imeeji_frontstage | Flowers of Heaven II: Star of Bethlehem

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Flowers of Heaven II: Star of Bethlehem

Who: lost(?) idols
Where: ???? a mysterious courtyard
When: day 490

[ You awaken to the feeling of cool stone at your back, and a night sky overhead.

All around is a courtyard—a wide circle of marble tile, alternating black and white, interspersed with stone benches and flowerbeds and ornamental trees, all lit by the lambent gleam of strangely vivid starlight.

It is beautiful. And it is decaying. The stone is cracked; the flowers wild and overflowing between the cracked stone; the trees bent and twisted with age, the ground around them littered with fallen fruit. There is a fountain in the center of this space, but it too is broken-down: the water sits stagnant, and nothing remains of the design except a basin and the shattered base of a once-golden sculpture.

—And surrounding it all are not walls, but dense mounds of kudzu, climbing over itself until it towers as high as any watchtower.

How did you get here?
The last thing you vaguely recall is a sudden fit of drowsiness. There’s no sign of any guide or host around, and your powers don’t currently work either. In fact, if you have any corruptions, whether mental or physical, they too are … gone? No, perhaps that's not quite it; you can still feel them—faint, like a phantom limb. Invisible, and unable to affect you.
But there is one notable exception to the rule: all wings, corruption-induced or not, remain in place, as natural as the starlight.

There are other idols around you, all waking up the same way. Is this meant to be some kind of game…? ]

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Not obviously dangerous, but be careful, okay?

-- I'm not sure if it matters, but my head is buzzing a little. Is it just me?

No, I'm okay.

[ But that definitely doesn't sound right. ]

Should we stop and rest a minute?

[ There are two paths in front of them--one that starts at the top of a staircase, spiraling down. And another where the path beneath your feet immediately becomes overgrown with moss, ferns, and wildflowers. ]

No, it's not unpleasant. Lupine pointed out that our corruptions are gone, so that's probably why.

If you want to go, I'm with you.

All right--if you're sure.

[ She needs to ask about those... But first. ]

Which way?

[ She gestures to the staircase and to the floral path. ]

It might not be safe to split up.

In these games usually the harder path is the better one -- or rather, the obvious path is full of horrible traps. So at the risk of being really stupid, I'd say the covered one.

-- And sorry in advance if this backfires.

Don't apologize. We can't know what's on the other side until we get there.

[ Walking forwarding down the moss-covered path ]

If it backfires, we'll handle it together.

That's right. [ It is nice to be with someone she's starting to really trust. ]

Then I'm all for heading on.

What do you think all of this... gold is?

[ She runs her fingers experimentally over one of the leaves as they're walking to see if it actually lifts off. ]

I'm not sure. My guts says a symbol of some sort of blessing or the like -- but it's decaying. So not a great feeling, overall.

A blessing in hell?

[ That's a strange combination. But now that she thinks about it, it sounds right, however far-fetched. ]

... Do you think we're actually still in hell?

[ along the moss-covered path—the gold leaf stays on the leaves, as she swipes her fingers along them. the vines are crisp and green, and feel a little more orderly—less overgrown. it's a proper garden.

ahead, there's something like a courtyard, or a clearing, maybe—a singular tree standing in the middle of it, surrounded by a modest smattering of flowers in whites and yellows. ]

[ Hmm, a clearing. This looks a little less ominous, but that could mean anything. ]

I think we are. They're just messing with our heads, probably. But this is a bit more of a calming place than the last courtyard.

[ There's something—blink and you could miss it. But was that movement, up ahead? ]

It's a strange choice, isn't it? Melancholy and not a single monster in si--

[ She's starting to approach the tree to inspect it--when there's that flash of movement ]

--Did you see that?

Sure did. [ If they could do so, her eyes would be glowing red ]

Should we follow it?

[ The tree looks—healthy, and vibrant with life; in fact, everything in this clearing does. The branches hang with a few ripe fruits with a bright golden sheen to them, and the air feels crisp.

and, also— ]

[ there's. a person there? or, rather, she looks like a person, although she's not one you've seen before. and, furthermore, she has two large, white feathery wings protruding from her back as she inspects the gardening here. ]

—you're here!

[ It was just the gardener? ]

Were you expecting us?

[ She looks over to Aliza. Does she know this woman??? ]

[ Aliza looks over to Lumine and shrugs slightly. No idea who this person is, but she doesn't seem all that surprised that she seems to know them. And then she waits for an answer to Lumine's question. ]

For my gratefulness to you—not in the specific, of course! But to you and your forebears, blessings, for by your generosity and sacrifices this one has been saved.

Truth be told, this one wasn't sure if it would still work, things being as they are.

[ this is both a lot and also nothing, being as ambiguous as it is. the more she hears the less she understands. ]

Our generosity and sacrifices? What did we save you from exactly?

[ Hmm. Maybe they're not in hell anymore. Interesting (but terrifying, because what about the people who aren't here?!) ]

Perhaps you could help us, in return?

"I once was lost, but now am found—" this one believes the saying goes. Those who have lost Grace may yet regain it, but with difficulty. There may yet be new purpose—

...and there is much work to be done, and few hands to do it. Therefore, this one must ask for the help of your fellows again, that your triumph over the Enemy's designs may be repeated intentionally. This one can only sustain a small portion of the garden, but—if we are successful, perhaps there may yet be a miracle.

What exactly is it that we need to do to help keep the garden alive?

[ And is it really a good thing? She's suspicious. ]

It is an old and holy magic—a ritual of purification. Without the One Most High...

[ there's a brief moment of extra solemnity across her face. ]

...well. There's no changing that now. But if the True Heaven is to have any chance of returning...

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