un: sweet lily of the hidden valley; voice

[bearshermark]

[Eleven's voice comes through hushed, yet tinged with urgency]

This one is asking for a mirror.

[A different, fainter voice, words heavy and slurred as through from disuse] Take me to mirror..

[Eleven audibly hesitates, his attention turning briefly away from the network as his voice lowers, softer] Are- are there more of them? The one on the ship shattered..

[A halting pause from the other side] ..End pain..

[Grief, bleeding through compassion] I will. If I can't help you, I promise.

[Eleven takes in a deep breath and clears his throat] ..I know it's probably too much to hope there's another mirror we could easily find, but he seems convinced it would help. It was said the body in the lake had a similar aura. I didn't think much of it then, but now I wonder...

Comments

[somebadnews]

[ He doesn't see the harm. Definitely wasn't listening to him at all. ]

You'll watch him suffer. Who are you really helping?

[bearshermark]

I'm trying to understand what's happening so we can help. I watched the miners deteriorate into undeath. This looks like the reverse.

Unless you already know what will happen if he's brought to the lake or looks into a mirror.

[somebadnews]

[ El is going to do it anyway, he can tell. What he knows is surprisingly little, for all his efforts. Cryptic warnings that don't add up to much more than frustration. ]

I don't.

[bearshermark]

[A pause]

I'm worried too, but if it might help..

And if something goes wrong, I will handle it.

[somebadnews]

[ Who said he was worried? He doesn't like it, but it isn't up to him to tell him to be careful. ]

Sure. Let me know how it goes.

[bearshermark]

[Non-worried people wouldn't tell him it's a bad idea]

Probably nothing, after all this.

[somebadnews]

[ That grates him, just a little bit more. ]

Tell yourself whatever you want.

[ Sometimes he just likes to go on the record for having said something. At the very least, he's expecting a gruesome death on his hands, and some kids aren't as up for that as they think they are. ]

Later

[bearshermark]

[A quiet breath]

He died. The body thawed back to a more natural death state as he wandered into the lake.

[somebadnews]

[ He's legitimately surprised to hear back from him. As for the results... that's interesting. ]

How hard was it to get him there? Was he drawn towards it?

[bearshermark]

It seemed that way. He walked into the water on his own; we didn't force him.

[somebadnews]

Strange. [ Does that mean anything? It ended with the same result as it would have if he killed him outright. ]

Did you leave him?

[bearshermark]

No. We pulled his body out and cremated it.

[somebadnews]

[ Hm. He would have wondered if Anurr would have claimed the body if he hadn't, if that's even possible. But despite his warnings, he has to give him credit for going through with the experiment. ]

It could have been worse.

[bearshermark]

It wasnt.

[He took pretty good precautions ok]

[somebadnews]

[ Don't get cocky, kid. He was wrong once. ]

You're not disappointed?

[bearshermark]

[He hums shortly, considering that]

A little, I guess- that there isn't more we can do. But.. it answered what I needed to know, so I'm no longer troubled by it.

[somebadnews]

[ Doubts that he'll want to stop helping the undead after finding out they're beyond help. It's a theme. ]

Now we just need to wait for the rest of them to find the lake.

[bearshermark]

I don't know that it does anything a sword can't as easily. Or won't happen naturally, to those that are thawing. They return to death, freeing their bodies from the curse of undeath. Without Yggdrasil, it might be the most that can be done.

[somebadnews]

[ Oh. Was it not clear that he was making a joke? He's not... great at them. -- It sounds like he finally reached the right conclusion anyway.

He's heard him bring up 'Yggdrasil' before though. If he thinks about it, he can probably place its origins, so he doesn't ask. ]

That should cut down on the debate.

[bearshermark]

[An agitated breath]

You look too young to act so dismissive.

[Or in effect: what is wrong with you child]

[somebadnews]

[ You'd think he'd be used to hearing that, since he hasn't even bothered to figure out how to change his username or corrected them when they make that mistake, but it still makes him twitch. ]

Trust me, I've seen enough.

[bearshermark]

Compassion shouldn't be abandoned so swiftly.

[somebadnews]

I'd call it being realistic. If you want to survive, I'd learn how to pick your battles.

[bearshermark]

[Well that.. very nearly sounds like a threat. It would be, from most anyone else]

Even you think so little of me.

[somebadnews]

[ 'Even you'... But no, he's not going to threaten a kid, he's just offering advice. ]

Who cares what I think? So long as you're willing to own your mistakes, you'll figure it out on your own.