Mag Lev

~ Cinders ~

Everything is good on my side however this RP is most definitely dead. I'll likely try it again at some point however it is better to let this iteration die out and fade away.

~ Cinders ~

@Rune_Alchemist

Falista, 33rd
1100

The waves of mottled golden and red leaves stood before the Orisiri, the trees flowing in cold air as she advanced forward. Her encounter with the scouts earlier had not broken her confidence in her skills, driving her onward to rid the Forest of whatever creature they had seen. Whether this beast was a spirit or some unknown monster was as of yet unknown however there stood no reasoning for which she would stop her course. Even as her companion, Kuri, caught up to her she advanced forward. Following the tracks of the scouts from earlier.

Their hastily made exist from the Forest had disturbed much of the moist ground, the hooves of their horses marking the otherwise fresh mud. Even without the mud it would have been easy to track their steps, the brambles and broken branches lying about as the pair advanced onward into the Forest itself. The light dimmed in the undergrowth of the Forest bringing with it a feeling of creeping silence. A silence ruled over the Forest in which no birds chirped, no rustling of deer or squirrel, simply the emptiness of its presence.

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@ZAVAZggg@Dealdric

Falista, 33rd
1130

The pair wound their way through the outskirts of the city, its massive walls looming over them as they continued onward towards its northern side. Eventually the graveyard came into view and its expanse of mottled gray and white stones spreading out across the fields, a lone thatch building standing out in the middle of it. The sound of their footsteps drew the views of a few mourners for recently dead, their tear streaked faces turning to scowls at the trespassers. A lone man approached them from the thatch building, his long black coat marking him as the gravetender. With a single tip of his head he advanced upon the pair, greeting them with a soft smile and stone cold eyes.

”How unusual for outsiders to come to a graveyard for those that live in these lands,” He said as he looked them over, ”I’m just a humble mortician by the name of Timothy Walls, nice to meet you lot. May I ask under what pretense you have come to my graveyard? I do hope you have no intent to disturb my occupants.” Timothy laugh with a hard smile, looking upon the faces of the two before smiling slightly and looking at a mourner. ”After all, the recent plague have taken so many people. I do not wish to bring more pain up on the mourners.”

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@Adalea

The silence around the tent abruptly vanished, the sound of birds and winds flowing back into the small bubble which the world had once been in. Without hesitation, the young rouge took this moment of rushing volume to make her way through the winding labyrinth of tents, fleeing from the secret meeting with haste. Her quick and silent steps guided her out to the road which divided the camp, being brought before a wave of merchants heading into the city one way and her Orisiri companion the other. With no sight of the rest of her party she fled onward, catching up to her companion quickly.

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@BlackSam3091@Aristo@Lucky

Falista, 34th
0900

The cold air flowed through the flowing hills which the group had made their camps between, the fire fluttering in the sudden burst. Above loomed the massive mountains, its shadow cast upon the nearby forests and valleys which ran near. The long days of travel had worn on the Orisiri and Elf, both of which rose later than the other members of the group and groggily gave notice to the two. With a brief bit of conversation and time to eat their rations, the crew packed up their camp and left, heading onwards towards the mines.

Even as they crested the hill they could see the mining town below, its occupants already up and going about their duties with little care for the figures above them. A caravan could be seen loading crates, likely filled with ore, unto their carts as raw ore rolled out of the maw of a large miine at the foot of the mountain. Beyond the village’s outskirts and near to the Eastern edge of the forests stood another grouping of figures, smaller and fewer than the others below. They too had been watching the village yet their attention had turned to the group not long after.

With what could only have been a brief argument, one of the figures hopped on a small horse and rode towards the figures. As it grew closer the band could see more about the small fellow, obviously a dwarf of some age however no less hardened than Stravi himself. The man bore an insignia of a wreathed sword and pick, its golden and black threads shining in the early morning light. Any dwarf would’ve recognized it, the insignia of the most infamous band of dwarven mercenaries, the Inspectors. Under the guise of ‘mine inspections’ they traveled through Ghenna often for whoever paid them, forcing mines and their owners to switch between Clans. Sometimes it was through violence, sometimes with more subtle means.

”What brings ye’ here, oh envoys of th’ Sacred Flame?” The man chuckled and looked over the mottled crew before staring at Stravi. ”Surly ye’ don’t think tha’ yer here to buy some ore? After all, a disgrace upon dwarves don’t belong in the business anymore. To think that ye’ went ahead and joined the Sacred Flame instead of facing out courts, Sir Stravi. As much a coward as yer father, eh?”

~ Cinders ~

@Nightingale43@Torack

Following this previous wave of posts the following two have been removed from this RP due to inactivity. Neither have mentioned a reason as to why a lack of posts. It should be understood that the characters of these two shall remain as NPCs.

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As for those who had yet to post this wave such as Aristo or Serendipity, they are exempt from a mark off this round due to the nature of their situations and the work for their posts.

~ Cinders ~

@ZAVAZggg@Dealdric@Rune_Alchemist

Falista, 33rd
1030

The chaos of the camp had died down long ago, the merchants done with their counts and their guards resting at their posts. The tension, however, was palpable. None could forget the sight of the injured men being dragged into the camp and none could shake the feeling of dread. The tent behind the three parted once more, a shaky hand landing on Einarr’s shoulder as a dreadful looking man shambled out. It had been one of the injured men, his other arm mangled beyond repair and his body now running on sheer adrenaline.

”They didn’t see it,” He said as tears filled his eyes, ”Nobody saw it. The Wargs were just scavengers. It dragged me and Heinar away in the night and we barely escaped. The Wargs smelled our blood and attacked. But IT just watched. It didn’t chase, didn’t try and kill us. It wanted us Alive” The man’s body nearly collapsed as a wave of pain shook through him, his mangled arm soaked with blood. ”No scouting’ll help you. I pray you don’t encounter It.” The man managed to shamble back into the tent before a loud crash was heard inside, the result of him passing out.

Even as the medics cursed from inside at the man, the party could hear the soft muttering of prayers from inside. Blessings of the Old Gods to protect them from this omen.

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@Adalea

Silence, there was naught but silence from the tent even as the scout had entered it. Before where there had been whispering and muffled voices stood now an uncomfortable silence. Even as the roguish woman drew closer, the voices sounded… unnaturally quiet. Eventually, however, she managed to make out the words from within the tent.

”-es Sir, they brought the Order into the Camp. Them dogs ain’t loyal to us or anybody else. Just their foreign Gods. Jorn has chosen his path.” The voice was clearly that of the scout who had wandered off from before, the second of the two who had arrived uninjured. His muffled voice was stiff as if addressing someone much higher than him in rank. Even his shadow on the tent walls reflected his stance.

”Yer’ tellin’ me that Jorn chose his path but all I hear is that we’ve got an opportunity now. Lord Worim told us to make as much profit as possible off this run, to make sure the other Lords who agreed to this don’t get their share. And what a better chance than to just, take the Caravan.” The foreign voice chuckled at his own words and a shadow of a rotund man rose up in the shadows. ”We just gotta get rid of Jorn. Tell them boys out there that Jorn was gonna sell us to the Order, make a riot against him and hang him like the dog he is. All we’s gotta do is wait. Them Order boys’ll meddle if we try it now.”

The Scout’s shadow shuffled inside the tent, his uneasy stance falling away as he moved closer to the tent’s flap and his voice became gradually less muffled. ”We got the perfect timin’ then. They’re gonna go get whatever is in that Forest. Probably’ll die at the same time. Kill two birds with one stone, eh?”

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@Lionhearted@0 Azzy 0

Falista, 33rd
1000

The first to speak up at the pair was, of course, Lord Turin with a toothy smile at the two. ”You say we should trust you simply cause we called for some aid? That we should let you operate on an ill child simply because you say you killed your Father for peace,” Turin paused and turned his smile towards Sarathai, ”And you believe that all our manifests, all our attention on those in the camp outside should be enough to denounce an assassination? That you would surely forsake your Order in order to perform your duty? The Old man laughed at the pair even as the eyes of the courts landed on him, his attention turning back to Lord Erith who took this as his turn to speak.

”My lord, would you trust a man who would forsake his ties to this land to cure your son? Or a woman who admits to killing her own Father, even if she believes it for peace? I would hardly trust either to even clean my shoes. To so clearly denounce the Order you serve, to admit so openly to a murder. How foolish are you two truly,” Erith rested his eyes passively on the two, ”I don’t trust you for these things however to so openly admit to such foolish statements before a court of Lords and the King himself, that requires guts. I say we give you a test.”

Lord Turin glared straight ahead at his rival even as Erith’s smile spread throughout the court. The man who had so openly argued with him earlier had finally trounced him in the game of words. ”My King, I propose that we have them deal with the string of illness plaguing our citizens by First Wharf. You see dear travellers, they grew ill over Summer and should their illness last through this Fall then they shall be dead. To bury the dead in the cold earth when we have this chance to heal them would deem us unworthy to lead. Cure all three hundred of them and we’ll believe you worthy. How does that sound, King Gorim?”

The King stood silent even as he walked back to the head of the table, his eyes distant and a conflict seemingly brewing behind. Even as he sat down and looked back towards the pair, the conflict had not yet left. ”Very well. Do us this duty and you may handle my son. Fail and we’ll wait for the others we had asked for help. I fare you well, adventurers.”

~ Cinders ~

@Adalea@ZAVAZggg@Dealdric@Rune_Alchemist

Falista, 33rd
0930

The merchants paused at the intrusion of the large man, their ‘leader’ taking the initative to interact with him. All attention was directed at the four who had simply walked into their camp, some whispering among themselves and others sneering at the sight of a Orisiri. It wasn’t long, however, before their attention shifted back to their food or dockets as many did their daily check of equipment. The leader of the merchants was a tall and lanky man, hardly fit for any sort of combat but certainly the bookish type who’d do well leading a caravan.

”I would not be able to say for sure whether they are beasts or man however all my men have been spooked by something. On our journey here from Vernthouth, we encountered the corpse of a stag and a few hours later one of our scouts found a warg with an antler from the stag inside of it.” The leader paused and sighed, looking at the group of men in the camps behind him. ”I’m not a superstitious man myself but the men believe it to be an omen, they follow the Old Gods after all. They think we’ll die if we go back through the Forest and think it better to camp here for the rest of the month. But we don’t have the time for that, the nobles who arranged this caravan want us back before the Moot, to sell our wares to all the men and women coming with Hagrir and the other Kings. I sent some men into the Forest yesterday but they haven’t-” Crows rose up from the fields and Forest as three men and four horse came barreling out of the forest, almost as if on cue from the Leader. Though he made no movement until he himself heard the pounding of hooves, the few guards towards the Forest rushed and shouting rose as men ran to the arrivals.

Cries for a medic and bandages arose as one of the men was dragged from his horse, another limping badly as he followed behind. The remaining two, though injured, walked to the Leader and shook their heads. ”We ran into wargs out there in the middle of the night. Whole pack of them. They tore fuckin’ Horim’s arm off before we could beat ‘em back. Hardly made it out,” The man stopped as he noticed the four behind their Leader, a grimace on his face. He spat on the ground at the four and sneered. ”I see. Ya’ bring in the fucks from up in the Sacred Flame bullshit cause ya gotta get back eh? Lord Yimmir riden’ your tail to get his payment? Lookin’ to get that nice plot o’ land for yer misses too? Fucking traitor.” The scout stormed off, heading towards the makeshift infirmary most likely, as the Leader sighed.

”My men don’t like the Order being here. They take it that I’d rather let them die out in the Forest and get home than get as many people as possible back. That is why I need someone to track down whatever is going on in those Forests. I’m willing to pay both you and the Order a heavy sum for your services, even give you a discount on our goods, if you can help us.” The words hung in the air between Einarr and the Leader, the camp’s momentary chaos dying down as work resumed.

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@Lionhearted@0 Azzy 0

Falista, 33rd
0930

As the guards gave way to the two travellers their weapons were stripped and a guard placed ahead of them to guide them along. All around various men and women mulled, going about their daily duties and briefly glancing over at the strange woman who walked through their halls. Some would remember seeing her years ago, though her dress was entirely different now than before. Others simply knew not what to think of her appearance or even the man beside her. It wasn’t long, however, before the guard directed them inside a room and paused.

Around them were gathered eight men sitting at a crescent shaped table, they seemed to be in the midst of an argument and their attention placed fully upon a man at the crux of the table. ”Just because these outsiders have come here doesn’t mean we need to help them. Let them freeze for all I care, the Order doesn’t belong here,” A scraggly looking man shouted across the room, his palm smacking the wood of the table as he gestured towards another across from him. His opponent in the argument was a well dressed man no likely older than forty, though his hair was already as grey as the others.

”Leave them to die and then what Lord Turin? If they die in the Winter will they not send more men here? Will they not think that we chose to let them die? Perhaps they will wage war on us when they come back. Do you think we can survive a war when Vernthouth is in such chaos?” Lord Turin shook his head in response to the man in front of him and sighed, looking heavily at the man at the crux of the table and the noticing the travelers and guard.

”You are right Lord Erith. We can’t just act however. We know not their intentions as of yet, right King Gorim?” The Lord smiled over at the King, his distant stare broken at the mention of his name and his attention turned towards the travellers in his Court. The King rose from his chair and stepped around the table, coming face to face with Tarasynora even as guards flanked him. The Lords at the table flinched and tension seemed to rise as they watched their King.

”She’s a restoration mage, more importantly she’s likely the best restoration mage the Order can give us. If she can help my son then I could care less about your petty squabbling Erith, Turin. We’d have a debt to the Order.” Clamoring rose as the Lords shouted at the King, various words of dissent being thrown at him and even some claiming that they could just as well kill his son. It was until Lord Turin slammed his gavel on the table that silence rang out, the Lords taking their seats once more.

”But sire, this is the same woman who visited our lands many years ago. From what I’ve heard with my contacts in Ioria, she had her own Father killed. Do you surely think you should so easily trust this woman? She could as well have been sent to kill your son instead of help him. The Order so wants our aide that now they are reliant on causing chaos in our own lands!.” Lord Turin stood from his seat and glared at the woman, his eyes seemingly burning as he watched her.

”True, how do you propose we should trust you, Healer?”

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@BlackSam3091@Aristo@Serendipity@Lucky

With the horses prepared and packed with supplies, the four prepare to head off towards the mines. Though the mines are only a days ride north, the travel is hard as the plains give way to rocky outcroppings and harsh hills eventually even that gives way to steep rises as the mountains grow ever closer. As the day wears on the party feels the ever present cold from the mountains as their ascent takes them closer to the foot of the monstrous heights. Camp was made not long before night fall.

Falista 33rd,
2300

Silence, the mountains are surrounding forests were eerily silent as the party slept. There were no sounds of owls or howls of wolves, no crunching of leaves from deer or stags. There was simply the silent howling of the wolves. It was like the world itself had frozen at foot of the mountains and nothing could break it. The air, however, was uneasy as a wave crept through the camp and down to the waiting party.

Georgia and Vélaneah could feel the presence of something creeping into their minds, its magical threads winding its way slowly through their minds and probing deep inside them. The creature remained shrouded and silent even as the uneasy rest of the two continued. It, however, did not find what it was looking for a crept to Nazan and Stravi where it was met with resistance. Nazan’s martial mind acted as a steel wall against the threads, the creature finding no purchase in his mind. Stravi’s mind was similar, however, the creature was more prepared this time and struck through the barrier. It wove its way through the mind of the dwarf and found what it had been looking for, creeping out as silently as it had come.

Falista 34th,
0800

In the middle of the night, the frozen world seemed to burst anew from its bubble. Owls returning and wolves howling. No trace was found of the creature as the four awoke from their sleep, no magical residue left to trace and no sign of movement on the ground. The unease remained, however, in the mind of the three it had probed. An unease of a shadowy being in its depths, looking for something.

~ Cinders ~

Updates will be provided for all who have posted thus far by the end of tomorrow. Any who are with Stravi and Einarr will be updated at the same time even for interactions away from each other. Any who intend to go with Stravi, Einarr, or Tarasynora will have to post by tomorrow or shortly after the update post. This is to make sure there isn't any stragglers in posting for these threads so as to allow consistent progress. Those who don't post by the deadline of 12am CST Thursday will be marked inactive for that week.

All that fancy stuff aside, I'll be working on the system for Travel very soon. This system will detail roughly how long it takes to get somewhere and allow a basis for how much time difference is needed between characters such as those in Stravi's party travelling to the mines. However, I'll also introduce some GM-side mechanics for events that can happen during travel. While this won't have a heavy affect on parties as is, it'll allow for events to happen during travel and be reacted to by the players. The chance of any of them being combat focused is slim, however, at least until we reach later portions of the story.

@Lucky@Serendipity@Lionhearted@0 Azzy 0@Torack@Aristo@Adalea@Nightingale43@ZAVAZggg@BlackSam3091@Dealdric@Rune_Alchemist

~ Cinders ~

Falista, 33rd
0900

The young Captain sighed and moved to the back of the tent, pulling a chair along with him as he moved to the table. ”I wish I could provide you with that information, I really do, but you know about as much as I do. My direct orders have been to establish a foothold here by Haev while our ambassadors reach out to the Kings and Queen. Since I’ve been deployed here I’ve gotten more and more soldiers with every passing month and yet no new orders. We’ve got nearly five hundred men in this camp and another four hundred in one by Vernthouth but we do nothing but idle and hunt.” Vaughn finished his statement by sitting in the chair, pointing at Normundr in the process.

”Right there is the only place I could think of being why we are truly here however only the Commander and his company are up there and I’ve heard of small updates on their progress with talking to King Hagrir. Honestly it feels like being here is useless but I’m not the one who makes the rules,” Vaughn pointed towards the embroidered flame on his tent wall and sighed, ”They are and as far as the Sacred Flame is concerned, we need to be here.” A brief sound of shouting outside the tent took the Captain’s attention and the Lieutenant quickly left to check the source before the commotion halted.

”As for what I want you to do, I’ll leave that up to the majority of you to determine. Stravi, Tarasynora, and Einarr however are required for work I specifically need done. Stravi, I need you to check out the Dwarves causing issues up by the mine north of here. Some fools seem to be messing around with the nobles up there.” The Captain pointed at the map as he finished his statement. ”It is about a day’s ride north of here so stock up before you leave. If you want, take any fool who’ll follow. Keep it small, we don’t want to start a war on accident. As for Tarasynora, the King has sent a missive to us. I understand that you are one of the only Restoration mages we’ve been sent and possibly the best so I’ll send you to handle him. Supposedly his son has been bedridden for weeks.”

Vaughn turned his attention once more to Einarr with a brief nod. ”I understand that Einarr and Georgia are both from this land how Einarr is perhaps the best suited for this task. Those merchants outside our Camp haven’t left in weeks. They are from Vernthouth and we’ve asked their business since their trade is clearly done, the only answer we’ve gotten is ‘Monsters’. I want you to ask around and figure it out. Take any of my hunters you wish to help.” Vaughn quickly seemed to realize something as he abruptly stood from his chair and reached into the desk behind him. He plucked from it a set of packs and slid it across the table to the Arrivals. ”Inside are Emblems that mark you as members of the Order and twenty gold each. You’ll earn more depending on how you perform. If you need any help settling in or finding jobs, ask my men. I’m sure some of them need help or have heard something from the Citizens.”

”Oh, an Lunearo make sure not to get caught if you raise any corpses from the graves here. Weirn is incredibly superstitious about necromancers and certainly don’t like their dead being dug up. The rest of you should try not to kill anybody or steal from them, we don’t want more trouble now do we. Of course, don’t try to run away in the middle of the night either.” With a slight wave and smile Vaughn turned towards the stack of books he had originally brought and sat in the chair, seemingly lost in his work.

@Lucky@Serendipity@Lionhearted@0 Azzy 0@Torack@Aristo@Adalea@Nightingale43@ZAVAZggg@BlackSam3091@Dealdric@Rune_Alchemist

~ Cinders ~

Updated the Places post with information on The Maw, Mire, Ghenna Mountains, Orimmir Mountains, and Aouril Plains. Further work will be done on the Time system but we can expect it to be finished and implemented by the next IC post of mine.

~ Cinders ~

Over the next few nights I'll be working on a Time system and scale to be implemented in the 0th post of the IC. Its primary function will be to balance out any differences in time that arise from having a large number of players and a large number threads to follow with varying lengths. This'll make it easier for me to avoid any situations where one group or person could end up a day ahead of others due to travel or rest.

~ Cinders ~

@Mag Lev

Quick question; what font editor are you using for that header?

I've seen it a few times, but never found where it comes from.

@Dealdric

1001fonts.com

Specifically this one is Beyond Wonderland.

Azzy already answered the question about language as it is one that has been asked before.