Private &nbsp; Orphiad: The Resurrection of S.

Arcturus Dinn · Jan 18, 2021

< I Think I'm Crazy >

Though it had seemed ageless and foreboding, as the boy placed his first step upon the way up through the Spire he was made aware of just how long it had stood in place. Cracked stone steps covered with moss, walls wound through with ivy, it was a wonder the thing had not fallen apart before now. It did not appear as it had from afar... Was this just an illusion? Was his own consciousness affecting the mountain he was now to climb?

Thesh had spent plenty of time with only the Force for company, locked upon worlds far from the throws of society. Surely if this was it he should have known, but he didn't. It felt real, tangible... Unnerving. He took the stairs two at a time, following the hollow cries of the disembodied voice, onward it pulled him, and onward he leapt, until his legs ached and fatigue threatened to put an end to it.

Even then he felt compelled to continue. A snatch of red hair peeked around the next bend. Was he gaining on it? Surely a little while longer and he would have it in his grasp...

"Please, wait..."

The light of the moon was eclipsed by rising sun as he came upon a room, the first afforded to him by the aged stairwell. When he set his first foot into the place it rippled and distorted, until what lay before him was not the Spire at all but a place all too familiar to the one who entered. A moment lost within the corners of his mind.

Before him stretched a vast room, filled to the brim with bodies and machinery he never thought he'd look upon again. They whirred and moved, each as much a cog as the other. The next breath he took stuck within his throat, and after an involuntary blink of his eyes he felt certain he had shrunk several feet in size. His view was lower, now, barely able to stand at the conveyer belt.

He slid into place alongside the others without much thought, and joined them in the assembly of something far more complex than his mind could comprehend. He did not need to be shown what it was he was meant to do, he picked up the two parts and slotted them together with ease, before returning the item to the conveyer belt. At his right the next child picked it back up, screwing something new into the device. And so on. Down the line... away from view.

Soon enough he fell into a rhythm. Everything around him melted away until his body, robotic in nature, took over the menial task and his mind his a state almost akin to meditation. Thoughts and dreams drifted throughout, hope that one day a brighter day would come... Hope... He had not felt such in so long now; it swelled within his chest, and alleviated much of the aching he felt within his body. Hours toiled by, but he kept it up, he kept going.

An explosion shook the foundations of the factory. Glass shards blew inwards as the windows shattered. All around him children fell to their knees, their terror palpable. Mirrored upon his own expression. Even the guards who stalked the floor, tasked with keeping the youngsters in check, seemed to falter. They called to those who were sane enough to listen, a new mission swiftly overtaking the prior; to shepherd, to protect.

He fell into pace alongside several others, hands pressed over his ears as further blasts echoed beyond the walls. Blaster fire rose among them, screams in the streets beyond. Thesh kept his head down, his heart raced and strange thoughts occurred to him: His mother... Who would protect his mother?

They were met at the doors of the factory by strange men in armoured suits. Balked at to follow, held at gunpoint, the children complied. Their saviours, men they had hated for so long, crumpled to the ground as bolts were loosed. Like his fellows Thesh kept his head down, Thesh followed...

But something within him stirred, a sensation he had not felt in a great many years. Not since his Father had eroded his will... A desire to stand tall, to not walk silently into the night. As they were herded toward ships, as Ession blazed around them, the boy reached out and snatched a holstered weapon from those who would bring them into their abattoir. The blaster felt cold in his hands, foreign, but determination rose within him and as quickly as he had it he loosed several rounds into the nearest man.

His one simple act seemed to spur on a desire to live in his fellow children. With one of their assailants down they turned into quite the viscous pack, making quick work of the second who barely had time to comprehend what had happened.

Pride swelled within his chest, as together they took a stand. They turned back toward the planet, away from the ship they'd been herded toward, and fell upon the streets. Others rose to join them, unwilling to go down without a fight. And then he slowed... His face scrunched up as he peered around himself, confusion wrought upon his expression.

This wasn't right. This wasn't how it had gone at all...

Thesh shook his head. In an instance the weapon fell from his hands and thudded against the duracrete ground at his feet. "No," he called out, "This is not how this plays out. I didn't do it, couldn't do it..."

All eyes fell on him in the seconds which followed, and aside from the turning of heads the chaos subdued as though someone had merely hit the pause button. He shuddered then, peering at all of the faces which were quick to fade away. He did not know who they were, could not attribute a visage to any one of them. Faceless beings every one.

"I cannot change it. Will not change it. Let it go. Let me go."

Around him the image began to fracture; like the windows the façade shattered into a million little pieces, until he stood once more within that empty room. More steps ascended upward but Thesh simply shook his head and scoffed.

"I will not play your game," he announced, to the boy he had heard, perhaps, or maybe to no one. He turned, and descended those steps as swiftly as he could. In fact he seemed to be out of there in mere minutes. As though there had only been a hundred steps to scale, not the million he felt certain he had previously stepped upon.

As the strange air hit him when he reached the field once more Thesh dropped to his knees and hung his head in shame. Face to face with his greatest moment of weakness, offered a chance at redemption... Should he have taken it? Should he have altered that which was set in stone?

"It wasn't real," he told himself, despite how much it had sucked him in, despite how real it had felt. It wasn't real... Right?

Lief · Jan 19, 2021

And then, just like that, he was upon her.

His presence bathed her in a warm glow, a comforting embrace felt through vacuous space that lingered between them. As tangible as he had ever been when stood before her.

Asha clung to that, a piece of familiarity amidst so much oddity, willing him to remain if only for one fleeting second longer. The Iridonian returned her call, quieting her so that unwilling ears could not prey upon their conversation. But now that they were connected once more there would be no need for such a signal to be broadcast. She could narrow her scope, speak only to him as their spirits rang out through the Force.

I will trust in your judgement, she assured him, still clinging to the notion that she was here for a reason, Know that I will be here, should you need me. My strength is yours to draw upon, old friend.

Even if that was to be the only part she played, she would make sure she played it well. So she sat, cross-legged and lost within the Force, her senses rippling into the landscape around her so that she might not find herself accosted by some unseen force. She drew upon the peace which escaped like plumes of smoke from the great crack in the earth she had found herself before; she listened to the quiet voices lost within it, each calm and satisfied with what they had discovered at the bottom of the pit.

She resisted that call, though it tempted her so. She was not ready to succumb to the Force in such a manner... She would not.

Sargon Vynea · Jan 20, 2021

Withdrawing back into himself he sat in silence for a moment. Bathing in the force as the Netherworld literally moved around him. He had a direction now, and perhaps even a goal. Though Asha had been an unexpected complication she was safe, and as long as she remained where she was he would be content she was safe. Where he was going though he couldn't bring her. There was a danger there unlike any he'd face before, and while she had faced awful things he would not put her in the middle of it. He was however glad she was here despite the danger.

With closed eyes he peered into the southern wall of the labyrinth letting his mind fall over each individual strand of the force as he waited for the way. It was building now. The singular moment when all things would align as they should. Not a weakness as most thought of it, but rather a way. A blade did not shatter because of any fault of the maker, but rather because the force showed the depth of it's truth. We were all many and one. A collective consciousness at war with itself. Every movement with purpose and even in the darkest part there was always the light of the force if one was but willing to see it.

The momentum built as the winds called him, their whispers tugging at his very molecules of existence. He could feel it's binding now, even inside himself as he focused more intently on a small section that seemed to shimmer in the force as billions of threads and pieces too small to ever be seen by the naked eye began to line up into that perfect moment. Everything had a beginning and end. There was no sorrow in that though, for all endings were in truth but new beginnings. As the force welled in him he could feel it all around him. So many potential new beginnings beyond counting that merely had to let go and move on. Even among those who had fought against the calling for so long.

Standing he took slow steps to towards the southern wall and placed his hand on it while he waited. It was one with him, and he was one with it. There was no miracle about it, for they were all bound together no matter how alone anyone might feel, they never truly were. Pressing softly he felt it start to crumble beneath his hand, and then he stepped into it. He could feel it calling him here intensely. Even as he stepped through one and then another all he could hear was the wind beckoning him onward, to join it finally.

In his heart he could feel it, if he but asked to fly it would take him in. Yet with trembling breath he pushed forward through the last wall, and as the moment past the song dimmed and the winds whispered once more. It was simply not his time yet, but when the day came he would join willingly and pass without fear into the force. A part of him ached to hear the song once more he'd tried to hear for so long, but this wasn't the time. He had an oath to fulfill, and he'd never waivered before. Nor would he now.

Opening his eyes he saw the river below him as he stood in the only peaceful area of the Netherworld. He didn't need to turn around to look to know the walls were already reforming. "I wish you peace. I hope one day you will find it oh lost of the labyrinth." Yet as he spoke he could already hear the cries for help from beyond. The people of Bakura begging him not to leave them to the cares of the dark empires that came after. It was a troubling thought, but there was sorrow enough for all. For them too would come a new beginning.

"A cup of tea please, Asha, and then I must continue down the river. First though, I believe a cup of tea would be lovely."

Lief

Ashin Cardé Varanin

Kaalia Pavanos

Kal · Jan 20, 2021

No clue? He had seen the souls of the dead fade away or drift into madness, seen foolhardy travellers swallowed whole by realms beyond the mortal ken or simply wither, their living bodies and feeble minds failing to adapt to the strange nature of this world of dead men and stranger things yet.

How one reacted when circumstances were dire said a lot about one's essential nature, however - time and again, she had turned to brute force.

<Given how often seem to end up in these situations, may I suggest some specialised training?> Her mother Ashin had the expertise, surely.

Noting the shift in her demeanour as the Tree of Solace came into view, Kal was forced to reevaluate the Garden's effects. It preyed on vulnerability, but it was more than that. Something about her being there in the flesh had exacerbated things - or perhaps it was simply her unique blend of despair and determination, her goals far clearer than the somewhat faded shades that often wandered this place.

Turning to thank the guide once more, he bowed deeply, smiling when the Maelibus returned the favour. Demonic-looking figure heading back into the Garden to continue his eternal work, Kal extended a single shadowy arm towards Noelle. <Yes. Take my hand, this might get... rough.>

Assuming she complied, he reached out for the Tree, touching its bark with his free hand and instructing her to do the same. As she did, she would note the maze fading away around her, as if it had never been real to begin with - despite the scratches she sported.

Not content to simply escape, he focused his will, tapped into the conceptualisation of freedom and hope it represented... and with a purposeful act of will, they were ripped from the Garden, from the region itself, hurtling through unreality before landing at the bank of an endlessly long river.

<Whatever you do, don't touch the waters.>

Noelle Varanin |

Noelle Varanin · Jan 20, 2021

River of the Dead

Kal

"--may I suggest some specialized training?"

She grimaced, his tease echoing a concern she had been holding for months. Or maybe it wasn't a tease. Maybe it was a harsh truth. Noelle still had not picked a focus.

She had thought being able to show knowledge in so many fields was a strength, but lately...

"I was trained enough to bind you," she stated flatly, lifting herself off the ground. She tried to steel her steps, the transportation leaving her with a sense of vertigo that nearly cost her her lunch. If such things existed in the Netherworld. The pale sheen slowly left her features, her balance returning as the thick red of the land settled over her vision.

"We're here," she breathed. She turned sharply, skimming for signs of Ashin along the flat river bank. "This is the place-- she is suppose to be here. I-" Dread turned her blood cold. "She'll do this without me." Or maybe, Ashin already had. The note had been very clear. She couldn't wait.

She might already be lost.

Noelle took off down the corrupted river bank, a hand raising. The waters rippled, then surged, starting to part.

The shade drifted in, its ship catching on the edge of her forming tides. It looked on, its expression even and unamused. "That will get you no where, living one."

Arcturus Dinn · Jan 20, 2021

He did not know how long he walked from that infernal spire before the fields melted away and the bank of a vast river spread before him instead. In truth he barely remembered getting back to his feet, had not even bothered to look behind and watch the spire fade into nothingness... No, it wasn't until the sound of the water reached his ears that he awoke from him waking slumber.

Left and right he looked, and as far as the eye could see the river continued on its merry way, twisting and turning sure but seemingly eternal.

"The fields had seemed endless, too," he reminded himself, replacing despair with hope in one swift thought, "With any luck, there'll be a way to pass..."

He inhaled, and let the music wash over him once more. This time he was the one reaching for the haunting voice among the symphony, prying in hopes that it might guide him on. It had led him to the spire, but that had been wrong... Somehow it had been himself he was chasing, not her.

Thesh could not let that happen again.

As he stood there, pondering a way across the rover, led again by the voice, an unexpected set of strings strained to join the orchestra. At first this brought only confusion, for no changes were apparent around him, but soon enough the truth revealed itself.

There, on the edge of the bank, just a short walk away from him, a girl appeared. As though spat out from some unseen void. At first he felt certain she was alone, that was until a shadow drifted through after her. He could not speak for the latter, they appeared as though they fit right in to this place, but the girl...

Well, she felt just like he did. Material... Alive.

He took a few steps toward them before faltering. Was it right of him to impose himself upon them? Perhaps they had arrived on some great quest of their own; was it really his place to interfere? The arrival of a shade, with a boat no less, sealed the deal for him: a way across had presented itself.

But how to secure himself passage upon it?

Now that was the real question...

Kal

Lief · Jan 20, 2021

Time meant nothing here, she had quickly come to realize.

A product of their own perception.

Sat at the edge of that great chasm, lost within her typical meditations, it both stretched on eternally and existed within the space of one mere second. She had barely lowered herself into the flow of the Force, become one with those threads of time she knew oh so well, when her external senses prickled and pulled her back to her body.

Sargon stood before her. His arrival seemed immediate, from the moment their conversation had ended, but she knew better than to be fooled by such. He was not an illusion, she noted that much as her eyes opened and she looked upon him. No, a trick of her mind would have seen him slightly younger. As he had been when last they'd met.

While the Iridonian was not old he had more experiences held within his eyes.

"Sargon," she breathed, her relief palpable. "It is good to see you, old friend. Please, take a seat... I shall see you satiated soon enough."

The girl pulled the pack from her back, something which had become increasingly more present over the years, and once it settled before her she rummaged through it in search of a few key pieces. The Teapot of Serenity was first among the items which were pulled forth, then a small pouch of leaves, two specially crafted - robust - teacups, and a container of water. She had known better than to journey up a mountain without them.

She knew better than to journey the galaxy without them.

Asha worked swiftly, forgoing her usual methodology in order to save precious time. Whatever reason Sargon had to be in the Netherworld she felt certain it had to be time sensitive, important. This was no simple feat, after all. She drew upon the Force to bring the water, now inside the pot, to a low boil, and submerged the leaves soon after.

While it brewed she felt struck with a sudden inability to think. There was much she had to say, she knew, much she wanted to ask... But she could not settle on anything specific now that he was there. Still, the infusion time was three minutes; as much as she could sit happily in silence with the man before her, these were precious minutes that could not be wasted.

"Why are we here, Sargon?" she finally inquired, as the peace from the depths of the chasm washed over them. The Iridonian had seemed more interested in the river than the void, in fact it was only that it had garnered his attention at all that drew her focus to it. Had it been there this entire time? Truly, she had not noticed...

Kal · Jan 21, 2021

Air seeming just a bit colder at her mention of binding him, Kal tilted his head ever so slightly sideways, tone as flat as hers. "Yes, and I am trained enough to turn this world against you. It seems rather rude to me to evaluate someone's competency solely on a disadvantageous situation, no?"

Nodding respectfully in greeting to the shade, his snarkiness rose to new heights. "The ferryman is quite right, Noelle. If you needed to be on the other side of the river that is where I would have deposited us." She really needed to learn to think a bit more before acting, in his opinion.

Suddenly turning upon his axis, Kal's attention swivelled towards the newcomer, voice cheerful.

"Greetings traveller. I see you are a stranger to this realm as well..." A meaningful glance at his Echani companion made it clear just who he meant by that. "... may I ask from whence you came - and perhaps more importantly, how you plan to return to the realm of mortals?"

Noelle Varanin |

Ashin Cardé Varanin · Jan 22, 2021

A Force call resounded along bonds and thundered down the river.

I KNOW WHERE SHE IS

TRUST THE FERRYMEN

FOLLOW THE RIVER TO ITS END

FIND US IN THE DREAMING DARK

The call came with a mental image:

(source)

Lief

Sargon Vynea · Jan 23, 2021

Now that was a question he would like to know as well, why were they here. He now knew why he was, but why were they. Taking his cup of tea his eyes never left the river as he felt it calling to him. Opening himself up to her inside the force he shared its song, the whispers here seemed to lack to that shroud on the other side and sung to him now. He could almost feel himself being pulled into it as he felt more then saw a lone boat pull up to the shore and stop.

"He is here for me, and it is time. As to why you are here, that you will have to trust in the living force to show. I advise you this though, hold this door open for us. Where I go is a place of great darkness, and it will not be happy to see anything leave it's grasp. It hungers for all things, but I fear I know what it is beyond the darkness of that place."

Sipping he slowly began his descent knowing she would at least walk him to the river. It was not in her to abandon those in need, much less a friend. Still though a way back must be left open, and a light out of the darkness would be of great aid. "How has the kitten been?" Pausing he shook his head, "I suppose it's been many years now since that feisty feline has passed my apologies sometimes I forget the passing of days."

As he approached the boat the lone boatman bade him enter with a wave of his hand, and he could feel the purpose of all of this was close at hand. As he did he felt the image of the darkness again, the petrified trees, and the touch of Lady Ashin's mind. So his faith was rewarded but he puzzled over the term us. Who else was on this trip? Then with a sudden click he recognized what he'd felt the other day in the woods, and with eyes wide he handed the cup back to Asha.

"The choice is yours Asha. You can stay and keep the way home open for us all, a light in the darkness quite literally. Your other choice is to come with me and walk through a shadowed land together once more. I think you know which I'd rather, but it is your choice. I must leave though my faithful friend, for I have oaths to fulfill once more."

Stopping a moment as his first foot touched onto the ferry he smiled embarrassed and turned back to her. "I'm sorry, I haven't been in the moment have I? There is something here I must do, something that binds me from far in the past. Something that willingly binds me at that. Forgive my distraction, but it is so loud now, it's hard to hear anything over it's call."

Lief

Ashin Cardé Varanin

Spencer Varanin

Kaalia Pavanos · Jan 23, 2021

The Dreaming Dark. The one place in the Netherworld Kaalia had always avoided. It was a place that contained horrors that surpassed anything the woman had ever bared to witness in the realm of the living. As deeply as she was connected to the Netherworld, that connection ended where the Dreaming Dark began.

For a moment, Kaalia hesitated to answer the call. She had told herself she would never lay eyes on that wretched place herself.

A deep breath.

No. She wouldn't leave now. Not when they were this close. Not when she had sworn to do whatever she could. Not to clear a debt, not to gain favor. This was simply the right thing to do. No more, no less.

The Sith Lady spread her wings, and took flight. Her destination, the Dreaming Dark.

Noelle Varanin · Jan 23, 2021

Noelle released the water, the river's surface raging chaotically as it fell back into its natural place. Droplets flew towards her feet. She yanked back, wary of Kal's warning.

Her mother's voice thundered down the river. Raw power and no finesse-- there was no doubting it was her.

Noelle's eyes widened, a step forward being taken. Kal stopped mattering, the stranger at her back meant nothing. She looked to the ferrymen and dipped her chin, apologetic and beckoning.

It wasn't like her to not pause and think things through, the eldest Varanin was once known for being meticulous and exacting in every choice she made. That temperament was gone, lost to the desperation Spencer's death had awoken. There was no time to slow down, momentum keeps things in your hands much better than staying still.

"Let's go," she ordered, eyes set on the horizon. Whether or not the others joined was none of her concern. She had her direction-- she had her aid.

For her, it would be silent journey, her expression pinched and unreadable as she followed Ashin's call.

Arcturus Dinn

ooc: lets skim our way to the meet up so things can move forward?

Lief · Jan 23, 2021

The notion that Sargon had not actually intended to call her into the Netherworld had not fully occurred to the girl until that very moment, when a ponderous expression worked its way over his features. Had she presumed too much by stepping over the threshold between life and death itself? Misread his intentions?

No matter; she was here now.

But Sargon it seemed would not be for much longer. At least not beside the chasm. A boat drifted to the shore, and the Iridionian simply observed it for a time before finally speaking of the matter at hand.

The girl wanted nothing more than to help. She did not want him to go on alone, into whatever uncertainties lay ahead... But she also could not argue his logic. To have a way home, a focal point through which to arrive back to the land of the living, would prove vital. Otherwise whatever this all was, would have been for naught. And there were others, it seemed... More beings out there he could rely on.

"I will do as you bid; I will hold place here. But know that I go with you in spirit, my friend. My strength is with you. You need only call, and I will come."

She rose up then, walking with him toward the shore. Before he could step foot upon that boat, which would take him off to Force-knew-where, to do Force-knew-what, she threw her arms around him in a tight embrace. She did not know what exactly had compelled her to do it, but here by the water, further from the chasm, she felt the impending dread ever-present in the rest of this void.

And though she tried to quieten her mind against such thoughts, she could not help but worry that this might be the last she saw of him.

No. I will not let that be so.

"You will come back, Sargon Vynea." Even if she had to drag him back from this monstrous realm herself, she would make sure of that... Right?

Then she released him, and watched as the ship carried him away...

Arcturus Dinn · Jan 23, 2021

As he approached the pair, who waited beside what looked to be just a rickety old boat, he turned his sights to the strange shade who addressed him and inclined his head in greeting. Though his experience in the Spire still niggled at the back of his mind, his focus had returned anew.

Down the length of the river an unfamiliar voice called out, different to that haunting, melodic cry which carried him ever on this venture. The stranger's words brought further revelation to the boy, a destination. Even if he knew not why he sought it, he knew that it coincided with his own hazy task. He looked once more to the boat, and the ferryman atop it.

These others, then... They too sought the voice?

"A stranger, yes... Yet you seem all too comfortable within its sway." He closed the gap between them, inquisitive gaze shifting between the three forms. The girl seemed distant, pre-occupied. This journey meant more to her than him, or the shade. He could sense that much. "I slipped in through a broken veil on Korriban... Though I did not think about an exit plan when I entered."

In fact, he had not thought about an exit at all until that very moment. A slight frown played at his lips.

"I am seeking the source of forlorn melody... Do you hear it? She cries out..." He looked past them, a faraway look in his eyes. "I should like to join you," he finally stated. After all, three sane minds were better than one, no? Together they might have an easier time keeping their thoughts in check.

Might have a better chance at escaping.

The girl urged them on, no care as to which among them joined her on the boat. And he could understand her haste, for he too felt the sense of urgency... He nodded, and stepped aboard the rickety ferry. There was no longer room for doubt.

Kal · Jan 24, 2021

The Dreaming Dark.

He had known Noelle's quest might bring her to some dangerous places, the depths of Chaos perhaps, but not that part. It was anathema, a wound in the very fabric of reality, a realm of twisted lawless madness into which only the boldest Shadows dared venture; more often, they sent Shades.

If a Shade or ten got eaten by beings from beyond structured reality, that was just the cost of doing business.

Entering the boat with great reluctance, he focused his attention given on the newcomer; Noelle did not seem in a talkative mood. "Korriban is full of hidden cracks, but it must have been quite the rift to allow someone like you across. No offence." Even experienced Sorcerers were, for the most part, better off using the most thoroughly charted passageways. People like Noelle or him were wont to end up in unfortunate places.

"Yes. She seeks a mother, her other mother a wife." They seemed to be equally dedicated to their task. Love or tunnel vision? It mattered little, in the end. He had little doubt they would do whatever it took return what they had lost. How was the one called Ashin holding up, he wondered?

He would know soon enough. The boat was getting closer, he could feel it.

Noelle Varanin |

Darth Daiara · Jan 25, 2021

whoops.

Noelle Varanin · Jan 25, 2021

Time bled away from Noelle. The river flowed, the trees passed in changing form. The ones around her, living or dead, received very little engagement. The holocrons in the family estate did little to prepare her for this realm, she felt that now, her attention lingering on the the oddities with unquenched curiosity.

They were not what she was here for.

Onwards, she pressed, unrelenting. Until the thickening bone-shard forest once again began to thin, and she came upon the edge of a camp, a familiar presence up ahead.

She came upon the group, fire in her eyes and a twig, long since tangled in her hair.

"Mother," came the sharp, anxious statement. She scanned the clearing, preparations for departure everywhere. Her nostrils flared. "I've brought-" friends? She glanced behind her, her brows furrowing on the two souls that had caught up in her wake.

"Company."

Sargon Vynea · Jan 25, 2021

Floating down the river he could feel her worry on the air and her final tight embrace. What drove her to such fear he wondered? Then again in the land of the dead perhaps it was only naturally one feared to become one of them. Still even as his body sat aboard the lonely ferry he sent

Lief a wave of friendship and love. She wasn't his daughter, but he couldn't be anymore proud of her if she had been.

He did feel it though as well, something dark was coming quickly. Something hungry? It was odd, he couldn't feel the presence of any singular creature, but rather some over whelming hunger, or need. Something completely alien. He considered it silently for a moment before turning back to his guide down the river. They had simply known each other, they'd needed no words to communicate their purpose. It was strangely more comforting then any words he could have said.

As they approached the area felt more, twisted, yes that was the right word, the only word that fit. So focused had he been upon it that he didn't even notice him until he spoke. "So, brother, we met again here among the dead. It's too bad really, but I suppose it was the only fate I left available to myself wasn't it?"

Turning slowly the Iridonian nearly forgot to breathe as he came face to face with a younger version of himself. "Arthos," he spoke after a minute a lump in his throat as he fought a dozen feelings. "I had not thought to see you here. I suppose I'd not thought of it at all in truth. For all the good I've tried to do I still am simply rubbish as a brother, eh?"

The ghost of a man smirked as he picked up a stone and threw it along the river watching it bounce in silence for a moment. "Perhaps, but I hadn't ever given you much cause to do otherwise, have I? I guess we're both rubbish brothers then, eh?" Watching past the river bend the first sight of the petrified trees stood awaiting them. "I wouldn't go in there though, Sargon. Light, or darkness it doesn't care much which it devours."

Nodding Sargon believed him, something was wrong here. There was never a choice though of going or not going. The force had lead him here, and here his oaths would be kept. Instead he said the words he'd wished he said a thousand times as the light faded. "I'm sorry, Arthos. I should have been there for you. I should have done more then simply felt righteous in my place, and reached out to you more. I still love you, brother. I always will."

He didn't have to look back to know Arthos had vanished as the shadows enveloped the boat. He knew he'd heard though, finally after all these years. Wiping away a tear the last of his family felt a bit of peace at that. We all fail, and we all fall. He'd gotten a second chance though years ago in the Fringe, and his brother had offered him a second chance here. It was a blessing, they all were.