Work Text:
Of Shadow
Very rarely was Hades left with perfect silence in the apartment, and he had, for the past few days, enjoyed it immensely. Not that he had any hard feelings towards his family, quite the contrary, but he was the kind of person who appreciated his time alone every once in a while. The weekend, however, had gone by in the blink of an eye, thanks to Hythlodaeus and Persephone who of course dragged him out, and now he was late on the reading he had planned to catch up on.
However, as the universe seems completely averse to giving him what he wants, he had had exactly 7 minutes and 34 seconds before he heard the front door open and the sound of a very excited, very quick set of footsteps heralded the end of his peace.
Slowly and deliberately, he closed his book so as to not damage it on impact and moved to sit up straight on the sofa he had been lying on. Perhaps a bit too slow. From over the back of the sofa, his little pest of a brother jumped as if he was trying for the Olympics.
“Found you!” Phanes beamed at him, unapologetic for knocking the air out of Hades’ lungs, totally uncaring of being picked up like a misbehaving coeurl, and put back on his corner of the sofa. “Hades, Hades! Guess what I found? I bet you can’t!”
“Is it a pebble?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. There wasn’t much that they hadn’t already explored in their grandparents’ farm, and Phanes had the habit of treating the terribly mundane and the truly uncommon with the same sense of wonder. So he teased the brat, despite the chance of being wrong in his guess, as it was most likely something as unremarkable.
Phanes smirked and pulled from his sleeve, surprise surprise, a rock. Hades barely had the chance to examine it before it was pushed on to his hands. He gave his little brother a look and, finding in his eyes a terribly excited and proud child, decided to indulge, telling himself again it would be the last time.
It was a small stone, yes, but upon close inspection, a slightly crystalline one, with a purple hue that revealed itself only under the right light. Its concentration of aether wasn’t the highest, but it was certainly unique. Sitting up properly straight this time, he took a more serious look at it, but from memory he couldn’t tell for sure if he had seen something like this before.
“Remember that huge storm that hit the countryside? Apparently it was so bad it caused a landslide near the waterfalls, so I went to check it out when no one was looking!”
“Phanes,” Hades reprimanded, or at least tried to. His brother was smart enough to know why he shouldn’t wander around on his own outside the city, and yet spoiled enough to not care.
At most, he pouted.
“Anyway, do you know what they are? I think it’s pretty cool. Oh, maybe you could try to make a copy! Grandpa is fixing the waterfall anyway, so I don’t think we’ll have another chance to find these any time soon, but we can look for them next time. You should have come, it was pretty fun.”
Hades fixed his eyes on the stone, less focused on the thing itself and more ruminating on what Phanes had just said. His first response would have been to give an exasperated sigh, but he held that one back for the sake of the little brother who kept babbling on about the food and the animals and the weather.
Of course they hadn’t told him. Their parents probably looked at this bright cheerful brat and decided it would be better to postpone breaking the news to him, as if it would be any better.
… How annoying.
“Hadeees, are you even listening?” Phanes asked.
Perhaps, if he had looked angry or demanding, Hades would have been more inclined to brush the whole matter off as their parents did. But he knew Phanes’ bleeding heart very well. His little brother acted spoiled most of the time, but he needed only to say a word true and he would return to his room without any real complaint.
Which didn’t make it any easier.
But it wasn’t fair to keep him in the dark either.
“Yes,” he lied, aware that Phanes would not press on it. Now his brother was the one looking at him, trying to read him through the mask. Suddenly, the words that were so simple faded just before he could voice them.
Regardless of whether he wanted to say it or not, Phanes at least deserved some time to think before the day came.
“We probably won’t get the chance to go back there.”
“Why?” Phanes shot back without missing a second. Mirth was leaving his voice already, as he surely had caught up something wasn’t being shared with him.
Hades wanted to pinch the bridge of his own nose, but made due with lightly touching his mask. He sighed, mentally chastising himself for making it worse and said it at once.
“Our grandparents are going to return to the Star.”
It took a moment for the information to truly hit him. For a moment, Hades had to watch his younger brother’s face stare at him in a near blank and he hated every second of it.
“They are- What? Why?”
“They have lived enough to see all they want to see in this Star, and they consider their service to it done.” Hades recited, the words an automatic response. “Our lives may extend towards eternity, but even we must give it back to the Star in the end.”
Phanes slumped on the sofa, looking so lost Hades was made painfully aware of why no one had previously had this conversation with him.
“I… know…” Phanes shook his head and lifted it up, putting as much bravery in his voice as he could, “I’ve learned about this already! It’s just-”
“It’s how things go,” Hades cut, because he knew where this was going. He knew his brother, and if he didn’t, he would not be able to bear it either.
His little brother flinched and let go of that spark of a fight he had in him.
Despite everything, Phanes was a good kid.
As the silence settled in, Hades wished Persephone and Hythlodaeus were there with them. Offering comfort was not his forte, and Phanes didn’t need it very often so he had never bothered to practice it, but they would surely know what to do rather than just sit awkwardly.
Phanes pushed up his mask lightly to rub his eye underneath. Hades didn’t even pretend to disapprove of that as he should.
“When is it going to be?” Phanes asked, awfully quiet.
“I don’t know. Last we spoke, it had yet to be decided. But they will come to Amaurot.”
Phanes nodded.
Hades lightly flinged the small stone at him. Phanes was still too dazed to notice, so it hit the side of his head. “Ouch!” He complained, way too dramatically for something that Hades knew had not hurt him at all.
"If they arrive and you continue to mope like this, they are going to be quite upset when they do leave." Besides, it’s not like they are going to be gone for good.”
“I know, but…” Phanes picked up the small stone. “They are not going to be Grandma and Grandpa anymore.”
“And? At least they are going to get to explore this Star all over again, like it’s brand new. Isn’t that something that gets you excited all the time? We will just have to wish them well on their next adventure.”
“Even if we never get to meet them again…?” Phanes asked, his voice betraying a faint glimmer of hope.
“Who knows?” Hades shrugged. “Perhaps we might meet again some day. And even if we don’t, we shall make an even better Star for them to return to. They are leaving it to us, after all.”
Phanes nodded again, this time with a bit more energy, so Hades must have been on the right track. As fun as it was to watch the gears turning inside his little brother’s head, it was nowhere near as intriguing as the stone the little brat had brought, which he took from Phanes’ hand.
“Hey!”
“What, weren’t you going to give it to me?” Hades provoked.
“I never said that! Make your own!”
“Then I’ll take this one for study in the meantime.” He smirked. It wasn’t that difficult to rile him up.
“Give it back!” Phanes tried to grab it, but taking full advantage of being the older sibling by a few years, Hades just kept it outside his reach while he struggled. “When you marry Persephone, she’s not going to let you do this kind of stuff anymore!”
At that, Hades almost choked on his laughter and the little pest jumped to grab the stone at his opening.
“Wha- What are you talking about, you brat! Me? Marry?”
“Yeah, ‘cause you’re gonna marry her, and then she’ll defend me from you!” Phanes pulled up his mask just so he could make a face at Hades, and for that he got a pillow thrown in his direction. Which the brat dodged.
Well then.
Hades conjured his staff, and with a simple magick took him off the ground and turned him upside down. “Like that would save you.”
“So you admit you’re going to marry her!”
And in saying those words, Phanes sealed his fate, and the clearly more skilled sorcerer summoned the Tickle Monster to keep him busy until he was fully out of air and unable to spout further nonsense.
If Hades picked up the book again, it was because he still needed to finish it, and not because he could feel his cheeks getting slightly warmer and he would not give his brat of a brother that victory.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”
“And?”
“And I won’t say anything like that again!”
“And?”
“I won’t tell her anything either!”
Empty promises, Hades knew, but it was good enough for the time being. He let his little brother go. Immediately, Phanes spun around and tossed himself as dramatically as possible on the sofa back again. When he got no reaction, he then tossed his legs over Hades.
“You’re evil.”
Hades rolled his eyes and didn’t respond.
He quieted down for a bit, his energy somewhat spent. For a single moment, Hades dared to hope he could just continue his reading in peace.
“Hades?”
He sighed the sigh of the ever-suffering older sibling. “What now?”
“When… When we return to the Star, you’ll find us again, right?”
Hades looked at his brother. His shoulders felt heavy. His little brother looked up at him, asking him to do the impossible, in a voice so full of faith he would feel like a monster if he even thought of saying no.
“Us who?”
“Me, Persephone and Hythlodaeus!” Phanes still sounded a bit afraid. It would take a lot to take his mind off the matter of death. Hades wasn’t sure if he himself was up to the task. “If it’s you, you can find us again, right? And then we’ll be together forever!”
Forever sounded like a long time. Every part of Hades’ rational mind urged him to say so, to not commit to something that they had no control over. But before Phanes, who himself was a small miracle, rationale lost all its power.
“I will, I promise.”
~X~
Emet-Selch did return to the site where the mysterious stone was found, when the sky was burning and he desperately sought a solution. It served him naught.
~X~
Of Light
Very carefully, Phanes reached for the small creature at his feet. The eyeless beast in front of them sniffed the air, its whiskers twitching in search of motion, and so he dared not make any sudden movement. He prayed with all his being that the lizard he had been following through those dark tunnels would not dart away from his touch, so he was very, terribly careful.
His brother, he imagined, would scold him a lot for taking such an unnecessary risk for a tiny creature that probably had better odds at surviving than he did. But his heart was racing, his legs were trembling and he could barely take his eyes from the beast in front of, so he tried anyway, because at this point he feared that if he stopped moving completely, he would not be able to unfreeze his limbs.
The creature, the owner of these burrows, opened his mouth, showing terrible teeth and a horrible breath. Phanes winced, and tried his best to not move further.
The lizard seemed as terrified as him. Enough that it allowed him to pick it up. As he hid the critter in his robe’s sleeve, the blind creature moved closer, inches away from him.
If it decided to harm him, he was done for. It towered over him, making the tunnels it had dug with its enormous claws feel even more cramped. Phanes considered pulling his wand- Well, Hades' old wand, and ran through all the two spells he could try to cast at the moment. Neither of them would be enough to save him.
The following second went by in slow motion.
First, the creature almost touched him. Phanes stepped back and the creature screeched, bringing up its claws. Above them, the soil started to give.
Phanes noticed pieces of soil drop and hit the creature's head. It wasn't much, only enough to get its attention to turn up for a fraction of a second.
But it was enough for Phanes to jump back and stumble away.
Then, cutting her way down with a scythe, Persephone descended.
He wasn’t really sure what happened next. Phanes felt himself being thrown back from the impact as he braced for it the best he could, and then being caught by the robes before he could crash into anything. Frozen still, he dangled for a bit in the air until he felt his feet touch the earth again, and only then he realized he had his eyes shut tight.
Blinking, he saw the quick glimpse of a dark barrier being unmade around them, revealing a collapsed hole. Phanes flinched. He knew this magick well, so he very slowly turned around. And surely, there stood Hades, and a little behind him, Persephone.
Their attention was still trained on the pile of dirt that Phanes assumed was covering the beast that had been about to attack him. The burrow was completely destroyed, but the two of them kept their eyes on where the beast supposedly laid for a while longer.
Persephone seemed satisfied with that and dispelled her scythe.
Phanes wanted to avoid looking at his brother, which he didn’t have to do for much because Persephone immediately rushed towards him.
“Phanes! Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?” Persephone started checking him for wounds, making him turn around and generally being more panicked about it than his own mother would probably be.
“I’m fine, I’m fine!” Phanes tried, going along anyway. He hadn’t gotten seriously hurt, really. His ankle hurt a little from when he first fell into the burrow, but it wasn’t anything his admittedly very basic healing magicks hadn’t already fixed. His robes were a mess of dirt but that was it. “See, I’m okay!”
He smiled at her, because, despite everything, it was a relief to not be alone anymore.
She hugged him, rather tight, proving once again that she was probably the most terrifying thing in a 1000 yalm radius. She said something else but Phanes found it quite difficult to follow while being crushed and gasping for air.
Eventually, Hades decided to speak up, probably because Phanes was starting to look a bit purple, “If you want to be the one to kill him, there are faster ways to go about it.”
Ouch. Yes, he was quite upset.
Persephone let Phanes go, and he took the deep breath he so desperately needed.
“I was just worried,” She patted Phanes on the head, offering him a soft smile.
“Weren’t we all?” Hades crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes at him, “If only it could have been avoided, right?”
Persephone looked between the siblings, and, despite Phanes’ pleading eyes, took a step back. If he wasn’t aware that he was in the wrong, Phanes would, perhaps, have tried to hide behind her for protection, but alas, he could only shift his weight around and pray that if he looked like he regretted it, Hades would not push the issue.
“Please, enlighten us, what were you thinking?”
“I… was bored?” He tried, wincing at his own words. Hades, of course, didn’t seem happy at all. “There was nothing to do back at camp! What was I supposed to do? Spend the entire day watching water boil?!”
Phanes crossed his arms as well and looked away. Persephone seemed sympathetic to his motivations, and gave Hades a light tap on his shoulder, silently asking him to go a bit easier. Hades, of course, wouldn’t budge.
“So you decided to go out and get yourself killed alone?”
“No one would let me come along!”
“Because we had to make sure the area was safe first!”
He stuck his tongue out at his brother, “Well, at least I’ve found something!”
“Listen here, you brat-”
Hades reached out to pull Phanes’ ear for that. Phanes made sure to complain loudly, even though it didn’t hurt that much at all. Deep down his brother could be a softie, but it wouldn’t stop him from being dramatic about it.
It didn’t last long anyway. The small lizard scurried underneath his robes, tickling him a little, but more importantly, biting Hades’ hand.
Hades hissed and pulled his hand back, and the tiny critter scurried back to underneath the cloth. Phanes tried not to laugh, although, if pressed, he would only reveal that he was being tickled. His brother looked confused for a second while he processed what happened, and then looked at him with a clear unspoken question.
“I made a friend,” Phanes shrugged.
“Really?”
“Yeah, the poor dude was lost down there.” Phanes picked it up, delighted that the lizard didn’t run from him this time.
“As opposed to you, who clearly knew what you were doing,” Hades poked Phanes, who pouted in response.
“Hades,” Persephone called before Phanes could protest and both gave way for her to speak. “How about this? You promise to stay close and we’ll bring you along for our next adventure!”
“Really!” Phanes beamed up before he could think, and then looked at his brother.
For a second, he was hoping for confirmation. Despite his attitude, he knew of the very real danger he had put himself into, but if he had Hades and Persephone with him, he would have nothing to fear and still have a good time in the wilds.
But Hades was looking at Persephone with that slight thread of tension along his jaw, one he usually had when he withheld some negative comment or critique.
Phanes deflated a bit, but tried to not show it too much. If he pressed it, Hades would probably give in and allow him to tag along in their next adventure. But that would mean he would have less time to be alone with Persephone, and that, among every possible reason, was why he even agreed to come on this camping trip in the first place.
He tried looking away, pretending that being left behind wasn’t a big deal to him.
"Just invite Hythlodaeus next time!" He said, channeling his best Hades-pretending-he’s-not-making-a-concession-at-all. “At least he knows how to have fun.”
Persephone called Hades’ name, in that tone that his older brother often found hard to deny. Phanes wanted to stay engaged in the discussion, as he knew his brother well enough to know how this would go if he didn’t interject.
However, from the edge of his eye, he noticed something.
It was just a pebble, he told himself. A pebble rolling off from the unstable ground of a now open hole. Still, he tensed up, hoping it was just that. A few more rolled off, the ground on the mound under which the beast laid moved.
Phanes jumped, hiding behind his brother, clinging to his robe and unable to look away from the emerging danger.
The other two were startled, exchanged a quick glance and turned towards the rising beast. Hades let out a brief curse Phanes couldn’t hear over the screeching that followed. He picked Phanes up by the robes once again and almost threw him to Persephone.
“Get him out!”
Persephone grabbed Phanes, who barely had the time to yell “wait!” before she jumped out of the hole.
He saw his brother draw his staff once again and ready himself for battle while he was taken to safer heights. He saw the beast lunge and the first spells fly, and then he could see no more, cut off by angle and distance.
Persephone put him down, bid him to wait and jumped back to help Hades, and Phanes sat down, clutching Hades’ old wand and praying they remained safe.
~X~
"If I have this," Phanes waved the wand, "I can steal your brain cells at will!"
Hades sighed, and didn't reply. Might as well let him have it.
~X~
Of Shadow
Hades didn’t skip classes often. Sure, every once in a while Persephone and Hythlodaeus convinced him that they could afford to relax for a day, but he always made sure that was true for all of them before indulging them. That afternoon, however, he did so of his own volition and by himself.
His little brother had a practical exam, and while it usually would be none of his concern, Phanes had been so terribly stressed the previous night that Hades felt uneasy not knowing if the last minute cramming he had helped the kid with was of any use. Thus, he found himself in a floor he hadn’t visited in years, hidden in a corner and relying on his soul sight to try and parse what was happening in one specific classroom.
Lucky for him, Phanes had a fairly distinct soul, so finding him was no issue at all. It followed then that the kids around him were his classmates, and the closest adult was his teacher.
All things considered, Hades wasn’t entirely sure why Phanes was treating the matter as such a big deal. The test itself, while a tad bit harder than what they had been doing up to then, was more of an assessment than anything else. The children were given a concept record of a familiar and asked to create it, mostly so the teachers could observe where each student stood in regards to the use of creation magicks and thus instruct them accordingly moving forward.
It was also said that many people took it as a lesson in humility, but Hades wouldn’t know much about it. He had gotten it right on his first try, as it was simply a matter of passing one’s creation magicks through a crystal and allowing its engraved concept to shape it. The days that followed were of people praising him for something he just wished to move on from already. (Persephone had found it cute, so Hades had gifted it to her and Hythlodaeus never let him live it down.)
He watched the kids step forward and attempt the test. Most of them couldn’t create anything at all and moved back to their seats, so Hades assumed they had failed pretty badly. Others managed to summon forth the wisp, too dim and unstable to last more than a second. Phanes was talking with a kid who kept fiddling with his thumbs and not looking ahead to how their classmates were doing.
Hades frowned to himself. What could he even do if his brother failed this test? If his little brother required further instruction, then that was it. The empty expression in Phanes’ face when he tried explaining the process was more than enough proof that didactics wasn’t his strong suit. Perhaps he could tell Hythlodaeus and ask for his suggestion again. Persephone would go on a warpath if it seemed that Phanes shed so much as a single tear, but it had been a while since his little brother had cried at all… Which would avoid any attempted beheading. But his brat of a brother was still very much capable of sulking, and Hades would rather not have to deal with that for an extended period of time.
Eventually, the kid Phanes had been talking with was called forward. They did get up, but Phanes shot up, raising his hand in a hurry. There was a moment of what Hades assumed was talking, the kid nodding and the teacher doing a motion he could only interpret as the surrender of someone who had to deal with Phanes on a regular basis.
His brother went forward to make his attempt. Hades found himself holding his breath.
Phanes held the crystal, and flowed his aether through it. A spark came, flickered and, after the longest of seconds, stabilized.
The familiar stayed. His brother picked it up, undoubtedly proud. Some of his classmates seemed curious, but after a few quick words from Phanes and their teacher, interest died down.
Hades stopped paying too much attention. Phanes had gone to the kid from before, who, to their credit, performed remarkably well.
Without any reason to stay around, Hades left his hiding spot and started making his way back to his own class, berating himself. Turns out, he should not have allowed this test to bother him as well, when he wasn’t even the one taking it.
How irrational of him. His friends would never let him live it down if they heard of it. His teachers would certainly be disappointed. Not that he couldn’t catch up but still.
He should just be glad that little drama wouldn’t require more than it already had.
At night, Phanes didn’t bring up the test, so Hades didn’t either.
~X~
Emet-Selch had spent the night awake, sorting through documents, so he considered himself deserving of a few minutes of respite, watching the sunrise over Amaurot from the comfort of his kitchen with a hot drink in hand. Then, he was whisked away to a battle halfway across the star.
“Excuse me, how?”
“Sorry!” Azem smiled, throwing his axe at a monster, “Er, improvisation?” He shrugged before being swatted by said monster.
~X~
Of Light
"There are better ways of wasting your time than standing outside my room, Phanes."
“I was starting to think the same thing, but you see,” Phanes said, opening the door fully and making himself at home in his brother’s room, “I was really curious about how long it’d take for you to notice. Have your special eyes finally gone bad from staring at paper for ages unending?”
“And I was curious about how committed you were to the role of silent wraith you seem set on playing. Though I must admit, you should give peace and quiet a try more often.”
“A wraith I might be,” Phanes brought his hand to his chest, as if the accusation caused him pain, “but it is not I who has been sucking all the joy from this household. Would you be so kind as to wait until our father finishes making the dessert?”
Hades turned around to see Phanes sitting with crossed legs on his bed, acting like he was suffering greatly. “Phanes.”
“Yes?”
“Fuck off.” And he turned back to his desk, to his pile of books and notebooks and his unending review.
Phanes rolled his eyes. “How cruel of you to wound me so, brother.”
“What do you want?”
“Can I just enjoy my dear brother’s company? You won’t be here for long after graduation anyway.” Phanes rested his head on his hand. “Who knows, at this rate, you’ll just have to tell Hythlodaeus and Persephone that you were devoured by books.”
Hades stopped writing, the tip of his pen hanging above the page. “Did Persephone get you to pester me as well?”
There it was. Phanes usually would have considered Hades taking such an obvious bait as a victory, but alas.
“Of course she didn’t. She didn’t mention your name the entire day. Not even once.” He shrugged. “I have to wonder what you’ve done to get her so mad. I would ask if she caught you kicking a puppy, but that would imply you have left home at all in the past week.”
Hades put his pen back to paper, though his hand didn’t move to write further.
Phanes had assumed they had a fight, when he was invited to go to the theater with their friends and Hades wasn’t, and he had an idea as to why.
“If you don’t have anything relevant to say, then it would be wise to say nothing at all.”
“Sadly for you, I’m not the wisest-of-all Hades, so I get to run my mouth as much as I want. How can I even compare, when even the Words of Emet-Selch look favorably towards his application? Why, one must wonder if he even has the time to talk to his girlfriend!”
“Didn’t you say that she does not wish to talk to me?” Hades sighed.
“Oh, I’m sure that can be arranged. Make sure to bring flowers, though.” Phanes half-joked, “But surely you of all people could afford to take a day or two to go talk to her?”
Hades stayed quiet. Both of them knew that if he did go after her, she would forgive him in a heartbeat. But Hades was nothing if not proud, so Phanes had to push him a little bit further.
“Look, you know she only gets this mad when one of us is being an absolute moron, and considering you barely left your room to eat this entire week, you can bet she’s more concerned about you than angry. I know you want to work with the dead and all that, but maybe don’t forget to live a little?”
"Work with the Words of Emet-Selch is not to be taken lightly, Phanes."
"You haven't even graduated yet! You realize that's the kind of experience they will be waiting for, right? Aren't you getting a little ahead of yourself, Hades?"
Finally, Hades put his pen down.
“I swear, you’re the only person in this entire star capable of suffering from success,” Phanes mumbled.
A part of Phanes wanted to point out that Hades did not want for opportunity. He could show up in any corner of Amaurot and people would be more than happy to have him around. He did not need to make himself miserable in his relationships, if that was how it was going to go.
But… Phanes also knew how much it mattered to Hades to get to work with the words of Emet-Selch, and he never was one to leave his own future to chance.
He couldn’t, and wouldn’t ask his brother to just drop it. It would go against Hades’ nature just as doing nothing about it would go against Phanes’.
“I would appreciate it if you didn’t make assumptions on things you haven’t looked into,” Hades said, still trying to justify his course of action.
“Oh, don’t you worry, I have my sources.” Phanes said, proud. Mostly because it was true. “I won’t bother you with the details, but as long as you have some space in your head, you’re good.”
Hades looked at him once again, and Phanes tried his best to convey that, yes, he knew what he was talking about.
It did, however, get Hades to get up from his chair and grab his mask from the desk.
"Wait, you're going now ?" Phanes asked, also getting up in a hurry.
"Yes, I am," Hades said, like it was obvious, "You become quite insufferable when you have a point and I'd rather not deal with that for the rest of the night."
"You sure sound confident for someone about to be torn apart by Persephone." Phanes held the door Hades was about to close on his face. "There is no way I'm missing that!"
~X~
At dinner, their parents had been talking about Hades’ graduation. It meant that he would soon be moving out. Phanes tried to not think about it much, as he tends to be the sentimental type and it is unbecoming of him to have too strong feelings about the natural tide of life.
~X~
Of Light
Phanes was going to miss the gentle breeze of Elpis. The weather control towers in the distance made it so there was always somewhere pleasant to take a stroll. Truth be told, he was going to miss being able to walk around with his hood down, to watch the creatures wander around the gardens.
So he took his time in making his way to the entrance. He had enjoyed his internship very much, but as with all career paths he had attempted, Phanes found his enthusiasm slipping away, and he quit before completing even two years.
Of course, he made some excuse when his superiors asked about the reason for his departure. It wasn’t a lie that his last submitted concept wasn’t approved, not even for trial, but he was used to that by now. Hythlodaeus had even sent him a fancy chocolate bar along with the denial letter so Phanes counted that as a victory.
Some of his colleagues suggested that he tried changing departments, but Phanes knew it wouldn’t help much, and he liked Elpis enough that he didn’t want his memory of it soured by his inability to stand still.
He wasn’t in a hurry. Truth be told, he had no plan at all. He took in the sights, the open fields and sparse trees, in search of inspiration. If he waited, he could catch the ship heading to Mount Lykaion and lend a hand in the release of a new species. Or he could just board the first ship leaving regardless of where it was headed. Perhaps he could take a trip down memory lane and visit his grandparents’ old state, then hit the road from there. He could see where his own two feet would take him.
What he didn’t want to do was to return to Amaurot.
Back home, Persephone and Hythlodaeus would be more than willing to help him find something else to pursue with some slight teasing and endless patience. Phanes was forever grateful for them and for all the opportunities they offered, and because of that, he didn’t wish to tell them that once more it had been for naught.
Lost in thought, he reached the end of that path paved in gentle stone.
He drifted back in time, when the biggest of his worries could be solved by simply following his brother. But alas, nothing lasts forever and time moves relentlessly forwards. Hades- Well, Emet-Selch now, was far too busy to be able to help him with his small predicament.
It had been a while since Phanes had talked with him at all. If he knew Phanes was in Elpis, it would be because Persephone mentioned it.
It was well past time for him to need a guiding light, anyway.
And so he left the floating gardens, his bag over his shoulder and zero desire to go home.
He handed in his identification and went through the safety procedures first, glad that he had decided against smuggling some cute critter with him. With the final goodbyes exchanged, Phanes leaned on a window, trying to make up his mind.
Outside, he watched the sea of clouds drift by. Even the great blue expanse of the sky and the wide star beneath felt just in reach of his fingertips. The winds howled with reckless abandon, and it washed over Phanes. Suddenly, his worries didn’t matter at all.
And just then, he had the worst idea he could have and conjured up the staff his brother had created for him ages ago.
To the people calling to him as he climbed the window, Phanes smiled and waved.
He could fly anyway.
And he jumped.
~X~
“Oh, it’s nothing that deep, I’m afraid.” Phanes had said, “I came here on a whim after a friend offered me a recommendation, and on a whim I must leave. If anything, the problem lies with me, I’m just not made for perfect things.”
~X~
Of Light
“So, Hythlodaeus got you?” Phanes asked, hand still on the handle of the locked door, hoping it would miraculously open.
“And you failed to escape Persephone, it seems,” Emet-Selch stated, clearly not amused.
“Hah.” Phanes gave an awkward laugh, still trying to make the door budge. No dice. “She can be quite terrifying, you know?”
“I know it very well.”
Emet-Selch sat in a very uncomfortable-looking chair, of which there were two in the vacant office room. Although his expression was hidden by an unfamiliar mask (Phanes hadn’t seen his brother in a while), he didn’t seem pleased.
“ ‘Twas betrayal, I tell you.” The attempt to lighten the mood fell flat, met only with silence.
Phanes allowed his hand to slip off the handle and, defeated, took his seat, slouching forward.
His brother then took off his mask and crossed his arms. He hadn’t changed at all.
“Are we truly doing this?” Phanes asked, hoping against hope that Hades would come up with some other idea to get them out of this conversation.
“The sooner we get this done, the better.”
Phanes sighed and removed his mask as well.
“When, pray tell, were you planning on telling me?”
“I was going to…” His voice drifted, his tone unconvincing.
“And yet, here we are, aren’t we?”
“Oh, shut up,” Phanes huffed, trying to avoid his brother’s gaze, “What did you want me to say? ‘Dear Emet-Selch, I am considering accepting the offer to take the seat of Azem, love, your younger brother’?”
“Crude, but far better than finding out through your mentor’s announcement.” Emet-Selch sighed the sigh of the ever-suffering older brother.
“I can’t exactly turn back time to fix that. Sorry, it is my everlasting duty as your younger brother to cause you trouble,” Phanes mocked, doing his best not to pout.
“Phanes, in case you haven’t noticed,” Emet-Selch pinched the bridge of his nose as if he was the only one getting a headache out of this conversation, “Each member of the Convocation of Fourteen holds immense responsibility to our star and our people. It is a role you must offer body and soul, you cannot take it on a wh-”
“And in case you haven’t noticed,” Phanes cut in, aware that he was getting too worked up, “I have spent the better part of the last century traveling with Azem. I know what it entails, Emet-Selch.”
At that, his brother recoiled, and Phanes felt a slight pang of guilt. Of course he didn’t know that. They allowed the silence to drench the spirit. Phanes took a deep breath.
Way to prove his point, idiot.
“Hades is fine,” he said, “I suppose… It is my duty as your older brother to fret over this sort of matter. Listen, I will not speak against your nomination in the Convocation. No, that honor will most likely go to Lahabrea. He still hasn’t forgotten about that Pandaemonium incident.”
“Wait, which of them?”
“Which?” Hades’ eye gave a small twitch, “Don’t tell me there were more than one.”
“What, no, of course there wasn’t,” Phanes lied without the intention of deceit, “Clearly there was only one.”
Hades seemed to have aged another decade from that alone. Serves him well, for self-appointing himself such an outlandish duty without asking.
“You know what? I don't want to know.”
Phanes snickered and Hades shook his head in disapproval.
“All this time, and you haven’t changed one bit.”
“Turns out, doing so now would do quite a lot of harm to my job prospects,” Phanes shrugged, “But, it’s funny. All this time I’ve walked, only to end up here, back at your footsteps.”
“Then I should let you know that the roles of Emet-Selch and of Azem have wildly different duties.”
“Thank goodness. I’d die of boredom if I had to stand in an aetherial observation deck for five hours straight.”
“Please, stop with the drama.”
“I’m being serious!”
“I’m sure you are. Then, tell me, what is that on your face?”
As a reflex, Phanes ran his thumb over the small scar on his chin. “Oh, this? Nothing much. Remember the flood warning that hit the far west a few years ago?”
Hades nodded, something cautious in his movement, but Phanes didn’t linger long enough to figure it out.
“Of course you do, anyway, Azem and I were around and those days were quite hectic. I think I hit a tree branch while running around, but there were much more important problems to be solved than a superficial injury. By the time I could do something about it, it had already healed.”
“And you just left it at that.” Hades didn’t even ask.
“Pretty much,” Phanes shrugged. “I do have a plan in case someone brings it up at the Convocation hall.”
“Well, let’s hear it, then,” Hades seemed to be trying his best to buy it and failing.
Phanes smiled, cleared his throat and sat up straight in his best posture. When he spoke, he did so as if he was in the debate halls, his voice confident and measured.
“‘Tis true that it marks me apart from our brethren, but should you accept me as a worthy successor to Azem, it shall not set me apart more than a red mask would. And while it may be unseemingly, I consider it a reminder of sorts. That our star is not yet devoid of perils we must still respect, and that for our brothers and sisters, we must yet brave it. And on a more personal level, it reminds me that I’m still young and foolish, and have many malms to go before growing into the mantle my mentor wishes to leave me. So, until then, regardless of whether I’m allowed to join, I must ask you to allow me this one last act of teenage rebellion. After all, what is a small mark before a name?”
And just as quickly as he took it, Phanes dropped the posture, leaning to the side with a shit-eating grin, “Pretty convincing, huh?”
“Change the ending, Igeyorhm will tear you apart if it seems you’re disrespecting the titles of the Convocation ,” Hades corrected, and Phanes deflated a bit.
“That’s not what I mean,” Phanes pointed out, “To truly embody a role in the Convocation is quite a task. Surely there are very few things in this life that feel relevant when compared to it.”
“Then give it a little more than an off-hand mention. And keep in mind that it is hard to predict how much appeal subjective arguments will have until you make them.”
“Eh,” Phanes shrugged, “It’s fine. What is life without some uncertainty?”
“A lot calmer for sure. Let’s see how that goes,” Hades gave a small smile, like he didn’t mind it at all. He stood up and placed his mask back on his face. Phanes raised an eyebrow, “I have changed my mind, I would like to see how far your spellcasting has come before giving my support.”
“Seriously?” Phanes pouted, watching his brother make his way to the locked door. Despite it all, he knew Hades well enough to call his bluff, “Weren’t you saying something about the Convocation and making decisions on a whim?”
“You know exactly what I meant.”
Hades put his hand on the handle and, making sure Phanes had a good view of it, opened the door. Phanes opened his mouth briefly but quickly swallowed any expression of surprise, as he didn’t want to give his brother that. Not that it helped, as Hades let out a “huh” with his mask doing little to conceal the smugness in his face.
Phanes jumped to his feet and hurriedly put his own mask back up, “Since when?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?”
“Fine, keep your secrets then.”
“And don’t think I’ll go easy on you just because you have just returned to Amarout.”
“Oh, please,” Phanes followed him out, catching up in quick footsteps, “How bold of you to assume Azem has ever gone easy on me.”
~X~
“Why me?" Phanes asked, somewhere along the seldom traveled road. She answered, "As it was, our paths would have crossed sooner or later. Perhaps, this is what we call fate."
~X~
Of Shadow
It was the middle of the night. Emet-Selch had planned to just close his eyes and go back to sleep. He and Persephone would return to Amaurot in the morning and he would have to make up for the days of work he left aside to help his little brother, but he made the mistake of opening his eyes and catching the sight of something rare.
The room was basked in darkness, save for the small light of a crystal above Azem’s makeshift bed. His little brother, who should be getting more rest than anyone else as he would be hitting the road at first light, instead had pen and paper in hand, undoubtedly writing the report of this small misadventure he got them all into.
His expression was uncharacteristically serious, with a small frown Emet-Selch had sworn Azem wasn’t able to make. It had been a while since he had seen his little brother without a mask. He had finally lost the last remains of his baby face.
Very few people assumed they were related at first glance. Unlike Emet-Selch, Azem had inherited their mother’s softer features and their father’s darker complexion, and although they shared hairs of similar temperament, his little brother had always preferred more asymmetrical styles and, ever since being taken under Venat’s wings, had let it grow quite long.
Seeing him being serious about his work for once was what made the fact that his little brother now had a seat at the Convocation truly sink in.
And, as if to prove that he hadn’t changed in the slightest, Azem finally noticed there was someone else awake and immediately perked up like a puppy caught doing something wrong.
Before he could open his mouth as he clearly was going to, Emet-Selch shushed him. His wife was still deep asleep and he would rather see at least one of them get enough rest.
Predictably, his brother covered up his mouth to prevent any sound from escaping, with a barely concealed smile. All it took was the hint of something vaguely amusing for him to drop any pretense of seriousness.
“Why are you awake?” He whispered.
Emet-Selch motioned to his still sleeping wife, and stated, “She kicked me,” completely certain his little brother would spend the rest of his life unsure of whether that was true or not as Persephone would deny it until the end of time. “And you should go back to sleep.”
Azem shrugged with a cheeky smile. “Might as well finish this now. This way you can take it back to Amaurot and save us a lot of work.”
“Really?” Emet-Selch raised his eyebrow at the audacity of this brat, “Tell me, would it kill you to go with proper procedure for submitting reports properly?”
“Why, of course,” Azem placed a hand over his chest like the suggestion was a personal slight, barely concealing the satisfied expression on his face, “Besides, you’d intercept it before it got archived anyway, so it’s also a favor to you if you think about it.”
“I would not have to do so if you actually wrote to your family every once in a while, brat,” Rolling his eyes, Emet-Selch looked away, hoping to not have to see Azem pout like a child.
“Sorry about that…” Azem lowered his gaze, back to the paper in his hands, “If I do write more often, will you at least make sure I won’t go down in history as the most boring Azem ever?”
“Regardless of how many tangents you go off in each paragraph, your predecessors are still quite hard to beat. You may have a better chance by adhering to the guidelines.”
Azem did his best to stifle a laugh, and Emet-Selch just shook his head in faked disapproval. His brother, being the hellion that he was, somehow found a lot he fitted quite well with.
“Then I guess I must try even harder. Well, if you excuse me, I do want to get this done in time to get some sleep. The Pororoca river delta is quite far from here.”
“Pororoca, huh?” Emet-Selch crossed his arms, “Quite far indeed… And out of the Convocation’s sphere if I remember correctly.”
“I’ve heard the river itself forms waves long before reaching the sea around this time of year, and the people celebrate those who brave it. And so I thought, why not see it for myself? Worry not, brother, I will go undercover this time around. No diplomatic incidents there if I can help it.”
“Isn’t that a huge ‘if’ by itself? You speak as if trouble didn’t follow in your footsteps.”
“I like to think I follow the trouble, not the other way around. You know, as it is my job?”
“I shall pretend I didn’t hear that, as it is too late for lectures on what your duty actually is, brat.”
“Then I shall quietly return to my report. You’ll have to take your gripes with it in the morning.” Azem waved him off.
“Very well. But trust me, if it is unsubmittable due to being written in the throes of sleep deprivation, I will drag you back to Amaurot for rewrites.”
“Fine, fine,” Azem sighed, “I will make sure to pester you the entire time, so be warned.”
“Oh, the sacrifices we have to make for the sake of half-decent record keeping.”
“I’m sure it’s nothing you can’t handle.”
To his side, Persephone shifted, still blissfully asleep. Emet-Selch allowed his expression to soften a bit. Azem took the cue to return to his writing, and the room basked in silence once more.
In recent years, they had been quite busy. All of them. Hythlodaeus and Persephone, living in Amaurot, made them easy to reach despite everything. Azem, on the other hand, flew here and there, with barely a plan and even less back up.
Persephone had traveled with him when he first took the Seat of Azem, but, despite her protests about him being alone out there, he insisted she deserved to be home with her family as much as anyone else. Emet-Selch still remembered when she told him about their parting, the worry written clearly on her face, even when she admitted to missing her husband dearly in each of her letters.
“Phanes,” he called quietly, still looking at his wife, “I am aware that you called us due to our expertise being relevant to the situation.”
Emet-Selch looked back at his brother, whose attention was back on him, without any pretense. Just a quiet curiosity in golden eyes in the dark of night.
“However, if you ever feel like you could use our help, do not hesitate to call upon us. Even if it isn’t strictly necessary.”
“Are you sure?” Azem asked cautiously, as if there was anything he could say that would offend, “I’m aware you’re a busy person,” he continued, “I don’t wish to bother.”
“A bother it might be,” Emet-Selch shrugged, “But I’d rather spend a few days dealing with your nonsense than be left in the dark while my little brother faces heavens know what sort
of hardships he may come across.”
Azem’s lips parted slightly in surprise, his expression rather subdued. But he nodded, and replied with a quiet “I shall.”
It would take some time for his brother to take this to heart, but Emet-Selch was satisfied. He nodded back, and feeling his wife tugging at his robes, moved back to his sleeping position.
He heard a quiet “Good night,” and left it at that.
~X~
The next report came with a letter attached, addressed to Hades and Persephone. Apparently, the waves were disturbed by a water elemental making its home upstream and making a mess of the local ecosystem. Phanes said he managed to stay unnoticed, but the official thank-you statement the Convocation received a week later made for a hard counter- argument.
~X~
Of Shadows
“Azem!”
He called over the flames. From where Emet-Selch was he could see his brother’s back, almost a fleeting shadow before the towering beast in front of him. It wasn’t like him to waver in front of danger, but he stood still for perhaps a second too long, and Emet-Selch would not take any risks.
With a quick swing of his staff, he flung a bolt of lightning laced with darkness at the creature. It recoiled from the hit and not a moment too late, for a small seed of light above its head bloomed into an white explosion, engulfing the monster and returning it to nothingness.
"You should know better than to be careless at times like this."
Azem looked over his shoulder, did his best to offer a smile that came across as little more than a forced twitch of his lips, and shrugged. "I'd like to think I had it under control. But thanks."
His face was bare, his mask nowhere around him.
He must have lost it somewhere, Emet-Selch told himself. Other than that old scar around his chin and scorched robes, Azem seemed fine, so he would take it as an acceptable loss. They could make a new mask at a later date.
"Right." Emet-Selch crossed his arms. "If you've finished here, then we need you to clean up the south residential district. Most people have evacuated, but there are still monsters about and we don't want another panic-"
"Aren’t you going to get into trouble for asking me this?”
“I don’t believe anyone is in position to complain about your little tantrum as long as you make yourself useful.”
Under normal circumstances, Emet-Selch would bet his little brother would gasp and pretend to be terribly offended, but never had he seen Azem this tired. His instincts yelled at him to go offer him some support, make sure he got home safe and whole, but he stood his ground, and so did Azem.
"When I said I was leaving, I meant it."
"We both know that was full of bullshit. If you had any real arguments back there, you would have argued."
Emet-Selch kept his eyes fixed on Azem. He knew his brother, he could read him like an open book and he was looking for an opening. Anything that would get that idiot to see reason and go back with him. Anything.
Instead, he saw Azem do something that he found out he hated more than anything else. He took one step after another, not moving away but not moving closer either. He was circling, like a feline beast, who was merely deciding the best moment to pounce.
Anyone would be on edge under this sort of gaze, but Emet-Selch knew him. If Azem was even thinking of doing something, it was a bluff. He would never raise a hand against family. So no, Emet-Selch wasn't unnerved by that. What pissed him off was that Azem wasn't even angry.
If he had been, then Emet-Selch knew how to deal with him. But this was a quiet resolution that he had never been able to dissuade his brother from. Their world had finally taken a step back from their march to the end, and now he chooses to be stubborn.
"The summoning worked. The Final Days are over." Emet-Selch informed him. He doubted Azem was unaware, but he wouldn't give him the pleasure of playing dumb. "We can start recovering what we've lost, and for that, we could use someone with your experience."
"Anyone with a third of my experience would refuse to help this insanity, so, good luck with that."
"Cheeky, aren't you now? One would think that the end of our world would finally teach you something about responsibility, but you do have a knack for proving me wrong. Then, pray tell, what would you have us do now?"
Azem gave pause, weighing his words before giving them voice in an effort to sound neutral. "We rebuild. We live. It is a miracle that we are alive, let us not waste it."
“And what do you think we’re trying to do, Azem, that you felt you would do better by turning your back on us?” He pressed, because if he pressed enough his soft-hearted brother would give in, surely.
But he saw, in the clenching of his jaw, in the edge of his eyes, that the next words that would come out would be more deadly than any weapon.
“You would feed this very star so your god can feast on it.”
Azem didn’t need to say anything else for Emet-Selch to grasp at the depth of his misguided fury. His brother, who had eyes trained on him, looked past him like he wasn’t even there, and with a few simple words drew his blade against their savior. There would be no argument to dissuade him from it.
His chest tightened once more, like his heart was trying to collapse into itself. However, they stood among the wrecks of their beloved home, surrounded by the cries of their people and the smell of smoke. In those days of tragedy, he had become so familiar with the feeling he was able to soldier on.
But that seed of fear had taken root deep within him, and it began to sprout. Only two people could claim they would fight a god and pull it off. One stood in front of him and the other had run off to heavens know where.
“Nothing of much worth would be lost,” Hades stated, reigning in his runaway emotions, “At least, nothing worth anywhere as much as the souls of our people.”
“We are not so above all the other life in this star that we can just demand that they forfeit their entire existence to return to our bygone days, Hades! Shouldn’t you know this better than anyone?” Azem raised his voice, a quiet desperate plea hiding behind it. It reminded him of the days his baby brother would follow him around like a lost duckling.
“We are the reason they exist in the first place, Azem. It is just-”
“That we forsake them?”
“Then would you forsake Hythlodaeus?”
Azem stopped. He looked as if Emet-Selch had just slapped him. So he grasped at the implications of that. Good.
He wasn’t there when the summoning was performed. He wasn’t there to hear Hythlodaeus' farewells. Perhaps that was a mercy. Perhaps he would have been able to convince him to stay.
“I understand your worries. We have never employed our creation magicks in this manner, but our work is not done. I will personally make sure their sacrifice was not in vain. Until then, have faith in Elidibus. Were you not an advocate for his talents despite his age?”
“I-” Azem shut his eyes, his voice sounding so small as Emet-Selch had not heard in years.
Pity would not serve either of them at that moment. Emet-Selch crossed the distance and grabbed him by the arm. He would not allow his brother to retreat now, lest he create more danger for himself and others.
“Listen to me. We return now and finish our duty. We owe them that much. You cannot defy Zodiark without sullying their names.”
Azem slowly opened his eyes, some tension slipping away from his shoulders. For a fraction of a second, Emet-Selch dared to hope. He hoped that he would see in his bare face that same kid who would run to him when faced with the unfamiliar and fearful, who tugged at his robes and asked what they should do before the unknown.
His hopes were dashed when his little brother merely shook his head. Deep in his soul, those dark roots spread even further.
Yet, Azem’s face quickly shifted to something alert. Before Emet-Selch could turn around, his brother pulled the arm that held him and swung his cane in a quick barrier magick around them.
The terminus monster swept down at them from behind his back, and it took to the sky just as quick. Emet-Selch regained his balance and as soon as the barrier was unmade he flung a barrage of fire and shadows at the being. Its speed was great. If it knew despair, it surely fueled its flight as he had packed enough power in the magicks tailing it that it would not survive.
Tendrils of light cut through its wings, and it was caught in a dark explosion before it could vanish over the burning city’s horizon.
Emet-Selch composed himself. Azem looked apologetic for having given him no warning, as if it had been his fault. Sadly, Emet-Selch was too tired to care about it.
“Just when you think you have seen enough of these beasts…”
“I don’t think it’s over just yet.”
“With them?” Emet-Selch asked, genuinely curious on whether Azem’s little defection would give them any better insight on where that wrecked noise even came from.
“Call it a hunch.” His little brother just shrugged instead. Disappointing. “But part of them is here to stay.”
“Would you kindly cut the cryptic statements and get to the point. We have wasted enough time already.”
“We can’t go back, Hades. Even if… Even if we do bring them back, what star would they see? If we go through your plan, we will have failed our duty to Etheirys. If we bring back our loved ones, what of those who cannot come back? If we deny this pain, then how are we to heal our wounds?”
“Azem, we have more-”
“Phanes is okay, you know,” His brother cut. His voice wasn’t unkind in the slightest. For his older brother’s ears, it held no malice or resentment. Just a dim lightness of someone unafraid of sharing his own heart.
The roots gnawed at him. That was what made Azem so dangerous.
“South residential district, right? I’ll be there soon, but don’t wait for me. I have some things to do. See you later, Hades.”
He waved and turned around to leave.
Emet-Selch gripped at his staff with so much force he could feel the tip of his fingers start to lose blood. By his seat at the Convocation, if Azem would not return willingly, then he should tie up any loose ends. If he decided to be a threat, then he ought to be treated as one.
Hades did nothing as he watched his brother walk on, hand in his ear to discuss some matter with someone unknown and a voice too far away for it to reach him anymore.
~X~
For the first centuries after the sundering, he searched for them. Their smiles, their laughter, their voices in the wind. He found nothing but wretched mockeries.