003. erichthonios by the gates of pandaemonium.

“Themis?”

your alias does not register early because you are too busy ensuring that familiar’s protection. truth be told, you are also still getting used to hearing your name again; you shiver to think of what people would say if they knew you used your old name for these matters. ‘tis for concealment, you might respond to the outbursts; had i conducted the investigation under my true name, then the results would have been contaminated. the warders would have been set upon impressing and deceiving so as to protect the facility. lahabrea may have even stepped in to defend himself. it was a risk i could not afford.

( in the future, you are glad that the situation is kept under the rug. you would have hated to explain it in full to the convocation or to the people. pandaemonium is not a facility that ought to be exposed to the public, and you will doubt erichthonios or his coworkers would appreciate the attention. this never comes to pass, a fact you will always be grateful for—and perhaps, if you ever learn the truth, one to be miserable for, too. )

“Themis,” however, repeats, and your ally breaches distance to find your attention. he does not know at this time that you are the emissary and thus shows no more respect to you than any other member of amaurotine society. this has let you stand a little less straight, hands behind your back more often than in front and eyes adrift over full focus. you undo all this when your name is called a second time and stand straight to look up to him, reestablishing your ever-present smile.

“Erichthonios. What is it?” you do not know enough about him at present to tell if he lights up at this or worries more for it. you hope that that changes soon; he is interesting, refreshingly so for the brief time you have known him, and you find yourself wanting to know more.

“Are you alright?” falls out first and implies he feels the latter for you. you chuckle and pull back from your observations of the waterways and the long fight that awaits the familiar, and you try not to linger on first impressions.

“Quite,” you grin. “But I thank you for the concern.” to erichthonios, this must not be anything to smile about—but you relish this moment and all else fore and after it. you have spent the whole day discarding pretenses and formality and even traded that bright red mask for old garb. although never something you would make a habit out of, you understand azem’s wanton disobedience even more now; you spend the day as though you are an entirely different person than the emissary your brethren adore. “I was watching the familiar begin battle with the hippokampos. They fight so deftly, them and the fractions of their aether both. It surprises me, for the better. While I was loathe we were forced to fight you, our friend possesses a talent like few familiars I have ever seen.”

well, you don’t get to see many of them in the city: the combative ones, anyway. few bring them to the capitol city unless the departments of creation or nabriales require them. the governing circles of amaurot, where you work, avoid dealing in concepts made manifest and physicality; you handle people and paperwork, especially when using your proper name. “I daresay we are quite lucky they chose to accompany us,” you add, adjusting your footing to stand next to him.

“Right. You mentioned that.” you never breach that transparent boundary, always a few paces apart, but erichthonios never moves away. erichthonios is a terribly forthright person—he spoke ill of who you speculate is his father without prompt in the same breath he did proclaim the protection of his colleagues and their creations. by that token, you’re sure he would mention if he were uncomfortable; but, he continues on, so you’re counting this as a massive success. “You didn’t arrive here with them?”

you shrug and chuckle preemptively. “I suppose we did, in a sense.” you rush onwards before you accidentally leave your new friend bewildered. “I intended to investigate with someone else of my organization, but they reasoned it was unwise for us to go together. Thus, they left matters in my care. Before I left, they offered parting words: ‘Fear not, for in my absence, a star shall fall before you.’”

you look up to erichthonios, and you cannot help but laugh. the absence of masks in elpis makes emotions even more apparent, abandoning the need to glance at unknown souls. erichthonios, who you suspect from his fall to unknown magicks is emotional enough on his own, needs no explanation for his blank-stare response. you never get this reaction in amaurot; everyone you meet fumbles for an excuse, not accepts a lack of.

the honesty is refreshing. he sees you as an equal in this moment and treats you accordingly. you can’t mask the desperation to hold onto it; you won’t stop smiling and your hands turn over behind your back and robe, twisting and fiddling like rope round a wire.

you tighten your grasp around both hands and step forward, gazing down at the waterways. the hippokampos’s wings dwarf every familiar, and you’re sure they would tower over you and erichthonios, too. but despite the blood in the water, you hold onto faith. “That familiar is my guiding star, in a sense. In the absence of my dear friend, we have found someone else to trust. I am sure they must have sent them—and how glad I am for that. As I am that we have found you.”

“Are you?”

you look back and tilt your head, forehead towards the grates. “Of course I am. ‘Tis a boon to cooperate with a warder, especially one as determined and observant as you.” the only worry here is that that determination may lead to his doom. but, then again, you and azem’s familiar are here to prevent that. you conceal that information and turn back to erichthonios without a change in your expression.

“Know that I mean that. If your memory is as sharp as you claim, then the interment shall proceed to completion. I need only entrust my faith to you. And, having seen your talents once already, I have no doubt you will succeed here.”

maybe you’ve talked so much that you’ve left him dumbfounded yet again. this time, he just nods, glancing down to the crystals that hang from his gold belt then back to you and the gate. you chuckle again, following his gaze down to the waterways and the draining sluice and blood.

“Ah, there they go again—another foe felled. Shall we put our experiment to the test?” that’s how this works, right? erichthonios nods and steps forward, and you step back to match him. you cloak yourselves in aether and warp down to the tunnel as the hippokampos falls. the rest of your aether siphons into erichthonios’s own, and you watch him trace out the runes and invocation to the letter, watch him encase and bind the hippokampos without a single flaw in his method. you grin again, giddy, and you hope azem’s familiar doesn’t see how even your teeth slip through and shine through your mask.

you’re too lucky you met him; he’s too interesting by far. you have to know more about him. you hope you get the chance.