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Post by Midori on Sept 30, 2017 18:53:30 GMT -6
Life in the village was quiet. The leaves of the trees were starting to fade, the days were getting shorter, and slowly becoming colder. Midori was forced to sleep with an extra blanket over her bedroll. As her sleeping area was usually the one that was furthest away from the fire. The farms would soon be harvested and the surplus foods to be prepared for storage. Crops that could survive the harshness of winter would be planted as a sort of emergency crop.
But, life for Midori was the same as it had ever been. Her duties shifted between tending to the people, domestic responsibilities, and her priestly training. Today's was a day of training or rather one of lecture. Lectures were something she had a bit of a fondness for. They were welcome breaks in between the sometimes rigorous training of a priestess. They were also something had become quite rare in her day to day life. She had learned much in her time among the clergy and soon that training would come to an end. Soon she would be a full fledged priestess of her tribe. Her responsibilities to her people would increase tremendously.
The group of priests and priestesses who were of her rank gathered together. The elders would guide them to a restricted section of their shrine. One where they kept the most sacred of relics. Today they would learn the art in properly caring and maintaining these holy relics. These relics were some of the oldest and objects in the tribe's possessions. Most of which were what would be considered trinkets. A few pieces of jewelry. An old sword. A mirror. A large gem stone. A sacred bow. And a holy staff. These objects required monthly maintenance. Dusting, polishing, varnish, record keeping, so on and so fourth.
But first the group would need to learn and study the who's, what, and why's were these objects were important. What significant history did these objects play in the role of the Chaklai. Which meant that the group of trainees would spend the whole day ... and several other days learning the intricacies of the relics. The group of trainees were told to prepare themselves both physically and mentally for the lectures ahead. They would spend the next week or so in a combination of lecture and meditation. One must be spiritually prepared to handle the relics at least that's what the elders kept on saying. Even though Midori had reason to believe that the spiritual properties of these relics were lost due to time. But, there was the possibility that these relics still held some sort of ancient power. Some sort of dormant spirit that must be treated with the utmost respect, lest they be offended and put a curse on the whole village. That was the last thing that village needed.
The pink haired priestess sighed a bit as she returned to her quarters. She wasn't quite sure what to make of the whole thing. Yes she was glad to be given a break for the more domestic aspect of her life in favor of lectures. Actually, she would take just about anything over sitting in-front of the loom.
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Post by Midori on Nov 15, 2017 20:17:51 GMT -6
The weeks leading up to the actual relic keeping were grueling. She spent days learning the history of each individual item as it was written in the scripture. Days learning about what tools were used for each little thing. And then the daily ritual one must keep in order to be pure enough to handle such a responsibility. The daily climb up the cliff side to the local little waterfall for a purification ritual was enough to almost have her quit the gig altogether. She broke so many sandals, was bitten by many bugs, and healed so many twisted ankles. The water was always cold. And the clothes that one had to climb back into felt so very thin. There were many in her company that succumbed to cold. The elders didn't want anyone sneezing, sniveling, or dribbling over any of their priceless religious artifacts. And those that showed signs of illness were quarantined until further notice.
Midori hated every moment of it! But, the ancestors were cruel in their ways, it was thanks to them that she managed to do the impossible. She managed to overcome all of the trials that came her way. She didn't get sick a9mostly due to Lady Lucy's guidance). She passed her lessons in scripture. She grew accustomed to the daily hike. She grew used to the diet and daily meditation. It was as if the gods were grooming her and two others into doing this sacred duty. Part of her wished she had gotten a cold, or failed a scripture, or fall asleep during meditation. SOMETHING to deem her unworthy of being an over glorified janitor to the artifacts. The pink haired priestess knew this sort of wanting was bad but it didn't stop her from thinking about it. She missed her previous routine. She missed her walks around the village and helping out the people. She missed Skai and his kids. She missed the innkeeper and his fish ball soup. She missed riding outside the village walls and talking to the farmers. She even missed the loom, slightly. She missed Ashes! With all the new training she was forced to keep her visit to the stables at a bare minimum. Lady Lucy, Skai, and several stable boys all took turns looking after the priestess' horse. And in the private moments where she was truly alone, the priestess let out her frustrations in the purest form possible. She ould scream and cry into a thick pillow until she went to sleep. And then repeat the torturous routine all over again.
Her dreams had gotten strange. At first, she was too exhausted to put any real thought into them. But, as she grew accustomed to the routine, she started to remember bits and pieces of her dreams. Sometimes it involved her doing what she wanted. Walking down the fields out towards the people. Other times it involved flying. Nightmares involved repeating the day's events albeit with some strangeness. But, there was one dream that kept repeating. She didn't have it daily. But, when she did have it, she remembered it profoundly. She remembered standing in front of a large crowd. Her arms held out in front of her as if she was giving a speech. Her sleeves were of a cloth she didn't recognize. Next to her was a man in white. The man's face was always blurred away, but his robes were something similar to what the elders wore. Then the scene would change. She would be crawling through a dark tunnel. She assumed it was a tunnel as she could see the outline of rocks and dirt along the walls. Something she assumed to be a tunnel into the mountains, which littered the area further above the shrine. She was walking alongside a person. The person who had the sleeves that she did not recognize. But she wasn't viewing the world as him this time. Instead, she was leading him into the tunnel. She could see that she held his hand. Her hands were tiny like a child's. And that they.. were both hurt. The man with the strange clothes says something but she can't make out the words. His face is blurred out like the man in the holy clothes. They were led into an open space. A clearing in the mountain? She couldn't quite understand. But, the area is pure. Clean. Untouched. The sun shines down upon this place. And the grass is green. She could hear water but cannot see it. But the hurt man hands her a stone. He smiles and walks to the middle of the clearing then falls. The world goes dark.
Sometimes she'd wake up at this point. But, some nights she sleeps through to watch the second half of the dream. She's in the same clearing again. But this time there's a young tree in the place where the man fell down. A small shrine rests in front of the tree. The stone rests in the middle of the shrine. It's shiny and green and tear shaped. She would also notice that her hands were different. They were older. Paler. And she could see the liver spots on bits of her arms. She assumed that lots of time must have passed since the day the man fell down. Then she'd wake up for real.
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Post by Midori on Nov 20, 2017 20:50:11 GMT -6
The days continued on. And on. And on. And the dreams persisted. It didn't click that these dreams she had were glimpses. Glimpses into the former lives of the items she was tasked to maintain. Before they became holy relics. Back when they were still bits and pieces of other things. A part of a necklace that became a charm. A stone that was crushed to become the stained orb that aligned the staff. She witnessed glimpses of the lives of the people who wore, used, and built the holy relics. People who lived peaceful lives. People who had died in fire and war. People who were loved by the masses. And others who remained hermits their whole lives. Innocent people. Murders. The lives of those touched by the relics were diverse and intense. She'd wake many times throughout the night sometimes in a cold sweat. Other times in shock. And some nights she woke up crying.
At first, she thought herself cursed. Some sort of foul demon had taken hold of her dreams and forced her to watch the lives of the past. She redoubled her efforts to keep herself purified. She fasted when she could. Prayed to the earth mother and father sky. She prayed to her ancestors to protect her and rid her of these dreams. And the people around her took notice. She had steadily gotten paler. And she would often time look weak. When questioned by the elders as to why the sudden shift in demeanor, she spoke the truth. She told them of her dreams. The elder ones seemed to be confused at first. They deliberated amongst themselves as to what sort of purpose this held. The more she described the dreams the more disturbed they became. The one dream with the man and the tree struck them particularly hard. She was not the only one of the relic keepers to report strange dreams. However, she was the first to report the dreams in detail. Details that matched up with a few bits of scripture that remained out of the lectures.
They decided to lighten everyone's load. An elder would include themselves in supervising the relic keepers in training. They were trained to maintain the relics so they could help out with other duties that would have otherwise burdened everyone else's shoulders. The elders worked in shifts. One for each day of the week. They purified themselves and followed the exact same rituals needed to become one of the relic keepers. Another day. Another week. Another month.
"Hey Midori. Happy birthday!" Midori looked at the small handwritten card that had found its way into her room. She recognized it to be Skai's writing and smiled softly. In all of the training, she had forgotten that the season had started to change. And today was the first day of spring. Her birthday. She remembered that Lady Lucy and Skai would find a way to whisk her away for the day and let her do whatever she wanted. Which mostly involved taking a small ride through the country and returning to town to ambush the inn for their special of the day. She felt a little sad that she wouldn't be able to do that this year. Maybe they could find a day to make it up. She pocketed the card and returned to her daily duties.
She purified herself in the usual manner. Ate a light meal. Prayed. Gathered the supplies. And set about cleaning the relics. It was just her and the elder today. The other two relic keepers had duties elsewhere. The pink haired priestess kneeled in front of the shrine where the relics were kept. Prayed and waited for the elder to open the shrine doors. She tilted her head back up and caught a glimpse of herself reflected in the orb of the holy staff. She felt something. Something inside her head that felt like a bolt, it was very brief, but it felt very strong. She held her head lightly once she managed to pull herself back up to her feet.
"Midori? You alright?" The elder with the bald head spoke.
"I.. think... I got up too fast."
"Midori?" The elder spoke again. This time with some concern in his voice. Midori couldn't see it herself, but she was pale. Her vision grew dark. She heard the elder call out her name again. But, it sounded like something far away in the distance.
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Post by Midori on Dec 30, 2017 15:46:10 GMT -6
Darkness. Darkness as far as the eye could see. She felt lost in it for a while. But, then there was a voice, and then a light. The voice spoke to her, like that of an old woman, like that of a grandmother.
"Child.."
"Huh?"
"Child.. I'm sorry. But this.. was the only way to speak.."
"I don't.."
"There isn't.. much time. Child. Please ... take me with you.."
She felt something on her shoulders. But the pink-haired priestess couldn't turn to see who it was.
"Who?"
"I am Kiseki. Child. The staff of miracles."
"But that would.."
"There is not much time.." The voice trailed away into the dark. New voices came to assault her ears. She heard her name. She knew this voice. The priest she was with. The pink haired priestess opened her eyes and saw herself looking up at the bald man. She was on her back.
"What happened?"
"I don't know you.. just suddenly collapsed."
Midori shook her head lightly. She knew what this meant. This would mean that she would be locked away in quarantine for a few days in order to recover. It could also mean the end of her visits to the shrine and the job of tending to the sacred relics. She looked up and out towards the shrine relics. To the staff that hung there. The staff of her people. The staff of blessings and miracles. The staff that cried out to her to be taken away from this place. If she touched the staff outside of her sacred duty she could be punished or excommunicated out of her priesthood. But, that staff, Kiseki, it wanted to see the world.
The priestess pulled herself up. She still felt incredibly dizzy. The elder priest had to help her stand as she was starting to sway. A few other folks started to show up due to the commotion. Midori did her best to keep herself balanced. She grabbed the staff from its mount in the wall and held it. She closed her eyes and had to put her faith in the trust in the voice. Kiseki.. please.
"Midori what are you doing?"
"It spoke to me."
"Has the training driven you mad? Put it back!"
"No! L-let me.. take it."
"This is a serious offense Midori. The sacred relic must be preserved and enshrined. Removing it would an ill omen among our people!"
"I just want to help Kiseki." Upon hearing its own name the tear-shaped gem lit up. The staff glowed with a bright and powerful light that enveloped the whole room. Most shielded their eyes to avoid being blinded. But, to those who braved the light to see could see a swirl of green light pulsating around Midori. And all those who had felt the light felt the blessing of the staff's healing magic. The barrier that was put in place over her body. And then the sudden collapse of the young maiden. The light dimmed and the world came back into view. Midori still had the staff gripped in her hands.
Thank you, Child. The voice spoke.
Midori was taken to her quarters. She was placed under house arrest while the council of elders would spend the next few days deciding her fate. The scripture had a history of this sort of phenomenon. Tales of the staff calling out to people in the Chaklai history. The third saint. Who used the holy staff to heal and protect the people from a group of marauders. The staff in its early days was passed down from saint to saint then down to elders. Sometimes the staff responded to them, sometimes they didn't. And to those that it DID respond to, it was usually used to help masses of people through a calamity. The last known priest to use the sacred staff was Kai, a monk who lived three hundred years ago, chosen by the staff to defend the people from a landslide. The council spent days discussing what should be done.
"She spoke its name." One of the witnesses spoke.
"The staff has not chosen a person since the era of Kai. Perhaps, this is a sign." Another voice.
"The world is engrossed in great turmoil. Wars to the north and east of us. Monsters roam the lands. Perhaps it had sensed something of this world and rose from its slumber to answer it." A third voice.
"It is still with her in her room. She refuses to let it go." The first voice spoke.
"When force is used the staff responds by encasing her in a bubble. Albeit a brief bubble.. but Those that confront her in the bubble.. they.. lose the will to get the staff away from her. We cannot deny these facts." An elderly voice spoke.
"But, there isn't anything special about her! She is not the descendant of our great spiritual leaders. She is not an elder in council. Why would it choose a relatively.. normal civilian rather than one of us?" A new voice.
"It is not for us to judge. The staff has picked her. And it's responding to her. It protects her. These are all for a reason. We must let her take the staff with her. And wait for its moment to defend the people." The third voice spoke again.
"Removing the staff would bring about death to the people. The reason there have been no calamities or disasters in the last three centuries was due to us enshrining the thing." The new voice spoke again.
"We do not know that. And the shrine is full of other holy relics. We have grown too complacent on the blessings of the holy staff. We are holy men and women. We have the power to make up for the blessing the staff gave us. So long as the holy gem remains undamaged the holy relic will be returned to us in time." The first voice spoke again.
"What do we do?" A younger voice.
"We let Midori take the holy relic with her. Let her figure out why it responded to her. As it did to Kai. As it did to Leydi and as it did to so many others before us." --
Midori spent five days locked away in her room. She was given food, water, and a bucket for her necessities. She prayed and meditated deeply in between her meals. She was afraid for her life. She never once disobeyed the scriptures to this extent. She knew this sort of betrayal usually meant death. She didn't want to die. She hoped for an exile. Instead. The staff, Kiseki, did not respond to her in all that time. She suspected it was tired from suddenly having to summon its protective bubble to defend Midori that one time those guards came in. She was summoned to the council of elders and informed of her fate. Kiseki came with her, just in case.
"Midori, in light of these events we are both disappointed and confused by your actions. You are not known for acting out against the scripture and law of the priesthood. Yet, we cannot deny the events that had happened. The staff responds to you. It chose to protect you. And you have heard it. We must honor its wishes and have it go with you."
"You will be returned to your regular duties. Though you must stay within the temple grounds for the rest of the season. You will return to your regular duties in town afterward." --
A season passed. The world of fall and winter faded away into the warmth and color of the springtime. After several long months away from the people, Midori was finally returned to the people. The first thing she did was talk to Lady Lucy, Skai, and then she rushed back to her horse Ashes. She'd been away from the animal for months. She groomed the beast and spoke to it all of the things that had befallen her over the fall and winter. And for the first time in a while, she felt like she was back to her old life. She just had to hope that her old life would be enough excitement for the old staff to take.
End Thread.
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