[ If he hadn't been stripped of two of his senses in quick succession, he would have gone to find Makoto himself after the worst of the hubbub had died down. Even the loss of one would have been surmountable, a stumbling stone instead of a complete roadblock, but he'd only be a risk to both himself and the rest of his teammates if he tried to strike out on his own like this.
Still, it feels wrong not to check in with the other man somehow, after all they'd been through—and especially after all Makoto had been through. If he can't find the other man in person, then he'll have to settle for a communion message instead, even if the thought of invading someone else's mind still makes him feel uneasy.
At least Makoto can always rebuff his message if he's not feeling in the mood. ]
This is Eustace. [ Obviously. ] I saw what happened. How are you feeling?
( morbid fascination had called makoto to watch the memories that binghe and others had shared, grafting onto his own recollection of that event outside perspectives. it's bizarre to internalize, but it at the very least informs him of what had occurred after he had lost consciousness (for better and for worse). it's with this information and the knowledge that eustace had seemed primed to help get him out of that situation that he allows the message to reach him now. there were plenty of others that he might have turned away, but — it seems wrong to do so now, especially after he had already shrugged off the erune's help in the heat of the moment. )
I could ask the same of you.
( when that thing had appeared behind abel, going so far as to reach through him... others might question eustace's instinct to shoot it, but it only earns makoto's respect.
he makes his answer very carefully: ) I'm uninjured, as far as I can tell.
[ There's a brief burst of surprise at the comment, a trickle of which makes it way through the communion channel. It's not that he sees Makoto as heartless but the Kenoma as a whole tend to be a mistrustful bunch, placing their own personal needs above those of others. Most people don't tend to ask after him.
But he answers quickly enough, tone still brisk. ]
I have a few injuries from previous altercations but nothing serious. [ ..... ] Though I still can't see.
[ No point in hiding it, when he'd reported as much to various others. Overall, his condition is less than stellar in many ways, but there's no time now to troubleshoot solutions to his (many) problems. Later, when they return to Achamoth.
Surprising that Makoto came out of all this largely unscathed though. ]
The [ what are they even calling this thing ] creature really didn't do anything to you other than knock you unconscious?
( oh, no, eustace isn't necessarily wrong to assume such a thing about makoto or the rest of the Kenoma at large, but... he's not about to be so rudely brusque to someone who has dedicated a non-insignificant portion of his time to helping makoto gain at least a passing level of weapons expertise. that, and he still can't really puzzle out why the erune had tried to get him out of that situation in Venera. logically, he has to assume it's something like loyalty to the cause of the Kenoma extending thereby to its members, but...
even with such an impetus, it's hard for the demon to comprehend anyone risking themselves for him like that. and just because he doesn't understand it doesn't mean he can't be appreciative, or even feel indebted. )
...Ah. ( now it's his turn for a breath of surprise. ) My condolences. I hope your vision returns to you quickly.
( he's largely unscathed because his body tends to heal quickly so long as it's whole and no longer under constant siege by magical disease. though — eustace's condition dovetails interestingly into his next question. )
Oh, no. It didn't necessarily harm me, but it certainly didn't leave me unscathed.
( a beat... ) For example: should you want aid for your injures, I can now help far better than mere bandaging, though at some personal cost.
( even if he wanted to be secretive about it, there's a compulsion aspect to it, so he can't guarantee he would be able to keep that secret. so... might as well. )
[ He accepts the sympathies silently, a hazy acknowledgement passed through the mindscape all the answer Makoto gets. It's a problem, most certainly, but one that can't be dealt with now, especially not when they all have so much on their plates with regards to getting to a place of safety.
His injuries are minor, all things considered, a few scrapes and bruises he would never even think of asking for healing for, but the particular lead-in to Makoto's offer, right on the heels of his own (apparently incorrect) assumptions, has him pausing, suspicion bleeding through his end of the Communion. Not towards Makoto but towards the entity that had caused all this, arriving and then vanishing as quickly as it had come. ]
( one thing that can be said about Communion is that it allows one to get certain concepts across more easily than attempting to explain them in words. makoto tends to keep empathetic communication to a minimum, attempting to only share what he feels is necessary to represent himself accurately — but now he draws a little more illustrative of a sensory picture. a sensation very similar to enervation, but not a natural type; one in which life is being drawn from the body by force rather than exhaustion being generated through exertion. )
It appears to drain my vitality to restore others', though I'm uncertain as to what extent at this point.
( as in: he has no idea if it will outright kill him if it goes on for too long. )
[ That sounds highly inconvenient, to say the least. The deepening of his frown makes itself known through the displeasure that pulses through their shared Communion, as well as the instinctive urge to pull back as soon as Makoto demonstrates just exactly how his newfound talent works. ]
I'd rather you not find out while we're here.
[ While the streets are still in enough disarray that anything could happen. Though surely Makoto feels the same way, so there's not much point in voicing that particular concern. ]
Do you need someone to help you find a clear path back?
[ Not him, because.....well, but surely someone else nearby is able to (and also not inclined to drop Makoto off at some unsuspecting location, thanks Binghe). ]
( given the nature of the curse, he's not really sure he wants to find out when or if he gets to that point at all. but he might not be in a position to make that decision.
eustace raises an issue he's already thought about a decent amount himself. being anywhere with a large concentration of people is dangerous, but venera in the wake of its miniature disaster is a particularly loathsome minefield. one he'd been dropped square into the middle of when binghe had dropped him off at the goddamned hospital; he'd regained consciousness surrounded by the living electricity of others' pain, and it had taken him hours before he'd managed to scrape together enough nerve to force himself to leave the place.
he's already figured out a way home that imposes less upon his peers. )
No, I think I will instead elect for some time alone and teleport to one of the shrines closer to Achamoth and fly the rest of the way.
( long distance is still challenging for him, considering how new his wings are still, but he'd prefer that over a crowded ship. )
I trust you have those around you that you can rely on guide you home?
[ There's a little blip of surprise at the professed method of return, but Eustace smothers it quick enough. ]
I didn't know you could fly.
[ Seems convenient. Also not something he'll dig too deeply into for the time being, both of them with more than enough on their individual plates to engage in a pointless interrogation now. ]
I'll be fine. If there's anything you need, let me know. I'll...
[ There's a pause on the other end as he grimaces at himself, his frustration at himself for ending up the way he had leaking through during the beat of silence. ]
I'll find someone who can help.
[ Since he can't in good conscience offer his own help right now, given the state he's in. ]
( there's no visual component to the Communion, but nevertheless there's the impression of a sly grin — one that's well-tempered, given their mutual situation in the wake of what had happened in venera, but one that exists nonetheless.
regardless: for the rest of eustace's message, there's little more than a nonverbal assent... though that doesn't seem to be all. makoto's presence lingers like a figure standing uncertainly in a doorway. there is something he wanted to say to the man, something only further exacerbated by his offer, and he currently grapples with the dual fact that this doesn't feel like the perfect time to ask, but also that it would only get more strange to do so the longer he delayed.
so he continues: ) You didn't need to intervene in the way that you did. ( something contorts in makoto; something uncomfortable and alien, and as estranged from mortals as dealing with the demon could sometimes feel, the most recognizable tinge to it is one of guilt. it's not that he feels remorse for what he did to estinien. he doesn't even necessarily regret inciting the Innocent (he's fairly certain his fate would've ended up the same regardless). but eustace had seemingly been trying to help him, and he'd shouldered him away to try to satiate his own foolish indignation. it's very characteristic of him, sure, but it doesn't mean he can't have his qualms. eustace is not J; his aid hadn't felt like just another way to control him.
part of him wants to ask, why? but the rest of him concedes that it's a question that's two parts foolish and two parts ungrateful. so he discards it, instead settling on another resolve. ) So I am in your debt. Don't concern yourself with me, and instead see if you can't think up a way that I can repay it.
( it's just about as cordial of a "thank you" as you can expect to get from a demon, really. )
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
voice, whenever binghe's post is over
Still, it feels wrong not to check in with the other man somehow, after all they'd been through—and especially after all Makoto had been through. If he can't find the other man in person, then he'll have to settle for a communion message instead, even if the thought of invading someone else's mind still makes him feel uneasy.
At least Makoto can always rebuff his message if he's not feeling in the mood. ]
This is Eustace. [ Obviously. ] I saw what happened. How are you feeling?
no subject
I could ask the same of you.
( when that thing had appeared behind abel, going so far as to reach through him... others might question eustace's instinct to shoot it, but it only earns makoto's respect.
he makes his answer very carefully: ) I'm uninjured, as far as I can tell.
no subject
But he answers quickly enough, tone still brisk. ]
I have a few injuries from previous altercations but nothing serious. [ ..... ] Though I still can't see.
[ No point in hiding it, when he'd reported as much to various others. Overall, his condition is less than stellar in many ways, but there's no time now to troubleshoot solutions to his (many) problems. Later, when they return to Achamoth.
Surprising that Makoto came out of all this largely unscathed though. ]
The [ what are they even calling this thing ] creature really didn't do anything to you other than knock you unconscious?
no subject
even with such an impetus, it's hard for the demon to comprehend anyone risking themselves for him like that. and just because he doesn't understand it doesn't mean he can't be appreciative, or even feel indebted. )
...Ah. ( now it's his turn for a breath of surprise. ) My condolences. I hope your vision returns to you quickly.
( he's largely unscathed because his body tends to heal quickly so long as it's whole and no longer under constant siege by magical disease. though — eustace's condition dovetails interestingly into his next question. )
Oh, no. It didn't necessarily harm me, but it certainly didn't leave me unscathed.
( a beat... ) For example: should you want aid for your injures, I can now help far better than mere bandaging, though at some personal cost.
( even if he wanted to be secretive about it, there's a compulsion aspect to it, so he can't guarantee he would be able to keep that secret. so... might as well. )
no subject
His injuries are minor, all things considered, a few scrapes and bruises he would never even think of asking for healing for, but the particular lead-in to Makoto's offer, right on the heels of his own (apparently incorrect) assumptions, has him pausing, suspicion bleeding through his end of the Communion. Not towards Makoto but towards the entity that had caused all this, arriving and then vanishing as quickly as it had come. ]
What sort of personal cost?
no subject
( one thing that can be said about Communion is that it allows one to get certain concepts across more easily than attempting to explain them in words. makoto tends to keep empathetic communication to a minimum, attempting to only share what he feels is necessary to represent himself accurately — but now he draws a little more illustrative of a sensory picture. a sensation very similar to enervation, but not a natural type; one in which life is being drawn from the body by force rather than exhaustion being generated through exertion. )
It appears to drain my vitality to restore others', though I'm uncertain as to what extent at this point.
( as in: he has no idea if it will outright kill him if it goes on for too long. )
no subject
I'd rather you not find out while we're here.
[ While the streets are still in enough disarray that anything could happen. Though surely Makoto feels the same way, so there's not much point in voicing that particular concern. ]
Do you need someone to help you find a clear path back?
[ Not him, because.....well, but surely someone else nearby is able to (and also not inclined to drop Makoto off at some unsuspecting location, thanks Binghe). ]
no subject
( given the nature of the curse, he's not really sure he wants to find out when or if he gets to that point at all. but he might not be in a position to make that decision.
eustace raises an issue he's already thought about a decent amount himself. being anywhere with a large concentration of people is dangerous, but venera in the wake of its miniature disaster is a particularly loathsome minefield. one he'd been dropped square into the middle of when binghe had dropped him off at the goddamned hospital; he'd regained consciousness surrounded by the living electricity of others' pain, and it had taken him hours before he'd managed to scrape together enough nerve to force himself to leave the place.
he's already figured out a way home that imposes less upon his peers. )
No, I think I will instead elect for some time alone and teleport to one of the shrines closer to Achamoth and fly the rest of the way.
( long distance is still challenging for him, considering how new his wings are still, but he'd prefer that over a crowded ship. )
I trust you have those around you that you can rely on guide you home?
no subject
I didn't know you could fly.
[ Seems convenient. Also not something he'll dig too deeply into for the time being, both of them with more than enough on their individual plates to engage in a pointless interrogation now. ]
I'll be fine. If there's anything you need, let me know. I'll...
[ There's a pause on the other end as he grimaces at himself, his frustration at himself for ending up the way he had leaking through during the beat of silence. ]
I'll find someone who can help.
[ Since he can't in good conscience offer his own help right now, given the state he's in. ]
no subject
( there's no visual component to the Communion, but nevertheless there's the impression of a sly grin — one that's well-tempered, given their mutual situation in the wake of what had happened in venera, but one that exists nonetheless.
regardless: for the rest of eustace's message, there's little more than a nonverbal assent... though that doesn't seem to be all. makoto's presence lingers like a figure standing uncertainly in a doorway. there is something he wanted to say to the man, something only further exacerbated by his offer, and he currently grapples with the dual fact that this doesn't feel like the perfect time to ask, but also that it would only get more strange to do so the longer he delayed.
so he continues: ) You didn't need to intervene in the way that you did. ( something contorts in makoto; something uncomfortable and alien, and as estranged from mortals as dealing with the demon could sometimes feel, the most recognizable tinge to it is one of guilt. it's not that he feels remorse for what he did to estinien. he doesn't even necessarily regret inciting the Innocent (he's fairly certain his fate would've ended up the same regardless). but eustace had seemingly been trying to help him, and he'd shouldered him away to try to satiate his own foolish indignation. it's very characteristic of him, sure, but it doesn't mean he can't have his qualms. eustace is not J; his aid hadn't felt like just another way to control him.
part of him wants to ask, why? but the rest of him concedes that it's a question that's two parts foolish and two parts ungrateful. so he discards it, instead settling on another resolve. ) So I am in your debt. Don't concern yourself with me, and instead see if you can't think up a way that I can repay it.
( it's just about as cordial of a "thank you" as you can expect to get from a demon, really. )