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Archive 24 / the-condemned
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Esme Garnier BOT 01-Feb-23 03:25 PM
There used to be a phrase: Normal is boring. Esme had seen it once in a history book depicting the past. The book explained that those who were different used to be mistreated. Bullied. Outcasted. Perhaps the phrase was wrong, then. After all, how could normal be boring if normal kept you safe. That was what her parents would like her to think as well. Life is easier if you blend in. Esme would consider her parents to be the ideal citizens of this utopia they called home. Ever since the time keepers had handled uniformity, children no longer were bullied for being "weird", whatever that meant. No one was weird anymore afterall. Everyone was simply the same. Everyone played the same games, wore the same clothes, and ate the same food. Once Esme had seen that children used to be bullied for eating foreign food, it was in the history books. What a bizarre concept. She scoffed at it at the time, how juvenile would it be to tease someone for the food they ate. She couldn't even imagine such a thing. That was... until she was different. Since her 21st birthday, Esme had found fitting in to be unusually hard. The first problem: she was gifted. The second problem: she couldn't tell anyone that she was gifted. Third problem: she didn't know how to control her gift. Did anyone know how to control their gift? It wasn't like there was some sort of manual. Esme had no other choice to find a way to control this gift before the time keepers found out, after all, if they were to find out all would be for naught. She would end up in jail or worse dead and she certainly wasn't ready for death. She thought living was absolutely average and she didn't think death sounded all that enjoyable. Yet learning to control a gift also made you a fugitive. There was no winning. No escape. No options. Stepping outside, Esme's gaze shifted around. Everyone was readying for work. Another day. Everyone wore the same outfits. Men wore white dress pants and button up shirts, women wore
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white dresses. Most looked bleak, their skin sallow and their hair unshined. Esme had always felt strange, her own skin covered in freckles and her hair the color of a burning flame. She glanced behind her, "I'll be off then. I told Elder Christopher that I would go to the forest today to gather some firewood for the winter. He thinks it ought to be a downright cold one." The forest. Esme had covered up her trips to the forest as charity for Elder Christopher. It wasn't a complete lie, she had asked Elder Christopher if he had any community service for her. He had asked her to gather firewood in the forest. Yet the forest provided the safest place to train. The forest where she could be alone without worry. Charity had never been more enjoyable. Her foot slid back into the dirt as she took a deep breath, her green eyes seeming to glow as she attempted to hone the energy. Esme didn't fully understand her gift yet, but what she did know is that it had the power to speed everything up. Or perhaps, it was slowing everything else down. She wasn't quite sure yet. Pushing off her foot, she ran forwards, trying to propel the energy into her legs. She was...somewhat successful. Somewhat because she had no aim and ran face first into a tree. She crashed to the ground with a thud, gasping for air as she stared up at the crisp autumn sky.
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@Marcus we can start from here then ^^ )
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๐“๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ ๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ: Dystopian tendencies, Potential Violence, Abuse
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Esme Garnier BOT 09-Feb-23 01:08 PM
@Marcus just checking in))
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Callum Harris BOT 12-Feb-23 05:05 AM
Callum was left alone to fend for himself at an age that any reasonable person would deem too early. Yet when your parents are both born gifted, that left you few choices if any. Do you subject your child to keep their gifts a secret or go against what society has determined to be correct and teach them what they'll need to know to control their gifts when they're old enough. Unfortunately, they were taken away from him while he was forced to hide in the closet and hope they wouldn't come back for him. He waited for two hours before deciding to leave and years later, he found himself doing anything he could to survive. Refusing to rely on others more than necessary to maintain an aura of inconspicuousness. Staying with few friends he'd grown up with when possible, leading them under the belief he'd been abandoned. When that wasn't possible, he used charm and sleight of hand to steal only what was needed and no more. Once his powers started to develop, it was like blessing in disguise, even it may have been just as much of a curse. Something that allowed to survive his chaotic circumstances just for a bit longer: telekinesis. Of course it wasn't all powerful or perfect, that would be too convenient. Instead he found himself able to move small objects, large enough to create a distraction, but nothing more. Circumstances that could easily be explained away by the wind or misplacement. Still, he knew he was on borrowed time. He could only get away with his theft on top of being a gifted for so long. It was only a matter of time before he was caught for steal or worse, being gifted. Recognizing his fate, he saw it fit to practice. At first in back alleys moving discarded balls and failed attempted at fallen pipes. After almost being seen by a homeless man, Callum's paranoia got the better of him. He decided he needed somewhere more secluded if he was intent on developing his ability any further. He found himself wandering deep into a forest to get away from any
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potential prying eyes. Using his telekinesis to move the soft dirt on the ground enough to clear away any footprints he might have left behind. As he found himself a comfortable distance away, he noticed a girl, running face first into a tree. Part of him wanted to laugh, but more than anything he knew her movements weren't that of someone "normal". She was like him, a kindred spirit. A gifted. He ran to her side, offering her a hand. "Holy shit, are you okay? That didn't look all too good." @๊’ฐ sunset shae ๊’ฑ เผ‰โ€งโ‚Šหš.
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Esme Garnier BOT 12-Feb-23 11:33 AM
The sky was particularly pretty in autumn. Or at least that was what Esme thought. Her gaze fell up as she wondered whether anyone thought it was strange how she always found a way to return to the forest like this. She liked the forest. Always had. Even before she knew she was gifted. As a child, Esme had always felt different from the others. And it wasn't just because of the red hair that seemed to make her stand out. She was surprised that red hair was even allowed in such a neighborhood. When she was a child the other children used to say that she had been sent to the wrong neighborhood. Said she belonged elsewhere and that she would never truly be the same as them. Comments like that had always gotten the teachers to keep their eyes on her. They told her that her braids weren't tight enough or that her skirt was an inch too short. That she would have to work harder than the others to fit in. She had to, after all. Perhaps that was why she felt safe in the forest. Esme currently worked at the library. It was a job that was nice and peaceful but also had different hours than nearly everyone else. While everyone seemed to work 9-5, she worked 11-7. It meant that she had ample time in the morning to spend doing other things and the thing she did most often was go into the forest for a walk. Of course, she needed an alibi, as anything did in this town. This was her quiet place. Very few travelled out to the forest at these hours. Mainly due to the fact that it was within normal working hours and people were getting on with their days. It was what made it the safest place for her training to take place. Who was going to find her in the middle of a forest? Don't answer that. Not important. Hopefully no one. She paused and forced her body up, blinking several times as she felt a wave of dizziness overwhelm her head. "Ech..." She muttered, stretching her arms over her head. She had two hours to spend in the forest.
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She would dedicate one of those hours to training and the other would be to actually gathering wood for the winter. After all, they claimed that this winter would be worse than normal. She wasn't sure what brought them to say that but she believed them for the most part. If they were going to lie about anything, she highly doubted it would be about the weather. Instead they would much rather lie about something like history. And that she was aware of. After all, all of the librarians had access to the archives and while she hadn't found much down there, she knew there were bits and pieces missing. Pushing herself up, Esme let out a soft grunt as she ignored her head and began to brush the leaves out of her hair, walking back several steps before directing her body in a different direction. Preferably not in the direction of a tree this time. Trees hurt. Note to self: Don't run into trees. Of course, that didn't make it easy when you were surrounded by them. She took a deep breath and slid her foot back into the dirt one more time. "Come on..." She muttered. In. A slow deep breath pushed into her lungs as if she believed it were storing up her power. She didn't know if that was how it worked but it was worth a shot. Her eyes fell closed and she pushed forward on her foot. She propelled forwards off of her foot, forcing the energy into her legs before she opened her eyes and had travelled nearly 20 ft away and was... crashing into some weird boy?! Her body slammed into the boy as if she had appeared from thin air. And... indeed that was what it would have looked like to him. After all, she kind of had. Well. She didn't have the ability to teleport but she certainly had the power to do... that . Whatever that was. She gasped as she fell to the ground with him, her eyes widening as she realized that she indeed was screwed. As she looked at him her green glowing eyes widened in surprise, "WHEN DID YOU GET HERE?!" She exclaimed, her eyes denoting the fact that she cle
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arly hadn't heard him make his introduction (most likely due to the impact from the tree) and was very much dazed. "Wait no... better question...how Did you get here?" @Marcus
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Callum Harris BOT 13-Feb-23 05:01 AM
The girl crashing into him left him slightly disoriented, but still left him bewildered and amazed. More than anything else, for once he didn't feel so alone. He'd found someone just like him, a gifted. He should feel annoyed and he should be angry that she flew into the air so haphazardly, but he couldn't be. How could he possibly be angry when he found someone he could actually confide in. Someone he could be honest with. He brushed the debris and twigs off his body as he found his bearings once more. He debated speaking secretively or deceptively for his own amusement, but decided, his heart knew best. "Well. I guess I've been here for a few minutes, although the concussion I surely have wouldn't make me the most reliable person in the world." He smirked at her, hoping his veiled attempt at sarcasm could be well received. "As for how I got here? Same as you, I walked through the forest, although maybe not as fast. I do however have a trick of my own that made things a bit helpful." He closed his eyes, allowing the smell and sounds of the forest to be the focus of his senses for the first time. The sound of birds chirping, the smell of moss and dew. Once his mind was finally clear, he used his telekinesis to lift multiple stones off of the ground, moving them in large circles, before letting them drop. "Now that the threat of performance anxiety is gone, would you say we have something to talk about?" @๊’ฐ sunset shae ๊’ฑ เผ‰โ€งโ‚Šหš.
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Esme Garnier BOT 13-Feb-23 05:13 AM
Bewildered, Esme stared at him as if he had three heads. Well... it wouldn't be surprising if she thought he did. After all, she had just had two rather large impacts and well.... while the tree certainly wasn't as soft as him, he had a solidness to him that made running into him quite painful as well. She rubbed her head and crawled off of him, her hair rather messy and her white dress rather soiled with dirt at the moment. She had clearly had made a bit of her mess of herself by falling several times. "I--" She bit her tongue, her eyes widening as she cursed, "For fuck's sake--" Curse words also were unspoken of in this society. She had found out about them in the archives having been reading a book that was mostly forgotten about. In her mind, they were flowery words that properly expressed pain in a way that the phrase "ow" just never would. Yet whenever she said such words, people often stared blankly at her. After all, who was fuck and what were you doing for their sake? She shook her head and sneered at herself, her gaze lowering as she tried her best to get some sort of sense of the situation. "Well... I suppose you're right but-- well quite frankly then I wouldn't be a reliable person either... though no one ever claimed I was." She rambled, quite honestly before realizing that he was being sarcastic. She paused mid sentence and looked at him, "Wait... you meant that as a joke... didn't you..." She frowned, part of her embarrassed that she hadn't realized earlier. Wait... Was he going to ... Kill her? She stared as he mentioned having a trick of his own. "Don't do it--" She started, her eyes widening as he closed his eyes and began to start. She flinched instinctively, unsure of what was going to happen. He could kill her for all she knew. After all, she had never met another gifted before and quite frankly she never would have guessed that anyone would simply admit to being a gifted without prodding. After all, it was a rather scary thing to hav
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e as part of your identity. Most would report you to the timekeepers on the spot. That was why ungifted were rather unheard of. After all, it wasn't something you normally would brag about. "Holy shit..." She muttered under her breath, staring as the stones lifted off the ground and began to levitate and spin midair. "You're a wizard... I--I---" She stumbled over her words, her eyes wide with surprise. "Wait-- no..." She shook her head and frowned before walking right up to him once more. "How did you get blessed with the wizard gift and I got gifted with running into things...?" She frowned, entirely serious. "I want to be a wizard... running into things hurts... can't we like... trade or something--?" @Marcus
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Callum Harris BOT 14-Feb-23 01:24 PM
Callum stood in shock when he heard her words. Shock, disbelief, bewilderment and once it set it that she was being serious, there was only one reaction he could have. He felt his chest tighten as his face contorted until he couldn't hold in the cackling any further. He bent over and held onto his stomach, tears streaming from the corner of his eyes as the smile couldn't be held back any further. This ensued until he was able to compose himself again. "Sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to laugh at you. That was just too great. And no, not a wizard, although that would be pretty amazing. Jeez, that was good. Maybe I'll call it as much. If we could trade though, I think I'd do that pretty quickly. I think it'd be more exciting to fly twenty feet into the air than lift a couple rocks. Although landing does seem to be a bit of a struggle..." As he pondered the idea of him able to run and jump at last twice as fast and high as he could normally, he considered how much more useful it would be if he were to get caught on his more desperate days. Maybe if he was able to perfect, he'd never have to worry about the idea of getting caught and could be a symbol of hope for other Gifted. As he started to fantasize about his ideals of grandeur and greatness, his eyes found themselves glued to the gorgeous woman in front of him. Tracing along every inch of her figure until he realized he'd probably been staring for too long up to that point. He cleared his throat in an attempt to dispel any sense of of awkwardness in the air. "Uhh I'm Callum. My gift? 'Wizard'. It's a pleasure to meet you." He smile sweetly as he awaited her response. @๊’ฐ sunset shae ๊’ฑ เผ‰โ€งโ‚Šหš.
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Esme Garnier BOT 14-Feb-23 02:11 PM
The truth was painful. Literally. After all, the truth was that Esme hadn't learned to control her gift even a tiny bit. She had recently learned of her gift and yet it had been taking her quite a bit a time to figure it out. No matter what she did, she couldn't seem to figure out what it took to control this thing that most would call a gift. Gifts were like curses to most. After all, no one celebrated being gifted. It was a permanent stain on your life and often brought an end to it. Or at least that was what Esme assumed what happened to the gifted. No one had ever seen one after they were found out and taken by the timekeepers. She paused as the boy burst into laughter, her face contorting into a frown as she watched. Was it that amusing? She rubbed the back of her neck and pouted slightly, "It's not funny... I'm telling the truth.. my gift sucks." She whined, clearly entirely sincere in claiming that her gift was to run into things. After all, that was all she had been able to do. "I'm going to lose brain cells at this point if I can't control it." She complained, shaking her head she watched tears stream down his face. While amusing, she would refuse to admit it being so. Her pain shouldn't bring amusement. "That would be an awful trade! What would be in it for you?" She questioned, her green eyes focused on him as he spoke. Quite frankly, he might've been a bit off at guessing what her power was. After all, she hadn't ever gotten any height when she crashed into things. In all reality, it was more like she... sped up time. Or perhaps it was a form of super speed. The problem was just that she couldn't decipher that time speeding up, so her body moved whereas her perception hadn't caught up. It was like running while being blind. No wonder she was running into everything in her path. "I'd bet you'll be able to pick up more than rocks....I guess we both have to do some training if we want to get anywhere... otherwise we're stuck Rocky Road and Crash
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Course. That'd suck. We'd be laughing stocks. Well.. not really seeing as well.." She leaned towards him, lifting her hand up as to whisper. "You don't plan on turning me in... right?" She questioned as if it was a question that needed to be answered. Of course, in reality, it was rather obvious that neither of them was going to turn the other in. After all, it would only bring more attention to the other. Esme paused as he stared, her mind moving far too fast to even notice his gaze falling down to her figure. She seemed a bit dense in those terms, after all, no one had ever had feelings for her and most didn't find true love matches. Most people were paired based upon job types and personality quizzes that you took when you turned 24. By the time you were 25, you would be paired with an applicable match and begin your life together. She had never even imagined someone checking out her body in such a way. Despite that, she had a rather nice body, her rather crumpled dress still revealing some of the womanly curves of her frame. She would never be one to consider herself beautiful though. After all, how could one be beautiful with such striking red hair? She assumed the worst had always considered herself to be rather ugly. "Oh right.. uhm. I'm Esme. Nice to meet you." She gave a sheepish smile and held out her hand towards him, surprised their meeting wasn't as dangerous as she had supposed. @Marcus
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Callum Harris BOT 14-Feb-23 04:23 PM
He reached out his hands for hers and shook it firmly. "Huh. Esme. A name almost as beautiful as it's owner. And for transparency's sake, no. I have less than zero intention of turning you into the peacekeeper's. I have less than fond memories and would rather not put anyone else through that hell." He felt his body tense, from his jaw being clenched to his fist being balled so tightly his nails dug into his flesh. It was only until he felt that he would break skin that he began to feel his body release from the stress of his past. He felt his face go from the pain and anger of his parents being taken to the relaxed person he was any other time. His mind clear, he continued. "And I don't think your gift sucks. Definitely hard to learn. It looks more than painful to get the hang of, I can speak from personal experience, but I think it could be something so unique and cool, at worst you can tell amazing stories about experiencing it. At best? You could go on the most amazing adventures. Nothing could tie you down. Holy shit, you could be free of all of this." Callum winked at her, using the unfamiliar phrase he heard her say moments ago. Something about it just felt right to him, comfortable even. He smiled at the thought of being away from his reality. "Besides, my gift isn't even all that great. I can only move light objects for now, forget a whole person. That's actually why I'm out here. I figured, I could find something heavier than a few rocks to practice with. Instead I found a beauty flying through the sky. Definitely an upgrade. But what do you say? Do you want to get together and try and practice together more often?" He figured using 'wizard' was out here was better than the city. He'd heard stories about what the peacekeepers did to gifted they'd captured and none of them sound remotely pleasant, with death being a mercy or even a gift to some. Besides, if he had a friend to practice with, maybe he could escape the loneliness of being the only gifted
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he knew. @๊’ฐ sunset shae ๊’ฑ เผ‰โ€งโ‚Šหš.
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Esme Garnier BOT 14-Feb-23 04:35 PM
Beautiful. Perhaps a better word was bewildered. Even stunned or caught off guard were better ways to describe her at the moment. After all, no one had ever told Esme that she was beautiful before. Her hand paused in his, almost forgetting to shake entirely as he firmly shook hers. Her hand swayed like a limp fish, entirely lacking any focus and precision as she stared at him with a look of surprise. He had called her beautiful. Her heart had nearly fluttered. Or maybe it had and she just didn't think fluttering was the best way to describe it. It was like someone had released an entire hive of bees in her stomach. Whomever had once claimed there were butterflies in your stomach was entirely wrong because she was sure this fluttering was much more of a rampage than the soft butterflies could provide. She swallowed and looked down, her cheeks stained red as she realized he had noted he wasn't going to turn her in. She hardly even seemed to notice his body tensing as he struggled to swallow down his own trauma, her cheeks a bright red as she wondered if he truly thought her pretty. Perhaps he needed to have his eye checked but even if he were blind, she felt it wonderful and amazing to hear someone say such a wonderful phrase to her. "I uh...thank you, no one has ever said that to me before...." She muttered, her voice coming off shyer than it had before. "Oh! I mean the pretty part... not the part about well--" She exclaimed as she realized it might be confusing, her gaze connecting with his. "I--" She paused, shifting on her feet as he told her that her gift was wonderful. "You mean... you think I could escape?" She wondered, her gaze shifting down to her own two feet. "Do... you think something is out there... something other than this? Maybe.... even a place where us gifted can...just be?" She wondered aloud, her words soft as if she hardly realized she were saying them out loud. She paused and looked at him, realizing that he had cursed. "Wait-- you kn
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ow curse words too?!" Her eyes widened in amazement, never having met someone else who would dare use such words. She had even once attempted to encourage a co-worker in the archives to sound them out but even she had refused. "I would love too!" She grinned, her eyes widening in surprise. "Together we-- we can get strong and then-- then it'll all work. We can make the greatest of escapes and make a new world where.." She began, stumbling over her words from speaking so fast, "where we will show everyone that it's okay to be different and that there is nothing wrong with being gifted... no... being gifted is the best thing that you can be!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air with a grin that grew and extended out to the highest points of her cheeks. The kind of smile that was unable to be rejected, unable to be contained and entirely contagious. @Marcus
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Callum Harris BOT 14-Feb-23 05:48 PM
He found himself caught off guard a bit by her words. How can no one have told someone as gorgeous as she was such a simple fact. He watched her get flustered and attempt to find her words. Further cementing what he'd already known to be true. Then he watched as he demeanor shifted from the shy and reserved woman to the excited and energetic girl ready to take on the world. For once, he felt like he could just be a person for once with hopes and dreams and not having to worry about what's behind him at all time. It was a nice change of pace even if temporary considering their current set of circumstances. That change in feeling was something he knew he'd be eternally grateful for.. "Well, all things considered, I wonder if it would be the first time someone's done this too." He leaned forward gave her a kiss on cheek, less than a centimeter from her lips. "I thought it probably too forward if I did any more than that." He gave her a quick wink before continuing. " I wouldn't say I know curse words, whatever that means. Just picked it up from you. Feels kinda freeing, so hopefully you'll teach me some more. As for what's out there? Well, depending on who you ask, there's whole cities of gifted, small militias of us ready to rebel and just more of what we already know. So I guess that's to say that the only way to know for sure, is to just go out and find out for ourselves. I'm ready to find out if you are, but we should probably get a better grasp on our abilities if we do, don't you think?" @๊’ฐ sunset shae ๊’ฑ เผ‰โ€งโ‚Šหš.
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Esme Garnier BOT 15-Feb-23 12:37 AM
Most people found Esme's personality to be rather... frustrating. Or at least that was what the Elders at school had used to say. They said she was too.. what was the word... uppity. Her eagerness to succeed was clear but she oftentimes messed that up by being rather excitable. It's strange when people use the same words to describe you as they would a golden retriever. Esme had grown rather used to it, after all, after years of attending school and attempting to swallow down what personality that she had, she had grown entirely aware of one fact: She was an awful actress. Yet she could be herself around him, right? After all, he was gifted too and that meant there was one undeniable fact about both of them: neither would ever fit in. No matter how they tried, there was truly no world in which they could fit in within society. They could attempt to blend to the best of their pitiful sakes, but the likelihood was that one day they would slip up and be caught... unless that is they escaped. "The first time someone has done wha--" She started to speak when he leaned forward and pressed his lip to her cheek, rather close to her lips even. While she was a girl in her 20s, she had never once been kissed. After all, she had always assumed herself quite the ugly duckling in school. She swallowed and stared at him, her cheeks reddening enough that it became entirely evident that he was correct: no one had ever done that before. "I--" She stammered, her hand lifting towards her cheek shyly, fingertips pressing the place he had just kissed. Her heart was pounding and if she had bees in her stomach, they were buzzing as if they had been had a rude awakening and been kicked out of their hive. She had watched her father knock down a hornet's nest once in the dead of summer. It looked rather similar. She assumed it felt similar too, though her father looked rather swollen and perhaps that was uniquely different from the growing redness in her cheeks. She paused and shoo
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k her head, listening to what he said, it was the best distraction she had at the moment. "I can teach you plenty more... though...I don't know what all of them mean... there wasn't a dictionary or anything so I had to make my best use of the context used in the books." She admitted, her gaze shifting away from him. "I work in the archives every now and then... so I was able to find books with old words like... fuck and god damn it and bitch. I'm not quite sure of the usage of Bitch though.." She admitted, shifting her weight anxiously as if she should have known, "It seems they sometimes use it to denote someone who is rather distasteful... but othertimes refer to their friends with such a word... strange really." She rambled, this continuing to be a trait of hers. It seemed to be an anxious habit that she couldn't shake away. "There are--?" She asked, her eyes widening like a child who had been told that Santa Claus was just as real as the old man who gave you candies at the bank. She paused, "I've never met another Gifted... well before you. I've heard of others but... when you hear about it, they're in trouble anyway." She looked down with a disappointed expression, her eyes shifting towards the boy once more as he admitted before they thought about escaping they should think about training their abilities. "Oh... right... right.... I was totally thinking the same thing." She nodded. She was not. @Marcus
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Callum Harris BOT 27-Feb-23 04:28 PM
Callum took a moment to enjoy the sight of her cheeks turning from a light rose to faint crimson. While he relished this simple moment of clarity and charm, he still wondered if he was playing to her heart to a detrimental degree. She seemed like a sweet, endearing girl. The type you brought home to your family, not strung along for fun. Such a simple thought brought a subtle pain to his heart. A pain that was quickly replaced by the smile on his face and light heartedness of the conversation. Esme seemed completely overtaken by the conversation and her passion for, as she put it, curse words. He found himself leaning onto the tree behind him, contemplating how different his life would be if he'd still had a family or even a friend like her around. Someone he could truly feel relaxed with and just exist. Not having to spend nights abandoned buildings or cardboard houses. The relief to not have to spend his days watching behind his back in case the peacekeepers were patrolling. The ability to exist and live life freely and not in a constant state of worry and paranoia was a freedom he'd long since given up on, but now, found himself yearning for more than anything. This moment of release forced Callum to look back on his own life and how he'd felt forced to keep a wall between himself and others. Never allowing himself to get comfortable or too trusting of anyone. Yet here was this girl in a seemingly similar situation, but all too ready to give him her trust and even put her life in his hands. Whether you call it naivete or stupidity, he found it fascinating enough to at least meet her half way. "I'm glad to know we're on the same page. And while we practice, we may as well learn as much as possible, don't you think? Maybe there's something in the archives that gets overlooked or even better disregarded. It could be the little piece of information we'd need to make this journey that much more worth pursuing and more. While we're at it, teach me as many of those w
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ords as you can. May as well add some spice to our conversation." He smirked at Esme, feeling like he had an ally for the first time in years. A friend. Whether he could count on her or not was an irrelevant part of the conversation as far as he was concerned. She was just like him and in the same predicament, even if hers came with a bed. Something a part of him had hoped they'd share one day. @๊’ฐ sunset shae ๊’ฑ เผ‰โ€งโ‚Šหš.
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Esme Garnier BOT 28-Feb-23 11:32 AM
Nonsensical. That was what she had always told herself that her ideas were. After all, no one had escaped the district before. At least as far as she was aware. Even in the archives she hadn't found any information on it. She had parsed all of the archives looking for missing persons notes, but all of them had eventually been accounted for. The only ones to ever disappear without clear reason were the gifted. No one knew what happened to the gifted, after all. Even the topic of the gifted was enough to scare most people off. No one questioned where they went. Whether they lived or died. Everyone assumed it was death. Death that hung in the air near the incinerators. Death that welcomed those who were entirely unwelcomed within society. Yet if they were able to escape, perhaps together, they could find a different world outside of the district. After all, they all knew a world existed outside of the district, their world only consisting of a small corner of the world. Yet they had never discussed what existed outside of their little society. Was all of the world like this? Or was there a world where even the gifted could live. Where the gifted didn't have to worry or hide from the time keepers? Those sorts of thoughts had plagued her for so long, left her mind wandering at night, kept her up for hours as she wondered whether she was thinking nonsensical thoughts again. That was what her mother had used to tell her when she claimed she would teleport to another world as a child. When she used to claim that she was going to disappear one day and come back riding mythical creatures that only existed in her fairy tales. Of course, in this case, she didn't plan on riding back on a wyvern's back, but she wondered if the things she had always considered a fantasy were able to become a reality. She nodded with eagerness, "Of course. I mean... we can't get out of here if we can't use our gifts correctly." She smiled sheepishly, "I mean... i don't wanna run into any
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more trees. And I'm not sure your pebbles will get us out of here. What if you could levitate yourself... what if you could levitate me? I don't weigh all that much--" She started, blushing at her own foolish comment. "I mean... ignore that..." She sheepishly smiled, her gaze tearing away for a mere moment. "But yes... we should train and uh...." She smiled, hesitating ever so slightly as her mind rushed ahead of her words. "We will get good." She nodded, looking at him with a slight smile. She was easy to read. Easy to understand as she struggled to keep on her own toes, struggled to keep her thoughts in line. She had always had an overactive imagination, her mind wandering too often. She was sure something was wrong with her but no one got diagnoses like those any longer. After all, diagnoses made you different. No one was different any longer. No one was special. Even if it was to their own detriment. After a moment of allowing her thoughts to catch up to him, Esme nodded, "So... I have a late night shift tonight at the library... Usually after 6PM no one comes..." She looked at him, "Would you wanna hang out... or something? Do some research?" She smiled, her idea seeming fun to her. It was like having a friend, something she had always struggled to do. She had never hung out with other people like the other students, perhaps they could be friends and do normal things together like hang out. Pretend they were normal before truly fading into the society to disappear.
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@Marcus
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Callum Harris BOT 13-Mar-23 06:24 AM
As he started to ponder the reality of their current trail of conversation, he began to wonder if this was realistic or a pipe dream. If there was a colony of gifted, wouldn't his parents have raised him there? Did they even have the opportunity to bring him there? Was there something else keeping them where they were? These were all questions he'd never really have the opportunity to know the answer to, but still found himself of the new path he'd be able to walk with Esme. The degree of comfort he'd found himself with was something he found himself unexpectedly okay with. The more she spoke, the more he'd come to understand that it wasn't just the fact she was also gifted, but it was just her. She had away of making him simply comfortable and happy in a way no other person had in his life. He then thought about the pairing all adults were forced into. They were raised being told it was for their best and in their best interest. After all, if they didn't have to spend a portion of their lives searching for a mate, they were more able to spend their time focusing on the career they were also forced into. The lack of choice and freedom presented towards his future made him sick. There was hardly a point in which he could just exist as the government was hellbent on deciding for him who and what he was. If he wasn't going to be a craftsman or merchant by way of the people, the government had decided he was an abomination instead. These distractions provided to them, emphasizing how similar everyone was to their peers, made sure that no one could possibly consider how much different their life could be if they'd made a different choice. One thing kept reverberating in his mind. Could the woman he was to be paired with make him nearly as happy, comfortable and at peace as Esme could? They'd only been aware of each other's presence for but a few moments but he felt something in him being ensnared by her charm and wit. Maybe he had realized how vulnerable and alone h
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e'd really felt. Maybe she just had a way to her that he couldn't shake. He was bound to find out one way or another. It was only the her heartening words that broke him from his train of thought. Esme's words put a smile on his face. "You know what? That sounds like a nice time, I'm in. Feel free to show me around while we're at it. Who knows? If we're lucky we may learn something interesting? Admittedly, we'll probably have to be really luck, but it's worth a shot. Making catch up on some reading, maybe you can teach me a thing or two. Also-" Callum crouched down and swept her off of her feet in a princess carry, holding her body tightly and close to his own. "You're not heavy in the slightest." @๊’ฐ sunset shae ๊’ฑ เผ‰โ€งโ‚Šหš.
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Esme Garnier BOT 25-Mar-23 03:55 AM
Reality. It had a way of tying them down. At least that was what Esme thought. After all, reality was what squandered most imagination before it had even bubbled into thought. Thoughts of the impossible quickly swallowed the thoughts of what could be. Impossible. That was what the two of them had to defeat. They had to entirely defy the impossible. She was sure that it was true. After all, no one had ever escaped the time keepers before. No gifted had ever survived to prove that the time keepers were nothing more than slavers to the identity that had once defined their world. It was their challenge to redefine that though. After all, if there was one thing that Esme held to be true, it was that everyone could not be the same in this world. The single idea that held their society together was that uniqueness was a sin. Esme was sure that was wrong. She wasn't sure what the world that they paved together would look like, but she was sure it wouldn't include a uniform or a haircut that required we all look and act the same. "I'm sure there is something down there... there has to be a reason they guard it so well." She explained, rubbing the back of her neck. "The world... it wasn't always like this. I mean... there were words that we don't even use any longer. Curse words. Words that have too much..." She paused, thinking of the word that she was looking for, "Flavor? I... that sounds wrong." She frowned, her nose crinkling as she spoke and searched for the word that she couldn't seem to find. "I...fuck.. what is it?" She rubbed the back of her neck again, pushing her hair over her shoulder with a light push. "I guess emotion.... not the word I'm looking for but... it'll do." She noted with a huff. "But you know what I'm saying, right?" She looked at him, smiling sheepishly. "The time keepers somehow even put a tax... on emotion. They make it so that those who live within society are expected to live within a clearly defined set of.... i guess expectations t
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hat simply defy all logic." She shakes her head, "But if words like those existed at a time, doesn't that mean that we once may have lived outside of those expectations. That perhaps there was a time when people were encouraged to live as they well...simply are. Without having to work to be someone that they aren't. There hasn't been a day of my life where blending in hasn't been hard work. I'm sure we aren't the only ones who feel that way...we...we just need to find evidence and... maybe an army." She rambled, far too excited to control herself as she spoke. Yet he quickly changed that, her gaze widening as he crouched down and swept her off of her feet, holding her to him. "I--" She stared at him with a bewildered expression, entirely surprised by the fact that he had jut done that. "Callum-- put me down-- you'll slip or drop me or uh-" She blushed, entirely flustered by the way he was holding her. "Jeez..." @Marcus
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Callum Harris BOT 17-Apr-23 05:13 AM
Callum laughed as deeply as he possibly could as spun slightly while enjoying her shocked reaction, swinging as he gently placed her on her feet. "I get that we're about to mess up our lives for better or for worse pretty soon, but don't you think we should use that time until then to just enjoy life and the world for a little bit until then? Admittedly I don't have much or any attachment to this place, but you? I don't know, maybe I'm being presumptuous, but it feels like there's a lot for you to leave behind comparatively. Just don't think you have to rush into anything you're not fully prepared for." He took a few steps into forest enjoying the sounds of nature that were so unfamiliar to him. In his future was a destiny that was surely uncertain regardless of the direction he'd taken, but he felt that no matter what, Esme was going to be by his side. Maybe they'd be stuck in this nightmare of a life longer than he'd wanted if not for the rest of his life. Maybe they'd leave and find a comfortable life with people like them. There's always the chance that they'd struggle in fight against the same people that forced him to live this reclusive life as all he'd known for years. A life of hiding and pretending. Stealing in necessity, and smiling to hide the pain. Every day unable to share the most important parts of himself that he felt most at peace, yet disconnected with. Avoiding prying questions from those that knew him at his most innocent. Trust being a luxury he wasn't sure he could afford. All the while, behind him was someone that could understand at least a small part of him that others would never begin to comprehend at best and report him to the peacekeepers at worst. "Let's take things slowly so we don't bring too much attention to ourselves. Last thing we want is a platoon of peacekeepers catching us looking at forbidden books. Although, I'd like to think we'll find something just a bit ore fascinating that curse words. Care to lead the wat princes
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s?" He smirked as he faced her, prepared for anything and everything that could come their way. @๊’ฐ sunset shae ๊’ฑ เผ‰โ€งโ‚Šหš.
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CiderSol 01-Oct-23 08:35 AM
(( @๊’ฐ sunset shae ๊’ฑ เผ‰โ€งโ‚Šหš. @Marcus is it ok if i archive this? if you think you'll come back to it i can move it back into the alphebetized category - we're getting rid of this inactive category. ))
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