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Bronze [Setebos]

Posted by: Kieran~ - October 22, 2017, 09:34:33 PM - Replies (1)

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The right side of his face didn't seem to be tight anymore. The scars had healed under the miraculous care of the Medic, his skin knitting together neatly under the salves and bandages that had been generously applied. The clinic had been quiet, thankfully, barely anyone trickling in in the weeks that Kieran had been an inpatient. His food was delivered on time daily, keeping his belly full and warm, as well as his pain relief. The bandages had come off his eye yesterday, allowing the man to see with both eyes as he lumbered about the gardens.

He wandered further at times, but always returned promptly. He was... not afraid, but wary. He was wary of the Monarchs, caging himself to the confines of Setebos' garden; as if they couldn't come in to get at him if they so wished. Brushing past the hedges, the man made his way back into the clearing, charcoal ears perking up at the sound of rushed voices. One being... an unknown, and the other belonging to a certain Medic.

Rumbling, the Omega made his way forward, chunky paws eating up the distance swiftly as he approached the arguing duo. Something about medication? The Medic was withholding pain relief for a patient who didn't require it. If that was correctly assumed from all the shouting and screeching. A huff escaped his maw as he came closer, colbalt eyes narrowing at the two men that were practically nose to nose as the argument escalated further.

The Omega came up on Setebos' side, loud footfalls hopefully enough not to startle him. A growl thundered in his chest at the other man, his hip nudging into Setebos' slightly as he loomed over the white wolf. He had no time to think about his actions, or even that this wolf could, and probably was, a higher rank than Kieran could hope to be in the coming weeks. But he was big, and could be intimidating without really knowing so. For a moment he forgot his position, a deep desire to put an end to this before it escalated any further.

“Leave.” He'd demand, ears pushed forward as he pulled his head down to invade the white wolf's space, almost forcing the other man back with his bulk. A huff left his lips as the other man backed up and left, Kieran's stance remaining unmoving before blinking owlishly at what he'd done. Taking a step or two back from the smaller Medic, Kieran lowered his head in a bow, remembering his place. Ah shit.

“Setebos... sorry. Shit. Don't tell Haylyn.”

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wallflower | WALL EXPLORATION!

Posted by: Iaera - October 22, 2017, 07:48:05 PM - Replies (6)

Akira had summoned them, and the new rules had been spoken by the previously absent Queen, Serrate if Iaera recalled correctly. It had been the first time she had laid eyes upon the Queen who admittedly, looked quite unwell despite her bold announcement. After she'd taken her leave of the whole situation, she thought back to it, she'd watched the wall be built up only barely, and knew little about the structure. Often she had patrolled out past it, into Gemini's lowlands, where the slightly-more-official border was. Today however the fancy struck her to really take a good long look at the wall, and perhaps, just maybe if she could find it in herself to get close, to study those skulls. They had no meaning to her, other than that they seemed like a not so thinly veiled threat to outsiders; Iaera truly knew very little about Gemini it seemed. Names that should have came up by now had not, and she was left not knowing the story of Skylar's father, the darling prince.

Probably because such things did not often come up in pleasant conversation... And pleasant conversation was the nature of Iaera, everything else came to her with some difficulty.

Right now however, there was nobody to converse with as she ambled towards the wall. It was comforting, to have something so wildly imposing protecting her from the dangers out there while she slept. Slowly it seemed to be easing Iaera's anxiety, but there was always something else to worry her. Now it crept up slowly, and took her by surprise, but she found herself wishing to criticize the quality of the structure... Could it be easily knocked down or tackled? Was it really as safe as it looked to be? Was it all just a ruse? Why couldn't she let anything go? Why couldn't she just relax? Why couldn't she trust that if her KING said it was good to go, that it was good to go? Her stomach rolled in knots, half in anxiety, half in self-loathing. "You've GOT to stop doing this to yourself!" she bit angrily to herself, shaking her head and beginning to march quite upsettedly towards the wall. She'd check it out, and she knew, she knew deep down it would be absolutely fine.

But it didn't hurt to look, to familiarize herself with it, after all she was a Ranger. It was quite the important thing to be well acquainted with the structure that protected their inner territory from harm. Plus she'd be going out to enforce the Queen's new rule, nobody under a year old could be beyond it into the lowlands. It was a good rule, and it did do wonders for Iaera's trust in the previously absent Queen. Serrate had made a decent first impression on the little Whisper-slash-Ranger; Iaera didn't care nor wonder why the woman looked unwell, it wasn't her business, she too often looked unwell as of late. Such was the essence of Gemini to make people unknowingly (or knowingly) unwell. It seethed in and out of everything, twisting and devouring, though Iaera was no hellion, it seemed to lay a heavy grip on her heart. Perhaps some day she would become stronger than the ethereal menace.

All thoughts were washed away when she came to the wall, the fortress' first line of defense. Tall, foreboding, especially to a creature as short in stature as the wolfdog was. Her small, delicate skull craned back to view all the way up it. Certainly a substantial work of art, and as she inspected it further she noticed the color of the miss-matched rocks, spackled together with whatever seemed to be around. A tiny claw tapped at it softly at first, as if the whole thing would come tumbling down on her should she hit it too hard. Then a soft pat, paw pad smacking against it, knuckles wracking against it, she threw her body weight against it, pushing with front paws. Each time she withdrew quickly, as if she would be fast enough to dodge it's eminent downfall, but each time it stood against whatever test she offered. It crossed her mind that she was not much of a threat to it, having no height and very little weight. She also thought she would very much like to avoid harming herself, so she would need to test it in some other way.

The rock staircases seemed like as good an idea as any when it came to testing the marvel. Thankfully this one was left assembled, as Iaera did not currently know the logic to taking them apart and putting them back up again. Each cautious step followed by a hefty bounce, as if daring it to go out from under her, while simultaneously being terrified that it actually would. It was a fantastic way of being, and the adrenaline in her veins kept her moving forward instead of freezing or going back towards the ground. Violet eyes focused solely on her steps she did not look out, or around, or down, step, bounce, step, bounce, step kinda bounce, stepstepstep. As she finally bridged the last step between staircase and wall top, she beamed proudly and finally looked up. Her fastidious test had rewarded her with a view that thus far had been unparalleled. Perhaps someone with less horizontal challenges, or someone who had spent time in the mountains, or the castle might not be as impressed, but Iaera was awestruck. She took it in, grinning softly, carefully setting herself down, as tiny as she was she had plenty of room.

For a moment, a brief shining moment, Iaera was quite happy and content with herself, looking out and around at all of Gemini. Until of course, it dawned on her that she would have to go back down the steps, as she turned to do so, her body sank into the wall. "Ooooh n-n-n-n-ooo-onno-nno-n-no-oooo." It gurgled out as her throat clenched shut, tail tucked underneath her petrified body as she lay as flat as she possibility could against the stop of the wall and the first step. She'd never been up high enough to learn that she was afraid of heights and now she wasn't sure she could get down. But... she couldn't call for help either, that was... That was pathetic. So not knowing what to do she simply laid her head down, wide, terrified eyes staring out at the wall laid out before her.

Maybe she would just die here, and they could use her skull too.

✬ IAERA ✬

|✬| gemini |✬|
the nymph
whisper & ranger

"Get over your hill and see what you find there, with grace in your heart and flowers in your hair."
-Mumford and Sons

Profile

lines © lilyote on dA

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In his castle strong brave reason sits beleaguer'd

Posted by: Excalibur - October 22, 2017, 07:08:59 PM - Replies (7)

The deluge poured in through the castle's crumbling roof creating temporary waterfalls that beat down onto the stone floors with echoing slaps. In some places this ingress had clearly been happening for decades, if not centuries, water had eroded smooth bowls and rivulets into the flags. Theses ingrained waterways then snaked away to disappear into the cracks between the huge slabs, presumably to continue the damp invasion into lower floors.

Excalibur scraped some mud into one of the cracks; it dammed the flow for a moment, creating a browish pool, but the water soon found its way through and drained away taking the mud with it. She sighed. She had known it wouldn't work but tried anyway. "Sorry. I'll have to come up with something better." She muttered, as if the castle could hear her. Of course it couldn't... But... There was something about this place, a watchfulness... A presence? She had noticed it the first time she had entered, many weeks ago. At first it seemed forbidding; odd sensations like a sudden, sharp, tug on her ear or tail and bitter cold patches of air, but now it seemed, familiar... Almost friendly? Warm gusts would greet her from no where, even on the coldest of days, and then there were odd sensations like gentle rubs on her nose. She was probably imagining it, she told herself, it was probably some sort of thermal activity underground and cobwebs... Something plausible.

"I would make you whole again..." She murmured to the nearest wall -a wistful wish from one shadow of its former self to another- placing a paw against it and scraping away the green moss coating. Back in her old home a rock was a rock -big, solid, hurt you if you kicked it- just plain old rock. Here it was comanded, twisted, shaped, it could become anything so long as you had the vision to make it so. The Wall had proven it. Well, vision and skills, and it was that last one she was sadly lacking in. She was no builder and had no clue where she would even start. A soft breeze seemed to stroke like fingers through her ruff, she smiled. While she was definitely refusing to admit a castle was her friend -her only friend- she did keep coming back, daily, and had even taken to calling out a cheery, echoing, 'Hello!' when she did so. "You would be so magnificent." She told the castle as she brushed more moss away from an intricately carved block.

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No Grave But The Sea [Solomon]

Posted by: Triteia (Trout) - October 22, 2017, 06:14:57 PM - No Replies

OOC: more crossposting old threads

Triteia could not scramble out of the cave quickly enough. With fumbling paws, she snatched the flask at her side and scooped as much water as it could carry, almost spilling its contents. She wasn't anywhere close to sufficiently hydrated, but in her desperation to escape Baal's probing stare (that single word, GO, haunting her, ringing in her ears, the shade of the cave might as well have been smothering her), she was all too willing to brave the scorching heat. She nudged Solomon hard in an attempt to rouse him, muttering in his ear, "'ey old man. I'm goin' out." The invitation hung in the air, and though she hoped he would accept it, it was his choice to decide whether or not to follow.

Panic was a horribly torturous feeling to endure, especially in solitude. Her hammering heart instilled a contradictory need for simultaneous distance and closeness; the want to have someone to cling to, but the need to reject everyone around her.

Triteia hastily departed the cave, resisting the urge to glance behind her. She heard movement -- the hairs on the back of her neck prickled, and against better judgment, she looked behind her. She was glad to see that instead of Baal, Aysu, or to a lesser extent, Raikov prowling in her shadow, there stood Solomon, looking haggard but nevertheless prepared. Triteia grinned as she was flooded with relief, the look edging too closely into her eyes, and led him away from their headquarters. Her plan was not to venture too deeply into the desert. Too great a likelihood to get lost and bumble about this neverending, unconquerable land for eternity. Protection was in numbers.

As the pair wandered, Triteia jabbered endlessly, voice hitching too quickly in places, sounding nigh incoherent as she tripped between tangents. She tried to play off her stumbling as just a minor quirk, but perhaps Solomon was perceptive enough to notice the fault in her charisma. After ten minutes of this endless barrage, Triteia obtained some semblance of self-awareness. "Uh, listen ta me ramble on and on and on," Triteia laughed sheepishly. "I sound like a fuckin' cra--bleh! Maniac, huh?"

More time passed. As Triteia trudged down this weathered desert road, flanked by looming stone walls, she noticed something lurking behind the heat haze. Irrationally, her nerves bristled. She proceeded down the leviathan's great throat and into its gullet, feeling those walls constrict around her like she was a nugget of raw meat, and as she advanced, she realized that instead of whatever oddity she had suspected, it was-- a collapsed human relic, half-submerged in the sands. Triteia blinked, and with renewed fascination, she sprinted for the wagon. One of its wheels was reduced to tinder, and mounds of sand accumulated in the wagon's crevices, trapping it like a rhino half-eaten by quicksand.

If Triteia knew much of humans, she would have correctly assumed that this was a lost piece of a larger procession, which was abandoned after being broken. Wandering nomads occasionally traversed the desert as they drifted from place to place, selling their wares, and this wagon was used to transport those goods. The wagon's former drivers had been sure to strip the wagon of most of its valuables, but as Triteia began to unearth the wagon, she discovered that not all of its treasures had been snapped up.

The fabrics had been dirtied by continuous exposure to the buffeting desert storms, but they were still intact, so she bundled them up. Beads and fragments of crystals were clustered in hidden shelves. She did not recognize most of the stones, but the great variety of colors intrigued her. Some of them had been carved into little shapes: turtles, birds and fish. Animal teeth and leather strips -- Triteia took those too. Maybe Albatross or Eremiel could fashion those into something suitable. Right now, Triteia was very much like a vulture, picking a carcass clean. She circled the wagon, eager to delve deeper into its innards.

"Wow," Triteia giggled, "Look at this thing. We've really hit the jackpot."

Too bad there wasn't any booze hiding in the remains.

triteia's inventory:
gold nuggets
water flask

gained:
- beads aplenty
- fabric
- obsidian owl statuette
- jade seahorse carving
- yellow agate turtle carving
- turquoise bear carving
- moonstone moon carving
- 5 sardonyx chunks
- 4 rose quartz chunks
- 5 river agate
- 3 pearls
- 2 moonstones
- 4 turquoise chunks
- 4 malachite chunks
- leather cords
- unknown bones

gee, that bag is starting to feel awfully heavy. good thing they're not far from camp.

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weights and measures [Kieran]

Posted by: Haven - October 22, 2017, 06:06:10 PM - Replies (2)

The queen paced the edge of the lake restlessly. She'd been anxious and nauseous and in foul tempers the past few days, despite having been given no reason for it. She stared at her reflection in the lake a bit, seeing the scars along her abdomen, now fully healed. Seeing the bright glitter in her eyes. The paladin, like all paladins, felt like she needed to be doing something, something important and desperate, but she did not know what. Everything was peaceful and still and all the queen could do was pace.

Appreciate the quiet, she told herself. It never lasts long.

At the sound of a rustle in the bushes, she turned. Ears pricked towards the interloper, eyes narrowed. She had thought for a split second that the wolf was Ghost, so similar were they in build and coloration, but no. This must be his father. The wolf that had left Inaria for greener pastures mere moments after Haylyn became a mother. The golden wolf had little patience for those who abandoned their kingdom, or their family. She sat down on her hind haunches, yellow gaze piercing.

"Omega." She said in cold greeting.

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16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought-Six [Sinbad, Celeste, Mako]

Posted by: Triteia (Trout) - October 22, 2017, 05:49:13 PM - Replies (2)

OOC: For Sinbad and Mako, but any of the Rabies kids are welcome to join! Takes place immediately after epilogue.

Fortunately, when confronted with bloody waters and a disemboweled woman on a slow crawl towards death, the royal siblings didn't require any further persuasion. Triteia easily corralled them away from the scene and, making sure they didn't glance back to the bloodbath behind them, she shepherded the children into the depths of the rainforest. Concerning herself with the children's wellbeing provided a valuable distraction from the reality of what she had witnessed. Triteia had a sneaking suspicion that the memory of Eros's remains splattered across the beach would revisit her later that night, but for the time being, she tried to focus on her next course of action.

Triteia didn't know Eros, or what, exactly, the woman represented to Baal and Raikov. Triteia had assumed that Raikov was there acting as Captain, not mourning the loss of his surrogate parent. As for Baal, the self-aggrandizing bitch could never turn down the opportunity to grandstand in front of the entire pack by slaying a shark. She could add "Sharkslayer" next to her fancy Kraken title.

Triteia ventured an appraising look over her shoulder, and was satisfied that enough distance had been put between herself and the beach. She supposed it wasn't fair to leave the kids in suspense. Sinbad in particular was likely wracked with anxiety. She was equally concerned for the both of them, but Sinbad -- the boy was her doppelganger, in some ways. It wasn't his physical appearance - he was a far cry from the turquoise genes predominant in Triteia's family, his pelt a lush camouflage of jade brindle splashed with his dam's golden-brown - but what the two of them had been exposed to. He elicited a certain sympathy from her that felt like a cold blade between her ribs. Triteia took a deep breath and approached him first, giving the little brindle boy a once-over.

"Hey, did that shark get you anywhere? You don't look like yer hurt, but I just wanna make sure," Triteia said. "Y' hungry at all? I can get you somethin' ta eat or drink."

Then, a reassuring glance to Mako. She remembered the kid from their last meeting at her new home. "And yer... Mako, right? I remember you!" She grinned, toothily. Her smile had a certain roguish edge that had a habit of surfacing even when she was at peace. "You doin' okay?"

While Triteia didn't know anything about Raikov or Baal's relationship to Eros, she had inferred from Hebe's reaction that Eros was important to him. He would need some time alone, and then... her mind wandered to Aethon. Her childhood friend who had been reunited with his long-missing mother, only to watch her get snatched away by cruel fate. Triteia swallowed, trying to keep herself talking, so she could stop thinking. "Um -- it may be a while before either of yer dads show up, but they'll be here," Triteia said. "Anyway, Mako here already knows me, but I'm Triteia - you can call me Tri. I'm yer dad's--uh, Raikov's, sister." They had two dads, didn't they? Duh.

"I'll keep you safe while we're waitin' fer him," she declared, pressing a burn-mangled paw to her chest in a silent pledge. No shark, panther, or terrible sea creature was going to hurt them while she was around. That was a promise! "Now then, what's yer name?"

(Triteia knew from experience that there was no guaranteeing safety.
It didn't matter if your mother - or father - was the Captain, if you had been through enough, or if you loved them.
They didn't have to learn that, yet.)

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The Night is Dark [Setebos]

Posted by: Kieran~ - October 22, 2017, 03:08:08 PM - Replies (2)

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The Omega awoke with a gasp, lungs heaving as he shook himself awake. Flashes of teeth and snarls and laughter rang in his ears, the large man trembling as he remembered where he was. Inaria's homely scent flooded his nostrils, assisting in calming him enough to stand on not so shakey legs. The moonlight illuminated the ground, the Healers garden a peaceful place even in the dead of the night. The Omega padded quietly toward the stream, dunking his face in the fresh water before pulling his head back with a brisk shake.

A shuddering breath left him as he focused on breathing. Though his ears twitched as he heard another figure out. Anxiety spiked at the thought of running into Haylyn or Ghost out here alone, but it was perhaps one of the only friendly faces he'd come to know. Quietly, he'd pad closer and enquire, the doctor looking as exhausted as he felt.

"Doc? You okay?"

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Pieces get broken (Setebos, repost from old forum)

Posted by: .Eira. - October 22, 2017, 02:21:55 PM - Replies (2)

Their time was running out.

Soon the scampering, hollering masses of Alteronian youth would be gathered at Lynx's proverbial skirthems, lead away from this idyllic paradise back into what could only be described as Azuhel's hungry maw. The prospect was not a happy one for the little hellhound. And so she curled in a tiny nook between some bushes and a tree, her paws over her face, her one broken antler jagged and asynchronous with the other. She wasn't crying, no, she'd tough it out for a while. But she did feel a sense of deep sadness.

One paw ran lifted from her eyes and moved upwards to touch the fragile antlers projecting from her skull. They were her curse and equally as much her identity, and she took a moment to wonder, as she often did, what her life would be like without them. How much easier things would be. She'd be spared physical pain, of course. The shame of being different. But part of her also knew that whatever had made her bony antlers had also made her visions. And her visions had caused her nothing but suffering.

She could feel the air becoming chiller, and she knew that Alteron was even further north. That at least was some comfort at least. By the time she reached that dreaded place, the feeble glow of her antlers now would be bloomed into a broken foxfire torchlight, her strange form finally becoming something useful.

Of course, her visions wouldn't warn her about what would come spring.

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Discord Link

Posted by: Raikov - October 22, 2017, 12:49:58 PM - No Replies

	.
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My Sweet Lord [PRP Trout]

Posted by: Raikov - October 22, 2017, 12:19:23 PM - Replies (1)

It was with a determined purpose that the Captain walked today.

The sun was bright and harsh on his back, soaked up the warmth that gave him more strength to press on. Heavy paws sunk into the sand as he walked down the beach front, nostril flaring as he picked up Albatross' scent. They had been established in the territory long enough now that he was familiar with their landmarks; picking pathways to navigate around. The denning around was made up of small, abandoned huts that the crafters had cleaned up. Not quite the traditional den, but they had never been quite the traditional pack. Tortuga was familiar with humans and their strange objects, they had little issue with residing in their handmade homes too.

Sand eventually turned to soft blades of grass, the Leviathans form slithering between the line of trees and away from the sea breeze. Alby didn't live at the floor level, but there was many levels on the mountain that held a nest of dens. The Captain's tongue swiped over his nose, feeling the ridge in the scar that was made the last time they had spoken. He had learnt a lot since then, had practised the art of patience with Eremiel, so he didn't make the same mistakes as last time.

The brute paused outside the den, decorated with seashells and feathers that chimed gently in the wind. Navy ears perked upward as he inhaled Trout's fresh scent on the ground, confirming that she was here. There was an uncharacteristic nervousness, but only fleeting. They had been at odds since she was young, the Bermuda strangling his conscious mind at the lightest tick and tock. It was unfortunate that Trout had bore the brunt of his fury not once, but twice now. He'd spoken to Brielle and then to Eremiel regarding their... relationship.

It was with some amount of guilt, that he would never admit nor show, that he came here. The absence of Rita and Shark meant he was head of their family, as both eldest and as Captain. He didn't want to rule like they did, splintering and shattering their family into unrecognisable pieces. He would be the glue that would mend them together, for the good of themselves, for the good of the Empire.

”Trout. Come out, I got somethin' fer ye,” He'd rumble, deep voice like a brewing thunder; though it held no bite, no sharpness to it. Raikov stood a few steps back, enough for Trout to slither out of the den to see it was just him, there was no ambush waiting. The captain's haunches lowered to the ground, claws digging into the soft soil of the mountain path as he fixation sharp sulphur eyes on her.

”We need ta talk.”

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