get the matches

regions of moonlight and chaos

Melita had other things to tend to that day – a tournament, specifically, and while she was usually hellbent on destruction and menace, there were significant matters to consider first.

Launching from the beach and directly into the sea, her anklet provided her to slip along the surface as easily as the ground – delicate, airy, and nimble strides taking her over to her favored shrine. Promises were promises, after all, and she’d given every indication she’d be just as preferential as she’d been in the past – but now duty seemed to linger there, in the back of her mind.

Like…responsibilities and stuff. Weird.

She crouched and placed a small doll along the other offerings – it too seemed to bear a little mask, though it differed from the raggedy herald’s. Within a moment, she was whispering and bowing her head too, dedicated and chaotic all in one breath. “Ludo, what would you like me to do?”

the honeybee

"Hello, sweetling. You came." Ludo peeps from around the statue; a raggedy youth, dark haired, dark eyed and black-fingered, plucking up the doll Melita has brought with appropriate aplomb. Stuffing it into its rags, it clambers around to stand with the Honeybee for a moment, before shifting to kneel on the sandy boards, reaching out to draw a grid with its finger - noughts and crosses, she might notice. "I want you to stop everyone from taking everything so seriously," it informs her, drawing an X to begin the game. "Everything was so serious with Remi, and now with the... that, too." It gestures out towards Starfall in the distance. "Isn't it boring?" LUDO Braved the forests, braved the stone Braved the icy winds and fire Braved and beat them on my own

regions of moonlight and chaos

Pleased that her offering had been decent enough, and unaware just how much she’d be sending others into turmoil in a matter of hours, the Honeybee listened intently, eyes fixed upon rags and kneeling alongside. She watched the grids, the noughts and crosses, familiar with the game, and followed through on making an O in the bottom left corner.

The information made her eyes narrow, lifting her head to survey Starfall, and then the general vicinity. “Should we not be taking it seriously?” Or maybe that wasn’t Ludo’s discretion, and it didn’t care. Pondering over the duty, her head tilted. “I wanted to blow it up,” she said with a casual shrug, as if that was a normal train of thought. “So should I be making people…happy? Amused? Distracted?”

the honeybee

Placing another X seemingly without care, Ludo sits back on its heels and scrunches its nose. "Well, I suppose so. The kind of conflict that sort of thing might bring would upset the balance of souls going to Mort's realm." It means, of course, the many fatal casualties that usually accompany war. "Blowing it up would be for the best." But as for Melita and her role? "You should be reminding people that there is more to the world than Starfall and fighting and serious conversations." The way its voice drops makes it sound an awful like Ludo is trying (and failing) to do an impression of Vi. A more shrewd soul might call it keeping morale up, as strange a thing as that might seem for a demigod of Ludo. But trickery is trickery. "However you decide to do that is up to you." LUDO Braved the forests, braved the stone Braved the icy winds and fire Braved and beat them on my own

regions of moonlight and chaos

She watched as the next X formed, furrowing her brows in thought before continuing along similar patterns as before, and making her following O into the bottom right corner. But then she was listening, over conflicts, over approval of blowing shit up, forming another mischievous grin at the thought. “It would be upsetting to have another war though,” because while she was all for bedlam, there were many others not equipped – and the tragic losses they’d had during the last one gave more cause for concern. "There's got to be another way to get them the fuck out of here."

And she couldn’t help but laugh at the Vi impression – having never heard the Old God before, she’d have to go on those notions of his distinct voice and abilities. “Okay. I can do that.” In her own way – and through the magic and means Ludo had already unfurled into her soul. “Do you need anything else?” Something more for her to do?

the honeybee

"Maybe we can just catch them and put them somewhere forever," Ludo suggests (haha, like the Voice in the Grounds?); its tongue pokes from its mouth as it reaches out in what it clearly thinks is a genius move, switching from Xs to Os and adding one to the bottom middle section, before drawing a prompt line. A winner! "Good! I thought you would be good at it." Smiling to her and sitting back, it considers her question with the sombre expression of a grim reaper, before bobbing its head yes. "There is something, actually. I would like you to steal all of Koa's shoelaces, hide behind a door and scare Hawthorn, and draw on Remi's face while he is sleeping." It nods sagely. LUDO Braved the forests, braved the stone Braved the icy winds and fire Braved and beat them on my own

regions of moonlight and chaos

She refrained from mentioning they’d already done that particular snippet before, and in the end, it still hadn’t quite worked out…nodding along instead, and then snorting outright when it took her victory. Striving to avoid the sense of mulish behavior varnishing over her mind, she instead nodding in great rapport, and then considered the list.

Of pranks and amusements. Koa’s shoelaces. Scare Hawthorn (who was that?). Draw on Remi and not get mauled in the process. Letting this permeate through her, and unbothered by all of it – it’d take some time and effort, but she’d certainly give it a fuckin’ go, she laughed in spite of everything else threatening to unravel around her soon. “Do you want me to report back when I’m done?”

the honeybee

"There's no need for that." Ludo shakes its head, flapping a hand at her. "This is all just for fun." Depends on whose definition of fun that might be, of course, but the herald - omnipresent to a point - will be enjoying itself thoroughly. With their game complete and the conversation seemingly finished, Ludo draws itself to its feet and reaches out to pat the Honeybee's fiery hair. "I think we are going to have a very good time together," it declares, before promptly disappearing in a wisp of rags and the faint sound of a cat's meow. ~FIN LUDO Braved the forests, braved the stone Braved the icy winds and fire Braved and beat them on my own