Where the Lost Ones Go [Eryn]

[Cayenne]

Time Stamp: Early Fall, 509 AV

Without a doubt, Eryn had been dead for a while. But even she had heard, even vaguely, of Black Rock. Ghosts, she had learned, tended to end up here, as if drawn to the mysterious, bleak island like a moth to the flame. The Citadel of the Dead Queen, they called it. Those that found their... condition... unbearable often went there if they were unable to move on.

And finally, it had been her turn. She had procured passage with a cowled figure who had spoken not a word, but communicated by mere gestures, inviting her to the boat with a deliberate sweep of its arm, which ended in a red glove. It was impossible to tell whether or not it was male or female; Eryn hadn't even been able to see its face. But a nod had confirmed that this vessel was bound for Black Rock, and the girl had settled in the ride. The gondolier poled the boat through the waters as waves rolled in the distance. They seemed as though they might overwhelm the craft, but the boat accepted each, rising up - sometimes at sharp angles - to crest each and break through it. Eventually, though, as fog surrounded them, the water became placid. An ethereal beam of blue light pierced the fog as they seemed to drift, the pole moving easily through the water. Gods only knew how it worked - there was no way that the water was shallow enough for a simple pole, but it seemed to do the trick.

The fog broke, and seemingly out of nowhere, the Citadel loomed. They poled past rocky coast, a veritable sea of black grass surrounded by a fence, concealing elaborate tombstones, and a beach of coarse sand. Up close, Eryn could see the beam of light again, sweeping out over the water, illuminating uniform white buildings. Ghosts of all walks of life were visible on the street, from little ones to aged elders. They mixed and mingled with the living, who were not at all affronted by the presence of the ghosts - which had not been Eryn's experience everywhere else. The boat was guided into a complex canal network, and suddenly, Eryn heard a hollow tone, like the ringing of a gong, ringing, and there was a flurry of movement on the streets as people fled for somewhere safe: grabbing onto benches, wrought-iron trees, disappearing into buildings... The reasons why soon became apparent, as the very canals began to shift before her eyes. The pathway that had moments before been clear to go straight ahead now lead to a stone wall. Overhead, a bridge that had not been there before was there now.

The gondolier effortlessly turned the gondola's course to reflect the new waterways as action above them resumed again, now that the shifting was apparently over. The boat was poled over to a carved wooden dock, and stopped smoothly. With a wide sweep of a cloaked arm, the figure bowed slightly - clearly, her journey was at an end, and it was time to get out. Up the stairs to the streets...

A young woman, draped in black and lined with silver, stood there, as if she was waiting for her. She appeared to be human, and alive, at that. She smiled at the girl. She looked elegant in her hooded cloak, her features pale and exquisite. Her eyes stood out from her and from under the hood, Eryn could see her dark hair. "Welcome to Black Rock," her voice was soft and silky. "My name is Meghanna. We've been expecting you."

[Eryn]

No matter how many years Eryn had been dead, centuries even, never did she actually get used to the feeling. The inability to eat or drink, no longer able to feel or be felt, it was all such unfamiliar territory even still. There was so much she didn’t know about this un-life and much that her childish mind couldn’t accept no matter how long she remained in this miserable existence. She could hover, could move through solid objects as though they were nothing and she could fly and while these interesting feats held her fascination for the first hundred years or so, soon they became rather drab and uninteresting. Despite all this, she continued to hold onto the need for revenge that bound her to that world, she wouldn’t allow herself soul to move on until she learned about why she had been killed and who had done it. Revenge was an option as well, assuming of course that the culprit still lived.

The little girl was drawn to the place known as Black Rock as other lost souls seemed to be, she had heard it whispered, spoken about by both mortal and ghost and it had drawn her attention, though for how long, one could never be certain with Eryn. Unbearable was a good way to describe Eryn’s existence, at least at this current point, so perhaps that was why the bleak island called to her, beckoning to her. She wasn’t sure what all she had to do really, aside from being dead, that was one thing she had going for her. She sat silently with her head down, little black stands of her hair falling in front of her face. The one who had granted her passage to the island wasn’t much for words and after a few tries at conversation; she just gave up and just twiddled her thumbs as a means of entertainment.

At moments such as this where she had nothing better to do then think, she would close her eyes and remember her life from before. It wasn’t much of a life of course, but it was more than this...’life’ was. She remembered her mother, what a wretched creature she had been, so manipulative and demanding, so very controlling. She had barely let Eryn breathe without permission much less anything else, she had been the cause for the glove that now permanently remains on her one hand, two fingers missing from her little hand. Aside from thinking on her miserable mother Debora, Eryn would think on how she died. It was hard to see the bloody wound in her back because of her black dress, the blood blended too well really and that was how she had died, she had been stabbed in the back when she hadn’t been looking. She could remember her last few breaths and then...this. She couldn’t remember making the decision that she would remain, couldn’t remember if she had spoken with someone or if it had just been her own conscious decision, too many things on that day muddled together.

Being the child that she still technically was, despite her many many years of existence, she often liked to believe that she had been killed because of some big important reason. She knew something she shouldn’t or something really grand. Nothing so mundane as a random killing or someone killing her to get to her mother because aside from the annoyance that she didn’t have someone to torture any longer, Debora hardly shed a tear over finding her daughter’s body. It was hard to pay attention to the scenery when she was trapped in her own thoughts, but the sight of all sorts of ghosts in one area was enough to draw her out of her thoughts. She couldn’t believe it, never did she see so many ghosts in one place and they seemed to mingle with the living so easily while she herself still was at odds with the living. She was jealous of them because they still breathed and she no longer did, though it was fun to play pranks on them when she got the chance.

Eryn couldn’t believe the complex canal system that she was being taken down, eyes widening as sounds assaulted her. She was confused as to what was going on but she remained silent as she waited to see what was happening. Once the boat touched against the wooden dock, she was bowed to by the cloak figure and it indicated that it was time for her to go now. She stood to her feet and got off the boat, both excited and nervous about being there. Not long after she got off the boat, she met a young woman who seemed to be waiting for her. What surprised the little girl wasn’t the fact that someone had been waiting for her or even expecting her but rather that the woman was human and...alive. “Um...I’m Eryn, but considering you were waiting for me, I suppose you knew that.” She wasn’t sure how to approach this situation but she couldn’t do much else at this point. “Why where you expecting me? I didn’t even know I was coming here until the last moment and I don’t even know why I came.”

[Cayenne]

The woman inclined her head slightly in acknowledgment of the fact that she did know Eryn's name, but certainly wasn't going to be rude and dismiss the introduction. "Almost every ghost passes this way at some point," Meghanna smiled faintly. "As one of the chosen of Dira, it is one of my duties to show new arrivals around the citadel," her hands seemed to be joined in front of her, concealed as they were by the black sleeves of her cloak, the minute silver stitching etching a design of crossed scythes along the sleeves. "You've been drifting for a long time. This is Black Rock. This is the home of the Dead Queen." the woman stepped away from the stairs, regarding the ghostly child beside her. "Shall we?"

"You should know that we have a few rules here, and abiding them will make your visit, or stay, whichever you decide on, a pleasant one," the striking young woman started to walk, clearly expecting Eryn to follow her. "The first of them is peaceful cohabitation with the living. They do not harm you. You do not harm them. Simple, yes?" she looked at her from under the black hood. "Respect for the dead is gained by respecting the living, as well. Black Rock is meant to be a peaceful place, and peace is enforced. Troublemakers will be found and swiftly dealt with. The Omens are the guards of Black Rock, and they will act in Dira's name," Meghanna explained. "We respect the privacy of the living, and the living respects the privacy of the dead. That means that their homes are their homes, and you do not invade and spy and harass without their express consent to do so. The temples and cemetery are sacred ground."

"Do you understand so far?" she held her pale hand out, indicating the first bridge to cross. The buildings so far all seemed to be the same, white marble that made them look like tombs. Some bore signs out front, simple things - they were in the commercial district, after all, and each of the buildings seemed to be a shop of some sort. Some were busy enough, like the Shroud and the Mercantile, ghosts as well as the living passing through.