Despite his best efforts, the fruit refused to stick. Caw was growing increasingly desperate, letting out a series of distressed noises; animal ones, human ones, anything that came to him.
When he heard Sebastian speak his name, he was certain a scolding was to follow. Much to his surprise, that was not the case. His voice did not sound angry, and what little Caw could catch of his face before the man turned to walk away did not look threatening. The kenku blinked, surprised, curious-- and taken aback. Sebastian would look away, for him?
Caw was so preoccupied by his act of kindness, that he almost missed another one. Rhayela had walked up to him, offering him a smile and a solution. Caw nodded slowly, carefully placing his fruit next to hers. He gave it a few gentle pats as if to make up for his transgression towards it, then turned to his friend.
"Good now," he informed her, then continued, more to convince himself than her: "Don't worry about it."
Easy enough a task, it turned out. Soon enough, they had much more pressing matters to worry about.
It started with columns of smoke, rising from a town in the distance. Greenrest; their destination. Smoke heralded fire, a warning to turn the other way and keep a distance - yet Cassandra did not heed it. For reasons unknown, she spurred her horse into a gallop towards the city.
And then the real trouble began.
A loud, booming sound followed another, then another, then another, as if multiple thunderstorms had all roared out their wrath at once. For a brief moment, something blotted out the sun. When Caw saw lightning pour from the monster's mouth, he could not help but think it fitting. The enormous blue monster was thunder made manifest. He'd read of them, creatures like this one, and wondered what it might be to soar the skies like they did. Now, he didn't even dare wonder.
Caw shrunk where he stood, regarding the creature with equal parts awe and fear. Seeing a dragon was a dream come true; seeing it this close was a waking nightmare.
He was ready to turn tail.
But before he could get far, Sebastian's words brought him to a halt. Not his title, nor his family name - but the two simple words that rung in his ears long after the man was done talking.
'Help me'.
Sebastian had helped him many a time. It was only right that he repaid him in kind.
Caw stepped up to the noble, trying to stand tall like him. Considering his diminutive size, the effect wasn't quite the same. For once, he was glad to borrow someone else's voice; his own would've likely trembled. "Help," he promised.
But... how? What could he do? What could any of them do?
Hearing Rhayela call out to him shook Caw from his thoughts. He turned just in time to see her make towards Sebastian's horse - the only one they had left now. She must've had a plan of some sort. Whatever it was, it was more than Caw had - so he scurried after her. He found his place on the horse's back, holding on for dear life as it dashed towards the city.
As the rushing wind filled Caw's eyes with smoke and his ears with a high howl, he lost track of time. The ride felt endless, yet it ended too fast. He'd held on so as to not be flung off for an eternity, but he'd only had a moment to prepare for what was to come. None of it made sense. He was scared.
The voice he managed to breathe out was not, and for that, he was eternally thankful. "Perfect!" The squeal of a lady admiring a golden ring was not a voice entirely fit for the occasion, but it was much better an answer than a scared squawk. Rhayela was kind, he knew. If she caught wind of his distress, she'd be worried. There was already plenty to be worried about everywhere around them.
Kobolds were the latest addition to that list. Caw counted seven, all hostile. Their behaviour was a stark contrast to what Caw had seen of Vaal, yet it fit what he'd read of them many a year ago.
The books had not told him what to do in a situation like this.
Rhayela seemed to know. She pulled out a dart and launched it at the creatures, catching one straight in the head. It fell. Now there were six.
Ever so slowly, Caw reached for his bow. He pressed his legs tightly against the sides of the horse and kept his form low. He let out the sound of an arrow sticking into flesh as if to let Rhayela know what he was about to do, then fired.
With that, there were five.
Caw fires an arrow [20] at one of the Kobold, dealing [9] damage on hit, if successful.
@CollectorOfMystJust finished, just gotta format the speech! I briefly thought that Caw could mimic some of the sounds he's heard from the dragon to distract the kobolds with, but I feel as though that would be a plan kenku couldn't necessarily come up with without something nudging them towards it. Not to mention, he's only heard the sound of its wings and the lightning, anyhow - not necessarily the most useful of things.
So, instead, he'll just fire an arrow. I'm sure there's a chance for mimicry to help with kobolds at one point, though~
Edit: Posted, hope I did that right. It's almost 1 AM, but I'll edit tomorrow if there's need.
Got my post started, but guests left pretty late so I couldn't finish everything I wanted to today. I'll finish up the remaining things I owe (including this one) tomorrow though!
I keep forgetting to tag, gah. But-! @alamantus, @typical. I had him unscrew the truck and then move on to attempt to do the same for the drain, but let me know if I should also roll for success on the truck and I'll edit accordingly! Also, let me know what to roll for the drain lid, if anything. I assume utility?
Edit: and then I tagged the wrong person bc I just tagged her in another thread... derp. Time to sleep for me.
Nine in the morning, huh. So he'd really been outta it the whole night. ... Well, at least it was sort of reassuring to know that it hadn't been longer than that, like a week or something crazy. Hopefully, by this time tomorrow, they'd be back in their own rooms. Or maybe the same room, going over what the hell they'd just been through to authorities or a shrink or something.
Duncan stuffed his cell back into his pocket and turned to Pebs.
"Yeah, sure thing. On it." With a few long-legged steps, he made it across the room to pick up the truck for examination. It was a weird thing to have in a room like this - but then again, the room was weird as hell in general. Considering how someone had been 'kind' enough to leave them a clue about the key though, he couldn't help but think the items were chosen and left for them deliberately. Just like in an escape room, just one they hadn't entered voluntarily. It made him almost certain someone was watching them.
He shuddered at the thought.
"Truck unscrewed," he hummed, handing the thing over before he moved onto do the same for the drain. As he did, he caught a glimpse of her creation.
"Think that'll do it?" he nudged his head towards the wires she'd tied. What she'd made looked good enough considering the circumstances, but he was pretty sure their little fishing break would be anything but relaxing regardless. "Sure hope you got some steady hands."
Now if only he could unscrew the lid of the drain, she'd at least have more room to work with.
Here we go, lemme know if edits are needed! @ambra I might need to proofread it later on.
"I have a plan. Please... listen."
Or, "What do you mean you're 0/3, we're two minutes into the game!?"
Name:
Jae-won "Jace" Park
Age:
20
Gender:
Male
Occupation:
College student, aspiring pro-gamer
Champion:
Evelynn
Abilities:
After not taking or dealing damage for a short while, Jae-won turns invisible. He can be detected if he attacks, takes damage, or walks within five feet of someone. If he's at low health while in Demon Shade, he will also start to regenerate health at a rapid rate.
With a flourish, Jae-won throws a dart that deals damage on hit. From there onwards, his next three attacks deal extra damage. Subsequent three casts have him launch rows of spikes that prioritize Jae-won's target and cost no prana.
At cast, Jae-won marks a target. If he attacks or otherwise touches the target right afterwards, he slows their movement. If he waits for a few seconds before doing so, he charms them instead. If he triggers either effect, the prana used for Allure will be refunded.
Jae-won produces two ethereal lashers that strike at an enemy. If he was in Demon Shade during or between casts, he pulls himself to his target and deals increased damage. In either case, he gains a small burst of movement speed after the attack.
For an instant, Jae-won's visage is replaced by that of Evelynn's true form. All those that are close enough to witness the horrifying sight take damage - and those that are at a very low health are executed. Jae-won is untargetable for the duration of this, and is flung backwards afterward.
Appearance:
Jae-won is diminutive in both posture and presence, easily blending into any given crowd - just the way he likes it. He stands at 5'6'' with a petite build and somewhat boyish facial features, making him look even younger than he really is. He has thick black hair; messy when he's alone, desperately combed to submission whenever he's forced to step outside. His eyes are dark brown, hidden behind the frames of large glasses. Round ones, unlike the ones in the picture. He has traces of past, teenage blemishes on his face, but he's rather apt at hiding them if need be. On most days, he doesn't bother.
Jae-won can often be found with a plain white face-mask on, even when he isn't sick. Preferably one that smells pleasant. The obscurity the mask brings is comforting, and the scent soothing. When it comes to clothes, his can best be described as "safe"; nothing too striking in terms of design or colour. You probably won't remember whatever he had on at any given time. At home, hoodies are his life. He owns so many animal hoodies that he could fill up an entire zoo with them.
Personality:
It's quite difficult to get to know Jae-won - or the real him, anyway. First impressions tend to peg him as shy, reserved and polite, always the one to avoid conflict and never utter a controversial word. That is, if you manage to get a word out of him at all; if given the choice, he much prefers to observe and go with the flow rather than speak up. However, unlike many might think, that isn't due to lack of opinions or things to say - it's simply for the sake of avoiding undue conflict. Jae-won would much rather get along than fight, which is why it's difficult to get a glimpse of the unfiltered version of him. Underneath his practiced calm, Jae-won is surprisingly short-tempered, and his thoughts are quite a bit ruder than the words that do leave his mouth. The same can be observed in-game: in chat, Jae-won is the most rational player imaginable, keeping calm and shotcalling no matter the circumstance. But oh, if only you knew the rage going on in his room...
It comes as no surprise that an awkward gamer like Jae-won is somewhat of a loner. Not because he would dislike the idea of friendship, but rather because he isn't very socially adept and doesn't really know how to make friends. Part of him fears that if he were to ever grow close to someone, they would eventually find out that he isn't as proper or polite as he seems to be - and fears their reaction. He hates letting people down, particularly those he cares for, and can be quite selfless when trying to help them. He is, however, quite critical - and while that is mostly towards himself, it goes to a lesser extent towards others as well.
All his awkwardness is further amplified whenever he deals with the opposite sex, to a point that even his carefully crafted calmness shows cracks here and there. As such, he'd rather just say nothing at all and hope his aloof demeanor gets considered 'cool'. It never does.
Short Biography:
Jae-won was born in Icheon, South Korea, where he spent the first ten years of his life. At the cusp of his eleventh birthday, his parents moved to Toronto, Canada, for his father's work - a prospect which, while exciting at first, turned out a source of anxiety for Jae-won soon enough. Always a shy kid, he turned even more a recluse when thrust into a new country with new people, customs and language. And while he learnt the latter fast enough, he never did grow fully accustomed to the former. It certainly didn't help that despite the big change, his parents' expectations hardly changed. They still expected him to be the top of his class and retain his previous academic score. After all, they hoped he'd one day achieve a high paying job like his father and help keep the family's finances steady for years to come. Stressed, desperate and in his teenage years, Jae-won did something he'd considered unthinkable previously: he acted out and rebelled.
That was, until his parents' sudden divorce. Jae-won was not told any details, and he never dared ask. All he knew was that one day, his father no longer came back, and his mother was left with the tough task of raising him alone. Stabbed with a sudden jolt of guilt, Jae-won went back to being the perfect, polite son to the best of his ability, taking on what little jobs he could to help provide for the family. This did come with an unfortunate trade-off, however; his studies suffered. During all this time, League was Jae-won's secret escape, a way to let out steam and forget all his stress and responsibilities for a while.
Upon graduating high school, Jae-won focused on finding more jobs instead of furthering his education, a decision his mother found regretful - yet could not deny the need for. At least, until two years ago, she found a new love. He wasn't as well-off as Jae-won's father had been, yet he was a nice man and did take financial burden off the rest of the family regardless. Jae-won could not say he felt any particular attachment towards him, but he tolerated him well enough. And while vary of his new sister at first, after a few years spent as siblings, Jae-won has started to somewhat relax around her. He looks up to her determination and fire, she finds him cute, much to his dismay.
With his financial contributions no longer necessary, Jae-won finally applied for college. A little later than most, but later is always better than never, he supposes. He chose a college in Darkwell, where his stepsister attends university. He lives with her temporarily, until he manages to find a place of his own - a wish he hopes gets fulfilled sooner rather than later, as his sister recently got a boyfriend. It's... awkward being the third wheel.
As for his studies, as it has turned out so far, college hasn't been quite as taxing as he'd expected, either, and he now finds himself with a surprising amount of free time compared to a few years ago. He has dedicated all that freetime for League, and has quickly risen the ranks all the way to Challenger. Such success did come with a cost, however; once a game he played for fun, League has now become a prospective job. School and traditional worklife, Jae-won has found, are not things he enjoys or is particularly good at. So if he does want a job that brings in money... perhaps it's time to look elsewhere.
Summary:
Nerd with big dreams and a short temper.
Other:
- Has multiple accounts on both NA and KR servers, since he travels between the two countries often. He has made one in EUW as well, but the high ping has deterred him from playing on it much. His NA and KR ranks fluctuate between Challenger and Grandmaster (depending on whether it's exam season.)
- Mains jungle, with support as his secondary role. Sometimes, when he's grown too frustrated with soloq ADCs, he dabbles into that role as well - mostly on smurf accounts that people don't know are his, since he isn't terribly good at it.
- His favorite junglers are Evelynn and Elise, but he has a fair amount of expertise with many others as well. At one point, he played a lot of Camille in particular.
- With many westerners, Jae-won tends to go by the name "Jace" to ease pronunciation woes. It has nothing to do with the champion called Jayce.
- When nervous, fiddles with whatever is available. Mostly his phone - whether it's turned on or not - but in its absence, pens, hair or sleeves will do.
I was waiting for DThar's post and a few replies to my question(s) from earlier. I can get a post in on Sunday if no one has done it before then though, and have Ardour suggest a name for the party (fair warning, leaving it up to him is not advisable).
Crimson Flame,
wanderingwolf,
Majoraa,
Snowdrops,
Abstract Proxy,
Guardian Angel Haruki,
The World,
BrokenPromise,
Digizel,
TheMushroomLord
