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8:07pm Dec 27 2012
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Normal User
Posts: 827
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Plot It has been several centuries since the destruction of the tower, and since then Babylon has gone through many changes; from different languages to mythical creatures and now centuries later, magic has come into Babylon. There has been so many changes in Babylon that each generation has started to forget about the tower of Babel and the importance of it. The tower of Babel was home to an important ob
ject, of which, is vital to the survival of Babylon and it's people. Although, with the lack of interest and protection of the ruined tower, this ob
ject has been carelessly forgotten as well. The Pandora box. This box contains diseases and illnesses that has the power to destroy Babylon and more. What happened to the box, you ask? It has shattered! Pieces of the Pandora box has been scattered throughout the realm, being very difficult to find. No one knows who has scattered them, nor knows who has broken it in the first place, but the people of Babylon do know that if it isn't pieced together in time, they will all die. Darkness and despair has settled into Babylon and everyone needs a shimmer of hope to lead the way. Though all hope may seem lost, the brighter side of the situation is that it is time of magic and magician meaning; Babylon candles! Babylon candles might have the luxury of traveling by the speed of light, and taking you where you want to go with one simple though, but finding the pieces of the Pandora box will be tricky to locate, since, everyone has forgotten all about it. Elders would be the only ones to know what the Pandora Box looks like, however unfortunately their ages has made them the first victims to undergo the wrath of the Pandora box. And with that being said, Babylon will need a group of gallant magicians to find the pieces and reconstruct them, though instead they got a group of magicians apprentices'. But can the young magicians find the pieces before Babylon withers away? They will need not only their magic but the power of Babylon candles. For you never know what demonic creature will try to stop them from succeeding. ~~~
Alright, that's the plot. I sort of expanded it a little, if that's okay? If you want anything changed just let me know. Anyways, yeah, time for the bios! We agreed on two characters per person, correct? I will have my bios up later tonight or early tomorrow.
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7:09am Dec 28 2012
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Normal User
Posts: 1,557
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/subscribing
I'll get mine up later as well.
~rabbah
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3:34am Dec 29 2012
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Normal User
Posts: 76
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Also subscribing ^^;; Too late for my brain to think at the moment. I can do a bio outline if it's all good though.
Name: Age: Gender: Appearance: Personality: Magic Specialty: ((a type of magic that s/he is particlarly good at or faund of)) History: ((optional I suppose, but perhaps a quick story about how they became a magician's apprentice would be good here)) Other:
If there's anything I forgot please feel free to just add it. One more quick double checking thing though (sorry!), what time period were you two thinking? Just wondering cause of the word centuries, wanted to make sure we were all on the same page. In my head it was after the destruction of the Tower of Babel but still in ancient-ish times, so traditional clothing, names, and such would be present in a very non-global world. I'm also fine if it's set more modern, I just wanted to make sure we were thinking the same things. The city of Babylon would be placed in modern day Iraq if it was still a city today just so you know. |
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4:06am Dec 29 2012
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Normal User
Posts: 827
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The bio skeleton looks good. Sorry I haven't posted my bios, I have been very busy. I promise to have them up by tomorrow. We are making 1 male and 1 female, right? Unless one of you wants to make your characters with the same gender. And as for the time period, I was also thinking about ancient-ish time for the setting, nothing modern day. I just didn't know when exactly the tower got destroyed so I just used the word centuries to express the change. Maybe the word generations would be better? |
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3:22pm Dec 29 2012 (last edited on 8:57pm Jan 2 2013)
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Normal User
Posts: 827
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Name: Elpis Gwenore Age: 17 Gender: Female
Appearance: Ash blonde hair tumbles down her tall and graceful figure, finally stopping at her waist. She doesn't maintain her hair so it lay, unpleasantly in knots. Her hair looks pathetic and dull compared to her bright and lively blue eyes and her fair complexion. However, by the insisting of her brother, Elpis wears a golden colored, braided-yarn, that she wraps twice around her head in form of a head band, trying to give her hair a little more life. Elpis also wears a cream colored stola that is floor length. Just under her bust a similar golden colored, braided-yarn, ties to make the stola a little more fitting, although it isn't visible considering the fabric droops down and hides it. The stola makes its way up and over her shoulders, not hesitating to even consider covering the rest of her arm, as it is content with just her shoulders. However, as simple and plain as her dress may sound, Elpis also wears a palla that she wraps around her body. It is a royal blue color and under one arm it goes and over the other it climbs. The palla Elpis wears goes down a little below her knees, so the cream colored stola isn't completely hidden away. As for her shoes, she wears sandals that have golden braided-yarn that keeps her feet in the shoe.
Personality: Elpis is what you would call an air-head. She acts out of impulse and always blames it on her "souls intuition". She also talks out of impulse, of which she blames the lack of truth in the world. I guess you could call her blunt and straight forward since she always speaks her emotions and thoughts rather than keeping them to herself. Her impulsive and blunt personality has caused a lot of troubles in the past and is sure to in the future; people would yell at her or try to do harm to her. It is always her brother who pulls her out of these situations and keeps her from harm. However, it isn't always others that cause her injuries. You see, Elpis is a very clumsy girl, she trips over the littlest ob[injection]jects and falls quickly, not attempting to catch herself until it is too late. When she falls and gets injured, her thoughts of the pain are usually light. Time will heal them, is always her response, leaving Akakios skeptical and worried. You could also call Elpis a little selfish for always making her brother worry and watch over her, not even trying to tame her impulsive personality. However, she has her own ways for thanking him and expressing her gratitude; she is very serious with him when she needs to be. Her effervescent personality disappears when she talks to her brother and is around him. This ways of gratitude may seem silly or useless, but Akakios appreciates it greatly. Aside from that, Elpis has an untiring avidity to become a great magician. She dreams big and holds nothing back. Magic Specialty: Elpis controls her magic through rhapsody, and to be even more specific, a flute. The flute is fueled by starlight, it is strongest at night when the stars shine throughout the sky, but still works during the day, where starlight isn't visible but is still there. This form of magic is just like a magician with a wand, there are certain spells that magicians use in different situations. The same goes for Elpis and her flute, there are certain tunes that are needed in various situations. Elpis has been learning about each tune through an old and weather beaten, leather bound book, however it is hard for her since she plays by ear and not written down notes.
History: From a very early age Elpis has been playing the flute, not knowing that magic was sleeping within. Her mother wanted nothing more than for her daughter to be a normal child, though she knew that magic ran through her veins. Her mother too had magic running through her, but she gave up that path long ago and fell in love with a man without the knowledge of magic. However, the man, Elpis's father, died while Elpis was still a baby. Elpis's mother was heartbroken and vowed to never have Elpis or Akakios know about magic. Her mother hid the flute away, so none of her kids would stumble upon it, although, there was no stopping destiny. Elpis found the flute at an early age and started to play it, simply out of curiosity which later grew to love. Her mother was terrified, but it was no use to try to separate the two, for they would always be reunited. Her mothers fear was sustain, for she knew that only if Elpis played among the night sky would the magic be truly awaken. So her mother turned to Akakios and told him to watch over his sister very well and to make sure that she was in bed at night, for danger was close by. The boy did as he was told, and Elpis grew up, only playing her flute in the sun. She lived a happy life full of music and love, until one day her mother grew very ill and on her death bed, her mother told her everything, from her father to the flute. That story was her last words. So at the age of 13, Akakios and Elpis set off to Babylon and became apprentices. It was hard for her to find magicians with the knowledge of magic through rhapsody, but she soon found a old magician who had books and books, filled with magic. And from there she learned.
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Name: Akakios Gwenore Age: 18 Gender: Male
Appearance: Akakios very much resembles his sister in many cases. They both have a fair complexion, a rounded face, and bright blue eyes, although his has a darker glow about them, as if eyes were truly the windows to the soul. However, it's hard to notice the dark glow that linger in his eyes when his hair is a bright ash blonde. And though it is indeed an ash blonde, it is so much livelier than his sisters. Unlike Elpis's hair which has grown to be very long, Akakios's hair only falls and inch or two above his shoulders. As for his attire, he wears a long tunic-like top that runs down to his knees. This cream colored tunic is nicely fitted to his body, not being overly baggy or way too tight. At the neck of his tunic, where it starts to fan up a little, being as a collar, there is royal blue embroidery of not much im[injection]portance than just design. To match the royal blue embroidery, Akakios wears a loosely made pair of pants that is also the color of royal blue. As for his shoes, Akakios also wears sandals with golden braided-yarn that keeps his feet in the shoe, just only a more masculine style. Personality: Ever since he was little Akakios has watched over his sister, and as time went on he has grown very protective over his her. He takes care of her mistakes and is always the one she leans for whatever reason. Taking care of her would seem like such a hassle, but Akakios has grown to love it. They truly are inseparable. However, their personalities are way different. Akakios is short tempered and is always serious and by far, he is the most mature one, despite his temper. It would seem as if Akakios always has a plan and always instantly knows what to do next, though he calls it common sense. He has very little humor, although some of the serious things he says, some people find funny. This really ticks him off, that people don't take him seriously, that is why he is grateful when Elpis can find it in herself to act serious around and to him. However, this doesn't mean that he finds his sisters carefree attitude annoying, the truth is, is that he likes watching her have fun, it makes him happy to know that the people he cares about are happy themselves. You see, Akakios may seem as stiff as a rug and lacking a heart, but he isn't really. If you listen carefully, it is quite easy to understand him. You would see that he is very passionate and loving over magic, just like his sister is, and they both dream big and hold nothing back. Magic Specialty: Nothing special. His source of magic is by casting spells. The huge leather bound book that looks carelessly thrown together (that you will never find him without) is a spell book, with various different spells, more than half the spells in the book are not to Akakios's knowledge. History: He heard his mothers story on her death bed, and his whole world started to make sense. From the time Elpis discovered the flute his mother had appointed him as her guardian (in the child Akakios's point of view). She always made sure that he watched over her very well so that she wouldn't get into danger. Supposedly this is how he came to be very protective over his sister. Akakios had always wondered why he had to watch over his sister, and why his mother always looked so frightened when Elpis played her flute, especially in the afternoon. It wasn't until a year or two after Elpis found the flute did Akakios discover something magical. A leather bound book that had strange writings in it and pictures that explained the writings. Akakios was fascinated, but was hesitant to tell anyone about his discovery. He was also hesitant to attempt to speak the strange writings that had a familiar alphabet, but as the months went by, Akakios attempted to read the contents of the book. It took him many tries to even come close to getting one of the spell right, and took him a little over a year to memorize and conquer one spell. After Akakios learned that it was magic he was doing, he was delighted, however he was still skeptical as to why he had to watch over his sister so well. But as the years went on and he had learned conquered more spells, in secret, he had an inkling as to why his mother looked so frightened when Elpis played the flute. It wasn't till her last words did Akakios truly understand. And when the time for mourning was over, Akakios told his sister everything about his discovery, and that's when they set off to Babylon, to become greater in their passion.
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8:17pm Dec 29 2012 (last edited on 12:16pm Dec 30 2012)
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Normal User
Posts: 76
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Name: Khalil Al-Rashid Age: 18 Gender: Male
Appearance: Khalil has long black hair that he keeps braided at all times. The braid falls just above the waist of his tan, loose, and slightly puff pants. On top of his head the boy wears a tightly wrapped white turban to protect his head and dark eyes from the harsh sun. If you were to roll up the long sleeves of his orange cotton shirt you would find black ink scrawled down vertically down his forearms. The tattoos of different Arabic phrases continue up his arms and more in circle tanned upper arm. His favorite tattoo however is the one that is spread across his shoulders and reads "God is an all consuming fire" in Arabic. Over his shirt Khalil wears a red vest that matches the sash tied around the top of his tan pants. He prefers to go barefoot, but Khalil does own a pair of brown sandals that he uses when traveling.
Personality: Khalil loves life and enjoys living it to the fullest, but he really only thinks about himself. If he doesn't see what's in it for him, he probably won't go along with the plan. Mostly what he looks for is the fun he can get out of it, if it doesn't sound like a good time he won't go.
Magic Specialty: Khalil has the ability to speak the language of fire and control it when he speaks with it. He cannot create fire with his power however, only control the fire that already exists around him.
History: The only person Khalil cares for besides himself is his Magic Master. His Master found him when he was a young boy trying to use his young magic to earn money as a street performer so that he could feed himself. Needless to say, he wasn't very good. Khalil's parents abandoned him because one day when he had gotten angry at his siblings he accidentally burnt the whole house down. They had never seen magic before and thought he was possessed by a demon. They left him there in the streets of Babylon to fend for himself. So when his Master found him, he took Khalil in and showed him the proper way to use his skills. When the sickness started to spread, his Master quickly became infected. Other: N/A
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Name: Zarah Hakimi Age: 16 Gender: Female
Appearance: Zarah's hair is nothing but a mess of dark curls. No matter how many times she tries to control it, it will never listen. To try and tame it slightly, she keeps is under a long, cloth headpiece that is held unto her head by a gold band with circular jangles hung to it around her forehead. The headpiece is made out of the same type of sheer material as the top la
yer of her purple dress. The second solid light-blue la
yer falls all the way to her feet whereas the sheer veers off at an angle at her waist. Around her waist is a belt of more golden jangles. Between her many jangles and the bangles on her wrists, Zarah could never sneak up on anyone, you could hear her from a mile away. At her elbows, the sheer sleeves stop being form fitting and open up so that they trail almost to the ground. Her feet are encased in a pair of purple fabric shoes that help keep her light on her feet.
Personality: Zarah is a natural older sister to anyone she meets, even if they're older than she is. She enjoys taking care of people and calling them "child". She will always do anything that is in her power to help those that she finds dear to her. She has a love for all types of life, and tends to consider some of her plants even as her "children" as well.
Magic Specialty: Zarah is from a gypsy family that practices earth magic. She can help plants grow at incredible speeds and even get them to move slightly. Zarah also likes to carry around a deck of Tarot cards that she has some skill in reading them.
History: Magic runs in Zarah's family. She knew from a young age that she had the ability to help things grow because, well, so did everyone else she knows. As a member of a gypsy family, she and her company travel from city to city looking for work, but never having anywhere permanent to call their own. They had traveled to Babylon when the sickness started to hit thinking that some of their members that were skilled healers would be able to help out.
Other: N/A |
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12:17pm Dec 30 2012
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Normal User
Posts: 76
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((Edited!))
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12:52pm Dec 30 2012 (last edited on 11:16pm Dec 30 2012)
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Normal User
Posts: 827
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[[blech, sorry for not finishing my bios. I will get it done with in the next few days. Even though its winter break my English teach is making us do work :(
EDIT: I meant Winter Break D: I keep doing that. Even when I was at school I would say spring break, when it was clearly winter outside, sorry I am such a failure!]]
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5:36pm Dec 30 2012 (last edited on 8:49pm Jan 1 2013)
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Normal User
Posts: 1,557
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[[Spring break? :D ]]
Name~ Shabti Roe
Gender~ Male
Age~ 17
Appearance~ Shabti has short, dark brown hair that has a mind of its own. His skin is nicely tanned, which he is proud of. He wears light-colored clothes most of the time. He has worn a bronze bangle on his left wrist since he was six, and hasn't taken it off once. He's grown into it over the years to the point he can't get it off unless he snaps or cuts the bangle off.
Magic Specialty~ Shabti has the ability to talk to shadows. All he has to do is go up a wall or something with a shadow on it and just talk to it. The shadows reply to him his his mind. Shabti can't control them, but he can ask shadows to do something for him nicely, and they usually comply.
Personality~ For someone who is surrounded by shadows most of the time, Shabti is quite lively. He's usually smiling and optimistic about most situations. He keeps a normal sleeping pattern that involves waking up around six-thirty a.m. and going to sleep at nearly nine every night. He likes consistency, and he will get irritated with abnormalities.
History~ He had been able to communicate with shadows ever since he was a child. His parents had thought he was insane by the way he held conversations with the walls, but they tried to ignore the quirk and nodded whenever their son said he was talking to the shadows. As Shabti grew up, he started to use his abilities to good use. He would ask the shadows to go around the city he lived in and gather information before reporting back to him. With the knowledge he gained, Shabti sold the information to others. His parents, not amused with his abilities, ended up sending him to be apprenticed in another city.
***
Name~ Kah Wignt
Gender~ Female
Age~ 18
Appearance~ Kah has waist-long black hair that she keeps in a braid. She hates how long it is, but she thinks she's more attractive with longer hair, so she bares with it. She has pretty hazel eyes. Kah files her nails daily to keep them short and smooth.
Personality~ Kah is very confident in her abilities and feels that she knows everything. She has a tendency to be wrong about most things, but she tries to just pass it over.
Magic Specialty~ Kah has the ability to be lucky. Though it's not really a power she can control, it still affects the world around her. If she plays a guessing game, she almost always guess right. If Kah needs to buy eggs and doesn't have enough money for them, there will happen to be a sale on that day. Her 'powers' have a tendency to turn itself off whenever the situation is im[injection]portant, like if she's trying to hide from bandits, she'll run into every ob[injection]ject available that has the possibility of making a loud noise.
History~ Kah was born into an average family. She was the oldest out of three brothers and one sister. She lived on the outskirts small town where nothing really happened, milking the family's single cow and walking into town to buy supplies once a week. Her luck ability started to appear when she was around thirteen, and ended up running into someone who offered to take her to a city where she could learn how to 'control' her abilities when she was sixteen. She, knowing what a good idea was when it slapped her in the face, agreed and moved to the city.
[[rabbah hates bios :c]]
~rabbah
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2:29am Jan 1 2013
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Normal User
Posts: 827
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[[I meant Winter Break D: I keep doing that. Even when I was at school I would say spring break, when it was clearly winter outside, sorry I am such a failure!
I finished part of Akakios's appearance and all of Elpis's. I shall have the rest done tomorrow!]]
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5:18pm Jan 1 2013
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Normal User
Posts: 827
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[[Ah, I am finally done :) What a relief. Sorry, I got carried away with my bios xD but anyways, I hope you guys had a great new years!]] |
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5:20pm Jan 1 2013 (last edited on 8:49pm Jan 1 2013)
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Normal User
Posts: 1,557
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asdf I'm not done yet. I'll start working on finishing it now >.<
[edit] ack, I've finished (sort of).
~rabbah
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10:28pm Jan 1 2013
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Normal User
Posts: 76
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((Yay! I'm excited. Anyone imparticular want to start or is it up for grabs?)) |
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8:37am Jan 2 2013
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Normal User
Posts: 827
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[[Eh, it doesnt matter to me. I about to go to school, so if no one post by this afternoon, I will.]]
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7:29pm Jan 2 2013 (last edited on 8:15pm Jan 3 2013)
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Normal User
Posts: 827
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[[Sorry for the delay. I forgot I was having a friend over after school, and she just now left. I still have some homework to do, so if either of you want to post your intros go ahead. If not, then I am hoping I will have it up later tonight. If no one posts their intro before me, I will edit this with my intro~]]
Babylon was once a place of fortune and grace, of power and knowledge, but what has come of Babylon now? It seems as if the people of Babylon (Babylonians?) are cursed or put under a great spell, of which Elpis can only dream of wielding. However, the power and spread of illnesses has grown to be unstoppable. Is there no cure? Are the superiors and the wise not doing anything to try to stop this madness? The people of Babylon are left in the dark, they have little knowledge of the past, for they gave little interest in learning. It's the old and the wise that are said to know the most, though most of them have fallen victim to this sudden plague.
This is the story, the tale, that has spread all over Babylon and beyond. Elpis has heard her share of words and stories in life, though none of them can compare to this one. For this story is true, this story is her life. As depressing and hopeless as the situation may sound, Elpis has some hope still shining though her. The people of Babylon, however, have began to speak as if all hope was lost. Elpis gets really annoyed when people start to talk so wary, and when she hears the dread and lost hope in their voice, she usually stride right up to them and speaks her mind. But today was different. Today, Elpis wasn't going to stop for no one. You see, Iros, the siblings 'teacher', had called specially for the two of them to come in the shop at the break of dawn. Their training and lessons usually started at noon, so curiosity sparked at his request.
Half an hour before dawn, the two set off. They made their way down a dusty dirt road. The dim lighting allowed Akakios to be even more cautious of his little sisters safety, so as a precaution he laid a hand on her shoulder and stayed close by her side. There had been many times during the day when a man would shamelessly walk up to Akakios or his sister and try to beg them for food or money. This man would usually be one of the "sickly"; those who have been suffering from the plague going around and lost their jobs because people feared that they too might get contaminated. Akakios knew that if people could waltz up boldly during the daylight they were bound to do worse in the dark. However, there was a strange comfort between the two, caused by their ability to do magic.
As they turned left on a fork in the road, Akakios could see the dim light a ways away and the image of old Iros came to mind. On this chilly morning, why in the world would an ancient old man be out alone as he waited for his two visitors? A small fear struck Akakios, he looked down at his sister and realized that she was looking up at him. They both sensed that something was wrong. Slowly Akakios gave a nod to his sister and they broke out in a run. Elpis's reason for such worry was because she had grown to love Iros, or Teacher as she calls him, as if he were her grandfather. As for Akakios on the other hand, feared and worried because over the course of the four years they have lived in Babylon, he has become quite protective over Iros, as he is with his sister.
Panting and out of breath, the two sibling finally reached Iros's fading light. Dawn had just started to spread the warmth of her touch over Babylon, so the need for candle light was no more. "Teacher!" Elpis said in a voice, way too cheerful for the time of day. She walked up to Iros and embraced him in a hug. Akakios could see Iros's hesitation in returning the embrace, but Elpis did not notice. Akakios just nodded to Iros, his way of greeting.
"Child I would not stand so close, for I fear by night fall I will have also fallen victim to the horrors that has befallen Babylon." Iros's voice was steady and not at all afraid, but Akakios's eyes slightly widened, and Elpis drew back fast.
Elpis was blinded by the tears that welcomed themselves in her eyes. She brought up a hand over her mouth to hide her trembling lips, and after a while she spoke, her words broken up by sobs, "How? Can - I - Do - Anything - To - Help." She held up a wooden box with a handle on it, showing the old man what she meant. Inside the box was her beloved flute. Elpis knew that she was powerless against the plague, but it was always worth a try.
With a careful touch, Akakios put his arm around Elpis and pulled her close to him as if he was bracing her for the words that were bound to come. And sure enough, they came, "Child, don't fret, I have lived a long life full of wisdom and adventure, of knowledge and strength, my time has come." Iros's voice was soft and gentle, he answered her in such a calming way, but also answered her question without harshly saying that there was nothing that she could do. But still, Iros must have seen the sadness that lingered in her eyes, for he continued, "Child, the sooner you accept my departure from this world, the sooner you can fulfill the task I am about to grant you. Please, please, child, if you want to remember me longer and keep me with you longer, accept this task I have for you, for both of you. Now come in, come in! Don't be strangers, I have quite a bit to tell you." And with that, Elpis was no longer blinded by tears and her huge smile was once again lighting up her face. Since she was now steady Akakios released her.
They welcomed themselves in and took a seat. Iros handed both of the children a piece of paper with black in scrawled all over it. Names, four other names to be exact. "Now what I am about to tell you, you keep to yourselves, alright?" The siblings nodded curiously. "Good. Now, where to start, where to start?" Iros pondered on the thought for a while before he threw his hands up in the air as if he lost a battle that was fairly won. He turned to the youth, his dulled black eyes looked sternly at both of them as he spoke, "This task, if you chose to accept, will be a test of courage and will power and when the task is finally over, you will come out being great magicians, maybe even wizards, I am sure of it."
This was Iros's way of being witty and trying to persuade the kids on accepting, knowing that they both strive to be great magician. Thus he continued his proposal, "Now then, the names that mark the paper you hold, those names will be the kids who will partake on this journey with you. You will all help each other out and hopefully in the end, you will save Babylon. You see, ever since this...plague started, a lot of the elders of Babylon have secretly been coming together and meeting to consult the matter at hand. We have debated many times, and argued about how and why these dreadful incidents have fallen upon us, but we have finally came to an agreement. It is believe that in the Tower of Babels, that had gotten destroyed many years ago, contained a powerful ob[injection]ject. One that holds great evils, and if in the wrong hands, could destroy the world. So the Pandora Box, as it is known as, was kept safe in the tower, for the tower was so huge and strongly protected that it was nearly impossible to get a hold of. However, the Tower got destroyed, so the protection vanished leaving the Pandora Box vulnerable. And as time went on, people started to care less for the tower until it was almost completely forgotten. We, the elders, think that someone has taken the Pandora Box and smashed it, spreading chaos all over Babylon, along with spreading the pieces all about. We think that this person intends on destroying the world! It really has us frightened. We spent several days trying to come up with someone who can save us all, can save Babylon from perish. Then an idea came along that we should use our youth, the less likely to fall victim to this plague in the allotted time that we have. The elders have carefully observed the youth for days, even weeks, determining the children that will embark on this gallant journey. And I am proud to say that you two, my apprentices, have been chosen. Now I know this is a lot to take in, and I am sorry for the short notice, but I don't have much time. So, Child," He looked at Elpis, his face has grown pale, the hours have already ticked away. "Child," He looked at Akakios, "Would you do me the honor and accept. Please children." He glanced at both of them and awaited their answer.
For a long while the siblings sat in silence. Akakios's face showed no emotion as he pondered his options, meanwhile Elpis's face showed sheer delight. Her blue eyes were as lively as ever, and sparkled in the morning sun that shone through a nearby window. "Oh Teacher!" She cried, in that same cheerful voice. "If that is what you wish, then that is what I shall do!" Like usual, Elpis was being dramatic and bubbly, but when Akakios chimed in, her emotions fled as she respectivly listened to what he had to say, "Someone has to protect Elpis, I will too go." He said with a sigh and a nod.
Iros's face lifted into a smile, he was almost as joyous as Elpis, "Oh wonderful! I have taught you well, you two, so don't you worry about a thing, here," Iros got up and frantically started to shuffle through his messy shop where he also lives. Then with a relief sigh, he pulled out a basket, "Now here, children." He said opening up the lid of the basket to show the siblings the content. "Babylon candles, the fastest way to travel is by starlight." Yes, Akakios and Elpis already knew that. In all the magic stores they sold these, although they have never seem quite as much in one place before. "Be careful with these, and don't go through them too quickly, you never know when you might need them most, and you certainly don't know when you will ever get them again after this batch, remember, Babylon is withering." Iros was speaking with such a light and happy tone that it was hard to feel the sorrows that have been building up in Babylon. "Okay now off you go. You should probably find those other children on that paper I gave both of you. I am not sure whether or not they have heard the news yet, but if they haven't be sure to explain to them like I did you. Now here, here, Akakios, take the basket. Yes, see you can hold your spell book and the basket at the same time. Now Elpis, here." Her eyes grew wide, but not enough to match her excitement. Iros had given Elpis his most prized possession, of which he was sure that it was the only one of its kind. Iros had given her a book ti[injection]tled Rhapsody. It wasn't a thick book like her brothers, but it had enough. "Take care now, I shall she you both in a better place one day."
With that, they were kicked out of the shop, not even able to say one word through Iros ramblings. Elpis and Akakios started to walk, the morning sun blazing on the twos fair skin. Silence was lingering between them, but the gears in their heads were working fiercely and nosily as they tried to comprehend all that just happened. It felt like a dream, so surreal. Their journey was about to begin.
[[Sorry, I kind of combined the two of them into one intro. I promise I wont do it in the future, I just thought it would be easier since they were together. And I apologize that it gets very jumbled together at the end. I was short on time.]]
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7:40pm Jan 3 2013
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Posts: 827
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7:52pm Jan 3 2013 (last edited on 7:54pm Jan 3 2013)
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Normal User
Posts: 76
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((You will have to forgive my delay. I started typing this earlier today and then one of my siblings exited it by mistake when I was almost at the end so I had to start all over again T.T))
The turnout wasn't as good as it usually was. Khalil was standing in the middle of the market place with maybe half a dozen other people scattered throughout the city center. He twirled his lighted batons high in the air a few more times trying to get someone to pay attention to him. It was no good however, people weren't sticking around to watch like they did before the sickness started to spread.
With a sigh the young man waved one hand over his batons, muttering softly, quickly the flames died. He slipped them into a tube that held a few more of his batons. He slipped the tube over his shoulders and started the long walk home. Since there were no people out today he figured that he could at least go home and start helping with dinner. Khalil lived with his magic master on the outskirts of the city. On a busy market day it could take him an hour to make the journey home through the crowds. Recently it has been taken him only a little more than a half hour.
"Master!" he called as he entered the small home that they shared. "I'm back. Is there anything I can do to help?"
It was only after he had hung up his bag and spent a few minutes tidying up that Khalil realized that his master had not answered. Looking around the room he noticed that the fire he had lit earlier that morning had died in the hearth, that the large black pot that they used to make soup had nothing in it, that in fact it looked as if nothing had been moved since he had left for market.
"Master!" Khalil cried as he dashed for the back room that they shared for their bedroom. "No, no, no, no..."
The old man lay on his bed, his skin yellowed and moaning slightly. His forehead was so hot that it could burn one's skin to touch it. The sheets around him and his clothes were damp from the sweat dripped off all parts of his body. It didn't make any sense. Just yesterday he was happy and healthy, telling Khalil about a meeting of magicians that they were going to attend together. The young man kissed his master's warm forehead, whispering, "Hold on," before running out the door again.
"Help! Please! Someone!" he yelled banging on every door he could find as he ran back to the direction of the market. Half way there he kicked off his sandals annoyed by how they were slowing him down. Just outside the market there was a caravan of wagons that were covered in different and fun colored fabric. Several people were walking back and forth from the various wagons. Khalil skidded to stop in front of the caravan, gasping for air.
"Please..." he said softly while heaving. "Help..."
A young girl with a head full of curls noticed the poor boy and made her way over to him. She leaned down slightly so that she would be at eye level with his doubled over form. Lightly she patted the boy's back, cooing as she did so, "What's wrong, my child?"
"Help... My master... He has fallen ill. Please come." Without waiting for an answer, Khalil grabbed the girl's wrist and began running back in the direction he just came, with her in tow. Together they ran through the empty streets, their feet making loud slapping sounds against the stone roadways.
Khalil burst through the front door of his home and dragged the girl with him to the back room. As soon as she walked in the room, the girl understood what plagued the older man. She knelt down at his bed side, feeling his forehead and wiping sweat from his face.
"I cannot heal him," she told the boy that had brought her here sadly. "My family is trying to figure out a cure, but so far we have had no luck. Perhaps if you bring him back to my caravan we can help him more. I can go back and ask someone to help carry him."
"No," Khalil replied sharply. "I can do it."
He bent down and carefully helped his master sit up. With a little bit of a struggle the boy was able to situate the old man unto his back. He nodded to the door and he and the girl left the house much slower than they had come. They made the whole trip in almost complete silence. It was only when the caravan was in sight again, that the girl spoke up.
"My name is Zarah, by the way."
"Khalil," he told her. |
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4:30pm Jan 4 2013 (last edited on 7:32pm Jan 4 2013)
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Posts: 1,557
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[[Sorry for the lateness >.< Should our characters be smushed together, or can we have them separate?]]
"The humans around here are dropping like flies." A shadow whispered in Shabti's ear. He was leaning against a wall in the market place. Usually, he told the shadows not to communicate with him if he was in such a public place, but few people had swarmed the streets in a while, so he thought it would be fine. Shabti eyed a young girl admiring a flashy necklace set on a blanket near him. The girl was a thief; Shabti had seen her snatch items under merchant's noses multiple times without the owners bl[injection]inking once. He figured she was using magic in some way, but it wasn't like he was a pro at telling what was magic and what wasn't.
Shabti decided to reply to the loyal shadow hovering on the wall next to him. "By what cause?" People died all the time; the teen didn't think that it was anything special. No one would ever buy to learn that their fellow Babylonians were kicking the bucket. Now, if it was because of bandits or poisoned mild, that was another story...
"Illness. The humans have died from a plague. I am unaware of what started the sickness. Some of the recent deaths have been magicians." Magicians dieing? That was interesting. Shabti rarely got word of that happening, and when he did, it was of natural causes. People with magic in their blood were supposed to be more resistant to diseases than those without. Either magic was slipping from the world, or the sickness going around was magical. Shabti couldn't see any other reasons why magicians were getting sick.
"Really now? Anyone I know?" Shabti asked. The thief girl had moved away from the necklace and over to a booth selling plump fruit. The owner of the booth had turned around to yell at a child who had been running around. The girl snatched two red fruits and walked away. The owner stopped yelling at the child and went back to manning his booth. The man didn't notice the disappearance of the two fruit. Unsurprising. People were so unobservant.
"Not personally. One or two Masters have died. Iros is infected." The shadow reported. Shabti tried to remember who Iros was. The name sounded familiar, but the teen couldn't remember who he was. The shadow obviously knew him, but that didn't mean much.
A few people in the marketplace were watching Shabti. They were probably worried about him. That wasn't unusual, being that the teen had been standing against the wall for a while now, and he seemed to be talking to himself. The shadows weren't invisible to people, but talking to them was like saying he was talking to a ghost. People just didn't expect shadows to be entities of their own. "Alright. Thanks for telling me. You may leave; go and see if you can get any more information about what is going on."
The shadow whispered goodbye and left. Sheti pushed himself off the wall and walked through the market. He left quickly enough, and headed home.
~~~
Kah forced herself not to smile, looking down at the three overturned cups. Her eyes flicked up to the man in front of her, a smug smirk stuck on his face. He was new in this place, unaware of the pla[injection]yers to watch out for. Kah had never seen his face before, which was alright because people came and went from this street, one of the back alleys to the east of the city. What had interested Kah was the fact that he didn't look away when she glanced at him while passing. In this street, making eye contact was a challenge.
All of the other men and women sitting on the ground or sitting on dirty chairs recognized Kah as the girl who just about always won. They would rather avoid losing a few coins than trying to best her. The new guy, though, obviously wasn't warned about her. He wanted play a match with her. There was no way Kah was going to decline the challenge, it had been a while since she had played any luck games. Her master had suggested (ordered) her to let go of them a few months ago, not that she had actually listened in the beginning. Her master had managed to introduce something else to use her luck on, though, so she hadn't been around this street in a while.
"You wanna play, girly?" The man asked. He had a slur to his voice that Kah didn't like. "The game's not too hard; you've got a one-in-three chance of winning." The man showed her a small marble that he then placed under one of the cups.
"I don't have any coin on me if I lose." Kah lied. She always kept coin on her, just in case she wanted to buy or bet on something. The man glanced her over.
"That bracelet will do." He said.
"And if I win?" Kah asked, stepping closer. She glanced over at the other people in the alley. They were minding their own business for the most part, but those who knew her were watching closely.
The man smiled a dark grin that Kah was familiar with. It was the smile of someone who thought they were taking advantage of someone and was pleased because of it. "Coin. A whole bag full." He nodded to a small coin pouch. It was bulging. Kah doubted that it was filled with items shaped with coins, no this man wouldn't do something like that. She figured he was the type who bet everything he owned just for the thrill of it. The woman nodded once and stepped closer. The man smiled again and lifted the cup with the marble. He set the cup down and started to shuffle all three cups. His movements were slow and smooth, but then sped up, staying graceful. The man knew what he was doing. Or, at least he had an idea.
The cups stopped. The man took his hands away from them. "You may guess now." He said, eying Kah's bracelet. The girl thought for a few seconds. She hadn't tried to pay attention when the man was moving the cups around because she knew she would never be able to keep track. Trying to watch them only make her confused and dizzy. After a moment, Kah gave up trying to you logic to figure out which cup the marble was under, and just pointed at the middle cup, where the little ball had been in the first place.
"That one." Kah said. The man hesitated before lifting the cup. A little round glass ball rolled around on the makeshift table.. Kah reached for the coin pouch and dumped the coins in her hand. She dropped the empty pouch back onto the counter. "Thanks for the game, sir." She said, and walked away. It was time to leave this street.
[[IT HAS BEEN FINISHED]]
~rabbah
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4:40pm Jan 4 2013
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Normal User
Posts: 827
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[[Oh! You guys can seperate them, I just did it cause I was short on time and found it easier since they were together.]]
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7:33pm Jan 4 2013
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Normal User
Posts: 1,557
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[[Okay, thanks.]]
~rabbah
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