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Derlik kept focused on the man. He'd make him pay, for everything. Soon enough, the god had the man turned into a doll, tossing him to the others and walking over to examine them.
"One more to go, then…" Derlik looked down when Luca woke up in his pocket, humming softly.
"Hey, Luca," the god said softly, one finger going in to gently rub the man's cheek, "I'm just getting some work done, kay? Go ahead and go back to sleep, my doll…"
Luca leaned into the finger rubbing his cheek… So he was tiny now. That was okay, he still had his human form. "What are you doing?" He asks softly, his head tilting ever so cutely. He smiles sleepily up at the god, looking rather content about being in the mans arms. He presses a quick kiss to the gods finger before curling up again, presumably to go back to sleep. He liked being carried around wherever the god went, it mean the god wanted him close, and he wasn't complaining.
The final woman had died about a year after the events that had unfolded. Her body had been found at the cliffside. Now, her spirit stayed there. Unable to move on or forward, just caught in a constant loop of pain and agony.
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"I've just got a few tasks to attend to for my work is all. We'll be back home in no time." Derlik watched Luca curl up, gently patting the man's head before pulling his finger out of his pocket. He picked the three dolls up, humming to himself as he looked down at them. They wouldn't get any of the kindness Luca was. He lifted the girl up, unsealing her mouth.
"Now, where did that precious sister of yours die, hm?" He had no time to bother with this.
Luca nods a little bit at the explanation, but he was already dozing off. If his god was working, he'd let his god work. He was sleepy anyways.
The doll hesitated for a moment before muttering quietly, "She died at the cliffside. She… she's still there. Sometimes I can see her, before she falls. It's like a loop." It sounded like she had been crying, the doll. She wanted to go back home, she wanted to be with her mother. She'd respect the gods, she had just been angry. "Please-" She murmured.
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Derlik had already sealed her mouth again. He didn't care. She'd disrespected him, and now she would pay for it. He tucked the two men into his pocket, holding the girl for now. He might need her again, who knew. The world twisted once more, bringing them to the cliffs.
"Come here." Derlik waited, patiently. The soul wouldn't be able to deny his command to her.
The woman appeared quietly, she appeared with her head bowed. "I can still hear the screams." She kept muttering over and over again. She seemed lost within herself, a wreck within her mind. "I can still hear the screams." Her eyes then lifted and focused right on Derlik' shirt where Luca rested and she broke down into more tears, wailing miserably.
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Derlik was a bit taken back by all of this. He watched the woman for a moment before stepping up. He took her head in his hands, lifting her face gently to be looking up at him.
"Do you want to stop? Do you want to truly pay for your crimes?" The god said, looking down at her.
She looks up at him, the tears never ending. Her eyes widened though, when the god offered for it to stop, for her to pay for her crimes. "Yes." She begged softly. "Please, anything. Please. I never- I should have stopped them." She whispered. "Please, please… I couldn't stop them." Apparently witnessing what had happened to Luca had driven her into hysterics.
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Derlik looked down at the woman, still confused some. Just how much of a real role had she played in Luca being hurt? He wanted to see.
"I'm going to judge you for your crimes," the god said. He touched her forehead, the scene playing out before them for Derlik to see. For him to examine himself.
She had been threatened, really. The men had threatened to hurt her little sister, do what had been done to Luca if she didn't help them. Luca was a traveler, and had been targeted by the men. She simply stood by, watched in pure horror at what they had done to this young, sweet boy. She couldn't even watch for the most of it, pretending she was simply keeping watch outside. When everything was said and done, she had come back in, seeing the mess, the horror that they had left behind. The cuts and the bruises, all of it. The men had grown bored and moved on, probably to their next horrors. She had cleaned Luca up with what she had, which wasn't much and dressed him carefully. The memory ended. "I should have stopped them." She murmured sadly as she looked up at the god. "They were going to hurt Tanya… They were going to hurt my baby sister. I couldn't- but after-" She broke down again. "After seeing him like that- I couldn't-"
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Derlik let out a soft breath as the woman's memories finished. He gently ran his hand over her head, wiping her tears away with his thumb.
"Are you ready for the penalty?" He asked. He held the woman's head still, having her still look up at him. This would be quick. It wasn't her fault.
She looked up at him tearfully, still shaking with quiet sobs before she nods in the gods grasps. "Please. I'll do it. Whatever the penalty is, just please-" she whispered. She regretted everything. That much was obvious. "I'll take if willfully." She murmured sadly. "Just- please- keep my little sister safe." She whispered. "That's- that's all I ask." A last request. It was more of a beg, a silent plea with the god.
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Derlik moved his hand to the woman's forehead, lightly touching it with his finger.
"You're going to be the one watching over her, actually." The touch wasn't enough to take all the pain away- but it could clear her mind, bring her out of hysterics.
"That's your penalty. You're to watch over her, understood?" Derlik held up the doll that was the woman's sister, restoring her to her human form.
"And you," He said, poking his finger at the girl, "Are going to serve three years in my temple for disrespecting the gods, understood? You have the night to say your goodbyes, and then you are to leave in the morning."
She relaxed when her mind had been cleared. The regret was still there, but she was grateful all the same. As for the younger sister, she stumbled a bit when she was released back into her human form. She glances at the god fearfully before nodding. Fair enough. She wouldn't complain. It was better than being a doll after all. She inhaled nervously and heads back down the cliff and back to the village.
The older sister paused before bowing slightly. "Thank you." She murmured quietly. She floats off after her sister.
Luca turned in his sleep, a soft yawn leaving his lips. He murmured something but didn't make much noise other than that.
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Derlik watched the younger sister go, patting the woman's head when she bowed.
"I'm getting soft," he murmured to himself as she left. "Ah, well. I'll fix that later." The god hummed some, looking down at Luca. He gently patted the man's back again from outside the pocket before starting down the cliff himself. He hummed some, pulling the two men out. He didn't need to bother with their memories- he knew their crimes.
"Time to punish you," the god said, eyes cold, as the world warped around him, bringing him to the clearing.
Luca woke up after the god warped the world again, maybe it was the constant moving, or the noises that surrounded them, he wasn't sure. But he peeped out of the gods pocket when they came back into the clearing. "What were you doing?" He asks softly, sleep still heavy in his voice. He was awake now though, so there was no point in going back to bed. He'd sleep later in the day if he was tired. He climbed his way up to the gods shoulder and rested there instead, holding onto Derlik's shirt so he wouldn't fall.
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Derlik sat the two dolls down where Luca couldn't ee them. He'd deal with them later, then.
"There was a wandering soul I had to deal with," Derlik said softly, looking down at Luca. He moved his hand up, gently rubbing Luca's cheek. "There's still a lot of time left in the night, are you sure you aren't going to sleep more?" The god pressed a gentle kiss to Luca's head, hand around him slightly to keep him safe.
Luca smiled a little and leaned into the touches. "A wandering soul?" He asks softly, tilting his head a little bit. He smiled when the god pressed a kiss to his head. "Yeah, I'll be okay." He assures gently. "I can take a nap later if I'm still tired." He hummed thoughtfully to himself. He climbs into Derlik's hand and smiles warmly, "Where to now?" He tilts his head a little bit, looking around. He recognized the clearing but he wondered vaguely where they were headed or what the god had in mind.
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"It's nothing to worry yourself over, my little doll," Derlik assured of the soul. He held Luca close when he came to the god's hands, kissing him again.
"And I'm not sure. It's too late to go clubbing, but it's a bit too early to go out and about in any cities… Hm…" The god thought for a moment, gently toying with Luca's hair and all around being very affectionate with him.
Luca melted into the affectionate touches, smiling warmly at the kiss. "Okay." He hummed happily. He was sure that the wandering soul was in good hands. He hummed and tilts his head. "Star gazing is always nice. I used to chart them." He chuckles meekly as he held onto the god as he walked. He smiled when his hair was played with, looking up at Derlik in content. "We could wait until morning and then go wherever. It might be fun." He giggles softly and relaxed again. "Do you think we could go to that place again soon?" He wanted to see the place Derlik had taken him, maybe explore that era a little bit.
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"Ah, looking at the stars is always nice." Derlik brought them to the boulder, sitting down with Luca in his hands still. He laid back, setting Luca on his chest.
"And I think it'll be fun to bring you with me there tomorrow, too." He hummed softly, rubbing Luca's head. He went quiet for a moment, smiling.
"Do you know what stars are?" Derlik suddenly asked. It was only the tenth century, after all.
He nods happily. He wasn't sure what stars were, but he loved how beautiful they were. He settles on the gods chest before looking up at the stars happily. "I'd like to go with you tomorrow. That could be fun." He murmured happily. He leaned into the gods touches and smiled a bit to himself before shaking his head at the gods question. "I'm… not entirely sure what they are. They could be gods, or diamonds, or beautiful balls of light. I'm not entirely sure." he tilts his head a little bit in wonder, a small smile on his lips. "Whatever they are, I think they're beautiful."
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Derlik chuckled some as Luca tried to guess what the stars were, smiling some as he looked up.
"Your guesses were somewhat close. They're souls, actually, waiting to move on to the next part of the rebirth cycle." The god hummed some as he spoke, ruffling Luca's hair lightly. "They really are beautiful, though, aren't they?"
His eyes widen at that, and a blissful smile came across his face. "Really? That's amazing." He murmured happily. "It's nice to know that. What kind of star do you think I'll be?" He wondered after a moment. He was mortal, he would die. He wasn't sure how long until then, but it was still a thing he would have to endure. He was only human after all. He liked it when his god played with his hair. It was comforting really.
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"You'll be a red star," Derlik said confidently. He pulled out a mirror from his pocket, then, holding it in his palm and showing Luca his reflection. "See that, on your neck side? That's my symbol, it shows everyone you're mine. When you die, you'll be my own personal, beautiful little star until we get you a new body." Derlik hummed, smiling some. "You'll never have to leave me."
He looks at the mark on his neck and smiled a little, gently touching it. "A red star?" He liked the sound of that. Would he look any different? He glanced at the god. "So I'll be able to stay?" He asks hopefully, moving closer to the god. "I won't have to leave?" He liked that idea. He liked being with the god. Derlik was kind to him. Gentle, even. "I like the symbol." He murmured softly, looking back up at the stars. "A red star." He murmured happily. He liked the sound of that.
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"You won't have to leave," Derlik confirmed. "Not ever. And I'm glad you like my symbol, my little doll." Derlik hummed some, rubbing Luca's back after putting the mirror away. "It's very important to me." Derlik smiled once more, looking up at the sky.
"You are too, you know. My doll is very, very important to me."
He watches the stars with a bright smile on his lips. "Yeah. It's pretty." He murmured happily. He glances at Derlik and pauses for a moment. He hummed softly and pressed a tiny kiss to his cheek before looking back up at the stars. "Still, I think it would be fun to be a star. But I'm glad you want to keep me around." He hummed softly, sounding absolutely genuine. Slowly but surely he was falling into the trap and mind games that Derlik was placing.
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Derlik kept his eyes on the stars, smiling still. He continued to play with Luca's hair as he spoke, relaxed.
"Ah, really..? I'm glad you like it too, then." The god hummed, lifting the small man up to kiss his chest. "And you can still be a star. My personal little star~" The god smirked some, nuzzling close.
"You'll be so beautiful~"
He leaned into the gentle touches, humming softly as his hair was played with. "I like the idea of being a star." He murmured and laughs when he was kissed and nuzzled, gently pressing a kiss to his forehead and relaxing in the touches. He loved the compliments, he loved being fawned over, he just liked being appreciated for once. But… "What… what if you don't want me anymore…? What if you get bored of me?" He murmured sadly, looking down at the god.
