The mortal was so focused on the map that he barely noticed the boy run up to him until he spoke. He rather reluctantly tore his gaze away from his studies and offered a small friendly wave in return. He had noticed Cuthwolf had only one arm, but that fact hadn't done much to faze the man-- he had seen a lot stranger in the past few days alone.

"Oh, I'm simply looking at this map here." The vines holding the map angled more in the direction of Cuthwolf, showing him that it was a fairly up-to-date map of the medieval sect, including major cities, landmarks, and approximate locations of deity domains in the area.

"I thought it may help to jog my memory, but..." he sighed. "I think all it's done is confuse me more, if I'm being quite honest. Sometimes I will see a name and recognize it, but as soon as I try to capture that feeling, it escapes me. I feel as if I'm trying to catch light. I can see it and feel its heat, but I can never truly hold it."

He realized at that point he was lamenting his extremely personal loss of identity to a random child. "My apologies, I seem to have forgotten my manners along with everything else," he said quickly with a sheepish grin. "I would tell you my name, but I'm afraid I don't know that, either. Who might you be?"

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Cuthwolf! It feels like I see someone new every day around here." The mortal pointed at a collection of kingdoms that were clustered closely together. "This area here, for the most part, is what I think I am supposed to know. This isn't a very detailed map in terms of local landmarks and things of that nature, so it's only the names of the kingdoms, but I feel as if I've studied it before. I have very vague feelings about many things, yet when I try to remember specifics, I can't seem to place anything at all. It's quite disconcerting."

As he spoke, his finger traced over the territory of Anatina. "This is the most familiar to me. I know that I had people I was looking after, and I failed in some way... and I know that I did something to upset a very powerful man, enough that he wished to kill me."

The man frowned and subconsciously moved back against the Bushbeast's leg for comfort. The feeling that he must have done something so awful, so horrible that the consequence was his death had been plaguing him for days. The fact he could remember none of it made it all the more distressing. How do you atone for something if you had no idea what you did?

Huck uttered a low grumble in his sleep, as if sensing the mortal's stress.

 

He looked back at Huck for a couple seconds, contemplating the question. He wasn't actually all that familiar with the creature. Sure, the Bushbeast had carried him around and was the reason he was still alive in the first place, but it wasn't as if they were making small talk the whole time. Still, he didn't strike the mortal as being particularly friendly. Having been carried in Huck's mouth for a few months, he had firsthand experience with the size of his teeth. Probably not a good idea to let strangers try to touch him.

"I'm sorry, I don't think he likes being pet. He's sleeping too, so it's best not to bother him. They don't need to sleep regularly like you or I, but a slumbering Bushbeast means they've expended a lot of their energy without a break and need to replenish themselves. A good nap in the sun like he's doing right now should be enough." the man's expression had brightened as he explained, but it now returned to the look of  puzzled frustration he had earlier. He'd been making that face a lot these days. "I'm not sure why I know that, but it seems correct. Perhaps I'm more knowledgeable on these creatures than I think."

One of Huck's eyes opened, revealing the glowing blue amber within. "Short answer: no," he rumbled.

Just as about Cuthwolf was to nod in agreement with Lianhuan, another set of footsteps tell that another is arriving, "Hang on." Time says, "I want to ask some more questions."

Time walks past the others to stop in front of the stranger a bit of a ways away. He shifts his weight as he stand in the grass onto one of his legs, "First of which, how are you feeling?"

"Mhm. Much appreciated." Time acknowledged, but he quickly moved onto his next question, "I know this may sound weird, but how much do you wish to remember yourself?"

"Finding out who you are, or were, may be something you're willing to do, but it also means reintroducing yourself the the past dangers and problems you had. From what I can tell, it seems those problems and dangers were quite major with someone poweful out for your head."

"By now, they could presume you dead from poison, but they definitely won't if you look to relearn your past."

"I'm sure that if some were in this position, they'd rather start anew than face that danger. I wanted to double check before I give some possilble leads: what will it be for you?"

((Ayo how secretive and how much time has passed since the coup give or take))

“Information!? I’ve got some of that!” Ark has arrived. Arrived late, but he has indeed arrived. “I mean, I might have information. Might not. Depends, really. But anyway, whatcha guys doin?” It should be noted that he is standing in the nearest window. 

((They blasted through everything?? I don't remember that lol))

Time acknowledges the arrival of Ark, "We're discussing this mortal's memories, and any possible leads we have for them. Feel free to add on." he then goes on to revealing some information.

"So, your coat, yes?" He motions towards it, "I'd assume The Ouroboros is a family crest, is it not? You also remember you were looking out for a group, and you had a sense of importance. Two and two together, it's obvious you're nobility of some sort."

He then points to the map, "You also have a significant familiarity to Anatina. As of a while ago, a coup was staged. Now I don't know the gritty details of it, though I should, considering the possible sponsors of the coup, but The King, and I assume any nobles were loyal to him were hunted down and killed. I'm sure you can defer from that."

"If needed we could follow up on what Lianhuan," He then nods to the Chinese Boy, "proposed and run tests from where the poison came from to confirm your nationality. Though using it to confirm where you come from can be iffy since the poison could have been provided from external sources. It could probably be used to help tract down said external sources though."

Last edited by Time (August 21, 2022 22:34:11)

Prospero exploded at least two doors iirc and a couple guards got killed. Felix was a very public-facing ruler so the coup would have been noticed by Anatina's neighbors regardless))

The information of the coup had stunned the mortal into silence for a few moments. To be honest, that hadn't done much to assuage the fear that he had done something horrible-- he could have very well have been participating in the coup just as much as he could have been a victim in it. But, some answers were better than none, and it seemed like they were circling in on the truth.

He reached up to the Ouroboros symbol on his coat, absentmindedly rubbing the fabric in his fingers. It felt comforting, familiar, a practiced movement done countless times before. A secret sign he'd used in many social events to tell Figura he was ready to leave. Figura? "I--"

Searing pain ripped across his chest, causing the mortal to double over with a strangled cry. The vines still  holding the map fell away, withering and crumbling to dust before they even hit the ground. The plants around him rapidly wilted, an effect that was already steadily spreading in radius.

The instant the mortal had hunched over, Huck fully awoke with a startled roar, leaping away from the him with an expression he rarely displayed: pure fear. A large portion of the foliage growing on the Bushbeast's back had turned a sickly yellow color, and fell off the creature in a shower of leaves as he landed several yards away from the mortal. On impact, he stumbled and instinctively lowered himself into a more aggressive posture but fell heavily on his side, gouging a deep furrow into the soil. Huck struggled to rise again, only to collapse back onto the ground with an earth-shaking thud. Throughout, he never took his eyes off the mortal, his ears flattened and lips pulled back in a feral snarl as he dug his claws into the dirt.

The mortal, however was oblivious to this, blinded by pain. He may not have known many things, but he knew magic when he felt it. But this was not the easy, comfortable warmth he felt when he grew the vines that morning, or when he had awoken in Shiloh's domain. This was dark, angry, intensely unnatural. Panic seized him, and from somewhere within he found the strength to lift his head to look pleadingly at the others. His eyes were entirely black with many pinpoints of white, like faraway stars.

“Woah woah woah!” Ark reacts in a similar manner. He snaps his fingers, and a short wave of light bursts out from his fingertips in all directions. Anyone in the area who has a relatively normal soul suddenly notices it glowing. A yellow glow for non hostile souls, and a red one for hostility. He also places his own shield outside the area. However, he seems to lack in healing capabilities. Other magic god, you’re up.

Ark shrugs. “Maybe. For all we know this-“ He nods towards the mortal. “-could just be caused by some random outsider who really hates this guy. Besides, it’s just a general detection spell. Not really meant for just demigods.”

"Nope." Time answers Ark, noting the current surroundings, "This magic is definitely from him. Or the poison." His mind churns as to why the reaction happened. But for now...

Time looks to the mortal, "How are you feeling?" He asks him.

Time frowns, "Unfortunately, my current theory is that there's some secondary enchantment delivered by the poison or something in which results a big reaction whenever you try to learn your past. A backup to if you survived the initial wound." He explains, ready to react just in case the decaying energy flares up again, "If we're not careful, it may happen again."

He pauses for a moment. Then speaks up, "Say, do you remember any information on the past that I gave you?"

“Hm…” Ark deactivates his detection spell. “Well, at least we have a name now! That’s something we can work with.”

Not much of a choice to be had there-- run some tests or die to the unknown. The man nodded a little. "Fine by me. However, I'd like to ask if those tests could be done sooner rather than later, or at least be able to be performed on the road. I think it's about time I prepare to take my leave. Perhaps I can find answers in Anatina. At the very least, if what you say about the coup is true, there may be those there that need my assistance."

With that, the mortal stood, moving in a slow, agonizing way of someone thrice his age. Well, at least he's up now.

Huck had somewhat rejoined the group and watched this passively. His wariness had dissipated from an outside perspective, but he was still a bit further away from the man than he had been in the past. "You look like you are going to fall with the next breeze," the creature commented matter-of-factly.