No response, not even visual stimuli. The woman before him definitely saw the memories, and yet, her eyes continued to hammer him down, beating the man as if he were a criminal resisting arrest. Perhaps to her, that's exactly what he was. Some criminal figure that wronged her in the worst way possible. Alistair did not deny his part in their undoing, as he was the one who drove her away. Red knew that as well. Alistair had tried relentlessly to force himself to forget what had happened, though as hard as he tried, the memory grew more and more vivid. Here, in this building was where Alistair spat on what they called a relationship. It was also the site of their meeting. How poetic it seemed that the place where it all started was where it ended.
Her words cut him deeper than he cared to admit. Alistair had known it was over the day he declined her. Yet it didn't stop him from trying to keep the charade up. Debauchery ensued after she left him once and for all; after denying so many with their offers of pleasuring the king, he accepted. The most cruel detail about it all was that he invited a very specific crowd to his chambers. Perhaps the most identifiable feature of the woman he loved: fiery red hair. The court was riddled with rumors while the king locked himself in his chambers.
For every mistake he made, he never tried to justify his actions. He never told Red why he declined her. In actuality, he already considered the woman to be his life partner. He shared secrets with her that he failed to share with anyone, including his fear of moving faster than he'd like to. Not even a few months before she proposed, Alistair didn't even consider the concept of being in any form of intimate relationship, let alone being married. And yet, Red shot herself back into his life and somehow found her way behind his rather thick emotional barrier. While he did picture a time where he completely surrendered herself to him, they moved too fast for his liking. Not long ago, the woman before him was closer to him than anyone. Today, she stood before him, declaring their relationship completely over. As the hybrid came to full realization of what she was saying, his demeanor grew colder. Her intentions... were unclear. Had she really returned just to tell him that he had no more chances?
It seemed like this week this full of pointless confrontations. First the Shade coming to him for... training. Then he was approached by Lilith, and for some reason she came just to tell him that she wasn't looking for him. And now, Red approached him for reason he couldn't even fathom any more. With ease, he pushed his thoughts into her psyche. *I have no interest in playing games. If you really came back just to tell me that I don't have a chance in hell with you, then consider your mission complete.*
Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2015 9:11 pm
ʀᴇᴄᴏɢɴɪᴢᴇ ɪ ᴅᴇᴘʀɪᴠᴇ ᴛʜɪs ғᴇᴀʀ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇɴ ᴇᴍʙʀᴀᴄᴇ ɪᴛ
There facts in life you can not ignore. Firstly, you can never know another person completely. Secondly, you are born alone and die alone.There is no such thing as safety. Only vigilance, determination to survive, and a willingness to be ruthless about it. Fourth: love is not perfect. Neither is anyone else. Those five facts were the bile with which she use to digest the events of her every day life. She marvels, standing and dusting off the backside of her leather pants as she approaches them, that way of life, at the way her thought processes have refined. There used to be so many pit stops and detours between her mental points of departure and their eventual destinations, but now it goes kind of like this: Had she loved him? Yes. Is he perfect? No. Will she leave him? Maybe for some time, but like all things that revolve around a nuclei, she had merely let him set his wings free. You do not know what you miss until it is gone. His actions, through the rumormill, provided a clear cut picture of what exactly he had done, or rather whom. True it had always been women with a very blaring similarity to herself, there is simply no other like her. Imitation is only second best.
He speaks within a wavelength, it hits her, burns but only by so much. "Black sheep always return home." Red's voice is void of inflection. If she’s irritated by what Alistair had telepathically spoken, she betrays none of it. The fire is contained, covered in what is now ice. It was no illusion. She was here. She was real. Joy, that elusive, priceless commodity, was once again his. He inhaled; she smelled the same as she had on the day he’d met her, of sunshine on bare skin, moonlight on silver oceans and enormous, limitless dreams. Only... more, amplified by the energy that courses under and over every curve and valley alike. To his kin, it is something like the fountain of youth, a nectar too sweet, too potent. If there was anything divine in the Cosmos besides her, it was this moment, occupying space with him, the frequency of the vibration of her fundamental essence and his combined. Deep in her chest thunder rolled, some wounds never heal. So you carried on by excising the savaged flesh and become the next thing. "To a land of real monsters, south and to the east. Mostly trading, spice and such."
At such a close proximity to him, their bodies move in a graceful dance of impeccable awareness of precisely where the other is at all times that is unity, symbiosis, partnership that most dream of, wolves that chose to pack up and hunt together, soldiers who will always have each other’s backs no matter what, no sin, no transgression too great. Because don’t we all transgress sometimes? He certainly had, over and over again. Then her gaze lands on Alistair again, his bobbing Adam's apple. Lines are thin. So easy to cross. Impossible to uncross.
She has suffered the worst the world has to offer, and thrived; she is beautiful. Her eyes neon cobalt, beyond long, thick lashes that flicker from the hazy heat of cheeks, her gaze lifts, taking in the moon of his face. "Some things never change." Then Red reaches up and cups the back of his head with one hand, pulls his head forward and down. Pressing her mouth to his. She kisses him, lips parted, slow and sexy, lightly touching his lips with her tongue, seductive, warm, inviting and … dangerous. Even the Shade could feel the explosive sexual energy held in check behind her bare feather of a touch. She’s making sure Alistair feels it, slapping him in the face with all she could offer - but isn’t. It's a challenge. I’m all you have left of Dani, she tells him softly through the same connection. Be very careful how you push me, Alistair.
Letting go is easy, slipping back as she straightens her spine. Arms crossed, she is all business. "Go on." She says to Kumori as if nothing had just transpired right before his very eyes.
The silence began to tear away at the man's composure, as it felt like he had waited hours for Red to finally crack, just to hear her actual voice. Any words she could potentially say seemed... less piercing that the silent gaze she currently had locked on her face. As he continued to sift through her memories, one particular memory caught his attention. Moonlight Peak. To Alistair, it was the first time that he truly felt that the two of them were alone. His feelings for her were raw, at best at the time, and yet he followed her there regardless to fill a position to be held by a close friend.
"... finally have a captain. Welcome to the job, I'm sure in a few minutes, you'll hate it. I think you've earned a half assed compliment by now. You're on the right track. Though you still need work. Mamuro was a Novice, and a close ranged fighter, at that. Imagine trying to rip off the arm of someone you simply can't hit, or even get close to. Now that you're an Adept, you can continue on with your training. Also, since you happen to be a berserker, you need to start thinking about your Descent to Madness form. I'm sure you've heard of it. Find a tamer. Someone you trust. Don't just pick a friend, pick someone strong. Someone worthy of being your tamer. It's a permanent bond."
Within seconds, she responded.
"I have... You."
A top the mountain, Alistair had finally seen Red for who she was. Danielle. It had all made so much sense. The girl whose cheeks would flush red while simply staring into Alistair's eyes. She was dead. In front of him. Though Danielle was dead, her purity lived on. It changed the man forever.
"You've played your part well. How long did you want to wish to play this game, Danielle? What are you playing at? Making me your tamer, coming back to Nocturne, pretending to be someone else?"
As the monstrous form subsided, Red, as vulnerable as possible, sat in front of him on the ground. His words seeped through her enraged form, revealing the girl inside whose rage was impossible to understand. The two parted words, and not long after, Red had found her way past Alistair yet again. The woman was right there, naked, of all things, in front of the man. With cold words, he shot her down yet again. "If you feel the urge to 'love' someone, snuff it out. Love is a distraction."
When her lips finally parted, the vision ended abruptly as her voice seemingly demanded his attention. Her voice, a melody that often served as a mean of calming his temper, softened his cold, hardened demeanor. Though, the smaller the gap between their bodies was, the less he was focused on her voice. Her entrancing scent finally broke his cold gaze. As she gazed in the azure orbs, there were no...barriers. His gaze, as soft as it was when he awoke to find Red beside him in his chamber. Vulnerable in every way. If there were ever a time Red wanted to exact her revenge, it would be now. She could cut into Alistair like he was a piece of soggy toast, and her being the sharpened knife. Yet, what she decided to do...
The second she led Alistair's lips to hers, the man quickly wrapped his arms around her slender physique, intending to not let her go so easily. Her taste was as familiar and sweet as he remembered. Her touch, inviting him further and further, completely forgetting about the Shade in the room, not that he cared. There had been a time where the king demanded secrecy from her. Now? He'd bed her in the Colosseum if she so desired it. For the first time ever, they weren't bound by titles. He was no longer her king, and she was no longer his student. The power he so ruthlessly held over her... he relinquished willingly. Red had all of the power. And Alistair enjoyed her having it. As she pulled away, Alistair tried to reach for more, though was stopped when he thought about just how... odd this may be for the Shade. Regaining his composure, he looked at the Shade after what may have turned into a smutty movie and beckoned for the Shade to report to him now. "...Right... Report now... don't worry about her."
Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2015 12:28 am
It seemed they were literally just more focused on eachother than the world around them. They were being consumed by the presence of eachother's mind, soul, and almost their bodies if it wasn't for Red's notion to the shade's being about telling him to go on. However, he smiled once, taking a small step back as the ground shook for a bit as demonic screams could be heard, but soon silenced fairly quickly. "Better... now for what I need to say..." Kumori once started before he soon turned his attention back to Alistair as the man turned his attention back to Kumori in vice-versa. "Well, seeing as how they've been keeping a very good eye on you with several spies tailing you at every corner, I found out that the female named Marishka had a pimp report things about you... which proved nothing to her so yeah, you can guess what happened. But we're going to have to plan carefully now though. She had sent word to Zach already about moving from the Estate towards the crypts. Your call what to do next boss." Kumori told Alistair in a lower pitch of a voice to try and keep things silent to just the room for him and Red only.
• Utilize Broken Strength This is automatically activated upon the user achieving a broken arm. The energy and muscle stimulating shocks sent to the broken arm are transfered from the arm to the rest of the user, most of it going to the other arm. This allows the broken limb to be numbed to pain but can be restored at an easier pace. This helps the broken being to weild heavy weaponry with only a single arm like a weapons master, except they do not have access to any of the Weapon Master's skills.
• Shadow Form Most, if not all, physical attacks simply phase through the user. This can be a good and a bad thing. If all the opponent has all weapon and hand to hand styles, then the techniques that do not have energy coated on the weapons will simply go right through the user, making all other attacks useless. This is also bad because if the Shade attempts to attack, once can aim a physical attack at him, forcing him to turn himself into his shadowy form. By disrupting him, all of the skills he used are turned into smoke. The user may also chose to go into his incorporeal form once every three posts, at which point he can't attack.
• Shadow Regeneration The Shades are known to be living and breathing elementals of darkness. Because of that, they are capable of recovering at a slow rate while residing in dark areas or in an ally's shadow. The body is constantly healing for as long as they are within darkness and having their weapons put away. The rate of healing increases with the duration they remain in the darkness. During the regeneration process, the user cannot use offensive Bloodline or Elemental skills. If they are attacked, they have to restart recovery at the slowest rate. 1 post: Small cuts & bruises are healed. 2 Posts: Gashes are turned into small cuts. 3 Posts: Broken limbs can recover within three constant posts inside of darkness. 4 Posts: Internal injuries or burns from light/flame/holy techniques can be recovered. 5 posts: An entire missing body part can be restored at a slow, and painful rate(Excluding the head or torso and it takes 5 full posts waiting in darkness to recover.).
• Shadowy Trail A Shade does not cast a shadow, but can choose to merge with the shadow of an ally, similar to a ninja. In doing so, the Shade can act as a hidden bodyguard, emerging from the allies shadow at will. The Shade can't be detected other than by holy creatures such as Nephilims, or Paladins and Clerics.
• Shadow MQC You can now bend the shadows around you to reach your opponent that would be two spears away from you as you can attack them normally while retaining regular damage. The Shade can perform D-ranked damage when at their full strength while in this fighting style, but this is the only range modifyer this style has. This does not spread to other styles, nor weapons can benefit from learning this ability as this is to be the shade's main Fighting style.
• Vibration Sensory A useful skill, the user channels energy into their feet to sense vibrations on the ground. As long as their feet is on the ground, a user can sense where an enemy is if they are earth bound within 50ft for five posts. This skill becomes passive once the user is Adept Rank.
• Miza's backshield So long as Kumori keeps Miza sheathed on his back, he is able to resist more damage to his back. But the downside is that she can only resist up to D-rank attacks, C ranks causes a rank down in damage and B and higher cause full damage.
• Trusted Wielder This Skill requires you to beat the Spirit inside of the Sword. Miza the Terror can only acknowledge those who can defeat her in combat besides Kumori Hell. Those who can hold her after the defeat of the Sword's spirit, can become one with the sword, gaining the knowledge to use her full potential of the Weapon Style: Miza the Terror. Be wary of the weapon style itself as it can kill the user if they misuse the Style's own techniques, the spirit would even warn them to be careful.
• Miza The Terror Weapon Style Miza has her own Weapon Style.
• Phantom Plane Origins The user's clothing emits a powerful substance of destruction, known as a Black Shuck Virus. The virus comes out to a maximum of 5 feet in battle, but only 2 feet out of fighting. Staying within the reach of the virus, the foe's own shadow vanishes if they are in the virus's range for 4 posts. Kumori's own shadow skill techniques will gain an increase of one rank for the shadows absorbed into his body(maximum shadows needed: 2) and can only last for 5 posts. As well as performing this, the user no longer suffers energy penalties caused from his class.
• Demonic Prowess The blood of the innocent courses through Kumori's non-existant veins, powering his body through death itself. As such, his max energy pool has been increased by 700 while every single one of Kumori's Earth Elemental attacks are now boosted with a natural life draining energy. Any earth that Kumori has influenced with his energy, becomes inhabitable by plantations, but unaffects other mortal creatures. Kumori's weapons and armor can effect skill barriers, normal/skill shields, and Armor.
A stolen touch can never compete with a voluntary touch of fervor and devotion. Shoulders form, strong, steeled, bunched with muscle. Hands brace wide, hugging, holding amply. He made himself taller and wider than she, encompassing, sporting the same visage he wore the day they met, nearly a million years ago. She loved that about him; he’s alpha to the bone but when the stakes get high, he doesn’t go all ape-s**t crazy trying to keep her out of the game. When she chooses her place to stand, he supports her standing there. And that happened to be right in front of him. Quite literally until they break away, returning to some normalcy befitting the stoicism of a mission. Her cool, alluring face had betrayed nothing. She inhales slowly, exhales even more slowly, smoothly in her element. Or at least an old one that keeps her focused. Red doesn't cut a glance to the man standing directly beside of her. It isn't that love is a distraction, it is lust and desire. They muddle with the senses, as she is well aware of due to past circumstances. It's a whole lot like fear, it can make you resilient and stronger.
The problem with having all chiefs and no Indians in the same teepee is that unless you’re the chief dictating the current warpath, or in tight with that chief, you have no bloody idea what’s going on. Where she had been previously is ran differently than Nocturne, perhaps that is why she enjoyed it. The days were hot and sunny, the landscape jagged and just as deadly than the dark nation, they had their own religion, where the wars have made men into monsters. Superior numbers versus superior firepower. A recipe for unending slaughter... until... A veil clouds her mind, like an evening fog on an autumn night. Alone, deep in the jungle, so small and insignificant, pitted against nature ... A living soul dwelling on a planet that is afloat in a universe radiant with life, she was kindled, heap of ashes molded as a human that she had been, into fire - brighter, hotter, more sure of itself and where it wants to go. Fire doesn't settle; fire doesn't tolerate; fire doesn't 'get by.' It consumes with passion.
Marishka. A single brow arcs, hadn't she enslaved him at one point in time? As more is explained she stands there, listening, saying nothing. Mulling it over before her visage lifts, flickering between the two.
Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2015 4:23 am
Listening intently at the report the Shade brought to his attention, a single name brought the man to a complete and utter pause. The mention of the name itself often brought out a pause from the man. Not out of fear, Alistair had years to run from Marishka. Both were blessed with immortality, and the run would be never ending. The one thing the man did not want was a life running from the one creature in this world who could had managed to kill him. With time, he felt his fear of the woman vanish slowly. Many assumed the two had been rivals of some kind, that must have been the reason the Vampire Vixen decapitated the man. Why her scythe came so swiftly at his neck.
But that wasn't the case at all. Alistair Maric and Marishka came from Houses so close, the two had practically been deemed related; cousins, though unofficially. Alistair was never supposed to go. Never supposed to enlist in the army. House Maric had been walking on ice financially for decades, the loss of a prime, young lord to marry off would surely restore order to the house. Yet, when Marishka beckoned for him to follow her, the young man did as she asked. Not long after the two arrived, the king, ruthless in his tactics, told the two that he had no use for two vampires. They were pitted together. Duty bound, Marishka accepted the task with ease, leaving Alistair shocked behind her. The battle, which had been put on for spectacle, cost Alistair his life. Though, before her scythe dealt the final blow, Marishka simply stared down at the defeated Vampire. With glory waiting for her after his kill, the woman paused. She muttered two words that would change everything. "I'm sorry."
The next time the man opened his eyes, his vision was clouded. His body... mutilated, yet intact. Even in death, his spirit was forced to linger a bit longer. In truth, Marishka never planned on allowing Alistair to never truly leave this plane. As Marishka's status elevated faster than ever seen before, a ghost lingered. Every step the man took was an aberration, forever halted in time, his figure remained the same. His soul was hers to command for as long as she drew breath. Strangely enough, the estranged man fought no battles. Instead, Marishka often summoned the man only to speak to her. Her mind grew addled as she accepted the power of a great creature. Her mind, broken by Envy, sought even more power. As she grew in power, the leash she kept around Alistair loosened. Many times, Marishka was simply lean against him, muttering words he passed off as the talk of a mad woman. Yet, even as her minion, soul bound forever to the woman who killed him, Alistair became... empathetic. Marishka's ruthless search for power had finally driven her mad. It was then that she finally confided in the man something she had never spoken a word of to anyone. "I wanna be immortal... like a god in the sky."
It didn't take long for the toll to finally seek it's payment. In the dead of night, Marishka passed. Possessing three Sins for an extended period of time caused untold damage to her body. In the end, she was frail. Pity was all she received.
Pity was all she deserved.
"Marishka Valentine. b***h won't stay dead." The man had a deep rooted hatred for Necromancy that only strengthened when he heard her name. The practice was foul, and even now, the extent of a necromancer's abilities are untold. These powers, mixed with Zachariah's own would prove dangerous. The news he received about a known location brought along a ******** of mixed thoughts. His location did not matter until they were ready... and they were far from it. "Is that it? Nothing else?"
Kumori noticed their reaction when he muttered the name Marishka. It seemed he still had some reading up to do since he has only spent a year and a half in this plane of existence. So there was much he needed to truly learn about complete areas before he sighed a bit. "There is some more facts I've learned. She's collecting information about targets, like you. They seem to be paranoid that there's more rebellious leaders in the nation and might be targetting Lilith and Aurelia." He responded to the King as he looked over to Red, pretty sure she was once forgotten dead and might have an advantage to this. Kumori placed his hands on his hips before he soon looked off out to the window carefully. "So I take it you know of this woman? I'll let you know something else, she has a minion going to inform Zachariah right now about the move." Kumori told him as he soon narrowed his eyes before staring to Red and Alistair.
• Utilize Broken Strength This is automatically activated upon the user achieving a broken arm. The energy and muscle stimulating shocks sent to the broken arm are transfered from the arm to the rest of the user, most of it going to the other arm. This allows the broken limb to be numbed to pain but can be restored at an easier pace. This helps the broken being to weild heavy weaponry with only a single arm like a weapons master, except they do not have access to any of the Weapon Master's skills.
• Shadow Form Most, if not all, physical attacks simply phase through the user. This can be a good and a bad thing. If all the opponent has all weapon and hand to hand styles, then the techniques that do not have energy coated on the weapons will simply go right through the user, making all other attacks useless. This is also bad because if the Shade attempts to attack, once can aim a physical attack at him, forcing him to turn himself into his shadowy form. By disrupting him, all of the skills he used are turned into smoke. The user may also chose to go into his incorporeal form once every three posts, at which point he can't attack.
• Shadow Regeneration The Shades are known to be living and breathing elementals of darkness. Because of that, they are capable of recovering at a slow rate while residing in dark areas or in an ally's shadow. The body is constantly healing for as long as they are within darkness and having their weapons put away. The rate of healing increases with the duration they remain in the darkness. During the regeneration process, the user cannot use offensive Bloodline or Elemental skills. If they are attacked, they have to restart recovery at the slowest rate. 1 post: Small cuts & bruises are healed. 2 Posts: Gashes are turned into small cuts. 3 Posts: Broken limbs can recover within three constant posts inside of darkness. 4 Posts: Internal injuries or burns from light/flame/holy techniques can be recovered. 5 posts: An entire missing body part can be restored at a slow, and painful rate(Excluding the head or torso and it takes 5 full posts waiting in darkness to recover.).
• Shadowy Trail A Shade does not cast a shadow, but can choose to merge with the shadow of an ally, similar to a ninja. In doing so, the Shade can act as a hidden bodyguard, emerging from the allies shadow at will. The Shade can't be detected other than by holy creatures such as Nephilims, or Paladins and Clerics.
• Shadow MQC You can now bend the shadows around you to reach your opponent that would be two spears away from you as you can attack them normally while retaining regular damage. The Shade can perform D-ranked damage when at their full strength while in this fighting style, but this is the only range modifyer this style has. This does not spread to other styles, nor weapons can benefit from learning this ability as this is to be the shade's main Fighting style.
• Vibration Sensory A useful skill, the user channels energy into their feet to sense vibrations on the ground. As long as their feet is on the ground, a user can sense where an enemy is if they are earth bound within 50ft for five posts. This skill becomes passive once the user is Adept Rank.
• Miza's backshield So long as Kumori keeps Miza sheathed on his back, he is able to resist more damage to his back. But the downside is that she can only resist up to D-rank attacks, C ranks causes a rank down in damage and B and higher cause full damage.
• Trusted Wielder This Skill requires you to beat the Spirit inside of the Sword. Miza the Terror can only acknowledge those who can defeat her in combat besides Kumori Hell. Those who can hold her after the defeat of the Sword's spirit, can become one with the sword, gaining the knowledge to use her full potential of the Weapon Style: Miza the Terror. Be wary of the weapon style itself as it can kill the user if they misuse the Style's own techniques, the spirit would even warn them to be careful.
• Miza The Terror Weapon Style Miza has her own Weapon Style.
• Phantom Plane Origins The user's clothing emits a powerful substance of destruction, known as a Black Shuck Virus. The virus comes out to a maximum of 5 feet in battle, but only 2 feet out of fighting. Staying within the reach of the virus, the foe's own shadow vanishes if they are in the virus's range for 4 posts. Kumori's own shadow skill techniques will gain an increase of one rank for the shadows absorbed into his body(maximum shadows needed: 2) and can only last for 5 posts. As well as performing this, the user no longer suffers energy penalties caused from his class.
• Demonic Prowess The blood of the innocent courses through Kumori's non-existant veins, powering his body through death itself. As such, his max energy pool has been increased by 700 while every single one of Kumori's Earth Elemental attacks are now boosted with a natural life draining energy. Any earth that Kumori has influenced with his energy, becomes inhabitable by plantations, but unaffects other mortal creatures. Kumori's weapons and armor can effect skill barriers, normal/skill shields, and Armor.
Technique
The Hiro of Highgarden
dat devil doe
Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2015 2:00 pm
ʀᴇᴄᴏɢɴɪᴢᴇ ɪ ᴅᴇᴘʀɪᴠᴇ ᴛʜɪs ғᴇᴀʀ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇɴ ᴇᴍʙʀᴀᴄᴇ ɪᴛ
The memories Red retains of Dani are enough that she should hate the world. Kevlar her heart. Never trust anyone or anything. As she looks to Alistair, she understood why he kept the world at arms length at one point in time, but it is so easy to lose yourself in it all. To let it consume and wash over you because it feels good. Bend but not break; that was Red. Nothing broke her. Ever. Not even if it meant splitting herself into pieces to deal with things, so she could laugh and want to go on living. It is a flame that can not be snuffed, though measures are taken to protect it, even from itself when necessary, and keep it alive.
The ghost of a smile vanishes and her face is once again a smooth, urbane mask. She clips, brisk and businesslike, "She was reckless, convinced of her own invincibility." Marishka’s got hell to pay, and Alistair is the devil that collects. "She isn't untraceable."
Kumori glances to her, her head tilting just ever so slightly as the wintery hues spear right back, study, cool and remote as ever. It's a knowing look, one that is more aware of the circumstances than it lets on. Presumed dead not just once but twice does have its advantages, complied with a fine artistry of subterfuge, it is no wonder she can assume any being. Upon pondering she scans Alistair, a smile tugging at the edges of her lips. She has learned that the world has teeth in the aftermath of their complicated past, she grew her own too. "You think she'd like to wet the Ex-King's c**k?" Her eyes glued to his face, exposing his debauchery by words alone. Light seemed to shatter apart in her too-blue eyes, bright as butane and full of ethereal fire as they tell him more than what is spoken. "A paid whore can never be trusted, they sell out to the highest bidder." Content to stand there in the warmth, she radiates. There are biologic imperatives, like it or not. Eating, ********, to name a few.
"Switch and bait." Or they could do nothing, simply watch as the plan continues to unfold, watching the nation unravel one night after the other. It is one plan but they'd need one with the greatest odds of success.
Though the name Aurelia did not sound familiar with the man, when Lilith's name was spoken, Alistair instinctively tensed up. Not long before he came here, he spoke to Lilith in the Square, and yet Marishka's informant already knew they spoke? Their talk wasn't exactly public, but many people cleared the square when their Captain arrived on the scene.The fact that the news got to the informant so quickly only meant that Alistair did not fully understand what he was up against. The possibility of his Phantoms betraying their loyalty to Alistair was slim, but they weren't dealing with a random mortal. Zachariah was an omniscient god with spies everywhere. His allies feared him and his retribution if they failed him. "Kumori... you've done well. Rest for now, but stay low. Do not give the guards of the city any reason to try and bring you in. I fear that our time here is going to get a lot more dangerous."
As Red made her remarks about Alistair's debauchery during her absence, Alistair glanced back at the woman only to open his mouth to speak. "She does seem like my type, huh?" Red's words, laced with more than their basic intent, slightly annoyed Alistair, though she wasn't exactly wrong in saying that. In all honesty, had Red laid with another man while they were apart, it would have bothered him just as much as it bothered her. "Perhaps, in time, you will forgive me. Hopefully as fast as it used to take your cheeks to flush red whenever I glanced in your general direction." He teased, amazingly enough. "Marishka is... dealing with her is waste of time. She will always come back, one way or another, and with a vengeance. She serves the highest bidder in hopes it will get her anywhere, just as you said. Dealing with her is like trying to kill a Hydra. Instead of dealing with the heads that grow back, let's focus on the... body."
Distracted as ever, and increasingly more so with Red in his presence, Alistair finally turned to face the woman and address her face to face. Briefly, he soaked in the sight. There was a new radiance about her that Alistair couldn't describe. Unlike before, her touch was warm. Blood was pulsing through her veins. He had been far too distracted to notice the smaller details before. Her radiance was just that. Life. "...You're like her, aren't you? I've spent enough time under a necromancer to understand when necromancy is at play." His voice... was not filled with anger, nor did he intend for his inquisitions to offend the woman. If anything, Alistair was impressed. The amount of power it took for Marishka to cheat death was immense, knowing that Red was capable of doing it as well... "Is this really you? Am I finally seeing the real Red?" Every time the woman vanished from his life, she would come back with a vengeance, catching more and more of Alistair's attention with each time. Though it was missing something. "How long will it take for me to get you back in one of my jackets?" He flashed a brief grin, before he allowed it to fall into a smirk.
Posted: Fri Aug 07, 2015 12:22 pm
ʀᴇᴄᴏɢɴɪᴢᴇ ɪ ᴅᴇᴘʀɪᴠᴇ ᴛʜɪs ғᴇᴀʀ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇɴ ᴇᴍʙʀᴀᴄᴇ ɪᴛ
She exhales gustily. Not because she feels sorry for herself. Self-pity is wasted emotion. It merely prolongs whatever trauma you suffered by keeping it alive in your head. They survived it. She’s different from the Dani he met so long ago. A meek girl turned sleek warrior woman, something he both saw and couldn't foresee. She was pretty when she came to him the first time; now she’s lean, strong, and alluring. If she could go back and change things, to tell herself one thing it would be: Revenge is a devil you don’t want to worship. In destroying your enemy you become it. Perhaps, she thinks to his words, listening further to his statement as he swivels to take all of her into his sight. He had given apart of himself unto her, one that nearly drove him mad. It is not the matter of lovers that streamed into his bed chambers, it was his words that had cut into her like jagged obsidian. Was that all she was to him in the end? There aren’t many sins in her bible but giving up is the greatest one of all. Only fractions of her broke the cardinal rule. Life is a gift. One fights to keep it and never quits. Never.
Red steps closer to him, looking like religion in combat boots. All his stories are about being left, all hers about leaving. So they should have known. Should have known to leave well enough alone; they knew, and they didn’t. They couldn't, they can't. "Alistair..." He’s disturbingly sexual, to men and women alike, in a way that sets a person's teeth on edge. With Alistair, one isn't too sure if they are going to get ******** or turned inside out and left a new, unrecognizable person, on a sea with no bottom and no rules. She was never immune to him. There were merely degrees of denial.
"I am thinking of the body." Lips purse, pausing only a second with an inhale. "If she is so enthralled with you, she wouldn't notice if someone was parading as you in your place." Entrapment in a web of his own creation, it is no news to some that he has had a past with the woman.
Steeling herself, he assumes and the assumptions aren't completely wrong, but not exactly right either. "I was, the first time you saw me in this very place." Looking around, everything and nothing have changed. "Every time after..." Again she gazes back to him, she knows she had been driven by circumscription of nurture, not nature. She’d been all nurture. He was all nature - trying to teach her to change. "No." All she had known was to be ripped in half to stop feeling so torn in two. Divided, never knowing who to trust.
Is this really you? Am I finally seeing the real Red? The words drift, exercising familiarity to underscore that he had the right. Unpredictable as a hungry wolf, he might be feared by everyone else, but he never ripped out her throat, only licked her, and, if his tongue was a little rough sometimes, it was worth it to walk beside the king of the urban jungle. "Yes, it is." There's a smile, a rise of hazy cheekbones with this confession. "Me. No one else, no parlor tricks. No sin. You can touch me and I promise I won't poof into a trail of smoke." Power is thick in the air between them and she's not sure what comes from him and what is rolling off herself. If there is a thing or two learned from him, it is that power is sexy. It shapes her spine, infuses her beckoning hand. A laugh, a throaty purr to counter his grin. Her face radiates only warmth, invitation, pleasure at his presence. Charged, exhilarated, passion is the spice of life and she is filled to the brim with it. "Here you are trying to offer me more layers to put on," she chimes, amused. Not that she needed the extra warmth, with every pulsation of a pounding heart was a wave of heat she never grew tired of. "We have a lot of catching up to do."
"We can't stay here." Both thought and speech reverberate, as he said previously, it isn't safe and neither are they. The smiles and jokes are pushed aside, an icy peace takes hold.
Kumori merely watched as the two spoke about the past, namely insulting the woman who just slit an informant's throat quickly. As he continued to listen, he couldn't help but slightly chuckle as Marishka was called a 'paid whore' before he took interest in the switch and bait idea. Before he could respond, he noticed Alistair's expression changed as Kumori could tell he was trying to process Zach's spy capabilities. Kumori knew one thing for certain, he had to assist in this being's downfall, even if it broke his spirit.'So it's down time huh? Okay then.' Kumori thought to himself before he noticed them trying to rekindle an old flame, causing Kumori to chuckle. "Don't worry, I won't be brought in, besides.... I'd start worrying about bed problems, like.... oh I dunno, will any bed survive the two of you?" Kumori verbally teased them both, knowing full well it might not work, hell it might not even make them fluster. But the fact was he couldn't stay her much longer, he had silently dealt with the spies in and around the place with his attack, so it wouldn't be too much longer before more arrived. "Be careful the two of you, I dunno how long until their back up arrives, we better split ways for now." And with that, Kumori vanished from sight, going off to enjoy some new downtime.
• Utilize Broken Strength This is automatically activated upon the user achieving a broken arm. The energy and muscle stimulating shocks sent to the broken arm are transfered from the arm to the rest of the user, most of it going to the other arm. This allows the broken limb to be numbed to pain but can be restored at an easier pace. This helps the broken being to weild heavy weaponry with only a single arm like a weapons master, except they do not have access to any of the Weapon Master's skills.
• Shadow Form Most, if not all, physical attacks simply phase through the user. This can be a good and a bad thing. If all the opponent has all weapon and hand to hand styles, then the techniques that do not have energy coated on the weapons will simply go right through the user, making all other attacks useless. This is also bad because if the Shade attempts to attack, once can aim a physical attack at him, forcing him to turn himself into his shadowy form. By disrupting him, all of the skills he used are turned into smoke. The user may also chose to go into his incorporeal form once every three posts, at which point he can't attack.
• Shadow Regeneration The Shades are known to be living and breathing elementals of darkness. Because of that, they are capable of recovering at a slow rate while residing in dark areas or in an ally's shadow. The body is constantly healing for as long as they are within darkness and having their weapons put away. The rate of healing increases with the duration they remain in the darkness. During the regeneration process, the user cannot use offensive Bloodline or Elemental skills. If they are attacked, they have to restart recovery at the slowest rate. 1 post: Small cuts & bruises are healed. 2 Posts: Gashes are turned into small cuts. 3 Posts: Broken limbs can recover within three constant posts inside of darkness. 4 Posts: Internal injuries or burns from light/flame/holy techniques can be recovered. 5 posts: An entire missing body part can be restored at a slow, and painful rate(Excluding the head or torso and it takes 5 full posts waiting in darkness to recover.).
• Shadowy Trail A Shade does not cast a shadow, but can choose to merge with the shadow of an ally, similar to a ninja. In doing so, the Shade can act as a hidden bodyguard, emerging from the allies shadow at will. The Shade can't be detected other than by holy creatures such as Nephilims, or Paladins and Clerics.
• Shadow MQC You can now bend the shadows around you to reach your opponent that would be two spears away from you as you can attack them normally while retaining regular damage. The Shade can perform D-ranked damage when at their full strength while in this fighting style, but this is the only range modifyer this style has. This does not spread to other styles, nor weapons can benefit from learning this ability as this is to be the shade's main Fighting style.
• Vibration Sensory A useful skill, the user channels energy into their feet to sense vibrations on the ground. As long as their feet is on the ground, a user can sense where an enemy is if they are earth bound within 50ft for five posts. This skill becomes passive once the user is Adept Rank.
• Miza's backshield So long as Kumori keeps Miza sheathed on his back, he is able to resist more damage to his back. But the downside is that she can only resist up to D-rank attacks, C ranks causes a rank down in damage and B and higher cause full damage.
• Trusted Wielder This Skill requires you to beat the Spirit inside of the Sword. Miza the Terror can only acknowledge those who can defeat her in combat besides Kumori Hell. Those who can hold her after the defeat of the Sword's spirit, can become one with the sword, gaining the knowledge to use her full potential of the Weapon Style: Miza the Terror. Be wary of the weapon style itself as it can kill the user if they misuse the Style's own techniques, the spirit would even warn them to be careful.
• Miza The Terror Weapon Style Miza has her own Weapon Style.
• Phantom Plane Origins The user's clothing emits a powerful substance of destruction, known as a Black Shuck Virus. The virus comes out to a maximum of 5 feet in battle, but only 2 feet out of fighting. Staying within the reach of the virus, the foe's own shadow vanishes if they are in the virus's range for 4 posts. Kumori's own shadow skill techniques will gain an increase of one rank for the shadows absorbed into his body(maximum shadows needed: 2) and can only last for 5 posts. As well as performing this, the user no longer suffers energy penalties caused from his class.
• Demonic Prowess The blood of the innocent courses through Kumori's non-existant veins, powering his body through death itself. As such, his max energy pool has been increased by 700 while every single one of Kumori's Earth Elemental attacks are now boosted with a natural life draining energy. Any earth that Kumori has influenced with his energy, becomes inhabitable by plantations, but unaffects other mortal creatures. Kumori's weapons and armor can effect skill barriers, normal/skill shields, and Armor.
Technique
The Hiro of Highgarden
dat devil doe
Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2015 12:18 am
It was was no secret that the man was so attracted to power, and perhaps that is what drew him to her in the first place. Even when she first approached him for training so very long ago, he saw so much in her. The man had no idea how to comprehend the feelings he had been experiencing, so he became less of himself, and... he pushed her away. That was a mistake he regretted deeply, though he never expressed the regret to Red before. Nor would he, that part of their life was in the past. If it wasn't enough, she had even changed her name to mark the start of a new life, a life she had chosen for herself, even with every warning Alistair gave her. Every day she had, it changed her. She grew stronger and stronger, mentally and physically. With each passing day, her ability to completely distract Alistair from what he was doing grew exponentially. Perhaps it scared Alistair, in one way or another.
In her absence, the allure never left. As if the man were being haunted, he saw her face in many places. Heard her voice in in the distance, still reporting in on the status of the new recruits. But the man was fully capable of understanding what was true and what was fake. Alistair had come to an understanding that it was possible that Red may never return. In his haste, he tried something that he didn't understand how to do: to forget someone you love. In doing so, he became lesser than himself once more, convinced that the way he was dealing with things was working. He missed the details of the women he brought over to use sexually. It started with women with fiery locks of hair, women from court that lingered in his presence, seeking to gain some form of position by his side now that Red was out of the picture. But even they weren't enough. The Succubi from the Red Light District... they understood what he desired, and they would become the one thing he wanted. But their disguise fooled no one. So he cycled through them, hoping to find one who could finally do the job.
It was only when Velox came to him that he realized that he had hit rock bottom. Behind closed doors, and in the safety of his home, the man thought he finally found the way to forgetting. Vertigo had become popular in the Red Light District; a drug used to increase the amount of endorphin the body produced. Behind closed doors, Alistair took to drugs. The disappointment that came after was perhaps the worst feeling he had ever felt. Yet he returned to it, to mask his own disappointment. Alistair was never prepared to deal with human emotions. From the moment he re-enlisted, the man was trained on how to be the perfect weapon. Leaders advised him on how to be a decent king. But no one provided him with any explanation of what it meant to love someone, and to eventually lose them. It had only been after Zachariah deposed him in his most vulnerable moment that Alistair found the strength to fight the addiction. Though, he learned a hard lesson while doing so. With all of his strength and all of his gifts, he wasn't invincible. Even today, he struggled with the temptation of relapsing.
But as Red neared him, his face hid his past transgressions. Though for the first time since he allowed himself to fall, he finally felt like he had the strength to get up. In Red's eyes, Alistair was more than a weapon. More than a figure head. The thought crossed his mind that the relationship was unhealthy. Every sign pointed to it. That she could be as dangerous as the drug itself. Her touch, chilling. Her gaze, petrifying. Her scent, intoxicating. In every way, Red was very much like a drug. Yet, she wasn't. Her touch, enlightening, Her gaze, lifting. Her scent, sweet as any delight. When he opened his mouth to break the silence, "Yes... that could work." Every inch of him knew that what she spoke of what important, and yet his own desires were beginning to best him. For several months, they were apart. Countless days, Red had gone without his touch, and vice versa. It had been a struggle throughout their talk with Kumori to not lay his hands upon her skin, to explore the body he had become so familiar with, and yet so distant from. "Marishka isn't important right now, she commands the least of my attention right now..."
"I don't remember saying anything about keeping any of your clothes on." They wouldn't be on long. As much as his fantasy of them reuniting at the scene where they first met wanted to come true, what she said was right. Though his quarters were not what they were before. "You're right... we can't stay here. Because..." Uncontrollably, his hands found themselves upon her waist, inching down her body until they reached the cusp of her belt. "...because we have so much catching up to do." All to eager to dip under the link that provided the slimmest of barriers between their flesh, he stopped himself reluctantly. "It's nothing posh... in fact you may laugh at how different it is from the estate. But it's away from here."
Be careful the two of you, I dunno how long until their back up arrives, we better split ways for now.
Nodding politely so, she would add a final quip before his departure. "The night is dark and full of terrors." Of course it begged to question as to who the monsters lurking exactly were. She smiles slightly, waving him off before returning her attention to the one whom was entertained with hers. She inhaled his scent, spicy, exotic, a cherished memory that made her feel alive, even more so. The electric current that always charged the air between them sizzled on her skin. "As if you could stop me if I wanted to keep them on." Being around Alistair has always made her fire on all pistons, and it didn’t seem to matter a bit that she knew a lot of his.. mistakes. Some people bring out the worst in you, others bring out the best, and then there are those remarkably rare, addictive ones who just bring out the most. Of everything. They make you feel so alive that you’d follow them straight into hell, just to keep getting your fix.
He murmurs but lingers, hovering as if he is on the verge of a cliff that she awaits below of. Her eyes closed, shuddering as a crushing weight slipped from her soul. She breathed, really breathed for the first time in days, filling her lungs greedily. The tranquil clarity stares at him, hands on her hips, brushing against the skin ever so slightly. ...Because we have so much catching up to do. Red reaches up and caresses his face, brushing her thumb across a lower lip, tracing it as the words fell like honey. Then it falls to his chest, palm pressing to the muscle. The corners of his lips turned up as if at some private amusement, and for a moment she thought they were having one of those silent conversations. Was it safe to close herself in with the beast? If he thought she was afraid, he'd be wrong. Maybe, she should be afraid, or he of her. Whatever the case, it doesn't stop the quick slip in, a lithe form hugging him tightly. Arms wreath themselves around his neck, the scent of his skin is one she will never forget, no matter how long she lives or the lives she must fake.
Even he has been thrilled to fantasy one too many times. "...Tell me where." In a blink they would be there, if not there is the art of disguise.
Posted: Sun Aug 09, 2015 3:24 am
(Oh yeah! Forgot this! Excuse my lack of 600+ words in saying this, but...)
They were both like, "Peace out, girl scouts." And left. In a cool dimension door thingy.
Race: Kiranu Class: Berserker Rank: Adept Element: Air
It didn't take too long for the Kiranus wandering to bring him to somewhere of interest. His gut seeming to simply guide him through the crowded streets, the rather proud male having to fight back the churning in his chest when it came to being in such a place. So far, Luminaria was living up to it's reputation, the filth and weary looks he noted showing all the signs of darkness and cruelty that possibly lay around the next bend. But he did not let that dissuade him. Kraen was clear to himself when it came to his goals. And it was going to take more than a bit of filth to stop him. Stumbling upon the Training facilities within the city. Kraen began to wander once more, his curious eyes examining the area around him. Curious to see if he could gain any further knowledge to help refine himself. Before long, the young man had found what he was after. A tombe, containing the methods and stances suited to a style known and Wing Chun. The fighting style appealed to Kraen. And so, in a more isolated part of the facility, the lone Kiranu began to hone his mind and his body. Using the words and illustrations within the tombe to teach himself, starting with the basics of course.
