It took a while for anyone to speak as they all climbed into Nyssi’s car. Nyssi sat in the driver’s seat, with Retvik sat next to her and Tenuk and Kayel in the back. Tenuk muttered something about feeling like a child, but no one paid attention.
“So, uh, Kayel, how does it feel, knowing you live down the road from the Avatar of Decay?” Tenuk eventually spoke out loud.
“Not as weird as the Thantophor… uh… Arkay being as friendly as he was…” Kayel replied. “Completely called us all out though.”
“Speaking of which!” Nyssi interrupted as she came to a stop at some traffic lights. “Tenuk, the Thantophor asked you to tell us something!”
Tenuk pulled a face, then sighed loudly. “If I tell you, promise you won’t tell anyone, whatsoever, and that you won’t hand me over to my dad, alright?”
“Your dad?”
“My dad, yeah…” Tenuk took a long, deep breath. “I was kinda hoping I’d be able to have kept this secret for more than a few days…”
“We can keep a secret, don’t worry!” Nyssi’s voice was quite reassuring. She seemed kinda happy, especially since she’d met a death god today. Then again, they’d all been told that they were in danger and needed to keep a low profile for a few days.
“You shall have my silence…” Retvik added.
“Yeah, I’ll shut my mouth as well.”
Tenuk sighed again, muttering a thank you, then began to explain. As he spoke, his colours changed from blue to red with a silver mane. “My name isn’t Tenuk. It’s Tanos. Tanos tou Ahvran. I’m the Lord Prince, the one that went missing in that hotel explosion. I genuinely didn’t remember who I was, and, frankly, I still don’t really know what happened. But I have always hated being the Lord Prince, I never wanted to be the heir to the throne, I was sick of having to study to death in order to be the next king, I got tired of having no life what so ever, so I took the opportunity to, well, disappear and be someone else.”
No one responded at first. Tenuk changed his colours back to blue and frowned. To his surprise though, Kayel put a reassuring hand on his.
“I totally get that. I’ve done the exact same thing.”
“I’m just amazed I was actually right when I asked you if you were the Lord Prince when we first met!” Nyssi piped up. “Plus, yeah, I totally get the whole family thing sucking.”
“What is the Clan Unmourned?” Tenuk asked, wanting to change the subject.
“Uh…” Nyssi fell silent, turning her attention back to the road. “We… don’t talk about that. Is it the next left, Retvik?”
“I just told you my secret!” Tenuk raised his voice a bit too much. “Just put myself out there!”
“Yeah but… Actually, now I think about it, I think your dad probably started a war with the Temthans like 500 years ago, but you weren’t around for that.”
“My dad has done a lot of… bad things… All the more reason why I don’t want to follow in his footsteps. Not yet, at least.”
Retvik grunted, separating Nyssi and Tenuk. “I think the Thantophor struck a nerve with all of us, revealing slices of our pasts. Maybe it is worth-”
“No, I want to know what the Clan Unmourned is!” Tenuk snapped. “And I also want to know why you’re an exile from some Family of Dawn and I want to know what a Phantasma is!”
Nyssi tutted, then pulled over, leaning over the back of her seat to look directly at Tenuk.
“The Tharr Clan was a clan of murderers and rapists that violently took over parts of Temtha Five, about fifty years ago, before everyone else rose up and killed them all. They’re the Clan Unmourned because no one mourns them, they don’t deserve it. I just so happen to be descended from one of the higher-ups that escaped, and that’s why I live in a small hut hunting big game rather than living a normal life as a normal Temthan. Now shut up.”
“… Oh…” Tenuk fell silent, shrinking in his seat. “… Sorry…”
Nyssi didn’t reply, instead she hit the indicator and went back to driving. No one else spoke for a while, until Retvik decided to change the subject to something a tad more important.
“I have work tomorrow and on Tuesday, but you are all free to stay with me over Macromera, if you all wish.”
“You’re working on Macromera?” Kayel exclaimed. “That fucking sucks. I thought you gladiators got time off or something?”
“Vok want their live matches…” Retvik shrugged. “I do not mind, I enjoy my work. The only issue is, I did not plan for guests and do not have anything… nice for the holidays. So you may need to go to a nearby shop and pick out some extra food and drinks.”
“I can handle that…” Nyssi perked up a bit. “I like shopping.”
“I’ll pitch in too.” Tenuk added. “After all, it’s not like I’m short on cash. Been squirrelling away money into various hidden bank accounts since I learned what money was.”
“Why?” Kayel questioned innocently.
“Because I am a child with many desires.”
“Oh. Fair enough…” Kayel trailed off. He felt pretty guilty, since he only really had enough money to cover his rent and bills, and had planned to spend Macromera with his friend and co-worker Essel’s family. Which he could no longer do because Essel was, well, dead. Now he felt like he was just mooching off from his new friends.
“It is fine,” Retvik smiled reassuringly, sensing Kayel’s uneasiness. At least, to Kayel it was a smile. The baring of Retvik’s overly sharp teeth probably looked quite threatening to non Panvok species. “We just need to keep our heads down for a few days, then we can sort everything else out. A bit of peace and quiet will do a lot for us.”
“Yeah…” Kayel smiled a little.
“We could also do with a lot more alcohol!” Nyssi added. “Is beer alright with you lot or do you want some spirits too? I think we should pop to the shop now, since we’re out. If that’s alright with you guys.”
“Good point…” Retvik nodded in agreement. “If you turn right here, there is a supermarket we can stop at…”