The Park (Character RP)

(So! Here we are! The new character chat for Rown Oquirrhs. Just a park somewhere in town and everyone is free to hop in, but it's mostly for characters. Just interact and explore with the place.)

The Park didn't have anything else other then the simple name to identify it. It was several acres of land, including some simple trails through wooded areas, a picnic area, even a lake. At the south end was the concert area which was being cleaned and prepared for Summer. It was too cold right now though and there was a light dusting of snow on the ground.

One of the groundskeepers looked up as Skye walked from the parking lot. She was bundled in a simple white hooded sweatshirt that was zipped over her chest from college. It was worn and the lettering along it was peeling off at the corners, but it was otherwise clean. She was also in a pair of faded blue jeans that flared out close to the bottom, but otherwise fit her well. Skye looked to the parking lot for a moment and then headed down the paved trail that went around the park. Maybe she'd run into someone here, but in the weather, it wouldn't surprise her if there weren't many people out. She couldn't stand being inside at the moment though. Especially with Miranda getting the decorations up.

Two young men sat leaning against the base of a tree along the path. One, art pad on his knees, pencil in hand, was drawing a picture of a rather beautiful young lady. The other had a large tome in his hands, which he was reading at a slow and careful pace as though memorizing every word.

A few moments later the one with the pad broke into a smile, and signed the bottom right of the page 'Todd DeMarc'.

"Finished it Jon," he said aloud, moments later.

The one with the tome looked up, "Oh yeah, let me see this newest masterpiece."

Todd held it up, displaying it proudly.

"Not bad Todd. Looks just like Mika." He laughed as Todd turned it quickly, glaring over at Jon when he saw the changes Jon had made.

"Dammit Jon, take that illusion off before Verity gets here." He was suddenly distracted, looking down the path. "Although. This good looking lady here might more than make up for any trouble."

Jon dispelled his illusion and turned to where Todd was looking, "Hello sunshine."

Skye raised an eyebrow. "Sunshine?" she asked. It had been a long while since anyone had ever called her something like that. She herself even didn't consider herself as 'a ray of sunshine' anyways. She just shook her head after a moment. "You guys wouldn't happen to have seen another guy around here? Older guy? Worn bomber jacket? Gray hair?" Her jade eyes looked over the book. Though she was no expert on the topic, she knew a spellbook when she saw one.

Jon grinned, "Can't say we have." He shot a glance to Todd.

Todd shook his head, "No, we haven't" He smiled at her, "but we'd be glad to help you find him."

Jon nodded, "Personal bodyguards and investigators, as it were."

"Maybe even good friends?" Todd chimed in.

"With benefits?" Jon finished, hopefully.

Skye raised her eyebrow. "With benefits?" she asked. "Has that line actually ever worked?" She shook her head. "Don't really need protection, but wouldn't mind a little help tryin' to find the guy though."

Jon shook his head, "It was a joke."

"Hope you don't mind," Todd added, chuckling.

The two looked at each other, nodded and grabbed their things, tucking them away into backpacks before joining the lady on the path.

"Todd." Todd told her, offering his hand, "And that's Jon."

Jon likewise offered his hand, "Friends since we were about 3 you know."

She shook her head. "I've just heard lines like that one time too many." She shook Todd's hand. "Call me Skye."

Todd looked across at Jon as the two took places on either side of Skye, "You'll note Jon, we always find women named after everyday words."

Jon thought about it, "Verity, Skye. I suppose." He looked at Skye with a smile, "Which by no means suggests we do not like your name."

Todd nodded, "We like it in fact. It seems to fit."

Jon smile got larger, "Describes you, might say."

She chuckled a little. At least these two guys seemed interesting. "Thanks," she said, starting down the path. "So, what's your deal? You sorcerers? I saw the book."

"Sorcerers?" Jon shrugged, "I guess you could say that. Book Magic is a little different from what people refer to as sorcery though."

Todd nodded, "Sorcerers are born with their magic, and it's something that just comes to them. Well we're born with it too, but we have to be educated."

"Anyone can learn book magic, but not anyone can use it." Jon added. "And not everyone that can use it bothers to really learn it."

"We're both two-fifths of the way along." Todd explained, "That is to say, we each have two of the five books for our forms."

"Never met anyone who wasn't born with the ability to use magic. Maybe it has to do with that big wall I drove through on my way here," Skye said. "Some people choose to develop their talents while others don't." They kept walking, passing one of the groundskeepers and entering part of one of the wooded areas. "You have any sort of... Like, school or something that helps with the books?"

Todd shook his head, "Nah, we just go to normal high school." He caught himself quickly, "We're seniors though, thankfully. Eighteen you know."

Jon nodded, "Perfectly legal, as it were."

The two smiled, and Todd continued, "We just find the books and teach ourselves, that's how it works."

"Ah," Skye said. "Well, suppose things could be worse." They soon were in a wooded area of the park. Snow had started to fall and the woods seemed to offer some sort of sinister feel to them, despite there clearly being a paved path. She looked back for a moment and then back at the two young men with her. Her eyes narrowed. "Something's not right..."

The two boys both paused, each scanning the woods.

"You know, you're right." Todd said, frowning and giving Jon a glance.

Skye felt a slight tingling sensation across her body as Jon spread an illusion across them. "I daresay someone is out there thinking bad things about us," he added.

Todd nodded, "And we don't like that."

"Well, that's no surprise," Skye said. "You're followin' me around and I can't get a restraining order to keep trouble away." She glanced at Jon for a second. "What'd you just do?" There was a snap in the woods and that took her attention, looking into it. There didn't appear to be anything though. "Stay behind me," she said firmly.

A burst of fire shot from the trees near Todd, and the young man turned, hands flying and the fire spread around them as though it had been stopped by a force field of some type.

Behind him Jon kicked into action, eyes closed he expanded his mind, looking for their enemy. But with a roar that nearly broke him it found him first.

"It's powerful, and intelligent." He gasped, as he tried to gather himself back together.

Skye ducked from the fires even before Todd had divided them. She'd managed to get a glance at what it was though and kept her gun ready, though knowing that there was little it could do. At the very least though, it could cause an annoyance for it. "Christ, was that a dragon?" she asked, standing back to her full height. "What the hell is a dragon doing here?" She looked at her hands and shook them for a moment. "And what is this illusion you have on me?"

Jon blushed, "Er.. well I just kind of did it quickly. It's Diablo from that computer game.."

Todd's eyes looked through the trees, scanning for movement. "There!" His hands flew and a slicing of branches followed by an ear splitting screech responded.

The dragon came towards them fast, a large slash across it's side where Todd's attack had hit it.

Skye carefully aimed. "Get it off me when we're out of this!" she shouted. Her jade eyes looked carefully for the knees of the charging creature. After a moment, she fired several shots at one of the creature's knees and then another to slow the beast.

Todd sent another blast at the creature, this time with it in sight he could aim a little better and the blast of magical force hit the creature directly in the scaled neck gashing into the creature and knocking it backwards and over.

Jon smiled, "Nice shot Todd."

Todd nodded, "Hope that's enough."

"We kill it?" Skye asked. She approached the creature for a moment before shrugging and turning away from it. "Well, could've been worse..." She checked her handgun and pulled the spent clip out before reloading it. "Can you take this illusion or whatever you've got on me off now?" Her handgun clicked as the new clip locked into place and the slide slipped forward.

Jon nodded and Skye felt the illusion drop as another brief tingling sensation across her body. The two boys proceeded to look over the creature now laying crumpled on the side of the path.

"You think we ought to get it into the woods at least?" Jon asked, as he carefully examined the creatures razor sharp teeth.

"Yeah, I'll do that." Todd agreed, taking a step back and closing his eyes.

Jon looked over at him and hurriedly stepped towards Skye, who he proceeded to shepherd across the path. "You'll want to stay back," he told her.

Todd made a complex serious of gestures and then his eyes snapped open, focusing on the wyrmling. A bead of sweat rolled down the side of his face as the creature began to move. It took him about a minute to get the creature pushed far enough into the brush to be hidden from all but the most curious passer-by.

Once he was done he looked over to Jon and Skye, "Shall we move on?" he asked, taking a hesitant step towards them and then reaching to his pack for a water bottle.

"No argument here." Skye hid her gun and started heading down the path and out of the woods. It didn't take too long, but they were soon on the other side of the park. There was an amphitheater nearby and it looked like it had been closed for the season. She looked back at them for a moment and eyed Todd. After another moment, they came to a bench along the path. "You wanna sit down for a minute or so? You look kinda tired." She reached into her pack and produced a water bottle of her own before taking a drink and placing it back. Oddly enough, for a moment, it seemed like the water bottle slipped into a pouch on her pack, but it vanished. There was no evidence either that the faded tan pack ever had a pocket or zipper there at all.

Jon eyed Skye's pack with some interest, finding himself intrigued. He couldn't see anything obvious about it, but it was definitely magical, just in a strange way he did not quite comprehend.

Todd shook his head, "No, it's a mental recovery more than a physical one. I can walk and move just fine, just don't ask me many questions for a little while." He took another drink from his water bottle and looked around.

Jon looked at Skye, "Our magic is nearly one-hundred percent mental. You're limited by your school and what you can think to do with it really." His looked to the side as if thoughtful for a moment then continued, "To move that dragon, well it's like taking seven or eight final exams back to back and then being asked to tell someone exactly what you put on the third question of the second test. It takes some time to sort it all back out afterwards. And to get some fresh bloodflow in, re-oxygenate, all that fancy stuff."

Abby shivered as a cold breeze rushed past her making her close her jacket. For a moment the park had felt, weird, and she had wanted to leave; but now that feeling was gone. Looking around her she began walking down the trail some more, whether she went home or not she had to go this direction. As she walked she analized the wisedom of coming alone. A head of her she heard some murmering, as she got closer two boys and a woman came into view. She continued walking, doing her best not to seem intrusive.