beleos: (pic#15952557)
beleos ([personal profile] beleos) wrote in [community profile] kenoslogs2023-08-18 09:53 am

Toxic Love: The Exalt Oracle


NOTHING GOES OFF WITHOUT A HITCH
You feel it, the moment that the Exalt oracle opens its eyes, like something that rips through your body from head to toe, something that feel like fire, wild. It sears into your veins, like acid and fire, something that triggers something that makes you want to run, or perhaps turn and face something head on. Before you can find what sets you off – if you could find it. Bearers know what this sensation is, it is different but the same at its core. The emotions, the feelings it sparks are different – but in the end, you know it for what it is: An Oracle.

Kenos groans from the awakening, like a part of a whole sparks to life, and though you do not know what it is that they want yet, you understand and know their existence down to your core. That feeling to attack or defend, perhaps even flee, does not leave you, but instead it fills your veins, you feel it thrumming, pulsing, like the beat of a heart – if one has one. With the sense of awakening, bearers know the shape of what comes next, they will be asked to act, to do. You do not know how it will happen, or what the Exalt will ask of you, but the knowledge that it will happen is borne from experience, not from the Oracle itself.

As you begin to move, to… look, you are not long for this day, it clouds your mind, a hazy, drowsy feeling takes over, the encroaching dark that threatens to swarm, crowding from the sides, taking over your vision – until… it fully takes over, and Bearers are put into a deep slumber.


When bearers awaken, it’s difficult to make sense of what your sleepy eyes see. Structures begin to swim into view, and they like tall figures looking down upon you. It’s difficult to tell what they are at first, but as you wake up, you begin to see, they are not people, or creatures, but long spore-like stalks. Some have ribbed overgrowths that you can see, and some end in growths that ripple and hang over, but have no “cap”. They tower over the bearers, like towering spires and buildings, on all sides, as if they were trapped in a ring of them. As bearers look around them they will notice tall green spires around them as well, and it takes a moment for things to really settle in. Mushrooms. Blades of grass. The springy moss about them is almost as tall as they are, low to the ground. There are pebbles that appear as boulders, and the thunderous steps nearby indicate an insect or arachnid walking by, far larger than you. There is a stillness to this space, like a held breath, and as the bearers awake, and regard one another, and then to the center of the circle is – a small effigy in the center.

It is here, the Exalt Oracle, and you feel compelled to regard it, before you are given a pang down to your core. It compels you – pleads, asks, begs, and demands, all in one – for what it wishes for. Precious mementos and precious items that they are missing. They have been lost, and they are somewhere within the Liosachán. It beseeches the bearers to return its items, and begs they be returned here to the circle. There are no words, but there is a pleading sensation, a feeling that these items are treasured by this Oracle.

You feel at your sides, your pockets, and find one item on your person, a weapon, a companion, whatever it is you would bring with you to the conflict, shrunk down to a tiny size with you.

Stay steadfast, bearers, and capture the flag Oracle!
SURVIVAL OF THE SMALLEST ( DAYS 1 - 5 )
Unlike the still, stale apocalypse that had been the setting of the Iconoclast Oracle, the greenhouse is lush and vibrant with activity.

The Effigy present within yearns to be reunited with what belongs to it, fixated upon the five items lost within the greenhouse. The swell of its longing fills all Shardbearers, urging them to take action, claim the items and present all five to it to attain victory for that Faction.

Over a period of ten days, Shardbearers of both factions will have to navigate environmental dangers, and the normal procession of time, as the greenhouse is going about its daily routine. Workers plod around like towering goliaths, weeding and watering and pruning the greenhouse's contents. The Liosachán's native population of fae begin to take notice of the newcomers in their midst, emerging from grassy mounds hidden in the natural landscape to spy and pry about the newness surrounding them.
Naturally curious, and equally dangerous, the fae of the Liosachán are Highstorm natives. They range in cool coloration, from soft violet-greys to deep stormy blues, and wear clothes fashioned from of goods pilfered from the pockets of workers, dropped on the ground or handcrafted from the environment itself. Wielding bits of copper tightly wound into blades and spears, they are a ferocious and cunning little people who seek to trick, trap and toy with Shardbearers. Direct violence is anathema to them, but violence that happens as a result of falling to one of their ploys is a badge of honor.
DAY ONE - THREE. The Effigy initially urges Shardbearers to build bases of operation for defense and practicality, as surviving ten days without supporting one another is a surefire way to meet a grisly, tiny little end. Resources must be gathered: gather food and water, prepare shelter, establish unity and organization and prepare to set off into the wilds soon.

For Shardbearers demonstrating particular selflessness, favoring the protection and defense of another, the Effigy responds warmly from the third day onward — rewarding them with a sign of their dutiful nature towards others in the form of fairy wings, the form of which are unique to the Shardbearer themselves.

DAY FOUR. The sudden thunderous sound of a storm begins. No, not a storm, the tumble and crash of water pouring down upon the greenhouse — the workers of the Liosachán perform their routines faithfully, after all. In watering the garden, the danger of the environment threatens to overtake Shardbearers and their work alike. Drops of water fall, their size equal or larger than even the tallest of characters, and trickles of water muddy the ground in the form of raging rapids.

The security of Meridian and Zenith's camps is even called into question, because as simple as the act of watering a garden is, it is a nightmarish situation for such itty bitty Bearers to be in!

DAY FIVE. By day five, the fae of the Liosachán no longer lurk and linger in the corner of one's eye. They make themselves known, having prepared a banquet below one of the mushrooms, within sight of the Effigy. A table draped in spider-silk lace awaits any Bearer who comes near enough, the sagging piece of driftwood polished to a gleam with golden sap, leaving it waterproofed and pretty to behold. A handful of corks serve as seating, with most of the fae draping themselves across scraps of cotton as though they are simply at a picnic.

They invitingly wave to Shardbearers, chattering brightly in their foreign, lilting tongue, waving tiny sandwiches and little clay pots full of jams and honeys, brandishing sugared berries that they bite into with gusto, staining their arms and faces in swathes of blue and red. They clearly are welcoming to whomever comes upon them, urging them to avail themselves to the bounty they have prepared. Perhaps some characters know better than to eat the food of the fae, recalling legends and lore about the mystical properties and implicit bargains made in becoming a guest. Perhaps some have no idea, and are simply hungry enough to dig in!

UNWILLING TEN-ANTS ( DAYS SIX - EIGHT )
The scuttling, scrabbling feet of ants crawling over surfaces, winding their way through this grassy playground, has become normal. Their feet thunder as they go about their business, and it seems to be a normal cadence to life here in the underbrush, in the greenhouse. It is normal, and it is has become nothing to really concern oneself with. They are ants, after all, what do they do, but work? Endlessly, continuously.

That is, until the heavy, loud sounds of their feet draw closer to whatever place that the bearers have found to camp in. Whether solitary or as a group, these workers are no longer content to simply ignore the bearers, but they are a curiosity, perhaps even a bother. You have disrupted their lifestyle. The sleepy pattern of obtain food, return ot the hive, and back out again now has obstacles. Now there are not simply the fairies, who live their own lives and existences, a part of the ecosystem, but now there are these tiny bearers. Fighting, working together, arguing and disagreeing.

You are disruptive to their way of life.

The ants have come to collect on this due, and some bearers that are vulnerable, or perhaps merely caught, are taken away, your weight so light compared to the rest of their burdens that they carry. The strength of these ants is overwhelming, incredible at this size, and try as you might, if you are caught in their strong mandibles, you cannot escape. An ant, after all, carries 1000 times their weight with those powerful jaws. You, bearer, are nothing to them.

They squirrel away the bearers within their hill, a complicated network of tunnels, junctions, and large spaces. Down within, where the air becomes stifling, and stale. The ants guard their pray, and you get the distinct sense that they see you not as people, not even as enemies, but as prey. You will be food – perhaps to the eggs that are gathered within this room, where you can see the stirring of new life, just beneath the surface. You may not have very long to live, if these little larvae get their mouths on you.

Or perhaps, your friends will save you? Once it is discovered that bearers are missing, the trail of ant prints on the ground is apparent – they are not stealthy creatures – and the feet lead from the locations of several kidnapped bearers toward the grainy ant hill that lies not far away. The hill itself swarms with life, with worker ants all over the surface, scuttling about, looking for the next meal for te colony. Or perhaps for more bearers to bring back for their young.

It will be dangerous, bearers, to save your friends. Should you choose to do so, you will be kicking the anthill, and the ants will protect what is theirs. Even if they just took it. Those bearers belong to them, now! Rescuers will find not only your average worker ant, ready to defend, but winged male ants will attack from above, and deeper, within the nest, near where the bearers are kept, lies the strongest ant in the colony: The Queen. Staggeringly large, strong, and vicious, when her subjects begin dying. She will do everything in her power to protect her colony, and that includes killing bearers, if need be. Or trying, at least.

Good luck rescuing your friends, bearers!
IN SMALL PACKAGES ( DAYS NINE - TEN )
The day after the ant-pocalypse brings with it the brush of recognition — the Effigy has foreseen the likely victors, and calls to them to approach it once they have suitably recovered. It judges them the ones whom are most devoted to what binds them, loyal to memory and remembrance, and begins to clamor for them to restore to it what belongs rightfully. Thus begins a full day of resting, locating last-minute items, shoring up defenses and preparing for the sprint to the finish line.

Certainly your rivals will not allow you to simply walk to the Effigy unassailed and unchallenged.

Eat, rest, ensure your fellows are close and bolstered, for tomorrow begins the final rally.

On the morning of the tenth day, Meridian Shardbearers approach the Effigy with its five items in hand. In the midst of the mushroom ring, the Effigy stands as it had in the beginning — arms outstretched and back bowed skyward, gnarled fingers seeking contact with that which has been lost to it. It awaits, it strains, and even as it does, it requires one last test of ability. From the shadows of the towering mushrooms, the rasp of scale and soft hiss of a great beast descends upon the fae ring.

A gleaming garden snake, with glossy black and green stripes, blocks the way between approaching Shardbearers and the Effigy.

Between its bright eyes, pressed upon its brow is a scattering of brighter scales that appear to be in the shape of a delicate, three-leafed plant with spiraling patterns for leaves. It braces itself against the approach, and there is no doubt that to claim victory, the serpent must be subdued. Though Meridian approaches with victory in hand, they have not yet attained it — their rival faction and this beast remain in their way.

MISSING LINKS ( THROUGHOUT )
As the Effigy desires to be reunited with what belongs to it, the swell of its longing stirs something more within all present Shardbearers.

With that foreign longing arrives knowledge: beyond the five items prized by the Effigy itself, there are other lost things within the greenhouse. Like a compass, each Shardbearer's mind points them in direction after direction, urging them to seek and explore. Implicitly, the thrum of comprehension fills your mind: these are things that do not belong to you, per se, but seek to have your hands ferry them home.

Amidst tangled brush, hidden under doffed acorn cap, tucked away in the belly of a fae's glittering den, lost in the depths of a puddle of spilled water that seems an insurmountable lake now, folded secretly into the petals of a towering, skyscraper-like flower, there are three additional items hidden within the tumultuous landscape that each Shardbearer feels a draw towards. Things that belong to someone else, eager to be reunited with them, but subject to whim.

Upon locating and retrieving one, the Shardbearer is filled with a sense of information — they know who this item belongs to, and they will know that they have a choice. Bonds are fragile things after all, and they exist to be enforced or abused, in order to advance a goal or to deepen a connection. How will you treat someone's precious bond? How will they treat yours?
NOTES
Here are some prompts to set the scene and foundation of the Exalt Oracle! — The theme of this Oracle is a loose edition of capture the flag, where the Effigy's items can pass through multiple hands within the ten day allotment.

— For additional ideas and fun, it is known that several Shardbearers have concluded their efforts to fulfill the Greenwood Yards' sidequest request.

— All details of the Exalt Oracle can be found here, and questions for the mods can be submitted here.
CODING
envoyoftwilight: (for so many years)

[personal profile] envoyoftwilight 2023-10-22 02:03 am (UTC)(link)
[Definitely perfect for a book. A very upsetting one, most likely. Judging by her expression, Midna mostly looks intrigued, though she's a little difficult to read.]

I'm sure to her, she probably found those things necessary. Did you ever get the opportunity to ask her?

[Not that she suspects it would have changed anything in the long run. Sometimes power simply corrupts, even when one believes they have a strong sense of justice. Perhaps it helps to have outside perspectives.]
hauntedking: (18)

[personal profile] hauntedking 2023-10-22 02:06 am (UTC)(link)
I had a brief chance to speak to her... but we made little headway. At the time, we were both committed to our courses of action and nothing could have turned us aside.

[ He sighs. ]

I wish she had confided in me earlier.
envoyoftwilight: (cos I will treat her right—and then)

[personal profile] envoyoftwilight 2023-10-22 03:19 pm (UTC)(link)
Perhaps she felt she couldn't. Some don't have the easiest time doing such things.

[People like herself.]

I'm sorry that you both had those experiences.
hauntedking: (12)

[personal profile] hauntedking 2023-10-22 09:11 pm (UTC)(link)
That may be the reason. But... well. It's in the past now.

[ He sighs again. ]

Just another moment where I wish things had been different. That's all.
envoyoftwilight: (for so many years)

[personal profile] envoyoftwilight 2023-10-23 01:45 am (UTC)(link)
[She regards him quietly, thinking she has likely poked and prodded at him enough. Both of them, in their own ways, have shared just a little part of themselves. She isn't arrogant enough to believe that Dimitri can be so easily defined by his past experiences. Shaped by them, yes, but definition is something so much more multifaceted and complex.

This girl in question from his past...
What kind of girl was she? Midna can't help being curious. An important one, it'd seem, given how she left such an impression.]


Moments we all experience. Some would dare to call that 'human.'

[In the proverbial sense, anyway.]
baltimores: (067)

[personal profile] baltimores 2023-10-23 10:10 am (UTC)(link)
[ Oh... he does not like having been the one to put Gray in this position. To try to hurt him, to have to apologize to him... It sucks. If he thought about it further it'd leave him wondering what the point of fighting over these Oracles even is if it's just going to create that tension and violence between him and people he likes, couldn't they just say fuck it to the whole thing...

... but he believes too firmly in Zenith's cause, so that thought's just not going to cross his mind. Right now, the facts are simply that the wing was a fake, which means they have nothing to fight over anymore.

So with that, he offers her a small smile. ]


Ah, it's alright. [ And all is forgiven! Just like that.

It's about time he stands back up, though. Get his ass off the ground. So he does, hoisting himself back up, and now it's just him and Gray here.

... The last time it was just him and Gray they'd planted something. A monument to their friendship, or some shit like that. She had picked the spot; he has an interest in gardening and farming, but she knows it. So — it might seem like a non sequitur, the way he launches into a new topic without any preamble other than looking at the garden around them for a second, but he's already moved on. ]


What d'you think about the gardens in here? I mean, without the us being tiny part. Don't think I'd ever been in this one before.

[ ... Like absolutely nothing ever happened. Like they weren't just fighting each other; like they aren't on opposite sides of a cosmic war. They're just two people who enjoy one another's company and nothing more, right?

Right. ]
baltimores: (070)

[personal profile] baltimores 2023-10-23 10:48 am (UTC)(link)
[ Look, Amos wasn't going to question wings sprouting out of his back at the exact moment he needed them. If they hadn't shown up he'd just be using gravity magic. They just give him a little more control, and it's not like he's going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

... But then Atsumu suggests that they might disappear, and Amos stops his descent, hovering in place.

Long pause.

He looks down — first at Atsumu, then past him. They're maybe. Halfway there? Halfway to being back on the ground?

His wings are still holding them in place, flapping at a comfortable pace. Okay. His long pause can be over now. ]


Nah. I don't think so. [ Reassuring! ] But even if they do, I can just use gravity magic. That'll slow us down. You were kinda stepping on air back up there too, weren't you? Grabbing onto it?

[ They've got contingencies between them, don't they? It'll be fine! ]
kinaesthesia: (22)

[personal profile] kinaesthesia 2023-10-24 04:16 am (UTC)(link)
[Gavial is all about getting this done as quickly as possible, though at this point it’s less out of fear of attracting unwanted attention and more about being extremely annoyed at being caught in such a position for so long. Yeah, she’s gonna have to have a nice, long “chat” with Mr. Bones when this is all said and done.

But the reminder of sharper tools is much needed in this moment, as in her frustration Gavial had forgotten about one of the few things that had made it into the garden with her. With her newly-freed arm, she reaches out (very carefully) to where a holster is strapped to her tail, grabbing the handle of a combat knife and pulling it free.]


Almost forgot about this thing.

[She glances for just a moment between the remainder of the web clinging to her lower body and back to Midna, giving a thoughtful hum of assessment.]

Give me another good tug, and the strain on the web should make cutting it a breeze. Should be home free after that.

[And none too soon.]
gravings: (100)

[personal profile] gravings 2023-10-24 05:35 am (UTC)(link)
[ Just like that. Gray had a feeling he didn't need an apology, but she has to admire how uncomplicated he is. Not to say he's unintelligent — he is an astronaut, more or less — but unlike Gray, he spends no time dwelling on unimportant things. All the better; she wasn't planning to take his offensive personally, so they're of the same mind.

She huffs out a breath, a quiet laugh. Amos's hands are still stuck with webbing, which also happens to be awkwardly stuck to her halberd, but here he is making pleasant chatter about the gardens. ]


Actually, I was given a small plot here. I planted some flowers, but they aren't much to look at yet.

[ She takes told of her halberd again and braces its shaft in her arms, an invitation for him to try to pull his hands free. ]

I didn't know fairies lived here, though. Speaking of which... um, I like your wings.

[ They're cute on him. ]
baltimores: (149)

[personal profile] baltimores 2023-10-24 08:18 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah? [ His wings give a little flutter at the compliment. He doesn't know how long they're going to last, if they're just a part of him now or what, but they're real right now. Useful right now. He likes them right now, so, ] Hey, thanks.

[ It's said softly, as he gently tries to extricate his hands from the webbing, finally. Now that they're working together — and not freaking out —

His hands pull free, and oh, thank god. There are still some strands sticking to his fingertips, but it's nowhere near as bad as before. He shakes his hands like he's drying them off and a couple more are knocked loose; that'll do for now. It's manageable for now.

That taken care of, his smile broadens down at her. ]


Shit, I didn't know you'd been planting anything here, though. Even if what you planted isn't much to look at, are they close enough to go see? Bet from this size they'll be amazing.

[ Because now that they don't have anything Oracle-related to fight over, what else would they do? He isn't typically one for sight-seeing, but like... he wants to see what Gray's accomplished, so.

Another little flutter of his wings. ]


Could fly us there if it's farther away.
wolof: (Coy)

[personal profile] wolof 2023-10-24 02:17 pm (UTC)(link)
[ If Akua noticed the pause from her, any hesitation from Midna, she did not address it. If asked, perhaps she would share the complicated... relationship with such things that she had. After all, Akua had committed a Genocide in the name of utilizing such power once, and had found herself on the other side of such a tunnel with guilt beyond what she ever thought possible.

The new Praes that her Warden sought for them would have them stepping away from blood magic and sacrifice for good. It was a complicated, bloody, mad legacy that she held, and one that she still embraced in some ways, but in others... she still stepped away from, slowly. Reluctantly.

It was obvious in that she erred toward this when trapped.
]

If we find some sort of bugs, or small creatures, their essence should allow us to tap sufficient power.

[ She let her light burst forth, and then out, a small ball that lit the way as if it were lined with torches. ]

Let me know if I start holding you back then, dear. I'll be happy to allow you to lead.

[ Ironic though it was, that Akua would allow anyone to take the lead, but she had learned to not always be the one in charge. ]
hauntedking: (23)

[personal profile] hauntedking 2023-10-24 05:27 pm (UTC)(link)
I suppose that's true.

[ There's a low sigh. An exhale that carries as he continues his walk. ]

But there are times I wish it wasn't so. Or that it hadn't happened as it did.
zauneyete: (tidy up)

[personal profile] zauneyete 2023-10-24 06:12 pm (UTC)(link)
[ It is perhaps more uncontrolled than Silco would have liked when it came to his demon. He often kept a careful veneer of respect for Sebastian, as he knew their difference in power was staggering, and it would be terribly easy for Sebastian to simply crush the life out of him. Really, he knew he should have been less... acerbic, but he had addressed Sebastian as he would have Sevika in this uncontrolled moment.

Sevika, though, was more loyal than Sebastian would ever be -- but far be it from him to apologize for the barbed tone or annoyance.

Silco returned to the water on his own terms. He saw it as something to master, control. Like fear, or like monsters. Something to control and wield. The fact that it would not allow him to infuriated him. Angered him beyond anything else. That he would be shocked into confronting old memories like that certainly left him struggling.

He nodded to Sebastian, accepting the faster method even as he returned to his feet.
]

Please.

[ He ran a hand through his hair, to slide it back into place, as if the sharp shock of discord and powerlessness was so easily tucked away neatly. ]
envoyoftwilight: (sont les mots qui)

[personal profile] envoyoftwilight 2023-10-25 12:36 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, that ought to do wonderfully.

[Midna practically purrs out her response with what must be a transparent approval. A shame she didn't know about it sooner, though she has a stunning lack of familiarity with weapons. What good is a blade, after all, to a people whose greatest focus is sorcery? As if to imply the might of magic may be sharper than that of a knife.

That isn't always the case, however, and in this particular circumstance, Midna can admit that.

She wears a small, pleased smile and she doesn't need to be asked twice. One more tug, thinks Gavial? Let them put that to the test. Strengthening her hold upon her companion, Midna renews her strength and her resolve, careful not to pull excessively or without kindness.]


—Almost... there, I think...!

[And little by little, the web begins to give way.]
envoyoftwilight: (meeting a man)

[personal profile] envoyoftwilight 2023-10-25 12:37 am (UTC)(link)
[Midna huffed out a quiet laugh.]

If I thought you were going to do any such thing, I wouldn't hesitate to tell you.

[Which was true. She had never been the sort to diplomatically hold her tongue. Even in a new world where she understood the power of compromise. Midna still very much preferred to do things her way, which she often times felt was the better approach to a variety of subjects. Yet when it came to danger, she was quite content to let someone else bear the brunt of that responsibility.

Reminded her a little of her outing with Yuri and Dimitri not long after her arrival. Even in the surrounding, heavy darkness that embraced them both, she could smile fondly at the memory.]


This place in particular feels massive. Wonder how long it goes on for. Can't wait to figure out what's in here with us.

[Because surely only a fool would have thought them alone.]
envoyoftwilight: (I love you; I love you; I love you)

[personal profile] envoyoftwilight 2023-10-25 12:37 am (UTC)(link)
[She can resonate with that, too. And yet—]

Would you be the same person now if that hadn't happened? Probably not. Hardships, much as I wouldn't ordinarily admit this, do shape how we become. And strengthen us. In order to become who you are in this moment, you may have needed to have such an experience. That's not particularly uplifting, but I'll be the first to admit that I'm not good at comforting others.

[And Midna, it seems, doesn't intend to change that anytime soon. Gods forbid someone should think her nice.]
kinaesthesia: (54)

[personal profile] kinaesthesia 2023-10-25 02:20 am (UTC)(link)
[Gavial readies herself as much as she really can from this position, holding steady as Midna gives her another tug. The web is pulled taut, straining to keep its hold on her despite the force, which is just the sight she wants to see in this moment. She puts the knife to work, liberating herself from the thin and sticky strands bit by bit.

And before long she makes enough progress that the tension in the remaining bits of web can’t hold up to the pressure of Midna pulling her along. The remainder of it tears free from the rest of the web and Gavial goes stumbling forward. She nearly loses her grip on the knife as she half-stumbles to her knees, but she leans back and raises it in the air with an excited whoop.]


Oh, hell yeah! [She grins up at Midna.] Finally out of that damn thing!

[Which is probably a good thing, because there just might be something lurking quite close from the shadows…]
settingup: (should revolve around me)

[personal profile] settingup 2023-10-25 03:47 am (UTC)(link)
[ Smile successfully knocked off his face as he stumbles a few steps, before getting himself walking normally, and trotting to catch up and walk beside her, despite her best attempts to drag him. ]

Kinda matters when you put it like that.

[ Because it's going to make a big difference how long it takes them. ]
cutlery: (teach your spider how to fist bump)

[personal profile] cutlery 2023-10-25 03:36 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Silco’s cutting tone is nothing that Sebastian takes personally (honestly, he’d tolerated far worse from Ciel…), but it does stop his usual habits of playfulness. With a nod, he sweeps forward to gather Silco into his arms in a motion that’s very smooth and comfortable for Silco, if just emotionally awkward for him. Sebastian is professional, at least so much as is possible when he totes him around as he once had done for a child.

But it is efficient. As soon as he has a comfortable grip on Silco, he simply turns, and with a burst of speed that’s unnatural and impossible, they’re off. It’s another display of the kind of power that Sebastian has at his disposal as simply as breathing. It’ll be hard for Silco to perceive the scenery around them as anything but a colorful blur, but it’s at least short. Just as quickly as Sebastian had rocketed off, they come to a smooth stop as his heels skid into the dirt as brakes, and they’re now safely under the canopy that will keep the water away. He’s also quick to duck to let Silco stand back on his own. ]


Here. This should be a safe spot until the rain passes.

[ …But as deferential as Sebastian is being, this event does not go without notice. The anger and the sharpness itself wasn’t unusual from his master, but the degree of it in this case was unexpected. It’s an anger that he knows is deeper, because he’s seen it before, even though he couldn’t guess its meaning now.

He glances out from under their safe spot to look at the rain, and though his expression doesn’t change, he’s curious. A few of Silco’s words in the past come to him, because Sebastian’s intense clarity of mind is just as much a weapon as anything else about him. And, just barely, his lips curve a little bit as he fits the pieces together. It’s not with any specifics, of course. But it doesn’t need to be.

It’s just good to know what his master feared. ]
hauntedking: (11)

[personal profile] hauntedking 2023-10-25 11:07 pm (UTC)(link)
It's not a particularly comforting thought. But... I do acknowledge that it's shaped up I am. That I have become something, someone different because of all of it. That doesn't stop me from wishing that it might have been different, once. Before it became something so tragic...

[ But he takes her point. ]
settingup: (i know i rock)

[personal profile] settingup 2023-10-26 01:33 am (UTC)(link)
[ The thought passes through Atsumu's mind that intentionally finding someone right now seems like it'd take a lot of luck, but he doesn't bother to chime in with that thought. It's not like it hurts his side if Eustace puts himself on a wild goose chase trying to find the apparent love of his life rather than tracking down the necessary objects with win the oracle.

So he'll cheerfully encourage this instead.
]

Hey good luck, man! If you're gonna track him down, maybe try askin' him a little about what sorta places he'd wanna go too. Get some date ideas outta it.

[ That's useful(?) advice that Eustace can use later too, when things are normal and he can actually find his crush. ]
envoyoftwilight: (we never thought of ourselves)

[personal profile] envoyoftwilight 2023-10-26 02:20 am (UTC)(link)
In an ideal world, we wouldn't have to endure tragedy to obtain strength.

[There's the keyword, however. Ideal. And it certainly seems like few things ever are.]

I said it before, but it merits saying again. I'm sorry that both of you had to go through that.
settingup: (as i vocalize)

[personal profile] settingup 2023-10-26 02:28 am (UTC)(link)
[ A stumble and then some as the blade cuts most of the way through the leg as the ant goes down. Having six and all, Atsumu is making the bold assumption that these guys will be just fine even if they're done by one, but he doesn't actually know the survival rate of a five legged ant.

This one has a bunch of buddies to watch out for it though, and considering how all those buddies have been trying to make mincemeat of him for the past several minutes, he finds his sympathy for it is pretty limited.

He bolts forward as the head of the ant hits the ground as well, chainsaw well in front of him to avoid accidentally harming himself with the blade. It's not until he's on the other side of the ant that he glances back to make sure Gavial is really following him.
]

C'mon!

[ No point in fighting their way out of the ants only to leave his savior here behind, no matter how fight happy she seems to be. ]
hauntedking: (12)

[personal profile] hauntedking 2023-10-26 03:34 am (UTC)(link)
Thank you. I appreciate that... even if it's a little late for any of it to really matter.
envoyoftwilight: (to her husband)

[personal profile] envoyoftwilight 2023-10-27 01:25 am (UTC)(link)
[It really is too late, isn't it. He can't go back in time. He can't change anything that happened. All he can do is live with it and everything it might do to him. But maybe she's in the same boat when it comes to the lives lost to Zant. And the ever ongoing process of trying to prove herself to her people.]

Yes, well.

[She shifts a little closer to him, reaching out in an attempt to curl her arm about his.]

I think we've been serious enough, hmm? You should be escorting me as a lady deserves. How rude for you to not have done this sooner.

[She isn't being serious by any means, but that's how she handles the more difficult situations.]