RP:Mist and Shadow
Part of the What You Leave Behind Arc
Summary Meri hides in the Shadow Plane equivalent of Khitti's childhood home for days, perhaps weeks, before anyone finds her. But are they friend or foe?
The Shadow Plane
Max left and Meri rested, with the understanding that the ghost would do his best to return if he could. Emphasis on the if. When Meri woke hours later, there was this overwhelming sense of helplessness. She was not the Shadow Planes expert of the group, she found herself relying on the knowledge of Khitti and Brand when it came to these adventures. Meri's first instinct is to hunker down and hang tight because Max was the brightest light of hope that she had at the moment. So Meri would start her day by doing a more detailed search of the von Schreier home but as the day went on she had her doubts as to if Max would actually return.
Day would pass into night and the sun would rise again, but this night was more restless for Meri and by the time the sun was up her mind was consumed with nothing but doubt. It wasn't the doubt that Khitti & Co would attempt to bring her home, but doubt that they would even be able to find her. Would they know where to look? Would Max be able to tell Khitti? Followed by the doubt in how real the items within the seemingly real ghost house actually were. Was it really? How could it be? It would be nice to have someone around to bounce ideas off of, but Wilson will not be making an appearance in this scene and Meri is left to battle with logic on her own.
The ultimate conclusion is that she can't sit inside this strange home for days and days on end, shut in and waiting. She would go stir crazy. Scratch that, she was already starting to. Which is why she has decided that starting today she would venture out and explore her surroundings. The von Schreier home would serve as a home base, a place for her to return to. None of her essential belongings would be left behind during any of these expeditions but the hope was not only to gain an understanding of what was around her but to try and see if there was not any additional supplies that could be cultivated. Little did she know that wildlife was fierce and the plantlife far more deadly than at home.
Hard lessons would be learned, rough experiences would be had, some days would be better than other. Meri would learn quickly that it was not as easily to find edible foods as she thought, don't eat the berries. She should have listened that day. At least she was still alive, she might have been sick to her stomach and hallucinated severely but she survived that experience. That was not her only incident, but the devil is in the details (as in is getting so long!). Numerous days would pass with Meri following the pattern of leaving the von Schreier for the daylight hours and (trying to be) back by nightfall. On this day, it was still early in the day leaving plenty of time for Meri to try and understand her environment, but she was already traveling back to the von Schreier residence. She was pale as a vampire, that might have influenced this decision.
Did the von Schreier residence look a little more solidified today, or was Meri hallucinating this, too? The house awaited her, silent and solitary as ever. Or was it? When Meri entered, she’d find the dust lifted from the furniture, the curtains cast open. In the kitchen, cheerful rays of sun spilled through the windows, bringing attention to a bowl of fresh fruit on the kitchen table. Recognizable fruit. Clean, healthy, edible fruit. And next to it was a glass bottle of milk, glistening with condensation. The house was waiting for her as if it was her home, or at least -someone’s- home, freshly lived in. But should Meri reach for the fruit, a shadow would announce itself from the next room over. Onyx sat cross-legged in an armchair, bow and quiver resting on the ground before them, watching. “Meri. You are not supposed to be here.”
Meri had convinced herself that the probability that the von Schreier residence was just nothing but illusions, hallucinations, and mind trickery was fairly high. Not a malicious trick meant to harm her, but that was the only justification that Meri could provide for the existence of this home. Meri was not magically inclined, so she was not even close to capable to understanding how this would be possible. Meri enters the home, and has a seat and the kitchen table, dropping sword and shield at the foot of her chair. She does reach for a piece of fruit, but it is not to eat for her stomach is already voicing its protests to the thought of food. It's then she notices that she is not alone in the home, and hears a voice that is familiar to her but not one that she deems to be friendly. To her feet Meri goes, swooping up her sword by its hilt and trying to maintain an air of confidence and poise even though she wanted to curl up and throw up. Suddenly jolting to her feet was not helping any of these sensations. Blue eyes narrow on Onyx, Meri mentally preparing herself to have her arse kicked by the guy (while also trying to pretend like she is confident, it's complicated). That piece of fruit Meri just plucked off the table is lobbed straight for Onyx's head, and the psion is not opposed to giving it a little bit of telekinetic guidance to help it to its mark. It'd just make her feel better if that juicy orange exploded against the side of Onyx' head and made them into a sticky mess. just a little bit better. "The same statement could be said to you. At least I am not the traitor." Her grip on her sword tightens with expectation. "You're here for a reason." And Meri was not assuming the reason was a friendly one. "So let's get down to business."
The orange hit true, but Onyx was no longer there. In the space of a blink, the entire house shifted. Sunshine became the dim gloom of the Shadow Plane’s dwarf star. The furniture was coated in thick white dust, and the air was saturated with it. The bowl on the table was long empty, the glass of milk nowhere to be seen. And then everything was once again as it was when Meri entered, save that Onyx now held the orange in their grip. They pulled a knife from their waistband and cut the fruit into slices, downing one with peel and all before holding the remainder out to Meri. “I’ve had ample opportunity to hurt you, now and in the past. It wasn’t my goal then, and it isn’t my goal now. You want to go home, do you not?”
The room had effectively been reset, Meri had noticed that. She was trying to act like she did not, but she did, it made Meri feel a little dizzy. Or maybe it was not this shift in reality, maybe it was the effects of the plants taking an even further hold on Meri's system. A hand is placed on the table to help brace Meri, try and as she might be to play the tough girl routine she so favored in this moment...Onyx could probably see right through it, they were quite intelligent and astute. Pride was a stubborn thing and Meri would not be seen without it. "I should think that in the past you would have very little to gain from causing me any harm. I think we both know I'm just a fly in comparison." A grim smirk finds lips that would have normally been painted red, but who has time for that nonsense out here? "I'm not sure what your goals were in the past, I always assumed pay. Had a job that wasn't half bad in comparison to the rest of the gigs out there in the world, and it paid." Onyx does strike Meri the emotionless sort, friendship was never their assumed motive or goal. "Now I am not so sure what your goals are. To help me and send me home? After what happened...?" Back at Facilier's. "Why?"
Onyx nodded. “Working for the Captain, working for Facilier... it pays, but not in the way you think.” Through the air sailed the sliced orange, landing on a newly materialized plate at Meri’s side. “I have certain oaths that must be fulfilled, oaths not directly in service to either.” A cloud of mist billowed in from the open window and grew in the space between human and undead, growing in shape and density until the illusion appeared as flesh. Khitti and Brand sat in the galley of the Tranquility, her on his lap, his hands on the dome of her unborn child. The mist scattered and rearranged: Lionel and Esche, poring over tactical maps and battle plans. If these visions were truth, they were all unharmed. “So long as we are here, Facilier and his spies cannot hear, but word of my true intentions cannot leave this place. Not until it is done.” Onyx’s expression was hard steel. “I mean to undo him, once and for all.”
One illusion tugged at Meri's heartstrings more than the other, prompting Meri to try and walk forward -- like if she could just reach out and grab hold of KhittiBrand, they would be able to tug her home. She was friends with Lionel, yes...but her friendship with KhittiBrand ran a little deeper. I mean she has declared herself Aunt Meri and has plotted out their baby shower, after all. It was a pretty adorable plot, it made Khitti cry. But soon the illusions were gone and Meri did not read too deeply into them. Illusions could easily hold no truth. Meri was normally quick on the draw to try and lure out additional information from people at every opening she could see. This is one of those moments where she is wanting to do just that, but her mind is fogging, her stomach is twisted, making her attempts subpar. She straight forward and lacking in tact, but Onyx was displaying a willingness to speak so she was hoping she could slide with minimal effort. "What oaths? How do you plan to end him? By yourself? Without their help?"
The undead’s mouth drew into a thin, grim line. Phrasing things correctly was paramount. “He will go Lithrydel when the child is born, convinced that the two of us together will succeed easily at seizing it, at seizing Khitti, at ending whoever gets in the way. His power is stronger than you’ve seen, and continues to grow. But I’ll have all the help I need, so long as he doesn’t suspect my betrayal beforehand.” The faintest smile lay on their lips. “ ‘Traitor,’ indeed. I won’t deny my methods are unpalatable to most. But I’ve had thousands of years of unlife, and have never yet been this close to such success.”
More questions bubbled in Meri's mind. Who was going to help Onyx? This point Meri was confused on, but she reasoned that Onyx would not be depending on Khitti, Brand and Lionel. Not with how it sounded like things were going to play out. Meri also reasoned that Khitti was nothing more than a pawn in some goal/oath that Onyx must have made long before even meeting with Khitti and Brand. She was not sure, and Onyx had opted not to answer the bit about the oaths. "So long as he does not suspect your betrayal before hand." Meri repeats. "Which means that you expect me not to speak a word of this beyond this point, especially if I want to go home." Meri tries to motion to the area around them. "Because once I am not here, Facilier and his spies can see and hear everything I say. That's fine. I'm good at secrets." And Meri could see a little bit of motive to keeping this one, especially if it did mean Facilier would finally die and thus leave Khitti in peace. But. "I'm just gonna say though. You're using Khitti as a pawn. I can see why. Facilier is obsessed. But if something happens to her or her baby because of this plan? I'll see you dead right alongside Facilier." Probably not wise to threaten the lift home, but sometimes Meri was a dumb lil' human. It can't be helped.
“Am I?” Onyx’s eyes danced with light. They pulled a stone from their pocket, small and round and etched with a rune that glowed turquoise with the same ebb and flow of an ocean’s waves. “I suppose that's one way to look at it. Exactly the wrong way, alas, but I don't suppose I've given you reason to suspect otherwise.” Onyx picked up their weapons, strapped them to their back, and held the stone aloft. The rune grew ever brighter, and from the house's foundations to its roof there was a terrible tremble. The plate, bowl, and fruit were thrown to the floor. Portraits fell from the walls. Bookcases shuddered and collapsed, their contents spilling every which way as the house sank into the earth. And all was cast into emptiness, darkness, a complete void of the senses.
The first to return were smell and taste. Something earthy and dank filled the nostrils and coated the tongue. Then, the chill. It was a wet cold that passed easily through skin and clothing and took up permanent residence deep in the bones. Light. There was torchfire in the distance, revealing only a glimpse of shadow and grey stone. But as the light drew nearer, it could be seen that they stood at the far end of a hall preceding a large chamber. Two figures approached: one the torchbearer and shrouded all in black, the other a small child with frightened olive eyes. “Why are we here? Did someone die again, mama?”
The other did not respond, but nor did she seem aware of their audience. The two moved past Onyx and Meri and into the chamber, filled with row after row of ornate coffins on pedestals of velvet. The elder figure seemed to be examining each of them in turn, discerning some manner of fault, and then moving to the next. When at last she spoke, her voice hung just outside the edge of familiarity. “Mama needs you to do something very important for her. Something only you can do, little sprout.” Whatever she was looking for, she found it. Hands stretched forth from underneath her cloak, bracelet dangling loosely from one bony wrist. “I've never told you,” said the mother, “never wanted you to be afraid, but all the dead you see here were murdered by your father -- some very, very dear to me.” Pale fingers traced an engraving of flames across the lid. The child hung back in the entryway, shivering, tugging at the hem of their tunic as if that might make it ward better against the chill, against their mother’s disconcerting words. She turned back, smiled at her child with eyes rimmed in glowing violet. “And you can save them, Onyx. You’ve inherited more than enough magical potential; your father saw to that, too. You just need the right books, the right teachers, and you’ll have the power to fix all my mistakes. You can make everything all right again.” The coffin was uncovered, its secrets exhumed. The sound of unsheathed steel echoed in the cold expanse. Mother kneeled before child with a dagger in one hand and an orb of swirling darkness in the other. “But first, I need you to die.”
A great cacophony erupted in the chamber. The ground was shaking again. Pebbles and dust fell from the ceiling, but they were in the underground chamber no more. They were back in the von Schreier house, and it was collapsing around them even as it rocketed into the upper atmosphere. A wall crumbled away, and books filled the sky like a migrating flock. The ceiling tore off and went spinning off towards the sun. There was a portal looming above them, and they were headed straight for it. And then… silence. They were back in the void, or so it seemed. Only when Meri tried to open her eyes, she’d find herself deposited in the shallows close to the docked ship Tranquility… at the very beach Khitti had tried to transport them all to weeks earlier. Was it all a dream? Had Meri been left behind at all? But she was alone, save for the nearby cries of the Tranquility's crew.
The Tranquility, Cenril Docks
Meri was at the mercy of Onyx. At least in her mind it felt like she was being transported from place to place? But maybe that was just illusions. She might not be the master of her own mind yet as psions usually strive to be, but she usually had a good sense of illusion versus reality. Onyx was a more skilled illusionist though, and Meri would know...she has encountered a few in her years here. The blonde stops trying to analyze if this is illusion or not and just takes in the details. The child? Surely it must be Onyx. Later conversation between the child and mother confirms this. Meri can be rough and tough but she is not devoid of a heart and the scene is enough to cause a frown to weigh at her lips.
Meri barely had time to fully come to process the bit of Onyx's past that she had just witnessed before reality was shifting again. They were back in the Von Schreier house? Did they ever even leave? But again, that reality was being torn apart before Meri could draw any sound conclusions and before she knew it she was sitting in shallow water in Cenril. Or was she? There was that doubt again. Onyx was a skilled illusionist, after everything she just saw that was the nagging thought in her mind. After a minute she comes to the realization that she should remove herself from the water and so she sloshes forward at the pace of a sloth and then finds a seat on the water's edge. Blue eyes slant up toward the ship, she was tired but part of Meri wanted to step onto the deck and announce that she was home. Another part of her was not ready to move, that part was bidding her to stay seated and stew over it all, pick apart the details, become sure this wasn't just another illusion and a sick joke. That was the side that won out, and so Meri remained unmoving at the edge of the water.
Maybe this was some sort of game, and Onyx was waiting to see what Meri would do. But that wouldn’t explain the letters scrawled in the sand at her side: “remember, not a word.” No sign of Onyx, apart from the note. And if this were an illusion, it did not flicker or fade, no matter how long Meri sat. If it was long enough, she’d notice the sun climbing in the sky. It was morning here too, though rapidly becoming afternoon. Distant bells sounded from ships further down the dock. Seagulls dotted the shore, foraging for brunch. One eyed Meri with caution before hopping on top of her pack. It dug inside with its beak for a short while before pulling out a slice of orange and flying away with its prize.
The words in the sand are given a long and hard stare that lasts for about a minute before Meri finally leans forward to smudge up the sand and brush the words out of view. It was the jolt into movement that she needed, though in the back of her mind she knew that she could not stay hunkered down into the sand forever. There were at least three people that Meri needed to see, to let them know she was here and alive. Easier said than done, everything was starting to take its toll mentally and physically. Meri makes an attempt to bring herself to the ship's deck but she does not even make it halfway to the gangplank before she gives up walking there herself. Instead she flags down some random citizen of Cenril, bidding that they offer her help to the Tranquility. It's with the help of this random joe that Meri is able to make her way onto the Tranquility to snag the first crew member that she sees with the tired request of, "The Captain or his woman. Please."
Brand could finally see up the last few steps and out the open doors to the deck, where their weary visitor awaited. It was Meri, alright. How had she gotten back? Had Facilier done something to her? Had Onyx? There wasn’t a chance this was one of their illusions, was it? Would she have a message from them? But only Brand’s mind could race like this -- Brand himself was stuck keeping pace with Khitti. The ship’s stairs, he’d learned, were -not- designed with a pregnant woman in mind. And so he climbed with one hand on her back, ready to steady her if she should lose her balance. It wouldn’t be the first time. “C’mon, c’mon. I swear, I’m gonna tear this whole gorram section out and build a lift as soon as I can figure out how the frak to do it.” It was true he had a book on pulley systems and mechanics lying open in the situation room, half-read. But the whole thing was proving far more complicated than he had initially anticipated, and he wasn’t ready to admit it. Stubbornness and pride prevented him from giving up and hiring a tradesman or delegating the task to his crew. Now, he was paying the price -- but that didn’t mean he was patient about it. “Lennier, you go on up ahead. See if Meri needs your healer’s expertise.” The elf nodded and ascended the remaining steps, medical bag in tow.
Khitti was getting as impatient as Brand was, what with all of his fussing. “Damn it, go on without me then! And you’re not frakking tearing up this ship. The upkeep alone is expensive without you wanting to renovate for something that’s temporary.” Khitti paused, stepped to the side, and gave him a push. “-Go-.” She wanted to see Meri too, but she -did- have to take it slow and she didn’t need his help right now to do so--they weren’t even out on the open sea. They were just at the wharf, damn it! Whether or not he actually listened to her, she’d eventually make it up the stairs and stopped in the doorway, that olive-green line of sight finally fixing on the woman she bestowed the title of ‘sister’ upon. “Meri.” Khitti was, well… a lot further along now that she was last time the blonde had seen her. There was only a month or so now before she reached full term (they sadly didn't know for sure) and it definitely showed.
If it was Lennier that greeted Meri first, he would find the woman to be...I mean he's a healer, he has probably seen worse. Still, Meri was not right as rain. Her skin was pale, she definitely looked exhausted, and it was not just from stress or lack of sleep. Given where the woman just came from, there was any number of plant life that Meri could have easily brushed up against that might be the cause. It does not look like she'll keel over and die, she must not have had that much contact. And it is good it is not some extreme or severe case, because without knowing what plant Meri encountered, it can be hard to treat, eh? All three of them are a sight for sore eyes and they're all greeted with a tired half-smile that fades quickly. The random chap that helped Meri on deck? He is over this scene, his good deed for the day has been completed and it is time to go. "Hi," she says to all three of them. Khitti is studied a little longer than the rest, maybe because the woman is definitely further along than Meri would have anticipated. That does seem to be the most logical. "You're ready to burst."
Lennier was a knowledgeable healer, but he was hardly an expert in Shadow Plane flora and fauna. “Is there anything you can tell me about what you might have consumed or come into contact with while you were gone?” He’d have to confer with Khitti or the compendium she possessed on the other realm. Brand’s question, however, was much briefer: “What the seven hells happened?”
Khitti gave Meri an awkward, lopsided smile as the blonde stated the obvious. “Yeah, but we weren’t gonna let this baby come out until it’s Aunt Meri was here.” Well, they didn’t really have any choice in the matter of when she’d go into labor, but for now things were relatively quiet on that front. She made her way over to Meri and the others, finding the first, nearest thing she can to lean against or sit on--all that added weight was tiring you know. “Not the spore plants, thankfully,” Khitti said to Lennier. “I think most or all of that’s on the mainland. She might not even be here right now if she’d come across those.” Khitti frowned at the thought, remembering the bones of all those poor souls Khitti, Brand, Lionel, and Esche had seen on their first trip to the Shadow Plane. She fell quiet eventually, after giving her small bit of input to the healer, letting Meri answer Brand’s question.
Meri has not had time to work out what she should tell them! Oh boy. Maybe she should have sat on the beach for a little while longer and given that some thought, but at the same time that was probably not a smart idea in terms of her health. Leave it to Brand to get straight to the meat of the matter. Meri has never had the sort of character that is opposed to lying but there are certain people she does not want to outright lie to. Thinking on her feet was not an easy challenge to take on at this particular moment. “Glad to see you too Brand.” Meri says with a slight smirk to give herself a moment of time. For to earn herself a few more moments, Meri addresses Khitti next, “Well I am glad that I made it back, and that you are okay, and the kid is okay.” Meri had little clue what happened to them, just like they had little clue what happened to her. Which brings Meri back to Brand’s question. “I got a bit of help from a bunch of spirits. One of them was named Max.” Lennier and Khitti confer, Meri will cooperate with whatever they decide to do, if anything. Good luck getting Meri to identify shadow plane plants though, she still had a long way to go with learning about the plants from this plane. No help.
“Huh. So Khitti’s dad is still holdin’ out, sounds like.” It was a good enough answer. Luckily for Meri and her lack of preparation, Brand didn’t see any reason to interrogate a friend, especially not one they’d thought lost and was now possibly sick or injured. Lennier’s interrogation, however, was only just beginning. “ ‘Not spores’ doesn’t rule much out, unfortunately, but I can treat your symptoms and we’ll monitor you for anything particularly problematic. What do you feel? Itchiness? Nausea? Any rash or stinging sensation? Dizziness? Shortness of breath?” Lennier would go on and on, rummaging around in his bag for cures to whatever ailed Meri.
Khitti blinked a few times at the ‘I got a bit of help from a bunch of spirits. One of them was named Max’. The mild shock would soon wear off though and a frown would replace it, “Oh.” She didn’t bother asking any further. Facilier would’ve remedied that situation almost immediately. Khitti tried to force away her concern for her father, trying so hard to focus on the fact that he wasn’t even alive anyway (which that’s sort of a lie, considering the fact that she was very much alive as an undead). That had to be enough of a comfort, unfortunately, because there was nothing she could do. Not anymore anyway. “I’m glad my father helped you. We’ve been trying to figure out the best way to come get you, without alerting Facilier, and well…” She tried to summon up a bit of shadowflame or ice or that black lightning of hers. Anything. But nothing came, and if Meri hadn’t put two and two together, Khitti would add, “Facilier took away my magic. Retaliation probably. So... I won’t be able to go to the Shadow Plane anymore.”
The clinging of bottles and whatnot in Lennier’s bag drew her attention to the elf, “She needs to go downstairs, Lennier. Don’t do this right here. She needs to be in bed. Please.” Khitti took Meri’s hand and squeezed it carefully, “Lennier’s good. The best healer I know. He’s the one that saved me, after Emrith. He’s the one that’s been helping us with the baby too. He’ll figure out what’s wrong and I’ll get him my book on the Shadow Plane too.” Now that she had a hold of Meri, tears started welling up in Khitti’s eyes. She was real. It was really Meri. “I’m so sorry.”
Meri meets Lennier’s interrogation with patience, never upset the healer or the chef. A solid rule that Meri firmly believes in following. Meri answers Lennier’s questions to the best of her ability, she felt sick to her stomach, yes, abnormally tired, no stinging and she did not think she had any rashes. Shortness of breath was complicated, it always felt like she was struggling to breath in the Shadow Plane. In comparison? She was breathing so easily. That she knew of. In addition to sleep a bed, Meri could also use a bath a some point. Maybe she could have still done this in the abode Max left her at? But she was a little hyper paranoid about being caught by Facilier without her pants on. Literally. Khitti takes her hand, and Meri does not object, bed sounds like the best thing ever. One where she does not feel like she has to sleep with one eye open. “Lennier will get me fixed up and after some sleep I will feel much better,” she assures Khitti, opting not to expand on the situation with Max. She could tell Khitti was a little curious and resisting the urge to ask...but there was only so much Meri was at liberty to say and even if she could say more? She had no good news. “I need to leave after rest though.” Even if the healer objects. There was obviously someone else who needs to know she is home.
Meri would have good food, fresh air, rest, and relative safety. And a bath. The Tranquility could provide all these things for her, even if they weren’t quite sure what kind of ailment they were dealing with. Lennier looked for the captain’s nod of acquiescence before telling his new patient that she could go when they were done. “I’ll write up a list of your symptom progression and remedies attempted, and you can follow up with a healer more local to you if needed. But with luck, I’ll be able to fully treat you here.”
Khitti nodded to Meri. Of course, she knew who Meri meant. “I’ll send word to him letting him know. I’m sure he’s worried sick.” Khitti released Meri’s hand, allowing for Lennier to lead the blonde into the ship and to the closest vacant bedroom. “I’ll come check on you after you’ve had a bit of sleep. I’ll make you something amazing for dinner as well.” Khitti, though, wasn’t going to get up from her spot just yet. There’d probably be a bit of crying after Meri was gone, both happy tears for Meri and sad ones for her father. Mostly, though, she just needed a bit of a breather before making the trek back downstairs. Maybe if Brand got some blankets and pillows, he could cover the stairs with them and roll her down to their quarters?