Fantasy Kraiven to Orivae: Rebuilding a Broken Kingdom

[Kylesar1]

The Story so Far
​

This RP is a Parallel Sequel to this RP Fantasy - Are you tired of sipping Crab Coladas? (Pirate RP) (Always Open). This synopsis is an oversimplified synopsis about events in this RP and since that is a pirate RP, the events mostly took place from the perspective of the pirates.





The Location: Toron, the Capital City of the Empire of Kraiven

Lore story short, this place was invaded by demons. The actual history behind it is currently skewed, but in the demon invasion, which was a one-sided domination by the demons, the king got his best to unleash a massive spell to escape and it ended in the Capital City and the cities around it all teleported in a place called the Null Realm (aka the Spirit Sea).

In this realm, time does not naturally pass. It only passes with the use of magic. It is called the Null Realm due to the fact that it is completely cut off from the other realms. Gods cannot see it and those who follow a God are no longer able to commune or communicate with their God. It is for this reason that it is also called the Godless Realm.

• Null Realm, Spirit Sea, Godless Realm all refer to the same place. This RP will mostly use the term Null Realm for ease

Now in a devastated destroyed city, the people were forced to rebuild while reconciling with the immense amount death. Laboring while knowing that they both will never see the real world again nor see their loved ones again, after being decimated in an invasion, the rebuild was slow. It took time, a LOT of time. Soon though, after enough time passed, the Capital city was rebuilt in its original pre-invasion image. Determined to rebuild what remained of the empire, King Hemhart was vital in making it happen.


The Return to Time: 2 Centuries Later and the Pirate Crew

Out of nowhere, 2 centuries into peace among the people, the kingdom found itself being ripped out of the Null Realm and returned into a world of time. The culprits? A pirate crew by the name of the Black Sea Basenjis. Headed by a powerful man named Asmund Adonis, the original plan of the pirates were to destroy and loot it for 200 year ancient artifacts and relics, as well as a Dragon Egg. However, this original plan was created on what seems to be inaccurate information. What they were told was a coward king and his 100 Elite turns out to be an entire thriving city full of people. This place...........was also the homeland of one of their members, a pixie named Demestral Asella. This woman, daughter of Arnold Asella, who is the guildmaster of Guild Stonerose, knew it was foul-play and, upon knowing that she was about to take her blade and the breath of her Wyvern companion to her loved ones in her lost homeland, did everything in her power to not let that happen

So she convinced the captain of leading crew, Sebas Deadeye, to shift the narrative. Adonis wanted the relics and items. The murdering the entire city to get the items were optional. Sebas's solution? He had his own problem. Due to the actions of Asmund Adonis, the crew harbored within their ranks a terrifying weapon: A little girl possessed with a powerful ancient demon. This little girl was someone Sebas was the father figure of (not her father, but her guardian essentially) and he never forgave Adonis for trying to use her as a weapon for the crew. To put it shortly, this little girl was supposed to die and be buried. Instead, Adonis wanted to harness her strong latent power. He robbed her of both a life and of a death by having her body possessed by a demon he thought he could control. This demon was too strong to be controlled and she ended up more of a danger to her crew than a weapon

Sebas decided to use the land to force the demon out to get rid of. So they came in peace. The crew met with the King and strong-armed them into accepting the condition. Either they allow the pirates to fight this demon, or THEIR captain would have them destroy this city. King Hemhart obviously accepted.


The Betrayal of the Crown and the Intervention of the Goddess

The pirates were determined to fight the demon away from the capital city. They gave the people time to prepare and even lent them assistance they would need to defend their city. However, instead of actually preparing, the King gathered his 100 Elite and closed off the castle. When the demon was summoned and his legion poised ready to strike, what should've been an easy defense turned into a nigh genocide. While the pirates were holding up their end of the bargain in keeping the ancient demon FAR away from the city, and other pirate crews defending any of the legion trying to infiltrate the gates, the interior became a bloodbath. What essentially happened was that the King gathered his nobles and the 100 best warriors in the city and then closed off the castle to let the rest of the city burn. With people who most of them haven't fought in 200 years, they simply stood no chance

In steps Mariana, Goddess of the Deepest Deep, who claimed the city for Herself and destroyed the legions inside while the pirates finally took on the demon outside. Thus ends the fight, but not without a genocidally high casualty rate of 81%, an exact number of 75,347, not including those who may go on to die from injuries after this announcement. Broken again, and broken worse than before, a people who already shouldn't be alive were staring ANOTHER rebuild in the face. This time with time being a factor now, having to rebuild in a world 200 years in the future, their source of survival lie under the fins of the Goddess. The Goddess had the King and his 100 Elite killed for their negligence. Their active inaction contributed to the vast majority of the deaths, all circumstances were taken into place. The pirates, both inside and outside the city defended with every bullet they had. They upheld their end of the bargain, the pirates were not there to defend their city FOR them. They lent assistance and the effort they headed (defending the gates) ended in perfect results. The efforts of the pirates inside were the direct cause of Goddess Mariana even being able to take the city

The King and Council executed, a city claimed by the Goddess under her protection and authority, a new Angel (a nun ascended to angel-hood due to her unfaltering faith in that 200 years) put in place to oversee the rebuild effort, and the strongest mage in the kingdom temporarily put in place as Queen, the present of the Kingdom looks bleak but maybe they can rebuild

While they rebuild in this new world, there are a LOT of questions to be answered. After the pirates have left, a rebuild and an investigation into the corruption of the Crown are in order.



This RP is the aftermath of the events, after the pirates have left. You are a person devastated, war-torn and traumatized for what may be the second time

 

[Kylesar1]

Prologue
Location: Toron, Capital of Orivae (Formerly known as Kraiven)
​

Devastated by the invasion from the legions of the Ancient Demon Mozreliun, Toron is currently in dire straits as a country/empire. With an extremely devastating death toll of over 80%, the rebuild looks even more bleak than the first invasion, not to mention that if the first invasion is weighing on the mind of the people, that in itself was an issue. With no economy, a blighted land preventing agriculture, less than 20% of their initial population, and being a new island 200 years more primitive than the rest of the world, The downfall of this island is all but inevitable without the help of the Goddess who owns this city.

Guildmaster Arnold Asella
"Should I hate the Crown or the Crew?"
​

1st Person POV

Who should a person hate more: The king who rebuilt a kingdom to sit atop a throne conjured by deception? Or a crew that summoned a beast whose legions caused a genocide, in which the cracks of sunlight exposed a traitorous King and Council? Perhaps we should hate both.......... but these may be the words of a powerless man whose greater wish it was to protect his homeland. Had I the strength of hand in my body to protect this land, my enemy would be clear. It would be the crown. The pirate crew is not blameless, but they are not my enemy. In fact, were they my enemy, I would have inevitably fallen to their storm of bullets and cannonfire. Their rank carried a swagger of victory before the fight begins, a firepower to dominate any amount of kingdoms of our time, and a troop whose battle-mania and bloodlust betrayed a selfless will and love of comrades rivalling my own guild. Though doubt-free of my abilities to best many of them in a 1 on 1 now that I know how a "firearm" works, I know that we stand no chance against this crew as a group. Pirates of my day were malcontents down on their luck. This crew has divinity in their back pocket, including my own daughter who invoked the power of Avalon to more destructive Draconic power than I have ever seen.

I think about one man in particular, an orc man named Bogrum. Calculated and respected, he reminds me of me when I was a young and dumb new party leader. He wants the best, but tends to overthink what is simple. He either has a genuine love for his crew, or he has a high sense of responsibility for the lives under his command. It has sunk in to him that in a place where the dead may be revived, he knows that prevention is the best mitigation. However, the crew is willing to die under his command, so I took it upon myself to ensure that he doesn't have to test his faith in whatever God he serves for a revival. I can only hope he took my advice to heart.

I should say that I am surprised at this outcome. I am not. In fact, this is the better outcome. Had we any less than their goodwill, we'd have been killed by that crew. Every man, every woman, every child. They made it clear. It was either they kill skeletons or they kill us THEN kill skeletons. It is frightening their confidence. I spoke to Vespera before she left, and she spoke of a witch named Elaina in their ranks. A sharp tongue and a condescending demeanor covering a level of skill and proficiency higher than even the Goddess. The Goddess taking the city, the Blight exposed, the corruption in the Church exposed, the corruption of the Crown exposed, and the plan to ultimately destroy the skeletons..........ALL her. A mastermind of a woman who is definitely not benevolent but not exactly malevolent either, any hatred I can have for her is dissolved by the fact that I have limited experience, though IN that limited experience, I can corroborate Ves's view of her tongue.

Where does that leave me? A Guildmaster of the Stoneroses, not quite at square one, but with a casualty rate that leaves dear Efilisa distraught, and a future up in the air. No matter what though, I press on. Through uncertain waters, I must remain more certain of the future than the guild I am to lead.

Though I pray to no God in particular, give me strength of mind to lead Stoneroses into a bright future. I already know I have the strength to turn away from the Goddess who ordered my alchemist Nancy away from the guild and his home, both against his will. Knowing that man being the cupcake he is, I cannot take this news positively. I would like to trust her word, but one does not earn the ire of Vespera easily. When one can jade someone such as her, the ire earned as well-earned indeed.



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

Part 1: Where to Even Begin Rebuilding This Kingdom?

Date: September 5
Time: 1400
Weather: Clear and Sunny
Temperature: 65 Degrees




Josephine Warren
Aecor Athenium (Formerly known as Vespera's Manor)​

Spoiler: Location: Aecor Athenium

Aecor Athenium (Formerly known as Vespera's Manor)​

Description: Located near the outskirts of the Noble District, the Aecor Athenium is the former home of the Vampire darling that is Vespera Marine (Mahr-reeh-nay) Seyres, the former Deputy Guildmaster of Guild Stoneroses. The witch Elaina Melora is turning her left behind manor into a library. As of right now, the manor lies abandoned and, at most, the master bedroom is being reconfigured to Josephine's own liking.

The population is currently Josephine and a huge murder of crows taking residence around and in it. The current resident of this manor says that anyone who wants Vespera's left behind belongings can get them. Otherwise, it belongs to Josephine herself. 99% of the history of this mansion would be preserved, mostly because Josephine feels bad about ever having to get rid of what seems to be important aspects of Vespera and the Seyres family, despite Ves choosing what she wanted to take with her.

The manor was massive. No maids/butlers, all Josephine had were Corvus birds. A lot of them. Jo had them survey the building, and borrowing their eyesight to get a good look at the place, but since then, she's been at her desk planning out how all of this would work. At some point, I'll have to go into the town, she thought. Damn she felt out of place and insecure about it though. 80% of their population were KILLED 3 days ago, and the bodies were still there. The only reason the bodies weren't an eternal feast for the flock was that this entire place was under a barrier that preserved everything under it. So there was a stench of initial death, but not the overwhelming stench of rot. If the Goddess owned this place, surely she could come down and do something about this. Throw them a bone. If they have to rebuild, AT LEAST remove the dead bodies!! Thankfully for Jo, any dead bodies around the manor were either moved elsewhere or just devoured by the flock. They did eat carrion afterall. Jo just made sure they picked the bones clean and then moved them to the burn pile. The manor had a furnace in the basement and right at the basement door was a barrel for the bones to go in, where they would be purified and then thrown into the furnace.

On top of those circumstances. These people were 200 years her senior, but they also lived in Stonehenge. May as well be a grandpa, all of them. Plus, SHE was the outsider, not them. How would she go about this? First, she can gather intel on the city and the goings-on. She got acquainted with Efilisa, Arnold Asella, Vlad, and Nellie Noi. She just....... didn't feel comfortable around them. She thought Efi was scary enough, but it would be unfair given how nice she seemed to be. As for Nellie............ Seeing within her eyes the Abyss of the ocean courtesy of the Goddess made her want to stay the hell away. On the other hand, the warm regal-ness of Vlad made her feel actually safe. Arnold was the most leader-like of the people she met, and it's probably because he was an actual Guildmaster and former military commander. Plus he was HUMAN. Something normal gave her a spark of hope for an eventual normal life.

Jo walked outside and clapped twice. "FLOCK, I need your help with something," she called. Immediately, the large group of crows gathered before her. "We need to scribe the layout of this manor and report it to Lady Elaina. I will be borrowing your eyesight." she commanded. The woman always felt in her element with these birds. Apparently she was favored by one Corvidae, who is apparently "King Corvus", the God of sorts of Corvus Birds. His favor granted her favor of the entire Corvus section. If there was a Corvus bird, she was inherently in good with them. The woman had no recollection of this, but a little birdie by the name of Rook informed her of all of this. In fact, he seemed to be her greatest lead of learning her past before becoming a slave.

The midnight meeting with the flock had gone incredibly well. She offered them food and Avian Veterinarian expertise. They offered protection and services. In one fell swoop, she became the Queen of the Orivae Flock. Of all Corvus birds here, not just crows. Being deemed a Corvian Benefactor let her unite even the Corvus Bird that would normally be natural rivals. "Let's get half outside and half inside." If Lady Elaina isn't busy, I can just have her borrow my eyesight and do it herself, Jo thought. Maybe this wouldn't be that bad. Then again, scribing this all out was the easiest part of what's about to be a long process.

Mariah the Watcher
On High (Heaven)- Mariana's Office
​

"Goddess, the people are requesting assistance." Mariah stood before the Goddess in her office. The Piscean Goddess was sorting through the souls of those who died during the Mozreliun fight. There were over 75,000 to get through, so it was basically her life with an increased priority. "There are too many bodies to reasonably compile. They've tried their best for 3 days. It is a soul-crushing experience, and I personally feel more guilty by the day since I have been doing other Angelic duties instead of helping them as much as I would like." It really was demoralizing. Day in and day out was body compiling and cremating. 72 STRAIGHT hours of work and they'd barely dented it. "Is it possible to Descend with the justification of needing to remove the bodies?"
"I already submitted for it," Mariana said formally, looking up from her desk work. "I'll be hearing back soon. When I get approval to assist directly, I will do so." Gods weren't supposed to be giving out direct assistance like that, but with a death toll like that, after those circumstances that required Divine Intervention, the justification was solid. Hell, the God of the Vault took the fall for allowing the Null Realm to be breached, the Goddess was punished for an infraction, results She didn't want to talk about, and the God of Exorcism had to deploy disguised forces to clean up the countless number of souls that escaped when the Null was breached. The Null Realm was resealed and then double sealed to prevent any more breaches, whether to enter or leave. It was a disaster all around, and the sole silver lining to Mariah was her meeting Lady Elaina. While no one from the pirate crew came back in those 3 days, Mariah DID get acquainted with Josephine, her slave and proxy
"Mariah, are you listening?"
"My apologies, Goddess," Mariah said quickly and apologetically, "I was just thinking about everything that's happened so far." Lying to a God was an offense, so she dare not try even a little white lie.
"Yeah.........We have no time to breathe," She affirmed, forgiving her not listening in that moment. "But tell the people that I will be Descending again to remove the dead bodies. It's taken this long to get approval because my standing is lowered from all this."
"Yes, Goddess. At once........ Before I do so, there is another issue I would like to bring up with you." No better time than now, while she was standing in the Goddess's office.
"Is it about that woman currently residing in Vespera's old manor?" Of course the Goddess would know.
"Yes, Goddess."
"Tell me about her."
"...........She is.........." Mariah was hesitant. She didn't want to set the Goddess off by mentioning Lady Elaina's plans. ".......Lady Elaina's slave and proxy. She is the one in charge of turning that manor into the library Lady Elaina wants."
"........Approved. Carry on."
"Wait? What?!" Mariah was surprised. Just like that?! "I thought you were resistant to Lady Elaina setting up a library!"
"She isn't a net positive person, but she is a net positive asset." Mariana said, eyes narrowed. "The people like that witch, so The Daedric Counsel will not let it slide if my pride costs my people their hero." Word of mouth about the Witch who masterminded the defense effort at the betrayal of the crown gave her a high standing in the city. Her sharp tongue betrayed helpful honesty. Jack and Steven had a high standing as well. They would be delighted to know that Lady Elaina the mastermind would be helping. Nellie, Vlad, Arnold, the Goddess, Lady Elaina, and Mariah herself. Those were the bastions of hope for the people. With morale at an all time low and dropping by the minute with these dead bodies having to be moved, this was an issue only the Goddess Herself can deal with immediately

The Daedric must've really reamed the Goddess to dissolve all of her resistance. The Angel was hoping that the Goddess didn't ask about her feelings on it. "Ok.....I'll let Josephine know."
"Tell her I will be visiting her manor and asking questions to her directly when I Descend," Mariana commanded, "If there is nothing else, you're dismissed. Thank you, my Angel."
With a bow, Mariah made her exit. Heading to the Realm Gate, Mariah actually came out with more hope than she came in with. She was glad the Goddess wasn't skirting responsibility, working as hard as they were down on earth. She just did all she could while being chained.

"Mariah to Nellie. The Goddess will be Descending in due time to remove the bodies of the dead." Their first bone would be thrown to them so they can actually begin figuring out how to rebuild. It would also give Nellie the first opportunity since the day of departure to actually have a conversation with the Goddess. She knew Nellie was dying to speak to the Goddess under the around-the-clock work they were both inundated with. Nellie was NOT happy with what happened to Nancy. Mariah certainly wasn't either, but worrying about that is low priority to the completely uncertain future of Orivae.
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Nelson "Nellie" Noi
Noble District - Cremation Pit​

The Goddess? On Earth?
"It's about time." Though she spoke through her crystal, the hiss in her words was notable. "I don't know how anyone On High thought we could just clean up ten thousand bodies in any timely manner, but I'm chancing a guess they watched us flounder enough."

Nellie didn't do any of this Divine shit. As far as she was concerned, it was all nonsense. Bureaucratic inanities that prevented action from being taken. Goddess Descending a day after the battle to execute the king and claim the city was okay, but Her cleaning that city wasn't? Sending out someone to assassinate the corrupt council on the spot was okay, but taking care of the broken civilians that remained wasn't? Having a mental break while wielding obscene power that was killing innocents wasn't worth punishing, but someone putting a stop to it by circumventing that power was?! Make it make sense!

The huff Nellie breathed would have been accompanied by an irate growl had she possessed the anatomy for it. "I'll spread the word. Let me know if there's any accommodations I need to make." Like hell she'd know what was proper for a Godly visit at any time, let alone times like these. As a newly Favored follower, she didn't know anything about this.

And she didn't know why she expected any different.

"In the meantime, Vlad and I are still working on it. Over," she quickly clicked off before Mariah could try to scold her for her tongue. It wasn't like she was insulting the powers above. She was just done. Done with cremating bodies, done with seeing a thousand grieved faces with tired eyes from this grim work, done with seeing many thousand more faces cauterize in the fires that burned all day and night. Vlad had worked endlessly keeping those Holy pyres burning hot, Nellie just as so carrying bodies in a summoned water current to those pyres and drawing the moisture out as they fell. Like a conveyor belt, body after body, monotony that numbed the mind of this soul-crushing assembly line. But it let the mind wander, wander into circles that descended into spirals.

I can't deal with this. Seeing her city destroyed was enough. Seeing every face she knew for centuries before she dropped them into the pits was enough. Not knowing how the hell they were going to establish any sort of normalcy after it all was enough. But she could rebuild. She could memorialize. She could lead the survivors into a new age. So Nellie couldn't afford any of her dwindling mental fortitude on things she couldn't make right. She couldn't fixate on what happened to her brother.

Looking upon the Goddess's face again would make that all she could think about.
What will I even say to her? ... Nothing. There wasn't time to discuss matters that weren't about the city. Nellie kept her Favor for the city. She let Nancy leave without her for the city. So if it wasn't about the city, it could wait.

It could wait.

It could wait.

"Vlad to Nellie." The beastman's voice lit up her crystal. "It's getting harder to fan these flames. What pissed you off?" The authority in his tone was dampened by its pervading weariness, but she answered promptly.
"Sorry. The Goddess is Descending to help with cleanup."
"Oh, thank the Gods." At least Vlad could show gratitude at a time like this. It made her feel a touch guilty. "I know She's the last person you want to see right now, but we need the help. Direly."
"I'll be fine. It's more important that we finish this so the people don't have to look at it anymore." Noble, Commerce, Residential, and beyond. All districts were swathed with the dead, and there was no avoiding it. Her and Vlad's efforts were concentrated where most of the casualties were, but often she wondered if she should have focused where they could have actually put a dent in the work so there would be a place the civilians could refuge without the smell of death purifying their noses. At least it was simply death, and not decay.

But it didn't matter anymore. Goddess would take care of this in under a day. Knowing that let her shed some of that building anger, the chill leaving the air and allowing the fires to again climb and crackle with vigor. Nellie's Daedric Favor gave her immunity to the heat, but she was still throwing sweat off her forehead every minute, haws closed so the salt didn't burn her eyes.
"I'm going to let the rest know."


Guildmaster Arnold Asella was next. "Nellie to Arnold. The Goddess is Descending to clean up the dead, so get everyone ready." As one of the few left in command, he was also one of the few who could reliably get things done in a timely fashion. "We were making little progress in the Noble District, so this was much needed. What about on your end?"


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Guildmaster Arnold Asella
Residential District- Cremation Pit​

"Thank goodness," Arnold said with a sigh. He sounded relieved, but not a happy relieved. A relieved of finally being replaced at his place of duty long after it should've been done. "I was told I have a bottomless well of mana, but somehow I'm reaching the bottom." Arnold was known as the Shieldless Paladin. Not carrying a shield, he instead used his "bottomless well of mana" to produce a shield, pinpoint like a sniper to prevent damage. He wasn't equipped to be burning literally nonstop for this long. No one was. "We've done a lot, but nary a dent. It's too many." The residential district was the area he took on, as it was where the Stoneroses HQ was closest to. Unfortunately, it was where the bulk of the population were. The Stoneroses were the most population-dense guild so it made sense but...........Man, there was never a more demoralizing thing than seeing all this and thinking they could rebuild from this. This was worse than the first invasion. "I welcome Her appearance to get this finished in one fell swoop." We got more important issues to worry about.

"Let us let our people rest. If the Goddess is Descending to remove them, we can call this quits," Arnold decided with a sigh, "Obviously we have shown them that this is unrealistic in a timely manner." The man was exhausted. Having expended more mana than most mages have spent in a month, in 3 days. 2 months in 5 days if you want to include their fight with that demon. "I'll not question it. Just be happy at her intervention." Ah, he didn't care honestly. That's his take on all this. He was filled in on everything concerning Nancy and the Goddess. As currently second in line to the throne behind Vlad, he had to be made privy to all of this information. He couldn't be left in the dark about really anything.

But on her order to get everyone ready, Arnold wasn't sure what she wanted. "We don't see anything to prepare for a Descendence. Either we gather for Her Descendance, or we go home and refuel," he told her, "Unless there's an order to gather, I'd rather my men rest." This was a doubly lined phrase, because if the order came either Nellie or the Goddess, he had to follow. Well............technically, Nellie wasn't Coronated so she wasn't the queen but there wasn't even a castle. Plus, who gives a damn about a ceremony? They were inundated with dead bodies! "Let me know if there's an update. Arnold, out."

He turned back to the task as hand. If the Goddess was Descending, no point in keeping them here. Not all of them anyways. "Oi!" he called out, projected his voice across the entire Residential District. "The Goddess is Descending to remove these bodies! Go home and rest." Some sighs of relief to his left and right showed that they felt the same as he did. "Stay flexible in case we have to gather for her Descending."

The roads still littered with dead bodies, Arnold was more than happy to leave this to Her. You'll have to redeem yourself in my eyes, Goddess. After being filled in on everything that happened with Nancy, the man was not filled with faith for the Goddess's intention. However, this would be a positive in his mind. Through the bloodied ruins of the streets of Toron, the man's boots trudged, demoralized but with a spark of hope about him with the information told to him.
WayfaringWaaksian

Spoiler: Josephine

Josephine Warren
Aecor Athenium​

This took a while, but Jo finally got it done. Lady Elaina WASN'T available to borrow her sight to do it herself, so she'd send her weekly report with the schematics a bit early, and just let her know. "Josephine to Lady Elaina."
"Yes Josephine?"
"I have completed scribing the schematics for this manor. I'll send it wit-" She heard a knock at the door. "Someone's at the door. Can you hold for a moment?" Jo requested as she ran to the front door.
"How bold of a slave to make the master wait......."
Jo ignored this as she opened the door to see Mariah. "Oh, Ms. Angel!" What the hell is Ms. Angel doing here?, Jo thought. This probably wasn't a good thing. Josephine was left the hell alone this entire time since they guided her to her new home. They had better things to do than to deal with a newcomer when they had urgent city-building things to focus on, and Jo was more than happy to leave them to it. This manor was stacked with food and alcohol. For a vampire who only needed blood, Vespera definitely still lived like a noble. "Come in. What brings you here?"
"Unexpected visit from Mariah?" Elaina said smugly, "How interesting. Keep me on the line."

Spoiler: Josephine, Third Wheeling

The duo took a seat out in the lobby. Jo had a desk setup there because damn if she navigates this huge house every time she needed to do a different piece of paperwork. "Lady Elaina is on the line. Everything told to me will be told to her in tandem," Jo informed her. No point keeping it a secret. She was Elaina's proxy afterall.
"Hello, Lady Elaina," Mariah said, smiling now. It DEFINITELY elevated the Angel's mood. "The people here lift up your name as one of the heroes, along with Sir Jack and Sir Steven." How nauseating. Elaina was at best an anti-hero, and knowing her as well as Jo did, Elaina didn't put on some act. You're submissive as hell! Elaina seduced your ass by being a bitch, Jo wanted to tell Mariah. The Angel wore her feelings for Elaina on her sleeve. I ain't banging you in her stead!
"I'm surprised the Goddess even allows it," Elaina mused, "The Daedric Counsel must've knocked some of that pride out of her..........but how are things in the city?"
"Awful," Mariah said, face falling at knowing what she'd have to explain. "We've been moving and cremating the bodies of the dead nonstop since you all left."
"Too many bodies," Elaina said bluntly. "If she doesn't Descend, you're all gonna catch disease when they start rotting. There must be a unit preserving the bodies as long as possible."
"Sharp as always, Lady Elaina.........It's my favorite thing about you."
"You flatter me as always, Dear Mariah." Oh brother, Jo rolled her eyes. She had to put an end to this!
"You came to tell me about removing the dead bodies?" To keep herself from being collateral for lesbian flirtation, Jo had to steer it back to business.
"Ah, right........" You were about to abandon this subject, Jo thought. "......Not just that. There's relief!" she said, perking up. "I'm here with a decree from the Goddess actually," Mariah said, moving into her reason for visit. "She is set to finally Descend to remove the dead bodies still littering the city.........

".........but another order of business is a personal interview with you, Josephine."
"HUH!?! HELL NO!" Josephine jumped up. Jo liked to keep away from all that crazy stuff, and Divinity was one such thing. She wasn't even comfortable with Ms. Angel here! "I don't want to talk to her! What does she want with ME?!" Messing with Divinity was how you ended up fighting that demon. For every Orabelle, there was a Lostro. That seemed the case here, because it's Ms. Angel and Nellie!
"Unfortunately, this isn't a request but a decree." Mariah held up a document. It was a summons, and like in normal law, Jo was being ordered to appear. "Since the Goddess owns this city, she can issue summons to its residents." So if she runs or hides, she'll be punished

• Note: This would more than likely be simple eviction

"Josephine, I'm borrowing your eyesight to look at that document." With that, Josephine's eyes began to glow. It always felt weird to just have here eyesight jacked like that. She did the same thing with her crows, but the crows have to consent to letting their eyesight be taken over. Josephine just had to accept it.
"I will call in that time," Elaina responded after a moment, releasing control. "While I cannot be there physically yet, I am obligated as her owner and the owner of the library to listen in."
"You may listen in, but you are subject to rules about interrupting should the Goddess establish formality," Mariah warned.
Both of you are annoying, Josephine thought irritably, not wanting to play messenger anymore between the duo. Mariah seemed happy just to talk with Elaina, and Elaina seemed keen to humor her, yet JO was the one who had to sit through all this! "Where does this leave ME!?" Jo expressed frantically
"The child through which adults speak," Elaina said coldly. "No getting out of it, so best prepare yourself."
"Be nice Lady Elaina," Mariah said, "The Goddess just wants to know the kind of person you are, since you're putting a library in her city. Think of it like a background check."
IIIIII DOOOOON'T KNOOOOWWW MYYY BACKGROUND! Josephine wanted to rip her hair out. For all she knew, a stork delivered her to Elaina fully grown. "Fine. No gettin' out of it," Jo said, resigning herself to her fate.
"I will be here with the Goddess, so don't worry too much," Mariah chirped happily, thinking it would cheer the woman up. Jo wanted NONE of them here though. She had her flock and her soggy-ass books to dry out. That's all she wanted these days. SHE DIDN'T KNOW MARIAH!!
"Fine. I'm not gettin' dressed up though." No point in trying to fight this. Elaina was a cruel mistress..........no, she wasn't. Jo was being dramatic
"No need," Mariah said, apparently satisfied since she stood up. "I will see you soon, Josephine."
"I await your return," Jo said sarcastically. With that Mariah teleported out. "Satisfied, Lady Elaina? Should I send the schematics?"
"Send it. I'm in Andouphe for the next 2 days so it's easy for your crows. Elaina, Out."

"AAAARGRGRAHAHSH!!!" Jo screamed as soon as the connection cut. "DAMN IT!!" Was she spoiled? Was being left alone too much to ask for? Was NOT dealing with Gods and Angels and Demons too much to ask for? Jo was a believer, alright. She BELIEVED all that Divinity stuff was batshit insane!

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

As time went on and afternoon turned to evening, and then the sunset to the cusp of night, the tension rose by the hour and faith tested by the minute. No action from the Goddess quite yet and Mariah received no message to deliver from Her. Only instruction: Leaders were to gather at the Church. That meant all Guildmasters (or standing Guildmaster) and then the Counsel which consisted of Nellie, Vlad, Mariah and Arnold. That left Efi as the standing Guildmaster so she would be there too. Non-leaders were not required to be there........ except Josephine, serving as proxy to Elaina. This of course flew in the face of Jo being told that she was just subject to a personal interview

That being said, there were people outside in anticipation of the Goddess's Descendance. To all but the leaders who knew the behind the scenes, the Goddess was their hope and savior. Plus, even if they knew, it wasn't like the people who treated Vespera horribly for being a vampire would care about what happened with a Locathah, despite his service to the people. They still had a ways to go as a people.

That the Corvian Benefactor herself had to be there left Josephine sitting at the back of the church, grooming one the crows nervously. She hadn't seen any of these people since they left her alone to tend to Ves's mansion, and while Jo would've loved to keep it that way, it was against her will that she were here in the first place.........so she kept her mouth shut and out of sight, mostly just trying to listen to what the others were saying. She had nothing to add to anything anyone had to say, unless it was about the library or Elaina

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Nellie Noi
Noble District - Cremation Pit​

"I... suppose just make them aware." It wasn't like the Goddess would be expecting a greeting party in a time like this. Nellie didn't know what she was asking herself. "Forgive my vagueness. Do as you see fit, and I'll report any new instructions." But who knew with Divinity! Maybe She expected offerings of myrrh and the blood of an alicorn upon touching down.
Don't be absurd. Nellie couldn't bank on Arnold to make up for her lack of knowledge. There was a perfectly willing source right there, literally soul-bound to her.

"Nellie to Vlad. Should we shut it down and send them home?"
"Yes. Why are you even asking?"
His sharp response pricked at her, words evading her crystal.
"... That came out worse than I'd intended. Apologies."
"We've been burning bodies for three days straight. I wouldn't expect you to bother with politesse." Regardless of the offered excuse, it chafed her. Why am I asking, because I DON'T FUCKING KNOW DIVINITY SHIT!!
"I just see no point in continuing if the Goddess is doing it for us, unless She had specific instructions."
"Not that I know of."
"Then let's send them home."
It made sense. But something didn't sit well in Nellie's gut. "Go ahead. Your voice carries more. I'll wrap things up here."
"Will do. Over."

Nellie could already feel the heat wane, but those fires would continue crackling for some time. It's not like they'd be running out of fuel anytime soon, and they wouldn't crawl out of the deep pit their Earth mages had terraformed... not that there were any buildings left to burn. Seems presumptuous to expect Her to do everything. Maybe a job like this was busy work in the hands of a Goddess, but again, what did Nellie know? She wielded the Abyss in her fins. She couldn't just let it sit in them uselessly when there were tasks to be done.

Spoiler: Executive Dysfunction

Vladimir Hochmut
Noble District - Cremation Pit​

As sighs of relief and trudging steps grew further and fewer between, soon the only living body Vlad saw was the one still distributing cadavers through her water funnel. It was exactly as expected, which was why the beastman made his way around the pit to confront her. "Nellie."
Uttered as softly as his lion's voice permitted, it still startled Nellie into a jolt, water spell shattering and dropping all bodies within. A body tumbling to the ground would have been a horror at a funeral, but such was regarded numbly by Vlad. Not so much by Nellie.
"Godsdammit, Vlad!" Glancing over where they'd all unceremoniously fallen, she fixed him with a glare. "Let me see you first before you start barking orders!"
"I haven't barked any orders." Not yet, which Nellie surely anticipated. "What are you doing?"
"Lightening the load." Her attempts at reforming the current were thwarted by a paw over her wrist. Another jolt, and a harder glare. "What?"
Then came the order. "Stop."

When a demand of "why" never came, he explained it anyway. "I was struggling to keep those fires hot long before the news."
His meaning was acknowledged with a huff and a downwards gaze. That was their bind: if Nellie grew weak, so did Vlad.
The fingers that gripped her wrist eased, passing over her palm. "Everyone's pushed passed their limits long ago. No one will fault you for taking a break."
"I don't care what people think," she told him, looking back up. "I only care that work gets done."
He knew it was a lie. "Don't overcompensate. What's done is done." After she woke up the day before, he'd held off on giving her a fine scolding for sending herself into a magic coma over a pretty winter spell. Again, what was done was done. Instead, he had imparted more important words. Grim words.

"You are guilty of sloth," he had told her. The virulent protests had been expected. Slothful was a word no one could ever describe the ever-diligent Nellie as. However, "In Law, it is defined as sloth when you neglect a God-given task. When you're given power to carry out a God's will, you do so immediately. It is your greatest priority." Instead of assassinating the crown and council, she had attempted to use that power to rescue survivors, with dire consequences. "It is a strip-worthy offense. Don't be surprised if this was all for nothing." It was a truth that had pained Vlad to share, but necessary. "That being said, since you're subject under the Daedric Court, there's a chance of a lighter sentence. They're far more considerate of circumstances." Whereas under the Holy Court, Nancy had gotten close to the harshest punishment possible for his offense. "On the other hand, there's chance of a worse sentence if you're not careful. Present yourself accordingly, Nellie. You represent a Daedric Lord now."

The same anxiety that grew then made her lips terse now. "I have to atone."
"This is not the way. You're wasting your resources, and running yourself into the ground." A light tug ushered her away, and she concurred, following him. "A queen who can't take care of herself is not a queen the people will have faith in." Recovering from a magic coma, terrible nightmares from the night after, and nonstop work next to hot fires? He admired her tenacity, but she didn't know when to quit. "If you can't stop working, then work on cleaning yourself up for the Descendence--"
Vlad felt himself tumble several feet away, a cold blast chilling well under the skin. When he dragged himself up with the weight of several gallons, his drooping mane was dripping, surely looking like a soaked cat just saved from drowning in the canal. The incredulous look he gave Nellie sent her into an uproar, crystal laughing in tandem with her wheezing breaths. Another spell drew the water from his fur, turning his bone-soaked chill into a pleasant cool against the heat.
"You too," she said after closing the distance she made, patting his freshly-fluffed mane with springy satisfaction. "You stunk."
"Having another mood swing?" It was still an overcompensation, but at least this one made him smile.

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

Nellie And Vladimir
Noble District - Church​

Evening stars appearing appearing in a navy blue sky marked the fizzled ends of the Mage pair's patience. Though instead of the anger they so often shared, an anxiety buzzed between them. There was endless work awaiting them, and while the body cleanup would have gotten nowhere even in those last hours of the day, the sooner Goddess came down meant the sooner they could start actually rebuilding. Whatever was holding Her up surely was of great importance, but that didn't erase the misfortune of so much time lost.

And the longer Nellie had to wait, the more her barbels twitched and tail ticked. Vlad knew she just wanted this over with as soon as possible. And frankly...
"I'm not particularly keen to see Her, myself," he admitted to her through his crystal telepathically. Their seats in the front pew was closer to the rest who were attending. "I'm grateful for Her assistance, but I do hope it will be as brief as can be."
He saw Nellie's eyes move. It was barely a centimeter, but he could see that her gaze had been scanning the pews behind them. In her peripherals was the librarian Josephine, a frazzled woman preening one of her crows like a nervous cat grooming itself. Her own unfortunate circumstances led her to the ruined city, no choice but to tend to the witch Elaina's whims. She was quite pleasant, Vlad believed, and seemed eased by his presence when he'd visited the old Vespera manor. But perhaps that was only because there was also a stoic Daedric Mage with eyes like sharpened ice piercing into her. Anyone would look more comforting standing next to her.

Vlad got no response, said piercing gaze accosting him for a few moments until it moved to the pulpit, watching for any sign of Mariana's sigil.


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Deepest Deep Relief

Unlike the last time the Goddess came with a loud crashing sound as if the sky were made of glass and She were crashing through it, this time was the simple blinding glow of the Church and her appearing as if dropping from above. However, anti-climatic entrance or not, her Holiness came crashing in with her, which everyone could sense. "Sorry this took so long. I needed approval to do what I'm about to do." Mariana said, skipping greeting and cutting straight to business, standing before her audience of leaders with Mariah at her side. "Allow me to lift some of your burden." Her eyes glowed a piercing white. "HAIL, PEOPLE OF TORON!!" she declared, her voice projecting over the entire city, "I have Descended. Your effort has been noted and your prayers answered in turn..........Stay where you are, as this assistance is overdue." The purified ashes from the dead of this city will be used to cleanse the blight over the land." A double bone-throw from the Goddess. With the land so seeped in either Blight or Daedric from the demon, as the Goddess of this neutral zone, she needed to balance it out.

Josephine Warren
Church
​

Oh geez, the Goddess was here now, assaulting the woman's sight with a sudden flashbang. What if I had epilepsy?! Jo thought as the light scrambled her brain for a while. Before the Goddess began her business, Josephine had to call Elaina. "Take a break, young one," Jo whispered to the crow who receded into her shadow, then she flicked her crystal. "Josephine to Elaina. Goddess is here."
The crows that loitered around the church were panicked. Apparently they thought she was in danger from the Goddess.

The city could still hear her words. "The souls have been reaped. Now for the bodies. You will Rapture NOW!" With the clap of her hands, the [Ordination of the Rapture] took effect as the bodies of all the dead in the land began to rise into the air. "With your souls currently residing On High, may your physical forms serve your people one last time. You will burn NOW!" The [Ordination of Flame] ignited all of the bodies in Holy white fire. The city was alight as the bodies burned and while it felt like a furnace from the heat, there was no fear of fire actually spreading and causing collateral damage. When the bodies were finally reduced to ash, Mariana sighed. With a wave of her hand, the ashes blew away, presumably to plant itself in the ground. With that, the dead bodies were gone and with it, most of the Blight in the land would be gone within a few days. While the investigation into the Blight was still on the to-do list, it could be dropped further down the list of priorities

• [Ordination of the Rapture]: Forces the target's body to continually rise into the air until the Ordination is ended
• [Ordination of Flame]: Sets the target ablaze in Holy Fire. Unless specified otherwise, this continues until the Ordination is ended or not even ashes remain

For Josephine, looking out the window and seeing all this was surreal. Just watching masses upon masses of dead bodies levitating and then bursting in flames like that. This was power. Real tangible power that can wipe her off the face of the planet with a snap of the Goddess's Holy fingers. And she wondered why Jo wanted to stay the hell away from her and her somehow even more frightening daughter. Josephine would have to be delusional to not believe in a God, but seeing those Gods convinced her to stay away from anyone with Divine Favor, especially the Daedric. The Goddess had both. This same Goddess who was unleashing this power was the one who gave Nellie that frightening energy about it. The Gods that gave Demi the power to unleash a literal nuke, and not even her super pleasant behavior within the library could save that Benevolent or not for the Goddess's actions right now, she was terrifying and Jo's fight-or-flight kicked in. It was FIGHT the urge to run because she felt like she would be struck down for doing so, the woman's stomach churning in the presence of this extreme Holiness. It's supposed to be soothing, but for Jo? It felt unsettling, knowing she would be face to face with this very soon, with only her attendant Ms. Angel as any kind of backup.

Josephine is now Theophobic. She is frightened of anything Divine. The Gods, Divinity Law, Divine Favor, and Followers of pretty much any God Josephine is now Neutral-Negative aligned with anyone associated with Divinity, including those with Divine Favor. She wants nothing to do with anything Divine Josephine is now Negatively aligned with anyone associated with the Daedric, be they Gods or with Daedric Divine Favor. She is scared of this more than any of the 4 Divine Elements Josephine is now Highly Negatively aligned with the Goddess. She is utterly frightened by Goddess Mariana

"I will remain briefly, so let your prayers be known post haste, so that they may be heard directly and answered in kind," Mariana said slowly and gently and with that, her primary objective in being here was done in 5 minutes. The Goddess then turned to her leaders, a serious look on her face. "Now we can move on to other pressing matters, that being agriculture and the actual rebuilding of the city. Until this place becomes my official Neutral Zone, it will need to be a port city." But the forest was destroyed in the fight against the demon. "We will salvage what wood we can gather. Nellie......" Mariana said, looking over to her scion. "Does the Sacrament have an idea on how they managed to survive in the Null Realm?"

Nellie's Answers- These are suggestions. If you think outside the box, feel free

1. Nellie knows how- Nellie has gone over the notes and have had to use it herself. It was Spirit Magic
   • Advantage- Nellie knows the taboo Spirit Magic and has used it
   • Disadvantage- The Daedric Counsel may or may not conduct an investigation; Backlash of Spirit Magic may have affected Nellie negatively, up to and potentially including Blight
     • Note: I'll lay out the lore regardless. It's just a matter of if she knows or not
2. Lie about not knowing- Nellie knows but decides to lie about it
   • Advantage- Prevents more responsibility on Nellie as the temporary monarch
   • Disadvantage- Lying to a God carries heavy consequence, and it seems like the Goddess is formulating a plan that is affected by Nellie's knowledge; If Nellie uses Spirit Magic, it carries an even heavier consequence
3. Nellie doesn't know how- Despite being near the top of the 100 Elite and the Sacrament's most renowned battle mage, Nellie was never put into the loop for this type of research
   • Advantage- Nellie does NOT know Spirit Magic or really anything about its use and application; This aspect of corruption Nellie doesn't know about
   • Disadvantage- The Goddess obviously has a plan that may be contingent on if Nellie knows or not
4. Consult the Witch listening in- Elaina probably knows because of course the Witch would know
   • Advantage- Forces the Goddess to bite the bullet and ask the 3rd source

WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Nellie Noi
Church​

A tap to her shoulder snapped Nellie out of her bow, taken the second her ears and eyes were flooded with the Goddess's arrival. Head now lifted, she bore witness to another Divine sight: a mass cremation that ignited the sky, the resulting ashes dispersing all across the ruined land. It was like the magelight shows that had concluded every Commerce Festival, wispy smoke lit up by rainbow fire. A morbid celebration, or a spectacular memorial.

3 days of work, and not even a forth of the bodies had been burned. 3 minutes of the Goddess's presence, and nothing else remained. Their strength and minds were whittled down to threads, when all it took was a clap of Her hands. Well... sure, it made sense why anything a God did needed approval. She could crush the entirety of Orivae with the clenching of her fist, as easily as Nellie had done the same to God Duion's statue. You'd think something like this would be higher up the priority list. Nellie wasn't about to let herself suddenly expect the Gods to give two shits about them. Goddess Mariana was the exception, not the rule.

With the dead finally at rest, now they could focus on what was most important: everyone who remained. What Nellie wanted more than anything was for routine and normalcy to return to the lives of her people, instead of them recovering their bearings in shell-shocked silence. Developing farmland and housing was the reasonable start, baseline food and shelter. Even if the Council couldn't get off their asses, at least Goddess had Her priorities in line.

Still kneeling, Nellie again bowed when the question was directed at her. "The only way we knew how to, my Goddess." Her closed haws tightened. "Allegedly." Nothing the Sacrament told her was trustworthy. "All of the highest rank were taught Spirit Magic." To aid the people, they had claimed. At it was true... when discounting the Blight that came of it and ravaged the kingdom. Before Nellie was made aware of that, Spirit Magic was nothing to her. Taboo? Who cared, it wasn't like the Gods could stop them. But here laid a key reason why mortals ought to not meddle in affairs beyond them.


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

"Rise, Nellie. No formalities. No time," Mariana said to her after hearing her answer. Spirit Magic. Shit. "Spirit Magic is taboo. Does anyone know why?"
No answer
"Witch? I know you're listening in. Care to explain why Spirit Magic is taboo?"
"I'll leave it to you, Goddess." came the answer from the crystal, to which the Goddess projected it for everyone to hear. "Since there are no formalities, be prepared for me to interject if you're wrong."
"Don't get cocky," she growled. Damn is she infuriating. Shame the witch was the hero of these people so she couldn't bring harm to her. Not even an [Ordination of Misfortune].

More important things to get to, so the Goddess shook off thoughts of the enraging witch and dove into the explanation:

Spoiler: Spirit Magic

Spirit Magic and Blight
​

Spirit Magic is a universal type of magic that manipulates the souls of the fallen. It does this in 1 of 2 ways: Spirit Manipulation and Spirit Empowerment

Spirit Manipulation is exactly that. Direct manipulation of the soul. Necromancy is the most common use of Spirit Magic, where one takes a soul and puts it in a body. This also extends to things like Golems or any other "breathing life" into inanimate objects. Spells like Spirit Flame involves taking souls and setting them ablaze to use against an opponent. Any sort of manipulation of spirits like Wraiths, revenants, ghosts, poltergeists, etc. with magic is Spirit Magic if it's not Divine.

Spirit Empowerment calls upon spirits to empower the caller and enable them to cast a single spell. Think as if each soul is a single-use spell scroll. This theoretically allows the user to use ANY spell by possessing oneself with that spirit so they can use their spell with the user's body, or consuming that spirit and using the mana it generates to cast a "dirty" version of the spell. The strength of Spirit Magic is completely unparalleled versatility. The weakness? Multi-faceted. If a Fire Mage calls upon the soul of a fire-magic user, it's all fine. If that same mage calls on a WATER spirit, which is strong against fire, it has a higher chance at infecting the soul with Blight. If the soul is a non-magic user, a being with no magic potential whatsoever (think like a common ant) is used, the soul is consumed and then converted to then use the spell. Using spells outside of a person's capability has a VERY high chance at infecting the user with the Blight. Consuming a spirit to replenish mana has a VERY high chance at infecting the user with Blight

For a real life comparison, think of it like firing a gun where your body is the gun and souls are bullets. A compatible soul is good ammo, a normal soul is normal ammo, an incompatible soul is bad ammo. All the while you're firing, the gun is getting dirtier. Slow/No dirt accumulation for good souls and faster accumulation for bad souls. The gun getting dirty is the Blight. Since dirt and bad ammo can make a gun jam, it WILL eventually cause a jam. The gun jamming (your body and soul) takes permanent damage every time the gun "jams." This isn't much in the beginning, but since more dirt causes more jams, it will quickly add up as the chance to "jam" increases.




Blight

Blight is the corruption of the soul. Blight is what happens when the incorrect soul enters a body. In Necromancy, the difference between an undead who can operate with intellect and a mindless thrall is solely dependent on if that soul is compatible with that body. If it is, the zombie is essentially just a person but undead. Otherwise, you get the mindless thrall that is ever-hungry never sated, disease carrying, and if they've been blighted for a long time, able to spread the Blight. REGARDLESS, as long as the zombie is sustained, the blight spreads. Again, slower for compatible bodies and faster for incompatible bodies. The "jams" that happen in Blight for undead typically manifest in fits of uncontrollable berserk. Even the mindless thralls cease being under control while berserk. The more Blighted, the longer the fits of berserk

A soul can also contract the Blight if it's been out of a body for too long, typically beginning at about 30 days. This is typically caught as 99.99999% of souls are caught and taken to the leylines to either their God's court or to the Null Realm for holding. However, that last little percent wanders and begins to Blight after 30 days, spreading ever-so-slowly but surely across the soul. As they Blight out more, they get more malevolent and berserk-prone and Hollows out. When they Hollow out completely, they become extremely strong and uncontrollable. It must be smited because it cannot be saved.

If the soul isn't cleansed before entering the body, even if it's a compatible body, it will be blighted. Granted, it will spread slower, but it WILL spread surely.

Spirit Magic when used on someone, can cause the Blight on them. Consuming a Spirit to cast a Divine spell such as Revive HEAVILY Blights the soul, so even if it's the compatible soul for the body, they are now Blighted. This is because not only has the soul not been cleansed, but the person casting the spell has not gained permission from a God to put the soul back in the body. This is a failsafe employed by Grim, the Daedric Supreme of Death, to prevent cheating death and robbing the Gods of their authority

For the overwhelming most part, Blight is caught and eliminated. It is most often integrated on formal Divine Healing training, so healers of any Pantheon have inherent anti-Blight within their healing spells. This is all to prevent causing an epidemic. The last epidemic of Blight was a MAJOR contributing factor to the destruction of the Draconian Lands, and after it spread among the humans, the best way was to straight up cull the blight. Every person, every flora, every fauna. Get rid of it and then introduce a new method of prevention to keep from ever having to do it again. Kraiven was moved into the Null Realm BEFORE that all happened on the earth

"So for all you people that may be lost in the sauce from the explanation," came Elaina's voice at the end of her explanation. "If your soul is an apple, the Blight is a bacteria, and Hollowfication is the full rotting of your soul." That was the TLDR of Blight. Spirit Magic caused Blight if not very precise about its use. With no margin of error for lenience, one wrong move with it and you're infected with Blight. It was unforgiving, which made the Goddess wonder why Elaina was playing with her own soul by using it. "If you used it on people to simulate the passage of time, say to grow an unborn, you've likely blighted that mother." She gave another example. "If you used it to grow wheat, you've blighted the wheat which will spread to people who eat it." It was easy to make plants grow with Earth or Nature magic. That wasn't the problem. More than likely, the problem would be using it on livestock on steroid their growth time.

With the point made, Elaina continued, "Blight damage is very slow but it is permanent and progressive if not treated." She let those last few words hang. "You can clean your soul to prevent future damage, but you cannot reverse the damage done. If your soul is too rotten, your soul is to be destroyed. No heaven, no hell, no Null Realm. DESTROYED." Elaina as usual was blunt and to the point. Holding nothing back to ensure everyone got the full effect. The children you people infected with the Blight to treat your own had to have the assistance of High God Obris, and the only reason it was approved was that the children weren't born until they hit the Null Realm. That got his pity." Not even the Goddess knew that. The children were so far gone that Obris himself had to step in to help him?!

The Goddess continued. "Spirit Magic is Taboo for 3 reasons: It's a form of Spirit cannibalism..........." They literally consumed the spirits to utilize their power. This fully robbed the spirit of an afterlife. This was especially bad for those in a God's Court awaiting judgement as a follower with Divine Favor. In the case of Kraiven which was in the Null Realm, they just utilized the spirits there. It was still taboo. "...............It can cause Blight, which can cause an epidemic.........." Hence the urgency to clear it in the new world before it spread, and the biggest reason why Mariana got approved to mass cremate the dead bodies: To purify the ashes to plant and start erasing the Blight over the land to prevent it spreading through the sea and to any animals who consumed the flora around the formerly floating rock. "............and because it can be used to steal, alter, or destroy a Follower's Divine Favor, in case anyone wonders why we don't allow Witches in our ranks."

"Indeed it is, Goddess," Elaina said, "I know the full implications of what I do, so I'll never infect someone or myself with Blight. That idiot Adonis? Not so much."
"I'm aware you're a cocky know-it-all, witch." The Goddess warned. "But don't give that man that book."
"Eh, you'll have to cut me a deal," Elaina responded without hesitation, "I'm a whore for knowledge. Hintedy hint hint......OH! I forgot something." Elaina was audibly sipping on her tea. ".........We are landed. Nancy is doing something other than crying and moping for the first time in 3 days.........." A scoff came through the crystal. "My tea is getting cold. Josephine, call me before your interview. Elaina out." With that, the connection on the crystal severed

Josephine Warren
Church​

WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME HERE WITH THIS!!?? Josephine's stomach churned as the Holiness crashed back into her, causing what felt like bubbling in her gut. When the connection severed, so too did Elaina's suppression spell keeping her from feeling the intense Holy influence. Her stomach bubbled over, causing her to run over to the nearby broken window and begin hurling her guts up. Oh God, I can't stay here, Jo thought as she hung over the window, not caring if glass shards dug into her clothes. Unfortunately, this called attention to her anyways, since Elaina's voice came from the crystal around Josephine's neck
"Josephine? Are you ok?" the Goddess asked. Looking back, Jo could see the furrowed brow of confusion.
"Please don't come any closer," Jo said, falling back into the church and tasting the bile in her mouth. Any step the Goddess took towards her made the pressure much much worse, and Jo had already fought the urge to jump out the window and take off running. "This Divine stuff makes me ill is all. It was bad with Ms. Angel, but you and Nellie together are..........." The woman scooched back away from them even more. Goddess, Nellie, Ms. Angel, Vlad. They reeked of the Divine

Someone put their hand on her shoulder. "Lass," It was Arnold Asella, "Head back to the manor."
"But the Goddess told me to be here. I'll be killed if I disobey."
The Goddess stepped forward. "Why would you think I'd-
"Goddess........" Arnold said to her, shaking his head, "Let me handle this, please. We've limited time......" Then back to Josephine. "Well I'M telling you to get the hell out of here," he said firmly, resolved. "If the presence of the Divine is making you sick, you can't be in the presence of the Goddess. Go and prepare for your interview."
"Uuuugh......" Jo felt like absolute hell and she would question no more. If something became of anyone now, it would be Arnold for giving her the order. "I'll be leaving now." Instead of taking the graceful way out, she climbed out the window, narrowly avoiding her own vomit. Almost immediately, most of the feeling dissipated as the wall blocked some of the influence
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Nellie Noi
Church​

The instruction to rise was further urged by yet another tap to Nellie's shoulder. She caught a glimpse of Vlad's muted smile. "Better too much than not enough."
Whatever. She didn't want to risk pissing the Goddess off. Maybe She'd threaten to seal away Nellie's skills next... no, who was she kidding? Her magic was critical for Orivae in a time like this. But since Nancy was being exiled, might as well strip him of everything else, right?
Nellie grew rigid. STOP. Not even five minutes, and she was already spiraling? At this rate, this meeting was going to end with someone turned into a icicle.

Cool night air became chilled after the explanation of Spirit Magic. So that was why?! It was taboo not just because of the challenge to Divine authority, but because it was MURDER?! Nellie was told that it was merely using the souls' power, not them being the power!
There were almost two sickly attendees in the church. Her stomach churned, horror creeping down every extremity until her veins were crystalized in ice. How many had they killed? How many afterlives had they robbed? How many people caught Blight from that alone? She just knew Blight came from resurrection. What more else did that corruption seed from?!
A touch to her hand made Nellie aware that she had collapsed into a seat on the pew. "I thought you knew."
What sounded like a laugh in her breaths wasn't matched in her crystal. "If I knew, I would've died trying to defeat Gormon." Perhaps that was even why she had been lied to. Nellie held strong principles, too strong to be shattered even by her allies. Especially when those allies led her astray, putting innocent blood on her hands.


In Case You Cared to Know

".........We are landed. Nancy is doing something other than crying and moping for the first time in 3 days.........."

That chill in the air flashed to a biting bitterness at those words. Her teeth gritted. Her barbels curled, nostrils flaring. "Oh, what did you expect him to do, sing sea shanties?! Is his misery inconvenient to you, Witch?!" But said Witch was already gone, the knives in Nellie's glare penetrating poor Josephine a bit too long.

Vlad pulled Nellie back, but guilt already sucked the cold out of the room after the librarian's pitiful display. Terror and bile filled Nellie's nose. Her own little fit surely didn't help when Josephine had to be outright excused from the meeting. "I'm... Apologies." She was long gone by now, but Nellie hoped the sentiment would find its way to her. When they first met, she had thought the woman's fear was at Nellie's own Daedric presence. And perhaps it was... only before Goddess gave a display of where that presence was sourced.

Vlad sent a mournful look out the window that had proved Jo's escape, but knew there was nothing he personally could do to help. Instead, he regarded Nellie. "Three days? That's sooner than I expected."
"The hell's that supposed to mean?!" she snapped.
"Don't you remember how long it took me?"
Nellie sighed as she did remember, the warm touch of Vlad's paws comforting now rather than frustrating. Long before Kraiven fell, Vlad had received his own sanction. Falling short in the eyes of his God had sent him into a deep depression that took months of clawing his way out of. Not that he had done literally nothing during that time, so in Elaina's vague wording, "something" could be as minor as Nancy finally stepping out of his room.


The touch on her arm grew hotter as the sanctuary grew colder.
"... If I may, Goddess." Back to business, as the longer a God remained on Earth, the more they'd have to justify it. "Managing the Blight situation eluded the Sacrament from the day it was discovered, to the day we were taken out of the Void Sea. However..." He scowled, pensive as much as reproachful. "I have reason to suspect 'management' was the main objective of their research."
"You mean..." The words struck her. The anxiety that again seeped through his fur struck her more. "You don't think they wanted to cure it?"
"Not altogether. To cure who they wanted, when they wanted, yes. But for those who proved difficult, it's a good tool to keep them in line. Force them into silence, and to receive care under their aggressors."
This didn't sound like a hypothetical. Nellie knew they weren't allowed to talk about it publicly, but that was outright maliciousness. "Did you see this happen?"
"I have." And he didn't tell her?! To who?! "Blight is insidious in how hidden it makes itself. As Elaina said, it's a slow growth, even slower in timelessness. Many are Blighted without them knowing." He looked across the group. "Anyone here who cast a single Spirit spell without knowing the proper applications could be Blighted. Even you, Nellie."

Her stomach dropped. Her own soul could have been eaten away at all this time? Well... if so, at least that would explain how fucked up she felt for the past century. "What are you saying? That it's all... intentional?"
"No. But more than you'd think." His reproach became disdain as he spoke of the man. "The king cowered from the messes he made, but also was a man of manipulation." He maintained good relations with the kingdom despite his first catastrophic failure to protect them, after all. "If he could use it to his benefit, he would. And I believe he did." To the Goddess, he said, "When we begin our investigation, don't be surprised when evidence of intentional infections comes up. Beyond the experimentation in the Church."


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Guildmaster Arnold Asella
Church​

"Nellie, don't shoot the messenger, in both senses of the word." Arnold scolded her firmly, his breath now visible in the form of vapor due to the lowered temperature. "She reported on Nancy's well-being, where Nancy himself lacks the ability." Arnold was not privy to Elaina as a person. Even if he was though, the fact remains that Elaina reported on his well-being. Arnold didn't care if it was Vespera or Elaina or Sebas. He got intel that Nancy was doing well. "Is the well-being of your brother not worth hearing about if it's from someone you hate?"

"The witch, thus Josephine, has knowledge beyond the Sacrament," the Goddess said, and Arnold thought it was smart to keep the focus on Josephine and not Nancy as She spoke. It was a touchy subject and the Goddess's input about Nancy probably wasn't welcome here. "We must not cultivate fear within the witch's proxy. She is an innocent forced into this by the witch" This witch Elaina was too arrogant to be liked but too truthful to be hated, at least to a man like him who could only respect a master of the craft enough to command such respect even when hated by those same people. "The Abyss consumes the everything around the stone before it consumes the stone itself. Remember the Sunning Stone." The Goddess was obviously speaking in code here to Nellie, unless she actually thought they were to understand what the hell that meant. It was an obvious metaphor, but..........

Vlad's Theory is Viable. Investigation Still Required.

Spoiler

"Back on subject," The Goddess said, "It makes sense. According to what the witch and the Angels discovered, they turned the Church into a business. Treat the Blight for a 'donation' to the Church." Mariana sighed. As She said it, it did indeed reek of intention. Maybe not for infection, but for managing infection "Laylah the Pacifist requested release from her [Ordination of Pacifism] to burn this place to the ground. It was denied, but I've known Laylah for quite a while. This pushed her beyond the edge............. Mariah, you were with that witch as the ones to discover the carnage. Anything to add?"
"It was systemic how my nun kin were used for the sake of testing," Mariah responded, "They were Blighted beyond saving. That their souls were destroyed fills me with the utmost grief."
"I agree, my Angel," The Goddess responded, "Punishment to the perpetrators is no peace to the souls destroyed, but catharsis hopefully."

"No different than those who burned for the glory of Orivae," Mariah said. "It would be better to probe my memories than for me to prepare a report, as I have repressed them." That little tidbit actually bit at the man's own heartstrings. He could only imagine how the innocents feel this time and last time. The man himself is well-versed in the horrors of war. They weren't, least of all a noncombatant nun. Then knowing that some souls were too blighted to save was like a second death altogether. A TRUE death in a way.

"As for the unknown aspects of the Blight, continue the investigation in the background." The Goddess thought for a moment. "Until then, my people will be joining the effort to rebuild this place," she declared. "Locathah, Sirens, and Tritons alike will be assisting in seafaring ventures. Get as much wood as possible. We need boats to traverse to the lands around. The quicker we establish trade, the better." There is mineral within this place. Maybe even new mineral that came from being in the Null Realm. Soul Soil and Soul Stone were two examples he could give off the top of his head.

"Vlad, I am entrusting the mining effort to you." she said, "Arnold, I am trusting the sailing effort to you. Nellie, I want you training battle mages for defense. We will have Efilisa recruiting for all fronts..............and Josephine will be your archive of knowledge" The Goddess looked to Nellie. "It's either you make good with her, or you deal with the Witch through her." she warned, then turned to Arnold. "Arnold, how do you feel about taking over the sailing?"
"I have plenty of experience sailing, but I will admit to not having all that much experience building boats."
"Then worry not," Mariana said with a nod, "Among those coming aboard, some will have experience in boat-building. Mining and Combat training needs to take from the residents already here."
"I have more experience with combat training than with sailing." He was the best swordsman in the kingdom and served as a combat instructor many many times.
"Vlad is Fire and needs to be land-bound. Nellie is the Queen. Hmmmmm........ When the boats are built, I will move you to combat training full time. Until then, I need you to oversee that development. I don't foresee a threat in this near a future." Normally he would have a high level of skepticism, but coming from the Goddess, there was no reason to doubt her. Plus, with a place this fragile, Nellie getting a PROPER Divine Empowerment this time would be an easy answer to pretty much any threat that wasn't Daedric, in which Mariah would take the Empowerment.
Arnold nodded. This was a better development. He didn't want to spend his life on the seas. Get them building the boats, get them built correctly, then he can go on to train the remaining guards and any new recruits wanting to step up and prevent this shit from happening a 3rd time. "As you wish, Goddess." he finally accepted

"If there is anything else, say it now," she finally said with a sigh, the business from her end pretty much over. "When Mariah and I are off to interview the witch's proxy, I will not return here."
WayfaringWaaksian

Josephine Warren
Aecor Athenium​

Jo damn near pissed herself when Nellie's glare pierced into her soul. An icicle could've gotten lodged in her gut in an instant, and Jo knew it. On a WHIM too. The woman knew the kind of person Elaina was, but when her very voice put Jo's life in danger, it really put it in perspective how hated she was to Nellie. I'm staying far the hell away from that glass of crazy, Jo thought as she ran all the way to the manor, invoking the [Relic: Icarus Feather] to speed her footsteps up. I DON'T WANT TO DIE FOR HER!!

I'm sorry for whatever she did! Jo thought frantically as she made it back to the manor, panting heavily and sweating bullets, not only from the temperature contrast from running while freezing her ass off, but the running itself and then the nervousness. Her clothing was SOAKED. Sitting in her desk trying to catch her breath, Jo thought about all that happened. That one [Nellie] was a danger. Every fluctuation in her emotion damn near froze the air around them, and the Goddess just let her keep that unstable madness. She would freeze Josephine's flock! As the Corvian Benefactor, she couldn't be bringing dangerous people around the flock on any kind of regular basis. Treating them for frostbite would be a pain in the ass and it would lower her own standing to bring dangers into the territory (Ves's Manor and the 10 acres of land it sat on). They protect her but she also needed to protect them.

As much as Josephine was willing to adhere to Nellie being the Queen, the Flock gave zero damns about a hierarchy outside their own, unless it involved another Flock. If they deemed Nellie an enemy, it would put Josephine in a VERY awkward place.

"FLOCK!" Josephine called, "Alert me when the Goddess and Angel appears, and pray Nellie isn't accompanying them." It was very common for Angels to be an escort for a God and normally that wouldn't apply to Nellie........but Nellie was the Queen here so there was a possibility she would be face to face with that again. It was inevitable in fact. For now though, the Goddess would be coming soon so she needed to get a shower and change her clothes.

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Vladimir Hochmut
Church​

The thorough scolding Nellie had received made Vlad hold off on adding his own lecture. Despite her taking to it well, he was more concerned about calming her down to keep the cold from teetering into Oppressive. The Abyss consumed all around, indeed.
"I don't hate her," she did argue. Vlad knew that for certain after she gave the witch her offer, which led to them having a library in the first place. Nellie was an intense woman, simple dislike or even annoyance displaying with a strength most could only read as hatred. "It's how she said it. Did that not sound like mockery to you?"
"I doubt it was intended to be disparaging." It was just Elaina's general tone, so Vlad thought. She could be talking about her favorite person and still sound condescending. "And even if it was-- who cares? We have what we need. No need to engage with her more."

By the twitching of her barbels, Vlad knew that wasn't quite good enough for her. But her continued silence told him that she'd conceded. Another overcompensation, he had to think, but kept that thought to himself. A misguided attempt to protect someone she could no longer protect. Elaina being blunt not even in Nancy's vicinity wasn't going to hurt him.
Still, his heart hurt for her, the same way it hurt for all of his siblings when Kraiven was lost. At least Nellie had hope of seeing her brother again in life.

On that subject, at least both of them still had the privilege of seeing their loved ones in death. Blighted souls being put down was no surprise, and news of an Angel breaking down after confronting the disaster was hardly news. Rather, the surprise was that High God Obris attempted to save the children. With what the Goddess relayed about the fate of the Draconian Lands in Toron's absence, Vlad would have figured there be a zero-tolerance policy. A wide scale purge of all Blighted in the kingdom, all souls to be cleansed or destroyed. Perhaps he was thinking in extremes... or perhaps the fact that Dr. Laylah requested release to burn it all down instead of a precise culling saved them from that fate.
Is this why You haven't been answering my prayers, my God? Prince Qeien had spoken to him before the battle, to give temporary release from his sanction to protect the city. Afterwards, nothing.


"Respectfully, Goddess," he finally said, opening his eyes. "I don't know the first thing about mining."
"Nobody in this meeting does. But you're the only one other than Arnold with combustible magic." That is, explosive properties that could be used for digging tunnels, blasting ore and burning natural gasses. "Efilisa will recruit people with experience," Nellie told him. "In the meantime, you will accompany me to the library tomorrow morning. Inform yourself while I smooth things over with Josephine."
Always on top of things, Nellie rarely left a problem she couldn't fix sitting on the table. "Wouldn't both of us at the same time be too much for her?"
"It would be worse for her to be alone with me." The poor woman was scared shitless after that sweet little look Nellie had sent her, so fair. "You don't have to be right with me. Be in the vicinity."
"Sounds doable," Vlad decided, no more objections. "I can oversee the mining projects, but I'll be training mages in Fire Magic as well." Everyone in this meeting were the most magically powerful in Orivae, all other masters dead under Nellie's ice. It was up to them to pass on their skill and knowledge.

"If there is anything else, say it now," she finally said with a sigh, the business from her end pretty much over. "When Mariah and I are off to interview the witch's proxy, I will not return here."

... Alright. Now or never.
"Goddess," Vlad began, looking her way. "I'd like to request a private word with You before Ascending."
"Private??" Nellie was alarmed, as expected. "We're all here! There's nothing we shouldn't know!"
"You all will in time," Vlad tried to ease her, explaining, "It's a delicate matter that only the Goddess can handle at this moment. I need you to understand and trust me." Vlad wasn't going to go looking for the Goddess in private, circumventing everyone. It would be suspicious behavior, when he knew everyone would know what he had to say eventually. They just couldn't know right then. Unfortunately, that meant talking Nellie down from grilling him about it. "Please."
"Okay... okay..." Her quickened breaths didn't calm, but at least she would say, "Do what you have to do."


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Mariana, Goddess of the Deepest Deep
Church -------------> Church- Lab​

Vlad pointed out that he wasn't good with mining, to which the Goddess figured at the face of it. When Vlad took on the task while suggesting he train in Fire Magic, it made sense. No point in denying them their forte if they were willing to take on her task to them. "Then same as with Arnold. When you appoint an overseer after achieving mining proficiency, I will move you to training in Fire Magic," Mariana affirmed, granting his request, "Mariah, my Angel, you will be training up a new clergy." the Goddess commanded. "Condition: Clergy leadership is open to those within my ranks and ONLY those within my ranks, either my Holy or my Daedric. Those in the ranks of other Gods may still become clergy, but no positions of clerical authority." If this is MY place, I want MY people calling the shots. This isn't some democracy, Mariana thought. This was EXTREMELY common in Gods. HER domain was to be HERS

"Efilisa, have you retained all of this?" The Goddess turned to the faithful receptionist. She had ignored the woman because, as she suspected, the Arachne was copying down all of this without having to be told. She ended up forgetting about Efi until Nellie brought her up
"Yes, Goddess," Efi responded with a nod, looking up from her scribing, "And I appreciate the shield provided to protect me from Your Holiness."
"A minor accommodation for a request for service," Mariana responded, "As the best receptionist in the kingdom, You are now the master of recruitment and logistics."
"What about the Stoneroses? Who will run the Guild in my stead?"
"No one. The guilds are all relieved of their original focus for the forseeable future. There is no point to guilds when there is but 1 mission" All of them were about to be put to work. Guilds were a luxury for places where the people had the freedom of choice. Choice in itself was a luxury of established locations. Everyone would be put to work somehow. Even the children would be out doing supervised work like foraging or tending to whatever small livestock they had left. "People are not being put to work based on Guild. It is based on individual capability, to which you will be the master delegator, under authority of Nellie, then Mariah, then myself."
"Yes, Goddess. I will begin work tonight."
"Tomorrow," the Goddess commanded, "Get rest because you will begin your efforts in earnest. We will require a census." They had to figure out exactly who was left alive so they can streamline their personnel logistics for the rest of the rebuilding process. "Before you head to the library, Nellie, procure for Efi the roster for both the Sacrament and the Crimson Embers. I suspect the witch, thus Josephine, has census documents within that forest of paper. I will ask about it directly."

"Goddess," Vlad began, looking her way. "I'd like to request a private word with You before Ascending."

Request Granted


Vlad then does the unexpected in requesting...... a private word? Hmmmmm...... No time to deliberate. "Done. Let us speak upstairs." She turned to her Angel. "Mariah, go to Josephine. I will inform you when I am on my way."
"As you wish, Goddess." Mariah then disappeared immediately
"Let us go, Vladimir," Mariana then moved towards the study for Vlad to follow

This put them in a separate room. To be specific, it was the lab Nancy had used before during the Undead Siege. A snap of her holy fingers engraved dimly glowing unintelligible words on the door. These were Angelic Words of Power, and this specific one sound-proofed the room with an [Ordination of Silence: Sound-Proof]. Only dispelling it would bypass this spell, though the Witch would find a way if she wanted. A shake of her head at the thought got her back on subject. Whatever reason Vlad had for wanting to speak with her in private. She turned to the beast man, "A private word granted," she said, "What is it you have to ask of me?"

Spoiler: Spell Details

• [Ordination of Silence]: An Ordination that calls upon the universe to prevent sound from entering/exiting a target or area. It does so by inflicting 1 of 2 conditions: Mute or Sound-Proof
  • Condition: Mute: Prevents sound from EXITING. Those inflicted with it cannot emit sound via vocal means. This prevents the target from anything involving their vocal chords. They can receive but not transmit.
  • Condition: Sound-Proof: Prevents sound from ENTERING, meaning that the target cannot hear things external to it. They can transmit but not receive.

Efilisa Oterah
Church​

The Goddess was a stunning presence, absolutely. Efi would stand to admire her beauty if not for the circumstance of their situation. She was being called upon as the new master recruiter of the rebuild of Orivae. She would do her best! Efi had only determination and dexterity of paperwork to make it happen. As Receptionist of the Month of however many years counting, Efi only had her best to give.

"I will do my best. I think it best to establish a headquarters so that we may recruit and task as needed." The castle was destroyed and there wasn't much in regards to tasking. "If nothing else, I would suggest either the Sacrament HQ, the Stonroses HQ, or the Church as a base of operations." If she were to be the master recruiter, he needed to streamline this process as much as possible.
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Nellie Noi
Church - Sanctuary​

After the Goddess's exit, flares of cold pulsed in the air, each one diminishing in its sharpness as Nellie gradually composed herself. Whatever was Vlad's worries culminated in anxiety that tainted his scent as he left, the same anxiety that she could sense since this all started. What did he know that she couldn't...?

Efilisa's question kept her mind grounded from wondering, even though it wasn't a question that needed much pondering. "The Stoneroses," was her thought. "I see no reason to have you relocate. It would be a waste of time." Almost everything Efilisa needed was right there in her office. And unless she wanted the change of scenery, Nellie didn't want to rob her of what remnants of familiarity she could have.

"I'll have those rosters ready for you. My question to you is what else you might need. Since I'll be heading to the library, I can save you the trip." Which would mean Nellie would have to visit Efi twice, but that would be fine. She could traverse the ruin faster than most standing here.

Vladimir Hochmut
Church - Lab​

"It's two-fold," he began, foregoing thanks and formalities for now. "My first concern involves Nellie. I'm aware that everyone is struggling to contend with all that's happened. But how Nellie's taking things worries me greatly." Vlad didn't expect the Goddess to be privy to the details. Nellie wouldn't ask for her consolations even if she had the time to grant them. "She has been greatly unstable. Moods shifting dramatically. Her nights have granted her little sleep, and I can feel her strength waning with each passing day." Nellie had been sleeping in his room since she had destroyed hers. He was there when nightmares ravaged her mind until her cries broke her free. "I've been the only solace she's had in all this. I'm the only one other than Nancy who knows how to comfort her." Seeing the alchemy equipment strewn about the room struck a pang of remorse in his chest. Nellie probably wouldn't stand to even be around them. "She has no one, Goddess. The Elites are dead. All who remains of the Sacrament are terrified of her, and she knows it. If it weren't for me, she would be completely alone."

Tears forming in his eyes told him that he'd relayed enough. Swallowing to even his voice, Vlad told her, "As much as I wish to help her, I can't carry this on my own. I can't heal this any more than she can." All Nellie cared about was Orivae. He was convinced that she would only take care of herself if it meant taking care of the people. Convincing her that that would be the end result was difficult enough. "More pressingly, I can't protect her from herself any more than she can protect everyone from herself. I'm sure you noticed how cold it got in there. It's only been escalating."

Guilt constricted his chest to say it, but it had to be. "She's becoming dangerous. She wants nothing more than to protect this kingdom, but if this isn't resolved soon, she's going to become another problem. Whatever plaguing her must be addressed." Though both of them knew damn well was that was. "I'll try to convince her to initiate a commune with You. When she does, Goddess, I implore You, be gentle with her." His voice shook again, pleading. "I understand that she is under Your Daedric authority, but handling this harshly will only push her away. She isn't just Your follower. She is Your child. Please do not neglect her."
Never again, Goddess, he wouldn't say aloud, but a twitch of his brows telling her enough.


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Mariana, Goddess of the Deepest Deep
Church- Lab​

"Your concerns have been duly noted," the Goddess said with a sigh at Vlad's words, breaking her regal composure for the first time. "I thought about scaling down her power a bit, but the last thing I want is to take any further from her." That was also why she didn't dial down the potent Daedric power Nellie has access to. The Abyss was POTENT stuff. Lostrogret could handle it because she has 9 brains, and even that girl was so damaged in general that Mariana was almost unable to save her soul. For Nellie to be gazing into the Abyss might be too much to bear..........but Nancy didn't take his bumps so Nellie could lose that Favor. The people of the Sacrament rightfully fear her and that while that was OK with the Goddess, she could see how isolating it was

"She is carrying a mantle that no one else can and I will do anything within my power to help her. However, we have been estranged for quite some time and I have miscalculated who Nellie is as a person. She changed while she was invisible to my eye." The Goddess thought for a moment before speaking again. "Back then, she would have handled the Abyss quite easily, and readily so. My miscalculation was believing she is still who she was. A common sense folly looking back at it............." The Goddess didn't know what that was, but something shifted in her.

"I implore you to stay with her," she said. It was about as close to a plea as Vlad could get from a God. "I can consult your God to get permission to access you directly for Nellie's sake. You are the right hand to my Scion and you serve........" A flash of her eyes. ".........Prince Qeien? He was going to release Laylah to destroy this place. He looks upon it with disgust. It is more surprising that he Empowered you in the first place." More than likely because a God can't be silent while their follower's lives fall apart. Maybe, like with Banera, Qeien wanted to see some blood. Since he kept Laylah from shedding blood, Vlad destroying stuff gave him that catharsis instead. Looking at this Panthera didn't paint a pretty picture of his standing. "I sense a level of apprehension about your God...........so I will set up a Commune between you and Qeien, as he is otherwise not trying to hear anything from this place. This is all I can give to you for your supporting Nellie." She couldn't exactly grant him a boon or a Request. He belonged to someone else.

"I have self-reflected and will proceed thusly. Is there anything else you would like to discuss with me?"
WayfaringWaaksian

Josephine Warren
Aecor Athenium- Bathroom​

The Goddess's visit was imminent, and with it came Ms. Angel, who rang the doorbell. "Josephine!" came a squawk from Rook, her attendant, startling her as she took her bath. "The Angel is near the house!"
But she noticed something. "Did you cover my ears?" Josephine asked. Why didn't she hear the flock? She was taking a bath because she, in her infinite wisdom, thought showers existed 200 years ago.
"Indeed. You need peace and quiet to calm your nerves," he said bluntly. "If that Goddess is coming, we don't need you angering her in your nervousness."
"Easy for you to say!" Josephine countered, "You can escape! I can't!"
"If you can't escape, neither can I," Rook cawed. "I will go let the Angel in." Her crow flew off as Josephine hurried and dried herself off. Those clothes needed to be washed, but that was for another day. Leaving them thrown in the floor, Jo ran out of the bathroom to her own room while Rook took care of Ms. Angel

Rook
Aecor Athenium- Front Door​

Spoiler: Rook

Rook


​

Occupation: Attendant to Josephine; Flock Maestro
Species: Corvidae (Crow)
Age: ???

Description: Rook is the primary Crow called upon by Josephine. He is assigned by King Corvus to tend to and protect however she needs. He is essentially a bodyguard and messenger to the Flock. Rook is a VERY strong bird and his most common form isn't his true form. In the interest of protecting her by any means, Rook went far above and beyond any member of any flock. He ended up attaining a new power surge from King Corvus and with it, the new form of a huge Daedric Crow with 10 eyes and immense power. This gives him the power of 2 highly trained Warriors, 2 highly trained Mages and a Daedric Paladin. He..........He doesn't tell Josephine about his actual form because he knows that she just wants a peace with minimal magic interaction. Plus, she is immensely scared of the Daedric, so he is fine keeping this a secret. Plus, his true form is something he only ever wants exposed when he is to kill who sees it

Rook is obsessed with Josephine, nigh in love with her for saving his life that day. Anything that tries to bring her to harm will be killed. If Josephine were to die, Rook's power would increase 100-fold and the final 10 minutes of Rook's life before he fades away will be a rampage for the ages. He is a ruthless killer, fiercely territorial, and won't hesitate to kill even a flock member that Josephine wants dead, and grows more powerful the more Corvus Birds he eats. He isn't loyal to a flock. He is loyal to Josephine and that simply extends to any flock she runs.

Josephine isn't a threat. Rook is the threat.

The Corvidae hates Elaina, but whatever binds she put on Josephine's soul makes it impossible to take his talons to her throat unless Josephine is in imminent danger. There is also an aspect of Josephine not hating the witch, due to the fact that Josephine has little history with Elaina that she's able to recollect. It's a frustration that Rook holds, that Josephine isn't aware that he holds. All he wants is her safety. Memories or not, so long as he is a presence that she wants to keep around, he is happy with his current life

Josephine was a mess through and through. More ruffled than he had seen her in a while. Maybe because she was coming face to face with the Goddess and her only perceived backup was the Goddess's own attendant, which of course wouldn't reassure her in the least. Rook wanted to deal with the Goddess and her attendants, but maybe there was a way to bridge the gap. Ultimately, Rook would bring to her their head if she desired.........She would never desire that, but at least he could dispatch the threats.........No, no, he had to calm it down. Ms. Angel isn't a hostile, so he could attempt to bridge the gap. That Nellie though? If she came forth, she would answer to the Flock before she ever got access to Josephine. The woman was frightened of the Daedric, and while Rook could take offense given that King Corvus was Daedric and his Empowered (True) Form was Daedric, he wouldn't. Rook didn't attach himself to her because she was some bloodthirsty battle maniac. He attached himself to her to preserve her desire for some semblance of a normal life. Librarian, Avian Veterinarian.

This place was her chance for such. Or at least as close as she would ever get under the witch

Rook flew out of a window and perched on the door knob in front of the Angel. "State your business with the Flock's Benefactor, Angel, lest you be turned away!" he cawed loudly
The angel looked surprised and then curtsied in the face of his ferociousness. "I bow only to my Goddess, but I offer this as my gesture of respect in lieu of the ignorance by me to your kind's customs," she said. It was then and then alone that Rook knew she was legit. No attempt to protest or assert herself. Just sheer respect on the spot. "I was commanded by the Goddess to report to Lady Josephine and ensure both her mental health and progress for the Goddess's impending visit and interview. To which authority do I address?"

"Flock Maestro Rook," he said. "Josephine's attendant, Flock Maestro.........and a leader that will take you on should you present a threat to Our benefactor!"
"Yes, that is understood Sir Rook." There was no semblance of resistance. "I come only with good intentions."
"The Flock approves of this one," Rook said, giving her the side-eye as he opened the door. "Proceed. Relay this to the one known as Nellie should she attempt to approach Our Benefactor. Our Benefactor will be protected not only under authority of Rook, but under authority of King Corvus." It was a precaution since Josephine was more frightened of Nellie than the Goddess Herself. "Await in the lobby for Our Benefactor. She is.........altering her attire."

Mariah the Watcher
Aecor Athenium​

Mariah wanted to giggle at the end of this, thinking about Jo. Rook was a bird seeming stalwart to the cause. Josephine was a frightened woman with a protector beyond her comprehension. Mariah would play along, mostly because it dawned on her that Josephine had no idea what was going on if Daedric made her sick. This bird was Daedric-touched. It was all the makings of a woman who was in over her head. Of course Josephine made that clear to the angel, but Mariah was now beginning to understand the depths of it. Josephine's world was much bigger than she knew, and now the Angel understood why Lady Elaina kept her around. Josephine didn't have Divine Favor or much power in general, but Rook was essentially her Daedric Guardian Angel. That was the special thing that Lady Elaina was looking for, and for a being as dangerous as Rook, Lady Elaina could only control it if she could control Josephine. Can't say I condone slavery, but it's good to know that even your slaves are chosen so carefully, Lady Elaina, Mariah thought. Rook was the reason Lady Elaina didn't kill Josephine, and the woman herself had no idea of Rook's true nature, and Mariah didn't know if it was due to Elaina wiping her memories or if Rook himself kept that a secret from her.

Mariah took a seat in the lobby, taking in the manor of both Ves's stuff and the new forest of papers, awaiting the Benefactor

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Vladimir Hochmut
Church - Lab​

Likewise, the Goddess's concern was noted to Vlad. Good to know her near-death wasn't merely "a thing Nancy didn't like", he thought, trying to forfeit that bitterness but still unable to manage it. It was understandable to him that a God's wounded pride might lead them to lash out, but it had been unacceptable. He didn't know what went on between her and Nancy during his last commune, but if it had been Vlad, the Goddess would have been fighting to keep him from dissenting over that assertion alone.

There was a reason he said Nellie had no one.

Doubts persisted. How do You know she would have even accepted it? The Nellie Vlad knew always insisted that she wanted nothing to do with Gods or their power. She lamented over her first Gift enough. Why in every realm would she ever accept Favor, completely locking her into their service? That, to Vlad, was to do with Nellie's change... but likely the Goddess knew something he didn't. He couldn't have known Nellie's mind like her own Goddess did.

".........Prince Qeien? He was going to release Laylah to destroy this place. He looks upon it with disgust. It is more surprising that he Empowered you in the first place."

But when the topic switched to himself, Vlad felt a numbness tingle over him. His claws reflexively twitched, but they didn't feel real. Though his mind was frozen, it was flooded with thoughts. Thoughts of how this could be, what had prevented it, and finally, why Vlad didn't come to expect this. The nuns, the children... it was unforgivable. This place was sinful beyond forgiveness.
But never would Vlad have thought his own God capable of destroying a hundred thousand people simply for being in its vicinity! Those citizens were innocent! They didn't know-- they couldn't have! They were just as much of victims... did that not matter to Qeien?

"... No, Goddess," he finally said, a brief deliberation that felt to him like an eon of deciding. "I fear what He might do to me once I'm in His domain."

Spoiler: Confession

Any apprehension standing before this Goddess was washed away as tense fear tightened to teeth-clenching anger. This was unforgivable. The church was unforgivable. Prince Qeien was unforgivable. Vlad himself was unforgivable.

"The other matter is the reason why I'm speaking in private. If Nellie were to find out about this so soon, she would kill me on the spot... justifiably so. And my God, clearly," he spat, tail lashing, "hasn't wanted to acknowledge my prayers. This is not a secret I can bear any longer, so that leaves You, Goddess. As the new ruler, You have the right to know before anyone else." If he kept silent any longer, his complacency would grow.

"Some time ago in the Void Sea, I grew suspicious of the Sacrament's intentions. Clergy and orphans going 'missing' in an isolated place such as here didn't add up to me, so I began a private investigation. Then I learned the truth. All of it. The experiments, the Blight being forced upon the children, and the scheme to profit off of it all. I was prepared to whistleblow their acts... before I was caught."

His throat wanted to close up, but he didn't fear these words. Glimpses of the beatings, the forced confinement, and what came after flashed through his memory. Faces of friends and allies turning vicious upon his "betrayal". They weren't details the Goddess needed, so he was glad to push them aside. "The Sacrament infected me with Blight to force my silence. I believe they wanted to kill me for simplicity's sake, but with my position in the Elites, they didn't want to raise questions." He still almost wished they had... but what would have come of Nellie?

"I was faced with a decision. Deny treatment and allow the Blight to overtake me, or receive it whilst knowing who would be suffering in my stead." With Vlad standing before her fit and healthy, she could infer what he had chosen. "It was not a decision I took lightly. My life means nothing to me. I was ready to defy the Sacrament again and expose their evil acts to the entire kingdom. But I realized that if I had started a civil war in the Void Sea, that would have only tightened Hemhart's grip on the people. I didn't trust any of the Elites other than Nellie to stand by me and fight, and I'm appalled to know that I was correct." The other 98 stood with the King, hiding away behind the castle walls while Toron was being decimated. "We would have never won against the other Elites, and without anyone to stand for the people, they would have been forced into even greater bondage. It was a doomed plan that would have deprived them of any semblance of a normal life."

To know that the only reason the people were free of Hemhart being due to Divine intervention assured Vlad he was correct. He wasn't happy to be correct, but was happy to know that the harm inflicted on the children on his part wasn't entirely in vain. "I chose the good of the many over the few. But that doesn't invalidate the suffering of the few. I take full responsibility of the continued abuse of those orphans, and the soul-deaths of the nuns. I'll accept any punishment deemed fitting to grant them justice."

Then his cool admittance wavered into instability, desperation rooting his words as they poured out. "Again, my life means nothing to me. But if Nellie were to lose me, she would fall apart. If she were to kill me for my complacency, she would be grieved beyond consolation. I'm confessing to You rather than Prince Qeien because You're the only other one who cares for her well-being. I can't trust Him to let this transgression go and simply abandon me. I'm begging You, Goddess..." Vlad lowered his head, the closest he could get before bowing to a God not his own, "don't take me away from her."


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Mariah the Watcher
Aecor Athenium​

Mariah waited patiently for Josephine to make her appearance. Rook seemingly disappeared after granting his approval and calming the myriad of crows loitering about the manor. When Jo made her appearance, Mariah stood up in respect. "Hello, Josephine. I was sent here by the Goddess."

"I assumed as such," Jo said, keeping her distance by stopping at the stairs. Despite knowing all this would happen, Josephine's stomach churned at the sight of the Angel. Oh god, Josephine thought, I can't even say oh god because one's coming to potentially kill me. Even the Holiness Mariah was giving off was making her nauseated. "Is it possible to NOT meet with the Goddess?" she asked, "No offense but your presence literally makes me ill. Like the actual need to hurl again."

Mariah stepped towards her, face showing heavy concern. "Why do we make you sick? Why would you believe the Goddess would harm you?" she said as she moved towards her, though she stopped as Josephine stepped back, keeping the already large distance between them large. This was a prick in Mariah's heart. She had done her best to make Josephine feel welcome here, yet in one fell swoop, it seemed like the progress not only reset, but proceeded into the negatives. What else could she do?

"I don't know, Ms. Angel. I don't know, but whatever that Divine stuff is, can you get rid of it?"

"I........I haven't learned to suppress my magic. I never had it before becoming an Angel." Mariah was as new to magic as Josephine was to Kraiven/Orivae, and Mariah inherently had vast amounts of it in her Ascended status. "What happened? You weren't ill last we met!"
"Knowing the Goddess can do to me what she did to all those bodies. Then Nellie.........That demon. I want it AWAY from me!" Jo nearly shrieked, her eyes tearing up.
Poor woman. Poor Rook too, Mariah thought. Josephine didn't even know that she was subconsciously rejecting her most trusted confidant. "Well, I cannot leave here until the interview concludes."
"But why. Do. I. Need. To. SEE. Her?!" Jo responded, more in frustration than anything. She REALLY didn't want the Goddess around her. Did she hate Her Holiness?

"It is Her will to see you. So it shall be. I cannot rebuff the Goddess," Mariana said softly with a shake of her head. Gods didn't just Descend willy-nilly so when they did, what they wanted to do, they would do. "I promise with all of my being, we are not here to harm you, Josephine." Mariah could only say that upfront. She really did want Josephine to feel welcome, and it wasn't even because she was the Witch's proxy. "Nellie is rough around the edges, but her hatred of Elaina does NOT extend to you. Same with the Goddess." She knew because they knew she was attracted to that very same witch. Yet there was never anything said about it. Maybe they trusted her a little less, but Elaina had carved out the status as the most hateable voice of knowledge probably on the planet. What attracted the Angel to the Witch was how amazingly she confidently marched to the beat of her own drum. As a little girl who grew up under strict control, and then a nun who operated under strict control, Elaina was an insight to the world she herself would never possess. To be bad, and be confident in being bad in a way that was still helpful was a new type of beauty for her.

• OOC: Mariah loves her Anti-Heroes, and Elaina is the truest definition of it in these RPs

Then there was Steven. Oh her darling Steven. Her lighthouse that kept her strict to the faith while showing the boundaries to such rules. He had an aura about him that commanded respect while being humble. Steven showed her freedom of movement within the rules. Elaina showed her freedom of movement outside the rules, and Mariah was smitten with both. She didn't even WANT to break rules. She just found a thrill in maybe being the getaway driver. Maybe forced to be the getaway driver, even.

• OOC: Mariah loves her "Forced to be bad" scenarios

These were feelings that she couldn't dwell on right now. Besides Jack, Josephine was one of the most normal of people she has dealt within the new world. Despite the world AROUND her being crazy, until the woman was in danger, one couldn't expect Josephine to be a complicated person. On one hand, Mariah wanted to pacify Rook. On the other, Rook was pacified so long as Josephine wasn't hostile. It wasn't even to piss her off. Just don't literally put her life in danger, and you were fine. She's a cupcake!, Mariah concluded with a bit of glee. I love her more! Whatever Mariah was thinking about Jo being a cupcake was more wholesome than most people in this day and age to an innocent

• OOC: Mariah loves that there is a woman seemingly less pure than her. Subconsciously, but present
  • Mariah feels guilty that she enjoys this

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


"........ Establish formalities!" Oh boy. The Goddess didn't have to relay the rules of Formality to Vlad. He knew them already, and the wave of power that passed over not only him but the whole Church was the familiar one. This room was now a courtroom, and the Goddess Presided over it. If Vlad was hoping for a pardon for the things he just confessed. It wasn't gonna end well for him.

Mariana, Goddess of the Deepest Deep
Church- Lab​

"Cease this lie that your life means nothing to you," the Goddess said sternly, Vlad's Holiness suddenly snuffed out as the room got a lot more Daedric very quickly. The Goddess took a deep breath and the Abyss receded from the room. "One does not knowingly receive a lot of treatments that push your Blight onto an innocent if you do not value your own life," came a simple but harsh reprimand.

Spoiler: Deepest Deep Reprimand

While the Goddess's temperament was tamed, Vlad could tell he had irked her. "I have looked into every single nun who could not be saved, and not a single Nun who knew what was going on received a treatment herself. In fact, the bulk of them who knew volunteered to take on more Blight to spare more damage on the souls of the children. They gave up their life and their afterlife in hopes that those children could be saved." The Goddess had to say it aloud to drive the point home. She was NOT happy about this. In fact, she herself had cried a lot for them, even more than she cried over Nancy. "Let me be clear: Incredibly incredibly fearful of death, they courageously marched into the maw to give those children even just one more day of life. One of those nuns attempted to whistleblow DESPITE the threats, and she lost her life for it. SHE would've rather this kingdom burn in a revolt than to let it stand on a corrupt throne." It spoke to their undying devotion to those kids. Vlad's excuses for why he didn't sounded like just that. She could understand his viewpoint and his hard choices, but he ultimately consciously chose to add to it.

"Those nuns? They will NEVER see their loved ones, their friends, or those kids ever again," The mournful words showed in her worked up tone. "Yet they will NEVER be with the God they dedicated their lives to serving. If you want to invoke my wrath, you can keep telling me that you enabled and contributed to that result all to preserve a life that means nothing to you." It wasn't even that the Goddess was upset at Vlad for having taken the treatment. It was that by saying his life means nothing to him, he contributed to suffering for nothing. She also wasn't about to let him labor under any impression that he acted or is acting selflessly

"You want to be by her side as much as she wants you at her side. Your love for my daughter contributed to the destruction of those souls." She wasn't going to sugarcoat it. The Goddess was willing to chalk up Vlad's choice of words to an attempt to save himself by appealing to Nellie's wellbeing, but having read through the souls and the memories attached, only to have to destroy it instead of send it to a well deserved paradise, any implication that it was in vain, made lightly, or didn't matter would upset her. "The actions you took are the same actions that had me execute the rest of the 100 Elite. You will drink every drop from that well and appreciate the sacrifice it took for you to stand before me healthy and fit right here and right now."

She then stood back and sighed. "Knowing this now and knowing Qeien, one course of action is to ignore your pleas and take this to Qeien......." the Goddess responded. Vlad was right. Qeien would not let this fly. He would destroy Vlad's soul on the spot for this. The Spring Prince's feelings about the place are not entirely unfounded. Over 89% of the population had some form of Blight damage. Many many of the citizens' souls couldn't be saved due to blight damage, and how horrid this place was made a complete purge a justifiable course of action especially if the logic of purging any and all blighted was taken. Those completely devoid of infection and those in great condition were the suspicious ones. The ones devoid of infection could be either lucky or cognizant and avoidant of the Blight. It wasn't something that began in the Null Realm, afterall. The souls infected but still in pristine condition were especially bad because it spoke to lots of treatments, and one didn't get a lot of treatment without some insight to the suffering that came with it. Vlad had no legs to stand on for why he should be spared. He was as guilty as every other noble who came in for treatment knowing he was pawning off his fate onto an innocent child or an innocent nun...... And no, staying by Nellie's side was not good enough justification. EVERYONE has loved ones they don't want to die and leave behind. "...........But you are correct. Qeien would destroy your soul. Deserved or not, Nellie deserves not such grief."

Nellie needed Vlad, and the man was here to confess to Her instead of his own God. Confessing his crimes stood for something, a guilty plea and yet a cry for help. "You knowingly pushed your death onto other people. This would be justifiable if you used their lives for a greater purpose. Instead, you chose to remain complacent and keep contributing to the suffering of those innocent." That is what turned bad to egregious. Knowing what was going on, doing absolutely nothing about it, and contributing to it. Vlad would be hard pressed to defend himself if one called it malicious. "I know not if your decision was right or wrong. Perhaps the Pirates stepping in saved more lives." It would be only a matter of time before the Kingdom would be too Blighted to save a single inch of it or a single soul who lived there.

Canon​ It is THIS decision from Vlad (the decision to not whistle-blow) that ultimately caused the Pirates to pull out a thriving Kraiven instead of the ruins they were shown before the raid. If Vlad had whistle-blown, the revolt would've destroyed everything. Vlad and Nellie would be dead and replaced, but the enemy would've been the initial Hemhart and his 100 Elite in the ruins of his kingdom

"Your reward for your actions in the defense of this city: You will be spared death. I will take over jurisdiction of you since your crimes happened in my domain." the Goddess declared, going official and regal. This was the signal that something official was about to be said. His reward? Being spared death and spared Qeien's wrath. One in the same. "Now for punishment:"



Vlad's Punishment

"By my authority as Lady of this land, you are hereby Stripped of your Divine Favor and made Universally Undesirable. You have breathed your last Holy Flame." This effectively freed him from Qeien's service, but gave him a huge power loss. His fire was still the strongest in the kingdom, but his peak was now much lower. If there was any question about his equality to Nellie in strength, that was laid to rest, because now Nellie was leaps and bounds the strongest in the Kingdom. Vlad now lacked the Holiness to put her Daedric in check. At Nellie's strongest, he would be lucky if his flame could melt Nellie's Daedric-touched ice in an hour. The interesting thing to note here was that the Goddess was invoking her DAEDRIC authority to Strip him of his HOLY Favor. It told the beast man of which bear he had poked.

"Furthermore, you are hereby soul-bound to Sunning Stone, also known as Nellie. When she breathes her last, so will you. You will give your life for her glory. You are bound where Nellie is. If she is in a city, whether Orivae or beyond, you may not leave that city. Exceptions to that rule will be asked of me by either my Scion or my Angel, on a case by case basis. You will be weaker the further away from her you are." While Nellie was in Toron, Vlad could go anywhere in Toron but he physically could not leave Toron. Like literally could not, as if a magnet would pull him back in. If she left, he had to travel with her. "In sickness and in health, until death do you part, where the Abyss awaits. 2 years Torment per treatment received after discovering the truth." The Goddess effectively deferred his true punishment until his death. Vlad's soul was in very good condition so he was looking at a long bit of Torment. He was receiving treatment for about 197 years afterall

"So let it be written, so let it be done." Snap! With a snap of her webbed fingers, Vlad began to be painfully stripped of his Divine Favor, very similar to the way Nancy was, only Nancy was practically unconscious and numb from the Oppressive Cold when it happened to him. Vlad was fully cognizant and conscious, with no cold to numb the senses. It would feel like someone was digging into his body to rip out his insides. While this would be extremely painful, Vlad was not coming to any physical harm. Whatever Vlad's methods of struggle, whether he writhed on the floor, or stood firm with all his might to take it, or roared in pain. Whatever his method, Mariana just watched, shaking her head. This won't help my standing with Nellie, but I cannot let this stand, Mariana thought. This entire thing would NOT go unnoticed by those in the Church. They would sense Holiness being purged, and would know immediately that it was Vlad. The man had to explain this to Nellie, and soon. If the Goddess had to explain it, she would just share Vlad's memories with Nellie and let that speak for itself. She wanted to avoid that because it could really complicate their relationship........ Or make Mariana herself dislike Vlad.

Spoiler: Record of Conviction

Record of Conviction: Vladimir Hochmut
Sex: Male
Offense: Negligence, Aiding and/or Abetting Soul Destruction
Punishment: Stripped of Divine Favor; Soul-Bound to Sunning Stone (Nellie); 2 years Torment in the Abyss per Treatment received
Duration: Life; Torment to begin in the Abyss in convict's Afterlife
Presiding Authority: Mariana, Goddess of the Deepest Deep and Daedric Lady of the Abyss​

Description: Subject led a private investigation, which uncovered a large-scale ring of "treating" Blight, which was monetized and simply transferred the Blight from one person to another. Those chosen to take on the Blight consisted of prisoners and, more notably, Nuns and orphans of war. This was done against their own will and caused severe damage to the souls of those it was forced on, causing permanent irreparable damage, up to and sometimes including Terminal Hollowfication, requiring the soul to be destroyed and preventing the soul being sent to their appropriate afterlife. This is egregious in the eyes of the Gods who created and preside over the realms, doubly so if done against the Faithful as it robs their follower of their God's paradise

The subject discovered this and instead of bringing it to light and alerting the masses, he not only kept it a secret but continued to reap his own benefits, pushing his own Blight onto them and contributing to the Hollowfication of their souls. Such act can only be seen as malicious. While others may or may not have ignorance of the effects of Spirit Magic, Subject is knowledgeable of the effects of Terminal Hollowfication and was knowledgeable of his own contribution both directly via Treatments or indirectly by sitting on the truth

Sentence: Subject will be punished in the following ways:

1. Stripped of Divine Favor
2. Mark of Universal Holy Undesirability (MUHU)
3. Soul-Binding
4. 2 Years Torment in the Daedric Abyss per Treatment received after discovery was made

Article 1: Effective immediately, subject is Stripped of his Divine Favor. Subject is immediately dismissed from the rank of their respective God and adherence to their individual Law and Divinity Law at large. This prevents the use of any Divine Magics (Holy/Daedric/Fae/Draconian). Any pending afterlife Rewards are kept or dismissed on a case by case basis, to be chosen by the God who issued the Pending Reward. Any item blessed by the God they were dismissed from will be rendered Null. Subject's soul will thenceforth be treated as that of a Non-Believer

Article 2: Subject will be issued the Mark of Universal Holy Undesirability (MUHU). This mark identifies the subject as Undesirable in the eyes of the Holy Gods, preventing him from receiving Holy Divine Favor while the mark remains active. Supportive Holy Magic is 75% ineffective on someone with a MUHU, as are the effectiveness of anything Holy that is beneficial to the subject with a MUHU. In the afterlife, those with a MUHU will NOT be sent to a Holy God in the Afterlife for permanent placement. For those with a MUHU, any pending Rewards from Holy Gods are on hold while the mark is active and if the subject dies with an active MUHU, any afterlife Rewards are Null

Article 3: Subject is Bound in servitude to the being known as Sunning Stone, also known as Nelson "Nellie" Noi. Subject gets progressively weaker as he moves away from the Master, up to 50% weaker (physically and magically) for a mile or more distance. When the Master is in a certain location (village, town, city, etc.) the Bound may roam freely but is unable to completely leave the location. The Subject gets stronger when defending the Master. When the Master dies, so too does the Subject

Article 4: With time to begin in the Subject's afterlife, the subject is sentenced to 2 years of Torment in the Daedric Abyss for every treatment for Blight that the Subject received. Torment is at the full discretion of the Presiding God or their respective delegates, and can include almost anything up to but NOT INCLUDING anything that causes damage to structure of the soul itself. Upon completion of the ruled time, Subject's soul is released. If the soul has served all sentenced punishment, then it may be sent to their respective God for any pending Rewards. If the soul is a non-believer and has resolved all punishments and rewards without being permanently placed, they will be sent to the Null Realm to await permanent placement

When the agonizing ordeal was over, and Vlad now devoid of Holiness, Mariana spoke again. "Since Nellie needs you, you defended this city, and you have confessed your crimes," She said with authority, hands behind her back. "The doors for redemption remain open. Prove to me that the soul-deaths you contributed to was not done lightly, and I will keep you out of the Abyss. Or at minimum lessen the sentence. I can forgive what you did, but as of right now, I have no reason to."

Mariana moved to the door to exit. "I expect you to tell Nellie the truth, because she WILL ask why I Stripped you of your Divine Favor......" Nellie wouldn't take it well regardless, but that was a consequence that Vlad needed to deal with, not the Goddess for doling out an arguably too merciful punishment, a boundary only justifiable because the Goddess decided to use his Reward to spare him. If he didn't have the Reward about him, she'd have another run-in with Diederick. "From the Highest Highs to the Deepest Deep......." she said, opening the door and heading out. "..........this meeting sleeps."

The Goddess walked out of the room with confidence. Out of the room, then to the Church doors as she decided to take the long route to the Aecor Athenium. It would give Nellie all the room she would need to figure out what happened with Vlad. "Speak to Vlad. Hopefully it won't cause a gap between us, because I wanted to kill him! YOU are why I didn't. I was wrong with Nancy, but I am NOT wrong here." The Goddess snapped to her daughter as she exited the Church on the way to the Aecor Athenium. The Daedric she left behind was both powerful and not to be trifled with. The Goddess was angry, and with good reason. Everyone within the Church could sense it.
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Vladimir Hochmut
Church - Lab​

When comprehension returned to Vlad, now met with numb limbs and a hoarse throat, he rose his head from the floor he had collapsed onto. A face upturned to the Goddess who saved him, rather than hung in shame from the Lady who punished him. Gratitude poured from him, shining streaks down his face. Goddess Mariana wouldn't stand to hear a word from his maw, let alone his profuse thanks, but thanks were all his rattled mind repeated to itself.

From the moment he had made his decision long ago, Vlad expected to reap Undesirability. Favor Strip had been an inevitability. And under a God as vengeful as her, his soul should have been sent screaming to the Abyss along with the rest of his ilk. A sure sentence, but now one delayed.
He watched the Goddess step out, leaving him trembling in the lingering Daedric with no Holy to counter it. You don't understand, was his pleading thought. Then, the realization, She can't. It had been poor wording on his part. His life did mean something to him, only if it meant he could live it for his people. But the Goddess was too grieved to see it as anything other than pure self-servitude. So be it, he supposed. So long as Nellie wasn't left alone in this.

With a flood of relief upon seeing Nellie burst through the door, he supposed there was an element of selfishness to it after all.
"Nellie..."
That lingering dread knowing he had to burden her with the terrible truth grew to full intensity when he read no concern on her face. No hint of crystalline white in her eyes as they pooled with black Abyss.
"You knew?"

Spoiler: A Sentence (Almost) Served Early

The Daedric left over by the Goddess's wrath pierced in intensity all throughout the Church. The air grew sharper, heavier, nigh suffocating as it briefly pricked the skin of everyone inside. Brief because the discomfort followed a shooting current as it flew through the doors, out and away, on and on until only heightened dread was left in its wake. Her wrath wasn't meant for them.

Anyone with enough nerve to look out the windows or the parted doors could see those icy waters dispel, and Vladimir thrown across the courtyard like a skipping stone. Nellie descended after him, looming over his limp body. No Holiness to counter the frigid cold seeping into his fur, his limbs froze against the broken stone. He could only meet her gaze, the Abyss glaring back at him. A rage that was controlled under the Goddess was now unbidden.
"You KNEW?!" Her scream echoed to every corner. "And you didn't tell me?!"
"I c--" The first ear of his voice only conjured another blast of water, lifting him up and slamming him onto the ground once again. He rolled over, ribs alight with cold fire.
"All that horseshit about thinking I knew," she hissed, lumbering towards his battered frame. "You KNEW I didn't know! You let me kill those souls! You LIED TO ME!!"
"I had to--" A shield of blunt ice clocked his jaw, shattering over his face. Copper welled up around his tongue.
"Because you knew I would revolt." His blouse tightened when she yanked him by the scruff. Her breath was frigid, crystalizing the ends of his soaked mane. "You knew I'd burn this city down trying to save those kids! Why the fuck did you think I'd want to live in a place that let that happen?!"
"This isn't just about you!" he said between ragged coughs, blood dribbling on his chin. "The Elites would've sooner let every last citizen die before turning on Hemhart! Or worse, enslave them for the Sacrament's sick experiments! I couldn't just throw them to the wolves, knowing the outcome!"

"THAT'S NOT FOR YOU TO DECIDE!!" Vlad felt himself scatter across the pavement after she whirled around to throw him. "You don't decide what becomes of the people! They do! If they want to die for what's right, YOU FUCKING LET THEM!!"
"I can't just 'let them die', Nellie!" What was she saying?! Wasn't this the woman who would fight to the ends of the Earth to keep her people alive? "I gave an oath to protect them, so that's what I did!"
"You didn't 'protect' us! You decided for us, and LIED because you couldn't handle the idea of me being gone!" Nellie reared her head, scales rippling like obsidian chain-mail. "I'm so SICK of the preferential treatment! You and Goddess! I SHOULD FUCKING KILL YOU!!"
"Nellie--"
"You're just as guilty as the rest of them!" Teeth glinting like icicles in the moonlight, she flashed them over his neck. "Why should you be given mercy?"
Vlad's thoughts ran, but to only one conclusion. The reason for that even Nellie could tell: it was only for her benefit. Only because the Goddess thought she needed it. Vlad had begged for mercy for her sake, but had he miscalculated? What if she didn't need him alive? What if she didn't want him? If not, then Vlad couldn't begin to blame her...

His skin had grown numb by now, no longer searing under the ice steadily encasing him. "I was given mercy for your solace," he asserted. "But if only my death will bring you solace... then so be it. It's your decision now." Vlad's fate was in her hands. And she was even less forgiving than the Goddess. What should he prepare for, knives tearing into his throat? Ice engulfing his body and lulling him into a deadly sleep? The Abyss awaited either way and he gazed right into it, accepting the path he'd paved for himself.

"... You did it for us." Pieces of ice bounced off his chest like hail, her tears freezing as tightening lids squeezed them from her eyes. "That is why you live." She opened them to glare into his damned soul, black and shining with grief. "So live. Live every last of your days knowing you're the reason why so many NEVER WILL!!"

Then she was gone. A summoned current dripped over his already soaked body as it shot away into the distance. Her destination? The closest place devoid of life, the ruined castle reduced to rubble by her own hands. That sort of power she'd never subject her people to again, so far away she would go. Just as she should have before.

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Mariah the Watcher
Aecor Athenium​

"The Goddess is angry!" Mariah suddenly said as the person in question approached the manor.
Josephine shrieked and ran in fear. "I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY! I DIDN'T MEAN TO OFFEND HER!!" she yelled as she hauled ass to the back of the manor. Man could that woman move, especially while using the [Relic: Icarus Feather]

Mariah knew better. This wasn't anger directed at Josephine, but when the Goddess was angry, she was unpredictable. Mariah had to do something. The Goddess's will was to cultivate a good relationship with the witch's proxy. The Goddess couldn't do that if She was angry. Mariah had to make something happen or Orivae was lost. I can't just pray! I must ACT, Mariah thought to herself as she ran out to the front porch. "STOP!" she yelled defiantly

"Are you issuing a command to me?" The Goddess said in response. Her eyes were dark and frightening. One glance into them send an Abyssal shiver down her spine. Nellie couldn't intimidate her, her Holy outdoing Nellie's Daedric too much to have that effect. However, this was a new level. Her soul felt like it was being submerged in the thickest murkiest depths of the Goddess's Abyss.
Nevertheless, the Angel pressed on courageously. "My sincerest apologies, my Goddess, but you must remember your own will," Mariah said. She had to do right by Josephine, and she would! "I know not what angers you, but you must not bring such wrath to this manor. Josephine is already frightened of you. It is for your will that I MUST STOP YOU!" Bold words. Defiant words said so confidently that it took the Goddess aback. "For the glory of Orivae, remember your will!"

A stand-off ensued between God and Angel, a silent front between the Goddess's pride and the Angel's convictions. Mariah was QUAKING. She knew that her life was insignificant in the face of the Deepest Deep. She was one of many humans who could become an Angel. She could die right here and now. Wait.......Why was she so fearful? If she wanted Josephine to cease fearing the Goddess, why was SHE herself fearful of doing what she was doing? "You..........are correct, my Angel," the Goddess finally said, "We must not cultivate fear within the Witch's proxy."
"I will push my luck further. Her name is Josephine Warren," Mariah said. She had this momentum, so she may as well go all out. "She is her own person, separate from the Witch. Please, my Goddess. If you want to cultivate a good relationship with her, it has. to start. with you. I want to protect her, and it hurts that I feel that I'm protecting her from YOU."

"........................." The pause felt like an eternity and Mariah felt like she was choking. She could sense though that the crows around this manor was drinking up this potent Daedric power, having a field day with Rook's Influence. Josephine was probably hiding in fetal position awaiting her death. ".............I will speak to Josephine another day." The Goddess finally said, which caused Mariah to heave a sigh of relief. She would live another day! "Until then..........." She turned around, away from the manor. "All my Angels and all my Daedra," she called out to the skies, which made Mariah kneel to receive the command. "We have received millions upon millions of prayers from my devoted." She began walking away from the manor, calmed now by Mariah's words, "We will begin sifting through them starting at midnight. I want all of you in my respective offices in Cordelia and Elmar. Angels by 11:45. Daedra by Midnight. So it is commanded, so let it be done."

The Goddess turned back to her. "That includes you, Mariah." With that the Goddess turned into a watery silhouette then popped like a bubble. The Goddess was gone. If Mariah weren't already kneeling, she would've collapsed in relief right there. The Daedric lingered potently, but now no longer in a quantity to choke her like it was. Like mother, like daughter, she thought. When their emotions flared, the surroundings knew it and often took the brunt of it. Luckily, it wasn't as bad a Nellie's. The Goddess leaned more towards Water and Nellie Ice, so Nellie would freeze her surroundings. The Goddess, at least this time, only brought about a thick Daedric Miasma. A potent one that most normal humans would've choked in, but the Corvian Benefactor would be fine in it.

"Josephine, I know you've sensed that the Goddess has left," Mariah said into her crystal, "Please know that I am here for you. I will leave you alone for tonight, but you will be receiving visitors tomorrow. Nellie to be exact." With that, the connection severed and Mariah flew off. The Goddess would've definitely accidentally killed Josephine if she brought that wrath to the manor. The way that she immediately took Mariah's rebuff as a challenge to her authority meant Josephine could've been on the business end of that. She would get to the bottom of why the Goddess was angry tonight. Tomorrow would be a hard day as she would come back sleep deprived, but she would manage



The Day Draws to a Close

With the Goddess gone, the Daedric began to recede. Slowly but surely. The Church should be purged of the Daedric by midnight and the Aecor Athenium should be fine by morning. With that, the work day drew to a close. The leaders of the Church took their leave to go back to their respective dwellings. The weight of relief now that the dead is gone didn't go without a different cloud hovering over them. With Vlad Stripped of his Divine Favor, those who were kept warm by his Holy Flame would wonder where it all went in one fell swoop. Regardless, everyone had their duties to begin the actual rebuild of Orivae. Efilisa the Master Receptionist to oversee all personnel logistics for the workers and their duties. Arnold to run the sailing efforts and then to train the guard. Vlad to run the mining effort and then train fire mages. Mariah as the direct messenger of the Goddess and Overseer of the Clergy. Nellie as standing Queen of this place, the overseer of the demolishment and actual rebuild effort
WayfaringWaaksian


OOC: This is the Timeskip Point. We can focus on Pirate and Timeskip them at the same time, or we can separate them. If we make them the same, this is on pause until the point in Pirate. I say parallel them so you can focus on Pirate and put this on the wayside until we're both ready

 

[Kylesar1]

TIME SKIP: 2 Days​

The Next Day

Spoiler: The Next Day

Guildmaster Arnold Asella
Stoneroses HQ- Guildmaster's Office​

The next day for Arnold Asella was a busy one as he started looking into building boats. The issue? ALL OF THE BOOKS ARE AT THE AECOR ATHENIUM! A frustrating day of looking around the city made him come to the conclusion. Why? There were ONLY loose paper or empty notebooks around the city. Elaina somehow stole every single book in the city, so his only way to get a book was to go through Josephine. He wanted to leave the woman alone to her Elaina-ordained work, but that could no longer be a thing. "Paper will be expensive, Efi," he commented from his Guildmaster's Desk. "Elaina really did her work. No books, no notebooks, no records, no scrolls, no diaries or journals." Efi made paper from her silk as a supplement to the city. It was not a replacement for paper production though. Nowhere near, in fact
"I can provide you with some silk paper."
"Don't need it. Just observing that Elaina wiped this city of any and all books, then the Goddess ruined most of the remaining paper with her Hurricane."
Efi's many eyes shifted up to look at the Guildmaster. "Any and all?"
"With the exception of the Stoneroses HQ, indeed..... Any. And. All," Arnold confirmed, "Not even personal written journals and diaries."
"Well.........I wonder how much of that stuff will be conducive to investigation." Efi said longingly. Ain't that the question of the decade? Arnold knew for a fact though that there was no possible way all or even half of it was. Investigation was not her motive. She made it clear to all of them. It was knowledge
"Hopefully enough," Arnold responded, "and that we didn't lose too much knowledge with the deaths of the people who held it. Or the Hurricane."
"I suppose I must thank Elaina then. It preserves the knowledge." Efi Efi Efi, ever the optimist
"I won't be thanking her for NOT stealing all our stuff, but I will at least count that as a blessing," Arnold responded, giving in slightly to her usually infectious optimism. "That, and the fact that we still have access to it. The issue?"
"Hmmm?"
"Josephine is now sitting on an entire repository of stolen information and books, in the city it was stolen from," he said, voice full of concern, "Poor lass is in for it if people get word and get mad."
".........You're correct," Efi agreed, "Shall we go see her?"
"Tomorrow." Nellie tried to visit her to no avail. That one made sense. "I will speak to Nellie and Mariah about Josephine, and I will be there when they visit. Since she feels unsafe around them, this is the only way. It's either me or Vlad, and I think she'd prefer a human."

With that, Arnold stood up. "I will also get you census documents. And my personal records stolen from my house." He couldn't care less about stolen jewelry and weaponry. The only jewelry he held dear was that given to him by Demi
"No rush," Efi said cheerfully, already buried in a mountain of paperwork that she hadn't complained even a little bit about. Chances are, it was all requests "We have so much to put together, and gathering 100% of the people will be hard to gather in general."
"With that, I'm done for the day." Arnold moved towards the door. "Head on home, Efilisa. Good work today."
"I'll work a bit more," she said, "I can lock up." When did she NOT work overtime? If she were paid hourly, she'd be the richest non-Noble in Toron pre-Null Realm. Arnold had long since given up trying to keep her from working extra. He definitely couldn't do it now since she was appointed Deputy Guildmaster

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

The Day After

Spoiler: The Day After

Mariana, Goddess of the Deepest Deep
Altxorra, the City of Gold​

Oh High God, she had to meet Diederick again, and in his realm this time. His realm was..........absolutely stunning. If there was one thing the Goddess could say, it was that the High Lord of Pride kept himself as braggadocious visually as he was verbally. Despite his face being plastered absolutely everywhere, the city was utterly pristine. It wasn't literally all gilded in gold, but it was maintained as if the entire city were a castle ground The people were beautiful, all dressed uniquely. It was no wonder why so many parties were hosted here. Diederick was so incredibly obsessed with being the best at everything that he made himself unbeatable. On one hand, she could call it a fragile ego. On the other, that "fragile ego" drove him to being looked at favorably even to Lords 2 echelons higher (Ancient Lords). She hated to admit how impressive it is to someone she absolutely did not like.

People were always cleaning the cities, and they looked like normal humans, and that's how she knew they were prisoners. Looking plain in a city like this? Punishment. Their punishment? Keeping the city pristine day and night for those more deserving, feeling the effects of exhaustion but never given rest nor food to replenish energy, and never allowed to stop. Eternal cleaning, but never allowed to be an eyesore to the city. While they had freedom of movement, they were under the affects of [Ordination of Silence] and [Ordination of Mute] to keep their voices and movements unheard. This was a unique form of torture that Mariana had never thought of: Making prisoners maintain Elmar like that. She just threw them in the brig and let her Abyssal Abominations do their work. Same with Cordelia and its prisoners

As she walked the gold-gilded path to the palace of Diederick, Mariana was also adorned in a beautiful ocean blue dress. Like an ethereal Lady of the Lake, it made her look like she was gliding with half her body submerged in crystal clear blue water. Her hair was worn green to match a blue skin tone today to pop out better, in a bun adorned with shiny clams with glistening pearls. The Goddess was dressed as if she were attending a ball in her honor. She had to. As much as she wanted to go in pajamas full of bed head as she was exhausted from an all-nighter of going through all her prayers with her Angels and Daedra, appearing before Diederick in anything less than the best was taken as a spit in the face. If he summoned you, you WILL dress up

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

Dining Room

"So what did you summon me here for, Diederick?" Mariana sipped her tea as she looked across the table to her summoner. Her voice was wary. Of course it would be. "Do you need to recharge your humiliation battery off me?"
"Oh, dear Mariana," Diederick said as he sipped his own tea, "How could I possibly humiliate a woman who went out of her way to look as beautiful as you do for me?"
"You probably have a list written down on that memo pad of yours," Mariana commented, "I have been up all night sifting through the prayers of my Devoted. I would like some rest, so I implore you to get down to business."

"Hmph, you reject my hospitality," he said, mock offended judging by that smirk on his face. "I summoned you here to accept an invitation."
An invitation? "To what?"
"We got word from our Lord Supreme that the Dragons have to make a title exchange, and to commemorate that, Elewynn will be getting a promotion. She will keep her title of Dragon Supreme.........because Dragon Supreme will now be a title one rank under the Draco Ultimata." This made Mariana's eyes widen. Elewynn was now far above either of them.
"For what reason does Elewynn get promoted?"
"One of the Dragao Supremo has died and she has been named the successor." Diederick said with another sip. "So you'll be going."
"I decline," Mariana said immediately, "I have a Neutral Zone to rebuild so malingering around with the other Gods is too jovial for me to partake in right now."
"As I said, I summoned you here to accept the invitation," Diederick said nonchalantly, "Funny you believe you had a choice in this matter."
"............" Mariana sighed, "Fine. I'm going. When is it?"
"2 days. You have 2 days. Invite who you want. Ask them or Ordain them. I don't care, but you're not showing up solo."
"I will see what I can do."
I will only accept what you actually do, Mariana." Diederick said. "When you're done with refreshments, you're dismissed." With that, Diederick walked out. Mariana finished neither tea or food as she walked out about 30 seconds after Diederick left.

"Mariah, report to my office." Mariana said as she teleported back to Eveasora. "I have a message to pass on."
"At once, my Goddess," came the response

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

Present Day

Josephine Warren
Aecor Athenium​

Over the past 2 days, Josephine was more than happy to be left alone. The promised visit from Nellie didn't happen. All the books were dry, but she had to go through them and assess for any water damage. When she wasn't doing that, she was setting up the Teleportation Gate. Since all of Lady Elaina's libraries feature a Teleportation Gate so she can get around in an instant, this needed to be done. The issue? Josephine knew nothing about magic so her magic circle had to be drawn to highly specific specs. Rook had to assist her but since Rook was a literal bird, it wasn't like he could do it himself

Jo was out in the front porch when there was a flash of light. Ms. Angel appeared when the light cleared. My peace wasn't made to last long, she thought. "ROOK," she called her companion

"Josephine, I would like to speak to you," Mariah said, "I come in peace, I promise."
"................I don't want to do any of this, Ms. Angel"
"I can't just walk away," she said, You will be visited soon by Nellie. Rook will not be able to deter her this time. He.......never did, in fact. Nellie was intentionally stopping there out of respect."
"Why do I need to talk to her?" Josephine asked urgently, "Why can't she just take a message?"
"Because she wants to clear the air," Mariah responded, "She is going through a lot. Due to the Goddess in fact. Nellie doesn't want you to fear her."
"Then..........Can you at least stay? Cancel out some of that........Dark stuff?"
"Daedric....... and yes, I can place upon you an [Ordination of Repelling] to repel Daedric influence."

Josephine recoiled at the thought of being touched by an Angel. She served the same Goddess. Her stomach began to churn. Mariah must've seen this, because she was quick with the reproach. "B-But if you're not up for a direct blessing, I can at least bless one of your belongings with it so it feels no different to you!"
Josephine took a deep breath. If she couldn't avoid Nellie, she may as well take the blessing. "Come in. I do have something if you want to bless it."

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

Josephine came down the stairs holding a ring. She didn't own many things. 7 sets of clothes (which included the ones she was currently wearing) that all looked the same save for color, this ring she found on her finger and thus kept since the day she came to after having her memory wiped, 3 pairs of shoes (including the ones she was wearing). Lastly was her "Here is the ring, Ms. Angel," Jo said, "Please don't break it. It's one of few things that I own."
"I will treat it with care," Mariah said gently, taking the ring "I thank you for entrusting me with this ring."
"............Just.............."
"Yes, I will.........." Mariah began to say some Angelic words and started to brim with power. Josephine had to take a step back as the Holiness washed over her, fighting the urge to vomit. She felt weak. Oh my god, she thought, falling to her knees as the nausea took over, her legs feeling like jelly. I wish it was anti-magic. Jo curled up, not wanting to even look at Mariah. Her skin started to feel itchy and her breathing was heaving. Tearing up, the only thing that passed through Jo's mind was ending this, whether it means Mariah stops chanting or Jo stops breathing. "Rook........," Josephine whimpered, pleading for her favored bird. "........Rook........"
WayfaringWaaksian


Mariah the Watcher

Mariah finally stopped chanting, the ring blessed with her power. It should surely protect her from Nellie's Daedric influence. The glow disappeared....... for her to see Jo curled into a ball and whimpering. It wasn't just Nellie and the Goddess. It wasn't just the Daedric side. Mariah had just hurt Josephine. "Josephine........." Mariah didn't know what to say. Her nose burned as she fought the tears that tried to spring. When Jo said she didn't want to do this, she meant it to the highest degree possible. If not for Mariah's influence, Rook probably would've attacked by now. Josephine was in a pitiful state, sobbing with fear almost a miasma about her, in a fetal position

The angel kneeled over her. "I'm sorry, Josephine. I was.............being............insensitive."
"Please, just.........." Josephine sobbed. "Just go, please........"
Mariah felt a prick at her heart at these words. "Your ring, Josephine. I am sorry." With a whoosh, Mariah was off to leave Josephine alone with the ring, sat on a nearby table.

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Spoiler: Day 1

Nellie Noi
Castle Remains - Toron​

Relief hung heavily above the city's remaining residents, with the vast undertaking of bodies finished. A sense of finality came with the broken streets now empty, but also a hollowness. It was easier now to see how devoid of life Toron was, beyond a shadow of its former self. It was as cold and still as death.
An odd chill had settled over the city. Maybe a harbinger of the cool weather soon to arrive, actual cool weather rather than the sting of nothingness that was the Void. Or lingering Daedric from the Goddess's prior rage.

Or maybe it was from that towering spire of ice that had sprouted up from the castle ruins.

Nellie pried herself up off of a cold floor, cradling a head laden with thick fog. It was the norm for her now: wake up in an unfamiliar place, burning with aches and swimming through a daze that came from getting only three hours worth of sleep. Her nights had been fitful, tormented with dreams that had her fly awake drenched in sweat. She remembered no dreams this morning. Only tears, screams, and ice searing through her palms.

The emotions that had coursed through her frigid flesh couldn't be contained. When she stared into the Abyss, it stared back with a commanding gaze. Be grieved. Be angry. Drown the world in despair, and crush it into sandy dust. She couldn't rest until it was done.
And now that it was done, she felt no grief, no anger, no despair. All that seared was a primordial need in her gut, comforting in its simplicity. Hungry.

The stairs downward were crooked in shape, like chunks crudely carved out of a glacier side. The windows were melting away into ugly yawns, displaying an even uglier view of a desolate ruin. Sunlight shining through the structure painted its insides cerulean, the one pretty thing about it. Whatever misshapen form it was, her craftsmanship was prettier than the mess she'd built it upon. Built from the most ugly of all feelings... maybe to be refurbished into something nicer, if she allowed herself the glimmer of hope.


Reconciliation

It shouldn't have surprised her, but Vlad was waiting at the foot of the spire.
"I... I wasn't sure how to knock." Seeing the state he was in made Nellie unable to conjure a laugh. His mane was in disarray, tangled and matted with blood from last night's beating. Swelling bloomed under the fur of his brow, cuts caked with scabs over his lip. Not a second had been spent cleaning himself up. "I couldn't reach your crystal. I wanted to respect your space, but I-- I worried--"
In no respect to Vlad's space, Nellie settled a hand under his chin, tightening her fingers when he attempted to lurch away. "Nellie--"
"I don't care about the Blight. Mariah can cure it." The expected protesting never came, Vlad instead conceding to the touch. Leaning into it, even. She tilted his face so she could better note the damage. "I beat the ever-loving shit out of you, and you're still worried about me?"
His closed eyelids tightened. "Justifiably so."
"NOT so," she barked, fatigue doing little to weaken the strength in her voice. "You received your punishment. I only added onto it to fulfill my selfish need for retribution." As if anything could atone for what was done to those children. No amount of pain inflicted on Vlad-- on anyone-- would alleviate their pain. "It wasn't justice. It was an assault."
He should resent her. Why did he only say, "I consider it comeuppance for what I did to you"?

If he was referring to what she thought he was, that had no relevance. It wasn't in the same time. Or the same place. They weren't even the same people. "You got plenty of comeuppance. I-- I don't WANT comeuppance. I--" Here her voice did falter, eyes stinging with salt. "I couldn't kill you. I wanted to. I don't want to want to." She remembered the dark ice creeping up his limbs, slowly encasing him. She remembered what made it stop. "I can't kill you like I almost killed Nancy--"
Vlad shushed her, thumbing away her tears with a dusty paw. "Nothing came of it. I'm alive. I forgive you." The softness of his face while tending to her hardened. "Not that I expect you to forgive me."

Nellie wondered if she did for what felt like hours. Only seconds had passed before she said, "I can't forgive you. I can never agree with or support what you did. But... I understand. I understand why you did it." Doom a few select people, or doom the entire kingdom? In Nellie's mind, Kraiven was doomed regardless. It was ran by a cowardly king undeserving of the title. Elaina was correct in the inevitability of its fall. But when it did was the burden Vlad had carried. Could anyone bear the guilt of feeling responsible for so many deaths?

"... I killed so many, Vlad," she keened, breaths becoming labored. "There were nobles in this castle. Citizens. People with children, just trying to keep their families safe. There were castle staff everywhere." Nellie had known her targets. She killed with precision. And during which, her powers killed indiscriminately. "Anyone who didn't escape right after I breached the walls are dead under our feet now. I don't know if any of the staff or those kids got out. I don't know if Azure's little boy..." Vlad cradling her face kept her breaths from becoming sobs. "And the Kitsune Twins. The whole family. They-- They didn't deserve to die! They swore no oath, held no obligation to the city! They let us take shelter in their homes! Why would Goddess--"

Senseless deaths. Senseless, senseless, senseless. Sense wasn't a trait neither mother nor daughter could boast.

"We're all murderers," she decided. "We're all guilty. We all deserve punishment. I can't... I don't dare to act like I'm any better."
"Nellie, don't speak like you're some sort of monster."
"I'm not saying that." Nellie took the hand on her cheek and lowered it. "We had our reasons. But the lesser of evils is still an evil." Their shared grip tightened. "And we'll spend the rest of our days atoning for it."
There wasn't much being contemplated behind Vlad's bruised eyes. "It's sad. I can't even argue anymore."
Nellie didn't think it was sad. "Then there's nothing left to discuss. Come, let's get you cleaned up."

Spoiler: Day 2

Vladimir Hochmut
Sacrament HQ - Vlad's Room​

It was all gone. Every single piece of research, stolen or original, whether it be scroll or book or loose parchment. From the shelves, the drawers, the hidden compartment under the rug, the hole cut out within the baseboards. Even his own magically fortified safe, ciphers and safeguards be damned. None of it was accounted for.
Vlad should have expected this knowing what happened to every other written article in the city. It still sent him into a tizzy, a whirlwind within his quarters to rival that Torrential Hurricane. How in the hell did Elaina manage to procure every single one within a night, during that disaster?!

Wiping sweat from his brow-- a gesture he'd been doing a lot lately-- the beastman found himself falling into the nearest chair. It wasn't from stripping the place down. Exhaustion weighed him down once he realized what this meant. If it wasn't here, or anywhere, it was in any number of Elaina's libraries. Or worse, the Aecor Athenium, where anyone could enter and read.
They aren't ready to know, he stressed, fingers rubbing at his tepid forehead. It's not...
What was he thinking? It was never a good time. It wasn't a good time for Nellie to learn, and it would be the same for everyone else. Vlad was waiting for a time that would never come, a wistful manifestation that only existed in delusion. I suppose it's only a matter of time...
Until what? They find out for themselves, and wonder why no one cared to tell them something so grave? No, not again. He would enter the library and--

"Vlad? Where are you?"
Nellie's voice. Its broken and weak cadence made him shoot upright in his seat. "In my room."
"I... I need to talk," she pleaded. "Can I come see you?"
"Yes. I'm waiting for you."

Nellie arrived in minutes, with running tears and stuttering breaths. In less than a second Vlad was at her side. “What happened?”
The simple inquiry– maybe its show of concern– broke her into sobs. “They looked through Nancy’s lab.” Trembling hands emptied the contents of a small pouch. A few blue, flaky scales glittered in her palm. Vlad knew who's these were before he sensed their subtle Water potential. “Thousands,” she croaked. “Tens of thousands, Vlad.”
A spiked mace caved in his chest. Locathah didn’t shed their scales. If needed– for alchemy, enchantments, or quick money– extracting them was a delicate, often painful process. Not to be carelessly ripped out in the manner Nellie had to give Vespera her boon. A few hundred would have made sense for the 200 years they lived, maybe a thousand if especially prolific. But tens of thousands… that could be a scale a day. Maybe more in a day, or even from before they entered the Null Realm.

An illness spread up Vlad’s throat, almost uncomprehending Nellie’s next words. “The note he left claimed it’s a blessing to help support the guild, but… I know what this is.” Vlad knew too, and too well. “He would’ve needed magic to do this so much. But now that he’s Null–” Nothing coherent could form in her crystal. She keeled over as she wept, Vlad holding her steady.
“He has the sense not to engage in something that could kill him.” And it could. Locathah needed their scales to stay hydrated. If Nancy couldn’t grow them faster than he plucked them, it wouldn’t bode well for him.
“Well, ‘sense’ isn’t something that runs in our family,” she snapped, hissing the very word.
“Don’t say that.” Don’t say that either, he told himself, noting the failed encouragement. “Nancy doesn’t want to die. He won’t do that to himself.”

“... I hate Her.” The air turned very cold. “I hate Her for this. He was already suffering so much, and She does this to him.”
“Nellie–” He cut himself off before she did. There was no need to scold her. In fact, he shouldn’t. This wasn’t a courtroom where her words could be taken offense. This room was now a confessional. “Keep your voice quiet.” It also wasn’t soundproof.
“I never wanted power, Vlad!” she continued under her rapid breaths. “I never wanted any of this. I didn’t even want to enforce Judgement. I just…” She shuddered in Vlad’s hold, clutching the scales to her chest. “I just want my brother back.”

He understood now why his encouragement was ineffective.

Present Day​

A clearer head greeted Nellie the next day. Not a happy, or even content head. But focused. She could hone her thoughts as easily as she did Ice in her hands. Now she knew exactly what to say to Josephine.

The icy spire was behind her as she began her walk to the Aecor Athenium. Each night she had to reform its drooping structure, and fortify it from the sun come morning. Nellie couldn't quite manage Perma-Ice, though she knew it was a spell she could easily learn with her newfound Favor. Keeping that ugly thing from melting gave her an outlet that wasn't creating even more rubble in this accursed place. And she wanted to. Oh, how she wanted to.

Vlad had said it was coming along nicely. The compliment left a bitter feeling, but she accepted it best she could. He needed some form of solace, after all the consoling he did for her in the past week. Last she saw him, his mane was still in tangled disarray. He never let it go in disarray. Today he had to recruit miners and scout out potential ore sources. No time to beautify himself; or, more accurately, to receive his own consolations.
But Vlad was a strong man. He would do his duty today, and when night fell Nellie could lend a shoulder to cry on.

Someone else was in greater need at this moment. "Nellie to Arnold. I'm ready to speak to Josephine." Josephine would never be ready to speak to her, but it was an inevitability. Nellie had to set things right between them. She couldn't have a civilian live in fear of their own queen, especially if that civilian didn't have the free will to leave the kingdom.


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Guildmaster Arnold Asella
Stoneroses HQ- Guildmaster's Office -----> Aecor Athenium- Property Outskirts​

Nellie came over Arnold's crystal. She was ready to speak with Josephine, which caused Arnold to sigh. "Aye. Let's meet at the outskirts of the property." There was no need to meet before heading over. "Arnold out." Arnold's hand held an apprehension as it moved away from his crystal and back to his blade. This trusty blade, his ole fall back. The one thing he could rely on when there was nothing else to depend on.

Be more certain of the future than the guild I am to lead, Arnold thought back to the entry he wrote only a few days before. With Vlad now Stripped and Nellie in emotional dire straits due to both the Goddess and the overall situation, Arnold had to step up to the plate. With another sigh, the guildmaster stepped out towards Aecor Athenium. He would never get used to seeing the ruins of Toron. They had another issue, which hopefully Josephine's archives had the answers to.

"Arnold to Josephine."
"........yes?" There was obvious sniffling in her voice.
"Lass, we're heading over. Mariah. Nellie. Myself." Arnold told her, expecting some show of resistant emotion. He got nothing aside that aforementioned traces of crying. "There's no getting out of it, but I will act as a buffer between you and that terrifying power." Arnold had none of his Fae Magic anymore, but he WAS the Shieldless Paladin, so surely he could just shield her with some of his nigh infinite magic reserves.
"Fine......." Josephine sounded defeated, utterly void of any resistance whatsoever. "Let's get it over with........."
"Are you alright?" Arnold asked, "You sound like you've been through it."
Another sniffle. "I'm fine. I'll be better when that Divine stuff is gone."
Straight to the point, and very honest about it. Josephine was utterly frightened of the Goddess. Hopefully a bit of Fae repulsion of both the Holy and the Daedric will help ease her, even if only a little. "Lass, I would like you to prepare a few books for us. Focus on building, agriculture, mining, sailing, and applications of non-divine magics." He said. The quicker she got those books ready, the quicker they would be out of her hair. "Also, we will require every census document, every guild roster, and I will personally come look for all of my personal books and documents that Elaina had stolen. I trust that's fair."
"Of course," Josephine said quickly. "These aren't mine anyways. As long as you keep them safe." Arnold was happy to see Jo cooperative. It will hopefully not be a painful endeavor


Arnold arrived first. The Sacrament HQ was further away from the Aecor Athenium than the Stoneroses HQ, so he should arrive first. Apprehension clouded the man's mind. Was Nellie in her right mind? Was Mariah still a stickler for the rules? Maybe he could turn the Aecor Athenium into a temporary neutral zone. Oh boy, the man thought, starting to dread the proceeding to come. I really hope this goes well. Nellie disliked the Goddess if not full blown hated her, Mariah was too much of an Angel newbie to deviate from a strict script, Josephine was a prisoner of the wildcard Elaina, under the command of the Goddess she feared.

I just want to get back to doing Stonerose stuff. It's just looking like we will end up a guild specializing in sailing or diving missions. The gears began churning in Arnold's head. He built that guild from scratch and led it to glory. He could do it again. It wasn't for the glory of the Goddess. Not even for the good of Toron at this point. It was for his people now, and his own survival.
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Nellie Noi
Aecor Athenium - Property Line​

The old Vespera Manor sat like a chipped cinderblock in a circle of burnt shrubbery, as one of the few properties to remain mostly untouched from the battle. Ugly as a cinderblock, too. Nellie was not impressed by Kraiven noble architecture. If it was her innate bias against the demographic she had a hand in culling, she didn't care. Nellie would be happy to rebuild this place into something that didn't look like it was carved out of a dusty mountainside, something that bore little resemblance to the kingdom preceding.

Not about you, she reminded herself as she approached the property. Whatever was for her people's comfort she would ensure, even if that was something too familiar for Nellie's comfort.

Nellie had seen this mansion countless times over a two century period, but neither was it too familiar. She wasn't inclined to perform a public dance at parties. Her and Nancy's social lives rarely intertwined. Sparse memories of his vampire friend floated in her mind. Is Vespera protecting him as promised, she had to wonder? As much as Nancy would her to the ends of every realm?

Arnold's stout figure became visible. No winged figure. Mariah was either already inside, or didn't get the memo. What was her presence even needed for, mediation? Arnold could do that. Nellie had the self-awareness to know she sometimes needed held back, but not by that stuffy stickler of a woman. For magic neutralization, then? Teeth ground with angry clicks.
She could have done that before, instead of sending Nancy to his death.

Any chill that pulsed from her body settled as glittery frost on her scales. Centering that power inward kept the air from growing much colder. But the air surrounding Nellie always was cold; Arnold could feel it near her no matter her mental state. "Good morning." Formalities were lowered when whiffs of anxiety pricked her nose like needles. "You're dreading this." A reasonable fear; Nellie didn't have the best track record for these sorts of meetings, and everything she ever heard of poor Josephine was her being a rattled mess. "I won't let this become another failure. I have a contingency."

Arnold would see for himself soon. Nellie [Projected] with the clear voice of the Abyss, only for Daedric ears. "I request an audience with Flock Maestro Rook!"


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Flock Maestro Rook
Aecor Athenium​

"I request an audience with Flock Maestro Rook!"

The words hung in the skies for a second. Then crows began to fly in. 1. 2. 10. 20. 50. The clearing remained clear, but the trees, the rooftop, the front patio, the fountain devoid of water in the center of the clearing. The counsel of crows had eyes on the duo who called out to him to request an audience

The air, still having the tinge of Nellie's influence, gained a new tinge: Hypoxia. Less oxygen in the air. Nellie, being ice, had an aura of ice and the air around her became cooler if not frigid. Rook's influence? Making the air around him harder to breathe, as if they were breathing on a higher altitude. A purple sigil appeared between the duo and the fountain, radiating powerful Daedric energy. The face of the giant Corvian slowly emerged. 10 piercing white eyes in a black hole of a face, only marked by the long beak protruding from it. This was Rook's true form, and not even the entire form since his wings were not visible.

"THE ONE KNOWN AS NELLIE SHOWS HERSELF TO THE FLOCK!" Rook squawked loudly, his voice able to cause a jagged piercing pain in the ear, then he leaned in a bit "What business does she seek from the Flock? Is it an audience with Our Benefactor? Or is it business with the Maestro?" Rook was currently in a weird place


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

Guildmaster Arnold Asella
Aecor Athenium- Property Line​

It took everything in the man for Arnold to not whip out his blade. He did, however cast a spell on himself to mitigate the effects of the Hypoxic air. This beast was DANGEROUS. Another demon....... Arnold thought. This is what Josephine had up her sleeve?! The "Benefactor" in question had to refer to Josephine. But............. Josephine is frightened of the Daedric, I thought, Arnold thought. No way in hell would she have had the reaction to the Goddess's magic that she did. Unless........unless it was the Holy specifically? Nah, it was the Daedric too. Something was fishy here. Was this demon pulling a Mozreliun? "Demon!" Arnold called, "Is Josephine aware of who you are?!"

"........... She is not," Rook admitted, "And you would do well to keep silent." Hmph, Arnold thought. A pressure point immediately. Then again, he himself stood no chance against this beast. From what he could assess, the only person who could defeat this beast is Nellie, and even then only if she received Divine Empowerment

• OOC: Rook can defeat pretty much anyone on Orivae. Nellie can take on Rook ONLY if she receives Divine Empowerment

"I am no demon!" Rook declared, "I am but a humble servant of King Corvus............ and voice to Our Benefactor Josephine Warren. Threats to her have to answer to me........ and YOU are a threat, Sunning Stone. You will proceed not one step further without resistance." Sunning Stone? The hell was that?

Arnold bowed in respect and stepped back. Nellie said something to summon this thing. He would not be fighting it. "I'd rather prevent bloodshed if need be." If Nellie summoned the beast, she can deal with the beast, not that he wouldn't lend his blade, but he wouldn't stoke any flames. "Nellie, this thing is dangerous. Don't make me fight it

By summoning Rook, Nellie has options

• Talk to Rook
  • Advantage: This can bypass Josephine entirely
  • Disadvantage: Making an enemy of Rook is not advised
• Request Audience with Josephine
  • Advantage: Bypasses Rook
  • Disadvantage: Have to convince Josephine, which may be harder than Rook Himself
• Fight Rook- Proceed to the Aecor Athenium by force
  • Advantage: None
  • Disadvantage: Even if you win, Josephine will be locked off by fear

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Nellie Noi
Aecor Athenium - Property Line​

Nellie felt Death's breath grazing the back her neck. With one bird, a premonition. With the entire flock, a certainty. Looking eye-to-eye with the massive Rook was like staring into the face of doom. She had gleaned Daedric influence from the little corvid days ago, but she never imagined that this was who guarded Josephine. For all of her magic prowess, Nellie was severely outclassed. Even if she wanted to harm Josephine in some way, this creature wouldn't let her take a step towards that goal, as promised.

Gills flared instinctively in the thinning air. It was getting hard to think, dread hanging heavy in her chest. But even standing before this powerful beast, she felt no fear of him. Then what...?
Ah, yes. She was probably going to fuck this up somehow. That was the dread.

"Not a 'thing', Arnold," she scolded, passing a glare over her shoulder. "Flock Maestro Rook. A noble beast, abiding by Law. Refer to him as such." It was not hollow praise. Nellie didn't know how the hell a nervy librarian dragged around by a bitchy witch served as Benefactor to all of this, when not even said nervy librarian knew. But she respected it. Such power to protect someone so fragile, wielded with a delicate hand as to not break her itself. It reminded Nellie that she had much to learn.

"I request both. An audience with Josephine, but firstly a word with you, Maestro. I have not the audacity to request her presence without addressing your concerns." She had planned out this speech for hours, but still gave pause. "There's no arguing that I've proven a threat. I've endangered Josephine's peace. That was not my intention." She glanced down at her flexing hands, watching the thin marks on her palms gleam in the sunlight. "I accepted power that I have no right to. I was not prepared for the responsibilities it entailed, or equipped to wield it with the proper grace. I've... hurt many already."

Where was her punishment? For godsdamned sake, where was her punishment?! This had to be considered Sloth on Goddess's part, right? She spared not a moment to punish Nancy, happy to lead Her scapegoat to the slaughter. Who did she think She was impressing, sparing Nellie?


Nellie's Offer

Her palms glimmered with crystals now. She reeled it in. "I can't reverse the harm I've caused. But I can make amends by proving I have no ill will towards Josephine. I present an offer to you, Maestro." She glanced behind her once. "Arnold, serve as witness." No point in summoning Mariah now. She didn't want to hear her protests to this, anyway.

"I seek an audience with your Benefactor, the goal being to assure her that she's safe under my rule. She will not come to harm by my hand again. Not emotionally, and certainly not physically. Failure of this goal reflects a failure as Queen-to-be, and that cannot go unpunished. The Punishment?" A sigh betrayed hesitation, but her next words were unwavering. "If I cause Josephine harm again, my scales are forfeit. As many that can be taken before I succumb to blood loss." Corvians liked pretty things. Shiny things. Especially if those things brimmed with power. And just one of her scales could send Vespera into a bloodthirsty frenzy. "The Punishment is NOT to be interrupted by my subjects. Intervention is allowed only to prevent imminent death. None of Maestro Rook's subjects may come to harm during the Punishment or intervention, or else my life be forfeit as well.

"This is not intended as a bribe. I will not treat your love and care for Josephine like a commodity that can be traded." Nellie cleared any perception of that out of the air. "I present this to show how serious I am about restoring peace to Josephine. If harm comes to her, harm must come to me. That is fair and just."


Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Flock Maestro Rook
Aecor Athenium- Property Line​

A soul-pact? Immense torture to all but an the forfeiture of her life should she bring harm to their Benefactor? Then the removal of all her frankly beautiful scales? While Rook didn't give a damn about Nellie's scales himself, if his Flock were to consume scales of that power, they could turn this entire rock into Josephine's haven. It would give him enough power to challenge Mariana for control over this domain. All he wanted was for Josephine to live a happy and peaceful life. If she were forced to live here, then she would live without threat. A contract allows all this to happen without Mariah or more importantly, MARIANA, interfering and preventing proper rendering of the punishment.

Arnold? Well, since Josephine trusted Arnold far more than Nellie, he would've been given passage immediately.........had he not come with Nellie. But Nellie made an interesting reason as to how she ended up inadvertedly a threat. "Power you've no right to? Claiming a throne before your time?" Should he believe her? May as well if she were offering these terms, knowing it could lead to a soul-pact binding her to her word. "A hatchling to lead the flock by cruel circumstance? Or cruel nurture?"

His 10 eyes then shifted to Arnold and he pulled close. "Our Benefactor trusts this man, so his witness is accepted."

Your Terms are Acceptable!

"Under authority of King Corvus, the terms are set!" Rook declared, "Should you bring Our Benefactor to harm, you will be plucked of every scale on your body, and with it any power stored within them. Should you bring harm to Our Benefactor or my Flock when punishment is rendered, your life will be forfeit." He didn't even entertain the idea of Nellie succumbing to bloodloss before all scales were plucked. There was Daedric Magic to heal Daedric beings, so that would not be a worry. Every single scale on that body would be plucked off as painfully as possible.

But that was a problem for another day. "For this gesture of good will, this one is to be granted safe passage," Rook declared, presumably to his Flock. "Any time and every time, unless ordered otherwise by Our Benefactor." The flock made a cawing symphony for about 5 seconds before quieting down. He then looked to Nellie. "We want the peace and safety of Our Benefactor more than we want your scales, so your plucking will be as painful as King Corvus allows us to muster should you break contract. For harming Our Benefactor, and for betraying our good will."

"This congregation is hereby dismissed," Rook cawed, "Our Benefactor has given us our tasks already. Go about them."

All but about 5 crows stayed behind as the rest left in a flurry of caws and squawks. With that, Rook began to glow and then shrink back to his small form. Pristinely groomed feathers, dark ruby-red eyes, Daedric influence minimal now. Infinitely less intimidating now. "I will go speak to Our Benefactor. Walk up to the door, knock twice, then begin counting. When you get to 60, knock again and we will answer."

Spoiler: Contract Details

Contract: Safety for Our Benefactor
Contractant: Sunning Stone Nellie
Contractor: Flock Maestro Rook​

Description: For the protection of the Corvian Benefactor Josephine Warren, terms have been established for her safety. Should the contractant bring Josephine to harm by either direct means or commanded indirect means, physically, psychologically, or emotionally, her body is to be plucked of all scales to thenceforth become possession of Rook and his Flock, never to be returned and wounds to never be healed in a way that allows for scale regrowth. Physically is defined as any harm to the physical body from direct impact, illness, disease, curse, Ordination, or Daedric Oppression. Psychologically is defined as damage to the mind, including but not limited to memory alteration/erasure, direct psychological damage, mind control, and any spell that takes the target's mind or thoughts in consideration as to its effects. Emotionally is defined as anything relating to the emotions, including but not limited to heartbreak, spells that alter/enforce emotion, spells that eliminate emotion, emotional abuse, spells that cause a desire for self-harm or harm to "friendlies"

In the event that the contractant breaks the terms of this contract, and either the Corvian Benefactor, any member of the flock under the command of Flock Maestro Rook, or Flock Maestro Rook himself comes to harm before, during, or as retaliation at any point after punishment, Sunning Stone Nellie thenceforth forfeits her life. If an unforseen event happens to prevent full or proper rendering of punishment, the contractant must present herself to Flock Maestro Rook for punishment within 7 days, else it be seen as abandonment. In the event of abandonment, the contractant thenceforth forfeits her life. If after breaking the terms of safety and the contractant attempts to degrade or destroy scales through direct or indirect self-harm, it will be deemed as sabotage. In the case of Sabotage, the contractant will forfeit any and all assets to match the Human market value for the degraded/destroyed scales as jewelry. The lost magic power in the scales will be syphoned directly from the contractant permanently. In the case of suicide, the contractant's body will forfeit all magic to be implanted into her scales, and then all scales forfeit to Flock Maestro Rook

This contract is null and void if the Flock Maestro instigates or in any way encourages harm towards the Benefactor, or if Josephine Warren loses her status as Corvian Benefactor.

This contract is to remain in effect until the Corvian Benefactor Josephine dies a "true" death, loses her status as Corvian Benefactor, or until the contractant dies without punishment pending.

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

Guildmaster Arnold Asella
Aecor Athenium- Property Line​

Arnold sighed in relief as Rook took off. "First that demon Mozreliun. Now Flock Maestro Rook......... I've half a mind to go get my Fae blood back," He remarked. He didn't WANT to though. Living under Divinity Law was having to follow Divinity Law rules. Despite the fact that Divine Fae was the LEAST rigid of the 4 major Divinity groups, he still had rules to follow that he simply did not have once he lost his Fae blood. He was given the offer to come back due to his performance against Mozreliun's hordes, but he hasn't given a reply yet. Rook was a dangerous being held back only by the fact that Josephine didn't know Rook was Daedric, yet if Rook were to be believed, he was as displaced as Josephine was and didn't want her to know his true nature. From the fact that he told them to keep quiet, it was a weak point. Not one very exploitable on a battlefield, but it gave them at least a point of insight. "Next time you want to appease something dangerous, warn me before you summon it," Arnold said as he sheathed his blade, "I wouldn't march you in front of something I want to appease without telling you what that thing is." To Arnold, it was a basic courtesy. She definitely had the plan to appease Rook. That was fine. A word of warning would've been nice. "But I guess your gambit guaranteed you'll at least meet Josephine." It wasn't much of a contingency if it was her plan from the start, but knowing it succeed set his mind at ease. Now at the risk of her life, Nellie HAD to either bury the hatchet or leave Josephine alone

This encounter wasn't over. The fight was 50% done, and was looking less and less like a shitshow in the making. "At your lead, we can proceed."
WayfaringWaaksian