Rainbow High [Arvalyn, Talon]

[Arvælyn]

Arry listened attentively to the statuesque creatures before him. He hadn't grown up around Avialae. If he'd seen them ere his move to Kalzasi, it had been at a great distance as they soared overhead. Since his arrival, he'd met his fair share but the bulk of his knowledge regarding their history came from plays he'd seen or read and so he wasn't sure how much of it was embellished. Hearing a firsthand account was an unusual, albeit exciting, opportunity.

His eyes widened slightly when he heard Aoren volunteered to join the Dead Legion. His friend, Areya, had been sentenced to serve as a legionnaire as Arry understood it. He didn't know people chose that dreadful lot of their own accord. But it seemed Aoren had mettle enough to survive and come out of it- And it seemed the sacrifice had paid dividends, as he was currently bound to a God-prince and had music commissioned in his honour.

Captivated as he was by present company, Arry only noticed belatedly that a crowd had gathered when they began to phonate audible responses to the ebbs and flows of Talon's tale. For his part, Arry's Rune remained dim. He had a tendency to withhold use of his aetheric talents when in the presence of superior mages, and Talon was beyond that. It was a cagey part of him and sort of a survival instinct. He didn't wish to prompt others to look too deeply behind the veils and masks he wore day-to-day, and so he was disinclined to dig elsewhere. Only if he were to feel some sort of manipulation seeping into his own symphony, might his aetheric hackles raise enough to attempt obstruction against intrepid explorers who might be interested in what might lie beneath the golden gilding of the elven actor.

Noting Finn's display of obeisance toward the newcomer Talon addressed as "Lord Senue", Arry bowed- albeit without the same flourish he'd afforded Talon moments earlier.

"Milord." He offered in genteel acknowledgement, and plucked a fresh flute of bubbly from a passing tray, taking an immediate, fortifying gulp and resting his other hand at the small of Finn's back.

[Talon]

T A L O N

Music began to play in the background. Before Talon had the chance to dismiss the presence of Karam Senue, the man stepped forward and extended a hand as he entered a half bow.

“May I have this dance, Your Highness?” Talon blinked at the Senue heir in surprise. The utter audacity of the man was galling. First, their encounter at the sparring match between himself and Rickter and the behavior of his companion, now this? Talon had to weight his options. If he rejected the man’s request for a dance at this social gathering, which included many members of high society, it would be considered a grave insult. The kind of social insult that would be humiliating and only further entrench those allied with either of their houses against one another. If he accepted, then it would open the door for more gossip and give Karam an opening to approach Talon in a more social manner.

Talon had to hand it to the man, he knew how to play the game and had caught him off guard. Across the bond, he felt Aoren’s touch of encouragement. His partner came to his side and spoke gently into his ear.

“Humor him, my prince. Then be done. Afterwards, we can have our dance.” Talon inclined his head to his partner. He extended his champagne flute to one of the serving staff and stepped forward. He slid his hand into Karam’s and found himself immediately swept into the rhythm of the music in one smooth motion. The Senue Heir placed a hand upon his waist and began leading Talon through the steps.

“You are a bold man, Lord Senue.” Talon spoke softly enough that his words could only be heard by the other Avialae. His words did not seem to phase the golden winged nobleman.

“Are not the Synnekar supposed to be bold, my prince?” Karam guided Talon through the steps of the dance, a careful waltz that incorporated the use of their wings to accentuate parts of the music. Talon did not know how many times he had been through this dance. It was a staple among noble gatherings because of its prevalence among high society. The two stepped away from each other, extending their arms in a half dip with one wing pointed toward the skies before coming back into step with one another.

“I must beg your forgiveness, Shinsei.” Talon quirked an eyebrow, tucking his wings in close and dipping under Karam’s raised arm. He swept one wing downward creating an almost billowing downward sweep before coming back up in a light sway.

“It is not my forgiveness that you should seek, Lord Senue.” Talon still remembered vividly the fury he had felt on behalf of his beloved wolf at the insult he had suffered. Karam bowed his head.

“This is true. Still, I ask for your pardon and even the chance to ask that of your bondmate’s. If you will allow it?” Karam released Talon’s hand and performed a graceful series of spins wherein he raised one of his wings to sweep gently over Talon’s head. When he returned, he took Talon’s hand again and placed an arm back around his waist. Talon had to admit, his request surprised him. He would not have expected a man such as Karam Senue to ask for permission to apologize to his bondmate. House Senue was not known for its humility.

“Perhaps. This is hardly the place and time to seek such an opportunity however.” The timing certainly was not favorable as it tied Talon’s hands and forced him into interacting with the other nobleman. Karam merely smirked.

“Would you have allowed me an audience otherwise, my prince? Our families are not exactly on the best of terms.” Talon considered his response. Would he have entertained a request to meet with Karam Senue, the man who had so insulted a person he loved? The Heir to the rival Great House that was inching ever closer to displacing his family as the ruling House of Kalzasi?

“Yes.” His response caused momentary surprise to cross Karam’s features. “You think me a spoiled child unwilling to hear what others have to say?”

“Of course not, my prince. You cannot deny the animosity between our two families however.” Karam brought Talon closer, hugging him more tightly to his body as the two of them entered a more delicate part of the dance. They were nearing the end of the waltz.

“Your purpose, Lord Senue. Why have you come? You did not approach me simply to request for an opportunity to apologize.” Talon raised an arm, allowing Karam to pass under it before the two of them returned to moving in step once more. Karam bowed his head.

“I would not spoil your evening, my prince. I ask only for an opportunity. This coming Eikaeus. Meet me at the Temple of Fallen Skies. Please.” Talon considered the offer. In front of him was an opportunity. Perhaps not a great one but it was an opportunity nevertheless. He inclined his head.

“Very well, Lord Senue.” Karam smiled and the two of them went into a slow bow as the dance came to an end. As the music wound down, the Senue Heir gave him another bow.

“Thank you, Your Highness.” The golden winged Avialae stepped away, leaving Talon to incline his head briefly so that he could return to the rest of the evening’s festivities.

----

Aoren watched as Karam led Talon away to join in on the waltz. He remained standing, his hands clasped loosely at the small of his back.

“That was a dirty trick.” He sighed, shaking his head. He looked to Finn and Arvalyn. “Sorry. Anyone with any hint of the type of man Talon is knows that he would not embarrass a peer by refusing them at an event like this. House Senue is getting bolder by the day.”

It was no secret that there was a tenuous balance in the Elder Council chambers. With every passing day, Savien’s popularity among the nobility dipped as he made decisions that undercut the status quo to empower the common man and made some of the more powerful families less prestigious as a result. The fallout had seen the sovereign become more loved by the common man but saw House Novalys gradually lose support among the peerage of Kalzasi. The end result saw now that House Senue had a true chance at claiming the Throne of the First Wind in the event of Savien’s passing or if the Shokaze stepped down due to lack of support. Aoren’s jaw flexed as he watched the two of them dance.

“Be glad that neither of you has to deal with politics.” Aoren willed himself to be at peace. He could hear the conversation taking place between Talon and the Senue Heir. His bondmate fed it to him across the bond. A thought occurred to him then. He looked at Finn.

“Can I ask a favor, Finn?” Aoren jerked his head toward Karam. “What do you get from him?”

[Finn]

Finn was learning a thing or two about politics the more time he spent in the upper echelons of society. People were starting to think of him as a favorite of the Shinsei, which made him a person of interest, but also put a target on his back. He was glad to have the towering Kathar on one side and his clever lover on the other; for the moment, anxieties subsided and he was safe. But that could not last in these shark-infested waters. He watched the dance, wished he knew the steps so he could ask Arry to dance even if they hadn't the wings for all the proper flourishes. He figured Arry would know how to use his clothes to great effect. But it was also nice to just observe, and he didn't want to leave Aoren hanging.

"But we do," he protested mildly. "The game may be smaller, but the stakes are no lower when it means food on our plates and a roof over our heads. But these politics affect more people, 'tis true."

At the request, he gave Aoren a long look, then nodded and focused his senses upon Karam Senue's symphony. Perhaps Arry would as well, though Finn was the one becoming more comfortable with people knowing of his Rune. He had more training, though Arry definitely had more raw power.

"His is a complicated music," he admitted. "Apologetic but prideful. There's a hunger... a need..." He put his arm around Arry, unconsciously wanting him close as he could be. The hand on the small of his back was steadying. "He is in a difficult spot as well. Perhaps he could be played against his father if Talon is clever. I'll keep listening... these things take time to unravel."

Aoren certainly had, though his reasons for listening to his symphony had always been to help write the music that would honor him for the Shinsei. That would have to be completed ere the season ended, as well. He hoped the surprise would be welcome and well received.

[Arvælyn]

Arry regarded the interloper curiously. His golden eyes darted to the faces of the power players at hand, appraising their expressions to glean something of their emotions even while he wasn’t actively listening to symphonies.

He arched an eyebrow as Talon and the invading lord stepped away. After a lingering glance, his attention turned to Aoren. He wondered for a moment whether he ought to offer to dance with him. He wasn’t exactly an expert in the courtly steps of the Synnekar, but he’d been a chorus boy long enough to be a quick study with choreography. That would have been rude to Finn, he decided and, within moments, he was glad he’d come to that conclusion. To learn a new dance was one thing, but to immediately modify it based on missing limbs on his part was another matter altogether.

Pointed ears perked as Aoren expressed the first overt displeasure at the exchange and even went as far as to entreat Finn to analyse the man who seemed to be some sort of rival. Arry already didn’t like the man for cutting his first royal audience short, and thus empathised to some extent with the Kathar before him.

He glanced to Finn as he began to give his assessment and then tightened the fingers pressed to his back. He opened his Rune and, rather than trying to make his own analysis, he infused Finn with some of his potency. Though Finn had explored Arry’s newly augmented symphony, he had yet to feel what it was like to channel at the same level. It might have been overwhelming for Finn, as it certainly had been for Arry, but the surplus of aether was his to channel if he so chose.

[Talon]

T A L O N

For all of his outward calm and bravado, there was a nervousness to the music that threaded its way through the thoughts of Karam Senue. Beneath it was a hunger and upon closer inspection, there was a jagged edge to that hunger. Ambition was there in abundance but underlying those things was a feeling that was, at first, difficult to decipher. It was not quite a sense of being backed into a corner but rather the feeling that one was presented with when they were faced with a difficult choice and an even more difficult choice. A fork in the road where neither direction led to safe harbor. The man seemed oblivious to the silent probing as he wove his way back into the gaggle of nobility.

Talon watched Karam walk away for only a moment before looking to Finn, Arvalyn and most importantly, to his bondmate. His gaze softened as he settled it upon people he cared for. Though he did not know much about Arvalyn, he knew that there must be something remarkable about the man if he had caught Finn’s eye and drew his heart. Instead of walking over to them, Talon sent a thread of desire across the Bond to Aoren. It made his partner blink in surprise. Talon reinforced it with the thoughts of wanting him by his side. He extended a hand to the raven winged Kathar.

It is time.

The thought rang true through Talon’s thoughts and settled within the core of his heart. As Aoren looked at him quizzically, he returned with a query.

Time for what?

Talon just smiled as the handsome man slid his hand into his own. He brought the back of Aoren’s hand up to his lips and kissed it gently. Talon then turned his attention to the peerage of Kalzasi that had gathered for his party.

“My countrymen!” The music softened and all heads in the room turned toward them as conversation quieted. He felt a thread of nervousness pass through his bondmate. Talon squeezed his lover’s hand and brought their thoughts closer together, opening up more of the Bond until his partner could feel the fullness of his affection and happiness in that moment.

“The evening grows late and I find that I cannot wait any longer.” Talon let the curiosity and confusion settle over the crowd before proceeding. “Seven years ago, a man came into my life though I did not know who he would become at the time.”

Aoren shifted where he stood. Talon reached out a hand to soothe the light flutter of his partner’s wings. He could feel his bondmate’s discomfort at being appraised. He was a soldier. He was a warrior, much happier to be moving and taking action than to be the center of attention at a lavish party. Nevertheless, Talon watched as Aoren stood a little straighter at the proclamation.

“Many of you know the story of the Kathar warrior who traveled with me briefly during my Warren March. What you do not know, is the story of the friend who saved me from a road of darkness and rage.” There were whispers among the gathered but Talon ignored them and pressed on. He focused his gaze upon Aoren. His silver eyes meeting those elemental ones with a soft tenderness that he did not have words for.

“I was lost. My first bondmate gone and the foundation we provided one another was destroyed. A pain that no Avialae wishes to feel. I would have thrown myself to the horrors of the Warrens were it not for the warmth of your friendship and then your love.” The rest of the world fell away. Talon remembered clearly that cold place of icy rage that had consumed him. The want to throw himself into the harsh and unforgiving terrors of the Warrens until the darkness of that place overwhelmed him like the gnawing chasm that had torn through his soul. Aoren reached up to touch a hand to his face. Talon leaned into that touch.

“I couldn’t stand to see you so cold.” Talon took his partner’s hand into his grasp and kissed the palm.

“When I was enraged, you were there to calm me. When I was wounded, you were there to heal me. When I was broken and consumed by darkness you and Rickter were there to bring me back to the light.” Talon leaned in and touched their brows together. The memory of that horrifying experience would never fade but Aoren’s presence gave him the strength to endure it. Talon pulled back and returned his attention to those gathered.

“Aoren Jarik d’Maliet, fire of my heart, bondmate of my soul…” With every word, Aoren’s eyes began to grow wider as realization about what was happening started to settle in. “...I cannot be in this world without you.”

Talon reached into his vest and withdrew a ring made of a solid black stone with streaks of what appeared to be molten lava swirling across the band. He dropped into a kneel, raising the ring and presenting it to his beloved bondmate.

“Will you--” Talon did not even get to finish his sentence before Aoren had yanked him back up and pulled him into one of the fiercest kisses that Talon had experienced from the man. Talon was left speechless as warmth, desire, joy, exaltation, and happiness poured across the Bond. This was not the traditional Kalzasern style of proposal, it was how Imperials typically proposed to their loved ones and Talon had felt it important to honor the man he wanted to marry. When the kiss broke, Aoren allowed Talon to slide the ring onto his finger. The Kathar caught his face again. Aoren’s eyes were misting and he spoke through thick emotion.

“Yes. By all the dragons in Ransera, a thousand times, yes.” Talon grinned, feeling his chest tighten. His vision blurred as emotions welled up inside of him. Overcome with emotion, Talon’s nimbus manifested and the light within the ballroom, across the palace, and reaching all the way into the city of Kalzasi and further, shone with a bright and soothing joy.

The roar of the applause from those who watched, could not match the euphoria that roared brightly in Talon’s heart.

[Finn]

His eyes widened suddenly, and then he blinked several times as he felt Arry's hand press into the small of his back more firmly and Karam Senue's symphony began to play more clearly, resonating with his Rune. A great deal more of its complexity was laid bare, as if it slowed down long enough for him to catch all the subtle shifts and modulations that would have taken him much longer alone. He murmured all that he found in it to Aoren and Arry, his hunger, his nerves, the mysterious choice he faced, and the request he made of Talon. Though he couldn't understand the choice nor the request, he felt their shape. It was the best he could do before Lord Karam disappeared into the crowd and his symphony was lost amid the dissonant jangling of so many.

But then Aoren parted from them to join Talon, and as Finn's arm tightened around Arry, he caught how the bond between the Avialae pulsed with a life of its own. Their symphonies were harmonized in a way he could only hope his own and Arry's would eventually when they had loved each other so long and hard.

He looked to Arry, eyes wide again.

"I think he's going to propose," he whispered into his ear.

And then, lo and behold, he did. Finn released Arry so he could applaud and cheer, and it seemed to his augmented senses that the symphony of the room began to harmonize as a pulse of celestial music rippled out from Talon, through the audience, and beyond.

He didn't suppose he had Galetira's gift of foresight, but his intuition based on the swell of feeling from Talon was well tuned. It made him glad to see the Shinsei, his friend, so happy, and he grinned at Arry, who was probably calculating how to have a similarly grand proposal should their time ever come.

[Arvælyn]

As Finn completed his augmented assessment, Arry withdrew his enhancements albeit not the hand that had served as conduit. As the tendrils protracted toward his wrist, the energy produced by his Rune began to wane and dim until the symphonies were all silent once more. The room, however, was anything but. Talon lifted his voice to rise over the din of the crowd and Arry cocked his head to pay heed to his words.

His ears perked at Finn's forecast, but his eyes remained upon the divine prince and his beloved. His lips tightened as the Shinsei said his piece and Arry felt an odd mélange of emotions swirling within himself. They were not the sort of feelings a person was supposed to have in moments like these, he knew. The appropriate responses included joy, compassion, excitement... All of which were absent in Arry. This moment, which should have felt hallowed, felt instead harrowing. He was afraid, and he didn't know why. Awed, but not for the reasons he ought have been. He didn't understand his own reaction, but it made him want to draw closer to Finn as if for protection. Unfortunately, the moment he attempted to do so was the same instant Finn began to withdraw to applaud.

Wincing, he quickly painted on a smile and shifted his body back toward the action at the centre of it all. He assumed the outward appearance of a person enraptured by the news- a beaming smile, frenzied applause and chesty vocalisations. He cast a sidelong smile to Finn and, as their eyes met, his Rune activated. It made no overtures into other Symphonies, but rather swept over his own soul to mask the odd notes now pervading his Symphony.

"It is remarkable to have been a small part of such an occasion!" Arry exclaimed, as the volume died down enough for him to be heard without straining his vocal instrument. "A moment ago we were chatting with Aoren, and now he is betrothed to a demi-deity..." He trailed off, shaking his head and repeating: "Remarkable." He gestured toward a servant with a tray of cocktails,

"We ought to toast them, I'll be bound." Which seemed an apt enough excuse to actively seek out the calming effects of alcohol in hopes of muting the unsettled feelings that brimmed beneath his merry façade.

[Talon]

T A L O N

Talon captured Aoren’s mouth in another kiss. He wrapped his arms around his fiance and squeezed him close before releasing him. The two of them shared a quiet moment before moving to rejoin the attendants of the evening’s festivities. Talon guided them back over to Finn and Arvalyn. As he walked back toward the two, Talon’s eyes settled upon Arvalyn’s smiling face.

A shadow passed over the light that illuminated the half-elf.

A host of dragons blanketed the skies as two godly figures charged toward him into battle. The dragons opened their maws but he remained unmoved. Stepping forward, there beneath the shadow of the mountain, the Prince of Dragons spoke with His authority and the mighty beasts recoiled in shock, humbled before the Son of the Dragon King.

To the radiant figure, resplendent in his gold light, He spoke and stripped him of his false glory. For the Light was His and He would suffer no mockery of it. He banished the frightening worship, freeing those enthralled by the false light’s domination by giving Hope to those who had been stripped of it.

To the mercurial figure, cunning in her power, He cast her into the dark and called forth Justice, all-consuming and terrible for the machinations she had inflicted upon the world. And so she would be burnt, condemned to be shackled by the weight of her own hunger and ambition.

There in the shadow of the mountain that would be their tomb.

Talon blinked, shivering slightly as the odd feeling washed over him juxtaposed next to the feelings of happiness and joy he felt. He paused as he looked over Arvalyn.

“Arvalyn…” Talon shook his head, setting aside the half-formed question in his mind. “Nevermind.”

He smiled and reached for two glasses of champagne so that he and Aoren could join in on the proposed toast.

“To the future…” Talon smiled at his fiance. Aoren wrapped an arm around his waist. “...and the joy it will bring!”

[Finn]

Finn couldn't help but beam back at Talon as he and his fiancé made their way to them. He didn't know why they should be a priority on this night of all nights, but he wasn't going to question it. The pronouncement had changed the swell of symphonies all around them, and a part of Finn was just swimming in it, taking it all in and trying not to wonder if he would be able to transmute all this feeling into a song. It was his job now.

But even as Arry suggested a toast, he felt a strange ripple through Talon's symphony, and Arry's as well. There was an echo within Aoren's, which meant he must sense things through those Avialae bonds. It was strange, and he let his focus contract down to those few in his immediate vicinity, those troubled by something. But Talon smiled, glossing over whatever it was, and Finn could only think to do the same. He gave Arry a squeeze of the hand, knowing he could ask about it when they went home.

"To the future and the joy it will bring," he echoed with a smile, his joy not ruined by the strangeness of the preceding moments. He couldn't help but wonder if he and Arry would end up like this, albeit with more modest accouterments. Their stars were rising, but they would never be nobility.

[Arvælyn]

As Arvalyn's eyes met Talon's, the fear snapped into his soul like the fangs of an asp- Whip fast and stinging like venom. For a moment, the gold of his irises spread to subsume the whites. His pupils warped into vertical slits and a golden glow surrounded them- churning like magma. His blood felt as hot, just now and reflexively his expression twisted until he was baring clenched teeth and his lip curled up on one side into a bestial snarl. But he wasn't looking at Talon anymore.

Fiery eyes widened at the scene before him. He recognised the setting and yet he didn't. He felt as though he was in a place outside of time... He would know this setting intimately, if he didn't already. It was writ within deep, unexamined parts of him. He could feel them roiling to life- churning toward eruption. He knew without knowing that the two Divine Crusaders rode forth to right an ancient wrong and to bring a natural order to a world wrought with such chaos. His nostrils flared as his eyes, glowing with the same golden energy that emanated from the male Crusader, fell upon the nemesis who stood athwart them.

This was the past, he realised all at once, and perhaps the future, but on this moment hung eternity. His tears were as lava and his cries were as thunder, as he watched the forces of Order vanquished by their natural nemesis. His victory would hurl the world into chaos and misery for an epoch. All the hardship Arry had been forced to endure in his life... The solitude, the misery... the crippling pain handed down over generations. The unslakable thirst and the insatiable hunger of the displaced, but deserving. He clenched his eyes shut. All the world had been cursed in this fell moment, and the grief swept over him like a tidal wave until...

A gasp. He opened his eyes and their glow receded. They were normal again- Golden irises with round, black pupils, though the whites were redder than they'd been for the sting of tears. The vision had receded but the feelings remained fresh and potent. He tightened his grip around the stem of his wine flute and was grateful for Finn clutching at his other hand. At his chest he felt the warmth receding from the old wooden charm he wore about his neck. As the others raised their glasses and their voices, his lifted both of his weakly.

"...The future..." He rasped quietly, "...the joy..." And deeply did he drink.