Chapter Text
Taako is in pain.
That was the only thought running through Kravitz' head as he cradled Taako in his arms. Taako was shaking and struggling to breathe, and Kravitz couldn't begin to imagine what Taako was experiencing. He knew Taako had a migraine after trying to remember The Hanging Arcaneum, but this—this was so much different. The Hanging Arcaneum was a place. That was a fact that Taako was trying to recall.
Lup wasn't just a fact. She was Taako's heart, his everything. She was his sister, she was always with him. They had an unbreakable bond that had almost been completely erased. When Lup said she would leave Taako, something inside him must have remembered—at the very least, a familiar feeling of loss—something tugging at his bonds. Something that was just strong enough that he could pull a few words from the static.
The thought of being a red robe gave Magnus a headache whenever he tried to understand the picture he was given. Taako got a migraine just from trying to remember where he learned advanced artifacing.
Remembering that Lup left him—Kravitz had no idea how much pain Taako was in.
Kravitz hastily cast Sleep on Taako, and breathed a sigh of relief when he went limp in his arms. At least he isn't hurting, he thought. He looked up.
Lup was trembling. Red lightning was blasting out of her form. The sight of her coming undone was terrifying—not just because of the explosive raw energy of an unstable lich, but also because she was a friend. She was almost family. Barry had come back into the room at some point, and now he was holding her and whispering to her. Kravitz didn't know what to do. He felt powerless. He just watched helplessly as Barry attempted to bring Lup back to herself.
Kravitz stood up, Taako asleep in his arms, and brought him to the room with the bed. Kravitz laid Taako down and kissed his forehead. Absolutely clueless of what to do, he opened door and peered outside. Lup and Barry were still fighting for Lup's stability.
Kravitz heard a yelp from behind him. Taako must have woken up. Kravitz cursed the short duration of Sleep and turned to find Taako curled up on the bed.
"Krav," Taako cried desperately, "It hurts."
"I know, my dove," Kravitz said, holding Taako, who clung to him, ironically, for dear life.
"It hurts so much," Taako sobbed, his fingernails digging into Kravitz' back.
"I know," Kravitz choked out, unable to hold back his own tears any longer. Once again, he was completely powerless. "I swear, Taako, I would do anything to take the static away from you."
In the midst of his desperation, Kravitz was struck with a realization. There was a way to take away his boyfriend's pain. The second voidfish. That's what's causing the static. If I could get its ichor for Taako to drink...
Kravitz pulled away from Taako, only slightly so that their foreheads were touching. "Taako," he said, "Where on the moon is the Director's office?"
Taako managed to answer him. Kravitz kissed him and leaned him back on the bed. "I'll be right back, my love," he said. "I promise."
Kravitz summoned his scythe and opened a rift to the moon base. Kravitz scanned the moon for the dome that contained the Director's office and cut another rift to put him inside of it. Luckily, he guessed the layout correctly and landed inside her office, if the large portrait of herself above the desk told him anything.
Unluckily, he was not the only person in the room.
"Davenport!" a gnome exclaimed, jumping up from a chair in surprise.
Oh, my Queen, Kravitz thought. He barely recognized Davenport from what Lup and Barry told him. Taako didn't mention his former captain very often, but now that the gnome was in front of him, those few details came rushing back. Davenport was something like Lucretia's servant or aide, and the only word he could say was his own name.
"So much was taken from you," Kravitz realized. "You spent your life preparing for the mission. Your name is all you kept."
"Davenport?" the gnome said, confused but still frowning.
Kravitz made a decision. "I can help you get your memory back," he said. Gods, how much does he hurt right now, if everything about himself was erased? Is he always in pain? "Captain Davenport, does Lucretia have a hidden room somewhere?"
Davenport nodded slowly, squinting suspiciously at Kravitz. Which was understandable. A stranger appearing out of nowhere calling you by name and speaking static? That wasn't something anyone would expect.
"I promise, I'm not here to hurt you, or Lucretia, or anyone else," Kravitz told him. Davenport didn't move.
"I'm desperate," Kravitz pleaded, losing his composure and falling to his knees. "The love of my life—of my death—he's in so much pain right now. It's killing him. His sister—her husband—if I can't give him the voidfish's ichor, they'll be gone forever."
Davenport blinked, cocked his head to the side, and walked to the wall to the side of Lucretia's portrait. He dispelled an illusion and revealed a large door. "Thank you, Davenport," Kravitz said, standing up. "Truly, I couldn't be more grateful." Davenport jumped back, startled, as Kravitz summoned his scythe and cut a hole past the door. "Oh, sorry," Kravitz said, wincing. "I should've warned you about that."
The next room, Kravitz was prepared for. It was an illusion that was meant to impede whoever came in. He'd seen it done before, but it was rare that he had the opportunity to dispel large illusions such as this one in his line of work. Kravitz appreciated the variety. He found a door at the opposite end of the room and cut another rift into that room, finally finding what he was looking for.
Alarms went off as soon as he stepped foot in the room. Kravitz knew he wouldn't have much time. He went over to the voidfish's tank and summoned a bottle, filled it with ichor, and turned around. Instead of warping out immediately, he remembered Davenport.
Kravitz opened the door to the second voidfish from the inside and found that Davenport had already gone past the first door and dispelled the room's illusion for himself. Kravitz went over and handed him the bottle, saying "Take a drink of this. You'll remember everything." Davenport glanced at the bottle, then took a swig and handed it back. Kravitz didn't have the time to witness the aftermath of his decision. He cut one final rift to Lup and Barry's cave.
Lup was stable again, much to Kravitz' relief, with Barry at her side. When Lup saw Kravitz, she was furious. She flew right up to him and screamed, "You weren't in there? What the Hell! My brother is in pain, and you leave him alone?"
"I found the second voidfish," Kravitz said, showing her the bottle of ichor, and Lup stilled for a moment. Kravitz rushed to the room Taako was in and found him clutching his head.
"K-Krav," Taako breathed, reaching out to him.
"I'm here," Kravitz said, holding Taako's face. "I—I'm so sorry I left, but I'm here now, and I brought you this." He sat Taako up and lifted the bottle to his lips. "Drink it, it'll help," he said.
Taako drank. He made a face. "Gross," he said.
And then he reeled back, worse than before.
Kravitz' stomach dropped. He felt as though gravity had tripled and the temperature had dipped below freezing. He wondered if he remembered wrong, wondered if Lucretia had poisoned the ichor, or if it was already poison and Taako was joking about drinking it. Lup and Barry were in the room now, hovering over Taako.
"I'm sorry," Kravitz said, breathless. He could feel himself shaking. He fell to his knees. "I'm so sorry, I thought-"
Lup was whispering frantically to Taako. Barry knelt down to put an arm around Kravitz and said "Hey, listen buddy, it's okay—"
"It's not," Kravitz bawled. Tears flowed unrestrained down his face and he gripped his stomach. "It's not and I know it. I promised to help, and I—I just took him from you." Kravitz felt Barry put his arms around him again. "I'm so, so sorry," Kravitz whispered, collapsing in on himself.
"Taako's not dying," Barry said, finally. Kravitz looked up at him in confusion. "He's remembering. He'll be fine, it's just—one hundred years and half of your heart is a lot to forget, and it's not fun remembering all at once. See, Lup's helping him."
Kravitz glanced at the twins. Lup was clinging to her brother as much as she could in her lich form. Taako was shaking, but no longer crying out. Lup was still talking to him. From the few words that could reach Kravitz, he knew she was relaying their memories. Making it easier for him. With Barry's help, Kravitz stood up on his shaky legs.
"You did it," Barry said, clapping his hand on Kravitz' back. He smiled. "Taako's going to be just fine. All we have to do now is wait."