TEST DRIVE #6

[fairyfoes]

TEST DRIVE MEME

Considering apping to EACHDRAIDH? Why not give the setting a test run here! OPTIONAL SCENARIOS 01. ARRIVING IN THE DRABWURLD. The Seelie and Unseelie courts welcome you with mirthful revelry and hearty food. After you have been briefed on your purpose here, you will find an endless feast and a night filled with entertainment to placate your concerns. Mingle with new arrivals, sneak down the castle halls and make sure your eyes are always on your glass; fairies and imps have no bias when it comes to tricks! 02. THE STATION. Looking for a little slice of home? The Station gives you all that and more. Take advantage of the wifi, have a cup of fairy-brewed coffee (the one they didn't spit in) or sit back and relax on the patio. You can even move your things into one of the available rooms! 03. WILDCARD. Your own scenario! Explore the Drabwurld or simply take advantage of your Locket!

Comments

[babbylon]

[That unintentional show of strength doesn't go unnoticed. A hard swat from his hand could take the head clean off a bull elephant, but her fingers barely even budge. In fact, they don't, and coupled with that mouthful of an address, Gilgamesh slowly pieces a few things together.

One, this probably wasn't an ordinary girl; two, while some bits of that title may have been exaggerated, most probably weren't; and three, he could probably make use of her, but it's just as likely that he'd burn himself in the process.

Of course Gilgamesh could never stay away from such a prospect. Apologies forgotten, his anger subsides.]

"Arcueid Brunestud"? [A disapproving tsk.] It's not too feminine. I dislike it.

[typemoonmoon]

You can dislike a name? [ That's a first for her, but then again he is the first of kings as well as heroes.

It only means he knows things that modern humans don't know. ]

Do you have something that fits appropriately? [ Is she actually willing to take on another name? It's possible. She's been called many other things before, so what's another one to add to the list? ] You may address me by it if you desire it.

[babbylon]

[She was serious, wasn't she? Seriously naive, but unlike many of his "honorable" Seelie kin, Gilgamesh takes no issue in taking advantage. Though he does have to give it some thought, as the name sounded like some kind of curse, or at the very least a burden. Great power tended to rest heavy on the soul, after all.

Not that he's willing to acknowledge it yet, and less so from one who takes the form of a girl. He is in part reminded of his darling Saber, the cute little king with her cute little sword and cute little ambitions... cute little flowers who always unfurled for him exactly the same way.]

Arc.

[He announces it with supreme authority after he has considered, as that is who she will be.]

For the great craft that once sailed across a raging sea.

[And that some creepy old man filled with animals, apparently. Better leave that part out.]

[typemoonmoon]

[ Naming a god-like vampiric celestial being after something made famous through the Holy book. Bold move there, but one she doesn't seemingly mind. The thought of crossing a sea like that excites her, makes her think of the possibilities a name like that invokes, and quells the waves within her mind before they can come crashing down. ]

Then I'll be Arc for you, King of Kings. [ She twirls on foot just once in her excitement and bows to him the second they're facing each other. ]

For now I'll act as your vassal. [ Seeing as no one else from their world has taken up this position. ] And keep you informed to the matters of this dying world.

[babbylon]

[He finds her endearing despite himself. There's appeal in that childlike sense of wonder and excitement, and in this she couldn't be further from the King of Knights, who had such a thing ripped from her long ago. Be she goddess or mortal or something else altogether, Gilgamesh recognizes that sorting her out will take more than a cursory glance.

That she's getting more than a cursory glance at all is a very high honor, and so her humble offer to serve as vassal is accepted as an expectation rather than the benevolent gesture it truly is.

Still, for just a moment, he does smile.]

Good of you to recognize your position. I accept. [For once, he elects not to prattle on and to press for information of import instead.] "Dying"? Elaborate.

[typemoonmoon]

During the last Full Moon, I chose to speak with the planet itself. [ Arcueid speaks resolutely, without a hint of untruth to her words. Lying is something she has no use for. ] There are many Greater Powers channeling into it in an attempt to keep it alive.

[ Dropping to one knee before him not to exalt, but to place a hand against the ground, it seems as if she's confirming her words for herself. ]

That's why I chose to not form a pact with this world. During the next Full Moon, I'll seek it out instead. If the planet can't support a system like myself, then I'll have to protect it via reflection of the moon.

[babbylon]

[She is either very deluded, very confident, or some mixture of both. Gilgamesh finds her answer curious all the same, this talk of Moons and Powers that even he doesn't recognize. And he does recognize that, to some extent, an edge has been taken off his awareness and his strength.

To that end, it may be best to let the Princess think and believe as she pleases until he can better figure out what do with her and her peculiar visions. A gift potentially worth many risks, which also meant it warranted much study.

At least she won't lie. This much he can discern with just a look.]

I will accompany you on this task. [For entertainment factor, if nothing else. Reflecting the moon? Really?] But be warned that I also dislike wastes of my time. Am I understood, Arc?

[typemoonmoon]

I don't waste time. [ Effectiveness is instilled within her every being... even if she's been steered off course a bit here. ] Guide me as you have guided others before and I shall act according to your will.

[ At least she meant every bit of that vassal part. ]

What will you fill your time with once the feast ends? It's only for a day.

[babbylon]

As rightful King, I hold feasts everyday in my honor.

[Simply stated and firmly believed down his very bones. Gilgamesh sips on his wine and flashes her a bright grin, less sharp than before and more willfully indulgent. This is a King who enjoys his pleasures and harbors no regret in doing so.]

And my will is for you to drink with me. Do not grovel in my presence, as I find it unsightly, and do not hold yourself to petty morality, as I find it unsporting.

[Add "unfun" to the list. She looks unfun. This is first on the list of Serious Character Flaws to address.]

[typemoonmoon]

[ Totes unfun. ] Very well.

[ Picking up a glass from one of the many passing by, she holds it up and looks it over carefully. She's only had a drink once before and in doing so, she went mad with the loss of power. Best to double check every glass she's handed now. ]

You'll do this every day? It'll liven things up. Lift their spirits.

[babbylon]

[Not to worry. For every glass she doesn't drink, Gilgamesh takes no issue in drinking two more. Or three more. Apparently worldhopping hasn't dulled his iron constitution much at all.]

They would not ascend to the heavens, where only I may walk. But those serving under my banner do so with pride, in knowing that the light of destiny shines upon them in all its infinite glory. And I would deliver it to them, from sunrise to sunset, treading upon the throne of the world with heels that never tire and a will at once boundless and indomitable.

[A very long-winded way of saying that Gilgamesh thinks very highly of himself, if she hadn't guessed. At least there's a whole lot of pretty face to go along with a whole lot of pompous babbling. And a whole lot of alcohol to drown the rest in.]

[typemoonmoon]

[ Where others may tire of hearing him drone on and on regarding himself, she takes interest in it. Suppose it helps that she can go days without sleep and can travel in the light unlike others of her kind. ]

That's remarkable. I've never heard a man speak resolutely of his goals with as much confidence as you do.

[ ... mostly cause she doesn't pay attention to them. Surely there's a few idiots who ramble on about their intentions on the locket while she tunes them out. ]

[babbylon]

That is because I am no mere man.

[Obviously. But as her simplicity of spirit continues to amuse, he doesn't belittle her for it. One can never have enough loyal vassals, following orders and singing your praises on command. Their other talents were secondary to this.

She must sound lovely when she sings, he thinks. Perhaps he'll test that theory later.]

Though I must wonder why so many willingly wear the shackles of these so-called monarchs. Are they truly that lowly, as to swear fealty to an unworthy liege? [Looking to her, expectantly.] Are you?

[typemoonmoon]

[ This much she can see. Heroic Spirits are like guardian spirits--not on the same level as herself, but she can understand their existence better than others. An ancient king who paved the path for the rest of humanity is worth listening to at any rate and answering-? It only comes forth because she's chosen to. ]

You're the first. [ The leaders of this world haven't spoken to her and never caught her interest. They were beneath her, only to be addressed when the shard of Uaine Cridhe within her breast deemed it so. ]

The only.

Any being that steals from me in order to shackle me is wrong. The only shackles I wear are the ones I bore myself within the halls of the Millennium Castle Brunestud and they have taken that from me. They think of it as freedom and are wrong.

[babbylon]

[This has taken a turn for the decidedly interesting. Those innocent layers are shed in favor of darker implications, and at once the image of a princess in irons is conjured, weeping on a cold stone floor. And Gilgamesh does not find this favorable, as it was an incident beyond his doing and therefore beyond his approval.

It cannot be said that Gilgamesh is merciful, but he is vengeful on behalf of those who pledge service to him. The idea rankles on principle.]

So you are the fair maiden imprisoned?

[The lonely king, upon the lonely hill... of any blade, nostalgia hits the hardest by far.]

[typemoonmoon]

[ This is because of what she is. A being born only to execute her own ruthlessly without any recognition that what she did was genocide, but over time questions continued to spring forward. What point was there in her actions when all she did was simply wake up, acquire the information needed for the hunt, and eliminate her prey? At first she tried to combat her own curiosity via the same methods of elimination, destroying everything.

There was always destruction.

Things that weren't her memory began to slip through in an attempt to combat her feelings, to force her to remain emotionless and uncaring. Yet each time she returned to that throne with those chains it wasn't because her hand had been forced, but because it was all she's ever known. After slaying her own brethren mercilessly, it was the only way to contain herself.

In a sea of blackness.

The Drabwurld had been like that for her too. Only blackness. Everything was black. Death ruled this land and made even the planet itself ache with despair. The Unseelie rode under the veil of night and outnumbered their forces vastly, though she hardly paid attention to those massacres.

Nothing caught her interest until this brilliant King made his entrance and in doing so, lit up the world around him as a result. Drawn like a moth to flame, Arcueid no longer has to dream of these things by herself. Not when she can follow his warmth. ]

So long as I remain without temptation, I have no need for shackles.

[babbylon]

[To all that anguish, all that strife, all that loneliness in that which is dark and damning and dreadful in every sense of the word, Gilgamesh leans forward and mutters only this to her ear:]

And yet you stand in the shadow of temptation itself.

[And he has no need to say much more, or to do much more beyond smile like the fox about to devour the hen. Perhaps it isn't far from the truth, for the countless he's swallowed up before her.

This may have been a mistake, Princess. This may have been the worst one you've ever made, as fire inspires as much as it burns.]

[typemoonmoon]

Do I? [ She doesn't show any fear or weakness before him, unmoved by his smile. If it was a threat, Arcueid's incapable of recognizing it for now. ]

I stand in the shadow of one I've chosen to serve. It's a good shadow. Comforting. Reliable.

If I'm tempted, then it's by the will of the King of Kings.

[babbylon]

Good girl.

[Good in giving the correct answer and good in doing what she's told. Her true value remains to be seen, but any king worth his salt can make use of obedience. Gilgamesh places his own value at roughly a mountain's worth.

The subtle slide of his hand along her cheek might be seen as fond. Really, it's more like a lord admiring his newest pet.]

I'll leave you to your own devices for now. Come when you're called. I must see more of this place... and I must do so alone.