Xelqua Rising || The Lost One AU

22.Disorientation

"W-What do you mean?! You're— you're joking! You're joking!" Grian cried, hands flapping wildly. There was absolutely no way that he had just slept for a hundred years! That would mean that he had spent most of his life here in this chamber. That would also mean he had slept right through his friends' deaths surely. That couldn't be right. That just couldn't be right!

He felt a choked sob raise in his throat as he processed this information. Netty was dead. Pearl was dead. Jimmy was dead. BigB was dead. Zee was dead. They were all dead!

... Including Taurtis, the man he had considered to be his best friend for years.

He held his head in his hands, though it not block his sight any. He failed them! He lied to them! He told them that he would watch over them and he didn't, not even for a second.

Miesall didn't know how to react. How was it that so much time had past and yet, Xelqua still grieved? He had known that he wasn't going to speak with them again. So why...? He didn't understand, but his chest ached anyway. He wanted to comfort the new Watcher like had done before, but he wasn't sure if he should give him the thing referred to as a hug once more. He stayed still, watching silently.

A thought crossed Xelqua's mind, causing him to look up: Martyn wasn't human; he was an elf. His lifespan was different from his other friends. Yes, he could still be alive. He would be... 156 now, assuming that exactly one hundred years had passed. Since elves aged and matured at half the speed of humans, that would mean he was around 78 in human years. He bit his lip and shook his head. Even if he was still alive, he wouldn't have too many years left. The thought did not give him much comfort in the end and he put his head back into his hands.

"Is Martyn still alive?" He asked, pretty much signing into his face. The question was now burned into his mind.

"Martyn?" Miesall asked. He couldn't quite remember which one that was.

Xelqua wanted to say 'the elf,' but he was never taught the word for elf. It had never come up. "The non-human," he replied.

Miesall paused, frowning. He looked almost afraid as he looked away. "Evo is deserted. That is all I know."

He... didn't know? How was that possible? "But surely you saw what happened to him! If he left or if he died!"

Miesall shook his head. "My knowledge is not infinite."

Xelqua raised his head, directing it towards the Great Ones though he did not look to them. "Certainly you know!" He cried.

"Xelqua... trust me when I tell you that you would not take well to the truth." The Great One spoke, causing his heart to drop. Yes, Martyn must have died and it probably was a pretty gruesome death from what she had told him. She was probably right— maybe not knowing was better.

Now the other Great one interjected, pushing past the Watcher's feelings and moving on. "We should get down to business now." He closed his fist and it began to glow. Once the light faded, he opened his palm, revealing a mask that the Watchers used to bind their physical eyes. With just a bit more magic, he sent it floating over Miesall, who grabbed it with both hands. "Please assist him in putting it on."

"Yes, my Lord," Miesall responded from where he stood, facing the new Watcher. Xelqua stayed put as Miesall entered the now empty box, held the mask to his eyes and tied it in the back to hold it in place.