Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » The Ruins of Rielle [Open Elder Scrolls RP]

Relieved that her advice had been heeded, Gwyneira leaned her whole body on the wall, setting her staf by it after ensuring the light would remain. She watched his restless movement with pursed lips and furrowed brows. "Si-sit still, else the 'rest' will mean nothing," she commanded him somewhat snappishly, fingering the material at the cowl of her hood.

After a few moments of silence, she chose to apologize. "Tha-that was... somewhat uncalled for. I am so-sorry, I should not have ta-taken that tone. At any ra-rate, all I kno-know of Malacath is his orig-origin, his realm an his... sp-sphere." She grimaced as she spoke of him, then sighed and shook her head. Poor fallen Malacath, the once mighty Trinimac. In a moment of bitter thinking, she compared him and the Orcs to the goblin-like remnants of her own people, and that at least drew a chuckle from her.

After Gwyneira had apologized, J'o Rahe stood silent for a moment. Though he still felt very agitated by being unable to lift the curse yet. He felt the need to simply forget the rest and venture down. He scowled at the doorway, contemplating whether he should just explore the ruin anyway. After a moment, he made his choice. Unsheathing his blade, he marched down the narrow hallway without a second thought, caring less about resting anymore. To him, rest would mean little as an automaton of Order.

He already knew much of Malacath, mostly from his time in Orcrest. The Corrupt Mer being his natural followers, Rahe despised them. The sacrifices of Khajiit they had commisioned in Malacath's name, had made him sick. Even after he inherited the his present home, he to pose himself as a Bosmer, in order to make the journey to Valenwood, and then Cyrodiil.

Before he could get too far, Gwyneira was right behind him. "Wa-wait! Do not go off alone." She has to run a few steps to catch up, but it's not that difficult, wooden staff ringing on the stone floor. It's a bit noisier than might be pleasant but it gets the job done. Her light was uneven for those running steps, forward and back with the pumping of her arms, but as soon as she fell into a walking pace slightly behind him, it remained relatively the same.

"Are you fe-feeling okay?" she asked uncertainly, squinting at him uncertainly. "You do not seem..." She paused a moment before continuing. "You are mo-more restless. More... agitated. It is not good, I do not think."

J'o Rahe turned his head towards Gwyneira, though he seemed relatively annoyed that he was stopped in place. "I cannot allow myself to just sit and watch, as I slowly twist into a lifeless husk!" His voice was stern, and sounded as if he was in some sort of pain. He then returned to his original task, marching on without a thought. The feelings that came over slowly made him apathetic those around him. Becoming increasingly agitated, Rahe quickened his pace, not knowing how long he had left angered him greatly.

"...Jygallag be damned..." Rahe whispered to himself in frustration,impatiently moving towards the new obstacles, which could possibly contain a number of traps.

Without concern for her own safety, Gwyneira reached a hand forward to put it on his shoulder. She was cold, likely cold even through whatever coated his actual skin- clothing, Daedric glass, what have you. "If you are ex-exhausted and unable to move, you will be-become a lifeless husk," she hissed. "Rest ass-assured, I will not simply let you fa-fall."

With a nervous glance into the darkness, Gwyneira swallowed. It was a miracle they had not tripped thousands of traps, and run into millions of assorted undead. She was glad, yes, but it left her suspicious and somewhat nervous. It had been too easy this far. It couldn't stay like this, not for long. Absently, so long as J'o Rahe had stopped moving, she removed her hand from him, hoping that he did not question the chill of her palm.

"And what may resting do? Only hasten my curse?" He turned around still agitated and frustrated, but then he took a moments thought listen to her words "..I am sorry... I am simply frustrated... Not knowing how long I may last is taking it's toll on me... I hope you will accept my apology..." J'o Rahe sheathed his silver blade back into it's place, and stood still for a moment, breathing deeply, hoping to forget that he could have put both their lives in danger with his impulsiveness, especially within an Aylied ruin, a place so full of creeping death around every corner.

Rahe did not take a seat. He decided to simply survey the cracked room from where he stood, hoping that a trap did not lurk above or infront of them. Continuing to breathe deeply, Rahe hoped that he did would no longer be as Impulsive, and not to put his life in potential danger within the ruin.

At first, only sharp words sprang to her tongue. As ever, though, she fought the heat back, instead replacing it with the serene chill with which she functioned. "It is fine. Und-understandable, but... you have to listen, and be ca-careful. Resting might delay it, if yo-you keep up your energy it will b-be much easier to fight it back." She granted him a soft smile, keeping a proper distance and not touching him but offering her own detached support.

Gwyneira turned towards the room herself, summoning forth more light with which to light its dark recesses. Again, empty. She frowned seriously and tilted her head. "I mu-must admit, J'o Rahe, I share your fr-frustration. This... Rielle... is dis-disturbingly empty of threats." As she spoke, and Welkynd stones that might happen to lay in the room float towards her, drawn in by her telekinetic spell.

J'o Rahe let out a distasteful, but obedient sigh. He sat down on ancient Aylied pew, eerily cold and hard from probably thousands of years of isolation. As he allowed himself to regain control of his detached mind, he looked to some of the floating welkynd stones. Heeding what Gwyneira had said, Rahe wondered if one of the welkynd stones amongst them was a fake. So far, the ruin had been eerily quiet, and dark welkynd stones could be found within Aylied depths, shooting a concentrated jolt at possible intruders.

Rahe still had not found out Gwyneira's name, however, he had to express his concern. "I do not wish to disturb your telekinesis, but you said this place was disturbingly empty of threats... The abundance of welkynd stones here is questionable... Could one be a fake..?" Although he did not question her magical abilities, he was suspicious of a possible ruse.

Gwyneira tucked these into her sash as well, until it became full and she was forced to remove her knapsack to deposit some in that. She did not turn to J'o Rahe as he spoke, but she still acknowledged him and responded when he spoke. "You di-disturb nothing, one do-does not become a mage without learning how to con-concentrate on more than one thi-thing. I would be-be able to tell, from a la-lack of magicka they give, if th-they were false. The ones I hold are all re-real, I can feel it pulse off of the-them."

Standing from where she knelt on the floor, Gwyneira walked closer, perching beside him and holding one out. "He-here, let me show you. Pu-put your hand on it, but d-do not absorb it. Simply focus- simply focus on it f-for me, how it fe-feels."

J'o Rahe slowly took the the welkynd stone, gently holding it, careful not to absorb the magicka from within. He could feel the pulse from within the welkynd stone surge through his hands. Though he indeed no professional mage, he could still feel the concentrated magic radiating from the stone itself. Having seen enough, Rahe returned the welkynd stone to Gwyneira. The pulse of the welkynd stone had helped to show him how tired he truly was. Rahe allowed his body to rest for the moment.

He leaned his head on the pew silently, trying his best not to lose consciousness, but the thoughts of Corinthe, his once beloved city had taken control of his mind. He allowed his exhausted imagination to run free, though at the same time, struggling to keep awake. He did not know how being asleep would affect the power of Jygallag's curse upon him.

"Ca-can you feel it? Warmth... but, not the sa-same as traditional warmth. It is not the warmth fr-from that crude mockery of light you ca-call fire, it is light. It is magic." She took the sone back there, placing it gently in her pouch and sitting there silently, regarding her own words carefully. Light. She forgot, there, that most might see the world in different elements than she did, particularly a Khajiit.

When J'o Rahe lay down, she scooted over, though startled. "I wo-would not advise that," she warns him almost immediately. "Sleeping, while under the ef-effects of the stronger part of a Dae-Daedric Curse, while in the middle of a haunted Aylied ru-ruin." For good measure, she nudged him with four cold fingers.

"I... I cannot help it... I am exhausted..." J'o Rahe stated, going out of his way to make sure he was sitting up properly. Everything appeared somewhat dazed. He had lost his perception of reality for a moment. He then sat back for a moment, allowing him to come to, he would not allow himself to fall asleep. In some futile attempt to regain his consciousness, he thought of Brutal Orcrest, and the misery he had seen there. Clenching the arm of the pew, Rahe attempted to force himself out of the seat in anger of what he had seen there.

He unsheathed his blade and forced his body to balance upon it, using it as assistance to stand up properly. Rahe felt extremely tired, but he did not know what came over him. Perhaps the vibrancy of the welkynd stone had made him sleepy.

Reaching into her pack, Gwyneira pulled out a small vial. "Dr-drink this- I am afr-afraid I do not have many po-potions to help with fati-fatigue, but this will take the worst of it. I wo-would also advise using another stone." Once he took the bottle from her, she would hand him one of the Welkynd stones as well. When he took out his blade, she sort of flinched away, but other than that she had very little reaction.

After he took the stone, unless he refused, she would stand, gathering a ball of light in her hands and charging up a spell. She cast it, throwing her arms out wide- taking care not to hit J'o Rahe in the process- and listened for anything that might sound like a ghost or a wraith or a lich. Just in case.

J'o Rahe took the vial with all the strength he could muster. He held it upright to swallow the liquid inside the vial. To him, it tasted vile. As it slid down his throat, he choked on the surprise of the awful taste. However, he could care less when it comes to taste for the most part, especially when his very life was at risk.

As the choking (And bad taste) began to wear off, Rahe could feel life breathed within him once more. He returned the welkynd stone to Gwyneira. "I must apologize yet again. The radiance of the welkynd stone was apparently too soothing." Rahe sheathed his blade, no longer requiring it for balance, but he wondered, if he was now wide awake, would they be ready to continue onward?

Gwyneira grimaced with pity at the Khajiit- she had to agree, most of her concotions tasted horrible and most of it was probably because she was too poor to make anything that tasted anything like what it was made of. "Sta-stamina potions don't tend to taste nice, do the-they?" she asked, voice somewhat apologetic. She held the stone when given it, trusting and respecting his decision not to use it. He seemed to be feeling well enough, at least.

"D-do not feel the need to apo-apologize- you are cursed. It is only nat-natural that y-you would be-be tired." Now she felt somewhat self conscious, holding onto her staff in a way that aided her own stride in a way that was not needed on her count. For a moment she was tempted to lend it to him in case the spell came back over him, but that faded rather quickly.

Having had the taste cleaned from his throat, the question of continuation came to him. "I no longer feel the rest... I think we should continue now." J'o Rahe kept his sword upon it's hilt. He felt the need to venture further into the Aylied ruins, and find what lay deep beneath the catacombs. There was probably something down there as well as the welkynd stones that he required.

The atmosphere felt as cold as ever, now that he was fully awake, the eerie jingle of the natural Aylied lighting did little for him. However, it had also help to awaken him aswell as the potion he had just drank. He now felt that his body was full of new-found vigor.

"I agree..." Gwyneira murmured, and with that turned to continue onwards, spinning on the ball of her foot and striding with purpose through the long, broken room. A pillar blocked her path, nearly, but it was small enough that she could perch upon it and swing her legs over. Once that was done, she glanced backwards to make sure J'o Rahe was not staying where he was.

"Be-before I forget! If you be-begin to feel overly warm, sw-sweaty, or nauseous, tell me immediately." She rolled her shoulders up for a moment, looking a bit sheepish even if he could not currently discern the grimace beneath her hood. "Side effect of the po-potion I gave you, sorry. It-it's... well, complicated al-alchemy things."

"Very well then." J'o Rahe replied. This possible side effect seemed like just another obstacle in the ruin. Dangerous, but can potentially be avoided. He took a small look at the somewhat small pillar, surveying it for the moment. After looking to the dark arch above, he took the moment to climb above the pillar, onto the next obstacle.

If things continued, perhaps there would be little to find within the next room, or perhaps because it is above the last, it could possibly be a bridge, or some form of platform. Cleaning himself of the Aylied dust, probably ancient scattered bone meal, Rahe began to follow Gwyneira to the next path, unknown of what it could contain.

Of course, their lucky streak ended with the clacking of bones and the clicking noise that skeletons tended to make. Immediately settling back into a ready position, arms raised in the correct position for spellcasting, elbows bent and hands before her shoulders, Gwyneira called an alarm. "Re-ready yourself!" Even as she spoke, a ball of telekinetic force was being gathered in her hands, bent and moved again together in front of her chest.

She was backing away, too, hoping that J'o Rahe was energetic enough to fight with her- it would not be impossible, of course, but it would be unpleasant and more difficult than it would otherwise be. It might have been simpler to simply turn them as well, but such a spell would only delay the inevitable. She would rather simply destroy them now.

Knowing that combat within an Aylied ruin was no more than a certainty, J'o Rahe unsheathed his silver blade from it's place. Keeping his distance, in case the skeletons were to attack first, which they probably would, being the near mindless and aggressive defenders that the skeletons were. He had no need to point his blade out in a straight position, knowing he could not impale the undead creatures.

He stood his ground carefully, waiting to pick a time to change his position. He did not know how supposedly powerful or what their original rank was in their past life. However if they were potent undead, Rahe knew that one of them could probably use its necrotic energies to summon more dead, as some skeletons were able to attempt.