(RQ) white night

i can't be your midnight love, when your silver is my gold

A letter was sent out before her arrival – a note that she intends to visit and hopefully not turn to stone in the process, alongside the task she’d been given to prevent the Inner Quarter from being infiltrated by the void now spreading across the continent. Halo looks different as she arrives, huddled in the jacket Deimos had made her alongside a torch that’s as close to her chest as possible to prevent her from catching fire and freezing to death, close enough that she can be somewhat comfortable as she tries to scout the damage done to the region she once called home.

The landing is easy, at least, and with it Deimos there to whisk her away and prevent her from turning to stone even as she can’t just run into the nearest building like she had when she’d come to the wedding – instead relying on him and his own torches to guide her way to the Fangs to help her collect an infected creature or plant. “I might need to take a dip in the hot springs when we get there.” Kiada murmurs, voice a bit sluggish as she raises the torch a bit higher and closer to herself, keeping the jacket wrapped around her as tight as possible and any part of her that could be exposed to the cold is certainly covered up by now.

“How has the rebuilding gone?” She asks quietly, peering up at him from under her hood and beneath her scarf.

i can't be your second best, close but not your favorite

i keep going back for more, when there's nothing from before

KIADA

DEIMOS And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame Letters received, and with some residual apprehension in place due to Kiada’s own Ancient circumstances, the Sword came laden with his hands full of torches as well. Escorting her through the Citadel might have looked comical at best, but he’d always put safety and security on the pedestal of his responsibilities, and with Halo in less shambles, destruction, and chaos than before, he could safeguard and shepherd her along to the Fangs. If his strides were long and purposefully swift, he made no mention of it. As soon as they embarked upon the Tundra he enshrouded leagues of fire around her, a surrounding and pervading purpose, nearly like a cloak, never quite touching but providing and presiding with heat, with a long sigh to accompany her inquiry. “You can hunt from the springs, probably,” he murmured, half-jokingly. “What were you hoping to grab?” Especially since it had to be alive – he’d encountered plenty that had no regrets in seeking to assault and maim. Keeping them in existence would be a more difficult task for him, who’d readily seethed and sieged upon the disturbing creatures at any opportunity. Glancing along the entrance to the open-air caverns, Deimos eventually rounded his gaze back to her, the slight reticence slipping over his features more of a habitual feature; a safeguard against the frustrations, weariness, and exhaustion. “Better now. Alys and I have already retrieved several off the tundra and new bay,” gesturing back to the reservoir clinging to the banks of the Citadel. He’d probably have to do it again soon. “Emergency shelter is nearly done, and improvements to the infirmary too. Then there is just the general repair work, and hunting some of these creatures down.” Which they’d accomplished in their own land, and Torchline, but there was clearly more to be done. “How are the Grounds holding up?” master of nothing place; of recoil and grace

i can't be your midnight love, when your silver is my gold

The fire is a nice touch, one that offers a lot of relief for the Harpy as they make their travel, body alight with the glow of the flames that surround her to prevent her from becoming a gargoyle. Her gaze drifts between their path and up toward Deimos at his inquiry, shrugging lightly in her uncertainty. “A creature or a plant. Whichever one is easiest, I think.. Probably a plant, if there are any.” It would be far easier to plop it into a watery jar of sorts to keep it alive for the trek back, versus trying to capture a creature and wrangle it back toward the Grounds.

But she can see the glistening entrance of the Fangs as they approach and her focus seems to linger in scanning its surface for anything of note that might be different – missing the portals briefly in a moment of panged sadness, before she bypasses it quietly and nods in response to Deimos’ answer. “A lot of work.” She says softly, a small apologetic hum leaving her.

“We’re doing okay. Just more flooding and creatures, really. But the flooding isn’t that much different from all the rain of last season.” Here a frown graces her features heavily, shaking her head in quiet annoyance of practically living like a drowned rat for an entire season.

i can't be your second best, close but not your favorite

i keep going back for more, when there's nothing from before

KIADA

DEIMOS And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame “We have the frostblooms,” he rumbled, a wrinkle to his nose indicating his irritation and annoyance with their existence all over again. “I already learned not to touch those.” And given Kiada’s current state and high risk in this land, the warning went for both of them. “Should be able to dig one out. Do you have something to put it in?” Not something he couldn’t handle either, not with creation entanglements and elements at his disposal, gliding within his veins within a moment. The Fangs were a telltale entrance of many a tale, adventure, and trial, and he wanted to ensure these moments wouldn’t land in any of those categories. He led them further, towards the hot springs, head tilting towards her as she listened, and then responded, to the mass amount of reconstruction and repairs. “Yes,” and he surmounted it all with a shrug, because they’d persist in forging onward. “I worry about any other repercussions heading our way. Have you heard about the island itself?” Remi’s letters had reached him, and likely many other leaders, but he didn’t know how many outside of Halo held the information. The news about the Grounds didn’t make that less tragic either, but held some brief interlude of relief that it just seemed to be another round of what they’d had before. “What sort of creatures?” master of nothing place; of recoil and grace

Like a self-contained blizzard, a white dragon snarls overhead with an ursur clutched between its claws. Flying towards the high cliffs that no doubt are its home, it’s probably a good thing that it already has its dinner for the evening, lest you have become its meal.

---

You’ve encountered a White Dragon. This counts as a rare creature encounter for the purposes of levelling, but does not count as a Random Event for levelling or MP. There will be no further admin/re intervention. If you choose to follow this creature, you do so at your own risk, however, just having it in this thread is enough to satisfy your levelling requirements. You may not kill your rare creature without admin permission.

White Dragons (Rare/mythical): Living in underground tunnels that are warded with ice and snow, white dragons hoard treasure and anything they deem beautiful. Often this means that one might find gold, gems, and frozen humans stored in their caves. They can speak the basic common tongue and can communicate telepathically with the attuned, though they are secretive, vain, and usually aloof and unhelpful.

i can't be your midnight love, when your silver is my gold

“Frostblooms…” She repeats, before she looks over at him through the glow of the fire with a raised eyebrow and a small smile – because she would have absolutely done the same fucking thing as touched one if she encountered anything of the sort. So far, she hasn’t, until this adventure, and with it the warning is already taking root – as if the fire essentially encapsulating her wasn’t reason enough.

Thank the gods for him though, to keep her safe through this.

“I do, I brought a small glass terrarium. I think they’re supposed to be alive, so…” She’d done the best she could to get a container that locked in case she encountered a flora or a small enough fauna. But the nets in her bag seem to suggest she’d try the other approach too if it ever came down to it.

She follows him as he guides her, though, eyes scanning the smooth surface of the wind tossed caves, watching the fire reflect within them as they walk. “I haven’t.” She admits, frowning lightly. “The general consensus I did hear is that it’s bad news.” She shrugs a shoulder gently, tucking the jacket in close again after and pulls up her little scarf covering up to above her nose.

As for the creatures in the grounds she does know about, well, “some of the wine spiders have gotten awful.” A shiver races down her spine with the memory, frowning lightly.

i can't be your second best, close but not your favorite

i keep going back for more, when there's nothing from before

KIADA

DEIMOS And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame Deimos would never be able to ignore the roar of a white dragon – not after all these years living within Halo, and the chaos that had once brewed within the Fangs themselves. His spine went entirely rigid, figure taut and tall, as it flew over them. He watched and waited until it disappeared along the horizon, before clenching, then striving to loosen his jaw – all over in a matter of moments, but the horrors still an immersion deep in the figments of his mind. His attention segmented back to Kiada once they’d gone deeper into the known pathways, turning along another bend. “Frostblooms,” he repeated, as if the echo was supposed to be a rhetorical nuance instead of grounding him back into the present. “They can freeze you, or the surroundings, upon contact.” Figuring he wouldn’t have to dive any deeper into why such an imposition would be especially perilous for her, his eyes went to notions of glass terrariums, nodding at the notions. The hot springs appeared along the next interval, and his stance altered visibly, into something far more at ease – though the news inspired a wrinkle to his nose. “Remi said he went – faced someone there that he could not damage.” Which was an indication of the level of power or prowess they were dealing with – but not much else. Perhaps Kiada could shrug it all away, but Deimos wouldn’t. He and Evie had an entire region to be concerned with. His brows furrowed, never figuring or counting on wine spiders to become anything threatening. “How so?” master of nothing place; of recoil and grace

i can't be your midnight love, when your silver is my gold

Perhaps she’s so distracted by the fire around her and Deimos being there that a white dragon doesn’t phase her, or perhaps her writer absolutely missed the fuckin serendipity when she was replying to it, hard to say. Her gaze flickers to the space in which the dragon vanishes into and swallows as she continues and listens as he explains what the frostblooms do. “Mm, yeah, definitely don’t need to get my hands personally on that one.” She flashes him an innocent look that seems to ask if he might be willing to figure out a way to shove it into the terrarium.

Her attention is immediately snagged by the hotsprings, drifting toward it as if honing in on its offered warmth despite the flames that encompass her. She reaches the edge of it and freezes, looking back over her shoulder at him with a raised brow. “Someone that Remi couldn’t damage?” That was a terrifying thought. Her nose wrinkles and she sighs, almost forgetting for a second about the comment of the wine spiders. “They’re hungry and mean. Their webs are dark and ominous and they’re certainly not the hiccupping adorable kind that used to be there.”

i can't be your second best, close but not your favorite

i keep going back for more, when there's nothing from before

KIADA

DEIMOS And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame “I already have an idea,” he assured, based on her tone and gesture, snorting the remains of his trepidation, watching as it billowed into warm vapors surrounding the area. Standing stalwart and nearby, he permitted the fire to continue its lingering range around her, even as she headed towards the hot springs, uncertain if she intended to immediately dive in, or merely linger amidst the heat. Scanning the surroundings, and relieved by their familiarity, it was probably the only comfort he’d find as the conversation continued churning. “Yes. And it has been a long time since anything like that has occurred.” Probably not since all their days stuck within the Hollowed Groudns, striving to understand and comprehend necessary actions for roles in which many had been unequipped. Deimos still had vivid recollections of the latest war, or searching for the relics, in which the Lullaby outclassed all their opponents and enemies – not without his own lasting injuries, but certainly never anything Remi seemed bothered by. “So we should not take them lightly. Or wander to that island.” Not yet anyway; though the warning was pointed. Deimos had known Kiada long enough. The wine spiders hadn’t lost his attention though, brow furrowing in thought while his gaze swept over the area once more, intent on notions of frostblooms. “Have they been attacking?” master of nothing place; of recoil and grace

i can't be your midnight love, when your silver is my gold

“I knew you would.” She chipperly responds, despite the air of tension regarding the now vanished dragon. But as for the hot springs, she doesn’t dive in just yet, content to actually help when it comes to collecting for her own regional quest, but she does linger, searching for something that might equate out to what this frostbloom looks like.

It helps to settle her while the panic of Remi being unable to handle something that’s a threat races through her mind, the warning clear and heard with a hum of agreement and a wrinkling of her nose. A wrinkle that remains while the talk of wine spiders fills the air and she nods a touch gravely. “Yes. I don’t think anyone’s gotten bit yet, though.” Not that she’s heard at least.

She slips around to the side of the hot springs, when something glittering and attached to the edge as if growing out of it comes into view and she inspects it briefly before setting her bag down. “Is this it?” She points to it, careful to not get too close to it and certainly refrains from touching it.

i can't be your second best, close but not your favorite

i keep going back for more, when there's nothing from before

KIADA

DEIMOS And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame He arched a brow at the quip, but did nothing more in response other than utter a snort. Despite the looming trepidation solidified through his ribs, he still didn’t want to cast these precious moments asunder – fully aware that their time together was often limited. They’d taken necessary precautions, but Kiada couldn’t linger amidst the cold for eternity, not now, and he had multitudes of other actions to carve through for Halo, and the world at large. He’d rather enjoy the present, finding it, and her, worthy of his attentions and love, rather than flickering through all the dread and consternations – difficult, perhaps, given the subject matter. In some regards though, information kept her safe too – and if he couldn’t be nearby, he’d at least hope she’d take his advice. A sigh lingered through his throat and chest at the images of wine spiders, the offer already across his mouth before he’d had an opportunity to figure out timeframes. “Let me know if the Grounds needs a hunting party there too.” If the tiny arachnids were becoming vicious, he figured there were more creatures hellbent for the same purpose. Maybe Fox wanted to commit to some slaying. His attention went from the plumes of heat and vapor to where she pinpointed the plant nearby – stoic and there, resting amongst the crag. The Sword wasn’t certain if he was offended at its expanse here or simply irritated by its existence overall, but he gave her a quick nod, and his long strides began to march towards it. “Yes. Get your terrarium ready.” master of nothing place; of recoil and grace

i can't be your midnight love, when your silver is my gold

She shares the same sentiment – the fact that she wants nothing more than to just settle down with Fox, to leave the adventuring behind despite just how the world kept trying to tear her from those she cared for time and time again. For now, she takes it one day at a time, each night spent with her loved ones a blessing and a gift, especially for the Harpy who was on her second life, her second chance.

“I will.” She comments, making a mental note as she focuses on the frost bloom in her vision – at least, what she assumes it to be, as she requests Deimos’ confirmation. And when she receives it and his instructions, she lingers at the edge of the hot springs, plucking the terrarium from her bag and collects some snow and dirt from the caves into it to hopefully continue to make it thrive during her travels, before she holds it out with her gloved hands, bright iceberg eyes watchful and waiting.

i can't be your second best, close but not your favorite

i keep going back for more, when there's nothing from before

KIADA

DEIMOS And in your darkest hour, I hold secrets flame Having learned from previous mistakes, Deimos opted not to make the same one twice. Concentration and focus honed immediately, with the diligent granules of his earthen incantations contorting rapidly in his wake. The dirt shifted around the frostbloom, but much more outward, as if carving or cutting away a puzzle piece; something that would’ve easily settled back into the sanction if he permitted. Senses indicated where the root system lingered, and with great certainty he plucked and snagged well beyond; so nothing would be touched, scorched, or laden with freezing entities. It began to pull neatly from the loams of hardened soil, and from there he tugged with Air enchantments too, ensuring the portions rose, roots and all, above and hovering for a moment, before slowly, meticulously, dropping them within Kiada’s outstretched terrarium. After a second more, he breathed, unfurling the weight in his chest he’d been holding. Arching a brow at her, and waiting to see if anything else happened from the dispersal, he jutted his jawline towards her. “Think that will be enough?” master of nothing place; of recoil and grace

i can't be your midnight love, when your silver is my gold

She remains still, settled by the edge of the hot springs and surrounded by the heat of flame to keep her from turning into stone, holding herself steady while she watches his magic take root – literally and figuratively – as the frost bloom starts to wobble amongst the snow and dirt, paired with the air she watches as it lifts and slowly sinks into the terrarium she holds. She waits until she feels the weight of it, before she encloses it, snapping the lid shut and locking it tight with the metal latch, before tucking it into the bag at her side, turning to him with a bright smile.

“I think that’ll be perfect.” She murmurs softly, relief spreading through her now that the task is complete. “Maybe we should head back now, though? I don’t want to exhaust you too much with everything you’re doing for me to be here.” All the magic he uses to keep her from turning to stone, so desperately appreciated. "And maybe we can grab a snack before I go officially? I've missed the cocoa here." Her smile shifts to a twisting, playful grin.

i can't be your second best, close but not your favorite

i keep going back for more, when there's nothing from before

KIADA