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 Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2011 1:00 am
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Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2011 1:17 am
Head milling, thoughts askew, but most importantly Acanthus was fidgeting. Nothing new, of course, but the stallion was all a-twitch with ears swivelling in every direction and his hooves clip-clopping away as he made his way somewhat rhythmically along. Where was it that he had been heading? Jerking his head up suddenly, he looked around to try to place where he had blundered to find himself somewhere very strange indeed.
The trees were tall and stretched beyond the stars overhead. Every branch was swathed in moss as if they were dressed up for some grand ball or other such expectant occasion. All was quiet, and there was an eerie fog rolling in with the glimmer of the night's first stars. It was cold to the touch and it seemed to whisper as it wove between the tree trunks and wiry brush. Most noticeable of all was the smell. The area had the distinct smell... No. Feel. Of time. This area was old, it was aged beyond years to be imagined.
All of this had caught Acanthus' attention so wholly that he was barely aware of his feet as they continued to trudge on while his head held high scanned the canopy above, sure that he was seeing eyes watching his every move.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2011 2:37 pm
It was as he remembered it, though he'd never been here before. He had seen it in his dreams, had felt the fog and the vapour. He had heard the whispers of the wind...this place, it really existed?
Why did he have this feeling of deja-vu? You weren't supposed to know a place before you went there. You weren't supposed to have a familiarity or connection there with it. Tendrils of questions twisted in his still forming mind.
He was young, orphaned--but old enough to be on his own if he wanted--though he was quiet lonely. Was this a place where once he had a family? There was something...something there he wanted and needed....Something....that was pulling at the edge of his mind.
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Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2011 3:38 pm
His giant hooves plodded along on auto-pilot, not the steadiest of treads, but this place was... strange. It spoke in chilled whispers that were almost understood, almost language and every so often he could swear they were talking to him as opposed to around him. But that just... wasn't possible... was it?
Why would this place be speaking to him, be tugging at his mind as if trying to pull out memories that he didn't know he possessed? Why did this place feel so familiar, and yet at the same time feel so foreign, so unreal and unknown?
Wings being rustled uncomfortably, Acanthus was paying no attention to his movements, so it was no surprise that out of what seemed like no where he came within closer than normal proximity to another soquili. Unaware of their presence, he threw out his wings suddenly in an attempt to unfold them and shake them out... had it not been for the body that one of them promptly bumped into, striking it violently in a loud smack with enough force to knock someone small over and cause a larger opponent to stumble. Snapping his head to attention, he quickly realized that he was not alone in this misty grove when he caught sight of the mass of orange and black that was another feathered stallion, but in reaction he was still slowed by the mysterious surroundings, and therefore just froze physically as his gaze fell upon the stranger.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2011 4:45 pm
As he tried to take in the surroundings, Horus closed his eyes. Sounds, dreadful sounds moved out there--but there wasn't anything there--right?
Wrong.
Just as he was about to open his eyes, something hit him and knocked him to the ground in surprise. For a moment, he sat there in a heap--glasses askew and didn't move.
Adjusting his glasses, he glanced aroudn to see what exactly had happened. Seeing a grey and bloody stallion, he focused his eyes on him. "Who--why are you here?" He wasn't really sure what to say or not say. Or really, should he run?
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Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2011 6:03 pm
His gaze was stuck to the stranger, but it took some time to focus and for him to really see what he was looking at. It almost seemed to happen in slow-motion. He felt impact, shivers went up his wing and through his back in small waves from the hit. Then the trees blurred as he turned his head to see just what he had hit, and to watch the stranger fall to the ground in a heap stunned. Freezing and allowing his gaze to drop down to the fallen (and now apparent) winged soquili, he was stuck in this trance until spoken to. The voice broke the spell and brought life back into Acanthus.
A spark of life, of dark craving and of hunger, flashed in his inkling orbs almost as if he were about to pounce or strike. But when he blinked it was gone, as if it had never been there. Slowly folding his wings back into his sides the draft glanced down at himself and instantly understood the look of shock and hesitation on the other's face. The blood. Ah yes, he had forgotten all about the blood. He had been out for yet another practice hunt, beginning to take down deer and even stags with relative ease but it was never clean. Oh no, it was never clean. Past the blood and gore it was always hard to tell just what the mangled mess had been before he had gotten a hold of it. Mid-meal he had heard a whisper, something calling his name and had left before cleaning up, and he had followed it here.
Grinning slyly Acanthus nodded at the other and replied coyly, "Hunting. Well... trying to anyway. Before I got called here." Narrowing his eyes and lifting his lip to reveal his kalona fangs he asked cautiously, "Was it you that called my name?" His neck had craned and snaked forward a bit, but as soon as he asked the question he drew back and lifted his head once more, it was no matter, he had afterall been curious enough to follow the calling to this mysterious place. Shaking out his mane and stamping a foot, he sent droplets of blood in all directions, and yet he would remain soaked from hoof to chest and up to his chin until he washed, which he had no intention of doing any time soon. This was much more interesting than his meal had been.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2011 6:53 pm
For a moment, something dark rose up in him---something from ancestors he never knew or cared to know about before. But the blood spattering made him grip his talons tighter and stare up at the other male as he rose. Something akin to hot anger coursed through his body as he bared his teeth, his hair lankly blowing in a sudden chill wind.
"I did not call you," came out the gruff voice. And then the anger was gone. As simple as that gone. Yet he sized up the other, the flecks of blood spattering him were now on Horus.
"Why would you think that I called you? I don't know you," he mused half aloud. But it was true, something--though not a voice, had called him here too. Some memory too faint, to uncertain that brought him here.
You've come before. We need you now. Soft whispers. Don' t you miss us...
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Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2012 11:13 pm
If this other stallion hadn't called him, then who had?
Taking a quick glance around once more, just to be sure, Acanthus scanned the area to see if he had overlooked someone. No one to be seen other than his own hulking frame and the orange stallion before him. Shrugging his shoulders, he half-turned on the spot, side now towards the stranger he calmly took in some details: feathery wings, like his, and yet obvious kalona blood also, almost resulting in a scuffle. Interesting, how violence was so often the first instinct the breed reacted with. But this silent musing was not going to get any of his questions answered, so he listened to the other's shared thoughts before sharing his own.
"And I do not know you," voice rough, but calm, he shortly added, "Do you know anything about this place? Feels like I've been here before, but I'm positive I haven't." For now, that was all he said, not wanting to say too much, but wanting to know if the stranger knew any more than he did.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2012 10:44 pm
Horus stared at the other male. He hadn't called him, and the other stallion hadn't called him. He was obviously kalona, violent by nature--by breed. But then, so was he. He gripped his talons harder into the earth. "You feel the calling of this place too? Like...you've been here before, only you haven't. Only in dreams."
This was what he was good at, telling stories. He'd always been convincing, and now it was turning into manipulation. "But isn't there a reason we're here then...that we should both be here at the same time?" He fluttered his wings lightly.
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Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2012 10:55 pm
Cautiously Acanthus nodded along. Yes, he had been called here. Yes, he felt like he had been here before. Yes, like a dre--- no. Almost having walked the suggestion straight into his own belief, Acanthus caught himself at the last moment. It was a good suggestion, and it was similar to what he could possibly describe it like, but it was not quite right. Not enough of a difference that he brought anything up, but he did stop nodding and instead payed more attention to the other stallion.
"I...." a falter, but only for a moment, "I don't know. It must mean something..." Doing one last size-up on the other male, the blue stallion finally puts his own neck forward, deeming himself safe enough to be able to stand his ground if it turned out to be a bad idea. "Acanthus. Does my name sound familiar?" It was a last-stitch sort of effort, as he had no other idea what could possibly tie the two of them together, other than the kalona blood and the approximate similar age.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Sun Feb 05, 2012 1:38 am
Horus thought quickly, "I might have heard it in my dream once..." He hadn't. "Does my name seem familiar? It's Horus." He tilted his head, widening his eyes as if in interest and shock.
He kept his eyes on the other male, his mind easing from transition to transition of thought. He felt relatively at ease. He was use to playing roles. This male he could be...useful. If not, he could at least avoid an unnecessary fight.
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Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2012 8:58 pm
Lifting his head and tilting it slightly, he thought a moment, mulled the name over and tried his best to recall anything about such a name. But all he drew was a blank. The name rang no bells, sprung no memories to mind, and even sounded a little foreign to him. He had never even met a different soquili by that name before.
"No, it doesn't." Replying honestly, Acanthus shook his head to go along with his answer, but one of his brows curved in toward the eye in mild confusion. If the two of them didn't know one another, and couldn't really identify this place, then why had they both been called here?
Stamping a heavy hoof, the stallion shifted his weight a bit. "This makes no sense. Maybe it's just the weather or something." He was about done with this eerie, confusing place. It was wasting his time now, and he had expended enough energy on trying to figure it out. Another time, he would have spent more to figure out what was going on here, but as it was, he had other things to work on. Not to mention he should really be heading back to Fathom soon. It wouldn't do to upset her, especially not with her recent development of sporadic grumpiness.
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2012 9:52 pm
Horus could sense the Acanthus growing displeasure, but he didn't want to let him go quite yet. "Hmmm..." he mused as if he was in deep thought. He wanted the other stallion to think that he was lost in trying to figure it out. There was nothing to figure out though, a mere whimsy of a dream had brought him here--but nothing more. If this stallion tried to find the deeper meaning, he would be searching for centuries--there was of course no tangible reason other than fate.
Which meant that Horus had something to...play with. He frowned lightly, "I suppose it could be the weather but...it doesn't feel right. It feels like there's a reason. Don't you...feel it?" He crinkled his eyes as if he really had to think about it, as if it really mattered to him.
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Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:06 pm
He glanced at the other stallion without moving his head, vaguely interested why he was still trying to figure something out. There were clearly no other signs here of what had brought them to this place, and yet the other was still musing and debating his own contribution of the possibility of weather interference. Alright, alright, so his suggestion wasn't a great one, but whatever.
"I... suppose..." When he glanced back at the other stallion's face, what he saw was determination and drive to try and figure this out. Well if it meant that much to this stallion, he supposed he could try to stay and help. Not like he had a bedtime or anything.
Coming over to stand next to Horus' side he lifted his head and took a really good look around. The fog was everywhere, as he had seen earlier, but now that he had decided to give it the time of day, he stared at it a little closer. It was all... no, it couldn't be...
Quietly he murmured as much to Horus as to himself, "Is it all moving together...? To the same place...?"
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Nyx Queen of Darkness Crew
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Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:38 pm
Horus could see that his plan was working. The other stallion was listening, staying just like he wanted. Did he have a purpose for the other stallion? Any use in mind? No, he didn't. But maybe it would come to him....
He'd never felt this drive to manipulate before. Maybe there was something about this place that was helping him to find himself, to direct his intentions on a certain path. Maybe this place was special after all. He nodded his head quickly, "It does look that way. But what could it mean?"
Indeed, what could it mean? If it even had a purpose. "It doesn't appear to be dangerous or anything of the like. Maybe it wants something from us..." Yes, there. The seed was planted, the feeling was planted..maybe this stallion could be manipulated in the future to do something he wanted.
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