Adventurer
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9,581(ish)
Renown
human vampire
Perhaps north was the wrong direction to go...
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Post by Adelaide Nastase on Jun 22, 2023 14:43:45 GMT -5
The world outside was very strange and foreign and far, far too bright. Not that she could really tell much about what the world had been like before, considering her lack of memory, but that just added to the sheer feeling of confusion she had. Barely escaping with her life, or unlife as it were, from the monster hunter who had unfortunately come across her in a moment of weakness, Adelaide had just been wandering aimlessly. Keeping to the shadows more out of necessity than anything else and watching life in Charon move about unhindered and freely she sighed at her plight. What was one to do when one is already dead? Surely doctors cannot do anything and a necromancer would want her for some nefarious purpose she reasoned. Or perhaps not, she isn’t quite sure what necromancers actually did and she didn’t really want to get tied up in any nonsense. She had plenty of her own to deal with.
After all she looked a frightful mess in her tattered dress and worn shoes, the blood just barely noticeable in little flecks of places after she’d carefully cleaned it off. Not that licking something really did much in the way of cleaning. She was a sight. Hair matted to her head under her umbrella, disheveled and mostly ruined clothes and constantly followed by the small dark cloud that hung about her head like a safety net1. It was no wonder that most people avoided her.
That suited her fine, it was almost preferable to be left alone considering her…. Condition. The last person she’d spoken to had tried to stab her and gotten eaten in return. It was a dreadful existence, having this dratted thirst. If she could simply be free of it perhaps she could make something of herself. Wandering about like a lost dog certainly wasn’t the best use of her time.
Time had become such a strange concept to her. Moving only at night she’d been stumbling through King’s Valley before trying to head north for some inexplicable reason. North felt right. Not much else did.
It had felt right, that is, right until she’d found herself in the harsh unyielding sun of the desert. There was no refuge to find there and she cursed herself twice over as she shriveled up underneath her umbrella2. Perhaps this was a proper end for her. Cooked by the sun. Couldn’t be worse than being in a box for untold centuries, could it? 1 Overcast 2 Umbrella Combo
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Golden Consortium
IS OFFLINE
17
Renown
Zeinav Desert
Scam? I’ve never pulled a scam in my life! I don’t even know what a scam is!
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Post by Morrigan Moonweaver on Jun 22, 2023 20:03:13 GMT -5
The Wagon of Wonders ambled at a snail’s pace across the white sand sea. The bright, multicolored wagon stood out like a sore thumb amongst the sea of pearlescent white, blinding where the afternoon sun bounced off against it. The Fellblood at the helm of the wagon, however, didn’t seem all too bothered by the heat. This vast expanse of land was their birthright, after all. It had been a while since Morrigan had returned here. In the past few months they’d run some scams in the ancient ruins conning money out of naive travelers. Good times those had been.
The memory brought a smile to Morrigan’s face.
A shadow passing overhead, rippling amongst the sand, caught Morrigan’s attention. The fellblood glanced up, shielding their eyes from the sun with a delicate, ring-clad hand. A brilliant, rainbow Phoenix soared through the air, long sweeping tail fluttering through the wind. The sight brought a grin to Morrigan’s face, and they shifted to the side to allow the Phoenix to perch next to them.
“Did you see anything interesting, Nugget?” They asked, running their finger down the Phoenix’s elegant plume. If it was possible for a bird to look affronted at their own name, Nugget was conveying it with a puff of rainbow feathers and a ruffle of their wings. Morrigan only offered her a sharp-toothed grin, shaking their head. “Too late, I already picked it. That’s the name you’re stuck with.”
Nugget looked very much regretful that she’d allowed Morrigan to pick a new name for herself. With a weary sigh, the Phoenix ducked her head and gestured with a wing in the direction ahead of them. Morrigan blinked, turning to scan the horizon, but they saw nothing but rocks and a couple of odd, dark shaped lumps. Morrigan huffed and turned back to Nugget. “Are you certain you saw something?”
Nugget responded by pecking at their skull.
“Alright, alright, I’m going, I’m going!” Morrigan protested, waving the meddling bird away as they picked up Sparkle Blossom’s reins. The wagon picked up through the desert once more, across the empty sands… until Morrigan spotted something odd on the horizon. It was difficult to make it out at first, but the closer they got, the easier it was for Morrigan to see the weird lump on the ground.
“Is that a person?”
It wasn’t entirely an uncommon occurrence in the desert. Travelers that weren’t prepared for the scorching, violent heat of the desert would simply keel over when they ran out of supplies and water. Morrigan shrugged, prepared to move on - what was another body to be claimed by the vultures - when they noticed a slight shift.
It was still alive.
“Shit!” Morrigan cursed, pulling the wagon to a sharp halt. If they were still alive, this just made things all the more complicated. They should… probably try to help, shouldn’t they? That was the moral thing to do, right? Ugh, being nice was so complicated. But Nugget was giving them a death glare, and there was no way that Morrigan could pretend they hadn’t seen it with her staring daggers at him.
“I’m going!” Morrigan protested, pulling themselves out of the driver’s seat. In one fluid movement, Morrigan pulled their water skin off from their pouch. To their surprise, the woman curled up under the umbrella looked more like a porcelain doll than a person. Admittedly, a shriveled up raisin of a doll, but one nonetheless. “Jeez, how long have you been under the sun?” Morrigan muttered, nudging her in the side. “Hello there, miss lady, come on, drink some water!”
They tried the best they could to pour some from their water skin into her mouth, but given that she was barely clinging to consciousness, it was more of a mess all over her face than in her mouth. Damn. She was shriveling up out here - Morrigan needed to get her somewhere colder. Shadier.
They had some ice in their wagon for mixed drinks, but did they really want to waste that?
They probably should. Morrigan was selfish, but not a monster. Plus, this woman looked like she was considerably well off, despite all the grime and dirt, which meant that she hopefully had some money on her, and would be willing to offer a gift in gratitude…
Er, not that Morrigan was doing this for a monetary reward, no matter how much they wanted to!
How did nice people do this all the time? This was exhausting!
Morrigan straightened, glancing at their wagon as their resolve hardened. “Alright, fine. You’re coming with me to the wagon. I’ve got some stuff for you in there.”
With a flourish they pulled out a multicolored, bright parasol, holding it with their tail as they stared at the woman. Okay, how were they going to accomplish this? They could try to pick her up, sling her over their shoulder - nah, that wasn’t happening. Maybe they could try a Princess carry? She would be protected under the parasol that way…
Morrigan moved down to scoop her up, but the moment they tried to hoist her up, something in their back twinged, and they let out a little gasp in pain, swearing under their breath in the infernal tongue.
Well then how were they supposed to accomplish this? Morrigan turned back to the woman, an idea occurring to them. Well, it wasn’t the most glamorous, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. It was unfortunate that her savior turned out to be the biggest selfish loser in all of Charon.
“Sorry about this!” They said, like they weren’t particularly all that sorry, as they positioned the woman’s umbrella over her front half and covered her legs with their own parasol. Then they grabbed each of her legs and tucked them under their armpits, and began the grueling task of dragging her all the way to the wagon of wonders.
“You better be… grateful for my… generosity, lady!” They huffed as they shuffled through the sand, making their way back into the shaded safety of the wagon. Bringing Pets Nugget (Phoenix, Beastmaster III - Counts against Pet Cap) Pink Lady (Crab Apple - Counts against Pet Cap) Concorde (Scarecrow Squire - Doesn’t Count against Pet Cap) Junior (Black Bog Leech - Doesn’t Count against Pet Cap) Clawdius (Gargoyle Rook - Doesn’t Count against Pet Cap)
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Adventurer
IS OFFLINE
9,581(ish)
Renown
human vampire
Perhaps north was the wrong direction to go...
9 POSTS & 0 LIKES
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Post by Adelaide Nastase on Jun 22, 2023 22:20:46 GMT -5
Adelaide’s eyes fluttered a little as she was hoisted unceremoniously out of the sun and into the wagon. She’d long since passed out and started drying up under the unyielding desert sun and the sudden change in temperature made her slowly come to.
“Mmm?” She groggily opened one eye to take in the oddly colorful and smelly surroundings. “Where…? What?”
Her voice was accented heavily in a strangely old-fashioned way, sounding painful and dry at the moment. Her eyes settle on the purple fellblood only momentarily before her brow furrows.
“Excuse me, sorry to bother you….” She manages slowly, “Could you kindly tell me what happened?”
She sits up slowly, like a rusty hinge folding against its wishes. Her hand comes up to rest against her throat as she lets out a cough. “Dratted sand… I feel I might have faired better buried twice over. Ah that’s right, desert. I went north and found myself here… Sorry to trouble you. You must have found me quite a sight.”
She offers an apologetic smile to Morrigan, cracked lips too dry not to pull back and reveal the sharp fangs beneath.
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Golden Consortium
IS OFFLINE
17
Renown
Zeinav Desert
Scam? I’ve never pulled a scam in my life! I don’t even know what a scam is!
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Post by Morrigan Moonweaver on Jun 27, 2023 7:58:54 GMT -5
Morrigan didn’t exactly have a bed in here, so they tossed the lady onto a pile of lavish pillows and blankets that they usually slept on when they were on the road. Sand got everywhere, which made Morrigan grimace. They’d have to do a thorough cleaning of this place afterwards.
… Okay. They’d helped her. What the hell were they supposed to do now?
After a moment of deliberation, Morrigan figured that one good deed deserved a drink - and so as the lady began to rouse from her slumber, far quicker than Morrigan had expected, they were in the middle of mixing themselves a rather colorful and sweet cocktail. Their tail flicked behind them in thought as she spoke, pulling herself into a sitting position with great effort. Her accent wasn’t from anywhere that Morrigan could place, though there was no doubting it was meant to be regal.
Morrigan set their drink down, turning to face their new charge. “Hey, you’re finally awake! Trying to cross the border into Zeinav, were you? It appears that you, my fine lady, tried to brave the heat with no protection save that dainty little umbrella!”
They pointed towards the frilly parasol that they had closed and propped up next to her.
“And I, brave hero that I am, simply had to help someone in need.” They pressed a hand to their chest. Where she was perched at the corner of Morrigan’s alchemy bench, Nugget seemed to roll her eyes. “You’re lucky I found you. A few minutes more and you might have been nothing more than Jackal Jerky!”
She smiled at him then, revealing two dainty little sharp teeth that made Morrigan freeze.
Oh, Ginma. Had they seriously invited a vampire into their abode? There was a rule about that, wasn’t there? Invite an ancient one into your home and they had permission to suck your blood? Perhaps Morrigan should have been nervous, but she was hardly in any state to drain their blood. Besides, she was indebted to them now, and what was even better than a person in debt? A powerful vampire in debt.
Morrigan waved their hand in the air, glitter flying from their sleeve. “Think nothing of it… it is hardly the strangest happenstance I’ve seen. Though, I must admit that I’m woefully unprepared at the moment to treat someone of your ilk. Is it blood you need? I can get you some if you promise not to ask where it’s from.”
They paused.
“Oh! Where are my manners? It is a pleasure to meet you, my lady. I am the Wiz- I am but a humble alchemist and merchant of Zeinav. You can call me Morrigan.”
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