[ Tezcatlipoca accepts the fond touch, and though the feeling isn’t returned with the true, sunny warmth that Set misses so dearly from his radiant brother, it’s returned. Tezcatlipoca places his other hand over Set’s in his palm, and it’s a firm touch. An anchor, maybe. But he laughs, short and a bit gloomy, because it’s a difficult question.
For a mortal, he’d dance around the answer, because they’re not meant to get straightforward answers from him. Straightforward answers from the divine are just bad for mankind. They need to think and carve their own path. For a fellow god, however— ]
No. Of course I don’t want it.
[ Even saying it comes with a heavy feeling. A mortal would probably call it guilt, but it’s something vaster between them. It’s duty and all its oppressive weight. It may come in shades amongst deities, but it denied them choices all the same. They had roles to play, things that must be, and in Tezcatlipoca’s case, simply wanting was something complicated.
…After all, he’d been supporting the pursuit of the kind of extinction that Set talks about. It’s not Oblivion, since Oblivion was bigger than what even ORT could do, but for the pantheons of Earth…? It would have been the same result. Without a planet, every spirit with a connection to the World would be snuffed out, just like that. It’s what Daybit wanted to do. Tezcatlipoca didn’t think he was wrong for it, either, considering.
Still, though. These aren’t uncertainties so much as difficulties. Set removes his hand to hold his face, and Tezcatlipoca can see the fiery, dedicated passion easily. His convictions run cooler than that, and it was shown even by that touch on Set’s hand. He’s the god that’s steadfast with his eyes always on the future—but the future itself belongs to others, not to him, necessarily. So, the epithet is both fitting and a touch ironic. ]
Problem is, wanting and accepting ain’t the same thing.Funny thing is, that’s pretty damn related to the second thing I wanted to ask you. It’s a favor. But we’ll get back to that.
[ He can explain Daybit and what they’d been fighting for in a minute, because diving into that first wouldn’t come off the way he’d want it to. So, instead, his hand settles on the back of Set’s neck, and he presses his forehead to the other god’s—or at least that’s the impression in Communion. It’s physical but also something relaxed like he’s letting more of his divinity seep out with the “touch”. It’s a gesture of sincerity. ]
If you survive, I survive, Yaotzin. [ He grants Set one of his epithets with a little joking in his tone, but he means it as a term of endearment. ] The mortals here might not, but maybe that’s their fate. Maybe it’s their destiny to create the fertile ground. And that’s why I can’t interfere. My balance isn’t one of makin’ sure both sides are playin’ nice. It’s of a winner and a loser and makin’ sure there’s a “tomorrow” after it all… Even if it means the death of a person, a civilization, or a whole damn planet.
no subject
For a mortal, he’d dance around the answer, because they’re not meant to get straightforward answers from him. Straightforward answers from the divine are just bad for mankind. They need to think and carve their own path. For a fellow god, however— ]
No. Of course I don’t want it.
[ Even saying it comes with a heavy feeling. A mortal would probably call it guilt, but it’s something vaster between them. It’s duty and all its oppressive weight. It may come in shades amongst deities, but it denied them choices all the same. They had roles to play, things that must be, and in Tezcatlipoca’s case, simply wanting was something complicated.
…After all, he’d been supporting the pursuit of the kind of extinction that Set talks about. It’s not Oblivion, since Oblivion was bigger than what even ORT could do, but for the pantheons of Earth…? It would have been the same result. Without a planet, every spirit with a connection to the World would be snuffed out, just like that. It’s what Daybit wanted to do. Tezcatlipoca didn’t think he was wrong for it, either, considering.
Still, though. These aren’t uncertainties so much as difficulties. Set removes his hand to hold his face, and Tezcatlipoca can see the fiery, dedicated passion easily. His convictions run cooler than that, and it was shown even by that touch on Set’s hand. He’s the god that’s steadfast with his eyes always on the future—but the future itself belongs to others, not to him, necessarily. So, the epithet is both fitting and a touch ironic. ]
Problem is, wanting and accepting ain’t the same thing.Funny thing is, that’s pretty damn related to the second thing I wanted to ask you. It’s a favor. But we’ll get back to that.
[ He can explain Daybit and what they’d been fighting for in a minute, because diving into that first wouldn’t come off the way he’d want it to. So, instead, his hand settles on the back of Set’s neck, and he presses his forehead to the other god’s—or at least that’s the impression in Communion. It’s physical but also something relaxed like he’s letting more of his divinity seep out with the “touch”. It’s a gesture of sincerity. ]
If you survive, I survive, Yaotzin. [ He grants Set one of his epithets with a little joking in his tone, but he means it as a term of endearment. ] The mortals here might not, but maybe that’s their fate. Maybe it’s their destiny to create the fertile ground. And that’s why I can’t interfere. My balance isn’t one of makin’ sure both sides are playin’ nice. It’s of a winner and a loser and makin’ sure there’s a “tomorrow” after it all… Even if it means the death of a person, a civilization, or a whole damn planet.