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  • Beqanna

    COTY

    Assailant -- Year 226

    QOTY

    "But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura


    AN EVENT [COMPLETE]
    #1
    Star 

    AN EVENT

    -The Strangest Shell-

    Another sunset paints the Ischian sky, perfect in color and unusually picturesque. Everything seems as it should be: new life thrums on her white-beach shores, the jungle chatter of jewel-toned parrots is still robust as ever.

    But something is missing, or should we say someone is missing.

    The Keeper has gone. Perhaps she slipped away into the sea, back to the folds of watery life that gave her power from birth. Or maybe she's tucked away in the hidden recesses of a dark trunk, settled on staying wolf forever. She cannot say and her followers cannot know ; there's only the absence of her pawprints in the sand to tell a story of goodbye without it ever being said.

    Beqanna, however, will continue without her (much as it always has) and though they'll never know it, the renewed love of Ischia from her gathered inhabitants has awoken a latent magic. Deep, deep beneath the rolling breakers a stone lays dormant, flickering to life only as the sun dips below the horizon. From there it will be shoved free by the tug and pull of the waves, lifted and swirled about until the force of nature drives it to the shore along with the glowing blue plankton.

    A myrtle-green gem, shaped like a scallop but cut like seaglass - the item will glow with bright intensity through the night and into the day, as long as it takes for the right horse to come across it, to be intrigued and draw near, to simply brush their nose against the surface....



    ATTENTION

    -An event has occurred. Overnight a strange gem has washed ashore where it will remain and glow for curious passerby's to see. There's no risk in having your character approach, go ahead and reply with a brief interaction! The second half to this event will be posted by Dec. 5th. Long live Ischia! Any questions, concerns, or comments on this event can be asked via PM through this account.
    Reply
    #2

    Krone

    You could be the king

    The dreams that usually cloud her sleeping mind have turned into nightmares. Her blood runs cold, her heart pounds fast beneath her breast, her skin sweats and her body shakes. She cannot shake the feeling that something is wrong. Underneath her favorite palm, the stars twinkling effervescent and brilliant in the sky, a change in Ischia occurs; and the green-pointed mare can feel it. As night turns to dawn, her eyes shoot open, and she mutters one word to pierce the otherwise oddly quiet morning. 

    "Circinae." 

    Without another thought, she is running beneath the creamy swirls of morning sunrise.  She doesn't have any reason to be worried, other than that underlying, gnawing feeling in her stomach that something odd was happening in her beloved Ischia.

    Then she spots it, and for a moment her heart skips a beat. Paw prints, retreating to the sea without an idea of where they may be headed. Krone cannot think of an animal on the island that can make those prints, or any shifters. 

    Except for one. 

    She follows them until she is standing knee deep in the waves, wondering what had happened, dazed, confused. The lump in her throat is heavy, almost choking her, and she cannot take her eyes off the sea. Where had she gone? Was there any reason for the absence? Questions rattled about in her brain like a swarm of bees, and silently (sadly), she leaves the waters edge to walk along the shoreline. 

    After a while of wandering aimlessly, an emerald gem catches her eyes. It looks almost like the color of her own points, and it radiates brilliantly in the early-morning light. She cannot help herself, and she approaches the gleaming jewel curiously, studying its shell-like shape but glass-like texture. She tilts her head curiously. What was this thing? Was this why she was feeling so uneasy? She bends her head down to it, sniffing it, until suddenly her maw brushes against its smooth glassy surface...   

    But watch the Queen conquer

    Reply
    #3
    She is gone. That's what they've been saying all day. Circinae, Keeper of Ischia, the Wolf of the Sea. She is nowhere to be found, and she has left no clues as to where she might have gone. It has only been a few short months since he had arrived, but outside of her wild daughter, Circinae was the first he met on the island he now called home. He too felt her loss on the wind blowing in from the sea. 
    Hod's blindness had become less of a issue since being here. It had not changed, per say, but familiarity with the land made it hinder him less. He did not need to see to be able to appreciate the beauty of Ischia. It was the joyful chatter of parrots that began each day. It was the salt breezes that reached every corner. It was in the rich earth and pure water that produced such food as he had never experienced before. 
    And what he loved above all else about the island was the strange plankton that illuminated the beaches every evening. Hod did not see nothing, exactly. His world was simply restricted to light and shadows, blurs of grey in between. He had grown up hating the night, because that was when he truly saw nothing. This was why Ischia had fully won his heart. The beaches had become his favorite place to spend his nights.  He would watch the band of phosphorus plankton that rode the waves etch itself in never-ending patterns for hours. 
    This was where he found himself that night. The island in mourning, he took himself to her shores, musing. The now familiar glow greeted him, comforting in its steadiness, like the island's own heartbeat. He followed it, wanting to reach the point where he knew stoney cliffs would form a sheltered cove. He did not make it that far. Instead, his attention was caught by a foreign light, different from his beloved water's glow. It was not black, or white or grey. Was this... A color? He stood still, fixated on the point of soft, verdant light.  It was small, only about the size of a hoof. He did not have a name for how it shone, only that it was beautiful and vibrant like nothing he had ever encountered before. Perhaps the sea had given him a gift. 
    He stepped closer, head dipped in low reverence, hoping he could catch a better idea of what lay in the damp sand. The grey stallion inhaled deeply, breathing in the scent of brine and seaweed. The scent of Ischia. Cautiously, carefully, he brushed the mysterious item with the very tip of his pale nose, feeling its ridges and glassy smoothness. It was like a shell, yet unlike any other shell he had come across. Despite the balmy evening air, Hod shivered. Something strange was going on here.
    Reply
    #4
    kylin
    html code by Toli, design idea based on "Dovev" by Laura

    Like a flower waiting to bloom.
    ”Ischia needs you.” With those words Circinae had turned herself around and left Kylin standing on top of the water and on her own. She’d said more, but those were the words that had swirled in her thoughts ever since.

    She hadn’t seen the forest green and navy blue mare after that, but in truth, Kylin still kept a bit to herself too much. But in truth, even if she had been aware of Circinae’s disappearance, it is not like Ischia didn’t have a history with disappearing leaders. Ea, then Reilly, Kerbors and Ea again.

    However, the lavender and white woman does long for the company of the others, yet, at the same time, she finds herself hesitant to approach them. It wouldn’t be the first time that she finds herself watching them from Ischia’s dense jungle, while wondering how Ischia needed her. Would that be in approaching them?

    Anyway, it wasn’t uncommon that her legs carry her towards the beach. The sea – and water in general – still called to her. It was a part of her that she couldn’t ignore. The nightsky is high above her, the moon casting a little light back to the land. In the same darkness it’s hard to miss the green glow coming from her right.

    This wasn’t like anything Kylin had seen in Ischia before. The sudden event pushes Circinae’s words to the back of her mind, and instead she focusses on the light, approaching it with care. There it is, a gem. Bright and green against the white beach, impossible for anybody to miss.

    For a while she looks at it, awestruck and amazed, but hesitant to reach down and touch it. It’s beautiful, green colored glass shaped into the form of a perfect shaped scallop. The longer she watches it, the more it intrigues her and the stronger the pull becomes. Ever so slowly Kylin’s head drops towards the beach, nostrils flaring a little as she tries to smell the gem. Her nose brushes over the smooth surface, it draws a soft gasp from her lips.

    Reply
    #5
    hold me in this wild, wild world
    'cause in your warmth I forget how cold it can be
    He stands at the edge of the trees, looking towards the shore, patient and almost completely motionless as he waits, and thinks. The setting sun across the water paints a mural of colors across the sky and reflected in the water and even tinting the white sand beneath his hooves. Brennen likes the sunsets here – they are uninterrupted expanses of color, much like his Tundra once was. Nothing to interrupt the sight as it wraps along the islands, lingering fingers of color into the darkness long after gloom has fallen. Then, as the tide washes up onto the shore, the ocean produces Ischia’s own unique sight; the glowing plankton that lights up the water, waves, and beach until it washes back out in the morning. The warrior stallion hasn’t been sleeping much (when has he ever?) and finds the glowing sealife brings him comfort in the long night.

    Tonight, he is worrying about their erstwhile Keeper. He had talked to her not a week before, sharing a moment deep in the jungle by the waterfall. That, too, had been comforting. A connection with another being who isn’t one of his own descendants that had seemed real and true. But then she had grinned at him, told him to take care of Ischia if he loved it like she did, and disappeared into the water. He hadn’t seen her since – and some discreet inquiries amongst the others he lived with had told him they hadn’t either. No sight of her blue-and-green equine pelt amongst the jungle and the sands, no sightings of her canine pawsteps on the sands after a long night. Brennen is equal parts worried about Circinae herself, and worried about Ischia left adrift without its Keeper appointing a new ruler as she had promised in the beginning. Those she leaves behind have many strong personalities, and if she does not chose one of them, he is uncertain how they will chose amongst themselves. The strongest? The smartest? Oldest? The girl who had lived here the longest?

    Brennen does not want to have to find a new home. This is the only place in the new world that he has felt settled, in his heart of hearts. Not that he hadn’t given Nerine and Hyaline honest-to-the-gods tries; but they hadn’t been right. Ischia felt like home. Felt like the Tundra, the Falls, the Deserts all wrapped into one perfect little island. Circinae had said that thrones and politics were not place to raise a family, but Brennen knows that Kingdoms are a very different kind of family, and he has raised many children in the shadows of thrones and politics, and he can envision himself continuing to do so here.

    The night is past dark, dawn beginning to creep upon them, and he blinks clear of his thoughts to watch the plankton recede. Curiously, he notes the bright green spark amongst the blue sealife and wonders whether it is something different, as he has not seen any green glow amongst the blue any other night he has watched them come and go. But he does not move to approach – not until he notices that it is not washing back into the ocean alongside the rest. Then he begins to move, approaching it in an indirect way that belies his curiosity is simply not that intense. But as the bay gets closer, he notices that the pulsing spark of light is not a squirmy sea creature of any sort, but more of a solid thing.

    Part seashell, part rock. That’s how Brennen classifies the object when he reaches it, standing a few feet away with one foot lifted into a relaxed pose, his finely shaped ears perked towards the strange object and his amber eyes reflecting the green glow. It is lodged firmly into the sand, half a washed up afterthought but half as if it has stubbornly rooted there, waiting. Waiting, he wonders, for what? Brennen takes his eyes off of the glowing shell to scan the horizon, noting that dawn is nearly upon them. This is the last glowing thing left on the shore. It is then, as the first rays of dawn break across the sky, that the curious immortal reaches down and brushes his nose against the strange shell, wondering if it will be hot or cool to his touch.
    hold me in this wild, wild world
    and in your heat I feel how cold it can get
    BRENNEN
    Reply
    #6

    Their meeting in the meadow had been brief.  Accompanied by too many prying eyes.  Though he hadn't been shy of his interest in her, he may have gone a bit farther if they had been alone.  So he had offered to show her around and she had accepted.  The allure of the island too much to pass up.

    Taking to the air he led the way.  Each stroke of his lavender wings bringing them farther from the mainland.  It wasn't extremely far and the island grows in expanse as they near.  They fly much lower than he was used to.  The spray of sea coating his limbs that dangled not far from it's surface. It gave him a sheen to his pelt.  Silver-hazel eyes find her pearled hue not far from him.  He smirks at her before turning his sights to the granulated shores.

    The beach comes up quick and his limbs reach to meet them.  Galloping along as his wings rest and begin to fold at his sides.  Once fully grounded and momentum slowed he looks back.  Slowing to turn and halt.  She too has landed and joined him.  Their eyes look to the jungle before he turns to look down the length of the beach. "It's beautiful no?" 

    His sights had just been cast to the shores when the light catches something within the sands.  It almost glows a sea-green shade of aqua.  Lavender profile tilts curiously.  He had never seen such a thing.  Lengthy limbs bring him to better view the object.  Now seeing it's shape that was familiar but the clarity of it still perplexed him.  Lowering his crown his muzzle runs across it.  Finding it's texture to be smooth.  He calls to Sabra, "Look at this thing.  It looks like a jewel of some sort." He waits for her to join and give her opinion on what it was.  Maybe it was powerful.  A gift from the fairies perhaps.  Ripe for the taking... 

    Klaudius
    Calm Before the Storm



    @[Sabra] >:]
    Reply
    #7
    He was interesting. Too cocky by half, and yet he was the one she couldn't help but focus on in the forest. The others would come, in time. She wasn't worried about that. Sabra was a woman who could play the long game. And so she followed him. Not even knowing his name, really. On the knowledge that he seemed to be as fascinated by her as she was in him, though perhaps with different reasoning. 
    They had erupted from the earth, pale angels in the day's light. Her glistening white wings beat in tandem with the lavender man's, not daring to betray her again. Mane and tail flowed in her wake like streamers of spilled cream, banners in her own honor. As the pair covered distance, far quicker than was possible on the ground, she watched the strange colored stallion with an appraiser's eye. His confident smirk, his tirelessly striking wings, the way the light shone on  his unusual coat. There was no denying his physical draw. Whether or not the mind behind it could keep up was another question entirely. 
    As they neared the island (Ischia, wasn't it?), her attention left her erstwhile guide. Now this, this was a view she could get used to. She relished the feeling of cold mist dampening her belly, and dipped low enough to run a forehoof through white cresting breakers as they closed in on the approaching shore. She could make out the pale sands and vivid green jungle, towering cliffs edging one side. Heartbeats later, and they are there. The narrow strip of shore welcomes them in, as they glide in to touch it, galloping as soon as their feet hit the warm sand. He has stopped a little way ahead, and waits for her to join him. It's beautiful, no? His voice is like his wings. Strong and smooth, with a feral undercurrent. She smiles to herself as her pale limbs bring her beside him."It's lovely. Will you give it to me?" She speaks about it as though it were a pretty trinket to be bought, not an entire island. But the way she tilts her finely sculpted head to gaze up at her companion, blue eyes unblinking, she is serious. If anyone could help her take an island, it just might be him. Forwardly, she mimics his introductory action, lightly running her lips over his shoulder, teeth scrapping gently at the rippling muscles underneath. Hers. Like this island would be. 
    At the same moment as he, a shimmer of emerald caught her gaze. Wordlessly, they moved towards it, like magpies towards broken glass. They find the shell, glowing clearly even in the daylight. With the appearance of a perfectly formed scallop, it looks more as if a gemstone only decided to take that form. It was a strange act of nature, she was sure. She watched the man beside her as lowered his head to graze the foreign surface delicately, then look back to her with wonderment in his eyes. Look at this thing. Its like a jewel of some sort. He voiced aloud, tone laced with curiosity. Truly, it was a remarkable find. She nudged it with a dainty hoof, intrigued when that action brought forth a clarion Clink! Lowering her own head to examine it closer, she marveled at it's perfectly clear green surface. She could see individual grains of sand trapped beneath, magnified by its convex surface. Now this was a prize worthy of a queen. With all the tenderness of a new mother, she closed the last distance to nuzzle it softly. Surely this was a sign that she was meant to stay here?
    Reply
    #8
    It's been a while since he's been home. For the majority of the year, the painted stallion had been exploring his new home in it's entirety. It had taken a while but over time he had grown to know each of the different sections of Beqanna's mainland and finally once he was satisfied he made his way home to the islands of Ischia. It was time that he take over his duties as watcher appropriately. With quick strokes the stallion swims towards the main islands wide open beach. The white glistening sands beckoned him home as the palm trees branches swayed gently in the wind. The calls of the toucans and macaws swung gently through the wind, dancing through the silence with a loving embrace. 

    The awakening of an ancient magic by circinae and her group of followers was probably right. Their home was a beautiful and amazingly peaceful place to live and was still untainted by the drama of the outside world. It was about time that they began to truly appreciate it. Though first, before he could do so himself, he had to find Circinae. He had to apologize for his absence and once again hand his loyalty to the keeper that he had handed his loyalty to without hesitation. But once his hooves found the sand and pulled him from the crystal clear waters he realized that his home was unusually quiet. The familiar faces were nowhere to be seen and Circinae was not there to greet him like she would usually be.

    For a moment his eyebrows are pulled together in slight wonder, ears flickering slightly as he listened for the voices that had yet to carry through the unusual silence that floated beneath the sounds of mother nature herself. With a slight glance around, he turns towards the mainland, his long muscular legs carrying him across the sand. For a few moments he is on a mission until suddenly the sunlight beaming down onto the beautiful beaches bounces off a shiny object hidden in the sand and catches his attention. The sudden glint is brilliant and for a moment it shines brightly when he turns his head, only fading slightly when he steps towards it in slight curiosity. 

    With timid steps he moves closer, his nostrils flaring as he snorts softly until finally the pull of the myrtle-green glow forces him forward with the strength of an ox. He is unable to keep on his previous path, unable to believe that it is something to be ignored and before he knows it he is standing in front of the scallop-shaped gem, a bright eye staring down without blinking. "Huh," he huffs slightly before gently leaning down and brushing his soft velvet like nose against the gem. Though when he does he feels a slight spark of electricity and with a quick perk of the ears and a slight jerk of the head he snorts softly before nudging it once more, this time without being shocked - and then comes one more nudge and doing so he completely releases it from the sand, allowing it to lay freely and completely uncovered in the sunlight atop the sand.
    Reply
    #9

    AN EVENT

    -The Strangest Shell-

    You touch the article and when you do, the same light emitted fills your body. Your very bones seem as warm as the white sand beaches, in your nostrils you can smell an overpowering sense of salt and humid jungle. Your eyes see life beneath the waves; gliding sharks and multicolored fish, nearly as brilliant and bright as the strange jewel.

    But, the vision ends as quickly as it begins - except, my dears, for @[Krone].

    At her touch, the little shell shivers in place, pulsating like an eerie heartbeat that thrums all the way through the earth and throughout Ischia. Thump, thump, thump the island breathes, alive and ready for the next chapter and suddenly, the object flashes with a blinding light.

    When her sight returns, Krone will see that the item is gone. Instead, the shell of Ischia has placed itself rather firmly between her eyes where it will stay. A permanent reminder of the Island’s choice, glimmering and crystal-like to match. It is a symbol, nothing more, but the message is clear for all to see. Ischia awakens, her time is now.



    ATTENTION

    - After touching the shell-shaped stone, your horse is given a brief vision of Ischia’s magical thread of life. Krone is the recipient of this item; She now has the shell embedded into her forehead and has been chosen by the island to follow in Circinae’s footsteps as Keeper. Krone, you may choose to keep the jewel for a short period of time or keep it permanently as a marking. This item has no power aside from being a cool accessory.

    Keep in Mind: This event was a unique way to pass leadership but remains just that: an Event. The rules of Beqanna succession still apply here - the others may choose not to follow Krone, someone else is free to step up themselves, etc. Have fun!
    Reply
    #10

    Krone

    you could be the king

    The smooth glassy surface of the shell feels cool along the length of her maw. But, soon after her lips touch the strange thing, it begins to quiver. Startled, Krone lifts her head away from it, but she cannot bring herself to run away. She simply stares at it among the morning sunrise, eyes wide and curious at the shivering shell. 

    Beneath her, the earth seems to pulsate like the beating of her own heart. In fact, it matches her own heartbeat. She looks around for anyone else, but she finds herself still alone. Hazel hues find their way back to the jewel, and suddenly, it flashes with a blinding light. 

    In her heart, her soul, and the very marrow of her bones she can feel the warmth that is her island home. She can smell the salty brine the sea emits, she can see the colorful coral and the plethora of fish beneath the waves. Her body feels oddly relaxed, despite the odd phenomenon happening to her. 

    Her sight returns slowly. It's almost as if she had been staring at the sun for a long time, every time she blinks, little dots of white and orange cloud her vision. Finally though she can see, and when she does she finds the shell has disappeared...but the feeling it had given her does not dissipate. In fact, she feels closer to the island than she had before. 

    The throbbing in the center of her head is the last thing she notices. An overwhelming urge overcomes her...to look at herself, something she hadn't done in quite awhile. Her green legs carry her to the ocean and she looks at the image mirrored in the water. 

    There it was. The missing shell, the perfect green jewel placed in the middle of her forehead, glowing for all of Ischia to see. A gasp escapes her...why her? She isn't unhappy with the decision her island has made, but she can't help but wonder why her out of all the others. She looks out into the horizon, staring at the never-ending sea.

    She would serve Ischia with the same care and compassion Circinae had. Krone only hopes that wherever her emerald friend had ended up, that she was happy

    "I won't let you down, Circinae..." She murmurs. "Long live Ischia."  

    but watch the Queen conquer



    @[The Strangest Shell]

    Thank you so much for this opportunity, and Krone would be happy to be Keeper of Ischia until the time is right to find a new one! Smile
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