Runelords 22.2 - Touchy Subject

The day following the unexpected, portentous events at the reservoir, it seemed that the resident lamia had returned to her machinations regarding the weather: rain poured from the sky, threatening to overfill the dam. They went to ensure that the ogres hadn’t returned, and indeed found that there was no trace of anyone around the swollen lake, ogre, teifling or otherwise. Still, the rain poured, and even without the ogres exacerbating the problem, the dam threatened to overflow. Unwilling to begin toying with any of the controls without at least some indication that they wouldn’t flood the town by accident, the group determined to return to Turtleback and inquire as to whether anyone there knew how the dam operated. With that, they walked back to the docks and hitched a ride back to town. As the boat made its way, Virgil, whose mood had been both reservedly strained and melancholic since their encounter with Tessirade, subtly eyed Aldern consideringly for most of the way back. When they stepped onto dry land, he pulled the man aside quietly, and asked to speak with him alone later; he agreed.
When the others were occupied with their own various pursuits and musings that evening, Virgil took him aside again, leading him into one of their shared inn rooms, currently empty. Aldern looked at him with curiosity, obviously completely unaware of what this might be about. Virgil spun on his heel and sat down on a bed, gesturing for Aldern to follow suit on the adjacent one, which he did out of manners more so than comfort. He didn’t say anything immediately, still wearing a thoughtful expression, so Aldern took the lead, “Is there something you want?...Or, need? I man, with what happened yesterday…”
“That’s what it’s about,” Virgil interrupted, cutting him off before he could say anything further on the subject. “Yesterday. Bit of a game changer, yesterday was,” he said lightly, though his tone took a serious shift as he continued, “And that’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Not me; you.”
Aldern frowned, “What? I don’t understand…”
“Well, once again,” Virgil said, gesturing about to emphasise his words, his tone light again. “I don’t want to put too much of a point on things, but I think I have to. Let’s be honest here, and figure out what we’re doing. The assumption, up until yesterday, was that sometimes you have...episodes.” As Virgil spoke, Aldern’s face fell, and he became increasingly uncomfortable with every word that the other man said. “Fits. Whatever you want to call them. We didn’t know the cause or the cure, but that was fine, because if you happened to have one, we’d be able to stop you from doing anything too serious.” Virgil leaned forwards, crossing his fingers as he placed his elbows on his knees; his voice dropped as he continued, “That isn’t the case anymore, is it?” Aldern flustered, stammering out a word or two before Virgil spoke over him, “None of us are immortal anymore. None of us are going to desummon, none of us can fly away. We are weaker,” he declared with a pointedness that encroached on bitterness. Just as suddenly, the bitterness left, “And you aren’t. We all laughed before, the three of us, that you could probably easily take any one of us, if you got it in your head, and it was all fun and games then, but it’s not any more.” Virgil’s voice was hard as he explained, “You could take any one of us, if you had a fit, and we wouldn’t just be inconvenienced. We’d be dead. You might be able to take all of us, if the situation was right. If you commanded Luna and caught us when we were sleeping, or injured, you could easily. And then, if you kept having fits? We’ve failed to keep people safe, like we promised. We failed to help you. We failed to protect innocents, and, on top of it, we’re dead. So, Aldern, what do you propose we do? We still have no real idea what caused your original episodes. We don’t know what caused them to stop, if it was getting you away from the manor or keeping you company or keeping you happy or what. We have no idea if or when one might happen again. We just know the damage it will cause if it does.” With that, Virgil fell silent and regarded him.
Aldern tightened his lips, taking a breath before saying simply, “It’s not a problem.”
This statement caused Virgil’s eyebrow to slowly raise in bafflement. When further explanation seemed to not be forthcoming, he asked, “What?”
“It’s not a problem,” he said again, somewhat stiffly. “I’m fine. It’s better. It’s not going to happen again.”
The disbelief was plain on his face as he said, “...For it to be ‘better’, you have to know that it can’t happen. Not just hope that it won’t.”
“It won’t happen again,” Aldern reiterated.
Shaking his head slowly in disbelief, Virgil asked, “...Do you know something we don’t? Because I don’t have any proof.”
“Well...what? What do you want?” Aldern said, his voice holding the trepidation that came from speaking on an unwanted subject. “You already know everything. It’s not going to happen again.” Virgil rubbed his eyes in frustration, which agitated him further. “Well, what?! What would you like me to do, go back to Medinipur? I can leave, if that would give you greater peace of mind.”
Virgil exhaled heavily, “No, that’s worse, because, like I just said, we still don’t know what’s causing it or how to definitively stop it, but at least we know what’s going on and have a hope of preventing anything serious. If you go back alone and something happens, then it’s on us.”
“Nothing is going to happen!” Aldern insisted. Both men huffed, emotions growing tense. “...Nothing has gone wrong in weeks. I’m better. It’s fine,” he asserted.
Rubbing his eyes, Virgil muttered, “...I know you’ve had some shitty experiences, Aldern, but just ignoring your problems isn’t going to make them better.”
He frowned, offended, “Well...well, what was your plan before? If you’re sitting here and talking like you’re...you’re some kind of jailers or something, then what was your plan? To keep talking me into joining you on ‘adventures’, or just following me around forever? Until you’re convinced I’m...safe, or whatever it is you’re looking for?”
Virgil made a sound between a groan and a sigh, “That’s not it at all…”
“Then, if that’s not the case,” he said with his own bitterness, folding his arms, “then there’s no need for you to be concerned about my business.”
Sighing and rubbing his eyes once more, Virgil dropped his hands and leaned heavily on his elbows, hunching over. He mumbled without looking up, “...Yeah. Yeah, I suppose… M’sorry.”
Aldern’s offense softened, but he seemed no less eager to end the conversation. “...Apology accepted. I...understand you aren’t in a good position, after what happened.” He looked up finally, the first of them to try and make eye contact in some time, “Is there anything else you need?”
Virgil shook his head, standing up but keeping his gaze down, “No. Sorry for bringing it up. And wasting your time.” As he made for the door, he turned about again and looked at Aldern, saying lightly, “I am sorry. That really made it sound like I don’t trust you. I do. I hope that’s pretty obvious by now.” Before he could respond, Virgil made a farewell gesture, adding, “I’ll let you get back to your evening. See you later.” Aldern returned the sentiment as Virgil opened the door and left. After a moment alone, Aldern sighed and shook his head slightly as he got up and left as well.
Category:Rise of the Runelords