Chapter Text
Anaxa gave a tense sigh, head pillowed in one hand as he stared at his desk in the dead of night. Before him sat his… unfortunate project, the anti-corruptive emitter. He frowned deeply, staring at the device.
What to do…
“You know…” He heard from behind him, and he only frowned deeper at the voice, “Simply staring at it won’t solve anything.”
“I am well aware of that, Cerces.” He muttered. She huffed behind him.
“So then what are you going to do?” She asked, her tone curt. He could imagine her tilting her head at him in question, and he sighed.
“I cannot leave things as they are.” He began.
“No, I don’t think you can.” She agreed. He saw, out of the corner of his eye, her spectre coming up to stand, or rather, float, beside him.
To simply hand the device over to Caenis as though nothing had happened… as though he didn’t know what he now knew-
He remembered… the other night. Making their way through an abandoned Grove, bit by bit. Cerces urging him to turn around, only to see-
Phainon. Braced against the wall, pale and trembling. A choked cough, and a lurch of gold that had Anaxa’s heart dropping as Castorice turned to see what he was looking at. His blood had run cold- As he watched Phainon fall, pitching forward as his eyes rolled back. Castorice’s call, unanswered. Phainon’s form- weak and agonized on the floor.
He never wanted to see Phainon like that again. His heart ached at the memory, at seeing the one he held… so dear in such pain. Never again.
“Then do something.” Cerces urged, her voice strangely… gentle. He sighed.
“What do you propose I do, then?” He muttered bitterly. “Incite a direct confrontation? You’ve heard the rumors just as well as I.”
“That she commands the Cleaners of old.” She finished for him. “Indeed, I have. However, there doesn’t necessarily need to be a… direct approach.”
Anaxa raised a brow in her direction, finally looking towards her. She wore the same smile she always did, her face revealing nothing.
Glancing back towards the device, he began to think, mind whirring in the vacuum Cerces’ silence had left.
If he were to… not destroy it, but rather modify it… yes, that might work. Replace the emitter with a simple noisemaker, one incapable of producing the correct frequency. Then, give it to Caenis as tasked. When her demonstration fails…
He frowned. A number of things could still occur.
“True. But, I believe… that idea is a step in the right direction.” Cerces said softly. Anaxa frowned.
“I don’t need your encouragement.” He huffed, standing up and collecting the device in hand before walking away with it.
Cerces gave no response.
He had only taken a few steps when he heard a thundering crack coming from his bedroom. It was quickly followed by a tumbling crash, and Anaxa rushed over to find that the ceiling had caved in, burying all of his belongings in a thick layer of rubble and dust.
The ceiling gave another groan, and Anaxa swore under his breath. He rushed to gather what little he could, before hurrying out and into the rest of his house. The cracks had spread through the ceiling, and it looked as though the rest of the building was in danger of collapse.
Damn it. Anaxa had only just moved in to this small home a few weeks ago – following the collapse of the Grove. He hadn’t had any time to inspect for- for structural integrity of all things.
Just how old were the buildings in Okhema that they were susceptible to such- spontaneous collapse!?
He swore again, running out of the house and out onto the street, illuminated by the ever-shining Dawn Device, despite it being well past the Parting Hour. He set his things down with a heavy exhale, catching his breath as his weakened body protested the spike of adrenaline. He felt the coreflame within his chest pulse faintly, reminding him keenly of its presence.
The building behind him gave another groan, and a few more fragments of ceiling fell down. The walls remained standing, and the building still seemed mostly intact when everything finally settled. But the debris everywhere would certainly take a while to clear.
Anaxa gave the sonic device on the ground a dirty look, mourning the fact that it hadn’t been destroyed in the collapse.
He gave a deep sigh, dragging a hand over his face.
With a deep frown, he pulled out his teleslate and typed out a text message.
<From: Anaxagoras>
> The infrastructure of your city needs work.
He huffed, but before he could pocket his teleslate, there was already a response. Anaxa glanced at the time, wondering just what she was doing awake at such a late hour.
<From: Aglaea>
> It seems my threads missed the warning signs from your building. Apologies. I’ll send someone over at the Entry Hour to help clear the debris.
Anaxa gave an irritated sigh, pocketing his teleslate without replying. Just what was he supposed to do until then?
Gathering up his things again, he made his way to a nearby square, where he sat down on the grass with a sigh. The light of the Dawn Device was irritatingly bright at such a late hour, but he supposed it couldn’t be helped.
He glanced down at the device in his hands, wishing he could just throw the damned thing off of the cliffside at the edge of the city.
With a sigh, he resigned himself to a sleepless night.
It was only the next day that help arrived, in the form of Phainon and Mydeimos. They’d gotten most of the rubble cleared, as it was small enough for them to manage, but the house was still rather uninhabitable. It was only when they were finally wrapped up, that talk of lodging started up.
“You know, you could stay with me for the night.” Phainon offered, as the last cart of debris trotted off. Anaxa had to suppress a frown. He was well aware of his own… feelings, for the man, and the idea of being in such close quarters with him for the night was a rather uncomfortable thought. It had been different, when they were on a mission. It had been different, with Castorice there. But just the two of them… oh, how Anaxa’s heart would hurt. The idea of being so close, yet so far brought with it a tinge of anticipatory pain.
“I’m afraid I’ll have to decline.” Anaxa said. When Phainon frowned, Anaxa realized the potential implications of his denial, and backtracked. “I’m simply… not a very social person. Forgive me.”
“But where would you stay?” Phainon asked, still frowning. Anaxa hated to see such a look on his face.
“He could crash with me.” Mydei offered. Anaxa still had to suppress a frown, the idea just as unpleasant. Both for a reason he could not name, and the sheer fact alone that siding with Mydei would only be proving Phainon’s skewed perception.
Anaxa was well aware of the fact that Phainon did not hold himself in very high regard. He wasn’t sure if that had been a lifelong thing, or if the presence of the Black Tide within him brought that view upon him. Either way, Phainon viewed himself as a ‘monster’, a terrible thing that should be hated. He operated under the assumption that others would view him the same way.
Anaxa remembered his fear, the ‘I- I can explain.’ as he tried to hide himself away, for fear that his identity, as a whole, would be rejected. He knew that Phainon’s first assumptions of those who knew the truth was never anything positive, simply because he couldn’t see himself in a positive light on his own.
Siding with Mydei, for reasons he wasn’t willing to explain, for that matter… Would only ‘prove’ Phainon’s assumptions to be correct. It would break him.
And Anaxa… he couldn’t bear to do that to him.
“I…” He offered, trailing off. Mydei remained silent. “I’m afraid not.” He answered, and Phainon only frowned again.
“But… where would you stay? You’ve got nowhere to go!” Phainon said, sounding rather distressed on his behalf.
“Oh just go stay with him, will you?” Cerces piped up, rather exasperated. Anaxa mentally hissed at her to shut up.
“I’m sure I’ll manage to figure something out. Do not worry.” He said after a moment, adjusting his sleeve as he spoke.
Phainon was quiet for a long moment, looking lost. Mydei simply frowned with disapproval.
Anaxa sighed internally. Perhaps Phainon was already overthinking things. Curse his weak heart.
“Stop making that face, Phainon.” He chided with a small huff. “If you want to help that much, I suppose I could stay with you for the night.” He said, and predictably, Phainon’s face lit up in surprise and relief.
“Really? You’re sure..?” He said hesitantly.
“I’m not in the habit of saying things I don’t mean.” Anaxa drawled. He could almost hear Cerces suppressing laughter, and he once again mentally told her to shut up.
Mydei seemed to perk up with a thought from where he was stood at Phainon’s side.
“I found you in the square this morning. Did you… even sleep? Or eat?” Mydei asked, brows furrowing with concern. Phainon’s face gained a look of almost… offense, for a moment, before it morphed into determination. Before Anaxa could even answer, Phainon spoke up.
“It’s about lunchtime anyways. Why don’t we head over to my place and I can make you something?” He offered, his gaze softening somewhat. Anaxa frowned. It was true he hadn’t eaten since… yesterday morning, but he’d gone longer without in pursuit of his research during long experiments. He sighed.
“If you insist.”
“I’ll be coming with to make sure what you make him is actually edible.” Mydei drawled. Phainon gasped in mock offense.
“You’re the one who taught me how to cook! If I mess up, it reflects on you, dear Mydeimos.” He huffed, crossing his arms.
“You’ve had two weeks of practice at most. Not to mention you can’t even eat what you make.” He added, lowering his voice on the last part without losing any of his teasing tone. Phainon rolled his eyes, though there was a smile on his face.
“Alright, your highness, you can come help.” He said, turning to walk away.
“I think I will, thank you.” Mydei quipped, easily following him. And oh…
How these two made Anaxa’s heart hurt.
Their playful banter was a sight to behold, to close yet so very far. He so desperately wished that he was able to put a smile like that on Phainon’s face. He would even bear Mydei’s teasing just to be part of that… bubble of peace they seemed to hold.
But… such things were not for men like Anaxagoras. He sighed, stepping forward to follow them quietly. Though Cerces remained silent, he could almost sense her quiet disagreement.
It didn’t take them long to reach Phainon’s house, where the man held the door open for them to enter. The first thing Anaxa noticed was that it was cleaner than the last time he’d been in here, right when Mydei had just brought Phainon back from wherever he’d run off.
Back then, Phainon’s house had still been in somewhat disarray from his hasty escape. Anaxa had been the one to clean up the shards of the broken mirror- as Mydei’s lap had been occupied by one sleeping Deliverer. Not that Anaxa minded, really.
Now, the pillows of the couch were perfectly placed. Nothing appeared disturbed, merely lived-in.
The three of them made their way towards the kitchen once the front door was closed behind them. Anaxa merely leaned against a counter to watch as Phainon started retrieving supplies. Mydei made his way over to stand next to Anaxa, merely supervising.
“I heard about what happened at the Grove.” Mydei said quietly, as Phainon perused a cookbook. Anaxa noticed Phainon’s head tilt their way somewhat, as if the low sound didn’t quite escape his hearing. He disregarded it, as Mydei continued. “Thank you for saving his life.” He said, his voice genuine and heavy with the weight of his words.
“Anyone else would have done the same.” Anaxa responded, just as quiet despite knowing full well Phainon could hear them. “It’s idiotic to think his life is worth any less than anyone else’s simply because of a curse he bears.” He huffed, and Mydei gave a soft laugh.
“Not surprised you see it that way.” He remarked, crossing his arms over his chest as he looked at Phainon fondly. Phainon had grabbed a mixing bowl, and was in the process of adding ingredients, carefully studying the cookbook. “You’ve always scoffed at the notion of gods and demons.”
“Don’t even get me started.” Anaxa scoffed. “But yes. The way I see it, he’s no different than the rest of us. Not in any way that matters, at least.”
Mydei hummed. “Good. I’m glad you see it that way.” He said softly, before going quiet for a moment. “…Phainon needs more people like that in his corner.” He said, his voice even quieter than before.
Phainon stilled where he had been about to crack an egg, almost imperceptibly. To anyone other than Anaxa’s sharp eye, it might have looked like he was taking a second glance at the cookbook. But Anaxa could tell his eyes were staring through the counter at nothing in particular. He let out a soft breath, clearly touched by Mydei’s words, as he continued his prep work.
“…He does.” Anaxa softly agreed, as Phainon grabbed the next ingredient.
Mydei startled, before stepping forward. “Don’t add that much vanilla, you’ll make it bitter.” He chided, grabbing a different measuring spoon from the set to hand to Phainon. “Use this one.” He offered, and Phainon looked between them before abruptly realizing he had indeed grabbed the wrong one.
“Ah, thanks Mydei! I wouldn’t have even noticed.” He laughed a bit sheepishly, and Mydei smiled fondly.
As Anaxa watched them work, setting a pan on the stove to heat, a thought entered his mind.
The sonic emitter… Where was it? Had he… taken it with him?
No… thinking back, he hadn’t grabbed it before leaving. It had been on the front porch of the building, but in all the work of cleaning up, it… well, he’d lost track of it. Mentally retracing his steps, he couldn’t figure out where or when it moved.
All things considered, it could even still be right where he left it. But he definitely didn’t remember taking it with him.
That was… not good. He still hadn’t modified it, hadn’t had the chance to. He pushed off of the counter, moving towards the door with urgency. He tried to reason with himself that one of the others had grabbed it- they wouldn’t just leave it, but human beings weren’t infallible and they could have overlooked it.
“Wait, where are you going?” Mydei asked, cutting through Anaxa’s thoughts as the sounds of sizzling Honeycake batter could be heard.
“I left something at my lodgings.” Anaxa replied, stopping in his tracks. “I need to go retrieve it.”
“You haven’t eaten all day. Whatever it is… I’m sure it can wait, right?” Phainon offered. Anaxa frowned, still not moving to return. His words wouldn’t form in his mind, unable to formulate a good rebuttal. He didn’t want to worry them. He couldn’t worry them if it turned out to be nothing- But he still needed to go check-
After a long, heavy silence, suddenly Anaxa heard footsteps.
Before he could even realize what was happening, Mydei was in front of him, strong arms grabbing him by the waist to hoist Anaxa up over one shoulder. Anaxa gave a mortifying squeak at the sharp movement, before he realized just what was happening.
“Wh- Put me down! Mydeimos!!” He spluttered, face burning.
“Whatever it is will have to wait until you eat and rest.” Mydei said firmly, before setting him down rather gently on Phainon’s couch. Anaxa was a bit frozen with shock, unsure how to properly react as his face flamed. The way Mydei had so easily lifted him up and carried him away had caught Anaxa off guard, and he was left reeling. The way the prince had so effortlessly hauled him around…
…Wait.
…was he attracted to both of them?
That’s just not fair.
“Maybe don’t be so easy to pick up.” Mydei joked, and Anaxa abruptly realized he’d said the last part aloud. His face burned hotter, and he abruptly looked away, refusing to meet Mydei’s eye.
“Aren’t you supposed to be helping Phainon?” He snapped, and Mydei, the bastard, just laughed at him. Blissfully, though, his footsteps retreated, and Anaxa was left to quell the flustered feeling overtaking his whole face. He gave an irritated huff, forcing himself to relax.
…He still needed to check on the device. But… he scowled, his face heating again as he realized he’d likely receive more of the same treatment if he tried to slip away.
He sighed, leaning back into the soft cushions. ...Maybe after he’d eaten, he could convince them to let him leave.
He could almost hear Cerces laughing at him. He decided to ignore her.
After a moment, Anaxa cracked an eye, glancing over at where Phainon and Mydei were stood, cooking together. They looked so… domestic. The sight put a pang of longing in Anaxa’s heart. One he now realized… applied to both of them. He had thought… the longing in his heart was for Phainon, and he’d reasoned with himself that it would be a… compromise, of sorts, to be with Mydei as well. How ridiculous of a thought in hindsight.
He sighed. They had each other. ...They didn’t need him. Besides… if he remembered correctly, Cerces estimated he only had but one month left before the Coreflame ate away at him entirely.
They didn’t need him.
Nor should they get attached to a dying man.
Once they’d eaten, they finally allowed Anaxa to return to his old lodgings to search for the device. However, no matter how much he searched, he couldn’t find it anywhere. The thought settled like an icy stone in his chest, dread making his stomach churn.
“What is it you’re looking for?” Phainon asked hesitantly. Anaxa sighed, hands clenching into fists.
“The anti-corruptive device.” He stated plainly. “I presume neither of you brought it with you?”
There was silence for a long moment.
“No. No, I… I didn’t even think about it.” Phainon muttered. Anaxa could hear the fear edging his voice, and cursed himself for putting it there.
“Neither did I.” Mydei grumbled lowly, clearly chiding himself for the misstep. Anaxa sighed.
“I haven’t had a chance to modify it yet. Were it to fall into the wrong hands, it would still function exactly as intended. It… could still bring great harm.” Anaxa said grimly.
“Perhaps it was placed on a cart? Among the rubble and destroyed furniture, it might have blended right in.” Cerces offered. Anaxa sighed.
“Cerces… seems to think it could have been placed on a cart with the rest of the waste.” He relayed.
“Yeah… hopefully that’s…” Phainon said, trailing off.
Anaxa held much the same sentiment. He desperately wanted to believe it, but…
The idea rang hollow in his chest.
Phainon gave one last glance towards the couch, where Anaxa was sat scowling at his teleslate. While it felt rude to leave Anaxa alone, he knew the man didn’t need babysitting. Far from it. And, Phainon had his own things to do. Anaxa had insisted that, despite everything, he still get it done.
Things had been… tense, last night, after the discovery that the anti-corruptive device was missing.
Phainon remembered wandering out of his room in the middle of the night for a snack and… catching Anaxa rather off guard.
Phainon paused, staring at the gun pointed right at his face. He was several feet away from the couch, where Anaxa was sat half-laying, half-sitting. Anaxa was breathing heavily, squinting into the darkness, and Phainon abruptly realized the other man couldn’t see in the dark like he could.
Abruptly, Anaxa seemed to realize who he had in front of him, and dropped the gun with an exasperated huff.
“Why are you even up?” Anaxa grumbled, rather irritated. “It’s the middle of the night, and some people are trying to sleep.”
“Ah.” Phainon said, “I didn’t realize my walking would wake you. …Sorry.” He apologized, somewhat sheepishly.
After a moment, Anaxa sighed, putting away his gun and sitting up properly.
“Do you realize your eyes are reflective? That is to say, that they glow in the darkness?” Anaxa huffed.
Phainon paused for a minute. “N- No?”
“It’s creepy.”
Safe to say, he’d given Anaxa quite the scare. Though, things easily smoothed over when they both realized what was actually happening. They’d had a short talk, and Phainon had mentioned his plans for the day. Anaxa’s response…
“I’d suggest you do it before you no longer have the option.”
Phainon swallowed roughly, finally stepping out the door. Today, he planned to tell those of the Chrysos Heirs who weren’t aware of his… condition, the full truth. Just as the door clicked shut behind him, his teleslate pinged with a message.
< From: Tribbie >
> You won’t believe it, but little Ciphy’s in town!
> You said you had something to talk to us about, right? Maybe she could tag along!
Phainon gave a soft smile. He hadn’t had very many interactions with Cipher, but in all most of them had been quite positive. Underneath her mischievous demeanor, he could tell that she really cared about those closest to her. Though she often tried to hide said fact. He wouldn’t mind her knowing as well.
< From: Phainon >
> Thank you, Lady Tribbie. That sounds wonderful.
> Please don’t forget to invite miss Hyacine as well.
He smiled softly, before pocketing his teleslate. Stress still managed to wind its way around his chest, both out of apprehension of willingly telling someone for once, and the looming threat lurking just out of sight.
He let out a breath, trying to calm himself down before he could get too worked up. There was no use stressing about things.
Mind made up, he set off.
He figured the only relatively private place to talk would be the Vortex of Genesis, as the Heirs often used it as a sort of meeting place. So, he texted Tribbie to meet him there, and slipped inside using a spirit basin.
Once inside, he… really had nothing to do other than wait. So, he sat down on the slight step up to the main basin, and simply waited.
It didn’t take long for the others to arrive, trailing in one after the other. He motioned for them to come over, and Tribbie was the first to sit down, cross-legged in front of him. Cipher took up a spot next to her, whilst Hyacine decided to sit next to Phainon. Tribbie, was, unsurprisingly, alone. He imagined the other two had their own duties to see to.
Phainon took a deep breath, fiddling with his gloves out of anxiety.
“Is Aglaea not coming?” He asked. Tribbie shook her head.
“She’s busy inspecting all her threads. Aggy wants to make extra sure no other building is in danger of collapse like Naxy’s was.” She said. Cipher piped up, crossing her arms.
“She seemed quite upset in the first place that even one building had slipped through her notice. She’ll be at that for a while.”
Phainon simply nodded. The silence seemed to… stretch, as he continued fiddling with his gloves.
“So, hero boy.” Cipher said, leaning forward suddenly. “What juicy secrets have you got to share with us?” Cipher joked, though he could tell it was only because she’d noticed how stressed he was. He… kind of appreciated the attempt at lightening the mood. Still, he… couldn’t quite bring himself to start yet.
“…I’ve noticed you wearing those gloves recently.” Tribbie spoke up, her voice soft. “They look nice.” She offered. Phainon huffed a small laugh, at the irony that she was trying to distract him with something that was the result of the topic of discussion.
Letting out a breath, he finally began to speak, eyes focused on a spot of stone floor.
“What… I’m going to tell you, all of the other Chrysos Heirs have figured out already. In… one way or another, through circumstances that… couldn’t be avoided.” He said, finding it difficult to push the words out of his mouth.
“Hyacine already knows some of the details, but… not much.” He said, and out of the corner of his eye, he could see the realization cross her face at what he was talking about.
“When I was fourteen…” He began. And slowly, bit by bit, the whole story flowed out from him. For once, he gave as much detail as he could. He’d only told so much to Mydei, in the soft hush of night when it was just the two of them, secluded away from the bustle of life during Phainon’s break. It felt… freeing, in a way.
When he described his corruption, he removed his gloves as a sort of… visual signifier. At that point, Tribbie finally stepped forward to take his hand in hers. A silent comfort.
By the time he was finished, the mood had definitely sombered several notches.
“That’s insane.” Cipher finally huffed, disbelief coloring her tone. She very quickly backtracked, however, when she realized how that sounded. “I believe you, I believe you- It’s just… Do you realize you’re… the only person who has ever survived the black tide?” She asked. “Do you… have any idea why?”
“No.” Phainon laughed wetly, his head held in his free hand. “No, I don’t- I don’t know why I was the only one who survived when everyone else…” He trailed off, voice choked and unable to finish his sentence.
“Shit, I’m sorry.” Cipher said, her voice soft. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
“No, I- I know.” Phainon said, taking a deep and shuddering breath before shaking his head. “I remember… what it felt like. It burned. It felt like it was eating away at me.” He recounted softly, eyes wide as he stared at nothing. “I remember thinking… ‘I will not die here.’” He said. “’I will not die here.’” He repeated.
“And then all of a sudden everything felt… ice cold. Like someone dumped a bucket of water on me. And it… stopped. I don’t…” He trailed off shaking his head, before sitting up properly.
“I don’t know what happened.” He said softly.
“Maybe…” Tribbie began, still holding his hand with both of hers. “Maybe it was your willpower that saved you.” She offered. Phainon shook his head.
“If it were that simple, then I probably wouldn’t be the only one.” He said, and Tribbie frowned.
“Either way…” Hyacine cut in, her hand on his shoulder. “We’re grateful you’re still here. I remember that… haunted look in your eyes when I first found you in the Grove. You’ve come so far, Phainon. And you know what? I already had an idea about the blood.” She laughed, somewhat wetly. “Lady Aglaea comes in with a partially corrupted charge, then out of nowhere starts asking me to ship her half our blood stores?” She laughed. Phainon blanched.
“Half!?” He asked, shock on his face. She just shook her head, still smiling.
“We didn’t take many donations back then, as we… didn’t need much. We didn’t have a lot to start with. We upped our donations after you came along, I promise. No one ever went without. Including you.” She said, he voice sincere. Phainon just sighed, unable to argue.
“Oh yeah! We had a question!” Tribbie suddenly piped up. Phainon easily turned his attention back to her. “If you’re part corrupted, then… wouldn’t the cleansing waters of the Hero’s Baths hurt?” She asked, head turned to the side in thought.
Phainon couldn’t help but laugh, caught off guard by the sudden question. He was still slightly reeling that they truly didn’t care, but it was incredibly easy to toss aside in favor of how everyone else had accepted him so far.
“No, I wouldn’t say they do.” He answered. “It… sorta tingles, I guess? Nothing any worse than the Dawn Device, at least.” He shrugged.
“Wait, the Dawn Device bothers you?” Hyacine suddenly asked. Phainon hummed.
“A bit. The way I’ve phrased it before is that it’s… an imitation of sunlight. That’s what really hurts.” He said, giving another shrug. “The Dawn Device pales in comparison, really.” He explained, and suddenly a realization seemed to hit Hyacine’s face.
“Is that what that burn was!?” She gasped. Phainon’s brows furrowed in confusion, before he suddenly remembered what she was talking about.
“You still remember that?” He asked, incredulous. Hyacine just smacked his shoulder.
“That was one of the worst burns I’ve ever seen!” She scolded. “The sun did that?” Unable to retort, Phainon just nodded. He gently pulled his hand free from Tribbie’s own to pull the sleeve of that arm up, revealing a deep burn scar across his forearm.
“At least it healed alright?” He offered, with a shrug.
“Hero boy, can you even feel anything there anymore?” Cipher asked dryly. Phainon gave it a glance.
“…No. Not really.”
Hyacine just rolled her eyes and smacked him again. “You have a terrible habit of trivializing your health.” She chided, though Phainon knew her tone was lighthearted.
The merry atmosphere was interrupted by the sound of clacking footsteps, echoing through the Vortex towards them. Curious to know if Aglaea had decided to join them, Phainon glanced up, leaning around Tribbie’s frame to see who was walking in.
His blood turned to ice when he saw none other than Elder Caenis walking towards them. Her hands were clasped elegantly behind her back, and she was walking towards them like she had nothing to fear. She was smiling.
“You-! How did you even get in here?” Cipher asked, incredulous, as she stood up and whirled around to face Caenis.
“I will admit, it took me quite some time to figure out where you’d all gone. But I have my Cleaners to thank for that. They followed you in, you see. Completely unnoticed~” She sang, a triumphant smile on her face. “It was rather easy to slip in once they’d reported back to me.”
Tribbie stood up, turning around as Phainon remained frozen. Hyacine had stood up as well, an arm held out protectively in front of him. Even without knowing the details of why Caenis was here, they still jumped to protect him…
“You shouldn’t even be able to use the spirit basin! How did you even get through?” Tribbie demanded.
Caenis tutted, walking closer. “You think I wouldn’t find the most talented staff I could? I’m smarter than you give me credit for, little one.”
“We’re older than you.” Tribbie huffed softly, crossing her arms. Finally, Phainon stood up.
“How did no one stop you?” He asked, voice grim.
“I have my Cleaners to thank for that as well. They’ve been keeping the others… rather busy, you see.” She said, with the most sadistic little grin on her face.
“Shit. Aglaea!” Cipher muttered. Phainon realized the same thing she did: That Aglaea was very distracted right now, and might not notice an attack. Her threads may be vast, but if she was so immersed in the ones far away from herself… well, her mind couldn’t possibly be everywhere at once.
“Take the others and go.” Phainon said. “I can handle this myself.” Cipher nodded, before she was gone in a flash, leaving Phainon alone. Stepping forward slightly, Phainon scowled.
“Why are you here?” He asked. Caenis just smiled.
“Why… I am here to bring you this!” She said, voice dripping with false cheer and malice. With a flourish of her hands, she carefully brought them out from behind her back to show the blasted sonic emitter cradled within. Just the sight of it sent a pit of ice-cold dread through Phainon’s chest, and he swallowed roughly.
“You see, I happened to… Stumble across this little device yesterday. You three were too busy to notice when it… conveniently disappeared.” She said, before her smile dropped.
“My Cleaners had brought word back to me that the dear Professor planned to render it inert, and well… I couldn’t allow that to happen. Because, you see… There’s one last thing that needs cleansed from this holy city.” She said, her gaze turning dangerous as she held it out towards him with one hand. She was too far away for him to even hope to take it from her- He didn’t know what he could do.
“I would like one thing from you, creature.” She spat. “You seemed so comfortable airing your filth to the other Chrysos Heirs just now… So I want you to say it to me. I want you to admit it. That you are a monster of the Black Tide.” Phainon swallowed roughly, feeling like there was a lump in his throat.
“Why?” He asked plainly, hands itching to reach for his sword. “Why not just kill me right now?”
“I’d very much like to savor this victory first.” She said, pulling her hand back towards herself to idly toy with the device. “If you don’t say it… I’ll simply have to drag it out of you.”
“Good luck with that.” Phainon scoffed. He idly wondered if anyone even knew he was down here. If anyone would be coming to his rescue, or if he’d have to grit his teeth and bear the pain of the sonic emitter in order to fight his way out.
“Lets start with the first glaring issue. The blood. When I first caught wind that the Chrysos Heirs were ‘anonymously’ receiving donations of blood packs with seemingly no real use, I naturally decided to look into it. It took me quite a while to trace it back to you, I’ll give you that. But once I did, it wasn’t hard to figure out you were eating them.” She said, voice dripping with disgust.
“Then we have the second detail. The physical irregularities. Once I knew to keep an eye on you, I began watching very. Closely.” She sneered. “And I noticed a great number of things. The elongated fangs, the enhanced healing factor. A factor quite reminiscent of the denizens of the Black Tide. Not to mention the occasional avoidance of sunlight, which I found rather curious.” She rattled off, as though it were a list of his crimes. “Along with a number of other small things. You’re so pale, you know. Not to mention, not even miss Ciphera’s eyes glow in darkness like yours do.”
“All of this pointed to you not being human, yes. But what exactly were you? Well… all I had to do was send a Cleaner to eavesdrop on one of your ‘checkups’ with miss Hyacine, and I had my answer.” She spat, before shaking her head.
“The city’s beloved Chrysos Heirs have been harboring a monster within them all this while, tricking us into believing it was still human.” She spat, as though the very words burned her tongue. “I had initially planned to tear away your flimsy disguise to the public during the Citizen’s Assembly. but… The Professor’s meddling forced my hand. I find myself needing to act sooner, rather than later.” She drawled, disinterested and somewhat annoyed.
“There is no one coming to save you, creature.” She spat, holding up the device threateningly again. “This will be your end.” She said. But…
Before she could press the switch, a familiar voice rang through the Vortex.
“I’m afraid I’ll have to disagree with that.” Anaxa called, stepping forwards all calm and collected. In one hand, he held the Coreflame of Reason, floating idly in his palm. He walked forwards casually until he could place himself somewhat in between Phainon and Caenis, a barrier of protection. This close, Phainon could see how pale Anaxa was, how his fingers trembled.
Had… removing the Coreflame done damage to him?
Phainon was unable to dwell on that thought as Caenis scoffed.
“Professor. How delightful it is to see you here.” She drawled. “Come to save your little pet?”
“I won’t waste my breath arguing with you.” He huffed, irritation dripping from his voice. “But I would like you to understand this. I cannot stop you from pressing that switch. But…” He said, before raising the Coreflame up for demonstration, “I can ensure you will face consequences.” He said, his voice low and certain.
“And how do you plan on doing that?” Caenis asked, eyes narrowing. Phainon’s gaze bounced between the two of them, the tension in the air so thick he could have cut it with his sword.
“Are you aware of how much power a singular Coreflame holds?” Anaxa asked, as though he were lecturing a student. “To wield its raw strength would surely kill me. So I won’t use such a crude method. Rather, I will tap into one of the lesser-known abilities of the coreflame of Reason.”
Caenis scoffed. Anaxa continued, as Phainon stepped to the side a little bit for a clear view of the both of them. He wasn’t about to move fully out from behind Anaxa, even if the physical barrier would do nothing to protect him in the event of a sonic attack.
“What is Reason? That is a question I have asked myself many times.” Anaxa drawled, bringing the Coreflame up to his face to gaze into it. “In my eyes… Reason, is a creature’s ability to draw upon memory, compare with reality, and make conclusions.” He said, before turning his gaze back to Caenis.
“If you press that switch, and attack Phainon,” He began, voice dangerous, “I will use the Coreflame to transmit a memory from my mind, to yours. I will take what the Coreflame witnessed several days ago, and I will force you to experience the same pain as if the memory was your own.” He said, and Phainon’s eyes widened, about to protest when Caenis raised the device threateningly.
“Not a word, creature. This is between the humans of the room.” She hissed, before redirecting her eyes to Anaxa. “You’ve skipped over one important detail. In order to pull the memory from the Coreflame, you’d first have to pull it into your own mind. As you said. Your mind, to my own.” She sneered, clearly thinking she’d won. Phainon’s muscles tensed, a plan forming in his mind while she was still distracted.
“A necessary sacrifice.” Anaxa stated plainly, his one eye narrowed at her.
She paused, before letting out a pitying laugh. “But Professor, have you considered… I might view my own life as a… ‘necessary sacrifice’?” She parroted. She raised her hand, holding up the device threateningly with her finger poised over the switch.
Seizing his chance, Phainon rushed forward, planning to try and knock it out of her hand. He didn’t make it but a few steps before her finger crashed down on the switch, and his whole frame was assaulted with the piercing screech of the sonic emitter. He stumbled, losing his footing and nearly collapsing as he grit his teeth against the fresh agony tearing through him.
Suddenly, he heard Caenis cry out, and managed to glance up to see her stumble backwards, away from where Anaxa held out a glowing Coreflame. Anaxa himself was struggling to stay standing, while Caenis’s trembling hand couldn’t hold the device any longer.
It clattered to the stone floor, breaking into several pieces at the harsh treatment. Blissfully, the noise stopped, and Phainon sucked in a breath as the pain receded somewhat.
He stumbled back up onto two feet, standing straight once more as he fought off residual pain and dizziness. He gave a short cough- though it was blessedly dry. With his heart in his throat, Phainon glanced towards Anaxa, who was hunched over, cradling his stomach with one hand.
“You should- know better than-” Anaxa began, choking on a groan of pain, “Than to underestimate me. …Elder Caenis.” He managed, and Phainon felt an icy spike of fear cleave through his chest as Anaxa stumbled.
Phainon managed to rush over to Anaxa, catching the smaller man before he could collapse. Phainon’s heart dropped as Anaxa choked a wet cough, gold spilling from his lips. Looking over, Caenis had already collapsed, breathing weakly.
“Anaxa, you- You have to stop-” He choked, holding the other man up as Anaxa’s hand weakly trembled, still holding the gleaming Coreflame.
“I… will not.” He huffed. “I can outlast her.” He choked, before coughing up even more gold.
“Please, just stop- You’ve done enough, it’s okay-” Phainon begged, as Anaxa only sagged more in his grip. Phainon was, for once in his life, extremely thankful for his enhanced healing factor, as he was already feeling mostly back to normal. But Anaxa didn’t have such a thing to keep him afloat under the assault of the device, or- the memory of it- He wouldn’t bounce back from this-
Under Anaxa’s increased dead weight, Phainon’s knees buckled, and he slowly fell to the floor, cradling the professor in his arms with terror in his gaze.
Blessedly, terrifyingly, Anaxa’s eyes slipped shut, and the Coreflame ceased its glow. It tumbled to the floor with a sharp, crystalline clatter as Anaxa weakly coughed up more blood.
“No, no- Come on, stay with me-” Phainon begged. “Please. I can’t lose you, please-” He begged, tears slipping down his face. What was he supposed to do, He was just sitting there and Anaxa was going to die-
You can save him.
...what?
Everything seemed to quiet as Phainon focused on the soft whispering voice inside his mind. What did it mean-?
You can save him. It repeated. You know how.
Phainon looked down, feeling as if time was slowing to a crawl. His teeth tingled, his mouth was dry.
Whenever Phainon found himself in desperate need of food, his instincts felt like a pull. Urging him to take and take until he was satisfied. But this… This felt like a push. The urge to… give.
I can save him. He thought, somewhat in a daze. Without hesitation, he sunk his teeth into Anaxa’s neck, right over his pulse point. Anaxa gave a weak shudder. He clamped down hard, leaving his fangs in Anaxa’s flesh as he could feel himself start to grow dizzy.
He stayed there for what felt like forever, his tears dripping onto Anaxa’s neck as he could feel the man’s heartbeat slow. He sobbed into Anaxa’s neck- for how could he be sure that whatever this was would work? His jaw ached, his heart ached- His head hurt, and he felt lightheaded.
Finally, he felt like he could let go, and pulled back. The wound on Anaxa’s neck was ragged, and Phainon carefully applied pressure to it so that it wouldn’t bleed. His eyes were blurry, and his hands were shaking.
What had he even just done? Had he- Had he really just saved Anaxa? Why would he listen to some random thought in his head-
He choked a sob, tears spilling from his eyes. Among the tears, dripped onto Anaxa’s chest, he saw a drop of black. Furiously wiping his eyes, he looked closer, taking a breath to steady himself. The action made him realize there was a strange taste in his mouth, and-
Another drop of black. It was coming from his fangs, he realized belatedly, and he raised a thumb to swipe over one of them. His finger came away wet, and though he couldn’t tell if the liquid was actually black with how soot-stained his fingers were, he could definitely feel it. It felt like a burning static, fizzing and writhing in the pad of his finger.
The blood of the Black Tide. He realized belatedly.
He’d- He’d basically just fed Anaxa Black Tide corruption-
Had he only made things worse? What if he’d truly signed Anaxa’s death warrant just now- What if he was now to blame for the man’s death?
Titans, Phainon could bear the thought of losing him- He’d never realized how much Anaxa meant to him until he’d nearly, or possibly, lost him, and the realization was ripping his heart in two. He never realized just how much he’d missed the man’s dry humor over his break until he’d had it back, his pretty face and all his eccentricities, and now Phainon was losing him-
“Phainon!” He heard, and his gaze whipped up to see Mydei running towards him. Mydei. Mydeimos. Surely he could fix this- But this was the black tide, Mydei had no exceptional expertise there-
“Phainon, what happened!?” Mydei said, cutting through Phainon’s thoughts as he jogged to a stop. Phainon distantly registered that the man was covered in blood, though most of it was gold. Likely his own.
“Caenis- had the Emitter. She used it, and- Anaxa used the coreflame of Reason to turn it back on her but- He couldn’t do that without turning it on himself and he collapsed and I-” Phainon rambled, tears flowing anew. Mydei’s firm hands gripped his shoulders, stopping Phainon in his tracks.
“Look at me.” He said, and Phainon abruptly realized he’d crouched in front of him, on the other side of where he was cradling Anaxa. “Breathe. Take it slow.” Mydei instructed, and Phainon gasped in a shuddering breath, his frame trembling with held-back sobs.
“I did something.” Phainon choked. “I was- going off of instinct and I gave him some sort of- venom.” He explained, taking in another shaky breath. “I just- somehow knew whatever I was about to do could save him.”
Mydei nodded, before pulling Phainon in to press a reassuring kiss to his forehead. Phainon could only accept the affection as he shuddered with held-back sobs. With calm and collected movements, Mydei checked Anaxa’s pulse, on the side opposite to the one Phainon was still putting pressure on. He frowned, and Phainon released some of the pressure in an attempt to feel for a heartbeat himself.
There was nothing.
Before Phainon could spiral, Mydei put a hand on his shoulder.
“Breathe. It’s alright.” He said firmly.
“But- He’s gone-” Phainon choked, and Mydei grasped the sides of his face.
“You don’t have a heartbeat either. Okay? That’s not a definite sign of life, and we know that because of you.” Mydei said carefully, before pulling an oddly bare hand away to hover the back of it in front of Anaxa’s nose. Phainon distantly realized the hand still on his shoulder had no armor either.
After a moment, his shoulders drooped with relief. “He’s breathing. It’s soft, but it’s definitely there.” He said, and Phainon choked a sob of relief. Mydei wasted no time pulling him into somewhat of a hug, careful not to disturb Anaxa between them.
“He’s okay? He’s really okay?” Phainon couldn’t help but ask, his vision terribly blurred.
“He’s gonna be alright.” Mydei answered, his voice heavy, slightly muffled in Phainon’s shoulder.
Phainon breathed a wet sigh of relief.