Brave Galaxy is set in a world loosely based on Hiro Mashima’s Fairy Tail and Eden’s Zero. It is a PG-13 or so rated space fantasy RP, and uses a combination of character statistics, which can be acquired via roleplaying and events, and creative freedom to help direct players’ characters. While there is a main storyline, which can be found in the events section, characters are free to interact with others and their environment however they see fit.
Explore the galaxy. Overcome the obstacles in your path. Shape the future of humanity.
A brief nod and several mildly uncomfortable shrugs later, Leo cleared his throat. "Water doesn't taste good. Also, I definitely was drinking before I was twenty-one, aha."
His awkward laugh was cut off by a searing pain that consumed his body, fire coursing through his veins. A terrible, seismic shudder wrenched his soul, its force attempting to rend one into two, all playing out on his visage. One breath, then another, his gaze fixated on the pendant at the center of the room, text exuding from it. It called, wanted, desperately yearned him to answer, yet wanting to crush all the same. He heard a vague sound call out to him, Eris, it was Eris. The words, he knew instinctively, didn't have to catch their content to assess her tone. "No, it's fine," Leo spoke through gritted teeth, barely managing the phrase. "Just my shoulder." Even as he spoke was his lie easily revealed, after all a cursory glance at the area in question showed bone perfectly knitted back into place, just the faintest of a scar where the man had brought down his sword, a mark already fading from his flesh.
He saw Maescia pause in her motions, in which he bit his lip, before resetting his jaw. "Don't stop, I need to know." She let out a near silent remark, glancing over at Eris who only offered a shrug. Leo set a straight face, disguising the torment as nothing more than determination, that was it, nothing more, not the seal that had been etched into his being removed, no, not that, anything but. Eventually the false pretense was no longer, however, and by that he meant the agony subsided, reset to a dull emptiness.
At that point Leo stood, walking over to Maescia. An intricate web of the void was laid out before them, inscriptions winding and twisting, weaving together one of the most complex enchantments he had bore witness to in a long time, and that was saying something. "Fascinating...." was all he could mutter, a strange, almost scientific passiveness present in his voice.
"Didn't you see this when my grandmother placed it on you?"
Immediately, he was shoved back into reality. "Yes, well, I would have paid better attention during its construction, but unfortunately I may or may not have been dying."
"Can confirm, he looked like absolute shit," Eris said, having taken the liberty to lie down on the cot, although she still observed the scene playing out through slightly flickering eyes.
Maescia was about to say something snappy in response, but held her tongue, pointing at an object of her curiosity. "What's this?"
He recognized the script immediately, letters carving themselves into his memory, having always been engraved since the moment it had first been written. ᛚᛇᚾᛁ ᚪᚷᛚᚫᚳᚪ. The runes spoke in his mind, a thousand different voices and yet only a handful all the same, the most distinctive one he forced out of his memory about as easy as he did a bad dream. That was to say, not at all. Still did she patiently await an answer, which he finally mustered as Eris watched, her expression grave. "Uh... my name."
The elf narrowed her eyes, almost amused. "That's not your name."
He winced. "My other name. It's the same thing, really." The defensive stance was instinctive, perhaps seemingly unnecessary to outsiders, but he knew better. No, not a single chance would be taken amidst that, it was not something he could merely impart, no matter how much it seemed he had already given away. It was for the best, for everyone, he told himself, had always thought such. Nothing else was easier erased from history than something that had never existed, after all.
Blitz would have made a remark about how whoever had gotten him alcohol before he turned of proper age was likely responsible, at least in part, for sparking his fondness for the liquid, except that right after Leo said that, he hunched over in pain, Blitz wincing slightly when the mark where the greatsword had struck was briefly shown. "Ooof. I've got some scars myself, but I've seen enough to know when one really must have stung. That sword really took a bite out of you." Blitz said, glancing at the scar tissue. "At least it's in a spot that's easily covered."
The next part was also surprising - a very intricate spellwork that was a chaotic, tangled mess of a spell, one that looked like it should have self-destructed from its own design, but somehow managed to hold up. "I think I've seen balls of yarn less tangled-looking than this," Blitz said, looking over the spellwork. "Given the complexity, it's actually impressive that the pendant can get up to a planet's diameter away from you without any major issues. You'd think this thing would have troubles with that kind of distance, given the layers."
One part interested Blitz, however - the part that he initially didn't focus on much, but became sharply focused on it when Leo said that it was somehow both his name and not his name. His name in an older Earthland language, maybe? Blitz thought, glancing at the runic characters. "You've taken a fair amount of damage every time that seal weakened a bit - and not in minor ways, either. Makes me wonder exactly what happened that you were on the verge of death at some point." Blitz said pointedly. What was more surprising was that Eris was rather....nonchalant about it. Granted, it had possibly happened over 1400 years ago, but for someone she had just kissed, she seemed to be able to mention seeing him almost die with considerable ease.
Blitz glanced at the duo's elven friend. "So, any sign of what could have caused issues? These two haven't said much about it, but from what I gather, the seal weakening in that facility we were briefly held in wasn't something that should have happened."
Post by Reya Starlyght on Jan 19, 2020 4:36:14 GMT
He could only offer a pained shrug to Blitz's comment, of course the man's sympathies were misplaced but he was in no condition to utter any correction. At least, at least he seemed to care. It was a bit of an... unfamiliar gesture, if Leo was being honest, most people who were close enough to him to even extend such a sentiment usually didn't bother; they assumed physical injuries were nothing more than minor setbacks, which was true in some circumstances, certainly, but it wasn't as if nothing ever hurt. Things did, quite a lot, quite often, most of the times he elected to block out said pain, but it was always present regardless.
"Well, there wasn't always a seal. And I'm... this wasn't the magic I was born with. When it...." he coughed, choking a little bit before he cleared his throat. "Yeah, it almost killed me. And the Blight almost killed me. That aside, I'm quote unquote on the verge of death more often than you seem to think, in general. It's a bit of a hazard that comes with being a mercenary, you know?" That was nothing more than a diversion of the topic and Leo knew it, but his words had already executed it before he could object otherwise. It was a subconscious instinct, directing him away from the depths he had almost delved into. If anything, that was not welcome at the time.
Maescia, intent on studying the enchantment while they conversed, ignored Blitz's initial comment although her expression had begun to fall even before his later query. She eventually nodded, hands outspreading as a segment of script nearing the center of the chain was focused upon, voice becoming grave. "I'm sorry, Leo. It looks like the seal functions around your connection to a particular place, in this case Earthland. For whatever reason, maybe your memory has faded, maybe the planet has simply progressed into being unrecognizable even by magic over the years, I can't begin to fathom, but unless you return... the only way to repair this would be to replace Earthland with...."
The silent word passed over them, unspoken yet tangible to all in the room except Blitz and his companion. Eris merely shook her head, hand instinctively falling to the now two and a half swords at her belt, while his voice was rattled with a cold, desperate furor. "Like hell that's happening. Can’t you just use Trillium or something? We’ve lived there longer than Earthland anyway."
The elf bowed her head, gaze falling to the ground as she remained silent for a moment before she replied. "You weren't born there, nor were your ancestors. There's not enough of a connection."
A corner of his mouth twitched, knowing her answer before she had spoke, yet actually hearing it out loud only solidified his worst fears. "Fuck it, then. Nobody is setting foot on Earthland, and Tritaihatreis, well, it probably doesn't even exist anymore." He slammed his fist against the table, items on it scattering with great intensity as they were alit with shadows. A few vials shattered against the walls, while other materials merely collided into them before dropping harmlessly to the floor. Leo put his hand on his forehead, tracing over the rest of his visage in frustration. "Oh great, I can do that too," he muttered sarcastically, brushing it all off even as he shoved his hands in his pockets, the quiver in his grip still evident.
"There are other things you can try, aren't there?" He barely registered her voice as Eris finally interjected, her eyes initially locked on Maescia although they eventually wandered over to Leo. A moment, two, perhaps more passed in that stare, exchanged between them, nothing but everything all the same.
Leo gave an odd shrug, as it he wasn't exactly thrilled about it, either, but he was coping. He did, however, mention that not only was the seal not always a thing - something Blitz had guessed when Eris spoke of having it placed on him a long time ago - but that it wasn't the magic he was born with. "Well, I'm sure that's an interesting story. You'll have to share it sometime. Though I must admit, it does make sense that this isn't your standard magic - it certainly does seem to disagree with your body to a remarkable degree, what with the coughing up blood and all that." Blitz said, looking thoughtful. "As for the Blight, I..." Blitz paused. "Well, technically, I can't even say that I'm not surprised, because my memories of the Blight are blurred at best. For all I know, I might have been nearly as close to death as you were, but I honestly can't recall anything about it." he admitted. "And while you might be a mercenary, there's a difference between dancing with death and trying to give it a bear hug, Leo." he added with a grin.
After a few moments of silence, the elf spoke up about the issue - Earthland itself, and whatever she was implying as a solution seemed to anger the duo, Blitz glancing between the elf and the duo with mild confusion, listening as they argued about something - apparently, the magic seal functioned by being tied to someplace that had meaning to the person in question, and while Earthland was important, Trillium hadn't earned that just yet. Leo wasn't thrilled about it, either, even scattering a number of vials off the nearby table, albeit by accident.
However, it didn't seem like the duo was entirely out of options, as the elf mentioned that there was another option. "From the way you just said that, I have this odd feeling that it's going to be more undesirable than the initial suggestion of hitching the seal to Trillium."
"And that alone he wasn't too chipper about." Shoop pointed out.
"But given the alternative, let's hear it." Blitz said.
Post by Reya Starlyght on Jan 20, 2020 4:37:32 GMT
"Oh, but hugs are so much fun!" Leo replied sarcastically. "Anyway, by the definition of standard this pain in my ass has been in my life for far longer than the magic I was born with. Not that they're really all that different from one another, unfortunately one I just can't fucking control...."
Maescia, despite the circumstances, released a note that seemed to be almost amused in nature. "Trillium simply won't work," she stated, gesturing toward the amalgam of text. "This... it's failing, but it's not gone yet. And if there's no way to get to...." she glanced again between Leo and Eris, unwilling or perhaps unable to speak of the world they all immediately filled in, "then examining the seal itself is useless." As she concluded, Maescia reached through the glyphs, tugging the pendant from its floating position. As she did so the visual of the enchantment abruptly dissipated, a wince visible from Leo although the expression was far less drastic compared to before. The elf then handed the obsidian back to him, and with a nod he tied it back around his neck, tucking it under his shirt. She had already turned her attention to the book at her side, scanning through a myriad of pages before she eventually closed it, shaking her head. "There's no sort of contingency plan written in this, so I'm going to need some time. Make yourself welcome, if you'd like." Not even waiting for a response, she returned to the room where she had retrieved the tome from, this time closing the door behind her.
Leo let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding, leaning back against the table as his frame slumped forward. His eyes narrowed to a squint for a moment, a couple of blinks following as he bit his tongue, forcing the salt away. However, any effort to maintain eye contact with anybody else in the vicinity was lost, as his gaze could only mull over the grains of wood set in the floor. He couldn't stand the silence, though, it gnawed at his sanity as no suitable distraction was within reach. "So, uh, Blitz, how's your life?" Leo managed, not even really registering what exactly it was that he had said.
Eris put her hand on her face. "You two have fun; I'm going to take a nap." With that he glanced up, catching the turn of her cheek as she flipped over onto her side, before he looked down again, nails beginning to tap a rhythm against the closest surface.
"Sorry, I, uh, just can't handle... nothing right now, if you get what I mean."
"I kinda gathered that you couldn't really keep a lid on your magical mojo - probably somewhere after the whole 'murder spree of guards', but before the 'coughing up a gallon of my own blood'." Blitz said with sarcasm. "But I see your point."
Meanwhile, their elven friend seemed to have reached a diagnosis of sorts about the seal - it couldn't be saved, but it would serve as a makeshift crutch of sorts until a better solution was found, and handed the pendant back to Leo, who didn't exactly look thrilled to get it back, but certainly looked a bit less pained with it back in his possession. After the elf left the room and closed the door behind her, Eris declared that she was going to get some shuteye, which was a vote of confidence in both Leo and the elf in Blitz's opinion. Not that he didn't trust Leo to keep a lid on things for the moment, but he couldn't deny that Leo looked a bit more.....twitchy than usual, judging by his inability to sit still. He clearly didn't want to think too deeply about what was going on with his magic, or any potential consequences, for any length of time right now.
"Well, if we've got some time to kill and you need distracting, I might have an idea of sorts." Blitz said, examining his metal arm and messing with a small interface built into the side of one arm, the display sparking slightly as he fiddled with it.
"What are you even doing? Surely you're not going to use the laser right now?" Shoop asked.
"No, but there's an older function. I haven't used it since my time back on Earthland, but the functionality's still there, just needs some wiring adjusted to get working for a bit so that Leo can meet a kindred spirit of...difficult-to-control magics." Blitz said quietly.
"Meet a kindred spi....oh, hell, are you seriously suggesting meeting him?" Shoop asked, slightly aghast.
"I've seen a fair amount of Leo's secrets, only fair that I share one of mine." Blitz said, as the display on his arm it up, and the room around them grew dark, but only faintly - you could just barely see the edges of the room and it's furnishings if you squinted hard enough.
A moment later, the room lit up again, but with one new characteristic - a cage of roughly-hewn metal taking up one corner of the room, but that was shadowed by the light overhead, so whatever was in the cage wasn't visible.
"A fragment from within my mind, I'm just using some software to project its form outside my own head for a bit, so you two can meet," Blitz said to Leo briefly, before saying "Rise and shine," in the direction of the darkened cage. "You've got guests."
From within the cage, there was a stirring of sorts as something awoke, then a dark chuckle was heard. "Well, would you look at that. The Warden himself deigns to grace my humble prison cell with his presence." A figured stumbled forward, leaning against the bars of the cage, a man in chains who looked almost identical to Blitz, but without the top hat, and whose hair was a violent shade of purple. "To what do I owe the....pleasure?" the figure said, glancing up to reveal even a matching face to Blitz's, barring a long scar that went over his eye, and eyes of a deep violet.
"You've got some experience in runaway magic, being one yourself," Blitz said, arms now crossed, "So I figure you could take a gander at my friend here, for a reference if nothing else."
The figure's eyes flitted over to Leo. "As loathe as I am to assist you, I can't deny that it defeats boredom as a pasttime." The figure waved a chained hand towards Leo. "Come closer, boy - I can't see you clearly from here, and lord knows my jailer isn't going to bother opening the door for me."
"For the record, I still think this meeting of the minds isn't a great idea," Shoop said, the figure in the cage ignoring him.
He listened intently as Blitz and Shoop bickered for a few moments, not catching the content of their conversation before he recalled the metal mage having mentioned... something about a darker iteration of himself. The details were foggy, he had dismissed it from even those sparse few hours earlier, but perhaps there would be something to gain. Then again, the mere way Blitz personified a part of himself was a disturbing concept to Leo, although not perturbing enough to push away his morbid interest. "Well, uh, I was going to grab my keyboard, but that works," he said, mostly to himself. Yes, he loved secrets, and it was a typically... far less emotional experience to dive into the hidden facets of others than it was to play music, as silly as that probably sounded to others. At least, that was his logic working overtime, grinding gears in a feeble attempt to brush over the heart of the issue.
Shadows loomed over the room yet his gaze sought purchase beyond them, witnessing the formation of the prison before his eyes. A flavor of the dramatic, certainly, but he was rather immune to the optical tricks of lighting. It was all an illusion, however, Leo could tell that based on the lack of life emanating from the prisoner alone. A shock of violet hair, eyes the same hue, yet the disparities in their appearances ended there, Blitz and the new figure looked nearly identical. Well, except for a scar and the presence of an actual left arm, it seemed like they had suffered different flesh wounds in the past, prior to whatever this phenomenon was now. Yet by far the detail Leo was most drawn to was the man's manacles, coupled with the lack of space in his solitary confinement. A shred of sympathy rose up within him, although it was coupled with another emotion. "Hey Blitz, if you ever have to lock me up please make the cage a little bigger than that," he muttered, a trace of fear found in his voice as it wavered.
Come closer, no, he didn't want to, he hated even the concept of drawing nearer to those wretched iron bars. There was nothing to learn, nothing to experience except dread and terror, memories splayed out in full color, in full horror. No, this was not his normal reaction to a jail cell, and Leo knew it, deep down. Yet there was something so ironic that he stood on the other side of those rods at that very moment, in a scenario that could have easily been turned on its head. It wasn't though, he reminded himself. Nothing tied him down except obligation and dismay, which was worse Leo wasn't entirely sure.
His eyes narrowed, approaching the cage. "I would offer a handshake, but I have a feeling it would just pass through you." His intonation was flat, introduction straight and to the point without giving away the slightest hint of anything. He didn't want to talk about himself, after all, anything but that. Leo had an educated guess as to what exactly the prisoner was, a theory that at once explained Blitz's lack of comprehension when it came to himself and was also deeply unsettling to him. Before he went off on an inward tangent, though, he had to be certain.
"Anyway, what are you, a fragment of his personality he repressed for so long you split into a separate entity, or is it something else entirely?"
Leo seemed less concerned about this dark-looking doppelganger of Blitz than the way he was imprisoned - which almost made sense, given the specifics of the seal that had been revealed thus far. "Yes, he's not exactly hospitable with me, is he? Keeping me caged up inside his head like this."
Blitz scoffed. "Don't try to rack up sympathy points. You know damn well that the restraints - both the cuffs and cage size are only a safety precaution, they aren't there most of the time. Besides, if memory serves, the moment I realized you were an independent being, I gave you your freedom so you could live your own life and discover your own existence. And then you tried to kill me. Multiple times, I might add."
"We could run the numbers, but it was a fair number of times. He tried twice in one month, at some point." Shoop said.
The doppelganger snorted as if in irritation. "I was about as thrilled as having a doppelganger running around with my appearance as you were. I was just more proactive in my solution."
"Which you're damn lucky you didn't actually succeed at," Blitz pointed out, "As your life force is tied to my magic in both directions - as long as I have this magic, you can't truly die, but if I die, you'd go right down with me."
"Not succeeding in killing you was.....a happy accident, let's put it that way," the other half said, turning to gaze at Leo. "You're not wrong on the 'passing through' thing. Let's have a look at you."
As the other self looked at Leo with a slight squint, Blitz said, "I suppose introductions of sorts are in order - I believe the name he went with was 'Thrash'."
"I had time to think about it," Thrash said, tilting his head slightly as he peered at Leo. "That's quite an old magic for a body that looks that young." Thrash let out of a brief bark of laughter. "An ancient whelp. Amusing."
As Thrash examined Leo, however, Leo had a question of his own for Thrash. "I think the metal man over there has given you the gist of it, more or less. He made me for combat, then was all shocked when I turned on him."
Blitz ignored the attempt at a jab. "I eventually found a way to lock him back inside my own magic, but in the time we'd been separated, he'd changed just enough that it wasn't possible to merge him back into my magic, so his consciousness got sealed in the bargain."
"Barring times like this when I get a bit of fresh air, so to speak," Thrash said. "As for your magic, boy, it's.....an ill fit. Not in theme, but in the attachment. You wouldn't have to convince me that it was a rush job and not your idea. But on the bright side, something that can be artificially attached with magic should also be able to be artificially unattached with magic. In theory."
Post by Reya Starlyght on Feb 14, 2020 0:26:14 GMT
An experiment gone wrong, that was all the so called Thrash was. Apparently Blitz's inventions hadn't all ended well, which was a fair assumption although Leo had possessed no evidence to back such until that moment. Yes, creating life was more often than not a foolish endeavor, nothing could truly mimic it, certain intricacies too small for the human mind to capture. The metal mage had rightfully paid his price for fabricating a facsimile of himself, a being so easily twisted into evil, as would have it. Indeed, while it was a far cry from what had initially struck Leo's mind, it was a concept he quickly established within his perception of Blitz, a missing piece of a puzzle who seemed to be too good, too right, to a stifling degree even. A part of him wanted to pry further into the details, to see whatever it was that had pushed Blitz to attempt such a feat in the first place. For power, for achievement, to prove a point? Whatever the case, it was not a query Leo would have a catch to ask, at least not at that moment.
Of course, Thrash had to be snide. The comment was amusing, certainly, yet the malicious curl was evident in Leo's voice even amidst a chuckle. "And I'm sure you've been quite productive, rotting away as a lab rat in a cage does." Normally, he would have been slightly more polite. Or perhaps not, he wasn't entirely sure at that point. All he knew was that the day had already gone on long enough, and was only going to continue in its exhausting march. He glanced over at Eris, who had already begun to snore as she often did. It would be lovely, having a normal circadian rhythm, but alas such was not the case. Nor could he trust his unconscious mind, as much as he loathed to admit it. Leo couldn't occupy his thoughts with petty squabbles, no, already there was an urge to act upon his words alone. An unsophisticated response, he scolded himself for the rumination, yet there was nothing he could do to halt its growth.
Coffee would help, Leo supposed, and thus he absentmindedly began to wander over to Maescia's kitchen, knowing exactly where she kept her machine. At least he would have, until Blitz's doppelgänger had to open his mouth again. He choked, not at the continued insult but the solution Thrash proposed. "I don't think you understand what you're saying," Leo muttered. Something coiled up inside of him, injured, begging to be caressed. He wasn't sure what it was, at least he wanted to deny it. Attached, unattached, nothing more than an object to be fancied. How terrible, reviled, was that thought. Spoken as a true, human mage, if nothing else, yes magic was nothing more than a tool, a weapon even. He never had been able to understand the connotation, his own life too tangled between them to recognize a difference.
Leo cleared his throat, turning back toward Blitz. "Thrash here, wants to kill me. Because that's what would happen, if my 'magic were unattached' as he said. I would have done so a long time ago myself if it wouldn't have resulted in a slow and painful death."
His gaze then averted back to the cage. "Apparently, not far off from your own situation. And, you may call me Leonidas, otherwise I'll politely request your master put you back whence you came."
Leo didn't seem terribly keen on Thrash, though he had called him a 'whelp', albeit an ancient one. Thrash, however, didn't flinch at the lab rat comment. "Hardly a lab rat - that implies experiments, and lord knows my creator didn't have the nerve try something on that level again, not after his first 'failure'." Thrash glanced at Blitz, who merely glared with mild disdain at Thrash, before Thrash's gaze drifted briefly to Shoop, then back to Leo. "However, you're not wrong that our situations are....similar, but with opposite inclinations. Both of us are rather....chained to our magics - quite literally," Thrash added, gesturing with his shackled wrists, "But the difference is that my magic hellbent on keeping me alive. Yours.....not so much."
Leo did, however, have an odd reaction to Thrash's theory of detaching the magic, as he replied that it would kill him, and not in a quick or pleasant fashion, either. "There's more to it than that, isn't there?" Thrash asked, mildly curious. "If you're as old as you claim, you've had nothing but time to think about this - unless you are truly dense, you had to have thought of that suggestion at least once before, yet your reaction implies that thought has more to it than simple mortality."
"He's been alive for longer than any living creature, as far as we know," Blitz interjected. "Death is a more foreign concept to try and come to actual terms with to him than most, I would think."
Thrash said nothing, but glancing curiously at Leo, smirking briefly when Leo spoke of Thrash killing him. "Honestly, I've no reason to - moreso if Blitz is willing to allow visitors. But if that's an invitation, you'd have to do something about him, first," Thrash said, gesturing towards Blitz, who scowled.
Leo finally introduced himself, then more or less said the meeting was over. "You heard the boy, visiting hours are over, and I'd like to return to my nap, so if you would please, Warden." Thrash said, Blitz silently dismissing the cage and Thrash from sight.
"Told you that wasn't a great idea." Shoop said. "Still weirds me out."
"Your own situation is complex, for damned sure," Blitz said to Leo, "But I thought you might appreciate the idea that magic you're not fond of isn't exclusive to immortals."
"Says the guy born over a thousand years ago." Shoop murmured almost too quietly to hear.
