[SRP] Nocturne Fallen [Astoria x Arcadia]

[Novablu]

Self-RP between Novablu's twins, Astoria and Arcadia.

 

[Novablu]

In the inky darkness of the night, only a pale sliver of moonlight showing, gleaming from behind a haze of clouds, Astoria knew something was wrong. She felt it, the wrongness, the darkness that lingered in the woods just beyond her line of vision. Her brightly-hued wings twitched in annoyance, jumping against her back like a flighty bird’s might. She flared them to full-size to make herself appear larger, though she was already a large mare to begin with and she was still a youngling herself. Her claw tips dug into the softened earth as she began to prowl, icy eyes pinned to the shadows, scouring them up and down. She froze and scented the air. The night had suddenly turned eerily silent and it made the hair at the back of her neck p***k at attention.

A low growl bubbled up her throat, escaping into the air, echoing past the trees. A warning. Maybe she was a fool; she’d been taught by her uncle Nox himself, never to give yourself away. To practice caution in the face of danger, but Tor was no coward. She would face danger head-on. She’d been in training since the day she could walk. She knew how to fight, how to use wings, claws, and fangs to her advantage.

She wasn’t afraid, but as the first scream lit the air, a low bellow of a war cry, she should’ve been.

X

Arcadia was one to stick close to home, reveling in the soft familiarity of the Nocturne herd. The swaying dancers with bells adorning their manes and ankles. The soft laughter of the harem girls who kept wanderers company. The low undertones of chatter, because night was when the herd was the most awake and aware. They were nocturnal creatures--dubbed gargoyles by some--and that much was apparent. A blended herd of feathered, clawed hippogriffs and the wiry, leather-winged kalona made up the herd’s base, but Nocturne Point was so much more than just family. It was a sanctuary. It was a safe haven, where lost little lambs could come and find shelter. It was a beautiful thing, and she was happy to be a part of it.

But the herd had been in a state of calamity lately. Namely because there was speculation that the crown princess, the eldest daughter of leaders Nox and Lithia, had struck out on her own. She’d gone rogue, just up and left the herd, her twin brother Sebastian in tow. Speculation. Right. Cade knew Gansey--they were blood cousins, after all--and Gansey wasn’t exactly the responsible sort. She knew for a fact that Gansey had abandoned ship, and with a smile on her face too!

One minute the herd was calmly milling around and the next, a low shriek split the air. A yell, a curse, and the darkness that was their enemy folded in on either side of them. It went from peace to chaos in one swift moment, but the only thing on Arcadia’s mind was her twin sister. She’d been scouting tonight. No…

“Tor!” she cried, leaving the guardians to do the brunt of the fighting, and took off into the woods to find her twin. Please don’t be dead…
 

[Novablu]

Astoria lunged as the fleet of pure kalona--her mother’s herd, well before they tried to kill her--leapt into a frenzy of movement. She was slammed left, shoulder folding as a snarling mare latched onto her, fangs ripping into her side. Pain lanced down Tor’s flank, but she spun around with her own fangs bared, blood filling her mouth as she clamped down around flesh and tearing. Growls and snarls echoed through the trees as the kalonas fought, but while Tor was young and determined, her enemy was stronger, faster, colder.

The pair fought under the sliver of moonlight, clouds covering the skies as thunder began to rumble overhead. Blood hung heavy on the air as Tor slipped down, fighting valiantly but struggling under the fierce jaws of her own flesh and blood. This mare… She was the one who had ripped her mother’s chest open and left her for dead. Her own sister. Tor’s aunt… Gasping for breath, she clamped down on Nyx’s neck even as her legs buckled from exhaustion and she dropped to her knees.

Nyx jerked free and smirked, a bloody-fanged smile. “You’re weak, just like them. Gargoyle scum…” she seethed, dark eyes flashing with anger, with hatred. Tor’s body thrummed with pain, gashes and bites littering her rainbow-hued pelt, blood soaking her fur as she struggled to get to her feet, but her legs just wouldn’t hold her. “Get up and face me like a warrior,” Nyx snarled then, standing tall. “Or I’ll snap your pretty little neck here and now.”

Tor gazed up at her aunt, a scowl on her face despite the blood blinding her eyes. Slowly, exhaustedly she rose, her claws biting into the earth, her serpentine tail lashing from side to side, though she swayed on her feet. Nyx smiled, eyes lighting up. “You’re a fighter. At least my blood runs true. Now come and accept your death…”

X

Arcadia leapt through the forest, nimble on her feet like a sprite. Her pale coat didn’t help her hide in the shadows as another legion of kalona rushed past, snarls and growls and hisses escaping them. Her heart beat heavy behind her ribs, the scent of blood ripe in the air, and the screams… She looked back at her herd, knowing her parents would be fighting the demons who invaded, but she had to find Astoria. Worry ripped through her, fresh and hot, and she moved through the woods at a quick clip. She heard voices, low and threatening, and when she saw her sister, wavering on her feet, torn and bloody, her heart nearly stopped. “Tor…”

She knew the dark-pelted kalona mare was none other than her aunt, Nyx, the leader of the kalona herd hellbent on destroying them. Because Nox and Lux were traitors to their own blood. Because of the past, which could never be altered, Nyx held a deep-seated fury for them. Cade stood just out of sight, glancing between her weakened twin and Nyx who sported wounds and old scars, but fearlessly.

And she knew what she had to do. Leaping forwards, wings bent to snag at her hair, to beat furiously against her enemy, Cade dive-bombed Nyx. The other mare let out a squeal of anger as the two, light and dark, began to grapple. She scraped her claws anywhere she could reach and the taste of blood was metallic on her tongue. Ears pinned back, she fought with all of her spirit, though she was never a fighter. More the peaceful sort, but when it came to her family--and Astoria--she would defend them until the very end.

And then her sister leapt into action beside her, her own movements sluggish but her eyes fierce as the fangs she bore. The twins beat at Nyx, ripping flesh from muscle until the other mare was shrieking from fury and pain. She yanked free, backing up, her face splattered with blood. Cade stood beside her twin, their sides heaving, their wings bloodied and feathers mangled.

“You’ll live to regret this,” Nyx hissed coldly. “I will have your blood on my hands, gladly.” Then, with a shriek that carried across the woods, she lit into the sky with a heavy, awkward wing flap to lick her wounds. A moment later, following cries rose up and the kalona herd began to retreat. The sky was peppered with inky forms as rain began to fall down, as if the clouds were crying.

“Tor… You’re hurt,” she said, reaching for her twin.

X

Astoria stood there and watched them flee, the cowards. Her body shook with weakness, with blood loss. Her wings ached, her claws burned, and she was so very tired… She looked at her innocent twin sister, now marked with blood and wounds that would surely scar, and she felt her heart squeeze. “Cade. You should’ve run. You should’ve…” She shook her head, because she knew their bond was one thing that would never be severed. “Thank you. I’m okay…but what about the herd?” Her brows knit together, concern in her heart. “We have to find them… Find Mom and Nox! C’mon!” she cried, limping off as quick as she could.

But what they found… Horses lay slain, throats ripped out and wings torn off, their bodies limp and eyeless. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t see as panic gripped her fresh, and she stumbled through Nocturne Point, trying to find her family. “Mom?” she whispered, voice hoarse from screaming. No… Lux lay flat, her pale eyes empty, void of a soul, blood staining her pastel pelt. Nausea roiled in her gut as she turned to shield her sister from the sight. “Arcadia, no!”

X

Arcadia’s legs were numb, her heart hollow as she walked through the chaos, the death and destruction that gathered around her. Her family… Her friends… Those they had sworn to protect. The Nocturnes had fallen… “No,” she whispered, over and over again, a haunted chant that ripped her open from the inside out. “Please… No. Tor…” She turned, tears welling in her eyes to streak down her face, mingling with the blood and dirt already there. “Where’s Mom? Dad?” Panic hitched her voice higher.

She barely registered her sister’s voice as she shoved past…and looked down at the corpse of her mother. A sob ripped up her throat, raw and ragged. “No. Please… Why? Why did this happen?” She nudged her mother’s shoulder, her body still warm. She folded her wings tight to her body, the ache would never quite leave. “I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…”

What happened next? Not everyone was dead. Some must’ve fled, on foot and on wing. She saw too many bodies that she recognized, but some of them… Surely they had escaped, made it out alive? She swallowed hard at the losses around her, but it was the fallen, broken form of their leaders that had her crying all over again. “Tor,” she called out, numb.

Nox and Lithia--the leaders of their sanctuary herd--lay side by side, their limbs broken and bent, their wings ripped and tattered, and their faces… Arcadia began to shake violently, fearing for the worst. “We have to get help…” she whispered, backing away, shaking her head. Her mind was beginning to shut down, shut everything out, because her home reeked of death and despair.

X

Astoria held herself very still, though pain echoed through her beaten body. Their mother, their leaders. Half the herd… Where were the others? Had they gotten away? Damnit, she should’ve never stayed to fight. She should’ve warned them. She should’ve… She ground her teeth against the fresh wave of emotion that wracked through her, anger and helplessness, panic and fear. What next? Where did they go from here? Nocturne Point had fallen… Their home was no longer.

“What of the young ones?” she asked her sister, ears pulling flat against her head. Canaan and Samsara were only foals. Were they out there, all alone? Had someone helped them? Their parents were slaughtered, possibly right before their eyes. She looked at Arcadia, whose face was blank, her eyes eternally sad. “I’m sorry, sis,” she said softly, bumping up against her twin. “We’ll…We’ll make it. Somehow. Okay? At least we still have each other, right?”

Not that that would ever make this…slaughter right.

“We have to keep going. Keep fighting. Mom would’ve wanted us to. Okay? Cade?” Her voice broke as a single tear slipped down her cheek. She would not break. She steeled herself, forcing the emotion back down. “Arcadia.”

X

Arcadia looked at her sister, her chest hollow and empty, the emotions forsaking her, leaving only pure agony. “Okay,” she whispered back, letting out a low sigh as she bumped her head against Tor’s shoulder, seeking the comfort that their mother always gave them, even though they were no longer fillies. “Don’t leave me alone, Tor,” she said, tight throated. “Please. I couldn’t bear it… Not after this…” She looked down at her claws, splashed with blood, and shook her head. This wasn’t right. This wasn’t justice, this was horrific and needless slaughter, and for what?

Anger grew, a fiery ball in the pit of her heart and slowly, she raised her head to look at her twin. Determination fueled by fury lit her blue eyes. “I will kill her,” she said softly. “Because if we don’t…” They would find them. They would hunt them down. They would never be safe… “I will end it. I promise you that. I promise.” Her voice shook as she gazed out over the corpses, laying in wait for the sun to rise and tell tale of this horrible night. “I promise, Mom…”

FIN