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Morden finally had the chance to run into Ben again at the Sailor's Lodge, yet, he put Ben in such a critical danger that he couldn't blame anyone else but himself.
Where did it all go wrong?
Was it that he didn't make it back to Ravenna in time? Was it that he left Ben behind at Fort Talos? Was it that he took the wrong path there? Was it that he dragged Ben into this whole Order of Aesir thing? Was it that he allowed himself to melt into his arms again? Was it that they coincidentally met again, at that moment?
"Get yourself together," Iris pats his shoulder. "We're going in to save your friend."
Morden blinks and looks at her blankly for a brief moment, before nodding.
How long has it been since he met these people? The very people who worked so hard to find clues on Ben's whereabouts? Two weeks?
"Look, I know you're worried on whether he'd make it out of there... But I believe in him. If he could came all the way to find me at Cirrus, I think he has it in him to survive too." As Iris tries console Morden, Neviro silently rubs his back.
"Yeah..." Morden should've known that the best. He's seen the kinds of things Ben has survived before with his own eyes.
In the past few weeks, Morden has been under the mercy that could only be spared by Hermes—and he's been so close in wringing his luck dry.
But please, just this once, may luck be on his side again.
"Are you three ready?" Edward, the co-captain of Ben's crew, walks into them. "I've prepared the entrance."
"Let's go." Iris pats his shoulder again, and Morden follows her.
"..."
"Hmm?" Edward turns to Morden. "Something in your mind?"
"Uh, has Ben talked about me?" He knows it's a stupid question, so he instinctively avoids Neviro's and Iris' looks.
"Oh, he sure did. He's talked about you a lot, actually... I have an impression you two were good friends."
"Man," Iris interrupts. "Do you have any slightest idea how much Ben kept bringing you up? Even before I even run into you in Ravenna?"
"That much?"
"I've heard about you from him too," Neviro adds. "He seems very fond of you."
Morden blanks out, and the conversation falls silent.
And so, Iris snaps him back to reality again by a light slap. "Okay, okay. Let's keep going."
Moving ahead, his mind is now filled with worry. If Ben was somehow that fond of him back then... Wouldn't he feel betrayed by now? He promised to meet him again soon, and yet, he broke it—and Ben is now captured...
He doubts his apologies would be enough.
After taking Ben's clothes and other belongings outside, the four of them stop in front of a cell.
"...It's him." Morden takes a good look at the sleeping prisoner. Red hair, thin figure, a familiar and terrible sleeping posture—it's really him. He's seen such a state before. "Are you blowing this up?"
Iris snaps at him. "What do you think I've been doing?"
"...Just don't hurt him."
"I won't."
With a loud, fiery explosion—Iris blew Ben's cell open.
Ben slowly pulls himself up, before snapping his head at the four of them with a glare.
Morden has seen this look before, back in the days they were experimented on.
He looks rather surprised.
"...Morden?"
"I'm sorry." The words began to fall. "I'm sorry for taking so long... When I went to search for the Death Curse, I had to went into a hiding from Ravenna ships for a while... Then I came to Ravenna, met these guys, looked into your whereabouts, and we finally... made it here. To pick you up."
"...Did you get the curse?" Ben's voice has gotten much more hoarse than before.
Morden nods. "It's... Let's just get out of here first."
"Wait," Ben tilts to look at the others who came with him. "Neviro? What are you doing here?"
"I've heard mentions of Ravenna from you and Iris, so I followed her all the way to Ravenna. We met up with Morden afterwards. When we discuss our plans, we came to a conclusion that we all share a common goal."
"The Order?"
"It's more about Ravenna, and the Caesar family's connections with it."
"I see... Hey, Ed. I'm sorry I left you to the crew like that."
"I can't hold it against you, captain." Edward smiles. "We knew Morden would eventually come to find you, so we've been taking care of him and the other two too. They're an interesting bunch."
Morden darts his eyes away from Ben, conscious of himself.
"Anything else you wanna share? I've told everything we found out at Cirrus island to them." Iris looks at Ben.
"I think... the King is the High Lord we've been looking for."
"I see..." Neviro nods grimly. "We'll discuss about all this later. For now, let's escape and stop King Calvus together."
"We're killing him?" Ben's expression brightens.
"If we must."
"Then I'm in."
"Wait," Morden places Ben's clothes and belongings. "These ones are yours, right?"
"Mhm." Ben smiles at Morden, filling his chest with a weight. "Thanks!"
As Ben turns away to change in his cell, Morden looks away and gestures others to do the same too. He's likely the only one who has seen Ben's actual body here, and he prefers to keep this secret as close to Ben's chest as possible.
Thankfully, the other three are polite enough to do so. He doesn't want to answer questions about his own body, and he has no doubt Ben would feel similarly too.
Ben eventually comes up behind him, wrapping an arm around his shoulder. "Let's go."
"Yeah."