I Can Explain (Faith)

[Rey'na]

93rd Zi'da

"So we came all the way to this shit-sty to meet your sister, who happens to be one of the most famous woman in Idalos, and you see no reason why telling me this might have mattered?" Violet asked with a raised eyebrow, sat against a wall with an amused look on her cheeks. In the blunt way Rey'na had learned to act she gave a small nod, the lack of emotion really showing through now that she felt stressed. Normally, the idea of being so close to her sister would make her happy, maybe even ecstatic. But all she could wonder now is what Faith would have to say about what happened in Rynmere.

With a small eye-roll, Violet leaned back against the wall. "Fine. But you owe me a meal some time while we're here, for all the rations I let you eat and share" she shot to Rey with a playful tone to her. "Deal" the child of Lisirra said with a nod, giving an uncomfortable hug to the woman. No matter how awkward she felt it was, Violet always insisted on it. Emotions or not, the Hone mage cared for her new pupil. If that meant she got a forced hug every now and again, that wasn't an issue as far as she saw it. Besides, whether Rey'na knew it or not, she gave good hugs. Though Violet found herself becoming a little more biased towards Rey'na the past few days.

Once the goodbyes were done, Rey'na head to the house she had been told she could find Faith at. If there was one perk to her sister being so well known it was that she could always track her down by rumour alone, following whispers of where she would go next and what she had been doing. It was a relief to know that Faith was still in Rharne, where she had told Rey'na she would be going a few seasons prior. It meant she didn't need to travel much for a short while, not that she planned on staying in Rharne for a prolonged period of time. As soon as she was done here the girl planned on moving back to the road, travelling and seeing where she could end up. Maybe a city would appeal to her, somewhere unfamiliar. A new start to go with her new mentality.

Firmly, Rey'na knocked at the door, only needing to pause for a few trills before it finally opened - and there she was. It wouldn't take even a trill for Faith to see the difference in Rey'na, be it her facial expression or her eyes or her entire face. Truth be told, more had changed in her life than anyone could read from body language alone. But the change was at least clear. No smile was on Rey's face, no tears filled her eyes. Nothing but a hollow look as she met her sisters eyes. Rey had to wonder if news had hit Faith yet, about her alleged death. Rey wondered if Faith even recognised that it was her.

"May I come in? I think we need to talk" the girl asked, her voice the same as always. "I can explain everything."

[Faith Augustin]

"One bit!" Faith called as she heard the knock on the door and then, she stepped into the hall of the large house she and Padraig had purchased here in Rharne. Just outside the city itself, it sat on the shores of Lake Lovalus. Set in five acres of land, the house had the lovely kitchen which Faith was most pleased with and Padraig had his very own tower. Like, as she teased him, the mad scientist he was. They were both busy, but not as busy as they'd been on Scalvoris, and as it happened Faith was in the kitchen when the sound of rapping on the door came.

So, she opened the door and there, in front of her, was a stranger. For the blink of an eye, anyhow. Just the blink of an eye because, as changed as she was, Faith knew the woman on her doorstep. "Rey'na?" She looked at her sister, wide eyed, and then opened the door, stepping to one side. "Come in, please, of course. How are you?" Faith frowned slightly, looking at Rey'na and she felt a deep seated dread in her stomach. But, now was not the time for dramatics, as Faith saw them, and so she ushered her sister in to the living room.

Inside the house was clean and bright and comfortable. It was obviously furnished with comfort in mind, with soft furnishings and high ceilings in the higgledy-piggledy corridors. Each door was different, but Faith opened one which led into a bright and cheery lounge. That there were children in the house was evident in each room and this one had two bright boxes of toys against one wall, children's blankets flung over an overstuffed armchair and parchments and chunky coloured wax sticks on the table. "Sit down, Rey," Faith said, gesturing for her sister to do just that.

Once Rey'na had sat, Faith would do the same. If he sister chose to remain standing, Faith mirrored that, too. Looking at her, Faith breathed in and spoke. When she did, her voice was soft and gentle, yet it had an edge of steel to it. It was Faith's absolutely determined voice, no doubting it. "We need to talk, yes, I'm sure we do. But before we do, I need to tell you something."

She didn't take Rey'na's hand, because she rather got the feeling that, right now, Rey wouldn't want her to. So, Faith looked at her sister with her misty silver eyes and she spoke in a calm, clipped and almost emotionless tone. Of course, it was only emotionless to someone who didn't know Faith. "I need you to know, Rey'na, that you are my sister and I love you." Faith's gaze was unwavering as she spoke. She didn't make any bones about what she was saying, didn't sugar coat it, it wasn't the way she was.

"I don't know what's happened, I'm not sure why you've changed or to what extent, but I know, without a doubt, that you are my sister and that means more to me than I express. And.." Faith was an incredibly disciplined young woman; her arcs as a slave had left her such and it was rare that she lost control in any way. Yet, tears stood suddenly in her eyes as she spoke the next words. "I am so sorry that I wasn't there to help you. With whatever it was."

Clasping her hands together, fingers entwined and pressing on to her knuckles so hard that the pads turned white, Faith's silver gaze examined her sister. "But, I'm here now. Tell me?"

[Rey'na]

Seeing Faith was beyond a relief. It had been a long time since the two had been together and talked, so much having changed and happened. But Rey's worried didn't fall to any of them but the one. One thing that she knew Faith would struggle to hear over anything else Rey'na could break to her. But she had to hear it, she had to know what happened and what it meant for the future. Because with her soul gone Rey knew there was a lot more she could do, yet so much was missing. So many opportunities to smile were gone.

Rey'na nodded simply as Faith told her to come in, following her sisters lead. "I've been much worse" she assured Faith at her question, seeing the frown on her sisters face. It wasn't a lie by any stretch, living without emotions had benefits that Rey'na could never have foreseen. Efficiency and prowess were just two, her abilities in combat boosted when there was no emotion to make her reckless. Sephira and Max had almost suffered because of Rey's inability to keep her emotions inside. Now nobody would have to die for her emotions sake again. Even if it meant she had to leave the only two people she considered her real friends in the whole of Idalos.

Silently, Rey listened to what Faith had to say, promising she would always love her no matter what had to be said. If she could bring herself to do it tears would be in her eyes, but right now she couldn't. Sometimes small bouts of emotion broke out, but that seemed to fade as time went on. It was as if her soul had given up fighting for what was missing now. When Faith began to cry Rey'na kept her gaze forward on her sister, not once breaking eye contact from her. In a weird way she felt braver by doing it, showing Faith that she was unmoved no matter what she had been through. But despite it her gaze remained nearly entirely empty, a glimmer of sadness in them.

"I don't know where to begin" she confessed as her hand ran through her hair a little, absentmindedly finding something to do. It was intense even without the emotional drive, admitting to your sister that your mother was a feared Immortal and that your soul had been torn from your body and ripped in two right before your eyes. After a small sigh Rey'na forced out the words as best she could. "I worked for the Elements, as you knew. When there was a big attack on Scalvoris myself and Sephira Blackwood worked together, we were a perfect duo. So much so that Qylios gave us both this" she said and showed the glowing band around her arm.

"Which meant when tensions got worse in Rynmere and we needed something they had to save Scalvoris it was me and Sephira that were sent, alongside one other. Maxine" she started, her hands freezing instead of fidgeting as vivid memories ran through her head. Meeting Max, the two smoking together in a bar, the mage burning and the Mantis cell. "We got found out. I saw a mage being burned alive by a young boy, almost being praised for doing it. Something inside me snapped and so I approached. As I did another woman launched an attack, so we ended up in a battle against the Order of the Mantis. A group determined to purge the world of magic."

It was now that Rey'na found her gaze breaking from Faith's, opting to look at the floor as her emotions flared. Sadness ran through her head for a moment at the memories of her own screams. "Which meant when they captured me and found out I was a mage they took me in. They wanted to use me to find Sephira but I didn't talk, refused to even say her name. After all the time I spent in Scalvoris it was you and Sephira that helped me, more than anyone else has in Arcs. So I wasn't going to risk them finding her. I figured I would either escape within a few trials or they'd kill me. But after some trials of torture, being poisoned to hallucinate, the torture suddenly stopped - yet I didn't die."

"They took my Spark by force, a gem ripping it away - with it went my emotions" she said simply, eyes looking back up to show the same hollow look they had before. Both her hands moved to her lap and gripped together. "Max and Sephira freed me soon after, while the Mantis tried to weaponize me against Sephira. Until we killed them all" she sighed before glancing to the nearest window for a moment, having been starved of the outside for a long time in that cell.

"Scalvoris thinks I died, killed in action. Sephira told me she would do that for me. But I didn't want you to hear it and think it was true."

[Faith Augustin]

Faith was far, far from a perfect person. Yet, she had talents and tendencies which meant that she was a good listener and, more than that, she noticed things. So, she sat and listened to her sister as she talked and Faith noticed a few things. The lack of emotion in Rey'na's face - but also the way that she fidgeted, until she spoke about Maxine. When that happened, her sister became stock still, like she dare not move. Faith watched, but she did not speak, just allowing Rey'na the chance to get out what she needed to.

And what a story it was.

Faith listened, all the way through. She kept her gaze on Rey'na, kept her focus there and the disciplined young woman's expression showed nothing as her sister spoke of having her Spark removed, and the emotions with it, Faith felt a pure cold rage building in her. She smiled, softly, her Discipline meaning that she kept herself in check; it was what she had done all her life as a slave, after all. She hid her emotions, she pushed them away; often times she forced them into her hands or her just did not allow herself to feel or show them. It was rare, though, very rare, that Faith got angry and that was what she was right now. More than angry.

Right now, she was livid.

But she remained quiet and she waited for Rey'na to finish. When she had, Faith was silent for a moment. Then, she spoke. When she did, Faith's voice was soft and calm. "I am so sorry that I was not there to help you, Rey'na. To get you out." She felt a pang of guilt, not a small one, at the thought of her sister there; she must have been so afraid. So afraid. Faith's silver eyes looked at Rey'na and in that moment Faith wanted to kill every member of the Mantis. Every last one of them. Yet, she was who she was and there was no doubting that; she quickly calmed down and her inner turmoil was not even vaguely noticeable.

"So, I have some questions, if I might?" She honestly felt like there were a thousand, but Faith sorted them in her head and lifted her hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. "Is Mantis destroyed?" Faith asked, her first thought clear and basic. Then, when Rey'na had answered that, Faith paused and pushed her fingers together so that the pads were white. "Is there anyone left alive on that side who might come after you?" She figured that was the next question to ask and, again, she waited for the answer. She didn't take notes or any such but then, Faith didn't need to. After all, she never forgot anything.

Then, it was the third, and final question and Faith looked at her sister with calm and non-judgemental eyes. "And please, Rey, if you would. Tell me what Maxine did?" Faith looked impassively, impossibly calm as she asked that question and she sat, stock still, waiting to hear the answer.

Insight

A capstone ability Faith has from Detection:
Faith's awareness of the world around her has increased to the point that she begins to be able to see and sense nuances in a way which might seem to be beyond human but is, in fact, very clear attention to minute detail. Like the modern day "Neuro-Linguistic Programming", and in conjunction with her high psychology skill, Faith has learned to read people. We tend to look in a particular direction when lying, another when remembering, pupils dilate when we recognise something and contract when we are afraid and so on. Her attention to non-verbal cues is such that she has developed a remarkable insight for what people are genuinely thinking and feeling, rather than what they are presenting to the world.

In practice, what this means is that Faith will have an excellent insight into the thoughts and emotions of those she meets. The longer she knows them, the more she gets to know their individual quirks, but upon first meeting she can gain a sound grasp of someone's reaction. It could easily be mistaken for Empathy or Attunement, but it is not as powerful as either of those.