Flowers of Heaven II: Star of Bethlehem

[rosetograce]

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…? ]

Comments

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[heavyliesthecrown]

A giant chess board...?

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[bondsofsuffering]

That's right. The tiles actually form a chessboard, down to the number of rows.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[heavyliesthecrown]

Just what is this place supposed to be? Giant chess? Fufu... well, I don't imagine it to be anything like wizard's chess.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[bondsofsuffering]

My guess is something more like... angel versus demon chess.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[heavyliesthecrown]

Have you noticed how this place doesn't feel quite...

[ Hmm. How to explain. ]

How everything feels like a metaphor?

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[bondsofsuffering]

That's not surprising. I'm starting to think that's just how heaven or heaven-inspired stuff operates.

Ah... Maybe I should give you a heads up for the upcoming game.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[heavyliesthecrown]

You have an idea of what will happen?

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[bondsofsuffering]

If I'm right, we're all about to end up with our souls tied to two flowers. And then, we're going to have to decide which ones to burn - even if that means burning up our souls.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[heavyliesthecrown]

W-Wait...

Burning up our souls!?

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[bondsofsuffering]

Mm-hm.

It won't kill us, but needless to say it's going to suck if one of your flowers gets burned and you aren't safe from it.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[heavyliesthecrown]

. . . I'd like to avoid that as much as possible.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[bondsofsuffering]

Then play carefully with which flowers you decide to protect.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[heavyliesthecrown]

I will be careful. Please do the same. I would like it if you are safe once we reach curtain call.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[bondsofsuffering]

I always try to protect myself and sensitIV, so worry about yourself instead.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[heavyliesthecrown]

I worry over many. But I will do my best to protect myself, naturally.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[bondsofsuffering]

Then you better be in one piece still by the time this game is over, got it?

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[heavyliesthecrown]

Most my unit only thinks with their muscles, but-- I shall do my best.

Re: EXPLORE THE COURTYARD?

[bondsofsuffering]

You guys do mostly have jocks, huh...