Riven Wight

A Land of Wonder and Nightmare

Elayra snorted at Miles’ complaints about an ‘aching back,’ watching him closely as he readjusted himself with his back once more against the seat, putting himself in an even easier reach.
“We’re all ears.” Dagger still in hand, she finally sat as far back as the cluttered seat allowed. She held the weapon in her lap, an antsy finger tapping against the hilt. She cast a glance to the car door and the rain-streaked window, the patter of it on the glass vying to be heard over Miles’ voice. She took a deep, slow breath, trying to calm the claustrophobia the cluttered car aroused.
“How would I know the place?” she snapped, her voice a bit more clipped and impatient than the situation warranted.
When he reached for his coat, her grip on the dagger shifted and her muscles tensed, ready to act if he pulled out another weapon. She watched him suspiciously. She cast a glance to Ghent, checking for any signal that the items he retrieved were an imminent threat, but he seemed untroubled by them. All the same, she remained ever on edge as Miles gave them their orders.
She stared at him for a short second, her brows furrowed, then realization of why dawned on her. She started to nod, but then looked to Ghent at his question.
“Seriously, Featherhead?” she asked, her voice as condescending as her expression.
She heaved a sigh as Miles explained himself, her attention once more on the man. She glanced to Ghent again at his uncharacteristic silence. The worry in his eyes was far from encouraging.
“I’ve broken into Forsaken-infested stores with alarms and guards I guarantee would make your police run home with their tails between their legs,” she tried to reassure him. “Breaking a window and running will be a piece of eatmay cake.”
Her full attention turned to Miles when, with a small flick of his thumb, a flame sprouted from a small device in his hands. More of this world’s use of science, she presumed. But her awe faded at the stench of the smoke, the smell similar enough to the stale odor clinging to the upholstery for her to recognize it.
She, too coughed as the foul smell filled the car with the white trail snaking from the cigarette’s cherry. Frowning in disgust and fighting back another cough, she placed the sleeve of her free hand over her mouth and nose, breathing through the fabric that still retained some of the earthy scent of Wonderland.
Elayra leaned into the door, more keen on leaving the car than before.
“Great." The fabric of her sleeve slightly muffled her voice. A foot tapped in quickening rhythmic sync with the finger on the dagger. “We’ll meet you there.” She paused, thinking of the dead-end alley housing the portal. “But we’ll have to go around its front. There’s no other way.”
At his demand to leave the gun, she held out her hand toward Ghent to stop him in case he moved to hand the gun over, the dagger’s tip pointing toward the door opposite hers.
“Once we’re out, he’ll leave it on the floor back here.” She looked to Ghent and nodded to the floor at her feet directly behind Miles’ seat as she returned her hand back to her lap. At last, reluctantly, she replaced the dagger in its hidden sheath, reached across Ghent, and grabbed her pack.
Eager to get out, she held her breath, lowered her hand, and frantically fidgeted with the door until she noticed a handle similar to the one on the outside. She pulled it, and the satisfying cla-thunk of the door unlatching made a triumphant twinkle enter her eyes. She pushed it open, and all but lunged out of the car.
Relief of being in the open flooded through her, drowning out the irritation of the torrent of drops splattering over her as if trying to make up for the dry patches that had formed on her clothes.
She quickly stepped away so Ghent could get out, turning so she faced the vehicle as she inhaled the wet air. The rain washed away most of the unfamiliar stenches of the city, leaving a familiar freshness in its wake, a freshness her lungs found most welcomed. The feeling of being trapped slowly ebbed with each breath she took. She slung one strap of her pack over her should, and could not help but gasp through her teeth when it hit her forgotten bruise. Hoping neither Miles nor Ghent had noticed, she turned a glare on the man through his window.
“See you behind Frank’s,” she called, the words a warning demand, before Ghent could close the door.

Of Science and Magic

Heh, I hear you on not being a people person. I'll take my alone time and solitude over socializing any day! And mmm. Cake.

MONSTORY

“Ah,” came Izzy’s laconic response to Riley’s first answer, letting him finish. That makes more sense.
She sighed heavily at his second answer. The sooner Trevor could get out of that house with his so-called family, the better. For everyone.
The man’s last answer was not one she had expected from him, but she nodded in agreement. There was not much else they could do, she supposed, and bringing what Trevor had done while under the influence of the Black Wolf would change little, if anything.
“‘Gray’ seems to be the color of the world ninety percent of the time.” She watched Riley stand, then nodded once. “Speaking of family, though, I should probably get back to mine. I’ve been neglecting them for the past week.” She gave a sheepish smile, then glanced over her shoulder toward the vampire child’s corner.
Looking back to Riley, she gave him a quick farewell nod, then turned and went to where the child sat, unusual helmet and all. She knelt in front of him and bent her head in an attempt at hiding her grin at the sight.
“Thank you for saving me last night,” she began, her expression audible in her voice for a moment before sobering. “I owe you for that. It’s good to know you don’t hate me enough to let me die.” She looked up and gave him a grateful smile, not expecting any kind of answer from him, then got to her feet and left the school.
Though her brothers and parents often drove her insane, at the end of the day, she loved them, and they were truly her family. Izzy would not exchange that for anything. As she pedaled down the road beneath the warmth of the mid-morning sun, she could not help but feel sorry for Trevor and the family he had never gotten the chance to have.

MONSTORY

Home. Trevor was home, which made it impossible for Izzy to check in on him without waking him, or meeting his unsavory guardians if they were home, if not both. When Riley continued, she glanced to the floor, anticipating how he would finish the sentence, but she looked back to him with a puzzled look. Before she could open her mouth to ask, he elaborated.
Izzy nodded in understanding at his explanation.
“You collect aberrations?” she interrupted, her brows furrowing in curiosity. For a moment, she could not help but wonder if she and the vampire child were apart of his ‘collection.’
When he finished speaking, she swallowed and glanced away.
“I’m glad he doesn’t remember any of it,” she began. Wish I could forget what happened, she added silently, draping her hands around her midsection. She bit her lower lip for a short moment, then continued. “But that part of him that wanted the White Wolf to stay is still in there, isn’t it? The part that wanted to hurt people.”
Izzy took a slow breath. He was the last person she would have imagined wanting to inflict suffering on others, but here they were all because he had welcomed the White Wolf with open arms. Trevor was far from the person she had thought he was, from who he appeared to be through the little window peering into the room he wanted everyone to see.
“What am I supposed to do with that?” She finished softly.

Of Science and Magic

Time. It is a callous, fickle thing Thea was sure took pleasure in seeing the people wading through it suffer. Though it was nigh impossible to gauge how long had truly passed, at best, she figured no more than two days could have gone by since she last endured what inevitably lurked beyond the large, double doors of the massive lab. However long it really was, one thing was for sure: they had never brought her back so quickly.
Thea felt sick. She dragged her feet as the guards gripping her pulled her forward. Further down the hall lined with lamps, she could make out the corpse of a burly man discarded against the wall across from the door leading to the lab.
They had not even bothered to fully dispose of their most recent victim yet.
Thea scrunched her eyes shut and grit her teeth for a moment. She would not go back there. She had promised herself that much.
Gaillard jerked her forward, making her groan. “Hurry up!” His voice turned the last word into more of a squeal than a threat.
At last, her opportunity to escape drawing to a close with each passing moment, Gaillard moved his hand from her neck and swiftly slid it down her arm to grip the organic metal, ready to toss her inside the lab.
She let out a shaky exhale and opened her eyes. Her jaw set, and she tried to prepare herself for what she knew her next actions would cause her.
“Sorry, Skunk Breath,” she growled, a tremor sneaking into her voice, “but I’m done.”
Before the guards could fully register her words, Thea planted her feet firmly on the floor, hunched back, and yanked her arms back and down out of their tight grasps.
The unfamiliar guard’s gauntlet dug into the soft skin of her right arm as it pulled free, leaving white lines in their wake that bled where they intersected with her raw wrist. Her left came easily from Gaillard’s grip, the scrape of metal sliding against metal ringing around them. The moment she was free, she balled her left hand into a tight fist as Gaillard, cursing, reached for his sword.
Before he could back off enough to safely draw it, she slammed her fist into his face, the metal bulging slightly with the tensing of the muscles beneath.
No amount of mental preparation could have readied her for the pure, white-hot agony that exploded down her arm on impact. It radiated up to her neck and down her side, making her stomach churn, dark spots speckle her vision, and head pound with a vengeance. It felt like every bone in her arm had shattered. But she knew better. Her scream rang loud and shrill in her ears, echoing down the stone halls as Gaillard was sent sprawling back from the force of her attack, and smacked hard into the wall behind him. He slid to the floor with a clatter of armor against stone, either unconscious or dead, blood gushing from his crushed nose.
Body trembling and vision blurred, it took all her willpower to remain standing, each heavy, groaning breath escaping loudly through her clenched teeth. She turned on the second guard, who had backed away toward the lab door. The hazy sight of him swam in front of her, darkness toying dangerously across the edges of her vision.
With a quick glance to his fallen companion, the guard turned and bolted toward the lab.
Thea knew at least some of her limits. There was no way she could catch the guard, and even if she could, the Sages had likely heard her cry and would be there any moment. Without wasting a second, as soon as he turned his back, Thea ran as fast as her burning legs would carry her in the opposite direction, her right hand clutching her left arm to her side where it hung limply, fingers curled stiffly, claw-like.
Each step sent an angered stab through her side and weary legs. They threatened to give out each time her feet slapped against the rough floor, barely capable of holding her own weight, but dire necessity urged them on. If she was in the open when the guards came after her, that would be it. She could maybe outrun a caffeinated slug. And once the Sages got involved in the search…
The thought made her already queasy stomach threaten to empty itself. She did not want to even imagine what they would do to her if they found her. She needed to find somewhere to hide. And fast.
She turned down the corridor leading to the other cellblock. If she remembered right, there was a door there that did not need magic to open, and the only science necessary was the knowledge of how to turn a handle. As long as it was unlocked, that was.
Angered voices rose down the hall. Voices that made her blood run cold and her heart forget to beat.
“She WHAT?” the orotund, pompous voice of the Sage Scientist reverberated down the halls, the sound enough to make Thea’s knees at last give out.
She fell to the floor, hard. Her vision turned black for a precious second when her landing jarred her body, making the internal flames consume her. She clamped her mouth shut against the scream that tried to make its way out, but fear the Sages would hear and follow the echo to her was enough on its own to keep her suffering in silence.
“FIND HER!” the Sage Scientist roared. Thea was sure his words had carried to every part of the dungeon within a half mile radius.
Breathing heavily, her world spinning in a haze of grays, browns, and the glow of the lamps, she forced herself to her hands and knees. Her stomach lurched, and she swallowed back bile that burned in the back of her throat. She avoided using her left arm, every little twitch reminding her of the cost of her impromptu escape plan. If she could even call it a plan at this point. Part of the metal-like plates encompassing her left leg like a second skin from a couple inches atop her foot to where it extended beneath her nightdress scraped against the stone floor, making her flinch, but the Scientist’s voice carried over it.
“Bring her back. ALIVE!”
“But make it known,” the softer, yet sinister and chilling voice of the Sage Mage reached her. Thea had never been sure whether it was more feminine or masculine. “If anyone so much as scratches her, I’ll see to it personally their fate’s worse than that pathetic fool’s!”
Not sure if the Mage was implying Gaillard or the corpse of the Sages’ last victim, Thea managed to get to her feet. Trembling violently, every muscle and bone in her screaming in agonizing protest, she miraculously made it to the door to the clatter of guards’ feet from off in the distance as they rushed to see what had caused the Sages’ outburst.
The door was a rickety looking thing, its wood partially rotted out in the top corner. And probably the first place the guards would stop to look. But it was better than nothing, and she felt herself fading. She could not hold up much longer.
Holding her breath, she turned the knob and pushed the door open just far enough to slip inside. Once it closed behind her, she leaned against it carefully, momentary testing her weight on it before she slid to the floor with a soft groan, her face twisted in pain. She tried to listen as the footsteps grew nearer, confused voices of the guards running together in a disorientating jumble, but she could not focus on them, the sounds seeming distant in her ears.
She did not have the time to take in her new surroundings before unconsciousness won the fight she waged against it. As the guards passed obliviously by her hiding place, she slipped unwillingly into the familiar dark abyss of pain-induced slumber.

A Land of Wonder and Nightmare

Story of my life, there. xD That happens so often. I'll wake up early, think I could sleep a few minutes more, then it's suddenly hours later. But hey, plenty of people don't get up until around two or so! Graveyard shift worthy people unite!

My gosh, that sounds EXACTLY like a couple of my aunts (and others, honestly, but they're the first family I thought of). They seem to love pulling other people into their fights with them for someone else to blame for their troubles. Yay for insane extended family. I swear, it's like they're ten or something.

Many thanks! Writing is often a sort of way of recharging for me, but we'll see how things go, or what comes up between now and then. Because life likes throwing running chainsaws more than lemons sometimes.

Of Science and Magic

Well, if it's one thrown for you, then happy belated birthday! If it's not for you, happy belated birthday, Random-person-who-will-probably-never-know-I-wished-them-a-happy-birthday! Either way, I hope you had a good time. That's quite a few dogs, there! I had neighbors once who had probably somewhere around six with them at one point in time because family needed someone to watch them.

Northwood Academy

Aww. I hate unfinished stories. But life happens! Thanks for letting me join in this story of Kirah's and yours! I've thoroughly enjoyed roleplaying with you guys over the last... my gosh, two years. If you can, send my best wishes and thanks to our dear GM for all the time and effort she (and you!) has put into this, please?

Thanks for the fun and excitement, all! <3

To Cure a Curse

Rayadell blinked at Calanon in surprise, before shaking her head and walking into the woods as his attention turned to Brogach. Even she had passed through a carnival or two in her travels.
When she returned to their clearing, Calanon mounted the elk as if in answer to her question. She strode toward the odd pair, ever cautious of the animal from years of conditioning. She hesitated a couple feet away, and her gaze shifted from animal to elf.
Despite traveling so closely for so long the previous day, he showed no obvious signs her curse was draining him. Yet.
She took a breath, debating on if even entertaining the idea of traveling via elk a second day in a row was worth the risk it may pose to Calanon. Or even, for all she knew with her little experience around animals, the elk.
But they were waiting, and the mountains calling, the very air around her whispering the promise of fresher mountain breezes. Besides, the sooner they got to their destination, the sooner she may be capable of breaking her curse. Exhaling, she closed the remaining distance between them and mounted the elk behind Calanon. Holding her staff so it would not hinder the animal’s stride, she held onto him with her free hand as the elk darted forward.
Around the gentle rush of the wind tugging at her hair and threatening to reveal her mark to the woods, she focused on the sound of both the elk and Calanon’s breaths, listening for any unexplainable variations. She watched their smallest movements, paying attention to the elk’s speed to be sure it remained consistent. If the curse decided to begin to sap their strength, she would know.
At least, she hoped she would.
As they entered the mountain pass, Rayadell broke from her diligent watch to look up to the peaks of the mountains. The sun made the points look deceptively warm, but the snow drizzled over the mountains a couple miles up like glittering icing shone the truth on the sun’s lies.
Rayadell took a breath and closed her silvery eyes. She had avoided the mountains for so long. Her grip tightened on her staff. Even here, in the narrowest pass of this smaller range, excitement and belonging mixed with regret and disgrace inside her at the reminder the risen earth created.
They entered a grove of pine trees surrounding the narrowing path, their needles adorned with beads of morning dew. No sooner had they passed between their trunks than what felt somewhere between nature’s version of gossip and a warning reverberated through the trees and brushed against her mind.
She inhaled and her eyes snapped open. A few members of the Promixtra—a group of notorious thieves, bandits, and murderers that cared only about skill, not race or gender—prowled these woods.
“Calanon!” Her voice low and urgent in his ear, she moved her hand to his shoulder as they sped through the trees. “There are—”
Before she could pass on the warning, a large ball of rock and fur rolled from the trees onto the path a couple yards ahead of them. Reaching the middle of the trail in the blink of an eye, it unrolled into a stocky man clad in furs and rock-like armor. He blocked their path, a massive, stained battle ax held threateningly in either hand, his stance daring them to try barreling past him.

A Land of Wonder and Nightmare

Ha! It's always somewhere between nine and eleven with my cat. Which for someone who usually crashes between six and seven in the morning... Hope kicking your furry friend out of your room works!

Ugh. Yep, I know somewhat how that can go. Even if you're not directly involved, it can still somehow affect your household, which dominoes into you, one way or the other. Sorry you had to deal with stuff, but I'm glad for you that it's over and done with! Speaking of family, I have one of them in town (it's been quite awesome) the past week, so have been busy, and didn't get the warning out of my potential disappearance (surprise, surprise). Should be capable of getting to work on replies here sometime after Sunday.