Purple Ice

[Sliver]

Purple Ice 40th of Fall 512 A.V. The day had come for Sliver’s trial in the snow, a prestigious and exciting event. The Icewatch logically wanted Sliver to undergo the journey before the warmer temperatures of winter set in, and the wolverine wasn’t one to argue. Two grizzly bear Kelvic led her out into the rainbow colored landscape giving her a few tips, like how she most certainly should not talk to any frogs she came upon because they were tricksters and fools, and that no three legged dogs would aid her no matter how hard she cried. The wolverine made sure to note these issues away for further study, nervous about the whole ordeal in the highest degree. Both grizzlies gave her friendly pats on the shoulder, wishing her luck with the trials to come, and one pulled out a top hat, saying that if it was destroyed before she returned she would truly fail in any endeavors she might attempt. Sliver put the top hat on gingerly, but it was very loose and kept slipping over her eyes, so she kind of sat it in the middle of her Mohawk where it seemed to remain still before continuing. Eyes gazed over the expansive landscape, pinks and creamcicle oranges drifting into her dark eyes. The landscape was a bit bland for her tastes, not enough fuchsia and aquamarine, but this too could be blamed on the frogs, who enjoyed stealing colors they felt reflected their true natures, and were never considerate enough to return them to the landscape. Sliver sighed, all of this was neither here nor there, she had to make camp and survive as best she could for the next few days, so first of all she would need to find some shelter, perhaps set up a camp, and then try to track down some dinner or lunch or breakfast, it didn’t matter. She was not completely familiar with the lands surrounding the city yet, but she knew of a small forest only a couple leagues from her present location, and that seemed like the best place to start. It was warmer than she could have imagined, in fact, so warm she needed to remove her coat and hold it above her, an immensely difficult task when one was wearing an overly large top hat as well. Suddenly the creamcicle ice turned into desert, and her feet began sinking in sand. Well this was a fine bunch of pickles she found herself in! Now she was in Ekytol, not only would they not find her when they came looking a few days later, but her mission for survival had suddenly been extended to crossing many many miles back up to the north. Something this dastardly could only be the cause of those gods be damned frogs, for they must have stolen the very landscape from under her in order to end up here. Sliver discarded her coat and tried to fix the top hat in a more comfortable position, then set off at a steady jog to the North, for that was where she needed to go. Perhaps if she could maintain her pace then multiply it by several hundred the wolverine would find herself in Taldera just in time to meet up with the grizzlies. Would it be too much to hope for? Sliver decided the only true way to go about this journey was to remain optimistic, so she refused to discount the possibility.

[Sliver]

Sliver was becoming exceedingly perturbed with the unchanging landscape. Talderan's icy plains were considerably more varied than these sandy hills that extended as far as anyone could see. Even the colors cast by shadows were just a plain, it would just figure that she would be sent here. Out of the corner of her eye Sliver saw a form following her. She was not sure for how long this had been occurring because if the Kelvic was telling the truth she had no iota of how long she had been walking, She simply did not feel tired in the least. Every time she glanced over to where the figure was it would disappear, but as soon as she had discounted the event as merely some mirage or equally ridiculous notion, there it was again, hanging just at the edge of her peripheral. The Kelvic carried on this was for an indefinite amount of time before stopping and turning around 360 degrees, eyes peeled for her pursuer. Again she found nothing, but now she was truly and utterly convinced of their existence. "Who is there?!" She screamed. The sound, like everything else in this gods forsaken land, was swallowed up almost as soon as she spoke it, and for some reason her voice seemed muted, almost far away. Silence was her only answer, and Sliver huffed, threw up her hands and began walking again, using the sun as her compass. For a few chimes Sliver was ecstatic that the image or mirage or whatever had vanished, clearly these things just need some yelling to discourage any mischief. Proud of herself. She continued her trek, increasing her pace a little in hopes of making the dunes recede at more speedy pace, content with her progress.

[Sliver]

Sliver knew she was covering ground swiftly, and part of her struggled to understand exactly how she was progressing so quickly at her slow jog, but her mind was enraptured by the dream world, and sent any logical thoughts that may have ever had any semblance of forming straight out of her mind immediately. The dunes seemed to recede in size before her as she progressed, ever stride taking her leagues across the desert, the colors became dimmer even less imaginative and vibrant when they had already been dull, and soon specks of aquamarine and forest green started appearing in the landscape. At first Sliver thought that she had reached the edge of the Ekytol region, and in such wonderful time too! Alas that was not the case. She had reached an oasis. Now Sliver was well aware that Oasis's could be mirage's she was no fool, and so as she approached in her swift manner, she was determined to exact the nature of this place and if it was indeed, real. The trees were lush and vibrant, insects and birds whirred and cheeped above her, and in the center of the forested area a beautiful cobalt and indigo pool sat, still as a gemstone perfectly centered in the gorgeous setting. Sliver was not some idiotic fool to be tempted by such aesthetic grace, though, the nerve of this mirage to try to sway her from her quest to return to Taldera. A critical eye studied her surroundings in great detail, trying to pick out a flickering of the obvious illusion, something out of place that would reveal the true nature of this paradise lost in the sands. Truth be told the Kelvic could find no evidence to the contrary. Stare the rainbow hued birds and the even more brightly hued insects, touch them, lick the tree bark, it all seemed completely and utterly real. Sliver tapped her top hat, hoping that it would reveal some sort of inner truth. How was one supposed to know when a mirage stopped and reality started. Perhaps there was a scale of mirage from grainy and insubstantial to reality, and if it was this real, would it truly be a bad thing to enjoy this wonderful little spot in the desert? No. NO. She could not be taken from her task at hand. She turned and slowly, oh so slowly, began to walk from the beautiful scene, she must forge onward, she couldn't abandon her quest this easily. A colorful bird with tail feathers 5 times as long as its body, emerald feathers and ruby red stomach, sat lazily on an overhanging branch she was passing under. He was a very dignified creature, and even if his coattails and natural if rather flamboyant suit could be ignored, the dignified silver monocle perched in one eye could certainly not be. As Sliver passed rather reluctantly beneath the quetzals perch (do not ask how she knew it was a quetzal), he cocked his head politely to one side and inquired. "Dear lady, you look quite tired, but I notice you do not take the time to rest, what could be of such importance that one would simply ignore the extravagance and wonder that surrounds them?" Sliver glanced up at the bird. She knew he was just being kind, no bird with a monocle could have a cruel heart, of that she was certain, but he simply couldn't understand the importance of her cause if his life was exacted in this paradise day in and day out. Sliver just shook her head solemnly and continued on her way. The bird called to her as she walked, but the farther she walked from the oasis, the easier she found her steps to be. Proud of her ability to fend off the wiles of the desert she began running once more, the landscape disappearing beneath her long strides as she traversed the sandy contents of the landscape.

[Sliver]

The second trap was not at all as easy as the first to bypass. While Sliver was still distinctly aware of some sort of lurking presence behind her, she could only imagine that the time it took to track ti down and destroy or confront whatever was following her, would not be worth the time it took. Though the feeling nagged and pulled at her, she did her utmost to throw it from her mind and continue onward. This solution could not be utilized when she came across a group of bandits blocking her path. She could have sworn they were not there just an instant ago or she surely would have gone out of her way to avoid them, but that mattered little for they were here now in front of her, looking imposing. They were clothed from head to foot, which Sliver found ridiculous considering the warm temperatures, and besides that there was something...off about them and she just couldn't seem to put her paw on it. "You are required to pay a toll trespasser." The voice that issued from the figure in the center was most certainly feminine. Sliver didn't really want to argue with them, but she realized after sliding her hands into her pockets that she had no money to speak of. Petch. "I apologize, but I just need to be on my way, if I had any money to give you I would hand it all over, but I really must be going." She started off to the side to make her way around the group, but they moved in alarming unison to block her path, then one by one removed their face coverings. They were all females, beautiful and exotic women, and not only that...they were all Konti. Sliver just stared, while everything up until this point had followed a completely logical progression: The grizzlies taking her out, the frogs transporting her across the land, the quetzal and his wonderful monocle, she had some vague memories of Konti somewhere in her mind, and she had never recalled them ever being like this. "Surely you women are not going to harm me are you? I have always known Konti to be so kind and helpful." The only woman who had spoken, her hair glistening like a soft rainbow, snorted derisively. "That was before Mura was destroyed. Kindness got us nowhere then, so we decided to no longer be meek fish, healing and aiding others." Somewhere, something, a vague idea of perhaps a reality other than this one invaded Sliver's brain. It lasted only an instant, pushing on this reality like a finger pushes on a newly made canvas to test its quality, and then it was gone. Yes yes, Mura destroyed, she had vague ideas of that as well, horrible occurrence that, of course it made sense that these women were in the desert here and now, desperate for her money.....Money she didn't have. Dark eyes adjusted her top hat nervously, then slowly began backing away. "I am so sorry for your loss, incredibly so, but I must press on, and I have no mizas on my person, perhaps once I finish my quest I will bring you back some money and apologize for this..." The Konti advanced on her even as she stepped back, but then Sliver dashed forward, headlong into them and made a giant leap into the air, up and over the Konti and back down to the ground below. She stumbled and fell rolling over herself several times before regaining her footing and sprinting as hard as she could (a difficult feat when powering through that much sand). Now the nagging feeling of something just out of the corner of her vision, was replaced by the very real and most definitely obvious fact that she was being chased by a group of Konti bandits. Would her trials never cease?

[Sliver]

The desert had finally vanished. It was as if it had just swapped. One moment there was desert next the terrain was beginning to get mountainous. Sliver could have sworn that Ekytol and Taldera weren’t just connected to each other like pieces of a puzzle, but she wasn’t one to question a good thing. Judging from Syna’s position she still had plenty of time to get back to the mountains of Taldera and begin her quest, hopefully the grizzlies won’t even have noticed her absence. She still heard the pounding of the Konti behind her, and wondered how much long until they caught up to her. She lamented the fruitlessness of their pursuit, for even if she was caught she had no money to give her. Perhaps they would be so enraged by the chase that they would kill her. That certainly couldn’t be an option, but they seemed a bit too dedicated to be satisfied if they searched her body and discovered she had been telling the truth all along. So she kept running. She was relieved when the first snowflakes began to caress her face, and soon the sky opened up grey and cloudy jaws, releasing a torrent of flakes swirling and surrounding her in a vicious maelstrom. Though her pace was drastically slowed the Kelvic kept on running as fast as her legs would take her through the whiteness all around. At least the weather would probably slow down her pursuers as well. She did not feel very cold, but then realized that the heat of the desert had clearly not worn off her skin and perhaps the heat was acting as a sort of internal heater for her body. Her theory was confirmed when any snowflakes that fell upon her body melted just before touching her skin and slid away, leaving her completely dry, as if a heat shield surrounded her body. Encouraged by this new turn of events she continued running, and as she did so that nagging feeling returned. She seemed to have finally lost her pursuers, but now that ever-present feeling of being watched had returned. Who had the ability to create this feeling even in the midst of a snowstorm? She had to know. Sliver stopped abruptly and whipped around. Like before in the desert there was no sign of anyone following, probably even less so now in the tumult of snow and ice falling around her. Not to be deterred again, Sliver began walking slowly backwards, dark eyes trained on every inch of the snowy tundra, surveying it piece by piece to figure out exactly what was following her. Even if they were invisible, which Sliver was beginning to suspect they were (it was the only logical conclusion one could come to at this point), you had to leave tracks…unless they also floated…No that was rubbish, something which could turn invisible at will certainly wouldn’t also possess the ability to float above the ground so as not to leave any trace of itself behind. Then she saw something. Though the white of the snow had wiped away all color from the landscape it did not stop to wolverine from spotting a bright flash of color darting to the side. The wolverine was on it in an instant, lunging through the snow on all fours. Head whipped furiously back and forth to try to catch where it had gone, but she spotted another flash. The first had seemed a pink or red blur; this one seemed a bright green. Soon the Kelvic was leaping back and forth darting after a myriad of colors that jumped in front of her vigilant gaze then disappeared just as quickly. In the end she found herself surrounded by two dozen tiny little spots of color that formed a haphazard rainbow in a circle around her: The Frogs. Solemn black eyes studied her with evil intent, and the wolverine was furious to see that she had been cornered in this manner, by the little demonic creatures. She was about to lash out and start just eating them one by one when they all together began a strange humming noise, little rubbery throats expanding with air. The area around her seemed to warm to desert temperatures and even though she hadn’t been adversely affected by the storm, a shield of energy formed around her and the frogs, keeping the snow and wind out. Frogs that could manipulate djed, what horrible entity had made these monstrous beings? Once this task had been completed the humming stopped and the frogs blinked in unison, then a voice entered her head. She knew it to be the frogs, for even though the voice was all in sync with itself, it had the sound of many within it’s tones and occasionally a syllable or two would drop out of sync. “We are not your enemy.” Sliver had avoided the oasis, escaped the Konti bandits (at least as far as she could tell), and she was not about to be tricked by a bunch of shield making frogs that stole colors form the very earth to make themselves look pretty. She thought these things right at the frogs and saw them sight collectively in a counter clockwise pattern, once one mouth had close the one next to it opened and so on. “You have been tricked.” Of course she had been tricked. By these frogs! They were the ones who had thrown her into the desert in the first place! “That is a falsehood.” Prove that it was. “We cannot summon that sort of imagery when you are already dreaming.” Sliver was furious, now they were even questioning her reality? The nerve of these tiny amphibians would never ceased to amaze her. “Answer us this then. What creatures make up the Icewatch?” Grizzly bears of course, with the occasional black and regular brown bear. “Answer us again. What creatures make up the Icewatch?” Again and again she answered, again and again the frogs repeated the questioned, completely unsatisfied with her answer. The Kelvic was so angry and filled with rage, patience completely evaporated that she grabbed one of the frogs, a brilliant aquamarine color with a yellow strip running down its back and threw it bodily against the wall. As it fell to the ground the question was asked one more, and absent of a single voice. “What creatures make up the Icewatch?” Sliver snarled in rage, and screamed out at the top of her lungs. “POLAR BEARS!” “Very good.” Said a singular voice, light and soft almost like a whisper. The aquamarine frog picked itself up and hopped back into place in the circle, glancing out of sync with the others at her. Sliver covered her mouth and suddenly realized that the frogs…were right.

[Sliver]

But if the frogs were right, did that mean-? “Yes.” They spoke collectively, answering her internal question before it had even finished. Sliver sat dumbfounded. After profusely apologizing to the aquamarine frog for her unforgiveable behavior she tried to think of what to do next. Clearly these grizzlies had somehow captured her beloved dire polar bears: If they had been able to brainwash her into thinking all of these things, then who knows what they had done to the others. She needed to return immediately. The frogs, their message sent, their purpose having been fulfilled, were now silent. Whatever path the wolverine chose from this point onward was hers and hers alone. One by one they disappeared into the snow, until Sliver was left alone inside the shield. She whispered a thank you for their help, but now she was sure of what she must do. As she stood the walls of the shield gave way and snow swarmed and whirled around her face with renewed vigor. Ignoring this mere obstacle the wolverine began to run as fast as she could. The landscape which had just been mountainous turned into the vibrant colors she had left, with blue and green snow raining down around her. Though she could have been anywhere in the dense snowstorm of rainbow colors, Sliver knew exactly where she was heading: Morwen’s Palace. Who knows what these horrible Grizzly bears had done with her Goddess and Queen. Well…she didn’t, but by Morwen she was going to find out! When she reached the city of Avanthal, she realized fully what the evil bears had done. Instead of buildings from icestone and the occasional wood, they were made of mud and sticks. Every building was an exact replica, save ugly and misshapen, missing the hands of Skyglow and Iceglaze architects. Her horror was only magnified when she saw that the palace was constructed out of straw and grass, violently swaying in the vicious winds, so banal and unstable it was likely to topple over at any moment. Sliver sprinted as hard as she could. Every step seemed to take bells, yet the hallways moved past her, despite the fact that she seem suspended in space in time. Suddenly, frozen as if in ice, she stood in the throne room, face to face with the most massive bear she had ever seen. She was a dark grey color with a white stomach and crimson eyes. Twice the size of the largest dire polar bear, she somehow still managed to sit on Morwen’s throne without breaking the delicate thing. “What have you done with her?” As her voice left her throat it sounded weak and childish, and the massive bear laughed and laughed, a guttural sound that was more like one continuous wall of sound made from a roar. “I am Morwen foolish child.” Sliver snorted and pointed an accusing finger at the bear. “No you are not, return the queen this instant or I- I’ll-“ “You’ll what? What will you do to me Kelvic?” The bear rose then, standing up on two legs. It was a horrifying sight to behold and Sliver was suddenly quaking with fear. The beast would just kill her, her, the only one who knew the truth of what was happening. She stammered and the bear laughed more and more, the sound absorbed by the sticks, mud and plants that somehow kept the palace together. The Sliver saw it, out of the corner of her eye. Somewhere, a memory vaguely drifted across the front of her mind, perhaps carried by a tiny aquamarine frog as one last piece of aid. Though this was a horribly inaccurate copy of Morwen’s palace, she remembered people telling stories of the beautiful palace and that how any gifts given to the Goddess, she always found them a spot to be displayed to show her gratitude. Sliver had never entered the place herself, but had heard several people say they remembered a stuffed bear right next to the throne that a child had given the Ice Queen once. And though the scene had changed, though the palace was an ugly mockery of its former self, she saw a white stuffed paw of a polar bear beneath a strangely pristine icy throne. Sliver threw herself forward. The bear lunged for her, but a quick somersault and she was at the throne, hand snaking beneath it to grab the toy. She rolled out of the way, narrowly missing a giant paw that slammed the ground next to her, sending the entire building shaking in its awful foundations. Leaping up Sliver held the stuffed animal triumphantly. The bear looked at the miniature toy, back to Sliver, then back to the toy. Then she began laughing again. Sliver thought for a moment that perhaps she had made some grave error, that this idea had been for naught and she would die here at the hands of that bear, for nothing. But just in case she ripped the head off the stuffed bear, to find its insides made of sticks and straw. Her gaze turned triumphant as she looked back up at the great grey bear, who was clutching her throat. With a strange popping sound her head severed itself from her body and rolled down the long hallways, screaming in agony as it went. The body disappeared into a fine mist, and as it did so ice began spreading out from the pristine throne, branching out to cover the floor and walls until suddenly, Sliver was in the correct ice palace. Now she felt her mind numbing. The images around her became hazy and lost their focus. She glanced down to see the toy restored to its previous and whole state, and then looked up to see a hand reaching for the toy, pale as snow with long elegant fingernails. Even as she looked up to see the face darkness was encroaching in on her, and the last thing Sliver could recall was a kind voice the sound of ice chimes in her ears whispering, “Thank you.” Sliver woke with a start, drool running down one side of her face. She brought up a stray hand to wipe it away, and noticed how dark the halls were, realizing it was just the middle of the night, and not yet time to wake, the remnants of the dream were already rapidly fading from her memory, but even so she was aware of a great many strange events occurring all at once. With a long sigh she collapsed back on her pillow, eyes drifting shut again, wondering where her top hat had gone at the end of the dream.

[Capricious]

Sliver

Award

Lore Earned

• Grizzly Bears are Tricksters

Witty Remark Here

Please note, skills points cannot be gained from Dream threads, only lores.

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