#vaporwavecat

Oberon’s head was bowed, lips moving in silent prayer. He had tried each morning for weeks during his daily prayers, beseeching Lathander for his aid. A silent, nervous presence leaned against a column behind him. He knew that Kaun had been spending his mornings around the temple as well waiting for something to happen.

Oberon had brought the idea forth, knowing that if he could receive intervention from the Dawnfather he could perhaps change fate and the fabric of reality. He had approached Kaun after a long night poring over the Unread Manuscript and asked how the changeling would feel if Oberon could somehow change his form permanently. Immutability, as divine favor. Peace of mind, perhaps, for Kaun who had spent so long brining himself in self-loathing and yearning for something more.

Divine favor was a fickle thing and Oberon had only thought of it after reading of a long-dead cleric who had brought the wrath of the heavens down on an enemy’s encampment, scourging the land and razing her foes into naught more than ash. Oberon knew he wasn’t the premier cleric of the Church of Lathander, yet he had done so much good in the name of light. If he asked, why should Lathander not answer? He had already spoken to his cleric and given the tools necessary to interpret the Unread Manuscript. Oberon’s brow furrowed deeper as his prayer went once again unanswered, whispered questions evaporating into the empty air of the cathedral.

He stood with a sigh and turned to Kaun. “I am so deeply sorry for this. I know this will work, we just need time.” Oberon’s eyes gleamed with a pained sorrow, not just for the lack of communication from his god, but for the lack of any resolution for his companion. He reached out to lay a hand on Kaun’s shoulder, giving a reassuring squeeze as he stepped past to return to his chambers.

Kaun’s already limited smile grew wan. This had become a daily occurrence, and nothing had yet changed. His pale cheeks warmed at Oberon’s touch and he looked down as the cleric moved past. “Thank you for trying. It-- I believe you will find a way. If anyone can, it’s you.” Kaun turned to watch Oberon make his way through the temple, wondering what it must be like to have such faith in a being that didn’t respond to prayers and pleas.

My Dawnlord is right, a voice intoned from behind Kaun. He whipped around to see who had spoken, looking for anyone else in the cathedral. Dawnlord... “Oberon?” he called after the cleric.

Oberon turned back and cocked his head. “Yes? Is everything alright?” He glanced around Kaun, looking for any cause for concern. From behind one of the columns, a stream of light pulsed as if in tune with a heartbeat. Oberon knew this chapel back and forth and determined immediately that the light source was the large statue of Lathander that eternally watched his followers from beside the pews. “Kaun! Be care--”

As Oberon stepped forward and spoke, the light shifted forward from the statue, enveloping Kaun in a warm yellow glow. Motes of light seeped into Kaun’s skin and began to illuminate him from inside. Oberon averted his gaze as the radiance became too bright, searing into his eyelids with a glow that he had never before beheld.

After mere moments, Oberon opened his eyes and blinked the spots from his visions. Standing before him in the place where Kaun had been was a half-elf man. Bronze skin replaced pale white, silvery hair grew from his head, and a soft hazel filled in the colorless pupils of his eyes. Oberon paused midstep. His face was one of bewilderment and surprise as he took in Kaun’s new form.

Kaun met Oberon’s gaze and a flash of concern crossed his face. “What is it? Oberon, what happened?”

“I--” Oberon paused a moment to gather his thoughts, shaking his head to clear his mind. “I cannot fully explain this. But I think my prayers finally worked.” A wide smile grew on Oberon’s face as he explained. “Lathander answered me!”

Tears formed at the corner of his eyes as he realized that his weeks of repeatedly asking had at last paid off. He reached for Kaun’s hand to bring him to the pool near the front of the church and motioned to the water. “Look, see what he has done for us.”

Kaun flushed as Oberon took his hand. He looked down at the cleric’s hands slotted between his own. Yet, was that his hand? His thoughts began to race as they moved between the pews towards the door of the church. Kaun approached the basin and looked into the water as directed. Elven eyes in a nearly human face peered back at Kaun, familiar yet so foreign to the one he had grown accustomed to after so many years.

“Is this...?” He reached a hand up to touch his face, trying and failing to use his innate ability to change form. “I can’t change,” Kaun whispered. Tears formed in his newly hazel eyes as the gravity of his situation sank in. “Oberon, we did it! You did it!” He turned to Oberon and embraced him, arms tight around his neck. Without thinking about it, he leaned up (was the height difference less now?) and pressed his lips to Oberon’s.

Oberon was slightly taken aback by the embrace, and even more surprised by Kaun’s lips on his own. The initial shock wore off quickly as he leaned into the kiss, letting months’ worth of tension flow out. After what felt like eons, the two pulled apart, sharing a warm smile between them.

“I told you,” smiled Oberon. “I knew this would work, we only needed faith.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The heated air around Oberon stank of blood and iron. Corpses littered the ground around him and he panted as the adrenaline of battle wore off. The cultists had finally banded together to deal with their collective issue and a huge retinue of foot soldiers had met them without mincing words for battle. The cultists’ number had nearly been overwhelming for their group, but they had emerged victorious, if barely.

Scanning the area for his companions, Oberon caught Kaun’s eye from afar but couldn’t see any of the others. The changeling looked more troubled than normal and avoided direct eye contact. Oberon moved immediately towards him and felt a heavy sinking in his gut.

“What is it?” he asked as he approached. Kaun motioned vaguely at the ground beneath and behind him, still not returning Oberon’s stare. The cleric looked down and felt as if the air had been stolen from his lungs. Miki was prone in the mud, not moving or breathing. Oberon quickly surveyed the surrounding area and saw both Ten and Neera in similar states.

He dropped to his knees beside Miki and pressed his hands to her stomach, willing the force of his magic to bring her back. He waited a moment, huffing as nothing happened. “Oh gods,” Oberon muttered and fumbled with his bag, searching for the diamonds he always had on his person.

Oberon’s hands shook heavily and he dropped a diamond in the mud after removing it from his bag. “Gods above, do something,” he shouted up at Kaun. “Go check on the other’s!” He pulled the diamond from the ground and pressed it into Miki’s chest, uttering a prayer to Lathander as he channeled his divine magic. Yet again, nothing flowed from Oberon’s hand.

His horror grew as he tried and failed over and over, his magic stores depleted over the course of the fight. This never happened, he was meant to protect his friends. Oberon looked for Kaun, sheer panic flooding his body like a pitcher of cold ice. “Kaun I--,” his voice broke as grief began to thicken his tongue. “I can’t heal her. It’s not working.”

Having searched Neera for signs of life and finding nothing, Kaun slowly turned to Oberon. He was going to check Ten next, though he had no idea how to find any sort of vitals on the Warforged. His shoulders sank as the realization set in. Hearing Oberon admit that he couldn’t do anything drove it home. Oberon didn’t make a habit of admitting his faults and mistakes.

Kaun picked his way through the field of corpses as he approached Oberon. Tentatively, he placed a hand on Oberon’s shoulder. Heaving sobs wracked the cleric’s body as he leaned forward against Miki. Minutes passed, feeling like eons. The radiant warmth that usually emanated from Oberon seeped into the earth beneath him and a dull glow pulsed around him. Oberon blinked away his remaining tears and pushed up from the ground.

He brushed Kaun’s hand from his shoulder and turned to face him. “This should not have happened,” Oberon said flatly. “Why do I have this power if I cannot save people?” He reached to his throat and tore the symbol of Lathander free, dropping it in the mud. Kaun stared wide-eyed at Oberon, not sure of what he was witnessing.