Fantasy [DM RP/Closed] A Heart of Ice

[Venom Adhamm]

Andewyn Roberts


The girl falls to the ground, staring past you and at the body. A short Human girl, with beautiful, long blonde hair steps into the moonlight, taking the sobbing girl's hand. She looks no older than twelve, yet her brown eyes show a higher degree of maturity.


"Go back to bed, Brianna," she says.


"B-b-bu..." the girl says, trying and failing to force words to escape her lips.


"It's going to be okay."


"I-I-I d-don't..."


"You don't want to go back to your old house. I know. Go back to bed. I'll take care of us."


The sobbing girl nods and walks back to bed. You can hear murmurs among the girls in the bed.


"What's happening?"


"Are we going to be okay?"


"Is Mr. Canterbury okay?"


The voices of the girls in bed soon fade from your ears as your attention becomes locked to the blonde girl, who stares at you with eyes that you haven't seen recently. Her eyes are full of anger. She shuts them and looks down, before opening them once more and looking up at you. She picks your sword up off the ground, then slams it into the wooden floorboards. Immediately after, she kneels down and breaks off a sharp piece of wood that resembles a dagger. She throws your sword onto the ground in front of you.


"Get out of here," she orders, tightening her grip on the piece of wood. You can see her hand bleeding a bit as a result of it.


"If I see your face again, I'll kill you."

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Leaf Aarondale 


100/100 Health


100/100 Stamina


Abilities:


Lunge (15 stamina) - Dash forward and stab with your weapon. It closes the gap quickly, but you can still be damaged if you lunge into an enemy's attack. Lunge does more damage when used on an enemy with their back turned to you.


Parry (15 stamina) - Enter a defensive state for one turn. Damage taken during this turn will be lessened. On the next turn, release an attack that does more damage based on how much you took while in the defensive state.


Precision Slash (20 stamina) - Strike at an enemy's artery, dealing damage and causing them to bleed for two turns.


There was a notice board, and a notice was on that board. Offered money in exchange for the head of a beast. With your pockets empty, you pulled the notice off the board, met with the woman who posted it, then set on your way. Her husband, a merchant, went missing several days ago. His body was found yesterday, brought to the wife today. It was riddled with claw marks and lipstick. It's believed by authorities that he was killed by a wild animal who smelled the scent of sex, or that he was killed by a wild animal who smelled the scent of someone doing very strange things to their body with lipstick.


Whatever happened, you managed to find the spot where the merchant's body was found. Some place in the middle of the woods next to Harpytown, so called because the person who made the sign had poor handwriting and couldn't write the letter "p" consistently and properly. You push past the brush into the clearing of the woods and find a stain of dried blood on the ground. Upon closer inspection of the ground, you can see a very, very faint trail of blood that leads away from the stain.


Quest Started: This Tangle of Thorns


-You've managed to find a lead that the authorities either didn't notice, or didn't want to notice because they get paid no matter what. For you though, following this trail could be what puts some weight into your currently light pockets.

 

[Koyne]

"You have to understand, i've never dealt with-" blinking a couple of times in succession, it took me a moment to have the reward, the Eldrin just put out there sink in. My jaw dropped, eyes widened and brows rose. I think it was obvious that i was starting to reconsider my decline. Shaking my head, i regained my composure and proceeded with eyeing the male suspiciously. There's no way anyone would pay THAT amount of credits for a bounty hunter... I mean, from what this guy's telling me, assuming that he isn't just crazy.... this definitely doesn't seem like something i've ever been confronted with before. But it couldn't be so challenging that a payment of one MILLION credts would be just... I guess i'm going to have to see for myself. once my inner dialogue was finished, i sighed. "I mean, i can atleast take a look around your house." I decided.


@Venom Adhamm

 

[MisfitGhoul]

I stare at the girl now, and I know I want to speak but words do not form. I hesitate a moment, then retrieve my sword and stand. Finally, I can speak.


"Take care of them well," is all I manage out. I wouldn't be able to convince them to come back with me, not only was it dangerous but... they seemed to be tied to this place. I let out a quiet sigh and take a foot of Mr. Canterbury; cringing ever so lightly, I start for the door, the dead man in tow. I had to prove to the man I had killed him, and I didn't want to do this in front of all these girls. Spare them of the horrifying side of my job, they've seen enough. Sword in my right hand and foot in the other, it felt like a nightmare. This job... it gets more and more gruesome with each new task... each new target.

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Hainer Falkenrath 


"Oh, good! My house is nearby, I made sure to buy a house next to a bar to limit the amount of time I have to be outdoors," the man explains to you, before standing up and walking with you to his house, which is a very short walk away. Upon reaching his house, you notice a peculiarity. His house is just a small metal shack.


"My house actually isn't this small. This shack is just to hide the elevator that takes you underground to the actual house," he says, nudging you into the shack and slamming a small button on the wall of the shack. Immediately, the ground below starts to sink and bring you down. The man waves at you from outside the shack.


"I don't want to go in! The ghost spooks me!" he shouts to you


Soon, you arrive at the main portion of the house. It looks very nice. A cool, modern style with lots of whites and black. Seems like a nice place. By the looks of it, you're in the living room, which is complete with a television, a couch, and a coffee table. On top of the coffee table is a notepad with the cover page facing up, which reads "A Full List of My Insecurities." Upon closer inspection of the house, everything seems a bit off. There's an air of something dreadful in the house. Upon looking up at the ceiling, you notice it. There's a noose hanging above the coffee table which looks like it hasn't been used yet, and a bottle of pills below the coffee table.


You're shaken from your thoughts on these objects by the sound of something rattling around in what seems to be the bedroom.


Quest Started: Coping


Upon informing a man you were willing to look around his house for a ghost, he proceeded to shove you into an elevator which brought you down to his house, alone. You could, of course, just go back to the elevator and head back up, but you'd be missing out on a large payday.



Andewyn Roberts 


You take hold of the corpse and drag it out with you. You hear the door slam loudly behind you. You now stand outside, the moonlight shining down upon both you and your sin. Nothing left to do but take this body back to your client, though it might be a bit difficult to drag a body around. In the past, whenever you turned your bounties in, you usually just cut a finger off, and your client would take it in to get scanned to see who it was that you killed if they happened to know exactly who your target was meant to be. Of course, you could really take whatever body part you wanted to for this job, since your client wasn't sure who exactly they needed you to kill. You can hear the sound of girls being woken up, and then crying immediately afterwards.

 

[Koyne]

My expression changed into a slight frown as both the noose and pills came into view. The way the Eldrin spoke about his anxiety and insecurity before didn't really give me the impression to be as serious as he made it out to be... but after seeing this, i knew that he really did have issues.  Then, as a sudden rattling came echoing from what i guessed to be bedroom, my attention was back at its peak. I turned towards said room's door and slowly approached, drawing my blade in the process  A sharp metallic shiiing! was sound off as the sword left its sheet. Once arrived, i carefully laid my right hand onto the door's handle, since the left one was busy holding a weapon. At this point, the bone-shaking dread i've felt moments ago was easily overpowered by a mixture of uncertainty and nervousness, which was pressing down on my chest. Taking a couple of breathes to calm myself, my eyes glanced towards the elevator for a moment, though soon moving back to the door. "I guess that's it..." At that thought, a certain sternness filled my expression and i slammed the doorhandle down, storming into the bedroom in one swift motion. 


@Venom Adhamm

 

[MisfitGhoul]

I move towards the surrounding woods to cut off two fingers from the deceased man and stow them away. Then, with a straight face, I begin hiding his body somewhere difficult to find. I really hope those girls don't find his body out here... And I do hope they return home. What else am I supposed to do... leave it there to horrify children? That's cruel. Sure, I kill people for a living, but I still have a heart and feelings.... and sympathy. Right? I finish hiding it and start off towards home again. Home. I hope I can get home soon and greet my parents again, it's been so long.

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Hainer Falkenrath 


Upon barging into the bedroom, you see a beautiful girl on the bed, with long brown hair and light skin. She's wearing a pale white dress that seems otherworldly.


"John?" she asks, before looking over at you, "Oh, you're not him."


She sighs and stands up.


"He sent you here, didn't he? He's scared of me, the poor thing. I've been watching over him all his life, and he's been feeling very down lately, so I came to this world to try to soothe him. He didn't react the way I thought he would. I haven't even had a chance to really talk to him," she says with a frown.


Her form seems to shift lightly, as though she were fizzling between this world and another.


"Oh... my time's almost gone... I won't be able to come back here when my time's up so... do you think you could help me? John really is suffering, he's been doing nothing but contemplating suicide for the past month. I came here to try to help him relax and leave this world without any regrets or pain... so that he'll be able to be with me in the afterlife. I really do think I could make him happy, but not while he's still alive in this world."


Andewyn Roberts 


You slice two fingers off of your dead target, then tuck them away. Soon after, you drag the body out into the woods and hide it among the trees and brush. The body will soon become food to the worms and scavenging birds. One bird has already landed on top of the body and begun to peck at it. You turn away and head back to the town of Sharen. You could head straight to the house of your client and get your payment so you won't have to keep those fingers on you for very long, or you could just head home and sleep.

 

[MisfitGhoul]

I decide to hand over the fingers first, as I'd rather not keep them on my person. I make my way towards Sharen, hoping to keep track of where I'm going by using landmarks. I bring my blade up as I walk and examine it; worn out, a few nicks, scratches, and a mix of dried and fresh blood. I really ought to clean this thing soon... maybe I will once I reach the town and get my reward. I try to keep my footsteps quiet, it was the forest after all. Creatures lurked everywhere, humanoid or animal, it didn't matter, they were all potentially dangerous. I lower the longsword again and face forward, although the occasional glance or scouting around was made.

 

[Koyne]

While the whole reason for me to be here was to get rid of a ghost, i was still taken aback by the sight of the real thing nontheless. The young woman before me definitely had a 'ghostly' feeling to her, even though her overall appearance  didn't really make her seem like anything other than a normal girl. Well, aside from the dress and the flickering. Since the female turned out to be not much of a threat, i lowered my sword and just generally loosened up a little as the young woman spoke. Apparently, my client's name was John. John wasn't feeling very well lately and was thinking about committing suicide. That wasn't anything new to me. The girl also told me how she believed in her capability to make him happy... though she couldn't do so while he was still in this world. She also asked me to help her with him. This is where i started to slightly raise an eyebrow. I eyed her ghostly form for a short moment, before finally speaking up. "First of all, sorry for uh... barging in like that. My name's Hainer and i'm a bounty hunter, amongst other things. To answer your question, yes, John did ask me to take care of this... matter." I said, looking the female ghost into her eyes. I paused for a moment in order to find the right words, but then continued. "Now, about helping you... What kind of help are you thinking of exactly?"


@Venom Adhamm

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Andewyn Roberts 


You arrive at the town of Sharen, then make your way to the home of your client. It's a fairly large, three-story place with white walls and probably a pool somewhere. You ring the doorbell and eventually a blond-haired and brown-eyed man in his forties steps out in his pajamas. He takes the two fingers from you, and hands you two hundred credits in return.


"Thank you," he says, "Did you... did you happen to find my daughter? Was she there? She looks like me... blond hair, brown eyes... She's only ten years old..."


Hainer Falkenrath 


"I just want you to let John know that I don't want to hurt him. Every time I try to talk to him, he shouts something about needing to leave to go 'perform some extensive research on the behavior of wasps.' And then he goes to the bar. There must be lots of wasps in the bar. It's good he has a hobby, but I'd really like him to just sit and talk with me so I can make him happy. Do you think you could bring him down here so I could finally get to talk to him? I can't reward you in any way because I can't hold things to give to you."

 

[Tom-Pen]

I walk through the trees with a slow but steady step, keeping my curious eyes on the lookout for the place of the attack.  I'm confident I can find the place easily enough, having been given directions by the merchants wife.  The forest, however, is a vast and mysterious place, and full of countless twists and turns I have yet to learn.  My walk grows longer and longer, and my feet more and more sore.   Nonetheless, I do find the place.   A stain of blood on the grass, nothing more nothing less (or so it would seem at first glance).  I kneel down to the blood stain, and inspect it closely.  "That's a lot of blood,"  I murmur to myself quietly.


Some of it must have gotten on the creature as well, especially if it used its claws to kill the merchant...


I stand up and step back from the stain, beginning to search around for drops of blood that might have been dripping off the creature as it fled the scene.  While I search I can't help but think of the grisly murder.  Suddenly - my thought gives way- and I have a curious epiphany.


Lipstick... the body was covered in lipstick.  Was the merchant cheating on his wife with some other woman, and if so, what happened to her?  Could the woman he was with - if he was with a woman at all - have torn him to pieces like he was?  Or maybe...


I stop thinking and forget the train of thought as I notice something bellow my feet


There, what is that?


In the grass, leading away from the stain, I  find a faint trail of blood.  I look at it, and ponder over it for moment.


The chance of this bringing me face to face with a murderous monster, of some beastly sort, seems high...


The balance of fear and excitement in me at the thought seems off, whether it's not enough fear, or too much excitement though I can't say.  My heart beats fast, pounding away inside my chest.  I put a nervous hand on the hilt of my sword and begin to follow the blood trail, wherever it may lead (surprisingly eager for what I might find).  The lipstick epiphany forgotten for time being.


@Venom Adhamm

 

[Koyne]

After a short moment of consideration, i sighed. "I guess i can make an exception on my payment, considering you're.. uh... non-corporeal. I'm going to try my best at getting him to come down here." And with that, i turned and headed back towards the elevator. While on my way, i took another general look around the house, only to realize once more how nice it actually was. Definitely nothing i'd be able to afford. I wonder what that guy's occupation is. He lives in a pretty nice place and offered me a million credits for the completion of this job, so it's probably something well-paying. Once i found myself inside the buildings elevator, i pressed the button which would set it in motion and waited.


@Venom Adhamm

 

[MisfitGhoul]

Do I tell him? I contemplate this for a moment. I risk either whatever this guy was "protecting" the girls from or just getting them home safely.  "I did find your daughter, along with the other girls, but they refused to leave the cabin. I can't carry all of them home as one person, and none of them would allow any to leave alone. If you want your daughter, get her back yourself. I've done my job." And they don't want to ever see my face again, I added silently. I flipped the blade in my hand, careful to turn sideways so I don't end up cutting the man in front of me. My other hand pockets the credits I've earned.

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Andewyn Roberts 


The man sighs and shakes his head, as though thinking about some great obstacle he'll have to try to surmount.


"Always a stubborn one, she was. She takes after... her late mother," he says, his mind trapped back in the past for a moment.


"I suppose I'll go and fetch her myself in the morning. She's in a cabin, you said? Where is this cabin? And... was she hurt in any way?"


Hainer Falkenrath 


You soon arrive back at the surface. John is pacing around, seeming very stressed and upset. He stops once he hears the elevator and jerks his head to you, shortly before assaulting you with a barrage of questions.


"Did you see her? Wasn't she spooky? Did you slay it? Did it manage to hurt you? Do you regret not taking the underwear I offered? Did you break anything in there that wasn't a ghost? Do I need to put salt on all my doors? What's the meaning of life? Why am I here? Why are you here? Oh, to kill the ghost. Did you see her? Wasn't she spooky?"



Leaf Aarondale 


You follow the faded trail of blood for some distance. Eventually, you reach a camp of some sort, a rather small one. A meager red tent has been set up, along with a campfire that currently has a stove over it. You can hear the sizzle of meat from a pan set atop the stove. A young Human woman, looking to be around eighteen years old, crawls out of the tent and brushes her long red hair out of the way of her dark eyes. She looks over at you and smiles.


"My, aren't you a handsome one?" she says, biting her lip, "Care to share breakfast with me? You look like you've walked quite a bit."

 

[Tom-Pen]

"Oh, well I uh..." I begin to say, "Thank you, but uh, you see..." My cheeks hastily redden, but I continue to force out what I have to say (albeit in a much less coherent - or heroic - way than I'd like).  "I'm looking for someone.. er something,"  I try hard to explain in more detail, "A monster I mean, a dangerous one; It killed a man with lipstick!"  though I mess the details up a bit.  "Errr, I don't mean the monster had lipstick that is... but the man, the merchant, he had it,"  I gesture a smearing motion around my face and lips, "all over him,"  I stop talking and look back at the young woman (trying hard to look heroic, and serious, though I feel more foolish and boy like than anything else).


"Have you seen or heard anything... uh, monster like?"  I ask. 


Meanwhile, the sizzling sound of hot food cooking on the stove makes my stomach grumble.  I think back to the last meal I had, but can't remember how long ago it was.  


It must've been at least a day ago...  The thought makes my stomach grumble louder.


Maybe a bite wouldn't hurt, she did offer after all.


"We could talk over breakfast, if you prefer,"  I suggest, trying my best to seem indifferent (thinking of other - none food related - reasons to stay and talk for at little while). 


@Venom Adhamm

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Leaf Aarondale 


(sorry that previous post for your part ended up formatted like that. no idea what happened. website probably hates me. not surprising.)


The woman smiles and crawls back into her tent, before coming back out with two plates. She takes a seat in front of the fire and sets one plate down beside her for you.


"My my, that sounds horrible. But I can assure you there are no monsters here," she says, looking over and smiling at you, "Only me."


She turns her head and eyes the food on the pan for a moment, before reaching her hands into the pan and pulling out two pieces of meat, setting one down on your plate, and the other on hers. She didn't even seem to wince at the heat.


She pats the ground next to her as she takes a bite from her food.


"Was this man someone close to you?" she asks.

 

[Tom-Pen]

(No problem, the site is still a bit finicky it seems.  In fact, I don't get notification on the computer when things are posted on this thread - even though I'm following it - so if you could tag me in posts that'd be great!)


I eagerly start toward the plate set beside her (I assume it's for me), but stop short as she takes the sizzling hot meat from the pan bare handed (with not so much as a wince).  She gestures for me to sit beside her, and I go, but slowly - a bit confused.


"Uhm..." I start to say something but trail off.


Strange, that didn't seem to hurt her at all... I guess the food isn't that hot... it sure did look hot though.


"Sorry," I apologize, shaking my head, "I didn't know him at all, truthfully."  I sit beside the woman and look at the meat, smiling, remembering just how hungry I am.  With no fork in site, and my stomach grumbling away, I waste no time and happily grab the meat with both hands (thoroughly expecting it to be somewhere between cold and lukewarm).


@Venom Adhamm

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Leaf Aarondale 


(okay. i'll try, but last time i did any tagging, the website deleted my post and then slapped me and called me rude names.)


Immediately upon picking up the meat, it burns your hands and you quickly drop it back onto the plate. Your first impressions of the heat of the food were right.


"Oh dear, is it too hot?" she asks, crawling over on all fours and gently blowing on your food. As she does so, you notice her lips glisten slightly in the sunlight.


"Perhaps you should just give it a moment to cool down," she suggests, looking up at you, "Can I get you anything to drink? I have water, milk, spiders, juice... or I could brew you some tea."


@Francis Stickmin

 

[Tom-Pen]

I'm caught off guard by the woman's - arguably odd - response to my food being hot... really hot.


Way too hot for any normal person to grab with their hands...


"It's okay, I'll... I'll," I struggle.


Is she wearing...


"Liptsick." I say under my breath, looking at her lips.  I slowly slide back from her and stand up.  My mind starts racing.


She's got lipstick on... lipstick, and the blood, the blood lead here... It lead to her.


"You're wearing lipstick," I say curiously, slowly taking a step back.


And has she been crawling on all fours the whole time... like an animal?


"And have you been..?" I start to say - my voice hinting of nervousness - my words trailing off.  I take another step back.


The merchant was torn up, clawed to death...  by an animal-like creature.  I move my hand toward the hilt of my sword, as discreetly as possible.  A bead of sweat starts to form on my forehead, I wipe it away.


"You're..." I stutter, "You're not human, are you?" My hand finds the sword hanging at my side and wraps tightly around its grip.


@Venom Adhamm

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Leaf Aarondale 


The girl smiles as she sits back and looks up at you.


"What's wrong? You don't like non-Humans? Are you afraid of the rest of us? We have feelings too, you know, and they can be hurt just like yours," she informs you, slowly rising from the ground. She looks at you with a smile, then turns her eyes toward your weapon and the hand upon it.


"Do you think murder will solve anything? Oh, my... forgive me, I forgot. It's not murder if your victim isn't Human, is that right?" she asks as she takes a step towards you, a smile still on her face.


"Will you cast the first stone against the woman who offered you communion?"


@Francis Stickmin

 

[Tom-Pen]

The girl smiles as she sits back and looks up at you.


"What's wrong? You don't like non-Humans? Are you afraid of the rest of us? We have feelings too, you know, and they can be hurt just like yours," she informs you, slowly rising from the ground.


"I don't like murderers," I say pointedly


She looks at you with a smile, then turns her eyes toward your weapon and the hand upon it.


"Do you think murder will solve anything? Oh, my... forgive me, I forgot. It's not murder if your victim isn't Human, is that right?" she asks as she takes a step towards you, a smile still on her face.


"I should kill you..."  I say, drawing out my sword.


"Will you cast the first stone against the woman who offered you communion?"


She's a monster, no matter how kind she might have seemed.


"You threw the first stone, when you murdered the merchant!"  I proclaim bitterly, taking a step back as she takes one forward.  I extend the point of my sword toward her, "Why did you kill him?"  I ask a bit sullenly,  "And I swear, if you come any closer I'll run you through,"  I add hastily, my heart beating heavy in my chest.


@Venom Adhamm

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Leaf Aarondale 


"My, my, my. This is no way to treat a lady, is it? Asking all these questions, spitting all that vitriol," she hisses as she steps forward again, as though daring you to try something against her.


"Well I'll tell you what happened. That man threatened me, just as you are doing now. He told me I should meet him every night to pleasure him, to sate the desires that his wife cannot, to make him feel young again. He was a vile man, interested only in this youthful appearance of mine. He told me his secrets, told me of all the young girls he's been with, and how none of them were as sweet and lustful as me. Then, he told me if I refused his wishes, he'd send people to kill me. I wished only to protect myself. And what do you wish for? What do you think you'll get out of this? Money? Fame? A sense of justice from killing a monster?"


She scoffs.


"The only monster that's touched these grounds is now buried under them."


@Francis Stickmin

 

[MisfitGhoul]

"From the looks of it none of them were harmed, but it was also difficult to see as all the lights were out by the time I got there. Its an isolated cabin just East of here. Do tread carefully," I warn. There could be so much danger in that forest that I got around, or even the girls themselves a threat. I take a deep breath. I hope he can get through to her and the other girls, bring them all home safely.

 

[Venom Adhamm]

Andewyn Roberts 


The man nods, utters another "thank you," then shuts the door. It's grown quite dark now, and the moon's light fails to reach you. Though no light finds you, you're still able to see the blood that stains your hands. Your hands have been dirty for years now, and it seems no matter how much you try to wash it away, the blood never leaves. It, along with your sins, clings to you. At least you and your family always have enough to eat. They're probably worried about you right now. Or they're just asleep.