< atton revisited > The information page for Atton has been fully revised and updated with the new map!
< updated calendar > The Fortuna calendar has been updated in the "Other" lore section! This includes a document which displays the calendar for you to see, making it much easier to understand.
< moving map > The first functional map has been released in the News section! This map is also interactive, allowing you to drag and drop between points in order to determine distances. This is the first iteration, and there's more and better to come!
< first annual awards > The results for the First Annual Fortuna Year-End Awards have been posted! Go and take a look at who the finalists were, and who took home the big prizes!
< new default skin > Our new skin has passed the beta test, and is now the new Default for the forums! If you have any issues with this skin, send a PM or Discord to Mellie.
< human lore update > Humans have been updated with TWENTY-FIVE subraces/subcultures which add numerous options, and a little extra lore and flavour.
< magic lore update > Magical Lore has been enhanced with the addition of a post on Magical Education. From Beginner to Expert, this is how you learn the spells.
< a change to member groups > Member groups are now based on storyline! You can change your displayed storyline by editing the settings in your profile.
Welcome to the world of Fortuna, a land of fantastic proportions. This is an original fantasy roleplay that takes place in a world developed over nearly a decade of work and collaboration. We aim to encourage all participants to have a hand in the stories of the characters here, and the world around them. Your choices are key - so make them with pride. You decide who wins the wars, you decide who becomes King, the world is ours, and together we will bring it to life!
Post by Merlyn Astra on Dec 10, 2016 15:15:42 GMT -7
The gentle swaying of the hammock was normally enough to put Merlyn Astra to sleep, but it was also enough to wake him up. Unlike most ship captains, Merlyn kept the lifestyle of a regular sailor. He knew from his days in a formal navy, as well as aboard other ships, that some captains lived a life of luxury aboard their ships. This would normally come in the form of fancy hammocks with all sorts of gimmicks that included more pillows and coverings. That was not the type of thing that Merlyn wanted while he traveled the seas. He wanted the rugged adventure and thrill that living could truly give.
He waited until the ship turned to a side again before he let himself roll out of the hammock and straight onto his feet. It took him less than ten minutes to get all of his clothing and equipment on. After all, if they were to be under attack he would need to take even less time to get everything together to properly defend himself. Once he was dressed, Merlyn left behind the Captain’s Quarters and stood on the deck of the ship.
Bright sunlight shone down for it was still the early morning. Deckhands were swapping positions with the night crew and taking on their positions up in the sails and in observation positions. Merlyn walked around them and up the stairs to the helm of the ship. He dismissed the man currently at the helm and took control himself. His eyes glanced down to the compass that sat atop the structure with the wheel. He turned the wheel until they were directed southward. “Keep us going in this direction for a few hours,” he ordered while stepping back and walking back to the main deck to inspect anything that could be going on.
“Anything new this morning?” He shouted up towards the crow’s nest, hoping an observer or someone could give him some information to make use of for the day’s plotting. _____ Tag: Leigh Haskell , Kali , @other Defiled Grail Members Notes: Sorry for the wait, take this any way you want, character introductions/stuff abound! If you want to lead into an actiony sequence later with the crew we can do that too!
Post by Leigh Haskell on Dec 10, 2016 16:02:02 GMT -7
[googlefont="Dosis"][googlefont="Lato"]
[attr="class","underwavesheader"]Early in the Morning 2nd of the Winter Storm
[attr="class","waveshsubtitle"]The Defiled Grail, 375 Miles Off the Coast of Aissic
[attr="class","drkwavesbg"]
[attr="class","underwavespic"]
[attr="class","wavesundtext"] Leigh had made the unfortunate mistake she made every year at this time. She had consumed far too much liquor, and had stayed up late into the night enjoying more carnal pleasures. Each year she knew that when the sun had passed the water's edge she'd need to hit the deck running... But each year she did it again. This time was a larger mistake than usual, mostly due to who it was she spent the night with.
After the game the night before it hadn't taken very long to seduce Kali into a mop closet. The two had become quite close - both having the new scabs and bruises to show it. She was a rough one, but Leigh had loved every second of it. Kali was the type you enjoyed, not the kind you fell in love with... And Leigh was done with love, so she would have a good time with Kali for the time being. The two had finished their tryst well after the rest of the celebrations had ended, and the sky was already turning to a lighter colour. She knew she'd be exhausted... But didn't realize how exhausted.
The bruises on her chest, legs, and stomach hurt the most, and Kali had left a decent sized slice in her thigh that burned when she ran some water over it. Perhaps it was something they would only do on occasion - Leigh didn't know how much she could take. As she walked, her head screamed at her - the rum from last night dissipating into pain. But -- she wouldn't look weak. She'd never look weak. So she dressed and was on deck at her normal time, working as the Sailing Master's daymate. Her more useful purpose was in fishing - which they only did when supplies were running low - and in combat and stealth... Which didn't look like the plan today.
The captain had already passed by her post this morning, and had taken the helm of the ship, as was typical. He liked to direct more personally. In fact, he did everything more personally than her past captain had. It improved loyalty - and she figured that was likely why he'd done it. The Sailing Master took the wheel once more and nodded a response to the captain before he noticed Leigh. She received a cursory wave, and an instruction to continue the work she'd started the day before. Of course. She watched with envy as he easily held the ship's wheel, wanting to stand there and feel the seabreeze ripple through her hair, she wanted the thrill of controlling the ship like she had only once or twice before. It was completely unlike the fishing vessels she'd sailed in her younger years. It made one feel powerful.
The job the Sailing Master had her working on was going through the documents they'd "liberated" from an SSPB cargo ship days prior. It was thousands of pages of documents, and most of it was dull... But there had been one item of note that she'd found the day before. One she hadn't shared with the Sailing Master. One she wanted to save for the Captain.
"Morning Captain," Lee offered her greeting as she passed by him on her way below deck to the files. She stopped as she reached the door, however, hearing the Captain's call for any new information. She smiled, then turned back as if just remembering something. She wasn't just remembering. She itched at the fingernail scratches on her collar as she walked back to the captain. She permitted the yells of 'sea and ice' from the crowsnest, and then offered something much more enticing: "Captain... There is something," She pulled the sheet from her pocket and offered it to him, "From the Peacekeeper cargo we grabbed a few days ago. Recognize the name?"
The page was an arrest report. The arrestee didn't have a name listed, only an alias: Plague. The girl was a sorry creature, a mess of bruises that never seemed to fade, and sunken eyes that made her look decomposing. But she was useful. She could squeeze through any space her head could fit, move her bones around like a damned rat. She had disappeared during their last docking, and everyone thought she'd finally had enough of the sea. Everyone had been wrong. She'd been apprehended - alive - by an SSPB officer. And then she had been shipped up to Artavia.
The previous night had been everything Kalie needed to release some of the tension that had built up since she had joined the ship. Rum, Leigh, and the broom closet had been the perfect combination, and the tease from earlier in the night, when Wight had asked Leigh to describe what she would do to Kali, had been more than enough to seduce her. Leigh had caught on quickly just what excited Kali, and she had put her hook to several good uses over the night. Kali liked to give as much as take, and both women had the marks to show for it this morning. Kali sported perhaps a few more than Leigh, as the other woman was willing but less experienced. She didn't take the same amount of pleasure from it as Kali did. Few people did. But again, she caught on quickly - Kali only had to tell her 'harder' twice before Leigh knew that Kali wasn't here for shallow cuts or love taps.
The throbbing in her skull was a beautiful drumbeat, the background music that was a perfect start to any day. It spoke of the excessive amount of rum and whiskey she had drank the night before and each pulse made her feel alive as only pain could do.
Her torso was a canvas displaying the art Leigh's hook and knife had carved into her the night before, some of them clean cuts and some deeper, more jagged, a dark angry red that pulled and stung each time she moved. Kali's skin was tough and hard to bruise after years of cage-fighting, so gouges and gashes were often the only things that left a lasting impression. She liked having trophies imprinted on her skin, and she liked just as much leaving trophies on others. She was sure that Leigh's thigh would forever speak of their night together when it scarred. The thought of it made her excited all over again.
Kali was one of the newest members of the crew, picked up the last time they had made dock a few weeks past, and as such she hadn't found exactly where she belonged on the ship just yet. She was no good at sailing as she had never been on a ship before so at least half the jobs were right out. But recently she had been tasked to help with any heavy lifting they required on account of her strength which suited her just fine. That meant she didn't exactly have a specific time she needed to be up, but she just felt so amazing this morning she was up and ready by the time the crew swap began. She was maybe a little tired from lack of sleep, but that was only a minor inconvenience which could be rectified that night. The previous night's fun was enough to sate her bloodlust at least for a little while. She hoped they would run into a trade ship or something soon though because she wanted her first taste of real action. Bedding someone who could satisfy her tastes was decent enough to ride her over, but there was nothing like an open brawl. The fear in their eyes made the pain inflicted so much sweeter.
She walked the deck, mostly looking out at the water but occasionally looking to the other crew members to see if anyone looked like they needed help. She didn't really want to help with anything, but it had been made clear that everyone on board had to make themselves at least useful enough to be worth the food they ate, so every so often she would find someone who needed help with something she wanted to do.
While she was glancing at the crew she noticed Leigh walking over to the captain. Kali remembered his name was Merlyn, because it sounded like a type of fish which seemed fitting to her, but she had only been briefly introduced to the man once and it was when she first joined the crew. It looked like Leigh was telling him something important, or at the very least interesting. Maybe she would have to go check things out over there. See how Leigh was faring this morning.
Post by Merlyn Astra on Dec 10, 2016 22:13:34 GMT -7
The sea breeze streamed through Merlyn’s hair, ruffling it into the wild and carefree look that it would normally have. There was nothing out at sea besides waves that would sometimes match the height of the deck. His view was obscured by the countless ropes that would drape down across the entire ship. Of course he turned his view upwards, looking up through the sails and watched as the morning sunlight danced through the dark red canvas. Blood red sails were a good way to get himself known. They were expensive, just one of the few things that he would indulge himself in with spending his money. He would spare no expense and making his ship known, whether it was from fear or for admiration, he cared not. “Nothin’ spotted yet sir!” a voice called back down from the observation platform. Merlyn got a small smile as he was already getting a feel for how the day would be. It was bound to be boring, hopefully something would come along and give him some sort of entertainment, something to keep his mind busy. Perhaps an albatross would come flying by and drop a treasure map, he mused while taking a few more side steps to search the sky for such a bird.
Merlyn was torn from his thoughts when he heard a greeting from one of the crew members. Before he could get carried away into his fantasies that would cure his boredom, the crew member that had just greeted him began speaking more in-depth. Just at the mention of there being something he gave all his attention to the crew member. What was their name again? Leroy…Lee…Leigh. That was it. When she handed him the file he took it maybe too eagerly. He just wanted something to do. Not one for liking forms very much, he scanned it for everything that would help. Though he did catch a look at Leigh, noticing her posture and scratching. “Looks like someone had a fun night,’ he grinned, ‘wish I coulda been there to place a wager or two.”
With his comment he went back to the forms. They were very interesting. The grin he had from before just got a bit larger. It was as though a fire was being started within him, and now that the coals had been stirred he would not let the ember go away.
“Great find, this should prove to be a fine undertaking for a new mission,' Merlyn said, 'do you have any suggestions on where to go from here?”
Normally it was in a captain’s best interest to make all decision’s on their own, but Merlyn did not like that. There was no freedom in it. Just because they flew under a different banner, there would be no differences if they still acted just like any other military or government vessel. No, they were all here for a specific reason, and he wanted to make sure that everyone was working towards this greater goal together. If he just gave all the orders, then he would be just like any other ruler. So he wanted to hear the input from crew members, what methods do they think they should be taking to demolish their enemy.
It was for just a few seconds, but Merlyn hoped with every fiber of his being that his crew member would suggest that they go hunting for this Plague that would be a good asset to them. ___________ Tags: blah Notes: blah blah....
Post by Leigh Haskell on Dec 10, 2016 23:24:46 GMT -7
[googlefont="Dosis"][googlefont="Lato"]
[attr="class","underwavesheader"]
[attr="class","waveshsubtitle"]
[attr="class","drkwavesbg"]
[attr="class","underwavespic"]
[attr="class","wavesundtext"] As the captain commented on her look, she laughed a little, and caught sight of Kali heading up for the morning. She didn't want to look like a fool in front of the captain so she didn't wink or gesture with her hook, but she did offer her a smile. She didn't want to ignore her new piece, after all.
For now, however, the captain was her concern. He took the page eagerly and roamed over it, seeing what she saw: but more intensely. It was an adventure for him, no matter what risks Plague's capture could pose. She was a pretty minor crew member, after all. She had pleased him, and this managed a smile from her. She wasn't the kind to play for favorites, but it never hurt to be on your leader's better side.
"That depends... Do you know anyone with an airship? Because either... We get one, or we stowaway on one heading there," As she said it, she wondered what riding in an airship would be like. Would the clouds feel like waves? Or would it feel wrong? Then she wondered if there was something else that was wrong about all this -- "Though, not to forget that this month most of the SSPB, including some of their top people will be in Aissic... So it could be a trick to distract us from their headquarters left mostly unguarded come the end of the month."
Kali meandered closer to where the two of them were talking, hunched over some papers. Leigh caught sight of her and smiled so Kali flashed a smile back, though it was more of a playful smirk. She noticed with glee that many of the marks were still very visible on the other woman's skin, and knew that under her clothes were would be even more. She was close enough to hear the captain mention a new mission and ask for suggestions on where to go from there, and Leigh responded that they would need to get an airship. Kali was intrigued. Where would they be going that they would need an airship? They were sea pirates, not air pirates. Leigh then went on to say that the SSPB headquarters would be mostly unguarded by the end of the month and the airship thing could be a distraction. Well, her curiosity was piqued. She wanted to do something other than nothing around here, and whatever they were talking about sounded like doing something.
"Good morning Captain. Leigh," she greeted as she closed the distance between them. "Did I hear something about airships?" Did she have anything to contribute to the conversation? Not really, but damn what else was there to do right now? The ocean was the ocean and the ship was only sailing in the one direction so everything was pretty much handled. She thought being a pirate would have more action, but it seemed to be a lot of sailing the empty ocean right about now.
Post by Merlyn Astra on Dec 11, 2016 18:04:32 GMT -7
Airships? Now that had been a while since he last attempted to do anything with them. Merlyn had found such methods of transportation to be quite boring, and quite frankly they take most of the fun out of piracy. Swooping down onto unsuspecting ships was far too easy. Normally this was something he would just ignore if he was still into regular piracy, but his movement had spread too much. His loosely held fleet was at war with those that would take their livelihood. This was no time to let any amount of pride get in his way.
”Stealing an airship sounds fun,’ Merlyn grinned, ’ah, morning.”
Then again, there was the opportunity to attack the SSPB base. To find someone that could help their cause or to assault the very people. This was one of those times that he would have to make a choice between two options, then again, he was no longer just a ship captain, he had a fleet at his disposal. Well, at least a fleet that would be happy to get some form of revenge against those that would steal their freedom. “Why not both? Certainly the theft of an airship and rescuing of a possible ally would cripple the morale of our enemies as well as boost our own capabilities,” the Captain said. It was true, only a single ship, no, a small crew would be needed to steal an airship, while something like that was going on a fleet could attack a near empty base, leave a mark on the SSPB. “I’m sure there is someone around here that likes to steal,” he laughed. _____ Tags: Blank Notes: Sorry for the delay!
Actually, it looked like Kali could contribute to the conversation after all. "Hmm, you know I actually know a guy with an airship," she mentioned casually, wondering what he meant by rescuing an ally. Had a pirate been captured? That certainly sounded like something that could lead to some fun. And if she could help, then she could get in on the rescue mission and get some action. She could see that Leigh and the captain were both interested and so she continued, elaborating on her previous statement. "Most of the regulars at the fights were arrogant pricks who liked to brag about how they amassed the fortunes they were betting away. More than a few of them had airships, but one of them was from the Tarifa underground, right here in Aissic. I'm sure if we tracked him down we could... convince him to let us use it."
Post by Leigh Haskell on Dec 11, 2016 20:03:48 GMT -7
[googlefont="Dosis"][googlefont="Lato"]
[attr="class","underwavesheader"]
[attr="class","waveshsubtitle"]
[attr="class","drkwavesbg"]
[attr="class","underwavespic"]
[attr="class","wavesundtext"] Leigh's eyebrows quirked at the new information Kali provided. Well well. She was just full of hidden uses, wasn't she? "Newbie's got connections," Leigh bit her lip, the scab left there pulling off and giving way to an iron taste that she thought might forever remind her of Kali. She then added onto the plan, hoping the captain was on board with the direction they were taking: "We could fly one of the merchant flags we've 'liberated' on one of your less recognizable ships and dock pretty easily. There's so many going in and out for the festival that they aren't going to bat an eye so long as we don't stand out."
Post by Merlyn Astra on Dec 12, 2016 20:29:49 GMT -7
A grin spread across Merlyn’s face. All of these members of the motely resistance he had come together with were surprisingly cunning. Not that he would ever doubt the conniving of the pirates, or at least those that associated with pirates. “You’re right, everyone’s got some useful connections, and I like the way you think, Kali was it?’
‘We have a new ship I believe, freshly ‘liberated’ from a trade fleet, it got lost in a storm if I remember, so it should serve well to lead a charge,” he grinned while withdrawing a compass from his pocket. He glanced down at it for only a few seconds to find their current heading. “Helm, take us South South-West to the nearest port of Tarifa, also begin preparations on the Kittihawk to make her look ‘normal’ again.”
As the command rang out to the helmsman, the ship began to shift direction with the Quartermaster taking command of the crew manning the sails. Looking back to Leigh and Kali he gave an enthusiastic look. “Come with me, we’re going to plan our special event entry for the festival,” he said while motioning to the two that helped come up with these ideas to follow him back into the main cabin where all the maps and instruments of planning could be found. _____ Tags: blank Notes: Sorry for delay, the rest of the week should be better for me!
The skin OTHERWORLD was made by JAWN of WICKED WONDERLAND.
FORTUNA-RPG was created by MELLIE. Images belong to their respective artists. All codes and scripts belong to their respective coders. Please DO NOT take anything without the owners' permission.
