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call me daddy - Aisha - 03-30-2020
It was just a glimmer, a faint twitch of the air around her, but not a wave of heat. She was used to those, summers were always harsh where she lived and she'd spent many a day lounging in the the courtyards under the glaring sun. These were not heat ripples, of that she was positive.
But here she was, head cocked, light hazel eyes scrutinizing over a subtle tear in reality. The cat begged her to investigate, and so Aisha prowled around it. It remained in place from every angle, taunting her and coaxing her. Perplexed, she now found herself instinctively reaching for it. Maybe not entirely instinct, as otherworldly forces were in fact in play, however the cat woman would never admit to doing anything without conscious volition.
Aisha's fingertips came in contact with the rift, and in that moment she saw nothing but white.
When she next awoke there were stars in the sky. She didn't need to lift her head to see them, only stare forward. That was odd at first, but then she became aware that she was laying down. The next thing she became aware of was the prickly grass that tickled her golden skin, and as soon as she was cognizant of it her whole body began to itch. She was uncomfortable now, still woozy, but at least she knew that she didn't want to be laying anymore.
Standing was no respite to the discomfort, as soon as she was vertical a chilled breeze whisked past her. No not just chilled, cold. Aisha was very cold. Another odd thing, because you know, it was summer. As grateful as she was to be coming to her senses, it certainly would've been easier to remain asleep.
Her brain finally began to piece together what had lead her to this situation, it'd taken her a moment to remember the shimmer in the sky, the touch, and the flash. Now that she had, she began to grow anxious. Where was she, why had she passed out, who had moved her? Aisha felt up and down her body, clenching her clothes as if they held a secret to what was going on. They were as they always had been, just fabric and leather.
I don't know what the fuck this is, but somebody's gonna be in deep shit, she purred to herself, trying to tide down her worries with sarcasm.
RE: call me daddy - Oliver - 03-30-2020
After he had happened to run into Harper on the day of his arrival, Oliver had made it a point to visit the Spire ever so often. If doing so little had created a friend out of Harper, then surely he could provide the same companionship to any future arrivals who came through the portal. Now, Oliver wasn't all happy and rainbows, he knew that he wouldn't always get along with all of the arrivals, but that didn't mean he was unable to help them or provide assistance. Besides, any opportunity to speak about Safrin would greatly be appreciated.
It was on one of his occasional trips that he saw an unfamiliar face. Normally, he'd assume that they were from Torchline or Halo at first before approaching, realizing it'd be a bit rude to assume everyone was an Outlander. This girl, on the otherhand, had a certain disposition to her. The way she held herself and behaved seemed to give hint to other underlying issues. Composing himself, Oliver appeared from the bush, walking towards the girl. His hands were clearly visible and shoulders relaxed, attempting to show that he meant no harm.
[say]"Hello? Are you lost? I'm Oliver."[/say] His voice came out smooth, fearless but also kind and soft. This wasn't his first interaction like this and hopefully, she'd be able to tell that all was well.
RE: call me daddy - Aisha - 03-30-2020
Aisha snapped her attention to the voice, blonde curls falling at every inconvenient angle into her face. With a puff she blew it away so she could see, surely looking a bit feral at the moment. She usually had good reflexes and reaction time, but right now she'd barely noticed the guy approaching. The fact that she was off her game and in a foreign place had her on edge automatically, and she was ready to interrogate the second he finished speaking.
[say]"Where am I?"[/say] she shot out quickly, a demand for information rather than a question. Her hands had come to stay in front of her, subtly warning him to stay back. This Oliver didn't seem all that threatening but she'd been taught not to trust anyone. Especially under such unprecedented circumstances. She'd need a bit more than, a name and a placating tone to calm down.
RE: call me daddy - Oliver - 03-30-2020
Her reaction was sharp and quick, but not unheard of. There was a sense of fear to her and how she responded, showing a sense of high alert. Oliver really couldn't blame her and was actually a small bit impressed with this. When he first arrived, he had been very dazed and even when he saw others arrive, they tended to be on the calmer side. Her? She was in a fighting stance, which would do her some good in Caido.
Stopping, he made sure to watch her carefully, but tried to maintain eye contact as best as he could. [say]"You are in the Hollowed Ground which is in Caido."[/say] Answer the question first then try and negotiate, it would hopefully make it far easier to get her to trust him or really do what he said. [say]"Would you like to sit down? It's a lot to talk about."[/say] Otherwise, he'd be content with how things were. Allow her to feel like she still had power, which would hopefully alleviate any stress. Really, Oliver wanted to get through this as quickly and easily as possible. If all went well: the girl would get all of her questions answered, a place to stay, and everyone in this scenario would be unharmed.
RE: call me daddy - Aisha - 03-30-2020
He paused before answering her question, and the words he spoke were entirely gibberish to her. Well she knew what hollowed and grounds meant, but she'd never heard of a place with that name, and she'd never heard of a Caido. Even if they had been places she knew, how did she get here. She hitched a breath, about to say something, but stopped. She didn't know what to ask, whatever question her mouth was trying to form couldn't possibly encompass all that she felt.
What she felt was cold, and itchy, and scared. But she tried to hide it, as a good princess does.
Her gaze had shifted to an undetermined point behind him during her muddled thought process, but at his words her eyes shot back to him. She definitely didn't want to sit, she had too much energy in her body to sit, and she also didn't want to give the stranger any advantage over her, as nice as he seemed. [say]"We can stand,"[/say] she said with confidence, holding her elbows tight to her sides as another breeze blew by.
[say]"Now explain,"[/say] once again it was more of a demand than an ask. Explain seemed general enough of a question since she was having a hard time settling on one. Hopefully Oliver had a lot to say, she wanted no nooks of information unvisited.
RE: call me daddy - Oliver - 03-30-2020
Watching her, Oliver tried to assess what she was thinking, but it was a bit hard from their distance. He also didn't want to make any assumptions, meaning he might as well bluntly ask her, which he wasn't about to do. If she refused to trust him now, there's no way she'd be open with him about anything going on. No way was she going to accept any food or drink, let alone anything else he had to offer. Looks like he'd just have to slowly gain her trust.
Standing up was fine, so might as well start. [say]"I don't know how much you remember, but you were just teleported here. A god has sent you here from your original realm and you are not the first. I was also brought here."[/say] Man does he probably sound crazy to her. Oliver knew that it sounded insane and unbelievable, but she'd just have to accept him. [say]" There are many differences with our world than your original one. There is a high chance you may have new abilities or your abilities simply carried over. There is unfortunately no way to go back to where you originally came from, I'm sorry."[/say] Letting out a soft sigh, he watched her, waiting to see if she had any questions or comments, clearly waiting to see if he should continue on or not.
RE: call me daddy - Aisha - 03-30-2020
Aisha was pretty positive she remembered everything correctly, that being said there wasn't really a lot to remember. A weird reflection and she was out for the count. The way he described it made her think portal, but she wouldn't dare say that out loud because it sounded stupid. Portals weren't real. Her eyes just narrowed as she listened to him, trying to decide if this was some sick joke or not.
If it was he was a hell of an actor.
He described the differences blah blah blah, abilities, worlds. But the last thing he said struck her like the back of a hand. Whether or not this was really another realm or whatever, the idea that she couldn't go back both angered and scared her. Who was he to say what she could do? From where she stood and what she thought she knew, it sounded like a threat, a threat masked in a kind tone.
[say]"What do you mean I can't go back,"[/say] she said, an accusatory malice in her tone. [say]"You're lying."[/say] It was a firm decision, but inside her the leopard was pacing in doubt. He wasn't lying, but how could she admit that?
RE: call me daddy - Oliver - 03-30-2020
The reaction was expected. Everyone was always surprised about something, most often the fact that one couldn't go back. It was something a large majority of Outlanders seemed to feel at one point or another. A shared experience. It was why he chose to mention it so early into his Welcome Spiel.
Offering her an expression of sympathy, Oliver let out a sigh. This would be hard for her, absolutely, he could tell. [say]"I'm afraid that I'm not lying, not about anything I just said. The portal is meant to bring you here and is incapable of taking you back."[/say] Hopefully she wouldn't blame him, seeing as it was the Voice that did this. [say]"It's not that we don't want anyone to go back, trust me... plenty of us probably do want to go back, but we cant. The Voice brought you and I here for a reason, she chose many of us out... and this is your new home."[/say] Might as well call out the goddess to give the girl a name to hate. It'd do her some good to hopefully stay away. Oliver knew she wasn't an Ascended, so he saw no reason not to protect her from the Voice.
RE: call me daddy - Aisha - 03-30-2020
Something about sympathy really got under her skin. Aisha was a Khai, she was princess of her people, she was not pitied. It may have been meant as goodwill, but she felt mocked by it, and her lip quivered at his sigh. [say]"Why? If I'm supposed to believe I was portaled to another world then there better be a good reason,"[/say] she replied heatedly, despite not wanting his pity her ire was backed purely by panic.
Oliver spoke about this so called god, The Voice. That The Voice wanted her for a reason, it was her fault. However much of that was true she couldn't tell, and while she comprehended it Oliver was still unfortunately the subject of her spite. [say]"This, is my new home? This cold dark shit hole. Why should I believe you,"[/say] she said, gathering herself up for some semblance of composure.
RE: call me daddy - Oliver - 03-30-2020
Oh that's the rich part. The absolutely beautiful part. To everyone but the Ascended it seemed that they were brought here for no purpose. How the hell was he supposed to explain this? [say]"Look. That part is super complicated, but longstory short: A goddess was trapped. She brought us here to free her, but then even after she was freed, people still kept coming. We think it's just a carry over of that."[/say] That's the most he could say because, well, that's all he knew. Even he had asked once if there were further nefarious reasons to keep bringing them, but from what everyone knew: it just couldn't be shut off.
The way she reacted was understandable and to be expected. Oliver couldn't blame her so he tried to not take any of her words to heart. People say odd things when stressed or afraid. [say]"Would I have any reason to lie to you? No. How about you ask me anything, tell me what it takes for me to prove to you that I'm not lying and I will do my very best to fulfill it. I can show you magic, animal shifting, or a number of other things that this world holds. Whatever will help you to feel calm, I'll try to do it."[/say]
RE: call me daddy - Aisha - 03-30-2020
The bluntness of his next explanation actually made her listen more, and gave him trustworthy points. He wasn't trying to appeal as much, it was more of a genuine reaction and response in her eyes. She let her brows relax some from the glare she was shooting him. The brief moment of coming to terms with things was halted when she processed what he'd said.
[say]"I'm carryover!?"[/say] this came out a bit loud, [say]"I'm stuck in another realm because some god forgot to turn off her portals?!"[/say] Ah yes, the sarcastic jokes to deal with the feeling of dread welling up in her chest. Somehow she was starting to believe him, maybe she always had. Her hands were trembling just slightly.
How could he prove it to her? She didn't know, that was part of the problem. She had no basis of evidence for otherworldly activity, there was no standard for new realm. His reassurance was appreciated though, even if it wasn't shown physically or verbally. She liked to know that he was willing to work to make her believe him, it felt like she was being given a scrap of the power that she'd lost the moment she'd woken up here.
Shifting was familiar to her, back in her world everyone could do it. It wasn't scary or new, and while it wasn't evidence of another realm, it was what she wanted to see. [say]"Ok, shift then."[/say] This was the first demand of hers that wasn't fueled by frustration or fear. It was more uncertain and hopeful than that.
RE: call me daddy - Oliver - 03-30-2020
The reaction was less than positive, but also understandable. The expression on his face was one of understanding and even a hint of annoyance showed through. Once she seemed to be done ranting, he nodded and let out a soft sigh before continuing on. [say]"Trust me, I'm not a fan of it either. I was also brought over like that. I think she may not be able to turn it off, thus making us come here anyways."[/say] She was understandably upset, so he tried to reassure her that she wasn't alone. Plenty of others were trapped here because of the Voice. Funny, isn't it? Trap others in order to free yourself. Narcissistic as fuck, really.
What she demands came off as a surprise, which was shown through his obviously raised eyebrows. [say]"Alright."[/say] It was interesting, really. He had expected her to ask to see magic, but this? Not at all. With a soft sigh, he shifted down into a small fox. One with absolutely massive ears. This was probably the best option since his other two shifts put him at a major disadvantage. The leopard could be too intimidating but the woodpecker was far too small. Staring up at her, he tilted his head before shifting back into a human. [say]"Anything else you want to see or ask about?"[/say] He'd ask questions to figure out what race she was eventually, but for now he needed her to feel safe around him.
RE: call me daddy - Aisha - 03-30-2020
Oliver didn't have any further explanation on the Voice bringing them here, but he expressed a similar bitterness towards it as she was feeling. Just maybe they were on the same side, screwed over by some goddess. Was it possible? Not but minutes ago she'd been convinced he was a liar, that portals weren't real. Now here she was, justifying trusting him based on a shared sentiment towards a being that she'd just learned about and didn't actually know existed.
This was so fucked, but she was starting to believe him, because what else could she do. She was entirely lost and this boy was the only person providing answers.
He seemed surprised for some reason by her demand, but didn't protest. He shifted swiftly into a small fox with big ears, sandy in color and covered in fur. She recognized the animal, in its diminutive stature and disproportional ears. They had something in common, and she latched onto that and held it close. A comfort, possibly misplaced but a comfort all the same. In a matter of seconds the man was back in the fox's place, asking if she had any other questions.
[say]"If you're telling the truth and this really is another world, and I can't go back; What am I supposed to do?"[/say] she asked, actually phrased as a question this time, her brain too racked to keep up the anger any longer. She felt uncomfortably vulnerable, but not in any state to care at the moment. She could only worry about what happens next.
RE: call me daddy - Oliver - 03-31-2020
The unnamed girl before him was slowly starting to wind down. Either she was running out of energy or she was slowly beginning to trust him enough to relax and calm down. He'd accept both since they were better than nothing. The reaction to him shifting wasn't one he really expected, but it was clear improvement. Good.
Her question was a common one and he was happy that she asked. It was the first step to accepting her brand new life. [say]"All you really can do it make a new life. You can find a place to stay or you can come stay with one of us, we have tons of spots available. Find a thing to do. Get yourself a profession or maybe join a guild. You have tons of new opportunities and things to do with your life."[/say] It was a lot, but it would show her that the answer wasn't super simple. She had many options and choices to make, but she also wasn't going to be alone.
[say]"When I first arrived, it took me a bit to find my footing. Eventually I settled in and joined the Artists Guild. It may take you some time, but I can assure you: we are here for you whenever you need us."[/say] Oliver would also absolutely offer a home to her, the manor. It was growing very lonely and he might as well offer up a spot since he's now running the thing.