Name: Sammy Bardales
Magic: Life Generalist; Healing Expert & Flora Expert
MGL Alignment: Life
Essence Colour: Deep Leaf Green
Tier: C-2 [CAUTION]
Social Standing: Once-Homeless Lotus Recruit
Age: 15
Appearance:
Nationality: Cirranian
Height: 4’8 (142cm)
Stature: Thin, Malnourished
Skin Tone: Tan; Freckled
Hair: Short, Curly Brown
Eyes: Right Pale Blue, Left Dark Brown
Identifiable Features: constantly grows
plants around him
Addendum:
{scribbled in pen: according to Lotus rumors, has been homeless, on the run, throughout Aurevia for the past several years. Reason is unknown.}
rising from the ashes
story intro
navigation (pending)
table of contents (pending)
WAVES OF MISFORTUNE
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It was just a normal day for the crew of the merchant's ship The Siren's Call. They made a stop at Vemor to load and unload cargo, give the sailors a break from the sea, and swiftly depart to the next destination.
As they always did.
And, right as they left, a series of explosions ignited the city all at once.
A stowaway, Flavie, is discovered on the ship. She clearly has a connection to the disaster—and the trail of similar cases leading up to Vemor—but a truth-compulsion spell confirms she's an amnesiac who knows nothing about the matter. Either she's innocent, or she's the only person alive who's found a way to lie through the spell...
Now The Siren's Call sails with a walking mystery amongst them, a burning city behind them, and secrets of their own suddenly under fire. Can they uncover the truth behind Vemor's burning before they're discovered? To the world, they look like accomplices. To Flavie, they seem like captors—or her last hope.
Because the return of her memories might doom them all.
On the other hand, it could be their salvation.
Who's to tell?
THEME SONGS:
Hell, what if heaven can't help me now?
Better run and find some hallowed ground
I'm in over my head
I'm in over my head
And when I take a breath I drown
(...)
Sanctuary, can't find no sanctuary
The dark is getting heavy
I need a little light
Just to get me through the night
Where do I start?
It's like I'm fighting sharks
Deep in the depths
Under the rest
I need to rest
Or maybe just a second to—
Catch my breath
(...)
Can someone call a referee?
This will come back to bite me
Please stop
I'd rather live in the make-believe
Can somebody pray for me?
Do any of these words make sense?
Am I fighting to be heard but leaving no defense?
Can you understand where I'm coming from?
All my friends are dead
And their bodies gone
We live in selfish introspection of our own dark light
Polluting minds with retrospection, was it worth the fight?
I can't seem to find the escape hatch
But I'm sick of sitting tight
(...)
Causing our own demise
Causing our own demise
Causing our own demise
Causing our own
Are we just drowning?
Can you please save us?
Black walls surrounding
Can you please save my soul?
Are we just drowning?
Can you please save us?
Black walls surrounding
Can you please save my soul?
🌊 high fantasy!
🌊 “gaslamp fantasy” if you've heard of it
🌊 aka kinda victorian-era fantasy
🌊 steampunk magitech vibes :>
🌊 aka—sword-and-sorcery edition!
🌊 tons of action!
🌊 also kinda a naval fantasy story? a good portion of the story has the cast at sea, aboard the siren's call.
🌊 although the cast aren't pirates--it's a merchant ship
🌊 pirates do feature but they're more of the realistic type
🌊 mystery!
🌊 everyone's hiding secrets, but which ones matter...?
🌊 the crew altogether is just as shady as flavie herself
🌊 did they really take her in of their own goodwill?
🌊 the obvious mystery of "who caused the disaster of vemor"
🌊 the captain herself is especially interested in it...
🌊 there's a history of similar incidents in the not-so-distant past that resonate with the mcs
🌊 what's cricket's history with the fire-saints?
🌊 more importantly... what's zarina's?
🌊 and why is a merchant ship investigating a terrorist attack?
🌊 nothing benji says about his history lines up...
🌊 who is he really?
🌊 the shadow of memories linger in flavie's mind. what are they, and what are they trying to tell her? why does she keep recognizing people who think they've never met? and why do some of them insist they know her until they meet her face-to-face?
🌊 as one-third of what i've deemed “the blazing trinity”, waves of misfortune takes place at approximately the same time as both sun and shadow and rising from the ashes. there will be some character overlaps and important events of one can and will impact another.
🌊 despite this, the stories will be wholly able to be read individually—knowledge of the other works will not be required to understand any of them.
🌊 includes:
🌊 allegories.
🌊 so. many. allegories.
🌊 neither of us want me listing them all
🌊 lots of parallels to our society
🌊 lgbtqia+ rep
🌊 much queer. much wow
🌊 (/pos)
🌊 neurodivergent rep
🌊 just assume everyone is autistic or adhd
🌊 or both LMAO
🌊 ptsd, anxiety, depression, etc
🌊 content warnings:
🌊 while there's some literal ways the following(s) apply, there's far many more allegorical ways they do. there is a reason i've titled myself the “writer of allegories”
🌊 shows depictions of:
🌊 shady politicians
🌊 trauma
🌊 gaslighting
🌊 religious zealotry
🌊 religious trauma
🌊 corrupt churches
🌊 firebombing
🌊 terrorist attacks
🌊 human experimentation
🌊 backstory elements:
🌊 (explored as trauma, but not depicted directly)
🌊 burn injuries
🌊 slavery
🌊 parental abuse & neglect
THEMES:
🌊 running away from your past is bad, actually
🌊 it will always catch up to you
🌊 metaphorically or literally.
🌊 denial and bottling things up doesn't solve anything
🌊 instead, they leave the problem for later...
🌊and, again, it will catch up.
🌊 if things are unacceptable, to fight to make them better
🌊 identity
🌊 discovering or creating yourself
🌊 should you be yourself, or who others expect you to be?
🌊 can you ever be what's expected of you?
🌊 and is it a bad thing if you can't?
🌊 are you who you once were?
🌊 can you change?
🌊 can you improve?
🌊 how much of your past are you responsible for?
🌊 is what happened to you your fault?
🌊 (btw the answer's no)
🌊 corruption of those in power
🌊 this one's a given in my stories LOL
🌊 especially:
🌊 politicians
🌊 the church
#high fantasy #action #action fantasy #diverse characters #fantasy #urban fantasy #political fantasy #fantasy story #fantasy writing #fantasy world #worldbuilding #fantasy worldbuilding #fantasy novel #magic world #comedy #humor
#sword and sorcery #naval fiction #political fantasy #political maneuvering #political manipulation
#diverse characters #poc in fantasy #poc characters #lgbtq+ characters #lgbtqia characters #lgbtq characters #lgbt fiction #neurodivergent characters #autistic characters #adhd character #autistic coded #autistic creator
[a wild, overgrown forest plane]
[in the midst of talamhdé]
[in a clearing within the forest]
[night; clear]
approx. 1 BA
(talamhdé timeline)
story intro
table of contents
chapter one
< last part
next part >
Scamall: (voice thick) "—I would-wouldn't do anything to hurt them…"
Scamall: [hesitantly looks back up, pressing her back against the earthen wall behind her and anxiously scanning the broken Faewilde around them]
Scamall: (pleadingly) "not—not even take their essence, if that's what you think! I—I mean, I don't even think I even could, but—..."
[She didn't even have to finish. The pressure immediately, completely eased around her following the first statement. And, before she started to trail off, Talamhdé slowly floated back together]
[Now, Talamhdé formed a forest much more peaceful than the one that'd fallen apart on them. It was no longer full of unruly, tangled thickets forming literal barriers. Now, it seemed like one of Talamhdé's typical forests… with an endless array of wobbly trees, wild nature, and endless magical phenomena causing all kinds of chaos]
Earth: [and, finally, spits Nova out, leaving them splayed across the forest floor, unconscious]
Air: [shudders again with one final echo, though it's weaker and quieter than before) "pro…tec… t…"
Scamall:
Scamall:
Scamall:
Scamall: [slowly, hesitantly looks down at Nova]
Nova: [passed out in the dirt, shivering. Slowly twists in place to curl into a ball, forehead against their knees and arms wrapped around themself]
Scamall: [and looks down at Spéir, in her arms]
Spéir: [tense all over, the blood he'd coughed up staining his shirt and arm, but...]
Spéir: [only has his jaw clenched, eyes narrowed, and ears lowered thoughtfully as he stares at Nova himself]
Spéir: [seemingly completely unaware of Scamall watching him]
Scamall: (voice weak, barely manages to get out) "Spéir."
Spéir: [ears flick backwards, tense, as he quickly looks up at her]
Scamall: [flashes a weak—uncertain—grin]
Scamall: [her ears lowered and brow furrowed, weakly) "are you okay?"
Spéir:
Spéir: [coughs and clears his throat awkwardly, but quickly takes control of the air around him to float out of her arms. Once he’s straightened and regathered himself, places his feet solidly on the ground]
Spéir: [coughs even more as he flexes and stretches his arms and shoulders… all while his back is turned to Scamall. Although she can’t see his face, his eartips are angled diagonally backwards and he seems to be staring at Nova]
Spéir: [finally, slowly comes to a stop in his stretching and coughing]
Spéir: (words just as slow, speaks hesitantly, his voice thick) "… yeah. Just… tried to use too much magic. Ate some ambrosia. Feel much better now."
Spéir: [and hesitantly looks over his shoulder at her, forcing a smile… though his eyebrows are furrowed and concern is clear]
Spéir: (carefully, voice still thick) "are you okay…?"
Scamall:
Scamall: [face flickers—]
Scamall: [face and legs collapse. Falls to her knees, bringing her hands to her face as she breaks out crying]
Spéir: [sighs, an awkward, pained smile coming to his lips]
Spéir: [quickly—but clumsily, still uncoordinated from his overextension—stumbles forward to drop in front of Scamall and—]
Spéir: [wraps his arms around her shoulders, hugging her tight]
Scamall: [just cries against him, her cloudy afro condensing into a waterfall that drips down her head and pours into her dress. Finally processing the panic of everything that just happened—]
Scamall: (sobbing) "I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I—"
Spéir: [moves his hand to the back of her head, rubbing it comfortingly and pressing her face into his shoulder]
Spéir: (voice thick and strangled still) "no, it's fine, Scamall. You've always been the nicer one between us. You just wanted to protect someone who helped us. I get it."
Spéir: [hesitates—]
Scamall: [hair slows in its drizzle, but continues pouring down into her dress before its magic rejoins her form. All the while, just quietly cries into Spéir, relieved by his understanding—] :'D
Spéir: [—sighs heavily, squeezing her tighter]
Scamall: [metaphorically melts into him, hugging him tighter for a moment in return as she hiccups]
Spéir: (grudgingly) "… plus… it would probably be better to have someone else with us…"
Spéir: [shifts around Scamall as he turns to look over his shoulder, at Nova]
Spéir: [snarling slightly; bitterly) although… I don't think they are a good faerie to fill that spot…
Spéir: [tenses for a moment, but quickly eases up and sighs again]
Spéir: [turns to face her again, lowering his hand from the back of her head to rub her back comfortingly]
Spéir: (softly—though his voice is still rough from coughing—says) "… so don't beat yourself up, okay?"
Scamall: [feebly nods, sobbing and hiccuping as she clings to her brother]
Spéir:
Spéir: [gives her one more squeeze, then, awkwardly) "… we should probably set up camp, yeah?"
Scamall:
Scamall: [hiccups and sniffles again, but hesitantly pulls away from Spéir. Wipes her tears away with the backs of her hands]
Scamall: [finally, opens her eyes to meet Spéir's with hers full of tears, her eartips against her shoulders, and a weak smile on her lips]
Spéir: [watching her worriedly, but carefully. Clearly analyzing her as he most often did when struggling to come to decisions]
Scamall: (weakly) "yeah."
Spéir:
Spéir: [offers her a weak smile]
Spéir: [and, finally, taking a deep breath, glides to his feet with a gust of wind, then offers his hand to help her stand]
Spéir: (gently) "c'mon. I got you."
Scamall: [lets him help her to her feet, only using a bit of wind to aid her]
Siblings: [and, hand-in-hand, hesitantly step over to Nova]
Nova: [still curled in a ball in the same spot as before… naturally, considering they were passed out and Talamhdé had left them to the siblings]
[Or, well… any other kind of fae-creature could've tried going after them, but…]
[Despite Talamhdé's leaving Nova in their hands, Scamall had a feeling it was still watching them. And that, if they failed to protect Nova, it would step in itself]
Nova: [a small, surprisingly human-looking androgynous faerie… on a surface level. They had warm peach skin, an endless amount of plain brown freckles, and long, ridiculously curly vermilion hair that distorted into the surrounding environment as it got further from their scalp. More typical for a faerie—and suggesting they might be a nature faerie—they had long, pointed ears; fawn-like legs; wooden hands and forearms; two long antennae stretching from their forehead; and delicate snow-white, mothlike eyelashes]
Nova: [last but not least: although their eyes were closed, Scamall had gotten plenty of time earlier to be able to picture their vivid purple eyes, surrounded by a golden ring and lilac sclerae]
Nova: [… even for a faerie, they were far from normal]
[And so was the fact that their whole form was semi-translucent and flickering…]
Siblings: [sigh in near-unison as they look down at Nova]
Siblings: [then hesitate, turning to look at each other awkwardly]
Siblings: [and force awkward smiles, their eartips drooping]
Scamall: [awkwardly looks away from Spéir, raising her free hand to bury it in her hair]
Scamall: (voice soft, awkward, and apologetic) "sorry, I…"
Spéir: [at the same time, squeezed her hand in his, eyebrows furrowing in worry as he watches her]
Spéir: (gently) "Scamall…—"
Spéir: [but goes quiet as they accidentally interrupted each other]
Scamall: [hesitantly looks back to him, face pinched in unease]
Scamall: [gently pulling her hand from his, anxiously) "their form is weak… I'm going to give them some ambrosia."
Spéir: [face twisted in surprise for a moment as she pulled her hand from his, but just as quickly went empty again as he listened to her speak]
Spéir: [sighing heavily, looks away and runs a hand back through his hair]
Spéir: (with his sigh, defeatedly) "… alright."
Scamall: [offers a weak smile even though he's turned away from her—in case he looked back—but quickly drops it to kneel down beside Nova. Awkwardly fishes through the many pockets hidden under the ruffles of her dress in search for an ambrosia square, buried deep within the fabric]
Spéir: (at the same time, hesitantly looking back down at her, voice soft) "I'm going to set up camp by myself. Do whatever you need to for them, alright?"
Scamall: [hesitates, caught off-guard]
Scamall: [can't help a small smile, ears drooping and eyebrows furrowing slightly]
Scamall: (gently) "thank you, Spéir. I know this isn't easy for you."
Spéir: [face flickers, jumping from indignant, to embarrassed, and quickly settling on irritable as he purses his lips and turns his face away]
Spéir: [ears low and pointed back in irritation, grumbles) "I never said that."
Scamall: [giggles softly, raising a hand to cover the lower half of her face. At the same time, draws her other hand—and a square of ambrosia—from one of her pockets]
Scamall: [fae-tipped ears lowered back slyly, teases gently) "oh, you didn't have to say." ;)
Spéir: [scoffs—and, though Scamall can't see it, she knows he's rolling his eyes as he turns away]
Spéir: [stepping away, sulkingly) "whatever."
Scamall: [snorts, then gives a longer giggle]
Spéir: [gives a heavy sigh, his back still turned to her. And yet smiling softly]
Poor, sleepy Nova. 😌
What do you guys think of Spéir and Scamall's relationship? I swear, I didn't even mean to make them mirror each others' actions half the time, it just happened lmao
story intro
table of contents
chapter one
< last part
next part >
dividers from @thecutestgrotto, @thyming, and @saradika
(this document is meant to be read on mobile. For the proper formatting, please view the web version.)
Name: Carmin Avila Lévêque
Magic: Barrier Creation & Object Gravity Manipulation
MGL Alignment: Order
Essence Colour: Muted Rose
Tier: D-3
Social Standing: The Unsworn Hand
note: do not interfere unless at risk of
exposure. NO OTHER EXCUSE
justifies intervention with Lévêques.
Age: 17
Appearance:
Nationality: Aurevian
Height: 5’2 (157cm)
Stature: Wiry, Muscled
Skin Tone: Tan-White; Freckles
Hair: Straight, shoulder-length,
naturally Red, dyed Black
{the following is written in pen:}
asymmetrical, half-burned
Eyes: Grey
Identifiable Features:
{written in pen:} burn scars
across her right side;
visible on the face
Leverage Vectors:
note: only under extreme circumstance should leverage be attempted.
- Roman Lévêque
- Yasmina Lévêque
- Kieran Caron
- do not attempt to use the King's Hand
as leverage
Ethics:
will not (intentionally) hurt innocents.
Guilt Vectors:
Unknown.
Narrative Risk:
Medium
SCL Alignment:
Loyal to Maurens Aelstrik & his ideals
Cross-Entity Interest:
- Lévêque
- Lotus Academy
Recommended Handling:
Observe only
Addendum:
{this section was once empty. Now, in pen, it reads: I do not have words to describe how disappointed in my own operative I am for this failure. This is irreversible and unforgivable, but I will do my best to mitigate the damage. — Hound}
rising from the ashes
story intro
navigation (pending)
table of contents (pending)
FAERIE'S DAWN
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Following the Shattering of Reality, the world was plunged into what came to be known as the Faewildes: an ever-changing world suffused with magic and danger.
Humanity crumbled under the weight of the new reality while fae—and the archfae above them—emerged to rule over the new world. Humans couldn't compete against the fae's sheer magical prowess, and soon built strongholds in territories with weak magical presence to stand against them.
Now, so many generations later, humanity has finally learned of faekind's weakness: metal, which weakens fae and blocks their magic.
A war is breaking out between humanity and fae, with gods each picking sides in the conflict. Between faeries Nova, Scamall, and Spéir, and the human settlement Eve and Asa protect... who will win?
(Psst... to fans of the Existential of Magic—aka the God of the Faewildes—this story has them as a major player! You'll see a lot of them in here! Your guys' overwhelming love for them motivated me to write this story lmao)
THEME SONG:
He looked me in the eyes, and without a word
He saw right through my soul
And with an evil little grin, and a stench of sin
He delivered me a message that I'll never forget
Put your hands up, this is your last chance
So boy, prepare to die
Get ready to meet your maker
Before I put one right between your eyes
Get ready (get ready)
For your resignation
Get ready (get ready)
For your salvation
'Cause when you wake up, you'll realize
Who even cares if you're dead
If you were never alive
MAIN CHARACTERS:
⚜ Eve Primavera
⚜ Asa Primavera
⚜ Nova “Me” Fae
⚜ Scamall “Cloud” Fae
⚜ Spéir “Sky” Fae
ADDITIONAL INFO:
⚜ obviously high fantasy
⚜ mostly rustic & post-apocalyptic
⚜ oh and TONS of action lmao
⚜ hope you like intense magic fights!
⚜ oh (x2) and mild aspects of horror
⚜ (I'm @ominous-faechild, I HAVE to!)
⚜ it's like a legal obligation lol
⚜ includes:
⚜ tons of lgbtqia+ rep
⚜ gays. all the gays.
⚜ nova's genderfluid (any/all)
⚜ a closeted trans???
⚜ tbh one is nb af but that closet??? inescapable.
⚜ neurodivergent rep
⚜ eve & asa both audhd lol
⚜ nova's audhd too lol
⚜ sky and branch are autistic
⚜ tbh it's safe to bet everyone is something
⚜ expressions of cultures inspired by:
⚜ middle ireland,
⚜ germania,
⚜ and criticisms of christianity
⚜ trigger warnings:
⚜ shows depictions of:
⚜ sexism
⚜ racism(?) (between fae/humans)
⚜ xenophobia
⚜ body dysphoria
⚜ depression & anxiety
⚜ religious zealotry
⚜ religious trauma
THEMES:
⚜ recognizing, breaking away from abusers, and learning to find yourself after departure
⚜ accepting one's self
⚜ especially for groups found "not traditionally acceptable" by society, which is reflected within eve and asa's home
⚜ discrimination
⚜ especially when artificial, or baseless
⚜ “man, these religious zealots kinda suck”
⚜ yeah it's a good mix of traumatic and cathartic here
MAIN NAVIGATION:
⚜ Schedule
⚜ Read It Now
⚜ Table of Contents
⚜ the Faeries (x)
⚜ Kilrey (x)
⚜ the Hunter (x)
⚜ the Humans (x)
⚜ the Captives (x)
⚜ Character Info
⚜ Lore Tags
⚜ Moodboards
⚜ #Faerie's Dawn
TAGS:
#high fantasy #action #action fantasy #diverse characters #fantasy #fantasy story #fantasy writing #fantasy world #magic world #worldbuilding #fantasy worldbuilding #comedy #humor
#diverse characters #poc in fantasy #poc characters #lgbtq+ characters #lgbtqia characters #lgbtq characters #lgbt fiction #neurodivergent characters #autistic characters #adhd character #autistic coded #autistic creator
[a wild, overgrown forest plane]
[outside the dominion of Kilrey]
[in the middle of the forest]
[night; magic storm-blizzard]
approx. 1 BA
(talamhdé timeline)
story intro
table of contents
chapter one
< last part
next part >
Scamall: [quickly pulls her hand from Spéir's after they travel a distance away from Nova, turning away from him and crossing her arms… but moreso doing the latter for comfort]
Spéir: [hesitantly looks back to her, fae-ears low and his face twisted in pain]
Spéir: (voice thick) "Scamall…"
Scamall: [sucks in a sharp, shaky breath as her hair storms and she struggles not to cry... or snap]
Spéir: [half-sighs, half-growls, putting his head in his hand]
Spéir: (grumbles) "this is your fault, for trusting—"
Scamall: [eye twitches—]
Scamall: [swiftly flips on her heel, turning to pierce Spéir with a glare]
Scamall: (snaps) "no, you know what this was!? YOUR fault, for being so AGGRESSIVE! They only reached for that ambrosia because you scared them!"
Spéir: [flexes his jaw, face twitching, as he stews on his own response—]
Essence: [flares behind them as Nova and Kilrey fight… and Nova is clearly on the losing side, her essence dying away quickly]
Scamall: [twists in place to violently jab a finger in their direction]
Scamall: (voice hard and raised) "they were brave enough to sacrifice thems—"
Spéir: [snarling, throws his hands up and interrupts) "they took responsibility for their own mistake!"
Scamall: (voice sharp and shrill) "what!?"
Scamall: [steps forward, snarling and with gales of wind speeding around them—]
Spéir: [funny! Does the exact same thing!]
Spéir: [crossing his arms, continues stubbornly) "Imagine what you'd ha—"
Both: [freeze]
Both: [shocked, look over their shoulders in Nova's direction again]
Both: [… can feel all too well that Nova shattered Kilrey's will.]
Both: [jaws drop almost in sync—]
Scamall: [turns to face the direction Nova's in again, mindlessly taking a few steps—]
Spéir: [grabs her hand, stopping her]
Spéir: (incredulously) "Scamall!?"
Scamall: [snarling again, flips on her heel to pierce him with a murderous glare]
Scamall: (harshly) "that fae not only tried to sacrifice themself for us, but they overpowered a Goddamned archfaerie WITH A FRACTION OF HIS ESSENCE!"
Scamall: [yanks her hand from his, snarling still, before finishing) "if you're REALLY so uptight that you don't want ANYTHING to do with them, then MAYBE I don't want anything to do with YOU!"
Spéir: [mouth falls open, eyes wide and turning shiny… but stunned silent]
Scamall: [huffs, brushing him off and flipping on her heel to hurry after Nova… who was probably giving Kilrey instructions, judging by how he was still there]
Scamall: [… though she had no idea what Nova could be ordering him to do.]
Scamall: [but pushes that thought from her mind, chewing her lip and scanning the woods around them]
Blizzard: [slowly dying out]
[“The Quaking” is what the residents of Talamhdé called the random bouts of frenzied electricity in the air, earthquakes, and sudden natural disasters that'd randomly strike the planes. Although few had reason to even suspect it, Scamall and Spéir were among the few to know it only happened when God was enraged]
[Thankfully, the Quaking was quickly dying down, leaving the ever-shifting Faewilde forest ominously silent and still.]
Scamall: (to herself, incredulously) … there's no way that's related to them, right…? The storm's just passed… and… the Quaking never really lasts that long…
Kilrey: [far in the distance, starts heading back off to his town]
Scamall: [distracted from her previous thought; can't help a weak smile or keep the proud tears from swelling in her eyes]
Scamall: fae, I may not know who you are… but I'm proud of you. And I'm going to help you.
Spéir: [finally chases after her, though he's dead silent as he trails behind her, shoulders slumped and his hands awkwardly in his pockets]
Scamall: [ignores him, reconsidering everything she knew about him… even though she'd known him for almost the entire time she'd been alive]
Scamall: (finishing her thought) … no matter what he thinks.
Nova: [collapses and passes out… but all the siblings can really tell is that he isn't moving]
Spéir: [silent for a while as they walk, but finally, awkwardly speaks up, his voice soft) "I just… want to make sure you're safe, Scamall…"
Scamall: [bites her tongue to keep from snapping at him, just continuing through the forest]
[The forest is made up of wobbly, ever-moving trees; hanging branches and swathes of moss; and an endless amount of gnarled roots that all shifted to try to get in their way and block their passage]
[As a land suffused with raw magic, Talamhdé was constantly shifting and changing. It almost seemed to be conscious, and purposely maneuvered itself to make travelling through it annoying… if not outright dangerous.]
Siblings: [had been travelling through various planes of Talamhdé for years, learning to navigate its ever-changing ways and live off of its power, but…]
[The forest is being especially difficult right now.]
Spéir: [uncharacteristically quiet and unhelpful behind Scamall as—]
[the trees creeeaaaaaaakkkkk noisily as they, their branches, and the roots all shift, blocking the siblings' passage toward Nova]
Scamall: [growls under her breath, face twisted into a snarl]
Spéir: [still just watching her silently from behind]
Scamall: [may not be looking with her eyes, but can see well enough with the air and her aura—]
Spéir: [frowning slightly. Has one arm crossed, its hand cupped under the other's elbow, and his other hand curled around his cheek as he watches her]
Scamall: [fae-ears low and hair storming in anger, bites her tongue to keep from snapping—]
Scamall: (wants to scream) YOU'RE BEING THIS STUBBORN ABOUT THEM!? YOU WON'T EVEN FREAKING HELP ME!?
Scamall: [—at the same time, dissolved into air to try to push herself through the gaps between the branches, but—]
Scamall: [slams into an invisible wall formed by the very same Faewilde magic that moved the trees to begin with]
Scamall: [gasps in pain and from surprise, reforming in the air as she flies back from the barrier—]
Spéir: [carefully catches her from behind, one hand around her shoulder and the other at the small of her back]
Scamall: [stunned from the impacts—]
Spéir: [peers down at her, his face unreadable, before quickly looking back up at the barrier and helping Scamall stand]
Scamall: [clenches her jaw, ears low and tears forming in her eyes from anger, but—]
Spéir: (voice light, impassive) "it stops at the treetops. We can fly above it."
Scamall:
Scamall: [hesitates, shocked. Hadn't actually thought he was paying enough attention to try to help… much less actually be willing to.]
Spéir: [as she takes too long to respond, looks at her over his shoulder with his fae-ears twitching up curiously. An eyebrow quirked, offers his hand and asks, deadpan) "ready?"
Scamall: [swallows, looking away as her ears droop in shame]
Scamall: [just lets out a slow, heavy sigh as she takes his hand]
Scamall: (tiredly) "yeah."
Spéir: [nods, looking toward the sky as he swells his essence around them—]
Scamall: [relaxes her magic around her body, lightening it and preparing—]
Siblings: [with a joint gust of wind, push themselves into the air, soaring above the treetops. Except… quickly slow down before they can hit the skybox, coming to a stop in midair]
Spéir: [not looking at Scamall, easily peers through the darkness and at the array of trees between them and Nova]
Spéir: [taking charge as always; evenly speaks above the wind) "we can probably fly past any barriers while we're up here. If anything comes after us, I'll take care of it, okay?"
Spéir: [with that, turns to meet her eyes, face focused]
Spéir: [always made the plans between them, working through the various puzzles laid out by the Faewildes… and archfaeries trying to block their paths.]
Scamall: [can't help the tears in her eyes or her small, weak smile]
Scamall: [cupping Spéir's hand in-between hers, gratefully) "thank you, Spéir."
Spéir:
Spéir: [face twists slightly—a flash of guilt showing—but quickly just nods curtly as he looks away]
Spéir: (voice subtly thick) "let's just go, yeah?"
Scamall: (softly, knowing he could hear her just fine through the wind) "yeah."
Hmmm... what's up with how Spéir's acting?
story intro
table of contents
chapter one
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(bitterly) “You can do it, too. Archfae aren't special. They just gatekeep knowledge, and pretend we're all lesser than them.”
“Hm. I don't much like that name, either...”
- Nova “Me” Fae
One of the many fae born in the early days of the Reborn World, Nova woke up in a world of chaos and magic. The Faewildes permeated all of what would have otherwise been reality, leaving the world nothing but madness.
This—a rapidly, ever-changing world of danger and subjugation—is the world that Nova grew up in.
For much of their life, Nova had watched the rest of the world from afar. They'd used their magic to see without eyes, taking in the actions and consequences of others. They learned the rules of the world without putting themself on the line.
And then Nova dipped their toes into the water.
They joined the rest of the world, abandoning their old voyeuristic ways to experience things for themself.
And then deeply regretted their decision.
Life As “A Normal Faerie”
Not accepting the typical rules of the Faewildes—where weaker fae fall under the control of archfae stronger than themselves—Nova has run from archfaerie dominion to archfaerie dominion, struggling to find a place they feel at home.
And each and every time, they've done something wrong.
The archfae turn on them, attempting to kill them for their crimes.
And yet... Nova's still here today.
They've survived countless archfaerie attacks, escaping to live on another day... and run into the next.
So, with their terrible luck, will Nova ever find somewhere they feel safe?
Magic & Combat
Nova is vague about their faerie domain—presuming they know it at all.
Still, they have displayed an incredibly diverse range of abilities, including (but not limited to): seemingly-unbound teleportation, turning invisible, creating sound barriers, and creating protective shields of magic.
In combat, Nova most often uses a combination of teleportation, warping their surroundings, warping their own body, and physical barriers to avoid attacks and turn the terrain against their opponents.
Despite their great skill in combat, Nova hates fighting. If a fight would be any more difficult than them curbstomping their opponent, they often default to the ability given to all fae: will-breaking.
Like all fae, Nova is able to break the wills of their fellow faeries and then command them. However, instead of subjugating other fae under their will for the rest of time, Nova brainwashes their enemies into leaving them alone.
Overall, Nova has extreme skill over their inborn fae abilities, but purposely goes around with an underwhelming amount of essence (magical power) in order to fly under the radar.
... if only it worked nearly as often as they hoped it did.
Appearance
As a faerie and a shapeshifter, Nova can technically take on any form they want. However, they tend to stay in the form of a 4'8 (142 cm), androgynous humanoid faerie.
Nova physically appears to be 14, but the Faewildes are infamous for their space-time distortions and inconsistent rules. Due to this, even they are unaware of their exact age. However, when their time experienced is translated into our perception of years, Nova is approximately 16 years old.
Described to be a "surprisingly human-looking faerie", Nova has warm peach skin, an endless amount of plain brown freckles, sharp features, and a mess of long, curly vermillion hair. For their fae features, they only have mothlike eyelashes, fawn-like legs, wooden hands and forearms, and stereotypical long, fae-tipped ears that move with their emotions.
Despite Nova's tendency to remain in that form, they shapeshift far more often than most fae, using it every time it's practical and/or convenient to do so. For example: they are frequently seen adjusting their height to be more intimidating, warping their body to work in impossible ways, and even growing massive butterfly wings in order to fly.
(Notably, Nova always wears a dark green, hooded cloak)
Personality & Motives
Nova is loud, crude, hyperactive, and childish. They've had very little significant interactions with others, and have instead spent a majority of their life watching others live their lives from afar or exploring the Vast Faewildes.
Nova is talkative, theatrical, and extravagant; and often uses dramatic gestures and magical effects to accentuate their speech. They constantly over-exaggerate and put their entire self into everything they do, making themself come off as extreme to others.
Still, despite their sociability, Nova is hyper-alert and paranoid. They're constantly prepared for anybody, everybody, and everything to suddenly turn around and try to attack them... and yet are still desperate for friendship. Although they refuse to admit it, Nova is extremely lonely, and is secretly searching for a place where they feel safe and loved.
To this end, Nova has been exploring the Faewildes almost aimlessly, mostly just doing the bare minimum to keep themself alive... until they came across two faeries in Kilrey.
Now, Nova has a new goal: to help Spéir and Scamall find themselves a home, and to maybe finally form a friendship they never thought possible...
... just, not with Spéir. He can go crawl into a hole and die. Or just shut up. Y'know, Nova doesn't really care, so long as he “just leaves them the fuck alone!”
(Except they do care... don't they?)
Name
Despite being referred to as Nova by the story, the faerie who claims “I'm just... Me.” has yet to pick their name. The name “Nova” was selected for poetic as well as symbolic reasons:
Nova, as in “new”
(because they're a young faerie)
(and... for other reasons 🙂)
Nova, like the “supernova” star
(😉😉😉)
During Faerie's Dawn, “Nova” searches for a name for themself... as they simultaneously try to figure out who they are and want to be.
(Also, Nova is canonically genderfluid. Feel free to use any and all pronouns for them! ❤️)
Theme Song
With one desperate push
His poor diaphragm forced out a plea
He said: “One home burned down, one fell apart
One met a flood, and one was nothing from the start
Weapons built against me, well they all seem to fail
But weapons built against my home
They always will prevail
“So leave me my liver and leave me my skin
Leave me the way all those other homes did
But leave me a soul, only by definition
I don't want to feel anything
“My neurons are snapping like cat gut strings
A symphony of agony”
“Oh... it's time for us to part ways, huh...? Well, then... take care, I guess...”
[a wild, overgrown forest plane]
[in the midst of talamhdé]
[in a clearing within the forest]
[night; clear]
approx. 1 BA
(talamhdé timeline)
story intro
table of contents
chapter one
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next part >
[Soon enough, Spéir had finished setting up camp. Their single tent sat close to the campfire; a clear tarp stretched above them to shelter everything from sudden storms; and Nova—who Spéir had helped physically carry on Scamall's behalf, since they'd fought magic being used on them—laid against one of its wooden poles, having slowly consumed half-melted ambrosia in their sleep.]
Scamall: [huddled up in a bundle of blankets, sitting half-beneath the lip of the tent and in front of the fire]
Spéir: [sitting across from her on the other side of the fire. Has a leg propped up against the ground and an arm against its knee, his back against one of the trees that'd shifted its way into their camp]
[Things in Talamhdé often moved as though they had a mind of their own… but, more often than not, it was Talamhdé Itself that had the mind, not them. And the tree seemed to be little different, so Spéir chose to get comfortable with it.]
Spéir: [staring into the distance, his face half-turned away from her and a subtle tension underlying his expression]
Scamall: [uneasy, but…] 😅
Scamall: [tiredly stares down at the half-finished ambrosia-and-herb tea Spéir had made for her]
Spéir: [had insisted she should have some now, since he'd had a whole square to himself earlier]
Spéir: [as the silence stretches between them, finally speaks up to say:) "Scamall."
Scamall: [shakes herself awake, quickly looking up at him]
Spéir: [offers a weak—but obviously forced—smile, then adds uneasily) "about earlier…"
Scamall:
Scamall: [lifts her cup to her lips to silently sip at it. Watches Spéir, knowing he'll continue on his own]
Spéir: [glances away from her for a moment, but quickly looks back as he finishes) "… when Talamhdé fell apart on us. What did you think of that?"
Scamall: [blink]
Scamall: [frowns, ears drooping and eyebrows furrowing as she watches him uneasily]
Scamall: [lets her arms—and the tea—fall back onto her lap.]
Scamall: (uncertainly, because everything about the situation had been obvious) "… what do you mean?"
Spéir: [sighs heavily, lifting a hand to half-cover his face. His beak-nose makes it so he has to do it at an angle where she could see his lips if she really tried]
Spéir: [peers through the gap between his dark, starry fingers as he answers cautiously) "… why do you think it did that."
Scamall:
Scamall: [holding her breath without meaning to, absentmindedly looks to Nova's sleeping form]
Nova: [has slowly dropped from the wooden pole to be laying across the ground, where wild grasses and flowers sprouted around their body. Snoring softly and hugging themself again, but sleeping much more soundly than before]
Scamall: (voice sounding distant even to herself) "… you remember Moyner—"
Spéir: [still leaned back against the tree, one leg curled flat against the ground and the other propping his knee up. His hand is still covering his face, but the angle and his glowing freckles make it clear that he’s wincing]
[Besides, they were fae. Unlike humans, it was almost impossible to hide how they felt. Their ears would always betray them.]
[And Spéir's four, long and feather-tipped ears were drooped into his shoulders.]
Scamall: (gently) "… so I don't know why you'd ask. That was obviously God. Though—obviously, I have no better idea than you why they'd be interested in this faerie."
Spéir:
Spéir: [ears slowly pop back up as he takes a slow, uneven deep breath—but he doesn't immediately speak. Clearly still struggling to find his words]
Scamall: [lets out a slow sigh of her own, ears drooping and looking back down at her tea]
Scamall: (voice soft, almost absentminded) "although… their domain is weird. I can't seem to figure it out."
Scamall: [looks up at Spéir again, eyebrows furrowed]
Spéir: [meets her eyes, though his face is empty minus a slight tension]
Scamall: [ears droop—but sighs, quickly looking away to finish her tea]
Nova: [has managed to curl into a ball again, their arms over their head, but it's loose this time around. They seem comfortable]
Scamall: [smiles a soft, sad smile as she eyes them]
Scamall: [once again remembering their fear, their bravery, and how they'd risked their own life to keep her and Spéir from getting dragged into their problems. How they had all that, when they were only a little faeling]
Nova: [despite their maturity, Scamall got the sense they couldn't be any older than seven]
Spéir: [takes a slow, deep breath, standing up]
Scamall: [surprised, looks back to him]
Spéir: [offers her an awkward, slightly-forced smile as he walks around the fire to sit down at her side. Finally, wraps his arms around her in a tight hug]
Scamall: [metaphorically melts into him, tearing up and laughing weakly as she hugs him back]
Spéir: (gently) "I love you, Scamall."
Spéir: [but, before she can say it back, continues more evenly) "I'm going to keep watch by the tree tonight, okay? You think you can take a stuffed animal?"
Scamall: [smile fading, presses her face into Spéir's shoulder as she hugs him tighter]
Spéir: [usually would be beside her—letting her cling to him—while one of them slept and the other kept watch, but… sometimes, he'd want to stay separate. And, to make up for it, he'd offer her a stuffed animal to cling to in his place]
[Since it was made from his essence, he'd reasoned, it should be little different from her cuddling him]
[But it'd never been the same.]
Scamall: (into his shoulder, voice muffled and disappointed) "… yeah. I love you, too, Spéir."
Spéir: [gives a weak laugh, squeezing her tighter]
Spéir: (gently, though there's an edge to his voice) "sorry… I'm just a little antsy today. I don't want to disturb your sleep, you know?"
Scamall: [gives a slow, hesitant nod as she continues clinging to him, not wanting to let go] 🥲
Poor Scamall doesn't get to cuddle with her brother 😔
On a more serious note... GOD!? God was the one who broke Talamhdé like that!? What's their connection with Talamhdé, and what reason(s) would they have to care about Nova???
story intro
table of contents
chapter one
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next part >
dividers by @thyming, @thecutestgrotto, & @saradika
