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Post by Arnsvaldr Mirrim on Apr 1, 2014 12:05:10 GMT
Today was perhaps not the best day, all things considered.
Of course, that didn't mean that Arnsvaldr wasn't going to keep his chin up. He was just fairly certain that at this point, the orientation of his chin didn't matter. Which way would up be when one was lying down, anyway? Of course, there was skyward, but that was just sort of where your chin naturally pointed when you were lying on your back chained to a rock. So was he supposed to point it closer to the horizon behind him?
He tried it.
Now that was just awkward. Who thought of these things anyway?
Oswald sighed. This was really no good. He was just going to stare at the sky, then, and uh... try and maybe get out of these chains.
He began by tugging on them lightly. The villagers had given him very little wiggle room. Another sigh. They must've been really scared that he was going to run away from this god that he was being sacrificed to. The high priest had deemed it necessary, and he'd been decided to be the sacrifice. Something about how his aura was especially delicious for the God?
No, it's not just that. It's also that you've been nothing but an annoyance your entire life, came words of wisdom from a small voice in the back of his head.
Yet another sigh. "Thanks for your insight, total lack of self confidence." There was a pause.
His head itched. He tried to pull up one hand to scratch it, but was jerked suddenly to a halt after a few inches of movement.
Dang it. "Couldn't they have seriously given me enough wiggle room to itch my head?"
Oswald glanced around. There was really nothing that he could do until the God came back. The villagers had figured out where this God had been staying, in a small sheltered cave outside the village. Oswald didn't think that especially Godly, but who was he to criticize the figure who had single-handedly saved his village from a massive behemoth attack? That was also the reason that he was being sacrificed to the God, hopefully to please and thank it for helping out the village.
"Sacrifice yourself to the god they said," he muttered. "It'll be fun, they said. I just want to itch my head, I say. I'll be a sacrifice, if you could just let me itch my head."
There was a rustle in the woods above his head.
He tried to glance over, but didn't get very far, being chained to a rock and all that. "Who's there? If you're from the village, could you loosen these chains? I promise I won't run. I just want to scratch my head. There's a itch right on the bridge of my nose and it's bothering me to no end. I'd really like to die without an itch on my nose, you know?"
Of course, he probably wouldn't have such a terrible end. He would go to the God's heaven, spending an eternity serving him and--ooh!--maybe even eventually be given a village himself to watch over! Then he could be the hero, fight the bad guys, and--
There was another rustle in the woods.
"Oh. Uhm. Was that your... godliness? I'm sorry, Your Godliness, for mistaking you for a mortal. It's okay, though. You're going to devour my soul anyway, right? Speaking of. Will it tingle any? I'm really ticklish."
Oswald's lack of terror was not by any means due to bravery. He was simply sure that this God would never hurt him. After all, it was a benign and beneficial patron, and he'd been promised by the village that it would treat him well so long as he served it excellently. To him, this was an adventure--never a danger.
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Tags: Nihaer the Empathetic
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Post by Nihaer the Empathetic on Apr 1, 2014 20:47:03 GMT
If there had been a town needing more defense than this, it would mean a very surprised Nihaer. The citizens of the town had seemed surprisingly helpless against the behemoth he had fought off, particularly for a land town. Although he had disappeared into the nearby stone clusters after the beast had fallen, he stuck around for a few days in order to ensure the village's safety. After all, a few days spent waiting around in his lifetime was nothing to be upset about. As the time passed, nothing eventful had happened, except for a curious group of men visiting searching the area for his living area. He suspected that they had found his cave, after all, the sudden cooked deer hadn't come out of nowhere.
At first, the Promethaen hadn't thought much about it, however, the next day more people began peeking around the area when they believed he was gone. Overhearing their conversations, he knew that they were discussing the fact that there was a God near them, and possible gifts to present in thanks. Yet Nihaer never thought that this would be their decision.
From his position up in the tree tops above his cave, the blue star looked down at the stone, his bright eyes wide with surprise. With raised eyebrows, he attempted to make sense of the scene below him.
There appeared to be a human boy completely in chains, laying on his back in front of his temporary abode. The cave wasn't the most comfortable, nor was it very fitting for his taken persona, however, it was the closet shelter he could find without being within the village itself. Why would a young man wish to be near a pile of rock and rubble? And why in the world would he tie himself up? Before he could ponder this more, there was sound from below.
"Thanks for your insight, total lack of self confidence."
What was the creature babbling about? He almost seemed like a Promethaen, talking to an OAI, but of course, no one of his species would be tied up, and certainly wouldn't speak to their mental helpers in such a way.
"Are you so sure about that?" Damien bit in the back of his mind. "You have next to no issue being an asshat when you converse with me."
With only a small groan of exasperation, Nihaer shoved the nuisance away into a mental corner. He was distracted by another sudden sound from below, the human speaking to himself. Strange, he thought, crouching on his perch in an attempt to obtain a better sound quality.
"Couldn't they have seriously given me enough wiggle room to itch my head?"
That statement made the God freeze up. He slowly lifted himself out of the crouch, standing on a thick branch on the top of the world, looking down on everything like the powerful being he was. Although he wasn't the brightest, even though he knew much about the human world and it's ways, this made him wary. Nihaer began to question the willingness of the chained subject. The mention of a supposed "they" worried him, and he began moving down the tree branch by branch as quietly as he could.
"Sacrifice yourself to the god they said," the human muttered. "It'll be fun, they said. I just want to itch my head, I say. I'll be a sacrifice, if you could just let me itch my head."
Sacrifice.
Blood turned icy cold under the Promethaen's skin. Frost came into existence on the tips of his fingers and out of sheer rage, a cool misty breath came out of his lungs when he exhaled. Incredible anger made him want to trust his power into a nearby tree and bring down the entire forest, but he knew it wouldn't help his inner turmoil. Idiotic humans. Stupid creatures, giving up the life of one of their own when the entire point of his village rescue was to save innocent lives. The blue star was tempted, oh so tempted, to race back to that horrendous village and freeze over every mother, every father, every child, every home until there was nothing left but ice and dead, cold bodies.
The leaves around him quivered as he grasped a branch, splintering the
"Calm down." Damien spoke in his head, trying to calm down the Empathetic. "Anger isn't going to help you right now. Try going and talking to the boy. It doesn't seem like he enjoys those chains."
Although Nihaer knew that his OAI was correct, the last thing he wanted to do was listen to someone else, and he recognized that without regret. However, he did have a burning curiosity about the human on the ground, so, while making quite a ruckus, honestly, he descended the wood-and-leaf-based plant.
"Who's there? If you're from the village, could you loosen these chains? I promise I won't run. I just want to scratch my head. There's a itch right on the bridge of my nose and it's bothering me to no end. I'd really like to die without an itch on my nose, you know?"
Although he normally would have laughed - humans were such humorous things, after all - there was only silence, perhaps a slight growl, from the dragon God. Someone had sent an innocent young man with most of his life left out in the wilderness to die, at the complete mercy of a powerful deity. Did the primates truly think that he was so cruel as to slaughter someone who had never done anything to him? Especially after he had protected countless lives? How foolish.
Once more the boy spoke as Nihaer leapt from a branch not too far from the ground, landing in a patch of dry leaves. In the process, pain shot up his left leg, and he winced lightly, but tried to ignore it as he walked over to his 'sacrifice'.
Coming up from behind the human's head, the Promethaen gave only a guttural growl, much different from the one that came out in his ordinary form but still feral nonetheless, as his only warning before he crouched down, running his hand along the chains, testing their strength. The boy probably couldn't see what he was doing as he summoned his powers and spread freezing ice, steaming up into the atmosphere, all across the chain. He restrained the power as much as he could, trying to focus on the chain only, keeping it away from the nearby flesh touching the metal. Once it had spread to the entire fixture, he reached over to the first place where it was tied around skin and grasped it, tugging whilst trying not to hurt the human.
The chain snapped, freeing the human's hands. Nihaer hoped that the frigid cold hadn't effected him too much, and peered over the man with concern in his heart but anger at the village in his eyes. "Why are you here?" He snarled.
"Nihaer, you look like an idiot." Damien said, referencing the costume that had already been partially taken off. The cape and mask were gone, but the basics and his sword still remained. "And you're just going to scare your sacrifice talking like that."
The Promethaen knew that what his OAI said was true, and with a small nod, he backed up, standing up over the man. "Are you a sacrifice?" He asked, trying to remedy the situation, but failing to correct his tone in the meantime.
Someone within his mind, Damien facepalmed.
*ooc;; IM SO SORRY THIS IS THE WORST POST I HAVE EVER EVER EVER EVER EVER MADE SOBS ENDLESSLY pls just try to reply my nxt one will be better promise CRIES 5EVER
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Post by Arnsvaldr Mirrim on Apr 1, 2014 22:25:18 GMT
There was a growl behind him.
Oswald jumped, looking upwards awkwardly on the rock. "Oh! Hey. Sorry. Uh. You scared me, your godliness." He'd seen the man save his village, this was definitely the figure. And he was not happy. Oswald cringed, looking away. "I'm really sorry," he muttered, as if scared to say the words, even though he meant them. Whatever he had done had been wrong, and he was sorry.
He had gone cold with fear, respect, or something, the frigid sensation seeping in from the chains on his extremities and biting to the bone.
Suddenly, there was a crash, making Oswald jump again, glancing down towards his arm. The chain had fallen from it. "Oh, thanks!" he exclaimed, beaming once more now, forgetting his fear. "Now I can scratch my nose." His hand flew up, matching the gesture to the word.
"Why are you here?"
Oswald went pale again, hand slowly dropping to his side as he swallowed, averting his gaze from the god above him. Even half in his awesome classy clothes, he was still terrifying to a puny mortal like Oswald.
"I'm, um..." He was really trying to speak respectfully, but it was kind of hard when he was having issues forming whole sentences that were loud enough to be heard. "I'm- I'm a- A-"
"Are you a sacrifice?"
Oswald nodded, completely unawares of the awkwardness of the question. He was too terrified, simply glad that the God had spoken the words he was trying (and failing) to say.
Deep breaths. Closing his eyes to avoid the god's furious gaze, he turned to face his head upwards. "Y-yes. They wanted to say thank you, so they chose... me." His voice became small again. "It's probably my own fault, anyway. I'm not a very helpful village member. N-not that they want to give you a second-rate sacrifice! I... just... I promise I'll be helpful. In the afterlife where I serve you. I can see the world. Do good things. It'll be wonderful."
He paused, biting his lip and swallowing the lump in his throat. "I'm ready now."
Once more, his acceptance of his fate was not due to any bravery. As he'd demonstrated earlier, he was not the bravest. He could be daring, even rash, but he was not fearless. It was a very fine but very obvious distinction.
Oswald was simply alright with his fate because he had been promised his dream on the other side. Even in service to this god, he would be given the chance to travel the world, to protect people, and to unearth mysteries all over the globe. He would be an explorer and a warrior and he would fight on the side of the god who was the ultimate right, who had protected innocents at the risk of himself. Not that he was at much risk--he was a god, after all. Regardless, Oswald would be there as he blazed through the ranks of the behemoths, fighting alongside him. It wasn't just the ultimate honor for him, it was the ultimate dream.
He was also sort of chained to a rock.
--------------------- tags Nihaer the Empatheticinspiration obviously none notes uh yeah i'm sorry this fails so terribly ;.; i can add on to it if you like i just couldn't think of anything else that he could do mostly because i'm terribly uninventive
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Post by Nihaer the Empathetic on Apr 2, 2014 0:10:05 GMT
"Damien, are humans who come into close contact supposed to their deities 'godliness'?" Nihaer asked his OAI, who merely made a noncommittal noise. Confused and half wondering if the village had sent him an insane person - after all, the human had been talking to himself before he had arrived - the Promethaen turned his head, not responding to the unnecessary apology. Damien, not the best with manners himself, neglected to reprimand him, of course, so no verbal words were given to confirm forgiveness or something of the sort at all.
When the worrisome bipedal suddenly became much more amiable and began to scratch his nose, the blue star's own nose wrinkled up in mild disgust. "Er, yes, it would seem that you could." The confusion in his tone only lasted as long as his concern could hold off for, however, and soon he began to hold a brief inspection of the body of the boy who was still partially - mostly - chained to the rock.
Almost warily, the God reached out a finger and lightly poked the human's face, like someone might poke an animal on the side of the road. The flesh was soft, as was all living tissue. As his eyes swept over the body, Nihaer noticed that the male was rather scrawny, having a scarce amount of muscle, very much unlike the average vikings the Promethaen had come across in his travels.
After he had asked his question, he noticed the averted gaze, and nearly sighed out of frustration. If there was anyone who should not be worried about being killed by the idiotic dragon, it was some random boy tied to a rock in front of his cave. After all, there was still an element of mystery - albeit one that would be answered in the next few moments - to his appearance at the location. However, it would appear that the fear within the atmosphere was much greater than Nihaer had anticipated, for the human could not seem to force out the words he was aiming to say.
The second question he asked brought on a nod, which made his stomach boil over with an icy fire of fury. Before he could speak, however, the boy himself did, and the God could of course only sit and listen out of respect for the fearful man.
"Y-yes. They wanted to say thank you, so they chose... me."
A thank you? Was this human life supposed to be some sort of present? A gift to be placed into his hands for him to toy with and do what he pleased? There had been a mention earlier of soul devouring -- was that what was expected of the deity? Cruel, unmerciful torment on an innocent? Nihaer wasn't even sure if it was possible to eat a soul, nevermind the fact that he never would do such a thing.
"It's probably my own fault, anyway. I'm not a very helpful village member. N-not that they want to give you a second-rate sacrifice! I... just... I promise I'll be helpful. In the afterlife where I serve you. I can see the world. Do good things. It'll be wonderful. I'm ready now."
With an angry voice now brought down to an ordinary level of volume, the blue star practically spat out his next words, dryly drawling on as he pictured way to torment an entire village for years on end. Unending snow seemed like a pleasant idea, perhaps an eternal blizzard to prevent anyone from leavings -- as him imagination was now proving, he was not above harming a human being so long as they were not pure.
"While I'm sure you would make a wonderful sacrifice," He said, slowly walking around to the other side of the rock, placing his hands on the chains and absentmindedly beginning to pry them free of the stone. "Unfortunately, the only lives at any risk right now are the ones currently in that damned village." He massaged his temples, feeling the awful concept known as a headache coming on. With a rough flick of his wrist, the metal broke free, setting the sacrificed boy's other arm free. Trying to be gentle but not exactly in a good mood, Nihaer grabbed the young man's arms and pulled him out of the rest of the chains, finally setting him free.
"Do you think he'll try to go back to the village now that you're letting him go?" Damien asked, placing wise seeds of doubt in the Promethaen's head in a way that he knew would be effective. Said dragon, not catching on to the trickery involved, nodded to the being inside of his mind.
"Like I said, your life isn't going to be on the line, but you should probably avoid that stars-forsaken town you came from-" A thought struck him.
"Damien, check recent memory data, what did the boy say about the afterlife?"
Startled, his OAI did as asked, quickly scanning through Nihaer's head. "He showed an interest in seeing the world -- what are you thinking? Oh, no, I will not allow you to-"
With a blink, he silenced his commanding helper, extending the single still-gloved hand to the human. "Come to think of it," He said, trying to bite down on the smile that threatened to come any moment now. "Since you shouldn't return to the village, you won't have a place to stay, mot likely. You seem like the type of person who spends their whole life in one place." He was rambling, thinking only of gaining human company, something that very rarely happened to him and only for a short while. "I guess you could always come with me. After all, you did say something about traveling the world, didn't you?"
Anger pushed to the back of his mind for a few moments, although he knew he would soon head off to pay a God's vengeance to a village and teach them not to fault with human lives, Nihaer offered out his hand in the promise of a great adventure, a secret bud of hope in his mind. After all, an OAI was the closest someone could be to knowing your every thought, but Damien was certainly not a creature as fascinating as a human.
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Post by Arnsvaldr Mirrim on Apr 2, 2014 1:41:34 GMT
"Er, yes, it would seem that you could."
You fool. You're complaining about the fact that the bridge of your nose hurts in front of a god?!
Oswald's mortification and fear had only deepened at that particular point.
It was to the point that when he was prodded by the god's finger, he thought he was going to wet himself. Of course, to do so would be completely inappropriate for a human, and so his thoughts at the time were constrained mostly to, Oh by the god that's poking you don't pee your pants don't pee your pants don't pee your pants his finger is really cold okay he's not poking you anymore but don't pee your pants anyway.
Perhaps gods had a lower body temperature than humans?
"While I'm sure you would make a wonderful sacrifice..." The god was prying chain from stone with his bare hands. Oswald paled at his strength--how was that even possible? Bending metal and steel with one's own fingers?
"Unfortunately, the only lives at any risk right now are the ones currently in that damned village."
"I-" His words were cut short by a yelp as the god grabbed him by the arms and yanked his feet from the chains. The terrified Oswald tumbled to the ground, pulling himself up to look at the god half in awe and half in terror. "I- Please don't murder them...?"
What should have been a plea sounded more like a hapless student's confused answer to a completely unexpected question from the teacher.
He swallowed, hard, knowing well that this situation meant life or death for not only him but apparently everyone in the village. This was, then, his first test. Could he save the day, and keep the villagers free from the wrath of the god who apparently didn't want human sacrifices?
"Like I said, your life isn't going to be on the line, but you should probably avoid that stars-forsaken town you came from-"
"W-Well," Oswald began very carefully, continuing with equal deliberation, "I appreciate the fact that I am no longer in danger of any presumed bodily harm or lack of ability to scratch my nose. However, I would still like to request that you... not kill the entire village. They're nice people, really. Maybe they just didn't get the, uhm, 'no human sacrifices necessary' memo. Whenever that was sent out."
His face was contorted into a questioning half-grimace half-smile. He obviously was just ad libbing this entire thing.
"Come to think of it, since you shouldn't return to the village, you won't have a place to stay, mot likely. You seem like the type of person who spends their whole life in one place."
"Well-- Er-- I--" He had always meant to see the world. But when had he really picked himself up and made him do anything?
That's right, never.
Thanks again, total lack of self confidence. You need a better name. Like... Antithesis of self confidence.
"I guess you could always come with me. After all, you did say something about traveling the world, didn't you?"
Oswald blinked, his mouth open in a startled 'o' shape. "I-- Well--really? I don't want to impose--but--I've always wanted to do that!"
He looked up at the terrifying visage of the god, eyes shining eagerly. He scrambled to his feet, once again eager to please. He was incredibly easy to make happy, and very difficult to make sad. In his eyes, it was one of his few good qualities. His other good qualities consisted of a sense of humor that very rarely actually made someone laugh and his optimism. Everything else, according to him, was bad and people were justified in hating him for. Of course, even his good qualities were only mediocre, meaning that he could conceivably be found detestable for them and he still wouldn't really be able to place blame on the person. After all, he knew how annoying and useless he could be.
"That would be awesome! But--I don't think it'd work." His face fell as he remembered his terrible lack of proficiency with just about everything that might actually be useful for adventuring. "I can't stab, I can't shoot, I can't even solve puzzles. I won't be much help. I'll just be a burden."
You're not already?
Thanks, formerly-total-lack-of-self-confidence-but-now-antithesis-of-self-confidence.
---------- tags ; Nihaer the Empatheticinspiration ; Mind's Eye - A Gentleman's Hurricane notes ; ayyyy here you go i'm so sorry it sucks so badly have an awkward arnsvaldr
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Post by Nihaer the Empathetic on Apr 2, 2014 21:12:38 GMT
While a smarter man would have realized a long time ago, Nihaer failed to notice that the boy in front of him was terrified. Certainly never one to be on the receiving end of such a show of overwhelming power, he did not grasp the concept that the sudden touch of a god could be enough to give some a lethal fright. True to this clueless mantel, he likewise did not anticipate the paling of skin coming from the scrawny figure.
"I would be more careful if I were you." Damien chirped. "The thing's gone as white as a sheet."
"That thing is a human, idiot." The Promethaen shot back, taking into account the sudden lack of coloring in the flesh of boy. It was troubling, of course, especially seeing as he didn't intend to make him frightened. Truth be told, he hadn't really meant to do anything at all.
When the ex-sacrifice tumbled to the ground, he tilted his head in puzzlement, mouth curved into a frown at the end. Concern was currently his highest priority. Once the young human was proven to be alright, then he would concern himself with the village.
There was both fear and something akin to admiration in the orbs that served as the boy's gateways to the world outside his body. Nihaer wasn't sure if he liked either. He crouched down next to the floored creature, his knees not quite brushing the ground but still low-set, hands hanging at his sides casually. His own icy blue eyes searched for the human's in an attempt to make a direct content and provide a slightly more casual situation, if only to comfort the human.
A twinge of guilt filled his throat. Although terror wasn't normally a bad thing to strike into humans, this one seemed particularly scared, and besides that, innocent. Even the banter Nihaer had overheard before he had revealed his presence had been comedic, filling with almost childish infliction. And now, the sacrifice had practically barked in surprise when the god had yanked him out of the chains.
"I- Please don't murder them...?"
Murder...? Funny, now that it was mentioned, the Promethaen supposed that wiping out a village /would/ classify as murdering them. These were lives he was dealing with -- the one thing he had promised not to destroy on this subjugated world. Still, however, the fact remained that they had commuted a heinous crime against one of their own whilst insulting his inner humanity.
"W-Well, I appreciate the fact that I am no longer in danger of any presumed bodily harm or lack of ability to scratch my nose. However, I would still like to request that you... not kill the entire village. They're nice people, really. Maybe they just didn't get the, uhm, 'no human sacrifices necessary' memo. Whenever that was sent out."
Oh stars, he was kind. Not only was he humorous, but he had every ounce of mercy that a true benevolent god should have. Despite the fact that his life could have very well been over based on their decisions, he had chosen to plead on their lives. Nihaer didn't understand the motivation at all.
Even through the improvised speech, the blue star was impressed. The sudden courage to stand up against a god was something that the boy had not appeared to have only moments ago, yet obviously first impressions could be false.
"Are you telling me you wouldn't have the ones responsible for your /sacrifice/ disposed of?" He asked, clear puzzlement in his tone, anger pushed to the back of his mind. After all, he did not want to be classified as a murderer, nor did he want to directly upset someone with whom he was face-to-face. "You do understand that a sacrifice usually entitles death, do you not?" A single raised eyebrow here, surprisingly human. "I suppose I could let them off the hook if they're really as good-intentioned as you claim." He said, although truth be told, the sole reason he was holding off from violence was for the human'a sake.
"Come to think of it, since you shouldn't return to the village, you won't have a place to stay, mot likely. You seem like the type of person who spends their whole life in one place."
Hope perked up in his chest like a blooming flower when the boy confessed that he had always wanted to see the world. The god - of idiots, as Damien would say - stood back up when the other began to scramble to his feet, leaning backwards as he escalated from his crouch in an attempt to be slightly more graceful.
However, as he opened his mouth to happily spout more words, he was cut off by something that made his soaring heart, pumped up into the sky with the prospect of a new companion, crash into his stomach.
"That would be awesome! But--I don't think it'd work. I can't stab, I can't shoot, I can't even solve puzzles. I won't be much help. I'll just be a burden."
The statement made Nihaer both relieved of his worries and sad at the same moment. On one hand, he knew that any battling issues would easily be taken care of by his powers, and as for problem solving -- he had made it this far without a logical brain. However, examining the other side, he was facing a person who truly seemed to think that he was useless. The need to comfort and to ensure that he gained a new source of human exposure in recent days drove him forward as he spoke.
"You said yourself that the village would never send me a second-rate sacrifice, so you must have something special about you." He delivered this with the best smile that he could manage, but in his time in a human body, he hadn't had much experience. "And in any case, I'm sure that I can help with at least some of those things." He was at least a god, if an extremely dull one. "If it makes you feel better about coming along, I don't really eat souls."
"Resorting to joking?" Damien choked out, as though he had even silently laughing in Nihaer's head. "You must really be desperate."
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Post by Arnsvaldr Mirrim on Apr 3, 2014 3:31:05 GMT
"Are you telling me you wouldn't have the ones responsible for your /sacrifice/ disposed of?"
The God seemed confused. Probably more bemused than anything, though. There was no way someone as powerful and omniscient as he could possibly have been confused by a mind as simple as Oswald's.
"Well--yes. That would be... my preferred answer. Plan A. Best option. All that. Uh."
"You do understand that a sacrifice usually entitles death, do you not? I suppose I could let them off the hook if they're really as good-intentioned as you claim."
"I. Yes. But--see, the way I was told it worked was that I would die, but then I'd become like some ghost warrior person who got to just follow you around and fight alongside you and all that. It was a pretty good deal, I figured. 'Cause, well, fighting along side the epitome of good and all that, right?"
He was babbling, babbling horridly, and he couldn't stop. It was probably because he was face-to-face with a God and the job of his dreams.
"And I'm pretty sure that they are. I mean. That's what they told me. Say thanks and all that. I'm not sure the exact reasoning behind choosing me specifically, but I figured it was because what I got to do after death exactly matched up with what's sorta my biggest dream, y'know? It almost seemed unfair taking that from... someone else..." He trailed off, chewing his lip.
Actually, what he was supposed to be doing after death was suspiciously close to his lifelong dream. His brow furrowed in suspicion.
Did they really want me to die?
Of course they did.
Wow, you're really supportive, Antithesis of Self Confidence.
You're welcome.
Oswald sighed, his eyes narrowing. Well, even if the village had wanted to get rid of him... he didn't want to endanger them. Being a tattletale was probably the worst possible option when dealing with this particular vengeful god, and besides, no actual harm had come of him, so no wrongs done, right?
He blinked, then glanced back up at the god from where he'd been staring off into space.
"Yeah, I was sort of a thank you present. I mean, now it seems obvious that it was not the best choice, but it's the thought that counts, right? I mean, some gifts are well-meant but badly chosen. Like giving contraceptives to a gay couple. I mean. What."
Dammit, Oswald, way to just slip up.
He scratched the back of his neck and tried to cover his cringe with a grin. It wasn't working.
"You said yourself that the village would never send me a second-rate sacrifice, so you must have something special about you. And in any case, I'm sure that I can help with at least some of those things. If it makes you feel better about coming along, I don't really eat souls."
Oswald blinked. Of course, the God had logically pinned him to the wall in regards to his self-confidence. Awful nice of him to try and convince Arnsvaldr that he was worth a bit more than he thought he was, but... probably not going to work. He'd just have to think up something along the way. Once more, he was going impromptu in front of a god who was possibly about to destroy his village.
"I... I can juggle...? Sorta...?"
That was really all he could think of.
"And, uh, it's great you don't eat souls. I was a little unclear on whether or not my soul would get eaten, or just liberated through death to serve alongside you. Either way, it seemed like a good deal." He shrugged, gesturing at the god in front of him. "I mean. Look at you. Wow." You're an idiot, Oswald. "Such Godliness. I'm awestruck. No, really, I am."
---------- tags: Nihaer the Empatheticnotes: oh my god this sucks i'm so sorry edited a few things because i didn't like some of his diction
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Post by Nihaer the Empathetic on Apr 4, 2014 1:24:07 GMT
"I. Yes. But--see, the way I was told it worked was that I would die, but then I'd become like some ghost warrior person who got to just follow you around and fight alongside you and all that. It was a pretty good deal, I figured. 'Cause, well, fighting along side the epitome of good and all that, right?"
Honestly? Nihaer was a little - alright, more than a little - flattered. After all, being the egotistical person that he was, posing as a god even when undercover, having someone willing to follow him into battle and follow him even at the price of death was the ultimate form of flattery. Of course, everything that the boy - who he had been rude enough not to perform introductions with yet - was spewing was complete nonsense, plain and simple. Even if people who had their lives taken by gods were able to become such impossible beings, the Promethaen had no earthly idea how he would perform a spell as powerful as that. As far as he knew, not even the most complex constellation spells could accomplish such a feat. It was an interesting concept, however, perhaps something he would mention to a scientist of his kind in exchange for the wonderful credit he would receive. He could just picture it now, the praise that all xenobiologists would shower him with for his brilliant discovery. However, the blue star noticed that he was completely fantasizing, staring off into the empty space of the world. As his eyes focused once more, he realized that he had been blankly looking at the human in front of him. His hand twitched as he prevented himself from reaching up to scratch the back of his neck in embarrassment. "That's an engaging idea," he began, truly sounding remorseful at what he was revealing, not merely stiff and uncomfortable. "Yet regrettably, I guess I was left out of how to perform that task."Nihaer knew that he was being selfish. After all, he was mentally cheering on the fact that the sacrifice now knew that the villagers he was so set on protecting had lied, or at least been horribly wrong -- he preferred the former. The cause for exclusive celebration had nothing to do with extracting 'vengeance'. At this point, wiping a village off of the primitive human map was a very, very distant second to obtaining a traveling partner. So what if he was pouring his all into developing a strong case to separate the boy from his home? Didn't he deserve some extended attention from his favorite species - other than his own - for the first time in forever? Clearly, the Promethaen did. After all, had he not saved over a hundred lives within the past week. However, despite his good intentions for the human, he did not feel remorse or any form of guilt for being sly and attempting to drag him away with him as though he were a fae replacing a babe with one of his own kind. Not that the sacrifice's family would be getting anything in return for the young man. Wasn't a sacrifice a gift, after all? "And I'm pretty sure that they are. I mean. That's what they told me. Say thanks and all that. I'm not sure the exact reasoning behind choosing me specifically, but I figured it was because what I got to do after death exactly matched up with what's sorta my biggest dream, y'know? It almost seemed unfair taking that from... someone else..."
"Your biggest dream?" The blue star asked, slightly amused, trying to hold back his goofy grin that would surely make him seem like a bigger idiot than he tried to believe he wasn't. "That's sort of cute." A paused here while the dragon god's eyes narrowed, almost in gentle chastising. "And also really, really dumb. You're supposed to fight for life, you know. Trying to go make all of my hard work for naught, eh?" This was clearly a joke, however, it was a sincere one, not just one meant to make the man more comfortable. Obviously, the human was going to be as awkward or as serene as he please. Nihaer didn't get a say in it. At the mention of well-intended gifts, the god blinked slowly, his eyes once more narrowing, however this time, they were clouded over, clearly confused, he looked down, suddenly interested in his feet. After brushing a very real piece of dirt off of his pants, he looked back up. "Uh... What's a contraceptive...?" He asked, feeling like a huge fool, cross with himself for making him seem foolish. There was a loud, aggravated noise in Nihaer's head. "Dumbass. You could've just asked me and spared yourself the trouble."The Promethaen mentally reprimanded himself, equally upset that he hadn't done so and that Damien was correcting him. Arrogant and all, the idiot truly did hate to be told he was wrong. "I... I can juggle...? Sorta...?""See, that's great! I can't do that!" He practically beamed. {AN: yo this is where my flow got disrupted expect it to suck from here on out. Where it's most important. -.-} He quickly sobered up, once more attempting eye contact, this time with deadly seriousness reflected in his blue orbs. "And anyways, if you really wanted, I'd offer to teach -- I mean, I'm sure you can't learn everything I can do, but there's always the basics, I suppose." He shrugged. "I mean. Look at you. Wow. Such Godliness. I'm awestruck. No, really, I am.""Oh. My. STARS. Damien, he complimented my godly demeanor! No one has ever done that before!" Nihaer practically screamed to his OAI, who neglected to respond, probably busying himself with more important things, like checking to make sure that the shapeshifting god's ecstasy levels hadn't accidentally slipped. With a cough of completely fake embarrassment, the blue star smiled. "You really think so? Wow. I mean, that's just. That's so nice of you.""You're an idiot, Nihaer. And anyways, weren't you going to try to swap names? I think you mentioned it a little while back."A nod to his OAI. "Anyways," A clear of the throat here, as if it would somehow help the idiot become more professional. "I don't think I've properly introduced myself yet. I'm Nihaer." He extended his hand again, this time the one not covered by the glove. A handshake was so much more friendly when you tried to make the person feel as though you weren't shielding your body from them. He only hoped that his racing heart wouldn't pump enough cold blood into his veins for the human to notice a difference. He bit his tongue in anticipation and hope. "Nihaer Holst.""Real smooth, dumbass."
---- tags: Arnsvaldr Mirriminspiration: pitch-shifted you're gonna go far kid on 10 hour loop count? xD notes: i thought it was p good idk im probs wrong tho orz oswald is such a cutie omg complimenting my bby what a little gentleman he's gonna be so smooth w the ladies when he grows up o wait
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Post by Arnsvaldr Mirrim on Apr 4, 2014 23:33:04 GMT
"That's an engaging idea. Yet regrettably, I guess I was left out of how to perform that task."
Oswald paused, blinked.
"You're a god. You can do anything." It was spoken with the simple trust a child would place in the prowess of a police officer, or the authority of a teacher.
Arnsvaldr took a moment to think, eyes narrowing.
He's a god. But he can't transgress the boundary of death? That seems a little... ungodly. I'm not sure I have the right to doubt him. I shouldn't doubt him--he has to be telling the truth. But why wouldn't he elect me to be among his chosen? Do I have to perform some sort of task?
Maybe you're just kind of a worthless dipshit.
I appreciate the sentiment, Antithesis of Self Confidence. But if he's not lying, then the villagers were.
He grimaced and quietly gave a tiny sigh. It appeared as if their intentions were looking less benign by the second. Regardless, they were just trying to get rid of an annoyance, and he hadn't died or been harmed. As such, he'd just have to continue to defend them from the wrath of the god as best he could.
But what did that mean about his future?
He shook the thought from his head. One thing at a time.
"Your biggest dream? That's sort of cute."
Another blink. The god had called him... cute?
"And also really, really dumb."
A lightning flash of self-doubt paralyzed him, the familiar voice of the Antithesis of Self Confidence taking the moment to tear a few chunks out of him.
"You're supposed to fight for life, you know. Trying to go make all of my hard work for naught, eh?"
Or you could go and die in a hole, you know. That might be a good idea, before you kill yourself and hurt this god with your stupidity.
Oswald looked at the ground, feeling the tears well unintentionally. He didn't even mean it that way! It was a joke! Leave it alone! Leave me alone.
"Uh... What's a contraceptive...?"
His mind locked up at the question.
After a moment of being frozen, he blinked a couple times, and then replied, "Uh... nothin'."
"See, that's great! I can't do that! And anyways, if you really wanted, I'd offer to teach -- I mean, I'm sure you can't learn everything I can do, but there's always the basics, I suppose."
A flicker of hope slowly came back to Oswald's countenance, glancing up at Nihaer. "R-really? You'd--teach me?" Of course, there were no promises that it would work, but Oswald was fairly certain that a god might be able to fix all his odds and ends and the like. And there was obviously no way that he could ever be as cool as this god was. It simply didn't work that way. Oswalds didn't become noteworthy.
"You really think so? Wow. I mean, that's just. That's so nice of you."
Oswald nodded, authenticity clear. "Yeah. You are obviously godly."
He needed to get back on top of things. The village was perhaps still in danger, and he couldn't afford to let his self-doubt cripple him while they were at stake. It didn't matter what they'd done to him. Perhaps he could prove his worth by protecting them... although it'd be nice to get a little recognition for what he was doing.
"Anyways I don't think I've properly introduced myself yet. I'm Nihaer. Nihaer Holst."
Arnsvaldr blinked. "Oh! Right. Um." He took the god's outstretched hand. "Arnsvaldr Mirrim. I prefer Oswald, I guess." It'd started out as a rather teasing nickname that he'd taken a liking to.
Perhaps not so teasing as derogatory, some part of his mind warned. You can't assume the villagers like you any more.
"So, are you planning on staying here much longer? If not, I don't have anything really to bring. I'll just follow you." Now was the part where he had to tread carefully. "I mean, I guess you could stop by the village or something and tell them calmly that no sacrifices were necessary. But... I..."
He trailed off, purposefully faking his bashfulness. Of course, his intentions were to get moving as soon as possible: so much to see, so little time. But he also had just the tiniest bit of bitterness at the village for so obviously betraying him, and just wanted to let them see that he was saving their lives.
But does that make you the better person?
He paused.
No. But am I okay with that?
Yes.
"...I really want to get going. I-I don't mean to be rude, though. I can wait. It's just." He grinned slightly. "It's the world." He gestured in the vague direction of the unknown for him, unsure exactly of how to convey his curiosity to the god.
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