simulsimul | another thing; w/ fafnirs and skeletonenigma; cw for suicide talk

I've gotten the impression that he's been a skeleton for a while. Blue hair is new.

[Familiarity, and all that. At that, Kratos can only chuckle.]

That's not what you said at the time.

[Of course, at the time it had been concern, and Yuan's only means of broadcasting concern; telepathy had only come later. Not too much later, luckily. Kratos's smile broadens a bit.]

I'm sure I didn't, but it's just as well. You're too at risk of becoming a recluse.

[It was entirely Kratos's fault.]

[No. At the time, Yuan had been much more aggrieved with Kratos, covering concern with it.]

[The look he gives Kratos is still flatly unimpressed.]

I recall complaining a great deal about you. That should tell you something about the Chosen's state.

It's as though he's determined to be even more obnoxious than usual, to compensate.

[He is not going to acknowledge that smile; nor the fact that he is beginning to recognize that it is better, not to be alone with his thoughts. That would mean saying he is, tangentially, appreciative for Zelos Wilder's new ways of getting his attention, which Yuan is decidedly not.]

[There's a quiet grumble which the audio transmitters don't quite pick up, but is probably something to do with blaming Kratos. Then:]

In any case, none of the angels you inflicted on me are in any danger of going to feathers.

[The smile turns faintly melancholy. Acting obnoxious; being annoying. It sounds not unlike the way Kratos had tried to make Lloyd hate him, before Flanoir.]

Obnoxious, hm? How is the Chosen's state, transformation aside?

[Kratos and Zelos are far from being on good terms, but Kratos does feel some sense of responsibility for the man -- whether Zelos realises it or not. Kratos, after all, had been directly responsible for the Chosen lineages; and he'd been one of those blackmailing Zelos with his freedom; and, of course, he'd been a traitor to those to whom Zelos had unwittingly given his heart.

[What Zelos doesn't know is how much looking at him is like looking at himself. Yes, there's a sense of responsibility there. After all this, the last thing Kratos wants is Lloyd to suffer the loss of a friend because they all of them thought the worst was over. Kratos of all people knows how those wounds linger.]

I never believed they were, under your care.

[It's an admission, as if either of them had any doubts.]

[Transformation aside--]

[Transformation aside, Yuan doesn't really know the Chosen. The essentials of his situation; once, enough to acquire his services as a turncoat; and the fact that Lloyd is, for reasons best known to Lloyd, very fond of Zelos Wilder.]

[He pauses in the flow of conversation to think about it, discarding something ready and snappish in favor of honest consideration.]

...at a guess, he is hiding something because he doesn't want Lloyd to worry. I couldn't say what, or if Lloyd has noticed.

[Knowing Lloyd... Yuan holds up a forestalling hand.]

If it looks like they cannot work it out, I'll step in. I believe I need to speak with him about his mana sense in any case.

[He's doing this as a favor to you, Kratos. As long as you're aware of that.]

Hmh. Sounds about right. The Chosen is --

[No. He needs to stop doing that. They both need to stop doing that; talking about the Chosen as if they're articles, not people.]

Zelos is ... very much like me, in a way. His mask isn't the same, but certain of his motivations aren't all that different.

[Zelos's mask is very like Nike's was, in fact -- all smiles and contentment. Kratos knows what's under it because of the conversation they'd had where Zelos had initially refused to collect the aionis for him.]

I should think Lloyd has noticed, but I doubt he's entirely sure how to deal with it. He's the type to think that once something is fixed, it's fixed.

[Just judging by the fact that Zelos had tried to get Lloyd to kill him, and failed. Kratos hadn't realised until after it was all over, when Lloyd had told him about it -- as though Lloyd felt he owed Kratos an explanation for why Lloyd hadn't been able to kill him either. All Kratos had known at the time was crossing Zelos, still alive and remarkably unharmed, flanking the angels keeping Bryant at bay in the arena.

[Between the two of them and Kate, they had managed to save the rest of the group and get the aionis. It ... had been an unexpected moment of accord.]

Which ones?

[It is, vexingly, a little more difficult to read Kratos through projection alone. And on a first read, Yuan would have said Kratos and Zelos were very little alike.]

[He's going to have to look again. Damn. He sighs shortly, aggrieved.]

If nothing else, I'm sure I can spark a fight with him.

[Kratos will understand that much. Yuan folds his arms.]

You're still trusting me to handle this?

[Please turn Derris-Kharlan around, Kratos. Soon. :|]

He never intended to live to see the end.

[It's a simple response, but a true one. Kratos had seen it, but not been able to do anything with it; he'd barely been handling what was already on his plate. As it turns out, being an angel doesn't endow one with the capability to handle everything at once.]

And he was willing to make his friends hate him to ensure he wouldn't. We're both traitors, more than once, even against those we love. It takes a special kind of self-hatred to accomplish that.

[His voice remains even while he speaks. It's not the sort of thing he'd usually say out loud, but telepathy isn't possible across these distances. They've never really spoken about how tired he's been. It's better than it was. Then Kratos smiles faintly.]

I'd hardly think you need me.

[He's already trusting you with his son's life, Yuan. There isn't much more trust than that.]

[Yuan knows this, on some level. Kratos released all his mana at the seal with no safety net, no knowledge of what Yuan had planned.]

[It still sounds wrong spoken into the open air like that, and he's quiet atypically long, for Yuan. Then:]

Tch. Do you think I have the patience for this?

[Of course Kratos is needed. Yuan shakes his head, and focuses on the skeleton, only very vaguely visible. What was his name? Yuan recalls the foreign syllables with a frown.]

Hey. Skulduggery.

[This is paired with a beckoning gesture, imperious and unquestioning, the attitude of someone who's used to being listened to. He points at Kratos, then lifts a hand and mimes a quick smack, as though to someone standing beside him.]

[Skulduggery doesn't understand much of the ensuing conversation. He hears Lloyd's name, which is to be expected if Kratos is worried about his son's well-being, as well as Colette's. But it's hard to make any other connections, especially since Skulduggery's still sure they're speaking different languages.

He connects enough to hear another name mentioned -- Zelos -- and can surmise from tone of voice that Yuan isn't happy about Kratos not being on Aselia. That's the part that interests Skulduggery; that means Kratos chose to leave without any outside pressure. In fact, it's starting to look like he chose to leave despite heavy pressure to do the exact opposite. Hm.

Guilt, possibly. Or a new goal hidden from Yuan. And since Yuan hasn't reacted at all to the passing feathered angels, Skulduggery has to assume the first.

He looks up when he hears his name, startled.] Sorry? [Another Irish accent, some part of him distantly notes, but Skulduggery's too preoccupied with Yuan's pantomime to pay proper attention.

Just when he thought he'd seen everything.]

You're asking me to hit Kratos? [Head tilt.] That doesn't strike me as a very good idea. Although I am less and less convinced you're beings worthy of worship, for what that's worth.

Yuan.

[Kratos's tone is tolerantly fond, and hardly exasperated at all. He doesn't even turn toward Skulduggery, until Skulduggery answers. Kratos can't understand most of the words, but the skeleton's tone of voice seems to be bemused and amused at once; and the skeleton hasn't moved, which bodes well.]

You see, Yuan? I haven't made myself that much of a nuisance yet.

[Yuan sighs an exasperated sigh.]

Clearly you haven't been communicating properly.

[He lives in hope. He motions at Skulduggery again, and transfers to the language Kratos has been using most frequently, in the hopes that Skulduggery will have absorbed something of it.]

He needs it. Slap him or hug him, I don't care which.

[...No, that's not going to help. Yuan makes a note to send an instruction to one of the communications techs, to try forwarding the instruction in a language the skeleton will understand.]

[This is at least partially because the image of Kratos having to cope with a skeleton hugging him is something Yuan takes inappropriate delight from.]

[Returning to old Sylvaranti:]

--we'll manage, until you return, but sooner rather than later would be better.

[... Yes. Two different languages. And they can switch between them, so the fact that Yuan didn't until just now actually does speak volumes about him.

It's a more familiar language, yes, but Skulduggery also hasn't heard Kratos speak it very often. They've been focusing on learning English. As a result, he doesn't understand a word of what Yuan says, though he can imagine it has something to do with clarifying that he thinks Kratos deserves being smacked on the head. Skulduggery shrugs and shakes his head.] I don't have access to Kratos's magic, I'm afraid.

[Because learning a completely alien language so quickly has got to be some form of magic.]

[At that, Kratos only chuckles, and now his mirth shows clean with his smile and the twinkle in his eyes.]

Good try, Yuan. Maybe I will come back earlier than expected -- if only to bring you here. What's the climate like?

[He is not talking about the weather. One of the main reasons why he's taking Derris-Kharlan away is because the undue pressure their presence will place on the situation of the half-elves. In a perfect future, he can wish for the angels to be accepted in Aselia as well; but he knows this isn't an outcome which will come fast or easily.]

[Good try his wingpack. Yuan will absolutely be leaving a message with one of the comms angels, and is in fact reaching for his own console -- slightly out of sight of the projection -- to do just that.]

Sunny, especially near the Tree. We're coming on toward autumn in these parts, but it's mild yet.

[In which Yuan knows exactly what Kratos is talking about, and is blithely ignoring it. Kratos should have used a different language if he didn't want the two meanings to be confusable.]

[He lets that sit for a few moments before relenting into what Kratos actually meant.]

Confused. The removal of the Tethe'allan Pope is still having a significant positive effect, and between Sylvarant and Tethe'alla coming together again the matter of half-elves is beginning to be a quieter one. There's still a long way to go, naturally, but...

It's better than I could have hoped.

[Kratos knows Yuan knows exactly what he meant, and lifts his eyebrows slightly, waiting in silence until Yuan picks up that thread. Still, the news is a bit unexpected; his brow lowers and his mouth turns up a bit.]

Hmh. That's -- better than I was expecting.

[Except for the implication that the kingdoms are suspicious enough of each other for racial bigotry to take a backseat. The fact that Yuan feels the need to add the last is a decent sign, at least; probably no war is brewing.]

Then I may not be as long as I thought.

[Of course Kratos knows. They know each other too well; but by the same token, it's some measure of gratifying to know Kratos does, after everything they've been through.]

It is. Not without problem, of course, but...

[Yuan makes a dismissive sound, waves one hand.]

For now, it's promising. I'll keep you updated.

[Also, the sooner Kratos turns around to help him with this problem, the better.]

That's everything I needed to bring up. Don't start a war accidentally. I'll contact you in another few weeks.

[With a nod to Kratos, and a gesture at Skulduggery intended to indicate that Yuan is watching him, Yuan closes the connection.]

[Skulduggery's being watched. From God-knows-how-many light years away. He's not quite sure what to do with this information, but that's about par for the course so far. He's not sure what to do with any of the information he's acquired.]

So that was Yuan. [Skulduggery nods.] He seems like a nice chap.

[Blue hair. Half something-not-human. Angel. Stubborn. Reluctantly affectionate. It's amazing how much you can learn about someone from only a few minutes of contextless observation.]

He reminds me of a question I had earlier, actually. Why did you leave Aselia?

[Is 'leave' a word Kratos knows by now? Hm.]

We left Earth, just now. [Skulduggery gestures back in the direction of the giant planet.] Leave. Left. Why did you leave Aselia? Don't tell me it's just to help them, because from what I've gathered, Yuan didn't want you to leave. [He points at the locket.] I can't imagine your family wanted you to leave either.

Yuan; yes.

[Whatever that second part is, Kratos can't tell, but he's watching Skulduggery with an impassive face and an internal mixture of amusement and exasperation. He would very much enjoy a face to read right now.]

Left, hmh?

[This language changes tenses in such inconsistent ways. Kratos does get Skulduggery's meaning, at least, and he gazes thoughtfully out across the expanse of drifting angels, fingering his locket. So Skulduggery doesn't believe that's the only reason, based solely on the conversation with Yuan. He's sharp. And Kratos is blaming this on Yuan.

[After a moment Kratos focusses back at Skulduggery. This is -- very complicated.]

Mithos is half-elf. Aselia is his -- before.

[No. Kratos pauses.]

What is -- is, but past? Like leave and left.

Was.

[Still impressed, but now that Skulduggery has the real standard for how fast Kratos picks up language, he's no longer thrown off balance by surprise. So Mithos is also a half-something-not-human. None of the feathered angels Skulduggery's seen have blue hair, but blue hair may not be the only indicator, and if specifying human angel was important enough to Kratos to make it clear to a comparative stranger, he might be in the minority.

Do only the half-humans regularly become angels? But Kratos said Mithos is his student. There's still too much context Skulduggery doesn't have.]

Go on.

Was. Aselia was his.

[Not his anything; just his, in its entirety. Though now the issue is how to distill the complexity of the Kharlan War, and after, down to its basics. Kratos has to pause again. How does one explain resurrection?]

His want was to save Martel -- his sister. She was ... hmh. Like you. Not skeleton, but like you. Mithos --

[How does one explain 'taking over the world'?]

-- killed the humans who killed Martel. Mithos made Aselia his. Whole planet.

[Another pause, primarily because he's trying to figure out which past-tense change this word should have.]

I help. Help Mithos. And they help.

[He indicates the other angels with a nod.]

After Lloyd killed Mithos, Derris-Kharlan left.

[There was too much tension to stay.]

[Skulduggery suspected it was something like that.

... Well, no. He suspected precisely 0% of what Kratos is now telling him. But the essence of it, the intensity, the complexity, the guilt -- that he suspected. Guilt is never simple and clear-cut.

Does Lloyd blame Kratos for what Mithos did? He'd be right to, if Kratos's version of events isn't too biased. But Kratos doesn't seem the sort of man to run because a family member is angry with him, so regardless of how Lloyd feels, Kratos's self-exile is probably exactly that. Self-exile.

Maybe that's the right thing to do. Skulduggery isn't in a position to judge.]

Mithos -- [ -- hm. Boiling things down to their basics is hard enough when the recipient speaks fluent English.] -- changed, did he? Do you know 'change'?

[Skulduggery's seen people do stupid things in the name of saving people they care about, himself included. And if Kratos feels as guilty as he does, then he probably didn't take Mithos on as a student knowing how things were going to turn out. There's only so many conclusions one can draw from that.]

Change.

[The word seems familiar, and Kratos pauses for a moment to let the cruxis crystal's imprints sort that out before remembering the use of the word in the pages related to Earth's seasons. Change between seasons.]

Changed. Yes. Mithos -- was like Lloyd, before.

[There's a note of grim sorrow in his tone, quiet though it is.]

His want was to help the world. Help half-elves. Humans killed half-elves -- many times. Killed -- hmh. Killed mana, with time. Killed Aselia. Mithos, Martel, Yuan, I -- not angels, before. Then angels, to help Aselia. To help mana. Then humans killed Martel. Mithos help Martel be like you -- with mana. And then ...

[Kratos makes a helpless gesture.]

Mithos help Aselia. Then he not help Aselia. Then he killed humans. Many, many humans. Changed many half-elves to angels. Killed many angels here.

[He taps his chest where his heart is.]

To help Martel. Yes, Mithos changed.

Edited (added a thing) 2017-01-04 03:54 (UTC)

[Their story starts in war, it sounds like. Or, if half-not-humans weren't as capable of defending themselves, genocide. Killing mana is a concept Skulduggery can't wrap his head around, but only because he still doesn't know what mana is. Killing magical energy, somehow dooming an entire planet? Unless Kratos is talking about running out of a finite resource. Then it makes sense. Aselia wasn't doomed; the people living there were.

But if Mithos had already helped Martel surpass death, why continue the carnage? Like you, Kratos said, not a skeleton. Not dead, but not alive, either. Somewhere in between. A coma, maybe. Though if she's also an angel, the truth might be more complicated than simple language can express.

It does, however, take a very long time for someone who wasn't a monster already to turn into one. It took Skulduggery nearly a century, and angels might well be truly immortal.]

Did the book tell you anything about --?

[Before he can finish, one of the feathered angels approaches them. A reverential nod at Kratos, a paper note pressed into Skulduggery's hand, and then she's gone again. The note says, in plain English:

Skulduggery, please, hit or hug Kratos. He needs it. Yuan.

... Well, points for determination. And it's unnerving how quickly Derris-Kharlan can already translate messages.

Skulduggery puts the note in his pocket, then gives Kratos a hard tap on the shoulder. For a human, it would be just painful enough to be startling. For angels, Skulduggery has no idea.]

That's from Yuan.

[Then, moving on without missing a beat:]

Did the book tell you anything about age?

[The sudden arrival of one of the junior comms officers has Kratos turning, but to his very brief surprise, it's Skulduggery to whom she goes. A moment later, the surprise melts into exasperated realisation, only a moment before Skulduggery tags his shoulder. His only reaction is to cross his arms and give Skulduggery one of his impassive-but-hiding-tolerant-amusement looks. Of course Yuan would press. Of course.

[He does send a quick telepathic message to the retreating angel to ask how long until the book comes back, if they're already sending messages in English. 'Not long' appears to be the answer. He assures them there's no rush. It's been a long time since he learned a new language in such a way. The novelty hasn't worn off yet.]

Age -- yes.

[There was quite a spread of pages for time-related words; he has to pause to sift through them, linking them together in his head. When he speaks it isn't mechanical, but it is something of a recitation, a similar rhythm to how he'd originally read them from the book in the car.]

Age and time. Earth -- twenty-four hours to a day; twenty-eight to thirty-one days to a month; twelve months to a year; three-hundred and sixty-five days to a year. Humans -- one hundred years.

[He tips his head, speaking slowly to measure the same spaces of time on his own planet. If Skulduggery was asking about age, then they ought to have some basis on which to compare their individual understandings of such.]

Aselia is twenty-four hours to a day. Forty-two days to a month. Eight months to a year. Three hundred and thirty-six days to a year. Humans -- one hundred years. Dwarves, elves, half-elves -- ten hundred?

[It wasn't the word the book had used, but it was how it had allotted the numbers. Saying it out loud leads him to the correct word.]

One thousand. Angels ...

[He spreads his hands and shrugged. Given the cruxis crystals are mineral parasites, and that even minerals submitted to time, it's possible there is an upper limit to an angel's age; but none of them have even remotely hit that stage yet.

Edited (adding more stuff; fixing my math) 2017-01-04 22:19 (UTC)

[Time to add 'walking encyclopedia' to the list of things an angel from outer space should not be, and yet is.

Differences in spans of time aside, it does sound like Earth and Aselia measure time in roughly the same way -- at least when it comes to telling how old someone is. It also sounds like angels are functionally immortal. There aren't many sorcerers who will take the existence of something greater than them well, and precisely none of them are worshippers of the Faceless Ones. If Kratos wants to stay on Earth for any length of time, things might get difficult.]

Humans -- we call them 'mortals', which isn't very fair of us -- live for one hundred years. Sorcerers, on the other hand, humans like me and Ghastly who can do things like this -- [Palm flame on, palm flame off.] -- we live for a thousand years too. And this...

[Skulduggery makes a gesture that takes in all of his skeleton-ness.]

I'm unique. There's no one else like me. I might live as long as angels do. Right now, though, I'm a little over four hundred. How old are you?

[There is literally no answer that will surprise Skulduggery at this point.]

another thing; w/ fafnirs and skeletonenigma; cw for suicide talk

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