The Fortress; Iaurdagnire

Iaurdagnire's picture





  • PLAYER / CONTACT 08.03.20

    Jay's passing is still sore, I find myself thinking about him if I'm driving in the rain. He has brought to light that I've not really been living for a while; my hobbies were consumed by work, so I'm making an effort to get those back or at least find new ones.

    One of which is enjoying a certain fantasy deer characters again, at least low key now that I've brought my old pc back from the dead. Maybe Dag will see you in forest sometime?

    He'll be 11 years old on the 21st March (:


    Characters

    Uuo (OOC) False God (special use)
    Kusakage (inactive) Kyte (inactive)
    Sulfur (event demons)

    Contact Info

    Discord: Find me as 'Dag' in The Endless Forest Server, feel free to add me!





"His presence seemed to be the Forest itself, loving and wise and without grudges or harbored shadows." - silentlikethat

        
{ I a u r d a g n i r e THE FORTRESS

Respected - Wise - Humble - Good-humoured - Articulate - Righteous - Authoritative - Dutiful - Fearless - Fatherly
Timeworn - Intelligent - Diplomatic - Limitless - Reliable - Altruistic - Resolute - Gentle - Charismatic - Genuine


"He walks with a gawky elegance, breaking the top of the hill. His hill. Though he hardly guards it with the malice of a dog.
Instead, this is where they gather. To play, to sit...to know that not everyone will belittle them." - Mjrn


Today
     A sight-seeing tour of the forest with his lady love as if everything was brand new.

Calm.
Alive.

Yesterday
    






    Identity }
    Dag's full name is pronounced 'I-or-dag-nyre', and was given the title 'The Fortress' in recognition of the guardianship he gives to and inspires in others. He is a symbol of unyielding strength of will and exhibits an impenetrable, one-pointed focus to rise above any situation. The emblem of victory - the Peregrine Falcon - still remains with him from his first and very old title of 'Wings of Peregrine'.
21st March 2009 | Pictogram
Stomping Grounds | Fireside | Valley View | Dandelion Hill | Sanctuary

    The Fortress }
    Voice - Deep bass; an equal balance of gentility and authoritative power associated with a voice of moral substance and leadership. Feral vocalizations are rare from him, though he is known to produce brontidal rumbles and has an extraordinarily low, growling bellow.
    Scent - His scent is very gustatory - likened to the smoulder of a warm, damp bonfire in the middle of open fields; burnt soil of old forests long gone.
    Build - Based on an old-world ice giant Eucladoceros species; the first species of deer genus to have highly evolved antlers yet is a primitive mass of strong bone and muscle. His body type is a visually solid domination with a dense muscular structure most noticeable around his barrel-chest and shoulders, reinforcing the relatively short, strong neck that bares the weight of a heavy square skull - resembling more bull than deer - and its gargantuan artillery; both of which being the most prominent indication of his skeletal bulk. Being top-heavy, his posture is almost restricted to one position when still. A long body means legs are stationed far apart to accommodate and spread the weight, and his head is always held high in balance giving him a kingly air, which is also reflected in his fluid and powerful gait. At full speed, there is very little that can stop his bulldozer momentum.
    Antlers - Fortress by design. Supernumerary, elongated branched-antlers where the beam has grown outward behind him, tines growing upward; his outer primary tines are the largest and grow into long forward-facing pincers. There are 12 tines per pedical and are split into four sets, all of which together are specifically designed to interlock with any antler type. Central clusters suited to single beam pronged deer, outer and brow tines designed for the larger supernumerary or palmated antlers such as Irish Elk. They are incredibly thick, astonishingly heavy, and an impenetrable defense that cannot be breached.
    Visual - His coat is made up of dense, varying shades of grey that give him an overall arsenic colouration, but his mane and face are the most striking; dirty white for the most part with a carnelian-red pattern draped around the contours of his beady-eyed, frill-cheeked face. The white of his mane continues only half-way under his stomach, and ends in a point with a very thin separating line of charcoal.
There is also an enormous patch-scar that tears through the left side of his neck which is coupled with the nick in his ear on the same side. This was given to him by the Spring Wolf in 2010*.
    Conqueror - Being the placid giant he is, Dag never lowers his antlers without reason; rarely has his combat been seen within the peaceful confines of the forest. However, heed the warning of his scar. Events leading up to his present existence shed further light on this war-hardened battler. There is something prehistoric and almost predatory about his combat - the misfortune of colliding with such a monolith is simply an all-sensory deluge.

    Antediluvian }
     Iaurdagnire's story has become that of Endless Forest legend, starting in 2009 and ending in 2013. His story involves the Forest, the Gods, and the spiritual embodiment of the Seasons whom he served with perpetual lives as a God-given duty. Dag wanted to escape, and continually fought for a life and death that was his to dictate; to cease to be a higher power's fuel for intellectual evolution. But in learning about his place in the world and a way to put an end to his duties, he became even more lost. Ultimately, Dag's story is an exploration of purpose and morality in all forms, and almost entirely community driven. The community has been involved in each section in some way, and these are referred to as "Season Events" by those who have participated; the events were designed for everyone to enjoy, regardless of the story.
Winter '09
Crackéd Smile
"I am here as a friend."
Autumn '09
I: Collapse the Light
II: Numb the Infection
III: I'd choose right now
Spring '10
I: Brontide
II: Thunderclap*
III: Colossus
IV: Oblivion
Summer '10
I: Fissure
II: Ignite
III: Mountain Masquerade
Autumn '10
I: Duty
II: Ender
III: Nothing Gold can Stay
Winter '11
I: Splinter
II: Restrain
Spring '11
I: Hesitance
II: Acrid Lullaby
III: Amalgamate | †
IV: Play the Hand
you are Dealt | †

Catalyst '11
Incubus | Reprise
I: Jack to the King
II: Overthrow
III: Start Your Descent
War Drum '12
I: Long Live the King
II: Dandelion Hill
III: Warrior Hysteria
IV: Wasteland Soldier
V: Your Supremacy
Elysium '13
The Fortress and The Raven | Epilogue
 
 
 

Background art by J!n

    Core }
    Ravenflight - The Queen His love and greatest treasure; indescribably bound to her like no other. Their history had long ran parallel, and although their paths crossed only rarely in bygone years, they were connected by a deep empathy for their respective trials and desire for freedom. Behind closed doors they each played a part in helping each other fulfill a purpose in order to escape, and then found themselves lost without it. When Dag returned to the forest, Ravenflight tried to help him re-adjust through her understanding of what it is like to feel truly detached from the world around you. As they spent more time together, Dag increasingly began to dote on her and fell very deeply in love. Captivated by her in every way. Ravenflight has given him a new purpose, and Dag is utterly devoted to her continued happiness. Adores and is enchanted by everything she is.
    Cry - The Ace Guardian; a source of security; life indebted to. Dag has known Cry for a long time, and upon his return was healed by him (see 'War Drum' Act V). Displays an affectionate "big brother" attitude towards the small white stag when around him.
    Ephiré - The Jack An unspoken natural affinity; indebted to. The two giants have much in common with the way they cope with the world around them, and it is this understanding that lead Ephiré to become the catalyst in Dag's journey (see 'Catalyst' story arc Act I-III). Has a profound trust in him and admires him greatly. He is also the only deer within the forest to have witnessed the full brunt of Dag's combat.
    Virgil/The Red - Part of the Fortress' strong foundations. One of his oldest friends of a different world to his own, wild and unrestricted. At the time of his trials, Dag thought of Virgil's existence as "real", moreso than his own and one he wanted to achieve. Events between then and now strongly effected Dag, but their friendship remains strong and has been rebuilt. [to be re-written]





  • Bonus Material

    Autumn '09 Act III: I'd choose right now, was the first song 'read along' blog to appear on TEFC (to my knowledge!).
    War Drum '12 Act V: Your Supremacy was my most successful community-wide event, where 68 TEF players participated.


    Antediluvian - There are two reasons why I chose to use this word for Dag and his story. The first is that it was originally a biblical word meaning the time between the creation of earth and the great flood/deluge myth; a narrative in which a great flood is sent by a deity to destroy in an act of divine retribution (the Spring Wolf). A parallel of this is a metaphor of rebirth, which was the premise of Dag's rebellion against his original purpose. Secondly, the modern meaning for this word is simply to be old fashioned/ancient in the most possible way (as if they lived before the great flood).

    Playing card references - A great metaphor for life in general, where one must simply play the hand they are dealt, good or bad. One of my favourite card games is Whist, where the object of the game is to simply score the most "tricks" by having the highest card in the suit that is being played. Therefore the cards you would like to see in your hand are the highest: Ace, King, Queen and Jack. The Jack is a good card to have, because it will generally weed out the other players higher cards in their desire to win the hand, so it is more common for you to lose that round but win others as you have exhausted the other players good cards. The Jack was the role of Ephiré, in Jack to the King. He killed Dag - referenced as the King - and although the hand appeared to be lost, the game was not over. The card that trumped Velocity's hand was the Ace, Cry, in Your Supremacy.

    As a character, Dag was originally inspired by naturally powerful characters like Mufasa from The Lion King and Riki from Ginga Nagareboshi Gin - characters the hero-type protagonists typically look up to for guidance and leadership.



 
 
 
 
 
 
parrotsnpineapple's picture

The world isn’t natural in

The world isn’t natural in this place. The atmosphere is dark, brooding, rolling. The sand is not pale under their hooves; it is bruised and dark with the violent rolling of the bloody-violet clouds. Dark greens, blacks and reds feeding through in veins and illuminate occasionally with false lighting. The ocean swirls and roars aside the shoreline with vengeance. It swells high and violently, almost beginning to form a curling wall. The waves are as dark and bruised as the sand. It could snap and lash out at the shore at any moment, but it stays. Rolling. Threatening to snap out and engulf the world.

They walk together, The Fortress and the Raven, along the dark sands. They both empathise. Both pawns in bigger games, only to able move forward once and never allowed to take steps back. They revel in the silence, needing no reason to speak. The brooding tempest was growing taller, as it threatened to swallow them whole; all it needed was a trigger.

And then a crack could be heard similar to a trees. The Fortress would halt, and look to the water. In the watery wall he could see them. A great oak would burn and fall, as it crushed others beneath it. The tops of the old church and ruins began to crumble to dust and the crying mother ceased to cry as the pond dried up. Their bodies were there too. Wudiin. Ravenflight. The forest dried and began to ignite; flames licking the trees and others hungrily. There was nowhere to go.

When I sat beside you I felt a tempest swirling.
When I slept beside you I felt an inferno dance with it.


The fortress turns to the Raven, but there is something different about her. Her eyes no longer glowed and her expression no longer welcoming. She began to walk towards the ocean, edging him closer and closer to the watery wall.
They are standing right against it now. Behind him is a large tempest, a watery wall. Behind it a world he knew was burning alive, but he could never be certain if the water played tricks.

And then she lowered her head, her two small prongs no match against his branching antlers. But he would not fight back. It was a danger unseen.

“All it needs is a trigger.”

She lunged at him with a ferocity unknown, her two prongs digging shallowly into his side, as they both broke through the curtain. The waves fractured and threw themselves at the coastline. In the watery depths a fortress was sinking, the weight of the world curled in his antlers. He could not swim upward.

She floated there, above him. Her fur no longer blue. Her feathers no longer green. She was sickly, gaunt. Eyes turned to whites and pieces of flesh began to peel from her bones. She would watch him sink.
Iaurdagnire's picture

Woah... that was so

Woah... that was so haunting... I love the imagery. "She would watch him sink." Ahh that's a brilliant final sentence.
"ITS NOT VERY GOOD but it was fun"
stfu it was awesome >8C
Freyja's picture

Is it okay to make one of

Is it okay to make one of these if the character has never met Dag before o:?
Iaurdagnire's picture

Yes it is okay - it's not

Yes it is okay - it's not limited to anyone, it's an open thing (: I'm happy you're interested in writing one!
thelittleraven's picture

Gah I don't think I have time

Gah I don't think I have time to do a comic. Just a heads up that I'm writing instead. (:
Seed's picture

I'm trying to come up with a

I'm trying to come up with a good nightmare, but I feel wierd writing for Dag... I dislike writing others' characters; any tips?

I'm working on it all the same, maybe I'll have better luck tommorow.
Kaoori's picture

these don't need to be long,

these don't need to be long, do they?

I have one in mind but it'll probably be a short story, just because of the situation. ;_;
Iaurdagnire's picture

Ryff - Can't wait c: Seed -

Ryff - Can't wait c:
Seed - Hm, I can't think of any tips to give you. I don't think I've ever written anything for anyone else's character either... I guess the advantage of making a nightmare is that you don't have to concern yourself with being accurate in terms of character - it's a nightmare, anything goes and there's no wrong way to do it! (:
Kaoori - No they don't at all (: I was expecting short ones, in truth -stares at ocean- XD ♥
Seed's picture

All Seed could do was listen

All Seed could do was listen to the screaming. It crowded his nostrils and his ears like smoke. The screaming sounded like the thundercracking of branches. Like the sloughing off of blackened bark, exposing the weak, white underflesh. Like the hiss of a shower of sparks as the pieces hit the backening, livid orange-lit earth.

Only Seed could hear this screaming, the last screaming in the world. The rest of them had run now, the deer. The real deer had run away to real places. Some had begged him to go, but more had lept around him in a tide -- even the tide had fled this place. Now it was only him and Iaurdagnire. The great deer, the great friend, stamped his hoof.

"Why won't you go? Don't you care for life? Please!"

Seed had never seen a wolf while awake, but he knew it, reflected in his friend's eyes. He saw it, the beast behind him, the great flame rending the forest to shreds with his teeth. Seed trembled.

"I can't go. I cannot. They were real -- they can go to real places. I'm just the poor dream of the forest... And it's time to wake up."

In the end, his roots had him shackled to the ground. He nudged his friend with his nose. The monster was behind him now, that black breath on his neck and in his throat. He could feel the heat crackling through his skin and singing his fur.

"But --"

"Go. I want you to live. Go be in real places."

That was how he explained it. Dag's eyes widened, showing more and more of the lurid light that was behind Seed, looming over him, the slavering jaws open, showering sparks and smoke like slobber.... The great stag bolted, just as Seed was bolted to the Forest beneath him.

"Real things can only be with real things.... So it's foolish. Please, don't worry about me. Just knowing you, seeing you one last time... was... such.... an honor."

He called after, weakly. As he tried, always tried, to pull a smile for his friend, his dried lips began to crack and bleed. His scorched skin began to shatter and shred.

"I wonder... What..."

He never finished the sentence, if he even knew what it was. Iaurdagnire turned one last time to see a tree covered in flowers in the wolf's jaws, shattering in a single bite. All Dag could do was listen to the snapping.



-----

I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be Dag's nightmare or just Dag seeing a nightmare from within his own, and went with the latter... Though if it's not at all useful, I can always try to write something a little bit less grounded in Seed (or any character's) issues and state of mind. I just think good nightmares need to come from inside, and so do the lousy ones like this one.

Come to that, I've been planning on a story involving Seed in a land of dreams, so we may just have a bit of crossover...

Ever had the feeling you've

Ever had the feeling you've been here before,
Drinking down the poison the way you've been taught?
Ever thought from here on in your life begins,
And all you knew was wrong?


Night was a symbol of beauty, of respite - the forest glowed under the moon's light, and its residents slept under its promise of safety; and yet, it was also a symbol of nightmares and death - the reverberating screams of the chosen victims wound their way through, the only sound in the following silence being the faint shuffle of something being dragged, further and further into the unending darkness.

Things stalked in the night, black silhouettes dancing in the dull light of the moon; eerie songs and the all too familiar echo of dragging feet vibrated in the giant's ears. His ears twitched, and he could feel a faintly familiar chill as it crept its way up his spine, before colliding with the base of his neck. He shook his head in response, and somewhere deep within him his stomach curled, and his heart raced.

Was he awake? Was he asleep? He couldn't tell; his eyes were wide open, images flickering towards and away from his vision. Still, his mind felt clouded and sedated; the images seem to blur and unblur as he attempted to form and keep a conscious. He thought he could hear the snapping of jaws, and the gruff hushes of growls, lullabies of predators that chained a prey's feet to the very ground they stood on. Even he, iron willed Iaurdagnire, found it impossible to move; the only thing he could feel, and hear his body do in reply, was the near choking sensation of a hard swallow, the distinct slurping noise the only thing answering the not so foreign noises.

"Dag?"

Instinctively, he swiveled around gracefully, his tines jetting outwards; they nearly collided with the familiar desert brown shape that was Lacie. The shape shifter jerked her head backwards, a sharp bark snapping him from his defensive stance. Her eyes were like saucers - she was a frightened wild animal, though her stance indicated her resolve to fight should it occur.

He tried to open his mouth to speak, and yet oddly found himself unable to. The Thylacine tilted her head in confusion as her eyes dilated back to their calm gaze. She nodded, once, approaching his then calmed form; her head, neck, and shoulders just barely brushed against his chest, and he felt himself completely relax at her touch.

"Tonight sure is cold, hn?" She asked. Again, his voice failed him; he nodded in reply instead. Moving to his side, she laid down, scratching the ground with her paw, gesturing him to join her. He did so.

"I hope you don't mind if I use you a pillow or blanket, heh." He attempted a friendly chuckle, yet his head jerked to the side as the attempt nearly choked him. The shape shifter either noticed it, and ignored it, or didn't notice it at all; she made no move to comfort or ask him anything. Instead, he turned to find her fast asleep beside him, though his ears caught her voice, scratchy and quiet from tiredness.

"Don't worry about the boogey men, silly. You're safe with me." Her tone was playful, yet sincere, and no sooner did his chin tap the ground did his eyes seal closed, his deep breathing shaking his entire frame.

What he couldn't see through his tired eyelids shortly before he succumbed was a sly smile spreading across her face. What his breathing drowned out was her voice, sickly sweet like honey laid out a tick too long.

"For now at least."

As his eyes forced themselves open, he noticed that the forest was still dark. Fog skirted around him, and he was momentarily spooked by the brisk chortles of an owl nearby. Turning his head slightly, he noticed that his companion was still beside him, her stripes nearly invisible against her fur with the way the light hit her body.

"Morning, Dag."

Morning? It was still night to him. He also noticed that her voice seemed thicker and sweeter than the usual. Puzzled, he lifted his head up to look at her.

And the chill that coursed through him made his entire body quake.

It was her body. Her brown fur, her stripes, her everything; save for her face. Instead of the boxy Thylacine head that differentiated her from any other predator, there was the skull of a wolf. Deep black sockets glowered down at him, yet he could feel the sense of victory and glee that lay hidden in their depths. He attempted to move, but the fear had paralyzed his entire body. His mind screamed, but his body remained still. A deep chuckle rumbled from her throat, approving of his terror.

"Iauardagnire, Iaurdagnire, did you sleep well?"

He tried to scream, to bellow, to rise and run. But as the wolf face inched closer, the breath that escaped her nose and mouth passed between them chilling his face, keeping him frozen to his spot.

"For now you shall come with me to the depths of Hell."

The last he would see was her mouth opening wide, near symmetrical to her entire face, much like that of the Thylacine he remembered. The last he would feel was the near numb sensation of her teeth raking across his throat.

The last he would hear was the sickening squishing of her jaws ripping his throat wide open.

Did you see the redness block your path?
Did the scissors cut a way to your heart?
Did you feel the end before the sons of mothers tearing you apart?
Arriving somewhere but not here...



----


....Goddammit, this sucks. I'll be trying hard not to delete this.
Fincayra's picture

"Iaurdagnire!" A shudder ran

"Iaurdagnire!"

A shudder ran through the core of trees adolescent and ancient alike as the thunderous voice resounded through woodland, reaching the ears of the Scar-Giant as he grazed in a patch of sunlight, oblivious to the happenings around him. The violent shift in nature - the altered course of the wind, the haunted silence of the birds and other fauna, the bent backs of flowers and roots as they recoiled into themselves - did not appear to concern the Eucladoceros, even when the voice shattered the peace of his noon-day meal. He was apathetic, unconcerned. Perhaps a touch annoyed by the interruption.


Thick boughs, pale and dark, snapped with little effort, were hurtled feet away from the trees from which they came. The silent giants shuddered, bowed their heads as the howl of the wind lashed viciously at what it could. The giant watched this phenomenon occur with the same air of nonchalance. As if it could sense this, the wind hit a higher pitch, swept toward him with the force of a tidal wave. Iaurdagnire staggered against its impact, then finally turned his eyes to the clearing to seek its source.


From the wreckage of underbrush and mutilated trees, surrounded by a flurry of autumn leaves and the wrath of the wind, The Monarch advanced, head low, unseen eyes locked onto his friend. Fresh blood coated his front, gore clung to the matted mane, dyed scarlet from what had appeared to be a frightening massacre. Hackles were lifted high, uncharacteristic of a bull elk. His stiff, hasty movement as he stormed toward Iaurdagnire betrayed the murderous intent behind his visit. As he neared, the trinket dangling from his antlers - an earth key - swung into sight with the rhythm of his walk. The two forest green orbs dangling on either side of the key, secured by small silver wires, were aglow with a green, voluminous light that was the source of the unexplained tempest storm of wind and nature.


"Iaurdagnire!" Esll roared, halting before the giant. A closer look revealed heavy tear tracks cutting through the crimson stains, leading back to empty eye sockets. "Iaurdagnire. Take responsibility for your demon before it ravages our home!" As if to back up his plea, a distant crash shuddered the earth and a plume of smoke lifted from the treetops.


Iuardagnire followed the dark trail with weary eyes. At length, he sighed. "I can't do much more than you have done to stop him. It is hopeless. He will not hear me any longer. I'm sorry I brought you all to this doom."


The butterfly stag snapped. "You selfish, weak-minded son of a bastard! You would not say such things if you knew what it has done to me!" Sharpened fangs of his mask buried themselves in the tough scar of Iuardagnire's shoulder, yanked him forward while a furious wind shoved at the giant's backside. "You will see for yourself what your abandonment has done!"


After a brief tussle with the larger bull, Esll wrestled him into submission and half-dragged him back the way he had come, grunts of exertion and rage emanating from the hollow skull. After a few moments he was assured Iaurdagnire would follow, and released his bleeding skin to jog ahead. The Scar-Giant picked up his own hooves to match the other's pace, sympathy for the poor soul welling in his breast. The two wove through charred trees; ash rose up in a light flurry around their pounding hooves. Smoke and sulphur suffocated them, strangled their lungs. Ahead, The Monarch's shoulders began to shudder and a strangled cry bubbled from his lips. Iaurdagnire frowned, looked ahead. It was then that he saw it.


He shouldn't have been surprised. It was only a corpse; there were plenty lying around, slain by rampaging Spring. But this corpse stopped him in his tracks. Jade eyes, cat-like and alluring, had clouded over but stared sightlessly, accusingly up at him. Ash coated the inside of her mouth and a bloodied tongue hung limply past parted jaws with missing teeth. The silver doe's limbs were twisted, thrown about in abnormal directions - one leg was partially gone, burned off by wild flames; the lower portion was nothing but charred bones. But perhaps the most appalling and grotesque aspect of the body was the massive hole blown into her belly. Black organs lay in a heap beside the shredded skin and blood that oozed out to water the ground. In the mess of gore, a few feet away from the hole, was a small, bloodied forelimb and the tiny, severed head of a newborn fawn.


The Monarch had fallen to his knees beside the carcass in a fit of agony. His head swung back and he wailed; the cry was met moments later with the distant, beastly roar of Spring. Then, as if the Sea Wolf's reply called him back to attention, he turned to fix the stunned Iaurdagnire with tear-filled, maniacal eyes. "Traitor! Murderer! You will pay for this sin, Iaurdagnire!"


The key shone with the same light. Thick roots sprang up from the ruined ground, wove their bodies around the giant's ankles so tight the circulation was cut off. Iaurdagnire stiffened in surprise, tugged at his bonds. He looked to the other stag. "I'm sorry.. this has.. ha-"


"Silence! She didn't deserve this! How could you!?" Esll lowered his antlers and scooped the remains up in his tines. Shredded intestines hung from his tines like strands of Christmas garlands. He approached Iaurdagnire with a demonic gleam in his dark eyes, and placed the body on his great shoulders. The giant winced and swallowed back the bile in his throat at the wet, sticky sensation that spilled all over his hide with the addition of the weight. More roots rose from the ground to arrest him. These coiled around his stomach and back, roping the doe's body on top of him. The Monarch returned a moment later with his unborn son or daughter's head and limb - they were placed securely by its mother's head and kissed farewell.


"What are-"


"You will go with her to the Otherworld. There, she will haunt you till you beg for your eyes to be dished out from their sockets and your ears torn from your head."

"Esll, this is madness!"

"YOU are the fool here! You let this happen! You lost control of the seasons. Look what it's cost you! YOUR LIFE!"

The petrifying howl of a thousand wolves but of one voice ended the sentence of the raving dark stag, followed by the thuds and quakes of an approaching monster. Esll smiled - an insane, berserk sort of smile. A scorched tree nearby erupted in tongues of flame, devouring the corpse until it joined its ashy brethren on the ground. Churning lava cascaded down the trunk of another tree, reduced that one to nothing. And in the clearing stood Spring, cords of fiery saliva dripping from grinning jaws. Blazing eyes flickered with triumph as he stared down at Iaurdagnire from his great height.


"Esll.. At least give me the chance to defend myself."

"Did she get a chance?" The dark stag cackled, then screamed, "DIE, YOU COWARD!"


The wolf sprung, consumed The Monarch in a tumult of dagger fangs and hissing magma. Then Spring turned his sights to the Keeper of Seasons, and swallowed him and the corpse down a burning throat. Iaurdagnire's scream was silenced in a heartbeat.


- - -

Here you go. :j
Hraeth's picture

Quote:"Esll, this is

Quote:
"Esll, this is madness!"



LOOK, I MADE A NIGHTMARE. 8DDD

/run
Freyja's picture

It wasn't Springtime. The







It wasn't Springtime.

The temperature was at a midpoint, horribly balanced inbetween comfort and discomfort. No warmth, but no cool. A collision of reaction and feeling, all mixed up, ending with no answer. One would not feel tired, but neither energised. A horrible meeting point in time.

It seemed an empty day too. There were no faces here. The pond was shallow, but the sky looked ready to snow; like a bad memory of the land, it was wrong. There was nothing The Fortress could do nothing but sit, and wait. For a long dwindiling hour of plain, violent nothing. A disruptive chaos that would pass, but would harm; would not differ towards anyone. It was all nothing.

"The stars!"

A lark's voice reached his ears. The soft tread of feet through grass, at an odd juddering pace; too fast would make oneself too hot very quickly, but too slow and they'd become cold. No change was allowed.

Then a pause, before some form nearby came close. But...

"Don't you want to say hello, stranger?"

"...I....would. But my eyes-,"

There was nothing. It wasn't blindness, and the stag could still feel them in their sockets. The world was grey.

"Why, they're full of smoke! And stars! And flowers and leaves, and dragon's wings; you'd call me jealous, good sir, if you had much of a voice today, hmm?"

He stood up, bewildered by such an answer. He did not think to ask again, for there was probably little this- now obviously female, via her voice - doe could do anyway. He knew where to go, and where she was, and sometimes even what he was looking at. But Iaurdagnire could see nothing the whole time.

"Do let's go to the pond, then. We can catch some falling ones; I think you shall enjoy it, good stag."

"What exacly are we catching?"

"Can't you see them? I've been waiting so long for this; I hope you do like it. It should be beautiful!"

When they reached the shallows, he dipped his head to the water, first for a curious drink of the very average water, then for a complete dunk of his head. The Fortress lifted his head and found the forest before his eyes, but not as he'd thought. He could make her out now; small, short-horned and gingery brown, tossing up splashes of the tide with her hooves. And all around the pond, blindingly bright objects of different pastel colours.

For a moment it was normal, but like the water dripping down his neck, it began to run like watercolours in a painting. Leaking from ferns; the green from the reeds dripped down into the world. The sky was grey, and the ground reaching up to grab what was left of its blue before it too ran away. It was not disappearing; just running, like a child's picture, turning everything blurred and strongly outlined. Too bright. Not normal.

"It's time!"

"What do you m-" Cut short as the vision before his eyes changed, he choked in shock, reeling out of the water. Flashes of dark blacks and bleeding reds came before him, revealed suddenly and more frequently. There was a pause inbetween every flash, but slowly, it was growing longer, until the picture was clear;

gone was the dripping colour, and the dreaming doe. Replaced by figures more sensical than the day itself had been all together, horrifically. He recognized forms coming from between the trees, and he'd recognize a face here and there, before it was gone and moved to another body. His friends, anyone he called family. Anyone he'd met. Any ties. All dripping red, until the world was something painful.

Then one broke to the front. The doe, the starchaser one. She leapt first. And the forest followed.

It was a surge of bodies, bleeding red in agony and anger. A tide of rage, scapegoating Iaurdagnire's fading blue colours, turning into grey as he turned and ran. Up around the pond, towards the oak, and then further. Never pausing to stop and look behind him, to see all his bonds reaching out, baying for his blood. Simply running forever in that nothing of a day.

But it was the Endless Forest. He tired, and slowed. As he dared to, there was a sudden feeling, a burning hot heat at his heels. The sound of the ripping of tendons, the drawing of sharp teeth, the snarls of a feral canine.

"It's time!"

Spring disappeared into a white oblivion, as the forest burst into fire. The stag could not move. He waited to be consumed by the flames, but stood by to watch everything burn. Everything, and everyone.
thelittleraven's picture

GORE WARNING “No!” The doe

GORE WARNING

“No!” The doe shrieked, twisting away from the “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?”

Spring was attacking her, intent on killing her. He was entirely red, as if he had no fur, and he seemed to drip like he was made of blood. His face was a skull now, grinning cruelly at the doe under his paws.

“DAG!” Ryff cried out as the wolf caught her flank and she stumbled over, her side torn by the force of his head shaking. Tears streamed down the tiny doe’s face as she tried to get to her feet and run away, but she could only strike at the air uselessly. “HELP! Please..!”

But Dag was frozen. He could only watch as the wolf continued to attack the orange doe. “NO!” He yelled, but they couldn’t hear.

“DAAG!” She yelled as Spring’s jaws closed on her throat. The doe bleated weakly and kicked at him, her hooves merely sliding through his bloody body. “NO!”

“Why don’t you help her, Iaurdagnire?” the wolf growled, as if he was right next to Dag’s ear. “Why don’t you help her?”

Dag couldn’t move. His vision swam and blurred, turning red and tunneled. He sank to the ground, even though he felt like he was running forward. But he was getting no closer.

Ryff screamed as the wolf ripped her throat out, her shrieks becoming a gutteral, wet sound as blood sprayed from her neck. Quickly, she stopped twitching and simply lay still, laying in a pool of blood.

“You traitor...” Spring spat. “You didn’t even try.”

The blood wolf walked back over to his kill and dug his claws into her shoulder, the flesh melting away and causing the ground around her to burn for a moment. With nothing but bones left, Spring stepped back and let the bones reanimate for a split second and stare at Dag pleadingly, emptily, before they fell back and melted into the ground.

Dag could stand now, but Spring was gone. He raced over to where he had seen the doe die, sinking to the now-black ground. He looked around desperately, as if verifying that it was indeed a dream. To his horror, he saw his friends behind him.

“I can’t beleive you just..” one of them started. Her lip quivered and she walked away, the flesh melting away and then the bone.

“Traitorous scum!” “Worthless!” “Murderer!” They said, and in turn they walked away and evaporated.

“No..please...” Dag murmured at their words. “NO!” He could only watch them all die as he ceased to move. He wanted to run to them, but he was trapped yet again.

As the last of them trailed off and died, the forest erupted into flame around him. “NO!” He yelled, trapped in place. Spring appeared before him, towering over him like a sequoia over the forest floor.

“Why didn’t you save them, Iaurdagnire? You worthless wretch!” Spring leaped over Iaurdagnire and vanished into the flames, but Dag could feel the eyes burning holes in his neck.

“N-AAAAAUUUUGCH!” The bull burst into flame as well and quickly flipped inside out, screaming in agony the whole time. His organs lay scattered around him and exploded, then the rest of his flesh. His bones continued to feel, continued to burn, continued to scream. They slowly melted into the soil, and the screaming was silenced. The world went black.

Spring stared right at Dag, surrounded by black oblivion.

“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.”


---

Bleh it's so bad compared to all the others TwT

This is my nightmare for Dag. Hope he enjoys it. XD
Hart's picture

(My writing's not that good,

(My writing's not that good, but I hope the imagery is okay.)

-

He awoke to a silent forest shrouded in deep mist. Void of birdsong, absence of even the lightest breeze to animate his thick fur.

Not even the distant calls of those he shares the forest with.

Solitude.

Perhaps this was normal though. The giant recalls what lies within the chilling of the seasons. This must surely be some sort of prank the world was pulling towards him. He took comfort in that idea, so warily he made his way to the pond - it was always very alive down there.

But it wasn't, he observed. Around it the willows stood barren, the shores themselves, usually teeming with life had shriveled and died.

The air smelt of somewhere far away. Salt and rot. Deja vu, he had lived through this before, or perhaps dreamed it?

He shyed away from the shores edge and with a deep commanding voice, he bellowed out. "Show yourself!"

It whispered in the wind, a dry and bitter breeze. The water started to shape before the great giant, but there was no set image to come forth and meet him.
Iaurdagnire, Iaurdagnire...

He listened.

Too long you have fooled yourself to believe.
That against me, you could possibly stand triumphant.
Dearest Iaurdagnire, how easily you are mislead.
For you do not hunt me. I hunt you.


And so Iaurdagnire braced himself for what he came to expect, the formidable violence of spring had left him scarred in the past, and it was a horror he believed could overcome.

But nothing happened. The breeze ceased to exist and the giant found himself so very alone once more.

The strike never did come. He was never blatantly attacked by the spirit. And so he waited. No one came, nothing lived, and Iaurdagnire watched himself grow old throughout a fragmented eternity.

And he was alone throughout it all.

Spring knew his strength, and in his nightmares, took it from him.
Iaurdagnire's picture

Just a quick note to say

Just a quick note to say thank you to everyone who has written one after my last comment. I have much reading to catch up on and I'm real excited about going through them! Especially can't wait to get in on your 300 joke, Hrae... 8]

I know there's one or two who still want more time to write one, and it's fine, post whenever you like (:

Edit: I don't know what happened to the comments... but it looks cool staggered like this haha.
Kaoori's picture

mines coming. I've just had

mines coming. I've just had no muse and I'm working on getting it to you. I don't want to miss this! Dag's very important to Kaokao. ;_;
Pegasicorn's picture

I am planning to do

I am planning to do something. I just need to get myself to do it. |D;
Kaoori's picture

(this is gonna be horrible,

(this is gonna be horrible, but I hope you'll like it anyway. ;_; )
----

She was being hunted. That much she knew. The wind had been powerful, foreboding.

..was it the wind hunting her? No. That was silly. But with the wind brought the scent of wolf, and that terrified her. Brought her back to the days outside the forest, where she watched the wolves pick off her herd because of her.

She continued on. She didn't want to spend the day alone; not with this feeling. She'd find a friend, and keep their company until things had calmed down.

Kaoori sniffed the air, searching for the scent of a friend. Over the smell of wolf, she could scent a familiar, comforting one- Iaurdagnire. Prince of the Seasons. She headed that way immediately, convinced she was being followed by an unseen foe.

But he'd help her. He'd always been a strong, stalwart friend. He'd know how to deal with this.

As she reached dandelion hill, she called out to him.

----
Iaurdagnire was sitting on his favorite spot on Dandelion Hill. The spring winds had picked up; things were not usual at all. It was always said spring came in fiercely. The smell of wolf was strong in the air. But he knew better.

"Dag-sama!"

His head turned to the voice, and he saw his little blue shika friend heading toward him, looking rather frazzled. The wind was fierce behind her, almost propelling her toward him. When she reached the top of the hill, and began to bound toward him, she called his name again.

"Dag-sama, it's so good to see you agai--"

A violent gust of wind cut through the air like a knife, a snarling sound echoing as it whirled around.

And Kaoori's head fell clear off her neck, rolling toward him, a smile still cruelly planted on her muzzle as she stared up at him almost accusingly.


----

fff that was so bad, I'm sorry. ;_;
Iaurdagnire's picture

I'm taking the mini-event

I'm taking the mini-event down now, as I need to start working on things this weekend. I've decided not to try and illustrate each nightmare because they're all impossibly good for me to even try |D so Pega and Tera (and anyone else), you can add yours here any time this weekend and I'll simply add it to the blog I will create with them all in.

I'm exhausted from reading them, they're all so good! I'll comment on each of them tomorrow. Part of me thinks I should have made a new community blog for it rather than housing it in Dag's bio, considering how amazing they've all been. You guys are talented, really, and I'm glad I opened up the floor to everyone. I think everyone knows how hard it is to try and write something to essentially go against their character and be cruel to them... which is why I wanted someone else to instead, hehe.

Thank you guys, you've all kick-started something excellent and I hope you all enjoy what is to come (:
Iaurdagnire's picture

I was meant to do this

I was meant to do this yesterday but forgot, so:

Seed - I read it as Dag seeing everything through Seed's eyes in the dream. I like the hopelessness of it, and how he basically sees himself leave Seed (metaphor for himself leaving everyone to die maybe?). I like to think in the last paragraph, Dag's view switches from Seed to himself in the last moment so he escapes the pain like a coward. I liked this (: thank you.

Lung - Ahhh this was awesome because I was expecting something nightmarish right from the start, but you made it kind of normal... and I was like oooo where's this going... bet that's not really Lacie... AHA goodnight Daggles. Excellent you used her Thylacine form too, it could be a projection of how uncomfortable he felt about that form in the past. If you had deleted this I would have been pissed xP You know how much I love your writing!

Fin - Fin. FinFinFin. This was so fucking delicious I really don't know what to say. The imagery is brilliant... and so sad ;; lol I kind of like batshit crazy Esll though 8D and the reference to Dag as Scar-Giant...

Noelle - Let's call your nightmare an... interlude. Rofl XD

Freyja - Now this was interesting! I could imagine every bit of it, the running of colours; lava came to mind. I like your character too and the way she spoke, which is something Dag would be naturally drawn to so it worked really well for me. Thank you for writing it!

Ryff - “You traitor...” Spring spat. “You didn’t even try.”
Ahahaha love this line the most for some reason. And that ending... I hate gruesome things, and trying to imagine him turning inside out was just horrible! You successfully creeped me out = excellent nightmare X'D

Vee - Wooooooooow, what a different way to go about it, I really love this one. Have more confidence in your writing!
"For you do not haunt me. I haunt you."
Spring knew his strength, and in his nightmares, took it from him."

Love it.

Kaoori - D'8 Omg such an abrupt ending, just like a nightmare haha awww my heart sank imagining her being decapitated. Wit h Kaoori everything is good, they always have fun and seeking each other is a natural thing, then for that to happen fffff. I'm glad you wrote one (: don't be sorry, silly!

Well, then be glad that work

Well, then be glad that work had me out for the last few days. Otherwise, it might have been gone, rofl.

I wanted to be cool n slick like that, so I tried to be subtle. Another thing I was trying to get at is the fact that thylacines and wolves are rather similar. They're a prime example of convergent evolution, and I was attempting to make some sort of correlation that way as well. It wasn't until I got home a few minutes after I wrote it that I realized I probably should have added more to drive the point home, but...meh.

YEAH, BUT HOW COULD YOU BE PISSED IF ALL YOU SAW WAS A "-" IN MY POST? HMMM? (8

Sorry about not posting an

Sorry about not posting an entry Dag, it just didn't work out. I've really enjoyed reading the others though, this was a fun mini-event.
Hart's picture

I'm really glad you liked it.

I'm really glad you liked it. <3
Iaurdagnire's picture

Lung - Those "-" posts. I

Lung - Those "-" posts. I WILL DESTROY YOU. /Morbo

Tera - It's okay Tera (: Teradeer counts as a living nightmare, perhaps? Speaking of which, I did see your Teradeer halloween picture but didn't know how to comment. I don't think there's a word that accuratly describes how much that lack of a jaw makes me squirm haha!

Vee - It made a nice interlude in the blog I put them all in (;
Kaoori's picture

nonono I don't want the end

nonono I don't want the end to start. ;_;
Iaurdagnire's picture

Kaoori you're so cute!

NO. YOU CANNOT TAKE MY RIGHT

NO. YOU CANNOT TAKE MY RIGHT TO POST "-" EVERYYYYWHEEEEERRREEEE. /STRUTS

-

-

-

8l
Kaoori's picture

ROFLMAO DAG I DIDN'T REALIZE

ROFLMAO DAG I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT WAS A LINK

Haha I suppose Teradeer is!

Haha I suppose Teradeer is! Thank you for mentioning your reaction to the Halloween picture btw, I appreciate that a lot especially because I know the design makes you uncomfortable lol. Thank you. Smiling
Iaurdagnire's picture

I'M GLAD YOU DID REALISE

I'M GLAD YOU DID REALISE EVENTUALLY KAOORI.
I can imagine a little Kao and butt-fluffed up doing that hehe xD

Lung. I have just one thing to say to you:


-


Tera - Aw, you're welcome. I've been really rubbish commenting on other peoples art these days |c
Seed's picture

@ Dag: Yeah, that sounds

@ Dag: Yeah, that sounds about right. I did try and switch perspective like that, so that we're left basically with Dag... I'm a bigger fan of emotional horror/sadness/whatever to physical, so I was going for something hopeless and lonely and inevitably doomed. Hence why it's on the very low end on the intensity scale.


@ Everyone: Dude, these are so awesome. Also, the end of the story-fied collection of these doesn't quite work right in presentation: there are a bunch of scroll bars that don't scroll at the bottom, and no place for comments or anything. A browser's nightmare, XD?
Iaurdagnire's picture

Haha, yes that is a browser

Haha, yes that is a browser issue. It's basically IE not liking code that every other browser can read. So I did some fixing, it should work now so sorry everyone who uses IE! If a lot of other blogs are broken for you there is a cure guys... firefox (;

Edit: Calling all gif and image spammers - the comment staggering on here is hacking me off, could you be a dear and bump it over to the next page? BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE! Your spam theme is...:
Futurama.

Purely so I can post this for my Futurama LS buddies:
Reyy's picture

what the fuck dag

what the fuck dag hahahahahahahaha ooooooomg
Iaurdagnire's picture

Dealers choice: Professor or

Dealers choice: Professor or Fry.
Pffftahahaha, that was an awesome episode.
Freyja's picture

AM I DOING IT RIGHT





AM I DOING IT RIGHT

ocean's picture

LOL SPAM HI. B| also what is



LOL SPAM HI. B|
also what is that
._.
and why.
WHYYYYY
ocean's picture

HAVE A CLASSIC TOO.




HAVE A CLASSIC TOO.
ocean's picture

(No subject)

Iaurdagnire's picture

Yaaaaay Bender 8C -shuffles

Yaaaaay Bender <3 "Another pointless day where I accomplish nothing" = one of my favourites.

HAHA OCEAN. It's annoying how well it works too. If anyone needs me, I'll be in the angry dome >8C -shuffles off in my slippers-

I'm going to bed now. I trust you all to have luls for me to read tomorrow morning when drinking my tea. ♥
ocean's picture

I KNOW RIGHT. I don't even

I KNOW RIGHT.

I don't even watch Futurama anymore and I STILL READ IT IN HIS VOICE.

ocean's picture

I HAZ CAT.




I HAZ CAT.
ocean's picture

C: TIME TO LET OTHER PEOPLE



C:

TIME TO LET OTHER PEOPLE JOIN IN.
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SOON.
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