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Post by Deleted on Jun 6, 2020 21:50:08 GMT -5
Also, Starchaser, can I say that I love the way you incorporate lore? It seems so effortless in your replies! Makes me jealous!! Everything was really good in your last reply and I love it!) |
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Post by Amber on Jun 6, 2020 22:03:38 GMT -5
(Don't worry about burnout, it was another good post~)
Staff slung over her shoulder out of the way, Avani reached forward to help steady the woman. The stranger kept her arms outstretched beside her in an effort to keep herself standing. Her balance might've been slightly off due to the missing leg, though Avani couldn't be sure. Instead of focusing on that, she took the chance to study her surrondings. It was just beyond the path she had been traveling, somewhat hidden away from view. There was a couple of large boulders where the stranger had been sitting and the stream she was hearing flower nearby. The forest was rather peaceful. Besides the pair making noise as they moved around, only the slight rustling of the breeze, babbling of the stream, and forest animals scurrying nearby offered anything else to be heard. It wasn't too unlike the calmness of the mountains.
The angel smiled lightly before turning her attention back to the stranger. Avani looked her over for a moment. She was easily a foot and some inches shorter than the angel. It wasn't surprising, even among other angels Avani tended to be the tallest in a group. After a moment, the strange managed to steady herself. As soon as she was still, a wide smile spread across her face just before she began to speak. Avani perked up, returning Lucrecia's smile with a grin from ear to ear. Perhaps it was the excitment about meeting someone new, or maybe it was the fact Avani was starved for a friendly conversation. Whatever the case was, she was glad for the questions. Lucrecia had barely stopped talking when the angel began to reply.
"Hi Lucrecia, I'm Avani Roshan! I'm an angel indeed, zough I'm sure my vings gave zat avay. Anyvay, I'm happy to meet you too! I'm not sure vhat territory you're from, but I know I've probably haven't met someone like you pefore. Vere are you from? Vhat's your home like? Are you going anyvhere special? How long have you been traveling?" Avani paused for a moment and watched the stranger. She was excited to learn as much as she could from Lucrecia. For most of her life, she had only met people from the other territories maybe a handful of times. Having conversations with them had been an even rarer occurance. Avani hoped the travler could answer other questions she had in store.
(I find it funny how everyone else is rather broody, silent, and/or grumpy and then we have Avani and Lucrecia. Avani's an intimidating-looking, (literal) giant being of sunshine and happiness who's talkative and doesn't realize when people are done talking or just don't want to. Meanwhile it seems Lucrecia is just as talkative and wants to know everything about everyone when they first meet. The only thing holding her back is how she's been socializing. Can't say that'll help Avani's perception on how to talk to people haha. When all the characters meet it'll be interesting to see how they'll react to each other.)
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Post by Starchaser on Jun 6, 2020 22:07:56 GMT -5
{@shootforthestars Gosh, you're too kind! Wolrdbuilding is among my favorite of all writing-related activities. I tend to get so caught up in it sometimes that I never get around to actually writing the story. I'm glad that I've been successful incorporating my thoughts on lore so far, I was worried it seemed too random and forced.
I would say that it's probably just a lot of experience. I've been writing for, gosh, somewhere around sixteen years now. Which, in looking at my progress, is kind of sad. I feel maybe I've reached a bit of a stalemate with myself. Roleplaying is pretty much the only writing I get in anymore. }
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Post by Amber on Jun 6, 2020 22:23:34 GMT -5
(I second what Shoot said. It's rather impressive, especially since it can be diffcult to incorporate something like that naturally.)
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Post by Deleted on Jun 6, 2020 22:29:46 GMT -5
You have been! It’s nice to see so much world building in the posts.  Yeah, Ive been writing for a while as well but never actually wrote any lengthy stories. Mostly short stories and novellas. XD You’ll figure out the block sooner or later! They usually clear up with some good writing and reading.) |
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Post by mossecho on Jun 6, 2020 23:25:09 GMT -5
[[ I third what Shoot and Amber said! I've never been good at artfully incorporating exposition, hence my brute-force approach. I really admire when people can include it well (: ]]
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Post by Starchaser on Jun 7, 2020 0:28:13 GMT -5
{ mossecho The funny thing is, I never wanted to be an adult all that badly. I did really love the idea of getting to do what I wanted in life and such, but I always looked at that way adults were and was like "it's a no from me." Mainly because the whole thing seemed really boring to me. I mostly miss the energy. I'm sure I would still be considered young, but I started calling myself "old" in my teens lol
I can never seem to get my motivation and inspiration to align, hence why some posts are quick and not that good, but others take forever and still aren't very good. I almost always write them in my head first and they somehow never come out the same *long-suffering sigh* If it helps though, I haven't read a single post from you guys that I haven't enjoyed. Your characters are all so lovely and unique and I just ugh. Alex can do literally anything I start tearing up. Lucrecia is a cutie too
I'll admit that I'm probably not the best person to be doing it. I feel like my spatial awareness is just not very good and it extends to me trying to describe/create physical scenes. So, if anyone else wants to try their hand at it, please feel free. That said, absolutely no pressure. I really like creating maps, I'm just bad at it.
Oh gosh, I would love to see that. Especially with Alex because he seems so soft-spoken and calm so watching him just completely go off would be so satisfying. Funny you should mention that, I was planning on having them interact at some point. On the old rp, I was gonna have Lilah put the group up at her family's house for the night and have that be the way they first met. I'm not sure how I would work it in here, but I'd love for it to happen.
Honestly, it would be so fun if we could work in a way to meet all the chosen ones' families. I don't know how we would reasonably though.
Anyways, yeah, Lilah has serious family issues. It's part of why she latches so hard onto her first friendship ever (and Alex in general) and is generally eager to get close to someone, even with trust issues. I'm not sure how much I'll cover in the rp, so I'll share a little more now. This is going to be really jumbled, so bear with me. Also, I haven't 100% committed to some of her history, so this could change a bit, but the general gist is there. }
{ I am so bad at controlling myself. I have all these huge info dumps that I completely meant to space out more evenly over time but just... yeah.
No need to apologize for that! I love your posts and style of writing. Also, I'm a huge fan of commas and ellipses, as you can probably tell. As for the em dashes, I never understood them that well. I'm too lazy to look them up a lot of the time, so I just use hyphens incorrectly. }
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Post by Starchaser on Jun 7, 2020 0:30:46 GMT -5
{ You're all so sweet! <3 I really enjoy all of your posts and approaches to wolrdbuilding myself. I don't think any of you should be worried about how you sound, you're responses are lovely }
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Post by mossecho on Jun 7, 2020 2:07:05 GMT -5
[[ I honestly didn't notice that but yes, completely agree xD Avani and Lu are going to be so happy and talkative while the others all wallow in a depressed silence. And no, Lu and Avani are certainly not going to help each other when it comes to learning how to talk to people xD it'll be very interesting once the whole gang is together
Also, I'm just assuming that Lu can fit most of what she says into one breath. I certainly couldn't, but this is a magical world so... idk. hand-waving, hand-waving ]]
Lucrecia smiled as she regained her balance, looking down at her foot to make sure it was steady before looking back up. She smiled even wider, the expression almost splitting her face in two. Not that that bothered Lucrecia, of course, she was far too happy to notice it. She just loved meeting new people. It was like a new opportunity, a second chance. And a new friend! How exciting!
As the angel, no, as Avani spoke, Lucrecia bobbed her head. She counted off the questions, almost every time barely stopping herself from blurting out a rapid-fire answer and interrupting Avani. The moment the angel stopped speaking, Lucrecia was speaking. Her voice was bubbly and full of inflection, her words bouncing up and down as the shapeshifter unknowingly clapped her hands along with her speech.
"I'm a shifter! I shift into a wren, it's a small and puffy bird. Nothing particularly special, certainly not something really cool like a hawk or a tiger or a peacock or whatever, but I like it! Flying is really cool, I really like it. Not that I have to tell you that, you're an angel, I'm sure you really love flying too! I'm not super good at it, but I do my best. Mostly it's just fun to fly between branches and stuff. Anyway, I am from a small shifting tribe! Nothing special or anything, we just all shift into birds—" Lucrecia paused to take a breath —"And avoid werewolves, they're pretty mean. I mean, I haven't personally met any of them, but one almost ate me. But that's ok! I got away, obviously, otherwise I wouldn't be here. Anyways, I am going to the Sanctum! I have some relatives that live there. They own a tea shop. Do you drink tea? Oh, please tell me you like to drink tea. I don't know anyone who doesn't. My entire family is in the tea business, you see. Do angels drink tea? Do you have tea? Please tell me you aren't coffee people. I had a bit of coffee once, last time I was in the Sanctum, and it was horrible. Absolutely horrible. If you are a coffee drinker, I feel really sorry for you."
Lucrecia ended her spiel and sat back down on the rock. She scooted aside and patted the spot next to her, beckoning Avani to sit next to her. Her smile had shrunk a bit at that point, but it was still bright and enthusiastic. Lucrecia put her foot in the water (her father never had the foresight to get the necklace enchanted to provide shoes), swirling it around a bit. The water was cool and calming, not that Lucrecia needed to be calmed down. She just liked how nice it felt.
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Post by Starchaser on Jun 7, 2020 2:36:44 GMT -5
{ @shootforthestars I feel so bad for Clari. She's the only one to stick up for this dude and he actually is a snake. Oh the angst and guilt.
So I'm not certain I incorporated this well in RP, but my thought was that the "border packs" are how any of the packs whose territories lie along the magic barrier around the kingdom. They're typically pretty small and don't hold a lot of territory or power, which leads to them being far more aggressive and having negative views of the Alinskys and other larger packs. Ordinarily, being by the border is rougher because they have nowhere to expand but inwards, where all the well-established and powerful packs are, but the whole world falling apart things has made it especially difficult for them. They're getting tired of always having to deal with magical problems and dangers from outside while the inner packs get to live easy, in their view at least, because they're the ones defending the entire territory, essentially. Ergo, they start teaming up in a effort to stand a chance against larger packs and move inwards. Now they're going after the biggest and baddest, despite it being a stupid idea because they're angry.
Sorry this was a bit short, the other post kinda killed me. }
{ Side note that isn't really important: Mordion is a mashup of Welsh words that means "death from the shadows." Because I like to be edgy. }
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Post by mossecho on Jun 7, 2020 4:06:20 GMT -5
[[ And here we go with the Alex post! .u.
Ah, I get that. I think I just always wanted to be seen as mature and thought that would come with being an adult. Unfortunately... eh. As a teenager I definitely tried very hard to be the most grown-up. Made the teachers like me a lot more, but honestly I kinda wish I'd allowed myself to be a kid. I mean, not a kid kid, but you know. I worried about my future a ton. Now that I'm actually living that future... I don't know. Just wish I'd let myself grow up a bit more slowly although I'm still growing up, but whatever, brain development schmelopment
Honestly, all of these characters are great. And I want to hug most of them, mainly Alex and Lilah. Lu's kinda funny to me. Originally I was basing her off of Lucrecia from Élite (hence the name because I am unoriginal), but then I completely changed her personality around so she's not like the Lu from Élite at all. Idk, I just find it weirdly amusing
I'm not the sort of person to ever yell or anything, so admittedly part of the reason I want Alex to yell at someone is so I can pretend to yell at someone xD also writing angry people is fun for me. Haven't practiced it a lot, but I love abusing exclamation points, so yeah ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ But completely agree, it would be great to interact w/ all the families. We should figure out how to work her way into the plot... hmmm....
also, totally hugging Lilah. she deserves all the hugs
also, feel free to dump lore into your posts. pretty sure that none of us mind one bit (: ]]
Alex nodded along as Lilah spoke. He turned his head toward the ground a bit, continuing to nod as a way to indicate that he was listening. The silence surrounding them was still confusing and all-consuming in a particularly eerie way. No forest should be this quiet, this empty. Alex could hear the faint bubbling of the river, the crunch of leaves beneath their feet, but not much else. There should have been more birdsong, more small rodents scrambling by the tree roots, more distant thumps of cloven deer hooves. Nighttime creatures should have been beginning to wake up, the others should have been going to sleep. Yet there was nothing, nothing but the wind and the river and the dying light.
Alex raised his head and looked at Lilah as she spoke about change. It was strange, almost, how optimistic she seemed to be about the prospect. To Alex, there was something so clearly wrong with change. Not small adjustments, those could be fine, but... change. It was such a big word, so much meaning crammed into one measly syllable.
As Lilah continued on the subject, Alex returned to looking ahead of them and nodding along. It began to make more sense why Mages valued change, as bizarre as it seemed. They lived the lives of mayflies. Short puffs of smoke, melting pools of ice, dying crest of a wave. There and then gone. Pitiful, almost, nearly, certainly. They had to cram so much into so little time.
So while that made Alex pity Lilah, her points about magic made him frustratingly jealous. Jealousy was something toxic, a feeling that settled and stayed. Something to be avoided. Alex admittedly knew nothing about magic, but Lilah's descriptions made them come alive. Made him yearn to see it. "Raw and unfettered," Alex repeated those words. Beautiful, almost. Strange, how that could seem amazing, yet the prospect of change was still so repulsive. How very contradictory of him.
When Lilah asked him about the Sanctum, Alex pulled at his cuffs. "I had a dream. We rarely have vivid dreams, you see. When we do, they are abstract. You may picture them as flashes of color without any shape. Most of the time they are only presented through one or two senses. So one may see a dream, but they cannot touch it. They cannot smell it. And, well, I did. It was like I was there, completely immersed, and then I was awake. I told the elders and... they sent me away," Alex bit his bottom lip lightly. There was not much more to say than that, really. Yet he could still feel pain rising in his chest, a tightness that threatened to suffocate him.
He missed home. Alex did not want to admit it, but he truly missed home. He missed his busy parents and his older brother and all of his cousins. He missed the monthly whole moon viewing, the gentle repetition of the week, the predictable path of everyday life. Now it was all gone. Everything that was familiar was replaced by silence and confusion. Even this land, which looked so much like home, was so utterly foreign. Alex inhaled sharply, feeling a hot burning behind his eyes. He blinked furiously, willing the feelings away.
The vampire glanced sideways at Lilah. He did not shift his head, he just looked out of the corner of his eye to check whether he had noticed anything. Had she heard a wobble in his voice? Had he trailed off too much? Was he that obvious, that transparent? That immature, that stupid?
When Lilah started on the Lancasters, it was almost a relief. Alex had a sinking feeling that there was something more to it, but he did not care about it much anymore. It just helped to know that Lilah did not notice. Unless she did and is just being kind... Alex tugged at his right cuff with his wrapped hand.
He waited a few moments, making sure that Lilah was done before he began. Alex hated interruptions, especially when he was the one doing them. Once he was assured Lilah had finished, he shrugged and began to talk in a voice that was just a slight bit too shaky for comfort. "I see. Thank you for telling me. And, ehm, no, I do not mind the comparison. It helps me understand."
Fantastic response. Absolutely fantastic, Alex's thoughts turned towards sharp sarcasm, a harsh critique of his admittedly weak response. "I imagine that is very frustrating. You value change so much and yet, from what you have implied, they do not change. I can imagine how that would make one such as yourself feel. Something that lasts so long, so much longer than yourself. Something that you cannot change when everything around you is in flux. It seems, ehm..." Alex trailed off when he realized that he did not actually have an end to that statement planned. Wonderful, how positively wonderful. "Ehm, on a hopefully lighter note, you seem to have much respect for magic. If it is not too forward of me to ask, could I, ehm... would you be willing to demonstrate some?"
Alex came to a stop, in part because he wanted to see magic and in part because he was gobsmacked by how horribly he had botched that change of subject and the subsequent request. He made a quarter-turn so he was facing Lilah, once again falling still. He tucked his hands behind his back expectantly. Too expectantly, Alex thought. He then moved so his arms were practically dangling by his sides, before being struck by how awkward that looked and opting for one hand in a pocket and the other around the strap of his bag. That was okay, right?
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Post by Amber on Jun 7, 2020 13:59:10 GMT -5
It was like clockwork. As soon as Avani had finished speaking, Lucrecia began to talk again. It was perfect. The angel could hardly stop smiling as they threw questions at each other. Anyone she talked to- except her family as they were used to her antics -needed at least a few moments to think her questions over. The shifter simply didn't do that. She would talk as soon as Avani stopped, speaking animatedly with her hands and head. The angel contiuned to smile as Lucrecia's reply came to an end.
"A shifder?!" She exclaimed excitedly. "I've met a couple before, zough zey couldn't shift into a vren! Vo cares if it's not a beacock or a tiger? Vrens are beautiful birds. Zeir size allows zem to get into places zose animals can't. Anyvay, I agree zat flying is amazing! To soar zrough ze air vizout vorry is quite relaxing and freeing. I'm sure flying zrough ze forest is equally amazing. Of course I can't do zat for obvious reasons. I'm not sure I've ever met a verevolf, but I can imagine zey have a bad temper. Or so I've heard at least. As I said, I've never met one so I can't say for sure." Avani lightly laughed at the thought of attempting to fly through the mass of trees. She couldn't be nearly as graceful as a small bird and would probably crash into everything, assuming she could get into the air in the first place. The angel paused for a moment to take a seat beside Lucrecia. Sitting with wings was diffcult. If she sat on the feathers, there was risk breaking them before they had a chance to naturally fall out and regrow replacements. Most of the time she couldn't outstrech them beside or behind her for risk of hitting someone or something. Avani didn't have to worry about that now. She lightly spread her wings out beside her and let them rest on the boulder.
Avani finally placed her bag and staff down beside her. Although she could effortlessly carry both, it was good to give her shoulders a break. After traveling virtually non-stop for a few days, she was glad to have some sort of rest. And with a new friend no less! The angel looked over Lucrecia as she sat nearby. Even sitting down Avani towered over the shifter. It wasn't all that surprising, in groups she tended to be the biggest person around. Angels tended to average around five feet, eight inches and upwards to six feet. She, and by extension a few of her family members, were seen as anomalies among the angels. Once she was settled in, Avani contiuned on. Lucrecia lightly swirled her foot in the stream. She seemed relaxed and happy.
"I'm going to ze Sanctum too! Ve can go togezer! Ve could even visit you're family's shop vhile ve're zere! Most angels drink both coffee and tea vhile some only have one or ze other. I've never been fond of coffee personally and vill ofden share tea wiz my family. Honestly, I find coffee to be disgusting as vell." For a moment, her mind wandered to the markets of her home. Among the merchants and traders, there was often a few stands selling coffee, tea, and/or food. She could remember the warm scents of freshly baked pastries, the bitter aroma of coffee, and bright colors of cloth that decorated the marketplace as they gentle rustled in the breeze.
"Vhat is the Sanctum like? How many times have you been zere? Is it much furzer from here? I'm sorry for all ze questions, I'm just so excited! I've never been zere before or really out of angel territory for zat matter," the woman noted.
(Haha exactly! When they think they're safe from questions or conversarions, one, the other, or both show up. They'll just talk at people nonstop and probably not know how to take a hint. Not only will they not help each other realize not everyone is so chatty, they'll enable the talking. Not sure if I wordered that right, but I retype that a few times, so hopefully my point came across.
Well considering she can shift into a bird, maybe she learned how to use her efficiently. But your right, not everything needs to be explained perfectly or at all. The answer can always be magic.
Also I hope Avani's speech isn't too annoying and understandable. I can always change up how I do it or provide some sort of guide to it or whatever if you guys want.)
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Post by Starchaser on Jun 7, 2020 15:12:54 GMT -5
{ mossecho Ah, well I understand all of that too. I would like to redo my childhood teenage years as well, mostly because I feel like I kind of wasted them. I can't exactly explain it, but I feel my general fear of seeming weird really kept me from doing things I would have liked to try and made me miss out on a lot. That and the whole future thing you mentioned. I have a habit of focusing solely on the future to the point where I neglect present events.
Isn't that the truth. I love these awkward sweethearts. It's funny, even Avani and Veive being the social ones, their way of doing so is considered abnormal.
Well, she's super cute
That's a mood. I'm probably the least confrontational person I know; it really gives me bad anxiety. So, I would say that my characters are all a lot more fight-y and generally cooler than me. We definitely need to figure out some way to have the group meet all the other families.
Also, in case you can't tell, I'm having a rough time coming up with stuff for Lilah to do that doesn't already fall under the other magic types. I get that it's basically a catch all, but I don't want to step on anyone else's toes either. Plus, I do want her to have powers that wouldn't already be provided by someone else, but my brain is bleh. This did give me a chance to actual develop the magic system of Mages a little more, and I'm decently pleased with how it turned out. I do actually have more ideas than this, but I haven't figured out exactly how I want them to work yet, so yeah, lame post is lame.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2020 15:41:22 GMT -5
I'm working on a reply now!
In response to what Star said earlier, I've also been working on a map so I should be able to upload that soon! If yall don't like it, feel free to correct the issues and I can adjust it!)
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Post by mossecho on Jun 7, 2020 17:55:42 GMT -5
[[ I don't have any problem reading Avani's dialogue, so I'm fine with it. ]]
Lucrecia pointed and unpointed her toes, sending ripples and small splashes throughout the water. She had always been one of those people who never seemed to grow up. She probably never would. The shifter had grown up around miserable people, the sort of people with gray and dingy auras and personalities comprised entirely of complaints and exhaustion. She did not want to be like that.
She laughed at Avani's comments about werewolves. Again, her only interaction with one was when she was almost a snack, but that was a long time ago. Lucrecia did not even remember it that much. Supposedly that was some sort of trauma response or whatever, but Lucrecia did not really think about it that much. Besides, those thoughts were for sad people. Lucrecia was a happy person. That's why she laughed along with Avani, because she was happy and joyful and safe.
Lucrecia swished her foot around in the water, creating tiny splashes. Avani probably wouldn't mind, after all, why would anyone? The water was so pretty at this time of day, when the sun was setting and the light was golden and everything was calming down. It was not too hot, or too cold, instead everything was just right. Like Goldilocks, only without the bears. Only without the bears.
"I'd love it if we could go together!" Lu cheered happily. "And I'd love it if you could visit! It's on the outskirts of town. Honestly I've never been to the city center, but I'd love to go sometime! That's where all the real fancy people live. My family's in the historical district, you know? Owned that tea shop for generations."
Lucrecia beamed, so proud. That tea shop was an oasis. Back home, she already knew everyone and everyone already knew her. Yet the Sanctum was just so... big. Lu loved it.
"I go there all the time!" Lucrecia continued, beaming at Avani. "Well, about once a year. Normally for a few months, just to help out my relatives. It's beautiful there. Absolutely love it. It's not much farther from here, I think. We just need to keep following this stream. They all go to the Sanctum, you know? It's just an island, a really beautiful island. We're on the west side, so we can watch the sun set from the second floor..."
Lucrecia trailed off, somehow out of more things to say. She looked back at the water and smiled, the light bouncing off the surface and dancing across her face. It's so pretty there... she trailed off, finally out of things to say. Lucrecia looked up and smiled at Avani. "So why are you going there? How long are you planning on staying?"
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Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2020 23:14:21 GMT -5
Starchaser Nah, she'll be ok. XD I mean she'll feel betrayed and angry if she ever finds out, but I'm sure Zane will feel even worse about double crossing the one person in the Alinsky pack that actually gave him a chance. Especially if some romantic feelings arise. Oh the angst indeed!
Honestly, I think you nailed it in the rp. I like the idea that the First Pack (the Alinsky's) are the ones in the middle of the territory, using the border packs as a barrier to invasion almost. However, that can backfire on them as well because it would be hard to defend the borders when you are completely surrounded by the other packs. Makes for a hard fought battle if they actually did go to war against the pack and speaks to the complete dominance that First Pack would have over the other packs. No one would dare invade them... at least until now. I really like that!
Also, I like how Zane's quote is just "Quote here" - Speaker . Don't know if you did that on purpose, but it kind of fits his personally. XD
Also Also, can I change Clarisse's age to 23 instead of 25?)
 Clarisse Alinsky  “The sun watches what I do, but the moon knows all my secrets.” - J M Wonderland ✶ ⤐ ☾ ⬷ ✶
Maybe it was the excitement from the earlier scuffle, but Clarisse was fit to burst. Unable to stay still as the male climbed to his feet, she pranced around him good-naturedly. Her guard stayed up in case he decided to attack her in a sudden rage though she doubted he would. The male - no Zane - was exhibiting all the signs of a wolf who knew his place and didn't plan to mess it up. After all, she had just saved his life and he knew it.
Clari could see it in his haunted amber eyes.
If she wasn't currently in Rafe's embrace than she would have smiled at his attempt to hide his ogling. She did him the courtesy of pretending not to notice it even though the attention was mildly appreciated. He was the first new face that she had seen in months, a year maybe. The males in her pack were ever stagnant and unappealing though they were good pack mates with good hearts. Besides, with a little food and rest, she doubted that he would be too hard on the eyes as well.
She nudged him from behind playfully, pushing him towards her parents with well meaning growl, "Zane of the Ulrics... can't say that the pack name rings a bell. Makes sense though if they were small and near the border. Packs come and go like the wind the further you get from the center of the territory."
Sniffing down his flank as she walked beside him, Clarisse begin to corral him onward. He needed to walk off the pain if he was to keep his muscles loose; the medical supplies on the cart would do him a world of good as well. She was trained to bind and dress wounds on the fly, but nothing of substance and with no one else in the party with experience, her meager skills would have to do.
"Let's get your wounds treated and then we can discuss what to do with you. I doubt my parents will be thrilled to have an outsider traveling with us." Clari stopped and looked back at him for a long second before grunting and carrying on. The air around her seemed to chill slightly as her mood dropped from curiosity to rightful dread. "Papa was going to let you die so it's him I think you'll have to impress. You know how males are. It's a marking party every-time another one comes around. Oh, no offense. Mama... well, let's just say that I'll deal with her for you."
Her tail dropped down as they walked, "I'm sticking my neck out for you here... try not to screw me over, ok? We don't deal with traitors kindly. Emmett ripping you to sheds will be a mercy compared to what Papa will do to you."
The threat hung in the air like a freshly fallen snow on a dreary winter's day. Clarisse said it mostly to warn him against acting out and to give him an opportunity to run now if he was planning on double crossing her. She felt no air of deception from Zane, but that didn't mean much really. Not when lies could be concealed as half truths and presented so easily in times of such chaos. Not known for being a great judge of character, Clarisse was the least qualified to screen his intentions. Was she intelligent? She liked to think so, but it had always been Devon that had looked into people's eyes and knew if they were lairs.
Her mother was waiting for them when they reached the small group, but her sunshine yellow eyes weren't the only on them. Unsurprisingly, her father had moved to the front and was talking to Emmett in a hushed tone. Clarisse paid them no mind and parted the group with a confident swing of her creamy head, "He's injured. I'm going to treat the open wounds."
She was surprised when Idena simply let them pass, her eyes burning with frustrated ire. They slipped to the back of the delegation where the wagon sat. Clarisse looked back at Zane and barked, "Stay here. I need to shift and grab some supplies."
If he had not been present, Clarisse doubted that she would have ducked behind the tall wagon for the privacy needed to shift. Everyone in the crew had known each other since birth, but the newness of him called for modesty. She was encased in human flesh in a heartbeat, goodeflesh on every inch of her rapidly chilling skin. Quick as a snake, she had climbed into the covered wagon in search of her warmest clothes. Her stark white suitcase stood out against the blackness, a beacon in a dark white.
When she popped out of the wagon, she was fully clothed and smiling broadly. Thin, twin scars pulled as she sized the male up, now absolutely tiny against his broad figure. Clarisse pointed to the back of the wagon, "There are clothes behind the wagon. I wasn't sure how big you needed them so I grabbed the first pair of Redis's clothes I could find."
There was an offended whine from the front of the wagon. Clarisse laughed and said over her shoulder, "Don't be a baby, Redis! We can wash them! Anyways, just holler if I need to get another pair. Papa's clothes should be bigger. Once you shift, I'll treat your wounds, ok? Oh, and remember what we talked about earlier."
She gave him a pointed look before walking off to speak to her mother.
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Post by mossecho on Jun 8, 2020 0:07:45 GMT -5
[[ It's just kinda sad looking back on all the things I could have done and didn't. I'm still mostly happy with what I did do. I had fun and really loved my extracurriculars, but unfortunately I worked a lot harder on getting good grades than on being happy. Still, I'm happy where I am now. Just wish I had focused on being happier when I was younger.
Social people are weirdos, in my mind. Alex and Lilah will probably end up feeling the same way around Avani and Vieve xD
While I wouldn't want to be exactly like my characters, they all have a few qualities I'd like. But anyhow, I'm not entirely sure how to get the group to meet their families. Maybe they could be at the fancy party where they rob, idk. At the very least we could get the Antiers and the Lancasters there.
"lame" post is not lame, Stars, it's just as great as always <3 ]]
As Lilah spoke about her dreams, Alex sought about regaining his composure. He pulled at both his cuffs twice, tensed and relaxed his shoulders, and raised his chin a bit higher. He blinked a few times as well, happy that he was wearing sunglasses that obscured it. At least that isn't as obvious, Alex thought to himself.
On another note, Lilah's comments about her own dreams were interesting to say the least. Alex had known that there should be others, but he had never gotten something as precise as that. The voices had been jumbled, so much so that he could not isolate a single one. Yet it was vivid enough to be notable and vivid enough for the elders to know. Alex was the one who had to leave.
Still, when Lilah agreed to show him some magic, Alex almost smiled. It was a strange relief, knowing that she had been willing to overlook his horrendous blunder. It was kind, simple as that. Alex stopped in his tracks, taking a few steps away to give Lilah room. He did not know if she needed it, but hopefully it was viewed as a gesture of goodwill as opposed to anything else.
Alex took a breath to help himself calm down. Why does magic worry you? You should be fine with it. Alex glanced down for a moment before looking back up at Lilah, just in time to realize that she had disappeared.
No. No. No no no. Alex inhaled deeply and, to his horror, could not smell Lilah. Magic had a distinctive quality to it, with thick undertones of petrichor and faint traces of spice. It was easy to identify and impossible not to notice. So how could it just be... gone? There were not even any traces of it. It was disarming, to say the very least. A vampire's primary sense was smell, so having it become entirely disabled was disorienting. To counteract the intense discomfort building in his chest, Alex stopped breathing again. At least that way he felt okay with not being able to smell (but the feeling persisted).
Alex stood completely still. This is becoming your default more and more often. Have some courage, for goodness sake. The vampire's gaze grew completely unfocused as he tried to listen for anything. The crunch of leaves underfoot, the huff of breath. Instead of those, he heard the beating of a heart. Faint, as if it was very distant, but nonetheless there. Alex paused for a moment, listening and rooting his feet to the ground. For whatever reason, he just wanted to run. Run from this forest, run from this magic, run to somewhere familar, teeming with life, somewhere loud.
Coward. Alex kept himself from reacting when Lilah reappeared in front of him. Still, he felt his mouth twitch, ready to bare his teeth. Alex prevented that from happening, but his muscles still tensed. Flight or fight. Or freeze, as so often was the case with Alex. He began breathing once more, once again smelling petrichor and spice. Alex did his best not to respond as she spoke, although admittedly he pursed his lips a slight bit. He did not being so... helpless.
Alex held both hands behind his back when Lilah stopped speaking and raised her wand into the air. His gaze followed hers to the sky, which was now ablaze with wondrous color. And again, it all felt... wrong. Beautiful, yes, but wrong. Vampires were not ones for science for the most part, certainly not technology, but they excelled at two areas in particular: geology and astronomy. Alex was studying the latter, so the night sky was his area of expertise. He knew it like the back of his hand.
This was not the night sky, but it was beautiful and grand. It reminded Alex of a photograph taken over many days and stitched together, documenting different details from different times all in one image. The air was now thick with the magic, so much so that Alex could almost taste it.
"It is indeed beautiful..." he trailed off, watching an imaginary comet rocket in the false sky. "Quite something. Quite something indeed."
He continued looking up at the false sky for a few moments before shifting his gaze to Liah. Then, of course, to Lilah's wand. It suddenly struck Alex then exactly what his situation was. He was stuck in an empty forest with a complete stranger. A stranger who could kill a wendigo and disappear completely.
Alex tugged at his left cuff again. "I would love to visit, at some point. Perhaps when this is all over. Ehm, you mentioned that you routinely moved between there and Sanctum, correct? Could you tell me about it? Dawncrest, that is. Although I would also appreciate learning about Sanctum."
[[ I hope you don't mind, but I assumed that the nondetection spell addresses one's primary senses first. That's why Alex couldn't smell Lilah at all but could hear her a bit, although once the wendigo's side effects have lessened that wouldn't be possible. ]]
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Post by Amber on Jun 8, 2020 1:29:11 GMT -5
Avani's grin only widened at Lucrecia's agreement to go to the Sanctum with her. Not only that, but she could explore the city with the shifter and get to meet even more people. Non-Heavenly individuals with rich and different expierences, accents, histories, and only Yarah knows what else. It would be beyond what Avani had learned through other angels and passing remarks. Beyond whatever rumors ans stereotypes she had grown up hearing. Beyond biased writings and tales many angels had access to. Despite everything that could've gone wrong with her travels, the perfect oppertunity seemed to have unfolded before the woman like a nice gift. Avani was happy with the situation she found herself in, but also relieved. Even if it was as easy as following a stream or a body of water, that wasn't something she had known previously. She now also had someone to show her the ins and outside of the city, even if she didn't have much expierence around it herself.
"I know nozing about ze historical district, but it sounds amazing! I can't vait to see it! I've never been, so I don't know vat to expect just yet from ze Sanctum. Vat is it like? Is it big?" Avani had been to a couple cities before. Her thoughts drifted to the few visits to the capital city of Cloudhelm she had previously. She could remember the way the massive buildings and crowded streets made her nervous. Despite it overwhelming the angel at first, Avani had quickly grew to love it. It had been nothing like the sleepy little village she was used to. She was pulled away from her memories as Lucrecia asked about the nature of her trip to the Sanctum. Avani opened her mouth to reply, then immediately closed it. What would be the best way to tell Lucrecia about her reason for venturing to the Sanctum? Should she even tell her the reason? The angel didn't want to lie to the shifter, but she worried about what would happen if she told her the truth. Would she be laughed at? Would she be called crazy? Avani didn't know for sure as she thought it over for a minute. Finally she sighed.
"I...Zis may sound crazy. I know my family vould cerdainly zink I've spend too much time in ze lowlands, but I've been having dreams for around a month. I-I'm not sure how I can describe zem, but zey've been pulling me avay from my home. I zink I have to go to ze Sanctum for ansvers. You can laugh, I don't mind. I've laughed about it. I'm not sure if it'll lead to anyzing, but it doesn't hurt to try, right?" Avani let out a soft breath. Even if Lucrecia did think she in the wilderness with a crazy person, it was good to finally get it off her chest. Avani hadn't talked about it with anyone. Now she had someone to confide into. A new shifter friend who would hopefully understand. The angel glanced up at the sky, noticing the sun slowing sinking away from the night. Avani turned to her companion again.
"You zhink ve can make it zere by tonight? I don't wlvant to be rude, but I've been traveling for a few days now and it vould be nice to go back to civilization." If they had to camp overnight, Avani could protect them both from whatever lurked around. However, she hoped it wouldn't come to that if they could make it to the Sanctum within a few hours.
(Okay, that's good to know.)
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Post by Starchaser on Jun 8, 2020 1:55:16 GMT -5
{ @shootforthestars Makes sense. Zane's the type to come off as not caring terribly much, but is secretly a real softie at heart. I've gotta say, this almost has a TLK 2 feel to it, actually. Particularly if we go the romance route. I've even pondered making Zane the adopted son of the Alpha (like Kovu is adopted by Scar), a pup from a previously destroyed back who was raised in the Audras because, even if they are brutes, they obviously wouldn't kill pups. So the Audra Alpha literally just decides to raise Zane cause he looks like him and he's super vain lol. Idk why, just thought it would give him more to angst about if he finds out. Like... he's helping to carry out the same kind of thing that actually got his family killed and his whole life's been a lie, which also means the thing he did (that got him exiled) was essentially for nothing and yeah.
You make some really good points. My thought was that the Alinsky's are the biggest pack with the most resources, so that helps offset some of the threat from other packs who don't have the same power, but it definitely does show just how much respect the other packs have for them. My thought was that First Pack is whatever is currently the oldest and largest pack currently in existence. The Alinsky's have held that position for far longer than most packs even exist, hence why they are so well-respected and have complete dominance over the land. This is my basic thoughts on Shifter structure (or maybe just werewolf structure):
First Pack: The oldest and largest pack in the territory. They command a lot of respect and have nearly complete dominance over the land. They are considered to be blessed by Rafe, hence why most packs don't attack, as they don't want to invoke their god's ire.
Central packs: Larger and often more powerful packs that surround the First Pack's land. They are more stable, but there is still a good amount of fighting here, usually with the outer packs but also among each other. These packs are usually more likely to ally themselves with First Pack because being so close to them does have its advantages. They would be a greater threat if the First Pack wasn't so well respected and feared.
Outer packs: Smaller and more numerous packs that are generally towards the outside of the land, which can include up against borders of the other Families' territories (but not the barrier). This is where most of the fighting and territory shifts take place.
Border packs: Packs up against the magical barrier. They are usually very small and pretty abundant with dangerous and constantly changing territory. Their land tends to have a lot less prey and more dangers. Their land is very mountainous.
Packless lands: The little slice of land in the mountains unclaimed by packs because survival there is too difficult. There are other no man's land type areas, but this is primarily where lone werewolves and rogues live.
Also, I've been meaning to comment on this forever, but their god being called "Rafe" is so fitting. I was reading about how Richard Adams, the guy who wrote Watership Down, came up with the conlang for the rabbits and I believe he mentioned something about creating words out of sounds the rabbits would be able to make. I can't really explain it, but "Rafe" just seems so perfect and natural for a wolf-esque speech. Not sure how intentional it was, but yeah, I really like it!
xD I mostly just kept it cause I wanted to remember the font and remind myself I still needed a quote for him. I always take forever to find little stuff like that for my characters and he was giving me a really hard time, but I just wanted to start rping him. Now that you've mentioned it though, I think I'm gonna have to leave it, because it does fit him well. It also kind of reads like he isn't sure what he wants his fake persona's life motif to be so he left it blank
Of course!
Also, I'll get a little form up for Zane at some point. So you actually have something to go on. }
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Post by mossecho on Jun 8, 2020 3:10:23 GMT -5
Lucrecia kept smiling as Avani spoke. She reached towards the water with one hand, dipping it in and twirling her fingers around in the cool liquid. She reached in with the other hand too, so both of them were wrist-deep. After a few moments, Lucrecia patted the back of her neck and smoothed her hair back with the water. It was not a permanent solution to her messy baby hairs, but at least it was temporary and came with the added benefit of cooling her down.
When Lucrecia looked back to Avani, the angel was glancing up at the sky. Lu followed her gaze, noticing how late it really was. Huh. She had observed how it was golden hour earlier, but she thought there was still around an hour until the sun set. Apparently not.
"I honestly don't know how long it'll take. Uh, normally it takes me about a day and a half, and I started this morning so... I don't know. I'd like to keep going, but I don't think I can. It gets hard for me to travel at night, just since, you know," Lucrecia gestured to her leg, or rather to the lack of a leg.
She looked back at the water, before seeming to reset with a smile and a new bounce in her voice. "But if you want to keep traveling, that's ok! I don't mind. All you have to do is follow the stream"— Lucrecia pointed at the water —"and keep heading out! You should come across the historical district first. You'll be able to tell because all the buildings are shorter than the rest in the city. They're also all made out of wood. Personally I think they are much, much more beautiful than the other parts of the city! You'll really love it there, I know I do!"
Lucrecia beamed. She loved the historical district. It did not have a great reputation, mainly due to the higher crime rates and supremely confusing maze of streets, but Lucrecia still loved it.
"Oh! But if you'd like, you can stay here with me! Not that you have to, of course, but I wouldn't mind. I don't snore or anything, so you don't have to worry!" Lucrecia grinned even wider this time, happy and content. She wanted Avani to stay, of course, it would be less lonely that way. Lucrecia loved staying in the city, but traveling there was not such a joy. Not that it was not fun, it was! It was so beautiful, peaceful, calming. But Avani seemed really cool, really nice, and Lucrecia would love to get to know her.
"The district's beautiful. The streets are all made of cobblestone and the sidewalks are all raised wooden platforms above the ground. All the buildings are two or three stories high. I don't know where you're from, but I'm from a tiny village, so for me that is huge! It's not known for being a very nice place, but I love it! The people there are so great. Oh, just wait until you meet my uncle! He is fantastic. Makes a great cup of tea. Just one of those people who makes everyone happy, you know? I love people like that, don't you?"
[[ Lucrecia's uncle is based on Iroh from ATLA, btw ]]
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Post by Starchaser on Jun 8, 2020 3:36:37 GMT -5
{ Ugh. I don't know what it is exactly, but I cannot make this post sound good for the life of me. I really hate going to bed without posting, mostly cause I like to have something to see the next day, but I just can't find the words and I'd rather wait than have a subpar reply. So, I think I'll go ahead and wait until tomorrow to post to see if that wont help.
Also, I feel like I need to address this for everyone. In reading a lot of my posts later, I realize that I tend to leave a lot of unfinished sentences and blanks. This is because I have a weird habit about having to word things just right, but don't want to interrupt the flow of writing, so I usually leave "[]" in the place of the word or phrase I need to finish as a reminder that it's not done... it doesn't work very well though, as you can tell, cause I still miss them a lot when checking. So, if you ever see a sentence that looks like I died in the middle of writing it, that's why lol }
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Post by mossecho on Jun 8, 2020 3:56:12 GMT -5
[[ That's ok! I definitely understand. At any rate, I'll probably wake up so late that your post will still be something to look forward to (: I always look forward to your posts, Star, they're always a joy. Even when you claim they're bad, they are always fantastic <3
Also, good to know. Honestly I have had to reedit some of my Lucrecia posts because somehow I swapped Avani and Lucrecia's names in my head xD but that's just me. Believe me, it isn't a problem for me if your posts have a few flaws. Honestly I don't remember most of them, all I see is the amazing rp writing that I love and look up to. You're a fantastic writer, Star. Don't forget it (: ]]
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Post by Starchaser on Jun 8, 2020 13:16:56 GMT -5
{ mossecho I think a lot of people can relate to that, which is really sad, honestly. Kind of comforting though, to not be alone in feeling that way.
That I agree with. I'm just a loner homebody at heart. And, yeah, they're definitely going to be weirded out lol.
Oh, yeah, I definitely don't envy my characters in most areas. They do have their qualities though and having magical powers is my childhood dream. I was definitely going to have Gabriel be there, cause he really strikes me as the type. Maybe they could have to visit the nation's leaders after the attack to discuss the prophecy, which would honestly mean we meet most of their families cause it seems like a lot of the characters are children of the leaders (I'm only not certain on Avani and Veive). Them causing a big scene at the party and then potentially in the cult attack could be a good point of contention.
I'm still not really happy with this cause I can't figure out what I want to do with it, but I don't want to dwell forever. Also, I hope you don't mind that I threw in some other vampires. They don't actually have to interact with them, I just thought I'd finally mention some others so they're not like the only two people in the land, and maybe have a chance to explore how some of the different covens interact with each other. Plus, when Alex mentioned the Antlers Coven living in the grassland, I just immediately thought "cowboy vampires" and ran with it. Feel free to expand on it or change anything, I'm always happy to see what everyone else comes up with
Also, thank you <3 You're all really too kind.
It doesn't bother me. I went with smaller spells anyways because I knew there's no way Lilah would be able to pull off anything big after nearly getting killed and having to perform a powerful spell right after.
Also, I really like that explanation!
Also also, I'm aware that the Mage territory is on the west side of the map, but I figured since it's a fantasy world we could do something like having the planet's rotation around the sun be in a different direction. }
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Post by Amber on Jun 8, 2020 15:12:34 GMT -5
Avani waited for a laugh or a scoff or some sign that her new friend thought of her as crazy. Nothing came. In fact, there was no reaction from Lucrecia at all. The angel blinked in surprise, then smiled lightly. She was fine with nothing. Avani nodded as the Shifter rambled about the travel time. If she thought it was better to camp for the night, then the angel wasn't going to argue. She knew better anyway having been to Sanctum before. Besides, Lucrecia's comfort and safety mattered more than getting to the city faster. Avani got up and stretched as the shifted explained show to get to Sanctum. If they were going to be camped there for the night, they needed to start setting up.
"No, I'll stay viz you. I've been enjoying our conversation and I don't like ze idea of leaving you alone out here. Safety in numbers, right? I have food in my bag ve can share tonight and zen ve can stard ze journey to Sanctum first zing tomorrow." She paused as Lucrecia mentioned snoring. Avani gave a hearty laugh. "Ah I'm sure you don't and it vouldn't bother me. Viz zat said, I've been told I can talk in my sleep at times. If you don't mind hearing creepy vhispers coming from me during ze night, it'll all be fine."
The angel offered a smile before turning her attention to the surronding trees. As Avani began to check the area to make sure it was safe, Lucrecia contiuned on describing the historical district. The amount of love and passion she had for it was pleasing to hear. She could only imagine what it was actually like, and by tomorrow she would get to see it! When the Shifter finished speaking, Avani began to talk. "I'm from a small village myself, zough I've travled to cities before. I can only imagine vat ze historic district vould be like. Your uncle also sounds amazing. I'm excited to meet him, especially if he's someone vo makes everybody happy. I really like zose types of people."
As the woman listened on, she moved just beyond the small clearing to began gathering firewood. The nights were growing chillier, so they would need something to keep them warm. Lucrecia would at least. Avani would probably be fine, if not mildly uncomfortable. Once she had enough, she began to set up the wood just like her father showed her before pulling out a lighter to set the kindling ablaze. Once that was taken care of, she pulled the bedroll off her bag and began to take out her remaining food. It wasn't a lot, just a couple of apples, a bit of bread, and some jerky she had left from the start of her journey. It was all still good, if not just a little stale. Avani offered some to Lucrecia before grabbing an apple for herself.
"Do you have any stories or legends from your people? Angels have many if you vant to hear zem, zough I won't be offended if you don't." Like all angels, Avani had, of course, grown up with the tales of Yarah and her heroic deeds. She never heard much about the other myths and legends and wanted to know about them.
(Yay for Uncle Iroh-type characters!)
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Post by mossecho on Jun 8, 2020 17:55:38 GMT -5
[[ I'd be fine with it if they went to meet the leaders after the attack. In Alex's case that wouldn't involve his direct relatives, but they could show up at the party. I could change that though, if we wanted. Maybe we could split up the relatives between the party and the cult attack aftermath?
Honestly, I just find the idea of cowboy vampires hilarious, so I don't mind at all xD Also the names I used near the end are Romanian because Dracula, idk. ]]
Alex followed alongside Lilah, hands still clasped behind his back and gaze fixed on the path ahead. He stayed silent as she spoke, processing her descriptions of Dawncrest. To be honest, while Alex was doing his best to pay attention to what Lilah was saying, it was hard to shake his feelings of discomfort. There was still a tightness in his chest, the sort one would feel if they had not breathed in a long time. Alex reached for his bag and the bottle inside, removing the cap and taking an almost exaggerated gulp of the blood inside.
He screwed the lid back on and dropped the bottle back into his bag. Alex reveled in the red liquid, happy that it had not begun to clot too badly. It was, miraculously, still fresh. Perhaps that was a strange wendigo quality. Whatever the case, Alex found it to be a relief. His headache had pretty much subsided since the river, but that blessed blood was helping sooth the tight panic that had nestled its way into Alex's stomach. The vampire almost smiled, content with the drink's immediate relief.
He turned back to look at Lilah, still describing Dawncrest. Admittedly Alex was prone to thinking any city was impressive. He came from a small community, as did nearly every vampire. The Capital was supposed to be a grand city, although Alex would only be permitted to visit when he turned twenty-five. The buildings are made of marble, the grand cavern ceilings inlaid with gold. The libraries full of the originals of every existing text created by a vampire, even some from before the Cataclysm. Oh, how Alex longed to go there. How he might never get the chance.
All the relief brought on by the blood disappeared. Alex smiled, a pitiful attempt to counteract his growing melancholy, and nodded along as Lilah described Novaluc. It was almost... cute, how optimistic it all was. How optamistic Lilah was. Alex found himself actually smiling, although it was still full of longing for his own home.
"To be quite honest, there is not much to tell," Alex commented. It was not as if there was nothing to his homeland, but he was unsure of what could be relevant. Besides, what could he describe? There was no way to describe what home meant, no way to capture the innate feeling of belonging. There were no words to encapsulate what it meant to feel as if everything was just... right. Exactly the way it should be. "Our forests bear a similar resemblance to here. We have the same pines, the sort that block out almost the entire sky. It changes by the river though. The river is ancient. It has been there since before we settled in the valley. It carved a canyon of sorts, cutting through the land. The trees lining the riverbank are all cypress trees. Moss hangs from their branches and their wood is twisted and curved. It smells entirely different too. Up here everything smells like fresh soil and wildflowers. There it is all petrichor and lemon grass."
Alex paused. He really did not know how to describe his home. It was just... home. That warm feeling in one's heart, the graying mist off the river in the morning, the rough cypress bark juxtaposed with the smooth cliffside. "We carved our homes into the side of the cliffs. Before the Cataclysm, our ancestors created stairs that lead down to every home, every shop, everywhere in the community. When the Cataclysm arrived, we destroyed those stairs. Everyone was almost completely isolated, unable to move from one space to another. That is how we survived," Alex paused. He had not been alive at the time, but he knew the stories. His elders remembered those times and passed on those legends. It was still almost traumatic, knowing how long everyone must have been stuck underground. Alone, with only gaping holes in the wall where doorways should have been. Feeling nothing but rock and wind for so long, living off of rations of coagulated blood. Alex pursed his lips, glancing to the ground. "You can tell which covens are older that way. None of the others remember the Cataclysm, but the older ones know our stories. Like us, they choose to stay below the ground. That is why our Capital is inside a mountain. It is safer underground than it is above. Only the younger covens reside above ground. They have forgotten those days. Perhaps it is a blessing that they do not have those stories anymore..."
Alex trailed off, unsure as to how to continue. He scanned the area before locking his gaze onto the distant lights of the Sanctum. He could make out the shapes of buildings, rising into the sky like the mountains now long behind them. Alex could not see many details at this distance, but he could still hear the some sounds of life. The forest itself was still silent, but the grasslands ahead were not. When Alex looked down to the flatlands, with wind dancing between grasses that could reach all the way to one's hips, he could make out people.
Vampires. Alex grinned, genuinely this time. He did not know them personally, but he knew of them. The Antlers coven. They were the second youngest, living nomadically across the few grasslands still remaining in the vampires' nation. They were unique in many respects, namely riding on horseback, speaking informally, and herding the cattle from which they drank. "They are the Antlers coven of the Ciocarlie grasslands. You may be able to see their tents"— Alex pointed towards vague shapes in the distance —"they set them up every night as the cattle sleep. We are allowed to approach, but we must stop at the border. They line their settlement with the martisor—a red-and-white rope. We are not allowed to cross without permission."
Alex sorted through his bag. He had brought small flowers with him, tiny bunches of buds wrapped with the moss from his homeland. They were the customary gift of goodwill between vampires. He selected one of the smaller bunches. Alex glanced at Lilah, wondering if Mages had a similar custom. He opened his mouth, unsure of whether or not he had to explain this. Quite frankly, he had no idea how this interaction was going to go. Lilah spoke so informally, so genuinely. She even uses contractions, Alex noted. The Antlers Coven may be young, but they were still vampires. They had a different way of speaking.
"Ehm, if I may," Alex paused. He was still unsure about this. It seemed rude to offer unsolicited advice, but he still wanted to avoid any potential misunderstandings. He twirled the small bouquet in his uninjured hand. The leaves rustled in the breeze, the tiny petals flapping up and down. "I do not want to impose. You do not need to feel uncomfortable, the Antlers Coven is known for their hospitality. They are among the less formal and more forgiving of vampires. They may be more friendly towards you than towards me. Do you have anything you can offer as a gift?"
Alex stood straight. He had not realized it until he spoke, but the Antlers Coven was likely to be much more suspicious of him than of Lilah. Lilah was a humans. The Antlers Coven interacted the most with humans, given they were by the border. They would understand any accidental missteps. Alex, on the other hand... well. The Antiers Coven famously looked down on the Antlers Coven for their informality and poor memory. Alex may be separated from his homeland, but he still smelled distinctly of petrichor and lemon grass. The Antlers Coven would know immediately where he was from.
Exhaling sharply, Alex began walking through the grass. It was tall, reaching perhaps a few inches above his knees, and it shook in the evening winds. Alex held the bouquet to his chest with both hands. He slowed down when he smelled twine, turning his head down to scan the ground. A few feet away was the distinctive martisor. Alex approached it and stopped just a few inches away, his shiny black shoes a distinct contrast against the pale grasses.
[[ Goodness I can't shut up about petrichor... xD clearly my favorite smell
Also I'm basically basing my descriptions of the Derramar river off of Monterey, California. I don't know that place very well, but it's beautiful and definitely worth a Google Images search. also I'm basically throwing environmental science out the window, but hey, this world has magic so screw science
... also, how long ago was the Cataclysm? Did we decide that? ]]
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Post by Starchaser on Jun 8, 2020 18:22:05 GMT -5
{ I'm working on a reply now, but I also just finished watching the new episode of my current TV show obsession and it about ended me, so I may be a little slow.
mossecho That works for me.
Same xD I just really like the idea of most vampire covens being all serious and structured and Alex (who is from the sophisticated, well-respected oldest coven) coming down to the South (which is actually this territory's North, I guess) and meeting yee-haw vampires. It's just funny to me.
I don't really mind throwing science out the window sometimes. Some days I like to be really precise and accurate, but other times I'd rather just have fantasy fun. It really depends on my mood.
Also, to answer your question, I'm thinking a few thousand years maybe? The Cataclysm is what the new nations call the fallout that resulted from the original prophecy members unleashing the curse on the land, so it's definitely been a while when you take into account how many chosen ones have come and gone. }
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Post by mossecho on Jun 8, 2020 18:31:40 GMT -5
[[ Oof, that Alex post took forever xD Well, here is Lucrecia! I should prob start using that code thing to tell them apart but... idk. I'm lazy?
We stan Uncle Iroh. I declare this RP a pro-Iroh RP. ]]
Lucrecia smiled at the fire. Admittedly she had little to no survival skills like firebuilding. She had never had any major problems with traveling, just since she spent most of her time as a bird and slept in a tree branch high above the dangerous forest floor. Besides, a day and a half was really not that bad. The forest was surprisingly safe, albeit colder than she would like. And a lot loneliner.
Besides, they were probably close to the forest's edge anyways. It always took Lucrecia a long time to get out of the forest, but once she got to the plains she could fly pretty easily to the Sanctum. Following the rivers was a sure way to get to the Sanctum, but they were infamously curvy and chaotic in the forests. Once she was at the plains, Lucrecia could just fly as, well, as the crow flies.
Lucrecia beamed as Avani talked about her home. She did not say very much, but Lucrecia could tell that it meant something special. That was good, home should always be important like that. Lucrecia watched as Avani made the fire, her smile only growing once the kindling transformed into a decent fire. Lucrecia sat up and held out her hands to the fire, smiling as they warmed up.
"We have a few, yeah!" she said cheerily once Avani finished. "I don't know them very well though. My dad knew them, but he always changed the details, so I don't know which is the original. We have one about an evil fairy who would trick people into deals, but I honestly don't remember it very well. The moral of the story is something along the lines of being careful about what you say."
Lucrecia shrugged and looked up at Avani, watching the fire's lights and shadows dance on the angel's wings. "I don't know about angels, but in my village every name has a date and legend to go with it. My name's Lucrecia because I was born on the twelfth night of an even year. We assign names by date, you see. Except when there are twins, then it's a bit more complicated, but normally it keeps everything simple!"
"Lucrecia's the name of the wren spirit. A king once wanted to know how long eternity was, so he asked his advisor. His advisor told him of Lucrecia, a wren who lived by the Bytiye Mountain, a giant mountain made of pure diamond. Every century she would fly from one corner of the mountains to another. During her flight, she would take one peck at the highest point of the mountain," as Lucrecia told the story, she made large gestures to emphasize the actions and the like. Lu was never a fantastic storyteller, but she enjoyed doing it nonetheless. "The advisor told the king that over the millenia, the mountain would be worn down. Eventually it would become a hill, then a gentle slope, and then it would disappear. When the mountain disappeared, the first second in eternity would have passed."
"The king told the advisor that it was an impressive legend. The advisor told the king that it was an impressive bird."
[[ Okay, so the story Lucrecia told is based off one I heard in a Doctor Who episode, Hell Bent. It's pretty much the same story, just with a few minute details changed. I don't know if that is where the story is originally from, but whatever the case, credit to whoever originally came up with the story. ]]
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Post by Amber on Jun 8, 2020 18:32:48 GMT -5
(I was just thinking about this, but would any of the races have night vision? I would think werewolves (and by extension other shifters that can shift into animals that have night vision) would in their animal form, but I wasn't sure if others would.)
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Post by mossecho on Jun 8, 2020 18:38:46 GMT -5
[[ Amber: Vampires do, but I honestly haven't thought about the others. I imagine Lu would not have great night vision, just since she shifts into a bird, but maybe she can see a bit better just because she's a shifter? idk. honestly haven't thought about it much besides for my characters ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Starchaser: Screw science.
A few thousand years sounds good to me. Just wanted to get the ages all right. The Antlers Coven is probably “only” a couple centuries old then.
Also, "yee-haw vampires" is a fantastic phrase xD I just imagine Alex is expecting pretty formal people and he shows up and they're just so casual and informal and not at all like Alex expected. They're just nice people from the grasslands who just like to hang with cattle and horses and live happy, worry-free lives ]]
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Post by Amber on Jun 8, 2020 19:08:14 GMT -5
(Ah that's right. So vampires and some shifters including werewolves have it. I would think maybe all Infernals have it as well. Mages and Elelmentals probably wouldn't and I'm note sure about Heavenlys.)
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