Ever Searching [Past]

[Castor Phecda]

He smiled slightly at the girl's enthusiastic answer, before turning back to the glowing eye. It preceded the shell? It wasn't part of the Flesh Golem then but somehow controlled it. The eye spoke of the girl then. He didn't quite understand. He could see where the girl got her cryptic nature if this thing had truly raised her. 

"Certainly not a talking metal eye." He responded. He didn't have an answer to his question. It had an authoritative voice but he really wasn't sure what to think. His default reaction in this situation was sarcasm it seemed. Still wanting more information, he pressed forward. "Who are you to guide this girl?" The question had a slight tone of doubt, continuing his first response. But he hoped it was simply enough to get the eye to tell him more about himself and not provoke any sort of argument. Surely the eye knew that what it was doing was a little unorthodox.

[Cassie]

The golem's face made for a difficult conversation partner, as only the motions of its eyes seemed truly lifelike - the rest betrayed little emotion. For now they eyes looked like they would be most suited alongside a knowing smirk."Insufficient talking eyes. Others settle for less."

The stare reverts to a blank one. "She will do great things. Your song...", continues the perpetually confident eye, "...why?"

"Because the ti-" Cassie glances back, cutting her response short after seeing that her 'papa' was looking at Castor. She seemed pretty comfortable with being randomly asked "why?", when one got down to it.

[Castor Phecda]

He smiled at the eye slightly at his first comment. He wasn't sure if he should so the smile was quick and cut off. The face made no expression but the eye spoke with at least some personality. What he said was true. Many are guided by greed and personal interest which Castor saw as the basest of driving forces. But simply putting himself on the scale above these things did not answer Castor's question of who he was or what he had to offer as a guide. He seemed to think he would lead her to great things though.

Castor had almost forgotten about his song. He thought the eye could have been talking about anything at this point, but it was actually talking about something relevant. "My song?" He repeated the question. He had to admit that when the eye had first asked him what guided him, the first word that came to his mind was, 'Love.' "I lost someone. I was hoping... the song would bring her back to me." He responded, not sure why he was being so straight-forward and honest. Maybe he could get the eye to reciprocate.

[Cassie]

"You'd have to play louder then, silly!" remarks Cassie. Another dastardly wave takes the eavesdropper back out of the conversation a moment later.

The golem's eyes looked somewhat thoughtfully at Castor. Perhaps it too had not been expecting such a straight-forward response. The sensation passes quickly, however, replaced with an inquisitional glare. "Despair, Death, Distance. Many ways to be lost." the eyes ease up a bit, a slight tilt of the head accompanying a more friendly tone "How lost reveals how to find."

[Castor Phecda]

He acknowledged the girl with a smile. Even she knew that his efforts were in vain. The eye continued talking. Castor felt compelled to listen as if to an old wise man. His last words sounded like a proverb or something. But he had no idea if it was true.

He thought deeply about the saying's application to his situation. He had lost his wife because he couldn't protect her from being taken by a force of Pirates. Obviously, increasing in his fighting ability would help to get her back. But no amount of training would help him get to an island that changed locations whenever he tried to find it. His best idea was to interrogate one of these Pirates. He just needed an opportunity. 

"Hm. I'm sure that's true to a certain degree." He responded, still not sure if he could clearly apply the saying to his own situation. He wasn't sure why, but he felt tempted to spill everything about what happened in the hopes that the eye could give him some solution. It just seemed so confident. 

He looked into the metal eye, discerning every detail he could see. "Who... are you?" He repeated. This time, the question did not have any ulterior motives. He wanted to know who he was talking to.

[Cassie]

"Eohwstlm, Yack." the eyes turn towards the little girl. "Cassie." It explains.

"Not yet papa! I'm winning!" shout the gleeful child, thinking Yack was talking to her. The girl smashes another wave with her magic, laughing as it helplessly flows safely around the sandy walls. Castle papa need not fear the watery hoards! At least, she was pretty sure the water was a kind of hoard. She should confirm that. Papa always says it's good to know things about your enemy. "Papa, a hoard is a bunch of shiny people with gold chains that burn things, right?"

"Two meanings. Separate. Alter."

"A bunch of shiny people.. or a bunch of gold chains that burn things?"

"..Again."

[Castor Phecda]

He didn't realize the eye had first given his own name until he gave the girl's. Cassie was much more obviously a name than what he said first.

He listened to their interaction. The girl was clearly wise in some respects. She had been taught magic and used it with confidence. But when it came to some common knowledge topics, she seemed completely clueless. Like she had been cut off from the world. He wondered how much of this was because of her teacher. Surely she could understand him better than Castor could, but if he was always so cryptic, it was understandable that the girl had a unique perspective.

"Have you always been... like this..." He pointed with an open palm toward the Flesh Golem body. "...Mr. Yack." He wasn't sure if he could repeat correctly the first name he had heard.

[Cassie]

"No." the eye pauses for a moment before repeating "some live many times.", its earlier sentence having finally found some context to roost in. "No regret." The glowing eye's lid then narrows, giving the golem a bit of a quizzical look. "I am always me. Who is tomorrow you?" asks the determined subject changer.

Cassie had returned to blocking the waves, mumbling about hoards while she worked. She looked like she was getting tired. Defending castle walls was hard!

[Castor Phecda]

Castor nodded, trying to understand. 'Some live many times?' Was these being claiming to have lived before in another form and now lived in the form of an eye? He couldn't quite wrap his brain around the idea. He didn't think it was completely believable but he at least had an idea of how these creature viewed itself. It did seem wise, for an eyeball.

He turned his attention to Mr. Yack's next comment and question. He again couldn't help but feel the depth of the question. Like this being knew more about himself than he did; Like he was trying to help him work toward some enlightening understanding. Or maybe he was just throwing out riddles for fun. There wasn't enough expression on the being's face to tell clearly.

"Well, if you are still yourself after living many times, I'm sure I will still be myself tomorrow, having only lived once." He was guessing at the 'riddle' using what logic was readily available. But maybe logic was not what this creature was looking for.

[Cassie]

"Interesting.'" The eye's tone of voice suggested the response was an honest one. "One Moment."

The golem starts moving out from beneath the castle, remarking "Castle is going to the Inn." when Cassie turns to see what's going on. The girl fervently protests the motion, prompting Yack to sit upright but move no further. "Soon." notes the eye while the golem shell waves 'go ahead' to Cassie. She grins broadly, just barely managing to blurt out a quick "okay papa!" in her rush to resume fighting the ocean.

Yack turns back towards Castor. "What makes you you?"