Court of the Fallen
a weed by any other name (open) - Printable Version

+- Court of the Fallen (https://cotf-rpg.com)
+-- Forum: Out of Character (https://cotf-rpg.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=26)
+--- Forum: Important (https://cotf-rpg.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=27)
+---- Forum: Archives (https://cotf-rpg.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=38)
+---- Thread: a weed by any other name (open) (/showthread.php?tid=2271)

Pages: 1 2


a weed by any other name (open) - Loren - 12-03-2019

After making the improvements, Loren had decided he should probably go out and check on the fields regularly. After all, it was a fine line between helping and hurting. Unless his changes were carefully monitored, he was more likely to do more harm than good. However, on the edge of the fields, he was greeted with an unusual sight.

Giant flowers. Three enormous lilies. They were pretty, beautiful even. However, the summoner had been warned about the unusual properties of these particular blooms. So, halting a safe distance away, he narrowed his eyes at them. Then, he blasted the closest one with ice. It seemed to writhe, and his jaw dropped as it physically moved away somehow. That wasn’t enough to stop him from pelting it with his magic, though.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Jigano - 12-18-2019

Jigano had his own concerns with the windbreak and wanting to grow it up tall enough in its first season to survive whatever Caido would throw at it, so that it could protect the fields beyond. It meant a little more magic pumped into the trees each day, another few feet added to their heights, and deeper roots to prepare for Longheat's drought. With everything else going on it had been hard to find the time, but he hoped that in just a few more days he would have managed to get them to the point where they would be fine on their own, barring willful damage by man or beast.

All well and good, but today they weren't the only things growing in the fields. He paused in bemusement as he noticed a familiar silhouette raining icy vengeance down upon a particularly unhappy Flower of Unusual Size. One of its cousins had taken a nasty nip out of his tail the previous year, and he chuckled in amusement as he came up to stand near Loren, eyeing the flower's friends. "Nasty bastards," he said conversationally. "They won't bother the crops, I think, but they'll take pot shots at the farmers." So saying he tugged at the earth beneath a second of the plants, opening a small chasm beneath its roots to drop it into as it suddenly writhed and shot out root and leaf tendrils to try and stop its fall.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Loren - 12-18-2019

As the familiar voice floated through the air, Loren shot a glance over his shoulder and smiled at Jigano. However the summoner quickly returned his attention to his magic and the flowers. [say]"I've been lucky enough to avoid them until now, but I figured that might be the case."[/say] His voice came out quite cheerfully for someone who was technically in battle with carnivorous plants.

His first target seemed well and truly iced over, so he switched to another. As the earth itself crumbled under one of the flowers, the Launceleyn's smile morphed into a full blown grin. [say]"So your earth magic doesn't just extend to growing flowers? You can kill them too? Could've fooled me."[/say] His tone was teasing, but given the number of times he'd seen the bard making plants recently, Loren thought he'd earned that. He broke off his assault to slice at the flailing roots of the exposed plants with carefully targeted icicles.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Jigano - 12-19-2019

"I haven't seen them around as much this year," Jigano admitted as he joined his friend and took up a ready stance to repel the invaders. Magic seemed the weapon of choice, and given how nasty a bite from the botanical bastards could be Jigano was just as happy to be able to keep some distance between himself and those deceptively sharp teeth this time around. "But it seems our luck has finally run out."

He grinned as Loren took the jab, rolling with it easily enough as he focused his attention on slamming the earth back together as the flower fell into it, courtesy of Loren's ice daggers slicing away its supporting tendrils. "I hope Frey and Rae think the same, if I ever encounter them!" he said, only half-teasing. "I'm more a follower of Ludo and Mort though. This isn't quite what Mort would want, I suspect... but he'd understand the desire to protect the fields and farmers. I'm not entirely sure if these things have souls to return to him." A curious question of theology, and one they weren't likely to answer today.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Loren - 12-19-2019

Having dealt with the second flower to his satisfaction, Loren turned his attention to the third and last flower once more. However, he spared a second to glance curiously at Jigano. [say]”Is that so? Any idea why? The coming back now, not the luck thing.”[/say] There was a great deal of resigned amusement on that last statement, since the summoner was well aware of his luck.

Sending a blast of ice towards the final floral, he smiled. [say]”I think Frey and Rae would probably tell us that the flowers lived a good life, and were felled in good time.”[/say] Then the corners of his eyes crinkled. [say]”They might not enjoy the magic though.”[/say] He paused, giving the bard an appraising look. [say]"How did you end up worshipping Ludo and Mort? I don't think you ever told me, or if you did I've forgotten."[/say] The Launceleyn offered an apologetic smile.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Jigano - 12-19-2019

"No idea," Jigano had to admit, though it pained him to do so. His lips quirked up at the comment on luck, however, nodding wry agreement given how his own had turned in recent seasons. "Perhaps the barrier had some empowering effect on them, and without it they've weakened? Or they could simply be having a low yield this year... or perhaps predators from the Greatwood are taking their toll. Or some combination of those things, or others we don't know about. Or maybe they aren't really rarer, they've just popped up in less-populated places this year." Nature was a curious thing, and Frey would be the one to ask, though it seemed a somewhat frivolous question to pose the deity when a concerted effort to look for the odd plants might provide an answer without any need for divine intervention.

The final flower dodged the ice, but Jigano pulled the earth up beneath it, raising it five feet into the air on its own personal pillar of earth so that it wouldn't be able to dodge a second time, setting it up for Loren's next attack. "I'll take your word on it," he agreed with a chuckle, perfectly content to let Loren handle the gods of nature and fertility. The tale his friend requested was one that almost no one knew, really. He couldn't remember anyone else asking, in point of fact, and he had told no one of that first meeting with Ludo but Rory. "Mmm. It happened in the usual way, I suppose," he mused. " Ludo was the first to answer one of my prayers. They weren't particularly kind about it, in point of fact... and I had heard something of what they had put Remi through. But they were willing to offer me a trade and to uphold their part of it. The next time I went to pray to them they were more welcoming, and ever since it has been... never an easy relationship. They are not a god to ever be taken for granted. But... I know where I stand with them. The same cannot be said for myself and Safrin, and I have never prayed to Frey. I know that they enjoy being given orgasms for their favors, and that is an intimacy I prefer to save for my mate," he finished with a shrug.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Loren - 12-19-2019

Loren shrugged, glad that the flowers had been dispatched more than anything. [say]”Probably all of the above. Alternatively, people have been spending their free time in Halo, which has few plants, and so they’ve just been around the Hollowed Grounds and the Greatwood less, and as a result encountered fewer flowers, rather then there being fewer flowers. Which you kind of already said.”[/say] Shooting a slightly sheepish grin at Jigano, the summoner ran a hand through his hair. [say]”Again, I imagine you’re right, it’s a combination of all those factors.”[/say] His voice had been speculative, more idle curiosity than anything else.

His sheepish grin grew slightly more so at the bard’s comment about Frey and Rae. Still, the Launceleyn nodded. Then he clasped his hands behind his back as he listened to the white-haired man’s explanation for his chosen gods. [say]”Fascinating. And fair enough when it comes to Frey.”[/say] Loren smiled faintly. [say]”They don’t always request orgasms. It depends on the individual in question. But I can understand wanting to keep that part of your life private.”[/say] There was more than a little bit of chagrin in his voice as he spoke.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Jigano - 12-20-2019

Jigano chuckled as Loren restated his own suggestion, albeit with more detail into the less-populated bit. He tilted his head in acknowledgment of the mage's sheepishness, not minding in the least. On the contrary, it was nice to have someone he could bounce ideas off of, who traded thoughts out loud so they could work it out together.

He started walking towards their erstwhile foes to make sure that the ice-blasted plantimals weren't just playing possum. He tossed Loren a wry grin at the additional information on Frey, arching a brow at the return of chagrin to his friend's voice. "That begs a question at the same time it warns me from asking it," he said, dry humor on his voice. "Have you found a god that you prefer to worship in particular here? I'd like to hear the tale of how you became an Attuned as well, if you don't mind?" He wasn't sure when it had happened, or if they'd even been friends at that point, but now that they were talking he was glad for the excuse to learn more about his new colleague and guildmate - and friend.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Loren - 12-20-2019

As Jigano walked towards the plants, Loren did the same, easily falling into step next to the bard. The question caused the summoner to flush even more deeply than he had before, and he flashed almost a guilty smile at the white-haired man. [say]”I suppose I would say Frey.”[/say] The Launceleyn’s voice came out anything but certain, though there was a certain reverence in his eyes and his tone as he spoke of the god of sex.

[say]”Similarly, they were the first to answer my prayers in Caido. And...they’ve been good to me. Better than I had any right to expect. Helped me realize that if I was always living my life for others, then I'd just hurt them and myself. Blessed me."[/say] The corners of his lips twitched. [say]"Also that it was important and good for me to accept happiness where I could find it."[/say] There was more than a bit of wry amusement behind those words.

Kneeling down by the closest flower, Loren inspected it, looking for the telltale signs of dead vegetation. [say]"As for becoming Attuned, well, I told them I was worried about the future. So they asked me if I'd fight or if I'd flee, and I said I would fight. They tested that assertion, and I must've proved that I was telling the truth."[/say] He shrugged, not entirely sure if that answered Jigano's question. [say]"Did you arrive in Caido as an Attuned?"[/say] The summoner tilted his head so he could look at the bard as the other man spoke.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Jigano - 12-20-2019

After Loren had seemed so knowledgeable about Frey earlier, Jigano wasn't surprised to hear that deity's name fall from the Launceleyn's lips, but it was still interesting to have it confirmed. He nodded thoughtfully as his friend explained how such a connection had come to be, lips quirking into a wry smile as the other man echoed what Rexanna had told him around this time last year, about Frey wanting people to live their lives for themselves. It was good advice, even if he himself was terrible at following it.

He stayed quiet as the answers continued, unsurprised to discover that it was Frey who had helped Loren reach Attunement with Caido after all else that they had done for the man. "Your form does, indeed, seem well-suited to fighting," he murmured with amused respect. The question in return, however, had him hesitating a moment out of old habit. It was hardly a secret on Caido anymore, though, and he could find no harm in sharing that once-hoarded piece of his history.

"I did," he said before the silence could stretch too far into awkwardness. "Which only made sense, given that I wasn't human on my world. That part of my heritage remained to me here, even though my magic was initially lost." A light shrug as he knelt beside Loren, for lack of magic was no longer an issue. He reached out to prod at one of the fallen flowers, and sharp leaf waved weakly to find him off as he did so. Grimacing slightly he used a stone to crush it more thoroughly with his earth magic, both to end its suffering and to end its threat. "Tenacious things. Did you have anything like them in Northhaven or Northwind?"


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Loren - 12-20-2019

The corner’s of Loren’s lips twitched. [say]”Thanks. Most people say I’m too skinny.”[/say] Then he gave Jigano a wry, but very pleased, smile. [say]”Oh, you meant the honey badger.”[/say] It was clearly the summoner’s attempt at a joke.

Nodding in acknowledgement, the Launceleyn summoned three rabbits to nibble at the flowers. All three plants responded weakly, not just the one the bard was crushing, so the summoner blanketed the other two with more ice. [say]"Did you have the same forms there as you did here?"[/say] That caused him to frown thoughtfully. [say]"Actually, what are your forms?"[/say] Loren didn't think he knew all of them, or if he did, he'd forgotten.

The white-haired man's question earned him a huff of laughter from the Launceleyn. [say]"I don't remember Northwind that well. But yes, everything in Northaven was trying to kill us. Mostly the jungle outside the city walls."[/say] His eyes grew distant. [say]"There was one incident where tree creatures attacked us as we were attempting to explore."[/say]


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Jigano - 12-20-2019

Jigano snorted at the joke, however weak it was. It was worth at least that much, and he grinned to encourage Loren's sense of humor. It sounded as though the summoner had little reason to life in his former life, so it was something he was glad to support the other man pursuing now that he was freer of his family's shackles and the bonds imposed by the hierarchy of Northwind. "Well, we can't all be Deimos. But your fuzzy form seems fierce enough to give him a run for his money!" he added with a wink.

At last Jigano's vegetative villain seemed to succumb, collapsing into stillness beneath the rocky assault. "Mmm. I was... a kitsune," he explained, the words still not coming easily after all this time. "I could take the shape of a fox or a man, though my true form was something... in between." He hesitated then shrugged. "But it was safer to wear a human guise, and let others think that was all I was. Here, though..." He chuckled shaking his head a little in residual wonder. "I arrived with my fox form intact, but I've gained a raven's feathers, a horse's hooves, and a snake's scales since then. And of course, you've seen my dragon shape," he added with a wry quirk of his lips.

Loren's words of Northwind matched what Jigano had heard from others from that land, and he nodded slowly - then arched a brow as the tale abruptly ended before it had properly begun. "Tree creatures? Like these, but bigger? Or something else entirely?"


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Loren - 12-20-2019

Letting out a huff of laughter, Loren gave Jigano an amused look. [say]”Considering he practically flattened me when he landed on me as a tiger, I am not so sure about that.”[/say] Still, there was a pleased smile lurking on the summoner’s lips at the bard’s compliment.

The corner’s of the Launceleyn’s eyes crinkled and he nodded. [say]”Yes. I know what kitsune are.”[/say] Waving a hand, the rabbits disappeared and a unicorn took their place. It started trampling the ice-coated flowers, shattering and crushing them in equal measure. Tilting his head, his expression grew curious. [say]”That’s a very impressive list. I’m curious why you gained a dragon form rather than retaking your former shape as a kitsune.”[/say] His brow furrowed as he considered the problem.

At the white-haired man’s confusion, Loren immediately  shook his head. [say]”No. They were like...wolves? But made of bark and vines. We’d settled in for the night, and it was dark, and they attacked. Thankfully, we were able to fend them off, but the rest of the group sustained some injuries, so we turned back. I didn’t get a chance to examine what was left of them.”[/say] He shrugged.


RE: a weed by any other name (open) - Jigano - 12-20-2019

Jigano snorted again. "He could flatten anyone if he landed on them in that form!" Even Remi would be hard-pressed to handle a tiger tackle unless he was in his manticore form, and even then Deimos's martial training might make up the difference in weights.

Jigano backed up a few steps to give the unicorn room, amusing himself by creating a garland of connected flowers around the unicorn's neck and horn, making it look even more like a fairy tale steed. He shrugged at Loren's musing, though, lips quirking slightly. "I didn't have much choice in the matter, but also... I don't think I could regain my proper form." He shrugged slightly. "Once I was old enough to maintain a human shape I almost never took my birth shape. I can come close here, now that I can partially shift... but my proper shape is bipedal, with fox's feet and taloned fingers, a bushy tail and a fox's head with a shortened muzzle for normal speech, and fur all over. And as little time as I've spent in it over my life, it is no great loss. That I could take my full fox shape as soon as I arrived was more important to me." He didn't know what kitsune were like Loren's world, but he suspected they were quite different from what the word meant to Jigano's people.

"Wolves made of plants?" he mused thoughtfully, nodding to the seriousness of the encounter. "Perhaps in a thousand years these carnivorous flowers might evolve into something like that. Or... have you encountered a Wicker Woman here yet?"