Chapter Text
The second they stepped out of that room, people started crowding them, wishing to take a glance at the returning Deliverer.
Phainon basked in the attention. He smiled through the crowds waving at the cheering of children and adults by equal. The atmosphere was vibrant, lively and idyllic, perhaps. The deliverer marched side by side with the other chrysos heirs. The great and beloved deliverer was back. The who had forced the dawn to arrive at Amphoreus with the efforts of the Chrysos heirs and the Trailblazers had returned to their home. This illusion that surrounded them felt like a dream. But, it had a failure, that it wasn’t working on Mydei. He didn't see what Phainon wished for him to see. He saw the reality. He watched silently, taking the dreamy scenery differently: the dismissive waving, a small frown in his face, and a superiority that irradiated from him as people cheered for him, celebrating him.
That plastered-on fake smile never left his face. Children waved and cried in disbelief, adults stood close as they clapped and talked in between them about the sudden arrival
Everyone felt ecstatic that their savior had come back home.
Mydei walked slightly behind, not wanting to stay too close to him. They retreated to the Chrysos heir's private baths. The rest seemed drowned into this fakeness Phainon had built, surrounding him and welcoming him back. Seeing them this way, made Mydei question if they could be snapped out of this trance.
But he couldn't just leave them trapped in this nightmare dressed as a sweet dream.
Guessing what he had done to the other heirs was a complicated task. Somehow, the imposter had managed to fool all of them even after everything they had done to stop what happened.
***
“What 's wrong? Not gonna join us, Mydeimos?"
Phainon stared at him with a smile on his lips. He was surrounded by the other heirs, Aglaea and lady Tribbios hugging him, Anaxa patting his shoulder, Hyacine, Castorice and Cipher close by. All of them looked at Mydei with a mix of confusion and intrigue: why would the one who insisted on searching for Phainon the most be the least excited to see his return?
He could see it, the way Phainon's eyes didn't keep a constant color: firstly a shade of blue, then yellow, then a crimson red — but the flashing of colors stayed for a brief second before settling in blue.
Mydei stayed quiet after that jab. Wanting to test the waters.
And it was useful. Because Phainon's expression seemed to sour for a brief instant when he didn't get an immediate answer from Mydei. His smile weakened, it wasn't reaching his eyes anymore — giving it a faker look. This imposter seemed to notice that someone had seen over his disguise without his knowledge. And he didn't seem to like it at all.
But he didn't attack, instead, he acted more brightly than ever.
“Ahh come on Mydei! It's been a while since we've seen each other and you greet me like this?”
Pure fakeness dripped off every word.
This person knew he couldn't act slightly off, as if they had studied how Phainon actually acted perfectly.
He could try to unmask the impostor now, with the others present. But if this Phainon managed to fool them, Mydei was sure he wouldn't stay still if he attempted to expose him.
So he gave in, walking towards the group with a more relaxed stance. He lifted his hand and patted Phainon's shoulder with a smile that he tried to make seen as more natural.
“I'm glad you're back, Deliverer.”
Phainon? Looked down at Mydei's hand on his shoulder, a brief second of confusion etched into his face before he shifted again. That smile who could warm up an entire room appeared again. Fully.
But this time it only made Mydei more cautious.
***
Phainon was now being helped into settling back in what used to be his quarters in the building. Hyacine and Castorice had insisted on helping the deliverer and he didn't try to deny it. Mydei had seen them leave together talking and laughing like old friends reunited.
There were a plethora of actions Mydei could try to take respecting this situation:
•He could try to warn the others and be seen like a madman
•Try to unmask the impostor by his own.
•Get more clues about who was he actually before he attempted anything
•Contact the astral express, they might have more experience in this.
He decides to try out the first one. And of all the heirs, he decided to go and speak with Cipher. As the Demi-god of Trickery and a master with lies, the idea of her falling for the impostor's hallucinations felt odd. Wasn't it?
“I dunno what you're saying little prince. Phainon looks very Phainon-like to me.”
Cipher lounged on the tree trunk, fiddling with a coin in her fingers as she sunbathed with no worries circling her mind.
“Red eyes? Glitching? I thought we left all those virtual things months ago with us winning against Irontomb.”
Her attitude and tone said enough: she didn't believe him at all. Mydei had his jaw tightened for the entire conversation without him noticing till it started to ache. He had to calm down, acting like a madman wouldn't make him look more believable than what he looked like now.
“He just isn't acting like himself.”
It sounded stupid coming out of his mouth. So stupid. What type of argument was this?
But what else could he say? Right now, he only had what he saw as his only clue that something was wrong. Cipher looked down at Mydei, her expression of absolute relaxation.
“Well… I'm sure he just has to get used to being with us.”
Cipher answered briefly, her tail hanging from the tree tuck lazily. Even when acting this uninterested, she noticed how Mydei still looked far from being convinced. She shifted her position, now laying on her side as she looked down at him. “I don't know, little prince. Just think of it, he had to go through millions of cycles and saw unimaginable horrors, I'm sure he isn't simply ‘over it’, give him time.”
“And then you’ll have your Phai-Phai back!”
The conversation was leading nowhere. Mydei left the gardens, leaving Cipher slacking off and chuckling with her last teasing directed at him. He retreated, going back in the elevator that led down into the interior of the bathhouse. Maybe he could try going to Anaxa, or Aglaea, two highly important figures in Phainon's life who might have noticed any difference. But if Cipher hadn't seen any signs, it was less than possible that they did.
He kept walking, his pace incrementing in speed. The idea of contacting the express felt more tempting than ever and it was probably the best idea. He stopped pacing like a caged lion in that small hall, getting his teleslate out to text them.
But, as he was about to send the first text, he appeared.
“Mydei! Here you are!” Phainon cheerfully squeaked as he appeared from nowhere. He hugged Mydei from the back, almost tackling the kremnoan to the ground from the jump. Mydei could feel the weight of Phainon’s head on his shoulder, almost dropping his teleslate. “Who are you texting?” The deliverer asked curiously, trying to take a peek into the texts.
Mydei turned it off before Phainon could take a glance. The worst case scenario was exactly this: Phainon discovering what he was attempting to do. “No one, Deliverer.”
He could feel Phainon's arms around his waist, but his grip was far more tight than what was needed. Almost as if he was trying to keep Mydei at his side. His head was still resting over his shoulder, his silvery blue hair tickling his neck. “I missed you sooo much.” Phainon suddenly mumbled, acting like a lovesick fool. “Did you miss me?”
Those words only made Mydei stiffer than before.
He didn't want to hear those words coming out of him.
It wasn't his Phainon.
Phainon insisted (or whined) that they go back to his private quarters now that he was settled in. As much as Mydei didn't want to go with him, he ended up giving in begrudgingly. Maybe spending some time with Phainon could give him more clues of his true identity to make himself look more believable. When the door closed, Mydei attempted to get some space in between them without force — but the man clinged onto him with strength.
The room felt far more suffocating, The warm light making the situation feel more intimate. Mydei avoided direct eye contact, his gaze sweeping around the room. It was surprising to see Dawnmaker displayed on the wall with all normalcy. Mydei noticed it, and he could see the dried golden blood on its point.
He took it from the grave. The thought creeped in his mind immediately after seeing it. He was still trapped in Phainon's arms, the man clinging like a puppy. It made him feel tense. It wasn't him. He didn’t want to do anything.
Right now he had the perfect opportunity to attack, to have an advantage and possibly knock out the impostor. But he hesitated. Even though he knew the truth, it still meant hurting Phainon.
And did he actually want to do it?
The hand behind his back was slowly starting to go lower, Phainon used his weight to trap him against the wall. The coldness of the room slowly had shifted to a warmth that irradiated mostly from Phainon. It felt burning against his skin.
“Mydei, don’t you love me anymore?”
Mydei could feel Phainon's breathing on his neck, lips so close to skin that a shiver crawled up his neck.
“Why aren't you answering? You don't love me anymore?”
Phainon whined with hurt, closing in to Mydei. His hands stayed on the kremnoan's waist, close enough for his lips to brush close to his neck. He slowly moved up till their lips were too close for comfort — Phainon smiled, and that act made a knot form in Mydei’s throat.
He felt it as a brief kiss grazed his lips.
“Why are you so tense? I thought you loved me.”
He repeated once again, and just again he didn't get an answer. He didn't want to reciprocate the affection.
And as much as he wanted, he couldn't hide it.
It’s not him, not him, it isn't him truly. Just attack first. His thoughts were a whirlwind of hesitation, anger, and confusion. Phainon wasn't actually doing anything… yet. He was only clinging to him, face buried in his neck, as his hands trailed around Mydei’s back. However the scorching heat was rising at a fast pace. Mydei thought of multiple alternatives of how to get space. He could attempt to form a crystal and attack him, but it would be quite noticeable.
But, he didn't actually want to cause harm. Mydei wanted to keep the impostor alive and conscious to question him. As his gaze washed over the room, he noticed that there was a jar close by. He couldn't hesitate for much longer — who knew how much longer would Phainon be this docile? A sigh left his lips before with a fast hand, grabbed the jar by the handle and smashed it on Phainon's head. Consecutively, pushing him away with more strength.
The jar shattered instantly, its pieces scattering on the floor. Phainon backed off with multiple steps, the honey dew mixing with his blood. It slowly flowed down his forehead with a sickly slowness. He kept looking down at his hands, the small drops of sticky honey and blood falling on them.
The silence stretched, and Mydei stayed on guard.
A minute went by until Phainon looked up, those soft blue eyes shifting into the red color that Mydei had seen previously. Everything was moving fast, the tension in between them thickening enough to cut it with scissors. Phainon started to become glitchy, his head twitching into positions that shouldn't be possible. Black and red squares started flashing around his skin, spots pixelating.
“I thought y-y-yOu wo-wOuldn't dare to h-hArm Phainon.”
“y-You tw-two seemed sO-sOo… In LovE.”
Phainon’s head snapped towards Mydei. A deranged smile formed slowly. He moved with a rigidity that made him look closer to a puppet being handled by strings. Making Mydei feel uneasy. Firstly, Phainon was simply standing still, staring intensely — the next second, he was charging towards Mydei with chopped movements that resembled still images. Phainon, if it could be called that, was acting like a deranged animal.
“Y-Yo-You.. thInK y3u WiL2.. b-b-be ab-bl7 to t-TelL.. th7m?”
His voice had left that fake softness behind, turning into one more glitchy and hard to understand. A high-pitched whine accompanying every word. Mydei didn't answer, perhaps he didn't dare to do so. He preferred keeping the stoicness, his fist clenched at his sides — his stance ready to fight.
With the sudden attack, Mydei had enough of an opportunity to avoid Phainon, that thing. He moved away from the range of attack — these impostor attacks were messy, uncoordinated at first. For the first minutes, Mydei only dared to avoid and deflect. Internally he was still a mess: he had to attack, but not in the situation of a simple spar, it was to avoid Phainon killing him.
He kept evading the attacks as he attempted to get his thoughts in order. It was like that till he shifted tactics: he wouldn't let Phainon attack and end up killing him. Mydei fought back, attempting to get a clean hit to the stomach to leave him breathless. From how unclean and animalistic his attacks were, the punch landed cleanly, making Phainon wheeze for air as he was sent back against the wall… where Dawnmaker was hanged.
And the impostor didn't hesitate. He grabbed the longsword immediately, taking an on-guard stance Mydei had long since memorized deeply from the hundred times they sparred.
The fight got messy faster than expected, Phainon attacked him endlessly, unclean and precise movements mixed together like a rabid dog. Mydei attacked back, using his crystals to get distance in between them.
It reached a chaotic state where every piece of furniture and decoration was shattered or on the floor. Phainon had started to attack at a faster pace that managed to make Mydei lose his stance briefly, but that brief second was enough to trap him against the rail of the balcony.
Phainon stood over him, attempting to press Dawnmaker against Mydei's neck — yet he with his gauntlets avoided it. Below them Mydei saw them. Castorice and Hyacine were walking through the streets and even looked up to where the balcony was. But they didn't notice the fight happening above them.
It was his doing.
“What did you do to them!?
Mydei grunted looking up at the impostor with fury, whose eyes gleamed with egocentrism.
“Oh, I just gave them prettier views… they don't need to see us.”
His voice was far clearer, the glitching and constant repeat fading. Mydei had to do something to get out of this predicament. Phainon had closed in, their bodies pressed together. That was when Mydei attacked, hitting Phainon on the nose. That made him back off, dropping Dawnmaker to the side as blood started to pour down his nose.
Despite the advantage, when he was about to finish this off and knock Phainon out… the door slammed open.
“What in Kephale is happening here!?”
Aglaea had slammed the door open, looking perplexed with this situation. Anaxa soon appeared behind her, the man having an ever more angered than shocked expression.
Surprisingly things didn't escalate further than that. Phainon shifted his attitude immediately once again, returning to the warm and heroic deliverer. He ended up making a whole story about an intimate encounter that escalated into this fight — something that made Aglaea stop him immediately out of annoyance and perhaps discomfort. Why would she want to hear that?
But Mydei, as he heard, saw how he was manipulating them too. Neither Aglaea or Anaxa seemed to see the state of the chamber, acting as if it was a minor argument. Phainon did what he just did to Castorice and Hyacine minutes prior. Phainon made them see what he wanted them to see.
The instant he was able to leave, Mydei dashed out of the room. Everything calmed down at least, the regeneration from the lingering immorality became useful for once.
This was even worse than what Mydei had thought, seeing how anger made all of that impostor’s facade crumble. The glitches, the way he spoke, remembered Mydei of Irontomb. But how could it have happened? Technically it was an impossible occurrence, they had defeated the Lord Ravager and erased him from the universe.
He retreated into the lousy and crowded market, needing to clear his thoughts on what he should do next as truly — he was alone on the plan of unmasking the impostor Phainon.
Or so he thought. As he reached his destination, that rooftop where sweet
memories happened, his teleslate vibrated from his pocket. A message arriving:
> Stelle: “Hi Mydei! How is the search for Phainon going?? We haven't found anything yet (>0<；)”
Of course, the trailblazers. They would be the best help Mydei could get to deal with this situation, and maybe get the real Phainon back home. So he started typing his message, trying to tell everything that has happened without skipping anything.