The Desert Dancer

Before she became the Empress of the Caizar Empire, Mahalia lived a difficult life under the stern guidance of her father, a hard man who sought power enough to raise his clan above all others. Encumbered by the strange powers passed on from her mother, she was outcast by many in the Nine clans. Until Emperor Mafar sought rest among their clan's shelter after a long campaign in the south. It was this single event that changed Mahalia's life forever.

Track: Princess of Persia ~ Faolan Music

Photo Manipulation by me. Used Texture from Sirius-sdz.

Wine flowed freely among the Emperor's men. Their journey had been a success despite the losses. Chieftain Bakir sat with the Emperor ensuring the best dishes were presented to him. He waved for a servant to refill the Emperor's empty wine glass.

"It is an honour to serve you after your campaign My Emperor."
"I thank you Chieftain Bakir for your hospitality. My men have been on the road for many moons and they will be glad of the fine food and drink you have given them."
"I have prepared something special for your entertainment My Emperor." at the Chieftain's signal, music filled the spacious tent. Seven dancers entered and fell into position. As their bodies began to move and sway to the notes of the song, six of them formed a circle around the dancer in the middle. Unlike the other dancers, this one's face was covered with a thin black veil highlighting the sparkling green eyes that gazed out at the audience.

The Emperor's eyes followed the lone dancer silently.
"Ah I see you have an eye for dance My Emperor. That one is my daughter, Mahalia. She is the pride of the clan. An accomplished dancer and our water seer."
"Your daughter has the eyes of a Queen in the making." The Emperor continued to watch her, his fingers tracing the curves of the wine glass in his hands.
"I am doubly honoured by your words My Emperor. If it pleases you, I will have her join us after the dance."
"It would please me greatly."

*************

This little snippet forms part of a collection of side stories that explores some of the side characters in a bit more depth. In the main story, Mahalia's capacity as a character is simply the mother of Ydros. Not too much time is spent on her or the Queen of Embra as these characters are not the focus of the main story which follows the children of these women and their journey. So I thought it would be neat to have side stories of the characters that don't really get too much time in the spotlight in Daughter of Fate.

Awake

The second installment of Mareth's adventures finds her where we left off in The Old Manor House Secret. She had managed to find the hidden door to the abandoned underground basement. After she entered, she was attacked by an invisible force that knocked her unconscious.

Track:Valhalla ~ BrunuhVille

Mareth floated for a time in a darkness so thick and dense that she feared that she had unexpectedly fallen into the depths of the world between life and death. She had read the texts but to experience this for herself was a marvel had she not been so afraid.

She lost track of how long she had been floating, time was different here. She could feel its flow and yet she could not quite grasp or understand its language. Even her body felt weightless, un-moored, cut from its very foundation. At first, when the darkness began to recede, she fancied she had imagined it, that her eyes, if she had them deceived her. Yet the light grew in size and intensity until she felt her feet land on soft ground. To her sight, it looked like fine sand. She knelt and scooped a handful, letting the grains fall through her fingers. It was then she noticed she had a body once more, the very body she remembered, the one she had cared for all these years. She raised her head and gazed out at the scene before her. Sand for miles and miles as far as the eye could see. An endless swell of it winding into oblivion.

Where am I? The thought formed in her mind and echoed around her, filling the space outside her physical being. And a voice answered.

Who are you? Why are you here?

A Moment Between Old Lovers

Title Track: My Hands by Leona Lewis

Set about two months after Ydros leaves the Eastern palace in secret on his mission to discover if he can beat the destiny that was set out for him since his birth.

Featuring Mahalia and Teo.

The Grind

Today, I want to share some photos from my Sims 4 game where I build what I imagine would be Deirdre's Cafe/Bookstore, The Grind. Now if only I could turn this into an actual diorama, then I would be happy.

The Grind is one of those places that have an old nostalgic feel to it with soft lighting and warm comfy seats. It has an ambience of mystery and one can't help but speak softly inside the walls. Deirdre bought the place and renovated it into a tiny little cafe and bookstore. She lives upstairs, above the shop. Let's just say Deirdre has a way with sweets. Her secret ingredient? She would never tell you what that was. Deirdre calls this place home. It's the one place she can truly be free.

Talehaven: A Choice To Make

First post of the New Year! I decided to feature Jytia and a little scene that sheds a bit of light on why she ends up partnering with the Sidhe.

The Three Sisters

I've been playing musical eyes and wigs again. This time I wanted to give a bit of attention to my neglected Yo-Sd girls.

This serves as an introduction to their characters within the world I'm crafting.

Let's start with Eolande. I was finally able to get a wig that I didn't mind on her. I still need to trim the fringe a bit but for now, she's pretty much done. I also managed to attach some new eyelashes on her. It still took many attempts. Eyelashes in small heads are hard to do!

Legacy

Today, I wanted to talk a little about the Legacy of the Wayward Inn as it pertains to the story surrounding my dolls, specifically my bjd collection. Despite the foray into other doll lines in recent years, I can say with conviction that bjds is and will always remain my first love. They have a special place in my heart as they were my first 'serious' collection. Their story has evolved over time and if truth be told, the story was inspired by the dolls rather than vice versa. And I've often had to work with what I have within my means. Had I been a great seamstress, I would have had a purely fantasy collection but I'm not so I had to adjust to what was readily available. Having an organic story allowed for this type of flexibility.

At the core of the story, there has always been Najara. She was once shelled by a Resinsoul Chun sculpt (who I still regret selling to this day. What was I thinking?) I wanted to pay homage to the character that started it all.

Inside the Wayward Inn is a framed portrait of Najara as seen below. (Hubby has mentioned she looks like Princess Leia in this shot!)

Credits: Frame by EveyD, Grunge Pattern by DivsM-stock, Victorian Wallpaper by the-night-bird, Photo by me, Model is RS Chun; (Face up Artist unknown)

Najara won the Inn (an old Manor house) in a game from a drunken landlord who wanted to rid himself of a Manor that was essentially falling apart. Najara restored the Manor to its former glory, called it Wayward Inn and opened it to the lost. Her very first resident was Deirdre Quinn. She mentored the young girl and groomed her to inherit the Inn. Once Deirdre was old enough, Najara handed her the reigns of the Inn and set off on her own mysterious journey. Najara has been gone for six years. Deirdre got letters from her old mentor for the first two years but there has been no letters since. Obviously the strange silence has worried Deirdre and as the new Matriarch of the Inn, she has sent out a few trackers to investigate. Of those that returned, there was no news, no trace of Najara.

Just Musing Around

This was going to be the original concept for the Adventurer's Club April theme but I decided to use the other one as a different sort of interpretation of the exotic animals.

My inspiration for this particular one was that every artist has an inner muse and sometimes, when our guard is down and our inhibitions are dulled, this inner muse can sometimes manifest in strange and wonderful ways.

"...in which Caitlin finds herself face to face with a strange creature during what she believes is a drunken hallucination from indulging in too much wine before bed..."

The Rune Garden, Misfits farewell

We haven't seen much of Rune and that's mostly because as gorgeous as she is, she is one of the most difficult dolls to photograph for me. She really is not photogenic at all. So I tend to discard a lot of the photos I take of her. Today was no different. Admittedly, it was after 6pm when I took these so the lighting was a bit dull but I had spent most of the afternoon trying to restyle her and fixing up that wig. I am still not sure about the top she is wearing. May change that out for something else.

In a rare moment of quiet, Rune enjoys the tranquility of the garden. As far as her character is concerned, it has been put through the ringer (when have any of my characters not been through the ringer?). She's come out of it just fine though. I've kept her original concept intact but added a bit of a twist. How Rune joins the Misfits will be a bit of a tragedy. The Misfits will have to say farewell to two of their members and try as best they can to continue forward despite their losses.

The Melody King

My dolls tend to get makeovers a lot but I think that's due to the fact that I like to explore a variety of characters until one sticks. Naoise's character has always been the same; even though I might have changed his name once or twice, I reverted to the original name for him in the end. But he has always been the lead singer of a band. He's definitely a bit of a rock star. 

First thing is first, his name is pronounced 'nee-shu' or 'knee-sha' with the -a sounding like a 'u', not 'noise'. It's an old Irish name and is infamous for the name of Deirdre's husband from the story, Deirdre of the Sorrows.

Tales: Dark Emergence

Featuring: Maldrin
Sculpt: Resinsoul Song
Music: Lust for Blood ~ Gackt

Skylar

 

 

My name is Skylar Morris. I'm what you'd call a counselor, but my official name is Human Relations Officer. It sounds a little more pretentious and hides the fact that I'm employed by GENESIS to help their employees destress from their demanding jobs.

 

I'm at the bottom of the food chain so my 'office' is on Level 1. At least it's not the ground level.

 

I married Kaed Morris. He works in the restricted access sections on Level 7. I love my husband but he's also my ticket into GENESIS. It's how I got the job. You can judge me if you want, but I'll do what I have to do to find out the truth.

 

Five years ago, my brother's motorcyle went off the Stonehart bridge. His body was never found. They ruled it as a suicide. Simple, neat. The case was closed. But I know my brother like no one else and he was not suicidal. He had a bright future ahead of him. He had a lot to live for. He was getting a promotion soon at this top notch facility in Haven Hollow. The company specialised in genetic research. The name of this company was GENESIS.

 

So here I am, five years later with my foot in the snake's mouth and for the first time, I feel I'm getting closer to something big. 

Imp Story

Introduction: In the aftermath of a festive Christmas Day, Lilliandra finds a stowaway at the Wayward Inn…