Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
|
Post by Ryugexu on Apr 8, 2010 13:23:21 GMT -6
Arashi nodded, "Artenius. In the place I'm from, the people called him 'Ar-tennis' because of the accent." He listened to her story and nodded. "It makes sense. A guy that powerful might let the power go to his head."
Arashi gave her a small smile. "So, what do you want to do about it? Fight? Run? Reveal him? He's not a God, so he's not immortal at least."
|
|
|
Post by Kendra on Apr 8, 2010 21:30:51 GMT -6
She found herself smiling back, chuckling even. "You know, I was thinking that same thing? I felt so overwhelmed, but when I realized he's not a God, I felt a little better."
Her eyes sparkled for just a moment with a hint of happiness, a feeling that had been too long gone from those eyes, eyes that had seen far too much trouble already. Then, that sparkle faded as she remembered what she had to do, and her expression became more serious.
"Brute force won't work, so a fight is out. He's too strong, too powerful, and he has the trust of too many people. Not only his servants, but the friendship of powerful people. We'd just end up with even more people wanting us dead if we managed to succeed," she explained.
"Running won't work either. I can't hide from him, not forever. He can get into here-" she pointed at her skull. "Almost did, while I was sleeping. That's why I woke up in such a panic. I can put up barriers, but eventually he'll find a way around them or break them. Then he'll know where I am."
Melkenthlir shook her head, not liking her only available option, mainly because she just had no idea how to go about doing it. "I have to expose him. Turn those who trust him against him. Bring his power toppling down on his own head."
|
|
Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
|
Post by Ryugexu on Apr 8, 2010 22:12:18 GMT -6
Arashi nodded, pleased with the reply.
"Well then, we reveal him." he said, "we turn his people against him. Where do we go? The capital city?"
Arashi tilted his head, "I have all the time in the world to help you with. Absolutely no tied anywhere."
|
|
|
Post by Kendra on Apr 8, 2010 22:57:36 GMT -6
She winced inwardly, knowing she wasn't cut out for this. She had no idea where to start. Would it make sense to go to the main city, or not? Her knowledge of the world was strictly limited. She'd grown up in her small village and never left until she'd been dragged away by slavers. When she'd escaped them, she'd wandered the woods for a few days before a Wysternia had found and helped her, and essentially handed her over to Artenius to learn the ways of magic.
"Thank you," she said, genuine sincerity weighing heavily in her tone. "But I don't even know how to begin."
She knew nothing of politics. Hadn't a clue how to get under the notice of the kings, let alone convince them that Artenius was working against them. Perhaps she could find the answers to those questions in the many memories now locked away in her mind, but it was going to take her time to sort through those.
She started pacing as she thought, an unconscious movement she was largely unaware of, placing a finger to her pursed lips and looking down at the ground.
"We need to get inside the politics somehow. Find a way into the maze of intrigue and start sewing some seeds of discord. I can't physically do it myself, because Artenius would catch me long before it would do any good. We need to build a support system. Start finding out who we can trust, who would believe us, who would help us..."
She stopped at once, her head snapping up to look at Arashi with a light of inspiration. "Of course! Why didn't I think of it before. Wysternia!"
|
|
Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
|
Post by Ryugexu on Apr 9, 2010 11:20:04 GMT -6
"Well, If we start at the capitals, we'll be called heretics and arrested..." Arashi mumbled.
In his mind he tried to play out any ways of telling the people. "We'll need proof-" then suddenly his friend shouted an odd name.
"Wysternia?" he asked, "whats that?"
|
|
|
Post by Kendra on Apr 9, 2010 11:45:15 GMT -6
"He's an elven ranger that lives in these woods, " she explained. "He's helped me once before, and I'm sure he'd do it again. He knows me. I'm sure he'd believe me if I told him Artenius is bad news."
Her heart had picked up pace in excitement. It felt good to have an ally, good to know someone might be able to help them figure out what to do. She had a pretty good idea where they could find the elf, after all she'd lived with him for a few months before he'd recognized her magical talent. He hadn't known Artenius personally, just known of his reputation. She was sure they could trust him.
|
|
Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
|
Post by Ryugexu on Apr 10, 2010 13:37:03 GMT -6
"Well then, we should look for him." Arashi nodded.
A hawk soared over head and let out its beautiful call, catching Arashi's attention.
"That way...?" Arashi whispered, pointing the path the bird of prey was flying. He looked to Melkenthlir, "your friend is that way."
|
|
|
Post by Kendra on Apr 11, 2010 21:03:29 GMT -6
They had walked out of the cave amidst the chilling spray and roaring crash of water, a little side tunnel that brought them out on a cliff side, a narrow path against the wide pool of wet that congealed into a flowing river path. The hawk had flown over them, following the downstream path of the river, and Melkenthlir looked up at the bird, then to her side at Arashi.
"Telepathy?" she asked. "With a bird?" She was impressed. Animals may have simple minds compared to humans, but they were harder to make any sense out of magically. Their simplicity led to a lot of instinctive thoughts and not much useful information, unless you could work past the instincts and connect with them on a more intimate level. Because animals were so focused on survival, this was much harder to do than with weak-willed, careless humans.
She then took Arashi in with a more critical eye. He'd largely resisted her terror attack, communicated with a bird without her so much as sensing how he'd done so and gathering information before she could so much as snap her fingers, and he had an "ability" he had not identified that resulted in a god chasing after him. She sensed that he was more powerful than she was, maybe even on par with Artenius, and that thought both frightened and excited her.
Could she REALLY trust him? Her standard method for getting away was out, as he could resist her mental blows. And he'd shown up at an awefully convenient time. Perhaps he was only feigning to help her? The thought did not sit well in her gut. He'd known just how to connect with her. Had she really met a kindred spirit, or was he bringing her right back to Artenius, or leading away to use her for his own means? She still knew very little about this man... and she suddenly found herself feeling very uncomfortable.
She found herself subconsciously withdrawing, emotionally pulling in on herself, and creating an emotional void with about a five foot radius around her. She felt scared, distant, and alone, and drawing inward was a reflexive defense.
She also found herself conflicted on whether she really wanted to seek out Wysternia. She wanted a friend, someone she knew she could trust nearby, to return that sense of security to her. Wysternia could do that. But at the same time, was she leading an enemy straight to her only known help?
Stop it, she thought to herself. You're being paranoid. She forced herself to calm down, clear her mind, and open back up again, so that she could listen to Arashi's response.
|
|
Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
|
Post by Ryugexu on Apr 11, 2010 23:01:07 GMT -6
"That's not a bird." Arashi said, an uncomfortable look crossed through his eyes. He opened his mouth as though he wished to explain it but simply shook his head. "It's a... No, not a bird."
He walked casually ahead of her, as though trying to shake off the feeling. "We should be able to get out of the forest around sundown if we keep a good pace."
|
|
|
Post by Kendra on Apr 14, 2010 14:31:16 GMT -6
"Right," Melkenthlir replied, her thoughts still distant. She tried to let her fears and worries disipate, but Arashi's stinted answer about the "bird" only brought them back full force. How did he know how to find Wysternia if that was not a bird? What was it then? What if he was leading her right into a trap? The more she thought about it, the more she felt that their meeting was just too convenient, and he was far too willing to "help" her.
Discomfort caused her to lag behind as she tried to decide whether or not she could trust this person. Furthermore, should she make her doubts known and try to clear the air, or play innocent and trusting so that if he was trying to set her up, he wouldn't know that she was looking for it?
She just didn't know what to do, and she couldn't think clearly. Her mind was still in turmoil from her encounter with Artenius and her flight from his tower. She needed to meditate, to clear her thoughts and figure out what she really wanted to do, and she needed to regain some comfort with opening her mind back up to the land, so that she could find Wysternia herself and not have to rely on Arashi's word.
They were passing a small inlet, a trickling stream meeting up with the river, surrounded by the sheltering shade of some large ash trees, and she stopped by a large flat rock. "Wait," she called ahead, letting Arashi know she had halted as she settled into a sitting position on the rock. "I need a little time to clear my thoughts," she said.
She did not wait to see how he responded. Melkenthlir just closed her eyes, settled in comfortably and started taking slow deep breaths, drawing calming energy inward and listening to her surroundings. The sound of the moving water, the rustling leaves, and the woodland creatures calmed her as she slowly and carefully lowered her mental barriers, opening herself back up to her surroundings and spreading her awareness outwardly like feelers, like an extended sense of touch.
When she was younger, before she'd started learning to control her powers, her feelings had always pooled outward, giving her a greater perception and sense of awareness. When she closed herself off, it made her feel vulnerable as that perception became limited. She could connect with the land and the trees in much the same way the druids did, but for her it took no effort.
As she rebuilt that connection, her fears and paranoia finally started fading, and she found she could sense Arashi's connective energies as well. His were strange though. He reminded her of a bird, in that his energy did not seem bound to the land but flowed freely with the air. Perhaps what the wind god wanted to do with him had something to do with that. Whatever it was, it was not threatening, and she could sense his sincere desire to help her.
She stayed still with her eyes closed for several long minutes as she did this. It seemed as though anyone could easily sneak up on her. She looked vulnerable, but she knew what was happening all around her, and with a deep content sigh she found herself at peace once again, ready to face the challenges before her. Paranoia gone, she knew she could trust Arashi.
[OC: Sorry if this post was confusing. My thoughts were kinda scattered as I wrote it.]
|
|
Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
|
Post by Ryugexu on Apr 14, 2010 18:06:24 GMT -6
((naw, I get it))
Arashi walked ahead of her as though following the direction given to him.
I hate when he visits me like that. Sure, his intentions are good this time, but... why is he letting me do this? Here I thought he would be siding with Kamaitachi.
Suddenly his companion stopped. He turned and glanced back, loosing his nervous tension from the distraction of her voice. Though wondering what she could possibly mean, he shrugged and waited politely for her, watching as she shut her eyes.
He kept a look out ahead of them, looking for any sign of life.
|
|
|
Post by Kendra on Apr 16, 2010 22:27:42 GMT -6
Melkenthlir opened her eyes and looked at Arashi with a small smile of apology, as she continued to let her awareness flow outwardly, sending tendrils of thought and emotion out in all directions to seek out Wysternia.
"Sorry," she said, her voice sounding slightly distracted as she worked. "I was starting to feel really paranoid there. I needed a moment to meditate and open back up. I'm extremely sensitive to emotional energies and my encounter with Artenius had me... pretty shook up. I'd basically created a mental wall between myself and everything else. There!"
She blushed in embarrasment as she realized she'd shouted that last outloud and out of context, and she knew she'd confused her companion "The... bird... was right," she made an attempt to explain. "Wysternia is that way. It will be several hours before we reach him though."
|
|
Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
|
Post by Ryugexu on Apr 19, 2010 11:02:30 GMT -6
Arashi nodded. "Oh, well that makes sense then. I'm glad you are okay now."
So he wasn't lying? That's good to know.
"Well, we should do our best to make good timing. Lets go, Mel!" he smiled brightly, ready to get their mission started.
|
|
|
Post by Kendra on Apr 19, 2010 13:23:06 GMT -6
Arashi's enthusiasm created a contagious energy that had Melkenthlir jumping to her feet to follow him before she even realized what she was doing. She didn't think anything of it, though, as she settled into a comfortable gate, caution to the wind as her connection with the land made it easier to feel reassured in her surroundings.
She could sense the animals that scurried away from their path, frightened by their human scent. Few continued about their business as if they weren't really there, and the forest itself seemed alive. She knew the activity of creatures that most would not even realize were their, and picking up on that life filled her with invigorating energy. She could get used to being in the woods. Comfortable. Perhaps she'd just stay with Wysternia once they found him... but no. She couldn't do that.
Artenius would be hunting her. He'd certainly not expect her to be staying in the woods so near his tower, but she felt certain he'd eventually find her mentally, and then she'd feel horrible about bringing that upon her friend. No, hiding and running were not options. She'd already determined that... though she really wished she could.
Lost in her thoughts and in her connection to the surrounding land, Melkenthlir did not even realize the silence that was probably making her companion feel uncomfortably awkward.
|
|
Ryugexu
Accomplished Bobbyer
Without Fear... I step forward.
Posts: 192
|
Post by Ryugexu on May 14, 2010 10:09:35 GMT -6
Arashi sighed relaxedly, listening to the sounds of nature.
He remembered when he had first left his home, how he wandered through a large grassy field and then into a forest, which gave way into a town he'd never seen before. Come to think of it, what's with young lost people and forests, he wondered.
He glanced back at Mel, ensuring she was still nearby. She'd been oddly quiet.
"So, Westernia lives in the forest? What's he like?"
|
|