Not your Typical Meeting (Mao, Ora, Puck)

[Puck]

Mao Consumed by the Hunt Mao loitered. She stood about as the chimes passed, and soon all that was left was the Kelvic and a few stragglers. Mostly they went about picking up trash, which consisted primarily of discarded clothing and scraps of food, and ignored Mao. They made their way up through the foyer and into the stands, and she was utterly alone in the foyer. Until the door opened. Its heavy hinges creaked as it was pulled inwards, and the Akalak known as Woredev stepped out. His loose white shirt was adorned with blood, and sweat covered his brow as if it had not been twenty chimes since he had fought. A look of shock came over him as he saw the Kelvic girl staring at him. Yet the thought faded quickly from his face as he crossed the short distance between Mao and him. He grabbed her by the collar and lifted her light frame, glaring into her eyes with his roiling black ones. His voice came out as a harsh whisper, "There is a reason I wait until the masses leave, ignoramus." As if she were a rag doll, he tossed her away to the floor. "If I find you here again you will die. Now tell me, what do you want and why should I care about the plight of prey?" Ora Sa'vina Consumed by the Earth Ora's fingers slid the cold rings about. When their designs finally aligned---which they were close to doing so several times, perhaps implying they could be arranged different ways---the Konti heard a sort of clinking sound as it set into place. She saw the elaborate swirls and circles, as if there were thousands of tiny vines on it. Near the top of the ring was inscribed the acronym "OGCR" in flowing, curled script; it might have been an indicator of which side was the top, but Ora could not be sure. While nothing happened in the center of the item, a sudden burst of energy was emitted at the point where its rim touched book. Blue sparks jumped from their contact, and the entire ring shook as if magnetized to the pages. If Ora's hand came near the spot, she would notice that the temperature had dropped extremely. The ring continued to quiver, though it remained in its position. The lights, on their way out, had finally vanished. The sparkles had relinquished control over her vision, and for the first time since coming down here she felt sober. Nothing strange was happening, well except for the artifact in front of her. Had she looked behind and to her left, the Konti would see two doors she must have overlooked before. Though as she discovered her return to reality, Ora's hands began to slightly shake, and she hungered for something she could not quite pin down.

[Ora Sa'vina]

As the woman slowly moved the rings into place she heard a satisfying click noise. Elaborate swirls and circles patterned the rings, the Konti found them quite beautiful and slightly reminiscent to the patterns of scales gifted to her by Laviku. At the top of the device four letters had been etched “OGCR”, Ora blinked, looking at the characters curiously. “OGCR?” Ora tried to think of what the characters could mean; they could mean anything or nothing, both of those ideas frightened Ora slightly.

The ring began to spark, quiver and crackle around the edge where the ring met the book; surges of energy popping in small blue sparks. The ring seemed to gain a life of its own as it seemingly shook against the book. The Konti moved back from the book, startled, her back hitting the back of the chair she was perched on, her eyes were wide, her hands covering part of her face. Violet eyes peered between her fingers as she watched the sparkling lights fly for a few more moments. Then the lights seemed to fade, her eyes looked over the book expecting something else to occur.

A few chimes passed and nothing had occurred, the book laid there, waiting. Ora took one of her hands and touched the book lightly, her shaking hand feeling the edge of the cover, slowly flipping it open, and her eyes scanned the pages, it looked the same. Maybe it was the same. Maybe what Ora had just seen was a side effect of whatever hell she had been pulled into? Was any of this real? The Konti closed the book, almost violently, her hands moving to her face, rubbing her eyes and temples for a moment.

While she tried to relax, tried to calm herself down, a feeling began to bubble in the bottom of her gut; a desire, a growing hunger. For what? She was not hungry, but she felt a drive for something, she needed something to fill this space that was left inside of her. Her hands moved from her face and moved towards the book before her. Her fingers shook; her hands were weak, shaking as she picked up the bound book. Ora drew the object closer to her face, her eyes looking at the script on the ring once more before she held it against her chest.

The young woman stood up and turned from the desk. Her eyes moved from the ground up to the wall across from her. Two doors were before her. Were they there the whole time? Had they just appeared? Ora had not seen the doors before, they must have appeared! She would have noticed doors! Wouldn’t she have? The Konti moved towards the doors, her hands still clutching the book to her chest. As she reached the double doors, a hand reached out and grasped the handle to the door, a small click and push was all she needed to open the door.

OOCSo if it isn’t double doors, just let me know and I’ll fix the post.

[Mao]

She should have suspected the Champion would have no real patience with dealing with those that were deemed lesser. Mao was a kelvic, she was a pet in the eyes of the blue men, only good for bringing more of them into this world and perhaps for petting, that was it. And although Mao, herself, had not acknowledged this personally, she was still exposed to it. She was also exposed to the sudden abrupt changes in Woredev’s emotions, the spike that churned her gut, that increased her heart rate considerably. But when he picked her up by her collar, she gasped for breath, clawing at his hands with her dangerously sharp nails. The floor met with her body harshly, but Mao simply lifted her upper body with her trembling arms, so worn from the exertion of earlier events that she was half-tempted to just collapse. Only when Woredev uttered the word ‘prey’ did her unnatural pupils reverted to slits and her fangs were bared to the Champion. “I am not prey,” she hissed, her body tensed, completely ignoring the fact that the akalak had threatened to kill her. But Mao was either foolish, or incredibly stubborn, or both. She would not budge. “I will never be prey.” She brought herself up to stand, dusting off her shredded dress almost absently, “I was told to find you by another blue ape,”obviously she cared not for her own terms for these men, “Some Akalak attacked us in the gardens, he shot me and he shot a Konti girl. Now she has been taken, and I am trying to find the bastard so I can at least break his legs. Take it as you will.” In all her stay here, this had been the longest she has talked to anyone. Although Wordev was obviously not one to mess with, she thought it fitting to explain.

[Puck]

Mao Consumed by the Hunt Woredev looked down at her imperiously, and with a hint of something in his eyes. It may have been an itch, or it may have been respect. Nobody talked back to him, except this bitch in heat. He liked that. In an instant the look was gone to be replaced by a flat look, and he approached Mao. Soon their bodies were close, and the Kelvic could feel the heat of his body sinking into her smaller frame. His hand reached around her hips, and closed firmly about her rear. Staring calmly down into her eyes and spoke again, "Alright then, girl. I do not know why you require my presence, nor do I care. Just know that if you take up my time, you will owe me." The serene look turned into that of a predator in the next instant, and his hand forcefully pulled the Kelvic against him, "lead on, Nakivak." His hand released her and he stepped back, reaching over his shoulder to unhook his maces from their harness. Ora Sa'vina Consumed by the Earth As Ora tried to pull the ring away, she found that there was some sort of magnetism. As if the book and ring felt they belonged to each other, the Konti felt resistance as she lifted the edge of the book. Yet after the edge of the book got far enough away, the force quit and the tome closed normally. The sparks and energy had stopped, and all was normal once more. Yet when Ora placed her ring on the front of the book, it pulled from her hands. Like two lovers reunited they clung to each other, desperate to not lose their other half. This time she saw no visual manifestation of their pull, yet there was an energy it put off that Ora could feel in her core. She would find that the ring was so strongly attached to its book that she could hold it upside down without it falling. The door would not budge, yet it was not due to some sort of mystic force. This, for once, made complete sense. The handle barely jiggled, as it was locked. Yet the girl heard movement on the other side, and a few Tukant curses reached her ears. "What the petch are you doing up and about?" Heavy footsteps approached the door, and the jiggling of a lock. One of the doors burst open a crack, not nearly enough for Ora to look through. A small leather sack the size of her fist was thrown in and immediately the door frame shut again. The locking of the door sounded once more. "There, we should..." His voice was muffled as it lowered, only a few words coming through the door. "How long is... Going to be here? When... Fa... Die?" Another man spoke, this time loud and clear, obviously not bothering to disguise his voice. ]"Do not wreck her with it, if she becomes worthless then her father won't come for her will he? As for your other queries, after he has come and given you the information you need, do away with both." His voice was cold, wise and calm. None of what the other man was asking him seemed to phase him in the slightest. "Now I shall depart. Bring the artifact to me at a place known as Haunted Falls when you've finally extracted everything that needs to be known. It lies six days Northwest of Sunberth along the road, you will know it when you arrive I am sure." The sound of more footsteps and a creaking chair, then the conversation had ended. Ora had found herself lucky that the man had not looked in and seen the book, but now she found herself dealing with not what he had taken but what he had given. The small sack lay on the ground, and if she smelled it there was what could only be described as a familiar, warm, and enticing scent. If she opened it up, she would find a wet ground up paste of leaves. A wave of its pungent smell would beat across her face as she undid the ties, and the sudden hunger she had experienced earlier would suddenly spike. The two pieces clung to each other and Ora could almost feel their energy against her bosom. The other room remained silent, now that the other figure had left. Then there was the bag that smelled oh so lovely right about now.

[Ora Sa'vina]

Ora stood at the door, the side of her face pressed against the wooden frame as she tried to listen in on the conversation. They were talking about her, one of the men seemed surprised that she was up and moving around. How was that surprising? The young Konti felt her heart skip a beat as the lock jiggled, was she going to be freed? Would she be able to run out of this madness? She could return to the Isle, to her sisters, she could forget this entire catastrophe.

A small leather pouch was tossed into the room, and before Ora could even move, the door was shut again, and promptly locked. A frown crossed her face as she sighed; she was still stuck in the small room. Her eyes moved to the pouch that rested on the floor, but her attention returned to the room on the other side of the wooden doors as voices rose. Only fragments of the original voice passed through the door, not much made sense to the Konti, but her heart began to pound as the final word was uttered. “Die?” Die? Who was going to die?

Small fingers squeezed the book, holding it closer to her bosom as she continued to listen, another voice speaking up, clearly passing through the door. “Do not wreck her with it? Me? With what?” Violet eyes moved from the book pressed against her chest to the pouch on the floor. She continued to listen as this new voice spoke of her father coming to save her. She felt a small start on her face only to vanish as the man continued. Her heart sank. “Do away with both.”

The rest of the conversation fell on near-deaf ears. All Ora could hear was her own heart pounding. She couldn’t let that happen! Her father! Her! That woman! Her death would be in vain! Ora wouldn’t—No, couldn’t stand for that. She focused again, quickly, suddenly, catching the end of the conversation. “Bring the artifact to me at a place known as haunted falls when you’ve finally extracted everything that needs to be known.” Directions were given, Ora found herself muttering them under her breath, repeating them, and at the very least that location could be of use if she escaped from this place.

Ora stood by the door and continued to listen; the other room had fallen silent as one man left. The Konti jiggled the handle once more, a feeble attempt, it was indeed locked, and there was no chance of her getting out, at least not yet.

Violet eyes moved, slowly, sluggishly to the leather sack on the ground. The small woman moved slowly, towards the object, kneeling down next to it, setting herself down on the cold floor. Her hands remained grasping the book, sitting for several chimes just looking at the small bag. A faint, delicious scent was present near the pouch, and after several chimes, Ora gave in to her curiousity, setting her book down next to the pouch. Slender fingers slowly untied the bindings around the leather, exposing the leaf green paste. A familiar, soothing, enticing scent filled Ora’s nose as the leather was pulled away from the paste. Her nostrils flared as she inhaled the scent deeply, picking up the pouch in her hands, holding it up to her face. The hunger Ora had felt early came back with a vengeance, clawing at her insides as she inhaled the scent.

The Konti’s lips quivered slightly next to the paste, she felt such a desire to ingest the substance. Her eyes closed as she took another inhale, her lips parting slowly, her tongue stretching out, scooping up a small amount of the paste. Ora slowly chewed it, her face twisted. It smelled delightful, but it tasted like she was eating leaves, a cellulose, plant taste. It was not pleasant. The young woman swallowed it as quickly as she could, trying to rid her mouth of the flavor. “Well, I won’t be doing that again.” Ora sighed, setting the paste down next to her, her violet eyes returning to her book. She knew she needed to figure the contraption out, and she needed to soon.

Her fingers pried the ring and book from one another, placing the freezing ring own on the floor, her hands moving to open the book a few pages in. Her eyes glanced over the paper, now the experiments would begin. Thin fingers lifted the cold ring and held it over the page, peering through the center of the ring. Her hands shook as she held the objects from one another, the pull between the two quickly winning over after just barely one full chime.

[Puck]

Ora Sa'vina Consumed by the Earth No response came from the other side of the door as she jiggled the lock, the remaining man must have been ignoring her or waiting for whatever it was he'd done to take effect. As Ora swallowed the mashed up leaves, nothing immediately happened. It had left a bitter taste in her mouth even after she swallowed, but again, nothing undue from swallowing leaves. The Konti knelt on the floor, playing with the book. The ring and book were difficult to separate, but far from impossible even for the small girl. She opened the book to find the same unreadable text greeting her eyes, nothing new yet. Though as she held the ring over the page, she felt the strong attraction once more. The ring trembled as it yearned for its mate, and eventually won over. As the metal came into contact with the page of the book, a great burst of energy could be felt. It ran through Ora like an ocean wave, encompassing her for an instant before vanishing. It started as a pin point, smaller than a pea. It was of a black seen only in the darkest places bereft of light, and a small breeze played across Ora's face. Yet then black tendrils reached out in a spiral pattern, each revolution making the black spot larger. Finally the entire inside of the ring was full of the inky blackness, a pool of night in the center of the book. Cold gust blew against Ora's face, sending chills down her spine. Not a sound but the wind in her ears could be heard, a desolate loneliness. A wave of dizziness overtook her, and a slight euphoria filled Ora's mind. A flush of pleasant heat pulsed through her body and she suddenly felt like laughing. The scent of the leaves filled her nostrils, and a buzzing entered her ears. A small fluttering noise reached her ears, and then her world erupted into chaos. Small scraps of paper burst from the black hole, erupting into the room like a geyser. They blew past her eyes, which had began to see multicolored lights in their periphery, and slowly drifted back down to the floor. The entire affair had only lasted a few seconds, but before Ora knew it the air and floor was littered with small scraps of paper. She heard a scream, a screech. Something else burst from the blackness, something quick. It looked like water, but was clearly the source of the noise. "THEDARKNESSPLEASENOMORELETMEFREELETMEGO," it frantically screamed this again and again as it roiled about the room like boiling water. It rapidly trickled around the room's perimeter, looking for cracks. Finally, it came to the door and slipped through. From the other side, Ora heard shouts and stomping erupt with the liquid blob's screaming.

[Mao]

Something in her cautioned that perhaps she shouldn’t have spoken to the Akalak in such a way, but being who she was, she could not help it. Perhaps she expected a different reaction, for her body had tensed even more when his hand reached out. Instead, she was rather taken aback when he let himself cop a feel. It was instinctive to immediately grasp his assaulting arm, until he spoke, and her gaze lifted to meet his own. She appeared conflicted, tilting her head a fraction at Woredev’s strange and spontaneous change of mood. But she could not deny, of course, being so close to one that shared such a predatory nature that she has since missed for a long time. “I require you to beat the shyke out of someone, or at least, help me find him,” She repeated bluntly. Mao didn’t bother responding to his comment on owing him for his time. She doubted he would remember after the day was over, however his sudden and abrupt pull to his body forced a small gasp from her lips. She had half the mind to slap him, but she did not resist, much to her disgust. Instead, the Kelvic turned to lead him out of the Gideon Arena, simply responding with a, “I am Mao, not Nakivak,” as she did so. The Konti’s scent still lingered in the air, and once the wind shifted toward her direction, it was far easier to trace the lingering scent, and she scouted the perimiter, then headed toward the Oathmaster’s Tower nearby. But almost immediately the trail ended. Mao circled the area once, her nose lifted toward the sky, inhaling, but nothing! Nothing she could discern! “Why… Why is it gone! No!” The hiss in her words returned, and the Kelvic soon found herself slamming a fist against the large door of the Tower. “Where is the Konti!”

[Ora Sa'vina]

The Konti felt herself consumed with the energy from the ring and the book, it surrounded her, filled her for an instant, and then vanished. Violet eyes blinked several times, peering down at the circle the ring made against the page. Ora's eye brows moved closer together, her eyes narrowing as a small point on the appeared, such a strange spot, it was darker than any ink the young woman had ever laid her eyes upon. A strange breeze shifted her bangs over her forehead, drying out her eyes. As the wind passed over her face and through her hair, small, thin tendrils reached out from the center of the small black point in a spiral pattern around the center.

The breeze that emanated from the black spot in the book seemingly grew as the black pool filled the circle Ora's ring created, the breeze turning into a cold gust. A wind which reminded the young woman of the cold snowy nights on her Isle, a chill snaked down her spine, the woman shivered slightly as her ears were drowned in the sound of wind.

Suddenly, unexpectedly, but all the same, pleasantly, Ora found herself warm again. The scent of the leaves filled her, a smile crossed her face, a sudden excitement and pleasure filled her. The young woman smiled stupidly down at the black hole, she was carefree, but for only a moment, then her blissful moment shattered.

Small pieces of paper burst forth from the hole, spraying the room with hundreds of scraps, the Konti shielded her face from the onslaught of paper as it shot straight to the ceiling, then trickled down to the ground like snow. As Ora looked through her fingers the delightful colored lights were back, filling the sides of her vision with sparkling light. Barely a fraction of a chime later, the geyser of paper ceased, the papers settling quietly on the floor around her.

A sudden scream broke the silence that had just begun to settle, a sudden voice, presence, Ora had half a mind to slam the book shut, but before the woman could move to do so, words formed as a creature, a thing shot from the book. "THEDARKNESSPLEASENOMORELETMEFREELETMEGO," It shouted as what appeared to be a puddle shot around the room, its substance seemed to bubble and boil as it searched the perimeter of the room. Ora watched it as it found the door, the Konti feared for this strange things existence. "No!" Ora said suddenly, lunging from her sitting position to the door, a fist slammed against the wooden frame, causing the door to tremble slightly. "Come back! Please!" Ora pleaded through the door, her forehead resting against the wood.

A small whimper left Ora's lips as her fist slammed against the door again. She was alone again. Alone, confused and surrounded with small pieces of paper. A few short moments passed before Ora moved from her position. A sigh left her as she turned, sitting against the door, her back leaning against the wooden frame. She listened to the shouting, the stomping, the screaming, her head slowly tilted back against the door.

"What am I doing?" Ora closed her eyes slowly, her lips moving slowly as soft kontinese spilled out across the room. "Avalis, guide me. Your daughter is lost." Ora continued to pray quietly for a chime before opening her eyes, her attention moving to the thousands of tiny paper, each with writing on them. "I haven't anything else..." Slowly, Ora began to sift through the small pieces of paper the surrounded her.

[Puck]

Mao Consumed by the Hunt Already more than a little bored with the pet, Woredev had definitely perked up when Mao mentioned ruining somebody's good day as well as physical health. There were few violent acts the fighter would not engage in, the gruesome ones being especially excellent for driving his other half into a rage. "So long as we do not get caught spattering their blood on the walls, that is fine by me." The gladiator had few caveats or inhibitions, it seemed. So he followed, for what he believed would be a good walk, but was more like a few steps. Around the perimeter and back toward the Oathmaster's tower not more than a few dozen yards away. Yet when the Kelvic seemed to suddenly go berserk and threw herself at the door, even Woredev seemed a little surprised. One instant the pet had been a calm tracker, now she was insane and desperate. He tiny fists pounded at the door, but nobody answered. "The Oathmaster and his... His petching dog aren't there, Nakivak." Dhani venom dripped from the words as he spoke of the latter figure. Unable to take more of the useless attempts at forced entry, the gladiator strode forward and gripped Mao by the shoulder. Yet rather than simply throw her aside, he simply pushed her roughly. He pulled the heavy metal head of his mace, and with a sudden expelling of breath struck the metal door knob. The device came off with a cracking noise and its twisted metal fell to the ground. Half the lock remained, and Woredev kicked the weakened door in. "Petching Oathmaster." He stepped into the empty building, glancing around with contempt etched on his face. It appeared to be a medical room, with a few raised beds and cabinets. There was a stairwell leading up, as well as one leading down. "Well, Kelvic? Tell me what to ruin next?" Ora Sa'vina Consumed by the Earth The black hole continued to produce a clammy, cemetery breeze that filled the room. It did not appear to have any inclination of stopping, even though the stream of paper had finally ceased. As Ora shifted through the various notes the lay about the room, she noticed each had a pair of phrases on them. One was in a strange language she couldn't read, while the other was what the Konti might realize as Nader-Canoch had she the training. To most, the writings would look utterly foreign, but a scholar could, with work, translate the ancient tongue to common and then decipher the word's meaning. Yet without knowledge of that long forgotten dialect, the cause might be hopeless. More screams and shouts erupted from the other room, as well as curses from the apparent guard. One instant the commotion had been small and muffled, but the next Ora found herself submerged in it. A boiling, agitated blob of liquid zipped under the door and whizzed about the room. It rapidly rolled around the floor, looking for anywhere to escape to. The lock on Ora's door jiggled, and suddenly the door burst open. In came stomping not the Akalak from the gardens, but a much smaller and greener one. He shouted at the silvery creature as it retreated to a corner, and dashed across the room to stomp it. "Harm the prisoner and you're petched, little beast." His foot came down on the spot where the blob was, but it had already darted off. "PLEASENOHARMNOHARMDONE" It snaked over to Ora, and climbed up her side. The guard had drawn a heavy hammer, and was going to bring it down upon the blob, but stopped short as it climbed Ora. It moved up her body, a stream working in reverse, and hung itself loosely about her neck. She could feel it vibrating with terror, like white water rapids on her skin. "PLEASESAVEME" The guard slowly approached Ora, color=grey]"Get it off of you. That thing could constrict at any moment and choke you. Don't sacrifice your life like this."[/color] The Konti would note that he flashed his eyes over to the open ring every now and again, and a look of surprise mixed with anger and hesitation was painted on his face. He didn't know quite what to make of this scene, but one thing was certain: he wanted this Konti alive.

[Ora Sa'vina]

It did not take long for Ora to give up her attempt at understanding the small scarps of paper. She decided not to waste her time with the tiny pieces and moved on to go look back at the book. The Konti loomed over the object, staring down into the pitch-black depths, a small, cold breeze rustling her hair. Now what? Her mental question was soon answered with noises from the other room, and the sudden sight of the strange silver water-like creature. The creature zipped around the room as the sound of the lock and knob jiggling could be heard throughout the room, the door quickly burst open an a smaller Akalak stormed into the room. The Konti had taken a few steps toward the strange water creature and stood between the Akalak and the silver thing. Ora quietly watched as the guard attempted to stomp on the terrified thing. The creature was able to avoid the green Akalak’s attacks and found itself rolling up Ora’s side, which was a strange sensation, almost ticklish. A small smile rested on Ora’s face as it settled around her neck. A small hand lifted up and lightly touched the creature as it trembled over her flesh. “Be at peace, I will not let this man hurt you.” The young woman said calmly in Kontinese, her eyes remained on the man before her as she spoke. Her smile faded quickly as he approached her, speaking. Really? You’re concerned now? After one of you shot and cut me? You’re worried about my well being now? Violet eyes narrowed as a scowl crossed her face. “No.” She moved past him back to her book, where she slowly sat down in front of it. “This creature will remain here, with me, on my person at all times. Do not even dare try to harm it, Helioc. Your concern for my well being is pointless, if you or any of your fellow men had cared, I would not have been shot let alone lock up here.” Violet eyes moved from the Akalak back to her book, the hand the rested against the small trembling creature moved to lift the book and place it in her lap. “Who brought me here? Why did they bring me here? You had better answer, I might have this creature kill me right now, and then what would your superiors say? You let their prisoner die on your watch.” Ora’s voice dripped with venom, her words here sharp, her eyes were focused. The Konti had no desire for any of this, the sudden changes, the bizarre treatment, she just wanted answers, and she wanted them now.