Rosemary
Newcomer
PL: 8,228
Hidden Potential (x4)
Zeni: 6,701
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Post by Rosemary on Jul 16, 2017 22:01:45 GMT
Rosemary's PL: 600
This place called Hell truly was strange. In the week since she'd arrived, Rosemary hadn't once seen nightfall. No clouds had dotted the pink sky, and the blinding light of a sun had never moved above. The light that illuminated the land simply was, and there was no changing that.
Of course, there were things that had felt familiar, as well. The trees near where she'd arrived were almost exactly like those back on Sadala, and everywhere she went, there was always someone trying to pick a fight with others. Judging by what she'd seen, that was never a good idea, lest one of the very large, red men or women -whom she had learned were called Ogres- punished the transgressors. She had thought about asking one of the Ogres for a spar several times, but they were always so busy with herding or shouting at the ground-hugging clouds.
It was still strange to think that those clouds were the souls of people just like herself.
Now, she had returned to exploring the land she'd come to regard as comforting. Her teacher had given her the day to wander and see the sights for herself, most likely because her boredom with sitting at a desk for several days had gotten the better of her. So far, she had seen all she could of the red lake -actually, it'd been called a "Blood Pond"- and her feet had brought her to a new place. Before her was a doorway, the first constructed of wood that she'd seen, and one set into the mouth of a cave, to boot! With a hungry curiosity, she let herself inside without trepidation.
With a puff of smoke, a lit torch appeared in one hand, and she closed the door behind her before turning back to the innards of the earthen hallway. Much to her surprise, the cave floor had been carved neatly into a staircase that descended down into the inky blackness, and the walls and ceiling were smooth to the touch. With her fingers trailing the chilled wall, she followed the path downward, descending ever deeper into the earth with every silent minute. It didn't take long for the cool air to bring goosebumps from her skin, and her tail rubbed slowly up and down her thigh to try and warm herself.
At last, the white-haired woman reached the end of the endless steps, and stood before a new doorway. Unlike the well-cared for portal at the mouth of the cave, this one was dilapidated and smelled of rot and mildew; a change from the dampness of the cave, but not quite a pleasant one. Her dark eyes passed to and fro around the small landing, and she waved the torch along with them in an attempt to find anyone nearby. When she saw none, a childish grin followed a faint bite into her own lip, and her hand reached to push open the newest barrier on her path.
With a pained creak, the door swung open with great hesitation, and Rosemary walked casually into the large room beyond. Even after raising her torch s high as her long arm could reach, its light wouldn't reach to the ends of the chamber, though there was one thing that'd caught her eye: a lone pillar just several dozen feet ahead. As she approached, some details came into view, and she marveled at the spectacular craftsmanship of the piece, until her eyes fell on the image of a man strapped to the tall construct with no small amount of thick chains. His black attire set against the bleakness of the room hadn't made him any easier to see, but the contrast with his exceptionally pale face nearly made her jump.
"Uhm... Hel-... -lo?" With a voice that struggled with the new language, she called out to the stranger.
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Greeve
Rising Soul
PL: 46,034
Haunting (x12)
Zeni: 500
Tag: @greeve
OOC Name: Lafitte
Posts: 108
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Post by Greeve on Jul 18, 2017 17:13:43 GMT
Greeve should have expected something like this, one he was returned to the Afterlife. After all, he did escape once, and though he felt his actions were for the benefit of the universe as a whole, apparently even some here disagreed with him. Once he was sent back to hell, he was siezed upon by Ogres, chaining him to this stone pillar. The idea was to ensure he never get out again, and so far it was successful. The chains that bound him were surprisingly strong, preventing him from escaping.
And so he hung there in silence. His eyes were closed, getting some rest as his mind took the time to work out his situation. Then the door creaked and Greeve's eyes peeked open. Someone was coming in. One of his jailers to check up on him? Nobody had been in here since he was chained up. So why send someone in now? He watched as a single, female form stepped into the chamber. An ogre. He quietly watched her as she approached him, calling out to him, as if curious or nervous.
"Interesting. I didn't expect to get any visitors here." the ghost spoke up, his dark eyes focused on the ogre before him. "Are you to be my guard? Or are you just curious?"
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Rosemary
Newcomer
PL: 8,228
Hidden Potential (x4)
Zeni: 6,701
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Post by Rosemary on Jul 19, 2017 21:07:48 GMT
Rosemary's PL: 600
As her eyes adjusted slowly to the darkness beyond the reach of her torch, more and more detail gradually came to the red-skinned woman. Every step that brought her closer gave her more to know about the man who was chained to the thick pillar. In fact, now that the flame could illuminate his features properly, she thought he looked much too young to be held in such a deep cave.
"No, not a guard." Rosemary answered the boy as well as she could, though she was certain she'd said something wrong. The new language was still strange, and she wasn't used to articulating so much with her tongue yet. To make up for it, she shook her head almost exaggeratedly, and spoke more with her hands and body than she did with words. " Just, um... curious." She stopped nearly a dozen feet away from the boy securely tied to the pillar, and almost tripped over the 'r' sound as she did.
"You're not an ogre, are you?" She began to circle around the pillar, and held her torch high to get a good look at the stonework. Her tail continued to rub slowly up and down her own leg, though she was beginning to grow accustomed to the chill in the air. "If you weren't, you wouldn't have a body, but you don't have any horns." As she came back around to face the boy, she thought aloud about what sort of creature he could be.
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Greeve
Rising Soul
PL: 46,034
Haunting (x12)
Zeni: 500
Tag: @greeve
OOC Name: Lafitte
Posts: 108
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Post by Greeve on Jul 20, 2017 21:53:45 GMT
Greeve watched the young ogre in front of him curiously. It seemed she had just wandered in, curious about this place. That, and she seemed to have some difficulty speaking as well. Just trouble talking in general, or was it a language thing? Greeve wasn't sure. As he watched her walk around his prison, she seemed curious about what he was. She seemed to be under the impression that ogres were the only ones that possessed bodies in the afterlife, a notion that caused Greeve to chuckle. Granted, ogres tended to watch over the souls here, which for the most part were formless clouds. But Greeve knew better. "Oh my dear, I am not an ogre. I'm what people would call a ghost. A phantom, or even to some, an abomination." He had heard the insults before up above. They didn't really bother them. "Consider me a soul that has accepted death, and grown stronger because of it." He was curious why this girl wasn't aware of this. Surely ogres knew all the aspects of the afterlife. Perhaps she was young? He wasn't sure. "Even so, there are those apart from us that have regained their bodies. There is a sort of...energy, here that they can harness to regain their physical forms. Even escape back into the world of the living."He glanced at the red skinned woman as she walked around. "Now that I've given you information, perhaps you can give me some of your own. What brings you down here to this dark pit of hell? I'm sure simple curiosity wouldn't bring you this far down here."Rosemary
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Rosemary
Newcomer
PL: 8,228
Hidden Potential (x4)
Zeni: 6,701
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Post by Rosemary on Jul 21, 2017 0:34:17 GMT
Rosemary's PL: 600
Yes, she did recall Nama saying something about beings who went against the natural order, Rosemary thought to herself as the boy explained. She wished that she could remember more than that, but her teacher had changed the subject so quickly that she'd not the time to ask. Still, that left her to wonder what he meant, both about accepting his own death and the energy of which he spoke.
"Well..." The young half-ogre mused aloud. Just how much should she have trusted this boy, who was tied up and left here for what she guessed had to have been a good reason? Of course, she couldn't imagine what one could do to justify such a thing, either. "I really was just looking. This was the first cave I'd come across since arriving, and... Uh..." Now that she'd thought of it, what reason could she give for her actions? It truly was that simple; she'd wanted to see what was down here.
"What of you?" She inquired into the boy's own reason for being here, even as she hadn't quite given much of an answer herself. "Did someone tie you up just because you're a ghost?"
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Greeve
Rising Soul
PL: 46,034
Haunting (x12)
Zeni: 500
Tag: @greeve
OOC Name: Lafitte
Posts: 108
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Post by Greeve on Jul 21, 2017 22:27:07 GMT
This ogre interested him. So she had only just arrived? Arrived from where? He had assumed ogres were born in the afterlife, particularly hell. But he would save the questions for now, as she had some of her own, mainly asking why he was chained up down here. "I guess you can say that," Greeve replied. Him being a ghost, and thus a bit outside of the laws of life and death was part of it, but not the whole reason. "You are aware of how things work, correct? People are born, live out their lives..." he tried to keep the venom out of his voice as he said that last word, "And they die and end up here."He slackened in his chains slightly. "But there are those that would spit in the face of this natural order. Those that would use magic to defy death, use robotics. Even bring those who had died back to life. And that's not including those who simply escape from here." He looked at the gore in front of him. "I sought to change that. I sought to drag those poor souls down here, where they belong. And when I was killed for my troubles, I became a ghost and escaped to continue me work, only to be sent back here once again." He gestured lightly to the chains binding him. "It would seem the authorities don't approve of my methods. I don't see why. I'm doing this universe a service after all.""And that's about the whole story of it. I hope that satisfied your curiosity." He wondered how she would react. Would she agree with his beliefs, or would she leave him bound down here? He really wasn't in any position to do anything about it either way." Rosemary
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Rosemary
Newcomer
PL: 8,228
Hidden Potential (x4)
Zeni: 6,701
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Post by Rosemary on Jul 22, 2017 0:14:00 GMT
Rosemary's PL: 600
She was gradually picking up on the boy's mannerisms and tone as they spoke. His monotone voice carried little emotion that she could hear, and he didn't seem to use his body much to speak, even within the small space the almost nonexistent slack in the chains allowed him. It was so different from herself, and from everyone she'd known back on Sadala. The sheer difference in how they communicated nearly tripped her a few times, and left her wondering about the few changes in his voice as the boy finished his story.
"So, you tried to bring the dead back here?" Rosemary questioned the nameless boy, tilting her head as her tail released her leg and swung out to the side. To tell the truth, she couldn't make sense of the reasoning behind keeping him here, if that were the case. Why couldn't a soul help to bring others back after they'd left hell? It seemed so... silly.
"Why would that be a bad thing? You didn't leave for your own reasons. You were trying to bring ghosts back to where they belong, right?" Now wearing a puzzled expression, she reached up and scratched her head, just behind one horn. She was definitely confused about all this. Maybe she should go back and ask Nama? She lowered her arm and folded both over her breast as she thought. "Keeping you here just because you're a ghost doesn't seem right."
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Greeve
Rising Soul
PL: 46,034
Haunting (x12)
Zeni: 500
Tag: @greeve
OOC Name: Lafitte
Posts: 108
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Post by Greeve on Jul 22, 2017 22:39:29 GMT
A smile slowly spread on Greeve's pale face, as the ogre seemed to agree with his line of thinking. Although rather innocently put, it really wasn't right for him to be chained up down here. Finally, someone who shared his methodology! "Yes, exactly! If anything, it just seems like the other ogres are lazy. Less people in the afterlife means less work for them. So they chained me up down here to ensure that I don't disrupt that." Sure, he was kind of leaving out the fact that he was actively killing people, but the premise was the same. The ogres disagreed with his reasoning, and so chained him up here to prevent him from escaping. But finding a kindred spirit of sorts wouldn't help him if he was still stuck down here, chained to this pillar. But then again, having someone like this around could be of some use. "Tell me, what do you know of these chains?" he asked, shifting his body enough to draw attention to them, "The ones who bound me weren't as strong as me, yet these chains are strong enough o keep me secure. Tell me, do you know of any means to unlock them, to set me free?"Rosemary
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Rosemary
Newcomer
PL: 8,228
Hidden Potential (x4)
Zeni: 6,701
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Post by Rosemary on Jul 23, 2017 21:50:08 GMT
Rosemary's PL: 600
Rosemary's expression turned from one of puzzlement to a subtle grin. She couldn't disagree with the pale-faced boy's excited claims. From what she'd seen, the ogres weren't very motivated, except for when something would upset another who was stronger than themselves. For that reason, the idea that they wouldn't want ghosts returned to this place because it made more work for them didn't seem so wrong.
"The chains?" Her black eyes widened a little as he changed the topic. Without a hint of trepidation towards the stranger, she approached the large stone pillar with her torch raised to get a better look. She hadn't thought anything of it at first, but now that she'd had her attention brought to it, they weren't very ordinary at all. The individual links were much too clean, and what should've been a coppery smell was instead...
"They're magic!" The red-skinned woman blurted out just as soon as the realization had hit her. Yes, the smell was unmistakable now. It was faint, like the boy had been here for a while, but the restraints smelled vaguely like life energy, not metal. Smiling a little, she backed away and set her torch gently on the earthen floor. "Yup, definitely magic.
"I could be wrong, but," She raised her right hand high, and with a sudden cloud of smoke, a great club of stone appeared in her grasp. "Magic restraints are funny. Sometimes, they can only hold a specific life force, and nothing else." With a mischievous grin creeping across her face, she circled around to the side of the pillar, and gripped her weapon tightly with both hands. What she'd said was true, but from her own perspective. Every time she'd tried to make rope or chain back home, it would hold the game she'd caught, but anyone else could easily break it and make off with her hard-earned catch.
"You, um... You might want to close your eyes." She gave the boy a few seconds' warning, and held her club poised over her shoulder. Energy both magical and physical flowed into the great weapon, then she swung with no small amount of effort. With a strained grunt from its wielder, the stone instrument collided with the pillar and chains alike, and the air filled with dust and rubble, and the sound of rattling chain links.
When the dust had settled and the torch's faint light could be seen again, Rosemary stood with the club resting over one shoulder and her opposite hand on her hip. A wide smile adorned her cheeks, and her tail swung happily behind her large frame. "Not too bad, if I had to say so." She giggled aloud, quite proud of her handiwork.
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Greeve
Rising Soul
PL: 46,034
Haunting (x12)
Zeni: 500
Tag: @greeve
OOC Name: Lafitte
Posts: 108
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Post by Greeve on Jul 25, 2017 11:10:49 GMT
Magic huh? That certainly made sense. He had fought foes who used ki, but none with magic. And it would explain how the ogres and Yemma were able to keep the souls down here in line. He considered possibly studying some magic himself. But right now, he had to be free from his bonds. And thankfully, it seemed to be what his new acquaintance had in mind. Greeve looked away as she swung her club, not due to fear of getting hit, but rather to avoid getting any flying rubble in his face. There was the shattering of stone and metal, as the chains came loose and clattered to the floor. As the dust cleared, Greeve hung in the air for a moment, before slowly descending to the floor. He casually brushed the dust off his sleeves, stretching his spectral limbs to get some feeling back into them. "Myself and the universe are in your debt," Greeve spoke politely, giving the ogre before him a formal bow. "Oh, where are my manners? I am Greeve."Rosemary
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Rosemary
Newcomer
PL: 8,228
Hidden Potential (x4)
Zeni: 6,701
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Post by Rosemary on Jul 28, 2017 7:04:54 GMT
Rosemary's PL: 600
Perhaps it was because of the poor light from her torch, or maybe she'd used too much of her power at once again. Either way, the half-ogre could have sworn the boy had floated in the air for a few seconds after the chains had slackened, and her confusion returned for a brief few seconds, only for so long as it took him to speak again.
"Oh." Rosemary stood still for a moment, wearing a silly grin while she watched him bow. The hand on her hip fell to hang limply, and the club vanished from her other with a second cloud of smoke, just in time for those very fingers to run sheepishly through her hair. "It was nothing, really." Thankfully, between her own natural skin tone and the darkness in the underground chamber, she was certain he couldn't see her blushing.
However, her newly adopted nervousness and embarrassment only grew once she'd realized the two had never introduced themselves. She was only just learning the boy's name. "Rosemary," she gave hers in response to the pale-faced ghost's, and slowly dropped the hand from her hair down the back of her head and the nape of her neck, until it rested at her side like its other. Before things could get awkward, she wandered over to retrieve her torch, and turned to face the boy while she backed towards the door.
"I'm sure you want to get outside and stretch your legs after being tied up." The large woman assumed audibly, turning around just as she neared the door and fumbling with it for a moment in the dim light. It soon opened with a familiar, agonizing creak and scrape across the stone floor. "I haven't seen a moon yet, but it's beautiful outside, nonetheless."
Tags: Greeve OOC: I'm sorry for the delay. Real life in kicking me in the teeth right now.
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Greeve
Rising Soul
PL: 46,034
Haunting (x12)
Zeni: 500
Tag: @greeve
OOC Name: Lafitte
Posts: 108
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Post by Greeve on Jul 28, 2017 17:21:47 GMT
Rosemary. So that was the name of his benefactor. As a brief hush fell over between them, the ogre girl, who Greeve could now see was taller than himself, grabbed a torch and headed for the door. The ghost quietly followed as she pushed the doors apart, effectively giving them passage out of this place and into Hell proper. As they stepped outside, Greeve took a deep breath. The air in his cell had been stale and stagnant, while out here there was a sense of freshness to it. It was dark and cool outside, most likely Hell's equivalent of night. He gave a small sound as he stretched his body out, feeling the spectral muscles being worked after hanging up on that pillar for so long. Indeed, Hell and the afterlife itself was quite beautiful. It just made him more confused as to why people were so desperate to return to life. He turned his attention back to Rosemary. "So tell me, what do you plan to do now? The other ogres would not doubt be sensing my presence out of my cell, and most likely coming to try and catch me again shortly." Now that he was free from those chains, he felt confident he could handle them. But what about Rosemary. She at least deserved some gratitude for letting him out of his prison. Rosemary
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Rosemary
Newcomer
PL: 8,228
Hidden Potential (x4)
Zeni: 6,701
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Post by Rosemary on Jul 29, 2017 5:26:35 GMT
Rosemary's PL: 600
The trek back up the stone steps was just as long as before, though it felt much shorter. Maybe it was because of the company, or how the air gradually warmed her exposed skin rather than cooling. Either way, the comfort of the warming air and friendly company helped to pass the time, even if they'd hardly spoken a single word between themselves as they ascended the earthen pathway.
At last, the pair emerged out of the underground and onto the wide, shadowed plains of hell. The torch disappeared from the red-skinned woman's hand with a cloud of smoke, and she stretched her back and shoulders a little along with the much paler boy. Wait... Shadow?
Much to her surprise, the infinitesimal light had dimmed for the first time since she'd arrived in this world. However, the boy had broken their silence before she could think on it for much longer.
"Well, I should return to Nama soon." Rosemary admitted without thinking about what she was saying. Surely, nothing bad would come of sharing the librarian's name with the boy, right? "Other than that, explore a little more? I mean, I met you already, so who knows what else I'll find out there?" The rather large woman grinned a subtle smile, and gestured with one arm out towards the open expanse of the world. Even her tail seemed excited to get back to her aimless wandering.
"What about you?" She inquired, with her black eyes peering at the boy from their corners.
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Greeve
Rising Soul
PL: 46,034
Haunting (x12)
Zeni: 500
Tag: @greeve
OOC Name: Lafitte
Posts: 108
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Post by Greeve on Jul 29, 2017 22:04:15 GMT
Greeve was a little curious who this 'Nama' was, but made no move to ask about it. Whatever Rosemary did with her existence was up to her. He didn't have to worry about her trying to capture him, or interfere with his plans, so that was all good in his mind. Though he was curious about why she wanted to explore hell some more. Just where had this ogre come from to make her so new to the place? Did she come into existence fully grown like himself, and just was freshly born? Or did she come from somewhere else, another part of the Afterlife that Greeve was unaware of. Well, any questions he had he would have to wait until later.
"I must be going," he said, slowly lifting off of the ground, "I must get myself stronger if I am to continue my work. Who knows, we may see eachother again." He gave a small smile and a nod to the ogre, before taking off and flying away. He would need to get stronger, better prepare himself for his task. But first, he was going to have some company, and that little encounter was best kept away from the ogre who had helped him. No sense in getting her in trouble.
[Exit. PL please]
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Capper Hofferson
Moderator
PL: 20
Zeni: 61,743
Tag: @sketch
OOC Name: Sketch
Posts: 833
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Post by Capper Hofferson on Aug 3, 2017 6:15:19 GMT
J A I L B R E A KRosemary | Greeve | WC: 2,325 ZENI GAINS: 1,860 OLD ZENI: 2,698 NEW ZENI: 4,558 | WC: 1,602 PL GAINS: 2,563 OLD PL: 39,308 NEW PL: 41,871 |
Adding now.
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