"Where brilliance is good and madness is better..."
Helovia Info
Helovia opened in February 2012! We are an active fantasy equine RPG
Where once the world narrowed into naught but gray dust and desolation, the gods called for life. Wielding the elements of fire and light, dark and wind, earth and water, spark and time, they have created Helovia. The realm is set within the mythical globe of Loorien, a planet rich with all variety of creatures and blessed with all manner of magic. Originally populated by nomadic, tribal characters, they've since grown into massive empires saturated with culture and history. Separated into four distinct segments of Helovia, called "The Regions," each band of horse strong enough and capable enough, took up the power and responsibility of leadership. Unicorns, old, wise and mysterious, took to the north, hidden in forests of mists and shadows and rarely making themselves known beyond their cliffs of the World's Edge. Equines, vast, organized and militaristic, split into two, one group went north to the Windtossed Foothills and the other group went south to the Dragon's Throat. Pegasus remained nomadic, making their homes in various parts of The Wilds in a migratory manner. For many generations, the land was peaceful and calm, but peace was never the way of the gods. With a clash of argument, war and bloodshed massacred Helovia, and in the aftermath, the realm was eerily quiet. Now, as newcomers sweep into this land, they are met with the lingering bitterness of the gods and the struggle to reclaim what was lost. Nothing remains safe or certain while sorcerers and soldiers alike brood and bide their time for revenge, honor and glory.
Site Wide Plots
Kaos :: The Beginning of the End ☼ - 6/2017 - Kaos placed Helovia in a time-bubble for a short period of time, but the Helovian gods are fighting back. But Kaos is powerful- far more powerful than anyone thought. This may be the beginning of the end of Helovia as we know it.
Kisamoa :: A New Kind of Kaos ☼ - 3/2017 - Kisamoa asks Helovians to help him restore the Spectral Marsh. Which side will you choose?
Invasions :: All Out War ☼ - 5/2/16 - New layout and the brand new invasion rules are up! Thank you for your patience and we look forward to getting started with this new adventure.
The Rift :: Gods Do Die ☼ - 8/2015 - Helovia Gods are saving the Rift from corrupt gods! Can Helovians band together against these foreign deities?
The Literal Ship ☼ - 2/8/15 - Oh no! You have to pair up for Valentine's day!
Sky Island :: Murder ☼ - 10/25/14 - Vesta has been found dead on the island, and the gods have called to you to solve the murder!
Sky Island :: Peace ☼ - 7/7/14 - An island has appeared in the sky! Clouds carry Helovians from the Veins to the sky.
Restoration :: We Welcome the Dawn ☼ - 9/21/13 - The sun has finally risen on this day, giving the land new light, but the Time God and the Sun God have yet to be seen.
Endless Night :: Broken Magic Plot ☼ - 8/30/13 - The earth god has returned and is walking across Helovia to heal the land. Every area can now be considered lush and prosperous, but the sun has still not risen.
☼ - 7/19/13 - The moon has risen in the sky, heralding the return of the Goddess of the moon. Lamp trees which light the paths have grown brighter, moon flowers which grow in dark places have begun to grow and prosper and the world is brighter, filled with a new hope.
Endless Night :: Dead Magic Plot ☼ - 6/22/13 - The gods of Helovia, in order to protect the world, have disappeared into the rift, leaving the world sunless, moonless and magic-less in their absence. Only the herdlands have a source of light, but lamp-trees with glowing leaves and branches sporadically line the popular roads and paths from place to place.
Doppleganger Plot ☼ - 6/20/13 - The God of Time is still struggling to close the rift though which the dopplegangers have come. He has requested that his brothers and sister assist in closing this hole, but without knowing why it opened, the task is proving difficult. Magic still remains faulty and hard to control, but the herdlands continue to be places of refuge for those who are fortunate enough to call these lands home.
ORANGEMOON cools off the lands with a a viscious force. Colder than normal, a sign of things to come during Frostfall, Helovia is bathed in a rich tropical lushness - albiet a cold one. The coastlines of the Dragon's Throat are pelted constantly by tidal waves, and the desert climate is humid but chilly. Ice begins to form early in the Aurora Basin leaving the winding trails slick and dangerous. The mists of the World's Edge coat everything in a glistening crystalline shine which encourages mould to grow everywhere. The Spectral Marsh is the only area which remains fertile, blissfully temperature and lush.
Cotm
Character of the Month for
June, 2017
WEAVER, Corporal of the Aurora Basin, is a relatively recent addition to Helovia and has taken it by storm. Branded with the seal of Death on her chest, intrigue and interest follow both her past and present. Though she is assuredly beautiful, her sometimes sharp personality reveals that there is more to this uni-peg hybrid than meets the eye. Proving herself able on the battlefield in the Basin’s warrior ranks, we can’t wait to see her test her mettle against the looming Kaos happenings! Congratulations!
Helovia RPG was created by Tamme and Blu and coded by Tamme also known as Schwartze. All coding, palettes and imagery are copyrighted to the website and are not for use outside of Helovia. Thank you to our ServerMaster for hosting Helovia. A special thanks goes to Neo for all of her coding help and fixing Tamme's errors, Boom, for her loyal service and creation of the Time God, and to Ali for her consistent contributions and dedication.
I HAVE BURNED MY TOMORROWS, AND I STAND INSIDE TODAY At the edge of the future, and my dreams all fade away
Ophelia travelled ceaseless, but she was glad that, for once, she had company. Torleik’s heavy footfalls at her side were like music in the crisp, autumn night, and lightning bugs danced around their sides. She had many responsibilities as lead – some of which she took upon herself entirely. Sitting in her icy throne while others did her work caused a few problems, so she preferred to do it on her own. Who could she trust to tell her the truth? Who could she trust to forge the right ties? Hotaru, perhaps, but even then the strawberry mare had made a few enemies. No, some things were best done on your own. The pale princess failed to mention her overwhelming addiction to knowledge and secrets, which was a strong guiding force to her involvement across Helovia.
But as she walked into the World’s Edge with Torleik, she felt confident, structured. They Grey had been a wild dynamic of mercenaries and fighters, unstable, but the Aurora Basin had been far more comforting than she had anticipated. She had grown rather fond of Ulrik, Thranduil and Hotaru. The group of unicorns was fascinating and taciturn, but they were also wildly intelligent and keen. Ophelia found herself attempting to keep up with their spies and overwhelmed by the battle prowess of Deimos and Torleik. In the snowy north, their fortress was fortified with machines and unique, strange souls, and she had grown to appreciate having this place to call ‘home’.
Thus, she stood in a forest, newly emptied after a victorious battle, speaking words she barely believed herself. She spoke of peace, unity and good when she knew the world was empty and unbalanced. But maybe, just maybe, there was some good, and her eyes flickered to Torleik, finding that even now, she did not understand him at all. He was neither a simple nor overly complex puzzle, but the pieces were cut in ways she could not grasp. Honestly, she had grown to appreciate the mystery – the surprise of never knowing what he would do next.
Until now.
Torleik spoke, and she listened openly, but when he offered himself as candidate for lead, the tidal wave of emotions roiling inside swallowed her whole. Ophelia’s expression remained neutral, the light in her strange, two-colored eyes turning to hardened, icy walls. He wanted to leave.
Overwhelming emotions locked behind an icy door, leaving her heart like an empty freezer. Cold. Nothing. Numb. She was still as a statue, marble cut from purest stone. The rest of his words floated on the surface of her drowning sea, barely reaching her ears, because he wanted to leave. Torleik had invited her to the Aurora Basin, shared his home with her, and now she was not enough. No reason to stay.
What was she expecting? That this would be different? A cruel voice in her head laughed, accusing her of naivety again. Her heart beat dully in her chest, and she opened her mind, allowing her dark curiosity the final stab of the knife from his thoughts. If he was to sever it all now, let him do so while she was unfeeling. A plea met her mind, and she stared into his deep, blue eyes vacantly. He thought he was protecting her? She did not need protecting. Not like this.
If he wanted to be by her side, why leave? Too many questions. None of it made sense, not to her. Did growing together truly mean being apart? Did absence really make the heart grow fonder? Ophelia did not know, but she did not dare to hope – not yet. Absence was an open door to worlds you had never known before and new fates which might fall into place easier than her awkward, broken fit. She believed that what he thought was truth, but all who left did not return, not to her anyway. Ophelia would always be an easily or forcibly forgotten past time in a world of pleasures, and only time would prove to him that she was right. Patterns do not change. There were no outliers in the equation of her life.
She imagined he would argue – tell her that she was wrong. Maybe she would be. Could she fault him for believing in them? Could she fault him for thinking that this could work? For wanting to try? No. And so she would wait, watch and observe his growth. As much as this hurt, she knew he believed he was doing right by himself and the world, and she was not worth casting that all aside. Ophelia would not ask that of him.
Maybe this was all there was? Maybe she should just enjoy the time she had until their roads separated completely. Maybe…
“You would make a fine King,” she murmured in his head. “I… I hope you are right.”
@[Torleik]
Image Credit: haiinee @ sxc.hu
Undertow has come to take me. Guided by the blazing sun. Look at everything around us. Look at everything we've done.
Please. Anyone. I don't think I can save myself. I'm drowning.
That she was in his head was still a surprise to him, but it was not a violation. Not...entirely. Everyone had secrets they wished to keep, hidden failures they wished not uncovered. Torleik was no different. Still, he knew of Ophelia's ability and as her cold voice slid into his mind, his eyes cracked with pain. He knew she would take this badly.
Why could this damnable woman not simply trust him?
What was so...fickle about him that she could not put her faith in the loyalty of his heart?
Frustration aside, the Bloodskald did his best to remember that her life was one of abandonment and pain. But that was not him. He was not here to hurt her. He wanted to mend her cracks, make her whole again. Make her happy.
Love her.
Whatever else might have been said then, Torleik didn't care. Others would present themselves, make their case. Surely there would be better candidates than he. This was who he was. This was how he was made. He needed to protect those he loved because he'd...he'd failed so horribly before. It had cost him everyone. His cowardice had cost him everything. Clenching his jaw, the Bloodskald plunged into this mental exchange.
"I am not doing this for myself, Ophelia. I don't want to go. I don't want to leave. Would that I had no other...debts in life, I would be content to stay and be your guard, always." He gave her a pained, wry smile. "But even where I am now, I do not see you much. I never know where you are. I find after the fact you have gone to Gaucho, most likely. Elsewhere. Always elsewhere."
The wound in his words was tangible, an assumption that perhaps he just wasn't stimulating enough or...safe enough, to keep her home. For her to confide in him. To tell him anything. "Perhaps if I am out where you travel, I will see you more. And I have...I have a debt to the Goddess of the Moon. I have seen what she is capable of and I fear her retribution if I do not uphold my end of the bargain. Maybe if...I do more, try harder, she will not..." he trailed, looking down, frustrated.
"I cannot let her hurt you." The frown that courted his rough lips was deep. "But if by doing this, I will lose you...if you cannot wait for me to prove to you that physical distance means nothing to how close my heart feels to yours...I will stay."
He took a breath, feeling his heart pounding in his chest. This was not how he'd expected this to come out. This was not the best time. But it was real and she needed to be told.
04-19-2015, 02:37 PM (This post was last modified: 04-19-2015, 02:38 PM by Ophelia.)
JUST ONE BEAT OF YOUR HEART AND STRANGER THAN FANTASY Is your love strong enough?
The light overhead was fading as she sank deeper into the ocean, the world around her turning to a faded, echoing din. Torleik’s mind unraveled through her mental space, and she heard his thoughts continue. Seconds after her cool words settled into his mind, he was rising up in his defense, just as she had thought. He would argue. He would beg. He would try to prove to her that he was different, and when he was tired of trying, he would move on to better, brighter souls. Some cracks were too deep to be filled and some breaks too complete to be made whole ever again. Ophelia had come to realize this about herself after time and time again those who entered her life simply… left. Who was he to say he would stay?
He couldn’t possibly know.
The accusation of going to visit Gaucho stung. If only he knew that the fire-king in the south was deeply in love with perfection, a radiant, angelic being of finer make than herself. If only he knew how wrong he was. Ophelia had been securing their future – using a bond she had forged in kindness after he had mistakenly tried to shove her body over a cliff. Traveling south was difficult, the heat oppressive, but she toiled so that those she cared for could live better lives, and he dared insinuate that she wanted to go? A blackness stained her heart, and she flicked a single ear backward – the only outward sign that she was not wholly committed to the others who were talking.
Debt? To the Moon Goddess? How had he gotten himself tangled in her shadowy webs? How had the lilac harlot ensnared Torleik? Her Torleik? That was what she had wanted to think, but in a way, it didn’t seem right. He did not belong to her any more than she belonged to him, and now that they were diverging, they were even less so. Ophelia would have to go to the Sun God and ask for council, especially to save him if the Goddess wanted to use him just as she had used Gaucho. The light that danced upon her brow, hanging from her spiraled, white horn, glowed brighter.
“You have to repay your debts. I understand,” she replied, mentally. “Maybe we will see each other more, but you need to do what you think is right.” The words were honest but removed, her emotions taken out of this game and hidden beneath a layer of snow. Ophelia could never ask him to choose her over this, over what he needed to do for himself. She was not worth the conflict. She never wanted to be a sacrifice.
The Moon Goddess did what she wanted without thought to others. She didn’t have the heart to tell him that trying to protect her would not matter. The shadow mare would take what she wanted when she wanted, and all bargains had loop holes and prices. If the Goddess wanted her dead, there would be nothing Torleik could do. Ophelia remained silent on this issue, knowing that he had to repay his debt to her as quickly as possible. If this was the best way for him to emerge from a devil’s bargain, then he needed to uphold his and run away clean.
And that was when he said it.
Three words, arguably four. Three mattered.
Instinct screamed for her to shut him down. No. He could not love her. Love was fleeting and futile. Love was an emotion for children and fools, a feeling that came and went.
Why did he say that?
Ophelia stared at him dumbly, trying to understand what would possess him to say those words – anything other than actually feeling what he said. How? She blinked, long white lashes fluttering to her cheeks as her world was turned upside down. Would his love be strong enough? An anchor in this ocean? Was it commitment and emotion? Or a bird to tangle braids in her mane and leave her with the knots? Could she trust what he was feeling?
Confusion.
“How?”
The question was weak and broken, undeniably self-abusing. She did not understand. How could he love her?
Undertow has come to take me. Guided by the blazing sun. Look at everything around us. Look at everything we've done.
Please. Anyone. I don't think I can save myself. I'm drowning.
With someone I could live for; nowhere I would rather be
But how could she blame him for conjuring his own doubts and fears into tangible words when the white-and-crimson mare never breathed a word of her actions or intentions to the Bloodskald? Too often was he left alone with his own insecurities and secondhand knowledge; too little was Ophelia with him, near him, speaking to him. And she was displeased he worried? That he coveted her? That Gaucho was perceived as a threat?
Her ear flicked back and both of his angled behind as well - and Torleik could have cared less if anyone thought he was paying attention at that point. What Ophelia replied to him then welled up a rage akin to the black, consuming pit that had swallowed him upon seeing Mauja's unworthy muzzle touch her perfect skin, but rage would not win him this battle. Rage would not win him her heart.
It would keep his safe from the painful barbs she drove deeper every time she neglected to put up the feeblest of fights for him, to keep him.
Because it hurt to watch her give up on him time and again. It hurt to know that all he'd done, tried to do, promise he'd kept, things he'd said...they were not enough to make her trust him. To make her want or need him.
To make her love him.
Sadly, it did not change the truth in his heart, and the Bloodskald could be burdened by his secret no longer. He was tired, tired of this dance, and she needed to know what was at stake for him. That Ophelia stared at him, dumbstruck, didn't surprise him, but it did sting. Dully. Somewhere beneath the ire that was still protecting him. To think she would question his admittance was a consideration not far from his mind, but the inquiry she did pose was a shock.
How?
...how?
She dared question how he was capable of loving her, as if it should not have come to pass?
A bitter snort echoed into her mental space. "Because I am a man and I have a heart?" But the retort was the culmination of his anger, for anger it a hard emotion to nurse and keep strong. It consumes like a fire and once all the oxygen is gone, it cannot sustain itself. The Bloodskald was weary of feeling angry, and his rage gave way to a nadir of emotional fatigue bordering on apathy. It did not impact his sincerity. "Because I have seen you, broken, bought low; I have seen you raised up. You are the same woman no matter where life puts you - above or below others. You are wounded, and lonely, and sad. Like me. You are strong and beautiful - and...perhaps...unattainable. You deserve a king of kings, a famed warrior of whom the bards sing. I am not that man. I am a bastard son of common blood - but my blood is loyal. My heart is not a ship, buffeted by the wind, like the others in life whom you've wished to love. I am the rock in the sea upon which the waves break. Boring. Underwhelming. But I'm hard to move."
A sigh punctuated his gruffly poetic speech, and his eyes fell to the ground. Torleik's hooves shifted and he watched the grass and dirt beneath crust over with a thin sheet of ice, which he cracked beneath a new step almost dejectedly. "I love you because I want to love you. I want to soothe your wounds, pick up your broken pieces, smooth over the chips and chunks taken out of your soul. I wish to make you happy, to see you smile, to bring you comfort. Even if you were to reject me, here and now, push me away and tell me you never wanted me and never will, I would still love you because...I know your heart. I care. And I wish...I wish for a path in life that will find you with less pain. I wish more than anything to be a part of that path, to walk it with you, but I know my fate is not of my own choosing. If I am not meant to be for you what I want, then I will do for you what I can, and I will find my own path, one day."
He had spoken far more words than he'd intended, but such truths had been welling up within him for over a season now. To only let part of the dam leak free was a fool's notion; once the levees broke, the whole flood would come forth. He deigned to leave out that should Ophelia crush his love into the ground it would destroy him and leave him a far more broken man than before, because why should she suffer the burden of his well-being? It was his risk to take, his pursuit to make. He had to be a man.
Torleik's eyes lifted, seeking hers out, hopeful, open, leaving no corner of his soul shadowed to her. Perhaps now she would trust him. Maybe this was necessary.
Maybe now she would love him, too.
@[Ophelia]
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Don't mind his deluge of feels. ;-;
04-26-2015, 05:28 PM (This post was last modified: 04-26-2015, 05:48 PM by Tamme.)
I HAVE BURNED MY TOMORROWS, AND I STAND INSIDE TODAY At the edge of the future, and my dreams all fade away
Anger. The color of his mind was red, and she recoiled visibly, taking a step backward. Two, delicately shaped ears flattened against the curve of her neck as his bitter words echoed throughout his mind. She clenched her jaw tightly, confused and open heart aching from this new wound. Ophelia could not hold back her pained response, mistrust and pain glistening in her strange, dual colored eyes. “Never made a difference before! Hearts break hearts,” she snapped back, lashing out her only way of defending her heart from words that meant more to her than anyone else’s. Had a stranger spoken to her, had anyone else given her that bitter response, she could have let it roll off with a shrug and a sarcastic snort.
But not him. He had the unique and powerful ability to hurt her deeply.
Ophelia blinked hard, wondering if this was his way of telling her that he loved her, but…
But, you are difficult. But, this is the end. But, you need to change… Love was unconditional; didn’t he know that? Or was she the fool to think that she would be worthy of love as she was now? Broken and damaged.
Warily, she listened, breathing hard. Emotions made her heart run miles in her chest, and she heard him speak. Lies. How could that be true? Kings of kings had threatened to kill her. Famed warriors had softer lovers. All she wanted was stability, like he offered. She did not want fame and beauty. She had never desired rich trinkets or material relationships. What she desired was so simple and yet had eluded her time and time again: loyalty. Above all else, she wanted the same voice to rouse her in the morning that put her to sleep that evening. She wanted arguments that ended in a tight embrace and conversation that lasted a lifetime about nothing.
She wanted to be able to trust that when she was gone, he would not waver, and she wanted to prove that she would not either. What she wanted was pure and wholesome in a dark world of vengeance and lies, but she had waited, heartbreak after heartbreak, for what she knew she would never deserve. Because, she was one of the shadows. She was a creature of vengeance, and like all fallen angels, she wanted just one more taste of heaven’s glory.
Blue eyes left her as he stared at the ground, ice cracking beneath the weight of his hooves. Could he really do what he said? Did he have the patience to pick up so many pieces? Did he want to make her happy? Was this the ended that she always wanted? So many questions, and she felt as if she could barely breathe.
Silence settled between them as she stared dumbly, the hammering of her heart racing in her chest. The answer she wanted to give was such an easy choice, but here and now? Duty called her to the Edge, and he might leave. Was this is way of holding on to her regardless of his decision, even though he sounded so sincere? In the end, she had to trust.
One last time.
“If… If… you can do as you say,” she said quietly in his mind, her words dripping with emotion and hanging on all of her fears. “I deserve none of what you have to offer, and your words would be better spent on hearts less damaged than mine. But, I… I want to be selfish. I want this for myself, and I want you for myself. Tell me… Tell me that that is not wrong?” she said, taking a shaking step forward. “Tell me that wanting you is right and that I can learn to love as deeply and honorably as you do?” The words were a silent beg, two colored eyes sweeping his for answers.
“I will love you as I know how. I can… I do love you.”
Was that right? Was this enough?
“But I will fail you. I am sure of this. Days, months, years from now, I will. If you still want me, I want you.”
Please say yes.
Image Credit: haiinee @ sxc.hu
Undertow has come to take me. Guided by the blazing sun. Look at everything around us. Look at everything we've done.
Please. Anyone. I don't think I can save myself. I'm drowning.
05-04-2015, 11:44 AM (This post was last modified: 05-04-2015, 11:48 AM by Torleik.)
Torleik the Bloodskald
And when my sins are just a memory of faith restored...
The retort that was fired back carried with it the pain that shined brightly, pointedly, in her gaze, and Torleik frowned. Her ears were flat against her crown, and she'd taken a step back. Wrath was not the answer; it never was, and he felt guilt trickle in for wounding her - though his defensive side reminded him she'd snipped at his heels first. "Hearts do not break hearts, Ophelia," he rumbled quietly through their mental link. "Narcissism breaks hearts."
And as if to prove it, the Bloodskald poured his own heart out on the ground between them, hoping that hers would fill the space he'd just vacated. He prayed that with each word, she would be more convinced of the truth behind what he said.
He loved her, and that wouldn't just change at a moment's notice.
All of the time he spent wondering about her, worrying about her, wishing to see, hear, smell, feel, taste her...it wouldn't simply just disappear. He was, as he claimed, hard to move. So with his heart came his own personal Poetic Edda of words, followed by a silence that felt so heavy he was afraid it would bring him to his knees.
What if she rejected him?
What if she couldn't love him?
But 'what if' was a thing that would never be, and Torleik tried not to let his mind run away with him to that land of eternal non-existence. And then, her flawless voice slipped into his mind like a gentle caress and the Bloodskald lifted his gaze, listening with tightly held breath. Every sentence lifted weight from his bulk like a joy that could not be contained - but it was such a fragile, tenuous pleasure that Torleik dared not even look too hard at it, lest it snap beneath the weight of a heavy gaze.
Tell me it that is not wrong.
It isn't.
Tell me that wanting you is right.
It is.
His heart beat forcefully against his chest with every question, every plea for him to reassure her of this path, and he took a constrained, jerky step towards her in response to her shaky one. "Would that we were elsewhere, I would..." he trailed, shaking his head and looking around with distaste. "It is not wrong to want me - I am yours to want and to have. I want you to be selfish. I want you to take me for your own." The warrior halted, his gaze searching out hers much in the same way she was scouring his heart right now. "And I promise, if you trust me, and if you let yourself, you can love the way you were meant to. Not like me; you are not me, and you will love in a way that is unique to you - but it can be just as beautiful and pure as any other love. I swear," he vowed.
Such elation as he had never felt when he heard Ophelia return words he'd not allowed himself to hope for, speaking to his soul and telling him that she did love him, that he was not wrong to believe that she might.
If you still want me, I want you.
"I have wanted you for many seasons, Ophelia," Torleik rumbled. "I wanted you then and I want you now. We will fail each other many times over, I am certain of it, but such is the crucible of the heart. We will come out stronger for it." Frustration knotted his thick shoulders and Torleik impatiently tossed his head. "I wish to hold you, but I cannot in front of this group. I curse myself for my inability to...tell you all of this until now. You deserved a better...you deserved more than this scarce mental exchange," the Bloodskald offered with frustration and regret.
The stallion wanted to embrace her, to feel her against his skin, hold her close and tight and not let her go until he was forced to. He wanted to spend the rest of their waking hours tangled together, talking, laughing, basking in the pleasure of one another.
But he'd chosen to let his emotional levees break here and now, denying them both the catharsis they deserved.
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[O] Silent beauty, silent ending [Torleik]
![[Image: 531c0b471919e]](http://images.helovia.net/index.php/view/531c0b471919e)
