july catch-all (open + closed prompts in comments)

[grice]

Who: falco w/ friends, old and new (you)!
What: an open log with a few closed prompts here and there for the duration of july; falco will be going through some changes that have to do with this player plot! i have my plans here and here for reference! feel free to reach out on the plotting comments, liberos or owlie#3609 if you'd like to plot something specific! i can definitely do personalized tls!
When: july
Where: corners of trench!

Content Warnings: this will be updated accordingly! check out the headers for their appropriate cws! here you will find: rituals, possession, body horror, mentions of self harm, child death.

Comments

[icanhearscreams]

Oh, you're intelligent. But you're not attacking me, so you're not like one of the beasts I've heard about...

[He writes that down and starts drawing again. It's not great, but he manages to get the general shape down and labels parts so he can at least look at them and know what he was trying to do. When he finishes he turns it around to show the bird-like creature.]

Thank you for holding still.

[grice]

[ after some hesitation, weighing his options and how risky it was at this moment (they were both pretty calm, there shouldn't be any problems, should there?), the bird creature finally takes one step away from the wall to lean over and get a better look. the distance is still slightly maintained, but he's allowing leeway. oh, jun, look at you! you too, get a surprised fluff up and a little pleased chirp.

he's doing something with his hand, bringing it to his chest until the innermost thumb touches the breast feathers, then waving the middle talons stiffly. some who may be familiar with sign language would know that he's complimenting him. maybe even sleepers who wish to understand the language can slip right through the barrier with enough effort. ]

[icanhearscreams]

[He doesn't understand the language, but he understands the other is trying to communicate with him. And based on the pleased-sounding chirp he's going to assume it's a positive reaction.]

It's not a problem. I just... there's so many things to discover in this place. There's not a lot of documentation that I've found so far, so someone has to go out and look for them...

[His omen sniffs around on the ground and pads a little closer before he sits. It's not an aggressive stance, just curious.]

Hey, careful there...

[grice]

[ he’s never actually seen a dog quite as cute as a golden retriever, even if it’s an omen. the bird seems to only watch it with a skeptical glance that remains ongoing, but not exactly on alert. he’s calm, and knows omens don’t exactly harm even if they try to on their own. besides that, the dog seems at ease, too. falco lowers down into a sit that resembles a roosting bird, and gives the dog a friendly wave.

from the titan’s frame, little grains of light begin to scatter out like snowfall until the particles come together to create a single entity: a pygmy falcon that flutters into shape and lands on stalagmite from the ground, bouncing her tail up and down to balance and introduce herself, as well.

an omen, to this very large creature you’ve found— who is also a sleeper. ]

[icanhearscreams]

[He jerks back and looks up at the bird. An... omen? He's seen some form before, so...]

So you're... like me, then? Not a monster.

[Not in the same way, at least.]

... How did you get out of the sea like that?

[grice]

[ the reason he's like this in the first place is gently left out— perhaps at a later time, falco could explain part of it, if he were to meet this boy again. he knows he wouldn't mind it! especially when it was so rare to see people his age around lately . . . most have gone back to sea.

he does answer though, with a choice of signs that's easier to understand: his hands are held out and he claws in the air to resemble the movements needed to crawl. he crawled out of the water, all the way over here. it wasn't exactly a fast process as he gathered himself, but it's been long enough that he's already preened. ]

[icanhearscreams]

Crawling... you must have crawled a long way. A while ago, based on your feathers.

[He takes another step closer and scritches his omen on the head.]

I'm not going to hurt you. Honestly I don't think I could even if I wanted to.

[Look at him, he's a skinny nerd.]

[grice]

[ an idle stroke of his talons rises to his feathers. the boy is perceptive, and that's a good quality to have, he knows. the step forward toward him is perceived and falco does give one of the most subtle flinches. perle, his omen, hops on the rock she's perched on to spin herself and regard her sleeper. would a chirp suffice an explanation?

well, she's out here, and he understands. the pygmy falcon turns toward the newcomer boy and speaks, with a female voice to convey what the bird wants to say: ]

It's not you that I'm worried about.

[icanhearscreams]

[He looks towards his own omen.]

Wait, can you talk like that?

['Ruff.' Inconclusive answer. He turns back towards the little falcon.]

Are you scared of hurting me? ... Don't be. ... It's not worth worrying about.

[grice]

[ omens are wonderful as they are unique! falco has a hard time speaking, like this. the boy doesn’t know sign language from the looks of things, either. so— perle provides for her sleeper.

the larger bird shifts uncomfortably and grumbles. perle translates: ]

Yes, it is. I don’t want to hurt anyone. And you don’t want to die.

[ that’s less of an assumption and more of a warning. ]

[icanhearscreams]

You don't know me. Why would me dying matter?

[His omen turns and growls at his Sleeper.]

... Right, right. Ngh.

[He sighs and folds his arms across his chest.]

How do you live like this? I can't imagine there's a lot of prey for you out here.

[grice]

[ jun. jun????? luckily, his omen's got that covered. falco stays quiet and observant through that exchange, but the perplexion from the following question shines through easily enough. the bird is in mid-puff from the surprise and trying to handle wording it, because prey? right, because he's at the very least predatory, but! ]

I— No, I don't hunt. Like that. [ he knows it's necessary and he does eat meat, but just. descending upon a screaming buck fighting for its life and then eating the whole thing raw would surely give him nightmares. he wouldn't even have the heart to start. ] My friend is bringing some food. I'm human.

[icanhearscreams]

... Okay, how are you human? Because you're not human like me. I can't... do that. Look like that. And I can't imagine why you'd stay like that.

[He frowns and paces for a moment. Why would...]

Some effect of this place?

cw mention of persecution

[grice]

[ that's what everyone on marley thinks, and it's easy to when you're different. they're not human. they're eldian. they can turn into giants, other people can't— but that doesn't tear away the strips of virtue he had of himself. they had abilities, dormant or active. that didn't make them or him any less human.

perhaps the brief silence from the titan is enough of an answer. he turns to the wall behind him and glances upward. he'd been pecking around at the rocks, some slabs were actually coming out. he chips at the wall with a talon, but speaks up through perle: ]

Something's wrong with the ocean. I can't get out of this— ever since I came back.

[icanhearscreams]

... Oh.

[He's not going to apologize for his assumptions, but he does look a little deflated. Something turned him into this. He sits down on a somewhat flat rock and thinks.]

I assume you've tried your usual methods of getting out of it. Is there anyone around who might have an idea of how to help you? You've probably been here longer than me.

[grice]

[ in a way— he’s been told that it may have to do with mariana, and the whole shebang that’s happened, but what exactly and how to fix it was up in the air. only possibilities were hanging over their heads now. ]

They’re looking into it. [ maybe they’ll have an answer. maybe. ] I’ve been digging, to pass the time. There’re some cool rocks.

[ his talons click against the slab— the ruins above it glow a dull, pulsing blue. he makes sure not to defile those.

and since both omens are out and capable of foresight, the bird seems at ease. it hasn’t been unpleasant. there hasn’t been any aggression from either side. ]

Want to see?

[icanhearscreams]

At least there's people working on it.

[He's hesitant still, but... cool rocks are cool rocks. He nods and steps forward, curious about said rocks.]

I wonder what kinds you'd find here? Something like sandstone, maybe?

[grice]

[ perle chitters, and glides to the top of the titan’s head— it’s easier to remember that the words are coming from him if she’s more in his direction. with a gentle clack of his talons against the slab, he digs the sharp end in and applies pressure. his grip causes a slow forming fissure. ]

I don’t know. I never really studied minerals in depth . . . [ it never came up as an active interest, but now— there is one, from lack of anything proper to do or not. ] I’m Falco. This is Perle.

[icanhearscreams]

We had some rock information come up in science class. I'm more of a zoology person, but rocks are cool too.

I'm Jun. This guy doesn't have a name.

[The omen looks up at Jun. He certainly does, but he's not telling his Sleeper that just yet.]

[grice]

[ jun receives a small inclination from the bird's head. it's good to meet him. ]

I'd like to take science classes. Maybe . . . When I'm out.

[ hopefully, that could be soon. sometime in the next coming months? like most children, especially for those deprived of a childhood— falco simply wants to do things growing kids do, and he likes to consume knowledge after being so very limited topics open to study.

finally, with further pressure exacted, the slab falco holds breaks off, and within it, he reveals a deep, metallic alloy. it looks silvery white in aspect, almost like, as the titan lowers it down to the ground to offer a better look: ]

It looks like silver.

[icanhearscreams]

[He moves closer to take a look at the rock. Hm...]

I think silver is found deep underground... I don't know about here, though. I've actually never seen silver ore up close...

[He kneels down near Falco and takes a pice of the rock to see.]

I don't think it breaks this cleanly, though.

[grice]

It still looks nice enough to trade. Maybe if there're some books in the Archives, there might be something.

[ since he's got his hands on the work as is, and— well, what else could they do? falco continues to mess around with the walls. it's calmer, this way, and reminds him that he's still just spending time with a boy his age. ]

You said you liked zoology, right Jun?

[icanhearscreams]

Maybe. We can always look. Or... I guess I can?

[He's not sure. Falco might have some trouble getting out of here. He seems young, though it's impossible for Jun to tell how old he is.]

That's right. Marine biology, specifically.

[grice]

[ allow him to rummage through some of his already dug-through slabs and cracks of rock, a little pile there behind his tailfeathers that are easily missed. just a gentle nudge of his talon until he finds it . . . (he does also croon to the suggestion; he'd like to go too, but maybe— if jun had interest, he was more than welcome. falco wasn't leaving the cave so soon). ]

I found this earlier.

[ he reveals now a different kind of slab. it's not shiny, taken from another spot within the cave. it just looks like normal stone, but if given a closer look, with the right angle and lighting—

it's a fossil piece of some kind. ]

[icanhearscreams]

[He waits patiently for the other to move the rock around, and crouches down to take a look at the fossil.]

Wow... this must be really old.

[No shit, Jun.]

I can see an eye... there's some kind of flap here... claws... maybe some kind of crab or shellfish? It's hard to tell... you should keep this. You could probably trade it for something really valuable.