The Knights Next Door

[xinoehp512 he/him]

 

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I've managed to make do without using any curses so far. 

It does seem strange that she would call Sha-thoexis that. It always seemed to me like more of a personal insult than a swear word, and it's kind of pointless to insult Sha-thoexis.

Regardless, Ene, know you are not alone in your opinions, although I'm not really bothered by that particular word. I very much hope that this discussion does not negatively impact your enjoyment of this thread. I know from personal experience how unpleasant these sorts of arguments can be.

 

 

A groan escaped from Draug as he struggled to hold up his bubble of protection. The whispers had reached a crescendo in his ears, their discordant voices mixing together in a perverse harmony. A symphony of pain and grief he had heard many, many times.

A girl with a ponytail, kneeling before a man with red and black skin.

A boy in a red shirt, curled up and with a tearstained face.

A man with blank eyes and a sword that did not glow.

The recollections began to come; people he'd traveled with, befriended- and eventually, failed to protect. Travel in groups, that was the advice. Having a friend helped you fight off any Voidbringers you might come across, in addition to keeping you safe from Sha-thoexis.

Supposedly, it worked. And yet, time and time again, he failed. Time and time again, his companions fell to the alluring promise Sha-thoexis offered. 

But he'd gotten back up, time and time again. He'd kept on protecting, time and time again. And now he was here, in a place unique among the cities of the West. A place where Radiants could gather in large groups without fear of Voidbringer assaults. A place where the whispers in the mind were silent. A place where, perhaps, he could succeed where he had failed before.

He faced this fear every night, when Sha-thoexis came. She knew how it grated on his soul. And so she filled his mind with images of his failures, telling him that he was worthless, that he could never succeed, that resistance was hopeless.

But she had not succeeded then. And she would not succeed now.

Through gritted teeth he forced out the words. "I... will... not... fall!"

The mist slowly rolled back, leaving a circle of clear space around him and the others. He relaxed as the voices began to fade. A smile crept onto his face.

But then- faintly- he felt a twang, like the sound a tightened string makes when it snaps. His stomach twisted at this discordant note; yet it felt familiar somehow.

It happened again, and he looked around in confusion. What could possibly be making that sound? He could have sworn that he'd heard it before...

And then it happened a third time, and his mouth opened in an O of horror as he remembered where he had heard it before.

"They fall..." he whispered. "Oh, Almighty, they fall!"

Edited May 21, 2019 by xinoehp512

[+Sorana she/her]

24 minutes ago, xinoehp512 said:

"They fall..." he whispered. "Oh, Almighty, they fall!"

Shana saw Draug fight back, the dark shadows vanishing. Then his face changed to one of horror and she rushed over to him, grabbed his shoulder. Falling? They were all standing on solid ground.

"What's going on?"

She asked.

"Who is falling? Can I help?"

[overlord stick]

As a nightmare attacked a distracted Draug, Flid yelled: "Draug, look out!" He ran over and stabbed it in the chest "Draug, I don't know who fell or when, but the past is the past, now is now. We have to fight these things."

[Wyndlerunner he/him]

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Oh, and @AonEne. I hope nothing I said hurt your feelings at all in any way. I don't know if anyone in the situation was approaching it quite levelheaded, but I hope time heals any wounds that you have incurred. Most especially, I think we all hope this doesn't ruin your experience with such a fun RP

"I for one," James chimed in, "agree with Flid." As he fled behind the newly formed wall. "I know the past can hurt", James said, "But we need to focus on the now."

Edited May 21, 2019 by Wyndlerunner

[old man moomba he/him]

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Ok... but Jamie turned them into dust, Thanos style. Then the dust turned into a funny choking fog. 

"It's less of a phyiscal fight." Jamie grunted, "And more of a mental one." With that, the whispers in her head finally stopped. The disgusting fog transformed into a grey mist, which swirled playfully around Jamie.

[Eluvianii he/him]

Edwin lost his balance as he swung the naginata and hit nothing. They were disappearing into dust, it was like they had never been there in the first place.

"Huh, it's just like in..." "Don't." cut him Twinkle, annoyed at his references.

But he realized he had been celebrating too soon. They weren't gone, not exactly. 

Then Draug... Edwin ran to him, worried.

Edited May 22, 2019 by Eluvianii

[AonEne he/him]

3 hours ago, Wyndlerunner said:

Oh, and @AonEne. I hope nothing I said hurt your feelings at all in any way.

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Nah, I was more frustratedly annoyed than I was hurt.

I crowded with the others as they went to Draug. It didn't look like he was focusing on the past to me - more like he'd suddenly realized something very important and very present.

[xinoehp512 he/him]

Draug fell to his knees as a vision swept over him.

Flames, burning bright against the darkened sky.

Figures with glowing red eyes and skin the color of ash and fire.

He saw the others gathering around him as if in a dream. He opened and closed his mouth, eyes unfocused, unable to speak.

Children crying out in pain and fear.

A young woman fighting clumsily against a man clad in carapace.

Unbidden, the surroundings began to shift to match his vision he was recieving.

Men wearing glittering armor laying on the floor, unmoving. 

A child with empty eyes holding a sword that screamed.

He saw it, and he knew it was true. Sha-thoexis was attacking this house in the real world, wherever she was. And she was winning. Not only that- she was destroying.

"Almighty help us," he whispered.

[AonEne he/him]

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*that moment when you almost write from a different character's POV*

 

[overlord stick]

Flid was worried now. This wasn't PTSD, and he felt pretty stupid for saying that. "Draug, what's going on? The nightmares are gone."

[xinoehp512 he/him]

37 minutes ago, xinoehp512 said:

Unbidden, the surroundings began to shift to match his vision he was recieving.

 

[old man moomba he/him]

Doc jumped, startled. He almost recognized this scene. Suddenly, it clicked. A spanrial report from an enclave in Colorado. It had discribed an event eerily similar to this. "Oh no. Please don't make me witness this!" he cried, "This is what she can do! This is her power!"

[+Sorana she/her]

Shana stared as their surroundings changed again, readied her weapon. She the child with the shardblade, the men wearing the armor. Their empty faces. Carefully she knelt down next to one of the men, but he didn't move, didn't react at all. It was like he was an empty shell.

"Oh no. Please don't make me witness this!" Doc cried, "This is what she can do! This is her power!"

And she looked again, only now understood, grasped how close she had been to end up like this herself.

"Can't we go into their dream, fight her there as well? Just as we did here?"

@Dr. Dapper

[Lunamor she/her]

Ben slowly walked up to where Shana was kneeling, too disturbed to say anything. He wanted to heal the hurting children, fix their injuries. He had more than enough stormlight to do so. Those empty faces, so full of pain yet still somehow void of emotion. It he could just reach out and touch one of them, maybe he could try and heal them... But he somehow knew that it wouldn’t make a difference.

Edited May 22, 2019 by Lunamor

[Eluvianii he/him]

The scene they were now witnessing was devastating. In a moment he understood how lucky they had been.

Were they going through the same? Just another dream? But, those were Voidbringers. He hadn't seen one first hand, they didn't let him go to battles yet, but those red eyes were unmistakable. They hadn't seen any Voidbringers. In fact, their experience had been so bizarre, so unreal, yet what was now in front of them...

"Is this real? I mean, is it happening in real life?"

[xinoehp512 he/him]

8 hours ago, Dr. Dapper said:

Doc jumped, startled. He almost recognized this scene. Suddenly, it clicked. A spanrial report from an enclave in Colorado. It had discribed an event eerily similar to this. "Oh no. Please don't make me witness this!" he cried, "This is what she can do! This is her power!"

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It's happening right now- he wouldn't have been able to get a spanreed report yet.

 

[overlord stick]

"Oh, oh god. That's- what's happening? Is that real?"

[Wyndlerunner he/him]

James looked on in utter horror, "Almighty above" he whispered, "It's awful"

[old man moomba he/him]

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Perhaps he got the report of an attack before going to sleep.

 

[xinoehp512 he/him]

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But it only just started...

I suppose he might have gotten a message saying 'oh, there are Voidbringers nearby.' A danger, but not one that he would really worry about; Voidbringer raids are super rare, and usually unsuccessful.

 

[AonEne he/him]

Cassie stared in shock.

[Eluvianii he/him]

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Ummmm so, who's running the cutscene?

 

[Lunamor she/her]

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I’d assume Xino, although I’m not too sure.

@xinoehp512

[+Sorana she/her]

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I've been waiting for him as well.

 

[I think I am here. he/him]

Rob watched as the scene changed, from a bloodthirsty battle to ruins. A broken house, many dead bodies laying about. “Did we win?” He asked, not allowing any inflection in his tone to signal his worry, or his anxiety at seeing such a nightmareish sight.