Live and die, and then... [open]

[distant_one]

Who: D, his Left Hand, anyone
What: Open and closed prompts for general June catch all
When: early june and onward
Where: Various places

Content Warnings:: mention of blood drinking, apathy towards violence, casual disregard for the safety of others, violence, additional warnings to be added to closed prompts in comments



1. A stiff drink; any time in June, especially after the wilderness expedition returns; open

The end of the previous month had brought an end to D's excessive bloodthirst. Which meant that he could once again drink alcohol without experiencing an almost painful and intensely bitter disappointment at every drop that passed his lips and wasn't blood.

He was still not a very social person, but could be found in various drinking establishments around the city, slowly making his way through the wide variety of unfamiliar alcohol. His usual habit was to order the strongest drinks on offer and work his way down from there.

2. A bloodless cut; two weeks before the end of June; open

D wasn't one to get involved in the affairs of others. Drunken brawls simply weren't his concern, and even when one escalated immediately to a lethal level and had people fleeing, D only glanced over briefly to see why everyone was screaming and running.

This was more than just a drunken argument getting out of hand, but apparently a case of corruption. The corrupted man was apparently not satisfied yet either, as he was lunging at the next nearest person with a jagged piece of wood from a broken chair.

Though he was half way across the room, D was suddenly next to the man in the blink of an eye. Before the sound of his sword being drawn could completely fade from the air his first slash had cut through the weapon, turning it from sharp enough to stab to a blunt end. The second slash, even faster and seeming no more than an arc of silvery light passed through the man's torso before he could stab the newly blunt end of his improvised weapon into his target.

Despite the arc of the slash that should've cut the man in half, he didn't even stumble. The man jabbed his newly blunted weapon against his target, only to realize it was no longer suitable for stabbing. D is the next target of his ire, the remaining stub of chair leg swung at him like a club was caught in D's left hand.

It was a waiting game now, to see how long it would take a corrupted person to drop from the very unusual slash he'd made that hadn't broken the skin or spilled a single drop of blood.

3. Wildcard

Comments

2.

[lightthedarkness]

It wasn't that Usagi had been a PART of the brawl so much as she couldn't get out of the way fast enough. She had been trying to get out of the way but the guy with corruption set his sights on her and while stumbling back to get away from him, she had tripped and fell. She lifted her arms to protect herself but the swing that was meant to hurt her never came. Usagi lowered her arm and instead the Corrupted individual was now fighting...

She watched the club fall and called out.

"LOOK OUT!" she scrambled to stand up and then paused when the much MUCH taller man didn't seem bothered at all.

[distant_one]

D's normally dark eyes had a faint red glow about them. He was careful not to step on the young woman on the floor as he moved into a better position.

Her shout didn't draw his attention until he'd halted the attack, and only then did he glance at her for a brief, cold, calculating assessment.

"I have everything under control." D said with a low voice, his tone one of smooth tranquility that didn't match the situation. He tossed the club off to the side when the man released it to start trying to literally claw at D.

He didn't so much dodge the wild swipe with hands ending in claw-tipped fingernails as he seemingly flowed past it, seemingly moving far less than he actually was and with footsteps that didn't make a sound.

[lightthedarkness]

Usagi dusted off her skirt, blushing deeply in embarrassment. Here he was all calm and collected and she was worried about him. She wondered if she should even call the Hunters. Maybe she could call one of her Nightwalker friends to help calm this guy down? It was important to ask, though.

"You're not going to hurt him, are you?"

[distant_one]

"No more than I already have. He's going to collapse soon. Then I'll take him to get help where there's no risk he'll hurt himself or anyone else."

Soon was a relative word, of course. But this was enough of a low risk situation that D was confident in his ability to keep his opponent contained and reverse the damage he caused if necessary.

At the very least, the man was sweating hard and beginning to breathe heavily enough though they'd barely begun to fight. Frustrated, D's opponent turned away from him, but didn't even get to begin to swing before D planted his toes at the back of the man's knee and turned his lunge into a sprawl out on the floor between D and Usagi.

The man managed to get his hands under himself enough to avoid breaking his nose or injuring himself, but was clearly struggling to get back up. Fortunate, too, that he hadn't landed in the blood spilled before D got involved.

[closed] for Allen and any sanctuary people he pulls in

[distant_one]

[D, courteous soul that he is, pauses to have his omen send a text to Allen that he'll be coming in with an incapacitated corruption patient and to have healers standing by.

Then, with an unconscious and seemingly dead man slung over his left shoulder, D took off, crossing the city in great leaps over ceilings and roofs that should not have agreed to support his weight, let alone the added weight of the man he was carrying.

When he finally reaches the infirmary, he finds an empty bed as far away from anyone else as he can and deposits the man there. He's not breathing, and his heart isn't beating, but he's also not dead somehow, and his soul is still anchored in his body.]

[closed] for Luke; cw orgasmic biting, blood drinking, blood in food, blood addiction

[distant_one]

[Backdated to the middle of the night on June 15th]

In the two days since D had returned from the expedition, his thirst had only grown worse rather than better. Getting a delivery of Trench native blood had helped for a short time, but soon D was reaching for the blood and fruit cupcakes.

He ate the last of the strawberry, and while the baked in blood wasn't particularly tasty, the color and texture of the treat was nice enough for solid food and it had seemed to help. A short time later he went for the other batch, lemon and blood cupcakes.

That had not been a good idea. By the second bite the cupcake had lost all appeal except for the unfortunately cooked blood in it. By the third bite, D decided that the cupcakes weren't really helping all that much, and perhaps his theory that trench native blood would best satisfy his thirst was incorrect.

Luckily, he knew where he could get Sleeper blood without venturing into any place that reeked too heavily of blood. Or rather, from whom. With the taste of Luke's blood in his mouth, even as unappetizingly cooked as it was, D had no doubt he could track down wherever the young man was staying.

He was little more than a shadow with glowing red eyes as he crossed the city over roof tops.

[faithfulson]

Luke had been spending more and more time in his own little place, the same place he had cuddled up with D and fallen asleep on him in. He was still determined to wander, to not really stay in one place for very long, but it was also clear that he wasn't going to be going anywhere any time soon -- having a place that was actually his would benefit him in the long run, an perhaps would keep a certain nephew from insisting he needed to stay in one place.

He was working late into the night, finishing up his work on the classic style oven he had traded for and was restoring to like-new condition, when something in the Force stirred in the back of his mind, like something was actively calling for his attention. Luke paused, frowning to himself -- it wasn't a call from another Force user, that much was clear, but what...?

With a tug on his tools, he pulled himself out from the oven, setting down his tools in favor of a rag to clean off his hands as he stepped outside of the house, looking around for the source of the feeling. There was a presence... something close by, but it took him a moment to identify it, if only because it felt... different from how it usually felt.

"D?" he finally whispered softly, like that was enough to summon the man from the darkness.

[distant_one]

Much like the devil he was at the moment, D was summoned by his name and separated from the dark of night that had been wrapped around him. It was all he could do to keep himself in check with how badly he wanted blood. His lips were an intense, almost bloody red, near the same color as his eyes, and the fangs he worked so hard to keep put away were visible even with his lips closed, the pearly tips visible at the corners of his mouth.

"I need blood. Give me your wrist."

He was worried he might lose control if he didn't drink some soon. It was always a risk, going for fresh blood, but D was nearly mad with blood thirst. The only other option was to lock himself away and he wasn't certain he could find a place that could contain him if he lost complete control.

[faithfulson]

The red eyes staring at him from the darkness had Luke frozen to the spot, flight or fight instinct fighting against his common sense telling him it's D, and D wasn't going to hurt him. He had to take a deep breath, had to draw on the Force to calm himself, and that fact probably saved him. There was power in D's words, and he swore he would have split his own skin open for the man if he hadn't already been on guard.

Whatever was going on, he needed to keep it contained. If someone else saw, they'd probably get the wrong idea, not understanding that he was trying to help the other man, not put himself in danger.

"Come inside first," he said, softly but urgently, standing aside to let D in.

1.

[democratically]

She was, by no means, a heavy drinker, although from time to time the social aspect of it was brought into play. Padmé knew better than to get too drunk at senate functions, as there were always eyes spying, waiting for any slip up to make the front page of the holos. She had been there once, and she would prefer not to be there again for any blunders or missteps.

But she had found that a glass of wine now and then on her way back home was a nice change. Life itself wasn't overly complicated, but the events that transpired threw a kink in such things. Still, she had learned more about the future than she might otherwise have, both good and bad.

Having placed her own order at the bar, Padmé waited, hearing a voice ask for a drink that she was unfamiliar with. Mild curiosity as she waited, she did glance toward him, asking. "What's that drink made with?"

[distant_one]

The question had D turning his head slightly to look at the young woman. "I don't know," D answered honestly. "But I've heard it's very bitter."

His preferred drink had so far been unavailable, and the one time he'd thought he'd come across it, it had turned out just to be a jar of some kind of salsa with a hideous but not particularly potent grain alcohol poured into it.

[democratically]

Bitter. Padmé's nose gave a little wrinkle as it wasn't something that she went for. Even the thought reminded her of some foods that she had had over the years. No, she preferred something a touch sweet with hints of fruit.

"I'm afraid bitter isn't exactly my go to. Wine." Giving a small grin with a light swirl of her cup.

[distant_one]

"There are some nice dry and bitter wines, too, but it's too bad there aren't many higher elevation wines available here." When D's drink came it was in a mug, and the liquid itself was a clear and very alarming shade of orange. Less a cheerful color and more the kind of color some animal might wear to warn predators it was highly toxic.

He brought it up to his lips and inhaled before drinking it. It was certainly strong, but whatever was giving it that strange color had clearly been added only for the color. D would do everyone a favor and not try to identify it.

[closed] for snow white

[distant_one]

Working with the nightmare was difficult. For all that cyborg horses could be aggressive and high spirited, they were made specifically to serve the Nobility and D was an expert horseman capable of pushing the beasts far past what they should be able to do without harming them.

But this beast was something else entirely, a horse in shape only. Since it had apparently decided D was suitable and kept showing up, D had eventually climbed on and then later gotten him to accept a saddle.

There were still disagreements. D had to grab the horn or pull its neck off to the side to keep it from charging and stabbing his friends. The nightmare often refused to stay where D left him, and when he showed up with food it was gone, or would leave to wander off and try to pick a fight when D dismounted for any reason.

Which was what had happened now. The very large hoof prints were easy to pick out the signs of even in town, as fresh as they were. A cyborg horse would have been much easier to handle, but D couldn't deny the nightmare had strength. If he could just convince it to behave.

[onebadapple]

It just so happened that the nightmare had wandered off again once D dismounted, again. Only this time, it wasn't picking a fight with anyone, quite the opposite. The nightmare had his head in Snow White's lap as she was seated on the ground, stroking his neck and mane.

"Oh yes, that does sound very scary," she soothed as she kept petting the giant beast of a mount. But it wasn't just the nightmare, there were endless amounts of animals around her both predator and prey and all of them seemed to be at peace in her presence. A giant stag was the only creature standing and watching the whole thing. The nightmare made some nickering noises and shook his head and she nodded.

"No no, I think you were very brave!" she offered. It was the animals, not Snow, who immediately sensed D and it was them who came to be alert. They would not abandon Snow White but they definitely didn't like D.

[distant_one]

If not for the abundance of other normal, non-murderous animals gathered around the young woman, D might have been more suspicious of her. It was clear that everything around her had sensed his true nature, that he was not part of the natural cycle of life and death, but the fact that they stayed with her was interesting.

They weren't frozen from fear, but chose to stay even as he approached. Well, at least the nightmare hadn't killed anyone. Her skin was so pale, hair so dark, and lips so red that D could almost have mistaken her for a Dhampir if not for that vital something that even the most human of Dhampirs lacked.

"You have quite a talent." Some people were good with animals, but this went beyond that by quite a lot. D hadn't yet decided if she had the same kind of enchanting allure over animals that D did over most people, leaving many entranced and eager to spend time in his presence even when doing so meant danger. Or was it perhaps something more benign, a connection to the natural world similar to the one D had with the night itself.

[onebadapple]

The giant stag, Faramund, a giant thing continued to eye D before turning back to Snow White. Snow White regarded D for a moment before offering him a smile. The steed, his steed, looked at him and snorted, turning his head back to Snow.

"OH! Oh is this the man you were talking about? Oh, I see, yes, he is very tall! Almost as tall as you!" she giggled, pressing a kiss to the muzzle of the horse. He snorted again, clearly not pleased with the comparison.

"It's so nice to meet you. And thank you. Your friend here was telling me all about you," complaining, more like, but Snow was too polite to say such a thing.

[closed] for Gaia

[distant_one]

While D does help around the house as 'payment' for staying there, he's also not above paying his way. Especially as he has plans that will consume more of his time, and will have less time to devote to fixing up a house.

Which is why D comes riding up on the back of his nightmare steed with something very brightly colored and iridescently shiny strapped behind him. From a distance it might look like a very large very oddly shaped pot or vase or decoration of some kind. As he gets closer it'll be more apparent. It is (most of) the shell of an extremely large beetle.

Only most of it, because his steed decided to try the shell as well as the softer insides and took a few bites before deciding to stop. The steed seems perfectly content to continue past Gaia's house, and D has to rein him in. This results in a brief disagreement that has the massive horse-shaped beast stepping awkwardly sideways and stamping his very large hooves very loudly before stopping.

[hammerbearer]

Payments and trades, not owing debt. Even before the incident last month, Gaia had the same attitude. Maybe for different reasons but she found it important not to be given overt charity.

But besides their arrangement, she'd be willing to call her relationship with D a friendship. More than acquaintances surely at this point.

Equine shapes tend to be monsters where she comes from and there's rarely anything in Trench that's disabused her of this notion. So even if she's seen D's new steed before now, there's a sense of alertness when she emerges from the house at the sound of the rider's approach and subsequent attempt to stop.

She's still herself, really. A smile, wry but still friendly expression, crossed arms and waiting until D has the steed under control. She still looks haggard from the prior month's events. Psychometry, the nightmare demon-Beast, judging the Paleblood competition. It'd taken its toll and while she'd escaped death, there'd been plenty of need to catch up on her health.

It'd taken a while before she'd felt it was safe to sleep. If she was more reserved it might be overlooked. If her appetite hadn't been the greatest, that could be accounted for. Even unusual sleeping patterns? Sure. It's not like she avoided the sun. In a way it'd become even more appealing to sleep while basking in its glowing warmth.

But those are problems to be addressed over time. For now she raises a hand and approaches D.

"It's been a while!" He'd not been stopping by so much, but that's okay; she knows he's become occupied with the idea of that forward base. Or would it be a shelter? Maybe both. She'll be joining in soon, now that she's on the mend.

Gaia's attention is drawn to the overly large beetle shell. It's certainly very obvious. "Are you coming to stay the evening or just for a visit? And what is that you have?"

[distant_one]

D dismounts first before he unties the beetle shell pieces and sets them down in front of Gaia.

"This is for you, it's shiny and colorful enough to be good for trading once it's cut up and polished a little bit."

At least all the rain has washed off most of the oozing remnants of soft insides. "I can stay for a while." Being rained on so frequently has made D very miserable combined with his difficulty sleeping at all while the sun is down. "Do you have any tea?"

Humans would be in trouble if their body temperature dropped as much as D's did in the rain, but for him it's only extremely unpleasant. Especially during the day.

[hammerbearer]

There's a time when Gaia might have wrinkled her nose with an 'ew' expression but still taken the gift and done something with it to make ends meet. It's not that she wouldn't have been appreciative. It's just... sensibilities. Lately though, the attitude of 'squick' has been gone.

She'd come out in the rain dressed appropriately for it. But when the pieces are set down Gaia's quick to pick a smaller piece and look it over. "I think you're right." She does look pleased, smiling brightly up at him.

Though honestly the rain is enough to want to chase her back inside to the warm and dry home (with its now fixed roof!), and his soaked condition plus the request for tea definitely add to the urgency. She gathers up the pieces- it's easy enough to adjust their weight with telekinesis if it's necessary- and gestures for the tall dhampir to follow her. "Yes, come inside! Oh, the lean-to's empty enough now to shelter your...er horse."

Yup she's still eyeing the nightmare steed a bit. But she's hardly going to leave it to suffer in the rain. The lean-to she's talking about is a temporary shelter for building supplies. Progress was made in the absence of the expedition and there'll be enough space to put the creature under it and out of the direct rain.

"Though feel free to use any scrap to shore it up. Sorry I don't have much else. Come inside when you're done and I'll have the tea started."

She'll have to look into that if D's going to be dropping by again. In any case, whatever needs to be done in the yard, Gaia will be working on a few things inside. The kettle, cups and stoking the fire. But also dry towels. One might argue there's even a set of his clothes ready if he's the type to leave spares for emergencies.

A new addition besides the fixed roof is that many of the rooms are now finished. Some floors might still be unfinished and walls unpainted but the rooms are no longer shells of studs and beams. Soft 'electric' light comes from a couple of lamps. The furniture is still very sparse but there are a couple of chairs. Even a simple rug by the fireplace in the common room. Slowly, Gaia has been moving out of the kitchen for everyday life.

The beetle shells have been left somewhere else and Gaia's already gotten into dry clothes herself. Any speed required for the setup was probably aided by magic and the extra hands (mouth?) of her fish-shaped Omen.

The Bog

[creationrebirth]

For months now, Sakura had stayed near Trench. There had been plenty of things to keep her busy, but lately she had been getting antsy. She wanted to explore outside the town's walls and see lay beyond. Hearing about the plant life, she had been eager to go collect some specimens in hopes of expanding her collection of medicines.

The trip out to the bog hadn't taken too long, and upon arriving at the bog, she looked over at her travel partner. He'd been out there previously and she was more than willing to follow his lead.

"What a place..." It was a dumb statement, but the place was so desolate she wasn't even sure how to best describe it. It seemed best to focus on the task rather than the surroundings.

[distant_one]

The sprint out had been much quicker than the day-long slog, but D could feel the steady weakening that came with distance from Trench already.

"Everything out here is at best least inedible in its raw form, much of it is probably toxic in moderate amounts." While he didn't eat human food, D's sense of smell was very good. There was a distinct bitter taste.

But he wastes little time pulling out a small utility knife and approaching the nearest plant. Even when he steps on the sticky, sinking mud he leaves no footprints at all. "We'll have at least fifteen minutes before anything I sense can reach us." Between his keen hearing and sixth sense, very little could escape D's notice unless he was too focused on something else or distracted, but he didn't quite trust himself to be able to detect everything.

[creationrebirth]

Sakura was relieved the trip hadn't taken too long, she had been a little worried about getting caught up in something on the way there. She was hopeful to collect plant specimens to take home, but she was also looking to this as a test run for a longer trip.

Joining him, she starts to pick out and cut different plants that she sees that draw her interest.

"One of the cool things about plants is often times the ones that are the most poisonous when eaten have great medicinal values when you use them in recipes or antidotes. It's the same with animal venom too."

[distant_one]

"And medicines in large amounts are toxic. Although there are some where I'm from that are lethal even in the smallest doses, and others that aren't toxic no matter how much you consume." It was a pity none of that particular moss grew around here, but D had checked the locations it might be able to live and found no trace of it.

"The creatures out here are extremely corrupted. I don't think anything could be harvested safely." And the bugs are awful, but they won't come within about three feet of D as he gathers various parts of the plants and collects at least a few cuttings that might transplant successfully.