ORIGIN

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Astraea was alone, now. And alone he picked his way through the ferns of the Maw of Mosses, his antlered head twisting this way and that. He was looking for another, here, with antlers: a predator, though, one he knew as Rift. Here, in these jungles, he led a group of those that fashioned themselves nurturers--and protectors.

Protectors were what he needed, now, though not exactly for defending.

He came to a clearing, standing in the shafts of light that lit droplets of moisture like motes of glowing fire. And here he cleared his throat, and called out. "Rift, of the 'Kingdom of Eridanus.' Come to me, and bring your people."

This is the Kingdom of Eridanus portion of the Spy vs Spy quest. Only Kingdom of Eridanus members may join.

@Rift

Thoughtfully picking his ways through the trees, leaping from branch to branch , Rift paused when a voice called his name, grabbing onto the branch he was currently sitting on and turning himself towards the direction of the voice. He couldn't place who it was, but it was distantly familiar, as if he'd at some point heard it before. A long blink before his eyes slid closed and magic rushed through the tree, bouncing across branches, through leaves, before running into the ground. His senses spread through the blades of grass, until he felt something standing atop of him, like hooves. A heavy weight - a deer of some sort. Perhaps Pride? No, his voice was different.

A memory surfaced, of a wolf and a fungus-laden stag within Eridanus and he flinched, the magicka cutting off immediately.

The garden was not far. Instead of heading for Astraea first, he hopped to the edge of the treeline and called across the Kingdom's grounds, "Kingdom of Eridanus, with me! We are needed for something." He waited for a moment before leaping to the ground and leading the way into the forest.

A few moments later, he emerged into the clearing, where Astraea was waiting for him. He raised his head tall before giving him a small, respectful nod. "Astraea," he rumbled. "What do you need from us?"

@Sebastian (Yew) @Oliver @Enka @Mercurius @Atinneas (Orlaith)

Oliver crept in, shy as ever but alert to the calls. He'd heard the stag--and now Rift, the voices drawing him in. Nervousness and curiosity twinned within him, writhing in his gut, and he was nearly on his belly as he slipped into the clearing.

He remained at the outer edges--half-shrouded by foliage, though clearly visible where he sat. It wasn't that he was trying to hide, exactly--he was just nervous, afraid, as he always was, in some vague and constant way that he couldn't have really quantified as "anxiety."

"Hi," he offered, softly, his ear-tufts flicking back and his head dipping. He knew of Astraea, and his wide blue eyes travelled over him, taking him quietly in.

Mercurius had rocked to his feet, haunches sore from the time he had spent gazing at a globe on one of his grotto's many root-shelves. Nowadays, Rift seldom called assemblies of his kingdom (which didn't bring forth the idea of power and nobility that the word implied.) It must be the near-ritualistic lull in the caves's activity.

As the pale beast walked into view of the clearing, his gaze found the form of Astraea. He paused mid-step, breath hitching, and quickly working at his magic, extending a mental link to Rift. It was uninvited and he gave no warning, but it was a necessity. Mercurius continued along his path, standing some distance away from the brown stag and behind Rift. All the while, he called into the cat's mind: Please don't flinch or acknowledge me. I need to explain something briefly through this link - Astraea is a creature to be wary of; he is cruel and may make disagreeable demands. He's forced a Gembound - Khloros - into the Spire before, one step at a time. Khloros has survived, but he is changed forever, stripped of his magic.

A pause, and one last addition, please consider whatever he says carefully. I'll try to manage this magic as best I can.

Huckleberry was curled just inside the treeline outside of the garden when Rift called for the Kingdom. At first, he considered not responding to him, but eventually elected to raise his head, turning to face where the voice had come from. Shiny's ears twitched as she lifted her head, looking up at Huckleberry. Are you going to go? He sighed and began picking himself to his feet. "I might as well. He never does this."

He padded through the trees, not really trying to hurry forward, until he reached the edge of the clearing and apathy was drained away in an instant. There was Rift, but there was also a stag, a regal one covered in mushrooms and holding an air of importance. Shiny climbed up onto his shoulder and then to his head to get a better look then off the ground. Huckle-friend, who is that? Huckleberry shrugged, staying just inside the trees. "I don't know, Shiny, but I think he's important."

Astraea responded to Rift's greeting with an incline of his antlered head. This was one respectful, unlike the way the Bonebound had been. This was good. And the others that gathered were not many, but eyeing them over, he thought that they would do. The black one seemed an able scout, and the others were large, powerful, and potentially stealthy enough for this task.

Taking a breath, he began to speak. "Kingdom of Eridanus. Rift; there is a danger in the caves. An ancient evil has awoken--I do not know how much time it has had to fester. It takes the form of a pale fungus, and speaks into the minds of your fellow Gembounds, corrupting them to its will. It has risen in the past, and if left unchecked, it will swallow down hundreds, or more. They will eventually be nothing but mindless drones, viciously defending the infestation and using all their energy to provide it food, until nothing remains of them but husks. I have gotten rid of one of the nests. I must search for more, but I task you with rooting out its mouthpiece. You must find the creature known as Reji: small, slender, blue, with a crown of black-threaded white stone atop its head. And you must kill it."

Astraea paused, taking a breath, looking over them again with solemnity. "You deem yourself protectors, and this is an assassination: but it must be done, or you are all at risk. And others may give you information they might hide from me," he added. "I would like it if she were found and destroyed within two cycles; the threat must be neutralized as soon as possible. Do not think to refuse me, and claim pacifism--or to fail; there must be consequences. If she is not stamped out, you will volunteer two of your own for our next Trial. If you succeed, however, you will have my blessing to remain here, under my personal protection, and I will tell you more of the cave in which you dwell."

The Kingdom of Eridanus have been tasked with finding and killing Reji within two cycles. Should she be slain, they will have the Kingdom officially recognized as such by Astraea, placed under his personal protection, and will be granted lore knowledge of Eridanus. Should they fail to deliver her remains, Astraea will demand two of their members as 'volunteers' for the next Trial of Hydra. KoE members may tag Game Master Dark for Reji interaction at any time.

@Rift @Oliver @Mercurius @Huckleberry

Rift's ear twitched, but it could have been towards Astraea or the others appearing behind him, but it was to Mercurius's voice in his ear. He didn't react otherwise, as the lion requested, but dread settled in the pit of his stomach when he realized how much danger they were potentially in. He tried not to let it show on his face, but he made sure to keep tabs on where the few members of the Kingdom were that had decided to appear.

As Astraea spoke, however, his eyes widened with disbelief. He glanced back at Mercurius before looking back, hardly believing what Astraea was asking him. Did he come here not knowing what the Kingdom's purpose was? No, he had mentioned that they could not refuse and claim pacifism. He knew, yet he still asked them to kill someone in cold blood. Even if what he was saying was true, about the ancient evil, which he wasn't sure he did believe, considering Mercurius's words, Rift wasn't sure they would be able to pull it off if they did accept the task.

He cleared his throat and dared to speak. "Um, with respect, I don't believe you've come to the right place with your mission. We're not exactly a Kingdom of warriors - all those that joined this Kingdom have sworn violence from their lives and it's the very core of our ideals to stay neutral and peaceful. Even if we were willing to carry out an assassination, I'm not sure how many of us are even physically up to the task. We're gardeners, not fighters." It was a bold thing to speak and the fear of the Trials, which Rift had heard about enough to know their danger, kept him from saying anymore, but he still stood tall, not letting that fear show on his face. Only a hint of confusion that they would be approached for a missions such as this.

Mercurius loosened his grip on his mental link with Rift, ending it with only a confused we're pacifists... The stag had come, claiming to know of the kingdom's purpose, then proposed the cold-blooded murder of a mouthpiece for - allegedly - some fungal hivemind. Mercy grimaced slightly, ears flicking back while his brows furrowed in conflicted confusion. Of the Gembound here, the only one predisposed to killing was - was one of the ex-Bloodberries. He wouldn't subject that child to it again. Not now, not ever. Huckleberry didn't deserve to be coerced into murder again.

As Rift spoke, the pale beast was glad to see he was in agreement. They were pacifists, gardeners. Their beliefs were built on these two values. Mercy's gaze flickered over to Oliver, and his feet carried him softly to the crow-dog. Plopping heavily onto his haunches, he gently brushed a shoulder against the hybrid's, waiting for the consensus.

If it came to it, Mercurius would take a Trial so that his fellow kingdom members didn't have to.

Oliver flinched at the very idea. Fleeting memories of violence--of sneering and screams and bodies and blood--whispered through his mind in a low roar.

"Isn't... there something else that can be done?" he asked softly, peering up at Astraea with wide blue eyes. "We aren't-... yeah," he faltered, nodding to the others. "I mean, can't we just--tell you if... if we hear it's around? Or something? The--the Reji person?"

The softest whine escaped him as Mercurius drew up close. He leaned into the larger Gembound, not overly so but enough to give the slightest press of black wing to body.

He didn't want to do this.

Huckleberry flinched when the word "kill" came out of the deer's mouth. He thought he'd never, ever have to hear that word again or even think about the act of murder once he'd joined the Kingdom, but here was a very powerful creature standing in front of them, saying "kill or be killed" and Huckleberry realized they were backed into a corner.

The first reaction, though, was to laugh. Because it was an absolutely ridiculous request to ask of the Kingdom of Eridanus. Their entire ideals were built on the ideas of pacifism and non-violence. Asking them to kill would be like asking nicely for the ceiling to fall - it just wasn't going to happen. He managed to stop himself before he did laugh, however, as he realized a moment later that refusing, which they would, would mean submitting two of them to the Trials...to die, probably.

No. There weren't enough of them to let go to Hydra. And if Huckleberry knew anything, he knew exactly which two would be volunteering for those spots. They weren't going to kill, because they couldn't. Not Oliver, Oliver could never, and Mercurius had spent enough time with him, helping him be better, to turn around and hurt intentionally. As for Rift, if he got riled up, he might be able to, but not in cold blood. He only fought if he needed to.

Which meant Huckleberry was...the only one that could.

No, Huckle-friend. Don't think about it. You're not going to do it. Huckleberry's claws dug into the ground at his feet. "But if it's to save the Kingdom..." He whispered, soft enough that only Shiny could hear. The catsquirrel licked the top of his head. Don't do anything without telling Rift at least, okay? Promise me that. Huckleberry hesitated, and then nodded slowly, but he wasn't sure that he even believed himself.

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Game Master Dark

Rift (Original)

Oliver

Mercy

Huckleberry

Game Master Dark

Rift (Original)

Mercy

Oliver

Huckleberry