City of IF

[Needles]

ENTER NEEDLES

In the lush green Fantasy Forest, animals of all types scuttle through the trees. Squirrels, Rabbits and Mice all hurry to their individual hovels, burrows and whatnot. A nearby squirrel is digging in the ground when a sudden breeze picks up. The gray squirrel looks up and blinks its beady little eyes.

"Chirrup?" said the squirrel, puzzled as to why this breeze appeared so suddenly. The squirrel looks up into the sky to see the clouds starting to thicken and grow both in size and shades. After five seconds, the clouds of water vapor had turned into a deep gray, almost matching the fur of the squirrel.

Deciding it was going to rain, the small marsupial dug the hole quickly and dropped an acorn into it. The acorn was at its feet. Just as it filled the hole, it looked up to see the clouds spinning, causing a whirlpool effect.

"Chirk!" it chirruped in shock. As quick as a flash it sped to a nearby tree and climbed up to a low hanging branch. It watched in animistic wonder as the clouds shifted from gray to a deep blue, then to a light purplish pink. Finally, the clouds went from a whirlpool effect to a spinning funnel.

The forest shook as the end of the funnel collided with the foliage covered ground. The funnel shifted to a golden color mixed in with bronze and silver. Finally, sunlight broke through the clouds and the funnel began to dissipate, leaving a figure standing in a small crater.

He was a teenager who appeared to be nearing 17. He had pale white skin with dark brown hair down to his shoulders, blue eyes that sparkled behind rectangular black glasses and possessed pointed ears. He wore a blue t-shirt under a black leather jacket, black jeans and leather pointed shoes. Around his neck was a gold chain with a silver four-point star at the end. In his hand was a lined notebook. In his other, a gold pen with a blue diamond where the clicker should be.

He smiled, showing slightly yellow teeth and looked around.

"Hmm, so this is IF huh? Or at least the forest..." he muttered, tapping the blue diamond clicker against his lip. His bright blue eyes flitted to the tree and caught the squirrel in its gaze. The squirrel froze, as if some force was holding it. He walked up and lifted it off the branch gently. The notebook floated curiously in front of the teenager, and he wrote upon it as if he was writing down a grocery list.

While he wrote the diamond on the pen glowed purple, despite the fact it was gold.

When he was finished, he clicked the clicker and the squirrel was surrounded in a golden glow. In a small amount of time the beast had grown to double its original size and was gifted with a blue swirly pattern on its back.

"Go to the Mayor and tell him: Needles has arrived, and he needs a place to stay" he ordered. The squirrel nodded and jumped off the boys palm, running North-East where the spires of a castle can distantly be seen over the tree tops.

[Andolyn]

((very interesting intro, my friend! i am intrigued.))

Andolyn watched the newcomer from the branch of the tree where she reclined, writing in a leather bound book of her own. she had been startled by the sudden change in weather, but such things were not unknown in If, so she waited.

the Empress held an ageless face with eyes deep and riddled with the memory of dynasties long past. her skin, pale, almost to the point of having a blue hue, shone faintly as the sunlight trickled through the trees above her. her golden hair was cropped short in a light pixie style accenting her pointed ears.

she stopped writing and spun her pencil between long, slender fingers. her curiosity had piqued at the strange treatment of the squirrel who had been singing below her. though her kingdom was centered in a sapphire city on an island in the sea, the Elven Empress had a defined love of wildlife on sea and shore. the animal did not appear to be in pain or danger, so Andolyn continued to watch silently from her place in the tree. she knew that if this newcomer were as intuitive as she guessed him to be, he would be aware of her presence sooner or later...

for now, she would watch and wait.

[PopeAlessandrosXVIII]

The demon beast ducks as a strange looking animal jumps over his reclined body. Lifting his head back up, he smells the air and confirms that it is a squirrel, but the scent of magic hangs thick upon it. Shaking his large shaggy wolf head, he turns to look from the direction it had come. The strange weather and the creature piques his curiosity. The beast comes to his feet. Resembling a black wolf, he stands a foot taller then any of such breed, giving away the fact that he is no regular canine.

Wandering forward, he picks up the scent of the newcomer, and the elven maiden. As he walks a slow change comes over him. Limbs lengthen, and fur shortens. Hair replaces the fur upon his head, and soon stands a man where beast once stood. The only traces of his alter form is a long black shaggy tail and pointed wolf ears atop his head rather then human ones. Stretching slightly, he plunges a hand into a nearby bush and pulls out a pair of leather pans and an ankle length black coat. Pulling on the clothing, he leaves the jacket open as he approaches the source of the new smells. Spotting the young man, he walks forward sporting a toothy smile, revealing slightly longer then normal canines. Stopping beside a nearby tree, he waves a greeting at the boy and waits for a response.

[Thunderbird]

High at the top of a towering spire in the heart of the city, an exhausted squirrel, winded from the long climb, delivers a breathless message to a sparking raven with red and yellow feathers interspersed throughout its ebony down, surrounded in smoke, fire burning in its opulent eyes.

The great bird nods and states, in squirrel-speak, "Tell him that he may do as all before him have done whom have come to our fair city - BUILD!!! Forge for himself a legacy of his own and we shall watch with interest, prepared to support him in his efforts."

The squirrel sighs and huffs, looking back down at the treacherous journey it must now make to return to the world below the clouds. He turns to go but is held up suddenly, "Oh," the Thunderbird waves a casual feather. "One more thing," he reminds the squirrel, "Let him know that homes are for sale in the City center and we look forward to him taking residence as he pleases."

The squirrel nods, further catching his breath before the bird gets a wry look in his eye and asks, "Do you need a ride down?"

"Chirrup!!!" the squirrel gleefully nods.

[Vikas Muralidharan]

Vikas stared...

He had no clue what was going on, except for the fact that IF had a new citizen. From his huge room in The Humor House, he stared at the Mayor talking to some creature. Vikas couldnt make out what the creature was. The noise had forced Vikas to take his mind off "The Parody Project" that he had hoped to get started.

Some distance away, Vikas noticed a girl with the same expression that he had, sitting on a tree branch. He closed his eyes, and with his mind, transported himself to the bottom of the tree, now facing the girl's back.

She hadnt noticed.... or had she?

Either way, Vikas decided that he would wait to see what the newcomer could offer.

This could be fun

[Andolyn]

Andolyn watched the gathering crowd around her. She felt Vikas's presence more than saw, however, and the feel of it made her smile. she was rather fond of him and his twin brother. she waited expectantly for the newcomer to act...or for more of her companions to arrive...whichever came first.

[Vishal Muralidharan]

"uh..what?!" Vishal grumbled as he woke up from his bed. Squinting at the bright light, he woke up and staggered towards his chair, and waited.

There. Now he could see a lot better, and his thoughts were more organized. He was sleeping quite peacefully, until his name woke him up. Someone had just thought about him, and the thought waves reached Vishal's "extra-growth", as the normal people called it. This was actually a thought receptor, which Vishal could use to read what others were thinking. Thoughts don't lie. Normal people wrote it off as a "growth", and Vishal was used to being called a freak, due to his unnatural abilities of mind reading, telekenisis and teleportation.

Lazily, Vishal stretched out a hand, as a cup of coffee rose, and flew right into his hand. Sipping on his coffee, Vishal took a moment to focus on the thought waves going around the city. This reflected on the mood of the whole city, which he would then use to find out how he was "supposed" to behave for the day.

But today, the thought patterns were different. People were happy, as they usually were, but this was due to a different reason. New kid?! Vishal felt the excitement grow within him. This was just what everyone needed. Putting the coffee down, Vishal proceeded to check where the thoughts originated from. Location confirmed Vishal thought, as a smile crept up his face. Putting the coffee down, Vishal teleported, and emerged behind the new comer.

[Tikanni Corazon]

Disturbed from her writings, Tikanni now stood by the huge, open window of her quarters in the Fantasy Guildhall. There was a gathering of presences in the forest below her, she could feel them, and it was very distracting. She sighed, and tossed back a stray lock of long, dark hair irritably, before turning, and walking purposefully towards her dressing room, her long amber-coloured dress sweeping along the marble floor. She entered the room, closed the door, and set about getting changed into clothing suitable for flight.


She exited the chamber a few minutes later, dressed in a deep turquoise tunic, and tight-fitting, navy-blue trousers, which were tucked into long, brown boots, decorated with patterns of silver thread. A thick, brown belt was clasped in one hand, which she quickly wrapped around her waist, and secured with an ornate silver buckle, studded with pearls, before making her way over to another room, and opening the door.


Tikanni looked around proudly at the collection of beautiful weapons (mainly swords) she had aquired, before stepping forward to select a set of silver daggers, with more pearls set into the hilts and the bases of the blades. Clipping the scabbards onto either side of her belt, she sheathed the weapons, and left the room. She made her way over to a large, gold-framed mirror, making a loose plait of her waist-length hair on the way. She secured it with a dark-blue cord, then checked her appearence. For the first time, she turned her eyes to the Gryphon, who lay on the floor by the window, watching her as she moved about the room, it's gaze haughty and disapproving.


"Look, Gwyar," she said, tying one last knot in the cord, before flicking the plait over her shoulder. "Just because I'm travelling, doesn't mean I have to look a mess, does it? I can still make the effort. There are people down there, after all." Finally, she pinned a large silver and blue-diamond hair clip into the base of her plait.


The Guildmistress's words were met with a sigh from the creature, who stood, and wandered over to the window to look out over the forest. She could sense the hubbub below as well, and was eager to check it out, though her dignity prevented her from becoming excitable.


After one last inspection in the looking-glass, Tikanni approached Gwyar, and raised a hand to stroke her pet's neck. She was rewarded with a crooning noise, and a quick nuzzle on her cheek, with the Gryphon's beak. She laughed, before climbing onto Gwyar's back.

"Right, lets go find out what all this fuss is about," she said, ruffling the feather on the back of Gwyar's neck. The Gryphon gave a loud, melodious cry, and took off, heading for the forest, and whatever awaited them there.

[Vikas Muralidharan]

She Knew

Vikas could feel it. He could sense that Andolyn noticed the difference.

"Hey An!" he called out. "You know what's going on"?! Through his mind, a similar message was being delivered to his twin.

Its sometime nice to have weird mind-powers

[Lilith]

It wasn't very long before Tika was greeted in mid-air with a crash landing by a human-sized fairy, who slammed into her rather hard. Hard enough even to send them both off Gwyar's back into the air with screams of fury. "Damn it! Sorry Tika! Someone's bent my wing, and I'll bet my boots it was one of those squirrels again!" She angled herself over to hook an arm around Tika's waist as they both hurtled downwards. The Gryphon, however, managed to catch them both easily, screeching her disapproval at them both, but especially at the fairy with a bent green wing. "Yeah well, your mother!" Lily responded in a huff, settling her body astride Gwyar behind Tika. "What are you doing up here anyway?" She asked the Fantasty Forest Guildmistress, auburn hair going every which way across her pale skin.

[Tikanni Corazon]

Rearranging herself on Gwyar's back, Tikanni smiled at her friend's less than ladylike entrance.

"So nice of you to drop in, Ladybird!" she called back laughing, and brushing a stray tendril of hair back from her face. "In answer to your question, can't you feel it? There is something going on down below, and I'll not be able to write bugger all until I get to the bottom of it."

She pointed at the bent wing, and gave a nod.

"Once we reach the ground, I'll have that sorted in a jiffy." She smiled reassuringly, and turned back to face the direction in which they were headed.


A few moments later, Gwyar began to circle an area, her eye's searching the ground below, before she began to descend. Tikanni spotted a familiar figure sitting on a branch in one of the tree'd below and directed Gwyar there. She hopped onto the branch alongside Andi, pulling Lil with her, before allowing the Gryphon to land herself upon the leaf-littered ground. She reached over to hug the Elven maiden before her, before tugging a jar of glittering dust out of her trouser pocket, and smoothing it over Lil's wings, slowly making the bend disappear until the wing was perfect once again.

"Andi! Good to see you! What the hell is going on down here?"

[Andolyn]

knowing well her favorite twins' abilities, Andolyn sent back her smooth reply telepathically. Morning, boys. She smiled half to herself, but kept her eyes fixed on the newcomer. It had been her experience to only let her guard down once she was sure of a new acquaintance's heart. She could sense that this man was pure, but one could never be too careful.

New guy. She thought to the twins, He just appeared out of a tornado...Land of Oz, much? She giggled at her poor joke.