storm in her soul

Hades was quiet before nodding his head. “She was lucky to have you as a friend. You made her happy.” Hades wasn’t born yesterday. He also knew Cricket like the back of his hand. His sister held a good amount of affection for the blood oath guild master and while Leo didn’t really know what to do, he knew that Elektra… Elektra would have been good for her… Not that it mattered now… 

“I should have told you. You should have at least found out from me.” He continued quietly before taping up the last of the boxes. 

“She would have wanted me to tell you.” 

Elektra nodded, though internally everything in her was slowly catching up to the sorrow that she’ll never get to talk and have good, playful fun with her friend again. Cricket did always know how to bring out the Hana who didn’t have a single care in the world. It began to struck her how quiet the treehouse actually was for once. But still, her heart glowed hearing Hades’ compliment — even if he was just saying it to comfort her. “You can’t help but try to keep her in the happiest mood possible. You surely know more than I do about how infectious her smile and laughter is.”

nowadays, it was hard for elektra to go anywhere without being eyed. the uniform didn’t help, much less her position and the status her guild has throughout velia. there were rarely any spaces where she could just be. everyone has their vices, their forms of escapism ( that is, if throwing themselves into the gameplay isn’t already escapism itself ). she’s certainly cycled through and tried on many like they were new pairs of shoes, some were healthier than others. but all it came down to was that hana is a creature of habit and sticks to what she’s always known to do: have fun and dance the night away. it was in nights like these where elektra would go to the makeshift dance studio she shared with skittles and just freestyle, groove to music, and find solace in movement. the blonde couldn’t help a smile upon noticing she suddenly wasn’t alone anymore. “you’re just in time. i was about to take a break.”

Hades stared at Elektra for a few more moments before finally lowering his arrow. “We tried to keep it quiet.” He responded as if that should be answer enough. He turned her back to her and continued his packing, not knowing what else to say. He knew that Elektra and Cricket shared a very special bond, and some part of him knew Cricket wouldn’t have wanted him to treat her so coldly… 

But Cricket wasn’t here, and Hades was no alone to do as he pleased. 

“How did you find out?” Hades asked, voice low and cold, not taking his eyes off the boxes. He needed to prepare himself now that word was slowly getting out. 

Realistically, she knew Hades wasn’t going to attack her but she did breathe a sigh of relief when he lowered his arrow. Elektra gently crawled into the space, hyperaware of every move she made. She didn’t know if it was because she could somehow feel how painful this all was for Hades or because the treehouse suddenly felt so empty and joyless. Either way, she suddenly saw this as a site for reverence. 

He longed for the days where he could just do whatever. Something Elektra could do that he couldn’t was just drop everything and be in the moment - a skill he both loved and hated. When she plopped down next to him he put his arm out for her to grab onto, where she instead latched onto his shoulder for stability.

David followed her to the bar, shaking his head as she brushed off the real reason he was here. She was drunk, not mind-wiped. Before she could order anything, he requested two waters and to close out Elektra’s tab. He’d already put gold down by the time the bartender came back with their drinks, his eyes not leaving Elektra’s flushed face.

“C’mon, love, we’re gonna head back to my cabin, yeah? And we’ll get you some more water, tuck you in, call it a night.”

He was in dad mode. There were so many times irl and in-game where he was called to rescue a drunk friend or guildmate. His calm demeanor was an asset when it came to these things; that and he thought of the blonde in front of him like a kid sister. This wasn’t even the first time he had to do this for Elektra, though she may not have remembered any of the others. Luckily for her, he had his own place now, and she could sleep it off without someone barging in and asking for full attention. 

The goal was to order two shots for the both of them, but of course David had other plans. Elektra leaned an elbow on the bar and dramatically groaned as he closed out her tab. It was extra -- she knew it -- but she felt it in her soul. 

“C’mon, you shoulda at least taken a shot with me. Not to be cliche but the night is still so young.” She stared back into the crowd of NPCs and players, and briefly wondered if she’d be able to lose him in the crowd. The blonde turned back to him, raised her hands in surrender. “I’m not gonna, I’m just saying.” 

Once the bartender placed the water in front of them, she reluctantly sipped but ended up downing the water in one go. How the programming in this damn game was able to account for dehydration she’ll never know, but it did have her realize David had a point.

“Fine, I’ll go back to your cabin -- but you gotta come drink with me another day. Can’t just be me having all the fun.” It was a fair trade-off for him cutting this night short, she reasoned. Besides, she knew this wouldn’t be the last time she’d be going out anyway.

David had received more than one concerned DM about his boss this evening. The first two were asking if he knew where she was, then there was silence. Maybe an hour later he gets a message from Tequila that there was a drunk blonde that he should be picking up from seven. 

He was starting to wonder if he was becoming the guild’s new designated teleporter when he made his way into the bar, wondering how he’d find -

Elektra.

He got it. He really did. He wanted to break loose, too. He wanted to stop being in charge for like… five minutes. But what he didn’t do was start dancing on the tables of the biggest nightclub in this never-ending pixel prison. David approached the table, watching her sway until he caught her eye and gestured for her to come to the edge of the table and talk to him.

One could say Elektra has a special talent in losing herself. It could be in battle, or in this case, when she’s having fun. It didn’t help that she was actively trying to push anything out of her mind that didn’t involve the here and now for just one night. No guilds, no meetings, no strategizing - just a flurry of NPCs and drunk players. It was why she physically almost shat herself when she spotted David.

At least she thought it was him. Oh, it was. He was definitely looking at her and he was definitely telling her to get down. Fuck. Now was it the best decision to jump off the table to meet him? Hell no. Did she do it anyway? High ranking player or not; never ask a drunk girl to make sound decisions.

Elektra landed next to him with a grimace ( and a stumble, and a probably nonconsensual grip on the shoulder for balance ). She knew by the look on his face that the chances of turning this around was low, but that didn’t stop her from attempting to save face. “Ayyyyyee!” She yelled through the loud music. “You came to join me, right? Love that for you. C’mon, let’s get you some drinks—” And with that, Elektra turned on her heel and beelined straight for the bar.

“Mario Kart is a video game, too,” Conejita reminds the other player.

She starts the hover car, giggling genuinely as it lifts off the ground. Even if she had driven before, she was almost certain it wouldn’t feel like this. An adrenaline rush went through her as she leveled the car and took off.

Despite her initial hesitation, she couldn’t lie: this was pretty damn cool. The hover car was undoubtedly impressive. A thought came to mind and Elektra wondered if she could say it, but she couldn’t help it. “How fast do you think this can go?”

impulse. it was a dangerous thing for elektra — as it both drives and inhibits her. every decision she’s made has always begun with a thought: what if? it’s gotten her in trouble in more ways than she can count, especially during the boss battles earlier in the game. but it’s also her secret weapon, and combined with her perseverance, makes her one helluva warrior. before velia, it couldn’t be doubted that she was a slave to impulses, always seeking the next adrenaline rush or adventure. now? well, she can’t lie; the game has done a pretty damn good job of taming and grounding her.  

she was a leader and actually had responsibility now. if you told elektra that three years ago, it would be nothing more than a hilarious joke. despite this, no amount of growth is ever gonna shake impulse off of her. it’s why pacing around blood oath headquarters only made her temptations worse. it’s why she, without another thought, teleported herself to the seven nightclub and ordered several shots with the intent of blacking out tonight. elektra hasn’t partied in a long time. getting lost in the music, the crowd, and the uninhibited fun has been so long overdue that she didn’t care what this looked like or who saw her — even if it was her own second in command.

The player hopping into her car was hardly old enough to be her sister, let alone her mother, but Conejita let it slide. Who was she to talk back to the guildmaster of Blood Oath? Plus, if she did talk back, she wouldn’t be able to pry for any information she could relay back to Erebus.

“I’ve played Mario Kart before,” she added, putting on her seatbelt, “that counts, right?”

“Yeah, it sure does count...” Except it really doesn’t, but she’d rather be optimistic at the moment. Plus, sometimes you just gotta keep things exciting. “If you need me to take over later though, I did have a license before this.”

you know, if he did this outside of this game, he would be outlawed as crazy. then again, this would not have been something he did. sure, mercutio goofed around back in the real world too but nothing to this extreme, nothing like dressing as if he’s a scarecrow to freak out a bunch of other people. though he has definitely been an actor inside haunted houses back in high school and college. those were his glory days. 

so why not take that to the extreme with a game full of people who would definitely kill him on sight? nothing could possibly go wrong! except when they did with radish and padme but honestly, the reactions were worth every single moment he stayed quiet waiting for them. let’s hope that elektra will be the same.

his eyes glance down at the dagger in hand – half glad that she hasn’t attacked him yet, half disappointed. for shame. mercutio slowly held his hands up as if that was his white flag before lowering it. “ elektra, elektra, elektra. aren’t you meant to be a guild master? don’t you know you can look up above my head to find out? i’m seriously disappointed in you, kiddo. i don’t know if i’m ever going to recover from this. ”

“ha ha. you got me,” she said, though she wasn’t laughing. elektra stepped back to make space between them. to be fair, the whole scarecrow thing threw her off ( and is still making her not want to fully make eye contact with mercutio ) -- but she knew that was a cop out. “you’re just lucky i’m not trigger happy. how would it look if i attacked my own guild member? not good, that’s what...”

that was definitely a cop out answer; yeah, she really won’t recover from this huh. her mind briefly wandered then, almost glad that she came across him and not some circus member or a player who was trigger happy. elektra looked back up at him in confusion. “hey wait a minute, is this what you’ve been doing all day? do you literally have nothing better to do?” 

you know what would be a terrible idea? scaring the living hell out of elektra. which is exactly what he wanted to do now more than ever. but what were the chances that he would catch a glimpse of his guild leader heading down his path in some maze floor, especially considering her position in the guild?

apparently very high. he wasn’t waiting for too long before he caught sight of the familiar face and he had to actively shove down a smirk that struggled against his lips. now, this was a good day. true, he had a few knives pulled on him and a few magic users knocking the wind out of him but hey, all’s fair in scare and crows. that’s not the quote but he gets what he’s going there.

regardless, there was little time for him to come up with a plan – not that he ever had one to begin with. but rather, the plan was simply focused on how he was going to freak her out. really, he’s hoping to keep some distance this time. mostly so his guild leader isn’t going to KO him.

which is why, instead of coming up near her, he gives out a low whistle and starts saying in the creepiest voice he can muster. “ oh captainnnn my captain. ” she might punch him. this is fine.

psychology says that in response to danger in one’s environment, the body reacts with a fight or flight response. elektra wouldn’t be as good of a warrior as she is if without fail, she reacts with fight in response to fear every single time. no matter how terrifying the opponent or how daunting the challenge is, she pushes forward. velia didn’t have to train her into this mindset and she’d rather die than cower under a fucking scarecrow cause damnit — something about this one immediately registered as wrong.

no, this scarecrow was immediately suspicious. whether it was the way it was positioned or the complete realism of its form, neither of those hunches mattered by the time it spoke. elektra shivered and held back the urge to move from her position. her feet stayed firmly planted, eyes narrowing before holding her dagger toward its body, her rapier shielding her own. 

elektra’s ears slowly caught up to what the scarecrow said, causing confusion to etch onto her face. “what the hell,” she whispered under her breath. wait. do scarecrows even talk? “try me, you fucker. who the hell are you?”

the brunette was stuck and overall, very annoyed. the day before, she was going through the garden maze and just her luck, she accidentally pricked herself on one of the thorns. it hurt like a bitch and she regretted checking it out on her lonesome the moment it happened, though she was lucky enough it didn’t paralyze her. since then, she was tucked away in her residency deciding impulsive decisions wasn’t exactly her style. instead, myth was nose deep in working on alchemy that she had already done a million times before. it had become something that calmed her nerves, the same patterns, precise measurements, and the feeling of her pencil scraping against the paper as she noted small changes. 

luckily when the vibrations of her door shaking from being pounded on, she was in the middle of writing and not actually making something. holding a hand to her chest in shock, her head whipped around to view the door. “jesus christ, are you trying to give me a heart attack?” she calls out, closing her journal and sitting up from her small stool, long brown hair being tucked behind her ear as she walks up to her door. “who is —” her words are cut off as she opens the door and a small smile comes over her lips. “oh, elektra. you scared me, come in.” she comments, opening the door wider for her as her eyebrows furrow slightly together. “i didn’t know you were coming.”

she leaned her weight on her left foot, crossing her arms with a smile by the time myth opened the door. responsibilities be damned. if she didn’t spend some time kicking back and just hanging out she’d probably go insane. it’s surprising that she hasn’t yet. seeing myth was an immediate mood booster, as memories from before her promotion of them spending time together come swirling back. so no, elektra couldn’t help the grin that sprouts on her face the moment her friend’s face appears in front of her, but she may be leaning more into that positive mood than she actually feels.  “honey, i’m home,” she jokes, sliding through the door and into the mystic’s digital home. “and no,” she adds. “i’m not trying to give you a heart attack because that would be bad and velia would become even more of a nightmare without you.” you’re overcompensating, hana. she sighs. “sorry i visited so suddenly. things have been... stressful lately.” she’s positive they’ll unpack this further later, but she decided to leave it at that for now. “wait, are you busy right now? i can come back tomorrow or something if you want! no pressure.”

level 75 warrior and she can’t even get through these mazes. it’s not even that elektra can’t defeat the opponents she encounters, because she does, but what was the point of constantly wasting her energy, only to continue walking in circles? at this point, she might actually consider punching through the confines of the labyrinth, even if only to ease her frustration for a moment. being this cranky all the time was becoming so uncharacteristic of her. is this what leadership does to you? sheesh, no wonder jupiter seemed to be brooding and irritable all the time. now she feels bad in hindsight for making fun of him over the very same mood swings she’s going through right now. 

truthfully, a large part of the problem is that she kept all of this in. it’s not like she could really go to members of her guild, who were counting on her to lead them with confidence. she definitely couldn’t vent to other guild masters, which would only support the whispers of her incompetency. deep down, elektra knows all of these statements are excuses from having to open up, which is why she sucks it up and teleports to the place she can confide in. the scent of fresh flowers calm her as she nears myth’s home. the blonde pounds the door upon arriving at her friend’s doorstep, eager for some time to destress and decompress.