Ursan lifted his head as the voice of his counterpart came to him on the wind, closing his eyes to listen to every word. The other spoke of vengeance. Vengeance to be taken swiftly. The horror of the village's mistakes must have finally broken through to his companion's indifferent heart. He lowered his eyes to the God of the flora as he appeared before the trio, the Beast King taking a step forward, as if to meet his request. His entire body was set in anticipation, a feral glee glittering in his eyes. He no longer bore the burden of executioner alone. The entirety of the forest was against these fools.

"The claws and teeth of this forest are yours, my brother," the Beast King said, his voice holding a cacophony of growls and snarls and various other animal noise just beneath that commanding tone. As his voice faded from the air, only silence remained. The very animals had stopped their chatter, almost holding their breaths in anticipation. "Their very bones hum for this. How do you wish for us to deliver our fury?"

Elyrion was studying the female knight with an air of superiority, his attention being recaptured by the human. He watched her carefully though as she stood and spoke to the beast king. When she unfastened her cloak and held it out to him, Elyrion leaned forward and sniffed at it ever so lightly. His nose wrinkled in a clear sign of distaste. "Just because I pretend to be human, does not mean I want their stink all about them. It's bad enough I smell partly like those villagers that treated me so roughly, I don't need to smell like a naive woman knight." Elyrion turned his nose up at her and the offered garment. He had no need for such a thing anyway.

He kept his eyes on her. "You're rather stupid aren't you? What good that was in humans has long since been buried by their greed, their hunger for power, and their stupid desire to dominate everything they deem a lesser creature or destroy everything they fear and do not understand. Perhaps humans had started out good, but they've allowed themselves to become very corrupt. You cannot help them, not truly. Besides, no one goes out of their way to offer help without expecting something in return." He had crossed his arms across his arms and for a moment it seemed like he might say something else.

Elyrion held his tongue though, because the plant king's voice was around them. Speaking of vengeance, and that brought a slight smile to Elyrion's lips. He was nearly tempted to ask if he could join, but he knew better. Even though the village had wronged him, it was not his place to exact revenge upon them. They had wronged the forest and it's gods for worse than they had wronged Elyrion. The half fae, half demon was not stupid. He knew when to step back and let things happen.

As the god of plants came before them, Elyrion bowed his head ever so slightly and took a few steps back. Then he turned on his heel and began to move towards the water queen. He was careful though, picking his way carefully without even looking. Though the sticks and rocks did hurt his bare feet, Elyrion covered the distance between him and the goddess without complaint and without stepping on any living thing. As if he already knew where all the plants or small creatures might be before he even took a step. Maybe he did.

((new character enters >.>))

Forest Mother

"To turn this to war could mean death to this forest...Please do not take such risk on impulse. I...This forest needs you." The water goddess said softly, speaking for the first time in a soft ethereal voice. She had almost said that she needed them, that she could not lose more children... but she dared not. She knew the flora god would not appreciate such a thing, even as her instincts made her wish to throw her arms around them and hold them here where they would be safe. Even gods could die...

Before she could say much more then this simple plea she sensed being approached. She looked forward to the red eyed creature and tilted her head to the side. She was surprised that he approached her, especially since it would mean he would be soon covered in rain since within one foot of her it could not be moved so the cleansing rain could continue. She bowed her head slightly in greeting, her eyes on him curiously.

Seda Tapio

Seda, often called Sey, had made a mistake. She had let herself be seen talking to one of her mice. Seda was a songweaver, a natural born witch gifted with the power of the voice. It was therefore little surprise she could speak to anything, as any songweaver born from two witch parents could. Still, when her parents had moved to the small town as refuges they knew to keep themselves quiet, and hide their daughter's power. Her parents could simply choose to cease practicing their craft, but a songweaver... a songweaver is not able to have a choice to hide their voice.

As the trouble started with the forest her parents had hid their magic knowing they would be blamed, ultimately dying when a plague had hit the village years earlier. She had been seven at the time but she always remembered their words. Hide until you can get out of this town... Yet she was lonely living as an orphan and so talking to the mice had become only natural, rodents ultimately becoming her familiars. Perhaps to be caught had been inevitable... She didn't know. She knew now, however, that there was no turning back.

She told her mice to run, to hide so they could not be harmed. This gave the villagers the opportunity to knock her out and after tying her hands throw her into the back of a wagon and begin to approach the forest. The scared village did not understand what harm they had done still, so they blamed her. She had brought down the wrath of the beast god by meddling in his domain, not they! She was a witch, that had interfered with the balance of nature and brought these terrible things upon them!

Her mice, however, had not obeyed her. They had hidden in her clothing and hair instead. As she lay unconscious they would chew at the robes binding her hands behind her back until it needed only one more bite and would once again hide. She began to come to consciousness as one of the other mice licked the back of her ear until she began to revive. She felt herself roughly pulled from the back as the one villiager brave enough to go held her up with one hand and held a sword in the other.

"Gracious god of Beasts! We apologize we did not find this dark one sooner, that we incurred your wrath by allowing her to trample over your realm. Her arrogance in talking to your beasts, manipulating them astounds even us. For allowing her to do this, though we knew not, we have deserved your punishment. Please accept her blood as our apology and forgive us our trespasses" The man shouted as he dragged her into the forest a few feet. He raised his blade, intending to spill her blood on the forest floor as he yanked her to her feet. Her mice, however, had planned on this and as one bit her hands free three others leaped onto his arm and bit into the sensitive parts of his wrist.

As he yelled and released her the mouse licking her ear nipped it lightly to let her know to run. Barely conscious she started to run as the three mice jumped back into her hair. She ran as the man chased after her, swinging his sword wildly. He did not care what he hit as he did so, desperate to kill the young woman he blamed for all their problems and even his own failing crops. Sey mean while kept running, even as she felt the air from the blade's thrusts because it grew so close. She did not even scream, she simply ran unknowingly towards the group as the farmer chopped branches and vines in an attempt to take her head...

Verity shook her head at his comments. She would cling to her optimistic view of the world, otherwise it would all seem far too dark to her and without any chance of good. Such a dreary outlook simply wasn't for the knight. Her mind had veered off, which wasn't a good idea when the gods were planning on wreaking havoc upon the village. She would have objected quite thoroughly, but Verity found herself wondering if perhaps this might not be just the wake up call these people needed.

All of a sudden crashing sounds filled the forest, and instinctively the knight unsheated her weapon and moved towards the racket. Seeing the villagers chasing yet another innocent into the forest angered the blonde. Her booted feet crashed carefully trough the underbrush, so as not to damage the forest, until she stood before the attackers with an angry glare. She'd not lifted her weapon against them before, but Verity couldn't in good conscious stand y while they tried to kill someone she was sure had done nothing at all to harm them.

The voice that reached the Beast King's ears grated on his nerves, the God turning his head in the direction from which it had come. His eyes flashed for a moment, the sound of crashing leaves echoing as something moved suddenly and rapidly, a low and dangerous hiss escaping its throat. And it moved, slinking through the underbrush almost silently. It moved toward the sound of crashing and breaking plants, being sure to stay hidden from the knight as she began to make her way in the same direction. As it neared, it slithered up a tree, a flash leathery wings, mottled feathers, and brown scales visible for a mere second before it was in the foliage, watching the knight and the two villagers with red eyes.

"You have poisoned our waters, slaughtered my children, and burned the forest's silent children to the ground." The voice of the Beast King left the toothy beak of the cockatrice as it stood, moving out onto an overhanging branch as it watched them with critical eyes, judging all three of them silently. "Do not insult us with petty excuses and blame, mortal."

Seda Tapio

the pale haired girl froze as the knight appeared before her from the trees, uncertain what to think. Her feet seemed to stumble over one another and she fell, one stocking ripping slightly. She glanced back behind her as the farmer neared and she opened her mouth. She had no choice but to try to attack him with her voice, even though she swore once to never use it on another living thing, when she found they would be interrupted. The farmer had raised his sword over his head but then froze too as he saw the knight and heard the rustling.

"We had no choice... we... we have been manipulated by this dark witch who uses nature! My arm bleeds from her using her powers to make helpless mice fight for her!" The farmer shouted, his voice half crazed. He seemed to genuinely believe what he was saying.... but then again desperation could make you believe many things that were not true. Seda simply gazed up at the beast god. She was not naive... though she had been disgusted with her own village and had helped wounded animals when she could, she was still a villager. The hatred in the beast gods tone... she and the farmer would both be dead very soon she was sure. She said nothing, not believing her voice could hurt a god... especially not when she'd had so little practice using it to weave spells or use it offensively. So she peered up at him with those dark lilac eyes and simply waited for death to come, her eyes pure and slightly sad while holding the softest hint of defiance.

This new intruder, had trampled the forest as he came here. That woman on the ground lay upon those plants which strive to grow towards the sun. In the midst of their talk of revenge the Beast God and himself had been interrupted by the humans once more. Any possible chance for him to turn back, to keep his passive ways had been shattered. The humans had too pay dearly.

"You burn my children, of which can not escape your fires." His voice filled the forest air as his body fell apart into a pile of bright green leaves, each fading into a dying brown. In the distance, near these two new intruders, the leaves of a tree pulled themselves together in the form of the Flora God. "The water which we absorb becomes tainted with your poisons." His body disassembled into leaves once more and collected themselves at the bottom of the tree, standing before the acclaimed witch and this man with a sword. Those swords were all too commonly used to cut down the beings of the forest whether it was the flora or fauna.

Disgust swirled inside of him, and vengeance was the only thing that comforted him. Raising his hands slowly, vines and roots began to overwhelm the farmer and squeeze his body, restraining him. "We flora of the forest need nutrients from the soil." His head turned to the cockatrice and Beast God. "If I may, I would like to make him pay for his damages with his nutrient rich body my friend." Turning his head back to the farmer now encased in thorny vines and roots he walked closer to him to hear his life slowly faded as breathing became impossible. Placing his hands on the mass of viney thorns and voracious roots that absorbed spilling blood and tore his clothes as they writhed around him, content filled the flora Gods heart. This is how the Beast God must feel when he gets his revenge, what a feeling it is.

As the farmer died before them all, He could feel the sigh of relief from the forest flowing through him. He had killed many flora beings in his journey in here, his nutrients would be used to ensure that those injured and maimed could restore themselves. "Beast God...." Turning to his friend he walked over gracefully and placed his arms around him, embracing him in a hug. Humans did it very often to express closeness - and now that he finally understood the Beast Gods need of revenge, how it felt. He had never felt closer to his brother. "I understand your behavior now my brother, I only wish I had made a greater effort to understand you sooner. This feeling, this content feeling. Revenge is what I have been missing for all these years." Pulling back from his hug, he wished he could show some sort of emotion - yet he still lacked that ability. But now he had a new understanding of what it was to be a God, and to act on ones desire of revenge. It was amazing.

Seda Tapio

Seda scrambled to her feet, muttering an apology to a few plants that had bent under her weight but strangely didn't break. She could speak to plants as well as animals, though she had never spoken to any outside her garden before now. She felt shaky now that the plant god had arrived too but she would show none of that fear. She would not give that satisfaction. She gripped the tree nearest to her as she heard the angry whispers of the plants being stirred by the god into a frenzy. She could only gasp as she watched, having never seen such a thing.

"So even the Gods grow dark..." She muttered darkly to herself, a look of sorrow touching her eyes. She had seen the town change, seen it grow darker and filled with more greed. The town had been a small town worth loving once, when she was a child. She could only watch as it grew darker around her, how the orphanage owner had once seemed to love the children but grew darker and crueler with each day... her body still bore the scars of how dark she had become. She shook her head as she leaned into the tree, her mice popping out of hair to squeak at the gods to leave her alone.

"Are you going to kill me too?" She asked simply, her eyes on the plant god. She showed no fear, simply calm and collected now after her initial fear. She would fight if she was attacked she knew... but hoped her mice would be spared. She had no doubt she'd lose but she preferred to fight rather then die quite so easily as the farmer.

As his companion put forth a request to exact this revenge himself, the cockatrice bowed its head and moved back on the branch, giving the flora God the honor as the Beast King himself actually approached, dismissing the cockatrice of its services. The avian then proceeded to hide in the underbrush once more, entering the unsettling quiet that all the creatures of this forest had fallen into.

He watched in a strange glee as his brother exacted vengeance, slaughtering the farmer with no mercy. He returned the hug as his brother afforded him one for what felt like the first time. It probably was. He wasn't too sure of that. "It is a wonderful feeling to right a such a wrong in such a way," he said, voice still containing the deep growls and snarls of the many beasts that resided here. "I am glad you've gotten to experience it as well." He pulled back, smiling at his brother.

As the young girl spoke, he turned, eyeing her with still angry eyes. He turned to her fully, approaching, lifting up his uncovered hand. One of the mice had poked its head out to watch the spectacle and he gently petted its nose, leaving his finger to rest gently on its nose. He felt no spell over them. In fact, the only magic he felt in the mouse, aside from the natural magic born within every living creature, was a simple connection spell, a bond with the girl that had been chased here. And he felt no hostility toward her from the small beast. It clung to her hair and body completely of its own will. And that Ursan could not punish. "You will see no hostility from me, mortal," he said quietly, dropping his hand. "Those mice are there of their own will. You have done nothing to ensue my wrath."

Her mouth fell open at the spectacle afforded her by the flora god. It made her skin crawl to see the forest suddenly come to life in such an unexpected way. Though in truth, Verity could hardly blame him. Carefully, the blonde placed her weapon upon the ground and began to unbuckle her armor. Each piece was placed softly upon the ground, away from any plant life. It was a show of non combativeness that she hoped would appease the anger of the gods, at least where she was concerned.

Letting out a deep breath, the young woman sat upon the ground and closed her blue eyes to try and collect herself. Finally, after a few moments, the knight lifted her face to the brothers. "And I, what shall happen to me?" She'd thought she was safe from their wrath, just as the other young woman was. Apparently they still had to come to some agreement.

Seda Tapio

Sey suppressed a shudder and bit her lip but forced her eyes to meet the angry eyes of the god. She wouldn't move as he stepped closer, only reacting as he reached for the mouse. She instinctively started to step back and raise a hand to defend the mouse for the mice were her only true friends left. The people of the town had all turned on her, focusing on her as the cause of their problems as they were growing wild and near crazed with fear.

As he simply petted it and seemed to speak with it somehow she dropped her hand and tried to suppress her instinctive desire to defend the unusually intelligent mice. She was unaware that it was their connection to her that elevated them to higher then human intelligence as she had not realized that they had become her familiars. Honestly she knew little of such things, despite her parentage due to their death. Still, she had more pressing concerns...

"But I'm from the village... is this some sort of trick? The an...I have been told how much you hate us." She demanded. She didn't say the animals had told her when she'd helped them, she doubted they'd mention what she had done to the god. She had told them to keep it quiet and to stay away from the village so they wouldn't get hurt again. If she were to mention it now it would seem a desperate plea for her life. The mice meanwhile were tugging at her hair, wanting her to run.

She glanced towards the other woman who spoke and removed her armor. She didn't understand why she would remove her armor and just submit to their will? She felt a moment of anger and uncertainty but she would stand up for herself. The mice would be protected so she could fight all out if it came to that... but she wasn't willing to turn her back to the gods until she was sure.

Elyrion stood before the water goddess, but his attention had been captured by something else. The noises of someone rushing through the forest, Elyrion turned to watch. All he did was watch. The brutality of the plant god was a little startling, Elyrion hadn't really thought the creature would resort to such violence. A little startling but not wholly unexpected. Even plants could be violent and dangerous.

He scoffed a bit when the knight began to remove her armor, what a stupid thing to do. Making herself more vulnerable. Elyrion made a slight noise and turned his attention back to the water goddess. "Humans are incredibly stupid." He spoke it rather matter-of-factly and with a slight shrug. "Don't you agree, pretty lady?"

Forest Mother, Master of Water

Pretty Lady?.... So you can be flattering when you want. I believe it depends on the human as with any creature, though I would say I have seen much foolishness here..." Acionna responded thoughtfully with a soft chuckle as she watched the two human women. They both seemed likely to get themselves in trouble, her nature to desire to protect them. Suddenly however, she tilted her head to the side as she realized she could hear singing water. There was only one type of human whose body, whose water, whose blood, whose bones, sang.

"A song weaver? I did not think they were still being born....." She muttered more to herself then anyone. Yes, for all spell casters words held power but for a song weaver.... their mere breath held power, held song, held magic. They were human, yet they were not... strange beings that even the gods were unsure where they came from. There had been gods of magic and gods of wind and gods of music who all claimed responsibility but none had ever been able to prove it..

"Flattering? Maybe, but what else am I supposed to call you? You are pretty and you are a lady, it's a fitting name I think." Elyrion had given her a rather cheeky smile, that smile faded rather quickly though as Elyrion tilted his head and looked at the song weaver rather intently. A song weaver. Humans had no right to such power. The half fae, half demon growled for a moment, only a moment. "Humans should never be given such power. Such a gift is meant for worthier creatures." Elyrion turned his nose up at the song weaver as he crossed his arms across his chest.

His gaze lingered on the girl though, at least for a few moments before it shifted to the female knight, and then to the beast king. Ursan. Elyrion wanted to play with Ursan, though his definition of play was far different from the normal definition. Elyrion wanted to bother, touch and talk to the beast king for as long as he could until the god grew angry. Simply put, Elyrion wanted to find out exactly how far he could push Ursan before something violent happened.

Right now though, didn't seem like a good time to play with the beast king. Elyrion also wanted to know how far he could push the plant king as well. Most of all though, Elyrion wanted to know what limit these creatures power had. Were they truly gods, then their power should be near limitless. Shouldn't it be? Elyrion really didn't know much about gods. He bounced on his feet for a moment, then reached out to touch the goddess as if he thought his hand might move through her the way it would water. "Are you made of water? You smell like the rain."

Forest Mother, Master of Water

"You could call me Acionna....It is a name I was given by the celts once. It has always been my favorite." She said quietly, her gaze briefly growing slightly bittersweet. There was a reason the early celts had meant something to her, and that only one carving, one testament, to her name existed. She pushed away the thoughts quickly however, and focused on her companion as he spoke again. She couldn't help but chuckle slightly and shrug her shoulders.

"Yet Nature seems to disagree with you, a songweaver must always have at least one human or songweaver parent. It is true though.... I have never met one with a truly evil heart. I tend to stay away from land unless needed now a days, however, so perhaps times have changed that." The gentle soul mused with a shrug. Perhaps being pure of heart was no longer something linked with being born a song weaver. She had been deep in thought about this when he asked such a question and reached out to touch her.

"when I wish to be...though I suppose I am always mostly water" She answered honestly, though she stepped to the side slightly at his touch. It had been so long since she had skin, and she had not been touched since that terrible fight so it felt funny. She said nothing of it, however, and simply continued to give him that gentle smile since he meant no harm by it. She hadn't even meant to step back really, it had been instinct.

The Beast King's eyes flashed dangerously at her comment, face twisting a snarl. "Do not remind me, pup," he hissed, voice once again gaining the various growls and snarls of the forest animals. "The fact you still stand there at all is a gift to those mice, and even then it is stubbornly given up." He glanced at the little rodent he had touched earlier, watching as it pulled and tugged at her hair. "I suggest you take that gift before I decide to take it back."

He turned his head as the knight relinquished herself of her armor and bowed before him, submitting her life to his whim. He could not tell if she was foolish or clever. He watched her for a while, silent as he decided whether or not she was worth allowing her to walk among his children. He huffed in mild annoyance. "I have yet to decide..." he hissed lowly, turning away and back to his brother, waiting patiently for his brother's plan of attack. This was no longer his vengeance. This was his brother's. And he would lead it.

((Er...could someone give me a quick update as to where everyone is? I read the first page, but I got lazy. *twiddles her thumbs sheepishly*))