Fantasy A Fresh Start (Closed)

[ShakinMcBacon]

Thalen's eyes narrowed as he spotted the dark figures that seemed to wander the hillside aimlessly. He couldn't make out any definite features, but they appeared human in nature. A rushing river lied between him and the figures, and he walked down to the bank to examine the waters. It seemed shallow enough, and the current wasn't particularly strong, so he unbuckled his sword belt to hold the sheathed blade over the water as he stepped in. He shivered as the water went almost to his waist, but it remained at that level as he waded slowly but surely across. Coming to the other side dripping from the waist down, Thalen wrung out the bottom end of his cloak, as well as his pants as best he could. He poured out his boots, putting them back on with some difficulty before buckling his belt back on.

"Where's a bloody bridge when you need it..." He muttered, then made his way up from the bank and towards the figures.

 

[Ubertide]

On his way to the chapel, Giovanni would likely find himself cutting through a small clearing where he'd immediately have a case of dejavu as there, gathered around a small tree with basket-like nests made from old blackberry brambles and grass; was yet another giant rat colony. At least these ones were a bit smaller and less hostile, as they'd flee into their baskets rather than try and scare him off. It would seem they were quite startled!
L llamatime (let me know what you wanna name this clearing!)

"Yes. It is." The Raven huffed before it turned away and just paced the grounds of the estate, looking less than interested in this line of questioning. "Rocks don't die, they just erode. As for why I still exist well...There's someone else that could better answer your questions than I...But she is out in the desert and her time is limited." The bird paused to stare down at his boots with a sharp squint, "There is also the matter of those...She might not take too kindly to you wearing them." The Guardian, meanwhile, was looking down at itself quizzically and was brushing it's shield against it's other arm for...some reason. Whatever it was doing it seemed curious and perhaps a tiny bit anxious.
Heyitsjiwon

Indeed! Well if there were any bridges, surely they crumbled away quite some time ago. Whatever the case was, he had made it in one piece and as he made his way up the bank he'd start to get a better view of the rocky terrain. And of those "human" figures. Just a few feet away now he could see a group of three ambling about and bumping into each other mindlessly; skeletal bone walkers. Their bones were sun-bleached and ancient and they wore the tattered and worn garb of soldiers long gone. One would have a rusted helmet and halberd, another wielded a simple battle axe, and the third was holding a pole which once had some kind of battle flag on it, but was now completely bare. None of them would seem to so much as notice Thalen as they just shuffled along on their path to nowhere. If he looked past them he'd see several hundreds more all in the same state, stumbling along the foothills without any sense of direction. He'd even spot some skeletal hounds in the mix, mindlessly following long dead masters. The terrain would seem bleak and completely barren at first glance, but the longer he looked the more he'd notice some shallow caves here and there; and not only that but if he looked up towards the distant mountains he could notice on the peak of one a strange shimmering of reflected light. Perhaps there was more to this place than it first seemed.
ShakinMcBacon

 

[llamatime]

Giovanni
He felt confident as he went on his way to the chapel, until he reached the clearing. He shivered in fear as he witnessed the smaller rodents. He was about to run away again until he noticed the rodent's behavior. They seemed to act differently compared to the ones at Rat root. He decided to take his chances and investigate. After taking some deep breaths of courage he stepped for the tree. "L-Listen rodents. I don't intend to do you any h-harm. I'm just lost and feel like exploring this new land I find myself in." He said as he continued for the tree. He made sure to keep his hands away from his weapons as to not repeat the incident from earlier.

 

[Heyitsjiwon]

Lothar grimaced slightly "Someone else, huh..." he muttered. It sounded like the Raven was trying to pass off work to him and to get him to "help" or save someone in the desert. He sighed deeply and said "Well, guess I better go find her." He then turned to the Guardian and said "Mind watching over the fire and these boots while I go to the desert and see what the heck is going on? I'll try to bring a souvenir or something." He then went off to change his shoes inside the tower. Coming back, Lothar looked at the Raven once more and said "Where in the Desert are we talking about? Mind guiding me or pointing in the right direction?"

 

[ShakinMcBacon]

Thalen paused for a few moments to view the shambling army with a silent wonder. What foul magic gave life to bones? Again, he felt there was something magical in nature about this land, and only more secrets seemed to form. A grumble in his stomach interrupted his thoughts, and he realized his growing hunger. If this had been an army at some point, surely there must be the remnants of a camp, somewhere he could find aught of use? As he started forward, he noticed the glimmer of light atop one of the mountains. It was unwavering and constant, like some reflective structure stood watch over the land. More questions, more secrets, more mystery... He thought, deciding to instead focus on the task at hand. A few small caves were dotted along the landscape, and he made his way towards the closest.

Keeping his sword ready to draw, he walked past the skeletal warriors. They seemed docile enough, but the rusted blades still looked sharp, so he watched them closely as he approached the cave with caution. It wasn't very deep, meaning it wasn't in complete darkness, but it provided excellent cover from the elements, if need be. Ducking to enter it, he found it went deeper still, until he was on his hands and knees, scrambling about in the growing darkness. His hands searched the rough stone for anything of use.

 

[Ubertide]

Clearly not understanding his words and not trusting this approaching thing, the rats that were hiding in their baskets would start gnashing their teeth at him as he got closer and their young would be hastily pushed into the back of their baskets where they would be safe. Even so, these ones wouldn't make any direct moves to chase him off despite how tense they were. They wouldn't be tense for long, however, as suddenly they dropped their hostile posturings and glanced past him. If Giovanni turned to follow their gaze, he would notice a pure white stag just standing on the very edge of the clearing, staring at him thoughtfully. After a moment of just standing there, it would snort and nod its head as if beckoning the man to follow before it turned and started to walk south-west back into the forest.
L llamatime

The Guardian first stared at Lothar, then back towards the fire inside the tower before glancing back to him. "I....will...try?" Something about its tone made it clear it found the prospect dubious at best! The Raven wouldn't seem to care in the slightest as it now looked completely disinterested as Lothar came back, "That I cannot tell you, for she wanders you see. I should let you know that you won't be the only one looking for her, there is a girl I've named 'Snippet' who will be seeking her as well. You will either want to find the Lady in Blue before her, or with her, as finding the woman after Snippet does will be highly difficult." With that cryptic piece of advice, the bird took a few steps forward and stretched out its wings, "Good luck, Lothar. I hope you lot don't wear out your welcome too soon." And with that, the raven took off into the air, quickly becoming nothing more than a mere speck of light soaring it's way towards the eastern mountains. Guardian stood in silence for a moment before speaking its mind, "I've....never...seen that...bird...so...angry...before."
Heyitsjiwon

As the shimmering light soared overhead towards that glimmering mountain peak, the dead would continue to pay Thalen little mind as he made his way towards the nearest cave. As he made his way across, he'd feel the air start to cool bit by bit as the sun made its way down towards the horizon slowly but surely. Fortunately, it would still be well before nightfall when he finally reached the place; a nondescript hole in the ground. However, if he stepped into the entry way and peered into the dimly lit space, he'd discover that it was in fact a rather crude tomb. In the center was an ancient wood coffin which had a rusted axe and shield neatly laid on top of it, with a folded tunic laying on top of those. It was dark red in color with the image of a bull painted across the front in yellow. Compared to everything else in the tomb, it would seem oddly preserved.
ShakinMcBacon

The cool air of the impending sunset would lick at Snippet's slumbering form, bringing with it a cool, dusty breeze. Soon, it would be dark.
matzi8qr

 

[llamatime]

Giovanni
He started to tremble at the sudden hostility from the rodents. He slowed down a bit and was still determined to investigate the tree, until he noticed the gaze from the rats. He raised a brow at first and then turned his gaze to the stag. He seemed to have calmed down, but his dubious expression might say otherwise. He thought about his situation real quick as the beast signaled him. He just found out about this creature, and just like the other beasts he encountered today, he didn't know what this thing was capable of. However it was getting late and he couldn't stay here forever. So with one more fearful glance back at the rats, he rushed to join up with the beast. When he got back to the beast he gave a curious/cautious glanced to the beast as he spoke. "What are you? Where am I?"

 

[matzi8qr]

Snippet

Snippet slept for the most part fine, which is awfully surprising for being out in the open in an unkown world. It seems that her writer has been too busy making sandwiches and doing school stuff to make a fully fledged post. Snippet's writer is also sorry for holding the other writers up.

 

[Heyitsjiwon]

Lothar shrugged and said "Can't help someone who won't tell you what the problem is. Don't think too much about it. Anyways, I guess I'm off to the desert. Hopefully I'll be back within a day or two. See you Guardian. Don't have too much fun without me." Lothar then began to head off to the desert that he remembered seeing from the top of the giant hill.

 

[ShakinMcBacon]

Fumbling about in the darkness, he was about to give up when he stubbed his knuckle on something. It produced a wooden, somewhat hollow sound, and he felt it more carefully to find it was a long wooden box. A coffin perhaps? Feeling gingerly above it, his hand clasped around a wooden handle. He hefted it, and was surprised by the weight on its end. He put it aside and grabbed the shield that lay there as well, in addition to the folded cloth. Gathering his loot up, he crawled his way back out to the quickly fading light. The wooden handle was revealed to be an axe; it was horribly rusted, but the edge still seemed fairly keen. A shield accompanied it, similarly rusted and old, but sturdy nonetheless. The final item intrigued him the most. It was a tunic, crimson in colour, with a yellow bull depicted on its front. The cloth felt new and supple, as if it had just left the dyer's vat. What he thought was nothing more than a cave must have been some sort of crude tomb, with its unfortunate occupant laid in a wooden coffin with his final worldy possessions. The bones continued to walk about, their eerie rattles and steps seeming oddly loud in the approaching dusk. If they walked...

Dropping his loot in a pile at the entrance, he drew his sword and reentered. Moving through the inkly darkness with a bit more confidence, he felt forward with the blade until he felt its point bite into the bone-dry wood. Getting a hold on the edge of the lid, he lifted with a grunt. It stuck for a moment, probably from rot, then came free suddenly, clattering from his grasp and onto the stone. He found his heart was pounding, and he tightened his grasp on his sword.

 

[Ubertide]

The elk stag merely stared him in the eyes for a brief moment before snorting and turning its gaze back towards the path ahead. It would continue in silence until they reached the edge of the forest with the chapel in the desert looming in the slowly darkening distance. It paused and glanced back to Giovanni as if asking if he really wanted to go over there.
L llamatime

With the sun still setting, the air would quickly turn cold and bitter and the evening breeze would kick up dust. The tumbleblooms nearby would start to close up and retract their roots, letting the wind catch them up and send them quietly rolling across the desert. The sandstorm in the distance would only seem to grow more intense with the cooling air.
matzi8qr

"Fun is...undignified." Would be the rock's only response as it nodded a stiff farewell to Lothar. As the man started to walk off, Guardian called out in warning, "Keep...your...eyes...on...the...trees. Something...lurks....there....at night." And with that the golem would just stand in place, watching as Lothar slowly disappeared amongst the pines. As the air grew colder, an eerie silence would seem to consume the forest even as he went further north towards Ratroot. It was almost as if the forest itself was holding its breath apprehensively.
Heyitsjiwon

As Thalen touched the tunic, he'd suddenly get the sense that this was an item that held some kind of power, he'd feel almost stronger just holding it. This feeling would fade the moment he dropped it and turned his attention to the sounds of rattling bone that appeared to be drawing near....Because they were. The walkers within sight of him were all slowly turning to face him and shambling their way over towards him at a snail's pace. However before he could really process this, he'd hear the slow scraping of wood against wood as the lid of the coffin was pushed aside as the occupant within sat up and turned its eyeless gaze right at him. Even though the bones were unable to form expression, Thalen would get the sense that he was indeed in some immediate danger as the walker tumbled out of its resting place, staggered up to its feet, and started stumbling right towards him with surprising speed.
ShakinMcBacon

 

[llamatime]

Giovanni
He sighed as he continued on in silence. He gazed in awe at the chapel amongst the desert. He glanced to the stag with a confident nod as he walked towards the chapel. He noticed how late it was getting and looked for somewhere to rest for the night.

 

[matzi8qr]

Snippet

Snippet let her eyes drift open--slowly at first, until she remembered she was in a dome with a bunch of strangers and even stranger creatures and raven things. And on that note, she bolted awake, and, seeing nothing was around and wanted to kill her, she raked her hands through her mangled hair, massaging the sand and knots out. "Well it certainly got cooler," she said. She got up, drank some water, took her fish, and began walking away from the lake, away from the forest, and away from Terrorguard Chapel, towards the unknown. "Let's go find me a lady in blue."

 

[Heyitsjiwon]

Lothar shivered at the lack of any noise in the forest... the fact that he didn't even hear insects or any animal... was bad. It was clear that he needed to figure out something and quick. So, he looked for a decent looking branch or stick so that he could at least have a small torch... and hopefully scare away whatever was nearby.

 

[ShakinMcBacon]

The corpse leaped at him with surprising swiftness, and Thalen stumbled back, tripping over a rough patch of stone and falling back. The creature was on him before he could make any attempt at raising his sword, and it clawed at his face with its sharp bony fingers, as if it sought to tear him to pieces. Thalen let go of his sword, punching feebly at the skull, which only ignored the minour blow. He felt a warm gash sprout on his face, and the glove on his right hand grew hot, until it was nearly unbearable. Yelling, he placed his hand around the skeleton's face, letting out his fury.

WHUMPH

A sudden burst of fire lit up the cavern walls, erupting with such force that the skull was blown clean off its body, flying back and clattering against the now somewhat blackened stone. Eyebrows singed, Thalen grabbed his sword and crawled frantically towards the mouth of the cave, not bothering to look back to see whether his foe was truly dead. The cool night air felt beutiful on his skin as he stumbled to his feet and over to where he had piled his loot. The shield, while the wood was rotten and the metal reinforcement rusty, seemed sturdy enough, and he shoved it onto his gloved arm, then picked up the axe and pushed its handle through his belt. The tunic he kept, now noticing the odd sensation of vitality as he held the fabric in his grasp. Perhaps it was touched with magic? He hung it over his shoulder.

He heard light footsteps and turned to see a skeletal soldier charging clumsily with a spear. Thalen held the shield forward, angling it so the spear's tip was deflected, then stepped forward to send bones flying with a stroke of his sword. Seeing more warriors converging on his position, he ran back towards the river, heart thumping in his chest. He had forgotten his hunger.

 

[Ubertide]

There wouldn't seem to be any place to take shelter in, except for the chapel itself which was still boarded and chained up with that same warning still present on the lock. Surely with some effort he could break the ancient chains and rip the boards from the door, but was that really a good idea?
L llamatime

There wouldn't be much sound around her other than the gentle rustling of giant flowers rolling through the sands carelessly. One would even bounce across her feet with a brisk gust of wind before continuing on its way. It was, in a word, boring. And lonely. The only thing to keep her company would be the distant swirling sand storm to the west....That and a distant figure. Was it a cactus, or a person? It would be too far away to really tell.
matzi8qr

No rats, no birds, no crickets, it was deadly silent all around him even as he rummaged for a stick and lit it up as a makeshift torch. At first, nothing would seem amiss until a soft hissing noise wafted down from the canopy behind him. If he turned the torch that way to see what was lurking, he'd see an extremely unusual thing; as large as a man with a snout like a raccoon's, a tail like a rat, dark grey fur, pointed ears, and glowing green eyes. It bared its teeth down at him, nostrils flared with primal rage as it clung to the tree and just stared down at him like it was waiting for something.
Heyitsjiwon

The moment the skull was knocked off the walker's head, its bones would crumble into a useless heap, never to rise again. He would not be so lucky with the other skeleton, however, as even though it lost a limb from impact it would still attempt to rise up and stumble towards him. Many others would follow suit, clumsily chasing him back towards the river just as the eerie whispering of men's voices called out from behind him. If he ever dared look back, he would see distant, spectral beings aimlessly roaming the foothills, seemingly unaware of the peril he was in.
ShakinMcBacon

 

[llamatime]

Giovanni
He investigated the chapel and noticed the boarded up door. He decided to avoid the chapel for now and decided to investigate his surroundings. His attention was drawn to the storm as one question came to mind, what was causing it? He couldn't hold his curiosity and dashed towards the storm. When he got close enough he noticed a form he couldn't forget, the girl from earlier. He remembered how scared she was, but he was feeling confident. He made sure to keep his hands away from his weapons and spoke in a calm, helpful tone. "Sorry if I arrived unexpectedly, but I hope you don't mind if I also investigate this storm as well." He then noticed the figure in the distance and continued towards the storm to investigate.
matzi8qr

 

[matzi8qr]

Snippet

Snippet trudged along through the cool sand, twirling her hair with her right hand and holding her spear as a walking stick in her left. She saw the figure, but she also wanted to keep away from the storm and the storm's path, and tried her best to gauge the direction the wind was pushing in; being caught in a sandstorm and the dark didn't seem like a good idea. She turned back to see the spire of Terrorguard Chapel to make sure her direction was set. She expected to see just the chapel, not the person dashing through the sand up to her. So, naturally, she jumped back a bit and hefted the spear towards the person before even seeing the details.
"Whoa, there. Sorry if I arrived unexpectedly, but I hope you don't mind if I also investigate this storm as well," he said.
"Why yes I do--" Snippet began, but the dude just turned and headed straight to the distant figure. "Hey, wait! Do you really want to get your dense head stuck in a sandstorm?! You're on the fast track to getting lost in a desert, buddy."

 

[Heyitsjiwon]

Lothar

If there was one thing that Lothar knew about animals, then it was that the moment you turned around to run or showed any fear... it was over. No matter what animal, even a house cat. With that in mind, Lothar silently drew his falchion from its sheath and calmly stood at the ready with no sudden movements. Rather than take an aggressive stance, Lothar just calmly stood his ground despite the aggression that the beast was showing. After all, what was more scary than an angry animal? An animal that didn't think twice about you being angry at it... as if you were just a fly to it. With that, he hoped that he could make the animal scared and stand down.

 

[ShakinMcBacon]

Thalen jogged across the uneven ground, steering clear of any walking bones. One seemed to rise from the earth, lifting a bow. Thankfully the string was old and rotten, and the arrow skimmed past, wild and lacking in momentum. He heard voices behind him, and turned his head to see the spectral creatures that roamed the hills just as aimlessly as the skeletons had. He reached the river and practically jumped in, running in an awkward, high-stepping wade, desperate to put some sort of barrier between him and the army of undead. Upon reaching the opposite back he halted, waiting for his breath to slow. This land obviously had more magical properties than he had thought at first, and the prospect of potential necromancy wasn't a pretty one.

Finding a rock, he sat down, sheathing his sword. He pulled off the rotten straps of the old shield, throwing it away. The spear had already left a gash, and he could see the wood was rotten all the way through. The tunic seemed to be more useful, and he could just about feel the magic that resonated from it. He pulled it over his head, and the tunic fit surprisingly well. A sudden feeling of rejuvenation came over him, and he felt like he would lift a tree from its roots. He didn't, and turned his attention to the glove. Until now, he had been to concerned with escaping to consider what had happened in the cave. Fire in his hands? The concept excited him, and he pulled the glove off to examine it more closely. The gnarled form of his right hand shocked him, and in the faint moonlight it looked to be burnt and blackened. Shuddering, he pulled the glove back on quickly; he would deal with it later. For now, he needed a place to rest. When the adrenaline from the fight had worn off his fatigue washed over him like a lead cascade, and he searched for some suitable place to rest.

He found it below a mighty oak, lying in the crook of one of its roots, wrapping his cloak around him. He ignored his hunger and closed his eyes, willing himself to fall asleep. Eventually he did so, and was submerged into a dreamless slumber.

 

[Ubertide]

In the darkness it would be difficult to tell what that figure really was, surely it was worth checking out even if it was rather close to that oddly stationary sandstorm. Whatever it truly was, it didn't seem to be moving.
L llamatime matzi8qr

Clearly whatever this thing was, it wasn't easily intimidated as it instead hissed and leaned downwards as if making ready to jump down. It wouldn't move just yet, clearly waiting to be provoked.
Heyitsjiwon

It would be easy to tell that these were the lost souls of the walkers, as they were all dressed in soldier's garb; some of them even seemed to linger by a specific skeleton. Whatever the case, once he crossed the river the walkers would seem to lose interest and resume their aimless wandering. Thalen would be allowed to rest unhindered.
ShakinMcBacon

 

[llamatime]

Giovanni
He glanced back to the girl. "So? It's better than just standing here." He said still in his calm tone, seemingly ignoring the girl as he walked into the storm. He focused on the figure and hoped it was another person. "Hello? is anyone there?"
matzi8qr

 

[matzi8qr]

Snippet

"So? It's better than just standing here," the guy from the morning said.
"I mean, standing here won't get us lost and killed in a slow and painful way that includes getting lost and inhaling sand but yea fine," Snippet said, exasperated for the most part. Noticing there was no convincing the man of little intelligence who was doomed to die, she looked at the Terrorguard Chapel, gauged her direction, and followed him. If the sandstorm won't get us lost, the fact that it's magical probably will. Just as long as I keep direction.

 

[Heyitsjiwon]

Lothar

Lothar just looked at the creature and continued to stay still. If it wanted an excuse to attack, then he wouldn't give it one. In fact, Lothar just slowly sat down. Holding a pouncing position was tiring and he had no intentional of trying to fight whatever this thing was. In this case, confidence was key.

 

[Ubertide]

As the pair continued forward, the constant roar of the sandstorm would only grow louder and more overbearing. Whatever force fueled it, it would seem there would be no sign of it slowing down. That would probably only be a secondary concern, as it would soon be revealed that the figure they were heading towards was indeed just a cactus. It would seem that no one else was around, and yet, there would be this odd feeling that the both of them were being watched.
L llamatime matzi8qr

The thing would continue to stare at him, rocking back and forth against the tree it was cleaning to with some agitation. It's agitation would grow into confusion as the man sat down instead of acting, its head tilting back and forth quickly as it tried to process what was going on. Slowly, it would start to clamber down the side of the tree, keeping its eyes locked on him just in case even as it touched on the ground. It wasn't angry anymore so much as curious and highly cautious as it slowly shuffled closer inch by inch on all fours.
Heyitsjiwon