• Closed • Entering Death's Domain [Malcolm]

[Jade]

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Continuation from this thread...

Noiseless footfalls coasted in the darkness that was Emea. If one looked above, they might have thought they were seeing stars in such a quiet place, and maybe they could considered these things to be stars. These pin pricks of light were other worlds after all; dreams and memories, souls and dimensions hidden in warped illusions, shadows, and light. Vri knew better than to travel to such places. He had no right to. The only thing he had a right to was stopping the sound of a beating heart, and for that, he often lingered in Emea, enveloped in his own space— his sanctuary. Watching... Waiting...

Unlike what most would assume from the Immortal of death, his sanctuary was far from any dreary graveyard or hellish hole with smoke and fire. No, his sanctuary was warm, with sun and sky, soft clouds and a gentle breeze that coasted on the soft green blades of grass. The trees were tall and bushy with vibrant leaves growing so thick that they shadowed the ground with perfect shade. Water drifted nearby, a stream that— in the distance— ran off into a larger body of water.

This was something of a memory he lived within, a place he use to call home with his human lover, Anaza. Now it was quiet and lonely, devoid of life, of sound, of sense. Just a memory.

Vri didn't focus on that, however, he had more important things to address and though he wasn't one who lost his temper easily, he was feeling the weight of irritation and disappointment settle on his shoulders. Some moments ago, the Immortal sensed a dying heart, one that needed to be stopped. However, it was a heart he'd known had hummed with life far longer than any mortal man's should have. He needed to end it.

In his sanctuary, Vri paused for only a moment as darkness enveloped him and suddenly, he was standing before a body that appeared cold and colorless. There was no one else in the room but the two, quiet, nearly soundless with only the very gentle beat of a heart. Vri's expressionless mask broke to a slight frown. He should have known such a thing would happen... Should he intervene?

This was his mortal born son, after all...

Vri's gaze fixated on Malcolm's still back, he knelt forward with his palm out and pressed it between his son's shoulder blades. It was a temporary fix, one that Vri would use to speak to the boy about his recent transgressions. Then he would decide whether this son deserved death or not. He stood up, watching as color slowly returned to a motionless body and knew, given enough time, Malcolm would rise again.

Vri, with soundless footfalls, moved towards a chair and sat, watching and waiting for his son to arise.

[Malcolm]

► Show Spoiler

There was a metallic taste in the man’s mouth, poison and betrayal. The heart in his chest set to cease, or pieces, for he was certain Vanessa had taken to it with hook and chain, had her fill and left him to die on the cold stone floor of House Krom. For four hundred and nineteen arcs he had walked this earth, existed, suffered enslavement, war, loss, and sacrifice; was this how it would end, a gut full of tainted wine and a chest littered with broken glass?
His breaths came short and shallow; the air was thinning on Vri’s stolen time while the floor shook beneath him and the walls slowly started closing in. With eyes open Malcolm looked but could not make the detail of a room he knew well. This, the calm before the storm, was it to be trial or retribution, with his immortal father, Vri, playing the role of judge. Malcolm had crossed every line and broken every vow, but time didn’t teach a man live, only to survive until the fight was done.
They were the kings of their own domains, Vri of death and love, and Malcolm of pain and devotion. It was strange to consider how the two coexisted and that which was born of one, would always die by the other. Love meant life, life only ended in death, while devotion meant love and to be stripped of such was to suffer great pain. It pooled in his belly now like water poured into a small vessel, soon Malcolm feared his pain would overflow to wet cheek returned to colour, while heart bid to beat saw life swell in his veins for the moment.
How long had it been since he had seen or heard from Vri? An essence as foreign to him as the idea of forgiveness stood now. Malcolm shuffled to his knees, fingers stitched and head bowed, this wasn’t the first time he had knocked on death’s door, but it was the first time the man on the other side had answered. Slowly, the mortal born son got to his feet.
Like his father he was tall and dark of features, long and lean of limb, with a watchful, knowing gaze. They were an imposing pair, and not just because of their chosen realms. Malcolm did not speak but stood seething, an attribute he and his long dead mother shared. Anger, only he was not afraid that this stirring, not like the flame he sometimes felt burning within, which promised only to devour. Pain punched holes in his chest, but he would not let it consume when it could be put to good use.
This pain was just a shadow of that which he would inflict upon those he now deemed unfit to so much as utter his name.

[Jade]

Many bits had passed while the Immortal waited for the man to awaken. It gave him time to think, to process the events that had and were transpiring. In time, he knew that Pier and Pre would welcome themselves to the situation. How long they would stave off to give them space, Vri wasn't sure. Propping his elbow upon the armrest, in a very human like fashion, Vri leaned against his left palm, index pressed against cheek, thumb holding chin, while his other digits curled to hide the frown that had not slipped from his features.

He slid his eyes shut and waited, listening to the slow beating heart of his son.

Bud-ump...

Silence.

…... Bud-ump...

Bud-ump...... Bud-ump... Bud-ump...

There it was, picking up pace. Soon it was beating regularly just as the sound of breath being pulled into the body filled the air. There he was... Vri listened as Malcolm shifted on the floor before slowly rising to his knees. The Immortal didn't have to look upon him to know Malcolm was suffering silently. His son was no fool. He was never raised as such, though he, like all humans, would make foolish decisions.

Pregnant silence lingered on, each man contemplating choices of life and death, pain of decision, intervention... They were much alike in many ways and somehow, now, they were alike in their dealings and attachments when it came to mortal beings.

Finally, the Immortal cracked dark eyes open to look upon his son. Still, the mortal sat bent, poison still coursing through his system, death halted for but a break of time. Vri had been keeping tabs on Malcolm. He was not unaware of what was going on in the man's life, though he was not completely up to date on the events that lead up to this point. He would surly find out.

His lips curled open as he spoke, a deep voice of a language uttered so powerfully, the room trembled as if the ground would suddenly split open. The Ancient Language Vri spoke electrified the air, pressing upon the walls and window and even upon the mortal man himself. It was apparent Vri was not happy about being here...

“You're being killed by poison...” Vri spoke in common. The room had stopped shaking, however, the air was still tense and full of power. “Tell me why I have come to find you in such a state, Malcolm.”

[Malcolm]

You know I care about you…

The words echoed in his head on repeat, little the ripple effect caused by a single drop of rain falling into a bucket of water.

I always will.

Forty arcs, the two of them had been together for almost half a decade, nursed each other back to health, shared trial and tribulation, raised two sons, entrusted each other with their darkest secrets, and managed to find peace, or something akin to harmony during their relationship. He could only sum up their time together as well spent, a life lived to the fullest of their ability, but age had changed Vanessa. Doubt was a seed from which sprung a vine that had entangled and choked her inner calm, poisoning whatever it was they had once shared.
It was impossible for the ageless to know the thoughts and feelings of one faced with death, but a taste of such sat before the mortal born now, and for a spell his rage subsided, enough so that the inner storm would allow him to speak, his tone broken and laced with disbelief.
“I’ve hurt her,” Malcolm admitted. “Ruler of my heart, she left me and I broke my mortal vow to her.”

Sleep sweet, my prince

The words were jarring and cut quick and fine like razors, it took time for him to acknowledge the sting, but once aware, just like a child who realised his scraped knee was bleeding, Malcolm couldn’t shut the new pain out. It burned like hot coals under his skin, causing his fingertips to flinch and head to hang, casting dark shadows across the length of his face, making him appear an eyeless figure who stood with mouth agape, trying to make sense of the betrayal.
The same heart that had thudded loudly in his breast with fury grew slow as Malcolm was transported to another place, somewhere in the archive of his memories. I love you, Malcolm, and I will always be yours, if not in body, then mind and spirit. Live again, my darling, love again, the world is yours as it has and always will be. Her letter, the goodbye she had not been able to give him face to face; what had changed since then?
Live again, my darling, love again.
Nothing made sense…
“But the Vanessa I know, the Vanessa I love… she would never do this,” the mortal born added as if to accuse his immortal father of lying to him.

Injustice, that’s what this was…

[Jade]

“But she did... And now I am here, bid by nature to deliver death onto you...” Vri answered, his voice drifting through the air like a chilling Cylus breeze. His gaze narrowed though, expressionless while he watched his son sink lower, trying to weave through grief yet was miserably failing. Betrayal warped Malcolm features, tensed his weakened formed, and distracted his focus to the point that Vri knew his son barely heard him. Malcolm's was enveloped in his thoughts.

A sigh lingered off Vri's lips and he shifted slightly in his seat, another human habit taken from the mortals he surrounded himself with. “Your lack of devotion explains much of the situation.” He observed his son, letting the words sink in. “And whether you wish to believe it or not... Your human lover is no innocent youth. Such becomes the aging.. They cannot stand by, growing old while we remain forever fixed...” He knew the words would bite Malcolm. “... Persisting while they grow weaker, grayer, till they are nothing more than ash upon the winds...”

For a moment, his own thoughts were else were, staring at a bright smile of a beautiful mortal woman.

Then the atmosphere shift as two young maidens, cloaked and hooded, came forward into the room. Judgment stood before pain and death and now, there was no turning back. Vri lifted his head and spoke the ancient language, however, it did not shake the room as it had before. In turn, bell like voices, almost as if they were singing, replied back to him.

Death shook his head and frowned, again speaking out but was cut off by one of them stepping forward, turning a thin hand up to push the hood off her head. She was dressed as a commoner, appearing even lower in status by the small rips and stains on the cloak that hid nearly her entire form from sight except her hands and face. Brown hair fell off her shoulders and bright, sea blue eyes pierced ahead, capturing any who gazed into them.

“Malcolm, Son of Vri.” Pier's hand grasped Malcolm's shoulder and turned him around to face her. “Bringer of Pain, Breaker of Oaths. You have caused the ones who love you to suffer. You have lusted for another, you have disgraced your own devotion and you will face judgment for it.”

“Calm sister, release him. He is weak enough.” Pre took a hold of Pier's hand, which still grasped the mortal's shoulder, and guided it away from Malcolm. “Don't say such things. He is Mortalborn after all.” With this statement, Pre's eyes turned to look upon Vri who had moved from the chair to lean against the wall. “Come, Malcolm. Sit and rest, you must be out of sorts.”

Stepping around her sister, she helped the man to the chair and allowed him to plop rather harshly into it. Laughing softly, she removed her own hood and wrapped her fine, silk cloak closer to her body before moving back. “You're like your Father in many ways, do you know? He too struggled with a mortal. Many, actually.”

“That's irrelevant sister—”

“Pier, Malcolm has much time to live and deserves to do so rightly.” Turning, Pre confront her in the game they always played. “As every Mortal, he too has performed misdeeds. Though he is no Saint, we cannot hold him to such status simply because he is Mortalborn.”

“The poison that was given onto him has been unnaturally halted. If he is as mortal as you wish to present him then he must naturally die. That is rightly so.”

“But wrongfully given.” Pre countered. “You know as well as I do that this event was unjustly brought upon the Mortalborn for wicked reasons. Reasons that spell further wickedness should we allow him to step into death's domain.”

“The world is full of wickedness, Sister. What does he bring to the world in terms of wickedness but just adding to it? Just because he is our brother's son does not mean we play favor to the other half of his blood. He was but a pawn in a plot and was ultimately executed for it. Being the child of an Immortal does not grant him safety from the Great Beyond. He has lived an unnaturally long life as it stands. Such events are unfortunate, however, we cannot overlook judgment because of what he is or whose blood flows within his veins.”

Pre fell silent for a short moment, her own sea green eyes gliding from Vri's to Malcolm's. “Yet he has much to live for, Sister. Though, with what state of being he is in now, no good deed may come from it.” She waved a hand towards Malcolm, turning back to Pier. “Mortalborn are unique creatures, made from the power of the divine and adaptive nature of the mortal. They have power, they live through centuries, they are our own and can protect us from the Great Beyond. Malcolm's kin have succumbed to the lust for power and I fear, dearest Sister, this does not help us if we continue down this path without Malcolm or the support of any other Mortalborn. The Heart of The World's dark cloud reaches far and I fear we might soon need as many arms as we can get. Malcolm is strong, he is faithful, he is loyal, he is trustworthy. You cannot deny this, no matter how many titles you wish to bestow upon him.” Again her silence blossomed just before she too sighed, as if exhaustion had fallen upon her so suddenly.

“You would want him to live simply for protection? What had he made of his life that would make him worthy of a second chance? Tell me this, Sister.”

Glancing back to the Mortalborn, Pre frowned softly. “Because he has not had a chance to make something of it, Pier. He is needed more alive than dead. You cannot deny this.”

“No, I cannot, but I find you lack a better excuse for his existence and I demand he pays a price for this second chance.” Pier slowly folded her arms. “I demand he be cursed.”

Vri's chilling voice spoke up then, drawing all eyes to his overbearing form. “You would curse my son..?”

Turning her chin up, the Immortal woman nodded, unafraid of her decision. Death's cold, emotionless eyes slid back to Malcolm. “Then I will do it.” And as those words left his lips, the room fell eerily silent...

[Malcolm]

“Deserves it! I daresay he does. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement. For even the very wise cannot see all ends.”

― J.R.R. Tolkien

Malcolm could not see past his family’s betrayal, one the Immortals assured him had taken place. He sat in his father’s chair but felt no warmth transferred, not via heat nor sentiment. Vri was not a cruel Immortal, but he had little room in his heart for dressing up the truth, and like stones, they sat in Malcolm’s belly, pinning him to the chair.
Lack of devotion, the mortalborn thought the words unfair and yet, he had let Vanessa walk away from him during her darkest hour. For over three hundred arcs he had refused to indulge the idea of a relationship, or raising children and spending his days with one being, not because the man lacked devotion, but because mortals had time and time again proved themselves to be fickle and vain. But Malcolm was his father’s son and love had crept into his heart and taken hold when he had least expected it.
Damn her blue eyes and golden hair, teeth the colour of the moon on a starless night, and a radiance that surrounded and followed the woman wherever she went. Vanessa, even with age had remained beautiful to him. Vri’s sisters bickered while Malcolm looked far award, heart still bleeding. Why, he needed to know, why now? What power was there to gain that he did not already give freely? His only reason for being in Krome was to sign his nobility away as per his wife’s request, allowing Marcus to take the title of Baron of Krome.
Marcus… the image of his son’s face clouded his mind, he had insisted that Malcolm try the wine, but this didn’t explain why Vanessa had been in on it, had come to say her goodbye moments before the end had gripped him and now, the Immortals stood judging him, as if they themselves had never tried and failed at something. Perhaps his father had not taken a lover so quickly after the first, but time and time again he had fallen to lust. This is your trial Malcolm reminded himself and looked up at the sisters, finally present and conscious of mind.

“Yet he has much to live for, Sister,” one of Vri’s siblings argued on his behalf and Malcolm sat, memorized by the display. “The Heart of The World's dark cloud reaches far and I fear we might soon need as many arms as we can get. Malcolm is strong, he is faithful, he is loyal, he is trustworthy”

Protection the second sister divulged, so the Immortals had some use for him yet, if not the pawn of man then pawn of the divinities, was this to be his fate, was he just another chess piece? Cursed, Pier insisted, better yet demanded, and the mortalborn found himself wondering as to the purpose of her existence, was immortality to be spent marking off one long checklist of pros and cons, arguing and debating the for and against for each and every individual set before them? Did he have any say, or would words merely spell his own doom?

“Then I will do it,” Vri spoke up and as the room fell into complete and utter silence, Malcolm rose to his feet, ready to accept the decision his father had made on his behalf. With a look he would apologise before bowing his head, lashes heavy with threatened tears, those born of anger. What kind of world was he returning to? Twisted and bitter, he would not be the same, but the man dare not make a beast of himself, lest a beast he become.
Pre had argued on his behalf, an act not soon forgotten. “Thank you, Pre,” the mortalborn acknowledge, “Pier… Father,” and with that he closed his eyes, ready for justice to be served.

[Jade]

Vri looked upon his son, a small form of pity slowly morphing his features as he watched anger wash over Malcolm, contained though it was, even he was uncertain how manageable those strong emotions would be with nothing to counteract them. No compassion, no mercy, no need to care, no need to love. That's what would be taken from his son and, as little as that may seem, it made an obvious difference within a broken man.

Doing this would seal his fate. He was doomed to die.

Vri furrowed his brow and looked back at Pier as she stood there in all her tatters. “Would you prefer I do it, brother?” She asked, though her tone was even. There was no spite behind it, nothing to suggest Pier had anything against Malcolm. She was simply doing her duty.

Shaking his head, the Immortal turn back to his son and grasped his left shoulder. With his left hand, he rested it on the center of Malcolm's chest, Vri's eyes slowly clouding to nothing back black as he sought after the emotions that truly made his son who he was. Absorbing each, they were drained away from within the Mortal man and finally ripped away as his father's cold hand dropped from his chest. Removing his hand from Malcolm's shoulder, Vri stepped back, turning.

“It is done.”

“Good. Judgment has been made, the price has been given. We will take our leave.” Pier responded, moving to throw her cloak over her head once more.

“I fear the consequences of this judgment.” Pre told her brother quietly. The two exchanged a look before she too hooded herself and left quietly with Pier into the darkness.

Vri remained with Malcolm, looking from his son's eyes to the chain around his neck. “There is an end to this, my Son. One that you will not see until you're able to. Until then, your love and compassion will remain housed within this.” Gesturing toward the necklace, Vri looked down. “This is as much as I am able to help you... If again you find yourself in such a situation, I will have to stop your heart. This is your second chance, Malcolm.”

Shadows engulfed him as Vri too took his leave.

“Use it wisely...”

With a beating heart and warm body, Malcolm was once again alone.

[Malcolm]

When Malcolm awoke it had only been for a brief moment, the tips of his fingers still cold with death, and heart but a murmur in his chest. He noticed a shadow in the doorway and felt the pain in his belly neutralised by some otherworldly force before darkness ensnared his senses again and unconsciousness took hold once more.

An icy cloth to the face saw the Mortalborn gasp and stir from a strange and dark dream to fine himself outside, helped to his feet by two of the house servants, including the young man who had greeted him on his arrival to Krome. "You still have friends in the north," the long, lanky one assured him. "But it's not safe for you here, Ser."

With his horse saddled and things packed, the man was bid to leave. Malcolm was helped up into his mount and led towards the forest surrounding the noble house and grounds. "Take the road south, milord, once you are across the river you will catch up with my brother, Steven. He is traveling with a merchant from Gawyne who plans to stop in Andaris for a time. He's happy for you to travel with them until you're home safe in the city."
"Vanessa?" Malcolm asked, his head still spinning.
"Knows that your body is missing but I'm not fully convinced she won't send a team looking for you," the servant admitted.
"Why are you helping me?" Malcolm asked, as if his ability to comprehend compassion had been compromised, or perhaps he had decided there was little reason to trust two complete strangers after what his own family had done.
"You've always been kind to us milord, northerners remember."

Malcolm was cynical and watched the pair through squinted eyes. He nodded suddenly, accepting the gesture and yanked the reins sharply, turning the chestnut gelding south down the path before his heels found the animal's soft belly and together they were away.

[Jade]

Well Earned Rewards

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Etiquette + 1
Intelligence + 2
Mount +1

Basic Knowledge:
Immortal: Pier
Immortal: Pre
Death Hurts
Vri: Doesn't Sugar Coat The Truth
Marcus and Vanessa Poisoned the Wine
Vri: Cursed Malcolm To Be Compassion/Loveless
Pier: Not His Ally
Northerners: Surprising Ally
Vanessa: Betrayed of the Heart
Vri: Gave A Second Chance To Live

Specialized Knowledge:
Intelligence: Learning Information The Hard Way
Pre: A Sinister Plot Unfolds
Poison: Built A Small Resistance
Vri: There Is An End To The Curse

I had so much fun roleplaying this! It's so interesting to see an Immortal interacting with their child, especially when they screw up! Hahah! Anywho, we will definitely continue to RP and see how events unfold for this mortalborn. In the mean time, if you have any questions or concerns about your grade, don't be afraid to let me know!