feudalladyshandmaid: (moon!fire)
Cassandra ([personal profile] feudalladyshandmaid) wrote in [community profile] deercountry2021-11-07 03:20 pm

moon's pale light [Open]

Who: Cassandra ([personal profile] feudalladyshandmaid) and YOU
What: Arrival and Catchall for your local angry moon lesbian
When: Early to mid-November
Where: Around Trench and the beach.

Content Warnings: Blood-Crazed Zealots in one prompt, attempted kidnapping, brief memory loss



[A-1: Open, shut, closed off - OTA]
[To be honest, Cassandra sort of missed when she was a brainless squid, drifting through a dark sea. No cares, no responsibilities, and nothing to annoy the ever-living shit out of her for once in her life.

At least, as a squid, she wouldn't need to contend with a city of rapidly shifting doors and structures. This city... "Trench" was its name? An oddity if there ever was one, but one that Cassandra wanted no part in. The way they moved about at random, barring passage just as quickly as opening up for her, even just crossing the street is becoming something of a herculean feat for the strange newcomer; a blue-haired woman wearing dark, almost stone-like armor - But on close inspection, it seems to be stone? How does it move so well?

The answer might lay in the glowing gemstone embedded in her stony chestplate, glowing with a clear, magical light, almost crackling with energy as its bearer faces yet another newly developed dead end. She faces the wall with a scowl, raising her hand to press it, palm out, against the smooth uncaring stone...

And drive her first into it with an unsatisfying crunch.
]

Come on! [The wall is unresponsive, so she needs to direct her frustration somewhere - Like YOU!] Are you seeing this?! How are you supposed to get anywhere in this place?

[A-2: Next stop, anywhere - OTA]
[There was nothing in Cassandra's experience, no cities or kingdoms, that were quite like Trench. To compare the quality of living in this place would be an entirely different matter, though Cassandra was focused less on that and more on... Well, everything. The city lived up to the mystique of waking up on the beach after formerly being a mindless squid.

Cassandra feels about as adrift now than back then. As ominous at the city seems, there's a rather varied supply of districts that Cassandra eventually finds her way into. An oddity that breezes her way through Gaze and its educational pursuits, stepping in and immediately excusing herself from Cellar Door with a hand up to block her view at all times, or briefly stepping through Crenshaw and gazing at the odd housing system the city had.

The few times she's fully halted come in a couple specific districts; namely, when she has to stop her self in the Cassandra district... because of course she does.

Her nose wrinkles at the heavy incense clouding the air. Spiritual healing. Peh. Her spirit was healing just fine.

The other was the trading district, so charmingly named "Willful Machine"... For some reason. At least the markets and booths were interesting - though, Cassandra was more interested in the stables she'd heard about somewhere nearby. But as soon as she tries to get anywhere, she's got locals clamoring after her - for trinkets and baubles she might like to purchase. Things that would go so well with that shiny gem over her breast. What was it? Could they see it? It would definitely fetch a pretty sum in someone else's hands-

They made themselves scarce when she drew her blade. She let it sink back into the scabbard forming on her back... just as she spotted someone looking at her.
]

Ugh. Please tell me you're not going to try and sell me something? Or get me to sell something to you.

[B: Zealous behavior - OTA]
[It was only a matter of time before a fight broke out, with Cassandra at the center of it. She had no way of knowing it would be someone else attempting to jump her, though.]

What-!

[They appear around her without warning; hooks, large and sharp. Seemingly conjured from thin air, they move with purpose to ensnare her. She feels them try to dig into her armor, into her skin. Most shatter against the impenetrable stone, but a few hook into her arm and whip her back as she scrambles for her sword.

Which is when she sees them. Humans, but nothing like she's ever seen before. Disfigured and reeking of blood, several of them advancing from a blind spot in Cassandra's vision. Obviously, they didn't like when she cut herself free of those restraints, because one steps forward, raises his hand, and-

Wait.

What's going on? Where is she? And what the heck are these people looking at-
]

Hey! Let go of me!

[More chains and hooks more? there were more? clamp around her arms and legs, dragging the confused woman back even as her instincts scream to resist. Even as they come to surround her, attempting to restrain her against the cobblestone ground with hooks and claws that scratch against her arms and face, she fights; even disoriented, she'll resist. These strangers have no idea what they're up against.]

[C: A moment for your my thoughts - OTA]
[Somehow, despite all the horrors and confusion, Cassandra eventually finds peace.

Not in herself, but rather in her surroundings. As the sun begins to dip under the horizon, Cassandra sets foot on the same beach she had washed ashore on. The smooth, black sand drags at her feet as she steps towards the waves. The air reeks of salt and ocean spray.

Somewhere, far out there, was her home, right? Yes. It had to be. Across this sea, maybe across another, and another still. She'd get back home, yes... She would do that much. She did so before, on foot no less.

At least, outside of the city, in the relative calm of this beach, she could think, and breath, and feel the power ebbing at her fingertips. Yearning. Like a muscle that hadn't been used recently. She had to flex it every now and then.

Cassandra lets her hand sweep to the side, to a random patch of sand, it doesn't matter where. Slowly, she focuses, and calls out, to the earth before her, and the power inside of her, flowing out of that tiny blue stone she'd coveted closely since waking up in this twisted land.

Slowly, but surely, a black stone emerges from the sands, intricate lines in the stone shining blue in the fading light. It raises up, and up, until she allows it to stop heeding her call. Only once it's at about waist height. A single fang on this beach, that Cassandra would sooner shove back down than use on anything. Not yet. Nothing's gotten to her so far.

The woman emanates a soft sigh and she lets the palm of her gloved hand brush against the stone. No matter what, she's got power. She can protect herself. Nothing in this world, or any other, would take that from her.
]

laminae: (not doing so good)

[personal profile] laminae 2021-11-26 12:55 am (UTC)(link)
[With how cool she is with those moves and that sword, it's kind of hard for him to not want to just go full cheerleader, okay. He just - needs to remember what Varian had said, that everything had worked out back home, that they were all on the same side again, that the alchemist still cares about her. More of that and less the kidnapping thing.

Anyways, he's a little distracted at the moment with the whole fire thing, and for a few seconds there's only pure panic running through his head. He's going to die, he's going to die again, he's going to fail at this fight and make all his friends and family upset -

And that thought promptly get squashed as he gets his by a spray of snow that smother the flames before the can spread to the rest of his body. He gets shoved off the zealot but hey, he isn't on fire anymore! He's sputtering on the ground, of course, and the zealot is scrambling to his feet to fire off another blast of - well, fire - but Fern reacts before he can manage that, sharpening his entire arm into one pointed vine. Even as he's rubbing the snow out of his eyes he's sending it straight through the guy's torso.

So that's one down.]
laminae: (hrm)

[personal profile] laminae 2021-12-01 09:03 pm (UTC)(link)
[Fern is no stranger to murder. He's done it plenty of times back in Ooo, back in Deerington, and Trench isn't any exception. He's freaked out, for sure, but part of him knows exactly what he's doing - getting rid of a threat. The zealots have more than shown just how dangerous they are, and if taking them out makes the city just a tiny bit safer (especially for someone Varian finds so important) then hey, kill them all!

The zealot falls and his arm returns to its normal state, albeit now covered in icy blue and red blood. Getting rid of the rest of the snow in his eyes, he sees the rest of the group get more non-lethally shoved away. That's probably the better way to handle them honestly, though Fern can't deny the spark of bloodlust that makes him want to go after them and make sure they don't hassle anyone again.

He tries to push that feeling down, instead climbing to his feet and looking over at Cassandra with a slowly ebbing aggression.]


You okay?