Seeking Guidance From the Moonlady - Mordular - Sam 26th MT

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Seeking Guidance From the Moonlady - Mordular - Sam 26th MT

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This temple of course lays at the bottom of the Gulanadur, on the Temple Teir. It is the largest of temples, not out of pride, but out of need. The Moonlady is a popular diety in Gulanadur.

However, the builders did not let the notion cross their mind of letting functionality get in the way of beauty.

The temple itself is a shallow, hallow mound, from above, it looks like a disc, or more accurately, the moon. The entrance is actaully several feet in front of the disc, and it leads underground for a few paces, so that no doorways, effect the beauty of this perfect circle.

After walking down the short underground hallway, one is met with a myriad of mirrors that decorate the walls, and ceciling. Bioluminiscent fungi lights this place of worship, and it's reflection off the hundreds of mirrors is sight to behold.

---

A young priestess dressed in the shimmering silver robes of the Moonlady smiled at Mordular as he approached. "Welcome home, brother." She greeted him. Dipping a silver ladle into a font of water, she poured out a drink into a stone cup and offered it to him. "Please, refresh yourself." After waiting a few flickers for Mordular to drink or not, she asked, "What can we do for you, brother?"
[size=100]
Donald heard a mermaid sing, Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known, I've had to make myself.

Shel Silverstein[/size]
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Re: Seeking Guidance From the Moonlady - Mordular - Sam 26th

Post by Guest »

Tristam wrote:
---

A young priestess dressed in the shimmering silver robes of the Moonlady smiled at Mordular as he approached. "Welcome home, brother." She greeted him. Dipping a silver ladle into a font of water, she poured out a drink into a stone cup and offered it to him. "Please, refresh yourself." After waiting a few flickers for Mordular to drink or not, she asked, "What can we do for you, brother?"


Mordular reverently took the stone cup from the priestess. Taking a moderate sip of water, certainly more than a perfunctory one, he brought the cup low into his hands. His eyes did not quite meet the priestess', the lowering of his head meant that his eyes focused on a spot somewhere on her neck.

"Thank you for the welcome and the gift of water." Mordular began, his eyes slowly tracking upwards as he gained the confidence to face her fully. "I have come." Mordular paused, raised the cup to his lips and took another sip of the water, and lowered it again. This time, his eyes raised to meet the Priestess'. "I have come seeking counsel as to the path my life has taken, from those closer to the Lady than I. Such closeness might allow them to see with a greater light the tunnels and caverns that I traverse with but a smaller one."

Mordular lowered his eyes slightly again, to the spot on the Priestess' neck he so intently studied before.
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Post by Tristam »

The priestess nodded in understanding. "You wish the light of the Moonlady to guide your footsteps. Many have come in the recent days seeking such advice. The Great Ascent has many struggling to decide how they may best serve the Moonlady and our people."

The priestess held out her hand for the cup and replaced it on the font. "Come with me, brother. I shall bring you to Sister Lilandra. She has offered much wisdom in this time of uncertainty." Mordular has heard the name Lilandra. She was once a high ranking member of noble house Ach-Lunari before giving up all her wealth and position to serve the Moonlady.

The priestess led Mordular to a quiet meditation room off of the main temple. It was a circular room around a round pool all in soothing white marble. "Please wait here, brother. I shall seek out Sister Lilandra for you."

Several burns later, a second priestess entered wearing white robes hemmed in silver threads. Her hair was the white of ivory drawn back in a ponytail and held in place by a simple bone clip. She had a quiet grace about her and slipped onto the bench beside him.

"Be welcome to the house of the Moonlady brother." She greeted him in a rich cultured voice. "I am Sister Lilandra and I am told you seek guidance, scion of D`Altamooriana. Please, speak your mind."
Last edited by Tristam on Fri Jan 13, 2006 2:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
[size=100]
Donald heard a mermaid sing, Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known, I've had to make myself.

Shel Silverstein[/size]
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Post by Guest »

Tristam wrote:The priestess nodded in understanding. "You wish the light of the Moonlady to guide your footsteps. Many have come in the recent days seeking such advice. The Great Ascent has many struggling to decide how they may best serve the Moonlady and our people."

"Yes" Mordular bowed his head. "That is the right action of it."
Tristam wrote:
The priestess held out her hand for the cup and replaced it on the font. "Come with me, brother. I shall bring you to Sister Lilandra. She has offered much wisdom in this time of uncertainty." Mordular has heard the name Lilandra. She was once a high ranking member of noble house Ach-Lunari before giving up all her wealth and position to serve the Moonlady.

"The name is familiar to me, though I have not had the honor of meeting here ere this." Mordular replied.

Tristam wrote:
The priestess led Mordular to a quiet meditation room off of the main temple. It was a circular room around a round pool all in soothing white marble. "Please wait here, brother. I shall seek out Sister Lilandra for you."

Several burns later, a second priestess entered wearing white robes hemmed in silver threads. Her hair was the white of ivory drawn back in a ponytail and held in place by a simple bone clip. She had a quiet grace about her and slipped onto the bench beside him.

"Be welcome to the house of the Moonlady brother." She greeted him in a rich cultured voice. "I am Sister Lilandra and I am told you seek guidance, scion of D`Altamooriana. Please, speak your mind."


Mordular paused a moment, looking down, away from Lilandra as he had done the younger priestess upon similarly meeting her. Finally he looked up at her.

"I do." Mordular began. Without the prop of a cup this time, Mordular had no excuse but to continue to look at Lilandra, and continued to speak. His words, when they finally began, spoke a little quickly, as if afraid to hold them back any longer.

"For several Yahren now, I have been working toward the first steps of a goal that has molded and forged the blade of my life. My lady, in my desire and wish to become a Dark Knight on behalf of House and City, I have lost the shape of the cavern in staring at the small details of a nearby stalactite."

"I do not know any longer when to stop the preparation, and actually apply for the training itself. For all that I learn, for all that I train, I continually feel unprepared to apply."

"Can you help me reconcile my fears to myself?" Mordular asked.
Last edited by Guest on Sun Jan 15, 2006 4:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Tristam »

Lilandra smiled warmly at Mordular and leaned forward to take one of his hands in hers. "Not feeling worthy of the Moonlady's call to service is something I am very familiar with. It took yahren before I realized I simply needed to act and trust to the goddess."

"Tell me young Mordular. What is it that you fear if you should act now on your dream and fail? What is it that holds you back?" She asks quietly.
[size=100]
Donald heard a mermaid sing, Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known, I've had to make myself.

Shel Silverstein[/size]
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Mordular gratefully accepted Lilandra taking his hands. His hand was a little clammy and shaking slightly from fear.

"It is the shame of failure that I fear, Lady." Mordular said quietly. "I fear being turned away for lack of preparation, and my carefully built artifice of hopes and dreams smashed to the ground like a crystal dropped from a great height, irretrievably lost forever in shards and pieces."

"I fear what I should do, if that should come to pass." he finished.
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Post by Tristam »

"No goal should be built up so high that you fear to fall from that height." Lilandra said softly. "You can never succeed without risking failure. The key is to always learn from those failures, to learn how to avoid them in future, and to make recompense for them where you can." Lilandra smiled warmly at Mordular. "Moonlady knows that we are but mortal beings full of frailty. It is why She calls us to aid each other in all our times of need. Whether it be in the Dark Knights or elsewhere, the Moonlady will always find a place for a heart pledged to the welfare of her people." Lilandra assured him.

"However, I do not mean to discourage you from following your heart and your dreams." Lilandra continued in her soothing voice. "I know you are of good family. I presume your tutors and instructors have been of quality and that you have been a most diligent student. Might I suggest that your fears loom so large because you have no experiences of your own to compare them to?" Lilandra suggests. "You wish to test your worthiness." She concluded. "I may have a way for you to do so. If you are interested."
[size=100]
Donald heard a mermaid sing, Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known, I've had to make myself.

Shel Silverstein[/size]
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Mordular listened carefully and intently as Lilandra responded to him. He found himself nodding as she spoke and distilled her wisdom.

"Yes. I think you have found the geode in the center of my problem, my lady." Mordular finally responded once the priestess finished speaking.

"I lack external proof of my worthiness. Validation of what I've learned." He bowed his head. "I am interested in this test."

Mordular paused, and then met her eyes. "Please, Priestess, tell me more."
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Post by Tristam »

"What I offer you is not a mere test but a call for you to answer, a void that needs to be filled." Lilandra intoned formally. "You know of the Great Ascent." She stated. "Many of the best and the brightest of our people have flocked to the Queen's banner. Even here beds lie empty as priestesses follow those they wish to serve to the surface. But not all have gone." She smiled slightly.

"This is true in all the houses and all the faiths." Lilandra informed him. "Many stay behind hoping to seize advantage while the best and brightest are away and the Queen's attention is elsewhere and her forces are stretched thin. Even the Dark Knights are leaving barely enough to safely guard the Queen, never mind keep order in the city. So we of the Moonlady are doing what we thought we would not have to again for some time. We are taking up arms. We will defend those that cannot defend themselves." Lilandra looked deep into Mordular's eyes. "Will you be one of the Moonlady's Sentinels? Will you defend our people?"
[size=100]
Donald heard a mermaid sing, Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known, I've had to make myself.

Shel Silverstein[/size]
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"A Sentinel." A pensive look went over Mordular's face as he intoned the word. The term, the story of the Moonlady's Sentinels was not a very well known one to Mordular. Perhaps it was because of the rarity of the performance of their service.

And with so many going up to the surface...the need was a real one, Mordular thought. It would be no token job, this. It was necessary. Perhaps, too, it would be exactly what Mordular was craving, needing and wanting.

He lowered his head. "I will serve, my lady, in any capacity that my hands, heart and mind will allow me to do so, as a Sentinel."
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"Good." Lilandra smiled. "Very good. We have many who are eager but few that are trained. Your skills will prove most useful I feel sure. Now that you have joined our ranks perhaps you will share with me your opinion on how we should proceed."

"There are some that feel the Sentinels should be like the new moon. Present but unseen. Watching until the proper time to reveal themselves and act. Others feel we should be as a full moon, a glowing presence speading Her light. They wish to march openly among the people and deter those that think to prey on them. What do you think of this?"
[size=100]
Donald heard a mermaid sing, Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known, I've had to make myself.

Shel Silverstein[/size]
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Mordular considered Lilandra's conudrum for a few moments. Since her acceptance of his application, Mordular found it easier to regard the Priestess, without the fear that had characterized his visit here to this point.

"I should think, my lady." Mordular finally began to formulate his answer. "That, like the Moon, there must be multiple faces of the Sentinels. Those who shield others by an open, full face, and yet others who better hunt those who would prey on us by not being open, and yet still a Sentinel as much as those who walk boldly. And those who stand between, who publically act, and on occasion perform other duties under disguise."

He regarded Lilandra's reaction to his response.
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Post by Jadmai »

Lilandra pondered over Mordular's words for a moment in silence, yet eyes that spoke volumes, "Yes, I believe that in some ways you are quite right."

The female dark adhiel touched a finger to her lips, "But what of the Dark Knights. If we take on so many facets, will it not seem like we aim to replace them? We already have some Dark Knights here in our possession of course, but we've never produced a sentienel or Dark Knight on our own--though what action could be taken against us if we took our own initiative."

Lilandra tilted her head to one side in thought and then turned her gaze back to Mordular, "These questions are not ones that I can answer, they are better posed to a Dark Knight. Would you be the vessel that would carry these questions to a Dark Knight--of course there is one here. Perhaps you will talk to her? And see what she thinks of our own ideas to fill our needs ourself, instead of relying completely on the Dark Knights."
"...war is the last flower on the evil tree."-- Betrand Russel
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Mordular looked downward, lost in thought, for a moment or two, as he pondered Lilandra's request.

"While I think that I might not be the best person suited to be such a vessel, part of the point of me accepting a position as a Sentinel is to improve my abilities, is it not? Or to prove that my abilities are better than I fear."

"Yes" he finally said after a moment's pause. "I will speak with the Dark Knight, and put to rest her concerns that we seek to supplant, rather than augment, the Dark Knights."
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Post by Jadmai »

Lilandra smiled at Mordular gently then spoke softly, "I am certainly glad you agreed, Mordular, because it was not really a question or request." She said with a knowing nod. "I think it is time you met, Cortei."

As if the name was enough to summon the woman herself, from behind them strode up Cortei, her walk exuding confidence, that only Dark Knights could muster. She stood in boilded leather armor, strapped to her using leather ties. Her white hair, pulled back and braided.

Cortei smiled at them both as she head her name, "I heard my name, I wondered if I could be of service."

Lilandra nodded back at Cortei, "Indeed you could, Mordular has some questions for you it seems--it looks as if he has nearly found his way to serve the Moonlady, but has some questions that you could clear up."

Lilandra stood up, and smiled at them both, "If I am not needed here, I shall let you two to talk."

Cortei lowered her head, and then took a seat on the bench, "Mordular, what questions can I clear up?"
"...war is the last flower on the evil tree."-- Betrand Russel
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Mordular blinked his eyes in surprise as Cortei appeared. He gave a bow of the head to the Dark Knight. He gave a nod to Lilandra departed, and left him alone with Cortei.

"I have several questions, both as a eventual. hopeful applicant to Dark Knighthood one day, and as one who would serve the Moonlady in another capacity, now." Mordular began.

"But let me begin, if I might be so bold to one of a rank and stature that I frankly admire to emulate." Mordular continued. "and ask what you think of the Moonlady's Sentinels."
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"I think that they are an archaic relic of a former time that the Dark Knights render completely superfluous." Cortei replied bluntly. "Under any other circumstances, I should object to their recreation most strenuously." She sighed and sank down onto the bench. "But the Dark Knights are mostly gone. Everyone talks of arming themselves for their own protection, of course." Cortei rolled her eyes in comtempt.

"I trust the servants of the Moonlady to not abuse the powers they obtain." Cortei admitted. "I would sooner see the Sentinels reborn than have the Reapers of Anasati once more stalk the city. What I doubt is the ability of healers and caregivers to bear arms in anything but a token manner. Llilandra seems to think you can prove me wrong."
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Donald heard a mermaid sing, Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known, I've had to make myself.

Shel Silverstein[/size]
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Mordular considered this for a few moments and then nodded. He still did not sit on the bench, but faced the seated Cortei as he responded.

"Your fears are well considered, good Knight." Mordular began. "Although I do admit that I object to your characterization of the strength of any of the Sentinels or those who would seek to become one."

"How could I, personally, prove you incorrect?" Mordular asked, a tone half in challenge as well as curiosity. "To remove the doubt from thine eyes?"
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Post by Jadmai »

Cortei shrugged indifferently, "Become one."

"Show me, and the remaining Dark Knights, that this can be vaild. That a faction can be created that can pose a threat only to it's foes, and not to the harmony of the Dark Adhiel way of life."

"It is, friend, an army of a god that is persecuting our fairer skinned brothers above us, and anyone else that does not follow their religion. The Army of the One, it's called...have you heard."

"Can you see the base of the fears that could mount, now, cousin?"

Cortei nodded, "Become one, show through example, that is the way of the Dark Knight. Can you take this task, Mordular?"
"...war is the last flower on the evil tree."-- Betrand Russel
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Mordular nodded slowly after a few moments.

"I Must, and Shall." he replied, rising his gaze to meet the skeptical Dark Knight's gaze. "One day, I shall apply to join the ranks of Dark Knights." he said, with rising pride in his voice. "As passport to that goal, I shall become one of the Sentinels, lead, and allay the fears that you and other Knights have."
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Post by Jadmai »

Cortei nodded and actually smiled, "Well, cousin, it is just that easy--as far as your part is concerned. We do not need permission from the Dark Knights to organize this faction, it's much more serious than that."

She stood up, "The Queen will need to approve of this. I wager she will, but her highness isn't the type that likes to find out information by word of mouth. It is the proper thing to do."

"Lilandra will be the one of goes in front of the Queen, but she will need an escort. Care to make that your first duty as a Sentinel?"
"...war is the last flower on the evil tree."-- Betrand Russel
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"To see the Queen." Mordular thought about this for a moment, the look in his eyes was not glazed over with the wonder of the thought, but of the gravity of the situation. He blinked his eyes a couple of times and then nodded.

"Yes. That would be necessary, for her to be escorted by a living example of what she proposes. Someone who will carry the idea of it within their very visage and appearance." Mordular found himself nodding his head.

"I would do such a thing."
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Post by Jadmai »

OOC: Sorry, you responded so fast, I overlooked you. Forgive, it is my fault. Promises of much adventure to come.

Cortei gave Mordular a nod, almost a bow, "I am sure the Moonlady will bless you with your coming venture, and I know the the preists and priestess' will be comforted to know the ranks beginning."

Cortei contemplated something in her head for a moment, and then her eyes turned back towards Mordular, "The escort will take place tomorrow, at late Tradetide--after the hustle and bustle of Gul has calmed down. You will meet us out front of the temple."

The Dark Knight sized up her dark adhiel cousin, "A Dark Knight excels in every aspect of their being--Including appearance. I shall have some of the acolytes prepare you a functional, yet regal looking uniform. It shall be ready upon your arrival."

"I will instruct you more upon your arrival, you're only mission now, is to be punctual. Understood? If there are no questions, I will meet here tomorrow, at late tradtide, three marks in."
"...war is the last flower on the evil tree."-- Betrand Russel
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Mordular looked relieved at the mention from Cortei that a uniform would be provided.

"That is a kindness, and I thank you." Mordular. "I will be here at an appropriate hour to be timely redressed and ready to act as Escort." he said, capitalizing the last word in his voice.

"I have no further questions." Mordular finished, with a respectful nod to the Dark Knight. "And I will see you then."
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Thread skilled!
[size=100]
Donald heard a mermaid sing, Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known, I've had to make myself.

Shel Silverstein[/size]
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