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Jaana · Posted: Sat May 22, 2004 11:35 pm Post subject: Proposal of the Sky

The forests of Moonglow witnessed three beings galloping through gleefully with two beings catching rides on their backs. Jaana and Ivae road atop light grey and pure white horses, while an armored swamp dragon clomped along behind. Occasionally, it would stray away from the band of beast and humanoid to bite off the head of a mongbat, though for the most part it kept up with the four in lead. Jaana followed Ivae as usual, not quite sure of what areas Ramoth enjoyed most.

They stopped at the graveyard as Ramoth chased down a mongbat towards it, and Ivae looked down at the corpses clawing at the fence, trying desperately to slide through the metal barrier so that they could assault potential prey. Ivae and Jaana glanced to each other then Ramoth.

With a playful smile as she eyed a zombie knocking off its' own head on the metal fencing, Ivae motioned towards Ramoth. "Should we let her at them?"

Glancing over the metal-clad swamp dragon in a calculating manner, she hesitated a moment. Jaana had only seen her tear through woodland creatures when she went hunting for a friend of Telia's. Though she'd done well, Jaana wasn't certain about how she'd fair against magically enhanced beings who refused to die in the first place.

Ivae offered her an encouraging smile, and Jaana finally nodded. Ivae had been with Ramoth longer than she had, so Jaana allowed herself a bit of confidence in Ivae's choices for once.

What a dire mistake, she scolded herself. Jaana was now standing half-submerged in the lakes of a peaceful cave not too far off from the Spirituality shrine. Her eyes were fixed on the lightly falling water that came though from an opening near the top of the cave. She didn't know where it truly came from. Many times had she pondered the source, though this was not one of them.

Her mind went blank a moment, and she heard a familiar voice through sobs behind her murmuring, "Jaana.. Please say something." She sounded so desperate.. so weak..

"I could have saved her," Jaana flatly stated without turning around. Her eyes were captured by the endless falls that trickled down so gently.

"No, you couldn't," she replied, trying to reassure her.

"I could have saved her," she repeated in the same monotonous voice, a youthful, musical voice mutilated by lack of emotion. "I stood there with my hand in my bag of reagents.. I tossed them but forgot why I did so until she fell."

Ivae was speechless, unknowing to how she could help. She fell to the ground, heaving and gasping for breath through her sobs. In an unusually slow manner, Jaana finally turned to face her. The movement made her aware of her wings stuck uselessly to her back, clinging to her as if for dear life from the water. A sore reminder...

Jaana's ability to contemplate at the worst times kicked in and her mind aggressively seized control of her voice. She still didn't know how to feel about Ramoth's death, and it didn't even seem to register to her that the ground-bound dragon was laying in the graveyard and serving as little more than a feast to the carnivorous beings that killed her. Mentally, she knew she was dead and that the fact was not going to disappear.

Ivae sobbed and threw an energy bolt at the cavern's rocky enchanted walls, though the magical walls caused it to ricochet back at her just as angrily as she'd thrown it. It scorched her skin, though she didn't seem to notice.

Ilshenar always confused Jaana, and she always felt as if it were trying to overpower her. The strong presence of magic had a tendency to make her skin tingle, and if she even touched something with strong magical properties she began to lose control of herself. Most of the time it felt like a drunken stupor, or even unfamiliar ecstasy. However, as she stood in the enchanted waters, as it placidly roamed about her person, all she could feel was the chaos of the past.

Her emotions refused to surface as her thoughts leaked through her lips. "Is this what I live for? To watch everyone I know die?" Ivae choked in response, trying her best to calm herself however unsuccessfully. "Am I simply to stand by so I can watch whom I'm to burry next?"

"You're right. My life will never be worth as much as Ramoth's was!" She leapt onto her horse and dashed out of the cave.

Jaana stood there in a water for a moment, staring at where Ivae had just been moments ago. Her mind wandered away from Ivae to life itself.

What prevents me from simply laying down and forfeiting mine life? Why is it such a priority to me to preserve? The trotting and pacing of hooves nearby caught her attention and her eyes rested on the big pools of a deep chestnut brown that belonged to her horse, Jenna.. the horse whom her very spirit was bound to.

Her hand rested on her chest, and she smiled bitterly at the horse staring fearfully at her. "Animal instinct."

Jenna's head tossed to the exit of the cave, and reluctantly Jaana finally dragged herself out of the small lake. She absently wondered if Ivae was out there waiting for her.

As they fought through the mass of vines that always fell back into place soon after movement, Jaana glimpsed Ivae through them. Managing their way out into the open, Jaana watched the nymph who didn't even turn around to acknowledge her. Jaana traced the tilt of her head and guessed that she was probably staring at the sky.. The night sky.

Ivae had been worried about night time of late, claiming that a woman out for her soul. She even claimed that the wound across her stomach that Jaana frequently found herself bandaging was from this woman. She had told Jaana to guard Ramoth for a while since she had been so worried about the woman coming to get her.

"You're right," Ivae murmured, her eyes locked on the darkness that fell over Ilshenar.

"About what?" Jaana asked, her voice still void of emotion.

"There's no point in life.. I might as well just die."

"Don't twist mine words."

A ghostly figure robed in white appeared in front of Ivae. The slim build suggested it female. Both Jaana and Jenna whipped around to face it, Jaana's quick reflexes rushing back to her. Jaana found herself trembling at the sight of this woman, though she couldn't quite figure out why. Tucked away deep down in the back of her mind, a space where anything important was whisked away to be forgotten a moment, Jaana knew she knew why. However, it wasn't until it was too late that she realized what was going on.

"Soul seeker," Ivae murmured. Without hesitation, she walked into the woman's open arms and they vanished immediately without a trace.

"Ivae.." she whispered, her voice moved by a hint of emotion.. A hint of regret.

A cold sensation ripped at her body as realization dawned upon her. A light breeze picked up and whisked past her soaked form, brushing past dripping leather armor, stinging her dry eyes. Realization of everything washed over her with the wind; Ramoth's broken body that lay now near fleshless at the graveyard, Ivae's soft and comforting voice that she'd probably never hear again.. The agonistic misery of having stood so idly by as a part of herself was plucked right from her very soul.

Get used to it, a part of her mind snapped at her. She heard the words pass her own lips as if simply hearing them in her head were not enough. They passed with the wind, though she remained standing there next to Jenna. Jenna nuzzled her in attempt to console her, though all Jaana could feel was a building callous to the world itself.

She stood in the exact same spot that Ivae had, staring up to the stars just as she'd spotted Ivae doing. The stars shimmered and the moon still shined, unmoved by the events they'd witnessed.
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"Forrest, a woman of many words.. Though most of them result in saying, 'You're wrong!'"

Ivae Z'ress · Journeyman Joined: 01 Apr 2004 Posts: 119

Ramoth’s corpse, mutilated and torn lay at Ivae’s feet. Her precious dragon, her child, was slaughtered while she stood helplessly by, barely able to keep herself alive. The dragon’s soul did not linger, torn from this world. Barely conscious, she gagged as she stepped from the fence, shaking her head as though to rid herself of the images, the smell. It has been her stupidity that got Ramoth killed.

She found herself inside the cave she had recently come to know rather well. The waterfall’s normally calming and serene sounds grated on her nerves, causing her to think her mind might surely explode if one more thing were dropped on it of late. Jaana’s figure stood before her, half submerged in the water.

“She blames me” These three words echoed through her mind as she left the cave several moments later. Her mind was empty, hollow. Ramoth could no longer be heard, her mind no longer touched, and Ivae could not stand the hollowness. She wanted not to hurt anymore, and not to hurt anyone else. She had killed Ramoth, and Jaana and Nazralte would surely be next. Everyone she loved would die, and they would all be her fault.

Vines tangled in her hair as she stepped through the entrance to the cave, and the realization night had fallen hit her like cold water to the face. Fear, raw and deep flashed through her for the briefest of moments. The soul seeker would be after her now.. now that the sun had set. But.. the soul seeker offered no pain… no more hurt… and she would leave Jaana and Nazralte alone if Ivae would only give her what she wanted.

Ivae’s pale upturned face shimmered softly in the moonlight as she contemplated her options. She would quickly be forgotten. She would leave this world as quietly as she had entered, and if she were missed it would only be shortly. Jaana seemed to hate everything she did anyways, so she couldn’t care for her that much. And now.. now she had murdered her child. Now Jaana would not have to hear about the Regency, or the guild, or deal with Nazralte.

…Naz. God how she loved him, but knew, deep down, she could never be loved like that. He had been perfect to her, but Jaana was bound to be right. Metios had thrown her away without a second glance. What would stop Naz from doing the same? He would learn to love again. He had many many years ahead of him, and Ivae was nothing special anyway.

These thoughts flew through her mind and justified her actions as she prepared herself to pay for Ramoth’s death. The soul seeker shimmered against the dark backdrop of the mountains, her surreal white light glittering like a fallen star. Vaguely, Ivae was aware of Jaana speaking to her before she stepped to the woman, and embraced her.

Blinding light filled Ivae’s eyes as she groaned softly, her eyelids fluttering open slowly. She was on a dirt floor, in a room somewhere.. and very much alone. Physically, nothing hurt.. but.. everything else was gone. Her hands lay splayed before her on the ground, and she glanced down, the skin so translucent every vien could be traced below the skin, the purple lines carving a masterpiece into her forearm, the blood now pumping for no purpose.

The soft and gentle face of a woman appeared over her, and Ivae struggled to sit up, gasping slightly as she did so. Every part of her body hurt, as though she had been ripped apart from the inside out. She knew, somewhere, who this woman was and that she should be scared, but Ivae couldn’t feel.

Standing slowly, brushing the dust from her skirt, she watched the woman move to a table where a small red box lay on a satin cloth, a shining emerald inset in the latch. Slowly, carefully, the woman opened it, and a small figure floated from within. The aura was that of Ivae’s, and she knew instantly it had been taken from her.

“Its too strong yet…” The woman spoke in a low grating voice. She could change her appearance, but never her voice. The soul drifted back down and the woman closed the box, carefully latching it closed. Turning to Ivae, she spoke again.

“I could kill you now that I have it, but it is too easy. I am granting you two emotions. Extreme love, and extreme pain. These you will know to the fullest extent of both, and the former is surely to bring the latter.”

Her grating laugh was the last thing Ivae heard before she found herself standing outside of The Garden of Sin and Pleasure, facing Tat and Ultima. For the life of her, she could not remember why she had disliked Ultima and at the site of her, he seemed to forget all animosity. She could not know, but her eyes were flat and dull grey. Where once had been shimmering emeralds, now two pools of darkness and lifelessness lingered, seemingly bottomless.

Naz.. he was behind her. God help her, he couldn’t see her like this. “But why?” her mind pondered. She knew she loved this man, but she couldn’t understand why it mattered what she looked like. Her painfully translucent skin shimmered in the sun as she reached out and touched his cheek. Their lips meet in a brief kiss once she had explained, and he drew quickly away from her. The reason was not lost on her. She had felt her ice cold lips when they pressed against his warm skin.

Turning her eyes from them, she spent the rest of the evening silently following him from bookshelf to bookshelf while he searched for something to help her. She couldn’t feel, couldn’t help, didn’t even know what was so wrong. Why couldn’t she stay this way? It didn’t hurt so bad when you can barely feel…

He had tucked her in bed and kissed her ice cold cheek before retiring to his desk in the same room, settling down to read. She lay, motionless, staring at the ceiling with emotionless grey eyes, wishing she could cry.
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Nazralte · Lore Keeper Joined: 29 Dec 2003 Posts: 790

Nazralte found Ivae at the Garden, a place they both frequent. But she was not herself. Her skin was pale and slightly translucent. Her eyes were grey and lifeless. Her bright red hair was a ruddy brown.
She told him of the recent events, and she did he noticed that her words held no feeling. Even when she told him she loved him, he couldnt feel it.
Unsure of what to do, and no where to talk to, he decided to search the libraries in Moonglow. He looked through the volumes in the Lyaceam, and after much searching came across a couple books pertaining to souls, death, and resurrection. Letting the monks know he was going to borrow these books, he headed home with Ivae.
He tucked her into bed and gave a kiss to her pallad cheek, hiding a shiver from her as he did so. He still loved her, and even in this state, that would not change, so he resolved to find a way to make her whole again.
After many hours, he finally had a plan. He scribbled a few lines in a book and decided to take them to Angelique on the morrow, thinking the gypsy may know something on the matter.
Before falling asleep in his chair, he made a mental note to deal with this fellow that cut an X into Ivae's hand...
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Nazralte
Former Regent of Britannia

Jaana · Posted: Tue May 25, 2004 6:21 pm Post subject:

Each step that Jenna took seemed to land right on Jaana's spirit, stomping it into the island's grassy surface, burying any small remnant of hope that she had for anything. Every breeze seemed to scratch at her skin and tear at her mind. She could feel the death that lingered in the wind that vigorously jostled her hair.

"The sun, it shines so brightly today," she muttered to herself as she stared at the tavern that rested on the peninsula south of Moonglow. "Do ye do so intentionally, in spite of those whom mourn? To taunt those whom walk under ye?" Her voice, usually very well enunciated and hard to ignore was barely above a forcibly emotionless whisper.

Stepping up to the door of the Moonglow Tavern and Trade, she rested her hand on the ring that served as a knob, hesitant to pull it. Jenna nickered impatiently after a moment and backed away from the door, causing Jaana to throw a leg over one side of her and slide off. Jaana finally pulled the door open, motioning for Jenna to go in before her. She hated leaving the horse out anywhere, always fearing for her safety.

Why am I even bothering? I should leave the damned human clueless to what happened to his little toy.

Glancing around the room and spotting nobody else, she bit her lip and cursed. A thick mauve liquid leaked out of the puncture and down to her chin before she noticed it and hastily wiped it away on the back of her glove. Looking up at the first set of wooden stair, she shook her head.

It was different when Ivae lived.. and when she lived here. I'm a trespasser now. Clenching her fists tightly, causing a subtle crunch to ring out from her knuckled despite the leather gloves, she strode up the stairs with her chin raised and a disdainful glare every step of the way. Watch, Ivae.. I bet he won't shed a single tear on your behalf.

She glanced around suspiciously as if expecting someone to spring out of the shadows at any moment. Someone did actually come out from the other side, and a baffled white-haired man wearing an apron stared fearfully back at her.

"I'm here for Nazralte," she muttered flatly in the monotonous voice she had recently taken on. "I have something to tell him."

Geoffry nodded slightly, apologizing politely though with a wary expression. He told her that he wasn't home and Jaana nodded, requesting a piece of parchment and quillpen (the quillpen she had one of her own, though she didn't mention that). Grudgingly, Geoffry led her back down to the bar and pulled out the paper that he seldom used any more to keep track of customers' tabs.

She jotted down a hasty note and handed it to Geoffry, instructing him to give it to Nazralte the next time he saw him. Geoffry simply nodded to her orders, intent to have her out of the house as soon as possible.

As Jaana jumped back onto her horse's back and galloped off, Geoffry read the note out quietly to himself.

"Ivae is dead."

With a gasp, he ran towards the door yelling, "Wait! She's dead?"

His words never reached her ears...

Jenna started to head off towards the graveyard, though Jaana's face paled at the thought of going there. She wasn't ready to face the now fleshless remains of Ramoth.. Even if it was to give her a proper burial. The fleshless remains of Ramoth whom lay dead at the graveyard thanks to her neglect to take action.

.. Coward.
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"Forrest, a woman of many words.. Though most of them result in saying, 'You're wrong!'"

Nazralte · Lore Keeper Joined: 29 Dec 2003 Posts: 790

Since the night before, Nazralte searched the lands. He searched for a magical item he had read about while researching his love's condition. A Magic Jar, it was called. Described as typicaly being a clay jar or jug, with arcane markings on it and a stopper of some kind, it had the power to draw a soul into it, and keep it there untill released. Nazralte was hoping that with this Jar, he would be able to trick this Soul Stealer and capture her within it.
Weary and tired, he first went to his house. Finding the bed empty, he then traveled to Ivae's new home and found her fast asleep. He felt guilty for having to wake her from her peaceful, yet almost death like sleep.
"Dear", He whispered into her ear, "It is time."
She rolled over and looked at him with her flat gray eyes. "I dont want you to risk yourself for me." She turns away and continues "Im not worth it. Not worth your life"
Nazralte sits and looks into her eyes "You are most worth it. And besides, have some faith in me. I've been lucky in this life so far."
"How so?"
"Well...I am a leader in a great guild, and I do have you." He smiles to her.
She simply nods and gets dressed, no emotion showing on her face, even with the thought that Nazralte may lose his own life in this. They head out into the morning sun, Ivae's veins showing through her skin, Nazralte's haggard face showing more lines from the long night, and set out to find the Soul Stealer.

Hours pass and after much searching and calling, Ivae tells Naz that the Soul Stealer is close. Before, Nazralte could never see her, so he calls out to this creature.
"Soul Stealer. I have a deal for you." He yells.
After a long moment, a reply. "What do you have to offer, mortal?"
Nazralte shivers at the things wailing voice. He shakes it off and announces his offer. "You cannot use her soul, but you can use mine. Return Ivae's, and take mine."
"Why would you want to do this mortal?" She wails.
"Love" He simply replies.
She laughs, the horrid sounds making Naz shudder, and even Ivae shiver slightly. "Fine then. If you wish to die for that foolish nymph, so be it."
"Just release her soul first. I wish to say goodbye to her before I go" His voice cracks slightly.
She laughs again at his remark, but does as he wishes. A shimmer appears from her and flows outward and into Ivae. As the soul enters, she collapses to the ground in fatigue. Nazralte rushes over and hold her close, he feels warmth spread throughout her body, color returns to her cheeks, her eyes are vibrant again, yet filled with tears.
"Why did you have to do this?!" She exclaims. "Why should I want to feel if it has to be pain?" Tears roll down her face and she looks into his eyes.
"Dont worry love, I am not going anywhere" He whispers into her as he kisses her cheek. Standing, he says aloud "I love you", and begins to walk towords the Soul Stealer.
"Come to me my pretty soul. It will be fun to devour you" She tells him as he nears.
Nazralte draws out the Jar and continues twords the spirit, "You will not be having anymore souls. Not now, not ever." He then opens the cork stopper and an inrush of air begins.
"No, you lied!!" She cries. "Fiendish Human!" With those words, she is drawn into the Jar, trying to flee and fight.
Nazralte replaces the stopper, turns to look at Ivae, and shakes the Jar for her. He laughs as he walks over and helps her to stand, kissing her deeply as she falls into his arms.
"Lets go find a safe place to keep this" He says to her.
"Lets, Melamin" Ivae smiles to him as they walk home.
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Nazralte
Former Regent of Britannia