Veralidaine Roleplay

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((Sorry for the wait guys!))

Asher walked along the dirt road, his heavy brown cloak pulled tightly around himself. His hood hung over his head and covered his eyes, though he didn't need to see as he could navigate by sound. He dodged around the humans walking in the opposite direction with ease, and the road itself was pretty straight.

He walked off the road and stopped for a moment. He lifted his hood just enough so he could see what was ahead. The walls of Agustine rose up in the distance, about another half hour of walking and he'd be there.

He had no idea what was going through his great-grandfather's head when he decided to send Asher this far north for some book. The old man must be losing his mind. However, Asher couldn't turn him down.

The sun was now high in the sky, though some clouds had begun to move in and cover it. There was a slight breeze that rustled the grass and the few trees that grew on either side of the path. Despite that, Asher was ridiculously hot, but he had to wear this cloak in case of poachers or whatever else. He knew what humans were like.

He pulled his hood back down and continued on. The road was somewhat busy, though the increasing number of demons tended to keep many people home and off the road. Also, only the most tolerant humans actually went to Agustine, since there were infanima there too. It had only been 68 years since the war between between the races had ended, after all. King Elson III had made Agustine as a place of peace and appointed his family and an infanima family, that of King Alyran, as its dual rulers, allowing both races to mingle there.

Lost in his thoughts, Asher accidentally bumped into someone. His hood started to slide back and he grabbed it, but not before he heard a woman gasp. He darted off the road and into a cluster of trees. He knew she had followed him; he drew his sword and waited for her.

She approached around a tree and came face to face with the blade. She stopped dead, but didn't take her eyes off the cloaked figure.

"I saw... horns. You're a..." she stammered.

"You never saw me," Asher growled. "You'll continue on like you never saw me and not breathe a word about it or I swear..."

He thrust his sword closer and she ran away. After fighting off a few stray demons, he returned to the road.

The rest of the walk was uneventful, and he soon arrived at his destination. The massive stone walls rose up before him, tall and sturdy enough to stave off most demons. Archers were positioned along the top of them to shoot down the airborne ones.

He slipped past the guards at the main gate using his stealth and a group of humans that were passing through and he was finally in. The city sprawled ahead of him, the houses and stores all made of stone and wood. Humans and infanima passed each other on the streets with restrained tolerance. Even after all these years, the city still wasn't the peaceful paradise King Elson had envisioned.

Asher passed by a group of infanima who had cornered a human, a guard who was breaking up a fight, and a male infanima and female human sitting on a bench together. Overall, he questioned the wisdom of making a place like this, though there seemed to be some good.

The library was near the castle. As he moved toward the north end of Agustine, he could see the tall spires of the castle rising up into the sky. The library was dwarfed by the building's overall enormity.

Glad to finally be there, Asher hurried on to the library.

{Attn: Open}

After a lively dinner, Maresca went to the temple as she planned. Once there she quietly went to the training room. She was delighted to see that it was indeed empty. She went to the center of the room to practice her Holy Magic. It was the one thing she took pride in. She is quite frail for a human, so is not a fighter. Also unlike most humans she can only do one magic. From being in the orphanage her healing is well practiced. She starts small with simple balls of light all hitting their mark. She then switches to spears. She tires out quickly after that.

It is after dark when she returns to the orphanage. She goes to the kids room to read them their story. They always love to hear her. She gives them their hugs and kisses, tucks them in, and blows out the candles. She enters the hallway headed to the older kids room. She suddenly gets a nagging prickling sensation in the back of her head. She pauses for a moment placing her hand on the wall. The sensation only worsened and soon she finds herself on her knees clutching her head. Before she could cry out, everything went white.

When she was able to focus, she opened her eyes to a figure standing amongst what appears to be a ruined stone structure. Clouds swirled around covering most of it. The sky was surprisingly blue and filled with clouds too. The figure was wearing a white cloak which covered most of his/her features. Maresca can only make out the mouth and chin. Then it started to speak. The words were very soft and Maresca had to strain to hear them. "...The world's only hope... Go east to the ruins... Claim the power to... defeat demons... If you six don't... world will fall to ruin... Leave at first light... You must..."

The vision quickly faded. Maresca heard footfalls of another person approaching. "Maresca, dear are you alright?" She felt herself being lifted up.

Her eyes had to adjust to the darkness again as she looks to see the Mistress. She says in a softened voice "Yes Ma'am, I guess I was practicing too hard earlier."

The Mistress brushes her hair aside to look into Maresca's eyes. "You know better than to practice so hard. You aren't strong like others. Here let me help you to bed."

Maresca shakes her head "Thank you Ma'am, but I am feeling better now. I can make it to bed on my own." The Mistress releases Maresca, but keeps an eye on her as she goes to her room. Maresca sits down on her bed the words replaying in her head. She wonders what is going on. Why her? She is a nobody, unwanted, overlooked. She gets changed into her nightclothes then goes right to bed, not even staying up to read.

((Attn: Open))

The conversation with the people from Infanus had only made Pallas feel more frustrated, depressed and helpless. The demon situation was as horrible away from Agustine as it was nearby. There were no signs of improvement, no plans of action, nothing. He sat down on the floor in the main room of the temple and flipped through one of the books he had taken out. He'd felt overly ambitious when he'd first gone to the library; now, he didn't even remember the point in reading about demons. The facts of the situation were that the demons were numerous, rapidly becoming more numerous and would eventually overwhelm the world as a whole. Far fetched plans of action derived from purposely twisting the implications of passages in books to suit one's needs didn't exactly compare.

He stood up, leaving the book open on the floor, and trudged to the back room. There, he poured himself a glass of the temple's red wine, downing it. It wasn't long before he'd done the same with a second glass, followed by a third. By the fourth glass, he was beginning to dread everything about it from the taste to the dryness to the way it felt in his stomach but he forced it down regardless. Then, he just sat there, contemplating a fifth glass but ultimately opting against it. It wasn't long before he heard someone entering the temple and stood, feeling the dizzying whoosh as the alcohol kicked in. He bit his lip, freezing in motion. "Oh, this was real fucking smart," he muttered to himself.

Luckily, the footsteps tapered off and whoever was there didn't call for him. They must have been training or meditating on their own. He leaned back and closed his eyes, letting the room spin. He forgot that someone else was around until he heard them leaving. By then, he was beginning to sober up. He was only slightly dizzy when he stood and stumbled back to the main room.

The dull ache in his head became a stabbing pain and his stomach lurched as he staggered forward, falling to his hands and knees. He clenched his teeth, his breathing fast and hard. Suddenly, everything went white.

When his vision cleared, he saw the crumbling remains of a structure that could only have been built during antiquity. It was obstructed by clouds. It wasn't long before Pallas noticed a robed figure standing at the top of it.

"The world's only hope..." it said. "Go east to the ruins... Claim the power to... defeat demons... If you six don't... world will fall to ruin... Leave at first light... you must..."

The vision disappeared as suddenly as it had come on and Pallas found himself sitting alone in the dark temple once again. He was a bit shaken by what had happened. Whatever it was, it was too much for him to process right now. He pulled out his sleeping mat and wrapped a blanket tightly around himself, closing his eyes and eventually drifting off, his dreams mirroring the vision he'd had.

(ATTN: MARESCA)
Chane silently follows the girl, keeping a close eye on her, making sure she is safe.
She didn't know why she was bothering with her. But she just got an odd feeling from the girl.
She didn't understand it.

[ATTN: Open]

Despite Cassian’s protests, his bodyguards convinced him to share a room with them for the night; they felt it was safer that way. The four went to the inn room, which was quite large. Leroy flopped on the nearest bed, Bernard sat on another, and Alicia busied herself with arranging the luggage. Cassian leaned against the wall after making a comment about the room being adequate, and stared out the window in the opposite wall in silence even though it was dark out. Alicia knew that the events of the day were bothering him, since he would normally be chatting to them about things he saw in the city. She stood up and began to approach him, when Leroy suddenly spoke.

“So! Have any plans for tomorrow, Master?” he piped up. “I think we should try to get near the castle. It’s so awesome and huge!!”

“Ah, yes, tomorrow…” Cassian responded, suddenly coming to life. “Yes, I would like to see the castle. I also noticed a very intriguing little shop while we were being escorted to the library… however finding it again may be difficult.”

He laughed a little at that last part, and then continued. “We need a map as well; it would be much better than following some human off the street.”

Alicia smiled at Cassian, then at Leroy. Her little brother always had a way of cheering up Cassian, whether it was intentional or not.

“I dunno…” Leroy said. “I think it would be easier to follow somebody rather than look at a map. They’re so confusing!”

“It would help if you looked at it right-side up,” Bernard commented.

“Hey! That was only ONE TIME and you know it!!” Leroy retorted, offended.

“Now, you two, you should be resting, not fighting and wasting your energy for tomorrow,” Cassian said. “We wouldn’t want…”

He trailed off as he felt a slightly painful sensation appear in his head and begin to intensify. Soon, the pain became unbearable, and Cassian clutched his head as he fell to the floor, barely aware of anything happening around him. Suddenly, the world around him became white.

Cassian found himself looking at a robed figure standing on some sort of stone structure, surrounded by swirling clouds; above was a blue yet rather cloudy sky. The person’s white robe obscured any features.

"...The world's only hope... Go east to the ruins... Claim the power to... defeat demons... If you six don't... world will fall to ruin... Leave at first light... You must..."

The vision faded away, and Cassian was looking at the concerned faces of his bodyguards. “Go east to the ruins at first light…” he repeated.

“Uh, I think he’s losing it,” Leroy said. “Maybe you should go to bed, Master.”

“No, a voice told me to claim the power to defeat demons!” Cassian insisted.

After convincing Cassian to go to bed, the bodyguards decided that their plans for the next day would be finding a doctor.

(ATTN: MARESCA, OPEN)
Following the girl back to the orphanage, Chane soon drew the attention of the children, as well as the Mistriss.
Who began to question how she knew Maresca. Chane answered the questions honestly, having nothing to hide.
The woman was suprisingly welcoming, giving her a place to stay the night, as well as something to eat. When one of the children saw her horns, she was berated with all sorts of outlandish questions. Chane simply smiled and gave gentle responses.
She followed Maresca insessintly, never letting her out of her sight.
Something about the girl piqued her curiosity.
But there did come a time when Chane did venture away from the others.
A smashing pain invaded her head, making her cringe. She places her back against a nearby wall in an attempt to wait it out. She buckled forward as the pain crashed into her mind with more ferosity, She clutched her head in pain and her knees gave out, sending her to the floor.
Everything went white.
When her vision returned, before her was a large, ancient stone structure, surrounded by clouds. Accompanied by a tall, cloaked figure with an imposing presence.
"The world's only hope..." it said. "Go east to the ruins... Claim the power to... defeat demons... If you six don't... world will fall to ruin... Leave at first light... you must..."
The vision slowly faded, dispersing like sand in the wind.
Coming to her senses, Chane got to her feet, once again resuming her place following Maresca.

[ATTN: Open]

Asher slept fitfully; every time he woke up his head hurt worse than it did the last time. He began to seriously believe they had put something in his drink ((they did XD)). The words from the strange vision still echoed in his mind, however. He sat up and saw the sun was starting to rise, first light. He stood up and his head pounded. It wasn't going to be a pleasant day, but he felt he had to check out these ruins or the vision would haunt him forever.

He realized he had been sleeping with his cloak on and rolled his eyes. He cursed humans and their sick idea of fun, then strapped on his sword. He checked out of the inn, then made his way toward the gate that he had entered the city through. Since it was so early, not many people were around, and when he got to the main gate he found the guards standing there, bored. They waved him on through, and after walking a short distance down the road his struck out east, where the ruins were supposed to lay.

{Attn: Open}

Maresca's sleep was haunted by the words. She wakes before the first light. She sneaks quietly to pack a small bag, not quite knowing what she will need. She packed some food, some changes of clothes, and a couple of books. She puts on a dark cloak she kept for rainy weather. She doesn't even bother leaving a note as she sneaks out of the orphanage.

She makes her way to the exit by the east ruins. She remain out of sight the best she could. If you six don't...the world will fall to ruin replays in her head. Maresca wonders who the other five are. She hopes another one shows up. The road to the East Ruins it too dangerous for her to travel alone.

((Attn: Open, Maresca))

Pallas groaned and shielded his eyes with the back of his hand as sunlight streamed in through the window. He had a headache, his mouth was dry and held a bad taste and his stomach felt a bit nauseous. It was only then that it occurred to him that he probably should have drank some water before going to bed.

"So damn bright..." he muttered.

Suddenly, he shot up straight, his eyes widening slightly. That hallucination he'd had last night had told him to head east at first light if he wanted to defeat the demons. A normal person would think it was completely ridiculous, and Pallas acknowledged that it probably was, but he couldn't get it out of his head. Besides, a trip to the ruins could be interesting. He'd never traveled more than a few kilometers outside of the city limits; one could easily say that he'd never left Agustine.

He recognized that his robes were probably not the smartest choice of attire for exploring ruins and so he donned a black tunic embroidered with gold, thick white leggings and sturdy black boots. After drinking a significant amount of water and equipping his weapons, he left the temple and then the city. A familiar figure appeared to be doing the same. He frowned, hurrying to catch up with her.

"Hey, you heading this way?"

It struck him as odd that the young girl would be taking such a dangerous route on her own.

{Attn: Palllas, Open}

Maresca jumped when she heard another voice. She was about to turn with an angry remark when she sees none other than Father Pallas. She bows her head. "Good morning, Father. What brings you out so early?" She looks to the gate. "I am supposed to be headed somewhere, but I am a little scared to go alone. I've never been outside the city gates before."

((Attn: Maresca, Open))

"Yeah? I'm actually heading out myself. Which way are you going? If you're going toward the east too, we can travel together. I'm... not exactly well traveled myself, but between us I'm sure we can handle it."

It was a bit embarrassing that he'd never really left Agustine at his age, but it wasn't like he had any reason to until now.

{Attn: Pallas, Open}

Maresca pulls down the hood of her cloak and scratches the back of her head. "I know this sounds crazy, but I...I am headed to the East Ruin." Her voice gets softer as she continues. "I had a vision last night...are...are you one of the six?"

[ATTN: Pallas, Maresca, Open]

When he went to bed, Cassian wasn't sure what to think of the vision he had seen; he tried to believe that it was caused by simply being tired. However, his dreams echoed the cryptic words over and over again. Cassian woke up at dawn, remembering that the vision had told him to leave for the ruins at first light. After taking his things to the washroom to get dressed and washed, he returned to find that his bodyguards were not only awake, but dressed and ready to leave.

"Cassian," Alicia began. "You're thinking about doing what that voice said, aren't you?"

"You all knew I couldn't ignore it," Cassian responded.

"Master, please listen," Bernard said seriously. "We are taking you to a doctor. We are concerned about your mental health."

"No. I am not insane," Cassian snapped, glaring at Bernard. "We are going to the ruins in the east. Now."

This left the three bodyguards silent, until Leroy spoke up.

"All right! We get to explore ruins! Let's go!!"

Cassian left the room, checked out of the inn, and walked outside. He made his way immediately to the main gate. He had to prove to them and himself that he wasn't insane. His bodyguards caught up to him as he reached the gates.

"Hey, you're that guy from yesterday!!" Leroy exclaimed, pointing at Pallas. He then turned to Maresca. "I remember you, too!!"

((Attn: Maresca, Cassian, Open))

Pallas widened his eyes when Maresca mentioned the East Ruin and his jaw even dropped slightly as she went on to describe having a vision that sounded eerily similar to the one he'd had. "Wow... so I guess that wasn't a hallucination, then..." he mused. "Yeah, I guess... I guess I am. I had a vision too. Something about heading east and defeating the demons. I figured it was worth checking out."

He couldn't believe that what he'd seen was apparently legitimate. Maresca had seen it too, and that meant there were most likely four others who had seen it as well.

Weird.

And as he heard Leroy's familiar voice, he knew things could only get weirder. "In the flesh. Lost again?"

(ATTN: MARESCA, PALLAS)
Chane waited until most were asleep to 'sneak' out. But before she did, she wanted to say goodbye to Maresca. Her footsteps were soundless as she quickly made her way down the halls.
Finding Maresca's room, Chane pushed the door open, finding the room empty.
'Strange..' She thought to herself. She knew the girl had probably snuck out on her accord. Who was she to stop her.
Deciding to take a shortcut, Chane opened the window, leaping from it's frame. She used her wings to glide and land gently on the ground.
She headed quickly for the east ruins, her eyes scanning the night.
She notices three people, two males and a female, conversing. She wonders silently if they might be three of the six the figure spoke of.
Scanning the three figures, Chane realizes one figure belongs to the girl, Maresca.
Deciding to reveal herself, she steps out of the shadows, greeting Maresca with a small smile.

[ATTN: Open]

As Asher walked along, any semblance of a path vanished and he was soon walking through a wild field. The grass came part way up his shins, in some places it reached his knees. There were trees here and there, and various bushes and plants. Demons could be hiding anywhere.

The sun had cleared the horizon now, spreading light over the field. Not that it mattered to him, he could see in the dark just fine. Actually, the sunlight only served to make his head ache worse. It pounded with every step he took.

Asher pulled his map out of his small bag that was tied inside his cloak. He hadn't been out this way before, but he seemed to remember his great-grandfather mentioning something about ruins being on the peninsula.

As he put the map away, his ears twitched. He could hear something moving through the grass off to his right. He could tell it had four legs and walked lightly on them, most likely a hellhound. He turned to meet it with his sword drawn.

{Attn: Chane, Cassian, Pallas}

Maresca hears Father Pallas mention the rest of the vision. "Father, do you really think we were chosen? I mean who would chose me, for anything?" He didn't get a chance to answer as she hears a male voice. Maresca looks at the rest of the group she saw outside the library. She smiles and nods not saying anything. She takes a step back so Father Pallas can talk to them. Then she sees Chane approach. She greets Chane with a surprised expression and a soft hello.

[ATTN: Pallas, Maresca, Chane, Open]

"Nope! We know exactly where we are and exactly where we're going!!" Leroy responded. "The east ruins!"

"Please reconsider, Master," Alicia insisted. "Hearing voices like that really isn't normal..."

Cassian wasn't listening; he continued out of the city, heading east.

Bernard turned around when he saw another person show up. It was certainly odd that so many people were gathering at such an early hour and at the same time.

Alicia followed Cassian, Leroy and Bernard trailing behind.

"So, where are you headed so early, Mr. Priest?" Leroy asked, lingering back with the others a bit. He looked to Maresca and Chane. "Wow, looks like everybody's leaving town!"

((Attn: Maresca, Chane, Cassian, Open))

Another girl approached shortly after Cassian's entourage. He heard Leroy blurt out that they were also heading to the East Ruins, which caused him to raise an eyebrow. Could it really be that they were all summoned here by that freaky vision?

"Maresca and I were heading east as well, to the ruins..." he trailed off, recalling that Cassian's servants had been saying something about hearing voices.

"It sounds like we were chosen," he said, glancing at Maresca as he acknowledged her previous question. "Anyone else, er, 'hallucinate' last night?"

{Attn Cassian, Chane, Pallas}

When Pallas mentioned that they were chosen Maresca looks down. She glances at the group in front of her. Chane was obviously well traveled, one cannot do that and not be strong. Cassian was someone of importance and has his bodyguards to protect him. Father Pallas was a priest, and important man. Each of them were worthy of this, but where does she fit in? She wasn't very strong, nor does she have any fighting skills. Her healing was decent at best as she has plenty of practice with the various of injuries at the orphanage.

She says a quick silent prayer before looking up at the door. She looks back at Chane with a hint of a smile and motions her head to the side. She moves to catch up with Cassian "We should travel together. It is safer that way, at least I think it is."

[ATTN: Pallas, Maresca, Chane, Open]

Leroy's eyes grew wide as he listened to Pallas. "Yeah! Master had some sort of vision! We thought he was losing his mind!"

"Yeah, I think you're right," Leroy agreed with Maresca.

At this time, Cassian reached the guards at the gates, Alicia and Bernard right behind him. The two human guards eyed the three distrustfully. Cassian looked at the two and folded his arms, sighing.

“Let us through,” he said, looking at the gates.

“This is human territory, infanima!” one of the guards growled.

“I don’t care who it belongs to,” Cassian retorted. “We are going to the east ruins. Let us through.”

“I don’t like your attitude, brat,” the other guard spat, moving toward Cassian and stopping when they were face to face.

“Please, stop,” Alicia said, taking at step forward to be next to Cassian. “We are going peacefully. We mean no harm; we are simply exploring.”

The guard looked hard at Alicia, and gave Cassian a shove. “Hmph. All right. Just keep this brat in line.” The two guards opened the gates, and Cassian stormed through them, glaring daggers at the men as he passed them.

Leroy saw that his group had gotten through the gates, and ran after them.

“I’m with them!” he announced to the guards as he ran through before they could close the gates.

{Attn: Pallas, Chane}

Maresca stands back, but glares at the guards as they insult Cassian for being an Infamia. At the orphanage she has lived with both races and is one of the few that are not judgmental about them. She looks at the guard as the door closes. "I would like to leave too, please."

One of the guards look at her carefully "What kind of business does a pretty little thing like you have out there. Don't you know it is dangerous? Why don't you run back home so your parents don't worry about you."

Maresca was expecting a response like this. She looks over her shoulder, hoping that either Father Pallas or Chane could help. She wonders how she would have gotten out of the city on her own.

((Attn: Maresca, Chane, Cassian, Open))

Pallas heaved a sigh. These guards were making this a lot more difficult than they had to be. His head was still throbbing from last night's indulgence and he had no patience for this.

"They're with me," he said in an uncharacteristically authoritative tone of voice, standing straight and looking the man straight in the eye. "We're on official business; there is a dire need for holy users in a nearby village that has been swarmed by demons and Maresca here happens to be capable of healing. Your interference is only serving to slow down the relief effort."

The guard was still regarding them suspiciously, but Pallas held his eye contact, his expression solemn. The guard did not look happy with this development, but arguing against people leaving the city to provide healing would make him look bad.

"...fine, then." He stepped aside, but hardly far enough. Pallas found himself having to brush past him.

Crises like the demon invasion tended to bring about power trips, it seemed.

{Attn: Cassian, Chane, Pallas}

Maresca looks at Pallas with a surprised expression on her face. *Why is the Father telling them lies* She doesn't say anything as she brushes past the guard saying a soft 'Thank you' as she passes them.

Once out of the city gates she takes a few steps forward and looks all around. She has truly never been out of the gates before. A big smile creeps on her face as she scans the countryside before her. She sees the forest surrounding the city. She sets down her bag for a quick second, taking out a map that she knew she would need. She point off to the East. "We have to go that way." Excitement in both her eyes and her voice.