open ♫ ANYTIME, ANYWHERE IS

[sora]

Welcome to the Forest

[Wherever you were before, you aren't there now. What welcomes you when you open your eyes is a cool green canopy and a mossy, spongey ground. Tiny mushrooms of all shapes, sizes, and enchantments grow at the base of the ageless trees. It's like something out of a storybook-- a place where only dreams dwell.

There are many paths within this forest, and maybe one of them will lead you back to the place you were. You might find yourself before a tree-village, or at the shore of some quiet spring, or captive at the center of a fairy ring.

It's up to you.]

[ooc: this is an open post. Feel free to request one of my characters or just do whatever. :D]

Comments

[shamanism]

[After meditating for the better part of the day, Thrall still hasn't been able to find the answers he wanted. The earth doesn't know how to get him home, and the wind is too busy dancing between leaves to pay him any attention. Fire has long disappeared from this place, and water-- water finds it very funny that yet another has been claimed by the forest.

Despite the danger that he could be in, he still feels that this place isn't quite as dangerous as he once thought. Sure, there might be creatures waiting to play tricks on him, but it's very beautiful. Most tiny forests like this were razed by Deathwing.

He sits himself on a mossy rock to think. There are a lot of footpaths, but none of them have been used recently that he can tell. Maybe he could make a map...

A squirrel peeks out at the shaman from behind the nearest oak tree, stuffs an acorn in its cheeks, and titters back up into the branches.]

[wilder]

[Not too far away from Thrall, just on the other side of some other rocks possibly just out of view, laid what seemed to be a human. One would almost think they were sleeping peacefully, but the form lies a bit too still.]

[At least until he suddenly wakes, gasping for air as if he had forgotten to breath during their rest and shooting up to sit instead of lie. He clutches his chest and coughs as he feels oxygen fill his lungs again. He is vaguely aware that he's in some sort of forest, though the whole breathing thing seems to be taking precedence so he hasn't noticed Thrall yet.]

[shamanism]

[Thrall notices the presence of another as soon as the coughing starts. It's shocking that something could sneak up on him like that, but judging from the noise, it was someone as lost as he was. Teleported, even.

And possibly injured, too.

Thrall scrapes to his feet and heads toward the sound. He finds a pale human boy. Usually they're part of the Alliance and wouldn't want help from an orc, but Thrall has no love for faction differences. He remains just out of reach as he looks over the new arrival.]

Are you all right?

[wilder]

[His clothes and armor are in bad shaped- torn open in several spots by marks left by weapons, drying blood on the edges and soaked further past- yet strangely there seems to be no injuries visible in the patches of skin where there clearly should be. Instead it's pale unmarred skin.]

[He coughs a few more times but does what he can to get it under control when he realizes he's not alone. Even now he does not want to appear weak in any sense. Finally when he feels he has semblance of control, he'll look up at the other person around and....raise an eyebrow not in hostility, but complete confusion as he's never seen an orc before And when he speaks? His tone full of skeptical sarcasm]

....Wow. You're not supposed to be the goddess or something, are you? 'Cause if so? The church was seriously off the mark.

[shamanism]

[Thrall notices that, and it's fucking weird. Maybe he has some... super fast healing abilities? It's hard to tell, and he's not about to go around poking strangers to find out. The ginger kid's got a smart mouth though, which counts for something. The orc raises a big bushy eyebrow at the question.]

I am an orc, [he says patiently,] and very mortal.

Are you hurt? [Perhaps internally?] I have some skill in healing.

[wilder]

Orc? [he says the word slowly, like it's the first time he's heard it] Never heard of one before.

[Which is weird considering how far he's traveled, but whatever. At the question, he snorts. What did it look like, he thinks- but when his hand reaches for what was a stomach wound...he is a bit surprised to feel nothing but skin through the thin layer of glove. And now that he thinks of it, the other injuries weren't giving him the sort of grief they were before he stopped feeling the pain of it all]

...Huh. Doesn't seem like it. Weird.

[He says in a casual disregarding tone that someone would use if they were remarking on some inconsequential oddity. Cause yep. That's how he rolls.]

[shamanism]

[Which could be a good or bad thing. At the very least, it means the kid isn't from Azeroth. Or at least not from a timeline that Thrall's familiar with.]

You must have fought hard, but there is not even a scratch. [Rather than owe it to luck, he glances meaningfully up at the tall trees. There is something inherently magical about this forest. He's sure of that now.] Perhaps you will find who to thank later.

[He offers the redhead a hand up. A hand that is suitably larger than Zelos', but friendly and warm nonetheless.]

1/2

[wilder]

["Thank"? Now that was an odd choice of words. Zelos had been thinking this was the afterlife. It was after his life, it would make perfect sense. There was no mistaking what had happened before as anything else. Yet this orc guy didn't seem with that sort of program. And on top of feeling very much alive with breathing and a heartbeat--]

[Dammit. Is this how it'll be then? Was it out of some sort of punishment or simply because the universe really hated him after all? So much that it wouldn't dare let him rest no matter what he tried?]

[Fucking typical.]

[wilder]

[Though Zelos was never an open person, he was a person of masks. If this guy wanted to think it was a good thing he didn't have a scratch on him? Sure, he can play that for now. Telling this stranger he essentially took a swan dive off the mortal coil would only cause problems]

Heh, yeah. Be nice to know who did such a nice job.

[At the hand, he hesitates a bit. Though it's hardly because of the size or color of it. But eventually, he takes it and pulls himself up and gives the guy a fake quick smile]

Thanks. So...don't mind me asking, but where are we?

[shamanism]

[Thrall's eyes are blue and clear, occasionally giving the impression that he's looking beyond the mask. The way they linger on that fake smile-- it's not the first time he's dealt with someone like that. He is genuinely concerned about a stranger, that whatever he fought against might have followed him here... but he holds it back for now.]

I cannot say for certain. It is an ancient forest with seemingly no end. I have spoken with the spirits for some time, and they have not revealed much more than that.

We are not alone in this forest. Of that much, I am sure.

[wilder]

[He is getting the impression from Thrall's look that he's not buying, that he's seeing past it. It makes Zelos uncomfortable. People don't look beyond the mask. That's not how it works. The last person who did...]

[Well. He rather not talk about that; even in his inner monologues.]

Spirits? Like...friendly spirits or something, right?

[shamanism]

[Thrall is the older one here, and he will act the part.]

I speak with the elements. I am a shaman; it is my duty to maintain the balance, and appeal to them when they are upset. They are more interested in playing here than communicating, however. It is... unusual.

[wilder]

[He frowns a bit, trying to understand that since yeah. What the hell is a shaman. Though maybe it was something like a summoner and the summon spirits? If he thought about it that way....]

[...On second thought, let's not think about her either. Let's just cut to the chase]

So...in other words, they aren't interested in helping us out, huh.

[shamanism]

[He shakes his head.] We should build a camp before dusk. [That's just an hour or two, judging by the position of the sun through the canopy.] I cannot guarantee that the path will be so pleasant when darkness falls.

[wilder]

[He nods, his arms hugging his chest. He's relieved the plan is to camp instead of go walking. Technically it was still the morning last he remembered back where he was before, but well, it had still been a very long day to say the least.]

Right, good idea.

...The spirits won't get pissed off if we use some wood for fire, right? [you never know okay!]

[shamanism]

[He wouldn't make anyone take a hike after clearly going through some kind of huge heavy battle. Just because his wounds are healed doesn't mean that his guest has a magically endless reserve of energy.

Zelos' question earns him a small smile, curling gently around his tusks. For a monster, he sure has a lot of human mannerisms.]

Of course not. Fire must eat to survive.

[He glances back at the rock where he'd been hanging out before. That's a good place to make camp, actually. It's easy enough to clear a bare spot to make a fire, and they'll be sheltered if it rains.]

If you gather firewood, I will look for water and food. [He can easily find his way back. Not sure about the human, though, which is why Thrall is doing the volunteering.]

[wilder]

[Yeah Thrall, he comes from a world where there's a race of people who look like they are in living cat suits. You're gonna have to try harder than tusks to get a 'that's effing weird' reaction from Zelos. He's too tired with everything to give much of a damn to begin with, so he just gives a quick inhale of breath] Heh, right.

[At the volunteering, he nods and gives a lazy salute. Firewood he can handle. He's not even sure what an orc can eat anyway, so leave that up to that guy]

Sure. Can do~

[.........he's just gonna try to hope you know what humans eat and don't bring back tree bark and bugs]

[shamanism]

[Thrall nods. He walks off in a random direction, but with purpose. His meditations from earlier did tell him where the nearest source of water was, and he's set on checking that out now. Hopefully Zelos is okay being left alone for about an hour and a half.

When Thrall returns, he has a canteen full of water and some meat. Judging by the shape, they used to be rabbits, but Thrall has already skinned them and strung them up so they will be cooked evenly.

The sun is dipping close to the horizon though, and the warmth of the forest fades with it, replaced by the ever-present dampness and cold of the night.]

[wilder]

[Zelos meanwhile has spent the time gathering firewood. It was an easy enough task, this forest was full of usable lumber. Starting the fire even easier with magic. The rest of the time he had spent simply thinking. Mostly...trying to figure out what in the world he was supposed to do now. This sure didn't go with the plan.]

[By the time Thrall returns, Zelos is sitting by a fire he's kept pretty well maintained. He's discarded some pieces of armor that lay in a pile near his side - most of it was no good anymore anyway. Not to mention, the whole urge to protect himself wasn't exactly at it's highest so he was opting for comfort instead.]

[He heard Thrall coming long before he saw him, but he'll still make the gesture of looking up when the guy comes into view]

Oh hey, welcome back. I see you found food.