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RaindropsKeepFalling

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Posts posted by RaindropsKeepFalling

  1.  

     

    HOW A BIRD MUST FLY

     


       

    The roads were musty that day.  The endless snow pelted at each roof where families huddled together in warm blankets.  The mothers tended their children, comforting them.

    “Play tomorrow, darling,” they’d say as if they were a hen to their chick. “It’s cold.”

    Lost in little understanding, the children were bored.  

     

        Only a single soul longed for the colder days.  The times where it wasn’t enough to envelope yourself in scarves. Only to stay inside, pulling a dusty book from the shelf, curious for its contents. Her name was Cajsa, and she was barely a child.

         She delved into the poetry of the atomic-sized things.  The little dewdrops sliding from the petal of a flower.  The lost feathers that fell from the sky, clipped by a feline perhaps. 

    Since she was a smaller girl, there was an unending pressure in the rat-race of the Imperial system.  She’d glance into the sky, lit up by little spotlights, dots: the stars.  Did they worry all the same?  Did they hold a pang of underlying guilt?  She wished to be a star, left as a concept, only a bright moment that dissipated as the sun rose. 

        Thus, she disappeared.  In the midday warmth, she crept from the wide concrete roads, into the past: the tropics.  The tall palms, the sand left in the heel of her boots, the bright sun further tanning her freckled skin.  Romance: a true love to find one day, packing your bags and taking a leap without a scarce look back.  The idealistic sentiment had been instilled since she was but eight.  She hadn’t met the boy; instead, she figured, it was the place.

        In 1801, Cajsa Serene Baelius vanished without a trace.  It was not an abnormal night.  The birds chirped amidst the leafless trees and the snowfall continued, pelting down on an unlucky passerby.  Yet, the girl was gone.

        Two notes remained. One lay in her dusty desk.  The second slipped under the crack of the Wick’s door in the aurora. The countless books she’d rant about had gone with her.  She’d dare not leave them behind.   

    The first note was in her scrawling cursive, edges ripped as it had been in a rush.  All she had time for was to scrap the page from her beloved journal.


    To My Parents 

    Spoiler

     

      By the time you are reading this, I’d suppose I have gone. It makes it no better, but I’ll excuse myself with “I’m sorry.”

    I’m sorry.  I’m sorry that my anxiousness would get the best of me.

    I’m sorry for the eccentric rants that went on.

    I’m sorry for breaking apart what you tried so hard to keep glued together.  

     

         If I was only not myself; I would make you proud. You’ll start angry, then feel sad; it is my cowardice.  I find it worse, speaking out in a harsh yell: I am this!  The cries,  I’m fearful of their echo. I am a selfish girl, that way.   

        If only the world was a more lovely place.  Or I was a more lovely person.  If I was perfect with golden goals, set in the stone.  Like those aging statues of the leaders of yore.  The memories they hold, of people sure what they wanted.  I don’t know if they were sure.  I just must believe that somewhere, somehow, there is a modicum of fairness.  If it is not true, it is what ought to be. If that is a crime then go ahead and prosecute me, for I would plead guilty.

    I do not mean to be ungrateful. Simply entertain me, however, and read a small story.  

        Once upon a time, there was a girl. Her name was Pepper.  She was a happy child, without a care in the whole wide world inside her city.  Along came chaos with tales of demonic things.  It left her anxious.  She grew up a little, and the whole world decided to migrate to a whole new world.  Like a ball, she bounced back, but since birth thoughts remained in her mind.  The bad thoughts, the “what if’s.”  

        She loved the sun, always waiting for it to rise each day so she could go play.  But it soon turned repetitive, and she grew restless. She began to wish to see the moon and its glowing face.  She was an owl, living as a songbird.  She figured: “I must soar.”  

        One day, she found her nest, but it lay far away, made up of sticks and mud.  She loved it from the pit of her heart.  They all told her to find love, but it wasn’t a mate.  It was her nest.  

    She took flight.

        Even though it is only a story I hope you may understand.  I shall not be gone; I am not an angst-filled creature wishing to never speak again.  I love you both, so much.

    But, before my wings are truly clipped: I have to see the tops of the trees. 

    I’m sorry,

     

    Kaia

     

     

     

    To Rahtol

    Spoiler

         When I was twelve you gave me a bouquet.  It was meant to symbolize that we would always stick shoulder to shoulder, side by side.  We’d be friends forever.  I hope, and I pray that this does not change that.

         When I was fourteen we went to the Grove together and you loved it.  I will only spare the real truth with you, as you did me with your Pa.  I long for it.  I have since I was ten years old.  It is my escape, my story, my love.  You are still my friend.  

         I will write,  and I hope you may visit. I hope we may not ever break that promise.  I wear your gloves loosely on my palms, traveling through the snow that belts a girl over the head with the blizzard’s winds.  In the future, it will clear.  We will see again, and I could return.  I would run through the grass without care, and maybe you would follow.  

         The skies are ever cloudy, but before I go to seven of them I must see the world a bit for its virtue. Where it’s hot and temperate, for I’ve seen the cold.  I’ve seen the water, and I’ve seen the land.

    Today, I’ll fly.  Today, you’ll find your mother and father. Today, nothing changes.  I am not leaving you, and however bittersweet: recall me by a note.  

    Love,

    “Pepper”

     

       

    And as she could dearly hope: time went on and the overcast day elapsed.  Perhaps different as to how it had begun, but all the same, majorly.  When spring sprung up, migration would begin, but this fowl had already evanesced.
     

     

  2. image.thumb.png.0e01f76858be5ef07907bfd2934cd158.png

    «PROVIDENCE POST»

    Published 9th of  Sigismund's End, 1799

    Halcourt Publishing Co. 

    (Join our Discord!)

    image.png.abb55625f70d0d550260c24126fece50.png

    «SEEKING PATRONS»

     

    The Providence Post is seeking patrons and adverts.  If you would like your message, or a campaign, a business, anything, in the spotlight for all to see, reach out to us. 

     

     

    We have restructured our sponsor tiers so as to allow our clients more options. As the newspaper with the largest reach in all of the Empire, we offer immense value to our clients. Our advertisement syndication service flawlessly embeds topical inserts right into our content, ensuring that the correct audience receives your message. 

     

    Purchase an advertisement today. There are so many ways that ads can help you. For your convenience, we have compiled a list of common reasons for purchasing an advertisement in the Herald.

     

    • BUSINESS PROMOTION – Drive sales to your in-person business. We have a track record of helping generate revenue.
    • PERSONAL INQUIRY – Looking for a date? Wanting to propose in a fancy fashion? Put it in an ad so the world can see!
    • PERSONNEL RECRUITMENT – Need more soldiers, barkeeps, or anything? We can help connect you with new employees.
    • POLITICAL OUTREACH – Do you have a message that you want the world to see? We can get it out to all the world’s voters.
    • AND MORE – Your imagination is the limit. Give us your money, and the whole of the Empire will read whatever you want.

     

    So without further ado, here is the new sponsorship structure!

     

    • PRINCE TIER – 150 MINA | ONE SLOT LEFT
      An article-length insert on the front-page of the latest edition, with a custom printed image of your desire.
    Spoiler

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    • DUKE TIER – 100 MINA | TWO SLOTS LEFT
      A 50- to 100-word text insert in either the first or last article, meaning that, by our estimates, 95% of our readers will see it.
    Spoiler

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    • EARL TIER – 75 MINA | THREE SLOTS LEFT
      A 30- to 50-word insert in one of our top performing articles. Top performing articles usually are the first in their section and garner serious engagement.
    Spoiler

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    • COUNT  TIER – 50 MINA | FOUR SLOTS LEFT
      A 10- to 30- word insert at the end of a topical article
      , hand-curated by our editor-in-chief. These garner a decent amount of engagement.
    Spoiler

    image.thumb.png.55b60a36201fe61986af99d957c8e22d.png

     

    • BARON TIER 30 mina | FIVE SLOTS LEFT
      A 5- to 10-word insert selected in whatever slot remains. These get moderate engagement.
    Spoiler

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    If you are interested in buying an ad, or simply supporting the Post (with perks such as: seeing the drafting process, reading it early and occasionally honorary editing!) please reach out to Editor & Chief Gino Falcone or fill out the form below.

    image.png.032964df530e30d9e929f1698b6fb20a.png

     

    « INQUIRY FORM »

     

    Please scribe all forms  in the following format:

     

     

    Quote

     

    NAME > 

    DISCORD >
    USERNAME >
    TIER >
    MISCELLANY > 

     

     

    Below is an example of a properly filled out form:

     

     

    Quote

     

    NAME > John Smith

    DISCORD > smithjohn#1234
    USERNAME > john__smith_
    TIER > Baron
    MISCELLANY >

     

     

     

    ((Reply to the forum post with this format, or simply join the Discord and pop in a message: we'll talk more in depth on rates, et cetera.))

  3. ((Missed deadline! Please delete!))


    SURNAME: 

    FIRST NAME:

    ADDRESS OF RESIDENCE: 

    YEAR OF BIRTH: 

     

    Are you registered and eligible to vote in Providence District? Yes

     

    Do you have any other title, peerage or military service that may conflict with becoming a Member of the House of Commons, as per the Edict of Reform (1763)?

     

    If yes, do you understand that you will be required to resign or abdicate from this position should you be elected to the House of Commons, and if this does not occur your seat shall be considered to be vacant?: 

     

    ((MC NAME)): 

  4. Spoiler

     



    It had been a week.

     

    The afternoons were darker, quieter.  Each night Gino went to bed alone, and woke up in the morning, only having himself for accompaniment.   The mortician had come around.  She was gone without a trace, but her words echoed endlessly:

     

    I love you.

     

    Their fights, their screams: they couldn't be ignored.  Each night, however, when he faced her in those darkened days and nights, he saw her.  She was his and he was hers and they were each other's.  A thousand thoughts raced each evening.  He fell down the twisting, swivelling stories of his own cracked mind.  When he went into a slumber he saw her eyes as he had when she lived.  When she ran, lively, never a bore: however chaotic.  It was his own fantastical hallucination.  

     

    His children silently loathed him.  It was a justified reply amidst his tyranny.  His screams photographed her; it was a sad memory that hung true.  He did not scream, but silently stood with a frigidly cold look, never blinking to dare see the vision, the deafening memories.  Even so, his psyche rushed, chasing it's own tail in a loop.  Lorenzo was right.  It was his fault.  

     

    The Falcone roamed down the streets.  It was late.  He'd left without a word to a soul.  He walked, wishing to fall and sleep, into hibernation like a temporary death.  Forty summers lived, and he was freezing, clueless as a child.  Somewhere he knew, but dared not speak it out loud; it made it de jure.  

     

    In a sudden urge of emotional adrenaline he raced to the house with the wind brushing up against his eyes and hair.  He was too blind to stop.  He made it to the house, stopping in his tracks, wheezing and out of breath.  The wood creaked. The crickets squeaked.  As he'd stepped in he'd forgotten all like waking from a dream.  Life was but a dream in those days.  Though, he knew not where the boat was leading him.

     

    He traced his palm down the plastered walls, only a single reminiscing thought in his head: a single memory.  

     

    I love you too.

     

    All the confused contradictions were silenced, and for one moment, it would be okay.  It was all forgotten now.

     

    The sun rose up, and it had been a week and a day.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  5. Gino Falcone scanned over the flyer, a small smile rising up to his face.  He tapped at his crowded desk a few times with his first digit, thinking.  He stood up, ready to finalize plans, staff and the casino for the coming event.  He recalled recently when he had arrived to Oren, back in the days of Helena: of Arcas.  The convention he'd arrived to, his little loyalty that'd since grown.  A Josephite he was, and the convention he'd help. 

     

  6. image.thumb.png.fb3a9e4ac36f6eda3a8c3d933393c361.png
    HIRING WRITERS
    Published 17th of Godfrey's Triumph, 1796
    Halcourt Publishing Co. 
    [Join Our Discord!
     

    image.png.d5e9520a15c80ec2cedb34a13e27470f.png
     

     

    « PROVIDENCE POST, NOW HIRING »

     

    With the Inferi Incursion and later the evacuation from the continent of Arcas into Almaris the Helena Herald (now known as the Providence Post) lost many of it's staff: editions also unable to be published, thus.  For over 20 years the Helena Herald has served the public with their journalism, publishing the first edition by Halcourt and Co in 1769.  To see irrelevance spreading through the establishment is an affair that must be acknowledged. This issue of the staffing and such holds the Post's attention: in consequence the it will now be hiring writers and editors. Note that Editors [There may be multiple] are left in charge of a section. 

    The current Post is split into Politics, World, Life and Academic. All staff writers are part of a section and assigned a portfolio of topics they may discuss with the Editor-In-Chief. Editors may also optionally write and edit their own articles.  All positions in all sections are being hired.

    If you, or or anyone you may be acquainted with holds interest please do not hesitate to contact Editor-In-Chief Gino Falcone and apply.

     

    « APPLICATION FORM »
     

    Please scribe all applications  in the following format:

     

    Quote

    NAME > 

    DISCORD >
    USERNAME >
    POSITION AND SECTION > 
    MISCELLANY > 


    Below is an example of a properly filled out form:

     

    Quote

    NAME > John Smith

    DISCORD > smithjohn#1234
    USERNAME > john__smith_
    POSITION AND SECTION > I would like to apply as an Editor of the World Section.
    MISCELLANY > ((Cool newspaper, seems like a nice community))


    ((Reply to the forum post with this format, or simply join the Discord and pop in a message: we'll talk.))

     

     

  7.      Gino Falcone leant in a familiar chair, hunched into the missive: glancing over it's contents.  A small smirk rose to his visage as the endorsed candidates were listed.  A familiar thought that seemed to predict the coming members in an impression akin to deja vu. 
    "Praise Josephites." He simply remarked, lighting up a cigarette.

        He stood up, waiting till the new Saint's Days where Joseph Marna's ideals would be once more perpetuated in the majority party: Josephites. The party he'd been loyal to for some fifteen years sweeping once again.  Another day, another sun, another Imperial Diet: 
    "For The Dignity of All." 

     

  8. Candidacies for the House of Commons in the Twenty-first Diet. 

     

    SURNAME: Falcone

    FIRST NAME: Gino

    ADDRESS OF RESIDENCE: d'Arkent 4

    DATE OF BIRTH: 1757

     

    Are you registered and eligible to vote in the Holy Orenian Empire?

    Yes. 

    Do you have any other title, peerage or military service that may conflict with becoming a Member of the House of Commons, as per the Edict of Reform (1763)?

     No.

    If yes, do you understand that you will be required to resign or abdicate from this position should you be elected to the House of Commons, and if this does not occur your seat shall be considered to be vacant?:

    Yes.

    ((MC NAME)): RainedropF

  9. [!] A debut poem by Cajsa Serene Baelius on the fair of the last saint's day.

     

    Cajsa Serene’s “Festival!”


     

    Oh fair, you are so fair.

    Oh fair, you sit out there.

    Playing words - hearing out, wondering when.

    The sun goes up, the sun goes down. I wander around.

    Oh fair, when will you end?

    Oh fair, Angel sent.

     

    In the grass, we look out.

    The dark dark skies. Her cloudy blue eyes. Lit up by “rockets” shot up in the air.

    Oh fair, I ran away.

    Oh fair, You color my eyes and stain my head.

    It is once more, day.

    I am tired, I will go to bed.

     

    Until another festival lies.

    -with my Makuahine

    Faring well on that future.

    Hoping

     

     

  10. Light sprung through the wide windows of the three storied home on the wide street in Helena.  The brick colors on the inside especially saturated it seemed with a new brighter day; a juxtaposition from the dark evenings throughout the Incursion months.  

    A young Cajsa Baelius glided down the interior stairs, hearing of the news with a wide, enthusiastic grin: a usual pep to her step.  She recalled hearing her youthful pals telling secondhand stories their parents had told them.  Aenguls and Daemons, tears in the ground.  The drama mattered not to the young girl.  She tugged at her mother's sleeve in the living space:

    "Makuahine,  I like playing.  Could we go- Could we listen to Al-ren's speech? Will Victoria be there?!"  
    She'd simply have to be patient, till the day did come. 


    ---
    @MotherLay 

  11. It’s complicated.

    I want to first disclose that I do not condone real life and OOC homophobia, racism, bigotry, etc. However, I firmly believe it is an entirely different animal when it comes to roleplay. Malaise put it very well.  You are not your character; you simply portray your character.  I’m going to go off on a little tangent here, but it’ll make sense in the scheme of things:

     

    A long time ago, I played a bipolar jerk.  He was unpredictable, and a wild card.  One day, he does something really bad and has an affair.  I strongly recall the player coming up to me and saying something along the lines of


    ”wth dude. whyyyd you do that? thats misogynist.”

     

    It sounds a little silly when it’s put that way. The point wasn’t to be a terrible person, or have a flat character for the sake of extending my inner bipolarity to the LotC world.  It was fictional, and he was odd. That was part of what came with playing him, or another interacting with him.  The point was, I was not him, and you are not your character. To claim that portraying any of these faulty issues makes you a believer of them is deeply flawed.  You could say to write a fictional story of inequality makes you the person you are portraying.  You could say Orwell’s 1984 taught us to be fascist. No, and no. I frankly think to blatantly turn our head up and close our eyes, ignoring these things is worse. It erases the fact that they exist.  It plays pretend that a “perfect world” exists, when that is far from the truth. It revises our memories.

     

    The time when homophobia and racism becomes a problem is when it is used purely to push your own inner hatred.  OOC harassment is a problem.  That is the sort of thing we should not, and cannot condone.  

     

    All of this, I feel, harkens back to a problem that’s been debated a lot on LotC: continuity.  Elves get angry with the human community that they want a more modern setting with artillery and colonialism.  LGBTQ+ character players want a safespace of no homophobia, racism, and such.  There’s an answer to both: you don’t have to look for conflict.  You don’t have to hurt your character.  You don’t have to push yourself into being PKed by some sort of hate crime.  What you do need is to acknowledge that you can’t always guarantee that you won’t be triggered very easily.  Conflict exists, and every person can’t edit themselves IRPly, and their story to your needs.  The same goes the other way, though.  It isn’t biased.

     

    One place not accepting enough?  Move. One place too accepting? Move.

     

     When it’s a novel: it’s easy.  We have all the cards in the deck; we can fill out this world.  It’s a little different with roleplay.  The world isn’t yours, and the world isn’t theirs, and that’s okay.

     

    I’ll leave this with a bottom line, and the closest thing I can articulate to being an answer: 
    Yes, all that can exist, respectfully.

     

    ((on a side note, don’t harass people and force them into uncomfortable situations: that’s an issue.))

     

     

     

     

     

  12. You hit the nail right on the head. 

     

    Rolling is a great system depending on the context. The main issue in my personal opinion when it becomes the default this way is leaving it to the RNG. The randomness is powergaming, almost. Countless times in my experience rolling can make or break roleplay.  It’s worked in D&D for years, because that has always been it’s central system. There’s an unspoken agreement when it’s there that goes:


    “This is how it is, you signed up for it, this is fair.”


    When there’s a sudden change here it’ll bring about bad things I feel.  Rolling will become the default because you have a better chance to win by RNG if you’re surrounded by 8 goons with swords than basic CRP. I completely agree on your statement on 10 blocks changing to 4, also. I don’t think this system is all bad. I think it had good intent, and I think in some situations it might bring about good things. Any Orenian roleplayer remembers the CasualNuker vs. Sergisala nightmare.

    Where my problem lies is similar to yours: powergaming, metagaming, and the defender having fear of losing a conflict. Rolling is nice, this is not.

  13. seperator.png.71671f2403ae7be63911141cb8b3eb17.png

    A d’Amato Falcone Union,
    To be held on the 5th of the Grand Harvest in the Helena Basilica 
    [[OOC: Saturday, the 26th, 4 PM EST]]
    71ZaJlVQz0L._AC_SX522_.jpg

    seperator.png.71671f2403ae7be63911141cb8b3eb17.png
    A personal invite was sent to the following friends and family:



    BEST MAN:

    Deputy Mayor,  Vittorio Antonio Falcone,
    @Aoxomoxoa

     

    BRIDESMAID:
    Vincenza d’Amato
    @MimosaMoi

     

    GUEST OF HONOR:
    Secretary of the Interior, Padraig O’Rourke,
    @Mandalore1

     


    seperator.png.71671f2403ae7be63911141cb8b3eb17.png

     


    Belladonna d’Amato   @maliiah
    Lorenzo Augustus d’Amato   @jcbeno
    Giada Fiorella d’Amato   @minty_roses
    Lusia d’Amato   @PrettyCuteAnna
    Veronica d’Amato   @_Capitalx_
    Gustavo d’Amato @Covey

    Mayor Dimitri Orlov @BogsBinny
    Sheriff General Aleksei Orlov @Aplex
    Trevor @Borin
    Santiana O’Rourke @Radzig
    Jeanne O’Rourke @Pompadour
    HOC, Ostromir Carrion @Lhindir_

     

    Archchancellor Jonah Stahl-Elendil @Braehn Elendil An'Hiraeth


    Jolynn @Madyssey
    Santiago Delacruz @Gousby
    Toni Talhoffer @Jagdkatzchen
    Tara Morgryn @EmiliainWonderland

    John Francis Winter @gemini95


    ...And other friends and family of the duo.


    [[ooc note: Sorry for the lateness of this post; there were a lot of scheduling difficulties. Better late than never!]]


    k40tohr8csxYdLv4iUK6v_XLo5-bsLM2G3ei8l9QMJDsirXqQke7tI4tumV17JC-5xh_l1l-5qqifAFbi1PR3nIUprqhW6CeILIpEQB5rfSB8zz4sB5b_tHmHvO8sK8n1Vo44A


     

     

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