Twhirtley

[Ebonfort] Days of Grass and Dust

Verissa had listened intently, realizing just how important Shenzi was. The blonde herbalist knew the woman to be quite knowledgeable and experienced, but something about her made Verissa think that there was a lot more than what was seen, which was already formidable. She would definitely seek her out at a later time. She continued to struggle to keep up with the language that Asher spewed forth, nearly forgetting that there were hand signals as well that she'd have to learn.

When Asher tried her stew, and nodded in what she assumed was approval, she smiled lightly. At least she'd managed to do that much, even if she'd startled him earlier. If this was to be their life, it wasn't so bad. She could practice her trade, her magic, take care of people, be... free. Truly so. And the life of a Scre... Kvaren didn't seem boring.

When he started on the Gathering, she sat down across from him, and began to eat heartily at her stew, not realizing just how hungry she was. She heard a little rustling and saw her pups nearby, shaming herself at nearly forgetting them, caught up in all the emotion of the recent moment. She stood up, filling the last bowl, a larger one, with much of the stew, sitting it down on the ground. The pups looked at her, before she smiled and nodded at them. They approached, sniffed at the food, and began eating heartily while she cooed at them and scratched their heads.

Returning to her own seat, she was still listening to Asher, hearing about the rituals and protocols she'd have to learn. The Gathering did sound very much like a festival back in Ebonfort. But when he glanced up at her, at his words, she found her throat tightening as she was taken by surprise. Her face flushed a deep crimson and she buried her eyes in her stew. As the bowl emptied, Verissa noticed that it was growing colder and colder, a bit more so than the previous night. It was then she realized she'd packed away her own bedding earlier, but not Asher's. Gulping deeply, she didn't know what to ask. She didn't even realize her eyes were locked on her empty sleeping space, as the words spilled out.

"I don't have... I packed..."

Her face showed her evident nervousness, before she took a deep breath, "Can I... stay with you tonight?" Her stomach tightened at the thought, but there was some reassurance that he'd said he'd never force himself upon her. But she needed to be practical, to be realistic, to be... Kvaren. And Kvaren don't freeze to death out of fear or stubbornness. Her eyes were still down cast as the moved their way back to the table in front of her, unable to find Asher's. She hoped he didn't assume this was permission for him to do... as he pleased, if he so did.

The Calm Before the Storm (Ebonfort)

There was a confused look in his eyes as she mentioned Juloya. He'd touched his blade many times in his long life, and never once had she spoken to him. It hurt to think that she could, but chose not to. When Rilana mentioned his cooking, "Well, when you've lived as long as I have, you find the time to learn many things, I'll teach you a thing or two when we get back." He said this with a smile as he continued to eat.

He turned to face her more directly, "A life without plans, regardless if they come to fruition or not, is a lonely one. If anyone knows this, it is me. I've had one singular plan this entire time. And now that it nears completion, I find myself relishing the idea of new plans, new experiences, new... friendships."

He nodded at her words, not missing out on her hinting. "Well, in all fairness, it was the plan of your ancestor, I just facilitated it. And I'm quite glad I did, otherwise we wouldn't have met."

He smiled at her, "And I think all could be forgiven if it means saving the world."

"And I must say... I don't think all hope is lost. And..." He looked off into the starry night, "I think this hope is beautiful. And I think it can be real. Just need to get rid of this one last cage of mine."

Blood and Gold (Ebonfort)

Graakt watched as the Knights poured in, and immediately turned his back away from them, keeping his eyes on them. He watched his winged companions flutter up to safety, as he brought his heavy fists up. Many people drew their weapons and fought the Knights in direct combat, but that was bound to lead to their deaths. Knights needed fought from the shadows. Graakt looked over his shoulder and saw a doorway in the back. He slowly crept back, watching the knights cut people down like the mass of weapons and armor they were.

Several knights with heavy crossbows entered, and with a shout, they noticed Cole over the doorway, though Cecielle had picked a more ideal hiding spot. The swarm of knights fought their way to the center of the hall, with more outside the front door, cutting down any that may attempt to escape that way. Graakt hustled back through the rear door way, into a storage room, presumably for the goods. He watched the knights rush the stage and set up the crossbowmen. More and more of the gang members rushed in from the back and the entire place turned into a bloody mess. But the crossbowmen were the deciding factor as bolt after bolt was loosed into the crowd and rafters. Graakt ran down the long storage room to the opposite door that led to the stage. It was locked, and heavy, and he doubted he could break it down.

His eyes fell on the hinges. They were rusted and old. He looked around the storage room, and found a set of heavy chained manacles. He picked them up, and hefted their weight, swinging them, testing them. It took many attempts but he managed to smash the upper hinges off. He lowered his shoulder and bashed his weigh through the weakened door. The lower hinge calved off, and the door fell hard onto the stage, Graakt atop it. From his prone position he threw his chain at the nearest of the three crossbowmen. It struck the main in his unarmored hands, breaking several bones. Graakt was up on his feet as he charged toward the other two, clearly distracted by the large orc. He threw a sloppy right hook at the injured man, catching him in the side of the face, throwing him to the ground, sending pain up his hand and wrist. He kept his momentum as he reached down and picked up his chain, turning swiftly to one side as he swung it, catching the second in the crossbow, knocking it heavily from his hands. Graakt kept charging as he tackled into the man, knocking him into the third.

They fell into a pile and Graak took that time to rain blows of fist and chains upon the men's faces. His hands hurt something fierce as he stood, more knights heading toward him, swords drawn.

[Ebonfort] Days of Grass and Dust

Verissa relaxed after it was evident that Asher was going to do her no harm, that he even seemed put off at the idea. She didn't flinch as he touched her back, her shoulder.

"I don't know. When the rumors of people with magic started, more rumors followed that they were being rounded up or killed. People did disappear. But then... well a Knight that seemed knowledgeable on the matter... told me otherwise. But when mine appeared, for a year I lived in fear of just one day being gone."

When he made his admission, she relaxed further, moving into the apparent safety of his chest. She had despised the fear she'd lived under, but there were other things that had been nice. She had her home, her own little purpose in life, and... her loneliness. It had all been so quaint and dull, which was perhaps why she was never able to settle for Edoward. Her home gone, her purpose lost, what did she really have left?

Her parents.

But she didn't live with them. They lived in the capital. But she knew her dad would be worried sick, her mother less so, more embarrassed that her only child might be a heathen. She wished she could contact her father, to at least tell him that she was alright. But she knew that to be impossible. She pressed her palms gently against Asher's firm chest, looking up at him as he stroked her hair, forcing out the words that were mostly true. "There isn't anything left there for me. I only have what is here."

Her eyes softened as she looked at him, the tears fading. "I would prefer to not have to hide it anymore. I just... I need to practice with it more." Then with a light smile, she gently pushed herself away from his chest, "But for now, I need to work on my cooking." Standing before the stove now, she stirred at it, feeling the last of her desires to go home fade into the little whirlpool she'd made. She looked over her shoulder, and in her thick accent, in Kvaren, "Thank you, Asher," accompanied by a genuine smile.

After a bit, the stew was ready, and she ladled it into bowls, handing one to Asher, "I hope it's okay. Would you mind telling me more about this..." she used the Kvaren word for "Gathering?"

[Ebonfort] Days of Grass and Dust

She didn't hear any of his previous words, only the command that told her not to run. Her eyes continued darting back and forth from him and the tent flap, her panic still full fledged. Verissa felt trapped, wanting to run, but knowing to do so would make things so much worse. It was just like the night before, when Jasper prepared to take everything from her. Except, Asher wasn't Jasper. And his eyes weren't cruel. There was concern behind the stern in them. He'd saved her from that man, he was not attacking her now as her panic-addled mind had thought he might.

She tried to force her breathing down, deep breaths through her nose and out through her mouth. Each slow breath calmed her some, until she reached up with a hand and touched her shield. It flashed into visibility, and she dissipated it, fading out of existence with the dull lavender glow.

Her pleading eyes, wet and wide with fear found Asher's, "Please, please don't hurt me. I've never done anything bad with it. I'm not even good at it." She didn't realize that he might not know how magic users back in Ebonfort were supposedly treated. "Are you... Am I going to be punished? Because if I am, please don't let the pups take any harm... They kill or exile us back ho... there. Please, I don't want to.." Leave.

She couldn't believe how careless she'd been. That was her ace in the hole, her biggest secret. And now it was out. She stepped forward a bit, putting herself closer, hoping it would help. She'd seen those looks, seen that Asher was in fact a good man, in a bare whisper, "I don't want to leave."

Ebonfort

I posted this in skype the other day only to remember that some of our members dont use skype... so here ya go

Just so everyone knows, my guy getting the site off the ground said it will be ready for me to do all my fun stuff around the 24th. Once it gets handed over to me, I'm going to bust ass to get it play ready immediately for the new season that starts May 1st.

A few points of note: anyone who transfers their character from rpg to the new site will maintain everything with that character. I've decided to not transfer the stories over because it would be time consuming, plus pain in the ass since written by multiple accounts.

so all stories currently active are to be finished here, and reviewed, and applied to the character. When the new site is up, all new stories are to be started there.

Does anyone have any questions, concerns, ideas during this transition stage?

@SouffleGirl123@The Emperors Blade
@Shurikai@terrorbubble
@thetruthwhale
@SilverSpartan
@Rekaigan
@Drache

@Foster@RomanAria
@krinos Solstice
@Mag Lev
@Landaus Five-One
@Visionaryness

A Heart Frozen (Ebonfort)

As Echo and Ortha followed the steep ramp into the lower tunnel, it got darker and darker, as expected. But that didn't deter the pair. Echo had better vision, though not true dark vision, but keen hearing. Ortha on the other hand, could see just fine in the dark, not even noticing the transition. As they trudged along, they ignored the deep guano muck they waded through. The ceiling was a moving carpet of blue and white bats, all watching or sleeping. The tunnel was winding and curvy, growing colder and colder as they plunged deeper and deeper. Nothing of note came about for a while until, Echo caught the scent of something. It was different from the smells in here.

It smelled similar to Rilana. Leathers and furs and other animals. The singular tunnel made it easy to follow the scent. Until it stopped at a wall. The scent told Echo that it continue on, but the wall prevented it. The wall was covered in a strange, purple moss, hanging heavy and thick. It appeared that the moss was a very thick drape, leading into a small cave. And inside was a Moon Fey woman, in dirty rags, torn and old. She looked up at the two creatures, not knowing whom they were with, but seeing they were alone, and clearly not wild. Weakly, Lady Moira's voice spoke, "...No... no..."

Drisceya was getting quite tired of following the orders of an outsider. She'd snuffed her attempt at wealth and renown, hadn't shown her true strength. And Drisceya was fairly certain she'd only gotten the position by sleeping with Svarak. Cursing herself for not having tried it herself, she hung back at the rear of the group, as Rilana picked the left tunnel. Once they were far enough along, she snuck back silently, and struck out on her own down the right tunnel. This was her world, her darkness, and here, she reigned supreme. Her daggers were already drawn, her eyes and ears on full alert as she slipped from darkest shade in darkest tunnel to another. Her tunnel kept leading deeper and deeper, showing no sign that anything had ever come this way in recent time. The only thing that seemed off, was the occasional wisps of heat whirling through the tunnel without explanation. They were far warmer than breath, seeming more akin to fire. But still, she kept on. Drisceya felt the slightest of vibrations, and immediately leapt back at the behest of her instincts. Before her was a giant maw snapped shut with massive slicing teeth, one of which was splashed with blood. She saw the creature slither back, revealing this tunnel opened up into a massive, seemingly bottomless cavern.

Then she felt the warmth on her legs, looked down, to see her left arm was missing up to the elbow, and was bleeding profusely onto her. The creature reared back, looking like some sort of massive worm. She watched it thin out, and immediately knew its intention. Instead of standing there, waiting to become food, she leapt into the abyss, other dagger out in front, ready to do something insane in order to survive.

The main group pressed onward, and Alya could hear the heartbeat growing stronger. It got deeper and louder, until the tunnel crested upward into a circular cave with no adornment. In the center was a single hole, and it was clear to the songweaver that the sound was coming from there. The walls were frigid, frozen, covered in ice. At the exact moment that Ortha and Echo had moved through the moss, the heart beat stopped. The ice on the walls fell away in shattered sheets, revealing three identical tunnels.

From the tunnel they'd come from, came a loud ruffling noise. It was heavy, and burst through the cavern. It was more of that purple moss, and was quickly filling and covering that side of the cavern. The two human knights were standing near the far right tunnel, Svarak near the central hole, and the humonculus by the far left tunnel. Svarak immediately drew his sword, but it was clear as the plant rampaged in and filled the space there was no fighting. It would simply smother or crush anything still in there in the very near future.

Ebonfort

Active
Aelia Tyrannson ✓ @SouffleGirl123
Gaulirax ✓ @The Emperors Blade
Dain Crest ✓ @Shurikai
Cole "Batsy" Orlain ✓ @terrorbubble
Graakt Softhammer ✓ @Twhirtley
Cecielle ✓ @thetruthwhale
Cihr'Cten ✓ @SilverSpartan
Ahmal Ervallen ✓ @Rekaigan
Drachiathoryx 'Drache Sgarsiath' ✓ @Drache
Asher Kincade ✓ @Drache
Raffey Silafin ✓ @Twhirtley

Chartose Treeshedder X

@Foster Few things needing to adjust. Metalsmithing doesn't need a (Copper), same with Animal Husbandry and (dog).

Rilana Aurorime' ✓ @Drache
Megumi Tsukiyama ✓ @Rekaigan
Lyriia “Lii” Elenye ✓ @RomanAria
Alya Eloen ✓ @Drache
Verissa Beatrix Greenlakes aka Trix ✓ @Twhirtley

Active, not in an RP yet
Alexander Bane ✓ @Krinos Solstice
Narissa Vendalien ✓ @Mag Lev
Natalie S. Brooks ✓ @Landaus Five-One
Finnras Duskarynn ✓ @Drache

Kira Kodera X

Apologies for taking so long on this. Its a very minor issue in my opinion. But starting skills need to be a minimum of 5 points. So your fishing, drinking, and gambling skills are simply too low. @Visionaryness

Inactive

Ardon
Ketta
Crann
Nyérë “Nia” Elenye
Baofeng Lingzhu
Halbera
Priestley
Bula Do’Gash
Anataaoerki
Temen
Genrit’khaath
Leona "Leo" Hartford
Zenovia
Ember
Zael Glast
Vera Persephone Woods
Kamui stormgaze
Ava Rayne
Gianna Ember
Galawynd Elsinal
Gregory Whitehorn
Samuel Spark

[Ebonfort] Days of Grass and Dust

Verissa suddenly found herself being swept all about, hearing the rough, loud, scared voice of Asher. The iron grip on her wrist, along with being pulled so hard bodily made her gasp in pain. For the briefest of moments, she was lost in a world of complete confusion, not realizing that her sneaky bit of Shielding might've actually been seen. She found herself looking at his face as he was inspecting her hand, and she could see the genuine fear there. He actually cared about her well-being.

Then she saw it. The look she'd always been afraid of seeing back in Ebonfort. He knew what she was. Despite what that captain had said on that day she'd found the massacred company, she still lived in fear of people discovering what she was. Her wrist was still in his iron grip, but that mild pain wasn't what brought tears to her eyes. It was fear of what would happen next. Her mind knew that she would be attacked, tortured, killed, at the very least, ripped away from this new world of hers.

Her chest began rising and falling rapidly, her panic taking over her breath. Her eyes began darting around for an escape, despite Asher still holding onto her. In full fledged panic, she used her other hand and brought forth an instant shield between them, focusing on protecting herself from as much as possible, just as she'd done during the raid. She attempted to yank her hand free, her voice coming in frightened gasps. The shield hovered momentarily, the light lavender that always seemed to be the color of her magic, before fading into invisibility. She could still see it though. It was small, about neck height on Asher, roughly the size of a buckler. She doubt it would stop him but she had no choice. She needed to run, to flee, to hide, anything so that these people wouldn't hunt and kill her.

Ebonfort

Welcome @Krinos Solstice to the family :D

I'm conducting a CS Review of all Characters as well as updating the Active Characters list. I'll be tagging you if there's any sort of issue. Thanks!