Re: What Is a God? [Mazda, Cyrus, Arcadia, Helle, Shirohime]

Fri Apr 09, 2021 7:30 pm

What Is a God? [Mazda, Cyrus, Arcadia, Helle, Shirohime] - Page 2 3SJ4LLH

AHURA MAZDA

Every angry word which left Helle's mouth was but music to Mazda's ears, such passion and such fire..! It was so tremendously beautiful, such that any actual wound he might have taken by merit of feeling insulted or belittled by her words was wholly inconsequential. And, beside, Shirohime so eloquently and succinctly made clear that she understood him quite well. Mazda would have expected nothing less.

"It is as Shirohime has spoken, my dear. In his weakness he has succumbed to the need to once more carry all suffering upon his own shoulders, and yet in the process, what has he done but cast them onto me? It is quite pathetic, more than anything else. A failure on his behalf, spurred merely by the loss of Ahura Mitra."

Mazda gently toyed with a strand of Helle's hair, not actually doing much to necessarily calm her, but clearly concerned with her beyond merely appeasing her.

"It is for the best. He is too fragile, too weak to achieve those aims that we have set out. You may both rest assured that I will do as I have sworn to you. To once more make this world into a place where the boundaries of life and death are not so fragile, to restore the natural order that has been taken away. It is the duty of a god to give the very best for the people, and I will do this without hesitation."

He leaned down to give Helle a kiss on the forehead, then, and then did much the same for Shirohime. Any sense that this may not have been an appropriate action was completely absent. It was, after all, simply a display of his affection for them both. Nothing more, and nothing less.

"I will not abandon your guidance as Kouroush has. My creation may well have been a mistake, but I will not allow my existence to follow suit."

END POST | OMNIPOTENCE GIVEN FORM

Fri Apr 09, 2021 11:20 pm

What Is a God? [Mazda, Cyrus, Arcadia, Helle, Shirohime] - Page 2 ZnehDGG

Helle Armstrong

“A failure? Do not refer to my Liege as a failure. He is many things: stupid, rash, unbelievable selfish, and an asshole. But, he is not a failure.”

She wants to scream. She doesn’t want this. No. His affection, if she even dares to refer to it as that, feels wrong. She doesn’t want his lips on his head. She doesn’t want to watch him do the same to the woman beside her. No. Her heart twisted and churned as he did so. Oh, why must her knees quiver, her body demanding she accepts him. However, her mind shall not be belittled by pathetic attempts at winning her over.

“You guys just don’t understand. This isn’t about what’s for the best or about saving the world right now. You’re all being stupid, blinded by your own goals. I didn’t care if my Liege was weak. I didn’t care if he couldn’t achieve his goals as he was. That is what made it all the more appealing to stand by his side, not only as a Quincy but as the woman who he gave his heart to and who gave her heart to him. This isn’t about achieving dreams, but it was all about chasing after them. I wanted to be beside him during his ups and his downs. Changing the world? Returning it back to what you call its natural state? The end that you seek…”

She shook her head, appalled. Her eyes could not fight back the tears that began streaming down her cheeks. It’s harder to breath. Her chest hurts. It’s not just her emotions, but her heart is unhappy. The stress of this situation is too much.

“People pray to some higher being, but that being isn’t supposed to be real. You want to return the world to some natural order when everything about you is all but natural… The world isn’t supposed to be moved by the whim of one man but by the collective dreams of everyone that exist.”

Sat Apr 10, 2021 9:03 am

SHIROHIME

The sound of unrequited love, it really brought back memories from an older time. So far distant were those memories though that they couldn't move her in her stance. Shirohime felt pity and sympathy but she couldn't truly rectify this situation and had she known Cyrus had intention to do this, she wouldn't have likely intervened either. It is as she had told him in that cave and his choice to continue down that path meant she had no right to deviate him from it.

"Don't you act like I don't know anything."

She hissed it out, how many years did she chase dreams with him, if only to be by his side and protect what mattered in her little world. How long did she go through event after event? Endure humiliation, enjoy protection, suffer distress and captivity? Where did chasing dreams rather than achieving them get her? Right here, standing before a being who was created of another man's hubris and a woman who had her first heartbreak in a dying body and rotting spirit.

"How can you say this when the very situation you describe is exactly what has lead us here!!"

There was a cough and then blood dripping down her lip but she continued anyway to Helle.

"One man's action is the reason why everyone sufferred through this shift of the world in the first place! Watching the world shift, watching everything you gave so much to protect turn to ash and to see people who had no need to know what went on in those other worlds struggle to accept it. You act like sheep can do anything together, you're wrong. It has always and will continue to be a small amount of people in the world that can make a difference!"

She hacked and coughed, struggling to keep breathing while her knees gave out under her weight and she tried to keep herself from falling over with Helle as a support. This pain, she hated it. It wasn't because it hurt her, it reminded her of everything she had failed to do and everything she could never have.

"I'm sorry, Helle. I shouldn't yell at you."

Shirohime croaked the last bit out before settling in her spot and dropping her head. She was crying, though she discern whether it was from her body's pain or her heart's.

THAT FORGOTTEN WORLD, THOSE FORGOTTEN MEMORIES | END POST

Sat Apr 10, 2021 10:21 am

AHURA MAZDA

Ah, they were both brought to tears by the depths of their pain. How lamentable, that they had been brought to such a state through the actions of one man.

"My heart, Helle, still lies with you. Even in the pursuit of this ideal world, my love for you will of course never falter. This mere change in my form has not altered the depths of my affection for you, of the place you hold in my heart."

And then, of course, Mazda gave both of them a supportive embrace. If they were in pain, it was only proper that he console them, yes?

"Shirohime is correct. The actions of few have dictate the lives of the people, and such a tragedy must continue for a while longer yet. But my works are for their sake, in their name. I act where those countless innocents cannot, and I seek peace for the sake of they who cannot achieve it by their own hands. Those dreams of the downtrodden are my purpose."

END POST | OMNIPOTENCE GIVEN FORM

Sat Apr 10, 2021 10:52 am

Helle Armstrong

“It is an endless cycle. One man ends the world. The other attempts to save it. In the end, one is dead and the other is soon to join him. One created a country, a desire to unite people, but he relied only on himself, waiting until he was consumed to repent. Now, we stand here, one who willingly allowed himself to be consumed before us. You’re asking me to believe that you are the one to save this world. I cannot. I told Cyrus that I wished to live beside the common folk, not over them. If life is only perfect when dictated by the whim of a single person, then I am fine with my imperfect world. It is not the sheep that are incapable. It is the shepherds.”

Her arm moved around Shirohime, holding the woman by her side. Tears, drying on her face as more refused to fall, began to swell her eyes again. However, she wipes away at them before they proved unbearable. That perfect picture is supposed to be impossible. That’s the whole point. She never wanted to create the ideal world. She wanted to create a world that was close enough, not just for her to enjoy, but for everyone else who exists to enjoy. It is foolish, idealistic, and childish at best, but what’s wrong with that? The sudden arms around her did not stir her from her sorrowful thoughts. As much comfort and familiarity they brought, Ahura Mazda is a stranger to her, a Cyrus incapable of being Cyrus. But, that’s the problem, isn’t it? The Cyrus she had fallen for isn’t even Cyrus but a remnant of a man who had already cast aside his humanity.

“Who are the downtrodden? For whose sake do you move for? The people will no doubt sing praises for the one who herald a new beginning, but then, they truly shall become nothing but lame sheep. I will stand by your side. I will not abandon Cyrus nor any facet of him. It is all that is left for me. If you are to be God, I shall be a humble maiden who hands are capable of understanding both the Earth and Ahura Mazda.”

She didn’t want to, but she required it, the comfort that his warmth brought. She hates herself, hates him, hates the woman he’s also cherishing. How could he allow such sweet ichor to dribble from his lips while disregarding her gentle heart? This is true cruelty, but she cannot go on any longer in such a manner. Her heart is hurting. In fact, she is having a heart attack. Pain, shaking her body, originating from her chest. She is suddenly hot with blistering sweat on her face. With a gasp, her body tightens before going limp against the two of them.

Sun Apr 11, 2021 3:57 pm

SHIROHIME

She wheezed, Shirohime wasn't doing this for an ideal world. She wasn't doing it for some divine salvation for the people, just return the world to how it was. The old world was never perfect, why did Helle think it was? Crime and corruption was everywhere, just without all that spiritual power to do as it did now. Where the shift of power went from everyone being on the same level of power with small exceptions, to everyone having all these esoteric powers. Shirohime couldn't say her upbringing was nice, it was only her and her brother. Their parents never did anything for them.

It hurt to say all that though, to try and explain. She just wanted to pass out and sleep, go to sleep and not wake up. A release from the pain- No. Not until it was all done, she'd reject her fate again and again. As many times as she needed to finish her goal before she passed away like a candle that was snuffed out.

Should she help Helle? Should she use that power? The Seiran disguise was only so useful to hide it's true nature and it hurt to do. Mazda could handle it. She might loathe Arcadia for what she had done, but Shirohime had to contemplate whether or not this was the ideal route to that goal.

THAT FORGOTTEN WORLD, THOSE FORGOTTEN MEMORIES | END POST

Sun Apr 11, 2021 5:37 pm

AHURA MAZDA

Whatever rebuttal Mazda might have made toward Helle was promptly sealed away for the moment. Her health was paramount, and he certainly would not allow his beloved any pain or injury. The moment that Helle fell limp, he lifted her into one arm, the other taking Shirohime to keep her from needing to take even one more step.

Ｙａｓｒａ　ｒｈｅｍｅａｓ　ｉｉｉｏｎ．

And then, they were within the medical wing, as if they had never been anywhere else. Mazda laid the two into separate beds, and spoke authoritatively to the rather surprised staff.

"Give your fullest attention to Helle, immediately. Do not interfere with Shirohime--she requires rest, nothing more."

While thoughts of Helle's words still swirled in Mazda's head, it was inconsequential in the moment. Her mind could be changed through discourse, through persuasion, but her life was a precious and fragile thing. One ultimately was paramount over the other.

END POST | OMNIPOTENCE GIVEN FORM