Fantasy Hearts of Beasts

[Escasriet]

A Tale As Old As Time...




Once upon a time in the far away world of Rohir. No one knows how far the lands and oceans stretch. For the people are no match against the horde of monsters that crawl the earth. Barriers, created by Radiant Stones, protect the cities and towns. The Radiant Stones use the primeval power of magic to provide the people with fire, water, and light. These stones provide everything that had made the cities prosper. The people of Rohir completely rely on them for their survival, and they naturally have be the cause of many wars. The greater of Radiant Stones and Radiant Stone supply a country has, the more power and influence they possess.




This was one of the reasons the kingdoms of Dahngrest and Aspio fought for over two centuries. With Dahngrest being the smaller and struggling country. For generations, the young country was constantly battling against its neighbor, Aspio, for Radiant Stones- which would allow to expand its land, resources, and power. During the last war between these two kingdoms, Dahngrest was close to not only be dominated but destroyed by Aspio.... Until a young man of the name of Gensor Windsor took matters in his own hands. Directly disobeying his superior officers of the Dahngrest army, he took a band of a mere forty men to the mountain side instead of joining their comrades in the front lines. Gensor and his men hunted down a pack on monsters and captured them. Before Aspio gained to the upper hand, Gensor ordered his men to release the monsters at Aspio's rear defense- separating their ranks into two groups with mass confusion. The battle was long and bloody, but Dahngrest was finally victorious. With the war won, the people of Dahngrest named Gensor king of their kingdom.




Generations past and the kingdom of Dahngrest had grown and prospered under the rule of the Windsor family and with the protection of the Radiant Stones. The early descendants of Gensor were strong and righteous leaders, much like the man himself, and were the pride of their people. As peace graced the land continued, the Windsor family slowly began to become more selfish and corrupted- straying from Gensor's ideals of a leader. The people began to prayed and hope to have a king like the ones of old, when King Alexander wed a kind and warm hearted woman named Caroline. Since they wed, the king became kinder as well as wiser and was becoming a modern day Gensor. It seemed like the Gods had finally heard and answered the people's prayers. Only for the Gods to take away their short lived joy when King Alexander and Queen Caroline had their four children. Each on was rotted in their own way be it pride, vanity, greedy, and selfishness.




The kind queen that was the light of the kingdom and the living hope of the people. Maybe just maybe the Queen's kindness would be learned by her children like the King did. The Gods once again played another cruel trick. This time the Queen being struck by an illness was the punch line. Healers from every corner of Dahngrest came to the queen's aid, but in the end there was nothing they could do. Queen Caroline's condition only got worse as she grew closer to her last days. The princes, and princesses mourned over the lost of the wife and mother in their own ways. The King tried to fill the empty hole of his heart by throwing balls, buying riches, and other world desired. Throwing away the man and king he was when his beloved Caroline was at his side. Word of the King's changed behave was spread, but also the Winsor children's spoiled, selfish, and unkind ways- even though they had everything their hearts desired.

A Song as old As Rhythm... ​

But then on one winter's night, an old beggar-woman came to the castle and offered the Windsor children a single rose in return for shelter from the bitter cold. Repulsed by her haggard appearance, the children sneered at the gift and turned the old woman away. She warned them not to be deceived by appearances, for beauty is found within. When they dismissed her yet again, the old woman's ugliness melted away to reveal a beautiful Enchantress. The King tried to apologize for his children, but it was too late, for she had seen that there was no love in their hearts. As punishment, she transformed the children into Beasts. Ashamed of their monstrous forms, the Beasts concealed themselves inside their castle. The rose she had offered was truly a strange radiant stone, which would bloom after six years. If they could learn to love another and earn her or his love in return by the time the last petal fell, then the spell would be broken. If not, they would be doomed to remain beasts for all time.




During the first year, King Alexander tried everything he could to try to break the curse on his children. He even ordered as far as having the daughters and sons of nobles dragged to the castle in hopes that at least four of them would love the royals. But all of them screamed and ran from the mere sight of the Beasts. When the anniversary of that winter's night came, the king could not take the emptiness of his heart and his monstrous children any longer. That night, the king took his own life. The Gods took a second life from the Beasts.




As the years passed, Aspio has began to notice the new found broken state of Dahngrest. The clouds of another war from generations of peace are slowly advancing Dahngrest's border. As for the Beasts, they fell into despair and lost all hope.

​

...Just A Little Change

 

[Escasriet]

Rules:

​

Follow the general rules of the site


Respect

Show proper respect to your fellow players and yourself; don't seek out arguments, don't flame or godmod or spam or auto-hit or any of the other just general junk that you KNOW upsets people and has no place in respectable writing.







Communicate

If you have ideas, questions, concerns, or the like then bring them to light. I am more than willing to discuss things with you either one on one or with the group.







Literacy

I expect at a minimum of

four solid post

(roughly 4-7+ sentences per paragraph). I understand that sometimes writer block and limited material to work off of can cause you to write a post less than four paragraphs. Having at least four paragraphs can allow farther insight to your character's actions or thought. Along with helping other RPers make a reply post. As long as you usually post at least four paragraphs, I don't mind the occasion short post. ONLY if it's over two paragraphs.



Activity




Life gets in the way of 24 hour RPing. I'm a college student and working a job, and I'm sure you guys are as busy or busier than I am. So the minimum activity is

once a week

. If we get multiple character posts in a month, once a week, or even multiple posts a week THAT'S GREAT! But I know my work load and I'm holding myself to the same standards as I'm asking you guys. If you can't make a post, please PM me.



Reserve and Submission of Characters

You can reserve characters through a PM or OOC thread. The reserve is good for three days after I reply back. When you complete your character, PM the profile to me.

 

[Escasriet]

Radiant Stones:

Radiant Stones are magical devices developed by an ancient civilization long ago. They process of how to create these objects were lost long ago, but a group of powerful sorcerers can repair and create a newer form of Radiant Stones. These "new age" Radiant Stones are far smaller and less powerful than the originals. The ancient objects were used for barriers and other large scale needs. The "new age" ones are more for personal and small community use (like purify water in a fountain, light streets, etc). All Radiant Stones utilize the primeval power of raw magic to provide the people with the basics of fire, water, light, and most importantly, protection against monsters. These objects achieve their functions by converting raw magic into energy by way of a formula. They are marked by crests that indicate their attributes. If a Radiant Stone breaks, it loses its ability to absorb raw magic, causing it to malfunction.




Barriers:








These are Radiant Stones with a large body that produces vast blue and white rings for the purpose of covering the perimeter of a town or city, preventing monster from entering. These object only protect the major towns and cities. Roads, fields, and small towns are not protected by a barrier. If it ever fails to function, the area immediately becomes susceptible to monsters. These might protect citizens from monsters, but it does not protect from attacks from other people or countries.










Ceres Stones

:








These uncommon types of 'personal' Radiant Stones are small that commonly crafted into bracelets and necklaces to be worn as accessories by a person. They are sometimes embedded into equipment such as swords or shields, and used to amplify the wearer's abilities for increased strength. Most people that get a hold of these are in the military, passed down in a family, or were stolen. Raw magic is still converted into energy, but that energy is used to power up an ability or object. A person can gain increased strength or other physical enhancement. In some cases, they can grant their user a "magically" ability such as telekinesis or invisibility. If someone is granted an ability, they only have it if they are wearing their ceres stone and can only be used for a brief time or have limitations.



Raw Magic and Magic Users:

In the world of Rohir, raw magic is everywhere like air itself. Small amounts of raw magic does not harm anything, large amounts of raw magic is a different story. Raw magic effects all forms of life differently, in some causes mutations or overgrowth occur. In humans, large amounts of raw magic can cause illness and even death if they are expose to it for too long. Magic Users are people that are able to use raw magic, with assistance of a Radiant Stone to covert the raw magic into energy they can use, and use spells. Every magic user has their own specialties in magic, but every field takes years and even decades of training to master.

 

[Escasriet]

Esmeralda Windsor

​

Scraping sounds lightly echoed down the empty halls as Esmeralda journeyed through them. After her transformation, her talons scraping against the stone floors had become as familiar to as her own heartbeat. Unlike some of her siblings, it didn't take long for her to reclaim her pride as a royal and a warrior- walking with her half-vulture head high with pride. If there was any annoyance with her new appearance they would be her new hands and wings. It took months for her to get used of her wings and training herself of how to use them. It took longer for Esmeralda to control the acid pores on her hand palms. At the beginning, she corroded countless swords and other weapons. Not to mention mountains of furniture, silver ware, and many other objects were ruined due to her acid.


As for all of the spineless maggots that crawl through the halls of the castle, the peasant staff all avoided the Windsor siblings if they could. If they had to pick which Windsor to serve, she would be near the both of the four. It was likely due to how she handled servants, knights, and other castle staff after the former king died. Nearly all did not wish to take orders of former shadows of the royal family. Some refused to kneel before their betters. Even if they were beasts inside and out, those peasants were still maggots under their feet and they were reminded of that fact. How did she 'remind' them that they were there to serve?


By hangings, torment til death, death by a squad equipment with flaming arrows, and other means of mass execution. Each of the pathetic peasants, from the 'noble' knights to the lowest dish washer, took an oath to serve the Windsor family. By abandoning their duties they were then breaking their oath to the royal family. An grave insult that doesn't go without consequences, not under Esmeralda's watch. Death seemed to be the only suitable punishment for their betrayal. The executions also served another purpose, the fools' deaths were the perfect example for the rest of the mutt-like peasants. The executions were the prefect example to teaching tool, bite the hand that fed you and you'll die a mutt's death.


A young servant cautiously approached her and was shivering under the princess's harsh glare. He stuttered and mumbled that it was nearly time for her meeting with the generals. After he delivered his message, he dashed off like a rabbit in the presence of a mountain lion. Ah, it never fails to lighten her day when seeing those beneath her knowing their place. It has been a while since the last set of executions, but it finally seemed the message came across to those mutts. She was a bit surprised that Alistair didn't try to step in. Then again, he has been busy trying to keep this kingdom together. It was almost an eventful when she actually did see her brother. Though as long as he does his part, she honestly couldn't care less.


Taking another turn down the hallway, a wave of nostalgia hit her. This particular hallway was close to her late father's and mother's chambers and was the late Queen's main showcase to show off her paintings. As she walked, the harpy princess glanced at once were beautiful pieces of art, but now were covered in dust and mildew..... The servants were growing lazy again. Perhaps she was wrong about the lack of need for an executions. Glancing back at the paintings, she struggled to find any meaning to it. Esmeralda never really understood the concept of painting wavy lines to make nothing. Where she lacks the passion for artwork, her deceased mother cherished it. She had many memories of her mother doing nothing worth while, painting some flower that she saw in the garden where she could merely pluck the plant. It was pointless and waste of effort. It was one of the many... differences that her and the late queen had.


The scraping sounds of her footsteps ceased when she came to her destination- the War Room. Today was yet another day filled with war meetings. Something that she could take more pleasure in if her Generals WEREN"T tied to their wives' apron strings. It would be so much simpler if they would just agreed to her views and plans instead of worrying about the citizens and other 'innocents' being caught in the cross fire. Her taloned hand wrapped around the door handle and pushed open the door to reveal the generals standing in their spots around a table that had a minuter structure of the kingdom. "Let's get this meeting under way."

 

[The Succubi Queen]

Demara NyxisAnother day, another purse of gold coins she was short.


This small Village a day's journey from the port of Dahngrest was as busy as ever, and the caravan was making good money- but it was nowhere near what they had planned. The summer's were usually the best time for Demara and the Nyx Caravan, but across the land there was this mood of gloom, and even Demara's most impressive dances couldn't seem to cut through it. As the little munchkin behind her banged her tambourine, and Demara belted out the power note in her latest song, she could feel the break in the audiences attention span. With ever pulsing step or spin she took, there were whispers, and when her tambourine player held out the small box they were collecting coin in, the villagers seemed to clutch their purses tighter than ever.


The golden coins in the box were enough for tonight's meal, but there wasn't enough to contribute to the caravan's latest community fund- and it seemed the trend was the same across the group. The Sailboat Commision fund remained as small as ever. Seemed that between threats of war and already rampant prejudice, the Armani were stuck with scraps. Demara counted out the coins. For the past year or so, Emile had played the tambourine for her show for a quarter of her profits. Today, She handed him about a third of the money in the box. "Alright, little drummer boy- back to your mother. If you have any money left after you pay for dinner, make sure to go to the apothecary- Kyla's cough is getting worse, and she ought to get medicine sooner than later."


The boy pocketed the gold, gave her a clumsy salute (as he did every afternoon), and dashed off. The little boy was one of her favourites among the caravan's children. He was half Armani, like her, and people said his quiet nature came from his Danghrestian blood. But in his silent observance, she saw the true magic of their people- it was hard to put into words, but Emile had it. People used to say she had it too, back when her mother was alive. Nowadays, she wasn't sure- but nowadays, they had bigger things to worry about.


The caravan was already packing up to move out in a mere few hours, towards the ultimate goal of their current migration- the Capital. There, the Nyx Caravan would stay, until they made enough money to afford a boat to take them across the ocean- away from this horrid mood of war.


She could already spot the castle on the horizon as she packed- this village wasn't too far from it all. There was something she had heard in the whispers of the crowd- now that the king was dead, there didn't seem to be a new monarch- the crown Prince, Alistair, had yet to take the throne. He and his siblings hadn't even been seen in years. There were rumors that, when the queen had died, the king had killed his own children in grief, and that the running of the kingdom had been dictated by a lunatic for the past many years. Demara put not stock into such stupid ghost stories, but Dahngrest needed a ruler- and no one seemed to be taking the spot. With Aspio broiling for war, prospects did not look good.


But Demara wasn't sure this was the best course of action- just leaving? There had to be something that could be done. If she wasn't more than a half-Aspion Armani, she'd have half a mind to march into the castle and sort it out herself.


Too bad she was merely a half-Aspion Armani.

 

[Idea]

(Omniscient POV: )


Sara took steps toward the castle, followed by Eldric and John. It had to be close, she was certain. The monster had just returned from it's last hunt, taken his fare share of lives. The three of them knew it better than most, as this last attack had been against their village.


They found many rumors to be truer than one might think, in their chase: many villages had been turned to rumble, ashes, swamps... Destruction was evident everywhere on the way. And was it not for their skills as former bounty hunters, they would have long since perished to the corrupted bears and undead ghouls for sure.

Spoiler

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The monster's taste in architecture, it seemed, was just as terrifyingly unrefined and unsettling as anything else. A distinct scent of rotting flesh gave an aura of dread to the ruined wall that surrounded the castle, as if the corpses that were spread all over it like broken dolls were not enough. Men were impaled in the spikes of the castle they once defended, guts and brains were splattered over the misplaced bricks, amazing amongst the mud and the bugs and what seemed like that octopus thing after Sara puked it over a longer run in Ken's. Even the sheer from gate was missing the actual steel gate, probably from the monster running it down, and instead had perturberances rounding over it like bath bubbles from soap and some tooth and tentacle-shaped spikes. There was some credit to go be the architects of this place, though, as it was pretty realistic. Sara wondered what kind of man had even ordered the construction and if that man ever once had a nightmare of the profane use the castle would one day have.


Sara gestured the rest of the crew to follow her lead as she ventured towards the castle, passing beneath the creepy gates and seeing the inside yard, more like a swamp really. It even had rotting trees and an actual lake with crickets and toads wobbling around. John actually moved ahead of her after her brief pause, quite possibly eager to venture into the monster's castle. To him, there was more than revenge at stake, there was glory...and money. Already, there was a bounty on the monster's head, albeit in secret. Sara turned to Eldric, just in time to see the "gate's" eyes open.





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"No!" She shouted, trying to run to his rescue, but she tripped, too late. There was a scream as several tons of "gate" crushed Sara's foot and Eldric alike, like ants. She, in turn, screamed as well, stabbing into the gates with her sword. It was surprisingly mushy, like meat after light chewing, ad it flinched as any animal getting poked with a stick on the nose. Eventually, it let go, and Sara turned away from, her leg numbed from the sheer terror that overwhelmed even the pain of her missing foot, and her gaze layed now on John, who was shaking next to the lake. Sara's eyes widened again.


"Get away!" John turned, finding himself surrounded by the toad's tendrils, before getting swallowed whole and the road himself swolle like a snake after eating an egg basket. She even got to see John fighting inside the toad for a few moments, struggling, until the movements cease along with his shouts... What kind of monster could do this?





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(Anduin's POV: )


Crunchy. Tasty. Unsatting.


Those were the thoughts I had as I chomped down the raw meat, pushing it into my mouth with both hands, the red flowing down the palms of my hands and my chin, and between the fingers. I swallowed and tossed aside the clothes and the mining pick. My stomach rumbled still,albeit lower, making me hit my fist against the wall. Not enough yet? Would this never cease to torment me?


I heard screams outside, and found myself unable to control my blood-red grin. So, there was more meal left. It was no fun if I just let my pets have everything. I was hungry too!


I sprinted down the castle halls on all four, though I could still pass through anyway. Still, I had broken up quite a few pathways to the dining hall and the ballroom, which held enough space for me to try sleeping, often a failure. At last, though, I arrived to the yard, where I saw a woman crying. Her foot was gone already , probably eaten away by the gates given their unusual grin and the frog had most likely eaten one of her companions, assuming by how he had grown over the last hour. The woman looked up, eyes widened shaking her head.


"No, no, no, no..." She begged as my hand descended upon her, grabbing her, throwing her in the air. I opened my mouth and missed. The woman fell right to the ground, there was a large cracking sound... She was dead. A shame. But food was a food. I just picked her up and shoved her in...