Tancuras

Rose Plague

Silent contemplation filled the man in the beaked mask as he stood with the trees. Many thoughts skipped across the surface of his mind - his past, his home, his future, things he had forgotten, things he couldn't explain. He pondered the group before him: the sad older man, the aggressive youth, the nurturing woman, and the young girl with her dog. They nearly looked like a family. Augustus nearly chuckled at the notion.

Family...

Something tickled the cheek beneath his mask. Augustus screwed up his face in confusion, then quickly abandoned the thought, returning to the present.

Armaments, he thought, turning to the youth. Companionship. He looked at the woman and the child. Leadership. He looked to the older man. But what am I to these people?

Augustus stepped forth from the trees, the sun gleaming off the beak of his mask. Nothing, he thought. I am but a shadow. But I will do what I can.

The wide-brimmed hat of the stranger shaded his face, and the black lenses of his mask left his eyes a void as he approached those left alive. He moved to the woman first, giving the dog a wide berth, and went slowly so to not miscommunicate his intentions.

"Good lady," Augustus said, voice muffled beneath the mask. "I have found this child's brother. My attempt to lead him here was spoiled by this animal. But I suspect he should be along shortly." Anticipating the lack of welcome as only a masked man can receive, he held up his arms, bowing his head. "I mean no harm. I hope you will take this as an act of good faith."

@SweetOwlette@XxLyraxX@hagroden

Dragon Sodality

I made it in! Yessss! Also, sorry I didn't get around to this earlier, I didn't get the notification for some reason.

@Absolute Grace Thanks a ton for the header, it's perfect :D

By the way, Orren's still looking for a tutor. *_*

Dragon Sodality

"Kingdoms rise and fall, but nature will remain."

Age

39

Gender

Male

Appearance & Physical Characteristics

Orren is a rugged man, harsh and lean like the mountains and wilderness of Vankinore in which he was forged. Tall and lithe with steel limbs, he takes on the characteristic of an animal, his green-eyed gaze that of a predator. Prolific scars cover his body, counting his hunts and marking his victories over death. He is often unshaven, thick ash-blonde hair falling in braids around his face.

Orren's garments are entirely leather and fur, showcasing function over form. They show little skill in tailoring, all hand-crafted by Orren himself. Dragonscales are woven into the hide in erratic patches, covering Orren's vital organs, and everything is enveloped by a heavy hide cloak. Simple hide boots are tied to his ankles with cord, and a sack hangs from his shoulder containing his belongings.

Personality

Introverted, wise, strange, competitive, wary.

Abilities

Aside from longevity, enhanced strength and stamina, and uncanny grace and reflex, Orren possesses an affinity with the wilderness almost unprecedented. He is an expert in tracking and navigation, able to detect nearly anything by scent, and is invisible in the woodlands. Furthermore, Orren seems to possess the ability to form deep bonds with animals, seemingly communicating with them.

In swordplay, Orren seems to dance rather than fight. His movements are fluid and controlled, almost serene, and his blade truly cuts where others smash. His archery, however, plays a part entirely opposite. His shots are frightening, hissing through the sky, and the impact where they strike is so great it can throw grown men through the air.

History

Orren was born into the wild. His tribe was large, but he has little memory of them. They were nomadic, traversing the mountains of Vankinore and camping in the branches of great trees. One day, when Orren was still hardly a child, he found himself alone, never knowing why he was left behind.

He spent his years in those same mountains, fending for himself, hunting beasts and fleeing other people. The isolation broke his mind. He never knew another soul and even forgot language, nearly becoming a beast himself. The life made him strong, though. Savage and cunning. He never found a hunt he could not conquer - not even a dragon.

The beast nearly killed him, but Orren managed to pry a scale loose. He tied it to one of his arrows and plunged it deep into the dragon's throat. As he carved away at the dragon's corpse, a hunting party passed by in the commotion. As it turned out, they were dragon slayers from the Sodality, and Orren had beaten them to their mark. After several weeks of visits and negotiation, Orren finally agreed to join the guild.

Inventory

The Sunset - A thin, curved blade made from a dragon's claw. It seems extremely fragile, but is in fact harder than steel and sharp enough to cut the sun itself.
Aeveri Shortbow & Dragonscale Arrows - A deceptively strong curved bow made from the trees of Orren's tribal homeland paired with dragonscale-tipped arrows.
Obsidian Knife - Orren's skinning knife, frighteningly sharp yet still only barely capable of prying a single scale from a dragon. But one scale was all it took.
Dried Meat - Rations.
Wineskin - Homemade, filled with water.
Whetstone - A stone for sharpening Orren's blade.
Scrap Leather - From many hunts.
Herbs - Various herbs for different applications.

Dragon

A dragon of the earth, this beast takes on the color of the season, a master of hiding in plain sight. Its horns are long forked antlers, and its tail ends in the shape of a massive leaf. Moss covers its scales, and it moves without a sound. This dragon's most dangerous aspect comes in its ability to take on any form of nature, from a prowling cat to a great whale.

Let's B!tch. I feel it's a healthy release for our roleplay annoyances 2.0

@Altered Tundra

No worries. Text loses all the tone and body language that would imply a completely innocuous response, but I admit I was little scared you were about to go in on me when I saw the notification--last thing I want is to get into an argument over personal preferences. Haha.

<Snipped quote by Mr Allen J>

I agree--while I often end up typing plenty to address everything I need to and want to, especially in more involved RPs, just the presence of a min. req. distracts me a fair amount because one of my inevitable thoughts as I type is "Okay. I've met the min. req. Good." I don't enjoy thinking that while composing a reply (It just makes me uncomfortable and leaves me with the irrational feeling like I only typed that much to meet a min. req., not because I love the RP and had a lot to say and do. Then the thought nags at me despite my clear knowledge that I really did write this out of enjoyment, not requirement.), though for most that paranoia is probably not an issue. The world is a weird place for fretting neurotics like me.

@January

My writing style is fairly action-heavy and it's often really hard to write more than one or two paragraphs at times during interactive scenes, especially since I try to refrain from taking any control of another player's character whatsoever. When writing in a scene that requires input from several people, you can only get so far on your own point of view and self-reflection. So I usually don't include a "paragraph requirement" when I run a thread, I think it's pretty silly.

Anyway, on to the reason I came here...

Man, am I sick of Gary Stus and Mary Sues. So many edgy teenagers who also happen to be "master archers" or "master swordsmen" or "master martial artists" and they're all "wise beyond their years" and they're good at everything and everything goes right for them and there are no consequences for their actions and they have no flaws or if they do they really don't matter anyway. Clusters of cliche and self-insert fantasies.

I miss originality.

Rose Plague

Augustus' plan to lead the boy was spoiled by something he had failed to see from the road. There was a crash from the brush before him, and the gradient fur of a large husky bloomed from the leaves. It must have belonged to the boy, hidden from view by one of the boulders nearby. In an instant, Augustus weighed his options. He knew there were only two: slay the dog, or flee towards the tracks and hope they boy was able to follow.

Cursing under his breath, the masked man spun, sprinting into the thick of the woods. Practiced steps guided him between trees, carrying him forward with all the speed he could muster. He could still hear the dog's snarls, close in pursuit. The thing was quick, quicker than he, even in the woods.

Still, he moved toward where he had last seen the small tracks. The dog grew nearer still, near enough to lunge, and Augustus felt teeth brush his calf as he broke to the right, putting a tree between the two of them. The animal twisted in an instant, readying itself for another leap, and Augustus threw himself back in anticipation.

The dog stopped dead, twisting its head around. Its ears perked up. Augustus sucked a deep breath through the roses in the beak of his mask. Someone's there.

The husky's tail began swaying and it trotted off in the direction of the interference, forgetting its previous engagement. Augustus watched it go, putting air back into his lungs. He followed after several moments, moving carefully, making all the noise of a mouse.

The dog's heading took him to another edge of the woods, and revealed something curious. A path was cut through the trees, and bodies had collected on it. But these ones were filled with life. They were speaking among themselves, and though the air seemed tense, there was no hostility.

Augustus contented himself with a position in the trees, hidden from view. He watched as the dog went to the person closest to him, a small girl. The boy's companion, Augustus thought. He looked back into the trees. Now I only hope he can follow.

@XxLyraxX

Rose Plague

No problemo!

Rose Plague

@XxLyraxX Mentioning you here in case my IC post doesn't notify you.

Rose Plague

The beast fell under the masked man's twin blades. Its cry was stifled by the tear in its throat, and it made only a gurgle as blood bubbled forth. Fallen and forgotten in a copse of trees, the body was the latest in a sanguine trail carving its way to the western coast.

Augustus flicked his blades clean and returned them to their sheathes at either side of his belt buckle. He let out a muffled breath into the cool autumn air, calming his aching muscles to stillness and dousing the fire of the hunt. He knelt on the corpse and used a clean patch of its clothing to clean the blood from his mask. I am making considerable progress.

Soon, he would be free of his duty. His cure was nearing completion, slowly but surely. The endless stream of blood would soon be over, and he would free mankind from their sins. And for this I am thankful. Yet, he still needed more samples. Day after day, it was more samples, more killing. Augustus entered the trees, quiet as death, hidden eyes searching the sea of autumn for another target.

He spotted nothing for a time. No movement, nor even a sign of life. Then he saw the tracks. Small, hurried tracks, the tiny shoes of a child. They moved toward where he was only minutes before. I must have missed the child during the last hunt. But is it man, or creature? Augustus had found his next mark.

The shadowed man turned to follow when the sound of scraping rock echoed from somewhere near the road. Augustus spun, flying through the woods with a phantom's speed. He stopped near the edge of the woodlands when he saw another victim of the plague, a beast in a boy's skin shuffling towards a set of boulders curiously formed into the shape of wings. Augustus raised his blades, poised to strike, eyes locked onto the glare of the beast's spectacles.

Augustus' vision flashed crimson and an exploding pain in his head nearly caused him to reel.

***

"...the Rose Plague, they're..."

...who are you?

"...won't leave you..."

Stop it.

"...I'll figure this..."

BEGONE!

***

Augustus shook his head, glancing back up. A boy, barely an adult, moved towards the winged stones. The masked man narrowed his eyes, studying the boy's skin. He did not seem to show signs of infection. Yet, his eyes seemed panicked, somehow.

Then, Augustus knew. The child. He is looking for the child. The notion was reminiscent to him, and he found himself wanting to help. But he could not risk a direct confrontation. Not yet.

Augustus stepped forward, standing at the edge of the trees' shade. Arms at his side, he simply stood, watching the boy. Before long, the boy's gaze met his, and their eyes locked firmly. Augustus stood for a moment longer, then faded back into the woods. Follow me, child.

@XxLyraxX

Stars over the Asphalt

For sure. Hopefully we can get at least a couple more people.

Dragon Sodality: A dragonslayer RP with a twist

@Obscene Symphony I think you can throw in a character for now if you want, and the GM is going to pick the group they think will work best before we start. We have a lot of interest but not everyone has made a character yet, so if you make yours first you might have priority. And if nothing else, we can probably fill in drop-outs if they happen later.