That single word brought the taint of sadness to the stallion's gentle eyes. So they would not receive help. Hope had been declined and their task was growing more difficult with each passing moment. They had little time allotted to them. They were not fish after all. Who knew how long this magical herb would help them breath in the water. Time was of the essence.
At the mention of fighting he too cast his gaze round about. His long, black and white mane dragging through the water with each movement of his head. His long ears swiveling like satellite dishes to try and pinpoint any sound of a fight. Taivas looked back at him. She need not beckon him or plead for him to come. There was no hesitation as he took off alongside her towards their companions.
His motions were slow, weighed down by the water. Spreading his wings he used them to try and propel himself further, faster. His gaze found the attacking sirens just as Taivas began to plead. The fire, that seemed to always boil in his blood when conflict arose, ignited. Tail lashing he bore his fangs, ears pinned. Taking a deep breath, if one could call it that down here, he let loose a sound none had ever heard before. A primeval noise that he was emberassed of. It was unnatural. A mutated mesh of a stallion's scream and bestial roar befitting his tribrid appearance.
The sound was like booming thunder even beneath the waves as he spread his wings out to increase his size as he charged towards the siren Taivas had addressed. If he looked big and scary enough than maybe the siren would be driven off course and Rixen could escape unharmed. He cared not if it turned its sights on him. He would always put himself before another.
ooc: Rosco does not hesitate to lend aid to the others. In an attempt to distract the siren attacking Rixen he lets out a loud roar and looks as threatening as he can as he "charges" towards the siren. Not only does he try to distract and deter the siren he hopes to get it to try and fight him instead of Rixen.
You have my permission to use magic/force against Roscorro.
Maiming and killing is not allowed, though.
My waterlogged call did nothing to stop the sirens. Okay, that's not completely true. Much to my relief, it did draw away Otem's attacker. But in my effort to stop the siren, I managed to draw the beast’s attention toward me instead. That’s what I figured, at least, because the next thing I knew the siren that had been heading for Otem swerved away, looping around Waker before heading straight for me.
Shit. I was vaguely aware of the other horses that surrounded me. Otem the ram-horned mare and Taivas, the silver pegasus in the distance, pleading with the sirens to stop. The unfamiliar dark-colored stallion emitted a loud thunderous roar, a sound that was more like that of a beast than of a horse, one unlike anything I had ever heard before. He charged toward me, teeth bared at the siren, yet his movements were but a blur of motion in the corner of my vision. Everything around me seemed to slow down and the dark water was silent except for the beating of my heart, every single pound in my chest like the beating of a drum. Panic flooded my mind, blocking all of my other thoughts, emotions, and actions. The only thing that existed in that moment was the ice spreading through my veins as I felt my blood run cold. I could not run. I could not swim fast enough. My equine body was not designed for underwater fight or flight. There was nothing I could do to defend myself except pivot my body slightly and attempt to kick (or rather, flail) my hooves out in the direction of the siren’s gnashing jaws, hoping to land a blow.
"Talk."
they heard me singing and they told me to stop
quit these pretentious things and just punch the clock
She passed a smile to Aurelia if she just so happened to look, but before she could try and say anything, there was a darkness that passed through her vision. Kiada held her breath for a brief moment, surprise lacing her features as her body felt sluggish due to the water to try and react. When she finally spotted the siren aiming for Aurelia, she hoped to god it wouldn’t hit. Those teeth looked horrifying and she couldn’t imagine the feel of them shredding skin. So she pushed her feet into motion, aiming directly for the siren barreling toward Aurelia, striking out with her hooves in an attempt to push the Siren a different direction all while hoping her hope light might push the creature away.
The siren's black, glassy eyes watch Taivas, giving no indication that she has heard Otem's call. Instead, she watches with interest that grows by the second, yet it is a cold, pointed thing, a hard to read emotion in an alien face. The easy, mundane things of life were not the interesting ones—the difficult choices were what defined us.
Both mare and dragon-stallion make their choice as Otem's voice rings out again. The light! We're just here to give you the light! But, the siren thinks as she watches Taivas's orb split, what does creatures of the cold, dark depths need light for? It is not a true question, of course; she knows well enough what the warm, bright light is.
She watches the pair leave, her eyes still cold and dark. Perhaps hope is not lost, after all.
EVERYONE
With a decisive, deft movement, the siren snatches up the orb of hope left behind by Taivas. She turns in the water, arrows through curtains of seaweed, heading for a place at the lake's bed where myths and legends were born and died a long, long time ago. She passes sentries, eyeing her with wariness, she passes warriors making bets about how long the equines will last.
And then, she floats before the stone basin, long since empty of anything but silt and dust and fish-bones. She's not sure this will work—she's not sure if she wants it to work—but with a hiss she tips the orb into the smooth-edged bowl.
For a moment, nothing happens.
OTEM, RIXEN, WAKER, K'YARIE, TAIVAS & ROSCORRO
The two attacking sirens care little for the pleas of Taivas; the one clutching to Waker's neck, teeth digging deep in muscle and its arms around the stallion, pays anyone little heed. The other, however, is momentarily distracted by Roscorro's earth-shattering bellow; enough so, that Rixen's hooves strikes the side of its body, smacking it away. It offers an ugly grin and an angry hiss to the gray stallion before propelling itself towards its new victim.
KIADA & AURELIA
Hooves catch the lower back of the attacking siren—it pulls up short, whipping around with a speed the equines could only dream of rivaling in the water. Baring its teeth, it launches itself towards Kiada's face.
EVERYONE
But then, light flares.
The small ball of light grows by the moment, so intense the siren turns to look away and closes her eyes. It burns through her eyelids, brighter and brigher like the distant sun, until the glow simply—explodes. It is a silent wave of pure light pulsing out; one moment you're in the murky dimness of the lake, and the next, engulfed in brightness and warmth.
In the aftermath, the three attacking sirens turn to look at each other. Tendrils of blood escape from Waker's neck and the mouth of the one who had bitten him—and as if reaching some kind of consensus, they disappear.
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01-12-2018, 05:29 AM (This post was last modified: 01-12-2018, 05:31 AM by Rixen.)
R I X E N
Startled by Roscorro’s thunderous roar, the siren that was headed toward me turned its head to see where or who the noise was coming from. That momentary distraction provided all the time I needed to defend myself. With a dull thud, my thrashing hooves came into contact with the siren’s slippery body, sending it reeling backward. When the momentum of the siren’s body finally and its look of shock subsided, the creature shot me a glaring look, eyes gleaming, fangs bared, its lips curled back in an angry snarl. To my surprise, rather than retaliating, the siren darted away from me. Even when the danger was gone, my heart never stopped racing.
The pounding in my chest wasn't without reason. The siren was not yet finished. Like a bat out of hell, it whipped around in a different direction this time, and I could only watch in horror as it sliced through the water toward Kiada. I was too far away to stop the attack. I would have cried out and warned the mare, but I never had the opportunity.
There was a split second where the dark water surrounding me was completely still. There was the churning of legs and the siren’s movement, but such minute details were quickly swallowed up in what came next. As my lips began to move, there was a burst of light. The angered siren fell back, as if blinded by such a sudden, intense brightness radiating in a place that was otherwise consumed by darkness. It was the kind of brightness that sears into your retinas and makes you close them for fear of going blind; it was a brightness to rival the sun itself. The intensity was so great that I had to look away as it spread around me, embracing the farthest depths of the lake with outstretched arms. When I opened my eyes again, everything was bathed in a soft glow. Blinking a few times, my eyes adjusted to the illumination that now surrounded my floating figure. It was just in time to see the outlines of three sirens slipping away into the blue abyss. The water was ...peaceful.
Where there was once cold darkness, there was now a warm light. It was the light of hope. The soft glow was mesmerizing, a beautiful treasure in this wasteland of a world.
"Talk."
they heard me singing and they told me to stop
quit these pretentious things and just punch the clock
01-12-2018, 11:34 PM (This post was last modified: 01-12-2018, 11:34 PM by Taivas.)
The pleas falling from the shaman's lips fall on deaf ears. The siren clinging to Waker only seems to bite down harder, and the other ignores her entirely, even if she is briefly shook by the monstrous noise emanated from Roscorro's lungs. A shudder runs down Taivas's spine at it, but she knows the primordial rage is not directed at her.
Panic and desperation drives her form forward, but then, a sudden stillness falls in the dark waters followed by a blinding light. Taivas clamps her eyes shut, but the light still flickers through the soft skin. Everything becomes quiet and warm, lifting her heart from the pits it had sat within just moments before.
When the intensity dims, Taivas opens her dark, starry eyes to view the crowd. The sirens had disappeared, leaving their prey behind.
We did it, she thinks to herself. I did it.
A smile, small and dainty, forms on her lips for a moment. Then, she swirls carefully upward to the surface of the lake, eager to be rid of the water in her lungs and around her body. As her head breaks out into the air she quickly races to the shoreline, collapsing on the sand.
Her legs were weak from panic and stress, unable to hold her weight. Quietly, she coughs up the water onto the sand and rocks, dark eyes seeking out the Matron on the shore with relief spreading slowly across her features.
So seize the day 'Cause you have come so far Watched a million frowns turn into smiles Lost all track of time Felt the energy of a million stars You'll feel love again after the rain
The young woman nearly gasps in happiness as her hooves collide with the siren’s back, but it doesn’t last long as the creature bares its teeth at her and barrels at her. For a moment, all Kiada can see or think of are those sharp teeth diving deep within her face, and for that split second she feels as though she can’t move. She closes her eyes, ready to brace the impact for defending her friend and only trying to share that stupid little orb by her side, floating uselessly as though it recoiled at the sight of the siren as well.
But then there’s a light. It’s pleasant, soft, and warm. It stopped the siren long enough to look at the source and not continue the charge on her. Then, suddenly, it vanishes, and Kiada nearly squeals in delight. She casts one long glance back at Aurelia before thrusting out her legs to propel her up to the sky where Khairi had been waiting with a furrowed brow and a few feathers crinkled looking from the stress of not being near her. As she emerges, her legs are tired and sore and she climbs up to the beach, shaking the water from her pelt as Khairi lands on her spine.
But then she notices Taivas, and she moves her sluggish legs over to the mare, offering her support should Taivas wish to stand again. She’d help the mare up – after all, they’ve restored Hope to the Siren’s. They had done this, and as if she followed Taivas’ gaze, she finds her own icy ones landing on the Matron for a few moments before looking back down to the pegasus on the sand beneath her. “Come with me. I’ll help you up and we can go to the Matron.” She announced to Taivas, quietly with a bright happy smile.
It's too much. The water, the darkness, the fact that you're attacked by a creature as unfair as a fish with arms, and that you'll die here, in the depths, far away from home, and everyone you loved—you stop thrashing. Your wings grow still, but your heart thunders on. Cold and clammy arms are folded around your neck, hugging you tight to the siren's scaled face; teeth are ripping through your muscles, blood trickling into the water, forming red ribbons.
You don't want to die, and somewhere, you don't mean to, either. You just need a moment, two, three, four, five, to simply be. You think, the siren is meant to drown its prey, not slowly eat it alive, but the damn plant keeps you breathing in the dark.
And you wonder what the point is, anyway. You're not sure anyone is trying to help you. It's like you're alone in the middle of the crowd, and no one, aside from the mare throwing out the orbs, seems to give a damn that you've been taken.
Everything seems to slow as bitterness takes hold. The world around you becomes distant. The sounds quieter. You're in the eye of the storm, uncertain of what to do, or where to go.
Light washes over you, so bright you close your eyes; you float in it, wondering if the siren got to your jugular without you noticing, and now killed you.
But as the burning light fades to a pleasant glow you open your eyes, and realize that you're still alive. The sirens are gone. And even though your heart hangs heavy in your chest, it's tinged by that peculiar feeling of things might end up being alright, anyway.
You're still too stunned to move, so you just hang there, until something in the back of your mind kicks in. Thunder rumbles overhead, and you light up with a fresh glow as the flesh and veins knit back together after the siren's attack; not all of it close, but you're not coloring the water around you red at quite the same pace.
You're tempted to remain where you are until someone remembers you exist and comes looking for you, but you don't want to test the limits of the malspira, nor be that childish. But still, in the aftermath of it, you feel tears stinging the corners of your eyes. With a sigh, you reconnect with your body, and power yourself to the surface, to the shore, where you step onto the gravel beach—a lonely black shadow, water dripping down. The blood isn't very visible against your dark hairs.
You're not a beacon of hope, you're a vision of something dejected, standing by yourself with a tired, wary expression on your otherwise so expressive face.
The world was still, the sirens had fled. Someone had succeed in their mission. The Frisian floated within the dark water for a moment before kicking wildly as she struggled towards the surface. Anger burned within her belly. She had been completely useless! First her attempts to aid the two the sirens had attacked had failed, and now she had done nothing to assist those who had brought light to this wretched place. She had been nothing more then useless baggage. It infuriated her warrior's blood. Her heart pounded within her chest as she continued towards the surface. She needed to breath again! She wanted to be rid of this place.
With a violent surge she broke the surface, gasping for breath before breaking into a coughing fit as the last of the water left her lungs. Treading water she shook violently before stubbornly striking out for land. her body wanted to stop, to give into the exhaustion brought upon it by moving within the water. But she would not let it. Finally, her hooves touched sand and she hauled herself out of the waves. her long tail trailing in the shallows. Sides heaving, nostrils flaring, she looked up to see the stallion she had tried to help.
The scent of blood caused a bitter taste to fill her mouth. She had been unable to help him. The orbs that she had sent to try and blind the siren continued to float around him, they had not left his side since the attack. Upon their master's arrival they bobbed towards her. The other two were still with Otem, though K'yarie had lost sight of the fall colored mare in her struggles towards the surface. Violet eyes swept over the injured stallion as he stood alone. She had been unable to help him before, but now what different. She still managed to move gracefully as she forced her legs to move. She came up next to Waker, touching her flesh against his as she shared her warmth and presence. She reached out towards where his injury was, her soft breath heating the area though she did not touch it. "How bad is it?" She asked, her voice as smooth and gentle as silk. "Do you still have strength to walk?"
talk talk talk talk
Fear not this Night. You will not go Astray Though shadows fall, still the Stars find their way
The light washed over him. He shut his eyes and splayed his wings outward as he spun within the water, unable to see where he was going as he tried to stop. But his momentum carried him lazily forward, the warmth of the light filling him. They had done it! The siren had taken Taivas's light! Slowly the light faded and he could open his eyes once more. In time to see his friend fighting towards the surface. With a powerful surge of muscle he fought towards fresh air once more. His hulking frame emerged from the water like a beast from the deep, his mane and tail plastered to his body, scales and hide glittering.
Shorting and coughing he stumbled onto solid land, his body wet and heavy. He pulled himself onto the sand just behind Kiada in time to hear her offer Taivas help. He looked to eh brave little healer and could not help but smile brightly, his fangs on full display. He wanted to tell her that she had done it! He was so proud of her as he beamed. His eyes swept about him, taking in the forms of the others as the emerged from the lake before gazing out over the lake. It sparkled in the light, still and calm. None of it hinted at the violence that had taken place bellow its surface. It was surreal. His Piece of Hope slowly floated up to him as he moved to stand beside Taivas. If Kaida needed aid, he was there to offer it.
Siren's Summit
