Quote:
Wanted Wisps (11): Small, wispy orbs are floating through the city. They can be found during the day but are far more visible at night. They seem to bob along a few feet off the ground and sometimes flicker in and out of sight. They are warm to the touch and seem to be somewhat magical in nature. Anyone can gather them in their hands; they do not quite feel solid but cannot slip through fingers or escape any container. If you find one of these, you must return it to the merchant. If you do not roleplay with him, it will be assumed that you returned the piece to hi anyway; there is no way to keep these. Please see this post for information on turning in the Wisp and claiming your prize.
Word Count: 519
In the darkness of the night, on the very edge of the city’s limits, where the trees stood old and tall, with the moon high above and the stars just out of sight, Ganymede saw a small, flickering light.
Sometimes, when she did not want to venture far from home but could not quell the impulse to do something, she powered up and took a stroll through the woods — far enough that she wouldn’t draw attention to her house, but close enough that it wouldn’t take too long to return. Chaos was far-reaching; it did not restrict itself to the heart of the city, but spread out and stretched beyond its edges. The quiet woods could offer just as much danger as the darkest alley.
Through the trees, floating a few feet off the ground, was a glowing orb. It continued to flicker as it bobbed too and fro, disappearing behind one tree and reappearing beside another. Ganymede watched it for a time, studying its movements, observing which paths it took, attempting to determine its purpose, but it was too erratic, there and gone again in the blink of an eye, flitting about aimlessly.
She did not know what it was, but she knew what it reminded her of. Perhaps surprisingly for something not of the normal world, it did not seem hostile.
“Hello,” she said when it drew nearer. “Do you have someplace to be?”
The wisps did not answer, merely danced around her, ducking behind another tree before flickering back into her field of vision, drifting ever closer.
Gently, Ganymede extended a single hand to touch it, testing the feel of it with the tips of her fingers. It was wam, and not quite solid, but not so airy that it couldn’t be contained.
“Are you lost?” she asked.
The wisp dipped down to her feet, floating between her ankles, then skimming the ground as it drifted by.
“That’ll take you further away from the city,” she warned it.
The wisp rose and bobbed around beside a flowering shrub, floating close as if to examine it.
Always cautious of unexplained phenomena, even those that appeared friendly, Ganymede made a slow approach, palms open to profess her innocence. She cupped her palms on either side of the wisp, then slowly closed them around it, taking the wisp into her hands. The wisp did not attempt to flee; it remained within her grasp, not quite still, but offering no real struggle.
Unsure of the wisp’s origins, Ganymede made a brief search of the area, assuming there might be others like it somewhere. Surely this wasn’t the only one of its nature, darting around the outskirts of town. Her brief exploration turned up no more. Thus, Ganymede assumed, if there were more, this one must have been parted from them.
But where did it come from? Where did it belong?
“Let’s find out,” she decided.
With a quiet sigh, suspecting she would be out longer than she intended, Ganymede began to pick her way carefully through the trees, the wisp held securely in her hands.
