((I'm starting to climb back out of the block! Merry late Christmas and hopefully 2022 will be better! Thank you everyone for your patience!))

"Water. He has been breathing water and told no one?!" Alter raged quietly, pacing around as Cross stood up from the figure in bed, water draining from their mouth in a spell. Dance stood in the corner silently, arms crossed.

The former queen whirled to face Cross, still bedecked in his glittering gold armor. "Well? Are you successful?"
"Of course. Took some tricky wording, but he should be breathing fine soon." The monochrome skeleton replied.

Alter slowly calmed. "Good. Good… I apologize, I behaved rudely."
"It's fine, you were worried. Anyone in your position would be." He nodded to Dance. "Especially with what you've dealt with in the past."
"..Feels like an attack on my choices, but okay." Dance muttered.

"I was just acknowledging what happened to you. It was honestly brave as hell?" It became a question as he regarded the violet clad one. Dance blinked. "You think so?"
"I doubt Red would even be so bold. Don't tell him I said that, he'd totally deny it."
Dance snorted as the tension in the room eased.

"Okay, but seriously? Let's make sure Geno doesn't find out about this. Guy's as bad as Error when set off, and this will guarantee pissing him off." Cross explained. "And for the record, I don't know how Error will react, but if he cares enough…"

"What? What will happen?" Dance questioned, worried. Cross mimicked an explosion. "Goodbye Aroughs."
"Goodbye? He'll destroy it?"
"Just a guess. He also might not. Geno could destroy it instead for all I know. Or I'm completely wrong. I don't know Geno as well as I probably should."
"You could have started with saying that. You had me panicking a little." Dance sighed.
"My bad."

"We should go." Alter murmured, heading for the door. "He should rest."
"And eat." Cross added under his breath as they headed for the door. "You'll cook him something, right?"

"You bring up a good point. I think I will cook for as many as I can, there are many injured-" "Alter, you are not doing this again. Relax. You gotta stop putting entire armies before yourself." Dance ordered. Alter was affronted as the door shut behind them.

"I am in perfect health, mind you! I am capable of healing those in need while attending to myself."
"No, you're not. You ignore yourself and helicopter around others until you drop. I'm here to remind you not to kill yourself. So hey, go read a book or something! You can help by conserving your energy."

"He's right." Cross spoke up before Alter could retort. "I used to do the same thing. Only stopped when I was passed out cold and the team was ambushed on a supply run. So please take his advice. Your productivity is much better when you're well rested and minding yourself."

The others blinked as he turned to leave. "You're a healer?" Dance asked. Cross paused. "Me and Nightmare both are. It's just.. his is so cold." He shuddered. "I know he can't help it, but it is weak and freezing."

"I never heard of healing magic that gives off such a sensation." Alter noted curiously. Cross shrugged, glancing down the hall.
"He's a God of Negativity, he can't help what he is."

Scratching his skull, he faced them again. "Sometimes it's good for numbing pain, though."
"Still. Weird." Dance stated.
"I guess so." Cross admitted, turning to walk down the hall. "I have to go though. One of the prisoners is a magician."
"Oh damn. Definitely go, can't have one of those loose."
He snorted, teleporting in a flash of purple and white while waving.

Dance faced Alter then. "Are you going to watch over After, then?"
He considered this. "I would prefer to cook something, at least."
The shorter relented. "I guess a little food will be okay." He said, turning to head down the other direction, Alter walking beside him.
"Let's find a kitchen, and not cook twenty pies."
"You wound me."
"I know you."
They both chuckled at their own banter.

. • ° ° • .

"What is your name." The question was asked in a cold tone, the shackled man with a gaunt frame refusing to look up from the wet stone floor. Cross watched this from the corner, tensely looking out for any attack the other might try to dole out. So far, the human was silent, unmoving.
Brigman scowled, repeating the question harshly.

Omega sighed roughly from the other corner. "Look, this is ineffective as hell. Asking his name nicely isn't gonna cut it."
"I am giving him the chance to cooperate." The human snapped.
"He isn't going to." Cross stated flatly, regarding them both as he stepped forward.

"And how would you beat it out of him? Will you reach into his mind?" The human demanded.
"I can't. He's shielding himself too well. I've never learned how exactly breaking shields work, but I am familiar with other.. types of mind breaking, even if I'm not proud of it."

"What do ya mean?" Omega asked cautiously. Cross regarded. "I know various forms of torture."
Here the other scowled. "Nightmare teach you them?"
"Not directly. Most of it is ideas based off of personal experience. Have you ever been trapped in a white void without any sense of time or food or water?"

Here both hesitated.
"No." Omega answered hesitantly.
"You don't want to be. You never want to suffer that. I had to learn that humans- from the Multiverse, of course- used such things as a form of psychological torment. Weeks, months, years of nothing. I might be a raving berserk now if I was completely alone." He grimaced, then gestured to the prisoner.

"The most effective torture is to do nothing at all. It would be easy then, if we locked him in a lightless cell for a little while. It wouldn't be the same, but close enough. Feed him, give him water, but don't talk to him. Any sentient being capable of speech needs social interaction of some kind." He looked away from the silent prisoner, regarding the other two. "You know what happens when someone is deprived of everything? Psychological breakdown."

"How the actual fuck do you know all this." Omega muttered in disgust.
"I researched everything about what happened to me as soon as I discovered what it was, Omega. I'm saying I now know how to break anyone. Do I want to do it? Absolutely the fuck not. Is it necessary? Unfortunately, yes. I don't want to inflict this on anyone, I wouldn't even do it to Galbatorix himself if I could. It's.. horrifying, but the future's more important than a few individual feelings on the side."

"What you suggest sounds quite time consuming. You understand time is short, yes?" Brigman explained tensely.
"Do you think such torture methods have ever been used before?" Cross pointed out.
"No. It sounds ridiculous."

"You've never experienced it. It's effective. The whole reason I joined Nightmare in the beginning despite how he was then was because he was my only way out of that place. It makes you desperate for anything. Even if my experience never matched up to the.. white room, it's still enough. Throw him in a lightless pit. Drug him so he can't cast, and just leave him. It's easy for you, you can focus on more immediate issues like what to do with this damn city."

"I'll not hand a fellow man to one with no knowledge of our kind! Not even him!" Brigman exclaimed.
Cross blinking, Omega recoiling.
"I.. do know about humans. Just because you're not as fast or powerful as humans from the Multiverse doesn't make your needs all that different. I'm not ignorant."

"There could be any manner of mistakes you could make. You could kill him for all we know! I won't have that, I won't have it at a-"
He was suddenly interrupted by the metal door creaking open suddenly, shadows blocking out the dim light as a pale figure stepped in.
"Geno?" Both skeletons present asked.

He regarded them both as a sigh sounded behind him, Reaper crouching under the doorframe as he entered. The white clothed one spoke brusquely.
"I heard the questioning wasn't going well."

Here, the normally stoic man spluttered in fear.
"Are you going to have him question the prisoner?" He queried frantically, much closer to the wall.

Reaper sighed again. "He would likely die the instant I tried. I'm not here for that. Just for Geno." He rested his hand on the pale one's shoulder as another figure took a step into the room.
Here, the commander actually pressed himself to the wall.
"Please. There must be another way. We needn't drive him mad."

Error scoffed. "I'm not going to drive him insane, human. I just happen to have the appropriate skill set to break this supposedly unbreakable barrier."
For the first time, movement from the prisoner caught everyone's attention.

The man with a hooked nose slowly lifted his head, regarding the room coldly.
"I'd like to see you try, bringer of death." He spoke in a hoarse voice, squinting as he lapsed back into concentration.

"....Well now I feel challenged." Reaper noted in the ensuing silence.
"Why did he say that to me in your damn presence." Error sighed.
"It's one of my titles, now I have to try."
"We still don't know if your death touch extends to mental probing." Geno pointed out.

Reaper paused, then shrugged. "Meh. If he dies, I'll just look through his Soul."
"Wait, Alagaësia has Souls?" Cross blurted in surprise.
Reaper nodded. "It's different from back home, lacking the physical form and all, but yes."
"..Huh." Omega pondered as the god drifted closer to the prisoner curiously.

"It means monsters can't manipulate them for the most part." He finally explained, setting his feet on the floor. The action bade the room to fall to silence. 
A minute passed, the god of death quietly studying the other as the human faced the ground.

"Look at me." Reaper murmured, wings shuffling on his backside as he summoned his ancient blade.
Gently pressing the flat of the blade under the man's chin, he forced the other to look up.
"Let me see your face." He continued gently, entirely devoid of hostility.

His empty sockets eventually ignited with blue spherical irises, peering into the other's green ones.
"You are not the one I spoke to." The man stated without fear.
"No. You were not looking at me. You were facing Destruction, and you called my name. I am Death, not he." He explained softly, watching the other's pupils shrink.
"I do not fear death." He snarled.

Reaper sighed. "I don't want you to, but I know you lie. Perhaps you could have fooled my brother, God of peaceful deaths and main ferry to your afterlife, but I have spent too many eons gathering the Souls of those that died fighting against their end. I know fear when I see it."

"If you really wanted me not to be afraid, you wouldn't go through these theatrics." The other scowled.
Reaper chuckled quietly.
"No, I'm not trying to be theatrical at all. You misunderstand. I want to remember your face. I've never tried entering a mortal's mind before, human or not." He leaned closer, intrigued. "The only minds I have ever touched are fellow gods, my undying beloved and the already dead."

"Reaper, don't lie. You are absolutely being theatrical." Error scoffed. Reaper turned, looking hurt as Geno snorted.
"Believe it or not Error, he is quite literally like this."
"I'm hurt." The god of death pouted, scythe still holding the magician's chin up as Error blinked.
"You're joking."

"He's really not. He doesn't know social norms outside of his pantheon and the little he learned from the Multiverse." Geno explained, pulling his scarf up.
"He's an absolute dork."

Now he hovered up, blade resting on the stone floor.
"Geeeeeenoooooo. Why would you call me that in such an important moment?"
"Because you are absolutely a dork who fits too well in Alagaësia sometimes."
The god gasped. "How could you."
The undead was clearly hiding a smile under his scarf now. "Reaper, you're wasting time."

He pouted, shaking his skull as he glanced at the human that gave them no thought, focused solely on his mental defenses.
"On my first time." He tsked, parting his wings as he focused on the other intensely.

After a short moment, the human gasped, tensing in his shackles.
"I'll admit, that took a second to get through." Reaper commented amiably as the blood drained from the other's face. "N-no-" He choked out, slowly reaching for his sternum.

"Nabian is a good name." Reaper stated kindly, still gazing at his face with a benevolent smile. The magician only let out a strangled grunt, face turning red from strain.

The smile on the god's face slowly morphed into a sad frown, leaning down a little as the human's eyes lolled about before abruptly focusing on him.
"I have yet to meet Angvard here. He has not shown his face. The spirits that have deigned themselves the guardians of your world have only whispered that he has vanished some time ago, after the rest of your gods abandoned your kind. I find this irresponsible beyond belief, but I only want to help your world. That can start with you, my friend."

A tear slowly made its way down the man's face as he fought to look away and found himself unable to. After a tense minute, the tension began to fall away, a pallor settling over his features.
"Damn you." The human whispered. "You know nothing of my king."

"No." He shook his skull softly. "I've seen ruler after ruler, kingdom after kingdom, emperor, high priest, nobles and kings alike call themselves good and a great force and still fall in the end as the falsehoods they are. It's okay to be wrong. You just need to accept that all things can sometimes prove to be failable." Reaper gave a mournful smile and drifted backwards, watching the other turn an almost pasty color.

"I'm sorry you have to die before your time. Just know that you will not be alone."
"You're killing him?" Omega whispered loudly as the human began to fall limp.

"Turns out staying too long does kill them." Reaper sighed as the magician's eyes glazed over, head falling to the side as his legs gave out beneath him. At this, the god leaned over and touched the man's chest, the last bit of flush leaving his skin as a faint light briefly flashed around the god's phalanges.

He stepped back then, straightening as his ethereal eyelights vanished, back to normal. "The Black Hand is still up and running in the Varden, though only a third of its members remain. This one was trained in Dras-Leona by dark priests of Helgrind in magic and was sworn to Galbatorix before being sent down here. He convinced Halstead to join the Empire's side and has assassinated others that remained on ours. He spread rumors against the Varden and has several assistants." He regarded Bridgman then.

"I can help you with those assistants if they haven't fled the city yet, if you want?"
The commander opened his mouth, mute.

"No, I think it's better you took care of the remaining Black Hand." Geno explained thoughtfully.
"You can tell us what you know of the assistants in Aroughs, though." Cross pointed out.

"Alright." Reaper nodded, turned his scythe on it's side so that he was sitting on the staff, starting to list off names. Cross started writing them down, glancing at the human every once in a while as Error handed Fresh to Geno, who in turn showed off the godling to Omega, who stared in tense confusion.

Eventually Reaper finished and promptly swooped over to snatch his lover from behind, Geno immediately shouting in the enclosed space at the unexpected capture, Fresh hopping into his mother's arms with no small amount of giggling at the scene.

As the god of death called his lover adorable, the door opened yet again, revealing a human that was still mostly a boy than man staring at the suddenly silent scene.
"Yes? What is it?" Geno asked.

"I. Lady Nasuada has summoned the Commander to…" His gaze drifted to the mostly forgotten body on the floor.

Brigman finally mustered his courage to step forth. "The Lady summons me where?"
"Halstead's quarters, Sir…. What happened to him..?"
"He died for the wrong cause." Error scoffed, stepping past him.

"Visiting was nice and all, but I need to return to Farthen Dur. Eragon needs me." He explained while walking into a glitching portal.
"Thank you for bringing me here regardless!" Reaper called after him before it closed.

Everything paused.
"He heard me." The god of death decided.
"Of course he heard you." Geno sighed in his grip. Brigman chose that moment to edge past them, ducking into the hall and marching quickly away. The messenger glanced after him, then at the skeletons still in the cell. Omega teleported away as he opened his mouth.

The boy froze, staring at where he had been in disbelief. "He vanished!"
"He left, yeah." Cross spoke up, peering thoughtfully at the body on the floor.
"Where did he go? What magic is that?"
"He went somewhere else, kid. I don't know." He looked up as he explained, then Geno spoke up.
"It's just a natural ability most skeletons have. We can.. shift locations to anyplace we've been before. It's an inherent ability. Can you put me down now?" The last part he directed at Reaper.

"Aww, but you look so cozy!"
"Reaper."
"Am I really not allowed to carry you?"
"I swear."
"What?"
Geno started kicking, pushing at the iron grip.
"Okay, okay!" Reaper let him go, the glitch dropping to the floor with a huff, brushing himself off. "I won't be respected by anyone being carried everywhere."

"Oh come on, Gen. That can't be true."
"It's ridiculous." The undead one crossed his arms, glancing at Cross. "Isn't it?"
"It.." The monochrome one hesitated. "I am not the person to ask."
"See? It's not ridiculous." Reaper grinned hopefully.

Geno shook his skull in irritation, facing the human. "Is it ridiculous?"
"I- er- it. It is odd? Strange. It's strange. May I ask why you wish to.. hold him, Sir?" He asked Reaper awkwardly. The god lit up in excitement, sweeping over to hug the bloody glitch from behind. "Because he's my precious undying! Why can't I keep him close?"
"Ugh, Reaper!" He pushed the raven-winged one back, annoyed.

"Undying..? You're immortal?"
"He's effectively not just immortal but just can't die." Cross explained. The human blinked in disbelief. Geno sighed. "It's why this dramatic crow won't leave me alone."

"Aww, Gen! That's not the only reason at all! You're precious, you're handsome, you're so confident in yourself-" "Shut up!" Geno interrupted, a red glow on his cheekbones.
"And you have the best reactions to compliments." The god added, amused. The bloody glitch fumed, practically glowing like a tomato.

"How is it possible to.. not die?"
"By reaching an equilibrium in a power that humans where we came from carried. It typically kills our kind.. horribly, but it's possible to have it without dying. I'm an example, but he's the one who literally can't die because he's a glitch." Cross explained while Geno glared at his lover.

"Glitch?" The human asked. "I've not heard of such a thing."
"Long story short, I'm slightly broken and it gives me something like this." Geno pointed at his signature glitch, then held out his hand as another jumped up his arm and fizzled in his palm.

"They're more or less a part of me, and they.. sort of make damage to me meaningless at times. They're erratic. I could get cut, and I'd glitch and it would disappear, or glitch and it's much worse. Fortunately I can control it for the most part. But this is part of why I can handle the element Cross mentioned. It's called Determination, and it's known to prevent monsters from dying in the right circumstances. If used improperly, it can melt the carrier."

He paused, then revealed the messed up half of his face. "It started happening to me before I glitched out, actually. It.. left me unable to die, for the most part."
"You didn't have to show him." Reaper murmured softly.
Geno regarded him. "I wanted to."

With that, he allowed the white glitches to appear back in their place.
"Is it some.. disease of magic?" The human asked nervously.
"Ah, no. It's a condition, not a sickness. It can have advantages and disadvantages, and the way one can become glitched is complicated and still not fully understood. Glitching in and of itself is still largely unknown, but it has many different levels. I'm a more serious case than most others. But Cross here is a very minor case."

"I'm not a glitch." Cross defended, stiffening. Geno gave him a look. "You're a glitch."
"I am not a glitch."
The undead one suddenly yanked out the other's split Soul.
"Just stop denying it already." He stated flatly as it glitched positions, white glitches audibly dancing across it. Cross held his hand in front of it, looking away in shame.

Geno stared for a long moment, then sighed abruptly, throwing up his hands and walking out of the cell in irritation. "I can't understand the problem, I just can't!"
Reaper teleported around the human to follow, glancing back at Cross in concern as he did so.

The monochrome one stood silently in the cell, staring at the ground as an invisible specter hovered beside him, equally disquieted.

"...I miss having a body.." The spirit sighed quietly.
"I miss being myself." Cross whispered in response.

The messenger at the door stared for a minute while longer, then slowly shut the door and hesitantly stepped away.