Historical Reference ((with Archailfire))

D

dulde

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Original poster
Lilith rubbed her temples -- a habit she's had since high school -- as she fought to stay awake. In front of her, a bright desk light illuminated the polyethylene bags full of artifacts of a culture scarcely known of. She recalled when she had unearthed the artifacts in Germany this spring and the sheer excitement she felt at finding that clearly were signs of the ancient European civilization, the Lykos. Once the carbon dating confirmed that it was from their time period, she knew that what she had discovered would uncover many of the mysteries surrounding the ancient peoples. And since she was the one who had come across the site, she was put in charge of researching and deciphering many of the artifacts they discovered despite the fact that she was still just a graduate student. So as soon as the artifacts were moved back to the University where she attends, Lilith, her fieldwork team, and her professors, have been working on studying their finds.

Lilith stared at the tablets in front of her in wonder. They were written in the ancient language of the Lykos and she was disappointed that the language and writing system disappeared with the empire because she had no idea what it said. The logograms reminded her of those of the ancient Sumerians and Egyptians that also existed during the time. If she had to guess, that probably developed with trade. She was in luck though because like the Egyptians, the language seemed to be based off of pictures written from life, much like the Mandarin language. It was no Rosetta Stone, but Lilith knew that she worked hard enough, they'd be able to partially decode it and perhaps figure out the way the language works (because this culture was incredibly advanced and they could learn so much if they just knew what the artifacts were telling them).

But, Lilith had to admit she had been working too hard lately (and for Lilith to admit she's working too hard is nearly unheard of). She had been in the curation room by her desk for nearly two days straight now with only one full meal and a box full of energy bars and coffee. A lot of coffee. She was reaching her limit and could barely keep her eyes open. So with a defeated sigh, Lilith carefully put the tablet back into its lockbox with her gloved hands and because of her lack of sleep, forgot to lock it completely (something she would berate herself for later), and left the building at nearly 4 in the morning. She'd be back in a few hours anyways.
 
Through the night the security cameras would pick up an odd light coming from the research area. Every now and then an open book would flip a page or a sheet would fall to the ground. If they had sound it would almost be similar to a long drawn howl, or just wind through a crack in the wall. Soon enough the lock box fell to the ground, the tablet spilling to the floor but remaining intact. The lights and sounds would only grow louder, lasting nearly three hours of the series before a being finally came into being upon the tablet. Slowly at first, almost like a ghost he came into being. The cloak covered man breathing heavily, reaching to the table to try to steady himself. It took a lot to come back into being after four milenia of being trapped.

Slowly the man stood, golden eyes darting around the room as he tried to understand his new surroundings. His eyes darted to the shelves of books, unfamiliar language written upon them. An annoyed growl escaped him while he looked aground gripping his sword. He had expected to awaken in a place like his home, this... this was radically different. Picking up the rusted sheet of iron from the ground he placed it upon the table, leaning over reading it over and over. Reading it aloud the language sounded almost feral, growls, barks, whines, far different from the more nuanced languages of modern times.
 
Lilith had gotten to her one room apartment around 4:30 in the morning. She left the university late enough to catch the early morning train back home. Once she finally got home, Lilith thanked her previous years in college because they made her an expert of collapsing onto a couch just right after a hard day of classes, work, or a party where she had happened to get especially drunk. She may be a studious person, but hey, she's still young. As soon as her head hit the couch cushion, she fell asleep, with an alarm set for 7:30 so she could get back to her studies.

If she were completely honest, the only real reason she went home was so her fellow colleagues -- who worshiped sleep as if it were a gift bestowed on them only once year -- wouldn't worry that she had stayed for a third day. And if she were honest, she wasn't sure how much longer she could go on like that. At least she had a decent nap that wasn't on the lumpy old couch that her professors put in the back of the rooms for students like her to crash on. She was just so determined to find out more about this culture. She was so close she could feel it and she didn't want to waste any time in finding out.

Lilith's phone alarm rang off a few hours later when dawn was breaking through her window. She shot up immediately, feeling more refreshed than ever, and grabbing a microwaved Hot Pocket and a steaming thermos of coffee before leaving to take the train back to where she came. Early morning patrons were around her, most commuting to work in the big city. When Lilith reached the lecturing room she noted that the only person there so far was her professor getting ready at the front for his early morning classes. She nodded to him before walking to the back room where the professor and the students who needed practice in the field of archaeology and preservation work, take care of, and curate artifacts before they're put on display in the Manhattan Museum or the college's own museum.

No one was in the back, Lilith noted as the lights were mostly off except for the one at her desk which she figured she must have forgotten when she left so tiredly earlier. Well, Lilith thought there was no one in the back until she heard the sound of something that she at first thought was a stray dog but then realized it was actually someone speaking some sort of gibberish Lilith couldn't ever hope to understand. When the source of the noise was finally in her line of vision, Lilith just about freaked. "Put that DOWN!" she yelled at the hooded figure. It didn't occur to her that this person could be dangerous, all she registered was that her precious treasures were being handled by someone's ungloved, unsanitized hands and they were destroying her history! Did she mention his hands were dirty?

"You're going to ruin ALL of it," she continued on, now panicked as she grabbed one of the polyethylene bags and used it was a make shift glove as she pulled the tablet away from the hooded figure and onto her desk where she grabbed her brush dipped in alcohol and tried to dust off and preserve the artifact. She completely didn't register the person and their ancient garb. And to be honest, she couldn't care less about the guy next to her as she tried to keep the bacteria that was sure to be on the man's hands from eating away at the artifact. All the while she mumbled phrases like "Seriously! WHAT were you thinking?" and "You must be a goddamn freshman." and let's not forget "Oh geez, oh geez."
 
The sudden yell snapped his head up, his golden eyes darting to her and his hands clasping the iron sheet still. He was in no way harming it save for whatever bacteria may be on his hands. His touch had been gentle, almost reverent. Before she pulled it away from him he finished the last growl like sound of the slab, her next words making sense in his head. His mind felt like it was on fire as the spell took hold. It made him stumble back grasping at his skull for a moment before the pain subsided. He just learned her language in half a minute. Sweat formed on his brow while he looked to her, trying to assess her dress, why she was putting on the strange gloves. Shock took his usually stoic mind while he just observed, fascinated that he understood what she said.

"I am ruining nothing." His voice seemed harsh, the accent reminiscent of rough German. "How did you get this?" He demanded closing the distance between them while he stared down at her, his unusual eyes piercing. "Who are you?" His hand went to the sheath of his sword, thumbing the blade up with a click. If she were to stop and assess him she'd see the weapon was similar to the rusted ones they would have recovered and his clothes similar to the images they would have found. "I am the protector of that tablet, now give it back to me." Anger lay within his voice, he had just awoken at a strange place in a stranger time. Why wouldn't he be radically upset.
 
Lilith scoffed, still not looking up and remaining focused on her task at hand. " There's only one protector of those artifacts and that's me," Lilith said, her brows furrowing into a frustrated glare that she directed to her desk. "Well.. me and the rest of the archaeology department, but still. I found dug these babies up so I'm in charge, freshman." Lilith had to be careful not to let the tablet sit out for too long or she could be in danger of rusting it or god forbid, damaging the ancient writing (Lilith would never forgive herself if that were the case). Using the soft-bristled brush, she cleaned the tablet of any fingerprints so it looked as it did before. Finally satisfied, Lilith placed the tablet inside the bag and placed it back in the lock box, correctly this time, before picking it up to a storage shelf.

Lilith climbed up the step ladder and very gingerly set down the box as she pulled out another filed under "LYK - DOC-01" that was filled with another iron tablet (it seemed to be something they could easily get a hold of). Lilith jumped down from the step ladder, the box tucked under her armpit as she carried it back to her desk. It was then that she noticed the stranger still there. "You're still here?" she glared. "Listen, as much as I would love to give you a tour of this wonderful school, I don't have time. There's an ancient civilization that's waiting to be learned about," she said, finally getting a good look at the hooded stranger in his odd clothing. Must be a cosplayer, she thought until she noticed one of the weapons.

Lilith's brows furrowed. "You took a weapon, too!?" she growled in frustration and threw her hands up in the air in exasperation as she made a reach for the sword. "Give that back! Why are you even back here?!" Only now she realized that only she and a few number of students and professors had authorization to be in this room, and she would have recognized this stranger with the weird accent if he really was authorized to help out or if he was a new intern or teacher's aide.
 
Her dismissal of his words only made him more angry, eyes narrowed upon her while she rambled on about who the 'real protector was.' For a moment he humored her, he listened to her. He could only take so much though. The reach for his sword crossed his line of patience, short as it was. Grabbing her by the shoulder he shoved her against the shelves. He was strong, the fact that his cloak had opened up to reveal the lines of his muscles proved it. Drawing the sword he placed it against her throat, the beginning of the belly to the blade resting against her. All it would take was one side motion and she would be dead before she hit the ground. "Who are you and where did you find these?!" He barked, baring his teeth like a feral animal would while he stared at her, keeping her pinned firmly.

If she were to look at the blade it would appear brand new save fore a few nicks along the edge. Delicate engraving lay along it's top, inlaid with gold. Images of hunting wolves and men ran along it's length. "My name is Mako, I was sealed with that tablet to awaken when it was needed, to make sure the prophecy was fulfilled." His words were practically snarls while he stared at her, predatory eyes. "Now, where am I, who are you, and what is this place?" It was a simple series of questions, though with one's life on the line. He didn't care if she was male or female, he would kill her if he had to for the information.
 
Lilith couldn't help but let out a startled yelp as she saw the blade pulled against her throat. She didn't dare yell for fear that moving like that would cut her throat or he would kill her because apparently, this man was a psychopath. Despite the amount of panic, one part in the back of her mind was grateful she had set the other tablet down before reaching for the sword because they would have been thrown onto the ground had she not. It was kind of like how people would lay down their lives to protect the Mona Lisa or the Declaration of Independence. Still, she couldn't manage to process much with that blade pressed against her. "Put the blade down and I'll answer all your questions... ?" she suggested helpfully, her glasses sliding to the bridge of her nose after being shaken so roughly like that. "It's kind of hard to - to think."

Lilith tried to take a deep breath, calm and tried to the meet the golden eyes above her. She figured her best chance would be to think clearly, answer his questions so as not to irritate the man further, and then get out of there as soon as possible. "I-I'm Lilith Darkholme, fifth year university student, first year grad in archaeology and anthropology," she tried to explain, though she kept her voice low so as not to move too much against the blade and to hide the slight shaking in her voice. "You're in one of the classrooms at my school where I study these artifacts," she said this as she looked down at his sword, finally noticing at how new it looked. She knew it was popular to get replicas of ancient weapons, it was a bit of a trend really. But these weapons and that style were completely unannounced to the general public as of yet because the discovery was so new yet it looked so real as if it came right from that archaeological site. How...? Lilith began to think but focused her mind back to the matter at hand and forced her eyes upward again, this time feeling a little braver.

"You're in New York City. These artifacts are from the ancient Lykos and come from Germany where I dug them up while studying abroad," she explained further, trying to hide her discomfort and fear which, if she could say so herself, she did an amiable job at.
 
He listened, head cantering like a curious dog as she spoke. For a moment his eyes narrowed before he moved the blade away from her neck and sheathed it. The mention of his people had spurred the reaction, "What happened to the Lykos?" He questioned, still having her pinned against the shelves. He saw no reason to let her go yet, he still needed more information. "Where are they now?" A bit of concern lay within his voice while he watched her, seeming just a bit more gentle, though it may be that he was distracted by the information she had given him. Breathing deep he could smell her perfume, when did women sat\rt wearing scented oils everywhere? He had nothing near it. ((Bah, a bit of writers block... considering the heavy dialog needed here.))
 
((Nah I totally get it ))

Lilith's shoulders slumped in both relief and exhaustion as the blade was removed from against her throat. She didn't want to think the man was hostile, but Lilith has lived in New York long enough to be able to recognize when someone was hostile. Still, he did seem confused, this -- Mako person -- as if he truly didn't know where he was. Though she was still uncomfortable, she tried to answer him as best as she could seeing as it seemed to calm him down. Her eyes softened slightly and she sort of looked off as if recalling something distant. "They fell, like all great empires do eventually," she said wistfully. She couldn't help but feel a smidge of sympathy for all these cultures who had fallen, even though she knew it was a cycle for all things in life.

Lilith tried to shrug which was hard to do from her position. "No one really knows exactly what happened. There's a lot of mystery around it. There was definitely some Civil War going on, probably due to a corrupt leader, and there were bad winters and famine, at least that's what's generally agreed upon, but there's not enough evidence. " She wondered about why he asked where they are. Obviously they don't exist anymore and their civilization was nearly wiped from history over time, but she got the feeling that this wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear or that from what she just said, already had a general idea of what happened to the Lykos. "Well, their culture and empire is gone. Their beliefs, language, and customs were lost over time and so was their way of life. In fact we know very little today," she admitted, though the way she said it clearly showed that she wasn't satisfied with not knowing more about this culture. "But.. I guess the people aren't really gone. There a millions upon millions of people with Germanic origin, most of those probably do have some of the Lykos blood -- however diluted -- running through their veins like I have a bit of Roman." Lilith hadn't realized she had begun to babble despite her current predicament. She smiled sheepishly and looked up. "Hey," she tried with a gentler tone, "you wouldn't mind if we sit down? This position is killing my back..." She trailed off, hoping he would back up a little and allow her to sit down.
 
He listened, something inside him broke. His stomach twisted and turned, cramping while he slowly let up off of her shoulder and backed away. The slight tan of his complexion seemed to have blanched a bit. Her words of the blood line continuing didn't help much while he sat upon the table. His golden eyes staring past her while his hands trembled. His people, his word simply fell as was forgotten? Looking to her he shook his head, unable to accept the idea, "H-how many years? How long since they fell?" He asked looking to her, the growl had left his voice, leaving a whimper to his accent instead. (Once again sorry...)
 
((No worries :D Mine isn't very long either))

Lilith's eyes looked at Mako in sympathy. He really thought he was a Lykos and that he came out of that tablet to the point that he thought the civilization was still around. Clearly there was something wrong with him mentally, but he was still heartbroken and he wasn't dangerous at the moment. Slowly so as not to alert him, she sat down. "We estimate that the civilization collapsed between 1450 to 1350 B.C. give or take. So considering we're in the year 2012 A.D., It's been nearly 3500 years since then," she explained in a gentler tone. It really seemed to affect him deeply. Lilith grabbed the tablet on her desk with a gloved hand to show it to the man. "This is all we have left and it's my job it stays around for a long time," she added.
 
Looking to her he shuddered, three millenia. With a small whimpering sigh he looked to the tablet. His eyes darting across the letters before he began to read it. Even with the odd series of sounds the syntax remained clear that he wasn't just babbling on with near animal like sounds. His golden eyes darted across it, slowly coming to terms with the fate of his people, partially from the tablet and partially from her words. Finishing he lowered his head, shaking it slightly while he felt a tinge of guilt, of sorrow. Propping himself up more upon the table he unclasped his sword, resting it beside him. "How many more tablets do you have?" He asked looking to her once more. She would have to know of the legend of the people's eyes. Other cultures from around the time and even after had myths about the Lykos.
 
Lilith looked towards the eyes of the stranger before her that shined oddly gold. At first glance, she assumed they were contacts, but looking closely she realized that no, his eyes really were that color. The sadness he carried around him was nearly tangible, and after hearing him speak with the foreign, wild and animalistic yet somehow methodical language she had always pictured the ancient Lykos to have, she knew something was up. There was more to this man than just another New York crazy. "... Not many," she said finally, "most of them were lost over time or damaged beyond recognition. But I have a few.."

With that, Lilith stood up from her chair and walked back over to the shelves that she personally organized. She pulled out another 6 boxes, all with an iron tablet in each and her from the corner of her eyes she noticed a security camera. A camera that has footage of the past few hours.I may not know much about him or what he's up to, but I can at least find out how he managed to get in here, she thought as she carefully climbed down the ladder with the boxes carefully stacked one on top of the other. They were balanced perfectly in one hand due to years of spent waitressing in her early years of college. Carefully, she spread out the boxes on the desk and unlocked each one. "Grab a glove and be careful. We have more but these are the only ones that are completely intact," she explained. In fact, they found nearly a hundred of them though many had scratches and were eroded. The ones in the best condition were sent here with Lilith's excavation team and they had some others that were nearly legible though much harder to read.

Lilith couldn't believe she was about to say this but, "I'm going to leave you alone with these artifacts okay? I'll be back in a little moment." With that, she carefully went back near the shelves but this time reached up for the security camera. "Let's see what you got to show me," she mumbled to the camera and accessed the playback feature. She rewound the tape backwards to after she left that night. Intently, she made the tape speed up 10x until she saw a light other than the one on her desk (Lilith was right, she did leave her desk light on) that came from the lock box. Papers flew everywhere on tape and she could make out clips of sounds that would have sounded like howls had she played it on something other than a camera on fast forward. It was then that Lilith saw something that was hands down the oddest, freakiest, and mind blowing thing that she would ever see. The lockbox fell onto the ground revealing the iron tablet where a man (a human man!) materialized from the tablet. A man that was currently sitting alone at her desk.

Lilith snapped upwards, turning off the video and shoving it back in its spot where it always was. She quickly sprinted back towards her desk, peaking around the corner with wide eyes to see that yes, the man was still there. And no, the camera didn't lie to her. WHAT?! her mind screamed. "You -- you-yuh,"she tried to speak, but the words wouldn't come out. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes a moment. Stay calm, she told herself. "You--" she tried again. "You weren't kidding, right? When you said you came from the tablet, right?" she asked. "... Right?" Way to stay calm, her mind said.
 
With a small nod he watched her, "Alright..." He replied watching her go about the shelves. With interest he looked to the gloves, the material making him intrigued for a moment. He fiddled with the gloves, ripping a few before he finally managed to get one on. Grabbing one of the tablets he looked it over, once again beginning to read while she left him be. His eyes darted over the scratches and writings, reading the history of his people after he was sealed away. The wars, the conquests, the falls. He eventually was on the last one. A tinge of guilt ran through him and he grasped the sheet tighter, his eyes staring at the slab before he placed it down.

His head was hanging when she spoke. Those golden eyes darted to her, staring blankly while she stammered. "I came from that tablet... High priest Rekkr placed me in it." He replied, his voice seeming solemn and sad. "Four thousand years ago." Once more he looked to the iron sheet before he replaced it in the lock box. A slight growl escaped his lips while he shook his head, bringing his gloved hands to his hair and grasped at his skull. "They're gone... they're all gone, they starved..." He whispered, clamping his eyes closed to stifle a tear. His mind was racing, aching. He felt sick, his breathing increased. He was going into shock right in front of her. Cold sweat formed on his forearms and forehead. His body trembled in the sheet while his nails dug at his scalp hard enough to make a bead of blood run down the side of his head facing her.
 
And all of a sudden, it occurred to Lilith what was happening. This man, Mako, placed inside his tablet was awoken into a new world only to realize he lost everything. Lilith couldn't believe she could have been so insensitive to the man's feelings. He looked like he was about to be sick and she didn't know what to do, but she knew that now was no time to be panicking. When she saw the blood that had formed as a result of the time traveler gripping his skull too hard, she hurriedly rushed over to the table where he sat. "Hey! Hey!" she said, gripping the man's hands and trying to pull them away from his head lest he hurt himself. "Listen! I'm sorry, about everything you've been through. I can't even fathom how you must feel right now, but I need you to do me a favor and calm down," she tried to soothe, still gripping his hands as she stooped a little lower so she could look at his eyes which were turned towards the floor and from the way they were shut, trying to hold back a tear or two. "I'm here," she mumbled gently, trying to get him to calm down.
 
The sudden yell made him recoil slightly, the touch to his hands soon pulled them away from his thick haired scalp. Her words made him tremble, often it has been said that a woman's voice could break the strongest man. Slowly his golden eyes opened to look to her. The very edges of the whites were red, tears forming in the corners while she spoke. Breathing heavily still he shook his head, "They're gone, my people are gone..." He whispered, his accent carrying the whine of a whipped pup. Sorrow lay heavy upon his strong features while he tried to compose himself. A true warrior shouldn't appear weak in front of a woman after all. A bit of blood fell to his cloak while he lifted his head, taking a long deep breath. "What is your job?"
 
Lilith mumbled soothing words, which she had to think hard about. Really, what could one say to someone who woke up 3000 years in the future and figured out they lost everything? It really was heartbreaking and Lilith wasn't sure what to do, but when he asked her an irrelevant question, she chose to ignore it for the second. "You know, you don't have to hold it in," she suggested. "But I'll let it slide for now, and tell you all about my wonderful job," she began speaking in a lighter tone, hoping to alleviate some of the sadness and recognizing the change in topic for what it was. "I guess you could call me a scholar, but mostly, I'm an archaeologist. It's my job to study and discover the things of our past. Lost civilizations, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park and all that jazz," she babbled, knowing he probably didn't understand the pop-culture reference she just made but trying to fill the silence.

As she spoke, Lilith reached for her cleaning kit she typically used to take care of artifacts. She grabbed the rubbing alcohol and cotton balls she carried with her as well as the pack of bandage she kept (sometimes she wasn't careful enough with the older, rustic weapons that even time hadn't yet dulled their blades) . "Now, hold still," she said with a warning as she leaned up to clean the bleeding scratch. "Take off your cloak too, you'll stain it," she said.
 
He looked to her while she mumbled soft words, though it didn't truly help him much. He wasn't used to such feelings, he had always been the strong one, always been the warrior. His golden eyes looked confused at the word archaeologist and even more so at the references. His brow furrowed while she babbled, head cantering like a confused dog again before he would give a humoring nod. Watching her grab for the cleaning kit he raised an eyebrow, wondering what some of the items were. The sudden command made a growl come, "You do not make demands to me." He nearly snarled before he winced at the feeling of the alcohol. He would have shoved her away but propriety kept him for now. After all his kind treated women with respect, they were essential to life after all. "My cloak has been stained by the blood of a hundred men, mine won't do it any harm. It already has some." He spoke before he gave in and humored that too, unclasping the howling wolf's head tie it slipped from his shoulders, revealing how built he was.
 
Lilith smirked as she saw the confused look on his face. He obviously had no idea what she was talking. "I collect really old stuff," she said to summarize what she had just said. "And I will make demands at you, because you're going to rip your scalp off and stain your only clothes." Mako seemed friendly enough now that he wasn't holding a knife to her throat and she wasn't nearly as afraid of him now that she knew what was up (and that he wasn't crazy and that he really was a man who lived in a slab of iron). Lilith couldn't help but whistle at the sight of the man's body. "Definitely a warrior's body," she mumbled appreciatively as she grabbed the cloak gingerly and held it up to get a good look at it. A really good look at it because these were the clothes of a warrior from 3000 years ago! Any clothes had long since fallen apart, so up until now she could only guess at the fashion of the time period. And it was so wonderfully put together as well!

"And no worries, I'll get those stains right ou---" she started to say but trailed off realizing that hey, she was a college student and she didn't even do her own laundry. "You know, I know a great dry cleaner's place down the street that'll get those stains right out."
 
((It's a series of wolf pelts >.> sewn together...))

He looked to her and gave a small nod, "I collected fox and deer tails..." He replied to her statement, it seemed like the right time, "And the ears of those I killed." With a shrug he sighed, accepting her reasoning for demanding him, "Are you the head of your clan?" He questioned looking to her again before she whistled a look of confusion apparent from the sentiment, "I am a warrior, why wouldn't I have this body?" He asked staring at her oddly. She was odd for her kind, back home women were strong, child bearing, and usually rather quiet unless they were alone or with a lover. "Don't take the stains out!" He spoke, almost seeming offended by it, "That was my father's cloak and his fathers! The stains are a sign of honor!"