let's delay our misery
Yes, folks, it's time for that staple of staples: the hot springs meme! Your character is now joining someone else for a dip in the hot springs (or just passing by, if you're really dead sure they're not going to strap out of their spiky armor).
Is this the Bokaisen in Kugane? The natural springs in icy northern Twinpools? Some hidden, bubbly corner of Gyr Abania, maybe? Or familiar Camp Bronze Lake? You've got a lot of options! It can also just, you know, be nowhere in particular.
Why are they in the springs? Who knows! It's meme logic, my friends.
A note: this meme is intended as a gen meme, though if you'd like to play it as a variant of the matchmaking smut springs meme that's frequently posted on Bakerstreet, you're very welcome to do so!
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valoirs
Zenos yae Galvus | OTA | Spoilers Are Just Fine
NPCs, OCs, everyone is welcome!]
just two bros chillin in the hot spring five fulms apart cuz they're not gay
Haha.
Aaaaahahaha.
That hulking man in the far pool looks just like Zenos yae Galvus. And while he is the Viceroy of Ala Mhigo and undoubtedly is somewhere in Gyr Abania, surely he would not be in this hidden little oasis in the Peaks, accessible only by flying, and only by word of the natives. How would he know? Why? When?
Six is, obviously, hallucinating.
That is how he convinces himself to just walk...right...past...the horrifying illusion and plop down on the far side of the spring. ]
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And words do not come. And so he furrows his brow. Then frowns. Is he perhaps imagining that his oh-so-fascinating rival has suddenly walked on past and settled himself in? No, no, this cannot be a delusion, and this does not have the bracing sharpness that comes with his newly-gifted Echo. So then... what precisely is happening here?]
Have you nothing to say?
[His lip curls, expression contemptuous... but he does not move so much as an ilm. He will strike when he is certain. No sooner than that.]
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The first is that Six is losing his mind. Not only is he conjuring the illusion of Zenos yae Galvus in a hotspring wearing...Thal's balls, he hopes he is wearing something beneath the water, or else his slipping sanity is more twisted than he originally assumed. But, not only is he seeing this impossible image, he is hearing it as well.
The second possibility is that that is, in fact, Zenos yae Galvus over there.
He's not sure which outcome he truly prefers. ]
No.
I do not.
[ Six leans back and thinks of tomestones. None of this is real. He has finally cracked under the pressure. ]
I came for a bath, not conversation.
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That look of displeasure quite quickly becomes one of amusement, dark though it may be. Ah, this kind of thing is why he has become so fond of this savage. Zenos smiles, and it is an unpleasant and vaguely predatory thing.]
One last bit of luxury before that final push? Before you try yourself against me once again?
[His eyes actually widen a little. There is excitement evident, here. Every time he has faced the Warrior of Light, there has been something more to it, something worthwhile. He is very much looking forward to Six taking another go at him. There is precious little else to look forward to, in this dull and deary life.]
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He wishes he was losing his mind.
He knows that he isn't. Despite how deceptively relaxed he appears, his arms draped over the lip of the spring, keeping himself propped up, beneath the water his tail lashes in slow, agitated patterns. His eyes are closed and yet he can all but feel Zenos's delighted gaze slither across him. Unarmed, he stands zero chance of...
But then, his enemy is without his entourage, his armor, or his array of weapons. ]
Of course.
A good soak loosens the muscles and elevates the humors. I intend to be at my peak when I finally topple you.
[ Said with utter confidence, which is something of a load of shite. ]
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He eyes that lashing tail curiously, amused at the emotions being betrayed there. For all that Six attempts to hold fast to his courage, to seem that he cares not one whit for any of this, parts of him say something quite different. How delightful.]
Do you?
[There is something exciting about that boast, exciting enough that Zenos inhales sharply. Aah, that's a flutter in his chest, that's a rippling of anticipation. They will have their fight, even if it may not be now...
But now can be its own thing to savor.]
Then I should strive to do the same. I should resist my impulse to challenge you here and now. To see what we are capable of, bare as beasts. To see your blood in the water.
[Those are the impulses he is feeling, he's... fairly sure of that.]
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[ "Zenos has never been one for politics. He lives only for war. Kill him, or he will kill you."
Lucia had told him that. He had believed her.
His fingertips twitch slightly. If he is swift, and there are none swifter than he, he could form the mudra for fuma shuriken and launch it in such a way as to separate Zenos's head from his shoulders. The damnable armor and the equally damnable swords had always stymied such assassination efforts before; his attempt with Yugiri that night in Yanxia had shown that much. But now Zenos has naught to his name but his bared skin and a frankly ludicrous amount of packed muscle. The man is more than big; he is broad. Easily three times his size.
...that implies certain other differences in size that intrude on his otherwise deadly serious thoughts.
Six exhales slowly. Now is not the time. He has a choice to make.
Speak. Stay. Flee. Fight--
Six is swift. There are none swifter.
His fingers twist in a specific pattern and aether flashes into his grip and he sends the fresh-made weapon flying in a wicked streak of black and flashing edges. ]
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Unburdened by armor, he is astonishingly swift for one so broad and brawny. He moves to the side with such haste that the conjured shuriken just barely grazes him. And then he follows that swift motion through and rises to his feet with a noisy displacement of water... and then simply stands there in all his glory, bloodthirst in his eyes.
Yes, he is very much naked. And yes, he is every bit as large, from head to toe, as Six's idle fancies had dared ponder.]
Not if you indulge me first!
[Which he already has. Which he will hopefully do again. A trickle of blood runs down his neck, beads upon his shoulder, catches a water droplet and streams down his chest... there may not be much time to admire such things, alas, for he begins to advance upon the Miqo'te. He takes long strides, slowed by the water, the steps of a man who is absolutely confident in his power.
There is still time for Six to react. Zenos hopes that he does.]
CW: hang dong
Six finds himself briefly incensed by the unfairness of it all. Why in the Seven Hells is he so gods-damned strong?! They had been mere fulms apart, he had given no warning, Zenos had no true defense, why--
But impotent anger at his own helplessness is replaced by a shot of adrenaline and the looming figure of the man himself, streaked with dampness and causing the spring to churn as he moves slowly through it. The heavy swing of his princely cock and balls would be comical if Six wasn't occupied with the spectres of his impending death, or his very likely impending death, though the direction of his eyes is rooted on Zenos's groin for a noticeable second before his gaze snaps up.
Kill him, or he will kill you.
Words to live by.
Six leaps from the water, springing up to give himself a little more speed as his fingers twist a second time. He lunges at Zenos, then jumps up again, a palm slapping down on the Garlean's shoulder; Six is slightly above him in the air, in the midst of his jump as bright purple lightning flashes in his other hand.
If he slams the raiton directly into his blasted face, surely that will kill him. ]
That's the best CW I've ever seen
It will register with him later, when there is time to ponder such things. But now...
Zenos moves with well-matched haste, shifting in the beginnings of another dodge, but that hand slaps upon his bare skin. Quick as lightning his hand closes tightly around Six's wrist, and he gives a sharp pull that is the beginnings of an effort to throw him forcefully out of the spring.
And then the other palm, crackling with lightning, comes down hard upon his chest rather than his face. Every muscle in his body seizes up, and does so with such violence that he collapses backwards into the water. His hand is not excluded from this. It's an almost-literal death grip at this point, and though it was not at all Zenos's intention, the Warrior of Light is coming right along with him.]
i try my best
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CW: Literal Fightboner
put that thing back where it came from or so help me
So help me!
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the bunwol insists this is why she can't have nice things
She'd just relaxed enough to properly enjoy the water, half a-doze and on the verge of happily bruxing from the feel of the water when a chill raced up her spine and had her eyes snapping open and her ears perking as the urge to lunge out of the water was almost overwhelming before her mind could piece together the why.
She almost, almost, lets the groan of dismay slip free as she sinks deeper into the water, all sense of ease and relaxation evaporating in an instant.
Of course the one day she manages to slip away from everyone, totally unfettered by chores or the beseeching pleas of others, she would stumble upon the only hot springs in malms that Zenos would deign to attend. Her luck, as always, worked against her.
After all, who else could be so impossibly tall, with impeccable hair, stunningly handsome all the while radiating a murderous intent that simmered just beneath the surface. Really, she was entirely too tired for this today.]
Such mean things you do to her
Would she want such a look? She is welcome to try. He sits there, up to mid-chest in the water, looking sleepy-eyed and self-satisfied.]
You have the strangest way of appearing in unexpected places, Warrior of Light...
[He sounds not the least bit unhappy about her sudden appearance in this place. Surely this was fated. Surely this was meant to be.]
I have done worse things just not posted them if that helps???
[Her gaze is hooded, the tip of her nose wriggling the only sign that her mind is racing trying to decide if he would simply be here to bathe or if she would need to resort to fisticuffs here in the water when it was one of the few things she was poor at.
That and with her chest unbound, fighting with him would be....uncomfortable at best. There were many, many reasons her armor and clothing always masked her figure while his added bulk. It gave her far more room to move.]
To what do I owe the pleasure of your company this day?
[Her voice is a low murmur, her accent thickening with her frustration, the 'r's almost purred out though her brow is still deeply furrowed.]
Or was it truly mere coincidence that we should meet?
perhaps, perhaps
He tilts his head the slightest bit to the side, and lets her question go unanswered for several uncomfortable moments.]
I do not believe in coincidence. I did not come here with the intention of finding you... but yet, here you are.
[He then takes this moment to shift, rolling his shoulders and flexing his sore muscles, sinking just a bit deeper into the hot water.]
...is a man not entitled to enjoy what meager pleasures he can find?
[Which is to say that he likes hot springs, at least a bit.]
i mean /mumbles something about lightwarded wol aus
[Still, she takes his words at face value, and seems to simply accept the fact that they were now sharing the springs within a stone's throw of one another. With a soft grumble she has sunk deep enough that the water threatens to wet the hair at the nape of her neck, her unruly mane wound into a knot high enough to keep even straggling curls from getting damp.]
Yet with how silken your hair is, I am not at all surprised you've a fondness for baths. For which I am grateful. 'Tis a custom more folk should have in common.
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[That tone from anyone else would be simple dry humor. From Zenos yae Galvus... perhaps it is a promise, or a threat. The way a smile plays upon his lips as he says it makes it clear that he would find such a thing to be enjoyable.
Still, he does not move.]
Indeed it is. How... pleasant it is, that we have one more thing in common.
[Pleasant is all a matter of opinion, and degree... but he is not disappointed to have found her here, or found that she has a taste for spending her time out of combat in similar ways. Another point in her favor, far beyond all others...]
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[And from the sideways glance she shoots him from the corner of her eye, she isn’t lying. Mykha was never one to sugarcoat her words, especially not with him, yet there’s a weariness about her that has only grown since they first fought, evident in the droop of her ears and the heaviness of her eyelids. She looked in desperate need of a good night’s rest, or five. Which was even more alarming when one realized she rarely let her guard down to show any signs of weakness.]
Still, ‘tis good to see you’ve reclaimed your body from the ascian, though I’m still cross that you tried to kill yourself like that. I’ve enough dreams of blood to last three of your lifetimes without having that seared upon my memories.
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[He does not wish to believe it. It is laughable, and so he laughs.]
The famous Warrior of Light has finally reached her limit? Fought too many battles? Done too many chores?
[But the laughter is brief. She does look tired. He may mock the reasons for her exhaustion, but the actual fact of it... well. It simply is. She has traveled quite far. She has done much.
And then come the well-wishes, the matter of regaining his body. He ought to laugh again, but he does not. For there is more to it than a simple congratulations. She has feelings on the matter, and it pleases him to hear them.]
'twas what the moment called for. I was... lost in the passion of it.
[He sighs wistfully at the memory.]
It pleases me to know that you'll never forget the sight...
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[She only seems to grow more exhausted just listening to the jeering, dipping low enough in the water that the wet heat rises over her chin, until it's halfway up her nose and she's glowering at nothing in particular. She seems intent to ignore him, tense all over as she glares, but an eyebrow twitches, an ear flicking toward him, then her brow arches and she's glancing at him, forcing herself up again even if she'd been so tempted simply to lay in the water with naught but her ears and hair out. Thanks to the Kojin's blessing, she hardly needed fear drowning.]
'Lost in the passion of it?' Zenos, you absolute madman you insisted it was because you'd not find another battle as fierce, you—!
[A flurry of words raced through her mind, venom rising at the back of her tongue as old hurts and anger blended into a white-hot blaze of irritation that strung across her limbs so tightly she thought she would snap. None of the words that came forth were harsh enough for his foolishness, eloquent enough for the anger that had risen at his...his cowardice at escaping his fate simply because he'd thought he'd be bored without her bashing him about the ears. She wanted to strike him. The only thing stopping her was knowing he'd most certainly enjoy it.
So she gnashed her teeth in fury, ears flat to her skull and practically quivering with her irritation. She'd wanted to rest, gods blast it all!]
Like as not you'll not forget my fist in your teeth! Aye, I've done much and more and it's not a onze less than anyone's asked of me, I'll not be mocked for taking one moment to myself betwixt all the blasted tasks that are all but endless. There's never an end to it. So aye, lad, I've grown weary!
[Blessed Wood preserve her if he said one more thing about how she should be above it she'd strangle him for nothing but the relief of getting it out of her system.]
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Have we not all erred, while gripped by passion?
[He really shouldn't have killed himself... but that is a decision made in hindsight, when he realized how incredibly inconvenient he'd made things. Inconvenient for himself, mostly. But he has paid that inconvenience forward and now... here he sits, soaking in the water and resting but a while. He gives a roll of his shoulders and a soft grunt.]
Have I mocked you, now? Though you'd do well to cease accepting such tasks, I'll not begrudge you a moment of rest, if you are too tired.
[Why mock when you can genuinely criticize, besides? His gaze grows sharper, less half-lidded and lazy.]
You spend your energy on the pathetic and ungrateful, and to what end? Does it bring you joy, I wonder? Is it truly your wish, to walk that path? To try and set this tepid, half-formed world right?
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this cannot possibly end badly
[Lyse came to the hot springs to relax, even if she was initially forced into it. But when she goes to find a spot, an eerily familiar profile in the water stops her cold.
For a second, she looks like she's seen a ghost, which in fairness isn't far removed from the truth. But just as quickly, her shock resolves to anger. It's not Zenos - of course it's not. Zenos is dead. This is just his corpse being worn like an ugly suit by an Ascian.
Which, arguably, makes his smug face even more punchable.
She doesn't greet him - he's surely noticed her, and her clenching fists will be greeting enough. Granted, she knows attacking him outright would probably be suicide, but it's very clearly what she wants to do.]
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The water's fine. Don't let my presence dissuade you.
[He sounds dreadfully bored, and not the least bit afraid or alarmed. If it is an Ascian doing their best Zenos impression, it's on point thus far.]
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That's it? That's all you have to say?
[Her fists are trembling with the effort of not trying to wipe that callous expression off his face. But it's more than survival that stays her hand. In her experience, Ascians don't just pop into enemy territory for no reason. What's the bastard playing at?]
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[Well, no. He said 'yes', after all. The contradiction in it is a childish thing... but he smiles, none the less.]
I've little and less to say to you. But, perhaps, is your friend somewhere nearby...?
[The unsettling delight in his tone at the mention of 'friend' ought to say it all. Is the Warrior of Light somewhere nearby? Yes? No?]