NATURE’S WRATH

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Spring comes in like a lion.
Something is anew.
Nature is calming.
Nature is thriving.
Will you heal?

A strange almost melody fills the air at the far west edge of the desert. Out over the ocean's waves in the hot and humid air one of the last swarms of big locusts are strangely heading straight out over water. Without land or food in sight the behavior is strange to say the least. Things grow more bizarre as the many individuals twist and turn- like the clouds overhead they morph into shapes that could be vaguely recognized, or attributed, to other earthly entities. Random happenstance or a message from things greater than mortal souls? And if the latter, what is trying to be said?

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INSTRUCTIONS

Trade Boosted: All clerics who post at least 3 times to this thread and exit before the end of the BWP will quality for "+15 BWP exp". All other trades can still collect regular exp.
Minimum Participants Needed: 5
Maximum Participants Allowed: 12
1 character per person is allowed in this thread until otherwise announced

This thread must be completed with exits by the end of the BWP to count for bonus trade experience. There is no posting order. The BWP account will not post again.

pixel credit to DiddyLyn

He had been roaming. Truthfully, he was curious to see if the lands had reset back to normal since the quaking, the fires, and the poisonous moss had stopped spawning and growing around the island. The desert should have been the last place he found himself, and with all his extra fur, he tried only to skirt around its edges to have an easy escape when he began feeling overheated, but a strange, droning noise drew him further inland - and despite feeling overheated, he ignored his discomfort as he feasted his eyes upon the gathering, black swarms in the sky.

Vellen, please don't let the world end today... he thought as he stood there watching the swarm get darker and darker.


BWP Tix
+1 Make a BWP-related post
+2 Study one of the natural phenomena occurring
+2 Pray to a god or deity for guidance

Potential XP
cleric
+15 BWP Cleric XP
+10 Cast a blessing on a group
+5 Cleanse an area of bad omens

paladin
+5 Save someone from danger

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The noise buzzes in his ears.

At first it does not register. There is always buzzing in his ears. A dull ringing that lingers there like white noise, static from a TV winding down. It is here the spirits live and converse and guide him -- even if he does notunderstand. There are no words, just buzzing. Faint, but familiar. Unexpected but not.. unwelcomed.

The locusts, though, are different

The rurik follows the noise with folded ears clenched tight against his skull, heavy brows furrowed. Ruby eyes shift to take in the scene, head tilting slightly as he does not quite understand what he's seeing. They fly and flock like birds, buzzing together into almsot... shapes. Patterns, certainly. A message?

A message.

But what did it mean?

Claws flex into the sandbelow, considering.

He is not alone, though. The masked @reynir is familiar and so heavy steps bring him closer, keeping a careful eye upon the bugz. What do you think it means? He asks, rough voice pitched low. They know little each other byron have experienced the strangest things together -- if anyone knew, perhaps it would be the sigrun.

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The humming sound draws her towards the western ocean, like a moth to a flame. She's no priest, but there is a certain desire to seek out the phenomena that is happening and learn about them, if only so she can better keep her family safe. She isn't prepared for the heat of the desert, though. Her black coat soaks up the sun's rays like a sponge and her thick fur traps it inside of her. Before she's even partway there she is panting in the heat that shimmers over the sand.

She pushes on, seeing the waves in the distance. Vellen, please, she begs, silently. Show me what you want from my family. But, as she has learned recently, perhaps it is not Vellen she should be praying to. So a second prayer goes out, just as silent as the first. Maua, she glances up at the sky, heat making the image hazy. Is this your doing? What can we do to appease you? You are new to me. I don't understand.

Overhead a shimmering swarm of locusts makes their way to the ocean, swirling and undulating in the sea breeze as they change shape, shimmering back and forth between different creatures. Surely this can't be real? She must be seeing things. Oh, when did she stop walking? The sand brushes against her side, a pillow for her head. Her eyes are so close now that she can see the heat wavering before her eyes, coming off the sand before her.

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OOC: she collapsed from the heat, in and out of consciousness

+1 - Make a BWP-related post
+2 - Study one of the natural phenomena occurring
+2 - Pray to a god or deity for guidance

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in this sweltering heat, one could easily write off the strange buzzing as a warning sign from your body, the complaints of a heart, brain, lungs under immense strain. a reminder that you were not as young as you used to be, that death stuck with you regardless of whatever perceived sense of invincibility you thought yourself to have. with exhaustion came the uncomfortable hyper-sensitivity to your anatomy -- the kidneys aching from lack of water, the blood in the veins thick and turgid, the dryness of a panting tongue. a foolish thought, then. nothing was ever meant to live here. as if in defiance, a darkness came swarming across the sky. it took him several moments to realize what it was, and in that time each locust was caught in dizzying acrobatics, creating a sacred geometry with the density of each segmented body. something instinctual and eulerian in those pulsing spirals, echoing organic patterns of every scale. nothing as vague as tea leaves, as distant stars. scripture was being written before his very eyes. a muffled thud brought him back to earth; wide-eyed, he scanned his surroundings and found a dark lioness fallen unconscious. revna, he realized, as he felt his stomach drop. he rushed to her, checked her breathing. in-between heavy breaths, "revna. we are going to get you out of here." he raised his head and shouted for assistance from the two strangers that stood at the edge of his vision. @Reynir @Kazimir @Revna

She’s following the bugs. That’s what she’s doing, she decides when she hears the humming move across the sands. She follows them trotting along rather happily to the odd melody that they allude, and when they start out over the ocean, she halts. Mad. She turns and huffs off, only to spy a few lions off in the distance and so she approaches them. One of them is lying in the dirt, and she approaches her. @Revna - prodding her with a foot. “Dead?” She asks the group, tilting her head curiously as she looks at them. Is the lioness dead- is that what they’re doing here?

coded by flea + background credit

He almost doesn't notice the heat until the woman passes out.

Even then, it comes in slow strokes. Heat under the collar, then color that sits high on his cheekbones -- ruddy beneath his fur. It's uncomfortable to say the least but he does his best to ignore it, even as his jaws part to better pant and regulate himself. He is in better shape than revna at least, who's sprawled across the sands -- she must have been pushing herself far too hard.

The thud she makes pulls his attention too -- and he gestures with his chin towards her, hoping to pull rwybir to help as well. Without realizing, of course, their connection. Nyet, he answers the other womans question, folded ears twitching. Heavy brows knotted tight, looking to the sleek @Isak.

I could help carry her, he says, though casts a wary glance to the sun above -- knowing it would be a struggle to not end up in the same boat. Still, it was better than leaving her here. Or he could collect water, or herbs -- something to rouse her, maybe? The spirits tut in his ears, unhelpful in their chittering but he listens intently regardless. They are here to help, and so then is he.

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Laveau had followed the locusts peculiar flight pattern, her eyes were narrowed as she looked up past the water that she'd had to stop at the edge of. She was interested in the reason they'd chose to fly over the water, not sticking to land where they could feast on whatever detritus they could find. Open water didn't seem very nutritional in her own eyes, but what did she know. The locust left dead empty carapace in their wake, molted empty shells,she kicked a few away and parred her jaws, panting from the heat. Truthfully, the small lioness wasn't aware of the other lions, not yet atleast, she'd been in her own little world. That was until voices rang out, and she was pulled away from her own thoughts.

Amethyst eyes gazed upon the over heated lioness, her brow furrowed, before speaking to the male that offered to carry the unconscious female . "Could you find me some herbs, or cacti?." She pinned her ears back, this many lions made her slightly uncomfortable but she could try and help as best as she could.

+2 - Heal someone who was injured by a weather event
+1 - Make a BWP-related post
+2 - Study one of the natural phenomena occurring
+2 - Save someone from danger
+5 - Complete a BWP-related thread (with 10+ posts)
+5 - Use knowledge from your trade to help someone else
+5 - Complete a thread with a character you've never threaded with before

image by moogle/code by saph

As he looked up at the dark clouds, he hadn't noticed, but he began to pant. The thick desert heat was beginning to seep into him, his fluffy coat holding it all in. It was a warm hug that he never wanted, but his mind was far from that now. It was on other matters that came in droves, threatening apocalypse.

A lion's deep voice reached his ears, and Reynir looked over to find a large, familiar lion he had seen on many occasions before. @Kazimir? He was forever grateful for the man's presence, however. Reynir felt that this lion was trustworthy, and if it truly were the end of times, he was glad to have him by his side - to fight for survival, of course.

"It can't be anything good," Reynir observed, finding odd shapes in the patterns of the hordes of insects. Reynir hadn't learned too much about tasseography and how shapes depict the future, so he had little to offer, but he did find the whole thing weird. It was certainly an omen, but he didn't know for what.

Though, they didn't have too much time to ponder on it. Someone shouted from behind them, and Reynir turned to find his mother a crumpled mess in the sand. He hadn't even realized she followed him. "Móðir!" he called out to her, forgetting the bugs and rushing over to her. He was glad to see @Kazimir there as well, offering the assistance he could - the man's size could be a blessing in these times. "Please, friend. We'll find some way to repay you. We shouldn't even be out here in this heat. This is His disguised blessing."

The heat made him feel faint, too, and perhaps it was a good thing that something happened, something to take him away from here out of the heat. Reynir turned, catching the words of two females that arrived just seconds later (@Marja and @Laveau). His green gaze cast out to the sandy dunes beyond. There were a few cacti, but he couldn't be sure they'd offer any medicinal properties. "No, fainted. And there isn't much out here. The best thing for her would be to get her some water and some shade."

@Isak @Revna @Marja

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Laveau flicked an ear at the male, she gave it a moments thought before speaking again, after looking around, only spotting a few shrubs here and there, though a green spike caught her eye and she motioned towards it,. "Aloe Vera, there's not much water out here. But Aloe Vera can be mixed down, it will refresh her, and help keep her hydrated." The smaller female only hoped they'd listen to her, it wasn't often she extended a paw to help, but she felt with the sign of the locusts, something was speaking up, she just didn't know what, so she was going to do what she thought her guides would want her to.

Creole words fell off her lips as she panted, the heat was blistering through her extra.long fur, though she gave no indication other than her pants, "Zansèt, prete m konesans ou, Baron, mwen chèche èd. "


Translation: Ancestors, lend me your knowledge, Baron, i seek help
+2 - Pray to a god or deity for guidance

image by moogle/code by saph