In the after

Sah

Sah took a deep breath to steady himself as he entered the shrine. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever truly be comfortable seeking out Caido’s gods. He’d spoken one on one with The Voice, with the spirits, but never any of the Old. A fact that was honestly a little amusing given that he’d long since chosen their side in the coming war.

But that wasn’t the purpose of his visit today. Approaching the shrine, Sah set his offerings down. It was the skull and antlers of a moose, as well as the claws of an ursur. Each item had been hand carved with images of death. Weapons, fire, poisonous plants, etc. Each had its visage carved into the bone.

Offerings in place, Sah kneeled and took one last steadying breath. “Mort. If you have the time and are willing, could you answer some questions for me please? With the war looming, as an Outlander, I’ve been wondering a few things. And if you’d rather not answer an Abandoned Outlander, I understand.”  

Collecting his thoughts, Sah posed his questions to the shrine. “If there is an afterlife, when an Outlander dies, do they go to Caido’s afterlife, or the afterlife of their original world? And regardless of which, do they only get to rest with those of that specific world?”

“Will I…?” Sah let out a shaky breath, “When I die. Will I be reunited with those I lost in my home world? Or only those I’ve lost in Caido?” Gods he wanted both, but he knew that it was most certainly only one. But to never see his mother and pack long passed in his world, or to never see Aino again. Both sounded like a form of hell.

“And if it’s something no mortal is supposed to know, I understand that as well. I just.. I just wanted to ask. Just in case.


~
Sah offers a moose skull/antlers and a set of ursur claws. All of which have been carved with images of types of death. He’s asking Mort about the fate of Outlander souls in Caido in terms of which afterlife they go to.

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I think there for I am,
But what if all I do is bleed?

The world around Sah begins to sigh and shiver with a warmth unknown to Halo. Streaks of light splay through a sky suddenly painted in lilacs and rose, as the buildings and hustle and bustle of the citadel grow still and strong until all that is left are the trunks of towering white aspens that stretch towards the clouds. Silence descends save for the sound of birdsong.

Seated where the shrine had been is a man of an indiscernible age. Though his eyes are old and though there are many laugh lines around his mouth, still he looks incredibly boyish with his tangle of dark curls. "Hello Sah." Mort says as he reaches for the moose skull. Placing it onto his lap he runs his fingers over the engravings as a small smile slips across his lips. "I do so love the things Rae makes." He muses. "And even moreso knowing that it's Vi's breath that carries them through their life until they finally come to rest with me." In the distance, a massive bull moose walks through the fingers of sunlight. It turns to look briefly at the two men, before continuing on to some unseen glade.

"Just like this moose, your soul shall remain here. With me." Setting down the skull, Mort folds his hands into his lap and turns a soft brown gaze towards Sah. "What the Voice did in bringing the Outlanders here..." Mort's smile faulters slightly, though the shine in his eyes never dulls. "It is why one must be so careful when creating life." He adds, before answering Sah's questions in a more concrete way. "Whatever world you came from I have no access to nor knowledge of. Your soul shall remain with all the souls created here in Caido."

mort

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Sah

The air turns warm Sah's eyes widen as the deity appears, truly astounded that he was being answered. "Hello." He manages to respond, his voice going up an octave from shock. He watches with wonder as the moose vanishes in the sunlight, giving the creature a nod of respect as it goes. Rae creates, Vi animates, and Mort preserves. The balance that the God paints with his words is beautiful and familiar to the Outlander.

Mort's next words sting as Sah's fears are proved true and his voice cracks slightly. "I see." He lets out a shaky sigh, "I suspected as much." The mere energy in Caido was different from his home world, it was no wonder that the afterlife was too. "Thank you answering me."

The Outlander can't help the tear that escapes, but he quickly wipes it away and tries to shove his pain down. He can break down later in the privacy of his home. Where he could mourn anew those that he's forever lost.

The comment about the Voice catches Sah attention and shakes him from his grief just enough for him to continue his questions. "Given what the Voice has done to the Ascended, do they even get an afterlife? Or are they trapped from entering your realm in the end?" If the New God's actions had affected his soul to the extent Mort spoke of, the Outlander felt a spark of fear for the Ascended. Did they simply fade to darkness because of their Goddesses' actions?

I think there for I am,
But what if all I do is bleed?

Again Mort's smile flinches slightly. "I try not to judge too harshly. I know what temptations come with the power to breathe life into the bodies you've made." And that he certainly did, he was in love with the most powerful creator of them all. "Trapped is...perhaps not the word I would use. But she does keep them. You will not find the souls of the ascended in my lands when you finally do enter them. Not unless she lets them go...but we know how powerful a mother's love is, don't we. How tight her grasp on her children."

Patting the rock next to him that Sah might sit with the weight of what he was learning, Mort continues. "They have an afterlife of their own sort, with the rest of the ascended."

mort

Table base by Sky!