Author: arcanum, Posted: Sat Mar 3, 2018 3:51 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

He inhaled quietly through his nose. Exhaled. "I'm sorry for your loss." He could relate to the loss of a loved one. He could relate to overzealous religious fanatics making a mess of things. Crossing his arms lightly over his chest, he stared coldly at the altar, seeking some distraction or another from pervasive thoughts. Xetera, thankfully, obliged. Frey glanced over. "Don't know what you're here for, but I came looking for clues. Treasure would be a bonus, however."

But then, something curious happened. A twitch of surprise registered across the aerkai's features as Xetera began to cry. Silently, Frey reached up and removed his mask, latching it onto his belt for safekeeping. His companion had shown vulnerability - it was only fair he do the same. But at Xetera's question, he could merely shake his head.

"The markings are unfamiliar to me, I'm afraid, which leads me to believe they honour an older deity, perhaps beyond most mortals' memories." A pause, then, another breath. "If you like, however…" The aerkai had removed his backpack and was carefully picking through it. "I can copy these down on paper for you, might make it easier to do some research on them at a later time." He did not like mysteries to go unsolved.

Author: Sophie, Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2018 8:10 AM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

'' Some idiotic religious people sacrificed my girlfriend Inza to some cruel god. I killed the lot of them!'' Xetera failed to stifle his wicked laughter. ''So, anyways, what are we doing here? Lookin' for gold, treasure, what? Personally, I would like weapons. Bloody ones.'' He looked at the altar and noticed that it had similar inscriptions to the one Inza was killed on. Remembering Inza made something happen to Xetera that hadn't happened in years. He cried. And cried. And cried. ''What god do you think this is for?'' He could barely contain the tears. 

Author: arcanum, Posted: Sun Dec 10, 2017 10:36 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

"Mmm?"

Glancing from the walls of the circular room to his company, the mage shrugged. "It's called an altar. Typically they are used as the focus for many a ritual, and are oft more specifically involved in making sacrifices or offerings to a deity." Frey frowned behind his mask. "Some deities prefer simple fare. Tokens of good will, promises of good intentions. Others prefer the ol' blood sacrifices, maidens of pure spirit, et cetera." He snorted derisively. Greedy bastards, the lot of them.

Circling the marble altar, the aerkai could but shake his head. "Why did you wish to know? …Haaave you mayhaps had dealings with these before?"

Just a guess.

Author: Sophie, Posted: Sat Dec 9, 2017 5:21 AM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

''Dragons, dragons dragons dragons…'' He muttered under his breath. He had gotten bored by now and was looking at the floor, desperate for something to make this interesting again. He heard say something about the three-headed dragon, but he chose to ignore him. His staring at the floor eventually led to his bumping into something smooth. He didn't care very much and was walking away when he realized what it was. It was those-those somethings. The things they sacrificed his only real friend other than Qilash with. They sacrificed her to some cruel, greedy god. He thought from certain evidence that the god didn't exist and it was just some cruel wizard toying with poor, gullible people. This wizard sounded fun.''Hey'' He hollered ''LeSilve!''. ''What is that marble thing called?''

Author: arcanum, Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2017 9:15 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

"Oh? And why is that? It looks as though the three-headed dragon came out on top."

Perhaps looks were, in this case, deceiving. With a huff, the aerkai continued in a neutral tone: "The two-headed one reminds me of my people. Violent. Cruel. Needlessly so. Makes me glad I did not grow up with them." Even so, Frey found over the years he had inherited some of their better known negative traits all the same, which included but were not limited to: a curious taste for blood he could at times barely keep under control; a selfish streak a mile wide; and a lust for power carefully tucked away in the far reaches of his soul but always there, always lingering, burning deep.

He would not allow himself to be defined by the characteristics intrinsic to his race, however. He had made up his mind on that a long time ago.

"I had a dragon as a friend, once. He was more like the three-headed one."

Finally, they reached the end of the corridor. A large, circular room awaited, braziers on the walls lit up in every which colour. A marble altar, plain in make, awaited in the middle of the room.

Author: Sophie, Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2017 5:28 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

''What does it mean?''. He thought about it for a moment. He was more brains than most people thought. Most people thought that because of his rough exterior and his extremely violent, evil habits that he was a musclebrain. He was quite the opposite. The two dragons seemed to be very young in the first one. Maybe siblings? They seemed to be fighting other dragons by the 7th and the 15th was the first one where the two-headed on did something violent. In the 25th they battled. That went on for 2 more carvings until the three-headed one appeared victorious. ''I think the three-headed one was more of a wise, peaceful dragon and the two-headed was more instinctive, violent dragon. I like the 2-headed one better.''There was some strange feeling in Xetera. Like maybe LeSilve was his friend? No, Maker said friends were only useful as tools and after Qilash, he realized the painful truth: Maker was right. Friends really were just tools.

Author: arcanum, Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2017 11:08 AM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

The man's spell saved Frey having to waste energy on his own magic, and for that he was grateful. As they walked, he too peered at his surroundings, eager to explore a new area. The mage had been many things throughout the decades, but he fancied he knew himself well enough by now to understand he'd always be at the least both a scholar and a treasure hunter. The worlds were vast, full of buried opportunity…

… and he couldn't wait to unearth that opportunity.

Still, something about this current exploration felt strange. The carvings on the wall were increasingly unnerving. Dragons, he thought, ought to be revered. He was not keen on what the progression of images was potentially forecasting. He'd been left behind a little by now, and so he summoned above his skeletal hand a ball of violet flames preceded briefly by a halo of violet light inscribed by runic symbols. The magic reflected dark shadows on the narrow walls.

His head jerked up at the sound of his name. He smiled behind his mask. "Coming, coming!" Coming to a stop, he looked at the wall and frowned. "What does it mean, y'figure?"

Author: Sophie, Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2017 6:40 AM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

''Yup.He said.''I'm ready.''. They walked into the inky darkness. He took out an orb engraved with the word lii tash, or light. He smashed it on the ground and a small, blue fire came out. He scanned the walls. There appeared to be carvings, but he couldn't quite make them out. He moved closer. The carvings depicted two dragons that looked very similar to the jade sculptures. In the first scene, they were small and appeared to be resting together. In the second, they were fighting something. In the third, the two dragons appeared to be older and were talking to humans. In the fourth, the two-headed one had someone in his mouth. The carvings kept going and each one since the one were the two-headed one ate someone had the two-headed one doing something crazy until the last one were they seemed to be fighting. ''Hey!''. He said. ''LeSilve!''.

Author: arcanum, Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2017 8:27 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

He walked forth with purpose. Frey found himself enjoying the light drizzle for the last few moments he'd be out in the open to take it in - soon enough, they would be inside, heading deeper into the heart of the ruins where light and hope were said both to peter out sooner rather than later.

It was with a huff and narrowed eyes that the 'annoying wizard' turned to look at his 'companion' upon being called.

"I much prefer 'LeSilve' to 'annoying wizard guy,' just so you know," he offered by way of initial response as he padded closer to better investigate the sculptures. One was fine. Two was the start of a pattern. Maybe there was more to them, after all. He extended a hand, palm upturned expectantly. "Let me see?"

But whether or not the demon handed any of the miniature dragons over, Frey was quick to turn again, eager to continue. "Look. An entrance. It's said only a magical light can brighten the way, and that much lurks in the darkness. You ready?"

Author: Sophie, Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2017 5:48 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

The other man had said it was just around the corner, but they had been walking for hours. Or at least it felt like hours. Days even. Weeks. Of course it had only been a few minutes, but he didn't need to know that. He looked at the ground. Lying on the cold, rainy ground was a similar little artifact to the jade one he found earlier. This one was similar but with two heads. Wow, he thought. The sculptor was not very creative, seeing as he made multiple of basically the same thing. He picked it up and examined it. He looked closer. On the bottom, the word skasm was engraved on the green gem. He checked the other one. Scabte was engraved on that one. ''Hey, annoying wizard guy!''. ''I found another of the jade sculptures!''. He wondered if they had any importance.

Author: arcanum, Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2017 3:43 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

A bloodied dagger. Fantastic. It reminded him of his brother, and the thought alone of the sordid man was enough to leave a bitter taste in the mage's mouth. His brother was not a pleasant individual. Repressing the urge to shudder, Frey merely shrugged instead and affected an air of curiosity, loosely crossing his arms over his chest and tilting his head to the side.

What was with this sudden 'we' business?

From behind his mask, the tiniest of smiles tugged at his lips.

"Should be just around the corner if my hunch is right. It's where I was headed prior to bumping into you, in fact. But…" He let the word hang in the air a moment, just for that extra little dramatic flair. "You are aware of the risks involved, aye? The rumours of monsters and traps aplenty?"

Not bothering to wait for an answer, the mage whirled on his heels, hands behind his back, and began to saunter toward the purported entrance. He'd much rather get out of the rain sooner than later, please and thank you.

Author: Sophie, Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2017 1:20 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

He was interested in this underground area of the ruins and wanted more than just little jade curiosities. He wanted riches, and It seemed like this other man knew where to get them. He thought for a short moment. How should I get the information, he thought. ''Hmm.''. Fear, charisma, Or flat out violence? He decided on fear. He decided fear because charisma wasn't fun and violence could kill him. ''Where is this underground part?'' He said, taking his dagger out of its sheath and examining the red stains. ''How do we get there?'' He said.

Author: arcanum, Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2017 8:54 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

The clink of metal on stone struck the mage from his thoughts. Instead of fretting over the mud on his boots, he fussed over the idea that he might no longer be alone in enjoying the scenery, which meant no longer alone in enjoying the rumoured treasures said to abound within these ruins.

Eyes narrowed irritably, Frey skulked just beyond the overhang he'd taken shelter under and found his suspicions confirmed. For an instant, he clenched his skeletal arm into a fist before inhaling a deep, albeit silent breath and calming his nerves. Tugging idly and his scarf and then readjusting his mask - which revealed only his green eyes - the mage stepped forth.

"That'd be a waste of both your time and the merchant's," he stated coolly. "Hm. But perhaps you could scam some ill-informed sap, one supposes."

A pause. "Please tell me you don't believe they keep all the good stuff simply up here on the surface? Why, if it were that easy, every poor soul would come here seeking their fortune." That, or it'd lose its value quick enough. Bah.

Author: Sophie, Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2017 5:25 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

The demon had come to find valuables and weapons, not for sightseeing. He was bored out of his mind. This was worse than the time he was lost in the plains. He was fiddling around with his dagger when he accidentally dropped and threw it. He nearly popped his eye when the dagger landed on the ground. He went to pick it up when found an interesting little jade sculpture on the ground. It appeared to be a dragon with three heads. ''Hmm.'' He muttered. ''Might just sell.''

Author: arcanum, Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2017 6:44 PM, Post Subject: that ghost of a smile [L:2//W: max 200]

A gentle rain misted the grounds. The mage kept to cover best as he could, hardly eager to see his clothes soaked and muddied - they were of fine make, some of his best work if he did say so (…and he did say so). Cautious steps picked a careful path over stone strewn dirt.
No doubt these ruins had once claimed a striking grandeur. Even today, there was a certain something about them. It was inexplicable, but it had nonetheless been enough to catch the mage's attention and draw him here. With nature the valley's obvious steward, he was not surprised. Certainly, the look and feel of the place both ranked leagues ahead of Adeluna City's popular streets. Ugh. Gross.

His moment of inattention cost him. He'd tripped into a puddle.

Cursing his luck, he stooped to pick up his mask, gave it a shake before sliding it back over his face, then stomped off to sit beneath an overhanging block of stone so that he might assess the damage. Great. Just. Great.