| Farewell Aerillia; This is from the Beta Run. I might as well... | |
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| Topic Started: Yesterday, 9:37 PM (5 Views) | |
| Anastasia | Yesterday, 9:37 PM Post #1 |
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(OOC: Continued from Chapter 3 and still rough-ish.) Chapter 4: A Welcoming Hand Eknara sniffled and wiped away at her wet face. “Okay. I can’t,” she paused and looked at her unclothed body. “Can’t stay here like this. We need to find clothes, Aicatul. And then see if we could...” her thoughts started trailing. She hadn’t memorized the spells from the scroll. She had understood how they worked and could possibly reconstruct them that way, but she really doubted that she’d actually be able to. “... if we could construct another portal to get back after we gather some materials.” She got up and began to walk in a random direction. Some hours after walking into a forest, she was able to construct a makeshift set of clothing from some leaves and a few samples of tree bark. She had yet to meet any sentient beings; just some animals here and there. Luckily, none had yet tried to attack her. But just to be careful, Aicatul was flying overhead and keeping a lookout for any approaching dangers. Aicatul suddenly started quickly flying back to Eknara before she heard a loud cheer from what sounded like a male voice. Her daemon landed on her shoulder and spoke quietly into her ear. “I saw what looked like two human males. They’re dressed kinda strangely, but more disturbingly, I didn’t notice any daemons attached to them.” The thought terrified Eknara. In Aerillia, only ghouls or zombies had no daemons attached to them. “They looked perfectly normal though,” Aicatul added. “Not like any ghouls or zombies.” “Maybe,” she trailed off. “Maybe this world is different like that?” “Perhaps,” Aicatul answered. “Their daemons may be hidden within them somehow.” “That’s a lonely prospect,” Eknara wondered. She certainly wouldn’t wish to go through life without her Aicatul. Not for a second. Another, and closer cheer reached their ears. Eknara certainly didn’t want to meet any strange men, even if they seemed to act normal. She quickly started walking away from the voice. She took a few steps before a man jumped literally jumped out of a bush to her right. Startled, she jumped back. “Woah,” he said. “Why hello there.” He smiled, but his smile didn’t manage to put Eknara anymore at ease. He looked to be probably a few years older than Eknara, but light-skinned and with short curly auburn hair. Eknara shook a little before quickly turning around to start running in the other direction. “Hey, wait up!” Eknara had no intention of doing anything of the sort. Her heart beat wildly as she continued running. “Why can I understand him, Aicatul? I actually understood everything he said.” Having no answers for her, Aicatul remained quiet as he remained perched on her shoulder. Eknara noticed that the man was running right beside her before he overtook her to block her path. “Slow down,” he said raising up his hands. “I’m not gonna hurt you.” Eknara turned around to run in the other direction, only to the see the same man just a few steps in front of her. She turned back around. The same man was still in front of her. She was now starting to feel a little faint. “And neither will my brother,” he added. Eknara took a few steps to her left and confirmed that there indeed were two men that looked exactly alike and were even wearing nearly the same clothing standing by her left and right. “Let me guess,” the man to her left said. “You’re new here? As in you just walked into this world?” Eknara tried to take a few steps backwards, but a tree trunk was in her way. She whimpered as her hands tried desperately to dig into the bark. “She seems to be easily scared and of the fidgety sort,” the man to her right said. He turned now to talk to her. “I assure you, miss. My twin brother and I will not hurt you. As for having just entered this world we have an idea of what you may be going through, for my brother and I went through the exact same thing. Like you, we are not originally from here.” Eknara dug her nails even harder into the tree behind her. “How do I...” she started quietly. “How do I get back? To my world?” The man to her right looked stoically at his brother. The man to his left had a sorry look on his face as his hand reached to the back of his head. “Umm... this is kind of a world that people end up in by mistake somehow. And as far as we know, no one has been able to leave it. I’m really sorry to have to tell you this, but please stay calm. I know this can be sort of a shock, especially at first, but we’ll help you. You’ve landed in Khaotics territory, and just like the Khaotics that took my brother and I in, we’ll welcome you with open arms. We’re like a family, you see. We’ll make sure you’ll have a very nice an happy home.’” “Perhaps it may be best not to try to be too familiar with her,” the man to Eknara’s right chimed in. “Oh, come on, Malek. She’s clearly scared. We need to prove to her that she’s safe.” “Agreed, but I do not believe you’re taking the best approach. Then again, you do have a longer record with women than I do,” Malek said. “Hey!” The yet unnamed twin was clearly offended by something that his brother said. He turned to Eknara and gave her a warm smile. “Ignore him. My name’s Ethan. There are a lot of scary animals around here,” he reached out his hand to her. “We’ll take you back to headquarters and get you some nice food and clothing and get you all settled in. Okay?” Ethan waited for Eknara to accept his hand. She looked turned down to look at it then looked back up at his face. “I will find a way,” she said quietly. “What’s that? Sorry, I didn’t catch what you said.” Ethan asked. “I said I will find a way back home,” she spoke a little louder this time and gritted her teeth. Ethan gave her a pitiful look. “We won’t stop you from trying. But first, let’s get you some food and some decent clothing.” He pointed to Aicatul. “That bird on your shoulder, did it cross over with you?” Eknara said nothing as she brought Aicatul to her chest and hugged him. Aicatul turned his head around to eye Ethan before a high-pitched cry escaped his throat. Ethan got the messaged and jumped back. Eknara thought over what the men told her. ‘Some food and decent clothing would be nice..’ she thought. ‘Just for now. Until I can gather everything I’d need to go back.’ Eknara nodded. “Okay.” “Ah. Follow us then. Ethan and I have to pick up the spoils from our hunt first, mind you, but we’ll make sure to take the shortest safest route to headquarters after. We will guarantee your safety from here on out.” Eknara nodded again and followed behind Malek. Ethan followed closely to her side. It took a considerable amount of courage on her part to speak up to Ethan and ask, “what is ‘Khaotics’?” He beamed and did his best to explain everything to Eknara. |
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| Anastasia | Yesterday, 9:42 PM Post #2 |
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Chapter 5: A Reluctant (But Appreciative) New Home Within An Alien World “So we’ll be taking you to see our leader, Fenix, first,” Ethan continued telling Eknara as much about Thracs and the Khaotics as he could. She had a few questions here and there, but he was doing most of the talking. The other twin, Malek, was even quieter than Eknara. “He’s a big guy, but don’t let that scare you. He’s really friendly, and has made Malek and I really comfortable here on Thracs.” Ethan slapped Malek on the shoulder and smiled. Malek didn’t appreciate the gesture as he was the one carrying the pair of raccoon-sized rodents while Ethan entertained himself with the newcomer. “He’s even named Malek, here, his successor. And we’ve only been on Thracs for about five years.” The immense amount of information Ethan was filling her with was almost a bit overwhelming and Eknara felt it would take some getting used to. However, Ethan was being really friendly and helpful to her and she felt he was being really sincere and not putting up a facade. She didn’t like to make judgements of people so quickly but she was getting a really a really good vibe from him. He certainly wasn’t hard on the eyes either, she noticed. “We’re here,” Malek called out. Eknara was greeted by the sight of a simple, but large wooden house. Malek walked straight by the guards by either side of the door and knocked. A gruff voice answered, “come in.” Malek walked straight in. Eknara, hesitant to enter the house, was urged to follow by Ethan. She gulped and walked in as she held Aicatul close to her chest. Malek bowed and placed the dead carcasses by a wall. “I have brought you a newcomer.” He motioned to Eknara. Eknara eyed the tanned large muscular man. He was covered in furs and sported a thick beard. Although he was sitting down in a large chair in the rather spacious room he looked like he would have been nearly two and a half metres tall (8 feet) standing up. Just the sight of him frightened Eknara and she found herself taking a few steps back before Ethan stopped her. “Don’t worry. Like I told you; he’s really friendly.” Fenix, still sitting in his chair, spoke up in his gruff voice. “Welcome, young lady. What is your name?” He smiled as he asked her this. Eknara, being very far from her comfort zone, found herself staying quiet. A few seconds passed before Ethan answered for her. “She’s a little shy, sir. But I believe she said her name was Eknara? Did I say that right?” Ethan turned to look at her. Eknara nodded timidly. “Well, welcome to the Khaotics stronghold, Eknara. Malek, let’s get her fed and in some more comfortable clothes.” “Yes, sir.” -==Approximately Two Years And Three Months Later==- Eknara lay flat on the grass looking up at an opening in the tree leaves above her as she mused about her present whereabouts and circumstance. ‘It’s such an auspicious day. There are only a few clouds in the sky, but it’s otherwise very sunny, warm and only slightly breezy. So why am I in such a bad mood?’ Eknara moved her upper body to sit up. “Ah, yes. Because that Ethan is late! I don’t believe this. Today of all days, and it was even his idea to come here of all places.” Aicatul, feeling Eknara’s rise in anger, swooped down from the sky. “Calm down. I see him. He’s on his way.” Eknara sighed. “How long before he gets here do you think?” “Maybe three minutes?” Aicatul speculated. “Is he at least walking very fast?” “More like a jog.” “I guess that’s some consolation.” Feeling relieved, Eknara lay back down with her hands supporting her head. “Hey,” Ethan was panting lightly as he approached the small, roughly four metre (~13 feet) diameter, opening in the forest that had a huge tree on its northern end. Eknara was laying in the shade of that tree, wearing little else but a simple light blue blouse and a short white skirt. A large box wrapped with some red cloth lay by her feet and something that looked like a picnic basked sat right behind it. The small opening was otherwise heavily surrounded by vegetation that included a variety of colourful and blossoming flora. It was a beautifully breathtaking sight. Although she had been waiting impatiently for him just a few minutes ago, Eknara couldn't help but to roll towards the tree and away from him when she heard his voice. A pained look crossed Ethan's features at the obvious snub. He really did try his best to make it on time. The young man, dressed in long black pants with a matching vest and a white shirt, moved forward nonetheless. He quietly dropped the package he was carrying on the floor, opened it and used the packaging sheet to spread flat on the floor from end to end right beside Eknara. He then took the package’s contents and pulled out a small piece of pastry from it. He lay on his left side, facing parallel to to Eknara’s body and just a few centimetres. He brought the small piece of pastry to hover precariously in front of Eknara’s mouth. Eknara smiled quietly to herself for a moment: Her favourite. He hadn’t forgotten to bring them. She moved her right hand to encase Ethan’s and bring the pastry to her mouth before taking a bite. She relished the taste in her mouth for it felt like a little piece of heaven to her. A couple of silent and languid minutes passed as Eknara enjoyed her treat. Ethan, relieved, smiled. “Sorry,” he said as he wiped his sticky hand on the grass bringing both of his arms to wrap around Eknara’s waist. “What kept you?” There was no hint of indignation or anger in her voice. He was very good at dampening such emotions from her. “Fenix tried to get me to accompany him and Malek on a hunt. It was really hard to get out of. Even after I told them that it was our anniversary. And Malek barely had my back this time. I think he’s starting to resent the fact I want nothing to do with Khaotics politics more and more.” He snuggled up more closely to Eknara. “Fenix of Malek?” Eknara asked. Ethan chuckled to himself, and managed to unintentionally exhale by Eknara’s neck; forcing her to close her eyes in response while she enjoyed the accidental gesture. “Both,” he said. “Although Fenix shows it more than Malek. But I guess that’s why Fenix had no problem with Malek naming you his successor. The old man is quite fond of you, and Malek loves you like you’re his own dutiful little sister.” Being reminded of being third in line to Khaotics’ leadership was still unsettling for Eknara. Ethan, Malek and even Fenix had taken her in with open arms and had treated her like family since that fateful day more than two years ago. It was only natural for her to accept their kindness with gratitude and help out as much as she could. Especially after her string of attempts of trying to make it back to Aerillia like she had once pledged to had all failed without a hint of success. She was stuck here. And no matter how much she missed her home, family and even Prilla, it had slowly become very apparent to her that she would never make it back. So she had done her best to make the most of her new home. This, surprisingly for Eknara, meant that for some crazy reason that Malek and even Fenix and the others somehow thought she could possibly be ready for leadership one day. She had accepted the post rather reluctantly and more out of obligation than anything else. Eknara turned around to embrace Ethan. “I don’t ever want to become commander.” “Oh, come on. You’re still saying that?” Eknara huddled closer to Ethan and attempted to hide her face from him. She did this as if he would protect her from the post, even though no one would ever vote him in for leader. “Don’t you trust Malek? Or even Fenix?” “I … I do.” “Do you think they would even consider you to replace them if they didn’t think you were fit to?” He tried to slowly free her grasp on him in order to see her face, but Eknara resisted. “Do you think they don’t notice all your hard work? See your determination? Or appreciate the adept fighter, hunter or sorcerer you are?” Eknara separated herself from Ethan to lean against the tree, hugging her knees. “Oh, come on,” Ethan exlcaimed, suddenly missing the warmth of her body. Eknara mused quietly to herself for a moment. “I’m comfortable with you guys since you’ve become family to me. But I’m still rather shy. I am not aggresive enough or have the courage to lead.” “That’s not true. You’ve proven --” Eknara cut him off. “I’m still the same girl who idiotically messed with magic far beyond her control and understanding to end up on Thracs in the first place!” Aicatul, perched up high on the tree above them, issued a sharp cry. That last point stung Ethan and he quickly stood up. He seemed to hesitate about turning around for a moment before he spoke down to her. “I thought you had accepted your place here already: Accepted it as your home and accepted us as your family.” Eknara bit her lip as she continued to hug her knees. Ethan continued, “accepted us … and me.” Eknara’s eyes started to water. She still missed Aerillia and her family, but she didn’t intend to have what she said hurt Ethan like that. Ethan saw this and he felt his heart drop a bit. He slowly lowered himself to Eknara’s level and sat on his knees. She looked straight at him. “You know I have, Ethan.” She tried to wipe some of the tears trailing down her face. “I didn’t mean for it to come out that way. I mean, I will always miss Aerillia and my birth family, just like you will always miss your world a little. I just meant I really don’t think I’m leadership material.” Ethan smiled sadly and wiped a tear from Eknara’s face. Eknara relished the gesture and let him cup her face in his hand. “Just give it time, Eknara. It’s not like you’ll have to assume command tomorrow or even in five years. Fenix is plenty healthy and will be around for quite a few years yet. And Malek? He’s even more fit than I am.” He kissed her lightly on the lips. “So please, stop worrying so much, let’s forget all our troubles and enjoy our anniversary in our secret spot, okay? Malek worries plenty enough for all of us anyways.” Eknara almost chuckled, but smiled instead. She pondered at how effective Ethan always was at consoling her. Malek was so serious and uptight it was hard to believe Ethan and him were brothers let alone identical twins. Eknara nodded and both began to unwrap more of the food they had brought. It was sunset when they walked back home. The smiles on their faces were wiped away to be replaced by looks of puzzlement and worry as they noticed how quiet everyone. No one would tell them anything, and there were no relevant conversations within the hive. So they both headed straight to Fenix’s house. It was there that a close friend told them the bad news. Fenix and Malek had both perished just hours ago in some accident. No one new exactly what happened, but a scouting team had been sent out to look for them only to return with their dead bodies. Eknara’s thoughts halted altogether when she heard the news, nearly falling into catatonia. But Ethan reacted differently. He lashed out in anger and demanded to see his brother’s body no matter what anyone said. They pitied Ethan and gave him what he asked for. Eknara followed. It was only after they saw Fenix’s and Malek’s bodies, and when Ethan reached out to clasp his brother’s cold hand within his own only to break down into tears, that Eknara finally came to. His pain was much greater than her own at the loss. It was her turn to console him now and be there for him. She embraced Ethan and let him cry his eyes out. Her own tears would come only later on that night, after her shock had worn off, and as they both cried to sleep within each other’s arms. It was only during the next day that it finally dawned on Eknara that she was officially to be sworn in as Khaotics commander. |
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7:02 AM Sep 5
