Bright_Ops

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk. VI

Aethel

Location: The Celestial Palace.
Interacting with: Monarch of All (@Lauder) and Ruina @Squad 404)

Turning their head slightly to gaze upon the new arrival, Aethel seemed to light up at the sight of one of their siblings. Springing up from their sitting position in order to ponk around Ruina while checking her out like an over excited baby lamb discovering something new. Finally remembering words were a thing after the first bouncing circle, Aethel finally came to a stop in front of her as their front hooves moved up to cover their mouth as a squeal escaped them before the gushing began. "Oh. My. Me! You look amazing! The perfect blend of soft and delicate beauty combined with animistic savagery!... as well as some tasteful sex appeal in just how tight your outfit appears to be! It even matches your hair and eyes! You're going to be so popular! Everything we create is going to want to get to know you!"

Remembering where they were and whom was present, Aethel glanced back at the Monarch with a degree of bashfulness before forcing themselves to calm down with a polite clearing of their throat and a deep, deep breath. "I mean... My name is Aethel. It is an absolute pleasure to meet you... sister?" Glancing back at the Monarch of All as if to confirm if they were using the right kind of relationship to describe a fellow deity, regardless of the outcome they would turn back and offer a polite bow of the head. "I am Aethel. And this-" There was a grand sweeping gesture of two of their legs and a countless number of tentacles towards the world that they were observing "-is going to be our stage of Galbar! Granted its not much to look at right now since all that is currently there is water, but some of our kin have big additions already planned and I'm looking forward to seeing them."

"In fact, I have some ideas of my own but.." Pausing for a moment, Aethel turned back to the Monarch fully before politely requesting "Father, in order to speed up my additions to Galbar during this early development, might I make use of some of the Mana of the Palace? It is not vitally important since I can make due without it, but it would considerably speed up the development of Galbar's own sources of Mana by introducing a supply of it from the start."

Summary

Aethel meets Ruina for the first time and politely asks dad if he can use some of the Palace's Mana to get things on Galbar going a lot faster then planned.

Vigor

Cycle 0 Vigor total: 10.
Vigor spent: 0.
Remaining Vigor: 10.

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk. VI

In a quite overgrown glade lost somewhere in the various gardens of the Palace, an impossible wind started to blow through. As the leaves rustled softly a joyous, source-less laughter echoed through the branches of the trees while rebounding off of... well, everything it could; The plants, the soil... even the air itself joined in the chorus of thundering laughter, both delightful and sinister in nature as it grew to a fever pitch.

As a violent light burst forth from the center of the glade, the chorus of laughter condensed down into a singular voice. Even as the blinding light started to fade, the localized world of the isolated glade continued to glow even without a source of light to provide it... but the original light had left some things behind in its wake.

The easier to overlook addition was that of the flowers. Around the center of the glade, what had once been a mixture of greens and browns had transformed into a perfect circle of flowers, the coloration of them all at once blended, competed and co-operated together at the same time to create a display that was captivatingly beautiful to behold, even if only a small handful of entities that would ever exist would even have the senses to truly comprehend what they were witnessing.

In the middle of the circle of flowers, sat Aethel. Their hind legs were spread out to the sides while the middle and front pair rested comfortably upon the ground as the equine shaped deity let their laughter trickle off. For a moment they simply enjoyed the colors and the quiet of their birth place... before with a content sigh they rose to all six of their feet, the grass and branches that had been caught in their tail and mane being removed by a combination of an expert shake of said newly created tail and the various tendrils and tentacles along Aethel's sides combing the hair in order to locate and remove the intruders that had gotten tangled up in it.

The trot to the exit of the Palace Grounds that lead to the world of Galbar did not take long to reach. Offering the Monarch of All a respectful bow that required the bending of their front legs fully, Aethel rose as he turned to look at the world in question... before sighing as they took a seat. "If it is all the same to you Father, I think I might wait until it stops raining. I just got my hair just the way I like it and I would rather not ruin it so soon." Turning their head to look at their creator, Aethel offered a soft, affectionate smile as they added "Besides, it would be nice to spend some time with you before I go."

Summery

Aethel comes into existence! Decides to remain at the Palace with Monarch for All for the moment as they wait for other deities to visit the world and give it some diversity instead of just water.

Vigor

Cycle 0 Vigor total: 10.
Vigor spent: 0.
Remaining Vigor: 10.

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk. VI

Aethel (Reworked)

Aethel

The Friendly Stranger
King/Queen of the Fey
Keeper of the Tree
Swimmer of the Magical Winds

Aspect
Mana
The primary duty of Aethel is to be the caretaker of Mana; It is their job to maintain it, propagate it and deal with anything that threatens its existence. But what is Mana?

Mana, in its purest form, is spiritual life energy. While it can take many forms (Ethereal, Spiritual and even Physical under the right circumstances) Mana develops, grows and is altered by the presence of life and death. The more life that develops in an area, the more Mana that area produces and, in a feedback loop, the Mana generated enhances and enforces the area in turn to make that area more inclined to flourish and grow, thus resulting in more Mana being produced.

Because Mana is primarily a spiritual energy that develops from living things, the nature of those living things can alter the nature of the Mana they produce and in turn, the Mana will enhance and alter the region in turn to better reflect its new nature. Lifeforms more sensitive to Mana (Or are willing to dedicate the time and effort to learn how to interact with it) can actively channel and shape it in order to achieve magical results; The type of Mana in the local area (and the nature of the entity doing the channeling) often serves to decide what form this magic takes and serve to strengthen or weaken the intended result depending on if one is working with or against the nature of the Mana in question.

Death, Rot and Decay produce their own brands of Mana that, while distinct from the standard Mana produced by life, are still perfectly natural and play a similar role in the world and to spellcasters who use Mana. However, while perfectly natural, the fact that the nature of Mana can mix, match and be altered can result in it becoming unstable and dangerous. If left the grow and spiral out of control in an area the results can be... interesting. While Aethel intends to develop systems to properly manage this sort of thing so that it doesn't happen naturally, the fact remains that combining multiple Mana of different (often conflicting) natures can result in incredibly powerful... if unstable results.

As for what happens when a large number of differing types of Mana are mixed together, the result is simply called a Manastorm. You can't really predict the outcome of what a Manastorm will do because you could run the same scenario dozens of times and it will be different each time, depending on pure chance of which form of Mana manages to trigger the cascade and consume all the energy of the Manastorm to fuel its effect. One time it might be a chaotic surge of highly specialized plant growth never seen before (and possibly will never be seen again), another the region might heat up to the surface of the sun for a second and incinerate everything within range before it literally burns out and returns to normal. If there is enough Mana present, it's possible for both these things can happen at once.

Mana for Dummies: A brief guide to how it works

Mana exists independant of life... but at the same time it is deeply connected to and affected by life as well (There is also mana connected with death and decay, but for the sake of simplicity we'll just be lumping it in with life in general). In a state where it isn't affected by sapient life, Mana will naturally change color to best suit the region it is in (For example: A place filled with decay and death will naturally turn the mana in the region black, a jungle filled with life will primarily be green and somewhere volcanic and prone to earthquakes will naturally go red). As the Mana condenses in a region, as it was affected by the region it will in turn enforce the traits that developed it (IE, An area filled with death and decay enhanced by black mana will likely gain a miasma like aura to it that sickens living creatures who aren't infused with black mana).

Sapient life has a major impact on Mana due to their ideologies and emotions working to shape the Mana they are channeling to achieve their goals. There is no exact doctrine to channeling Mana and even seemingly conflicting rituals, methods and ideas can get similar results. That being said, those more attuned to a certain shade of mana will have an easier time channeling and casting mana of that color and gaining results natural to it while conversely, channeling a mana color counter to both yourself and your intended result is a hell of a lot harder.

Mixing different colors of Mana together is a risk vs reward kind of operation. While it is perfectly natural for different colors of mana to mix together, the more colors connected results in an increase of both A) Raw power and B) Instability. In nature, three different colors of mana might be combined together at best and it is insanely rare that it happens. Any more then that and you risk a Manastorm. Effectively, if you mix enough different, conflicting mana types together it becomes highly unstable; All it takes is one fraction of the mana swirling within the storm to move in just the right way and suddenly there is a cascade in which all the unstable, built up power is channeled in an uncontrolled, random explosion of spellwork that will be shaped by one of the colors of mana within the storm that got lucky.

In theory, a powerful enough spellcaster can channel the general shape of a Manastorm; tweak it so that all that raw power is channeled towards a kind of mana and maybe even give the resulting spellwork a general shape. A true master of the craft can do this and have a good expectation of surviving doing it.

Mana is not fixed to a single coloration; It can change colors depending on changes in circumstance and location. But it never forgets the color(s) it once was, retaining a small part of that as time passes. This means that over time, mana will turn into 'Heavy' Mana and grow increasingly more chaotic and unstable the more it changes color. In order to stop random Manastorms from just happening rather then them being the result of misplaced ambition and reckless stupidity, Aethel's 'Tree of Harmony' serves to draw 'Heavy Mana' to it before it reaches critical mass via its root system. Once 'Heavy' Mana reaches the Tree, the Tree filters the Mana, returning it to a pure, raw state and sending it back out into the world again via its root system.

The chaotic build up of energy doesn't just go away through. It is vented out of the 'leaves' of the Tree and pours freely into the lands around it. The result of this is that there is a permanent manastorm raging around the Tree of Harmony at all times, even if the exact strength of it waxes and wanes at a given moment. It does no harm to the Tree itself, but there is a wide area of land around it that is unsuitable for life as it is violently reshaped and remolded by the chaotic energies released by the tree rapidly.

Persona
Aethel is one of the nicest entities one could ever encounter, if strange. Always polite to a fault regardless of who they is talking to and what the circumstances are, energetic and dedicated towards making whoever they are talking to feel welcomed and included in whatever is happening. While they can come across as somewhat scatter brained and prone to shifting between different topics and focuses at a whim, they are just as prone to focusing on a singular topic or interest obsessively long past the point that others care. A patron of stories and music, Aethel is a great storyteller themself... but terrible when it comes to actually playing instruments; No matter how long they practice, the noise will always be horrible to listen to and the fact that they're just so energetic about it somehow makes it worse.

Despite how friendly they are, Aethel is at the core a selfish individual. Their desires and flights of fancy will almost always come first despite the fact that they personally consider themselves to think about others often. Some of the flights of fancy and obsessions they can develop are of a... darker nature and are as readily pursued and explored as any other without hesitation. These vices can include things as mundane as drinking alcohol, harmless (and sometimes unintentionally harmful) pranks, lustful needs or even just a desire for romance... but at the same time can spill over into full on hedonism, stalker like obsession, ritualistic murder and acts that could haunt entire species for generations to come. The politeness and friendly nature will always remain, even in the depths of what appears to be utter insanity.

Despite having a remarkable vocabulary, Aethel themself tends to be a very literal entity and will honor and obey to the letter any and all obligations and deals that are required or made by them. TO THE LETTER is vital to remember. While some might claim that it is due to a trickster nature the truth is that while Aethel takes pride in their work and making sure it is completed in a timely and satisfactory manner, they rarely stop to consider the wider implications or logical outcomes of the requirements or rules of the task beyond asking themself if they are following them successfully. That being said, they are not afraid to ask for clarification if something is too vague or they simply don't understand/are confused by something.

Always remember, 'Nice' and 'Friendly' are different from 'Good'.

True Form
While Aethel has many forms, their true form is that of an androgynous six legged hooved equine with a cloud like mane and tail that seem to constantly shift coloration, rarely being a singular color at all and, on the few occasions it happens, rarely remaining that way for long. White of coat that seems to blend perfectly with whatever coloration their tail and mane happen to be at the time, Aethel has two horns coming out of their forehead; A smaller crescent shaped one up front and a larger thorn like horn rising up behind it.

Along their body are an indeterminate number of mollusc like tentacles, the tops covered in the white fur of his coat but the bottom of them are clearly filled with fleshy suction cups. Along their six legs shimmer a series of pleasantly glowing 'fins' that, much like the mane and tail, slowly change colors over time. Both tentacles and magical leg fins are used by Aethel to 'swim' through the shifting tempest of mana of his home like a fish in water.

Musical theme

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk. VI

Aethel (Reworked)

Aethel

The Friendly Stranger
King/Queen of the Fey
Keeper of the Tree
Swimmer of the Magical Winds

Aspect
Mana
The primary duty of Aethel is to be the caretaker of Mana; It is their job to maintain it, propagate it and deal with anything that threatens its existence. But what is Mana?

Mana, in its purest form, is spiritual life energy. While it can take many forms (Ethereal, Spiritual and even Physical under the right circumstances) Mana develops, grows and is altered by the presence of life and death. The more life that develops in an area, the more Mana that area produces and, in a feedback loop, the Mana generated enhances and enforces the area in turn to make that area more inclined to flourish and grow, thus resulting in more Mana being produced.

Because Mana is primarily a spiritual energy that develops from living things, the nature of those living things can alter the nature of the Mana they produce and in turn, the Mana will enhance and alter the region in turn to better reflect its new nature. Lifeforms more sensitive to Mana (Or are willing to dedicate the time and effort to learn how to interact with it) can actively channel and shape it in order to achieve magical results; The type of Mana in the local area (and the nature of the entity doing the channeling) often serves to decide what form this magic takes and serve to strengthen or weaken the intended result depending on if one is working with or against the nature of the Mana in question.

Death, Rot and Decay produce their own brands of Mana that, while distinct from the standard Mana produced by life, are still perfectly natural and play a similar role in the world and to spellcasters who use Mana. However, while perfectly natural, the fact that the nature of Mana can mix, match and be altered can result in it becoming unstable and dangerous. If left the grow and spiral out of control in an area the results can be... interesting. While Aethel intends to develop systems to properly manage this sort of thing so that it doesn't happen naturally, the fact remains that combining multiple Mana of different (often conflicting) natures can result in incredibly powerful... if unstable results.

As for what happens when a large number of differing types of Mana are mixed together, the result is simply called a Manastorm. You can't really predict the outcome of what a Manastorm will do because you could run the same scenario dozens of times and it will be different each time, depending on pure chance of which form of Mana manages to trigger the cascade and consume all the energy of the Manastorm to fuel its effect. One time it might be a chaotic surge of highly specialized plant growth never seen before (and possibly will never be seen again), another the region might heat up to the surface of the sun for a second and incinerate everything within range before it literally burns out and returns to normal. If there is enough Mana present, it's possible for both these things can happen at once.

Persona
Aethel is one of the nicest entities one could ever encounter, if strange. Always polite to a fault regardless of who they is talking to and what the circumstances are, energetic and dedicated towards making whoever they are talking to feel welcomed and included in whatever is happening. While they can come across as somewhat scatter brained and prone to shifting between different topics and focuses at a whim, they are just as prone to focusing on a singular topic or interest obsessively long past the point that others care. A patron of stories and music, Aethel is a great storyteller themself... but terrible when it comes to actually playing instruments; No matter how long they practice, the noise will always be horrible to listen to and the fact that they're just so energetic about it somehow makes it worse.

Despite how friendly they are, Aethel is at the core a selfish individual. Their desires and flights of fancy will almost always come first despite the fact that they personally consider themselves to think about others often. Some of the flights of fancy and obsessions they can develop are of a... darker nature and are as readily pursued and explored as any other without hesitation. These vices can include things as mundane as drinking alcohol, harmless (and sometimes unintentionally harmful) pranks, lustful needs or even just a desire for romance... but at the same time can spill over into full on hedonism, stalker like obsession, ritualistic murder and acts that could haunt entire species for generations to come. The politeness and friendly nature will always remain, even in the depths of what appears to be utter insanity.

Despite having a remarkable vocabulary, Aethel themself tends to be a very literal entity and will honor and obey to the letter any and all obligations and deals that are required or made by them. TO THE LETTER is vital to remember. While some might claim that it is due to a trickster nature the truth is that while Aethel takes pride in their work and making sure it is completed in a timely and satisfactory manner, they rarely stop to consider the wider implications or logical outcomes of the requirements or rules of the task beyond asking themself if they are following them successfully. That being said, they are not afraid to ask for clarification if something is too vague or they simply don't understand/are confused by something.

Always remember, 'Nice' and 'Friendly' are different from 'Good'.

True Form
While Aethel has many forms, their true form is that of an androgynous six legged hooved equine with a cloud like mane and tail that seem to constantly shift coloration, rarely being a singular color at all and, on the few occasions it happens, rarely remaining that way for long. White of coat that seems to blend perfectly with whatever coloration their tail and mane happen to be at the time, Aethel has two horns coming out of their forehead; A smaller crescent shaped one up front and a larger thorn like horn rising up behind it.

Along their body are an indeterminate number of mollusc like tentacles, the tops covered in the white fur of his coat but the bottom of them are clearly filled with fleshy suction cups. Along their six legs shimmer a series of pleasantly glowing 'fins' that, much like the mane and tail, slowly change colors over time. Both tentacles and magical leg fins are used by Aethel to 'swim' through the shifting tempest of mana of his home like a fish in water.

Musical theme

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk. VI

Aethel

Aethel

The Friendly Stranger
King/Queen of the Fey
Keeper of the Tree
Swimmer of the Magical Winds

Aspect
Mana
Of all the forces of existence, magic alone is filled with paradoxes and contradictions. It laughs at the very concept of order and rules, but beneath the whimsical chaos are laws that refuse to bend no matter how much one raged, threatened or bribed... But might make an exception out of compassion if one pleaded and begged with pure intent. Both beautiful and ugly, the stuff of the most serene of dreams and the most unending terror of nightmares, a means to impose ones will upon the world and by which the will of the world can impose its will upon those who inhabit it.

Magic has countless definitions and interpretations. To some it is where the dream meets with the physical for better or worse. To others, it is the truest expression of individualism and how the will of one person can shape or reshape the show that is life. To the clinical, at its core it is the power to look at the world and say 'Yes' or 'No' to the rest of the laws that govern it. It is both the purest expression of the soul and a sign of the darkest, most twisted of corruptions. All of them are true, to a degree.

Regardless of if it is viewed as science or superstition, Magic is a aspect of the world. A force of both unnatural and natural nature.

However, magic doesn't just spring into existence from anywhere. Like a fire cannot exist without fuel to burn, magic needs mana in order to exist. Mana is... hard to explain. It is an invisible, untouchable essence that ignores physical barriers in order to move around the world like the gentlest of breezes... unless it isn't or doesn't. Mana has many varieties and exists in states of being, be that ethereal, physical or even spiritual. Regardless of form, much like the magic it allows to exist it seems to possess a will of its own.

The primary duty of Aethel is to be the caretaker of Mana; It is their job to maintain it, propagate it and deal with anything that threatens its existence for without it, magic would quickly fade from the world and anything dependent on it would quickly wither and die.

Persona
Aethel is one of the nicest entities one could ever encounter, if strange. Always polite to a fault regardless of who they is talking to and what the circumstances are, energetic and dedicated towards making whoever they are talking to feel welcomed and included in whatever is happening. While they can come across as somewhat scatter brained and prone to shifting between different topics and focuses at a whim, they are just as prone to focusing on a singular topic or interest obsessively long past the point that others care. A patron of stories and music, Aethel is a great storyteller themself... but terrible when it comes to actually playing instruments; No matter how long they practice, the noise will always be horrible to listen to and the fact that he's just so energetic about it somehow makes it worse.

Despite how friendly they are, Aethel is at the core a selfish individual. Their desires and flights of fancy will almost always come first despite the fact that they personally consider themselves to think about others often. Some of the flights of fancy and obsessions they can develop are of a... darker nature and are as readily pursued and explored as any other without hesitation.

Despite having a remarkable vocabulary, Aethel themself tends to be a very literal entity and will honor and obey to the letter any and all obligations and deals that are required or made by them. TO THE LETTER is vital to remember. While some might claim that it is due to a trickster nature the truth is that while Aethel takes pride in their work and making sure it is completed in a timely and satisfactory manner, they rarely stop to consider the wider implications or logical outcomes of the requirements or rules of the task beyond asking themself if they are following them successfully. That being said, they are not afraid to ask for clarification if something is too vague or they simply don't understand/are confused by something.

Always remember, 'Nice' and 'Friendly' are different from 'Good'.

True Form
While Aethel has many forms, their true form is that of an androgynous six legged hooved equine with a cloud like mane and tail that seem to constantly shift coloration, rarely being a singular color at all and, on the few occasions it happens, rarely remaining that way for long. White of coat that seems to blend perfectly with whatever coloration their tail and mane happen to be at the time, Aethel has two horns coming out of their forehead; A smaller crescent shaped one up front and a larger thorn like horn rising up behind it.

Along their body are an indeterminate number of mollusc like tentacles, the tops covered in the white fur of his coat but the bottom of them are clearly filled with fleshy suction cups. Along their six legs shimmer a series of pleasantly glowing 'fins' that, much like the mane and tail, slowly change colors over time. Both tentacles and magical leg fins are used by Aethel to 'swim' through the shifting tempest of mana of his home like a fish in water.

Musical theme

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk. VI

Just to try and call it so someone else doesn't steal the idea... I'm thinking of making a deity of magic.

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk. VI

I want in. I'll start work on a god of something after getting some sleep. I know I've joined and left Divinus games before, but I've never been able to get in on the ground floor to help shape the world from the start before either.

The Masque of the Dragon || Fantasy Dragons hiding among Humans

I do kind of love how Droka clearly has a very different set of priorities then other dragons.

The Masque of the Dragon || Fantasy Dragons hiding among Humans

Droka
Near Whistle Hill

All things considered, it had been a rather lovely evening flight for Droka. While his efforts to secure the future of dragon kind in Nihn were absolutely vital and worthy of any sacrifice, discarding his masks to be himself and take to the sky was a pleasure that he hadn't been able to embrace for a few years now. It was a small, personal thing but... often the small things were what made fighting for the big things worthwhile.

The fact that he had been flying back into his homeland on Virtue Day was a happy coincidence; A quirk of the cosmic dice falling into place. Like flying or being in his true form, Virtue Day had been one of those small pleasures that had to be forgone for the greater picture... but he hadn't seen any harm in partaking of the festivities while the opportunity had presented itself.

Unfortunately, those plans had quickly gone out the window when it became clear that Whistle Hill village was on fire and actively being attacked! That sort of thing tended to ruin the festive spirit. In Droka's case, it replaced what was going to be good cheer and fellowship with his fellow dragon with an intense, so cold that it burned murderous rage.

Having landed a short distance away in order to scout out the situation on foot, Droka made the decision not to change into his human form. He was stronger in his dragon form in both magic and physical power and he fully intended to take advantage of both shortly. After all, the Masque was only breached if humans saw a magical creature turn into a human... and the Masque couldn't be broken if there were no witnesses to tell the tale.

However, charging into a fight (even with his natural advantages, plus the element of surprise) somewhat blindly was not something that the black dragon was going to do. A better idea presented itself to him.

Hidden among the shadows of the woods surrounding the lit up Whistle Hill, Droka concentrated as he started to draw upon the shadows of the night in order to sculpt an illusion of a young, red dragon in the smoke filling sky on the opposite side of the village. It was modeled on no one he personally knew, but was based more on the stories that humans had told themselves about dragons over the years; Covered in spikes, massive fangs and claws and a look in its eye of a murderous predator that had found both prey and a challenge to its territory and was intent to dedicate all the rage that its basic, animal like brain could muster to rip and tear both to shreds.

Once his distraction was ready, it began its performance as it started to swoop down towards the burning village, letting out a massive roar that filled the air as a quick, secondary illusion was thrown towards the Nihn raiders that one of their number. The exact person was unclear, but the human mind tended to fill in the gaps by itself... and the important information the voice was conveying was rather pressing and demanded imitate attention. "DRAGON INCOMING!"

Said 'dragon', as it entered the light of the village proper, turned its head to strafe some of the buildings with a burst of flame before it turned its head to start its approach of the marauders proper (a keen observer might have noticed that the buildings in question had been on fire to begin with and, after having been beset with dragon flame, didn't seem any more on fire then they were before. However, such an observer would have to completely miss the very loud, angry dragon that was flying straight at them).

Landing on the ground with a heavy thump and a quick illusion to make it seem like the ground had shaken briefly, the red 'dragon' roared its beastly, primal challenge at the Nihn marauders from no more then ten meters away from them.

The Masque of the Dragon || Fantasy Dragons hiding among Humans

So is this happen or... no? Because I'm still around with Droka.