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Post by Kendra on Mar 1, 2010 14:59:21 GMT -6
[OOC: Here's the rp for your char Arashi, Ryu! The character I'm using is the new one I just posted- Melkenthlir]
"There she goes!" someone shouted. The voice sounded distant and muffled, clouded by the brush of the woods.
"No this way!" shouted another. "I think I saw her over here!"
The shouting grew more and more distant, as a young woman found her own hearing flooded with the sound of her labored breathing and the slapping of passing twigs and branches as she ran with no attention on the direction she was going. Suddenly, one of the voices called out very near to her- "I see her!"
She started and dashed away from the sound of the voice, working hard to calm herself and gather her senses. She focused, focused... calm, quiet, and found her mind brought to that elf that had helped her so long ago. The elf was always calm, knew the woods, connected with nature. She found her fears disippating enough to gather her emotional energy, and just as a large man tumbled through the brush next to her, sending her reeling backward as he almost grabbed her arm, she sent a wave of confusion that knocked him flat on his rear.
She dashed away once again, running deeper and deeper into the woods, the sound of roaring water growing louder and louder. Honing in on that sound, she worked her way forward, drawing closer and closer before she came to a screeching halt at the edge of a waterfall.
Her heart was pounding, the sound of her own blood pumping in her ears mixing with the roar of the waterfall. She glanced over her shoulder to find her pursuit not far behind, their stumbling in the brush causing leaves and branches to shake and shudder. She felt a presence, a strong presence, encroaching on her mind, seeking entry, and she shoved it aside, her terror returning. There was only one escape.
As the guards of Artenius came into view, Melkenthlir leapt from the river bank, sucking in a deep breath as she dived into the crashing pressure of water, feeling it pound her downward under the waves. Then, before the water could wash her downstream, she kicked with all her strength, pushing against the pressure, her lungs growing hot with the need for air, until she finally surfaced in the calm waters of a cave behind the falls. Gathering her energies, she created a mental fog around it, making extra sure that her pursuit would not find it, that they would assume she'd been carried downstream, and when unable to find her body that they would assume her dead.
Shivering in the cold water, she looked around the cave she had not seen in years. She'd been here, once, when the elf had found her as she'd fled the slavers. She swam slowly and laborously to the edge of the water, exhausted. A small cluster of rocks gave off splendid heat, an underground spring bubbling to the surface and trickling water down to meet that of the waterfall not a few paces from her. She curled up on the warm rocks, and let her exhaustion overcome her fear, falling fast asleep.
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Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
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Post by Ryugexu on Apr 5, 2010 17:18:44 GMT -6
The forest was a place of refuge and of life, all though it could also prove quite the labyrinth at times. A strong wind blew from the east as Arashi headed north. He could smell that he was not the only human, or at least human-like creature, in the forest that day. He could smell upturned dirt, disturbed during the chase, and he could feel the breeze from a young woman's heavy breathing of running for her life. It was troubling in an otherwise beautiful sanctuary, as the traveler believed a forest to be.
He felt the wind shift direction, as though pushing him towards the direction of the ended chase.
He walked along the edge of a river for a few miles, and the afternoon sky faded to stars. About that time was when he found her.
A soaked brunette girl was lying there, sleeping off her encounter. She appeared to have only some minor injuries- things she would recover from quickly.
She's... kind of cute.
Arashi collected firewood and made a small campfire not too far away from her. He also carefully placed his wool traveler's blanket over her to keep her warm. He decided to guard her overnight.
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Post by Kendra on Apr 6, 2010 22:33:05 GMT -6
Her sleep was fitful. She twitched slightly as he placed his blanket over her, but then she snuggled into its warmth. It was a comfortable blanket. Sleep, however, did not bring comfort.
She could feel Artenius poking around, seeking entry to her mind. Her dreams spiraled around the images she'd seen when exposed to his soul. Death. Pain. Sorrow. Torture. Too many jumbled memories and thoughts to piece together. They all interlaied, mixed and mingled, so that she could not decipher just what they were about. Yet all of them were terrible.
She shied away from those dreams, her mental training allowing her to slowly seperate herself from them, shutting of the portion of her mind containing those memories- memories of another. As she did so, she became aware of the prying around her barriers.
She sought to block entry, enforce her walls, block her mind from penetration, but Artenius was like flowing water, trickling through her cracks. He wanted to know where she was. He wanted to find her.
Melkenthlir denied his access to those thoughts at every turn, and as he grew angry and impatient his attempts altered from the penetrating flow of water to pounding hammers. Those, however, were easily blocked, and soon she was able to surround and contain, and slowly but surely shove him out of her mind.
As she made the final push, Artenius screamed in fury, bombarding her with all he had, and Melkenthlir found herself physically bowled over.
The girl rolled off the warm rocks by the spring, tangling in the blanket that had been placed over her and gasping in sudden panic. Her internal battle of the mind had shown no outward signs other than the occassional twitch or inaudible mutter, but now she was awake and aware... and terrified.
The blanket seemed to her to be a net. It covered her completely, blackening her vision, and ensnaring her as she struggled to escape the tangle it had become. She thrashed and flailed, seeking a way out, certain that her hideout had been discovered and she'd been captured by Artenius' guards. She was ready for the fight of her life, and she gathered her building terror, ready to send it out in a concussive wave on the first person to come near her.
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Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
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Post by Ryugexu on Apr 6, 2010 22:52:07 GMT -6
It seemed nightmares plagued the girl's sleep. Arashi sighed- he knew nothing that could help.
Suddenly and all at once, her twitching turned into a violent seizure of fighting against an invisible enemy in her mind. He tilted his head to one side, examining her. Nightmare were curious. He wondered if she was reliving a dreadful past or if her nightmare was related to the chase. Being one of a difficult past, Arashi could sympathize with her.
As she rolled off of her resting place and began panicking, Arashi quickly moved to her side to console her.
"hey... hey.. calm down." he whispered softly, reaching out to touch her shoulders, "it was just a nightmare-"
((OOC- please describe the attack as you please as I'm not entirely sure how to write it))
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Post by Kendra on Apr 7, 2010 0:59:11 GMT -6
[OC- No problem. I was planning on giving you a good description anyway. Also, it's up to you how heavily it affects him. Those with a sound mind are better at resisting her attacks.] She did not hear the consoling words, as her thoughts were elsewhere, panic stricken. The touch of his hand on her shoulder, however, she felt and recognized as an enemy. Her strongest magical ability was with emotions. She could sense the emotions of others, easily sympathize and empathize with them, and even sometimes take on their emotions as her own. And, as she'd learned to control, she could take her own emotions and place them on others. Such could be used to help calm someone in need of help, to invigorate someone to action, or as an attack. She'd gathered her terror like a tangible force within herself. Balling it together, pressure making it stronger, rolling it around and around like an invisible, barely contained hurricane. And when Arashi touched her shoulder, she released it along the path of his touch. The feeling entered through his fingers, traveled up his arm, and hit him like a malevolent storm in his chest, shuddering up his spine to cloud his mind with nothing but that overriding feeling of terror. Fear with no direction, no cause, no purpose. Fear of everything and everyone. Fear that put all the senses in overdrive with the need to flee, to escape. As he was struck with the strong emotion, the terror in Melkenthlir dissipated. It was as if she'd released it through a conduit, and she was able to think clearly once again. She realized she was not caught in a net at all, but wrapped in a blanket. Her limbs had been tangled as she'd tossed and turned and struggled. She'd had no blanket of her own, which meant this person here in the cave with her must have given it to her. Not something an attacker would do. And, as she extended her awareness, she realized he was the only one there with her. Who else knew of this place? Wysternia? The elf? No. She had not attacked her old friend. It was someone else. Someone different. Someone she'd never met before. She finally managed to untangle herself, and looked around to survey the damage she'd caused with her mental attack. Readying herself to send out soothing waves if necessary.
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Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
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Post by Ryugexu on Apr 7, 2010 11:01:30 GMT -6
It was somewhat painful as the jolt of emotions traveled into his body. He flinched back and shivered as it moved.
At this time was the only time he was thankful for his odd heritage, as it made him stronger against other forms of 'magic', so he wouldn't be as horribly affected as a human would. Perhaps he overestimated himself, though, as he collapsed to the ground with heaving breaths, his body became spasmodic from the sheer force of the attack.
He felt an emotion like he'd only felt once before.. the feeling he had when he awoke to ashes thick as snow in the air, and his hometown was nowhere in sight where it had once been.
No! There is nothing here. It's just some magic-induced fear or adrenaline. Stop reacting to it, Arashi... A dark voice whispered in Arashi's mind from the cool wind that blew across the area.
Arashi became re-aware of his surroundings. Still breathing heavily, he attempted to compose himself. "Y-you alright?" he managed to ask her.
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Post by Kendra on Apr 7, 2010 11:41:39 GMT -6
"I'm fine," she whispered. Part of her glad Arashi had so quickly and easily recovered from her mental blow, and part of her worried. He had to be a strong person to have shaken it off so easily. Could he be a threat?
The warmth of the blanket around her shoulders convinced her otherwise. Whoever he was, he had not come to harm her.
She took in his appearance. He'd fallen back when she'd stuck out with fear, and he looked rather unsettled by his apparent vulnerability. She had the distinct impression that he did not like appearing weak or inferior in front of anyone, vanity. His hair echoed that same vanity, carefully kept in an odd style that covered one eye.
His clothing seemed to move with the air, air that gusted freely in their hidden cave, a current pushed by the flow of the crashing waterfall.
She felt awkward in his presence, especially after he'd witnessed her fitful sleep and panic stricken tussle with the blanket. He had seen her vulnerable side, just as she'd seen his. It left her feeling exposed, and she didn't like that one bit.
She tried to take her mind off her discomfort, focusing instead on the wonderful comfort provided by that blanket.
"Thank you... for this," she said, huddling into the wool. "It's very warm."
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Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
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Post by Ryugexu on Apr 7, 2010 15:21:22 GMT -6
Arashi got to his feet carefully, not wanting to look like a fool by falling back over, which he barely avoided.
He touched the left side of his face, ensuring that his hair hadn't moved too far from hiding his missing eye. When he felt comfortable with it, he sat on a nearby rock as though to now relax and to try to forget that awful ability the girl had.
He was glad when she decided to start conversation.
"You looked cold." he replied quietly.
"Did something happen to you?"
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Post by Kendra on Apr 7, 2010 20:20:01 GMT -6
I... fell down the waterfall," she lied. Well, it wasn't really a lie, except that the word fall implied it had been an accident. She'd jumped down the waterfall to escape her pursuit, but she didn't need to share that. He'd want to know who had been pursuing her, why she'd been running away. The less he knew the better. For herself and for him.
Artenius held a lot of sway with people. He'd worked himself into a powerful position, giving councel to many of the kings in the country round about. He was a famous wizard, with a high reputation... and a far reaching arm. He could reach even into the minds of those he chose, and he could pull information as he pleased. He'd been teaching her to do the same- she'd thought to help people. Now she knew better. She didn't need to get this guy involved in her problems.
There was much in the jumbled memories she'd been privy to in her glance upon his soul. Given time to sort through it all, she knew she'd find the details of his coniving plans. Already, she'd acertained that he was goading rival kings into war- a war from which he would profit.
He knew that she knew this, and so he would hunt her down and anyone who tried to help her. Her only option to avoid capture was to find something she could use to expose him. It seemed a suicidal mission, but she was already dead if she did nothing. She knew she wouldn't be able to remain in hiding forever. He was stronger than her. Eventually he'd break through her barriers and find her.
It would be better if she left this young man behind... for his own sake.
She rose from her seat on the rocks and handed him his blanket, nodding in gratitude. She released subtle waves of assurance, hoping the emotional energy would keep him still, passive. She didn't want him to recognize the feeling as coming from her, as the terror attack clearly had. She wanted him to feel as though there was nothing of concern, nothing he needed to do. That way he wouldn't attempt to help or follow her.
"Thank you again, but I really need to go now," she said.
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Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
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Post by Ryugexu on Apr 7, 2010 21:02:19 GMT -6
"Alone?" Arashi commented.
He could feel her lies and see through them, just as easily as his mother lied to men when he was a child, when she told them they were her 'only love'. As strange as it sounded, Arashi felt like most people had a similar look when they lied. What was she running from? Could she do it alone?
Arashi's orange eye scanned over her, curiosity brightened.
"It's dangerous for a girl to travel alone." Arashi said with a shrug. "Can I at least accompany you to the next town?"
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Post by Kendra on Apr 7, 2010 21:51:38 GMT -6
"No," she said quickly, only after the word left her mouth realizing she did so too quickly. Her face screwed up in discontent as she realized her mistake. Now he was sure to want to come with her even more. It was clear she was trying to hide or run from something, and that was bound to pique his curiousity.
Perhaps, to stem the curiousity, it would be better to share... just a little bit. Maybe he'd realize he should leave her alone. Then again, seeing as how he was bent on helping a "girl in danger", letting him know she really was in danger might not be such a good idea. She inwardly shrugged. It was her only chance to get rid of him, since he was already bent on coming.
"Look," she said, her voice serious, clearly sharing the truth. "I'm in some trouble that will affect those around me. I need to go... ALONE... for your own good. It's best if you don't get involved. In fact, it's best if you forget you even met me."
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Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
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Post by Ryugexu on Apr 7, 2010 22:43:51 GMT -6
Those words were all too familiar to Arashi.
"I'm in some trouble that will affect those around me. I need to go... ALONE... for your own good. It's best if you don't get involved. In fact, it's best if you forget you even met me."
It was something he often told people on his travels. He even told it to the girl whom he fell in love with when he left the village she lived in. He knew he broke her heart, but it was a better fate than if she followed him.
His curiosity gave way to a darker, more pained look. "You are running away from something big too, huh?" he mumbled, looking out over the forest around them.
"A while ago I was a normal person, then I discovered something about myself that was unusual, and someone wanted me for it. He was going to force me to act as his slave." Arashi decided to avoid details, he was worried she already thought he was a creeper, or crazy perhaps. After all, the more he thought about it the more WEIRD he realized it was to approach a girl in the middle of nowhere and watch her sleep. He shifted from foot to foot awkwardly.
"I have nothing to lose if I help someone stuck in a situation like that. After all, even if in the case of violence, the one who's after me would wage war with the person chasing you if I came close to getting killed."
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Post by Kendra on Apr 7, 2010 23:05:51 GMT -6
Melkenthlir could only shake her head in disbelief. That sounded far too much like her own experience. It was almost as if he were a carbon copy of herself.. except male, and a bit more odd. But then, who was she to think someone odd? After all, she was very short, appearing to be no more a child when she was in fact far past puberty. She was the one with the mental powers.
She could sense his sincerity. She knew from the emotions radiating outwardly that he spoke the truth. Thinking of his past caused him discomfort, memories pain, similarities comraderie. Now she'd never get rid of him.
His use of the word "slave" made her cringe, and she couldn't hide how obviously it affected her. She hoped he wouldn't ask. It wasn't something she wanted to talk about.
Now though, she was filled with her own curiousity. She wanted to know just what kind of trouble he was in. Who was after him. Were they both running from the same person?
She settled back down on the rocks, comfortable in her hiding place since she wasn't going to be rid of her new companion. Few knew of the cave- she was certain Artenius didn't, and as long as she maintained her mental barriers she didn't have to worry about being found.
"It seems we have something in common," she said. "Perhaps we can help each other, but first it's best we know what we're dealing with. You first. Who are you running from?"
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Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
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Post by Ryugexu on Apr 8, 2010 0:01:26 GMT -6
Arashi was glad to see she wouldn't run away from him too.
Her question, however made him worry again. However, he couldn't lie to her or deny that information now and he knew it. He glanced at the dirt flooring of the cave. His chance of having a kindred soul was now or never.
"I'm running from the Wind God of Vengeance, Kamaitachi. He destroyed my hometown, and killed everyone I loved. I'm the only survivor." Arashi touched the left side of his face again, "He thinks that I was meant to hunt him down and take his place. He's been attacking me ever since, but I don't want to fight him." he admitted, "Violence begets more violence. If I take revenge on him, I'll do exactly what he wants me to do. There's some prophesy that's involved but I can't remember, and I don't believe in prophesies anyway."
He shook his head, "however, if you have a more realistic enemy, I'd be more than happy to help protect you."
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Post by Kendra on Apr 8, 2010 10:31:59 GMT -6
Melkenthlir sucked air between her teeth at his explanation. She knew it was the truth as well as he knew she'd told him the truth. He'd trusted her, a complete stranger, in telling her something she was certain he would normally have kept secret. There was certainly more to what he was saying, but prying for details really wasn't necessary. It was enough that she he was running from a very powerful being that had tried to use him and when he'd resisted decided it was better to kill him. How like herself that was.
While her enemy was not a god, he was certainly powerful, and could even very nearly be attributed to a god for all his influence. Her enemy, though, was more feasibly dealt with. He was, after all, mortal.
Hearing his brief tale eased her worries, made the efforts she knew she'd need to be undertaking seem less suicidal. Besides, he was willing to help her, and sympathizing with his plight, she knew she would return the favor if she could.
Now it was her turn to share. "You've heard of Artenius?" she asked, fairly certain he had. There were few who hadn't. Even as a little girl, when she'd still been with her family in her small, distant village, she'd heard of the great wizard who adviced the rulers of the land and used his magical abilities to help the people. He'd stopped famines, helped explorers traverse the seas, tempered storms. Now though, she knew such things for what they were. A cunning and calculative ploy to garner more power.
"I was his favorite student... but I discovered being under his tutelage was nothing more than a cover for becoming his tool, among other things. I saw into his mind, saw things he'd rather the world not know. And now he's trying to kill me."
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