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.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break] i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe [break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"] A light chill clings to the soft mist that creeps at his feet, lanterns barely keeping at bay the fog. McKenna revels in it, practically being made of mist herself. At least, that is how Aiden had always envisioned her. He had seen her emerge from the mist, obviously she must’ve been born from it right? There’s soft jingling as Mckenna strolls down the path, a small bouquet of flowers in her mouth. She knows the way well enough. Aiden followed a little way behind, one hand on a pail of water, and the other carrying a sponge and special soap bottles to clean the stone. His kept glancing around for other signs of life. He was early for their task, but then again, he wasn’t even sure it mattered as long as the section of the cemetery he and his companion had been relegated was cleaned up.
[break][break]
He could see the occasional witch. No discernable colors or coven, just work clothes and something thick to war off the cold. Aiden matched, wearing comfortable, but beat up sneakers, worn, ripped jeans, and a thick coat and hoodie. He’d be quick about this then, just in case he wasn’t the only one with a mindset of getting things done early and quickly. He jogged to catch up with his familiar. Sure, the clean up crew would be going through the entire graveyard, but he preferred doing it himself. McKenna circled Amelia’s gravestone. The gazelle glanced around, keeping an eye on the rest of the cemetery while Aiden doused some water on the stone table and worked quickly.
[break][break]
Amelia’s was one of the cleaner graves as Aiden and his parents had a habit of visiting it on her birthday and Aiden tended to visit often, cleaning what he could when he did. Still there was a little grime from the seasons that he could dispel. McKenna shifted away from leaves and stray branches with a few soft gusts, while Aiden worked bubbles on stone before dousing the rest of his bucket on it. Satisfied, he offered a quick greeting to his mom before looking over at Mckenna who bowed her head before presenting the arrangement of white and red flowers. “Right then…let’s go wait for uh…” he trialed off as he turned his back to the grave. “Taylan. Taylan Karga.” McKenna offered hopping after her master, her harness covered in silver bells jingling merrily as she moved, and she indulged in every tingle she emitted. “Right, right.” The teenager replied as he made a beeline with his familiar to the entrance and waited for his partner for the morning.
[attr="class","i1scroll"]he has a job to do — he knows this. but alas, old habits cannot be denied. taylan makes a detour to the bonfire, first. picture this : he skirts the edges of the crowd, a scarf drawn high up against his neck, dark eyes peering over soft grey cotton. there is a token clutched in his hands, a little folded paper with its edges a little crumpled. he takes a breath. a deep, shuddering breath, like he’s trying to flood his lungs with the gold of dawn. then he stretches out his hand, and lets the paper fall.[break][break]
to anyone else, they see a wisp of smoke, curling ever upwards. taylan sees a snake, coiling around an invisible column, pausing only long enough to stare at him with eyes flecked with ash. it looks — it sees — it knows the ghost that lingers beneath his skin, because it once lived there too.[break][break]
he does this every year, trying to burn the past away. swears to never speak the blasphemy that bristles on his lips. vows to ignore the drumbeat beneath his ribs, or the magic that shivers asleep in his lungs. it does nothing but bring ruination, as far as he’s concerned.[break][break]
the thing is, he’s pretty sure he’s getting closer and closer to breaking that oath. the smoke curls up into nothingness, and he is left with nothing more than the flimsiness of his promises.[break][break]
“iris,” he ends up saying, just to fill the silence. “let’s go clean some graves.”[break][break]
the entrance of the cemetery arcs high above, and beneath it he spies a mist-made deer, slender of limb and impossibly elegant. taylan pauses. tugs the scarf a little lower to reveal his face, his gaze sliding sideways to regard the familiar quizzically ( hopes it’s a familiar, and not an errant ghost ). “aiden emerson?”
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break] i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe [break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"] The teenager perked up, standing up a little straighter as he heard his name called. He looked around for a second before staring up at a much larger man than himself, pausing wide eyed as he opened his mouth, and nothing came out. “Taylan.” McKenna supplied before Aiden picked up the reins of conversation, smoothing out the previous panic. “That’s me!” the witch cleared his throat before continuing. “Mister Taylan…Karga, I presume?” he said pulling the last name with a little bit of a struggle, but he made it.
[break][break]
He holds back a quiet ‘umm…’ as he looked over at McKenna before she gave a small nod and he turned back to the florist. “I’m Aiden, and this is McKenna, my familiar. She likes to watch.” He explained, McKenna’s vague explanations leaking onto Aiden’s own conversational patterns. McKenna gave a purposeful jingle jangle, misty tail and horns letting out a bit more powerful fog than before. She was eager to get to know more witches. Aiden knew enough, he said, but the more the merrier right? Sure, there was a very obvious age gap here but it didn’t mean Aiden couldn’t befriend Taylan. Probably.
[break][break]
It didn’t matter that he was currently working through issues with another friend. Those would be solved, eventually. This was just a temporary distraction. Maybe it would teach him something. “They left us supplies in the shed over there.” He said nodding over a ways away. On the property there was indeed a shed tucked away in the corner of the cemetery with their tools. “I think I’ve grabbed enough soap for now.” He added, his left arm still carrying multiple bottles of liquid soap, one container already open from his earlier washing. “I, uh, got here early to take care of some business.” He added.
[attr="class","i1scroll"]there is surprise on the young boy’s features, to which taylan meets with an even gaze. “correct,” he confirms, in a voice now softened. his eyes flit lightly over aiden and mckenna as introductions are made, before he, too, calls out his familiar. a nudge, a whisper — iris shimmers into existence, with a flurry of iridescent sparks and a translucent rainbow, suspended against a million microscopic water droplets that never actually hit the ground. [break][break]
he raises a hand to gesture at the floating dolphin, blatantly ignoring what must be the jarring, erring on comedic, contrast between witch and familiar. “this is iris,” he says, by way of explanation. "she also likes to watch. and sometimes help." the dolphin trills, high-pitched and joyous, dark eyes glittering with bubbly cheeriness as she regards their mission partners.[break][break]
“we can just start with washing,” taylan says, lifting a shoulder in a shrug. “unless you’d prefer something else?” but he’s already reaching over for a bottle of liquid soap, letting it pool in his hand before he begins to let water coalesce in floating orbs around him, their surfaces shiny with now-diluted soap. a flick of the wrist — several descend swiftly onto a nearby gravestone, with just enough pressure to mimic a controlled hose, taking off a layer of brown-green grime to reveal cold grey stone beneath.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break] i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe [break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"] McKenna is intrigued at the other familiar and Aiden’s simply held back a sigh, anticipating the incoming non stop jangling of McKenna’s jingle bells as she got to know the rainbow dolphin floating after her witch. Aiden nods, a polite smile crossing his lips as he gave the dolphin a curt nod. He turned back to the much older witch, “Sometimes.” He repeated the ghost of a snicker passing by him. The ginger blinked for a moment before watching curiously and even a little amazed as Taylan began his work. A Water witch! Well, maybe he should’ve guessed it judging by the looks of his familiar but this was still….incredibly fortunate.
[break][break]
“N-No, washing is fine! In fact, I don’t think you’ll need my help with it.” He said, grinning as he watched layers of grey and green pool on the ground, the letters of the grave getting a little sharper. Maybe he’d make him wash Amelia’s as well. Just to get that deep grime all the way out. Later though. “If you can keep that up I can rake around the area.” He added, pointing a couple of graves a little ways away. “They’ve marked our area of work so the faster we finish the faster we leave.” He added as he adjusted his grip on his bucket and damp brushes.
[break][break]
“I can…I guess I can prep the graves for you?” Aiden offered, not wanting to get in the way of Taylan’s efficiency. He probably had better things to do after all. He jogged off without a word, to switch out his supplies for a couple of rakes and some trash bags. McKenna seemed to not pay him any mind, hopping closer to Iris and circling her a few times to admire the rainbows she brought with her.
[break][break]
Aiden didn’t pay her any mind, letting the poor gazelle socialize if she wanted to. He leaned the extra on a wall before approaching the graves next to Taylan’s work and lifted his index finger to coax a metered gust of wind, dumping stray leaves and trash onto the ground that he raked to the side, so his partner wouldn’t step in it. He worked quietly, dutifully pulling debris piles away from the water, so it could be disposed of. Maybe composted, but then again that sounds like even more work. Keeping near Taylan however, he spoke up. “You visiting anyone today?” His question was casual. He’d been coming here so often since he was a brat, so the question no longer felt awkward. Why else would anyone come to a cemetery?
[attr="class","i1scroll"]iris spins through the air, arcing far above her witch. there is humor clear in her voice as she calls out to aiden, her voice lilting and bell-like, “don’t mind him! he’s not quite as standoffish as he likes to look.” her comment nets her a mildly disgruntled grunt from taylan, but incites no further response. the witch is dutifully washing the graves, collecting water within his palm before flicking it towards the graves.[break][break]
he’s a diligent worker, systematic and consistent, keeping up the pressure until the grime is more or less completely washed off the stone, at least to the best of his ability. the water is careful and controlled, a just-right level of exertion that means he can keep it up for a while to come. he lifts his gaze from the work just enough to regard aiden’s first question, replying with a shrug, “that works with me.”[break][break]
his familiar cares less for the work, and more about the mist-made gazelle familiar, mckenna. with a cheery trill, she conjures up several small water bubbles once more, the rainbow reflected infinitesimal on their surfaces.[break][break]
at aiden’s next question, taylan pauses for consideration. “not really,” he says, but his voice is deceptively light. there’s a grave in the corner, small and innocuous, a name etched into the stone, but it is empty. “what about you?”
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break] i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe [break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"] The dolphin’s words comfort him, and he gave the familiar a nod and a small laugh in Taylan’s general direction. As long as the man wasn’t annoyed with him, he was fine then. He focused on the task at hand pretty well. Aiden hoped briefly he wouldn’t fall behind. The thought of being a hindrance made him a little anxious, but he quickly banished the thought once he’d set himself to work on his self-appointed task. Especially when Taylan approved of it. Good. The last thing he needed was to seem like he was slacking off.
[break][break]
McKenna is equally taken with her new friend, murmuring greetings before watching excitedly as the dolphin created little spheres of rainbows. She wished for a moment she were a light familiar in order to help spread the colorful visions on the ground but was content with eyeing the shadows of the orbs on the ground. Her extremities however seemed to exert a more powerful mist as she walks, almost cloud like. Or a fog machine. Though she can’t help but stick her nose into one bubble, popping it in the process before having a small laugh. “These are nice. We can only make breezes.” She commented.
[break][break]
Aiden finished up raking a pile up to the path before leaning on his rake and looking at the florist. “Yeh, my ma’. Figured it’d be a good time as any if I was gonna be here anyway.” Not that Aiden didn’t take any excuse to visit his mother’s grave when he stayed with his grandparents. “I ask in case you wanted to clean their stones personally. I don’t mind helping.” He added gently, hoping it wasn’t too sensitive as a subject. He gave a level stare before looking down back at his work, a harsh gust blowing what it could over to the next grave before he began dragging his rake over the dirt once more.
[attr="class","i1scroll"]iris trills a laugh, delighted in the presence of her newest acquaintance. there is curiosity and wonder bright in her eyes as she regards the way the mist rolls off mckenna like the train of a gossamer dress. she glides closer, sunlight sparkling off her in a million different directions, sending miniscule rainbows scattering across the gravestones and her own witch. “breezes are nice too,” she chirps encouragingly, not one to downplay anyone’s strengths.[break][break]
taylan moves on to the next row of gravestones, once more repeating the process of slowly washing away grime. there is a moment where he pauses, regarding aiden with a steady gaze of his own, dark eyes unflinching. “my condolences,” he offers quietly, momentarily unsure of what to say, and not quite expecting any response in that regard.[break][break]
then; a breath. exhales lightly. “it’s alright,” taylan says, his focus momentarily drifting away from his work, “i took flowers to her yesterday.” there is a hint of a smile ghosting across his lips, but there is gratitude clear in his voice even as he gathers up more water to wash the graves once more. “thank you, though.”
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break] i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe [break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"] McKenna bowed her head in thanks and lets out a small laugh as well. If she could, she would smile in appreciation at the compliment. “Yes…very useful. Especially in warmer weather. I particularly like ringing wind chimes with them on my spare time.” The gazelle tended to have her flashes of mischief and those usually manifested in incessantly playing with neighborhood wind chimes. On quiet days, when she and Aiden went for walks, she’d circle around breezes to cause a ruckus. “What about you?” she asked, hoping Iris had the freedom she enjoyed form her witch to roam.
[break][break]
Aiden is quick to look up when Taylan speaks once again, pausing in his work to give the older man a slow nod and a smile. “Thanks.” He felt less tense knowing that he hadn’t bothered the florist with his questions. Some people couldn’t talk about their loss, and he wasn’t one to push for it. But at least Taylan seemed alright, as far as he was concerned. Or well, at least he seemed as well adjusted as Aiden claimed to be. “No problem, I wouldn’t have minded anyway.” He said with a small shrug.
[break][break]
He then stayed quiet for a moment glancing at Taylan’s work before picking up his rake and jogging away to grab trash bags for all the debris. He almost felt bad for throwing out old flower crowns and dead balloons but tried to remember people would be visiting soon enough with new decorations and offerings. He moved around Taylan, keen on not interrupting his work flow and began the process of scraping small bundles of leaves and twigs into trash bags. He filled up two bags quickly before he caught up to Taylan once more, and began raking stuff out of his way, and picking up litter. The cemetery is silent and so Aiden, after a moment of hesitation, breaks the silence once again. “Mr. Karga, if I may, who was she?” he asked, vaguely curious of his companion. “If- IF you don’t want to answer that’s fine.” He added quickly. He could ask other things. He didn’t particularly enjoy the sacred silence that enveloped the graveyard, often talking to himself or to McKenna to keep it from driving him batty.
[attr="class","i1scroll"]apart from the quiet chatter of the familiars, silence falls over the graveyard like a shroud. taylan does not think he envies desmond in this instance — he can only imagine what seers like him might feel like in a place like this, with ghosts breathing down their back with every step. what does it feel like, to gaze in-between the worlds, between the breathing and the dead? he does not think he wants to know. there are faces that haunt and linger in his dreams each night, and those are ghosts enough.[break][break]
“wind chimes do make a beautiful sound,” iris says to mckenna, and there is a glitter in her eyes that passes for a smile. “i favour the ocean,” she admits, and the familiar turns her head ever so slightly to regard the distant glimmer of sunlight on water. “we stay fairly close to the sea, so we go for walks by the beach when we can.”[break][break]
there is a quiet that falls between the witches, nothing uneasy, but simply by virtue of being engrossed in their work. taylan doesn’t mind; he is used to it, but perhaps his younger companion is not. there is something about the lack of sound that tends to drive people up the wall, sometimes.[break][break]
“my daughter,” he offers, after a moment of thought. “she passed in an accident.” there is no further elaboration that he gives right now, and taylan, prepared for further questions should aiden ask, pushes the truth to the back of his mind, and pulls a well-practiced half-truth to the tip of his tongue.
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break] i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe [break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"] By virtue of Taylan’s magic, mud began to cake around the edges of Aiden’s worn through sneakers as he moved back and forth collecting trash and raking away miscellaneous trash. He kept himself occupied, every so often glancing at the stone Taylan was working on to read it before moving over to continuing his trash collecting duty. As he reached the end of the first row of graves and ties off third bag of trash, he doubled back to look over the graves his companion had tended to. Most of them were clean, but even so, occasionally there was left a stubborn piece of moss or some sort of withered petal that stuck to the marble. Aiden was quick to flick off anything with swift gusts, making sure it looked at presentable as possible.
[break][break]
McKenna tilts her head upwards, looking for what Iris is staring at before taking a few steps into the air with Solidify. As she stands a foot off the ground she can now see the twinkling of the ocean in the distance. The low fog that had been sticking to the ground forgotten and gone. “It sounds peaceful.” The gazelle mused curious to Iris’ home before continuing forward. “He burns too much to enjoy visiting the beach. But I like the nature of the dunes and how they travel.” She stated, already picturing it in her mind despite having been unable to see it as often as she’d like.
[break][break]
As Taylan gave his answer, Aiden turned back to the old man, watching him carefully to make sure he knew when to stop talking if things got a little too…intense. “Ohh. How old was she, Mr. Karga?” he asked, knowing better than to ask for the grizzlier details of what exactly the accident was. She was dead, it didn’t matter how.
[attr="class","i1scroll"]he spares a glance down at the mud pooling around his feet, making a vaguely disgruntled noise as he did. probably should have worn wellies. that being said, these boots were old, though. they were well used to mud ( one of the downsides to being both a plantshaper and water elementalist ).[break][break]
iris floats gently to match the gazelle familiar. “perhaps try walks in the evening? you can’t burn too much if the sun’s already setting,” she suggests lightly. taylan tends to favour midnight swims, after all, when the water is freezing and the stretches of white sands empty, and the sea is lit only by stars and the dim golden lamps of the docks. there is peace to be found there, in a heart bared to moonlight; a closeness to the sea rarely afforded ever since the serpent’s scorn had docked in sundial so many years ago.[break][break]
“around fourteen, at the time,” taylan answers, his tone level and steady. he has grown comfortable with grief, in the time that has passed, leaving it to in his shadow when he isn’t paying attention. it doesn’t leave, you see. he just stops noticing after a while. “she’d be around your age, maybe, if she were still around.”
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break] i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe [break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"] As the graves dry, Aiden noted there seemed to be a light shine probably thanks to the soap and Taylan’s work. The path down this particular row is clear thanks to him. He nodded in affirmation. It had been a blessing Taylan carried water magic. He doubted he and Taylan would’ve moved as quickly without his control on the soapy water like this. He’d gotten lucky, but he tucked this thought away for later in case he ever had to wash anything ever again. Just get help from a water witch, why make it complicated?
[break][break]
McKenna’s head snapped to Iris, suddenly excited once again. The action sends out a ripple of sound where the jingle bells on her harness all ring out at once before silencing once again. “Yes. Yes, I will try this.” The gazelle stated with a nod. “Perhaps we will cross paths if you live so close by.” She added happily.
[break][break]
Aiden tilted his head at Taylan, listening closely given the nature of the subject. “I see.” He returned looking at his shoes for a moment before looking over Taylan once again. “Same age, but she’d probably be taller if she was yours.” He stated pointing up at the huge man. “The kind of girl that wears heels as a power move.” He added almost picturing the man’s daughter with just him as a frame of reference. Then again, he was pretty short for his age. Anyone was taller than him. Except Ling. Ling was just extraordinarily small. There was another pause as Aiden tossed his trash bag with the others and clapped his hands together to get rid of dust. “What was she like?” he asked after a while. It was a day of remembrance after all. This was fine right?
[attr="class","i1scroll"]there is an ease to his command over water, one that comes with repetition and practice. it’s a little like watering plants, just with more force. no one needs to scrub plants down, after all. he regards the clear path with a small nod of approval — good thing he’s been paired with with a competent air witch. it would certainly be a whole lot messier if aiden hadn’t blown away all that debris. wading through a muddy puddle full of miscellaneous grave-junk? not fun.[break][break]
“perhaps we will!” iris agrees, cheer apparent in her lilting voice. she adds after a beat, gesturing vaguely with a flipper, “if you take the hilltop trail, you can catch the most scenic sunsets from up there, too.”[break][break]
there is the faintest hints of amusement in his voice as he regards aiden. “probably,” he agrees lightly. “it does sound like something she’d do.” thea had always been lanky for her age, a fact only exaggerated by the sheer size of her familiar. [break][break]
how would one describe her, though? thea — theodosia — a daughter of the sea, all bronze and bite, a dawn rising crimson and bloody over raging waters, shipwrecks strewn in her wake ; she had a heart too big for the cage of her ribs, and dreams as wide as the mountain ranges that stretched over the entire horizon. she had been destined for greatness ; she would have touched the stars, if not for the reaper that had come calling, and sent her into the arms of death.[break][break]
“she was a good kid,” he ends up saying, “always looking for adventure. when she first got her magic, she’d keep setting the curtains on fire, while also trying to climb them at the same time. not sure how much she cared for the concept of gravity.”
[attr="class","a1lyric"]i got nothing but dreams inside[break] i got nothing but dreams
[attr="class","a1lyric2"]i'm just young enough to still believe, still believe [break]young enough not to know what to believe
[attr="class","a1icon"]
[attr="class","a1white"]
[attr="class","a1scroll"]
He lashed a grin at Taylan, proud of their work and happy it had taken very little discussion and instruction from either witch to accomplish this much. If only his classmates could work as well with him as the florist did maybe he’d get fewer gray hairs from schoolwork.
[break][break]
“I will keep my eyes open then!” McKenna added with a confident nod before looking over at where the dolphin directed. “Oh, excellent. I will look into this for him. I’m sure Aiden would enjoy it.” She said with a confident nod, already planning a venture or two out without the boy’s approval. She never worried though since he was relatively easy to sway when it came down to it. He’d become a bit more of a pushover since he’d left the Hovel, but for the better perhaps. At least he got along with others more nowadays. Charani Petrov ’s situation notwithstanding because he would solve that in due time. She wasn’t worried. “I hope we can visit you, Iris.” She added.
[break][break]
The ginger offered a small grin at the mental image of a tall girl already, donning stiletto six-inch heels. A classic move. Rubes would quake in her presence. “Is that something you would do?” he asked, poking fun at the older man. He didn’t look like the type, but then again maybe it was just age that dulled his image, but not the witch themselves. He didn’t know Taylan after all, though he did find the mental image of the man strutting around in six-inch stiletto heels funny. He paused at the story scrunching his face up at the plantshaper. “Do fire witches not get burned?” he asked. “Or did she just not care?” He stopped before correcting himself. “About the fire. Cared about the fire. Since she obviously didn't care about gravity.” She sounded rowdy, but then again someone he probably would’ve liked to befriend.
