Enterance Thread for Mara Odette Tateen

[rhoddin]

The soft brush of the salty air finally wakes you up. There is sand between your fingers. A beach! The rushing sound of the gentle waves breaking a few yards from where you lay sprawled on the sand confirms your suspicions. Your mind is empty and you have absolutely no clue how you landed here.

As you look around you see the beach is empty. In the distance some gigantic crabs scurry away. Your eyes kid you not, they are indeed as big as pigs, with vicious claws to match. But they seem more scared of you than you are of them.

In between the gentle dunes, with fair tops of waving seagrass, that mark the end of the beach you notice a small path. At the beginning of the path you see several items on the ground, shining metal sparkling in the sunlight. A small awkwardly written notice, that surprisingly even the illiterate can read, says

"Please leave all weapons here. Beyond this point the gods will provide."

[Mara Odette Tateen]

Mara slowly awoke on the sandy beach and looked around in surprise, this didn’t look anything like home, how in the world did she get here she wondered and looked around again. Seeing the note she read it out loud and said to herself “well, I don’t have any weapons with me, so I haven’t anything to leave behind.” She stood up and brushed the sand off of her clothing and out of her hair. She looked with interest at the giant crabs but though twice about going near them. She didn’t know if there were any people nearby, but she decided that she should have a look, so she started to walk up the beach in search of a path or house at which she could ask where she was.

[rhoddin]

OOC: Umm there's a path here, and it's the only obvious way off the beach

IC: As Mara walked up the path that many before her had trod, she passed by the same large fields. In the distance there were well tended fields, replete with crops gently swaying in the mild breeze that swept the Isle. Although she could see people working, she like those before her, felt herself drawn along the path, and could not veer away to investigate these fields, or the attendant farmers.

Soon she found herself approaching a collection of white buildings. The path ended on a dusty square, in front of what was clearly the centrepiece of the settlement, if one could call it that. The entrance, marked by two huge marble pillars, had no doors, only a deep, inviting darkness, that pulled at her very soul to enter, in fact Mara found the pull of the entrance almost unbearable.

[Mara Odette Tateen]

Mara stumbled alone the path following the pull, she looked with interest at the people she passed and was more than a little concerned that she wasn’t in control of her body. When she found herself in the town she was quite pleased because she figured this was her destination and she was right when the strange force pulled her into what seemed to be a big temple or something like it. Her mind hadn’t yet began to think about her situation seriously yet, everything was just happening too fast, but she felt that she was about to find out what this was all about.

[rhoddin]

As Mara stepped into the hall her eyes were drawn to the middle of the temple, where light fell in through the roof. There was a pool right under it, sparkling in the wan sunlight.

As her eyes adjusted to the darkness she saw four small channels run away from the pool, where overflow water would be easily drained.

At the far end of the pool a large decorative construction hung over the pool, almost like an aquaduct. Darker in colour than the rest of the stone, there was a suggestion that water flowed regularly from its top, about ten metres high.

But not now. Everything was quiet, hushed, waiting....

[Mara Odette Tateen]

Mara observed the place with wonder in her eyes, “what manner of place is this?” she said quietly to herself, taking in every detail as she walked toward the pool. “Whatever can this be for, I pray my god to teach me.” She spoke the words in reverence as she always did when asking something of her god. The strangeness of her situation was beginning to dawn on her and her mind was filling with questions as to just what was going on.

[rhoddin]

As she stood looking at the pool, Mara's eyes adjusted to the light further, she noted the blue mosaic tiles that lined the pool, swirling in what seemed to be geometric forms beneath the surface of the still water.

The water was probably about half a human's height, making it comfortable for bathing, althought the solemn atmoshpere hardly seemed to set an environment for such an endoevour.

Feeling the warmth of the wan sun on her face, Mara heard a gurgling sound, and within seconds water streamed down from the decorative structure with such force as to create a strong waterfall. The rush of sound filled her ears as it had countless before her, and it was as if just beyond her capability of hearing a thousand voices filled her head.

[Mara Odette Tateen]

The patterns under the water interested Mara and she peered at them closer, the whole room was very beautiful, and the question kept running threw Mara’s head, ‘were am I, what is this place”.
Just then the water gushed out of the channel thing and startled Mara, she jumped back from the waters edge ‘whoa, that scared me” she said out loud, her hand on her chest as if trying to manually slow she pumping heart down. For a moment she thought she could hear voices, but it was just the rushing of the water, she thought about calling out to see if anyone was in the building, but decided not to for a moment. Instead she sat down on the tiles, crossed her legs and tilted her face up toward the wan sun, it was beautiful here and she wanted to take a few moments to appreciate it.

[rhoddin]

As the waters of the pool calmed, as soft shuffling caused Mara to look around the room and to where a woman in a simple white robe was standing to the right. Had she been there before? The woman was old and slightly bend, wrinkles cracking up her coarse face. Certainly she was no beauty. Yet as many before had found she waited serenely, peace radiating from her face and her hands folded in front of her.

When she saw that the young woman had noticed her she smiled. She spoke in a solid but gentle manner, as if performing a ritual she had participated in many times before.

"Blesseth are the new. The gods talk to you, daughter. Are you ready to learn how to listen?"

[Mara Odette Tateen]

Mara was surprised to see the older woman standing there, she certainly moved very quietly. Mara stood up and bowed respectfully to her. “If the gods speak to me I have no other choice but to learn to hear them, I would be a fool to ignore such and honor.” That sentence cleared up some questions, she figured she had to be in a religious compound of some kind, she wondered now what god spoke to her, she hoped it was her god.

[rhoddin]

The old lady bowed her head for a moment, whether in recognition, or consideration of Mara's reply it was hard to know.

When she raised it again clear grey eyes stared out at Mara, eyes that seemed to strike to the very core of her soul. Not that you would call them predatory or dangerous, just knowing with the knowledge of ages behind them.

"Mmmm, it seems you may be ready to listern daughter. If that is the case then cast off your mortal garments and enter the pool of the Oracle. Call to your god and let them speak too you, listern to what they have to say, and be prepared to listern." Her statement had the sound of ritual, like so much that Mara had already expereinced in her first few burns on Oracles Isle.

For such a frail old looking woman, her voice had a resonance that filled the chamber.

[Mara Odette Tateen]

Mara did as the old lady asked, not the least bit disconcerted by her piercing eyes. She laid her clothes neatly to one side, long blonde/silver hair covered her body like a veil and she slid down into the water. It was cool, and washed over her body like silk, standing in the middle of the pool she simple prayed, “Illuminatus, father of all wisdom, I am thy servant, if you have something to say to me, say it so I may know thy will and do it.”

[rhoddin]

As Mara stood in the waist deep water, she was surrounded by a glowing light which gradually increased in intensity until she seemed to be infused with the brilliance of the light.

A perfect pure cylinder of light folded around her, as she began to feel something swirl through her very essence.

[Mara Odette Tateen]

Mara was a bit surprised; she hadn’t been expecting the strange sensation that was now running through her veins, she wondered if this was the voice of her god, but if it was she had no idea what he was trying to tell her. ‘relax’ she told herself sternly ‘ it is most likely just his holy presents, not his way of speaking’ so she relaxed and waited to see what would happen next.

[rhoddin]

Slowly the light enfolded her, and a note of some form of music seemed to throb through her very bones.

As the note build, she seemed to vibrate herself, to join with the note, to hum or not....

[Mara Odette Tateen]

Mara couldn’t believe the feelings that coarse threw her body, the incredible feeling of power, she was helpless to resist, and she didn’t even try. She was still amazed that the gods would speak to her. Her mind was confused, the only thing she could focused on was her god.

[Finodborn]

OOC: Rhoddin is absent for a while, so I'll be taking over for now.

As the sound penetrated Mara's mind and body, the curtain of light seemed to fall, leaving the young woman standing in a circle of white, a residual of the earlier light.

Standing across from her was a vaguely humanoid (or elfoid if you prefer) shape, seemingly clothed in a shimmering white light. The features where impossible to make out, but a sense of power and age emanated from the entity as it surveyed Mara.