All Shall Find the Light at Last

First Sign [Voice]

beyondimagining — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 22:30:48 GMT

I can't help but feel that there is something quite undignified about a magic banjo. [Will felt instinctively that if an item of power took the form of a musical instrument, it should appear more like a golden harp or a silver horn.]

beyondimagining — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 18:52:38 GMT

[ Player Name ] :Lel

Personal LJ ] : leloipa

[ Age ] :27

[ Timezone ] :EST

[ Other Characters ] :Danny Fenton

[ Character's Name ] : Will Stanton

[ Character's Age ] : simultaneously 12 and as old as the hills and older even then that

[ Series ] Dark is Rising Sequence

[ Canon Point ] After Silver on the Tree

[ History ] :

Will grew up in a small village called Hunterscoombe in rural Buckinghamshire England, the youngest child of a very large family. He was an ordinary child, even if he was thoughtful and acted rather old for his age. On the eve of his eleventh birthday he went to sleep wishing for snow. He awoke into a time several centuries before his own, in the days when all of his village was nothing more than a clearing in a great forest. Feeling almost as if he was in a dream, Will followed a trail through his forest. After a few dangerous encounters Will found his way to a set of Great Doors standing alone on a hillside. They opened at his touch.

Will walked into a great stone hall lined with tapestries. There, he found two people waiting for him. Merriman Lyon, once called Merlin, and a birdlike old woman known only as the Lady. The two of them proceeded to tell Will of his heritage, now that he had awoken. They told Will that he was the last of the Old Ones, the first to be born in over 500 years. And that with his wakening the time for the last battle was drawing near. That he had a gift, one that the very law of the universe demanded that he serve and one that he could not refuse. That he was bound by his very nature to fight against the Dark.

At first Will was certain that they must be mistaken. But after Merriman guided him through the steps of speaking into another Old One's mind and starting fires with his mind Will reluctantly accepted his heritage as an Old One.

But this first meeting was not over yet. Merriman told Will that his first quest was to reunite the six signs of the Light and gave him the name Signseeker. The first sign Will had already been given, but now Merriman recited a prophecy about them.

"When the Dark comes rising, six shall turn it back
Three from the Circle, Three from the Track
Wood, Bronze, Iron, Water, Fire, Stone.
Five shall return and one go alone."

Iron for the birthday, Bronze carried long,
Wood from the Burning, Stone out of Song;
Fire from the candle-ring, Water from the thaw;
Six signs the circle and the grail gone before."

But before Will could ask any more questions they were attacked by the Dark. They could not enter the Great Hall, but they called out to Will in different voices, trying to persuade him to open the door. When they used his mother's voice Will nearly gave in. But before he could approach the door his hand brushed against the Iron Sign on his belt which burned in warning, branding a perfect symbol into his forearm. It is a circle, quartered by a cross. The Lady healed him, and then drove the Dark away. But not without sacrificing all of her strength. With the way out freed, Merriman brought Will back to his own time. A few days later Will successfully retrieved the second sign from a man known only as the Walker. Soon afterward Will came to the village manor caroling with his family. To his surprise Merriman was there, posing as a butler. The two traveled to a Christmas Party in Victorian England. There, Will was brought to the Book of Gramarye. This single book contained all of the accumulated knowledge of the Old Ones. In a single moment of suspended time Will received his training and came into his full power as an Old One. Two other important things happened at that party. Will met a man named Hawkins and he received the Sign of Wood. Hawkins was Merriman's liegeman and adopted son from the twelfth century. He brought forward in time for that night only to break the spell guarding the Book of Gramarye. But Will also witnessed the beginning of Hawkin's fall from the light. Furious that Merriman had risked his life to bring Will his education and jealous of the Old One's immortality Hawkins took the first step on his fall to the Dark. He would become the Walker that Will had met in his own time. Watching, Merriman told Will what would happen and that this was the greatest mistake their kind could make. For Merriman had placed more trust in Hawkins then the man had the strength to take. And with that, the two returned to Will's time.

Over the next few days Will continued to collect the signs even as the weather became colder and colder, bringing down more snow than Buckinghamshire had ever seen before. The Sign of Stone Will found inside the wall of the local church. A few days after Christmas Will discovered that the cold was a part of the Dark's power. To break the chill and save the lives of his neighbors Will helped Merriman seize the candles of Winter from the Dark. Placed in the candle-ring of the Old Ones, the candles warmed and created a flower of fire with the Sign of Fire in the center. The Sign of Water came to Will resting in the hands of a Viking King on his funeral ship, unburied in the flood that followed the warming weather. With all six signs reunited, Will called forth Herne the Hunter and the Wild Hunt to chase the Dark to the edges of the Earth. And that was the end of Will's first quest.

His second quest came in the summer, when Will traveled to Trewessick in Cornwall. There, seemingly by coincidence, he assisted Merriman and three human children to recover a stolen Grail and a lost manuscript. And yes, it was the Holy Grail. Together, the two artifacts allowed Will and Merriman to decipher a coded prophecy in Ogam on the side of the Grail.

"On the day of the dead, when the year too dies,
Must the youngest open the oldest hills
Through the door of the birds, where the breeze breaks.
There fire shall fly from the raven boy,
And the silver eyes that see the wind,
And the light shall have the harp of gold.

By the pleasant lake the Sleepers lie,
On Cadfan’s Way where the kestrels call;
Though grim from the Grey King shadows fall,
Yet singing the golden harp shall guide
To break their sleep and bid them ride.

When light from the lost land shall return,
Six Sleepers shall ride, six Signs shall burn,
And where the midsummer tree grows tall
By Pendragon’s sword the Dark shall fall.
Y maent yr mynyddoedd yn canu,
ac y mae’r arglwyddes yn dod."

From this, Will knew that his next task would be in Wales. But he didn't know to what efforts the Light would go to send him there. Only a few months later he became desperately ill with hepatitis. So ill, that he quite possibly could have died if not for his immortality. He lived, but at the cost of all his memories of his life as an Old One. He was left with only a few scraps of verse, instincts he couldn't understand, and the desperate knowledge that he had lost something more important than his own life.

His family sent him to a sheep farm in Wales to recuperate, and he spent a few days slowly wandering the hills searching for what he had lost. On a hillside he meets a white-haired and golden-eyed boy named Bran and remembers everything. Together the two boys would embark on a quest to find a golden harp and wake the seven sleepers. And by the end of the adventure Bran's heritage as the son of Arthur would be revealed and Will would acknowledge his own duty to serve as the Merlin to Bran's Arthur.

A year later Will returns to Wales for his last and greatest quest. Along with Bran and the three children from Trewessick they would find the last great object of the Light and fight the Dark in one last battle. They win and the Dark are cast out beyond time. But with the vcitory comes sadness. The great work of the old Ones has ended and they all board white ships to sail to the castle behind the north wind for their rest. All save two. Bran is given the choice to come live with his father, Arthur, but he chooses to forget and live in the mortal world. And it is Will's last task to remain in the mortal world as the last watchman for his kind. As the Old ones leave everyone except WiIl forgets everything.

[ Personality ] :

On the surface Will is an entirely normal eleven-year-old boy from the English countryside. He is quiet, polite and cheerful, with a wry sense of humor. There is a solid sense of practicality and capability about him. A lot of the time he appears almost aggressively ordinary and unremarkable. Will’s expression stays solemn a lot of the time, but he has a rare smile that lights up his face. He has an keen interest in things like folklore and ceremonies. Will enjoys learning about languages as well, although he likes the logic and formal structure of Latin best. Will also loves all the socializing and craziness that comes from being the youngest in a very large family. He loves the moments when all of his eight older siblings are home and making noise.

But at the same time there is something oddly old about Will. As if he were ancient and young all at the same time. There are times when he simply knows things. When to act and what to say. Odd thoughts about events that happened long before he was born. Things about plants and animals and stars and people. At times he acts much more like an adult than a child. He has a habit of making puzzling and cryptic comments about different topics. For example, one such comment about the nature of religion caused a confused priest to wonder whether Will should be exorcised or ordained.

All of these oddities are caused by the fact that Will has another, much deeper, side to his character. In truth, Will belongs to a group of metaphysical beings who call themselves Old Ones. He was the last to be born and the one with the closest ties to humanity still. Although the Light is good and noble, it is not kind. It can be very cold and pragmatic. And it can be cruel, especially to it's own kind. Old Ones are concerned with the great battle against the Dark, fighting so that humans can have the chance to make their own choices. But Old Ones themselves do not have a choice about their own destiny. Once they come into their power they are bound to serve the interests of the Light. If they are required to sacrifice a few individuals for the greater good, they will do it. For Old Ones, duty comes first. Always.

For Will, who still has ties to his human family and human emotions, the demands of being an Old One can be hard. He still feels empathy for the humans he protects, and regrets the need for sacrifices. But at the same time, the part of him that is an Old One limits his ability to to empathize with human emotions like grief. In a later book, when a friend was upset over the death of his dog, Will was only able to offer him the wisdom of an Old One. At the time Will knew that it was the wrong thing to say. That the cold pragmatism of his kind was not what his friend wanted or needed to hear. But he was unable to be human enough to be what his friend needed. Another time, Will’s mentor told him that there were parts of his abilities as an Old One he could not understand because he still thought too much like a human.

When acting as an Old One Will is calm, serene and authoritative. Old Ones tend to be utterly unflappable and rather cold and pragmatic. They are not human, even though they may appear like ordinary people. Yet there is a sense of companionship among them. Old Ones only truly feel complete when they are in a gathering of their own kind. But because their duty to the Light will always come first, they spend most of their time alone among humans.

Strengths/Weaknesses ] :

Will is calm and practical and capable of all kinds of interesting magical abilities. He is one of the most powerful creatures in his world, and he possesses all the knowledge that his kind have gained over 3000 years of walking the world, But he is limited by the rigid laws of his kind. He cannot touch or alter the minds of humans. At all. He also cannot kill with his abilities. Much of his magical knowledge will become useless due to no longer being in his world. He is also very young, and occasionally prone to making poor decisions because of that.

[ Other Important Facts ] :

Will has access to a wide variety of spells and knowledge, including the ability to sense darkness and speak mind to mind.

Sample ] :

From Discedo
Will shivers slightly as he slips out the door, shoving his hands deep in his coat. It was cold, here. Not quite as cold as Mid-Winter had been this time last year. But cold enough. Especially with so many without proper winter gear. But no snow. For a moment Will lo ngs wistfully for a proper thick blanket of snow to appear here in this place. The sort of snow that transformed the world and made everything look fresh and new. It seems to him that such a thing would make even this lost city much improved.

But no sense thinking about that now. He had a task for today. Will had heard that someone had seen something similar to mistletoe in the forest. These humans of the modern world, so many of them thought it no more than a silly game. But Will knew the virtue of the plant, learned with so many others from the Book of Gramarye. It made for an excellent defense against illness and creatures of the Dark when pinned above entranceways. He rather thought that that might be useful.

Lost in thought, Will trudges through the streets. How many more of the Nine Trees of Virtue could he find here, he wonders. About to turn the corner towards the forest, the old One glances up sharply at the approach of a small pack of Wolves. Their presence brimming with darkness and hunger to one of the Light. But no threat, not to one of his kind. He stretches out one hand, fingers spread stiffly, and speaks a word of the Old Speech. He waits as the wolves freeze, caught outside of time, and hurries down the road. Will pauses near the end of the road and stretches out one hand again in a gesture of release as he speaks again in the Old Speech.

“Be free. And forget.” He watches solemnly as the creatures shake their heads in confusion and make their way away from him.

“A shame,” he murmurs. “Even in another world some creatures are so easily drawn to the Dark. But it is their nature, I suppose. The milgwn, the wolves, and the rooks. Just as my own nature is of the Light.”

Link

beyondimagining — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 18:21:21 GMT

This journal is being recycled. If you still have me friended from discedo please remove this journal.

Fifteenth Sign [Accidental Audio]

beyondimagining — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 20:23:23 GMT

[Anyone listening on the communicators tonight might be able to catch the sound of a young boy singing in a high clear voice. He doesn't seem to be aware that anyone else is listening. ]

 
Still hangs the hedge without a gust,
  Still, still the shadows stay:
My feet upon the moonlit dust
  Pursue the ceaseless way.
 
The world is round, so travellers tell,
  And straight though reach the track,
Trudge on, trudge on, 'twill all be well,
  The way will guide one back.
 
But ere the circle homeward hies
  Far, far must it remove:
White in the moon the long road lies
  That leads me from my love.

[Will's song is a setting of one of A.E. Housman's poems from A Shropshire Lad.]

Fourteenth Sign [Voice]

beyondimagining — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 01:50:01 GMT

[The feed turns on to the sound of page softly turning. This lasts for a few more seconds until Will starts speaking distractedly.]

Italy? I finished writing out a few songs like you asked. I hope they will do.

[He trails off again, then continues determinedly.]

And I have been wondering if anyone had some spare paints or charcoals. Anything that makes a mark, really.

Thirteenth Sign [Video]

beyondimagining — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 00:45:03 GMT

[For once Will is looking rather tired and put out. He rubs at his forehead, trying to ease the dizziness that had set in after his fifth slip through time in the past hour. But it had taken him a few more slips after that to realize that every one of these odd visions that he came near was triggering his own ability to follow a memory through time.]

Today has been a bit strange, I think. I am wondering, if anyone has any ideas on what is causing these odd visions. Or how much longer they might last? They are of the past of this city, am I right?

Twelfth Sign [Video]

beyondimagining — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 14:19:49 GMT

[Will knocks the communicator off the table as he tosses and turns restlessly in his sleep. His expression is troubled. After a minute or so he abruptly sits up, wide awake, and listens to something intently.]

That...

[He laughs with delight.]

I hear it! I can hear it again!

[ooc: This starts off the second part of Will's event. For the next two days time will be getting a little weird around Discedo and a few things will be happening..

1. A powerful presence of Light just appeared in Discedo. If characters listen very closely, in a quiet place, they might be able to hear a delicate strain of music right at the edge of hearing. It sounds almost like Greensleeves, with a harp running like a gold thread through it. But even as you hear it, you begin to forget what it sounded like.

2. Characters might get caught out of time for a few seconds or minutes. They are completely unaware of anything that happens during that time. To everyone else they appear to be frozen.

3. Characters may have a chance to see windows through time. These are not obvious. They might see a monster walking by in front of buildings, when it suddenly fades away and they see through the monster into a moment from their own past. ]

Eleventh Sign [video; forward dated to tomorrow morning]

beyondimagining — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 23:26:39 GMT

[Will coughs weakly as he holds the communicator up, looking rather pale and tired. The fact that the boy is completely soaked and covered in bubbles doesn't help matters.]

Animated cleaning supplies are terribly inconvenient, I think.

[He coughs again and sets the communicator down, showing that his room is currently being enthusiastically cleaned by a team of mops and brooms.]

[Posting this early, due to a surprise family event tomorrow that might keep me out most of the day. Assume this happens tomorrow morning, as Will's event starts.

This kicks off the first day's effects. Animals will be restless and frightened. Around Latimir, any electrical devices might malfunction at odd times. ]

Tenth Sign [ Voice/Action for first floor of Latimir]

beyondimagining — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 20:41:15 GMT

[Will stands by a window on the first floor of Latimir, looking out at the snow covered ground. He has a thoughtful expression on his face.]

There's something wonderful about snow. The way it blankets everything. It almost makes the whole world seem new.

[He laughs suddenly.] At home, we hardly ever had snow before Christmas. Hard to believe that only a year ago I wanted snow for my birthday more than anything.

[The boy trails off in thought again, with a kind of melancholy expression on his face.]

I suppose it shan't feel like a real birthday. Or Christmas. Not without everyone.

[He is quiet again for a moment. Then begins to sing softly in a high, clear voice. After a minute or so the feed cuts off.]

Ninth Sign [Accidental Voice]

beyondimagining — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 20:22:18 GMT

[The communicator turns on as Will is halfway through reading something aloud to himself in a thoughtful tone of voice.]

-is called of some Sanguis Draconis, of the bloudy color of which the whole plant is possest. If you take the roots of Monks Rhubarb and red Madder of each halfe a pound, Sena foure ounces, Anise seed and Licorice of each foue ounces, Scabious and Animonie of each a handful; slice the roots of the rhubarb, bruise the anise and licorice, breake the herbs with your hands and put them in a stone pot called a stean, with foure gallons of strong ale, to steep or infuse the space for four daies, and then drinke this liquor together as your regular drink for three weeks at the least, though the longer you take it, so much the better; and then provide in readiness another stean so prepared, that you may have one under another, being alwaies careful to keep a good diet; it purifieth the blood and makes young wenches to look fair and cherry-like.

[He trails off for a moment, and then comments thoughtfully.]

Such a way with words old Gerard had.

4th Wall Day

beyondimagining — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 13:38:49 GMT

My goodness, it seems something odd is happening.

Eighth Sign [Voice]

beyondimagining — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 20:21:53 GMT

It grows colder every day now. It will be winter soon. And then Christmas.

I was wondering if there was anyone here who would be interested in preparing a group to do some caroling. It doesn't seem like it would be quite a proper Christmas without it.

[Will hesitates for a long moment before adding one more comment.]

And I was wondering, too, if there was anyone I could speak to to learn more about this chip.

Seventh Sign [voice]

beyondimagining — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 03:14:16 GMT

On the day of the dead when the year too dies....

[Will starts off dreamily, almost as if he were reciting something, before switching into a more matter-of-fact tone.]

Did you know? The old Celts thought that the year ended on October 31. Samhain they called it in those days. The end of the light part of the year and the beginning of the dark, on a day when the world of magic drew close to the world of men. It was quite the important day, once.

Sixth Sign [Video]

beyondimagining — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 01:12:41 GMT

[Will stares solemnly at the camera with a bland but pleasant smile on his face.]

If anyone has the time, I've gotten rather curious about something. I've heard that quite a few people come from worlds where magic is common. And I was wondering if anyone would be willing to tell me more about that. I've always been curious about magic and ceremonies and the old ways of doing things, you see.

Fifth Sign [voice]

beyondimagining — Sun, 17 Oct 2010 17:32:13 GMT

[Will is musing in a quiet, almost dreamy, tone of voice. He hasn't quite noticed yet that the communicator is on.]

This week has been bad. Even in another world, it seems the Dark can easily sway the hearts of humans. Always, there are those pulled to the Dark. I know this, even if I could feel nothing.

But.. it is in the midst of the darkness that the greatest light shines. I know this, too.

[Will is silent for a moment, thinking of the struggle of snowdrops to push up through the snow and refugees pausing to bury their treasures in the chalk as they fled from the Saxons.]

What am I to do, Merriman? I wish I could ask you that.

Fourth Sign [Voice]

beyondimagining — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 15:09:56 GMT

Ah, hullo? I heard that there was some kind of school here. I was wondering if anyone knew who I should be talking to about starting lessons. I shouldn't like to fall behind on my classes.

And I was wondering too, if there was any such thing as a choir around here.

Third Sign [Accidental Video]

beyondimagining — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 02:06:47 GMT

[Will flinches in horror as he feels the mental attack strike through the frail defenses he had been able to build without his magic. It sinks deep inside, wounding his thoughts and twisting his will as not even the Dark had been able to do. How could this be possible? He gathers himself up, groping for the words in the Old Speech that would cast the intruder out of his mind. Perhaps the Old Speech could do what his power could not.

And then he felt it. His magic was back, following the thread. And now... now he could feel the darkness. It was in so many places. How could he have been so blind? How had the Dark infiltrated so much? Will's attention is caught now by the Dark, not aware that it is already too late. The aura that attacked was already affecting him. as no such power should ever be able to do.

He stands up and stares directly out the window in a disconcerting way, approaching it even as his form seems to stretch impossibly tall. He begins speaking quietly at first, then his clear voice seems to resonate in deeper and fuller tones.]

This... This should not be. It cannot be. But there is so much of the Dark here. Have I failed?

No not yet. There is still time.

[The boy steps forward and holds out one hand, fingers splayed.]

Hear me, creatures of the Dark! In the name of Arthur and of the Old World before the Dark came I command you! Be gone from this place!

[ooc: So... Will got hit with out of control powers AND paranoia. Even though Old Ones are supposed to be immune from this kind of manipulation. Don't chips make things fun?

Will is seeing a lot more darkness than is really there and is probably VERY uncomfortable for anyone aligned with darkness to be around right now. Stick around him too long and you might get hit from the side effects of out of control telepathy and time stopping. You might even lose a few memories.]

Second Sign [Video;English]

beyondimagining — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 12:54:04 GMT

Ah, hullo?

[Will pokes at the buttons a bit with a general air of curiosity.]

These devices really are something marvelous, don't you think? Not like the phones I used at home at all. I think I've figured out a bit of how to use them.

[In a unconscious gesture he pushes his heavy bangs back from his eyes and smiles pleasantly.]

Ah, but I've gotten a bit off subject.

I was wondering, is there such a thing as a library around here somewhere? Or is there anyone who knows a bit of the history of the place? I'm quite mad for things like anthropology and history, you see.

First Sign [Video:English]

beyondimagining — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 13:31:00 GMT

Use this? What a curious thing to say.

[Small clicking sounds follow, until by chance the boy hits upon the right button and turns the video on. The video feed shows a small boy with shaggy brown hair and a solemn round face, dressed in a light sheepskin jacket. He pokes at the communicator again, an expression of mild curiosity on his face.]

Ah, hullo? Is this thing on? Quite a strange little device. The sort of thing James would enjoy taking apart, I should think.

[Will blinks, and smiles a little foolishly.]

But then I’m getting off topic. I don’t suppose anyone would know the way to Trewessick or Buckinghamshire from here? Only it seems like I’ve become rather lost.

Concrit Post

beyondimagining — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 02:05:16 GMT

Drop a comment here to let me know what you think of Will. He's fairly new muse with a very complicated voice, so I would appreciate any crit.

If you're interested in contacting for plotting you can usually catch me on aim as leloipa.