ATLAS
A serpentine path of silvery stones led from his hostel out into the city proper. The once well-kept foliage and landscaping had become jaundiced yellow and rimed with frost. There had been little energy for tending it with no Elena, and the thought stabbed at Atlas with a pang.Elena’s absence formed a gaping, draining wound in Terrastella, an abscess where time had hastily tried to stitch together the flesh and only been successful in trapping feelings of resentment, and loss. Atlas was not the type to judge and felt surely whatever her reasons they were good ones; he had met Elena only briefly, but had pledged his full support, and should she ever return, he would do so again with no explanation. Life was too short to see the worst in people, especially his fellow Terrastellans.
Dew was beginning to form on the grass. Soon the sun would set completely and winter would crisp it to frost in her dark grip; but the dusky sky was a navy curtain, the horizon a scrawl of black ink, and Vespera’s glory colored the clouds magenta and tigery-orange.
There was a crowd gathering in the city square and Atlas’ curiosity, never a satiable monster, urged him onwards; his joints were stiff from sitting in one place and writing all day. He was penning a novel-- it was part memoir, but mostly an allegorical tale of warning of what happens when opulence becomes poison, and power is equatable with spilling blood.
Nosing his way gently through the onlookers, he found himself in a grand and powerful shadow; he had to blink his eyes in quick succession to ensure what he was seeing was real. It was Vespera herself, her visage cut from the clouds above, all faceted warm light and angles. The sun sank behind her, poised like a crown. His eyes watered.
A stranger stepped forth first to answer Vespera’s call, followed by someone Atlas knew by face, if not name. Link? Logan? Whatever his cognomen, he was handsome, rugged. Looked like a leader. Had a good head on his shoulders. Compared to him, Atlas was a tiny, golden relic; a beam of sun in the duskening sky. And he should have been happy to live and let live, and surely Vespera would choose correctly, and Dusk would have a leader worthy of replacing Elena, replacing Marisol.
He was not that person.
Was he?
Something within him kindled and was warm, and before he could stop himself, he was moving forward. A golden aura enveloped him, refracted off of Vespera’s glorious skin. His head was lifted high, small as he was, and in that moment he was not small.
“I would be considered for this honor.” Atlas’ voice was strong, but humble. There was no demand, no tenuous request, but neither did his voice waver. “Our strength is in our unity, and the bonds in our community. I would put my heart forward for the Terrastellan family.” He bowed, then, perfect, snappy, well-practiced, a flush of muscle memory rushing back to him like spume on a breaking wave.
Atlas had devoted his life to giving. The question, then, was to Vespera: how much did she deem necessary to take?
She could have his life, if she desired. They all could.
About the RPer
Sides, Sunny Sides.
24
I briefly had a member of a 'dark and powerful' special race on another RP site and it was fun but ALSO I disliked how limiting it was. Like, it was the Limited Edition™ status that made it special. I think characters should be special on their own merits WHILE ALSO realizing that sometimes there needs to be ranks of "power" to move things along.
Yes
Something about Novus keeps me coming back-- I think it's the richness and depth of the characters and the opportunity they have to interact with the world. Also, the people. The people are coo.
Sovereign Questions
Atlas embodies all the traits mentioned in the Terrastellan Solar Court guide: He can keep a secret and has his own (all dealing with his pre-Novus life), he is quiet and soft-spoken which could be taken as shyness but really he just has a hesitancy to force what his views as his Negative Self on other people, he is modest beyond words like literally the boy knows nothing of pride, he is capable of loving and caring for everything and everyone, and he's terrified that he will someday be a bystander to the cruelty and horror that he saw in his childhood. He is determined to never let anyone walk over anyone ever again.
Atlas' goals as Sovereign would probably be to make everyone happy tbh. He would work to make sure everyone was on equal footing and no one felt put out, start programs to encourage arts and learning, and he would probably, eventually, do the faux pas thing where he reached out to other courts and helped heal and teach them. Atlas isn't super fond of parties but he does like practical things, like scavenger hunts and story-telling. He would probably hold like, the Novus Skog/Griot/Storytellers Convention, or something.
his name is little king trash atlas and he's gay.
