Set fire to the rain

Maea

My heroes had the heart to lose their lives out on the limb

Maea approached the shrine with a flutter of moths assaulting her insides. That she had met Dygra three times before had in no way assured her of the goddess's temperament. Being welcome... yes. To an extent. But whether a prayer would be heard, if a desire of hers was too base, too boring, too bold, that Maea couldn't even guess at.

So she came bringing gifts.

Recently she had been adviced to kill herself, in a very blunt and straight forward manner. And once she recovered from the shock, the pale ancient found it wasn't bad advice. There were plenty of things about herself that she didn't like, didn't want, parts that held her back and kept her from moving forward. If the gore crow shift was the one thing that had made her feel truly herself lately... then it also represented all the things she didn't want to be. It had not been easy, bringing herself to hunt and kill something that she liked, but that was the whole point. She needed to stop avoiding things that were difficult, or painful, or different from what the old self would have done.

Gently placing the limp body of a gore crow within the indentation of the obsidian slab, Maea gazed at it and stroked the black feathers for a moment, before pressing her fingertip against a razor sharp talons so that some of her blood dripped down into the bowl. Taking a step back, she sank to her knees and bowed her head in respect - to the bird, and to the goddess.
"Lady Dygra," she prayed, "I ask for your presence, and but a moment of your time."

And I remember thinking — I want to be like them

Dygra

Slowly - slow enough that Maea might not notice at first, the gore crow begins to shrink and wither, before abruptly warping into a puff of ebony feathers. It's through a rain of black plumage that the goddess speaks, her voice causing soft ripples in the bowl of blood where Maea has left her offering.

"A moment is granted," she says, her presence like blood-heavy silk and warm rain. "Speak, sweet, dark child."

Table coding by Sky <3

Maea

My heroes had the heart to lose their lives out on the limb

Taking in a deep breath as the withering crow and the hum within her bones announced the arrival of the goddess, she braided her fingers together to keep them steady.

"Thank you, lady! I was hoping... that you might help me strengthen this armor you made me?" Touching the black velvet over her heart, the softness beneath her fingers was as boosting to her confidence as the had hoped it would be. "The world is as dangerous as it has always been, and I still have much growing to do before I can hold my own."

The tournament had been a good reminder that even your trusted friends could be the death of you by sheer accident. It would be beyond neglectful of her to place her safety in the hands of anyone but herself. And Dygra, of course.


--------

Maea asks for a quest to upgrade her armor.

And I remember thinking — I want to be like them

Dygra

Maea won't see it, of course, but she might feel the phantom sensation of fingers following her own across the dress that doubles as her armour. Dygra listens, patient and endless as the stone all around, and the girl's request seems far from unreasonable. "Things must be tested to be strengthened," the goddess purrs through the dark halls of the cathedral, "and so this is what you shall do. Once you are finished, you will find yourself and your equipment more capable than they previously were."

---

Maea has received a quest! She must:

1. Complete a Training thread focused on endurance.
2. Complete a thread using the Valair armour to block damage. (This may also be a training thread, but it doesn't have to be!)
3. Complete a thread killing something with a hide that can be harvested. This must be done without using a shift and wearing the Valair armour. (Harvest the hide afterwards too, obviously).
4. Complete a thread satisfying bloodlust on a predatory animal.

Table coding by Sky <3

Maea

My heroes had the heart to lose their lives out on the limb

The phantom fingers trailing her body made the young woman shudder. Too many impressions to sort out crossed her mind - unsettled, startled, comforted and frightened all at once - senseless and unfathomable in their complexity. Like the goddess herself, she supposed, and decided that she was at least honored to be acknowledged.

The tasks set out for her were straight forward and simple enough, even though it would take some time to get them done. Bowing before the altar - the only time she willingly lowered her head to anyone - she accepted them gratefully. "Thank you, my Lady. I will make sure to be thorough. And... I'm honored, that you would grant me an audience. It means a lot to me." As a former abandoned who rarely had her prayers acknowledged, let alone answered, the lack of curses and silence was startling. Welcome, and comforting - but strange. Some days it made her wonder if there was a catch somewhere, or a price to pay down the line that kept building up, just waiting to drop onto her head.

But maybe that was just her suspicious nature rearing its ugly head.

She lingered for a time, and when the echoes of the goddess's presence had faded entirely it was with a new goal in mind that Maea took her leave.

{Fin}

And I remember thinking — I want to be like them