Akkey Confronts Stonegit

"[THREAD TITLE]" is a [SEASON NUMBER] thread started on [IRL DATE] and finished on [IRL DATE].
==Summary==
[Write a summary of the thread's events here, including spoilers and important plot details. Check the Order of Threads to see if the thread you are placing already has a summary, to make less work for yourself.]
==Full Text==
Akkey: She hurried through camp, her wet robe starting to freeze. But she barely registered this. The Queen has returned and the King was dead. She needed to see her immediately.
The fortress came nearer, and she quickened her pace, panting a little. But something caught her eye… towards the right, the dueling ring. The ground still had scorch marks from Stonegit’s attacks and blood from the fight.
She caught her breath, and hesitantly stepped towards it, the Queen momentarily forgotten. The ring was empty, the bodies were gone… but she could still see it clearly. Haddock’s prone figure, smoke rising out of his chest. Stonegit snarling, his back arched and his eyes in slits. Everything was shrouded in shadows.
She saw it all. She was there.
And she couldn’t do anything.
Her hands trembled, and she stumbled forward. She could hardly breath. The images flashed quickly through her mind, over and over.
“No, not again…” she furiously whispered, “Vox told you. There’s nothing to be done… nothing…”
She started hyperventilating, and she wrapped her arms around herself. “Nothing… nothing… it’s over… nothing…” She took a deep breath, willing her pulse to calm down. This is not the time to lose it. There’s no one around to slap some sense into her.
Breathe in. Breathe out. That’s it. She closed her eyes and she finally stopped quivering. “Alright,” she stood, avoiding looking at the dueling ground, “Back to business.”
She flinched. Wait… something’s wrong. She saw the soldiers whispering amongst themselves, shuffling quietly around. They eyed her suspiciously, and she darted out of their view. She headed for the fortress and to her room. She needed clothes. Keeping out of sight, she overheard snippets of conversation. 
“battleofthegroundeddungeon’s Queen and moe-lazyeye was assigned as second in command…”
“He’s going insane…”
“He ordered a lockdown…”
“The Queen overrode his orders, though. Right?”
“Who knows…”
She finally reached her quarters, which were thankfully empty, and hurriedly pulled on her gear. Stonegit, you idiot. What did you do…
She clipped her hair up into a short ponytail, consciously missing her ears. She braced herself and took a deep breath. Now is not the time. She headed for the dungeons.
Vox: “Where do you think you’re going?”
Vox called to Akkey in hopes of getting her to stop. Still cold from their trip through the water, he now had enough strength to follow her wherever she planned on going. He needed to know what was happening to them.
“Hopefully nowhere without me, of course.”
Akkey: "Vox!" she turned, "What are you doing here? Oh gods, and you haven’t changed. Didn’t I tell that guard to take care of you… here." She threw her robe around his shoulders. I’m going to the dungeons, they said the Queen and Stonegit are there."
She quickened her stride, her mouth set in a grim line, “Something’s going on.”
Stonegit: Stonegit glanced up as she walked by, letting his chin rest on the floor. “Find your dad yet?” he asked calmly. 
Akkey: She raised her eyebrows, but ignored his question. Sitting down to look him in the eyes, she whispered, “What happened to you, Stonegit?”
Stonegit: "Hm" he grunted with a passive shrug. "Stopped caring about people I suppose. I hurt for a while…feeling so depressed and wretched. Now, it’s not so bad. Numbed up I guess," he scooted forward. "Now…about your father…"
Akkey: "Numbing up… wouldn’t be so terrible." Her mind flicked back to her most recent panic attack. She sighed and shook her head, "What about my father? I haven’t seen him since the lake… I doubt we’ll see him any time soon."
She leaned forward and stared furiously into his eyes, even if he could barely see her(?), “Stonegit… you can’t stop caring for people. That’s what Haddock admired about you. You cared so much, and you protected your friends. That’s who you are. This… isn’t. The man Haddock trusted with his life shouldn’t be in a cell like this.”
Stonegit: Stonegit clicked his tongue. “Can’t just stop?” he stood, leaning forward so he was meeting her eye with his lazy pupil. “But I already have. Akkey…I need to kill Pitch, you know why, and you, of all people, can bring him here.”
Akkey: She froze. Did she hear him right? He needs to kill Pitch? A familiar surge of anger and panic rose through her, and trembled. She tried to keep it down, but memories of the duel was crashing down on her. Again.
"You want to kill Pitch?" she whispered, clenching her fists to keep they from quivering, "You already killed the King, the man who treated me like his daughter… and now you want to kill my real father? Are you trying to take everything from me, Stonegit?"
Stonegit: “You’re only saying that I killed Haddock because you want to shame me for wanting to kill Pitch,” Stonegit said. “Odd…plan on doing to the same thing to Tree when she makes you upset? Or perhaps you’d like to blame yourself for the actions Dust committed when you need a nice guilt trip?”
“I’m not trying to take everything from you Akkey, my motives aren’t that petty.” he rubbed the corner of his mouth with his restrained hands. “Care about people…” he huffed. “What good can people do?”
Akkey: “Shut it! You want to kill my father!” her eyes momentarily darkened, much like when Dust possessed her, “He may have made mistakes… but he’s still a person! My father! I won’t let him die again!”
She breathed heavily, her body tensing. She swallowed, dropping her arms and willing herself to calm down. Losing her temper now would only make things worse, especially with fresh, painful memories and fragile emotional states. She glanced at Vox, standing silently behind her, listening. If anything went wrong… at least someone was there.
She sighed, and said, “I’m sorry for lashing out. I just… you can’t kill my father, Stonegit. And Tree has nothing to do with this. There were mistakes, and they’ve been forgiven.”
“You’re right. I blame myself… anyone, really… when it should be Dust to blame. But she’s gone, and there’s no one left other than you and me. And it’s not fair… it’s unfair to both of us. She controlled us, and we tried so hard… it’s unfair. We tried…”
She started trembling, fighting back tears and hysteria, “It hurts, Stonegit. I know how much it hurts… but I’m trying. It will take time, gods it will take time… but it will heal.”
“You need to come back, Stonegit. You want to know what people do? They bring joy, they bring sadness, they bring kindness. They bring life. And caring for people… you feel what they feel. Their happiness is yours, their sorrows, their excitement… it makes you human. It lets you live…”
She slowly reached past the bars for his face, “And Haddock… Haddock knew that you cared, that you lived. At the same time, he cared for you… don’t let his efforts go to waste.”
Stonegit: Stonegit huffed. “Or they can tear you apart,” he growled, motioning to his eye. He falls silent as she reached for his cheek and he gently took her hand. “Akkey…” he whispered quietly, stepping close. “Look me in the eye and ask yourself. Would I even hesitate to bite off his finger right here?” he asked, gently taking her little finger between his thumb and index.  
Akkey: "If there was a purpose and a reason for it… no, you wouldn’t." She returned his gaze, unmoving. Unrelenting.
Stonegit: He smiled slowly. “You’re right…” Stonegit backed up. “See? Not as crazy as everyone thinks.” he turned away, walking to his mattress. “Not feeling anything is so much better than feeling depressed or wrathful all the time. Now I can be patient, look at all this…as a job, rather than a uncontrolled, impatient passion.”
Akkey: She let her hand drop, staring sadly at his retreating back. She knew what he meant.. She wanted that, unfeeling, unemotional… if it meant taking away the pain.
“But that’s not human,” she said softly, her thoughts coming out to the open, “Your job is to protect and to teach… not to kill. Everyone is afraid, people are hurt… this isn’t the Stonegit that the Rebellion has fought with… that I’ve fought with.”
Stonegit didn’t respond, and she sighed. She tried to reason with him, to bring back the warrior that she knew… but this man in front of her was a stranger. He felt nothing, he refused to think. He’s a cold blooded killer, careful and precise.
She’d be lying to herself if she didn’t envy him, even for a little bit. Her heart was still thundering, the anxiety and hysteria threatening to surface. To be rid of this guilt, this pain… it would be ideal.
Ideal. Yet wrong.
“I hope to see you a free man soon, Stonegit,” she murmured sadly. She turned, and left the dungeons, lostvox following her. Her trip down there wasn’t so pointless.
“I need to speak with her Majesty, battleofthegroundeddungeon. I must find my father and warn him.”
Category:BOTGD
Category:Season 3
Category:Events
Category:Akkey Black
Category:Stonegit Brotchurn Elmiss