[OPEN] That sign isn't for me because I didn't read it

GIDEON

pulled out all your stitches

Determination was the most valuable skill in a war and Gideon intended to put his to good use. The Ascended had killed the Order's leader, injured him, ruined their plans, but he wouldn't be scared away. He wouldn't quietly leave and leave his views for his comrades only. No, more now than ever, the people needed to hear what he had to say.

Walking right past the Notice Board on his way into town, he found a spot where two streets converged, where many people would be passing, and drove his staff into the ground. In the dim late-afternoon light, it made the point. He was enveloped in sunlight just as he was in the truth, in confident righteousness.

One hand on the staff and the other gesturing out (but ready to dart into his pocket for his compass, should he encounter serious resistance), he began to shout, this time his usually smug demeanour taken over with a rage that boiled over into his words.

"Too many times I have heard people say the Ascended are peaceful. That they only wish to live among us, to make a society that provides for both the real Gods and their 'new' Goddess. These are lies. The Ascended want nothing more than to make you all like them. Every last one, filled with their machinery and their fake souls, doomed to remain in the Voice's clutches forever, never to know Mort's Realm - they want others to partake in the same misery." His eyes scanned across those who had stopped to listen as he took a moment to breath.

Continuing, he pulled up his sleeve to show the still healing wound on his arm, the scar not quite yet formed and the edges messy. "This was delivered to me by a powerful one of their rank in the same moment she killed my friend. They come without warning, invisible and silent, then attack. No discussions when they want you dead. No peace when blood is their goal." Touching the slash, his fingers came away with a faint, pinkish layer of blood, which he held out for the crowd to see. "What kind of honest, good people slink around in the night and drink blood? How can you say you are protecting your children, your town, if you are letting these machine monsters run rampant?!"

Hubris is a bitch

the echoes of the thunderclaps
reverberation of the dead

Harper recognizes Gideon readily now. After his last speech, after Harper had sought him out in Stormbreak. And as the man walks past, clearly intent on something, Harper breaks away from his shopping and follows. Grim and determined. As Gideon begins to speak, Harper positions himself not far from the man - in sight, in reach, if both were to do so at once.

From his back comes his staff, broken into two parts, and he reunites them and leans against it. To anyone else it would appear like any other staff or walking stick. A device to aid him and nothing more. But Harper knows that Gideon is aware of its power. Harper is is here, wielding it silently, and that is the protection and support that he gives the man. Ready to intervene this time if he needs to.

provides the tempo for the song
describing how all things went wrong

death, you bring death and destruction to all that you touch

The Sword was usually amongst the hustle and bustle of the crowd nowadays, given the nature of the guild rebuilding, needing to prepare for some more repairs and maintenance on the structure itself, or any other requirements. What he hadn’t been privy to were any outraged sermons, and so at the first indication of a voice he recognized – shouting and booming over onlookers. Curious and nosey to a fault, he inclined his head in the direction of the din, much like the multitudes of other people.

Luckily he towered over a majority of them, so it was easy to spot Gideon leading the religious fervor. The note from Aurelia on the notice board had been fresh in his mind from days prior, and then the one after, rolling and churning in his mind. The notions that this event could in a multitude of directions inclined over his spine, and he wasn’t certain which would be better. He jutted his chin out towards Harper, but then leaned against an outcropping of a building, arms folded across his chest – no clear intention marked there. Maybe he simply wanted to listen, to hear, what on earth had occurred now.

Murder, mayhem, and some assaults by the Ascended. The war twisting and turning, ever closer.

DEIMOS

Maeve

There wasn't much she missed in Torchline. Not anymore. What she wasn't expecting was another sermon. Not after what happened last time. Her steps slow next to Locke's and her hand tightens its grip on Edmund's, spotting  Harperearby and Deimos as well, giving them both a look. She expects that Harper will step in if he needs to. That was his job. To help keep the peace. The Sword, while new to her shores on a more permanent basis, made her a vow and she expects he'll make good on that now too if he must. She glances down at her son, murmuring quietly, "Reste près de nous, petite étoile." Maeve doesn't dare to let him out of her sight.

Her chin lifts, jade eyes narrowing as she listens to what he has to say, jaw feathering at his implication. She was keeping her people safe. Her children. All of them. The implication that she wasn't ruffles her feathers, but Torchline was Safrin's. She was making sure they were safe. However the news that they were so blatantly attacked, that one of them was killed, it makes her stomach turn. Was this the point they were at? Was it starting already?

when you are not fed love on a silver spoon
you learn to lick it off of knives

RAY

In ancient times
cats were worshipped as gods

Ray had heard the commotion and come to see what was happening and noticed quite a few familiar faces. She'd arrived just in time to catch Gideon's speech and her eyes narrowed at the man, scanning his injury. His words were concerning but so were the holes in his story. The herbalist knew a few Ascended and none of them matched the description that Gideon was throwing out. At the same time though, she wasn't particularly close with any of them either.

The herbalist sighed, and clearing her throat, she called out to Gideon, "Can you give us any more context or details? Or descriptions of the individuals?" The more they knew, the safer they could be. And Ray could try and figure out if she knew the culprit. But more importantly, "Who the fuck are you anyway?"

They have not
forgotten this

EDMUND

Edmund listened to the man's words with horror, grasping tightly to his Mum's hand. The child couldn't help but duck slightly behind his parents, scared over what was happening. His Mummy had warned him about the Ascended but this was horrible. How could anyone do that to someone?

Auntie Ray seemed unsure of the man up front and that made Edmudn unsure. But then the man revealed his injury and Edmund gasped. It looked so painful! "Mister!" He can't help but call out to Gideon, "Are you going to be ok? Do you need a bandage?" Edmund wasn't sure where he'd get a bandage but if the man needed one, he'd find one.

I never realized how beautiful
Fires burn under the stars

LOCKE

He walks a bit behind them, too protective and the crowd too thick for him to do much otherwise. A voice booms over the crowd and Maeve stops, watching. Locke frowns but hovers close by, one hand on Edmund's shoulder. He listens, face scrunching up a bit in annoyance. He has a feeling there's more to this than what is being said. Especially with what Aurelia had told him.

The Voice hadn't tried to change him, hadn't tried to force him to assimilate. She had accepted him as he was, as someone branded by their affiliation with her enemy. Yeah, something was wrong here. He pulls Edmund closer, touching Maeve's arm lightly. He's not sure if they should be here. But he thinks he needs to stay.

Except Edmund speaks up. Locke's jaw flexes but he's not sure how to.. Reprimand his son for it. Instead, he just pulls him closer, leaning down to whisper, "I'm sure someone will help him, be quiet now."

I'm motivated by the lack of doubt
I'm consecrated but I'm not devout

Cam was only here to buy some paints. They didn't even pay attention to the man speaking in the middle of the road until their ear caught the word Ascended. Then they pushed their sun-blocking parasol back on their shoulder so they could get a good look at the man speaking. For a moment they just listened. Anger grew in their chest -- their knuckles went white on their parasol -- but it didn't occur to them to respond, not at first, accustomed as they always had been to living as a bystander. But no one else was answering the man's accusations, no one was defending the Ascended, and instead of making Cam back down, that actually just made them angrier. Finally they realized that if they wanted to see him contradicted, they would just have to do it themself.

But god, where to begin?

Well, they could sit here all day trying to come up with the perfect phrasing, or they could just start talking. Cam stepped forward, tilting their parasol back -- while still careful to keep out of even the weak afternoon sun. "You're going to hear it one more time: we, the Ascended, just want to be left alone to live in peace. If you think that's a lie, then call me a liar to my face."

They took a deep breath, glancing out at the people around them. OK, don't focus on the asshole preacher; take the high ground, speak to the crowd. "I'm Ascended. I'm not miserable, by the way. But that aside -- I don't care if any of you Ascend. I'm not here to proselytize for the Voice. You can worship the Old Gods for the rest of your lives and I'll have no quarrel for that. I just don't want to be fucking murdered for following a different god than you do."

As for Gideon's nice little demonstration ... Cam pulled up their sleeve and displayed the scar from Nephele's chakram, long and silvery in the sunlight. "Cool scar. I've got one too." Hearing Ray's questions, Cam nodded. "What were you doing when you got yours? I was drawing flowers when someone decided to take on a big, bad Ascended." As they spoke those last words, Cam chuckled ironically, gesturing a little to their own unimposing form. They certainly didn't look like a monster, just a pale, awkward person.

cameron ?

"Cameras" by Ennev is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

GIDEON

pulled out all your stitches

Gideon was too distracted in the throes of his passionate speech to notice in the moment itself, but later he would reflect and be surprised that so many were content to just listen or even seemed willing to protect him. The last time he had come to Torchline, there had been a distinct air of resistance against his ideas. Maybe they were finally coming around.

The first to question was a young woman asking for more detail, which he was glad to give. "I am Gideon Clemments. Priest of the Trinity Temple in Stormbreak and loyal servant of the True Gods. I'm assuming that is why they attacked - and of course, my associate Cian, who was murdered, was the leader of the Order." By this point, Gideon assumed the cat was out of the bag when it came to the Order. Besides, if they were going to make the kind of steps they had to, they'd soon be well known.

"The first that attacked was a young girl by the name of Mabel. You'll be glad to hear she is dead. The second was a tall, older woman with short blonde hair and a hard, evil look in her eyes." Embellishing his part, Gideon drew a hand over his face and stared across the crowd. "Mabel was overtaken - no, possessed - by their ghoul of a 'Goddess' and killed my companion. I was attacked with blades by the other and only escaped by the mercy of the True Gods. Luckily, I had means to get out of there." He clasped a hand to his chest as if savouring what life remained within.

He was about to continue in a similarly passionate manner about the crazed look in Mabel's eyes as the electric demon took her body, but then a child approached. Gideon stopped, unable to calm himself down enough to respond appropriately to the kindness - he just shook his head. Not that it mattered, because soon there was an adversary in the crowd, someone to direct his ire towards.

Watching Cam with dark eyes and a straight, domineering posture as they spoke, he scoffed out loud at several parts of their speech but said nothing until it was done. When they were finished, he took in a breath then began to laugh. Loud, high pitched laughing that echoed down the street, not joyous but angry and manic. "You think I'm scared to call you a liar?! You are a liar ten times over, just like every machine she spews out. Am I meant to take your word that you come for peace? Even if you do, what about when your Goddess decides enough is enough and takes control of your body? I've seen her do it. Like a puppet - she could take your hands and put them around the necks of anyone she chose!"

Hubris is a bitch

I don't care who I might hurt along the way, I'm fuckin' sinking
Into every word, I don't care if you're lyin' when I'm drinking

Ohoho, alright. Batter up, wrinkle-bitch.

Bartholomew is the absolute worst person to have ventured upon this little spectacle. He’s a fang-banger of the highest degree, twin considered. And Cam? Well, Bart takes one look at the waif and sees all sorts of ghosts of the past, and Bart’s never been able to back down from a bully.

So he comes up behind Cameron, one hand gently moving the kid behind him, and since nobody else is nutting up he cocks his chin at Gideon and squares his shoulders. Let’s dance.

“This is a public square, so if yer gonna throw down how about a real debate?” his accented voice rings out, unapologetic of the space it takes. “Any person, race or allegiance aside, is capable of bein’ a saint or a killer. How many Torchers have gutted a man on these very sands?” Pirates, looters, bandits, smugglers…these sands have been bloodied a thousand times without the Voice interfering. “Matter’a fact, all you Attuned out here listening’ - you swore yourself to a God too. Who’s to say they can’t take control’a you if they wanted? Just cuz nobody’s seen it before? Seems like the first time this chucklefuck’s seen it happen to an Ascended, so who’s to say it can’t be done across the board?” Just because it hasn’t happened yet doesn’t mean it’s impossible.

“And don’t think I didn’t notice how ya skipped over this Mabel girl bein’ around you guys in the first place. We all saw that Notice. You wanna clarify just how that came to be, Priest?” The title is venomous in its sweetness. “Considering how excited you are to tell us a kid is dead, it don’t reflect well on you.” The entire time he keeps his arms crossed and forbidding, hip cocked, and otherwise motionless. The old bastard isn’t going to use the excuse of being attacked to scurry back into his hole this time.

Bartholomew isn’t going to sit and listen to genocidal wank like all the other onlookers.

everything look worse at night - I think I'm overthinking

BARTHOLOMEW

Aurelia

You may feel no purpose for existing
It's all just conjecture and gloom

She's here, she's not gone, certainly not dead. Matters in the Hollowed Grounds and then in the Greatwood have only taken a few days at most. Granted, she got a lot done in those few days, but who is Aurelia if she doesn't bite off more than she can chew?

That she can turn into a tiger is no secret, and so her presence amidst the gathered crowd should be identifiable even if she shifts. And yes, she had been mingling along the outskirts in her human form for a while. Until she had seen enough, heard enough. Then, striding forth, she melts down into the tiger's powerful frame. Nothing but stripes and claws now, she pushes past silent bystanders to stand beside Bartholomew. She'd met him only the one time but now that he's spoken up against Gideon, she sees no reason not to back him up - fully. And Cameron, too, should anyone dare to make a move against the Ascended who has so bravely stuck up for herself and her people.

While she does not speak, her presence should be more than enough. Casting a neutral gaze in the direction of Maeve she seems to silently ask Do you believe me now? Her gaze is unwavering as she does this, but it doesn't truly matter if the queen sees it or not. This is a matter of the people. Aurelia knows that much, at least.

So she squares her shoulders and leans in enough to nudge Bartholomew, to let him know she's here with him. Whether he recognizes her or not. And for Cameron or any other Ascended that might step forth? She will defend them, too, with all the might of an apex predator. Should the need arise.

To this end, her only warning is a fearsome snarl that echoes through the crowd and across the sandy streets.

As for Gideon? She's made her stance perfectly clear, and it takes no small amount of self-control not to run up on the poor man and sock him herself. But she knows that will do nothing, so she bides her time.

And there may not be meaning
so find one and seize it

death, you bring death and destruction to all that you touch

The crowd grew, and Maeve caught his eye – and he sighed, waiting for some order. He couldn’t imagine Gideon would be permitted to unfurl for much longer, based on the reactions he was gaining from the growing, gathered area.

And while he listened, there was certainly something distinctly missing here. An attack, an assault, first from someone named Mabel, and the other accurately depicted someone he knew well. Perhaps it was Wessex? he murmured in a low rumble to any other Attuned capable of hearing him – it wouldn’t be surprising, given the woman’s tactics, skills, and capabilities.

What was new information was the possession of an Ascended by the Voice.

Something in his heart, in his blood, ran cold – wondering if these were stories of truth, or merely scripts placed by the Order. If this meant all the Ascended would be the same. If there were chances where they’d all be sitting ducks, waiting for the slaughter. But something else nagged at him, and he couldn’t help following up with the Accepted’s inquiry nearby. “How did all of this start?” Had Gideon implied the Ascended just started assaulting him? Or had there been an impetus, a reason, a meaning to the matter?

DEIMOS

Ray

Have you ever heard a shadow?
A whisper at night?

Ray's heart sinks as Gideon speaks. It becomes even more clear just what's occurred. The fact that the Voice can take over her own is terrifying but the fact that she did adds more weight to the herbalist's suspicions. Stepping forward once more her brow furrows in fury at Gideon. "The Order, of course. And you think that you are important enough, enough of a threat for the Voice herself to attack you unprovoked? To reveal her capabilities? You're not telling us the whole story and clearly won't." Walking over to stand beside the others guarding Cameron, Ray snarls out "So get the fuck out. I've heard enough of your propaganda and lies." The Priest might be right about some things, but his story is so clearly fabricated and edited that Ray can't find herself to believe a single word.

Shifting into her panther form she lets out a snarl. Hearing Deimos speak she replies through the bond, If it was Wessex, then it only further implies that he's lying. Say what you want about her, but she's too clever to just stir up trouble that might endanger her family. This situation was likely defensive on the Ascended's part. She hopes that any other Attuned will see the logic in her words. The incident with Gideon was likely his own fault.

The soft sound of paws,
In the dead of night?

Maeve

She ignores Aurelia. She ignores everyone except for Gideon and her family. Her hand tightens it's hold on Locke and Edmund, drawing her son closer between them as she listens to all he says, knowing there are things missing. Two sides to every story. She had wanted proof. This was proof. Still, not all of it made sense. She doubted it would without speaking to the other side. It was concerning. That they had decided kidnapping was the best course of action. That they were spurring things towards the point of no return so quickly.

Her eyes shift to Ray and then Harper. Maeve draws in a breath, raising her voice to be heard over the crowd, "Harper, for the safety of not only the people of Torchline, but also our guest-" The way her voice wraps around the word suggests that he's anything but. "Please escort him to the skyport so he might make it home without incident. Otherwise he can see his way out with that fancy compass of his."

when you are not fed love on a silver spoon
you learn to lick it off of knives