[Lilith Michaelis]

((Vensemont Greyvalle. Please move this to the Roraldi Forests.))

Normally, the Roraldi Forests were a beautiful place, filled with lush vegetation as far as the eye could see. Hot springs peppered its vastness, flowers and fruits of all kinds filled what leaves and bark did not, amazing fauna skittered between the trees. It was a paradise, perfect for any vacation or a troll through the woods.

It was still beautiful, but now it, and the rest of the planet, were covered in this strange black mist. Nothing about this forebode well. And that was why Vensemont was here. The organization he worked with was hardly going to stand by and not study this phenomenon; who knew what effects it might have on the world?

The undead man had started on the edge of the forest earlier that morning, clad in his usual array of robes in varied shades of grey, with a matching scarf and and hood pulled over his head. It was useful for keeping his....condition, hidden. The only downfall was that his softly glowing yellow eyes could be seen, but many creatures in Evelon had strange, luminescent eyes. He pretended to be no different.

[Saahs]

((Sorscha, human form))

He had lived in the Roraldi Forests for years, now. Almost a decade. And something like this had never happened before, not even before he'd come there as far as he was aware of. Sorscha stared through the blackened mists, a frown on his face and his brows knit low over his one eye and eyepatch.

As per usual, he was donned in the garb of a ranger; light leather armour, green and brown wrappings, and weapons fastened close to his person. He had no intention of being grabbed by something extending off of him, so most of his attire was close fitting to avoid just that. He kept his hair tucked away in a brown leather hood, though limited his eyesight was by having it raised up over his head.

Nevertheless, he made his way quietly through the thicket, his footsteps barely making a sound as he wandered through the woodland, searching for the cause of the darkness. It wasn't quite late enough for it to be a trick of the night time's light (or lack of), so it was definitely something else. Something he would have to be careful about disturbing. But he had to know.

[Lilith Michaelis]

Vensemont carefully and quietly made his way through the woods, his feet barely making a sound. He wandered through the forest for at least an hour before he came upon a small glade. The robed man bent at the knee, one hand swiftly but carefully reaching into a side pouch on his belt, gently pulling a single glass vial from within it.

He uncorked the stopper with surgical precision, as if he had done this a thousand times before. Vensemont drew the vial through the air, attempting to capture as much of the strange mist into the vial as he could, whispering inaudible words as he did so. It was a simple spell meant for minor control of the air. He hoped it would be enough to encourage the mist to cooperate and stay within the vial. As soon as he had collected enough, the undead man corked the vial again and put it in its place in the pouch once more. He rose from the ground and continued onward further into the forest.

[Saahs]

So far, the mist itself didn't seem to be of any harm. There was no odd smell, and Sorscha's breathing was normal as ever. His mind also seemed to be in its proper place, so this mist was not of any threat. Which left only its cause and source, if they weren't the same thing. Was this a natural phenomenon? Was it magically caused? A lab project gone just that wrongly?

He didn't quite care, actually. He only cared to make sure that the mist wouldn't be of any danger to the woods-- anything living, really-- or himself. And thus far, he'd passed by a few creatures, and at the worst they were simply confused by the mist, at best unbothered by it entirely. So he moved on, making sure that the mist was the same wherever he went. Who knew, it could be more intense in the centre of the woods, its effects could just be too weak out at the borders.

[Lilith Michaelis]

Vensemont reached out with his senses as he trudged along. So far, he had felt no presence of static nor any change to his mind or senses past the mist itself, which indicated they were not involved, but it could be just very well hidden. But no matter how much further he pushed his feelers, he felt nothing of the sort.

It seemed the mist was nothing more than, well, mist. At least at this point. So what had caused it? Where did it come from? Why was it everywhere?

Determined to find out, Vensemont pressed on.

[Saahs]

The more Sorscha observed the mist, the more he began to come to the conclusion that the mist itself was harmless. Good. He would still have to check the mist in the centre of the forest, but it would take him a while to even get to that point. While not in a huge rush, his stride bordered on the line of being a jog, his footfalls still silent as a mouse.

It helped that he'd spent years observing animals and mimicking their motions; he hardly moved like a human any more. Now, he worked almost solely on instincts, listening to his gut and the world around him rather than to emotions and what other people would have done in his shoes. Yes, there were even times where he would drop on all fours. It wasn't efficient for speed, but for climbing up steep hills? It was much easier on the body.

Which was what he was doing now, skittering up a hill on his hands and feet to lessen the risk of hurting himself should he lose his standing. Once he reached the top of the hill, he paused to scan his surroundings. They were, like the rest of the forest, both familiar and bathed in mist. But something was off. It was distant-- so very distant-- but Sorscha could sense a presence that didn't belong here.

[Lilith Michaelis]

He was reluctant to deem the strange dark fog harmless without further investigation, but it was certainly beginning to seem that way. He quickened his pace slightly so as to cover more ground more quickly, but was careful to remain as quiet as possible. It would not do to alert something that could spell trouble. The less of that involved, the better.

Vensemont continued to reach out with his senses and his magic, ever so gently searching the forest ahead of him. He did not prod anything to harshly, so as not to disturb the life here. There was.....something on the very edge of his senses. He couldn't tell who or what, but that was fine as long as they held no ill will. It was understandable there were other people in the forest, whether they lived here or were investigating.

And it certainly did not stop him from pressing on.

[Saahs]

It appeared that, whatever Sorscha was sensing, was in his line of travel. Where they were going, what they were doing, however, he couldn't say. There was no telling what the thing he felt was, without reaching out with a bit of cheating. And that would definitely alert them of his location and the fact that, hello, he was watching them now.

That would not do at all, no sir. So he continued on, fingers crossed that they were either meaning no harm, or would be easy to beat down in the case that they gave him any trouble.

Sorscha ventured deeper into the forests, almost nearing the centre of it. And yet still, the mist didn't look to behave in any different manner than it had at the edge of the woods. Perhaps it was only docile during the day? He wasn't sure. Perhaps putting up camp and waiting to find out was in order. Hmm.

[Lilith Michaelis]

Whatever or whoever was on the edge of Vensemont's senses seemed to be slowly getting closer. He kept a close eye on the presence as he continued on. They were likely harmless but....

The undead man brought up a small portion of his power momentarily, to see if he could possibly manipulate the fog. But only a small portion. He did not want to alert or startle whatever presence was out there. As he gently waved his hands around, the mist moved a bit, but not as much as he had been intending. It was not of shadow and void then, or at least not the same sort he was trained to manipulate. But could he control the water molecules?

He tried yet again, this time focusing his quiet incantation on the water itself instead of the shadows. That bore better results as a small section of fog bundles up into a sphere before dispersing again with a wave of the man's hand.

Satisfied with that particular finding, Vensemont pressed on, slowly and cautiously edging towards the strange presence.

[Event posts end here]