Plot: Return of Dulcian

[Relairah]

OoC: This is the beginning of the Sitewide Plot. Mascamora is deceived by Dulcian and Dulcian is resurrected later. This is a continuation of the thread A Good Decision... Or a Mistake? on the Shinkou Ookami forums where this plot was originally conceived. Since the plot never actually got started, and the realm of the dead is not really affected by time, I'm basically just repeating a few events to get going.

Look forward to your reply, Addy! Also, if you want, I figured the first couple of posts could be brought over, and we could just continue :3

iC:

Much time had passed since the first time in which she walked the plane of the dead, when she had first spoken with her father's soul and soon afterward restored his life. With everything that had happened since... it had been a while since the last time she had visited this realm. Her physical body was fast asleep, safe within a cave which was hidden beneath some massive boulders in the Rocky Grounds of the Outlands. But her spirit roamed. In many cases, she felt as though she walked without being called out to by the souls which dwelled here. Perhaps visiting only to search among them. But now and then she felt as though she was called, though by whom and for what reason wasn't always clear. In any case, now was such a time.

She had grown rather familiar with this place, with how things changed and yet remained the same in their monochrome colors. She was also used to souls gathering around her, knowing she was of the living, and searching for another chance at life for redemption. But Mascamora was not easily fooled. She was rather smart, and it would take a lot to convince her one was worthy of a second chance. This she had come to learn simply over time and experience.

Or at least... she didn't bring back just anyone. To date, there had been only one. And her father, she felt, had truly earned his redemption. And thus had been worth her efforts.

Her bi-colored eyes, one deep blue the other brilliant red, gazed at her surroundings and at the lights which gathered and danced about her. Those orbs were souls which simply hadn't chosen to take on their life's form yet, but they could speak to her either way. They sang her name, calling out to her wistfully. She didn't head their calls. She had a feeling she would soon encounter someone significant from the rest. Who and when, she had no clue. So until then, she continued forward.

[addykins]

He had never been one of those souls that swarmed Mascamora, no instead he had lingered just out of her line of sight, watched from afar as she traveled the Valley of Souls. While they begged and pleaded with her for another chance he merely watched, he wasn't one to beg or plead for anything he wanted, and of course those that gathered around her did not deserve to return to the world of the living. He did. Oh, he believed he deserved a chance at life more than any of these pathetic souls that lingered here. He had been cut down too soon, in the prime of his life, and he would not accept that he was dead. It wasn't an option, and ever since he had died he had been searching for a way to get back to the land of the living.

And imagine his surprised delight when he found this little thing roaming around, he had watched as she brought that white druin back from the dead, and he had been forming his own plan ever since. She didn't look stupid in the least, but he was overly confident in his abilities, he'd be able to convince her to restore his soul back to the land of the living. That he was sure of. He pulled his large wings closer to his body, as he padded along, watching her with those silver eyes. He'd watched for her every time that she had come to this place, perhaps it was a bit stalkerish but he didn't see it that way. He saw it as doing his homework, studying her behavior and how she acted when she visited this plan. Now he slunk off, intent on heading her off. He wouldn't approach her, no, he had seen countless others doing that and it did them no good.

He needed to convince her to bring him back to the world of the living, and he certainly wasn't going to do that by following her around like a little puppy dog. Instead he'd settle down a ways ahead of her, knowing her path would undoubtedly lead her to stumble upon him instead, unless she diverged from the course she had chosen. He didn't think she would. And when she found him, he would be sitting rather peacefully, his gaze turned up to the sky, thoughtful perhaps. No, he wasn't going to be as desperate as the fools who had surrounded her. He was going to convince her to take him back to the world of the living, no matter how long it took. He was dead anyways, what else did he have to do?

[Relairah]

Her gut feelings had not often lead her astray, and this time was no different. Even in this astral state she still had living instincts and soon, she did indeed notice one a little ways off. She knew he was different than others, or perhaps she was mistaken. There certainly was something different about him, though she of course would not know that he was the same as the souls around her in his thirst for life. His difference lay elsewhere. Still, she sensed it.

Once she saw him, she moved toward him, this time with more purpose. The lights that had been around her began to fade away, leaving her in peace at last as she now stood within a few feet of this one who unlike the others had chosen to take on his physical form even in death. She had been observing him as she had neared, taking in his features and his stance.

She also had been contemplating her words before speaking. She could address him in many ways, friendly, domineering, commanding, innocent, among others. She stuck with simplicity. "Greetings." It was perhaps a little strange to address one so in this realm but she had a feeling it did not matter much. So instead, she remained standing, eyes fixed on him, and waited his response.

[addykins]

He watched from the corner of his eye as the female drew nearer, though his attention remained elsewhere. As if he had more important things to do that lay within the sky, as if all the answers in the world lay within. The tip of his tail twitched on occasion, keeping a steady beat to some lulling noise within his own mind. He was content in waiting for the female to make her way to him, watching the slim white figure from the corner of his eye draw closer and closer. He could see now, the resemblance between the white druin and this creature here. Perhaps some sort of relation? It would make sense then, for her to bring him back to life. Affection was one hell of a strong emotion. He would tuck that thought away, perhaps logic wasn't quite the way to go with this pretty wolf.

Finally, after a long pause, the male found his head tilting down towards the female. His head, while long and lean, did not bear the horns that a normal druin might possess. Instead, his long ears were the only appendages that adorned his head, though the soft silver that found it's way curling about his eyes, as if the color had leaked from his eyes which found themselves steadily upon the creature before him. Her greeting was short, and he found himself slightly humored with her rather stoic appearance in the land of the dead. "Greetings." He replied in kind, tone low and welcoming, warm despite the way that his wings seemed to shift almost menacingly about him. The blood red color of his devilish looking wings could, potentially, give one the effect of a rather devious fellow. But the calm, almost warm look that graced his far less frightening visage was enough, hopefully, to deter that feature.

"Tell me, why would one such as yourself desire to be in the land of the dead?" His question was soft and he found himself turning to face her, head tilting to the side ever so slightly in curiosity. His eyes, no matter his movements or the actions of others around them, would remain upon her, always. "Does it not become tedious to have all of these spirits hounding you?" As if her well-being was already a concern of his. As if he cared about how the land of the dead treated her.

[Relairah]

Slowly, Mascamora took in this fellow's features. At his first words, and the look in his eyes, she found herself growing comfortable. She had known it. That this one was different from the rest. She still didn't know exactly why... although she was quickly figuring it out. Aside from his pleasantness and concerned words, she always noted it when a spirit didn't hound her for attention. For a chance at life. Perhaps she was not as smart as she thought. But she hardly ever grew suspicious of one who left her alone.

At his questions, she smiled slightly, remaining standing. Already, she was captivated by his eyes that never wavered. She chanced a glance toward the distant sky... it was not the same here, as it was in the realm of the living. But it was still fascinating. She turned her gaze back to him. "Well, I can't explain it entirely... but I find a sort of solace here. It's usually quiet, and peaceful in a way. Here there is no war or blood or useless conflicts. There is no heart-break or wistful longing. There is only the ever scape... nothing changes, yet that is a good thing here." She paused, contemplating dealing with the spirits. It was perhaps the one thing that could be of a bother here.

Finally, Masca sat back on her haunches, dipping her head slightly. Her long ears swiveled forward so that her focus was completely on him. "Perhaps at times, it does become a bother. But I do not come so often... and it is only natural that they would be seeking some way back to the realm of the living. I suppose I typically tune them out. And really... seeing them as mere floating lights is no bother at all. Eventually... they leave me alone." As if to prove her point, she glanced to where she had been traversing mere moments before, to where the lights had now faded and there was only the gray path.

At this time, she had also come in hopes that someone older and wiser than herself might provide her with answers which she was seeking. But she didn't reveal this quite yet. Instead, she turned the conversation toward this wolf... who had ignored her presence until she had approached him. "So, wolf, I must ask you why you weren't hounding me? Why did you merely lie by yourself? Have you accepted your existence here, neither to move on, nor to live again?"