The Nightscape

Commands

Lyra froze as the command passed through her, struggling to bring in a shaky gasp. The urge to do it, to grab onto Guy and haul him out and back to Zidros and let him do what he wanted was overwhelming. For a moment, her hands twitched towards him before she stemmed the urge to grab him. But then, as she stepped back, she felt her muscles beginning to tense and rebel, and her vision suddenly went black as she fought back against the command. With a low, panicked groan, she dropped to the floor, curling up into a ball and covering her head with her arms as she tried to breath through it. 

"Lyra?" She distantly heard, but she just shook her head. Lyra tried to tell Guy to get away from her and leave her alone in case something bad happened, but all that came out was a slurred mess of noise that didn't send him away. Suddenly, her hand darted out and grabbed him by the arm, but she wasn't the one who wanted to do it. "Lyra, what's the matter?" He asked her, trying to loosen her grip on his arm just a little. 

"Get away. Zidros." She muttered, trying to let go and crawl away. She didn't hear whatever Guy said, but he did pull his arm clear and back away from her, thankfully. 

Zidros, stop it! Get out of my head! You can't force me to do what you want, it isn't right! She yelled inside her own mind, hoping that he could hear her but having no idea how he spoke into her mind to begin with. There was a moment of silence, and then the power settling over her limbs released and she recovered, gasping and shaking and terrified. 

You are part of my council, Lyra. That means you have to work with me, not against me! You're immortal now, you should be able to understand where I'm coming from. Look around you, and see how these people are living. Do you think this is a good way to live? Do you truly think they wouldn't be better, and happier, living and working together to establish a society? He asked her, frustrated beyond belief. Lyra swallowed, recovering her eyesight and looking around at the worried, thin, dirty faces of the people who had trusted Guy to see them well. But he clearly couldn't; he clearly didn't have the expertise or the resources to do so, and if Hayden had resorted to slave labor, clearly he wasn't doing well either. But that wasn't what she was struggling with right now. 

Zidros, I will speak to you about this later, but that is not my issue! You can't control my actions to abduct Guy, it isn't right! Talking to me is one thing, but possession is something else entirely. How would you feel if someone did that to you? She demanded, hoping that her concession about his ultimate plan would make him more likely to listen to her protests. Sure enough, there was a moment of silence before the boy answered. 

Very well, I won't possess again. Please will you bring Guy to me?

No, that isn't right! You can't force people to become immortal, and I won't help you do it. Lyra answered, not going to rehash the same argument she had already tried to have with him. There was another pause. 

Very well. I'll send Francine to bring him. Don't intervene, that is the one circumstance in which I will possess you, if you fight with other council members. He said, and then she felt him leave her mind, clearly decided on his course of action. Lyra could finally focus on what was happening around her, because when she was listening to Zidros in her mind, she couldn't pay attention to what others were saying to her. Guy was a few feet away, crouched down but clearly ready to back off if Lyra were to suddenly lunge at him. Everyone had gone mostly quiet, no one daring to talk at a normal volume, though the low buzz of whispers did irritate her anyway. The eyes of everyone was on her as she shakily stood up, and a couple of people flanking Guy stepped forward to half shield him from the woman. 

"Francine is coming to take you to Zidros. We need to move, and soon, because Francine doesn't need to rest." She told him, a little shaky, and not willing to tell him how close she had come to doing the same. He nodded, paling.