the Rift


so i leave it up to you

Tarek Posts: 3
Up For Adoption
Stallion :: Equine :: 16.2 :: 8
Adoptable
#1
Tarek
the desolate
It was dark around him, and nothing but the moonlight to light his way. Just the way it should be, where his ancestors once waltzed beneath Her radiant light. To the outside eye he looked like a burnished statue as he walked, hide dark and melding into the shadow of the forest if not for the white ring around the base of his muzzle, a stark contrast to the deep colour of the hide across him. Around his neck the collar of gold shimmered, and he remembered fondly that moment when he had won it for himself, as he made his name known.

As he steps though, his thoughts drift to the past – back to the home he had been born into. A land of radiant beauty that had shunned their Gods in favour of gold, only to have raiders come and strike at them, he had never been what his family wanted to be and so he was a mere disappointment, and nothing more. His father, his family, were of the Royal bloodline at the time, and he had been second born and therefore had been expected to become a powerful fighter, a conqueror as was his namesake, all to bring their family further glory. He had been given his own crown, but it weighed heavy upon his head. He turned from his family, sharing little desire to be what they wanted him to be.

He remembers watching his sister, his beloved Raniya, as she had been handed off. His sister who he had spent so much time with, whom he adored and who had taught him of other cultures, had been handed off, as she had been only a piece for more glory and supremacy for his family.

He turned from them, just as he turned about now, stepping down the dark path.

There were no others to meet here, no one he wanted to speak to. He remembered how he had made a name for himself and yet his family had been so disillusioned by him and his choice, and he had gone to Uumalah – and he had made himself rich, gathering his own strength as he had crossed the desert landscape.

He had a name for himself and in his revelry he had found her, Ghalia, and he had won the right by spending quite the fortune on her, to take her for the first night. She reminded him of his sister and so he had returned to her then after, only wishing to speak – and it was only pain he felt, guilt for what he had done and pain over the loss of his sister, who had died too young, too young.

Tarek would never forgive them.

In his last moments in Uumalah he had fought like a wild creature – he was trained to be a conqueror, after all – and he had rent Ghalia from her imprisoned life, forcing her to flee and then he too, fled from everything he knew.

He had wound up here, alone and without anything. He lost so much, he had lost all he had cared for but he found he was less bothered by it than he thought he would be. He felt he had gained some kind of liberty by his choices, though that was an irrational thought. He had left in his wake powerful enemies, and so he was looking now, to find somewhere he would not be recognised, he would not be known.

With tentative steps he walks through the forest, feeling the weight of the humid air pressing upon his back. Even in here though his coat was brilliant, and he knew he would draw eyes to him – he always had. It had certainly been quite the benefit for him, in both garnering a large amount of gold and making his name known, as well as other more sordid treats that he had wanted.

And here he would continue walking, until it was all gone and behind him – perhaps forever though he knew that the past always had a way of catching up. He’d do his best to hide from it… but with Raniya flashing through his mind, and Ghalia who was so like his sister, fiery as the desert he had been born into. He walks and his body reflects the hard nature he was accustomed to wearing now…

But his eyes betray him, as they look from here to there, always alert and watching, senses opened wide. Tarek knew that even as far as he had gone now, he still felt it wasn’t far enough.

Not far enough at all.



Note; wait for Ghalia to post please, before coming to say hi :D <33

Ghalia Posts: 2
Up For Adoption
Mare :: Pegasus :: 16hh :: 4
Adoptable
#2
She did it. They had done it.

The sun rose high after the moon relieved it's place amid the darkness of the world--their cover for her escape. She dared not even take a breath until the Oasis was beyond their line of sight, heart pounding in both elation and fear. She wanted it, she wanted to leave behind all that gave her nightmares but actually doing the act was different; if they were caught, if the hands of the Bidharr or wrath of the Shurta befell them, they would surly be sent to death. Not even she with her power and prowess could convince the Father to keep her alive. Yet they moved and with each step she became ever certain that they would make it.

She would be free.

The arms of Uumalah fell away from their sides, the dawn breaking into the sky to signal that they were successful. Darkness still clung to their world, and Tarek had gotten away from her at some point during their run; she didn't have enough time (the time that ticked and pushed and reminded her that she needed to go) to make sure that he was beside her every step. It had been with a heavy heart that he managed to convince her to leave, strangely, for all she had endured at the hands of the Father it was easy to assume she'd happily depart. But she was unsure of the future; at least there, amid the beds and finer things, she was guaranteed good fortune. She was treated well, relatively speaking. Really, though, she had just needed an excuse to part ways and Tarek offered her the perfect one: from start to finish, all she needed to do was run.

That, at least, was something she could commit to.

There wasn't a concept of time passing when one was being hunted; everything blurred together and she could never get enough distance between the 'there' and 'then.' The images of all she left behind flashed at her, and she snarled right back at them--if they wanted to put up a fight, she would bear her teeth. She might not have had much of a kick, but her bite could do plenty in its place. She would have smirked at that thought (remembering the various one-nighters that wandered into her quarters each night) if she weren't so preoccupied with getting out alive.

Leaves crunched loudly underfoot but she no longer cared about the noise that swam around her. She reached the depths of a forest, wings folded tight against a sweaty body from all the exertion she made. If she felt confident enough to fly perhaps that would have been the easier option, but she was sure to get herself caught if choosing that route. So she stuck to the safety of her legs, taking one last lingering glace behind her, satisfied with the place she was in then. Tarek had managed to loose her chains and with them her title of Mahzia slunk back into the night, carried by the stars that kissed them both goodbye.

Her good fortune wouldn't leave her quite yet, as the figure of the one she knew so well met her eyes ahead. She didn't slow until she pulled up alongside him. "Antazir lahzat." Her words ran together in a huff, and a laugh ripped between her ribs into the new day's air. She stood still for the first time since leaving her chambers, ocean tides caught in her chest whilst she regained breath. How he had gotten ahead of her she couldn't know, but glad to be beside him once again she pushed her nose into his mane and closed her eyes, noticing her weariness for the first time.

It was but moments before she nodded to Tarek and took off though, a walk too hurried to be for pleasure; she wouldn't stop until she was far from the reaches of Uumalah.


--antazir lahzat: wait a minute
credits


yayy open to all <33

Tarek Posts: 3
Up For Adoption
Stallion :: Equine :: 16.2 :: 8
Adoptable
#3
Tarek
the desolate
He felt an impatience in his mind and body – he was too eager to put as much distance behind him from Uumulah as he could, wanting nothing more than to ensure they wouldn’t be found. He was not truly aware that he and the beautiful Ghalia had come to another place, even though there were so many different scents here, and not just of living equine beings. Tarek jumped a little at a sound, but he looked behind him as he heard words huffed out by she, and he unwillingly drew to a halt.

And tilted his head to give her an impatient look.

“Insha’allah, min fadlak,” he says under his breath, tilting his head before he switches tongue, “What is it?” He inquires, his rich voice with a light but true accent of his homeland, as he turns about to look at her.

He watched and knew though, she was revelling in the open air. Tarek found himself unable to turn his eyes away as his sister danced before his mind’s eye and he felt himself sinking down into the memory of her; her delicate beauty, her wonderful way of speaking, she had been so lovely. He appears to steel himself mentally against that – and then he continued to wait while he forced himself not to think on what he could not change.

It was useless.

When Ghalia came towards him, he nodded gently. He understood, this must be so perfect for her, to be at liberty after so long imprisoned.

He didn’t speak though. He merely walked, and they walked together until Tarek found himself at a place where there was a fork in the paths, a large tree standing tall and strong before them.

“Which path do we take,” he says to both himself and her, as he peers around at her with his amber eyes.

Which would lead them further away from everything behind them, and all the danger it carried with it… he didn’t know. He gave a little smile to her, more to reassure her that they would be far enough off, but it did not break his cold exterior as he turns his attention back around.

“Where is this place,” he murmurs to the world, wondering to himself more than to her. This was nothing like their home.

And Tarek felt lost.



@Ghalia and any!

Yael Posts: 186
World's Edge Seer atk: 7.5 | def: 11 | dam: 2.5
Mare :: Pegasus :: 14.2 :: 39 - appears 8 HP: 63.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Zani :: Serval :: None Astor
#4

yael

It seems their task could not be completed without a requisite amount of drama; why adults could not simply perform a job dutifully amazes her. Both groups of bone-collectors were more focused on personal grievances, quipping snidely - or screaming - rather than turning their energy to other things. Doubt, too, grew in her mind about what the bones were to be used for. It was a peculiar request. The flesh was long stripped from bones, the fragments scattered to the winds and carried otherwhere by time, tide, and traipsing paws.

It was time for a break. After delivering her second bundle to Keesamoa, the black-tipped pegasus takes to the air again, driving herself away from the areas they are cleansing, and towards the budding forest. If asked, she would not be able to say what brought her back to the site of her traumatic entry; her heart wounds still oozed - the memories were still too fresh. Gaping. Raw. Well-hidden.

Only recently had Yael seen the full force of Xelovia out and out, heard the chatter of multiple tongues, and it wasn’t until she returned to the Threshold that it occurred to her that many of them must be transplants like herself. Upon landing on the westernmost edge, she found herself wondering about the others that passed down the same trail as she; hoping, mostly, that they came here on more fortunate tides. Yael’s mysterious tumble from one place to the next left her with many questions, and no one who could answer them. No mortal someone, she privately (occasionally) thought. And there are still moments of panic, but they are becoming less and less, the wild lost-ness falling from a clenched jaw and hopeless eyes. The little foreigner may not have a purpose yet, but she is making tangible progress. And all the while, her hooves take her down a flat, but mossy trail - clearly worn down over time, but not used often enough to chip away at the soft covering. It might muffle sound of her steps, but she is a gilded lady, and the leaves are still buds, which offers many holes for the sunlight to fall through and shine off her skin.

A different smell, and then the faintest sound of a voice in an otherwise bird-infested forest catch her attention, and so Yael ever so slightly increases her pace. The path clears out ahead of her, and with it, come a pair of horses. Ever the friendly one, the aurelian woman calls out to the two, perhaps in syllables that sound vaguely familiar to their ears. “Shalom!” And then, when she is closer, “You look… unsure? Perxaps I can xelp?”

She hasn’t anything else to do, after all. Except gather bones.  

trust your heart if the seas catch fire

live by love, though the stars walk backwards

Image © littlewillow-art



@Tarek  
@Ghalia

Please only tag in starter posts, or if the thread is getting dusty
Force and magic allowed, no death please

Ghalia Posts: 2
Up For Adoption
Mare :: Pegasus :: 16hh :: 4
Adoptable
#5
To say she was scared would not quite match the true emotions reeling through her thin-framed body; she was, after all, the one everyone else feared. Yet even still if she had fallen into the wrong hands since betraying her city, there would be nothing she could do to save herself, much less Tarek. She owed her freedom to him, and in return she vowed however much of his safety she could grant. Her body and words would hold enough sway over any to ensure safe passage, at least.

But that thought alone could not settle their frayed nerves, Tarek even worse for ware than the golden beauty. He not only devised whatever scheme he put into motion to release her, but took down her guards and hand-maidens himself. Through their actions she had briefly wondered if he had been injured, but she had not the time to ask--she wouldn't know what to do even if he was. She was no healer. Yet finding him standing upright at the end of it all eased her worries on that account. Anything serious would have put him out, and she would have had to go off on her own to find help.
His slight bout of irritation at her words earned him a rueful smile, her eyes lit brightly from the inside out. She gave no response as he followed alongside her, then silent. She took in everything there was to see, finally given a moment to simply breathe and look. The nature was unlike anything in the Pleasure Oasis, the city of buildings and gold all fabricated whereas where they were then was... real.

They stopped at the break in the path they traveled. He spoke in her non-native tongue, but growing up in the arms of Uumalah did her well; she knew many languages that weren't her own thanks to the wide variety of nightly suitors. Tarek himself had taught her of the languages he knew, long nights spent not in a love-drunk stupor but studiously passing information of the outside world she could not see. Little did she know she would become grateful for the long hours of those teachings. She would find, with time, there would be next to none who spoke her home's dialect.
She remained quiet next to him, decidedly less disturbed than he at the problem posed before them. Her gradient tail flicked in slight irritation at the thing that stopped them, but before she could delve further into those thoughts the voice of someone else carried over to them. She flattened her ears and made to step in front of her partner, slight-muscled wings extending to block him from the intruder. Her initial fears went instantly to someone of Uumalah finding them; who know, amidst all the turmoil that followed her escape, if one actually had managed to find them.

Either way, at any rate, she could not be one to let her guard down until she understood the nature of the woman. "Tawaqquf. Daeuna 'ann yanzur sharat alkhass bik." The words rolled between her lips forcefully, each letter harboring its own distinction. If the other winged lady were truly after them, she would know the words spoken and knew to comply--but if not, then, perhaps she could be trusted.


--tawaqquf: halt
--daeuna 'ann yanzur sharat alkhass bik: let your badge be seen
credits

@tarek // @yael

Tarek Posts: 3
Up For Adoption
Stallion :: Equine :: 16.2 :: 8
Adoptable
#6
Tarek
the desolate
It was strange being here, in this place, so far from everything he knew. There was no sand, little sand – but with her behind him, he felt that perhaps they would be okay. Safe, away from everything that would come after them. Perhaps this place they had come to would be guarded by something fierce and wouldn’t let those with terror ruling their hearts in, to come to find him. Even if they did, Tarek would fight. He doesn’t speak his tongue again and he had just turned to Ghalia when the stranger turned up.

The merchant was on guard in the moment it took to breathe and then she was in front of him… Ghalia moved in a heartbeat and shielded him from the eyesight of the stranger. He wondered for a moment why she did this, when it was his responsibility to protect her – but he knew the feeling went both ways. He gave a half-hearted smile, eyes shining, and he listened out.

She spoke to the stranger, and Tarek wondered if the winged one knew what Ghalia spoke. They had spoken another, the Common tongue and not theirs of their home and it was now that Tarek moved forward. His gaze was steady, always watching and weary. He was tense.

So was Ghalia.

He glanced to her first, his eyes showing his own gratefulness to her, as his gaze then passed to the stranger and then he noted that they had greeted them in a tongue he knew, but for the sake of this… Tarek speaks,

“Help would be good but… answer her, and then perhaps we shall see,” he says on the common tongue, and he is always on guard now. Any stranger before them may be someone waiting for them, waiting to try to strike him down for his actions and drag Ghalia back, but he wouldn’t let it happen.

No… but he could smell that this one was different, coming from this place but he had to be sure before he went further.



@Yael @Ghalia I'm so sorry this took so long, I was kinda wrapped up in an anxious ball of doing nothing for the last little bit - the thing I was anxious over I finally did and now I'm good again :| My brain is a dumb dumb! (also sorry this is a bit all over the shot, back is very sore and distracting me ><)

Yael Posts: 186
World's Edge Seer atk: 7.5 | def: 11 | dam: 2.5
Mare :: Pegasus :: 14.2 :: 39 - appears 8 HP: 63.5 | Buff: NOVICE
Zani :: Serval :: None Astor
#7
The little aurelian foreigner remembers (in bits and pieces, mostly, due to shock) how unnerving and destabilizing her arrival in the Threshold had been, and does not find it odd that she is met with hostility. Her smile remains easily on her fine, angular face, and if anything, she is ever so honored that someone might think her a threat. She is petite, very much dwarfed by the enormous, fluffy, shiny mass that are her gold and black feathers. She has not the muscular build of a soldier, nor the stony look of someone who might release their ire on the pair.

It is telling that the pair are bristly, like a pair of guard dogs. The words are harder than her own, which roll easily off her tongue. In the off chance that they might know yet another language, she answers in her first language to the winged woman, and finishes off to the stallion with her second.Ani miztaeret, ani loh mevinah... I don’t understand xer, I’m afraid.” Her shoulders roll back a bit, and her head falls to one side in a rather innocent look.”I assure you, I mean no xarm.”

Danger is like beauty - in the eye of the beholder. And if they are fleeing someone or something and find Yael suspicious, there is truly little she can do to change their minds. So she stands their and waits for their reaction, kind, inviting gaze flickering back and forth. Where could they be from? The lady is gorgeous, the stallion rather handsome… and pretty usually means popular, and popular folks just don’t just up and leave their homes on a whim. Her curiosity grows.

yael

Image | Background



@Tarek  @Ghalia  I'm sorry this is shit. Just wanted to get something up for yall.

Please only tag in starter posts, or if the thread is getting dusty
Force and magic allowed, no death please


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