002 | On Gestrals

[notthislife]

[The mood in the Grove has shifted. How could it not, when bodies of their own had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Verso hadn't known either of the men, but it was clear that many had. Their grief is... difficult to stomach, leaves him feeling unpleasantly itchy and irritable.

Drinking doesn't help it. Neither does ignoring it. The grief permeates everything, until his ability to resist is worn away and he finds himself rambling away in his journal. Growing up, this had helped him. Maybe there would be some wisdom to be found for the citizens of the grove.]

You wanted to know more about the Gestrals, didn't you? You being the general Grove and not anyone in particular.
In addition to being broom-headed menaces, and pseudo-experts in engineering, they really seem to have it right.
They don't fear death. When they're lost, they enter what they call the queue. It's... a line to get into the "sacred river." Once they're bathed in those waters, they come back. They aren't always the same, children might become parents to their forebears, and so on. But they still come back.
And that's how it goes.
They play their games. Fight their fights. And when it's time to go, they go.
I never understood why we grappled so angrily with the concept of death. Why we let grief and loss change us so deeply, or do things we might regret. It's another journey. A trip down the river. And the comfort that you will find another again one day

Comments

[kingincognito]

Precisely.

Because anything else would mean admitting defeat.

[notthislife]

Just remember to care for yourself along the way.
Some of us would be worried, otherwise.

[kingincognito]

[ There's a pause for just a moment. ]

I am trying. It isn't easy, but others are reminding me that to keep going, I must sleep and eat properly. And Torgal is quite insistent that I do.

[notthislife]

Easier said than done.
Which does beg the question.
Am I going to have to force feed you? Or would simply delivering meals to your doorstep work?

[kingincognito]

I

[ For a moment, he leaves his words hanging after that single letter. Abruptly, he is reminded of Clive, and how his brother had threatened to force him to take his medicine in the same way he forces Torgal to take medicine. There's a pang of ache in his chest, but... a fond ache, all told. Bittersweet. ]

No, that won't be necessary. Force is not needed.

[notthislife]

[If Verso noticed the pause, he doesn't say a word about it.]

Good, then. Keep it that way.

[kingincognito]

[ He's a good man. ]

I will do my best.

You would make a pretty threatening healer yourself, you know.

[notthislife]

You think so?
Typically I stick to patching myself up, but maybe I could give it a shot.

[kingincognito]

[ Well, he'd meant it in a sort of teasing way, but now that that's been said... ]

Of course. Especially now that you've admitted to having at least some rudimentary skill. There is never an abundance of hands.

[notthislife]

And then I can pretend to heal myself and neglect any clinic trips.
It's a perfect idea. Thank you, Joshua.

[kingincognito]

Oh, absolutely not. Healers should see other healers for their own ailments.

[notthislife]

Is that really necessary?

[kingincognito]

Of course it is. Take it from someone who has been in need of one more often than I'd like to be.