i'm on the wrong side of heaven, and the righteous side of hell
It was odd to feel the walls closing in. The ramifications of his deal with Eight had begun to weigh heavily on his mind, to say nothing of how it felt on his shoulders. He’d told not a soul what he had done, though he was sure they could sense that something was different with him. Had he not been more brooding than usual, more apt to snap and lunge instead of his usual quiet coldness? Maybe all of those things were in his imagination…it was hard for him to tell it apart from reality nowadays.
The time had come for him to own up to his mistakes and to tell Straia why he’d been so absent from the kingdom. He didn’t expect her to understand. Her temper, he supposed, was one of the things that made her such a good queen. Though he wasn’t particularly looking for a tongue lashing, he knew better than think she’d pat him on the head and say “well done”. He assumed that was the Rodrik blood flowing in her that made her slightly…unreasonable. Never the less, the black stallion wandered across the border, his brown eyes sweeping to and fro over his beloved kingdom. The blue infinity symbol at his chest glowed brightly, possibly in response to the recent visit from a strange fairy, or perhaps because the magic recognized it was home. For a moment he thinks about hunting her down, but given the fact that his ass was likely to be sore from her chewing it, he figured he’d make her work at least a little bit. The mouse doesn’t get eaten by the cat because it goes out looking for it.
warship 
i want the world in my hands
 She certainly had a temper, but it wasn’t the standard temper one thinks of. Straia isn’t prone to yelling, and she hardly raises her voice. Her words are cool and clipped instead, her meaning obvious enough in her choice of words. But she didn’t consider herself to be unreasonable. She gave chances, certainly. Warship had been absent much before she finally removed him as General. But eventually, it became clear he was not returning home in any reasonably timely fashion, and she needed a General that would be around enough to train the army. Not that she had one yet, but at least she had prospects.
Kavi still retained his position. He was gone, certainly, but less so than the old black stallion. He returned, and still managed to do his job. Though she admits, if he hadn’t returned home soon, she would have been looking for a new Ambassador as well. But then again, should she disappear for too long, she expects the kingdom would replace her as well. And they should. The Chamber has no room for absent leaders. Not if they are to be powerful, feared, strong.
And she will accept nothing less.
She knows he’s back, of course, but she leaves him there for a while. The ravens tell her, and when she hears, she takes the sky as one of them. She watches him from above for a while, not avoiding her, but not seeking her out either. Of course she’ll come to him. He knows this. He knows her. All too well. But that was inevitable. He known her since she was a little girl, and known her in the biblical sense as well (perhaps they would again, their first son had turned out so damn useful). She does, of course, harbor some level of affection for the black stallion. The extent of affection that Straia is truly capable of, at least. It’s more than most get.
Still, he left. And she has a kingdom to rule.
Eventually, she lands on his shoulder, a pitch black raven on his matching hide. But her voice is her own. “Look who’s come crawling home. And to what do we owe this honor?”
straia the raven queen of the chamber
i'm on the wrong side of heaven, and the righteous side of hell
He knows he is in the wrong, and would never defend his disappearing act. But perhaps if they had known what caused his absence, would they understand? Should he even explain his deal to Straia? She would probably scoff at him, call him an idiot…but could she pretend that it wasn’t for the best? Probably not, though he was sure her pride would allow some free flowing choice words before she saw reason. The warrior was prepared for that. Her tongue might have been forged from silver, but his skin was forged of iron. Not that his deal was reasonable for himself, but it was certainly reasonable for the Chamber. They would have him forever, so long as he played whipping boy to Eight and the Chamber kept their heads above water.
He hears the rustling of feather above him, and can’t help but shake his head ruefully when the raven lands on his shoulder. Despite his recent semi vacation, he is no fool. Past the beady bird eyes and the greasy feathers, Straia shines through. “Neat party trick.” he says, his voice low and calm. “Oh but my queen, the pleasure is all mine.” He longs to return the sharpness of her voice in his own but thinks better of it in the end. He sighs, then shakes violently, the cascades of his tangled mane hopefully dislodging the bird from his withers. It was strange speaking into the thin air when the voice he was speaking with came from his back. “I’m sure that you’ve guessed something has been different with me, the recent absence not withstanding. I suppose now is as good a time as any to let the cat from its bag.” he pauses for a moment before continuing, “I made a…deal, of sorts, with Eight. I was dying, and he gave me life. Surely you’ve noticed that glowing blue symbol on my chest. With that deal I will not die, so long as the Chamber is alive. However, for the magic to continue, I am a mercenary of sorts for Eight.” He doesn’t know how she will react to that part, but there isn’t much he can do about it anyways. What’s been done, is done. “So I can explain my absence if need be, but know this…everything I do or have done, is for this place. Always for my home, our home, our sons home. I have literally now given my life for this place. I don’t expect you to understand or be happy about it…but it is what it is. For the Chamber.” And he falls quiet now, wrestling with feelings of indecision deep in his chest. This is likely the longest conversation he had ever had with Straia, and now he has spilled his guts to her. Now to see what she does with them.
warship
i want the world in my hands
There’s one thing about her he seems to have forgotten. She is not a child anymore. She grew up. She rules a kingdom, has rebuilt it from the ashes. Her temper, her petulant child attitude, would never have seen her through such. So she changed, adapted as the Chamber required of her. He adapted as he needed to survive, tying his life to the Chamber but also to Eight. Straia may have owed the magician a debt, but her life was her own, and nothing she agreed to do for him would hurt the Chamber. Straia would give her life for the Chamber in a very different way than Warship had.
Raven Straia hops on her shoulder as he speaks of party tricks, taking off into the air and switching from raven to horse just as her feet hit the ground. “Yes, party trick,” she says, because it is endlessly more than that. She can light a kingdom on fire with the wings of her ravens, or send icicles through their hearts with their beaks. She is so much more than the child he knew all to well, the child he seems to remember more than the mare she has become.
Not that he’s entirely wrong. She doesn’t tolerate anything less than the best in the Chamber. Not from her subjects, and not from herself.
He speaks now in explanation, and she falls silent, ears pricked forward and listening. Shock never crosses her feature, nor anger. They remain impassive as he speaks, but of course, she is not surprised. She’s known for some time he made a deal with the devil, though she didn’t know all the details of the deal. At least now she has the whole picture.
“Yes, I rather guessed most of that when Eight summoned both of us in the middle of the night.” It made some sense to summon her, but Warship? Only because there was something Eight needed, and Warship would have to do it. “But I also need a General who’s around. We have a growing army that needs training, and you cannot do it from the Amazons. Prove to me you can serve the Chamber as loyally as you have in the past, and the position is yours again.”
It is that simple. He can earn the position again, if he can juggle Eight and the Chamber. If not, she would find someone who was present. Because she never again wanted to be in the field unable to tell a recruit that their General could train them. Because she didn’t know where her General was at that particular moment. Thankfully, Erebor is a good substitute for his father, but still. She wanted them all to know the Chamber was strong, the Chamber was capable. She wanted everything for the Chamber. Everything was for the Chamber. Surely, he understood that just as well as she.
straia the raven queen of the chamber
 Use of mild power playing is allowed; no injuries without permission
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