Moving across the Greatwood with a mer was an experience that Noah had never had before. He was surprised with how efficient and quick the king could be in the water, as if he were matching stride with the Forsaken on land. In fact, Noah had to use his teleportation magic to be able to get to parcels of land disconnected by thick swaths of water that Hadama easily swam. The air grew thick and cold as they continued on, and Noah couldn't tell if it was from the setting sun or from the place they now tred.
"I know there is a shrine here somewhere, if you wouldn't mind a pause in our hunt." Noah said to Hadama, looking to the merking's eyes to see what response he would have. Until this point, Noah had been mostly silent, ruminating on what the Tidebreaker had told him of his celestial abilities lacking when it came to facing the threat of Dahlia.
the forsaken
Hadama was content to swim in silence and let Noah digest what had been revealed. The Greatwood was beautiful and strange, like a great deepwater kelp forest growing out of the sea instead of in it, and the Symphony was broad enough for him to stretch his wings. It was enough to travel at his friend's side as they kept their eyes peeled for a flicker of crimson and gold amid the deeper greens of the islands and meandering spits of land that connected some, but by no means all, of them.
The change in the woods was gradual enough that the mermanta was unworried by it until the oaks and birch were almost entirely replaced by a type of tree with bloody bark, and mist hung heavy in the canopy overhead, casting the water and the forest floor into shadow.
Hadama turned at the sound of Noah's voice, and only when the demigod spoke did he realize where they must be. "Mmh. I do not mind," he agreed, tilting his head in consideration before nodding. "Perhaps an offering to Ludo will bring us luck in our task. At least while we are in its territory."
Little did Noah know that his rumination would only increase in the coming days (when he would meet with Safrin #timelines), but Hadama seemed comfortable enough with Noah’s internal struggles and therefore his silence. When the silence broke, though, the merking seemed just as inclined to pray at the shrine as he was. ”Knowing Ludo,” which Noah only did by tales and accounts, ”it could go either way.” The glacial features shifted to a smirk, glimpsing towards the merking.
AS they moved and the trees resembled skin more than they did bark, Noah could feel the cold coming in and grasping at the back of his neck. It was enough to make the hunter pop his collar and duck his head as his eyes shifted around them. He searched for both bright red petals and the eerie purple glow of the void-touched. the forsaken
"Mmh. It has played games in Torchline before," the Tidebreaker mentioned, a flavor of wry amusement in the Attuned bond to accompany his words as he met Noah's smirk with an upward twitch of his own lips. "Though I lost. And endured nightmares for several nights after." Given that his sleep was rarely so troubled, it had not been a particularly enjoyable experience.
The waterways wended through Ludo's Woods as they did every other area of the Greatwood, and Hadama swam at his friend's walking pace as he, too, kept an eye out for both trouble and triumph on their travels. Crimson and violet, life and Void. Two very different visual cues, but he and Noah were adept at multitasking in that regard.
"Have you heard where the Festival of Lights will be this year?" he asked as they searched.
Orbs of light beckon and call from the darkened angles and shadows of trees. Were those whispers of your friends? Family? Fallen allies?
Was that a scream? Could they be in trouble?
Is it all in your head? Just your imagination?
Or something else altogether – because what if it’s true?
You’ve encountered a Will-O-Wisp. This counts as a common 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. Will-O-Wisps (common): Glowing orbs of light that dance and weave between the branches, despite their usefulness, these creatures are not to be trusted. Mischievous and loyal to no one, they will lead travellers astray at a moment's notice.
The demigod was already looking for his offering as they continued to walk (swim) and talk. He stepped sideways and bent down to gather tiny, fragile bird bones and a half-skull. Holding the tiny bones in his large, calloused hand and admiring them for a moment, the demigod thought of Weaver. He knew she had gone to Ludo prior to her death, and the herald had made her scythe more powerful. ”Ludo met me at the Festival of Lights the day the Voice ripped the veil and brought back several souls as ascended.” He remembered then, that he had his journal in his jacket pocket. Placing the bones on an exterior pocket of his jacket, Noah then searched for the journal. Rummaging in the large inside pocket he found it and flipped only just the first few pages. It was there that he found an image that took up about 3/4 of the page. It was a depiction of Weaver and Noah together on the hunting aspect of that quest, of the woman slaying a Luxere with the scythe Ludo would then enchant. He smiled, between that and the bones he hoped Ludo would enjoy his offering.
But something caught his eye. Shining light, tiny flames, he wasn’t sure — but he heard a voice and he knew it. He couldn’t say how, or who, he knew it to be, but he did. A chill ran down his spine and he shot his head up and around, ears half-shifting as if grabbing for the sound out of the thin air. Noah paused before stepping forward, towards where the voice and light had come from. Noah didn’t quite hear Hadama’s question and he offered a hmmm? distractedly in response. the forsaken
Hadama watched with interest as Noah gathered the bones and considered what he could set before the nearby shrine, too. He had never asked anything of the masked god before, and therefore had never needed to prepare an offering at one of Ludo's altars, but he had been raised with the respect due to all of the old gods. So.
"Mm. I heard only rumors of that," he admitted, emerald eyes continuing to seek the banks of his stream for something within reach. "I did not think it possible..." He trailed off as a flicker of light drew his attention, bobbing low to the water. His expression grew fierce with a frown as he stopped abruptly, tail lashing beneath him in the water.
"Wait." His voice was hard and grim as he held a hand up to try and gain Noah's attention. "It is an illusion." Or close enough. He had run into the will-o-wisps in the Greatwood on several occasions, and he was far from pleased to encounter them again. "Will-o-wisps. Like echo sharks of the land."
"I thought I heard..." It is an illusion Hadama cut him off which gave the demigod pull pause. He still couldn't place exactly what, or who, he thought he had heard; but, he trusted his friend. If Hadama had said that it was an illusion, a trap, then Noah would sit in that trust. He had to. It had been his own hold on reality that brought his fellow warriors out of the illusionary trap they were in in the war, and it was their trust in him that saved them. Noah had to extend that same trust to the merking, because he was his friend.
The demigod blinked it away, and shook his head slightly. He looked down at the paper in his hand and sighed. He looked up again, the chill still on the back of his neck. "Are they always like that, or was that a void-touch?" He asked, turning his head slightly to look at his friend before his legs starting carrying him to the shrine, opposite the way of the illusionary Will-o-Whisp. the forsaken
Yes, Hadama answered Noah's unspoken thought through the Bond, understanding suffusing his mental voice even without the details. He had experienced the painful uncertainty and tug of desire to help the 'voice' of someone he could have sworn he knew, and he knew how hard it was to resist it.
They began to travel again and the mermanta let out a slow breath he had held while waiting to see if Noah would become ensnared by the cruel lure of the will-o-wisps. "Always," he confirmed. "I have not encountered any that were void-touched. They are bad enough without its influence."
A patch of white caught his attention at the edge of the bank and he swam over to investigate. The partial skull of a glotter, long buried, was now eroding out of the river bank. A few moments of careful work with a gentle jet of water worked its canines free and Hadama swam to catch up with his friend, cleaning the teeth in the stream as they neared the shrine. "Do you want privacy?" he asked his friend courteously, prepared to swim back a little ways while the Forsaken made his offering if Noah requested it.
03-18-2024, 12:29 AM
(This post was last modified: 03-18-2024, 12:29 AM by Noah.)
"Yes, that would be nice." Noah said, his mind still trying to shake the feeling that the will-o-wisp had left in its wake. As Noah approached the shrine of the herald of death, a solemn reverence enveloped him, though the unease still clung to the base of his neck. In his hands, he carried his offering, and kneeling before the makeshift altar to the trickster herald, Noah placed the drawing of Weaver and the bones at the base.
Noah sucked in a breath, bowing his head in deep respect. As Noah prayed to Ludo -- begging him to give his love to the Hales, should his prayers be heard -- his words echoed faintly in the stillness. "In Mort's realm, all paths converge," he continued, his voice quiet yet thick with the weight of his words, "Grant me the wisdom to navigate the shadows, the strength to confront my fears, and the grace to accept the inevitable journey that awaits us all." As he concluded his prayer, Noah remained kneeling before the shrine, enveloped in a sacred silence that seemed to stretch beyond the confines of time itself.
He wasn't sure how long he prayed, but when he stood, he could tell the difference in temperature once more. He crossed back to Hadama, offering the merking a nod before then offering him the same privacy for his offering. the forsaken
Hadama swam back a little ways, out of earshot of Noah in order to gave his friend space to say what he found needful to the masked god. It gave him a chance to work on his own offering, using a slender needle of water to bore a neat hole through each glotter tooth so he could string them onto a macabre necklace. The task occupied him until Noah returned and then it was the Tidebreaker's turn to approach the shrine within the tree.
He couldn't easily reach it, but he used his air manipulation to raise the necklace up to the altar. Then he reached up to remove one of his earrings; his fingers hovered over the emerald in his left ear before rising to remove a simpler silver stud higher up in the cartilage, between the webbing. It was a memento from his grandfather, who had begun his training as a seasmith, and he clasped it tightly for a long moment before sending it to join the necklace of teeth.
"Ludo," he rumbled quietly. "We will need all of your tricks and cunning in the days ahead. Your inspiration to evade our enemies. The protection of your shadows. And your guidance for our people who do not survive. Lead them well, with all our love." He bowed his head deeply, his more personal prayers being spoken in the silence of his heart.
When he raised his head he felt lighter for the offering, and he swam back to Noah with a clearer gaze and his head held high once more. "The Crimson Cataract next?" he suggested.
Turning away from the ancient altar, Noah's eyes fixed on the distant horizon through the trees. The flickering light behind them seemed to illuminate the path ahead, casting shadows that danced with long, enticing fingers Noah kept his gaze far out and his ears shifted back as to give the merking the privacy and respect he promised as he offered his prayers and presents to the veiled herald.
As Hadama came back to him Noah nodded firmly towards the merking. He hoped the continued journey ahead would not be fraught with more challenges, but Noah walked with a confident stride nonetheless, fueled by the desire to find Vi's Roses.
FIN the forsaken
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