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Post by Solveig on Nov 24, 2017 1:35:04 GMT -7
What the priest was saying made sense, but only in the way that abstract things like metaphysical selves could make sense while simultaneously not really making a lot of sense. But the premise was clear: she would be putting her very being in danger by going to the Elsewhere, and it would be very hard to find someone with strong enough magic to do it. She carefully noted his suggestion regarding where to find a possible conjurer, trying not to think about how Sia most definitely would have been capable of doing what needed to be done. If only it had been Sia who had made it out of this. She would know what to do.
Then, the priest said something she probably wouldn't have expected from a priest (though maybe she knew less about what kinds of things a priest would say than she thought she did) and suggested that doing this was not required of her and if they simply let the people - her people. Her Sia - pass it could be easier. She imagined it was out of concern for her very soul that he said it, as if they died they would go to the afterlife whereas if she failed in her task she would cease to exist forever, but rather than turn her away from the dangerous, reckless, possibly deadly idea it merely steeled her resolve. Not that she had any doubts to begin with.
"No, I have to save them. My soldiers are my responsibility; they trusted me with their lives and though someday they may pay the price it will not be without me doing everything I can to prevent it. And Sia, my Sia, if she were to pass so too would my very heart. Ceasing to exist would be a mercy compared to a life without her. You must take care of their physical bodies until I can save them. Please."
Making sure their physical bodies didn't die was equally important to returning their spirits, though perhaps less existentially dangerous. She hoped that she could do what she needed to do in time. "Is there anything else? I should gather my things and prepare." She wondered if she would be able to take her sword and shield with her to the Elsewhere. Did swords have metaphysical essences? She supposed she would find out.
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Post by Sialarvanya on Nov 29, 2017 16:28:12 GMT -7
 T he priest nodded at Solveig's insistence - perhaps somewhat relieved, perhaps somewhat disappointed - and told her that he and his worshippers would keep the bodies safe for as long as they remained. Then, he turned back to his altar and pulled free of it a small talisman. It was a necklace of blackened jewels and perfectly silver pearls, which beheld a black stone the size of a child's fist at it's middle carved with the symbol of Khades. "Take this, Captain," The priest told her, draping it over her head and then gesturing holy symbols over her, "And may our Mother of Shadows keep you hidden from those who would bring you, and your righteous cause harm. Go in Her grace."- ƸӜƷ - This was a game Sia could never win, the drawing of cards. She realized the fact far too late, because now she had nothing left to bet with. Everything belonged to Streike now. She could not see, she could not hear, she could not smell, or taste. Her jewels had all been relinquished, and her horns came after them. She had wagered her youth next, the thing she had won so long ago, but it was the one thing Streike did not want. The Goddess told her, "If I end you now, Sialarvanya, your pain will end as well."All she really had left was the thought that Solveig was going to die in that box, and the tactile sense of the cards in her fingers. There was no escape from this pain, from this loneliness, the Deity of Death had no mercy for Sialarvanya Konstantinov. She had been too pompous, too self-serving, too greedy. She had thought herself all the better than mortals, Kings, Supremes, Gods, and the deities themselves. This was her suffering now, this was her life... No, afterlife? Whatever this was, it was to be her forever. "Please, Great Mother of Death, if you cannot show me mercy, at least free Solveig. She has done nothing that I have done, she is undeserving of this pain," Sia spoke, but she did not know if the words actually sounded. She was deaf, was she mute? Either way, the Great Goddess could read her thoughts, could she not? The answer came soon enough, as Streike's voice boomed once more beyond the ears that were unhearing, "No. Her crime is that she has found love in her heart for someone so selfish. She shall receive her just deserves for it. And you shall always remember that her suffering is due to your pitiful existence."And then, Sia stopped feeling the cards in her hand. Streike had won that match, too. To Be Continued |
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