the weight of what we owe // open, awakening

[Hope Arcanium]

She had been ambushed. Well, it could be considered an ambush as she hadn’t been expecting these hostile gods to actually try and attack her and Elysium by extension. The large wyvern was a tough opponent, but she managed to hold her own. But this battle left her... forever changed. Or had it always been there to begin with? She had always been told that she was something beyond the ordinary- that her energy was incredibly powerful, unique, and yet no one could get a precise and accurate telling of what or who she is. But this event... it had awakened her. And somehow, this felt like only the beginning of her journey.

She was exhausted, covered in burn marks and deep wounds across much of her body, and somehow she remained standing, dragging a piece of the wyvern she had slain behind her back to Elysium’s camp. Although she was limping, exhaustion gripping her entire body and mind, she pressed forward, unrelenting, the crackle of electricity surrounding her body as well as a small outline of crimson fire further emphasizing her newly awakened soul.

Each pawstep shook Playerone to her core, her muscles screaming in agony as she pressed onwards to her home, blood dripping from her injuries. Still, she persisted- this unfathomable energy and power she now had unleashed kept her going. Her white, scaled dragon wings hung limply at her sides, the underside of them glowing a faint green much like her eyes, the marking on her shoulder, and the newest markings of stars around the corner of her left eye.

This energy and power overflowing from the feline-fox hybrid could only be described as ‘otherworldly’, and her presence that of a god. Those are things the others would take notice of, as Player was too focused on trying to keep moving and get to Rin to even realize the drastic changes she had undergone during her battle with Erinya.

Her entire being was tired. Exhausted. But also felt free.

The hybrid’s body felt like it was on fire- the long trek from the middle of the territory to the fight of her life cost her much of her energy. She barely made it to the entrance of camp before summoning up a desperate call for help.

“R-Rin-! Kade! C-Coop-”

Before she let go of the wyvern’s leg and collapsed, the fiery aura and electrical crackles that once surrounded her dissipating. Her energy, which she had not been aware of, probably was more than enough to draw attention before she even spoke due to the nature of it.

She was conscious, barely able to speak, and the pain was catching up with her quickly. She couldn’t move- there was no energy left in her worn out body. Her wounds would require immediate medical treatment, and it was a wonder how she even made it back, much less how she was even able to remain conscious.

//tl;dr- Playerone returns from her battle with Erinya carrying the opponent’s leg with her bearing a strange marking. Play has also been awakened into godhood/realizing that she is a ‘god’, and has found her way miraculously just outside of camp with multiple deep lacerations and electrical burn wounds.

[Warringkingdoms]

  [font=trebuchet ms]Quennel is healing well.

  Under the candlelight, Rin wrote on the pages of a new notebook, filling the blank space at a steady pace. The distant thunder calmed her, though she had to wonder about its source- the skies were clear then, with nary a cloud in sight. Then again, perhaps her mind was creating it out of whole cloth. I miss Nemhain, she scrawled, her ears twitching. I've accomplished... some things in my research, and it's probably for the best that she takes a break. But having her around made fighting off these-

  Playerone's voice, screaming her name, sent a jolt through her, the ink splattering across the paper at the sudden stimulus. Gritting her teeth, she whipped around and snatched her satchel from beside the door, then rushed outside. The pain and panic in Play's tone had her fearing the worst, but maybe- maybe- she could be saved. Maybe this wouldn't be like Starrynight, or the deer, or...

  ...no, she insisted to herself, she couldn't think about the past right now. This was the now, the part she could influence.

  Arriving on the scene, she hurried to Play's side. Still breathing. Quickly applying gauze to the two most severe cuts, she yelled out, "Someone get over here! I need extra paws!" The burns would need to be treated too, but her first priority was to stop the bleeding before Play lost too much blood. In her haste, she only subconsciously noticed the strange aura in the air- like the oxygen itself crackled with electricity with every breath that Play took.

  Using one of her back legs to press gauze against a third cut while using her other back leg for balance, she found her gaze wandering over to the hunk of meat that Play had been carrying- probably belonging to an attacker. The scales suggested a wyvern, but she could notice a strange pattern set within the scales.

  Her heart nearly stopped.

  Two horizontal zigzag lines on top of each other. The symbol of Aquarius.

  Skyborne.

  A familiar burning feeling set into her skin, within the scars on her frame- smoke curling out of her maw as she struggled not to hyperventilate. This is your fault, the past echoed into her ears. You let her go out alone and now this happened. Hypocrite. Weak, useless. Ragged breaths pour- poured out of her, her paws pressing harder against Play's form as if to prove that she was really there and not some sick hallucination.

  They can't take you from me too, she wanted to scream out, but the words would accomplish nothing. All she could do was hold Play here and hope that someone made it here soon. Clenching her jaw, Rin shut her eyes. Stay alive, she willed, though she knew Play would not hear her messages the way Nemhain could.

  She could feel the energy draining from her bones, but she would not give up here.

  /Rin is subconsciously attempting to use health transfer on Playerone

[kinglykingstone]

DALE COOPER

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Cooper had been spending very little of his time within the mountain, finding it sickeningly claustrophobic. He prefered to roam the territory, sleeping under trees and on cliffs under the stars. Maybe it was a blessing that he was in such a way, causing him to be close to the border, or just a coincidence. Either way, when Playerone called out, he heard it loud and clear.

Heart racing, the canine lept to his feet, immediately breaking into a sprint. Were it not for the adrenaline running through his veins, the old dog would never be able to push himself so hard and he would regret it later. As he found her, Rin by her side, he stumbled to a stop, panting. "How... How can I help?" He'd ask this calmly, years in the field coming back into play and giving him a level head for now.

© MADI

[Tena M.]

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Tena Moonspinner —
Tena knew something of... Otherworldly power.  Of containing something within herself that wasn't quite mortal.  Not quite normal.  The petite Demdji never spoke of it out loud, never voiced her thoughts on her mixed-immortal blood.  What sort of father did a Djinn make?  A non-existent one.

Perhaps it was being a Demdji that saved her when... Well.  It was more Lavi than anything.  But she'd thought for sure she'd died.  Was dying.  Should've died.  And it would've been fine with her, if it meant she had bought time for those she'd been protecting.  For Lavi, who'd inexplicably followed her.  But she'd opened her eyes to the safety of home.  Alive.

Her Djinn blood clearly didn't save her from the burns left behind by the flames.  Half her face a mask of burnt skin.  An eye gone pale.  An ear torn.  Usefulness fading.

Lavi would grumble if he saw her heading out the door.  She had to dart out when he wasn't looking.  Not paying close attention.  Knowing full well he'd know in the end.  Stumbling on bandaged legs, sure she'd heard a cry for help though trusting her ears had become... Difficult lately.  Lavi had been expressing concern she might be deaf on the left side.

Her lungs ached as she skidded to a stop, brows creased as her eyes moved over the scene.  Quickly analyzing.  Faltering.  Something felt... Odd.  Different about Playerone.  Charged, like the air before a massive storm.  Familiar, because she felt it in herself sometimes.  Felt it in Ebra.

"Who did this?" Clearly she'd been in a fight.  The culprit could still be close.  Reachable.  Killable.
[align=right]— I tell you this story, save your life, set you free

[Hope Arcanium]

The hybrid god could feel some of the energy returning to her, the pressure of Rin holding bandages to her wounds seemed to burn slightly, and her face scrunched up. But the way that her friends and brother came to her rescue gave her reassurance that she wasn’t alone, and that she was still loved, regardless of what happened. Yes, the thought of what she had done to Cooper moons ago still haunted her, but this was proof that she need not worry about such a thing. He cared for her still. That’s what mattered.

Everyone here cared.

She wanted to speak, to tell them how grateful she was to have them there with her, but she knew better than to speak when she could use all the energy she could get and save. Rin, Cooper and the rest of Elysium is all that she could ask for at this moment- being able to exist here with them, for however long or short that time may be. She wouldn’t die today, no- that was not an option. She had things to do. She had to help protect Elysium from these gods the best she could.

Speaking of the hostile gods, Tena arrived, asking who had done this to her. With what movement she could muster, she tried to point her paw in the direction of the Wyvern leg. The one with the unnatural symbol on it. The one of her attacker, who she was able to take down with a bit of effort and luck. Lots, and lots of stupid, good old luck.

“A wyvern... I took care of it...” She felt her entire body scream in agony, even with that little movement and speaking up, it felt like literal hell. There wasn’t any way to describe it as Playerone hissed in pain, holding back from speaking or making any more noise.

They would have to wait for an explanation until she was healed.