"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
The entire place was shrouded in fog, and Mori shivered, unused to the cold. Rising to a standing position, her hooves shifted through a thick layer of lifeless leaves and scattered branches. Her white coat stood out like a ghost among the redwoods, making her as obvious as could possibly be. Slowly, she picked her way to a massive redwood wider than she was long and so tall she thought it could pierce the clouds and sky and keep going even beyond that, where she proceeded to collapse, mind whirling. How had she gotten here? She'd been at home, sleeping, just hours ago.
This wasn't home.
A tendril of fury curled in her chest. How dare whoever was responsible take her away from her home?! She screamed her defiance at the redwoods in a wordless whinny, holding it as long as she could. But the sound was soon gone, and with it her anger, leaving behind only a hopeless feeling. She didn't want to stay here. She didn't want this strange world, covered in mist and silent redwoods. Anger, Mori decided, was a far better feeling than this. But try as she might, she couldn't bring that fire back.
Well, anything was better than sitting around doing nothing, right? She got to her feet, with absolutely no idea of where she was going. "Hello?" she tried, voice empty of emotion and nothing like her earlier outburst. "Anyone here?"
He is here, ever lurking between the Taiga and Sylva. He much liked drifting between his homes here. The jackel of sylva is a creature of habit and rarely wanders far from the known. His blackish body melding with the cloak of darkness that often consumes the crevices of these territories. Only his glowing red eyes hint that something lurks within the depths and it is there he observes.
A young girl lays dormant amongst the dried pine needles today. Awakening with shock as if someone had transported her here unknowingly. This causes him to cackle softly. Now wouldn't that be a sight. A menacing grin forms upon his lips at his contemplation. Next she rises, unsure and stunned. The stark white contrast of her coat does not blend here well and that could be bad for her. The forests were infested with creatures of the night and one looking so -lost- would surely fall victim to their antics.
Sweet melodies spill from her pale lips, a demanding call of answers and frustration. Perhaps he should intervene? Yes, he could do that, he decides with a blink of blood red eyes.
Now words form and she calls questions into the mists. They echo against the vast forest, and that is when he steps from his hiding place with a gentle shake of his head(never breaking eye contact), "I wouldn't do that if I were you." His voice is monotone and expression emotionless. His lanky figure slides easily next to hers and with a whisper to her ear, he fills her in on why, "There is an evil here... Best not to wake them." His voice cackles slightly at the end, as lips curl devilishly, body side stepping slightly right and against the trunk of a giant redwood.
He poses in a relaxed manner. Resting himself against the pine bark, eyes examining the young mare. "You don't seem to fit in here... How...No, Why are you in these forests?" He questions casually. Something so pure shouldn't be in a place so tainted...
08-24-2018, 08:24 PM (This post was last modified: 08-24-2018, 08:26 PM by Mori.)
So there is someone else here after all. A black and white stallion, appearing seemingly out of nowhere. His voice is monotone, but Mori cam hardly blame him for that when her own voice has lost its emotion after her earlier outburst. It's his sudden presence right next to her and a whisper - far too close to her face and ending in a cackle she does not trust - that provokes a warning snort and leads her ears to pin against her neck. Even after he draws away, she takes a cautious step away from him, just in case.
"Thank you for the warning," she says anyway, because she hardly wants to be rude. Her ears flick forward, alert, as the stallion starts speaking again. State the obvious, why don't you. Not one single fiber of her belongs here. Not her coat (glaringly obvious anywhere, but especially unhelpful when it comes to hiding from the evil here), nor her heart (it belongs to her home and nowhere else), nor any other part of her. "I don't know either. I'm guessing that random new horses popping up isn't a common thing here, then?" A dash of sarcasm makes its way into Mori's previously neutral voice. From the looks of this forest, she would have guessed that just plain horses wasn't a common thing here, but the stallion's sudden appearance makes her think twice about that conclusion. "Do you know of any place that isn't so... creepy? One that doesn't have an evil lurking somewhere?"
From his perch, he watches her frustration form. Something was misaligned and he was interested into just what it was. His answer comes quickly and a snort of laughter emits from him. Drawing his lengthy stride to move forwards once again, but this time he does so in the opposite direction she stood. With back turned, he contradicts her comment, "You'd be surprised, on just how common it actually is, M'Love..." His slinking pace continues, head turning lazily from one side to the next as if he was looking for something he misplaced.
He doesn't move far when she comments on his home and those who live in it. A sneer forms along the thin lines of his lips as he twists to face her once again, "Why? You too good for us..." His final syllable drags and head lifts in thought -as if attempting to pull forward a memory. Having not found it, he realizes just why and attempts to resolve the issue promptly, "How rude of me! My apologise Miss. I am Ouija... What is your name, M'Dear?" He paints a wide toothy grin across his maw, awaiting her given title...
Wanna play a game?
@[Mori] I haven't written him in a while so bare with me lol. He also has Fear Illusionism, if you want to explore that. He can be illusioned as anything your character fears(when he wants to be really creepy) kind of like It. But he will ask if you wanna play a game first
The stallion snorted with laughter and turned so that he had his back to Mori. He did not turn to face her even as he started speaking again, delivering some surprising information. The word m'love resulted in an irritated twitch of her ears, though unless the stallion had eyes on the back of his head he wouldn't be able to see it. Mori bit back an annoyed what are you doing?! as he started pacing with his head turning from side to side. It looked ridiculous, though he didn't seem to care.
Finally he stopped with whatever it was that he was doing and turned to face her again. The use of the word us sent a shiver down Mori's spine, setting her nerves on edge and somehow making her even more unsettled than she was before. "You said yourself that there is an evil here. I assume that avoiding it would be best for my health." she replied warily. "And I'm better suited for warmer climates anyway." Living in a perpetually foggy and cold forest with an evil lurking somewhere was not her idea of fun. "My name is Mori."
He scuffs in a humorous tone at her comment. Each step sliding him closer to the dove mare. His voice hisses into the vapored air, "Not all of us take pleasure in harming others," -physically, he wishes to add but the word is lost to the mists.
The moment comes he has been lingering for, Mori, she replies is her name and his lips curl tightly to reveal a toothy grin. "Mori..." he tastes the word on his tongue. Swirling it about his senses, crimson eyes turning skyward as if it caused him pleasure.
Seemingly, he snaps back to reality with a light jerk of his skull. Gaze finding her again and with a dip of his head he offers his assistance, "Well M'Dear, I suppose if the weather here does not suit your fancy... I would gladly escort you someplace more to your... liking." He couldn't guarantee her safety nor if where they ended up would be better than here, but it was an offer nonetheless.
"Shall we...?" His body curls tightly around the mare, head now pointed to the west(in the opposite direction he had been facing). He allows her to consider if his assistance was propitious...
Wanna play a game?
@[Mori] So he would probably lead her into Sylva which is his actual home kingdom
Oh look! He's actually coming back so we can have a conversation at a normal distance for once! Now isn't that nice?
Mori banished the thought from her head as Ouija hissed more words into the air. Really, did he have to be so melodramatic? "Evil would not be evil if it didn't harm others." she insisted. Granted, he'd said 'take pleasure in harming others', but why do something if you didn't enjoy it? Still, the use of the word us unnerved her. Perhaps Ouija was only defending his homeland and its residents, but could he not have simply said that they were not all evil? She had the feeling this horse couldn't be trusted - but he had warned her of the evil and answered her questions, even if it had been in an overly theatrical way.
And here he was now, offering to take her somewhere else. Somewhere other than this awful depressing place. Well, she supposed... if there was truly no way to return... she probably had to accept, didn't she. She certainly didn't want to be stuck here forever. He was too close for comfort, though - she'd have to address that first. "Ouija, please. I'd like some personal space." She hoped her tone didn't sound too rude or irritated, but she wanted to make it clear that she was firm on this. "Yes, if you know of a place that's more wide open and warmer, without evil - I'd be happy to go with you. Thank you."
This one definetly had a spunk about her and he wonders if perhaps she would fit in with the Sylvian crew. He motions forwards and is quite pleased that she is willing to follow...
His lanky stride begins and though it is not a trot, it is quite fast and fluent. Allowing him to slide between the masses of trees surrounding them, with a serpent like ease. Crimson eyes focused on the terrain in front of them and lobes trained on the body behind him, he searches for the border of the two territories. "Just a tad farther M'Dear," he states in almost a pleasant tone. Another bend around a grove of brush and the autumnal forests lay before them.
His blackish body halts and he waits for her to step beside him, bloody eyes looking out across the dense canopies of golden hues. "Well here she is... Sylva. Home sweet home. Whattaya think? Will this land please you, M'Love," his words pry for an answer of content but he wonders if this place will do for such a creature of light...
Wanna play a game?
@[Mori] If you want to post a new thread in Sylva to extend this one I am game... If she wishes to head elsewhere reply here
Was a thick forest Ouija's idea of a wide open space? Perhaps she needed to be blunter. Mori didn't judge him for liking it; she could see how some horses might find it a beautiful place to call home. And it was a much nicer place than the foggy redwood forest, too. Still, she wasn't the type of horse to like trees.
"Sylva is certainly beautiful. But does this place have any land that's more... open? A field, perhaps, with grass in it." As colorful as Sylva was, Mori could see no grass. "What do you eat here, anyway? Do you somehow magic grass out of nowhere?"
... Oops. That was rude, wasn't it. Then again, knowing that horses lived in forests and that random horses suddenly popping up was a common thing here, would it really be a surprise if they did in fact magic grass out of nowhere? See, this can actually be a legitimate question. Just don't say it in such a sarcastic tone next time.
He looks out onto his home land with prideful eyes. The tips of the autumn trees were bright, even as winter took hold of the other lands. Here snow did not threaten to bury us, nor were the summers too hot or winters too cold. It was in an eternal state of fall, his favorite season. So when she looks to it with wonder of its beauty, but a question of its sustainablility, his ears perk ever so slightly.
With a grin quirking his lips, he doesn't even look at her, but continues to look out across the autumnal lands, "I can show you what most of us feast upon M'Dear..." There is a quick jerk of his neck, to view her with a tilted head and eager eyes, "Lets play a game shall we?". His figure begins to morph into whatever her deepest fears could conjure up. A monster, an enemy, perhaps something more enviromental -burning or the alter drowning- that she fears most. His flame licked eyes focus on the depths of that fear and ignite her senses with its properties; sounds, smells, tastes. Turning her visual senses against her as well to see only her fear and not him...
He would watch her panic while feeding on the threads of darkness that consume her. He would also watch her flee from the borders of his home and secretly wish her better luck next time, a malicious cackle echoing forth from his lungs.
This was a fun game wasn't it
Wanna play a game?
@[Mori] I would assume she will run from him now. If she wanted to run far, and stumble into Tephra, she is sure to meet much nicer ponies of mine lol. Thanks for entertaining my creepster though!!