Monkey's Paw Tavern

[Durithill the Black Blade]

SPACEIt was a little surprising to Durithill when the kid suddenly walked out the door, apparently furious with the man for dragging the corpse off, almost as if he had some strange magical connection to the creature Durithill had just killed. Not a few moments later, he walked back into the bar, mission apparently accomplished, and collapsed on the floor of the tavern. A small sigh escaped Durithill's mouth as ice then began to crawl across the floor of the tavern at a slightly alarming rate. Magic, of course. This tavern was certainly getting a work-over today, wasn't it? Still, it was probably best not to leave the kid freezing the place over too long. "Bartender, a shot of vodka." Durithill said, glancing at the man who was staring and watching with a look that said 'Why the hell is this happening to me?' If someone could wake up the kid, he might be able to make the ice stop. Something as strong as vodka might do the drink. Once the bartender was done pouring the drink, he grabbed the shot glass and a napkin and walked over to the kid. Oddly enough, the ice seemed to avoid Durithill as he walked. Once Durithill was next to Tobias, he bent down and used the napkin to open Tobias' mouth without touching him, then dumped the alcohol down his throat.


((If I may ask, where is the ice coming from to begin with? Tobias has zero points in water magic, and his gloves only have the ability to create ice blades, water whips, or steam. Same with freezing the creature's body.))  

[Evol Bear]

♫Of course I'm beautiful.♫

Venustas watched as the boy left the bar, his reaction had indeed been an odd sight for her. The anger in the boy was definitely great, but she did not know why. She could only watch the door until it swung back open with him collapsing just inside. Venustas quickly ran over to him and knelt next to him, concerned for his safety. Then her head turned to see Durithill with a shot of vodka, and her eyes knit together in disapproval. Carefully, she took note of the napkin that he had used to keep his hand away from the boy's skin as he poured the vodka into his mouth.

"He's much too young for that, Durithill." Her gentle hands adjusted the boy's cold body so that he would sit up and better be able to swallow the liquid. "I just hope this works." Her hands rubbed his shoulders as Venustas held him up in a pitiful attempt to keep him warmer. All the while, she stared at Durithill.

Within the hours that she had met him, only once had Venustas come in actual physical contact with Durithill. Even then, he had flinched away from her too quickly and made him seem excessively careful with physical contact which made her very curious. She wasn't intimidated by his eyes at this point, and she gazed straight into them, still holding the boy as she asked the question.

"Why the napkin?" Her ice-cold eyes were penetrating as she held his gaze, awaiting his answer.

♫Just as an angel should be.♫

 

[Doctor Corn]

۝۞۩ۻۺ

Tobias Gingerback

۝۞۩ۻۺ

~Ⱳater Ḟlows Ḿuch Ḷike Æther

((The ice is a side effect from something about Tobias.....that really cannot be revealed. Its part of a possible plot with Awesome.....think of it as his own power trying to weakly protect him))

Tobias coughed and spluttered, jerking to a semi-conscious state as the ice disappeared instantly. The boy reflexively wrapped his arms around Durithill's neck, arms protectively sheathed in thick cotton. "You......smell nice" he murmured as he lapsed into a true and well deserved rest.

▁▂▃▅▆▇ ssǝppoƃ ɹǝʌʃıS ∀ ǝʞıʃ ƃuısıᴚ ʎʃʍoʃS ▇▆▅▃▂▁

۝۞۩ۻۺ

۝۞۩ۻۺ

 

[Durithill the Black Blade]

SPACEDurithill remained silent as he waited for the alcohol to take affect, ignoring Venustas's protest. The boy was young, true, but that was exactly why this particular method might work. As unaccustomed as he would be to alcohol in general, the shock of such a strong drink hitting his system might knock him back into the realm of consciousness, even if just temporarily. If that were so, then they could probably get the ice to stop. Of course, it seemed like the ice was fairly weak, so Durithill probably wouldn't be affected anyway, but if the whole tavern froze over he wouldn't be able to get food or drink here anymore. Luckily it seemed like it was working, as the boy suddenly began jerking slightly and the ice disappeared. "Luckily for us, it would appear that worked and we need not take more drastic measures." he said to Venustas as he quickly examined the boy's body with his eyes to make sure there were no other anomalies, such as his limbs turning to ice or anything.

SPACEThe answer to Venustas's question was on the tip of Durithill's tongue when suddenly Tobias, in his half-unconscious state, threw his arms around Durithill's neck. "Lay your hands off me!" Durithill shouted as he leapt back to a standing position and a foot further away from Tobias. A violent shudder made its way through Durithill's body as he rubbed his neck. Even the feeling of his own skin on his neck was odd. Lucky for Tobias he had sleeves, or he would have been in for a rough awakening. "In response to your question..." Durithill managed to say as he calmed himself down. "I may have.. understated the degree to which I am averse to physical contact." Although that was probably fairly obvious by now judging by his rather grand reaction. "It is an idiosyncrasy that developed from my childhood." He didn't explain further than that, as that was usually enough of an explanation for most people.  

[Soidie Denroth]

Fleischer walked down the stairs and stat at the bar to find his previously half-empty beer full once again. He was going to ask the bar keep about it, but was calmed by the bar keep's dismissive wave to say plainly he didn't give a damn. Fleischer spun around on his stool to take a quick look around the bar and found a few of the other patrons to be buzzing among themselves. One kid seemed to be a commotion, but Fleischer didn't really care for that moment.

All that was left in Fleischer's world: Himself, the bar keep, and Herr Stein. After about 10 beers and several shots of oddly placed alcohol, he was ready to throw in the towel... the mug rather. The world had changed all of a sudden, everything had a evil double. "MaBeyss, the dObL HAs an EViL tWin?" said Fleischer oddly to the bar keeper, and the bar keeper giving him a gesture to the backrooms. After 3 steps, Fleischer landed on the bar's floor, KO from the alcohol, and sleeping peacefully. Hmm... maybe that is how the world could achieve eternal peace! Just place it in a giant mug filled with the best beer around!

((In a little while, I will wake, one way or another.))  

[Evol Bear]

♫Of course I'm beautiful.♫

As soon as the boy left her in favor of Durithill's neck, she watched Durithill's reaction, his moment of panic as he threw himself away from the boy. Venustas couldn't help but to snicker at him and raise an eyebrow suspiciously at him. "Seems to me, Durithill, that it is more than a mannerism you developed early on. I will reveal what that is in time." She sighed and turned her head towards the bar now. Suddenly the bar-stools, shot glasses, mugs, and scent of alchohol was positively inviting. Venustas rose to her feet, leaving the boy on the floor and Durithill rubbing his neck awkwardly.

Quietly she sauntered into her seat at the bar and nodded her head at the barkeep. As the older man eyed her suggestively and inquired her about her choice of drink, her grey eyes pierced his. Venustas was disgusted by his eyes.

"Vodka. Whole bottle. Shot glass on the side." Her eyes didn't leave his as she spoke, barked, rather. Her face was painted with sweat, so she raised her kerchief and dabbed away the drops as the barkeep turned away from her. His body was stiff, intimidated by her ferocity and beauty. Venustas giggled inaudibly to herself as she flicked her hair playfully behind her shoulders, eying the tavern, though her eyes fell back to Ruo.

♫Just as an angel should be.♫

 

[Durithill the Black Blade]

SPACEA small sigh escaped Durithill's mouth as he decided to follow Venustas over to the bar. "I suppose that I owe you a story in exchange for yours earlier anyway." he said as he seated himself next to her and ordered another glass of red wine. "It is not something I much like talking about. The truth is I was often beaten as a child. My parents would beat me.. Other kids would beat me.. Shop keepers would beat me.. Anyone that could get their hands on me, really." The bartender came back at that point, causing Durithill to pause in his narrative and take a sip from his drink. It was a different wine than the one he drank during his meal, but still pretty good. "This scar," he said, pointing to a rather nasty one on the middle of his left forearm, "is from when my father cut open my arm with a broken bottle of whiskey. And this," he said while pointing to a scar on the back of his right hand and on the palm of his hand, "is when a shopkeeper punished me for trying to steal a loaf of bread after having not eaten for several days. Lucky for me he decided to only stick a knife through my hand instead of cutting it off entirely. After spending your whole life learning to avoid contact with other people, knowing that it will only bring pain, it becomes hard to think otherwise."

SPACEThe expression on Durithill's face remained cloudy as he took another sip of his wine in an contemplative nature. "I became something of surgeon because I was never taken to the hospital and as such always had to tend to my own wounds, no matter how severe. Even had I gone, I doubt they would have treated me." Due to Durithill's magic resistance, it required a fairly strong healer in order to actually heal them. Since a lot of hospitals tended to employ mostly magical healers rather than old-fashioned doctors, most saw it as a waste of time to heal Durithill when they could be using their energy for more critically injured patients. With the same amount of energy needed to heal a paper cut on Durithill, they could heal a knife wound on a regular person. "Of course, I can attribute my current strength to this. You learn how to fight fairly quickly in that situation, and daggers, my weapon of choice, are easy to conceal and easy to do a lot of damage with, as you observed." Easy to conceal, easy to kill with. The perfect weapon for someone who doesn't appear too strong.  

[Evol Bear]

♫Of course I'm beautiful.♫

The warmth of the vodka teased her throat as Venustas took a single shot. She watched Durithill intently as he spoke to her, explaining specific scars on his body that she could easily see. His voice was soft as he spoke, though it was clear that he didn't like to speak of it, and though he gave a very detailed explanation to his behavior, something still seemed amiss.

Venustas nodded, understanding the reasoning behind his behavior. He was very odd. He was very warm in conversation but his past reflected that perhaps he should be far more reserved. Then she shrugged and took another shot.

It had been a while since she had really had something to drink. She was very sensitive to the burning sensation it caused, so her face contorted some in an attempt to douse the flames. "Well. You might not want to get too close to me. Something bad may happen to you." She looked back up to Ruo. She couldn't let him fall like that again, but she was afraid to be close to him...

After a couple seconds she looked back to Durithill. "Forgive me. . . I've been through too much in my lifetime and I've witnessed a lot of death. Now that I've been the source of multiple deaths, I'm trying to separate myself from that." Venustas looked down to the shot glass that both her hands held, twisting it with her gentle fingers.

♫Just as an angel should be.♫

 

[Durithill the Black Blade]

SPACEA small chuckle escaped Durithill's mouth as Venustas said he shouldn't get too close to her. "I should be the one saying that to you." he replied as he took another sip of his wine and began unconsciously rubbing him arm. He was still incredibly uncomfortable with only wearing what he was, and made constant sweeps of the bar to make sure no one was approaching him. First thing he would have to do before going to see Alex would be to find someone to clean his usual clothes. "There are some who same I have a curse about me. Ha!" Although Durithill let out a laugh, his eyes showed no mirth at all. They were still quite as dead and emotionless as always. "A curse.." Another small chuckle escaped Durithill's mouth as he shook his head. If only people knew. "Such things have only as much credence as you lend to them, and so I give it none."

SPACEEven though Durithill wasn't really watching Venustas with the same scrutiny she was giving him, he noticed her glancing back at the person who had come into the bar looking for Tysulir. "Forgive my curiosity, but did something happen between you and Tysulir's handsome challenger?" he asked with a slight gesture towards the man. Durithill had been glancing all around the bar, but Venustas' glaces had always been towards Ruo. This most recent time she did it after saying something bad might happen, which told Durithill that quite possibly something bad just had happened, only to the other man rather than to himself.  

[Evol Bear]

♫Of course I'm beautiful.♫

Durithill spoke of this curse that people believed he existed with, but he didn't explain it well. His sudden attitude change suggested to Venustas that he was darker than he let off. But when he brought up Ruo and inquired about her experience with him, she looked back towards Ruo and couldn't help tearing up. She remembered his weak and feeble state as the creature known as a god had stolen his beauty from him. The amount that she cared and worried for him was a feeling she hadn't felt in some time. . . It brought back memories of hers that she couldn't escape and they were somewhat painful for her.

Venustas was quiet as she spoke to Durithill, still looking at Ruo. "The creature that murdered the child I unveiled also had stolen Ruo's beauty for his own. The monster took my halo from me. . . Not that you can see that. In order for the two of us to get our beauty and halo back. . ." Venustas paused, fighting back a sob and trembling. She took a deep breath and started again. "We killed an angel. Thus, I have my wings back as well."

Venustas stretched her metallic wings slightly. She had kept them close to her back to make them less noticeable in the tavern, but they had grown uncomfortable in their concealed state. "Ruo helped me to get these wings, but it was not a pretty sight." Her trembling only increased until she was crying again. Her tear ducts were growing tired, but today had been almost as traumatizing as losing Autumn. "Forgive me, Durithill. But I am no angel. I am a monster."

♫Just as an angel should be.♫

 

[Doctor Corn]

The door swung cautiously open, a small gust of wind wafting through the open frame before closing softly. A heavily cloaked woman paused just inside the threshold and stared down at the boy by her feet. After a moment she sighed wearily and kneeled down to feel for a pulse in the child's neck. Assured that the boy was indeed alive the good Samaritan gently picked up the body and deposited it in a alcove not too far from where Durithill and Venustas were conversing. The woman's features were completely concealed, yet one could just feel the exasperated expression she cast upon the sleeping form. She rummaged through Tobias' cloak and pulled out an amulet on a chain, tapping it a couple of times. A small flash of light, unnoticeable to all but the most inquisitive eye flared and jumped up the woman's finger. She cursed quietly after a moment, then deposited the charm back into the cloak while draping the chain around Tobias' neck.

A few minutes later the door was opened for the final time. With an almighty crack the door was wrenched from it's frame and hurled across the room to embed itself into the wall and a couple unfortunate drunkards. Past the door a semi-solid shape made of pure darkness floated, occupying the space just outside where the light ended. With a subtle motion the night around the bar was engulfed in absolute darkness, cancelling out both moon and stars in a deathly embrace. An armlike protrusion snaked into the light, flinching just slightly and becoming more transparent. Four more followed suit, launching through the air and landing about ten feet inside. Where each one touched a circle of darkness appeared, each taking up a two foot diameter space. From each hole to the void rose bubbling clouds of black viscous liquid that congealed to take the form of the most recent and vengeful soul. Five reptilian forms leaped forward, holding a semi-circle around the door and portals. One of the portals bubbled again, this time spewing forth a large ethereal tentacle that snaked over to where the boy slept. "Take the boy and the water whisperer" the being outside the door hissed. "Then dispose of the witnesses" It said as it faded from this world, leaving the creatures and the unnatural night.  

[PandArsonist]

Naru and Zero approached the bar just as the being outside the bar faded from view. Naru covered his features with his cloak, while Zero took a more defensive stance. Neither of them were especially eager to fight at the moment; Naru wanted to learn more about the occupants of the bar, and Zero needed rest, but if a fight was called for, they would not be taken off guard. Naru went to the Inn keepers desk to inquire about a room, ignoring the darkness slowly forming, as Zero looked over the room, ever ready for combat.  

[Soidie Denroth]

Fleischer finally woke up after passing out from the waves of alcohol that had found their way into his throat. He could feel the pressure of the head ache that he had, constantly pounding. Several things came in mind when he turned around: Firstly, thank god that he had become used to alcohol's after effects. Secondly, thank god again for alcohol in the first place. Thirdly and finally, make sure to piss on god's door mat, because only he would be willing to send some dark and dreary McEVIL goons. Fleischer quickly but clumsy pulled out his bone saw and readied his hands for some "medical work" on some limbs... "Are they veally...ugg..#@%^ mein head!" Was it just an illusion or was the dark=bad?

Deanfore woke to the smell of burning wax and a throbbing pain in his body. Looking down, it all came back to him. "THE DAMN THIEF STOLE MY GEM!" bursting out loud. He will pay with his life he will! He deserves nothi- Wait, were am I? Then noticed the note on the table. "Hmm.... Well that was quite convenient." He unfolded it and read the chicken scratches that were called words. Even as old as he was, paying back someone usually meant family fortune gone. 2 mins later, he was down the stairs and walked into a conflict with the whole "ditch your savior" plan.  

[Durithill the Black Blade]

SPACEDurithill listened closely to Venustas's story, analyzing all the things she said as she spoke. Something was definitely going on, although what it was Durithill didn't quite know yet. Come to thing of it, he had overhead Tysulir and the one called Ruo talking about a child in another language. What had they said again? Something like "child of origin", he believed. Although he hadn't payed much mind to it before, now he grew more curious. With a name like that, and the amount of trouble this person had gone through to eat it, it had to be something special. Maybe it granted some sort of extreme power when eaten? That would be the most likely scenario, since if the person simply wanted the child dead to prevent succession to the throne or something there were much simpler ways to do it than by devouring then child. Durithill wondered what kind of power it granted. Perhaps he would have to develop the taste for baby flesh in the future.

SPACENone of what Durithill was thinking reflected on his face, but as soon as Venustas called herself a monster Durithill suddenly began laughing involuntarily. "I am sorry for laughing," Durithill said a moment later as he calmed down, "but you are hardly a monster. You have done things you regret, maybe terrible things, but I am sorry to say that only brings you down to the level of us ordinary humans." She had killed an angel and let a baby be eaten. So what? Durithill himself had murdered countless people, and for much less than being forced to by something. "There are many people in this world that would have killed that angel themselves if they thought it would grant them your life. You have your life, health, and more strength than most." Durithill paused and drained the last of the wine out of his glass before continuing. "There is a saying I believe I heard once a long time ago. It went something like 'if you walk with your eyes gazing backward, you are sure to trip and fall'."

SPACESomething caught Durithill's attention from the corner of his eye then, and he glanced over to where he thought he'd seen it. He thought he had seen a flash of light just now, but when he looked over he only saw and old woman fiddling with the unconscious Tobias's necklace. He turned back to continue talking, but then the door of the bar blew open and the creature of darkness appeared, summoning more creatures and ordered the death of everyone in the bar. Today had truly been a bad day to come to this bar. "If you wish to atone for a death, then save the life of another. The world will certainly give you plenty of opportunities, including the one at present." Durithill pulled his daggers from his sheaths and stood, still facing the bar. One of the shadows of the creature he had just killed noticed him and charged at his back, but before it could strike Durithill used the bar to jump up and back-flip over the creature, burying his dagger in its head and pulling down with the weight of his fall to rip open its back. When he hit the ground, he pulled the dagger out and spun, slicing both of its Achilles tendons before rolling out of the way.