Post by zuyuri on Feb 2, 2015 2:10:26 GMT -5
"Raven! Raven!" Facilier was storming through the cirque grounds. The incident between two siblings shouldn't have bothered the ringmaster, but the big ringer was the rumor being spread of the word 'kill' being uttered by one of them. Toxic conflicts were not going to be tolerated in the Cirque Mystique, and it had to be put to rest as soon as possible. He had turned the corner to find Raven and Tulio talking
"He apologized to me and Saya before he..." Tulio was saying before he saw Facilier looking at them out of the corner of his eye. The healer stopped chatting before asking, "Um...Facilier...what, um, what's going on?"
"I wanted to talk to Raven," Facilier answered, "about her husband. And, well, it appears you may be in on it, so I suggest we talk about this behind closed doors."
The trio trudged to Facilier's caravan in absolute silence. However, the common issue buzzed overhead like a gadfly; what was going on with Gaara and Korra. It was getting dangerous, where either one of them could be hurt. What seemed like a short walk seemed leagues until finally, the door was bolted shut and they could begin talking. Facilier opened the floor with the blunt question, "Is it true that your husband declared he wanted to kill Korra?"
Before Raven could answer, a very loud pounding echoed from outside. "Facilier! Let me in!" The door was opened to reveal Belle, who looked like she had seen a ghost. Held against her chest was a worn on book, the cover being made of old, cracked leather engraved with Arabic letters. Upon seeing Raven and Tulio, she let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank God, I was looking for you both."
"How come?" Tulio inquired.
"You were the last person Gaara came to talk to. I saw him leaving the infirmary, and then remembered what I read in the old desert tomes he had given me as a holiday present. I came across this." She lay down the weathered volume to the page that was splayed open. The illustration depicted a large, catlike monster towering over desert dunes, it eyes were an intense yellow-gold against the darkened eye sockets. In its claws stood a human figure, and from its hands, washes of sand were being thrust forward if bot being fed into the monster. In the dunes, a hand could be seen; limp, lifeless...buried. Belle pointed to the torrents of sand,
"The Sands of Time choose a host based on past struggles. Typically the vessel is someone who has undergone cruelty since birth. Raven," her worried hazel eyes directed over to Raven, "what did Gaara tell you about his childhood?"
Raven pursed her blackberry glossed lips in thought. It was obvious that what had been told was not exactly a pretty image. "He told me that...well...his mother died in childbirth and that his father blamed him for his death, so he sent him away to stay with his uncle."
"Okay..." Tulio nodded. Beneath the thoughtful expression were glimpses of empathy and sadness. Troublesome fathers were something they had in common.
"...and when he was six, he and his uncle found the caverns in Turkey..." Raven continued. "...they located the Sands, and then," her violet eyes narrowed and her shaodwy powers began to fluctuate, "...and then Yashamaru tried to kill him, to which the Sands then acted to protect Gaara and allow him the strength to fight back and kill Yashamaru. Before he died, Yashamaru confessed that no one in Gaara's life ever loved him..."
"..and thats why the Sands chose him as their vessel," Facilier finished. "he has been walking through shit highway since comin' out of the womb."
Belle nodded. She looked once more at the picture before pointing to the hand. "The Sands of Time take on an extremely protective role when the vessel has been chosen. It will seek out the source of a threat and try everything it can to destroy it....did...Gaara tell you what happened to his father?" At the sight of Raven shaking her head, Belle assumed the worst and looked on. "So with Yashamaru dead, Dad dead, and mom dead...who is the last family?"
"Korra," everyone answered simultaneously.
"And the Sands get nastier when the final target is in sight." Belle pointed to the beast. "They begin to overtake the mind of the vessel. The most common is taking on the form of a fierce animal...in the process...the human mind is lost." Solemnly, she closed the book and looked at everyone in the eye with utmost urgency. "Gaara doesn't want to kill Korra; the Sands do. They deem her a threat as she's the only family left to kill."
"Then we need to keep them as far apart as possible," Facilier mused.
Raven turned paler. Her violet eyes were big, hurt, and unyielding. Her husband was becoming a monster? How could they keep the Sands power under control? Keeping them away was easier said than done. And then there was the problem with Korra being guarded. Charlie could end up being hurt in the fray, which would be unintentional but a murder nonetheless. She stumbled a bit, trying to catch her breath. "How...how do we keep him...humane?"
Belle shook her head sadly. The book had no answer. Her eyes looked to Tulio. "You might be able to heal him...find a way to ease the Sands..."
Tulio held up his hands. "As much as I would like to help, I can't risk getting hurt - and having others getting hurt. What if the Sands deem me a threat by trying to keep them on a leash?" That was a very valid point. Healing the Sands would be even more dangerous, and would make their primal will spread faster if it failed to hinder its effects. Simply 'keeping them away' was easier said than done. "Do we let Korra know about this?"
Facilier looked at the old book. "Yes. That way she doesn't confront him and end up getting hurt and he can keep his humanity. Now the question remains; how do we stop the Sands of Time from taking away our fortune teller?"
"He apologized to me and Saya before he..." Tulio was saying before he saw Facilier looking at them out of the corner of his eye. The healer stopped chatting before asking, "Um...Facilier...what, um, what's going on?"
"I wanted to talk to Raven," Facilier answered, "about her husband. And, well, it appears you may be in on it, so I suggest we talk about this behind closed doors."
The trio trudged to Facilier's caravan in absolute silence. However, the common issue buzzed overhead like a gadfly; what was going on with Gaara and Korra. It was getting dangerous, where either one of them could be hurt. What seemed like a short walk seemed leagues until finally, the door was bolted shut and they could begin talking. Facilier opened the floor with the blunt question, "Is it true that your husband declared he wanted to kill Korra?"
Before Raven could answer, a very loud pounding echoed from outside. "Facilier! Let me in!" The door was opened to reveal Belle, who looked like she had seen a ghost. Held against her chest was a worn on book, the cover being made of old, cracked leather engraved with Arabic letters. Upon seeing Raven and Tulio, she let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank God, I was looking for you both."
"How come?" Tulio inquired.
"You were the last person Gaara came to talk to. I saw him leaving the infirmary, and then remembered what I read in the old desert tomes he had given me as a holiday present. I came across this." She lay down the weathered volume to the page that was splayed open. The illustration depicted a large, catlike monster towering over desert dunes, it eyes were an intense yellow-gold against the darkened eye sockets. In its claws stood a human figure, and from its hands, washes of sand were being thrust forward if bot being fed into the monster. In the dunes, a hand could be seen; limp, lifeless...buried. Belle pointed to the torrents of sand,
"The Sands of Time choose a host based on past struggles. Typically the vessel is someone who has undergone cruelty since birth. Raven," her worried hazel eyes directed over to Raven, "what did Gaara tell you about his childhood?"
Raven pursed her blackberry glossed lips in thought. It was obvious that what had been told was not exactly a pretty image. "He told me that...well...his mother died in childbirth and that his father blamed him for his death, so he sent him away to stay with his uncle."
"Okay..." Tulio nodded. Beneath the thoughtful expression were glimpses of empathy and sadness. Troublesome fathers were something they had in common.
"...and when he was six, he and his uncle found the caverns in Turkey..." Raven continued. "...they located the Sands, and then," her violet eyes narrowed and her shaodwy powers began to fluctuate, "...and then Yashamaru tried to kill him, to which the Sands then acted to protect Gaara and allow him the strength to fight back and kill Yashamaru. Before he died, Yashamaru confessed that no one in Gaara's life ever loved him..."
"..and thats why the Sands chose him as their vessel," Facilier finished. "he has been walking through shit highway since comin' out of the womb."
Belle nodded. She looked once more at the picture before pointing to the hand. "The Sands of Time take on an extremely protective role when the vessel has been chosen. It will seek out the source of a threat and try everything it can to destroy it....did...Gaara tell you what happened to his father?" At the sight of Raven shaking her head, Belle assumed the worst and looked on. "So with Yashamaru dead, Dad dead, and mom dead...who is the last family?"
"Korra," everyone answered simultaneously.
"And the Sands get nastier when the final target is in sight." Belle pointed to the beast. "They begin to overtake the mind of the vessel. The most common is taking on the form of a fierce animal...in the process...the human mind is lost." Solemnly, she closed the book and looked at everyone in the eye with utmost urgency. "Gaara doesn't want to kill Korra; the Sands do. They deem her a threat as she's the only family left to kill."
"Then we need to keep them as far apart as possible," Facilier mused.
Raven turned paler. Her violet eyes were big, hurt, and unyielding. Her husband was becoming a monster? How could they keep the Sands power under control? Keeping them away was easier said than done. And then there was the problem with Korra being guarded. Charlie could end up being hurt in the fray, which would be unintentional but a murder nonetheless. She stumbled a bit, trying to catch her breath. "How...how do we keep him...humane?"
Belle shook her head sadly. The book had no answer. Her eyes looked to Tulio. "You might be able to heal him...find a way to ease the Sands..."
Tulio held up his hands. "As much as I would like to help, I can't risk getting hurt - and having others getting hurt. What if the Sands deem me a threat by trying to keep them on a leash?" That was a very valid point. Healing the Sands would be even more dangerous, and would make their primal will spread faster if it failed to hinder its effects. Simply 'keeping them away' was easier said than done. "Do we let Korra know about this?"
Facilier looked at the old book. "Yes. That way she doesn't confront him and end up getting hurt and he can keep his humanity. Now the question remains; how do we stop the Sands of Time from taking away our fortune teller?"