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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:08:46 GMT -6
That could be a reason enough to take a risk and dive into the unknown. Simple greed was a strong motivator, but Silver was honestly more curious than anything.
Things were always more complicated with a giant, blind, fire breathing creature in the mix. While most people (and other creatures) would probably be terrified of her, Silver always felt the need to be overly protective of Nyx. Perhaps it had something to do with her blindness, the way she acted as a baby, or where she originally came from. Whatever the reason, Silver wanted to keep her safe.
Why, then, would they go somewhere they seemed to think was inherently unsafe? Their desire to spend time with her (combined with unceasing curiosity) was greater than their skepticism about the mansion’s mad magic. At least for now, it was. They were fairly confident that they could protect her if they needed to.
3 [135, 11]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:09:05 GMT -6
Silver spoke softly to the Equillion about what was going on around them as they made their way to the gates of the old manor. While she didn’t truly understand them, like some creatures did, Silver did think that she liked to be spoken to. What they spoke about wasn’t that important, so they just narrated whatever they thought was interesting.
Some passersby gave the pair weird looks, and they honestly couldn’t tell what they found more unusual: a short light elemental talking aloud to nobody, or a huge black equine with translucent skin and black smoke for a mane. Probably a bit of both, really.
“Ah, look… heh, sorry… I can see the gate. What do you think will be inside this time?” Silver mused aloud. The one thing that never changed about this place was that it was always changing. They honestly could not predict what they would find as they entered the gate, even though they had been there many times.
4 [135.05, 12]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:11:01 GMT -6
Nyx blew some air out of her nose and leaned to the side so that she could rest her head against Silver. She wasn’t actually putting that much weight on them, but the fact that they could touch made her feel safer. She could hear and smell many unusual things, and that made her nervous. She really loved Silver, though, so she was willing to trust them no matter where they led her.
For most of her life, Silver was a primary source of comfort for her. She knew she could always trust them to be there for her, because they always had been. At least... almost always.
“Alright then, let’s go,” they said. For some reason, the gate felt like a huge barrier. Almost as if they were reluctant to cross the fence line, even though the gate itself was open. They could easily just take one step and be over the line, but they were frozen for just a moment too long.
5 [135.1, 12.2]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:11:17 GMT -6
Silver shook their head. What was that feeling? Whatever it was, it was fleeting, and they were able to proceed without too much trouble after that. They stepped onto the grounds of the mansion and looked around. What would they find there today? They had been thinking about it since they planned this trip.
Despite the cool weather of late autumn, the surrounding foliage was in full bloom. Silver wasn’t that surprised, really. The weird magic around here had rules of its own. If it wanted to have a lush garden in the middle of winter, well, was anything going to stop it? Probably not. The place could probably make its own weather, even. Actually, they were pretty sure that it did just that.
“What do you think, Nyx?” Silver said. They rested their hand on her shoulder. “What should we look at first? The garden? The house? Hmm…”
6 [135.15, 12.4]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:11:39 GMT -6
“Oh, I know, why don’t you lead the way?” Silver asked. They walked around to Nyx’s side, brushing her side with their fingertips so that she knew where they were as they moved. They tapped on her shoulder to let her know that they were about to climb up onto her back. As she was taught long ago, she pressed her wings in at her sides so that they didn’t get in the way.
Then, in a single well-practiced motion, Silver hopped up onto her back. They were pretty good at that for someone so short. They made it look easy, but then again, they did have a lot of practice. More than most people, even in a place like this which was full of fellow creature tamers.
Nyx knew how to be ridden, of course, but she still felt a bit strange about it. She immediately took one step backwards, then two steps forward, trying to settle herself. Finally, when she seemed relaxed, Silver rubbed her neck and shadowy mane.
7 [135.3, 12.6]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:12:12 GMT -6
“Good girl,” they said in an encouraging voice. “You still got it, don’tcha?”
There was something beautiful yet strange about sitting on the back of a creature, no matter what creature it was. Silver had done it hundreds of times with many varieties of creature, and it never became mundane. They could always feel a pulse in their heart, a puff of excitement perhaps, every time they climbed onto the back of some beast. This was where they belonged.
Now, where to go? Wasn’t that the problem they had in the first place? They decided to let Nyx lead the way. They gave her a bit of encouragement so she would move forward, then left her to decide her own path. Nyx was an interesting creature in that she had no eyes. While they had a few creatures with no eyes, Equillion did usually have them. She was somehow born without. That meant that she couldn’t see where she was going at all.
8 [135.25, 12.8]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:13:05 GMT -6
Nonetheless, she seemed to get around alright. Was it her sense of smell? A feel for the wind in her fine black fur? Something else? Silver wasn’t really sure, but she didn’t seem nearly as helpless as they might have thought when they met her. They would still be looking out for her, of course. She needed someone to guide her when things got tough, but for now, they could wander about in the garden without much issue.
Nyx adjusted her wings and snorted loudly. She didn’t mind giving Silver a ride, but it did feel weird. She had to take a moment to get used to it again. Their weight against her, being touched in ways that she normally wasn't? It was a lot to take in. She touched her nose to the ground and sniffed around in the grass. It was as if she was trying to comfort herself with a familiar smell.
9 [135.3, 13]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:14:05 GMT -6
From the point where her breath touched the grass, a few blades wilted away. It was as if merely touching her was enough to send them into the realm of death. Silver always thought that was peculiar, but they knew she didn’t mean any harm. She was a sweet, gentle creature, despite her gruesome appearance.
Finally, Nyx started to be a little more comfortable with everything going on. Weird place, check. Weird person on her back. Check. She wanted to move around a bit and explore. Perhaps she could even find something tasty to eat. That would really make her feel better, though she wasn't sure that there was any good prey to be had around here.
She headed off in the direction of the faint breeze, so that it was blowing behind her instead of against her face. Those sorts of things made a bigger difference to her than most, as she obviously couldn’t choose a direction based on what ‘looked interesting’.
10 [135.35, 13.2]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:14:48 GMT -6
Now and then, Silver would lean slightly, encouraging her to move in a particular way, but they tried not to have too much influence on where she went. They wanted her to feel like she was in control, though they couldn't explain why.
Just around the building itself, the grass was short and well kept. It was all very tidy, almost too tidy to be real. If it weren’t maintained by magic, it would take someone quite some time to make it that nice. Or perhaps someone had spent a very long time on it, though they doubted it. Things were never that simple around here.
To their surprise, Silver found Nyx gravitating toward an increasingly thick forest on the castle grounds. Usually, Equillion liked to spend time in large, open spaces, but perhaps she knew of or could sense something that they didn’t know about. They let her guide the way, only occasionally adjusting their path before they bumped into something.
11 [135.4, 13.4]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:15:09 GMT -6
It was becoming increasingly dark as they wandered deeper between the trees. Nyx wasn’t worried, of course. She belonged in the darkness. As for Silver, well, they were pretty sure that they would be fine. Though they did have to wonder what portion of the darkness was caused by the leaves rather than… something else.
Was Nyx attracted to the darkness because it was familiar? Calming? Silver wondered about the nature of a being like her as they slowly meandered deeper into the unknown. They were so very different, yet they got along. She always made them remember not to judge someone before getting to know them. If a creature that looked like Nyx could defy all of their explanations, well, they shouldn’t judge anyone without knowing who they really were.
A trickle of light flickered through the trees. In most places, that wouldn’t be very unusual, but it felt very strange here. Silver was on edge immediately. They encouraged Nyx to slow and even hopped off of her back. Something was off.
12 [135.45, 13.6]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:15:28 GMT -6
Nyx let out an anxious snort and took a step back. What was Silver doing? She could tell that they were worried, but not why. Since she couldn’t even see the light, she had no idea what was going on. All she knew was that something had changed, and all of a sudden she was worried, too.
“Ah, no, it’s okay,” Silver said. They pressed their head against her side again, to let her feel that they were nearby. It also served to ground them a bit, back into reality.
Silver could see something on the ground. It was like the earth was glowing where the light was touching it. How unusual. Silver waved their hand into the light, blocking it from hitting the ground, but it didn’t change how the grass looked. Well, grass wasn’t quite the right word for it. It was more like a moss of some kind.
13 [135.5, 13.8]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:15:51 GMT -6
They knelt down to inspect the moss. They touched it gingerly, and a tiny mote of light jumped out and floated away. They were so fascinated that they didn’t even think of being afraid. “It’s… light magic,” Silver said with some confidence. Light magic was one of the things they did know at least… something about.
“I’m going to keep a little,” Silver said. They ruffled through their bag and pulled out a little vial. They kept them in there for just such a thing. “Here we go,” they said, scooping bits of the moss into the vial.
“I don’t… know if they’ll stay magical once they leave this spot, but I guess we’ll find out.”
“Oh, sorry, I guess this wasn’t that interesting for you, huh?” Silver laughed a little. “I suppose we should move on, huh? Hmm… this place is pretty spooky. I can see why you like it.”
14 [135.55, 14]
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Post by Silver on Nov 7, 2021 6:16:15 GMT -6
“Well, let’s keep going, then.” Silver hopped back up onto Nyx and took a moment to steady her again. They smiled, and let her take the lead. She walked right through the patch of light, which caused them to flinch, but they didn’t stop her. They couldn’t be afraid of every little thing.
Nyx suddenly stopped in her tracks, causing Silver to lurch forward uncomfortably. She made a horrible screeching sound and blew a puff of smoke out of her nose. They did what they could to calm her while also trying to assess what had made her upset in the first place.
What Silver hadn’t noticed, but Nyx had, was that the vines on the ground were moving of their own accord. She had felt one brush against her, but in the dark, Silver was having trouble seeing it, even with their glowing eyes. All they could do was comfort Nyx and hope that whatever had startled her was not that big of a deal after all.
“I’m sure it’ll be okay,” they said.
15 [135.6, 14.2]
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Post by Nadia on Nov 7, 2021 9:24:18 GMT -6
Be careful nothing else here spooks her...
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Inertia
Dec 30, 2021 5:59:47 GMT -6
Post by Silver on Dec 30, 2021 5:59:47 GMT -6
Cold. Every year, Silver forgot just how cold it was when it snowed. During the warm summer months, they found themselves daydreaming of a crisp white wonderland, only to regret stepping outside the moment the frigid air touched their face. They squinted into the cold air, as if that would change anything. Slowly, their eyes adjusted to the blinding white of everything being covered in fresh snow. They adjusted their scarf to cover more of their nose and headed out into the frozen world. Crunch. Crunch. Their feet made a distinct, quiet noise against the snow. Everything seemed so much quieter. As if the snow had swallowed up all of the sound. That only made each step seem louder by comparison. A wispy white blur streaked across their vision, causing them to stop in place and look around. “Ah, hello there,” Silver said. They smiled softly. It took them a moment, but they figured out that the strange blur was actually a creature of theirs named Lumie. 1[136.8, 1.2] - 1
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