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 Posted: Wed Oct 15, 2014 8:48 am
"Stop."
The order was quiet, spoken in an even tone as the shetani paused for breath. Silvana relaxed the muscles in her hand, loosening her grip and allowing the strands of hair to slip through her fingers. She understood now.
"You can stop."
She laid her hand briefly on his head, smoothing his hair before withdrawing. A gentle gesture, intended to soothe the boy's shaking..and likely as close as he would get to an apology at the moment. She had watched the shifting emotions that crossed his face before attempting to speak. Fear...indecision...she'd wondered at first at the struggle she was witnessing. The group that had grabbed him before seemed to think the shetani had been sent by someone. What could they hold over him with such power to still his voice? He was afraid...of her? Them? No, something else...
The thought crossed her mind, of course, that he could simply be faking. Pretending in order to throw her off the trail, to have her drop her pursuit. No, she'd sensed no deception in his eyes. Only honest fear and despair. Gone was the stubborn, rebellious glare. He hadn't been resisting her because he wanted to; but because he really couldn't answer her as she'd wished.
She shifted her weight back and to the side, no longer pinning the shetani to the earth, but remaining crouched alongside. She reached for his shoulder, gently, but firmly attempting to roll him on his side. She could at least get his face out of the dirt before speaking with him further.
"You really can't speak...can you?" Though it was phrased as a question, she didn't require an answer. It was one thing to interrogate a rebellious intruder...another altogether to deal with a trembling, helpless youth. What was she to do with him now? She frowned, briefly considering that this too could be an act. Not that he could speak...but that he still knew more than he was telling. Or showing, as the case may be.
She found herself suddenly between a rock and a hard place. All suspicious Pae were to be arrested for questioning. What if the boy really did know something about the attack? What if he didn't? That still left questions about these supposed kidnappers up in the air as well. Granted, a number of them had been faun...but others had not. She hadn't recognized any of them, and their motives still eluded her.
Still crouched, she reached over and pulled her blade from the ground. "Don't move...okay?" She waited for some acknowledgement, then moved towards his feet. She slid the blade beneath one loop of the bindings restricting his legs. It took some effort, but she managed to get the loop cut after a few moments. The bindings were removed, then collected in a neat loop in her hands. Silvana watched him warily for a moment before setting the cord aside. She really didn't want to have to bind his wings...hopefully, he'd cooperate with her rather than doing anything stupid.
Leaving his hands bound, she moved to help him to a sitting position. She wasn't sure how long since the group had grabbed him. Maybe he'd been tied up for a while. Eyes flickering over his ankles, then back up, she asked, "Do you think you can walk?"
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Posted: Wed Oct 15, 2014 1:19 pm
Malek didn't put an effort to resist as his body slowly returned to the ground, the tension and the pain released from his head. All that was registering was that he'd failed in his speaking; he'd failed in saving the girl; all of this and what?
He'd failed.
The shaking did subside after the touch without his knowledge, though perhaps it was saying too much that he'd acknowledged the activity initially. His breath and pulse, both of which had quickened just moment before, returned to their normal rhythm. His eyes remained downcast, looking away from the goddess as she released the pressure from his back and moved him to lie on his side instead. As she spoke again, his jaw slowly reaching forward to bite his lip before pulling back and shaking his head.
He didn't need her concern, her pity; that was a worse emotion than distrust or hatred. He could feel perfectly damn sorry for himself without anyone else there.
That was what he usually did.
That was why he didn't go and make friends outside of his 'quiet shadow' of a mellon.
But no, he couldn't speak, and now she knew that. What would she do now that her source of information was rendered useless? She hadn't wanted communication with gesture, hadn't trusted his shadows. If not those, then what was she asking of him? Speak or don't speak?
Don't move. Okay. Like he really had much of a choice in the matter.
Her next move took the shetani by surprise. Part of him had expected her to just leave him to starve once he was no longer of use. Had he known her better, the thought wouldn't have crossed his mind, but all he knew her to be was what she had shown herself as in the recent past: skilled, deadly, distrusting, and near cruel. For somepae like that to cut his bindings away from his feet... it almost brought a smile to his face.
Almost.
As the bindings fell loose, he was made acutely aware at how numb that part of his body had gone. The painful stinging as blood returned with a vigor made the rest of him tense up, something that Silvana would have noticed as she sat him up. It only took a few minutes for the pain to pass and the feeling to return in the form of flexing toes. It felt so good to be able to do that again.
Looking to her at the new question, he nodded twice before looking again to his feet. As he rolled his ankles, his wings flexed behind him not to attempt to flee, but merely to stretch. If only she'd untie his arms, things would be golden.
Well... he'd still have failed his mission... so maybe not so golden.
But better no doubt.
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Posted: Wed Oct 15, 2014 9:23 pm
She nodded once curtly. This would be much easier if he could walk. She was normally short and to the point when dealing with business, though even she recognized that her actions today were...a bit more extreme than usual. Perhaps a bit cruel. And yet, still she'd been restrained. The pain of the Great Tree weighed heavily upon her heart, and the agony of all those connected to it cried out for justice. She could only imagine how the poor Faun were being affected who lived beneath Her boughs.
She did not move to free him further. In fact, she moved away from him, muttering something about waiting there for a moment, then disappeared behind a near tree, looking at the ground. From this vantage point, Malek would be allowed to see that the demoness moved lightly on her feet, like a deer; completely at home in the forest. She reappeared only a second later, bow and quiver back in place, slung across each shoulder. In her hands, she carried what seemed to be a fallen tree limb. From the ground perhaps, as she'd clearly had no tools for such a thing.
She kept an eye on her prisoner, aware that it would take some effort for him to get up and even attempt to escape with his hands still bound behind his back. And even if they were not within her forest, she'd still have no trouble catching him again. Focusing on the branch in her hands, she lifted it, drawing a circle in the air. When nothing seemed to happen, she frowned, and tried again. This time, a soft green glow seemed to flicker to life, forming a portal. There were trees within the shape, much like these, but...not the same trees. The image seemed to flicker from time to time. Silvana noted this with some discomfort. That...wasn't normal.
Nonetheless, she returned to her captive, taking him by the arm to help pull him upwards onto his feet. "Let's see if you can stand," she said quietly, then after pausing to make sure he had his balance, she nodded briefly and moved around him. "Good?" She seemed to be okay with nods and head shakes now for answers. Before, she'd believed he was only using these tactics in an attempt to distract and deceive her. If they were the only tools he had to work with...well, they'd have to do. Honestly, the more she thought about it, the more genius it seemed. If he had been sent for some other reason by another party, one wanting to keep its secrets...then what better way than sending an agent that couldn't say anything they shouldn't?
She paused behind the shetani and started untying his wrists. Alert to any funny business he might get in his head to try, she kept her expression and posture as neutral as possible. As the length of rope came free, she reached up and began rubbing his shoulders, encouraging the circulation to resume normally. Whoever had tied these knots seemed to have little concern for the captive's comfort...or safety, she noted. The boy was possibly luckier than he realized that she'd come along when she had.
She urged him to move his arms forward, restoring normal range of movement and feeling with her efforts to get the blood flowing again. She eventually moved back in front of him, running her hands down his arms to his wrists and pausing to look them over for any sign of damage. Nothing that looked permanent at least. Good.
"I am sorry about this," she said quietly, then like a flash, she slipped the two loops she'd prepared while behind his back over each wrist, and pulled the rope tight. A couple quick 8-shaped maneuvers around each, locking them together, then after checking that it wasn't too tight to cut off circulation, but certainly enough so that he wouldn't be slipping free any time soon, she tied off the knot, leaving a bit of lead line. "But I can't just let you go."
While she was being far more considerate than his previous captors, she fixed him with a hard stare that stated she wouldn't be putting up with any funny business. "We'll leave it at this as long as you cooperate. I've still got more rope if you decide to make this hard. And before you get any bright ideas about those wings, I can draw, pull, and let fly to pin the wings of a sparrow to a tree. You...make a much larger target."
Her gaze scanned the ground, stopping on the squirming bag with muffled noises coming from it. Yes, she could have definitely let that one speak instead...however, she'd rather have answers than insults, so she opted to leave him in his current state. However, tugging lightly on the line leading Malek's wrists to make him follow her, she retrieved the bag with Andrei within and hooked it to the belt of her quiver.
"Alright, let's go," she said briskly, pulling briefly at Malek's wrists as she stepped forward and gestured towards the portal.
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Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2014 9:48 am
The shetani tilted his head as the left him there, his actions and thoughts far calmer than one's normally might have been in such a situation. If you thought about it relatively, though, it was certainly an improvement over having your face forcefully shoved into the dirt while all of your limbs were bound to the point of numbness.
Actually, were his hands even still there? Yes. Yes they were.
Some might have attempted to escape in this window of opportunity, but the shetani was smart enough (and calmed enough) to recognize that as a false sense of hope. He was in no shape to outpace a goddess in her realm in normal circumstances; in these he'd simply have no hope, No, it was far better for him to just remain sensible and to take each moment with a rational air.
When she returned, he appeared all but obedient. Even if she recognized that this was in most part due to self-preservation rather than respect, though she certainly had earned a respect for her abilities from him, there would be nothing for her to gain by moving on him. It was in as much her best interest to keep him well as his own.
Unfit pae'il cannot move themselves; frightened pae'il are less likely to cooperate.
Standing on her cue, though awkwardly, shakily, and more than a bit reliant on his wings to help him up, Malek turned to look over at her as he regained his balance. Again, all he gave was a single, compliant nod.
When she disappeared, internally he cheered. It was here, the time for his freedom! She would release him at long last. Oh how his wrists felt so sore, yet so amazing as her fingers trailed them and he brought them forwards to rotate. Cracking and popping... Oh, now she was rubbing his shoulder?
Okay... That was getting a bit suspicious... Why go from questioning one with his face in the ground to helping him to regain vigor?
When the rope returned around his wrists in a flash, binding them once more (though this time in front of him), he barely reacted in response. Eh... It was a natural thing for her to do... a bit expected even. He, again, simply nodded to her demands; he hadn't a reason to resist her with his life not in danger.
For the moment in any case.
But he would cross that bridge if he came to it. Likely, if he had to, he'd lose and then be replaced by one more capable than he.
Eyes widening, the portal was something that had been entirely unexpected. She wanted him to go in there?! No. Nonono. There was no way he would ever--
With a bit of "persuasion" on her part, he'd soon step through.
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Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2014 2:09 pm
Noting the sudden hesitation in her previously cooperative captive, Silvana paused and looked back at the shetani, then to the portal, then back again. "Yes, we're going that way." She supposed she could understand his wide-eyed wariness. The softly glowing portal seemed to flicker, seeming not entirely stable. She was...somewhat wary herself. However, it was the best way to save time and energy.
She settled with her hand on her hip, standing between him and the portal. "I assure you, I mean you no further harm. It's a transportation method to take time off our journey. I'd demonstrate how it works, except it closes after I pass through. That's why you have to go first." Dropping the lead and moving behind Malek, she placed a hand on his shoulder and started pushing him forward. "Oh, and the edges are more solid than you'd think. So be sure to pick up your feet and don't trip."
After not-so-subtly pushing the shetani through the portal, she followed by leaping lightly over the bottom of the glowing doorway. Upon landing, she immediately realized that something wasn't right. This...wasn't where she'd tried to teleport them. She'd aimed for the northwest border of her lands, closest point while still remaining in the forest to the Great Tree. It would have shortened the walk greatly. So where...?
She paused, collecting her thoughts and regaining her bearings with a thoughtful frown. This was...nowhere near where she'd been aiming. Already the portal had closed behind them. What had gone wrong? The constant phantom pain in her chest reminded her...the Tree! If the Great Tree was in such pain, had taken such damage...then perhaps it made sense that the ability granted to her when she'd sworn fealty to Laisidhiel and the Earth may have also suffered from the attack. Could she risk trying to use it again?
Best not to. She said nothing to the captive, moving to take hold of the lead line as if this were all according to plan. There was no telling where in the forest they may end up if she tried again. They'd just have a long walk ahead of them instead. "See? No harm done. Let's go."
She led the way, momentarily pushing aside her concerns about her malfunctioning teleportation portals. Surely it was temporary. She hoped.
Normally, the peaceful silence of the forest was enough for her and she'd have felt no need to carry on a conversation. She felt uneasy, however, moving through the still forest, leading the bound prisoner in her wake. She supposed she could at least say something to him as they traveled.
"You know...I have no personal grievance with you," she started, pausing a moment before adding, "as long as you have been truthful with me. I simply need questions answered and I think that the most direct way of getting answers is through the Faun. You have nothing to fear, so long as you have done nothing wrong." And if he had...? Well, then that was on his own head.
Besides, orders were orders. Any suspicious Pae'il found near the Tree were to be brought in for questioning. In a way, even with the earlier rough treatment, the boy may have been lucky to have run into her rather than one of the Faun right now. They may have shot him on sight.
At least, if she were bringing him in as her prisoner, she could offer the poor kid some sort of protection if he were innocent. She could even explain that he couldn't talk and might need some consideration of other methods of communication. Silvana knew she wasn't equipped to deal with finding the truth from the boy...but she wondered if someone like the mystical Seer might be. While she didn't know the extent of the fauness's powers, she knew the Seer capable of many things beyond the understanding of the common Pae'il.
Still, her feelings of unease grew. Did she feel sorry for the boy? Not particularly. As she'd stated, if he were innocent, he had nothing to fear. And if he weren't...then justice would be served. Neither case was necessarily her responsibility. So why...?
Frowning, Silvana fell silent again, golden eyes casting over their surroundings. Maybe it wasn't the boy who was making her feel anxious. Something felt...odd. She focused on tapping into her domain, reaching out through her forest, seeking the disturbance. She seemed distracted, distant now, though her pace never faltered.
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Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2014 9:36 pm
Dark silhouettes darted from the shadow of one tree to the next, following the pair's progress through the forest.
"...will this work?"
"Just make sure you grab the boy."
"But...what about the goddess-?"
"Distract her; we'll take care of the rest."
A silent hand-motion signaled the dark shapes to spread out, surrounding the pair before they started closing in...
*****
No...something was definitely not right...something was obscuring her forest sight... She could not see them clearly in her mind's eye , but there was too much movement...surrounding them, not forest creatures, but...
Without warning, Silvana pulled forward on the lead roughly, hissing, "Get down!" She dove with Malek, releasing his wrists to spin gracefully and whirl her bow free of her shoulder. She passively noted the spear striking where they'd stood just moments before as she notched and drew her bow in one smooth motion.
She also noted with interest that the thrown weapon seemed to have been aimed for her.
"Who DARES challenge of goddess of this domain?!?" Her voice rang out sharply, tone fueled by divine authority. She was more interested in scanning the area where the spear had come from for any signs of movement than in any sort of actual answer.
That's when she noticed movement out of the corner of her eye to the right and whirled to face it, arrow notched and ready to fly. She locked gazes with a sneering Faun holding a woven throwing net, weighed at the edges with small stones. Puzzled as to why one of the Tree's own would threaten her, she did not, however, lower her weapon. "Have you no idea who I am? Stay your hand, brother of the Earth. I too have sworn to protect the Tree. Hostilities are not necessary."
A voice from behind her on her left piped up, "That's right, they're not. Just hand over the boy and walk away, Tree Witch." An angelic male had emerged from behind one of the trees, a wooden club in his hands. More figures were moving just out of sight, still in the shadows of the forest.
Without moving her weapon, Silvana shot a glare over her shoulder at the second voice. An angel? Wait...so these were not residents from the Tree? Then who...? Could it be the group from before? But...they were on the other side of the forest now! How could they have gotten here so quickly? Sneering, she shot back coldly, "Watch your tongue, curr!" Despite the circling foes, Silvana stood her ground between the two armed males and Malek behind her. "The boy is under my protection until I deliver him to the Great Tree; and I will suffer NO such insults by intruders to my home!"
"Oh, he won't be going to the Tree. He'll be coming with us. One way or another," the angel shot back with a chuckle and a cocky smirk.
Silvana's blood began to boil...disrespectful, foolish mortals! Aiming a sneer towards the angel, she let her arrow fly in the opposite direction and was rewarded with the pained cry of the faun as the projectile pierced his shoulder. His attempt to take advantage of her distraction and dart forward for the boy was foiled, and he dropped the net in favor of clutching at his wounded shoulder. "You wish to incur my wrath? Then so be it," She picked up the flicker of hesitation in the angel's expression and pushed forward with the bluff. "If you want the boy...then come and get him."
Dearest Mother, Artemis, protect us.
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Posted: Sun Oct 19, 2014 4:32 pm
The boy's eyes darted which and every way as he regained his balance when they exited the portal, trying to figure out exactly where they had gone. Nothing was familiar, not that it had been even remotely familiar to begin with. There wasn't anything in her form to suggest that anything was wrong, so he suspected that this was where she had wished to go. It wasn't particularly difficult to keep up with her; she was kind enough to keep a pace he could maintain with little strain.
The conversation, however, was not something he could contribute much to.
It was a relief to know that, if only for the moment, she didn't consider him a personal enemy. As far as he was concerned, he had been truthful with her. No, he wasn't directly responsible for anything. He knew that his family, his grandfather, had been involved with something, but one's family was not oneself. When the goddess quieted, it was more a relief than anything. Just a quiet, somewhat tense, walk to presumably meet the faun.
A bit too quiet, perhaps...
Malek hadn't time to think before he was pulled stumbling and falling forwards.
Awkwardly falling on his bound arms, he quickly turned to look to observe the situation. He was entirely enthralled by her, by her power and presence. It struck him as strange to hear that she was aligned with the tree, but that alone was not enough to cause him discomfort. She was, after all, protecting him, even if it was just to bring him to the faun for interrogation.
Interrogation was better than the present alternative.
Shifting his position, he looked around at the ones circling about them. Even for a goddess... perhaps their sheer numbers were a bit much? If she failed, he would be lost, and more importantly the child...
Wait, where was the young girl?
Looking around, the young adult tried in vain to place her among those surrounding them. What had they done with her? Brows furrowing, he glared forward and made eye contact with one of them. Oh... if he could just summon shadow animals as his grandfather could! He could imagine it so clearly, a tiger coming forward to circle, fangs bared and claws extended as it moved forward.
Or... was that image becoming a shadow of reality?
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Posted: Sun Oct 19, 2014 9:38 pm
The hostilities were quick to turn to violence after the first arrow flew. If there had been any alternative, it would have been preferable...but the demi-goddess had read the intentions in their eyes. They meant to take the boy whether she willed it or not. Why? She still didn't know, but it couldn't be for anything good. Violence was inevitable, because she wasn't about to hand him over either. Best she take the first strike then.
The instant an arrow was released, she moved, drawing another before the first had completed its journey. A demonic goddess, in her element, and full of fury.
If she'd been alone, this rabble wouldn't have stood a chance.
But, she had a prisoner to protect.
The forest goddess's skills allowed her to disappear, to dodge, to strike, all relying on full range of movement and freedom. Freedom she could not have if she also had to protect a hostage. She was holding her ground...for the moment, but it was like being tethered, for if she got too far away, one of these rabble might make a move as one had tried earlier. Their target was the boy, so she couldn't move far, else she risk losing him.
He was HER prisoner, dammit!
"Ahh! It's one of the goddess' beasts! She's calling them down on us!"
Silvana glanced towards the panicked cry, sensing a hesitation in the attacking force. That wasn't...one of hers... Her eyes flickered back towards the shetani, noting his look of concentration. This was their chance! Sidestepping near the fallen shetani, she hissed, "Good work, kid. Now move! Before they completely surround us!" She gestured back with a quick nod towards the only place she hadn't noticed movement yet. If their attackers had completed the circle, they were doomed. There'd be nowhere to run.
"You idiots! Don't fall for the same stupid trick again! It's not real! Now get them!"
That distraction could have lasted longer. Well, take what they had. Silvana whirled, catching a demonic female with a knife closing in on her. Perhaps she thought she'd be safer if managed to get in close, too close for the goddess to use her bow. She'd have been right...if Silvana hadn't had her own blade close at hand. Still...credit to her for being brave enough to try. She dealt with the distraction swiftly, then moved to follow her prisoner on their escape.
Several things happened at once: as Silvana turned, she locked eyes with a figure in the foliage. She couldn't see much of this figure, because the eyes dominated her vision for a split second, followed by a blinding purple flash. She began to fall, having been in motion when she realized her body was no longer responding to orders. She could still feel...but it was as if she were encased in stone...she could not move. She couldn't even reach out to stop herself as she started to topple.
Blinding pain followed, as a crushing impact with her shoulder sent her flying to the side, tumbling like a rag doll to land in a heap. She landed half on her uninjured shoulder, half on her stomach, cheek resting on one arm. Her eyes fluttered and she'd been left dazed by the impact.
"That was...unnecessary."
"Fun though."
A low growl was aimed at the grinning angel with the club, who seemed to balk somewhat. "Stop wasting time and get the boy! We're done here."
Silvana's vision swam, and though she couldn't move, a shiver of cold traveled up her spine. As the angel hurried off on orders, motioning to some of the others to retrieve the net from the ground, she could have sworn she saw a colorful figure step into view. She must have been hit harder than she thought...was that a halo? No...there was a tail, cracking like a whip...she must have been imagining things...no one had half a halo...not even ones like the boy there, who were a little of both...
The boy! She had to get up, get to him before they did! She struggled, trying to get her to feet, but to no avail. She couldn't move. It was as if she were frozen...in fact, were those ice crystals forming on her arm in front of her face? Wait, it was far too warm for ice... Still the crystalline shapes grew, covering her skin and creeping upward...claiming her form as she lay powerless to stop it.
"Should have stayed out of our way, little girl."
In the background, voices rang out.
"Haha, we got him now!"
"Net him and lets get out of here!"
"Derrick, Shayne, carry our new friend here!"
A pair of feet had halted in Silvana's vision. The figure watched the prone goddess with interest for a while before following the others. This seemed to be taking longer than normal...but it was working. "You weren't really part of the plan. And as fun as it would be to end you now...well, I really have better things to do. Besides, most don't survive this anyway. Best of luck with that." The feminine voice seemed to lift its tone, ending with a girlish giggle before the figure stepped out of Silvana's view.
Soon, the goddess was left in silence, only the noises of the forest to keep her company as she could do nothing but watch the crystals slowly encasing her form...
*****
((This RP is considered finished and complete. One more post for reactions from Malek will be allowed if his player so wishes, but is not required.
As it stands, Malek has been taken. His status is currently MIA and he will be temporarily unavailable for RP until this situation changes.))
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