leave my ashes to the wind

Gideon had come to the Celestine at a late hour, wanting to be as alone as he could be for the prayer he wanted to make; the quiet of the garden seemed fitting to the matter he wanted and as he laid down a simple black cloth before the shrine, he placed gently on it several dolls he had bought in the market earlier. Simple wooden pegs decorated with faces and delicately stitched dresses and jackets: the kind of thing a child would see hundreds of possibilities in, he thought.

Kneeling before the altar, he dipped his head slightly and closed his eyes. "Ludo, I request your wisdom on a matter that has...shaken me." Gideon had chosen to pray to this Deity because he knew of it's disdain for the Ascended...and because he was aware what he might have to do could involve grisly work.

"I have met an...Ascended 'Demi-God'." His tone made it clear he didn't consider them to be that at all. "I need to know how we can tackle this problem."

--
With so many favoured in one place, fickle spirits tend to leave you alone. You cannot be cursed when visiting a shrine by a spirit. (In order to use this, make sure to note the ability at the bottom of each shrine post).

GIDEON

You claim to be virtuous, but you're a liar
And you'll feel the heat of the flames

ludo Braved the forests, braved the stone Braved the icy winds and fire Braved and beat them on my own ”Fire tends to be a handy deterrent.” In the darkness Ludo may as well be nothing more than a mask, hovering above the dolls Gideon has brought. They seem to slip away into the shadows, but if the Priest looks closely, he will notice that tendrils of cloth are snatching them away, appreciative of the offerings that have been left. ”Fire and sunlight. The Ascended are many things, but they do not seem keen for a tan.” If there’s a sardonic sort of smile on the mask’s face, then that is entirely Gideon’s imagination. Clearly.

It was always a moment of great honour when a God appeared to speak with him. Gideon closed his eyes and dipped his head in respect, watching out of the corner of his eye as the dolls were picked up and inspected; it seemed his offering had gone well, which brought a smile to his face.

Letting out a soft laugh towards the ground at Ludo's glib comments, he raised an eyebrow and nodded, letting the point sink in. "Oh, I'm well aware of the effects fire can have on the Ascended. It's good to know that would work on their 'Demi-Gods' too, though I was hoping you might have a more...permanent solution." Lifting his face to look at Ludo's mask, Gideon spoke quietly but with conviction, measured and sure.

"Is there a way to limit, even stop, the Voice's ability to make these creatures? She has to be taking some kind of template from the Old Gods. Surely we can do something..." Gideon gestured aimlessly with his hands, unsure what it would look like. "Something to cut it off at the source, not just deal with them as they show themselves."

GIDEON

You claim to be virtuous, but you're a liar
And you'll feel the heat of the flames

ludo Braved the forests, braved the stone Braved the icy winds and fire Braved and beat them on my own The sardonic smile seems to grow - if it exists at all - and the ragged deity might just shrug at the Priest’s remarks. Drifting up, bathed in starlight, Ludo drapes itself around the statue of Mort, lovingly wrapped about it like a shawl. ”To cut it off... at the source...” The mask nods slowly. ”The Ascended worship at those abominations they call shrines,” it says. ”That is where the Voice appears, and that is where Ascension occurs, for the most part.” It chuckles a bit. ”It would be very difficult for Ascended to replenish themselves, or for any new ones to emerge, without shrines to visit. Do you not agree? What a shame it would be, if something were to happen to them.”

Gideon watched Ludo wrap itself around the statue of Mort and smiled at the simple, but meaningful gesture; something that might make a good art piece for the temple, one day. He'd always liked how Ludo moved and composed itself, with all the carefree nature of a powerful being but still devoted to the causes that mattered, like the eradication of the Voice and her followers.

"The shrines, of course..." He nodded, thinking it over. Gideon was sure the shrines would be protected with magic, but with a good enough team and strong weapons, they could probably destroy them; with the blessing of the Gods, it might even be an easy task. There was only one small issue to tackle first: where they were. "Oh, I agree wholeheartedly. If I wanted to go and find one of these shrines...out of curiosity, do you know of the location of one?"

GIDEON

You claim to be virtuous, but you're a liar
And you'll feel the heat of the flames

ludo Braved the forests, braved the stone Braved the icy winds and fire Braved and beat them on my own Ludo gazes down upon Gideon like he is some benevolent servant - and he is, truly. A Priest is always a welcome sight at a shrine, regardless of the god who visits. It doesn’t sigh, but its rags billow around the statue of Mort as if it has. ”I do not,” it confesses. ”Such things are a well kept secret, and I have been warned against such meddling more than once.” Wiggling a tendril of fabric at Gideon, it seems to shine with an idea. ”Mayhaps I could make you a device to search them out. It will not be easy - you will certainly need a sample of Ascended fluid, to create such an object. But for the devout and for those with such ambitions... I have faith that you will do whatever is necessary.” Its mask tilts to the side. ”What say you, Priest?”

It was interesting, sometimes, to learn where the limits of the Gods lay. Ludo could not sense the locations of the Voice's shrines, nor could it simply go to destroy them, nor the Goddess herself. Truthfully, it frightened Gideon a little bit. If a deity couldn't face the Ascended, how could the Order hope to? Hopefully, there was a plan in place, and he wasn't meant to know all of it. "It's hardly meddling to stop the influx of Ascended being made by the Voice."

The suggestion caught his attention, certainly; gaining Ascended fluid...it would be difficult, whether he did it through violence or more subtle methods (and Gideon favoured those), but not impossible. If it was for his Gods, nothing was impossible. Gideon nodded, clearly already thinking his ways around it in his mind. "Of course. I will do whatever is asked of me, Ludo. You have my word."

GIDEON

You claim to be virtuous, but you're a liar
And you'll feel the heat of the flames

ludo Braved the forests, braved the stone Braved the icy winds and fire Braved and beat them on my own ”My point exactly. Alas, there is no consensus on the matter,” Ludo mutters. But it is too caught up in the prospect of Gideon making progress against the Ascended scourge as a perfect cat’s paw, and it focuses instead on what might come in the future. ”Good,” it almost whispers, wrapping more tightly around the statue with a smug expression on its masked face. ”Then heed these instructions carefully, and return here when preparations are complete. Bring your compass with you.” It means Gideon’s Capitol Compass, of course. Gideon has received a quest from Ludo! He must: - Complete a thread meeting an Ascended and obtaining a sample of their fluid. - Find an Ascended shrine (he does not need to actually post in the shrine board, as he is not required to pray) - Learn the views on Ascended from 2 separate characters. Once all of these are complete, he must return to this shrine with his Capitol Compass.

"I am glad you and I can see sense together." Gideon said carefully, measured; he didn't want to insult the other Gods, of course, but Ludo's simple, dark yet effective plans always called the most to him. To the instructions he listened to every last word, making sure he understood entirely and clearly what he was to do. Once he had understood, he knew he would be glad to do it.

Bidding Ludo well and promising he'd be back soon, Gideon was already making plans by the time he left the Celestine, sure that he'd be able to return promptly with all that was required of him; he'd be sure of it.

{FIN}

GIDEON

You claim to be virtuous, but you're a liar
And you'll feel the heat of the flames