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You have a way with words, Belly. I like the whole "parastical phoenix" metaphor to describe 4CW. Very clever and well written. I could have done with the first few paragraphs being just a little bit shorter - but I'm nitpicking.
"before you know it, everyone is coming back from the eternal abyss to claim they were the rightful one to lead this ghost ship into a modern era…"
Great line here and it rings more true than any of us realise I think...
Your descriptive powers are on point, nice imagery, Belly's words kept me interested and even though some of what he said was a little vague, I see what you were going for and it works well. Overall, this is a great roleplay to get back in the swing of things.
Thanks Taker_2004 for the banner!
Peering through the nothingness… piercing the complete blackness that surrounds… light somehow finds away to survive and fight back. The darker the blackness becomes, the brighter the light appears to be as it struggles to find its rightful place in this world, proving that no matter the odds of survival or how unlikely it seems, there has always been and always will be a place in this world for both light and dark even if it is just a glimmer of light or a tiny shadow of darkness, one cannot exist without the other.
It is this defiant light source that seeks out and finds a reflective surface, thus giving its life meaning as it radiates itself tenfold, it reflects from a mirrored surface, creating a tunnel through the darkness thus proving the ying and yang of light and dark continues to exist. In this small window of visibility, staring back at its own reflection are 2 dark holes surrounded by a glimpse of white, which catches the attention of the reflecting light, and the brighter the whites of the eyes get, the darker the pupils become, both light and dark coexisting together, feeding off one another, becoming stronger together.
The tunnel of light is not powerful enough to extend a view beyond the eyes, yet these 2 piercing black holes continue to stare at the mirror, motionless without blinking they continue to stare back onto themselves, an endless cycle seemingly to never break. The mind is a wonderful thing though and a very powerful tool when used correctly, for once the darkness engulfs and the vision is impaired or hindered, then the other bodily senses begin to take over as they all become sharper.
The body begins to feel the moisture in the air accompanying the darkness, which is amplified further by a slight whistling breeze hitting the bare flesh on the arms and the head.. the beads of sweat becoming slightly colder as the breeze makes contact. As breathe is inhaled through the nose, the damp smell of the surroundings is unmistakable, not the fresh air of outdoors but that stale smell of recirculated air of an old air conditioning unit, that if you are motionless and concentrate hard enough stimulates another one of your senses, sound… the rattling of the old piping as the screws rattle in their holes, a sound easily overshadowed by the hustle and bustle of every day life, but only really appreciated when everything is still and silent.
A softly spoken, quiet voice breaks the silence, distracting all of the other senses as the mind focuses on the sound of the voice
“It has been compared to the phoenix, whom time after time is reborn from its own ashes, creating its own circle of never ending life… But the more apt comparison is that of a parasite refusing to die off, no matter how many times it falls, and is stamped on, the cockroach manages to survive.”
The eyes staring back from the mirror has its constant stare broken for a tenth of a second as the lids close and reopen quickly, just one blink before the stare continues. The silence never returned for long though as another voice, much sharper, more impatient with a deeper tone begins to talk
”Every time it arises from the ashes, the phones begin to ring, the internet becomes alive with hash tags of those 3 characters, rumours are started and inevitably names are thrown around and before you know it, everyone is coming back from the eternal abyss to claim they were the rightful one to lead this ghost ship into a modern era… This isn’t the first time that the couriers have left documents where they know I can find them… nor is this the first time that the phone begins to ring from numerous lost numbers… Never are they answered, as that would mean looking backwards yet the path I follow always moves forward”
The eyes in the mirror blink twice, just as quick as before but one after another before the stare is resumed
“The path my friend can spiral many times, before it reaches its final destination, it is not for one to question the direction of the path but to keep moving forward, following where the path takes you. No matter how hard people look at something not everyone can see what is truly there.. Some people cannot see beyond what is directly in front of them no matter how long or hard they may stare into the abyss, their minds will only let them see what they want to see... “
The beads of sweat continue to slowly fall down the bare skin, yet the slight breeze from the air conditioning does not make the beads so cold now that the silence has broken, yet the eyes continue to stare into the mirror, still focuses ion themselves, blinking slowly.
“You always talk in cryptic sentences, never saying what you really mean, always thinking that you are better than you are when in truth you are always alone, you go from place to place, hiding in the shadows, observing from the darkness, critiquing wherever possible as you always know better… But the one thing we have always agreed upon is to never be led like the blind or follow aimlessly like sheep and yet here you are suggesting we do just that and make a 180 on our path”
The stare into the mirror is still unbroken through the tunnel of light - except for the blink of the eyes - the stare remains constant throughout
“The path that is laid before you my friend was laid a long time before the phone calls began once again, so there are no 180’s or back tracking, the only way is forward as it has always been… You cannot return to somewhere that you never truly left…. If the path leads you towards the phoenix once again, then it is because you have unfinished business that needs to reach its conclusion”
“I stand here staring into your eyes… I can see through the darkness that consumes you and I can open the gate to your soul… You once told me that a change of appearance is a necessary requirement from time to time… But if this is the path I must take, then this is the incarnation I am sticking to…”
The eyes that stare into the mirror begin to move closer and closer to the mirror, until they are almost touching, waiting for a second for focus to be regained…
“Knowing how to peer into the gateway to the soul is not the same as knowing how to unlock that gateway and using it to your advantage my friend… You still have a lot to learn… A change of appearance is necessary and the manifestation of which you have chosen is acceptable - for neither Life nor Death can survive solely in the shadows, thus requires the ability to walk that fine line straddling the two. You know what you must do now, you know where you must go, and what you must do…”
As the eyes begin to retreat from the mirror, the light creating the tunnel begins to fight back against the surrounding darkness as the tunnel of light begins to grow. The eyes step further back from the reflection in the mirror, enabling the tunnel to multiply in size, and it is not long until the eyes are not the only thing seen within the reflection, as a pale nose can be seen below the darkness of the eyes, with pale white cheeks surrounded by a dark trimmed beard. Slowly a hood that cover the rest of the face is removed, revealing the dark Mohican that runs from forehead to neck, dividing the head into two halves.
“The path I travel down has many twists and turns and often takes me to places I had never expected, and this is no exception.. But I trust in what you are saying and I know what to do next.. I know that the call must be answered as the unfinished business you speak of is a given and no need to utter names but we both know of whom I speak of… Once again our path crosses with the phoenix”
Reaching up from his waist, the man in front of the mirror raises a black bandana and ties it around his head, the large white skull prominent in its position at the top of the bandana, as the light continues to battle against the darkness, pouring in through a window, slowly the darkness is sent into retreat as it hides In the shadows of any objects it can find as the window allows more and more light in to the fight. Yet no matter how light the room becomes, the darkness of the eyes in the mirror remain the same, no light could ever defeat the darkness completely as long as those piercing eyes remain staring back.
“Yes my friend… The parasitical phoenix awaits”
The man in the mirror talks with a soft spoken voice and within a blink of an eye the same man talks with a deeper sharp tone, 2 voices, one mouth as the man continues to stare into the mirror as a slight smile begins to appear upon the face of the man but only for a second and then the emotionless stare returns as the man once again blinks creating an unbreakable darkness in a room full of light.