Void Rift (rp) - Intermission

I let him think as I look around.

 

Ihra continues into her trance, the forest continuing to overgrow to the point of becoming a nigh impenetrable barricade of plants.

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You're in the realm of shadows, so...
nep help (double post should stick it to the other reply)

 

The overgrowth seems to attract more attention than just Artemis, a few other death guardians showing up to try and keep balance and prevent the forest from killing itself.

Ihra finds herself slipping into another vision.

Ihra wakes up under a large pine tree, seeming to have dozed off for a moment. She gets up and turns around, looking at the giant field in front of her. Various other kids her age seem to be running about, on one side of the field playing football, and the other side card games. Ihra feels an odd sense of childlike freedom as warm sunlight bounces off her soft skin. She feels herself holding on to a dry pinecone, and the vision doesn't seem to be guiding her, but letting Ihra guide it.

 

@Nepeta Leijon

The forest seems to be perfectly healthy - despite the overgrowth, the tangle seems to be symbiotic rather than competitive. The more death guardians that try to curb the growth, the stronger the life energy becomes.

Ihra tries moving about, a bit curious.

 

From the doors of the Shadow Palace, a vast, twilit city reaches out in front of you. Red eyes and dark bodies mark the barely visible presence of Shadows roaming about, though their movements and actions are surprisingly human. Near to the palace seems to be an incredibly high-class district, likely filled with nobles and the upper class. Large, ornate buildings and expensive looking shops seem to make up the majority of the area. Further on seems to be the main meat of the city, commonfolk and essential shops filling up a huge mass in the centre, with housing districts to the left and right. Barely visible on the other side of the city seems to be a slumlike area for the lower class, a visible wall in place to seperate them from the main city. A large fountain is visible in the very middle of the city, a clearing of buildings around it with what looks to be a large gathering of shadows.

Closer by seems to be the beautiful Shadow Palace gardens. Forest guardians tend to the flowers and plants curving around the exterior of the vast palace, the pathway up to the doors filled with bright flowers and sweet smelling plants. The forest guardians seem social, some chatting with Shadows or each other as they work. Some seem to carry baskets of fruits, vegetables and mushrooms into the palace - presumably for the kitchens - trying to keep out of the way of visitors to not disturb them. One forest guardian in particular stands out to you: They don't seem to be much older than a teenager, and appear to struggle with growing flowers near one of the large trees in the garden. Every time they attempt it, the flower withers and dies shortly after they stop feeding it.

Just inside the Shadow Palace shows the usual curve around the throne room, the queue of people now much shorter. Pleasant smells come from the right, while servants seem to move down the left, carrying items from food platters to towels. One servant seems to have the job of cleaning the floors, though they only seem to have a mop and no water to dip it in; nonetheless, they never seem to run out of water.

Ihra finds herself immersed further into the vision as she moves about, before it's seamless with reality itself. The only difference is Ihra seems to be a human child dressed in a smart school uniform, though she can still feel her horns protruding from her head.

The pinecone in Ihra's hand feels sentimental to her in some way, and she notices a somewhat familiar face. What looks like a much younger Abigail seems to playing one of the card games with the other kids. From this, she can see another pine tree with a dark shadow in front of it, and some kids on the far side of the field digging into a tree stump with sticks. Ihra feels full of energy, ready to run about and enjoy the day.

 

I just keep a keen eye on Scurn, waiting on Shadow Steph.

 

It takes until all of the people in the queue waiting to see her have gone until Shadow Stephanie finally leaves the throne room, holding a canned drink of some kind and looking tired. She notices you and Scurn and walks over.

"Oh, hey. You're still here," Shadow Stephanie says, taking a sip from her drink "Have you explored the palace already?"

 

“No, I’ve been waiting. My patience can extend for a long time.”
I look over to Scurn.
“Not sure about him, though.”

 

"You two didn't get food or anything?" Shadow Stephanie asks, a little puzzled, "It seems like an odd way to spend your time. Anyway, what did you need?"

 

"He didn't want food."
I shrug.
"He wants to get in touch with your reality's Gaia. We were going to get to Stephanie to try and get that done, but in order to get to Stephanie, we needed to get to you anyway, so here we are."

 

"Why does he need to get in touch with Gaia?" Shadow Stephanie asks, "Does he want to become a guardian or something?"

 

“He’s seeking assistance. For himself and his crew.”

 

"Oh? What's he trying to achieve?" Shadow Stephanie asks, sounding a little skeptical.

 

@Enhanced_Human
Scurn makes eye contact with Thirteen, seeming to snap out of his vacant state of mind.

Ihra tries to break the immersion, seeming a bit uncomfortable with the scenario.

 

As much as Ihra tries, she can't seem to break out of it. If there's a way out of the vision, it'll likely be by completing something within it.

 

I gesture, offering Scurn to speak for himself.

 

She feels her head for her horns, looking around for anyone else she might recognize nearby.

@Nepeta Leijon
"My hometown was razed, and the shelter city I was in started being burned to the ground by Idhaenna. I don't usually take in a bunch of people at once, but I'd like there to at least be somewhere for those who were just unlucky enough to be present during all this to go other than a condemned underground complex that's fenced off five times for a reason. I was hoping she could get ground zero inhabitable again or something. Or some sort of military aid for the other foolish kids fighting the Hive Master just to play hero. I can't talk down every naive kid from going on a self inflicted suicide mission, so I'd like them to have some alternative other than go get mind controlled by a jackass or dying."

 

Her horns protrude from her head as normal, though they come with a head of hair too.

Ihra can't recognise anyone other than Abigail, though the dark shadow in front of the pine tree seems to have an air of familiarity about it.


"So you're thinking Gaia will go and heal everything up for you?" Shadow Stephanie asks.

 

Ihra cautiously waves a single time at the shadow, seeming uncertain.


"No, that'd be a stupid risk for any god to take. I'm hoping she could at least help us figure out some alternative to fools throwing themselves at the Hive Master. Anything more is an unexpected bonus that I'm not counting on."

 

A pair of red eyes meet Ihra's, along with a white smile of sharp teeth. The creature seems hesitant to leave the safety of the shade, however. Nobody else seems to notice it either.


"I doubt you'll get far, but you're welcome to try," Shadow Stephanie says, "I'll see if I can get in contact with Stephanie, but whether or not you can get an actual audience with Gaia is purely luck-based."