Void Rift (rp) - Intermission

"Hey, if you can show me how safe your place is, I'll let you take one home if you'd like." The Matriarch offers.

One scene is of a knight struggling to cut out of his armor, the dark-cloaked king trying to prevent him from doing so with a spectral chain painted so carefully, it's hard to make it out from the backdrop. Beyond the castle wall, though, is a beautiful forest teeming with wildlife.
The next is of a hydra, bloody and dying, last head looking in despair as its body bleeds out among four other decapitated heads, a grisly sword laying broken on the edge of the backdrop.
Each looks like nothing less than a masterpiece.

 

Stephanie takes out a potion of swirling colours, drinking it. The potion enhances her vision, so she can differentiate colours better and see them as richer, even seeing colours not normally visible to the naked eye.

 

There's no extra added depth. No magic, nothing other than dyes and slightly differing hues. The potion does, however, let her catch finer details such as a shadow of an assassin moving towards the king and a flattened and bloody chestplate laying next to one of the decapitated heads.

 

Stephanie just admires the paintings, before realising she's being rude not answering.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry, Matriarch. I can show you the museum where they'll be stored now, yes." Stephanie says, bowing.

 

"No, I appreciate it when other creatures can admire my work. Makes me feel like I'll have a lasting impact once I... you know. But yes, I am very interested in the museum you speak of."

 

Stephanie takes out a black crystal with runes etched into it, offering a hand for the Matriarch to take.

 

She takes it, eyeing the crystal curiously.

 

Stephanie drains the crystal of it's power as she and the Matriarch are transported outside the Shadow Palace gates.

"Who's this stranger with you, Miss Stephanie?" One of the guards asks, eyeing the Matriarch suspiciously.

"She's an artist who wishes to see the museum. I intend to bring some of her artwork here to hang there." Stephanie says officially.

"Very well," The guard says, looking at the Matriarch, "Cause no trouble, and bring no harm to Miss Stephanie."

The guards open the gates for the pair, and Stephanie leads the Matriarch through.

 

"I have never taken a drop of blood from any foe, nonetheless a friend. If I were to harm her, even by accident, I would hope you end me swiftly." The Matriarch says, bowing to the guard before catching up with Stephanie.

 

Stephanie heads into the palace, the guards at the door opening it for her. The matriarch recognises a few forest guardians tending to the gardens as she walks toward the palace, the gardens quite different to the rest of the realm, the sky even looking blue against the deep green of the grass and pretty colours of the flowers.

 

She just keeps to herself, inhaling deeply and seeming to enjoy the non-ruin air as she follows Stephanie.
"Quite the place your friends have. Do they serve, or are they the royalty here?"

 

"Royalty. I'm the queen's form, so I'm sort of an important figure." Stephanie says, heading toward one of the elevators in the palace. The matriarch can smell a wonder of delicious smells coming from the right hallway.

 

She seems to pause, before stopping entirely.
"Uhm... would you perhaps be able to get me a small meal? I haven't eaten in days..."

 

"Oh, sure thing. The dining hall serves anything you like, it's this way." Stephanie says, turning around and heading toward the source of the delicious smells.

 

"Just a few leafy plants would be nice. I'm sick of eating scraps off corpses day in, day out."

 

"So, a salad?" Stephanie asks.

 

"A what?"

 

"A dish of vegetables, like lettuce, tomato, that sort of thing." Stephanie says.

 

"I, uh... think I've heard of lettuce before...?" The Matriarch says, getting a bit lost in thought.

 

"You'll see it when you get it." Stephanie says happily, walking into the dining hall. It appears to be quite busy, Shadows, Guardians and other creatures all eating food at the tables.

"Whoa, little busier than I thought it was going to be." Stephanie says.