Horizon Walkers (Game Thread) Dead

[hiei82]

"Before we left, I saw Dalrel behind a pillar. I wanted to shout, but he was too far away, and then the Horizon opened. I'm sorry he was left behind Kes..." Nettil said, drawing Kes's attention. Upon looking over, she saw that she was speaking to Des which confused her for a moment. "Oh. You're alive?" Kes started to say, her tone betraying her disappointment. "I'm Kes by the way." she finally added before returning her attention to the wreck.

The wreck was a small vessel but it wasn't in too terrible shape. If they had the supplies, they could probably have fixed it. Sadly, there just wasn't enough wood. She thought Lucia might have been able to scavenge from another island, but she doubted that would be enough. Still, maybe some of it could be salvaged.

These ideas were interrupted when she heard a groaning from inside the vessel. For a moment she thought it was just the ship. Then she heard it again and knew it was a person. Turning on her heels, she called out to the others. "There's people still alive in here!" From there, she started pushing through the wreckage, looking for survivors.

 

[DarkRawen]

"Before we left, I saw Dalrel behind a pillar. I wanted to shout, but he was too far away, and then the Horizon opened. I'm sorry he was left behind Kes..."

"I'm... Des," Des replied, he wasn't sure what else to say. Dalrel was left behind? And Nettil had come instead? "And why didn't you tell us? Dalrel was injured, we wouldn't have left him behind if..." He frowned.

"You mortals truly have no care for each other, do you? Slaughtering each other, brother using brother as a shield... Did it not strike you that telling us this earlier would have been an idea? Dalrel... he's been with us since the beginning... and if he was hurt, he might be dead. And that might very well be because you didn't tell anyone, only thinking about saving yourself."

Des narrowed his eyes. He felt bad for not having noticed that Dalrel was missing, but the man had been rather quiet, and there had been a wave. Still, now that he knew that Dalrel could be dead, he sighed, another of their original group gone. Was that going to keep happening until he was wandering the horizons alone. What if something happened to Kes?

I was mistaken. Mortals does treat animals like they treat other mortals. And if it is enough for a demon to frown upon it, what must one of those gods of theirs think?

"You know he wouldn't have been hurt if you hadn't insisted on dragging us around, right? We could have... I..." Des shook his head. "Mortals," he muttered, and walked over towards Kes, only for her to call for everyone.

"There's people still alive in here!"

"Got it," Des replied, his thoughts still sort of elsewhere, and went over to help her look for survivors. At least Kes was good, she had cared about the goats as well. On the other hand, she could execute any of her kind with the simplest of ease. It was odd, wondering about human morality. It felt like forever since he had done so, having just tagged along.

Perhaps I should ask Alex.

 

[Anti-American Eagle]

After the wave hit Kyras was knocked into the water. The cold cold cold water. Focus He started pouring his energy into himself, doing what he could with his body with what was happening. Forcing heat into his limbs from, he wasn't sure where he was pulling it but he was thankful for it. As his eyes opened and focus returned he scrambled out of the shallow water he found himself in and towards the burning tree he saw.

Standing next to the fire, almost hugging the thing he heard "Before we left, I saw Dalrel behind a pillar. I wanted to shout, but he was too far away, and then the Horizon opened. I'm sorry he was left behind Kes..."

Which brought to his mind to Dalrel again. He heard Des talking about abandoning him... Lecturing Nettil about not saying anything. He hadn't been abandoned, there was nothing that could be done. He wondered if he should say something... then as if on cue Kes yelled about survivors.

After a moment he walked over to the wreckage and started helping Kes with moving it.

 

[Josh123914]

"I'm... Des,"
And at that Nettil cringed, deciding to just stand by and take the lecture she was delivered. It would help.... Des, and would at least stave off any extra questions about the last few hours in that world.

As Des finished, the real Kes was heard shouting about survivors. "There's people still alive in here!"
Nettil was tired. No, more than that, she was exhausted, but persevered as there was more work to be done. She sauntered over towards the wreck, meeting Kyras along the way, who no doubt heard Kes' tirade.
She put on a winning smile and spoke, "Umm.... You were the last to meet the group at the Horizon. If you saw Dalrel, could we discuss it in private before the rest of the group finds out? I'd just appreciate it, okay?"

 

[DarkRawen]

Des wasn't in a good mood, and when Zuria quite coldly assessed the survivors in the wreck, his mood got even worse. He quietly slipped away to think, only getting back to the rest when there was a camp-fire prepared.

"You should try this. It's tolerable. Anyone have any good stories?"

Des shook his head, and instead sat down next to Alex, motioning for the other to listen. Then, he leaned over, and whispered. "Why are mortals so callous?" he asked. "Why are the lives of others of the same standing, with the same kind of presence, not important to them? Why do they treat animals as if they are above them?"

He figured that Alex would know. He examined the man closely, waiting for a reply, tilting his head in a both curious and concerned manner, eyebrows wrinkled and his mouth in a careful frown.

 

[IFS]

The wave left Alex cold and wet, his clothing was quite protective against wet and cold normally of course, but the land he came from was beset by cold rain not massive waves. Shivering he set about helping the others get a fire together, without a source of heat to stay warm and dry his clothes he would certainly freeze to death. Once the fire was raging he stripped off his wet clothes, revealing his scarred body, and set them near the fire to dry, digging around in his pack he found a small blanket that was only somewhat damp and draped it over himself.

"You should try this. It's tolerable. Anyone have any good stories?"

Grabbing a chunk of the meat for himself he took a bite, the meat was dripping with fat and he wasn't certain it was fully cooked, but food was important to stay warm. He shook his head at the mention of storytelling, obviously she was impervious to the cold to think about such a thing at the moment.

"Why are the lives of others of the same standing, with the same kind of presence, not important to them? Why do they treat animals as if they are above them?"

He frowned, the demon continued to surprise him. Perhaps where he's from is a backwards land where demons are helpful faeries, feh. The question itself was not so easy to answer though, and Alex hesitated for a long moment before speaking.

"It depends on the person," he said "if I seem callous to a loss it is because I have experienced many such losses, and choose not to dwell on them. It may be the same for others, or perhaps they have their own reasons. In general though I find that life for us is too short to spend it all dwelling on things, or people, that we have lost."

He sighed, that wasn't entirely true as he did dwell on his losses but rather chose not to show it.

"It is also a matter of morale," he continued "showing a loss has affected us can make us seem more vulnerable, and when that happens we feel more vulnerable, there isn't really time for that right now. Perhaps later we will mourn, but for now survival is our concern."

 

[hiei82]

Kes listened to what Zuria said. "Male? Odd, must be Huriglian, explains the state of their ship at least. Feverish. They've been exposed too long; I've seen this before. If they actually wake up they'll wish they hadn't. At least they won't be needing the food or coats anymore."

For a moment, she thought Zuria might aid her in helping them since she obviously knew what was wrong with them. However, instead the woman took to rummaging through the leftovers of the ship. Instead, it was Kes who had to deal with it. One-by-one, she pulled away debris and picked the sailors up before relocating them to safer ground not far from the flames. She left those unconscious with ample covering to keep them warm and set about helping them however she could. Specifically, she looked for surviving containers of fresh water for them.

She didn't know if her limited survival knowledge would apply to the different sub-species, but most humans she'd encountered required water to survive fevers so it was a good place to start. While searching for these supplies, she similarly found more supplies which she liberated from the wreck.

At some point early one in her search, she'd found some clothes and placed them near the fire to dry. Once they were dry, she'd change into them and let her current clothes do that same.

As she made her many trips, she caught bits of the conversation and events. She noted Alex's many scars with some surprise. She'd realized he was a hunter of demons, but given her experience with them was limited to Des and a disease back on Alex's world, she hadn't expected so many scars. Kes wondered if she'd fought some kind of demon in the arena before but quickly abandoned the line of thought as useless speculation.

Kes heard Des's words as well. "Why are the lives of others of the same standing, with the same kind of presence, not important to them? Why do they treat animals as if they are above them?" he'd asked. Kes wasn't quite sure how to answer it immediately but was given time thanks to Alex's answer. She took the opportunity to change clothes and set her normal outfit to dry.

Kes couldn't disagree with his answer; life was short so there was limited time to spend mourning the dead. On the other hand, Kes suspected that wasn't what Des was actually talking about. "Many do believe they're above others. Sometimes they're right; eventually they're wrong." From there, Kes started to say something in her native tongue before stopping and translating. "We're all something else's predator; we're all something else's prey."

 

[Anti-American Eagle]

"Umm.... You were the last to meet the group at the Horizon. If you saw Dalrel, could we discuss it in private before the rest of the group finds out? I'd just appreciate it, okay?"

Kyras turned to see Netti's smiling face and blinked "Why?.." he shook his head slightly not in the mind to argue "Fine."

As the wreckage was pulled away and the shivering unconscious bodies were exposed, Kyras listened to Zuria, what she said meant that they were dead or would die out here. He watched Kes drag them near the fire and tend to them as the time went... In the morning he'd try to help them he thought. His strength needed to go to himself now, it was too cold and he was too tired to deal with more than that right now and he wasn't sure if there was anything he could do for them.

As things wore on Kyras found himself sitting by the fire and listening to the others again. Des asked things he wasn't expecting. He nodded to the answer Kes put forth to the questions as he thought. He tried to think of something to add, but decided not to speak. His thoughts on the matter, what he had learned and been told had already been spoken by her and Alex in a broad way already. The thought that came to him was that Life is cruel and selfishness is the only defence of the living. It was something he had heard one of the others slaves say to him in his early days as a prisoner of the Liemians.

 

[DarkRawen]

"It depends on the person, if I seem callous to a loss it is because I have experienced many such losses, and choose not to dwell on them. It may be the same for others, or perhaps they have their own reasons. In general though I find that life for us is too short to spend it all dwelling on things, or people, that we have lost. It is also a matter of morale, showing a loss has affected us can make us seem more vulnerable, and when that happens we feel more vulnerable, there isn't really time for that right now. Perhaps later we will mourn, but for now survival is our concern."

"No, you're... not callous," Des finally replied. "You're clever, that's why I asked you. But... my life is not short, does that mean I should dwell on all the deaths? Because I..." Des frowned. "I don't really have that sharp a memory, I go through life, and everything around me change so suddenly. One week the king is red-haired, the next week he's got a black beard. Suddenly the woman I cherished so much has passed away from old age. I can only mourn those I still remember."

Then he listened to the others, to Kes, who spoke of being someone's prey. Des wondered if he was anyone's prey... because, who would prey upon him? Who would prey upon a demon? He listened to Zuria, who spoke of the illness that had befallen the menn on the boat, but what she said confused him further. Illness was strange to him, a weakness he didn't seem to possess. In the end, it didn't explain much to him.

"What about your eternal life?" he finally asked. "You speak of surviving, but do you not have gods that will judge your life, long or short? Will you not go to hell, like so many other mortals? If I die, I disappear... but you won't, is that not so? That is what the mortals say where I am from, that the flesh's days are numbered, but the soul is eternal. Would you rather have a long, pleasant life than going to the paradise mortals speak of?"

 

[Josh123914]

After leaving Kyras, Nettil tugged at some of the tree branches of the burning tree. She used the staff to cleave these segments away from the burning tree. She felt weaker than ever, but used her magic to stretch and shape the brush to act as a large windbrace between herself, the campfire, and the rest of the island.
She then kicked up a small mossy stump to rest her head on the ground, and then pulled out a simple blanket from her bag, before curling up on the ground.

That is what the mortals say where I am from, that the flesh's days are numbered, but the soul is eternal. Would you rather have a long, pleasant life than going to the paradise mortals speak of?"
She heard in the distance some pious preachings from Des.
Nettil realised that she was physically tired, not mentally, and so wouldn't be able to sleep adequately while others spoke, so she joined in.
"I believe that when I die, my remains will feed the world, and this." she said, gesturing her hands to the tree structure she created.
"And while I would hope to believe there is an afterlife, I've seen no proof of one. So why should I act on the presumption there is one?" She stated, disappointed by her own lack of optimism. Nettil then looked over to see who Des was talking to. "And I'm Nettil. Sorry, I didn't really introduce myself since we got here."
She said, slamming her head onto her mossy stump defiantly, but soon found it was also a rather painful action.

"....Ow." She moaned quietly.

 

[Lunar Templar]

Lucia just rolled her eyes as the conversation turned from the morality of 'what makes one better then others' to 'gods' and continued gathering wood from the other trees for the fire. Unfortunately, there wasn't much so it didn't take long so for now so just sat quietly by the fire and hoped they talk about something else. Her thoughts however turned to the effects this monster had on it's victims. 'Kinda sounds like Leviathan, well, an angry Leviathan anyway.' The thought of facing one of Leviathan's 'cousins' from another world was not a pleasant one, Leviathan him self was a right pain to even get to let alone fight, so it's little wonder most actively avoid angering the great serpent.

 

[Anti-American Eagle]

Kyras sat quietly as the conversation continued, eventually he spoke up when the silence came. Looking at Des he said "Death isn't something to dwell upon, death is just a part of one's path. I was taught when I was young that there is more than this life, and that all of us are spirits and what lies beyond us is eternity." he paused briefly to think and then continued "I don't worry about judgement, if I'm to be judged it will be in this life."

 

[hiei82]

You speak of surviving, but do you not have gods that will judge your life, long or short? Will you not go to hell, like so many other mortals? If I die, I disappear... but you won't, is that not so? That is what the mortals say where I am from, that the flesh's days are numbered, but the soul is eternal. Would you rather have a long, pleasant life than going to the paradise mortals speak of?" Des said, sparking a conversation.

Kes didn't really have anything to add on the matter of religions. Her people had a faith - and she did as well for that matter - but it didn't have anything to do with gods. "I don't know about eternal life and paradise. My people believe in spirits of nature. We have a few rituals to quiet these spirits should they try to harm us, but we do not follow them and we do not build monuments to them like the Liemians do. Most are not even human. As far as I know, our spirits don't live on beyond us unless they're angry."

 

[DarkRawen]

Des listened to the mortals, it was strange how their view of the world differed so much from those of the mortals where he was from. Not only was their gods different, but even among those in the group, the teachings were different, views of how everything was supposed to be differed.

"Personally," Des finally said. "I think that it's better to live your life as pleasant as you can. The afterlife will surely hold something else, something unfamiliar and strange for mortals, why not take comfort in what you say. However," he looked at the fire in front of him, then back at them.

"Mortals where I am from think otherwise. They keep away from pleasure and joy, afraid of being judged and cast aside by an almighty god. Some starve themselves, and live with almost nothing, not because they are poor or unable to get anything, but because they believe it will serve them well, that their piety will get them into some heavenly kingdom. It's... strange, isn't it? How mortals differ? When I was younger, hundreds of years ago, I used to think that... well, that all mortals were the same, humans, animals, bugs..." he chuckled.

"Some might take offence at that. Anyways, I learned that it was not true, that not one human was the same as his family, even if they share beliefs." He tilted his head. "And even now, I'm learning that there is not one belief of what the world is. It's... odd."

 

[hiei82]

Kes didn't know what to think of what Des said. It seemed both obvious to her and other parts were just beyond her understanding. It didn't help that she had little concept of an afterlife. Still, Kes was never one to let things bother her. After completing her turn at watch,she set about going to sleep.

After everything that had happened in the last day, even Kes felt fatigued. As such she slept well. It was dreamless and all together too short, but it was welcome. When Zuria spoke, Kes awoke with a start. She'd half expected someone was attacking them, but instead was faced with a calm morning. Zuria seemed to be cleaning up the camp, but otherwise... nothing.

After Zuria had put the fire out, Kes set up another camp in the event the sailors awoke. She left them some supplies and weapons and the tools they'd need to construct a raft from the wreck. They were sailors so she assumed they'd know how to do that. And if they died, then so be it.

After that came a sudden realization. Though she'd been aware they were on a small island and they'd need to leave, she hadn't put much thought into the how. Specifically, she hadn't considered the fact that they'd need to travel by boat. Understandably, Kes was rather hesitant on the matter. Her last experience with boats hadn't exactly gone well.

To settle her mind before the voyage, she skinned and cut the goats so make something with them later. From what she knew, unquiet spirits usually only happened when a creature had been killed needlessly. If their death proved useful, than the spirit could take solace in that. Unfortunately, the task didn't help much with the boat issue.

Knowing she'd only lose her breakfast later, Kes chose not to eat and instead only drank water. Wherever they went, Kes knew they'd need to make landfall at the end of the day due to the size of the ships so she at least hoped she'd be able to eat and sleep then.

When the time came, Kes got on the raft and immediately regretted it. The rocking seemed even worse than on the larger ship they took into the city in the last world. As they set sail, she tried to fight the seasickness and help with the rowing as best she could. Occasionally she had to stop and heave off the side of the raft. The lack of food helped as there was little for her to lose. As the day went on however, her strength drained further and further until she could barely move or see straight. Her head began to ache and her skin paled. Eventually, all she could do was lightly paddle with her arm; providing little power.

Through it all, she saw little of the scenery they passed. She was vaguely aware of it, but with her dizziness and headache it was little more than blue, grey, and green blurs. At some point they stopped though Kes didn't know why.

 

[Josh123914]

Nettil's head was pounding after slamming it against that rock, but that feeling subsided as she drifted off to sleep.
She dreamt of the wave. A wave as large as the one that night, but bigger, as though there was somehow more water added to it, making it faster but smaller at the same time. Nettil dug in her heels and created the same pillar as before. The wave eclipsed the hill in front, and washed away the others, before slamming into the front of her pillar. The shock sent her flying off her pedestal, and headfirst towards the ground.
Nettil closed her eyes, but felt the impact of a marble floor. Sunshine was filling through windows behind her. She got up and inspected her surroundings. Potted plants lined the shelves and vines grew on the walls, and there were steps spiraling upstairs. Nettil went to inspect where would be her room. She entered the room and looked around.
Total silence.
Then, Nettil peered into a cupboard, but instead of clothes or papers found only smoke. She tilted her head up and found most of the room engulfed in smoke and fire. A figure was in the room with her, but she couldn't make out who. The figure took a step forward, but as it did a crashing noise was heard as a chunk of the ceiling collapsed.


Nettil gasped and threw her eyes open, only to discover she was wrapped in her cocoon shaped sleeping position. She shivered from the cold, damp weather, and nearby heard Zuria.
"Wake up everyone."
Nettil stood before Zuria could get to her, tossed her blanket into her bag and then headed towards the water. Her reflection presented a face that Nettil considered attractive, and long hair that was now starting to get in the way.
Nettil then rummaged through the bag again. "Shit." she muttered, realizing she hadn't brought a container or even a cup for water. She splashed some icy water in her face and then drank with her hands. Her hands were more coarse than the night before. Rougher, but at the same time with looser skin. Nettil couldn't put her finger on what exactly caused this, and went on to dry herself. As she pulled out the small cloth, one of her sandals somehow shot out of the bag.
"I won't be wearing those anytime soon." she lamented, before packing everything back into the bag and tying the top and returning to the rest of the group.

"Morning," she said quietly to the others. On picking up her new staff Nettil recounted who was in the group; Of them, Kes and Des no doubt loathed her by now, while Kyras most likely thought quite lowly of Nettil for her request the previous night.
As they all squeezed onto their transport, Nettil slided the staff beneath her, and sat her bag on her lap.

The journey was long and frigid. While on board, Nettil was tempted to fall asleep, but couldn't will herself to. She thought of other travels by boat she took at home. Most were on larger vessels, with sturdy hulls and the like.
Nettil looked at the looming glaciers and was reminded of Sal. She felt guilty for losing him, but if she wanted answers she probably wouldn't get it from the group. She pushed him to the back of her mind again, and pulled open her bag to reveal a smaller pouch. In lay dozens of unique seeds. Some large, some small, quite a few were vibrant, but Nettil treasured most of them, reassuring herself that she will rebuild what once was.

After counting each seed and assessing them, Nettil looked up to see that the raft had stopped, and their de facto leader was asleep. Nettil felt the need to say something, but wasn't sure what. Something, anything to fill the space that was the current slate of silence.
She made an audible, "Hmm" and then continued. "Awfully cold, isn't it?"