Can't get started without my morning coffee

He almost sighed in frustration. This Summoner reminded him vaguely of Tibarn trying to persuade him into a safer course of action. Only more annoying. And he didn’t want to listen him like he usually did with Tibarn.

Maybe…he shouldn’t have been so quick to demand to be sent away, but -

He also didn’t want to explain what’s driven him to this point either. Why he wanted to go home. He’d had more than enough of being made to look weak, pathetic, useless. Explaining just how helpless he was - didn’t seem like it would help his point in the slightest.

And Leanne -

What if he couldn’t keep her safe back home? What if he pulled her from this world into one that had grown even more dangerous while they had been away? And she - she seemed to be doing better than him. Perhaps…if Leanne was not being tormented, it was selfish to demand to leave for his own sake.

Worse things had happened and he had survived them…

“I suppose, due to the uncertainty - and the limits on your knowledge of the weapon you use - returning home may not be ideal. At the moment.” He hesitated. 

“Have you sent anyone home before?”

It was a hard choice to make. 

Sebastian didn’t know all the details, but it was hard to not hear about most of the nonsense that went on in the Order. Usually, it was just ridiculous shenanigans between the Heroes, or people getting excited or riled up about new Heroes potentially joining the cause. But, sometimes, there was real chafing going on between so many people; many were comrades, but there were plenty others that had been opponents to others in war.

Making your enemy an ally was never an easy, or entirely safe, thing to do. This place didn’t change common sense, despite what some might think.

“...For the moment, at least. If you can, give it some time. See what sort of progress we make in this fight, and if people...improve around the Order, before you make your final decision.”

He paused for a moment, but nodded in confirmation. “Yeah, it really isn’t all that uncommon for people to ask. Everyone I seem to summon has been through the wringer, and to suddenly end up here, to fight some other war they have nothing to do with? It’s only natural to want to go home, back to familiar places and family.” 

It’s what they all wanted, for the most part -- outside of some of the more questionable people that got brought here. Sebastian wanted it just as much as the heroes did. This wasn’t his world, and he had a life back home and a daughter to return to.

“If it weren’t for this disaster, none of us would be here in the first place. I know it hasn’t been easy, and you never got much of a say in if you joined this fight or not. I don’t make promises lightly, I’ve fucked up enough times in my life to know that they’re just words until you make it happen, but if you can just stay strong for a bit longer, I’ll make sure you and yours all make it back to your home, safe from whatever this world might threaten on yours. It’s not a promise yet, not ‘til I see you off and out of here for good, but I haven’t fought through hell twice just to give up when something new wants to mess things up again. I’ll make it happen, I just hope you can stick with me long enough to see it through for good, Reyson.”

Alm’s hands clasp together as he listens to the Summoner talk (Sebastian, wasn’t it?), a nervous sort of expression on his face. Sure, he had lived uncertainty and distance before from a friend, and it had been as painful the first time as it had been now, but… this felt different. It felt… He wasn’t sure how to express it, yet he was certain that perhaps the man would understand.

He nods as he listens, taking in the words that likely come from a raw sort of experience that Alm is certain he should probably not ask about. Even so…

There’s something in the man’s words that strikes him, perhaps about as hard as a slap would. Of all the words to hear from seasoned adults, to let himself feel wasn’t one of them. There had been no time for feelings when he had to grieve, there had been no time for his own peace when so many others leaned on him for support.

“I…” And it really shouldn’t have him so choked up. The summoner is a stranger in a strange land, though, wasn’t he? Likely missing his own as much as those who had not been reunited with anyone were… didn’t that make his words valid and true? Didn’t it mean that grieving had meaning? But was it time to?

A shuddered sigh leaves him, and he then shakes his head. “I’m sorry. It must have been difficult to speak of this.” Alm says after a moment’s thought, wringing his hands together before letting his right fall to his side, the left rising to a spot at his neck, where a necklace sits under his gambeson. “But… thank you.”

No matter how seasoned he had been to the feeling, he had always felt without guidance— to receive something to heartfelt, maybe… maybe…

He exhales. “For us all, I hope this war is done soon.” Reaching out, his left hand hesitantly grasps at the man’s shoulder in what he hopes is a comforting gesture.

It was hard to grasp that someone Alm’s age had to deal with anything even remotely like the loss Sebastian’d had in his own life, even if the rational part of his mind was aware that everyone in this place had gone through at least one war. It was just so jarringly different from the norm back in his world. Kid Alm’s age shouldn’t know what it’s like to kill someone, or to lose someone dear to you in the violent tides of war.

The kid seemed...nervous. He was fidgety, kept messing with his hands. 

“Ah, don’t bother apologizing. Nothing to be sorry about, kid. It’s the tough shit that really needs to be talked about, anyway,” Sebastian waved off Alm’s shaky sorry. It’s not like Alm had done anything wrong by asking, and the kid was clearly just looking for some advice on something that was difficult to deal with, even when you weren’t so young.

Sebastian hadn’t been a proper detective in a few years, but it didn’t take any hard observation work to recognize what that sort of gesture meant -- Alm’s hand ghosting over a spot near his neck, like where a necklace might hang. Something held close and dear, from someone he cared for.

Same reason Sebastian had an old photo stuffed into his back pocket, edges burned by fire.

It was a bit awkward, being consoled to some degree by someone so much younger than himself, but that was the one, for sure good thing about Askr. Everyone here had a support network -- hero or villain, many or few. They were there to back each other up. 

@dadjokesinaskr || Can’t believe he’s asking Reyson to actually THINK before he does something smh at this bullshit 

He hadn’t realized he’d been holding his breath until it slipped between his gritted teeth in a long hiss.

By this time he had assumed he’d already be home, or at least bracing himself for - whatever happened when that thing was aimed at you. A burst of light, a flash of pain - whatever it was, he had steeled himself for it.

But now -

He was still standing in the middle of the shadowy, slightly musty smelling hallway. Still stuck in this cursed castle.

“I - “

Back up plan? For what?

“My - only family I have left is Leanne. And - I was hoping you would be willing to send her after me. If she wished to follow. I would not force her, of course, but - I thought we could go together.”

He swallowed, though it was harder to do with the lump in his throat now.

“I don’t even know what happened the first time we were - brought there.” He didn’t really want to remember being summoned to that place. Where the smell of death and reek of darkness had kept him constantly on the verge of unconsciousness. Where the memories screamed louder and louder with every passing moment in the presence of so much death.

Never. Never would he go back there. And if he left Askr - would they be able to pull him back under Hel?

He shivered.

“I don’t know…” His shoulders slumped. 

There really was no way out of this was there? No matter what path he chose it would all end in loss.

Sebastian didn’t have any qualms about sending Reyson and his sister back home; they never signed up for this fight, so there was no way in hell he was going to force them to stay. Whether or not they had the power to fight should the war spill over from Askr into their realm, he wouldn’t deny them the chance to go back to their home.

“Hm...If she wants to leave with you, I have no problem with that either. Like I said before, same applies to her as it does to you, Reyson. I don’t intend to force anyone here to fight,” he shrugged, leaning his side against the doorjamb.

He watched the Heron carefully, seeing the darkness that came over his face, before it faded away into the resignation of uncertainty. 

Sebastian sighed, craving a cigarette with all this serious talk.

Yeah, there were a lot of drinks that would fit that description. “I’ve got you covered,” he grinned– it was a great arrangement, for Tibarn in any case.

“Good. I’ll get us some, then. Anybody I should grab while I’m out?” Didn’t seem like Sebastian was friendly with many here, but it was worth asking– the more the merrier.

Sebastian shrugged, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

“Bring whoever you like, I’m not against the company. It’ll feel like old times...,” he answered, waving Tibarn off. The other man hardly needed his permission for such a thing. So long as they didn’t get the whole army drunk, where was the harm?

Today was just the day of difficult questions or demands, wasn’t it? First Reyson, now this Alm kid was coming at him with something that just didn’t have any easy answer.

Sebastian rolled his head a little, making a low noise in the back of his throat as he thought on Alm’s question.

“…I’d say it…sort of depends on who the person is, and your relationship with them. You don’t miss some people as much as you miss others, yeah? So…you should try to identify that first,” he started, hesitant. He really wasn’t the best person to ask advice on this, as he didn’t handle this sort of situation very well in the past – but, it wasn’t like he was about to tell the kid to go on a couple years long binge

“There’s…There’s a bit of a difference in missing someone, and keeping them in your thoughts or close to your heart. You shouldn’t…or, well – it’s not healthy to fixate on someone you’re missing. When you do that…you stop moving forward with your own life, you let that missing feeling turn into something that drags you down, and keeps you down. And whoever it is you’re missing, I doubt they’d want you to stop living your life on account of them.”

Myra had all but told him that, at the end of it all. She hadn’t been able to follow them out, and so it was up to him to build a life for himself and their daughter. He’d say the same to Lily right now, if he could; she had to keep living her life, even if he wasn’t there with her right now.

“But, you keep ‘em close to you, however works best for you, that can help. Some, you know you’ll get to see again after all this. Some...well, you might never get to be with again like you might hope, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t still with you to some degree. People that come into your life, they touch it, leave a little mark -- big or small, good or bad. You might not be able to make it completely painless, but...reflection is good. You have to find a middle ground between yourself, and your pain; accepting whatever’s happened to cause the separation. If you just leave it as it is, don’t address it, it’ll just fester.”

A pause, a deep breath inhaled through his nose.

The ambush should have been a surprise, but a combination of old paranoia and this place being a constant buzz of activity sort of left that dead in the water.

“…Well, that’s to the point,” Sebastian remarked, a hand coming up to his mouth as if he actually had something to consider here.

“I’m not in the business of making people fight against their will. If you don’t want to be here anymore, that’s up to you. This thing drags people from their homes without any consent; I think it’s only fair that I get to send them back if they want to, without consulting it,” he shrugged, gesturing to Breidablik.

He’d fought through worse on his own, but they had an army here. If some people wanted to return home, they could spare it.

12. How did the relationship develop between your Summoner and their primary crush?

Outside of Detective McStereotype probably living off of coffee, booze and cigarettes, coffee was literally the Heal All Wounds mechanic in TEW2. When a hot beverage saves your life in the mental hellscape of STEM, you return the favor by loving it for the rest of your earthly days and beyond.

5. What was their biggest struggle about adapting to the new place?

No coffee machines. 

Probably the very visceral style of fighting that goes down. He’s used to some very, very grotesque things going down, but there was always a filter of “I’m chainsawing my way through a bunch of mutated zombies, not actual people”. After a while, it was easy to get used to.

But, here, it’s all just people. Hel brings on the same sort of feelings as STEM, so it doesn’t bother him as much, but the previous conflicts were a bit jarring. Death by swords or lances is not pretty. Magic provides the unique opportunity to see someone get ripped to shreds by the wind.

While he does adapt to it, it brings up some very bloody memories, and it’s difficult for him to get passed real people suffering some pretty horrific deaths.

7. Something they instantly hated about the place?

No coffee machines. 

The ye olde magic grandeur. He just wants people to talk plainly, act like normal people, and maybe stop dressing up like a cross between renaissance fair and slutty renaissance fair. 

He doesn’t care about titles. It’s sometimes difficult to communicate with the vast gaps in speech and knowledge about various things. There’s nothing simple about medieval fantasy, and it sucks ass sometimes.

  36. Why do they keep helping the Order?

Bottom line is this: he wants to go home, the Heroes want to go home (for the most part), and the Askr siblings want to return Heroes to their homes without the issue of bad contracts.

In the long run, that’s his goal; he wants to get back home to his daughter.

38. How do they think others perceive them?

Exactly how he presents himself. A tired, washed up bastard that probably shouldn’t be here, but is doing what little he can to help anyways.

Sebastian isn’t quite as…prickly as he used to be, given that he’s (as far as I know because who knows when or if another game will crop up to toss him into more hell will happen) finished with most of the disaster his life has turned into, and actually gets in a few years of normalcy with his little girl. So, as unhappy as he is to be stuck in Askr until who knows when, he’s not a cold-hearted bastard, and he wants to help the people here – even if he thinks it’s all a whacked out dream to some degree.

dani you weenie

10. Who’s their primary crush?

His wife 8/

11. How did they meet their primary crush? What were their first moments?

They were partners when they both worked at the KCPD, and their first moments together were literally her catching Sebastian checking out her ass.

12. How did the relationship develop between your Summoner and their primary crush?

Myra got shot while on duty, and Sebastian proposed to her during her recovery. It’s what you do when you’ve known a girl for four months, check out her ass, and then she almost dies.

13. What does your Summoner find attractive about their primary crush?

Her ass, duh.

14. What does the primary crush find attractive about your Summoner?

Good fucking question! I think he was a Good Dad at one point, but rampant workaholic-ism & drinking kinda fucked that up a bit. But, likely it was his starry-eyed belief that he could actually clean up the city by being a good cop.

15. Any side crush? If so, how serious?

Nope! Him love his maybe dead wife! Only one who comes close is his daughter, but we don’t crush on our children here, folks, that’ll get you arrested.

16. Anyone else having crush on your Summoner? What do they like about them?

DOES ANYONE WANT AN OLD MAN WHO HAS QUITE A FEW BAD HABITS, MAY OR MAY NOT STILL TECHNICALLY BE MARRIED TO A GOOP LADY, HAS A CUTE CHILD THAT WAS USED IN A WEIRD EXPERIMENT, AND IS PROBABLY NOT FULLY SANE? Well, too bad, this man will risk his coffee & booze loving ass for only his two girls. 8/

23. Who they don’t trust?

“You mean Tibarn? He is not my - bodyguard.” As if he needed guardians. Rude. “And I am not a child. I am quite certain I am older than you.”

But he did want coffee…or at least - he wanted to try it.

“Are you going to hand over a cup or not?”

“Well, I still don’t need your massive friend ripping my guts out, so if this goes badly, you didn’t get it from me,” Sebastian amended sarcastically, his expression pointed, but nevertheless he was pouring out an extra cup for the ruffled bird-man.

That little revelation gave him pause for a moment, but then he was shaking his head, like of course this guy was some sort of elfin bastard that looked like a teenager but was actually triple his age.

“You sure don’t act like it,” was all he said in regards to Reyson’s statement. If him being older was true, so was his attitude.