Event Log: April, Tangled Terrors Part Two

[faileas]

Event Log: April, Tangled Terrors Part Two

Hopefully you and your fellows have prepared yourselves for the trial that comes next, with supplies and backup, because it could be days until you see the city of Aefenglom again. Slashing down the curtain of blackened roots that bar entry to the source of all this trouble will open up access to a truly massive cavern, the ceiling of which is far, far over your heads. Unlike everywhere else in the Underground so far, slats of light from aboveground filter in through cracks in the ceiling of varying sizes, where thick, sickly roots penetrate the surface and reach down, down, down, hanging like stalactites or wrapping around the mass at the center of the chamber. There it is, the pulsing louder than ever, a steady drumbeat of unease: a beating, throbbing mass of Cwyld, easily as large as one of the bigger buildings in Aefenglom. Pitch black in color, it’s attached firmly to the coiling roots of what must be a huge tree above, leeching from it like a parasite and reaching dark vein-like fingers into the leyline. This is an ancient, well-established thing that must have laid dormant for a long time, newly awoken by the efforts to clear away infection in the tunnels close to it. With every beat of this hideous heart, the problems that plague the Underground, Aefenglom, and the Mirrorbound grow incrementally worse. It’s easier to feel out the leyline here, even for those who may not be sensitive to such things, and its poor condition is enough to fill even the stoniest heart with empathetic, deep-rooted despair - the magic here is badly tainted, the land dying all around you.

I. The Screaming Tree It’s possible to climb the winding roots up to the world aboveground, wriggling through the cracks in the earth’s ceiling. The Cwyld is deep-set here, the grass ashen gray and withered, crumbling under your feet, the plants black and twisted into strange shapes or simply dead, collapsing into dusty husks at the slightest brush. The ancient tree before you is just as dead, its branches long bare, its bark crumbling and leaving bone-white patches of the raw wood visible in the trunk. It might have been beautiful once, homey, its roots spread wide and forming natural hollows and bowers to rest in, but that was a long, long time ago. Before something terrible happened here. Look closer at the trunk, and bear witness to the faces of two dozen humanoid creatures who seem like they were partly absorbed into the tree and frozen there, their expressions a tableau of horror, fear, despair, many of their mouths twisted into screams. Men, women, there are even a couple of faces that seem so, so very young, held in place inside the dead tree by black, pulsing veins. Their long limbs are outstretched like branches, as if they’re reaching for you, desperate for help. Black, oily sludge constantly leaks from their unmoving eyes like tainted tears. The Dryads died out a long time ago, fallen to the Cwyld, that’s common knowledge, but now you’re seeing it for yourself. The pulsing mass of Cwyld below overtook this tree, and the Dryads who no doubt lived among its roots and branches. "Can thou feel their cries? The hopelessness wrought deep in their souls?" comes a larger than life voice near you, laden with despair of her own to see the evidence of lives cut tragically short. “I remember this place. It was a Dryad settlement once, long ago.”

II. Guardian's Blessing The source of the voice may be familiar to some: Creia, the guardian dragon of the earth, who was once freed from her own slumber thanks to Mirrorbound efforts; her scales are a vibrant, emerald color, evidence of her better health from her first true meeting with the Mirrorbound as a whole outside the boundaries of Aefenglom, and there's a sense of power in the words she speaks. The power that comes from long life, from an ancient being who has seen and experienced much. "Mine wings bore me as swiftly as they could," she says, settling into a sitting position in the dead grass, watching the tree with immeasurable sadness. "Thou hast seen what lies beneath, have thee not? The Cwyldheart." Her tone is nearer to disdain than sorrow, but there's a clear remorse in it as well. "I had not thought they existed still, but perhaps they merely laid dormant where my senses could not find them. This one poisons the very leyline that runs beneath thine Aefenglom." She goes on to inform all who are gathered that when she heard from you Mirrorbound that something was amiss, she came as quickly as she could to see the damage, and to try and offer her help if she can. Cwyldhearts, she tells you all, are masses where the infection is concentrated, where it has consumed a great amount of magic or lives, and when active, they cause powerful surges in infection all through the leylines they attach to. She wasn’t aware that any remained, and speculates that they hide themselves when they go dormant. This one is most assuredly active, and that means it won’t stop until it has consumed everything it can, turned every life from here to Aefenglom into an infected husk. But Creia, her talons scratching at the dead ground, and her gaze fixed on the tree, does not seem so willing to accept that. "Thou who hath been called by the world, thou hath proven thyselves capable of achieving the improbable before, have thee not? That I stand here now before thee is proof enough of that. Perhaps, should thee take heart and valor in hand, thou may be able to do so once more. Wouldst thou like to try?" In a surge of power, the ground immediately beneath her shifts, the grass changing color slowly from gray to white to green with new life, and she drags her claws through it to turn the earth, revealing large brown seeds shaped like teardrops, the size of footballs or ostrich eggs, nestled in the dirt. Despite their woody outer shells, she’s very careful with them as she offers a seed to anyone who steps forward to take one. "Each of these seeds contains a piece of my magic. Keep them safe, plant them in the center of the Cwyldheart, and add thy power to mine own. Yes, yes, those who are closer in form to myself as well, everyone with a spark of life in them can lend their voice to the chorus of this world. It will amplify thine abilities and thine hope for a better world, and enough of them should allow thee to destroy this blight for good." She casts a glance to the tree, to the frozen faces of the Dryads, something new entering her expression, something like hope. "And who knows what may happen then?" This mission is a dangerous one, but Creia sends off those willing to take it with a warm, heartfelt wish. "Thou must take care of thyselves, but be certain to take care of thy comrades as well. Thou shalt need one another."

III. Heart of Darkness You can’t put it off any longer. With seeds in hand, it’s time to venture back down below, to the pulsing Cwyldheart. The steady thump-thump, thump-thump resonates in your very bones, in the back of your brain that has your instincts screaming at you to run the other way. The twisted knot of blackened roots and veins at the center of the chamber does not welcome visitors, but it’s possible to slip through a gap between the tangles, into a darkness you’ve never known before. Whatever entrance you find closes up the moment you and your fellows step through it, and it becomes obvious quickly that either you will succeed here, or you’ll join those Dryads in the infected tree. Your Watch still works, at least - most of the time. The connection is quite spotty, and voices can come out sounding garbled and nightmarish on both sides, but with persistence, this is the only way you’ll be able to talk to anyone who isn’t on this mission with you. Otherwise, you’ll have to rely on your fellow volunteer heroes to help you through this. a. Inside the Cwyldheart The inside is much larger than the outside would suggest. Once your eyes adjust to the darkness, an easier feat for Monsters than it is for Witches, the true scope of this maze of tangled roots becomes clear. The walls move in and out like they’re breathing around you, some corridors much tighter and others feeling vast. In some, you can walk right side up, while in others, your feet remain on the ‘ground’ but the blood rushes to your head, the actual floor far below you. Time and space take on a dreamlike feeling, and you can’t tell if minutes have passed or hours, can’t tell if you’ve gone feet or miles, but Mirrorbound at least should be able to tell the difference between dreams and reality. This is all very real, and you won’t wake up miraculously fine if you get hurt down here. Negative feelings seem always at the forefront, paranoia and fear especially, filling those who venture here with the sense that they need to watch their backs. The air is thick and stale, damp and reeking of rot. The natural pathways that tunnel through the Cwyldheart like twisting arteries are lined with clusters of purple fungi, and very old, sludge-covered bones of the creatures it infected long ago. They’re rare, but occasionally blind Shades still wander within the chambers of the Cwyldheart, so twisted and mutated you can’t tell what they used to be. These are attracted to sound and motion, and by staying very still, you can generally avoid their attention. Everything in this place gets more dangerous once it gets the scent of those seeds you carry, though. As if sensing what they could do to it, it will react defensively. Protect those seeds; Shades will come after those who carry them, the roots in the walls and the bulbous mushrooms loosening and growing and lashing out. The Cwyld may sink its claws into you in an attempt to infect and consume those seeds - too much contact with the roots or the Shades may start to cause physical mutations in you, just like those mutations of the velvet wormipedes and the native creatures of the tunnels. Your limbs may change and twist, you may grow new blackened protrusions. It's painful, and disgusting, and if it goes too far, you may need to hand your seed off to someone you can trust, lest you sabotage the mission yourself. b. Heart on Your Sleeve As the hours pass within the Cwyldheart, things get… a little weird. Your sense of perception could feel off. It may feel like something is always watching you, like you have to keep looking over your shoulder every few minutes. Or you might feel utterly, utterly alone in the universe, even if someone is standing right next to you. Whatever makes you feel worse, it seems like. But then the strangeness gets more improbable, like the Cwyldheart itself wants to probe at your weaknesses, bring them out to the forefront to better get under your skin and make you lose hope in ever finding the center. All those things that have hurt you in the past, that left their marks on your mind, your soul rather than your body, surface as wounds or scars on your physical form. None of them will be debilitating or life-threatening in themselves, you won’t bleed out from your past broken heart, but they will be painfully obvious to those around you, and some may not handle that type of vulnerability well. The only thing that seems to ease the pain from these psychological wounds is talking about the events that caused them to another person, whether they be your Bonded or a total stranger, or just sharing an emotional connection of some kind. No one wants to discuss some of their worst memories or open up to a near stranger, but it might be necessary to keep yourself from being distracted or held back as you wander the maze of the Cwyldheart. c. A Helping Hand The rampant issues with Witches’ magic, with Bonds, even sometimes with Monsters; abilities, continue even here. With your proximity to the source, they are even stronger - but there is a way to alleviate the effects enough to progress. The land recognizes all bonds, even those that are unofficial, even those that are new. While you can hang on to your Bonded if you’re lucky enough to have them with you, friendships or familial relationships or a budding romance, the heat of a rivalry, or even the new and tenuous bond of two strangers brought together by mutual dangers can be used to your advantage. Physical contact with any of your fellow Mirrorbound, even just clasped hands, or a comforting hand on your shoulder, can make it easier to cast spells to light your way through the dark or fight off the few wandering Shades. It can give you the strength to use your abilities, not quite to their fullest, but better than you can use them alone. It will also help you protect those seeds you hold close to your chest. Your bonds, and your Bonds can help shield their presence from the Cwyldheart, making it safer to proceed. It’d be easy to push people away, especially bearing the physical representations of your deepest emotional hurts, but you’ll never survive that way. You’ll only make it to the center by coming together.

IV. Seeds of Hope In the real world, at least a week has passed before you and your fellows find the center of the Cwyldheart, though it may feel like only hours or it may feel like weeks to you, stuck in a place that ignores the conventions of the real world. The innermost chamber is a small space, tucked away, with sloping walls made of latticed roots littered with holes. This is the only place inside where a thin trickle of light filters down, weak, through a small hole in the ceiling. This chamber is vulnerable, all the strange defenses outside meant to protect it. The soil here is black with infection, but soft, easily dug with your hands or tools if you happened to have brought them. The perfect place to plant your garden of hope for the future of Geardagas. Once you’ve broken through to the innermost chamber, the pulsing seems to fade away, letting you think again, clearly, for the first time since you entered. The walls are still. You’ve made it this far and no more dangers will come for you. Plant the seeds you worked so hard to keep safe in the blackened soil, hold your friends tight, and plant a piece of your own innate magic with them. All your best intentions, all your joys, all your light. Let it bloom. The seeds take root quickly, and bloom they do, growing fast and strong and pulsing with magic, Creia’s bolstering your own to make something bright and brilliant. The resulting plants grow huge in a matter of minutes, twining together in harmony. Maybe you can even tell which seed you have carried, because the plant is a larger version of something significant to you, or it bears colors that represent you. They form a sheltered bower, and spread upward, pushing away the blackened walls, sinking fresh green tendrils into the bigger roots of the dead tree. The Cwyldheart crumbles around you. The black recedes. The leyline fills with fresh magic and pulses with new life. A gentle warmth wraps around you like a blanket and heals your wounds and banishes any infection you picked up. It will keep working over the next few days, the new life sinking in, banishing the Cwyld entirely from the Underground caverns and weakening its hold above. It will gradually bring life again to the ancient tree and make it bloom once more. At this point, you can stick around to watch it happen, or you can return home with the good news, and trust in what you helped to start. With the destruction of the Cwyldheart, all its negative effects will fade. Your Bonds will snap back into place and right themselves from the Dryad Tree clear into Aefenglom. You might feel the phantom ache of that loss for some time more, but the moment it’s destroyed, everyone will know that all will be well.

Welcome to Tangled Terrors, Part Two! This part takes place entirely at the site of the Cwyldheart, but anyone is welcome to do Watch threads on this log to communicate with the group they aren't part of (staying home vs expedition team). We'll be posting a small wrap-up at the very end of the month that will describe the aftermath and the rewards characters will reap for their efforts, but it won't be a full event post of its own. As always, you're welcome to use this log or make your own, and please make sure you warn for any content that might be disturbing to others! And lastly, please direct your questions here. Have fun!

Comments

[worldcleansing]

[ Finally finished, Light takes a step back and releases a controlled breath. Even with experience and knowledge, such deep and complicated injuries aren't easy, especially with the added caution; if the spell were to go backfire, Light couldn't have stopped it with the current magic climate, but it meant he went slow enough that should the magic begin to backfire, he'd have been able to stop before too much damage was finished.

Thankfully, that wasn't necessary. ]

I'll need you to stand still and turn the injuries toward me. And I have a lot more questions after you've had a chance to heal.

[ L likely would have known he would. After all, it's important to know if that person is a new risk or an old risk, and considering they lived together, a risk to L could likewise be a risk to Light. ]

Remember that it's going to hurt at first, but I'm sure it's already hurting enough that it won't be too easy to notice. The guy really wanted you to suffer, didn't he?

[hearthebell]

[There's a sharp intake of breath from L at the touch of Myr's snout against a wound the stag likely does not intend to give like mush, the way it does. When he answers them, his soft sound of agreement is tense, soft, wavery. Satisfied that Myr's been seen to (for Kira is, paradoxically, an excellent healer), he keeps his faun at his side for support, turning the left side of his face toward the other man. Third-degree burns, easily, starting at L's jaw and traveling down his throat over the Cwyldheart's finger-shaped bruises.

He's unhappy to entertain more questions. Speaking of Mello with Light, at all, is a minefield waiting to go up, not just with Light but with their mutual bonded Near. It's imperative that L behave as though he knows nothing about his future after his death; so far, it should be simple enough for Light to believe that would be impossible, that L had no way of receiving information about a future he was dead for.]

He was confused.

[He steadies his breaths. Keeping his information straight will be more difficult through the pain of the nerves regenerating.]

I don't think he knows what he wants.

[Does L, for that matter? At this point, the best he has been able to surmise is that he feels bad that Myr was injured, but struggles to determine what else about it he might regret.]

[faithlikeaseed]

[Loathe as Myr is to participate in subterfuge, as little as he likes lying--and as much as he thinks L's tactics in this respect are liable to end them in far more trouble than not--he can at least understand and grudgingly approve of maintaining secrecy in this instance. Now, when the Cwyldheart is warping their emotions and turning them against each other, is not the time to reveal Mello's identity and its breadcrumbs back to Kira's eventual demise.

Any Mirrorbound death, down here and so far away from the Coven, would be permanent, and could plausibly be made out to be an accident.

(It is a pity that Kira is such a skilled healer: It makes it harder to oppose him without wondering what else could be and whether there was a way to redeem him that wouldn't be subject to manipulation.)

So the Faun shifts himself just a little closer to his Witch, offering a warm flank and a silent promise of support. His own breathing steadies, slows, falls into sync with his Bondmate's; he does his best to quiet his own flutterings of anxiety and offer an emotional backstop to lean against rather than another distraction.

(They will have to talk about what actually happened to touch off the fight--later.)]

[worldcleansing]

He was infected?

[ Anyone who lived here for any length of time would know about the Cwyld, never mind any good healer. Light's experience with it is limited to L's infection at the party, but he's done no small amount of research on the topic.

Another deep wound. Right after the first, during a time when magic doesn't feel as safe and reliable as it's come to feel. It's odd, the way it turned from massive and a bit frightening to feel almost like an extension of his body. Still, arrogant as Light is, it's normally not without some kind of baseline, and his confidence in his ability to heal L and Myr comes from what he considers an honest assessment of his ability. ]

The same advice applies to you. Don't move, even when it starts to hurt. It won't last long.

[ With another centering breath, his hands are in place and the healing begins. This time, he falls silent, deciding to turn all resources inward. When healing Myr, Light was as well-rested as he'll be in these caverns. After, there's a decent drain on his energy. ]

[hearthebell]

It's a reasonable assumption that he was. The veins in his hands were blackened... his overall state emotional and agitated.

[He doesn't say that that's Mello even on a good day. Just nods, allowing Light to place his hands over the burns, trying to keep the tremor from his breaths and the wince from his face. The rest of the wounds hurt, certainly, but it's all grown into a sort of baseline ache that he bears and manages. For all of them with wounds like those, isn't the implication rather that they bear and manage them anyway, only unseen?

The burns are different. Tender, real enough to remain long after they go back to the surface if nothing is done. Light's warning is accurate; the nerves regenerating are like feeling the flames again, in a way, and involuntarily, he reaches for a handful of Light's sleeve, twisting the material in his hand to keep from pulling away from the pain.

Light's reassurance is accurate as well, though; it dissipates and smooths itself out along with the skin. Some healers might not take such care in restoring a scarless appearance, but Light has a way of going above and beyond, striving for perfection, taking that extra step.

He's grateful for it now, as annoying (and thrilling) as it was when he was fighting Kira.]

[faithlikeaseed]

He smelled of it.

[So did everything down here, but Mello had carried the peculiar and threatening overnote it took when mixed with living blood.

Myr lapses silent, having said; Light clearly needs all his concentration to work this time. L's discomfort is all-too-palpable, though, and tugs at the Faun's instincts to comfort and assure. A moment passes before a fragment of melody insinuates itself into their Bond, a familiar and wordless lullaby. It is meant as a soothing distraction--from L's pain, and from Myr's dwelling too long on his own realizations.

(Any Mirrorbound death down here would be permanent. Light would be close to the ends of his magic once he's finished with L.

Oh, Maker, let me not be tempted.)]

[worldcleansing]

[ Slow and steady. In spite of Light's actions back on Earth, he does consider himself a healer, if of society instead of one single person. It's no different here, in this world, but there's also just a general combination of pride and general competence in all things he tries. Light enjoys losing as much as L, which is to say he doesn't.

It had to hurt. The same was obvious of Myr's injuries. The magic was probably hot enough to do this quickly since even if L was small enough to hold, it would take a monster or a spell to hold a faun as large as Myr. If he'd wanted to fight any healing, Light would have had a hard time, an impossible time without magic, stopping him.

No level of skill could heal the other injuries. Only confession would do that much.

It won't be healed.

Finally, he finishes. Thankfully, this time, there's no backfire. That was an unspoken worry, but they both know how magic is working at the moment.

Another exhale as Light inspects the results. Surrounded by so many other ghastly wounds, it feels almost silly to focus on one, but that one is at least closed. He's tired now, tired enough that Myr is right: he wouldn't be a difficult target. Likewise, he'd be easy to catch by surprise. By his assumptions, Myr isn't someone who'd go on the offensive very often. ]

Does anything feel strange?

[hearthebell]

[There is surreal and ongoing irony in Light ending L's life in their world, and mending his flesh in this one. It's disquieting, and never lost on the detective. Myr can't see the way he swallows thickly and grimaces, but he can certainly hear the sharp, short breaths, feel the fiery nettles of nerves springing back to life. He knows, partly because Myr felt this himself moments prior, and also because he can hear the threads of a melody over their Bond, as soothing and gentle as any lullaby.

When Light's hands pull away, L lets his sleeve go, wrinkled now from the force of his grip. Smoothing his palms over his healed neck and face, he blinks and nods appreciatively.]

You really went all out...

[His skin might be softer and more even than it was before the burns, even.

At Light's question, he makes an uncertain sound in the back of his throat, still tense from the bracing he did during the healing process. There's space, now, to think of what happened a few minutes ago.]

Aside from...?

[Aside from everything. This whole bizarre situation, having two of his Bonded with very different outlooks so close to him at once.]

No. I don't think it does.

[faithlikeaseed]

[Myr was not often one to go on the offensive--but not for want of recognizing the moments when he could.

(The opportunity is right there; the fatal knowledge of it pounds with the beat of the Cwyldheart through his skull.

It would be easy. Neither Witch could stop him. It would end a future threat to his beloved and maybe all of Aefenglom.

It would deny a man his chance to repent. It would break L's heart. It would be wrong.)

Apropos of nothing, the stag snorts and bumps his nose against his Witch's shoulder--mute warning he's about to move before he takes several steps away and settles down on the tunnel floor with his legs folded beneath him and his head pointing away from Light and L.

It makes ambushing anyone harder.]

Nothing strange here, either. You did good work. Thank you.

[Even if he had a feeling the question was not addressed to him as such, he needs to say it.

For many reasons, he needs to say it.]

[worldcleansing]

[ It's no secret that L is their nexus, their only common denominator. Myr and Light have known of each other much more than they know about each other, but the question can apply to them both. It would be easy to assume someone of Kira's ego would hate anyone who disagreed with him, but he doesn't. Hate is a strong enough emotion that he won't waste it that easily and even if he has a sizable following, he also has sizable opposition, his father included. The plan has always been patience and allowing people the time to come around, to see the peace his choices created. L was unique in his ability to push the right buttons, which is one of the reasons he's always been such a brilliant, successful detective. Logical people are most likely to make mistakes when they're made emotional instead.

So, he doesn't hate Myr. The same logic understands why Myr would dislike him. That said, he still believes in Kira's nobility, but simple disagreement alone isn't enough to put anyone in danger. ]

You're welcome. You two should rest up. I can heal the injuries, but I can't give you back your energy.

[ Finished now, he leans against the wall. Light needs to follow his own advice. ]

We don't know what's ahead, and none of us are at our best right now.

[hearthebell]

[Resting is a good idea, in theory. If they had the luxury of doing so, it would be ideal; unfortunately, they do not possess it.]

I'd not want the party to move on without us, and leave us more prone than we would have been if we'd had the safety of numbers to protect us. In any case... my attacker is in the same situation, if not worse off, and so all we should need to worry about are the shades.

[Not a small concern, but if others are taking those down, the three of them may be able to straggle to the finish line with their bodies and seeds intact.]

We'll rest when the group does. It shouldn't be much longer until the next stop.

[faithlikeaseed]

Linden's right. We can't afford to get behind.

[Though Myr has not yet heaved himself back to his hooves. He's more exhausted than he thought he was when he was still standing; a full-shift takes a great deal out of him even when he's well-rested and not in the grips of an adrenal drive to defend his Bonded.

He really does just want to rest, whether or not it gets him eaten by a Shade. More, he does not want to be in this conversation, as an unneeded appendage whose only contribution now is the Cwyld-driven desire to kill the light L orbits like a moth around a flame.

(It isn't hatred beneath it, really, nor even dislike of Light himself--however blasphemous and warped Myr found what he knew of the younger man's outlook. Kira is simply a threat, and it is easy for Myr to ignore that a threat is also a man with a man's capacity for repentance and redemption.

To say nothing of how L and Light fit so naturally together that even a blind man could see it, and stand aside from it with a mix of awe and jealousy. Whatever the flaws of the men who made it up, that relationship had a natural glory to it that asked for respect.)

None of this really rises to a level of conscious thought as Myr considers their options, leaning down to rub the itch of blood from his face against one fore-knee. It runs beneath all that, pushing him toward the kind of perverse self-spiting action he's inclined to in his worst (and best) moments.]

You two might take a break from walking, though. I can carry double until we've caught up. [He'd pay for it in spades once he shifted back, but they'd be as safe as they could be in these tunnels, by then.]

[worldcleansing]

The two of you can walk?

[ It's a surprise, but perhaps the fight and subsequent injuries didn't drain them as much as he'd assumed. Admittedly, Light had to make a lot of guesses about what happened, but if the two of them can keep moving, it shouldn't be a problem. He's tired enough that the idea of a fight isn't appealing, but even healing to that degree wasn't enough of a drain to steal the ability to move.

It's a small surprise to hear Myr's offer but only slightly. Myr may not like him, but he's duty-bound and hasn't seemed to be outright rude. Maybe more of a shock is the fact that he's capable of carrying two grown men after those kinds of injuries. If only Light had advanced enough in potions to have made something to give them more energy, but wishing won't gain them anything. ]

I can walk and as sure as you are that you handled him, it's better if somebody can watch our back until we can get back with the group. Linden?

[ If he needs the help, they can wait until he's ready to move. ]

[hearthebell]

My legs aren't broken.

[Said offhandedly, almost flippantly, because L doesn't want either of his Bonded to believe that he could possibly be even more of an inconvenience to consort with today. Between getting into fights and having too many secrets he refuses to part with to heal life's mental damage manifested on flesh, it would be generous to claim that he's worth the trouble for this particular endeavor.

It takes two steps for him to waver and stumble against Myr. Miserably, he doesn't have much choice but to acknowledge that insistence on moving under his own power could well hinder them even more than asking his Bonded for this favor.]

Myr, could you...

[Just for a little while. Unless, of course, he falls asleep with his face nestled against Myr's white neck, something that happens almost immediately when he mounts.]

[faithlikeaseed]

[L has very few reserves even in the best of conditions, so it's no surprise to Myr when his Witch falls asleep almost the instant he's off his feet. The stag gives a huffing snort of weary amusement as he feels his Bonded transition from waking to sleeping, and slows just a little to balance his newly unconscious rider.]

He'll learn he has limits one of these days, [he mutters, with marked fondness.] Before he burns himself out completely.

See anything ahead?

[worldcleansing]

No, it's still clear for now.

[ For now. It's an important for a qualifier. ]

And it's probably weird to say, but if Liden goes too easy on himself physically, he'll suffer in other ways. Hopefully, one day he can find a balance, but for now, he can live with this a lot easier than he can deal with losing what he does fight for.

[ His life. A case. Whatever he tries, Liden hates losing. They're alike that way. ]

You seem to take care of him in between the exhaustion. You gave him a place to live, food, and even helped keep the home stocked. He must've made a big impression.

[faithlikeaseed]

[Ah.

And there it was.

Myr swivels an ear toward Light as the younger man speaks up, showing his attention even if he can't look in that direction.]

That's the line, [he replies, with dim humor.] And so far as it's used for young men in good health who can trade against it for their years of future success, it's an argument I buy.

[With the implication that this is not that case. L was not in good health.

L does not have years of future success, back home.]

But Linden's somehow, [the word is larded with an unmistakeable irony; it's not a mystery to Myr,] hit on the notion he will serve us all best by spending himself entirely on the fights only he can win. Burn fast, die young, and let the future mind itself.

[He must've made a big impression.

Oh, had he.]

I love him. I believe he was Made for more than a single flash of brilliance and an early grave. He deserves every opportunity to learn that.

[worldcleansing]

[ For the first portion of their relationship, L had been just an disembodied name. First, he'd been a threat on the television, then an invasion into the Yagami home, and eventually the difficulty of staying free made him all the more engaging. Just as Light's movements caught and kept the detective's attention, L became someone who wouldn't just be pushed aside from Light's own brand of justice. He'd become a rival, one worthy of fascination and engagement.

This world made him more human. Or, at the very least changed the circumstances which hid his humanity. The question is how much has he changed versus how much is situational? The L Light had known in Tokyo would have never been involved in an orphanage, and yet here he was volunteering until it became a paid position. Even now, he openly admits his desire for the logical work of a detective is because of the challenge, not morality.

Myr's right; L's always planned to burn bright. The difference in their perception is that Light has to wonder if he'd be happy burning on a smaller scale if it meant having more time. It's difficult to do any job worthwhile in their field and live to retirement. Light's father isn't nearing L's level, and his own level of dedication has caused health problems.

But two years and Myr's obviously changed L to a degree. It's almost three years now, as Light isn't new anymore. It's clear that the faun and the witch have a special bond that isn't related to the more magical variety. If Myr asks for a favor, L will follow through. When they interact, there's a clear worry that he'd never seen in the detective before. It isn't completely obvious if Myr has changed L or if L changes for Myr.

Either way, the sentiment is much more simple than the detective himself. He worries, he doesn't want L to overdo himself, L always overdoes himself. Somehow, it likely won't be a large relief for Myr to hear that at the very least, L's already managed several acts of brilliance. ]

Did you two come at the same time? It's still odd to think he lived two years while I was still interacting with him in Japan. The magic was easy to adjust to, but that idea isn't as easy to grasp.

[faithlikeaseed]

[Myr's worry for his Bonded is simple, and not. Partway it's made of the same concern the Faun holds for everyone around him: That they be healthy, and happy, and living according to the higher law their own Makers had written in their hearts. Any of those were sufficient grounds to argue against L's self-destruction; any would come easy to Myr's lips if he were asked a specific reason he cared.

Less easy to articulate is worry born of the deeper correspondence between Myr and his Witch: They were both children sacrificed to their peoples' need. They had been purpose-made by thoughtful men to serve a fearful world. Their talents made them monstrous and unfit for society--so they were told--but a form of redemption lay in using those talents to their utmost to do what others could not. Then they could pick the battles that fascinated them; then they could have rightful pride in their victories, won within the circumscribed bounds laid out for them. So long as they never presumed to deserve or choose what anyone else might have through an accident of birth; so long as they never mistook themselves for people, rather than precious tools.

It can't be all his own choice to die in harness if that was the only future ever offered him.

Therein lay the gap in Light and Myr's evaluation of L's self-destructive tendencies.

But L had begun to change those, with aching slowness; and Myr takes every incremental improvement as a victory, whether they're changes he's wrought or changes for his sake. The fact L hadn't fought much longer to walk on his own, or resisted the sleep he sorely needed, felt like another of those little victories.

A tactically useful one, too, for his other Bonded to do a little scouting. Which of them will make the most of this interlude...]

He preceded me by a few months. He'd already established himself with the runes by the time I arrived--that's how met, at first. I hired him for a job.

[How they'd met, but not how they'd taken to each other; that required a different set of circumstances and a vigorous debate about one of L's other Bonded--one that had led to Myr's commitment to drag the detective out of a Void of his own making.

How things came back around.]

It is a strange notion. That our lives--and others'--seem to continue while we're here.

[It's fed more than a few of Myr's own worries about his own nature, though present cares have largely silenced them.]

Two years is more time than you two had been working together on your mutual case, wasn't it?

[worldcleansing]

[ That gap isn't as large as it may seem considering their opposing roles. Light is the one who will take L's life while Myr fights to lengthen it. Before Kira, the two detectives didn't know one another. If the Death Note had never fallen in front of his class, the two wouldn't meet until years later, possible once Light joined the police form but possibly sooner. Had that been their fate, his opinion of L would just be as complex as it is now, if different.

The bare truth is that Yagami Light is unable to connect to most people on any kind of real level. L's actually a rare exception due to his own intelligence, but he's spent his entire life being praised and held to such a standard that it became difficult to feel the same as those around him. In that essence, he's always used people. He needed friends so he chose a few to be especially friendly toward. Normal people dated so in spite of no sex drive, he occasionally went on the odd date. It was no different than taking up tennis because it was healthy to have a sport. If he was kind to them and gave as well as he got, wasn't it fine? It was moral and still.

The disparity came in that in spite of this, he didn't condone hurt or misuse. Kira was created because he wanted to save the world from those who would harm the innocent. In that line of thinking, it wasn't okay to use someone in a way that would hurt them, and he would find L's own past abhorrent, too.

At the very least, the current Light is different than the one a few years from now.

But Myr is right that two years is longer than he and L worked the Kira case. ]

Mm. Quite a bit. It was an intense case, but a short one.

[ And Light knows Myr is vaguely aware of it. ]

Our time here will match it soon. It's been very different but still intense. If you'd told me I'd spend my year living in a cottage with Linden, I'd have had a hard time believing you, but this world's thrown a lot of surprises at us.

[faithlikeaseed]

[Myr makes a noise somewhere deep in his chest, a rumble that passes for an exhausted laugh.]

"A lot of surprises." Yes; it has. This among them.

[He'd never fancied himself as a Warden, for all he'd idolized some of their brighter lights as a child (and what elven kid didn't hero-worship Garahel at some point in his life?); trekking through blight-infested tunnels being beset from every direction by disease and monsters was nowhere in his plan for himself.

Nor contesting with a man who had ambitions of godhood and a body count in the hundreds.

The Faun slows a moment, craning his head back to nudge L into a more secure position on his shoulders.]

Could've fooled me, [he picks up, once he's settled his Witch,] that you hadn't known him that long. You two work and live together like you've had years of practice.

Will you tell me more about the case? If you feel at leave to speak of it.

[worldcleansing]

Linden and I... we have a lot of differences, but we have some important similarities, too. The case really highlighted that. We argue a lot, too, but that's usually behind closed doors.

[ Light chuckles, too. They're often in sync, it's true. L and Light understand a base truth about one another after spending a life of feeling like no one else can understand. ]

He'd probably be bored if we agreed on everything. But the thing that lets us work so well together spills into our personal life, too. Living together didn't hurt.

[ Another of their surprises. Somehow, this kind of situation was different than being handcuffed to the man around the clock. ]

But I think it's different than the relationship he has with you. Probably, the relationship he has with you is different than I've seen him have with anybody else.

[ A casual shrug before he admits: ]

I haven't had the chance to see him in a lot of different situations becoming coming here, but he's not known for normally showing worry.

[ Would Myr feel better or worse to know that he's one of the small number who receives the visible concern from L? As far as Light knows, the faun is a good enough person. That means he'd want L to also feel the same amount of concern for others. However, Myr's also hu--- a person. What person doesn't enjoy knowing they're special to someone who's clearly special to them? ]

Myr, I know you know about the case.

[ L's admitted that Myr knows about his suspicion and Light is equally aware that he'd take L's words over his. It hasn't come up during the passing conversation, but it would be damning for Light to back away from it now. ]

[faithlikeaseed]

[Myr's neither so hard-hearted nor so utterly self-assured that it doesn't lift his mood to hear that he's special to L--even if it's also not much of a surprise. Many of his other worries about the dimensions and limits of his relationship to his Witch have much to do with knowing he occupies a place in L's heart and mind second only to Light Yagami--if second is even the right way to think of it, when their respective relationships to the detective are so very different.]

Kind of you to say that. I don't like to make him worry, but we have come through a lot together.

[Likewise it's not a surprise that Light should pick up so quickly on what Myr's angling at, though hearing it said straight out that way gets a discomfited twitch of the stag's ears.

Any unease he might feel doesn't carry into his tone. He did expect this, after all.]

I have Linden's version of it. I've reason to believe your account might differ in some important ways.

[He tips his head vaguely toward Light, ears turned in that direction. He can't look at the younger man to make a point, but it's close enough.]

Does it?

[worldcleansing]

Mhm. Very different. If it wasn't, there wouldn't have been much of an investigation. He thinks I'm a serial killer. That's the outcome he wants the most, too. Before you think that's insulting, he'll tell you the same.

[ L has always been right. Sometimes, he's been right even when the evidence said he was wrong. As Light's plans made that clear, even he admitted that he wanted Light to be Kira. Of course, his brilliance will always be the greatest draw so it could have gone no other way. For either of them. In the end, one of them would have been dead. ]

I assume that's why you've been avoiding the cottage now.

[ Since they're clearing the air, there's no reason to hold back, even if Light's sure to bring it up not in a defensive tone, but simply as a fact. It's not meant to be an attack on Myr. ]

I understand why you'd believe him. You're close, I'm a stranger, and it's not like I can prove my innocence in a different world. Linden can work with someone who he thinks can be capable of murder, but most can't. I won't say it'd be impossible for me, but the circumstances would have to be right.

Your biggest worry is that I'll hurt him, right? I won't. We're on a team, and if I was going to become a supernatural mass murderer, it'd have shown by now. Linden has a way of finding trouble, but I won't be one of the worries.

[faithlikeaseed]

[Ah. It's about the frame Myr had been expecting--which means either Light doesn't know the Faun's knowledge of his guilt is certain, rather than speculative... Or he's content to act as if he doesn't know. Either presents its own set of problems, and Myr finds himself suddenly and heartily wishing L were awake for this because he is exhausted and very far from home and not trained for any of this.

But that is not the situation at hand, and so--he'll make do with what he has.

The temptation to call out the lie is a strong one. I know you confessed to him would be the most direct but also the most easily denied; you could prove your innocence; there are spells for that, was a little more discrete but risked much, if Light didn't already know that. (Again: Assume any ignorance was feigned.)

Better to come at it from a flank, then. Myr plods along in silence for a moment, head dipping low; his own obvious weariness and need to feel his way through these tunnels are an excellent, half-true excuse for a slow reply.]

Avoiding it to stay out of Kira's shadow? [He gives a chuffing noise, a kind of half-laugh.] Partway, to be truthful. But I did nearly kill Linden once myself, so the company he keeps is hardly surprising.

Partway it's what I said before: You two fit together. So well there's no room for a third. I respect that.

[He lifts his head, giving it a shake before sniffing at a nearby wall. They seem to be going the right direction.]

My biggest worry is that if you were Kira, I'd have to break his heart. [It isn't untrue, either: Worry was for events that might not happen.

Light would kill L, back on their world, sure as the dawn. There was nothing Myr could do to fix that.]

You're also quite dear to him. You know how rare that is; you can imagine what it would do to him to lose you.

[Would Light care with the same intensity Myr did? He doubts it. (Uncharitable, he knows. Unkind. Not leaving any space for someone to be better than he seemed.) But invoking mere emotion isn't the point of saying so.]

But you've proven amply able to take care of the both of you and you have saved his life. That means a great deal.