Sameness (Closed)

Soren couldn't help but give the Amazoness a worried look as he went over to pick up the soul stone and his arrows. As he bent down to pick them up, he tried to think of what to say to the girl. He was afraid of something worse than her snapping at him, but he was very worried for the girl that looked similar to his father. I should really stop thinking that, he mentally chastised himself as he went over to her.

"Are you okay? Maybe we should take a break," he said as he reached a hand towards her. His hand was slapped away as she groaned. "Please, it would be better for you. You look exhausted..." He flinched on instinct, expecting some very loud shouting or even her trying to beat him up. He wasn't looking forward to what she was about to do next.

 

Soren couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief when the girl said it was alright for them to take a break. Good, it looked like she really needed it. Now it was just a matter of finding the right place to stay without any monsters intruding. He just hoped the Amazoness wouldn't continue to push herself if push came to shove.

They wandered around the third floor looking for a place to stay, finally stopping when they reached a dead end. She pointed to the spot and went over to the wall, not paying attention to Soren. He sighed and dropped the bags on the ground, feeling relieved that they were taking a break at long last. After a pause, he grabbed the girl's bag and went over to her. "Here, do you have something to eat already?" he asked as he handed her the bag, "I can share some of mine if you want."

After that he went over to his own bag and began rummaging through its contents. He pulled out a sandwich and a flask of water, uncorking the bottle before downing its contents. He let out a satisfied noise once he was done drinking. He felt a little better already, drinking its contents in relative safety. He then began to tear into his sandwich, ever now and then glancing at Parvati to see what she was doing.

 

The meal was ate in silence as both of them tended to their own needs. As Soren glanced over to Parvati, he couldn't help but feel relieved that she was looking less pale and less exhausted. It was a good sign, right? They needed to look out for each other, so that the other could survive. He shuddered at the thought of being abandoned by her to die.

As he ate, he began to think about why she looked so similar to his father. The face shape and hair, same skin color too. Now that they were safe, he figured now would be a good time to ask. "You know," he began to say, "You look a lot like my father. Strange, isn't it? He's a kind man, if a bit of a worrywart."

 

"I don't know about that, I doubt you would be related to my father," Soren said, laughing a little at the idea that he might have a sibling. He grinned as he began to talk about his father. "Father is a kind man, a bit of a worrywart too. He's been taking care of me ever since my mother died in childbirth. He's the best father I could ever ask for..." He sighed. "He's good at cleaning and cooking, having done that for a good amount of his life. Um...he's from a land faraway, not too sure where though. He never told me."

Soren gave a pause when he thought about how his father had once been a slave and that they were on the run as fugitives. He wanted to keep that bit a secret that only close family members knew. "He...had a hard life before I was born," he said haltingly as he tried to choose his words carefully, "He never really talked about it with me, but... Whatever he went through..." He looked down at his half eaten food and frowned. "...I want to help him whenever possible. I owe him so much..."

He sighed again before looking over at the Amazoness. "What about you? What's your family like? I'm assuming you're an Amazoness because of your skin and the fact your ears aren't like mine." He cocked his head to the side, awaiting an answer. But maybe he shouldn't bother, after, he was just a supporter trying to make ends meet, nothing more. There was a slim chance Parvati would even answer his question.

 

Soren couldn't help but give her a look of pity. What kind of mother would make her children fight for her love? It didn't seem right to him, what Parvati's mother did. He couldn't imagine his father ever being like that, he was too kind and gentle. Maybe his mother if she were still alive? Probably not, his father seemed to love her dearly.

He began to feel more uncomfortable as Parvati listed out the name of her family. Why were these names ringing warning bells in his mind? Why did some of those names sound familiar? Parvati's last name especially ran a large warning bell in his head. Why was it all so familiar? But he might as well say his father's name since she said her family's name.

"...Theo Kalamolos..." he said as he looked into the Amazoness' eyes.

 

Soren's blood ran cold when Parvati said that she knew Theo Kalamalos and that she was the Amazoness' father. "...N-No, all the way out here...?" He began to slowly inch away from the Amazoness. "I- W-Well, maybe it's a-another Theo K-K-Kalamalos you're thinking," he stuttered, "I...well... Maybe it's...just a coincidence?" He chuckled nervously.

The stare she was giving him wasn't making things any easier. "...If-If there is anyone coming after him, please, don't tell them where he is," he begged, "I can't...Father's been through enough, hasn't he? Being used to make more Amazonesses, do you even know how traumatizing that is? He..." He gulped. "He-He gets nightmares every so often because of that. He- I..." He looked at Parvati pleadingly. "Please...don't drag him back to Telskyura. Please..."

 

Soren was still uneasy about the whole affair. Even though she had said that she won't rat him out, at least, he assumed that was what she was saying, he still couldn't help but feel ill at ease. "Th-Thank you..." he said quietly. He couldn't just bolt down the corridor and run, he wouldn't be able to survive on his own if that were the case. So he was pretty much stuck with Parvati until the time came when they had to part ways.

"I...Maybe? I don't know, I don't want Father to be worried. I want him to stay in one place and live a peaceful life, like when I was younger," he said, "But...If we do have to run...then we run. I'll follow him to make sure he's alright, that's the way things have always been." He looked down at his half eaten sandwich and began to wrap it up. He wasn't hungry anymore.

 

"O-Okay." He fumbled with the bag and nodded. "Yes, I'm a supporter." I'm not your slave, though. he thought privately as they began to trek through the Dungeon, intent on getting back to the surface. He wasn't sure how the Amazoness will deal with the information that he was her half sibling, but he knew that her relationship with her family was not a good one, so she would most likely treat him poorly. He sighed at the thought. He wasn't looking forward to seeing her again if his father decided they would move.

The trip was largely silent, other than running into the occasional monster and attacking it in order to collect its soul stone. He was still doing his job, but at a more leisurely pace. Parvati didn't seem to mind, both of them had their thoughts clouding their judgement. He didn't want to deal with the Amazoness any more than he had to, after all it only made things even more awkward.

 

Soren had felt relief when they finally reached the surface. He was alive, for one. And he was going to part ways with his half sibling- No, the Amazoness, for another. He couldn't wait to get away from her and the revelation that he had a family other than his kind father who went through too much.

He stiffened as she approached and handed her the bag with a neutral expression on his face. He couldn't help but groan when she mentioned they needed to go to the Guild first and get their valis. "Okay," he said as he began to walk side by side with the Amazoness, not noticing that he had taken a position that was not behind somebody for once.

The trip there was awkward, to say the least. Neither of them spoke as they walked, but it suited the two of them just fine. After all, that awkward revelation simply had no words. Was fate playing with them? Neither of them knew. They reached the Guild quickly and dumped all the soul stones they gathered onto the box that would slide in, then slide out with the number of valis all of them cost. They quickly retreated and made their way outside, intent on divvying their hard earned money between them.

The dark elf said nothing as he let Parvati decide how to divvy up the valis. This was normal, right? This was just like a normal day of dungeoneering, except he found out he had a half sister and- No! He shook his head and mentally chastised himself for thinking about that as Parvati handed him his share. "Here," she said, "May we never meet again." He watched her walk away before beginning to do so as well. Both of them hoped that they would never have to meet again.