[private] don't give it a hand, offer it a soul

[Abrus]

ABRUS

Abrus leaves the woods that he had first landed in, following the tug on his soul to explore more of this land - more of the forests here. The meadows and rolling hills towards the south do not interest him, and while he is naturally fascinated by the swirling mists that conceal the land to the west - even his abilities aren’t enough to part them and discover what is hiding there. He travels north, through the mountains, following an instinct that helps him navigate - in addition to the borrowed eyes of a possum perched on top of his head.

His raven companion scouts ahead and she is the first to see the pine forest where it stretches from the foothills to the sea. The moonlight upon the mist and needles sings through every cell of Abrus’ body and he feels satisfied. It had not been intentional to arrive at this continent or world, of all the ones that existed, but at least he could be sure he would not be disappointed or without power while he remained.

The possum is left unceremoniously at the edge of the woods - perhaps later Abrus will remember to return it to where he had taken it, or perhaps it simply lives here and must adapt to the changes in the world it had known. He is too distracted to focus on it, moving forward past the stunned creature. As he approaches the trees, wooden antlers grow from his head - just wide and strong enough to support the weight of the raven. She perches there and both sets of their eyes glow white as they take their first steps among the trees. Dawn is not far now, and as the creatures and plants awaken to greet it Abrus feels their energy awaken inside of him as well.

@Iliana

[Iliana]

I L I A N A

She had been raised on stories of the Chamber, and so it was no surprise that she had come to see it for herself.

Settled onto the thick branch of a large evergreen tree, her panther tail languidly flicking, she stares out into the forest with rose-gold eyes, taking it in. She could see why her father had liked it here—the darkness of the trees, the coolness of the needles underfoot, and the general quietness that only a forest could bring. She is not sure if it is the phantom beat of her father’s heart that she feels or simply her own pulse echoing back to her, but she is aware of it all the same. She is not sure if she will stay here; she has little interest in taking up her father’s mantle, in continuing the reign of the Chamber’s long-lost panthers, but it is not a decision she will hold herself to just yet.

There is always time to change her mind.

Somewhere beyond the tops of the trees the sky begins to awaken, though it comes as a nearly imperceptible lightening underneath the canopy of the trees. She yawns, white teeth glinting inside a dark mouth, but before she can lazily bring herself to stand she sees the antlered stallion—a raven perched there as if they were the branches of a tree—maneuvering through the trees. It’s the glowing white of their eyes that snags her interest, though, but the nonchalant way she makes her way to the ground betrays just how much her curiosity has been piqued as she lands with a soft thud on the forest floor.

“Good morning,” she greets the pair, and settles back on her haunches with her tail curled around her paws. She does not say anything else; the Chamber is not her home to welcome to or chase anyone away from, and instead she only watches them with her own rose-gold eyes.

-- the shadow is mine, and so is the valley

@Abrus