• GREENSTONE, 1633
    RollentopicPraattopic 1 & 2Speeltopic


    Dertien jaar geleden klom de Schotse familie Ackerman aan boord van de Mayfair, op zoek naar land waar ze een nieuwe thuis konden stichten: land waar geen monsters waren, land waarmee ze de macht van de Gemeenschap konden veilig stellen en uitbreiden, en waar ze hun kinderen veilig konden trainen zonder dat weerwolven of vampiers hen het leven zuur maakten. Alleen was een kleine groep vampiers hen voor. Zij wilden ook een nieuwe thuis, een veilige haven; hun leider was al eeuwenlang vastberaden om die voor hen te zoeken omdat in Europa geen plek meer bleek te zijn.
          De Gemeenschap wilde niet ophoepelen. Hoe konden ze dat ook? Vampiers hadden het recht niet om zomaar een stuk land te claimen. De Eerste Kolonie had al zo'n groot grondgebied in Europa - konden ze de rest van de wereld niet alleen laten?
          In de laatste dertien jaar zijn de spanningen opgelopen en hebben zich twee kampen gevormd: de Gemeenschap van Jagers, die ondertussen uitgebreid waren tot dertien families met de Ackermans aan het hoofd, en het groepje vampiers dat zij 'de rebellen' dubden, onder leiding van de legendarische, gevreesde vampier Helias Vanparys. Noord versus zuid, met enkel een rivier die hen van elkaar gescheiden houdt. Geen van beiden is gelukkig met het grondgebied dat ze hebben en willen de ander weg. Een gulden middenweg lijkt onbestaand, zeker wanneer het nieuws de oceaan oversteekt en Greenstone stilaan een haven wordt voor gevluchte piraten. Sommigen van hen zijn Europese vampiers die deel willen uitmaken van de nieuwe kolonie in Amerika. Anderen zijn vampiers die uit zijn op bloed en van de chaos gebruik willen maken. Dan zijn er de Jagers, die hun soortgenoten willen bijstaan - maar ook de Jagers die alleen zijn en de mogelijkheid zien om die institutionele Community onderuit te halen. Ten slotte is er de groep die liever onbekend blijft; weerwolven, gewone burgers en piraten die Greenstone opzoeken om de onbekendheid op te zoeken tussen al die andere bovennatuurlijke wezens die toch te veel kabaal maken om nog andere stemmen op te merken. In ieder geval begint de spanning een hoogtepunt te bereiken; zowel in Greenstone zelf als op zee, waar schepen met bovennatuurlijke bemanningen strijden voor hetgeen waarin ze geloven. Of gewoon voor de lol. Niemand die het echt duidelijk lijkt te weten. Niemand die weet hoe dit wetteloze stukje grond ooit verder zal komen dan één bloederige slachting.




                                                    Lore

    Je kan alle informatie over de wereld terugvinden in de lorestory. Alle informatie over vampiers, weerwolven, jagers en hun geschiedenis staat beschreven. Je kan uiteraard ook een mens spelen, maar dan is het alsnog handig om misschien even de geschiedeniscomponenten te lezen om me te zijn met de geladen onderwerpen.
    Mocht je nog ergens vragen hebben, stel ze gerust!



                Personages & invulijstjes
    Vampiers

    Naam
    Echte leeftijd (maximum 600)
    Fysieke leeftijd
    Paramount & eventuele Subjects
    Groep & positie (deel van Helias' groep of rogue?)
    Innerlijk
    Uiterlijk
    Krachtbeheersing & skills
    Geschiedenis (leg ook even uit waarom ze naar Greenstone gekomen zijn)
    Extra
    Relaties

    Weerwolven

    Naam
    Leeftijd
    Groep & positie (zin om een roedel te maken? Ga ervoor, maar bespreek het even met de groep (: )
    Innerlijk
    Uiterlijk
    Krachtbeheersing & skills
    Geschiedenis
    Extra
    Relaties

    Jagers

    Naam
    Leeftijd
    Groep & positie (deel van de Gemeenschap? Welke familie; familiehoofd of niet? Algemene leider van de Gemeenschap in Greenstone is een Ackerman!)
    Innerlijk
    Uiterlijk
    Wapens & skills
    Geschiedenis
    Extra
    Relaties
    Mensen

    Naam
    Leeftijd
    Groep & positie (Hoe ligt jouw personage in de algemene maatschappij van Greenstone?)
    Innerlijk
    Uiterlijk
    Skills
    Geschiedenis
    Extra
    Relaties

    Forbidden characters/faceclaims from canon
    - Helias Vanparys (Niclas Gillis)
    - Thorne Madison / T. Magen (Anton Lisin)
    - Freya Ackerman (Pyper America Smith)
    - Clark Ackerman (Boyd Holbrook)
    - Egorov Vasilyev (Finn Cole)
    - Holden Ackerman (Cillian Murphy)
    - Lev Vasilyev (Ivan N)
    - Nora Quill (Starlie Cheyenne Smith)


                                              Rollen                                         
    Vampiers
    ⛧[P2] — Helias de Beaumanoir Vanparys (451/20-28?) — RSK | Marthe
    ⛧[P5] — Katherina Vasileiou (166/28) — Hammock | Selena
    ⛧[P4] — Nessa Craven (372/28) — drow | Sasha
    ⛧[P7] — Azrael Ishtari (75/26) — Barbarian
    ⛧[P5] — Madalena Belfiore (181/23) — calIiope | Daisy
    ⛧[P7] — Adrian Vynall (284/43) — Spiral | Xanthe
    ⛧[P] — Voornaam Naam (AGE) — User | Naam

    Weerwolven
    ⛧[P5] — Farah Fenrir Parker (25) — Frodo | Bes
    ⛧[P5] — Sofia Cortez (AGE) — Saureus | Lisa
    ⛧[P4] — Robert Frankson (24) — amberkishatu | Amber
    ⛧[P7] — Lachlan Carmichael (25) — inktzwart | Rhys
    ⛧[P] — Voornaam Naam (AGE) — User | Naam
    Jagers
    ⛧[P1] — Reed Ackerman (27) — Spiral | Xan
    ⛧[P2] — Mikhail Sergei Vasilyev (26) — Satoru | Mexx
    ⛧[P5] — Elizabeth Lavely (AGE) — Hammock | Selena
    ⛧[P4 tot 26/2/24] — Fiona 'Finn' Ackerman (27) — RSK | Marthe
    ⛧[P7] — Celeste Girard (26) — calIiope | Daisy
    ⛧[P] — Voornaam Naam (AGE) — User | Naam


    Mensen
    ⛧[P4] — Antigone Lamb (19) — inktzwart | Rhys
    ⛧[P5] — Carwen Weasmer (25) — drow | Sasha
    ⛧[P7] — Tamanend (21) — Satoru | Mexx
    ⛧[P8] — Thomas Crake (33) — Greenfeld | Lene
    ⛧[P] — Voornaam Naam (AGE) — User | Naam





                                                    Regels
    - Don't be a bitch
    - Bespreek gevoelige onderwerpen met je tegenspelers & duid trigger warnings aan boven je post
    - Reservatie blijft 10 dagen staan, daarna wordt die automatisch verwijderd
    - Als je langer dan 45 dagen niet antwoordt, wordt je personage automatisch verwijderd. Ik kom niet smeken.
    - Je kan zowel Engelstalig als Nederlandstalig schrijven, maar spreek misschien even af wat handig is voor je tegenspeler.
    - Topics worden aangemaakt door Coryo of Moskowitz. Stuur ons gerust een berichtje als we het niet meteen moesten zien!
    - Have fun!
    ©2024 Vanparys, Frisk & Spiral.

    [ bericht aangepast op 5 juni 2024 - 14:15 ]


    help


    ◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈
    ₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪

    𝕋𝔸𝕄𝔸ℕ𝔼ℕ𝔻
    TAMANEND

    ₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪
    ◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈

    After his question, Tom explained more of what had happened this morning. It had explained the commotion that Tama had seen before he had spotted Finn. Since a human life was more important than drama, he had opted for seeing if she was alright before going to investigate what more had happened. It took quite a bit of effort on his part to understand exactly what Tom meant in his sentences. So many words at once was still a bit difficult, but Tama got the gist of it, luckily Tom used enough words that described actions so he could picture what Tom had seen. Though there was one thing that the man kept bringing up, but that Tamanend couldn't place. Why would someone go hang from a bridge? That just sounded exhausted. If the man had wanted to go into the water, he could have just walked into the river from the side or even jumped down from the bridge, but letting himself hang from the side didn't seem like the best thing to do, especially so early in the morning. Then Tom said someone had hung Raphael on the bridge. Sure you could hang herbs somewhere to dry, but why would you hang people? Alive people were way more useful as they could actually work and do things, Tama couldn't think about any use for dried people, that just sounded morbid. In the end Tama just looked utterly lost at the last part. And Tom said something about Raphael being murdered? So all in all he could conclude that Raphael was dead, possible murdered either before or after he was hanging from the bridge because he wanted to go in the water.
    Tama pushed his still full tankard to Finn. He was not going to drink it anyways and she seemed like she wanted more. Better not to waste Toms generosity by throwing the liquid away in the end. Tama took a piece of his bread. If there was this much commotion around someone, they must have been important as Tom had said. Finn brought up another concept Tama was unfamiliar with in her explanation that she did know the man. Though unfamiliar was the wrong term, he knew the concept, but it just didn't seem necessary. Surnames seemed like much more of a hassle than it was worth, but apparently it was important here. The man had been her uncle and Tamanend did know that word. That one was an important one.
    "Is he a brother from your mother?" he asked immediately, it would give him much more context in how important the man was to the woman next to him. "Or from your father?" Though, the exact answer did not matter for what Tama was going to do next. It was still one of Finns relatives that had died and there were things that were more important than to know if the man was more or less important to Finn. He took the small knife from his belt and stood up, placing his foot on his chair. With a swift motion Tama sliced a thin strip from the bottom of one of his pant legs before sitting down again. It didn't matter to the Lenape that his clothes were different now. He needed to appease the elders and follow his customs, otherwise Finn would be next to cross the bridge. Carefully, Tama moved a bit closer to Finn and tied the hide string around her wrist.
    "You should keep it around your arm until it falls off," he said, fully serious now. "And wash your hair within four sun rises, but never sleep with wet hair. The elders will think you come visit them." Maybe he should bring some more more strings to the rest of Finn's family, but he had no clue where to find them, though they were on his land far away from their own ground and Tama didn't want them to displease the spirits as that would give them more trouble. Did this Raphael guy ever abuse a dog?
    21 ◈ Human ◈ The Salty Scallywag ◈ Tom & Finn
    △▼△▼△


    ⋆。˚☾˚。⋆𓃦 ⋆。˚☽˚。⋆



    𝔢𝔩𝔦𝔞𝔰

    𝔡𝔢 𝔅𝔢𝔞𝔪𝔞𝔫𝔬𝔦𝔯

    𝗩𝗔𝗡𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗬𝗦
    𝖛𝖆𝖒𝖕𝖎𝖗𝖊 • 451 • 𝖘𝖔𝖚𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖓 𝕲𝖗𝖊𝖊𝖓𝖜𝖔𝖔𝖉 (𝕶𝖆𝖙 - 𝕬𝖉𝖗𝖎𝖆𝖓)

    ╘═════ 𖤓 ═════╛



    ”We need to act swiftly and decisively,” Kat agreed with Helias’ assessment. “But we must also tread carefully to avoid provoking further violence.”
          It was an obvious statement Helias didn’t think necessarily needed to be mentioned. ”You wouldn’t be here if I didn’t trust in your capability to be subtle,” he said with a slight edge to his voice.
          ”I will go to Nessa and tell everyone to shut up before the briefing. You should go with Helias,” Kat continued.
          ”I wonder how peaceful Nessa will be in reclaiming it,” Adrian wondered out loud. “But I wish you all the luck in the world, Kat,” Adrian replied. ”I am unsure if there is benefit to be had here. It feels more like someone wanted to create liabilities for both us, who have to solve this issue, and the Hunters by taking away their leader.”
          Helias gave Adrian a warning glance at that. He hated wasting time on mulling over things that were unimportant short-term.
          ”Want me to draft up the letter to Isabella later, or do you need me to do the briefing?” Adrian asked.
          “Brief them,” Helias said curtly, smoothing over his clothes and sliding his sabre down its sheath again. “Don’t waste time hypothesising or entertaining them with vague answers to their questions. State the facts. I’ll write the letter myself.”
          Helias had already turned around and fixed his hair when Adrian’s sarcastic voice piped up again with a useless remark. He clenched his jaw for a moment, his mood completely soured now. “People are looking at us, Adrian,” he chided lowly without turning around. “I hate to ruin your mood, but maybe you should focus on that instead of offhand comments.”
          Helias started walking without saying anything else, Adrian soon catching up with him. He could teleport to Headquarters, but he’d always enjoyed walking places. It opened up time to ground himself, sometimes made space for unexpected encounters that could oftentimes prove interesting. The breeze that ruffled his wavy blond hair helped settle his mind, because even though he didn’t like wasting time on hypothesising without knowing facts, his own brain rarely stood still, searching for answers wherever it could. Four hundred and fifty years of non-stop thinking was exhausting.
          ”So Simon and Genevieve,” Adrian started. “Have they reported anything interesting so far, or is it too early for that just yet?”
          Helias took a moment to answer, habitually reverting back to Dutch, Adrian’s mother tongue, now that they were alone. “Nee. Een paar weken geleden zat Simon op Farah’s spoor maar ze heeft hem afgeschud. Sindsdien hadden ze op de wekelijkse briefings niets interessants meer te zeggen.”

    [ bericht aangepast op 13 mei 2024 - 15:59 ]


    help


    Adrian Vynall

    Vampire ✧ 284 ✧ Southern Greenwood ✧ With Helias

          Adrian did not miss the warning glance Helias threw his way. It’s not that he got scared, sometimes things that were less fun needed to be said. They parted ways with Kat as Helias issued his orders for the briefing.
          “A briefing without objections, got it. Don’t know who, don’t know how, it wasn’t us, don’t talk to anyone you don’t know about it, there’s going to be even more tension,... Anything else I need to mention?” Adrian summed up what needed to be said in short, precise bullets. He didn’t want to make an interview of it, so he would probably end with the ‘no talking to anybody point’. He would have the head of anyone who talked anyway.
          Helias didn’t take the comment on his appearance in stride, but Adrian just took the backlash without even batting an eye. He knew how fickle Helias’s moods were.
          “Exactly why I made the comment, Helias,” he answered coolly. “Wouldn’t want you to look disheveled after being accused of things you didn’t do.” There was no hint of a joke in his words anymore. He was, somehow, just defending his own choice of words. Even though he had said them in jest, it had been a genuine concern.

          He walked beside his para as he chose to not teleport himself out of the forest. Adrian knew Helias enjoyed his walking as much as he did. Adrian waited for him to break the silence on the Simon and Genevieve matter. To his surprise, Helias answered in Adrian’s native tongue. He made a disapproving click noise when he heard the news that they had found next to nothing.
          “Waarom is er minder nieuws van de Ackerman?" Adrian questioned the duo set out to find out more. Adrian knew the werewolves would probably smell them quicker than the hunter would notice. He kept up with the brisk walk of his superior.
          “Mijn eerste gedachte is wel dat ze zouden afspreken buiten jagergebied. Het lijkt me niet verstandig voor haar om hem daar te treffen,” Adrian hypothesized quietly, but ended up shaking his head. “We horen wel weer wat ze te vertellen hebben,” Adrian said with a certain kind of finality. He didn’t want another grumpy comment about hypothesizing. It was where the sub and his para differed a bit. They both wanted the facts, but Adrian liked voicing every approach too, so he could anticipate or add more situations to his predictions. It helped him anticipate all the situations to come and how to react to them in the best kind of way.



    Old things have
    strange hungers


    [ bericht aangepast op 13 mei 2024 - 21:47 ]


    Sidera nostra contrahent solem lunamque

    T O M      C R A K E

    Human • Butcher • 33 • The Salty Scallywag with Finn and Tama

    When Finn told the two men she was glad to be rid of that Raphael fellow, Tom had a hard time believing her. Not because he knew Finn that well – he didn't even know her surname or where she lived – but because he simply couldn't believe anyone would be happy to hear someone they knew had passed. Crake wouldn't even wish that on his mother – God rest her soul, although he wasn't sure on that on. She had been a pain, so much a danger to the life he wanted with his late wife, he had at one point vowed to kill her. But after all this time, all he wanted was to see her again someday. To hug her, to tell her it's okay and that he understands the things she did, she did to survive.
          Tom returned to the current day when Finn cleared her throat and decided that there and now was the time to announce she too was an Ackerman, and that the Raphael fellow was in fact her uncle.
          Crake's jaw was on the floor, while Tama just looked confused at the boatload of information being dropped on them. Tom couldn't believe what and idiot he was. Here he'd been, casually mentioning someone had killed himself and it turned out to Finn's family?
          He immediately got ready to start apologizing but Tamanend was quicker. ''Is he a brother from your mother?'' the Native American questioned. Crake's embarrassment turned into confusion. How was that of importance? "Or from your father?" Isn't an uncle just an uncle?
          Tom realized he was still gaping at the two and closed his mouth. He took a big gulp from his bottle and watched as Tama protruded a knife from his belt. Tom immediately raised his hands. ''Ho, there fella. I don't know how y'all do things over in your country but we don't just raise knives at each other in bars.'' It sounded a little hypocritical as Tom had definitely raised a knife at someone in a bar once. But contrary to that event, Tama didn't use it to threaten anyone, but simply to cut off a piece of fabric from his tunic. He tied the piece of fabric around Finns arm and gave her simple and clear instructions on what to do so the... Elders wouldn't take her? Crake wasn't sure what'd just happened. Some kind of Native ritual? He secretly was pleased he had been there to witness it, but he was also aware Tama could simply just make stuff up and no one would bat an eye. Or, not no one. His wife would've known about the practices of Natives.
          He clapped Tamanend brotherly on the shoulder. ''There you go, fella. Knew you'd only be protecting Finn from evil Spirits.'' He hoped he interpreted that right. ''Didn't doubt you for a second.''
          Tom turned to Finn. ''Blessed be. You're also an Ackerman, then. Here I thought I knew no one of importance.''


    [ bericht aangepast op 14 mei 2024 - 21:50 ]


    kindness is never a burden.




    l¢hl
    W E R E W O L F      |      2 5      Y E A R S      O L D      |      O U T F I T
    Watching Bloodlight Bridge | Observing

          𝓞nce Lachlan had reached the source of the screaming, a lot of information was already semi readily available just by listening to the chattering from the people who spectated - so that was how he figured out, rather quickly, that a certain Raphael Ackerman had been hanged from this very bridge (Bloodlight Bridge, because could he have expected a vampire colony to pick a subtler name for their architecture? Suppose not). Most of the onlookers Lachlan could overhear were, of course, from Montandon, and thus not much of Hillside's theories could reach him, which was a shame, but also totally fine - Lachlan didn't fancy being shot.
          It was a disgrace, some of the bystanders said to each other, because they'd of course be blamed for this, and they hadn't even done anything. What idiot would do something so rash?
          No, it was good for them, actually, another bystander seemed to say, but how dare these damn Silverwalkers cross our bridge? (God forbid a body was properly removed from the crime scene, Lachlan thought to himself) - Lachlan couldn't focus on all conversations at once, despite there not even being all that many people.
          He tried to have a glance at the body, but it'd already been mostly taken away. Pity. Lachlan would've liked looking at it to perform an autopsy. He wasn't gonna risk crossing the bridge to just offer that, though - not with hunters quite so distraught, it'd be more trouble than it was worth. This really, really was not his problem (though he'd like it to be), and he needed to lay low enough in this town to be able to afford being nosy, meaning he could only be as such at the right opportunity - which this wasn't.
          He glanced around, just watching as events unfolded, trying to think of what to do exactly with this situation. This Ackerman must be a prominent hunter, for this to cause such outrage on the other side of the bridge. Lachlan had to admit he knew little about what hunters had settled here, or which hunter families there were at all, having refused to learn about them thus far, but he supposed he was open to learning a little, to understand what was happening right now.
          He leaned against a nearby wall, giving his leg a rest.
    yep this is super late
    pretend that i posted this micro update weeks ago okay


    obsessive rage



    𝔢𝔩𝔦𝔞𝔰

    𝔡𝔢 𝔅𝔢𝔞𝔪𝔞𝔫𝔬𝔦𝔯

    𝗩𝗔𝗡𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗬𝗦
    𝖛𝖆𝖒𝖕𝖎𝖗𝖊 • 451 • 𝖘𝖔𝖚𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖓 𝕲𝖗𝖊𝖊𝖓𝖜𝖔𝖔𝖉 (𝕬𝖉𝖗𝖎𝖆𝖓)

    ╘═════ 𖤓 ═════╛




    "Waarom is er minder nieuws van de Ackerman?" Adrian questioned while the both of them made their way out of the forest.
          Montandon appeared around them. The calm outside was almost eery, only a few people being out on the streets. Helias nodded at them when they locked eyes with him.
          "Omdat Genevieve hopeloos is en ik beter iemand anders gestuurd had," Helias replied with a grumble.
          "Mijn eerste gedachte is wel dat ze zouden afspreken buiten jagergebied. Het lijkt me niet verstandig voor haar om hem daar te treffen," Adrian pondered.
          It made Helias raise his eyebrows again as Adrian shook his head.
          "We horen wel weer wat ze te vertellen hebben," Adrian concluded.
          Helias paused for a second, breaking his stride, and inspecting the man besides him suspiciously. "Is er een reden waarom je dat altijd luidop moet doen?" he asked, an impatient edge to his voice. It was not the first time he'd told Adrian to not get ahead of things, and though Helias appreciated his curiosity and was happy to strategise with him when necessary. But, when he had no use for unnecessary comments, like now, Helias preferred the man to keep his mouth shut. Sometimes he wondered why it irked him. Maybe because Adrian, in those moments, started reminding Helias too much of himself. Of his own impatience, his insatiable need for knowledge, for being on top of everything. He hid it all carefully behind his icy, patient exterior. It was easier to keep track of himself like that, as well as of the people around him. Few people got glances beyond his façade, and even then rarely. He preferred to treat them all equally: by being the asshole he was known to be.
          There was nothing Adrian could tell Helias that he hadn't already thought of himself. Hearing it all parrotted back to him was infuriating. "Als ik wil dat je ergens luidop over nadenkt, laat ik het wel even weten," Helias conluded, averting his gaze. He started walking again.

    [ bericht aangepast op 15 mei 2024 - 14:59 ]


    help


    Adrian Vynall

    Vampire ✧ 284 ✧ Southern Greenwood ✧ With Helias

          “Blijkbaar,” Adrian said with raised eyebrows, commenting on Genevieve’s capabilities. Or lack thereof so it seems. “Zeer teleurstellend moet ik toegeven,” Adrian said next while he made a disapproving sound.
          Helias’s disapproval sounded in his voice as he asked if Adrian needed to do that out loud.
          “Macht der gewoonte,” Adrian answered subtly. He guessed he had to be careful where he was treading again today. Adrian had kind of slapped his para down from kind of happy to the foulest mood. It wasn’t like Adrian didn’t regret the news he had to bring, but he also deemed that someone had to do it, so he had taken the task upon himself.
          Adrian wanted to say it was something he had always done as a human. That he still did it because it gave him a kind of grip over his own humanity so he wouldn’t lose himself. Instead he just went: “Mijn excuses,” with one hand over where his heart was situated and a small dip of his head. His other hand, casually rested on the hilt of his rapier, slightly worried Helias might attack him to put him in his place.

          The rest of the walk went by in relative silence. The birds around them did twitter from their hiding places, and the murmuring sound of water kept them company as the two men returned to the Scabs.
          As they made their way to the meeting point where Helias had told Simon and Genevieve to be, the crowd and bustle of the city also became a more prominent sound as they went.
          Upon arrival they waited some time, both of them already a bit later than the hour they had chosen to meet. The bell had already been tolled and the informants were late.
          After waiting a while longer, Adrian spoke, “Ik wist niet dat ze beiden geen tijd konden lezen.” His face was void of any emotion, just stating a fact to put some emphasis on their tardiness. Adrian wasn’t a fan of people who wasted his time like this.


    Are monsters born
    or created?



    Sidera nostra contrahent solem lunamque




    FINN
    27 | SALTY SCALLYWAG | TAMA & TOM

    "Is he a brother from your mother? Or from your father?"
          Finn, not really paying attention to the question, just nodded absentmindedly, fiddling with her empty cup. She wondered again if Reed was okay, or if she should go and find him.
          "Ho, there, fella. I don't know how y'all do things in your country but we don't just raise knives at each other in bars," Tom suddenly made her snap back to the present.
          Finn wildly looked around, as if she'd forgotten where Tama was, and had to hold back from violently jerking her arm away when he tied a piece of string around her wrist.
          "You should keep it around your arm until it falls off," he said seriously. Finn recognised it for what it was; a superstition. "And wash your hair within four sun rises, but never sleep with wet hair. The elders will think you come visit them." Though she had the urge to tell Tama that she didn't care about her uncle or her elders or his crazy spirits, Finn respected his culture too much to go ahead with it. The gesture reminded her of her crew, even though she'd never seen this specific ritual before, or heard about going to sleep with wet hair or anything of the sort. She had, however, learned many other things in the past year, and she had revelled in the beauty of diversity, in the beauty of how different people gave their own spirituality different meaning. She missed them, so much. This small gesture somehow managed to calm her down a bit, also made her a bit sad, nostalgic for better times. She wished she were out at sea again. She also knew that would be the death of her.
          So, instead of snapping at Tama, Finn gave him a wry smile and gave a nod of understanding.
          "There you go, fella. Knew you'd only be protecting Finn from evil Spirits," Tom said helpfully. "Didn't doubt you for a second." He turned back to Finn. "Blessed be. You're also an Ackerman, then. Here I thought I knew no one of importance."
          Finn scoffed. "If you must, I'd rather you know me as Finn. I don't carry my last name with pride." She stared at her empty cup with empty eyes, wishing it were not filled with ale, but with seafoam.



    [ bericht aangepast op 20 mei 2024 - 19:08 ]


    help



    𝔢𝔩𝔦𝔞𝔰

    𝔡𝔢 𝔅𝔢𝔞𝔪𝔞𝔫𝔬𝔦𝔯

    𝗩𝗔𝗡𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗬𝗦
    𝖛𝖆𝖒𝖕𝖎𝖗𝖊 • 451 • 𝖍𝖊𝖆𝖉𝖖𝖚𝖆𝖗𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘, 𝕸𝖔𝖓𝖙𝖆𝖓𝖉𝖔𝖓 (𝕬𝖉𝖗𝖎𝖆𝖓)

    ╘═════ 𖤓 ═════╛



    The Scabs were perpetually being renovated in these last few decades. The barricade on the western border with Hillside didn't really seem to be doing its job, since the buildings behind it were all but a ruinous landscape. Helias wondered how long it would take the Community to break the precarious ceasfire they'd agreed on a couple of months back. Helias added 'reinforcing patrols in a subtle way' to his mental to-do list. He needed more eyes pretty much... everywhere but he couldn't afford to look suspicious, so he'd have to be sneaky about it. Luckily, sneaking was something he excelled at.
          Adrian beside him, Helias made his way to the main HQ building, which was also currently under construction and mostly consisted out of woodwork that could easily be replaced in case of sudden destruction. His small office was lined with bookshelves, barely letting in the light from the one small window. When all of this was over, when he'd solidified his reign in Greenstone and finally managed to make a deal with the Community, he'd have to invest in a bigger office. The current shelfspace could barely contain all of the files and papers and journals and logbooks from the past few decades of living in Greenstone and broader New Amsterdam. Most of his past research, journals and logs were still scattered all over Europe. He'd had no time thus far to recollect any of them, though he mostly missed his library back in Paris. The few books he'd taken along on his journey across the Atlantic were stowed away in his home at the border of the Greenwood. He hadn't been there in a few days, either.
          Helias sorted through the piles of paper on his desk while he and Adrian waited for Simon and Genevieve to come up. He threw an occassional glance at the grandfather clock that was stowed in between two bookshelves, watched the hands move slowly, until Simon and Genevieve were unbearably late. It did little to improve his mood.
          "Ik wist niet dat ze beiden geen tijd konden lezen," Adrian remarked.
          It was well known among his people that Helias bore little patience when it came to starting meetings on time. Simon, and even Genevieve, had never before been this late. No one, except for maybe Nessa, who'd do it to make a point, would ever even dare to be this late. "Er is iets mis," Helias replied, putting the papers back on the desk. He rested his hands on them and inspected Adrian's face. "Fetch Terrence for me, will you?"

    [ bericht aangepast op 20 mei 2024 - 21:30 ]


    help


    ◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈
    ₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪

    𝕋𝔸𝕄𝔸ℕ𝔼ℕ𝔻
    TAMANEND

    ₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪₪
    ◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈⧖◈

    Well, that answer didn't help at all, but then again, she might have just lost her father-figure which would explain why she wasn't in the mood to answer. So Tama let is slide without asking more questions about her family. He did look confused towards Tom though. He had assumed the man to be smarter than this. If he had wanted to threaten his friends, why would he have waited this long? Besides, they were his friends, why would he even want to threaten them in the first place? They even had knifes for the food that was eaten in bars. At least Finn was smart enough to let him do his work.
    "We do not have bars and this knife is for cutting string and plants, not people," he said confused after he was finished, showing the small, three or so inch obsidian blade to Tom. It was clearly a utility blade, not for hunting. The man hunted himself, did he do all his normal work with his large hunting knife? White people had some weird ideas about life, which was only confirmed by the man talking about protecting Finn from evil spirits. He might want to teach Tom some more about life here.
    "Evil spirits?!" Tama exclaimed. "Finns elders are no evil spirits. They are coming to get her uncle and take him him home, but if Finn is not marked, they will get confused and take Finn's soul as well. Her whole family should wear hide strings to make sure their elders don't take more souls than only her dead uncle." It wouldn't surprise him if within a couple of days more people would die just because their soul got taken. Luckily Finn seemed to accept his help, maybe she could teach the rest of her family as well. Tama was surprised when he heard that Finns clan was important here in the village. He hadn't known he was in Ackerman territory, but that was good information to have.
    "It will be alright," Tama said when he saw Finns sad, longing eyes. "Your uncle will go live in the endless fields of the Creator. Sometimes, at night, you can see the bridge that guides everyone home." Not knowing he completely misinterpreted her glance.
    21 ◈ Human ◈ The Salty Scallywag ◈ Tom & Finn
    △▼△▼△



    CELESTE

    GIRARD
    HUNTER • 26 • BLOODBRIGHT BRIDGE • WITH ELIZABETH, REED & MISHA

    Wait until they were summoned, as if they were some sort of housemaids. Waiting wasn’t exactly something she pretended to excel at. She rolled her eyes. “Of-fucking course,” she muttered bitterly, more to herself than to the others. What was the point of being a hunter if you could not even hunt?
          And Reed was right. The sun was particularly bright that morning, as if it wanted to punish the leechers for their crimes and sins during the night. But some of them were old enough to still parade around town as if it were theirs.

          “Whatever it is you two do, it’s best for you two to stick together. Hunters without a partner get picked from the bunch a lot easier by the vermin in the streets,” Reed stated.
          Misha, the man who rarely spoke, suddenly find some words at that. "Why are you not partner?" he asked directly when Reed was done talking, motioning to the two of them. "You are young and is safer for hunting."
          “Seriously?” Celeste raised her eyebrows, irritated. “You never talk and now you suddenly have something to say?” She bit her tongue to not say that Raphael had a partner and was still dead. If the leechers wanted you dead, they would find a way.
          Eliza seemed to be on the same page as her. "If they can get their hands on Raphael, it doesn't even matter if we are with our partners or not. We just have to get our hands on them first before they make another move. I work better alone." She couldn’t even be offended. Them training together was enough for her.
          Celeste merely shrugged and crossed her arms. “I’m doing just fine on my own,” she said stubbornly. She had been doing fine without a partner for a few years now, with no desire to suddenly change that. Though, it rather was that she’d never admit that she wouldn’t be able to handle losing another partner. And Eliza had a point. Even their leaders could die while having a partner. Her foot was still restlessly tapping on the ground, her fingers acting in the same manner on her arm. Those filthy leeches were probably lurking in the shadows while they were just standing around.
    She gestured towards the crowded bridge. “So we’re actually expected to just wait here and do… nothing?” If hunters weren’t so goddamn observant they could try to sneak off, even with all the shit that was going on. If they would, they definitely would receive a scolding at minimum. Not that she had cared about that before. None of the four of them, apart from Misha maybe – the Rus was harder to read than a stone wall – was particularly happy about their current situation. If she were still her teenage self, she would’ve bolted minutes ago already.
          There was one thing that kept on prickling in the back of her mind. “What I find curious,” she started slowly, “is that Raphael’s body wasn’t found until the sun was risen. Isn’t the bridge supposed to have an almost constant patrol?” It seemed near impossible that Raphael had murdered early into the night. His body would’ve been found sooner. And, if the murder had taken place near daybreak, it was more likely that an elder vampire had done the deed. “Are there any hunters missing?” she voiced her concern. Their leader being dead might easily overlook the disappearance of some others.

    THE GIRL HAS ALWAYS BEEN
    HALF GODDESS
    HALF HELL

    [ bericht aangepast op 26 mei 2024 - 14:14 ]


    darling, you can't let everything seem so dark blue



    MADALENA
    BELFIORE
    VAMPIRE • 23/181 • WITH NESSA

    “I never liked you taking money from that toddler anyway,” Nessa said snarkily. This was not the time to tell her friend that Carwen barely paid her anything. Almost more for a lack of her not asking for more, than him not paying it. Though Lena was certain that Carwen with rear up like a horse if she ever were to ask for an increase in pay. She didn’t mind it much. She had more than enough money to make due. It was rather for the joy of it, seeing people come together in the tiny pub. It was a rare moment in which she could completely indulge herself in the human world. A fascination with how they reacted to music.
          “You could sing for me tonight,” Nessa continued to whisper in her ear.
          A shiver ran across her spine, not just because of the the words, but also because of Nessa’s breathe on the skin of her neck. Memories of days of the past flashed by.
          “You know I’ll always sing for you, Nessie,” she said softly. “Maybe I’ll… prepare something special for you, if you’d like.”

    Nessa looked behind them. “Damnit, where is that Vanparys?” All the peacefulness that had just been there, completely disappeared out of her. “He should’ve been here by now, don’t you agree?” Nessa shot her a piercing gaze.
          "Well,” she sighed, “there is no way he hasn’t heard that scream.” Even most of the humans must have heard it. “But I think the Hunters would even shoot him on sight, were he to step on the bridge right now.” Some of them had a rather big temperament on them. The questions did make her ponder where Helias was. “I haven’t seen Adrian or Kat yet either…” Lena bit her lip, staring at the bridge. “It is curious though. The Hunter leader must have led some sort of wound on the attacker but no one has come into the infirmary last night.” And it was only human blood that she could smell, coming from the bridge.

    She rubbed her temples with her free hand – her other arm still tucked into Nessa’s. “Are we going to keep on staring at the bridge for the rest of the day?” Lena sighed. “We have no lack of time in our lives, but this is still a rather boring way of spending it. They’ll be on that bridge for the rest of the day” The bridge was still in a flutter if activity of hunters. “And discussing death is a bit depressing, don’t you think?”
          Rather, it felt as if she were crossing a boundary, looking at people grieving. She could only imagine what the man’s partner must feel. The sadness. It was captivating in the most sorrowful way. Most of her own agony and heartbreak had come from other places than losing someone. Lena tightened her grip on Nessa’s arm, as if to make sure her friend wouldn’t just disappear.
          “Why don’t we hold our own little church service?”

    THE SWEETEST TORTURE
    ONE COULD BEAR


    darling, you can't let everything seem so dark blue


    REED HOLDEN
    ACKERMAN

          ⌖ ⌖ ⌖ ⌖ ⌖
    ⌖ ⌖ ⌖ ⌖ ⌖


    HUNTER ⌖ 27 ⌖ Bloodlight Bridge ⌖ With Misha, Eliza and Celeste

          For a long time in the conversation, Misha had kept quiet. But when Reed was done speaking, he opened his mouth for once. It seems like his partner and himself were on the same wavelength when it came to hunter matters, since Misha asked them why the both of them weren’t partnered up. He spoke of their safety and age.
          Reed just gave a small agreeing nod. He had known hunters who were partnered up that were way older than the pair before them. Usually, they hunted alone or with another pair for a while until someone compatible was found. And both of the ladies were Community hunters, their lone wolf thing didn’t make a lick of sense to Reed. He was sure that when Finn got cleared to hunt again, their family would find her a partner as well. Or she would be assigned to other duos for the time being.

          Eliza had a strong reaction to his words. Reed had tried to keep his own strongest reactions inside, but it obviously hadn’t mattered.
          “We won’t sit around and do nothing. Orders will come through from the main house sooner rather than later. I wouldn’t worry too much about aunt Isa. Next to the fact that she is one tough lady, she’ll have her own personal guard for the time being, I bet,” Reed said sharply.
          His thoughts wandered to his aunt again. She was one of the most temperamental ladies in the Ackerman household. Born Isabella Carneiro, she was one of the hunters from the Portuguese hunter clans. She was about the only woman who had been able to shut his uncle up from time to time. She had also gone with the first settlers to Greenstone. What he remembered most of all, is that getting disciplined by his aunt had been worse than the disciplining his uncle had dished out.
          Eliza wondered if the absence of the vampire had anything to do with a new plot. Reed frowned at the words. He himself had no warm feelings for vampires either, but two attacks in two days? He doubted it.
          “I don’t think there will be a second attack so soon. They’re smart enough to know we’re on high alert right now,” Reed pondered, a smidge of annoyance in his voice. Reed knew he wasn’t the brains a lot, but every hunter was on high alert at the moment. Only a suicidal blockhead would take that fight.
          Finally Eliza answered Misha's question first, saying that they had gotten their hands on uncle Raph and that she worked better alone.
          “Whatever floats your boat, I guess,” Reed said in a standoffish tone. “But the fact that they found uncle Raphael by himself tells me aunt Isa wasn’t nearby.” Reed shrugged. If his aunt had been there, there had been either two corpses or a dismantled murder attempt.

          Celeste on her turn, immediately went for Misha’s throat however, and just scolded him for suddenly speaking. She just ended up parroting Eliza’s last words as well.
          This sparked Reed’s temper more than Eliza’s answer had done and suddenly he was in her face. “Hey, no shitting on Misha. He brought up a valid point. In the end it’s how this community works,” he drawled, getting a little closer to Celeste. Reed took a breath, and ended up back off.
          Celeste did wonder what was expected of them.
          “Wait, don’t wait, it’s whatever,” he snorted as he looked at the both of them. “If you really want to help, go find some witnesses and report them to Juni if they have information,” Reed grumbled as he nervously fidgeted with the knife sheathed at his back.
          “Constant vampire control would be more like it. They deem it their bridge,” Reed sneered while looking at the bridge again. “Nobody is missing as far as I know. I heard this from Young this morning,” he sighed in defeat. He hadn’t learned anything new either, and it annoyed the young hunter to no end.
          “Again, witnesses or wait for the summons. I bet there will be more patrols than usual for a while. Maybe you two can volunteer for the first patrol.”


    Rage, maybe rage
    would lift me up,
    make me stand,
    make me walk—


    Unfortunately for everybody I will keep doing whatever I want


    I am the architect
    of my own destruction


    Sidera nostra contrahent solem lunamque

    T O M      C R A K E

    Human • Butcher • 33 • The Salty Scallywag with Finn and Tama

    Tom seemed to have struck a nerve with Tamanend, who explained that his knife wasn't created to hurt people and that Tom's take on evil spirits was also very, very wrong. Crake liked Tama a lot, and he was genuinely interested in the other mans culture and life. He hadn't meant any harm with his words, he'd only wanted to try to understand but it seems he missed the mark entirely. Somehow that made him unreasonably sad. He knew that to be loved what to be understood, that's what his wife had told him all the time. He wouldn't say he loved Tama, but he did want to treat him with the same respect as he treated white folk.
          Tama's words about Finns uncle going to the fields of the Creator, brought a sense of comfort to Toms mind. He only wished he could see that bridge that brought his wife home once. In Christianity, Tom had learned in Church the past months, that was something similar. Heaven was like Tama's endless fields and that bridge were the angels guiding your soul to the Lord. He had no doubt the kindest angel and softest cherub of them all had guided his Delilah and Morwenna home.
          He barely heard Finns answer about her last name. The realization that he still had a hunt to finish before church, hit Tom all of the sudden.
          He cleared his throat and started amassing his things. ''Finn Not-Ackerman,'' he said with a smile. ''Mr. Tama.'' He nodded at his friend. ''Thank you for sharing this drink with me and joining me to break the fast.'' He stood up and threw the bag over his shoulder with the bow and arrow, and took the spear in his hand. ''I'll be on my way then, unless anyone wants to join me on this hunt?''



    kindness is never a burden.

    (cat)

    [ bericht aangepast op 11 juni 2024 - 16:11 ]


    it's not you, it's me. i have standards.