Description
A gray-feathered arial stands quietly here, trying to look important. The
feathers surrounding his face and head are slicked back, making the scarlet
crest protruding from his crown stand out with a defiant wildness. He is
dressed messily, but neatly, his sad mismatch of garments clean and pressed,
but worn, weathered and ill-arranged all the same. Glowing magical trinkets
glimmer proudly against his drab coloring, and a simple sack is tied securely
at his hip, though it is stained, and possibly leaking some sort of glowing
fluid. His wide wings are tucked in behind him, and his talons rest firmly
on the ground. Bright red avian eyes skitter slightly, perhaps taking in all
that surrounds him, or, possibly, fixated on an unseen something.
Role
Magical Solitude
Added Mon Jun 19 12:55:11 2023 at level 23:
You want it to all add up so neatly, don't you? But that is not
life. That is not even magic. We try to bend the rules of nature to
to our own whims, and you are worried about the why and when of
things?
Oh, but that is the paradox, isn't it? We study and research,
we experiment and try, ever seeking the order for that yet to be
discovered, ever shuffling and restarting. In the end, there is no
reason to it all, I assure you.
But at that time, of course, I did not know this. Still, you must
understand, those years being trapped in Glymarach were most formative.
Nothing quite like solitude and starvation to really set the mind to
focus. It was there that I was forced to reckon with my whims, my
choices... my suspicions and fears, really.
I did not like what I saw, you know. So I dove into my studies.
When one does not like one's reality, magic is ever available to
change it. Not always forever, no, but I learned there that not
only can the energy flowing through this world be harnessed to
reshape the world, it can be tapped into to shape one's own
thoughts and feelings.
And so I decided then and there, as destined for death as I was,
that I could indeed choose to bend my situation to my benefit. You
see? That would be the key to my future. That time, rotting in a
cell with nothing but the few incantations my guildmaster had urged
me to master as well as some elf or human student, it became my
time. And study I did. Alone. Away. Focused.
Yes, I was Liiga's, and though I resented her, and vowed revenge, I
was not Raik's or Hekkamos' or any other's. All Liiga wanted from me
was my feathered frame in her possession. But I had all the arts
I'd learned at my disposal to master, and all the questions I'd
discovered, to consider.
They say the cruelties of a dungeon can make a fellow mad. But I did
not lose sight of myself, no. I gained vision of the world around
me. Tendrils of mana flowing throughout, eager to be harnessed,
ignorant of their purpose. I learned, you see? I discovered that all
we were ever taught, was quite, quite malleable.
You disagree? You are wrong. And if you are right, I will make
you wrong.
Inviting Serendipity
Added Wed Jul 26 10:16:47 2023 at level 36:
I suppose it is disappointing when a thesis is disproven. But why? The
answer is found, the truth revealed. No, what is truly disappointing is
the reality that a random act of serendipity can be the cause for
illumination, just as easily as hours of diligent measuring, testing,
analyzing. It is surely enough to make the most rigid mind flaccid.
So what does one do? The deck is ever stacked against us, surely even
you have come to realize this. Souls are blessed with knowledge, souls
are cursed with naivete. And adventurers... each of us, our kinds, are
told what we can do, and what we can't. Such bonds are so difficult to
operate within!
And so you see, flying free, but always moving your wings, that is how
you learn. That is how you invite the fleeting chaos of serendipity into
your world.
Yes, I experiment. Yes, I separate my magic from my heart. That, that is
another treatise altogether. For now, know simply that I do as I wish,
and if it seems a mess to you still, that is your own curse. The curse
of a shuttered soul - yes, that is the worst affliction one can welcome.
Water
Added Thu Aug 3 13:27:39 2023 at level 45:
I was wondering when you'd ask.
It was a whim, really. But as I've learned, the chaos of whimsy is more often
than not steeped in that most ethereal of traits: intuition. Good luck to
those who strive to secure, categorize and harness such a thing - because
those of such a nature are always too disinclined to abort their plans for
in favor of the serendipitous risk of happenstance.
And so the nature of water and of myself proved to be, naturally, most
key in my research of how to change the shape of things magically. I
was quite surprised when I noticed in my guild that my kind were indeed
allowed to focus on the forms of water despite our known hatred of
submersion, whilst felar could not. Perhaps a joke by those who make such
rules, perhaps an oversight. But jokes and errors are ever gateways to
new perspectives, and well, though such things can oft be frought with pain,
pain is still a currency of knowledge. You see?
You don't see.
Let me put it this way: I am an arial, understood to be a certain way. Now,
if you've been listening, you ought to know by now that there is nothing
more limiting to discovery than assumption. So, they tell us to be afraid
of this, or to trust that. Things are a certain way, and that is that.
Magic is the key, but our predilections... our assumptions of ourselves
and this world... we... we lock ourselves with our ideas of what we
believe can be.
So I sought to be of the water because I was supposed to not.
And mastering that, well, that's how I was able to accomplish everything
else.
Remnli's Unexpected Journey, Part I
Added Wed Sep 27 14:09:38 2023 at level 51:
Now, without question, it is very careless for one to take rest at a public
temple. Moreso if that person is hurt. But that's why we go to the temples,
no? For the healing priests? And so that's where I took my rest.
So yes, when I awoke at the feet of a most smelly, woodsy elf, perhaps I
ought not have been surprised that I was so swiftly hacked into
ghosthood! Chopped and sliced, and then, forced to witness the
butchering of my very own gray-feathered lifeless birdbody into cruel
little Remnli steaks!
He would need to pay. And so I sent out on my quest for revenge.
The problem with hunting a ranger, now, is that you can't really see them.
But I had a hunch. It is known that at a certain rank in one's guild,
the carcasses of scary spiders are sought out by many at the behest of one
very rich lumberjack. Now, personally, I hate spiders. But I also hate
stupid elves who kill me, so a compromise with myself was reached. And
so scared-of-spiders-Remnli was negotiated into acquiescence.
But not into submission. I was there, in the Spiderhaunt Woods, but I was
terrified. As I treaded carefully beneath a dense canopy of foliage, a
sense of unease increasingly churned in my stomach. I passed through
sticky strands of spidersilk that wafted in a breeze from which I could
find no source. And all was silent. No chirping. No buzzing. Never had a
forest felt so... unalive. But I was prepared for an ambush from an elf. I
was ready for him. I heard something. Like scissors, opening and closing...
LIKE KNIVES IN MY LEGS!
Giant sword-like prongs thrust up and down at me from the darkness! Blood
sprayed from my thighs with each thrust, splattering all over a hundred
red eyes fixated upon me! I ran. More spiders! Seemingly popping in front
of me from another plane! The sword spider chased me, and then another
appeared... I was trapped, doomed! But then... I disappeared suddenly.
Summoned out of the woods - I was saved! I smiled at the knight before me,
a kindly golden hue emanating from his presence. His fiery passionate eyes
met my gaze, then closed. He nodded at me.
HOW IT BURNED!!!!
Holy wrath filled my heart, wracking my body with pain. The most horrible
thing ever had found me: a paladin! I tried to utter a word of recall, but
his holy wrath had cursed me. Writhing in agony, I desperately flung
myself a step away, and tried the spell so many of my rank had mastered,
but I had never bothered to.
I teleported! I found myself in another dark wood, thick vines and heavy
mist covering the ground. My wounds were many, and I was weak, hungry and
thirsty. I took a sip of water from my canteen and tried to assess if I'd
found serendipity, or further misfortune. A howl echoed through the night.
Tangles of vines brushed me uncomfortably. Exhausted, I closed my eyes,
even though I had a feeling that I was indeed not fully fortunate.
Continued...
Remnli's Unexpected Journey, Part II
Added Wed Sep 27 14:17:37 2023 at level 51:
I opened my eyes.
AIR! I NEEDED AIR! I needed to... BREATHE!!!
A length of green tendrils were curled about my neck, choking the life
out of me! They were hard as rotted wood, and I could not claw free!
An orange pumpkin-headed creature cackled at me from above, relishing the
empty gasps from my throat. I instinctively shapeshifted into the form of
my mustang. Wriggling free with the change, I instantly sprinted away,
and raced in a panic through the woods! A witch greeted me from the south.
A spidery beast clawed at me from the west. I turned, I dashed, I kept
running until I could run no more!
Out of energy, I collapsed on the ground, forced to return to my natural
form. My clothes were soaked in blood. My stomach rumbled with hunger. And
a curious pixie stood plaintively above me. Exhausted, I couldn't move.
I needed food. I reached for my bag... not on my back, not on my belt...
where was my food? Where were my supplies? Bah! The elven ranger took my
bags, and I'd not noticed!!!
After all that, was I to die from starvation? I eyed the little pixie
above me salaciously. She looked weak, but I had not the energy to change
shape and murder her. But perhaps a few wacks from my staff would be
enough to kill her and salvage a leg or arm from her...
She seemed to sense my wicked intent, and stepped to a safe distance away
from me. I wondered then if I should have just asked her for help.
NNH! MY STOMACH WRENCHED ITSELF INWARD!
Like a wet rag being twisted and drained, I felt my gut folding upon
itself. I was no longer cursed, but lacked the energy to muster any spell.
I dug through my pockets, my belt... ...yes! One last tincture just for a
moment like this! I drank the gray potion at once, and found myself
instantly transported back home to Seantryn's Dark Temple.
And one step away from the healer who could help me.
I could not drag myself another step, so close to death I was. Was I to
die again on the same temple steps where this whole misadventure began?
And then there, at my feet, I noticed a most welcome surprise. In a small
pile of gray feathers...
FOUR PERFECTLY PRESERVED ARIAL STEAKS!!!
I tore into the delicous poultry. And I say this sincerely, I never tasted
so good.
PK Wins
Nov 7, 2023 |Lv 51|East Sumner's Road|Movh vs 3: [47] Zicdorgle (0%), [51] Fisih (55%), [51] Remnli (44%, claw)
Nov 7, 2023 |Lv 51|Ruins of Maethien|Baznul vs 2: [51] Remnli (18%), [51] Fisih (81%, KB)