𝑅𝐸𝑀𝐸𝑀𝐵𝐸𝑅 𝑀𝐸 | druig

𝓉𝑒𝓃

Until he figured out what to do about the events of the previous night, Druig held the entirety of his compound under his control, keeping them asleep in the early hours of the morning. He brought Nita back to his cabin, influenced her to change into dry clothing, then put her back to sleep in his bed. While she slept, he stood before his stove, boiling some tea as he tried to organize his thoughts.

The deviants were back, that was for certain. It was the only logical explanation for the immensity of what had attacked Benita and Andres in the river. And a part of him felt a great sense of unease as he thought about that deviant and where it had gone. It was coming for him and he knew that it would destroy everything and kill everyone in its path to get to him. He vowed to protect his people, but he was at a loss for what to do as he knew his powers wouldn't be enough. And to put matters even further from his favour, he had no idea as to how much time he had left.

He poured himself his cup of tea and then quietly turned to the doorway of his room, leaning against the threshold while he looked down at Benita sleeping soundly in his bed. His stomach did a little flutter as he gazed at her beauty. A beauty he had been admiring for some time now. His lips twitched into a small smile as he thought about the woman who had caused him the most trouble was also the woman who he had been captivated by.

Through the centuries of protecting his people generation after generation, there had been very few women who had caught his attention as Benita had. Although none of which went beyond anything physical for the obvious reason that he was immortal and they were not. He never allowed himself to get too close to anyone as they would be gone just as quickly as they'd appeared, and he would have to live on with them only appearing in his memories. It wasn't an ideal way to live and it was a part of himself that he hated. Mortal lives were too short and because of that, he was lonely. Constantly surrounded by people but forever alone.

But there was something about the woman laying in his bed. He'd had people not want to fall into step with his ways, but none of which was so profound that he almost wanted to agree to help them. Never to the point in which he knew of their plans to leave and laid awake in his bed while he heard their minds scramble as they made their way to the beach, took one of his boats, and set off down the river.  And now as he stood watching over her, eyeing the bandage above her brow that he had tended to, anger pooled in his stomach at himself as he thought that if he hadn't let them leave, he wouldn't have lost Andres and nearly lost Benita. Druig's hand balled into a tight fist at his side at the thought.

Watching her was only making him angrier at himself by the passing seconds, so he retreated to the main room where he took his seat at the wooden table against the wall, staring down at his tea.

He had to do something to protect his people from the oncoming threats.  It was the vow he made to himself all those centuries ago. For a brief moment, he thought about sending out for his fellow Eternals as without them, there was nothing he could do against the Deviants. He didn't have the strength of Gilgamesh, the lethal warrior skills of Thena, or the power of Ikaris. The only weapon in his arsenal was mind control. And because that was his only weapon, he knew he had to use it.

But Benita would never forgive him if he did. Druig dropped his head in defeat, closing his eyes and taking in a deep breath through his nose. 

Why did he care so much about what Benita would think if he had an entire compound to protect? What was it about this one woman, who despised him no less, that had him questioning everything he believed in?

He wasn't in love with her as he didn't completely know her, even though he had seen her grow up from afar, barely paying her any attention until only a year ago when she turned eighteen. That's how he chose to live, hidden from his people and watching from afar as they progressed. She was a young woman now; a defiant, stubborn, and at times, annoying, woman. But maybe it was how she posed a challenge to him that had him intrigued. Or her fiery drive to go against her leader, just as he did all those years ago. Maybe it was because there was a part of him that he saw in her–he felt connected to her in some sense. Familiar with her.

With what was bound to come, he knew that he also had to trust her and she had to trust him, which meant he had to explain himself to her and hopefully she'd come to understand why he was doing what he did. Although he had next to no idea on how to go about what was to come with the Deviant's, he figured waking Benita and fully opening himself up to her would be a start. To what? He didn't fully know, but he had to do something, and maybe she could help.