Cernan decides to try and change the subject. "Sister Azmaria," he says, "You seem to have a lot of very strong theories about the nature of 'evil.' Who is this 'Lucifer' you keep mentioning?"
Well, She says apparently glad that some have an interested in her teachings. Lucifer has many different names, depending on what part of the world you live in, or which of the saints' teachings you adhere to. He has been called Satan, the dark one, Beelzebub, or just supreme Devil. He rules over Hell, and fights the Angels of Heaven for the souls of mankind here on the earth. it is said that he seeks to corrupt all of man's hearts and cause the world to loose faith. forcing God to come to earth to restore faith. it will be then that heaven will come to earth and hell will move to the heavens dethroning god as the supreme being.
To prevent this God commissions his Arch Angels to to bolster the faith of and protect the hearts of man. The Arch Angels, in turn use the faithful leader of the world to spread god's word and keep faith alive. It is written in scripture "Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”
Turning to the other at the table that wish to hear, i will tell you now the same words I told the messenger of God when asked about what I have to offer to be chosen, "All of us possess great power, but it what we do as people that will affect how our lives are judged. That is why we must battle the demons of the darkness, for what other point would there be to our lives if we shirked that duty. In the end each of us must take responsibility not just for our own actions, but to prevent the actions of others that we know to be wrong.
The one thing that makes us all shine brightly in the dark is the heart, and what sustains the heart on its journey is the light from faith. Those that dwell in the darkness were led astray by the weakness in their hearts. And fundamentally they are still people in need of being saved. It is not just the demons of the darkness that we must face, but that which brings forth those demons, the human heart."
Lesith gladly returns the hug to Arabeth.
Lesith answers Sister Azmaria with gentle smile.
"I sure hope he hasn't call me to be a warrior in his army, as I am not one. I know there are times when you need to defend and protect others, but never to attack or to kill. He would never ask us to make violence on others, but only to prevent violence from appear, or escalate. About who deserve violence, I would like to think no one does, but you are right, there are times when desperate measures are needed. But those are exceptional times... not a way of life."
At the mention of her name she smiles to Poterol.
"Please call me Lesith, and how I can call you?"
To Natanja she answers.
"Yes, and bring you many friends, vistas, ideas. To travel is to live. And life is only, after all, a travel. But don't embrace life very closely, as it will end, and in time we must move forward. Continue advancing."
Se smiles at Kiwyn words, nodding.
And she mumbles at Cernan's words.
"Evil is the absence of god."
"You can defend and protect? Good. We'll fight, you stop us from dying. How's that for everyone?" Aeryth looks slightly annoyed at the bickering.
Poterol nods to Lesith, "Poterol Leafblown. However, My lady Lesith, please do not be afraid to shorten it if you wish. As you do not insist on formality, neither shall I."
"The problem with having this many of the religiously-inspired in one place," Cernan mumbles, "Is that they've all got very different ideas of what that means, from a church with a supposed hierarchical 'Hell' to both dogma-bent crusaders and pacificst. I say we worry about whatever our 'divine inspiration' would have us believe, rather than our preconceived education and creeds."
With an arm still lightly around Lesith, Arabeth raises and waggles a finger to highlight the point she's addressing.
"Uh, uh. No one is determining doctrine or hierarchies. It is, was just people explaining their different views that the saints have shown us about life." She points out.
"I say we worry about whatever our 'divine inspiration' would have us believe, rather than our preconceived education and creeds."
"Aye, and thus come together for a greater purpose, which we have yet to know. We could speak in circles until the Lady from the dreams makes it known to us our full mission. And as yet, we have no set time on when we will receive such information."
"Poterol. I haven't heard it. What does it means?"
Bowing to Lesith, Poterol smirked. "I am the son of elves, so my family name should be obvious. My given name is actually two different Elven words spliced together. Polent, meaning 'Gifted' or 'to be given', and Lanol, meaning 'Heavenly'." He straightened up, saying "A bit of a joke on my parents by the fates. They were expecting a pure elf, not an aasimar for a child."
Glancing sideways, he mentions to Natanja, "If nothing else, we shall have more information on the morn. Whether the forthcoming dream will have all of this mission explained is still unknown, but I do not think any one of us shall be bound to this if we truly do not wish it."
Her radiant golden eyes took in Poterol.
"I concur with your premise that we will not be bound if we cannot, or will not for whatever reason, follow the order of the mission. We came here of our own free will and we can leave the same way, if it is not to people's liking."
"....But don't embrace life very closely, as it will end, and in time we must move forward. Continue advancing."
Natanja was driven and passionate. To hear someone believe that life should not be embraced intimately ... well, it seemed a foreign and absurd concept to her. Yet, she remained respectfully silent with her thoughts and inclined her head to the marked Lesith. Each person had an opinion and she was not concerned with debating who had the right of the matter. In her heart, Natanja knew what was right for herself. Yet, the Emberkin's eyes sparkled a little brighter as she listened to the banter and observed the early relationships forming around the table.
I feel there is goodness in the dreams we shared. All the saints are recognized as such because their beliefs and actions were undeniably in service to God. Saint Angradd, known for his fire and war, is every bit a saint as Saint Erastil whom dealt in trade, farming, and family. Cernan is right in his quiet doubts, we all dreamed the celestial choirs that called us here. We all serve God in our own way, even when our hearts guide us to different resolutions. One may be of peace, another of war, it matters not as long as goodness guides your hearts. The dreams call us for good, those here that have answered the call have sacrificed their day to day lives because each one of you knows the same as I do. Question others always, but listen to your hearts, and do not bar God's grace from your life.
Brit takes another drink from her wine before she begins to roll tobacco. Rest assured, those that deny God's grace and fall to the temptations of evil, in any form let it be sin or grand devil, tend to get uncomfortably-shaped objects shoved into inconvenient places and judgement tends to be worse than eternal Mindfire or necrotic boils on the sunless places of the body. She smiles, not entirely directly at anyone, and sets to smoking.
With the food he palmed earlier, he heads outside, away from the others who may be there, he will head down an alley and share the food with someone who looks like they need some food.
"Evil's evil, and good's good. Not sure why it has to be any more complicated than that," Marius chimes in. "How Hell works and how God and the Saints do their duty doesn't really matter in the long run."
He takes a long sip of ale, watching the others reactions. He hadn't really been one to hang around religious zealots, and now he had his fill of them. And different ones at that.
I knew there had to be something wrong with this bunch. A group of agreeable folks? Too good to be true!
"All this talk only cheapens the reality of it all. Men straddle goodness, treading the fine line between good and evil. And, in my experience, good is losing. Let's not make any grand claims that it's devils or demons or whatever doing the work - it's people, plain and simple. I, for one, can certainly respect Lesith's desire for peace. We all know there's too much war in this world already."
"Vincent." Eli says, flat monotone sounding aloud, despite the lack of inflection. "Where are you headed. I recommend against going alone. Wherever it is, take someone that appears older, to avoid accosting. Similarly any who would leave, I recommend going with others. Remember, we stay here tonight for free; this is where we are to receive our dreams. If that bothers you, feel free to offer your services to the Treekeeps free of charge, as I have this past while." he adds.
"Thank you" - Lesith turns to Marius - "Thank you for remembering what is the real purpose of our efforts."
Andrei lifts his mug and gestures towards Marius. "And this fella. He gets it, too. God this, God that. They can come down and help if they need every one of us to fix what needs fixing," he says sardonically, before taking another swig of the wine. "I ain't got a problem with doing what we was called here to do. But that don't mean I gotta like it."
"Eh?" Poterol looks at Eli, surprised. "Treekeeps? Those who keep trees? Or perhaps those who keep to the trees? Please do explain, Eli"
|
Kiwyn frowns as she address Shyness.
”Honor is a very subjective idea. But it should not be sought after solely from the taking of life, or the causing of pain and suffering to others. Should not the easing of pain, the healing of the unwell be given praise. Should not the breathing of new life into the world not be celebrated as well.”
Shyness frowns slightly. "Honor is gained in many ways. Defeating the enemies of the tribe is one. Defeat does not mean death or cruelty. This view is primitive." Her frown becomes a sympathetic smile. "You will learn," she says confidently.
Vincent, stops to listen to Eli, but doesn't respond. This is a strange bunch, to say the least. I presume he has some merit, I am in an unfamiliar place. My "home" if I had to call it that was an equally larger city, but still had people who would drive a dagger in my side if it fit their whims.
Eli goes to not necessarily meet up with, but will at least stay within yelling distance of the inn or another party-goer. He than goes on his way to find someone in need, and give them some food.
"The Treekeeps are Bob and Alice. The Innkeepers here." Eli notes, with no variance in his voice whatsoever.
"...Men straddle goodness, treading the fine line between good and evil...We all know there's too much war in this world already."
"Yet to maintain peace and freedom we must engage in battle against those who would take them from us. It would be simpler if people were peace-makers. Yet as Marius himself described it, they/we straddle goodness, treading a fine line. So we have to fight harder to ultimately be/do better."
She silently appealed to Eth for patience and restraint.
Natanja watched as Vincent had stood to go outside and heard Eli's word of caution. She agreed with Eli that the boy not go out alone. Yet, Vincent had mentioned earlier that he grew up on the streets and he seemed confident in exploring alone. But wise counsel was not to be tossed to the wind. You have to stop comparing Vincent to Branek and being the overprotective big sister...You do not know this boy and he may not appreciate your silent watchfulness.
Azmaria was listening to all the discussion, noticing the boy Vincent leaving for some reason. Azmaria is only a few years older, she hears what Eli has said as well.
Once he steps out, Azmaria excuses herself and heads out behind Vincent.
Hey, mind if I join you? she calls to him rushing to catch up.
"I ain't got a problem with doing what we was called here to do. But that don't mean I gotta like it."
Again Natanja gave a brisk nod in the affirmative, her copper hair floating effortlessly about her face.
They were indeed a large group and varied in age, experience, temperament, zealousness and ideals. We need to find a way to come together, Natanja mused privately. This will be interesting. Natanja wondered what the Lady in the dreams thought of the collective assembled in the hall.
Natanja reached up and scratched Oko's warm chest, knowing how much the hawk enjoyed the touch. It made Natanja feel better, too.
I don't care. I just wanted some fresh air. All the God talk, is well...much for me, he kicks a random rock on the street.
Vincent, looks up to the night sky, and tries to pick out a constellation or two. After a few moments, he walks down a random alleyway, trying to hide in the shadows, but not necessarily leave her in the dust. Mostly a game of cat and mouse. A bed huh, it has been awhile since I slept in a bed. I sleep in them all the time when in a city, but I feel more at home on the earth. Whether it be on the road adventuring or at "home" on the streets
Azmaria...why did you come out here, was it to keep an eye on me, to protect me from whatever goes bump in the alleyways?
Azmaria hurries to catch up, but stops at the edge of the Alleyway, apparently she has lost sight of the boy. she hears his voice though.
To be honest, I did come here to look out for you, but I realized that wasn't a reason.
She takes a seat on a small broken crate at the edge of the alley, knowing Vincent's skill at stealth is beyond her abilities.
But after hearing everything in there, and trying to explain what I've been taught, it seems that the road before all of us is much more difficult than I thought. I don't even recall your name, why don't you come out so I know I'm not just talking to the darkness.
Azmaria sits for a bit waiting to see if he comes back out.
Arabeth gives Lesith's arm a friendly pat as she drifts away with a smile, Natanja's avian friend seeming to attract the feathered cloaked woman's attention.
Vincent, steps out of the alley, after a few moments. He calmly walks up to Azmaria, My name is Vincent, a beggar by birth, and an adventurer by sheer luck as it were. My life story is my own, for it seems like most people in there simply wouldn't understand... not many would
He starts to tumble a bit, nothing big, a hand stand, flowing into a roll and the back to his feet.
I am gonna going to judge you based on your views or beliefs Azmaria, as long as you are happy with your life that is all that matters, as he gives her a very small and sheepish smile.
Azmaria returns the smile. well then, Vincent, I am pleased to meet you. I really don't care about your life story, nor what hardships you had to endure, those are yours and If you wanted to share them you would.
She seems impressed at his acrobatic skill and gives a little applause at the performance.
Anyway, the real reason I can out here was to get to meet you. I saw you inside and you didn't have much to say. and while I seemed very adamant in my beliefs, I am not completely blind, you seemed lost in there. Well I am here to tell you, your not alone. I came a very long way guided only by faith. and think you did as well.
He give a slight bow, then a shy smile at her words, Fair enough, shall we head back, lest they think something grabbed us in the night.
With that he heads back inside, hands in his pockets, playing with the piece of fruit he nabbed earlier.
Azmaria grabs his arm, she seems to think there was more to this night time stroll, wait, if there is something you really wanted to do, lets go.
She smiles, not entirely directly at anyone, and sets to smoking.
Aeryth turns away and breathes in through his shirt. " I'll be outside." He walks out quite quickly.
Vincent is surprised she grabs his arm, and he wrests it free, if only out of sheer instinct to survive. He then realizes that it wasn't meant in a negative way, he looks down for a moment then at Azmaria, Sor..sorry. It was just instinct that kicked in is all. I appreciate the..um..gesture. Don't take this offensively, but the plans I have or had I prefer to do solo and discretely is all. They can wait for another time
There will always be the poor and starving...the upper echelon wouldn't want to give ground of their precious society
"Halt." Eli says to a fleeing Aeryth, with no hint of emotion. "You have yet to introduce yourself, yet have not shied away from having judgement and commentary on others. This is rude and suspicious. You will name yourself, as the others here have, or be considered a spy or cretin." he informs him. His voice holds no hint of malice or fury... but it holds no hint of anything at all. It is simply informative.
"Should this be the case, I will do all in my power to protect these from you. You are, of course, always free to leave entirely. In which case, I will see you out of town beyond it's closed gates. Through all I am, no harm will come to any here by you tonight."
"If, on the other hand, you have identity to speak, share yourself before this people in the spirit of truth. Then you may depart with no insult, shame, or reproach, for you will be known to us."
"If I haven't introduced myself, I am Aeryth. You now know about as much about me as I do." Aeryth continues to leave, if not asked anymore questions, he will leave and sit down right outside the doors off to the side a bit.
"I am also extremely sorry for this insult, don't ask how I know I did. I don't know how I do anything. Please forgive me.
Eli half-bows from the neck. "Then be well and fear not, Aeryth. You have proven yourself no stranger and no spirit." Eli informs him with no more emotion than before. "Go free, as you will."
"Thank you."
"All this talk only cheapens the reality of it all. Men straddle goodness, treading the fine line between good and evil. And, in my experience, good is losing. Let's not make any grand claims that it's devils or demons or whatever doing the work - it's people, plain and simple. I, for one, can certainly respect Lesith's desire for peace. We all know there's too much war in this world already."
Leave it to men to straddle anything of purity and to walk on the line that separates good from evil blurring the crossing point for others to heed.
Brit gives Marius a grin biting her cig between her teeth.
All this seriousness in here. Surely not everyone is burdened with the weight of all the evil in peoples hearts here. We may not know each other well but seeing as we're sleeping together, I think we should lighten the mood and relax. Be friendly. Enjoy the food and cheap wine and each others company.
Leave it to men to straddle anything of purity and to walk on the line that separates good from evil blurring the crossing point for others to heed.
Marius returns the grin with a hearty laugh. "It's not entirely our fault," he jests.
All this seriousness in here. Surely not everyone is burdened with the weight of all the evil in peoples hearts here. We may not know each other well but seeing as we're sleeping together, I think we should lighten the mood and relax. Be friendly. Enjoy the food and cheap wine and each others company.
"But don't get me wrong," he continues. "I agree completely! Everyone is so concerned with who it is we're working for, or why, or to what end, all while we have a feast before us. A free feast! Is that not a cause for merriment of its own? Why worry about the dawn while the night still awaits?"
"I agree with Marius. There are no little problems here, only questions yet to be answered. Let us partake of this food, for we shall not know when we may bemoan its loss." So saying, Poterol picks up a leg of fowl and salutes all at the table.
Natanja followed suit and picked up some crusty bread, fruit and a chunk of hard cheese and placed it in the wooden bowl in front of her. Noting the assortment of meat on platters along the table, Natanja chose a portion of the roasted fowl and tossed it to Oko who swiftly caught the morsel in her sharp beak and quickly gobbled it up.
"The Treekeeps are generous providers. A toast to their hospitality", lifting her mug of wine.
Natanja followed suit and picked up some crusty bread, fruit and a chunk of hard cheese and placed it in the wooden bowl in front of her. Noting the assortment of meat on platters along the table, Natanja chose a portion of the roasted fowl and tossed it to Oko who swiftly caught the morsel in her sharp beak and quickly gobbled it up.
"The Treekeeps are generous providers. A toast to their hospitality", lifting her mug of wine.
Or to whomever it was that paid and made it possible. Brit raises her mug to Natanja.
Lesith smiles at Arabeth, and goes out, looking at the sky.
As people slowly begin to dissipate, Eli gathers remaining dishes, leaving those where people are still sitting, and goes about quietly assisting in cleaning in this area and in the kitchen of the place.
He would sleep after everyone leaves, or at the staff shift during the late night.
Aeryth comes back inside after a while. Most of the other guests have retired by this point. Meeting Eli's eyes he nods. He orders some food, eats it, then goes upstairs. Upstairs he polishes his armour and sharpens his sword before going to bed. His door his open a bit, in case anyone would like to talk.
Azmaria, decided to take a stroll for a bit looking about the new surroundings. this place is so different from the city. and there are so many people with differing beliefs. this is new to me.
She soon finds herself in front of a small makeshift shrine that someone probably left a long time ago. she removes a few weeds, and kneels down before the cross pitched there.
God, Grant me the courage to face the demons of the darkness,
The strength to bring the light of truth to the hearts of the faithful
The power to cast away the darkness in the hearts of the lost
And the wisdom to know the difference.
Almighty, You have called me to this part of the world to do your will, I ask you to give me the strength and wisdom to complete your works. guide my actions and shield my heart from the darkness we may face.
Azmaria remains there for bit longer in silent prayer.
She gets up and returns to the inn, everyone has left for the evening except Eli.
Prophet Eli, You are the Prophet Eli, assigned by God as the protector of his holy word?
Andrei decides that he's had enough cheese and discussion for one night and gladly goes to rest in the room provided. Removing his breastplate and other equipment, he slumps heavily into the inn's bed. "Well, let's see how this goes..." he says as he rests with his hands behind his head.
Vincent follows Azmaria, so she is not alone. He sticks to the shadows, but within visual contact.
Noting that Eli was cleaning the platters, bowls and food from the table, Natanja stands, casually tossing another piece of roasted meat to Oko, and begins aiding the man in the mask.
"Excuse my forwardness, Eli, but is not that mask stifling? I could not wear such a thing for any extended period of time. Is there a reason you don it?"
Once the task is completed, Natanja will bid Eli and any other lingering in the hall a "good night" and retire with Oko to her room.
"Eth, see us through this night and in the new day. I suspect we will learn much and begin in earnest after dawn."
She settled Oko on the old chair by the bed. Natanja placed a woollen shawl on the seat ... for the avian to use as nest to take her rest.
It is late, after most have gone to bed. Poterol leans out the open window of the room he was given. "This will certainly be an adventure," he speaks to Merry. The squirrel merely looks at him, then points out toward the street. Poterol sees several people who looked like they were at the meeting walking about, but cannot see them clearly enough to be sure. For all he knows, they might be strangers that look similar.
"Well, my friend," he soothes Merry, "Tomorrow is the first day of the rest of our lives." The practiced words come easily, but this time there is a sense of weight to them that they have not had before.