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Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Thu Oct 14, 2021 1:46 am
by Eitan Angevin
5 Ash 121 Steel
Aboard the Nachtherr
Inevitably, time wore on and shifts changed and Eitan got himself a turn at the stern. When Dienerin went to rest his eyes from watching the horizon, Eitan happily took over for him and told him on his way out that if he saw Private Albrecht lazing about, to send him along to the bridge. Stefan's man complied with military precision, which made the Commander smile. Over the course of Searing, he had gotten to know Stefan better. They were no longer children so the age difference meant less, and now they were friends—and now they were brothers. The 'in-law' part mattered little. They were family. And so, he was pleased to note that Stefan had capable, loyal servants. It spoke well of him.
The view from here was expansive, and he couldn't help but grin. He slung smoked spectacles from his ears so the glare of midday sun wouldn't blind him.
Though he had been trained in this, it had never been his specialty and so he never got to practice. This was as good a time as any. Their course was straight and if Albrecht showed up, he could check the instruments and give him simple course corrections, easy peasy. And, of course, he would feel as though he weren't being derelict in his duty overseeing his charge and his friend.
Eitan all but danced a jig behind the wheel and he even felt the urge to whistle. After all the planning, training, and preparing, they were finally on their great expedition, their grand adventure. This was what he had dreamed of since he and Brenner had escaped their own birthday party to play at being sky captains saving Zaichaer from mages and pidges and all the powers of the Warrens.
It wasn't everyday a man got to live out his dreams.
Re: Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Thu Oct 14, 2021 3:25 am
by Florian
"You look happy." Florian remarked, though he was most certainly not. At the very best, his feelings were mixed, and at the worst, his stomach was a pit of anxiety and grief. He had some moderate success in ignoring these feelings by occupying himself with literally anything that was asked or needed in general, but there was only so much he could do. Distraction only went so far, and even ignoring the ever-present grief, he could not understand why there was excitement to go into the Warrens. Then again, he wasn't in it for Zaichaer. He wasn't in it for the potential use of the bugs. He was in it because Eitan wanted him to be.
While he was never the one piloting an airship, he knew what everything did, and he knew how to do it if he had to. He didn't know if Eitan needed help, or really for what purpose he had been retrieved. Not that he minded. He stood next to him and watched him, though he looked at the man as much to avoid getting the sun in his eyes as he did because he liked looking at him.
"I don't think anyone's ever been so excited to dive into that cavern of horrors." He wanted to add that he didn't think any amount of preparation would be enough for them to be ready for what could happen, but he always seemed to be the pessimist to Eitan's optimism. Florian was worried about his status as one of two mages on the ship, let alone the only mage capable of using magic offensively, but he had to trust that they would keep him well supplied with aether to siphon and store. Regardless of the individual opinions of the people on the airship now on magic and Lysanrin, there were some things that only he would be capable of killing. Like the wraith they had met in their own trip.
Re: Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2021 3:33 pm
by Eitan Angevin
"H'lo, Albrecht," he said, and he was certainly a bit cheery. "Oh, I'm not excited to go diving into the Warrens again. I'm excited to be flying an experimental stealth ship... Would you might navigating for me? Our course is straight ahead for the next few hours, but I get so little time at the conn. Have to make certain I remember how to fly in a straight light."
He pulled a face, not really believing it would make Albrecht smile, but he was feeling ebullient and it was worth a shot. His grandmother had told him when he was young that sometimes pretending to be happy could trick the heart into feeling it, at least for a little while. Find something to laugh about or at least smile about and the physical gesture told the mind what it ought to be feeling.
"You don't have to, of course. There's little required of you today, so you can take time for yourself if you prefer. But I sort of wanted to have you around and if I'm here and you feel like talking, well..."
Angevin was trying to balance being a good friend with being a good officer. They had left too early that morning for any sort of new developments in the case to be shared, and they wouldn't get any until they returned. There was nothing to be done about that. Albrecht wasn't at optimal, but there was nothing to be done about that either except try to make what allowances they could for him and trust that he would pull through when the situation required it of him. That was what the Air Defense Corps did, after all.
And Albrecht had proven himself an able airman.
"At least, for the time being, it's quiet here and has an amazing view." He offered a smile.
Re: Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2021 10:48 pm
by Florian
Florian smiled faintly. He knew mostly what he was looking at, in terms of controls, and he was not completely incompetent at navigation. He looked out the window and crossed his arms as Eitan spoke, and then he laughed.
"You want my help to navigate in a straight line?" He knew that wasn't entirely it, but it was a funny excuse for what seemed to amount to Eitan just wanting to keep an eye on him. He wasn't going to complain, however, and he did mind their time spent together in the slightest.
"I suppose." He turned his head to look at him again. "You don't have to convince me to be around." Florian meant it. Eitan was his friend. The lines of their relationship was blurred - they had fucked, they had slept in a bed together, he had cried in the man's arms and in front of him. He had fixed his horn, taken him to a party he did not belong, brought him to see the butterflies on his family's estate. Florian didn't know how or why he had allowed himself to become so close to him.
"I'm trying not to dwell. On anything. Or think about too much other than what I'm doing at the moment." But now that he was mostly standing around, he had to keep his thoughts at bay. He reached one hand up to fiddle with the gold chain around his neck. He wished he had something of hers, anything that she had owned for longer than this. She'd only had the necklace for three days, and even now he had worn it longer than she had. He wasn't entirely sure he'd see anything from his childhood home again, and he didn't know if he wanted to. A frown crossed his face for a second.
"Trying to enjoy the time we have in the air. I figure when we're in the Warrens I won't have to think about anything not dying, though, so that'll do wonders for my mood." The delivery was deadpan, but it only took a few seconds for a smile to come back.
Re: Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2021 11:51 pm
by Eitan Angevin
"Aye, keep me on the straight and narrow, you smug asshole." He chuckled. "If you keep an eye on the topography and the map, you can let me know if I'm erring and need to make course corrections. Don't tell me you slept through navigation classes and managed to graduate?"
Angevin didn't know what to say about some of what Albrecht said. They spent a great deal of time together as a matter of course. Some of it wasn't required by Corps and Order, but that bond that had formed between them made them more effective for Corps and Order. Noticing Albrecht play with his mother's necklace, he didn't bring up the uniform violation—this wasn't an official mission, after all. He didn't mention that he had put in an official request for Ava Albrecht's personal effects upon the completion of the investigation. There was a chance that would be held up for a long time. There was a chance someone in the Order wouldn't take good care of her things given her race. There were many chances that her things wouldn't come to him to give to Albrecht, so he kept mum on the subject and just hoped to be able to surprise him with them at some point. And if the crime remained unsolved when they returned, he would look over the files himself and begin his own investigation.
"That seems healthy," he offered. "It'll take time. Living your life in between the times that are most difficult is the best you can do." And he had to laugh.
"It will be dangerous. We will follow procedure. Between us and Myles, there will be discipline. Whenever we sleep, there will be a perimeter and watches set. Wards. Might not be the most restful sleep, but there will be sleep. Now, I don't want us to run into any of those emotional vampire wraiths, but if we do... I want you to see if you can sense them channeling aether. If they manipulate it the way a mage does, you may be able to just... steal it, and blast them in the face with it. If they have a proper face, of course. No telling with wraiths."
Re: Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Sun Oct 17, 2021 1:29 am
by Florian
"I do know how to do that, yes." He rolled his shoulders. "You may not believe it, but I was very well behaved in basic."
Florian decided to humor Eitan and actually do his job, and so he took the time to look between map and window. It did not take long for him to determine that they were still on the right course, but it also wasn't difficult to tell. He realized he should still not be so familiar with Eitan on the expedition, even if they were in private, even if it were unofficial. He was still supposed to do what he was told.
"You're still going the right way." He offered. It was difficult not to get too comfortable, and now he felt awkward. Eitan's comments about there will be sleep were almost humorous in their own way. He hadn't been able to sleep comfortably since that night, and that was when he was safe. He didn't think that Brenner would appreciate him getting drunk to be able to fall asleep, and he also didn't think that Eitan would be willing or able to, say, hold him through nightmares. But Eitan knew he hadn't been sleeping well, and Florian certainly didn't know if being in the Warrens would it worse or not.
"Maybe I'll be too exhausted to wake up every few hours, eh?" He stared at the map as he tried to make light of the situation anyway. "I'll just have to be so busy I can't think, and then so tired I can't wake up before I'm supposed to. I don't really have another choice." With that said, he looked back up at Eitan.
"I don't think I could outright...well, I don't know if it would be safe to try? Have to drain the magic, not the mage, and all that. And considering everything, I have to be watchful that I am not the one the wraith decides to inhabit. I could see the magic affecting you last time, but I didn't really have a chance to investigate. For obvious reasons."
Re: Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Sun Oct 17, 2021 6:08 pm
by Eitan Angevin
"Excellent," he declared crisply. "Thank you, Albrecht. Well done, us." He saw Albrecht struggling, perhaps with how to be. This was military in nature—sort of. It was unfamiliar in many ways as well. As a leader, he would have to help him find his place. As a friend, he would have to try to help him through his sorrow.
"I'll have to ask Arnnett how he plans to have camps set up," he said, both in order to make a mental note and to assure Albrecht that he was handling things as was his responsibility. "If there's any sort of privacy behind the perimeter, I could at least be close when you wake." He glanced at the door, but they were alone for the time being and could speak plainly. "You could ask Dr. Stechpalme for a sleep aid." He unconsciously rubbed at his ear. "She's an effective physician."
Listening to Albrecht's concerns, he nodded. "I do believe I can more effectively ward against their predations now. I was practicing against Mesmer, which seems like a similar sort of sin. There will be some element of improvisation when we're down below, I'm sure. But it is something to consider, at least."
Eitan had spent the bulk of the past season honing his body and his mind for this expedition, vetting people like Albrecht, Myles, Beeman, and others for necessary skills to increase the probability of mission success. For all that he felt stronger, better educated on mission critical topics, and more prepared for many probably eventualities, there were so many unknown variables, that all that work might still prove for naught, but a part of being a leader was acknowledging fear and setting it aside. All they could do was the best they could manage.
Re: Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Mon Oct 18, 2021 6:13 am
by Florian
"Oh, when I was much younger, my mother would give me tea to help me sleep sometimes, but I've never been able to remember what was in it, and I always forget to ask." He rubbed his arm. "Well, I never needed it, so it wasn't ever important. I don't think I've spoken to a real physician in ages. My mother knew first aid and how to suture and that's all I've ever really..." He paused. He had a nasty scar on his chest, and he had almost forgotten how she had to drag him to a real doctor to deal with it. Of course, the lack of professional work on his history of injuries just made the scars all the more prominent. There was never any intention of making his potential scars less obvious, just the need to make sure the cuts were closed, stayed closed, and didn't get infected.
"I suppose the last doctor I saw was the one I had to convince I was fit for service." Florian realized he was rambling. "What I mean is that I'll ask her for something to help me sleep. Though it'll have to be something that doesn't make it too difficult to wake up if and when I need to, either..." There was also the manner of limited space — there was the chance Dr. Stechpalme did not have anything that could help him sleep in just the right way, which brought him back to his first idea of coping. Exhaustion.
"Whatever the case, I won't let myself be so out of sorts that anything bad comes of it. I'll figure it out." He could cry quietly. He could pull himself together. He could get enough sleep so he wasn't exhausted when he needed to be alert, and if he couldn't, he could sustain himself with aether. Florian returned to standing next to Eitan, though he had to consciously fight the growing, overwhelming sense of dread that threatened him. Still, he had to have some confidence that he could do what he needed to do when he needed to do it.
"You know, I had spent some time thinking of the reason for why she'd not hear from me for so long, something more convincing than 'because of the air defense corps', but I never came up with anything that good. It's funny, I guess it doesn't matter anymore when there's no one waiting for you at home." Florian chuckled, like it was a joke. Maybe he laughed because he thought it would stop him from crying, but tears still beaded in his eyes. He cried too much. It was a bad habit.
Re: Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Tue Oct 19, 2021 12:36 pm
by Eitan Angevin
"For tea?" he asked, glancing at Albrecht for a moment before returning his eyes to the task at hand. He rather liked the tinted spectacles, imagining walking down the street back home and people not being aware of where his gaze had landed. "Valerian, chamomile, lavender... There are various tisanes or additives that can calm the nerves a bit. Presumably, she would have something of a stronger, clinical strength, though perhaps that wouldn't be wise if we are awoken by danger and you need your wits about you. My hope is that your mind will react somewhat like it does in battle... the clear and present danger persuading your mind to set things aside in order to focus on survival. But we shall take it as it comes. I will check in with you, of course, but I would appreciate you communicating your needs with me when and as you can." He paused. "As your superior and... as your friend."
He did squint at Albrecht, though.
"Wait, you haven't had a medical examination since you were vetted...? I will have to see about that when we return. I can put in a request for a physician with more experience with Lysanrin patients, but we all get regular physicals. Strange."
Angevin was quiet as the private spoke a bit about his mother and how her absence changed little and large things. Finally, he sighed.
"I know it won't be any balm for your feelings, but I envy you the relationship you had. 'Better to have loved and lost and all that. I always thought it sentimental drivel, but perhaps there is some truth to it after all."
Everything was temporary, he knew, except, he hoped, the Pax Zaichaeri, though in his heart of hearts, he knew that something else would eventually take its place. Change was the only constant in the world.
Re: Flight of the Nachtherr. [Florian]
Posted: Tue Oct 19, 2021 11:05 pm
by Florian
"No, I don't need to see a physician anytime soon. I really don't." Florian held up his hands, almost defensively. He had avoided the sickness that had been spreading in Zaichaer, and he wasn't injured. Even if he were, he would have to be dragged by the horns to see a physician. The rare experiences had been distinctly uncomfortable, and the very clinical, medical view they had of him was too much.
"I just always assumed I would die first." He'd gone so far as to tie his own theoretical noose by joining the corps and being a mage and yet he was still alive and his mother who did nothing to anyone but hold her own secrets was killed. The letter he had received from her, somehow, did little to salve his growing curiosity at who she had been before she was his mother, but that was tucked away in his apartment and committed to memory. He had already read it multiple times a day, if only to see her handwriting again.
"But I didn't. And for as long as I can, I won't." His eyes still watered. There was always the chance that Eitan was right, and he would prove Florian wrong, and he would end uo living a normal life in Zaichaer. Maybe his participation in the expedition would make him look good enough. If it went right, and they found what they were looking for, and every single other variable that had to be just right at just the right time for Florian to exist normally. But mostly, he was still aware that he had more than likely signed himself up for the worst.
"Sorry, I'm trying not to cry so much." Tears had started falling down his cheeks, a sure sign that he had failed. He wiped his eyes with his sleeve. "I'm not even sad right now. I don't know what's wrong."