(no subject)

[warrior_king]

[Gorthan is sitting on a bench, and the Library can clearly be seen in the background. He sighs to himself before speaking.]

It would appear I have been asleep for nearly a month. Of you, dear denizens of Vatheon, I ask two things - that you tell me more about this unusual state of prolonged sleep, and that you provide a brief report of anything I may have missed during my forced absence.

You have my thanks in advance. And if you wish for a reward in exchange for the information I seek, it could consists of book recommendations, for I have nothing else to offer at the moment.

[Inwardly, he is a little nervous. He has yet to check whether on his acquaintances here, and he wonders whether they are all still around.]

Comments

[kagayakashi]

[ Gracia smiles; she's incredibly happy that Gorthan was still in Vatheon. She'd lost too many friends without a goodbye because of the cursed sleep... ]

Gorthan! You were just asleep...I'm so glad you're awake now! [ She tucks loose hair behind her ear. ] You have nothing to worry about. Everyone, at one point, sleeps for a long time. Even me and Father.

[ Gracia hums, her chin tilted upwards, lips in a pout. ]

You missed quite a lot though. Where shall I began...?

[warrior_king]

Gracia!

[And whether Gorthan likes it or not, every bit of his concern is evident when he answers. Gracia is by far the person he was most eager to contact as soon as he woke up. He doesn't want to think about what that means...]

... Thank you for contacting me. And, yes, Motochika said something about you being asleep for two months consecutively...? Your father must have been very worried... [Implying Gorthan himself would worry extremely as well.]

Take your time, Gracia. I understand a lot has been going on... are you safe?

[kagayakashi]

[ The young lady chuckles slightly, the corners of her eyes crinkling in her delight. She scratches her cheek as she replies. Three of her fingers are still recovering from her injury, hence being bandaged, but they've gone a long way from being broken. ]

Of course I'd contact you, silly! We're friends, remember? Friends check up on each other, especially when you haven't seen them for a long time. [ She nods. ] I woke up so stiff and hungry, you wouldn't believe it! He was, but not too much. He checked up on me every once in a while, so it was alright I think. [ Her smile drops slightly. ] Speaking of which, Father is asleep right now. I hope he'll wake up soon.

I'm safe, yes! [ She begins recounting the events he had missed... ] Let's see...there was a monster called Yami that went up on the island. It caused all sorts of trouble, but we were able to defeat it. Father took part in that battle, and gained incredible strength! [ Gracia sighs dreamily, before shaking out of it and continuing. ] Besides that, the island also seems to have a strange research facility that you can explore if you want. [ Her expression turns dark. ] It's the lab that they took us when we were kidnapped for three days. You should go take a look at it, Gorthan. You're smart, so you might be able to help out with the investigations!

[warrior_king]

[As long as Gorthan sees the bandaging, Gracia will be treated to the rare sight of the space conqueror freaking the hell out.]

Gracia! You are hurt! Did you somehow become involved with the battle as well?

[And... now he will feel extremely bad because he was not able to somehow prevent all this. And just the fact that he will feel anything at all will be enough to confuse him.]

I will be sure to visit that place. Science is not evil in itself... and yet, misusing it can originate all manners of evils.

Your lying to me about your health concerns me. Did you simply not want me to worry, or is your father such a poor teacher?

[kagayakashi]

[ Gracia only dismisses him with another smile. She also flexes her fingers, curling them against her fist for emphasis. ]

I tried to fight the Yami, but regular punching just wouldn't harm it. I made a mistake, but Gorthan should calm down! I'm fine now, it's almost fully healed! [ Her expression grows fond, however. ] Thank you for always worrying for my safety. You're a very good friend, yes indeed!

[ Now that that's out of the way... ] I can accompany you if you want. I've already explored that place, though I wasn't able to find anything of use...But maybe if I go with you next time, we'll find something that will help solve the mystery?

[ She tilts her head to the side. ] I'm not lying, I promise I'm not! I'm really alright! And Father would never teach me such things! He's much too honorable! [ Gracia can't help but laugh at his persistence. It reminds her of her Father, clearly, yet at the same time it's Gorthan's own brand of protectiveness she's not completely used to. ]

[warrior_king]

[Yes, he is worried to death, but he will still do all he can to act tough.]

Almost is not completely. As for the way you fought the monster, your father once mentioned to me that he, along with Motochika, possessed powers akin to magic. Do you not possess those powers yourself?

[... Not to mention that he has no idea what to do with the "you're a very good friend" remark. It's quite fortunate that Evronians are unable to blush.]

What did you see there? Even if it provided no leads.

[kagayakashi]

[ She shrugs, still smiling. ] Almost means it's getting there, though! And yes, I have those powers too. It's called musou, or battle magic as I heard Father call it once! It's what we use to make our attacks on the battlefield all the more powerful! [ This time, she raises both her hands up to the sides of her face. She clenches her fists once, as if preparing herself for a fight. ] A lot of my attacks use it, actually. But even so, musou was useless against the Yami. It took a special blessing to defeat it! Best ask Father; he fought in it more than I did.

[ You should be used to that by now, Gorthan <3 ]

Lots of empty rooms, but some had blood smears on the walls...[ Gracia sighs. ] We found the white room where they took us as well. The place where we were when we got kidnapped a few months ago. Our names were on a list. [ The very act of recalling that moment gets her hairs raising. It was an unpleasant experience - one she had to go through with a few others, including Mitsuhide, before she met Gorthan. ] There was also a laboratory, a place with a password that we don't know, and an exit tunnel!

[warrior_king]

[While he seems very interested by Gracia's description, he closes his eyes gravely when it ends. Something twitches on his brow, a small sign of anger.]

Of course... as I suspected from the start! We are being studied and experimented on... like what happens in that hellish pit, R'ur Kil! As marvelous as the many disciplines of science are, those who apply them truly know no scruples and are the bane and the ruin of all planets everywhere... and you say you were kidnapped, too? What did your father and Motochika do?

Eep, sorry about the lateness! ):

[kagayakashi]

[ Okay, most of that flew over her head. Your words, Gorthan. Sometimes they are too big for Gracia to follow xD But it's okay. Even if she didn't get the essence of his words, she was able to see that anger hidden beneath them. She blinks and tries to comfort him with another reassuring smile. ]

Gorthan, how agitated you are! Calm down and take a deep breath!

[ A slight nod. ] Yes, I was. Unfortunately, Father was kidnapped just like I was. Motochika was left searching for us both, for three whole days. And when we finally found each other...[ She frowns sadly. She prefers not to remember how different they had all acted. How much sadder she was, and how little hope there seemed to be. ]

[warrior_king]

[While he does try to calm down as Gracia says, he cannot help but be concerned when she won't finish her sentence. In a moment of complete lack of empathy, as is usual for Gorthan's species, he simply cannot fathom why she'd do that.]

Yes? I am listening, Gracia.