brave_kreyu | OOM All Skate Skellig Dream Magic Weirdness -Part 12

They wind up staying two full cycles of the Moon with Tyr's tribe.

Time enough to learn the various dances, share recipes, race through the Teeth, make friends, share stories, BELONG.

It might even be enough time for Skellig to sort out how he feels about being among other people with wings!

Tyr clasps Skellig's forearm in farewell. "I would call you my brother, if you would permit it?" he says, voice soft.

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Ajax speaks at last, his voice cracking. "I knew my family was selfish, greedy, but to see THIS hidden away."

"It would have kept attracting covetous dragons," Kreyu murmurs, sounding slightly drunk on karma.

"Many dragons," Koschei adds. "But, we fix. Won't attract karma anymore. Won't give power. Can't be moved either. Should be...safer to have in the open."

Human greed and human ambition to have the wonder will still apply.

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"Will..." Skellig hesitates to say Gorgon out loud, because he does not fully understand what that might do in such a space as this - even with the Karma pulled away and divided between Koschei and Kreyu. "Will he be less interested, now that it is not a source of power?"

It is Kreyu who is 'bright' to his senses now, and Skellig might be staring at her, just a little, as they move closer to it. The echoes are still loud within the tower, but it is not as nearly deafening as it was previously.

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"Yes, too much risk for reward," Koschei replies. "Would not function at all, if moved, might shatter. Too dangerous for him to bring rest of hoard here for decorative item."

Kreyu flushes at his staring, laughs. "I am surprised I can attract your attention in the presence of such a wonder."

Ajax is the last to reach the tree, touches the trunk reverently. "It has the look of wood turned to stone," he whispers, awed. Given that much of the exterior of the tree is made of petrified wood, his impression is surprisingly accurate.

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Skellig huffs a laugh under his breath at her comment. "With the Karma, it... it is as if you are... extra shiny," he struggles to explain, though does divert his gaze back to the tree, allowing his fingertips to trace the veins in the stone.

To me you are the most wonderous piece in this room he 'says' to her, privately.

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brave_kreyu

"Interesting," she muses. "I certainly FEEL very good right now."

"Karma drunk," Koschei quips. "I spent much karma yesterday, so it not affecting me."

She flushes more at his private comment, looks away. You say the sweetest things, my love. You are the greatest wonder in the world to me.

They climb up the ramps wrapped around and through the tree, the passage of countless feet over time making marks in the stone despite its magical reinforcement. As they climb the tree, they'll see wildlife captured in stone: squirrels, birds, insects. (Some of the insects are no larger than Skellig's thumbprint would be!)

As they pass through the trunk of the tree as the path winds upward, they will see a life sized stone owl roosting inside the 'cavity' of the tree. The patterns on its wings look very much like those on Skellig's.

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"The detail in these carvings is incredible," he says as they pass the various depicted creatures. The owl itself actually stuns him a bit into reverence and silence when he first catches a glimpse of it - simply because it looks so very real!

He pauses at it, to study closer.

"Feathers are...very difficult," he comments quietly. "These are...very well done."

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brave_kreyu

"My brood sister master of stone," Koschei replies, his voice soft, but proud. "One day, perhaps, I equal her."

"I have never seen such a wonder," Kreyu adds, awed. "And we have not even REACHED the top yet."

Ajax has been very quiet as they climb, deep in awe and thought tinged with guilt because his family has hidden this WONDER from the world. But the words 'brood sister' catch his attention. "Brood sister? I have not heard that term before."

Kreyu touches the carving oh so gently, in wonder and awe, leaning into Skellig.

"My kind no kin of the body," Koschei explains. "Kin of the soul, karma intertwined. Brood."

Ajax, judging by his face, is trying VERY HARD to figure out how THAT works for a few moments before he gives up.

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Skellig's touch also goes to the feathers near where Kreyu is touching them, tracing the delicate lines of the vane and then where each individual barb has been etched into the stone. It is almost identical to a real feather, and it is not even that cold, even though it is stone...

He wraps one arm around her shoulders, hugging her close to him.

"It truly is a marvel the amount of effort that went into this," he says, as they begin to climb higher into the 'branches' of the tree.

Edited Date: 2024-12-29 09:44 pm (UTC)

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"Miraculous," Kreyu murmurs.

At last, they step into the dome at the crown of the tree. Vast crystal domes arch above them. The one they can see most clearly is the color of the night sky, speckled with glowing 'stars'. A giant, moon colored, orb, lit to show the moon's current phase, sits at what would be the horizon, rising. The great stars, the planets, are orbs of their own. The planets that would be visible this time of year, the Great Stars, are orbs of their own, of different sizes and colors, in THEIR places in the sky.

Kreyu, Koschei, and Ajax are left breathless with wonder, with awe.

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All four of them are breathless, staring into the Heavens above - if Skellig's wings were 'out', he certainly would have to flutter them a bit as he attempts to resettle his bearings, looking around while slowly spinning in a circle.

There is just so much to look upon.

Finding himself near the 'center' of the space (and just a touch 'weak' in the legs), Skellig kneels and rests a hand on the floor in a crouch of sorts - this could be considered a bit of a bow, if looked at a certain way. But here it is safe, here he does not mind if others see. They SHOULD see - everyone should see such a wonder as this, not keep it locked up and hidden away!

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As his hand comes to rest upon the floor, he can FEEL the device, feel the connection to the local ley lines that power it. He KNOWS it will respond to his desires, will show him the sky at any point in the past or the projected future that he so desires.

Faint bands of light appear between the stars, showing the shapes of constellations, and the moon and stars begin to move with a slowness imperceptible to humans.

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It is something that he does truly just KNOW - he is not sure HOW this is the truth, but it is without question - and so he decides to test it, mentally thinking back to the day that the Fates aligned and she found him wandering in the desert, stumbling and lost...

(They did not spend time outside on that first night - and he has always wondered what things looked like in the skies above, on that first night...)

Things rotate and shift a little faster - not MUCH, as in the reality of time, that night was not truly that far in the past, considering you have the entire expanse of time and space at your fingertips - and Skellig watches as things realign, the moon changes phase, the Great Stars slowly shift backwards in their orbits above.

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There are cries of delight and surprise from the others as the 'sky' moves to show it as it was on THAT night.

A tiny sphere of gold appears in the sky, a comet, its 'tail' streaming out behind it. It blazes through the sky like an omen or a sign from the gods.

Is it an echo of his soul, of his arrival in this world? A coincidence? A path that he walked and can not remember?

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His eyes are drawn to the comet and he tilts his head curiously, studying it as it blazes across the sky.

Is that how he came to be here? It is a sign? An echo?

There are questions to which there are no answers that can be 'set in stone' - despite the fact that they are all currently surrounded by dozens (if not hundreds) of different types of it!

Night of the day you found me, he 'says' to her. Always wondered.

From:

brave_kreyu

She crouches next to him, wraps an arm around him. It's beautiful, her mental voice full of awe and wonder. Rare to see such a thing in the sky, generally held to be an omen.

"A wandering star, I remember seeing that," Ajax says, voice soft. "The priests and the sages were all saying it was a sign of a great change coming." He chuckles. "Always a safe bet to make about the future, change."

"Much goes, much remains," Koschei rumbles.

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"Many things have changed since that night," he says quietly. "Perhaps even more than any of us are aware of."

He is grateful for the contact, for her presence close to him. Hearing her heartbeat, breathing her scent, feeling her touch as she wraps her arm around him - all of it works to solidify the connection between them, strengthen it even deeper.

As he lifts his hand, the sky slowly begins to return to 'present' day, though the motion is slight and smooth, the mechanisms that drive the machine flawless in operation. That way, if one of the others would like to try, they are free to.

Privately, he turns his head and presses his lips to her temple. "Love you, my mate," he whispers. "With all my being."

From:

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"Yes," Kreyu replies. "So very many things."

She smiles so wide at his kiss, love filling her heart. "Love you, Skellig. With all of me that is mine alone."

Koschei touches the floor, and the stars begin to move far more rapidly, cycling back over many many years.

There is a surge of rage in the distance strong enough to pierce the echoes that cling to the Procession of the Heavens. As the 'sun' hangs overhead, providing bright warm light, Koschei stands, something drawing his attention.

Skellig hears a guard's last breath as he is violently gutted with a blade. SOMEONE more than human is coming, and they're PISSED!

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"Company," Skellig grumbles as he pushes himself back to his feet, bringing Kreyu with him - and turning his attention to Ajax, who is the most vulnerable out of all of them at this moment as SOMEONE growls and pays no heed to the 'don't open the door' rule...

But at least, they still have a brief moment to plan.

Kreyu and Koschei, he is not (outright) concerned for their safety.

"Ideas?" He asks, pushing away the sounds of a man choking on his own blood and he lies on the sandstone outside the tower.

From:

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"Will ambush," Koschei growls. He strips off his chiton, then sinks into the stone of the Procession of the Heavens, heading for the floor.

Ajax picks up Koschei's chiton without really thinking about it, his stomach in knots.

"Will take him time to get up here, in a human shape. I can throw fire at him once he starts to ascend. If he gets around me..." She glances at Skellig. "We might have to trust Ajax with a secret, but I think you can get him out of reach of anything human shaped."

"And if he's ever dragon shaped I'm going to be running away as fast as I can," Ajax quips.

Then, the door slams open with such Force that it actually falls onto the floor! Gorgon stalks inside in his human shape, every line of his body naked threat. He hasn't bothered with clothes, and he's already splattered liberally with other people's blood. He tightens his fist around the hilt of the sword in his hand as he stares at the Procession of the Heavens. "What happened to it?!" he snarls. "It's just a useless trinket!"

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"Won't have to worry about running away," Skellig says. "And not worried about secrets."

And that is all he truly has time to say, before the door below slams open and Gorgon's voice - a deep growl, full of rage and fire and so many echoes of those he has harmed along the way to get to the point where he stands at the foot of the Procession.

Wordless, Skellig puts a hand on Ajax's shoulder and takes a half-step backwards - they can still clearly see all that is going on (he can feel the concern Ajax has for Koschei, wherever he has gone off to) but they are out of view of Gorgon, in more ways than one.

It likely is not that Skellig is strong enough to hide their presence entirely, and the nudge he is purposefully keeping subtle, as to not draw attention to his energy.

From:

brave_kreyu

"Know you're here SOMEWHERE," Gorgon growls. He stalks forward, confident and unafraid, which proves to be a fatal mistake.

Most beings are accustomed to the earth being solid. Therefore, Gorgon is taken entirely by surprise when Koschei's draconic head, jaws open wide, rises out of the stone right under Gorgon's feet. Like Kreyu, Gorgon is far more vulnerable in a human shape, and he doesn't have TIME to change that.

Koschei's jaws close around Gorgon's body like a snapping trap, easily holding and hiding his entire body in Koschei's gigantic maw. Thankfully, that also constrains the...mess as the inside edges of his teeth tear Gorgon apart in a matter of seconds.

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That was...surprisingly efficient, and Skellig is impressed! Which Ajax may be able to sense by the not-so-subtle sound of appreciation that escapes Skellig's throat as Koschei's jaws SNAP shut firmly around Gorgon's body.

It is probably better that Ajax's hearing is not as fine-tuned as Skellig's however, given what sounds filter through his ears in the few (thankfully brief) seconds that follow the initial 'catch'.

From:

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That's definitely for the best. Once Gorgon is dead, Koschei retreats back under the earth to dispose of the body. And, well, probably clean his mouth out. He's not a CANNIBAL!

Ajax is staring at the spot where Koschei was. "He's MAGNIFICENT," he breathes. "Clever tactic, and such power."

"That should postpone any trouble with Gorgon for quite some time," Kreyu says, relieved.

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"He is," Skellig agrees, nodding as Koschei retreats and disappears - relief also entering his system now that the overwhelming sense of rage and anger has begun to dissipate from the room. There will still be hints of those echoes that remain, but they were so very, very brief...that in the overall aura that surrounds the Procession, they are nothing more than a fragment that can be swept away.

He rolls his neck and stretches his shoulders out a little bit - his wings are still concealed and he would not show them yet, but he was ready if needed to do so and that has them 'itchy', in a sense.

From:

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"Unsettled, darling?" Kreyu asks, a bit concerned. "We can wait here for Koschei to come back, seems the most expedient option."

"Yes, that sounds good," Ajax agrees, staring up again at the false stars.