The Garden of Everything

"In my homeland, one famous poet wrote in his time-,"

No heaven's prayer and no mark of hell,
One thing in life there is: the death-bell's knell,
From which few would escape the tale to tell,
And none at all could say that it ends well.

"My point is that few know of true heaven. Not I, perhaps not you. It is, after all, only a state of utter divorce from the physical and the mental." Gant tapped his chest, a dull, metallic clink. "None on earth have yet reached that place we esteem so highly. And thus, who can know what it is in truth?"

edited 16th May '11 7:09:19 PM by Morgulion

"I live for the promise of the next day, Asau. I live because the next day I wake up may be different. Maybe the world will change. Maybe the world will, even for a day, be a better place. A place where I don't have to suffer. Until that impossible day comes, I wait. I survive."

His stringy brown hair blew in the breeze like a shade, hiding the sharp blue eyes sunken so low in the boy's face. People always assume that people who've suffered are fragile, brittle. But right then and there, Asa's heart felt like a lump of lead. No matter how much he wanted to, he couldn't bring himself to feel anything about what he just said. About the meaning of what he just said.

The heart is like a knife, huh? The more you use it, the duller it becomes. You were right Al. Now I've seen just how much is lost to me.

edited 16th May '11 7:21:34 PM by KSPAM

Asau nodded in approval. "Finally, the old soldier remembers why it is he lives." Her voice filled with compassion, she said, "thank you for sharing that."

Then she took a minute to examine her surroundings. The pond she'd thrown Asa's gun into was quite large. She walked over to it, reached her hand in and felt it; warm, wonderfully warm. A pleasant, soothing warmth. An idea came to her... no, later. First things first.

She went over to Julia, gave a deep, polite bow, and said, "I would like to thank you, m'lady, for your hospitality." She took Julia's hand and kissed it, in a manner that was mostly just formal, but had a slight flirtatious edge. She was curious to see if Julia would pick up on it.

edited 16th May '11 7:19:54 PM by KillerClowns

Asau left to let Julia consider the meaning of the gesture, and strode over to Gant. "Well, you're an interesting creature. Lots of big words. And such... abilities..." she caressed the back of Gant's "chair" thoughtfully, and asked, "I do wonder... can you still feel such delicate motions? For your sake, I dearly hope so. It would be such a terrible shame to be locked in a metal cage, unable to know the warmth of a human touch, forever..."

To Lena, she said, "and as for you... you still intrigue me. But then, most in this place do. I can't quite place it, but there's something about you..." she place a hand on Lena's shoulder, and said, "hmm... is it just me, or are you a bit warmer than most? Perhaps it's just a trick of the sun's warmth, though..."

She then turned her attention to the violinist, and said, "and as for you. You're a man with secrets, aren't you? A young body, an old voice... have you lived many years, or have the years been too full of life? I wonder..."

She plucked a juicy orange from one of the trees and began peeling it open, savoring the feel of it on her fingers. She had a good feeling about this day.

It seemed a bit late to just edit in Asau's continuing mischief, so I figured I'd just doublepost and be done with it.

edited 16th May '11 8:59:51 PM by KillerClowns

Gant turns to Asau. He can twist his head around, but for some reason, he drapes an arm over the back of his chair, turning more fully to face her. Maybe it seems more personal to speak in this way, but he does not know whom he is opening himself to.

"I can feel as much or as little as I would like. For the past ten years, I saw little need to do it at all. I came here in penance. Twice in a life that has been far too long, I have lost those whom I loved. The first time, it was a student-" he raised his head, showing three sharp-edged gouges running down his throat and onto his chest, "-and all the friendship we had is now bitter; I killed her friend to keep her from following in my path."

He sighs and clasps his hands together, grinding them until the bone creaks and the muscle is flattened. "The second was a lover, yet I have no memento from her. It is because of her loss and mine that I came here."

It seems as though he is about to wipe away the blank face of his, but instead he merely sighs, a morose and echoing sound. "I suppose it is fixed. So, madam, the answer is this: I feel, but I no longer desire to."

edited 16th May '11 10:13:41 PM by Morgulion

Julianne glanced at her kiss'd hand, and gave a smile in return. Briefly she wondered why there was a garden so beautiful, that she had never laid eyes on before. But her question faded as she began contemplating that urge, which itched in her as mosquito bites do.

She said to them it wasn't heaven they were in. It wasn't yet, she felt, as long as past pains still haunted them. What if you could start it over again? To forget your identity and name while you kept your wisdom for futures to come? She herself wanted to run away from the cruel world, and this was her answer. In the garden awaited forgiveness ahead, somehow she knew.

Surely this could be a reason why she was here. Possibly they too. She did not remember if Julia was her name before, although it was the first name which sprung to mind.

The lanterns grew a tad brighter.

edited 16th May '11 9:31:03 PM by QQQQQ

"I guess you could say a mixture of both..." he replied with a smile. "Matthias Cline, by the way. Call me Matt if you want."

Gazing blankly at the dancing lanterns that he could not see, he closed his eyes. He had been neglecting to practice his violin since he left college, just six- six! -short years ago. Since then, he spent his life living out of a suitcase as he traveled around with an acting troupe, an environment that did not breed romance. Only recently has he settled down, discovered a new playwright, found a new beginning...

He raised his violin back to playing position.

How did that melody run? He put bow to strings.

A soft, melancholic stroll through the woods, sunlight kissing the soft mosses carpeting the trees, faces of those who go for a walk, dancing upon them like warm little sprites.

What happens next?

The tempo quickens. A rustling is heard, and the creatures have come out to play. The birds are singing their own beautiful melodies back and forth, their tiny bodies flitting about through the trees and leaves. A doe has even ventured out. The rabbits gnaw on the fresh bounty of nature. They gather together to play, having left behind the struggles of survival as well.

You return to your leisurely forest stroll. You continue on through, the scents of flowers leading you onwards, enticing and teasing the senses. Sunlight pours into a clearing, dancing effortlessly upon the petals of flowers in full bloom. A truly magnificent spectacle.

And such ended yet another chapter of his song.

I'm serious, Madrigal by Gaubert kept going through my head as I pictured this garden. A link is in Post #2, if anyone wants to go check it out.

"I suppose that's a fate we share. Those of us who know nought but blood will continue to know nought but blood. Our victims die by our sword and thereby assure that we too will one day meet our death at the sharp end of a blade. An endless chain of bloodshed without rhyme or reason." Asa whistled.

Reaching to his side, he reached for a clump of berries from a bush. He plucked the berries and pulled his closed fist towards him. Just as he expected, he'd crushed most of them. It always turns to shit in my hands.

That's when he saw something unexpected. Right in the center, cushioned by the crushed husks around it, was a single, undamaged raspberry. Carefully plucking it between his fingers, Asa rolled it down the hill and shoveled the berry mash into his waiting face.

edited 16th May '11 10:11:15 PM by KSPAM

"Such a cheery lot." Asau's voice was slightly sarcastic, but more gently teasing than cruel. "I'm sure you are are all a blast at parties. Real life of the crowd." These were clearly tormented souls, and Asau did want to help to ease their torments. The question was how to go about it — her own life had not been nearly so harsh as she suspected theirs had been, so she was in no position to simply lecture them into cheer.

"How does one free a tormented soul," she wondered aloud, "one whose own dark past has forced him to build an fortress of his soul, impermeable to both pleasure and pain?" Others of her order tended to such wounded souls as their life's duty, helping those who had undergone unspeakable tortures by the hands of the Eternal King and his henchmen move on and live normal lives. Though she technically outranked such evangelists, she decided she would have to speak with them, learn what she could. Sure, she could give anyone one of the people here — probably even the metal shape-shifter — the greatest fuck of their lives, but that probably wouldn't solve anything. Might even make things worse, given how fragile some of their minds seemed to be.

Of course, there was something to be said about simply shocking everyone — and these Earth-born were easily shocked. It was fun, at least. So she sashayed over to the pond, cheerfully said, "water's wonderful, by the way." Then, without even a hint of modesty, she flung off her clothing and dove in. When she surfaced, she was holding a large, struggling fish, which she held over her head for the collective crowd. "Anyone getting bored of fruit yet?" she asked.

edited 17th May '11 5:06:04 AM by KillerClowns

Gant was not particularly startled by the events developing around him- when one is over two and a half centuries old, the nude women are, if not a common sight, certainly a familiar one. She had an interesting lack of reservation, almost as though the others were closer than objects than people before her; it was a quality he had once shared, as had Itou, and the memory of that made him shut his eyes for a moment.

He had often said that fate dictated all- to a certain scale. It was indubitable that his arisen state was the work of fate, brought about by this half-connected gathering. So perhaps this woman could be an agent of fate, observant and dissociate from reality as she was. He regathered his mass, and stepped into the water with a hiss of hot metal cooling down.

It was like the older rituals of ablution. An interesting thing to perform in strange company, but he he had never been preoccupied with the finer points of such things; he preferred to move through them by instinct alone. And that appeared to be the proper course.

*snap!*

A twig broke noisily underfoot. The soft and regular crunch of summer leaves being trodden on followed. Another snap.

There was a man moving through the trees. He looked young, barely a man, really. No older than twenty. He was slightly pale with a thin face and an unkempt mess of light brown hair fell to just above his brow. He was wearing what looked like light brown cloth military garb, with a small pack slung over one shoulder. Over the other hung a long rifle on a strap, of a somewhat odd design. It was composed of a wooden frame with a six-shot revolving mechanism. There was one other weapon, a service pistol, also of a revolver design, sitting in a holster on his belt.

He trudged on through the forest.

After what had seemed like an eternity of taking one foot, lifting it up and plopping it down in front of the other, the thick and foreboding foliage of the Northwood had cleared. The dark and oppressive atmosphere had gradually lifted to reveal a picturesque emerald forest. Thin rays of light filtered warmly through the canopy. The deep shadow had given way to cool shade surrounding the patches of sunlight that reached the forest floor. Like splashes of sunlight reflected off the surface of a pool.

This had to be a good sign.

This was a lot more like the tranquil Elven glades of myth and fairytale than what the last six weeks spent with the logging expedition had been. He paused and took a moment to think back on all that had happened over the last few days. It was only when he arrived at Dirge Outpost that he realized it was too much to hope for a quiet post away from all the fighting. Being attached to a security detail on a logging expedition to a peaceful woods had sounded so idyllic. No threat of death from a hail of arrows, fireballs raining from the sky, formation-decimating pulse spells, clouds of magically-invoked pestilence or being hacked to pieces by an Arcana footsoldier. In practice however, one means of death had simply been replaced with another. They had lost men with worrying regularity to animal attacks, more had fallen or been seriously wounded by improvised traps and there were still people firing arrows at you. Only this time they were pissed-off wood elves who struck quietly and invisibly from high in the trees. This was opposed to hundreds of conscripted bowmen standing in block formation firing volleys at ranged-out zones. The Elves were much more accurate. Come to think of it, this post had, at least, had the courtesy of not to letting you know you were about to die. He supposed he had to count his blessings one way or another.

It was quiet. Finally, the boy thought to himself, things seemed to be looking up. He took a deep breath of fresh air, savoring the crispness of it, then exhaled slowly. He looked all around once more, taking a moment to finish soaking in his surroundings and then, with renewed vigor visibly springing his step, continued on his rather arbitrary way.

He had come to be walking aimlessly through the forest after being separated from his unit. After a bit of panic and wandering around looking for them, he had just decided to pick a direction and stick with it. The ambush had scattered what remained of the team he was with. He had bolted along with Hannan and Kovitch, at least that was as far as he could tell. Though which direction they had taken was not known in the confusion. He didn’t even know if anyone had been killed in the ambush or not.

So there he had been, dazed and lost. At the time he hadn’t dared call out the names of the others for fear of attracting the nearest razor-toothed, clawed, fanged or otherwise carnivorous inhabitant of the Northwood to him, armed as he was with nothing but a small-caliber rifle (that was in honesty more fit to be called a carbine) and a holdout weapon. Rifles and other long-range weapons were incredibly ineffective in this sort of terrain, which was something he had found out first-hand. Their effectiveness relies on the environment presenting you with clear and unobstructed line-of-sight to the enemy, something which just didn’t exist among the thick arrangement of trees that made up this wood. There was ample cover for a marauding wood Elf insurgent to make use of, and even more opportunities for concealment.

After a few more minutes of walking through a tranquil landscape, brushing past bushes that caught on his uniform and pushing low-hanging branches aside, he heard something. He stopped. His ears pricked up. The dulcet sound of music drifted through the trees ahead of him. It sounded close. He spared a second to consider whether he should approach quietly and attempt to remain unseen, or make his presence known. He weighed his odds. Not good. He decided on the latter. Music meant culture, civilization. A settlement maybe. Or, at the very least, some other intelligent contact even if it wasn’t necessarily Human.

He hadn’t run into any dangerous creatures on his way to- wherever he now was. This fact, in addition to the less hostile surroundings seemed to him like evidence that he was walking out of the forest. It should be safe to give a yell. The young man cupped a hand to his mouth and shouted,

“Hey! Is anybody out there!?”

edited 17th May '11 3:02:29 PM by Gault

Lena raised an eyebrow at Asau's modesty- or lack thereof- and loosened her hold on her cloak. Good to know she wasn't around a bunch of prudes, at least. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, taking in the sound of the violin. The man was skilled with his fingers, that much was certain.

Another noise penetrated her ears; a shout, it sounded like. Her eyes snapped open again, the irises changing hue from blue to red as what little was left of her magic flared up.

"I'm not crazy, right?" she asked, to no one in particular. "Somebody's shouting."

His note stopped abruptly, his own eyes snapping open at the sound of a shout, by a young man who had aged in all but body much too fast. Much like himself, actually. Fighting for one's life, no matter the enemy, could do that. This young man likely suffered through the same foe as Mister Akagawa. War. He was a soldier; it was obvious, simply through his voice.

The two of them- no, all three of them -bore something in common.

What more could this garden offer to calm this one, as well? To not see every locale as a crimson-spattered gate to Hell? It would happen, soon, just as it did with Mister Akagawa.

Suddenly, the music stopped. He wasn't sure whether to take this as a good thing or a bad thing. It meant someone had certainly noticed him, but who? And what were their intentions? He was too war-weary to think it was anything good. Still, he continued to approach the clearing. The trees were thinning a bit, now.

The young man picked his way cautiously through the foliage towards where he had last heard the wonderful music, shuffling over more verdant soil. The ground was almost level here. No awkward footing or protruding roots to catch your foot on and trip. He thought he'd call out again.

"Hello?"

Was this a dream?

edited 17th May '11 5:26:35 PM by Gault

Asau tossed away the fish when she heard the newcomer. Nimbly hopping out of the pond, she ran through the garden to the source of the yell. When she found him, she said to newcomer, "well, hello there! Name's Asau. So, how about yourself? What's your story?" She grabbed his hand, shook it enthusiastically, and let it go.

After a moment of thought, she added, "please tell me you're not another shell-shocked veteran of some ridiculous, senseless war — Sul'ah only knows why so many have shown up here. I think somebody wants to start a support group or something."

edited 17th May '11 5:32:45 PM by KillerClowns

Where…am I?

As Hector’s vision came into focus, the first color that his mind registered was red, then the cool greens and earthy browns. It was an apple tree. His hands curled into the warm grass at his feet.

Food appearing in the middle of nowhere. Probably a trap to poison me.

Lazily reaching upwards, Hector plucked the nearest apple off the branch and began to eat. It was sweet and crisp, not juicy and savory like a hot dog, but this was an actual garden as opposed to the urban one that he had grown accustomed to. He reclined backwards into the tree, feeling the bark dig into his back.

Hector’s neck rolled forwards as he moved his vision from the underside of the apple tree to the field in front of him. Tree leaves and flower petals waved in the summer wind, while in the distance a pond glimmered. He was positioned on a hill overlooking the rest of the garden. Here it was just him and the apple tree.

The scene is perfectly idyllic. Usually that would mean something’s trying to kill me. The smart move would be not to let down my guard.

But what about the correct move?

Yawning, Hector reached into his pocket and unloaded his sidearm. He had learned that violence would do him no favors in a place like this.

Down in the pond, somebody was splashing around. For a minute, he considered calling out to them. Walk up to them, join them, and converse with them like a normal person would.

The wind swept his long, stringy hair over his eyes, and he sank back into the tree bark. If they wanted to find him they would find him. He just wanted another apple.

With a smack, another one fell into his hand.

edited 17th May '11 7:38:34 PM by Chubert

The young man paused a short ways from the edge of the clearing. He saw someone approaching through the trees. He halted, then blinked twice, unsure of what to do. How to react. After a moment of thought, he had his answer.

This was it, he decided. He had gone insane. He must have. Because he could not- nay, outright refused to believe what he saw in front of him. That an incredibly well-toned and inordinately beautiful- actually, blatantly beautiful, as was apparent by the fact that she was also very naked- dark-skinned woman had just run up to him, shook his hand, and asked where he was from. It was, in light of the events of the past few days, simply too improbable. He knew he lived in a world where people rode on the backs of dragons and where magic could raise the dead, but given his recent streak of luck or more aptly lack thereof it was far easier to believe that all this was simply one large, elaborate illusion brought on by the psychological stress of the ordeal he had to endure up to this point. Yes, that made sense. He had seen others succumb to various battlefield psychoses before. Perfectly normal men one moment turned to gibbering emotional wrecks in the next. When asked about it, they would often have no recollection of the episode at all. Perhaps that was what was happening. Although… the bare naked front of the woman before him, completely exposed as it was, did seem pretty real. He briefly considered reaching out with his hand just to make sure, but this idea was immediately doused by his sense of modesty. That same part of his brain that killed that idea also then dispensed the requisite dose of shame at the thought, and now in addition to incredibly awkward the boy was feeling quite embarrassed. It was starting to show too, as his cheeks began to flush with red.

If this was a mental fabrication or some kind of coping mechanism for psychological stress it was certainly an odd one. The peaceful, tranquil garden he could understand- take him to a happy place to hide from life’s troubles and whatnot. But as for the woman- well, for one he had never remembered having a particularly strong fetish for black chicks. Oh well. Even if she wasn’t real, the least he could do was be polite. Unaccustomed as he had become to such straightforward acts of kindness (along with several two other globe-shaped reasons), the most he could manage to do was stammer a greeting.

“I uh- h-hi.” He said meekly.

What now? His mind went blank. Shit. He needed more than that. What about- a question! Yes! He would ask her something! ...

...

... What would he ask her?

“Um- A-are you an angel?”

... Fuck.

edited 17th May '11 9:09:49 PM by Gault

Asau laughed, a friendly chuckle. This was all too amusing. "No," she said, with a friendly smile, "though I do appreciate the compliment. At least, I think it was a compliment — were you thinking 'holy bringers of mercy and love' type angels, or 'destroy you utterly for so much as looking at them funny' angels?" After a moment of thought, she said, "actually, I'll take it as a compliment either way."

Her smile turning mischievous, she added, "Oh, by the way, free advice." She put a finger under the lad's chin, and gently tilted his face upwards. "I understand it's considered polite on Earth to look people in the eyes when you speak to them." But the warmth in her expression suggested she wasn't offended in the slightest. She almost felt sorry for the poor fellow — it had been rather rude of her to not throw something on before greeting strangers. But it was just so funny to see people struggle for words, even though she knew she shouldn't enjoy such it as much as she did.

She still hadn't gotten used to how slowly these Earth-born aged, either. She wasn't much his senior, but the lad seemed so much younger. Asau's world was less forgiving of childishness, less tolerant of innocence, and she frequently forgot that the people of Earth had the luxury of growing more slowly. An Uelane of his age would probably be on his second child by now, but him... he probably wouldn't even be considering marriage for a few years yet. She'd have to remember to adjust her treatment of him accordingly — he might not know how to react if she was too forward, too blunt. Best to just be friendly for now — maybe by the end of this, he'd learn not to stare so. A valuable lesson.

No matter. What was done was done. So she turned, waved for the newcomer to follow her, and said, "so, kid, you got a name, or wha-" she stopped, and spotting Hector, she said, "oh, look. Another newcomer. You there! Enjoying yourself, I assume?"

edited 17th May '11 9:41:03 PM by KillerClowns

Ah. They had spotted him, it seemed. Well, it would be educational to talk with these people outside the limits of a computer screen.

“Very much, thank you,” he replied, remaining sitting. “What might be bringing you here to this garden on such a fine day?”

His vision focusing on the woman who had addressed him, Hector slowly came to the realization that the woman was stark naked.

...Maybe it's a cultural thing? he wondered. You're in foreign lands. It's rude to presume anything.

Slowly, his gaze slid to the deeply embarrassed soldier standing next to the dark-skinned lady.

Or...maybe she's just fucking with people.

Wait. Fucking with people. I remember those pics.

He knew this person. The chat logs, some person posting shock images...

She was fucking with that kid.

Well, it wasn't as if he was giving his identity away anytime soon. With his completely mundane, civilian clothing, and all his weapons unloaded and concealed, it was absurd to think that a stranger might recognize him for who he really was, even if they weren't part of his own setting. Sitting under an apple tree, staring lazily at the red fruit above, there wasn't a single ounce of fight in him to mark him as a threat to be even casually examined.

He almost opened his mouth to talk—discuss problems, solutions, enemies, friends—but his tongue remained still. Problems were burdensome, which was why it was the task of certain individuals to carry those burdens. But problems distracted, they ate away slowly...

His duty was with primarily with Odyssey. There was no need to invest himself too much in other issues, and it was all too easy to do that when he could speak with others, face to face.

A moist apple core slipped to the ground beneath his fingertips. Quietly, Hector said, "I would like another apple."

Without even moving an inch from its original position Hector's hand caught the falling fruit. In mild surprise, Hector looked back up at the tree. Last he checked, he did not possess the psychic ability to make apples fall from trees at will.

edited 17th May '11 9:57:34 PM by Chubert

"I-I'm- err that is to say- my name is Mal- Wesley!" he jumped to correct himself. Was a first name too informal? A silly gripe, he realized, having just met a tall, long-haired dark lady who apparently didn’t have a single compunction towards nudity and- at least, if he was reading her right- sexual conduct as well. He dwelt on that for a second. This was all so strange. How would he react, he wondered, if she were to make such advances on him? And this is assuming she hadn’t already, that she considered what she had just done to be nothing more than a friendly introduction. This could very well be the case from what little he knew of her. Perhaps it was quirk of her culture. He concluded it would be safest to assume nothing.

He gave a nervous laugh, exhaling some of his awkward tension, and decided he’d try that whole ‘introducing himself’ thing again. He swallowed, looked squarely at Asau, and said,

“My name’s Malcolm Wesley.”

Oh good. He was finally able to say something without his tongue tripping over itself and fucking it up, forcing him for the sake of clarity to try to say it again.

He followed along behind the strange lady. He spoke as he walked, loosening up.

"And- I am a soldier, yeah. Well- a conscript."

edited 17th May '11 11:48:34 PM by Gault

"Malcolm, huh? Pleasure to meet you." Asau said. Then, noticing Hector's ability to conjure up an apple, and his evident suprise at his own ability, she held out her hand and said, "neat trick. How about a tomato?" A tomato dropped into her hand — which was odd since she knew tomatoes didn't grow on trees. She tossed the tomato against a tree, where it exploded with a satisfying splat, then said, "aloon." A round, bright blue fruit with subtle cyan stripes emanating from its stem, shaped like a cross between an apple and a blueberry, dropped into her hands. Perfect. Aloons were a fruit of her world, and an acquired taste — Asau was fond of them, though Rachel had described the flavor as "a cross between vanilla extract and stomach acid." So naturally, Asau would be summoning quite a few of them. "Oh, but first, main course. Could do with a nomen," she said, and a maggot, about the size of a large peanut, still squirming, dropped into her other hand. She tossed it into her mouth, bit it in half, and swallowed.

"Alright," she said to the air, "care to drop me a handsome man?" Nothing. "Or woman. I'm not choosy." Still nothing. "Eh, worth a shot." She bit into her aloon, and said, "alright, lads. You there," she grabbed Hector's hand and shook it, "pleasure to meet you. You got a name? Oh, and my new friend Malcolm here seems to be a bit tongue tied. No idea why." She knew exactly why, but had decided to play dumb for now. "Anyways, if you feel like talking with people who aren't me, for whatever silly reason, just follow me. Hope you like giant scary robot things." She pushed aside some shrubbery to reveal the pond where Gant still rested, and dove back in. "Hey, Gant," she said cheerfully, "I miss anything?" She took another bite of her aloon, quietly hoping somebody's curiosity would overcome their common sense.

edited 18th May '11 4:26:24 AM by KillerClowns

Wesley continued on somewhat numbly and came upon the clearing where Asau had slipped back into the pool he assumed she had been bathing in before she came up to greet him. Yes, there were her clothes crumpled by the edge. So, that was why she wasn’t wearing anything. Still, it’s not exactly normal to just drop everything and go to greet an unknown newcomer when just a second ago you were luxuriating in a natural pool. In the nude. Asau-

Wesley’s mind began to wander into inappropriate places. He shook himself. Now wasn’t the time, he self-consciously chided. He still didn’t know precisely what kind of a situation he was in. It seemed safe by this point to say that nothing was likely to kill him here- at least not right away. He knew for a fact that this forest had a nasty habit of having poisonous plants grow in it, but it seemed like he had left those behind with the rest of the dangers. This place seemed different- was different. Now that he had spent some time here, there was no doubting that. Wesley took stock of his surroundings.

For the first time the full impact of what he was seeing registered in his mind and, shortly after, on his face too. Wesley’s jaw dropped. It was a breathtaking sight. The tree-line had stopped a few feet behind him, opening up to a wide clearing carpeted with lush grass. Bushes dotted the edge of the glade, adorned with various multicolored berries. Flowers of myriad hues hung from vines that wound their way up the tree bark, spangling the area with dots of color. The sun radiated its warmth onto everything, setting the area wondrously aglow. Wesley simply stood there. He was at a loss for words. If the scene before him was describable, Wesley was sure that he did not have sufficient vocabulary to describe it. Actually- too good to be true was how he would have described it.

He seriously considered for a second time whether or not this was some sort of dream, in light of what he was seeing. Perhaps in reality he was having his guts chewed on by some hungry animal and all this was nothing more than a pleasant fantasy his brain had conjured up as a form of painless farewell. A parting gift from his brain in a short life that has so far been roughly equal parts fear and pain. It's morbidity gave him pause for thought, although he had to admit it wasn’t impossible. He had seen far stranger things. Then again he had never been particularly imaginative. As his reaction was indicative of, he had never seen anything even remotely like this before.

After he finished marveling at the scenery, he observed the clearing’s various inhabitants. One that immediately stood out was the obsidian golem resting in the pool near Asau with an inhuman, statuesque stillness. That was another thing he had never seen before. He had witnessed battle golems, their destructive potential, and while this ‘’thing’’- whatever it was- superficially resembled one, it was made of no material he recognized golems to be created from. Though judging by the way Asau had dived carelessly in with it, it wasn’t malevolent. She spoke to it as well, suggesting it possessed intelligence and the ability to respond. Another unusual property of this supposed ‘golem’, as the ones he had seen, shot at and inevitably run from were all dumb and mute. They weren’t made for much other than warfare and maybe a spot of heavy lifting. Was this specimen a product of some new magic? Despite the warmth, Wesley shivered involuntarily.

Then there was Asau, of course. She was wading around without a care in the world right next to that skeletal thing, not seeming to be the slightest bit intimidated. Amazing. Thinking back to his inane question from earlier, he asked himself, what had made me say that? He wasn’t a particularly religious man- few Tech Union members were and for soldiers even fewer- but the only answer he could come up with was that in his addled state he thought she must have been an angel because this place looked to be heaven. As his eyes hovered over her there in the pool, yet more lecherous thoughts crept into his head. He suppressed them, then quickly shifted his gaze to the various others around the glade.

Aside from those two in the pool, there were two girls and two men. Hector was somewhere behind him. One of the men looked to be a soldier like him, but dressed somewhat strangely. The other was holding what looked like the instrument that had been making that wonderful music. One of the girls was dressed in a cloak that was pulled tightly around her. The other girl however was wearing a simple dress with long, flowing hair that fell like water down her back.

His stomach rumbled, snapping him out of his contemplative state and back to reality. He walked over to a spot on the grass and set his pack and rifle down, removing his belt and the sidearm attached to it and setting it down as well. He sat down settled in, breathing deep. He relaxed. The grass waved slightly as the breeze blew across it, tickling his palms. After witnessing Hector then Asau’s apparently inexplicable ability to summon food, he thought he’d try it out for himself. He raised his right hand and spoke clearly.

“Soumi.” A beige, thick-skinned oblong fruit dropped into his outstretched hand, apparently out of thin air! A grin formed on Wesley’s face. Finally, magic was working for him instead of trying to kill him. He’d have to thank whoever had created this mystic glade, if he ever met them.

Just looking for a little feedback here. I know I tend to make these posts kind of long so are any of these at all boring or difficult to read through? I don’t want these to come off as long-winded or dry.

edited 21st May '11 10:46:22 AM by Gault

An idea came to Asau as she noticed Malcolm's stare. She hopped out of the pond, and found a long, light rod of bamboo. Then she walked over to Malcolm. "Still can't quite keep your eyes off me, can you," she said, smiling. "Well, I can hardly blame you. Not many can. But I'm more than just a pretty face and body. I can teach you things..." she stepped closer, well into his personal space. If he just leaned forward a little bit, his face would be in her chest. Her voice soft, seductive, she whispered in his ear, "I can give you all sorts of wonderful lessons..."

She swung the bamboo cane with lightning speed, and it hit Malcolm's belly with a sharp thwack. It wouldn't do any real damage, but no doubt it would sting horrendously. She then leaped back, and adopting the same stance and tone of every military commander she'd ever encountered, be they Mauros, American, or Israeli, she said, "and your first lesson is not being so damn easy to distract." Circling him, she lectured, "Otherwise, the next time you lose focus like that, you could get a bullet to the skull, or a knife in between your ribs. Focus, lad, focus!" She spun her bamboo cane, and said, "watch the staff, lad! There is a very beautiful, stark naked woman who is about to wallop you with a stick, and you need to focus on the important part of that sentence. Otherwise, all sorts of..."

She stopped mid-sentence and aimed another blow at his belly.

Whether he dodges, blocks, or gets smacked is up to you, Gault..

I thought there wasn't really going to be fighting in this one.

Wesley barely managed to get to standing before the second blow stung his belly. He flinched forward in reflex. He dropped his fruit, only just having begun to remove it's leathery outer skin, and scrambled into a defensive posture looking startled and angry.

"What the fuck?!" he barked in surprise.

If he were a regular instead of a conscript he would have had a single-bladed sword for close-quarters defense. As it stood, he was reduced to using his rifle, which he pulled up from the ground by it's strap, as a makeshift staff. He hadn't mounted the bayonet on the lug below the muzzle, so blunt attacks were all he could do.

He crossed the rifle's length in front of him. It was clear she didn't mean to kill him. Her superbly toned body looked as if it could snap his scrawny frame in half if she wanted too. He took a few measured paces away from Asau, who was squaring off against him. He held the rifle with both hands by it's wooden foregrip and stock, his finger away from the trigger and in no way near firing position. His sidearm lay on the grassy floor next to his bag. He didn't intent to shoot her, but he was nevertheless confused and reactionary, acting off a soldier's hard-learned instinct.

edited 18th May '11 9:00:21 AM by Gault

True, but in Asau's case it's more "lecture punctuated by smacks with bamboo."

"Good, good," Asau said. "That woke you up, I see." Sling her staff over her shoulder, she said, "now, tell me, what did you learn here? I hope you've been paying attention to what I just told you."

She continued her lecture. "The Blade Brothers and Sisters of Sul'ah are trained in three things. We perform Her rites. We entertain, in various ways, for rather impressive sums of money. And we assassinate people. Mages, mostly. Mages are controlled by their emotions, which makes them easy targets for men and women like myself. I'm sure your world has people very much like the Blade Brothers and Sisters, and I'd feel terribly guilty if you left here unable to defend yourself against such assassins. Better a smarting mark from me, than a knife from someone who really wants you dead. So, as I said, tell me. What did you just learn?"

edited 18th May '11 8:09:45 AM by KillerClowns