Fantasy Character Castle Chronicles n.1
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The man’s hand was raised just above shoulder level, palm outward. Virtus took it as a greeting. “Virtus, Virtue; son of Fidus, Trustworthy,” the man said, and Virtus furrowed his eyebrows as he sorted through the string of words. “I am Nithel, son of Father.”
Aren’t most people sons of their father? Does his father not have a name? Or is he like Rebere? Virtus offered a friendly smile, noticing the way the man stepped slightly in front of the other. Were they brothers? They didn’t look especially alike, but Nithel certainly acted like a protective sibling. A slew of words escaped his mouth on accident. “Nice to meet you. Sorry, but I don’t know the meaning of Nithel. Does Virtus really mean virtue? I was always told it meant strength.” He shrugged. “And yeah, Fidus means trustworthy. Or stalwart. Or pretty much everything else like that.” He laughed a little. These people didn’t need an up-tight soldier, especially if he wanted to get some information from them.
The man lowered his hand, giving Virtus a look the soldier couldn’t quite interpret. Confusion, maybe?
Virtus took a seat on a nearby windowsill, trying to look relaxed. He scanned the room once, not making eye contact, just assessing the present situation. It was a habit he kept trying to make less obvious. Drawing his attention back to the two young men, he offered a cheerful grin and locked eyes with the younger brother. The lad’s eyes were frightened, but Virtus could see he was doing his best to keep his chin up. Better play it gently. “Are those books? If you don’t mind my asking, what are you reading?”
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Virtus smiled softly, glancing over Nithel and Alessio. “Nice to meet you. Sorry, but I don’t know the meaning of Nithel. Does Virtus really mean virtue? I was always told it meant strength.” Virtus shrugged, not waiting for a reply, though Nithel could have given one. “And yeah, Fidus means trustworthy. Or stalwart. Or pretty much everything else like that.” He laughed a little.
Nithel’s loose brows lowered the smallest bit, but his face wasn’t serious, just watching. Judging. He lowered his hand.
Virtus took a seat on a ledge, shoulders loosening, and one leg sprawled further out than necessary. He wasn’t worried. But then Virtus’ eyes ran over the room, anad Nithel doubted such was true. He was nervous.
Then his eyes came back to Nithel and Alessio, a smile lighting his face, making his teeth show. Good teeth, surprisingly good teeth. But the eyes went past Nithel then, assumably to Alessio.
Nithel turned his head some to see his friend.
“Are those books? If you don’t mind my asking, what are you reading?” Virtus asked.
Nithel’s brows went up and his gaze went back to Virtus. ‘Books’, good to know.
Nithel was about to say they were looking for a map, but, thought better of it, and glanced to Alessio again.
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@this-is-not-an-alien @joelle-stoneJominkreesa
'Forth now! And fear no darkness!'
“Virtus, Virtue; son of Fidus, Trustworthy,” Why are you translating everyone’s names? Alessio tilted his head at Nithel quizzically. “I am Nithel, son of Father.”
This was ok, this wasn’t so bad as long Virtus was talking to Nithel he could just listen, that wouldn’t be too stressful or anything..
“Nice to meet you. Sorry, but I don’t know the meaning of Nithel.” Oh, he wasn’t the only one trying to follow suit with everyone else, that was mildly comforting. “Does Virtus really mean virtue? I was always told it meant strength. And yeah, Fidus means trustworthy. Or stalwart. Or pretty much everything else like that.” He laughed. Alessio mentally noted that Virtus talked a lot when he was in an awkward/tense situation. He was also very wary of his surrounding. Dropping to the nearby windowsill Virtus attempted to seem cheerful as he made eye contact with him.
“Are those books? If you don’t mind my asking, what are you reading?” In response Alessio glanced down at the book. If you make me talk I’m going to say something stupid and probably somewhat morbid. Was Nithel going to help him? No, he was going to have to talk after all but he didn’t have the slightest notion how to causally converse with anyone. ‘Are those books?’ seemed like the kind of obvious question that begged a sarcastic answer which Alessio swallowed so hard he didn’t dare open his mouth yet.
Since he hadn’t read enough to answer what he was reading, Alessio handed Virtus the book.
“I was looking for any maps or clues about this place. The most effectual means of finding a way out would be to accumulate resources and systemize a strategy based off that.” As long as Nithel was there Alessio could manage this much communication, but he still wasn’t used to being noticed or at least not used to being noticed in a positive way at all and it grated against every instinct of self-preservation.
“You were a soldier? Is there any stratagem you’ve used to handle a similar situation before?”To be a light to the world you must shine in the darkness.
Virtus took the book from the lad, noticing the insecurity in his eyes. This one had a past that troubled him. Just like everyone else on the planet, Virtus thought.
“I was looking for any maps or clues about this place. The most effectual means of finding a way out would be to accumulate resources and systemize a strategy based off that.” The lad spoke with eloquence. Was he a noble? “You were a soldier?” he continued. “Is there any stratagem you’ve used to handle a similar situation before?”
Were? It was hard not to notice the lad’s past-tense wording. Did he know? Or was Virtus now trapped here, and a soldier no longer, whether or not he’d deserted? “Uh… not really. I’ve never been randomly dropped from a solid ceiling before.” Virtus felt a little uncomfortable, so he turned away from the other two’s eyes and to his book.
The book didn’t have anything to do with strategies, especially not ones involving escaping a castle overseen by some creepy dude’s uncle. Virtus wasn’t especially interested, until he had rapidly skimmed halfway through the book and noticed the pictures.
People. Lots of people. Most weren’t smiling, some looked scared, others angry, others confused. Each page began with a word, which seemed like a name, mounted above a person’s portrait. Beneath the portrait was a paragraph about the person. A book of characters? Or a biography?
Virtus did a quick scan of the room, then flipped to the front of the book and let his eyes skim the page more carefully than he had last time. The small, perfectly neat handwriting hurt his eyes and made his head swim, but he buckled down to read it. The first gazillion pages were copyright, whatever that was, then a few paragraphs of pure gibberish.
Giving up on the first section, Virtus picked a place in the middle and started reading.
…worlds. You who have questions that need answering, prepare to have those answered. This is the purpose.
Huh? Confused now, Virtus turned a couple pages and read another paragraph.
…danger is real. The injuries will hurt, you will need food, water, and rest. Death is possible, and has stained my stones before. This is the purpose.
Virtus looked up and met Nithel’s eyes, then the lad’s. “It’s some kind of journal, or something, written to the reader.”
Nithel didn’t respond, but the lad’s eyes grew wide.
“Look at this,” Virtus added, reaching for a table and dragging it nearer. He turned to the end of the book and spread it out on the table, running his fingers over the pictures. “People.”
The boy came over to Virtus’ side and studied the pictures. “Aragorn,” he read slowly. He studied the picture for a bit, then flipped the page over. “Jadis. Who are these people?”
Virtus studied the words. It was just a brief history, but something caught his eye. Beneath the woman Jadis’ portrait, and at the bottom of the page, there was one line, written with a human hand. From Charn.
Inspiration struck, and Virtus turned pages back rapidly. From Aerwiar, read another, then From Arrethtrae, from Arda, from Badon Hill.
“Worlds,” Virtus murmured, remembering the previous word.
“I beg your pardon?” Nithel asked.
Shaking his head, Virtus flipped farther until he came near to the end. There it was. From VaSerBo.
Lytt.
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@kimlikesart @this-is-not-an-alien @rusted-knight @anne_the_noob14 @skylarynn @sylvain-alistairHope it’s okay that I did that. I figured it might be cool if these weren’t the first people “Lord Castle” *wink wink at Cathy* trapped. Maybe the people from Lewis and Tolkiens’ books were developed here, out of pure imagination? If that’s too weird, let me know and I’ll change it. 😉
“Look at this.”
Isaac listened closely. There was a slight flutter. A page being turned.
“People.”
Closing the chamber that held the detonators, he lifted the pack to his back. Time to work a bit. Approaching from the side, Isaac saw the pictures. Nothing seemed special but his line of work taught him that any little detail could be important.
“Aragorn, Jadis. Who are these people?”
The man continued to turn pages. Isaac saw a pattern to the pictures. Some had a red background while others were white. The order of appearance seemed to be random. Then Virtus stopped. His face was frozen. He saw something he did not expect. Looking at the page, Isaac saw a picture of Lytt. Across from her was a picture of Dharin. Both had white backgrounds.
In an instant, Isaac saw a chance to glean information. Taking the book from Virtus, Isaac turn to the previous page. Teagan was there with a red background. Red must mean those who died in the castle and white was for those who were returned. Flipping back to the last page, Isaac returned the book.
“It’s a record. Dharin and Lytt were here until an hour ago.”
The Devil saw me with my head down and got excited. Then I said Amen
@joelle-stone OHHH DAAANG I like that!!!
(Am not inspired to write at this present moment, so I’ll let you guys write a few more entries and then see what’s up 😉 )
“Enough! Be quiet! I can’t hear myself think! I can’t hear my teeth chatter!"
Vulferym seemed mildly stunned by Brendin’s feral gaze and the hard edge in his voice. Finally he said: “I have already introduced myself, or did you not hear?”
Brendin realized he’d be wasting time with the man and turned away towards where many of the others were clustered around a book.
“It’s a record. Dharin and Lytt were here until an hour ago.”
Brendin hung back a little from the group but close enough he could still see what was on the page. So they weren’t on Haven…then the Maeres* weren’t here… Suddenly Brendin’s outlook was much more optimistic.
“Wait, we should be in here,” Virtus said, flipping a few pages past Dharin and Lytt. He turned one page too many. Instead of ‘Virtus’ across the page, it read ‘Brendin Warin’ and below showed an image of Brendin in the desert, the sleeve of his jacket uncuffed to show his syne glowing orange against his arm and his eyes fiery gold. Brendin could not help but read over Virtus’s shoulder – though it wasn’t the page he’d intended to find the soldier still stopped to study it.
From Haven
Formerly Lord Brendin Warin, son of the Lady Warin. Now a Maere of Ingor, though he has escaped. Bears a fire syne. His magic is unstable and volatile as his soul has been damaged, perhaps irreparably so. He may turn completely fey before the end, if he is not already.
Before he finished reading Brendin could feel the eyes of the others on him.
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*I changed the spelling from Mares to Maeres to better distinguish the villains of Brendin’s story from female horses. Sorry for any confusion.
"Remember, you go nowhere by accident. Wherever you go, God is sending you." - Rev. Peter R. Hale
“It’s a record. Dharin and Lytt were here until an hour ago.” The man with the long coat tapped the page, then turned back to Lytt’s entry and handed the book over.
“Just an hour?” Virtus asked, shaking his head. He quickly noted that the man carried many strange apparatuses that looked like they could be used as weapons. (?) Best be careful with this one. “But Lytt hasn’t been gone. She just went scouting. One odd thing was that…” he trailed off. “Oh wait.”
“What?” Nithel asked, but Virtus was already blazing ahead.
“We should be in here,” he muttered, flipping rapidly. World names began at A again, and the backgrounds changed from white and red to full pictures. These were present.
Something caught Virtus’ eye, and he stopped turning pages. It was Brendin. He was standing in the desert, a orange symbol emblazoned on his arms, his eyes burning with fire. Did he… was he… impossible.
Brendin Warin, the name read. Formerly Lord Brendin Warin, son of the Lady Warin. Now a Maere of Ingor, though he has escaped. Bears a fire syne. His magic is unstable and volatile as his soul has been damaged, perhaps irreparably so. He may turn completely fey before the end, if he is not already.
From Haven
Virtus looked up as a shadow fell across the page. Brendin was there. Tensing, Virtus felt for his sword hilt. His magic is unstable. Had his power gained control? The words if he is not already had an ominous ring.
“Hey, Brendin,” Virtus offered as cheerfully as he could. “Is this you?”
Brendin nodded silently.
Suddenly the lad reached forward and grabbed the book. “I want to see something,” he murmured.
“What?” Virtus asked.
“Vulferym.”
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@this-is-not-an-alien @kimlikesart @skylarynn @rusted-knight @anne_the_noob14 @silvain-alistairHope I portrayed your guys’ characters all right… 🙂
“Uh…not really. I’ve never been randomly dropped from a solid ceiling before.” Virtus shifted his gaze to the books while Alessio gave the ceiling one last confused glance. This was awkward and uncomfortable and he had managed to say something without getting that painful look from Nithel so couldn’t he just relax now? They still had to survive, as his anxiety hastened to remind him.
Virtus began flipping through pages intently before looking up, his eyes brushed Alessio’s a second which wasn’t something he was used to anymore.
“It’s some kind of journal, or something, written to the reader.” When he was kidnapped by a serial murderer, Alessio had scribbled in the margins of books constantly, in part to keep his sanity and also in the hopes someone might find it or him in time. It wasn’t exactly something he wanted to remember but the only person he knew who would have orchestrated this…
“Look at this,” Alessio was too busy wincing at the eerily noisy screeek of the table Virtus dragged. A satisfied smack of the book pressed open and Alessio skimmed over the room as if the sound might reverberate across the walls and yank attention toward them. “People.”
Alessio hesitated before curiosity won over wariness. He’d seen calligraphy winding around sharp curly letters before but never actual drawings in books. Why did they do that instead of portraits or tapestries? Isaac came over and Alessio swallowed the urge to tense.
“Aragorn,” Would Virtus stop flipping the pages so quickly?! “Jadis. Who are these people?”
Maybe if you actually read the book you’d find out…But Virtus was already whirring through pages before Alessio even had a chance to skim the words.
“Worlds,” Virtus murmured
“I beg your pardon?”
Too late. Virtus was already turning over pages again! There was no hope of reading even a paragraph with Virtus holding that book so Alessio gave up.
“Maybe we should write our names in there too, we’ll probably join them soon enough assuming they all abide in the same afterlife.” Alessio muttered almost instantaneously biting his lip and shooting Nithel a sheepish look. He blew it now; Nithel will never stop treating him like a poor lost soul. So Alessio decided to go ahead finish his sarcasm. “…in my highly optimistic viewpoint.”
For once, Virtus lingered on one page which made Alessio peer over his shoulder inquisitively. From Brarlock. Wrong one, he was staring at something else. VaSerBo. Lytt? Alessio glanced at the name and then at Virtus. Lytt sounded like a girl name…
“Who’s that?” Alessio asked, mostly to confirm whether or not he was shipping them by Virtus’ reaction. But Isaac took the book from Virtus and flipped to the last page.
“It’s a record. Dharin and Lytt were here until an hour ago.”
“Just an hour? But Lytt hasn’t been gone. She just went scouting. One odd thing was that…Oh wait.” His hands whizzed through the pages yet again then Alessio caught on to his idea and turned pallid.
Brendin Warin…Bears a fire syne…unstable and volatile…soul has been damaged…
Alessio stared at the book, his eyes widening. If Brendin was there…
“Hey, Brendin. Is this you?” Alessio snatched the book before anyone else could.
“I want to see something,” he murmured
“What?” Silently Alessio ripped out the last pages, including Brendin’s. His fingers shook uncontrollably but the words were gone now and nobody would read them.
“It’s nobody’s business,” he said staring at each one of them individually. “Whoever you are we’re all stuck together now and if we start prying into the other’s secrets we’ll tear each other apart. Then we’ll all die, understand?”To be a light to the world you must shine in the darkness.
@everybody, I’m sorry my character ruined a really awesome plot thread! (but he hasn’t actually destroyed the papers yet if you hurry you might be able to catch them or maybe the mirrors will start showing stuff to everybody or…something). Sorry again XD
To be a light to the world you must shine in the darkness.
“It’s nobody’s business,” he said staring at each one of them individually. “Whoever you are we’re all stuck together now and if we start prying into the other’s secrets we’ll tear each other apart. Then we’ll all die, understand?”
Brendin snatched the book from the boy, flipping quickly back to the page with his name across it. He thought he’d seen something earlier while Virtus was leafing through.
“What are you – ” the boy began to ask, but Brendin flipped the book around to show them the page after his. Across the top it said ‘Avatus Coryphaeus’; the image showed a well-built man dressed in mail and a navy surcoat emblazoned with a pair of white wings as some sort of crest. He looked stern. At his side was a sword.
As with Brendin’s page there was text below:
From Bellum.
Formerly King of Altiorem, now Champion to the Throne. The Godslayer. Bears the legacy of Ignus and the favor of Iracundia; his flames are particularly potent. Has retrieved someone from Terramorta itself.
“I told you,” the boy said, “we shouldn’t pry into others’ secrets – ”
“Look around,” Brendin said softly. They looked. “He isn’t in the room. But he’s in this castle. Somewhere.”
_______________________________________________________________
@this-is-not-an-alien Hopefully Alessio understands why Brendin just did that (and hopefully he’s not now more afraid of Brendin because Brendin just reminded him of abuse or something…)
@sylvain-alistair thought I’d introduce Avatus, hope you don’t mind.
@kimlikesart I bet Nithel’s gonna have fun figuring out all these names once he catches up"Remember, you go nowhere by accident. Wherever you go, God is sending you." - Rev. Peter R. Hale
Alessio passed the book to Virtus. Nithel stood quietly behind Alessio, waiting.
“I was looking for any maps or clues about this place. The most effectual means of finding a way out would be to accumulate resources and systemize a strategy based off that.”
Nithel blinked once, Such strange words. He had never met someone who spoke that way. Alessio hadn’t even spoken that way. He had changed his way, for this stranger, again.
Nithel pressed his lips together, still as the new pair spoke back and forth. His heart was open to the new man, but still unsure. Prospecting.
The way Virtus looked at Alessio, he judging as well.
Nithel’s chest tightened, and felt cold. This place was wrong, so wrong. All his skin tingled. He wanted out. He needed out. But how? How did he come here? Did any of them know? Was it all a dream? That made sense.
How else could one fall through stone? Or how else could stone be held into a room? How else could mirror or book exist?
Nithel started watching Alessio instead of Virtus. His friend, Nithel hoped he was real. Nithel’s heart began to throb with the drive, but he didn’t know.
Then something happened that nearly made him jump to the ceiling. There were pictures. Pictures in that book. His eyes widened. Breath no longer breathing, he stared. How in… I just had that in my hands? I saw no images, I know it. This... He dragged in air that scratched his chest. This can’t be real. Too many things are changing, too many impossibilities are happening.
Nithel stared blankly at the images as Virtus flipped through them with abandon. Not even taking the time to seep them in. Art was for eyes to fully comprehend, or hands to feel, and he was wasting it.
But perhaps he was looking for something more. The strategies or maps Eaziziun Wahid had mentioned.
Vitrus’ eyes jumped up to meet Nithel’s a moment, and he blinked rapidly, stunned. But the eyes of the soldier had already moved to Alessio.
“It’s some kind of journal, or something, written to the reader.”
A what? And… written to the reader. Was that not…how it was done? Perhaps that wasn’t always certain? But… Nithel shut his eyes, and stopped trying to process every little thing man said.
“Look at this,” Virtus added, reaching for a table and dragging it nearer. . The screeching of the wood on stone reminded Nithel of the workshop and Amit. I wouldn’t be sleeping now. It’s the middle of a work time.
He opened his eyes reluctantly, though his insides were still trying to understand where he was.
“People.”
Alessio moved closer to Virtus, and Nithel’s stomach tightened. His feet moved him a bit nearer as well. Man had the ability to hurt, and Nithel didn’t want this man to harm Alessio. Though, what could he do?
“Aragorn,” Virtus spoke slowly, eyes fixed on the image.
A name? A place? Nithel swalllowed slowly, his panic subsiding bit by bit. A proverb of Jacine going through his mind, then the sadness that came with his friend’s name brought him completely to reality.
“Jadis. Who are these people?”
Names. Nithel swallowed. He didn’t know the meaning of Aragorn, but didn’t think it a good idea to ask for it at the moment. But Jadis… ‘Sorcery’, or ‘witchcraft’…. His stomach flipped, and his mind felt like it was being gripped.
That was what this was. How? It was outlawed in the Ten, was it not? Did not only the reaches of the Twin States practice such? How… We need to get out. There is always a way. He opened his lips, but no sound came out as another spoke-
“Worlds,”
Nithel’s brows quirked. “I beg your pardon?” Was that woman here? Did she wield the magic? But magic only came for those destined for death.
Nithel’s chin shook the smallest bit. His mental struggle going on.
“Maybe we should write our names in there too,” Alessio spoke now, and Nithel’s soul nearly fell from his chest. Write you name in that book? No. no. no. no. no. no. Nithel wouldn’t let it be an option.
“we’ll probably join them soon enough assuming they all abide in the same afterlife.”
Oof. Nithel’s eyes widened, even as his heart felt cut. But then the eyes Alessio showed Nithel, caused him to realize the youth didn’t know what he was saying. And that brought some peace. But only a bit, What if he did wrong without realizing?
“…in my highly optimistic viewpoint.”
Nay… he didn’t know. No one joked about eternity, unless they didn’t know the full meaning.
Another man then approached then, before an answer could be had. If Nithel had had a reply…
The newcomer was the man like Gabrel, but softer. Broader too.
He reached out and grabbed the book from Virtus, flipping to a different leaf. A man’s image was there, red the color of blood bathed the lead behind him.
The new man paused a moment, staring at it, then turned to the end, sliding the book back to Virtus.
Nithel took a step back, feeling like he was in the way, eyes sliding to Alessio one more time. He would not leave his friend. Ever.
“It’s a record. Dharin and Lytt were here until an hour ago.” The new man spoke.
“Just an hour?” Virtus asked, shaking his head. “But Lytt hasn’t been gone. She just went scouting. One odd thing was that…” he trailed off. “Oh wait…” Then his face tensed a second. “Wait, we should be in here,” Virtus spoke and began that rapid searching yet again. He froze the motion on an image of the other who’d fallen into the room.
Something glowed on his arm. How…strange. Nithel’s brows lowered. *thoughts*
The three other men leaned and looked at the scribbles around the image. Nithel waited, silent.
Then Virtus’ hand went to his side, and the other two men looked toward Brendin, the man in the image.
“Hey…Brendin.” Virtus spoke like one would to a calm anxious dog, or cat. “Is this you?” But a dog or cat that would become lunatic at any second.
Alessio snatched the book before anyone else could. “I want to see something,” he murmured
“What?”
Silently Alessio ripped out the last pages. Nithel’s eyes widened, and he had to agree with the course of action. Though, why so slow? Why not shred out the pieces and rip them to oblivion? Perhaps a fire could be made as well.
Alessio’s fingers trembled, and Nithel again stepped closer.
“It’s nobody’s business,” he said, eyes lifting, and looking over each of them. Nithel felt like a stranger as his friend’s eyes passed over him. “Whoever you are, we’re all stuck together now, and if we start prying into the other’s secrets we’ll tear each other apart. Then we’ll all die, understand?”
Brendin snatched the book from him without another second, flipping through the many remaining pages.
“What are you – ” Alessio spoke, but was ignored.
Brendin flipped the book around to show them a page. The image showed a well-built man dressed in mail and a navy surcoat emblazoned with a pair of white wings as some sort of crest. At his side was a sword.
He looked trustworthy. But even the darkest man could look like light.
Eyes then stared at the page a bit more. Nithel looked over those around them.
“I told you,” Alessio’s tone was hard. “we shouldn’t pry into others’ secrets-”
Nithel’s lips lost their firmness a moment. The last statement of Alessio, how true.
“Look around,” Brendin said softly. “He isn’t in the room. But he’s in this castle. Somewhere.”
Alright. Nithel didn’t get the point. Am I supposed to be afraid? A man with a glowing arm, seems just as fierce. A woman, with ruby lips, and hair dark as night, seems just as frightful. Why is he more to be feared than you?
Or any of them, for that matter.
The man who had yet to join their cluster, the son of Aden, should we not deal with the present problems, before worrying about the future ones?
___________
@rusted-knight @this-is-not-an-alien @joelle-stone @anne_the_noob14 @skylarynn @sylvain-alistairJominkreesa
'Forth now! And fear no darkness!'
The castle— if that’s where he was— appeared to be deserted. He’d been wandering the various corridors and rooms for what felt like nearly an hour, but so far all he’d found were more empty rooms. He reached the end of a short hallway and walked through the doorway. Expecting to see more of the same, his eyebrow went up in mild surprise as he saw the contents. The room was circular with a domed ceiling, firstly. He’d yet to encounter any of that shape. Second however, there were three doors set at regular intervals.
“Which one, I wonder,” he muttered. Shrugging, he walked to the one on the far left. He opened the door and started to take a step forward… before immediately jumping back. In front of him was a deep chasm. The far side of it looked to be several dozen feet away, and the bottom was out of sight.
Avatus quickly closed the door and stepped away from it. “Not that one then.”
More warily, the soldier approached the second door. Expecting danger this time, he also drew and ignited his sword. The steel glinted like gold in the flames. Avatus opened the second door quickly and gripped his weapon. This time the room was dark, though not cavernous like the previous one. A sound emanated from someone inside it. The soldier frowned. It sounded familiar, almost like a bird. He took a step forward, the flames casting light across the stone walls. Something further inside moved. Avatus began to take a more defensive stance—
A mass of fur and feathers slammed into him and threw the weapon from his hand. Claws raked at his armor, though they fortunately didn’t pierce. Rolling onto his back, Avatus drew his dagger and stabbed upwards. An angry squawk came from the creature as it rolled off of him. Avatus rolled to his feet and summoned an orb of fire in his hand and took a step back, only now getting a good look at his attacker.
“A gryphon. Great.”
As if angered by this comment, the gryphon let out a series of chirps. It pawed the ground in front of it and flared its wings. Not waiting for him to come to it, the beast launched itself at Avatus a second time. The soldier slid aside at the last second and slashed at the gryphon’s exposed flank. A shallow cut opened up around its ribs, though Avatus suspected he’d only angered it further.
As if trying to prove him right, the beast immediately turned and snapped at him. This time it was more successful, catching Avatus by the forearm in its bone crushing grasp. Avatus let out a groan of pain, feeling his bracer dig into his arm as they began to give. Opening his left palm, the soldier launched a plume of flame at his attacker. An acrid smell suddenly filled the wide corridor as the fire latched onto the gryphon’s fur. It let out a screech of pain and released its prey.
Avatus didn’t hesitate to recover his sword, grasping it in a two handed grip. He approached his attacker and raised it above his head. A spatter of blood ended the beast’s cries.
Before Alessio could finish purging the book Brendin snatched it away from him.
“What are you–” He halted staring anxiously at the page Brendin opened. Alessio wasn’t completely sure he’d ripped his own page out yet and he wanted the book back before anyone could read it. Someone called ‘Avatus Coryphaeus’ and he had wings…? Maybe that wasn’t all that unusual before the Great War he’d never heard of an ability-born with wings but nobody knew anything about ability-borns anymore except the secret guilds. Maybe a wizar–Alessio caught himself and glared at Brendin.
“I told you, we shouldn’t pry into others’ secrets–”
“Look around. He isn’t in the room. But he’s in the castle. Somewhere.”
That suddenly made Avatus Coryphaeus a concrete character rather than an esoteric historical figure. Did that mean there were people who still knew how to use their powers? ‘;his flames are particularly potent.’ Alessio looked up at Brendin with almost a feeling of kinship. ‘Bears a fire syne…unstable and volatile’. Maybe, just maybe he knew more about…
Hoping no one would notice Alessio flipped through the pages he ripped out until he found his own page.
Alessio Eliakim
Illegitimate son of the queen of Hesgmarde. Gifted with uncontrollable powers growing stronger than any seen since the beginning of the Great War–
Alessio buried the page under his surcoat and burned the rest under the table where assumably no one would notice. ‘Uncontrollable powers’ The glowing heat lingered through his fingers minutes after the light was visibly extinguished. Fear was supposed to kill the use of those abilities but it had only served to damper it just enough he didn’t unconsciously use his powers anymore (usually).
“Do…In your world do people usually have…powers or are accepted with their powers?” Alessio asked Brendin, attempting to sound casual. If there were somebody who actually knew how to use their abilities then there might be mentors or half a chance he could–Alessio bit his lip suddenly realizing the impropriety of the question if they were going to respect each other’s privacy. “Never mind.”
He didn’t look up. For several seconds he didn’t even dare look at his friend. If anyone found out…well, he wasn’t sure how Nithel would respond but he didn’t want to lose everything all over again for the sake of finding out. He just didn’t know what to do yet he needed time to think.
“In any case this book isn’t going to help us escape.” Alessio said snatching the it back again. “The most productive mode of action right now would be to determine who has the qualifications to make executive decisions to avoid unnecessary argument. Then we can…”
Glancing up Alessio caught more than a few confused looks and then realized he’d reverted to the turns of speech he’d learned to use around nobility or people he didn’t know too well or was expected to be formal around. Alessio awkwardly cleared his throat.
“We should agree on a leader before deciding on the next best course of action.” he muttered.
@kimlikesart @rusted-knight @joelle-stone @anne_the_noob14 @skylarynn @sylvain-alistairTo be a light to the world you must shine in the darkness.
“Do…In your world do people usually have…powers or are accepted with their powers?”
Brendin set the book down on the table and unbuttoned the cuff of his jacket sleeve. “Yes,” he said, raising the sleeve to show a black marking on the inside of his forearm. Several burn scars were also visible around it. “Synes are pretty common.”
The syne flashed red as Brendin made a small gesture and an orb of fire flew into his hand from one of the torches. He quickly extinguished it however and lowered his arm, rebuttoning his sleeve.
“Never mind.”
Alessio took the book back, commenting that it wouldn’t help them escape. “We should agree on a leader before deciding on the next best course of action.” he muttered.
Brendin nodded. “I agree,” he said. “And I think we can agree that Vulferym will not be the man in question.”
Here’s what Brendin’s syne looks like:
"Remember, you go nowhere by accident. Wherever you go, God is sending you." - Rev. Peter R. Hale
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