Solo Memento Mori

Aster turns a reminder of death into something a bit more special.

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A city floating in the center of a lake, Ravok is a place of dark beauty, romance and culture. Behind it all though is the presence of Rhysol, God of Evil and Betrayal. The city is controlled by The Black Sun, a religious organization devoted to Rhysol. [Lore]

Memento Mori

Postby Asterope on July 1st, 2018, 8:54 pm

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7th/Summer/518 AV

Unable to sequester herself away in her room any longer, Aster had set out to look for food; she had no idea where she was, or where anything else was in the city. But she was used to simply wandering around and hoping to find what she needed.

So Asterope left Tarsin's, the sun having long since set, and picked a random direction to walk. She was very quickly realizing how convoluted navigating the city was; it was, in her opinion, far more difficult than trying to navigate Alvadas.

Finally stumbling across a bridge, Aster crossed it, pausing to peer down into the canal below her. There were no ravosalas around, and the water was mostly still and dark, lapping quietly at the sides of the canal. There was something eerie about staring into the dark, reflective surface of the water; Aster tore her gaze away, and hurried forward, paranoia prickling at the back of her mind.

It took a few bells of wandering, walking alongside canals, crossing the occasional bridge and taking the occasional narrow alley between buildings, but Aster eventually found herself in what seemed to be a market of some sort.

Shops lined the walkways, a few open stalls scattered around the slightly larger surface area of the ground; at least, larger than Aster had seen in her wanderings throughout Ravok.

Most of them were closed, or in the process of closing, but one in particular caught her eye. While the few other stalls advertised their wares clearly, this still had no signs, and the man behind the wooden counter was busy with something, hunched over and scribbling on a piece of paper rather than trying to attract customers; it was slightly strange. The difference was subtle, but once noticed, he stuck out like a sore thumb.

He seemed to feel Aster's gaze on him, for suddenly he looked up from whatever he was drawing and locked eyes with Asterope. She blinked, startled, glancing around uncertainly before looking back to the man. He narrowed his eyes at her, and Aster took a step back, ready to leave, but he suddenly gestured her over.

A long pause stretched out; the anxiety stirring in her brain urged her to turn and flee anyway, but her curiosity got the better of her. With slow, cautious steps, Aster crossed over to the stall, stopping about a foot way. Up close, she could see that the human man was older; faint wrinkles covered his face, a scar running down his cheek. His greying hair was thinning, and as he grinned at Aster, she noticed that a few of his teeth were missing.

"Hello there," He greeted, his voice rough, with an accent Aster couldn't place. "How can I help ye, dear?"

Aster peered down at what the man had been drawing, and felt her heart give a kick of surprise to see somewhat familiar circles; automatically, her hand went to her pocket, feeling for the engraved bone in the pocket. Malediction, the word came to her mind unbidden, recalling the Dhani's words from the season prior, when she had discovered the bone.

It was almost too convenient, especially for a place that didn't operate under the strange whims of Alvadas. "That depends," Aster said carefully. "What services do you offer?"

Word Count: 548
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Asterope
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Memento Mori

Postby Asterope on July 1st, 2018, 9:24 pm

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The man chuckled, sliding the papers to the side. Leaning down, he rummaged around with something beneath the stall, and then straightened up, carefully placing a few bones onto the counter he stood behind.

Aster inhaled sharply, leaning forward in interest, her curiosity piqued. The bones were all small, clearly from various small animals; she recognized a bird skill and a leg bone, though from what animal she couldn't say. Some of the bones were already engraved with their own unique circles, others were still blank and clean.

The man chuckled at Aster's reaction. "So. Interested?"

"I am," Aster tilted her head. Reaching up, she tugged the cord around her neck, freeing Navi's tooth from beneath her shirt. Pulling the cord carefully out from under her hair and over her head, she set it gently on the counter. The man raised an eyebrow at her.

"That. I want that..." She waved a hand, uncertain of the correct term. "Malediction on that, please," She finally settled on saying, causing the man to chuckle.

"Yer just full of surprises, then. Alright. What sort of tooth is it?" The man pulled the necklace closer, picking up the tooth to examine it more closely.

"A dog's tooth. A big dog; she was...very important to me. Her name was Navi." Aster's words were quiet, tinged with sadness. The man hummed thoughtfully.

"I see. A guard dog, then?"

Aster's smile was brief, flickering over her face. "Of a sort."

The man nodded, rubbing a hand over his stubbled jaw. "Hmm. Alright. Give me some time, then." Aster nodded, leaning against the stand carefully, and watched as the man pulled out a new piece of loose paper, grabbing his charcoal stick and beginning to sketch quickly.

Aster watched the man work silently; she had questions, but didn't want to distract him, so instead settled for peering over his shoulder. She had no idea how long it took for the man to sketch out the circle he deemed acceptable; it could have been only a few chimes, or even a few bells, but finally he grunted, pushing the paper away. "That should do it."

With the sketch done, the man pulled out an engraving tool, pulling the tooth close to him and hunching over as he began to work. By then, the other open stalls had been abandoned, the moon high in the sky, illuminating the surrounding area, reflecting off the water of the nearby canal.

It took longer to engrave the tooth than it took to do the sketch; the man worked with slow and precise movements of his hands, carefully etching a much smaller version of the design into the tooth's surface.

He blew some dust off the tooth, continuing to slowly etch the design; finally, he straightened up again, turning the tooth this way and that to examine it. Apparently satisfied and deeming it acceptable, he pricked his thumb with the engraving tool, smearing it over the carved circle on the flat side of the tooth.

Aster watched curiously; nothing happened that she noticed, but the man seemed pleased as he wrapped his thumb in the hem of his shirt. "There, that should do it," He spoke, gruffly, cleaning the excess blood off the newly activated malediction fetish.

"What...is it going to do?" Aster asked, hesitantly. She knew so little about malediction to be doing such a thing; she could only assume that the effects were, in general, supposed to be positive, and that she had ended up with something botched or cursed by a fluke. She hoped the tooth would have a positive effect as opposed to the vertebrae sitting in her pocket.

"Hard to say exactly," The man admitted. "You'll have to wear it and see."

Aster frowned slightly; that was hardly helpful. "Alright," She relented. "How much do I owe you for your services?" The man hummed thoughtfully for a moment, considering.

Word Count: 650
Total: 1,198
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The sun will rise, and we will try again
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Asterope
A light that never goes out
 
Posts: 651
Words: 661387
Joined roleplay: August 16th, 2017, 11:11 pm
Location: The Outpost (Sunberth)
Race: Ethaefal
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Memento Mori

Postby Asterope on August 20th, 2018, 2:27 am

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After a long pause, he inclined his head to her. "Twelve gold Mizas seems a fair price." Aster nodded; she was surprised. She'd expected such a service to be much more expensive, but she supposed she wouldn't question it too much.

Fishing out the gold pieces, she handed them to the man, who counted them quickly before pocketing them. He gave her a grin, and held the necklace out by its cord. Aster took it gingerly, examining the freshly engraved symbol on the tooth's surface. It didn't look or feel any different, but her frame of reference wasn't much.

Making sure the engraved side of the tooth was facing down so it would lie against her chest, Asterope slipped the necklace back on over her head. She gave the man a nod, and he waved at her. "Pleasure doing business with you," He chuckled.

Aster tucked the tooth back beneath the collar of her shirt, feeling its familiar weight settle on her chest. With a nod to the man, she turned, hand still pressed to where Navi's tooth sat beneath her shirt; she'd forgotten why she originally left her room, too wrapped up in her thoughts as she pondered what powers the maledicted tooth would have.

Quietly, Aster returned the way she had come, gaze distant and thoughtful.

Ledger :
Maledicted tooth: -12 GM
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The sun will rise, and we will try again
User avatar
Asterope
A light that never goes out
 
Posts: 651
Words: 661387
Joined roleplay: August 16th, 2017, 11:11 pm
Location: The Outpost (Sunberth)
Race: Ethaefal
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Journal
Plotnotes
Medals: 5
Featured Thread (1) Mizahar Grader (1)
Overlored (1) Alvadas Seasonal Challenge (1)
Power Fork (1)

Memento Mori

Postby Asterope on August 2nd, 2020, 2:58 am

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Here are your bright, shiny grades...
Enjoy!


Asterope

Skills

☀Observation +2
☀Land Navigation +1


Lores

☀Location: Tarsin's Boarding House
☀Ravok: Harder to navigate than Alvadas
☀Ravok: City full of canals
☀Malediction: Engraving bones with magic circles
☀Malediction: Finishing with a drop of blood
☀Malediction: Wait and see what it does


Rewards & Penalties

☀-12 GM
☀+ Maledicted dog tooth (noted in SS)


Thank you for your patience! As always, please don't forget to delete or edit your grading request in the queue. Otherwise, if you have any questions or concerns about your grades, then just PM me and let me know!
Image

The sun will rise, and we will try again
User avatar
Asterope
A light that never goes out
 
Posts: 651
Words: 661387
Joined roleplay: August 16th, 2017, 11:11 pm
Location: The Outpost (Sunberth)
Race: Ethaefal
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Journal
Plotnotes
Medals: 5
Featured Thread (1) Mizahar Grader (1)
Overlored (1) Alvadas Seasonal Challenge (1)
Power Fork (1)


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