The Knights Next Door

[AonEne he/him]

With Cassie’s question answered - if not directly to her - she sat back thoughtfully. She hadn’t known the Nightwatcher could do stuff like that. “So she can just...grant you anything? Like a genie, but once?” @Wyndlerunner 

Edited August 29, 2019 by AonEne
I need to start remembering to tag people, my last two questions got totally ignored

[Wyndlerunner he/him]

15 minutes ago, AonEne said:

With Cassie’s question answered - if not directly to her - she sat back thoughtfully. She hadn’t known the Nightwatcher could do stuff like that. “So she can just...grant you anything? Like a genie, but once?” @Wyndlerunner 

"Well, yes" James said, "If the genie also gave you a curse that you have to live with till the end of your days."

[AonEne he/him]

She considered that, the heart of an idea welling up inside her. “A curse like what?” 

@Wyndlerunner

[+Sorana she/her]

Shana listened to the talk about a curse and and the sword. To Draugs explanation about the police.

"So we are safe."

She repeated and burried her head in her hands.

"We are safe, we don't need to flee."

Yes, that was good. To stay here, to stay with her friends.

"You are my family."

She stated quietly, although they probably wouldn't even hear her.

[I think I am here. he/him]

Talking. Talking was never Rob’s strong suit.

To one side, was the debate about the world knowing. It was a fruitless argument, Rob knew, because Sha-Theoxis suppressed knowledge of Investiture to normals. Humans, Rob reminded himself. He had always reminded himself that he was not superior to other people just because he could turn rock to mush or turn a cloth into a knife. He’d seen the shows and movies, and he was adamant never to become like those people in them, who created a separate term for people without their abilities (his personal least favourite term was ‘muggles’). They were people, not a seperate species. Thinking like they were was how one traversed into supervillain territory.

But now he realised he had been thinking off topic. Off the topic of whether people should know. The thought that it was a fruitless argument again appeared in Rob’s head. Sha-Theoxis didn’t allow for it to happen, and that was that. Why did it need to be complicated? But if they beat the Unmade, which was the plan... then it got complicated.

And on the other side, the talk about the sword, about the wishes, about the curse. That was interesting. Rob wondered what would happen if they asked to have all their problems removed? What would the curse be? What if they wished for the end to world hunger? Was the Nightwatcher even that powerful. They’d have to sacrifice someone to get the curse, but Rob would be happy to volunteer. Enduring was what Stonewards did.

Tumbling the thoughts around his head, Rob spoke up. Shana was upset and James was clenching his fists, someone had to say something.

“It is a choice. We have kept this secret for so long, that if the world knows about us, the ones who want to stay secret can do so, without ever revealing they have powers. And the ones who want to reveal themselves, can. To each their own. Right?”

[Bookish Ocelot she/her]

“Well, it would be great if I didn’t have to light things on fire every time we needed assistance.” Leona said. “I greatly prefer cake.”

no way said Onyx. never would have guessed. you? cake? nah uh.

Leona rolled her eyes. 

 

[+Sorana she/her]

"I'm sorry that I destroyed the door."

Shana opened her hands in exasperation, honestly, it was a door and it had been accident. Still, she needed to get a better grip on herself. Who knew what she might set aflame the next time. She thought about Rob's words and then slowly shook her head.

"I'm not sure, if it's a situation where we can decide if we want to step out in the open or not. If each of us can decide. As long as we all live here, we are in this together. Right now with Sha'Theoxis we are protected to a vertain degree, but once she is gone, that protection will be gone as well. And at least I am in favor of us having a plan."

She stood up again, thinking while sitting down and doing nothing wasn't hers. Her grades easily reflected that as well. She had to move, had to do something. Then she could reflect upon things.

"The situations like we had today won't stop. Never. If it's Voidbringers, or later fanatics, or those afraid of our powers. We have to accept that we a minority, and people never react well to a minority. We might be used, we might be loved - I can't look into the future. But we will polarize society. I think, we should decide for ourselves what we want to do. What our goals are. I am perfectly fine to spend my whole life fighting evil, and if that means cooperating with the government, then I will do that. But I can't speak for all of us. And should some of us want to life a different live, then we need to decide how to pretect them, how to offer them a chance to life a live that suits them as well."

Turning around, she looked at each of them.

"You are my family and I will protect you. And I don't care whose heads I have to smash in to keep you safe."

 

Edited August 29, 2019 by Sorana

[Wyndlerunner he/him]

9 hours ago, AonEne said:

She considered that, the heart of an idea welling up inside her. “A curse like what?” 

@Wyndlerunner

"It depends on the person" James said, "Sometimes your curse is tied intrinsically to your boon, sometimes the two are completely unrelated."

[AonEne he/him]

8 minutes ago, Wyndlerunner said:

"It depends on the person" James said, "Sometimes your curse is tied intrinsically to your boon, sometimes the two are completely unrelated."

Torn between Shana's and Rob's opinions, Cassie elected not to choose a side and kept speaking with James. "That's...huh. That's really interesting." 

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Can I wake him up in the middle of the night, or come talk to him if he's still awake?  

 

[Wyndlerunner he/him]

2 minutes ago, AonEne said:

Torn between Shana's and Rob's opinions, Cassie elected not to choose a side and kept speaking with James. "That's...huh. That's really interesting." 

 

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You can talk to him, I don't think James will be getting any sleep anytime soon.

 

[AonEne he/him]

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Deevy...wait, how late is it right now? Past midnight, right? 

Looking from James to the others, Cassie added, "Hey, maybe we should get some sleep. This is a potentially huge topic, but better to cover it when you've had rest, right? It's been a long day." 

[Wyndlerunner he/him]

2 minutes ago, AonEne said:

Looking from James to the others, Cassie added, "Hey, maybe we should get some sleep. This is a potentially huge topic, but better to cover it when you've had rest, right? It's been a long day." 

"I agree" James said, "It's been a hard day's night, and we've been working like a dog, we should be sleeping like a log." he said, quoting the Beatles, hoping to appeal to their senses of humor.

[overlord stick]

Flid frowned at him. "That sounds like something from the 60's. I'm probably going to stay up, I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight."

[AonEne he/him]

Cassie snorted at the song lyric, even though she didn't recognize it, but stayed silent. She didn't think she would be doing a lot of sleeping either. 

[Wyndlerunner he/him]

James stood up, and announced, "If anyone needs to talk, I'll lend my ears." he said, and began to walk upstairs, "I'll be in my room if you need me."

[Eluvianii he/him]

Sleep. Yeah, sleep sounded good. He would go to the kitchen for a bite and then sleep until lunch. Try to, at least. Too much to think about.

[I think I am here. he/him]

Rob didn’t get the beetles reference. He didn’t listen to much music. If he listened to anything, it was usually a steady repetitive metronome to help him focus. He just nodded and looked to Shana. He could understand how he felt, not because he felt the same but because he knew what it was like to want to serve a duty. The Dustbringers were fighters, unparalleled in their fearsomeness. But they destroyed to protect.

“Like a wolf,” he said to her, thoughtfully. “Protecting the pack.”

He stood up.

“They are right. We should sleep. All of us will probably think clearer when we have had a good rest.”

[+Sorana she/her]

Shana smiled at Rob's words. A wolf protecting the pack. He knew, about duty, about following your path.

Respectfully she inclined her head at him, realized that the moment they would fight together, they would be devastating.

"I agree. Let's head to sleep. Tomorrow we can eat pancakes for breakfast and see what happens."

Smiling she offered Ben her hand to help him up.

@Lunamor

[Lunamor she/her]

3 hours ago, Sorana said:

Shana smiled at Rob's words. A wolf protecting the pack. He knew, about duty, about following your path.

Respectfully she inclined her head at him, realized that the moment they would fight together, they would be devastating.

"I agree. Let's head to sleep. Tomorrow we can eat pancakes for breakfast and see what happens."

Smiling she offered Ben her hand to help him up.

@Lunamor

Ben didn’t respond; he was still fast asleep.

[Wyndlerunner he/him]

James flopped on his bed, and turned on a playlist of relaxing music. "Ah," he sighed to himself, "Enya never faileth"

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I was super tempted to have him be listening to the soundtrack from 'Octopath Traveler', but I'm restraining myself from making obscure video game references.

 

[+Sorana she/her]

10 hours ago, Lunamor said:

Ben didn’t respond; he was still fast asleep.

Shana picked Ben up and brought him to bed. Then she went to her own room and fell asleep.

[I think I am here. he/him]

It was late. Incredibly late. And as Rob watched people slowly get up from the living room and wander to their rooms, Rob realised just how tired he was. He had been putting it off, thrusted his tiredness aside to focus on his duty. But there was no more things to do, and suddenly the lack of sleep kept up with him.

Wordlessly he walked over to the stairs, and on the way he flipped a switch and turned the porch lights off. No need to waste electricity. On his way to his room he looked at some of the art that hung on the wall between doors. He felt a dull hit of envy, that  there were people so creative as to make such popular pieces of art while he struggled to draw much more than a very detailed square.

When he was in his room, he took a moment to happily bask in the bare, neat, utilitarian room. This was his domain. Putting his phone on charge and laying down on the grounded mattress he called his bed, Rob stared up at the ceiling. He switched off the light, and for a moment all he could hear was his heartbeat. Then, he closed his eyes and clenched his fists, and slept instantly.

[WrathofaShardKitten]

Evelyn finished her healing aon and smiled with relief as the pain in her back vanished. She hadn't been sure if it would work, since she didn't know exactly what the voidbringers had done, but the pain had vanished. Evelyn got to her feet, yawning, and followed Rob up the stairs.

[AonEne he/him]

Cassie paced in her room. Joy followed each movement a step behind, jerking to a stop when she did and reversing when she turned to pace a different way. At least, Cass assumed she was reversing. Maybe she was just going backward. Did lightspren have fronts? Regardless, she floated along almost comically; it would have been funny if Cassie hadn't been in deep thought for the last hour or so, from the moment she'd stepped in her bedroom after heading up the stairs. She knew she'd regret not sleeping eventually, but for now her exhausted contemplation was immersive enough to distract her.

She was evaluating her worth.

From the second James Deoven had adopted her, she'd known she wasn't going to be good enough for him. How could she be? He was a Bondsmith, a magical savior of the world with a powerful being bonded to him, someone who went around giving kids a place to stay and inventing awesome new stuff. And Cassandra Qanara, as her name used to be, was just a girl who didn't know who or what she was and could never decide on anything. She was too flighty, some of the other foster kids said, while others preferred the word inconsistent. Half the authorities thought she wandered off too much, exploring; the other half complained about how quiet she was. A few tried to get her into therapy, but it never really worked out.

And then. Then she had bonded Joy, named for what Cassie hadn't had but then gotten when the spren came, and spoken those Immortal Words in a heartbeat of glory and excitement. The rush of Light; the Surge of Cohesion. Now, she had promised herself, I can do something important. Now I can prove to myself and Doc that I matter. Something she would only ever admit to herself was that she called him by the title sometimes in her head when she was alone. Having a title like that was one more piece of evidence for how much higher on the scale his value was compared to hers.

But she'd been wrong. She was as useless with Radiancy as she was with anything else - her ability to use her one Surge was practically nonexistent, and her interest in doing so had died off quickly. Why keep exploring down a path that had proven itself time and time again to be a dead end? No other Ideals made their way into her head, and even though she was one of the oldest people in the house, she had silently watched the rest surpass her in skill. They learned how to fight while she learned how to fill out Washington college applications - dreading every one, unable to settle on one she wanted - storms, unable to decide on a job she wanted. Where was she going in the world?

Down. That was all she could think.

The others had gone out and fought Voidbringers, then come back and trained. She had participated in neither. They had all been sucked into the awful nightmare with Sha-thoexis. Cassie's only contribution had been temporarily finding Ben. Even when she'd helped her adoptive uncle find Jamie and Jamie pick up Evelyn, the fighting and evasive driving had all been done by others. And her latest, worst failure...the prom. She'd been a chaperone. She was supposed to be the one looking after them. But a crush of maybe a week had drawn away her attention, getting Shana and Ben kidnapped. As for the police interrogation, well, that was just another disaster she hadn't stopped.

As the person she currently was, Cassie was useless.

She sank onto her bed as her mind discovered that fact. Or, rediscovered it, more like. She knew it already, had known it and been thinking it for years. It had just gotten stronger during the past few days. Staring dully at her black computer screen, reflecting her face and the state of her soul, Cassie came to the conclusion that she had to change or leave and stop dragging everyone else down. The thought of going away forever was intolerable; change, then. But she couldn't do it on her own.

The seed of an idea from earlier in the night came to her, insidious as the seeds the Voidbringers had had. The Nightwatcher had immense power. She could do things unimaginable to most, even Invested. Cass could just go and ask to be better. So simple! She jumped to her feet, rejuvenated, and booped the top of the ball of light as Joy bounced closer. "This is it," she whispered to her lightspren. "This is something I can do."

Trying hard to be quiet, she crept out into the hall and to James's room, knocking lightly. @Wyndlerunner

[old man moomba he/him]

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Bruh nooooo.