Heavy Lies the Crown

This was where Resin had been born. His mother's words roused some semblance of understanding in young Artorias' mind, and his keen amber eyes reflected that realization. These were the Carpathian Mountains, the land which his family had been named after. Though he had never seen them before, he was now living their existence through the memory of Resin. It was captivating and unnerving at the same time. Artorias' eyes drank in their surroundings, trying to commit to memory as many details as he could. If this was to be a temporary moment, he wanted to remember it as vividly as he could. The harsh response his mother gave him in asking if he was dead startled him some, but her words brought him some comfort. He still had a long time to go before he had to worry about finding his way to the other side. Though he didn't know how Resin could know such things, he trusted her implicitly, just as he had since he'd been a pup.

Artorias watched as Resin remained stoic and impassive as he spoke words of love for her, giving only a short nod in response. He felt his heart sink a little; had she really become so emotionless in death that she could only seem to exist as a husk? Even when alive, he'd seen some shows of joy and love. Not often, but they had been there. Here, Resin seemed like a ghost of herself, as ironic as that phrase was applied here. Still, he sought her wisdom and counsel while he had the chance. She told him the key to her rule was balance. Finding an equilibrium between merciful and brutal, leader and tyrant. Artorias took her words to heart—at first. Then she began to shift her demeanor, explaining the negatives of her methods. She kept everyone at bay, including Tamsyn, and it had made her time on earth unhappy. She finished by telling him that he needed to find his own way of leading, developing his own skills and methods as he went, and to always do what he believed was right. It was a haunting echo of what Sirius had also told him when he'd gone to mentor with the Warlord. Balance and finding his own means of judging right from wrong. The more he heard it, the more he realized that no one person was going to have the answers for him. In this case, he'd need to seek them out on his own journey.

Resin lifted a paw and touched his cheeks with duty blue pads, and her touch felt so real that it made Artorias' heart lurch in his chest again. Here—wherever here was—it was as if she was back with him amongst the living. It hurt and felt so good simultaneously. Artorias closed his eyes and leaned into her touch for a brief moment, then opened his eyes to look back to his mother again. There was still two things he needed to talk to her about before their time was done. "I have a problem, Mom... Well, two, actually. It's Bowen. And it's Oxx." Artorias took a slow breath to steady himself while he let Resin process the topics he wished to discuss. He'd start with the more pleasant of the two. "Bowen came back home to us, Mom. I think you saw her when you came back during the Long Night. But... what you don't know is that we've fallen in love. I love her, and I think she loves me back. I'm... I'm sorry if this disappoints you in us, but I can't help it. She means so much to me. But lately... she's been so sad. She's in pain, Mom, and I know much of it comes from what happened to her. I try to help her, try to make things better, but I can't seem to do anything. I feel so useless... like I can't pick up the pieces no matter how hard I try. I don't know what to do to help her." He breathed another heavy sigh and shook his head slowly, trying to hold back the tears from forming in his eyes. "I love her, and I just want her to be happy. I just don't know if I can do that for her anymore... I don't know what to do at all." Artorias didn't expect Resin to have any answers for him when it came to relationships, but maybe she could think of something with a clear mind that he couldn't—assuming she wasn't disgusted with the incestuous relationship her own children had started.

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Argent"