Behind Enemy Lines [Rhys]

[Deleted]

January 5th, 2026
rhys alexander greyback

Eeva... felt like a wrecking ball had been taken to her brain. Like the worst hangover of her life. Memories. Memories that weren't hers. Flooding her senses, her mind. She could hardly even process them because she was still processing the voices in her heads. The days events had at least taught her who the voices belonged to. Though... she still didn't fully understand. It was the creatures. But she kept hearing them when she couldn't see any creatures. Were there invisible creatures on the island? Or was she hearing some that were too far away? She didn't understand that part yet. But now... these memories were just making it... worse. 

LIke the night before, she had chosen to stay on the island overnight. Several other Heliopath members had a similar idea, however, so they'd made a small little campsite, tucked behind one of the ships wrecks. It would act mostly as protection. From... Who knew what. While the few others that were camping out mulled about, discussing their days events Eeva sat there. As if in a daze. 

There was a thought nearby. A quiet little voice. Simple, without many cares. IT was thinking about the humans, and the camp fire they'd made. Care free. Listening to it, in this moment was almost soothing. It gave her something to focus on. Some sort of order to the chaos of her mind. That is, until it's thoughts went frantic. Panicked... Then gone.

Eeva jolted, as if shocked out of her thoughts and turned her head to where the tiny voice had extinguished. There was Rhys. She didn't see it, but she knew what had happened. IT had died. Somehow. Someway. Her already pale complexion (from the affects of the island) turned a hint of green.). "Decided to stay the night?" She forced herself to ask, to try and focus on something other then the little voice that had just died and the memories flooding her mind.

[rhys alexander greyback]

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See the animal in his cage that you built

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January 5, 2026
@eeva

Rhys 'stood', or whatever he called this. Looking down, he saw the red sand below him, but his boots didn't touch it. They hovered about a foot off the surface, as if he was standing on top of an invisible pane. He sighed heavily in frustration. Since he'd arrived back with Poe the day before, he hadn't left the island opting to camp out with other Heliopath members until he could figure out this new...condition. That made his fourth day on the island now, and it wasn't as bad to him as the others. Poe had been quite jittery, as had some others and Eeva had been almost completely distracted since he'd met up with her earlier in the day. She had been exploring the island's outskirts the previous day with Levi and the colossal statues surrounding the island. There was so much here to see and learn about, and that type of environment always piqued his natural curiosity, but right now, he was purely distracted by the fact that he couldn't touch the ground. He quickly realized that other surfaces like the large fallen and dead trees he could sit on, but otherwise her he was in this perpetual suspension in the air.

Poe had helped him find a "walking staff" of sorts, and though he was remarkably stable like this, his brain kept telling him he was going to fall, so the staff provided sort of a mental crutch so he could get around. However, bumping into things or things bumping into him affected his stability greatly. Rhys made his way toward the small campfire they had made. He was exhausted--of course, his guise for being here was for the bank, but Heliopath decided that it was necessary to explore this if only so the Purifiers wouldn't. Eeva was already there, though it had been about a month since he'd bumped into her in London and mistaken her for Hannah they had actually become friends. They'd found some overlap in their unfortunate histories, and then he'd managed to recruit her into this cause. Slowly, he "walked" or whatever this was but tended to use the walking stick to lead him around until he approached Eeva. Her red hair against her pale complexion made the unnatural tinge in her face more noticeable. "Well, I can't bloody well go home like this, can I?"

To nobody's surprise, Rhys had been particularly grumpy since he'd arrived the previous day. He was frustrated that he couldn't figure what had cursed him or why or even how, but here he was. He let out another frustrated sigh as he "stood" a few feet away. "How are you holding up?" He asked. She hadn't looked well at all and worse off than some of the others. However, aside from his sour mood and his not so grounded physical state, he had felt actually okay. He thought it might be that he wasn't as nervous in these types of situations because of his Curse Breaker work, but it was hard to say. There was some kind of magic here. They all seemed to feel it in various ways. "I think a few more are arriving tomorrow. Once they can get away from the Ministry." He knew Bianca would be arriving, though he wasn't sure off the top of his head who else.

[Deleted]

January 5th, 2026
rhys alexander greyback

Eeva didn't notice his floating at first. But his response seemed to finally bring her fully back to the world around her. Out of her head and finally aware. When she didn't notice it she couldn't help but stare. Rhys was floating. Floating. Well. That was one way to get your head in the clouds. It wasn't much, just barely off the ground.. But from her current position (sitting in front of a camp fire) it was very noticeable. She blinked several times. Still trying to comprehend what exactly she was seeing. Floating wasn't unusual on it's own. Magic made things float all the time. But people didn't usually float on their own. A memory came rushing back to her. She opened her mouth and words came out before she even realized what she was saying. "Must be karma from fourth year." Fourth year? Had Eeva gone to fourth year..?

Eeva looked away, her thoughts even more of a mess then a moment before. She covered her face with a hand, eyes shut. What was that? That.... memory? Hogwarts. A prank. Teenage Rhys and Ilija. No. That wasn't her... Was it? NO. It couldn't be her. But then who was it? Where did it come from? Why did she remember it? He asked her how she was holding up and she shook her head. "This place is.... wrong. I don't know how you wizards stand it. How all of you seem so... so fine. And I'm here feeling like my insides are being turned inside out." Eeva hadn't mentioned her Druid heritage, now that she thought about it. "This entire island is.... twisted. This has to be the place in the legends but I don't know how it's possible." She was lost in thought now. That was the only thing that made sense. Yrisle was real. THis was Yrisle. The prison of the Wyrdness. The corrupted God. That realization only made her stomach knot even harder. Rhys mentioned others coming and she gave a small nod.

[rhys alexander greyback]

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January 5, 2026
@eeva

Rhys fidgeted, or rather shifted his weight sort of on his other foot. It felt normal, but it didn't look normal by any means. He still felt incredibly uncomfortable and unsure about what this all meant. At the same time, it was a matter of ego. There hadn't been a curse he'd come across that he hadn't been able to figure out before, and yet here he was 'floating' for more than twenty-four hours. Everybody else still seemed to be accepting it as well, and Eeva looked at him with almost a blank stare until she spoke. Rhys blinked and then paused. "What?" He had heard her but wasn't sure if the words had registered correctly. Fourth-year? But she hadn't gone to Hogwarts. "Did Ilija tell you to say something?" Normally, he might have chuckled, but he wasn't one hundred percent not in the mood for a joke about his current state. But it did bring back a memory of a small prank he, Ilija, and Hannah had pulled that only resulted in Renfri smacking him full upside the back of his head afterward.

Eeva still seemed to be struggling in general. Even in the little time he'd spent with her, she seemed out of sorts ever since they had arrived here. "What do you mean?" Rhys had heard various comments from others about the island, but he never had the hair on the back of his neck stand up or goosebumps as others described or that sense of trepidation either. Eeva's description was much worse than that even. "Interesting....I think I've actually been okay. Well, except for....this." Rhys leaned on the walking stick and looked down where his feet were off the ground. But, he listened to her to continue speaking. Almost frustrated and overwhelmed even. "What legends?" He asked curiously. He tried to sift through his own mind and about any legends he may have heard or been familiar with within his work. But nothing came to mind that remotely fit this description, so it would have been some area he hadn't studied himself.

[Deleted]

January 5th, 2026
rhys alexander greyback

Rhys looked just as confused she was. So at least she wasn't alone in that. She didn't know what it was she was remembering, but it was clear as day. As if her own memory. Only... It couldn't be. She didn't go to Hogwarts. A memory from Hogwarts made absolutely no sense. Her eyebrows furrowed together as he asked if Ilija had mentioned something. Was that it? No, it wasn't. It was clearly a memory. Was it one of Ilija's memories? Maybe the mist had somehow... shared some of his memories with her? But... that almost didn't make sense. Because he was in the memories as another party. If they were his, she'd be seeing them from his point of view... right? "No...." She answered slowly. "Just reminded me of the cake." A cake. A floating charm. It felt so real. Like it was a memory. But again, she didn't understand whose.

Eeva ran a hand through hair, letting out a slow breath. "Druids have a.... connection. With the earth. With animals. Like being a part of it. But here it feels like everything is rejecting my presence. Like the very air hates me." It was an intensely uncomfortable feeling for a druid. To be rejected by the one thing you had such a strong connection with. She stared into the flames, lost in thought again. These feelings almost seemed to reinforce her suspicions. As he asked about the legends she glanced at him, a somber look in her eyes. "The legends of Wyrdness. The corrupted God of magic. They are.... ghost stories. You'd tell them to druid children to scare them. Like Grimm Fairytales. But the more time I'm here the more I wonder... If they aren't stories at all." She motioned to his feet, his floating. "Is that the only change you've... endured...?" Or was there anything else? Did he hear the voices of the creatures like she did? Was he having flashes of memories that didn't belong to him?

[rhys alexander greyback]

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January 5, 2026
@eeva

They both seemed confused as to what had just happened, but Rhys was almost about to let it slide and assume that Ilija had told her a story of when they were teenagers until she spoke again, and Rhys was about to fall over though he wasn't sure how that would have gone with floating. If Ilija hadn't told her....then how in Merlin's name would she know that. "How did......How do you know about that?" Rhys asked. There was concern in his voice, but only because it was strange that she would know something like that. She hadn't been there, and the only people that could have told her either didn't or were dead. For the first time since he'd arrived, a chill went up his spine, maybe the magic of the island was getting to him after all, or he just didn't want to admit how spooked he was by Eeva's words.

Rhys was still standing as he didn't quite feel comfortable trying to sit yet. He was tired but had grown used it mainly. Years of climbing up pyramids and into cave networks made him used to this type of physical activity. Druids. He hadn't thought about them, not since he'd found out he had half-druid siblings the previous year. What did they have to do with this? The feeling that Eeva was describing was almost the opposite of what Rhys had been feeling, and at least hearing it out loud helped him find those words as well. But, how would she know these legends? If there was one area of the world he'd visited very rarely, it was Hy-Brasil. But if she knew these legends, which with how she described them left a sinking feeling in his stomach, then what did that mean about her? "So..." He wondered if there was a tactful way of asking, not that he was ever known for that. "Did you grow up with Druids?" He knew that her family was gone, much as his mother had been taken from him so young and so violently.

He paused to think. Maybe that was why she looked like she was going to faint. He looked at the red sand below his feet, "Well, this isn't like any nature I've ever seen. The magic here must be different." But the legend. This Wyrdness. Much like the stories told to kids to behave, each culture seemed to have its own set of them. She asked about his condition. "As far as I know..." He was having a hard time differentiating what was exhaustion and what was this place affecting him. "I don't know. It's hard to tell. I don't feel all that different here. It's an eery place, but I always feel like I know where I'm going..." He hadn't said it out loud yet before. It had only been his thoughts, but it wasn't anywhere near the rejection she described.

[Deleted]

January 5th, 2026
rhys alexander greyback

How did she know about it? That was a very good question. Eeva stared at him with confusion for a few moments. It didn't make sense at all. That she would know that. And yet... "The mist, I think," she started, pausing for just a moment. It was the only theory she had currently. "Ilija and I were caught in it together." It had to have shared some of Ilija's memories. That must be it. But again, her point of view in the memories didn't make sense. But it was the only thing that made sense. IT had been the second time she'd been caught in the mist. The first time... well... That was when the voices started. She looked away, her face turning a little green as she heard another voice nearby. She looked up to see one of those bizarre birds sitting on the ship wreck at their back. "It does strange things to people..." She finished. She wasn't going to explain the creatures' thoughts yet...

Eeva didn't look away from the bird, even after he spoke, asking about her growing up with druids. "I am druid," she answered, which wasn't necessarily the exact answer to his question, but it was at the same time. She'd not only grown up with them, but she was one. "Not from Hy-Brasil, though. I'm from a small community in Northern Finland." She hadn't been back in years though. Couldn't bring herself to return to the place her family was murdered. Her family history had come up when she joined Heliopath. WHy she wanted to be with the group. The Purifiers, in her mind, were no better then the wizards that killed her family. And had to be stopped.

Eeva finally looked back at him. Night was setting him, long dark shadows stretching across the beach and the fire seeming to grow brighter in the darkness. HEr eyes looked almost amber in the flames light. "That's probably because of what you are," she finally explained after a long, silent moment. "Are you familiar with any druid legends?" If not, she'd explain, b ut she wanted to know what he knew first.

[rhys alexander greyback]

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See the animal in his cage that you built

Are you sure what side you're on?

January 5, 2026
@eeva

There was an expression of knowing and a lost look in Eeva's eyes that left Rhys confused. Like that look you saw in someone's face when recognition set in, but hers was a strange combination. He didn't understand it. But then she mentioned the mist, and his ears perked up. The mist. He recalled his own experience, but he hadn't really put two and two together in terms of the mist. It had honestly slipped his mind only because of the dense fog that seemed to cover most of the island and at least the parts of the island that he had been exploring, but did that mean the mist wasn't the fog? All he ever seemed to be left with was more questions than answers. "The mist..." He mumbled as he glanced down again at the red sand that his feet refused to touch. "Seems like everybody got something different..." Nobody else was floating as far as he knew. That much was obvious.

"So...what does that mean with--how did you know about the cake?" It didn't answer the strangest coincidence of how Eeva knew a story that only three or four people would most likely recall. She was looking at something, so he followed her line of sight and saw that she was watching one of the strange creatures, a bird of some sort, but then he looked back at the fire when she spoke again. A druid. He couldn't believe the timing and the fact that he'd met more druids this past year than he really had before. But she wasn't from where the majority were from. "Oh." He responded, he wasn't sure what to make of it yet. Not that it mattered, but he thought about this legend, and now they were on this island and all of them suffering in their own way. "My half-brother and sister are half-druid..." He commented. Maybe when he left this forsaken rock in the ocean, he could see if they were familiar. Well, Ava would be less than Jean.

Despite the fog and the mist that seemed to follow them around, sunlight still managed to get through, but it was also getting late now. "What do you mean what I am?" Rhys asked, confused. What was that supposed to mean, and how did that connect with druid legends? "No, I'm not. Not many of us get to Hy-Brasil."

[Deleted]

January 5th, 2026
rhys alexander greyback

Eeva had encountered the mist twice now. How long would it take to understand what it had done to her the second time? The memories. What were they. What did they mean. Did they even mean anything? Was it just a strange side effect where, because she and Ilija had been in it together it had jumbled some of their memories. Did that mean she had some of hers? But that didn't explain that first moment. That agonizing, searing, pain. Like she was being ripped apart. No one would survive something like that, so it couldn't be Ilija's memory. Clearly she didn't understand any of it. "I'd be happy to trade you, if you like. I'd rather float then..." she trailed off, trying to decide how to explain it. "I've been hearing the creatures thoughts." That on it's own didn't actually sound that bad. "Including the terrified and agonizing scream of one being hunted and killed by another." She said it quite casually, but the memory made her shudder.

As for how she knew about the cake. Again. Still up for debate. "I think it jumbled some of our memories." It really was the best guess at the moment. At least, it was the only logical guess she could think of. She didn't even know what other guesses were even a possibility at this point. He mentioned siblings being half druid and her eyes widened, her eyebrows raising high. "Greyback half siblings?" She asked, for clarification. "I hope they aren't on Hy-Brasil then. I'd pity them." Eeva had spent enough time away from druid society to not feel as... prejudice about "dark creatures" as others, but she knew how they felt. A Greyback half druid on Hy-Brasil would be seen as an abomination.

Eeva gave him a look when he asked her what she meant. One of those "are you serious?" looks. "A werewolf, obviously." Though, his inexperience with druid legends would explain why he didn't understand what she meant by the comment. "Well, the very quick version is that the Wyrdness is the creator of all magic. Only it never stopped creating. And slowly it became more twisted and corrupted. We believe that the Wyrdness created the first vampire and werewolf." She paused, running a hand through her hair. "Eventually it became a danger to all magic and our ancestors locked it way. So that it's influence wouldn't spread to the rest of the world."

[rhys alexander greyback]

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See the animal in his cage that you built

Are you sure what side you're on?

January 5, 2026
@eeva

Rhys debated for a moment the offer of a trade if it were even magically possible at this point. However, after she described her affliction, he wondered if that was worse or better than essentially being a low flying balloon. Rhys had enough personal pain hearing and sorting his own thoughts without having to hear every other creature's thoughts mixed in. The idea gave him anxiety, and suddenly, floating didn't seem as bad. "I think I'll pass." Rhysmuttered. He wondered if that was the reason her memory seemed to be affected--maybe there was some connection by it. "Is it just the creatures or what about the rest of us?" The full moon had passed just two days previously. He'd gone home for that and barely had time to rest before joining Poe on that plane. The ride had been bumpy. He realized he didn't like heights that far up, and the sun in his face like that had been excruciating. Did he count as a 'creature' when he transformed?

If this mysterious magical force had encountered Eeva and Ilija together, it would be probable that the memory was actually Ilija's. But there was no way to confirm until he showed up--if he did. Rhys had spotted him earlier but wasn't sure where he had wandered off to, but truthfully he wasn't here with the Bank this time, so he was cautious about who he ran into in case they started asking questions about why he was here and with whom. Claire had let him in on some details regarding Heliopath and also Ouroboros, not a lot, but he felt warier than ever. That constant feeling he had that wasn't from the island itself. She seemed surprised to hear about his siblings, but he had stopped being surprised at his family and their tendency to appear randomly. Rhys nodded when she asked if they were Greyback siblings, meaning their father was also Fenrir Greyback. Her response wasn't a surprise, either. From speaking to Jean and seeing what he had on Hy-Brasil for himself, that seemed to be a common sentiment. "Its...." Rhys paused and tried to think of some word for Jean and Ava's situation. "Complicated." But such was the nature of existing as a child of Fenrir Greyback.

At least Jean and Ava had been spared the existence as a werewolf, much like Max had been but unfortunately not Dahlia, Adrian, Jamie, and himself. If that wasn't a reason for society to look down upon them already, using the Greyback name as their surname made them easy to spot in a crowd. She explained more about this magical force, the 'Wyrdness' she called it. Rhys had never heard of it. Druid stories hadn't been needed in his training nor for his work--not that they were ever really allowed on the island. Rhys had visited all of two times himself, and the second time it had taken quite a few connections to do so. But he listened intently, describing some kind of magical force as 'the creator of all magic' made him believe more that it was just a story as that was a bit of a grandiose statement in itself. But then she connected it to him or at least being a werewolf, but he couldn't' help but look away slightly. This 'Wyrdness' had become dark and corrupted and created the first vampire and werewolf. He shouldn't have been surprised to hear his lifelong affliction also be connected to some dark and twisted magic in another culture's folklore. But he supposed he just hoped in vain that one day it wouldn't automatically be a classification of something so....bad.

He paused to think. From his work and studies around the world, he found that folklore was based on some fact though the stories were modified over time as they were verbally passed down or exaggerated to prove a point. There had to be more. It couldn't be that simple as a children's story. "So you think that this place is the one from your story?" He asked, though he was personally very doubtful. Magic was never quite a tangible thing but tangible enough to be believed while this was just something extraordinary and beyond what he could currently wrap his mind around. "So is this dark magic?" He wasn't sure how to classify it. Floating like this was relatively harmless compared to the curses he had come across over the past seven years, but he just didn't know what to make of it yet.

[Deleted]

January 5th, 2026
rhys alexander greyback

Eeva looked back up at the strange bird. Half listening to its thoughts as Rhys asked if it was only creatures she could hear. It was a very valid question. But currently, she could only hear one extra train of thought. It wasn't always bad... Not in moments like this. The birds in general, she'd learn, were rather peaceful. They weren't malicious. Or at least their thoughts weren't. The long tongues were a bit unnerving. "Unless one of us is thinking about mating season right now, I think it's just creatures." It did make her curious. It's thoughts, all about the upcoming mating season, also mentioned a stone garden. What was the stone garden? "Do you know if anyone's encountered a stone garden? Seems to be a popular place for these birds."

It had been... intense to say the least. Encountering the mist with Ilija. While it seemed she'd gotten some of his memories in the mist, she didn't know how it had affected him. It seemed that the mist was changing some people physically, and some mentally. It wasn't so clear cut on who, or how, you were affected. She wanted to talk to him about it, but it seemed like a bad time. After what had happened. While the memories seemed to have started to settle, her head still hurt. There was so much pressure. Still so many unfamiliar memories swirling around in her head. It was an information overload that she was trying desperately to fight. It was why she was sitting here. Out of everyone's way.

Eeva made a face at his "its complicated" comment. Well, no shit. She hoped Rhys at least know how most druids felt about werewolves. Particularly Fenrir Greyback. She wondered how there were two half druids with Greyback's lineage. "They're lucky the High Druid is forward thinking." She started to explain. "If it was someone else... I wouldn't be surprised if they were banished." Banishment for druids was.... intense. Her own village took it to an even worse degree then Hy-Brasil. While many of the older generation wasn't a fan of Fae's leadership as High Druid they didn't question it. She had been called as High Druid for a reason. A less open minded High Druid wouldn't have thought twice to get rid of Greyback sired children.

Eeva knew that some of the Druid stories of the Wyrdness were no doubt just that: stories. But stories sometimes had a grain of truth to them. And this island seemed to be living truth of that. She looked back at him as he spoke, asking if she thought this was the place in the stories. She reached for her bag, and pulled out a small notebook. Flipping it to a page, she got to her feet and held it out for him to take. "I found that symbol on one of the statues around the island. It's archaic and ancient. But it's similar to a few runes I've seen on Hy-Brasil. It's..." she thought, trying to think how to explain it. WHile english was her main language at this point there were somethings that she never had to explain, so she had to figure out how to explain it. "It's a base? It has a simple meaning, and then you can stack others on top of it to expand on it?" She hoped that made sense. "It's a ward. But to protect or imprison, I can't tell. It was too worn. Maybe one of the other statues will have a clearer carving, but that symbol at least tells me that my ancestors carved it." She paused, frowning just a little. "Right now... I think the Wyrdness is the best guess we have."

Though... Was it dark magic? Eeva shook her head. No. It wasn't. The Wyrdness wasn't just dark. It was all. It was the entity itself that had become corrupted. "No, I don't think so. I think it's simply... magic." She ran a hand through her hair, as if trying to decide how to explain. "It's.... ah how do I explain it...." She turned away, pacing a few steps back. Finally she reached down, and took a handful of the sand. Some people had been wary to touch it, rightfully so. But Eeva didn't hesitate. She turned back to him, and held out her hand, the glittering red sand shimmering in the light of the fire. "This sand. It's neither bad, or good. It's simply... different." She let the hand fall between her fingers. She then looked at the bird, which was still eyeing them curiously. "That bird. It's different. But I haven't heard a single malicious thought from it. It's mind is almost like what you'd expect for a normal animal. It's not dark or evil." She turned back to Rhys, smiling just a little. "The Wyrdness itself, as an entity, is evil. Not its power." She hoped that made sense. Eeva had been raised to believe that the Wyrdness was evil. Corrupted. But seeing this place, while it was determined to make her sick, wasn't evil. It was unique. Different, terrifying, beautiful, and fascinating. The island itself, and the magic of it, wasn't evil.

(Just gunna start including that @ilija can join whenever you want!)

[rhys alexander greyback]

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See the animal in his cage that you built

Are you sure what side you're on?

January 5, 2026
@eeva , @ilija

Rhys slightly rolled his eyes at her answer. He wondered what the bird's thoughts were--the one she kept looking at. Out of everywhere, he had traveled and the different things he had seen in the muggle and magical communities, this island had the strangest by far. Rhys looked around, the other Heliopath members hadn't come back to the campsite, but he wasn't worried. They all knew to find a place like their current one--near a shipwreck or somewhere secluded to hunker down until the next day. It wasn't clear how long they would stay, but Rhys hoped to find some kind of cure, a fix, or counter-curse to his current issue. He was more concerned with running into someone they shouldn't out here, whether it be a Purifier or some new creature he hadn't encountered or worse--that mist again. He looked back when she asked about a stone garden, his brow furrowed in thought. A stone garden? "I don't know, where I last explored had a thick fog but a lot of stone. We'll probably have to wait for the others." Maybe one of them saw something.

His brother Jean had given him a summary of his experience on Hy-Brasil, and it hadn't been the best. Rhys himself knew what it felt to be rejected because of his heritage, but at the same time, it hadn't been to this extent. "I didn't say it was easy." Rhys responded. He shifted the walking stick to lean on it with the weight of his other side. It wasn't a natural position. His upper body was sore and tired, and letting him know this floating thing wasn't fun. It wasn't an ideal situation, but he didn't quite feel like explaining it at the moment. The more siblings he seemed to connect with, the more complicated the story grew to be.

Despite her current state, she was willing to answer his questions, and he had a lot of them. But this time, she ruffled through her bag and pulled out a book, which she then handed to him. Rhys took it with his free hand. The page had a symbol on it and not one he recognized. He examined it. Moments such as this tended to kick him into Curse Breaker mode, so he was curious. Rhys looked up as she tried to explain this symbol's significance to the island's colossal statues. Still, in general, Runes were Runes and worked similarly in terms of magic-- at least that had been his experience. But he nodded as she spoke to indicated he was following. However, her conclusion made him pause. A spooky story that wasn't just that. "I'm not familiar with druid runes, but I do have experience with runes." He responded. He wished he wasn't the only Curse Breaker that he knew about in Heliopath. Having an extra set of eyes from Renfri or Jasper would have been useful. They all traveled and focused on different parts of the world, so their knowledge and insight would have been useful.

"So......you think this story about the 'Wyrdness' is real?" It was a serious question, and she had grown up with this story, and that already put her ahead of that knowledge out of anyone he knew really. The nature of the magic was where Rhys had a hard time understanding. This island was dark, foggy, and eery and gave most of them a haunting chill up their spine. For Eeva, it seemed to torture her as much as whatever the mist did to her was, and Rhys was apparently the least bothered by it. His instinct went to dark magic. As she thought about his question, he crouched or rather floated lower than he had been. His legs were tired from standing, and at least like this, he didn't need the walking stick for the moment. He laid it down on the red sand. It seemed harmless enough though he didn't have to worry about touching it himself and rested his elbows on his bent knees. She paused and then hurriedly picked up a handful of the red glistening sand to illustrate her point. His face showed he was thinking. "So what you're saying is that its--the 'Wyrdness' is....misunderstood?" It was ironic that was the first word that had popped into his head. Maybe there was something to not taking something at face value. Much as he wished people would do with him.

[Deleted]

January 5th, 2026
rhys alexander greyback

Eeva was very interested in this "Stone garden". If only because the bird didn't seem to be thinking of it as the same as a... well, regular stone garden. Was it stones, or something else? Perhaps it would give some hints at some point of where it might be. She'd jsut have to keep listening to see. She nodded as Rhys answered he hadn't, but waiting for someone else. Hopefully someone had stumbled upon it. She also began to wonder if anyone had been working on a map of the island yet. Many of them were beginning to learn their way around, those with a good sense of direction and a desire to explore. But a map would be a must. No doubt the Ministry was working on one. Probably sent in cartographers for it. Though they would need a good vantage point to make anything accurate. The only good vantage point she'd found was a far off volcano. No offense, but she didn't think climbing that was a good idea.

Eeva offered a sympathetic smile as he responded, saying "he didn't say it was easy". Oh, she wasn't saying it would be easy. Just that they were lucky that they at least had a High Druid that would give them a bit of a chance. She'd broker at least the worst of the discrimination. Though no doubt there was an intense amount. Eeva was druid, but even she knew that some of her people were a bit.... extreme. She only had an open mind because she hadn't lived among her people in almost ten years. It had weakened most of her own prejudices and made her much more open minded. Though she clearly still had some of the superstitions. Such as the Wyrdness. The rune was a welcome distraction though. If anyone would be able to figure it out, it would be curse breakers. "If I find any others, I'll let you know. Perhaps a clearer one might shed some light on it's meaning." It was why she'd drawn the rune in the notebook. So that she could refer back to it later. If they couldn't figure it out while here, then she could take it home and continue her investigation on Hy-Brasil.

Eeva walked back to the spot by the fire and sat down. She thought. If she thought the stories of the Wyrdness were real. She leaned toward, bringing her knees up and propped her head on them. "I think after seeing this place it'd be foolish to believe there isn't at least some truth to the stories." She answered honestly. Though, the Wyrdness had always been a tale of warning for druid children. To scare them into being good. Being here brought a different perspective. There wasn't anything inherently evil about the place. Except how it felt. But strangely, it seemed no one else felt the same way. Rhys made sense. If werewolves did originate from the Wyrdness, he would have a stronger connection to it then the average witch or wizard. But why was there such a difference between herself and other wizardkind? Why was it affecting her so much worse? "Maybe. This place isn't evil. We just don't understand it." She pursed her lips. "All the stories of the Wyrdness growing up were about how terrifying it was. A fallen deity that became twisted and unrecognizable as it's power grew. That it would take you, and twist you into a horrible monster until you lost yourself." She tilted her head to look at him. "No one has become a "monster", but we can't deny that this place isn't changing people."

[rhys alexander greyback]

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See the animal in his cage that you built

Are you sure what side you're on?

January 5, 2026
@eeva , @ilija

Rhys tried to think through what he had seen in the past few days. A stone garden wasn't in those memories. But then again, "garden" could have meant something else. He shook his head. He supposed they could have to wait and regroup and share observations before coming to some kind of conclusions about this island. Rhys had focused his efforts in that area he'd found with Dahlia a few days previously. There was a gut feeling about the place he couldn't describe, but he didn't want to wander alone, so he'd wait for tomorrow. The "woods" or large clearing of interesting trees between this beach and that foggy area seemed harmless. Well, at least Rhys hadn't had any issues aside from scraping up against higher branches than he was used to.

Rhys wondered if Jean and Ava could help with these druid legends, Jean wasn't from there despite his lineage, but it wouldn't hurt to ask, he figured. He made a mental note to write to him whenever he was back home. Rhys looked at the rune on the page she had handed it. It wasn't like anything he'd seen before as he tried to mentally think of any that might have a similar pattern or shape. Some runes you could decipher because another rune helped provide a starting point. If he was lucky that might be the case here, he could ask Ilija or Jasper--even Renfri, but he was hesitant of the word of this getting out and falling into the wrong hands. Rhys nodded when she spoke, closing the notebook and holding it out to hand back to her. "When we get back, I can do some research and see if I find anything like it." All of his research materials were in his flat, though he'd stowed some away when he first visited their safe house in Wales. Conveniently located near where he'd been born.

He was still trying to wrap his mind around this...story or legend. If it was real, it was more than a story now, but it was a lot to take in at once. Rhys was used to keeping an open mind about such things, but the idea that such a magical entity existed was intense. Rhys stared at the red sand, his brow furrowed into a serious expression. It could be mistaken for anger, but really he was just thinking. "Mythology and stories is always based in fact and truth but usually as a way to explain what wasn't able to be explained at the time." Rhys thought out loud. The Ancient Greeks had a way to explain the seasons, the lighting in the sky, and even death. With magic, it wasn't as straightforward as that. Rhys looked down at his floating state. This was certainly not anything "monstrous." A fallen deity. Rhys tried to go through all the myths and stories he'd ever studied, but it would be easier with his books in front of him.

He sighed, "I suppose this could have been worse..." Not that it made him any happier about it. Rhys paused for a few moments, still going through everything she had said so far in his mind. "Twisted and corrupted......so the magic here isn't bad, but the Wyrdness' intent is? And that's why you can hear the creatures, and I'm floating?" It reminded him of some tombs. The spells and enchantments themselves were just magic, but they had been placed with a specific purpose and intent in mind. The curses themselves were dark magic, so there was always that key difference. "And anyone different, like me, is almost perfectly fine here?" It was a question, but also, he was just thinking out loud. The pieces were there, but it was a matter of putting them together, but he knew many large pieces were still missing.

[Deleted]

The entire day had been insane, bad, madness. Or well, maybe not bad, he had no idea how to feel about very specific aspects of it. Mostly the part that had him ... changed. He wasn't sure how he knew but he knew something was different. He'd felt it in his blood as the mist hit the moment he heard Eeva scream. He'd realised it, even as he ran that he was changing with every step he took and the bad feeling the island gave him had grown less despite his exponential growth of emotional distress. He was pretty sure he'd never been that panicked before in his life, nor ran quite that fast. It was almost like the intense emotions had pushed the adrenaline surge to a whole new level. Now he'd wandered off into the wyrdwood, a small while away from the camping site that Rhys and Eeva had set up. He hadn't asked questions, he hadn't even planned to stay at first but with everything that was happening he couldn't leave. Not while his friends were still here.

He'd walked aimlessly for a while, more than aware of the dangers this place seemed to hold. Not even the creatures seemed safe and all seemed to be equally capable of killing anybody. It messed with him, but less so than with Eeva. She'd seeemed off all day, even before the fog had settled in. Afterwards it just seemed to have gotten much worse, as if there was something that made her even more uneasy. He could have sworn he saw flickers of recognition in her face that hadn't been there before and it chilled him to the bone. What did it mean?

He'd strayed back to the campsite, not really paying attention to the words of both Eeva and Rhys as he returned, lost in his own mind. He walked over and sat near them, looking at them both briefly and nodding, not wanting to distract them from their conversation. It seemed rude. He absently fiddled with the bracelet on his wrist. It had been a gift from Renfri for Christmas and it had messed him up severely when he'd opened it. He still felt ill at ease because of it. Renfri had bought it for Hannah and yet he was wearing it around somebody that looked like her mirror image but was vastly different from the girl he'd been so madly in love with. It was enough to make any guy go insane. He knew he needed to pay mind to the future more than the past, but the past was very distracting. He couldn't help but look at her, noticing how much she looked like Hannah. Carmen was more like Hannah in terms of personality, that much was certain. She was sweet and considerate and took all his flaws in stride, but it only made him feel like he was holding her back. That and the fact the fame she had would eventually catch up with him and he knew that he wouldn't be able to handle it. With all the camera's and attention? No, he didn't want all his dirty laundry out in the open. He was a very private person, and he wondered if that would ever go right.

On the other hand he knew that whatever he thought he felt for Eeva was far more likely to be his feelings for Hannah projected on somebody that looked like her. Eeva was great company but he barely even knew her. He stared into the small fire for a moment, lost in thought as ever. He then looked at both Eeva and Rhys. It was then that he blinked several times as he (for the first time that day) actually noticed his friend was... holding up his feet? Without effort? Ilija blinked and thoughtlessly blurted out his next words. "Rhys man... are you floating? I thought we decided that was a bad idea after the cake incident." He shook his head, a bit stunned in surprise as he looked at Rhys. Was this a curse he'd encountered on the island? He expected his friend not to walk into a trap like that so easily, although with this island everything seemed to be rather unpredictable.

@eeva and rhys alexander greyback
I hope it's okay? >.>