:Open: Shedding Skin to a Dying Song

[tiff2]

Morning broke across the horizon as purplish pink from the sun coming up. The sea was actually calm for once except for a few small waves lapping up the shore. Slowly Maren emerged from under the sea as she pointed her head upward pushed the mass of Raven hair back from her face. Her large lilac colored eyes opened as she blinked a few times and looked to the shore. No one it always seemed whenever Maren looked there was no one. Then again it was early in the morning. A gentle sigh left her lips as Maren moved towards the shore, only needing to take a few strides since she was already close to it. When she was able to, she stood up and let her toes touch the dry sand as she stepped on land.

Maren was of course naked, expect for a strewn of pearls in her hair. The very pale woman walked over to a cluster of rocks and reached into a whole, grabbing clothes where she had hidden some. It was a lovely deep blue dress, with a tight bodice, black riding trousers and black boots with a black cloak. She of course knew that this was a queer attire for someone, especially a woman to have, but she didn't care. She found it to be comfortable. Maren put on the drapery she had hidden, saving the worn in boots for last and leaving the cloak on a nearby rock.

She elegantly took a seat on a rock and began to ring the sea water out of some of her curls while combing them with her long fingers. Slowly a gentle melody began to leave her lips as she began to sing soft notes, growing louder and softer in pitch.

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[alicecrysis]

there's nothing in this place

[/font][/i]
THAT EXCITES ME ANYMORE[/color][/font]
i long only for nightmares,[/color][/font]
FOR APOCALYPSE AND WAR[/size][/center]

One of Alatar's deepest fears had been actualized; a fear that would spell the deaths of many elves and men alike. Something in fact, that was brewing on the borders of eastern Middle Earth. No, this was not the work of orcs or trolls, but Men. Evil Men. Corrupted by the evil entities residing to their south, the Men of Rhun had taken up a strong allegiance to Sauron. Alatar had long since held distrust for the Men of Rhun. They were shady. Their practices evil. Constantly trading and whispering with the orcs of Mordor. But now, only now, did she possess the proof that she required to prove this. Hopefully with this proof, Alatar could persuade those who still had the power to dominate other forces of Middle Earth, to attack now rather than defend later. First to come to mind was king Thranduil, as his kingdom was both vast and near. If that failed, Lorien would be her next target. Perhaps even Minas Tirith or Dol Armoth, if the elves proved uncaring. First though, Alatar needed to get out of Rhun. She was being hounded by the Men of Rhun after she'd discovered their true intentions of bringing war to the realm of the Men of Gondor. And in order to make the long trek back across the Brown Lands, Alatar had to restock on water so that her horse, Shadowmere, could survive the journey. This meant a dangerous but otherwise essential stop at the sea of Rhun; though unfit for drinking naturally, the water could be easily purified by magical means.

The sea was calm. Both the waters edge, and the shores and beaches appeared to be void of life at all. That bode well for Alatar, meaning that either she'd completely thrown her predators off her trail, or that they were lying in wait to spring a trap. A quick scan of the area told Alatar that there weren't many places to set up an ambush - whatever could be set up behind the odd rock or dune could be easily struck down with a bolt or two of lightning. Confident in her own abilities, she pressed Shadowmere down towards the waters edge slowly. A vigilant eye keeping an eye on the surround. Only when Alatar was no further than fifty yards from the shore did a song drift into her ears. Immediately her heels dug into her mounts' sides, forcing a rough stop. Long before she could spot the owner of the voice, she recognized the magical prowess contained within it. The songstress was old. Very old. And powerful. Alatar was at a complete loss for what could be lingering here, of all people. Forsaking safety for curiosity, Alatar set forth down the dune and towards the ocean spray.

She wasn't hard to spot. A siren of some sort, bathing in the nude by the waters edge. Alatar was relatively dumb-founded. Clearly not someone she recognized. Not even a being she really recognized. Then again, this was her first time taking to the sea of Rhun, and only her second visit to the general region. Tucked away far to the east, little word of anything escapes out into the more populous regions of Middle Earth. Intrigued, Alatar dismounted Shadowmere and patted her shoulder gently, giving her the go-ahead to wander off on her own. She took to this happily, and trodded off along the shore line, seemingly enjoying the cool water upon her legs. Cerulean eyes fell back on the bathing beauty. Somehow, Alatar just didn't feel threatened.

[/size][/font] "Hark!! Be thy friend or foe of a fellow ancient being of the world?" Alatar's deep blue cloak flapped about animatedly in the gentle sea breeze, exposing her figure as slight and feminine. Her staff held calmly in her left hand, Alatar kept careful watch on the figure from a dozen feet away, awaiting her response eagerly.[/justify][/blockquote][/size]

[tiff2]

Maren's singing quieted a little as she heard hoof beats on the sand. It was a muffled sound, but she still heard it. Slowly her lilac eyes gazed up as she noticed someone walking towards her, a woman. It was easy to tell the way her cloak whipped away from her form to show how feminine it was. Her singing seemed to fade as the woman asked her a question. Maren's eyes seemed to grow wider as she blinked and watched her, tilting her head just so."It depends on what thy are, a friend or foe, and what thy wants with me" she spoke matter of factly as she looked back down at her black raven locks, still combing them with her fingers.

It was an honest answer. She generally was only really a harm to men, if she felt like being nice. But that was also rare. Her lilac eyes flashed up yet again and her small lips fell open a little as she tilted her head again and watched the woman. The woman seemed to be unaffected by her singing. Though Maren would like to have taken credit for Alatar coming to the sea shore, she could tell that wasn't the case. Her body moved as she bent to the side to see her horse running along the shore. Her lilac eyes moved back to the woman.

Maren removed her fingers from her hair and pushed her locks off of her shoulder, the pearls gleaming in the beams of light. Her body moved as she stood up from the rock, her worn in boots digging into the sand and her dress skirt falling the rest of the way. She knew that her outfit was a bit odd, but it was all she could scrounge up, which meant steal. Her hands went to the side of her as she held the folds of her skirt, still standing by the rock.

Maren's eyes had a hint of confusion as she tried to figure out what exactly the woman was."Thy seem to be unaffected by my singing...by my voice..." she spoke as a statement rather then a question. She didn't dare move and instead stayed right where she was. The pale woman's hands moved to the front of her as she clasped her hands together. "Well if thy are an ancient being what exactly are thy? I don't really meet a lot of them" she spoke straightly. She figured the woman wouldn't answer her, but the mermaid really didn't meet many ancients, so it was hard to tell what they were. It didn't help that the woman wasn't affected by her voice, this annoyed Maren.

[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[alicecrysis]

there's nothing in this place

[/font][/i]
THAT EXCITES ME ANYMORE[/color][/font]
i long only for nightmares,[/color][/font]
FOR APOCALYPSE AND WAR[/size][/center]

Ankle deep in sea water, Alatar was really at a loss for herself. Whatever the being before her was, it was either rather unintelligent, or inexperienced. Or playing games with her - that notion didn't please Alatar at all. She was fine sacrificing a bit of time in the name of curiosity, but, if she was simply to remain and play word games, she had no patience.

[/size]"Of course your powers of speech have no affect upon me, spirit. Such powers influence those of young and weak mind, and I am neither! You may call me Alatar the Cerulean, member of the White Council appointed by the Valar," Alatar commanded, once again taking slow strides towards the beauty sitting perched upon a rock. This was what characterized her as either unintelligent, or inexperienced. To think that something as simple as a captivating voice would have any affect upon the heart of a Maiar was preposterous. Alatar could feel nothing malicious in her character. And more importantly, nothing malicious in their surround - if anyone would have been plotting an ambush, they would have done so prior to her going shin-deep into the water, as their heavy armor and cloths would only weigh them down so much more than Alatar ever would be. "I am of the Maiar. Now it is your turn to answer my questions; just what are you, and why is someone of your ancient, powerful nature lingering in such a remote location such as this?" Alatar asked in her usual tone of command, her default from many centuries serving as a leader of Men and Elves.

She paused once more, only this time she was no more than a few feet from the being. Her deep blue robes nearly matched the color of the surrounding water, giving a mild illusion that she was in fact part of the sea; a figure rising from the depths. Staff held in her left hand, Alatar keep her right idle and ready to react to anything that could happen - namely by reaching for the sword hanging from her hips, the hilt of which was barely visible protruding from beneath her billowing blue cloak. "I've only come to restock and cool down before a long trip, I mean no harm or intrusion unless you have those intentions yourself. Or if you're aligned to the evil beings that take residence along these shores," Alatar added, in a bit of a harsh growl. She was still very, very bitter about their turning. Not because it surprised her, in fact, it was only a matter of time in her mind. No, her frustration was centered around the fact that she needed to travel all the way across the Brown Lands to prove something she already knew. Being already in a bitter mood, the woman before her had better tread carefully.[/justify][/blockquote][/size]