[... She means to say more, but. Neither of them are decent at small talk. Perhaps it will be forgiven that she can not muster it now. She has more pressing business.]
Have you seen recently any sign of the war god, Set?
[She knew they were at least vaguely acquainted, for she had seen overheard them on Communion, but... most of the people she knows for sure have deeper bonds with the man (god) she despises, and she will not speak to them, even in a time such as this. Byleth it is.]
Hayame, hello. I haven't seen him recently, now that you've mentioned it.
[The last Byleth had seen him in person had been when seeking his advice regarding the Sword of the Creator, otherwise... the public Communion. Byleth had been busy pondering how to approach settling Sothis's remains to rest, as well as sketching out a vague storyline for this "happy ending" he had promised Set - that he'd completely neglected to visit the man in person for a while.]
I hope he hasn't wandered off somewhere and gotten hurt. When did you last speak with him?
That's troubling. Set is powerful in battle, but he's fragile in a myriad of ways. Whatever could've killed him...
[Also the question of what happened to his Shard if he was dissipated?]
I'll try contacting him via Communion throughout the next few days. If his Shard has been returned to the Tree, likely he'll return in a few days. Otherwise I can search Alenroux for any sign of him there.
Alas, I'm neither. My sense of smell is rather good, but not enough to sniff out Shards or lost people.
[He is good at stumbling across lost items, though! He feels Set's Shard wouldn't be the equivalent to a comb lost down to the back of a sofa, though.]
The revived person grows from a seed, do they not? At the very least, we could see if there's any recently disturbed earth or the beginning of a seed forming.
[It might not be Set, but no one else has sounded the alarm on any missing Shard-bearers or any killed ones.]
As for shattering his Shard, perhaps. There's another scenario that worries me: Aetós.
You don't need to directly confront someone to kill them. Strength means nothing when compared to guile.
[Granted, Set being a god meant assassinating him was likelier a trickier task than if he'd been a simple human, but still.]
And, considering how he's been these past few weeks... [The whole, ranting and raving at a ghost thing.] ...his guard might not be as high as it should be.
[She does not mean to snap, because she is the one who had come to Byleth, but she is on edge and uneasy, alone in her own head for the first time since… months and months.]
I thought-
[She’d tried, she tried to rip him from what haunted him, to shove sense into him, to do anything, and she’d foolishly thought-]
...perhaps. But recovery isn't a constant line of improvement, especially if the injury is to one's mind.
[Byleth had witnessed more than a few mercenaries break under pressure or a harsh life. Some managed to, well, manage it, but there were never any miraculous recoveries: only brutal masking of the issue until something upset the careful balance they maintained. So, when someone was 'better', it didn't mean they were better.]
There'll be lapses and backsliding. Which is why it's important we show support and withhold our judgement until we understand his reasonings for the actions he takes. To him, there's an unshakeable logic to what he does, even if from our perspective it seems nonsensical or self-destructive.
[...]
But I digress. Discussing Set's mental health is moot if we can't confirm he's safe and sound- ah, relatively, if his Shard's been planted at the Tree.
If he wants me to understand the reason for his actions, he can tell them to me!
[She has asked, and she has demanded, time and again for him to just... just say something, anything, even just the barest of warnings before he implements the plans that he must know she will despise or suspect, and still... still, even though he claimed they were friends, he-
[Byleth didn't react to the shout, Hayame's frustration and anger washing over him like water over a duck's back. He simply gave the mental impression of blinking slowly, like a cat.
He was used to hot tempers and angry worriers, as the majority of mercenaries tended to be passionate, hot-blooded pack animals that bonded intensely to the few who survived more than a few battles with them. Hayame yelling didn't really register as yelling, just normal levels of "I am worried about my friend and I will make sure everyone knows this while putting up a tough front".
So he let Hayame shout, patiently waiting, until she suggested they went to the Tree.]
Very well. I'll meet you there, then. Will you be departing now?
[And with that Byleth just... cut the Communion. Sorry, Hayame, he was still learning how to properly say goodbye before just ambling off. But he did immediately head off to the Tree after severing the Communion, so he won't keep her waiting at least.]
[There is nothing more to be said. She didn't expect a goodbye, this wasn't a social call. They will meet at the Tree, they will eventually find the cocoon of someone, that will revive sometime...
And Hayame will leave in anger, before the anger becomes any kind of visible upset.]
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kenos
[... She means to say more, but. Neither of them are decent at small talk. Perhaps it will be forgiven that she can not muster it now. She has more pressing business.]
Have you seen recently any sign of the war god, Set?
[She knew they were at least vaguely acquainted, for she had seen overheard them on Communion, but... most of the people she knows for sure have deeper bonds with the man (god) she despises, and she will not speak to them, even in a time such as this. Byleth it is.]
no subject
[The last Byleth had seen him in person had been when seeking his advice regarding the Sword of the Creator, otherwise... the public Communion. Byleth had been busy pondering how to approach settling Sothis's remains to rest, as well as sketching out a vague storyline for this "happy ending" he had promised Set - that he'd completely neglected to visit the man in person for a while.]
I hope he hasn't wandered off somewhere and gotten hurt. When did you last speak with him?
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I am not concerned about him being hurt.
[She is concerned about him being dead. But how does she say that? It sounds insane when said out loud.]
I last spoke with him over a week ago. But I have... ways of being informed of his presence. Communion-wise. He was fine enough until yesterday.
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[Which meant...]
Dissipated?
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Possibly. I can think of nothing else that would remove that connection.
[Except Set willingly cutting it off... and they have not fought so recently or so viciously as that.]
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[Also the question of what happened to his Shard if he was dissipated?]
I'll try contacting him via Communion throughout the next few days. If his Shard has been returned to the Tree, likely he'll return in a few days. Otherwise I can search Alenroux for any sign of him there.
no subject
[Even though she knows it's true. So much for the great and almighty gods. No matter how powerful he was in battle...
But there weren't supposed to be battles now. Not over the Oracle, anyway. So who had he been warring with, what had he been fighting- ?]
If he returns, I should know of it.
[Should she? Is that how their bond worked? She was only guessing, but...]
What we require is someone who can sense shards. That, or a bloodhound.
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[He is good at stumbling across lost items, though! He feels Set's Shard wouldn't be the equivalent to a comb lost down to the back of a sofa, though.]
I suppose... we could check the Tree.
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[Jinba might have good senses, she could potentially find Set if he were alive and in the same area, but.]
Check the tree for what? If someone dissipated him and then planted him, there would be no way to tell what is in the ground.
If I were Zenith and I had just dissipated Meridian's god of war, I would not miss the chance to shatter him.
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[It might not be Set, but no one else has sounded the alarm on any missing Shard-bearers or any killed ones.]
As for shattering his Shard, perhaps. There's another scenario that worries me: Aetós.
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[And yet she does not seem enthused to do so. ... She does not enjoy being in the Tree's presence.]
Has he been poking his nose in Aetós' business of late? I know only of his contact with him from that doll thing after Manon's interrogation.
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[The book of Egyptian mythology, currently in Claude's possession.]
It's something to keep in mind. If we're fortunate, however, Set is only dissipated and currently reviving as we speak.
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[Nor really talked to anyone about what was found there. She'd had other things to concern herself with during that time, and now...]
We should be concerned either way. Set may be "fragile" in some ways, but he is a powerful fighter.
[So what killed him in the first place? She's supposed to just hope that it was someone kind enough to plant him in the Tree's soil after?]
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[Granted, Set being a god meant assassinating him was likelier a trickier task than if he'd been a simple human, but still.]
And, considering how he's been these past few weeks... [The whole, ranting and raving at a ghost thing.] ...his guard might not be as high as it should be.
no subject
[She does not mean to snap, because she is the one who had come to Byleth, but she is on edge and uneasy, alone in her own head for the first time since… months and months.]
I thought-
[She’d tried, she tried to rip him from what haunted him, to shove sense into him, to do anything, and she’d foolishly thought-]
I thought he was getting better.
no subject
[Byleth had witnessed more than a few mercenaries break under pressure or a harsh life. Some managed to, well, manage it, but there were never any miraculous recoveries: only brutal masking of the issue until something upset the careful balance they maintained. So, when someone was 'better', it didn't mean they were better.]
There'll be lapses and backsliding. Which is why it's important we show support and withhold our judgement until we understand his reasonings for the actions he takes. To him, there's an unshakeable logic to what he does, even if from our perspective it seems nonsensical or self-destructive.
[...]
But I digress. Discussing Set's mental health is moot if we can't confirm he's safe and sound- ah, relatively, if his Shard's been planted at the Tree.
no subject
[She has asked, and she has demanded, time and again for him to just... just say something, anything, even just the barest of warnings before he implements the plans that he must know she will despise or suspect, and still... still, even though he claimed they were friends, he-
...]
There is no "safe and sound" if he is a shard.
[Even at that damn-]
Let us check the accursed tree, then.
no subject
He was used to hot tempers and angry worriers, as the majority of mercenaries tended to be passionate, hot-blooded pack animals that bonded intensely to the few who survived more than a few battles with them. Hayame yelling didn't really register as yelling, just normal levels of "I am worried about my friend and I will make sure everyone knows this while putting up a tough front".
So he let Hayame shout, patiently waiting, until she suggested they went to the Tree.]
Very well. I'll meet you there, then. Will you be departing now?
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I will.
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[And with that Byleth just... cut the Communion. Sorry, Hayame, he was still learning how to properly say goodbye before just ambling off. But he did immediately head off to the Tree after severing the Communion, so he won't keep her waiting at least.]
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And Hayame will leave in anger, before the anger becomes any kind of visible upset.]