There Must Be Something More ( Bellroc x Jim Lake's older sister Iris Lake)

Semideum Venti Et Nivis, Part 2

" You two couldn't love before you met Nari??"
His face scrunched up in annoyance.
" I did not say that. She did not miraculously cultivate love on hopeless barren soil. She taught us that that feeling within, the tie that bound, did have its own name and definition, like every thing that is or was or will be.
Love is like the Wind, she said to us.
It cannot be seen; but you know that it is real, and it is there, because you can feel it. And in any place where the unseeable love or -wind is found, the effects of its presence can be clearly observed. "
" That's pretty deep."
" I do not know what you mean by that. It is poetry, beauty and truth, to be sure. But it isn't submerged in water."
" Never mind. Tell me about you and Bellroc's first time meeting Nari."
" I had been spying on the local villagers, trying to gain more knowledge for myself and them. From watching humans, we'd learned how to fashion and wear raiment, how to make and use weapons and tools. We had learned how to speak, read and write, in the language of the Dreysi tribe . Bellroc had learned how to do tattoos.
We appeared as we do now, save for some differences. My fingers and toes were not frostbitten, and thus I didn't yet have tattooed fingers.
Bellroc's eyes had not been blinded,and no paint had come off of their pauldrons. Their bird skull was undamaged. No bandages were wrapped around their forearms, for they were still unscarred."
Skrael paused to take off his skull helmet and set it on a shelf.
As he turned to face her, his trapped hair hung free, and his hood fell back.
His hair reached "bra strap-length", and its color was the silken black of a pied crow's plumage. Medium thickness; straight, soft and shiny. Really, she was dying to ask what hair care products he used.
Then she remembered how old he approximately was, and decided she might not want to use what he used.

" I took Bellroc to the heart-shaped meadow, which the forest nymph frequently visited for its juicy ripe blackberries. And there she was, where my earlier ice-scrying had determined her to be.
Nari bounded up to us , eager to make new friends.
We offered her more than that, however. With us, with her own kind, she'd be pack mates. We would have wanted Family if we had known the word.
But, once she was of our group and not just one of the demigods, she would never feel lonely again. So she accepted. After we became a family, we also became the Arcane Order.
Each of us dearly loved, and dearly loves, one another. "
" But what went wrong?" Iris asked softly.
"Our Order's purpose was, and is, to maintain the balance between magic and mortal. To be the heroes that swooped in and saved the day when magickind needed us, or to exact terrible vengeance, to deal out harsh punishment , when we uncovered the crime after the fact. As humanity worsened, Bellroc and I changed.
Humans became more and more selfish, short-sighted, callous, depraved, intolerant, and destructive.
More and more heartless, shameless, remorseless, compassionless and cruel."
And today, they were as bad as they could get. But unlike Bellroc and Skrael, Iris could see that there some good people amidst all the awful ones.
"My heart grew colder, and Bellroc's hotter.
Ice grew around my heart and mind.
Humans lost their personhood in my eyes. They weren't even as animals to me. They were a plague of buzzing, loathsome, worthless insects, just intolerable pests.
And what do you do with pests?
You squash them.
However, it is one thing to combat a pestilence, and seek to eradicate it.
It is quite another, to find yourself enjoying the act of killing them off, so much so that I ceased pursuing vengeful and/or retributive justice, and chased my own sadistic pleasure instead. My victims were always guilty people, but that was a mere excuse so Bellroc would allow me to make toys out of living creatures.
Not that they cared for humans anymore, they just don't like me playing games.
I played Torture with my toys, and always, it didn't take long for them to break. After which, they were discarded. "
Iris jumped to her feet.
He held up his hands." I have tried to revert to who I was before I lost myself. I have tried for nine centuries. In hindsight, I see the monster I had become. I will never do it to anyone, ever again. I did not listen to Nari, until I had already lost her."
She sat back down. "Tell me the rest."
Skrael obliged.
" The humans' crimes hurt the non-magical and magical species alike, and caused devastation to Nature. Initially, Bellroc only felt righteous anger. But because of it, they carried out unjust punishment.
Their heart hardened, they burned with fury and hate. It was all done in the name of the greater good of fixing the balance. We watched as it tipped; I watched as they snapped.
Nari would not, could not, warp as we did. She also would not do what we thought she should be doing. Her approach to the growling oppression and wickedness of man, was to try to befriend them and show them the error of their ways, or to educate those who were just ignorant.
I found Nari's flaw. She admitted that she was angry with mankind, but did not show it .
I stoked the fire, I whispered in her ear. I washed her vision in red.
When someone is angry, they do very uncharacteristic things.
Nari's Anger, exploited by myself and Bellroc, suppressed her charity, empathy, mercifulness and reason.
The Battle of Killahead opened her sweet and innocent eyes. We had had a hand in this battle, but it had proved fruitless. It had not restored the balance, as it was intended.
We had lost, and so many lives had been sacrificed for nothing.
This was the worst thing the Order had ever done. No good intention behind it, for " balance "now meant aiding Gumm-Gumm troll-king Gunmar in his plan to overthrow and tyrannically rule over mankind.
No good result; innocent humans dead for no reason.
We were not the people Nari had grown to love. We had manipulated and fooled her, into doing things that would haunt her for the rest of her unending existence.
Before, she did not know, like a little child under the influence of immoral parents does not know.
Now she knew, and there was no going back.
A new day dawned. Neither Bellroc, nor I , could see Nari anywhere.
We sought her in all her usual haunts, but we did not find her. We teleported to the Black Sea cave where our Order meetings were held, and there, we found Nari's staff. She had broken it in pieces, signifying her defection from the Arcane Order,her separation from our family."

He stood on the floor. Tears threatened to overflow and gush down his cheeks.
Iris gently embraced him.
It seemed to lighten the burden of the past nine centuries.
He hugged her back,she paid no attention to the cold and hugged him harder. Skrael let out a breathless squeak.
" Too! Hard!"
They separated. Skrael looked as if he'd been starving for affection, and had just gotten a precious morsel.
" How would you like the idea, of making a new friend? "
" I'd like it very much," Skrael said.
They smiled and shook hands.
The door opened.

" You owe us an apology,Bellroc."
Skrael's eyes bulged; he hastily mouthed No to her, shaking his head.
" You can't take it out on me or him. Them?" She asked. He shrugged.
"Either one suits me."
" ...okay, I digress. The point is, it's not our fault that you're in some kinda mood. Don't punish us for a crime we didn't commit. "
Shame softened Bellroc's face.
" Skrael-"
" This was entirely her idea-"
" I apologize. "
He looked as if he'd just found out that aliens were real.
They gazed at Iris. " I apologize to you as well. You won't ...break up with me, as you have warned?"
Iris reached up, laying a hand against their cheek.
Their hands rose to wrap over hers, fondness written all over their face.
" No. But I know you can grow. I know you can change. Love is a magic all its own."
"I...I will change. "
" That's all you have to say."
" I have, I have so much more to say.
If only I could find the words. "
She gave them a peck on their other cheek, delighting in the fire-orange blush that bloomed there.
Skrael gagged.

" Is it time for you to return home?"
" Yeah. I'm sorry,but I've got stuff to do. But later... Skrael? Bellroc?"
Both responded:" Yes, Iris?"
"How would you two like the idea, of having some fun at my house? I think you could both benefit from what we Men call a "Movie Night " ."
Skrael and Bellroc shared a look, before giving their answer as one.
"We'd like it very much."