mykidisthebest

[he started spell casting just in case but y’all seem to have it handled so he just grabs Lethe’s shirt in his teeth to keep him upright yeah.

the bullets and mana don’t exactly destroy the thing, but they do kind of explode it into smaller less coordinated pieces that have a harder time even getting across the clearing at them. the ooze at their edges seems to be reforming and melting back together, though, and they’re still reaching for the trio, with the silent anguish of all the trapped creatures within.

Charon hesitates and then leads them to the left of the mess, which seems to be gathering less effectively. they’re rushing still but he’s not doing a headlong run anymore in case he sends them straight into another one.

on the bright side, it doesn’t take long for that second light to pop up after that!]

[ ... ,, LOOKS AT LETHE ]

Holy shit.

[ He's following hastily behind Charon and keeping an eye on Lethe to make sure he doesn't damsel faint and land on his face. As they approach closer to the light, it seems to be a...

Lightbulb? ]

[wow he would never damsel faint where anyone could see it. probably. sticks close to both of them as they head for the light, only to skitter to a stop in surprise when they find the thing.

raises a single eyebrow and looks at Minuet like, 'this you?']

...I can see the family resemblance with your sisters.

[…says nothing here, just gives Minuet a supportive nudge forward]

[ Of course it's this

He offers a chagrined sort of shrug before approaching the bulb, crouching down to peer into it ]

[ What does he say here? He hadn't really thought about it until this exact moment; he's silent for a long while, turning things over in his head.

Ultimately he decides to just pretend he is talking to one of his sisters, like he might have back home. ]

I got sloppy. I ended up promising a lot of people that I'd try to be happy. I'm not sure I know how to do it, though -- it's been a really long time. Or if it's even okay, while you're still not free.

[ He lifts a hand to the illusory glass ]

I know what you'd say, though. So I'm still gonna try.

[ After a moment, a hand reaches back from within the bulb, fingers long and feminine and distinctly alien. When their palms meet across the glass, the apparition dissolves into him, leaving them in a regular old mist clearing.

STANDS AND BRUSHES HIMSELF OFF LIKE NONE OF THAT JUST HAPPENED. GOOD TALK. ]

...

[it would be polite and prudent to put the feelings aside for later, especially since they still have to find Charon's name.

but everyone involved knew what they were getting into when they brought Lethe along on this trip. he makes a motion for Minuet to get closer and opens his arms for a hug]

[if Minuet consents to hug Charon just kinda winds himself firmly around their legs, very much more cat behavior than dog for a minute.

(Minuet also smells, in a certain direction, something strange. blood, wet stone, the sharp crisp edge of fresh-fallen snow.)]

[ Oh No

He does accept the hug, though. And the leg winding. He lets that moment sit for a bit, selfishly savoring it in the spirit of what he just told his imaginary sister.

Eventually, ]

... I think I can smell Charon's.

[don't think he won't come back to this later because he will

lets him free of the hug so he can point to wherever his nose is leading him]

Can you? That was fast. Everything still smells like earth to me.

[Bullying Will Occur

Charon sniffs around a bit and then just gives Minuet a soulful gaze with his ears cocked in different directions. point me bro]

[ He points, squinting into the mist as if that will reveal anything. ]

It smells like... rain on pavement. And that crisp smell the air had when it was cold.

[ He doesn't mention the blood ]

Edited 2024-08-06 18:13 (UTC)

[rubs at his nose to try and clear away Minuet's smell, and sniffs at the air to catch a faint whiff of something new

hmm that one just kind of smells like home too

doesn't say that]

I think I can smell it...but you'd better lead the way for this one, Minuet.

[trots forward, turning his face into that direction…nothing…nothing…ah. his ears prick up]

Hm. All right.

[he kinda sounds like he’s bracing himself, but they can all move towards it together.

the sounds of pursuit are getting uh. that’s problematic levels. really gotta nip this one up quick]

[ He sticks close to Charon as he follows the scent, so he can stop or nudge him if he seems to be struggling (Can a person even smell their own name smell. Unknown.)

He casts a furtive look behind them periodically, but seems to be of the same mind: get Charon's name ASAP and get the fuck out ]

[Lethe moves to cover them both, gun drawn, eyes and ears alert for anything that might give them a bad time; an irritated huff escapes his mouth when he hears the distant rustling behind them and picks up the pace.]

[they don't stumble direct into more mobs, fortunately: Charon doesn't seem to have as good of a handle on his own name's smell, no, but with a helping nudge or two from them he keeps gamely on the track, and they chase it down, even as they're being chased.

in the last clearing, the light's hovering at eye level. it's in the shape of a star, and there is another name in gold, that's...scrawled over it? conjoined to it? the colour seeping into its light. Minuet and Lethe can't read the characters of that secondary true name, but they can take a Pretty Good Guess as to who it belongs to.

they're in a hurry, though, and Charon has never been one to hesitate about his feelings when there are bigger problems pressing in. he just looks up at them for a moment, ears forward and tail high, before he walks up to it.]

[ He hangs back only enough to be respectful of how personal the situation is, but not enough that he thinks a mist wolf could get to Charon before him.

Just gives Charon an encouraging scratch behind the ear as he approaches it. ]

[Lethe gives Charon just enough space to be polite; he's too antsy about the mist wolves crawling in the mist to give him more than that.

he's like, half a foot closer than Minuet, mostly because Minuet is faster than him.]

[god. all right they hear all of this, even if he’s speaking quietly and quickly to the star:]

I have always welcomed the strange legacy our name brings, but my little brother has found it Sisyphean. He sought no secrets in our vaults, growing up. He has been layabout and laggard in his lessons, without sufficient will to back his beliefs.

But I suppose he must have found something worth living up to it for, at last. He managed to see through me at the end of our war, which I did not expect of him. “Our battle isn’t over yet—and until it is, don’t die on me.”

He has potential to be brilliant, my brother. But I don’t intend to let him be, or any generation of us after him.

I am going to kill a god, someday, and erase the need for genius at war in my world. And in part it will be because I never wish to feel as I felt again, learning that he stood on the other side of the field.

[the star drifts down, and he snaps it out of the air, light burning silver-gold down his throat.

the first mist wolves come slinking into sight, the edge of the wave they’ve stirred up caught up to them at last.]

[ He's got that "WHAT A MAN!!!!" feeling again.

It will need to be revisited later, though; he's stepping closer to Lethe and Charon as he fires on the wolves, hastily reloading as more slip into view. They're not quite surrounded yet, but it's shaping up to be an unnerving semi-circle as more materialize from the fog. ]

[it is horribly unfair of these wolves to interrupt before he can say anything in response to that truth; there is spite in his aim as he fires off several headshots on the mist wolves that are creeping around the edges to block off any exit]

How fast can you both run?

Don’t botherrrrr.

[hey why is Charon’s voice doing that

hey why is he getting even bigger and inhumanly shaped in the shroud of mist,

HEY WHY IS THERE A DRAGON]

[

OH MY GOD ]

--Charon?!?!

[

WHAT IS HAPPENING scrambles back a few steps to give him space]

What the--since when can you do that?!

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