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 Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2017 4:44 pm
Rainier || Post 7
Rainier's face drained of blood as the pair of grotesque limbs reached out of nothing and snatched at the young priest almost directly in front of them. He swayed and glanced at his hands, he had nothing, no weapons, no spells to cast in defense of the boy.He hesitated, what could he do? Their leaders backed away in horror, the crowd was frozen in absolute terror. Then the screaming started, Rainier shook his head, trying to clear it of the panicked fog. He needed to act. A man charged past him, throwing him off balance, heading for the creature, it broke him out of his stunned reverie. He lunged for the boy's leg even as the creature let out such a piercing screech he wanted to curl up and cover his ears but he couldn't leave that boy to such a fate. Only a step more and he'd be close enough, he dove, his fingers closing over thin air. The pair of them, creature and boy, were just... Gone.
Rainier barked his knees against the ground painfully and scuffed his palms as he caught himself. "Uggh." he groaned. Laying there for a moment, he had failed. He had been right there and just watched as the young priest was tore from his people, the only family he knew. Rainier's shoulders hunched in shame and self loathing. Taking a few deep breaths he walked over to the other man and offered him a hand up. "Are you alright, did you hit your head?" He inquired, concern creasing his brow.
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 4:49 pm
Ko | 8 |Overcome by a combination of abject terror and curious fascination locking him in place as he gripped his sister’s hand, all Ko could do was watch as the two beings were swallowed up by the black rift that reappeared, as if sucking them into the abyss of death itself. And as for the two brave souls who tried to aid the young priest, all they received as reward for their efforts were new cuts and bruises.
But at least they had done something.
He detached himself from his sister’s grasp to rush over to the two Yeali who had tried to help, popping into a squat next to Rainier as all his nervous energy came tumbling out in a slurry of words, “Are you both okay?! Can you believe that just happened??? What was that thing? Did you see how it ripped the sky in two?!? Do ya think it was a demon?!”
He looked from Rainer to the stranger on the ground with eyes wide in wonder and admiration, “You both got so close to it! Did you see its face? You’re both so brave; even the priests did nothing! Did the Gods help you move?? Could you feel them in you??? Is that how it works?? Were you scared?!”
DraconicFeline Sorry for thrusting all of Ko's energy on your poor boy = u =;;;
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Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2017 2:04 pm
Kieran - 6 In the chaos the yaeli had moved forward so that he could protect Taijana. Whatever the strange creature was it moved with precision and it seemed that it was intent upon taking its hostage with it. Gritting his teeth in frustration Kieran moved forward before thinking once more to take a step back. The last thing he wanted to do was leave Taijana's side in this instance. " It seems I will take you up on that offer...though I won't be kicking you out of a bed." He replied quietly as he reached out to hold her arm, a gesture to comfort her and at the same time reassure himself that she was safe and still there at his side. That thing could have taken any of them...and the way it moved...was so unnatural. He had never seen the likes of such a thing before and it truly bothered Kieran. " Are you alright, Tai?" He glanced over at her protectively before glancing around the crowd one last time. It seemed that things would be quiet...for now.
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Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2017 6:05 pm
Chapter 9: Grave Expectations
|| IC ||
 The crowd was panicked, frightened, they looked to each other for protection, for support, but it was close to chaos in the Yaelian capital. The priests seemed shaken, the High Priest even was at a loss for words. The Priestess looked to her partner, took three deep breaths, and raised her arms to the crowd. "Everyone. I understand that this is frightening, and that it seems as if it is madness. I believe that it is a test, and obstacle set forth to us from the Gods." She took a moment to steady her mind, clear the way for the words to come. "A priest has been taken, we will not stand by for this, but I believe that the gods have taken him in order to help lead us to him and his captors. We are going to make the world better by removing this evil from its surface." They were bold words, but a priest had been taken.
There was someone in the crowd, one of the outsiders, though still few and far between. It was an older shifter man, there only to trade his goods and return home. "Why would this evil be this far south?" He wondered aloud, his gaze distant. Someone else pointed to him, their voice puzzled. "Why does it sound like you know what these things are?" The yaeli woman asked.
The shifter man seemed to focus, the other voices in the crowds dropping off to listen to him. "I've never seen one before, but there were rumors - where I'm from. They speak of bug men so twisted that the evil has permanently changed their bodies. They have antennae and sectioned bodies, always covered in cloaks, and they use a magic so dark that all of the rest of Tendaji can't access it." His words drifted off, it was exactly what they had just seen. "They're called the bug mages."
|| OOC ||
||. If your character is not signed up for their thread, they may not participate. You can PM Suhuba for late entries.
||. Please limit to up to 2 posts between NPC posts (these should be spaced out by responses from others to your post, no needless posting just to get more points).
||. NPCs will post twice a week, on Monday and Thursday.
||. If you have any questions, please post them in the Main Thread.
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Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2017 7:34 pm
Tarlok
Post: 9
Location: Near the Priests
--------------------Tarlok took the offered hand and achingly levered himself to his feet. "I'm not sure." he said shakily, still in shock. "What about you?"And then some very energetic person joined them. "Uh."This person was energetic, maybe a little too energetic for Tarlok's liking. "Uh." He had no answers, not for what it was, not for what it could be. Fortunately, most of it was directed at the other person, but some of it... "Maybe..." Tarlok said, looking shakily back at the priests, then back at the kid. I'll either come out a believer... or not. he thought again. "What about you, are you okay?" he felt he needed to ask, too. What head priestess was saying was not of consequence to Tarlok at that moment, nor was what the Shifter was saying. What mattered right then, was the aftermath of the moment.
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Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2017 9:31 pm
Taijana - 7
"Good," She said breathlessly. "Good, good, I- I-"
The High Priestess spoke then, and Taijana turned her attention to the regal woman. Frightening was an understatement, as even in that moment Taijana felt light headed and nauseous. Out of everyone to be taken a priest was snatched away from them. What could that mean? Was it a true sign from the Gods or something from a nefarious spirit?
She was almost ready to believe the priestess - to find some comfort in the moment, just enough to keep her cool - when a shifter, an outsider, began to talk. "He knows. These are monsters from his home and he brought them here."
Trilanna tried to place a hand on Taijana's shoulder but she shrugged it off with a sharp twist. "Tai, come on now, it's going to be fine-"
"WHEN HAS IT EVER BEEN FINE?!" She shrieked. It was the loudest she had ever been in her entire life, but Taijana was pushed well over the edge. "First the mainlanders send the extremists here and they breed more on our shores, and now they're sending more demons? One of our priests is gone! Or did your eyes fail to see that, sister? "
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Posted: Tue Aug 01, 2017 6:54 pm
Ko | 9 |Almost as quickly as the onslaught of questions came pouring out of him, Ko turned his attention away to the High Priestess and dark stranger who spoke, almost as if he was not expecting or requiring answers to his inquiries. They simply needed to be verbalized.
The description of their assailant was laid out in a rather redundant manner, but despite that, Ko was fixated on every word. More often than not he was the one inventing strange creatures and dark monsters to fill his world with; but for once, what was being said was confirmed to be true, and by another person at that. Everyone had seen it. If evil kidnapping bug men with magic so dark it can rip apart the fabric of the world could exist, then so could any other outlandish creature. It was only a matter of proving it.
It was a prospect both exciting and fearsome at the same time.
And with that his little mind started whirling away, trying to paint a mental picture for what kind of society these evil creatures could be a part of, where they might live, how their magic might work, taking what he had already learned and filling in the gaps with his own invented ideas.
He was so engrossed in crafting this new world that the sudden hand on his head from his sister gave him a good fright, shoulders jumping up to his droopy ears with a little yelp. He was still crouched on the ground; the other men had already stood up. How long had he been down there? He hoped it wasn’t very long, standing up with his freckled cheeks tinted pink as he glanced at their faces again. Hopefully no one had been trying to talk to him: it would have been very rude of him to be ignoring them!
Ko picked at some dirt under his nail while he fiddled with his hands, looking up at Tarlok with a sheepish little grin, “Umm…sorry. I can be...a bit of a bother sometimes. I hope you’re okay!” He looked over at Rainier as well, giving his dirtied knees a glance, “And you too Ra…Rainier? I think that’s right. Sorry if I’m wrong! I’m a forgetful little knob.” He rapped a knuckle on the side of his skull for emphasis, then gave a little 360 degree look at their surroundings, voicing a question not directed at anyone in particular, “I wonder what happened to that girl with the tiny glasses…?”
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Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 8:29 am
Saedah - Post 7 The poor girl had been shocked, scared and appalled at what was going on, though she was more in awe of the Yael man she had been talking to..the merchant who moved to do something. How...brave. Braver than she was anyway, standing there like a bug in a spiders nest. The creature was there...and then it was gone. Vanished. Taking the poor person with them.
It took Saedah a moment to unfreeze, to allow her joint to unlock and bend. Her mind had been ensnared by fear it took several minutes for it to start working again. Once she was able to think straight, her breathing returning to her burning lungs she rushed to Tarlok, brave brave Tarlok her skirts billowing as she moved to his side.
He of course was surrounded by other priests and priestess's as well fellow Yael, she winced hearing one particular Yael praise Tarlok and stating quite bluntly that even those of the order hadn't moved to take action. She lowered her head ashamed, and she slowed her advancement to Tarlok's position. Now standing just outside of the ring of people whom had gathered to praise him.
Hearing the High Priestess talk, the stranger from other thanks caused her body to tremble. Creatures of the darkness? Bug men? Clutching the sides of her dress she lowered her head back to look at the ground, but only after giving Tarlok another passing glance. Maybe he wouldn't want to do business with her and the temple any longer.... DraconicFeline she's near Tarlok and Ko just standing outside of the group feeling like she shouldn't interrupt lol
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Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 5:19 pm
Quote: Sorry for the awkward little disappearance,
life can get so unexpectedly fast paced, but thank you for participating with me! heart
I would love to RP with Ko and Rainer (and Tarlok if it please!) after the meta.
c:
Rain.
It was acceptable enough. Until he winked. Fortunately, Rain’s attention moved on to focus on the younger boy the next instant, sparing him from the convoluted baffled and offended stare she shot him the moment after. After, the details on what exactly happened would be lost on her. She meant to snap at the boy, to explain to him, ‘Don’t be a fool, the child is talking about real shadows.’
But she never made it that far.
Instead, some great commotion came upon the crowd, and when Jacline looked, she felt her body lock as though taken over by some foreign power. She saw what was occurring, but could not react so much as to see. One of their very own Chosen was being abducted before their eyes. Their leaders, the most revered among them touched by the gods themselves, stepped back in the face of this demon-
And Jacline, pray though she might on her own time as much as she had the time for, did not have the strength to rally herself then. Her body seemed to make its own choices.
She could not have laid forth the details of when or how exactly - what moment it was that she fainted - but she must have collapsed, for when she came to it was groggily and from a very different position than she began. So different, in fact, that she thought it might have all been a bad dream, an ongoing bad dream. She had fallen somehow, she hurt, but all the terrors in her mind could not have been real.
Yet, there were people still about her, it still smelled like a massive gathering, and oh, she was on the ground. After emmitting a small and pitiful quick sound of frustration she scrambled to convince her limbs to right herself. She couldn’t simply stay like this, but was she mad? What had happened?
If a nightmare could have the aftertaste of regurgitation backwashing into her mouth but translated into a mental sensation combined with nausea and wild dizziness that was how she felt as her head attempted to re-provide the images she had witnessed just before losing consciousness…
But no, it had to have been all in her mind. Her eyes flit in a panic for the closest persons to provide confirmation, her hands fumbling to secure on something to help herself up.
“What…?” Though there may have been more on her mind to say, that was all she could rally from her tongue for the moment.
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Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2017 10:35 am
Ko | 10 |Despite the many hiccups that come with being smaller than normal for a boy his age, occasionally there are great benefits to being a small little thing: this was one of those times. Anyone taller would have perhaps missed it, but being closer to the ground lended Ko a lower field of vision; which was how he happened to see the girl he had mentioned earlier lying on the floor.
“Ah! There she is!” he chirped as Ko wiggled through the natural gap created between the two taller men standing together, kneeling beside Jacline on the ground as he practically tipped his head upside-down to get at eye level with the prone girl. “Hi Miss! How’d you end up down here?? Did someone knock you over when that monster appeared? Did you hurt yourself?”
“Oh!!” Ko bounced on his heels as he righted his head to the proper angle again, his curls whipping back to pop back into place as the next obvious course of action only just now came to him, “A pretty girl like you shouldn’t be down here where it’s dirty, what if someone steps on you?! Lemme’ help you up!” And without much thought to the propriety of it all or waiting for her permission to help out, he took her hand in his to give Jacline something to hold onto.
But they were a little boxed in down on the ground with so many people about, so again with a spontaneity born of his straightforward way of solving the problem, he took a fistful of the long skirt right in front of them, giving the fabric a good few tugs to get the woman’s attention it belonged to, “Hi hello Miss? Up there??” Looking up, he addressed the young priestess with an earnest little smile, “Could you maybe take a few steps away? We’re trying to get er’ up, and space is a liiittttle tight right now.” He wiggled Jacline’s captured hand in his for emphasis of the point, but then suddenly gave the girl’s skirts another emphatic tug as a good idea came to him instead, “Oh wait, no! This is better! Could you please help me with her instead? I’m kinda small, and I dunno how her legs are doin’, so she might be too heavy for just me!”
Quote: Ko just casually dragging half of Yael into interacting with him, soon everyone in the meta is gonna be tagged lol
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Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2017 11:13 am
Rainier || Post 8
Ran's face twisted and he squeezed his eyes shut as his mind answered Kos' rapid fire questions. Yes, he'd come close, he was terrified, if the gods had tried to move him they'd found their vessel unworthy of the task at hand. But he kept his mouth pursed as shame and rage coursed through him.
His head turned as he listened to the priest and priestess reassure the crowd, his fury flared again at their assurance that the gods had taken the priest to lead the Yaeli to the enemy. He hated that idea and knew he would desperately need a cleansing ceremony for such un pure thoughts, these priests were the only family the victim had, why were they so calm?
He pulled the man to his feet and clasped his shoulder companionably once before letting go, "I am uninjured friend, thank you for your concern." He smiled down at Ko, he'd never had a brother but the surge of warmth towards the other boy was brotherly, sure Ko made him wince a bit with his boundless enthusiasm at times, but he could handle that. "Ko, as far as I'm concerned, its better to be a bit over engaged then uncaring."
Bug mages, Rainier swallowed the bile in his throat as finally a name was put to the gruesome creature that had raised such chaos. A fitting name for the thing he had seen.
At Ko's reminder, Rainier winced in embarrassment, he'd been so caught up in the moment he hadn't spared a thought for the young lady he'd promised to guard. He spun around to face the crowd once more and his face went bleak as he saw the girl had fallen to the ground and was struggling to rise. Ko had already flitted past him and taken charge of the situation though. Rainier felt a bubble of mirth before his face cracked into an outright smile as he watched Ko struggle with the girl on his own and then start tugging on skirts for the assistance he required. Rainier gave a moment's thought to hopping down himself and offering to lift the girl, but even in the short time he'd spent with her he had a feeling she would pummel him for even trying. "Let me know if you need me Ko!" he called out over the heads of the crowd.
Now that the worst was over he felt very self conscious standing up with the rest of the sanctum priests and priestesses, he hopped down and strained to see through the people. Where was Raisa? A bolt of fear shivered down his spine.
But no, she was just lost in the crowd somewhere, she'd be fine, he worried too much, she reminded him daily of that fact.
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Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2017 12:22 pm
Xelannis | 7
Although there was always more to say, lingering just on the tip of Xelannis' tongue, before he had the chance to utter any of it, the crowd had come to such an immediate, jarring silence that he too found himself quieted as his gaze searched for and then landed upon the strange thing that had appeared before them.
It stood on the same steps where he and the other Chosen stood, a scant number of feet from Xelannis' own placement, not so close as to be able to touch, but far too near just the same. He could see all of it that was visible from beneath its hood: jutting antennae, sharp mandibles, a segmented figure. It clicked and hissed and had an aura about it that felt as though it had come from a dark and evil place. It held one of his comrades captive, and Xelannis could see terror in the other young man's eyes.
Xelannis was not physically powerful, nor was he trained in any combat arts. He had no affinity toward magic and couldn't be sure what spells would even work upon this creature. He had no power except his mind, and in this case it was devoid of knowledge on how best to acclimate to the new situation.
He did what all of the others around him did and stepped away.
They could only pray that the monster would choose to leave them in peace of its own volition, or that the gods would be merciful and send them someone who did know how to tame or otherwise banish this thing. If Xelannis were to say that one of those options happened, he would say it was the first. As quickly as it had come, the creature vanished through a rift, taking its new captive with it, and leaving the crowd in a greater state of panicked shock than when it had arrived.
For Xelannis, the prior grievances of the day seemed insignificant. The idea of stirring up a scene over nothing did not please him, but that had not been nothing, and it now felt as though they'd all become a bit more wiser to their surroundings. What was most troubling, though, was that they were not safe just because they 'weren't alone.'
If even a group of this size could still lose someone to those creatures, than they may as well not be safe at all...
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Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2017 5:56 pm
LucidStreaming I'd love to plot with you/rp! We were in the middle of a rp in magesc werent we? With all of you, actually! He needs more interaction and friends and such.
Post: 10
Location: Near the Priests
-------------------- "I'm... fine. Yes." Tarlok said, affirming for himself. He was shaken, maybe he'd get a bruise, and he'd lost his dagger, but he was alive. He really was lucky. And, he supposed, not soulless. Merchants had a reputation for being awful - not his family, of course, but sometimes he could be shady and cruel and... Well, I guess I'm not uncaring. Tarlok thought idly as here were suddenly several people around, including one who had... fainted? Someone else was probably going to step up for that - and did. Tarlok was a little... done for the day, he felt. He needed to find his dagger, have something to drink, think about his life a little because that was what one did after a situation like this, wasn't it? The circle of people was breaking up and there were priests everywhere. Tarlok looked around for the metal weapon, but it had been, by now, kicked and tucked away into the midst of the crowd. He wasn't going to crawl on hands and knees for it, though. He sighed. Well, he'd have to get another, then. He supposed it wasn't a waste of money, even if it got lost. Not in these troubling times, after all. He gave the environs one last look, and noticed the young initiate from before glancing at him. He smiled a weak lopsided grin that didn't quite reach his eyes. I have no idea if this was good for business or bad. He was just glad he was alive...
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Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2017 6:39 pm
Chapter 9: Grave Expectations
|| IC ||
The High Priest and High Priestess listened with their undivided attention to the man as he spoke of this rumored evil on the mainland in Tendaji. When he finished, finally giving a name to those responsible for the disappearances, the High Priest stepped forward.
"It is a sign from the Gods. We are no doubt to help rid this evil from the world. We will send word to the other nations of Tendaji, asking their involvement and what they know." He gestured to the direction of the mainland, though it was nowhere near within view. "We will put together a sub council that will go to the mainland and meet with the other leaders. It must be."
"In the meantime, the Sanctum prays for safety and peace within our borders. Take extra caution, add the whole of Yael to your prayers and you can be sure the Gods will listen and they will help us through these trials." There were more words of parting, more talk of convening and it was sure that the priests weren't going to just shrug this off. They would need to meet and make a plan, but in the meantime, for the rest of Yael, it was a time of waiting.
|| OOC ||
Chapter 9 is complete! That you everyone for your participation! Please take a moment to read the following for additional guidance on what's you can expect for those who reside in Yael!
||. The High Priest and Priestess have asked that everyone try to travel in groups, and to keep their spirits up.
|| Yael can be expected to have an increase in visible devotion to their gods. So think more meetings/sermons from the churches, more prayers at home, etc.
||. The leaders are contacting the other locations for more information. They have not yet realized how wide spread it is, but eventually rumors will begin to spread.
||. Feel free to base rumors off of the information in the Official NPC thread. Considered this word of mouth and rumors, and feel free to have your character exaggerate the info beyond what's listed. Only Alkidikes know the truth, and they have not yet provided information to earthlings.
||. More information on next steps, plot progression, and OOC information will be shared once ready.
||. If you have any questions about plot or otherwise, please post them in the Main Thread.
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