Corpus Rahkshi

IC: Snake - The Rebellion, Kaam

I turn at the sound of voices near me, taking my hands away from my eyes. The forest is almost as dark, with only the Moon's frosting and a deep blue stippling of sky visible between the canopy above. Half turned as I am, body sprawled on the ground under a blanket, I listen in to the conversation. I'm too tired to engage with it at the moment, but I let the words drift in as I wait for my breathing to return to normal. 

While I listen I think about my own problems. Something that's been on my own mind recently is the Kaita. I feel like I should talk more to Shield and Jayar: directly after the Kaita (well, after I'd got over my paranoia...) there was a sense of camaraderie I'd never felt before. But over the last week or so I feel like I've lost track of them, not had time or motivation to sit down and really, properly talk to either of them. I must understand them better than anyone else here, and vice versa, yet I haven't spoken to them much more than anyone else.

My mind wanders for a second to Xara. I'll be honest, I never knew her that well, but...It's funny, sometimes the farther removed from a person you are, the more you like them. It's like you suddenly remember how much you have in common, even if you don't enjoy their actual company. Me and Xara didn't really know  or like each other, it's true, but we shared a common goal and...well, maybe that's more important than anything else.

And there's the simple fact that we've lost one of our own. It reminded me how...mortal we are. It reminded me how strong a force simple, stupid accident can be. I wonder where she is now...

And then I think for a moment about Kat, and more generally the future of this situation. But just considering it gives me a feeling of dread, like I want to push the thought away as quickly as possible. I've never been very good about thinking of the long term. So I turn back to the conversation.

IC Kat:

She jumped, evidentally startled out of whatever trance she'd been in.

She looked at Shield, eyes tired, spines drooped.

"Wha- Nothing. I'm doing my best not to think about anything right now."

It wasn't untrue, though everything weighed on her mind. Xara missing. Hoto spirited away. Everyone else bickering. 

And her. The failed leader. The one who had dragged everyone into this for some ###### foolish idealistic crusade.

She looked away again.

IC Percy:

Dodge. Again, again, again, agai-Leap!

Ina zigzag pattern, Percy moved in on Exxan, and made to tackle the other Rahk.

IC: Shield - Talking with Kat

I sighed.

Kat was always the leader of the group, but as of late, her purpose had been drained.

Her spines had sagged down, she was tired and she was most likely sick of the bickering.

I wonder if my little stunt deteroriated her will, Grey. Or should I say, our? Heheh~

Shut. Up.

S-s-stop d-distracting him, D-deceit.

Shut up, Green. You're lucky I didn't ###### you up after I failed to kill his friend.

Both of you shut up!

...

Silence.

I felt my mind going back to the past.

"You remember Visorak?" I said, suddenly.

I wanted to distract her, as well as myself.

I looked down at my wrist, where part of my paint had been scraped off, revealing the stark white underneath.

IC Kat:

Visorak. Exxan. Root.

"Yeah. I remember."

IC:

Karz, the amount of petunias that happened on Visorak was enough for one of Root's beloved novels.

"I remember me and Root stumbling across that abandoned city....and just getting our teeth kicked, you know? We were way out of our league, even Root's books didn't prepare him for that encounter."

I looked back up at Kat.

"You brought us down into that basement, and even when we were your prisoners you treated us with respect."

IC Kat:

"No. I didn't."

After I'd finished interrogating them, sure, I'd made efforts to mend them up.

Didn't excuse what I'd done before that.

IC:

"Yes, you did!"

I unwittingly raised my voice a little.

"Sorry. But you were respectful enough to earn my best friend's trust, as well as mine."

I looked back into the forest.

"I blamed myself mostly after what happened in the basement, though I projected some of that onto Punch, as well as Lucid, at one point. But thanks to Root, I'm still alive, and ultimately, he wanted that."

I sighed again.

"You were the only other person I could go to, really. Root was dead, and I couldn't let his ideals just scatter in the wind."

The stark white scrape on my wrist seemed to stand out.

IC Doubt

Questions of what he was doing with his life raced through his head.

Although they were answered all right here; this is what he was doing with his life.

IC: Exxan - Gym. 

As my opponent leaped into their tackle, I lashed out with a concentrated blast of vacuum power, aiming to intercept him in midair and fling him away. Perhaps all the way back out of the arena, if I was lucky.

But, let's face it, I'm rarely lucky. 

___________________________________________________________

IC: Era - Forest.

I sat alongside Zivon in one of the branches overhanging the clearing, breathing in the scent of the smoke, and doing my best not to listen to the mopey conversations. The overwhelming aura of unhappiness wavering off of everyone was practically audible. 

I could understand their despair, but their lack of resolve was... disheartening. We'd all known what we were getting ourselves into, all known it wouldn't be easy, but one small setback, and suddenly everyone was on the verge of giving up? Karz, what was I thinking when I agreed to this? Of course, I already knew the answer to that. Hoto... I was thinking of Hoto... Hoto, who'd suffered through so much during her short life. Hoto, the only other rahk I'd ever met who understood what life was like for me. Hoto, who was now lost and alone because of us. 

"Oh, to karz with this!" I dropped down out of the tree, landing beside the fire, "Enough sitting around exchanging sob stories! No one's going to save us for us. Only we can do that. So do you guys want to sit around being sad for another week, or do you want to get up and do something to get us out of this rut?" 

IC Kat:

"Maybe."

Era.

My spines stiffened slightly.

I drew myself up.

"We'll go hungry long before we find the Hand at this rate. We should see if we can't find a village and trade."

My tone was hollow. I knew we didn't have anything to trade. nothing to barter with. I knew they'd probably just chase us out, or worse, kill us on the spot.

I also knew that we'd never be able to hunt with the weapons we had. none of us had the long term survival skills to last out here, or if any of us did, they were keeping it to themselves.

I stooped, scooping up the haft of the warhammer in my hand, hefting it over my shoulder.

"Let's get moving. Put out the fire."

IC: Shield - With the rebellion

Era's interruption made my spines stiffen with irritation.

I was trying to get through to Kat, and as usual, someone else had to interrupt and ruin it.

Muttering to myself, I grabbed my shield and sword, and kicked out the fire.

IC: Kororia - With New Friend

"Wow, you made it? It's really nice! I like to make things too. Mum showed me some stuff about making metal things, but I'm not very good at it yet, and the fire you need was very hot and dangerous so Mum had to do that part a lot. Did your parents teach you, too?"

IC: Jayar / Forest of Kaam

He had been quiet for some time. Thinking on things. People left behind, lost, and awaiting them. How poorly this quest was going, the reasons for it, and the remedies, which were all too lacking. Why the Hand, undoubtedly capable of vanquishing seven novice refugees, had instead vanished from them.

Now he stood, though what good might come of action was uncertain. "We should move on," he agreed. It wasn't as though they had just been sitting around for days, they'd spent time searching (all in vain), just they couldn't afford to wait around in any place too long. Worse than brief inaction, though, was tension and bickering. "And in unity. Each of us has no allies but the others here."

IC: Era - Forest of Kaam.

"So, uh, has anyone here seen a map of the Northern Continent?" I asked hopefully, trying to remember what Johmak had told us about where we were, "Or were any of you sired by Krika? This is supposed to be his territory, right?" 

IC: Fate - Hallways

"Um..."

Mum? Was this a word? Several parts of her terminology were greatly confusing me.

"I don't use fire." Was all I could say.

IC: Kororia - Making Friends

"That's really cool! What other things do you make?"

She was really liking this place so far. Everyone was so nice! And she already had something in common with this Rahkshi- she liked to make things, too. it made her wonder if there was a whole arts and crafts club here.

IC Doubt

Just out of sight of Kokoria, he was furiously avoiding the urge to facepalm with his massive hands.

IC: Gaever / Forge

Did she want to be alone? She had, that was why she had come here. But then, she had not known anyone whose presence she felt benefited her.

She had since discovered one.

"No," she answered. "Not entirely. It is my desire to be away from violence and cruelty. But I do not wish the absence of a friend."

IC: Phantom - The forge

Phantom smiled at this, and turned back to look at the wastes.

"Friend." She said.

The word hung in the air. Phantom was still. Sounds muted by the veil of fog persisted in the atmosphere. Sounds of a town slowly falling apart, and of a forest at it's edge, ready to reclaim it. Soon, there might only be the forge left.

"I want to walk through Phantom. Find... things. To have. Keep. Things to keep."

She stood, vapor curling as her mass tugged at the air.

"But I don't want to be alone."

IC: Fate - Hallways

"Many things. I constructed the suit I'm wearing." I gestured to my person.

"I could not find a suit that... was to my liking, so I built one instead. Aside from that, I've personally crafted every weapon I've ever carried."

IC: Snake - The Rebellion, Kaam

I stand, groaning internally. I'm too tired for this, but at the same time I feel like we have to keep moving or we'll pause so long that we lose our confidence...though it seems we've lost most of it already. I feel a bit disheartened at times by recollections of Visorak: all that time, while I was curled up in hibernation, the others were fighting and building friendships. I sometimes think I would have risked my life for the friendships alone.

"From what I remember," I say thoughtfully, "The Continent is pretty empty. In which case a compass might be more immediately necessary." It wasn't a particularly useful thing to say, but I felt like I had to say something - if only to prove that I still exist...

OOC: Who doesn't post from a mobile

IC: Kororia - Making A Friend

"Ooh! It looks really good!" She bounced on her heels. "My Mum made mine, kind of. Mum makes weapons sometimes, but she doesn't make all of hers. Dad makes all sorts of different things. He shows me how to make things too! Do you wanna see something I made?"

IC: Fate - Hallways

"I suppose so."

I was far more interested in her suit now that I knew it was a custom build, but if she had something more to share, then I would be content with seeing it as well.

IC: Kororia - Wherein Fate Is Granted A Boon

She took her bag off her back to pull a crocheted scarf from it. It was soft and warm, with an alternating stripe pattern. She held it up proudly for the other Rahkshi to see.

"My Dad showed me how to make things with yarn," she said brightly. "You can have this one if you want! I can always make more- I brought all my yarn making stuff. Do you like it?"

IC Doubt

For a moment, a recollection of a yarn-spinning Rahkshi came to his mind. Who was it?

IC: Fate - Hallways

I blinked in contained surprise. She had mentioned weapons forging, so I had expected as much, but not... this. I took the cloth in my hands. It was quite soft.

"I should say I do."

". . . What is it?" 

IC: Kororia - With Friend

She glowed with glee and pride. "It's a scarf! You wrap it around your neck and it keeps your neck warm and cosy."

She held it out further for them to take.

IC: Shield - With the rebellion

God, Grey. You should have ended these arseholes way before now.

You have anything useful to say? No? Then shut up.

Y-y-you sh-should go s-s-speak to S-s-s-snake. H-h-he is y-your b-b-brother n-now.

Valour's suggestion was a good one. Snake had been one of my few friends in the rebellion and I had not talked with him in a while.

I edged through the group to find Snake.

"Hey. How you doing?" I asked quietly.

IC: Fate - Hallways
"So it's a kind of garb, then?"
I picked up the offered "scarf", feeling it again. The closest thing I could compare it to were the sheets of the infirmary. It occurred to me, in that moment, that things like this might be common knowledge to other Rahk.

"Thank you." Rarely did I have the opportunity to say those words, in that particular order anyway.

IC: Kororia - With Friend

"You're welcome!" She gave a little squeak of glee. "What's your name? I don't know if you heard me before, but my name's Kororia. I just started today!"

IC: Snake - The Rebellion, Kaam

I look up to see Shield edging over to me. Of course now that he's here I can't actually think of anything useful to say, so I just reply with a slightly weary "Alright, I suppose...". I pause for a second. "I'm sorry if I woke you up. I'm still having...dreams, y'know?" It might sound selfish, but a part of me hopes he is too, if only so that I can talk about them to someone. Then I remember that Shield probably understands them perfectly already.

IC Kat:

"What are you implying? That a Makuta might help a band of runaway Rahkshi?"

I snorted joylesslly.

IC: Fate - Hallways

"I am called Fate." I said, bowing my head slightly, "I had heard, I was merely... distracted."

IC: Era - Forest of Kaam. 

"Well, this is Krika's territory," I replied pointedly, "And I've heard he's supposed to be more... sympathetic, than some. Surely it makes more sense to go to him than to go looking for villages?" 

Cuutuk - Refectory

He followed closely, a smile plastered on his ugly mug. "A peace group? Melody, you know I'd love to join. Where do I sign up?"

Krieveks - Refectory -> Hallways

"Well fine..." He growls under his breath. He pours his own grub, and begins to chow it down, walking out of the refectory. He sees a short Rahk handing out odd clothes. What is she, a kraata of generosity? Goodness. He attempts to walk passed her.

IC Kat:

There was a brief moment that she looked like she might argue the point.

The moment passed.

"Do Makuta eat?"

It wasn't a loaded question, simply one of necessity. The fact of the matter was that they needed food.

If some of it came from a Makuta who wasn't set on murdering them on sight?

That was fine by her.

IC: Shield - With Snake

I didn't have bad dreams, usually. I didn't blame Snake for waking up on accident, he most likely was not in a good position at that point.

"You're fine. I'm just worried about our fearless leader and all."

Kat was probably in a much worse position than both of us combined.

IC: Fang - Forest of Kaam

"No." Fang suddenly snapped, standing and walking back toward the group. His eyes and vents blazed with unholy light. "We're not going to waste all of our time and effort to get away from the Makuta just to go crawling back to Krika!"

IC: Melody - Refectory

"If you'd like to join, consider it done!" Melody grinned. "We'll have to find everyone else and introduce you!"

IC: Canvas - Refectory

She glowered as the other Rahkshi insisted on getting food before her while she was doing her best to pick up five bowls on one tray, nearly dropping all of it in the process. When at last he moved on, Canvas swiftly poured in a few ladles while the Porters moved back into place.

"So, who's this?" Canvas asked as she meandered back to the table with her tray. Melody seemed so happy to be with him...

IC: Kororia - An Inescapable Attractor Of Friendship

"Hi Fate! I like your name- oh!" In trying to escape walk right by her, the newcomer had accidentally pushed her a little. She turned with a bright smile nonetheless. "Hello!"

IC Kat:

"Suppose we could always pilfer extra food from a Matoran village...."

She wasn't thrilled about the idea of stealing food to survive,especially from Matoran.

But it was either that or take their chances that the rumors about a Makuta were true and that he even had food to give.

She knew which she'd prefer to bet on.

IC: Era - Forest of Kaam. 

I was about to snap back a reply, but something about the inflection, the anger, in Fang's voice gave me pause. Deciding it was best not to push him further, I focused instead of Kat's words, "So you think we should avoid going to the Makuta... in favour of raiding a skakdi village? Assuming the skakdi themselves don't kill us, how do you think Makuta Krika is going to react when he finds out there's not one, but two groups of rogue rahkshi roaming about his territory?"