The Land of Rhapsody

Imperatus Rex

Imperatus Rex

Semper Imperatus
The land was thick with trees, creeks, and wildlife. Among this land stood one mountain that the peek was often hidden from the clouds. Long ago people lived here, and their structures barely remain. Now we see some curious adventurers dedicated to an expedition of this land lost in time. The question is, will they return?

Demetrius walks along the forest path, hearing the birds chirp. "I won't be fooled by their chirping... this is no vacation. The second we see the colossus beasts we will wish we never came." He states, keeping a wary eye on his surroundings.
 
A slight nervousness trembled through her, accented by the jittery hand that ghosted over the handle of her blade, fingers brushing warningly over the hilt. Her boots uncomfortably skittered across the debris, finding her way through the forest path, designated by the large footprints of those who sought what she desired, and she followed them earnestly.

Perhaps following the same trail wasn’t the smartest idea the young lady had at this point, but an idea was better than the alternative of having nothing, surely that was enough to justify another foot moving forward. Her leather armour chafed under her elegant structure, somewhat loose around her wrists, but light enough she could bend with some ease in this dense woodland. She remained silent, for there was no other option when walking through the giant oak structures, life churned around her in waves, squawking and chirping, almost enough to drown out any noise she was making, but unfortunately, not enough to quieten her completely.

Arya tucked a stray lock of blonde behind her ears, eyes searching the dense canopies, leaves and trees, cautious.

[I hope this is okay, If there is anything I need to know, don’t hesitate to tell me. Dx I assume this is a just jump in and off you go type of deal?]
 
Demetrius looks back on the other adventurers, and sighs. "Those footprints aren't from the human vagabonds. We are the first here, those are Elven tracks I believe." He says as he continues through the forest. A small clearing came into view, with a creek off the the left of it. "We will rest there for a while." He says, his sword clanking against his chain greaves.

Demetrius sits down at the creek, gesturing for the others to join him. "We are lucky to have easy access to a creek at least." He says with a laugh and cups his hands into the water, then pouring it on his face. His dark espresso hair was mangled and long after the long journey to the land. They finally arrived a couple days ago on the legendary land of Odin's Rhapsody after a long ship voyage, and desert caravan that lasted at least a week. The forest and creeks were indescribably refreshing.
 
“How fresh do you think the tracks are?” Ayra told inquired simply, stepping quietly into the clearing, leaving little noise when she shifted away from the forest path. “Shouldn’t we keep moving?” She argued, eyes roaming over the clear crystallized water, a welcoming sight against the dull browns, withered away greens and vibrant plants, almost settling her nerves alone.

But seemed her words would go unnoticed, her fellow adventurer was already dipping into the creek. She shuffled forth, claiming her own small spot, knees bending softly against the hard ground, situating herself closely to the water source. She began to check the daggers, strapped and bound in various sheaths, tightly wound around her body in excellent craftsmanship she bought some time ago, a total of four blades, not counting the small sword accompanying her hip. She nodded, affirming her weapons were currently in a state to fight and clash.

The need to move was nestled between her muscles, pounding through her veins in an impulsive need to go further, but she knew that wasn’t going to happen for some time. At least she could prepare for the remainder of the journey, check her items and ensure she was more than prepared to face danger.
 
Demetrius uses a straight edged dagger from his side to cut some of his hair. He thinned it carefully, and removing the mullet that he grew during their travels. "The tracks are probably an hour old at most. This area is filled with life, no doubt we are being observed as we rest." He says as he gestures the dagger towards her, offering to trim her hair as well.

"There is no need to move just yet, we are on no time limit and the next place will be just as deadly as here." He states as he surveys the clearing. The only life he saw were beautiful doves and furry squirrels watching in curiosity.

The clearing also had very soft ground, with the exception of a small stone jutting out of the ground by the creek. The water was fresh, tasting almost of grass and leaves. Elves were watching them from above the canopy, curious of the new visitors.

~Lore Notes #1~

According to the studies of Odin's Rhapsody from the legends, back when humans actually lived on the land, the Elves were submissive to travelers. However, if a traveler were to light a campfire or chop firewood, along with other perversions of nature, the Elves were known to get very angry and kill the traveler.

Fey-folk in the area were much less submissive compared to the Elven brethren. They would attack if a traveler was too close, but they hated iron passionately. Few would attack a traveler that had iron weapons or armor, but having an iron necklace would cause the Feys to tease them.
 
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~Lore Notes #2~

In addition to the lore around the Fey-folk and Elves, there were the legends of the Giga Beasts, or Colossus Beasts. Some examples of these creatures included dormant Giants, Bears, and Titans that roamed the Mountain of Rhapsody. Nobody knows the truth in these tales, though there have been scholars who do not reject the idea of Titans due to the scale of the mountain.

The base of the mountain is cut off from the forests and plains by a thick moat-like river that surrounds it, according to ancient cartographer notes. The moat tastes "Like Honeysuckle" or "The lips of an Elven Goddess" according to the legends. In addition to the taste, the water is said to have magical power to cause the drinkers to fall in love. Another version of the tale says that the water will cause them to fall into a coma, and wilt away like a rose into the bank of the river.

Odin's Rhapsody is often referred to as a continent on its own, and it is estimated at 15 million square kilometers total. Certainly more than an average adventurer would ever explore in his lifetime.
 
Demetrius finishes relaxing by the water, and stands up. "The Elves might not want us here, so be careful." He says, inspecting the plants in the area. "Eeias ku'll lor." He says aloud, reading from his notes he brought from studying the legends of the land.

"Assuming that translates like I hope, I have established us as docile travelers. Still be very careful." He says to the others as he sketches a flower in his notes. It was similar to a rose, but the petals were longer and it had a paler red color. There weren't any thorns on it either, but it had some fuzz on the stem.
 
"Relax Demetrius. You aren't going to act like this the whole time, are you?"

Isaac walked up to Demetrius. He was a giant of a man, standing a head above his companion. His facial features were rough and angular, as if they had been carved out of stone. It seemed as if he always had a smile on his face, and very few people had never heard him laugh. His voice was deep and booming, as if echoing out of a great chasm.

"Lighten up a bit. You might actually end up enjoying yourself for once."
 
Demetrius laughed at the prospect of fun in a raspy voice before clearing his throat.

"I am telling you, the second you see the beasts your mind will change." He says, closing his notes. He walked casually around the clearing.

"Tell all that to miss 'move along' over there." He says with a humorous chuckle, although it was more tongue in cheek than casual banter.
 
"Indeed." Isaac said thoughtfully, nodding in agreement.

He was silent for a moment, taking in their surroundings. As they went further along the path, the forest seemed to grow darker and stranger. The canopy of leaves blocked out almost all the sunlight, save a few gaps in it that sunlight to pass through. The forest was eerily quiet, save the rustling of the leaves and the crunch of dirt and dead branches under their feet.

In certain places, you could see vines, climbing up tree trunks to get whatever sunlight they could. Isaac took note of a rather strange looking plant, a thick pale green vine with delicate looking pink and white flowers, shaped like bells.

"They say that there was a kingdom mightier than any other here. If these rumors are true, then whatever drove them out is clearly a force to be reckoned with." He paused for a moment, then said "That was years ago, however. I'm sure whatever beast lived there is nothing but a pile of bones by now." He looked over at Aura, hoping what he was saying would comfort her.

"Regardless, we should still be prepared to draw our weapons whenever necessary"
 
Demetrius shook his head and laughed at his words.

"Pile of bones... that is a joke, right? Besides, the beasts didn't destroy the kingdom. The humans angered the Elves and Feys."

He resumed wandering, and followed the path more without gesturing them to follow. He was curious of the Elves.
 
Ayra puffed her cheeks out somewhat childishly, to ‘Miss Move along’ and her lips thinning in what one could only describe as unamused by the conversations proceedings. “If something happens, you can’t blame me, since I voted to move.” She spoke to them both, but she wasn’t truly hurt by the comment, rather, her display was just defensive teasing.

“I hope you’re right.” She retorted quietly, shivering at the mention of the word beast, skin prickling uncomfortably and moved her hand around to withdraw her blade, dawning into the light that slivered through the leaves. She wielded with the blade with her right hand, cuffed and covered with her leather gloves, more than proficient to thwart the weather, the temperature from clawing at her and she was relatively warm.

One could say she traded durability for comfort and flexibility in her movements; she was a nimble fighter foremost before anything else.

Her figure only supported her style, standing around five foot six – neither too tall and neither too short. “I’ll do one better, I’ll keep my weapon drawn.” And she was also a little too eager on times, but danger never waited for you to kindly bow down, wait for you to prep yourself and then resume whatever was going to happen.

She knew that lesson well.
 
Demetrius sighs as he walks forward down the path. "I already told you, the next patch will be as deadly. We are in Odin's Rhapsody, not some castle garden."

He watches warily around him, taking in the sight of trees. He would willingly travel here alone, but strength is in numbers sometimes. He dreamed of meeting the Elven Goddess when he was younger, but now he only cared about finding the ancient libraries. Or better, discover the Colossus Beasts.

He gestured for them to follow him, they should cover more ground. The clearing had very little to learn from.
 
"Fairies? Demetrius, I might not know much about them, but one thing I am sure of is that they are not what you would call warriors."

Isaac walked in silence for a short while, before stating "Demetrius, something tells me there's more to this than that. In fact, I think there's a lot more to this than any of us think." He looked around. The trees seemed to be getting thinner, the canopy no longer obscuring all the light. This part of the forest still had that eerie silence about it, as if nothing had lived there for centuries.

"Ayra, what brings you to this desolate place?" He looked over at her. She always seemed tense, as if death itself was waiting, right around the next corner. He hoped to make her relax a bit, maybe even put her sword away.
 
Demetrius shook his head once more.

"You know nothing of the Fey. The legends describe them as wicked pests, their magic is potent as well." He says observing the clearing. The trees were too eerie... they formed a perfect circle around the clearing. He looked above, and sees bright green eyes staring at him. The Elves have shown themselves.

"Remember, do not defile the nature or they will never let us pass. Be wary of the flowers, and don't dare snap a branch." He warns his companions as he walks around the small clearing. Why would it be so... perfect? There was not a single reason in his mind he could think of.
 
Isaac drew his sword, preparing himself for the worst. You could never be to safe. "I don't like this. They seem too... quiet." He tightened the grip on his sword, ready to strike at any moment.

He looked up at the elves. They seemed to be waiting for something, silently. He then looked at the clearing. A trap, he figured. He picked up a stone, and carefully tossed it in. He waited to see the effect.
 
Demetrius ignores the actions of Isaac.

"We are merely travelers, will you grant us safe passage?"

When the stone hit, a badger dashed out from the bushes towards Demetrius, who was looking the other way.
 
The badger aims to bite his leg, but it is bound in vines by the Elves who watched the adventurers.

As the badger struggles to break free, an Elf jumps from the canopy and lands gracefully on the ground. The Elf looked like feminine, and had long white hair in a braid. She looks at Demetrius with large jade-colored eyes.

"Keep calm, everyone." Demetrius says as the lady walks closer to them. He felt uneasy, even though she didn't look hostile.
 
Isaac prepared to bring his sword down on the ferocious critter, but suddenly it was... Trapped in vines? How? He stared at the creature for a second, struck dumb by confusion. He heard a soft thud, and turned quickly, bringing his sword up. It looked like a little girl, young and frail, with oddly colored green eyes. Perhaps these were the elves Demetrius was so fond of?

He brought his sword up, ready to strike at any moment. Whatever was out here must be regarded as dangerous, regardless of how young or frail it seemed."I warn you." He said sternly, glaring at the elf. "Make one move against our friend here, and you'll regret it." He looked over at Ayra "Stay on guard Ayra. I don't want you to get hurt."

If there was anything Isaac knew, it was that you could never trust the enemy to fight fair.

Ever.
 
Demetrius shakes his head in embarrassment for his comrade. To show himself as a submissive to the Elven locals, he bows down before the lady as if he were groveling.

"Va'jlins luui neliyokt... yoin lyjjr" The lady says softly to Demetrius, and turns to glare at Isaac. "She says we are welcome to travel the woods, but we should dare not defile it." Demetrius translates after she finishes, gesturing to Isaac to yield. Sometimes the only way to survive was to surrender dominance, Demetrius believed.

The lady crouches down to examine Demtrius, who remained bowing. She inspected his hair, face, and clothing fabric. Demetrius slowly stood back to his feet after being examined. "Hm... they haven't seen humans in forever I bet. Imagine how peculiar we seem to them..." He says in thought, ignoring that it was the same for both parties.
 
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