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Who: Emet-Selch and Elidibus
When: Shortly after the A Little Perspective event
Where: Their shared apartment
Summary: Emet-Selch and Elidibus deal with the aftermath of having been hunter and hunted (among other things)
Warnings: None atm

For all that even Emet-Selch cannot deny that it had felt very nearly right to act as he had, when he had been made hunter to Elidibus' prey, neither can he deny that the urges had been very much unnatural. And though Elidibus had trusted him even altered as they had been, well, it would not have been something he would have dared to do had it not been thrust upon him. Nor can he truly deny that it had been something of a relief when the compulsion had finally been broken.

Yet still the fact remains. Altered or no, he had very much taken it on himself to hunt his fellow Unsundered, a fact for which some apology must be made. And one that Emet-Selch is loathe to leave to something as simple as words.

It's a simple matter to acquire the item he means to offer by way of apology. He knows Elidibus' tastes well enough, and they frequent the bakery in question often enough that it's hardly a surprise that he stops in. From there, it's a simple matter of tracking Elidibus down, which ends as it often does: at the door of his room in their apartment, and a simple knock announcing Emet-Selch's presence.

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"Come in." Elidibus has never hesitated on letting Emet-Selch enter his room. And that alone has probably given the older of the two a candid look over the months since arriving on this star of the younger's progressively growing collection.

It started tamely. A personal laptop, books borrowed from the library, journals bought and written in. The limits of their powers made the storage of information and memories difficult, so these mundane items would need to substitute.

As keen as his mind is, Elidibus was not going to trust his memories to remain intact. And the knowledge they needed to learn and quickly about the workings and history of this star were an utmost priority. ...And Fears and their affects on Glouchester aside, he was too painfully aware of the feeling of inexorable unraveling of memories.

Not that this had happened. But it was such an experience that it would be no surprise to find it affects him. Eats at him, along with the discomfort and the temptation to pursue knowledge to sate something more than a robust curiosity had ever influenced him.

Naturally the rest of the apartment's public spaces were kept nice and neat and just enough 'lived in'. Elidibus's room was far from what anyone could call dirty. It's just... there was only so much furniture one could fit within. Bookshelves were packed, shelves were packed. Boxes of neatly filed newspapers or copies thereof were stacked and probably organized properly and there was a place to sit at a desk and use the laptop, sure. But there were also several external drives (neatly stacked and labeled) and many printouts.

Well, usually there's a place to sit. Right now that chair is filled with books that don't fit on the shelves. As well as other books in similar arrangements around the room. It's so very annoying in a way that even as the footprint of walkable space shrunk over the months, it was still organized, alphabetized and separated into categories that even someone walking in to look for something could find in a few minutes.

The only thing that's kept him from doing the rational thing and using the third empty bedroom as a second library is a growing reluctance to let his hoarded knowledge be far from reach in case it's ~~taken~~ needed. This is probably not a good sign.

In his robes (as is almost always normal for home life) and sitting on his bed, Elidibus is reading from a large book of occult lore (the type that is more accurate than the fictional myths the public at large were privy to). And as if he's building a nest, there's many other open books surrounding his cross-legged seat, checked by bookmarks and often with those clever little annotating markers stuck on several pages like some rainbow-neon porcupine. Some are language dictionaries, others etymology and still others on several stages of histories, town plans and major events in Glouchester and surrounding areas.

But don't worry, nesting books are not a sign he's starting to grow feathers and talons again. That had been taken care of the moment he'd been kept caged long enough to not waste the energy returning to him. Thankfully that had been all which was needed to dispel the need to hunt Elidibus. And Elidibus' need to fear and flee had vanished as though it'd never been. Certainly he had thanked Emet-Selch and seemed to think nothing more was needed to be dwelt on about the matter.

Yet here his colleague is, about to walk in with apology pastries.

Which are so totally not about apologizing at all, surely.

Elidibus glances up briefly though it seems he finds it difficult to tear his gaze away. Manners win in the end and he offers a pleasant smile.

"To what do I owe the company, Emet-Selch?" He remembers nothing pressing. And generally speaking there's usually a specific purpose in mind if either seeks the other out rather than waiting for them to emerge from their respective rooms.

Edited 2023-10-31 08:14 (UTC)

He never has, it's true. Yet all the same, neither can Emet-Selch bring himself to not knock, all the same. Even if it should do naught more than announce his presence. They may live together, but that is hardly a reason to be rude.

That said, what he finds once he actually does step into Elidibus' room is... concerning. He knows well enough that Elidibus has always been prone to wanting to know all sides of a situation (something that his affiliation with the Eye has almost certainly not helped) but even considering that Emet-Selch can't quite shake the feeling that things have grown somewhat excessive. Especially given the relative lack of seating space that has occurred as a result. Still, he is content to simply stand for a moment yet.

"Can I not simply be curious as to your current research?"

The fact that he's holding a bag in his hand does perhaps rather spoil the question, but even so, surely he cannot be blamed for not immediately coming to the point.

There's this sly little look at the bag proudly labeled with their favorite bakery. Very subtle. Very brief. But hardly meant to be missed before Elidibus brings his gaze and pleasant expression back to his friend.

"I'd be happy to share. Though it may take some explanation."

He then carefully sets down his book. There's little or no room other than his position on the bed to add a second person right now. Thus it's no surprise he's going to get up and move the books off the chair for Emet-Selch. There's two observations that can be taken from this.

One, he's not so far gone in his focus on the research that he's going to be rude and require Emet-Selch to make himself a place to sit.

Second, he doesn't intend to leave his work.

Admittedly, it's nothing unusual in a way. A thousand thousand years ago, there was a bright and curious and earnest young man who gave his all fulfilling his duty and occasionally had to be reminded by his peers to take a moment to relax.

A person oft thought to be lost when he became the sacrifice which would give Zodiark His heart.

Maybe it was the return of memories, the brief wash of the Underworld, now called the Aetherial Sea that has brought this much of Elidibus back. Perhaps the obsession for knowledge brought about by the Eye shown in this form is a veil to prevent too much prying for the sake of... sentimentality?

It's true though, that regardless of any potential influence this would be inextricably linked with Elidibus because of his very nature.

There's a nod in return from Emet-Selch. He has, of course, no objections to the idea that it might well take some explanation. There is little enough that requires his immediate attention as matters happen to stand, and the waiting will afford him some time to see just how far gone into his research Elidibus happens to be.

Fortunately, the fact that he is at least willing to acknowledge social niceties is something, even if he doesn't intend to leave behind whatever work it is that has had him leaving the fruits of his research. Which does certainly raise concerns, especially when he is aware enough that there is yet a risk of Elidibus going to far, but Emet-Selch is, for now, willing enough to see how matters should happen to unfold.

"Then allow me to do so in return."

Emet-Selch's own offering is nothing more than the contents of the bag he's holding, which he draws forth only a moment later, with comparatively little fanfare. Though the fact that he has chosen something that is Elidibus' favorite and not his own likely speaks to the intended purpose of this particular purchase.

The chair is swiftly cleared, along with a small portion of the desk. Elidibus had been very obviously aware that the bag itself had been brought in for them both to partake. If this had not been what Emet-Selch intended, then it would have been left in the other room while the older man had checked in on him.

Books may be all over in their stacks but there is a safe path through without the indignity of having to step over them on the way to the desk. Once everything is arranged, Elidibus waves Emet-Selch toward the seat with polite invitation. He had started to step back into his 'nest', but the offering of the bag gives a moment's pause.

"Thank you." It will be taken and looked into. The contents earn a brief smile. Yes, this was certainly meant for his sake, wasn't it. Well he won't say so in so many words. Retrieving one of the servings, Elidibus seeks to finally return to the bed. Dessert is set down on the nightstand after another careful rearrangement, the book retrieved.

It's... questionable when he's going to consume it. The dessert that is, not the book.

"I have spent considerable time compiling the history of this world. Both its civilizations and languages. Its diverse beliefs. And the known history of what are referred to as the Fears by our hosts."

It is not, then, specifically centric to current issues, for all it can be well argued that it provides a foundation for it. He has been working hard on gathering this information since they first arrived; an immediate need given they had not simply lived and observed those events. Yet it became more and more an unending warren Elidibus burrowed into after the initial metaphorical rabbit hole.

"It has been a fascinating insight to a world not governed by the laws with which we are familiar."

He frowns just a little.

"I admit I can not speak with clear certainty that these entities are connected with the Final Days before our star was sundered. Though I can say this is not some heretofore unknown reflection of our true world, I would be hard pressed to explain away the vast amount of similarities."

The rough geography. Names in myth. Countless upon countless terms and expressions throughout the myriad languages (even the languages themselves). But the connection eludes Elidibus. The whys and wherefores that surely might lead to a reason why they were able to be summoned here and may provide a path home.

The way it slips from his grasp so tantalizingly close keeps causing Elidibus to look harder, pursue more and more.

So here we are.

How long it should happen to take Elidibus to actually partake of Emet-Selch's offering is - at least as far as Emet-Selch is considered - of lesser importance to the fact that it has been both offered and accepted. Even though he knows full well that Elidibus would not be likely to have remained under the same roof as him had he genuinely offered sufficient offense. But the fact remains that he had nonetheless acted in manners that were contrary to how he would have, absent the compulsion.

Still, he offers no further comment on it. They have both returned to their own selves, and there is little to be gained by continuing to speak on the matter. Not when there are other matters at hand. Matters which seem to be occupying far more of the Emissary's attention than is strictly for the best - or at least what Emet-Selch assumes is for the best. (He is not the one bound to the Eye, after all.)

"I would suggest taking care that your research not consume you. The means by which one is drawn closer to the Fears that govern this world are only partially known to us."

And the last thing he wants is for Elidibus to become as lost in something as he once had in the millennia following the Sundering, as memory had faded away into little more than a draw to duty.

"That being said, many of the Fears that rule here are things I would consider to be common to mortal life. Why they have arisen here, in similarity to the fears of our time, I cannot say. Though it is certainly not impossible that they were born in much the same manner as the primals of our world. Entities born not of faith but of fear."

The other similarities he cannot speak nearly so readily to, and so he opts to leave those aside for he time being.

This reminder gives Elidibus pause to look up again, for he'd been drawn back to the book the moment he'd finished speaking, skimming over words and committing them to memory. Fingers clench at the edges as a brief suggestion of emotional turmoil. Yet Elidibus closes his eyes and as ever turns to rational thought. Emet-Selch is correct to speak of such concerns and it is thus worth a brief self-assessment of the moment. How long had he been here today? He certainly could not, nor would deny the other signs of the state of his room which are glaringly obvious.

The moment passes but the man's faint smile hints more toward somber acknowledgement than humor or the earlier almost quiet eagerness to share what he had learned. Again he opens his eyes to focus on his friend.

"You are correct that I should take care in such regard. Still, I fear I am subject to the cost of using such magicks as we harness. As, I suspect, are you. Yet by our very nature as beings beyond the laws of this star, we may have always been more susceptible than most to the influences of the Entities."

Have you not felt it, Emet-Selch? The discomfort, the weakness of not leaning into the urges of one's patron? Perhaps even before they had truly leaned into more than discreet 'tests' of their abilities. For the silver haired man, it seems assuaged by an extension of his inborn curiosity and commitment to seeking the best possible path forward. Or listening to the woes of those who would allow Elidibus to be privy to them.

Of course it might also depend on how much Emet-Selch has allowed himself to make use of the benefits of feeding the Entity. It's probably unsurprising that Elidibus is a little less sparingly than he should be, for the sake of others or the pursuit of this knowledge that draws him to learn more and more. It is just as well there's someone still willing to remind him, gentle or no, that he should take a moment away from it.

Even the Eye does not yet require quite so much from him.

Drawing Elidibus to ponder the similarity of primals summoned as they taught the mortal races to do so in their own world and the Entities themselves might have caused him to shift a little too easily toward what may be learned, what he wants to know. Fortunately he not one to be given a warning that he heeds only to fall right back into the same pattern so quickly. With a sigh he closes the book and sets it aside. The dessert is fetched from the table and its container opened.

"As loathe as I am to say it, these may be mysteries we will not be capable of resolving in what time we have upon this star. There may be a connection beyond our ken, lost to even the oldest records of our people. Or something far more recent, depending on whether these Entities exist before the mankind upon this star or because of them."

Which if one were to think about it, may well make Elidibus and Emet-Selch older than the Fears. Not that it really matters if they are and that had been an early possibility considered anyway given the worry they may have been born of the Final Days and found their way here.

"The similarities may truly be nothing more than coincidence. The universe is truly diverse. When alternate realities and time itself are not barriers, then perhaps it is only to be expected to find a world such as this in a near infinite amount of possibility."

The motions of taking up the dessert are more than token. Whatever utensil was provided it used to take a bite and Elidibus does enjoy it; it is after all one of his preferred and that was the point.

"A place where we may find our names from before we accepted our respective seats on the Convocation listed among the myths and legends of gods from ancient civilizations."

And twisted, wholly uncouth allusions in certain literature to their past world. Well. A lot of the mythology was superbly twisted.

Even as Elidibus lists off the possibility this is one of those places where infinite possibility ends up being pure coincidence it is clear it doesn't sit well with him. But he's probably right that they would never be able to find an answer to why so much seemed the same. 'Earth' really is so similar to their own worlds that it could be another shard of the sundered true world. But it's not. And that might be the most horrible thing about it.

A part of Elidibus still often wonders whether this may still be some twisted, nightmarish reflection brought about by the Final Days. A thing they could probably never find the truth of either.

That Elidibus does take the time to stop and think offers some measure of comfort. Especially when Emet-Selch is certainly no better able to tell how long Elidibus has holed himself up in his quarters save that it has almost certainly been too long - and repeatedly so. Still, when Emet-Selch speaks, it's in answer to the actual comments Elidibus has offered rather than anything else.

"It is certainly possible that we have been drawn more heavily to the Entities that govern this world then most. We know little of how those native to this world are drawn into the influence of those same Entities."

And yet... some clearly have. How and why, Emet-Selch has had comparatively little interest in delving further into, but even he is not blind to that same draw. True, the Dark calls differently to him then he suspects the Eye does to Elidibus, but the whispers are there all the same. The reminder that there are things in the dark; things even he might not know. Things that both do and do not warrant looking at, and it's often time as much as stubbornness as anything else that keeps him from looking into the nature of the Entities themselves, even as he keeps careful tabs on what little their fellow misplaced souls might mention, should it prove useful to him (or the Dark) at a later point in time.

(And he, too, has not always been the most sparing with the power he has been granted. Even now it galls him to not have the aether reserves he is accustomed to and though he has grudgingly lessened his use of soul sight, he refuses to go without it altogether.)

He says nothing of either. Instead, he nods at Elidibus' assessment of the nature of the Entities.

"I agree. Though it is certainly not beyond possibility there is a connection, even our oldest records never spoke of other worlds. Nor would I trust this world to be accurate in recording the genesis of the Entities in question, if they did not come into being with the world itself."

And they may well not have, for all either of them happens to know. Still, there's a nod at the endless possibilities of the universe, while Emet-Selch takes a bite of his own dessert.

"As to our names being listed in the history of this world... that I cannot speak to. Though I would hesitate to assume this to be even so much as an errant shard. This world lacks much of what we would consider common to those fragments."

"Not a shard, errant or no," Elidibus concurs before expanding on the thought. Their world had been counted as fourteen parts for a distinct and provable reason long a certainty. "More an... emanation, diluted by distance and reality itself. One that may have imprinted misunderstood details of a past long vanished."

He rarely gives voice to what ifs, particularly where possibility far outweighs any tangible fact. This is largely due to consideration about how people depend on his words. Elidibus makes it clear this is just a moment's fancy, shared in the spirit of idle conversation between friends. Or possibly, a share of concern for his plight, however couched in gentle words and light tones.

"A part of me would dearly like to know the answer. Yet... it too is a temptation I must resist. I suspect that any slim chance to speak with surety on the matter would come at the cost of irrevocably tying my fate to my diligent patron."

And Elidibus recognizes that the chance he could find such knowledge even as an Avatar of the eye is very slim indeed.

"Whatever the truth, I will instead focus on the possibility those of us brought here are wont to value most. That of how it might serve as a bridge to return us to our rightful places among the endless sea of stars." And try not to be too distracted by the fascinating rabbit holes along the way. More dessert is consumed.

"...And the efforts to keep this star intact, so long as it serves as our temporary shelter in the storm."

The dessert is pleasant. But it probably would be moreso with a warm beverage. Elidibus seems to think for a bit, subtle in glancing around his room and giving his mood as much consideration as the wisdom of... well, departing his room for a time.

"Perhaps we should adjorn to the living room to continue our conversation. I could make some tea, or coffee, should you prefer."

Both could be made to suit the dessert in question. And Elidibus, while appreciative of Emet-Selch's good manners in not mentioning how awkward things are, is well aware his room isn't exactly set up for the comfort of visitors. Few bedrooms are, but there's also the wisdom in leaving so he doesn't simply return to his books the moment Emet-Selch leaves him alone again.

There's a considering sort of silence from Emet-Selch at the mention of something beyond the simple distinction of shards. What Elidibus proposes is, perhaps, not beyond the realm of possibility - especially when they are ample proof that some things can be drawn from their world of origin to this one. Yet... neither is it something he could say he might have considered.

"I should consider it more likely something akin to the Echo, in that case. Glimpses of other realities drawing people to making parallels rather than a direct echo of our world itself."

But even that is no more than theory at best, and not something he means to make much effort to find the truth of.

"But I agree. Better to focus on the preservation of this star, that we might return to our own, in due time."

'Due time' being here read as 'whenever we manage to get free of this world' but Emet-Selch figures Elidibus will understand his meaning well enough.

"Tea would suit better, I think."

Still, there's a nod and once he's certain that Elidibus also means to get up he does indeed make his way out into the living room.

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