[center] [img]https://i.imgur.com/LkjUl9O.png[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/pq1V8p0.gif[/img][/center] [color=E5A7E2] [center] 🌸 [color=F97FCA]Race:[/color] Half-Elf 🌸 🦋 [color=#FFD351]Class:[/color] Druidic Mystic 🦋 🍄 [color=#BC16A1]Location:[/color] The Bathroom🍄 🍃 [color=#FFD351]Interactions:[/color] Meiyu [@Tae] Talis/Liana [@Oso] 🍃 🌼 [color=F97FCA]Equipment:[/color] 🌼 [hider=Full Equipment List][color=FFD351]✦[/color] Druidic Staff [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Stone-Carved Dagger [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Poison-Tipped Blowgun Darts [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Her amulet [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Satchel [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Flint & dried tinder moss [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Waterskin [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Dried Medicinal Herbs [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Bag of pretty trinkets, marbles and rocks [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Sharpening river stone [color=FFD351]✦[/color] Oruna tribal moon bracelet[/hider] 🪷 [color=#BC16A1]Attire:[/color] [url=https://i.imgur.com/6CiluJx.png]Outfit[/url] 🪷 [hider=Attire][color=FFD351]✦[/color] [color=F97FCA]Antler Headdress[/color] – Elegant branching antlers wrapped in vines and blooming wild roses and other flowers, dangling with purple crystal teardrops. [color=FFD351]✦[/color] [color=F97FCA]Thick Magenta Hair[/color] – Flowing in long, heavy waves with many braids, tiny beads and blossoms braided throughout. [color=FFD351]✦[/color] [color=F97FCA]Forest Bralette[/color] – A natural fabric top adorned with layered leaves, hide, flowers, and shimmering gem accents across the bust. [color=FFD351]✦[/color] [color=F97FCA]Arm Jewelry[/color] – Vine-wrapped armlets and bracelets studded with glistening stones in violet and turquoise hues. [color=FFD351]✦[/color] [color=F97FCA]Green Cloaklet[/color] – A light green cloak clasped with a gem like amber—crafted from flora and fauna [color=FFD351]✦[/color] [color=F97FCA]Layered Skirt[/color] – Flowing petal-draped skirt with high side slits, woven from cloth and flower petals [color=FFD351]✦[/color] [color=F97FCA]Waist Adornments[/color] – A golden vine belt holding a satchels, feathers, and a charm pouch of herbs and trinkets. [color=FFD351]✦[/color] [color=F97FCA]Leg Jewelry[/color] – Beaded anklets and thigh cords with gemstone charms [color=FFD351]✦[/color] [color=F97FCA]Nature Tattoos & Paint[/color] – Faint tribal markings or nature-inspired body paint peek beneath her outfit[/hider] 🪞 [color=F97FCA]Gold Balance:[/color] 46 🪞 🌸 [color=#FFD351]Injuries:[/color] [hider=Injuries] [b][color=F97FCA]🗡 Deep Stab Wound – Inner Forearm:[/color][/b] Took a dagger meant for her chest directly into her forearm. Blade embedded deep, slicing muscle and likely grazing bone. [color=#FFD351][b]Symptoms:[/b][/color] Intense bleeding, nerve pain, compromised grip strength, nearly unusable arm. [color=F97FCA][b]💥 Dagger Hilt Nerve Strike – Same Arm:[/b][/color] Liana delivered a blunt-force strike to the same wounded arm, targeting the nerve center. [b][color=#FFD351]Effect:[/color][/b] Caused violent spasms, a surge of white-hot pain, and temporary loss of staff control. [color=F97FCA][b]👢 Abdominal Kick #1:[/b][/color] Delivered early in the fight, knocking the wind from her lungs and sending her back into a fall. [b][color=#FFD351]Injury:[/color][/b] Minor bruising and impact trauma; no time to recover before escalation. [color=F97FCA][b]💥 Blunt-Force Trauma – Abdomen (Round Two):[/b][/color] After wounding Liana with her claws, Phia was struck again by a full-force kick, this time with devastating intent. [color=#FFD351]Result:[/color] Cracked ribs upon impact, severe internal pain, and possible bruised organs. 💔[color=F97FCA] [b]Mirror Slam – Back & Head Trauma:[/b][/color] Her body was hurled into a mirror, causing glass to shatter around her. [color=#FFD351][b]Likely Effects:[/b][/color] Lacerations, mild to moderate concussion, whiplash, and shock. 💣[color=F97FCA] [b]Face Slam x3 – Wood Frame:[/b][/color] Liana repeatedly smashed Phia’s head into the shattered wood behind her. [color=#FFD351][b]Injuries:[/b][/color] Scalp bleeding, split lip, bruising across face and brow, potential concussion symptoms worsened. [b][color=F97FCA]💀 General Condition:[/color][/b] Phia was left semi-conscious, bleeding from multiple points, her breath labored, body trembling, and suffering from a mix of nerve trauma, internal bruising, broken ribs, and likely concussion. [/hider] 🌸 [img]https://i.imgur.com/cOPfAGm.png[/img][/center] [center][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qemb3iBlp1o[/youtube][/center] The air smelled of copper, sweat, smoke, and something far worse: the sharp, metallic tang of a life slipping away. Talis's hand wandered blindly through the blood-slicked tile, pawing through broken glass and puddles of blood like a child lost in the dark. And Phia saw it through the haze of her own agony-through the feeling of her cracked ribs screaming with every breath, and through the pounding in her skull from the concussive rhythm of impact after impact. Her wounded arm hung numb and bloodied, but her good hand… Her good hand was already waiting for hers. Talis’s fingertips brushed hers. [color=olive]“You’re still here.”[/color] Phia closed her hand around hers instantly, the blood slick on their rough fingers as they intertwined. [color=olive]“Thank you… I didn’t think anyone would be.”[/color] Phia’s throat tightened. Her whole face folded into a broken smile, full of sorrow and defiance against a world so cruel it had dared to make this girl feel abandoned at her end. [color=F97FCA]"Of course someone would."[/color] she whispered, her voice cracking as if the idea of someone not being with her here right now was insane. Her forehead pressed gently to Talis’s, her breath shaking as it fanned against her blood-matted hair. Then sudden movement caught her gaze. At first, it looked like a shadow beneath the girl’s skin, something cast by the flickering light. But shadows didn’t move like that. They didn’t spread like that either. Phia's eyes narrowed as they followed the slithering trail of the black ink traversing Talis from her wound, her brows drawing tight with dawning dread. They crept through her body like living things, like vines, winding beneath the surface of her skin, threading into her chest, her arms, her throat. [color=olive]“I was so afraid she was going to kill you both… I’m so sorry…I never wanted to be such a burden to anyone.”[/color] Amongst the pain came intense sorrow that made Phia shake her head vehemently, tears brimming in her eyes. Her head shook before she even knew it was moving, violently, desperately, as if to physically shake away the weight of Talis’s guilt. [color=F97FCA]"Our lives are precious. All worthy of protection."[/color] Her gaze slid then at that moment as Meiyu spoke. She remained unblinking even as the woman relayed how she had her face smashed. However, she then tensed as Meiyu knelt beside them. [color=7DBC89]“You’re dying...I can’t save you. And unless she knows what this is…”[/color] She gestured to Phia first and then to the black veins. [color=7DBC89]“Then any attempt to do anything could make it worse and make it more painful.”[/color] Phia shook her head.[color=F97FCA]“It spreads like a poison… but it’s not from any creature, any root, any leaf I’ve known.”[/color] Her fingers hovered just above the branching black, trembling.[color=F97FCA] “It’s like rot.”[/color] [color=7DBC89]“But I [i]can[/i] take the suffering from you. The fear. The burning in your chest. The cold in your bones... All I want in return…is the truth.”[/color] Phia's eyes furrowed. Her gaze lingered on Meiyu, not with hatred, but with the quiet weight of recognition. Even as Talis lay bleeding out in her arms, her body trembling, her soul flickering like a candle about to vanish, this woman knelt beside them not to mourn… but to measure. [i]To consider what she could take. [/i] However, Phia didn’t curse her for it. Just as a vulture follows the scent of death, just as a wolf stalks the wounded at the edge of the herd, so too did this woman move with that same cold inevitability—a serpent in human skin. It was honest at best; just a creature acting within its innate nature. Yet... There was also something hollow about it. Something unbecoming. Phia didn’t expect a serpent to act like a puppy, but she’d hoped, perhaps foolishly, that something with a voice and a name might act with more than just instinct. Perhaps she had been wrong to expect such… even outside the woods where nature had rules. Phia returned her attention to Talis as the girl stirred with renewed effort, her voice as fragile as her body—barely more than breath held together by will. And now, Talis had revealed a crystal. She felt a pang of heavy sadness in that moment, not just for the dying girl in her arms, but for the friendship that could never bloom. If she had known, if she'd only known they shared that joy of collecting crystals, they might have sat together beneath the trees, trading stories and stones like two girls unburdened by the world. [color=olive]“She took the bag... But not the prize. I hid it…that…made me feel brave.”[/color] She gave her hand a gentle squeeze, and a soft, broken smile tugged at her lips—the kind of smile that said more than words ever could. [i]Yes[/i], it said. [i]You were brave.[/i] Phia continued to listen intently as she spoke. And then, Talis’s fingers opened. For a moment, Phia thought it was simply surrender...just one more thing slipping away. But slowly, silently, the crystal lifted from her palm and upward as if pulled up by a string. Then came the humming. Phia felt it more than heard it: a vibration through her ribs, her blood, her bones. The air in the stall had changed, thickening as if the world itself was holding its breath. [color=olive]“I’ve been alone my whole life.”[/color] Phia's gaze locked back on Talis, her brows knitting together once more. [color=olive]“Even when I wasn’t. Even with my family. Even at the academy…I was always invisible.”[/color] In that moment, Phia wanted to assure her more than anything, but the words clung to the back of her throat, trapped behind the rising pressure in her chest as Talis spoke once more. [color=olive]“I’m scared. It hurts, and I’m scared, and I don’t want to die. But… I’m not alone anymore.”[/color] [center][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrukumNIiug[/youtube][/center] Something flickered. Not in the room, but inside her. A flash behind her eyes, sharp as lightning and gone just as fast, like a rupture in the present that was both sudden and searing. Phia knew not if it had been some sort of vision, or intrusive thought, but it felt as if it had been something from a dream long forgotten. A hazy image of a face had come into view. Small, bloodied, and familiar in a way that hurt too much to recognize. Magenta hair soaked and dark, stuck in strands across a pale forehead. The skin was smeared with mud and blood, and her lips were parted in the kind of smile that broke a heart—a smile that didn’t belong to happiness, but to someone trying to be brave. She had freckles just like Phia, and lovely blue eyes like the sea. Those eyes, wide and young, were glassy with tears that never fell, half-lidded and dull in a way that only the eyes of the dying could be. Her mouth moved, but no sound came. And then a small, trembling hand reached up toward her. The image vanished before she could have seen more, but the hand reaching toward her face remained. Instead, it was Talis who cupped her cheek as Phia's eyes dilated. Agonizing grief overwhelmed Phia, drowning her where she sat as tears spilled over Talis's bloodied fingers. Phia reached up to clutch at her hand with desperation. [color=F97FCA]“No—no, you don’t have to be scared,”[/color] she whispered, almost choking on her own voice. Her hands gripped Talis tighter, trembling. Her whole body trembled as she leaned forward, brow resting against the girl’s. [color=F97FCA]“You’re not alone. You’ve [i]never[/i] been alone, not ever and not in the way that matters.”[/color] Her words began to spill faster, a breathless tumble torn from somewhere deep and breaking. They came with an almost ruthless intensity, sharpened by the raw conviction in her eyes as she held the girl’s fading gaze.[color=F97FCA]“There are spirits waiting for you in the trees,”[/color] she whispered, her voice trembling, thick with sorrow she could no longer contain. [color=F97FCA]“The wind has sung your name every night since you were born. The earth remembers your footsteps, even when no one else did.”[/color] Talis's body soon went still after a quiet thank you. Then a silence followed that was so still it felt cruel. Phia let out a sound between a gasp and a sob as she pulled the girl’s body close, dragging her gently to her chest with the only strength she had left in her battered limb. Her good arm wrapped around her like a vine trying to hold back a landslide, while her wounded arm remained useless. With nothing left to anchor her, Phia sank with her, collapsing down to the blood-slicked tile, her shoulder smashing into the tile, her ribs screaming as she landed half on her side, half on her back, Talis tangled against her. Her injured arm twisted beneath her with a jolt of white-hot pain, and a sharp cry tore from her throat. Blood smeared beneath them like ink spilled across parchment. Her hand slipped as she tried to right herself, her fingers scrabbling on the wet tile, but she refused to let go. She lay there, breathless, hurting, wrapped around the girl who no longer breathed as she continued talking to her as if she were still there. [color=F97FCA] “You... You don’t have to be afraid. Your ancestors... All of them. They’ve waited years just to hold you. To kiss your forehead. To wrap you in arms that never got the chance.”[/color] Phia managed shakily, her eyes meeting Talis's still ones as if that might force her to wake up to hear her in that moment as she said, [color=F97FCA]“...You’re going home now.”[/color] The silence pressed in like a closing fist, and the stillness of Talis’s body was too complete, too final. It settled against Phia’s chest like stone, and the warmth was already beginning to leave her. Phia’s stomach turned. Her throat closed. Her body shook so hard she thought she might break apart entirely. In her mind, she whispered to the spirits, begged the wind, the trees, the stars, that maybe they could decide to breathe life back into the girl. And still… The world remained quiet. And Talis remained gone. Then, Phia’s body slumped forward, her vision blurring as the edges of the world turned soft and far away. She curled instinctively around the girl one last time, as if her spirit refused to let go even as her consciousness began to fade. Darkness folded in, and just before it swallowed her whole, a voice brushed her mind like a breeze through leaves. [sub][color=#F9A7E6][i]Oh Ophelia, you'll always be my big sister.[/i][/color][/sub] [/color]