[003] video | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

[ It's early November when Orpheus posts to the network again, this time sitting cross-legged on the floor of his bedroom with his guitar in his lap and the Omni propped up in front of him. The camera catches him leaning back after having set it to broadcast, and he waves as the recording starts. ]

Hi, everyone! I'm Orpheus, and, I thought of something that might be nice for us to do together? I know we're all busy building new lives here, but I don't think that means we have to forget the places we came from completely, or leave those memories behind. Unless you want to? That's fair too.

[ He pauses briefly, looking thoughtful and a little solemn as he considers that, before shaking his head and getting himself back on track.]

But! In my experience a big part of any place a person calls home is the stories that people tell there and the songs they sing, and it seems like it might be nice to share those with each other, as a way of giving each other a glimpse into where we came from, and of preserving them for the future. It can be anything you want to tell us about, whether it's a piece of history or a legend or a song or even a nursery rhyme you like. You don't have to share anything if you don't want to, of course, but I'd really love to hear anything and everything people are willing to add.

[ OOC: This is a mingle post! Please feel free to comment on other peoples' additions and otherwise tag around. ]

Comments

[1/2] video | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

[ CW: assisted suicide in the second comment ]

I guess I'll go first? This is a story my mom taught me. It's a little dark, as a warning? But it seems kind of appropriate, after last month.

[ He clears his throat and begins to play a slow and mournful tune on his guitar, letting it build in complexity before beginning to sing.]

Medusa was a beautiful girl
Pursued by men was she
But she had no patience for that sort
And refused their company

Oh Medusa, turn your gaze
Upon me, so they cried
But she cared not for them
And closed indifferent eyes

Poseidon was a confident god
And smitten with her was he
He thought that he could win her heart
And make her his devotee

But Medusa, she refused him
And he flew into a rage
And chased her to the temple
Of Athena, wise and sage

Athena was a merciful one
She took Medusa's hand
"No man shall touch you from this day hence,"
She said, "Now take a stand."

Medusa was a beautiful girl
But no more was she just this
Serpents unfurled from her hair
Bright-eyed and soft of hiss

Oh Medusa, turn your gaze
Upon us, cried the men
But when she looked upon them
They would never move again

Poseidon fled from her new visage
Even him, appalled and afraid
And the men that followed him fled too
Leaving statues in their wake

Medusa found power in her new gift
At first, but soon she'd see
That stony gaze was limiting
Her chances at company

Oh Medusa, turn your gaze
Away, cried all who saw her
So for seven lonely decades
Exile was what seemed only proper

2/2 (cw: assisted suicide)

[themuseabandonsyou]

Until one day, a weeping boy
Stumbled into her cave
She hid from him and asked him what
Made his fate seem so grave

"My mother is a beautiful girl
Pursued by men is she
But they do not wish me their son
And I was forced to flee"

"What is your name?" she asked the boy
And "Perseus," said he
She said, "I've lived a long and lonely life,
So boy, listen to me"

"Take this knife and behead me
Do not look me in the eye
Show it to your mother's suitors
And this fate you will defy"

Perseus did as he was asked
Mourning all the while
He did not wish to kill her
But she was ready for this trial

And so Perseus went home
Medusa's final gift in hand
And the suitors who were not frozen
Scattered throughout the land

Oh Medusa, turn your gaze
Upon these unruly men
Who harass unwilling women
So they never will again

[ He continues to play as he finishes singing, looking back at the camera. ]

Perseus gave Medusa's head as an offering to Lady Athena, after he'd driven away the men threatening his mother, and Lady Athena honors her tragedy and sacrifice by bearing her visage on her shield. They say Medusa's shade still appears sometimes, to protect women being hounded by men who would harm them. I don't know if that part's true? But it's... not nice, exactly, but something to think about.

video; UN: TripleJ

[kyley_b]

That's a nicer version than the one I've heard. In that one Perseus just hacks her head off to use as a weapon.

video; un: Albus Dumbledore

[chambermusicandtenpins]

A lovely song well-sung, if sad. I had never heard the tale told in such a way before.

audio; un: padlocks

[enblightened]

Ah. You are Orpheus.

...There was a performer I knew, a formidable ally truly. His songs and music would ease my heart and mind so thoroughly that I would be content for a time. A difficult thing to achieve. I fear I've no skill in the art of music, but I do deeply appreciate it.

audio | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

Right! Music has a power to it that not many things in the world can match - or at least, um, that's what I think. I'm always glad when people appreciate it.

You've heard of me before, though?

[ That's... potentially an awkward conversation on the way, and Orpheus sounds a little cautious because of it. Less so than he would've before reuniting with Eurydice, though, and of course being himself he's still doing his best to sound friendly and mostly succeeding. ]

[enblightened]

It is more powerful than anyone could expect. If I may, I might like to request your music sometime.

Oh, yes. Varian told me to speak to you. He had high praises for your skill, and music is one of the few things that put me at ease. An important factor for me.

audio; un: doublehedgedsword

[laminae]

Dude, this is a great idea. [And who better to come up with it than Orpheus? That song about Medusa is amazing, albeit heavy, so his normal exuberance is tempered a bit.]

I got tons of stories about Ooo. Actually, the biggest here there had a whole song about his adventures, too. This kinda reminds me of that.

audio | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

Thanks! I thought people might like it. Getting a chance to share something from their old homes, or just listening to what others have to add. And I'd be interested in hearing them, if you're feeling up to it!

[laminae]

Okay, cool. Uh, let's see, I think I found some kinda record on my Omni a little while ago. I got actual stories too, but here....

[He does a bit of searching, and sends this monstrosity to Orpheus to have a listen.]

( video | un: duckling )

[danserai]

Oh, I know lots of stories! There's Giselle, Coppelia and of course, Swan Lake . . . I guess the one I know well is The Prince and the Raven.

Though most of them are sad stories.

video | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

Oh! I know a few of those. They're ballets, right? Hold on - [ Orpheus thinks for a moment, before starting to play a slow, contemplative tune on his guitar. He doesn't play long - just enough that the melody is recognizable - but he looks very pleased with himself for remembering. ]

And that's okay! Sad stories aren't my favorite, but they can be really important to tell, sometimes.

text; username: grollschwert

[hauntedsavior]

I'm not much of a storyteller. But 'twas just the season.
So let's give it a try.

This is a story about a girl who walked beneath reality. Into a separate layer, hidden from sight even from people who knew it was there. It was a cold February morning as she walked through the barren grey shell of a garden once in bloom. One by one, footfalls filled her ears, a horde of beasts escorting her to a doorway through space and time. She entered, and she fell.

The grey gave way to pitch black silence, broken only by her own footfalls. Her path towards a hidden chamber beneath reality stayed clear only when she strayed from it, each misstep leaving a beacon of light when her foot rose from the ground. And so she pressed on into the darkness, her destination unknown but certain she'd know it when she got there.

A voice of a loved one whispered horrid memories into her ear, coaxing her to turn. A voice of a lone Rose, her nectar sweet the way a body rots. But the girl never turned, no matter what she heard. Not when it mused on the nature of life and death, of the ship of Theseus, of whether humans are more than just meat and fertilizer. And not when it asked her to return to her arms and warm the nights the way they used to. She pressed onward.

Until she found a door in the darkness, a lock with no key. But with the words of her Rose buzzing in her ear, she knew how to unlock the door. For her Rose had told her that she would give anything to get what she wants, and spat a simple question before disappearing: "What about you?" Would the girl give up anything? To learn an answer she'd only realize once she found it? Her hand pressed her temple, pulled away a silvery thread. And the door opened. And she forgot.

Inside, she discovered more memories than she knew existed. Ones that resonated with the soul inside her chest, rattling the bottles and straining the stoppers with a desire to break free and inhabit a new vessel. One small vial shattered, then another, then another, until her mind became a breeding ground for thoughts and lives not her own. (How can she even be sure she's still herself to this day?) She stumbled, staggered, blindly found her way through the laboratory to an enormous creature hooked to equipment in the next room.

And the creature took her within it. And they fought. And it took the souls from her. Nearly every last one. Nearly her own, the one that belonged there in the first place. But she carved the beast to shreds from the inside with a blade that shouldn't have found purchase. A blade that couldn't have, in any other circumstances. But the creature, in its dying throes, was not content with leaving her unscathed. It took something else from her that day, even as it gave her sacrifice back. Saying that she walked back through the lab blindly would only be half right after the battle. And she bled and limped her way to reality once more.

There's no fancy ending to this.
Guess it's hard to finish something that I can't remember that clearly.
Happy Halloween.

text | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

[ Oh, wow. It takes Orpheus a moment to take all of that in, reading it over a few times to really absorb it before he responds. ]

I think you're a really good storyteller, actually. It all sounds like something out of a dream. I assume it's not, though?

Video; un: darkness cw: a little gore

[survivalthroughhate]

[He can recall Orpheus and he exchanging stories before, how similar the tales seemed to be despite coming from completely different universes.]

This is an old Sith legend I read as a young boy. There are few left in the galaxy who even know it any longer.

[He takes a moment's pause to think of how to word it correctly before continuing on.]

Long ago, there was a Sith lady, Darth Vanitas, who was said to be the most beautiful woman in the galaxy. Beings of all shapes and sizes were enamoured merely by a glimpse of her. Wars were fought by those who sought to gain her favor that encompassed many planets and systems, though she cared for no one but her own reflection, and trampled upon the hearts of those that tried to love her. Any suitor who came to seek her had to prove their cunning and knowledge as well as their skills with a blade. All of them failed and she took their heads with her lightsaber, putting them on spikes in front of hr castle. She had a mirror imbued with powerful Dark energy that she stared into every day and it showed her to indeed be lovely....on the outside at least.

But one day her rivals had enough of the bloodshed that she had caused and came to her castle. Though she fought back with all she had, they eventually overwhelmed her and permanently disfigured her so that no one would ever love her again. Vanitas fell into despair, for without her beauty, she felt she was nothing. Eventually, despair turned to insanity and insanity to something much more deadly. She began to kidnap young maidens, using Sith alchemy and the energy of her mirror to find a way to remove their skins, and wore them as her own while the maidens perished. But they never lasted for long, always rotting away, and so she kept going on and on, always seeking to regain the beauty she had lost.

In one last mad effort, she decided to use all the energies of the mirror and her own powers to restore her beauty by draining an entire planet of life. But word of her cruelty had spread and the Jedi arrived to stop her. Eventually, they shattered her mirror and she let out a scream of despair, stating she would never be beautiful again. She collapsed on the floor in front of the shards, weeping for what she had lost and would never be able to find again. It seemed nothing would ever stop her tears. Several of the Jedi felt nothing but disgust for her but one was moved to pity and gave her comfort before departing. The small act led her to finally stop weeping, accepting the kindness she had been missing for so long. That was the last anyone ever saw of the Sith lady and no one knows to this day what she did until the end of her days.

video; UN: TripleJ

[kyley_b]

Dude. That's pretty fucked up right there.

video | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

[ Orpheus is silent for a good long moment, before saying, quietly; ] Wow, that's terrible.

[ And for another moment, before realizing how that sounds and hurrying to add; ] Oh, um, what she did, and what happened to her, I mean, not your storytelling.

video; un: Dr. Disraeli

[delilahs_death]

I can share, but all of my songs and rhymes are macabre. They all seemed to end in blood or misery.

[And sometimes had actual murders based on them, because his world was like that.]

video | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

Oh. Well, I wouldn't want you to be left out just because of that, if you still want to share. After all, the story I had to tell didn't exactly have the happiest ending, either.

[ Not to mention some of the others. Maul. ]

un: trienemybest; video

[droptheious]

Well. There's plenty of history in my world. Did I ever tell you about The Day of Hearts? That one's right up your alley.

[You hopeless romantic, you. ]

video | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

No, I don't think you did! I'm listening, though.

video; un: Wesson

[family_remains]

Wow. This is really useful. How about next we all sit in a circle and braid each other's hair.

video | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

[ Sarcasm is something Orpheus struggles with a little bit - he picks up on it here, as it's fairly obvious, but he's not sure what to make of it, brows furrowing in confusion and a little bit of hurt. Unsure of what else to do, he responds as if it were sincere. ]

I don't really have enough hair to braid? I'm sure yours would look really nice, though! You have nice hair.

voice; un: 3167

[lludw]

[He considers giving some kind of introduction. But it's the tale itself that matters. And it reveals more than enough.]

Centuries ago, the Roman Empire ruled Britannia. Although they had come first to conquer, they learned to live in harmony with the native Celtic people.

The greatest of them was Lord Artorius. He was just, a fair leader who looked on everyone equally. He chose wise counselors to help him, and built up the land. And he was a true warrior. He fought back the invading Angles and Saxons and protected the land from being overrun for a little longer.

[Not forever, though.]

Eventually, he was wounded in battle. They say that...somewhere over the sea, to the west, there's a land called Avalon. Lord Artorius was taken there to recover from his wounds. It's peaceful place filled with magic. They say that one day, he'll return to save Britannia again.

voice | un: lyreplayer

[themuseabandonsyou]

[ Some of that sounds vaguely familiar, like something Orpheus heard once when he wasn't really paying attention, but he can't quite place it. All the same, he listens intently, and when the story's over he says; ]

He sounds like he must've been a great leader. Who took him to the west, do you know? Was it someone who came from Avalon for him?