"Death Song" (Port Town and Ocean Temple)

Rin Nyx

Rin Nyx

One Thousand Club

shanty_town_by_jbrown67-d5ffqia.jpg


The port town of Mistrise Landing, normally quite busy as a major port for trading across the ocean. The town was well on its way to becoming a city, expanding and growing its population. Now, however, the town is oddly still and tensions are in the air, fear palpable from the town's citizens as stories of sirens and the undead are told in hushed whispers. The undead only come out at night, but the sirens could take the unwary away at any moment...Could this be due to the ancient temple that was recently uncovered?
​
 
((@Eraticwanderer We'll start posting here once our characters get to the town. I'll post a description of the ocean temple area once we actually get to that part ^^))
 
Arya heard the old king’s warning about the town, but it hardly concerned her -- she already knew that she was walking towards danger. It did, however, suggest that the man was heading to the same town that they were, further suggested by the man coaxing his horse in that direction. It seemed as though this town was attracting a bit of attention.


...


As they traveled, the sun slowly lowered in the sky until the light it cast turned the sky into bright shades of pinks and oranges. It was with this sunset that Arya and Kain arrived at the town of Mistrise Landing. As Arya approached, she noticed that the few people that could be seen -- and there weren’t many -- were hurriedly shuffling about to get indoors, some even dropping things in the street and leaving the item there in their hurry to get inside.



“Perhaps we should check in at an inn first?” the hybrid suggested to Kain, red eyes scanning the area to see where it might be. Was Plough's Fulcrum supposed to be the inn, or was that strange man talking about something else?  she wondered briefly. While she wanted to explore the town, and would definitely want to see these ‘undead’ that were being talked about, she also did not want to get locked outside with them the entire night, and they had been walking for quite some time and could probably use a rest. Still, the puddle at her feet -- now considerably smaller from the long walk to the town, twisted with curiosity at the state of the town they were in.


@Eraticwanderer @Radigan
 
Kain enjoyed the nice walk to the town. He always enjoyed a good walk. As the sun began to set, a smile grew on his face. He always enjoyed sunsets and nightfall. The people of this town seemed to disagree though as they hurried to get indoors. There are rumors of the undead at night and all. He turned to Arya as she asked about an inn and he shrugged. "I rarely use inns. I much prefer nature over people, but I'm willing to make an exception in this case." He was also tired from the walk and even though the rumors sounded interesting, they also sounded tiring. It wasn't like they were going to disappear after one night anyway. He looked at the small puddle around her feet with amazement. He was never able to use much magic, nothing more than a breeze to guide his arrows, and so he always liked to see someone who was strong. That was one reason he liked to visit dragons with his father. 


@Rin Nyx
 
Henry's journey was quite a nice one, the stallion was fast and Henry wanted to secure trust with the townsfolk... That or retire, the town had a mysterious beauty the old king admired which rather unfortunately isn't something the townsfolk themselves noticed or cared for as their rather depressing day was interrupted by the man in the crown upon horseback; Some bowed their heads in apathy, others just stared and one person walked up to the king in an unscrupulous manner. "Sure y' didn't make a wrong turnin' me highness? The palace is South." The unfriendly figure warned, inciting the closest thing to laughter a few other locals had ever experienced for a while.


"Is this where Hecate robs Rán of the siren's seduced? If it is tell me of the stables and the pub. As well as something that weathers the water well, or go off and beg for Leucothea's maternal protection as the sirens sing your funeral!" The King almost shouts to the time wasting townsperson, scaring the laughing locals into a saddened silence and summoning directions from the joking resident in a pitiable mewl. At the mewl the King organises for his horse to be stored in the stables after a rather friendly conversation with the said owner of the stables who was apparrently born in Plough's Fulcrum, the town a day away from Mistrise Landing. After the conversation and a clothes buying stop the king arrives at the local inn wearing a warm and comfy coat made of sealskin... By the by the King is in the door around the same time the duo arrive at Mistrise Landing.
 
The innkeeper did a double take at the sight before him. A man had entered his establishment, which was strange enough with all of the trouble that the town was going through -- the inn itself was practically abandoned, with only the innkeeper inside. What made this even more odd was the man’s attire, or more specifically, the crown that sat atop his head. Regardless, there was not much time to sit around staring. “In ‘r out, I’ll be lockin’ those doors ‘ere. I suggest in, as out will be leadin’ to a bit o’ trouble t’night,” the innkeeper told the crowned man in the doorway, moving to lock the doors regardless of what the man chose to do.


((whether Henry stays in the inn or goes outside is up to you))


---


The hybrid glanced over at Kain after his response, noticing that he was looking at the water by her feet. The girl looked away again quickly, her face simply neutral with hardly any expression at all, though the water at her feet swirled and bubbled a bit. The girl couldn’t keep the water from following her, and was unable to keep it from reacting to her emotions; having someone looking at it like that, looking at what she perceived as a weakness of hers, was rather embarrassing.


“Are ye crazy? Get inside, travellers, or ye won’ make it through th’ night!” the high-pitched call came from a distressed woman, yelling from her open window at the pair before slamming the shutters closed. The sky was indeed growing darker, and at a quicker rate than Arya had expected as the sun seemed to race below the horizon.


Armor quietly clinking together as she moved, the blue haired girl began walking again, this time at a quicker pace, in search of the inn. It wasn’t that she was scared to be left outside all night -- actually, with the town so void of people, it was kind of relaxing, even with the thought of the undead -- she did, however, wish for a nice bed to rest in, and walls secure around her to keep others out so she could let her guard down for a time. The girl didn’t even check to see if Kain was following in her search for the inn, as she made her way down cobblestone streets and paths set up of wooden planks. Finally, her eyes settled upon the sign, ‘Sailor’s Respite Inn’. So, Plough’s Fulcrum was something else, then, the girl thought briefly as she briskly walked to the door. She reached out to open it, only to find that it was already locked. Damn. The water at Arya’s feet spiked up in annoyance.


As the hybrid attempted to open the inn door, the last of the sun’s rays disappeared over the horizon; night had fallen. A quiet melody began to play somewhere in the distance, beautiful but faint. The music drifted through the still town, bringing with it a thick, unnatural fog. The fog rolled in quickly, covering the streets, though there was nary a breeze to carry it in on.


@Radigan @Eraticwanderer
 
"Lemmie do that for you, guess a few rooms are open as well, we'll negotiate in a minute?" The old king offers, his voice being strange because of it's leniency to have an undertone of a native-to-area accent all the while lacking any proper and permanent connection to any accent (the Southern English accent being adopted from the mayor of Plough's Fulcrum) as he makes sure to lock the doors, checking them twice and even going as far as to jam the handle with a chair. "Any other precautions we need to take or should we be safe?" Henry asks as he takes a proper look around at the inn.


The Sailor's Respite Inn is a reasonable establishment with one floor dedicated to the actual pub consisting of the main room, kitchen and whatever else and stairs up to the first floor where the guest rooms assumedly are. The common arrangement of tables and chairs made of a local bay willow are grouped off around the room in an organised manner as to ensure pathways to the stairs on the western wall from the door and the bar which in order are on the north and south eastern walls as well as from each other table to the bar. The bar itself is a nice big durmast oak log respectably cut down to a nice cuboid in front of three shelves of beverages, plates and cutlery which were all ready for the customers who would never come until Hecate departed, the kitchen door being beside the shelves and behind the bar. All in all the inn was a pleasant and clean little establishment for drinking, sleeping and regretting the drinking part afterwards, not the best for hiding in from the undead but it's locked, warm and well stocked.
 
Kain followed Arya quickly after the woman warned them to get inside. They were too late of course and when they finally reached an inn, it was locked and the sun had set. A melody could be heard in the distance and a fog rolled in without reason. Kain observed all this with a watchful eye and a sigh. He was tired but it seemed he wasn't going to get any rest. He perked up though. This melody. It seemed familiar but he couldn't quite place it. It was like the memory was dancing right outside his reach. Kain brought his bow out and knocked an arrow but it kept it at his side. "Looks like those monsters we are hunting are deciding to make an appearance early. Not even letting us rest from the journey. And I was starving too." He said it with a laugh to try and lighten the mood. He stared out into the unnatural mist with a cautious but excited eye.


@Rin Nyx (Sorry it took so long. Really busy and forgot about it for a day.)
 
After the doors had been locked and all the windows shut and reinforced, along with a small array of other minor things that the innkeeper did to keep his establishment safe from harm, the middle-aged man let out a tired sigh and returned to the front desk. Tired eyes turning towards the strange man who had entered his establishment, the man spoke. "Thanks fer th' help. It's been a couple o' rough nights in town o' late. We'll be safe 'ere t'night. Ye'll be needin' a room, I take?" the man pulled a key out from under his desk. "It's a li'l slow, so 'ow 'bout twenty gold, eh? Great discount fer a fine inn like this 'ere, an' ye'll get supper in tha' fee. So long as ye stay indoors, ye'll be safe 'ere. What'd'ya say, mister...?" the man grabbed a pen and hovered it over a journal, meant to record the names and rooms of guests. Tired brown eyes watched the man expectantly while he waited.


@Radigan


---


Arya turned away from the locked inn door; there was no point in trying to get in now, since night had already fallen. "Well, you did say that you liked to sleep outside," the girl mentioned to Kain, mirroring his attempt to lighten the mood. Still, her face was void of any lighthearted mask that she would normally attempt to wear, her expression instead serious and focused. "We should at least get to somewhere less open." The girl shifted her scythe in her left hand, prepared to use it if she had to, and began to move. She was headed towards the coast, towards the cavern that she had heard about. Aside from apparently being where the entrance to the temple was hiding, the cavern would also be a decent place to get some shelter for the night. It was also, however, closer to the source of the music that sounded throughout the town. This was made clearer by the fact that the music began to grow louder and louder as the hybrid moved closer to it.


The music was rather relaxing, like an old melody that she had heard long ago. The girl's grip on her scythe lessened a bit as she listened, and she moved through the mist with less focus than before. Though it was difficult to see under the thick fog, the water that normally followed her had slowed, not reacting nearly as much to stimulants around the blue haired girl. Those who knew of the girl's powers well enough might even pick up on the fact that the fog itself was not reacting to her presence, something that would normally only happen if the girl was completely relaxed and comfortable, or if that fog was being controlled by something very powerful.


A loud, high-pitched scream snapped Arya back into focus. Red eyes blinked, then scanned the area for the source. The scream came from inside a house nearby, the reason likely due to the large man pulling and banging on the door, attempting to get in. The man's movements were unnatural, puppet-like almost, and his skin was too pale and almost bloated. Clothes and skin were caked with dirt, the man's clothes were torn and tattered-looking, and his greyish black hair was matted and in disarray. As Arya continued walking by, the strange-looking man turned towards the girl, head tilted to the side and mouth lulled open. His eyes were clouded over, and signs of decay could be seen on the man. A snarl-like grunting noise could be heard from the man, before he began sprinting with surprising speed towards Arya. He didn't get far, as the girl raised her right hand and sent small blobs of water hurtling towards him, fast enough to cut metal, let alone the decaying corpse. The man fell over on the street, several holes now added to his body.


I don't think that's going to keep him down, the girl noted, gripping her scythe tighter in her left hand once more. She started to pick up the pace, red eyes scanning the area. Several corpses had began to appear, shambling through town. The man that had been hit with her water projectiles was already beginning to crawl back to his feet as well. It would be a fight to get to that cavern, and that strange music was making it very difficult for Arya to focus. The girl was faced with a bit of a dilemma: move quietly, and risk being lulled into a trance of some sort, or drown out the music somehow, and risk attracting the attention of all of the undead in the town. After a moment's hesitation, the girl decided, I'd rather fight my way through than be stuck defenseless in some sort of trance. With that decision, the girl began to hum, a bit quietly at first, then a bit louder as she attempted to focus on her own song rather than the music in the background. The song she was humming was the same one that she had been humming at the pond previously, the one that her mother had sung to her as a child. The humming did certainly attract the attention of the walking corpses, as several began to turn towards her, unnatural wailing and groaning sounds coming from decaying throats as they began to shamble towards her, some running as the man had, others slowly making their way to surround the blue-haired girl (and Kain, provided he kept up with Arya). Arya simply continued humming and moved into a fighting stance, ready to cut her way through to her destination.


@Eraticwanderer


((It'll be a fight to get to the coast/cavern, woo!))
 
"On two other conditions, you arrange for the strongest of the town to meet me outside the closest thing to a blacksmithy this town has in the morning, I intend to ransack Coventina's temple in the morrow and force the wretch's wealth upon the townspeople who have been wronged by the blackguarded Hecate... The second being that I ask for the use of your establishment as a staging ground on the toad's temple." Henry adds, taking out twenty gold pieces ready for the barkeep, remembering perhaps one of his greatest victories as a soldier to his old kingdom; ransacking a temple which had been occupied by a vile and old religious group... The day's blood was only a fraction compared to what those zealous murderers had committed to something long lost nowadays. 


The plan in Henry's head is to gather weapons, armour and equipment for a good gang to help take over the temple for the town. Whatever happens to the temple past it's ransacking isn't for Henry to think of, after all the town will always need something for storage, or maybe renovate it to a more modern religion... Henry just fancies three things from the locale: Learning of the artifact, getting a decent share of the treasure within and finally ensuring the town remembers him; Plough's Fulcrum and Mistrise Landing could be useful allies in the future. 
 
Kain chuckled a little at her joke and nodded at her suggestion to find some cover. Arya began to move in the direction of the coast and Kain followed behind observing the surroundings. The music grew louder as the got closer to the shore and Kain smiled as he felt his mind begin to slip. He had heard that the music did something to your mind but it was one thing to hear about it and another to have you become forcibly relaxed when you know death is in front of you. He saw that the same thing was happening with Arya, she no longer looked prepared to fight and the water at her feet looked slow as well. 


Suddenly a scream rang out and his eyes swung over to the walking dead man pounding on a nearby door. They continued to walk but the man saw them and ran at them. Kain aimed his arrow but felt the effects of the music and Arya shot him with water before he could shoot an arrow. The two began to move faster and the music grew louder as more of those undead, including the one they knocked down, begin to appear around them. Kain's mind continued to waver so he bit his tongue to keep his mind in tact. He then heard Arya's humming and chuckled slightly. It was the easiest solution and he wondered if anyone had thought of that before. He recognized it from the song she was humming before and began to hum along as well. This caught the attention of the creatures and they did not seem to like the song. 


Kain let a few arrows fly at the creatures, hitting their legs and pinning them to the ground. The creatures ignored this and, after a few yanks, pulled themselves free while losing more than a bit of their legs. He shot a few more arrows before putting his bow up and pulling out his short sword as the creatures got closer. He hummed louder with a smile on his face as he charged the creatures, a slight breeze flowing with him.


@Rin Nyx
 
The innkeeper's expression turned from tired and weary to one of anger. "Those blokes messin' wit' tha' temple is what caused this 'ere mess in th' first place! I ain't gonna make it worse by bringin' more folks to it. Ye best be goin' if yer thinkin' of stormin' tha' place, as I won' 'ave any part o' that," the middle aged man slammed his pen down while he spoke his harsh words. After a moment, the man's expression softened a little. "Look 'ere, twenty gold fer the room, an' if ye wanna try ta gather th' townsfolk in the morn', tha's up ta ye. But my establishment ain't a playground fer some war on this 'ere 'Hecate' or what 'ave ye. Th' townsfolk're scared, ye'll be hard pressed fer any o' them to help ya in yer quest, but they might give ya some food 'r weapons, if yer lucky," the innkeeper reasoned with the man. The innkeeper was firm in his ways, and was fully of the belief that nothing good could come of entering that temple -- a belief shared by many of the townspeople in Mistrise Landing. Just because this man -- who had yet to even tell his name -- came in wearing a crown and talking about fighting some folks with names like 'Hecate' or 'Coventina', didn't mean that the townsfolk would be all that eager to follow him. After all, many travelers had come to the town seeking to destroy the temple, or fight whatever was causing the undead and sirens, but none had managed it so far, and many had only made the problem worse. The crowned man's words did not come off as the comfort that they might have been at the start of this incident, and instead only cause fear and anger for the innkeeper.


@Radigan


((Just a by-the-by in case you were wondering why I put them in quotes, I know who Hecate and Coventina are, but they aren't necessarily myths of this world, so names like that would go over the heads of most of the characters in the rp ;P Not to say that they can't have their myths in certain areas (or certain time periods), but in most places they will be unknown except by a few. The innkeeper is not one of those few ^^''))
 
Arya continued humming as the walking corpses approached. The sound of Kain humming with her surprised her slightly, but she didn't show it as she continued her song, red eyes watching the undead that threatened them. It seemed that Kain was capable of defending himself, from the way that he shot his arrows at the corpses and charged in with his sword. That was good, as the blue haired girl wouldn't have to worry about defending the man. Adjusting her stance a little, the girl began to move as the corpses came into her range. Swinging her scythe in a large, horizontal crescent, the girl swept up several bodies in one motion, several getting cut by the large blade, while others were knocked off balance by the staff portion of the large scythe. The hybrid then brought the weapon towards herself in a quick, jerking motion, causing the blade to slice through the remaining corpses that were stuck in her weapon. From there, the girl began to advance towards their destination, using her scythe in swinging motions to cut down many of the corpses, pushing forward with her weapon to push the onslaught back with the dull end of her blade, and using the handle to knock the creatures off balance when needed, or bringing it up close to her to block an attack by a corpse who slipped into close range occasionally before pushing it back. The girl's attacked were augmented by her control of water, using the little puddle and the nearby ocean (the fog proved to be resistant, and while she could force it to do her bidding, it was more trouble than it was worth) to call upon the water to attack her foes, though she mostly used this to push the creatures back. While the water was a useful weapon most of the time, it did little to slow these creatures, and the girl would rather use her scythe and save her energy in magic in case she needed it later. All the while, the girl hummed, trying to drown out the lulling music.


They were making progress, fighting their way to the coast. The pair were almost there, just at the edge of town now, though the music had grown louder as they approached, and the horde of undead had only grown as they progressed. At this point, Arya had abandoned humming and moved on to singing the song that she had chosen previously, as it helped to keep her focused better than the humming had. One more push through the corpses, they were almost there... Arya swept up some of the horde with her scythe again, cutting some and pushing through the creatures. "Like the waters of time, flowing all around us," the girl sung as she stepped onto the sand of the coast, "The waves of your heart will prove unyielding. Let the waters be calm, dear child of the ocean, let the waters be calm, let your light be shielding..." the hybrid continued singing as she moved further onto the coast, the walls of the cavern already in sight. Suddenly, though, the girl paused, her head tilting to one side a little.


"Dear child of the ocean, your light does shine bright in your heart. Still there lingers a darkness, we can see it tear you apart..." The line rang out along the coast, not coming from the hybrid who had been singing. Though it was not a line of the original song and the tune was different, the message seemed to grab the hybrid's attention well enough, as if it was sung in response to the line that the hybrid had just finished. Some corpses took the chance to attempt to approach the girl again, though the sand slowed them and the girl was still aware enough to push them back.


"The pain of your past is unyielding, the damage it's done has been great, still there is hope in the darkness, you know it is never too late.


The waters inside you are turning, your heart is stormy indeed, if easing your burden is your goal, we can help you succeed..."


The hybrid had stopped even humming at this point, becoming emerged in the song that was being sung. Like a sweet lullaby, offering her rest and respite... Her tight grip on her scythe began to loosen again, and the girl took a hesitant, almost clumsy step towards the water.


@Eraticwanderer


((by the way, if there are any lyrics that can be sung to draw in your character, feel free to add them in, or you can have the sirens focus on Arya at the moment :P ))
 
"Oh aye? How will we get rid of them then? I don't know if it's just me or are the town's doors a little battered and worn? I could probably kick in the door to the cobbler's and slaughter him right now if I wanted with a little bit of effort... Unfortunately the dead out there are a lot more determined then I am to assault a cobbler... Yes the corpses walking out there may be weaker then me, however they have more time because skeletons can still walk... At least back in my days as a king they could aided by weaker powers then an ancient goddess of the sea. The problem of a small immortal army purging the town's streets of life every night will not go away, those corpses will continue fighting well beyond the time their flesh has rotted, the tide goes in and out, the dead will just rise again and again and again... And there's no use sitting here and hoping for the impossible, the temple will not care for your pathetic mewling, it will not care for your sullen pule nor for your twopenny-halfpenny obsecrations... It sees us all as it's enemy so I shall provide it with an enemy, I will put in the effort the malevolent force has squandered on this town of poltroons and try to save an undeserving town... Goodnight innkeeper." Henry avers in a rather low, gentle and politely assertive tone before getting the keys, exchanging the money and preparing to sleep in his new room.


By now I assume the child of the ocean is drenching her foot in the water by now... What a contrast between the two; Henry is enjoying the luxury of a quiet and respectable establishment's room; it's warm and dry atmosphere, clean bed and a nice cosy dressing gown while the hybrid is out among the smell of the dead and the cold water out in the probably breezy cold in armour.


((It's what I had in mind, Henry's a man out of time with different Deities and ideals, it's a little quirk I had in mind to show off how outdated Henry is in his ideas and beliefs.))
 
((Well, since @Eraticwanderer hasn't been on in over a week, I'm gonna move on here and just assume that Kain somehow got separated and/or died. So, in order to keep things moving, I'm also going to go ahead and get to the next morning so that Henry and Arya can start exploring the temple, either separately or together))


The tired innkeeper sighed and shook his head as his lone guest retired to his room. "John Smith it is, then," he muttered, writing the name down in his guest book. While the older man certainly had a point, the innkeeper had seen many like him attempt to do the same thing this man was, and it never ended well. To him, the time for fighting was over, as it only added to the death toll. Appeasing the angered goddess seemed like the best plan, and that is what him and the townspeople had planned. They were going to offer up their best crops, some of their best animals, gold, jewels, anything that they could spare, and hope for the best. If that plan didn't work, well...at this point, it wouldn't come as a surprise for the townspeople to offer up a sacrifice to the goddess of the temple. Maybe a traveler, someone whom the citizens would not be too attached to. The innkeeper frowned at this. "I hope yer right, mister Smith. Fer the sake o' all o' us, I hope ye defeat wha'ever hell lurks in tha' temple," he sighed, then began to clean up the inn before retiring to bed. Outside, the faint sounds of moans and banging on the doors and walls could be heard coming from the undead, but in the inn, the innkeeper and the old king would be safe for the night. Come morning, a meal would be waiting for the old king, and the doors and windows would be unlocked again. The townspeople would venture out of their houses to begin to clean up the nights' damage, and life would carry on.


...


Sweet words rang out like a lullaby, drawing the hybrid closer to the ocean. Waves crashed along the shore, like ominous waves of turmoil now washing over the armored feet of the blue-haired girl. Blood red eyes dull, as if in a trance, the girl began to walk into the water, dropping her scythe on the beach and leaving it behind her. The dead still snarled and moaned behind her, shambling along the sandy shore, but their attention was on the girl's companion, not on her.


Arya stepped further and further into the ocean, letting the waves wash over her. The sweet promises of relief, of easing her pain, were intoxicating when mixed with the deadly music, and the girl had fallen victim to the sirens' song. Water surrounded the girl on all sides, stretching deep below her and far, far above her. She didn't even remember moving so far into the water. Most people probably would have drowned by now, she was deep in the waters. Some movement caught the girl's attention, almost bringing her out of her trance, but the sweet melody rang out again, dulling her senses once more. She could vaguely make out three beings approaching her, moving swift in the water. Their song was so sweet, the hybrid was unconcerned of their presence...Arya closed her eyes, listening to the melody. Who knows how long she had been down there? Under her cloak, which wrapped around her neck like a scarf, gills had appeared -- these were not some magic caused by the sirens' song, but rather part of the hybrid that only showed when she was fully under water, as her dragon blood granted her the ability to breathe underwater. Most full-blooded water dragons would not display these gills in their human forms, but like the hidden scales on her body, the gills were indicative of the beast form that she did not posses, the true form of a dragon. These gills -- or rather, the ability to breathe underwater -- had thus far saved the hybrid's life, as any other without the ability would have drowned at this point, simply adding to the walking corpses that plagued the town at night.


"Come, my child, return to my arms; like many before you, like those who did fall;


Child of water, kin of my kin; come to me, child, come to my call.


We can provide you with the love you so crave, you'll be the ocean, the crashing wave;


Those who have wronged you will trouble no more, their blood will spill and stain the shore;


Open your eyes, child, come to your kin; join us forever, be absolved of your sin."


The hybrid's eyes slowly opened. Before her was a creature, nearly transparent in the dark ocean water. The creature was shaped similarly to that of a human female, but with fins around the face, arms, and along its body. Some of the fins along its back looked strange, almost as if they could stretch out into wings and take to the air. The creature was beautiful, in a deadly sort of way, as sharp claws protruded from webbed hands and spiked teeth showed when the creature opened its mouth to sing. The siren was holding a hand out to the hybrid, as if inviting her to stay. The sweet melody continued on around them, keeping the girl's thoughts cloudy. Something's not right... the small voice inside the girl's head was barely noticed, but a small amount of doubt struggled it's way to the girl's expression as she began to reach out towards the siren's outstretched hand. 'Blood will spill and stain the shore,' the voice quoted the siren's song. Arya blinked, stopping her hand from reaching out. I don't want to be that monster, I don't want to cause that bloodshed, the voice, Arya's own, thought, finally coming to through the siren's sweet melody. Coming out of the strong trance that had enslaved her, Arya looked at the hand that was still being offered, shaking her head and moving backwards in the water, away from the siren.


Displeased with this reaction, the siren let out a blood-curling screech, baring its sharp teeth and claws at the hybrid. The other two sirens, having been positioned unseen behind Arya, swam forward in a flash, each grabbing one of the girl's arms and holding her still while the first siren charged towards her with claws out, piercing the hybrid in between her ribs, but luckily missing her heart. Blood pooled out into the water, spreading out like ink dropped in liquid, and Arya crumpled in a bit with pain. Using the adrenaline from the pain to fuel her escape, the hybrid pulled the two sirens holding her arms forward, a strong torrent of water pushing them away while their sharp claws scratched uselessly across the girl's armor. Then, kicking the third siren away from her, the hybrid began swimming up. Her speed in the water matched that of the sirens, and she used her magic to have the water propel her forward faster and hinder the creatures' movements behind her.


Even with her speed, it took the girl some time to get back to shore since she was so far out, and she was losing blood quite quickly. Still, she managed to return to the shore, surprisingly near where she had first entered the water. Crawling up out of the water (and not bothering to make the water leave her clothes and skin), Arya grasped her ribs where she had been injured. It was difficult to breathe, but she couldn't stop here. The girl crawled over to her scythe and grabbed it, using it to help herself up. She looked around. Her vision was blurry, she had to hurry. At least it looked as though the undead had returned to terrorizing the town, meaning that the beach was clear -- although, there was no sign of Kain, either.


Using her scythe to help her walk, the hybrid made her way towards the cavern she had been trying to get to before. The music had stopped for now -- perhaps the sirens planned to just leave her to die, or maybe the rumors that sirens will die if someone resisted their song was true. Whatever the case, the blue haired girl had more important things on her mind. She made her way into the cavern, steadying herself with her scythe and by holding on to the rocky cave wall. She made her way inside just far enough to be out of the way of any enemies entering, then collapsed to the floor, scythe clattering on the ground beside her. Vision was worse now, she could barely see. She was losing a lot of blood. The girl slipped off the gauntlet on her left hand, dropping it on the ground next to her scythe. Placing her hand firmly on the wound, a blueish light began to emerge from the contact. Pain, so much pain! The girl grimaced as the pain of the wound was intensified, then let out a shout of pain as it only got worse. The pain was over shortly, however, as the wound stitched itself back together with her magic. Still, the hybrid had lost a lot of blood, and healing was strenuous on the body. The girl's hand went limp and fell beside her as Arya fell unconscious in a pool of blood and water. The fabric of her dress was stained with her blood, and with her already pale skin, she looked dead by all accounts. But a closer examination of her would reveal her chest moving up and down with shallow breaths, and only the faint hint of a scar where the tear in the bloody fabric would suggest her wound would be. The girl would be unconscious at least until morning, but safe inside the cavern that led to the entrance to the temple.


@Radigan ((This ended up being a lot longer than I had planned, so sorry it took longer than I had expected to post it ^^''))
 

Yuvii & Kira
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​


"Damn those weird creatures," Kira said as he wiped the blood and gore off of his blade. "I've seen a few weird things, but nothing THAT weird." It was clear that they had been fighting the undead masses in the city. What a nightmare that was for them. Kira and Yuvii were trying to find a way to get them to stop moving. Chopping off limbs was a quick solution, but once the limbs were gone, all that was left was the unholy mess of the creatures squirming toward them with the goal of biting their legs off. Both of them had nearly lost themselves to fear or disgust at some point, but that's when Kira decided to start cutting muscle tendons. Whatever was controlling them, it seemed to be using their muscles. Kira didn't want to risk the dead being stitched back together, so he just cut muscles until all that was coming from the creatures were moans of anger and frustration at the man who was stepping on their heads and kicking them around like a ball with a sadistic grin on his face.


"There are two things I hated about you then. You were far too sadistic with the dead and you also won't stop feeding that gore to my wolf! I don't think he needs to taste mortal flesh, they always hated the beasts," Yuvii said as he used his wind magic to quickly blow a piece of muscle away from his wolf. Kira let out a fox-like cackle as he opened up his fan and bared his slightly pointed fangs. That's when Kira sniffed the air and looked down on the ground immediately. Yuvii looked there as well and then began following it. He noticed where it lead to immediately. "The cavern. Did something happen there?"


"Always has to be the hero..." Kira sighed as he slowly walked slowly after the sprinting Yuvii.


Yuvii immediately made his way into the cavern and was able to directly see the source of the blood. A young woman lying in a pool of blood and water. She looked noticeably dead, but the moment Yuvii's wolf, Harlend, walked over to the seemingly dead; however, rather than mourn or start eating, Harlend lapped up the blood on the girl's face. He kept lapping and lapping until all the blood was cleared of her body then began lapping up the blood on the floor. "Is she not dead boy?" Yuvii asked his wolf companion who gave a quick bark as a yes. Yuvii looked at the scene Harlend had created and smiled. That's when a certain person behind him stated his direct thoughts.


"How cliche, take away the blood and it's almost poetic. A young sleeping maiden in a beautiful sea cavern. If only she didn't have a scythe and torn up clothes."


Yuvii nodded with a grin in agreement to Kira's exact thoughts. He didn't think long about it before he picked up the girl and had Kira pick up her belongings. "We'll get her away from this ominous cavern and more inland. Maybe the weird creatures won't attack her there. When we get to a suitable spot, start a fire and hunt. Since we made it too late for any inn to take us, I'm saying we camp outside away from the town."


"Yes sir, but what about the weird creatures in town?"


"I think you left enough groaning heads around for one night. I've seen more than enough."


A laugh that sounded like "Kikikikiki" came from Kira's mouth as he slung the scythe over his back and opened his fan. That comment just made his day. He didn't understand his sadistic sense of humor, but he sure did love it.


@Rin Nyx
 
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Henry had a peaceful, calm and uninterrupted sleep that night, as the creatures and the dead strode across the town and the stars glistened above in complete ignorance of Mistrise Landing's woes and laments which the dead wailed as they thudded against the doors, steaming up what glass there is exposed and rotting as they went. The morning arrived and Henry was awake by the cockerel's klaxon and drinking from an ornate and almost supernatural goblet, the drink within had the old king fully alert and ready for the day which could be the old king's last skirmish or the town's greatest victory... Either way the old man had his crown, his sealskin coat and his cane with him as he procured his horse and rode it to the centre of town which was filled with the petrified populace.


"Lo and behold the town of Mistrise Landing... How far you are falling. Your doors and windows are battered and torn, your swords look dulled and your souls look lost already. Why do you not seek to end your suffering? The town suffers, you suffer and your families suffer tremendously so why not fight and or die? If you die then your suffering is over and the afterlife awaits, if you survive you become the executioners of the exalted... Either way is better then watching the remains of your buried beloved be puppeteered and possessed by a malevolent force you can overwhelm and outclass in such a frightening way. If you will condemn yourselves then I ask for your reasoning and implore an answer." The old man questions earnestly as he looks around the startled square. 
 
((Well trained wolf, not to go into fight or flight around Arya, what with her being part dragon and all :P Anyway, since it was almost morning in my last post for Arya...let's see))


The sun began to rise, peaking over the horizon to the east and casting light into the cavern where the hybrid had been found. Apparently, the elf and enkidu had been fighting the undead in the town for longer than they had thought.


Arya let out a small groan as she began to stir. Something didn't feel right...sure, she was still slightly sore from her wound from earlier, and a little worn out from healing it, but that wasn't it. She felt strange, warmer than she would have expected, but also almost un-grounded in a way...the hybrid's blood-red eyes snapped open at the realization, a startled intake of breath accompanying this action. She wasn't on the ground of the cavern, where she had passed out after the events of the night before, but was now being held by persons unknown. The girl's heart started racing in her chest as she was startled more awake, her eyes wide as she immediately began to squirm and push to try to free herself from whomever was holding her -- she was not awake enough and was too startled to have hidden her emotions at this point, or to calmly look around at the situation. All the hybrid was thinking was to get away, and as such, the water in the cavern began to react to her panic by spiking up, floating into the air, twisting and turning, and otherwise moving unpredictably around the girl. A large blob of water was hurtled through the air towards the face of the elf holding her, not fast enough to cause damage, but definitely large and fast enough to soak the man if he was hit by it. Meanwhile, Arya continued squirming, throwing punches and kicking blindly in her panicked attempt to free herself.


@Silver Wolf


((and I'll post the townspeople's response in just a bit for Henry, just gonna post this before I lose it in case my internet goes down again))
 
The old man had gathered quite a crowd in the center of the towns square. The people gathered did not seem particularly enthused at the man's words, however -- rather, they seemed angry, fed up.


"You think we 'aven't tried tha'? Look 'round, man, can't ye see how few we are left?" an angry voice rang out from the crowd in response, prompting a few shouted agreements throughout. Indeed, the townspeople were much fewer than they had been, and many who were gathered were women, children, or old. There were very few men in the crowd, though there were a few scattered throughout.


"Folk like ye are wha' drew out tha' beasts that be the sirens!" A voice accused.


"We were fine 'till yer kind poked 'round tha' temple!"


"Leave tha' cursed place alone, let us offer a sacrifice of our harvests. A goddess wan's followers, we'll offer worship t' the diety!"


"And if that doesn't work?" A new voice rang out, challenging the last one who spoke, "Will we cower in fear? Offer up our animals next, then our own people? Nay! I say we storm the place! We can't give in yet! I don' want to live in fear!"


The rest of the crowd began to break down into loud, incessant arguing, as the townspeople began to fight amongst themselves over the best course of action to take. Henry's speech served to rile up the townspeople at least, though it didn't seem like many were eager to follow him to battle.


@Radigan


((You can have up to two townspeople accompany Henry, but you'll have to control them for the most part, and they both have to die either before they enter the temple or very early on in the place :P The choice is yours!))
 

Yuvii & Kira
​


 
​






Yuvii just stood there for a moment, completely ignoring the squirming girl in his arms. He was soaking wet and all thanks to someone who should have been far too deep in their sleep to notice. Ignoring the squirming, kicking, and blows to the face, Yuvii gently set the girl down and walked away a little bit, shaking his wet appendages to get some of the brine out. He did this all while the enkidu was laughing behind his fan, though it was obvious who was laughing.


"I guess your reward for saving her were a couple bruises. I heard some ladies liked scars," Kira said in a very pleased tone. He was clearly overjoyed. His fluffy tail was wagging wildly with joy, he was smiling behind his fan, and his tone of voice was almost impish. 


Yuvii sighed heavily and looked over to the girl who had just drenched him. Even his freaking wolf had gotten off without any water. He cleared any expressions of annoyance during his sigh and took a look at the girl. He then put on a kind smile and said, "Sorry if we startled you."


"We? You did all the work on that one."


He sighed again and looked at Kira for a moment with eyes aiming only at the enkidu which clearly stated for him to shut up. Kira just laughed and let Yuvii continue. 


"We just noticed you sitting here unconscious in a pool of blood. We were going to take you away from this accursed place to somewhere safer, but you seem to have waken up. My name is Yuvii, may I ask why you were in such a state?"


@Rin Nyx
 
"If a few of you wish to accompany me then I am no opposition to that, for ye all I ask of two things; make a note on these men's bravery and fashion yerselves ambuscades, toils and general defences in case we fail, you are all better off fighting to defend yourselves then offering trinkets to a harlot such as the temple's occupier! With me my compatriots and good Mistrise Landing please cease your petty grizzling by the time we return!" The King states in a selectively ruthless tone of weariness from the town's more diplomatic and peaceful attitude, as he reminds himself of the hardier people he seeks to restore to history Henry draws the sword hidden within his cane and he coaxes the horse into a prideful march towards the temple with two townsfolk accompanying, others cheering on the march of King Henry Wicker, ruler of dust and ruins known to few. 


After a minute or two the two townsfolk manage to get into the swing of marching pridefully which in on itself was odd as they had rarely done it before. Along the way the two patriots of Mistrise Landing's dwindling supply with the financial aid of the King buy weaponry and armour from the various local shops and even a large amount of rope with the King's last resort in mind being to tear down the temple if the small gang could not capture it. Although the gang march on with an ambitious goal in mind to conquer the temple and offer it as a present to Mistrise Landing, perhaps that would turn a few heads in the larger Tomarith Empire... The Executioners of the Exhaled was what Henry had in mind for him and his compatriots. The small gang edged closer and closer to the coastline in their proud march with multiple onlookers and even a few people cheering... I wonder if the beach combing quartet are going to aid the king in his combat against Coventina or whoever the Goddess be.


((Would it be alright if the two townsfolk just stand guard or just pull down a few rocks, pillars and broken walls to make a nice clearing instead of dying in combat?))
 
Once the blue haired girl was on the ground, she immediately scrambled backwards, her heart pounding in her chest as she tried to breathe and regain control of the situation. She looked down at herself. She seemed to be fine, her clothes were still intact (aside from the bloodstained tear on her dress from earlier), and there didn't seem to be any new injuries that she could feel or see. Only...her scythe was not nearby, and she was still missing the gauntlet that normally covered her left hand. Pulling her uncovered hand behind her slightly and using her right hand to cover up her torso where her skin was exposed, the girl blinked a little before looking up, carefully watching the two who had found her as the water in the cavern -- previously moving erratically in response to her panic -- now gathered in a puddle around her on the ground, though it still bubbled and spiked up dangerously around her. The girl kept her head tilted forward, casting a shadow on her eyes so they could not be clearly seen while she inspected the two.


It looked like the enkidu was holding onto her things, as her scythe was slung over the man's back. Having her weapon in the possession of the laughing enkidu only made her more nervous, indicated by the water spiking a little more violently around her. Her face, however, had regained its composure, being perfectly neutral while she processed the situation. The elf, who had been the one holding her, was definitely soaked, but was at least trying to act friendly. And then there was a wolf nearby, which also made the girl nervous. Her dragon blood meant that wolf could easily go into fight or flight around her, and unless it was remarkably well trained, she wanted to try to stay as far away from it as possible. With all of them in the cavern around her, the girl felt trapped, but at least there was no reason for them to think her a hybrid. As long as they didn't get a good look at her eyes, she could just be a dragon to them, nothing more, nothing less.


The situation having finally processed and her having calmed down enough, the nervous girl put on a shy, innocent expression, hunching her shoulders slightly and looking down at her torn dress. The expression was not far off from how she actually felt, though the extent of her nervousness and the fact that she was ready to fight at any moment if need be was not hinted at in this mask of an expression. "Sorry about the water...you did startle me. I ran into some trouble with some sirens," she responded as explanation for her state of being. Crap, dragons don't have healing magic...how do I explain that lack of wound? the girl realized silently, her armored hand clutching her torso just a little tighter. She decided to just simply not explain the lack of wound unless she had to. After all, she could have had a companion with healing powers...or maybe she would feign ignorance? Or, maybe the two just wouldn't even think about the oddity at all. The hybrid hoped for the latter. "My name is Arya," she added on, glancing up at the two men just briefly before looking down again. Hopefully the introduction would help distract from any suspicions they had.


@Silver Wolf
 

Yuvii & Kira
​


 
​




Yuvii took a quick note of the girl's shy attitude. Must have had a rough past no doubt. Yuvii had seen it before and Kira even explained this phenomenon. The people who feel helpless, scared, or maybe even trying to hide something usually refuse to allow people to see their eyes. Kira had likely already noticed this because his expression and body language had changed to somewhat serious. Yuvii put on a kinder smile and lowered himself to her level. Not exactly crouch down, he actually fully sat down with crossed legs. Maybe this would show some form of equal footing without seeming patronizing?


"Sorry about startling you, I didn't expect you to wake up so soon. There was so much blood surrounding you and you were quite pale," Yuvii said as he looked at her shadowed face. He was just going to be as kind as he could, but he did notice the torn dress, and the lack of signs of blood. That just made him a bit more curious, but perhaps it would be polite not to ask.


"Say, how is it that you haven't bled out? If you were with someone they are either the worst traveling partner ever to leave you here if they didn't carry you to safety. Plus...why hide your eyes? I haven't seen many shy people who hide their eyes so actively unless they have an identity they wish to hide," Kira said simply as he walked over and set the girl's weapons beside her. 


"Kira...I advise that you don't push matters like these," Yuvii said calmly.


"Very well Yuvii, I'll take Harlend and leave. You can have a nice little chat with the 'dragon' girl,"  Kira said with sarcasm dripping from his voice. However, Yuvii clearly didn't understand what he was being sarcastic about. However, Kira left without a word while leading the wolf out as well.


"Excuse my companion, he's quite cautious. I wish he wouldn't try to spark up conflict so much. I'll let you know though, I don't care about your lineage right now. All I want to know is if you're alright."


@Rin Nyx
 
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((Ok, so @Silver Wolf, just gonna say, as a shy girl with a cushy past who would be acting the same way as Arya (avoiding eye contact, being shy, etc), definitely not a sign of a 'rough past no doubt' >.>


Anyway! I'm just gonna clarify a little here, since I'm not sure I made this clear in my explanations in the background info and whatnot. Due to the rarity of hybrids, most people wouldn't think 'hybrid' as something someone would be hiding until there was quite a bit of evidence to point them to that conclusion (such as if they actually got a look at Arya's eyes). Your characters might be different with their backgrounds having more interactions with hybrids, but they are still exceedingly rare, and likely wouldn't be the first thought that pops into mind ^^'' Definitely can be suspicious of her hiding something, though, as she was acting rather shady :P ))


Water spiked up in annoyance slightly as the enkidu began talking in an accusatory tone, but not a trace of this appeared in the girl's expression. Instead, Arya seemed to hunch over slightly more, her shoulders shaking slightly as tears began to run down her cheeks. "I...I did have a companion," the girl stated with a shaky voice, her grip on her torn dress tightening slightly. The enkidu had already left with the wolf -- that in itself made her feel less cornered, at least -- but she wasn't about to let any sort of suspicion go on with the elf. Besides, that statement was the truth, she had come to the town with another. "We came down here for the temple, but...I got caught up with the sirens," a look of guilt and a few more tears now, "It was like they were calling just to me...then I got hurt, I was bleeding a lot, but I got away, and Kain, he..." she cut off here, sniffling as she moved her unarmored hand up to her face to wipe off her tears. After a moment, she continued, "This was the safest place nearby, the best place to heal me. I must have passed out, and now..." she paused again as her expression became more anguished and more tears began to flow down her face, "Now he's gone, and I don't know what happened to him," she let out a sob, bringing her legs up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them in a position that made her look very small, and very sad.


The girl had chosen her words very carefully; everything she had just said had been the truth. The words might indicate that Kain had been the one to heal her, but they never actually stated that, and with the rarity of hybrids, there should be no reason that Yuvii wouldn't assume that he was the healer of the two. Sometimes the best lies are the truth, after all...In any case, the very real tears and the sniffling and sobbing tended to make others uncomfortable enough to not dig too far into things. Maybe they would even make the elf uncomfortable enough to leave, so she could explore the temple on her own, though that was likely just wishful thinking on her part. Either way, now that she had her scythe and gauntlet back, she wanted to get to searching the goddess's temple as soon as possible.


((@Radigan Hey, are you planning on having Henry meet up with the group at the cavern soon? I'm waiting for my next monster attack for when he arrives ^^''))
 
Soon the sacking of Mistrise Temple would begin in Henry's mind as the sands began to crunch under the horse, the coast was before the king and his first fight of the century. There was the stable owner, a woman in a kaleidoscopic robe and a few children who watched on from a tired coastline household. The residence itself happens to be a reasonably large building in this world's version of an Elizabethan style, it's windows boarded up like a Victorian house and what could technically be a door if you ignored the planks missing and the remains of last night's barricade lying within. The two minions of dominion following the kingly horseman reach the sand after the horse takes it's first ten steps across the coarse and clumped sands, the tide must have gone out recently.


"I await your return Henry! I have a bottle of a fine beverage we could celebrate with upon your victory!" The stable owner calls out from the balcony, hopeful that the trio or at least one of them will return victorious. "We shall all celebrate at the pub I imagine! Ensure there is enough for the whole town upon our return my friend! I am sanguine we shall return as the conductors of Deicide!" Henry calls out in response before arriving at the cavern's entry, the horse is set and tied to a sturdy pillar and the trio of hopeful goddess gutters walk in to the sight of bloody water and whatever else lurks within. King first then the followers laden with equipment and reasonable tools of murder second and third; William and Dylan were the names of the two able and brave men. These men accompanying the old King Henry Wicker walked towards either their ends or their first proper taste of combat. Time shall be their witness and a force beyond awaits within the temple, to them it is a Goddess in need of deicide... Which is a lot for an old king, a dockworker and a blacksmith to face considering their uniquely poor positions.
 
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