SkeankySnack

Realms of Sun & Shadow

Céline

_{Location: Aelios’ Temple}

---

Celine watched as the woman from her vision was sent down a side passage, while a nearly identical version of the same woman approached them. Unlike the distressed and armor-clad woman that she witnessed, this woman was dressed in a priestess’ garb and greeted them both as such, reaching out to receive her companion’s ‘offering’. Hospitality, quickly turned to curiosity as Celine was queried as to her knowledge and recognition of this acolyte’s sibling. Before she had a moment to answer, however, Celine was bombarded with similar emotions to what she experienced outside before the temple. It wasn’t like the rancorous call of a warhorn like before, this was more like a general distressed cry directly emanating from the woman before her. The feelings were intoxicating, desirable, yet nauseating as Celine resisted their call, unwilling to fully imbibe upon such a veritable wellspring.

Physically her ears drooped and her balance swayed as she caught her head in one hand and the edge of a pew in her other, allowing her body weight to guide and prop itself upon the wooden surface. Mentally, pieces were suddenly falling together, the identical appearances, the familial heritage, and the similar emotional trauma resurfacing pieces of the vision she experienced moments before. Had Celine not bore witness to both the priestess and the soldier, she would have easily mistaken this blightborn woman to have been the woman in her vision. Her new revelation, however, far exceeded the initial dread she felt, for she had experienced the death of the woman before her; and her sister had to watch. Celine rubbed her head, fighting back against both the nausea of emotions she felt and somehow the invasion of the thoughts behind the emotions in her head. Deep breath, count to three, exhale, count to three. After a few moments she had regained enough composure to wipe the sweat that had formed on her brow and a few stray tears that both belonged and didn’t belong to her.

“I’m sorry,” she straightened herself up and looked down at the young woman before her, and offered a weak smile and a small bow of her head, “Forgive me for not answering right away, I felt a bit…overwhelmed for a moment and needed to compose myself,” she raised her head up, “Thank you for receiving us Priestess Ranni, my name is Dr. Celine Moreau and this is my companion Ivor,” she gestured towards the large, fur clad man, who opted to present his fish to the priestess. Celine’s eyes wandered towards the side hallway where the other woman had gone, if she remembered correctly Tingara’s room was down that way along with other spare rooms, one of which she had occupied. The glasslike spheres returned their gaze back to the priestess, “I don’t know if I can really explain how I saw your sister, any better than how I can explain why it feels like you’re inside of my head. All I can say is, ever since I changed, I can feel what other people feel and, maybe your emotions are strong enough that…I could see your sister through your eyes,” her gaze shifted, unable to admit that it was when Ranni died that she had seen her sister. Whether or not the priestess believed her or not didn’t really matter, it was already hard to have rationalized it herself when she first succumbed to the first few ‘visions’.

Celine attempted to deflect, proffering a sheepish smile, “I know that probably sounds…insane to hear.” Before a response could be uttered though, Celine’s ears perked up at the sound of yelling and smashing wood, her head whipping to the left as streaks of light flooded from the hallway beyond, “What in the blazes?”

_{mentions Tia@c3p-0h; speaking with: Ranni@Queen Arya}

---

Ivor, The Wild

_{Location: Aelios’ Temple}

---

For the most part Ivor had kept quiet per the doctor’s request, after all he didn’t want to accidentally offend the goddesses and have the quiet town of Dawnhaven fall into chaos. Still some things gave him pause, such as the two completely identically, yet differently dressed women and Celine’s relationship to them. It didn’t help when Celine didn’t answer right away and nearly toppled over. While fortunate she was able to catch herself, it didn’t help but give him stress as he decided between whether or not he should drop his offering to help Celine, or if it would even be accepted after being dropped regardless of circumstance. Fortunately the stress was short lived as Celine eventually snapped out of her stupor and introduced the two of them. Now having his name dropped he felt comfortable enough to present his offering to the priestess before him.

“Greetings, friend! I am Ivor, bless you!” Ivor made a gesture akin to one sneezing in their balled fist as he spoke, believing it to be a universal religious greeting, “I present to the goddess, this,” he placed the half a meter long blue and purple scaled perch in the priestess’ outstretched arms, still cold and slightly clammy. “I found many much fish like this, people will get to eat, but goddesses should eat too!” Sensing he was being a little too loud again he silenced himself as Celine gave her explanation. His eyes wandered the building, taking in all the fixtures and features, the central flame that lit the entire hall. His eyes wandered towards the open hallways, one of which had noise and light suddenly emitted from it. Ivor’s eyes narrowed as he sensed something unusual afoot, “Wait here, Ivor will look.”

Ivor’s rather large frame pushed the much tinier priestess to the side as he approached the hall where the other woman had gone. He couldn’t quite make out the noises, although he did hear an exclamation of protest from Celine behind him. As he peered down the hall he saw light coming from a room at the end of the hall, door half open and splintered, a figure beyond it. “What is going on over in there!? Are you alright? Are you experiencing the breaking and the pains?! There is a doctor here, they can break your arm back into place!” His voice echoed, loudly.

_{Interacting with: Ranni @Queen Arya}

Realms of Sun & Shadow

Céline & Ivor

_{Location: Lakeside outside of town → Eastern gates → Aelios’ Temple}

---

The two traveled together along the lake’s edge, retracing the path Céline had taken from the temple. Nature had deemed her earlier footsteps too unnatural for the snowscape, opting to erase them with powerful gusts of wind. Now she had returned to double, if not triple nature’s workload with her new companion beside her, all the while engaging in pleasant conversation beside. Céline’s interaction with Ivor was not unlike other Lunarian tribals she had encountered during her travels. Though most Aurelians considered people like him gruff and barbaric, really they were just misinterpreting pride and survivalism. They too held an innate curiosity, which showed in spades as the giant blightborn barraged her with a tirade of endless questions, she was only happy to answer. The man asked, listened intently and tried to understand as he made brief comparisons between her profession and his experiences with local druids.

“So you’re saying that if Ivor breaks man’s arm, you can fix it and not even using any of the spellings?”

Céline suppressed the urge to look shocked and smiled instead, “Well, it requires a bit more time and effort than that..I can’t exactly mend bone with the snap of a finger,” she demonstrated as the snap reverberated in the air, the only sound to accompany their conversation and the crunching snow beneath them, “but it’s amazing what the human body is capable. My mentor always believed that given enough time and with the correct treatments, anyone is capable of recovering from even the most serious trauma or disease.”

The giant smiled down at her, “Your mentor seems like good person, raised a good dock-tor.”

Céline’s head lowered as they walked, “He was…he died a long time ago, long before the blight ever wreaked havoc…” She was grateful that he was not here to witness the ravaged world, to run himself ragged as she had… Still there was a part that longed for him to be here, “I still wonder, if he were alive today, if he wouldn’t have figured out a cure by now, if maybe..Ivor?” The crunching snow had diluted down to one set of feet, and as Céline turned to understand why, she saw the man staring out into the distance. “What is it?” She asked, doubling back slightly.

“Boirds…” he responded, eyes narrowed, Céline’s gaze matched his own as she saw a small flock of birds scattering from the treeline. “Something…wrong…out there.”

The two had taken a few moments to stay and observe, after some time though Céline managed to convince Ivor to continue walking with her. Animals scatter when they get spooked, that’s not unusual and while the proximity is alarmingly close to the town, there’s no way the two of them would be able to get close enough quickly to investigate. On top of all that, there was a whole town between them and the birds that could respond faster to the situation. Erring on the side of caution, however, she figured it couldn’t hurt to gather her medical bag at the temple before heading into town and being introduced to the prince.

The two had passed the eastern gate and were on approach to the temple when a sharp pain suddenly spiked in Céline’s head, her legs giving out beneath her. Her mind was flooded with vivid images and sensations; of darkness, anguish, pain, fear and death. This deluge of memories was not her own, but her power made her experience it just as intimately. Céline saw a darkened path, tattered cloth, corpses beneath tree, the fear in the other woman’s eyes as she could only watch Céline crawl helplessly through the miasma laden ground, “live..” she spoke? No, this wasn’t her, this voice was not her own, this trauma was not her own. In the back of her mind she heard a voice, was it praying? She felt her life wane and ebb, a sensation she did not want to relive; yet another voice brought her back from the brink.

As the light and life faded, she was quickly brought back to the darkness of reality, “Miss Sealing! Are you alright?!”

Céline’s head hurt, Ivor’s booming voice was only adding to her pain and sudden nausea, “Ivor, yes, I’m alright, please lower your voice…” the woman rubbed at her aching skull, “What happened? Where are we?”

“I do not know, we were walking together, then you were not. You fell down and Ivor tried to wake you up, when I could not do this, Ivor picked you up again and kept walking.”

“You picked me up again?” Céline looked down now realizing the weightlessness she felt as she was being carried in the bulging arms of this blightborn. The rest of her body was propped up against his frame, or rather his latest catch. “I- thank you…Ivor, please put me down, I think I can walk from here.” She asked quickly, coming to the conclusion as to why one cheek felt so wet.

Ivor stopped, then helped lower Céline down to the ground, standing by ready to catch her uneasy form. “What has happened to you Miss sea- Celleen.”

Céline momentarily propped herself against a tree to get her bearings, “I’m not really sure myself,” she wiped away the dampness on her face and rubbed at her eyes, finding there were tears there too; had she been crying? As she recalled the memories that flooded her mind, the intensity of it all. There had only been a handful of times she had this experience, so there wasn’t much to compare it with, but this by far had elicited the strongest physical reaction from her. “For a brief moment I was someone else.”

“But how can Miss Celling be anyone else but Miss Celling?” Ivor asked with a rather perplexed look on his face.

Céline shook her head, “I wish I could explain it better, it’s just something I’ve been able to do since I turned into…this” She felt light-headed, the blightborn was already hungry before arriving to town and while the brief emotions Tingara experienced around her kept the woman from starving, it didn’t improve her condition either. At least this time, she could take solace that she didn’t empty the contents of her stomach in front of her new acquaintance. “Come on, the temple isn’t much farther now, it’ll be better if I rest there than out here.” Breathing heavily, Céline pushed herself off the tree and started trudging forward; she almost lost her footing, but was able to quickly regain her balance. Taking one more deep breath she pressed onward, Ivor watching all the while to make sure she had herself before following behind.

It wasn’t much longer before they arrived at Aelios’ temple, and as they approached the main doors, Ivor stopped leaving Céline to approach on her own. Once she realized he had stopped, Céline turned towards him perplexed, “aren’t you coming inside?”

Ivor looked concerned at the doors, “I have..never been inside a temple.”

“Really now?” Céline asked, surprised, “I’d have thought that you had lived here longer than I, that you’d have at least visited once,” though perhaps that was a bit insensitive, Ivor is a Lunarian, so perhaps he worshiped Selune and felt he didn’t belong here.

Ivor shook his head, “Temple only finished not long ago, Ivor had no reason to come before.”

“This feels like a better reason than any, my friend, though…perhaps you want to leave your fish outside, they might not find it appropriate inside.” She looked sheepishly at him.

Ivor looked down at the draped cloak of fish around him, “Eh, perhaps you are right, though temples take offerings, perhaps they will take one fish,” Ivor smiled, “gods need to feast too, yes? People will have plenty of fish, they won’t miss one little baby fish.” Ivor went to work burying his bountiful catch in the snow, keeping at least one in his hands that had a glowing purple and blue hue, “Gods also like pretty things too, yes? This is why your priests are always in the gold?”

“Haha, no no, they’re not my priests,” Céline chuckled, “but Aelios does seem to like embodying the golden hues of the sun,” she stared at the odd colored fish in his hands, “it might not be sunlike, but I think she’ll accept your offering all the same.”

Once the giant was beside her, the two opened the front doors together and stepped inside, quickly closing them once inside. They were greeted by the brazier of Aelios’ eternal flame, the promise of her hope and the reality of her warmth and embrace. In front of the flame were two darkened silhouettes of people, perhaps it was Tingara or some other worshippers. Not wanting to be disrespectful and disturb their potential worship, she looked to Ivor and urged him to remain quiet once they began to move forward. As they approached closer to the brazier and altar, Céline realized that neither of the individuals was Tingara, though one certainly seemed dressed in a priestess’ attire, the other looked dressed for combat. Once close enough Céline realized they weren’t praying, and thus felt compelled to speak, “Hello, I’m sorry to interrupt, but I’m just here to collect my things and my friend has an offering he’d like to present to the goddess.”

Once close enough that their faces came into view, Céline asked, “Is priestess Tingara here, she can vouch for my-” the blightborn woman stopped in her tracks, her eyes widening and her blood running colder than before. She recognized these people, or at the very least the woman in the armor. While the other woman in priestess garbs bore the same face, Céline couldn’t forget the horrified face that had burned itself into her mind just mere moments before, “I- I saw you…” was all she could mutter.

---

_{Interacting with: Ranni & Dyna @Queen Arya}

Realms of Sun & Shadow

_{Location: Lake outside of town ::: Location: Unknown}

---

A soft ticking echoed through the air, glassy eyes staring down at the sound’s source. Céline felt a sense of deja vu as she closed the pocket watch, returning it beneath her coat. Once again she stood alone on the outskirts of town, by the frigid waters of the nearby lake. Its surface had not yet frozen over, but the edges were beginning to blush over with crystals, the whitish tinge contrasting the dark waters lapping over. Despite this obvious change in temperature, it didn’t feel any colder to the blightborn than normal; an odd condition of her change, especially considering her place of origin. She gave the town a final cursory glance before continuing on her walk around the lake, brow furrowed in silent contemplation of the past week.

She had only just arrived in town, barely started making a new acquaintance before causing a rather revolting or at least unceremonious introduction to a few others after. Some of those she met were human, some were blightborn. Just like she had learned through her travels, there was a safe haven for her kind, though safe was between two large quotations. Her kind was dangerous and she nearly proved that in her moment of transfixation on that woman’s sorrow and anguish at the hot springs. She shook the images from her mind, already knowing that it was possible word of her actions would eventually climb the hierarchy. Although the inclement weather certainly provided some delay, that window was rapidly closing. Céline was not a woman to rush however, hence this walk to both collect her thoughts and desperately stretch her legs after being cooped up in the temple during the blizzard. It wasn’t her first choice, but she had been brought there after her incident to rest and recuperate, only to find out she’d be having an extended stay when she awoke to the howling winds outside.

Priestess Tingara had been more than hospitable, though her initial palpable anxiety was nauseating, it slowly eased away as she realized the rabbit-eared blightborn was not a threat. During their brief internment together, Céline helped around the temple, read and studied while Tia prayed and when they were able, the two conversed. The conversations never lasted long, but they were enjoyable and it gave an idea of the town she was planning on living in. Tia mentioned that Prince Flynn would be the one to speak with about moving here and as soon as the blizzard had abated that was the plan. Still a week trapped, Céline needed the time to take a long walk and really stretch her legs. Despite the vast amounts of snow, she made good progress having reached the far side of the lake, the town now much smaller than when she last gazed upon it. She took this moment to sit and just breathe, thinking it might be good to ask Tia to introduce her to the prince later, if there was anyone who could vouch for Céline, it would be her. Before she could really ponder on it further, a muffled sound caught her attention, low at first, but growing. Céline looked around, her ears like two antennae trying to find the source, only to look somewhat confused at a large snowdrift beside a cliff face. The woman got to her feet and cautiously approached the mound, pressing her ear closer; was someone…digging?

Ivor trudged along the darkened pathway, his heavy footfalls reverberating in the cave around him, a cave he found himself stuck in for many days now. He couldn’t remember exactly when he fell in the hole in the ground, but when he awoke sometime later it was far too dangerous to go back out. While it wasn’t an ideal situation, the hunter knew he’d only lose himself further venturing outside during a blizzard, better to stay in the hole, better to explore the hole. Said hole turned out to be an underground cavern of some kind, plenty of dark and winding paths, all natural, yet maze-like in its layout. Ivor had plenty of supplies on him to mark specific paths he had taken, ones he knew were dead ends, ones he knew he'd be able to easily traverse; oriented rocks here, some marked ink on the wall there.

After a few days of idle exploration, Ivor’s spelunking found himself in a secluded crystalline cavern, separate from the rest of the cave. The cavern glittered and glowed blues and purples from the walls reflected back infinitely into the pool of water below; a pool containing a multitude of fish. The giant blightborn knew he found a good find, but another pathway from earlier beckoned further exploration. He doubled back to travel down it until the sounds of wind howled louder, another entrance, but the blizzard was still ongoing and didn’t seem to be letting up anytime soon. Ivor all in all, felt this was a good time to fish and for three days that’s exactly what he did. Now here he was, a blightborn man who had supped on the souls of dozens of fish, had said fish strung up to bring home and feed the people. By now the howling of the wind had died down, it was time to return home with his bounty. He hauled his load through the cavern, down the pathway he doubled back down, only to find the entrance blocked up with snow. Sizing up the entryway he lowered the fish down and began tunneling his way out with his bare hands. It took some time, but without the sensation of cold to stop him from digging, it was faster than any other man with a mote of desperation could do. When the first bit of moonlight started breaking through the snow he knew he was close, all he needed to do was go a little further annnd…

“Ahhg!” A massive hand popped mere inches from Céline’s face, ultimately startling her and sending a sudden, short yell from her throat as she backed away from the potential danger. The hand paused in the snow drift for a moment before resuming scooping snow out through the hole it just made. Céline took a few moments to process exactly what she was seeing before it clicked; someone’s trapped. “H-Hold on, I’ll help you get out!” The woman rushed forward, hurriedly scooping snow out with her own hands, unsure if whoever was on the other side was injured or not.

Ivor paused when he heard a voice call out, it wasn’t anyone he recognized, but if they were here to help. “Hah! Thank you, should not take too long to get out now!” The giant exclaimed, continuing to scoop large handfuls of snow out.

The harshness of the voice was somewhat off putting, but at least the source didn't seem to lack neither vigor nor vim. The snow slowly depressed with each scoop, some minutes passed, but eventually the whole pile collapsed away revealing the two diggers to one another. Céline took a look at the man, only some inches taller than herself, yet magnitudes larger in size. Her eyes widened, a sudden momentary and primal fear overtaking her senses as she froze in place, something screaming to run away; like prey staring at a predator. The way his emotions felt, however helped to ease the sense of impending doom, she could feel herself relax, shoulders far too tensed.

The giant stepped forward, staring down at the rabbit-eared woman and gave a soft smile, “Hello,” he stared a little longer trying to remember if he’d seen her somewhere, “Ivor thinks he has not met you before.”

Ivor? The accent was a little hard to comprehend, but she was sure that was what he said, “H-hello, Ivor was it? My name is Céline, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?” Awkwardness and fear aside, Céline decided to grow up and be a doctor for a moment considering she did find him trapped.

Ivor bellowed out a deep laugh that echoed across the lake's waters and surrounding woods. Birds in nearby trees quickly departed in protest and Céline winced slightly, her ears casting downward to the sudden auditory trauma. “Never better Miss Ceiling, good to meet you!” Though Ivor was excited, he remembered that he had an entire school fish to travel back to town with, “Ah, almost forgot, yes! Look!” He quickly turned around and proceeded back down the path hole he emerged from, filling the blightborn woman with a mixture of confusion and curiosity as glassy eyes stared into the darkness of the cave. In short order the giant returned from his hole with at least a baker’s dozen plus of fish, all strung up neatly by their tales. “Look at all this good stuff I caught!”

Céline’s eyes widened as she looked at the giant’s haul, “You caught all this?” Ivor nodded in response, as she eyed his prize, noting that while the entire catch looked healthy, some of the fish bore some unusual color patterns. She wasn’t sure what breed of fish these were, but she’d never heard nor laid eyes upon fish with such vibrant hues of effervescent blues and purples. She looked back at the man, glassy eyes gauging him as she sensed his emotions. He was strong of heart, that felt certain, full of energy, definitely. A mixture of pride, honesty, integrity, fairness, with an overwhelming sense of trust.

Ivor seemed like a decent man, a potential guide and companion to enter town with for the first time , “I don’t suppose you’re bringing all of those fish over there?” She asked him, staring at his haul before looking over at the town he nodded. “You live in that town?” When he nodded again in response she asked him, “Is it alright if I come with you? I’d only just arrived before the blizzard came, and hadn’t had a chance to enter the village proper. It might be better to enter with someone who lives here, rather than as a lone stranger.”

Ivor looked the woman up and down, definitely blightborn with ears like she had. She didn’t seem dangerous and she did help him get out of the cave, so he saw no reason to refuse her. “You wish to live here too then?” This time Céline nodded back in response and Ivor smiled in return, “Well, I am not one in charge here, but..welcome to Dawnhaven! Is very good town, with very good people, I will take you there, come!” Ivor decided quickly as he began to trudge long steps through the snow back to town. Céline, somewhat taken aback at Ivor’s abruptness quickly regained her composure as she caught up with the giant blightborn man. “So! Miss Ceiling, what brings you to our good town?!”

“It’s Céline, actually,” she politely corrected, “..and I’m here to help people, I’m a doctor.”

“Doc…tor…what is that?”

“Hm…well it’s much like a healer really, only without all the magic…” she began to tell Ivor as the two walked to Dawn Haven, side by side.

Realms of Sun & Shadow

_{Location: Communal Hotspring}

---

Both Anathema and the other blightborn set out to find Céline’s belongings, leaving both herself and the woman whom she had been resting on moments before. Céline wanted to look at the other person, knew that she should look at her, but kept her gaze averted, fearful she might be consumed by hunger just from looking at the woman. Something inside knew that probably wouldn’t happen, the raw emotions Céline had been feeling were now far removed, having been replaced with concern and some anxiety. Still, regardless of her feelings, this person didn’t have to stay, she could have easily run, grabbed guards, had her captured or executed; but that didn’t happen. Gratitude…and a humbling amount of hope to go with it.

When asked about a healer, Céline simply shook her head, “That’s usually my line but..” she coughed, really wanting to chuckle instead. It still seemed that speaking was going to be difficult for a moment still, “no, I don’t think a healer will be necessary,” warmth though…that sounded good right about now. Temperature hadn’t been an issue for her since her rebirth, but for the first time since then, this was the closest to human Céline had felt. “Thank you,” she continued, her eyes still on the ground in front of her, “I don’t really know what happened, but thank you for helping me and I’m sorry for all of this,” the hare-eared woman gestured to herself. Her mind wandered to the feelings that were emanating from this woman before, they felt so strong and so painful… “And I’m sorry…” since speaking, Céline’s eyes turned towards the other woman near her, “for whatever it is you’re going through.” She knew that this phrase would sound strange to the other person, like it had to so many others before, coming from a woman who knew the how, but not the why. The blightborn could only hope that the other individual saw not malicious intent, but true commiseration.

As the others returned however, there was no time for further response or elaboration as the group decided where to bring Céline. The inn had been mentioned, as well as a nearby temple and though she was no devout of Aelios, the woman appreciated the sanctuary such spaces offered. As Anathema helped Céline into her coat the woman couldn’t help but sigh as the warmth enveloped her, only to be surprised as another layer wrapped itself around her

"Céline, do you think you can make it to the Temple if we help?"

Céline was grateful for the extra warmth and tender voice, her ears still somewhat ringing from earlier and only barely able to tolerate certain sounds. A hand found its way on top of hers and gripped it gently, nodding in affirmation to Anathema’s suggestion, small reassurances. Again she was grateful that her new companion took the cue to follow up on introductions. Though Céline had her voice, she didn’t really want to speak unless she had to at this point.

“I think at this point, the temple sounds the best,” she still felt weak, but with the two of them on either of her, Céline could at least balance herself more easily. “Ana and, Sya, was it? Could you help me up? I should be okay to walk with support.”

---

_{Interacting with: Octavia @The Savant, Anathema @Lu, Sya @PrinceAlexus}

Realms of Sun & Shadow

_{Location: Communal Hotspring}

---

There was movement around her, Céline couldn’t quite tell what or who it was, but there seemed to be more than one person. Her head felt so out of sorts, the ringing in her ears hadn’t subsided and it made everything around her sound a hollow echo, almost as if she were underwater. She felt her own body shift in space, felt wisps upon her head and face, muffled voices as if just on the other side of a door. The one thing that Céline felt in absolute clarity in this moment, was cold. For the first time since her transformation, she was freezing and wanted nothing more than the ghostly maiden cradling her to just shove her into the springs or carry her gently to a roaring fire; goddess how she missed the sun.

Céline wasn’t sure how much time had passed while she was laying here, but whatever sensation had stricken her began to slowly fade away and consciousness would retake its place. The rapid spasms dissipated and her muscles relaxed gradually, eventually coming to rest. Céline’s eyes opened, immediately redacting her earlier thought, thankful the sun wasn’t shining to worsen her splitting migraine. The blight-born took a moment to recognize the very sore muscles from her spasms, and her rapid breathing and pulse. Some primal instinct wanted her to bolt upright, but logic told her it was better to lay and assess her current condition. Her hand reached down into her trouser pocket, pulling out her trusty watch. She flipped it open, holding it upright while she pressed her index and middle fingers into her wrist, counting the number of pulses… Abnormally high and worse yet she was still freezing in addition to being hungry.

The blight-born woman breathed in deep and exhaled, thinking for a moment and calming herself. The cold was unusual, it couldn’t be just from the weather as she was surrounded by the hot springs, perhaps some kind of internal abnormality of the humours…. Her heartrate she needed to get down though, something in her pack might do. Realizing she hadn’t said anything yet, Céline took a moment to finally observe those around her. A woman above her, the one she felt pulled towards, was letting Céline use her lap as a pillow, a gentle hand caressing her head. Céline’s glassy purple eyes stared into the woman’s, wondering just what happened to her to exude such strong and raw emotions. Her eyes then drifted towards Anathema, looking somewhat disheveled and out of breath, but her eyes showing worry and concern. Céline felt horrible for having abandoned her to some primal urge from within, a wave of embarrassment washing over her. They then drifted towards a third individual, dark haired, one eyed, pointy eared and very much naked. Céline’s dark skin hid her blush well, but the quick aversion of her gaze gave away how uncomfortable she felt right now in this moment. Aurelians were known to show more skin compared to the Lunarian counterparts and growing up, nudity was not a rare sight. However, in this circumstance, having undergone…some unusual condition, only to wake up and find a naked woman staring over her was…awkward at best.
Returning her gaze to the woman above her, through a somewhat hoarse voice, Céline coughed through, “I thin- I think I’m okay to sit, can you please help me up?”

Once she was upright the migraine hit her head in full force for a few seconds, forcing her to hold herself upright until it dulled somewhat. Waiting just a moment longer she then readjusted herself to be sitting so as to view all three individuals around her, albeit only looking at the legs and feet of the naked, assumed blight-born. Céline wrapped her arms around her chest trying to retain some feeling of warmth, but she wanted something more than just that right now. Looking to Anathema, a pang of guilt in her chest as she was about to ask another request of the sage, “I’m sorry to ask, but you know where my things are…can I ask you to retrieve them,” Céline swallowed hard, feeling the swollen tissue in her throat, “You should get your things too, you look colder than I do,” another wave of guilt washed over her having cut this introduction in the hotsprings short. Turning back to the lower third of the blight-born individual, Céline blushed unsure on how to pose her question as her cheeks grew darker with each word, “I don’t mean to be rude but…is there…any chance your clothes are nearby?”

---

_{Interacting with: Octavia @The Savant, Anathema @Lu, Sya [@Prince Alexus]}

Realms of Sun & Shadow

_{Location: Communal Hotspring}

---

Although the initial greeting was somewhat awkward, Anathema didn’t hesitate to choose a rock close to the blight-born woman and enjoy the springs’ warmth. It was unusual, how long had it been since someone was so comfortable to be around her? Since the transformation most humans regarded her with fear and suspicion, even when she made her intentions clear; even after she healed them… To be treated like a person again or the human connection that came with that was a comfort Céline realized she had sorely missed.

"No apologies are necessary." Anathema began, "You actually happen to be the first blightborn I've met, but I am a sage--a researcher--I've come to Dawnhaven to study the blight and, ah-um, those affected by it."

It was even more surprising when Anathema revealed that Céline was her first blight-born interaction and yet somehow that only made her respect for the woman grow. Anathema seemed somewhat hesitant to share her reasons for coming to Dawnhaven, but perhaps it had to do with her subject of choice being the one to ask the big ‘why?’ Still Céline felt a kindred spirit within this person, someone who, despite the risks, was willing to go the distance.

"I just feel it's too late for me to be afraid. I've come all this way, by my choice, afterall.”

“I think some people might call that pretty reckless, stupid even,” Céline smiled, interlocking her own hands together, rubbing them for warmth, “personally it’s something I can relate to. Even after my transformation I never tried to stop helping people, even after…well they said some pretty nasty things to me.” She chuckled nervously, “When I first heard of this town, having no other information than a name and that both human and blight-born coexisted, I knew I had to come. Call it…intuition or faith, I felt this town needed my help.”

"You said that you're a doctor. Do you mean that you use healing magic? Do you also come here from Aurelia?"

Céline had to laugh a little at that one, but it was an understandable mistake, “No no, I’m sorry, I was actually born with no magical affinity whatsoever, in a land far east of the Aurelian capital. My ‘healing magic’ is something a bit more practical, sometimes long-winded depending on the injury, but effective nonetheless.” Her eyes wandered to the steaming pools below, the moonlight somewhat diluted upon the waters’ surface. “In a time where healing magic is so limited, especially those affected by the suns’ disappearance, I think a little practicality is something people desperately need right now.”

The anxiety that was emanating from Anathema hadn’t gone away since she had revealed her role as a researcher in this town. It didn’t take much to draw a line that the research was around blight-born; people like her. There was a lot of curiosity and excitement, but that anxiety was holding her back from being more open. Despite risking the floodgates of emotion once more, Céline decided to broach that topic. “On a serious note, it’s pretty dangerous to approach a blight-born you don’t know.” A light scolding for sure, but Céline liked this person and didn’t want to see her get eaten after just arriving, “There are some pretty…feral and wild ones out there that don’t hold as much pleasant conversation as I do,” Céline smirked, “that being said, this seems like a perfect opportunity for you to conduct some rese-”

Céline’s ears perked up, suddenly picking up the noise of crunching snow, “It sounds like someone’s coming,” her eyes narrowed and moved towards the directions of the sound, footfalls crunching and winding their way through the springs rather hurriedly, followed by a splash as if someone plunged themselves in. There was something else that she could hear coming from that direction, something faint, yet deep, “Do you hear.. _that”

As she turned to face Anathema, she was gone from her vision, turning back the trees and sky had dissipated, leaving something large and aching in its wake. It felt like a pulse, looked like one too, a black and viscous ichor that seemed to pull and gnaw at Céline. She tried to pull away from it, but it wouldn’t let her look at anything else, move anywhere else, as the world faded away around her. It called her in, beckoned, something that was pure and raw; anger, fear, loss, anguish, despair, hopelessness, survival, desperation. It was beautiful, violent, awe-inspiring and she wanted to let herself be drowned in it. Something stopped her though..

Blinking, Céline looked around and realized she had stepped away from the pool of water and was now standing barefoot in the snow, some couple dozen or so feet away from another individual. She looked at the brunette haired woman in the water, beautiful, fearful, and the reason Céline had been so inexplicably drawn here. A meal of raw, fresh, undiluted emotion was just sitting there waiting to be eaten and Céline’s eyes grew wide in fear as she tried to step back. Her body just didn’t seem to want to listen as she collapsed to her knee, the back leg suddenly giving out underneath her weight. Everything just felt so difficult right in that moment, an aching hunger, a free meal right in front of her, a moral obligation to do no harm. The weight of all that stress on her mind locked her in place. ‘I-I-I I can’t, I can’t do this, I won’t Iwon’tIwon’tIwon’tIwon’t-I …I can-’ and like her leg, the mind gave out.

Throwing her body forward onto her hands and knees Céline emptied the contents of her stomach; a mixture of whatever bile and mucus had settled its way there. Before more could be said or done, Céline collapsed on her side, her ears ringing loudly and her mind going blank, unable to comprehend the violent convulsions her body was going through from the shock of rejecting one too many meals.

---

_{Interacts with: Anathema @Lu; mentions: Octavia @The Savant}

Realms of Sun & Shadow

@Lu, wanted to apologize for not writing a post yet, its in the works right now and I'm hoping to have it finished up tomorrow.

Realms of Sun & Shadow

_{Location: Communal Hotspring}

---

‘Oh goddess…’ Céline thought as her ears noticeably wilted, reading the emotions on Anathema’s face; shock? Awe? Fear? Whatever emotions were there, Céline could only pray it wouldn’t lead towards a scream, she already hated screams and her ‘mutation’ only amplified that hatred and pain further. Céline was ready to embrace the worse, however instead of pain though, she felt something else welling within Anathema. Despite the girl’s outward appearance, there was a torrential wave of emotion rushing from her, a level of excitement, curiosity and wonder that threatened to drown Céline. Oh goddess how she wanted to be drowned in it, to consume every last drop of this deluge till the source was nothing but an empty husk. She wanted to devour it, but every fiber of her being fought against it, unwilling to harm this human, this new encounter; even if it made her sick to her stomach. She breathed in through her nose and out her mouth, treating this like a hunger pain, yet one that rolled throughout her whole body and tensed every muscle, shocked every nerve. If she had the contents within her stomach they would have long been emptied by now.

"Perhaps we can find another who would be kind enough to perform introductions? she chuckled, "Though, I'll be spending another moment here. I'm not quite ready to brave the cold again."

Céline opened her eyes, unaware of having closed them, unaware of how heavy she was breathing. She placed the back of her hand to her forehead and felt the beads of sweat that had welled up, or was it condensation from the springs? Reality slammed back in and it didn’t take long for her to notice that her clothes clung to soaked skin, tugging with every motion. Despite wanting to get as far away from this well of emotion as possible, Céline hadn’t the endurance to get far, even if she tried. Anathema hadn’t run yet, in fact she seemed content to stay awhile, even inviting company. Perhaps…residually…

Céline forced a smile and quickly wiped her brow with the sleeve of her thick traveler’s coat, “I’d only been sitting here moments before you happened upon me. If you’re not opposed to it, I’d like to continue doing so and we can enjoy each other’s company.” She turned to sit, but not before removing the thick teal blue coat, revealing a rather oversized and loose fitting tunic. She folded the coat over placing it beside her before lowering herself back on the stone Anathema had found her. “I must also apologize for assuming you were one of the townsfolk. You approached me so calmly that I figured I wasn’t the first blight-born you had met, though still that might be the case anyway. Personally…you have me curious, what are your reasons for coming to Dawnhaven?”

Everything Céline said was true and she genuinely was curious about this person who approached her with no fear. That being said, this was also a way to maybe help curb her excitement a little bit. Something for Anathema to focus on, but general enough to be broad and not trigger one of her episodes. She already felt off being in front of this person, she didn’t want to have a full body paralytic experience on top of it. Goddess was Céline hungry…

---

_{Interacting with: Anathema@Lu}

Realms of Sun & Shadow

_{Location: Outside the Eye of the Beholder}

---

While Ivor hadn’t wanted to waste too much time cutting the tree down to size, but like earlier in the woods, he found himself getting into a steady rhythm. There was something relaxing about being one of the few people awake and working, watching those he knew (and didn’t) getting up for the ‘day’. He’d already been greeted by the prince, even though he seemed to be in a sour mood. Ivor didn’t want to bother him and simply said morning to the young blackened sun in return. Several other townsfolk wandered by, either in search of food or beginning morning chores, some greeting the towering giant and others going about their business. He recognized that the line between man and blightborn was very thin indeed and while some trusted Ivor to behave, others still had their reasons to be wary. It didn’t bother the man much, he was used to being treated somewhat differently than others. His heritage amongst his clan held a legacy, a promise, and that intimidated people. It often led others to speak with him with only eyes above hushed waters, masking their true intentions with flair or formality. Nowadays, he intimidated people for an entirely different reason, but if what he said to Kira last night was to be true, then he would need to make it so and not let such ‘little things’ bother him.

“Good morning, There's a big town clan meet, moon. Half way. Western sky. You might not have got and too few of us know this one, If you have spare firewood, I might need more, we have a baker to support Hunter Ivor.”

Ivor looked up from his tree once more and smiled as he watched Sya exit the inn less concealed than she normally was. In the few months he’d known her, she’d kept her appearance obscured with a thick cloak, especially while out and about. Being a blightborn was no easy life and where it can take so many shapes, change into so many forms, not everyone was lucky enough to retain all of their human features; to see Sya out like this, brought a sense of joy. In tow was a rather ample young woman with black as night hair, possibly the baker Sya mentioned? Despite the odd matching and pairings of languages, Ivor got the gist of what she was saying.

"Good morning ladies!" he greeted the two of them in the common tongue, waving with his free hand.

“Ja, Syraeia, I’ll make sure to be there,” he called back in the guttural tongue of his tribe, “and Seluna’s light is dull to the beauty you shine on us this morning, may she guide you ever brighter!” He placed a hand over his heart, bowing his head deeply as she walked by. He gave a big smile and waved both of them off before resuming with his earlier task.

As he sized up how he was going to cut out the actual door from the heartwood, it occurred to him that the best possible size was the actual door itself. Approaching the building Ivor stepped up to the door and began to un-wedge it from the frame. It took a bit of effort considering he put it there to begin with, he hoped he wasn’t breaking anything else inside with his racket. Finally the door unjammed with a loud crack as more wood splintered away from the remaining hinge plates. Looking inside Ivor wanted to make sure that people were both okay and that he didn’t cause more damage than he already had. Giving a sheepish grin to the people around, he simply stated, “Ivor sorry, but I must borrow this door to make a new door; excuse me.” Politely, he backed both himself and the door out of the tavern. Walking back to the log, he placed the broken door over a flattened area and using that as reference, started hacking out a shape with his hatchet.

---

_{Interacts with: Syraeia @PrinceAlexus, Becky @amorphical; Mentions: Prince Flynn @The Muse}

Realms of Sun & Shadow

---

_{Location: Communal Hotspring}

Céline relished this moment, this pure and simple bliss of steaming water upon aching legs and feet. Ever since her turning certain sensations had become muted and dulled, cold most of all. When the heat was concentrated like this, where it penetrated deep into her calves, she almost felt normal again. That word itself was funny though, normal had an odd way of changing definitions. As if it's normal that the land is blanketed in eternal night, how it’s normal for there to be feral, flesh eating, blood drinking creatures, how it’s normal that the sun may never rise again. In Céline’s case, it was having long ears and a constant craving for the emotional energies of those around her. It felt like a constant tug and pull of knowing it was wrong to hurt others, yes so desperately craving all the wicked screams she could muster out of them; it was torture.

So lost in her own mind that Céline barely registered the crunching snow some few feet to the left of her. Her entire body froze, her heart pounded against her chest, her breathing was shallow, quick, quiet. Everything in her body told her she needed to run, to flee, that she was going to be killed by whatever ‘thing’ was about to pounce upon her. Céline wrested control though, able to identify where the animal ended and her own personal intuition began. In the end, rational thinking won the day and she opted to remain perfectly still, unsure if whoever was there even noticed her sitting there or not. Perhaps if they didn’t, they would simply leave? No such luck as what sounded like articles of clothing were being removed before footsteps broke the water's surface, splashing subtly as the figure moved through it. Céline chanced this moment to turn her head just enough to get her eyes onto whoever was now here. A woman with thick auburn hair stood still in the water, seeming to take it all in like she had done only moments before.

Before Céline could consider her options for a moment longer the figure finally took notice of her presence. The woman apologized so quickly it startled Céline from the abruptness, causing her breath to catch and heart to stop for a moment. The hare eared woman already had a foot out of the water before she even realized it, but the intuitive side stopped herself, curious to see where this went. The woman who called out to her was already wading her way in the water, “Anathema..” Céline whispered to herself, committing the name to memory. She seemed so candid, confidently approaching the blightborn in front of her. Were her ears not that off-putting? Maybe she didn’t see them yet and would scream as soon as she did? Céline considered the possibility that Anathema might also be a resident of the town, and that would at least partially explain why she felt comfortable enough to approach. Taking in her surroundings though, Céline also had to wonder if the woman approaching her even knew that she was coming towards a blightborn? Even assuming that she didn’t know, there was no way to hide away her ‘physical extremities’ without it being painful. Regardless, what felt like an eternity passing, Céline replied to the woman’s greeting.

“Hello Anathema, my name is Dr. Moreau, but you may just call me Céline,” she smiled, shifting her weight on the rock and readjusting her pant legs, “actually it is probably I should be apologizing. I only just arrived in your town and found myself near these springs. The water seemed so inviting that my aching feet couldn’t help but to accept.” Standing up from her position, despite having heard a woman would find a more androgynously dressed individual with a slightly too big and loose fitting shirt, slightly oversized and baggy wool pants, rolled up just below the knees. Atop her head, the two ears twitched and rotated independently of each other, twisting with each new minutiae of sound, but keeping wholly focused on the conversation in front of her. “I assume that you reside here, yes? I was hoping to move and live here, but I’m hoping to speak with whoever is in charge first..” she paused after that, considering her options for a moment, a question eating her at the back of her mind and fear kept it there. Shaking her head she resumed asking, “Perhaps you’d be willing to introduce me?”

---

_{Interacting with: Anathema @Lu}