Crusader Lord

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay, Mk. V

Arira - Goddess of Cycles

When The World Needed Her Most...She Did Not Vanish!!!

---

...Did she mourn that the third race of her children had become so divided? Indeed. Such a thing weighed upon her heart, and yet at the same time her resolve was not broken nor shattered. The Erimav remained among her children, and a few had come to live within her Paradise like a similar amount of Ketto and Brynlic had before. These would, in the coming centuries, be transformed by the nature of the Ariran Paradise and the sustenance there just like the humans who were living there would be as well. More so, from the Erimav had come thoughts of just how to make things better for the region.

But before she exerted her might to a great extent on this Shard of Creation, this very Shard of Galbar, she would have to make one more civilization. One more race to create that would be numbered among her children, who would live upon the land and help make it great in their own ways in due time. She had even been going around giving the races she had already made, and the humans and other lingering survivor groups who now lived in the region, some amount of guidance and direction to set them on their own paths and away from a world of apocalypse.

And this time, she knew what she would need to do this time around for this race.

To this end the goddess flew herself over to the south of the small Freshwater Sea, all the way down to the Land Between Two Rivers...also known as the ‘Land of The Two Rivers’ or most importantly as “Aimatoposem”. In a good spot of land in this area, a flat place where there was room to grow and build and so forth, Arira would once again raise her arms as her now solemn visage looked upon the area. For a moment she mumbled a near-silent prayer under her breath, to whom or what or where none else would ever know, and then closed her eyes once more.

To them would be given civilization and order, but not as strict and peculiar as the Erimav had.

To them would be given strength and stamina, but not as much as the Ketto had.

To them would be given magic and mirth, but not as much as the Brynlic held.

To them would be given the spark of strong will and desire to learn, but not leaving the accidental empty spaces and erroneous things otherwise that had resulted eventually in the twisted Erimyr by mistake.

To them would be given great strength of spirit and hearty souls, like unto the survivors of the apocalypse...who had weathered so much but clung on through even the most godless of days to survive.

To them she would grant a form mostly like that of humans and elves and such folk, with only very slightly pointed ears to boot and fitting physiology of the canine teeth for their potential to drink blood as an alternate food source from animals or such. No power to turn things into their own kind like the Erimav did though.

To this end she would form them, without as much pomp and circumstance. They were able to feed upon the blood to survive, but also to eat all the other mortal foods that the world would have to offer. Civilized and orderly, yet mirthful and full of life.

“Rise, oh the last of the mortal races born into this world as mine children...rise, oh Dirham!”

After she cried aloud, the goddess lowered her arms one last time and opened her eyes as she began to float down to the ground. Below her, a great number of the Dirham lay upon the ground, male and female alike, with gothic attire and soft skin and lovely eyes that began to flutter open as they awoke. They lacked the inherent beauty of the Erimav, yet were a touch above regular humans and the like. Intelligent of mind, strong of spirit, able to fight the darkness within themselves and in the world about them as well as enjoy the light.

These numbered many more than the other races had in their initial creation batch, and as they rose they began to look at each other and speak with one another. Some were happy, others confused, and others seemingly grumpy at having woken upon the ground. Good. Ultimately, however, the people would begin to shuffle forward to where Arira had stopped her descent only some feet above the ground. To see the great throng of the people looking upon her, it made Arira smile as she looked into each of their eyes and upon their curious and mixed gazes.

It all felt...right. Yes. None of the others before were mistakes, as varied and individual as any other race, and they were all beloved even as these were. But this felt as if it just ‘clicked’ within her with a sense of finality and pride, as if she knew within her that this was the final major people to be born of her in this manner of creation during this time period. Like this creation was good, and none other like it was needed for this region at this time.

“Welcome to this world, oh last of mine mortal children made directly by mine hands. I am the beginning and the end. I am the seasons and the climes. I am the winter and spring, the summer and the fall.

I am Arira, Goddess of Cycles, and I have madest all of thee in the image of my mind...and of the cloth woven by thine cousins who also till this land and a place very far off from here. Therefore bend thine ears to my voice, and listen. Heed my call, and come forth to me. Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed that thou seest me here.

I am thine mother and maker, wherefore I invite thee to come near to me and take comfort. Speak thine minds as well, for I wish to hear thee with my own two ears.”

“Why did you make us?”

“Where are we?”

“Could you have made us not on a patch of itchy grass?”

“Could use something to eat really.”

“Wait, why do only I have both-, oww! Somebody hit me!”

The goddess chuckled as the sounds of various voices entered her ears, questions sensible and otherwise taken into consideration. For a time she would begin to give some answers, at least, until the time for initial questions had gone on long enough. Gently she then waved her hands down, shushing them eventually once more.

“I shall answer more in time, oh Dirham, oh the lastborn of the mortal races that are mine children due to being made by mine hand.

I must first finish a great work, one which all of thee shalt be witness to along with the rest of this Shard of Creation, this world known as the Shard of Galbar.”

Then one last voice spoke up as the goddess looked over at the woman who was shouting up to her, the woman donning a long masculine Victorian coat and gloves as she gave a fanged grin.

“Well then? Get going! We’ve got to start getting things set up for when you get back then! So shoo, go do your god thing and we’ll be over here!”

A few chuckles and groans came from the throng of Dirham, but Arira’s smile did widen at the words as she let out a light peal of genuine laughter for the first time in her life thus far. Where some might have seen it as insolence, however, she could feel the gusto of the mortals’ spirits shine!

Love and laughter. Groans and complaints. Struggle ahead and yet the spirit to overcome it all in the end. It was beautiful. Simply beautiful.

This was what was so transcendent about mortals, at least in the goddess’ mind. Their lives were so very short compared to her immortal nature, and yet they sought to pursue the impossible that lay beyond the eternal horizon. They sought to conquer what challenges lay before them, and even with the good and the bad and so forth among them they never ceased to push themselves further and further.

Where divinity might stagnate or sit idly by with time, an eternity of memories possessed and so forth, to see that burning light of the flame of mortal life so brilliant in these was a sight like none other.

“Well then! My children seem to be adamant about watching their mother’s work! Then be off, begin to cut the wood and work out your homes! I will return to help afterward!”

And with that, the goddess would begin to rise again, voices beginning to bark out as the people began to try to organize themselves to start the work of making homes and so forth. Of course...they and their seed would have plenty of time for that. More than enough over the ages to come.

As for herself, however, she had one last set of things to do for this world. Indeed, these things had been long overdue, though I’Iro’s work and ironically her Paradise had made it all finally possible at this point in time.

---

Higher and higher she climbed, higher into the atmosphere.

Faster and faster she would move, seeking to reach the highest point in the atmosphere that was far above the perfect center of the world.

From Mount Divinus, a divine being’ senses would allow them to know she was far above there.

Far above the cloud whales and flying krill, far above the tallest mountains and greatest of lands she would fly up to, and standing at the edge of the atmosphere and void beyond she protected herself with a thin barrier of still-potent divine power.

Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale. Control your breathing.

Yes. The Goddess of Cycles would begin to control her breathing, channeling all of her focus and divine power as it began to ripple throughout her. This would be an exertion far from the vulnerable mortal eyes that might be scarred or slain by seeing this, and to the gods a sign that she was serious in this work of hers. Arira’s flesh would begin to glow, and soon it began to shift as it changed at this spot far above and away from the eyes of all. Yet even if it was not directly seen, this would all be felt....especially by the rest of the gods.

‘My tiny brother, give me strength...yet keep safe and far from my true form! Oh mother, grant me boon and watch upon me from afar as my form shakes the very heavens themselves! Oh mortals, look upon me and know hope!!!’

Such were her thoughts, such were the desires shouted silently into the aether and void and heavens by her very immortal soul.

Still faster and faster and faster the flesh of her would shift and continue to move, all as great and blinding eyes appeared on her that would madden mortals if she were closer to the ground. So blindingly radiant was the divine light emitted from Arira, though, that all those below would see would be a radiant light high in the heavens...a strange one, yet its light was warm and eerie at the same time. Though even as her flesh moved and shifted, rings of spinning divine flesh and form and power were forming.

It was the beginning and the end. The start and the finish. A light that would gleam with raw divinity and magnificence and unimaginable incredibility, such that was untold magnitudes beyond her ‘base’ form.

Indeed, she would in the end become Cycles Incarnate for what she would be doing next.

Cycles Incarnate

And thus after, the sound of uncountable voices speaking in perfect unison would begin to ring throughout the air of the world...even as it touched upon all the land of creation. It came with the loudness of a burst of thunder, the swiftness of lightning, the glory of the sun, and the mightiness of Domain made manifest.

“Let the chaos be bidden: Come, Come, Come!

Come into my being and be consumed in thine End, yet be the fuel of the Beginning that shall come to the world anew. Burn, Burn, Burn!

Swell, oh Dominion of Cycles, and encompass all in thine eternal embrace! May the eyes watch over them and see it all through, yea let the rings bind them that the balance shall be constrained. Swell, Swell, Swell!

Rise, oh Jewel of Silence and freeze of Winter, be taken as part of mine being forever more. Make thine cold be the season’s sweet solace, may thine sobering touch cling to all as much as the icy winds cling to all the lands in thine domain, and may thou embrace the still silence at the end and beginning of all years to come!

Rise, oh sweltering Summer heat, burn forth from me forever and radiate like the heat of the sun and the burning fires of youth and growth and raw passions made manifest. Do this upon all creation to stir it forth to action, that none may sit idle as thine waves wash over them like waves upon the ocean shores!

Rise, oh cool winds of Fall, let thine decline and autumn colors show forth the softer brilliance of nature and beauty that comes in even with death! Become the comfort to all that rest and life so too, yea become the gentle chillwind that soothes the soul and ushers forth the coming cold to be!

Rise, oh lovely warmth of Spring, let thine sweetest caress and gentle rains bring forth new life and sounds of joy where once was death and silence! Manifest thyself as the rebirth of all creation, that cometh during its time to bring back vibrance and loveliness anew!

Oh climes and times of year, cling thee to all places of existence as thou fittest and form-est upon all creation and life therein! Let all life know the seasons and understand without words! Let all climes have their times and seasons thus, all being anchored upon mineself and mineself alone always, and manifest forth properly upon this Shard of Galbar, this Shard of Creation, and all land seeded and made before and now and forevermore!

Let mine existence be the essence of all this, and make mine existence the eternal foundation for all these! So it is decreed, so it is made immutable by being tied to my being forever! Let the gates of destruction and instability of these things be shut!

Shut!

Shut!

SHUT!!!”

So the voices would speaketh, at the end an almighty scream…

...Thus it was done.

The Seasons would be born into creation by the might of the Domain of Cycles now incarnated. Yea natural and normal clouds to bring forth rains and snows and storms and so forth would return and encompass the Shard of Creation alongside the cloud whales and such creatures, that the seasons might occur with the right weathers. Each biome of the world, those created before now and ever so after even, would now possess their fitting weather and climates and seasons thus...now and forever.

All of it was bound to the existence of the Goddess Arira, never to be rent in twain again unless she ceased to exist. It was her, her will, her extension, her life, her very being now. The Cycles of the Seasons, the Cycles of Life growing and dying and reproducing and resting, and the fitting Climate Cycles of all the lands and terrain and so forth, all were ushered in. All were a part of Arira now. They were her, and yet not her. They had beginnings, and they had ends. They had starts, and they had stopping points.

Yet not all was well in this aftermath.

For even as all the other gods and lands would find themselves stable and organized in ways prior untouched or unfinished or absent, the Goddess of Cycles would rapidly shift back to her Base Form.

Rapidly, Arira’s body would limply begin to fall from the heavens.

Oh save her, gods of the world, that she be not broken upon Mount Divinus itself!

Summary

Arira made the Dirham race, and this time her creation process went without flair and any sort of pomp and circumstance. More or less she took this most seriously as her last Post 0 race-making shenanigan/action, using all she had learned thus far in making races and seeing things in order to craft the Dirham as perhaps the most ‘balanced’ race of all.

She then was encouraged by them to quit waiting about and to go finish her work, to which she took joy and went off to perform a great miracle. She then went to the center of the world, Mount Divinus, and went high up into the atmosphere and such from there...and from the center of the world went into her True Form. In this she created the Seasons, set forth all needed cycles of the world across all of it, and exerted herself so much she basically got exhausted and passed out from all the MA power-spam.

Mind this was all just done after asking the GMs, as well as that it is basically a one-off instance of this insane divine power use to help us get past the Post-0 time period (finally).

She also kinda passed out and is falling rapidly from the sky down toward Mount Divinus in her Base Form (which she reverted to upon passing out) once more, so can someone please save her from this literal fall? (lol)

MA Summary

1 MA (0 from Apocalypse) - Arira created the Dirham, making more of them at their inception and taking into their creation all she has learned from making other races so far. It is the final race she will be making at all during this Post-0 time period.

1 MA (0 from Apocalypse) - Arira went full True Form, far away from hurt-able mortal eyes but rather readily able to be sensed by the other gods all over the Shard of Creation/Galbar as a result.

Several MA (0 from Apocalypse) - Arira exerted her full power in her True Form to create the Seasons, proper Climates and Climate Cycles, created normal clouds again which will create proper weather as part of the proper weather/other cycles of the world (even though Cloud Whales and such exist and weren’t harmed in this), and set the cycles of reproduction and so forth into their correct placements and manners and so forth.

In other words, she set the climate stuff and cycles stuff in order all at once in a mass exertion which will honestly never happen again because this is Post-0 times and Arira just wanted to help get things in order so we can move on forward with things on Thursday. XD

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay, Mk. V

Arira - Goddess of Cycles

The Southern Pole...and its Consequences

---

It had only been a short time since she received the letter from I’Iro, and not long since she had taught the Ketto and Brynlic races some things to get them started as civilizations.

Perhaps she’d eventually set up schools or such one day, but today wasn’t that time for them yet. Truth be told, she’d even gone round about the area and helped begin to organize some of the lingering humans and other races that had been survivors on the land when she terraformed it. There would be a long time before things got back to normal, or at least what normal this region now had as it moved forward, but all the same it was something on the mortals’ part to work on.

She didn’t want to be over-involved, but more or less would give teachings and help them organize at least. Monster/Demon hunters that would be necessary from now on, villages and towns and such forming, and the introduction of a fitting technological level would be trickled in over the centuries to keep the layout and progress of civilization organic for the races of the region. Etc.

But all the same she’d decided to head down to the place I’Iro had talked about, passing over the newer temperate-to-taiga land to the direct south of her region and taking check of it along the way. To this area I’Iro had ultimately created by consequence she gave the name “The Winter Lands”...hmm, no. How about “The Pale Lands'' instead? That sounded about right. Chilly enough, but not bad. There was also the new ‘Ghost Sea’, another something of note, which she further approved of the name of herself. Still, finding a segment of some odd vine-root-like tendril stuff along the way...she curiously picked a section of it to take with her. Maybe she could make use of it? Or she was just getting too curious.

Eventually she would, however, arrive at the small temple that the Dream Goddess had made, which-...hmm. The style was rather peculiar indeed, like it had all been carved out of a single large piece of stone. At least it looked so in appearance. But that wasn’t going to be a terrible matter either. With her divine power, Arira began to carve her symbols and so forth into the temple, tweaking it into a blend of styles between her fortress-temple and how I’Iro had made it. A fitting blend, though her holy symbols and other things would fill it and decorate it all wholly and entirely now. Of course she tosses in some depictions so I’Iro was given due credit as well. She wasn’t going to leave out the intelligent yet cute dream goddess who had

To cap it off, the goddess exerted herself to consecrate the area. Her very power was imbibed into every bit of the temple and icy grounds it was upon, even the Jewel of Silence and its containment measures within, transforming the area into an extension of herself. Perhaps it was a tad rude to the goddess who had made this place first, but doing this would allow Arira herself to keep better track and care of the place as a result. Especially when protecting it. Still, as she finished that work the goddess would throw on some grandiose and very heavy stone front doors to the temple, as well as tossed in a further-protecting and cold-balancing small divine-power forcefield around the alien-metal orb that contained the crystal, and let out a large sigh of relief.

Walking outside, she would take the strange oily-filled tendril piece she took with her power as she examined it more curiously...before tossing the segment onto the ground outside the small temple-shrine. It would glow for a second with her power, before its exterior gained a strange metal sheen and it began to dig into the ice and grow. It would bend and twine, forming a winding, twisted, intricate wall of metallic vines around the outside of the temple-shrine with a woven grand entranceway leading into the temple-shrine. Likewise they would form a large field of such around this grand wall. These strange vines had a very tough exterior, as tough as the toughest metals, covered in finely razor-sharp thorns as well...yet internally filled with a new, circulating, and strange dark blue oily substance within. They would even dig deep beneath the ice to root this ‘South Pole’ into the ocean floor and keep it very firmly attached to this Shard of Creation...this chunk of Galbar as it were. Likewise it all imposed a great defensive spread before anything that sought to get to the temple-shrine at all.

This creation she would call “I’Irian Vines” in honor of herself and I’Iro, vines whose oily inner substance was circulated as a means of keeping the ‘plant’ alive as it derived what little to no nutrition it needed from the cold ocean water far underneath the dense ice of the South Pole. Its internal ‘juice’ was very flammable naturally, but the vines could very quickly use autotomy to ‘separate’ and remove such segments rapidly to avoid body-wide burning or a chain-reaction or so forth if it was set on fire internally somehow. Externally it wouldn’t exactly burn at all for the most part, but under an intense enough heat (rather intense enough for sure that is) the metal-like exterior could be melted down to make things. Durable, yet practical. She’d take a sample to test later back at the Ariran Paradise to boot.

Yet...it all still felt somewhat incomplete. Like even with the I’Irian Vine field and specially-woven dense wall of them around the temple-shrine, something needed to care for the place really. It would be frozen cold up here, and despite the vines protecting from the elements well enough things weren’t perfect. Even if she could keep an eye on here, it was not like she wanted to leave the spot empty either...ah!

Something simple would have to do the trick. A race that needed minimal requirements, but had something to sustain them located in the temple to keep them loyal there.

There was one biological mechanic she was tempted to make use of for it, since it would at least function for those needs she had of a race in this location, so perhaps it would work? Blood-sucking that was. It was macabre, but also a part of the cycle of life for some things regardless. It wouldn’t require too much work to make by using humans as a base for this race, but unlike when she made the Ketto she wanted to make sure to focus this time. They would need to be a distinctly more orderly bunch here, disciplined really, to not go too far with things. Yes! That would work nicely...well, after she did one more small task.

Arira would create a pale white bird, a Dovling she would call it, on the spur of the moment. Into it she sent a message for I’Iro about what she had done, and would be doing, before it flew off like a streak of light from her hands in haste. Once it simply touched the other goddess, Arira’s message would transfer into I’Iro’s mind from the bird itself safely and fully. It was also perhaps an experimental means of communication, but...eh, it would work.

The goddess would then re-enter the temple, standing in the now larger entrance room just beyond the doors, and extending her hands with her palms out and having closed her eyes once more.

The base form of the beings to be made would be taken from humans, but given the climate and very minimal sunlight here they wouldn’t need that much resistance to it. Incredibly pale and ash-pale skin would be perfect in this case for them, without much thought having to be given save for them getting sunburns more easily than any others.

Make just the upper canine teeth more pronounced, enough to break the skin of prey on the ice or otherwise to drink their blood. Would be mostly meant as a supplementary measure, but would work still as a backup for them to use for eating. Plenty of life would grow and rise up upon the ice, she’d take care of that on her way out. Hardy enough to live there, populous enough on the barren icy sheet to rely on the ocean for food, etc.

Then make them very orderly, enough to keep the temple in good shape and not be inclined to abandon it or frankly ‘take over’ among other grueling possibilities. Well, free will wasn’t going to be taken from them though. Hmm. Still, it all worked out as she hoped for the most part. Had to leave that wiggle room.

Could devour and subsist entirely on blood, that she already knew she was going to put in. Regular food they’d not really be able to digest at all, though, since they didn’t need it. Also made designing them more simple by adding enhanced senses into the mix.

Superior night vision, heightened reflexes and durability and strength lesser than Ketto but more than other mortal races, and an instinct for organizing around hierarchies all were good things to toss in perhaps. Yes.

Also clothes this time. That was rather important. Maybe that would be something they could make use of animals for as well, though at the same time she would give them the tools to weave and make finer clothes for themselves over time.

They had a division of the sexes as well, this time at least, and could reproduce normally or by...hmm. Well if anyone wandered in foolish enough to try to raid the temple, they’d be able to be bitten by these creatures and turned into one of them by force. That would ensure trespassers would not step foot inside! Hopefully. It was also another layer of defense for the temple-shrine really. Biting foes and using claws instead of normal fingernails would also be a deadly touch.

Not that this didn’t mean they couldn’t still be rather beautiful in their own right perhaps. Like a lovely face in the moonlight, though even if the sun was far from desirable and they hated it at least they wouldn’t instantly catch on fire underneath it. The death or destruction of their heart? Decapitation? Excessive Starvation? All would be enough to really kill them despite their inherently very hardy bodies and so forth. A part of them none of their kind would be able to ‘shake’ off.

As the goddess opened her eyes this time, finishing up the process and lowering her arms, she caused a fountain to sprout up in the middle of the large entrance-way as well. Designs of balance, of the vines and so forth, and of the crystal at that, would cover it, and immediately the fountain began to spit out its infinite fountain of non-freezing and nutritious blood. Macabre, really, but fitting for the landscape all the same.

Before her, the human-like beings in rather neat and high-class gothic attire began to stir, their gold and silver and precious-metal-colored eyes reflecting the dimmer magical lights that lit up the temple within. Their skin was so pale they almost looked like corpses in that vague sense, but as most awoke they walked or pulled or crawled over to the fountain to drink heartily of its contents. One male, in particular, would stand, dusting himself off and walking over to her before giving a very deep and fanciful bow as his handsome visage smiled at her.

Well, at least this time things felt more ‘on-point’ than last time!

“Milady! It is but a humble abode thou hast given us, yet even so I am most pleased to meet you and witness your divine beauty that has blessed our presence most graciously!

Still, I believe we must ask thee for something, I pray. A name, and why we are here, would be most welcome to know indeed.”

Arira gave a small smile in return, noting this one’s strength in not immediately giving into the slaking of his natural thirst, even as those drinking from the fountain would drink up and begin to stand about her.

“The pleasure is mine, my children. Where there is light, darkness also. Where there is a beginning, there is an end. I am Arira, the Goddess of Cycles, and thine kind hath been made to bear up this place and protect it from thieves and ill forces and so forth. For this is mine consecrated ground as well, a place wherein the might of cold is eternally enshrined in my name and due to the help of a friend.

Thine thirst is for what thou drinkest, blood, that which flows through all living things and only else from this eternal fountain beside thee. The light of the sun is loathe to thee, and yet in the dark thou hast no equal among the civilized races of the world. Magic can be used by thee, as well as martial tools and fang and claws where fingernails would hath been on others.

Thou are order, civilized, and yet bring this to the barren wasteland roundabout. I shall assist in making a great cavern below this temple, hidden beneath the ice, where thine kind can liveth and rest under mine blessing.

Thine race shall be the Erimav. Proud and unaging after maturity, yet not indestructible nor immutable. A loveliness and strength beyond many, but not all, mortal races, yet a nature that shall teach thee to know discipline and struggle and sacrifice and come to understand this world.”

Yet...hmm. She could see it in their eyes. She could tell their nature in ways that hadn’t been decided outright by her, but came as a result of them themselves. Intriguing. Very intriguing.

The goddess then seemed to have a sudden twinkle in her eye of...something else. Something gratingly different than she had ever been like before. It was alien, and sent a shudder through the most weak-willed of the folk before her, but a message to the unflinching strong nonetheless. Still, the smile of the one who first spoke to her did not break before her gaze...though he seemed to get the point.

“But bewarest thou, thine power and might is not the be of all and end of all. Thou shalt stop aging after some time of maturity, that thou might gainest wisdom, but know that thine lives hang as frail in the balance as that of any other mortal race.

For themselves thou shalt be able to choose, as like any other, to follow thine purpose or not. Still, those who live here shall abide by mine rules, lest if they seek to turn on this place in evil or ill deeds then they shall be smitten into naught but dust in an instant.

Ist’ this understood by thee, oh my Children of the Night?

And what about thee...oh Drakenvald, First among the Erimav?”

The lead one took another deep bow as he was spoken to directly, being given a name at that, and most of the others did so after him.

“My Lady! Oh what joy your words bring to my ears! It is a joyous thing to exist in this world, with the first name of my kind no less having been given me, knowing that our purpose is most clear and our nature allows us to choose thereof! I am sure we shall follow our duty most clearly...but if not the price is most easy to understand of course.”

...She hoped so.

---

Many, Many, Many Years And Generations Later...

[History of the Ararian Church or "Cyclican Church", Book 4, Chapter 4]

“…[and] the goddess would assist her newest children at this time in crafting that great underground habitation, but more and more she worried over the nature of these folk with exposure. Most seemed well, orderly enough even, and yet in the years after she left things would change most frighteningly. Whilst the most noble and just of the Erimav would remain at the temple and adhere to their duties and strength, including those few brought to her Paradise for study and to live in its bounty, in time there were those whose drive for order and strength did not hold true to some kind of balance.

Indeed some fled the rumored and legendary temple-shrine, and managed to reach the mainland of the Shard of Creation. These in time would come to be derided and feared and killed by the mortal races, becoming warped into monsters who dwelled in caves and castles and dark places as they sought dominion over the land and used magic to their own ends. It brought sorrow to the goddess, and yet they would not escape entirely free from the evil they would make wrought in centuries and more so to come.

‘Erimyr’, this derivative group of them would come to be called derisively by their original kin and mortals on the mainland alike, a corruption of the Erimav as this group warped themselves and became corrupted by their own hands and behaviors and the magic they came to use over time. The Erimyr had much the same raw strength, but now bore corrupted magics and weakness alongside. The Erimav’s original loathing of the sun would become lethal to these Erimyr, burning them like a curse and weakening them greatly in contact with it...even able to kill them and cause them to crumble to naught but lifeless dust with enough exposure. Fire too would become a weakness of them, even as they gained the power to shapeshift unlike the original Erimav.

Even so the Erimav would remain a purer race, an enmity between them and their ‘Erimyr’ cousins would become an eternal rivalry and hatred of each other down to their cores. Some Erimyr would perhaps find their way into the care or influence of other divinities, but no divine hand of others would be able to shake them of their weaknesses...such was the price they paid forevermore, the so-called ‘Curse of Arira’ upon their very flesh and souls by nature of them existing at all.

Indeed...they who had chosen such vile things would find only torment before them, even after death.”

Summary

Arira went to the new South Pole and basically consecrated the ground of the small temple I’Iro made, as well as adding her own touches and such too to make it the Southern Temple-Shrine of Arira and giving the crystal another divine defensive bubble about it to help regulate and such even more finely. She also created the I’Irian Vines at the location to protect it and root the South Pole to the bottom of the ocean for extra anchoring and safety, creating them anew from a small portion of the tendril stuff that got left behind (more than plenty left for the humans of the area to harvest later on) by I’Iro.

She then went about trying to create a race to care for and protect the place, fearful of outside forces or such trying to ruin the place or take the crystal within one day potentially, and through this made the noble and fancifully-dressed, orderly, and otherwise more highly civilized and blood-drinking Erimav race to care for the place and an infinite eternal nutritious-blood fountain for them at the location. But rather than make a big mistake in creating them, in this case Arira found that aspects of them she didn’t directly decide on had shaped into...equally bad and good potential in them indeed.

Despite having made her first intimidation in her life so far, mainly to test her newest ‘children’, an excerpt from a Cyclican History book from rather far in the future notes what happened in the many years and so forth following...that some of the Erimav fled to the mainland and became corrupted by their actions and use of corrupt magics and became more akin to traditional vampires. These became known, by all others, derisively as the Erimyr, gaining more potent weaknesses but also the power to shapeshift (all unlike their ‘pure’ relatives), and their drawbacks passed irreparable onto the Erimyr race as a result of their creation being called the Curse of Arira despite the goddess having no proper hand in it at all.

MA Summary

1 MA (0 from Apocalypse) - Arira consecrated and shaped stuff around the temple at the new South Pole, making it as much an extension of her and securely her domain as the Ariran Paradise is.

1 MA (0 from Apocalypse) - Arira created the Erimav race (whom from some would branch into the derivative ‘Erimyr’ race who became twisted as a race by their own hands and terrible actions), basically civilized and orderly ‘vampires’ of a sort who she helped carve a large hidden home underneath the temple and ice so they can grow and prosper.

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay, Mk. V

Arira - Goddess of Cycles

The Creation of the...Ketto? Oh Dear.

---

It had been some time since she’d used her power to ‘birth’ the Brynlic into the world, transforming the group of once-wandering Coilbrywen into a group she was proud to number among her children. They had been settled (with only a minute bit of help from her) within the northeast of the region, settled amidst the hills and small forests and to the southwest of that lake by which they’d been reborn. Plenty of room to grow, plenty of room to spread, and so forth. Yet all the same...they were but one race that would need to be placed onto the land to make use of it, to till it, and to work it well. She loved her new children dearly, all of them, and she’d even brought a few to her Paradise to grow and prosper there with the slowly-changing humans. They all would begin to change and be shaped by the magic of her Paradise and the fruits and materials it bore, as the place truly had all that was needed and then some, but all the same there was much to do if she was to make the most of this region and bring greater life to it.

To that end she had come to the area just south of the Ariran Paradise, placed directly between the great and unconquerable mountains hiding the paradise to the north and the mini-freshwater sea to the south. A place where forests and rugged mountain slopes and freshwater sea were the main borders, with room to grow westward most easily achieved. A good spot to allow her newest batch of ‘children’ to live and grow well, at least for some time without conflict with their siblings over living space she hoped.

Still, what was she to make of this second batch? What was she to make them like? This was the area her intuition had led her to when seeking a good spot, and even in her latest lectures back at the Paradise she’d brought up a map she’d made of the region’s landscape and allowed her students to ponder the matter alongside her somewhat. It was a good thought experiment, but the answers they’d given were so rather...varied. “They would need to be strong!”, “They would need to be giants!”, “They would need to be durable!”, “Why can’t they all just be cute?”, and more had been among their answers...

However, this did lead to an interesting mental image indeed-...wait! That was it! She had been pondering more and more so that the race needed to be strong, likely larger than the Brynlic, to have a balance. Why not use some of those traits to create a race that embodied several of those things best? Large, strong, durable folk who could labor in the land and fight back lingering demons better! It wasn’t as if the apocalyptic demons in the land weren’t weakened, at least those that had been in the region for the terraforming, but other things from outside were still an issue indeed. Even once the world was fixed, monsters and beasts and demons would likely remain a lingering problem anyways in some form or manner.

In fact, why not use one of the demons she’d seen thus far as a base? It would make the race look menacing, and even more fearsome to their enemies!

From where she sat upon a great boulder, a fist on her chin as she thought, the goddess smiled at her conclusion and stood up upon the great stone. Yes, it would do nicely! Surely they would be ‘some’ trouble in a sense, just as any mortal race with free will was apt to be, but not be so savage and barbaric as to try to destroy everything or so forth. Yes, she didn’t want to make mindless meat hunks. Practical enough they would be indeed!

Arira lifted her arms up, opening her hands and pointing her palms down as she extended them out to point them at the open space before her. It was dotted with rock jutting out in parts of this rare hilly space, but it would do for inspiration. So too she closed her eyes as she began to channel divine power, imagining the appearance of that humanoid demon she’d seen prior. Just to base the appearance on some, that is.

A pair of horns coming from the head-...hmm, in this case the forehead was going to be simpler than ram-like horns stretching forward from the sides of the head.

No wings, but the deep red skin was something that would strike an imposing appearance in part for sure! Make the horns the same color too, would be simpler that way.

Hair colors would vary, but perhaps better to keep them simple. White, black, grays, silver, gold...well, even ruby, sapphire, and emerald colored hair would be acceptable among their genes. It wasn’ too gaudy, just different!

There was also making them intelligent and civilized, yes. None of this wanton barbaric-ness that would tear her poor children apart over time!

Slightly pronounced lower AND upper canine teeth, nothing that would stick out of the mouth...but something that when they smiled or grinned would be visible and somewhat charming really. Perfect, when paired with tall, naturally muscular bodies with incredible strength and high metabolisms. Workers of the land would need that strength for the many tasks they had, but also the energy to sustain it. That and for battling demons and so forth, to strike fear into it! That would be good, yes.

Then what else? Well, she’d have to think back on the body of the demon. It had been rather ‘shapely’, ‘curvy’ even. Big chested, and a cute butt too...mmm...wasn’t it all-female as well? Or was it built to do both? Well-

Wait. Waitwaitwaitwaitwaitwait-!!!

Arira’s eyes swiftly popped open as she finished the creation process.

Uh Oh

...Uh Oh.

Uh Oh!

Uh Oh!

She’d let her mind wander as she wove the magic for a second there, a bit too long during the creation process, and swiftly she had opened her eyes in panic as she pulled her arms back down to her sides. Yet in the end, it was ultimately too late for her to...change what she’d just made. The process was done by the time she’d realized her mind was drifting off the correct train of thought just long enough to ‘botch’ things.

Before her a race of 7.4-8’2” tall, red-skinned, very muscled, forehead-horn-having, durable...and visibly all-female race was lying on the ground asleep. Well, they were all female looking at base, but she could tell from a very quick ‘scan’ of them with her divine power that when mating they were very capably hermaphroditic and could...oh my. Well, half-breeds were also possible as well as that it seemed.

What in the heavens had she done??? By Chakravarti’s fifth arm and her brother’s adorable baby face, what had she done to these poor creatures!? Sure reproduction wasn’t a problem, that much she was glad she hadn’t utterly botched, and they were all fully functional as living things and a sentient race..but she hadn’t even made it to dividing the sexes, giving them initial clothes, and finishing up with other touches like she’d wanted to! Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear! This was an embarrassment of the highest regard!

Even so, as the goddess visibly lightly panicked internally to herself as she stood on the stone, the beings in the area began to awaken. One by one the amazonian race stirred and began to stand up. They began to very curiously look at each other up and down, look up at the sky, and even around themselves at the terrain and ground. Some would thump each other on the back with a hearty laugh, a couple began to arm wrestle even, and so forth. Ultimately, however, their eyes and attention would turn up to look at the panicking, short (compared to them) goddess who was standing atop a great stone. In this vein, after a few more minutes one of them walked over to the stone to get her attention, lightly tapping it to snap her out of her current state.

“Are you the one that...ah...just kinda made us here? Or who are you? Not sure a place like this is a good place to panic, you know.”

Arira blinked slowly as she looked down at the one of her creations who had just ‘snapped her out of it’ and talked to her. Letting out another long, drawn sigh, she neatened herself up and gave a gentle nod to the individual before her.

“Y-Yes, my child, I did create you all...though I fear I may have let my mind wander as I did so. It is most embarrassing indeed.”

The individual raised an eyebrow, before she gave a simple shrug.

“I mean hey, we didn’t get to choose, so we don’t mind one bit! Honestly don’t mind how I am, unless anyone else has a problem here.”

In response, many of the others simply stared for a second before shrugging or simply brushing it off. Still, the one individual seemed to come right back at Arira with more.

“Well, not unless you think we’re a mistake or something. Not like I know! So just suck it up and deal with what you’ve done!”

The goddess paused for a moment at the rude, but perhaps much needed, exclamation to her face. Indeed, it made her chuckle for a second after the words sank in.

“No, none of thee are mistakes in my eyes nor in my mind. Thou art my children still, and as such I care for all of thee no matter what unintentionally happened during your creation,” she said putting a hand to her chest as she looked out at all the others as well, catching her breath a little still, “In truth I was’t rather panicked, and feared that there woulds’t be issues or true problems with thee or thine seed from mine mind wandering during creation. I dids’t not desire to do any ill to thee...but hath been worried in truth.”

The individual before her gave a wide, fanged grin and slapped the great stone the goddess stood on with gusto and a hearty laugh. Similarly the others behind her began to chuckle and laugh as well. Yet the blow to the stone nearly knocked the comparatively smaller goddess over for a second, which the one individual seemed to lightly panic at, as did the rest for a second, though once Arira got her balance back all seemed well once more.

“Well, ‘Mom’, you worry too much! We’re all fine I think! You did a damn good job crafting us as we are, so don’t sweat it! But ah…,” the individual trailed off as she looked back at the others before looking back at the goddess once more, “What are we? Might be a good place to start there.”

...Ok, so the race she had just created was rather ‘blunt’ in this sense. All the same, however, it was a very practical question that this one was getting at. Rather, she was very inquisitive in a practical sense for someone who had been created moments ago. Arira had wanted to make them like that, but to think it would come back to bit her somewhat! It was amusing in this case, rather than offensive, as she had panicked briefly there and needed the ‘snap’ back to reality.

But this race did need a name! A good one, really, that would encapsulate them best. The Brynlic had been easy enough to come to mind for her, but then again they had come into this world and been reborn rather than be ‘made from scratch’ as these were. It was all a tad strange in that regard.

Ah!

“How about...the Ketto? Thou are the second race I hath made, and though second among my children thou are beloved still. Would this suffice?”

There was a general murmuring as the giant amazonians turned to each other and began to discuss it. Some seemed to not like it very much, though others seemed to either shrug it off or look more positive about it at least. It was a few minutes before they seemed to come to some general consensus, with the one standing closest to Arira herself putting her hands on her hips and letting out a sigh. She then turned her head to look at the goddess, a proud grin on her face.

“Works for us then!”

Summary

Wanting to create another race to diversity the region she revitalized, after her touching time spent with the Brynlic, Arira pondered on the matter for a while. She would eventually think back on the issue some whilst sitting on a giant stone, and pondering on suggestions from her followers/students in the Ariran Paradise she came to a final idea that seemed like it would work! All she needed to do was take the desired traits, and then use a strange demon she saw before as a general way to help 'shape' those traits in her mind as she crafted the new race.

All was starting well, though...her mind did manage to wander a little bit during the creation process. It led to a rather Amazonian and particular race emerging from the creation process. Fearing how embarrassing her fumble was, Arira was beside herself with panic until one of the new race walked over and bluntly snapped her out of it. From here the goddess came to terms with her fumble, and loving her new yet unique children all the same she bestowed upon them the race name of 'Ketto' (meaning 'two' in Hungarian I hope) in the end.

MA Summary

1 MA (0 from Apocalypse) - Arira created the Ketto, the second race she considers her 'children' but also the first she's made from relative scratch. She does desire to make one more to help seed the land with more sentient life, though has learned a bit of a lesson about the rather easy pitfalls of a goddess letting her mind wander during the process of creating new life...

The Epic of Beginnings - Fragments of a weathered scroll

Leannah

---

...This was concerning. It helped her keep evolving her theories, sure, but the test was concerning. Yet its similarity to some big puzzle-filled adventure-action game with a mute elf-eared guy pushing block and yelling 'HIYAH' was enough to put her at some minute sense of ease. Well, a minute bit more at ease was the better way to phrase it, really, as she was still dealing with a puzzle from a seemingly-mad God of Knowledge that she'd managed to get in am upbeat mood by suggesting a 'game'. Perhaps otherwise it was a bad idea in hindsight, but at the same time it was not as bad as other potential outcomes when she was having to ad-lib on the spot to keep her furry tail and hide intact.

Well, if Lazhira knew this temple well enough then perhaps she'd find where that crystal had been left. Not that it was connected to this place at all, if anywhere else was connected to this place at all beyond these rooms, but it'd be a hopeful sign that Leannah had been there and that something was 'up'. Hopefully Narkissa and the other guy were also ok for that matter, not that the latter had ever been introduced to her. Wait. She hadn't even asked him in the first place!

The catgirl slapped her forehead lightly with the palm of her right hand, before letting out a sigh and stretching her arms and legs. It was a moment or few to think for a second before acting this time.

'Well it seems I was wrong about his mother...Delphiti was his mother then? So the other 'goddess' is his 'Auntie' then perhaps? That would explain the moon thing when I first saw her, and the hooded person dropping the white-eyed child into the ocean.

Plus if that place was meant to lock her up, or whichever goddess of all things, then the whole cracking glass, moon turning red and all stuff when I first met her was maybe like some prison alarm going off or something? Maybe something Delphiti placed on her or did to keeps tabs on her?'

It was a another big leap to take, and like anything else prior was potentially far from being right (or alternately far from wrong) in some fashion or another.

But all the same she would walk over, putting the note on the operating table to be held in the picture book with the journal page in her 'inventory' as it were.

'Right...let's get started with this then!'

If the operating table was one clue, though, something was literally 'taken' from another, if 'Knowledge was birthed by The moons demand, but it was knowledge stolen' was any indication. So when the Illuminator mentioned his 'mother', did that mean his 'birth' mother or Delphiti taking him and acting as his 'mother'? The latter currently felt more likely, and if this god was indeed 'mad' enough then a lunar connection was perfect. 'Lunacy', after all, was tied to the moon and madness back in Earth mythology...at least somewhere or another.

It could also mean taking knowledge from the mortals races, or at the very least humanity, and coalescing it into a god perchance? Either that or Ms. Ocean was his Auntie who had some aspect of her stolen by Delphiti and used to make a god of knowledge. All incredibly rough and unrefined guesswork at best on the fly, but it was what she initially had to go on when working on her feet.

From here she would investigate the rest of the main room some more.

Around what seemed to be the door at the top of some stairs on a raised platform were four slots for some round spheres.

Yes, there were those slots on the door that seemed to be slots for some kind of orbs that would act as keys then. That was the most easy assumption to work from initially, so she'd do it. After this would come taking a doorway-side quick glance at each of those four rooms.

The northern room -

Seems to be a rather simple room. A large stream of water runs through the middle of it, and one of the aforementioned statues is submerged pretty far in the stream. The stream moves fairly slowly from one end of a wall to another - a grate at one end while there's one at the other end. You'd need to enter it to see more of it.

The southern room -

Seems to be a room without light, save for the orb in one of the statues on some sort of elevated platform. Hard to see anything else in here as of now.

The eastern room -

Seems to be a completely bare room, except for the statue which is being suspended above the floor by metal chains.

The western room -

Seems...completely out of place. Large glass cylinders line either side of the room with a large black slab of stone against the far wall that pulses slowly with blue energy. A statue sits in front of it. The room reminds you lightly of the prison and the cylinders the things Leannah and the others came out of.

Hmm...interesting.

Notably, you can see what is likely the objective. Various statuettes holding several spheres. The statues also have distinguishing features - one has extremely long, gangly arms. One is standing on some rather tall, slender legs, another has a head with horns similar to the motifs you've seen through the temple, and the fourth has a torso with a large hole in it.

Ok, context clues here were going to be key to figure it out correctly. Likewise the correspondence of the orb-holding statue in each room in turn to something back in the Library puzzle was especially useful. Would she overthink it? Likely. But having solved the Library puzzle she knew this:

The stone necklace upon the vase holding the statue. The crystal sphere on the outstretched hand. The Crystal necklace on the hooded figure's neck. Immediately upon placing the last object upon where it last rested, there was an audible click.

Yes. Ok. So she had some stuff to put together first so she could build her knowledge base, then she could try to apply what she'd learned thus far to the room with some context clues and so forth.

One-

A statue of what seems to be a woman in a flowing robe. She is holding a vase in her hands, and is sitting upon some sort of pillar. Water flows from the vase into a cistern below. The statue smirks knowingly. Its centered at the back of the room against the wall. Bookshelves flank either side of it.

“Thus, the exodus was made. The beloved Sage led from the place of birth, the heretics cursed to remain. The moon wept once more, the cistern overflowing, and brought life back to the land. This, would in turn give birth to Knowledge, which in turn gave birth to the desire for the secrets of the Oceans. Desire turned into actuality, and thus a seal was made by their accord.”

-...this was the statue with a 'knowing' smirk and inscription back in the Library. Aka: The Smirking Statue. It got the heavy carved necklace upon its neck, which came from the Hooded Figure.

A robed statue is kneeling at the other end. Their face is covered by a hood, arms outstretched towards a carving in the wall. The carving is of a crescent moon, a star situated in the empty part of it. Tears seem to flow down its face into a basin below, where the water collects and flows away under the front wall. Upon their neck is a carved necklace that seems to detach from the statue.

Said Carved Necklace was far heavier than it should have been. Like a great burden, and if the crying part of the Hooded Figure was right then it was a burden like unto mourning and crying or guilt or such. Like something had been lost. This burden was then removed from the crying Hooded Figure, being placed on the Smirking Statue who had been holding the vase that had the Crystal Orb in it.

This led to the Crystal Orb's end location, as it was taken from the Smirking Statue and given to-

Another statue is tucked away on the wall opposite to the door you had walked in. A rather macabre thing this one is. A two faced bust statue that seems somewhat to resemble a pair of theater masks, split down the middle of an old man angrily shouting and a woman laughing manically. Atop the head, some sort of claw is reaching up, many tentacles and appendages reaching for the ceiling as though its trying to grab something.

...The Two-Faced Bust, which had a hand reaching up for something.

She still assumed this one was The Illuminator. A two-faced mad god, at one time happy and jovial and at others full of anger and hatred. Just like he'd been in front of her in their short experience around each other. If not that, then Delphiti herself was the mad goddess, given the associations of the moon with lunacy or madness.

Right or wrong, the hand had received the Crystal Orb, which if it was the "Secrets of the Oceans" in any capacity was so desired by the hand. So whoever it was had wanted to get those secrets, whichever deity it was anyways, and had achieved this somehow.

Then the final object: The Crystal Necklace.

A final statue, this time on the same wall as the one you walked in on. Rather than a person, it seems to be some sort of carving. Of a tower. You might vaguely recall the same tower you saw off in the distance in the prison you woke up in. Seems as though it might be hollow.

Said necklace came from the Hollow Tower, which had been a prison for the Illuminator's 'Auntie' if he was to be believed. This had been placed on the Hooded Figure statue.

So what did this all mean in the end? What did it translate to, which might help her in this new puzzle about The Illuminator's origins and history?

The Smirking Statue was holding a vase that contained what could be the "Secrets of the Oceans" in it, which was to be given to the hand reaching out from the Two-Faced Bust.

The Hooded Figure bore a great burden, in the form of the heavier-than-it-seemed Carved Necklace, which was given to the Smirking Statue and ultimately put into the vase it held.

The Hollow Tower contained the Crystal Necklace, which was given to the Hooded Figure after breaking open the Tower.

Ok. Now to try to make a story out of it.

The Prison she and the others were formed in was made to contain a goddess, The Illuminator's "Auntie" as it were. Likewise he had noted he helped his 'mother' make herself and the other world-jumping peoples' bodies, and he knew they were reincarnates. A crescent moon was on the dark pillar that 'sealed the way' to the prison. Also 'Knowledge was birthed by The moons demand, but it was knowledge stolen'. Like it was 'foolish mortal pride' that maybe led that...'thing' in the prison to be that way.

“The old tower...the old Lab...it was before my time, but she lets me play with the inmates every now and then. Really, poor sods the lot of them. All because they wanted to lock auntie up. Ah well, mortals will be prideful and foolish mortals...that’s what makes them fun.”

Yes. That as well.

Time to theory-test then.

A goddess, Delphiti, made the lab to create life, but eventually most of the humans she made there left. The remaining humans wanted to do something horrible, aka: lock The Illuminator's aunt. A goddess. Delphiti mourned this, as well as how those that remained sought to chain up a goddess...her sister...potentially an Ocean Goddess. So for this they were punished, doomed to be eternal toys for The Illuminator and his mother's permission Likewise that statue golem killing machine thing was put there to prevent them from escaping. That lattermost bit was the small part that made a lot of sense and seemed more grounded. Foolish mortal pride, thinking they could contain if not chain-up a goddess on a goddess' turf no less.

If running the place was the 'burden' that the Carved Necklace represented, then Delphiti handed off the 'Warden' position there to The Illuminator's Aunt. It was a great weight to her to bear all the crap from there thus far, so she simply handed it off without giving up dominion of the place itself. After all, The Illuminator had noted that he'd helped his mother make her and the others' bodies, as well as being allowed to toy with the 'inmates' there. But why hand off Warden-ship to the goddess who others were trying to lock up in there? That was a big question.

Still, the Crystal Necklace had gone to the Hooded Figure she had assumed was Delphiti in the Library puzzle. So did the mantle of Ocean Goddess get taken by Delphiti in exchange for making her sister the warden of the prison? Either way Delphiti was, if Lazhira's tale about the legend was true it meant Delphiti owned the oceans and manifested life from them after that. It 'brought life back to the land', and she had abandoned the use of the now-prison. This also led to the birth of The Illuminator himself, whose existence led to a desire for the 'Secrets of the Oceans' or what potentially was analogous to 'how to create life'.

If Delphiti, his mother, held these secrets and power, then she'd likely stolen it or the secrets of how to create life from her Ocean Goddess sister in their 'trade', forcing her burden on her and using those Secrets of the Oceans to birth new life from the Ocean. Maybe she even made the lab with her sister's help, before or after stealing that knowledge. Regardless, in turn The Illuminator desired this knowledge from his mother. So she gave it to him, the "Secrets of the Oceans" as it were, but this deal was a pact to hand over this knowledge in return for sealing away the prison complex forever. And even if the sister goddess wasn't a 'Warden', per-say, the 'Secrets of the Oceans' were stolen from her.

In other words, Delphiti made a lab to create humans with or without the help of a potential sister Ocean Goddess. In time a division of opinion happened among the humans, and most left whilst the 'heretics' stayed to try to lock up her sister...also a goddess. This failed terribly, resulting in Delphiti mourning not only being abandoned by her creations but also how some of them turned on the gods in their vanity and 'foolish pride'.

Having had enough of the crap, Delphiti took the "Secrets of the Oceans" represented by the Crystal Necklace and left. She took this knowledge from her sister, who the 'inmates' had attempted to lock up, and used it to take control fully over the oceans and birth new life into the world. Thus 'The moon wept once more, the cistern overflowing, and brought life back to the land' made perfect sense, as once again life returned to the lands of the world by her actions. This making of life by Delphiti would lead to the birth of The Illuminator, her 'son', who would in time desire the 'Secrets of the Oceans' for himself. So Delphiti made a deal with him, a pact as it were, to satiate his desire for this knowledge but also clean up her 'old messes' in the process. He helped her seal away the 'old lab' in return for the knowledge he so greatly desired, which he so desperately wanted. In that sense Delphiti and The Illuminator were kind of 'Wardens' of that prison then, not another goddess.

Then, however many centuries or millennia later, a goddess had gotten ahold of the souls of herself and several others from Earth. Either it was a facet or side of Delphiti, that Ocean Goddess sister theory proved true, or someone else. Had Delphiti snapped and split herself into two goddesses, by thus making a hot mess of things? But that goddess made the bodies, and The Illuminator had helped her by his own words...as well as calling her 'mother'. Then, in essence, was Delphiti a damaged, broken goddess who had lost herself in making life, stealing the secrets to create it and not being in a rather good spot?

Ugh. She was making her own brain hurt. For a second, then, the catgirl lied down on the operating table to rest her head. Whilst she did she'd look for anything suspicious or so forth, if it didn't clamp on her like some trap, and whether something was found or not she'd ultimately get off of the operating table.

From here Leannah would scour the main room, from the door the the operating table to anything else in there as closely and as detailed as she could in a similar process. Ceiling, floor, slots, weak tiles, breakable things, inscriptions, etc. Anything she could get. Yet whether anything was gained or not from the efforts she would eventually wrap up her investigation and enter the Western Room...the one that looked like the prison complex she and the others had escaped from.

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay, Mk. V

Arira - Goddess of Cycles

Rise of the Brynlic

A collab by @Zinita and @Crusader Lord

---

When the Coilbrywen arrived in this world, they quickly noticed their group was too big to be sustained by the deadlands under the eternal night. While their supplies from the dimension they previously inhabited would help for some time, soon they would need to scavenge for food, and as such it was decided that they would split up in three bands of numbers more fit to survive of the little the wastelands could provide.

Realta the Lucky’s group so far hadn’t had, quite ironically, a lot of luck. At least it seemed the world was slowly becoming more fit for them to live with a day-night cycle and gente rains, but the lack of forests was disencouraging. They did find a swamp, but it just wasn’t the type of land fit for them, while their hooves-like feet were good for hills and forests, in the mud they were too short and immobile to be useful, so the group merely gathered what they could and continued their nomadic journey in search of good lands.

“But a thousand days have passed since!” said Brynn, finishing another chapter of her chronicle of the group’s adventure. Realta was not pleased at all with the smug tone. But what could she do? Brynn was one of the last who truly believed in her. The youngest Elder of the three bands they had formed, a young adult at the prime age of 50.

“Please add a note saying the days were moving really fast. Otherwise it's just unfair, it has been three days since we stopped here to gather water, and we just stopped.”

“If you double my rations I will'' Brynn joked. “Okay okay. Don’t get pouty.” as she finished adding the note to the paper, a far more grumpy Coilbrywen approached them, saying the jars had been enchanted, fixed and filled with water, it was time to continue their journey.

The young elder sighed, grabbing her things and setting off again. She took the lead which was typically left to the scouts, something she was before she became a leader. It was during that time that she got her surname, famously surviving encounters with forty six deadly creatures out of pure luck. They never realized that her propensity to almost becoming dinner was because she was really, really clumsy, and shy, shy enough she couldn’t turn them down when they made her leader.

“Yeesh.” Brynn shook her head. “That was a cold look back there, you better get that luck working Realta, or they will demote you for sure.”

“People need to stop thinking my luck is outright magic, I can’t just make it so a verdant field just shows up as soon as we are past these rocky hills. Though if they pick someone else as elder, fine, it's shameful but better than this. I think even having been lunch to one of those monsters would have been better than this.”

They continued their short trip, soon moving past the rocks that blocked their view of the horizon, as they skillfully climbed up a hill. When they caught a glimpse of the other side, they gasped in unison. It was a large, verdant field, further still they could see rolling hills, forests and a great lake with no human village in sight. It was paradise.

Brynn whistled and laughed. “Welp. You did it! Quite amazing. Now you are basically an elder for life.” the chronicle keeper laughed, the mood of the others had also immediately shifted, it was only Realta who was having mixed feelings over the prospect of at least one more century of leadership in her future.

The small furry humanoids quickly moved to the fields with newfound energy, setting up a small camp and starting to scout the area for things fit to transform and domesticate and places that could be good to settle.

---

Far away, deep into the woods and farther beyond even the rolling hills and smaller forests and such, a certain goddess was hovering over the treetops as she zoomed over it using divine power. It had been her first task, before anything else, to observe these lands after the rejuvenation of this region into something...and a short rest. The freshwater inland sea was something of note, and the rivers as well as one great lake to the north would provide plenty of water and space. The generic wildlife seemed to enjoy it, and the cordgrass and cardinal bushes seemed to work well where they had been specially placed. The trees were alive, birds sang, and all seemed to be well in order for the most part.

She would have to work on her people at the Paradise, as well as fill the land with things to thrive alongside them and make the region a real ‘home’ as it were.

...However, it seemed something or some-things had wandered in already! That much her divine senses could tell from afar. They didn’t seem to be from this Shard of Creation at the least, maybe a creation of another deity? No, they didn’t seem that either. Hmmm. Still, neither did they seem to be hostile or trying to tear up the place.

In that vein the goddess would take pause in the air, looking off in the direction of the interlopers, before letting out a sigh and zooming away in their direction.

---

The Coilbrywen had made a little clearing in the middle of the field where they were now sharing resources, discussing plans, and overall just enjoying that sweet, sweet feeling of hope the fields had given them. The golden age of carelessness however was quickly brought to an end as from their place in the small hill they could hear a loud noise, trees shaking and a whirlwind trail of leaves.

Realta stood still, looking up at the incoming creature in a passive stance, all others were either hiding behind her to use her as a human shield or scurrying off, hiding into burrows and fallen logs. The elder however knew that it was not worth running, that thing was clearly very powerful, likely divine, so she simply adjusted her blue hair and long furry ears to make herself more presentable to whatever was coming in the chance it wasn’t set on murdering them.

And indeed, the Coilbrywen would not have to wait long for whatever was approaching them to arrive. Descending down slowly upon them, after she stopped in the air over the correct spot, was another humanoid being. Her skin was impeccably fair, softer and smoother than silk and without blemish. Her hair was long and tan, or perhaps a very fair blonde, and even her grey-blue eyes seemed to shine with a beautiful countenance about her. Golden ornaments of beyond-mortal make clung to her body all around, and she was wearing a beautiful light blue gown. Even a crown of leaves and berries sat atop her head, as if to mark her as having authority of some kind, though her mouth seemed to be twisted into an inquisitive look.

As she landed on the ground before Realta, Arira took a distinct pause and gave a brief glance around the area before looking back at the elder before her. Then the moment of realization and reflection came.

“Ah. My sincerest apologies, little ones, I seem to hath frightened you a good bit with mine arrival indeed.” she said in a gentle and soft tone, before giving a very light yet humble bow, “I am Arira, Goddess of Cycles, and by mine power hath I seeded this land to stand as an example of what I pray the rest of the world whilst receive in due time.

Pray tell, however, what are you, and how did you come to be in this Shard of Creation?”

She’d just done the things the other gods had done to her people, but to these ones. Ironic.

Realta, while initially calm, soon started to become a bit more tense as the goddess started to speak. She was expecting a god but a polite one just meant she had to put an effort into what she had to say. She fiddled with her wooly poncho and her tail moved about nervously, almost in a wag. “Ah. You see… We are the uhm. Coilbrywen. We came here… by accident?”

Brynn, a short Coilbrywen with fluffy white hair, a pair of ram-like horns and olive skin, soon peeked from behind her friend and leader, and soon seeing the situation, advanced to also greet the goddess. “We who stand in front of you, oh graceful goddess, are the Coilbrywen. We were stuck in a world of wilderness for countless generations, our homeland lost even to our memory. Recently, however, a sister of yours, the goddess of storms, Paratiri, entered said realm and in that way she opened the path for us to come into this world of yours.” she bowed cordially to Arira, crossing one goat leg over the other

The young elder sighed in relief as her friend did a proper introduction. She took a long breath and calmed herself. “There are not many of us. Only my band and two more very far away, I am the leader of this group, Elder Realta the Lucky. I hope our presence here is not troublesome to you, oh uhm… awesome…? Goddess.” As she talked, the rest of the group left their hidey places, a band of small fluffy humanoids, many had furred limbs and bodies, some were mostly smooth skinned like humans, all of them had tails and long ears. They did not have much at the moment, a cart with jars of water that emanated an alien magical aura, a bit of food. Some wore rags while others even lacked clothes.

The goddess gave a nod as Brynn introduced herself, but even so listened intently to the two females as they explained their peoples’ situation. Arira even put a hand to her own chin, however, as her brows would soon furrow in deep thought after the two Coilbrywen spoke and the other emerged from their hiding. Yet soon she would let out a small sigh, lowering her hand to her side once more and gently smiling at Brynn and Realta.

“Your journey has been long and arduous indeed, little ones, though I must confess Paratiti and I have never had the chance to be acquainted. It seems, however, that she left you wanderers in a strange and devastated world by consequence of her actions.

Yet all has led to your arrival here, and such is a blessing indeed. Wherefore, fear me not oh Children of the Wandering Wood, Coilbrywen, for I have an offer to make to you if you all are willing.”

Soon the whispering and chitchat started behind the young elder and her loyal friend. Small voices talking about how this goddess was totally better than the last one they met, how she was so nice and pretty and not murderous, and that they should agree to whatever she asks, but Brynn soon stared at them and did a little gesture with her hand saying they should keep it down.

Realta took a moment looking up at the goddess, “The journey was long but we never lost hope, yet never even in my dreams had I hoped to stumble upon a land of such beauty. What is your proposal, goddess, we are small but willing to help anyone who shows us generosity.”

Arira simply smiled a little wider in return.

“Then I shall give thee mine blessing, a transformation that will shape thee into something familiar yet greater. Something similar to thine selves as thou art now, but which shall allow thee to yet greater prosper. I shall also take a few of thee after, a few to grow and prosper in mine own paradise. That is all I asketh of thee.

In return, thou wilt have reign to live upon this land and prosper for er’more. To have homes and places to build, to make mischief and peace, and so forth as thine seed shall do from this day hence.

But know this, that others shall be seeded here as well over time, and there wilt be other peoples who come to live here. Such are the ways of mortals. Not always shall there be peace, not always shall there be war. Not always a feast, yet naught always a famine.”

The goddess then spread her arms widely, as if to gesture out to all the Coilbrywen, “So...what sayest thee, oh Children of the Wandering Wood? Wilt thou make this pact with me, and be among those peoples that shall be mine children evermore?”

The proposal was quite radical, even though they were mesmerized with all they had seen so far, the Coilbrywen in general seemed to have many doubts. Brynn thought about saying something, but instead she just smiled at Realta, knowing their rightful leader would talk sense into the others. “It is understandable that there is doubt among you.” the young elder spoke. “But I have faith that Arira means well for us, I have few qualities but seeing the good in others is one of them. Also uh… if she wanted to kidnap us or do something evil she could just do that so yeah…?” the other Coilbrywen were forced to nod, their leader did speak with wisdom.

“Still, I will not force any of you to take this oath, it is not our way to force this upon others.” but as she looked back at her band, she saw that all of them were in agreement at this point. With a sincere smile, Realta turned back to Arira. “We, the Coilbrywen, Children of the Wandering Woods, will accept your generous offer, Arira.” the elder said politely.

Brynn laughed, wiggling in place as she became excited at this. “Transforming sounds so fun. Now that will be some good material to add to the chronicles.” she whispered in a more brattish tone, nothing like the polite one she used for the goddess.

Arira’s smile seemed to be beaming at this point, yet with a solemn nod she would gesture for the Coilbrywen to follow her. All the way she would lead them to the side of the great lake, into a patch of woods on the southwestern side of its banks. Here she would arrange them about her in semicircles, as a mother might arrange her children to tell an old story.

“Oh little ones, take this song I shall sing into your hearts. Pass it down to you children, and you children’s children. Let this song be sung in times of plenty, and to bring hope in times of great sorrow. Let it be sung to herald a new birth, and yet to see off a life whose cycle has ended.

Let this melody be the very song of your people, that by which you shall always know each other and remember where you came from. Let iit stir the memories in your blood of generations that will one day be long passed, that even your descendants shall give heed and respect to what once was.”

Listen To This As You Read

Then...Arira began to sing.

Her voice at first was soft, and yet as it moved on seemed to take on an enchanted tone as the words passed her sweet lips.

The tune was gentle to the ears, like the breeze that now began to blow, and though still as soft as the grass the Colibrywen sat upon.

Yet to the minds of those hearing it brought back, something began to stir to the front of their minds, like lingering things that had ever sat upon the edge of their minds but were returning in vivid detail. Emotions. Memories.

Songs their grandparents used to sing to them near the fire, which brought them comfort in dark times.

The smile of a long-lost friend or sibling who had perished, and the joy that leapt into their breast when playing with them.

Gentle lullabies their mothers would give them, easing the tired body and mind and soul as they drifted off into a sweet slumber.

The warm smile of a father showing them the world for the first time from the comfort of his arms, and the wonder of feeling the air upon their faces for the first time and seeing the brightness of the beautiful sun.

Such were the things that were stirred up within them, and more, but even as such went on they would notice more about them. Sparks of minute white light, and greens and reds and blues and so forth in time, began to appear above the water and flitter about the top of the lake immediately behind Arira. They seemed to dance upon the water with joy, to flit about without a care about the apocalypse that lied beyond those borders.

As these dainty sparks danced, so too the more things come.

Golden drops of light, like an aetherial liquid, began to appear float upward from the waters of the lake...even from the ground that the Coilbrywen sat upon and ground round about that.

More and more the goddess’ voice too seemed to echo about the air, as if the winds and trees and grasses and world were beginning to sing along with her. A warm feeling began to spread throughout the bodies of the people in turn, and if any paid attention their bodies would begin to glow with a faint but spreading silvery light.

Images of beautiful vistas and open plains, of forest untouched and seas uncharted would begin to flow into their minds as well, even more beautiful things that tugged at the heart like a musician to the strings of a harp. The good, the bad, the ugly. The suffering, the salvation. All of it seemed to bubble up all at once more, like a great chorus within each of them.

The silvery light too would spread over their bodies all, and the warmth would sink into the depths of their souls as it did so.

Yet...before one could blink, before any might realize, it would suddenly dissipate about each of them in a shower of celebratory but soft silvery sparks that would quickly vanish. Arira’s voice and the ringing out of the song would soften again to quiet. The sparks on the lake and golden light that floated up to the heavens would eventually fade and disappear. Even the emotions and memories too would return to where they once more.

...And so it was done. Though only after a moment of still, soft silence did the goddess speak up once more, a single tear rolling down one of her cheeks. .

“Rise...my children. First of my beautiful children made on this land, oh Children of the Feywoods, oh sweet...sweet Brynlic…” she said, even as a few more small tears began to roll down her cheeks, “Oh my...t-this is a most welcome warmness I feel within mine breast…a beautiful thing, though it brings me to tears...oh my children...”

The Brynlic were dazed for a moment, their minds still returning from the moment of memories and wonder they had just experienced, their reflexes adapting to the new aspects of their bodies. While there existed some Coilbrywen that were fully furred before, the shape the goddess had gifted for them was far more consistent, a full coat of dazzling beauty, fluffy and warm. They took a long moment marveling at it as they looked at their reflection upon the lake waters.

Brynn was the first one to look up, towards Arira, with a satisfied smile at her new puff cloud aesthetic. She saw the goddess crying in joy and decided to casually approach her, unlike any other of her band could. “Hey. This is pretty great. You are truly amazing… and I want to give you a thank you hug.” she extended her hands towards the goddess, simply ignoring the hierarchy like only a trickster brat could.

Arira would gently go down to her knees, only to accept the hug from Brynn wholeheartedly and silently. No talking, just a hug. A warm, fuzzy hug from what was now a magical fey folk...but also her children. She was simply so happy, however, that one question didn’t exactly come to mind yet…

...How would her parent react to this?!

Summary

A group of the Coilbrywen entered the territory Arira fixed up, which really has no official name as of yet, and were rapidly noticed by the goddess. She noticed them as she surveyed the land, doing so to double-check her work after a brief resting period post-revitalizing-the-region-around-the-Ariran-Paradise. She managed to naturally spook the poor little folk, which she found ironic, but ultimately heard of their tale of travel and how they got onto this Shard of Creation.

Taking pity on them, but also needing to put some peoples onto the land of her region to settle it, she made the group of Coilbrywen an offer: Be transformed by a pact with me, and you can settle on this land. Of course she let them know life wasn't guaranteed to be perfect, but in the end of the group accepted. Arira then sang a magical divine song that transformed them, and got a hug afterwards. Also Chak has an unofficial adopted mortal race as grandkids now, so that's both exciting as well as terrifying.

MA Summary

1 MA (0 from Apocalypse) - Arira created the race of the Brynlic (a race she considers among 'her children') out of a group of willing Coilbrywen, and has allowed them to initially settle in the north of the region she revitalized.

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay, Mk. V

Arira - Goddess of Cycles

What Is A Land, But Soil And Sweet Sorrows?

---

The land. The seasons. The cycles, all so broken or absent or incomplete. It tore at her ever so, eternally crying to her for relief. It was night maddening all the same, no matter what work she'd done with the technical and lovely I'Iro, no matter that she'd made her embassy upon Mount Divinus, no matter the help Algrim had been and his kind face, and no matter the myriad times she'd gone back to teach the mortals thus far and continued to educate them and give them guidance. Pain. Continuing pain rippled ever throughout her mind and wracked her body more and more so the longer things went unchecked and unfixed, and there had to be something to do. Her paradise offered only so much solace to somewhat reduce the pains for a moment, a minute place of balance that brought her some relief but far from enough.

"Oh goddess, your visage is most auspicious to this day!"

"Oh blessed Arira, thine countenance is as a lovely morning beam or gentle breeze"

"Oh great one, let thine eyes watch upon our children, that they may grow hearty and strong in thine sight!"

Even the humans showered her with praises, and before them and so many others she kept up her smiling face. Before them she maintained that lovely visage of a goddess, serene and yet more than potent nonetheless. Already it seemed the goods of her paradise were having some effect, with the children that were being born being more vibrant and lovely than the generation prior by some amount. Yes. In due time these humans would be reshaped simply by the intake of the fruit of her divinely-appointed land. It would be some generations yet, but even so it was something significant in her eyes. A fruit of hope to come.

...Yet the pain. The pain she bore was great still, despite it all. But there was something she had realized could be done. Something great, yet which would make her burden easier. If her paradise was a framework for what stable cycles and so forth were, then a greater expanse, lesser much so than her divine paradise, would provide a framework as the cycles of the world were stabilized. A zone that could serve as a general blueprint, a pillar, even a marker to work from and base things on in some respect or another.

A land that bore the fruits of stability, from which she could work to stretch those fruits of stable cycles to the rest of the world. Yes! It was a brilliant idea, though she wished the Goddess of Dreams had been here to discuss it with at this time. Alas. It made her heart pang...or perhaps she was inheriting her parent's dramatic anecdotes. Considering how Chakravarti was, they had perhaps made many another deity bonded to them with closer ties...or had annoyed them into submission with all the subtlety of a thirsty, giant, rampaging beast blitzing toward the nearest pool of water to get a life-sustaining drink.

Even so, it would take much for her to make this work. Other deities had laid certain groundworks, and now she would borrow some of that with her power to make this region right. Whatever races were upon the land would be ministered to by her grace in the days and weeks and such thereafter, organizing them in a general sense so they could live better lives. Of course conflict and so forth was inevitable at some point, but an initial peace from which to build and grow and find rest was at least a start to bettering this shard of creation that floated about the void. It had to be.

So it was that the goddess Arira departed her paradise, her promise to return eventually the same as ever, but this day her mission was something greater than she'd done before this point.

She rose above the land far and wide, moving southeast from her paradise and the great mountains that entirely hid it round-about. Wind whipped past as she flew, propelled by the might of divinity only some ways before she stood high and far above in the air. And yet...

...Below her the land far, far below was charred by apocalypse. Destruction wrought, instability ever-present, demons ever-wandering, the skies ever-tumultuous and inmabalnced, and races that for all she knew would be changed by the power that would soon enter this area. It made her slightly grimace in sorrow at it all, even wince as her pains flared up once more with vigor, though soon she began to take deep breaths. In and out. In and out.

Gently the goddess raised her arms with open palms facing upward, her eyes remaining closed as she envisioned and focused her energies and power outward. The minute seeds of what she'd laid some time ago, right after her birth, began to respond to her touch and in spirit reached out for her like an infant to its parent. Then the apocalyptic chaos seemed to begin to slow, as even demons looked up upon her with raised eyes and roars and so forth.

Her hands began to tremble slightly, as if a great weight was being placed upon her more so, her own aches and the groaning of the world wearing on her far more as she built up greater and greater energies to exert, pushing herself more and more and more as she prepared an almighty action that would take root upon this world.

"...L-Little brother, I dearly hope you can bear witness to this."

The fair-skinned goddess whispered under her breath, almost akin to a mortal's prayer, and yet right after her eyes would shoot open once more. Her teeth would grit, her brows would furrow greatly, and swiftly she turned her palms down and swung her arms down as she dropped her great power upon the landscape below. As she did so, she did so with a thunderous cry that would shake the skies, one that would reverberate and echo throughout the skies of the rest of the world like a mighty thunderclap or a lion's great roar!

And so from her being would drop a great, shining ball of light. It was the most blazing and bright white light, incandescent and ethereal, radiant yet utterly blinding in its sheer divine luminescence. It dropped down slow at first, and yet accelerated quickly to become like a great meteor....no. It was a brilliant fallen star from the highest of the heavens had fallen from the skies, shooting faster and faster down toward the devastated section of world far below. It was a sight like none other.

By the time it reached the ground the great ball of light crashed with an almighty force beyond any mortal comprehension, erupting into a supervolcanic-scale pillar of light that eclipsed the lights of the void and beyond! It too began to rapidly spread in all directions from its point of impact, spreading out like the water of a shattered dam as it roared like a wall of thunder down and outward onto all else about it.

The region itself trembled and shook in awe, all as the effect spread faster than most eyes could perceive, and any divinity worth their salt would be able to feel the ripples of divine power as it rapidly consumed the land and sky.

...And yet in the blink of an eye, one which seemed to all within like an eternity in the span of a moment, it was done.

Vast plains rustled as their rugged wild grasses and golden wild wheats rippled like an ocean before a gentle breeze. Were one to look from a high enough point, it would all seem to stretch out almost forever.

Great and verdant forests of various sorts and heights and kinds stretched out upon the landscape, all brimming with the sound of songbirds or otherwise bustling with the calls and sounds of new life running about.

Hills rose and fell with deep greens and lovely hues upon them, rolling about without a care upon this particular area of landscape covered more so in Cordgrass. Even the hardy Cardinal Bushes had found places to take root on a rare few of these hills, and even upon a few places about the rocky crags within the lower areas of the mountains surrounding the Ariran Paradise (among other bushes and hardy things in the mountains).

Along the ocean coasts there were sprawling beaches, covered in innumerable sands that seemed to gently accept the ebb and flow of the ocean tide. Small crustaceans skittered about upon them, whilst small saltwater fishes fed in rare rock-sheltered shallows and pools near the rejuvenated shores. Even seaside cliffs where the land had risen higher, and the salty smell of the sea breeze seemed to only compliment the tropical trees and fruits and nuts that grew on and close to these beaches.

And so the region about the Ariran Paradise has become something far more, far more than the few residents it had left could have imagined in their wildest dreams. Life was vibrant, and stability was asserted there in a way the rest of the world had yet to see. It was a miracle among miracles, though whilst its plenty and so forth was great it paled in comparison to the far smaller paradise its saving goddess has already built.

If one went high up enough in the atmosphere, if one went far enough away by land, and so forth, the apocalypse that gripped the rest of the world in some fashion or another was very much still present. The land in this region had been saved, but...it was far from a stable and saved world overall.

But even so it stood, stood proudly as an example of what was feasibly possible to be for the rest of this shard of creation. In other words, not only rebirth...but also:

Hope.

Summary

After setting up her embassy on Mount Divinus, Arira, despite being in a constant pain as the unstable world cries out to her from balance, decided to create a more stable spot in the form of the region round about the Ariran Paradise and out toward the coast. This would be able to act as a blueprint for later stabilization of the rest of the Shard of Creation, as well as make things better in the area's inhabitants at least, but on the side would create a space that makes her pains a little easier to bear at this point in time moving forward.

She flew over, high up in the air, using her powers as a goddess. From here she gathered up a great amount of her power, before unleashing them in a fantastic display of power on the region of the world she was targeting below. Whilst it created an idyllic layout of terrain and so forth, it is still distanced a good bit from the divine 'true paradise' she created around her birthplace (the Ariran Paradise). Likewise this act is far from fixing the rest of the world's problems by far, and took a lot out of her for the moment to do given her current status.

MA Summary

Arira created a thriving region around where the Ariran Paradise is, terraforming the land and creating a stable airspace about it all the way to the coast of said region. Aside from wild beasts, and some stuff like cordgrass incorporated in some spots, it is a stable and proper ecosphere that could very much serve as a blueprint of sorts for the deities of the world to help them stabilize the rest of the world.

The only inhabitants beyond wild beasts and so forth naturally there now would most likely be stuff like:

1. The minute amount of remaining but likely weakened demons not 'entirely' shredded by Arira's massive use of divine power on the land, which weakened demons themselves wouldn't be enough to destroy these lands she fixed here

AND

2. Any mortal survivors (human or otherwise I left it open for) that lived in this once apocalyptic region.

The Epic of Beginnings - Fragments of a weathered scroll

Leannah

---

Well, even this brief exchange had granted her something of value in information. The Illuminator's "mother", literal or otherwise, was the goddess who'd brought them here. The same goddess who had their bodies custom if not tailor-made to certain specifications, which her "son" had helped her create. Likewise that 'thing' in there had at some point perhaps been toyed with by this god...made sense with how twisted it was...she almost pitied it a bit now for the briefest glimmer of a moment. Plus now it was more than likely at this venture there were or had been more of those things like the one she'd killed back there. Not to mention the chances of other creatures lurking about that place at the behest and perhaps 'creative spirit' of a toying, playful, mad god of knowledge.

But the whole complex was seemingly made to lock up The Illuminator's "auntie", which if she had a guess was likely Delphiti based on her limited information thus far. Which would make his 'mother' the 'sister' of Delphiti, not the daughter or child of her thereof. Well...potentially at least. It was all speculation at best. For all she knew Delphiti was that white-eyed child dropped into the ocean, and the goddess she'd seen was just usurping Delphiti's stuff or something. Again simply another wild theory, but a theory with even the tiniest potential evidence and grounds to exist in her mind at the moment nonetheless.

Plus there was that journal page. Yes. Someone who had infiltrated this place before it was left to the elements, specifically getting into this god's cult to seemingly get revenge. It had reminded her of some plot in the prequel movies for some space opera back home, one which her father had been rather the fan of rather intensely actually. It was one of his few passions that didn't involve her training for hours and days and more at a time with some martial arts masters around the globe. Ah. But she was getting away with her thoughts there. She had no idea how long ago the journal page was written! Yet considering Lazhira was able to get to the temple and back so easily despite the fog and danger, especially with some of markings on the temple were eerily similar to what she'd seen on the cheerful girl, she had growing suspicions about how well Lazhira was acclimated with this place in reality. It was all so...convenient. Too convenient. She didn't think the girl meant them all ill-harm at least, but one thing was for certain in the catgirl's mind: Lazhira was potentially connected to this place somehow. Connected to The Illuminator and his worshippers here.

More than that, apparently the Kyrinth was not just a creature but a deer. Sentient, based on context and inferring things from that context, and it being ancient even more likely given a deity called it an 'old deer'. Then again it could be some ancient deer beast roaming the woods, but based on what she'd heard the strange guy ask Lazhira earlier things like 'sentient' and 'ancient' and likely 'powerful' were applicable to it. Like some fickle woodland nature god from that "Princess Something" movie that studio in Japan had made years ago. She'd liked the movie, really, just not remembered the name after so long was all. Still it was a more solid inference to make than some prior things she'd theorized or assumed back in the trapped library.

This in the end left her with a few more worries and a very distinctly-toned offer before, the latter due to her 'big mouth' in this particular situation. Not that she'd had time to think about it, but who ever could have had the time under the same accidental and rather pressing circumstances with literally zero experience talking to a crazy knowledge god?! But that theoretical argument could be saved for later...much much later in fact. Right now she had to decide.

Throughout The Illuminator's words with her so far, odd pricking sensations that seemed unnatural or at least 'off' after he noted he knew about her and the others and a dark chuckle about mortals, a warping hall before her appearing in full, and the shifting between joyfully reminiscent and heavily hostile left her with a definite impression. No choice was safe, and no outcome was certain, and for all she knew the cake was going to kill her or turn her into a kookaburra and she'd be damned for eternity.

Yet the god's desire to 'play games' and toy with mortals seemed to be the more sure thing of all right now. That was what she could rely on, what she could at least work with, aside from the fact this being was otherwise unpredictable. That and if this deity had read her like a book or similarly during the 'creation process', which was a big potential there among other side things, there was danger of being played like a fool in a poker game to boot. Heck, she wasn't even sure if there was some kind of 'rules of hospitality' around here or if the god was just prodding with his lure to get her hook-line-and-sinker.

Was this how the legends of ancient myth felt, like when Oedipus faced the Sphinx with the threat of death?

Was this how Neferkaptah felt, knowing he was digging up the Book of Thoth and likely to face divine punishment? Or how Prince Setna, foolish son of the greatest Pharaoh as he was, felt when he played that dangerous game in Neferkaptah's tomb?

There was only one way to find out for herself, and the god's attempt at bullying with a hostile tone at the end wasn't going to impact her decision...even if she was going to be going along with it by virtue of her own judgement and a still-lingering curiosity otherwise.

Curiosity had better not kill this cat today though! That she'd do her best to ensure. But if she was to face the Labyrinth...she'd have to channel her inner Theseus, and she'd have to gamble like Ptolemy I Soter heading out to steal Alexander the Great's corpse.

"How could I refuse such a hospitable offer to enter your home! It would be far too dull to not take up such an opportunity!" Leannah said with a beaming smile, gently placing her chunk of crystal on the center of the room floor (this one she had originally stepped into from the pool of water area) before walking forward to enter the winding hall and such before her that seemed to be made of some kind of marble-like smooth stone, "I must say, you have me quite excited! And terrified. Kind equally both things really, and that's the best part~"

She did silently pray to the Bastelian goddess in her mind, however, for some guidance and wisdom where moving forward through this place. It wasn't a serious prayer as much as a silent coping mechanism, but if it reached the cute bird sun goddess safely then all the better potentially. She at least wasn't sending some lunatic prayer in the middle of a fight with big stupid birds, if nothing else!

The Epic of Beginnings - Fragments of a weathered scroll

Leannah

---

Leannah noted to herself that practicing telekinesis later would be a good idea. She was no master at magic, but truthfully it more and more seemed enough like martial arts with all the need for practice, discipline, caution, and so forth. So for the time being, unless proven otherwise, she'd run with that type of approach.

More importantly, however, her attempts to solve the riddle were something that seemed to fall more than flat. It had attracted the attention of the Illuminator himself! She hadn't really put much into the solution, or rather had simply overthought things and tossed out knowingly wrong answers to try to whittle down her thoughts on the fly. The thrill of exploration and so forth had in the process left her a bit hasty in her rough attempts to solve it as well. Bit of panic from being separated from the others, the temporarily being trapped ina puzzle-library, trying to avoid possible dangers at the pool, falling in a tar pit, finding cool crystals that glowed in the dark, all of it was something new and exciting...as well as equally menacing and very much potentially lethal. It was both the thrill she'd wanted in her past life, and yet the sort of thing she was still adjusting to and trying to roll with.

...But this was perhaps the most dangerous thing she'd come before in this world thus far as well.

The cute sun goddess bird had shown her well enough the menace and power that could be displayed in a vision alone. Now she was not in a vision, though, but standing in the middle of a puzzle-filled abandoned temple...before an engraving on a wall with an impossible riddle...from which a tricky, danger-causing, crown-taking, smug yet crazy deity of KNOWLEDGE was very literally and actually speaking to her. That all whilst he sounded like the Mad Hatter to some extent! To say that 'one wrong step' could kill her was an understatement, especially with the type of fickle and very odd deity that this one seemed to be.

"At least it wasn't a When, Why, or Where, though those would be fascinating ways to try to approach the question. Imagine if my next guesses was going to be 'cranberry' or 'homunculus' or a 'clone' or the 'beginning'! Haha!

Hmm...but my brain could be full of fur perhaps, I was just born yesterday. Got reincarnated into this world from another by a Goddess of all things! Woke up in a neat little area that looked part 'abandoned lab' and 'cursed prison with monsters in it'. Dueled a magical stone construct and stuck a spear into it and almost died just to get away from it and get out!"

So maybe the way to survive was to play along then? Yes. And she wasn't lying either, so perhaps something she had experienced or done would prod interest or a long-winded mad ramble. Hell, maybe she could get some answers! Mostly she just wanted to buy time and hope that the rest of her group would be able to find her here. Or something...truth be told she didn't have the luxury of being able to think too far ahead on this. Right now was more improv and trying not to die most of all!

"Really, truly though, I came here to learn about you! The Great Illuminator! I traveled all this way to venture into this old temple, just to see what I could find and learn! I'd heard a story or two on the way here from someone in that silly village, hoped to find some pristine artifacts, and all of that!

I also heard something there is something called a 'Kyrinth' or some nonsense, really, along the way. Not that it seems much anyone back there even listens to that thing anyways! I don't even understand it. Or perhaps I didn't look into that enough. Mostly I just almost blew some friends and new acquaintances by accident with a fireball. Oops."

Leannah kept up a merry but still casual tone, channeling a bit of that panic and energy as excitement rather than fear or so forth. She had no acting skills, but this was a situation that demanded it! Besides, she wasn't lying to the god either, just tossing out info as she briefly chatted him and introduced herself and her reason for being here (which was rather truthful as well). She was just choosing the manner of doing all of this to be...'uniquely presented' and delivered in this case. To almost imitate manner of the god in some sense as she went back and forth a bit in what she said, trying to adapt to the situation and being before her with all of her nonexistent experience with deities (beyond one vision) at all.

Or perhaps she was dooming herself faster. Either way there was no going back, but to her she felt perhaps getting to the point promptly now would be best...

"Still, I would be most humbled to know more about you! As much as I can learn! That would be but my humble request really. Though of course I am not ever against a fun guessing game or the like for the information, if you wish! This temple has been quite the adventure so far, and I have heard you rather enjoy seeing how far mortals would go to learn something!"

The catgirl gave a deep and humble bow before the engraving after speaking, even giving a flourish of her arms in a ye olden fashion as a means of respect but not faltering in that face of excitement either.

Still...maybe a guessing game? Not that she knew if the mention would work, but if her guesses amused the god then perhaps she could learn and keep him amused at the same time? It was a rush plan, no real time to think but on her feet.

If she died, she prayed there was a death goddess who would take some pity on her. Maybe.

Divinus: The Deity Roleplay, Mk. V

Oneiro - Goddess of Dreams

and

Arira - Goddess of Cycles

Of Cycles and Dreams

A collab by @Double Capybara and @Crusader Lord

---

A blueish green comet had been circling the skies of Galbar for quite a while. There was much data that needed to be gathered after all, and many things to fix were I’Iro to attain a decent diversity of mortals to interact with in her search of meaning and wisdom. Many locations had got her attention, but none quite as much as what she had just seen. Hidden among gentle valleys was a paradise of both nature and civilization, the perfume of divine presence was easily tracked to this area not only by the unique sensory input innate to the gods but the sheer abundance and planning in the location was simply unnatural, ongoing apocalypse or not.

In form the dream goddess was far more gentle and quiet than the last visitor to the temple-fortress. In actions, however, she had the same divine aloofness and insensibility. Without thinking of what the mortals in the land would think of a green comet going straight for the centre of their capital at ultrasonic speeds, she simply swooped down, landing in the nearest clearing to the temple, dismounting her dragon and observing with curiosity the community around her.

To say the least, a glowing green comet descending directly upon them from the sky was not something the residents were used to. Just as they had become more accustomed to the higher-altitude life and being surrounded by mountains that concealed their home from detection otherwise, and now something was coming from the one direction that anything could hope to notice the great paradise valley from. Still, as I’Iro looked about she’d see in the distance the pregnant women and children were hurried away to safety as the adult men and women who could fight were taking up arms for defense and raising palisades about their humbles homes and entrance to the temple that was visible from the dream deity’s landing spot.

In terms of armaments, they would in some ways notably differ from what had been seen before by a certain Earth God during his arrival. A tiny amount of matchlocks, as well as: properly metal-tipped spears, very few pikes, and in final a few crossbows or more primitive bows even were among those tools of war being carried and hefted about by would-be defenders. Naturally, it seemed the goddess of this paradise had been teaching the people a bit more, and it wasn’t as if the valley didn’t provide an eternal plenty of all the resources the residents would need to make things as well. Even so…against the smooth, shiny metal carapace of the dragon and I’Iro’s own appearance they were still very much primitive in comparison ‘at best’.

However, even as the defenders worked in a seemingly well-practiced haste, a figure would appear already at the doorway of the temple. Tan hair of a silky and divine softness, pale and smooth skin that saw not a single blemish, elf-like pointed ears, beautiful attire and a woven crown and golden ornaments far beyond mortal comprehension covering her form, and in final soft grey-blue eyes looking outward directly at where the new arrival had landed. Despite her soft and gentle smile, looking at her would give a sense of...exasperation? A brief flicker of familiarity yet tiredness behind those eyes and smile?

The goddess quickly started to pick up hints of what was happening around her as the panic had set into the city, and although it took time she finally realized her “gafe”. My truly sincere apology. she said to the nearest human to her, not realizing it was just a low ranked town militia I had forgotten that such a sudden arrival would likely spart fears into mortals due to your existential fragility. I am I’Iro goddess of dreams. Greetings. And I do not mean harm up the land. She gave a little apologetic bow to the confused human and then simply ignored the madness she had caused to focus on the fellow divine who had appeared. The machine goddess moved towards Arira with gentle steps, her synthetic unnatural clothing and cold expression the same as always. Greetings. I am sorry for the sudden arrival. I merely noticed your village while flying and it truly sparked my curiosity. Do you have a moment to engage in communication?

At first the worried but middle-aged man, holding a spear, paused in initial fear of being suddenly approached and spoken to...but the being before him didn’t seem to care he was just one citizen among those living here. It wasn’t a large city around the temple-fortress, at least as of yet, but the inhabitants had been hard at work all around. But as she spoke to him he seemed to calm down a bit, and after she just simply walked past him he seemed to let out an exasperated sigh as a look of recognition ran over his face. He then ran a hand down his face and began to run over to the others who were still moving people and supplies and so forth about.

But how-

“Everyone! Hey! It’s just another of those friendly divines, so this one doesn’t want to kill us either! _{...I hope.}”

-...Oh. Oh. This wasn’t the first time an ultimately ‘friendly’ deity had roared into the place with all the grace of a frothing berserker in a room full of pottery, was it?. Of course they had kept up caution since last time, all as a ‘just in case’ since there were likely many more deities in the world now, but still...apparently this was ‘round two’ and not the one man’s first time either. So as the man’s message spread, the defenders began to calm down bit by bit once more. The word would spread duly over the course of the hour, but even so Arira helped calm those between herself and the approaching mechanical goddess for the sake of simplicity.

“Greetings fair I’Iro, Goddess of Dreams. I do have time to speak with thee, yes, though perhaps we should proceed to the throne room of my temple-fortress here first as the people calm down.”

Arira would then turn to the side, politely motioning for the other goddess to follow. If the other goddess would follow, Arira would begin to lead her through the temple-fortress. Up and up they’d climb, through grand hallways, past smaller branching paths to various types of rooms along the sides of those grand hallways, until they came to a set of grand doors. A pair of armored, poleaxe-toting mortals, their appearances and much else concealed underneath the armor, who with a wave of the goddess’ hand would open the doors for the duo to progress.

Though if she’d move forward to enter alongside the hosting goddess, Arira would speak once more to her as they walked a little more.

“Mine speeth is’t strange compared to some others of our divine kin, but it is simply what I hath chosen to use as part of mine own preferences. The make of your steed is most excellent, and I must say that your choice of chassis in this world is most intricate and well-built to mine eyes as well. I am open to any questions about this place or mine self, but...perhaps let us not cause more panic among the mortals. They have seen much in their years, and only since mine birth at this place hast they seen much of peace thus far…”

As they walked in down the main walk through the center of the room, the first thing that would be apparent was its size. It was like a grand lecture hall room, or a great classroom, with rows of pews with desk-like writing places before them for those sitting. All were neatly lined about on the left and right sides of the room...all looking up at the only slightly-raised throne at the far back center of the room.

The wide main walk went right up to the throne itself rather directly, aside from where it branched here and there near the doorway to lead to the pew seating on either side, and Arira would approach and sit upon her throne in turn. The chair in and of itself was a rather ornate golden chair, depicted with fitting designs of world cycles and scenes of learning to hint at this throne room’s purpose. Yet without skipping a beat the goddess would lightly conjure a similar chair right, one just as golden and ornate and facing her own throne whilst being on level with it.

It bore mechanical designs where Arira’s was more ornate, circuit-like blueprints scattered about with dream-like designs covering it and depicting I’Iro’s own domain. A very fancy thing to do for a guest, especially a divine one, indeed.

I’Iro could not help but gently giggle at the chair. [color=7bcdc8]How nice. This is the first time another entity has made something in dedication to me. It is incredibly fascinating to see how my form is reflected in the mirror of your mind.[/color] she sat by the side of her fellow goddess, although she did not feel the need for it she was able to follow social protocol quite easily. In fact this whole palace and the city around it are very interesting. I do not believe any other god has engaged in such complex social systems or intricate designs yet. Your ability to seek out your objectives and diligent mindset are enviable. the goddess would lean forward a bit closer to better observe Arira. However. It does make one wonder what drove you to create this location. Was it a sense of magnanimous empathy towards mortals? Or was there something you wished to do or discover here?

“In truth, this place is where I was born. My parent, Chakravarti, came upon this place as they sought the mortal kin of a formerly human babe who is now my demigod brother. Here they were assaulted by mortals who thought them to be a demon, and after some argument and realizing the mortals here would avenge each other in a ‘cycle’ until they were all dead if they had to...from this my parent was ’aroused’...and from this gave birth to me.”

Arira seemed to deliver the last line with no small amount of embarrassment and exasperated resignation, but lightly shook her head before continuing. Even deities could have those embarrassing parent moments...even if those moments were how they were born into the world.

“Circumstances as they were, I put the mortals at ease and consecrated this place as the sacred place of my birth, setting rules and coming to begin to teach the mortals here as I have worked upon the world.

Since then things have also changed. Alrgrim, God of Earth, approached my domain and desired to place a pillar here to help stop the shaking and quaking of the world. As my paradise was in the location he desired, and his intentions were just, I did grant him assistance and helped place this pillar here to help stabilize the world. It lies in a grand chamber dug underneath this temple-fortress...the very temple-fortress we sit within the highest chamber of here and now.

Prior to this time I have taken up the task of understanding space-time better, and continue to come from time to time to teach and educate the mortals living here as my subjects.”

I’Iro was deeply fascinated by all she had heard. So. You are a god born from another god. One that was born from human interaction no less. I guess this could explain many things. Although most gods are days old there is much to be understood on why the inexplicable laws of the universe saw fit to bring you to this world as a second generation. Through mortal-like birth no less. The goddess was so deep in thought that she even stopped looking straight towards Arira. On the topic that there is a god slowly stabilizing this world. I did have such suspicions. In this area there is a clear difference in the geo-magnetic stability. This is good because it brings me straight to my topic. Which is the health of this planet. As while a stable lithosphere is created the situation of the atmosphere remains stagnant. Quite literally.

The dream goddess adjusted her eye contact and then guided the other goddess to look at the nearest window. As it stands today the Shard of Galbar is unchanging. In the south the land is always cold. In the north it is always warm. And the center as you must have seen is always in the comfortable barrier between both. Flowers mix up their time to flower and their time to fruit. However. As the goddess of cycles. Do you think this is the normal and most healthy state of the land?

After a moment, the cyclical goddess let out a long and drawn-out sigh.

[color=FFE4E1]“It is not, dear I’Iro. The land cries to me, the skies, the atmosphere, the plants, the animals, all of it that remains out of balance cries to me. I sought to seed the land some at first with the makings of balance and stability, but in the end could only lay preparations for and ‘seed’ the land in ways that will help more rapidly restore things once proper cycles begin to take root round-about the region of land this paradise exists in. But before a great storm in the north and other instabilities blocked my efforts from going farther...and it made me wonder.

Thusly pondering, I came back here to study and see if I can derive any useful information from these studies of space-time to apply in reinvigorating this Fragment of Creation. Some ways and some data that can be extrapolated and built-upon soundly to create a most fitting solution.

But what has become more and more clear, in truth, is that it cannot be done alone. I cannot silence all those cries from creation alone, even though my heart yearns to do fix things as rapidly as I can,” she said, using two of her fingers on her left hand to rub her temple, though trailing off a little at the end before looking back up, her true feelings of tiredness and stress about the matter on-display for a brief moment before I’Iro’s eyes in all their relevance, though soon after the goddess sought to put back on her usual airs and self, “It is most vexing, sorely so as a problem, yet I still believe hope remains. My conclusion thus far in my studies and work has pointed to needing more of us to unite to get this to work.”

I’Iro nodded. Arira truly was a sister to mortalkind. I too thought I should do more than I was able. It was a mistake that almost put my life at peril over reckless behaviour. It seems the lesson that cooperation is necessary is one taught to gods through pain and exhaustion. the goddess mood was initially low to accompany Arira’s struggles but it suddenly became more positive. The solution to this problem. However. Seems to be deep in your heart. In the walls of your palace there are many cycles. One such is a cycle of nature. A balance between blooming and ripening. Of times of warm rains and cold winds. I already had a great expectation that you could help me from the fact weather is intimately related to the water cycle. However. That you already had the solution printed out before I even presented the problem… It is astounding.[

I’Iro extended her hand and showed a map of the Shard. As such. I have decided that the least I can do is work towards the more physical actual solution to the issue. There is a location southward that seems to be the origin of cold winds in this continent. If my suspicions are right… It could be the first step towards a proper seasonal cycle. You are to be the ultimate master of it. Of course. But you already have much to care about. So leave the hard. World traveling part to me. I will report back to you from time to time and I am sure you will be able to craft a proper healthy climate for the Shard out of whatever I find. Along the way I will try to contact other gods with domains or interests towards the climate to further alleviate the burden of the task.

Arira seemed to perk up as I’Iro spoke, a light behind her eyes more so as she leaned forward to speak again.

“That might work, but...if I may?”

The goddess reached over to the map I’Iro displayed, only taking a moment to look before projecting a larger map between the two of them. On the 3D magic-formed display, various dots and designs appeared to mark locations and issues and so forth. One bigger dot appeared at the top of the Mons Divinus (name pending*).

“Among others, you perhaps might understand what I am now going to propose best and most quickly.”

She drew lines between various points of issues, meeting at the big dot on top of the Mons Divinus.

“I propose we, even if temporarily, use the central place of this world as the ‘axle’ of a great wheel, a central hub from which I could perhaps guide efforts and coordinate yourself and any others along the way who are willing to help out in the field. From there I could process and connect to what yourself and any others alert me of out there, and assist your efforts out there remotely using either a limited mental connection to yourself and the others...or perhaps something else like beacons that can be carried about.

Alas...it isn’t a perfect plan per-say, a thing I have just thought of off-the-cuff as it were. It could work with simply the two of us, but if others were willing then efforts could be expanded more rapidly and multi-tasked using this design. I could simply leave a part of myself here, a projection controlled by my mind as I focus the rest of myself to this work…

...your thoughts?”

This map… this is extremely valuable data. Wait… As she finished hearing Arira, I’Iro looked puzzled. It seems our minds think alike. Perhaps as a trait of us both being logical thinkers? Nevertheless. What if I told you that there is already a facility at the center.of Mons Divinus meant to be a place of connection and dialogue between the gods? Me and the illusion goddess Astella started this exact project when we met at the central summit.

Arira blinked in surprise, before her gentle smile returned just as quickly (if not a bit happier than before).

“That would be brilliant! A good central location, and as the world’s center it is a literal and symbolic center akin to the axle of a wheel! It would make setting up easier, as well as give a greater ease to projecting my power into the field from such long distances! Even the map could be most properly filled in as more information from other deities is gathered-!”

She paused for a moment, before letting out a small cough.

“Mmm...I beg thine pardon. I have become most excited by this most welcome news. Pray tell, how soon could we begin to arrange things that I might set myself upon there to begin work?

Mayhaps mine eagerness is far too great, but...the sooner this world hast been brought into stable peace the better it would bode for any future efforts to shape things perchance?”

In my conclusions I cannot say anything but as soon as possible. I know that for sure as soon as I leave this palace I will set straight to the south to explore the cold lands and discover their secrets. If I do manage to set up something in the south then the immediate worry will be the North: The contrasting warm winds to the southern cold winds. Meanwhile. It would be beneficial for you to travel to Mons Divinus and set up your embassy there. Every god is allowed a… sector to build in it a facility in whatever shape or purpose of their liking. Within reason. I’Iro explained in a very even toned voice.

However, a pang of disappointment became clear soon enough. It is a shame I came here in such a hurry. You seem to be a very knowledgeable goddess and this city is fascinating with its high mortal population. As a goddess seeking to understand the mind and teach mortals how to best use theirs… It really felt like I could make good progress here if given the chance.

Arira’s smile stayed in place, even as she put a reassuring and kind hand on I’Iro’s shoulder. Her touch was not harsh, nor stiff, nor stubborn, nor hostile or having any ill-intent.

“I shall go set forth mine embassy upon Mons Divinus in its proper place, and straightaway begin mine work from there. First in this work I shall seek to forge a connection with thine mind, that we might communicate from afar with greater ease as thou goest to investigate in the south. From mine embassy I shalt assist thine work thusly in the south.

Any thou findest to join in this plan, invitest them to this plan that we may forge a connection with them and further ease the work.”

She then stood up from her seat gently, standing before I’Iro and putting both hands on the other goddess’ shoulders as well. Her visage was now beaming with joy, and gently she took her hands off to but put a single gentle hand under to caress the other deity’s chin. In this she would softly lift her head up to look into her eyes as she moved her face closer to the dream deity’s.

“And dear I’Iro, I shalt make this next part clear. Thou art welcome in this mine Paradise always, to help teach and guide the people as I do. It shall be further instruction for those who seek it here.

From this room thou shalt have space to teach as much as I hath, and thine guidance shalt be further refinement for those living here. Mind that this is mine paradise, mine sacred place of birth, but I shall not chase thee away from this dream of thine heart and mind.”

I’Iro nodded at Arira even though she really didn’t understand these sudden movements the other gods made. It was understandable that she had adjusted I’Iro’s face to an socially acceptable angle but why was the hand still there, she wondered. [code]I am happy to hear that. I do not have a clear mind like you. There is doubt on how I should pursue my own core directives. It is incredibly generous of you to allow me to interact with your followers and even open up your very home to me. Know that I cherish this and I promise I will make this partnership of yours worthwhile. the goddess of dreams ended her sentence with a gentle and sincere smile.

Summary

I’Iro is journeying the world when she notices Paradise and accidentally becomes the second deity to cause them all to become very stressed once she decides to explore the place.

She meets Arira and soon the two start talking about recent events and the health of Galbar.
I’Iro brings up how the climate in what is left of Galbar is stagnant and unhealthy.

Arira agrees but she is also very tired with her hands full over so many broken cycles.

So I’Iro proposes she will do some of the hard work of bringing back seasons herself while Arira can handle things remotely as ultimately her domain is the master of the seasonal cycle.

Arira also says I’Iro is free to come join her intellectual company for activities such as mortal lectures or study dates.

Arira also agreed to go to Mount Divinus after this to set up her embassy/allotted spot there. Then after that she'll try to make a mental link with I’Iro to get started with the work at hand.

The Epic of Beginnings - Fragments of a weathered scroll

Leannah

---

Interesting...but all the same Leannah did not want to risk diving into a pool full of eel-like fish. Especially when in the temple of a perhaps maddened trickster God of Knowledge who liked to see how far people would go to learn knowledge. Then again divinity was its own kind of perspective, perhaps, but was a perspective she didn't have all the same. She was a mortal like the others, and was most unlike the cute sun goddess or peculiar goddess who brought them into this world in that regard. Still, the statue with the flowing dress which turned to water...the one back in the library with the knowing look to boot...she suspected this was who had brought them here. The one she'd placed the stone necklace on, which was taken from the hooded figure. It was another working theory at least, so she was open to being proven wrong or confirmed right if the right information came along.

Regardless, after looking at both rooms she felt she had some kind of plan. If this was a temple to a deity of knowledge, then she could at least try to be clever! Not the stupid kind of 'clever' that got you killed, she hoped, but maybe enough to get things done in a less 'I am going to die' kind of fashion. That or she would eliminate approaches by the process of elimination, and hopefully not blow up the room or herself or the like somehow.

With this in mind the catgirl first returned to the pool, and opened up her right hand as she aimed her palm out at whatever was glinting off of her light. That cage and whatever was in within it at the bottom of the pool would be what she was aiming for. She then began to focus on it, beginning to channel mana again and let it flow like a gentle river at first. Good. That was step one. She then put two fingers of her other hand to her temple, and using the hand with an open palm pointed out at where the cage and contents were in the pool she seriously focused/concentrated her efforts and mana like she was some superpowered person using telekinesis. She used the strong mental image and imagination of using telekinesis to 'grab' onto the cage and contents, in other words, as the 'form' to channel the use of her mana into. Ah. In other words, she was using a strong mental image to shape the use of her mana to cast a telekinesis spell to try to grab onto the cage and contents to lift them out of the pool. Simply using magic to try to use telekinesis in a sense, really. She would put all of her focus and effort and strength into the effort, as well as exerting as much self-control and precision and care as she could muster to keep track of things and make sure she didn't lose control.

If these efforts bore fruit, and she managed to lift the cage and its contents out of the water and over near herself, then it would warrant a carefully investigation of the cage and contents that would now be on dry (enough) land and out of the water. She'd hopefully be able to find something good, if anything good was in there, and if she had to bust open the cage somehow she'd have to try that if it wasn't already broken

If what she tried didn't work or felt any bit along the way like it threatened danger or losing control, she'd stop herself and stop trying altogether. Better than wasting her time trying to kill herself or do something worse.

Once she was done with the stuff at the pool, successful or not, she would ultimately return back up to the hallway she'd just scouted. Here she would simply speak aloud where the carving was and say "A book!" aloud to the carving/pillar...and if speaking the answer didn't work she had another idea. In such a case she'd backtrack to the library she was formerly trapped in, seeing if she could grab some intact-enough book to bring back to the carving and see if there was any place to put it or such to trigger some kind of opening mechanism. In such a case it would be worth a shot.

And if a book wasn't the answer, she'd have to go back to the drawing board really fast and would likely next trying saying "A library!" and then "A baby!" aloud to the carving/pillar. She wasn't as sure of those two, but if the first answer failed it was worth trying too.

Still, through everything she was going to keep a careful eye and ear and so forth out for trouble. Creepy old temples were not known in any Earth media for being safe or free of worse traps and such.