(Daedalus)

IC: Faora

Faora's eyes shot sideways toward Zealot. She was surprised by the question. She couldn't remember the last time anyone had asked her a question like that and actually seem to care. It was... odd, but in a good way.

"Well," she started. She cleared he throat. "What's there to tell? I used to live in Onu-Koro and did some mercenary work there, but I left because--" She caught herself and forced a cough, hoping it didn't sound as fake as it felt. "Excuse me. I left because I wanted to--" Her mind wasn't working right now. Oh, travel! That was good. "--travel, and that's what I did. I couldn't find anything steady, though, so when the opportunity to join the Outsiders came up, well..." She shrugged. "I couldn't pass it up."

Aside from her first glance at Zealot, she still wasn't looking at him. She couldn't figure it out; she normally wasn't this... unnerved in social situations. Mata Nui, what's wrong with me?

Wow. Now I'm praying to Mata Nui.

IC: Faora

Despite her discomfort, Faora smiled. Zealot's convictions were strong--an admirable trait.

"I'm glad to hear it," she said, though she couldn't look at him. She still remembered his knowing look into her eyes.

But does he really know I'm half-blind? she thought to herself. She supposed it didn't matter, but that was something she usually kept hidden. Maybe it was some weird sense of pride on her part--she didn't like someone else knowing her biggest weakness--but she couldn't help it.

Suppressing a groan of self-directed irritation, Faora put her earmuffs back on and, drawing a bit more on her mask, focused on the fight. As soon as she did so, she saw Rekhyt fall from the sky and smash into Forger. Her mouth dropped open.

"Is Rekhyt mad?" she said out loud.

IC: Trauer

Trauer watched the Skakdi approach. Something about him was dangerous. Very dangerous. Trauer stepped closer to his master, preferring to let him speak.

OOC @Requiem: Sweet.

IC: Faora

The way Zealot looked into Faora's eyes made her quickly look away and shift on her feet. She had no idea if he knew, but even if he suspected, it could turn out bad for her chances of becoming an Outsider.

"Just be careful that your creed stays true to Mata Nui," she said, trying not to appear uncomfortable. "I've seen people realize too late that their personal creed has led them astray." She wasn't exactly sure what she was saying; it just came out. Part of it might have to do with the fact that she liked Zealot in a way. She didn't want to see him lose his way, as it were.

As Zero told the two fighters to begin, Faora reached up to adjust her earmuffs. She pulled the right side off her ear to put it in a more comfortable position. As she did so, she heard, faint and distant, banging. With a frown, she pulled the earmuffs off and twisted, looking back in the direction of the outpost's front door.

Turning back toward Zealot, she leaned forward and looked past him to Veteran. "Hey Veteran, were you expecting more guests?" She jabbed her thumb of her shoulder. "Sounds like someone's at the front door."

OOC: That last bit is at you, Roman.

IC: Faora

Faora hadn't expected such an emotional response.

"That's understandable," she said softly. "But what is true justice, and what, or whose, law does it follow, if any?"

IC: Faora

"Then I'm sure Mata Nui's proud to have one such as you fighting for him," she said, smiling.

She'd never been one to fight in another's name, but in her years of travel, she had come to realize that even if one's views or beliefs in a higher cause were misguided, they tended to provide one with a passion and drive hard to match. A question, however, occurred to her.

"I'm curious, and I apologize if you've already been asked this, but... why join the Outsiders?" Faora asked. "With your beliefs, why become a part of an organization such as this? It seems..." She couldn't think of the word. "I don't know... antithetical?" She hoped the question didn't come across as confrontational; she was genuinely curious.

OOC: No worries; I figured that was the case.

IC: Faora

Catching some movement out of the corner of her eye, Faora glanced over at Zealot. He appeared to be waving her over. With a half-smile on her face, she approached him.

"I wondered if you had heard me earlier," she said when she was near him. "It wouldn't be the first time I haven't spoken loud enough." She tapped her earmuffs. "I always sound much louder to myself than I do to others. Anyway, I just wanted to compliment your fighting skills and congratulate you on officially becoming an Outsider."

IC: Faora

Faora watched Zealot walk away. She frowned. He must not have heard her.

With a shrug, Faora turned to Scholar with the intention of saying something to him, but then she remembered his "Ice to meet you" line. Puns were  bad enough, but a bad pun?

Nope.

Popping her neck, she donned her fuzzy pink earmuffs and turned her attention back to the dueling ring. Rekhyt and ohyeahhisnameis Forger were facing off, waiting for Zero's go-ahead. Faora was looking forward to this fight; it would be interesting.

IC: Faora

Faora had watched the duel silently, impressed with the newly-dubbed Zealot's abilities. Truth be told, she was sure that he could have won the battle, but even if he didn't, he proved himself a worthy fighter. She was slightly worried about her own chances, but she attributed that to nervousness. In fact, she kind of wished she had stepped out and volunteered before Rekhyt so she could get this over with, but as it was, she would have to wait.

As Rekhyt and... that-Outsider-whose-name-she-couldn't-recall prepared to fight, Faora approached Zealot in time to hear Scholar spew out an awful pun. She cringed.

"That was some good fighting, Zealot," Faora said, trying not to look at Scholar or appear too disgusted by his vocal spilth. "Congratulations."

OOC: New Faora development: she doesn't like puns. Also, is it possible to fail to prove oneself worthy of joining the Outsiders?

IC: Trauer

Trauer watched the events unfold before him with a grimness he hadn't previously known. He winced when he saw Skorm get his pelvis crushed, and again when Skorm was thrown in front of him and the others. He moved to offer his assistance to Karna, but when Skorm accepted Karna's help while still conscious, Trauer felt a sense of incredulity.

"Strong words for a broken man."

"Foolish words, I say," Trauer muttered, shaking his head. He had a feeling things weren't going to stay quiet for long. "You need any help, Karna, just let me know. I can't do much, but I'll do what I can."

He also kept an ear open for the Abettor's response to his master's question; he was curious to know the answer himself.

OOC: Edited my post to fix my misunderstanding.

 

Okay, I'm considering creating a new character bonded with a parakuka, but first, I have a question about them: Do they only alter the appearance of their host if they are activated regularly, or do they still alter the host's appearance even if he or she never or rarely activates them?

 

Well they do have a slug melded with their spine, so there is some change. I'm pretty sure that a greater, temporary change happens whenever they activate their powers.

 

I was more specifically referring to the "pseudo-rahkshi" appearance, but after reading the post about the parakuka again, I see that that pseudo-rahkshi appearance occurs when the parakuka is activated. I guess I shouldn't try to figure this kind of stuff out while I'm half-asleep.

Okay, I'm considering creating a new character bonded with a parakuka, but first, I have a question about them: Do they only alter the appearance of their host if they are activated regularly, or do they still alter the host's appearance even if he or she never or rarely activates them?

IC: Trauer

Trauer, mostly recovered from the use of his mask, took up position behind his master. He was ready to move when his master was.

IC: Trauer

As soon as the Rahkshi of Quick Healing was dead, Trauer released his control of the Rahkshi of Density Control. He felt like a weight had been taken off of him. Controlling a Rahkshi was far more difficult than anything else he'd ever controlled, but he also didn't feel as bad. It was kind of hard to explain, but it didn't feel... wrong to control a Rahkshi.

Still, it had taken a toll on him, and he leaned over and placed his hands on his knees, breathing heavily.

OOC: Hey, an opportunity for Trauer to use his mask!

IC: Trauer

With the Rahkshi of Density Control dead, Trauer considered attacking the other Rahkshi. However, he couldn't permanently harm it, and he wasn't sure he could get the Rahkshi's staff away. Unless...

Trauer frowned. He knew of a way to even the odds a bit, but he didn't like it. At all. However, it was the best way to keep the Rahkshi occupied while the others got its staff away and killed it.

Gritting his teeth, Trauer sheathed his blades, activated his Kanohi Tryna, and focused on the Kraata within the dead Rahkshi's body. It twitched a few times. Suddenly, he could feel it. It sputtered to life--though that wasn't quite the word to describe it--and the Rahkshi jerked. Trauer grunted. Reanimating the Kraata was one thing, but getting the Rahkshi to move was another. He focused harder and was able to get the Rahkshi on all fours. Through is manipulations, it reached out and grabbed its staff. It then rose shakily to its feet. Turning it around, Trauer pushed it forward in a loping gate.

The Rahkshi of Quick Healing was in the process of healing a wound from Kotak when it saw its formerly fallen brother approaching. It shrieked. Trauer made the Rahkshi of Density Control swing its staff at the other Rahkshi. The blow was awkward, but it took the Rahkshi of Quick Healing by surprise and struck its right arm, knocking that hand free of the staff. The Rahkshi of Density Control then let go of its own staff and lunged at the Rahkshi of Quick Healing. As the two grappled, the Rahkshi of Quick Healing's left arm, still grasping the staff, was exposed.

As he fought with the Rahkshi, Trauer hoped someone would take advantage of this opportunity to try to get the staff away.

 

Of course it is. It's the equivalent of owning a bomb, we don't just let people possess that sort of thing casually.

OH MY GOD JC A BOMB

 

I love this so much.

OOC: So, um, I'm not exactly sure how fights against NPCs are supposed to work. Can anyone control them?

IC: Trauer

Trauer had stayed next to his master as the Rahkshi charged them. He watched Skorm attack it, but the Rahkshi came out on top. As it raised its staff in-- what was that, celebration?--Trauer charged forward and sliced the Rahkshi across its leg. It shrieked and instinctively swung its staff down and back, striking Trauer in the side and sending him flying sideways. He slid across the ground and hit the wall with a grunt.

As he pushed himself to his feet, he glanced at the Rahkshi. It didn't appear to be too badly affected by his attack, though it would probably have a limp.

IC: Trauer

Trauer was conflicted. His master had no intention of fighting these Rahkshi, even though they were most likely feral and wouldn't think twice about killing any of them. Pacifism was admirable, but in this case, it seemed foolish. How could his master spread his message if he died because he refused to defend himself? It didn't make sense.

Shaking his head, Trauer stopped debating. He wanted to follow The Heretic and he wanted to learn from The Heretic, but he couldn't do either if either one of them died. No, he would fight. If his master didn't approve, Trauer could apologize later.

As Teren used to say to him, "Ask for forgiveness, not permission."

It kind of depends on what type of Rahkshi we encounter, and how many there are...

 

Plus The Heretic is a pacifist...

Good thing his disciple isn't, then.

IC: Trauer

Trauer found Skorm's question to be... odd. Why would he come to Mangaia for allies if he didn't even know what to look for?

He refrained from speaking, however, as he had nothing to add to his master's or Karna's answers.

IC: Faora

Faora was so intent on the duel that she didn't notice she was also using her mask to increase her sense of smell until her nostrils were assaulted by something pungent. She scrunched up her face and turned to face the direction from which the smell was coming. A Lesterin had opened a barrel of some type of alcohol, and Veteran--apparently devoid of senses and sense--was actually buying some.

As she turned her attention back to the duel, she thought, Note to self: Think long and hard before trusting Veteran's judgment.

IC: Faora

Faora listened to Enforcer--Mr. Pleasant, as she preferred to think of him--and she was about to volunteer when a Ko-Toa stepped forward, doing some weird salute and bow.

Ah, well. Maybe she would be next.

i only wrote one sentence today and honestly im beginning to feel like i didn't flesh out my idea enough for me to stretch it into a full novel. i'm at about the word count where i failed last time so i'm going to try to push on but it's just starting to feel like such an awful chore.

If it feels like a chore because you are trying to stretch your story to reach 50,000 words, my advice would be to stop stretching. I know it would feel great to reach 50K, but if it doesn't help the story any, I don't see a reason to push yourself. It won't do you or the story any good to try to make it something that it doesn't need to be (if that makes any sense). Besides, NaNoWriMo is more about just getting you to write; 50K is a cool goal to reach, but finishing your story and being satisfied with your accomplishment is, at least in my opinion, far more important.

If the writing in general feels like a chore, well, I'm not sure what to advise there. If you really want to get it written, I can only advise you to push through the slog. If you just don't want to write it anymore, why continue? Writing requires some work, yes, but you should, ultimately, enjoy it. If you consistently don't enjoy writing, there's no reason to force yourself to keep writing. I get the feeling this isn't the case, but it is something to consider.

Well, I've hit the half-way mark (congratulations and respect to you, TNTOS, for already hitting 50K), and I'm nearing the end of Part 1. I got there sooner than I expected, though I suspect Part 1 will gain some length in revisions. There are quite a few places that could do with some more detail, and I definitely need to work on characterization. Still, I'm happy I've gotten this far. I think Part 2 might be a little harder to write because the themes I want to deal with are going to require a little more nuance and care, but I may just chug along like I'm doing now and fill in the more important stuff later.

IC: Trauer

Trauer stuck close to his master, pulling his blades off his back. He offered a smile at his master's comment, but it quickly faded. In a place where the darkness felt like a physical presence, it was hard to smile.