The Lykos Mystery

[Finn]

Arx Rubrum Petram
1st of Ash, Year 123 of Steel


"Either eating or training," said a subvigil when Finn asked after Lykos of Karnor. She immediately caught herself and apologized for her tone.

"As long as Sentinel Phocion doesn't hear," he said with a lopsided smile that made her smile in return in spite of herself. But she was off about her business and he continued on his. Today, he was meant to interview Lykos and get a bead on the progress he was making. Of course, he was observed, and of course, Hilana was questioned regularly, but it was hoped that someone who spoke Common with a similar accent, who knew what Winter felt like, and who was a native of Karnor might form an easier rapport with the wolfish man.

The rathari was not in the mess hall, but it was entirely possible he ate alone in his rooms or with Hilana, who was not expected at the Citadel anytime soon. Not wanting to disturb him in his chambers unless necessary, Finn took a long, circuitous route from the kitchens to the normal training areas. As he walked, he carefully reached out through his rune, seeking that divine symphony.

There was danger in that, but he had listened to divine music before: Talon's, Avaerys', Varvara's, even Lykos' own, albeit not at length. It was a matter of degree and care, and he had mastered his Craft. Were he looking for Hilana, he would open his rune fully, but for Lykos, he only opened it enough for a thread to go out seeking, a thread that couldn't carry enough of the grand, cold melodies to shatter him like some frozen statue of himself.

And anyway, Lykos would have to learn to contain himself, control how much of his power shone through, if he wanted to coexist with mere mortals.

[Rickter]

The Lykos Mystery
1st of Ash, 123rd Year, A.o.S.

It had been quite the undertaking since the beginning of Searing had hit, and with only a couple of minor hitches to interrupt his work, Lykos had been determined to work out the kinks that would deliver what he'd originally promised. A cold room. A facility that would allow the citadel to generate it's very own supply of Frostlyth shards. Imagine what that could do for the citizens of Solunarium, if he actually were to accomplish such a thing in the time he spent here. More often than not did his mind wander on the outside world at times, yet no matter how much he allowed it to, the lupine demigod remained fixated on his current project.

Truthfully, Arx Rubrum Petram had become a safe haven he hardly felt inclined to leave. If only because the outside world still overwhelmed Lykos a little, and he felt better off remaining guarded within the stone walls of the citadel. Still, as he sat on the heels of his feet with elbows cradled by his knees, the wolf sensed something tingle at the outer fringes of his mind. Something sought him out within the confines of the cold room he toiled away in, an inclination that threaded its way into his aura from where he had knelt.

As he'd noticed this, the faint glimmers from his hands receded in turn, for Lykos looked up from his project to acknowledge the presence of the one who reached out to him. It was strange because as a Demigod he had noticed it at times, the subtleties in which mortals might acknowledge him be it in thought or prayer. Though none hardly ever really spent more than that, for he knew the devotions of those in Solunarium remained with that of the Founders themselves. Nevertheless, it wasn't lost on the lupine demigod that he could sense such things, and typically if one ever sought to reach out to him, then he was never too far off to respond with a kind word in turn.

This extension however felt much more familiar to him than the others, and while he knew Hilana's and the majority of the friends she possessed, Lykos hadn't quite put to thought the impressions they held for him quite yet. Yearning as this one was though he wasn't against letting the figure meet him there, in fact, even when he knew he was being watched Lykos preferred company now and then. It made the time go by much smoother really, and it was always nice to mull over just about anything in the presence of others. I'm right here, it's alright, you're more than welcome to come in. He beckoned as he started to lessen only a couple of the wards on his aura.

Throughout Searing he'd grown impeccably astute with fine-tuning his wards, of course, there was always something new to learn with them also. But all the same, Finn would soon find a calm and tranquil song ready to guide him, and just as Lykos allowed the melodies of his aura to be heard by the Vigil, the wards of the room shortly glimmered before the central pictograph before him remained alight. It was getting closer and closer the more time he spent in the chamber, the entirety of the schema etched and designed with networks of anchors all over. He oft wondered how much longer, before he would be finally done with this project he'd set his mind on. All that remained was to make sure the wards themselves held against the front of his Divine power, and that the wells created would store all aspects of Frost within their written task.

Lykos also wondered what Vigil Finn might have in store for him today, as he knew the Sentinel was of the same origin where he came from. The two did have much common ground when it came to the North, and truthfully, he loved to hear whatever stories that the man had to share of the land. Perhaps because deep down part of him still missed it, as it would always remain his homeland no matter what state his mind was in. That said though, the wolf returned his attention to the sigil at the center of the room, his hands brought close to the vector etched in the center, as he started to generate more aether at the surface from his fingers.

Not much longer now, he hoped, until finally the citizens of Solunarium would experience a genuine taste of real Frost.

[Finn]

'Twas a marvel to Finn's mind that a demigod who did not bear the Rune of Mesmer could still sense it and respond to it, not as a fellow Mesmer, but communicating in a way a Mesmer could understand. Even if this unknown Drægir of Winter was only a babe compared to the Moritasi Twins of Solunarium who had known multiple lives, he was already able to work around the rules that bound mere mortals. He would have to remember that with these demigods of mortal seeming - Lykos, Kala, even Talon to some extent - that while they seemed more mortal than immortal, they were already something else, something they were becoming.

He was laughing quietly as he entered the experimental cold room. Even the ley lines of the slipspace felt cold in here. Fairly certain he could vault to and from it, there was a possibility that it was, for all intents and purposes, a site sacred to the God of Winter. It were best he asked permission first.

"Good morrow, Lykos," he said, lapsing into his country Karnor dialect. He could speak like a proper Kalzasern lordling if he chose. Musicians had an ear for accents and dialects. But they were a breath of Kalzasern air to each other, and so Finn didn't bother with being anything but what he was born.

"How goes the Great Work?"

His tone and manner were in good humor. It was no secret that whatever he learned would be reported to Phocion, but the Custodes Deorum was offering him a safe haven even as they learned from him and about him. But he was also a friend of Hilana, which ought to make him trustworthy. Solunarium had been an intense culture shock for Finn, but he did seem happy here. He seemed at home.

"Oh, and..." Finn couldn't read minds, not exactly, but he had intuited a few things from the way Lykos had communicated his presence. "I wasn't praying. I, ah... can't pray to you. Not without upsetting Deus Aværys. Hunger, Ambition, Power - not the god I thought I would cling to, but he..." His blue eyes softened. "He knows me better than I know myself in some ways. But he is a jealous god. I would not pray to you because his anger might as easily come to your doorstep as mine. I am... passing friendly with Talon Novalys. They call him Dæmon here." Finn didn't know if Lykos remembered the Kalzasern milieu. "In any case, I knew him before Arcas was reborn in him. He actually wanted to mark me with his emblem as well, but my god would not brook other tethers upon his chosen. I say this not because you have misstepped, but because I have also been a stranger in a strange land here and I often benefited when people took the time to over-explain things to me.

"So, I shan't pray to you, be your adherent, but we have fought the voidborn together. We are shield-brothers. And as a Sentinel, I will protect and aid you while you enjoy our hospitality. And if it isn't presumptuous for a mere mortal to offer, I could be your friend, as well."

[Rickter]

It did not take long at all for his fellow Northern to reach him, and though his back was turned to prevent visual upon entry, the arrival within the cold room brought a gentle smile to the lupine demigod's lips. The subtle scent of the mountains was not lost on him at all, though, the musks of the desert were also tinged with the perfumy oils the Vigil washed himself with diligently. And to hear the accent that Lykos himself still carried at times, though not as much due to his practice with Vastian recently, brought an unusual sense of familiarity the wolf couldn't quite place.

"And good morrow to you, Vigil Finn." Or perhaps it was still subvigil? He wasn't entirely sure about the proper regality, even if he had only grown somewhat adjusted throughout Searing. Upon the inquiry of his continued work with the project, the faint shimmering lights that glimmered greens and blues faded away from beneath his hands once more. Not out of distraction but out of disengagement, as he could spend hours upon hours feeding his divine aether into the sigils around him. "Bit of a rocky start, but with all that behind us, things are coming along together well."

He admitted this with a steady turn of his head to the figure, to gaze upon Finn with a warm expression counter-presentive to what his Domain might've suggested. "I appreciate you coming to check in on me." Lykos had grown accustomed to the occasional visits Finn would make, as well as what the rest of the Sentinels maintained with their regular duties. Much of what they learned from him, or even about him, would be reported back to the higher-ups as needed. Lykos suspected that if Phocion wanted to, he would've already known what the wolf ate for breakfast, even before Lykos himself had managed to find it waiting for him in his chambers.

But Finn had decidedly elaborated on what his mannerisms were before joining him today, and that while he could not bear any semblance of faith in the lupine demigod, he still felt and hoped that Lykos would be inclined to treat him as friends. The wolf could only smile a bit wider, before he straightened tall to stand before his northern companion. "It's a funny concept when you think about it. Prayer. Like a whisper one murmurs in private. Rest assured though, I've not heard such whispers here, Vigil Finn. As I do not question nor wish to challenge the rule of the Twins you and your kin here serve."

He shared with a tone one might suggest was hearty, in truth though, Lykos felt humbled by the approach that Finn had shared. "I had merely felt the influence of your..." The thoughtful pause gave him a moment to consider, as he brushed his thumbs over his fingers in the deliberation of thought. "I want to say your gift? I'm certain one of the Runic powers in your possession is the source of it. Regardless, I felt it's influence brush across one of my wards, so it felt more like an inclination than actual prayer in truth."

Given that there was only ever the one time he'd met Damien so far, Lykos had only heard bits and pieces of him during his time at the citadel. From what the wolf understood, he was another Demigod in turn, and one that had adopted the alias for the benefit of his stay here. Lykos hadn't really figured out any sort of connection between them, yet, though he also hadn't been too worried about that since the Vastiana sisters kept him busy also. "Daemon, Talon, Arcas... All these names to tie into one entity. I'll admit, the thought of passing an Emblem on has crossed my mind at least once or twice." He admitted with the softness in his features still present, though, the blue eyes of the lupine demigod wandered throughout the sigils across the room.

"As I'm sure you remember, I'd would like for my Domain to mean something for the world. And for those I've thought worthy to bear that ideal, well, I've already pondered the possibility of meeting the Founders in due time for one..." The Athalia he knew wasn't a citizen by Solunarian standards, so there was little argument to be found there, but if he ever wanted Hilana to bear his Emblem one day... well... "It is my wish to respect the principles the Founders have established here, while also request of them an opportunity to empower one of their own. With that said, I only wish to continue as I have here for the time being."

The admittance came with a fluctuation of aether throughout his being, as a simple if not soft flow that caused the witchmarks on his skin to illuminate. Specks of fluorescence dotted along his lower torso and forearms, generating brief patterns resemblant to the northern lights as he exuded aether into the open air. The chill in the cold room intensified if only by a small amount, but somehow, wouldn't affect Finn as the wards kept him protected within the room. "It does me great honor though, knowing that you not only carry your duties well, but find homage enough to think me worthy of companionship. Truthfully, it's one of the few things that makes me feel..." He pondered the right sense of the word, if only to grin a bit more before he summarized it in one word. "mortal."

Perhaps it was due to the fact he bore no connections to his life prior, or the fact he'd awoken with the impression that he was the late Lord of Frost as it were. Yet no matter what might've influenced him in the beginning, Lykos had found it hard to differentiate between the term mortal and immortal. If Demigods were such creatures destined to live great lengths of time, if not to adhere and carry out the principles existent to their domains, then where did one such as he find a line between being mortal and immortal? It had been a philosophy that weighed heavily on his mind, and one he never quite found the answer to even during his training and personal projects.

[Finn]

The answers to his thoughts and queries made him smile in amusement and commiseration. As they were, he hoped, to be friends, he reached out to clasp forearms in a Kalzasern warrior's greeting, though Finn hadn't been much of a warrior until he became Solunarian.

"Dæmon had a more difficult time making peace with the Founders," he assured him. "The sins of Arcas were forgiven in Talon. You have not, insofar as I know, made them regret the hospitality they have shown you. Who can say? Perhaps they will one day allow you to bless Hilana without stepping on their toes. I would guess, though, that one thing they would demand would be that the gift not be with intent to sway worship and devotion away from them. I cannot claim to know the mind of Deus Aværys even though I have spent more time in his radiant presence than most, let alone his sister's, or Dæmon's, or... yours." Finn smiled again. It was an easy thing; he was far more expressive than most Sentinels, at least when his veil was down and he was allowed to be himself.

"A recent guest of the Umbrian court, Lady Kala of Starfall, told me that prayer is an attempt to speak to the Gods, meditation an attempt to listen to Them. Hm, she said many things about prayer, actually. I wasn't very religious when I lived in Kalzasi, but then gods weren't grabbing me, claiming me, and putting me on a path. I don't see how praying or even having prayers answered should feel like a threat to a god, but then... I am not a god." He laughed at the thought, though it seemed strange to him that the goddess of music was an Ork, as though music wasn't a universal concept. It saddened him that he could not know the embodiment of his greatest love, but at least his music was pleasing to his god.

Had a younger Finn met the Finn he was now, he might have thought himself a god—able to bend emotion with his song, able to translate himself from one continent to another between one breath and another, pull weapons out of thin air—and so he wondered if a mere mortal could in fact know the mind of a god if only given greater time and context.

"Well, if an appropriate opportunity arises, you can always ask. They will certainly assert their boundaries without hesitation." He laughed again as if their anger weren't implacable and terrible. "And don't forget that I'm a bard when not dressed in black and guarding the divine. Perhaps I'm just here to record your thoughts and adventures so, whenever you do venture back out into the world, you will have a folio of songs to spread your glory. Hm, I wonder if the other gods of the seasons will be reborn as well..."

[Rickter]

As they were, Finn seemed inclined to extend an arm as a means of a familiar greeting, and while Lykos had been all for the sense of commadarie between them; he might've accepted it with a sense of small awkwardness on his behalf. Only because he failed to recollect any particular gesture of kinship, even then the action somehow felt faintly familiar to proceed with. Lykos grew genuinely curious at that point, pondering if he would always go through this with every little thing he did.

From the sound of it this Dæmon, who was officially Arcas but also someone else up North, had his own ordeals after he came to Solunarium. "Well, I certainly have tried. Coming to Tertium fresh out of... wherever the sisters found me, there was a lot to process before I realized more of myself." He'd never forget how easy the rain came that day, how quickly it seemed to respond to his emotions while he collected himself.

He had never intended to cause or bring any real trouble to Hilana and Athalia, nor Solunarium as a whole once he had arrived here. Insofar he'd done his best to maintain that disposition, though, he'd also steadily grown accustomed to the few friends he'd made here. "It seems a simple concept but faith is fickle in that regard. While I would never intentionally cross the Founders, I've noticed the sisters have developed a different sort of faith. Not like what deities seek mind you, but a more personal trust than anything."

And it was also that faith he did not wish to let down either. The Vastiana sisters had done so much for him, given up so much for themselves on his behalf. If it ever did become a circumstance where he'd needed to appeal to the Founders, well, the lupine demigod would certainly express the intent behind his request in full. As they chatted though the pictographs throughout the room slowly flared to life, the wards brightening from a faint glimmer to a full glow now that his aether saturated the room.

"I... can't say I've heard anyone necessarily 'praying' to me yet. Perhaps its because I have yet to actually influence so many lives as others have, it sounds as though this Lady Kala is as wise as she is thoughtful." Lykos could only smile in wonder about that to say the least, questioning the thought on whether there were more Draegir found in the North. He certainly hadn't met any of them, yet, but from what he deduced there had to have been at least two including him. Unless Kala was also one and he just failed to acknowledge the moniker properly.

"I have to agree though. Maybe it's only because I'm not spent on cultivating faith, but, should someone seek me out through prayer; then I feel it part of my responsibility to listen on their behalf. Sometimes a person only seeks a significance in something, or even a chance at comfort over whatever may ail them." He reasoned thoughtfully in turn, amused by Finn's perspective on the matter given his mortality. Truthfully, it did seem interesting if not also maddening, when he considered the prospect of other deities reaching out to him.

If he were mortal prior and dealt with a similar situation, Lykos felt certain he would've questioned such intent with resistance. At the notion of an appropriate opportunity, the wolf nodded vacantly at the thought of it in truth. "I appreciate that," he soon remarked in light of Finn's statement of songs, "I'd be interested to hear what you come up with." The wolf admitted with a hearty chuckle while the auroran witchmarks danced across his left shoulder and bicep next.

"And as such, I'll certainly bear that opportunity in mind. I would not want to impose on the Founders, especially if the timing does not favor their moods any." As he concluded with that Lykos took in a deep breath, allowing it to rest inside his gut momentarily as the room felt stilled, until the release of the air through his nose venerated a soft escalation of the chill throughout the room. Particles of frost began to accumulate around the six major anchor points of the cold room, signifying that they were absorbing the aetheric traces of his divinity with ease.

Then again they were of his design, after all, created and tampered with to allow for a steady growth of Frostlyth shards. The room itself was ready and prepared, so all that remained was to push it so that the sigils absorbed enough of his energy as well. "Just think, in a few more months, this room will supply all of Arx Rubrum Petram with a constant supply of ice." He remarked with a bit of a soft grin to Finn, before he reflected on his other project he'd been steadily focused on.

"And it won't be much longer now," the wolf then carried on, "before we see if purification is possible for the soul." Naturally, he surmised it easy to deduce who the wolf had referred to in light of this.

[Finn]

Finn nodded thoughtfully to all Lykos said. While he had a job to do here, he did hope that he was able to provide the Rathari Drægir with a sounding board for his thoughts. Caterpillars turned into slime in their chrysalis, reformed, and fought their way out. How much more difficult a process of evolution was godhead, he could only imagine. It seemed to him that an Empyreal Lord could accomplish even more with the dawnfire of Arcas in one hand and a blizzard of Lykos in the other, but he supposed Aværys loved as Arvælyn loved. Sometimes it felt constraining, but often it was comforting, too.

"I shall certainly thank you for this room whenever summer returns to the sands," he said with a jovial laugh. "I don't miss the worst of winter in Karnor, but even snowed in with my family could be fun if we were properly supplied. And as for the souls, of course, our hopes go with you as well as our aid. If the Void is coming for us, it were better we had remedies for the Void."

Finn dropped a sword-callused hand upon Lykos' shoulder. There was still the nagging thought that he ought to know him, but there were also the crystal clear memories of facing down a massive voidspawn with his aid just a season previous. Whoever Lykos had been, Finn liked who he was.

"You have already accomplished great things with us, and you will continue to do so, I'm sure."

The bard wasn't going to be much help with Lykos' work here. The Assessors could observe and offer constructive criticism. His own talents were better suited for the field. That said...

"We will leave within a fortnight. Do you have any... questions for me? About Karnor... about Kalzasi... about anything?" He wouldn't say he was an expert, but he was a native son of the northern lands. While he couldn't fill the gaps in Lykos' memory with regard to the plot and characters of his life, he could at least describe the scenery and customs.

[Rickter]

What Lykos had left to do now would probably remain the easier part of his experiment with the project, since the glyphs of the cold room had been refined to the highest caliber he could manage. Recovering his strength had doubly helped in the long run of his efforts, and now, with the foundation of magic created and out of the way; all that remained was to simply bathe the wards with his divine aether.

Such was what Finn likely felt even now, as the cool currents of his aura shifted and wavered throughout the room. The lupine draegir had suspected that doing this for the rest of the season would be enough, so that once the true Frost season would finally hit, the room itself would feed off the stored energies within; and generate the desired Frostlyth shards the citadel would use for any of their needs.

"You flatter me sir." He remarked to Finn in regards to the room, feeling a touch of pride in hearing the man regale of his fondest winters. Harsh as they could get Lykos wanted to believe there was more to Frost than just the cold, the snow, and the dormancy which the season brought. The belief of that had only been reassured at the prospect of fun. "Truthfully I had my own doubts when I first pitched the idea to Vigil Phocion at the time... but the Vastiana sisters were there to encourage me as needed."

And really, it came together splendidly once he ironed out the faults in his original schema. The amount of revisions to some channels, and additions of new ones to accommodate the threshold of aether levels, all of it proved to be a major undertaking that the wolf silently grew to enjoy throughout his stay. "I don't know if I could stop the entire Void, with or without aid really, but if one soul can be cleansed of its lingering malice then I'll certainly try."

Especially given the fact that very soul was dear and precious to him. The touch upon his shoulder could only reassure him of that effort, and instilled a sense of hope that things would turn out for the better in the end. "Well, I wouldn't consider them great on my part." He rather quickly rebuffed with modesty in his tone. "I can understand that in the eyes of mortals, my actions may seem pretty grand in the scheme of things... but in the end, I've only done what I've felt was necessary on behalf of those present."

To Lykos it was far more important to look after and support the ones who'd gotten him here. This far no less. Alone he would've been lost in the world, but the ones who'd sheltered him here had prevented that. While he had worried at the burden he might've posed in the beginning, that hadn't stopped nor slowed him in repaying all their gracious efforts. In regards to any inquiries he might've had, though, the demigod paused as he considered what Finn had posed to him. It was true that Lykos knew so little of his own homeland, if only due to the circumstances which led him down here. Time and time again he often did wonder about the Northlands, just never worked up the courage to ask when things were getting settled here.

"Karnor is... always will be my- our home no matter how we look at it." He reminisced as he hadn't forgotten the fact Finn was also from the region. "Though I had no idea why at the time, I missed it dearly when we left there. Even if I had nothing fond to remember it by. I suppose..." A faint sadness elevated in his tone as he paused, contemplating the source of his curiosity before he looked squarely at Finn once more.

"What is it like in the city of Kalzasi? Tell everything you know, please, so that I might grasp what to expect when we do visit it." For whatever reason part of him shook inside, as Lykos hadn't fully grasped how anxious he was to learn of his old home. He wanted to be prepared for when that time might finally come, to know what awaited him so that the visit itself wouldn't overwhelm him so.

[Finn]

"Any protection from the Void is better than none," he opined. The Void was more a poetic concept to him than anything else, even though he had battled it on more than one occasion. He could grok emptiness. He could even grok a hungry emptiness; nature abhorred a vacuum, and the Void was a sort of vacuum. Its nature was to devour. But a sentience, he didn't understand how an emptiness could be sentient, how a lack of thing could be a thing.

Thankfully, Aværys and Varvara were more capable, and they looked out for their children.

And Lykos remained to help, as well.

"I suppose I can understand that," he said. "I hid my Mesmer for so long that once I grew accustomed to using it here, it surprised me how respected it was, how powerful it made me. And Traversion was a rune I received out of cowardice. I was at the wedding reception for Talon Novalys when he and his husband were abducted and the Shokaze was assassinated... that broke me, found cracks in me that hadn't healed after a beating I had taken for singing truth to power. I wanted to be able to run away." His shrug was regretful more than embarrassed. Here they called him Viator, and if Traversion was a rune for servants, he didn't rightly care. It had opened the world to him. "What was once wonderful and remote is... well, one can grow accustomed to any manner of wonders. It must be the same for you on a grander scale."

As for Karnor and Kalzasi, Finn took the time to tell stories, mostly from his own point of view when he first moved from village to city to make a career for himself. He painted a picture with words, Kalzasi viewed from afar, the glitter of light on the Udori. He walked Lykos through the Commons, the Jeweled Arches, and up to the Palace of the First Wind. He described buildings, people, scents, sounds, and all. He hoped they resonated with Lykos, helped him feel the click of connection when they arrived.

It must be terrible to not know one's own home.

"Perhaps there we will meet Dæmon. You have his emblem. He ought to remember you."

[Finn]

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Notes: Just clipping this one so other, more plot-important Ash threads can be prioritized. Let me know if I missed anything!