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 Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2017 10:44 pm
When Lailah let loose of 'Cria', his weight was too much so Alethea just dropped him. He didn't want help up anyway. Neither of them did. If Lailah hadn't just done what she did, Alethea was sure she would certainly imagine herself doing it. She didn't think she could actually do it. The talky angel sure made her hackles rise though and she was cheering Lailah on and even started to tear up at the emotional outrage. Absolutely everything she'd been thinking from the moment they set foot in this swamp Lailah had just spoon fed to that angel. The short pause in Lailah's voice caused a hitch in Alethea's own breathing as she let out the breath she'd been holding.
The difference in what Lailah said and what Alethea was thinking however, was that Alethea would leave them to rot. They were not worth her friend's lives, even if they did kiss the Guardians' a**.
"Lailah ..." Alethea ran towards her comrade - no, friend - to see if she was okay. She knew the blood angel didn't have emotions, well, at least, she didn't show them if she did. But this outburst just made Alethea's heart swell.
"Lailah .. " she said softly, resisting the urge to put a hand on her back. She pulled the hand back, gently curling her fingers in. "You just said what we were all thinking." Keeping her eyes open still, she was eager to get out of there.
"There,"she pointed to what looked like a way out. "Maybe that's worth checking out. Could be a way out." Or just a shadow from the falling rocks of the decaying castle...
By 'way out' she really meant a way out of here, this place, and on their way back home and out of this nightmare.
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Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2017 2:09 pm
'Yet' he corrected her as she tried to convince them that the teenagers weren't attacking them. The words had been unspoken and there was a chance he could have kept his tongue if she hadn't actually attacked him.
Pinned helplessly against the pillar Kurt gave a short bitter laugh, "Yet, you showed yourself." The game frayed on this particular teenager, dropping the act of wanting to help fit her so naturally. There was a mantle of rage that just fit her lovingly. She belonged here, demon playing as a good guy.
All her yelling and raging met with disinterested pink eyes. She was too close to loook away from but he avoided looking her in the eyes directly. The gold reminded him of something, something hidden among the brambles of his mind. A mad grin seemed to form as he told her, "You've become a part of this place." This place was a part of her even if all that nonsense was true he could see it and even feel the kinship growing.
They'd better be worth it? Trying to think to hard on it only made his own screams echo in his ears. "You have no idea." Morning the dead, the dead didn't have to suffer, that was for the living and if this volatile female was any indication, he had far more suffering left to do, normal for a Tuesday.
The push had him down in an instant, there wasn't enough strength in his battered exhausted body to fight the gravity. Lack of food or water, constant pain and torment, if it weren't for Cria he'd sit there and fight the hand.
Heavy sigh followed as he took the help up offering the first thing close to a thank you. It was a nod, and a lack of hostility but it was more then anyone else had really gotten. On his feet he could better protect Cria.
A laugh caught in his throat, "Worse? Everything becomes worse here, there is no worse. Well sore cheaters maybe" That was just rude, or teenagers pretending to be heros and doing a horrible job hiding their ill intent. Did they expect a bloody parade? Well the angriest female probably called the event master himself.
Name? Oh that was a thought. What was his name? "K..K something Kurt maybe?" It sounded right, but different at the same time. Eligor could tell him he was wrong and at this point he'd believe him. So strange how things almost seemed clear then faded away again.
Heedless of any interference Eligor might offer, Kurt still tried to get to Cria's side. There wasn't much he could do but at least he could be there.
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Posted: Sun Mar 26, 2017 8:57 pm
As Kurt spoke to her, Genesis had a bewildered look on her face. He recognized her? She didn't even have the chance to attempt to recognize him as Lailah got in his face with her outbursts. Venting like she was, was not going to get them anywhere, but it was clearly something that Lailah felt needed to be done because Genesis could never have imagined the guarded teen having an outburst like that. Her words were true, and Genesis felt certain that it was an idea shared by the whole group.
Once that was over, Genesis went back to looking at Kurt, mentally peeling back the wear and damage to his face that had been caused by his time in this dark place. "Kurt... that is correct." Genesis repeated his name back to him. "I remember you, we completed the guardian's task together." Genesis hoped that this revelation would help settle his spirit, perhaps then the taint would leave him easier.
Genesis lifted her head to look where Alethea had pointed, moving to investigate where she pointed, her sword at the ready again. She had been studying the walls as she had circled the group protectively and was certain this was the only way they could go, other than up, but she didn't like the idea of attempting to fly out of the keep, it would make them too visible.
Genesis drew some light into her hands to shine into the darkness. It looked clear, "Yes, this way." Genesis agreed.
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Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2017 9:55 pm
Katya took a moment to walk slightly away from the others and watch the skies. Failing light was now giving way to twilight, and if they could have seen over the walls of the courtyard the squires would have noticed the first stars beginning to glimmer in the east. She mused that the darkness would make any approaching hostile force more difficult to spot. Although conversely it would make the squires themselves more concealed, they were not creatures of darkness (as Katya's overactive imagination pictured her adversaries) and they had just collapsed a magical field, along with the stone tower that was apparently supporting it. That nobody had come calling after all that racket kept the young squire perplexed and on edge.
Yet night, whenever it came, would make it easier to simply fly away from this bloodsoaked place. For a moment, she let wishful hope take her mind and imagined them all taking wing and flying away, even the two abused and weary adults. Maybe they could somehow carry one adult between two of them? Even without having specifically trained to do so?
And then have to drop their unfortunate passenger should an attack eventuate. Perhaps not.
With the discovery of another way out of the courtyard (but back into the buildings that made up this keep) Katya moved immediately toward the entrance the others had pointed out. The light Genesis shone made visible a good section of corridor, flagstones, cold grey walls and all. What caught Katya's eye however was a door sitting ajar off to the left side. A storage room perhaps? She walked into the darkness despite her unease and, with Genesis' light behind her, peered around the doorway, past a reasonably well-built wood and metal door. In the dimness she made out furniture of solid construction, heavy and unnervingly large, like that found in the hall they had fought in earlier. The room was rather spacious but otherwise featureless, with no windows to the outside, lending credence to the idea that it might indeed be a store-room, albeit a sizable one.
Katya dared not enter the room alone, even though she couldn't see or hear any unwelcome activity within. "Got a storage room over here." She glanced back at Genesis and added, in a low voice, "We can gather ourselves and the captives in there. See if we can get their heads straight. What do you think?"
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Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2017 11:11 pm
Genesis looked on past Katya, nervous about pressing further inward. Genesis was looking for anything out of place, anything that would tell her that they were walking into some sort of trap because she could not shake the feeling. Nothing betrayed this though. Genesis looked back over her shoulder, wary that some enemy could approach them from behind and shut them into this room.
Genesis could see no other options though. The choices were simple, die out there or potentially die in here or potentially move on. "We have no choice." Genesis responded, agreeing to Katya's plan. The sound of defeat was clear in her voice. Was night actually starting to fall outside? Had they only been in this place for a day. With how much they had lost... How much they had failed, it felt like so much more. "This way everyone, we will recover in here." Genesis followed Katya's lead, speaking quietly to her closest comrade, the message would have to be relayed, but you never knew who was listening.
[Genesis would like to roll a trap check]
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Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 4:17 pm
Lailah had rushed away from the angel before he could say anything else to stoke the flames of her anger. She'd made the excuse of scouting ahead, as that was her normal role, but her mind was only half on the task at best. Much of her thoughts whirled around what she'd just said and how she'd just behaved. In front of the others no less. There was definitely something wrong with her...with all of them. They weren't acting themselves, that much was clear. This place...it had to be...
She'd heard Alethea follow her and it wasn't until she sensed the near-contact, her wings twitching and pulling tighter against her back, did she acknowledge her presence. Fortunately, contact never came, so the most Alethea received for her attempted gesture was a brief glare over Lailah's shoulder. She clearly didn't want to be touched right now, so the decision to withdraw had been wise. Lailah didn't doubt the truth of any of what she said; she was sure that she hadn't been the only one thinking it either. She just normally wouldn't have been the one to say any of it aloud, which was more what she was angry with herself for. She didn't let others see behind the mask. She was the cold one. The one who was willing to do what needed to be done. She was the weapon to be aimed, the one to drive them forward when they began to lag and stagnate. She didn't have feelings.
She wasn't supposed to.
Luckily, Alethea left it at that single statement. Lailah was more comfortable when they returned to business at hand and she made that clear by acknowledging the suggestion positively. "Could be. A way out would be fantastic about now." Clearly, she wasn't the only one eager to get going, as Katya and Genesis moved to take point ahead of her. Alright then. After listening to their report of what they found, Lailah felt it sounded like a better option than staying out here. Darkness was falling anyway. Better to find somewhere defensible to bunker down and rest, perhaps for the night. "Alright, let's move."
Eligor couldn't help but lift a curious eyebrow at the angel's response. He wasn't sure of his own name? The demon waited to respond until Genesis had confirmed that she had in fact met this angel before. "Kurt, then. I'm Eligor." Perhaps if he could keep the elder of the pair calm, it would help in getting the two of them moved all the easier. He hadn't missed the nod or the sudden compliance, even if half of what he kept saying made no sense or sounded deranged. He brushed aside any thoughts of lecturing Lailah later on her behavior; perhaps it was what they had needed to break the stalemate after all. Even if he didn't agree with her method, it was hard not to stand behind some of the things she had said. He'd been thinking some of the same thoughts for a while now.
The mage felt some of the tension subside from his head now that the hostilities seemed to have cooled somewhat and it felt like they were making progress by moving. He was only momentarily concerned when Kurt started to pull away, but noticed he only seemed intent on getting closer to the shetani. Amazing. As corrupt and twisted as his thoughts were, he remained determined to protect the younger male. Believing that perhaps a bit of give and take might work better for negotiating and keeping the former prisoners working with them instead of against them, Eligor didn't try to stop Kurt, but instead followed him over to Cria. "Come on," Eligor offered, reaching down for the shetani's arm to help him stand. "Let's get you both somewhere safe."
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Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2017 5:30 pm
Genesis distracted him, faded golden memories dimly floating through the tar. "Where is my sword?" Valid question, he'd gotten one, once. "Where is yours?" Another valid question, it seemed so important once.
So many times, more than he could ever hope to count, the angel thought to a sword. That sword would protect him, keep him safe. Where was it? The other things, tokens beyond memory. If he had those them maybe, maybe. Wondering about it visibly distressed him as he began to look around in earnest for the sword that seemed so important.
The others moved around, he noted it but didn’t particularly focus on any single one of them. Typical teens thinking they knew more than their elders. Grouchy but focused, he kept working on a way to get himself and Cria out of this mess.
Eligor, that sounded a lot like a name. Huh. Looking to the most reasonable of the teens again, Kurt. “Alpaca are pregnant for a full year, Eligor.” Information for information, talking about his passion felt like tossing a blanket off. Or back on, it shielded him as much as seemed to burden.
Distracted again, he heard what the teen said but didn’t exactly listen. No pae held either of their leashes and it wasn’t like he could really pick Cria up on his own. Sighing, resigned for now, Kurt looked at Cria, waiting to see his eyes. As soon as eye contact was made he’d look up sharply and jerk his head just enough. Follow, for now.
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Posted: Fri Apr 14, 2017 1:32 pm
Despite the sharp pain the shetani felt on his backside as gravity took hold and he fell back against the column, an uncharacteristically twisted grin seemed to take hold of his lips as his eyes narrowed suspiciously. Cleared from his previously panicked state, yet certainly far removed from a sane frame of mind, he willed his presence to be small as the engagement between Lailah and Kurt took place. If he wanted to stroke his own ego by playing the protector, by all means, he could have it. These guys seemed to be more preoccupied with the ruckus in any case. Pushing around ever so slightly, weary eyes followed after the girls who continued onwards. If he could just get a little closer... He could make a run for it.
Oh damn it all why did he have to bring the attention back to him?! See this was the problem!
The shetani made eye contact with his comrade, more focused and intimidatingly more icy than they'd been in quite some time. Kurt could probably imagine the tch he internally made as he grimaced some at the thought of cooperating with them, but his scowl soon subsided as he came to an agreement in the course of action. Certainly, now that they were once more the focus, it would prove easier to go along for now and make a break for it when they slipped up.
If they slipped up.
They seemed green enough for an opportunity, though. Just had to wait for it to present itself. If patience was all it took, that'd be no hardship.
After all, time was all they had these days.
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Posted: Wed May 03, 2017 4:36 pm
For a moment, it seemed that a bit of clarity had come to Kurt's features. He looked towards Genesis as if he recognized her, then began asking...about swords? He didn't mean her usual weapon, clearly, as she had that. Did he mean...the swords the Guardians had tasked them to retrieve? Eligor's questioning gaze turned on Genesis. Did she remember this Pae'il from before? Had he something to do with her retreval of the Air representative objects? Then it seemed as quickly as the clarity had come, it was gone again, and Kurt seemed to grow more anxious all over again.
Well, that was frustrating, but at least for a moment, it had been something.
When Kurt addressed him directly, however, Eligor's response was to raise a single eyebrow and comment, "Err, that's...fascinating, Kurt." While it was interesting, this wasn't exactly the time or place, was it? Not for the first time, concern touched his expression as he watched the two former prisoners' odd behavior. Surely they were just befuddled by the corruption and would clear their hearts and their minds once cleansed of its effects. Hopefully. Right?
It was not the first time he'd begun to worry that perhaps there may be more damage here than they'd be able to heal. If there were permanent damage...
He shook his head slightly as if banishing the thought. No need to concern himself with what might be unless that presented itself as reality.
"Coast is clear," Lailah snapped in an even tone, her eyes on alert for that to change at any time. "Storage room, there on the left," she pointed, acknowledging what Katya's scouting had found ahead. She waved to hurry Eligor along with the two now-cooperating rescued victims. If they could just get into the storage room and blockade the door from the inside, they'd have somewhere safe to rest and recover, perhaps for the night if they needed it. It wouldn't go amiss to have some proper time to rest, even she had to admit.
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Posted: Wed May 03, 2017 6:26 pm
Eligor became forgotten as soon as Kurt put eyes on Cria. Pausing still with slightly widened eyes, he 'heard' the other's argument. Glancing around, he tried to consider another option.
One attempt at stretching his wings proved to be a painfully bad idea. That meant flying to safety was pretty much out. Tugging at his tied up arms meant that fighting was out. It brought to mind if he could get Cria to play along and untie him so they could free each other while the teens weren't looking.
Taking a deep breath he exhaled a little louder and more slobbery than he expected once the decision had been made. Between where they came and where they could go the teens seemed to have the best of ideas
Huffing and rolling his shoulders with a groan he looked back to Cria. Small turn of his head either way to convey it wasn't a good idea.
Stepping forward he went to follow the teens, for now. However, as he walked he moved in front of Cria and purposely moved his wrists. On the hand that he had the most control over he moved his fingers trying to get Cria's attention while keeping his back from the Teens now headed towards the storage room area. Maybe that place had his sword?!
Focus, get Cria to understand that he needed to help untie him as soon as they were able. Two of them able to fight might make a half decent warrior and against teenagers at that.
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Posted: Mon May 08, 2017 8:24 pm
Eyes following to where Lailah had pointed, Genesis nodded her head in agreement and moved into the storage room, she stood by the doorway, watching the hostages of this dark place be escorted by her companions. She watched them closely, knowing all was not well still, but they would remedy that soon.
For now Genesis was trying to take things one step at a time, if she tried to look to far ahead she was at a loss of what to do.
"With haste..." Genesis urged in a low whisper.
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Posted: Sat May 20, 2017 3:00 pm
Upon entering the poorly-lit room, Katya stepped to the side and crouched low to the ground, trying to peer through the dimness to see if there was any sign of ominous shapes moving or hiding under dusty tables or chairs. Satisfied that there was nothing underneath the closest table at least, she hopped up onto it as silently as she could and once again marveled at its height. Was it really a table or a small shelter? The beings that used it must have been very large indeed. Even though Katya found herself sharing the tabletop with a couple of upturned chairs and an odd-looking metal sculpture of some kind, this one was far less cluttered than all the others in the room, those being stacked high with various heavy wood and corroded metal items.
The young demon had her bow out again, with an arrow ready but not nocked. Perhaps, in hindsight, it might not have been a bad idea to at bring a knife or club maybe for combat in small rooms such as this one. At least by standing on the table any threat would have to climb up to her first before it could reach her.
With little else to do, Katya idly scanned the room around her, keeping an eye open for any traps or hidden escape routes. Anything to gain an advantage
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Posted: Sun May 21, 2017 9:56 pm
The only threats to be found in the room were a couple of colossal dust bunnies and some (thankfully normal) cockroaches that skittered off into a dark corner as the Squires and their rescues hurried into the room. While their comrades shut and barred the door behind, the others would find what the scouts had already noted: a storage room perhaps, full of old, but massive pieces of furniture and easily years worth of dust. Though they had obviously hung on the wall for a very long time without being touched, there were some torches along the wall that would probably still burn if someone could light them.
With the door barred securely, the Squires would find themselves in a safe place for now to rest, recover, and help the rescued hostages.
*****
Breathing heavily, a female figure dashed headlong through the fortress' hallways, a swirl of leaves in her wake. She gave little regard to any possible dangers lurking in the depths, her crystal blue eyes were focused forwards on her goal beyond. She was navigating the corridors automatically, turning, dodging, weaving ever deeper into the dark fortress.
No, no, nonono! Her hand clutched at her chest as she ran and she seemed pained, teeth worrying her lower lip. The seals were weakening! What was happening? They'd held this long. Why would that change? It couldn't be...could it? But why would they? What reason would they have...?
She was getting close, she could feel it. But, it was too late. The ground shook as a mighty commotion ahead heralded the pillar's fall. The woman had slowed and now fell to the ground, not from the shaking earth, but more collapsing with a shudder. NO!
Ahead, the dust was settling and the Squires would be picking themselves up off the ground. The woman lay still for a moment, sprawled on the floor seemingly motionless. No, a slight movement...her shoulders shaking silently. She slowly looked up, tears welling at the corners of her eyes before they spilled over, leaving shining trails down her cheeks. As she began trying to collect herself from the ground, her movements held a new sense of wariness. Carefully, she moved forward towards the archway that led into the open courtyard. Ahead, the Squires were checking on each other, celebrating their victory, the rubble strewn about, all that remained of the towering pillar...
Oh Spirits, what have you done?
Shaking, she kept herself out of sight. Until she could determine the motives for their actions, she would rather not reveal herself to these Squires. Had their true purpose here been driven by malice? Had they any idea what the consequences of their actions would be? She had been too late to stop them...it was too late now. Too late.
Too late.
Still out of sight, she withdrew as the group ahead seemed to start mobilizing again. There was nothing else for her to do here. It was too late to stop this...but that didn't mean she was giving up yet. She would need to act swiftly, but there was something that could be done as a countermeasure. She needed to hurry though. There was no time to waste.
As the Squires moved deeper into the fortress, the woman turned and fled back the way she came with a prayer on her lips, blinking away the tears in her eyes.
Spirits help us all.
*****
((This is the final shop prompt for this portion of the Squires part, however, their work is not yet done. It is up to the players of Squires and rescued captives alike, to work together to finish the process of cleansing and healing Kurt and Malek in order to consider Part 3 complete. Once they are recovered, the Squires may begin asking them questions to try to find out more information about their captivity, their captors, or anything else they might know about the fortress. Part 4 will pick up the next morning, after they have all had a chance to finish the task at hand, then rest and recover for the night.))
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Posted: Mon May 22, 2017 2:16 pm
With the door shut, they were sealed in the room and all light was sealed out. Genesis drew the guardian's light into her hands in order to see the room. She couldn't help but feel nervous, they had worked so hard to escape from the clearing they had been trapped in, and now they had trapped themselves into another space. She was remaining as strong as she could, but at this point she was thoroughly exhausted.
"Everyone gather..." Genesis instructed, wanting everyone on hand in case something happened, she couldn't forget that Kurt and Kria were tainted and that they were still unpredictable, even if they had seemed to be going along with things.
Once everyone had gathered, Genesis spoke again, "We should complete the cleansing first, and then take care of their physical ailments." None of their injuries had been so dire that they needed to be treated now. "Two of you help Kurt." She could feel it when she had attempted to cleanse him, the taint went deeper in him, perhaps it was because he was an adult. Genesis turned to Kria, "This will make everything feel light again."Genesis said, trying to be reassuring as she attempted to draw the taint away from him with her light magic.
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Posted: Thu Jun 08, 2017 12:26 pm
Dante, who had been elated at their success in removing the barrier, found his emotions thrown into an un-Squire-like tumult as they interacted more and more with the former captives. He'd held back and let the rest of the group do most, well--all, of the talking. After all, what use would he be here?
When it became apparent that younger one of the pair was also mute, it sent Dante into a spin. He'd never met anyone like him before. What could this mean? He'd always understood his own muteness as a punishment, something to overcome. What, then, was this stranger overcoming? What lesson did the Guardians want him--want them--to learn? Dante wanted to draw nearer to him, to find out more about this Cria, but it was clear that something had addled his mind--both of the former captives' minds. And so he kept his distance.
Another thought occurred to him as he followed the group (he would later remember his introspection as a failure on his part to stay alert and engaged with the situation), which is that the Guardians, though they had deprived him of his voice, had blessed him with a community of friends--almost family--with whom he'd invented a way to communicate without speaking. Even Lailah used the Squires' system of signing with him, and did not ignore him. This poor fellow...did he have such a thing? Or was he alone in his silence? Dante sent up a quick prayer of thanks to the Guardians for his gift of community.
As they entered this room and the gloom surrounded them, Dante was exited from his thoughts. A hot blush of shame covered his cheeks and ears; he was thankful it would be difficult to see. Banishing his own emotions from mind, he gathered with the rest of the group around Genesis. Her instructions were sound, and he nodded his understanding.
"I will heal their injuries," he signed. This was his strength, and the gift the Guardians had given him.
((OOC: THANK YOU for being patient with me! I still don't have internet at home but I can pop on during lunch at work. I went for a more introspective post so I could go ahead and catch him up without having to like, touch everything else and make this long overdue response even more overdue. heart ))
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