Open Post - Ever Forest

[serotinously]

One would think as one walked into these woods, that they'd been transported back in time. The very air around it breathed ancient without the gloom and dust that often accompanied it, instead the air was just heavier and a bit more solemn. Trees were not placed tightly packed but close enough that it gave the feeling of being enveloped in a warm hug of nature. And the fauna of the forest helped in that matter, the songs of songbirds high above and the soft chittering of squirrels that hid the quiet footsteps of nearby deer. It was if all technology had been washed away... There were no sounds or signs of humanity anywhere in this forest, only deer paths.

As one walks further in, the light remains constant as though time has also frozen in its old age. There's a brook or a small river nearby, you can just barely make it out over the stones in the waterbed. And a soft humming. Perhaps there are humans in the wood after all, or a fae.

But no, should the curious mind follow the source of the sounds they'll find a small clearing. There's what looks to be a fire pit well away from the main structure, indeed quite a few of them. But when looked at more closely one would see that the ground was freshly turned in the middle of said patches and the fire ruptured after the fact. The rows of crops leading up to the house tell a slightly different story, they seem to have survived any sort of burning. Though honestly they look like they're in need of a decent watering, the corn not quite ready for harvest.

The structure itself is rather...well, almost like a homeless person had slapped together a shack and supplied it a thatched roof. (X) And out of it pops a modestly clothed woman though the clothes look like they'd seen better days and better mending but they're serviceable still. With her is a bucket and ladle, she seems intent on not sloshing it on the ground that doesn't need water as she heads towards the field.

Comments

[eatwell]

Merlin left Ghoul Castle in the wake of excited clamor. He'd be lax of late, leaving the humans for the guards to deal with (as he should), and he hadn't heard any remarks about it. But it seemed the Demon King was the type to go hunting for humans, as he learned from the guards at the door. He really didn't want to be seen as that kind of person, but Nasir had been insistent. The human intruder had gotten hurt in the scuffle and the Head Doctor wanted to treat them, but of course he couldn't go and find them himself... and no other demon would've approved of bringing a human back alive at any cost, for any reason, let alone to treat them. (Merlin also didn't approve of going through the trouble of bringing a human back alive at all costs. They knew what they were getting into, coming here, and if they had an escape plan, why should he ruin it? But Nasir had a good heart and good intentions, and Merlin was not very good at being a bad king.) He'd been in the forest a few times before. Never alone, but he thought he knew it well enough to recognize his way through, and his way back if he found or couldn't find the human. The first thing he noticed was the sun. There was no sun in Devildom, however that worked, and what sunlight reached the Grey Desert had been weak and dim. It felt like years since he saw sunlight, real sunlight, and it left him almost stunned. Did Devildom's forest stretch that far? Wasn't there an entire ocean between the two kingdoms? Why is there a sun. He walks through the trees in silence, almost afraid that it was a dream, or that maybe the human had some ability to cast illusions. It didn't even feel like the same forest. Then he heard the humming, saw what might have passed for a campsite, the crops, the fields.. he knew it couldn't be Devildom. Nothing in the demon kingdom looked this nice, not to mention the drought still hadn't lifted and this place didn't seem like it was suffering from any drought at all. The house and the woman walking out of it confirmed his thought. As far as he knew, no humans or demons lived out here in the forest... at least, not any that the kingdom or Chancellor would have known about. Keeping his hands visible, he approaches carefully, making his presence known by stepping on one thing or another. He's never been very good at stealth, anyway. "..Hello," is what he says if he manages to get her attention from a fair ways away. He can't tell if she's human or demon, or if she could be a danger at all. The place seems pretty peaceful. He doesn't want to mess that up with any violent misunderstandings. "Sorry-- I'm not intruding, am I?"

[serotinously]

At least he's much kinder than Fye would have probably been in his shoes. Granted she was gifted with a Blessing that she didn't want and her life hasn't been what she wanted. It was easier than many others could say for themselves and she could have made it easier still but she chose instead to go against her Blessing. Which is...why the fire pits are all around and she's not around people. After a while they start getting suspicious about strange fires near vegetation.

Sure, it was lonely at first. Any kind of solitude after living in a village of about 100 people for years was difficult at first. No one to ask how to do things, it was either learned from books or spoken tones overheard while trading in a village that knew nothing of her. That was in her stone house...

Now in her wooden one—which may have a few scorch marks here and there on the inside—she'd not spoken in months. Words weren't necessary when you had no one to speak to and the noise just seemed to break any sense of serenity the forest had. And no one really intruded on it, either.

The strange time mechanic the forest gives off keeps people from entering it often. Mostly they stay near the edges to collect fallen branches, they don't even hunt or fell trees here. So no, Fye isn't expecting company at all.

Fye jolts when he speaks, enough so that there's a yelp of startlement and the bucket of course sloshes some of its precious contents onto the ground. Thankfully she's close enough that the water splashes on the cabbage she has planted.

"Wh-what? How did—?!" She pauses long enough to shake her head to clear it, holding the ladle in her hand and pointing it at him with eyes narrowed, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

In this forest, really. I mean, the oddity of it was the reason behind her choosing it in the first place. No one would willingly go in a forest that seems to stiffel life and throw one back in time. Perhaps he's a fae they spoke of living in the forest? (If so, she's done mucked up hospitality.)

[eatwell]

He's had to deal with fire for a while now, having a brother with fire-based magic. But they were lucky that Noah couldn't accidentally burn anything down unless he really wanted to. He'd heard some people had it worse with their magic, if they never learned to control it. Or if they couldn't.

Merlin also jumps back when she does, hands coming up to show he means no harm-- even if he could still be just as dangerous with his bare hands. That ladle isn't particularly threatening, but.. some people have very strange abilities.

"I'm--" the Demon King "--.. My name is Merlin. I, um. I came here looking for someone. Well, not here specifically, I don't.. really know where here is.. or how I got here." He still looks a little stunned at everything. Not so much at the woman, but at her surroundings. The trees, the plants, the ground, the sky, like he's never seen them before. His distraction only lasts a moment before he clears his throat. "They're injured, and I was asked to bring them back for treatment, so I won't bother you any if you haven't seen anyone come by."

Human living in the woods? Sure, humans did that all the time. Living in the woods under the demon kingdom's noses? ...Unlikely, but he'll believe it. Weird magical abilities, demons not being very observant, good hiding spots. These woods, though?

He could definitely feel the air that the trees gave off. Not oppressive, but heavy in its own way. It almost reminds him of Cecil... except Cecil was more. Suffocating. Dangerous, at times. Not like this place, where it just feels like... a lot. Like a massive amount of energy is condensed into a small space.

It had to be made by magic, or something like it. He's heard of magical forests and enchanted lands, but only in storybooks. Only in long lost tales. As it is, in any other situation he would want to stay here to study it some more. Present company permitting.

I lied.

[serotinously]

She has control of it for the most part, there's no worry there. It's only when her temper gets the best of her that things have a shorter fuse and little fires threaten to catch. Still... Of all the Blessings, she had to have fire choose her.

For now, the fire is at bay. Mostly because she can't work out whether or not the newcomer is a threat or not. Or a fae. Which, honestly, she wouldn't want to attack anyway. That would just wind up with her thrown out of the forest that's protecting her and letting her try to get her dream.

(lol Yeah, no, don't open with "I'm the Demon King," Merlin. It paints you in a worse light than a fae.)

Fye squints at him, confusion clear on her face. She never really figured out how to hide her emotions, they're all over her face. And as quick as her confusion covers her face, suspicion replaces it. Looking for someone...

Probably not her? ... Hopefully not her.

All in all he just seems confused at their surroundings as well.

"You don't go to a Fire Blessed for healing..." She frowns, "Why are you looking at the woods like you've never seen them before?"

After all, everyone has heard of the Ever Forest.

A little late, but... hi.

[herpetreaper]

"Virginia?!" Not again. He could see not far away that the truck had hit someone. That there was blood smeared across the ground. He knew from his internal clock as well as the pocket watch, that she would be dead. Again. Still he had grown so used to following her that he felt a moments... panic? He ran through the small town towards her, pocket watch in hand, watching it.

Just as he rounded the truck he herd her coughing. The watch ticking again. He stumbled to a stop and--

There were trees. Death straightened up and looked around at the sudden change. "Not this again..." He sighed, reaching a hand up to comb through his hair and ruff it up a little all at once. This was happening more often then he liked.

The wooded area was calm at least, and his pocket watch ticked along just fine. He put it up in a breast pocket and started to wander. Sometimes his job took him places he didn't expect. At least not in this vessel. Still, he wandered until he found the little shack and saw the woman leaving it. Curious.

He pulled the watch out to get a read on her time left, but it didn't give him anything. Death wasn't here to collect, then. As the woman moved off towards the field, he followed, watching her for the moment.

"Excuse me, miss?" He called out as he got closer.

o/ Take your time~

[serotinously]

Seems like someone else is playing "yank around the supernatural" and see how long it could take them to get back to where they were. At least if it was long enough you might be able to escape any kind of retribution. But he could rest easy as it wasn't the brunette. At the sound of his voice she jerks, the bucket sloshing but the water thankfully hitting cabbage she intended to water. The yelp that escapes her sounds rusty, as she hasn't spoken in months. There wasn't much need to when you were the only person around for miles and miles. Most folks avoided the forest and the eerie feeling that it gave off, which was why it was the perfect place to make home. She whirls to face him, more water spilling (thankfully) on other thirsty plants, "Wh-who?" Fye squints at him, "How did you..." ...What are you wearing? Is he a fae come to kick her out of the forest? But he doesn't feel like the forest. Still strange, but not the same strange. Drawing herself up and squaring her shoulders, "Who are you and what do you want?" Hefting that poor, beat up ladle.

<3

[herpetreaper]

This has happened to him a few times now, so yank around the supernatural is starting to become a trend. Sadly. At least it let him keep his vessel. Malach winced as he seemed to startle the young woman anyhow, a splashing of water as she turned. This entire area seemed to need water. As for his own attire, it was a bit out of the usual for her, wasn’t it? Jeans with small tatters in them, a white button up and a black vest with gold buttons. Over that a blazer that had seen better days. At least it wasn’t one of Virginia’s band shirts. That would have been hard to explain. He lifted a hand, palm out, to show he meant to harm. “I’m not quite sure of the how I got here, but I can answer the who at least. My name is… well, I go by Malach, and, and I don’t want anything, other than to know where I am?”

omg it would help if i was on fye instead of lavi

[serotinously]

Can't really blame her for being startled, it's not like these forests are heavily populated. If he's at all able to read tracks he'll see that all of the ones here aside from his fresh ones were made by the same boots. (Does he even leave footprints as Death?) But yes, vastly outlandish fabric at the very least when everyone is still wearing woven clothing. Even with the outstretched and empty hand she shows an unusual amount of suspicion, which, given the environment of her home...still an acceptable reaction. Her eyes narrow at the 'not quite sure' part because that should be easy to explain. Unless the fae dropped him off, he was dropped off by bandits, or he is the fae. Fye keeps to herself still, "Everyone knows of the Ever Forest, even if they're not brave enough to walk it."