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.
Post by Charani Petrov on Sept 18, 2017 2:29:58 GMT
TAGS Desmond Grey NOTES we don't have time to be sorry
❀
Someone... some kind of monster was stealing medicine for an animal hospital. Like literally who did that? Was it some crazy person who just really hated cats? He was more of a dog person himself but he still didn't get it.
Currently he was speaking to one of the young veterinarian assistants here in the city. She was only mildly helpful as the medicine always seemed to be taken as soon as it entered the city. The problem had to lie within the transfer into the city then... or so he assumed. Maybe someone had an in with the people who inspected things coming in... or maybe it was a local gang? This was a huge city and one with the council watching every move so it was probably not some big organized crime syndicate. Or at least he hoped not.
"Has there been anyone suspicious snooping around... maybe following one of your workers home? Something strange like that?" There was a small insinuation maybe they had a rat in their midst. It would make sense given how it had usually made it into the city before being taken. It wouldn't be hard to have someone tip off the location of where the medicine was being stored from one of the workers at the animal hospital. Possibly the security firm that was in charge of protecting it even? It was hard to tell where a leak could be from.
"I'm sorry... I haven't noticed anything really... but I'm kind of forgetful," the woman said with a kind of obnoxious sounding laugh. She seemed genuine in her actions at least. It probably wasn't her. He wasn't a very good detective or lie detector though so he couldn't be sure. He could never be sure. Trust is something that is hard to give. There was someone else walking up to them as they were talking. Who could it be?
Desmond was not known for taking missions when he was not specifically requested. He only acted when asked to, if he decided to act at all. Perhaps he felt as if this made his actions less his own, or perhaps he didn't want to sway the actions of the populace who assumed he made choices based off of visions and dreams. He had never discussed his reasoning with anyone, but his strict obedience to this unspoken rule hadn't gone unnoticed by the rest of the Snakes.
And yet, here he was.
"Terribly sorry for the delay," Des speaks to announce his presence as he walks into the room with Charani and the rescue worker. He guessed the identity of the Knight from overhearing the final pieces of conversation. "My bartering took a bit more time than expected." He briefly holds up a vial to show his spoils. Though he didn't plainly say so, it contained a sample of the medicine they were meant to retrieve -- not enough for a proper dosage, but certainly enough to follow its scent. This was not his first trip to the big city, and though it would forever seem terribly foreign to him, his web of contacts reached even here.
When the distance between them closes and the mercenary ceases his long stride, he glances down at the Knight, expression neutral and features haggard. "I'm Desmond. If I'm not mistaken, we've been given the same task. Before getting into the questions of who and why, I suggest we follow the physical trail first."
Charani Petrov if this mission doesn't directly & immediately result in Des getting a pet cat, I will weep
Last Edit: Sept 18, 2017 4:33:25 GMT by Desmond Grey
Post by Charani Petrov on Sept 20, 2017 0:49:31 GMT
TAGS Desmond Grey NOTES we don't have time to be sorry
❀
Charani looked up at the older man with wide eyes. So cool. He'd already gotten way farther than the young man had. Honestly he was exuding the hero worship vibe. He did this was older witches who... well seemed cool to him. People who got things done. It was the same kind of air he had around Erza to be honest.
He didn't really hear the woman as she spoke to the two. Something about good luck or something about a trail. He wasn't honestly paying attention. He was to caught up in the cool factor the man exuded with her detective type work. "My... name... m... my name's Charani," he said with a thick stutter, a nervous blush gracing his cheeks. Okay keep your shit together Charani. He was just a dude no need to get all hero worshipy on the poor dude. He didn't even know the guy even.
He was embarrassing himself plain and simple. He had to get his stuff together. Deep breath, center yourself and focus on the task at hand. He just couldn't though. There was this lingering aura he could feel... like he felt strange being around someone who could possible be his father by his haggard appearance at least. He felt like the man had to be like super strong or something. He just had to be! Right?
"Right sir! Lead the way!" Charani gave a salute like a soldier... waiting for the older man to point them in the right direction. The young woman from the clinic just chuckled at this turn of events. She waved them off as they no doubt moved towards wherever the older man had gotten his intel from... or somehow they could track that bottle to the source. It'd help if they had someone who was a good tracker or knew the way around.
"Charani..." Desmond repeats, testing the name on his tongue as his gaze sweeps over the teen as if to judge his worth. The seer wasn't terribly experienced in working with people who were so easily flustered, so his opinion of the young knight's ability remained mostly unformed. "Were you given any instructions on what to do should we intercept the thief?" the Silvertongue asked, having been in the coven for too long to assume that his mission partners received the same instructions as himself. This one looked too young and shining to follow through with the vengeful instructions which Desmond had received, written (he assumed) by someone whose own pet had perished from the lack of medicine.
As he was told to lead the way, he nodded, but lingered in the clinic's room, eyes searching. They couldn't leave yet... they hadn't found all of the pieces. Before arriving in the city, Desmond had foreseen just three requirements for completing this mission in his scrying pools:
First, the vial of medicine (which he'd already attained) and where to find it. Though the quantity was insignificant, it would at least provide them with something to follow.
Second, a dog. It had seemed oddly small in his vision, but it wasn't uncommon for the liquid's surface to warp his perception. Desmond presumed the creature's ability to track scents would be key in linking their current vial of medicine to the rest of the stolen goods. He could have used Grendel's sense of scent, of course, but that wasn't what he had seen. Presumably, walking a massive, skull-adorned spider through the city would have too high of a risk of alerting the thieves.
Third, a small bunch of carrots. He hadn't the slightest clue as to why they were important, but he'd bought them and stashed them away in his jacket nonetheless.
"Miss, before we leave, would you happen to ha--" he began to ask the assistant, but stopped himself. Surely there were dogs at a vet clinic, but what sort of professional clinic like this would be willing to part with a healthy canine in their possession? No... the dog must have been somewhere else, but...
Desmond turns to again face the young knight. "Do you have a dog with you?"
Charani Petrov -screams quietly- apologies for the delay ;A;
TAGS Desmond Grey NOTES we don't have time to be sorry
❀
Charani was given very little about the actual thief to be honest. He just had some basic information about the crime and that was honestly about it. "No; I was only asked to recover the medicine... nothing was requested specifically about the theif..." he hummed. He assumed they'd go to jail as bad people and thieves often did.
He didn't really hear the he started to ask the woman something. It took him a minute to register he was being asked a question. Did he have a dog? Well technically he always had a dog. He titled his head as the question was asked. The young man put a hand on his heart and closed his eyes as he willed Teddy into existence. The dog appeared behind the young man; small and cute as ever.
"I do." he stated as he took a little side step to reveal his small dog. The little familiar barked in response to being found. The saint bernard familiar stepped in front of the young witch to be between the boy and the older man. The dog seemed to be highly protective of the young man and had a sense of distrust surrounding it that the boy did not exude. Teddy did not trust men easily.
"This is Teddy!" Charani hummed as he introduced the dog. The young man leaned down to a crouch to pet the dog. This seemed to please the young dog. "Hello," came the surprisingly deep voice of the canine familiar. That dog sounded like a dad especially when compared to the young man.
"Mm. That's for the best," the Silvertongue notes, "The less requirements you have to fill, the less complicated a mission becomes." More importantly, however, this meant that Desmond could send the youngster back with the medicine while he focused on completing the distinct requirements of his own mission.
The dog, once revealed, was indeed very small. Even better, he was a familiar, so they would be able to communicate with each other clearly. "Ah, very good," he says, eyes no longer searching the room and, instead, resting contently on the compact arrival. Although the dog's voice was unusually deep, after hearing Grendel's unusually soft voice for the first time, such discrepancies between expectation and reality no longer surprised him. "Hello, Teddy. I hope we'll be able to work well together," Desmond says to return the greeting, his mouth forming a line which almost maybe could have been the hint of a smile.
He uncaps the medicine vial and kneels down, offering it forwards to the canine familiar. "If you would, please let us know when you find the scent of the most recent delivery diverges from the usual path," he requests, re-capping the bottle after the dog had a chance to take a sniff. He again stands to leave the premises and enter the metropolis' bustling streets.
Post by Charani Petrov on Oct 8, 2017 22:54:18 GMT
TAGS Desmond Grey NOTES we don't have time to be sorry
❀
The dog didn't care much for the older male. He was not a big fan of men in general... even boys Charani has dated have gotten the evil eye from the canine familiar. Some never made it past that point... well honestly only one has made it past that point.
"I suppose," the young man said with a sigh. He kind of liked having some kind of parameters in order to work within. He was not a big fan of being shackled in his missions but a little direction was always helpful. He had received little to none from this mission though.
"Very well." the dog stated as he took in a big sniff of the bottle as it was offered to him. The dog allowed scent to wash over his senses before the bottle was taken from him. The canine's face went immediately down to the ground trying to find the scent. The city was full of distinct smells and sounds so it wouldn't be that easy to distinguish them between each other. He had to try though.
"I'm counting on you to behave" Charani said telepathically to his familiar. The young man hadn't let it escape his attention how on edge the canine was around the other witch. He and the dog proceeded to exit the establishment in order to follow the path that would hopefully lead to their target.
Teddy's uncertainty of Des' character was very much justified. The Silvertongue was very keenly aware that he was not a good person, and made no claims to the contrary. Though he hadn't done anything especially deplorable in the recent past, the scents of blood and fear, though too faint to be detected by any human nose, clung to him like a curse. Covering, but not concealing the aforementioned smells, the sharp scent of alcohol was by far the most prominent smell on him. Even a human could catch that, if they dared to stand close enough.
"Thank you," he says to the canine, following a good distance behind as to not interfere.
The man is not prone to smalltalk, causing much of the walk to be filled by nothing but the droning bustle of the city, presuming Charani doesn't try to fill in the empty conversational space. However, he does speak up when they approach a certain turn in the road.
"There may be a fork up ahead. Though the supplies are brought through the same entrance of the city, the courier could take back roads to get around the traffic of the main road." He pauses. "I would assume that the main road is known as the safer path, but it would also be fairly easy to cause a commotion to force a courier to go around. How about we take the path less traveled to be kinder to your nose, hm?" he suggests, addressing Teddy more than his partner witch.
Post by Charani Petrov on Dec 3, 2017 23:10:16 GMT
TAGS Desmond Grey NOTES we don't have time to be sorry
❀
Charani is far to focused in his own head as he usually is. It is a symptom of something far greater than this simple mission and wouldn't probably vanish from his life anytime soon. It followed him every time he closed his eyes even to blink. He knew it was stupid and that they were just dreams. No dreams aren't the right way to refer to these things. Nightmares. That was a better word. A boy walking towards him that shone like sunlight. He could feel the warmth as he got closer and closer until they could touch. It was warm and familiar feeling. It was like someone lit a fire in his chest and it was burning him alive. Then it got worse. Much worse.
Desmond talking broke him out of his head for a moment. Just before the worst started to enter his mind. Good. There would be a fork ahead and the small dog in front of them was being more addressed than he was. Teddy sniffed the ground ahead before stopping. The canine snorted/sneezed as dust traveled up his nose... or maybe it was dirt? It didn't matter as he went right back to sniffing the ground until they got to the fork in the road.
"We shall go left here." That was what the dog familiar said in his husky voice. It was always strange to hear such a cute small puppy have that deep voice. Sometimes it even surprised certain people close to Charani. What did he sound like again? His screams were still very vivid but his voice was getting harder to remember.
"Okay Teddy..." Charani said looking down to his familiar. Just a couple more minutes. That was it. The dog seemed to have an air of worry about him. He wanted to get this over quickly and get his witch back home. When he spent to much time in his own head bad things tended to happen. Distractions were a part of why he pretty much pushed the boy to go on missions instead of pining at home. They went left at the fork or at least they attempted to.
Teddy was not the first familiar Des had met which seemed to have a poorly matched voice and appearance. His own, Grendel, was the opposite side of the same coin: monstrous in image, but with a soft voice and disposition. Between the two of them, Des much preferred the dog.
"Left it is," Desmond affirmed, turning towards the alleyway. The younger witch's confirmation, however, seemed distracted, and his familiar seemed concerned. Were they talking about something through their mental link? Had the canine smelled something disturbing? Desmond hadn't sensed anything wrong yet, though, admittedly, he hadn't been searching very hard. He was so out of practice with using his inborn abilities towards a specific goal that they'd do him no good unless they were close to the culprit. On a whim, he slows his pace, nearly stopping for a second, and allows his vision to blur. He refocuses on the immaterial space along the path they intended to take, catching sight of a wispy trail of auburn which seems to darken the further it meanders from the main road. That said, any back alley in a large city had some amount of danger associated with it, and he'd certainly seen worse. After two quick blinks, he is again focusing on the physical world. His pace resumes and strides lengthen to catch up to his partners for this mission.
"Is something wrong?" he asks them bluntly once he again walks beside the Knight. He's still unsure of where their concern could stem from, and knows all too well the destructive power of words left unsaid.
TAGS Desmond Grey NOTES i don't wanna be your girl no more
❀
They go left. The young knight is just going through the motions and following his familiar who is much more in the moment despite the worry oozing off him in waves. Maybe this was a bit of Charani's influence on his own emotional state... the familiar bond was a strange and mysterious thing.
Desmond seemed to be picking up on that sort of dark feeling in the pit of the boy's stomach. It was there quite often lately. He wasn't sure why it kept pulsing and the pain kept coming back. He didn't expect the man to ask what was wrong though. Maybe he thought they'd sensed something? Or were on edge because of the mission. The mission meant nothing in the grand scheme of things... his mind only lightly present in this moment.
"No." He was lying. He was lying to the man with conviction. Maybe eventually he'd even fool himself. There was a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. Does this pain ever end? It just seemed to jab and jab every so often in his chest when he almost forgot about it. It was always mixed with new dreams that seemed to be... foreboding. Dreams that just... frankly seemed way to real to just be dreams. The canine familiar seemed to stiffen a bit as they walked, partially trying to shift away the conversation from the man.
"Shhh. Something is getting close." The dog was on edge, arching its back as it said this. The air was charged with this dark foreboding feeling assuming one could feel that sort of thing or even see it. Even then something felt off. Something was definitely coming. Maybe guard dogs or guards just in general. Whatever it was... they had to be close to something. There were only seconds to react as footsteps could be heard coming towards them. What would they do?
Desmond wasn't sure he believed Charani's smile, especially with the way his familiar was acting. Unfortunately, there was little time to analyze the situation as Teddy warns of something's approach.
The footfalls were quick -- too quick, Des realized, to be human. "Stand behind me and don't look," Des instructed the Knight, placing a hand on his shoulder to turn him around and face back towards the way they came. The seer had gotten a strong impression that his young partner hadn't participated in many fights -- if any. There was no need to taint him now. "Just keep looking that way, no matter what you hear."
The clamor of running paws was close enough now to hear that there were likely around half a dozen of them, growling with the intent of protecting their territory. Desmond waited until they were close enough to see before sending the mental instruction: "Now, Grendel."
Between the witches and the guard dogs, a huge tarantula, large enough to easily touch both walls of the alleyway, appeared from the outer strata. With curved fangs large enough to impale a human as easily as a fly, and garlands of skulls adorning its figure, it oozed a blatantly dangerous aura. Instantly, the intimidating growls turned to yelps of alarm, and the rhythmic pattern of running footfalls degraded to chaotic scampering in the opposite direction. The oversized arachnid gave a warning hiss at the pack as they left, but spoke no words before the Silvertongue reached out and returned her to the nonphysical plane. Although Grendel wished the best for her human (and, perhaps more importantly, the innocent bystanders who got roped into his activities), she had learned over the years that the less interaction they had, the better.
"They're gone. We should follow them," Des says to the Knight as he turns to face him.
Charani Petrov so how's that fear of spiders working out for Charani...
"Wha???" came Charani's surprised yelp as he was forcibly turned around by the older and larger man. He was quickly told to pretty much shut up and don't look back. Who was this man? Was this because of his age? Maybe because of his disposition? He wasn't sure. Fine if the man wanted to play it like that he would... well he wasn't really sure.
The pack of guard creatures came... maybe six or so of them with malicious intent. Hiding was not an option. The canine familiar arched his back, dropping low in his stance as he prepared to be assaulted by the creatures. Since there were so many of them his best option was to use Earth Magic instead of brute force. Despite his small size he was deceptively strong.
Teddy didn't have a chance to do anything though as the older witch summoned his own familiar. It was a large spider... way to large to move around without being spotted... probably why he had not summoned it earlier. The creatures seeing such a large creature oozing with malicious energy turned tail to flee. It wasn't that surprising given they stood no chance. The creature just as quickly vanished as it had come. The small dog familiar didn't like this one bit. 'Be on your guard around him child.' the canine thought, using the mental link to speak to his witch. As he hears the creatures flee the knight turns around.
"Lets go Teddy," he said in a cheerful tone, attempting to hide his mistrust of the older witch. Teddy would go first naturally, using his keen senses to follow the creatures they had just chased off with the two witches close behind. Before they made their way though, Charani poured some of his own mana into his eyes. as he took a couple steps to be closer to his familiar. His green eyes gave off a pale glow like a cats as his magic worked. He turned his gaze upon the witch behind him now using Divination - Aura Reading in an attempt to read his aura... his general state of being in this current moment. What would he see?
Desmond's aura appears primarily human, but with too many hands, and far, far too many eyes, many of which appear unnatural, like Chanari's own when he uses his abilities. It is in the company of a second, separate entity which flows around the darker patches of the aura, shapeless and dark as the sea. The lesser entity appears unperturbed and unfeeling -- inconsequential -- but lingers nonetheless. On the witch's inner self, jagged streaks of red mark where the claws crowning his lank fingers had dug into his own aura's surface, picking at its chest and its auxiliary visual organs -- unneeded, unwanted, and wholly resented. Its exposed ribs betrayed the hollowness in his chest, as the un-gouged eyes betrayed the tiredness of his spirit (and also: the sudden alarm at the realization that it was being seen).
Charani would only be able to catch a glimpse, because a swift (and very physical) hand flew forward to slap the other seer square across the face.
The Silvertongue may have been out of practice in leveraging his inborn talent, but he could certainly still recognize another seer's spells on sight. Though he strikes first, he does not move closer nor threaten any additional aggression. Frankly, he's still processing the fact that his partner for this mission was a seer -- could that be why he had felt compelled to take a mission so dissimilar from his usual contracts?
A beat of silence follows, with his brows remaining furrowed and his mouth frozen in a rigid line.
"That... was unnecessary," Desmond hisses, his reproachful tone making it quite clear he was talking about the younger seer's actions rather than his own.
It was just for brief moment. It looked vaguely human shaped with eyes. Eyes. So many eyes that it looked... felt like something horrible he was looking at. It was like he was peeking into something he had no right to see but he had to anyway. Something he couldn't avert his eyes from like the sun.
There was this dark energy... or maybe entity? He couldn't tell since it had all happened so fast. All he could see was exposed ribs... like someone had been gutted in front of him... heart torn out. It was like many of the dreams he had... horror given a corporeal form. There was a startled moment and edge to it as eyes laid upon him in those brief seconds. It was like the thing was staring directly at him... alarmed that it had been seen. Ten seconds. That was about all the time he had to look at the older witch's aura.
He felt the man's hand on his cheek, a sting as his face went sideways from the blow. Not strong enough to knock him down but strong enough to break his concentration. That was the point wasn't it? The man didn't move closer or give off some kind of aggressive alarm. He just wanted it to stop; it was like a parent scolding a child for digging around in the cookie jar. The canine familiar though did not take kindly to this. Three seconds. That was how long it took for the creature to react, placing himself between the two witches and baring his teeth with a growl. Charani cupped his cheek with one of his hands, eyes turning onto the other witch.
"No, it wasn't..." he said in a calm tone. His eyes were defiant as they tried to bore a hole into the man before him. Everything was needed here. He needed to know. He needed to see... it was without reason. Reason is not necessary. Reason destroys creativity and thought. This was something the core of his being wanted to know... there didn't need to be a reason for it. Or maybe there was? He didn't know. Maybe it was just a feeling?
