Fantasy Are you tired of sipping Crab Coladas? (Pirate RP) (Always Open)

WayfaringWaaksian · Sep 13, 2023

Vladimir and the Noi Twins
Toron - Church

Before Nancy could drag the beastman to breakfast, the opening Church door made them both give pause. Eyes lit up with relief, Nancy rushed over, stopping abruptly about a tail-length away. Any trace of dust and debris had been washed away from his sister's water current, but red-brown patches still blotched her robes. That wasn't reason for his hesitation, however. <<Are you... did you do it, then?>>
"Yes. Down to the letter." Voice having returned to a calm flat couldn't hide the turmoil hiding behind her own face. Eyes red from crying herself, head lowered from its typical proud stand. She was broken inside, held together by resolute seams. "The Kitsune family, the Castle, and all inside are no more. Only the king lives, incapacitated and ready to be executed when the Goddess wills it." A great deal of anger was suppressed behind a tone that grew terse. "The people deserve to punish the cause of their suffering by their own hands."
"Very good." Vlad wouldn't bemoan the fact that this should have happened long before. He could take comfort in what was being salvaged. "Did you speak with Her after?"
"We spoke. And She..." Her scaled brows twitched, betraying confusion. "She apologized for all of this?"
"She committed an infraction," Vlad informed her. "Granting a new follower Favor-- in your case, a newly repentant follower-- is negligent on Her part. Empowerment on top of Favor? Highly negligent. None of this would have happened had She not acted hastily." He took a moment to read her expression. "She'll have to atone for this, just as Nancy will for his crime."

Nellie's face had remained on the side of neutral up to this point. "It's not fair," she said with a grimace. "He shouldn't have to be punished for our mistakes."
<<But I should be punished for mine.>> Before she could rally to his defense, Nancy lifted a hand, taking a small step closer. <<Let me explain what Vlad told me. Favor and Empowerment are incredibly powerful tools. World-altering, given the right circumstances.>> Given what little remained of her targets, Nellie couldn't deny that. <<It's as great of a privilege as it is a responsibility. It's on the bestowing God to ensure that their follower is worthy of it. And it's on the bestowed to use that gift within the parameters as to not cause a disaster.>> Recalling Vlad's exact wording, Nancy adjusted his glasses as he thought how to relay this. <<What you were given, as someone uninformed on the Law, should have only been in extreme emergencies. Threats to Order, threats to Earth as a whole. Prevention of a Rapture-scale event.>>
"Destroying the castle sure as hell wasn't that," Nellie acknowledged, turning her gaze down.
<<Right. But in the case it HAD been, and you had to stop that threat?>> Nancy breathed a sigh, fortifying a hard look upon his face to convey the seriousness of the subject. <<Draining your Empowerment before you could carry out Her Will had the potential to doom everyone. Especially if someone like Elaina hadn't been there to try to salvage it.>> His own gaze dropped to the floor. <<That's why defying a God's Will is such a serious crime. Causing accidental harm with a power you don't know how to wield is one thing. Causing definite or potential harm by obstructing a God's attempt to enforce Order?>>

He trailed off. Looking back up, he could see Nellie's throat tighten, mist accumulating in her eyes. She understood.
<<I'm not being punished just because 'I deserve it',>> he assured her. <<I'm being punished to uphold a standard. Terrible punishments are given for terrible crimes, to discourage followers from committing them in the first place. If people saw me defy the Goddess's Will, then get away with barely more than a slap on the wrist, there would be no reason to fear dissidence.>> Closing the rest of their distance, Nancy slipped his hands under Nellie's palms. She reacted with a slight startle, looking up at him. Holding the touch for a few moments, he pulled away to sign, <<That's why Order must be upheld. For the protection of everyone else.>>
Slowly, reluctantly, she nodded. "If it has to be that way..."
<<It does. But...>> He wasn't sure what consolation it would offer on her end, but he went on, <<Mariah is probably right, that my severance a would be deemed fitting punishment. Maybe that will be accounted for.>>

Tears spilled over, but Nellie kept her sobs locked in her throat. "The Goddess said She'll have to punish you Herself. But She also wants to reward you for saving me."
A swill of emotions raged on behind Nancy's glistening eyes. He took a step backwards, tail circling around himself and forming a barrier between the two. <<I'm sorry I attacked you. I had no business getting so angry, when I would have done the same thing as you in your shoes.>>
Nellie followed after his retreat, stepping over his tail so she could pull him into a firm embrace. "I never planned to hold it against you. You just had your world shattered, how could you not be angry?" A pause. "And it's not like your candy arms could've hurt me."
His tail fin slapped hard against the floor, suggesting what he should have used instead.

Nellie burst into a laugh-- a strangled laugh, choked on sobs-- pulling away an arm so she could dry her cheeks. "I need to find Mariah. The Goddess is here, and She's about to claim the city."
It was Nancy's turn to fight back another crying fit. <<She's here in person?>>
"She is." If Nancy was to remain afflicted with Anti-Magic, this would be one of the very, very few times he'd ever see Her again in his mortal life.
"We'll have to make you both presentable." The twins were both disheveled from their respective duties and emotional distress. Addressing Nellie, Vlad's whiskers twitched as he held back a smirk. "And I'm sure you're ready to clean out the entire kitchen." A Mage with her mana expenditure was ravenous on a good day. A whole night of leveling a fortified, several-century-old castle was sure to have left her feeling like an emaciated horse.
Nellie rewarded that little quip with a slap from her own tail as she walked past.

Bogrum Mazoga
Canine - Command Wing

Sleep hadn't been on Bogrum's agenda that night. Exhausted as he was, physically and mentally, even with all the alcohol in his system, rest would not grace him. A racing mind demanded to be put to use, so he had spent it slaving away at his armor and weapons. A personal worktable set up in his room, he sharpened his axe, patched up the split leather of his armor, cleaned and polished the grime and minimal blood off, all to ensure he was battle-ready at a moment's notice. Habit, really. It wasn't like Kraiven would be a threat now, after what had happened in their city.

Groaning, he set his tools down to run a hand down his face. Can I stop thinking about it for a moment? At least? With little else to maintain of his gear, Bogrum turned around in his chair to look at the bed. Fergie was laid there on her side, still snoring away. Last night's attempts to get her in her own room had proven fruitless, and Bogrum couldn't have told if it was due to noncompliance or her state of inebriation. When he asked her for her key, she only stumbled on more air and claimed it was in three different places. Her boot, somewhere unmentionable, and her hat. Bogrum opted to not check any of those places, and just brought her inside his place. He wasn't about to frisk a barely coherent drunk woman. Besides, it was better that she had supervision, and Dr. Laylah was far too busy to oversee yet another patient.

Bogrum opened his mouth, ready to bark her awake, but thought against it. I don't even want to look at the Mess right now. And if Fergie was still dead asleep, even through all the noise he made from his work, he could guess she didn't care to either. With a sigh, Bogrum faced the table again, struggling to find anything else he could tweak at to keep his mind on a leash.

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Sep 15, 2023

Steven the Deacon and Mariah the Watcher
Church

Steven woke up to Mariah sleeping, head in his lap. Sitting up, he saw that he was laying across the width of the bed, with Mariah laying curled up from Steven's lap to the foot of the bed. Glad she finally made it to sleep, Steven thought.

"Steven to Jack," he muttered
"Jack 'ere. The 'ell are ye?" Jack said groggily, still obviously drunk but answered immediately.
"Down in the Church," Steven responded
"Thought ye wer gettin' answers."
Steven wanted to take a stroll around town to survey the damage but the hurricane kind of kept him inside. "Shit went down with Nancy and his sister, and their Goddess."
"Fish got a sis?!" That revelation seemed like it immediately sobered Jack right on up. "Wha happen?"
"I'll explain it to you later. It's related to the storm that hit us last night." That should satisfy whatever question Jack has at the moment. "Right now, I'm just helping Mariah manage this shit."
"Ya eat?"
"Huh?"
"Don' magic make ya hungry? Ya eat?"
Steven smiled at this. Fucking hell, Jack. You ain't even awake yet, Steven thought. "Yeah I ate." Last night, he did manage to eat but only after everyone else ate. With Mariah distressed and the rest of the nuns generally shellshocked, Steven had to play manager for the night. Luckily the kitchen was unaffected in all this besides it being raided for knives, pans, and mallets to fight skeletons with.
"Ya sleep?"
"Rested good enough." Steven didn't go to sleep until Mariah finally cried herself to sleep fully. Man was pretty much up talking to and comforting Mariah that entire time. He went to sleep not long before the storm finally stopped.
"Ya need a right 'and?"
"I'm good," Steven responded with a laugh, which made Mariah stir to the point of opening her eyes and waking up. "Plus your drunk ass might do something stupid down here." As much as he wanted Jack around, he couldn't while Jack was already drunk.
"'Ad tah drink fer both of us," came a dehydrated chuckle from Jack. ("Had to drink for the both of us"). "Carved up da demon nice an' good."
"Get your ass to breakfast," Steven said, "Since I missed the bloodwork, I'll be at the king's execution. See ya soon."

Steven popped his knee to jostle Mariah's head and force her up. "Wake up, Angel."
"Mmmm......You're sweet, Steven," Mariah said, rubbing her eyes. "I think you're an Angel too."
"I wasn't complimenting your personality," Steven retorted. "You're literally an Angel. That doesn't work as a compliment anymore."
Mariah looked to the left and right, and spotted her wings unfurled. "Urrr, so it wasn't a dream?"
"If all this was a dream, we wouldn't be talking right now," Steven told her, flicking her forehead, "Now rise and shine. We got business to tend to."
Mariah held her hand to her flicked forehead. "Oh alright," she said, finally giving up the pretense. She didn't want to deal with this, but as an Angel, she was over the clergy for Mariana's Church. Plus, Steven wasn't going let her laze around or escape her duty

The moment they stepped out of that room, Mariah's eyes widened. "THE GODDESS IS ON EARTH!!" She exclaimed and took off running down the hall into the main room where Vlad and the twins were. Of course the Watcher would know where her Goddess is. It seemed like they already knew. "I'll rouse the other nuns! We have to get this place as clean as possible before the Goddess makes Her appearance!"

Steven addressed the other 3. "Mornin' mornin'," he greeted cheerfully, then laid eyes on the unconscious king. "Smells like Daedric retribution in here. I didn't get to see my crew carve up the demon, but I'll see some justice today." Steven's hand sparked with white lightning. He made his fingers into a finger gun. "Bind." Pulling the trigger on said finger gun, Steven shot a bolt of lightning into the king when turned into electric chains that bound him hands to his side and feet tied together. "Can't let his big-ass wake up unbound." Hemhart was a literal giant. In the face of a non-empowered Nellie, Hemhart could smack her flying over the horizon. One hit from him on ANY of them and a Coin was activating for a second chance at life.

"Proud of ya, Nellie," Steven told her with a decisive nod, "Condolences for the lost. Congrats for the success." Steven could very well imagine killing someone he actually liked. High God Obris had him do it before. "Your Goddess is a vengeful one"

Steven sniffed his pits. WHEW, he recoiled. If Mariah didn't smell that, maybe SHE needed some deodorant. "I smell like ass, so I'll head back to the ship then return," he told them. "Can't miss the appearance of your illustrious Goddess. And the execution." The appearance of a God was always an event to behold, and even though he didn't serve Mariana and wouldn't bow to her, he would at least not show himself to be disheveled. He was a reflection of High God Obris

While it isn't a violation of Divinity Law, bowing to a god you don't serve is an infraction in the eyes of damn near every God regardless of pantheon. Most gods have a rule of monotheism. It won't get you stripped of your Divine Favor for a first offense, but you could immediately get hit with a 24 hour Ordination of Misfortune, or something similar

Sebas Deadeye
Command Wing- Sebas's Quarters

Laylah and the Goddess left. That left the 3 and as soon as the door closed, Lostro threw herself on Sebas, hugging him with all her strength and crying. "I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY!" she wailed. "I did a bad thing. I remember turning people to stone in the forest! I DIDN'T MEAN TO! I THOUGHT I WAS GOOD AT CONTROLLING IT!!! Please don't abandon me again." It occurred in that instance that Lostro had jumbled memories. She mostly only remembered the major events, and part of that was her turning about nearly 50 pirates to stone and then shattering them to keep them from revival. It made Sebas realize that even while under control of Mozreliun, Lostro maintained her mind enough to believe that it was her that was doing these things.

OOC: It recently occurred to me that my childhood is largely the same. I dissociated so hard that I know WHAT happened, but I don't know the timeline of WHEN things happened

"It wasn't you, Lostro," Sebas immediately reassured her, hugging her close and fighting his own tears. "You were sick and not yourself." This girl is gonna have a hard time living this down, Sebas thought. "I won't leave you. We can use your old room as something else. You're in here with us."
Lostro clenched tighter. "I was doing so well and then........I don't know. I promise I'm not lying, I don't know," she pleaded
"I believe you," Sebas responded. "We will teach you to control it as we've always done." Lostro was always under the microscope for that reason. The girl always had extremely strong magic potential. She just had a hard time controlling it, which included turning people to stone if they inflicted in her very strong emotion that wasn't making her laugh, including any crushes she may have had. While her snakes helped her regulate her emotions somewhat, she was still a child thus subject to intense emotion
"What if I turn my sister to stone?!"
"You won't." He held up his left hand, his holy hand. "I have the power to limit yours." Lostro had enough distress in her life. She wasn't turning anyone to stone anymore that she didn't want to. "Come on, meet your sister."

Lostro pulled back and hopped to the floor. She held out her hand shyly to the girl in front of her. "I'm Lostrogret Whitcoat," she introduced herself. Ora reeked of Holy, and Lostro had to fight a recoil.
Ora was equally shy. She had residual fear of Lostrogret despite the life returning into her eyes and her head wasn't full of grey dead snakes, but while she was hesitant to take Lostro's hand, she eventually did. Lostro reeked of Daedric and Ora had to fight a recoil. "I'm Orabelle Alahala."
"You're both Deadeyes now," he corrected them. "No Alahala, no Whitcoat. Deadeye."
"Thank you for saving me, Orabelle." Lostro hugged her. "And it's just Lostro. You reek of Holy......"
"I'm happy to have a sister now," Ora responded, "Even though she reeks of Daedric. And it's just Ora."
"You both stink," Sebas said, jumping off the bed to his feet. "Time to shower and then eat."

News of a Goddess aboard the Canine ran like wildfire. It was always incredibly easy to sense such powerful beings. They could sense it when Possessed Lostro ever walked around the ship and they could sense it now while the Goddess was aboard. Hell, the only reason their resident Angels didn't give off that same presence is that they actively suppressed it while among the crew. Most of the pirates knew to generally stay out of the way and don't talk to the Goddess unless she spoke to you first. This was courtesy of the other Followers on the ship regardless of whether or not they had Divine Favor. The only condition one could speak to the Goddess was to convert.

Those the Angels/Goddess passed just made a path for them to keep walking. Some bowed their heads, some nodded, some receded into a room and shut the doors. Whether benevolent like the Goddess or malevolent like Mozreliun/Lostro's, the presence of a God was INTENSE and it commanded absolute acknowledgement, either in reverence or in fear.

Elaina Melora
Crew Wing- Library- Elaina's Quarters

The great thing about mastering sensory magic is that you can turn off your senses at will. This allowed the Witch to get a fantastic sleep by literally making herself deaf to the sounds of the storm. Elaina woke up well rested and when she turned her senses back on, she sensed Goddess Mariana close. VERY close. On their ship close. Elaina quickly showered and threw on her gear. There were books to put back on the shelf, the literal 2 libraries worth of books they just got from their looting raid to be more exact, but that could wait. This could be more fun.

Elaina grabbed a book off the shelf and then opened the doors of the library.
"This is our crew wing. We house most of the Canine Crew here." It was Dr. Laylah and Evangeline walking with the Mariana, the Guardian in front, then the Goddess, then the Enforcer in the rear. As they neared the library, "This is our library," Laylah said, "Our archive of information mostly owned by the librarian, our-"
"-Witch. Your library is run by a Witch." The Goddess finished that thought, freezing in place as she laid eyes on Elaina
"Indeed," Elaina said with a sly smile and a curtsy, "How honored I am to be graced with the presence of a Goddess. My name is Elaina Melora."
"Why don't you use your family name?" Oh? Elaina was investigated by the Goddess and knew that Melora was Elaina's middle name not her last name. How interesting
"Tis tradition, is it not? Since when did witches follow tradition?" Her voice was a waterfall of sarcasm.
"Then why does a fil-" Mariana caught herself by clearing her throat. "Why does a witch show such courtesy in the presence of a Goddess as Believer's tradition dictates?"
"A flourish from a resolute Guardian would serve as angry Enforcement," Elaina responded, letting the Goddess know why she wasn't saying what she WANTED to say. "Would you like a book as Tribute to your Holiness? I have one here called......" Elaina looked down at the book she was holding, then held it out. "..... 'Nullifying Nullification: Theories on Giving Magic Back to the Magic-less'. Hopefully it speaks to you as it speaks to me, Your Darkness."

The tension between the 2 women was palpable, more palpable than Evangeline's anger at any given moment. Mariana clenched Her fist but She maintained Her composure. Gods had to maintain an image and after wailing for half the night, Mariana couldn't lose it again. "No thank you. I cannot accept Tribute from a witch." She decided with a nod, which told Elaina that the Goddess hadn't told the Angels what had happened. Also, the use of the word "cannot" instead of "will not" told Elaina that the only reason the Goddess rejected the offer was due to rules, not personal vindictiveness. "Your gesture will be remembered though....... Let us continue the tour."
"You won't stroll through my archives? It took my entire life to amass such a collection." Elaina's library was actually a pocket dimension in itself. Her archives were one of the largest in the world, especially after getting all of the originals out of the Kitsune Twin's Library. Elaina could amass generations worth of fortune from all the 200 year old originals
"I will once you stock your shelves with the books stolen from my city."
"That won't be until Ora and I save the ones damaged in Your hurricane and thaw the ones frozen by Your child, Your Holiness." Elaina wasn't going to let the Goddess act like she cared about the books.
"Ora?" That gave Mariana pause, and she stepped forward towards Elaina. "Why would a witch employ my child for anything?"
Elaina stepped forward as well, holding Mariana's gaze. "Money is hard to come by for a child, so she'll be grateful for the pocket change," she said nonchalantly, then her gaze hardened in defiance. "And if I may be blunt, Your Darkness, I have Orabelle's favor. I tutor her in all manners outside of Holy Magic, Medical, and Physical Combat. THAT I leave to your accompaniments. It has earned me favor of her AND her father."
The two were eye level. Elaina was prodding the bear, knowing she was completely powerless in the face of the Goddess. A flick of Her wrist would send Elaina straight to the Abyss......... But She wouldn't because then She'd have to justify it to the Counsel. "If you lead my child astray, I will have their father punish you."
"Warning heeded, Your Holiness." Another curtsy. Elaina had honest interest in Ora and now Lostro, but absolutely none of that had to do with their affiliation with Mariana. "It takes a father to keep his children on track. It keeps the balance from too doting a mother."
"My liege, time is short until your appearance in your city," Laylah said, putting a break to this. It was like the Guardian and Enforcer were 2 different people when around the Goddess. Laylah definitely sensed that Mariana and Elaina had bad blood deeper than Elaina being a witch. "Next stop is the Mess Hall."
"From the Highest High to the Deepest Deeps, it seems this meeting sleeps," Elaina gave as farewell as she closed the door to the library

WayfaringWaaksian

WayfaringWaaksian · Sep 15, 2023

Vladimir and the Noi Twins
Toron - Church

Before Nellie could reach the hallway, Mariah came rushing in, the pirate Steven following leisurely behind. Vlad gave them a proper "good morning", while the tired Nellie could only manage a nod of acknowledgement. From the corner of her eye, she saw Nancy give an uncertain wave before shying away, gaze lowered to his tail as it circled around himself. Her barbels twitched.

"Surprised even you could carry him all this way," Vlad commented to her, rather impassive as he watched Steven bind the disgraced king.
"Wasn't that far." It had taken up her last drop of Daedric mana, carrying the giant with her Empowered water current. The feeling that came after, being drained of such a great power after exerting it out of herself, was an exhaustion she'd never known before. Battles against monsters or armies couldn't compare to the weakness she felt in her limbs, the numbness she felt in her mind. It was almost dizzying. That, on top of WHAT she had to do with that power.

Steven's compliment caught Nellie off guard, her head shrinking back as her eyes grew a touch wide. "Mm... thank you." The words themselves struck her too. Loss and success described it well. Kitsune family aside, there were many people in that castle she wished she hadn't needed to kill. Acquaintances, friends among the Sacrament even. But many, many more she had been thrilled to destroy. Was the trade-off worth it, though? Too many emotions to sort through later to decide that now. "I'm sorry I didn't make it happen sooner. When I accepted Her gift, I failed to heed the 'Her Will be done' part. I won't disservice Her again." Whether because she'd wizened up, or because this would be her last order as a Favored.

"We'll be happy to have you," Vlad replied to Steven saying he'll join in the Goddess's appearance. Following his action, the beastman similarly tested his odor. He similarly recoiled. "Apologies to the nun having to scrub wet cat smell off the pew," he remarked, dutifully keeping his arms down. "I'll be cleaning up, myself. Will I meet you at the Sacrament, Nellie?"
"Soon." Looking at Nancy, she said, "I'm taking Nancy to the Stoneroses first." She tilted her head, addressing her brother properly. "If you're ready?"
Nancy nodded enthusiastically, eyes glistening some. <>
"Actually..." Vlad morphed into his full lion form, huge paws almost taking up the whole walkway between the pews. "You've exerted yourself enough. Allow me to escort him, then I'll meet you there."

Bogrum Mazoga
Command Wing ---> Mess Hall

The exhaustion that came with his mind running in circles was finally beginning to catch up with Bogrum. The arm that propped up his head weakened, and was ready to send his face smacking onto the table. That wasn't what jolted him awake, however.

What... Bogrum could feel an intense power radiating from somewhere, close enough to be aboard the ship. It was on par with Lostro's malevolent field of Daedric, but instead of gut-dropping dread, he felt... soothed? Not quite like Dr. Laylah's singing spells, but an assurance of protection. And assure it did, after marinating in that demonic presence during yesterday's battle. Well, might as well. No use in sitting around, being depressed.

Ensuring Fergie was undisturbed as she dozed, Bogrum closed the door of his quarters softly as he walked out, following the Holy aura. Fittingly, it guided him to the Mess Hall. Telling me to get a meal in me, hm? Sounds like Fergie. But food wasn't what he was thinking about. The pinpoint source of the energy was at full intensity where a woman stood, shadowed by the ship's Angels like a pair of bodyguards. A Triton woman, and within seconds Bogrum knew who this had to be. The insignia on her wardrobe was similar to Sebas's pendant, and he realized that the energy was familiar, having felt it near him and his adopted child of water.

The Goddess Herself? Gracing us with Her presence? he thought with wonder, taking in the sight. She must be pleased with Sebas.

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Sep 20, 2023

"This is our Mess Hall."
"Hmmmm..... Extravagant isn't the right word, but clearly this pirate crew is more well to do than most," Mariana commented as she looked around. She was speaking in Piscean. Sebas and the girls understood Her. Elaina was Elaina so she'd never NOT have a way to understand Her. Probably the Trace Spell. "It brings me joy to see the ships of seafarers, despite this being in the sky this time."
Laylah saw Bogrum. "Oh! My liege!" she said, perking up. "This was one of the appointed leaders in the raid!" Laylah beckoned Bogrum over. "This is Bogrum Mazoga, the leader of the Defense of the Gates to your holy city."

As Mariana stepped towards Bogrum, the energy was absolutely immense, and rising exponentially per step in his direction. By the time She made it to him, Bogrum had to fight the urge to either run away or fall to his knees. It was potent to the highest order, like being hit with a pound of hard drugs and getting all of its effects at the same time. Intoxicating and overwhelming. A flick of Her finger could remove Bogrum from this plane of existence, yet he could very easily rest assured that this immense power, as frightful as it can be, would not be wielded towards him. That was the power of presence, knowing that the only reason he was alive is really truly only because this woman who he towered over by magnitudes could literally kill him by mistake with a handshake

"Oh? I did watch you fight." Mariana turned to Bogrum and gave him a nod. Her voice was regal and queenly, yet soft. As if She were talking to a trusted knight. "Bogrum Mazoga." The Goddess weighed the words in her mouth. "You resolved yourself to defend the Gates, and that you did. For that, you have my gratitude. Shall I bestow a boon?" The Goddess thought for a moment. "Hmmm. Not enough magic potential in your body for a boon. How about..... A Request." Mariana conjured something in her hand. A clam. The clam had her insignia glowing in a faint baby blue. When opened, the clam revealed a pearl. This pearl had a swirling black and white about it, always touching but never mixing. "This clam calls upon me for a request. You can request from the Highest High or you can request from the Deepest Deeps." She handed him the clam. "When you are ready, consume the Pearl whole and make your request. Unless the request breaks one of my rules, or breaks Divinity Law, I will fulfill it to the highest extent of my power."

OOC: I think Bogrum might be the only one in the RP currently with a Request in his pocket. I think Fergie used hers unless she has another one. Since this one is Daedric AND Holy, Bogrum can actually go with demonic stuff as well

"It is but a small token for your efforts, and worth not a cent in human currency." It would catch Bogrum a lifetime retirement.............in the Pockets. "Now, to a more serious note. I sense restlessness for what happened in my city." Mariana's voice took on another meaning, then the feeling he got from the Goddess changed. It changed from that righteous benevolence and protective feeling to that of pure malevolence to vastly outweigh even Evangeline's. "Know this: punishments were enforced last night. The king will have his body rended for every life lost due to his indolence."
Bogrum held in his hands the power for immense good or immense evil. An act of selfishness or selflessness. Hell, he could easily request the revival of all lives lost in Toron given that Laylah likely had them, or the full repair of Toron, or the pardon of the King, or the revival of every crewmate that COULD be revived, or the death of pretty much anyone.

"Tell me, Bogrum Mazoga," The Goddess said to him, boring into his eyes for eyes contact, "You were in my Pockets, almost a sacrifice to me which is another reason I bestowed that clam onto you." Her people almost sacrificed him in Her name, and he goes to defend the gates in Her city. This clam was well-earned. "But........I also feel a disconnection from this seafaring crew. Is it sailing?.........No, it can't possibly be sailing." It could indeed be sailing but the Goddess couldn't fathom someone with that lack of desire to see the seas. "Is it a love for me or my ex......" In other words, a love for sailing (Mariana for the Depths, Kaimana for the sea) ".......Or something deeper. Hmmmmmmm. Deep. Not Deepest Deeps for you as with most mortals in this realm. But tell me: What compels you to the Seas yet potently to my Deadly Depths?"

Steven the Deacon
The Canine- Crew Wing: Showers -------------> Mess Hall

Steven made his way back to the ship, having to call one of his troops to bring him a teleport crystal so they could go back to the ship. First thing's first, he had to take a shower.
"How's Fish?" It was Jack, just skipping the greetings and going straight to the business
Anyone who wasn't a leader with their own quarters had to use the ship's communal showers. "Nancy is fine."
"Sis?"
"You care about his sister?" Steven asked
Jack shrugged yet didn't answer the question. It seemed to mean not necessarily YES, but since he obviously held Nancy in some sort of regard, may as well ask about his loved one
"Their Goddess did some bullshit," came the response.
"She's on ship."
"Huh?"
"Fish's God," Jack clarified, "On the ship."
Steven's eyes widened. That's what he was feeling? The fucking GODDESS was on the damn ship?! He finished washing his ass, changing clothes and making his way over to the Mess Hall, following the sense.

He arrived and sure enough, there was the Goddess in all her Holiness along with both Angels. She was engaging in conversation with Bogrum, having just given him something, judging by the Holiness AND Daedric aura softly emanating from it. Steven needed to eat anyways, so he went to grab food while listening in on the exchange between Bogrum and the Goddess. Jack might want to hear about this.

The Mess Hall was currently Sanctified Grounds at this point, kind of intimidating to go into unless one REALLY wanted to lay eyes on the Goddess who stood as the pinnacle of Triton beauty from the Surface to the Trench in which she resided. Of course that came with it the knowledge that the Goddess's Daedric, while not as prominent was still sensed so any and all vulgar talk regarding her would be kept within their minds.......and if they didn't sense it, they DID see the face of both Evangeline and Laylah, rigid and official. Laylah only threatened the crew when it came to disobeying the rules of her Medical Bay, and when there was expected to be a God present. In this case, more than likely hadn't needed to. With Evangeline always looking to kill, the Doc wouldn't need to............but the Doc would if someone showed insolence in the face of ANY God.

This is intense, Steven thought. It was soothing from the Goddess, but the Angels were very very tense. Maybe the Goddess came without enough forewarning. Then he remembered that the Goddess spoke to him directly in regards to curing those children. High God Obris would overlook it for a reason like that, but it meant that the moment the Goddess saw him, she would approach him after Bogrum.
Fuckin hell. Should've gotten this to go

WayfaringWaaksian

WayfaringWaaksian · Sep 20, 2023

Nellie Noi
Sacrament of the Arcane - HQ

What Remains

Water current petering out as the Sacrament's lofty HQ came into hazy view, Nellie flopped onto the walkway with little more grace than a dead trout being slapped onto a butcher's table. She retained some of her composure by landing on all fours successfully, but even if she hadn't, there wasn't a care left in her body at this point. No food for over a day, no rest in twice that, and the weight of all that happened during which, was all swiftly draining what little strength kept her limbs moving. The coming day felt all the more daunting. How would she be able to face the full destruction of her city? How would she face her Goddess?

Nellie shook out the fatigue clouding her head, with little success. Clarity returning to her mind only allowed foul memories to replay. Businesses and homes gradually being torn asunder by the demon's dark forces. Horrific deaths of civilians that loved ones had to watch. Her brother crying in agony, for he might as well have suffered such a loss. The looks of terror in the eyes of people she had known for 200 years before she slaughtered them like the undead had slaughtered the people they failed.

Taking in the fullness of the establishment she called home for even longer, only slight damage from the Oppressive Storm having torn off some shingles, made emotions flood into her lungs, choking her up. The juxtaposition of a building that barely looked different from the day before they left the Void, against the ruin and rubble that laid scattered all about, began to snap those seams of resolve.
I can't do this...! But those renewed tears were flicked away, regardless. What would they think of me if I lost it again? She had already lost her composure at a critical moment, and ruined everything because of it. She couldn't again.

I just need to eat. And clean up. I'll feel better if I look better. More words of wisdom Vlad had bestowed upon her back in better times. And if her blood was rushing to her stomach instead of her brain, she'd be thinking less. Vlad had been absolutely right-- in the sentiment-- that she could clean out a whole kitchen with her hangry bitch appetite, but the Church kitchen wasn't for that. They had nuns and children to feed. The Sacrament... had a lot less mouths, now.

When she entered past the doors, most of the eyes that laid upon her weren't Sacrament eyes either. Refugees from the storm, she figured. But regardless of who they were, or what they were doing there, a persistent vibe spread all throughout them. A scent bit into her nose with a similar intensity it had been throughout the battle and her purge of the Castle.
They figured it out already? Though she couldn't bear to look at one person longer than a second, she could tell that fear hung around every one of them. They had to have witnessed the destruction of the Castle as the storm passed, but how did they make the connection that it was her? Did news travel that fast? Or was it a simple process of elimination? Am I even welcome here anymore?

What followed, to her surprise, was an overwhelming apathy. Despite the weight that pulled her down, she lifted her head up high, gaze dead ahead and tail lifted from its drag on the floor. My clothes are here, and my meal is here. "Goddess Mariana is about to lay claim to this city," she announced as she drifted past. "Come to the churchyard to witness the execution. Justice is to be served to the man responsible for all of this." If they have a problem with me, they can strike it up with Her.

Vladimir and Nancy
The Stoneroses HQ

A similar realization came over Nancy when Vlad padded up to the Stoneroses building. Not quite untouched, but certainly unfazed in the face of a demon's battle and a Goddess's storm. Tears had been held back all morning, and with every glimpse of what remained coming into view, that pressure behind his eyes built until a headache was pounding in his skull. But he didn't want to subject Vlad or anyone else to yet another crying fit. He'd caused far more than enough trouble. And like he had told Vlad, he was far from the only person in misery.

"I'll be here soon after I've finished," the beastman told Nancy as he slid off his back. "Get ready fast. We can't keep the Goddess waiting."
The thought of Her arrival had him catching himself smoothing the wrinkles out of his robes, even though they were overdue for a change. So instead of using his hands for that moot purpose, he signed, <<Are you okay?>>
Vlad stared at him with his impassive lion's face. "What?"
Nancy sighed at himself. <<Stupid question, sorry.>> Impassive and hard to read that face may be, he could smell the distress that filled the air around him. <<You're NOT okay. But will you be okay enough for this?>>
Furred brows furrowed. "I have to be, so I will be."
<<But is there a way I can help?>>
A sigh rumbled somewhere deep within his glossy mane, though that scowl softened at Nancy's words. "You're not okay either. Seeing you holding your composure even still reminds me that there's hope still." Just as it had been when pulling survivors out of the ash and rubble. Despite the pain of losing everything, losing their home and family, that determination to persevere was a spit in the face of the forces that vied for their suffering. The evil demon who attacked their lands, and the corrupt leaders who allowed their land to succumb to his Chaos, would see their efforts bear little fruit. Kraiven would live on strong. Thus, so would Vlad.

"If I fall apart now, I won't be able to pick myself back together for a long time," he told Nancy seriously. "There will be a time soon where we all can finally face this. But until then, we'll stay strong."
Nancy nodded, a look of grief sinking his face. <> He shook his head suddenly, catching himself. <<I'll make sure we leave a good impression for the Goddess.>>
"And we will." Before turning away to bound off, he said, "Make sure the others know of Her arrival."

Alone at the front step of the guild house, Nancy took in a fortifying breath. Who would he see alive and well? Or who was well enough to come to the HQ this early, he supposed. And then he would have to explain-- No, I won't explain anything. I won't add to their grief, he decided, knocking on the door. It's my burden to bear.

Bogrum Mazoga
Mess Hall

When Dr. Laylah motioned Bogrum over, something very heavy sunk deep into his gut. Oh no, don't--
But She was already approaching. He wasn't sure if it was that or the power that buffeted him all the more that caused him to take a step back. There was something so wonderfully right, yet so horribly wrong about this presence. Was it the Holy/Daedric combo, or the simple effect a Goddess had on a mortal's mind and body, both feeble and finite in comparison? Not that he could figure it out now, while She stood before him. He had to be gaping like a fish, which was hardly the image of himself he wanted to present to anyone, let alone an infinite being.
Damn it Laylah, why did you do this to me?

But here came the silver lining. What rested in his hands, cradled like a delicate glass egg, ebbed with the most powerful energy Bogrum ever had the privilege of holding. It was soft and gentle, a far cry different than the raw power that almost knocked him off his feet from standing near the Goddess. But the potential this pearl had was undeniable.
"Goddess, I'm..." Grateful? Unworthy? Unable to fathom this gift bestowed onto him, a mere foot soldier? "Forgive me, I'm not sure what to say. This is... a great honor. Thank you." The highest honor a man could receive. A gift from a God, and one he didn't even serve.

Her assertion that justice was to be served made his thoughts speed. Not that they were coherent thoughts, given his position, but he wondered all the same. What was in Her ability? What did or didn't break the rules? Was the Request powerful enough to fix all of this? He knew the gods had the power to revive people, but only the right to under certain circumstances. This had to be one of them.
Bogrum looked back to Her, ready to speak. There was no time for hesitation. Each second that passed was another body buried, another body rotting away. It wasn't the sort of thing that could be sat on to decide if it was the best choice. But... how many people were given an opportunity like this? To get almost anything they wanted, no catch? This wasn't one of Adonis's Favors, or a demon's tribute.

For Who's Benefit?

A blessed/accursed distraction from that decision, the Goddess inquired of himself, which surprised him. What curiosity could a God have of a common mortal? "I'm sorry. It was purely accidental on my part to end up in Your Pockets." Apologies for being there in the first place, or that he hadn't wanted to be there at all? He'd go back to his home tribe before starving in those underwater caves again. "As for journeying on the seas..." Then again, he left home for a reason. "I don't believe I'm ready to return to land just yet. I can't see myself settling down until I figure things out." As for what those things were, he wasn't keen on detailing. Only if the Goddess demanded it, but he had a feeling that it wasn't Her intention to be nosy. "Until then, I'm content assisting this crew, and whoever else may be in need throughout our travels."

Bogrum wanted to help. That was one thing he could trust to stay consistent in his life. But why was that, really? Did he like seeing relief on people's faces? Or was it an urge to fix problems when he saw them, in true tinkerer fashion? Who was he really helping, when he butted his way into their dilemmas?

"Holy Goddess," he began with a courteous bow of his head. "If I may ask of Your knowledge, what is the full count of causalities, Basenji and Kraiven? How many bodies lay in good condition?" What they were good for, She didn't need to ask.

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Sep 21, 2023

Efilisa the Receptionist
Stoneroses HQ

The one who answered the door with a smile on her face was none other than their faithful receptionist. Unlike most who held a false smile or false courage, Efilisa never held anything but genuine love for the people and loving to care for people. She had the Divine Favor of the Web Weaving Trickster, the Daedric Lord Lycosa. It was peculiar, someone like her following a trickster, but Efilisa always shrugged. "He loves me for me, and allows me to use the gift how I want," she always said, and never did she use her Daedric power for maliciousness. She used it mostly for healing Daedric creatures in a city that only ever helped the Holy if there was Divine Favor.

OOC: I think in Guild, I used Anansi the West African Trickster Spider God, but since I want to make my own characters, I'm turning it to Lycosa. Lycosa is the genus for tarantula.

Efilisa took one look at Nancy and knew immediately the he was Null. She always sensed magic within him, but now there was absolutely nothing. Efi didn't know what happened, but knowing that it happened over the course of this ordeal, she wouldn't have him rehash it. She didn't let anyone rehash any of the bad things that happened to them. Not to her at least. Instead, she hugged him warmly, like she would an adventurer coming back from a longer or more dangerous excursion. A long history of hearing about the deaths of people who went out exploring and never came back changed her. "I'm glad you actually made it out alive, Nancy!" she exclaimed. Simply the fact that people were alive was what made her happy. "Come in, we're more full than usual but I did clean the rooms of all Stonerose members!" This was perplexing. Efi was on the lines of battle actually fighting the undead, and since she couldn't use Daedric Magic since the enemy they were fighting was Daedric, she was stuck using actual physical combat as her main means. As the housekeeper for the guild, Efi did clean rooms unless told otherwise via a Do Not Disturb sign so.............after all this, Efi STILL cleaned rooms

This showed as Efi STILL cleaned the the lobby even though it was full of refugees. The interior was damaged, with holes and whatnot in the building, some holes bigger than others and making the building look closer to how it was when Nancy first joined, but the interior itself was SPOTLESS. Not a single pebble or speck of dust anywhere, the color of things actually shining pristine. There was no harder worker in this Guild than Efi, yet no fatigue showed on her face.

"Vespera and Arnold are discussing what to do from here. They're in the Guildmaster's Office. They'll be happy to see you!"

-------------------------------------------------------------------

The question silenced the Mess Hall, any sort of merriment drained as if Oppressed clean out of the room. This included the bickering of Ora and Lostro as they themselves entered with their father. It was a question everyone wanted to ask but no one wanted to know the answer to, and Bogrum just asked this to the only person who could possibly know the answer. "You wish to know?" The Goddess said aloud, looking over the Mess Hall and knowing the answer from the silence alone. "Very well."

Steven was about to get up and then he heard that question along with everyone else, and like a magnet the seat pulled him back into it. Jack wasn't here but he would absolutely hear about this. Those were numbers that EVERYONE who was on the Toron Defense Force wanted to know. The city being destroyed like it was, with Hemhart's negligence being the entire reason why this happened despite Bogrum defending the Gates and Elaina's Crew reestablishing and defending the Church.

Sebas Deadeye
Mess Hall

The man was in the line getting food when the question was asked. When it went silent, Lostro and Ora looked more confused than anything about the sudden almost spell-like muteness that fell over the room. "Wh-"
Sebas quickly snapped his head towards her, making the shush gesture with his right hand then did the same with Lostro with his left hand, literally physically muting them on the spot. "The Goddess is about to tell us how many we lost," he told them telepathically. "You'll stay muted for a bit. Can't have you two interrupting what she says." It was more that children could be completely fucking tone-deaf and he couldn't have them saying something that would make him want to drag them out of there

Elaina Melora
Right Outside Mess Hall

"Elaina to Nancy, Vespera, Nellie, Vlad, Mariah, Demi," she whispered into her crystal. Nancy could hear what came out of his communication crystal. He could receive but he couldn't transmit due to no voice. "The Goddess is on our ship and about to give a Death Toll. Shut up and listen........" The moment she picked up that the Goddess was talking to Bogrum, she wanted to hear it this. That question gave even HER pause. Yes, she was an all-seeing witch, but once the numbers got too high, it became hard to keep track of. It's why she kept to specific search terms when casting her net. People close to death, skeletons currently moving outside of graveyards, etc. She couldn't highlight the entire population of Toron without causing herself an almost head-explodingly painful migraine. "For perspective, there are 1,437 pirates in our crew." This alone was far and away greater than any pirate crew sailing. Even the biggest crews were around 500. Adonis didn't have a simple pirate crew. He had a pirate ARMY, a complete FLEET'S worth of pirates if he wanted to. "The population of Toron was 92,539."

The Death Toll

"The number from my city? 75,347," The Goddess said simply and with a poker face. Absolutely no elaboration on anything regarding that number, and since there was rarely ever a higher death toll than injury toll, the number of people injured was probably even higher. Those whose injuries would lead them to death in the next few weeks would add to that number as well. "The number from your crew? 388." It was a staggering number. The Basenjis lost a whopping 27% of their total crew. With the same logic applied from the injury toll, it really begged the question of why the hell Laylah was here and not overworking herself to an Oppressive degree. The answer to that was the one who just answered Bogrum's question. "The numbers that may be revived......." The Goddess said. These were the numbers that offered hope to all who heard it. "From my city? 3,763." That meant around 95% of the bodies couldn't be revived. It was an utterly jaw-droppingly high number. Yet they only fought SKELETONS!! "From your crew? 43." That was 89% of the bodies desecrated. The Mozreliun attack was a VERY destructive move, not necessarily helped by any otherwise revivable bodies that were cremated in Demestral's Ultra-Violet Nova or destroyed by Evangeline's Sword in the Stone attack

Kraiven Population: 92539

Kraiven Death Toll: 75347 (81%)
*Able to be Revived: 3763 (5%)
**True Death Toll: 71584 (77%)
Final Population (Not-Revived): 17192 (~18.5%)
Final Population (Revived): 20955 (~22.6%)

Percentage Decrease: 77%-81%

Basenjis Population: 1,437

Basenjis Death Toll: 388 (27%)
*Able to be Revived: 43 (11%)
**True Death Toll: 345 (24%)
Final Population (Not-Revived): 1049 (73%)
Final Population (Revived): 1092 (76%)

Percentage Decrease: 24%-27%

*The percentage here is the number relative to the Death Toll
**True Death Toll is the number of people dead who can't be revived.

Silence. Absolute silence. The words from the Goddess sucked any and all ability to speak out of the room. The biggest reason the Basenji Crew cared right here right now in this Mess Hall was simple: They weren't the ones who caused the deaths in Toron. This wasn't a slaughter. This wasn't a massacre. This was a straight up genocide. Laylah had tears in her eyes despite maintaining her full rigid bearing. Evangeline had a poker face now, but her eyes were fighting cloudiness. She may be bloodthirsty but it wasn't like SHE purged them. The Goddess said nothing further. One. Two. Three. The seconds ticked. Heads down in contemplation. Four. Five. Six

Elaina Melora

"Is it sinking in? The reality of things?" The voice of the witch was the new audible one to those in the Mess Hall and then those she called over her crystal. If there was ever someone who has something to say, it was Elaina. "I was there at the top of the church and then down in the streets with my crew, watching all of it." Elaina took the brunt of the horrors. She had eyes on everything. How many deaths did she witness? How many body desecrations did she view? The woman was powerless on her own, but no one could say she didn't give it her all. "Eyes on my troops, eyes on Vespera's troops, eyes on those in the Church, eyes on Vlad/Nellie's troops, eyes on the castle. Strategizing on how to counter the skeletons as best we could. Getting rid of the Blight in the Church. Defending the Church. Exposing the corruption with the Church." She watched the most horrors of this than anyone. "It goes to show how bad things got while you were all fighting the demon. It is the perspective of why some of us view this as a full victory, some a hollow victory, some a complete defeat. Me? I view it as a victory."

Elaina wasn't here to offer comforting words. She was here to offer her perspective as the one who saw the most of anyone by a long shot. "To put this in perspective, crew." Elaina spoke up louder now, standing just inside the doorway. She let Ves, Nellie, Vlad, Demi, and Mariah hear this as well. "From our crew, even if what's revived can be revived, we've lost AT LEAST 24% of the ENTIRE CREW. Gone, kaput, never to walk these 3 ships again." This wasn't the time for joking or prodding. This affected her too. Her feelings against Kraiven actually got stronger. The Basenjis did their due diligence. The only other possible thing was to fight their fight FOR them. "To the Capital City of Toron, they had a population of just over 92,000 people. They're suffering loses of AT LEAST 77% of their population. Remember that this was a kingdom that was destroyed by war, so how much of their population even made it to the Spirit Sea in the first place?"

"ESPECIALLY to those who worked under me and those who defended the Gates, who went in and SAW the destruction first hand, it's important that you understand where we the Basenjis stand in all this. This is why the Goddess is going to execute the King." Elaina's voice steeled and got rougher. "That utter fool housed in that castle of his 100 of the most elite troops in the city and ALL he had to do was send them to occupy 3 GODDAMN GRAVEYARDS!" She almost shrieked those last 3 words. The simplicity of how to counter this was what irked her the most out of all of this. "It's not the lives I care about per se. It's that HOW MANY INNOCENTS entrusted this man, his counsel, and his elite to protect them against exactly this? WE WARNED HIM that this would happen and that's why he chose to do what he did." That was number 2 of why it irked her so much, more than she realized until the dam of her mind broke and became a stream of consciousness between brain and mouth.

"Only a body count that high would've gotten those people to realize that the group that ran that kingdom, the crown of that empire was a COWARD!!" Elaina slammed her fist on the table, her eyes turning bloodshot from the anger releasing. "Just like the total desecration of the bodies of 345 of our troops were necessary to put down that demon, the desecration of over 71,000 people is what it took for them realize that the destruction of their empire was inevitable under that fool's rule, and that the cure for his corruption is the guillotine." The use of those words from Arnold really resonated with Elaina and it was why she reused those words here and now.

"Think on it, crew. WE did our job. The king didn't fail his people. The king ACTIVELY ABANDONED his people," Elaina concluded, regaining her composure. This was the biggest outpour of emotion their resident witch ever showed to the crew. It was also most contempt-filled and genuine she had ever been. "To my crew, the ones who defended the Church, you are all free to come with me. I WILL watch Hemhart's head roll. There is no one more deserving a death." With that, Elaina walked off

The Goddess looked towards Elaina was standing when she spoke. "Your Holiness," Laylah spoke up finally, "We are out of time. It is time to claim your city."
"Yes," Mariana responded, "The witch is correct. For his crimes of gross negligence resulting in catastrophic deaths, the King will pay." She looked about the ship and liked what she saw. As the former Goddess of the Seas, She was subject of much prayer for fair tides and still held the fondness for those who sail the seas, be they pirate, navy, cargo, or leisure. "This seafaring crew did well in taking out that demon. Bogrum Mazoga's team did a commendable job defending my Gates, the only part of my city that remain undamaged. The witch's team........ though it pains me to praise a witch, it is her and her team which is why I am able to claim this city as mine in the first place. Feel not guilt. You were successful."

"The hour is upon us. Is there anything to ask before I leave? Sebas? Girls? Bogrum?" The Goddess inquired. Since Bogrum got the commendation and Sebas/Lostro/Ora had Her Divine Favor, they were the only ones who could actually speak to Her directly.

WayfaringWaaksian

WayfaringWaaksian · Sep 21, 2023

Nancy Noi
Stoneroses HQ - Entrance

The doors opening, meeting a smiling Efilisa and her warm embrace, came as no surprise yet with such a shock. Nancy stood stiffly in her hold as memories flooded back to him. The good old days, long before Kraiven fell to its first ruin, and even the decent days after. Days spent with acquaintances who grew to be friends, helping the town and running requests, soothing worries that all felt so silly now. So incredibly silly... but Goddess, if only he could go back. If only this all really were a bad dream, and he was back to agonizing over what ingredients to use for his potions, or if he was being too aloof by burying into his books, or if Vespera--

Breathing in deep relief, Nancy leaned into the hug, eyes closing as he let his mind drift back. A few moments of blissful reprieve, before the lack of Daedric scent in his nose returned him to the now. At least in his now, he could still share it with loved ones. <<I'm so happy to see you okay,>> he signed to her, trying desperately not to spill yet more tears. <> He was going to be saying this a lot, to each person. He hoped, anyway.

When it was revealed that Vespera and the guildmaster could be among those people, Nancy's eyes lit up. The simple mention of her name, that she was okay, banished that torment that swirled on behind his brave face, if only for a second. <<I'll be sure to suggest Arnold pay you double for cleaning up, even after all of this,>> he told her, honestly tickled by the fact. And honestly worried. Cleaning was one of Efi's ways of decompressing, so he could only imagine...

Nancy was ready to haul tail to the office, but a certain witch demanding his ear came on the crystal. The sinking feeling that came was much less from the who than the why. Looking up at Efi, then over at all the refugees inside, he announced, <<If you all can stomach this, you can listen too.>>

Bogrum Mazoga
Canine - Mess Hall

When that hush fell upon the entirety of the Mess, that pit in Bogrum's stomach sunk even deeper. Oops... In his haze, it hadn't occurred to him that he ought to have asked such a heavy question in private, without disturbing the merriment of the crew. However, the Goddess addressing all in the room eased his concerns in that regard. Everyone needed to hear this, no matter how sordid.

Now, his only concern was the extent of the damage. And that... was beyond his comprehension. Even with the number of living before the battle and deaths after juxtaposed to each other, Bogrum couldn't fathom it. Seventy-five THOUSAND people, all dead in just under a day. THOUSANDS of lives with over 200 years of experience, gone from this world as quickly as they had returned. The efforts of the Defense, the injuries and deaths sustained, almost all for naught. And of all those lost, only THREE THOUSAND had a chance of being saved?!

Even under the Holy/Daedric spell of the Goddess, numbness crept up from his limbs all the way into his core, all color draining from his face. The death toll of the Basenjis he could have expected, against such a terrible foe as Mozreliun. But as Elaina highlighted with none of the empathetic glee she had when citing her extensive knowledge, the losses Toron had sustained were nothing short of utterly pointless. Why? For what reason did the king allow this? Was it truly as simple as cowardice?

As cowardly as dragging an entire kingdom with you to avoid facing its fall, Bogrum realized, a sudden hot flash flaring where there had been only ice. I payed respects to that man! I BOWED to him!

Vladimir Hochmut

When those numbers echoed out of his crystal, they almost deflected off of Vlad's mind. It couldn't have been possible. It COULDN'T. Against skeletons? Despite how many they'd saved?
How many?! You could count them on your fingers!
That treacherous thought pierced through like a jolt of lightening. His limbs went weak. Pain sparked in his paw, and he found himself rolling over the scattered ground, stopping only when his back slammed against a fractured wall.

Grunting as he picked himself up, Vlad flexed his claws into the broken cobble and stirred dirt. "What..." His people, massacred. "What was the point?" The home he'd known for 200 years, desecrated. "What was the point of ANY OF THIS?!?" The only home he could hope to have, hardly a home anymore. "MY GOOOOD!!!"

His roar reached up towards the heavens, echoing throughout this broken landscape. "I kept myself strong so I could continue protecting these people! I broke Your tenants to fulfill my oath! ALL FOR WHAT?!?" The anger wasn't for Him. He couldn't begin to blame His God for this, nor did he wish to. The one to blame... had succeeded. The demon had succeeded. The fruits of their labor were laid bare for him to see, in case he dared to believe Kraiven could ever live on strong after this.

Maw open and bearing fangs, he could taste salty water touch his lips as it left hot streaks in his fur. A paw splayed open, alight in crimson fire as it swung towards the nearest pillar. "RRAAAAAAAA--"

Nellie Noi

"--AAAAAAAAGH!!"

The last Ice Shard she could summon without pushing herself into a coma cut a cracked hole into the wall. Many others were jutting out beside it, impaling furniture and ripping upholstery. With all the frigid cold she could muster isolated in her trembling fists, Nellie's breaths ran hot and ragged, her face so flushed that tears felt like ice water against her cheeks.

"Nothing-- Barely even a city left!" The voice from her crystal crackled, almost fizzling out. No one else was in her room to hear her rage, but someone would hear it anyway. "My Goddess..." she growled, a hand settling shakily over her throat, where steam burns still etched lightly between her scales. "I was too hasty." Her tail raised, tense and poised. "I should have made it SLOW!" She spun around, knocking away the only table that hadn't fallen or been destroyed. "I should have cut every noble one by one, in front of the windows so the last thing they'd see was the city THEY RUINED!!" Yanking out an ice shard with a vigor that shot pain up her arm, she fired a water blast that flung it towards that table, splitting it in half. "I SHOULD HAVE MADE THAT WORTHLESS KING WATCH THE LIFE LEAVE HIS DAUGHTER'S EYES, AFTER MAKING HER BLEED OUT DROP BY DROP!!" Just like You had to watch my brother fade from Your gaze...

She had her answer. There was no doubt in her mind now. "That's my only regret, my Goddess." Sacrament be damned. Friendships that stood the test of time be damned. Anyone behind those Castle walls let this happen. Every one of them were traitors. "If I had to do it again? I would in a heartbeat." Mustering one more spell, she summoned a cluster of small shards, icy daggers pointing towards the tapestry hanging from the wall. The Sacrament emblem, settled within the city's crest. It would fall to the floor in useless rags. "I'D DO IT A HUNDRED THOUSAND TIMES MORE, FOR EVERY LIFE LOST!!"

---

Fists would be clenching, had his hands not been preoccupied. The delicate nature of the clam and its potent pearl was what kept his cracking composure in place. Standing before the crew, and especially before the kingdom's-- what was left of it-- illustrious new Goddess, was not the place to be succumbing to wrath. No... he'd have plenty to spare for that, in the coming execution. He hadn't cared to see Mozza's death. The demon's demise was hardly worth his time. But the king's? He would savor this.

"I do not, Holy Goddess," Bogrum said in as soft a tone he could manage. It was quiet, audible enough in this deathly silence, but the edge could not be filed out. "Again, I thank You for Your generosity." With that, he closed the clam with a gentle click. He wouldn't be using it to revive lives. Not that each life wasn't precious, but they were too few to make it worth expending something as world-altering as a Request. The Basenjis entered that battle knowing they could die, and died living the life they eagerly risked it for. As for the people of Toron? What a great cruelty it would have been, forcing the dead to return to the ruin that was left for them. Bogrum would not rip them away from peace among their chosen gods.

Nancy Noi
Entrance ---> Guildmaster's Office

A trembling hand settled over his crystal, another over his mouth, Nancy found himself seated on the floor after his mind could pull away from visualizing all the death. It wasn't like he hadn't expected something as... as... there weren't even words. It was a catastrophe, to the highest degree. Not the catastrophe of knocking over all your alembics with your clumsy tail, right before the Commerce Festival. A real, life-altering, unprecedented catastrophe. That reality pulled him well away from any fanciful thoughts of a home that didn't exist anymore.

<<I...>> He barely could hold control of his hands, or his thoughts. <> She had heard everything too. He knew that she hated living here, but she didn't hate its people. It wasn't in her nature. How was she taking this, after all her efforts? A renewed strength in his legs, Nancy got up and made way towards the office, not hesitating when he knocked.

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Sep 27, 2023

A wave of despair passed over the people as they got the full scale of the destruction in the city. Even if they could rebuild, there was no recovering from this as it were. It was a city of 300,000 people in the beginning, reduced to a population of less than 20,000. That was around 5.75% of the original population of Toron, original to mean before they were ever transported into the Null Realm in the first place. With the king being determined as the culprit thus his execution was nigh, the people really truly had nothing hopeful to cling to in recovering any semblance of their life in the past 200 years. The city was literally made for a population about 15x the size they had right now. If the city was empty after Invasion 1, it was damn sure empty now.........and in all of this, they would have to clean the bodies. 75,000+ bodies of someone they almost certainly knew.
"What are we going to tell the people in smaller villages around?" It was a decent question. The death tool was only in the capital city itself, not on the entire rock of Kraiven. It was something to address later.........on brighter days. There were no reports of deaths in those villages though, which made sense because the Basenjis made sure to keep things drawn on the capital city

OOC: Remember, Ves and Nancy delivered letters to a bunch of smaller places when the Basenjis first arrived

An Angry Arnold Asella

No answer at the door for Nancy at the Guildmaster's Office. Instead, Nancy got an earful of screaming from their Guildmaster and Vespera
"I'LL KILL HIM A THOUSAND TIMES OVER!! I'LL SELL MY GODDAMN SOUL!! GET THE FUCK OFF OF ME, VES!"
"NO! They're gonna execute him! I can't let you go rogue!"
"WHY DO YOU CARE?! YOU'RE LEAVING US!!"
The words caused a bit of silence. Ves yelled back finally, then silence. "I love this place, I really do but......... I miss my family. Don't YOU? Demi is leaving again and you can see Lucille again."
"This is my home, Ves. Are you insinuating that I leave after this!?"
"NO!" Ves fired back without hesitating, "I'm saying understand where I'M coming from! My parents, my siblings, my uncles/aunts. 200 years. I. MISS. THEM!!" She said resolutely. "You want to stay here and I commend that, but I don't."
"When our people get slaught-"
"NO!" Vespera shrieked, cutting him off immediately. "NO NO NO!! It's nothing to do with that! I am a Daedric woman in a Holy city. I'm spat on and insulted on a daily." Ves's voice began to show signs of breakdown. "I took that because I love this guild. Because I love the people here. I promise I'm not trying anything malicious....." She was pleading for Arnold to understand what was going on. "I love you. I love this guild. It PAINS me to leave Efilisa and Nancy. Please, as the guildmaster and a friend, you've got to let me go."
"Are you at least coming to the execution? The bastard's head must roll."
A gasp. "Absolutely not!" Vespera exclaimed. "I don't want to see an execution!"
"You still have sympathy for the bastard who could've prevented that slaughter?" Arnold's voice was dark and reserved, his anger no longer overt and that was proof of how resolute he was. Then again, from the champion knight who never the merciful type against enemies, this made sense.
"NO, DAMNIT!!" Ves yelled back. Rarely did Ves swear, so her emotions were running high and directed at Arnold. Probably because Arnold kept insinuating that she wasn't willing to stand with the people. "Despite what he did and his deserving of the death penalty, I'm not about to take JOY or sport in seeing someone's head cut off!!" Vespera was NOT the type for this. The woman was extremely apologetic for shattering the kneecaps of people who tried to chase her down and kill her, so why Arnold thought she would want to watch someone be publicly executed was beyond explanation.
"We need you here, Vespera. Your presence is too important to allow you to leave!" From the perspective of the Guildmaster, it made sense why he would want her here.

"I was there trying to contain the skeletons." Ves's own voice grew dark and it seemed to speak of a rising anger. However, it was obvious she was crying at this point. "I watched SO many people die in front of me. MUCH MUCH more than you have seen AND killed in your life, in one day. I put up with so much, SO SO much before then. I am HATED HERE because I am a vampire." Ves was breathing heavily, her voice cracked. "It hurts for you to question my loyalty, Arnold.......and I WILL NOT have it questioned any further! I was asking for your blessing to leave, NOT your permission!

-----------------------------------------------

"I REQUEST AN AUDIENCE WITH THE FAE COUNSEL!!" A wave of whimsical Fae Magic passed over the ship, distorting everyone's vision briefly. Demi was calling Order, and she shrieked it, her voice racked with emotion. This was NOT like the time she called upon the Dragons of Avalon where she seemed determined and respectful. She had heard all of this. Sebas didn't know how. Sebas didn't know why. Sebas just knew that Demi was about to unleash hell again, and that no one could handle a double dose of Divine Empowerment. It simply wasn't possible. Demi could hurt herself VERY bad with expending all she had for 2 Divine Empowerments in such a short time, on top of the fact that Demi just got done doing what she did between running a ship, managing the Rider Squad, saving lives, and fighting skeletons

Sebas Deadeye
Mess Hall

"Fuck! Fuck! FUCK!" He yelled, jumping out of his seat, pushing the girls aside. "Stay here, Girls! I gotta stop her!" Sebas hauled ass out of the Mess Hall with a level of speed that could only be matched by trying to outrun a stampede. If not for the knowledge of Divinity Law given to him in full be Goddess Mariana, he wouldn't know about what it was that Demi was about to do. Daedric Lords and the Fae Counsel offered a second way to request Divine Empowerment. That was through sacrifice, perfectly in line with their love of contracts. There was an inherent catch though: The price for Divine Empowerment almost always outweighed what you were requesting it for. Why? Well it was supposed to be primarily for emergencies or for cases like Mozreliun where a huge threat was looming and the lives of many many people were in imminent danger.

Out of the Crew Wing, across the deck, over to the Beast Wing Sebas ran like the troops trying to outrun the UV Nova as it crashed through the forest. "DEMI!" he yelled out. Stables, right? Sebas thought desperately. Correct he was, because as he closed in on it, he caught sight of some..........what the hell was this? Some weird looking blue girl with ginger hair. That's some Fae shit if I've ever seen it.
"Please! Stop Lady Demestral!" the girl pleaded with him as soon as she saw him. "She's doing something unreasonable!"
Sebas would wonder what the hell this person(?) was in the first place later. "Get me to her!" The girl nodded and busted into the stables, beckoning Sebas to follow with her mermaid tail..

Steven the Deacon
Mess Hall

"Mariah to Steven." That voice was almost unrecognizable. If not for the fact that she said her name, Steven wouldn't know who this was. Hearing Demi call out to her second set of Gods, and Sebas running out meant only one thing. "You said call if I need you. I'm sorry but I need you so bad right now. You told me to be strong but," She wasn't bawling like she was when she broke down, and that's how Steven knew it was worse. A heartbreak so big it manifested physically. "It's too much........I can't be strong through this." The voice was that of a truly broken woman

Why'd you share this, Elaina? Steven thought, though he knew the answer. Mariah and Demi could only both hear these words if Elaina called them. Elaina would never skimp on the information, and that witch was overwhelmed with emotion herself. "My God Obris, give me strength." Steven said, standing up calmly. Luckily he ate all of his food. "Steven here. Lemme grab Jack and I'll be there for ya." The number was shocking to him, but it didn't make him mad. For some reason, seeing everyone else's anger, especially from ELAINA of all people, made him want to keep calm. Or maybe his time under the High God steeled his nerves........or maybe he was desensitized. No, it wasn't that. It was

Wonder how the rest are takin it? If Elaina called Demi and Mariah, that meant she also called Vespera, Vlad, and Nellie. They were probably all having respective meltdowns
"Goddess, your Angel might be about to Faith Shatter. I'll help her out, but..........we might wanna wrap this up." After all that she was told before, now being told that 75,000 people died in a day, all of them from the city every one of them lived in for over 200 years and survived one slaughter together, would drive someone absolutely mad. Not Faith Shatter, Steven thought, Broken Heart Syndrome.

The things I gotta do............... "Steven to Jack." Steven didn't care if everyone in the Mess Hall heard it.
"Yeah?"
"I'm going back into Toron right now. Coming with?"
"Hell yeah."
"Out at the bowsprit."
"The 'ell is that?"
Steven sighed. "Right at the entrance to the Crew Wing." He wouldn't do this with Jack so he just changed the location

Mariana, Goddess of the Deepest Deep
Mess Hall

The quickness that anger flared in the crew was honestly kind of surprising for the Goddess. The words from that accursed witch galvanized those in the Mess Hall. How beloved is she to this crew? Mariana thought. The answer was VERY beloved. Elaina being the resident nerd earned her a place in the crew as the hub of knowledge. She LOVED to teach people stuff, and holy hell was she one of the greatest assets to the crew, and even Mariana couldn't deny that her exact power was vital to the people below being able to save lives. When she spoke, people listened. It was something that those in Toron down to her own children in Nancy and Nellie came to learn. Whether or not they liked her as a person was irrelevant. She was reliable and respected. Even the Goddess herself found herself listening to the Witch's words. It wasn't like the words were untrue nor or the emotion unwarranted.
"Mariana."
It was voice she hadn't heard often, and not one she really wanted to hear right now. "Paragon," she said. Obris was a higher ranked God than Her, Qeien, and Banera. "Is there something you need from me?
"Qeien, Banera, and myself are in unanimous agreement. While my follower is fond of your angel so I'll let him engage with her, my follower should not be cleaning up after your mistake." Coming from the High God, the words stung. "Furthermore, Laylah has a duty to save lives. She should not be foregoing her duty to heal over accommodating you. You should be more considerate." Obris was known to be polite, almost never NOT official in his dealings
"Yes, well in the face of staking the claim over my city," Mariana started, "I at least wanted to meet the crew responsible for bringing it out from the Null Realm AND responsible for my acquiring this city in the first place. Plus, to deliver the news of the Death Toll AND personal gratitude, who better than the one who will rule this place?"
"Hmmmmm." Apparently those words of deliberation made sense to Obris. Bogrum's question may have bought me a pass, Mariana thought. Even Gods, even faced with higher-ups may need a bone thrown.
"Very well," Obris said, "Be that as it may, there are lives within said crew inching towards death. If you wish to show gratitude, allow Laylah to keep their death toll from increasing any more." So cut it short instead of full blown return, a middle ground. Fine, Mariana thought.

"I will begin preparations for claiming my city," Mariana said aloud, "Laylah!"
"Yes, Your Holiness!" Laylah stood at attention, eyes focused. "ORDER!" she called and her familiar Official power passed over the area, over all 3 ships. Orabelle dropped to her knees immediately, with Lostro following after a bit of confusion. "You will be silent when the Goddess speaks. For all non-believers, this comes under penalty of immediate death at the hands of the present Enforcer. For all believers, you will be punished for Insolence to a God under Divinity Law and punishment will be enforced in accordance to the rules of the offended God up to but not including death." This was the first time most of the crew heard these words. Why? This was the first time they were in the physical presence of a God. Mostly it was because it was a room full of non-followers. These words weren't spoken to Sebas and the Girls.

Basically, if you have Divine Favor, you'll be punished severely. If you don't have Divine Favor, you'll be killed on the spot

"Official words from the Goddess are as follows:"

Mariana then spoke aloud. "Laylah! By order of Qeien and High God Obris over us, return to your duties IMMEDIATELY."
"At once, Your Holiness!" Laylah said with a nod then took her leave

"Evangeline!!"
"Yes, Your Holiness!" Evangeline did the same as Laylah
"You will accompany me," Mariana declared. Banera wouldn't be happy about this, but Mariana had a happy medium. "You may use your Goddess's Executioner's Blade to enforce my judgement, but my Scion (Nellie) will Hook his soul. He will NOT Ascend." Every God had an Executioner's Blade that their Angel used when rendering the death penalty. In fact, it was what Evangeline used to behead Baroness. Every life claimed by a God's Executioner Blade made that God stronger, so essentially Mariana was giving Banera credit for this kill as compensation to keep her off her neck. She couldn't have Mariah behead the king, and Qeien absolutely would not stand for Laylah EXECUTING someone

"Lostrogret! Orabelle! Go to your father IMMEDIATELY. If that Fae loses control, he WILL require your assistance." Demi was tired from her Divine Empowerment. She could be taken down, but it still required more power than Sebas alone could muster. The GIRLS got Mariana's power, not him. "Remember: you 3 are a unit."
"Yes, my Goddess!" Ora exclaimed, then turned to Lostro, grabbing her hand. "Let's go! She said IMMEDIATELY! We go straight there!" she said, forcibly pulling Lostro along until Lostro gave up and the duo took their leave, must to Mariana's mirth. Lostro will be a promising one, she thought. All that power, but I can't risk the wrath of their father by using her to enforce my will very often, lest he dissents and I lose 2 powerful girls and their father capable of sending them to new heights.

"Nellie!" The crew across all 3 ships could hear these words, but from within Toron, Nellie and Mariah and them ALONE could hear these words. "I told you that you were the hook to drag to the Abyss anyone who defied my Will. You will be the one to rend the souls of everyone I casted judgement on." Nellie was about to get her wish of a round 2. She destroyed their bodies. Now it was time to Oppress their souls for their crimes. "You will stand aside the Enforcer."

"To this crew, I will place a Teleport Gate in the middle of these 3 ships. They will take you to my Church, where I will execute the foolish king." She declared. It was a reward to the crew. She allowed them to loot her city for their pay, and the ones angry about this got to watch them pay for their crimes. "You are free to attend if you wish. I can't COMMAND you to attend but....... it's not often mortals will ever see something led by a God in person. End formalities!" Gods can't command non-followers. Even if they could, it was crusade level stuff to impose a command on people who may follow another God. It was why she had to ask Steven to heal the kids, not COMMAND him
"From the Highest Highs to the Deepest Deeps, this meeting sleeps." Evangeline was the one to close it since Laylah was gone

With that, Mariana gave a nod then her body turned transparent as if made of water, which then popped splattered water all over the Mess Hall floor which quickly dissolved. That left the crew to decide within the next hour or two whether they would attend the execution of the king or not. If they did, they would stand to gain an eyeful of what

WayfaringWaaksian

WayfaringWaaksian · Sep 27, 2023

Nancy Noi
Guildmaster's Office ---> Nancy's Room

When Nancy's ears were met with screaming through the door the moment he arrived before it, he immediately got the sense that he really shouldn't be standing there listening to it all. But a faulty worry that Arnold might break from Vespera's apparent grasp and need a second person to block him (because no one was escaping out of a vampire's hold) kept him there long enough to hear the accusations start to roll in. Among the pain, the grief, the shame and fear of what his coming punishment would be, another feeling he'd been suppressing for too long flooded in until all else was drowned out.

How could he...? The hand that had attempted to knock curled into a fist. How DARE he?! After everything she's done for us, he has the gall to insinuate--
Sympathy trickled in, a thin sheet to coat his rage like oil over water. He's hurting too. He's hurting so much. He's not meaning to--
It wasn't enough, when that water was beginning to roll to a boil. So he can take it out on her? The person who took the most beatings for her guild?! Was that not enough?! CAN'T THIS POOR WOMAN CATCH A BREAK?!?

Between uselessly watching Ves be attacked by that witch, bearing witness to the full extent of her misery in Toron, knowing she was still fighting for these people and watching them die in droves, and hearing her STILL be attacked any time Elaina spoke to her, Nancy had enough. Arnold taking out his grief on her and questioning her loyalty, causing her to audibly cry, was Nancy's breaking point. He needed to drag his tail out of there before he started pounding on the door, demanding entry. The argument was for Vespera and Arnold to settle, and him barging his way in would make things worse.

A hiss of angry breath flushing from his nostrils, Nancy clung to his alchemist's bag tighter and rushed away towards the West Wing, shut haws squeezing tears back into his eyes.

Consolations

Bogrum Mazoga
Bogrum's Quarters

Trudging back to his quarters in a daze, Bogrum could barely see past his own thoughts through the hallway. A powerful relic pulsed magic through his hands, and a terrible knowledge throbbed pain through his skull. An execution was to be displayed for all to take solace in, and now Demestral...
Should I try to help? The answer to his own question was a staunch, resounding NO. If the Goddess felt the need to send Her children-- literal children-- to help her, with that new power they radiated with since this morning, whatever the issue was could only be solved with the Favored. Bogrum had almost died trying to execute a Divinely Favored Ghauznud, and wasn't going to try fighting back that power again unless he was directly ordered to. Sebas knows her better. Let friends help their friends.

Which was precisely what Bogrum intended to do once he reached his room. Opening the door softly, he was ready to prod Fergie to a gentle wakefulness. But as he peered in, he saw she was already upright in the bed, back facing him and arms draped around her folded legs.
"Morning."
"... Mornin'." He could have overlooked the crackle in her voice, and the huddled posture she sat in. But when he stepped in proper, the new angle allowed him to see the redness in her cheeks, and the dark smudges on the pillow.
"What's wrong?"
"Eh?" An arm unraveled to wipe its sleeve across her face. "Just wakin' up with a damn hangover, nothin' new."
Bogrum wasn't in the mood to play this game. "Why were you crying?"
"'Cause ye got sawdust all up in 'ere?" she spat, glaring over her shoulder with bloodshot eyes. "Can't get this shit outta me eyes--"

When Bogrum sat on the bed, it was with none of his careful minuteness. He almost sent Fergie rocketing off from the force he plopped down, disheveling her out of her fetal position. "Talk to me."
Hands propping herself up from behind, she was forced to stare up at him. "Don't worry 'bout me--"
"TALK. TO ME."
After a moment of processing the tone coming out of him, Fergie spun around with a growl, boots hitting the floor and taking her away.
"Don't try to get out of--"
"Is she still here?"
The question, as well as her halt in the middle of the room, gave Bogrum pause. "Who?"
"You know who!" Arms wrapped around herself, as if holding herself together. "That... that Goddess. Is She still here?"
Now Bogrum was processing her own tone. He had heard worry lace her words before. Fear as well, when it came to him or the rest of her crew. But this was something else. Instead of puffing up in defiance of a threat, here she sounded so... small. "Not anymore. She just left to the city."
"... Thank the gods..." Such ironic words, considering.

Bogrum knew she had no love for them. It had been in the back of his mind, admittedly, that it was fortunate that Fergie had been tucked away for the Goddess's visit. But why had she even asked that at all? She should have heard the Order on the ship regardless. It occured to him that she might have simply wanted the reassurance, but more likely? Asking about the Goddess was to signal that it was ABOUT the Goddess. Asking if She was still there was to signal that since She was gone, it didn't matter anymore and there was no reason to press. Bogrum didn't want her getting away with that, but she didn't give him the chance.
"Yer turn." Turning around once again, she looked down at him with hardened eyes. "What happened to ye?"
"Oh. The Goddess rewarded me for defending the city--"
"Figured that." Fergie gestured at the clam Bogrum had glanced down at. "Ye look even more fucked up than last night."
He breathed a quiet sigh. She had a right to know, just as the rest of the crew did.

Relaying the grim result of the death toll hardened that horrible pit in Bogrum's stomach, as much to see the reaction in Fergie.
"... Jesus FUCK!" She glimpsed out the window as if she could see it for herself, even though there was only a full view of city wall. "Damn right, they better execute his worthless ass!"
"Will you come to see it, then?" he asked, expecting a no anyway. "Even though the Goddess--"
"Hell yea, I'm comin'!" She righted her hat and pulled out the wrinkles in her sleeves, even though she'd need a wash and change anyway. "Fuck it, I'll get over it."
Pleasantly surprised, Bogrum rose from his seat. "Did you hear the rules?"
"Aye. Don't interrupt, don't speak unless spoken to."
Nodding, he then suggested. "If we went separately, maybe you can avoid Her eye."
"Ain't worried 'bout that," she dismissed him. "I know She don't give a shit 'bout me. 'Sides, ain't leavin' ye alone. No fun goin' to a show all by yer lonesome."
Trying not to ponder too much on that odd bite that lingered in the first part, Bogrum couldn't help but smile. He knew the sentiment was more than she let on.

Nellie Noi
Sacrament HQ Entrance

Nellie abandoned the cafeteria with a dizziness rolling in her head, and an illness tinging her tongue with bile. A concoction of Mana potion and a hastily scrambled-together breakfast weighed a heavy nausea in her stomach, and wouldn't cure the resulting fatigue from her outburst for a time. Still, she had her orders, and she wouldn't be complacent again. She wouldn't wait for her meal to settle, and she wouldn't wait for Vlad before she was at the churchyard, ready to take her place beside the Enforcing Angel.

With that decided, it came as a relief when an upright Vlad met her in the entry hallway. It was relief that turned to worry when she noticed the matted fur under his eyes.
"Vlad!" It came as a shock to see. 200 years had passed since she last saw this steely man cry. Without a thought more than that, she rushed forward, reaching out as if to wipe that residual wetness away.
A jolt away from her approaching hands let her know that wasn't welcome. There was no hint of anger, new or lingering. Only a grief that sunk his features to where he looked more like a beaten dog than a regal cat. "I'm sorry," he murmured in a hoarse voice. "I wasn't strong enough..."
"No one is!" She handed him a handkerchief pulled from the pockets of her clean robe. "There's not a man or woman alive who's strong enough to deal with this!"
He accepted the offer, unable to even give a gracious nod before he dried his eyes. With his hand lifted, she saw it now. So desensitized to the scent of blood after this disaster, Nellie hadn't noticed the makeshift wrap, and the bloody mark blossoming underneath until it was in her face.
"Oh, Vlad!" she cried, reaching forward again. "What happened?"
"NO!!"
The shout, his leap back, made Nellie recoil, her hands retreating against her chest. "Wh--"
"I can't!" Vlad kept his own hand close to him. "I can't let you touch that! I'm sorry."
"Why?" She smelled it again. That spike of fear from before radiated around him now. Her questions became more frantic. "Why?! Vlad, what's wrong?"
"I'll explain later." It wasn't the answer she wanted, but his firm tone let her know it was the only one she'd get. "Until the Goddess is finished here, it's least priority."
Nellie disagreed... but understood. "They're healing the wounded in the East Wing. They can help you there."
Vlad nodded, but didn't move to head that way yet. "You're critically low again." Refering to her Mana, she figured. At least she could still talk properly. "Are y--" His head snapped up, a hard face forming. "Nellie, what did you do?"
Mute at first, she glanced about this way and that. "I... might not have much of a room left..."
He sighed raggedly. "Oh, Nellie..."
"It's out of my system now. I'm... stable," she assured him. But "assured" wasn't the look he bore.

"Nellie..." His voice croaked, his head shaking. "Was I... too callous?"
"No--" Though she fell silent. "I don't think..." She then sighed. "It... It did feel like you cared more about the fact he broke the Law than the fact that he saved me."
Regret made his eyes clamp shut, shutting off tears that wanted out. "I only wanted to convey the seriousness of the situation," he told her, lamenting. "I'm sorry. It wasn't my intention to hurt anyone."
"And you did! Er-- Convey it!" Nellie found herself crouched and kneeling to be more eye-level with him. It wasn't something he particularly liked, being a man of shorter stature, but here he wasn't protesting. "We didn't need to be coddled. We needed a kick in the ass." She could tell the use of "we" surprised him, his ears flicking forward. "I never once doubted that it was out of love." She moved to settled her hands over his shoulders, which only got a mild flinch before he allowed it. "We know you love us, and we love you, Vlad."
Maybe a little reluctantly, he came to an understanding nod. "I'm just so worried." Tears filled his eyes as he began to say, "Last night--" But he shook that thought away abruptly. "I can't begin to express how grateful I am to still share this world with you two. The odds were in no one's favor." Having Divine Favor didn't count for the twins at this point, after what had happened to threaten both of their lives.
Godsdammit, she wanted to hug him so badly. "We're going to get through this," she promised him, firming her grip. "We're going to get through this one day at a time, and one day, we won't be miserable. We won't have to worry about a cowardly king and his tyrannical nobles controlling our lives."
"At what price?" he asked needlessly. Helplessly was more of the word.
"A price that every single person is paying. Victim, perpetrator. God and mortal." Not a soul was getting out of this situation unscathed. There was some solace to take in that fact, as malign it felt.

Rising to a proper stand, Nellie told him resolutely, "And the Goddess will ensure no one pays for it more than the indolent, in the hereafter. She appointed me to drag their souls to the Abyss." A faint thrill coursed through her, her pulse quickening. What was it, really? The great power she was granted? The chance to inflict more harm upon those who harmed her people? Though she believed it was mostly what she'd come to say. "They lost any chance of happiness when they allowed this tragedy to happen. While the rest of us can make our own happiness. Without their meddling."
She could see this spark a glimmer of hope, dim as it was. "I'm trying to cling to that."
"Then keep trying." She wanted desperately to stay and continue comforting him, but as he said. Least priority, until loose ends were tied. She gave him a smile before stepping around him, saying, "Don't worry about being strong right now. The Goddess is expecting shell-shocked survivors, not proud warriors." Her final note was said with a cool assurance. "Can't be our best at our worst."

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Oct 3, 2023

Vespera Marine Seyres
Stoneroses HQ- Guildmaster's Office

"You're correct, Vespera." Arnold said with a sigh. Who WOULD want to stay here after all this anyways? He realized that he was indeed lashing out at her, and the mixture of Ves's emotion and the guilt in knowing he contributed to it when they all needed to come together was a waterfall dumped onto the fires of his rage. "I am calm now, so can you let me go?" Vespera was holding Arnold in place by hugging him. Under Blood Empowerment, Arnold stood zero chance against her vastly superior strength no matter how much he struggled against it."I don't know what it is you went through here," Arnold told her. Ves had never given to them ANY indication that she had been suffering any more than anyone else here. "I have nothing but the utmost respect for you. I thank you for your service to this guild and while it pains me to see you leave, your legacy will carry on."

Ves began to tear up again. She didn't know why, but with how formal Arnold was and his tone, it just sounded.........dead. This was NOT how Arnold usually talked. This was how a Guildmaster talked to someone new to the Guild. His uptilted head and rigid demeanor. Then something clicked in her head. Ves realized that Arnold had chosen to steel himself in the face of all this. "I've done all I can for this guild, for this city......." Ves said, shaking her head. "After over 200+ years of service, I just want to be with my family, then eventually start one. If I can't get the blessing from Guildmaster Arnold Asella, then I'll take the consolation prize from Champion Knight Arnold Asella." Vespera gave a salute, something she hadn't done since the day she was officially initiated as Deputy Guildmaster at the onset of their time in the Null Realm some 197 years ago, then exited the room, letting the tears drip from her face.

Vespera went out to the lobby where she got a look at the despair among the people, including Efi herself which caused Ves to run over to her. "Efi! What happened?" Then her stomach sunk as she realized that it had to have been the same reason Arnold almost lost it himself.
"Nancy had the people listen in when the Goddess spoke," she said tearfully, confirming Ves's suspicions immediately. It made sense. If she wanted Arnold to hear, it makes sense that Nancy wanted the people to hear. I'm almost surprised that Elaina didn't project this over the whole city, Ves thought. Then again, she did leave it in their hands and Nancy took it upon himself to let the people in the HQ know.
Ves hugged Efi tightly. "We did all we could," Ves whispered to her. I'll tell her later, Ves thought. "Where's Nancy?"
"He went to the office to find you, then I think he went towards his room."
"Let me go find him. See how he's holding up."
"Vessy," Efi told her seriously, "Nancy is a Null now. He has no magic whatsoever."
The words made Vespera's eyes grow wide. Then she shook her head. Better to talk to him directly. "Thank you, Efi. I'll go find him."

Ves charged towards the West Wing at a high speed due to Blood Empowerment. Nancy was a Null now?! Who was there for him in all this? She went to his door and firmly knocked. "Nancy! It's Vessy!" She called. If Nancy were at that door, did he hear everything?!

Steven The Deacon
Church

Thank you, Goddess, Steven thought at the prospect of not having to buy another Teleport Crystal since She set up a portal. Teleport Crystals were too expensive and he was honestly glad the Goddess extended the invitation to the execution, as morbid as that was in itself out of context. He took Jack as they went to the portal which, in a flash of light, had them out near the Church and looking on the city in all its destroyed former glory.
Walking in, one of the nuns recognized him immediately. "Sir Steven! Sir Jack!" she exclaimed, running up to them, a spark of hope reignited in her eyes at their visage. It was actually great to know that the duo were respected among the nuns
"Mariah relayed to you the Goddess's words, right?" Steven asked her
"Aye," she responded. "The Angel showed us the image of the Goddess as She gave Her holy word. While it was a beauty we had never seen before, it was dampened by the grim news."
"Are you all OK here?"
"No........" The nun shook her head. "We're not OK here. After our Holy Angel showed us the Goddess relaying Her holy word, we............We lost hope." she finished with a shrug. "There's no other way to put this. We. Lost. Hope."

Hmmmmmmm. This didn't sound good at all. Steven put his hand on her shoulder. "Well Jack and I are here to lend a hand where needed. We got more crew coming in to survey the damage and watch the Goddess," Steven told her, "I'm sure those that come will come to help as well." It wouldn't make sense to watch the king be executed and have zero care about seeing the physical manifestation of the cause of the execution. "Don't lose hope just yet. The Goddess loves Her people." Or so I think, Steven thought. The man wasn't a liar by any means, but no God HATED the people they ruled over. "She knows your conviction."
"I got my Divine Favor stripped," the woman started tearing up, "I failed in keeping to my convictions."
"Converting, repenting." Steven said simply with folded arms.
"I can't convert!" The nun exclaimed. "That's shirk! Blasphemy!" She wasn't lying. Shirk/Blasphemy was prohibited under Divinity Law

Steven's eyes took on that on someone looking down on who he was talking to. He served the High God Obris, and such a God never relented in the face of a job, a role to fulfill. "If your God remained silent and inactive while the people around you got slaughtered and you are without guidance, you are within your right to dissent," he said darkly. Gods had roles. They couldn't just sit on their asses and do nothing. "If you have heard NOTHING from your God, either personally or from anyone else, I suggest choosing a benevolent God. Mine spoke to me. Vlad's spoke to him. Demestral's spoke to her. Nancy and Nellie's spoke to them." This was the biggest thing to happen across all of these realms in YEARS. Most Gods/Lords/Counsel/Royals had their eyes on this. For a God to not speak to their people in all this would make Steven dissent in a HEARTBEAT. "But.........I can't tell you to dissent," he said finally. It wasn't his role. "Just remain vigilant. Ole Steven is here, I promise."
"Your presence is reassuring, you don't even know Sir Steven!" the nun exclaimed
"I'm glad to help you how I can," Steven said decisively. It is Mariah's job to do this, but he could understand why she couldn't. "Where's Mariah?"
"She's in her room," The nun responded, "I'll take you there." she said with a smile, completely reassured with them there.
"Jack, I'm with Mariah. Help out where needed."
"Aye," Jack acknowledged. "Don' bang an Angel."
"Not that involved, man," Steven said with a laugh. Nah, he really didn't have a thing for Mariah. She was a Goody-Goody

Demestral Asella
Stables

"Hello Demestral, my knight!" The Queen Aurora Herself's voice filled the Stables. "It's been quite a while since you've requested an Audience with us. We've all had our eyes on you and this entire development." The Queen appeared in the form of a glowing white wisp
"Then, my Queen," Demestral began, "I'm sure you can pinpoint why I called for an audience with you."
"Indeed," The Queen responded, "You want a drop of Royal Blood to punish the King for treason against the people."
Demi nodded vigorously. "Indeed, Your Highness. I want to burn him until not even cinders remain!" She said furiously through gritted teeth. Her magic was leaking in nigh a freeform type of way.
"Denied," Queen Aurora said immediately, "Firstly, the subject of your sacrifice is here to stop exactly that..........." Demi gasped when she looked back to see Sebas standing there with Lattice, eyes focused and determined. "..........Secondly, the Goddess already said She would punish the King. Since it is HER city and HER subjects, there is no need to put your body at risk."
"But what ab-"
"DEMI!" Sebas barked from behind, making her flinch. "Your Queen has spoken! SURELY you're not going to question Her judgement or Her rationale, are you?" Demi knew what Sebas was doing, playing the role as something as bailiff for this Audience, with Lattice serving as witness. But he wasn't wrong. As someone who was Favored as well, it wasn't like his own audience with his Goddess would be any different. To even begin questioning Her judgement was something to reprimand. "You are too valuable to put at risk for something ultimately pointless."

The words enraged Demi. "POINTLESS?!" She turned tail and pounced at Sebas in rage. "POINTLESS?!!?" She screamed, magic flaring. "I JUST LOST MY HOMELAND, YOU BASTARD!!"
Sebas cracked his knuckles together, then crossed his arms uttering the Aegis spell. Demi struck Sebas's shield and that shield was STRONG. "My girls are on their way, Demi," Sebas warned calmly. "If they see you doing this, they'll kill you AND the worn out Quincy. Is this how you act in front of Royalty?"
You're embarrassing yourself in front of the QUEEN, Demi. Stupid, STUPID girl!! Reason flooded her head again as Sebas forced her back by dispelling the shield in a burst of energy.
"Listen, I called it pointless because you gain NOTHING by killing the King yourself vs the Goddess."
"I sacrificed a Dragon Egg for this and I FAILED!" This whole thing was causing Demi to begin unravelling. "This was literally CENTURIES in the making!"
"No, you sacrificed the Dragon Egg to help kill the demon, not save your homeland." Demi's eyes widened at the realization, and the words from Elaina came back into her head. "Fighting the Demon and Defending Toron are 2 different fights" Elaina had said and now it made sense. She requested the Royal Blood on Quincy to kill the Demon, NOT save her homeland. They had used the Dragon Egg to kill the Demon NOT defend her homeland. The only Defense of her Homeland was due to Bogrum/Arnold, Elaina, and their respective crews.

"Asella, regain your composure," Queen Aurora said patiently but firmly, to which Demi grew rigid then knelt before Her again, shame being hidden by her head as she looked to the Stable floor. And I called from a Stable, Demi thought. Granted, Demi kept the Stables fairly clean but........it was still a Stable. Now the nitpicks were beginning. "I will overlook such behavior in the face of the circumstances you face." The words stung, knowing that she was just granted mercy. To do this AND have another God's Favored correct it?! Yeah, making your God look bad was an offense in itself. "Sebas speaks the truth. As I said, it is not our domain. We can't empower you to directly undermine the Goddess's will. It will cause political problems between our Pantheons."

Well, she wasn't going to get the Empowerment anyways, regardless of if Sebas was here. She also worried the hell out of Lattice who knew of her condition and the risk it posed to her body since they were already Empowered before. "Right," Demi said in a defeated tone, keeping the sorrow out of her voice despite not being able to keep the tears from coming. Luckily her hair kept her face covered as she kept looking at the ground. "My apologies for wasting your time with such a frivolous request."
"It is NOT frivolous request," Aurora reassured her, "It is a request that, for a Knight in very high standing like yourself, would've been granted had the Goddess not claimed this land. Understand that for me." Then the Queen's voice got rough. "It is purely political why we haven't tasked you to bring us his head on a pike," she said, and Demi could imagine her leaning forward in her throne as she said it. "Dearest Elewynn would agree." The Fae Queen and the Dragon Supreme were on friendship terms. "Speaking of, She filled us in on what happened with Quincy. Have you figured that out?"
"Not yet, Your Highness. It's been...........incredibly traumatic for me." No one could really argue that Demi bore the worst of all this. Losing the Dragon Egg, 1/4 of the crew, and nearly 90% of what she held dear. There was nothing sorrow and anger about her. More sorrow than anger
"Understood," Aurora said, "HOWEVER! You told Elewynn that you would do it.......in your name as a Fae, before you do it in the name of the Draconians. Delay it not much longer. We are agreeable, but We are not merciful to the lazy."
"I thank You and Dragon Supreme Elewynn both for your undeserved consideration," Demi said in response.
"Do not disappoint us, Demestral. You are one knight that we can count on," Aurora said, "END FORMALITIES!"
With that, the connection severed.

WayfaringWaaksian

OOC: Next post will be on Mariana's 60/90 minute warning. Warning will go by in 30 minute intervals, so it'll be 2-3 posts (maybe) to prep for that, then I'll streamline it since there won't be much emotion to write as it will be action

WayfaringWaaksian · Oct 3, 2023

Nancy Noi
Stoneroses HQ - West Wing

Cold water on his skin did wonders in cooling any heated emotion. But while drying off and stepping into clean clothes, Nancy was still upset. Yes, "UPSET". Because that was absolutely the accurate descriptor for all of this. She deserves this the least out of us. Collar straight and not a wrinkle in his robes, the only unpleasant thing that stared back in the mirror was a sour expression. They all have a right to be mad at me. Ves? What did she do?! Nothing, that's what. Nothing but be among the absolute best of Kraiven, yet they still spat on her like a criminal strung up on the pillory to be reviled. Yet they still had the nerve to demand more out of her, despite a heart as worn as the scarred and scabbed fingers of a sweatshop worker.

Yet... that heart still kept working. It still kept loving, despite being broken. The thrumming pulse of their overlooked community, she truly was the Darling of Toron. I'll never see her again, will I? That selfish thought was snipped away. This place doesn't deserve to see her again.
Nancy was jostled out of his head upon ear of the knock. He fled out of the bathroom upon ear of the voice.

He swung his door open and was met with her anguished visage, rosy eyes still wet with tears, exactly as he'd last seen her. Not a thought passed his mind before he dropped to his knees, cradling Vespera in a firm embrace. Oh gods. Oh my gods, you poor thing. He wasn't about to cry here, when her own suffering had gone unaddressed for so long. Though maybe sobbing openly would convey what he could no longer say with words. I love you. I love you so, so much. You're so amazing. So incredible.

Remiss to let her go, Nancy had to pull away to tell her. She needed to know this first and foremost. <<Whatever you have to do, I'll always support you,>> he promised her. <<Always, to the end.>>

Nellie Noi
Toron - Church

Despite her conviction to be ready long before it was time to fulfill her duty, Nellie still found herself torn in two opposite ways. Vlad was unraveled, wounded far deeper than the nameless injury to his hand. Nancy, she shouldn't begin to let herself wonder what he was feeling, but the worries came rolling in regardless. Her only assurance was in how reposeful he carried himself now, as opposed to his complete deterioration last night. Vlad had to have talked some comfort into him, given what Nancy relayed to her upon her return. But Nancy was a masterclass in keeping whatever he willed hidden. It was no surprise that he'd been able to lie about his intentions with ease... so why should she trust this calm about him? Especially when he could barely keep his own tears at bay?

"Last night", Vlad had began to say. It wasn't like Nellie could profess certainty, but she knew Nancy. She knew what he turned into if he so much as knocked over someone's vase by accident. For Vlad to suddenly be so concerned about whether or not he was being callous, as he put it, they both had to be wondering the same thing. How in the hell was Nancy going to handle THIS?

He's not, was all she could think. He's acting okay now, but it'll all be a downward spiral from there. He'll never be okay again-- Her throat felt so dry, despite being in a tunnel of water. It was all for nothing! I'm going to lose him, and there's nothing I can do! Tears mixed in with the current. Oh gods, why did I let this happen?! Why-- Why did he do this?! WHY DIDN'T HE JUST LET ME GO?!?

The spell was destabilizing, so she let it collapse, dropping to the ground as neatly as she could. Whipping away that excess water and her tears with it, she made the rest of the way in a trudging walk. I'll never forgive us for this.

By the time Nellie had arrived at the churchyard, she was... stable. As much as she had to be. She wasn't going to make her appearance in a wreck, though she also wasn't going to wait outside looking pretty. Mariah had to be in a frenzy, trying to get the place presentable right after hearing the news. Or hell, maybe she was the wreck now.

Stepping inside the front doors, Nellie took in the scene. She caught a glimpse of Steven being ushered by a nun, and noticed one person she didn't recognize among the rest. If the pirates were here lending a helping hand, Nellie definitely wasn't going to just sit around. "Is there any way I can assist?" she asked them. No point in asking if they were okay; the place was drenched in salt and despair.

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Oct 11, 2023

"HAIL! PEOPLE OF TORON!" came the bellow from Goddess Mariana projecting over the sky itself. It was worth noting that Mariana had 3 voices: Her Holy one, Daedric one, and Neutral one. Holy believers heard the Holy one, Daedric Her Daedric one, non-believers her Neutral one. Those like Sebas, Mariah, and Bogrum (who had a Holy/Daedric Gift from Her) heard all 3. Nulls like Nancy heard the Neutral one

By believers, it means believers of any god. Serving ANY Holy/Daedric God made you hear that God's respective voice

"IT IS THE HOUR TO DAWN A NEW ERA FOR THIS LOST EMPIRE!! 60 MINUTES!! EVERY ABLE-BODIED MAN, WOMAN, AND CHILD OF EVERY RACE. IF YOU'RE NOT TENDING TO INJURED WHO CANNOT ATTEND, YOU WILL BE THERE! 60 MINUTES!!" It wasn't an option to attend, at least not for the people of Toron. The Goddess was someone who wasn't lenient on those who wouldn't attend as opposed to who couldn't attend

A kingdom destroyed by the Crown who ran it and a Goddess who was granted ownership of it. What was there to be for Kraiven's Future? Would it be run by the Ocean Trench Mariana, or the Daedric Abyss Mariana? How would the Stoneroses prepare for this event? How would the Basenjis prepare for it? This would be a historic event either way for both groups involved. With many of their lives now changed for the lifetime, it was hard to know where they would go from here on an individual level, let alone as a group.

Jack the Shotgunner
Church

A new voice made Jack turn around. "Fish?" Then he took another look. Fish didn't wear those clothes. Plus, Fish's voice was different. Jack quite literally couldn't tell the difference besides that. If there were differences in Male and Female Locathah, Jack damn sure wasn't a man who would know how to tell. "No........Must be Fish's Sis." he commented, which said that he had familiarity with the Daedric Mage's beloved brother. "Name's Jack. Steven's gettin' Mariah outta 'er room. Gotta prep th'place fer Fish God." He took a look around the Church, then pointed at the nuns on hands and knees washing up blood from the floor. There were no dead bodies around here. They all got incinerated to prevent raising again as zombies. "Blood. Can ye' wash it? Fresh not salt."
"Sir Jack, shall we clean up this statue?" The earnestness of the nun in seeking his opinion should be noted
"Irene." Irene was the other Primed Angel to Ascend. However, unlike Mariah, she wasn't likely to fall under Goddess Mariana which is why she hasn't become an Angel yet. "Statue?"
"There." The Nun pointed to the hulking statue in the Church, only mildly damaged in all of that nonsense. This was a statue of the God
"Hm, din' bother figurin' out who it was," Jack scoffed, then he manifested an elephant in the room. "Don' look dirty. 'Tected 'is own statue while lettin us die 'fending his place." "It doesn't look dirty. He protected his own statue while letting us die defending his place?" That thought honestly pissed Jack off. It meant that the God was definitely watching, because skeletons absolutely infiltrated and there was no way in hell that statue would've come out of this unscathed. "Or did 'e repair it?" Jack grabbed his shotgun and calmly unloaded the rounds, letting them clatter to the ground. Then he pulled out 2 more shells and loaded them.
He pointed at the face of the statue and blasted right at the head. Sure enough, a barrier deflected the bullet. Another pull of the trigger, another shotgun blast filling the air, another deflect. "Thought so," he concluded while reloading the other shells. "Sis Fish. Can ya destroy this? Then th'nuns'll (the nuns will) sweep up while ya do the blood."

"Why would you want to destroy this statue?" The nun asked frantically
"It ain't 'is Church no mo'," Jack said bluntly. "Now where the kids?" Jack gave her no time to press the subject. He had decided. The statue was coming down.
"They're eating and those that finish we get ready." she responded
"Bathed?"
"After they eat."
That sounded like a plan to him, which he acknowledged with a nod. "You bathe?"
"Err......" The nun looked embarrassed and recoiled in said embarrassment. "I apologize Sir Jack. We haven't had the time."
"Make time," Jack said bluntly, "Rotate. Wash yer ass, change, swap out. Eat after kids. You, Amma, Hilde first." These were the names of a few higher ranked nuns.
Irene nodded profusely at the orders. Irene, being one of the more popular nuns, took to Jack's words immediately. "At once."
"If ya ain't there in th'head, least ya look the part." Jack didn't understand the sentimentality of whatever was going on. All he knew was that if there was a ceremony, he'd try to look as put together as he could muster. His belly was full, his body and clothes clean. The nuns could do the same. "Leave least 2 'n each duty. Bathe quick." Bringing up them not being there in the head showed that Jack still held some form of compassion.

Jack looked to Nellie. "How's Fish? Brother or.....Sis?" he asked, not sure if he was talking to Nancy or Nelly but SURE that unless Nancy was tricking him that this couldn't be him. "Sumthin 'bout Fish God an' fuckin' up but.......... s'he livin?" "Something about Fish God and fucking up but..........is he living?"

From this, Nellie could tell that the intellect wasn't necessarily all there and that there wasn't much mana within him, but he was genuine and trusted among the nuns so he must be a fearsome fighter. Plus, he seemed to actually care about Nancy which was more than she could ever say about Elaina

Still, Nellie should give the man her name because he thought himself in circles between being sure it he wasn't talking to Nancy but not being able to see any physical differences between her and her brother. It was nowhere near the first time Nellie has come across this with humans, but the first time in at least 100 years

Steven the Deacon
Church- Mariah's Quarters

"Her room is here." The nun brought him to the door
"Thank you, Sister," Steven said with a nod. "May you live a life of Virtue."
"So that we may become like the Paragon," the nun responded with a grin and then took her leave. She didn't serve Obris but one of his delegates

Steven tried the door but it was locked. Huh, he thought. Then he kicked it in. "Knock knock," Steven said as he breached the door and startled the crying Angel. "Wake up," he said with authority.
"I'm awake......." Mariah said, the startling taking her out of her crying
"How ya holdin' up?" Steven asked her. This was of course a rhetorical question. Mariah looked absolutely awful. Disheveled, her hair roughed up, face puffy and red from profusely crying
This only caused Mariah to start crying again. "I can't do this, Steven. I can't. This wasn't a massacre. This was a genocide."
Steven sighed and approached her. "Where's your brush?"
"I don't care!" Mariah exclaimed
"Where is your brush?" he asked her again. "You can't appear in front of your Goddess looking like hell on earth. You can't appear in front of the people looking like dogshit. You're an Angel, a messenger of your Goddess and a symbol of hope."
"I don't have any hope! How can I have hope in times like this?"
Steven walked over to a vanity and spotted her brush. "You're not expected to have hope. You're expected to symbolize hope." he picked up her brush and gave it to her. The difference is that they needed to fake it until they make it, because the future of Kraiven all rested in the decision of the Goddess, and She seemed intent on making all of them into her subjects. "Getting yourself together is the greatest way to keep going when it seems all hope is lost. If you the Angel fall into despair, the people will lose all hope." He gave Mariah a hug. "I'm still here as long our ship sits on this rock."
"Thank you for being here. Really truly, it means a lot to me."
Steven pulled back from the hug. "Go take a bath though. You stink."
"You ruin these moments being so mean to me," Mariah said with a laugh through her sniffling.

Vespera Marine Seyres
Stoneroses HQ- Nancy's Quarters

"I love you and appreciate you with all my being, Nancy." Vespera told him in her sobbing. She knew that he had heard of her conversation with Arnold. "I've got to leave. I can't really truly can't stay here and I just hoped Arnold would've given me his blessing." With those words, Ves sounded defeated but more like she had accepted that Arnold was in no place to emotionally take a voluntary departure after all this happening, especially someone as important as she was. That she could understand overall. There was much anger as there was grief and despair. Ves knew she would be feeling this for years to come, but now was not the time. If she were to be haunted by nightmares, she at least wanted to suffer through them with her family around to support her. The people that caused her such trauma, Ves simply could not be among their ranks anymore. This utter population destruction may very well wipe their racism towards her, but even if she were to forgive, they themselves were trauma triggers.

"And what about you? You're a Null now!" Ves said to him, shifting her focus to him instead of her. In one fell swoop, Nancy just had his life upended in a way beyond the rest of them. Ves had always been dreaming of. "I'm sorry this happened to you. I know you of all people don't deserve this." Ves didn't know what exactly went on concerning Nancy, but at this point, she honestly didn't care. She was just glad he was OK and sad for him knowing that he was immediately having to adjust to an entirely new life, one of which concerned now having to use Kraiven Sign to communicate. That was fine within the walls of Kraiven, but an entirely different life in every other aspect. No magic, no communication crystal. Just a basic Locathah out of water is what her best friend was reduced to.

It took the vampire a minute to finally wipe her eyes and get some sort of composure. "So what's next for you? I'm leaving with the pirates," Ves told him, "Maybe I can get Demi to take me to my family. If not.......maybe Elaina can educate me on this world so I'm prepared when I leave them." Demi told her she would help how she could, but even then Vespera might need Elaina's knowledge of the world regardless. It's 200 years. 200 YEARS!! The world they left was not the world they came back to

WayfaringWaaksian

Sebas Deadeye
The Canine- Beast Wing- Stables

"Demi, I can't express to you enough how much I appreciate you," Sebas said to her as he hugged her and brought her down to the floor.
"I gave up SO MUCH!" Demi wailed into his arms. Her devastation was clear. Sebas knew that it was time to listen, not inform.
"I'm here for you," Sebas said simply, "After everything you did for me, my blade is on your side." There was no doubt in Sebas's mind that Demi had pretty much earned his gratitude for life. He allowed her to let it out and cry until she was out of tears, just sitting there with her. It pricked at his own heart to see Demi like this. Demi, their happy-go-lucky Rider Squad captain, reduced to this traumatized, sobbing mess. It pissed him off all over again knowing that

"So..........." Demi sniffled hard, "I have to confront Adonis but I need someone to bear witness."
"What do you mean?" Sebas asked, "I gotta keep you from killing someone?"
"No, I won't attack him." Demi nodded. "I was told to handle something like the Fae before I handle it like a Dragon. It's more for safety than anything."
"And handling it like the Fae is is more peaceful than handling it like a Draconian right?"
"Exactly." Demi answered. It wasn't like that concept was hard to understand.
"Then seek out Fergie or Bogrum," he responded, "From what you say though, I'd go Bogrum over Fergie," Sebas laughed

"EEEEEEE--" The delighted squeals of his girls filled his ears. "Eh- Wha-?" Turning around, Sebas bore witness to both his girls delightedly hugging Lattice, and the young woman in question being extremely confused and a bit fearful about what was happening
"She's so PRETTY!" Orabelle squealed
"And she's CURSED! Can we keep her, dad? Please! Please!"
Sebas sighed. "No, you can't keep the cursed woman as a pet, Lostro."
Demi started laughing, a laugh among the bleakness. "Lattice," she said to the woman, who immediately stood to attention. "This man is my captain. Sebas. You will treat him with respect as you will his daughters."
"Of course, Lady Demestral," Lattice said with a decisive nod. "Hello Lady...... I apologize for not knowing your names."
"Orabelle the Triton and Lostrogret the Gorgon," Sebas told her, completing the thought and eliminating any confusion for the young woman.
"Lady Orabelle and Lady Lostrogret."
"Ora. Lostro," Sebas told her, "Shorten it for your ease." He leaned in close to observe her, causing Lattice to recoil. "Lattice. Hmmmmmm," he said. "You're perfect for my daughters." Looking at her shattered irises. ginger hair, and hooves in the back legs, Sebas knew she was absolutely a Fae creation. "Lostro likes curses. What's the nature of yours?"
"Yes......" Lattice said with a bow of her head. "I am a Draconian cursed to be ugly and subservient."
"Ugly, I wouldn't say," Sebas said, "The most Fae shit I've ever seen, but not ugly. I find you......."
"Beautiful?" Ora asked
"Amazingly accursed?" Lostro piped
"Likable," Sebas said. If his daughters liked her, there was no reason why he should ever DISLIKE her. "Lattice, I welcome you to the crew."
Lattice's eyes widened at the though that she WASN'T ugly. "I- Are you sure you don't find me repulsive?"
"Don't know why you think I would," Sebas responded. He did know. Lattice must've gotten the repulsive treatment her whole life. "My daughters really like you, so you have my approval."
Sebas knew that Demi would be haunted by all this for a long time to come. "Demi, don't be out here suffering in silence."
"Thank you, Sebas but......" Demi looked sad again. "I won't saddle the crew with my burdens."
"I'm not asking you to saddle the crew with it. I'm asking you to find someone dependable and let them be some form of support for you." Sebas didn't even trust the whole crew. "Now, get ready. The Goddess is taking this city in an hour, and I suspect that you're trying to attend."
"Of course," Demi's voice got dark. "I can't wait to see his beheading." It was this that always reminded Sebas that the Fae weren't there to fuck with.
"I'll pass on it since I'm not wanting my girls to see a beheading." Sebas looked to his girls. "Girls! Let's head out."

With that, the duo finally left the stables, Demi going one way to her quarters and Sebas making his way out with his girls in tow. The pixie was off to see the indolent king lose his life for his crimes against his own kingdom.

WayfaringWaaksian · Oct 11, 2023

Nellie Noi
Toron - Church

Nellie felt her barbels want to curl. "Fish"?! The hell kind of audacity was that?! Granted, it wasn't even close to the worst thing the twins have been called. And those things hadn't been said with... surprise and appreciation? Once it was clear that this Jack knew Nancy, she figured it must have been some affectionate nickname. If Nancy was fine with it, she supposed...

While Jack was going on about the statue, confirming his suspicions by firing a few shots, now Nellie's barbels folded tightly against her scales. It wasn't just at the God who'd abandoned them. And it wasn't the newly wet blood that made her nose sting. It was... something else. Something she'd never smelled before-- save for once. It was when she rushed into the Church last evening, carrying a dying Nancy inside. Maybe right before that?
Gods, why does it REEK in here? How could a Holy place smell as bad as death, yet nothing like it? There WAS a scent of lingering death in the blood, but that something else was making her want to recoil, nostrils begging to seal shut.

Jack turning his attention back on her made her realize that she ought to properly introduce herself. Despite differences between Nancy and herself, they weren't enough for most humans to pick up on. For the longest time, it had confused her to no end. To her, they were like night and day. Nellie's scales held a warmer, almost violet tint, while Nancy wore a cool blue. She was lean and muscular, while he was soft and fat. She held her head high while she made her presence known, while he shrunk within himself as if to be less visible. But at some point, she had to realize that these differences were only stood out when they were compared directly. Their scale pattern was the same, their weight close enough to be easily confused under their robes, their heights hard to determine when they carried themselves so differently. The latter was usually the only thing that cued them in, their contrasting personalities. Eventually it had happened enough times for it to finally stop surprising her.
"Sister, yes," she confirmed for him. "Nellie. As for Nancy, he's... alive." She would have said "surviving", but didn't want it taken literally. If Jack wasn't the observant kind, as he'd demonstrated, he wasn't going to pick up on her grim metaphor. Yet, he knew she was a Water Mage, and a newly Favored one? Word must have spread quickly after all.

The nuns seemed at ease with him, and his obvious concern for her brother softened her opinion of this pirate, at least. She wouldn't mind following his orders here. But she didn't need orders to decide what she was going to do next. Gaze piercing the idol-- an almost flawless depiction of its Holy image-- Nellie began her approach, hands brimming with power. "So You think this place deserves to burn?" she asked, mirroring her brother's words as well as the anger he had spoken them with. The nuns clearly weren't protesting, so she wouldn't wait for Vlad or bother Goddess Mariana for the okay. "I'll return the favor." With the freezing cold and crushing pressure of the Deeps, the statue imploded, fine gravel raining in its place.

Nancy Noi
Nancy's Room - Entrance

To witness Vespera's continued sobbing, Nancy's heart ached. More than it had last night, in ways. A pain for others hurt differently than pain for himself. He felt pain for Arnold, who had just watched the city he served for so long be abandoned by the king he swore his life to. That alone kept his anger towards the guildmaster at bay. But knowing what Ves went through, the pain for her was physical. A sickness in his stomach, a burn in his chest. Gods, it hurt. And it wasn't even close to the piece of agony his Goddess had shared with him.
<<You as well,>> he told her, earnest as can be. <<Wherever you are, I'll always love you.>> He had already thought it, so he wanted to say it. He wanted to say it a hundred thousand more times, for as many people who had once lived in this city. But if that's what it took, words simply wouldn't suffice in conveying her importance to him.

Nancy's own importance to Ves was made clear in how she swapped the focus. Though he felt gratitude and, frankly, relief at the concern, it almost was drowned out by an ocean of guilt. Being reminded that he was Null brought that crushing weight back. Being told he didn't deserve this made him ill. Don't I? The Holy Council seems to think I do. But it was relief, in the end, that finally drew more tears from his eyes. <<Thank you. You don't know how much it helps to hear that right now.>>

When she asked what was next, he could do little more than shrug and say, <> It wasn't a "maybe", though. If the crime was as serious as Vlad and Mariah said it was, he could expect a punishment to fit. Worst case, it might to upend what little stability he had left. His only solace was hoping that it being private would be a truth. Being punished by a Holy God for breaking Divine Law, in a Holy city, in full view of said Holy city, would be an added mortification on top of all of this. The reputation he had spent so long building up-- more than a lifetime-- would be shattered in that instant. Would Toron start to revile him too, just as they had Ves? At least she wouldn't be around to witness that.
Though the pirates had established themselves to be not as bad as Nancy had been anticipating, that didn't mean Ves would be in much better company. Elaina?! he thought in shock. The very name made his lips curl. <<Why her?! The last thing you need right now is to be abused and belittled! Why not Demi, instead?>> Her former best friend actually gave a shit about her, and didn't view people as toys to play with. An immortal who had personally seen the world change in those 200 years, too. How would that witch top that?

It was at this point, the Goddess's voice boomed across Toron. Nancy snagged his lip under his fangs, the pinch of pain starving off more tears. In sixty minutes, he'd see Her again. And likely never again. <<She's expecting everyone to be at the execution,>> he said to Ves. <> Then he smiled, a glint of mischief in his eyes rather than sorrow as he flashed her a wink. <<And if that doesn't work, I'll vouch for you.>>

Remembering something, he stood up straight, glancing behind his shoulder into his room. <>

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Oct 13, 2023

Steven the Deacon and Jack the Shotgunner
Church

The man stood back as Nellie crushed the statue. Damn, he thought. "This was alright, right? Gods don't take lightly to shit like this."
Irene perked up. "It's OK. This Church no longer belongs to Him. It belongs to Goddess Mariana now, and Gods take even less lightly to the image of other Gods in their house of worship." With that, Jack shrugged. "Sounds good to me. Was my idea so tell 'im eat my ass."

A bolt of lightning struck nearby and then a thunderous boom, which caused Jack to jolt his head towards where it hit, because they could hear it hit from the sounds of a horse whine. Looking out the window, there was a horse fried by lightning. It meant their message to the God had gotten through and he was NOT pleased about it. Jack shrugged. They were in Mariana's church. This God couldn't do shit without damaging Her church which was a personal attack. Jack didn't know. Jack didn't care. Jack just knew he'd put a bullet in that God if he ever saw him, for letting what happened to his church happen while keeping the statue of his image unharmed. It meant he was no different than the King. WORSE than the king to Jack because while the king cowered, this God actively stuck his hand in it to ensure that the blood of the people shed fighting for their lives didn't sully his statue

For Nellie, if the smell came from the overwhelming stench of Holy in her Daedric nose, it cleared up soon after the statue was destroyed and the influence of the God over the Church was no more.

Steven came rushing out with Mariah. "The fuck was a- Ahhh......." Steven laid eyes on the destroyed statue and it explained the Holy Lightning that killed the horse. "Nellie pissed off the God by destroying the statue, eh?"
"Was my idea," Jack said without hesitation.
"Why?"
"It was flawless," he explained. "Notta drop 'o blood. 'r scratches. 'r anythin'. Bastard God 'tected th'statue while lettin' us die 'round it." "Not a drop of blood. Or scratches. Or anything. Bastard God protected the statue while letting us die around it."
"Hmmmm." Jack didn't know enough about this kind of shit to lie about it. "Might've earned that God's wrath." Steven said finally.
Jack shrugged. "Better than earnin' 'is respect."
"Mariah, what God did Kraiven primarily serve?"
Mariah nodded, "The God Kraiven served is Duion, God of Festivities."
Duion? Steven hadn't heard that name in a while. "Steven to Elaina. You hearing all this?"
"I never stopped listening for the words of my dear Nelson," came the response from the resident witch. Creepy, Steven thought. "Over the past 200 years, Duion has had his rank stripped many times due to dwindling numbers. Long history lesson short, when much of the world is thrown into war and strife, no one turns to the God of Festivities. To put it in perspective, with the population of Kraiven right now, if ALL of them were followers and added to his count, Kraiven would be 86% of his total follower count."
The words shocked Steven. After 2 decimations, this small population was enough to be the overwhelming majority of his followership. It meant that Duion could be on the verge of losing his God status. This meant that this city being claimed under Mariana may have sealed his fate as a God. Not that Steven cared. His point to the nun about Gods like Duion stood. Duion didn't act like a God who gave a shit about lives of the people who worshipped him.
"When your capital city is serving a God of Festivity, is it any wonder then that they are indolent in the face of war?" Elaina paused. "Hence my point with this needing to happen." Nellie could tell that these words were directed towards her. Only to Nellie out of the people gathered that Elaina expressed that Kraiven needed to burn. Deserved? Maybe not. A necessary to expose the evil?...........well not to expose the evil. To ACCEPT that the evil is evil." Without awaiting a response, Elaina cut the line. She was sounding worked up. All of this seemed a sore subject for Elaina

"Well there ya have it. Shitty God acting shitty might be pissed that people treats him like he's shitty," Steven concluded, "I doubt he'll do anything. If he does, he'll have to explain it to the Holy Counsel. And if he bears his teeth at the Basenjis, he'll have to deal with the Goddess, the High God, and the Dragon Supreme. Good luck." Those last words dripped with spite. Steven was like Jack now in that regard. He would definitely lead a crusade against Duion under Obris's banner. Decimate then execute him for the same crimes as Hemhart. "Til then, let's get it going."

More pirates entered the Church via the teleport arch the Goddess set up. "Oi," Steven said as they walked in. "Start cleanin," he commanded and they set to work immediately. Most of them were familiar to the nuns which was why they felt at ease as crewmates took brooms and washcloths from them. "This here is Nellie, sis to Nancy. 'Bout 1000x stronger too. Disrespect her and answering to me will be getting off easy." The crew set to it in earnest and the nuns, after explaining what they were having to do, moved out to start getting ready. "Ye ain't standing around doing nothing," Steven barked aggressively, "If ye ain't helping, it's back to the ship!" Most of the those who came here in the same time period as him and Jack came to lend a hand. The few stragglers wouldn't be just left to watch and roam surveying the damage they were trying to clean.

For the next 45 minutes, the duo worked with the crew and the nuns as they set about making the Church as presentable as it could possibly be. Luckily there were a few mages among them who could also assist in washing the blood up and repairing the windows. The pews were destroyed in having to be used as wood to incinerate bodies and any stained glass windows were a lost cause. That was a bit of artistry that couldn't be replicated with the same shattered glass after it was destroyed. The remains of the statue were swept up

Vespera Marine Seyres
Stoneroses HQ

A sigh from her. "I'll be there. I just won't watch," Ves decided. She wasn't about to appeal to a Holy Goddess as to why she didn't want to go. In Ves's mind, as a Daedric woman, there was no discussion to be had there. "I can't be near the Church anyways and any cheering from the crowd will drown out the noise." There was quite a few people to pack there so it shouldn't be too hard to pretend someone wasn't about to be beheaded.

Ves fully expected Nancy's reaction to the idea of her going to Elaina. "Like her or not, there is little doubt in my mind that Elaina knows more about the world than Demi does." As one lived in a world for longer and longer, one was more resistant to change than most. It was why both the Fae and the Vampires tended to live in places nowhere near as advanced as humans did. Their short lifespans made for constant innovation. Things were clicking even for her WHY Elaina did what she did, and the answer was simple: She already told them why she did it. Thinking that one was better than her set her on a path, a path to break you down with nothing more than the harsh undeniable truth. "Demi can get me to my parents. Elaina is a knowledge lover. Demi has 200 years of seeing the world.........but so does my family, Nancy. Elaina is my best bet to knowing about this world." Demi had 200 years of life, but the big factor that someone like Nancy wouldn't understand was that most immortals were INCREDIBLY set in their ways. It was very very rare for immortals to innovate at the speed of humanity. Their short lifespans meant that advancement was paramount, unlike they who were timeless. "Plus.......Demi wouldn't allow her to take her jabs." If Ves knew one thing about Demi, it was that she was FIERCELY protective of her friends.

Demi knows better how to survive in the world. Elaina knows better how to live in the world as a member of society

Nancy expressed something to give her, which made Ves smile. "I won't get on the ship yet." She had to get in contact with Demi and go get her stuff. "What is it you wanted to give me?"

WayfaringWaaksian
(15 minutes, so my next post will be the beginning the actual execution. So any character you're getting there, get them there.)

WayfaringWaaksian · Oct 14, 2023

Nellie Noi
Toron - Church

After leaping out of her scales from that instantaneous thunder, Nellie rushed towards the window to see what the commotion was. An immediate hiss seethed between her teeth, upon sight of the fizzled horse corpse. "So that's how it is, then?" Duion reinforced His point, that His precious statue was much more important than the lives here, no matter how lowly. Nellie was no animal lover, but after the genocide that took place, she'd be pissed if that God so much as squashed a cockroach in her city.

Steven's comment that her actions likely incurred Duion's wrath earned a scoff. "He earned OUR wrath by abandoning us, like that cowardly king." This kingdom had been failed by everyone who benefited the most from it. Abandoned by both God and King, corrupted from the inside out by a corrosive nobility until the infrastructure became so weak as to collapse on itself upon disaster. She was 100% on Jack's side regarding this, though that wasn't to say Steven wasn't, further cemented by Elaina's oh-so-not charming voice.
"86%?!" she repeated, stunned. "He fed the majority of His followers to the wolves? Why?!" Gods gaining rank by follower count was basic Divinity 101. If Duion was in dire straits as it was, why would He further plunge Himself towards His fate? Was it spite towards the followers who disappeared, perhaps abandoning Him in His eyes? Or was He just saying "fuck it" at this point, knowing the end of His Godhood was inevitable? It made as little sense as a king letting his subjects die off. What was a leader without their followers? Without a kingdom left, he had no power.

Though what did make sense regrettably regarded Elaina's own opinion on this. Did this tragedy need to happen? Nellie couldn't really disagree. After the first massacre, one would think that the people would realize they were being led by a coward. But his subjects were stubbornly loyal to that worthless dog... or afraid to say anything? She hadn't a clue. None of this would have been necessary, if they hadn't let those parasites burrow their teeth in deeper after the fall. But here they were, and of course, here Elaina was being right. I'm not your "dear" anything, witch.

By now, the evil scent lingering in her nose had been long since banished. Nellie wafted a hand in front of her snout to confirm it. Geez, Duion. Was that a fart, or Your ego reeking up the place? Though Steven hadn't voiced it-- maybe implied it through his sarcastic wish for luck should Duion challenge them-- Nellie would launch herself towards the opportunity to join a crusade against Him. She didn't fear mortals nor Gods, though the latter unwisely so, as Vlad had told her before. But she had no reason to fear a disgraced God when she had the Favor of a Holy/Daedric Goddess as influential as hers.
Regardless, even in the chance Goddess Mariana wanted to start that crusade the very next day, Nellie didn't think she could just up and leave her people at their worst moment. She hadn't wanted to leave to destroy the castle when there were civilians in need of saving...

Nellie shook those thoughts away, spraying dried blood away with a stream of her classic fresh water rather than from the Deeps. Executing the king would be good enough for now, to bolster the survivors' will to continue on. They would recover and rebuild. Then, perhaps, they could fulfill justice when they were well enough. It was something she was keen to bring up with the Goddess.

With the additional aid from the influx of pirates coming in, it was a good opportunity to see what Kraiven had been working with. Quite a lot of them were human or otherwise humanoid, but much more of a melting pot than even the "accepting" city of Toron had been in its heyday. Was it just because criminals were often forced to work together, or was it a reflection of a new standard, and the other kinds had grown more accustomed to each other over the centuries? It was a hopeful thought, especially when she was reminded that she and Nancy were apparently the last of their kind.

Catching a gaze that lingered just a bit too long for comfort, Nellie turned to stare back at that pair of yellow eyes before they conveniently flicked away. The hell are you oogling at? she thought with a flicking tail. Don't act like I'm the weird one, with that half-fungus face. Such strange creatures even among the pirates. The lichen person shouted something to a massive orc man, thankfully a race she recognized.

"Oi, Bogrum! Blows that the whole forest got pulverized." The-- woman?-- was pulling laden bags towards the entrance doors. From the shape and the straining it took to drag them, Nellie presumed they were full of window glass and debris, cleaned up for safety but left to be discarded at a better time like now. "Could've harvested them split trees, an' I know ye like yer wood."
Despite the bags weighing over his shoulders, the orc man turned around as easily as if he were carrying pillows and blankets. She could see a grin behind those polished tusks. "Phrasing."
"... Eck! In a church? Yer nastier than me."
"Like you care."

Nancy Noi
Nancy's Room ---> Nancy's Lab

The defeat in Ves's words made Nancy frown, but he wouldn't press. She made a good enough point about needing to be far from the Church anyway. <<If you'd like, I'll be there with you. Assuming the Goddess doesn't have a special role for me.>> He couldn't imagine what that would be in regards to the execution, though. He wasn't a man of violence, which was why he suspected She might have Nellie fill the role of executioner, seeming to have chosen her as an enforcer of sorts.

He also wouldn't press Vespera's insistance on seeking Elaina's council. Sighing, he conceded, <> Though he'd never fully understand what it was like being a true timeless being, living in the Void Sea was a close enough experience to see where Ves was coming from here. Despite the scientific, arcane innovations required to adapt to their new circumstances, not much really changed beyond that. No new people entering, no old ones leaving. It had been a period of stagnation, and Nancy could say with confidence that the man who stepped out of the Void a few days ago wasn't far removed from the man who stepped in 200 years ago. Was it a stretch to say the same of Demi?

<<Sorry, I just worry. I don't want her attacking you again.>> Though in that case, Elaina had been a position of power. The fate of Kraiven had rested in the pirates' palms. But now? Ves would be a crewmate, or the very least a passanger, under the protection of their respected Beast Tamer. Not that Ves would let herself be beat around; she was a pacifist, not a pushover. <> In a lifestyle that flirted with death, holding out on your own and winning disputes earned respect. It wouldn't serve her well to be disliked or viewed as a burden by the crew.

Ves asked what Nancy wanted to give her. <<It's a surprise,>> he signed to her eagerly, finding her smile contagious now more than ever. <<You'll see when it's time. But I need to finish getting ready now. Thank you for checking up on me.>>

Retreating down the hall, weight beared down on Nancy suddenly, lowering his head without him thinking. Without Ves there, the reality of the situation-- how HE felt about the situation-- returned full force like the ocean depths. Kraiven really was in the Deepest Deeps now, and only a God as generous and kind as Goddess Mariana could pull them out. A Goddess, and her determined subjects. But how can anyone stay determined in this?

"Nancy?"
Vlad's voice on his crystal jolted Nancy out of his thoughts. He thought a reply, but it wouldn't be heard.
After too long a pause, Vlad said with realization, "Sorry. I forgot... I'm not well, as I'm sure you're not. I wish I could check on you, but I can't come pick you up. I sustained an injury on the way to the Sacrament." A flash of concern froze Nancy's blood, though as if knowing that, Vlad reassured, "A minor one, don't you worry. I'll be there at the execution. But you'll have to leave ASAP. Just be careful navigating through all that rubble."

With that understanding, Nancy hurried to the East Wing, where his lab was waiting. Why here instead of his room, he had something specific in mind for the finishing touches. Looking over his flower nursery, he pondered the message he wanted to send. But Vlad's wasn't finished.
"I wanted to say I'm sorry, if my actions last night bordered on cruelty rather than necessity." Nancy paused after collecting his pruning shears, trying to remember what on earth Vlad did that could be considered cruel. Harsh, certainly. Cruel? That wasn't a word he could ever associate with the beastman. "None of us are okay, and it would be callous of me to expect anyone to make the best decisions when I myself can't. Not that it justifies anyone's mistakes, but I won't pretend I'm above making them."
Eyeing a hyacinth in its glass globe, Nancy clipped off the top of its purple clusters. I regret what I did.
"My anger wasn't directed at your actions alone. I was afraid when I learned of what happened. The idea of losing two of the most important people to me in all of this was a fear I couldn't begin to describe. My worry is that I allowed that fear to control my judgement."
Swallowing dryness from his throat, he pruned a tiny bunch of three, blue forget-me-nots. Have me in your thoughts, always.
"I've reflected now that I know you two are safe. And if you're worried about the punishment, trust in your Goddess. She's always been one to build up Her followers at their lowest point, rather than pushing them down. Her saving this city proves that this never changed, as long as it's been. I can promise She'll give you the chance to atone, rather than simply prolong your suffering."
Hovering over a small basin of water, he snipped the stem from a floating water lily. Pure white, as any yellowing petals implied a sullied Holiness. Since She was Goddess of the Sea before, the water lily was a flower unique to the Lungborne represting Her, being freshwater. You are my shelter.

"And sorry I'm saying so much you can't reply to," Vlad continued, as Nancy weaved the flower bases through a clothes pin. It made a palm-sized brooch that he pinned to the left side of his robes, over his chest. "I wanted to make sure you weren't spiraling in silence. Don't feel like you deserve to be alone. No one deserves to suffer through this, save for the indolent who caused--" Vlad cut himself off once he noticed the tapping noise Nancy was making on a countertop. "I'm sorry, repeat that?"
Nancy did, but slower, articulating his hard taps against his brisk, light ones. <.-.. --- ...- . / -.-- --- ..->
Vlad was silent for a long time. After worrying that he had gotten it wrong, Nancy realized he was finding his composure. "I love you too, Nancy. You're like a brother I wish I always had."
The call clicked off, and Nancy had to keep pouring tears from staining his clean clothes.

---

After finding his own composure, Nancy was too pressed for time to help the refugees get ready, to his regret. There wasn't much he could do to help, he had to remind himself. The Goddess wasn't expecting Her new people to look any better than the ruined city she was soon to lay claim over. As for that "ceremony", Nancy would either be finding Ves within the growing crowd, or if she protested his presence, squeezed himself closer to the front. His taller height would allow him a decent view regardless.

Since Bogrum had dragged Fergie with him early in his insistence that they help in some way, the two were able to snag a spot very close to the action. Since Vlad arrived later, he was nearer to the back. Nellie would remain in the Church, awaiting the Goddess's arrival. Nancy would have been waiting inside with her, but since he wasn't specifically called to be with the Goddess, he stayed with the crowd. In his position, it felt shameful to demand Her presence until it was explicitly given.

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Oct 22, 2023

Elaina Melora
Church

Elaina teleported in with flash. Specifically the flash Evangeline was known for as the duo came in together. Elaina inspected the damage. It was immense but it looked better. People from both crowds packed out the Church.
"Lady Elaina!" The voice of the Watcher reached her ears and she turned to see the Angel in question. "It's so nice to see you!" Mariah hugged her. While Elaina wasn't the huggy type, she knew her presence made the Angel happy, and given the signs of crying that Mariah went out of her way to hide, Elaina decided to let her have it. She even returned it
"It's nice to see you as well, dear Watcher," Elaina responded then looked Mariah up and down when they broke their embrace. "What the hell is this!?"
This startled Mariah. "Wha-? What's going on?"
"Why are you in nun attire!?" Elaina said.
"It's some of the only clothes I have. The few others are destroyed!"
"Absolutely not!" Elaina balked. "You're an Angel, not a nun. Your beauty is a reflection of your Goddess. You WILL look the part." Elaina did a quick inspection. "Wings? Incorrectly groomed." She could tell that Mariah and Steven did their damndest, but they didn't know how to groom feather. "Face? Scarred. The rest? COVERED!" Elaina took Mariah by the hand and forced her down the steps of the alter after her. "You're coming back to the ship with me! You're changing RIGHT NOW!"
"I-I don't have time, Lady Elaina!" Mariah resisted. It was noting that Mariah was putting up a resistance so weak that one would wonder if she was actually against being taken ANYWHERE by Elaina
"Exactly, so save me the resistance!" Elaina said, hearing none of it. "I have clothing befitting the occasion. You will wear it." She conjured a teleport crystal and upon cracking it in her fingers, the duo teleported away, presumably back to Elaina's room

---------------------------------------------------

Karma Collects, the Goddess Corrects

The grounds of the Church and its surroundings were packed out with as many citizens as could possibly fit. The pirates held a buzz of anticipation about them. Most of them were honestly looking forward to watching the man's head roll, and the desire for blood increased in whoever surveyed the damage from the inside and saw first hand why Elaina's crew and Bogrum's crew were so enraged.

The people of Kraiven held similar anticipation. However, unlike the anticipation being a crust under which lie a murderous anger, most of them were more scared than anything. Scared for their lives, scared for their city, scared for their future. The vast majority of them were traumatized, having watched loved ones die, some loved ones die AGAIN, watch their city burn to the ground, and news spread that their disgraced king lie in bounds for hoarding the 100 Elite awaiting execution with the Slothful 100 Elite being executed overnight.

The loud crash of glass overhead and a thunderously loud haunting aria of a whale reached all of their ears. Loud talking from outside drove some people outside. It was an absolutely ENORMOUS sky whale flying and circling the floating rock slowly. There was no missing her immense stature regardless of which corner of the rock one stood on. It was impossible. If the Goddess flopped onto the ground, she would destroy the literal dead middle of this entire city made to house approximately 200,000 people. It wasn't uncommon to Gods to appear in the form of an animal, but Mariana cranked it up to 11 with this utter behemoth of a form

"The Goddess looks so majestic in her True Form!" Orabelle exclaimed. The Father/Daughter Trio all sat out at the gates on the ship awaiting exactly this.
"Agreed," Lostro said, "Though, I can't wait to see her TRUE True form!" Referring to the utterly unnerving Angler Fish Daedric Form that would undoubtedly frighten the people of Kraiven into despair.
"The Goddess has 2 True Forms," Sebas commented, so Lostro wasn't exactly incorrect. "This is the first that I've seen her Holy Form though."
"Why does your Goddess have 2 forms?" This was Lattice perking up in curiosity. Demi had her stay with them.
Sebas began explaining to her how/why Goddess Mariana became the Goddess of the Deepest Deep

Avery, Ash, and Naka watched the proceedings from inside the ship. "Why doesn't Raid Captain attend ceremony?"
"I have nothing personal against Hemhart," Avery shrugged, "Why didn't you?"
"Naka shares Raid Captain's sentiment." Naka responded, "Is Master Captain attending?"
"Doubt it. Probably watching it from the Daddy-ship."
"Getting Adonis to get off his ass? Good luck," Ash quipped as she started draining her mug of ale, drinking way too early in the morning.

Demi floated in the air on Quincy. With Lattice being squeamish to things like gore, she made her stay back with Sebas much to the delight of the girls. Demi's heart was heavy with anger. There was not a single part that want to grant ANY mercy to this king. Demi didn't want to expose Lattice to the burdens of her heart. "How are you feeling, Demi?" The voice of her beloved Wyvern came into her head.
"Ready to burn his body to cinders," Demi responded to Quincy monotonously. After a night barely any sleep and none of it good, Demi wanted to see justice served, then to hibernate too deeply to have the nightmares that would haunt her otherwise.
"You sure you won't let me eat him?"
"No," Demi said decisively, "I want his body burned." Demi held the type of anger that only she could hold. Dual-hatting all of this, her sorrow was universal and amplified by the fact that this was her 200 year long-lost HOMELAND. "If you eat him, you'll catch his cowardice."

"HAIL, PEOPLE OF TORON!!" The whale bellowed from above. There was no escaping hearing Her words. "It is time to claim my city. Beautiful thriving place and people, abandoned by your God Duion. Such a coward, I will take you under my fin. I will be the light in these Abysmal times." The Goddess radiated a Holiness so great that Vespera had to put up a magic shield to keep from being burned by it. The whale began Her descent, a slow spiral down to the physically and emotionally broken remains of an already broken kingdom. Elaina made the walls of the church transparent so the people could see the same view as the people outside and not be blocked by........well literally being inside.

Mariah floated high above, an envoy of Her will. Dressed in the purest white and preened to perfection, Mariah shone as well as she could. Even with her heavy heart, she couldn't help but feel full of hope as the Goddess Descended. Mistakes aside, one couldn't really question the authenticity of the Goddess's intentions. To Mariah, the Goddess having made those mistakes and seeming to want to correct things made it even moreso clear. She hoped the Goddess would rule in benevolence. King Hemhart was on his knees shackled, chained, and gagged to prevent speaking. Not quite naked but regal clothing in tatters from Nellie's icy wrath, it was a pathetic look befitting a pathetic king.

It was the moment they all waited for, especially for the followers of the Goddess. It was the form Nancy had seen the Goddess in plenty of times when he communed with Her, but never seen in the flesh. All those times before, he was wrapped in the warmth of Her waves as much as he was wrapped in the warmth of Her divine light. Now though, he felt none of it. Not the warmth of Her waters or her divinity. Not the serenity of Her divinity or love. How he felt about SEEING her was one thing, but the feeling of being embraced by Her was no longer there.

WayfaringWaaksian

WayfaringWaaksian · Oct 31, 2023

Fergie
Toron - Churchyard

Few things could make a twinge of sweet bleed though the bitter air of a disaster. It wasn't the sickly tang of blood, though a blood much bluer was ready to be spilled, to Fergie's great anticipation. Nothing could be done to repay the lives lost, or the lives abandoned in a ruler's negligence. But a public regicide would suffice.

"Can't count on me fingers the times I've dreamed this." A king, wholly unworthy of the title, shackled before them in wait of a deserved death. The anarchist in her was howling with delight. "Feelin' vindicated right now, Bogrum. Always knew them damn royals were only out for themselves."
When Bogrum only returned with a hum of acknowledgement, Fergie looked up to take in his hollow gaze. If there was any sort of indignation when he laid eyes on the king, she saw none. It was a reminder of what was on his mind... and what she was duly keeping off hers. He had been cracking jokes earlier, but now being faced with the reason for all this again must be dousing any good spirits he could muster.
Eyeing behind her shoulder and taking in the great swaths of survivors that circled the execution site, she told him, "I'm worried about 'em too, aye? Ain't just 'bout the show." Pirates lost their leaders on a regular basis. If they weren't tearing at each others' throats trying to seize the position, they were voting a new one in, and business continued as normal. She could guess monarchies were reduced to that when there left no one to inherit the throne. Royalty and nobility gone, only humble citizens could take ownership of things. As it should be, but she could imagine the staunch change was daunting.

Bogrum managed a weak smile, though on him, it looked more like a lip twitch. "I know." Now some of that anger manifested, brows closing in. "I just want to understand why..."
She shrugged. "What's to understand? Can't fix folks who don't want it."
He hummed again, but now she could see him pondering. If it didn't satiate his need to know, it at least gave him something to think about.

The Ascended Descends

All private thoughts halted for the Goddess's grand appearance. Far above them yet so large as to not tell the difference, the great whale demanded the attention of every spectator, subject or guest. Bogrum, though newly accustomed to Her power, was still in awe of the ample presence that hung over him. He was in a sea of magic, the weight of it drowning him beneath the surface.
Fergie's anxiety renewed when she felt that same presence, but even she couldn't look away from this impressive entrance. Embodying the majesty of the ocean, what better form than a whale? As blue as the depths, as graceful as the rolling waves. A single slap of Her tail could send this city buffetting. She already had last night, and the Goddess hadn't even been physically here.

Deeper in the crowd, Vladimir in his own full animal form rested on his haunches. Mane groomed and fur cleaned of any traces of tears, only the bandaged paw held by his chest marred his steeled countenance. Broken inside, but pieces held together for the sake of his people. Goddess Mariana gave them promise, and he expected Her to make good on it. A Deity familiar with death and tragedy, having watched ships swept under the waves and Her Piscean people torn by war and predation, he trusted Her judgement far more than he could the flamoyant God who'd ruled over a once prosperous land. Grave mistakes had been made, but at least those with good intentions. If Duion was to lead His followers astray, it wouldn't be from the frantic actions of a father missing His children.

From his elevated view, Vlad could see people rushing from the church to get a better view. Among them, Nellie was easily spotted. From this distance he couldn't read her face, but when she slowed to a stop, bumping into someone when her gaze was locked overhead, he could tell that she was completely enthralled. Shamefully, he felt a touch of envy along with his gratitude for her. To still be so esteemed by her Goddess? She told him long ago that she hadn't communed with the Goddess since she was a child, and that she could scarcely remember what it was like to be enveloped in Her waters. The memories had to be flooding back now.

More Bitter than Sweet

Conversely, Nancy was near the very tail end of the crowd, adjacent to his apprehensive vampire friend. Behind the magic shield, he could tell she very much didn't want to be here. Faced with an execution AND the overwhelming presence of a Holy Deity? With the latter, he wished he could whisk it away from her and burden it on himself, but not just for her sake. It was well said that witnessing a God in the flesh couldn't compare to communing with them in spirit. To be embraced by their impervious power, their unshakable love, in all the five senses was an experience to set all aside for. Followers fought and died for these experiences. In his earliest years, Nancy had prayed for the chance to see Her in person.

In a sense, his prayer had been answered. He saw Her now, fins and fluke like maginficent wings gliding through the air. Her imperial form took up nearly the entire sky, a bright halo circling Her girth where She blotted out the sun. The sight was everything Nancy had dreamed about. But what he felt? Nothing but a light breeze, the elbows and shoulders of other spectators bumping into him. Despite being packed in like a sardine, he felt like a lone fish in an empty sea. After an eternity of waiting, he simultaneously was getting exactly what he wanted, and had been robbed of it.

The worst part? HE had robbed himself of it. That reminder was what choked his breath with sobs, tears flowing like brackish streams. Retreating behind the cloak of his robes hid him from the sight of others, their breaths of awe filling him with shame that drove stakes into his stomach.

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Nov 4, 2023

The Deepest Deep Speaks Pt. 1

The whale that was the Goddess drew close, then in a flash of light, the whale began to shrink. More and more the whale shrank until the light silhouette took the form of a human, though with the identifiable aquatic Triton traits and wings. When she came back to full color, floating down to settle at the top of the Church, she was donning a beautiful dress that was white at the top and gradually gradiented to a baby blue to a deep blue to a dark blue to a black, representing the layers of the ocean from the Surface down to the Abyss. It was decked out in many a set of oceanic jewelry and Holy Relics. Since she was appearing to the people as the Ocean Trench Mariana instead of the Daedric Abyss Mariana, she wasn't donning any Daedric Relics. Her wings were that of a flying fish, a translucent blue almost transparent when looking up at them with the backdrop of the blue sky above them. Mariana's eyes were a deep Piscean yellow like Orabelle's, vertical irises. To say she was stunning was kind of an understatement. One didn't have to be into Piscean women to see it. It of course made sense. If Angels were all meant to look beautiful, then Gods had to take it to 11 in the eyes of the people who served her, or at least the species they're presenting as.

"My people, broken and beaten after being broken and beaten," the voice of the Goddess came over the people. It sounded sorrowful. The people looked awful, but also the most hopeful for the future as they've been in a VERY long time. Vespera was centuries ahead of the curve in feeling hopeless and trapped, but the people here saw now, looking at the Goddess, a return to the realm where the Gods could see them and acknowledge them. Especially after the fall of their coward king, any desire to go back to their established comfort zone in the Spirit Sea was as ruined as their city currently lie. "I will make it my highest priority to ensure that the lives lost here make their way to Judgement, not trapped in that accursed Realm awaiting Judgement for whoever knows how long." Death worked fast but Judgement couldn't keep up. "While the sins of those lost are to be taken up between person and their respective God, those who served no God will be Judged by me and my Council and I will reunite them with lost friends and loved ones into eternity. After so long, I can only be merciful."

Evangeline and Mariah knelt facing each other with a bit of a distance, allowing the Goddess to find her footing. When She did so and went to address her people, the duo of Angels spoke:
"ORDER!" Mariah declared. Unlike all of the previous times she speaks, Mariah was regal and official. The Angel was wearing a dress of the purest almost radiant white, a fitting symbol of purity for the pure Angel wearing it. Her hair perfectly groomed and short wings with feathers as white as the dress, it was a night and day difference from what she was going to wear that she owned. Elaina gave her a full makeover and it went amazingly. "All clergy may rise." All of the nuns, who knelt from the moment they saw the Goddess slowly stood. "The Goddess will speak now! Idle chatter is permitted, but you will not interrupt the Goddess as She speaks! Violators will be subject to swift and immediate punishment at the blade of the Enforcer currently present." Mariah let the words hang a little before continuing. "As a resident of this city and as someone who loves all of you, please don't test those waters. We have suffered enough."

The Goddess stepped forward and snapped her fingers. The Church began to rearrange itself to make a podium where all could see Her with ease, a set of stairs with the Goddess and angels at the top and Nellie at the bottom with the King. "For the people here, know that your God has abandoned you. Duion watched all of this and made no effort to step in to protect his people." Mariana's voice kept the same tone but the words were ominous. "In order to protect my own, I stepped in to claim an entire city off his negligent hands. I cannot encourage you to defect from another God, but know that after such a trial, you deserve a God who simply not stand to watch their subjects fall." Mariana wasn't entire sure of a few things, but in this, it was a no-brainer. She had to choose her words carefully, lest she start a political problem between her and Duion, though..........well he'd have to answer socially as to why he allowed them to be slaughtered. " I am NOT an infallible being, and I have had my own failings even here that I must answer for, but a devotee who tries and falls is more admirable than a devotee who chooses to not act." Mariana was admitting her own faults here and that said faults have resulted in more deaths..........but not without scorching the name of the God who watched them all burn while defending a statue of his visage. "To all who choose to join my ranks, I will fight to ensure that you do not be charged with Blasphemy or Shirk given the circumstance. Join my ranks and we will rebuild this city. The Holy City of Toron will become the sanctum of those who wish to fly with my flying fish, manatees, Water Dragons, and Sky Whales among the Highest Highs."

Steven the Deacon
Church

Steven soaked in those words. There seemed no hesitation in Her words, and her transparency was winning people over. Then again, it's easy in circumstances like this, Steven thought. Nothing any God said could ever sway HIM, but Mariana did have a good ratio of benevolent action, nurturing demeanor, promises of action, and blunt honesty. He didn't say anything aloud though. Wasn't like he had much to say anyways. He had to acknowledge that Mariah was far more pleasing to look at than the Goddess Herself. The Goddess left a bad taste in his mouth for Her actions here that ultimately led to Nancy doing the stupid shit that he did. All She had to do was follow the damned rules! The same rules She expected Nancy to know! He couldn't understand why Nancy didn't full blown defect for that shit, but while Steven had his judgements, he'd hold off. Nancy had his own reasons for following the Goddess. He needed to figure out his life right now, not decide whether or not he should be staying with the Goddess

Demestral Asella
Church

Demi listened intently to the Goddess. Last thing she wanted was for this Goddess to screw up her homeland and her people any more than they already were. Rarely did Avalon ever mess around with Earth affairs, but Toron was exactly in the situation that would pique Fae interest. However, the Fae were known to be fairly brutal so even she couldn't guess if the people of the city would be protected or subjugated. It depended on if the Seelie or Unseelie court took over the city if it were claimed by the Fae in Avalon. The Draconic in Avalon had no interest in such a land regardless. The Draconic of Earth might, but with all of the loot in Kraiven pillaged by them, they had nothing to gain from running the people away and claiming the ruins

OOC: Seelie and Unseelie is effectively the Fae equivalent of Holy vs Daedric

Demi's biggest concern was for her people and then seeing the king get served justice. Get on with it, Demi thought. So these people can rebuild.
Quincy could sense his master's mixed bag of emotion. "Patience, girl. The Goddess needs to get as many people as possible to defect from Duion without directly telling them to," Quincy growled
She needs to play politician right now, Demi thought in response. If She lies to these people, I will lead a crusade against Her.
"You and the catboy. So quick to act........"

"My first act as Goddess of this city is to purge the one who caused this in the first place." The Goddess's voice took a very dark turn very quickly. "The man responsible to rule his people allowed it to burn. The captain of a ship always goes down with the crew." The Goddess stepped down off the podium and made her way down the steps to the bottom. "WATCHER! TIME TO JUDGE! ENFORCER! TIME TO ENFORCE! NELLIE, MY SCION........TIME TO DRAG HIS SOUL TO THE ABYSS! Those unfit to reach Paradise who died here will be more than happy to show the King's soul how they feel for eternity." The judgement was a formality. He was already guilty, but it didn't mean that this needed to be skipped.
"ORDER!" Mariah cried out again, "Hemhart, King of the Kraiven Empire. Before you are the people who have suffered from your actions. In the face of an unprecedented threat, instead of being a king, rallying your people and defending your city, you instead hoarded within the castle the 100 most elite combatants within the kingdom. This speaks not to a benevolent king. It speaks to a king who is content with watching his kingdom burn while he protects himself.

"Your actions are treasonous." Mariah was beginning to unravel, but in an unexpected way. There was anger in her. Anger. In Mariah of all people. "Therefore, you will be held accountable for every single life lost due to your actions. In my authority as Watcher serving the Mariana, Goddess of the Deepest Deep, King Hemhart...........you are found GUILTY!" Mariah's voice was cracking in sorrowful anger. "You will be executed here and now. In Eternity, you will be tortured slowly and painfully until you experience the same number of deaths as those lost in the attack of the Ancient Demon Mozreliun." That number was 75,347 deaths King Hemhart was to be tortured to until he could be laid to rest. "The counter resets to 0 if any other resident of the Kraiven Empire dies by any means without exception." 17,192 people left, and ANY of their deaths completely resets the torture counter on Hemhart. Mariah, the gentle soul she was, thought up the most eternally painful punishment she could think of. The woman was in pain. A LOT of heart pain, and this was the manifestation of first time she had been angry in a long long time, and such a punishment betrayed the brimstone hellfire seething going on within her that even she probably couldn't even process right now. "May you find relief after your soul is allowed rest.........but may you never rest until you feel the pain of the spear you shoved into this kingdom."

"So it is decreed, so let it be done," Mariana then disappeared by floating into the air, turning into a bubble and then popping into a fine mist. However, since she didn't dismiss it by ending formalities or her ending sign-off, this wasn't done.

It was on Nellie to prepare the body for execution. Hold him in the air with Daedric Magic? Water Magic? Ice Magic? Hemhart was a Giant, so doing that physically wasn't happening. Bind him to the ground for a guillotine execution? Hold him in the air for a flourish sword execution?

Hold him up- Allows for an upright decapitation with plenty of public humiliation for the shamed king.
- This appeals more to the Basenjis and Arnold with its more flashy nature
Pin him down- Traditional Guillotine execution. As formal as it can get. A solemn execution befitting the betrayal of the people.
- This appeals more to the Kraiven People who are broken from this ordeal
Let the Enforcer Choose- The Enforcer will never pass up an opportunity to execute. Allow her free reign with the body while Nellie preps to do the soul
- This appeals more to Divinity, who look upon Earth from multiple realms

WayfaringWaaksian

WayfaringWaaksian · Nov 5, 2023

Nellie Noi
Podium - Bottom

Nellie wasn't sure if the credit was deserved. If a Goddess could appear as a larger-than-life animal and a strange new Piscean race, She could look however She wanted. Someone who could choose to be anything could-- and would-- choose beauty beyond measure. So Nellie shouldn't have been surprised, let alone stunned, when the Goddess bedazzled the crowd with shimmering wings, and adorning shells with the iridescence of pearls.

That's how she knew it wasn't just Her regal presentation that fell her to her knees, head upturned and taking it all in. The pressured air around them, the hum in her ears, the buzzing in her mind... everywhere thrummed with power. Unattainable power. Drawn both from coveted Heights and reviled Abysses, the latter of which Nellie felt ebbing within her. Being this close to the Goddess-- in the flesh!-- had her Daedric magic tingling her nerves until her hands began to tremor. She felt Empowered all over again, which caused her to check that the surrounding pavement wasn't collecting ice. It was all feeling, and damn, did she feel it. A feeling she could have never possessed on her own.

And the Goddess just... gave it to her. On a whim. Nellie had done nothing for Her, nothing to give Her glory or honor. Yet here she was, unattainable power at her fingertips. Why? She couldn't have been deserving in the Council's eyes. But to Mariana? You've already given me so much. Noticing the angels kneeling brought her to her senses some, and she bowed until her head nearly touched the ground. I'm so unworthy...

Nancy Noi
Churchyard - Back

Nancy's scoldings never ceased, even as the Goddess gave her speech to the people. How can you be so ungrateful? Mariah's words, warped as they were from original meaning, echoed in his head, and no amount of lip-biting or fin-tugging could choke the flow of tears. She's right there! Your own eyes can see Her! Can't you just be happy? You miserable, terrible--
No, he had to stop this. He was keeping it together so well, he couldn't fall apart right when the Goddess arrived. So selfish. Stop making this about you. These people need to see Her. They need to feel that she cares.

Though he doubted Vespera was feeling the love, shelled up behind her shield. It would burn her anyhow, especially since the Goddess was appearing in a Holy form. Sniffling back snot and blinking away tears, Nancy tried drying any trace of sorrow. His cowl stayed up however, masking aching eyes under shade. He waved at Ves's eye-level before signing, <<Just think of it as the Church's grand reopening. And the cheers are after the ribbon's been cut.>> A wet, gushing ribbon. Hopefully her bat's hearing wouldn't pick up on that from out here.

Bogrum Mazoga
Churchyard - Front

A gasp caught in Bogrum's throat. It shouldn't have shocked him, considering what happened here. A better descriptor would be appalled bewilderment. Abandoned not only by king, but god as well? What had these people done to deserve such a thing, if anything? Bogrum's earlier declaration that the Gods were on their side felt hollow now. Granted, it was just one God. A God he'd never heard the name of before now, and perhaps this attested to the reason. A God who threw his followers to the wolves wasn't a God worth remembering. But he was THEIR God. THEIR protector. They trusted him like they trusted their king

"Never allow trust to relieve you of the duty to survive", one of his officers had told him back in the day. If they counted on someone to save them, why prepare for the worst? Elaina's assessment wasn't wrong, and neither was Fergie's. Even though some of her assessments were better kept behind loose lips.

"She's a looker, I'll give Her that."
Bogrum gave her shoulder the lightest smack an Orc could manage. Of course, she recoiled and hissed as if he'd swatted her with a wet towel.

Nellie Noi (Cont.)

Judgement was given. Mariah the Watcher, their gentle, loving nun, condemned their cowardly king a sentence so harsh, so unforgiving, not even Nellie could have conceived it. Her own punishments were immediate and brutal, physical in nature. Such was the power of Elemental Magic. Lightning frayed nerves, Fire scorched flesh, Ice froze blood under the skin. They were potent and painful, destroying bodies faster than any Magic that wasn't Divine. The closest thing to a lasting punishment was if her enemy survived, carrying an injury that would follow them through the rest of their life. Death was a mercy, when granted by Nellie. But for the king? A fate worse than death awaited.

Hearing the cracks in Mariah's voice, exposing the agony within, lit unholy fire in Nellie's gut. This terrible, terrible man at her feet. How can one fool be the cause of so much suffering? Such is the folly of giving authority to one alone. The Holy Counsel had checks and balances, by the sound of it. Absolute laws were in place that all must follow. But no one below the Divine could sway the monarch of their kingdom. To think I swore my life to your service.

Anger boiled, teeth clenched. Why? Why?! Why rule a kingdom you couldn't protect?! Nellie pierced his gaze, searching for something. ANYTHING. Some hint of remorse, or sorrow, fear or even anger. Or was there only defiance, a regret only manifesting after consequences arrived? Because we weren't a kingdom of PEOPLE. Only PAWNS. Pawns to THROW AWAY! She wanted to rip that gag away. Demand answers. Demand he explain himself to the people he betrayed. They deserved to know WHY!

Yes... but no. Acknowledgement quelled those fires some. They deserve to rest more than anything. Looking over what remained, Nellie saw the people broken, terrified, and looking to the Goddess for hope. Her heart ached for them, a physical tightening in her chest. This needed to be gotten over with, so they could move on. Time to close this book.

The Royal Line Nears its End

The crowd came to a hush, chatter quieting to an inaudible murmur when Nellie set a boot on the king's back. That wasn't going to pin the Giant down, so she would have to force him down with magic. She could push him forward with Water, or laden his shoulders with Ice. Daedric magic might frighten the onlookers. However...

They've seen it all, she knew. They saw what she did to the Castle. They saw what she turned into as she reduced the grand architecture to rubble. In mind, and in body. Nellie had caught a glimpse of it in the midst of her rampage, a flash of something horrifying in the mirror. To simply gaze upon a Daedric creature was enough for some to fall into despair. But Daedric was going to be an indisputable fact of Kraiven life, with the Goddess around.

You never really were good at masking, were you? Even though the Goddess was basking Her people in Holy now, Nellie still felt her Daedric. Maybe ONLY she could feel it. If other Daedric citizens didn't feel it, it was Nellie's unique connection to Her. It wasn't something she was keen on keeping to herself. She's shown them Her mercy. Now show them Her malice.

Dark tendrils, writhing and cloudy with an opaque black, sprouted from the ground and wrapped around the king's massive chest. He was yanked down, immobilized and neck exposed when the tendrils parted just thin enough to beckon the Enforcer's sword. "The Goddess has granted you a swift death, Hemhart," she told him grimly. "Take solace in your only mercy."

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Nov 7, 2023

Hacking Off Hemhart's Head to Haul to Hell

Nellie's assessment about the reaction to her Daedric was spot on. Immediately there was unease among the crowd as the King was pinned down by the power given to Nellie. The tendrils were reminiscent of a beast none had never seen before, radiating an aura that commanded a reverence lest one find themselves on the business end of Oppressive Darkness, a tyrant to be recognized and feared. Luckily, the fraction of the power was so small that it was more of the visual for most. The aura only hit those closest to the front. Whatever horrid beast Nellie had summoned those tentacles from, it was best kept in the Abyss from which they were summoned from.

Mariah felt nothing from it, drawing her Holy power from the same source as Nellie drew her Daedric. Elaina was Elaina, not fearing anything Divine. She of all people felt it before Nellie even summoned it. Steven got hit with the aura, yet the power was too small to have an affect on him with how strong his Divine Favor was. He did notice though that some of the Basenji hands went to their weaponry, a sign of unease. A lot of the denizens of Kraiven full blown recoiled and moved back to get away from the feeling of fear pressed over them. Any and all doubt that Nellie was to be feared was laid to rest on the spot. They had felt that Oppressive Ice which snuffed the life out of people. They had felt the overwhelming power of magic that allowed Nellie to destroy both the castle and the 100 Elite all by her lonesome, and they knew now that given how Nellie was recognized as the Scion of the Goddess, the Deepest Deep referred to exactly that: Within the darkness of the deep ocean lie the unholy mixture of Oppressive Pressure, Oppressive Darkness, a distance so far from salvation that snuffed out any hope for survival, and topped off with a pull ever downwards even further from the light of salvation until one reached the Abyss.

Now the people were left with a question: Was Mariana a tyrant, lying to Her new people with the intent of oppressing them? To Elaina, the answer was an obvious no. If the Goddess wanted to do it, She'd just do it. To Mariah, it was an obvious no. Mariah was the symbol of hope for the people and would defect in an INSTANT if Mariana sought something other than the best for these people. To Vespera, the answer wasn't as obvious. Daedric touched or not, a Holy Goddess would never have her best interest in mind. To Arnold Asella, broken by the betrayal of the King, it wouldn't surprise him if Mariana WAS just another tyrant

To the people? The answer was grey. Very very very grey. On one hand, she was executing their tyrannical king and it was her presence that protected those who made it to the holy places in time. She also took the city from an equally negligent God. On the other, the very nature of Daedric was to Oppress. To a Holy city, what was there to look forward to? Work camps? Walking in darkness? Moral corruption? Rampant debauchery?

Evangeline the Enforcer
Podium- Bottom

Upon the Watcher's word, Evangeline made her way down the podium and drew her blade as she stepped. This was what she lived for, second only to purging. She had no words for this King and she would not allow him words. Mariah and Nellie had said it all. This was their God, not hers. She was just the blade lent by her Goddess Banera. Every step Evangeline took made her anger grow. Not at the crimes of the king, but more the fact that these actions had caused significant strife in the heart of Mariah. A heart so broken it manifested physically? Evangeline could consider it harm to an Angel, thus she had all the will to make this as personal as possible, as selfish as that was.

"Gui-llo-tine! Gui-llo-tine! Gui-llo-tine!" The Basenjis began to chant, then some of the Kraiven people joined in until it turned into a glorious roar to see blood
"THE CURE FOR CORRUPTION IS THE GUILLOTINE!!" Arnold screamed to the heavens over the chants, his eyes bloodshot with sorrowful anger, seething like a kettle ready to explode. "HE AND HIS GOD LEFT US TO BURN! TO HELL WITH HIM!" The man would know peace only after the last life in that castle had been destroyed. And yes, that included the little boy of the King's daughter Azure. The desire for that entire family tree scorched satiated the Enforcer's own bloodlust. A crusade of the purest form. The only traces of Hemhart's existence to be left were those recorded in books that now lie in Elaina's ever-growing library

My Goddess, I am honored to add another serving of justice to your record, Evangeline thought. "When I raise this sword, so I wish that this poor sinner receive eternal life," Evangeline declared to the heavens, her voice impossible to not hear. She lifted her blade and it began to glow harshly and then with one forceful slam of her blade, the head of the king came off, projected into the air. A swipe of her blade to fling the blood from it, an expert flip and quick sheathing of her blade, and then a hand outstretched to catch the now severed head. Evangeline had on her face the same twisted murderous grin she had when she took down Baroness, holding it out for the crowd to see. Another head to add to my Goddess's Crypt, the Enforcer thought.

The crowd cheered loud and furiously, now galvanized at the festive Basenjis who began the chant. This was the only response to the King's crimes

Vespera Marine Seyres
Church- Back of the Crowd

Ves didn't pick up on the gore or blood spurting with her ears due to all the chanting. She did see it though. They all did. "Some church I'd want to join if this is how She'd like to kick things off," Ves said sarcastically in response into her crystal. "Still, enjoy it for me, Nancy. My magic shield won't last much longer." This was a lie. It would last, but Ves's stomach was churning at the brutal display mixed with the whirlwind of emotions crashing through her stomach mixed with seeing humans praising such brutality. I don't expect you people to feel squeamish but........to CELEBRATE this?, Ves thought. She couldn't help but feel disgusted. Ves was far from a pacifist but she couldn't bear to stand such brutality. True Blood Vampires in general hated brutality. Even if they killed and drank blood from humans, it was treated like the hunt. You don't torture your prey. You take the quickest way out

She had to get out of there though, and go grab her belongings............

"Drag his soul to the Abyss!"

"Now, Nellie." This was the voice of the Goddess inside the head of Nellie. "Time to drag his soul to the Abyss. Remember this order: 'Your soul is summoned to the Abyss to begin your sentence effective immediately.'" These were the words Nellie had to say to kick off the ritual. "Remember this simple ritual: Turn the ground under him into a puddle of water, summon the Abyssal Hook, shove it into his heart, then let the hook recede into the puddle." The Daedric Hook was simply a giant fish hook that would emerge from a body of water. There was nothing special to look at concerning it, but the amount of Daedric power such a hook gave off was immense. This was the hook of the Goddess Herself, the weapon of a Tyrannical Darkness and the tool to literally catch a soul and bring it down to the Abyss where it belonged should the Goddess determine it or the Watcher judge it.

WayfaringWaaksian

WayfaringWaaksian · Nov 7, 2023

"Blood for Blood"

The moment all had been vying for arrived when the king's head, cleaved as cleanly as a butcher's cut, was raised above all in gory display. Fergie pumped a fist in the air, her chant along with the pirates ending with a cry of, "JUSTICE!" Bogrum, who was solemn during all of this, ended his silence to echo her. The deep bellow of his yell pierced its way over the cheers of the crowd, as easily as Fergie's guttural caw. Louder still was a thunderous roar of approval from Vlad, officiating the end of Hemhart's rule. A tradition from his homeland, a crowing or dethroning of a ruler was ended with a lion's roar, the universal symbol of royal leadership.

Nancy Noi
Churchyard - Back

In contrasting silence stood Nancy. Unable to speak, unable to conjure words if he could. Vengeful bloodlust was roused in the kingdom's remains, but lie dormant in Nancy. In its place... not peace. He'd never know peace again. Not quite satisfaction, either. I'll be satisfied after he dies every one of our deaths. Given the lifespan of many nonhuman citizens, that could be as close to eternity a mortal being could fathom.

Maybe he couldn't fully process this grim celebration when his friend was having the opposite reaction. Sympathy for Vespera ruled out any offense he would have taken by her sarcastic comment. Besides that, everything about this was in opposition to Ves's morals. Just because it was a beheading didn't make it a merciful death; there was the humiliation of being publicly reviled, and the agony of awaiting a terrible sentence. Not to mention the whole holding up the severed head thing, like it was a prize. Even if she could, why would Ves want to join a Goddess who reveled in such brutality? She was known for being brutal even before whatever brought Her to embrace the Abyss. Few things outclassed the seas on that front.

I pray you'll never have to be so brutal to survive, Ves. Her having to join a fleet of pirates didn't earn him much hope.

Nellie Noi
Podium - Bottom

Anticipation thrummed in Nellie's veins. The words of the Goddess in her mind, knowledge came spilling forth. She had been looking forward to this since the task had first been given. Now, she knew exactly what to do. Lungs beckoning a breath, deep and shaky in her zeal, Nellie took a few indulgent moments to relish in the ongoing cheers. Her people, thirsting for blood and death! Such Holy people, indeed. They can't lie to themselves after this, was an eager thought. Show them. Show them to embrace it!

"CITIZENS OF KRAIVEN!" she howled over the crowd, a splayed hand raised and demanding hush. After that display of dark power, they knew to give it. "My people. Beloved. Broken. Betrayed. Bask in true justice this day, for my Goddess fulfills Her promise to vindicate our great city!" She swept her hand, palm upturned. "You all have tasted Her mercy, spared from the demon's army and the king's negligence. Know that you have the protection you've always deserved under Her fin." When she gazed across the span of her gathered people, her voice grew ominous, born of that same darkness the Goddess spoke with. "So fear not that protection. We return to a dangerous world, where new enemies will plot to strike us down at our weakest. I swear on my life-- my soul!-- that every attempt will be met with swift retribution!" Arms outstretched, she backed away from the king's body. "Oppression awaits any who dares to oppress us! Bear witness, my people! WITNESS HER MALICE!!"

An accusing finger pointed down towards the dead Hemhart. "King Hemhart!" The order brimmed with power, assailing all ears. "Your soul is summoned to the Abyss to begin your sentence effective immediately!" The ritual primed, a wave of Daedric energy passed over the churchyard, Nellie at the epicenter. It flowed through her body with a bounty nigh Empowerment. Her chest ached from a thundering pulse.

A pool of water began to collect under Hemhart, clear and blooming with blood. Then it darkened, bearing the same blue as the sky above, a deep navy blue, blue a hue away from black, and finally a black that stole away all light that touched. A portal to the Abyss was open, beckoning the new resident. It was time to send him off. "Come forth, Abyssal Hook, to rend this accursed soul!" Hands steadied from their trembling, Nellie's palms raised, pulling up from the pool. "Damnatio Abyssi!"

From the depths of the portal, a flash of metal glinted in the darkness, flying upwards until it entered the Earthen plane with a splash. An upside-down hook gleamed under the sun, its barbed point sharp and deadly. Its very presence came with such magic that the air around them grew heavy, the sun's light distorting from the thickening atmosphere. Nellie had felt nothing like this in her life. Only the Goddess herself, in her physical form, compared to the intensity that radiated from this simple instrument. Here was the power to Oppress a soul, wholly and entirely, snuffing out all hope for salvation. On the tip of that point was eternal damnation.

She yanked the line down, jabbing that point deep into Hemhart's chest until it caught. A pitiful puff of Holy magic fled in the instant before the hook tore all the way down, taking with it an orb that blackened until it was impossible to discern from the Abyss around it. Down, down it went, the hook glinting its farewell until all went dark. Satiated, the pool evaporated to nothing, leaving the headless and soulless body laying as it were.

All Daedric in the air dissipated as well, benevolent Holiness resuming its comforting glow over the people. The ritual was complete, and Nellie fought to stand upright after the intense power vanished from her body. A step back righted herself before she fell, but she didn't allow apprehension to show on her face as she read the reactions of the crowd.

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Nov 8, 2023

Nellie's words saved her from Oppressing the mood out out of existence. The crowd jumped onboard, again mostly because of the Basenjis who reveled in the blood sport. The people of Kraiven just jumped on the bandwagon, driven by it and Nellie's words which exposed a level of hopeful assertiveness. Oppression awaits those who oppress us. It gave off a massive eye for an eye kind of feel to it, and it was ultimately that which kept the people from being frightened beyond belief.

The Goddess reappeared. "To my scion, I am depending on you to main law and order. To my Watcher, I am depending on you to carry out my Will for this city. We have work to do. We much scrub it of blight from the top to the bottom. Then we will rebuild this into the city of my Will. Holy? Daedric? It will be both, as it will be the City of the Deepest Deep, Orivae." This seemed to be the best conclusion for the Goddess. This was undoubtedly a Holy City led by a Holy Angel, but She had a Daedric Scion and BOTH of them drew upon Her. It would be experimental if nothing else for the Goddess. See how the people get along and see how the Holy and Daedric work together. Sebas was her human experiment and Kraiven would be her social experiment.

"I will not forsake you like your last God did. As I said before, those of you who wish to leave may do so. Those who wish to follow me, my Holy Angel, and my Daedric Scion as we bring in a new era for this city, this city will live again." A snap of her fingers, and a wave passed over the people, a mixed bag of Holy and Daedric, healing their injuries and reinvigorating them. Their clothing were still in tatters, but they actually felt alive again. Even Vespera felt it, the Daedric portion coming over her with the Holy passing over her so as to not wipe her off the face of the planet by a wave designed to heal.

"Enforcer, that skull belongs not to me." It was going to Banera. "The body will be fed to the fishes. END FORMALITIES!" The Goddess disappeared

"From the Highest Highs to the Deepest Deeps, let this ceremony bring in a new era as it sleeps." The last words of the Goddess came from overhead as if spoken out of an intercom. A ceremony one could definitely not call beautiful, but it was meaningful and it was impactful. 90 minutes from the time the Goddess appeared to the time she disappeared. Her Holiness was suffocatingly powerful, Her Daedric showing the power of Her deadly depths.

Now it was time to face reality again. This time with someone ready to lead

Demestral Asella
Flying near Church

Demi was definitely on the side of bloodlusting, cheering VERY loud once Hemhart got his head removed. She didn't do it herself or her father by his hands and that was a shame, but she was happy nonetheless to see him dead. Unlike Ves, who couldn't understand how people could celebrate this, Demi was happy. VERY happy. There was no person more deserving of death than that man. Dishonorable, shameful, disgusting behavior. Good riddance to the trash masquarading as a King.

Demi cheered with the rest. While she had plenty of skepticism, she was happy at the moment. Seeing her people cheer elated her heart. It was the first bit of happiness she had seen in them in a while and hopefully they all find peace as they rebuild. Hopefully the Goddess becomes a God capable of giving them peace. Demi had no idea what would happen to the city itself, but for once, she didn't feel pessimistic about it.

"Got faith in Her?" Quincy asked
"Enough to leave it in Her hands," Demi responded.
"Vespera to Demi." Her friend came into her crystal.
"Yes?"
"I'm gathering my belongings. I would like to accompany the pirate crew until I can go back to my family," Ves said, not sounding pleased. More like sounding like she was accepting her fate to join a crew that she didn't want to join.
"I'll be more than happy to get you back to your parents. Don't join the crew," Demi said decisively, "Quincy and I will fly you home."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course. A nice long flight is what I will need to clear my mind anyways, so it's a win-win."
"..........Thank you, Demi. Even after 200 years, you remain one of my best friends."
"We have a ton to catch up on with our flight," Demi said with a smile. Just the thought of this calmed any kind of less positive emotions she may have been feeling.

Mariah stepped up on the podium in the Goddess's disappearance. "Thus concludes the ceremony!" She declared, "As Watcher, it is my job to carry out the Goddess's Will for this city. First order of business: Food! We will set up Food Banks. The Goddess will feed Her subjects until we re-learn cultivation and farming as people now again living in a timed world. I will consult with the Goddess, we will gather ourselves and then we will begin our efforts to restore this city." Mariah really had her work cut out for her, but unlike the last time which nigh made her fall into despair, she was feeling empowered at this point. "To the pirates who risked their lives to defend this city moreso than our coward of a king ever did, we thank you for your help. You exposed the corruption of the crown that our own blind faith allowed to fester. We know now that in order for us to rise again, we must fall again and allow the captain to go down with the ship. We wish you safe travels. May those lost in the battle find rest."

"DISMISSED!"

The Raid on the Fallen Empire of Kraiven: CONCLUDED

Arnold Asella
Church

Arnold was feeling a bit more at ease after the death of the Coward King Hemhart under Mariana's rule. With the deaths of every guildmaster in Kraiven, it left the Sacrament and the Crimson Embers without a GM. Seniority rule dictates that the highest ranking takes command and with the death of Azure and those GMs, that left HIM to be the Champion of Kraiven, the Master of Mercenaries (the one in command of all guilds)............or it left Nellie to take that role with him staying in command of the Stoneroses. But first......."Bogrum!" Arnold called out, approaching the orc/elflin duo. "Gotta thank you again for your help. We have a big memorial to plan before it's time for us to get our life back together for a 3rd time." He pressed something into Bogrum's hand. It was a Stoneroses Badge. "Ancient relic 200 years in the future. You and your men are warriors. Gotta respect it. As leader, you're an honorary Stonerose. If ye don't want it, it'll catch you a fortune." A collector or historian that WASN'T Elaina would pay a massive sack of coin to get their hands on that badge.

Multiple of his men came forth with their own nods of respect to the orc man. "As you lead, remember your goal. You're a pirate but YOU think more than the rest. Don't think like a pirate. Think like Bogrum." He was referring to Bogrum losing track of the goal to defend the walls by almost ordering an offensive after they secured the integrity of the wall and made the ground deadly to the skeletons.

After Bogrum said his peace to Arnold, the Guildmaster would take his leave to begin the next order of business.

Mariah the Watcher
Church

After the ceremony, Mariah folded her wings and went to go see Steven and Elaina. "So how'd I do?"
"I've seen better," Elaina said without hesitation, "Find your confidence as an Angel. It seems like outside of rendering an official decree, you've no confidence."
"Yes," Mariah said at the criticism, "I will do better."
"But.......You were beautiful to behold for a first time," Elaina said, following up, "In part due to my makeover, but......" Elaina placed her hands on Mariah's cheeks and did a quick lookover. "You didn't need much. You have natural beauty." Fire started to well in Mariah's face
"Agreed," Steven said with a nod. "Ya did good out there. With a goody goody like you at the helm, Kraiven will be fine."
"I thank you both for the words of advice. You've changed my life." Mariah said with a bow.
"You got the power of an Angel and you got my crystal ready to communicate," Steven responded with a smirk, "You ever want to visit? Give me a call. I'll be happy to have ya." Mariah couldn't help herself. She jumped on Steven, giving him a tight passionate hug. Steven brought her back to earth too many times to count in the short amount of time he had been here. He gave a ton of advice

"As will I," Elaina said, "I've........enjoyed our chats, Mariah. You are worthy of my trust." The words filled Mariah with incredible joy. Elaina was absolutely prickly and grumpy, but she held an aura of genuineness that could only be admired. To know that she opened Elaina that much made her happy to new heights. "I will seek to chat more."
"Just one question, Lady Elaina: Why did you trust ME? Why me?"
"Simple," Elaina said with a shrug, "As Steven said, "You're a goody goody.........but you also don't take some moral superiority over people you've just met. Unlike everyone else except Vlad. For that, I actually like you, Mariah." The smile Elaina gave Mariah, a nice genuine NOT cocky or condescending smile, could melt even the thickest ice in Mariah's heart.
"I-I'm........I'm fond of you as well, Lady Elaina. It was kind of fun breaking rules." It was very embarrassing to admit given how diligent Mariah was. It would be even more embarrassing to admit that doing ANYTHING with Elaina would be more fun, now given that the Goddess hated her and that Gods in general hated witches.

Sebas Deadeye
Toron Gates- The Canine

"Nancy. Nellie. Mariah. This is Sebas Deadeye, follower of Goddess Mariana and holder of both Her Holy AND Her Daedric Divine Favors. All 3 of you as well as myself are wanted in the Guildmaster's Office in the Stoneroses HQ. 1 hour." Sebas didn't know if the Goddess passed on his information to them, but the feeling in the communication, the source of magic Sebas drew upon was undeniably that of the Goddess. Sebas didn't say any more than this. He just cut off.
"Girls," he said, "We're going back into Toron to meet more followers of the Goddess."
"I can't wait to meet those Locathah! And meet Mariah!" Ora exclaimed, grabbing her staff
"I'd like to learn how to summon the Abyssal Hook," Lostro quipped.
"Where would you like me, Sir Sebas? Shall I stand by here?" Lattice asked him
"You're coming with us."
Lattice's eyes opened. "I-I'm not worthy to be in the presence of a Goddess!"
"Then the Goddess Herself can tell you to wait outside," Sebas retorted. The Goddess would know immediately how fond the girls were of Lattice. The cursed Draconian was attached to him courtesy of those girls. "Let's go."
Lattice bowed, absolutely frightened at messing up in front of the Goddess and being turned into a minnow or something. Nevertheless, she would do her job without further complaint. "...........I will do my best to not bring shame to the Deadeye name."

WayfaringWaaksian

WayfaringWaaksian · Nov 8, 2023

Nellie Noi
Podium ---> Crowd

After wholly expecting the audience to recoil in even greater terror, they instead celebrating all the more showered Nellie with relief. A smile found its way up her face. Seeing these people happy again, despite everything, strengthened her hope from a flutter to an invigorating rush in her veins. It was finite, a brief reprieve from the desolation around them. But the message sent was permanent: the old, flawed way was history. The Kraiven Empire was a thing of the past, laid to rest as it should have 200 years ago. Under her Goddess, a new order would rise. "Orivae." She tested the name on her crystal. There wasn't much of a city left now, so she supposed a new name was appropriate.

With the ceremony dismissed, Nellie searched for Vlad from overhead. She didn't need to summon her glasses to find his enormous, maned head. Rushing down the podium, energized from the Goddess's healing spell after the exhaustion of casting so many powerful spells, she weaved through the crowd until she was with her battle partner.

"I must say," he began the moment he laid eyes on her. "That was an absolutely terrifying display."
Nellie stared at him, too dumbly for her liking. How to even take that?
Vlad apparently found this funny, chuckling, "Learn to expect that as a compliment, Daedric Mage."
Alright, so that was how. "Well, I didn't want to scare them out of their wits even more."
"You did everything right," he assured her. "That was a very tricky thing to pull off, encouraging Holy followers with a show of Daedric power. And you succeeded most excellently." The surprise at being praised must have been worn too plainly, as he draped his non-bandaged paw gently over her shoulder. "You're too hard on yourself, Nellie. You made mistakes in the throes of tragedy. You pulled yourself together despite it. That's an accomplishment in of itself." If that wasn't enough to convince her, he leaned in to say out of the ears of the humming crowd, "The Goddess was hasty in granting you so much power this soon. But she made no mistake in choosing you. You were always an inspiration to the Sacrament, and you've proven that these people will be no different."
Muscles easing after growing rigid from his touch, she gave a relenting nod. She couldn't say she was fully convinced, but she was encouraged. "I have you to thank for it all."
"I only gave you the tools. You put everything together."

The benign argument would have continued, had Nancy not joined in. His cowl kept him hidden, but Nellie could smell the despair and sorrow. "Nancy!" Already she was reaching for him, hands cradling his cheeks. They were sticky with dried tears. "I'm sorry. That must have been so hard." The whole gathering was overwhelmed by the Goddess's presence, yet he had felt none of it. He'd wanted that more than anyone here.
Before Nancy pulled away, she felt his lips tense. <<I'm fine now. I'm just happy to see everyone in high spirits.>> Enough light touched his face that she could see a soft smile. <<You and Mariah were amazing up there. It's not easy, being brave for people.>>
"You'd know better than anyone." She would not be convinced that he was fine. "How are you handling things?"
<> Nothing in the motions of his hands changed, but she could smell a touch of annoyance wafting from him. <>
"You expect me to not be worried?" she pressed, making no such attempt to hide her own agitation.

A less benign argument would have ensued, until a new voice from their crystals interjected. Nellie didn't recognize the voice or the name, but Nancy was soon to sign, <<That's one of their captains. Demi favors him.>>
Being a follower of Mariana was enough for her, but knowing that Nancy's old friend thought highly of him was an added bonus. "Then let's go." She could smell relief mixed with dread from her brother. She knew all he could smell from her was dread.

"Allow me." After removing the bandage and briefly morphing into half-form to tuck it in his pocket, he returned to full size and presented his back. The Goddess healed his wound as well.
"Will you come with us?" Nellie asked.
"This sounds like it's between Her and Her followers."
"Please. I want you with us." She loathed to beg, but ego felt insignificant to what she was about to face. With the excitement of enacting justice over, Nellie had nothing to distract from her brewing apprehension. "I'm..."
<<You could present yourself as my translator.>> Nancy stepped in, sparing Nellie from the admittance.
She shouldn't have been so reluctant to confess her fear, because Vlad radiated with it. There was aversion, the same from the Library, the same from the HQ. As always though, it didn't halt him from pressing on. "That's reasonable. I'll join you, then."

Bogrum and Fergie
Church - Crowd

"Oi! Bogrum!"
A slap on his shoulder jolted him out of his daze. Blinking, he looked down to see Fergie smirking.
"Lookin' like a trout on a cuttin' board, there."
Bogrum couldn't think of a quip to reply with. "It was a lot to take in."
"I'd say ye were pretty 'hooked'."
Now he was just miffed. "You were the one reaching for your belt, when those tentacles showed up."
"Tch!" She shrank away, making a big show of offense that wasn't really. "Just a trained response, 's all."
Genuine offense should have been taken, but Bogrum didn't allow it of himself. He had a damn good reason to feel apprehension in the face of Mariana's Daedric magic. It had been that very thing keeping him trapped in the Pockets. Still, Fergie meant no harm. No reason to act like it had.

Arnold Asella's approach came as a pleasant surprise, to which Bogrum smiled with gratitude. After last seeing the guildmaster battered and broken, it was a relief to see him again, body and will intact. Yet another was tribute placed into his palm, though instead of the stunned astonishment he'd been encumbered by before the Goddess, he nodded his thanks. "I'm honored, sir. It was a pleasure to battle alongside the guild." Dropping a bit of the formalities, he added as a joke, but with a genuine undertone, "If that's how you fight two centuries after seeing any action, I'd loathe to be on the business side of your blade any time beforehand." Arnold had been a menace on the battlefield, along with his men. Rusty for sure, but a fierce foe regardless.

The nugget of wisdom he parted with was taken with a moment of silent consideration. "I'll keep that in mind." It made him uneasy, how quickly he had been about to send his crew off course. But he wouldn't let himself bemoan it. A crisis averted, a lesson learnt. "I hope you learned as much from me as I did from you, Commander. And I hope our paths cross again some day."

When the two went their separate ways, Fergie granted Bogrum yet another clap on the back. "Popular today, ain't ya?"
"Seems like it." The appreciate was nice, but it was getting a little overwhelming. "I'm heading back before anyone else decides to dote on me."

Kylesar1

Kylesar1 · Nov 12, 2023

Orivae (formerly known as Toron)- Church of the Deepest Deep

Mariah the Watcher

The name Sebas Deadeye rang a bell. He was mentioned by the Goddess as a holder of both Divine Favors, an experimental project She was working on. It meant that Sebas, for someone being a guinea pig, was also extremely trusted by Her. For him to be the one to relay the message, it told Mariah that Sebas was one to keep note of if for no other reason than that alone. The Goddess told Sebas to tell them. 60 minutes to be there, which meant that the Goddess would give them time to talk to fellowship for a bit.

While talking to Steven and Elaina was something Mariah wanted to do far more than go into this meeting with the Goddess knowing that it was to be about Nancy, she had a job as a Watcher to see it through. "I must go meet the Goddess," she said to the beloved duo
"Nancy getting punished," Elaina said with an amused smirk. There was zero doubt that Elaina found out when they found out, unless she found out when Sebas got the order. Elaina's title as the All-Sensing Witch was not for nothing. "I'll be listening in."
"As expected of Lady Elaina," Mariah sighed.
"Lemme know the punishment," Steven said with a shrug, "Knowing the Goddess, it'll be a slap on the wrist."

Mariah couldn't tell where Steven was leaning in whether a slap on the wrist would be something he wanted or not, and just knowing that made her wonder how strict the man was when it came to the rules. Divinity Law was one thing, but what about a crew who wasn't really subject to such law at large? Was he as strict with his crew as Divinity Law was to believers?

The Watcher moved out of the front door and spread her wings to take flight. Firstly though, she wanted to see the damage from above. It was terrible. Utterly devastating

Elaina Melora

Elaina took her leave of Steven. "Going to be nosy in person?" he asked her as she was to leave
"Not particularly. Just a loose end to tie up in an unsatisfying situation."
"What's unsatisfying? The man's dead."
"I am unable to see why he did what he did," Elaina said. When Elaina didn't know something, nothing bothered her more than being unable to get the answer. No, NOT not knowing the answer. She could find it. It was not BEING ABLE TO GET the answer that bothered her, the eternal lack of closure, a nag that would never cease. Like with the rat search, when the brain is preserved, Fatimah could search its memories. With the King's head given to Banera, it was lost. With the bodies of the 100 Elite desecrated by Nellie, those were lost too. The only thing left was the archive of record for her to read through. If it isn't there, it no longer exists anymore. "It's more important to me than simply seeing his head roll." She definitely wanted him dead, but she didn't anticipate the Goddess giving Banera the man's head. Even if she could anticipate it, there was nothing she could do about it. Banera was not a Goddess to be trifled with on ANY means. She would take Elaina's head and serve Her punishment for it with a smirk on her face. If she were on earth, she'd bring her weapon to her mugshot.
"Maybe some things are better left undiscovered," Steven shrugged
"That is something people say when they've given up trying to find an answer." Elaina said in response. "But my loose end concerns Nancy."
Steven's demeanor focused in an instant. "You ain't fuckin' him over are ye?"
"Offering him a way out," Elaina said honestly, "Not without a price and not under his control but..........perhaps he can not be a Null." Not that Steven could stop her even if she were trying to fuck Nancy over, but she'd rather not make enemies where there was no point in there being. Steven's Divine Favor was strong, but Elaina's Defiance was stronger. If no
"Hmmmmmm.......... Guess it's worth a try." That told Elaina that Steven was leaning to a way out for Nancy, which meant that despite his mentality for the rules, he wasn't exactly keen on punishing Nancy.

Stoneroses HQ

Sebas Deadeye

Sebas, the girls, and Lattice all made their way to the Stoneroses HQ to the Guildmaster's Office as ordered. The quartet took care to avoid the commotion of the church and the father daughter trio took in the damage. "Guess I can see why the man lost his head," he muttered. The place was in shambles. He could also see why Bogrum and Elaina were so pissed. What's the point of the defense. He already got the reports but he knew he wouldn't be getting used to a sight like that anytime soon.
To think this shit is better than the alternative, Sebas thought. That alternative was to turn Demi's UV Nova, Fatimah's Cascada, and Naka's Laser Cannon Barrage against the city, while Elaina snipes from the ship with Anti-Magic bullets.......... All under the strategic genius that was Avery, who showed himself to be immensely frightening to get on the bad side of...... Or worse than all of that, unleash the Mozreliun-possessed Lostro to go all out and gluttonize on human souls. It gave Sebas a new appreciation of the power they held, and made him respect Adonis for putting together a crew like this, him being as unlikable as he is. Perhaps that's what was driving the man's mentality: Not only the crew behind him, but the fact that he COULD get this kind of crew behind him.
"Girls, Lattice," Sebas said as they came to the HQ. "Don't say a thing when the meeting begins. If you do, I'll mute you. Lattice........I'll report your offenses to Demi."
Lattice bowed. "I'd prefer you beat me with a stick than tell Lady Demestral."
As if Sebas would do something like that! Only if the Goddess commanded it, then She'd have to explain that shit to Demi. He wasn't getting his head put on a pike by pissing off someone like Demi. "You're not my servant, Lattice. Just stay in line or Demi will be the one beating you with a stick. Not me."

Lattice Stoneburn

TELLING LADY DEMESTRAL!?! Lattice was internally trembling at the idea. Lady Demestral was a very lenient master, but that meant that any rules she DID have, she was incredibly strict about. Looking back on the times she was punished and the times she punished Quincy, and the times she punished those that made her angry, Lady Demestral was someone hard to make angry, but someone so fiery when she did get angry that serving one of her punishments was as physically taxing as it was mentally debilitating. Lattice saw Demi beat one of the maids for berating and insulting Quincy, and that maid had such heavy PTSD from it that she had to be transferred to another manor. Just being tasked to go into her Lady's room sent that maid into a crippling panic attack. This wasn't long after Demi came back from Redcap School as well. By no means was her Lady cruel, but she had the capability more than anyone else to BE cruel and merciless.

"You can consider your warning heeded, Sir Sebas," Lattice told him. Sebas was intimidating in his own right. Scary eyes, decisive demeanor, and a nonchalance towards putting a bullet in someone's head, given power by the Goddess to control the duo of daughters at his side. Lady Orabelle was nice and serene, a sweetheart through and through. Lady Lostrogret? Nice and serene about the most frightening things imaginable. If one observed her actions, she was as cute as Orabelle if not cuter given that Lady Orabelle crunched on fish and left a bloody mess while Lostro just liked sweets. If one listened to how she spoke though, it was clear that the Gorgon child was twisted beyond belief. Innocent about horrors beyond the cursed maid's imagination

Why am I here? Lattice thought, internally groaning. Be careful what you wish for, Lattice. She was caught in a vulgar, bloodthirsty pirate crew. No table manners or etiquette to speak of. The most normal person seemed to be the Orc man Lady Demestral mentioned.
Let's face it, Lady Demestral loves this type of insanity and I fit right into it, Her train of thought continued. A cursed draconian maid, a Triton girl out of water, a dwarf Gorgon girl possessed by an ancient demon, a polytheistic Pixie woman who rides a wyvern, a human man who isn't fully human anymore granted both Holy and Daedric Divine Favor and is now the blood father of the aforementioned Triton and Gorgon girls. A Goddess who is somehow both Holy and Daedric. Then looking at other members on the ship. A woman with a bear pet seems fairly tame. A slave owning witch who can see and hear everything seemed tame. A young catboy who can orchestrate the subjugation of an ancient demon capable of causing the apocalypse seemed tame. A goblin elf woman who was very tall with a prosthetic leg she kept attached with magic seemed tame. A giant woman capable of manipulating her size and controlling the weapons aboard the ship seemed tame. A captain who owned a gun axe that consumed blood and could talk seemed tame. An air breathing Locathah woman who ended up becoming one of the greatest mages in a human kingdom from a race known for having very very little magic seemed...... Well that one was more chaotic.

Lattice was thinking herself into a tizzy. THIS IS WHY LADY DEMESTRAL LOVES THIS CREW!! Lattice thought frantically. Such dysfunction and chaos. A thousand elements that should never work somehow work. If Lady Lucina saw this crew, she'd have an aneurysm! Lattice learned to steady herself in unsteady conditions. Hell, her existence is born from an unsteady ancestry. More chaos was never a desire for the perpetually young Draconian, but she always hoped that Lady Demestral would mellow out eventually. 200 years later though, and her Lady is the same as ever

"Let's go." The quartet walked into the HQ, the first to arrive in wait for the Goddess. Please don't let this be something crazy, Lattice hoped.

After they closed the door, Elaina made herself visible right outside the Guildmaster's Office in that little lobby in itself. At this point, no one would pass through without the Witch's vision passing over them.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Setting Sail Again: The Warning

"Adonis to All units. We are dusting off at 5:00. Anyone not on the ship will be left here. No exceptions no questions." It was currently about 1:00 so that gave them 4 hours. Adonis wasted no time in wanting to leave this place behind, just like he would've done if they had left it in smoldering ruins after slaughtering every inhabitant. The most surprising thing about this is that for all his wasting no time in wanting to leave, he's allowing the pirates to waste time in further fellowship with the people after the Goddess claimed the city.

Just like that though, the crew was forced to change their mindset to move on to the next thing. What was the next thing in question? It was very much up in the air. Literally, at least until they made it back to wherever Adonis wanted them to land. Until then, it was time to wrap up

WayfaringWaaksian

WayfaringWaaksian · Nov 12, 2023

Nellie Noi
Stoneroses HQ

A quick trot brought the trio to Headquarters soon after the arrival of Sebas's small entourage. A very empty building, with most of the inhabitants either out in fellowship, still returning, or in a different Wing giving or receiving medical care. The vacancy of the lobby stood out, especially when a certain witch was presenting herself right before the office door.

What's she here for? were Nellie's sour thoughts. Here to relish in our misery?
... Hardly. If that's what Elaina wanted, she would have let the guards flounder while they failed to protect the city. She would have let Nellie cook alive, or Nancy freeze to death. The simple fact that she had intervened at all flew in the face of any suggestion of ill will towards her people. Did she care about them personally? Hell no, and not that Nellie expected her to. Then why? Why did she do it? Personal gratification? An inability to leave something worse off than it started? A need for control?

Nellie realized here that she didn't care. If the intentions weren't hostile, they didn't matter. Results were what mattered, and they were GOOD results. The best they could have gotten in this rancid shitpile of a situation. And results deserved rewards.

"Elaina," she greeted simply. Tone terse and body rigid, only some of that tension released with a breathy sigh. "Convenient that we find you here." With the way she sounded, it could have very well segued to a demand of WHY. But instead she continued, with an honesty their ever-earnest accomplice was owed, "This is not easy for me to admit. It was my duty-- a duty that I failed in-- to protect the people from harm." A testament to her fumbles, her emotional breaks, and the stupid decisions that led to more deaths. "So know that I speak for all of us when I say... we're in your debt. Every one of us."

It was only her long-term familiarity with nobles that allowed her to maintain poise, gazed locked on Elaina when it wanted anywhere else. Her hands lacing tightly only betrayed their dire need to fidget. "Without your guidance, this entire city would have been lost to chaos. And without your personal intervention..." Pressure grew behind watery eyes, and she had to fight the urge to blink. "You've spared my Goddess from the shame of a defied Will, my brother from eternal severance... and ME from the agony of having set it all in motion." Not to say she wasn't now, but to be spared from the worst possible consequences was something she could only owe to Elaina.

Vlad's endearment at her attempting diplomacy was interrupted by a tapping on his coat. Glancing behind himself at Nancy, he was shown some startling words.
<<Don't fear the Goddess. She wants to cure the sick, not smite them.>>
It pierced his chest, spreading a cold chill throughout. Never mind the bluntness of it, when Nancy was now privy to a baleful fact. "How did you find out?" he whispered.
<>
That was means for greater alarm. Over the course of a few days, it was manifesting that strongly in his blood? He was right to keep Nellie away from his wound. "I trust Her. That's not what I'm worried about." He left it at that.

Nellie was about to choke up on this humble pie, so she had to wrap things up. "You've done more than enough to earn the respect of this city. If you have a request-- ancient knowledge, history, magical assistance-- name it, and I'll fulfill it best to my ability. Within reason." For an added bonus, she told her, "And you're welcome to a tour of the Sacrament, after we've established some sense of order here." The HQ was still intact, with it all of its tomes and relics. With the deaths of Gormon and the rest who had been punished for inaction, there were still files to audit, hopefully to get some answers for why they had abandoned the city in favor of the King.

"There's a lot we have to share with the world today, and a lot we must learn if we're to be part of it. It would benefit us greatly having someone as knowledgeable as you to call upon." Fins flattening close to her head, she murmured, "Mostly for Vlad. He's curious."
"I never suggested any of this, by the way-- PFFFFT--" Vlad was getting a face full of tail fin, but the truth was already out.
Given that he felt inclined to tease her instead of protest, "He's in agreement, then."

Bogrum and Fergie
Orivae ---> Canine

While the two made way towards the portal that would take them back to the ships, Fergie perked up, "Sure ye finished here? Ye heard the Cap'n. Got a few hours left."
Bogrum shrugged, but he smiled at the suggestion. "Nothing more to say." Arnold was the only person he'd been involved with. He felt no need to peruse the crowd. "I'd stay for the memorial, but that'll be long after we've left." Collecting the remains of 75,000+ bodies wasn't going to be done in less than 4 hours. "I just want to put this behind me."

Giving one last look from the inside of the city, the utter destruction of it all jabbed his heart with the same stinging barbs as every other time. If he was to ever return, he'd be happy to see it at a new peak, restored and thriving under the Ocean Trench Goddess. Assuming she doesn't allow another Megalo to take the throne. Bogrum had high hopes, but he couldn't ignore the possibility.

Stepping aboard the Canine, Bogrum said, "I'd check on Doc, but she's up to her ears in souls and wounded." There was no way she was okay after this, holding back tears after the Goddess gave the death toll. He hoped she wasn't feeling like she failed in her promise.
"Then let's check on Ave," was Fergie's suggestion. "Give him a proper congrats, aye?"
"Of course. If he's not sleeping in after two missions in a row."

With that in mind, the duo began their search for the rest of the ship leadership.

Kylesar1

Fantasy Are you tired of sipping Crab Coladas? (Pirate RP) (Always Open)

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

This is my loudest bork

To Anywhere but There

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