netherwork | video, un: mk

( though marc spector is relatively newly arrived, it is not his first, nor his second, or even his third experience with something like this. he's dressed in his clothes — or vestments, as he likes to call them: an all-white three-piece suit decorated with small crescent moon details and a larger crescent moon embroidered on the forehead of the mask he's wearing.

when he speaks though, the voice is fairly ordinary — adult male, chicago-accented with hints of new york here and there. )

Good evening. Some of us have met, but for those of us who haven't, my name is Mr. Knight. ( is it? no, of course not, but it's the only name he's sought to provide anywhere. ) I'm the high priest of Khonshu — one of the gods of the moon. Formerly, I ran a mission out of Manhattan. ( beat. ) For the protection of those who travel at night. ( is he going to elaborate on what that means? no. not really. ) A status of being that includes all present here.

( punctuated by a breath of a pause and a slight, fleeting glance to one side. )

While I lack all the resources I had previously, a preist does not need much. If anyone finds themselves in need, from the mundane through to the weird — quests, protection, investigations—. ( marc unfurls a gloved hand and lifts a shoulder in a minute shrug. ) Please, don't hesitate to get in touch.

This isn't my first rodeo, as they say.

( ooc— marc will absolutely be looking at running a version of his midnight mission out of stygia. for the time being, he'll simply want to raise his profile a touch, make sure he's known. he operates predominately at night but keeps irregular sleeping patterns so can and will be contactable during the day. )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Here's a video feed flickering to life, mismatched eyes and flaming laurels the most interesting of the whole thing because otherwise, Zagreus here only looks like a lad.]

It's not your first…? Have you been in an underworld such as this one before?

( marc is only loosely familiar with other gods and deities: his interest in ancient egypt is a result of his position, formed by circumstance rather than the other way round. thanks to the mask, it's difficult to tell if marc's expression flickers or alters at all, if there's any recognition, but he does lean closer towards the camera and rests his chin against his hands. )

Not such as this. ( breath of a pause. ) But I have died before. Been reborn. Death and I aren't friends like that. ( he is very good at creating it, though. )

[There's a small pause. When one's a childhood friend of the incarnation of Death, you sort of have to do a double-take to make sure this person is not referring to it literally.]

What kind, then? You were reborn? How so?

[Soz, Marc. He's the curious sort, and this hits sort of close to home.]

It's what I do.

( that is ... not an explanation and marc knows it, so— )

Khonshu's avatar. For as long as there is work to be done, he will keep bringing us back. Life and death are worth far less to gods than they are to mortals.

Khonshu. I apoligize, I'm afraid I don't know that deity.

[It's actually somewhat bashful, that sentence. He's always struck by the amount of things he doesn't know, and becoming more aware of the dimension of what he doesn't know he doesn't know.] It's a… [what's the word] peculiar job description, it seems.

Ancient Egypt. The pantheon is more subject to myth than active worship these days.

( at the second remark though, marc mms. he's never given it that much thought — there had been part of him that had always assumed that, aside from the obvious, khonshu had always chosen marc on the basis of his old testament-esque sense of justice.

god of vengeance wasn't such a stretch when you were used to killing on the basis of the decisions of others. )

If you think of him as protector or defender, it might make more sense.

Ah, I see.

[He had wondered. Ares did show himself, but a deity like him didn't linger long in such a place. Perhaps, in the same way, the Styx would take him back to the underworld after spending some time on the surface, and his ichor would take him back to Olympus.

It was a matter of time until someone close to Set showed up.

His lip quirks.] Even so. The high priests of the gods I know don't usually have to die often.

[Zag's head tips in acceptance.] But there are people here who could use more protection. I'm glad you're here to assist.

It's not habitual.

( it's just, like, happened a few times. a risk inherent to the job description. )

—Mm. ( 'thank you'? 'you're welcome'? ) If you need anything, you know who to ask for.

I shall. [A smile. Genuine. Go figure.]

Could you tell me more about it? About what happened when you died?

[A beat, and his curiosity relents.] Er, if you wish. I understand it can be a bit of a dark subject.

The first time? Sudan, along the border with Egypt. A decade or so ago.

I had a disagreement with my employer. ( a beat. wryly— )—You might call it an attack of conscience.

I was left for dead. I managed to drag myself some distance across the desert, before being found outside a tomb a team of archaeologists had been looking into. Fate, you could say.

Khonshu called to me. Offered me a choice between life and death. I chose life and Khonshu brought me back. Remade me. Reworked me as his tool.

( does it really explain anything? no, not to anyone that isn't marc, but it's marc's recollection of events — mostly, anyway. he'd awakened in front of khonshu's statue, marlene present alongside him — marlene, who'd helped him create moon knight, even if she'd never really been sure if khonshu was real. )

[The story is somewhat similar to tales he heard in the halls of the House of Hades. Zagreus has read and listened to stories about those touched by divinity in one way or another before, and he nods as he realizes some similarities.]

Was it worth it, the trade?

[A beat.] Do you remember how it was, when you were dead?

No.

( any of it, all of it.

it wasn't worth it. as he'd told dr. badr, all khonshu had given him was his miserable life back; as he'd told dr. sterman, he regrets his choice. it had been a choice made to continue his life of violence. that he continued, now—

—well, he had nothing left. had nothing left, even before here.

it'd been a selfish decision made by a selfish man. nothing more and nothing less. )

[Well, silver linings and all that. Zag shifts at listening the weight on that single word, tilts his head before nodding.]

You're showing commitment to it, even so, and that's very commendable. [It's more of a musing than an actual statement, but Zagreus smiles, anyway.] You've said that you can help people who may need it, but is there anything we can do to help you around here?

( there isn't a response marc can give to zagreus' first remark that isn't either slightly pitiful or plain repetitive, so he skips past it in favour of the second.

it's not a question that marc expects: historically speaking, he's never been very good at accepting help in any capacity, and even worse at asking for it. )

I don't think so. ( punctuated by a pause. there are things that he'd like: weapons, equipment, tools, all things that need money and knowledge of the right people. ) What do you do?

video, un: mk

un: zagreus

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