time stop

[normalization]

Mithos kept his eyes forward as the Rheaird sped over Gaoracchia Forest. He was situated behind Genis, who was piloting the single craft, and somewhere behind them...was Lloyd, who had trailed them on their entire trip to the Fooji Mountains. Naturally, Mithos had sensed him. He wasn't certain if Genis had figured it out, but he supposed it had worked out in a way—he hadn't needed to use any of his own powers to help them ascend the mountain, and so they had obtained the Fandalia flowers without arousing any suspicion.

And Genis had agreed to stand by him, anyway. It was only natural. Lloyd may have accepted him for now, but he was still only human. He was still different.

Well, once his Age of Lifeless Beings was realized, they would all be the same. But for now...Mithos was already the same as Genis, and half-elves could only exist amongst each other.

"There's the house," he piped up over Genis' shoulder, his gentle voice betraying none of his sinister thoughts. Sure enough, they were almost directly upon the rock face where Altessa lived, and Genis brought the Rheaird into a quick descent, so that they soon landed in front of the dwarf's home. Surprisingly, all but Lloyd's Rheaird were now there—meaning the others had returned earlier than he expected. Mithos' angelic senses easily picked up words from inside the house, but...they caused him to narrow his eyes.

"Lloyd was supposed to be-"

"I can't believe this..."

"What are we going to tell the kid?"

Mithos held tight to the flowers they had gathered as they hopped off of the craft, and he gave Genis an encouraging smile tinged with worry. "Let's hurry in. Even if they found a doctor, they should still be able to use these flowers..."

He said that, but he was beginning to suspect that the doctor plan hadn't worked out in the least. Most likely, any high-profile doctor that the group thought of wouldn't waste their time treating a half-elf.

Comments

[normalization]

"It's nothing. I've just had a lot of experience," he replied with rare humility. Mithos was confident in his abilities and knowledge, but Genis was so honest in his praise... He was a true friend.

And while Mithos was being truthful, there was something he could admit. "To be honest, I haven't worked with a broken Exsphere before. For our purposes, if they had been broken, they weren't much use, so we just kept them in storage for recycling..." He trailed off as he pondered. The ones in storage wouldn't be useful comparisons now; they had been broken too long. If he wanted experimental material to test the best way to revive Raine, he'd need one that was similar to her state.

"Genis, can I have your Exsphere?" he asked abruptly, but quickly reassured, "Oh, but don't worry. It'll just be temporary." Yes, he'd soon give Genis a much better one.

[twohares]

He laughed a little, as hollow as it was, hearing Mithos's answer. He was being humble, and it was so like him. He was Mithos.

The brief period of laughter ended with Mithos's admission, though. It wasn't that surprising. He was more surprised when Mithos told him that there was still a way to revive Raine even if her Exsphere was in pieces. He stayed silent, fingers nervously stroking the glass as if to comfort her - and maybe himself too.

Yet hearing Mithos's next question broke him out of his daze. Genis blinked, finally pulling his hand away from Raine's Exsphere to hold his own hand. "My Exsphere?" he echoed. He looked at Mithos as if that'd make things clear. Maybe it was because he and Raine were related, and their mana signatures would be similar? The pieces didn't connect in his mind, but in the end, there wouldn't be any harm to it. It would only be temporary, after all. He looked down, nodding slowly before pulling the crystal from the Key Crest. "Sure. Here."

He held out the blue Exsphere out to his friend with an open hand.

[normalization]

He knew that reviving someone from a shattered Exsphere was no easy task, to say the least, but Mithos would never consider it impossible. He had the world's best powers and facilities--as well as eternity--at his disposal; if he wanted something, he would make it happen.

No matter what.

"Thank you," he nodded and carefully grasped the Exsphere.

There was no hesitation. Mithos concentrated magic in his hand and snapped his fist shut, crushing the Exsphere with a small crack.

There was nothing to it. He didn't consider for a second whose lives might have been used to make it; he had a purpose for it, and that purpose involved smashing it to smithereens.

[twohares]

Genis's eyes widened, and he felt something else inside him break along with that snap. Genis stared in shock at Mithos's fist, unable to believe what just happened.

That was Marble's Exsphere... It was like a gift to him. He remembered all the times he could feel her presence alongside him when he used its power. And now it was in pieces, in Mithos's hands.

The pain he felt at that moment paled compared to the loss of his sister. He didn't have it in him to be angry or sad. The emptiness inside of him just grew deeper. He stumbled forward, looking from his friend's hand to his impassive face.

"Mithos... Mithos, what are you doing? You said that you were only taking it for a little while!"

[normalization]

Mithos response was only a casual, "Yes, I'll get you another one soon--a better one, even! So you don't have to worry. Nobody will hurt you here in the meantime." Certainly, without an Exsphere, he couldn't be as strong. However, as Mithos promised, no harm would befall him here. There were no humans or monsters to threaten him, and even if there were, he would protect Genis.

So there was no issue, really.

He opened his fist to briefly inspect his work. The Exsphere had broken into a similar number of pieces as Raine's had, and he nodded with satisfaction. "Good, this will work. Now let's stabilize it the same way as your sister," he instructed cheerfully.

[twohares]

His heart was pounding. He couldn't understand. He didn't want to understand. His face went pale, arms hanging at his sides. Mithos...

"That's... I-I know I won't get hurt here, but..."

The Exsphere was in pieces like Raine's was. It nearly looked identical. It didn't matter if he had another Exsphere or not. It didn't matter if nothing would attack him or if Mithos would protect him. He knew all that and trusted Mithos to keep them all safe. That wasn't the point.

"...are you going to try to revive her, too?"

Of course he wanted to see Marble again. Of course he missed her. But like this- this wasn't fair. He could imagine Marble's pain at that moment, her soul in pieces, being used like a trial run at reviving Raine. He felt like he betrayed her all over again. It was like when she was turned into a monster just to punish the three of them. She didn't deserve this.

He should have destroyed and buried Marble's Exsphere before this could have happened.

[normalization]

He observed Genis' dejected form with the barest hint of pity. "Yes," he answered, then amended, "partially. We can't just experiment on your sister, Genis. One mistake, and you could end up losing her forever." He tried to be soothing, but his voice was laced with warning.

That Exsphere couldn't have been anyone nearly as important as his sister, and Genis would have to grow accustomed to many more sacrifices. He would get used to it, or he would never be able to see his sister return to life.

"It will take some trial and error to find the best method for her. You understand, right?"

[twohares]

His face heated up. He felt like crying...because Mithos was right. It was wrong and unfair, but Mithos was right. He could lose Raine or, at best, hurt her even more if they experimented on her. To lose what was left of her soul—Genis didn't want to think about it.

He wanted his sister back. He wanted her back more than anything else. This emptiness was overwhelming.

Over the years, it must have swallowed up Mithos, too. That was how he ended up here now, not thinking twice about experimenting with another person's soul. Marble had already died... He'd try to make her continued existence as comfortable as possible. He'd apologize to Marble a million times later, but there wasn't any other way. In the end, he barely managed a nod.

"I understand," he murmured, a tiny bit of regret sneaking into his voice. Marble must understand, too... "There's no other way, right? We need to do this for her."

He could understand Mithos. They would both do anything for their sisters' sake, no matter how wrong it felt.

[normalization]

The smile didn't return to his face, but Mithos looked at him with a steady gaze. "I knew you would understand. It's all for Raine's sake..."

Just like he did everything for Martel... Compared to her, nobody else mattered. Nobody could ever come close--not even Genis, though he was closer than others would ever be.

He held the shards out for Genis. "For your sister's sake, this will be the first trial."

Reviving a soul from a broken Exsphere was no easy task. This was certainly going to be the first of many trials.

Thankfully, Mithos had plenty of whole Exspheres at his disposal, too.

[twohares]

"Right. For Raine's sake..." He gingerly took the shards into his hands, looking down at them with the same pained expression. He hoped Marble would understand. He hoped this trial would be over soon and she could rest in peace. But then when that happened, there would be another trial. And another. It was going to turn into a trial to see how long he could stand this.

As he turned towards the equipment again to find a new capsule, he remembered how many years and how many Chosens had come and gone since Martel's death. Thousands of years, countless people dying for her revival... And her soul was whole. Lloyd was right; he was a liar. He really was going to do the same thing for Raine's sake. She would hate it—

...but she would always love him, no matter what. Mithos was important to him - maybe the only person that could be important to him now - but Raine would always be his only sister. If she were with him now, everything would be better. He could imagine her hand stroking his hair like she used to when he was upset. It was going to be okay.

He wouldn't turn his back on her. No matter how many trials it took. He stole a glance to her Exsphere once more before storing Marble's Exsphere in a similar capsule and repeating the ritual. This was all for Raine.

"I'm sorry... This is...this isn't what I wanted...but I won't give up, either. I'm serious about this, too."

In case Mithos had any doubts. In case saying that would help offset his guilt.

[normalization]

Mithos silently shook his head as he observed the expression on Genis' face. Even after losing his sister, he was still soft towards humans. If he wasn't careful, he'd end up hurt again.

But Genis was smart enough to have learned his lesson now. Lessons just needed a little time to sink in sometimes.

Luckily for him, they had all the time in the world.

--And Genis seemed to be catching on. His statement garnered Mithos' approval, and he held out a hand with a small smile again once Genis was finished. "Good. I know you are. Let's leave them like this for a little while so that your sister can recover, all right? You should probably rest, too." Genis wasn't an angel, after all. He still needed food and sleep.

"In the meantime, I'll have a test subject brought here for the experiment," he offered, and continued to more or less think out loud. "With the Exsphere broken like this, mana stabilization won't be enough to revive her. The Exspheres need to be properly nourished again..." Just like when they were first growing and maturing, attached to the prisoners at the human ranches.

[twohares]

He took Mithos's offered hand, holding it tightly as he had with Raine's Exsphere. He was tired, but he didn't know if he could sleep now. It felt like the two of them were still watching them from their capsules, souls fragmented as they were. He should stay with them. It was his fault they were here anyway.

But Mithos was holding his hand, and he wanted to be with him, too. Even if he knew Mithos wouldn't need to rest. He probably couldn't even feel the same warmth when they held hands like this. (Was Mithos okay with that, too?)

Yet when he thought it couldn't get worse, it did. When he thought he had accepted the sacrifices necessary, he was wrong. His eyes grew wide with understanding. Another subject meant another victim. The first of so many.

His hand squeezed Mithos's as he stepped closer, voice desperate, "Wait, is there..." There is no other way. He looked down at their hands and his empty Key Crest. "C-can I? Can I do it instead?"

[normalization]

For a moment, Mithos stared back in uncertainty. "You want to do it yourself...? Are you sure?"

...Of course Genis was sure. He was learning quickly, just as Mithos expected.

He smiled softly. "Yes...yes, all right. Of course you'd like to do it yourself." His smile brightened, a cruel glint coming to his eyes. "There must be someone you'd like to choose, isn't there? Like those inferior humans that exiled you...or the so-called doctor..."

He squeezed Genis' hand back with a firm nod. "We'll have to ensure compatibility, but once we've done that, of course you can pick whoever you'd like. It really is perfect...you can help your sister and carry out vengeance for her at the same time..."

[twohares]

...is this really Mithos saying these things? The rims of his eyes were getting watery all over again. He didn't understand... The little bit of relief he felt when Mithos said yes (and it was only a little relief) was dashed. Mithos didn't understand him at all. He was supposed to, but he didn't.

There was no-one in the world he wanted revenge on like this. Not the mayor, not the pope, not the guards that were going to execute him. There was no-one he could hate enough to put them through this.

It was bad enough using Marble and all those other Exspheres. He can't let himself be just like the Desians and use people to cultivate Exspheres. It was wrong, and Mithos didn't get it.

"That's not what I meant!" he cried out as he shook his head. He couldn't believe Mithos was smiling now. "I want to be the one that feeds her Exsphere! I don't want anyone else to do it!"

If he really wanted Raine back, he should be the one making the sacrifices. No-one else.

[normalization]

Confusion was already brewing in his mind at the tears welling up in Genis' eyes, even as he kept talking--Genis was going to get used to it. He had decided on this path--the only right path.

Yet...

The smile immediately dropped from Mithos' face at the outburst, replaced by an almost-emotionless stare that held a hint of skepticism. That just...didn't make any sense. Mithos shook his head.

"What are you talking about? You can't do that. It would be completely meaningless." His mouth curved into a frown. "Those humans are all worthless--no, they're less than worthless. They don't deserve to live after all they've done. They might as well be put to one last use before they die."

[twohares]

"But not all humans have done anything," he tried to reason, getting away from what should really be the point of all this. Mithos was Yggdrasill, he reminded himself; he was the one responsible for the human ranches and the Chosen system. What was so surprising about him saying what would be obvious to anyone else?

...because Mithos was his friend, and he couldn't really believe what he was saying now. Mithos was kind and caring and smart. He was just hurt and taking it out on everyone. That wasn't what he was really like, though.

Genis wasn't going to release his hand.

"I hate humans too, but this isn't what Raine would have wanted." And it wasn't what he wanted, either. "We still need them. I don't want anyone else to die. Even if they are human," he finished miserably.

[normalization]

Mithos sighed. Genis was speaking nonsense, but since it was him, Mithos could let it slide.

Rather than argue, he simply replied dismissively, "You need rest, Genis. This way," he began tugging Genis towards the door without waiting for a response.

With some proper sleep and a bit of time to think it over, he would surely come to his senses. There was no meaning in dying to save his sister when someone worthless could die in his place and allow them to live together forever. It was one of the silliest ideas he'd ever heard.

[twohares]

It wasn't the reply he was expecting, but at least Mithos wasn't mad at him. Still, it was so frustrating. Mithos wasn't listening to him!

But he still followed along, grasping Mithos's hand as they left the room where Raine and Marble waited. In the end, Mithos was probably at least right that he needed rest. His head was pounding, but the adrenaline wasn't letting him focus on it. He needed to get through to Mithos and find a way to save Raine. There had to be some way. The two of them had to be smart enough to figure something out.

Bothering him now wasn't going to work, though. As far as Mithos was concerned, they were done.

...His eyes hurt when he blinked.

"What about you?" he asked after several moments.

[normalization]

Since Genis was so tired, Mithos was content to lead him in silence, back in the direction from which they'd originally come. Sleep, food, a bit of time--then he'd be back to normal.

Not that he minded answering a simple question like that, either. "Don't worry. I don't need sleep," he replied with a glance back. "I have some other duties to oversee, though... As you now know, I rule over this place as well as the worlds below."

The worlds weren't really his concern anymore, though. Only for a little longer--long enough for Colette's illness to be cured and then he would need nothing more. "And my sister..." he muttered. "I need to check on Martel."

[twohares]

When he said that, it was impossible forget who Mithos ultimately was - what he was. It was a little scary...but the fear he felt was for Mithos rather than towards him. Being an angel seemed painful...but not as painful as his missing sister. That was probably why he chose to be an angel. Not sleeping, not eating, not feeling, controlling the two worlds for centuries...it was because he missed her so much.

It wasn't okay by any means, but he sort of understood what he was feeling, at least. He wasn't heartless; he was just sad.

"Is she okay?" Genis asked quietly, voice laced with concern. She was the most important person to Mithos. If he lost her completely, there was no way he would recover.

[normalization]

The evident concern brought a soft smile back to Mithos' face as he looked over at Genis again.

"There's no reason she shouldn't be. But I have been away for a little while," he acknowledged. "So I'd like to see her and make sure..."

Nothing should have happened, but that didn't mean he would just ignore her! Martel was too important for that.

"You can check on Raine anytime you'd like, too," he added. "Here, you can sleep close by." Although they exited the building, he turned and led them right to a small, adjacent facility. This one was lit up like the others but also completely devoid of life--angel or otherwise--as they entered an empty foyer, containing nothing more than a few doors leading elsewhere.

Mithos came to a stop and turned to Genis. "Choose any room you'd like. I'll have a meal brought to you, too."

[twohares]

That's right; Mithos had been spending time away from here to stay at Altessa's house. Keeping tabs on them must have been important to him if it kept him away from Martel for so long...

All he could do was nod slowly at his answer. It didn't feel appropriate to smile even if he was glad that nothing should have happened to her. Watching them was probably for her sake, though. When they finished collecting the cure for Colette's illness, he would probably take her, too.

...Lloyd was an idiot. He hoped he'd be okay. There was no way he could think of Colette now without feeling her fate looming over him.

He couldn't think about her, but the silence inside the new building felt like it left him with nothing but his own thoughts for company. It was entirely lifeless; if they weren't talking now, he imagined he'd be able to hear his own heart beating against it. Cold, empty, lifeless. This was the kind of place Mithos had created.

But Mithos was still thinking of him. There was still warmth in him, at least. It was one bit of hope for him against all of his doubts. A ghost of a smile came to his face as he looked up at Mithos again. "Thank you. Thanks for everything," he repeated shakily. "I think I'll check on her again soon, too, if you can't find me here."

Food wasn't a priority and neither was sleeping. He still had so much to say, and the apologies and explanations were mounting. He needed to see her again...even if they both needed rest. It was the one thing keeping him from going to her immediately once Mithos left. She wouldn't be able to tell him she needed rest, so he had to be especially considerate. If his guess was right, they'd have forever to talk anyway...

[normalization]

He let Genis take in the new surroundings, observing him quietly. If Mithos registered the complete emptiness of the room, it didn't bother him. It was peaceful--free of humans, of emotion, of forgotten responsibilities. Nevermind Sylvarant and Tethe'alla; this was the world he created for Martel.

It hadn't been anyone else's world in a very, very long time...if ever. But now, that was changing: it could be Genis and Raine's world, too. They deserved it.

He answered Genis with a sympathetic smile. "It's all right. We're friends, and we made a promise." He started to step away so that he could send for some food, adding, "Just be sure to get some rest to clear your head." And then he'd see eye-to-eye again.

[twohares]

...Yeah, Mithos was still thinking of him. Even with the complete emptiness around them, Mithos was still there, always. It made him feel a bit better. The two of them would be friends forever.

Even if that really entailed being friends with only each other forever. It didn't matter how much he slept; he didn't think he could change his mind or ever accept the sheer amount of people they would sacrifice for their sisters' sakes. Genis couldn't nap it off any more than Mithos could just have an epiphany and stop what he's doing.

But they had a long time. Maybe sometime, he could get through to him. A friend wouldn't let him do anything he'd regret. (Like Lloyd.)

He wasn't sure where to begin, but he'd find a way. Maybe he should just eat something and rest until he could think clearly.

"I will," he answered weakly. "When you're done with everything, maybe you should rest too. It could be good for you."

[normalization]

He almost laughed. Genis was still so...innocent, in a way. He didn't fully understand--not yet, anyway--or so Mithos thought.

"Don't worry about me, Genis," he answered in what he felt was a reassuring manner. "I don't need to sleep. But it's only a little longer..." Then Martel would be back.

Of course, now there was Raine to think about, too, but Mithos didn't mind. He had made a promise--a genuine promise--to help Genis bring her back, too, and he intended to see it through.

He smiled one last time. "Your meal will be brought soon, so don't wander too far, all right?" And then he turned to leave.