November 27, 2021, 11:42 AM
(This post was last modified: November 27, 2021, 04:27 PM by Sieghard.)
Sieghard ascended the incline at a moderate pace, though his sides heaved from the the exertion. Despite all of his exercises in which he engaged daily, this was taxing. Apparently, climbing - or at least sprinting uphill - should be added to his repertoire. He occasionally paused to take stock of his surroundings and to see how his view had changed. It also gave him a chance to discreetly catch his breath. The sky was darkening quickly, the sun having retreated to nest below the horizon. Clouds of nightshade and elderberry hues were blowing in on a cold wind. Sieghard slapped at a piece of loose stone with the side of his paw. It quickly vanished from his sight, but he could hear it clattering down the side of the escarpment for several seconds.
He continued his walk for about an hour more and then stopped at an overlook. There was ample space here for multiple wolves to gather, but he was alone, so he stood smack in the middle of the area. Why not stretch out? Alone... He hadn't liked answering to his trainer and others of his ilk, especially when unsavory tasks were placed upon him. He had been given so many orders, some of which had made his blood run cold or had made his moral compass feel that it was on the brink of shattering... Now, he only answered to himself, yet it still felt unfulfilling. He had coveted his liberty, and now that he had it, it felt... Well, it wasn't what he'd expected. Perhaps he just needed more time to adjust.
He tilted back his head, gazing at the sea of stars which had appeared among the dark. A million little lights, all pretty much identical... No one would notice if one went out, because there were so many others just like it. He felt an unaccustomed heaviness in his heart, but he would not sing about it. He never sang.
@The Listener
He continued his walk for about an hour more and then stopped at an overlook. There was ample space here for multiple wolves to gather, but he was alone, so he stood smack in the middle of the area. Why not stretch out? Alone... He hadn't liked answering to his trainer and others of his ilk, especially when unsavory tasks were placed upon him. He had been given so many orders, some of which had made his blood run cold or had made his moral compass feel that it was on the brink of shattering... Now, he only answered to himself, yet it still felt unfulfilling. He had coveted his liberty, and now that he had it, it felt... Well, it wasn't what he'd expected. Perhaps he just needed more time to adjust.
He tilted back his head, gazing at the sea of stars which had appeared among the dark. A million little lights, all pretty much identical... No one would notice if one went out, because there were so many others just like it. He felt an unaccustomed heaviness in his heart, but he would not sing about it. He never sang.
@The Listener
November 30, 2021, 08:34 PM
(This post was last modified: November 30, 2021, 08:35 PM by The Listener.)
the listener had received mortal form in the valley of the bear-witch and his followers, but it had been upon a mountainside that her divine instinct had been cultivated and refined. no longer would she be a mountain-dwelling wolf in this life, but the prophet nonetheless remembered well the lessons of traversing treacherous stone-carved terrain. the wolf of many names roamed with fluid grace among craggy spires and sharp inclines, a gaunt figure in ragged nightspun robes. she gleamed in nightshade hues under a dark berrystain sky, as much a part of the landscape as the mountains themselves.
in time, the listener came upon an overlook, and a lone silhouette wreathed in spiritwisp grey. at a distance she lingered, and watched in silence. waiting.
in time, the listener came upon an overlook, and a lone silhouette wreathed in spiritwisp grey. at a distance she lingered, and watched in silence. waiting.
December 12, 2021, 04:48 PM
A delicate shiver traversed his spine - an intuitive reaction to being watched, though he did not know that yet. Sieghard grappled with this newfound discomfort for a few seconds before surrendering to his instinct to turn around. He should have done it sooner - after all, he had walked himself into a vulnerable position, what with his back against the trail and a yawning precipice immediately in front of him.
He widened his stance slightly, steeling himself lest something spring from the shadows like a monster from a child's nightmare, but there was no demon intent on tantalizing him. There were two orbs, each richly robed in its own color, and they appeared to belong to a child, though some quality about the watcher's physique was ambiguous enough to make him feel uncertain. Whether this was a child or a small adult, he didn't know, but neither possibility affected his response. "What are you doing?" It came across as accusatory, and then, without as much of an edge, he added, "I don't take kindly to spies..." Rapidly, he was assessing that there was no danger, and his body language was relaxing. "Care to join me over here?"
@The Listener
He widened his stance slightly, steeling himself lest something spring from the shadows like a monster from a child's nightmare, but there was no demon intent on tantalizing him. There were two orbs, each richly robed in its own color, and they appeared to belong to a child, though some quality about the watcher's physique was ambiguous enough to make him feel uncertain. Whether this was a child or a small adult, he didn't know, but neither possibility affected his response. "What are you doing?" It came across as accusatory, and then, without as much of an edge, he added, "I don't take kindly to spies..." Rapidly, he was assessing that there was no danger, and his body language was relaxing. "Care to join me over here?"
@The Listener
December 20, 2021, 11:44 PM
the air around the figure crackled, alight with tension. fanged energy radiated like a cold sickly glow, unnatural under the warm silver cast of moonlight. anxiety, or perhaps fear. the listener tasted it on the air, drifting closer with steps light as stardew over a grey moondust path. the figure turned, then, and the silence shattered against the sharp tones of his voice.
the listener bore his accusing words in silence, still and unchanged until the stranger invited her closer. intrigued, the prophet swept forward like shadows creeping higher with the shifting of the sun. a heavy silence wreathed her, trailing in her wake like a thick cloying scent.
the listener bore his accusing words in silence, still and unchanged until the stranger invited her closer. intrigued, the prophet swept forward like shadows creeping higher with the shifting of the sun. a heavy silence wreathed her, trailing in her wake like a thick cloying scent.
January 01, 2022, 06:04 PM
No demon - that was what he had surmised, but his new companion moved in silence like a ghost, intentions unrevealed. She had reacted to his invitation by drawing nearer, but she seemed as tethered to this place as a cloud; one wrong move on his part, and she might dissipate. He studied her with no regard for how staring might be considered rude, but her appearance was like a book's binding written in an unfamiliar language; he couldn't glean any information about her, couldn't formulate any guesses as to her purpose...
He softly began to clear his throat, but the sound, though barely audible, seemed to him to thunder in the silence, so he stopped. "Not much for words, eh? Neither am I," and, "Cat got your tongue?" and similar fare were fleeting impulses which he never acted upon. He had already spoken enough. It wasn't his responsibility to carry and steer a full conversation. If the ghost didn't fancy words, so be it; they could protect this silence. He consciously stripped away his stern gaze and went back to admiring the stars, though the majority of his attention was fixed on the presence which lingered near him, still curious about her.
@The Listener
He softly began to clear his throat, but the sound, though barely audible, seemed to him to thunder in the silence, so he stopped. "Not much for words, eh? Neither am I," and, "Cat got your tongue?" and similar fare were fleeting impulses which he never acted upon. He had already spoken enough. It wasn't his responsibility to carry and steer a full conversation. If the ghost didn't fancy words, so be it; they could protect this silence. He consciously stripped away his stern gaze and went back to admiring the stars, though the majority of his attention was fixed on the presence which lingered near him, still curious about her.
@The Listener
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