[closed post] war council

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe wants to find and kill Aornis immediately, and if Shen Yuan's death was more recent, he would do so. But he's had time to ruminate on what happened, and speaking to Shen Yuan through Lan Wangji—and watching his new body grow—has settled some of the frantic animal need for revenge. His rage has not dimmed in the slightest. But he has some practice enduring it while he waits for his time.

The fact is that Luo Binghe already fought Aornis once and lost. And that was two against one, with Shen Yuan at his side. He has some idea of why—Shen Yuan lost his cultivation, and Xin Mo turned on him—but since he cannot remember, there could have been other factors. And since Lan Wangji has concealed information from him before on this matter, he cannot rashly charge into a fight without ensuring he knows everything there is to know.

Thus, he is looking for Magnus. This would be so much easier if the mansion were like Luo Binghe's palace, where all his wives and inner circle have taken his blood. How can anyone tolerate how inefficient it is to look for people?

Comments

[summerdude]

Magnus isn't that hard to find, once Luo Binghe gets outside -- he's in Uncle D's garden with a book about early childhood development, trying to understand what Sunny needs most and what he should expect next, while also soaking up the sunnier of Uncle D's vibes from his growing melon plants.

When he senses another presence, he puts the book down and shadows his eyes from the sun with one hand. "Luo Binghe?"

[protagonisthalo]

"Magnus." Luo Binghe has been unrelentingly moody since Shen Yuan's death, but Magnus may notice that he is especially grim. "I need to discuss something with you."

[summerdude]

Oh, that is not a good tone. Magnus leaps to his feet. "What happened?" he asks, hand flying to his necklace pendants. "Is it the body? Did, um... did she find it?"

[protagonisthalo]

"No, everything is fine. Better than before, in fact." He is loath to tell Magnus outright about the misstep Aornis made; it's safest if no one knows. "What do you know of Shen Yuan's murderer?"

[summerdude]

"Name, face, general aura of assholery," Magnus says, ticking things off his hands. "Um, and, I'm pretty sure I was her during the, like, bodyswap thingy."

[protagonisthalo]

"You were?? You remember?"

[summerdude]

"It doesn't feel like remembering," Magnus grumbles. "And I don't have, like, any details. It feels like I was reminded about something that happened to someone else. But it was me?"

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe would like to look into Magnus' subconscious to see if there are any more memories to be uncovered—but right now, he is impatient. "I have... some advantage over her that I did not before, and I intend to make my move soon. But I need to know if I am missing any information." Magnus surely remembers that Luo Binghe asked him previously to keep him informed.

[summerdude]

Magnus has been keeping Luo Binghe up to date! Just less-so with stuff that feels more like speculation without clear benefit, like the bodyswap thing. His posture straightens, and he frowns. "I don't know," he says. It feels... really weird to admit that he's handed off worrying about Aornis on account of the fact that it seemed like she was one of the concerns he could rely on others to hold for him when he got so overwhelmed. "Hanguang-jun and Claudius have been, um, investigating. What information do you have?"

[protagonisthalo]

"That she can erase or alter memories at whim. That she knows when her name is spoken. And that she can manipulate reality to cause improbable coincidences. I know her name and face, and that she has infiltrated our number again in a weak disguise."

[summerdude]

Yeah, that just about squares with Magnus's knowledge. "We found a recording," he says then. "Like, yesterday^*. An... image of her face. That's what made me remember being her. That's how we found out about her ability to sense her name."

*What is linearity?

[protagonisthalo]

"A recording? Like a movie? How?"

[summerdude]

"It was on the -- you know the game Shen Yuan plays all the time? It was saved on that device. Somehow. There was a recording of her talking to Laertes in the library. I gave SecUnit the thing it was saved on so it could make backup copies, in case anything happened to the first one." He pauses. "I was gonna tell you the first time I saw you, obviously. So--" he gestures between the two of them.

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe swallows. "Did Shen Yuan save it?"

[summerdude]

"I don't know. I don't think there's any way to tell for sure." Magnus pauses. "Shen Yuan was there when we found it, though. He made some things, like, move about it."

[protagonisthalo]

"Oh." Luo Binghe is often afraid to interpret little unexplained movements as evidence of Shen Yuan's presence, even when he's nearly certain. Without Shen Yuan physically here, it's too easy for him to question whether he is only inventing what he wants to be true. "The persona that she has taken on now... Do you know if she can sense that name as well?"

[summerdude]

"I don't know. I don't want to risk it."

[protagonisthalo]

"No matter. As I said, I plan to confront her very soon. I only want to make sure that I know everything that your friends know about her abilities, because... I have fought her once before and lost." He is still cautious of how much to tell Magnus—if Aornis can enter dreams like Luo Binghe can, she may be able to glean information from them—but it has been on Luo Binghe's mind that Aornis said her weapon was meant for him. Such a thing does not seem able to kill Luo Binghe, but it should not have killed Shen Yuan.

[summerdude]

Magnus hesitates. "Are you open to talking to Hanguang-jun?" he asks. "And, like. Claudius? I don't know if I know everything they do about... her." He hasn't asked, because it's overwhelming and he only wants to know if she's, like, actively coming after someone else he loves. "I've been focusing more on Shen Yuan." Don't tell Luo Binghe about the dick pics, Chase!!!

[protagonisthalo]

"I am. Are they willing to talk to me?"

[summerdude]

"Yeah, of course," says Magnus, with perhaps a little too much confidence. They both know that Luo Binghe lost his love and has a vested interest in this thing.

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe gives him a skeptical look. Claudius, perhaps. Lan Wangji wouldn't spit on Luo Binghe if he were on fire, and Luo Binghe has no interest in persuading him otherwise. "In case they are not, I'd be indebted if you could ask them for me. And I have another question I think you are more suited to answer."

[summerdude]

"Yeah, I can be Diplomatic Envoy Guy," says Magnus. "Tell them to meet you... somewhere. Lakehouse after breakfast tomorrow?"

[protagonisthalo]

"Alright. What can you tell me about the murderer's weapon?"

[summerdude]

"When she got me, it was with a sword," says Magnus, promptly. "I don't know if anyone recognized the kind. When she got Shen Yuan... Listen. The memories were really hazy, but it looked like a gun just, like, hovering in midair. Maybe a pistol? I don't know a lot about kinds of guns beyond, like, my buddy TJ's rifle. I don't know." He frowns. "Maybe she was actually holding it and I just don't remember that part????"

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe frowns. "How does it work? I have seen a gun before—Nina's. But I know not how to fight it."

[summerdude]

"There's no good way, guns are the worst. You'll want it out of commission somehow. Some way of getting it out of her hands and away from the scene. Bullets are fast and you can't, like, stop them." Grimly, Magnus thinks that it's likely the Peace of Frey could probably do the trick... but he really doesn't want to be involved unless he absolutely has to. Maybe Hanguang-jun could use his music? That does a shockwave too, right?

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe nods; this is very helpful. In case Magnus is worried, he adds, "If she does hit me, I heal quickly. She got to Shen Yuan by blocking his cultivation, but my resilience is inborn, not cultivated. She cannot affect it with coincidence."

[summerdude]

Magnus feels compelled to say, "I have... this ability. Peace of Frey. It disarms anyone within a thirty-foot radius of all weapons. But that includes allies, so it's probably not a great solution."

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe hesitates. "It could be useful. If we faced each other without weapons, I would undoubtedly be the stronger. But... Do you intend to fight with me? I had anticipated doing so alone."

[summerdude]

"I don't want to," he admits. "But if I have to, I will. You... you really shouldn't fight her alone."

[protagonisthalo]

"I'm used to it."

[summerdude]

"Dude," says Magnus, very seriously. "No man is an island." There's, like, an entire movie about it^*. "And if I've learned anything from all the battles I've fought, the easiest way to overcome someone who doesn't have people -- like Loki; he had an army but they didn't care about him or his reasons, they just cared about stirring things up -- is by having a community." His hand flexes into a fist, fingernails biting into his palm. "She doesn't have people. You need to have people. If I have to be 'people...' if Hanguang-jun can't help... I will."


*He's thinking about About a Boy.

[protagonisthalo]

Luo Binghe has to swallow back the sudden tightness of his throat. "What you say is reasonable. And... very kind. I hope it will not come to that." Shen Yuan wouldn't like to see Magnus in danger. And Luo Binghe wouldn't either.

[summerdude]

"It would be so stupid for you to die trying to avenge Shen Yuan," says Magnus, stoutly. "So don't. I'm pretty sure anyone here would be willing to help in some way, honestly, given everything she's done."