"One for Sorrow,"

From within the Shrine of the Spirit nestled at the heart of the Valley of Flowers, the flames had begun to dim. Blood still stained the stones in places no amount of water seemed able to cleanse, darkened remnants left clinging stubbornly to the shrine grounds. A lone Fireborne remained upon watch in silence.

And not far off—a Fable-blessed of the Twinbirds sat collapsed before the altar. Purple ribbon wound loosely around trembling hands now gone still from exhaustion; a favor once gifted with soft fondness, now clutched like the last fragile proof that warmth had ever existed at all.

The woman did not speak. She wept until even grief itself seemed exhausted—until tears no longer came, and nothing remained but silent, shuddering breaths and the hollow stillness left behind when sorrow has taken all it can. The light within her gaze had long since guttered out, leaving only that distant, unfocused stare of someone who had watched their future die and could not yet convince their heart to follow what reality had become.

Hours passed with her remaining there motionless beside the dying flame, as though departing the shrine would make the loss final in a way she could not bear. In the end, it was not hope nor reason that stirred her from that place, but gentle insistence alone—the weary urging of the warden who kept vigil nearby, coaxing her at last toward rest.

The remains of some sort of struggle stood off the side of the tree, blood on the withering grass and signs on the dirt of something having been dragged and pushed around, but most importantly, a lonely white bonnet, now stained with dirt and blood.

At the same time, someone seems to have gone missing, Mellory Arskic, the pale maid, who hasn't been spotted or heard of in the Spire for a few long days now... A few onlookers may have last seen her roaming away into the woods east of town.

It seems the pieces simply land together, but the question remains: where is Mellory?

When a star dies, it can take years for anyone to notice that it has because the light doesn’t vanish right away. However, the stars in Thanatos’ eyes were extinguished with a few single words.  There was no sudden realization, and a slow fading. No, it was abrupt and brutal. The light that had glowed so brightly was snuffed out. It didn’t fade to such an extent even when he had heard of the death of his friends. Yet this? This news rended away pieces of his soul into fractured little bits. 

Each lesson he had been taught, each moment of joy that had been shared. A promise that had been told to him once, “Even if I go, I promise I will come back.” Yet, he knew better. He knew.

So, he began his vigil. Standing alongside a greatling, he didn’t budge. He wouldn’t budge. He didn’t care if he starved or how much he wanted to cry. He wasn’t going to move. He knew the outcome, knew this wouldn’t work. Silently, he cursed those who had thrown his father into a corner. Such curses were only ever quietly muttered under his breath, only for the ears of the Greatling beside him. For he was flame and should have gone with the flame, not under the earth. Yet, below the mask, his heart ached. 

And so, for the continued three days, he would stand and then some. Anyone who got too close, who he didn’t see as kin, would be met with curt words to step away. If he needed to, he would step away, but only to be by himself.

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OOC Note: Thanatos has joined Eivor standing over the grave blossom, feel free to ask to RP. He may be a little aggressive as a forewarning, but if you come RP I will give you a heads up.