The ornamental woods.

Chatterbox: Inkwell

The ornamental woods.

The ornamental woods.  

Deep set in the cornapy mountains the ornamental woods are host to many an array of creatures. However wether they know it or not they are ruled by the "Kesaay" a government of beasts, mythical or otherwise.   The kesaay perform invulnerable tasks.  Controlling the weather for instance. Without them the forest and all its creatures would vanish forever.  

However something is corrupting the forest.  Trees wither like grass in full sun.  Rivers are black with poison, and a disease is spreading.  A disease who's bearers lay writhing in agony for a day and disappear the next.  

Those of the forest blame the kesaay, threatening to overrun their rule and take the power for themselves which could only end in great destruction.  Destruction that could spread from the ornamental woods into what lies beyond.  

 

RULES & INFO:

The kesaay are organized into ranks, each rank possesses a layer of the forest.  For example.  The first rank abides in the upper canopy, etc.

RANKS: From lowest to greatest.

SEVENTH RANK:  leaders of the animal clans.  Example.  Leader of wolf clan.  Leader of owl clan etc.  (This is optional, those who exel at sixth rank can still be part of the kesaay) capacity: there is no limit 

SIXTH RANK:   Training to become part of the kesaay.  Failure in this can result in going down in rank.  Capacity: 20

FIFTH RANK:  Healers.  Those in this position are sent out to heal the sick and injured as well as participate in further training.  Capacity:  10 

FOURTH RANK:   Water.  In this rank one will help control the speed, power and purity of the streams, rivers, ponds and lakes in the woods.  Capacity: 

THIRD RANK: Weather.  In this rank one will help control rain, wind, lightning, etc.  Capacity: 

SECOND RANK:  Nature.  Those in this rank will help control plant growth, etc.  Capacity: 2

FIRST RANK:  Leaders of the kesaay.   Those in this rank are known as the elders, they control the passing of time and space.  The most powerful rank of them all.  Legend hold the elders are fallen stars chosen by the moon.  It is nearly impossible to get into this rank, none have done so in a thousand years.  Capacity: 

RULES:

1. There are no humans in the ornamental forest

2.  You can be any creature imaginable, but there is no magic apart from that in the kesaay.  

3.  Potions etc.  Are allowed though.

4.  No being op.  You CAN NOT be *poof* one rank into the other, moving rank too rank takes time and training.  

5.  When one is ready for the kesaay, the mark of first/second rank will appear on their body. 

6.  11-up only please.

Please fill out a charrie sheet.  Example.

NAME:  Sage Thrush

SPECIES:  Barred owl 

APPEARANCE:  A barred owl with light green accents, striving for second rank.

PERSONALITY:  Curious, easily frightened, easily fascinated by anything that catches her eye.  Especially plants.

RANK/TITLE:  Second rank.

BACKGROUND: Doesn't like to talk about it. 

 

 

submitted by Windswift, age Unknown, Here
(July 26, 2016 - 10:00 pm)

Yeah that's fine.  

submitted by Windswift
(July 28, 2016 - 4:03 pm)

Name: Lynn Saoirse

Species: Selkie (seal shapeshifter)

Appearance: As human, long brown hair and sea green eyes and pale skin; as a seal, brown fur, sea green eyes.

Personality: Wise, calm, satisfied. Very "zen" like.

Rank/title: Fourth rank

Background: I don't care. 

submitted by Brookeira
(July 28, 2016 - 12:18 am)

~ KESAAY, RANKS AND TITLES ~

~ Seventh rank: Leaders of animal clans

~ Sixth rank:  Moon, scillyia, cormorant, carnelian, kesawate, Silver eye and poinsettia.

~Fifth rank:  Jewel (winged tiger), Blossom (fox), Cassowary (storm petrel), Sage thrush (barred owl), Fallon (river wolf), Fauna (unicorn), Havan (deer), Pyrite (crow), Bristlecone (deer), Hillside (horse)

~Fourth rank: Silvie (Water horse), Lynn Saoirse (seal, since the elders ban all shapeshifters from entering  the kesaay is it OK if everyone just thinks your a seal?  It'll help the plot line as well as add some drama!!!!) Icewall (snow leopord) Luster (water dragon), Desert (Jackal), Sunshaft (Burmese python), Wildfire (Phoenix)

~Third rank: Rain (griffin), Cliff (golden eagle), Autumn (pegasus)

~Second rank:  Fern (faery), Aer (unicorn)

~First rank:  Calypso, Greatness, Wonder, Forest and Stargazer.  

 

Jarvis, I know you reserved a spot so when your charrie sheet is made I'll make sure you get the right rank:-)  If anyone else is hoping to join we have room for one more!!!  

submitted by Windswift
(July 28, 2016 - 3:01 pm)

TOP RIGHT NOW OR ELSE!!!!!

submitted by TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!, age Top100%, Topland
(July 28, 2016 - 3:02 pm)

THE SECOND PAGE?  WHAT CRUELTY IS THIS?!?!? TOP! TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!!!!!!! 

submitted by TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!
(July 28, 2016 - 7:42 pm)

YYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!  It topped!  Woohoo!!! Yeah! Yay.......

submitted by Windswift
(July 29, 2016 - 6:56 am)

Ugh, I'm so impatient.  I'm gonna start, Jarvis and some person who may join don't worry.  ;-) 

Psssst, I'll be writing as the elders so I can add a few things.

 

~Forest

Screams of agony, as if the trees themselves were mourning the pain and suffering the woods were bearing.  A small stream beneath my feet emitted putrid smells, the deep black sign of death lying on its surface.  Writhing, mocking me.

A wail cried out among the shadows, suddenly a dragonet lay before me.  Her eyes white and staring.  Her jaw agape.  Puss leaked out from snout and deep gashes lined her scales, as if she had fought a great enemy.   And lost. 

I tried to reach out, to help her.  But then she was gone, replaced by countless dragons laying limp across the earth.  Insects crawled across their figures, as trees shrivaled to black wisps right before my eyes.  Their voices rose up, chanting mangled words

"the kesaay are useless, they have forsaken us. They watch us, laugh at our misery.  Laugh at our extinction, laugh while we die in agony and torture.      When the last of us are gone the kesaay will rise in triumph.  In triumph that they have...." 

My eyes tear open, my breath coming in short gasps.  

The others have surrounded me, Greatness wears a fore-boding expression on his face.  His eyes boring through me the way they always do.  

"The dream has haunted your sleep as well?" He says,

"the nightmare," wonder whispers.  There are rings around her eyes and tears in her voice.  Stargazer brings his wing around her, cooing softly.  

"Thoughtful will be fine," I say, hoping to comfort her.  She whimpered softly, "of course she'll be fine,"

Her voice says the exact opposite.  

"Well, what are we gonna do?" Says Calypso.  

Stargazer glanced out the window, a rising sun cheerily greeting the day.  

"Send a letter," he commanded.  I grabbed a bark scroll and a quill, waiting for his signal.

"Tell the leader of the dragon tribe we send much tribute to her and her tribe. Ask if she has noticed anything unusual or out of the ordinary, if so to contact us immediately......................... He glanced at wonder.    " and to be careful" he finished

I rolled up the scroll and sealed it with wax.  

Calypso caught my eye. We stared for a moment, "its probably nothing,". He said half heartedly.

I gazed into his hazel eyes, if we lost each other... " I hope so, I truly hope so." 

 

submitted by Windswift/Sagethrush, age Sorry!, Imsoimpatient
(July 28, 2016 - 9:39 pm)

The dragon tribe. My home. It was located in a large canyon filled with trees and prey. Like a forest protected by a large rock wall. Or a large rock wall trapping the dragon tribe.

Or at least trapping her.

Mother said to stay here. Mother said that if I stay here I will be safe. I have lived my hole life in this wretched canyon, the Water Dragon's Breath. They call it. Home to the dragons. All except one.

Mother was the only dragon who didn't live here. She was a kessay. That ment she had to live with the other kessay. And since Thoughtful wasn't a kessay, she had to live with all the other dragons, away from mother. And mother never comes to visit. But when she does she is swamped by other dragons, all admiring and awwing like a stupid mob. When mother finally stops talking to the last one she just 'checks in' with Thoughtful, ask her if she's healthy, but most importantly if she has become a kessay yet. The answer is always no, and Wonder always leaves right after with a sad snort.

The worst part though, is that all the dragons stare at Thoughtful. Wonder why she's not with mother. Then whisper after she's past them. She's the only dragon with feathered wings like mother's, so it's easy to pick her out as the special one. But here is the thing, she's absolutely not special. Mother is. But since mother is special all the dragons see her as special. 

That makes her angry. And determined. Determined to earn her own fame, be greater then mother.

But another problem was that that was impossible. No one could be higher up and more special then mother. She was a first rank kessay. You can't get any higher then that. 

Thoughtful sighed.

Right now she was at her large, lonely home in the highest cave in the canyon. The higher each dragons caves are, the higher the class. The jailers, or the dragons who broke a rule, were at the bottom of the canyon, and as a rule weren't allowed to fly or hunt in the cracks in the canyon. They were assigned to hunt on the ground, guarded by a knight at all times. Their caves are small and damp, flooded whenever there is rain. They also have bars on their caves so they won't escape. The their class, the pheasants, were just high enough that their caves won't get damp from even the worst flood. But, they are only allowed to fly high enough to look through the small cracks in the canyons for prey. The middle class was a about in the middle of the canyon wall, they were allowed to hunt in large caves and fly freely, but not up above the canyon walls. And the first class, the nights and guards and anyone related to them, had large wide caves and were allowed to fly into the Dragon Eye forests around the canyon. Then there was the royalty class. They were located in caves as high up to the sky as possible. They were the only ones allowed to hunt in the sky. The royalty class was made of the curant leader of the dragons and their family, and Thoughtful. Her cave was basically on the top of the canyon. She was so lonely up here sometimes she considers braking a rule so she would be assigned to stay on the ground at all times. Even the veiw of the woods and sunsets got old. And ever so lonely. The school was just bellow the leader's cave, and all dragonets had to go to it, the class didn't matter. Everyone there, even the leader's son, would sstear clear out of her way. Sometimes she whisked she could just die her wings Brown in mud and stick them to her side's like she was a theirs class dragonet, or someone who broke a rule. Other times she debated on flying away and watching the next time her not he  came to see if she noticed or cared. 

Thoughtful sighed. Sometimes she wished she was a little less.....Thoughtful.

submitted by Thoughtful
(July 28, 2016 - 11:38 pm)

NAME: Swift

SPECIES: Shapeshifter, switches between leopard and cardinal

APPEARANCE: As a leopard, small, with pale golden fur and an inky black leopard pattern. As both animals, he has the telltale silver eyes of a shapeshifter and the shapshifter symbol on his tail. As a cardinal he looks just like any other male cardinal - bright red and... bird-y? Except for those characteristics of shapeshifters that I said before.

PERSONALITY: Alert, and constantly on guard, he's been hunted all his life, so, naturally, he has developed a strong hatred towards the Kesaay. Is forced to live alone so is rather introverted and not good at socializing.

RANK/TITLE: He's not a part of the Kesaay.

BACKGROUND: See personality

submitted by The Riddler
(July 29, 2016 - 9:23 am)

~Wonder

I couldn't bear it.  

Thoughtful was my daughter, my only child.  Even if she wasn't part of the kesaay, she could stay with me till this whole thing blew over.  

I glanced down at the others, a summer moon casting a glow across the room.  Greatness was out on duty, if I could get past him...

I crept off my ledge, slowly descending down to the floor. A loud thud resounded.  I froze, cursing silently.  

Forest stirred but didn't wake.  I let out my breath and plodded across the floor, gently.  I scarcely made it out of the room before calypso screeched, his arms and legs flailing like he was running.  His ears lay flat against his skull,  after a moment he began shaking uncontrollably.  

"I'm sorry....please, spare them! take me instead.......

Forest!.........

No. No. No"

he broke into unquenching sobs, as if someone had plunged a spear into his chest.

After a moment he whimpered and then was silent.  Again sleeping peacefully.

 

I waited for a minute then glanced back at my fellow elders.  Making me wish I didn't have to keep so many secrets.  

Secrets like thoughtful.  

 

 

submitted by Windswift
(July 29, 2016 - 8:27 pm)
TOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!!!!! TOP RIGHT NOW!!!! TOP!TOP!TOP!TOP!ROP!TOP!TOP!TOP! 
submitted by TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!, age Top100%, Topland
(July 29, 2016 - 9:16 pm)

~Sage thrush

I stared down at my empty bark paper, bored as always.  Caudalia was droning on about brewing and dabbing techniques.  And then in to a lecture of vitamin defficiantsy.  She was only a substitute,  noy even a kesaay.  But even fauna looked ready to leave.   I glanced back down at my parchment. I moaned softly and started doodling.  More then tempted to slam my head into my desk.  Maybe then she'd have something to practice her  "dabbing techniques" on.  

Finally the morning bell rang.  Everyone rushed out the door before caudalia could say another word.  I immediately flew to the library, as I always did after classes.

The library was a treehouse just like all the other classrooms and meeting places.  All of them were connected by rope bridges that wouldn't waver or lean, no matter who or what was on them.  

I landed on the porch where a number of perches and cushions had been laid out.  There were a few others there mostly from the higher ranks.  I went inside, and as usual I went to the history section. No one knew anything of the kesaay's past except the elders had started it many millenia ago.  But that wasn't enough, what of before?

I sighed, none of the books I had gone through so far said anything, except in so and so, so and so was elected leader of all wolves or something.  I brushed a wingtip across the parch cloth, silently reading the titles.  The sixth war, Owl Clan History, Alpha- The Wondrous History of Wolf Clan, The Great Flood...

I sighed, none of these were any good.  It was the sama as yesterday.  I pulled out "Alpha-the history of all wolves."And turned to the middle.  

It was blank.

That was weird.  I flipped through the pages, but all of them were empty.  I was just about to put it back when I noticed a small bit of writing in the corner of the first page.  I squinted, the writing was deep red as if it had been written in blood.  

" TeFaRrU  hAS reTuRnED."

Everything went black. 

submitted by Windswift/Sagethrush, age START!, WE ARE STARTING!!!!!
(July 30, 2016 - 8:22 am)

Top! Top! Top! Top! Top! Top! Top!

submitted by Windswift
(July 30, 2016 - 5:25 pm)

Actually, I'm  changing the cardinal to a falcon.

submitted by The Riddler
(July 30, 2016 - 3:43 pm)

Is anyone here?  :-\ 

submitted by Windswift
(July 30, 2016 - 8:50 pm)