#martel 01

A day spent with a stroll through one of the city’s various parks is a day off spent well. The air is so much warmer now that spring was coming to its close into Grimm’s favorite time of year, and he’s eager to spend it outside more.

There’s an area over here that he hadn’t noticed before, covered in flowering bushes and green plants. And a woman, equally as green as the plants she’s tending to.

It passes Grimm’s mind that he’s never taken care of flowers or even planted anything before. He wants a place of his own here, eventually, and the idea of being able to decorate it with life was somehow appealing. He’s... a being with a soul of flame, though, and completely lost when it comes to this sort of thing.

Raine had to be careful walking around the Forest of Airaisal with how easy it seemed to be to get lost, similar to the forest surrounding Mistwood. This time she had regained some use of her powers and thus that she could protect herself from the monsters more easily. The last time she was in this area, she had some maps to look at from previous expeditions. Unfortunately, while on the outer bounds of this forest, and thus relatively easy to navigate back to safety, Raine had discovered this location late in the day and could not stay long. That is why today she chose to return in order to add to her notes of the area. 

In a small copse there was a field of flowers that grew alongside a pond. Raine got up early that morning to make sure she had plenty of sunlight hours. It was surprising to her when she arrived that she would not be alone. Very few people journeyed into the forests because of their danger. This figure seemed to be admiring the pinks, oranges and blues of the wild garden, bending down to admire the beauty of the petals. As Raine approached closer, she was speechless to discover that this figure was the spitting image of Tabatha, the robot that she knew to be Altessa’s housekeeper and former Cruxis experiment.

Only...she was different. She had a staff, and so she could clearly perform some kind of magic. There was something in Raine’s gut, a half-elf’s intuition oddly shared among those with elven blood, that told her that she was the same as Raine. She couldn’t be sure.

Now, that was curious. It seemed as if the vast majority of people in this city were humans, and perhaps a few elves- but outside of the two that she somewhat knew from being with her brother, she hadn’t run into any half-elves. Which was why she’d perked her head up slightly when she’d noticed the green-haired woman, her mana signature being that of one caught in the middle, like her.

“Um.... Pardon me for asking, miss, but are you... you know...?” 

She was there. Alive, smiling; tracing her hands over the flowers around her. After deciding to explore the forest for the day, Lloyd never expected that he’d find her here, of all people; that she could even be here, away from the place they had last seen one another.

Lloyd didn’t dare move, didn’t dare speak until a moment had passed.. and then finally, her name quietly left his lips.

“Martel..”

“You’re.. here. But you’re supposed to be with the Giant Kharlan tree, aren’t you? Unless..” he remembered then, how Raine told him that many of the people he knew had memories from different times; but was it possible for them.. to have been different people all together? “.. are you.. Mithos’ sister?”

Who would’ve thought wandering around in the forest would lead her to a place like this? Not only was there a cute little cottage sitting there, with one of the most beautiful gardens Bee had ever seen, but there were also chickens running around everywhere! She kneeled down right in the dirt, picking up some of the leftover feed on the ground and offering it to the birds around her.

“I haven’t been this close to chickens in forever..! Probably since dad took me to the petting zoo when I was a kid.. c’mere, let’s share some lunch together, okay?” as one of them plucked some small pieces of corn from her palm, Bee lifted the rest to her mouth, eating it herself just as she heard someone approaching from behind. When she looked back, a beautiful woman was standing above her; almost making her heart skip a beat just at the sight of her. “Oh..! Hello! Are these ‘lil guys yours?”

“Martel...?” It’s said with a quiet respect-- not of reverence to a goddess, but of admiration for someone Regal knows has been through so much in her time. He’d wanted to speak with her ever since the others told him she was here, but no time seemed right to seek her out. And he’s sure she gets these sort of awkward encounters all the time...

‘Wait, she’s Martel...?’ Alicia looks between them, blinking curiously. ‘That’s really her?'

“Yes,” Regal nods. “Though there’s a few things I should catch you up on, I can expl--” Regal isn’t even able to finish his sentence before Alicia has left his side to join Martel, eyes sparkling as she offers her hand forward.

‘It’s so nice to meet you!’ Alicia beams. ‘My name is Alicia Combatir, and this is my boyfriend, Regal.’  With a sigh and a small smile, Regal joins them, nodding his greeting to her as well.

Her voice, her words, both were like music to his ears. He loved her so very much, his dear sister, the one he had fought for (so selfishly) all of these years. He felt guilty now, for all that he had done; he knew it was wrong, and knew for a while, but ... he couldn't turn away from his goal; for her, to know she would be with him again, he would do anything. Now, he simply... felt bad for not considering her feelings on the matter. How she must have suffered, how she must have cried for both him and the world. What had he put her through?

"M-Martel..."

A hand raises to his chest, where his heart would flutter. It was somewhat shocking, to hear these words. He should know that his sister would always care for him, but ... he couldn't explain it, he just thought that by now, she would feel differently.

"... you aren't... disappointed in me?"

He wants to say it, but he's afraid, the question of 'don't you hate me'? The question, 'aren't you tired of me'? She had to be so exhausted, her heart must have hurt so much. Despite everything, she was able to witness so much, and... she had seen a side of him that he wished she never had to; She saw her little brother fall into a certain madness, seen his emotions consume him.

"you still... want to be seen with me...?"

It's hard to look her in the face. He's afraid to. He doesn't want to see her gaze. He didn't want to see if she pitied him, and then... even if it was warm, did he really deserve it?

"you don't want to just forget about me?"

It's not like she would be the first one to leave him, after all. So many had. It wasn't until recently that he had found people who cared for him enough to stay. Genis, Raine, and Lloyd, too ...

"I don't understand..."

"how can you still care so much?

It was overwhelming. Frightening. The idea of meeting his sister again after all that had occurred over the last four-thousand years, after his ideals being rejected-- he knew now, that she hadn’t approved of his actions, that all that he had done for her was actually for nothing more than himself, coming from his own twisted view of her final words. He was afraid. What should he say to her? Sitting there in the vehicle with Raine, he thought, he should send something first. While Martel didn’t know how to function the device, she should at least see his message, shouldn’t she? Lips press into a thin line. 

What should he say? Enough would be said when he arrived there. He just felt anxious. He should say something first, he thought. What should it be? Simply that he was going to see her? It didn’t seem right. 

Fingers lay over the device, and he draws a slow, deep breath. Okay. He could do this. He could write something. He had to. He couldn’t simply arrive there, could he? 

Martel?

He started, the typing rather difficult as his hands shook, trembling with the rest of his body. He hoped that Raine wouldn’t notice it from where she sat beside him. He was trying to keep this to himself.