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The Waiting Game ((Nascent! Open-ish))

Started by kleineklementine, June 25, 2013, 08:02:34 AM

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kleineklementine

OOC: This thread wil be about my noble Olive being escorted to the mage camps by Nascent's Knight of the White Lilly Kasna. If you have a character you'd like to add and you think they'd fit (another mordecai, someone they meet on the road, etc), super! Just PM Nascent and I.

BIC:
Olive knelt in silent prayer before the alter of the saint charged with, among other things, guiding troubled souls through difficult times. A large, shaggy grey Tracker curled up beside her. Though she wasn't certain if she was really much of a believer, Olive had always been a regular church goer. For years, it had perhaps been her way to make up for her other, glaring differences. As if at least the appearance of devout piety might take precedence over being a skinny tomboy in a society of strict gender roles or, worse, being marked as a mage. It was this second point that had driven Olive into the church much more often now. Since the outbreak of heightened tensions between the government and mages, the church had become the safest place for her. Here she was protected – if pitied, if perhaps distrusted – but with the symbol of the church blazened on the left breast of all of her clothing, she was clearly identifiable and it was no longer safe outside.

Of course, piety wouldn't be enough for the others marked as she was. And Olive wondered if there were any known mages still in Uthlyn besides herself. Or if they had all been sent already to the camps in the north. No, Olive was spared not for her piety but because of her position. A noble, the only daughter of a duke, she had thus far avoided being sent with the others to the mage camps. But that didn't mean she was free to do as she pleased. Her life had been confined to a sort of house arrest. Outside of her quarters in her family's Uthlyn house, she was allowed only to go to the church. At all times, day and night, escorted by what she'd come to think of as 'her' mordecai. Even they, she knew, were something of a luxury. While certainly not friendly, they were respectful of her and both were the epitome of the 'love the sinner, hate the sin' teaching of the church. On rare occasion, they were even kind to her.

But Olive was beginning to wonder how long this would last. Tensions were rising in the city, and she could tell her mordecai, as well as the priests and deacons she met with at the church, were increasingly uneasy. Her luck, she was sure, was running out. Maybe she should have tried to make a run for it earlier. She had thought about it when things started getting bad, after the Grand Duke was assassinated. But her actions, she knew, reflected on her father and mother, and on their duchy. So hadn't dared it. She stayed in Uthlyn and continued to play the part of the ideal, penitent mage who wouldn't dream of using magic.

And then she'd received a letter from her mother, uncharacteristically short and direct, and the only correspondence she'd been allowed in months...

Constance, it had begun – her mother always using her first given name...

Constance,

Your father and I want to ask you again to please comply with everything asked of you. The Grand Duke is trying to protect us all. Remain faithful, remain pious, and remain loyal to your family and your to government. The road of righteousness may be hard, but we are confident you will follow it.

Lovingly,
Mother


This letter and cemented the growing feeling she had that her remaining time in Uthlyn would not be long, though she hung onto a small hope that being the daughter of a duke would spare her. That she would be allowed to remain in the city, shadowed by Mordecai but safe, until this all blew over. In the meantime, she came here. She came to the church where she felt securely alone with her thoughts. Waiting to see what the next turn of events would bring.

Nascent




A task such as this seemed... beneath her.

Nonetheless, orders were orders. Kasna pulled aside the carriage's black curtain, gazing out quietly upon the ducky of Uthlyn as she was driven through its streets. It wasn't her usual way of doing things, being driven around in a somewhat fancy box on wheels by a hired man and a pedigree horse -- truth be told she would've been happier with just the horse, though 'happy' on an assignment like this was a fragile and relative term. Escorting a marked mage to the camps... her left eye twitched with irritation at the thought. It was the kind of job one would assign to the order's peons or, at most, a completely novice knight, not someone with her formidable reputation and service record. Kasna knew where she belonged: out in the field, finding where traitorous mages were hiding and answering their unholy fire with cold steel. But some amongst the higher orders of the White Lily... seemed to think otherwise, and that galled her.

To ease her ire she closed her eyes and focused on her breathing, shutting out the world around her until only the unsteady rhythm of the carriage and the clop of hooves remained. A place of calm and solitude, a quiet darkness within. At least, in theory. She could never maintain the meditation for very long before, like an itch just out of reach, some violent urge would pop into her mind and have to be constrained with effort. Sighing, eyes snapping open, she instead reviewed what she knew about the mage she'd be... escorting.

Constance Olivia Carwick, daughter of the local duke. Nobility... the fact that magic's curse would turn up in the privileged upper classes didn't surprise her. Honest work and physical effort were the sisters of devotion, preventing idleness and unhealthy curiosity. Magic bred, it seemed, amongst those with too much time on their hands -- it was perhaps the hand of providence that kept more of the soft, entitled nobility from being touched by the fey arts. This girl was, so Kasna had been told, penitent and faithful, a bright example of redemption and the subservience of those tested my magic to the Divine Warrior's will. Taking her to the camps was just one more show of obedience, the higher-ups had said. This girl and those like her would demonstrate the triumph of faith over heresy; in time, the church would hold her up as an example for others to follow. The very notion left a bitter taste in Kasna's mouth.

Mages should die. That was their rightful penitence for being born cursed.

The carriage pulled up in front of a large gothic-styled church and the White Lily Knight swiftly and gratefully stepped out, feeling stiff and ill-at-ease from sitting so long on cushioned seats. She stretched briefly, then gestured for the driver to wait before going inside. If memory served the girl was supposed to have a Mordecai guard about her; this, most certainly, would be the best place to learn their -- and thus her -- whereabouts.

It didn't take long once she stepped inside to notice the girl at the altars bowed in prayer, a handful of official-looking guards with the mark of the Mordecai stationated attentively about her. Kasna allowed herself a faint, fleeting grin -- this, then, must be the mage. A voice in the back of her head urged her to draw her longsword; she could charge down the aisle and drive its blade into the foul magic-born's back before she even knew what was coming, anointing the holy altar with blood. Such an imagery was... pleasant, but the thought of her superiors stayed her hand. Instead, she slowly strode forward, the soft metallic clinks of her armor echoing in the hallowed space. The Mordecai turned almost as one to look at her, then exchanged glances amongst themselves.

They knew. The presence of an Adhara could only mean so many things, after all.

"Constance Olivia Carwick, I presume?" Kasna folded her arms across her chest and waited for a response.

kleineklementine

"Constance Olivia Carwick, I presume?"

Olive's heart skipped a beat and it was only after a second that she realized she needed to exhale. She had, in her heart of hearts, expected this, but somehow that didn't stop the fear growing from her stomach. The girl remained kneeling at the alter, her head bowed, her eyes closed. She was entitled to finish her prayer, she knew, and she needed the time to collect herself. Her mind was racing, prayer to the saint the last thing on her mind. She had to make a conscious effort to normalize her breathing. It had finally come. Her time sheltering in Uthlyn was over.

A horrible thought kept nagging at the back of her mind. No one had heard again from the mages sent to the camps. The camps that were 'somewhere in the north.' Are there really mage camps? Was she really going to be sent away to be kept separate and 'safe' from the rest of Connlaoth, or... It had already occurred to her once before, when she first learned that she would be kept under house arrest rather than being sent away with the other marked mages. Are there really mage camps? If the camps were what they claimed to be, safe places where mages could be kept safe and separate, protecting both them and Connlaoth, then why had nobility been enough to keep her here for so long? But if there were no camps... Her parents were ardent supports of Calent (really, with a mage for a daughter, they had to be). But killing a duke's daughter might be going to far. ...Right? Are there really mage camps?

It seemed like she was going to find out.

Remain faithful, remain pious, and remain loyal to your family and your to government.

With a calm and slow deliberateness that was extremely forced, Olive finished her prayer and stood. Was she shaking? She couldn't tell. Olive was not one to normally think much about rank, nobility, and station, but she tried now to raise herself to her full height and summon as much noble poise and carriage as she could muster. But her face was ashen. She looked first to 'her' mordecai and found that they were both watching her, but not with their normal watchfulness. They didn't, she thought, know this was going to happen. At least, she didn't think they knew it was going to happen just now. Maybe, she wondered, they hadn't been told for fear that one of them might be too sympathetic to her.

The large Tracker rose beside her, standing protectively beside his charge. Unconsciously, Olive let her left hand fall onto the dog's head.

Then slowly, very slowly, her eyes turned to look to where the voice had come from, and her courage almost faltered, the pit of her stomach falling for miles. An Adhara. But it didn't. She stood straight, tall, chin slightly lifted, the way she'd been taught to hold herself and they way that, before now, she almost never had.

"Yes," she finally answered, as calmly and as self-possessedly as she could manage, "I am Constance Carwick."

Nascent

Kasna's expression was muted, but just visible behind the mask of neutrality was a hint of a frown... or perhaps a sneer. Nonetheless her tone was businesslike as she reached for a small satchel at her side and pulled out a scroll of paper, unfurling it and holding it up for Olive to see. What was written there would confirm much of her fears.

"Under the authority of the Knights of the White Lily, by the grace of his lordship the Grand Duke on Connlaoth, you, Constance Carwick, are hereby summoned to present yourself, for purpose of census and for the proper restraint of magic and mages, to the camp of Reidspear in the duchy of Falstead. The length of your residence at Reidspear has yet to be determined -- so long as you are law-abiding and faithful during your stay suitable provision will be made for you." The Adhara paused, quietly thinking to herself 'But nothing like what you're used to little mage, I'd imagine.' before continuing. "I am Kasna Vel Telshear, Knight of the White Lily, sent to escort you and ensure your --" She almost spat out the next word. "--safe arrival."

"You have one hour to pack whatever you wish to bring with you and say your goodbyes. Weapons are strictly prohibited, and your luggage will be checked for contraband upon arrival at Reidspear." Her eyes focused on the mark upon her clothing; it had always seemed something of a travesty to Kasna to mark mages with the iconography of the church, though it did make them easier to identify. "As you are the duke's daughter I expect I'll have your full cooperation, in spite of the abrupt nature of this event. These notices are very seldom given much in advance... even for one of your station, miss Carwick."

She then turned to the attending Mordecai. "You're relieved of your duties in attending her -- she's under my charge now. Kindly go inform the duke and duchess; we will be along shortly."

kleineklementine

OOC: Sorry it wasn't clear. Olive's actually from a duchy to-be-determined when Rhi and Spice get their map together, not from Uthlyn. She's here for the college. No worries. Hope you don't mind how I used Kasna's "mistake" about where she's from.

BIC:
"Lady Carwick," Olive corrected, coolly but pointedly, doing her best to channel her mother. She would, of course, comply with the orders. Or, she was mostly certain that she would. But if the situation were different, if she hadn't been 'Lady,' then she certainly would not. Maybe she would be dead, or maybe she'd be living in the wilds, or maybe she'd have left Connlaoth all together, a long time ago. So, as it was, she wasn't going to let the knight forget who she was. Perhaps it was some sort of defiance. Well, if her defiance could only come in such small measures, she would take it.

"And of course you don't have to inform my parents," she said, turning to the confused expressions of the mordecai. Turning away from the woman, even for a moment, made her uneasy. She held onto the thick, wiry fur of the dog.

"Our duchy is several days journey from Uthlyn," Olive stated plainly to Kasna, feeling that this was a slight upper hand for her. Though she could only guess how dangerous that might turn out to be. "And I'm sure its unnecessary. I would be surprised if they didn't know already."

Probably, she thought to herself, they had some hand in ordering it. Or at least in giving consent. She was confident that they would have done either.

"Of course you will have my full cooperation," she continued, keeping her voice formal, keeping her chip up, and trying to make it sound as though it would be an insult to suggest she would not comply. Though it was all a bit of a struggle, as the reality sank in and replaced the anxious anticipation she'd felt up until now, it became a little easier. Whatever was happening now, was happening. "I am a law-abiding, pious mage. I wear the mark of the challenge God has set before me. And I listen at all times to the teachings of my church and the commands of my government."

"I will, naturally, accompany you to Reidspear."

Would she, she wondered? It wouldn't be difficult, on the road, for the Knight to kill her. She knew. Maybe that was the idea. Are there really mage camps? Or would she lose her nerve? Bolt at the first opening like a scared, wild animal? Probably to be shot down like one...

No, she wouldn't let fear drive her to a desperate, irrational action. That, she knew, wouldn't only reflect on her family... But any misstep now, anything that could be hyped and spun, would reflect badly on all mages. Pious or not.

She said a short and sincere goodbye to the mordecai who had spent the last several weeks with her at all times. Both men tried to hide their embarrassment at this action in front of the Adhara. Then she turned and started heading out of the church, confident the woman could follow her.

"Come on, Dac," she said to the Tracker, "let's go get our stuff."

Nascent

(OOC: No biggie. First rule of RP, like with improv comedy, is the "yes, and..." principle -- you're just rolling with what you've got.

Though technically, Kasna never mentioned Uthlyn. ^_^;; )



The nobility and their fixation on titles; Kasna's eyes narrowed somewhat in displeasure when "Lady" Carwick corrected her, and again when she pointed out the locale. She wasn't in the least bit sure how this little mage knew Kasna had been misled to believe she was in-or-about Uthlyn; perhaps it was a common mistake for travelers in this area. She'd have to have a few words with her driver about his grasp of geography.

Despite that teensy bit of pride showing, Olive was otherwise was cooperative and they were soon on their way to collect her things. Kasna wasn't at all sure whether the girl would be allowed to keep her furry companion when they arrived at Reidspear so she didn't speak up when Olive had the dog follow her. They were soon out on the streets heading, most likely, to wherever the Carwick family considered their estate.

"We will be traveling by carriage," Kasna pointed out as they exited, lifting a gloved finger to point to the waiting driver who, in turn, tipped his hat and bowed meekly. The knight didn't much like her charge but, at least, it was best to get all the need-to-know details out on the table at the outset. "It will be roughly a ten day journey if all goes well. Tomorrow we'll be meeting up with a caravan on the road who will also be under my protection as they make their way to Reidspear."

"If you have any burning questions, now is the time. You can expect me to be rather silent once we're on the road."

kleineklementine

It felt like everything was happening in slow motion somehow. Like she was underwater. Or suspended in honey. ...What a strange thing to think. But Olive felt like the world was a million miles away as she entered her family's Uthlyn home. It wasn't excessively grand. A "city" home for when they wanted to come enjoy the arts and festivals, and then later a place to put their daughter while they hid her away at the college. Olive had been coming here since she was a girl, had been living here for over a year, but she felt nothing for the place now. Now she already felt like a stranger here.

She would never be here again. The realization hit her hard. Not just the house, but... Even if the Knight was telling the truth. Even if there were actually camps in the north where mages were only kept separate. Even if she made it to the other side of this thing - there would be another side, right? - it wouldn't matter. She was a mage, and mages were the enemy, and now she was being taken off to the only place the were fit to keep, or to be killed. Her family wouldn't take her back. Wouldn't welcome her with open arms, just to see her safe. It was over. That part of her life was over.

The force of the realization stopped Olive in her tracks and it was wet nose of her dog pressing against her hand that brought her back to reality. She was in her room. Had she come here herself? Feeling defeated, feeling small and scared, she looked over the room. What would she need? Anything? She didn't want to bring anything.

No. She forced herself out of the malaise. She had to at least think practically, even if she couldn't think sentimentally. Moving through her things like a marionette, Olive changed into traveling clothes and packed a second, warmer set. She packed a book. She didn't even pay attention to which one. She couldn't think of anything else. Any thing of use... well, they'd probably take it away, anyway. But it seemed like a small and sad, the bag, like there was so little that mattered now.

And now she found herself outside of the carriage... ready to go?

Olive just nodded her understanding to Kasna. She didn't have any questions. And got into the carriage, the tracker following her in. Once it started moving, and the city began passing before her, she found herself wishing there were someone out there to save her, like in stories. To whisk her away to some safe, faraway place. But this wasn't a story, and there was no one out there now. Who in this city would even notice she was gone? She, after all, was the enemy.

"Why did it take so long?" she suddenly blurted out, looking from the window to Kasna. It was past the time when Kasna had asked for questions, but Olive didn't care. She wasn't sure what she would gain from asking, but she didn't feel like there was much to lose. "For them, for you, to come collect me? It's been ages since the other marked mages were evacuated from Uthlyn."

Nascent

"Why did it take so long?" Kasna parroted back Olive's question with a half-amused huff and a dry, mirthless chuckle. Her cold silver-blue eyes turned on her passenger, the knight sitting opposite Olive in the carriage; whatever pretext of respect and even decency that gaze may have held while in front of her Mordecai was gone from it, leaving just a piercing glare of superiority and disdain. Kasna shook her head slowly. "Of all the questions, you had to ask the most obvious? Hmph."

"Look at yourself." One gloved finger rose to point squarely at the mark Olive wore. "Daughter of nobility, a marked -- and supposedly pious -- mage. Why do you think? Or have you thought about it at all? It should be obvious."

Kasna sat back, crossing arms over her metal chest plate. "No one gave me an exact reason, but there are plenty to choose from. Your noble status, for one. You said your parents likely knew I'd be coming? You're probably right. And, to preserve their reputation, they likely didn't want you hauled away with the common rabble. Or perhaps someone wants you to serve as an example of obedience. Clearly, it 'took so long' because someone had an interest in it being so... for all the difference it makes now."

Kasna pulled back the curtain of the window, hooking it into place so she could see out. She didn't like being blind to her surroundings any more than she liked sharing the cabin of the carriage with a mage. She could feel her fingers itching for the familiar grip of her sword, her mace... or someone's neck. Putting these two women together in an enclosed space was like caging a gazelle and a panther together; there would almost certainly be blood before the end. For now, at least, Kasna kept her murderous urges in check.



-----------------------------------------------------

"They've set out, have they?"

"Indeed, master. They make for Reidspear by the shortest route, as you anticipated."

"Good, then we won't have to wait long. I'll inform our... associate... to be ready to do his part. The carriage reaches the caravan in one day's time -- be sure everything is ready by then, Sieben. Our performance must be... flawless."

"And so it shall be."

kleineklementine

It seemed like Kasna's words were coming from a million miles away, not the other side of the carriage. Dad rested his head in his girl's lap and Olive unconsciously put her hand on his ears. She didn't even look at Kasna, just stared listlessly out the window. "I just didn't think that would be enough," she answered distantly. "If there were really camps for mages... For mages to be 'separate and safe,' I thought I'd be the first to go. To make an example..."

But she trailed off when she realized what Kasna had said about her parents. Now she did look at the Knight and let out a short, dry laugh. "Oh, to 'preserve their reputation,' I'm sure they'd rather I tragically died on the road. The if have been doing the Right and Expected Thing, and they'd never have to deal with me again."

Nascent

"That can be arranged."

The words were cold as ice and spoken with a muted expression that would've led Olive to believe that Kasna would as easily and uncaringly snuff out her life as she would that of a fly. They were also word that slipped out just seconds ahead of the knight's better judgement. The woman-warrior grunted in annoyance and stared out the window.

"This isn't all about you, little mage." Kasna spoke with mild contempt in her voice, but it was restrained, muted. It was probably as close to an apology as Olive would get, even if it was itself an insult. "My orders are quite clear: you are to reach Reidspear safely and be handed over to the Mordecai in charge there. Make no mistake -- your life is in my hands, but it would... reflect poorly on me if any accidents were to occur, especially like what you seem to think your parents would prefer."

She went silent for a moment, then halfways looked back at Olive with a neutral gaze. "The camps are real, just so you know. Not every camp is the same: the one you're going to was only established recently and is exclusively for those of your kind who have the favor of the church. It's one of the better ones, at that. There is a second, larger camp in Reidspear for other kinds of magic-tainted -- political dissidents, minor criminals, the unconfessed and the less faithful, those whom the authorities believe can either be redeemed or, at least, retrained in time. In the eyes of those who oversee this work most of them merit neither the sword nor the mark, and it is their ilk, the 'common' mages, that most of the camps were established to contain. I believe your camp is being named Silverpine or something thereabouts to differentiate it; I don't care to spend my efforts on irrelevant details like that."

"I hope that answers your questions." It was a statement, notas king for Olive's affirmation and suggesting the dialogue was over for now. Kasna had let spill more than she'd intended to her charge and intended to leave it at that; at least the information would quiet the girl for a while, she hoped.



-------------------------------------------------




The journey was barely a day on, and already the tension was uncomfortable. Normally that wouldn't have bothered Kasna... but then again, normally she didn't spend any longer with a mage than it took to hear them stop screaming. This... this was something different.

They had stopped to make camp for the night, the driver tying up their weary steed with a bag of rough oats and hay while the Adhara assembled a small campfire. They had enough dry provisions that there was no need for a large one to cook over -- just a little light in the dark was all that was required. With that done, Kasna turned and spoke to Olive for the first time in hours -- she'd essentially ignored any further attempts at conversation since the discussion about the camps.

"Sleep in the carriage if you prefer, but I'll be checking on you. Don't wander off."

It was a loud and clear warning, delivered with cold assurance. That done, the Knight of the White Lily laid out a simple, somewhat rough-worn bedroll nearby the campfire and laid her mace down next to it, taking her sword in one hand. For a second it seemed like further intimidation from the Adhara to her traveling companion... until, that is, the knight began sparring slowly with an unseen opponent, rehearsing sword skills and techniques. Her movements were relaxed and yet precise with no real speed or emphasis behind them, practiced to the point of being as instinctual as breathing in and out. She was doing this as much to unwind as to exercise her protesting muscles that had sat idle for too long in that blasted horse-pulled fancy box.

She would sleep, but not for quite some time yet. For the moment -- prior instructions notwithstanding -- Olive could do as she pleased while Kasna found what comfort her katas could offer her.

kleineklementine

Olive settled into the silence of the journey. The Knight had said much more than Olive had expected her to, and the girl didn't want to push her luck now. Plus, what else would she ask? She hardly wanted to hear about this woman's favorite color or childhood best friend. But...

"The camps are real, just so you know."

That was an interesting thing to hear Kasna say. Had she been fishing for this when she'd made the comment that she'd have expected to be sent there first? No, not exactly. She'd stopped thinking as much since getting into the carriage. But now she was glad that she'd said it. Why would Kasna lie about this? It gave Olive some new - hope was definitely not the right word - determination, maybe.

'Silverpine.' Olive couldn't help but giving a quiet snort of a laugh at that. Silverpine. It sounded like a manor home or a fancy retreat. What a joke. Silverpine.




Kasna wasn't the only one glad to get out of the carriage when the small, odd party stopped for the night. Olive hated being cooped up in small places. She much preferred to be out in the woods and valleys of her home province or out in the streets of Uthlyn, getting into trouble. That, for a moment, made her think of Jobias. And that also felt a million miles away, a million years ago. And she didn't think of it again.

The girl and her dog followed Kasna closely out of the carriage, both stretching while Olive nodded her understanding of Kasna's instructions. At first Olive watched Kasna, confused (and, yes, intimidated) at her miming with the sword. Yikes. She couldn't help but be impressed as she realized what the Knight of the White Lily was doing, and she wondered how many had found themselves at the other end of that sword. And what they had been guilty of, other than being born mages.

Olive spent much of the evening puttering around the camp site, not wandering off, and was throwing a large pine cone for Dac as dusk began to take hold of the forest. She was letting her mind wander during the exercise, thinking about what her life had been up to now, and what it wouldn't be again. Frustrated, she threw the green cone a bit too hard, and unsettled a grouse from the forest underbrush. Dac, being only a dog after all, immediately took off after the birds, into the gloom of the forest.

Shit. The tracker, despite his name, had gotten himself lost more than once before, and she couldn't bare it if he were now. Before even thinking it through, Olive took off after him. The thought of Kasna and her deadly weapons temporarily gone from her mind.

Nascent

It was the sound of wild birds running and panicking that first drew Kasna from her quiet routine; her eyes flicked in Olive's direction just in time to see the dog run off, the girl pursuing it. For half a second she entertained the idea that this was a thinly veiled escape attempt, or could at least be made to look like one, then rejected the notion utterly. Much as the idea chaffed, she needed Olive safe and alive to satisfy her superiors... which meant catching up with and babysitting her while she chased after her mongrel. Kasna's scowl was so sharp it could have cut glass; grabbing up her mace and binding it around her waist, the knight turned to where their driver was reclining.

"Watch the camp; I'll be back shortly."

With that, Kasna took off after Olive who'd taken off after the dog, all three now rendered in indistinct shadows by the waning light and the heavy canopy.

... And not a one of them suspecting that a third party had their eyes on them.

As Olive pursued her dog into the underbrush, she would hear something. It was a voice, almost certainly, but not any voice she would recognize, barely a whisper on the wind yet as clear as day, echoing yet muted, its tones dry and hollow like someone blowing gently into a poorly made flute.


"So alone... she is so very, very alone..."

kleineklementine

What was she DOING? The fact that she was doing exactly opposite of what that crazy woman with lots of very big and very sharp and very heavy weapons had told her to do was slowly working its way into Olive's brain. Why did she always have to think of these things after she got herself into trouble? And now that she'd thought of it, she could hear the sound of the woman also moving through the forest. Oh boy. She was going to kill her. But the idea of losing Dac now, her only constant companion who'd never cared what or who she was, was too much for her to bear. So Olive kept running, but as the light failed, she was increasingly unsure if she was still running after the dog, or if Kasna was still running after her. In fact, in the gloom of the trees, she wasn't even sure which way she'd come from anymore.

Great, Olive. Always doing just the right thing.

Then she heard something. At first she'd just thought it was the sound of the wind moving through the forest foliage. But no. Those were words. Windy, hollow, whispered words.

"... so very, very alone..."

The surprise of it distracted Olive from a protruding root and she went tumbling, head over heel, down into a forest gully. Her head spun for a moment and when she picked herself up to a sitting position, she found herself in a local depression with great, old, wide trees standing guard on the high ground in all directions. It felt distinctly like being trapped. But now she wasn't sure what she was running to... or from.

A few stars peaked out between the openings of the forest canopy, and everything seemed very silent and still. Where had the sounds of Dac and Kasna gone? And what had that voice been?! Suddenly it felt like she'd been much safer penned in that carriage with the Knight than she was out here on her own. She'd spent much of her childhood getting cuts and scraped knees in the wooded lands of her duchy, but this felt distinctly different. Over the silence of the forest, all she could hear was her heart pounding.

"...Dac...?" she called, her voice quiet and uncertain. And then, many moments later, "....Kasna...?"

Nascent





"The mage-killer will find her, yes... and perhaps the dog will, too..."

The voice was more than a whisper now, louder and seemingly closer -- yet just as ephemeral, a voice seemingly without source, like a ghost hovering an inch from her ear. The forest around Olive was all long shadows and dark star-lit shades of green, the heavy-hanging silence of it all interrupted only by the unsettling voice and the very soft rustling of leaves in the canopy high overhead. There was no further sound of Kasna's pursuit, nor did there seem to be any trace of Dac.

It was just Olive, alone, with the voice.

"But this one has found her first -- found her in the bushes and the trees, in the shadows and the leaves. Found her away from her warden, indeed."

Slowly, a figure began to materialize in the dark -- not appearing out of thin air or from behind some cover, but as though it had blended into its surroundings in the fashion of a chameleon and now set its camouflage aside. The creature was slightly shorter than Olive was and lithe of frame, cast head to toe in the livery of a harlequin, its colors -- which were gradually shifting from midnight green to deep brown and then onward to red -- standing in opposed symmetry with its black elements. The eyes of its mask were upturned crescents, coy hints of a smile where no mouth could be seen; it had been crouching on the ground and as it made itself seen it slowly stood upright, looking at Olive.

"This one can help her, yes it can. This one wants to help her, if she will but listen to it. Will she listen to it?" The motley creature held out its arms in an exaggerated imitation of begging and pleading as it added: "Oh, please say that she will!"

kleineklementine

Olive froze. The voice hadn't been in her imagination. She'd really, really wanted it to be her imagination. But she could hear it clearly now. Or, at least, clearly enough to know she wasn't dreaming it. "The mage-killer will find her..." Was that Kasna, or...? The Mordecai and the Adhara were, of course, 'mage-killers.' She knew that, but she'd been preferring not to think of it that way. Kasna certainly could have killed her by now. Oh boy, when Kasna found her, she would kill her. Running off like this. What was she thinking? Where was Dac?

Or maybe it meant something - someone - else? And what would that mean for her? It seemed like everyone these days was some sort of mage-killer. Wrong time to be a mage.

Then the... the thing appeared and Olive let out a small gasp. Was this where the voice was coming from? She couldn't see its mouth, so she couldn't tell. But it hadn't seemed like the voice was coming from anywhere. For a moment she was frozen on the spot, holding her breath. But when the harlequin began to move, she scuttled backwards, not unlike a crab, just trying to get some space, feeling through the leaves and litter of the forest. When her hand landed on something hard, she clutched it. A stone, no bigger than a grapefruit, angular. A sad form of protection, but it was all she had. Gripping it tight, Olive forced herself back up to her feet to face the creature.

Help her. She had a hard time believing that. No one helped mages. Not anymore.

"What - what are you?" She had maybe meant to say 'who', but as she watched the jester-like creature move, 'what' was all she could get out.

Nascent

It looked at her, mask-face tiled to one side almost whimsically. "This one is Sieben, a half-born. Not yet..." It seemed to be searching for the right words, then settled on. "...fully made. Not yet complete. This one's kind are... ideas, given shape. Beliefs. Feelings. We spring from a place that is not a place, a land that is not land... somewhere beyond, yet ever close by. This one... does not have the words to explain. Are there such words? This one... is not sure there are."

Even though its face conveyed nothing, its body language -- far more exaggerated than a normal human's -- seemed to speak for it. The creature, Sieben, suddenly seemed excited, as though it had struck upon an idea. "It is like... like if she had never seen a candle burn, never seen a hearth lit or a torch alight, how then would this one explain it to her? That is this one's challenge. The idea is there, but the words... this one does not have the words to reveal it to her." The creature's shoulders slumped in sadness.

Seemingly suddenly to see how terrified olive was, Sieben gestured enthusiastically as if to say 'I mean no harm'. "This one does not seek to harm her, it swears! This one has been sent to help her. But," The harlequin looked into the trees, as if seeing something in the distance. "Not much time. Her warden will find her soon. Too soon. This one cannot fight the warden -- would become ashes, this one would." The creature seemed terrified, looking around at the higher ground. Indeed, now there was the sound of movement through the trees, though not close just yet.

"This one is not very strong... but... there is another. One who is strong. One who can help the mage-child flee her warden."

kleineklementine

Olive stared and clutched the stone tightly. She had no idea what to make of this. This situation, or this creature. "'Beliefs? Feelings?'" she repeated aloud. Then asked the question that seemed most pressing to her: "Whose feelings?"

Olive felt like she should run. But where? Could she run from that voice? She still couldn't tell if it were coming from the jester-like being in the hollow with her or from somewhere else. Where else could it be coming from? she asked herself. She felt stupid. Or at least ignorant. Dangerously in the dark. She made a face at the creature's, Sieben's, exaggerated body language as it  - or they? - tried to explain what it was. It was almost comical. Maybe the voice was coming from the creature... somehow...

She bit her lip. The slumped shoulders, the enthusiastic waving. She almost sympathized with it. She almost liked it. No, she told herself, that's what it wanted her to think. But... And there it was again, offering to help her. Help her. She wondered at that. She knew what Kasna meant to do. In the best case scenario, with Kasna, she'd end up penned in at the mage camps in the cold north. Until when? Forever? Or just until it was acceptable to stop keeping them apart? 'Separate, safe.' But when that happened, would they stop keeping them separate... or would they stop keeping them safe? A shiver ran down Olive's spine. All those mages. All together. Surrounded by Mordecai. It'd be so easy for the mage-fearing government to just snuff them out. And why wouldn't they? As things got more heated, as people got more afraid, surely it would become an increasingly acceptable, and maybe even attractive, solution.

That's where she was going with Kasna. But what about this thing? What about Sieben? What would happen if she followed it? If she accepted its help? If it was help that it was really offering. It could be, or it could be worse. And there was some memory nagging at the back of Olive's mind. Something about a jester. Why did that seem familiar? But if it really would help her, help her escape... Her life as Lady Constance Carwick as she'd known it was over, that seemed unavoidable to Olive now. What new life could she forge if she ran away from Kasna, from the camps, from the responsibility of her position?

Responsibility.

The words in her mother's last letter echoed in her mind: Remain faithful, remain pious, and remain loyal to your family and your to government. The road of righteousness may be hard, but we are confident you will follow it.

The sound of someone - Kasna, or Dac? - approaching through the forest reached her a moment after Sieben, and just for a moment she took her eyes away to glance upwards. Then quickly back at the creature. She shouldn't have taken her eyes off it for a moment.

"Why help me?" she demanded, her voice lowered so only the two of them would hear her. "Why help any mage? No one's helping mages anymore; why should I trust you?"

Nascent

(OOC: My sincerest apologies for taking almost a full month to post -- things IRL have been a bit crazy lately and I haven't had the muse I wish I did. Anyways, let's get this back up and rolling, shall we?)




"No time -- this one has no time left!" Sieben seemed even more anxious, masked face scanning the edge of the depression as the sounds of movement became clearer and closer. "There is one who wishes the mages' freedom, who wishes -- but no, no time!" The creature, whatever it was, was becoming increasingly nervous and desperate, it's movements more frenetic and jumpy.

All at once Seiben stopped looking around, it's body gradually shifting colors and camouflaging once again. "He will come for her -- to free her, to strengthen her, to give her a future, yes he will. His name! She need only speak his name and he shall hear it -- the name, she must remember the name!"

And then, just as Seiben was all but gone from sight, with the only other trace of its presence being a faint scraping of dirt and shifting of leaves, it left Olive with one final cryptic word...

"Mephistopheles."

And with that, the jester-like creature was nothing more than a silent phantom in the night... leaving Olive once more alone with its bizarre promise of uncertain hope.

And like clockwork -- close enough to the harlequin's departure to make it's existence seem like a half-imagined dream -- Kasna's voice rang out through the midnight glade. "I know you're nearby, little mage, so stop hiding or scrounging around in the dark. I have your pup --" There was a slight pause, during which Olive would be able to hear Dac's slight whimpering whine just at the edge of her hearing. "So let's have an end to this nonsense. Where are you?"

kleineklementine

((OOC: My turn to say sorry! I should actually be back around now!))

Olive watched wide-eyed as the figure disappeared, wondering what had just happened. For a moment, she even wondered if she had imagined it. The result of the shock and stress of being uprooted from her collegiate life, her noble life, all the life that she'd known, and carted off by the Knight to who-knows-where. To the camps. But no. It had been real, somehow, she knew it.

Mephistopheles.

Silently, the girl mouthed the name, repeating it her head.

One who wished her freedom. One who would come for her. Who would help her.

Did she really believe that? Something about a jester taunted her from the back of her memory, but she couldn't recall it now. Everything that had come before the coach ride with Kasna and Dac seemed so far away now. It was like waking from a dream, trying to remember a key detail... Something about a jester. Why did that seem so familiar, and so unsettling?

And at first Kasna's voice also seemed like it was coming from a dream, or from somewhere far, far away. Where are you? Olive was snapped out of the trans Sieben had left her in and turned to face Kasna. It was the first time, she realized, that she'd moved since she began talking to the.... to the thing. And, as hard as it was to believe, she felt relieved to have Kasna here.

"I'm down here!" she called once she could muster the clarity to do so. "I... I fell and then, and then there was... there was a... a thing." It was the best she could do and, looking at her, it would be easy to tell that she'd been frightened, and that she was being sincere now. "Like a... a jester. But it just.... disappeared."

Nascent

(OOC: It's okay -- life happens, and we don't always have control over when we can and can't post for any number of reasons. In any case, welcome back! ^_^ )


Ah, the little mage's voice at last! Kasna had been tromping around in the woods for altogether too long trying to find her; even trained as she was to track and hunt, the wilds at night was an unfavorable environment at best. Chancing across Dac rummaging around in the brush had been fortunate -- in perhaps a supreme twist of irony, finding Olive anytime before sunrise might have proven nigh-on impossible without the tracker's keen nose. It had been lucky to find the dog, luckier still that Dac had been trying to trace his owner (instead of another wild bird or some forest critter) at the time Kasna decided to follow him. And so, at length, the two came to peer over the edge of the gap wherein Olive, in the company of mud and leaves and broken twigs, was.

Olive would see Kasna, barely outlined in the dark, standing at the edge of the gully, looking down at her. It was impossible to tell what, if any, emotions were writ on the knight's face, but the silence after Olive's explanation suggested Kasna was not in a charitable or sympathetic frame of mind. It was that silence and stillness, punctuated only by Dac's canine panting and pacing back and forth at the edge of the depression, that hung heavy over the entire scene... a calm before the storm.

And then there was a sound most dreadful. It was deliberately slow and methodical, drawn out for as long as possible. It was a sound that could not be mistaken: the drawing of a sword, the sound of a blade scraping lightly across metal chain. And indeed, one glance at the figure of the Adhara confirmed Kasna was pulling her blade loose. Fully free, the sword rested comfortably in her hand, a pale gleam of moonlight cresting off its polished steel. For a moment in time, it seemed Kasna was poised to end Olive's life right then and there... her grave a mere ditch amongst the trees.

And then the blade swung, almost without sound, and the branch of a nearby tree fell clean away. With her free hand Kasna picked it up and extended it down, something which Olive could grasp onto and climb up with.

"Test my patience like this again, little mage, and there will be consequences. I don't care what story you tell -- no phantom in the woods excuses you leaving my sight. Now climb up; we're going back, now."

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