• Logout
  • Beqanna

    COTY

    Assailant -- Year 226

    QOTY

    "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


    [private]  higher, faster, everlasting; Elysteria
    #1
    the taigan
     
    He'd walked these lands countless times. Destruction and six years had changed it much, but not enough for their Taiga not to welcome him home. This forest had soaked up too much of his love not to. The Heart of the Taiga, they'd once called him. When he'd been married and guided their people at his wife's side. She had done most of the leading, and he had done all of the loving.

    So many children, he'd brought home to cherish and strengthen.
    He missed Illae, the softest of them. The most innocent.
    He'd wanted so badly to protect that for her.
    He missed them all.

    And then he'd led it alone, but never alone. He held the place of leader, but they all led together, the Taigans. This was their forest, not his. Their home. He was Dominant, and Alpha, but never a king. He'd never craved power as others had. He'd only taken it up alongside his wife, and continued on dutifully in her absence.

    His winter coat was long, adding to his wolven appearance. The shape of his body was all that separated him from his wolf. He had the color, and the heart, and the mannerisms. But he could no longer shift, and that soul was kept permanently from him now.

    He would've howled if he'd been able to.
    He would've hunted if he'd been able to.

    There had been one other thus far in Taiga that he'd come across with a natural Dominance, loud enough in presence to put him on edge. When confronted, the powerful man had only held Ruan in respectful deference, allowing him to hold the highest position between them. It had been an odd meeting, a curiosity, but Ruan had been glad of it. And found himself respecting the man for their shared lack of hunger for power. Even between themselves. He hadn't a clue what he'd done to earn that sort of respect or indifference, but he didn't question it long. It wasn't in him to do so.

    As he continued through the land, he came to pause at the creek, his eyes darting to the sides as he approached in natural caution. There was only the quiet of a chirping night that greeted him, and he pressed forward to drink, lapping the icy water in solitude. Polaris and Soldat were curled up asleep in safety nearby. He was alone for now.



    Reply
    #2

    There's blood on your tongue
    when you kiss me goodbye

    She had slept. After the lands had shifted and everything she had known and loved had been stripped away, she had felt such bone-deep tiredness. A thing impossible to deny. She had heard such a thing would take those blessed (or cursed, however one might look at it) with immortality, but it is the first she had experienced it. And when she had woken, everything had been changed. Everything she had ever known, erased from existence as though it had never been.

    For so long now she has been cast adrift. What once had dictated her life no longer seems to matter. That home she had returned to over and over again is lost to the ashes.

    It had taken her time to regain the brightness that had once been such an inherent part of her. It is impossible to vanquish, but she had felt so dimmed for so long, lost in the darkness. But she had pushed onward because she must. Because it is what she had always done. Life would not wait for her.

    Now, after so many long years, she feels a semblance of the woman that had once existed has finally returned. And so she walks into the world once more.

    She had floated above the earth for hours, trying to gain her bearings in a land so foreign and strange. When finally she had landed, it had been into the misty wood of pine, a land faintly reminiscent of the Dale she had once so loved. This could be a home, she thinks. Not like the one she had lost, but a new one. A fresh one.

    Briefly, her heart aches for that lost time. For a love she hasn’t seen in so many years. He has forgotten her, no doubt. She had never truly been to him what he had to her. She cannot begrudge him it though. He had given her so much, had taught her so much. And she wishes him happiness, with all her heart, no matter how much it aches.

    With a soft exhale, she moves forward, russet gaze taking in the scenery surrounding her. She is a woman who has lived, her body a testament to that life. A ragged, circular scar is etched across her chest, stark white against the red. A testament to her determination and bravery. A patchwork of faint scars are scattered across one side of her small, delicate form, telling stories of nearly forgotten pain and terror. But still she shines, an undeniable brightness to her soul, an undefeatable kindness softening her gaze. Life has not been kind to her, but she remains unconquered, unbreakable in strength and spirit.

    She does not see him until she is nearly upon him, and when she does, she stills. For a moment, her heart squeezes inside her chest. With only a glance, he could easily be mistaken for a wolf.  Her hip burns briefly with a phantom pain that traces the parallel scars there, a kaleidoscope of memories reminding her of too close encounters with the vicious, magical wolves that had invaded the Dale so many eons ago. But upon closer inspection, she recognizes the man beneath the beast.

    Still, she remains cautious. “Hello,” she greets softly, a smile curving her lips, warm despite her caution. “I’m sorry if I’ve disturbed you.”

    Elysteria

    Reply
    #3
    @[Ruan] rolled a 4 and is safe. For now.

    @[Elysteria] rolled a 6 and is safe. For now.
    Reply
    #4
    the taigan
     
    He stilled when he saw her, his calculating eyes taking in the large scar across her breast, the splash of more scars across one side of her. Even still, she held herself with a grace and dignity, an elegance without pride. There seemed to be a light shining from within her and through her eyes, as if she'd bottled up the heavens to guard it in this body that refused to break.

    Their gazes met, his light ice-blue eyes steady on her, watching as she startled then gradually relaxed. He had assumed his coat would cause that reaction often, and so he was not surprised. Nor was he sorry. It was only accepted, and he moved on.

    "Hello," she greeted, her voice soft, ringing to him like the soft whisper of windchimes in the distance on a quiet day. His head lifted, ears forward. "I'm sorry if I've disturbed you."

    He gave a subtle shake of his head in dismissal of the apology. It was not necessary. She was not a disturbance.

    With his gaze still on hers, he slipped forward. His black hooves turned to ink in the water as he crossed the small creek, the current tickling and laughing softly at his quiet pass. Dim moonlight lit the dark along his shoulders and spine just enough to show the royal purple sleeping in a bed of wolf-grey.

    He was comfortable with not speaking as he drifted to a silent stop. He'd learned over the years that it could be a little unnerving to some, but that knowledge did not change who he was. He was a man accustomed to intuition and reading body language, unwilling to fully trust what one says rather than what one does.

    His wife had said she loved him.
    Her actions had told the truth.

    "Are you lost?" he asked quietly, his voice drawing out in a breath of darkness in the forest, bright blue eyes on hers. It was spoken plainly, softly curious at this new addition to his night. Welcoming, though. He was not much for social events, but he did enjoy meeting new faces. Most especially those that loved this forest as much as he.



    Reply
    #5

    There's blood on your tongue
    when you kiss me goodbye

    She had always been a social creature, yearning for the comfort of others. Though that remains unchanged, she had long ago learned to grow comfortable in loneliness. When one lives long enough, it is an inevitable by-product. She thinks perhaps in this man, there is a kindred spirit. Someone who has known these things and still strives to make the world his own. Still seeks others despite the unavoidable pain it would bring.

    Some break beneath that forging, some become shiny and hard, pretty but unforgiving, and some become malleable beneath it, always returning to form in the end. Perhaps one day she would have been reshaped so many times she will become unrecognizable. But not yet, not today.

    She watches him draw closer, the way his muscles shift beneath the shaggy gray pelt, his blue eyes intensely focused. He has the bearing of a predator, but she feels no threat from him. Her natural caution keeps her alert however, russet eyes focused despite the easy warmth of her demeanor. Life may not have stolen that light from within her soul, but it had taught her prudence. For all her softness and kindness, she has never been easy prey.

    Are you lost?

    Her gaze shifts briefly, taking in the curling mist, the dim light of the forest, the slow ripple of the shallow creek that had separated them. Perhaps she does not know this place, but in heart she knows she is just where she is supposed to be. There is something here in this land that speaks to her, as though pieces of the Dale had woven themselves throughout the landscape. And perhaps they have. The gods have mysterious ways.

    “No,” she breathes after a contemplative silence, her bright gaze returning to the wolfish stallion. “I think I am just where I’m meant to be.” A soft smile curls her lips then, the warmth of that gesture lighting her eyes. “I’m Elysteria,” she finally offers. “Ely, if you prefer. Do you live here?”

    Elysteria

    Reply
    #6
    the taigan
     
    She considered his question, her soft earthly gaze taking in their surroundings. He could see the foggy mist reflected in her eyes, the tall shadows of the trees. A circle of moonlight was there too, shining brightly despite the darkness around them. Or perhaps stubbornly?

    "No," she finally answers after deliberating with herself, her voice like a rich velvet. "I think I am just where I'm meant to be."

    He tilted his head, studying her. Was that a comment on premonition or some other kind of magic? His life had been full of so much of it, and he couldn't help but wonder. He kept the question to himself though, and his patience was rewarded with her name as she offered it next. Elysteria. Ely.

    "Do you live here?"

    He filled his chest with a slow, deep breath and nodded. "Yes. This is the Taiga." This was the first time in a while that he'd introduced it, and it felt damn good. Perhaps it was odd to the rest of the world, but he couldn't remember a single time he'd introduced himself as its leader or former leader in this case. The Alpha. It had always been only:

    "I am Ruan."

    His eyes remained steady on her, intense as was his usual way of being. He sensed she may have been from the Before, a depth of knowledge and history in her eyes. He had been young then and hadn't had connections with the politics. So he had no idea if admitting Eight had been his king, Topsail his Queen, was a bad thing. He added it to the conversation anyway.

    "I was born in The Valley. Traveled while I was young." After his mother had died, his sister too. His only family. "I had barely returned when The Reckoning came. I have lived here since." 

    He had helped grow it by a large number, finding kind or feral souls from the Field, or adopting orphaned children. He was too humble to say so aloud, or even think it for long, but he knew it was the truth that he and Jinju had done the most for the Taiga out of all of them. Aten, too, when he'd made it his home. It had been in their care for the longest and they had never been idle caretakers of their Taiga. Romek, his once-king, had chosen well.

    "Where do you come from?" He had never been skilled with small talk, but somehow this didn't feel like it was. So perhaps he was doing it right this time.



    Reply
    #7

    There's blood on your tongue
    when you kiss me goodbye

    The Taiga.

    She has not yet familiarized herself with the new lands which fill her home, but the sound of it settles nicely into the air, lodging itself between her ears. No matter what else she may come to learn of this new Beqanna, this will always be her first. Perhaps it is a foible of hers, to find that which suits and immediately settle. Just as she had with the Dale, though that kingdom had been her home from the moment of her birth. The Taiga might never replace that, but she thinks perhaps her heart had not taken her so very astray when it had brought her here.

    His introduction, to his home and to himself, brings a smile to her lips. There is an honesty in the way that he speaks, something so true and straightforward, an authenticity that draws her in. Too often one encounters sly wit or outright deception in this world, so much so that the lack of it is somehow notable. And for all that she has lived and seen, she is still a very simple girl at heart, the same one that had always longed for the most basic of pleasures in life.

    He continues then, and Ely is pleasantly surprised to learn he had known life before the world had so drastically changed. Her bright gaze sharpens with curiosity as she takes an almost involuntary step closer before recalling herself, her natural reservation stilling her feet once more. They are nearly close enough to touch now, but she refrains from reaching out. “Ah, the Reckoning,” she murmurs in response, her gaze once more slipping past him to survey the surrounding wood (a land so drastically different from what she’d once known). “I knew many in the Valley.”

    They had been allied, once upon a time. But she doesn’t suppose he would recall so much, especially if he had traveled. Indeed, she had known Eight even, perhaps too well for comfort. But that is a story for another time.

    She softens with his last question, eyes returning to him, though the barest hint of sadness lingers in the depths of her russet gaze. “The Dale was my home.” Would always be, she supposes. But she does not think the gods would ever bring it back. And she has never been one to live in the past. “Now though? I’m afraid I haven’t anywhere to call my own,” she finishes, her gentle smile fading slightly beneath that tinge of nostalgia.

    Elysteria

    Reply
    #8
    the taigan
    She smiled at something and his head tilted, almost feeling his lips try to mirror it with a little quirk. Hers was dazzling and sweet, matching the soft glow buried in her eyes. She seemed such a gentle creature, but the sharp scars scoring her body told him she didn't have to be. She could've become bitter or fearful or harsh. She chose to be this way, and it said a lot about her.

    It spoke of a strength so many overlooked, or could even mistake for weakness.

    He was pleased that she'd known the Valley. There was a quiet, shared understanding between those that had lived Before, had survived the chaos of the Reckoning. The younger generations couldn't understand how it had torn families and friends apart, how so many had simply vanished to never be seen again by their loved ones.

    He'd been lucky. He hadn't had anyone but Kilter to care for and the boy hadn't even been his. His heart ached at the memory of him, even still to this day clinging to the hope that he'd see him again. He wouldn't allow himself to believe Kilter had died.

    The Dale had been her home. His attention focused on her as her eyes returned to him.

    "Now though? I'm afraid I haven't anywhere to call my own." He smiled at that, quiet and only peeking through his somber expression subtly though it warmed his bright blue eyes with humor.

    "I thought you were where you were meant to be?" His lips lifted more, finally settling in a smooth smile, teasing gently. "Do you often change your mind so quickly? Or will you be staying?" He thought he'd like her to, would like to get to know her better. He couldn't say so aloud though, so often second-guessing himself now with how his wife had accused him of wanting someone that was not her. Impossible. She should have known him better. There had been confusion on his friend's part too though, so he'd clearly done something wrong at some point.

    It still hurt that either of them could ever think he'd care for someone else that way when he was married. It hurt that those closest to him hadn't seemed to know him at all.

    He was naturally so intense, too intense, and he realized he was directing that at Elysteria now. His gaze slid away to peer at the forest around them as she had done, to free her of his penetrating looks that seemed to be so often mistaken for something more. It was not natural to pull his eyes away and he had to force it on himself. Learning society's rules for acceptable behavior went against his nature, against his Dominance, and his damned eyes simply returned to her of their own.

    He gave up. Society be damned, it never did anything for him anyway.

    "I hope you'll stay," he said evenly, his voice firm with his buried irritation and confusion regarding his past. She would be a welcome light in these dark times, and he was completely unaware of how accurate that was. "I should return to my children," he said softly, his eyes dimming a little. They weren't from his marriage but they were all he had left of a semblance of family and they were everything to him. Jinju, Fur, and Aten. Soldat, Polaris. He was blessed, he knew. He was so fortunate to have them. Now Lilitha too and her baby.

    He turned and paused, watching her. 
    "I hope to see you again."



    Reply
    #9

    There's blood on your tongue
    when you kiss me goodbye

    It’s easy to become lost in the past, to allow memories to overcome and ancient emotions to hold sway. She knows this better than anyone (she remembers a time she had lived in fear, had known terror at the thought of loving another, at the possibility of letting someone so close they might destroy her all over again. She had picked up the pieces of her very soul once already, but time had taught her how kind love could be. That the cruelty of her youth had not been her fault, and that living in the past would only serve to destroy her future). Even knowing, she still gets lost in it sometimes. Still allows it too much control.

    His words draw her back however, reminding her that her story is not entirely written just yet. She smiles at his gentle teasing, russet gaze returning to him, crinkled in faint amusement. “I think you will find I am more stubborn than you will likely care for,” she replies lightly, only half-joking. Once she had made a decision, it is not changed easily or lightly. For better or for worse, as many had discovered in their knowing of her. Her amiability had so often been mistaken for acquiescence. A fault of hers, she supposes. But she is far too old now the change so easily. “But if you will have me, I think I would like to stay.”

    She meets his gaze easily, unfaltering. His intensity is unmistakable, but there is something comforting about him too. Something that puts her at ease, as though she is safe with him. It is a thing she so rarely experiences that at first she cannot quite put name to it. She has spent so long learning the defend herself, to be strong in a world that wanted only to break one down over and over again. But instead of breaking, she had learned to bend.

    She recognizes a kinship in him, beneath the force of his being. And understanding, perhaps. He is a boulder, strong and immovable. But she is a river, the water rushing around him. Both with their own quiet strength, and yet able to live harmoniously with one another. She hopes, at least. Perhaps these are merely fantasy’s of a mind too long left to slumber.

    I should return to my children. She softens with understanding, knowing the hold children could have on one’s heart. Her smile remains, but a faint sorrow colors her gaze briefly, her own heart squeezing in her chest. “Yes, of course,” she concedes gently. “We must treasure them while we can.”

    She misses her own children terribly, flung far into the world by time and age. She would have held them close to home forever if she could have, but they had their own lives to live too. Perhaps one day they would remember her. Would come back home to her.

    She accepts his leave then, eyes trailing him as he pauses. Her lips tilt warmly at his hopeful goodbye. “I am certain you will.” She didn’t think she would be going far. Not for a time, at least. “Perhaps you might even introduce me to your children then.”

    Elysteria

    Reply




    Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)