Giving offerings to the Gods was not something Morgan had a tendency to do often; her mother had encouraged it when she was young, but she had whined and refused, and simply not shown up when she was older. Now though, she had a purpose and a reason to, Frey asking for three sets of offerings for the Citadel's protection; so she came to the shrine, a bundle of items in her arms.
She had the usual; fruits and creams, sumptuous delights, but as this was Frey's 'nature' aspect, she had brought other things too. A couple of figures carved from the wood of local trees (particularly hardy ones, to live in Halo), a small painting depicting a scene at the Sea of Glass, and a handful of snow. Morgan had not been sure about the last one, but she had always like the crispness of the fresh snow under her boot; she hoped Frey enjoyed that too.
Not expecting to actually see the deity, she gently placed all her offerings under the shrine then stood back, waiting for a moment or two for nothing in particular, just making sure she paid the correct respects; she could not afford to ruin this chance for Halo.
Loren regularly brought offerings to the shrine. However, he was pretty sure this was the first time he'd seen Morgan there. The healer hesitated in the doorway, a bundled of gifts cradled in his hands. Astra, though, had no such hesitation: she trotted right up to the Warden and bleated, before nosing a little at the berries and cream.
Smiling, he made his way towards the luxere, laying a hand on her head. [say]"Sorry dear, that's not for you."[/say] She turned to lick his palm and twine around his legs. Shifting his gaze to Morgan, the Firebrand cleared his throat. [say]"Warden."[/say]
Expression veiled, he set his goods down on the altar. Twitching aside the cloth, he revealed apples and honey along with a Ursur tusk carved with the deeds of the mighty hunters of Halo. Stepping back, he eyed the presents, carefully not looking at the woman by his side.
Morgan looked down at the sudden bleat, a small smile coming over her face as she saw Astra. While it meant Loren wouldn't be far behind (and she had no idea where they stood now), the little Luxere was sweet on her own merits. She knelt to gently move her away, when Loren came to do just that.
[say]"Loren."[/say] She replied, watching his offerings come out onto the Shrine. The typical sort of thing one might offer to Frey; she found herself glad that her gifts didn't look drab in comparison. For a moment Morgan considered simply getting up and leaving, letting Loren stay to pray in peace, but she knew that was half an excuse to avoid an awkward conversation. Standing and with one hand absentmindedly stroking the edge of the altar, she asked: [say]"Do you come to pray to Frey here often?"[/say]
Loren inclined his head at Morgan in response to her own greeting. The stoic image was ruined somewhat by the luxere frolicking around his legs. Smiling down at Astra, he crouched to give her a proper scratch. She closed her eyes and bleated.
Looking up at the Warden's question, he shrugged. [say]"Fairly often."[/say] His eyes strayed to her offering before flicking back to her face. Biting his lower lip, he shifted his weight a bit from side to side, before taking a deep breath. [say]"I've never seen you here before though. What prompted the sudden bout of piety?"[/say] His lips slammed shut as soon as the words were out of his mouth and he would've kicked himself if he was standing.
Morgan nodded, thinking that from what she knew of Loren, it made sense he'd pray (though why to Frey, she wondered? Some of the possibilities would lead her mind to a place it very much did not want to go, so she refrained from wondering too much). His question for her did not offend, even with it's awkward phrasing, Morgan having expected the query turned back to her.
[say]"The plans for Deepfrost protection involve Frey's blessing heavily. I am not so proud as to turn down a Gods help when it is sorely needed for the Citadel's betterment."[/say] While she still struggled to trust the Gods, their intentions and just how far their powers extended, any chance to help Halo survive during the cold was one worth taking. [say]"Frey asked for offerings to be left here, so I give them. Besides...now that they have a nature element to them, I find myself feeling warmer to the idea."[/say]
Nodding at Morgan's explanation, Loren continued to stroke Astra, staring at his companion rather than the Warden. [say]"What else needs to be done?"[/say] He cleared his throat, a light flush creeping into his cheeks at the thought of his own task from the god.
He finally glanced up at her words regarding the deity's recent split. [say]"Actually, they always had the nature aspect to them."[/say] Shrugging, he gave the luxere one last scratch before standing up. Astra had gotten fur on him, so he brushed it off his pants and his shirt, keeping his eyes downcast again. It was stubborn stuff, clinging to the fibers of his clothes.
[say]"Two more offerings to Frey, a search for Mageglass, and the construction of an altar. The last one I shall be overseeing myself in a short while."[/say] Morgan told him, having already made plans to clear the area and gather the materials needed. [say]"The expedition for Mageglass is within my ability, but I am busy in the Citadel with other matters. Perhaps...you could take that duty?"[/say] She asked, glancing over to him. It would certainly help to rebuild their trust.
She raised her eyebrows and nodded at his information, not knowing any better herself to argue with it. [say]"I see. I apologise...I've never been close with the Gods, nor thought to learn much of them until recently."[/say] As an Abandoned, she still didn't have much will to do so. [say]"You've taken to them well, though...did you have Gods like ours in your past world?"[/say]
Loren nodded, both at Morgan's explanation of the remaining tasks and her request that he search for mageglass. [say]"I can do that. I...have an inkling where a deposit might be."[/say] Hesitating, he eventually closed his mouth and fidgeted, not knowing whether to speak further on that subject. [say]"Let me know if you need my help with anything else."[/say] He inclined his head to her.
Shrugging, he waved away her apology. Shaking his head at her question, he rubbed one palm against his thigh. [say]"No. No gods or religion."[/say] Astra stared up at him with wide eyes and he laughed at her expression, scratching beneath her chin.
[say]"You do?"[/say] Morgan asked, glancing up, though her gaze wasn't particularly angry; she'd never prioritised the hunt for Mageglass, which was in most cases pointless. She'd seen too many fall to the fruitless search in the mountains. [say]"That would be very useful, if you could. Thank you."[/say] She smiled, going to walk a little towards the door, beginning to feel stifled by the Godly atmosphere; never her forte.
And in that spirit, she sighed at his explanation of his old world. [say]"Must be a lot simpler like that."[/say] No Voice, no Old Gods, no conflict going over human heads and drawing away focus from what needed to be done. While Morgan could see the advantage of using the Gods powers when available, she would have swapped it all for a chance at mortals getting to try life on their own.
Flushing, Loren looked down at the ground and scuffed one foot against it. [say]"The cultists that attacked the Citadel were guarding a deposit. We were outnumbered, so I decided not to engage them."[/say] Rubbing his eyes with one hand (the other still curled under Astra's chin), he sighed. Glancing up, he met Morgan's gaze.
Letting out a huff of laughter, his lips quirked up even as he shook his head. [say]"Not really."[/say] As she turned to go, he faced the shrine. [say]"People always find a way to make things complicated."[/say] He spoke in a quiet tone, more to himself than anything he intended the Warden to hear or engage with.
[say]"..Ah. A smart decision. So you will be needing a guard patrol for your mission?"[/say] Morgan asked, sure that they had not eliminated all the cultists during the Gate Battle; there were always more coming from the mountains, cannibals and occult masters that were mostly used as bedtime stories to scare children, but could be very much real. [say]"It seems like so long ago we had that battle. So much has happened."[/say]
She'd become Warden, for one thing, a role that felt so natural Morgan almost struggled to remember how it felt being anything else.
Morgan did miss his last words, but it made sense that despite the lack of Gods, life had not actually been simpler; when was it ever?
Hesitating, Loren shook his head. [say]"I think a small scouting party would be better."[/say] Grimacing, he rubbed the back of his head, looking away from Morgan. [say]"The tunnels were relatively narrow and filled with hazards. I'm afraid a large group would just put everyone in danger."[/say] Astra bleated, though it was impossible to tell if she agreed with her person's assessment or not.
[say]"But we should send guards into the Fangs to check for cultists. And back out to Whitebrim."[/say] Still not meeting the Warden's gaze, he sighed at her next statement. [say]"Yes. It has."[/say]
When Morgan finally left, he inclined his head as she departed. Giving one last look at the shrine and scratching between his companion's ears, the healer sent up a silent prayer for Frey. Then he turned to go as well.
-FIN
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