HARPER
The man's smile inspires a small one that flickers on Harper's face, incapable of being stifled even in the face of uncertainty. His own hand is scarred and calloused in comparison to Gideon's, but the squeeze of his fingers is sure and cordial. "I try not to listen to what they say, admittedly," he confesses, chagrined as their hands part. "All I've heard yet is emotional outcry. Nothing concrete." Precisely why he was here now. Gideon had proven himself eloquent even in the face of vitriol and Harper had high hopes that trait would shine through once more in private.
Harper sits beside the man in the pew, gaze following the priest's to the glass structure before them. It is the closest thing Harper has seen of technology and art that mimics his own highly modernized origins, much like everything else in Stormbreak, and he marvels quietly a the beauty of it. "I feel I should start at the beginning," he warns, maneuvering his staff into his lap and tracing the edge of the star symbol with his thumb. "When I first came here, Safrin was the first god I met. From there, I met Ludo as well, but my heart always returned to her. She has given me guidance every time I have dared to ask it of her, though I was always so hesitant - in my home world, deities were usually far from benevolent." And their offspring usually went mad, and had to be slain - unfortunately, usually by his own hands. "As such I trust in her word. When she Attuned me, I asked what I could do to shore our defenses against the Ascended, and was tasked with using her power to ward them away from the Skyboats." He has not told anyone of this, but Gideon is the only one he feels he can trust with it, despite knowing the man for mere minutes. He is a man of faith, staunchly against the Ascended, and that alone lends credence to his assumed silence.
"She gave me this," here he gestures to the staff, "which can nullify Ascended abilities within a certain radius. As such I feel I am on the right track in aiding her in this fight, but..." Hesitance curls over his features, suddenly self-conscious as he ducks his head, ringlets of dark hair concealing his eyes. "I'm struggling. I was taught to kill against my will as a child, so once I was freed I spent my adult years trying to only save. To preserve life instead of end it, so that I might redeem myself for what I was forced to do. Safrin is Vi's herald, and I know life is her realm. It is part of why I am so faithful to her. And while she hasn't tasked me with murder outright, I feel the threat is only increasing - and that our efforts must match." A hand rises to rake through his curls, biting his lip and staring up at the images of the heralds in the glass. "But I can only see them as human. For all the threat they pose, they seem as human as the rest of us. I have managed to avoid befriending any Ascended - aside from one. The one that attacked you." Frowning heavily as he thinks of Nate, Harper sighs. "And that violence has forced me to rethink that moment of weakness."
Harper sits beside the man in the pew, gaze following the priest's to the glass structure before them. It is the closest thing Harper has seen of technology and art that mimics his own highly modernized origins, much like everything else in Stormbreak, and he marvels quietly a the beauty of it. "I feel I should start at the beginning," he warns, maneuvering his staff into his lap and tracing the edge of the star symbol with his thumb. "When I first came here, Safrin was the first god I met. From there, I met Ludo as well, but my heart always returned to her. She has given me guidance every time I have dared to ask it of her, though I was always so hesitant - in my home world, deities were usually far from benevolent." And their offspring usually went mad, and had to be slain - unfortunately, usually by his own hands. "As such I trust in her word. When she Attuned me, I asked what I could do to shore our defenses against the Ascended, and was tasked with using her power to ward them away from the Skyboats." He has not told anyone of this, but Gideon is the only one he feels he can trust with it, despite knowing the man for mere minutes. He is a man of faith, staunchly against the Ascended, and that alone lends credence to his assumed silence.
"She gave me this," here he gestures to the staff, "which can nullify Ascended abilities within a certain radius. As such I feel I am on the right track in aiding her in this fight, but..." Hesitance curls over his features, suddenly self-conscious as he ducks his head, ringlets of dark hair concealing his eyes. "I'm struggling. I was taught to kill against my will as a child, so once I was freed I spent my adult years trying to only save. To preserve life instead of end it, so that I might redeem myself for what I was forced to do. Safrin is Vi's herald, and I know life is her realm. It is part of why I am so faithful to her. And while she hasn't tasked me with murder outright, I feel the threat is only increasing - and that our efforts must match." A hand rises to rake through his curls, biting his lip and staring up at the images of the heralds in the glass. "But I can only see them as human. For all the threat they pose, they seem as human as the rest of us. I have managed to avoid befriending any Ascended - aside from one. The one that attacked you." Frowning heavily as he thinks of Nate, Harper sighs. "And that violence has forced me to rethink that moment of weakness."
this is your ocean, an ocean of night
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
