"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
09-06-2015, 02:24 AM (This post was last modified: 09-06-2015, 02:26 AM by Scorch.)
WATCH THE FLAMES CLIMB HIGH INTO THE NIGHT
How she got here, she will never know. The scenery changed from coarse and heavy to light and green in what might have been seconds of weeks; in her weakened state, little truly pierced her sluggish mind. It’s good I gave Lagertha the crown when I did, She thinks repeatedly; I can’t even keep a… straight…
Some good-luck watched over the Sisterhood the day Malka volunteered to solidify the alliance between the Falls and the Jungle. Small parts of the ill mare are aware of this, though her awareness constantly flickers. Whether her escorts fight for her right to the waters or they simply dump her in, Scorch never finds out. While Sunday managed to subdue the pain, she also subdued Scorch’s consciousness. Large holes begin developing in her memory; a singular event she does remember in the end played out as such:
With her legs draped into the Falls’ healing waters, the pitiful ex-khaleesi gives birth. Her swollen stomach and malnourished ribs constrict and release until one dark bundle slips into the shallow waters. It’s a miracle, really; though without the magical water, perhaps all would have been for naught. The dropping of her child does little to alleviate her clouded and painful existence, however. Huffing, Scorch raises her heavy head.
There should be two.
Heaving herself up with a new-found clarity, Scorch makes it to her hooves shakily. One slips precariously when she turns to investigate. Cleaning the girl poorly and quickly, Scorch begins to panic. Through all the confusion and black-spots, she’s known that there were two.
“Vi,” She states with wide, unseeing eyes. “Vi, where’s Volcan?” Snapping her head to the women who joined her and others who may have found the spectacle, Scorch stumbles again, dizzied by the sudden movement. “Where is Volcan?” She asks the nearest horse in a horrible, frenzied voice.
“Volcan, Volcan, Volcan? Volcan? Volcan?”
Silence falls when her hoof slips and her body follows, her immense weight slamming into the sandy shore. Disoriented and mentally disfigured, Scorch dissolves into senseless tears and mutterings of her daughter’s names. When someone steps forward to care for her daughter, she’s already lost consciousness, another black spot claiming her memory.
Over time, the healing waters rouse the woman, clear her head. The worst of the damage seems to be the stiffness now; but what her reaction is when she surveys the delectable scene through truly seeing eyes is yet to be told.
Scorch
Ex-Khaleesi of the Amazon Jungle
ooc - so like, do what you want with this :) I just know that Tinsel's waiting for Vi to be born so yay now that happened! Feel free to power play Scorch mildly and basically have your own little thread if you truly desire; I'm assuming IC that some zons came along like they said they would, but considering Scorch's state, she won't actually know until she replies again after some people reply, so it doesn't really matter :) JUST GO HAM MY FRIENDS!
It goes without saying really, that Sarkis followed her Mother and the others to the Falls.
The young roan filly follows closely all those that depart. Those bigger and stronger, ones that could support her Mother’s weight. She might try to help but she would more likely just get in the way. She settles instead for soft calls to her Dam, sounds of comfort and love as the group progresses, leaving the comfort and familiarity of the Jungle.
She never realized just how little she knew of the world outside the home of the Amazons. In truth the young girl had only made a single trip to the Meadow, and she found it neither friendly nor welcoming. She had stuck to what she knew since then, the burning heat and humidity of the lush Jungle. As the embarked she watched the landscape change, the overflowing amount of plant life trickling away to a more sparse (to her) scenery. The temperature changed significantly as well, a tepid, less choking atmosphere was held here at the place the others called the ‘Falls’.
Sarkis isn’t sure what to expect when her Mother’s ailing body is coaxed into the healing waters. Her first thought was some magnificent display, something that truly was magical, a spectacle. All is less amazing than that, a more subdued magic that the girl does not fully understand. Perhaps someone would have first thought to have ‘the talk’ with the child, before she witnessed such things as child birth. But-sometimes things just don’t go according to plan, or how one thinks they should. It is with wide eyes that she witnesses the birth of her sibling, her Mother’s sides heaving and twisting in ways she can not imagine. The infant slipping from the place between her Dam’s legs, and the entire thing frightens her, how is that even possible? A dark form slips into the water, landing with a splash and her Mother makes quick work to…eat that? She was too shocked to lose her stomach but she would have otherwise, disgusted by the event. She wasn’t sure she could ever do any of that, not sure at all.
Soon, her Mother’s eyes are blazing demanding to know where Volcan is. Volcan?”I-I..dont know Mother.” She manages to sputter back at Scorch, unsure really of what to say or how to respond to that question. Of how to respond to the state Scorch is currently in, nothing like her usual self.
The one advantage to being ancient is that you become the things that surround you. You are able to tune into everyone's bad days, their feelings, their distress. Most of the time it was a burden but sometimes it was the biggest blessing. When you're a practiced magician you come in handy, at least when you're not losing your marbles.
It seems like Prague has brought herself in from the meadow at a pivotal time in the Jungle, she wonders if this distress and uprising is just life's way of balancing but for now she must take the rational out. Although she and Scorch have not had the most endearing relationship, she is a sister and Prague would die for one of her sisters. She wastes no time, she doesn't run but swiftly appears with the group, her long forelock still moving as she stops. She nickers to Firefox, she son knowing he will find her. She knows some faces and they rapidly mesh together, her mind is thinking so quickly that it registers but cannot take the time. She notices Sunday and she, too, can feel her healing properties. Prague cannot pick up just exactly how strong Sunday is but she does not want to overstep her bounds. She has known since her return that Lagertha would be the new Queen, she knows because there's a certain type of woman that demands that position. Lagertha is it, Prague was it long ago. "Lagertha, I am proud of you and many congratulations and discussions I will offer later," she hurriedly dips her head to her, "Sunday, I have been practicing magic for over a hundred years. I can help you if you need it, " she says looking around taking a head count. She hopes that Sunday is not bothered by her, she wants to help - she needs to help to stay alive herself.
Prague forgets that the Falls is where she so long ago ruled with Texas, when they were lovers or something of the sort. She regrets a few things about that but now is not the time. She must do what she can to help Scorch, "Scorch, I'm here as a friend."
immortal. magical. fucked up. amazonian.
I think I may have come in too late but if I haven't, please let me know :D
09-06-2015, 06:03 PM (This post was last modified: 09-06-2015, 06:06 PM by Tantalize.)
tantalize
infinity overhead
and i whisper, are you listening?
It’s a worried procession that heads to the Falls. So many changes in such a short period of time. The new wings attached to her ruffle nervously along her side, how she would like to fly ahead of the group to clear the way for them all but alas…. She has yet to learn to fly. So she simply acts as a guard as the others help support Scorch’s bloated figure to the healing waters. Prague has returned and it’s good to see the other looking a little less lost. They were all finding their ways again. There are others as well and Lagertha and Sunday too but everyone blurs together once they get to the bank of the waterfall.
So far it seems the Fall’s kingdom is quiet and it’s odd considering their large and loud party. Scorch is hurriedly ushered into the shallow end and then everything seems to happen quite quickly. A child slips into the cool depths and Liz watches hesitatingly, not sure if she should help when this should be a moment between mother and child. However her help is quickly needed when Scorch completely loses her mind. Scorch looks to her asking where Volcan is. ”Volcan?” She replies blankly, just as confused as the disoriented mare before her. Her golden gaze looks to the others, knowing they all share the same bewilderment. It doesn’t last long, that look they all give to one another, because Scorch has started screaming the name in a frenzy. Liz’s wings flare in agitation as she steps forward to try and calm her down. Before she can, Scorch has fallen in a heap on the sand. Muttering and crying.
The jaguar mare has never been very good at this kind of thing, especially when it’s not quite clear what has happened. Her golden gaze turns towards the foal that’s still laying in the water. That’s not healthy. Quietly she splashes into the pool, nudging the child up. She was far from the best when it came to parenting (her own few children would attest to that) but she at least could keep the girl alive till her mother came to her wits. ”Come along now..Vi” She murmurs not unkindly, nudging her softly with her muzzle to get her on her feet. Having to grab at the name last minute, as it seemed it’s what Scorch wanted her to be called. Which now that you mention it… Looking at Scorch’s defeated figure again… Shouldn’t there have been two children? She had been so large, they had probably all thought twins. So did Scorch apparently. Poor thing. The loss of the second baby that was never born, it seems to have completely broken her. The jaguar knows what it’s like to be broken and so she stays with the others but keeps the newborn foal close to her side, a wing draping protectively above her as if to shield her from her mother’s madness.
More and more sisters join them, voicing their concerns about Scorch and giving assent to the new Khaleesi. It becomes quite the gathering - more sisters than Lyris has seen in years. It appears that the combination of potential tragedy and a new ruler has brought everyone out of the woodwork so to speak.
Little time is wasted on pleasantries however (as it should be, given the situation). Sunday immediately tries to assist the fallen Scorch and other voices offer their assistance, one of which briefly catches her interest. Prague (whom Lyris vaguely remembers from the army meeting) reveals her true age and her magical abilities, and Lyris files the nugget away before joining the procession to the Falls. A rather interesting piece of information after all.
They reach the former neutral kingdom in what Lyris assumes is record time (considering Scorch’s condition), and the former queen immediately … gives in to instinct. The whole thing is rather messy and unpleasant and Lyris hangs back, letting the more … experienced, take lead. She can help field any questions from any Falls members that show up anyway.
In a surprisingly short period of time, a dark messy bundle slides down into the shallows. Gross. Yeah she’s not feeling so enthusiastic about the whole childbirth thing.
The hairless mare stumbles over to the thing and cleans it off. And then, after she names the thing, she starts going a little loopy. The former Khaleesi starts stumbling about, calling out what Lyris assumes is a name. “Volcan?” Her head cocks to the side in puzzlement as, which turns to concern as the mare collapses. It happens too quickly for her to cushion the mare’s fall with winds.
Eventually though, the mare stirs again, and another sister steps forward to look after the child. Lyris hangs back still - she’s clearly not needed. Not yet anyhow.
At first there is warmth. Warmth and two heartbeats besides her own. She lives like this for what seems like forever, happy and warm, sequestered in her mother’s womb.
And then everything changes.
One of the heartbeats suddenly disappears, and then her world becomes a whole lot larger.
She slips out into the light, instantly chilled by the air. It only gets worse when her body slips into something cold and wet. A face appears, licking her down, cleaning her off. It calls her … Vi? And then just as suddenly it disappears. “Mama?” She blinks against the brightness.
After a few moments another face appears (not her mother), nudging at her, trying to get her to stand up. She obliges (what else can she do), trying to find her feet in the sandy bottom. Her feet slip once, then she finally stands on shaking legs. The second face nudges her again and she stumbles forward, finally out of the water. A wing closes over her, pulling her close to a warm side. She snuggles in to the heat for a moment, dazed. But then she remembers something.
She tries to take a few steps away from the strange mare. “Mama?” Where is her mother?! Where is her sister?!
(ooc: Uuugh so crappy. I'm having a hard time getting a feel for her D: )
Sunday follows the parade, for many reason really. Her concern for the queen is obvious, but her position as a healer and bloodrider dictates she should go. These are all meaningless to the forever diplomat, duty is second to love. And she does love Scorch the way she loves all her sisters. Tattoos? Those are meaningless. The bonds between them are the true strength.
She follows at a comfortable distance, listening to the frenzied heart beats of the twins inside Scorch. They need to hurry, the stress...it comes off the children in waves. It fills her heart with anxiety and dread she wishes she can shake off. That's the curse of empathy, of magick, she is so in tune to others and nature it can be overwhelming. She tries to shut the thoughts out, continuing her magickal dump of healing onto Scorch. It's nothing compared to the relief the mare feels when her hooves touch the waterfalls. Sunday goes with her, mostly because her energy is sapped at this point, and also because she knows the mare would drown otherwise.
In this confusion she loses track of the other heart beat.
One minute there are two buzzing about in her belly, frantic for release. The next? Nothing. Vi is expelled, and the other...?
Sunday passes a worried glance amongst her sisters. They wouldn't have heard this, except for the older mare with magic. Maybe she did. Maybe.
He is on the far side of the kingdom when they arrive. The bay stallion had been walking beside the river when the smell of the Jungle reaches him. It is too strong for a single mare, too strong even for a diplomatic pair, and before he truly processes the idea, he’s cantering toward the waterfall. Picking his way down the rocks is something he can do in his sleep, and with his immortality returned he is even faster, less cautious and more sure-footed than ever before.
There’s a bald mare bleeding into the pool at the base of the waterfall, and she’s surrounded by a bevy of Amazons, most of whom he’s never seen before. He recognizes Lyris first – hard to miss with her bright spots – but he doesn’t approach nearer than necessary for conversation. (He’s especially glad of this when a certain grey mare is revealed by a shuffling in the assembled crowd).
Texas’ nearness (and his conscious request of the kingdom’s assistance) are the only reason the water’s magic is aiding Scorch. She is not a member of this kingdom and so the water is nothing but water until it is asked to be something else. He’d considered doing nothing, and his lack of expression and nonexistent greeting are rather telling of that fact. He doesn’t know the bald mare that’s turning the water red and feels no pity for her condition. She’s here for healing, and so Texas has bade the waters to do their work. He’s fulfilling the terms of their alliance; no one said he had to be polite about it.
She was beginning to enjoy her time here in the Falls. There had been little interaction on her behalf so far simply because she was still getting to know her new "home". She spent a good part of her time in her quetzal form sitting on one of the many rock crevices that made up the waterfall. From up here, she could see a good bit of the kingdom and the spray from the falling water was a cooling relief.
There was a loud commotion on the border of the Falls and Malka's attention focused in on it. It took her but a moment to recognized her queen and several of her fellow sisters making their way towards the water below her. Malka waited until the arrived, not quite sure what was going on and not wishing to be in the way. As Scorch collapses in the water though and births her first foal, Malka can already see that something is wrong. She does not assume the relaxed look of a mare done foaling and instead begins to panic, screaming another name that Malka does not even know. With her history of twins, it would be no surprise if she was again carrying a pair with one still stuck in the birthing process.
The Amazons step forward and begin to care for the newborn filly and Scorch soon succumbs to her exhaustion and passes out in the waters. It takes but a moment for Malka to fly down from her crevice perch and land out Scorch's crest - a favorite spot for the mare's Erinak to stay. The quetzal gentle grooms at what little bits of hair stick up from the burned mare's neck before flapping quickly to the banks where she transforms back into her equine self. She lets her eyes fall on each of her sisters and for the moment, there is nothing she has to say to them. Instead she steps back into the water and moves so that she can push the hairless mare's head up away from the water. She needed the water to heal, but that same water could drown her if they weren't careful. Malka had not been a resident long enough to have even begin to inquire about the water's magical abilities and so, she is thankful when from the corner of her eye she spots one of the Fallians.
Once Scorch is out of danger of drowning, Malka turns to face her sisters. "What has happened here?" she questions. Malka had not been in the Jungle when Scorch had stepped down nor had she been privy to Lagertha's rise to the throne. She observes the gathered mares, looking between them and mentally taking a tally in her head. Rhy and Lagertha were both not yet present. Pomona (who had wished to fill Malka's current position) and Pharaon were also not among the gathered.
She waits until someone has filled the paint mare in on the craziness that had just befell the 'Falls before she speaks slowly one more time. "I do believe that it would be in our best interest to not strain our newly formed alliance with the Falls," she starts. She was not sure what the rest of the Falls horses would think about half the Amazons marching across their border and dropping their Queen in their waters (for as far as Malka and the Falls were aware, Scorch was still Queen). "I think those that are still necessary for Scorch and her child(ren)'s care should stay behind. Those that cannot be of immediately help should return to the 'Zons and let the remaining sisters know that she is being cared for to the best of everyone's ability. Too many extra heads will just add to the confusion" she finishes.
She does not want to hurt her sisters' feelings, but it was quite apparent to her that Scorch needed the healing waters. The healing waters would only work for the Fallian horses and though the had an alliance, it had yet to be tested up to this point. Malka hoped to keep the alliance between the two kingdoms strong, because it had just proven its necessity in the Amazon's life.
09-08-2015, 04:49 PM (This post was last modified: 09-20-2015, 10:08 AM by prague.)
i was filled with poison, but blessed with beauty and rage
There is a certain amount of brain function that magical beings use and she is thankful for Sunday getting there first, although the lioness may have old magic she has not practiced in quite some time. It is like riding a bicycle that once you learn, you don't forget but that doesn't keep you from shakily riding the first mile or so. That mile was not one they could risk right now.
The gray mare picks up on the scents of her sisters, noting that Tantalize is doing well in her return as well as others, no harm in the group yet but soon testosterone, particularly a male she knows intimately is on the outskirts. She first wonders if he would come in to start trouble but as he stands back, he actually aids more. "Thank you, Texas," she says perhaps for the first time to him in her entire lifetime. Thank you for staying at arms length. Prague had noticed the two heartbeats, one was quite louder to her than another and then first she thought maybe the second child was in so much distress it was having PVCs...until it was gone. She watches as Tantalize helps the child, Prague is no mother to her own children and isn't the best choice to step in for someone else's.
"Sunday, did you hear two as well?" she speaks to Sunday through magic, this was not for the group to hear because there's always that one who will say the wrong thing and cause an uproar. Although it was a frantic time they needed to keep structure about them in some way. "Scorch, we're all here to help find...Volcan, we'll find the child. Take care of this one and yourself for now." She says although she realizes it may go through one ear and out the other, "Malka is right, there's no use in us straining on resources here," she says even though it is not her place to delegate she looks to Lyris and Sunday, "Lyris, if Sunday and I can put our magic together and get a lead can you orchestrate a search?"
Prague can sense there is something amiss, there is someone behind this or a carcass would float up behind the other child. The womb held two, Prague has looked inside and two placentas floated. There is someone else playing with magic she thinks to herself but just who is the mystery. "Ladies, did anyone hear of Scorch having a particular enemy? You don't have to say aloud if you have an answer."
The old mare is useful for something, after a very long time of being useless.
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