week 1, sunday

[vigilantics]

[ later in the day after trial, stephanie will be making her way through the castle. slowly, but... look she's really bad at the staying in one place thing. her injuries are never going to heal properly, she's accepted this by now, i'm sorry.

when she passes by the tailer though, she pauses when she sees a familiar face. ]

Hey Fane.

Comments

[vigilantics]

[ she wonders if it's rude to ask about lohse's situation is given that she doesn't actually know her. ]

Can only one of you become one then, if you're competing?

[faceripper]

Correct.

[ He nods ]

That is where our partnership does get complicated. Or will, more accurately. Presumably, we'll have to fight to the death or something of the sort.

[ Fane says this so casually and matter-of-factly that it might be surprising. Or not, since it's Fane. ]

[vigilantics]

...

Fight... to the death...

[ hm. ]

[faceripper]

...What?

[ He questions, as if this is a perfectly normal and reasonable thing to do. ]

It's not that strange. I need to ascend for my own reasons, as I'm sure they all do for theirs. If any of us had a problem with this arrangement, we're hardly required to keep each others' company.

[vigilantics]

Well, I mean... is there any way to do it that requires less dead friends?

[ ?????????? ]

[faceripper]

[ He shrugs ]

I've no idea. Unfortunately, I've never ascended to divinity before,you know.

[ There's a pause, and then Fane adds: ]

—I suppose we are, at this point. Friends, I mean.

[ gj fane ]

[vigilantics]

Yeah, sometimes it takes a while to notice when you're busy adventuring.

[ well, not to her. steph usually notices right away, but she has spent enough time around people to realize that some of them can be constipated when it comes to friendship. ]

[faceripper]

[ Fane makes a light, thoughtful noise. It might be discontent, but it's really borderline, so it's difficult to tell. But whenever he's finished thinking about whatever he's thinking about, he just sighs. ]

I suppose I'll have to accept that. [ constipated may be an understatement huh ]

[vigilantics]

... well, I wish you luck with that.

[ ... ]

Not with the killing them part though? No offense.

[faceripper]

None taken.

[ He shrugs, since he definitely just accepts that one quite easily ]

I would prefer not to kill them, mind you. I'm not bloodthirsty. Unfortunately, it's simply necessary. If I'm to find out what happened to my people, well, divinity is the course ahead.

[vigilantics]

Did... something bad happen to them?

[ she almost asks if they all turned into skeletons but she manages not to. ]

[faceripper]

[ ha ha if only ]

They are... gone. Disappeared. [ His voice is surprisingly soft as he says that, and certainly softer than she's heard. It's very clear that he cares deeply about his people, and is also deeply troubled by whatever happened to them. ] It is not even that they died out, though that's quite impossible. There is no record of them at all. Only our buildings remain, and even then, they're just considered ancient curiosities. No one knows of the Eternals.

[ He crosses his arms, and his tone shifts to more determined. ]

That is why I must become Divine. I must find out what happened to them, and with any luck, bring them back from wherever they went.

[vigilantics]

Oh.

[ she wasn't really expecting that. he talked about the other eternals so much that steph didn't really register that it was all... past tense. his question on whether or not she knew of any eternals where she lives makes more sense now. ]

Then... you'll definitely find them! I know that means nothing coming from me, but you will.

[faceripper]

[ There's another pause, but his voice comes out soft and amused. ]

You know, that's kind of you to say. No one else has.

[ Largely because people tend to forget just a little of empathy in the face of "Fane, what the fuck," and that's fair. He doesn't begrudge people for it, and in fact, hadn't even really noticed until she had offered it. ]

[vigilantics]

[ that's a little surprising to hear, but also not. she figures a lot of what fane says might go over someone's head.

still, if someone has made it clear that this is their life's goal, you support them. ]

Well, that means my words are extra lucky and full of support then.

[faceripper]

[ He laughs, though this time, it's warm instead of dry and sarcastic. ]

I'll take your word for it. It's hardly as if I can disprove that.

[ translation: thanks ]

[vigilantics]

[ she smiles and gives a little shrug. ]

Besides that, I also wanted to say thanks. For when we went into that cavern.

[faceripper]

[ Again, he's a little surprised by the thanks, but he nods. When he speaks, it's almost... bashful, of all things. ]

Well... Naturally. I may not think very highly of mortals' survivability, but an ally is an ally. I would never hesitate to help someone in a fight.

[vigilantics]

My partner yelled at me for helping you because he said you would have just abandoned me.

[ which annoyed her, since she was actually there and saw fane do the exact opposite of that. ]

[faceripper]

[ Fane pauses, and there's a distinct sense in his silence that he's offended. However, if there's any doubt— ]

...What a little shit.

[ -10 for hikage ]

[vigilantics]

I know! That's what I said.

[ well, not exactly.

but she was pretty mad about it. she still sounds vaguely annoyed. ]