“…who?” she asked weakly. She’d add them to the list.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Modestus, for one, if he's still around." "Modestus the Mad," Tomhas said quietly. "Just so. Venr Ash, probably--maybe. He just seems like a rough sort, being from the Tribal Period and all. And probably a lot of Septimus's siblings."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Narfi? Her gut flopped. “…how many siblings did he have?”
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Six," she replied. "He was the youngest of the seven."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“The youngest?” So all his siblings would have been dead before he became Lord? So Narfi wouldn’t have been there when Sera was… would he? Why would he lie about that? Unless… well… maybe Septimus wasn’t Lord when Sera came. Maybe.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
She nodded. "Three died, two abdicated, and Matthias was exiled. Septimus was all that was left."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“…I see…” her gut felt very, very bad. “…so they…” careful. “…what were the names of the ones who died? The ones I may run into? What did they look like?”
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Well, most of them are dead now anyway," she mused. "Severus--the eldest--passed away in 366, but he was one who abdicated. Matthias is still around somewhere in the East with his husband; they'd both be well into their eighties now. Argus died at eighteen in a hunting accident. Silvius and Ulysses both caught a nasty plague after visiting a village to provide aid. Clara abdicated, and she died the same year as Severus."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
There was still a chance it was okay. Maybe Narfi had been dead by the time Sera came but formed a weird fictional attachment to her. Maybe he’d died young and so liked hanging around in the same room as Sera and Tomhas and Gaius and felt like he knew them even if they didn’t know him. Maybe—
She paled as his name didn’t come up in that list. What? That couldn’t be right. Why would Narfi claim to be Septimus’s brother if he wasn’t? Was it Argus? But why would he lie about his name? Why would he lie about any of it? Who… who was Narfi? What did he have to gain from lying to her?
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
Sera looked at her, brow furrowed. "Have you met some of them, then?"
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“…no.” She shook head, but it made it feel light so she had to stop. Her stomach was churning. “I don’t think so.” So who the fuck had she met?
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Alright," she said hesitantly. "I've been told that Silvius was a bit of a hothead. Severus and Matthias are perfect gentlemen; I've met them both briefly. Matthias was invited out of exile when Gaius came to power and he and Alistair visited us for a short time to pay respects and meet Sara. Clara was wonderful as well, very full of love. She married one of the Counts."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“That’s… sweet.” Ky forced a deep breath. It was a long shot but maybe, just maybe, “What was his name?”
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"Cecil. Their son Edwin and his husband Atticus are running House Delevan at the moment; Gaius meets with them frequently on territory business."
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Ky nodded. Who the fuck was Narfi? Could she figure out an excuse for why she should know his name to ask? Probably not. Fuck.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
