Horizon Walkers (Game Thread) Dead

[Josh123914]

Dalrel witnessed the spectacle unfold as others ran bleary eyed into the sunlight. If Dalrel wasn't imagining if it was him at the bottom of that abyss, he would have ran with them.
Around the time he stopped with his dreaming he was on his feet. Adjacent him was Serragish, bent over some poorly drawn lines passing for a map, while those that didn't leave the room were all backed up against the walls.
The room was silent, until the new commander sauntered in, eyeing anyone daring to look him in the eye.
It was after several moments noisily making themselves known through the commander's exhasparated breathing that Dalrel approached him positively.
''....Anything you'd like to know?'' he asked. The group he joined were total strangers, and best he try and cement a position for himself if he's to have any hope of survival.
''Please, by all means, what do you need?'' he said, hoping not to come across as sarcastic.

 

[DarkRawen]

Des followed the mortals as they walked through the strange, new horizon. He hadn't passed through a lot, so each one was different, a new experience. Part of him wondered if he should find a way home, and if all of this had been because of a rather silly and not well-thought action. However, he looked at the women in the group, and decided that he certainly had found what he was looking for, exotic women, all beautiful in their own way. He thought of the ice-user again, and felt mixed feelings, regret, of course, but there was also the vitae inside of him, delicious and energizing.

I'll just have to try to remember her.

How often had he thought something like that? He couldn't remember, he never could. His memory wasn't exceptional in any way, barely a good as a mortals, and most of his 400 years consisted of women, loving every single one of them, seducing them, sleeping with them... how could he ever hope to remember one of them more then the others? Deep in thought, he didn't say anything when they sat down, though his attention was more there when people started introducing themselves. He knew who most of the others was, and he was sure most of them knew his name, but still, he smiled.

"Hello, my name is Des, it's nice being able to greet each other without being pitted against hostile creatures." Just as he spoke, more people arrived, and started being... well. Mortal. Speaking of fighting and war. He tended to just shut out those noises, and so he did, besides, the others could just deal with it, he wasn't much for speaking to mortals who tried to make themselves better than other mortals. It seemed a little silly to him, was all. Des kept eating as the whole ordeal went on, and suddenly he found that a lot of people had gone outside, or left their seats. Was he supposed to do that?

The mortals will sort it out,

he shrugged, and spotted Serragish. "Hi," he smiled, warmly, as if there was no one else in the room. "Serragish, do you need help examining that?"

"....Anything you'd like to know? Please, by all means, what do you need?"

That made Des even more sure of the mortals were taking care of it.

 

[Lunar Templar]

She listened to the happenings from where they put her but did nothing for now, deciding it was best to just stay still and let the humans handle the situation, besides, even if she did try and 'help' she'd likely only make things worse by simply talking, so for now she lay down and closed her eyes, and kept a ear on the happenings around her case something needed a response from her.

 

[Terratina.]

Names flew around as the others ate and drank their full. A Leimian in the corner of the room also joined in with the feast, savouring each bite. Though, one might say that the person was enjoying the food a little too much. The glutton pushed aside feelings of dizziness, grogginess and fullness just to cramp more food in, like the Leimian hadn't eaten in decades. At least, until all of those lovely things were put away. The gormandizer was busy with the matter of picking teeth as the goings on when on and on. It was really quite droll. All that mattered was escape, anyway, and this charade was pretty demeaning. It would probably been more fun to stick a nose somewhere else or stay and watch and perhaps participate in the carnage near the arena.

And to top it all off, some lout was trying to play leader.

The Leimian sighed and stood up.

A speech was made, "My name is Tarquin - short for Tarquinius. And dear me, this 'Daldrel' doesn't seem to know anything."

Spoiler: OOC

For those who don't seem to get what's going on, things happened thusly:

1.) Lion carnage.
2.) Id-Lion sees a very blurry image of its arena friends walking away, including Miss Mind Touch.
3.) Id release its grip on the Lion.
4.) Possesses a citizen of the Leimian Empire, Tarquinius. (I'd figured one frightened fatso is pretty weak-minded so an easy target, possession/puppetry details are in Id's sheet as its major power thing.)
5.) Solid Snake it up and follow the band of misfits through the Horizon and what not.
6.) Chill around the camp, etc.
7.) Present time.

 

[IFS]

Alex had kept an eye on the cloaked figure, and noted it taking control of one of the Leimans, he only observed for a time though as all it did was make the man gorge himself. It did the same with the lion, a gluttonous spirit then. But then it left to join others at a meeting. He had previously been happy to let Dalrel claim leadership, such a claim was meaningless and insubstantial but he was not about to allow some toxic being to speak for them.

He approached the group quickly and quietly, stopping alongside the possessed lieman "Leave him now, you have no right to his body or mind," he said, directing his voice to the Lieman but loud enough that others could hear.

Without turning his attention from him he addressed the others "This 'Tarquin' does not speak for us either, rather it is a controlling spirit having taken possession of one of your men."

 

[Anti-American Eagle]

Kyras listened intently, they had been found out.
He moved to near the other one, Kes, and sat beside her. He began speaking in a hushed tone.
"You don't know me and I don't know you, but it's clear to me you were held by them for awhile as well. They know we aren't them. If you help me get out of their territory, I'll help you get where you need to be. I could make a run for it on my own, but I don't know the territory and walking into it alone sounds like a fast way to die."

 

[hiei82]

"You don't know me and I don't know you, but it's clear to me you were held by them for awhile as well. They know we aren't them. If you help me get out of their territory, I'll help you get where you need to be. I could make a run for it on my own, but I don't know the territory and walking into it alone sounds like a fast way to die." Kyras said.

Kes raised an eyebrow at the statement. She'd been listening to the conversation of "leaders" and what not. Truthfully she didn't much care who was chosen; all this talking was meaningless to her. The only thing which had meaning to her was action. The alternative offer Kyras raised was an intriguing one if without benefit.

"I don't need to be anywhere; my people are gone-" she said between bites of food. "-and I think there's still safety in numbers." She took a moment to think before continuing. "However, when things turn bad I'll be ready to run; if we stick together, I'll work with you." She waited for a reply before turning back to the conversation on leaders. After a few seconds she returned to Kyras and asked "So how long were you in the arenas?"

 

[Anti-American Eagle]

"I don't need to be anywhere; my people are gone - and I think there's still safety in numbers. However, when things turn bad I'll be ready to run; if we stick together, I'll work with you. "

"Fair enough."

"So how long were you in the arenas?"

He took a moment to think about it, a small amount of happiness crept into his voice as he thought about it being over.
"I think it had been three Ides out of a Deck."
He paused and realized out of every Horizon he had been on, his tribe was the only one to use that system. He figured it would be easiest to use what he knew of the system his keepers used. The happiness seemed to leave his voice as he remembered his tribe.
"From what I gleaned, over three of their year cycles. How long has it been for you?"

 

[hiei82]

"From what I gleaned, over three of their year cycles. How long has it been for you?"

Kes didn't answer right away; instead focusing on the conversation at hand. Or rather pretending to. Truth was, she was counting the number of years. After a few seconds she spoke again. "Around fifteen I think. I don't know for certain." she said pensively; she tried not to think of the past and it reflected in how she spoke of it.

 

[Anti-American Eagle]

"Around fifteen I think. I don't know for certain."

"I'm sorry to hear that." He sighed and shook his head "The gods'll cut those monsters down some day."
He downed the rest of his glass of water and turned his head back to the "leader" / "execution" debacle that would determine whether the plan turned into a gut and run or a peaceful walk away.

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

Vaerys watched what happened with growing interest but that interest went down the hole as the little spectacle broke up. He looked at his plate seeing it empty which made him a little anxious. He loved rest just as much as anybody but staying down for too long made him feel uneasy. It made him think and remember thoughts that he wanted to throw out into that dark abyss. He was walking back, partially looking out the tent when he caught himself nearly walk into one of the ex-gladiators who seemed to be napping on the floor. He chuckled before curiosity got the better of him.

"So, where are you from?" Vaerys asked the creature. He remembered one of the other ex-gladiators mention her name but the memory eluded him except for when the arena, the creature had a muzzle on. "I imagine that lion throwing is a past time, isn't it?

 

[Lunar Templar]

She perked her ears up, letting them twitch as Vaerys spoke to her, then briefly considered ignoring him. Then the thought crossed her mind she might be stuck with these people a bit longer then just this check point/base thing, at which point she opened her eyes and give a quick look around before replying.

After all, she was 'laying low' to keep the trouble to a minimum.

"We have no 'lions' to speak of back home, nor do we have humans." She said as she sat up "Which I'm starting to think might be a good thing" She then paused, and pondered a moment "As to your first question, much with my name, your human language lacks the sounds needed to speak them. Unlike my name, which has no accurate translation, the forest I came from does have a reasonably close translation. 'The Nine Trees'."

 

[DarkRawen]

"I think I can manage reading a map, nothing wrong with my sight or anything."

Des chuckled as well. "Of course, I was just curious, to be honest. Just wondering what a beautiful woman such as you wanted with the map, surely something fun and interesting." He leaned closer in his seat, trying to see the map a little better, but not managing to.

"So---" before he got the chance to ask about something else, Serragish started talking with one of the mortals from this world, discussing the map. Kes was busy talking to... what was his name again... Kyras? Yeah, Kyras, and their conversation didn't sound very pleasant. Des couldn't think of anything encouraging to say, and so, he didn't speak, just listened around from a conversation he'd be interested in. Luckily, Alex provided that rather quickly.

"This 'Tarquin' does not speak for us either, rather it is a controlling spirit having taken possession of one of your men."

Des tilted his head, looking at this Tarquin. He didn't think he had seen him in the arena, nor when they got through the horizon. Was Alex speaking the truth then? Then again, Des didn't remember most of the guys of their group, their faces all sorta looked the same to him. Des wasn't sure what he thought of possession, a little of it wasn't bad, as long as the mortal was treated well, and it didn't last for very long. Some creatures needed to do that to survive, after all. Besides, sometimes mortals needed to be led, else their own lack of experience would ruin them.

Is Alex speaking the truth, I wonder? Or rather, does he know for sure?

Des listened to some of the other mortals speak, they were talking about proof. Proof would be needed, yeah, though Des didn't particularly either way, just the possibility was... curious. Not as interesting as if it had been a woman, -or as a female in any situation- but he sat closer to the two.

"How do you tell if someone's possessed or not?" he asked Alex. "He looks like a normal mortal to me." He was still smiling, not unnerved by the thought of the possibility of a spirit capable of possessing people, nor bothered by the heavy atmosphere in the room because of the military people.

 

[Josh123914]

"My name is Tarquin - short for Tarquinius. And dear me, this 'Daldrel' doesn't seem to know anything."

Dalrel was in disbelief for a few moments at the sheer audacity of the statement thrown at him-- it was probably true in the context, but they were all strangers here. ''There is no need to belittle others, whoever you are, and aside from that at least I'm making an effort to help, if you somehow know more about our group, which I doubt, considering my name is Dalrel, of the Free State Ilyara and the house of Alress, but by all means, negotiate.''
He figured throwing a few names around the others hadn't heard of ought to shut this 'Tarquin' up.

"This 'Tarquin' does not speak for us either, rather it is a controlling spirit having taken possession of one of your men."
Brilliant he thought to himself. He gestured to the rest of the group as the conflict brewed next to him. ''Does anyone else have any exotic secret or nefarious agenda while we get to know each other?'' he asked, as the thinly veiled courtesy he once spoke to the taciturn general with began to fade.

 

[Terratina.]

"This 'Tarquin' does not speak for us either, rather it is a controlling spirit having taken possession of one of your men."

The man's smile twisted into a frown of confusion, "Is that how you Pagan-types dismiss one another? How quaint. It is also slander from an Outsider against an Imperial Plebeian, I might add. And please, stop acting like you hold some sort of authority here."

So much for trying to help. 'Tarquin' couldn't possibly leave the leadership of such people to men like this.

"...Aren't you, honourable chap I'm sure..."

And then finally a friendly face but there was something recognisable about the women. The Leimian threw up his arms in exasperation, not returning the handshake out of caution.

"The most, if I may be so bold. I could be bolder and take this slanderer to court. However, I do have some goodwill."

There was quite a tightrope to be walked here. Especially with some of the people in the room. Unfortunately, the human was so utterly keen on being the leader was being a nuisance.

"...but by all means, negotiate..."

"So easy to trust one who also has belittled another, and so easy to dismiss another's help I see..." The Liemian's eyes narrowed, "What sort of a leader does someone like that make?"

The question hung in the heavy atmosphere.​

 

[IFS]

"I know the faces of everyone here, if he's possessed he came through the horizon that way, but that's not even relevant, what makes you say he's possessed?"

"How do you tell if someone's possessed or not? He looks like a normal mortal to me."

"Is that how you Pagan-types dismiss one another? How quaint. It is also slander from an Outsider against an Imperial Plebeian, I might add. And please, stop acting like you hold some sort of authority here."

"Yes he joined us shortly before we entered the horizon, which was odd enough in and of itself, but there are elements of his behavior that make me suspect him," he said calmly, addressing Des and the Commander, mostly the commander. He spoke in a cheerful but polite tone "I've encountered a number of them in my time, of many different varieties, they all have their quirks and its not too hard to spot one when you know theirs. This one so far has sought to consume, control, and escape, it joined us in a bid for freedom from the empire and since its been here its done nothing but have its body gorge itself on food, as for control well you can see right here its attempt to grasp for that."

He ignored Des's reference to 'other mortals' for now, the possessed man was a larger issue and he would do his case no favors by making more accusations. He had glimpsed some of Des's interaction with the snow elf before she died, watching from a safe distance to be sure he wouldn't harm her, but he had asked for her blood and she had given it. She hadn't seemed to behave different afterwards either, maybe a bit more tired, but it was something he would confront the self proclaimed demon about later.

He then turned to address the possessed man "I may not hold any authority here but neither do you, even if you weren't possessed your claims to leadership are ludicrous, you only joined our group shortly before we crossed anyone else in the group would know it better, could speak for us better."

He took note of how the man had refused to shake Serragish's hand, he wasn't quite sure what it meant though. Well other than the fact that the spirit was rude. He had certainly made a misstep in simply declaring his suspicions, it was all too easy to forget that these people had no inquisitors, but he wasn't about to let the spirit continue to hold a man's body and mind against his will.

"Does anyone else have any exotic secret or nefarious agenda while we get to know each other?"

Alex chuckled at the remark, though the spirit found it less amusing.

"What sort of a leader does someone like that make?"

"I believe you belittled him first, if we're getting on people's case about name calling, and you haven't offered to help so much as vie for his position," he said calmly "A position he's more qualified for than you, given that he's at least been with us for some time."

 

[DarkRawen]

"Is that how you Pagan-types dismiss one another? How quaint. It is also slander from an Outsider against an Imperial Plebeian, I might add. And please, stop acting like you hold some sort of authority here."

The mortal didn't seem possessed -or was it possessing- as he spoke clearly, and with a certain knowledge that sounded like it belonged to someone like him. It did seem a little bit odd that he was that quick and vicious when it came to defending himself -lashing out on whoever stood in his way- but that might be because Des preferred the more pleasant and laid-back mortals, the ones who didn't plan their every move.

"Yes he joined us shortly before we entered the horizon, which was odd enough in and of itself, but there are elements of his behavior that make me suspect him. I've encountered a number of them in my time, of many different varieties, they all have their quirks and its not too hard to spot one when you know theirs. This one so far has sought to consume, control, and escape, it joined us in a bid for freedom from the empire and since its been here its done nothing but have its body gorge itself on food, as for control well you can see right here its attempt to grasp for that."

Des tilted his head. He was slightly confused, but not because it was difficult to understand what Alex was saying, rather because it sounded off. Weird. An assumption based on something that was simply natural. "Is it not mankind's true nature to indulge in whatever provides them pleasure?" he asked, though he already knew the answer.

"It is only normal for a mortal to eat everything he can enjoy, should he have the chance, the same way it is in their nature to seek out pleasure in other forms. For example, freedom and control. Mortals give up a lot for pleasure like that, after all, they sacrifice what they can in order to feel good." He chuckled, friendly, as there was nothing but praise and interest in his words.

"That is why I like mortals so much. They cannot resist the temptation in the end. It reminds me of myself." He glanced over at Serragish, thought only subtly. Des then smiled, very innocently. It wasn't done as a way to manipulate, simply the fact that he had no underlying plans, nor meant anything bad about what he was saying.

"I think you might be a bit quick to judge, Alex. Now, if his head started turning completely around, then we'd be talking about possessed."

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

" Unlike my name, which has no accurate translation, the forest I came from does have a reasonably close translation. 'The Nine Trees'."

"Sounds pretty." Vaerys mumbled. "And trust me, not all humans act like this. My people, you may call them dwarves, are more simpler to deal with. If you don't like someone, you don't deal with them or you kill them. Either way its very straight forward with us dwarves. One time, me and my mates were dealing with some orcs. I must admit that a smarter group might have went around or dug under their wall. Not us though, not us dwarves. We spent all night hammering at it until it fell. You should have seen the looks on their faces! Hah!" Vaerys threw his head back in a roar of laughter before he calmed down. He was completely oblivious to the talk that the others were having so he laughed quite loudly.

"Ah, what do you do for fun in 'Nine Trees'?" Vaerys asked, curious of the creature and her world.