#sloopidoop

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By this point, Omeluum was getting rather frustrated by the lack of progress it had made. So far, all it had established was that it was meant to give Blurg some kind of gift, but it had no frame of reference for what sort of gift would be considered appropriate. The idea of disappointing Blurg was... upsetting.

"I hear that you're the reason Grazilaxx is in even more sour a mood than usual."

Omeluum looked over to where Sloopidoop was sitting in the common area. His eyes glittered teasingly, clearly more entertained than accusatory.

"I did not intend to upset it. I suppose it told you about my predicament, then."

"Mm... in so many words," Sloopidoop laughed, "You know how Grazilaxx gets. Something about your 'foolish romantic notions', if I recall. Still, I would rather hear it from you." He gestured an invitation for Omeluum to sit with him, which it reluctantly accepted. "Come. Tell me what the trouble is."

Omeluum folded its hands carefully in its lap, though it couldn't deny that Sloopidoop's calm demeanour was a welcome change after the chaos of the afternoon. Once again, it explained what was happening, and how it seemed no closer to figuring out what to do.

"This is all admittedly new to me. These feelings are.... unfamiliar, and I do not know how to navigate the situation. I fear that I will unintentionally hurt Blurg in my inexperience."

Sloopidoop listened (as best as one can listen to telepathy), then finally spoke quietly. "Have you considered asking Blurg what he wants?"

Oh.

"No, I... suppose not." It seemed a painfully obvious solution, but then... "It seems the sort of thing that I am supposed to know already."

"But you don't," Sloopidoop said patiently, "You are illithid, my friend. No one expects you to know how to navigate romance right away. Blurg least of all. He is not unreasonable."

Omeluum considered this, feeling pinpricks of embarrassment at its own foolishness. It knew that. Of course it knew that.

Sloopidoop continued. "In any case, it is always better to ask than assume that you know what someone wants. Even if you were right, the asking itself is important."

Aaaah, thank you very much @cactusmisslittle for your adorable dilogy (I hope that it would be more than dilogy). I decided to draw a compilation of scenes from the first story. It turned out, though, a little sad, but there is another option.

For those who haven't read (hope I can post a link): https://www.tumblr.com/cactusmisslittle/751082507674566656/quite-unnecessary-littlemisscactus-baldurs

Chapter Seven

Exodus

1485 D.R. / Day 57 Neverlight Grove

The final syllables of the restoration ritual lingered. Sloopidoop’s webbed hands hovered over Sarith’s still form, shimmering with a faint glow that matched the blue light thrumming beneath the ground. The six companions remained in a tight ring around the fallen drow warrior, hands touching his shoulders, arms, and armor, each a thread in the fragile web anchoring him to the material plane. Silence followed. It stretched, thick and unbearable, each second dragging out like an eternity.

Then—

Sarith’s chest heaved upward like a man pulled from drowning. His eyes shot open wide—wild, dilated, frantic—muscles tense as if he might strike or bolt. He flailed instinctively, but something caught his wrist.

“Sarith?!”

“He’s breathing!”

Zelyra let out a choked gasp of relief, half a laugh, half a sob. Beside her, Fraeya exhaled sharply, blinking fast and wiping her cheek. The two women threw an arm around each other in a tight, brief side-hug.

“You absolute bastard!”

Sarith blinked rapidly, his vision sharpening. The grove swam into view—blurry faces and familiar voices. A strange dampness clung to his skin. He shivered, not from cold, but from something he couldn’t name. His body ached, his head throbbed, but he was alive. His eyes locked onto Fraeya’s, and the rogue pressed something into his hands before he could fully register what had happened. Cold metal, worn smooth by time. He looked down. It was two small emblems. He knew them.

“You are innocent.”

Sarith swallowed hard, a lump forming in his throat as he stared at them. “How—?”

“You escaped that day,” Fraeya continued, her voice softer now, but no less resolute. “Imbros Mizzrym did not.”

His breath hitched. He had assumed— 

No. He hadn’t allowed himself to assume.

Sarith had let the memory of that doomed mission rot in his mind, convinced that he had failed. He lost more than just a fellow guard that day. He lost his station, his dignity, everything. He had lived with the weight of that sin for what felt like a lifetime. And now, Fraeya had undone it with the simple truth laid bare in his hands.

You escaped that day.

He did not.

His lips parted, but before he could voice the whirlwind of thoughts in his mind, Fraeya’s relief turned to fury. “What were you thinking!?” she burst, rounding on Sarith so fast he recoiled on instinct. “Running into the fight like that?! You were already on the brink of—of whatever the Abyss was happening to you, and then you go sliding down the ravine to distract Yestabrod like a damned martyr?!”

Sarith blinked, then let out a tired, long-suffering sigh. He rolled his eyes, rubbing a hand over his face as the rogue continued her tirade.

“You could’ve died! You almost did die! Gods, you are so reckless, I—”

“I did die,” the drow warrior corrected dryly.

“Apparently, you need someone to remind you that you are not expendable!”

“I had it under control.”

“You liar!”

Sarith groaned, but there was no real venom behind it.

“I was already infected,” he insisted. “It seemed efficient.”

A vein in Fraeya’s forehead bulged as she pulled her lips back in a snarl. The drow looked like she was two seconds away from sending Sarith straight back to his grave.

Kazimir chuckled lowly before stepping forward, extending a hand to the drow warrior.

“Okay, okay. Let him breathe, Fraeya.”

cleaned up some sketches from mine and @littlemisscactus magma session

old man yaoi is a treasure

+ bonus Sloopidoop

Sure enough, Blurg soon found him sitting a few paces away, turning over what looked to be some sort of coral mushroom in his hands. But as Blurg got closer, he quickly realized that he was mistaken. "I- Sloopidoop, where did you find tessadyle?" Tessadyle was an incredibly rare fungus usually only found in illithid colonies. A remarkable organism, certainly, but one only capable of growing in regions with large amounts of psionic activity. And this sample was fresh, too...

The Society of Brilliance's Guide to the Abyss by @littlemisscactus