Diasbaile is in shambles and left vulnerable, cultists have infiltrated using ancient arts of shardbearing against us shardbearers, the Void closes in from the north and the south, our High-Queen wastes away as she tries to protect us and tensions mount their way to desperation.
I knew all of that, Loki. [That wasn't what he was asking but granted he wasn't really being that clear either.] I'm at Diasbaile right now. Ariadne--I mean you heard her. We talked. [And he's working on something for her which is part of the reason he's checking on Loki.
…that, and, he's genuinely concerned about chaos mom at the moment even if chaos mom has other things on his plate.]
I meant with you, but if you want to talk general shop, let's talk general shop. Up to you.
What happened with me has happened already. There's no need for further details.
[ but there is. he can say he's fine, and he can brush it off casually like he does everything else. he can say he's been through worse, that he's done worse, but this leaves a sour taste at the back of his throat that he can't shake. Hiro didn't need to know that, and Loki didn't want to tell him. ]
Talked.
[ a pause. ]
Tell me, then, what do you plan on doing in Diasbaile, hm?
[He could push the subject but he won't. Not now. He won't forget it and he'll try again later but now isn't the time. Loki has made that clear.
Instead he asks a question Hiro can actually answer]
Ariadne asked me to look into some stuff. [No. No more being vague] Shard magic. And I'm going to do some more research about the cult. Anything I can find. [Among other things]
[ Loki's voice is taunt, and gone is his usual playfulness. ]
Many of the secrets of this "shard magic" are shattered and lost, others shrouded in myth. There are places that it remains, but our enemies are better versed in its art.
[It's that reason among others that has Hiro very, very concerned at the moment. But he's getting answers. One step at a time.]
So I've noticed. My research is still going in circles so far but I've only been really looking into stuff the last couple of days. [A pause.] I want to learn as much as I can so that we can get better and hit our enemies back even harder.
...myth like...your kind of myth? Where there's still truth and the same stories being circled back over and over? Or myth like "don't even bother listening to those stories" kinda myth?
Myth like the kind of history that passes through a millennia, a story told of the ages and those that plays host to the tale of the shards and their shardbearers. There is a game of battles that the shardbearers play amongst themselves, but much of the art is lost. There are few that know of it, and even fewer that would share the details.
But there are still people who know the origins of the myth. The ones who could, maybe, be convinced to share the details if the pitch was compelling enough. Those are the people I want to talk to. Those are the ones I need to talk to because learning the keys of shard magic is going to be what helps us in the next phase.
[But he's sure Loki knows that and that he's talking in circles, as usual.]
...I know you said you wouldn't teach me how to activate my shard until I learned how to conceal it, but what can I do to prepare for that in the meantime?
What makes you believe that they won't play the role of the dissembler? Offer hospitality in the morn and then flay you when the sun sets for your shard? Perhaps leave you to the carrion eaters once their prize has been secured.
The ones who've held these secrets have done so for thousand of years. What, pray tell, do you believe you have to offer them that they have not already been offered?
Prepare as you have been. Read between the lines, find the answer you know is there. Prepare your emotions, and think of something in your memory. Think of something that reminds you of home. Hold onto it, remember it vividly. Keep it. You'll need it.
I don't. [Normally he'd argue. Normally he'd find a way to justify that he's the exception to everything and would talk in circles around Loki to bullshit his way out and try to weasel information out that way...but no. Instead he's just focusing on the conversation at hand and what he has in front of him instead of any imaginary scenario he can create. It's a disturbing image to conjure in his head, but at the same time he knows very well it can happen.] I don't know that, and I don't think I have anything to offer them yet that they haven't been offered already. That's why I'm doing my own research first. I want to see what I can find on my own for comparison and I want to be able to activate and study my own shard before I try anything else.
It could be months. [And the way he says so is so matter-of-fact. Almost patient. Almost.] We might not have months, but we also don't have the resources to set ourselves up for a guaranteed failure. [A pause.] A good something, or a bad something...?
[ those that Morla had mentioned to him where long-term shardbearers and lords that knew the world better than them. they had guarded these secrets for a millennia, and he knew that they would not yield without a particular brand of cleverness. ]
Something strong. A bed, a place, a toilet, something that resonates in you. Something that you can remember details up and conjure at a moment's notice.
As far as the promise of activation goes, our deal stands, but that doesn't mean that you can't find quicker means of finding how to hide your shard signature.
...I think I understand. And I think I have the perfect place. [And he does. Even while just speaking with Loki he knows exactly what to pinpoint, already drafting up the support beams and the low lights in his head.] I'll keep that in mind for when I'm ready then.
[That causes another pause though.] Oh yeah? I thought that was just something you had to earn from the monarchs. [Granted he's been idly searching since Loki told him that part of their deal. The answer's just been escaping him over and over again.]
You're clever—I'm sure if you want something badly enough you can find means to do it.
[ if Hiro wants to point his passions in directions that may get him killed rather that ones that may not, Loki finds that he can offer a little bit of help in that respect. ]
[He doesn't say anything for a long time after that, and when he does speak it's very slow and deliberate.]
...I'll think of something. [He has ideas, certainly, everything ranging from "killing somebody" to "marching up to Morla and demanding shard concealment" to "figuring out how other people like Loki have done it" but he's not going to charge straight into anything just yet.] Thanks for the vote of confidence. [And also surprisingly not sarcastic. He's...actually thanking him for that.
There's way too much happening right now to even try to be his usual bratty self. More than anything he's busy trying not to push Loki's buttons, too. He's puzzled out that Loki had to had suffered the same way Ariadne did, but if Loki's not going to directly tell him, Hiro will just make sure to keep mind of it.] I'll see what I can come up with.
[ Loki says smoothly. there's a laundry list of places for him to go, and people for him to talk to. luckily this will shake off, and luckily he'll be back to throw himself into the game. ]
ASAP-ity, won't you? This shard magic won't do itself, you know.
ASAP will only work so much right now. [People to check in with, things to figure out.] But close enough, sure. I'll...let you know. [Strangely he's at a loss for words. He doesn't quite continue but he doesn't quite cut the call either.]
Needn't be, gonna be anyway. [Another shrug. SOME THINGS JUST DON'T GO AWAY DUDE, THAT INCLUDES CRUSHES ON CUTE BOYS AND CULTS. Don't ignore it Loki, jeeze.
And, perhaps, he's overstepping his boundaries, but he's going to try one more time.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Hiro-network, audio, May 9thish
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Ah, shoot.
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Are you okay? [Lets go with that first]
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No.
But there's not much to be done for it.
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Maybe not. [He's trying to restrain himself from outright asking Loki tell him everything.] What else happened?
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Diasbaile is in shambles and left vulnerable, cultists have infiltrated using ancient arts of shardbearing against us shardbearers, the Void closes in from the north and the south, our High-Queen wastes away as she tries to protect us and tensions mount their way to desperation.
Where would you like me to start?
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…that, and, he's genuinely concerned about chaos mom at the moment even if chaos mom has other things on his plate.]
I meant with you, but if you want to talk general shop, let's talk general shop. Up to you.
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[ but there is. he can say he's fine, and he can brush it off casually like he does everything else. he can say he's been through worse, that he's done worse, but this leaves a sour taste at the back of his throat that he can't shake. Hiro didn't need to know that, and Loki didn't want to tell him. ]
Talked.
[ a pause. ]
Tell me, then, what do you plan on doing in Diasbaile, hm?
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Instead he asks a question Hiro can actually answer]
Ariadne asked me to look into some stuff. [No. No more being vague] Shard magic. And I'm going to do some more research about the cult. Anything I can find. [Among other things]
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Many of the secrets of this "shard magic" are shattered and lost, others shrouded in myth. There are places that it remains, but our enemies are better versed in its art.
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So I've noticed. My research is still going in circles so far but I've only been really looking into stuff the last couple of days. [A pause.] I want to learn as much as I can so that we can get better and hit our enemies back even harder.
...myth like...your kind of myth? Where there's still truth and the same stories being circled back over and over? Or myth like "don't even bother listening to those stories" kinda myth?
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[But he's sure Loki knows that and that he's talking in circles, as usual.]
...I know you said you wouldn't teach me how to activate my shard until I learned how to conceal it, but what can I do to prepare for that in the meantime?
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The ones who've held these secrets have done so for thousand of years. What, pray tell, do you believe you have to offer them that they have not already been offered?
Prepare as you have been. Read between the lines, find the answer you know is there. Prepare your emotions, and think of something in your memory. Think of something that reminds you of home. Hold onto it, remember it vividly. Keep it. You'll need it.
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It could be months. [And the way he says so is so matter-of-fact. Almost patient. Almost.] We might not have months, but we also don't have the resources to set ourselves up for a guaranteed failure. [A pause.] A good something, or a bad something...?
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Something strong. A bed, a place, a toilet, something that resonates in you. Something that you can remember details up and conjure at a moment's notice.
As far as the promise of activation goes, our deal stands, but that doesn't mean that you can't find quicker means of finding how to hide your shard signature.
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[That causes another pause though.] Oh yeah? I thought that was just something you had to earn from the monarchs. [Granted he's been idly searching since Loki told him that part of their deal. The answer's just been escaping him over and over again.]
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[ if Hiro wants to point his passions in directions that may get him killed rather that ones that may not, Loki finds that he can offer a little bit of help in that respect. ]
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...I'll think of something. [He has ideas, certainly, everything ranging from "killing somebody" to "marching up to Morla and demanding shard concealment" to "figuring out how other people like Loki have done it" but he's not going to charge straight into anything just yet.] Thanks for the vote of confidence. [And also surprisingly not sarcastic. He's...actually thanking him for that.
There's way too much happening right now to even try to be his usual bratty self. More than anything he's busy trying not to push Loki's buttons, too. He's puzzled out that Loki had to had suffered the same way Ariadne did, but if Loki's not going to directly tell him, Hiro will just make sure to keep mind of it.] I'll see what I can come up with.
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[ Loki says smoothly. there's a laundry list of places for him to go, and people for him to talk to. luckily this will shake off, and luckily he'll be back to throw himself into the game. ]
ASAP-ity, won't you? This shard magic won't do itself, you know.
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...what's your next step anyway?
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[ one of these more than the others, really. it could be the nap. ]
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["Just in case somebody decides they'd like to tap in and mess with your head again."] I'll see what I can do with some of the leads on my end.
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One pair of eyes will be fine. You needn't be concerned.
[ THIS WILL JUST GO AWAY. ]
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And, perhaps, he's overstepping his boundaries, but he's going to try one more time.]
Any other omissions you wanna share?
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