journal ⚔️ a warning

[discourtesies]

Sender: Barok van Zieks

[The writing is hurried, a cursive that just manages to be legible. In his rush, his usual formalities are cut short. The message is more important than the form it takes.]

There is a demon in the wilderness — a bestial man. Powerful and violent, able to heal itself in an instant. Anyone unable to defend themselves should avoid the woods until [until what? It's killed? If there's any shred of the man still in there, he can't condone that.] further notice.

[Is that a drop of blood on the page? Eh, it's fine.]

It was Kazuma Asogi. I don't understand it, but I wasn't able to reason with him and he became this thing before my eyes.

[After a moment, he adds:]

He cannot be left like this.

Comments

[discourtesies]

[Barok, meanwhile, is still carrying clear marks of the attack—his decorated coat is placed over his shoulders, his gloves are missing, and the white button-up is stained red where the claws tore through his left side and right forearm. There are clean bandages underneath them now, of course, but he hasn't exactly had the opportunity to find something suitable to change into. What's he going to do, go shopping after that?

He bows his head briefly as a greeting.]

Mr. Ragnvindr. I'm pleased to see you relatively unharmed.

[disdelusioned]

[Diluc looks Barok up and down before responding, assessing his condition. He's bandaged and cleaned up, but it seems he walked away in no better condition than Diluc himself did. The slight furrow of his brow betrays his concern, but overall he maintains his composure.

Really, he's relieved to see the man isn't faring worse.]

I wish I could say the same, Mr. van Zieks. But you look well enough, given what you've clearly been through.

[discourtesies]

[He nods to confirm Diluc's judgment. He doesn't feel great by any stretch, but it turns out the wounds are no worse than those he's dealt with before.]

I'll recover.

[It seems neither of them are a stranger to combat; even if van Zieks is unfamiliar with the more supernatural aspects and still carrying the marks of them, he's calm when he responds. As bad as it was, it could have been much worse.]

I'd like to hear of your encounter with Asogi... if you're amenable.

[disdelusioned]

[Diluc has no reason not to take Barok at his word with regards to recovery. He's injured enough to be concerned, surely, but not so much so that he finds himself alarmed.]

I have no reason not to be amenable. Whatever you need to know, I can tell you.

[The fight wasn't especially personal on either side, all things considered. And, truth be told, he's curious as to what about the relationship between Barok and Kazuma led to such a surge of anger like what he encountered there.]

Is this a conversation we can have in public, or would you prefer to take this elsewhere?

[discourtesies]

[Barok considers the question for a few moments, eyes moving to examine the surroundings. Utlimately, even with from the convenience of the café and the promise that the threat has passed, he'd really rather not be around other people at the moment.]

I'd appreciate a more private location.

[They could have it in public. He has nothing to hide, and there's really nothing worse about Asogi that he could say other than what was in his earlier messages. He'd just prefer the quiet.]

[disdelusioned]

[Diluc figured as much.]

In that case, follow me.

[His own dwelling is safe enough and plenty private. More importantly, it's not to Barok's detriment if they're somehow found. Barok doesn't live there, and Diluc isn't in any kind of danger after the confrontation. Even at the time, Kazuma made it clear that as long as Diluc stays out of his way, he has no intentions of inflicting harm.]

[discourtesies]

[Though he has no opportunity to follow Diluc's thought process, he'd be impressed by how alike they are in mind if he could. As it is, he simply nods and turns to follow.

Perhaps it's unwise to trust the man to lead him somewhere without inquiring as to the destination, but a combination of the circumstances of their first meeting and his own efforts to be less horribly cynical keep him silent for the time being. It's rare that he enjoys being proven right outside the courtroom, but perhaps this time will be different. If he's lucky, anyway.]

[disdelusioned]

[There's a reason they get along so well, and it's not just the sad nostalgia they shared over tea.

Diluc leads him back to his treehouse without much fanfare--he's not much for small talk, and figures that Barok isn't in the mood for it besides. The space is clean and furnished, but that's about it. He hasn't been here long, and isn't much the decorator type. Function over form.]

I can put on water for tea if you need some.

[discourtesies]

[Barok hasn't exactly had the time or the resources to decorate, himself. Either way, even a man who prides himself on appearances can appreciate a utilitarian space.]

That would be appreciated.

[If just to have something warm to put his hands around and distract from his wounds. But he's not going to waste much more time with pleasantries, now that they're in a more private space. He finds a place to sit and eases himself into it.]

What was your encounter like?

[disdelusioned]

[Diluc appreciates that they're not beating around the bush. He typically doesn't have the patience for that sort of thing.]

Brief. There were only a few exchanges of blows before I had to retreat. The worst damage he did was to my side.

[He pauses in his preparation of their tea to lift his shirt slightly and reveal a bandage on his left side.]

Kazuma was impossibly strong, and had the forest ablaze besides. And he was single-minded, seeking only one target. I can only assume based on context that he meant you.

[discourtesies]

[It's good to see that said wounds have been properly taken care of, even if it's not so great to have confirmation that wounds were inflicted in the first place. He feels partly responsible, having sent others against Asogi in the first place, and lets out a slow breath.]

I have no doubt of that. In his mind... I am the one who sent his father to the gallows.

[With others, he might not so readily share the details, but in private with this kindred soul of sorts, who's fought on his behalf in a sense—well, he sees little reason to hide it.]

Even knowing that, I couldn't have expected such a violent outburst. I know him to fight with words... not merely steel.

[disdelusioned]

[Diluc is quiet for several moments after that reveal, carefully processing the information and how he wants to respond to it. His immediate reaction is a rather simple realization: so that's why the anger felt so familiar. After that, however, his thoughts quickly jumble. Luckily, he has the distraction of pouring and steeping their tea to buy him a bit of time as he takes the time to untangle them.]

Speaking as someone who lost his father because of someone else's mechanisms... I can understand his anger toward you, if he truly believes that to be true.

["Someone else" is rather understating it, but this isn't the time or place to get into Snezhnaya and the Tsaritsa and her Fatui. Really, this is a big enough admission as it is. And it's one that he wouldn't give without the foundation of their relationship so far--and the fact that Barok is also being open with him.]

By "sent his father to the gallows," you mean to say you're the prosecutor that convicted him?

[He can't think of another way for that to mean, off the top of his head.]

And it seems like emotions have a lot more power here than either of us are used to. It's a dangerous precedent, what's happened with him.

[discourtesies]

[Van Zieks nods to confirm his role in the situation. It sounds as if this young man has experienced circumstances—or rather, a plot just as complex as the one surrounding those events.]

I am. It was... my own form of "revenge."

[Suffice to say, he also understands that anger—but there's a clear regret in his tone, and the shame in the way he diverts his gaze. How much suffering could have been avoided, if he had simply looked more closely? If he hadn't allowed his grief to blind him? But thinking of the past will only get him so far, and he recognizes the importance of changing in the present.]

That power is something we must become familiar with, I'm sure. That which emerged from my own feelings allowed me to escape with few injuries... but that is not enough.

[disdelusioned]

[The use of the word "revenge" gets a reaction from Diluc, albeit one subtle enough to miss if one isn't paying attention. It seems the more they learn about each other, the more questions seem to spring up. Especially since there's more and more for Diluc to relate to with each reveal.

He shifts his gaze over to Barok, eyebrows furrowed slightly as he considers the implications of the word and the clear regret with which it's spoken. There's much more to this story.]

Revenge for what, if it's all right to ask?

[Barok will tell him or not, as he sees fit. But Diluc's curiosity is piqued enough to ask, regardless of the other man's answer.]

I intend to start training once I'm well enough to do so unhindered. I've been caught flat-footed by my inability to channel it twice now. It will not happen again.

[discourtesies]

[He hesitates briefly, but simply to gather himself. It's not something he enjoys recounting, no matter how much his confusion and hatred of Genshin drove him the past ten years.]

... the death of my brother.

[His beloved, esteemed brother, whom even now he has a hard time bringing down from that pedestal. Case in point:]

It was his specter that appeared to protect me mere hours ago. Though I cannot imagine harnessing such powers... I intend to find a way, as well. [He pauses to switch topics.]

You've been involved in another conflict?

[disdelusioned]

... I see.

[He should have guessed as much, in hindsight. Little wonder, then, that the relationship between Barok and Kazuma is so complicated. Both justified, in their own way, and neither entirely correct in their course of action either.

(There's a lesson here about how the need for vengeance only hurts others and perpetuates the cycle of pain and suffering. It's entirely lost on Diluc.)

There's no need to dig any deeper. Diluc has no issues following Barok to a less emotionally heavy topic of discussion.]

I fought a nightmare creature--noctaere, I believe they're called--in the dream the tapirs set up for us not long after our arrival. However, I wasn't fighting alone and we all came away unscathed.

But I still wasn't prepared for how the dream reacted to my emotional state, and it could have cost us dearly had one of the others not been prepared for it.

[No, he doesn't want to talk about what thought it was that nearly made things worse.]

Nothing nearly so high-stakes as my encounter today.

[discourtesies]

[Really, the most Barok had to deal with in that trial dreamscape was being in the body of a stuffed animal. Perhaps he would have been more prepared had he encountered something dangerous like Diluc had, but there's little point in lamenting that now.]

Fortunate that you were accompanied by such allies, then.

[He won't question what particular feelings caused the danger. He can guess. His own dissatisfaction with himself has made his limbs heavier than they might have been, and he's only recently recognized that it isn't merely the exhaustion from his injury.]

I regret that I was unable to provide the same sort of assistance.

[disdelusioned]

It was.

[That's about all he's willing to say to that effect.

At the next statement, Diluc shakes his head.]

I understand the regret - [If the situation were reversed, he'd say the same.] - but there was no way you could have. You were injured, and I was reckless. That's all there is to it, when it comes to what happened to me. We'll just both have to be more careful.