to sift through the treasury and see what he could find. If not to destroy Faustite, to keep them safe.
Of course, he might need a whole team just to get through his collection. He couldn’t imagine any sort of aggressive team, that’s not what he wanted. That sounded like a recipe for disaster; too many strong personalities were bound to collide. If he was going to find a team to work with, he wanted it to be with people who wanted to fix things, not break them.
If he was going to work with anyone, he wanted it to be people who brought out the best in each other, not the worst.
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Posted: Tue Sep 19, 2023 5:53 am
Michael took the bone back and smoothed his thumb over it. He was gentle with it, because something was telling him there was more to the little bone than he knew. A pull -- or push from his starseed -- had him glancing back towards the door and down the hall.
“I think… I might know what to do with this. I think there is magic in it,” he said quietly with a frown. He hoped he wasn’t just making things up in his head and that Sessrumnir really was doing whatever it could to help them.
But before moving, he reached down to take hold of Devyn’s hand again and brought it to his lips, kissed it, and then lowered his hand back down as he sighed.
“Sorry, no memories. Just a feeling,” he clarified. He didn’t want Devyn to think he was keeping secrets from him, or not sharing when Percy decided he wanted him to see something.
“What would Percy think of all this…?” Michael asked before he could think better of it, but around Devyn it was easy for his thoughts to develop into spoken word. “Ah… that’s not really fair to ask. Upset but supportive, I’m guessing?” It felt a little weird to assume things about someone who had died a thousand years ago, and Michael felt a little guilty for boiling what were likely very complex emotions down into something so simple. He was curious, but he didn’t want to pry.
He held the door open for Devyn so they could make their way back down the hall. The lights seemed satisfied and followed along their path this time instead of lingering at the closet door.
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Posted: Tue Sep 19, 2023 6:56 am
Devyn wore a soft smile as he stepped through the door. He waited for Michael, and when he had stepped out as well, Devyn took his hand. He swung it lightly while they walked, and though he didn’t lead Michael, he took the first few steps. He knew what it was like, to have a feeling but not know where it came from. Maybe it was just instinct, but sometimes it was more than that.
It didn’t need an explanation; he trusted Michael and he trusted Sessrumnir. If they’d been led here, it was for a purpose.
“Oh, probably,” he agreed. He didn’t seem upset or worried about the question. He liked talking about Percy, and he liked Michael’s questions.
“He’d put on a brave face and push himself until everything was okay. And then, when all the adrenaline faded and everyone was taken care of, he’d let himself be upset. He’d worry. It’s in his nature, the curse of caring so much. Probably try to brainstorm solutions. Pore over books, looking for some line of text he’d missed. Invent some tool to solve all of our problems. Or just keep me out of less trouble,” he hummed.
“Percy would think you did an excellent job keeping the boys calm and getting them patched up, though. I know that must have been hard on you. He’d have been very proud of you. Just like I am.”
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Posted: Tue Sep 19, 2023 10:42 am
Michael was quiet as they walked down the hall, mulling over everything Devyn said. About Percy, about how he was proud. How Percy would have been proud. He took a moment to glance down at the tiny bone in his hand again and let out a somewhat exasperated breath.
“Seems like he’s still trying to take care of things.”
There was no way to really know for sure. Maybe it was Sessrumnir itself helping out, but the last person who would have shared such a close bond with the Wonder was Percy. Sessrumnir knew what Percy wanted, just as it knew what Michael wanted.
“It feels like he prepared for all of this. Well, I doubt he would have known what was going to happen. And it might have taken a thousand years, but…”
It was strange. Michael knew he shared a starseed with Percy, but it still felt like they were completely different. They were. And yet still the same.
“Seeing you now, especially with Atticus, I think he would have been very proud of you too, Devyn.”
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Posted: Tue Sep 19, 2023 11:44 am
Devyn had seen Percy in these halls long after he had passed. He had seen him here since he met Michael. It might have been his imagination. It might have been the ghosts of his memory. It might have been a lonely heart.
It might have been Sessrumnir preserving some part of him here.
Devyn liked the idea that Percy was still watching over Sessrumnir. As long as he wasn’t lonely here. In his heart, he knew it was wishful thinking, but if he didn’t put too much thought into it, it was a nice fairy tale at least.
He smiled and lifted Michael’s hand to his lips so he could kiss the back of his hand.
“I think so, too. Thank you, Michael. Percy probably did prepare for things. Maybe not this, but he was always worrying about me. I got into a lot of trouble. I know he did his best to prepare for every emergency he could think of. And even some of those he couldn’t.”
The bone was unknown to him–familiar, perhaps, in the way that Devyn had seen many old and interesting things, but he could find no real recollection of it or any like it in his memories. He didn’t know what it could do, or why Sessrumnir had drawn them there. He trusted it was for good purposes all the same.
“And I’m proud of the boys, too. They did very well tonight. They’re both so young, I wish it wasn’t like this.” He was quiet for a moment, and then added, “We’ll make a better world for them, Michael. Maybe even a few.”
He would put effort into Earth. Into Alastor. Into Jupiter, and the Moon, and anywhere else that asked for help.
Tonight couldn’t happen again.
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