Void Rift (rp) - Intermission

It's a bit of a walk across the field with her smaller form, but upon approach, Ihra can see what scared the kids.

A skull with a few half-buried bones rests just beneath the rotted stump, an odd force emanating from it as it rises from it's resting place.

"You understand this is merely a vision, and not reality. It can be changed; destroyed. Give me the token. The pinecone. I shall give you freedom from it." Artemis' voice echoes clear, seeming to come from the skull. A skeletal hand rises up from the dirt beside Ihra, open for the pinecone.

"Understand this. Accept this route, and you shall forfeit all others. This choice is final, as is all." Artemis says.

 

"You speak as if I'm trapped in this." Ihra says, wary. "This was your idea to begin with. If I am trapped as a result of listening to you, why should I continue to do so?"

 

"We are not the same as our real-world counterparts. I am merely a part of your subconscious, aware of this world, manifesting as one of your friends," Artemis explains, "You have a choice of paths to follow, like a fork in a river. I am merely a guide to it's bank."

 

Ihra thinks for a moment, before handing Artemis the pinecone.

 

The pinecone withers away into dust in the skeletal hand, and the world seems to melt around Ihra, before she blacks out, feeling nonexistent...

Ihra's eyes shoot open in Artemis' forest. Everything seems to be the same, other than the overgrowth caused by Ihra's meditation. Artemis meditates peacefully next to Ihra, though she almost looks like she's in a trance.

 

Ihra’s overgrowth mostly dissolves into a dim green light that converges on her staff as she stands up.
“I suppose that did help a little...” Ihra sighs.

 

Artemis doesn't respond, though Ihra senses movement in the trees around her. Fortunately, whatever it is seems to be moving away from her.

 

Ihra looks towards the movement, vision unobstructed by physical obstruction.

 

It seems to be a few death guardians scurrying away into the forest; seeming to have just been checking on the overgrowth and it's source.

 

I make sure Scurn stays close to me as I proceed towards the tree.

 

The walk is long, but is hardly treacherous. A few more robotic golems pass you as you walk, though seem to take little interest in you, only chiming at Scurn.

A couple of hours later, you manage to make it to the main island. However, the moment Scurn sets foot on the island, alarms seem to go off; startling the birds as a light from the forest scans the pair of you. White, metallic walls appear from seemingly nowhere around Scurn - boxing him in - though they don't appear around you. A couple of seconds later, the box disappears along with Scurn, and the alarm stops. There doesn't seem to be clear way to follow Scurn, the area he was just standing on seeming to be no different than any of the surrounding ground. The only way forward seems to be the direction you were already going: through the forest.

Looking over the trees, the main tree doesn't seem too far. However, the forest itself is incredibly dense and brimming with life. A thick canopy of leaves shades the ground below, only patches of sunlight leaking through and revealing the hearty undergrowth. Mushrooms, rare flowers and thick moss blanket the ground; while various birds and forest animals flit through the trees. Vines snake up trees, and fruit dangles just out of reach, almost teasing you. A few of the trees seem to have runes carved into their bark, though they appear to be inert.

@Exvhius

Once Scurn sets foot on Praecantatia's island, an alarm seems to trigger. White walls suddenly box him in, the top closing over with a glowing crystal as a robotic voice inside the box speaks to him as he feels it move into the ground.

"Alien intruder detected. You are now being quarantined." The robotic voice says. Before Scurn has a chance to protest, he finds himself being dropped into a pure white room with a TV screen on one wall.

A girl in a dark gray and blue dress appears on the screen, the dress seeming to end in a short skirt followed by knee-high socks. She's contrasted against a white landscape with a grid of grey lines stretching back to make it look as if it has depth. Her appearance seems to be a little too clean, and Scurn easily recognises the girl as animated, rather than real. One of the most noticeable aspects are her large eyes, far too large to actually exist on a normal human; as well as a pair of long blue pigtails that seem to extend to her feet.

"Hii-ya~!" The animated girl says, waving to Scurn cheerily, "You're currently being held in quarantine, since we don't know who you are! If you wouldn't mind telling us a bit about yourself though, that'd be super~!"

 

Ihra stretches and yawns, petting Sgavrinn a bit while uncertain on how to proceed.

He doesn't even flinch in response.
"Scurn. Age fifteen, naga hailing from the smoking crater that was Brinook. Lowlife, scavenger, wanted for spellthievery." He says flatly, looking blankly at the girl. "This isn't exactly what I'm used to quarantine meaning, though."

 

A ray of sunlight falls on Ihra, and a leaf from one of the trees falls nearby. With Artemis entranced, she has quite a bit of freedom to explore the forest on her own.

"That's great! I'll send this data off right away," The girl says happily, a rainbow appearing in the background to match her good mood, "So why'd you come here, Scurn?"

 

Ihra opts to take a stroll, Sgavrinn following her as she walks aimlessly about.


"My home's a smoking crater, Idhaenna just razed the sanctuary city I was holed up in, and now most of the survivors left are me and the probably orphans that are now stuck with me. I don't deserve shit, but I was hoping maybe your Gaia could do, I dunno, something for the stragglers? Ours hasn't shown in a long time, even discounting the war. Apparently Praecantatia is the one shot I have at being listened to, so I figured I'd press my luck once again in the off chance something finally goes right for my people." He shrugs. "The alternative is that they play hero against the Hive Master, or just lay down and become his puppet anyways. Throwing myself at suicidal odds isn't exactly new grounds for me, so I figured I'd come here and see if the rumored 'second reality of the resistance' had something to spare for those caught in collateral."

 

Ihra ends up getting lost in the forest, losing track of Artemis and everything else as the forest seems to blend together while remaining completely unfamiliar.


The girl seems to think for a few moments, before perking up.

"Oh! It's you! Praecantatia is expecting you, I'll send you right to her!" The girl says, a holographic pad appearing in front of her. She begins tapping away at a few of the keys, and a hole opens up in the wall of the room. A large transparent ball rolls out, with a detachable top.

"Just climb in there, and I can send you off to see Praecantatia." The girl says happily.

 

Ihra starts backtracking, seeming to be able to perfectly replicate her steps.
"The forest should twist and turn, I suppose. Maybe it'd be best I just head back?"
Sgavrinn whines, nuzzling her.
"Yes, I know I just got here. You still be good for Artemis, okay?"
He nods as Ihra forms two balls of overwhelming life energy in her hands, before throwing them together and vanishing with a flash of green light.


Scurn does as told, without another word.

 

Ihra's attempts to backtrack just lead to her getting even more lost, almost as if the forest itself shifted around her. Ihra winds up in a totally new part of the forest, and she feels like she's even further away from Artemis. While the trees are quite tall, Ihra could likely fly above them - or try to climb them - to get a point of reference for where she is.


The ball shoots back through it's point of origin, showing Scurn a scenic view of the underside of the islands as it drops out at one point, only to fly back up through another tunnel and into what seems to be a gem mine. It bounces through an area that seems to be underwater, then around a brightly lit casino-esce roulette wheel, before finally dropping him into what seems like a gigantic study of sorts; the ball rolling out into a fenced-in part of a huge table from the tube.

A goddess of gargantuan proportions sits at the table, sketching in a tome. What looks like a long, green carrot sits suspended in front of her, and she appears to be drawing it accompanied by an unfinished entry in the tome. Deep purple hair flows from her head like water from a waterfall suspended in time, breaking over her shoulders. A pair of metallic goggles rests atop her head, though strangely, she appears to wear a fairly normal looking black shirt. A yellow crescent moon is barely visible as it ducks beneath the table's edge with the rest of the shirt.

 

Ihra having left, Sgavrinn takes off above the canopy to try and find Artemis again.


Scurn pops open the ball and steps out, shuffling his cloak a bit to have it fit better after the trip.
He looks around for any intended means to get Praecantatia's attention, though if Praecantatia bothers going through his thoughts he seems to already be aware of a fair bit - Fia's name included.

 

Strangely enough, through either luck or an unseen connection, Sgavrinn manages to fly straight back to where Artemis is meditating; the home just beyond her hangout place easily visible after a short bit of flight.


Scurn notices a large wooden totem nearby. He seems to recognise this as a dispenser, and a way to grow and shrink. Two figures hold their hands out with wooden cups in their hands. The figure around Scurn's size stands between the legs of the figure many times larger, just about bigger than Praecantatia's hand.

 

Sgavrinn carefully descends, curling up around Artemis again.


He guesses that the smaller figure produces an enlarging fluid, dispenses some, then drinks it.