[PQ] Feathers & Fearlessness

The sign on the bulletin read: ATTENTION: ALL FLIGHTED SHAPECHANGERS I would like to fly to the top of the Spire. I have reason to believe we might gain valuable information by reaching its summit. BE WARNED: Though we have not yet seen that the creature that guards the Spire can fly, it is entirely possible that it can do so, or that there might be other dangers. If you would like to join me in trying to reach the top, I will be leaving at noon tomorrow. -- Remi Abruzzo It was entirely possible that no one would come. Only Remi had heard what Ludo said about answers being at the top of the Spire. Of course that probably meant inside the Spire, but seeing as the alchemist currently could think of no way of getting close to the spire, much less getting inside, he wanted to rule this out as a possibility. The only avian shape changers he knew of were Vanya (pregnant), Martha (MIA) and Koel (MIA, but probably just scouting).  What the alchemist hadn't decided yet was whether or not he would go alone. If the Spire Monster could not fly and there weren't any other obstacles (there didn't appear to be), flying up seemed completely uneventful. But then again what in this place was ever as it seemed. And so as the sun rose in a grey sky heading towards its peak indicating noon, Remi waited about 40m away from the Spire where he knew it to be safe. This PQ has 3 spots. 1. Remi 2. Kiada 3. Devrum REMI I wish I could discover something that doesn't expire

The harpy hadn’t met anyone here yet – but that didn’t stop her from making her way around this land. Despite the sickening pain she felt in her chest every time she bore her wings, she found it easy to scout and see from above, relishing that sad part of her that wondered if that was what Khairi had seen through his scarlet gaze. She put the thought aside, having spotted the sign that mentioned flighted people were needed at that dark spire that jutted out from the ground. Now Kiada wasn’t interested so much in being helpful as she was interested in learning about the land and its inhabitants. She wasn’t the only one to grow wings and soar, and so she heeded the warning of danger and took off in the direction suggested. Upon approach, her pale wings took to the winter skies as she circled, searching for whomever it had been to post the notice when she spotted a stranger in the snow. She circled lower, until she was able to reach the ground and shift into her dark haired mass. Her icy eyes scanned over Remi before dipping her head in a greeting. “I saw the notice. I can help.” Her words were curt yet said with a pleasing lilt even if she felt like wallowing in her own sorrow. Then as if it suddenly occurred to her to introduce herself, she turned a bit more front on to Remi and let her gaze linger along the panes of his face. “I’m new here. Kiada’s the name. Just, uh, let me know what you need done?” She managed to say, trying to sound as pleasant as possible. KiadA you think i'll be the dark sky so you can be the star? i'll swallow you whole.

coding

DEVRUM Devrum had stared at the notice for a long while. Scratching against his beard pensively, eyes squinting as he studied the notice. This certainly wouldn't be as easy as flying up...had anything happened to Remi and Devrum had the ability to be there for him and chose not to do so...that just wouldn't sit well for him. So he ran and his wings shot out before taking the form of a rough-legged buzzard. His brown, tan, and black feathers rippled against the winds as he soared toward the location. Screeching as it appeared to dive down at an angle, Devrum shifted back so the momentum continued. Carrying his steps toward the pair with enough ease to signal he had rehearsed this entrance more than he cared to admit. "You got balls. I'll tell you that much." He spoke with a bearded smirk to Remi before looking over Kiada briefly before turning his hazel and green eye to the spire. "Well...I ain't much for suspense. We doing this or what."

The hawk had never seen a bird like the harpy before, which was his first indication that this was likely a shapechanger answering his call. Though given the newness of his world it was entirely possible that the crimson-eyed creature did indeed belong here and was merely out for a glide. However as Kiada circled lower and lower still, eyes intent on the human-skinned hawk, the alchemist became even more sure that the bird was actually a human. Who though, he had no idea. As she landed changing easily from avian to woman, Remi fixed the icy-eyed woman with a friendly smile and nod. As she circled around, Remi tracked her movements with a openly optimistic expression despite the strong and impregnable expression that his new companion wore. "Pleased to meet you Kiada. I am Remi." Her name flowed off of his accented lips like a melody, and he dipped his curly head slightly in greeting. Turning another bird was quick to arrive, and once again it was not one that he recognized. That was why as the bird neared the ground and shifted with impressive elegance into the form of Devrum, Remi was taken aback. The bear? A bird now? "Wings look good on you." Remi said with a boyish grin. Glancing over at his shoulder then back to Devrum, Remi motioned towards Kiada. "This is Kiada. She is new here. Kiada, this is Devrum." Though three seemed like a fairly safe number, given how new Kiada was he'd not risk her safety without proper warning. "A monster guards the spire. That is why we are going to try and fly to avoid it. That being said we have no way of knowing what else might be protecting it. This may end up just being a boring flight for the three of us, but potentially not." If she was going to back out, now was the time. Taking a breath, Remi looked up. Can you hear me like this? It was a recently ability he'd learned that he had: he could speak telepathically with other attuned even when he wasn't shifted. However even while they were, that did not necessarily mean they could speak back. Make it clear if you see something while we are up there. We should remain as a group if we can. So saying, it seemed they were ready to begin. Trotting forward a few steps despite the snow, Remi's arms spread from his sides and with the practiced ease of years of doing precisely this, Remi's body contorted and contracted into an avian shape much smaller than his two companions. Still, he was agile and fast, though hopefully for this mission he wouldn't have to rely on this skills. Gliding towards the Spire, Remi's sharp eyes warily watched for the demon to see if their presence had alerted it or drawn it out. We will circle as we go up. He mentally called to them, and so saying, he began to loop around the spiral flying higher. Though they were only about 20 feet off the ground, a bizarre and cantankerous wind blew out of nowhere. With freezing gusts it buffeted the birds around. To make matters worse it seemed weighty with moisture making their feathers feel soggy and heavy. what —? Remi whispered with a startled trill, fanning his wings as his smaller body was tossed about by the winds. Kiada and Devrum will be similarly bounced about by this sudden change in weather. How will they overcome/avoid it? REMI I wish I could discover something that doesn't expire

stars, hide your fires; Let not light see my black and deep desires

Confession time: Rory wasn't the best with letters. Sure, his mom had taught him. Sure, his sister had heckled him about it, more than once, and with varying degrees of pedagogy. But even though it stuck in theory, he had a hard time translating it into practice. And besides, he didn't have a lot of reason to read or write, so he'd sort of stopped doing it, which meant that he was very, very rusty.

But he'd stopped by the noticeboard on his way back from some errand, and caught sight of a name he actually recognized almost instantly: Remi. So, laboriously, he had deciphered the note, in the end just grabbing a passerby and demanding they read it out loud to him.

He didn't like what he heard. And by all indications, it seemed that it was today, and noon was rapidly approaching. Rory would have precious little time to talk him out of it.

None, actually.

As the black pony reached the Spire it became painfully obvious that he was too late to stop them. Remi changed into a hawk, accompanied by two larger birds, and up they went. Rory walked Talys to the spot where they had changed, and then he just.. sat there, staring forlornly up at their circling shapes as the wind began to tug at them.

At least this way, someone would know how they died.

[ Rory arrives after y'all have taken off, and he's not part of the PQ, he's just there to judge your feathery butts. Don't wait for him in the rounds of the PQ! ]

His eyes remained on her as she landed and shifted back into herself. He smiled with a kind smile that wasn’t entirely returned on Kiada’s own face – instead a small curt nod was given in his direction. As he mentioned he was pleased to meet her, she only bobbed her head again, “Same to you.” She responded in her usual short phrase. She had no need for full or pleasant introductions. They were here to do a job of sorts, and she intended on getting it accomplished. She turned back to look at the spire before another rather large bird caught her attention, soaring toward them and shifting into another man she didn’t recognize. Though when he spoke, she appreciated the short bluntness the man possessed too, and offered him a quiet half smile in a reaction before Remi spoke. He introduced her and she nodded to Devrum in her own way of a greeting before Remi seemed to catch her attention and begin to explain the situation with the dark spire. “What fun would it be otherwise?” She questioned with a bloodthirsty grin. “Game on.” She looked over to Devrum to see if he had anything to say to it, and when she looked back to Remi as he began to move, she heard him from within her mind, without his lips moving and attention on her. It pinged some familiar feeling deep within her and she scowled slightly at the memory before following him, shifting into the pale vulture and soaring into the sky. She was larger in this form than Remi, but the man had the experience Kiada lacked. She’d never had true wings, never been able to carry herself high into the sky. But she followed his instruction, circling above the spire as though it were a practiced formation before the wind pushed them all around. It was cold, soggy, and caused her to lose focus as it battered her. Her beak opened and a guttural growl slipped out before she pulled her wings in tight and lowered herself just enough to hopefully gain momentum to swoop up and propel herself upward, hoping to outrace the winds even if it battered her outside of the range of the spire. Her wings pumped in short bursts, hoping to gain altitude with the least amount of moisture settling on her feathers. She wasn’t certain it would work, but she wanted to try. KiadA you think i'll be the dark sky so you can be the star? i'll swallow you whole.

coding

DEVRUM "Fresh air, monsters...my kind of party." Devrum muttered as he looked over the skies, turning and nodding his head to Kiada as Remi introduced them. Once the pair were off, Devrum leapt off as he rippled into the shape of the larger raptorial predator. His wing-span spread out nearly 5 ft across with powerful flaps, closing in to glide and build momentum before opening them once again to push further up. That's when the gusts began to pound in. The Buzzard screeching in disapproval as it slammed off the moisture from its wings with a strong flap. Smart girl... Devrum thought to the pair as he pulled in his wings and sent himself diving down like a missle of feathers before shooting out his wings, gliding up in a powerful swoop though he changed course to remain beneath the gusts. We stay below the gusts, look for a clearing to climb. If there's no opening we push up. Devrum thought, seeming like the most reasonable choice, instead of spending unnecessary energy pushing up winds meant to stop their advances.

Kiada 's strategy was a good one, but this was not just a regular guest it would seem. Rather than allowing for a pocket of air through which the birds could fly, instead the wind relentless beat and battered them back down. Every time they managed to gain even a bit of altitude a swift and quickly descending thrust of frosty and heavily-laden-with-moisture air. Their wings would feel soggy and heavy and each beat of them would require much more strength and energy than it normally would, their hollow bones providing little support for this frigid onslaught. Staying closer to the Spire should block some of the wind... Remi said hesitantly. He wasn't entirely sure whether directing them to be closer to the spire was a particularly good idea, but so far it didn't seem like the most dangerous thing in the skies. It was either that or give up and go back down. So saying, Remi pinned his wings and dived towards the Spire, losing altitude along the way to try and avoid some of the icier gusts. It was true that nearer to the Spire he only really had to worry about being battered from the top or the sides rather than head-on. Does anyone see anything? On the Spire? A way in? Markings? Anything? They eyes were all sharp and given their proximity the alchemist was hopeful that perhaps the trio would be able to spy something useful. Please post a number from 1-100 at the top of your next post!~ REMI I wish I could discover something that doesn't expire

{Numberrrrr 83!} Kiada bristled lightly at the sound of Devrum’s voice joining her mind. It recollected something so foreign and pain wrenching that she had to look away from the other two birds. Yet she listened to him regardless, honestly not attempting to die today while the winds battered her wings. She lowered herself again, listening as Remi spoke to her and Devrum as well. Circling around the spire on the bottom, she tucked in close and tried to circle upward. Remi then asked if they saw anything and she narrowed her eyes on the black pillar as she circled, searching for anything that might be intriguing. But Kiada hadn’t ever seen it before today, so she wasn’t certain what exactly they were looking for. What kind of markings? What type of opening? She had no way of responding anyway, unable to speak to the pair like they could to her. All she could do was caw that guttural sound in response, somewhat sounding like she was unsure. She tucked her wings in tight and circled closer to where she could reach out with her talons and scrape the Spire should she wish to, but she kept them tucked. She didn't know if it had any kind of magic sucking power should she actively touch the thing. Kiada had so many uncertainties about this black pillar that she hoped the pair could describe them to her when this was over. KiadA you think i'll be the dark sky so you can be the star? i'll swallow you whole.

coding

DEVRUM {Numberrrrr 69} More or less, Remi appeared to somewhat agree with Devrum in keeping their path low, avoid the gusts. Though cutting it close to the spire was not the intent. The buzzard screeched as it gazed down and followed followed past Kiada diving down at the side of Remi the larger stretched out its beak as he began to cut slightly ahead of the Alchemist. An opening would prove ideal, though the ease of the mission, he knew, would alter greatly.

All at once the winds died away as the trio rose higher. Though Remi had not seen how close Kiada had come to touching the Spire, he probably would have advised against it. Although ... they were here to test the limits of the thing, were they not? Still, he'd not risk harm befalling the vulture even if he didn't know her well. Given the break they were afforded by the breeze, Remi extended his wings and pressed them fervently against his sides over and over, forcing himself towards the top. Quickly, while the wind has died away—We can make it. He called punctuating his mental voice with a bright and enthusiastic trill. The top of the Spire was nearly in sight now. However for all of Remi's keen vision, the surface was so smooth that the hawk was having a difficult time actually focusing his gaze on it. Were there etchings at the top? Or was the surface completely smooth? The lack of contrast made it nearly impossible to tell. But they were close now...they would see soon enough. Fly to the top! Please post another number at the top of your postttttt <3 REMI I wish I could discover something that doesn't expire

{going with my LUCKY NUMBER 11} The girl looked up to notice how Remi and Devrum stuck close to one another, her feathered head tilting as she circled the spire and attempted to catch up to the two of them – still refraining and tucking her talons in to not scrape against the obsidian hue of the Spire despite a deep will to want to and see what would happen. Suddenly, Remi’s voice broke through her mind again and she responded to him with a guttural howl of a screech and diving upward. She followed Remi close, as she narrowed her eyes on the top of the Spire to try and find out what might be marred on the surface. Luckily for her, the wind had a break and she had followed Remi close enough that she wasn’t tossed out of it with wet slick wings like what had nearly happened before. Her wings flapped against the air, gaining altitude as she swooped closer to the Spire, uncertain if she was seeing anything or just the trickle of the rain making marks into the top. Huffing quietly to herself, she screeched yet again to Remi as if to say, “what are we looking for?” before turning her attention to Remi and Devrum. She chose to try and stick close now – it appeared the two of them had more experience with this strange building and she needed all the help she could get if she wanted to survive. KiadA you think i'll be the dark sky so you can be the star? i'll swallow you whole.

coding

DEVRUM 42 As the winds died out slightly, Devrum pulled up his broad wings and began pushing himself upward. He'd keep a rhythm of flap, and closing his wings tightly to pierce the air and gather momentum. His eyes gliding over the spire in an attempt to focus on the etchings as they pushed toward the top. "Answers to questions we haven't thought to ask yet." Devrum replied to Kiada before screeching and launching himself toward the top. At least, that was his expectation of what they would find, otherwise this was a waste of time and Remi would be working off the time equal to the effort he gave to this quest of his.

Kiada would see a flash of electricity as she circled. It might have been nothing; merely the glint of light against the strange substance that the Spire appeared to be made out of. Or it could have been something quite important. It was so hard to say. As she flew though she would indeed see and notice it more frequently at the top, as if it were gathering somehow... Devrum would notice this and more. Perhaps his trajectory was braver or his eyes somehow better suited for the task, but he would notice rings of electricity arching near the top, as if emanating somewhere deep within the Spire and then being released. But it was no more than that; no flair of discharge, no sudden burst of understanding. Just coils of electricity seemingly simmering and simpering away at the top... For his part, Remi noticed very little. His gaze was more focused on the literal interpretation of what Ludo had said, as if expecting there to have been a door at the top they could simply open up. Another raucous gust of wind would blow the trio about now that they were at the pinnacle of the Spire without its bulk to protect them. Down! Remi urged, adding a loud vocal trill to underscore his word. There is nothing here...no way in...back to the ground Disappointment coloured his mental speech, but at least they were unharmed. Gliding down to the ground, eyes now trained below, the alchemist spied Rory lingering from where they had taken off, crisp blue eyes raised towards them. Giving his friend a bright trill of greeting, Remi briefly considered seeing if Rory would extend an arm or a shoulder for the hawk to land upon, but decided against it. Words were quite useful after all, and he'd rather like to actually be able to gaze into Rory's eyes have an actual conversation with the man, rather than just be a feathered accessory. And so, shifting nimbly in the air and landing elegantly on his feet, Remi flashed a boyish and charming smile towards the blue-eyed man. Still a bit breathless, Remi shielded his eyes to watch Devrum and Kiada hopefully following in his wake. "I did not expect to see you here." Remi laughed still a touch breathlessly, his expression and tone still coloured by adrenaline and emotion from his flight. PQ Over! Thanks friends! REMI I wish I could discover something that doesn't expire