Mokley — Roleplayer Guild

@Mokley  Wait, I thought we were going as a group?  Or are we splitting up to search?  I mean, from an OOC standpoint it'd make more sense to go together, and certainly it'd make it easier for the protectors to keep people safe IC.

I'm honestly not sure how I'd split things.  If push comes to shove, Nikki will stick with Blank, but she'd /prefer/ Rahna&co around -- and I would like Sera with her and possibly Kel, which means also Lee and Tivo, I think.  And then it looks like Pacha's bard is joining Tivo...@.@

Basically you lose a lot of group dynamics if you split up too much.@shylarah

I never once mentioned groups, I never remotely mentioned splitting up, this was all you people's idea, I'm innocent, I didn't do it! xD

Whoever wants to team up with whoever or whatever's happening with whatnow is cool with me.

“C’mon, if we go to the gallery, we’ll be able to listen in without being seen~”

From their awkward vantage point, they could see the old king hunched in a wash of sunlight. His white hair shone like a scraggled halo, his red robe was thin and tired with age, and he leaned on his wooden staff as if he might fall out of the throne otherwise.

The king raised his watery eyes as Gaius clanked forward.

"RATS!"

This was a shout from behind Nikki and Blank, where a young guard stood akimbo and glaring. She'd approached in careful silence, just to make the sneaky teens jump.

"You two! Out! Move it! Git! The training grounds for the both of ya, we'll use ya fer target practice!"

She stomped forward and stood directly in the way of the view of the king, arms folded and a smirk on her face. Today, they were busted -- but there was always tomorrow.

Tivo allowed for the equipment he carried on his shoulder to simply fall off of his shoulders and land on the ground with a 'thump' before taking a seat right in the middle of the path, as if preparing to settle in for quite a while.

Overhead, an occasional streak of light flashed in the sky: a meteor shower, barely visible in the bright sunlight.

"Why do I feel like something's wrong?"

A flock of starlings surged like a wave over the edge of the island from below; they swirled and looped and billowed around the high forested rocks, passing with a wave of glimmering wings underneath Eli and Rahna. They flooded across the island and disappeared among the trees.

"Kela? I'm here! It's Lee."

The parlor was empty, as if no one had been there all morning.

There was a box inside the door, full of the same paints that Lee had given to Blin earlier -- as well as a gold marble, tucked in a corner of the box.

He swore to himself that he would not close his eyes this time.

A sudden updraft roared all around the small island where the library sat. The ground felt slightly tipsy for a few moments, rocking just slightly enough to feel sick -- and then the rope bridge to the mainland snapped.

The library island had sunk a few feet, and drifted a few feet farther from the village proper, and spun only a bit before it settled again.

At least Blin was closer to the farm, now.

"I'm out of money, so this is my last one."

A furry little creature crept closer to Sera's feet as she ate. It was lanky as a snow-white weasel, with long ears and a tufted tail. The critter rose up on its haunches, wriggling its whiskers hopefully, staring with glittering eyes at Sera's pie.

Hopefully his highness would be there, and Gaius wouldn't be left waiting for his return.

art by Renju Mv

The king stared in silence at Gaius for a long while.

Behind Gaius and to the side was a muffled shout and a noise of scrabbling movement -- then silence again.

A songbird outside warbled.

"Gaius." The old king tightened his grip on his staff, and he wavered slightly side to side. The king always had an attendant at his side in case he began to fall over -- but that attendant was missing today.

"Something is going to happen."

In the distance, outside the window, the shouts and swords of the training grounds echoed. The king was quiet again. He appeared to have fallen asleep.

"Protect Sera." The king's gray eyes opened. "Watch over Tivo of the ruin. And keep a careful eye on that boy with no past."

He said nothing else, but he stared at Gaius through dim eyes until he was certain he'd been understood. He raised a gnarled hand and waved him away, a dismissal. That was all.

art by Geoffrey Ernault

♫

At dusk, the king got up and began to shuffle his way toward the doors of the castle.

The dimming light made clear the streaks and flashes in the sky: the meteors were falling thickly across the stars, a light show that the village had gathered in the streets to watch. Every telescope was pointed at the stars. Gliders had been grounded to avoid blocking the view -- though an occasional rebel swirled overhead, much to the outrage of those watching from below.

Just as the king reached the open castle doors, a huge streak of white light passed overhead. The village let out a collective gasp of wonder as the falling star lit up their faces. It spanned the sky, flashing and burning all the way into the distance. It disappeared on the distant horizon with an explosive flash that lit up silhouettes of mountains. A few seconds later, they could hear a low rumble like thunder.

The king had made it to the banister outside the castle. He raised an arm and shouted to the wind and to the people gathered on the streets below -- but not a word of what he said could be heard. He coughed and wheezed, then motioned for his attendant to come close.

"His Majesty the King of the Island-in-the-Sky," the attendant shouted clearly to the people of the village, "hereby proclaims that at the first light of dawn a search party shall gather at the eastern cliffs for the purpose of retrieving the star we have just witnessed to have fallen." The attendant paused and stooped a bit to hear what the king was mumbling. "One out of the party that returns with the star will be named heir to the throne. The rest will be appointed to the council and will be made royalty." The attendant stood idly for a moment, assuming he was finished -- but leaned down again when the king tugged on his sleeve. "To anyone who plans to gain these rights deceitfully -- the king himself promises to kick your ass." The old king grinned and nodded slowly, hunched over his staff.

The town criers made certain this message was spread throughout the village and its outskirts and the ruins beyond within the hour; gliders and messengers and carrier pigeons scattered throughout the islands. The starry sky was calm and clear.

At dawn, the Weather Man floated above in his balloon, signaling the spot where the adventurers would gather. Crowds of villagers brought cakes and dried meat, lengths of rope and filled backpacks, repair kits for gliders and hooked lanterns for night-flying, hoping to send off the search party well-stocked and well-fed. None of them had ever been to the surface, but all of them had warnings or questions or requests for souvenirs or stories. All of them wondered, behind their smiling faces, whether any of the explorers would ever return.

The sun rose behind the distant mountains, marking the spot where the star had fallen. Between here and there was a sea of forest and mist, and a spiraling flock of sparrows.

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aka windyfiend

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