Grayscale

Chapter 11, Against the Grain

Morning inside of Endrais home, the light of the dawn beginning to seep in through the window. Endrai begins to stir, moving the blankets from his head so he could look to see Efni laying beside him in her avatar form. He raised an eyebrow, reaching over and gently nudging Efnis shoulder as she lay on her stomach, unmoving. At the slight touch, Efnis eyes began to glow their usual sapphire blue, and she rolled onto her side.

Efni; "Heh... Morning."

Endrai smiled and rested a hand on Efnis cheek, caressing it gently.

Endrai; "Morning, darling. I don't know how Primevals sleep, but I hope it was pleasant."

Efni rolled onto her back and sat up, resting all four of her hands in her lap.

Efni; "Well, Primevals don't sleep at all, so... I just kinda left the avatar here and went to take an ichor bath; recharge my batteries, so to speak."

Endrai nodded with a chuckle, pulling himself out of bed and putting on some dark blue sweatpants, along with loose azure t-shirt, while Efni rolled off the bed, splashing onto the ground in a shower of sapphire mist before it coalesced into her avatar standing once more.

Efni; "So, what's the plan for today?"

Endrai looked to Efni with a smile, gesturing her to follow him.

Endrai; "Well, first, I want to get this 3-D printer working, so I can get on back to making the weapons for you guys." 

Efni scoffed a little, her mandibles mimicking a smile as she followed him.

Efni; "Really, babe? I mean, I'm not gonna *force* you to stop, but it's the last day of our honeymoon! Besides, it's been a couple weeks, you'd think they'd get another lab set up by now!"

Endrai laughed as he spoke, heading downstairs.

Endrai; "Hah, that's uh, definitely not the way the Soviets operate. At the absolute least, I'll be sharing a lab with someone else for the next few months, and then I'll have to wait another several months for them to requisition all the original equipment I had."

Efni rolled all four of her eyes, still bearing a smile as she followed Endrai down the stairs, clambering down in a similar fashion to a crab, using all six of her limbs to swiftly descend.

Efni; "Well, what then? You're gonna play gunsmith in your own home?"

Endrai scoured through the fridge, getting out what appeared to be batter in a plastic container, setting it near a waffle iron on the kitchen counter.

Endrai; "The internet is a weird and wonderful place; I'm sure I can learn some new things. Besides, I'm the only one trying, aren't I?"

Efni shrugged, going over to the kitchen with him and sitting on the opposite end of the counter.

Efni; "I mean... Vulcanalia's exiled, Xogdran vanished and Skadi... Yeah, no, you're the only one actively trying to make weapons. Ardra has her own armory, but that's just storage, it's not making anything new."

Endrai poured the batter into the iron and closed it up, leaning an arm on the counter to look Efnis way.

Endrai; "Exactly why I'm doing this. If no one else is gonna take up the reigns, then someone's gotta do it."

Efni nodded gently, resting her lower hands in her lap as her upper hands supported her from behind.

Efni; "Yeah, but... I guess, we don't really know when or if it's gonna happen again. We could be gearing up for nothing. It could all be over, but..."

Endrai raised an eyebrow, opening up the waffle iron when it buzzed, taking it out and putting it on a plate, sliding it to Efni.

Endrai; "But what?"

Efni grimaced, picking up the waffle and taking a bite after speaking.

Efni; "There's... A prophecy written by Tyd that's always made me a little worried. They're supposed to be for fun, they're glimpses of timelines, but... I don't know. It's a little unsettling."

Endrai poured in the other half of the batter into the iron, only briefly taking his eyes off her to focus on the iron.

Endrai; "Well... How's it go, if I may ask?"

Efni swallowed the bite of her waffle, and Endrai could see it sink down into her core through her translucent crystal body, dissolving into nothing within her. She looked up a moment as she attempted to remember the words, speaking as she gazed towards the ceiling.

Efni; "When the pyramids are torn asunder: When the Dreamer and the Deceiver swap places: When the Angel and the Sinner are brought together in forbidden love, and quickly separated: When the Long Winter ends: When the Blade sharpens itself on the depths: When the twice-blessed fight each other once more: When the ally is deemed a traitor... The Erksavaan arrives, and will herald the awakening of Rokon."

Endrai listened intently, only being broken from the trance to get his waffle out of the iron, lathering it with butter.

Endrai; "Rokon... The last Dyrith, you told me about it. What happens when it wakes up?"

Efni let out a sigh, talking through a mouthful of waffle as she looked ahead at nothing.

Efni; "... I don't know exactly, but I know the Primevals wouldn't stand a chance. We were lucky to survive the Drekar, and that's just the scales off his skin. If he sent his true fighters... Or, Anomaly forbid, he gets involved himself... There'd be nothing left."

Endrai leaned forward to rest a hand on Efnis shoulder, smiling gently.

Endrai; "And that's why I'm doing this. Whatever the chances are of this prophecy coming to pass, I'm gonna make sure it doesn't. No matter who tries to threaten you, I'll protect you."

Efni smiled softly, leaning in to kiss his lips.

Efni; "And I'd do the same for you."

Unseen, at the top of the stairs floated a small swirling of sand and golden plasma, through which, Orlog was listening from his home realm. He spoke to himself, dismissing the cloud to his right, looking back to the sundial and pulling up the timeline the pair was in, speaking to himself as he opened a view of the Drekar in Mayberry.

Orlog; "Still making weapons, hm? Unfortunate... Time for more... Drastic measures."