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","denomination"] Legs kicked up and each bone sore from a long day at work, Rhea found herself sitting at the end of a pier, sandaled toes kicking up water like an elephant's trunk, as the ocean loomed still and silent before her.
What was beyond this point? Sometimes, all the dreams she'd never had the luxury of dreaming would crash in on her like one great tidal wave and she'd sit, just like this, at the end of a pier and reminisce. Suddenly, the scenery around her shifted and changed, and she was in the mind of her sixteen (or seventeen? when had she ever kept track of her birthdate?) year old self, an adrenaline rush coursing through her veins.
SHe had just stolen a golden watch off some tourist passerby, a frightened and scrawny girl now cowering in the glare of a man three times as big. Her eyes shoud have had the look of being forzen in place, all alone in a world that was too big for her. Maybe even then it had been an act to sell their little duo further.
She had gone in for the kill, but it wasn't like she could get away just yet. So she had learned and forced herself to rely on someone else. That someone who ought to be swooping in from behind at any time. Which explained how the dilated pupils in the widening eyes betrayed so sense of fear, just hollowness.
And then, as time sped up, a slow smile settled onto her face. She could trust her partner had arrived.
Post by evanora galestorm on May 2, 2017 5:41:42 GMT
ashes to ashes.
Waves of white foam lapped at her feet as she walked along the edge of the coast. Sand crunches underneath the sole of her sandals, and she finds herself completely content with her life at the moment.
Was this the dream? Evanora used to have many; like she would be the tsunami that would seek and destroy anyone who had opposed her. She could've also been like the gentle push and pull of a tide; an everlasting rivalry and bond between her closest friends. She could've been a lot, but now she's only another grain of sand among millions. And she's okay with that.
Her eyes drift closed, and she's suddenly not twenty-four anymore. It's ten years earlier, and she's a rebellius delinquet, always looking for trouble--and of course, with a friend. This so called friend had gotten herself into trouble, a golden watch clutched to her chest, trapped in a corner.
It's the best setup for a duo like them.
When the time strikes, Evanora executes. A bright flash fills the corner, and she takes the distraction to take a nice swing at the man. He goes down before he even sees it; whoever said to speak quietly and carry a big stick had obviously not considered Eva and Rhea's line of work. She cocks a hip and leaves the stick on the edge of her shoulder, a smug smile playing on her lips.
[attr="class","denomination"] Fear was a liar, or so she'd learned. If you stayed afraid of things for too long, they'd consume you like parasites until they became you and wore your skin, playing you like a marionette.
Rhea's audacity and Evanora's shrewdness made for something loud, explosive and fearless when tried. It was the start of something undeniable, the kind of future that made Rhea's blood rush with adrenaline and heart beat with excitement and longing. They'd pave the road. They'd make it somewhere that fear couldn't find them.
Light flashed and the man was out for the count, Rhea's eyes traveling up to Eva's frame before clambering up, pulling out his purse and a few other valuables while he was down. For good measure, she kicked some mud into his shirt before looking up and cockily brandishing the watch, her newest trophy. "I owe you for sticking to the plan? Yeah, yeah." She waved her hands apathetically, as though she had no intention of splitting what she stole.
She gave the man a lingering look before she gestured with her chin towards the cargo maze. "Let's get out of here."
On her way, she tossed the wallet to Evanora and held the watch up to the sky, looking at how the afternoon sun's rays reflected off the similarly golden surface. "How much do you think this'll fetch?"
It's an undeniable truth. They don't get what they want to get, and the buyers try to buy as cheap as possible. But there's the fear that maybe it's worth nothing at all. It's the poor thief's dilemma, and it strikes them out every day. Yet at the same time, Rhea doesn't see it as a problem. Eventually, they'll find their niche. They'll click. Eventually, there will be no crime untouched. She is the kind to constantly seek change and improvement. In herself, in others, in the world. Yet her mind's gone to the point where she can't think any longer of the life she's left behind.
There's nothing but blackness when she looks back, so she looks at Eva instead, at what she hopes is a picture of the future.
Post by evanora galestorm on May 4, 2017 1:47:51 GMT
ashes to ashes.
They are two pieces of a puzzle, carved to fit together in spaces they didn't have. The world should watch out for such a perfect pair, for they have nothing to lose but each other. Look at us, Evanora thinks, eyes glittering with courage and confidences and things she'd never dreamed of having before. Look and watch out.
She rolls the stick in her hands, throwing the end up like a baseball bat before swinging it behind her and leaving it on her shoulder. Rhea grabs his purse and valuables before they take off, disappearing into the maze of concrete.
Evanora looks at the wallet and opens it, finding a lump sum of money inside. She smiles and lilts, "Hmm...enough to have some fun at least?" The golden watch is valuable as well; carefully crafted with an opulence she's nearly jealous of.
Nearly.
Evanora meets Rhea's sharp gaze, and returns it with a content, lidded stare. It's a shot in the dark as to whether some of the stuff they take is valuable or not, but Evanora's learned to take what they can get--and haggle for it. She smiles back at Rhea and winks.
"It'll work out no matter what happens."
She sees Rhea's hopeful face before it fades away, suddenly replaced by the crackle and snap of a fireplace. They're cooking fish stolen from the local market; the outside charred black but succulent against her tongue. Evanora lays back on soft sand, warm from the heat of the fire. She's at peace with herself, and takes this time to enjoy Rhea's presence.
Eva grounds her, reassures her that things will work out, eyelids hanging almost lazily across her eyes. But Rhea knows that look is as aware as hers is, or the blonde would not have survived half as long out here on her own. They've both been inured by hardship and misfortune, and they both know better than to question the other. When she gives her that look, Rhea can focus wholly on the present.
There's a soft flash to the future, and Rhea is staring at a flame. Like Evanora, her back is held up by the beginnings of Venice beach and her eyes gaze into the sky. If the fire wasn't right beside her ear, turning it pink from the heat, she might have lost her mind to the silence of the night. It's the only reason she can never stray too far from the docks. The ocean breeze and gentle lapping of the waves calm her like a lullaby, and the fire adds to the melody.
In a flight of fancy, she's struck by vivid images of the past. An empty household. Does she feel regret somewhere in the back of her heart? No. That place has been empty for a while now.
"The past," she muttered uncharacteristically, unable to bring herself to lie to Evanora. Not that she'd been a stellar liar anyway. "Say...do you ever regret it?"
She didn't know what kind of horror Evanora faced- only that she had managed to escape into the madness. She kept her eyes fixated on the stars. For some reason she was unable to turn to meet the eyes of her only friend. Though she didn't know why, her heart began beating wildly, so out of sync with the soft lapping of the waves.
Post by evanora galestorm on May 9, 2017 9:16:49 GMT
ashes to ashes.
Her eyes run across the night sky, tracing each constellation as it passes. With a sea of sand below and stars above, she feels small in such never-ending world. The fire quietly crackes before them, and the push and pull of waves nearly lull her into sleep. In such solitiude, she would've felt lonely if not for the person next to her.
Evanora doesn't think of her past often; in fact, she barely thinks about the days she'd run after robbing warm loaves of bread from the local bakery. She doesn't think about the moments where she'd forgotten what it felt like to have a full stomach; no, she doesn't think of it at all.
Not unless someone else brings it up.
One of her eyes open, and she lilts her chin up to catch a better view of Rhea--she had an expression that was hard to explain. Uncertainty was the best word to describe it, and Evanora hums softly to herself, comtemplating such a off-beat question.
"No, not really." Evanora says, and shrugs. While she'd appreciate a better life, she woudn't trade it for another else.
"I'm fine as long as I'm with you."
Evanora snickers, eyes drawn, lips curling at the edges. Despite her teasing, there is some truth to it, although Evanora would never admit it out loud.
With Rhea, it feels as if she could take over the world
She doesn't know why she's so afraid to ask the question. It seems to linger in the darkness for far too long and in that void regret and denial swell up - she should have just lied about what she was thinking about. She should have just said something more typical for her. Assimilated back into the identity she'd built for herself, found something to break the unease.
But she wasn't dumb. Even in the haze of her defiant mind, she knew what she was afraid of. What if Evanora didn't want to be here? What if this struggle was in vain despite her inability to admit to it, and her commitment to changing the situation? What if she was alone, and she really did have no one but a delusional mother and a fool for a father?
Evanora finally spoke (and just seconds before Rhea could swear she had felt the piercing gaze of her friend on her side, and she had done everything in her power to resist looking at her) and what she did speak made her heart beat slow. The supply of fear drained from her body as she chuckled half-heartedly at the attempted joke.
"So you do love me~" she teased, rolling from her back to her side so that her face was illuminated by the flickers of the flames. She grinned, unaware of how the fire cast shadows across her features, making her more feral than she intended.
Rhea's eyelids dropped heavily for a split second before they opened wide again, and she smiled softly. "Well isn't that a shame, cause you know you can't go soft on me, right? Who else could I possibly take on the world with?"
The flame crackles. The waves roll. But this moment feels suspended, permanent. Ever lasting in her memory.
Post by evanora galestorm on May 17, 2017 6:01:53 GMT
ashes to ashes.
Despite her seemingly carefree lifestyle, Evanora does possess her inner demons. Most days she manages to push them far into a corner in her mind, running past their whispers and taunts. Yet, some days they scream so loud they she can barely think without giving in, letting her insecurities ruin and tarnish her thoughts. In those moments, she dares to voice them out loud, terrified of the moment that Rhea affirms the truth--only to be proved pleasantly wrong.
When Rhea's own demons speak up, it's only second nature that Evanora would do the same.
And at Evanora's answer, Rhea laughs half-heartedly, giving her a chesire grin. She looks wild in the light of the fire, and Evanora can't help but smile back, eyes lidded, lazily mischievous.
"I wouldn't dream of it, Rhey." She murmurs, watching her expression through the light of the fire, listening to the gentle roll of waves. Evanora briefly notes to tease Rhea about this later, before letting her eyes droop shut. With the starry field above and soft sand below, she lets the darkness take her in a content, satisfied silence.
Evanora blinks, the nostalgia of her memories lives her wrought with emotion, and it shows on her face. She was supposed to take on the world with Rhea; but she'd left that universe behind. Jester's Den is her home now, and she knows the Rhea would never, ever join. Such a stubborn soul could not be caged in so easily; and she's sure that Rhea still hates her. Who wouldn't?
Tonight there is no fire to fuel their friendship; it's only cold ocean air and the taste of salt--even though that isn't the reason she has a bitter taste in her mouth. She looks around, eyes catching on the bright black and white of Rhea's hair. Evanora's throat closes, her heart beats quickly in her chest--does Rhea know she's here?
She doesn't know, but she's certainly not going to run.
The memory fades. Despite herself, a smile stretches across Rhea's mouth. A lazy, reminescent smile that faes as the wind blows onto her face. Her legs, once kicking at the still ocean now still themselves and she finds herself looking down at her rippled reflection, barely visible in the moonlight.
She hears something odd in the way the wind whistles, as though something is blocking its free passage. She senses something behind her, and the scent is unfamiliar. Her body moves slowly, back turning so that the corner of her eyes can peek out towards the mysterious figure behind her.
The anchored boats cast shadows across the pier, and the light house shifts its focus away and towards the sea. Rhea cannot see the person, because she blocks the moonlight herself and her shadow is long across the wooden plank.
"Hello there," she says, bu her voice is on edge, ready to fight, ready to lash out.
Because that's how she'd always lived her life. With or without Evanora Galestorm.
Post by evanora galestorm on May 19, 2017 6:23:52 GMT
ashes to ashes.
She takes more steps, her heels clicking against the weathered wood of this pier. Rhea's facing behind her, but her presence doesn't go unnoticed. Her hair sways as she turns--her words may be cordial, but the tone implies anything but. She's never sounded so on edge, high strung. Evanora frowns, and she steps out from the shadows. Moonlight drapes over her face.
Her expression is carefully neutral as she faces the person that once meant the world to her.
"Rhea."
She feels her stomach sink, fingers tingling. Evanora may be calm and reserved in the most stressful of situations, but Rhea will always make her heart race--especially now that they're not friends anymore. She clasps her hands behind her and lifts her chin, feeling sweat on her palms as she does.
If her tone is already on edge, then her eyes turn feral when Evanora's face is hit by moonlight. She'd never forget her face, no matter how many years passed. Something in her wants to leap outside of her skin and rake across the girl that had promised her everything she'd ever wanted. Her expression is seething with hatred as she accepts the fact that they've met.
That this of all places would be their fateless reunion. She didn't, of course, believe in fate.
Her knuckles turn white from grabbing at the edge of the pier, body radiating a dark kind of malevolence, before she sucks in a breath and lets it go in one fell swoop, head sinking low before she turns back to Evanora, dangerously calm. She stands up, carefully releasing her grip on the pier that she had wanted to tear apart just seconds ago.
"What the hell do you think you're doing here?" Trespassing on her memories. No, Evanora had to right to share this sacred ground with her. She had to right to be here any longer.
"Go back to being society's dog."
She doesn't move an inch closer to Evanora, and her very anger should be enough to keep the girl clear for walking forward.
Post by evanora galestorm on May 20, 2017 5:10:01 GMT
ashes to ashes.
Despite the time's that passed, the years and months since their seperation, Evanora will never forget Rhea. She's as familiar as the back of her hand; weathered but not jaded. The bright white streaks in her hair have never faded, and her eyes are as sharp as ever, like she could pin someone with such a gaze. Wild and angry, she pierces Evanora and leaves her frozen in place.
It's a shame that she's on the recieving end of such an expression.
But she refuses to back down.
"Why do you think?" Evanora scoffs, rolling her eyes. She can't deny; she'd been reliving her memories, salvaging what was left of her former life. Despite what Rhea thought, she wouldn't ever dare to taint such a pleasant past.
She refuses to let Rhea get an emotion out of her.
Evanora ignores Sushi's pleas to be cordial and lifts her chin, looking down her nose at Rhea. Her lids droop. She holds herself in high regard, like royalty looking down on their own peasants.
[attr="class","denomination"] "Oh, I don't know," she says, sneering as she stands her ground, legs adamantly spread apart as though she was taking up a fighting stance. "I don't think about you much." Her eyes darken, going from confident to angry as she fights to unclench her fists. "After all, everything I did think turned out to be wrong, no?"
She didn't care, she decided. She didn't care why Evanora was here. She couldn't care. Because no matter what filthy excuse she gave, Rhea would not let her walk around freely on her territory.
Unlike Evanora, who plays a shield, Rhea tends to sacrifce her defenses for an attack, and so when Evanora bites back there's a flicker of something in her face. It can't be called hurt, no. She's been told worse than that. But it's a flicker of surprise that she'd have to hear something like that from someone like this.
What does she have to be surprised for?
Rhea scoffed, mostly at herself for expecting any less. "Leave, Evanora. This isn't your place anymore. Go home. You might miss your eight hours if you stay. ANd god knows you worked hard to earn those." Rhea didn't know what happened to Evanora since the last time they saw eachother. But she could only suppose the blonde had thought it had been a fair trade- a stable life for the life she'd known.
Rhea had just been a fool to think that Eva would have declined the offer like she had.
Post by evanora galestorm on May 25, 2017 7:08:44 GMT
ashes to ashes.
Evanora stands straight, hands clenched at her sides. Rhea's words--it stings, opening up old wounds, letting it bleed and fester. Her expression flickers with hurt before she turns angry again, resentful. Rhea just didn't understand. And she doubts that she ever will; the likes of her will rarely change for values they've held their whole lives.
Evanora had almost been an example of that.
"..."
She's known Rhea for years; Evanora is well aware of Rhea's insecurities, what bothers her and what doesn't. And when she swings with her own sword with words attached to the blade, she can see how quickly Rhea's expression can change from one to another. Uncertainty, surprise...maybe something akin to hurt.
But her sword is double edged; Rhea knows Evanora like the back of her hand. She can easily cut her down, and she does with viciousness that Evanora had never wanted to become face to face with.
"You don't own me, or this place, Rhea." She says. Nicknames have no place in a moment like this, and she doubts that Rhea would act too kindly to a nickname right now. She risks turning around, raking her eyes against the very beach they'd made their promises in, and struggles not to lash out in anger.
[attr="class","denomination"] Rhea smiles at Evanora's words, but her smile is embittered and crooked. It's an unfamiliar expression on her face because her eyes don't light up and her lips don't part to make way for yellowish white teeth. It's not the smile she smiles after hearing a terrible and likely inappropriate joke, or the smile she smiles after a mission well done. It's a sickened smile.
"Oh yeah, I forgot. Someone else does."
She spits on the ground, eyes glowing venomously. Evanora's made a trade for her luxury, and Rhea can't see any benefit from that trade. Evanora, in her eyes, has lost what had made her stand against the current. She's lost edge and spirit, and anything that would have made her a worthy ally to Rhea.
Rhea. Evanora. They dance about the ways they used to call each other, they continued to attack with swords of the present and cast blind eyes to the past, despite their hearts screaming in pain. Well, silencing their pesky emotions was the first thing they had learned together, after all.
When Evanora turns around, a breeze kicks up. Rhea's scarf stirs lightly and her hair is lifted off her shoulders. But she feels the furthest thing from liberated at what Evanora says.
"What?" she asks, wondering if she had been wrong to think Evanora had even known her at all. "Redeem myself? Do you think I want to? Do you think I'd stoop as low as you? You have no idea what I've done. Do you think I'm still that sixteen year old fool? You have no idea what I'm capable of."
Burning on the dancefloor,to rise like a Phoenix
