Give it time.
That was the primary piece of advice that Lex had managed to gather from her various conversations with others about what to do regarding Zelda. It was something that nearly everybody seemed to tell her in some way or another, and she was used to hearing it. The Clan Leaders had said as much, and when she danced around the matter while speaking to her mother on the subject, she had given the same piece of advice. Lex hadn't been able to fully elaborate about the truth of what was happening with Zelda as far as her mother was concerned, but she still received the same advice of taking a step back and trying to process her thoughts on the matter before she made any large decisions.
Of course, there were a few flaws with this line of reasoning. Lex still hated the idea of simply 'giving it time' because of how much time was starting to nag at her. She liked to think of herself as a patient person, but there was only so much pressure she could take before her resolve began to bend and then finally bow at the hands of the truth that Zelda had presented to her. She knew that she had all the time that she needed to come up with a proper response to Zelda's actions, but that barely made it easier for her. Zelda was going to be patient with her, yes, but there was only so much that patience would be able to do for her.
As Lex sat on her bedroom back on Earth, she tossed a small ball back and forth between herself and the wall. She had come to pass the time over the years by simply throwing this small toy around when she needed something to focus on aside from the screaming inside of her own head. She was glad that she had perfected the angle and force needed to throw the ball years ago, and it meant that she was able to go on autopilot as she waited for everything to happen around her. She could think while still giving herself a little something extra to do, and Lex hadn't noticed how valuable that was until it was too late.
She finally caught the ball after throwing it around for what felt like about fifty repetitions. She let out a sigh as she shook her head to herself. This was a disaster as far as Lex was concerned. She had to give it time. That was what everyone had told her, but Lex didn't know how much time she would be able to spare to something like this. Even if their fight against Alba didn't happen for another two months yet or something outrageous like that, it didn't matter much to Lex. The subject would continue to weigh heavily on her shoulders, keeping her from ever feeling truly relaxed or safe. She knew herself well enough to say conclusively that her paranoia was going to keep her from functioning normally, and there wasn't much that she could do to make it go away until she got over herself and just talked to Zelda.
Of course, that was much easier said than done. Lex didn't think that she would be able to forgive Zelda for all that had happened on a closer level than what she had previously. Talking to Zelda as a distant comrade who she rarely interacted with was one thing, but being forced to interact with Zelda on a regular basis because of their shared blood was another beast that Lex didn't thinks he was ready to tackle yet. In fact, part of her doubted that she would ever be truly ready to embrace something like that. The mere idea made her feel nauseous in a way that she struggled to describe. When she hadn't known the truth of her connection with Zelda, it had been easy to keep the woman at arm's length. After all, there was nothing to be lost or gained if she kept her distance, but all of that had since fallen apart because of the revelation that Zelda had given to her.
This wasn't Lex's way of saying that she wished she had never found out in the first place. In fact, she was happy that she knew the truth. It was best to know and simply have to cope with the knowledge than to be completely ignorant as far as Lex was concerned, though this was a thought process that not many expected to hear from her given her outlook on the world. However, not even all the optimism in the world would be able to keep Lex from her curiosity, and she prayed that she would be able to figure something out so that this would be less of an issue.
Part of Lex wondered if she even wanted to solve this for the sake of her dynamic with Zelda anymore. Maybe it was simply a matter of her own wish to get this weight off her shoulders that pushed her to want to find an answer. It wouldn't surprise her, if she was being honest. She was desperate to be rid of this weight that seemed to crush her when she wasn't paying attention to holding it away from herself. She had to find a way to escape it, but talking things out with Zelda seemed to be the only solution.
Lex stared down at the small blue ball in her hand. She couldn't remember in full when she had gotten the toy, but she knew that it had been a gift from her mother at some point. It made sense given how close Lex was with her mother above all others. After all, for a long time, it had just been the two of them against the rest of the world. The universe had turned away from them, so they relied on one another instead. Lex had been fine with that for so long, but the sudden arrival of Zelda had changed all of that.
She had known that there were others out there like her as soon as Tuila began to explain the truth behind the Deadly Flame Clan during her first trip to Hyperion. She knew that there had to be siblings who shared her blood somewhere out there given how the Deadly Flame worked, but knowing that and being aware of who one of her relatives was were two different beasts entirely, and Zelda was the last one who she expected to find herself dealing with on this front.
Lex sighed and set the ball down on the bed beside her. She pressed down her palms against her eyes, only pulling her hands back when she saw stars explode in her field of vision. She sighed and shook her head, wishing that all of this would just be over. It wouldn't end until she came up with a solution, and she was fully aware of such a fact, but that wasn't going to stop her from dreaming about how lovely normalcy was going to feel after all of this had been signed and sealed away. Lex wanted to tuck this issue onto the highest shelf in the back of her closet so that she would never have to deal with it again, but that simply wasn't feasible, so all she could do was throw the ball around and pray that it took away the lingering residue of her anger and grief regarding matters that had been out of her control from the very beginning.
There had to be a solution to this, right? She was sure of that much, but figuring out what it was that she had to do was a different beast entirely. Zelda was still waiting for her response, and even though Lex knew that she could take her time and not worry about keeping Zelda on edge, she felt as if she had to do this for herself. It was an odd sense of duty to her own heart that she absolutely despised, and she prayed that it would end as soon as possible.
"Why can't I just have a normal family for once?" Lex muttered under her breath. She would have even taken the weirdness of Jayler's twin growing up in a different universe over the hand that she had been dealt, and that was no small compliment to his situation given how difficult it had been for him.
Lex reached out for the ball and started throwing it around once again. Each successful throw brought the sphere back into her waiting hand, and Lex looked down at the orb silently before repeating the process. She'd figure it out sooner or later. She had no other choice but to find a solution, so she'd find a way out of this. Whether she wanted to or not, she'd have to find something that would make this easier for herself. She hoped that it came up soon. This constant waiting was absolutely exhausting, and Lex wished that she could just send her emotions away before they could give her another crisis from their complexity.
~~~~~
The preparations for the battle against Alba were going well, all things considered.
Tuila had started spending more time on Skylia compared to Daragon, and it felt as if she and the other Draconic Superiors were constantly swapping back and forth between the planets to figure out where they were most needed. Each day brought with it new challenges that they would have to face one way or another, and Tuila knew that there was no choice but to play everything by ear and see how it unfolded along the way.
The Fearbringers had come to gather extra information on the situation, and that meant that Tuila would be able to use that to her advantage to create a solid strategy alongside Liathine, Lana, and Tavi. The four of them had become the unofficial tactics group for the Hanilia ensemble living within the castle, though Tuila wished that they could have had a representative from the Clan Leaders as well. She thought that Luke would have done the job well, though since he was constantly bouncing between planets where magic did or did not thrive, that was off the table. Moving between Skylia and Daragon was repetitive, but going between Hyperion and Earth was downright exhausting, and Tuila almost found herself bitterly yearning for the days when the Clan Leaders had lived in Hyperion as a result of the war.
It wasn't something that she should have been thinking about, and Tuila knew it, but she couldn't help the direction that her mind traveled in when she wasn't paying attention. Suppressing the thoughts had become downright impossible, especially with the recent drama that had erupted behind the scenes. Even though Zelda hid her emotions well, Tuila could read the fidgety way that Lex hid herself each time that she thought the leader of the Fearbringers was close enough to start probing the emotions that she chose to bury deep inside. Tuila could tell that Jay was growing tense around Zelda as well, though Tuila doubted that there had ever been a moment of peace between the two parties in the first place. Zelda had moved on and was trying to find a better future, but Jay remained uncertain, not that Tuila could blame her in the slightest.
"How are you doing?"
Cordell's voice pulled Tuila away from her trance, and she looked up to see Cordell standing above her alongside Liathine and Diamond. The three Rauleighans were carefully observing Tuila for any signs of something having gone wrong, and while Tuila would have normally complained about being scrutinized to such a degree, she knew that they were just trying to look out for her. That was what they did because they were a team. It had been the case for a long time as they prepared for the war, but she didn't think that it would ever get old for her.
"Exhausted," Tuila finally forced herself to respond. She figured that she was only stating the obvious. Dark circles had formed under her eyes from a lack of sleep, and there was only so much that she could do when she was running so close to her breaking point. Tuila was just glad that she was at least relatively functional even on little sleep. Nobody had to know that she was up late each night because of her fear regarding what could happen if the attack against Alba somehow went south when they were invading the Lakinya's hideout.
Diamond's touch was gentle as they came up behind Tuila, and the maternal aura that she had come to know from them calmed her soul for a brief moment. "You don't need to push yourself so hard," Diamond whispered to her carefully, making sure that the other woman understood each and every word that she was speaking. "We're here to make sure that you're alright. All you have to do is start to rely on us in the first place, and we'll do what we can to ensure that you're alright. I promise."
Liathine sat down in the chair across from Tuila and propped her head up in her palm, her elbow falling against the wood. "Take a break for the rest of the day. I know that you feel obligated to keep this hell storm together, but you aren't the only one here capable of looking after everything that functions. We know what we're doing. You forget that we were there to help you throughout the entire process of winning Daragon back from Mersall's forces. You might think that you have to do everything alone, but you're actually not an island. Who would have thought?"
Tuila winced at Liathine's words. She had known for quite some time that blocking others out when they tried to help was a striking issue of hers, and Liathine had made it clear that this was the case quite some time ago. "Perhaps you're right," Tuila murmured, never one to yield in the face of opposition. She was loath to admit that Liathine had a point because of how much work had yet to be done. She couldn't just up and leave when there was still so much that she had to do specifically, right?
"Perhaps?" Cordell echoed with a snort. He let out a roar of laughter, and he slammed his palm against the table in his jubilation. It took a long time for him to finally wind down, and Liathine, Tuila, and Diamond all stared at him in their own ways until he had managed to calm himself. Cordell let out a sigh after he was sure that he was done with his laughing fit, and he shook his head. "You're not the best when it comes to admitting this sort of thing, Tui. I hate to say it to you, but you're actually not as invincible as you make yourself seem."
Tuila looked carefully at all of her companions before releasing a sigh. "You know that I don't have much of a choice on this front. Everyone is waiting for me to make a decision. I'm the leader of this group, and they're relying on me to do what must be done for the sake of our victory. We are soldiers in a battle, and we must work together. I'm the commander, and--"
"The war is over," Liathine interrupted her suddenly, resisting the urge to slam her hand against the table with immense force. "You're not the one leading a chessboard anymore. We're all here because we want to make change. We're all human, and that means that we understand what it means to make mistakes along the way. Look at the people that you're surrounded by for a minute, would you? We've all messed up, but you don't hold that against us. Quit holding it against yourself because you can't accept that the rest of us are here to help you."
Tuila was silent afterwards, but Diamond cleared their throat to cut through the silence. "You do know that Liathine has a point," they murmured. "I would not have put it quite so harshly, but we are all here because we want to be able to help one another out. You don't have to act as if you're the only one here who is able to do anything. Allow us to follow through with helping you. I understand that your instinct is to resist this because of your long history in the war, but you forget that you aren't the only one who had to go through that. Let the rest of us into your bubble, Tuila. We've done everything up to this point as a team because we want to be able to help one another out and make a difference."
"You don't need to shut us out," Cordell commented. "In fact, I know that we would all prefer it if you didn't do something like that. We've got the same burdens that you do, Tuila. You might have been the spearhead, but you can't form a weapon without a solid base, and I like to think that the rest of our team falls into that category. Look at the rest of us. We were working with you for ages because we were trying to end the war, Tuila. This isn't the battle against the Fearbringers anymore. I know that you feel like you're under a lot of pressure, but... You really don't need to bear all of this on your own. Please just let us in."
"I hardly believe that this is as large a deal as you're choosing to make it," Tuila told them evenly. Her eyes were deadpan, and it was clear as could be that she still had not let go of her stubborn and bitter determination after her long time of fighting both in the war of Daragon for the sake of future change.
"You can say that all that you want, but I think that you should trust us when we say that this has been an issue for a long time. Pretend that this is nothing all that you want, but we know exactly what's going on here, Tuila," Liathine cut in, her tone oddly barbed. "I know that this isn't something that you don't want to do, but just let us in, would you? If you don't try, then you're going to break under the pressure of the rest of the world. You deserve the help of others just as much as any other person does, so stop acting like you're somehow above or beneath it. Do you hear me, Tuila?"
The room fell silent as Tuila looked up at Liathine silently. She eventually yielded and let out a sigh, knowing that even her consistent determination would be unable to outlast Liathine's confidence on this matter. Liathine knew what she was talking about, and Tuila, despite her quiet stubbornness, was aware of what she was trying to get across as well.
It had been easy to ignore the issue for a long time as a note of strange pride for Tuila, but she doubted that she would be able to get away with that ever again. Liathine was going to make sure that she changed at least a little bit, and while Diamond and Cordell were less intense about it, they were going to push her in the right direction as well. They had been the dynamic quartet working on the restoration of Daragon for quite some time, so they knew each other intimately enough to change everything within the hearts of the others if they rubbed the right way.
"Alright," Tuila murmured. She closed her eyes and tried to contemplate the situation, though it was much easier said than done to come up with a solution to this matter. She had been ignoring her emotions and the aid of others for as long as she could remember because she knew that it wouldn't matter in the grand scheme of her life. The world was waiting for her to make history, and she was going to push for what would make its way onto the pages of the future rather than what mattered to her in the silent moments that filled the space between significant events.
"It's funny, you know," Liathine continued bluntly. It was clear that this thought process had been bubbling up for a while by the way that she spoke, and Tuila suspected that it was only coming out now because of the war on Daragon stopping her from feeling as if she would be able to speak previously. With that matter mostly resolved save from the aftermath and its resolution, it meant that Liathine could speak freely.
And that was more than just what she did. "You're both selfish and selfless sometimes," Liathine muttered without a beat of hesitation. "You want to help other people so much, but you don't realize that sometimes, they want to help you too. That can be a problem sometimes too, and it's important to acknowledge that much every once in a while. I understand that you're not the type to confess to weakness, but you have to understand that it isn't a bad thing to be vulnerable every once in a while. You might consider yourself to be a figurehead for a war, but we know you better than that. Let us pull you off that pedestal for a second, would you? It's not a crime to be a human, Tuila."
For another long moment, Tuila was completely silent, and she looked down at her feet quietly, unsure of how she was meant to respond to those words. It seemed as if Liathine wasn't waiting for a reply though, and the Metal mage cleared her throat before speaking once again. "I expect you to resolve that matter in the near future. In the meantime, I know that getting down to business helps you to take care of these matters, so we might as well think about what's bound to come next in the upcoming battle against Alba, wouldn't you say? We'll discuss this again later," she said.
The sudden transition between Liathine's attitudes was surprising to Tuila, but she decided that it would be best to not push the matter. Instead, she simply nodded and waited for the trio of Rauleighans before her to settle down into their regular seats for the upcoming meeting between them. Tuila let out a sigh and tried to tuck Liathine's words into the back of her mind. It was much easier said than done, but she would take care of it later. Even if she had ignored it previously, she was going to follow through this time for the sake of the people who cared for her so much.
~~~~~
Jay's sword clashed with Lana's rapier within the training grounds of the castle. The other four members of their group watched on with curiosity, amazed at the quick flashing of blades taking place before them. Jay had been the one to say that she was going to train, and from there, she questioned if any of her teammates would join her. Jay had always thought that it was easy to get to know someone by seeing their fighting style and how it incorporated with their personality. Lana had volunteered to clash with Jay directly, revealing that she had an aptitude for the rapier, and from there, everything simply started naturally.
It wasn't until Jay managed to get a tap in at Lana's arm with her magically dulled blade that the duel ended. Lana let out a small laugh as she pulled her rapier back. "You did well to win," she said. "I can certainly see why it is that you prefer to fight with a sword in battle. You've clearly been practicing for a long time."
"You can say that again," Jay muttered with a shake of her head. "When I was born, my magic was so minimal that I couldn't actually use it outwardly in any way, shape, or form. I had to rely on my skills with a weapon to defend myself, and when I was asked what I wanted to train with... Well, I feel like my decision is pretty obvious if you look at what just happened."
Lana nodded as she wiped at her forehead with the back of her hand. "I understand that. You do very well with the weapon, I must confess. I've been training on and off with a rapier for a long time, you know... Lyloc taught it to me when I was younger, and I suppose that I was never able to get past those memories. Of course, that isn't a bad thing, so I guess that it's fine," she commented with a laugh.
Jay's expression softened. "You know, Lyloc was the one who trained me as well. She's great with all sorts of weapons... Well, she was good with them when she was still alive. I just hope that she's resting in peace now that all of this has happened," she remarked. When the room fell silent, she shook her head and began to walk away from the center of the training area. "So, who wants to go next? We have to make sure that we're as ready as possible for the battle against Alba when the time comes."
"I don't think anybody wants to follow that up," Arian confessed with an anxious laugh. "I mean, you two are both great with your weapons, and I feel like I look beyond inferior by comparison. I can use my magic just fine, I guess, but it's nothing like that. I haven't ever liked combat, so I didn't see much of a reason to get too much better at it, you know?"
"You can't get better if you don't start anywhere," Jubilee pointed out as she rose to her feet. Her auburn hair had been tied into a braid that beat against her upper back as she walked to the center of the training hall. "Let's go for a spin, eh, Arian?"
"No," Arian said immediately, his eyes going wide. When he noticed that his response could have come off as rude, he cleared his throat to cover his tracks. "No, thank you. I think that I'm perfectly fine with watching from over here. Ronan, you need to get better with this stuff too, don't you? Why don't you go and--"
"Just do it," Colt told him with an intense stare in Arian's direction. "Worst case scenario, you lose, and nothing happens as a result. We're just trying to hone our magic, and that's not a bad thing. You're going to be fine."
Arian whimpered as he rose to his feet and followed Jubilee to the center of the area. Lana sat down next to Jay, her rapier in one hand. Jay reached for her water as Lana leaned forward, propping the tip of her sword into the ground as she watched Jubilee and Arian prepared for their upcoming match. Jay had taken a lengthy swig before she looked back to Lana, and she raised an eyebrow at the other girl in curiosity.
"If you ask me, it's almost poetic that we found ourselves together like this," Lana commented. Colt gave the cry for Jubilee and Arian to start fighting nearby, but Lana didn't look away from Jay after her gaze shifted in the direction of her friend. "I mean, we were both trained by Lyloc, and in a way... That's where our magic came from too. Generations apart, we found each other through similar origins. It's funny to think about, wouldn't you say?"
Jay was quiet at first before she nodded. Lana's talk about poetry certainly made it seem as if they had a romantic connection as far as Jay was concerned, though that could have easily been passed off as a result of her limited exposure to the genre of literature. "Yeah, I guess so," she muttered, unsure of how to respond to that. She would have been lying if she said that she didn't almost enjoy the idea of Lana making a romantic remark in her direction. Jay passed it off as her merely entertaining the thought of connection after being distant from connections with others for so long.
Lana chuckled to herself as she nudged Jay with her elbow. "No need to be so tense. I'm not trying to make fun of you or anything. I wouldn't want to do anything that could hurt you. I know that I've been hard on you in the past, but... I just want to make sure that you're okay, you know? I only pushed you so far because I knew that nothing else was going to work as far as getting you to open up was concerned," she said quietly.
Jay nodded along, though this was certainly something that she had already come to understand. Lana was always acting in her best interests the same way that she did for the rest of the team. Jay didn't get why it was so strange that she liked it when Lana gave her this attention, but she ultimately passed it off as inconsequential. There was too much for her to focus on in that moment to think about Lana's odd behavior in the first place. Was it even strange? Jay didn't know it, if she was being honest. After all, this was simply how Lana acted as far as she was aware.
Lana turned her attention back to the nearby sparring match a few moments later, and Jay found herself stealing glances at the other girl out of her eye. She insisted to herself that it was just because she was curious about Lana's words from before, though she could tell that there was something more. There was no time for that anyways. Everything else mattered more in that moment.
Later. I'll deal with this later the same way that I always do.
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My flash drive is broken oh no aaaa
-Digital