umbralscythe-blog

[umbralscythe-blog]

liquidsnxke‌:

the soldier shakes his head and finally allows himself a small laugh at rhaast’s finally message. what a terrible entity that scythe proves to be, but he cannot help but be the least bit amused by him. regardless of the circumstances, which liquid has guessed by now, but keeps his seething to himself.

to: shieda kayn. from: liquid snake. > Are you now? I can’t recall much of Cotes. > I may have visited once or twice. . . . > Would you want to resume training sessions?

kayn leaves the weapon against the wall aside his bed, propping himself up on the mattress and getting comfortable before resuming contact. rhaast, mercifully, leaves him alone. strangers outside are shouting. the acolyte heaves a sigh.

to: liquid. from: shieda kayn. txt: cotes is quieter. it reminds me of home. txt: minus all the people trying to kill me, that is. ... txt: sure. that’s fine with me.

[umbralscythe-blog]

liquidsnxke‌:

as soon as the message asking for liquid to wait pops up, the soldier mentally prepares himself for direct communication from rhaast. to dramatize it would to say that liquid is pained, physically and emotionally, to be exposed to the darkin’s presence. however, he’s fully aware that he prompted it.

entirely, unapologetically aware.

to: shieda kayn. from: liquid snake. > Oh, I truly did. My life was never so fulfilling without you. > Anyway. I’m glad to hear it. > I’m housed in Fibonacci now.

to: liquid. from: shieda kayn.

txt: FORTUNATE THAT YOU’RE BACK, THEN.

kayn decides that that’s more than enough, and stops typing messages out for rhaast. the darkin would have plenty of opportunities to antagonize liquid some other time.

txt: really? txt: i’m still in the same place, but i’m getting tired of it. i’ve been spending a lot of time in cotes during the day.

[umbralscythe-blog]

☽ @stygianking // starter call.

kayn grows less fond of archimedes the longer he is forced to stay there.

on days where the ward’s varied vistas and tourist traps draw greater crowds, it becomes unbearable for the acolyte to leave his apartment. he can’t stand the noise. beyond that, the cracks in island society have become more apparent to his eye. suffering is a human constant, it seems.

he decides to chance going out on what is usually an off time, but it is clearly too much to hope for a simple uninterrupted trip to the corner store. there is a commotion coming from one of the alleyways, and, against his better judgement, kayn gets involved.

there’s a kid there, and a couple guys look like they’re giving him a hard time. kayn doesn’t particularly care what about, but he doesn’t need to ― what he wants to do is help get the men off his back. rhaast is the first to note the presence of the boy’s weapon: a sword of unusual quality. regardless of the outcome, the darkin is interested in the impending fight.

the argument stops briefly when one of the men sees kayn enter the alley. 

❝ i don’t know what happened to get everyone so angry, but i think you ought to stop messing with the kid. just an idea. ❞

[umbralscythe-blog]

liquidsnxke‌:

the prompt answer is almost as aggravating as his earlier inability to decide upon messaging or not to begin with. liquid sighs roughly, audibly annoyed, as he snatches his phone back from the surface of the kitchen counter, reading the message with half of his heart expecting kayn to ask who the hell he is.

a relief might have washed over him as he closes his eyes and composes himself before opening a new message. ( yes, he would admit that he is fond of the acolyte. )

to: shieda kayn. from: liquid snake. > Have you been practicing your CQC? > Hello, Rhaast. A true, unadulterated pleasure.

kayn decides rather quickly that there isn’t much point in asking where liquid had gone. first, this place is strange. it was wrong of him to expect some normalcy. second, it would make him look a bit more vulnerable than he wanted to be.

so he puts it aside. liquid is back now, and that’s fine.

to: liquid. from: shieda kayn. txt: when i have the time, yes. txt: hold on.

there is a short delay between messages as kayn asks rhaast for his input.

txt: HELLO. I’M SURE YOU MISSED ME. txt: ;)

[umbralscythe-blog]

okay, i’m taking the boy off his hiatus!! i’d love to get more interactions going for kayn & rhaast, so if you’d like to thread here is an uncapped starter call! slightly selective, will get to them over the course of the week!

[umbralscythe-blog]

liquidsnxke‌:

he’s had quite the attitude about himself since he returned, even by his own standards. or perhaps it’s the nature of his mood that truly aggravates him. whatever it may be, it’s had a heavy hand in the soldier’s decision to hang back from confronting kayn ( and rhaast, which may or may not be an additional factor ).

liquid could have texted him several messages in the time he’s spent going between looking at his phone and tossing it aside.

should he? does kayn remember him? come now, liquid snake, you have never once been so affected by something so superficial as this.

to: @umbralscythe from: liquid snake. > Kayn?

of course kayn remembers him.

spirale has been nothing if not frustrating for the young acolyte, but a few people have made the ordeal more bearable at the very least. liquid snake is among them. he hasn’t gotten many texts lately, so the ping of the notification surprises him; the name even more so. 

kayn hadn’t anticipated the soldier’s return; usually when people disappear, it’s within reason to not expect them back.

it’s nice to hear from him, though.

to: liquid. from: shieda kayn. txt: hey

[umbralscythe-blog]

☽ you cast a long shadow, boy. // covet drabble.

kayn isn’t normally one to accept random acts of generosity. when the unusual gift makes an appearance in his living quarters, he almost has a mind to throw it away.

but he doesn't; at least not immediately. a note addressed to him sits rather conspicuously on top of the neatly-wrapped box.

hello, kayn! you have done some very bad things in the past, but your heart has (mostly) been in the right place. at least i think so! we both know you can do better.

this is for you! hopefully it helps you figure some things out.

- noel

kayn stares at the message for a while. the promise of what lies within is vague --- he may not trust it, but it is enough to spark his curiosity.

❛ AREN'T YOU going to open it? i'd like to see what all the fuss is about, ❜ rhaast chimes in, making his unwelcome opinion on the matter known. ❛ BESIDES, who doesn't like surprises? ❜

kayn clicks his tongue against his teeth.

❝ i don't see your name on it, rhaast. ❞

with that, it is decided. the acolyte opens the box. it’s empty.

of course the whole thing is a joke made at his expense. the darkin certainly seems to think so, if its sudden bark of laughter is any indication. agitated, kayn takes the gift to the common area to shove it into the trash. as soon as he closes the lid, there’s a knock at the door.

on the other side stands nakuri, the gnarled scar across his throat the only indicator he had ever been dead at all.

❝ oh, come on, shie. look at you, ❞ nakuri says, looking kayn up and down before he can get a word in. ❝ you’ve really done it now, haven’t you? ❞

the use of the nickname shocks kayn to stillness. he can’t meet nakuri’s eyes. to have to admit he was wrong to the man he killed, the only other person in the order he ever trusted, would be a greater wound to his pride than he’s willing to take. luckily for him, nakuri doesn’t need him to. 

the other man has always had a knack for knowing things.

❝ why are you here? ❞

❝ don’t have a crisis. i’m only going to be here for a bit, and i only want to talk to you. ❞

dejected, kayn stands aside to let nakuri in; it wouldn’t be right to turn him away.

they sit across from one another at the dining room table, trading words.

❝ so, you missed me, right? you look like shit, but i’m sure you’re aware. ❞

❝ yes, i did. and yes, i am. thanks. ❞

❝ i’m not angry with you anymore. i was for a while, but there’s no point in it now. ❞

❝ i’m sorry anyway. i’ve been a fool. ❞

❝ yes, you have. ❞

kayn sighs, the dull pain in his corrupted arm suddenly all the more noticeable. whatever edge rhaast gives him over opponents in battle wasn’t worth nakuri’s life. he knows that now; he has had plenty of time to think.

❝ it’s going to kill you, too. ❞

❝ i know. ❞

nakuri leans forward in his chair, taking kayn’s human hand in his. 

❝ there isn’t a man alive that doesn’t need help. going it alone with the weight you’re forcing yourself to carry will kill you faster than that demon. ❞

❝ what am i supposed to do, nakuri? i can’t expect anyone to understand why i did what i did, why these plans are so important to me. i can’t waste my time gauging if someone is worth getting attached to, or if someone really wants to help me. if they die, or if they leave, that’s time i can never get back. ❞

being trapped here has done nothing but make him miserable, reminding him constantly that his days grow increasingly numbered. talking to people might provide temporary relief, but all that ails him will never have a cure.

❝ shie. you’re not meant to be alone. you’ll fall in with the right people. people that make you happy. and then you’ll see. i’m always right, yeah? you’ll see. ❞

❝ nakuri? ❞

❝ hm? ❞

❝ could you stay for a while longer? ❞

[umbralscythe-blog]

gcdeaterr‌:

Holes in walls were far from Karma’s mind right now. Kayn grabbing the other end of the scythe made him pause for a moment, head tilted enough where one big orange eye stared at the kid, black pupil that normally slit vertically was as wide as a hunting cat’s. It almost took up the entire eye, a thin ring of orange on the outer edge and light reflecting in the depths  to quite literally make it glow.

To Karma, this was a game. Kayn’s demand for him to drop it went unheeded. 

“Pull.”

A simple command.

“Then drop when satisfied, little demon brother.”

The game was set. Rhaast was the new toy. His jaws clamping tighter onto the blade.

❝ i’m not playing with you. you need to let it go. ❞

as funny as this has the potential to be, the acolyte is more concerned about keeping an intact apartment and not angering the other tenants. kayn keeps his hands where they are on the weapon, but doesn’t look to initiate any sort of competition. rhaast groans in irritation.

❛ I’VE BEEN IN worse places, but the mouth of an animal has never been a favorite. ❜

just how long pembroke can maintain this form is the point of contention for the duo. kayn makes no effort to pull, hoping instead to just wait it out. 

[umbralscythe-blog]

furyeyed‌:

STARTER FOR @umbralscythe

it was well into the later hours of the night when it seemed best to at least visit the assigned home he had for the duration of his stay, though it felt more like journeying to his own cell than it did ‘going home’. it had been advised however, from many and not merely a few, that to get some rest would only prove to aid him in the long run and that the momentary confusion and uncertainty would fade as the days bled into weeks. but ever the restless sort, he imagined himself walking through the doors, merely to exit very soon following. still, he decided to visit it at least. 

the streetlamps were flicking into sleep, midnight a distant memory as the stars freckled the heavens and estinien made his way to his ‘condo’. a key, a number, a dragoon clad in the very armour he’d been taken in. he spared no mind for the noise, for the clunk clunk clunk of steel and armour as he squeezed himself into the domestic abode, knocking over several items along the way as he made his way down the hall. the sound of tearing broke the silence further, as estinien turned to enter the kitchen, one particularly pointy tip of his shoulder blade shearing part of the wallpaper. no matter. they ought not to have such flimsy decor. 

he entered the main room, a table in its centre with an array of kitchen-like items scattered about. there was a hum, a low buzzing which unnerved him, and as he fumbled about for lanterns, he soon realised there to be none of the sort. of course, the world was so unlike his own, perhaps it was his own foolishness which had him seek out something so obviously inaccessible. 

what he did find, however, was a large pitcher of water. he seized it within a single hand before tilting the spout to his lips, pouring the entire thing down his throat before loudly discarding it into the basin. 

kayn has never been one to sleep well. survival at home meant being able to defend yourself from people who could cut your throat across the room, and so he has long since learnt to be a light sleeper. The nightmares are another battle entirely.

when the commotion first wakes him, he believes it to be a break-in of some kind -- one glance at the clock affirms the abnormality of the situation. though kayn has not been the most social of roommates, he knows none of the people that have come and gone from the lodging would cause such an obnoxious racket in the early hours of the morning.

fully expecting to encounter a night thief or killer, kayn leaves his room with rhaast. he can tell before even touching the weapon that the darkin is likewise not enthused by the disturbance.

what the pair find instead is a fully-armored figure looming in the kitchen, the trail of destruction left in the walls and the furniture by the outfit’s impractical spikes clearly visible. kayn finds himself altogether baffled, and while he drops his fighting stance, he does not let his guard down.

❝ hey. who are you supposed to be, and why are you in here? ❞ he questions the stranger, keeping his voice down a bit. rhaast is mercifully silent about the whole ordeal, eye watching the man from kayn’s grip.

[umbralscythe-blog]

@coluberfoxii ☽ starter call

the longer this interdimensional island-dwelling situation drags on, the further kayn falls into feeling like he is trapped. it is not the reprieve from strife for him that it is for some, and having to heft the weight of his predicament whilst being unable to return home has turned the acolyte’s mood south.

it hardly helps that the one person he was thinking of opening up to has up and  gone.

he tries walking through archimedes to clear at least some of his thoughts, rhaast harnessed and slung at his back. it doesn’t quite work, and what he does instead is end up colliding shoulders with someone in the street, so absent that he misses the darkin’s warning prior to impact.

now, kayn, realistically, knows that he is the one at fault; he was the one not paying attention. what spills out in place of an apology, however, is rather angry. certainly unfounded, but it isn’t something he can take back once he opens his mouth.

❝ hey! how about you watch where you’re going? ❞

[umbralscythe-blog]

aeternuming‌:

though the teen who wields the scythe in question warns lloyd of the impending, long-winded story that he is sure would come, the brunette cannot help but gape slightly.

“‘darkin’,” he repeats, voice quiet with an airy wonder.

curious as always, the swordsman opens his mouth once more to post another question for rhaast, only to blink and look kayn in the eye in that moment. the realization of what the other teen had said finally dawns upon him and he smiles sheepishly.

“i take it you’ve heard all about it a thousand times over?” he ventures. lloyd leans forward then, propping his elbows up on his knees and joining his hands together loosely. “i won’t ask then. i hate having to hear the same dull lectures over and over again.”

a snicker. lloyd grins at rhaast before smiling good-naturedly at the boy with a braid.

“i’m lloyd, by the way.”

❝ yes, i’ve heard it before. ❞ kayn very decidedly plants the darkin weapon in the ground once more with intent to aggravate, leaning a bit more heavily on the hilt and rolling his free shoulder. ❝ but i can’t exactly stop him from regaling someone with his entire history, now, can i? ❞

rhaast makes no indication that he’s affected by the action beyond a brief squint of the eye. lloyd’s display of awe, however, is deemed appropriate, and draws out a chuckle.

❛ NO, YOU CAN’T. but i’ll save it for another time, boy, if you’re really interested, ❜ the scythe says, sight fixed to the young swordsman.

❝ right. i’m kayn. like i said, you can stay and watch if you want. ❞

despite the banter from only minutes earlier, the acolyte finds himself wondering if lloyd wants something from him, or if he simply makes a habit of drumming up conversation with people who swing dangerous weapons around.

[umbralscythe-blog]

hey!! i’d like more threads on this kid, so if you want to interact with kayn and his rude scythe leave a like on this post for a starter of varying length! i’ll get to them over the course of the next couple weeks. capping at 4 for now, with castmates exempt.

if you want to plot anything beyond a starter, feel free to ask for my discord!

[umbralscythe-blog]

gcdeaterr‌:

“RHAAAASSSST?”

The name easy to say between hisses and growls, much easier than human words he’d have to bark, delicate words his head structure could not form properly. Karma moved his big head to stare at the scythe, one big orange eye staring at the weapon. Then back to Kayn, head tilted to watch him struggle. He huffed, a garbled mimicry of a laugh.

“WHAT is a RHAAASSSST?”

And then the more important questions.

“WHY?”

Steam didn’t pour off him in excessive amounts at a resting state, still humid, still heavy. The dog shifted and moved, standing on all fours over Kayn now, effectively releasing him, but he grabbed the blade of the scythe with his mouth, picking it up.

as soon as the beast shifts its weight off of him, kayn pulls himself out from underneath. he stands up, exasperation showing on his features at the mere thought of getting karma out of the apartment.

the hound beats him to his weapon, and kayn can’t help but smile as its teeth chew on the blade.

❝ that’s a rhaast, and i don’t think you’re going to make friends with him that way. ❞

the darkin within the scythe, however, is far less amused; kayn can feel his irritation through the connection they share. the acolyte approaches karma, taking hold of what part of the handle is jutting from its mouth.

❛ I HARDLY THINK you can grasp the “why” of me, dog. ❜

❝ yes, well. despite the amount of fun i’m having, i don’t feel like playing tug-of-war with you, pembroke, so you need to drop it. we need to leave before you put more holes in the walls. ❞

[umbralscythe-blog]

blood moon boi

[umbralscythe-blog]

acescere‌:

the radio silence is not something he’s too keen on explaining. when kayn does nothing to question his absence, the blond is subtly relieved. a mere affirmative before the acolyte arrives.

liquid perks up when he hears kayn’s voice as he approaches, turning an amused smirk toward the younger warrior as he continues wrapping his knuckles.

“if i thought so, then i wouldn’t have invited you out here to begin with,” he chides, voice comparatively heavy to his expression. “i see you brought the sheet metal with you. good morning, rhaast.”

( if kayn listened hard enough, he could hear the edges of the soldier’s voice rasp with sleep. though he certainly hadn’t done much of it. restlessness. )

the gym itself is fairly empty. it is rather early, even for the usual morning crowd. a couple walks together leisurely on a pair of treadmills across the facility and another man is doing light lifting nearby. in the next half hour or so, this place would be crowded.

standing up, liquid tosses the tape toward his sparring partner.

“have you eaten breakfast yet?”

kayn shifts his weight to one side and smiles back. ❝ that’s fair, i suppose. ❞ he takes the sling containing rhaast off, and sets the weapon heel-first against the wall. it’s awake and watching, and is indignant upon being addressed.

❛ I’M SURE you missed me, ❜ says the darkin, if nothing else entertained by the thought of kayn and liquid punching each other around for a while.

the acolyte catches the roll of tape, but is only able to bind his right hand; the left is much too sharp and more trouble than it’s worth, what with all the edges. he is glad there aren’t that many people here yet.

❝ mind this hand, would you? it’s, uh, a little more dangerous than my right, ❞ he says, stretching the clawed fingers out to demonstrate his point.  ❝ don’t want you to get all cut up over a sparring match. and no, i haven’t eaten yet. was i supposed to? ❞ 

[umbralscythe-blog]

tenacioushound‌:

The door opened before he could ram it again, exhaling a steam through his mouth as he collided with Kayn and his… Scythe? Where’d he get a scythe? One big clawed paw pinned the arm that had the scythe and he specifically sniffed it. Growling. It smelled like something dangerous. Kayn less so, but even he could smell something weird about him. He sniffed the arm. He sniffed Kayn’s face, blowing out a puff of air into his face and growled again.

Karma warbled, finding the mimicry in voice he could use to just spout nonsense. It was always nonsense. It was like asking an actual dog to speak. Too stupid for anything coherent.

“Little Demon Brother.” Jaws much too big snapped in front of the other’s face, vibrating in an attempt to mouth the words he said. Like a parrot. Hard to actually hear the words through the garbled mess of growls and huffs.”Found you. Found YOU. Found YOU AND COMPANY.” His voice only grew much too loud for the close proximity between them. 

With that, Karma laid down, quite literally flopped on top of Kayn, moving his claws from the arm he pinned to cross over his chest.

“WHAT IS IT.”

he expresses physical discomfort at the beast’s examination, but as soon as he opens his mouth to say so he’s knocked to the floor, the damn thing laying on top of him. ❝ yeah, you did, you found me, ❞ kayn says, straining as he tries to remove himself from under the weight of the beast without agitating him.  ❝ now, can you get off of me? ❞ 

as the young man struggles fruitlessly (it’s like pushing against a brick wall — !), the darkin scythe chuckles.

❛ NO, NO. feel free to stay right there. there’s no rush. you can tell it to be quiet, though, kayn, if you’re going to have it keep spitting out words. ❜

❝ how about you be quiet, rhaast? ❞ kayn retorts, eyes off of karma for a moment to shoot a glare at the weapon; the acolyte doesn’t find this situation particularly funny. he turns back and frees himself up a couple inches.

❝ rude is what it is. don’t worry about it. now, please, get off. you can’t stay in here like this, and i’d like to move. ❞

[umbralscythe-blog]

☽ @acescere

kayn doesn’t consider himself sociable, but he has made some effort in maintaining conversation with one or two people on his contacts list. receiving mostly silence on liquid’s end over the past weeks has left him missing the text notification sound in the early hours of the morning, despite how annoying it can be in the midst of waking up.

when he hears his phone go off for the first time after the lull in communication, he is startled enough to check the message right away. rhaast merely groans at the development.

❛ OH. fantastic. i was beginning to wonder if he’d been in an accident. ❜

❝ shut up, ❞ says the acolyte, stretching and rubbing sleep from his eyes.

kayn slings the mouthy weapon over his shoulder and starts heading to where liquid wants to meet up; some kind of gym, it looks like. it’s for a quick sparring match, and kayn is agreeable to it. he would enjoy the practice, and the place isn’t far.

when he walks in, liquid is already there. 

❝ hey, ❞ he greets on approach. ❝ i’m not actually complaining, but it is a little early in the day to be fighting each other, don’t you think? ❞