Song; A Sadness Runs Through Him by The Hoosiers.

(With adjustments to the lyrics to avoid as much repeating and better fit the characters in some spots)

Characters; Blade, Tarka, Siserich, Eugen, and Marisol. Cyril mentioned, technically, I guess.

Context; Basically just how people, mostly dead ones, see/feel about Blade. Not including Amandine since I don’t know how she sees/feels about Blade yet, haha. Mentions of character death and very vague implications/hints.

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*First we start it off with Tarka and Blade. Basically immediately after Marisol’s death. Prepare for a lot of vagueness because honestly explaining everything would take way too long at the moment. Just know that after Marisol’s death, the group kind of split. Kind of. Tarka remained friends with Blade and Cyril, though both friendships had new strains to them. Blade and Cyril are more complicated. Cyril isn’t the focus here though so we can just forget about him for now.*

Tarka, half to Blade, half to himself, we’re witnessing the birth of a new mindset as he tries to cope with Marisol’s death and the breaking down of the group; “People are puppets held together with string.”

Blade, about Tarka, referring to how after Marisol’s death there was a moment where they ended up talking about Blade’s religious sect; “There’s a beautiful sadness that runs through him as he asks me to pray to the God he doesn’t believe in…”

*Skipping straight past that vagueness into the actual RP timeline here– Eventually, at least some of the polycule will get to meet Tarka. Who will, of course, offer insights and information about Blade if anyone asks… Literally anything about the two of them. Tarka has zero qualms in sharing basically anything and everything. So, uh, yeah. Tarka and Devery would be great friends. Either that or they’d hate each other. Very much would depend on quite a bit, I think.*

Tarka, about Blade, also kind of referencing the cult, because, well, fun fact he knows way more about what’s going on there than what you’d assume at first glance; “Time and again boys are raised to be men, impatient they start… Fearful they end…”

Tarka, just more about Blade, referring to how Blade was before Marisol’s death, yes, before Marisol’s death; “There was a man mourning tomorrow, who drank but finally drowned in his sorrow.”

Tarka, referring to the cult, and also kind of Cyril; “Oh, he could not break surface tension, he looked in the wrong place for redemption…”

Tarka, this bit is a little more dependent on how the others react to Tarka’s insights but, I mean, it’s also a bit of Tarka having guilt and trying to cope with it however he can, including basically saying that helping Blade is impossible; “Don’t look at me with those eyes, I tried to unheave the ties… Turn back the time that drew him. But he couldn’t be saved, a sadness runs through him.”

*And now, we get to the dead people. This also will, technically, give you some insight on said dead people. So. Enjoy that, I guess. Anyways, the first dead people up are Siserich and Eugen! Aka, Blade’s older and younger brother, respectively. This means, gasp, you get some hints on their past too!*

Siserich, and thus the hints begin, as Blade’s older brother is mostly just referencing their childhood at the moment, though this bit is almost in a fond sort of way; “Time and again boys are raised to be men, impatient they start…”

Siserich, oops, he’s still referencing their childhood but this bit is most certainly not in a fond way as he is kind of referencing his and Eugen’s deaths; “Fearful they end.”

Siserich, and now he’s moved on to how his and Eugen’s deaths affected Blade; “But here was a boy, mourning tomorrow… Who ran but finally fell in his sorrow…”

Siserich, now starting to reference the cult as Blade was first taken into it despite his, uh, appearances and issues at the time; “Oh, he could not break surface tension…”

Siserich, referring to when Blade officially joined the cult; “He looked in the wrong place for redemption…”

Eugen, woo it’s the younger brother now, referring to how absolutely amazing he was before his and Siserich’s deaths, dude was seriously singlehandedly keeping the brothers’ mental states together; “Don’t look at me with those eyes– I tried to unheave the ties!”
Eugen, still referencing the same thing but like, in a much sadder way given how everything turned out and all; “Turn back the time that drew him…”

Eugen, yeah, uh, he’s mostly just trying to cope with what happened at this point; “But he couldn’t be saved… A sadness runs through him…”

*And now, uh, well. Technically it’s Marisol’s turn but to understand her turn, we first have to spend a little more time with the brothers. The hints will be… Relatively vague. Which is why it doesn’t get its own context separation and all.*

Siserich, to Blade, taking his job as the eldest brother very seriously, also far before anyone’s deaths; “Don’t look…”

Siserich, to Blade, still taking his job as eldest brother very seriously but now it’s also basically right before/during the deaths; “Don’t look!”

Eugen, dying, I mean, no real good way to put it, it’s him right before/while dying; “Don’t–”

Marisol, and it’s finally her, during their last argument with Blade before her death, which was, uh, about the cult, oops; “Don’t look at me with those eyes! I tried to unheave the ties!”

Marisol, after their death now and very much referring to her argument with Blade, very upset/frustrated, though mostly at themself and the cult; “Turn back the time that drew him! But he couldn’t be saved! No, he couldn’t be saved–”

Marisol, not very upset/frustrated at Blade though, because, well, she knew quite a bit of what was going on behind the scenes; “A sadness runs through him…”

Ovid; “That’s capital B bullshit!”

-

Blade, to Eugen & Siserich, starting to laugh; “I have no idea how we’re still alive— It makes no sense!”

-

Anissa; “Kylar?”

Kylar; “So you do remember. Wonderful. Saves us the bother of useless pleasantries.”

Anissa; “What the hell are you doing in my apartment? What are you doing in this city?”

Kylar; “I came to see you. What else would I be doing?”

-

Hasiya; “When I first met you, I thought you were weird and annoying.”

Eyphah; “And?”

Hasiya, knowing full well that they’re great friends; “And you are.”

-

Nex; “I agree with Kylar.”

Seely; “I don’t agree with Kylar.”

Nex; “Oh! Then I don’t agree with Kylar too.”

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Presley; “You underestimate the number of weird, nerdy conversations I’ve had with clergy.”

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Tris, to Nex; “Are you a hero?”

-

Nex; “I’m going to defeat you with the power of friendship and this gun I found!”

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Kylar, to Anissa; “Would it be inappropriate to wear my combat boots with formal attire?”

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Anissa; “I’m not going to stand by and watch you kill a man.”

Kylar; “Well, you’re welcome to sit, if you like, but you are gonna watch.”

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Theora; “Uh… I think you threw a guy off a skyscraper in Paris?”

Zenith; “Hm…”

Seely; “Last chance for that cup of tea!”

-

Theora; “I may not entirely trust my assistants, but I won’t lose them.”

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Nex; “Death will not do us part, you stupid cunt.”

-

Anissa; “You’re supposed to be dead.”

Kylar; “I got better?”

-

Kylar; “You know the plan.”

Raivo, to the rest of the squad; “Uh… Dudes?”

Hasiya; “What?”

Raivo; “He jumped.”

Eraño; “He jumped?!”

-

Seely, to Harlye; “Keep it sunny, little bunny.”

-

Anissa; “You can’t just walk in there, with your three piece suit, and say, ‘Hello, drug dealers!’”

Kylar; “I would never do that.”

Song; Wait For Me from HadesTown

(With some slight adjustments to the lyrics to better fit characters and avoid as much repeating in some spots)

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Characters; Søren, Lorcan, Alizia, Aether, Kit, Sandy, and some random guards.

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Context; Søren lore, yippee!

This song dives a bit deeper into Søren and his former group's escape (or attempted escape for some of them-) and some of that aftermath while also discussing some of the general mentality that the living carry even now (as in, at the start of the RP).

Ummm, lots and lots of angst in this one, mostly angst, actually, so, enjoy! Lmao

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TWs; Mentioned character death, suicidal thoughts/implications, implications of child abuse (sexual, physical, emotional, mental) and neglect, mentions/implications of trafficking

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*Starting with the planning stage, most of the materials and the map are all already gathered at this point, but as the group sits down one night to put everything together a large hole starts to show as they realize there's not really a single blind spot or specific time that the guards have where escape would be easier, meaning they have to fall back on plan B, which is decidedly more risky*

Kit, sitting down and tilting their head slightly, watching Aether, waiting for an explanation of the plan he's creating: “How to get to Eylsium?”

Aether, examining the self-made map only to shake their head and push it aside, recognizing it'll be essentially useless with the lack of pattern the guard uses: “We'll have to take the long way ‘round.”

Sandy, grinning, enthusiastic about the idea of escape, not really processing the risk: “Through the underground, under cover of night!”

Alizia, pulling Sandy to her side, trying to seem enthusiastic for the younger’s sake but failing at hiding her nerves: “Laying low, staying out of sight…”

Søren, starting to form his own plan as they register Aether's rising anxiety at having to use the fallback plan: “Ain't no compass, Aether.”

Aether, looking over at Søren, clenching his hands to hide their shaking: “There ain't no map.”

Lorcan, taking a deep breath, pressing her shoulder against Aether's in comfort: “Just a wire, and lack of track…”

Aether, closing his eyes and leaning into Lorcan, nodding and setting his jaw, leaning into the secondary plan; just run: “Keep on moving, and you don't look back!”

Sandy, grinning: “'Til we get to the peace lands!”

*Jump to the night of the escape, the last meeting before they start running, the first real one since Lorcan's death a week ago. They split into groups, Alizia, Kit, and Sandy in one and Aether and Søren in the other, tying wires to their wrists or clothes to make sure they can stick together. Each has a chunk of bread in hand. The plan was for Søren and Aether to run ahead first, in hopes of drawing any attention that might come from the attempt away from the desired path, the other three would wait five minutes and then book it. Meeting outside was discussed, but without knowing what all is outside there's no real way to figure out where to go*

Alizia, visibly shaking, but determined: “Wait for me, I'm coming!

Sandy, grinning and grabbing Ali’s hand, more excited than anything: “Wait, I'm coming with you!”

Kit, grinning and ruffling Sandy's hair, nodding encouragingly toward Ali: “Wait for me, I'm coming too!”

Aether, determined but worried, eyes focused on Søren who he immediately caught on to being weird: “I'm coming too.”

Aether, sighing and turning to the rest of the group, once again covering the path, eyes turning a bit sad when using mythology terms to describe the route, continuing what Lorcan had stated years ago: “River Styx is high and wide.”

Sandy, nodding excitedly: “Cinderbricks and razor wire!”

Alizia, squeezing Sandy's hand tighter: “Walls of iron and concrete…”

Kit, trying to keep up the mood, despite the danger, mimicking Sandy's excited tone: “Hound dogs howling round the gate!”

Aether, nodding, holding up the chunk of bread in his hand, meant to be thrown to distract the dog: “Those dogs will lay down and play dead if you got the bones, if you got the bread!”

Søren, tone slightly more commanding, reminding the others that, as soon as that bread leaves their hands, they run: “But if all you got is your own two legs? Just be glad you got 'em!”

Ali, taking one last deep breath and triple-checking that the wire connecting her to Sandy and Kit is secure, keeping Sandy in the middle for protection, and kneeling down to look Sandy in the eyes, determined to, at the very least, get the younger girl who she considered a sister out: “Wait for me, I'm coming!”

Sandy, grinning and wrapping her arms around Alizia's neck: “Wait, I'm coming with you!”

Kit, grinning at the sweet interaction and pulling them both into a hug as well: “Wait for me, I'm coming too!”

Aether, watching the other three for a moment before turning to Søren, double checking their wire one last time before they start their run, lightly placing his forehead against the others and tapping his arm in non-verbal communication that they, along with Lorcan, had come up with after Søren lost their sight so they could communicate without talking still, affirming that they were going to stick together: “We’re coming too.”

*Now onto the run! Starting with Søren and Aether's! This song doesn't have enough to get into all the details, so it's all pretty vague here. No worries though, I do have plans for a short story (or several short stories) eventually! For now, just enjoy the angst hints, lmao*

A guard, turning in confusion, basically immediately catching on to Søren and Aether as they run from their usual holding room raising the alarm while the two continue to move to drag the guards away: “Who are you?”

Aether, in a panic as Søren suddenly tanks the wire off his own wrist, severing his and Aether’s connection, and diverts from the planned path, shoving Aether forward and away while doing so before spreading their wings and basically causing as much of a ruckus as possible to bring all the attention to themself: “Where do you think you are going?!”

Søren, raising their voice, successfully pulling the attention away from Aether for a moment, tapping ‘go’ on their leg for his friend to see and hoping Aether obliges, which he does after a moment of hesitation: “Who are you?!”

One guard, after fighting to get Søren captured for a minute, using a mocking tone: “Why are you all alone?”

A second guard, coming up behind Søren, just managing to snag part of his wing with his weapon before Søren can jump out of the way, flinching when Søren retorts by throwing one of their make-shift knives (scraps of metal he’s collected and sharpened over the years) directly at him: “Who do you think you are?!”

The last guard on Søren, eyes narrowed and voice low with anger and a threat: “Who are you to think that you can walk a road that no one’s ever walked before…?”

*Jump to Kit, Sandy, and Alizia at the five minute mark, making their move, only to realize Søren and Aether's first attempt actually kinda backfired, with more guards having been alerted to the attempt and now being more on the lookout for others who may try to run as well while also looking for Aether and trying to contain Søren*

Kit, as the three begin to move, squeezing Sandy's shoulder and quietly encouraging her excitement, mostly trying to keep the mood from shifting to pure panic: “We're on the lam!”

Sandy, enthusiastically playing into Kit’s encouragement, also keeping her voice low: “We're on the run!”

Guard, cutting the three off and grinning, basically mocking the idea that any of them could function in the outside world, rubbing in the lack of identity while pushing them into a corner: “Don't give your name, you don't have one.”

Ali, shoving Sandy behind her, speaking so only the younger and Kit cam hear: “Don't look no one in the eye…”

Guard 2, also mocking, while reaching out to pull the three apart: “That world would suck you dry!”

Guard 3, snickering and rushing to help restrain Kit, who's fighting back one of the other guards somewhat successfully, keeping up the mocking tone: “They'll suck your brain, they'll suck your breath!”

Guard 4, getting in Sandy's face threateningly, seeming amused at her fear and Alizia's screaming, Kit’s gone noticeably silent: “They'll pluck the heart right out your chest!”

Guard 1, shrugging and releasing Ali, smiling in a way that says he knows she won't make it out in the world alone, throwing one last insult her way before leaving her to “finish the escape” and signalling the other guards to follow, taking the limp bodies of Kit and Sandy with them: “They'll dress you up in your Sunday best, and stuff your mouth with cotton!”

*Jump a bit farther, after Alizia, Aether, and Søren are out, but after Ali and Aether have already parted. Aether and Søren search for each other while Alizia contemplates her choices. The dead keep track of it all, with Sandy having bonded to Alizia after death, Lorcan having bonded to Aether and Søren both, and Kit having bonded to all three.*

Sandy, watching Alizia from the afterlife, trying desperately to somehow communicate that she's still there and Ali isn't alone: “Wait for me, I'm coming!”

Kit, nudging Sandy's shoulder and smiling comfortingly: “Wait, I'm coming with you!”

Lorcan, going back and forth between watching Søren and Aether, really just wishing he could be with either of them in the way she wanted, torn between grief of not being able to and hope that they may find each other again one day: “Wait for me, I'm coming too…”

Alizia, sitting on the edge of a building roof, tears in her eyes, looking up at the sky, speaking to Sandy without knowing if she can hear her or not, desperate to see her little sister again: “I'm coming…”

Søren, navigating the outside world surprisingly well all things considered, focused on finding the others, especially Aether, and trying to keep from losing hope: “I'm coming, wait for me! I hear the walls repeating the falling of my feet, and it sounds like drumming!”

Aether, arguably doing the best of any of them, incredibly determined to find Søren, not allowing himself the time to even question things: “And I am not alone! I hear the rocks and stones echoing my song; I'm coming!”