»THE TIDES OF SIN ;; ||Open||

[Tagliagole]

THE TIDES OF SIN DRAW TIGHTER AND BRIGHTER, THE HOURS BECOME HEAVIER AND WEIGHTED, AND THE SHADOWS SMILE, DARK AND WILD. THIS IS WHEN HOPE AND DESIRE COLLAPSE, THE ARC OF THE DREAM DESCENDS INTO DESPAIR,. Evening fell upon the quaint little town of Almira. As the the sun dipped down in the horizon, it shed its dying rays across the streets in a last futile attempt to keep the darkness at bay. It only aided the shadows, as they seemingly danced to life. They grew and stretched, contorting into grotesque caricatures of their owners. What was once beautiful and serene became twisted into something much more pernicious. Even such a friendly area as this could not keep the malice away for long. Just as a beaten dog runs away to refuge, the sun wavered into hiding, allowing the monsters to come and play. For night is the hour in which the devil likes to play. Twelve o'clock, tick-tock. An amber moon hovered above the world. Lady Luna sat aloft in her throne of narcotic, silken black, keeping company with the stars, watching the pestilential beasts writhe in her glory. Her rays bathed the terrain in a monochromatic light, setting a damning scene. The muffled droning of a sleepy city set the score for this glorious play. All that is good had slunk away at the first disappearance of daylight. Now was the time for the monsters, all the ghouls and damned to come out and desecrate the world around around them. They care not for the lives cost, the oxygen wasted. They live for the kill, die for the thrill. They are no better than the vermin scouring the sewers and on par with the cretins hiding, tails tucked, waiting for dawn. No reward, great or small, in the afterlife shall forgive these pitiful beasts for time wasted wallowing in fear or greed. Tap tap tap. The faintest of footsteps seemed to echo through the corridors of the alleys. A pale figure drifted through the darkness, eyes alert and slim bodice prepared for prompt action. It flittered about, almost unheard, nigh unseen. It appeared nothing more than a ghost; a glorious phantasmagoria haunting the deepest of shadows. It did not falter for a moment in its purposeful stride. What creature, so elusive to sight, traipsed through the pernicious dark so confidently? What force propelled such an axis shift? For surely this creature, elegant in step and colored a shade only worthy of angels and death, could not be of such virulent stock as these other base life forms! And with just a glance over the ivory shoulder, it winked out of sight. Even the heavens above could not see this seemingly incorporeal being. Corvo slipped through a busted window and into the empty lower level of a building. She walked on deft feet; nimble as a feline. Brilliant cerulean eyes drifted across the vacant room, searching for items of worth. Well, worth to potential 'buyers'. A mild frown graced her visage for but a moment as the overview proved fruitless. It was ephemeral in span and soon faded back to a cool, neutral mask. She would just have to search a little more thoroughly. With measured, cautious steps, she meandered about. 'Take care not to disrupt anything too much.' A voice seemed to whisper in her ear. She was used to the voice, a guide of sorts, and merely continued on her journey. Humans were easily fooled. So long as their belongings were at least near to how they were originally placed, they never notice. For the most part, she seen stacks of papers and files. The garbage can was overflowing with refuse and an empty coffee cup, long since stale, sat as a make-shift paperweight. Thus far, there was little of interest to the crafty mutt. However, she did enjoy a pizza crust that had been halfway sticking out of the waste bin. It appeared tonights raid would prove useless, though she didn't expect much from a junkyard. Most of the treasures were those lost and forgotten in the old vehicles. That was her next course of action. She knew she would have to tread lightly, as junkyards are popular resting areas for the strays. Carefully, she climbed atop the desk and made her exit from the office. It took a few moments to find an opening in the chainlink fence. It was not very wide, but it proved no obstacle as she squeezed her way through. So long as her head could fit through the opening, so could the rest of her. She paused on the inside of the grounds and studied the automobiles before her. The older vehicles would already be cleaned out, so the newer vehicles would be a better choice. However, they would also most likely be inhabited by another as they would not be so worn out with time a use. It was a wide lot, that was for certain. Her eyes drifted to the highest point in the stacks of vehicles. That is where she would begin. It would give her the best view of the lot so she could choose her pickings carefully. She didn't have all night, after all. With a last glance around, as to ensure she was not being tailed, she made her ascent. Some of the surfaces proved tricky, but if there was one thing that Corvo could do better than most, it was climb. Wary of the sharp, rusted points everywhere, she made her way up. Standing atop the vehicle, she looked around. To an outside viewer, she'd appear perfectly at home at such precarious heights, looking down on those around her. She appeared to be a phantom, glowing ivory under the moonlight. She took a moment from her scavenging to simply gaze upon the moon. A faint tugging upon her heart and in her memories made a painful ache throb through her. It was a clear night that night, too. The most heart-rending look flashed across her facade as she felt a pain like no other press down on her shoulders. What? What happened that night? Why can't she remember? It killed her not to know what had occurred, only that it ended her life. With a morose sigh, she looked away from the sphere and went back to looking for a target. Upon spotting a relatively fresh looking vehicle, a black SUV only a few years old but severely mangled in the front, she began to make her way to it with tentative steps. WHEN INNOCENT LOVERS DANCE LIKE ANGELS ON FIRE. THIS IS WHEN THE NIGHT COMES DOWN, A HAMMER ON AN ANVIL, AND THE ONLY ABSOLUTION ACCEPTED IS A LEGACY OF BRUTALITY. A SINGLE NOTE RINGS ON AND ON.... WORDS || 1,051 TAGGED || Open MUSE || Great NOTES || Rambling p.o.s. D: Sorry.

[nessyo]

♥ Chocolat -

Today's foray into the Land of Solitary Adventure had not panned out as  Chocolat would have liked.

It started off normally enough. She was just starting to get comfortable leaving her territory during the day, and wandering about. She didn't spend that much time in Almira proper, preferring instead to keep to the shore more often then not: she'd only wandered through the town itself once before this, intimidated by the smell of strays. The nightmares she imagined they faced, not having a human or a home to call their own! And the nightmares she had heard about them- oh, it had been a common lesson her milk-mother had told her and her siblings, she could just barely remember. The strays were vicious and violent and uncivilized and would hurt you. She'd took those lessons to heart and had avoided them where possible-- it was not always possible, but there you were.

There had also been a few harrowing times where she had gotten terribly lost, but by sticking to areas her humans had walked her, those had been minimized, and thankfully she'd always managed to find where she was going before the darkness came and her humans returned home. Every time prior to this one, anyway: Today was different, and unpleasant. On a whim she now regretted, she'd decided to go into Almira proper  instead of wandering along the shore. She'd been carefully tracking where she was going, of course-- but an unexpected thunderstorm brought terror to her heart, and had her fleeing mindlessly for any kind of shelter. It was one of the dry ones, which were the worst: lightning and thunder and little else.

It passed quickly, as all summer storms did, but when light once again flooded Almira's streets, Chocolat was totally lost.

A day of exploring had not brought her home, and had instead sent her into the heart of stray country: the junkyard. She could smell them, but she tread lightly and hoped her own shampooed fur would not attract too much attention. Nervous, she'd crawled on her belly right underneath a mangled SUV and tried to sleep, fitfully waiting for the morning to come so she could find her way back home.

Somehow she did manage to sleep, and when she woke, it was to a shocking sight: by what light the moon offered, she could see a white canine approaching, pale and ghastly. Holy shit-- was this place haunted too?

Voice high and wavering despite her best efforts, she called out, "Hello?" She was doing her very best to not appear nervous, but it obviously wasn't working quite so well as she might hope. "Can I- um. How- Who are you?"