khuioduan | Video | August 16th | Locked to Dreamfolk

[The room is mostly dark, but there's enough light to see that Valdis is sketching and almost not even paying attention to the camera.]

Ban Om. Kaka'i. The Sabonile. Tariku. Tifaut. Tia-Cheal.

[The six major religions in Aifaran had recently drawn her attention, but for less than ideal reasons.]

Organized religion is usually something to be wary of on some level, and while these may operate in the light of day, what of the ones that don't? Any summoning of powers based in the sensation of death, on harnessing the final moments of life, in consuming the moment the soul breaks...this is dark magic. Dangerous magic.

[She makes a few notes then goes back to whatever she is drawing.]

With the current state of Konryu, meaning the collisions between the planes, it is prudent to wonder about the darker side of things. There's an underworld to every religion. Parts that break away to interpret texts differently. Pieces that twist and morph and remake themselves. It is not exactly hard to think that at least one of these six has potential for darkness.

[She flips the book around to show the details of her sketch. Faceless figures wrapped in shadow, all surrounding a bound animal. But the animal isn't alive, its skin and fur are rotting off, leaving a half covered skull with gaping, empty eyes. To those who explored the depth of the Narrakra, they may recognize the animal to some extent.]

I just want to know which one.

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[ Sheena's expression is calm, but there's no hiding her bitterness when she responds. ]

You have two options: The largest and the smallest.

Ban Om is the largest, I do not discount them, and in fact they are my biggest concern...Their history is fraught with the remnants of death.

[She hums and makes a note, not over Sheena's bitterness, but of her advice.]

And from my observations, the remaining religions do not condone violence and in fact desire life and wellness.

[It is not difficult for her to imagine a sect of the Ban Om that leans toward Death. They may not even realize what they are playing with.]

Edited 2018-08-12 22:44 (UTC)

Then you want to look at the one small religion who is very vocal about life and wellness.

That usually means they're hiding something.

[ Experience is a wondrous thing. ]

You mean the Tifaut?

[Another note]

Acts of kindness will heal the world and all that jazz...If repair is what they seek, then consulting the Death Plane for answers would not necessarily be out of mind.

[ Sheena believes in letting people live and worship the way they want, but she has a problem with those who run the religion. ]

Heal the world? As in make it perfect for everyone--or only a select few? Yeah, keep an eye on them.

Groups like that will do whatever it takes to get what they want. And time is usually no obstacle.

You certainly seem to have an experienced bias against religion.

[ Sheena gives a crooked smile. ]

That obvious, huh? Yeah, you can say I have a little experience with this.

In fact, my world has about 4000 years of experience with this.

Four thousand years is no joke...I'm guessing it wasn't a happy religious experience.

For some, it was, but for the person who was the symbol of the religion?

[ She sighs. ]

It could mean death.

[ Of course, that's not all. ]

The dead are often the center of world religions on my world, that doesn't sound incredibly unique.

[Therefore, there must be more to the story.]

[ Sheena pauses then makes an "ah" sound. ]

Ah. No. The religion doesn't worship someone who died. That's not the symbol. The symbol is someone called "The Chosen", who must go on a pilgrimage in order to save the world with a prayer to the Goddess.

What we didn't know for thousands of years was that the Goddess really did exist. Only she was someone who had been killed all those years ago and whose brother wanted to resurrect her by using the Chosen's body for her soul.

[ So, all kinds of death here. ]

[Sounded more like a sacrifice than a pilgrimage, so Valdis' expression shifts from neutral to restrained fury.]

That's rather...twisted.

[and repulsive.]</small.

[ Exactly. ]

Oh yeah. It is.

[ She sighs ruefully. ]

I can tell you the whole story if you'd like. It's kind of odd and hard to believe.

[ And she was there. ]

If it's hard for you, there's no need. At least this was just an animal.

[She didn't expect it would escalate, but the worry was in the back of her mind.]

[ Sheena shakes her head. ]

It's not that it's hard for me to tell, but it's pretty hard to believe.

And don't underestimate the power of an animal. They may surprise you.

I am not one to underestimate the power of an animal. I have seen your pet, and mine is more intelligent than he should be as well. It's more the escalation that concerns me.

[ Sheena can't help chuckling. ]

Good point.

But there are cultures that hold animals in high esteem and worship them. Sometimes in odd ways.

There are many cultures that hold animals in esteem. I just...don't feel that this action was reminiscent of one of them.

Hmmm. It could be, in a way. Done as an insult or a threat.

[ A pause. ]

But this isn't telling you about my world, is it?

No...what I experienced was definitely a ritual to some end...

[But it had nothing to do with Sheena's world.]

I would like to hear the story, if you have time.

Yeah. We can talk about that later.

[ If Valdis wants to. ]

Okay. Where to begin? Well, let's start with what caused a lot of the problems my world was having. Do you know what mana is?

Raine used to talked about Mana. It's like an energy, right?

[Valdis couldn't remember much.]

And it could be...unique to individuals somehow, she could read it.

[ Sheena isn't really surprised that Raine and Valdis had known each other, considering where each of them worked in Keeliai. ]

It's the source of all magic and life on my world, and yes, each person has what's known as a mana signature. I can also read it, but not as well as Raine, and usually only those I'm friends with or if the mana is pretty strong--like with the Summon Spirits.

[ Which is a whole other story. ]

The Great Kharlan Tree was responsible for supplying the world with mana, but about 4000 years ago, magitechnology began draining it faster than the tree could supply it. And since mana is the basis for all life...

[Raine had been a close friend and there were days when Valdis still missed her dearly.]

Life began to decay as the supply dwindled...

[No source was infinite.]

[ Sheena totally understands, though she doesn't show it. ]

Exactly. Of course, it didn't go unnoticed and someone tried to tell the rulers of each country what was going on, but neither one would listen to him.

Because he was a half-elf, and they were looked down upon by both humans and elves. So, he decided he was going to take matters into his own hands to stop the war.

[ She pauses a moment so she doesn't burden Valdis with too much information at once. ]

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