open Lost Fables (RP)

[Hazard Time 1,127]

@

 

As Mori's response reached her ears, Ametrine could feel her blood run cold and her heart sink.  There...was no way?  Was she stuck like this?  Forever?  Even if the magic existed to restore herself, what cost would it incur?  What difference would it make?  Just how pointless was her struggle?

 

Could her mother be right?

 

 

"N-nevermind," she stammered.  "I-I-It was j-just a thought."  She sharply turned away from the other mare and began trotting up the trail.  She put a hoof to her breastplate and took deep breaths, but it wasn't as effective as she'd hoped.  It only served to remind her of the crushing tightness in her chest, ever more crushed and contained by the armor she bore.

 

She couldn't do this, but she had to.  After everything she had done, there had to be a light at the end of the tunnel.  She couldn't have sacrificed so much to get this far only for it to have all been in vain the whole time.  She had to find the light!

 

@@Driz @@P-Jay

 

Her thoughts were interrupted by Helios' call.  Eager to disrupt this line of thought, she hurried over to him and took her map from her saddlebags.  "Is that...another map?  Convenient, much?"

[That One Techpriest You Used To Know 2,286]

@@Driz, @@Hazard Time,

 

"No, I did not mean-" She stopped, suddenly, and took a step back as the mare's face immediately dropped.

 

So much for dignified royalty, hm? She looks on the verge of tears from your response... I wonder what despair colors her soul? Perhaps we'll find out after she joins us; if you don't first.

 

Mori remained silent before her face softened, and, for a moment, appeared to speak again before she was cut off by Ametrine's hurried response. "Oh, if only I knew what troubled you so, fae princess," she whispered to herself. "It seems that both real and abstract beings have their own webs of secrets that they are caught in."

 

A sole spirit wandered to her from the side. "We have done what we can in the time allotted to us. It will take several weeks to properly prepare a place for every body here, so we have rendered the bodies in the area covered in only shallow graves and marked them for later anointment and recognition. Let us hope no dark magicks touch this place until then, else we may have a horde of desecration scratching at our back."

 

Mori turned and curtsied to the side in thanks to the spirit, before the light mist receded and the spirits returned. She flipped up her hood before approaching the scholar, shovel being returned to her side in exchange for the old tome. "It is quite dusty, and I have been unable to find anything that mentions an author. Perhaps you will find what you are looking for?"

[Driz 1,552]

@@P-Jay, @@Hazard Time, @

 

The professor briefly glanced over at Ametrine, intrigued by her sudden uneasy display of behavior. Perhaps the answer she'd received from Mori hadn't been one she desired to hear. Nevertheless, he would touch on that subject some other time. There were more prominent matters to attend to at that moment.
 

"Not quite another map, I assume... Something else." He answered, disregarding the scene for the time being and taking the crystal pony's map, steadily presenting it open on the ground beside the note he'd found. Next, he carefully grabbed hold of the gravedigger's tome, nodding a polite thank you motion and swiftly skimming through its pages. That one actually required a considerable amount of effort, but soon enough, right on the back cover, he managed to find what he was looking for.

 

An expression of pure satisfaction appeared on his feature as he laid the three artifacts on the ground in front of the party: the map, the old book and the recently discovered scrap of paper. On all of those files, largely visible, the same exact name could be read:

 

 

" K. L. Lovelace... "

 

Anyone who ever knew the slightest thing about Helios could tell that, even though it didn't show on the outside, he was cheering excitedly, jumping with joy on the inside. Similar to a child finding gifts under their tree on Christmas morning, his feature lit up like the opening act to a stage play. Had they engaged in a treasure hunt, finding the first clue towards the prize acted as the kick-start to a roller coaster of discovery. Pieces of a puzzle fitting together resulted in a sentiment the professor longed for every single day.

 

"This name does not ring any bells immediately..." He started theorizing, stroking his goatee. "But whatever the case may be, I believe it is evident that this Lovelace fellow is tied to the lost fable of Valran's Forest of Blood after all... Perhaps the author of these maps, or the mastermind behind the legend in its entirety... One can only wonder." He points a hoof straight across the wood's winding path. "Furthermore, we can deduce that this same mysterious fellow is currently present here among us. Tell me, doesn't this pamphlet look... say... fresh to you?" He began lecturing the mares as if they were his pupils. "It seems as if it fell off someone's pocket, onto the cursed soil of this same path we are following right now... Either on purpose, or out of clumsiness when in a hurry... Hmm..." Helios continued to stare at the pieces of evidence in front of him, floating around inside his own little world of concentration.

[Hazard Time 1,127]

@@Driz @

 

Ametrine looked between Helios and the maps, watching as he explained.  Her stance stiffened as it all came together, and she chewed nervously on her tongue.

 

"Do you believe that we're being led?" she inquired.  "That we were expected?"  She opened her mouth to continue, but closed it again.  Was this to be our destiny?

[P-Jay 1,987]

The parchment on the ground, when unraveled revealed detailed, intricate writing. Apparently, it was a part of a diary, that'd been left behind...

 

It read as follows, but it seemed the previous entry had ended abruptly as soon as his writing on Valran began:

 

 

 

 

--ld Stone King.

 

12/13

I have decided to turn my studies and searching towards a story with a being known as Valran. Such a name invokes fear, but above that, challenge. This fable is one of stagnation, hopes, and dashed aspirations. I first heard of the name, from an old story mothers would tell their children. 'Never set your sights so high that you find yourself alone at the peak; lest you'll end up like old Valran.' After further digging, I uncovered more of his story. Once, far, far from the West, there was a Minotaur. He was a traveler, who journeyed over the world, sporting naught but fur armor and an ax wielded only by himself; a terrifying warrior, one who'd possibly been breed for combat over a course of several generations of selective breeding. Although, I can only assume that is how Minotaur mating habits work--I am no expert on that, and have no desire to learn more of it, despite my title as a scholar. 

 

Valran...He became known in his day, as one of the strongest warriors in the land. He grew to such a caliber, that he believed none posed a challenge, and perhaps...This dampened his spirits. After all, improvement is achieved far better when there is a hurdle to overcome, when there are rivals to compete alongside, yes? He came to plant his ax in the ground of an empty field, and bellow a challenge to the heavens and the earth--a voice that carried through the land, rumors spreading of his declaration. And of his will. 

 

He decreed whoever would fell him in a battle to the death, would come to possess his fortune he'd horded from his life. Perhaps...As time went on, he began to want less of a rival, and more of a battle to send him to an honorable death. Challenger after challenger approached him, in hopes of claiming his glory for their own, and one by one, they fell to his might. One by one, their blood was spilt. One by one, they were forgotten, their fable ending at his...

 

12/18

According to story, from the sheer amount of blood spilt at his feet, plants began to grow...Then bushes...Then trees. Until he was hidden within a forest, grown from the blood of his enemies. Barbaric, but it would certainly explain the red tint of the forest. I have been searching for his grave for quite a few days now; this forests' silence is beginning to cause me to lose sleep.

 

12/25

I believe him to be dead. No being could survive as long as this, yet...I am certainly not the only sentient life in this forest. A hermit, perhaps? Merry Hearth's Warming.

 

12/31

Valran the Barbarian, is very much alive. Nothing shy of a Minotaur would cause those sounds I heard...I had come across close calls before, but this in particular made my heart feel as if it were too intimidated to even beat...He lives in the center of the forest. But how, how is he alive...? Necromancy is banned, and I don't believe Zebras are native here...

 

12-_--_l[\___------

 

 

 

At the end, it seemed something startled him enough to make an incoherent, dark streak across the page, and abandon wherever he might've been writing, in favor of fleeing. Obviously, it was here something gave chase, and caused him to drop his documents...

Edited December 26, 2016 by P-Jay

[Driz 1,552]

@, @@Hazard Time, @@P-Jay 

 

His eagerness too much to bear, Helios picked up the small pamphlet off the ground and steadily unfolded it, taking in every second of the task as if it meant anything close to a precise medical surgery. When the content inside was finally visible, he held the paper upright in front of the three curious pairs of eyes gathered around it. Even then, he still read every word out loud, providing for himself a tactic for better memorizing and understanding of a story. Perhaps old habits died hard.

 

As he thoroughly perused the writings contained within that memo, his expression displayed a very unique mix of anxiety and inquisitiveness. Once he was done, he slightly lowered the paper in front of him in order to be able to grasp just what it meant to be present, body and soul, inside that otherworldly realm known as the forest of blood. The scholar felt something stirring up inside his stomach - a feeling of nausea that eventually made its way to his head, as his vision got blurry and, for a fraction of a second, he lost orientation of his surroundings. Immediately after, he came back round, shaking himself awake and looking back at the lost journal page.

 

As far as first impressions go, Helios was already a fan of Lovelace's work. They were there before him, studying and exploring the unknown. They managed to open way to a whole new wave of explorers, set ablaze by the very same ember: the passion towards knowledge. More than anything, Mr. Whitequill did not wish to let that opportunity pass by. He wouldn't let Lovelace's efforts go to waste. With a determined look decorating his feature, he got back up on his four hooves and glanced at the two mares.

 

"From the looks of it, we will indeed be facing an incredibly dangerous - and equally unknown - threat. Furthermore, our dearest writer, Lovelace, might just be in need of assistance... I, for one, do not intend to dawdle any longer. My purpose is set." He paused, waiting for the inputs from both Mori and Ametrine.

[That One Techpriest You Used To Know 2,286]

@@Driz,

 

I, for one, think this whole affair foolishness. You go to your death, Mori. We've done our task here for now; should the nobles wish to march forwards foolishly on their own, let them.

 

"Perhaps," she whispered, "but we must ensure our need to repeat the task is not in our future." She looked at Ametrine, and then at Helios. "... yes. I agree. We shall accompany you forwards, at least," she said, referring to the many spirits with whom she traveled with. "Although, he seems to have been moving out of the forest as opposed to deeper in... he may have already escaped, say, a day or two ago. It has been fair weather as of late, and rather dry. There also appear to be a distinct lack of wildlife around here that would harm the paper, and little wind as well... it would maintain it's appearance for quite some time."

[Hazard Time 1,127]

@@Driz @

 

"So then this paper could have been here for weeks, months...maybe even longer?"  Ametrine exhaled and closed her eyes.  She hadn't expected a cakewalk, but the number of unknowns she was encountering at this point in time was not satisfying her.  Still, at least Lovelace was nice enough to leave a paper trail.

 

"I think it's safe to say these woods are unnatural.  Whoever wants to appoint themselves the pathfinder is more than welcome to.  I'll take the rear."  Ametrine lifted a hoof to her back and shifted the earthbreaker she carried.  There was trouble ahead, and she couldn't afford to have it snag on a strap.

[Driz 1,552]

@@P-Jay, @, @@Hazard Time 

 

Helios listened patiently to his partners and nodded his head in agreement, taking into considerations their statements. Above all, he was glad; relieved that they chose not to turn back and flee from what sounded like an imminent death warrant. Either way, much like nearly everything else in life, whatever they were dealing with was only a handful of mysteries. Whether or not a horrifying, death-defying beast awaited for them just a few steps ahead. Whether or not the supposed writer known as Lovelace was safe. Just what exactly hid within the blood forest's heart. For such answers to be found, their only option was to proceed and check for themselves.

 

"Then it is settled." The stallion said as he gathered the items scattered in front of the party and handed them back to their respective owners - keeping for himself the newly found diary page, folding it back to its original state into his own saddlebag. "Whatever happens from here onward, I believe it is of utmost importance that we do not part ways: be careful not to distance yourselves from one another... If we can find an agreement, I shall lead the way." He then began cautiously trotting forward, further into the depths of the forest's path.

[P-Jay 1,987]

As the four talked, the forest remained as eerily quiet as ever.  As frozen in time as ever, without the slightest breeze to signal any life. After the agreement was struck, and the walking resumed, slight differences could be felt. A slightly stuffy atmosphere, a slightly metallic scent in the air, the red tint growing in hue...

 

While they walked ever so deeper, a few rustles could be seen. Small, small animals; a rabbit here, a turtle there, but they seemed to be almost depressed. Walking along slowly, only mindlessly searching for their next bite to eat that wouldn't taste like copper. 

 

The forest was, naturally, large from eons to grow. Yet the trio was definitely making strides, seeing as the ominous feeling that had made itself known upon their initial arrival, was growing fast...