Fathomless Sunset - Letramenia

Deleted User - 819397

A short distance down the vine, Iatairris stopped moving, though she couldn't determine why. "Um, guys? The air's broken…" she called up. It was at this point that the ghostly Gemina appeared. "Oh, hey Gemina! You know air, could you YIKE!" the specter had knocked her off the vine, though she was falling at a rather slow rate. "Ohhh…so THAT'S why you said be careful…couldn't make it too easy, right?" She giggled. "Ok then, let's get down there!" She tucked and somersaulted in the air, her staff/lance appearing in her hand as she did so. A quick motion below her and a crystal appeared, thin and platformlike. It existed just long enough for her to jump off of, only to be replaced by one above her, which she shoved herself from forcefully for speed. "You should know, Gemina…I spent hours bouncing around my cave back home…a lot more dangerous than here, if not as high. If there's one thing I know about my ability, it's how to manipulate my position! Woo hoo!!!" Another pair of crystals and she was continuing to head downwards, though now angled back at the vine so she could grab onto it and swing further down. "Come on you guys, this is great!!!" she called up, laughing ecstatically.
 

DeletedUser

Watching Iatairris knocked off the vine and recover Wallace stops Whisper from descending ahead of him. "I think this might be better if I carry you down. Your powers don't seem like they would stop you from getting knocked off of the rope. Though I can't make a path down allow me to give you a safer decent." Offering a hand to the girl he extends his other hand to grab the rope and locks his gauntlet around it.
 
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DeletedUser

[FONT=&quot]Whisper gasped at Iatairris' travel down the hole. That was not what Whisper was expecting to happen. First Iatairris was stopped from going, then what appeared to be Gemina’s ghost made Iatairris lose her grip on the vine. But, Iatairris was still laughing with glee. “Iatairris… are you alright? Stop playing, and get down to the bottom so we can have our turn. "Why thank you, Wallace that would be wonderful!" Whisper exclaimed. “Iatairris has hold of the vine again, so let’s wait for her to finish her descent. I am doubtful it would hold all three of us at once.” Whisper took hold of Wallace’s hand, and peered over the edge to see if Iatairris had made it safely yet. [/FONT]
 

DeletedUser28032

Getting back up onto his feet Kaiden joins Red as they start making their way back to the dining hall in order to say their farewells to the friendly villagers before planning their next move.
Suddenly there was a flash of light and a harsh whistling sound as something passed close by him and Red followed by a heavy thud as the blade buried itself deep into halls door post. Spinning around he catches sight of a figure fleeing to the south and turns to follow, shouting over his shoulder "Jokir, to me!" as he did so wanting the assassin to know that trouble was a foot.
Sprinting after the man it soon became clear that he wouldn't catch up with the man who had already had a considerable head start before the hunter had even begun to react. Skidding to a halt Kaiden holds out his right arm as if trying to reach something on the other side of the world, causing tree roots to burst from the ground like the tentacles of some great sea creature and grapple the mans legs and arms so as to pin him in place. Drawing his bow from across his shoulder he then proceeds to knock an arrow in a leisurely fashion as he continues to move towards the would-be assassin at a more sedate pace. They were surrounded by trees so if the man escaped his first attempt more roots and branches would simply appear from elsewhere until he was eventually caught, though it was perhaps in his targets interest not to struggle after all the trees were old and sturdy and it wouldn't be the first time that they had inadvertently removed a limb.
 

DeletedUser13682

Akana was ready to apologize to Tempa, and was close to entering the communal hut, when a sharp, high pitched noise, originating from a source moving behind her head, from left to right (the Amrywiol Āvāza effect of changing sound based on relative speeds). A faint AAE determined that it was moving very fast, very deadly. A sharp thwack a second later revealed the object, a wickedly curved dagger that had missed Akana by a few simta. Almost immediately, Kaiden sprang into action, chasing after a fleeing figure. Kaiden, however, was too slow. The distance too far to make up, based on a quick estimate of both figures’s relative velocities. Akana jumped onto the rooftops, willing the wind to carry her forward in pursuit. As the roofs turned to trees, Akana saw a strange sight. The suspect was currently tangled in trees.

Reaching the suspect’s current location (not that he was moving anywhere), Akana looked at the man before leaping down. This man did have a hood, and seemed creeperish. This must be the hooded man that was stalking the village. Jumping next to him, Akana was reminded of a chapter from a book she had read a long time ago. A horror story that took place in a cabin in the woods, one chapter involved a woman running from the monsters that were inside the cabin. However, the monsters followed her and took over the trees, grabbing her and binding her in a similar manner the hooded creeper was currently bound. Summoning her sword, Akana calls over to Kaiden. “Release him. I would like him with me to duel.”
 

DeletedUser28032

A small smile touches the rangers lips as arrives in time to find Red stood beside the hooded man sword drawn; her method of pursuit far quicker than his "He can't talk if you kill him" he stated calmly, his eyes never once leaving the bound man "...perhaps once we have learnt all we can from him we can see if he's capable of fighting fairly" he'd always considered throwing knives to be rather dirty tricks, a weapon designed to murder an unwary opponent and one usually unaware that he was even under attack "So tell me before I allow my friend to use you for weapons training who are you? And what are you doing here?"
 

DeletedUser31931

Jokir heard Kaiden shout and glanced round. "I'd better go." He said and pelted outside at full force, his shadow slipping up and solidifying into his knife as he went. He soon caught up with the ranger to see the hooded figure caught in some roots with Kaiden aiming his bow at him, and Akana asked Kaiden to let him go so that she could duel him. Jokir certainly wouldn't, but he wasn't a dueller so that made sense. As the ranger went over to the man though, Jokir followed. He listened as Kaiden made his threat, and waited for the man to speak, if he refused to then Jokir would offer his services, he had learnt over the years how to make men talk.
 

Apelatia

Well-Known Member
Eternal Staircase

Gemina giggled softly from her hiding place as Iatairris took the new challenge in her stride, using crystal platforms to accelerate her movement, and allow the young girl to bound around the trunk's interior with ease. "I should have known better than to hit you, I know..." Gemina chuckled to herself, thought no one would have been able to hear her... Perhaps one more challenge... The brown-haired woman contemplated for a few moments before deciding against the idea. Meanwhile, Iatairris had reached the ground level, whereupon she discovered a dry bed of golden-coloured leaves that glimmered faintly due to the shine of the lowest teardrop lanterns which revealed the 'steps which weren't there'... In the side of the tree trunk, a plain wooden door stood; it would be safe to assume that this door led to the outside world. In contrast to the doors in the tree-house that lay concealed above, this door was unadorned, and lay bare, except for a small knob, meant for opening and closing the door. From out of the air, Gemina suddenly reappeared, before giving Iatairris a knowing smile, through which could be discerned happiness and pride for what her new student had achieved. "You did well Iatairris. If I may ask, do you perhaps have a shortened name that I, and the others could know you by?" While Gemina waited for the crystal-wielding girl to respond, she called up to Whisper and Wallace. "The air is still, the vine is strong, and no harm is to come to you both. You are free to come down both of you!" Meanwhile, the woman waited for Iatairris' response, and for the duo to reach the base of the trunk stairwell.


Tretana Village

The hooded man hadn't had long to run, before he found himself caught in the roots of a tree that had suddenly sprung from the ground. After a few moments of precarious dangling, the man managed to maneuver himself around to face two of the intruders, a scowl on his face. The man with the bow looked tired, as though he had slightly overexerted himself, but the other two appeared to be in good shape. This he confirmed in his mind when the woman asked the bowman to release him, challenging him to a duel, before...making a sword appear? His astonishment as he had first been captured by the roots of the ground, and now he was seeing a woman summoning...a weapon...? "What are you?" he sneered at both Kaiden and Akana in a sly, creepy voice. "You summon roots, you make weapons to appear... Do not think that I do not know of your kind foul intruders..." The man grimaced, before continuing, as Jokir arrived on the scene. "'Keep watch over the western forest' they told me...and that I did, but you... you of the forgotten people... Why do you stalk these lands...What force is in the land that would will your kind back into being...? So many questions, but so little time. Duel you I will foul Ancslá woman..." The man ignored Kaiden's questions, before stating, "You both will watch from over there. Here he pointed towards the west, where there lay a field. Your Ancslá and I shall duel in this area..." Snickering, the man made a gesture with his free arm, outlining the perimeter of the proposed duelling arena. "Let me off of your root platform, and we will begin."

[SPOIL]Braet, the Iatairris lesson applies for Kaiden too. You planted roots from afar, and the further away you are, the more energy the task will consume. Of course, this energy output will have decreased by a great margin as you neared the scene, but Kaiden will have lost perhaps a third of his energy in his further-away state. Just a heads up. [/SPOIL]
 
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DeletedUser31931

Jokir nearly laughed as the man decided that he would challenge them to a fight. He smashed the man in the stomach and said "Now then, I'd answer my friend's questions first, otherwise I can make life very uncomfortable, if you know who we are you'll know what we can do, and my powers enable me to do things like this." His shadow raised, forming a knife made purely out of shadow and moved up to the man before dissipating. "So I'd suggest you answer the questions, or your situation can get a lot more... painful."
 

DeletedUser13682

Disappointedly, Kaiden wasn’t willing to release the stranger for combat, at least not without getting information from him. That wasn’t very fun. Luckily for Akana, the man seemed more than willing to duel her, after he went through a journey of confusion, understanding, and utter contempt. Akana didn’t know what an Ancslá was, but the way the man said it, the word seemed to be offensive. After the man described the desired arena of on one on one combat, Akana began to grin, a combination of elation and deviousness. “Release him,” Akana told Kaiden. “He would like with me to duel. I can not to wait.” However, before he could be released, Jokir came up, and punched the man in the stomach. That wasn’t very sporting of him. He too, made threats towards the man; it seemed neither of Akana’s current companions had the right stuff. “Release him,” Akana ordered Kaiden again. “Strike me also,” Akana ordered Jokir. “I wish this fight fair to make.”
 

DeletedUser

[FONT=&quot]Whisper heard Gemina call up to them, that the way was safe and they were free to come down. Whisper turned back to Wallace and said “Wallace, thank you kindly for your offer, but it looks like no harm will come to us now. I will go first, and see you at the bottom. “ Whisper’s stomach then growled this loud sound, which echoed in the narrow passage, and she giggled. It had been a while since they last ate. Whisper thought, if there is nothing to eat when we get down there, I will have to eat this vine. She immediately started thinking of what vegetables she could grow, to compliment the kudzu vine stew. She giggled again, then scampered down the vine, and was soon at the bottom.[/FONT]
 

DeletedUser

Mezonas turned and moved back into the Room of Eternal Glorious Light and Endless Joy, closing the door behind him. Arkadi followed as the hippie prophet traveled through the halls back to the staircase they had entered through the previous night.
Mezonas has picked up his pace, and was bounding down the stairway. Arkadi matched his pace, leaping down, taking several stairs at a time.
Eventually the tree ended and they arrived back in the forest glade, now deserted.
Skidding to a halt, Arkadi caught his breath before speaking. "So brave leaf oracle, what must I do now?"
 

DeletedUser28032

As Red continued to harass him over letting her duel the man and Jokir offered to torture him, Kaiden merely held up a single hand to silence the pair before speaking, holding both arrow and bow stave with one hand so that the arrow merely rested upon the stave with no pressure behind it "Who told you to watch the forest? And why?" he said continuing to question the man; ignoring the threats and insults directed his way as he always did under these situations.
Upon hearing whatever answers the man supplied him with Kaiden gave a single nod of understanding before whirling around to drive his fist into Red's stomach with enough force to double her over "we wouldn't want you to see the blow coming so you could tense your muscles now would we?" he teased as he gave the girl a friendly pat on the back follow by a brief hand gesture causing the roots to release their grip on the man's legs and disappear back into the ground "Well...have fun you two, don't make to much of a mess...come Jokir lets us take a seat this should prove most entertaining"
 

DeletedUser31931

Jokir waited and listened to the man's response, but before he could decide on how to act, Kaiden punched Red and then let the man go. He told Jokir to take a seat and Jokir deferred to the older man's instruction. As they sat down to watch the fight he spoke "You know, I don't think I ever asked, how long have you lived for Kaiden? What do you do with your life, unable to form friendships. I only lost my friends a good 50 years ago, and I didn't have that many to start with anyway..." Jokir tailed off, memories of the others coming back, they had worked in a group, but as they'd all gotten older and lost their touch, he'd stayed strong, fast and agile, still slipping into the shadows with ease. He'd discovered his powers by accident on a job that had gone badly wrong, but after that there was no stopping him, he'd become a master thief, kidnapper, watcher, bodyguard from the shadows. He would do anything shady and the name Jokir became legend, the thief who would not die, rumours spread about it being an order, and so he made it one, he trained people, to be the best thieves in the world, and demanded nothing of it, for sixty years he'd done that now, and then the invitation had arrived, and he'd decided that maybe what had happened to him had a higher purpose. So he'd gone to investigate, and now it appeared it hadn't.
 

Deleted User - 819397

Iatairris had reached the ground, grabbing the vine and swinging around rapidly for the last few feet to kill her momentum. Gemina then reappeared and told her she'd done well, causing the younger girl to beam happily. She was then asked if there was a shortened name she could be called by. "My name IS really long, I guess…hmm…I've never had a nickname before…why not just Irris? That way it's two nice syllables for you!" She waved to Whisper as the woman joined them, then waited for Wallace to descend as well so that they could be given further instructions.
 

DeletedUser

Wallace watched as Gemina reappeared at the bottom of the hole and shouted up that there would be no more trouble on the way down. Wallace allowed Whisper to go down herself as she wished and followed suit shortly after she touched ground. Upon reaching the ground Wallace picked up the now cool piece of metal and returned it to his armor, upon doing this he notices Gemina and Iatairris talking about making a nickname for the latter. "Irris? Why are you trying to come up with a nickname? Your name isn't too much of a mouthful though I would balk at the idea of trying to spell it...."
 
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DeletedUser28032

"I am five hundred...and...Nineteen..." Kaiden replied to the question screwing his face up in concentration; thankful that he'd learnt his numbers so that he was capable of answering such a question "As for what I do I spend most of my time patrolling the wilderness keeping the bandits and wildlife in check...put it this way when was the last time you heard of a warlord in these parts?" he couldn't be everywhere at once but those he did track down seldom lived long enough to gather followers.
Purposefully ignoring the question of friendships Kaiden instead turns his attention back to the duel for several seconds before speaking again "So...judging from what you've seen so far do you reckon they're right about this army or just trying to fish us in"
 
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Apelatia

Well-Known Member
Eternal Staircase

Gemina smiled once Iatairris had stated that she wouldn't mind being referred to as Irris, and also explaining that the new words was only two syllables long, making it easier for her companions to say. "Two syllables... Irris... I like it!" Gemina repeated the name a few more times before saying again, "Irris... It rolls off the tongue in a pleasant way doesn't it?" As Whisper and Wallace reached the bottom, Gemina gave another smile. She was quite obviously enjoying having new companions, even if she was the one instructing them... "You know, I've lived a life alone with my father for so long that it's nice to have you three with me... I'm sure that we're going to get along well." The woman paused momentarily, before starting again. "It's time to leave our abode. I won't be able to so effectively test your abilities with challenges as I have here for reasons that I might explain later... We will have to resort to other methods... Ah... Anyway, let us be going!" Striding forwards, Gemina walked to the side of the tree trunk, and turned a door knob embedded in the wood, whereupon opening the door. A waft of fresh air drifted over the travellers as Gemina led them outside of the treehouse abode, closing the door behind her.

The section of the forest into which they had emerged faced north; a narrow, scarcely-used path winded its way underneath the canopy into the distance. Lining this path were a multitude of berry bushes and fruit trees of all shapes and sizes: gooseberries, blackberries, redcurrants, sloes, redcurrants, apples and plums... A juicy paradise for a fruit lover's stomach. "Mezonas and I have tended and nurtured these fruit plants for many decades. Autumn is the prime season for many of these... I've brought four sacks along for each of us, which you can sling across your shoulder. There is a waterskin inside of each, and room enough to carry enough fruit to keep you going for a few days..." Gemina gave Whisper a quick look, knowing that the other woman especially would appreciate the time and effort required to sustain a small grove, before placing three of the small bags on the floor. This done, she went about collecting her own supply of fruit to survive on. This task completed, she returned to the location of the door, and sat down in the path, waiting for the others to finish collecting for themselves. Once the others had done what they needed to do, Gemina spoke again, "We will be able to fill our waterskins a short while from here. Tonight, we will make camp, and will discuss what the first stage of our journey will contain... Do any of you have questions as of now?"



Tretana Village

The man groaned in pain as Jokir punched him in the stomach, causing the hooded man to snicker again, "Foolish boy. You don't seem to know any self control..." The man ignored the rest of Jokir's demands and Kaiden's questions, concentrating solely on Akana, who now wanted to make the duel fair by being struck herself, which the other man promptly did. The two men then left to spectate; the not-so-foolish one letting him lose from the root platform. Free to move as he wished, the hooded man turned his back on Akana; walked back a few paces; before turning again to face the woman. Reaching with his right hand across his body, the man drew a curved sword from his belt. The weapon having previously been concealed within the interior of his cloak. Twirling the weapon around with his hand, he spoke again, "Duel me you will Ancslá. Do not think to presume that I am a weakling to be toyed with. ...and if your friends interfere, they will pay the price. You must agree to this." Snickering again, the man began to pace towards the right, meanwhile waiting for the woman to draw her own weapon...


The Forest Glade

The corner of Mezonas' mouth turned upwards in a slight smile when Arkadi referred to him as the 'Leaf Oracle'. "If I was to be an oracle, I would be the 'Water Oracle', but alas I am not, and I do not wish to be either. "If you are to travel with us, we must run to catch up with our companions. We must take the long way around this area of the forest to reach our friends... The forest surrounding the Hall is too dense for us to travel through it by normal means... We must run. Follow, Arkadi. Let us hope that you have stamina enough to maintain my pace." Mezonas gave a last, longing look towards his home, before turning to face the exit to the glade. Sprinting forwards, he ran out through the entrance, and turned east, running seemingly at random throughout the trees. The ancient man didn't stop, but rather expected that Arkadi would be following...
 

DeletedUser13682

The waiting was starting to get annoying. The man was right there; the only thing stopping the duel was Kaiden’s vines, a dirty trick if you asked Akana. No honour at all in that. Where was the fun and the thrill in the chase and the combat? Where was the thrill in just holding the guy still while you sauntered up to him, ready to slit his throat like a sacrifice at Teliafo’s temple. Akana sighed. This was boring now as well. She was about to appeal to Kaiden again, when he punched her in the stomach, causing her to double over as the breath left her body for a few moments and her sword disappeared. Recovering, Akana smiled at Kaiden, then turned to the man, who had just been released. They walked over to the clearing, where the man drew a curved sword that was hidden from view in his cloak. It looked like a kilij.

The man set a simple term; Kaiden and Jokir were not to interfere. “I agree,” responded Akana. Was he trying to insult her by saying that? Why would they interfere? It was a duel. Unless you had no honour, you never brought anyone else into a duel. Maybe he had bad experiences with dueling. “I hope you well to duel,” Akana said, before summoning her sword. As the man circled around, Akana followed. She wouldn’t make the first move today. She felt as if he knew a thing or two about dueling; therefore, Akana would wait for him to attack, see how good he really was, and move on from there.
 

DeletedUser31931

Jokir pondered Kaiden's question about the army. "We've seen no evidence of it so far, but maybe our hooded friend will shed some light on its existence." He was in two minds, he wanted to believe that there was some higher purpose, that he really was here to do something, but over the last 100 years he'd grown sceptical of what it was all for. He helped the people with no future now, the street orphans and those thrown out of society, he helped them get their own back, but what next? He couldn't just do that forever, what sort of life would that be? His problem was that he did not have many skills suited to other things. That said, he had plenty of time to learn new skills, maybe he could remain in touch with Kaiden after this. It would be nice to have a friend in whom he could trust, and Kaiden seemed the trustworthy type and it would also be nice to have someone who wouldn't age and die as he remained young. That had stopped him from forming any real attachment in the past forty years, but it did get quite lonely.
 
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