PM to join [The Sunset Falls] A Picnic by the Avitar

[Anders]

Summer 29th 513 AV

Anders' recent trip to Aylasa Caves and his experience with the Kelvic really gave him an appreciation for the joy that could be felt from escaping the crowded fortress. He yearned to get outside the castle walls again, not just to look for more ghosts but to actually get some quiet time in solitude.

After doing a bit of research, he decided that the falls would be the best destination. The hot springs were too close and the salt lake seemed far to dangerous of a journey. A well traveled and romanticized locale like the Sunset Falls were going to be perfect. Anders simply hoped (and was later proven quite fortunate) that he wouldn't find himself a stranger amongst a wedding party or a group of explorers. Luckily, he was able to secure the isolation for which he had been looking.

He dealt, so often with the meddling affairs of mortals (in life or in death didn't change the fact) that it was quite refreshing to revel in something as powerful and timeless as the powerful, intimidating drop at the falls. He had carried a small bit of food with him so he was able to take the morning and settle down at a specific overlook.

At the moment, he was seated and preparing to eat a few cold slices of cooked ham which he had brought for the picnic. Maybe it was his recent interaction with Fubuki, or perhaps the disturbing visit with a Nuit. Maybe it was just the unsettling rumors of a renegade knight, but something just felt restless within Anders. It was a restlessness that could only be brought on by the manic, hyperactive rhythm of living in a crowded city and it could only be cured by the serene quietitude of nature. There was something positively meditative about having a chance to be out here and to get away.

[Draven]

Draven truly enjoyed 'living' in Syliras, the magnificent castle-like city. He loved floating throughout her streets, and exploring her hidden corners. He did regret one thing: his almost constant separation from his raven. So every now and then he'd leave the city and have some sort of adventure, with his raven at his side. Today was such a day; he'd left the city and called for his raven, which swiftly flew towards him, as if it had been waiting for its friend to return. He petted the raven and gently let his soulmist envelop the pitch-dark bird. Feeling his essence spread throughout the bird - a body he knew like his own - he stretched his wings, before soaring off into the wilderniss, which surrounded the city of Syliras. He had heard of the Falls, the legendary waterfall, while playing a joke on some old couple, which he had given a tremendous fright. He had possessed their tabby cat, and spoken in a made-up language. It had been hilarious. However, before the whole demonic cat thing, he heard them speak about the Falls, as something being truly worth seeing. It had sparked his interest. As he arrived at the falls, which had taken him less than an hour, but had nonetheless exhausted him, he saw a weiry traveler, a human man. He was eating a slice of cooked ham, which Draven did not care for. The Raven however, did long for a slice of ham, and Draven could feel its exhaustion, having been possessed for a short hour. Still in the form of a raven - he figured a ghost might scare both the traveler and the ham away - he flew towards the man, who was still enjoying his meal. As he landed in front of him, he stood still, and eyed the man, its beady eyes focused on the piece of ham he was about to stuff inside his mouth. He had never begged for food as a raven before, but the thought did amuse Draven, who was still controlling the gentle raven.

[Anders]

As Anders enjoyed his quiet moments of leisure, he started to feel the familiar sensation of nearby soulmist. A few minutes later, he was approached by a small, innocent looking raven. This, alone, would have been enough to make the spiritist suspicious, but on top of everything he sensed the cold, dark aura coming off the bird. It was like a dark, grey filter over a completely different aura. There was something entirely alien accompanying this bird.

"Well this is peculiar..." This silent thought was his first reaction but he quickly decided to play along. After all, no good researcher seeks to create a more pronounced interaction with the research subject. the everlasting pursuit was to have virtually no impact on the experiment. Yes, although he meant to come out here and get away from the city, he had no desire to abandon his role as a researcher. A ghost had been, quite literally, dropped into his lap; he wasn't going to squander this opportunity.

"Well hello there, little friend," he smiled and spoke softly, as if truly in the belief that he was addressing nothing more than a simple raven. With the piece of meat hovering just inches from his mouth, he took notice of the snack.

He wanted to see where this was going to lead. "It's the ham, isn't it?" He chuckled innocently. "Funny thing for a... Bird... To desire a slice of ham," He reacted and recovered from the pause and his near slip up. "Well I'd gladly sacrifice a small bit of ham for the company of a curious stranger," he smiled, offering a hidden invitation.

He had never quite seen something like this before. Sure, possession was a natural occurrence when dealing with the world of spirits, but motivation to tame a feral creature for no other use than to lease a living body? It wasn't anything he had come across before and it was terribly fascinating. So this ghost...he or she must have known that she was dead. And yet, the desire to return to life was not, as it was with so many other spirits, an obsessive fantasy which often clouded logic and judgment. Here, with this spirit, it seemed to be a well thought-out desire, within the creature's grasp.

[Draven]

Carefully accepting the traveler's offer, Draven took the piece of ham. He could not taste the meat - his possession of the bird merely resembled a puppeteers control of his puppet - but he could feel the raven was grateful, and decided it would be best to allow the bird some rest. Additionally Draven had come up with a way for him to get some enjoyment out of this unexpected encounter. He rose up from the raven's body, and channelled his soulmist around himself. As the soulmist enveloped his body, which emitted a soft and gentle glow, it created an athmosphere of calmness and serenity. Long strands of gentle mist swirled around the two of them, as he stood floating above the ground. Now resembling a divinity, he gently smiled towards the Ethaefal. ' I thank you, gentle traveler, for the kindness you bestowed upon my servant,' he spoke at the man, while pointing towards the raven, which flew off into the morning sky. ' I am the lad~ - Boy of the Falls, and long have I waited for a kind and gentle soul, ' he continued speaking, as he smiled towards the man : ' Now, my child, I will grant you 3 wishes, a reward for your kindred spirit~' Mentally Draven was chuckling, but on the outside he retained his divine composure. The plan was perfect: a common man would most certainly be fooled by his divine appearance. Then again... Draven was not aware that the man in front of him was a spiritist.

[Anders]

When the ghost rose upward and revealed himself, Anders knew that he would have to pretend to be alarmed. After all, the supposed idea was that he was, in no way, onto the spirit's ruse. He was a pretty good spiritist but not so great an actor. "Mn'ahhhhooohhh!" Anders obnoxiously exclaimed upon seeing the tendrils.

After the introduction, Anders smiled, thankful that his role, in the little play, called for a smile. Three wishes? This was such an entertaining encounter. In death, just as in life, children were just so more energetic and creative. It made for a far more interesting interaction and certainly a less predictable account. Besides, his experience as a spiritist told him that the boy meant no real danger; his ability to sense auras indicated the same thing. Anders happily decided that it was appropriate to play along but he had to think of something...something outrageous and impractical. It came to him mercifully quickly.

"Three favors, for a simple piece of ham!" Anders joyously cried. "Truly, Ovek must be smiling upon me!" He scrunched his face into a thoughtful grin and waited for a few seconds. Then, he suddenly sprung back into actiona. "Okay, I have my first command! I often venture out here, to the falls, to gaze upon their beauty. But its such a time consuming venture to exit the city and come out here. So often, I wish that i had an easier access to this beautiful stretch of river. Raven-spirit, I implore you to re-route this stretch of the river. Cause the Sunset Falls to take their wonderful plummet right near my home in the Maiden District of Syliras!"

Sure, the spiritist risked being a little too playful but he wasn't working anyway. This was his leisure time and he would remain careful not to upset or alarm the ghost. As for his own antics, Anders did not act or speak in any fashion that would appear threatening. At this point, the interaction between them had been quite whimsical.

OOCBy the way, Anders' patron deity is Leth and his mortal form is a human, so as he sits here, during the daytime, he looks like a normal human. Just wanted to let you know so that you could go back and change those few references to the horn.

[Draven]

Draven had laughed, hearing the man's suprised exclamation - Draven was indeed quite gullible. He had kept smiling towards the man, as he expressed his gratitude, but had frowned when he had heard the mans request. "Cause the Sunset Falls to take their wonderful plummet right near my home in the Maiden District of Syliras!" He had expected something vague, or practical, like a farmer asking for a better harvest. But this- this ludicrous request was something entirely different. How in the names of the Divines would he reroute an entire waterfall? ... Who'd even ask something like that! Swaying about in his still overly ethereal form, he came to an answer: 'Oh, gentle traveler, if that is what you wish... it shall be so!'. Draven focused his soulmist once more and started swirling it around himself, forming whips of soulmist which he swayed about. In reality it was of course nothing more than a little show he put up: the Falls showed no difference. Gently smiling towards the man, he continued: ' Yet the inhabitans of this region, of this forest, have need of my water as well. So I had my Falls plummet near your home ... by moving your home instead, which can now be found at the bottom of my river, o kind traveler!' To prevent himself from laughing at the potential sight of the man's distress, he closed his eyes and chanted his next few word: 'What is your second wish, my ... dear'. The whole thing was becoming quite stupid, but he had planned a joke, and a joke he would have. Besides, messing around with humans was always amusing, and he loved doing so. OOCFixed, my previously goat-like threading partner ... also, that avatar is quite confusing

[Anders]

Anders laughed at the juvenile spirit's solution. "What a clever way to fulfill the wish," Anders smiled. "Thank you, great Raven spirit." This was, for the spiritist, becoming less about documenting behavior and more about testing and prodding his guest. The time had come to interact with his subject more completely. He wanted to see how far the spirit could continue the facade. It was almost becoming a sort of game to the spiritist and he found himself quite entertained.

"The river is such a mighty force, isn't it?" Anders mused as he looked out over the water. "Timeless, majestic, honorable, indomitable..." He grew silent for a moment, basically miming a sudden moment of contemplative reflection. "A river can accomplish so much good and yet when not properly respected it can take a life in a matter of moments. Think about that kind of power! I must admit that I am envious of that kind of power."

Anders stooped down to pick up a rock along a nearby stretch of the ground. "I will also admit, to you, that I am a man of scholarly pursuits. My days are filled, not with feats of strength or bold adventures, but with dusty books and hushed libraries. I have bolstered my mind but done nothing for this pitifully weak body..." He gestured his arms in front of him, as if to flaunt his lack of physique. "I ask, spirit, that you give me the strength and the might of the Avitar; give me the strength to crush this rock within my hands!"

He was having such a time, with this child, that he only barely managed to keep a straight face as he waxed poetic about the river and lamented some sort of hero envy. Sure, part of this interaction was a quest for knowledge into the ghost's personality and psychology. A good portion of this, however, was just a childlike curiosity as to what this ghost would do with this next wish...

[Draven]

Draven had been dissapointed hearing the man's reaction to his 'wish'. Did that man -at least if he really believed Draven had done so- enjoy having his house teleported to the bottom of some ridiculous river? Draven had sighed internally, losing a bit of interest in this unknown traveler. Honestly, that interest did not return, hearing the man's lunatic rave about the almighty beauty of 'his' river. Although he had troubles retaining his composure during the man's ... poetic introduction - to his second wish, he did like hearing said wish: this one was a lot more practical, a wish he could've expected - not that he had, but still. Draven took a closer look at the man; he was indeed more the scholarly type, looking quite skinny and ~ lacking a weapon? Draven hadnt noticed before, but now he had: the man had no form of weaponry on him... even though he was a traveler! Keeping this interesting discovery in the back of his head he continued his 'divine play'. 'O traveler, I have heard your wish,' he began, speaking slowly : 'It is a common one: most men desire strength of flesh!' He bowed his head, uttering a dissapointed sigh: ' If it is truly strength of flesh you desire, strength of flesh you shall have... but flesh requires time to grow, it lives ... it is no matter of wood and stones like your house was ...' He waved his arm, pointing towards the sun and releasing a bit of his soulmist. He then continued: ' By this time, three days from this very moment, you will possess the strength you so desire!' At the very least, the man would be very dissapointed in a matter of three days, and perhaps he'd even make a fool out of himself, as the result of overconfidence. 'What is your third wish, my traveler?' he gently asked.

[Anders]

"Three days from now," Anders warmly smiled but he also laughed quite blatantly. "Good idea," he nodded.

"My third wish may prove to be the most difficult of all,"Anders admitted. "My third request, my ghostly friend, is that you tell me about yourself. Who were you, in life? With what name do you now identify yourself?" Anders smile, now, was a bit different than it had been a few moments ago. It was just as disarming as it ever was but it seemed less playful and more mature now. "You see, I'm a spiritist from Syliras. I have been quite amused by your game," he admitted. "Is this a routine which you use to fool many of the living?"

Anders also took a moment to look at the raven. The fascinating thing was that the bird made no attempt to escape; it had stayed through the entire exchange. Its aura was vastly different, now without the ghost inside of it. Even now, its aura reflected tranquil serenity. The creature was totally at peace, maybe most at peace, with the ghost. It seemed that the raven was a companion, not a vehicle for the boy.

It was refreshing to see a ghost with such youthfulness. Even if it turned out that the ghost had learned to eradicate the very last of a 'childlike innocence,' the very fact that he had such energy and creativity was refreshing. Anders mused over the state of existence. If one was to be trapped in the stagnant mindset of undeath then the contentment of childhood was certainly preferable to the apathy of the nuit, the sorrow of the lost or especially the rage of the misfortunate.

Anders next thought of the idea of a family. He feared that this may have been the heart of the matter. This may have been the anchor that kept him here, the tragedy that interrupted his transition. Anders hoped not. He thought of his own loneliness and the longing for his true 'family:' Leth and his court. The thought came to him and then burst from his mouth before he could spend another moment considering it. "You aren't alone out here, are you? Do you have any family, nearby?"

[Draven]

Draven was no idiot, even though he could be considered rather childish at times. As the man had thanked him for his second wish, and had once again blatantly ignored that nothing had really happened, Draven started suspecting the man of either being stupid, or up to something. In the end he had been right; the man had admitted being a spiritist, and put an end to his game. Draven had never met a spiritist before, but he had heard of them. They were sly, and malicious, wizards, who lured ghosts into their traps to dust or enslave them. Draven was not afraid though: knowing the man was a spiritist blinking away should do the trick, letting his raven peck out the man's eyes...not that he would dare chase Draven through the Syliran wilderniss. . He might as well get to know the man, since in the end there was nothing more fascinating about a spiritist than his potential to serve as ghost's body and thus provide him with some form of permanent return to the world of the living, and who knows, if the man turned out to be beginner he might as well consider an attempt at his body... that should be fun. "You aren't alone out here, are you? Do you have any family, nearby?" Draven, still in the form of a divinity, had laughed; he had been about to answer the mans question, when the latter had blurted out a second question. No, hearing the man's distress he decided that the spiritist meant him no direct harm. He was most likely a beginner, still on his path to greatness... still a genuine interest in ghosts as something else than a possiblity to dust or enslave. That of course, made the spiritist ever so interesting. ' Of course I'm not, dummy,' he spoke, reducing the impressiveness of his ghostly form to something less exhausting: ' I've got him here, haven't I? ' He had pointed towards the raven, which flew back to his master, circling around his head. ' I will grant you your third wish though ~ and no, this was a one time thing.' He sighed. ' I was born in Nyka, the city of monks. My mother was beautiful, or so my grandparents have told me, ' he began, not minding the Spiritist's presence: ' She was destined to marry a wealthy man, ~ guessing he was ugly, cause my mother fell in love with a Svefran traveler.' He liked this part of his own story, because of how romantic it all sounded, like something a Vantha storyteller would sing about. 'She got pregnant, and my father ran. My grandparents locked her up, telling whoever cared that she had fallen ill. Nine months later she died while giving birth to me, and I was born, ' he sighed, this was the part were it all started going south: ' My grandparents spread the message, that she had died of exotic disease, and raised me in a single room. I guess they hated me, yet I didnt hate them ... I think?' He had often wondered whether their hate had been mutual, but he had always assumed not, since he would've escaped otherwise ... were it not for the iron shackles at his feet. ' One day they stopped comming to my room, and I died, ' he took a look at the raven, which was still circling his head: ' This old geezer used to live with me, in that room, locked up as well... I remember freeing him, and well ... we just started travelling after that.' He smiled, avoiding any more thoughts about his long past life. 'So, are you happy now, mister Traveler? Have you gotten all that you wanted to know, mister Spiritist? Or are you planning ... ~ unkind things, ' he asked the man, paying close attention to his next few words.