this is Salem, a land filled with magic and maladies. It is a place where witches and their elemental familiars gather, a home to legend and
lore that predates time itself. Yet of all the wicked and wonderful stories the past can tell us of, the most magical are the ones yet to happen.
This is Salem - this is the start of your very own journey. Welcome to starfall
Starfall is an animaga witch roleplay set in mostly modern times. Members play as witches in a world plagued by monsters, where the only safe spots are walled cities. Starfall strives to be a character-driven roleplay with expansive lore and a highly interactive plotline. We want to allow members to
create and look back on a magical journey, and mold the site and its plot as their characters grow.
when fane woke up in the middle of the night, all was in chaos aboard the black widow. and despite whatever darkness her dreams had foretold, she had gone up and down the ship to make sure that everything was alright; that everyone was alright. and now a week had passed. she had since forgotten the contents of whatever plagued her that night. and so had the majority for whom the incident had been less jarring. [break][break] thus, life had resumed, partly because of the buzz of the two latest events. she still had to figure what exactly had happened, and catch up with her sweet novice trio after their run in with darling medeia. but for now, she had another thing to occupy her mind.
"hi sima~" fane said, sliding into the seat opposite to the dark haired girl. it was strange because generally, fane was working. today, however, she appeared to be relieved of all sorts of duties, and instead sat across the table from the apprentice dressed in an average tunic and forgettable cloak. not to mention the fact that her presence was quite entirely nonexistent, so it probably felt like she had appeared from thin air.[break][break]
"i hope you don't mind me taking the seat! i'll leave if maddox is supposed to be here." she winked at the dark haired individual as she made the offer, but simultaneously made herself comfortable by setting aside a pouch to her right. [break][break] notes: n/a[break] tag: Sima Pahlavi
[attr="class","intext"]Sima rubbed her face as if it might stimulate her. Everything felt heavy, laid with lead. Her eyes, her arms, her legs. It took so much effort just to move, but there was work to be done and letting it pile up wouldn't help anyone. Nor did she want the concern from Maddox or Aeris. They already knew, they had to, but by being out and about she kept them from really vocalizing their worry and doing anything more than making her a cup of tea or taking a couple of her chores. And it was nice to be out. Reminded her that there was a world outside her head. It didn't necessarily keep her in the real world. She's off in her own head, a heavy static of restless, anxious energy coursing through her. It's been a week, but she still can't relax.
And then Fane appeared. Suddenly and without warning, but it wasn't Fane she saw. A memory, teeth and blood and suddenly she couldn't breathe because she could hear it, their cheers, the growls that rattle her chest, and the teeth that dig in. She jumped violently to her feet and three strides back, chair clattering behind her and magic already humming at her fingertips. And then she saw her. Fane. Fane. "Do not sneak up on me!" She shouted it because for a moment she didn't care who Fane was. She stopped being Fane her boss and became Fane who made her remember. Her hands shook, she shook. Clench tight, feel the pain in the palm, release. Repeat. Relax. She rubbed her face again and stumbled out an apology. She felt ridiculous. Embarrassed. Did she have to react like that? This was nothing like the nightmare. The world wasn't being weird or wonky and it wasn't actually unusual for Fane to just appear. Shame welled up in her gut, but she forced herself to pick her chair up and sit back down. "I'm— I'm sorry. I just—" She sighed, "Don't quite like surprised right now. Is there—" Her voice cracked and so she swallowed hard, trying to shove down her anxiety, "Is there something I can help you with?"
when she heard a sudden shriek fane blinked and jostled a little herself- power swept through her body as she found herself subconsciously getting ready to deal with a threat. but then she realized that far too unlike her usual behavior and calmed herself down before she did anything else. on her face, the only expression that betrayed this was the widening of her usually lidded eyes.[break][break]
well, if she was this agitated, it was a little silly to expect her children to be feeling much better. the epiphany dawned and she relaxed, though her face beared no look of remorse or pity. "relax, sima. it's okay." she smiled at that- gentle and genuine as always. "it was my fault for sneaking up on you." though to be fair, she really hadn't been trying. it was her fault for making her cloaking spell so passive she hardly noticed it.[break][break]
could sima help her with anything? well, not in that state. fane wasn't fond of pushing others to their limits, especially when she had all the time in the world to be making her moves. "oh," she said, letting the word linger as she grasped for an appropriate response. "no, not really." (ah, how eloquence escaped her) she gave sima a worried look then, and quickly shifted focus to what was more important in her mind.
[break][break] "is there anything you want to talk about?"
[attr="class","intext"]That worried look on her face, she hated it. She didn't want to see it. Seeing it only made the knowledge that something was wrong more concrete and she still wanted to pretend it was nothing. "I— No, not really." She said quickly, but she paused and then began again. Her tone was exhausted, but insistent. "I can't sleep, that's all. Not for more than a few hours and not without waking up several times in the middle. It's not a big deal, though. I'll get over it soon, I'm sure." That's what it was. That's all it was. There was nothing more to it.
Fane wasn't particularly intimidating. She was a novice, apparently, and she didn't look particularly strong physically. She was an absolute enigma, though, and Sima was weighed down by the feeling that if she didn't tell her herself what was wrong, she'd still find out eventually one way or another. It wore away her resistance and what she believed to be her a better judgement. "I'm having nightmares." She couldn't do more than whisper the words out as she looked away, "It's, y'know, not everyday you feel yourself die and have to wake up and live." She laughed bitterly and sighed again. "A good night's sleep and I'll be fine, though." The problem wasn't that big of a deal. Stop the nightmares somehow and she'd get enough sleep again and she'd be fine and just as good as before.
fane's caution seemed to directly contradict sima's own refusal of such; the clash of looks resulted in sima eventually opening up and fane quietly listening. the pinkette's face was impassive as the dark skinned girl spoke, but her fuchsia eyes lingered on sima's own, staring even during the brief moments when eye contact was broken.[break][break] if that was the case...[break][break] "you're absolutely right," fane said. "it's not that big of a deal. you're awake now. what are nightmares to someone that's awake?" she smiles softly. in the end, there will come no good of telling sima that those nightmares might be dangerous fragments of the haunting one days ago. in the end, people with the courage to throw up their own resolve need to have that resolve reaffirmed, not questioned.[break][break] "even then, you know, it's not just you. everyone had nightmares. and i'm willing to bet more than half of them still do. the whole of the deck woke up in screams. i was in a cold sweat myself, but i think the drink made it better before daybreak." she chuckled and shook her head. "it was a rough night, but it's over now. regardless, i'm always open to hear it if you want to share." [break][break] "oh, were you going to get something to eat or drink?"
[attr="class","intext"]Sima bit at her tongue. "What are nightmares to someone that's awake?" Fane's question was rhetorical, no answer was expected, but still she wanted to say that they were memories, hauntings, something of that sort, because it all still followed her around like a sickness, but she kept it to herself. She didn't want to talk about it too much or too in depth.
How could Fane be so calm and casual about it? Was it her personality or was her nightmare milder than hers? Maybe she didn't die like she had. But then again, it was Fane. Who knew what went through her head or what she felt about anything. A walking enigma, she could have storms raging inside of her. And in the end, she seemed to be trying to help.
"I know," But how many others were torn to shreds? She kept her question quiet, tucked down underneath where she could pretend it didn't exist. She couldn't belittle the sufferings of others simply because they didn't go through the same exact things as she did. "and it's certainly a comfort knowing that it wasn't just me and Maddy, but it doesn't make it much easier to cope with. It's just really difficult. I close my eyes and I can see it all again. The statues that tried to kill us, the tigers. It was, it was just the one at first, but we messed up and the cages for the others they opened and I couldn't get away, I just—" An anxious sigh hissed from between clenched teeth and she rubbed her face, pressed hard against close eyes as if the pain would keep her rooted in reality. It helped, a little.
Food? Drink? She couldn't remember, exactly. Her mind had been completely elsewhere when Fane had showed up and jarred her back to reality. The lack of sleep was getting to her. Maybe she'd seek out a doctor, see if there was some magic or potion that could help. "Uh, yeah." She said, "Probably just a coffee or something. What about you?"
there is a certain power in words. when sima speaks, the words radiate like toxic steam being let off by a marsh beowulf. sima hisses (or sighs?) and fane nods solemnly, not even attempting to point out the subtle change between I'll get over it soon and it's just really difficult. things become closer to the truth the longer you speak, after all.[break][break] "you shouldn't blame yourself. nothing in that dream was in your control, to begin with. and any man with half a mind would be shaking in the face of a tiger- it's natural law."[break][break] tigers and statues? interesting. so it was a more generalized nightmare, that many people saw at once. then why did she have one so...specific? was this the work of an illusionist? did the caster know the fears of the populace? no. impossible. which meant that the generalized dreams were the only things possible to create. if that was the case why did she see that dream (again)?[break][break] "i'm so sorry you had to go through that."[break][break] there's a lingering silence. "ginseng should help you get some rest. i can't say i'm a good alchemist, but i do know a few friends that could help."[break][break] she smiles teasingly. "is coffee really a good idea sima? you're already sleep deprived you know. as for me i'll grab a bite, probably. it's one thing to worry, but it's another to worry on an empty stomach."[break][break] she motioned for a waiter. "i hope you don't mind! i did end up crashing in on you, ahaha." [break][break] notes: n/a[break] tag: Sima Pahlavi
[attr="class","intext"]"I mean, it's not that I blame myself, I'm just scared. I lay in bed and I can't sleep because what if it happens again? What if I don't wake up this time? And then when I do wake up I'm not sure if any of this is real anymore." Ah, he'd thought it might have felt good to open up, but all he felt was vulnerable, like Fane could cut him up nice and neat and he wouldn't be able to defend himself. But she wouldn't do that, right? She'd nothing to gain and so far she'd been nothing but supportive. "I uh I don't really want to uh to talk about this anymore." Sima added on. He didn't like this feeling, didn't like the way his gut was twisting and the way his hands shook.
He focused on the topic of food as the waiter finished up what they were doing to head on over. Was coffee a bad idea? Probably, now that Fane mentioned it. The caffeine would wake him up, but maybe that wasn't a good idea. It wasn't going to really be worth the anxiety that would choke him out or the way he'd shake even more after it. He was too on edge and like this the coffee would just push him over.
"What can I get you guys?" The waiter beamed at them. Sima thought for a short moment. If not coffee, then what? Did bars even serve coffee? It'd been such a last minute, impulsive decision.
"A uh ginseng tea?" Did they have that? He assumed they did because the waiter nodded and scribbled it in her notepad. Ah, Fane had mentioned food and when was the last time he ate? This morning? Last night? He struggled to put his memories in the right order, but regardless he decided he probably should eat, even if we wasn't hungry. "And an order of dumplings."
there's a strange sort of uneasiness that no amount of coaxing can force out of sima. fane wonders if she's a lost cause, but then supposes she herself hasn't done much pushing. she doesn't like pushing people unless it's absolutely necessary. so when sima admits she doesn't want to talk about her nightmare, fane offers her a sympathetic shrug. "of course," she says, her eyes drifting to the window and the great sea beyond.[break][break]
the waiter arrives and fane waves at him easily, tempted to start conversation but then deciding that it wouldn't be worth her trouble. the waiter beams at the two of them regardless and fane lets sima order first and shrugs when the waiter turns to her. "the usual then," he says, and spins off towards the the kitchens.[break][break] "such a lovely, homely place," she remarks, relaxing into the back of her chair. her eyes flicker around the bar, eyeing strangers and sometimes darting into the windows, a bit of boredom fluttering through her. she fixes her gaze on sima again.[break][break] "you seemed a bit hesitant. not your usual hangout?" she asks conversationally and with seeming genuine interest. her back, however, still leans against her chair to give her a better vantage of the room.[break][break] notes: n/a[break] tag: Sima Pahlavi
[attr="class","intext"]"No, not really." He admitted after a moment, "I usually stay home and when I go places, it's usually with Maddox." He didn't really remember what led him here. "Tired of being at home." He guessed. The lack of sleep grew to anxiety and restlessness was poorly dealt with at home. It wasn't exactly better dealt with here, either, but at least he didn't have the urge to kick his legs or flail his arms. The painful static energy that coursed through the muscles faded sometime during the walk over, thankfully. "You're here often, though, right? You like it here?" What sort of things was Sima supposed to say at a time like this. Was there a need to keep the conversation going? His body felt heavy, laden with lead and his head felt stuffed with cotton. What was Fane expecting from this? He didn't know, but right now he wanted his tea, maybe those dumplings, and another attempt at sleep.
Fane often played the game of counting visitors. It kept her mind working. It was a method of routinely and very deliberately maintaining sanity. She would keep track of every single person in the bar all at once as they entered and interacted. Her eyes never stayed still, and her thoughts were constantly shifting to account for every event. [break][break] A lifetime of playing this game with herself had taught her to never miss much in terms of detail. She nodded at Sima. "A change of scenery is something every good wanderer longs for. Whether they know it or not..." her words seem wistful, careless. But the sharpness in her eyes conveys a different message. [break][break]She blinks at being addressed. "Oh, I do, I do. You hear whispers from every corner of Salem here." She leans in and her elbows press into the wooden surface. "Two tables to the left, there are two helios knights discussing last week's events. In front of us is Captain Lacey. He's just returned from the north with a huge shipment of good wood. For some reason, the person talking with him is hiding a wand in his sleeve...oh and two tables behind I think some university students are having a lover's quarrel." She chuckles sheepishly.[break][break]
She presses her lips inwards and pops them casually, reclining back into her seat. Despite not even looking in the direction of the kitchen she seems to know that the waiter is due to arrive. And he does arrive with the tea and a glass of water for fane. [break][break]
She drinks the water. "So Sima. Why did you join this coven of all covens? I'm sure your brother's recommendation could have gotten you into the Helios Knights. Any other place would have been a lot less trouble, really." Again, she speaks carelessly, and she seems more interested in the view of the west Salem sea than anything else. [break][break] notes: n/a[break] tag: Sima Pahlavi
