[AW] I am Not Throwing Away My Shot

[Israfel]

Israfel

The ghosts of her past brought her here.

The sound of crashing waves is like music to her ears, the sharp, slanted crags of cliff side a picture of perfection. They were all familiar, reminiscent to the World's Edge of Helovia. To home. To her life before. It was the first semblance of normality in her life since, well... Since her death, and then her resurrection, coming back to a world that was new, frightening, and unfamiliar.

Israfel had not asked to die. She had not fought brilliantly and bravely to her death, nor had she stood against tyranny or oppression before meeting her end. The reasons behind her very own death were a mystery to the Sun Daughter, and they left her wanting. Questions formulated in her mind, gathering and fermenting, yet remained unanswered. Perhaps they never would be answered, and the simple thought was enough to douse her heart in melancholy and doubt. This world was not Helovia, and while a part of her, the new part of her, realized that and understood the implications that this could never be Helovia and that she needed to move on, the innocent child of her mind scrabbled in denial, in fear of change and her lack of ability to adapt.

A heavy breath left parted lips, rose-petal pink in color. The Daughter of the Sun stood among the flatlands overlooking the rocky crags, fiery vermilion eyes peering down at the churning, crashing waves down below. Her wings were stretched out, ripe alabaster and gold, stretching out to simply feel the breeze filter through every feather, the tips of grand wings brushing the ground in her languid stretch. Had she the heart, Israfel would have realized it looked suspiciously like she might be preparing to jump to the sharp rocks below and changed her posture, but... Alas. Still, the thought brought a quirked sort of grin to pale pink lips. The breeze tousled the gilded strands of her mane, creating a wild look of disarray that she would have once loathed, but Israfel, well... She was learning that there was much more to life than her appearance, pride, and ego.

She had arrived to this cliff side by accident, by chance, only an hour ago. The sun was setting, creating a picturesque display before her very eyes. The breeze carried with it the taste of salt, and she relished in it. Slowly, the gilded maiden lifted her head, striking vermilion eyes sliding closed, and let herself feel the world around her. For now, she would absorb the world around her before resting for the night, and come dawn's first light would she continue her venture with no destination.

x - x

Dusk Joining thread! <3

[Morozko]

morozko and all our footprints in the snow. Ever since that first day on the cliffside he’d been thinking of the sea. He’d been new to Novus, new to the Day Court, new to any world that wasn’t winter. What had at first been he and Reichenbach had ended up quite a gathering, but it was less the introductions that Morozko remembered than the waves that surged and crashed, the shorebirds’ calls, the way the wind tore at him. He’d never seen the ocean before, and now, as he spent the bulk of the long summer days trying to hide out from the heat, he tried to remember what it had sounded like. Had it been a battering of waves against stone, or more of a murmur? Were the gulls laughing or shrieking? Today, after the sun had begun its slow descent and the worst of the bright heavy heat was done, he set out to sea, just to see. By the time he reached the coast the evening was nearing done, his shadow long behind him and the scent of salt coming in off the coast. The breeze was a small blessing against his sweat-slick skin, and on it he tasted brine and earthy notes he couldn’t name. It was nothing like home, where everything was the cool clean smell of snow or ice or pine. This is home, he told himself, but he didn’t even try to believe it as he crested the final rise and the ocean came into view. Once again, he was not alone. Once again, there was a figure standing a breadth from the edge, looking ready to fly or to fall. The beginning of a wry smile quirked one side of his dark mouth; clearly it was a popular place for such contemplations. But this was no Night King, tangled hair and scent of jasmine, dusky skin and dancing eyes. This woman was bright and pale, a small sun there on the cliffside, and for a long moment Morozko contemplated leaving her be and finding a different section of cliffside. In the end, he didn’t feel like picking his way across the windswept rocks to another viewpoint; he didn’t have wings to catch himself if things went south. He approached with a nicker, so as not to startle her, and watched her sidelong through cool silver eyes before gesturing to the wide swath of horizon before them. “Are you just arrived, or poised to depart?” @Israfel hello!

[Israfel]

Israfel

A nicker in greeting was her only warning that she was no longer alone. Israfel's brilliant vermilion eyes slowly slid open 'neath pale lashes, flicking to the side as she twisted her head around to peer at the one who had happened upon her thinking place. The Sun Daughter did not move from her languid stretch, keeping her wings and feathers spread, posture rigid and erect, letting herself continue to feel the world around her even as the newcomer spoke. He was a slight-built creature, tall and leggy and nearly reaching her very height, dappled grey in color. Poised and polished he seemed, with a militaristic roached mane, opaque horn, and piercing silver eyes.

"I've only just arrived," Israfel began, her voice a soft, thoughtful timbre, flaming eyes following his vague gesture ontowards the horizon, "Sorry, if I'm intruding." To a degree. She had been exhausted from traveling, and this provided a perfect sanctuary for respite.

The dappled stallion smelt of salt, of pine, of evening smoke, and the summer breeze. His posture and demeanor were not nothing to be concerned with or particularly note worthy, and so Israfel did not feel intimidated or worried upon his decision to linger. He was certainly more than welcome than she was, as this particular cliffside was not hers to safeguard.

Gilded feathers ruffled, fluttering amidst the breeze, before finally the sun maiden pulled her wings back in, the appendages coiling close to alabaster sides. Her posture did not relax, however, standing proud, tall, and erect. Forward. Determined. Vermilion eyes once more trailed back to the dappled stallion, and she went on, pale-pink lips upturnd in a coy sort of smirk, eyes alight in mirth, any trace of previous melancholy long gone.

"I'm Israfel. A pleasure." She nodded, a curt, yet respectful movement. "I've been flying for days, and thought these crags looked to be a good place to rest. Do you know where we are?"

After all, Israfel herself knew very little of the land that she had found herself in now. All she knew was that she had followed the sun since finding the strength to do so, flying as high and fast as she could manage in an effort to simply feel alive. To feel the wind in her hair and flutter beneath powerful, tattooed wings, to feel her heart beat within her chest, air in her lungs, breath on her lips. Alive. Breathing.

Then, as an after thought, the Sun Daughter went on. "... You can't really beat this view, though."

x - x

@Morozko

[Cress]

There's no walls & no ceilings as far as I know

just the echo of scars and the unbeaten road

Gently, the sun was setting.

It let its colors spill across the horizon, a sink overflowing in reds and gold, lapping creamy clouds and tinting them pink. The wind milled through the evening air, stirring the warm air through yucca stalks and sumac branches, tall grasses and thistle. It was peaceful, as it had been earlier that morning, but this picturesque finery was not about to be shattered by the crash landing of a small, four-legged blue jay – no, this stillness was for keeps.

Since arriving that morning, our feathered friend had wandered the cliffs and crags, exploring all the little nooks and crannies that the seaside had to offer. She was no closer to an answer of ‘where’, but she’d been enjoying herself nonetheless. Her haunches were still somewhat sore from her earlier scrapes, but the steady movement throughout the day had kept the muscles from stiffening, and besides, Cress was too involved in her explorations to notice a little tenderness. 

Now, back toward the top, she gazed out at the sunset, watching as a few gulls headed inland from the sea. For a moment, the smallest of moments, a touch of nostalgia threatened to sweep over her as completely as the waves that crashed below, but she pushed it aside. Yes, she missed her flock and family, but she was here to explore, to learn, and to live. She couldn’t have had that there.

Movement caught her eye, as it tends to do, and she watched as a horned silhouette walked down the slope, headed away from someone else still facing the sea. She wondered why they were parting, but more importantly, if either of them knew where she was. Her brief melancholy forgotten, she trotted toward them, pausing to half hop, half glide across a few gaps where the rocky ledges gave way to open air.

By the time she’d arrived, the first one was long gone, his shape rapidly dwindling in the darkening flora. She glanced toward the other, a light colored Pegasus and headed her way, the feathers on her head lifting in curiosity as she took in her appearance and wings.

“Hullo!” She said brightly, folding the blue wings against her backside, tips neatly crossing over her haunches. “I’m Cress! Your wings are very pretty.” She added with a small head bob, candle-bright eyes a vibrant gold in the light of the setting sun. Her words were a compliment, but almost said as if this was a standard greeting – and perhaps it was, the little Pegasus came from a flock of odd customs. 

“You wouldn’t happen to know where we are, would you?” She asked quickly, before she could forget to do so.


@Israfel

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