< 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!
Simon was having an uneventful day. He didn't mind though, because he enjoyed the odd uneventful day. You couldn't be a hermit in the woods if you hated uneventful days. He had caught up on all of his current potion orders and nobody was supposed to be coming to pick them up until early the next week, so he was currently outside meandering in his garden, picking a few vegetables for supper.
His garden was protected from the cold weather and snow by a few magic charms so he could keep a garden all year, which was good both for his food needs and also the constant need of a potioneer to have fresh herbs and strange plants for making unique potions. While in the garden the weather was warm and any snow falling from the sky melted into a gentle mist, keeping his plants watered throughout the season. He was quite proud of his charms. They were practical. Of course, some people wanted fancy schmancy charms to do dumb things, but if they paid him to do it he would and he wouldn't even complain about their stupid reasons. He was just happy to be creating things.
He had just finished picking some carrots when he had one of his feelings, the kind that he couldn't stop from happening every so often, and this one was telling him that his thus far uneventful day was about to become decidedly more eventful. Interesting.
Post by Markus Woodrow on Dec 23, 2016 13:24:24 GMT -7
Woodrow disliked the woods. The scent of it was offputting enough - the smell of dirt and shit had never done it for him - but his entire soul seemed to complain when he was distant from the sea. Certainly forests weren't as bad as the deserts, but being landlocked as he rode a white steed through the trees was not a pleasant feeling for a child of Moann.
Thankfully, it was only an hour's ride. If he had been poor enough to walk he didn't know if he could have managed it... But on the back of the steed he used whenever he visited Nisequois - Lolouis - it was fine, he supposed. It was worth it to get what he wanted, in any case.
"Hail and well met, young alchemist," He called out as he approached the cabin his sources had told him about. This was the place Tehodis had been brought. Where she had been healed. This was the place where everything had gone wrong... She no longer cared for his presence. She avoided it at every cost, ignoring even his knock when he was at the door of her home. He knew it had something to do with that Artemis White boy, and this place here. He had suspicions that her memory had been altered. He couldn't have that.
He got off his horse and pulled the bit from it's mouth to prevent it from getting colder than necessary before approached. The horse was obedient enough to leave sniffing at the ground. "Might you have a spare moment?"
"Hail and well met, young alchemist," someone called out. The voice had a confident strength to it that Simon liked immediately. Or more aptly, that Simon found to be attractive immediately. Simon stood and turned to see where the voice had come from, but then had to do a double take though, because he didn't believe his eyes the first time. It was like a fairy tale prince had shown up in his front yard. The handsome voice came from an even more handsome man, with thick brown hair and a body that Simon would either kill or die for, and he was riding a white steed. If he couldn't distinctly feel his pulse quicken at the sight of the man, he would have had to check that he hadn't died and gone to heaven.
"Good afternoon," Simon greeted back, wondering what kind of person said 'hail and well met'. Someone important, probably. He definitely looked important. He looked like he should be important.
The man even dismounted smoothly, like he had done it a hundred thousand times before, and as he approached Simon could see that he was not quite human, but something more than that. His eyes were the colour of the sea and his skin looked positively lickable. Bad thoughts, Simon get your head in the game.
Luckily he was much better at keeping his cool on the outside than he was at keeping his thoughts in check, and while the man approached he cocked his head to the side and flashed a smile, putting his free hand in his pocket while the hand holding his carrots hung at his side loosely. He probably looked a little disheveled, his hair was likely a mess, and his knees were definitely covered in dirt but Simon was glad to say he at least was not wearing his pyjamas today and at least had regular black pants and a loose t-shirt on. His cottage was warm and his garden was warm, so he had decided he didn't want to wear a coat for the brief walk between the two warm locations. He felt underdressed compared to the man approaching him, but how was he, a lonely hermit in the woods, supposed to know when to dress up? He was not.
The man asked if he might have a spare moment and Simon's mouth moved before his brain caught up with it, which may have been a good thing considering his mind was still in the gutter, or a bad thing is the man didn't appreciate Simon's humour. "I could probably clear some space in my incredibly busy social calendar, since you asked so nicely," he joked, his tone light. "What can I do for you?" The man knew he was an alchemist, so Simon would normally have thought he was a customer, but he wasn't so sure.
Post by Markus Woodrow on Dec 27, 2016 13:01:36 GMT -7
The boy was entirely unimpressive. When he had learned that the one who had helped Tehodis was a hermit in the woods who brewed potions and made charms and was mysterious he had thought that certainly he would be... Well, older for one. Dressed more mystically. Perhaps with some kind of gnarled beard. Instead, what stood before him was a mere teenager. A child. A child who had no sense of propriety... But at least he wasn't as distasteful and rude as Artemis White.
"You helped a friend of mine recently," Woodrow spoke as he approached the garden, observing the kinds of things the man was growing... Perhaps looking for something illegal, some reason to dislike him, but he found nothing suspect. The only thing strange, in fact, was that as he passed into the garden, a warmth drifted over his skin. It was welcome, Woodrow disliking the chill, and he undid his winter cloak slowly as he spoke: "I was in Boiss for business, and thought it would be well worth my time to come and offer my gratitude... And perhaps find out exactly what the solution was, should anything so horrid ever occur again. Might that be something you could share?"
The man spoke again as he approached, saying that Simon had helped a friend of his recently. Admittedly, that didn't help Simon figure out who he was or even who his friend was, because he was not lacking in customers who he had helped 'recently'. As the man stepped into his garden, thankfully staying to the paths and not stepping on his food, Simon tried to avoid staring while he started to slowly undo his cloak, and definitely tried not thinking about him removing any more articles of clothing.
The man continued speaking and said he wanted to thank Simon and see if he could find out what he had done for this friend of his, in case the same situation came up again. He asked if that might be something Simon could share, and Simon was tempted to just say hell yeah because, well, look at him. And besides, if he was trying to help his friend in the future that seemed like a noble cause. However even Simon, whose morals and ethics were admittedly a little questionable at the best of times, had some lines he didn't like to cross, and some customers he wasn't willing to divulge details about. That didn't necessarily mean he couldn't help the man out though.
"I always appreciate gratitude, I admit, but I've never had a friend of a customer stop by before. I could probably help you out, if you let me know who your friend is and what was wrong with them?" To be fair, with the amount of customers he had he didn't exactly remember them all just by name. However, if he knew what was wrong with them he could at least say how to fix that problem, with or without remembering the person.
Post by Markus Woodrow on Dec 29, 2016 11:20:47 GMT -7
Woodrow had to wonder just how much the boy would help once he told him more. He worried, of course, that Artemis White had said horrible, and untrue things about him. He worried that Tehodis had been incoherent and unable to defend him as justly as she would have wanted to. He decided that before he got what he came here for, he needed to make this alchemist like him. Make him realize that any horrid things that had been said about him were quite incorrect.
"If you've got the time to spare, perhaps we can move our meeting inside? I've brought some items as thanks. Perhaps I've assumed too much about you, but I've heard that alchemists enjoy tea."
Right, inside. Perhaps someone better than him would have invited the man inside already, but alas Simon was only human and he was flawed. Deeply flawed. As deeply flawed as the man in front of him was deeply unflawed, and he could admit to a certain level of distraction. "Yes, I have some time. I warn you, my cabin is likely much more chaotic than whichever mansion you live in, but you are of course welcome. You assumption was correct as well - I do enjoy tea."
He led the man to his door and opened it, waving him in first and then following. The cabin was as usual. Messy, chaotic, but organized in a way that probably only Simon would know. Overflowing baskets on shelves held charms and herbs and gemstones, and flowers hung from the ceiling near the walls in bunches to dry. His living area was clear of clutter though, the floor tidy and neither of the chairs covered with anything but perhaps a bit of cat hair. It was home to Simon, and he loved it, but he was sure someone who looked as impressive as this man would be distinctly unimpressed with everything about it. "Home sweet home," he announced, taking a seat in his favourite chair, which left the one that Endless had previous sat in open for the man to take. Or not take, he wouldn't judge. "Perhaps now would be a good time for introductions, since I seem to be forgetting all of my good manners today. I'm Simon, resident potioneer and charm-maker extraordinaire."
Post by Markus Woodrow on Jan 3, 2017 13:37:01 GMT -7
The man was right, the cottage was completely chaotic. Disorganized. Messy. Woodrow held in his distaste for it, pretending to be curiously observing the many herbs on the walls as if he cared. How someone could live in this kind of chaos, let alone work?
"Pleasure. Mark," Woodrow said decisively, joining the man at his chair and taking his hand firmly. With his other, he pulled free a small silk sack. He took his hand back, and replaced it in Simon's hand with the fanciful package, explaining it's contents thoughtfully: "I hoped perhaps I could bring you tea you hadn't tested before. Silver Tip Sultanate. It is harvested from the Sumish Sultan's own garden, during only the full moon during the month of Moann's splendor... I've not tried it myself, but evidently it's quite good. I... Owe you far more, for what you have done, but I hope this is a start, Simon."
The man introduced himself as Mark, and the two shook hands. The moment their hands touched Simon felt a spark inside of him, and it wasn't related to the fact that he was touching the most attractive nobleman to ever step through his door. No, this was the spark of magic that despite his ignoring would simply not go away, and liked to flare up sometimes. If he flinched at the sudden feeling, he hoped the man would chalk it up to him being too weak for a good firm handshake. He didn't explore the magic further, because he knew immediately what it meant and to do so would be obvious to the man as the trance of a diviner was pretty universal. He had someone he needed to contact after this man left.
A moment later the connection was severed as Mark took back his hand and produced a fancy package of tea, which he described to be basically the coolest-sounding tea Simon had ever heard of. Harvested in the Sultan's garden, only once a year on the full moon during The Path of Many Forks. Damn. The man said he owed Simon far more for what he'd done, and Simon wondered exactly what could possibly be worth more than this ridiculous tea? He didn't even want to think about how expensive it probably was. Likely at least as much as his entire cottage was worth. Probably more, who was he kidding.
"Thank you Mark, this is a very generous gift and I certainly have never tried this tea before. How about I brew some while you tell me about the friend I helped?"
Post by Markus Woodrow on Jan 5, 2017 9:33:15 GMT -7
The boy seemed impressed, and Markus merely smiled. Such gifts often did wonders for one's opinion of another. It would show how deeply he cared. Yes, he had money -- but this was not the kind of thing you simply threw away as a petty favour.
"That sounds lovely," Markus nodded, watching as Simon stood and began to prepare the tea. He thought of exactly how to describe Tehodis, hoping that now the boy had warmed up to him he would not have any reason to believe negative things the criminal might have invented. Or things Tehodis might have said in a stupor of pain, things she didn't mean. "She's the most beautiful woman you've ever met, I'm sure," He leaned back in the chair as he spoke, attempting to relax into the mess of the place, "Silken brown hair with hints of gold in the sunlight. Bright blue eyes, like the sea on the clearest days. A soft voice to stir one's soul... And skin shining and pale, not unlike the moon. She's... The sea itself, in all of its beauty and hardship."
He cleared his throat, attempting to gauge Simon's reaction thus far, trying to see if he could tell who Markus spoke of. Eventually, he confirmed it: "Tehodis Kitai... Without you, I would have never seen her again."
The skin OTHERWORLD was made by JAWN of WICKED WONDERLAND.
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