Re: ((Follow the Braid everyone)) The Arival pt 2

[Guest]

Venis had to find a few things before her healing. She knew that Gawain and Kahn would have Tasha healed fast enough. She saw Manny tending to Epiphany. "Are you going to be alright Lady Epiphany?" She was a little worried. She knew that Epiphany was in good hands with Manny, but she still wanted to make sure that she was ok. Because if she wasn't, then she would put a stop to everything else before it even began. She would not go through with getting healed of it was going to make Epiphany suffer.

She got her purse from inside her coffin and began to dig through it one handed. She was still aware of everything that was going on around her, but she had to find what she was looking for. Finally she found it. "Hah, there it is." She pulled from her purse a cross. It was a solid diamond cross that she had made herself. Shamus had carved the coal and she made it into a diamond. It was three inches long by two inches wide by half an inch thick.



She looked the diamond over and smiled. It was exactly what she needed. She held it up so it could catch the artificial light within the room. She loved the way it sparkled. She sat the diamond in her lap. Then she pulled out some parchment and a feather quill from the lining of her coffin. She searched around and found a bottle of ink. Then she began to write down the spells that they were going to need.

[Epiphany]

(Awwwwww ^.- )

What Manny was presenting her with now would be alright. It was herbal - and knowing a good bit about herbs herself - it would be okay. She was going to tell him that she could do it herself, not being use to having anyone really care for her, but that look he was giving her said it all. She relinquished her hand, offering it out to him so that he could see the black, red, and dark purple wound down her hand.

If she refused all types of help it may cause suspicion, or come off as rude. "Thank you Manny. The herbs, yes. Please." And she knew to stay still. Epiphany also noted the confusion on his features, even if it was slight. "The dagger wouldn't have done this to a normal person."

Then she heard Venis' question and looked her way.

"I'll be fine Venis. Don't worry about me."

[Guest]

Manny smiled, and added the paste. Then he pressed the cloth into the palm on her hand and used the strip of cloth to tie it to her hand. "There we go, that should make it feel better soon, and help it heal, I hope."

He sat back down and glanced over at the animals that had been at the foot of Tasha's bed. They had been so well behaved, but Manny had just seen movement. He sort of whisper shouted. "Leviathan no, leave Dre alone and let him sleep. You don't fit under that bed from the end of it anyway." Obviously, Leviathan had been trying to crawl ubder the foot of the bed to reach Dre. He placed hia hand back on Epiphany's shoulder because in his mind it was helping.

[Beastie]

Dre slept on soundly, though he did reach out to nuzzle Leviathan. He also reached up and poked Tasha in the head whispering, "Keep it down up there sis. Am sleeping down here."

[Guest]

Venis heard the message from Seleen. "Dre, honey, wake up. Seleen needs some back up outside at the coaches. Evidently there's something going on up there." There was a hint of worry in her voice, Seleen had told her that she was taking some mortals to the keep today. She closed her eyes to feel for danger. ~Seleen, I'm sending you Dre.~

[Beastie]

He was instantly awake and slinde out from the bed. "As you rewquest," a wicked smile on his face. He stood over Tasha a moment, then leaned down and kissed her head. "Get well soon Sister, so that we may hunt together again." With that he began the painful process of shifting. One part of him hitting his sister in the forehead.

He gathered his loincloth and blades, he also grabbed one of his apples cause he was hungry. After dressing he set off with a spring in his scaely step.


(editing this because I hate double posting....lol)

He had nodded to Seleen and went downstairs telling his mother everything and letting off some steam about the lass. He also sent Venis a better image of the one called Sky and told her of the warning he had given him about Tasha. He then kissed her cheek softly, patted Kahn and Gawain on the shoulder and excused himself. Going off to find the room he had rented. He stepped right over Pip, and yep no choice in seeing things there. At the top of the steps he chuckled, and all knew that he meant to do just that. He spoke in Drow one last time, "Usstan tlun ussta ilharn's dalharuk." and then he washeard thudding around upstairs. Almost seeming like he was going to come through the floor.

[Guest]

Her head snapped to the direction of the stairs when she heard him. "Oh no! Um ..." She looked towards Kahn and Gawain. Nope. ~Dreconis Dragonis-Darkmane. Come here please.~

[Epiphany]

Lucky for Dre, Epiphany hadn't seen. After Manny had finished with her hand, wrapping it up good, she had given him a smile and closed her eyes. Might even call it meditating for that was sort of what she was doing.

Although, when she felt his presence near she went perfectly still, only relaxing once he was moving away. "Maybe the steps are not a good place to sit...." that was more to herself as she would wait to discover what the next phase of the healing would be.

[Guest]

Manny had been lucky, when Dre left the basement he wasn't sitting beside Epiphany on the steps. He had gotten back up to put the ointment back into Tasha's bag. He looked up at Tasha now, he smiled as she was shifting back into her human form, although from the looks of it she was in tremendous pain. He turned and looked at Epiphany, she seemed to be resting or meditating. He figured she wouldn't mind if he was away from her for an extra second.

So he went to Tasha's garment bag and pulled out a little purple and black number. Then he got her some stockings and underclothes. He laid all across the foot of the bed. He had seen her wear the outfit before so he knew it was right. He even remembered what shoes to get for her.

Then he went over and got some food for Midnight. Then got out some more meat for the other animals. It was only then that he rejoined Epiphany on the steps. He didn't touch her, not wanting to disturb her. So he quietly spoke to Venis instead.

"V, did he say he is his fathers son? Doesn't that mean he's mad and someone is going to find out just how mad?"

[Beastie]

He heard his mother and ducked down the steps looking at her, a smile on his snout. He only stopped about halfway down, knowing his stunt with Pip would not be allowed to go again. He chuckled inwardly and was right. He was his father's Son. He was crude and rude. What many would call a Dirty Bird.

He spotted Manny and chuckled out loud.

"I am so not mad. Was having my fun, being the Dirty Bird my gather taught me to be. My exit was unorthodox yes?"

He shook his head and said," You two of all people should know when I am angry. So a lass mouthed off to me and Seleen. I am sure Seleen has her handled. As for me, not the first time. Why you two need to be discussing is how to keep the kitty up there away from my sister. Now really I must see to my room. Hate to have paid all that gold and have to sleep with pigs. Manny you would have no bacon for breakfast anymore."

[Guest]

She looked up from the spells she was writting. "Dre, dear, first of all, appologise to Lady Epiphany. You shouldn't act that was towards a lady, regardless of how your father used to act. Second of all, I agree, Seleen probably has it under control. But do me a favor? You like to be out running around more than most of us, especialy me for now, I have a lot of things to catch up on. So help out with keeping an eye on that cat if you don't mind. And what do you mean all that Gold, I already told you I was going to pay you back for that. And Manny shouldn't be eating fatty bacon at his age anyway."

She laughed and winked at her friend. She always told him that he would live longer and be happier if he ate better. But he was just as stuborn and pig headed as she was. "Ok, sweetheart, you seemed to have something you wanted to do so go ahead. But hurry back because I am going to definately need your help later when we get ready to do this."

[Epiphany]

Epiphany smiled from where she was, sitting at the steps, her eyes still closed. Hearing Venis' remark she lifted her head and smiled. "He doesn't have to say anything. He might want to watch where he walks, or walks over, never know what might happen when you're unsuspecting." Small mischievous grin added to her words. If only he knew what she was thinking as she said those words.

Still, with eyes closed, her head turned in Venis' direction. "Why is he keeping an eye on a cat? Is it an enemy? Also...what happened to the plants and trees out back of the Inn?" She didn't comment on it before because she didn't know of it fully. Now, in her current state, she could feel the dead life of the plants that had been burned by Venis' flames earlier.

[Guest]

She chuckled. "Dre, this one can hold her own against you. I'm glad, but she's still a lady son." She looked at Epiphany then. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to dry up the plants like that. I just got a little over heated so they did too. They will all grow back just fine, but if you want an instant fix, I can give you one. The side effect is that they will never die naturaly either. They will live as long as I do."

She thought to her rose garden, and Schala's Silver Roses outside the gates of the walls of the keep at the Blood Rose. She knew they were still alive, she figured that they were a very large bush by now with no one there to tend them anymore. "Epiphany ... do you like roses?"

[Epiphany]

"Roses are pretty. Things should follow in with the natural evolution of life. It's given to everything to die." Was what she would say first as she flexed her bandaged hand.

"Fall is soon coming and they would have died anyway. The flowers loose their blooms and the trees their leaves, only for new ones to grow in their place once the season comes around again. I'm sure you won't mind in helping to hydrate and till the ground of that area with me so that the new plants will come in healthy."

Good, old-fashion, manual labor. She was talking about getting a hand rake, a watering can, a bag of fertilizer, and kneeling on the ground to prepare the soil.

"It may give us time to talk."

[Guest]

"I would love to help. I love to work the land. I don't mind getting my hands dirty, You should see my garden. But about the roses, I know where there is a rose bush that has no one to tend it anymore. I will have it brought to you if you would like to care for it. Unfortuantely, it cannot die, I accidently pricked my finger on it's thorns and my blood dripped into the soil around it. The roots drank it in and the roses are now immortal. But I do own a pair of nice thick gardening gloves, should have worn them to smell the roses. I would love to help. Thank you."

She was actually exited by the thought of caring for the land around the Inn. She loved doing such things, it reminded her of when she would help her mother care for their land so many hundreds of years ago.

[Epiphany]

"That's wonderful," she chanced to open her eyes but kept her head lowered and eyes averted. "That you like to get dirty. My hands are often dirty and many things that I do are unconventional." Very unconventional at times. Epiphany was a strange girl. She didn't mean for that to sound.. odd, or to instill any odd ideas.

"While we what.. maybe you can tell me about the second part of this healing process so I know what to expect?"

[Guest]

She held up her diamond cross. "Isn't it lovely?" She hoped that Epiphany liked the large diamond. "Shamus carved it for me, out of coal. Then I turned it into a diamond. It's designed to hold my soul. Not to be confused with my soul gem mind you, even though both are diamonds. Diamonds are the only stones strong enough to contain my soul because of who and what I am."

She was rambling, not meaning to. She had just never had to explain this before, in fact, she had never even had to pull this off before. "In order to heal my flesh, because I am a vampire, it will require a lot of dark magic. Magic that can harm everything that is good within me. The magic will not harm anyone or anything else, it will be targeting me. So I have to put everything that is good within me ... my soul for lack of a better term, into this diamond."

She put the diamond back into her lap. "I need someone who is strong enough of will and pure enough of heart, someone holy, to keep this diamond safe. That is where you come in. See, the person I was going to have heal me, well, she's not around. But she had her own dark magic and was able to control it and still maintain all that was good within her as well. Like I do every day. But because we will be using my magic, and it won't be me controling it, I feel safer getting all that is good in me, away from my body."

She looked up to Epipany intently. "I am trusting you with everything about me that is good. My mother's white witch bloodline, my Godhood. I need you to get it away from me, into another area of the Inn. But not too far away, because if anything happens, it will need to be replaced or ..." She didn't want to think of the or. But she was going to have to.

She lowered her head. "With all my good being in the diamond ... all that will be left is the bad. My fathers black witch, or warlock, bloodline ... and a vampire who was responsable for millions of rapes and deaths. A monster." Yes, even after all this time she still considered herself a monster. She could save every innocent soul to ever come to be for the next million years, and she would still feel guilty for what she did. She would still wish to be mortal again so she could die for her sins. She still felt that she could never attone for what she had done.

"Tasha will have to mix up the potion that they are to use. I will put the spell on it. Then I will also do the spell to put my soul into the diamond." She sighed and raised her head again. This was the part that worried her. "You, Tasha, and Manny will have to leave as soon as Tasha hands you the diamond. It is vital that no one but you touches it after she gives it to you. She will only have seconds to give it to you after I hand it to her. While the diamond soaks up the blood."

She looked at Dre who was still standing on the stairs. Then she looked over to Kahn and Gawain who almost had Tasha back into human form and healed. "Kahn, because he is vampire and God, will have to use cotton balls and the potion while chanting the spell I give him. He will have to whipe away the scars. The magics won't harm him because they will be targeted to me, his Godhood is safe."

A blood tear fell from her eye. She hadn't put the hood up on the cloak because everyone in the room had already seen her scars, so she had no reason to hide them anymore. "It's going to burn, and there will be nothing good about me. I will be loud, rude, and violent. That's where Dre and Gawain come in. They are going to have to try and keep me under control. I trust them to do whatever is nessesary to do so. They are strong enough to restrain me if that is what it takes."

She whiped away the tear. "If, for some reason, I manage to escape them. I doubt I will be able to, but if I do. There will be little time to get my soul back into my body. That is why you cannot go too far away. But if I get out of this room, while out of control ..." She took a deep breath. "I will have men posted outside the door, armed with wooden stakes. Men behind them armed with crossbows with wooden arrows. And Seleen. She has a gun with bullets in it that are a special mixture of wood chips and a radioactive liquid that absorbes UV rays. She will shoot me in the heart. If she's not back in time from my keep, I have a sharp shooter in my group, he's one of Kahn's Rangers. He will not miss."

She whiped away another tear. She missed her mortality, but didn't want to die right now. She had barely gotten home to her family and wasn't at all ready to leave them again. "With my Godhood being in the diamond, one of those three lines of deffence will kill me, after all, I will be a normal vampire again."

She shook her head. "But I know these men. I trust them with my life. I trust them to be able to contain me. They might not like the things I say to them, but they love me, they will do everything they can to contain me and heal me with no chance of me escaping."

She picked up the diamond again. "Afterwards, once the scars are gone, then you will have to return with the diamond so that you can put my soul back into me. For your safety, Dre and Gawain will be restraining me. All you will have to do is press the diamond to my chest and hold it there. You will know when I am back to myself."

She smiled then. "Afterwards, I would like for you to keep the diamond. Something for you to remember the day you saved one of the God's of Rhy'Din. I will have no use for it, and I have so many diamonds that I give them away already anyway. So I want it to be my gift to you. I have something else for you as well. Not because you offered to help, just because you are Manny's friend and I like to give gifts to people. Manny, can I have my jewelry box?"

She took the box with a smile. "Thank you. Epiphany, these are for you. When I met you I thought about them. I have never worn them, they are brand new and made of white gold." She opened the box and pulled out a red coloured cloth. She unfolded it in her lap and then held it up.



"This bracelet, and the necklace that matches." She sat the red cloth and bracelet down and pulled out a blue cloth. She set it in her lap and unfolded the cloth. Then she held it up for her to see.



"I think they will look very lovely on you. Will you please accept them?" She picked up both items in their cloths in her one good hand and held them out to her. "No stings attached, I just think that they were meant for you."

[Epiphany]

Epiphany looked to Venis when she started to explain about the crystal and what was to happen. Her eyes, which were usually golden, had taken on a very light shade and were almost white. So that was the plan, she was going to put her soul inside of a crystal.

"You're not a beast." The words came out firmly and she shut her eyes. Beast. No. Venis didn't call herself a beast. That was someone else. In words that were softer she spoke again. "You're not a monster. No matter what you've done in your past you can be forgiven of your sins. You can be redeemed..." Trailing off at the end for she could feel herself about to go on a rant.

She looked at the gift and stood from the step; then took a step forward. "You will turn evil once your soul is deposited into the cross?" That was dangerous. With Epiphany already on the borderline herself - even a bit across it - she wasn't sure how she would be if Venis turned pure evil. Epiphany was taking her time crossing the room. A faint glow was surrounding the girl, she was more than merely a person who was holy.

"If you manage to escape those men, and I happen to find you, or you find me, I'm afraid that I won't be able to hold back any longer. It's been a struggle to do so now for so long. Everything in me wants to kill you. I'm sorry. It's the truth. I am maintaining through meditation. But, if you come after me, or anyone I may be with, in a threatening way, I will loose the grip for control that I have. The result will not be pretty."

What a thing to say to someone who was offering you a gift. She only wanted to be sure Venis knew the possibilities. "I won't go far but, if I am to maintain longer, especially to be able to come back down here and return your soul, I will need to get something from my room upstairs. Your soul will be safe with me. I will....do all I can to help you. but you need to do something for me as well."

Epiphany finished her approach and stopped in front of Venis, not too close, and not too far. She looked Venis straight in the eyes. "Forgive yourself for what you've done in the past. Seek forgiveness, and you shall have it. At least try." She held out her hand to accept the gift. She did not want to touch Venis, physically, at the moment. If having contact with holy water had put those marks on her skin then Epiphany's touch - as she was now - would leave a mark.

[Guest]

Epiphany had said the magic word. She had said she would kill Venis, that even now she wanted to kill her. That seemed to be music to Venis' ears. She needed to know that she would be stopped if Dre and Kahn and Gawain were somehow overpowered. She never in a million years thought that without being a God she could take all three. But now she was a little less worried about it.

She whispered one small word in responce to the death threat. "Good." She held the jewelry over Epiphany's hand and turned her own, letting the jewelry slide into her hand without touching her, somehow she just knew better than to touch her.

"Epiphany, I am a monster, and an abomination. I once had a conversation with a lych, the two of us would never battle each other because of the consiquenes and repercussions. But he reminded me of what I was, and what I will forever be ... and there is no forgiveness for my wanton distruction of God's creatures. In all these years that I have been a God, knowing full well that I could seek an audience with the 'big man' himself, I have never once gone to him. I fear his telling me that he could never forgive me. Even if he did grant me these powers so that I may save his children. I just don't think he can forgive one such as myself for what I have done."

Another blood tear fell from her eyes. But every word was the truth, and now everyone in the room knew how she truly felt about herself.

[Epiphany]

Venis cried, at least there was a tear. Consequently what was said didn't make Epiphany feel empathic - it made her upset. Her words were flat yet strong. "He wouldn't give you powers to 'protect his creatures' if you were not forgiven, that doesn't make any sense on any level. Just as you gave a lot to protect the human race, He died so you could even get to this point." It was safe to say that Venis' words struck a cord. "I don't know what God you serve, or if you answer to anyone at all, but mine - the only god there is - wouldn't give someone, who was their enemy, power to protect, not forgive them, and turn around and want them killed."

The force within her was growing; the mask of Epiphany beginning to chip away bit by bit. She knew this and therefore she started to back away. With a deep breath she rolled her shoulders; and headed back towards the steps.

[Guest]

((Just wanted to say that I'm sorry if the religious debate is offending anyone. No one is trying to push their beliefs on anyone else IC or OOC, this is just a game and we are just going along where the SL takes us. No offence ment to anyone. You have the right to agree or disagree.))

Venis wasn't looking for empathy, sympathy or anything else. She was simply expressing her oppinion. Epiphany had the right to do the same. She watched her back away before she spoke again.

"Epiphany, I agree with you on certain points. It is true that there is only one God who was never anything else, therefor could be considered the only true God. Kahn and I were both something else before we were Gods. Dre was not, Dre is as he was born, half-blood God. A Demi-God, being born of a God and a non-God ... Sound familiar? And yes, I too believe the tales of him sending his only begotten son to die for humanity. I believe that because of what I did to save it as well. And if I was willing to make that sacrafice, then who am I to say that someone else would not do the same? Only, I could never send my son, I would not be strong enough to do that."

Venis sighed then. "Perhaps you are right and he has forgiven me my sins. I simply have yet to ask him. For many years I thought about doing just that. But every time I did I would have a nightmare that he would tell me that he in fact had not and that I would be spending eternity in hell if I ever were to truly die. That is my own insecurities. I agree that my insecurities make no sence at all. But they are my insecurities just the same"

She twitched the right side of her mouth. "For the rest of my time in this plane of existance, however long it may be, I will be atoning for my sins by protecting the innocent beings that exist amungst us. My sins require a little more than some 'Hail Mary's' and a few 'Our Father's'. And you have the right to your oppinion that he is the ony God there is. But there are others who do not believe that. And those of us who are deities in this room have made great sacrifices of our own. You do not have to choose to worship us, in fact, I'm still not used to having worshippers myself. But please, at least respect us, if not for what we are than at least for what we have done."

She hoped that she had cleared up any missconceptions. She would never truly give up her Godhood perminantly. She wanted it back, that's why she wanted Epiphany to keep it safe. If she wanted it gone, she had the means to do so. She chose to keep the gift she had been given, everyday she chose it again and again. She reached into her jewelry box and patted a black cloth. It contained a vile that held a liquid that could take her gift away for good ... if she ever truly wanted it gone. It had never even been opened.

[Epiphany]

(yeah I probably should've said some type of warning. just a character people, don't shoot me. and the mun will post once she can get her character to stop ranting and raving in her head. sorry for the oocness! >> )

[Epiphany]

Walk away Epiphany. Walk away and don't say anything. This was not the time to discuss religious matters though there was so much that she wanted to say. People always saw forgiveness as a hard thing to attain because people found it hard to forgive. If forgiveness was really wanted, all the person had to do was sincerly ask for it.

Was there a point in telling her that? Not now. It was the same with all the vampires, demons, hellions, fallen angels and the like she had met in the past - all believed that there was so much they had to do before they were forgiven. Those of them that believed they could be forgiven.

Epiphany didn't want Venis to think that she hadn't heard her; so once she sat down, she gave a simple nod. "Yes." For sake of appearance, she kept the wrapping Manny had done earlier on, though she knew that it wasn't needed anymore.

[Guest]

She had heard the yes, and she had only asked one question, so she knew that Epiphany understood what she was saying about Dre. The two of them, he and Dre, were in so many ways worlds apart. But then again, the two of them did have that in common.

She wanted so badly for Epiphany to understand. "I am sorry that my insecurities have upset you. I want us to be friends. Perhaps, after all this mess is over. Perhaps I will go have that conversation with him. I'm not sure about the rules concerning visitors, but you are welcome to join me as far as you are allowed to go."

Speaking of the visit to heaven reminded her of something. "Oh, before I forget, honey." Speaking to Kahn. "We need to take a trip within the next few weeks. We need to go see your daughter-in-law, make sure she's 'enjoying' her stay." She knew that technicaly it was her daughter-in-law, and his step daughter-in-law. But just like all parents did, they always playfully passed the kids off on the other parent when they had missbehaved.

[Epiphany]

"It's not your insecurities Venis, but other...things. Simply because we are different does not mean that we cannot coexist." If she wasn't able to coexist with people, then she wouldn't be here in the first place. Epiphany settled to making herself calm and balancing herself out for she wouldn't be able to help if she was a torrent on the inside.

"And talking to you, like this, with what you said, makes me remember one that I should forget."

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