In Which the Joker Kills the Queen; A Sadstuck
Nielon stepped into the small stone room – tomb, rather. The walls were made of a dark red stone, heavy enough to block out the sound of great machinery moving and shifting all over the land around and above them. Light peeked inbetween gaps in the ceiling. It was no sun or moonlight; the atmospheric glow came from luminescent crystals, nestled in the thin crevices. It fell down and echoed from the stone enough to dimly light the scene before him.
When he had begun to trail Zilist and Thiarn, this was not what he had expected to find.
He cautiously approached the altar at the center with the body resting atop it. Green liquid oozed and trickled from numerous wounds on the small frame, pooling on the slab beneath the girl, marring the gear-like symbol adorning it. As he got close Nielon could detect the faint rise and fall of her chest that gave proof of her dwindling life. She, too, took notice of his presence – god only knows how long she had left to live by this point – and the tiniest of smirks graced her bloodied lips.
He didn’t know what to say. He only stared, face set in grim acceptance of the situation. That fucker Thiarn had gotten the best of her. The price she paid would be death – though the “reward” far greater.
“are… you jealous?” the words held too much weight and yet none at all as she spoke them. He scowled, but refused to look away. Here she was, dying, preparing for rebirth. Here she was, refusing to shed that damn attitude. Here she was, mocking him like always…
“I can’t believe You let that hissbeast get the best of You. Even moreso, I can’t believe I actually expected any better of You.” Of course he had expected better. Zilist was one of the few trolls he could lend occasional respect to, and her gifted ‘sight’ should have kept her one step ahead of Thiarn. Letting your guard down around him… well, it got you here.
She went on, as if his words meant nothing. “you always… wanted to god tier…” her smile was joyless and pained, and the bloodloss was probably already addling her mind. The seadweller didn’t respond.
“i don’t… i don’t even want it…” her eyes slipped closed, missing the shock that touched his expression. She may have sighed, but she hadn’t the strength for more than a weak breath.
“You don’t?” Nielon did his best to hide his surprise. Godtiering was what he’d been fixated on from the beginning. Of course. As much power as possible, flight, immortality. He craved this power and here she was, about to receive the greatest gift and she didn’t fucking want it?
He bared his teeth slightly in frustration. This whole situation, it was all too unreal. And yet it had played out before his eyes – even more, he had acted in it, taking some role in this morbidly ironic scene. And now he had a choice to make.
He stifled any feelings he was capable of having – which many would argue were few if not nonexistent. Stepping to the side of the stone slab, he bent over to slide his hands underneath Zilist’s body to pick her up carefully. He turned away from the room’s olive-stained centerpiece and knelt down to lay her on the floor. It was no proper place to die, but he figured she would prefer it to the alternative. He leaned over her, staring at her face until her eyes cracked open to return his gaze. Her smirk was gone and he thought she looked questioning, though he could tell her mind was fading away with her life force.
“Why don’t You want it?” he needed to know. He demanded to know.
The girl let her eyes slip shut again, the effort of consciousness becoming too much. “i don’t.”
She murmured something too quiet to catch, then let a more audible phrase escape with her shortening breath “take my things… i’ll go… go…”
Nielon grit his teeth for a moment before cutting off her half-formed thought. “I’ll find you.”
The girl gave no sign that she’d heard. The seadweller watched her, face set. As her chest stilled, the air in the room around them seemed to grow heavier and silent as well in the wake of her passing. Without a second thought he leaned down and briefly kissed her lifeless lips. Pulling away, he took all the items from her sylladex with little fuss and got to his feet. He didn’t look back at the body, nor at the blood covering his hands as he left the room.
He was going to find Zilist on her return, and then.
He was going to kill Thiarn.
