A Step Away
Follow me into the sun.
Inner Sanctum Nobility
Hello, thank you for dropping in. You can call me A Step Away or Step, if you prefer. New around these parts but I have been roleplaying for over twenty-one years. I'm looking for a partner or maybe a few more interested in collaborating together on long-term roleplays that can be adventurous, romantic, dark or light. I want to tell a story we both enjoy with equally likable characters and worlds. If you want to get something going, send me a PM, let's discuss it. Please do not post here.
About Me
▪︎My posting schedule will be multiple posts a week, 1-3 posts or one post a week. I'm not a rapid-fire poster. I can get busy but I'll always keep you informed of any delays on my part.
▪︎My posts will usually be multiple large paragraphs or novel-length. Maximum of 3,000 words and a minimum of 1,500. This does depend on a few things though. My openers tend to be pretty long so that's one instance. Or if I'm moving the story along, descriptions and details, introducing important characters. Now posts with more dialogue may be a little shorter but I always aim to bring a reply my partner will hopefully enjoy.
▪︎I only write in Third-Person.
▪︎I have writing samples available upon request.
▪︎Image references for my characters will be of realistic art, or written descriptions.
▪︎MxF pairings. My main characters will be female but I'm able to play side characters of any gender.
▪︎My F-List: Here
▪︎Apologies. I'm not looking for anything way out of the realm of what's on here.
▪︎I do not write helpless females.
What I'm Looking For
◇All characters above 18.
◇Replies a couple of times a week, one post a week. Real Life always comes first though.
◇At least two paragraphs. More is appreciated but certainly not necessary.
◇Does not matter who you are behind the computer, if you can play a main male character that's fine with me.
◇Third-person Perspective.
◇Someone to contribute to the story/collaborative in moving it forward and put in ideas when plotting with me.
◇Can play other characters to help with the story. Side/NPCs when/if necessary.
◇Communicate with me once in a while. Does not have to be every day, not even I'm looking for that but just enough to keep in touch or discussions about the roleplay or the occasional heads up about being away for an extended period, if you want.
◇Be willing to write an opening post if it makes sense for your character to be in the scene first.
◇Character written descriptions are fine. If images are used that's fine too as long as it matches with the setting of the story.
Genres
♡Fantasy. It can include Modern, Dark, or Medieval.
♡Sci-fi. Post Apocalyptic and Apocalyptic can be included.
♡Action-Adventure. Exploration. Personal Journey.
♡Supernatural: Werewolves, maybe vampires. Horror elements.
♡Slice of Life: High stakes involved or something casual.
♡Weird West: Gunslingers, saloon girls, machines.
♡Medieval: Just the regular castles, kingdoms, Kings, Queens, Princesses, and Princes. Everything but the fantasy part.
Things I enjoy
Romance, nothing instant
Character chemistry
Tension
Enemies to Lovers
Forbidden Love
Flawed characters
Character development
Political intrigue
Ideas
These are just simple ideas. If you have your own to add to them, cool beans.
Plots
Disclaimer: Nearly all the plots are from the perspective of my character and are just a premise and an outline. If you're interested in any of these including the ones with a sort of pre-determined character, we can change or add what's needed to make it work.
About Me
▪︎My posting schedule will be multiple posts a week, 1-3 posts or one post a week. I'm not a rapid-fire poster. I can get busy but I'll always keep you informed of any delays on my part.
▪︎My posts will usually be multiple large paragraphs or novel-length. Maximum of 3,000 words and a minimum of 1,500. This does depend on a few things though. My openers tend to be pretty long so that's one instance. Or if I'm moving the story along, descriptions and details, introducing important characters. Now posts with more dialogue may be a little shorter but I always aim to bring a reply my partner will hopefully enjoy.
▪︎I only write in Third-Person.
▪︎I have writing samples available upon request.
▪︎Image references for my characters will be of realistic art, or written descriptions.
▪︎MxF pairings. My main characters will be female but I'm able to play side characters of any gender.
▪︎My F-List: Here
▪︎Apologies. I'm not looking for anything way out of the realm of what's on here.
▪︎I do not write helpless females.
What I'm Looking For
◇All characters above 18.
◇Replies a couple of times a week, one post a week. Real Life always comes first though.
◇At least two paragraphs. More is appreciated but certainly not necessary.
◇Does not matter who you are behind the computer, if you can play a main male character that's fine with me.
◇Third-person Perspective.
◇Someone to contribute to the story/collaborative in moving it forward and put in ideas when plotting with me.
◇Can play other characters to help with the story. Side/NPCs when/if necessary.
◇Communicate with me once in a while. Does not have to be every day, not even I'm looking for that but just enough to keep in touch or discussions about the roleplay or the occasional heads up about being away for an extended period, if you want.
◇Be willing to write an opening post if it makes sense for your character to be in the scene first.
◇Character written descriptions are fine. If images are used that's fine too as long as it matches with the setting of the story.
Genres
♡Fantasy. It can include Modern, Dark, or Medieval.
♡Sci-fi. Post Apocalyptic and Apocalyptic can be included.
♡Action-Adventure. Exploration. Personal Journey.
♡Supernatural: Werewolves, maybe vampires. Horror elements.
♡Slice of Life: High stakes involved or something casual.
♡Weird West: Gunslingers, saloon girls, machines.
♡Medieval: Just the regular castles, kingdoms, Kings, Queens, Princesses, and Princes. Everything but the fantasy part.
Things I enjoy
Romance, nothing instant
Character chemistry
Tension
Enemies to Lovers
Forbidden Love
Flawed characters
Character development
Political intrigue
Ideas
These are just simple ideas. If you have your own to add to them, cool beans.
■Two heirs of different yakuza/organized crime families find their paths crossing in a game of crime and violence. When they can't trust anyone can they trust each other?
■A drifter on the road happens across a traveling companion who frequently, seemingly on purpose, brings trouble on their doorstep.
■Arranged Marriage. They hate each other but the only way to preserve their kingdoms is to propose marriage but what happens after the I Do's? Will the hostility really just disappear after a night of passion?
■Mage x Religious Knight. She never asked to be born with powers but with them, there is a bounty on her head. He's a knight of the order tasked with bringing all heretics to execution and he's not one to shirk his duty. He has her cornered yet the tables turn when she saves his life. He owes her a steep debt that she will collect one way or another. Question is, what is worth the saving of one's life?
■Courtesan x Captain of the Imperial Guard. Her family status has never been anything worthwhile. With the mounting debts, she's forced to carve out some sort of living in the brothel. Of those she entertains, she catches the attention of the Captain of the Imperial Guard. He is someone of status, naturally and for him, she has something he wants. Maybe they can help each other.
■She-wolf woman x Hunter of a prestigious family. Cursed by a form of magic, she and others of her kind have another form. One human. Not that they would want to lower themselves to be among the humans but they could. She is trying to find a cure. He comes from a long line of wolf hunters. When he ventures to the beyond, he sees her by a lake and her reflection is that of a wolf.
■Career-driven co-worker x Take it easy, charming co-worker. He's a bit uptight, focused on getting the next promotion and she likes to take easy while still getting the job done. Unfortunately they are paired up on a project together.
■Second-in-command of organized crime x Everyday citizen. She has a cozy little café and he happens to like a couple of items on the menu. Of course she thinks he's some entrepreneur and he's not going to tell her any different until he shows up one evening at the back door, shot, and bleeding out.
■Princess x Knight-could be formerly of the throne. Their relationship was forbidden aside was a secret. The princess and a knight of the throne. They swore their allegiance to each other yet when her hand is promised to someone else, he cannot simply watch her get married and leaves his post. The family she is marrying into is anything but kind and she will need the man she has devoted her heart and body to.
■Queen x King-Also will work with Prince and Princess. He has seen his fair share of battles leaving him little time for a wife let alone heirs. His kingdom is prosperous but there has been no end of enemies lining up to try to destroy his legacy. She is ruler over a much smaller kingdom where assassins come from within her own camp. This does not deter her in the least and it is when a couple of insurgents try to take her life, she takes their heads. All witnessed by him and they meet to discuss a possible alliance through marriage.
■Bodyguard x Social Media Darling. Opposites Attract. 3.5 million followers and counting. She's a social media star, influencer, whatever. Beloved, not so much. Someone has been making death threats even trying to carry out a few attempts on her life. This does not stop her from snapping a selfie for the fans though. Insert a man with a particular set of skills that does not involve getting on social media. He's only trying to do his job and she's hindering it by being so damn stupid.
■Adventurer x Rival Adventurer. At odds over past grievances, former lovers have to share a lucrative contract of escorting a prized piece to a location, unscathed. The item being in mint condition that is. With thieves trying to steal it or beasts trying to break it, they have their work cut out for them.
■Lady/Lord of the Manor Non-traditional Butler/Maid. Inheriting sizable property, the owner is shocked to discover that a butler/Maid also comes with it and there's more than meets the eye with them.
■Two travelers. One needing help on the road, the other vowing to never let another person die on their watch.
■Victim saved from an attack x Patrolman. On the verge of a vicious attack, she is saved by a patrolman who is someone she knew from her school days. While she left town, he remained doing well for himself or it seems. Now that she's come home, old feelings for him have resurfaced but he seems to be oblivious to them.
■Those with superhuman powers. A good versus bad thing, anti-heroes. Trying to survive.
■Corsair x Villager. "You're always working twenty-four seven, why can't you find a nice woman to settle down with? Have a family?" His father always told him whenever he stopped by his stomping grounds after raiding and pillaging. Taking the older man's words to heart, on his crew's next profitable excursion, they interrupt some nuptials on docks. Before the bride and groom can finish their ceremony, she's kidnapped by the pirate who intends on making her his wife. Problem solved.
■In a world torn apart by madness, survival has just become that much harder, and trust is fleeting. She is a survivor who comes across the first other survivor she's seen in months only he robs her of her supplies leaving her for dead. Now she is on a quest to find the man who has problems of his own.
■They used to be something until she went away, and he stayed in their humdrum town. After a couple of years, she came back, just not the same person she was before. He's different too. Despite this, there's something still between them.
■He had the chance to make a career of the sport he loved. That, of course, meant leaving his former life and her behind because a long-distance relationship wasn't in the cards. Five years later he's at the top of his game. Wealthy, successful, no shortage of women then in one instance, an injury ends all of it and he's forced to reconcile with his past and the ones he left.
▪︎Strangers. Meeting at a bar or on a train, what can happen next?
■A drifter on the road happens across a traveling companion who frequently, seemingly on purpose, brings trouble on their doorstep.
■Arranged Marriage. They hate each other but the only way to preserve their kingdoms is to propose marriage but what happens after the I Do's? Will the hostility really just disappear after a night of passion?
■Mage x Religious Knight. She never asked to be born with powers but with them, there is a bounty on her head. He's a knight of the order tasked with bringing all heretics to execution and he's not one to shirk his duty. He has her cornered yet the tables turn when she saves his life. He owes her a steep debt that she will collect one way or another. Question is, what is worth the saving of one's life?
■Courtesan x Captain of the Imperial Guard. Her family status has never been anything worthwhile. With the mounting debts, she's forced to carve out some sort of living in the brothel. Of those she entertains, she catches the attention of the Captain of the Imperial Guard. He is someone of status, naturally and for him, she has something he wants. Maybe they can help each other.
■She-wolf woman x Hunter of a prestigious family. Cursed by a form of magic, she and others of her kind have another form. One human. Not that they would want to lower themselves to be among the humans but they could. She is trying to find a cure. He comes from a long line of wolf hunters. When he ventures to the beyond, he sees her by a lake and her reflection is that of a wolf.
■Career-driven co-worker x Take it easy, charming co-worker. He's a bit uptight, focused on getting the next promotion and she likes to take easy while still getting the job done. Unfortunately they are paired up on a project together.
■Second-in-command of organized crime x Everyday citizen. She has a cozy little café and he happens to like a couple of items on the menu. Of course she thinks he's some entrepreneur and he's not going to tell her any different until he shows up one evening at the back door, shot, and bleeding out.
■Princess x Knight-could be formerly of the throne. Their relationship was forbidden aside was a secret. The princess and a knight of the throne. They swore their allegiance to each other yet when her hand is promised to someone else, he cannot simply watch her get married and leaves his post. The family she is marrying into is anything but kind and she will need the man she has devoted her heart and body to.
■Queen x King-Also will work with Prince and Princess. He has seen his fair share of battles leaving him little time for a wife let alone heirs. His kingdom is prosperous but there has been no end of enemies lining up to try to destroy his legacy. She is ruler over a much smaller kingdom where assassins come from within her own camp. This does not deter her in the least and it is when a couple of insurgents try to take her life, she takes their heads. All witnessed by him and they meet to discuss a possible alliance through marriage.
■Bodyguard x Social Media Darling. Opposites Attract. 3.5 million followers and counting. She's a social media star, influencer, whatever. Beloved, not so much. Someone has been making death threats even trying to carry out a few attempts on her life. This does not stop her from snapping a selfie for the fans though. Insert a man with a particular set of skills that does not involve getting on social media. He's only trying to do his job and she's hindering it by being so damn stupid.
■Adventurer x Rival Adventurer. At odds over past grievances, former lovers have to share a lucrative contract of escorting a prized piece to a location, unscathed. The item being in mint condition that is. With thieves trying to steal it or beasts trying to break it, they have their work cut out for them.
■Lady/Lord of the Manor Non-traditional Butler/Maid. Inheriting sizable property, the owner is shocked to discover that a butler/Maid also comes with it and there's more than meets the eye with them.
■Two travelers. One needing help on the road, the other vowing to never let another person die on their watch.
■Victim saved from an attack x Patrolman. On the verge of a vicious attack, she is saved by a patrolman who is someone she knew from her school days. While she left town, he remained doing well for himself or it seems. Now that she's come home, old feelings for him have resurfaced but he seems to be oblivious to them.
■Those with superhuman powers. A good versus bad thing, anti-heroes. Trying to survive.
■Corsair x Villager. "You're always working twenty-four seven, why can't you find a nice woman to settle down with? Have a family?" His father always told him whenever he stopped by his stomping grounds after raiding and pillaging. Taking the older man's words to heart, on his crew's next profitable excursion, they interrupt some nuptials on docks. Before the bride and groom can finish their ceremony, she's kidnapped by the pirate who intends on making her his wife. Problem solved.
■In a world torn apart by madness, survival has just become that much harder, and trust is fleeting. She is a survivor who comes across the first other survivor she's seen in months only he robs her of her supplies leaving her for dead. Now she is on a quest to find the man who has problems of his own.
■They used to be something until she went away, and he stayed in their humdrum town. After a couple of years, she came back, just not the same person she was before. He's different too. Despite this, there's something still between them.
■He had the chance to make a career of the sport he loved. That, of course, meant leaving his former life and her behind because a long-distance relationship wasn't in the cards. Five years later he's at the top of his game. Wealthy, successful, no shortage of women then in one instance, an injury ends all of it and he's forced to reconcile with his past and the ones he left.
▪︎Strangers. Meeting at a bar or on a train, what can happen next?
Plots
Disclaimer: Nearly all the plots are from the perspective of my character and are just a premise and an outline. If you're interested in any of these including the ones with a sort of pre-determined character, we can change or add what's needed to make it work.
She wanted to be away, from their darkness masked by false kindness and generosity. There was only one voice within the Kingdom of Dwirnod, the king. Above all else, his word was law. The majority were entranced by his ideals, his empty promises, and hopes for a brighter future. But in reality, his dominion over his so-called birthright and all other neighboring lands could be considered as a form of suppression and nothing more. Not everyone has fallen under his allure. Unbeknownst to his supporters, in his campaign to unify the entire continent under his rule, some of the lands that were once outside of the scope of the kingdom have fallen to ruin. Their inhabitants are given only one option, submit. Some of the survivors took to the seas while others went into hiding, forced to watch as their homes succumbed to tyranny. A young woman of wealth has never known the aftermath of war, only that the life she has been given is in due part to the king's graciousness yet deep down she knows something is terribly wrong. That on the comfort she has been afforded, others have suffered. Unfortunately for her, she has once again caught the eye of the king's eldest son, every bit the calculated man his father is. She knows of this personally from an unwanted encounter with the prince prior. This time around, he aims to make her his bride. A privilege, according to her status-obsessed family, but she knows better. That if this marriage were to be, she would have no freedom of her own. The prince is not someone many say no to, not when his veiled threats can so easily come true. Why should she continue to pretend he or his family are the upstanding individuals the population portrays them to be? Backed into a corner, she makes the decision to flee the capital in the dead of the night, hoping to maintain her sanity and her body. Elsewhere, survivors of the destruction brought on by the king, have risen up against him. They are fueled by their desire for revenge and are led by a leader who has a personal interest in wanting to see the royal family destroyed completely. The path of the woman leads her on a collision course with the enemies of the throne setting in motion a dangerous chain of events of which the way forward is uncertain.
You never know what you would do in that kind of situation until it happens to you. A woman has just witnessed a brutal murder by members of an organized crime syndicate. By some miracle, she is able to live. Now telling the tale is something she's not really interested in doing especially when it becomes apparent the ones responsible are not willing to take a chance that she won't spill her guts. The powers that be of the law on the other hand, want her to testify against the perpetrators that opens up a whole new set of problems. They're concerned about her safety, sure, just not so much as they are with the case. They are not exactly giving the impression they care all that much about her feelings, on whether she agrees or not. One thing was clear. She had to live long enough to get this over with. Whatever happened after could be thought about when she was safe. If, she would ever be. Escorted by marshals to what was supposed to be a secret location until the trial, En route, however, the convoy is attacked because someone on the team got a little greedy, willing to give up her life for a buck. She once again manages to escape and is separated from the rest of the group, their fates unknown by this point, and she's unsure if any of them were even trustworthy to begin with. Seeking refuge in the nearby wilderness, it seemed like a good idea at the time but her navigation skills weren't exactly the greatest. Further in, she comes across a cabin to hide out though she soon realizes she is far from alone.
They had to rely on each other once more if they did not want to see the kingdom fall to ruin. Cocky, maybe a little. Loyal to his king and country, without a doubt. He is not exactly a follower of the code of a traditional knight. Still, he is one regardless of how he is viewed by others. With the sovereign, he is very much trusted. The knight is a man having seen many battles and the scars of them carry with him no matter how much he pretends otherwise. Then there is the princess, sole heir of the king. She is smart, resourceful, yet kept away from the horrors of battle by her father for obvious reasons. The truth of the matter is not lost on her. That there is a fragile alliance between all of the kingdoms which threatens to break at any moment and with it would come war. Both the knight and princess find themselves worlds apart these days. The latter holding a certain disdain for the knight's public antics and him not caring about the opinion of a 'pampered brat' but at one time seemingly long ago, they had meant something to each other in secret. When they were alone, away from duty, obligation, and prying eyes, they were free to be themselves. To be lovers not defined by their set roles. Now, they could not have been further apart. Yet when the king is viciously slain at the summit, the princess has little choice but to take throne or risk seeing everything her father had built fall to ruin. There is enough blame to go around. Despite this, the two of them must navigate this new normal learning to truly depend on each other. She will need the knight to help fight their enemies from all sides to maintain her crown while he seeks to find forgiveness and vows to protect his queen at costs.
Nothing ever really stays in the past…The last thing she would ever need is to be rescued. Well maybe from boredom of the Podunk town where the only excitement, at least to her, came in the form of the customers she served as innkeeper. At times they came a few, others in droves. All of them with their different stories of the road loosened from their lips by the alcohol she gave them and her ability to listen to their problems, and for a few extra coins, if they were charming, something extra on the side. This allowed her a momentary reprieve. To be connected, no, important to someone else even if it was fleeting. It was during those times she forgot that underneath her façade of an ordinary worker. She once was a newcomer to town with nothing to her name. Only a hint of a past that has her wanted for the murder. This was years ago. Presently, her life was somewhat respectable. But one can only run from their demons for so long until they came back to collect.
Remember me? Of course you do, you stole my stuff after all. Whoever he was, it was not the business of anyone. He had served his time, whatever that meant and now all he wanted to do was live his life free of the shackles of worthless rulers and their meaningless words. In a town far away from his home, the man finds himself drawn to the tavern where a few things could happen. A nearly endless supply of ale, depending on his funds, good conversation, and a warm body to lay next to the following morning. He seemed to hit the trifecta. She, with hair a fiery red, has spent her time going from place to place but not for reasons one might assume. Since the traveling man has occupied the tavern, her eyes have been on him solely and after a few drinks, a no strings attached connection is established. They share much more than just a room together. The following morning, she is gone. Unfortunately for the man, he has been completely robbed of his traveling money, including a valuable keepsake. The woman, a seasoned thief, decides to move onto the next town, maybe pay some of her debts or not. Hot on her trail are others who have come across her and the man, all wanting what she has taken from them but it's just a matter of who will reach her first and what kind of trouble will be sure to follow.
I despise you….
They had broken the treaty by invading the land. In the campaign, an immeasurable number of lives were lost and the ones who had somehow survived the massacre, mainly women, were enslaved and taken by ships across the sea. Among the captives, a young woman. Being held prisoner was in no comparison to having watched her family be cut down right before her very eyes. Regardless of the intentions of the people responsible, they could break her no more than they already had in the destruction of her former life. She and other captives are held prisoner and taken across the seas. The journey is a long and difficult one where she remains confined in the lower bowels of the ship along with the others. When they reach land, she realizes freedom has long left her and the only way to move forward is navigate as an outsider in this foreign world with her life solely in the hands of one of her captors.
They had broken the treaty by invading the land. In the campaign, an immeasurable number of lives were lost and the ones who had somehow survived the massacre, mainly women, were enslaved and taken by ships across the sea. Among the captives, a young woman. Being held prisoner was in no comparison to having watched her family be cut down right before her very eyes. Regardless of the intentions of the people responsible, they could break her no more than they already had in the destruction of her former life. She and other captives are held prisoner and taken across the seas. The journey is a long and difficult one where she remains confined in the lower bowels of the ship along with the others. When they reach land, she realizes freedom has long left her and the only way to move forward is navigate as an outsider in this foreign world with her life solely in the hands of one of her captors.