one more shifty, slightly leveled field of communication

[livesarock]

WHO: trueltning_fury and inthirds (who is cured)
WHERE: MAC
WHEN: Way super early 11/10
WARNINGS: MANLY TEARSno idk nobody dies at least
SUMMARY: Hey old man it's me, the pal you carved up like a week ago!
FORMAT: No



He could've just fallen asleep right where he was so easily had his mind not wandered back to his first contacts. It hit him like a knife in the back, causing him to start a little, though hardly much to disturb the sleeper curled up on him.

It had been well more than an hour, hadn't it? Not even a day back, already falling behind...

Further still, as it took a length of time to free himself and slink down the hallways. Barefoot, still feeling like he was stuck in a surreal dream...feeling his footfalls. Coarse carpeting. Cold, concrete steps in the stairwell. He was in danger of a sensory overload nearly every time he changed places. Goose pimples to go with the anxious knots in his stomach...how long since that was ever a thing?

Zelgadis wound up staring at the appropriate door longer than need be. He wasn't completely lost; he knew he had the right one. But the correspondence left him with uncertain footing, so to speak. And the disturbing remarks of that Goku person only gave his mind ample opportunity to draw the most unsavory conclusions. What had happened, and did he even want to know?

One way or the other, though, he had to knock. Four muted raps by the backs of his knuckles, drawn away as quick as they were brought forward. The notion that the hour was a little unreasonable had only just struck. Perhaps he ought to just go back upstairs––

Comments

[livesarock]

It was a poor guest who threw up all over a person's clean floor, but Zelgadis was feeling less and less capable of not doing just that the more he probed. Fist clenched again, it drew to his face, uncurling and pinching at the bridge of his nose.

The blue demon with all the elemental powers, he said. That was you right? But the grandpa killed him.

The dead part he'd gleaned to some degree already, given Terra, but...Should he be thankful he was offed by a familiar face? It was one thing to say, but quite another to deal with.

It really was all his fault, wasn't it? Him and his stupid decisions, one after the other – the endless domino effect that was his life choices. If he knew what the hell dominoes were, anyhow. But if he did, that's what he'd consider it.

Geddoe's lack of detail only gave Zel's imagination room to roam to terrible conclusions. Dead isn't just dead, and fights aren't just fights...

His nose was starting to hurt. Enough of that. His hand dropped with a dull sound onto the chair.

"I shouldn't have gone at all," he muttered bitterly.

[trueltning_fury]

It was a good thing Geddoe was not offering to share his beer, then.

He stood towering over Zelgadis, sighing through his nose. "No, you shouldn't have," he said gruffly. "I don't even understand what damned sense of ethos drove you to it. If you ever pull something like that again..." His left hand curled into a fist, as if it wanted to punch something. Something soft and fleshy. "...I don't give a damn what you believe is the thing to do, I will make sure you aren't capable of going anywhere near that demon. One way or another." His lips pressed tightly together for a moment, and then he added in an undertone, "I will not be put in that position again."

[livesarock]

For some reason, despite being made of mainly rock for most of his recent life hadn't conditioned Zelgadis to not flinch when a friend threatens to harm him. It was probably mainly because, somehow, Lina could do a great deal of damage regardless. His windpipe could attest to that...and portions of his cranium. Which was weird, but not something he readily dwelt on.

Regardless, it wasn't being suddenly a lot more punchable that caused him to shrink and freeze in place, gaping up at the stern face. He twitched back to life at the concluding remark, rattled by a fresh stab of guilt through his ribs.

He managed a mumbled sound, but something not very close to a word. He dropped his head, shielding his face from scrutiny with that mess of bangs. Like getting rocks chucked at him, or the elbow to the head, or the chokeholds, or...well. The list went on. But that's what his friends did to keep him from being stupid and ultimately remind him he had friends. Somehow, that was more sincere and telling than much else.

Being moved by threats...Lina Inverse had really warped him, hadn't she?

[trueltning_fury]

Geddoe stared down at him, fully aware that Zelgadis was probably a bit mentally fragile but under no compunction to coddle him. That simply wasn't his way. If it would teach him to make better decisions in the end, even once, it was worth a bit of a lecture. "At least you weren't conscious of the fight," he muttered. "Whatever possessed you, at least I didn't have to look into the eyes of a friend and know betrayal. As you sit here, I know you aren't the individual who wanted to kill me. It was the magic."

[livesarock]

Zelgadis was very compelled to put at least a little distance between them, moving around the chair to sit heavily as the other was speaking. That weird guy was probably being honest about things, then, more to his distaste. He grimaced behind the hand drawn to his face once more, feeling a sting of pressure from trying to make Geddoe's remarks fit into some fuzzy sequence of events.

Magic, huh...

"Something about that," he mumbled, sliding his hand away to be heard. "Something about not being good enough on my own...something about...a skull, or a sorcerer. Or both, maybe."

[trueltning_fury]

"Hm." Geddoe vaguely recalled a skull...didn't Illidan have one around him most of the time? Twice Geddoe had invaded the church, and he was pretty sure at least one of those times there was some kind of glowing skull nearby. He gave a scoffing snort at the insinuation that it was done to improve Zelgadis' skills. "He wanted you fully under his control, that's all. Not a servant, but a slave."

At least by now, after his spat over the comm, he understood Illidan to be completely deranged and not to be trusted. Powerful or not, he was a foe plain and simple. Despite being disgusted with the immature behavior of stalking him and killing him in cold blood, Geddoe privately hoped maybe he'd stay dead this time. Watching him was going to be troubling from now on, if he returned. He took a long drink and set the bottle down on the table next to the couch. "I'm starting to wonder if his interest in you had nothing to do with you at all. You were a pawn. Disposable. Enhancing your powers only meant whoever faced you would have to kill you to stop you, instead of knocking you out and leaving you there to nurse your pride."

[livesarock]

The remarks weren't made in spite of him, but Zelgadis could still feel a bit resentful at the implications. Slave. Disposable. It made his skin crawl and his blood heat up just enough to look as irate as he was starting to feel.

"Terra said he's dead," he said, looking over at Geddoe for confirmation. "So the chances of something like this happening again..."

[trueltning_fury]

"...depend on whether he returns as well." Geddoe would not beat around the bush. "Again. I have no doubts he'll cause trouble so long as he's here. But." He turned back to Zelgadis and gave him the scowl again. "The chances of him taking you under his thrall depend entirely on you."

[livesarock]

The second time around, Zelgadis was less chastened and more defensive. He put on a scowl in exchange, mouth twisting with a bit of defiance.

"I'm not repeating the same mistakes over and over," he said, folding his arms. "I'm not an idiot."

A fool, maybe. But a fool who could learn now and again.

[trueltning_fury]

"No?" Geddoe huffed a little. "Then if he does come back, I take it you've washed your hands of him."

[livesarock]

"I don't want anything to do with him," Zelgadis asserted, shoulders shrugging up for effect. "I haven't for the longest time, except he kept dangling that stupid deal in my face and what he considers charity."

Recalling that incident, seeing his hand fleshed out and normal again...he visibly shuddered with a mix of repulsion and unease. He uncurled his arms, staring at his hand for a moment.

"But it's all over. And even after he took this away from me...I have what I asked for in the first place."

[trueltning_fury]

"Good." Geddoe's shoulders sagged a little, a sign that he was much less interested in punching than a little while ago. "I should have to do something drastic if you hadn't realized that much."

He looked down at Zelgadis where he sat, wondering if the other rumors were true and death caused a temporary loss of power. That meant this state would not last, either. But he didn't bring it up. Instead, he went and sat back on the couch. "I told you I would protect you. I wish you would have trusted me with that...but perhaps you will at least from now on."

[livesarock]

The notion of having to be protected brought a fresh flush to his face; it was definitely not something he was looking for. All he'd ever wanted was to be strong, but look how well that had gone. His expression darkened, glaring downward with hardly any fire, only displeasure.

"Going there wasn't about not trusting you," he muttered, adding on a bit louder, "or anyone."

He'd just wanted to finally be done with it all. It seemed simple enough before he'd went and tried to see it through, but...

[trueltning_fury]

"Then what was it." Geddoe's brow knit in a frown. "What are you so damned intent on proving, and to whom?"

[livesarock]

"I wasn't proving anything!" Zelgadis' arms folded tighter to himself in defense, shaking his head. "I just wanted this mess to be done. The fewer who had to put up with it, the better. And not because I didn't trust anyone," he added quickly, glaring at Geddoe unhappily. "But if all he wanted was me to cut up a few monsters, that was fine. But it wasn't. And it was a little too late to call for help."

[trueltning_fury]

Geddoe pretended he was more interested in his beer than in excuses. "Who are you trying to justify it to," he murmured, "me, or yourself?"

[livesarock]

He bristled, but bit down on a response, slumping into the chair with a huff of an exhale. "I don't know," he grumbled.

[trueltning_fury]

At least Zelgadis looked to still have his usual personality. It was heartening - if annoying on the surface. Broody youngster. Geddoe sat on the edge of the couch cushion, elbows on his knees and the beer bottle dangling from one hand. "Then don't bother. What's done is done. I'm satisfied that I don't have to watch you do it again...or take arms against you again."

He was never going to come out and say that anything bothered him. Certainly not! That was for the emotional, the soft and the weak.

[livesarock]

Zelgadis grimaced again, eyes fixed on the arm of the chair as he felt embarrassment and shame creep back up his neck, face and ears again. Trying to imagine what happened wasn't giving him a pleasant image; asking about it was just going to make him feel worse. He didn't feel up to hearing about the gritty details of trying to kill one of his only friends in this rotten city...

He shot a look at Geddoe, mouth tilting with his pondering, anxious expression. If someone was really shaken up with his screw-ups, it usually resulted in bodily harm. But blowing off not getting cuffed was ridiculous. He was just going to have to accept how badly he'd wronged pretty much everyone who mattered somehow. Those he hadn't...he could probably come up with elaborate explanations to make them count, too. But later.

A different thought entirely flickered into mind; his head lifted a little, squinting at the bottle.

"...You only brought out one," he pointed out. "Aren't there any more?"

[trueltning_fury]

Yes, Zelgadis truly was lucky that he'd befriended someone who wasn't a hot-head, for once. The blow that almost came from that fist seemed to have dissipated for now. Geddoe's lips twisted in a pout of disgust. "No. This was the last one." He tilted the bottle to look at the jaunty Oktoberfest-themed label. "Fruit in beer is a stupid idea."

[livesarock]

That made him snort, his tone drying out real quick. "Are you saying that because you mean it, or because there's none left?"

[trueltning_fury]

"If you want a taste, just ask," Geddoe grumbled. "There really is none left. I haven't been here for the last week to restock."

[livesarock]

The petulant look was only momentary. "Where were you?"

[trueltning_fury]

"Away." Geddoe also looked away, though his gaze found the sheathed sword resting in its usual place next to the table - within arm's reach, as any seasoned soldier would know. "Wild Geese is damaged. I hoped to find an actual smith in the rural areas outside this city."

[livesarock]

He grimaced a little. "My fault, I guess?"