Little Bird

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

((Now that I'm not going (as) crazy))

Kiatiaki

Homestead

Wake Up; Grab A Brush And Put A Little Make-Up

Michele woke a pitch darkness. She ached in parts of her body she had never known could feel pain.

She half-blamed the armored suit for the rough and tumble landing she had made when she jettisoned from the DPV. Skye had mentioned it was fresh in from assembly and programing; the notion that it might have had a few kinks and bugs to work out wasn't entirely out of the question. Excuses. As the return journey from Aralsk returned them to the Homestead, Michele only shifted more of the weight of that mishap onto her own shoulders. She was a newbie; a rookie. She knew there would be a learning curve; it was just a sharper turn than she figured it'd be.

Not without effort, she managed to remove herself from her bed and onto her feet. It was a good first step.

She stretched as best she could and tended to her wounds. While the armor had proven resilient to light firearms, a few lucky shots had caught the spaces where it was left thinner for mobility. There was that, and the fact that she had weathered the jumppack donning gunmen, who had come prepared to deal with a heavier threat than her.

The thought of it shuddered her. She had managed to do them in before they could off her... five... five men in total had been ripped through by Hornet's trigger before the Cavalry arrived. Michele wouldn't soon forget that she had taken lives for the first time... she had jotted it all down as soon as she was back in her room. 'Aralsk. Five. FNP-90,' was stretched into the pages of a small notepad. She'd have that if anyone decided to give her shit for being 'too soft.'

To say the least of all, she had survived, even if she had to chock it down to luck a few times. Evidently, she had taken a rough it at the tail end of the firefight that left her out cold until they were airborne and en route home. The Englishman will never let me live that down, she joked to herself.

Daring to venture, she swung open the door to.het quarters into a significantly brighter corridor, and started towards the dining area with a grumbling stomach.

RATTLECHOMP

~Toni~

"Oh. I see."

That was a lie, of course. A white lie, or more of an untruth. Harmless, yes; dishonest just the same. Sasha's response had left Toni only a little less perplexed, and bounds more intruiged. Maybe Sasha had a gift for using normal weapons against the Rue. Maybe she wouldn't even need a weapon. It was an interesting the thought. Next to that, the gun at her own hip felt like dead weight if angry Rue were all that awaited them on the way. Can't be too careful though. She wondered how well her own way of dispatching Rue would fare when the time came. It worried her to an extent, but that worry was now tempered by knowing that a companion could work off her.

Learning about how others could interact with Rue would be an adventure all its own.

The train jerked forward without much warning as it started down the tracks. Toni stumbled off balance and dropped gracelessly into the nearest seat. Other than the rough take off, the ride felt smooth to begin with. Even the prying sensation of the Rue floating about washed away as the station blurred and faded from the window.

As she settled in, her attention turned once more to Yiya. The woman, almost clairvoyently, proceeded to address the very questions that Toni had begun ruminating on back at the station. The plant, the Trailing Bird, was somehow important to the Rue sustaining themselves. Naturally, then, for Yiya to have killed it where it had been would have done nothing to help her village. Though this raised other questions for Toni, the new ones were less of confusion than of curiosity.

Even absent those answers, the job was clearer than before. They, the Howls, weren't just protecting Yiya from what she couldn't perceive or combat; they were protecting Echoh and, most of all, the Trailing Bird.

It was a conclusion Toni hung on until Yiya began speaking again. This time questions of her own... to know what the Howl's she had recruited could do.

I... I could feel it... if that makes any sense. Toni blushed a bit as she explained. I mean I can see them, but only vaguely,; they're like blurrs or clouds of smoke that are almost shaped like something. But it's the feeling that I get from them. She paused, staring out the window as if she expected to find something amid the glowing fireflies in the tunnel. Not looking away from the window, she continued. "Most of the time it's just a prickle through my skin. Hairs sticking up. Other times it feels more pleasant, like drifting on a cloud... but then... sometimes it feels heavy. Like a burden. L-like something is pressing against me. That's... that's when I'n sure they mean harm.

She turned her head back towards Yiya and the others, pulling a wet sleeve off of her eyes.

The Witches & Warlocks of Tanner 2.0

Caitlin

Out for a Walk

Saturday

The days following the party had dragged by at a snail’s pace for Cait. The morning after had kicked off to an uninspiring start; Carlisle had all but kicked her out of the Coven manor when she tried to talk with him. Since that morning, she had stayed away from the house for some time, spending the week at her parents’ house. It wasn’t much better there either though, as both her mother and father remained generally silent towards her. The fact that she had chosen to spend most of the days lounging around the house hadn’t done her any favors. On the few instances that her parents did in fact speak to her, it was to belabor the fact that she should have been at the Coven resuming her training… as if there were a line of people there waiting to help her with that. 

When she woke up on Saturday, she stared at her phone screen, contemplating any call she could have made. Victor was the first to come to mind. But she knew he had just been through a load of shit. She might have tried to reach out to Aurora… but she didn’t have her number. That left Daniel; he had offered to coach her, though she had been hesitant to reach out or take him up on the offer. Pocketing her phone after fifteen minutes of staring blankly into a dark screen, Cait dressed herself and crept out of the house. It was still early, and her parents were fast asleep, no doubt finding what enjoyment they could in the weekend; they, like other seniors of the Coven, had been running some level of damage control in the wake of the werewolf attack. 

As she closed the front door behind her, Cait wondered if word had reached them that she had, in fact, magic’d her way through a fight with a werewolf… or if all anyone said was that she turned tail and ran for her life. “They probably wouldn’t care, huh, Tig,” she said to a small Maine Coon, Tigris, sitting out on the front step. She rubbed the top of the cat’s head as she hopped down the front step. Not looking back, she strode down the driveway and to the street, wishing she could have gotten her skateboard back. 

The walk, long, and a bit chilly in the morning hours, brought her to the park, where the alluring sound of wheels rolling over concrete drew her to the basketball court. Off-loaded from an old VW Bus sitting at the far end of the court, a makeshift set of ramps and rails set up like a mobile skate park was laid out. Jumping in turn off of a kicker were two faces Cait knew from high school. One, a lanky Latino man with dark, shoulder length hair; the other a young brunette woman. "Yo," Cait called as the pair landed on the flat. "Ricardo! Dez! Getting in a sesh before the ballers come out?"

The pair turned and skated to stop near Cait. "That Mo?" Ricardo asked, popping his board up into his hand.

"Yeah bro." Cait replied with a nod. "It's me."

"I thought you were in Cali," Dez spoke half-snarkily.

"I heard you got fucked up down there," Ric added.

"It got hot down there." Cait replied with a defensive tone. "Had to come back up for a bit. Y'know. Wait for the crew to chill a bit before head out again."

"Bet." Ric's face shifted. "I thought I saw you the other day. You were going to the mansion. What is that place about anyways?"

"No clue man." Cait shrugged. Her insides churned; her surface stayed calm though. "Wasn't me you saw; never been in the place. Probably some fancy social club."

"Right." Ric shrugged too, though he eyed Cait with scrutiny.

"Where's your board at, Mo?" Dez chimed in, breaking an awkward silence.

"Home." Cait said without missing a beat. "Need to do some work on it."

"Well get to it. Ric and I were gonna hit some spots in the city one day. Would be cool if you were there too. It would be like old times."

"That'd be sick." Cait fist-bumped her friends. "I gotta duck out right now though. I'll hit you up later."

~-------~

It was mid-morning as Cait strode back down her driveway. A revolving door of thoughts spun around as she started onto the front walkway.

Magic vs. Skating. That was the debate. To bury herself in the daunting effort of catching up to her peers in the Coven, or to cut loose at the first chance to do what brought her peace of mind. To invest back into the life of being a Witch, or stay her course a skatergirl. The former had been pulling more aggressively since the party. As she was, she was being torn by two paths that demanded full attention.

"I'm guessing you didn't go to the manor."

A voice hummed in Cait's ear as soon as she entered the house. She turned to see her mother sitting cross-legged in an armchair in the living room. Cait began to walk over. But, to her shock, her mother stood up and walked to meet her halfway.

"At least you got out of the house, finally. You were becoming a couch potato."

Cait said nothing.

Not dismayed, her mom continued. "I... I feel that your father and I... and maybe the others as well, were too quick to give up on you."

Cait remained silent.

"The weight we put on our own children to master powers they never asked for. To thrust the burden of an underworld of horrors onto teenagers and young adults. It's crazy, really. And almost none of us were ready for it when we started; even heads of the Council struggled at first. My point is, I understand why you've been running from it all."

"I haven't been--"

"You can't lie about that, Caitlin, dear."

Cait fell silent again.

"Trial by fire." Cait's mom walked to an end table, picking up a large, leather-bound book. "That's always been the policy for Covens world over. And there are some things we just can't run from forever." She held the book out for Cait. "Like what runs in your blood."

"What's this?" Cait asked.

"A gift from your grandfather. My father. Your Papa Lafayette. There's no hurry for you to read it; go at your own pace. But it's the ongoing history of our family, my side of it anyways. I, believe it will have more to do with you than the Cade side right now."

The book dropped into Cait's hands without her even realizing she had reached for it... like it too was pulling her in. "I... um... thanks Mom."

~-------~

The old book sat on Cait's nightstand. Cait sat on her bed, staring the book down as if its pages would jump out at her. She sat like that for close to thirty minutes before she finally broke eye contact.

A whirling storm of inspiration had hit her. She reached for her phone and pulled up Daniel's number.

"Hey dude. Been thinking about it a bit. If you still can, I could use some help with my magic."

[Send]

The text 'whooshed' out. Cait flopped out onto her bed and heaved a heavy sigh.

((OOC: On a time crunch this morning. Will format this thing more later))

Age of Darkness: Despair of the Golden Goddess (LoZ RP)

Orin Ackermore

Orin lead Lanayru through the village. People passed, giving slight waves of greeting as they noticed the Captain; he returned the pleasantries dutifully, while ignoring the whispers of uncertainty that followed as they noticed Lanayru treading in his wake. Strangers from the outside had become a rarity, and each was subject to scrutiny by the locals.

Before long, the pair came to the home of a Cucco keeper, who had opened their home to some of the Hylian Army. The Captain reached to pull the door open when a the familiar tone of a stern voice caught his ear from behind.

He turned hastily, side stepping Lanayru in the process.

"Lady Impa." The officer was noticeably flustered by the sudden appearance of his superior as he offered a salute. "I apologize. I had only just returned from the mountain pass when I was informed of a refugee." He indicated Lanayru standing behind him. [color=0072bc]"The trail up Death Mountain is too dangerous at this time to allow passage. We have injured; but to my knowledge there are no casualties.[color] He hung in silence for a second, glancing inconspicuously back to Lanayru. "Are you able to confirm the well-being of Her Majesty? I've been receiving inquiries."

@Product @Dark Cloud

The Little Hamlet

Right now I just need time and energy to align properly for me.

RATTLECHOMP

After Toni had pointed out the Rue hovering over the train tracks, her new acquaintances set to motion. She stepped back as the first of them moved forward. Sasha was the one to challenge, unholstering a revolver.

"Huh? Toni looked to the revolver held at her hip, and back to the one in Sasha's hand. Could the Rue be hurt by bullets? She wouldn't have thought to even try it. She quickly reached for her piece, but stopped to a freeze frame when Sasha pulled the trigger. The click and sound of an empty chamber cycling echoed around the platform. Though Sasha recoiled against the force of a shot fired, Toni saw no evidence of a round being spent. Yet a sharp, piercing sensation drove through near her left shoulder in the same time that the Rue dissipated. A single tear rushed out from tightly shut eyes; a slow breath, like a patient easing through a needle stick flowed out from her lungs. The pain was gone almost instantly.

Seconds later, heralded by an unnerving, demonic-looking filter of red light, the train of the Darklight Corridor rumbled in and whistled to a halt before them. The door of a empty car opened up where the Rue had been. The train as a whole, intricately decorated with Witch symbols, and primarily coated in black accented by red lighting, seemed foreboding. Were they embarking on an adventure, or being carted to Hell itself?

Maybe both. Toni thought quickly of her brothers until a feeling drew her in the direction of the train car. She side-eyed Yiya quizzically as she started toward the car. If couldn't sense Rue... surely she knew that her escort of Howls were capable of it...

Toni would he the first to enter the train following Echoh and Yiya. Crossing through the sliding door felt heavy, but once inside the weight became feathery; a light sensation, like being brushed by soft hair or fur. At ease, she looked a Yiya, pondering her questions. But her attention would turn more to Sasha as she would enter the train. "Your revolver," she would start. "It's... not normal, is it?"

The Little Hamlet

I daresay I've fallen behind.

RATTLECHOMP

I'm around. Just been whipped from work the past two weeks.

RATTLECHOMP

Ye! Welcome Mae! :D

Anyone feel like dropping a post claim? I can still edit the latest mod post as well to shift or clarify things to be more interesting. 🤔

@Mokley

I'm getting a post worked out at the moment.

I was traveling over the weekend (mini vacation). Flights got a bit hectic though so the bounce back into normal life is a bit staggered.

The Little Hamlet

[quote=@Mae]
Honestly kinda glad to see a BBCode discussion because that stuff has always been pretty esoteric to me in terms of best practices. Also, feel free to replace the header with a prettier different one if you like, so long as the key info is on it.

@scrawls@Theyra I want to give Zrer and Bolo a chance to meet before the little girl [s]attacks[/] borrows a book.

Also kinda curious how the @The Irish Tree@OwO@Dark Cloud Ingrid / Cornelius / Wormwood situation at bridge will pan out.

<Snipped quote by Wayward>

@Waywardhere's a first pass at his skills, anything you want added/removed? Also what kind of hobbies does Rinan have?

Insightful is a mix of mana/ki detection and detecting ignoble magic - wind. He'll be able to detect subtle changes in air currents to detect secret entrances, the mana/ki detection allows him to know of creatures nearby, and he can hear things from further away as the noises are carried to him on the wind.

Graceful Fighting gives him a bonus to fighting when he has freedom of movement.

Probability Trance can only be done once a day and takes time. He will get a strong inclination towards an outcome of a specific actin taken or event that is upcoming.

Missile Rejection is a bit silly so feel free to remove it if you don't like it. Rinan has missile deflection which is pretty fullproof, but in the event he does get hit with a missile or allows himself to be hit, it does less damage. He can flex his body to 'reject' the embedded missiles and send them flying out his body at all angles.

Disengage is kind of like a reduced Misty Step in DND parlance. Rinan takes a few steps back so quickly it looks like he teleports, probably only Goh would see him move. I originally was going to mark it as a combat skill but the idea of Rinan noping out of a conversation this way was pretty fun.

Fear Resistance II
Disease Resistance I
Poison Resistance I
Paralysis Resistance I
Observant
Insightful
Martial Arts
Graceful Fighting
Meditation
Meditation: Probability Trance
Disengage
Flurry of Blows
Missile Deflection
Missile Rejection
Housekeeping
Wayfaring Hills
[/quote]

Abilities look good on my end.