Beyond Arcadia [Cyrus, Elysia]

Well, it took her some time but here she was. Silently sitting on the desk which was a strangely familiar feeling - having sat in this spot so many times in a state of undress to tease the man. Though if one could call the two of them the same, they might be the same in body and spirit but time is a funny thing with changing perspectives and from the perspective of Elysia the person she became and the person she was at this point are at complete odds with one another.

Given the ghostly nature of her which was more a mirage than anything given she was only present to the eyes of the man who was diligently working away at the desk with such a weary look. It would not surprise her if they could sit like this forever and never talk to one another. At times she tried but it required so much effort to attempt a form which was able to be perceived whether it was as subtle as knocking something or saying his name and not getting a response.

Regardless of if he noticed her or not though, Elysia was happy to sit away with those same blonde locks framing her face and the slitted red eyes that belonged to only one familiar face - as far as she liked to imagine - in this man's repetoire of contact.

"Cyrus, or do you prefer Azmi? Can you hear me by any chance now or are you still dumb to my presence?"

She was by no means an eavesdropper but maybe she did learn a thing or two which was information not known to another part of her which had been usurped by Mazda. It didn't bother her though, a child could be carefree and didn't think of the consequences. There were some parts of his life that she happily turned a blind eye to however, one might not think that at one point or another she might've been a very introverted and modest person which was not fond of anything remotely lewd or that could fall under that category..

"It's a little boring not having anyone to talk to, one day all of your aspects should hang out with me and we can have a party in your head haha."

Cyrus could, in fact, hear the girl speaking to him from atop his desk. He could see her, but that gaze haunted him quite often enough that he had almost become numb to the idea of seeing it yet one more time. The key word there, of course, was "almost," for it was not in the nature of the Affectionate Flame to deny what was so plainly in front of him. His reason for shifting to yet another aspect had been nothing more than to ensure that he could-- but, of course, Cyrus would never admit that to anyone. After all, part of his domain was to make certain that none worried after him.

"Suffice to say that it seems quite strange to hear the name Azmi spoken in your voice. But if you wish to use it, then I will not deny you that."

Setting down his pen to face the girl before him, Cyrus simply studied her, and though he would have rather wished to hide such plain emotion, the pain in his expression was still rather plain to see. He was not so weak a man to simply hallucinate an aspect of Arcadia, and certainly not now when he had come so far. To combine that with her line of questioning lead only to the conclusion that this was, in one capacity or another, a very real thing.

"I will do my best to speak with you more often, then. I take it I will not have to look far to find you."

"I do and you may call me Elysia, Arcadia's such a haughty name if you'd even call it as such. It's more like a title or adjective rather than anything fit for a name hehe. Don't look so glum though, I know you're beating yourself up over how things went but I have to admit I'm pretty impressed, never in a millennia would I imagine that something would change my behaviour after I became so egotistical and senile."

A couple of moments after she said it, she was actually hoping that he would react a lot different. It wasn't able to be placed but maybe some shock or tripping over himself with questions. It was a little bit of a bummer that she had built up so much anticipation about being able to interact with him that he handled it surprisingly well - as far as he showed her anyway.

"Sooooo, don't you have questions? I didn't exert so much effort to try and appear for idle chitchat!"

Elysia sounded a little frustrated, immaturely so in that she didn't like that he was handling this so well. Didn't he understand that she was looking for some attention here. Pleasure first, then business. Wasn't that how it went?

It seemed remarkably fitting for her to be so casual about such a grave situation, given who it was that he was speaking to. Cyrus would never have expected Arcadia to be too terribly serious about even the most bleak of situations, if only for her own sake. This other aspect was presumably no different, and he allowed himself a small, sad smile.

"I do think I have earned the right to take a few moments to process your presence, hm? One that I hold more dear than near anyone else has simply reappeared before me. Is that not cause for at least a brief moment of quiet?"

A deep sigh followed, and Cyrus steepled his fingers as he thought about the situation. Of course, he wasn't upset with her obvious frustration. Even if perhaps he should have been, it was not in the Affectionate Flame's nature to be, particularly not toward one for whom he cared so much. That was simply who she was, he knew.

If nothing else, he had to be wholly grateful that his divinity was lost, else the whirlpool of emotion currently filling his heart would have been nothing short of agony. Instead, all that he could do was simply look into Elysia's eyes.

"I have a great many questions, Elysia, but I do not know how many of them are ones that have any answers. I am grateful for your presence, and part of me thinks it would be rather pleasant to simply enjoy it, to pretend as if nothing has happened. But that would hardly be good for either of us, hm?"

"It doesn't bother me."

She let out a small shrug at the casual remark like it didn't concern her that her very being had been usurped by a delusional offshoot of Cyrus that had been given form. It was all too familiar a feeling but she did at least acknowledge that all misfortune that had befell her was self-made.

Ergo she could not sympathise but it was a matter of hubris that she not allow it to stand - and she would be lying ever slightly if she wasn't touched by the way that Cyrus had been able to sway her from the person that she became.

"You're right though, not good for either of us. So what's your plan Azmi? You are not so crestfallen that you've conceded defeat, are you?"

"I can hardly ever concede defeat to one such as him. Perhaps it is true that he could remove me as a problem without so much as an effort, but I know that he would not be allowed to do so, and that my death would only stand in the way of his goals. But the same cannot be said for me. If anything, his death is necessary to mine."

There was an undeniable malice to his tone as he said that, not toward Elysia, but toward the very idea of Mazda standing in his way. There were few toward whom Cyrus could ever be so honest, and even fewer toward whom he felt it prudent to show the true degree of his spite. But he doubted that Elysia would ever share such a thing, for more than one reason.

"When the day comes that the Soul King is dethroned by my hand, Elysia, I intend to offer Mazda as a sacrifice for that power. He will die that I may take those reins for myself, that I need not worry about divinity or the realm of gods. He is nothing more than a tool for my own vision, to enact the promises I have made."

Of course, Cyrus knew those things were still far off, at least relatively speaking. He could not simply go and replace the Soul King so easily. But he would, in time. The means were slowly, but surely, being put into place.

"Ehehe. I like your attitude towards it. The confidence is really good with the girls too or so I'm told."

She said with innocent mischief, though she could not say that she was as confident. Such a joke could easily turn her into a naive and flustered mess if something was targetted at her, she was far too young to imagine herself with another person intimately - not like her older self.

"Anyway, so with your goal set how do you plan to accomplish that with a path and in a reasonable timeframe? You can't linger for too long, nor can you be too hasty lest you wish to trip."

"The unfortunate truth is that I cannot say for certain. I know all too well that it would be nothing but suicide to try and dethrone the Soul King now. Even if I had all of the power I lost, I still could not have matched what the Soul Society kept at his defense. And that is to say nothing of the safety of the Vandenreich in our stead."

He knew, of course, that there were likely other options. Cyrus was not so foolish, or so self-absorbed, as to think he would be the only one with the capability of achieving this sort of thing. That was perhaps his one success over Mazda.

"I have precious few allies, you know. Fewer still that I think I could rely on for something such as this. But I believe that I could request it of Shirohime if I truly needed to cut my path directly there. That is something I would share with no one, not even with her until the time came. But I cannot take that step until I am strong enough to ensure it succeeds. I am no longer nearly so foolish as to take on these burdens on my own. I know that such blind arrogance is exactly what brought us here."

There was bitterness in those words, though not the sort that was filled with regret or with doubt. It was, rather, the sort of bitterness that drove men forward, that made them desire nothing more than change of circumstances. After all, Cyrus would do nearly anything to see things through. He had made far too many promises that had been broken. He would not break them again.

"Ehehe. You've been thinking about this which is good to see. However, from what I am gathering you. You're trapped into this spot by your duty to the Vandenreich, no? For these goals to proceed would it be more appropriate for a smaller and independent group to work towards them?"

Elysia mused from her spot on the table. Staring out his window at a flock of birds flying by, it had been a long time since she saw such creatures in the air and it almost made a tangent where she wanted to cut their conversation short to go and admire the wonders of the world through her infinite desire to gain new experiences and knowledge.

Alas, she had to remain somewhat composed here. It was a serious matter and she couldn't let her airheadedness wisk her away with trivial matters!

"Not that I am saying you should abandon your station with the Vandenreich to pursue these matters. The issues remains however, that the Vandenreich is far too integrated into the scene of this realm, you remain in the limelight and therefore no actions can be taken without another party having a chance to put it together and impede."

She stated matter of factly with her hand pointing towards the roof and moving at the wrist in tandem with her nodding. Things that he had no doubt already considered but she was trying to be helpful here and contribute to the brewing of ideas.

"Ergo, we need some kind of group that is not an organisation or bound by these limitations. A group with no discernable direction or endgoal to be seen by their actions or with any greater connection to the Vandenreich beyond any other but whom can achieve these results, Azmi?"

The animated usage of gestures as she spoke died down and her closed fist tapped on her cheek in thought. How utterly bothersome a conundrum this was.

Cyrus understood quite well the weight of what it was that Elysia was putting forward, even if her childlike nature made it seem almost innocent. This was something which could never be known by the rest of the Vandenreich, something which needed to be disavowed if ever found. Who could he even trust for such a thing?

"I do not know. I think there are none alive that I would ask such a thing now. I could not in good conscience ask it of anyone who is already among the Vandenreich. Even if it were not a breaking of their trust, it would certainly put their own ethics and allegiances into question. And who is there outside of this organization that I could put such faith in, Elysia? These are far too troubled times for that."

There was still no defeat in his voice, only the grim reality that he knew of no one that he could trust for something as important as this.