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Site Wide Plot  - But it refused.

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Played by Offline Sparrow [PM] Posts: 196 — Threads: 34
Signos: 25
Dawn Court Scholar
Male [He/Him/His]  |  16 [Year 495 Spring]  |  15.2 hh  |  Hth: 22 — Atk: 18 — Exp: 48  |    Active Magic: Blood Manipulation  |    Bonded: Alba (Barn Owl)
#1



"… It fills you with determination."
The wind blew, bitter and cold with the promise of winter. Somnus entered the mountainside along the worn pathway carved by hundreds of others before him with a humble air, uttering not a single word as he stepped inside and out of the wrath of the buffeting winds. The only sound was that of his hooves scraping against mortar as he made his way inside, eyes forward and locked upon his goal, ears at attention as he listened to the echoing sounds of his own footsteps. The silence that loomed around him was omnipresent and all consuming, and the Dawn King would have sworn that he could hear the sound of his own pulse echoing off of the walls.
 
Perhaps, of course, it was the heartbeat of the very mountain itself. Or the heartbeats of the Gods. He had never questioned their existence, but they felt all the more real after the events that transpired at the summit. Tempus’ words echoed once more in his head, and the dunalino’s expression grew grim.
 
The world was changing. Somnus knew. Change was inevitable.
 
He knew it in the way that he grew older with every passing year. He knew it in the way that Eulalie’s belly, once firm, toned, and supple, had grown larger with every passing day, heavy with the twins. He knew it in the way that he now knew his two children; Anemone and Regis, one strong, one weak. Somnus had become many things in his life; a politician, a tactician, a survivor, a Sovereign, a father… Change was a constant companion, both welcome and unwanted. Fighting it was pointless.
 
Bowed, but not broken, Somnus was a man accustomed to change. He knew the agony of survival, the agony of living when the things one loved most had been stolen away, but he was also knew the joy. The glory. The thrill. The pleasures in simple things. The good that outweighed the bad.
 
The dunalino’s eyes slid closed but for a moment as he came to a stop before the statue of his patron deity. Oriens’ knowing eyes stared out at him, seeming to stare into his very being, passing judgement where he saw fit. Verdant eyes opening, Somnus returned his stare with one of his own. When he spoke, the timber of his own accent surprised him as it echoed against the stone walls.
 
“… I am sorry that I have not come sooner. Perhaps it is out of desperation that I come to you now.” Desperation, yes… But not from what others might think. Yes, change was inevitable. Somnus understood that. Change would come whether he wanted it to or not. He knew that he would not serve Oriens as Dawn King for his entire life; he could never be so blessed. The title would eventually be passed, or stolen, onto another… And yet, amidst his duration of holding Oriens’ blessed, wise crown, Somnus wanted nothing more than to be the best sovereign that he could be.
 
For his Court. His friends. His family. His children. He thought of them, of brazen and brash Anemone, of timid and fragile Regis, still so small and unwell. He thought of the beautiful and strong Eulalie who had gifted him with not one, but two children, of dear Ulric and sweet Ipomoea. He thought of the others he had met since his arrival into Novus a little over a year ago; Kasil, Florentine, Orion, Pavetta… So many names, so many faces. Somnus even thought of his beloved Vhallen King, dead and gone from his grasp forevermore.
 
“I come not asking for much, Wise One. I am but a humble servant in your name, a servant to your Court… But I implore you now for understanding. For guidance. Please.” Letting his head droop, his wings relax, Somnus’ posture loosened as he bowed before his patron God.
 
“Help me to help them.”
 

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Please leave Somnus be! :D This isn't an open thread.




"There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self."



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Played by Offline Staff [PM] Posts: 309 — Threads: 165
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Official Novus Account
#2


a new dawning






Four days had passed since the closure of the Summit. Four long days where the sun had seemed to struggle to rise and set properly, had appeared shaky in the skies during the day. The world’s natural order had been disturbed.

On this particular day, the night lasted far into the morning. The moon had already set in preparation for dawn—but the sun had failed to appear. The seconds drug into minutes; the minutes seemed to last forever. The world remained dark; the sun was late.

But at the shrine of Oriens, light began to form.

It crept slowly into the carved rock of his face, illuminating the reflection of the sun etched into his forehead. The lines of his face began to glow, the light creeping down his neck and touching his legs, his hooves, the bands and symbols crafted onto his pedestal. As Somnus bows before the shrine, light begins to wash over him.

The god of dawn opened his eyes and looked around.

He saw the four empty pedestals surrounding him, the statues having disappeared in the preceding days. He saw the king of his own Court, head still bowed before him, as if unaware of the change witnessing before him. Oriens let out his breath in a long, slow sigh.

On the eastern sky, the sun finally broke the horizon, brought back by the god who so loved watching it dawn.

“It’s better to be late than to never try.” The voice is simultaneously young and old, youthful yet wise. The god steps down from his altar, testing the solid ground beneath his hooves.

Oriens paused, head still turned to the east to watch the rising sun--the first time in a very long time in an earth-bound body. The color blooming across the sky was reflective of the hues splashed across his own pelt and the sun marking on his dark forehead. His golden eyes blinked in the early morning light.

“You have got a lot on your mind, Somnus.” He shook his head slowly, finally turning to address the golden Sovereign. “It’s the curse of ruling a Court… and of starting a family. It takes an extraordinary individual to balance both.”




@Somnus has been greeted by the god Oriens, who has materialized from his statue into equine form! 





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Played by Offline Sparrow [PM] Posts: 196 — Threads: 34
Signos: 25
Dawn Court Scholar
Male [He/Him/His]  |  16 [Year 495 Spring]  |  15.2 hh  |  Hth: 22 — Atk: 18 — Exp: 48  |    Active Magic: Blood Manipulation  |    Bonded: Alba (Barn Owl)
#3



"... It fills you with determination."
In the wake of the meeting, Somnus did not know what to truly expect from his journey, but desperation was a mighty temptress. It made many a man do obscure things, and Somnus was not above being ensnared by its siren song. Perhaps he would have stayed away if he had all of the answers. Perhaps he would have remained within the familiar borders of Delumine if his son was hale and hearty. Perhaps, if he knew what awaited them in the coming days, he would not be here… But that was a different life, and Somnus was not the type to waste his time and energy on ‘what-ifs’.

Still, he did not expect what he received. He had heard tales of such events happening to far more worthy men and women than he, after all. It seemed almost surreal. In the wake of the meeting, where the Gods had quarreled and Tempus had released them from their chaste imprisonment with only a chilling warning, Somnus expected to do nothing save speak to an ancient room and barren pedestals, mull over the recent events, and then turn on his heel to head home to his Court and family… But that was not so.

’It is better to be late than to never try.’

The voice caused Somnus’ head to raise slowly, ever the composed figure, his verdant eyes widening in unexpected surprise at the mighty form that had manifested only feet away. It was Oriens, patron lord to the land that he so passionately served. The God’s voice was young and old, wise yet inexperienced. In his words and in his eyes, Somnus would swear that he could hear and see the growing of the forests, the breaking and reshaping of the earth, and the altering wear and courses of the oceans and rivers. This being, almighty and omnipresent, knew unfathomable truths, lies, and knowledge, and Somnus was not worthy.

“Majesty.” Somnus breathed, feeling his body act on its own accord and straighten into a far more befitting posture of a King to his patron deity. Sovereign though he may be, his King was here before him. When was the last time that Oriens had graced their mortal realm in the flesh? Somnus’ gaze, however, stubbornly remained averted and downcast, at least until he realized that Oriens was not yet looking at him. With a great deal of caution, Somnus found himself lifting his head to follow the God’s line of sight. The light of a new dawn crested over them, and for a moment, the dunalino remained silent and stalwart, basking in the rare moment of the first rays of sunlight over the horizon. They were not like Solterra and Denocte, who reveled in hours of their patron times. For Delumine and Terrastella, their moments were far more rare, and far more precious.

Inevitably, Oriens redirected his knowing, gilded eyes onto Delumine’s Sovereign, and Somnus bravely held his gaze. Keen verdant met wise gold, yet there was nothing but reverence and respect in his gaze. “I do.” He answered, his eloquent accent deep and somber. This was not a happy meeting, as much as he wished otherwise. “I have never stopped learning since I became a disciple in your name, Majesty. I have learned discipline, grace, compassion, and love… Yet now I know terror of the likes I have never before experienced.” Somnus wondered, belatedly, if he would be condemned or reprimanded for speaking to Oriens so freely. It was not his place… Was it?

Yet as he stared unabashed into his patron deity’s golden eyes and watched the colors of dawn spread across Oriens’ radiant form, he couldn’t help but think that this was okay. “My son is ill. He is weak. I worry for his health, my King, but I know not how to help him. I worry for my daughter, and my darling Eulalie. I worry for my brothers and sisters of Delumine, and even those who live in the provinces heralded by your siblings.” Realizing that he very well may start rambling in the presence of his most beloved God, Somnus bit his lip and grew quiet.

What could he say? How could he sum up the words as to how he was truly feeling? Inhaling slowly, Somnus let his shoulders droop and relax, grounding himself here. He could not fall apart. He could not be weak. Not now.

“… I do not ask for power. I do not want it. I am just a man who yearns to protect those that I love. I am faulted and imperfect, and one day my title as your Sovereign will no longer be mine to carry. Yet I stand here imploring you for wisdom. For understanding. Please… How do I help my son? How do I protect your Court? Help me understand how to become this extraordinary individual?”

Brave or foolish? Somnus did not know. Perhaps the answer did not even exist here, or anywhere. All he knew, was that standing in the dawn’s early light with his patron God, the Sovereign already felt far more at peace than he had before.


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"There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self."



Please tag Somnus in all replies!





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