The disease that wiped the earth of mankind has returned, and it's starting to change its hosts somehow. Reports of unearthly powers are arising all over Toren while more and more become infected.
updates
< 11 JULY 2017 > The staff auditions and OTMs are officially OVER. I'd like to welcome our two new staffers - Lutheus and Crowenth! There will be some new events soon, as well as a big announcement - so watch this space.
< 20 JUNE 2017 > ATTENTION! Staff auditions are up and running. Please click here if you are interested in helping me run Clash.
< 06 JUNE 2017 > It hasn't been too long since we've opened - but we've already got a fresh new look. If you find any bugs in our new skin, please let me know so that I can fix it. Old members might have to update their avatar links and profile info! x
< 07 MAY 2017 > CLASH has officially been reopened and is ready for action! The plot, rules and canons have been revised - read more about it here.
The tall figure moved slowly through the trees, head low, eyes barely bothering to focus on anything. All around him life was at work. Birds swept past, singing good mornings and frolicking in unison before the rains started. Jester didn't even see them. All he saw were his front hooves moving rhythmically before him. One two, one two. There’s no conscious thing on the face of the world that doesn’t know dread more intimately than its own heartbeat. There was no destination, nothing that called him onward. The ghost simply moved because moving meant he was still alive. Whether he liked it or not. In the serene setting he looked like a reaper, an unfriendly figure wafting through the bright green mosses. Polluting the earth with his presence.
Ink dipped legs thudded along, carrying the heavy body slowly. If he were to slow his pace any further, he'd come to a complete standstill. In a flurry of white, a small rabbit dashed from the low vegetation and paused before the stallion. It faced him, it's small little nose twitching as it took in his scent. "Run." He warned, lifting his head and standing to his full height - his shadow covering the small creature like a veil. The rabbit didn't run. Does the beef salute the butcher as it throbs to it's knees? Understandably so - Jester was a horse. A herbivore like it was. It made the stomach acid in his belly churn, and before he knew it - he had shot out his front leg and struck the innocent creature with his hoof. Making a muffled cry, the rabbit rolled backwards, then lay still, it's small leg twitching in a painful spasm. It was broken.
"Oh little friend, I told you to run." He whispered as he moved to stand over it. His empty eyes gazing down at the white lump. It would be cruel to leave it here like this, and Jester knew it. He lowered his face, muzzling the creature to it's side as it squealed in protest, trying to escape, but failing. It was over soon though, for Jester opened his great mouth, took the rabbits head gently in its grasp. Lowering his hoof down over it's small frame and holding it to the ground, he twisted his head and pushed the body. Flesh could not keep its glamour, nor eyes their sheen. They would go to nothing soon. But monsters are forever. A small snap was heard as it's neck broke. Nothing crossed over Jester's mind. No remorse, no sorrow. Simply an odd spark that made him paw at the ground, covering the small body with moss and dirt. "Rest now..."
Okay, not good, not good. Being in a place you don't know is most definitely not good. Buttercup gazed warily at the high canopy of the forest, squinting whenever golden sunlight broke through the cluster of leaves, shining in her eyes. She could hear the merry melodies of the birds, but she couldn't, for the life of her, see one. If only she could--then she'd probably be able to ask for help. Like, ask it to fly overhead or something and tell her where the mangroves were located.
Buttercup let out a little meep as she tripped over a rock, landing face-first into the ground. Well, ouch. The young horse hauled herself back up, shaking moss and other green things she didn't want to know off her blonde-mess of a mane. Served her right for not looking at where she was heading.
Buttercup paused to look around her. Trees, trees and yet even more trees lined the area. Nothing but different shades of green and brown, lining either sides of her, leaving a gap of a meter or so of grass and moss--the 'road' she was walking on. Buttercup sighed. Her mother was going to be so mad...
Buttercup perked her ears up. Was that a...? A voice? It was so soft--almost negligible. It had to be! Buttercup leapt to her feet, her belly jiggling embarrassingly, and she trotted towards the direction of the voice. Maybe it was a forest fairy! As much as she hated how childish that thought was, it was still pleasant to her.
Buttercup skidded to a halt. Oh. It was a stallion. His hoof seemed to be pawing at the ground. Did he lose something? Well, in any case, cool. She could ask for directions!
"Hiya, Mister!" She said, grinning (or, well, did the horse equivalent), as she pranced up towards the male, feet raised high with each step. Her brown eyes grew wide. She had never been this close to a male before! Mother never had allowed her to. She studied him. They look the same, save for an extra appendage! He didn't look as scary as mother said men were! If anything, he looked kinda... sad. "Whoa, you're really big!"
Blood. The smell of blood enticed her, gripped her, and sparked her senses. Blood. It was her Achilles Heel and the lass couldn’t resist for the life of her. Bronze loved the iron-like taste grating across her taste buds and running down her throat in thick pools. The crimson substance filled her stomach, and diluted the hunger pains that came upon her sometimes in more desperate situations. The lifeblood of another soothed her in a way, and it was also a strict reminder of the reality of things. All living beasties required blood to live. Most of her species were purely herbivorous, munching on the greener things that partially satisfied her. But this horse, this special horse, was omnivorous. The very smells of freshly “prepared” meat lead her to this very destination. Bronze was minding her own business, attempting to find something to occupy her time (for she hated to waste it for she could never get it back) and then the scent came on the wind to her. The easily disposed of rabbit attracted the beast and her carnal nature surged to the surface. So, the black mare moved through the seemingly glowing forest, her hooves kissing the earth, propelling her forward rather agilely. Propelling her like the felines that she was so inclined to hate. Like the one that had changed her life forever. But that’s a story for another time.
Bronze weaved through the forest, and her head bobbed up and down lightly as she did so. Her brown eyes held a glimmer of amusement, curiosity, and yearning. What was that lovely smell? When she began heading into these lands, Bronze had no idea what to expect on this journey. Bronze could most definitely be considered a nomad at this point, for she had no permanent residence to call her own. She just kept moving, and nothing would stand in her way. Not even this dang disease that was consuming her from the inside out. When the enticing scent hit her nose, Bronze’s path was determined. The blood was a beacon to the mare, and she would figure out what it was if it was the last thing that she did. But it wouldn’t be, rest assured.
When the other two horses came into view, the mare’s eyes narrowed and her lips tightened. She liked her solitude very much, and these two were imposing upon it. The lass showed up just as the small white hare was being buried. The Friesian equine stood partially hidden in the cover of trees and moss just observing. Had that stallion wasted that good meat? He just killed the being without doing anything worthwhile with it? The mare began to tread forward again, but was stopped short when the younger mare pranced so joyfully up to the stallion. A disdainful snort involuntarily came from Bronze’s nostrils and her tail flipped beneath her rump. These two were polar opposites; the mare could just feel it from where she stood. ‘This will be amusing for us, no?’ her mind jibed lowly. A slow, sly smile crept onto the mare’s features. “Indeed, it will,” the lass murmured aloud to herself.
Once the young one finished speaking, Bronze just waited, she would make her entrance, and make her move on the kill in a moment. But she wasn’t one to be the life of the party, so waiting and watching she would. Due to the disease that ran through her veins and body as a whole though, Bronze’s vision waxed and waned a little for a moment. It blurred and shifted many times, creating apparitions in the girl’s line of view. It disconcerted her considerably, but the lass would fight it like all heck as she had been doing in the past. Recently she gained information on the Carnicula flower, and the little she’d eaten had been her saving grace. For now. Bronze shook her head roughly, and her eyes cleared away the blurriness, normalcy returning. Her inspection of the situation continued and Bronze waited. Just waited and watched while she could still do so.
Idly pawing the dirt over the heap before him, he scented the air. Something sinister had arrived here, something musky and dense - but he couldn't quite place the flavor. Perhaps he had caught the attention of some poor creature with the blood of the innocent rabbit. He almost smiled, skin prickling in anticipation of a fight. Like a snake, he pretended not to notice anything unusual. He kept his face down, not moving a muscle and continuing to shuffle the dirt about. But his eyes were alive, scanning every inch that they could without turning his skull. But... No. It couldn't be? As the scent neared, he could have sworn it was that of a fellow equine. Something was terribly off with it though. Something... Ferral.
A crash from behind made his wheel around, lifting his front legs clear off the ground and slamming them back into the earth with a great power. What he saw though completely threw him off kilter. A plumpy little thing with dirty white fur stood before him, calling him 'mister' and showing no apparent fear of the situation it'd just put itself in. Instinctively, he flattened his ears against his skull and narrowed his eyes, ready to lunge and get this little girl out of harm's way. But once again, she spoke, oblivious to everything. Whoa, you're really big!
He raised his head, relaxing his ears the slightest and snorting. He had nothing to say to that... Obvious statement, but it had made one thing clear - blind as she may be, she was blinded by innocence - a thing that Jester couldn't bare to destroy. "You shouldn't be here. Leave, now." He snapped, taking a slow step in her direction. His voice was deep and booming, erupting like a volcano in the silence of the forest. The strange scent was upon them. He felt that any second something was going to leap out of the shadows and attack. It would be a waste of blood to get a filly involved.
( no light, no light in your bright blue eyes ) I NEVER KNEW DAYLIGHT COULD BE SO VIOLENT
Buttercup blinked. Her large brown eyes followed the stallion's head as he raised it high, easily towering over her small frame, sensing something almost regal about the way he moved.
Fae prince. Mmhmm. Had to be. In his past life, maybe.
Buttercup barely flinched at the harshness of his voice, her interest and curiosity in the opposite sex overtaking nigh all her brainpower and comprehension skills. She hardly noticed the bloody scent of the rabbit, or the scent of the stranger close by. She didn't train herself to notice--the only smelling she did was to distinguish between bitter berries and fresh ones. Other than that... her sense organ was rarely used.
What did mother say about males? They had pointy teeth? When the stallion spoke, Buttercup paid close attention to his teeth. Hm. Nope. Those were normal horse teeth alright!
What else did she say? You could see the darkness in their eyes?
Buttercup attempted to raise on her hind hooves to meet the stallion in the eyes, failing, and instead falling over on her back. Being the fat thing she was, she had to roll around a few times before she could haul herself up to a sit.
"You know Mister, mother always said males were scary things with pointy teeth. Funny, you don't look like that at all!" She remarked, utterly ignorant that she might be invading personal space or something. "And ah, yeah. I know I shouldn't be here. Mother's probably freaking out right now... But I'm kinda... ah... Lost?"
Last Edit: May 25, 2012 7:20:24 GMT -5 by buttercup
Bronze remained stationary for as long as she could, hidden only remotely by the foliage above her. She was taking note of the stallion’s behavior first and foremost, because he posed the most threat of keeping her away from the rabbit that she so desired. It was his kill after all, and he might not want it to be taken away from him. He could do with it as he wished, but the mare wanted it too. And she wanted it badly for her own. ‘Have we found another like us? One who savors the blood as we do? Or is he in cahoots with the wolves and intends to give it to them later?’ Bronze’s mind questioned. ‘If that is what his intentions are, he is a fool.’ There was only one way to find out the answer. The mare made her advance then, disclosing her location, and low and behold, when the younger mare tumbled over in a bumbling heap, she let out a guttural laugh. She would pay for this later, as her throat sometimes inflamed so badly that she could hardly breathe, but the sight was just too much to bear. Bronze could remember when she was that clumsy, for it was only a couple of years ago to this very day. But unlike this other mare, she was never so pudgy though as to where she couldn’t easily regain her footing after taking a fall. The laugh held a sinister tone, starting deep within the mare’s chest. A wicked smile crossed her features, much much more pronounced than the one from before.
The lass slunk up near the pair of equines and stood across from them. “Delightful running into you here,” she murmured lowly. There was a sardonic twinkle in the mare’s eyes, mocking them, sizing them both up. Bronze inhaled softly through her nostrils, and though there was a burning sensation accompanying this action, she confirmed the location of the blood and that was sweeter than any pain. She didn’t know what she was going through in full, but it was being nullified currently. Bronze had not yet completely discovered the full extent of the disease. All she knew up to this point was that she would go through intense spasms of pain and the like. The complete mutation had not yet reared its ugly head. The Impetus flame had not yet been sparked. It was only a matter of time before it was though. “I want what you have,” Bronze said bluntly as she looked into the ice blue eyes of the stallion. They were captivating to her, she would gladly admit that, and they drew her attention. The stallion was also a good deal taller than her, but the mare was undeterred. “Give it to me now, or the little one will suffer,” Bronze threatened, and she didn’t make idle threats. Ever. The mare stepped towards them both, not batting an eyelash. She showed no fear whatsoever and harbored none at all. Bronze was a mare of confrontation and destruction. The ball was in her court. ‘The pudgy one would be more beneficial to us than the mere rabbit. We should take her instead,’ Bronze thought, peeling her eyes from the stallion.
The Friesian didn’t lose focus on the gigantic male only inches from her, nor the rabbit at his hooves, but her motive was to be an instigator for the moment. It was here to push him to his limits to give her what she wanted. Manipulation was a fun game to play. “You’re lost little one?” Bronze cooed, “I’ll make sure that that situation is handled, you will be lost no longer, and your mother’s worries will cease,” the mare said assuredly. Bronze was attuned to the innocence radiating off of the other mare, and though her words were sweet sounding to Bronze herself, a venom dripped off of them.
OOC Buttercup is positively adorable! WC.&.650
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Last Edit: May 25, 2012 22:25:44 GMT -5 by Deleted
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