Peace and Quiet

Thread Status: Closed
Players involved: Hera, Kila
Characters involved: Aolani, Wrath
Setting: Life lands, nestled in a small garden
Time: Early evening
Weather: Partly cloudy, cool and pleasant

Aolani

The evening sky was beginning to turn shades of pinks and purples as the sun, a vivid orange, began to dip towards the horizon. There was a pleasant breeze blowing through the garden, pushing the clouds overhead across the sky, occasionally gusting. It was a quiet, peaceful place. Exotic flowers and trees lined the shore of the pond, with water as blue as the sky during the day. Four bridges connected the shores to the island within, perfectly centered with a blooming magnolia tree. The trees and bushes rustled, petals were blown off flowers, falling into the water while others landed in the hair of the angel sitting on an island in the middle.

She sat with her legs crossed, her hands folded in her lap as the breeze whipped her long pigtails around. Her eyes were closed in meditation, her face serene.

Times had been stressful recently. The two oracle deaths rattled the people. Between tending to Haliea's temple and the angels that came en mass, and dealing with the aftermath of the demon lords' meeting at the temple of Vaerath--where their oracle had reappeared--it had been a very, very busy past few weeks. Her nightly meditation became all the more important. It was a time where she could reflect and seek guidance from the gods. And in times like these, she needed all the prayers she could offer--though Vaerath had seemed displeased by this. Not to mention the fact that she'd failed to heed the god's calling for the oracle, no thanks to her misunderstanding with Feather.

Aolani chewed her lip as she thought, growing more concerned. Breathe, she reminded herself. Breathe.

She exhaled, and tensed muscles relaxed.

Peace and quiet. Just what she needed.

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Oh how pitiful the days had grown. From one to another, the days seemed to have blurred together as each morning the sun rose and each night it fell; leaving the moon to take its place. How many years had it been since he really enjoyed a moment like this where the sun had just begun to dip, yet the moon was still not out. Katakarthia had grown boring for the elder creature as started to wander from one place to another. It was home to the species he had a stronger feeling towards, so it made sense for him to be at their homelands. True, others could have been on one of the other continents that made up this godforsaken world, but for now his eyes were set on the heart of the species he called prey.

Not too long ago two oracles had perished; none of which involved his prey yet there was a big enough disturbance that drew the large creature back to these parts. A gathering of powerful demons had caused him to compulsively follow the lure of demonic energy that could cause a disturbance. Sure enough, it had been the four demon kings that had dragged him out to watch over them as they conversed. The last thing he had expected was for their patron god to appear with another of the oracles. At least that one was still alive... for now at least. At the rate they were going, another oracle or two may fall but it wasn't his call to make. Two were dead and now there seemed to be unrest. Thankfully none had pertained to his prey, but there was still time. How would the magically inclined deal with their oracles now dying? The demons had gathered to discuss while the angels seemed to leave it be. The elves well... They had been quiet. Maybe it was because some of them seemed to keep switching leadership. Out of all the prey, only one clan had managed to keep ahold of his throne for some time, but it was still the one that the hunter watched more carefully. Things had been quiet from him though, other than the demon meeting, so for now, the tarsian could relax.

A small gruff came from the humanoid as he looked around here he had been. There was an unusual amount of positive energy in the area. The light seemed to be more pure than in other parts of the continent. "Ah, it's probably the Light Angels," he murmured to himself with a tsk sound to follow. The angels normally got on his nerve a bit more than the demons. They seemed to be filled with more positive energy that was almost sickening to stay around for long. While he was generally neutral, neither good nor evil, there was a reason why his namesake was Wrath. He knew what lines he could cross and where to back off for fear of his own kind coming to hunt him in return. It was the way they all lived. Slowly though, a familiar scent started to catch his attention. No, it wasn't a pure one... It was muddled with another creature.. One that was normally given to another of the clans. The male gave a small lick to his lips, lining the gentle curve of his lower lip as his attention drew to the hybrid that now was his target. He wasted no time before setting off to look for the part angel who called to part of his soul.

Slowly and quietly, the tarsian perched away from her sight to look at the creature. It was... strange. She gave off no ill energy and looked almost... peaceful? The very idea was strange for him to comprehend as he watched the girl, saying nothing. He made no motion to go closer to her, or announce his presence. Instead, he simply watched to see what she would do next.

Aolani

Aolani was no longer alone.

The other presence became known to her, and was...complex? Not an angel. Not a demon. Not an elf. Yet somehow all three? How curious.

But the mysterious man was not a bother. He was a curiosity; watching her with what could only be described as a hunger. His aura was a tangled mess of anger, kept boiling under the surface, like a horse chomping at the bit and ready to buck itself free. She chuckled to herself. This stranger needed to meditate more than her, it seemed. The scent of the magnolia blossoms overhead lulled her back into the world, tempting her to cast aside her inner peace and engage the stranger who'd been eyeing her from a distance.

"Would you care to join me?" she asked, opening her vibrant blue eyes to look around her secret garden for the mystery man of anger.

She found him easily; it wasn't hard to miss a man of his stature. He looked like a statue carved in reverence of the gods, with the stony expression to match, but it was his eyes that drew her in the most. Red irises against black sclera, and they were entirely unreadable. There was definitely a hunger there--it put Aolani on edge, just a bit. It reminded her of how she felt before war. A thirst for battle and the thrill of conquest.

Feelings she left behind long, long ago.

The angel shifted closer to the tree, and patted the grass next to her in invitation. "If you're going to watch, you may as well come closer," she said with a gentle smile. "It seems as though some meditation would do you well."

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The embodiment of wrath watched her closer, surprised at to how she had been so easy to invite him closer towards her. Could she not feel how his presence was? The mixture of three souls yet not the typical scent for a hybrid. No... Tarsians were different to say the least and he was more-so than most so how was she so easily able to draw him closer without a care in the world? Surely that would be a foolish thing to do, especially for a lone woman with a creature who easily dwarfed her with no effort.

Yet somehow, he found himself compelled to walk closer towards her. Her eyes were a bright blue, a harsh contrast against his own. Her hair.. so colorful and vibrant like her eyes. It was odd to see a creature so pure. Her own aura seemed to be at rest compared to his. It was odd to see her like this, yet the male couldn't help but slowly take her invitation. He emerged from the vegetation, slowly showing just how tall he was compared to her sitting. She almost looked like a child to him by the time he stood where she had patted the grass. Wrath's arms were crossed over his exposed chest, unsure of what to make of this. Still, the girl meant no warm. Besides, she didn't seem like a threat. The girl was too frail in comparison to himself and half angel. That alone was enough to keep him at ease. Angels he could hunt. Dragons, he liked to but avoided due to the conflict it created with the other clans. So, Wrath took his place next to the girl with a small plop. His right leg was stretched out in front of him, his left folded under the right. The majority of his weight shifted back onto his hands that rested just behind his back; parallel to his shoulders.

But still, the male said nothing. He simply looked in front of him with a an emotionless expression. The closest to saying something to the girl, was deeper breath as he tried to understand why she would even be sitting here in a place like this. Even more puzzling, why was here here now?

Aolani

Her companion was the silent type, it seemed. No matter, Aolani thought. Silence was good. It made it easier to relax, to just focus on the world around her. The flowers, the gentle murmur of the water around her little island, the whisper of leaves in the wind...this was the peace she sought. What she had fought for so long ago.

As he settled beside her, the angel leaned back against the tree, feeling the bark against her skin. Smooth and pale, with moss growing on the trunks and branches, it grounded her. She would be like the tree, strong and graceful, growing in spite of the adversities thrown at her. Aolani would continue blooming, just like her magnolia tree.

The pink petals fell loose in a rather strong breeze, many landing on the newcomer and in her own hair. He was unreadable. What was he thinking? From what she could read of him, he was just as perplexed as she was.

Aolani busied her hands with brushing petals off her skirts, leaving those in her hair alone. They were, after all, a match for the fresh flowers she wore in her hair that day. With a deep exhale, she closed her eyes, and let her head rest against the tree. As the sun sank lower into the horizon the colors of the sky intensified, casting the pale angel's skin in a golden light. The golden accents on her skirts and bodice shimmered, and she opened her eyes again to take in the world, singing in the twilight hour.

As blues and purples overtook the world, fireflies came out in droves, their lights twinkling in shades of pale greens and yellows. The world was beautiful, and Aolani set her fingers on the pearl embedded in her chest. "I'll never tire of this," she said with a sigh. "This is the best part of the day, when the calm and quiet of night starts to settle in." She drew her knees to her chest and smiled to herself. Soon the stars would be out, and then she could go home to enjoy a meal.

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As the sky began to change colors, still nothing came from the newcomer to this odd domain. He simply did as the smaller hybrid had asked of him, no idea why but he did, and sat there in silence. The closest to any sounds that he made came from the occasional need to shift his position on the ground. Once it was to untuck his leg out from under him, another to tuck the opposite leg under him once more, another to shift the weight on his palms, and so forth. Every so often, a new movement, a new sound, yet none spoken from his lips.

It was odd for him to spend his company in the presence of another. He wasn’t known to socialize with others, if that was what you could even call this at the moment. The area was unusually peaceful and quiet… almost too quiet. It was as if something should be happening soon but what, the male did not know. Situations like this normally made him uneasy as it may have been serene right now but it could change in the blink of an eye.

Wrath had been deep in thought, trying to understand why a female would be so keen as to spend some time out here when a petal danced across his face and landed on the bridge of his nose. The small, pink remnant of a flower startled the tarsian as his eyes grew; exposing more of the black sclera that helped identify him. A small growl rumbled in the base of his throat as he swatted away the pesky plant from his face. It was then that the male took the time to recognize the other petals that had fallen into his mane-like hair. Before long, Wrath had his fingers running through the top of his hair as she vigorously tried to shake out the petals loose. One by one, each one fell until they were all removed. When he was satisfied with their removal, Wrath folded both of his legs back up to sit cross-legged and hunched himself over so his elbows were resting on the side of his knees with his arms and hands hanging freely. His hair no longer looked as tamed as it had been before. No, the tarsian hadn’t taken the time to fix it after he removed the petals and now, it truly looked like a thicker lion mane running down his back as opposed to around his neck. He didn’t care though. It wasn’t like he couldn’t fix that later.

His focus soon enough shifted back towards the female, noticing she still had the petals in her hair. Why hadn’t she removed them? It perplexed him a bit, but his attention was shifted towards her voice as she mindless spoke. He never thought of this time of day being any better than the rest. Well, it wasn’t a completely true statement. Maybe he had when he was younger but as the days continued on, it hadn’t been a focus of his in a long time. His focus shifted away from her to watch as the daylight transformed. The nighttime creatures were slowly coming out as frogs began to sing and insects began to chirp. One by one, the stars revealed themselves to them as they waited in this isolated location. It was so peaceful here… Was this why she came? The idea still perplexed him, but his focus remained on the changes that occurred to the surrounding area.

He had shifted his position once more to mimic her own with his knees drawn towards his chest, arms casually wrapped around to hold him in place. “I’m not sure if it’s the best, but it does have its own qualities.” The male finally had replied to her in a low voice, eyes watching the sky. “I guess it can be… if you like this sort of thing.”

Aolani

The night's symphony was out in full chorus, and the angel was so caught off guard by her companion's voice that she stared at him, mouth slightly agape. His low voice was barely louder than tge sobgs of crickets and frogs that, for just a moment, Aolani thought she might have imagined it. After finally collecting herself, she put on a smile. "My, he does speak!" Aolani said, her laugh clear and sweet as a bell. At least her meditation was over. For now, she could let herself rejoin the outside world and prepare for the following day, no matter how much she wanted to linger and soak in the man's mystique.

It was strange to have a companion during her meditation, and for all his shuffling and grunts, it wasn't at all unpleasant. The company was nice. It was nice to not have to think about the oracle deaths; to just have a moment with some company and have no pressure. No one to calm but herself, no one to focus on but herself. It was a time for the woman to find the strength to be strong for those that needed her now. The life of a priestess was never easy, but She had shed the armor of war for the cloth. It was her burden to bear.

Taking a deep breath and savoring the cool, crisp feeling of the night air as it filled her body, Aolani let the tension of her burden roll away. She rose to her feet, her tall, slender figure not as small as she appeared to be while sitting, and ran her fingers through her rainbow hued hair, shaking the petals free where they were carried away in the breeze.

"I'm afraid our time together has to end now, stranger," she said, glancing back at the man with those dark, unusual eyes, her own sparkling in the light of a thousand fireflies in stark contrast. "I need to return to the temple for nightly prayers, but perhaps tomorrow we can do this again? It was nice to have some company." A radiant smile spread across her face as she made eye contact with him. He was almost magnetic in a way, drawing the angel in. Aolani recognized the feeling of danger around him, ever present, pickling at the back if her neck. But his was a soul needing to find peace, and what sort if priestess would she be if she denied him the chance to find it?

"You don't need to answer. Just show up around the same time and we'll meditate." Aolani gave a short wave in parting as she turned away, her golden heels clicking softly against the stone  as she crossed the bridge. Before too long, she was gone, back to the choas that had become her life.

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Wrath just blinked at the girl. He was so confused by her bubbly personality and her random need to keep conversing with him. They had been doing fine when he simply was just sitting there and she was doing her own thing. Wasn't that enough? So the male said nothing to the spunky girl as he watched her get it. However, he was a bit more intrigued by her. She seemed to be taller than the averaged sized humanoid, but it was difficult for him to tell from his current position on the ground. She may have been taller than him? No, it wasn't possible. Very few were taller than him and most were of his own race. She lacked the smell of a tarsian to even consider it, so he quickly dismissed the idea. Tomorrow he could try to see how tall she was in comparison to him. Apparently she wanted to see him again?

- x -

All too soon the next day had arrived. It had been a foreign concept for the male to have plans with another person, even if it more of a one-sided discussion. He never said that he would show up, but then again he never said he wouldn't. The female had been so firm in her stance, that it almost intrigued him more about her. She was so calm yet... There was something there. Wrath couldn't quite put his finger on it, but there was an aura around her that was almost familiar. Maybe it was the angel in her that called to the angelic soul in him.

So there the male sat once more, almost in an identical position to where the female had left him the day before. His back was to the tree as he had his legs stretched out in front of him, only this time he had his hands folded up behind his head. A gentle breeze had knocked a few of the petals down from the tree, only to land in his hair like it had the previous day. This time though, the male didn't try to take them out. He simply let them in as the wind played at the ends of his hair.

By the time the angel made it to the garden, the sky was already turning inky as the shades of the night sky began to roll in. Her day had been...chaotic. The temple needed cleaning after the latest round of offerings, and the acolytes were tending to their organization within the temple walls. So Aolani had taken to the task herself with a small handful of priests. Polishing the floors and the statue of Haliea, making sure the gold sparkled in the light of the setting sun...the temple was always beautiful when Aolani tended to it. She made sure the goddess' home sparkled.

Even if it meant being late for meditation, and the stranger she was almost certain wouldn't be there.

Even for all the golden splendor she wore, the angel looked tired. While she still wore a neutral smile, there were dark circles under her eyes, and her fingertips ached from scrubbing the scuffs out of the polished marble floors. Yet as she reached the height of the stone bridge and she saw the mysterious stranger sitting with his back to the magnolia tree, she felt a spring in her step as she quickened her approach to the island. Even though she barely knew the man, she was pleased by his company.

"It's nice to see you again," she said with a warm smile, though her eyes were tired. With a sigh, she took a seat beside him in the grass, and leaned back against her tree, too sore to hold herself up. It brought back the days of training for the army, how her limbs ached from the work, but her back had never ached as it did now. Stooping over on her hands and knees to scrub, maybe she was getting too old for such things. Ha! An immortal complaining about feeling too old, it was enough to make her chuckle inwardly. She was in the prime of her life.

Resting her head against the tree, she cast her gaze skyward as the first stars over the evening began to twinkle to life. My, had it really gotten so late? As Aolani focused on her breathing, her body relaxed, shoulders sagging as she folded her hands on her lap. Another breath, and her eyes closed halfway. She was so tired tonight, but there was always time for meditation.

The male watched as the girl had finally come to join him. It had been hours since he had expected her to show up. Had she not known what time she had been here yesterday? Normally if you made plans, as little as theirs had been, it was wise to stick to them yet today she seemed to have arrived when the sun had dipped and the stars were slowly coming out. For a girl who seemed so adamant in her nature, it didn't appear as if she were the type to be late. However, he said nothing as he gave a simple nod and let her settle in beside him.

Wrath was quick to notice the change in the girl today though. She wasn't as vibrant as she had been the previous day. No, she seemed tired. Her soul was weaker, her eyes were dark, and she barely even woke beyond the simple greeting. True, the male didn't speak much either but in their little time together the girl was more vocal. Today... it was odd. He watched as she settled in and then... fell asleep? The tarsian was taken back by how quickly she was about to fall asleep. Her eyes were barely even open. He stared at her, not sure how to go about this.

"...are you awake?"