That familiar darkness, those floating candles, the large ornate throne and the table with the magical chalices on it, they were all back. Arkay, Litvir and Retvik were back in the dark pocket dimension that Deathven, the Overlord of Decay Lord society called home.
“Hello, Missing.”
“Oh, hello, again, Deathven!” Litvir smiled weakly. “How are-”
“Hello, Deathven!” Arkay snapped, interrupting Litvir. “Are you going to one day teleport me here when I am wearing armour for once?”
Deathven looked Arkay up and down. “You are naked, currently?”
“Yep.”
“You do not look naked.”
“Well, I’m a Skyavok or a Threan-type Retha or a Rethavok or whatever the fuck I am, I’m naturally armoured. I’m still completely naked right now, I’m not even wearing a loin cloth! You seem to know to check that our ship is stopped or whatever but you can’t check to see if I’m wearing clothes? Do you do this to other Decay Lords? Do you sometimes teleport Ziital from the Travellers when he’s not in his armour? Or is this just some load of piss you do to me to annoy me?”
Deathven eyed Arkay somewhat. The little mimic seemed rather angry. Angrier than normal.
“Most of my Hidden Trios are dressed at all times.”
Arkay crossed his arms and tutted. “You’re telling me that they don’t shower occasionally? I was literally taking my clothes and armour off so I could have a nice warm shower!”
“You would be surprised, actually.”
Retvik nudged Arkay. “I think he has a point. I think Itaviir and Vikalos only shower now because we have the decontamination showers.”
“What about Galyn?”
“When Galyn had his own personal little ship, he had a fancy bathroom in it.”
Arkay paused, then turned to Retvik. So did Litvir. “How do you know?”
“Well… when you were busy being confused and Litvir was still in processing, I did some… secret training by Galyn’s side. One mission went a bit… bad, I freaked out and hid in Galyn’s bath for a bit to regain my composure.”
Deathven eyed Retvik somewhat, just as confused as Arkay and Litvir were. Retvik though just shrugged.
“Everyone assumed I had been a god for millennia, not a day and a half, when I was picked up as a Decayling. I was apparently far more competent than most. Either way, why have you summoned us here?”
“Before he tells us though, let me summon some armour for myself…” Arkay tutted. “I don’t like being naked in front of anyone but you two. Or Kayel. Or Psiksi. Or Elkay if he asks nicely.”
Deathven turned his attention back to Arkay. “You Amalgam Mimics better not-”
“We’re not doing anything, it’s a joke and Elkay’s happily married to Teekay and 100% does not want anything to do with kids!” Arkay rolled his eyes, then snapped his fingers, summoning some basic armour and clothing, all in dark blue. “Whatever. What do you want?”
“Thank you for getting us back on track. I have a request to deal with a bit of Corruption in the Perilit Straights, somewhere you have been before. A sentient core of Corruption and an ancient breeding ground has been found inside an abandoned Life Goddess Oasis and needs to be removed. We believe it is the main source, and has been causing problems for millennia. Since you have dealt with this unique white strain of Corruption in the past, it has been decided that you three are the best choice to send in to deal with this infected nest. You will be given shielding, tools and a location and will destroy any and all traces of Corruption. If it is possible to salvage the Oasis and not destroy it, that would be preferable, but complete destruction of the area is fine if it means the Corruption is also destroyed completely. You will-”
“No.”
Deathven blinked. “No?”
Arkay sighed, then shook his head. “Sorry, but no. I’m not doing this. Not right now. Firstly, the last time we were there, we were attacked by an infected Voidborn and Litvir got hurt. Secondly, I’m fucking exhausted right now. None of us are capable of doing this task currently.”
“So you are denying me?”
“Indeed. I’m putting my foot down and saying no. It’s something I don’t do enough of. No is the most powerful word there is, the chance to deny what others force upon you. You’re trying to send us on a dangerous mission, but we’re not physically or mentally fit to do so.”
“How comes?”
“Well, I’m exhausted from working as a Time Drake at Savepoint, a duty I hate doing. Retvik’s oldest friend Elksia just had a kid and Retvik has been busy keeping her safe and happy, and Litvir is tired and pissed off because Retvik and I have been neglecting him, and also, he’s been busy planning a wedding for his twin sibling. None of us are in the right state of mind to go and kill Corruption in a place that has already caused stress for us in the past. Doubly so since that weird white Corruption causes wounds that need Life Goddess milk to be healed properly, and I am NOT going through the piss needed to make THAT happen.
“So yeah, I’m putting my foot down and saying no. No, we’re not doing this stupid mission for you. Send the Pentathax to deal with it or something. We’re three fucking people, and these two are literally babies in the grand scheme of things. Find someone else to deal with this millennia-old mess. Because I refuse to do this job, and I refuse to let Retvik or Litvir do this job as well.”
Deathven eyed Arkay some more. After an awkwardly long silence, he grunted.
“Very well. Missing, when will you three be available for missions again?”
“You… are just taking that?” Litvir exclaimed. “I thought you would be angry.”
“Oh, I am a little annoyed, but Deathbringer is completely correct. You are not in the right frame of mind to deal with a dangerous task. I will hold off until you Missing are feeling better. Is a 4-ev long enough for you to recover?”
“It should be, yes.”
“Very well. Rest up. I will speak to you soon.”
The Overlord snapped his fingers and Arkay, Litvir and Retvik vanished, reappearing in the middle of Savepoint.
“I am amazed that worked…” Retvik muttered after yet another awkward silence.
“Me too…” Arkay sighed. “I really need to say no more often…”