Post by Yoshimitsu on Feb 15, 2016 17:42:42 GMT -5
So I figured I'd start a thread about this, because it's something I've been doing for a while now
Basically it's a thread to test out writing or characters before they debut, or to try them out to see how they're received, basically just a test run for something that you're not 100% on. This is a heavily feedback based topic, but it's also a place for people to test out something they've been working on that they're not sure on.
To establish: this is not a place for WIP, it's a place for new concepts that you want some opinions on. Got a new character you wanna try out? Bring it here. Want opinions on something you're half-finished with but have no intentions of changing? Nah.
So I'm gonna start out with a non-canon interaction between two potential new characters, written from the perspective of one of them (and I'm also gonna spoiler it because I think it keeps things a bit cleaner, personally):
Edit: New Rule! If you submit something, you also have to read someone else's work and critique it. Whoever reads this gets a free critique, yayyyy!
Basically it's a thread to test out writing or characters before they debut, or to try them out to see how they're received, basically just a test run for something that you're not 100% on. This is a heavily feedback based topic, but it's also a place for people to test out something they've been working on that they're not sure on.
To establish: this is not a place for WIP, it's a place for new concepts that you want some opinions on. Got a new character you wanna try out? Bring it here. Want opinions on something you're half-finished with but have no intentions of changing? Nah.
So I'm gonna start out with a non-canon interaction between two potential new characters, written from the perspective of one of them (and I'm also gonna spoiler it because I think it keeps things a bit cleaner, personally):
"Have you ever seen the Milky Way?"
Lex turned his head towards the source of the unexpected question. This person, he had been quite sure he was alone on the rooftop and there were no obvious hiding places that he'd overlooked, but this person was stood a scant few meters away. No, the only way he could have appeared was by some supernatural means. From a glance, Lex took in all that he needed to. The person looked to be all show, glitter on his eyelids and more rings on his fingers than could be practical, clothes finely tailored to his body and dark hair perfectly coifed into a quiff. Knowing where he was, it didn't exactly take much to connect the dots. Cassius Pryde.
"Everyone's seen the Milky Way," Lex responded dismissively, turning his head back to the sky.
The sky was vibrant, as far as he was concerned. He could see flickers of white on the the black background, constellations that he recognised but didn't bother to catalogue. Orion was somewhere, Ursa Major was somewhere else, he didn't particularly care. There were lights in the sky and that was enough for him, enough to let him have a moment of peace and actually embrace one of the things that most mortals took for granted. He ignored the warlock's movements - if he was going to attack, he would have attacked by now - and let his eyes flicker from star to star. Or maybe a planet. He didn't know, he wouldn't know how to tell the two apart, but he didn't mind.
The warlock hadn't said anything else, so he took the initiative.
"So why are you up here?" He asked, more out of curiosity than anything else. Dealing with non-humans was one thing, but they tended to attack before asking questions.
"I noticed you staring at the sky," Cassius responded after a pause. "The residents of this building often abscond to the roof for private time with their significant others, but you are neither a resident nor with a significant other. I was curious."
"Then your curiosity should be satisfied," Lex countered, his eyes still towards the sky. "I'm here, and I'm looking at the stars. That's all."
There was silence for a moment, but Lex could feel an energy radiating from the man beind him. It went further than the usual dealings he'd had. It was raw, untapped, but still completely in control. He glanced back and was met with a gaze that held his own. This Cassius, Warlock and half-demon, was staring at him with an expression he couldn't read. There were elements, curiosity and hesitancy and things indecipherable, but all hidden under a facade of being indifferent. He turned his head back to the sky, but the lights looked dimmer somehow. The urge to reach for an arrow was subsiding rapidly.
"Back to my original question, have you ever seen the Milky Way? In all its glory?" Cassius asked, and Lex wasn't sure how to respond.
"How do you mean?"
"I mean without the light pollution of a vibrant city. I mean seeing the true glory of how the stars and moons and planets look without dull eyes viewing them," Cassius said in a tone that was so even, yet so confident, that Lex didn't know what to do with it. Was he being genuine? On guard? Deceptive? Lex knew, by reputation, that Cassius could play a game, and play it well. If he was playing a game, then Lex would play along. For now, at least.
"No. I haven't," he admitted.
"Would you like to?"
Lex glanced back to the other man, noting his appearence again. The suit was tailor cut, yes, but it was also embroided with tiny gemstones that accentuated the collar and highlighted his physique. The hair was dark but there were different colours involved. Even the rings on his hands, those rings were too ornate and too carefully positioned. The man in front of him might have been offering something, but Lex was certain that there was a price involved. There was always a price involved when it came to half-demons.
"And what, exactly, would you charge?" He asked, folding his arms but still not turning around. "Warlocks aren't typically known for the generosity."
"You're well versed, clearly. I charge nothing," Cassius responded, his entire posture still as relaxed as ever as he wandered around, gesticulating wherever. Cassius was a man that talked with his hands, clearly. Lex would never understand that. "I came up here expecting a fight, not a young man who was more interested in the stars than the building he was standing on. I offer this as a gift."
Lex turned his head properly this time and met Cassius' gaze. Eyes of vibrant green, like how cartoons would show toxic waste, glowing out from his otherwise dark attire. The Warlock approached and Lex kept his arms loose, just in case. It was only when he was within arms length that Lex allowed himself to relax. A man of Cassius' reputation could have easily inflicted significant damage from much further away. The warlock extended a hand, palm facing towards the sky. Smoke, or flames, or mist, Lex couldn't decide on the exact substance that seemed to be flowing from just above the extended hand. It was the same colour as his eyes, that bright green, and it was flowing within a contained sphere.
"Don't worry, I don't bite," Cassius said, and there was a hint of a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
Lex reached out, cautiously and deliberately slow. It could be a trap, but something was telling him that it wasn't. There was a sincerity in the warlock's whole... demeanour.
Lex turned his head towards the source of the unexpected question. This person, he had been quite sure he was alone on the rooftop and there were no obvious hiding places that he'd overlooked, but this person was stood a scant few meters away. No, the only way he could have appeared was by some supernatural means. From a glance, Lex took in all that he needed to. The person looked to be all show, glitter on his eyelids and more rings on his fingers than could be practical, clothes finely tailored to his body and dark hair perfectly coifed into a quiff. Knowing where he was, it didn't exactly take much to connect the dots. Cassius Pryde.
"Everyone's seen the Milky Way," Lex responded dismissively, turning his head back to the sky.
The sky was vibrant, as far as he was concerned. He could see flickers of white on the the black background, constellations that he recognised but didn't bother to catalogue. Orion was somewhere, Ursa Major was somewhere else, he didn't particularly care. There were lights in the sky and that was enough for him, enough to let him have a moment of peace and actually embrace one of the things that most mortals took for granted. He ignored the warlock's movements - if he was going to attack, he would have attacked by now - and let his eyes flicker from star to star. Or maybe a planet. He didn't know, he wouldn't know how to tell the two apart, but he didn't mind.
The warlock hadn't said anything else, so he took the initiative.
"So why are you up here?" He asked, more out of curiosity than anything else. Dealing with non-humans was one thing, but they tended to attack before asking questions.
"I noticed you staring at the sky," Cassius responded after a pause. "The residents of this building often abscond to the roof for private time with their significant others, but you are neither a resident nor with a significant other. I was curious."
"Then your curiosity should be satisfied," Lex countered, his eyes still towards the sky. "I'm here, and I'm looking at the stars. That's all."
There was silence for a moment, but Lex could feel an energy radiating from the man beind him. It went further than the usual dealings he'd had. It was raw, untapped, but still completely in control. He glanced back and was met with a gaze that held his own. This Cassius, Warlock and half-demon, was staring at him with an expression he couldn't read. There were elements, curiosity and hesitancy and things indecipherable, but all hidden under a facade of being indifferent. He turned his head back to the sky, but the lights looked dimmer somehow. The urge to reach for an arrow was subsiding rapidly.
"Back to my original question, have you ever seen the Milky Way? In all its glory?" Cassius asked, and Lex wasn't sure how to respond.
"How do you mean?"
"I mean without the light pollution of a vibrant city. I mean seeing the true glory of how the stars and moons and planets look without dull eyes viewing them," Cassius said in a tone that was so even, yet so confident, that Lex didn't know what to do with it. Was he being genuine? On guard? Deceptive? Lex knew, by reputation, that Cassius could play a game, and play it well. If he was playing a game, then Lex would play along. For now, at least.
"No. I haven't," he admitted.
"Would you like to?"
Lex glanced back to the other man, noting his appearence again. The suit was tailor cut, yes, but it was also embroided with tiny gemstones that accentuated the collar and highlighted his physique. The hair was dark but there were different colours involved. Even the rings on his hands, those rings were too ornate and too carefully positioned. The man in front of him might have been offering something, but Lex was certain that there was a price involved. There was always a price involved when it came to half-demons.
"And what, exactly, would you charge?" He asked, folding his arms but still not turning around. "Warlocks aren't typically known for the generosity."
"You're well versed, clearly. I charge nothing," Cassius responded, his entire posture still as relaxed as ever as he wandered around, gesticulating wherever. Cassius was a man that talked with his hands, clearly. Lex would never understand that. "I came up here expecting a fight, not a young man who was more interested in the stars than the building he was standing on. I offer this as a gift."
Lex turned his head properly this time and met Cassius' gaze. Eyes of vibrant green, like how cartoons would show toxic waste, glowing out from his otherwise dark attire. The Warlock approached and Lex kept his arms loose, just in case. It was only when he was within arms length that Lex allowed himself to relax. A man of Cassius' reputation could have easily inflicted significant damage from much further away. The warlock extended a hand, palm facing towards the sky. Smoke, or flames, or mist, Lex couldn't decide on the exact substance that seemed to be flowing from just above the extended hand. It was the same colour as his eyes, that bright green, and it was flowing within a contained sphere.
"Don't worry, I don't bite," Cassius said, and there was a hint of a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
Lex reached out, cautiously and deliberately slow. It could be a trap, but something was telling him that it wasn't. There was a sincerity in the warlock's whole... demeanour.
Edit: New Rule! If you submit something, you also have to read someone else's work and critique it. Whoever reads this gets a free critique, yayyyy!