.aspects game

[decomposed]

GAME ENDS 4PM PST 8/19

hit me up on slack (utaoutauhito, display is 森 歌) or plurk (sacae) if you have any questions! probably people won't get very injured if at all but there is some chance of getting mauled to a small or possibly significant degree. careful guys

Comments

[decomposed]

It is the law of Heaven.

[ once Giovanni is on his feet and seems steadier, Uriel turns to one of the ghouls and cups their face in his hands. under his touch, the awful feelings they exude, the pain in Giovanni's chest subsides, as if it's subsided in them as well - but at the same time their figure starts to become more distorted, more monstrous ]

I have made my place here, trying to ease their suffering... but in truth it may be of no help to them.

[ofobedience]

[he's not sure how to feel about this-- any of this. the thing, the way it warps under Uriel's hands even as the dreadful feeling recedes, what he says about Heaven, they're frightening and difficult to understand]

I thought Heaven was supposed to be a good thing.

[he glances at the distorted creature, then quickly away again]

But...even if what you're doing doesn't help, it's good to try. I think. It seems to me that someone should.

[decomposed]

No... it is true that they should not be left to this. But what they need is surely different. I am unfit for the task, yet even so I cannot help myself.

[ even as he speaks, he reaches out for the other, repeating the process ]

[ofobedience]

[again, he glances at the creature briefly and then away again]

Mmm. They shouldn't be left like this. Only something destructive and twisted could have made them like this.

[which is something for him to think about, isn't it? yes it is]

[decomposed]

[ quietly, and slowly, but with an undercurrent of faint mania ]

Many of them... if not all, were sentenced by my hand.

[ he lets go of the ghoul and turns to face Giovanni once more ]

You should leave this forest. I will guide you out. They will not pursue you while you are beside me.

[ofobedience]

[the revelation hits him like a bullet to the gut because it doesn't fit the schema he's built up around Uriel, and there's a quick inhalation of breath-- but even as it hits him it's slipping away because is it really so strange or impossible to grasp? perhaps not. he's a lot of things he wouldn't once have thought possible himself, after all.

he takes a moment, then nods once in agreement because he doesn't want to be in this place, preferred all along the clear path and the bright flowers, even if walking beside Uriel will make it easier to bear]

Yes.

[he'll follow readily enough, wait a handful of seconds before asking--]

Did you do it under someone else's command, or was the punishment one of your own making? Create those things, I mean. Those ghouls.

[decomposed]

[ he goes slow, so Giovanni can watch his step, getting through the thick of the forest. at times he offers out a hand to help steady him through the dips and swells of the uneven footing. he takes a bit of a long time to answer. ]

... I do not recall. Though the law itself is the word of the Lord, as judge and executioner, delivering punishment was my responsibility. Although I have no desire to bring others to harm... perhaps it was I who decided what severity is appropriate for each crime.

[ofobedience]

[he's silent for a while as they walk, thinking through what's being said, thinking of those things back there and the terrible feelings pouring out of them. he takes the hand whenever it's offered, keeps close, and eventually he speaks again]

I wonder what someone had to do in order for you to think they deserved that.

[it doesn't sound accusatory, though. just curious and concerned and desolate]

[decomposed]

Even those who have commit truly heinous crimes, and have remained truly unapologetic to their core... Is this truly what they deserve? Even them, I could not bear to watch suffer.

[ soon they're back out of the forest, and in a few more steps back on the path. the way Uriel is leading him, they'll probably end up back at that staircase. ]

[ofobedience]

I don't think I'd wish it on anyone.

[somehow, it cuts too close to the bone. he doesn't remember everything about his life, not by a longshot, but there are hints and whispers, enough to know that being reduced down to the most fearful parts of yourself isn't something he could ever consider fair, or just.

he'll keep quiet after that though, will follow Uriel back to the path, and there's visible relief on his face once they're out amidst the wildflowers and the peaceful certainty the path represents]

[decomposed]

[ Uriel falls silent as they walk. his expression remains troubled throughout but the journey down the path is soothing, calming, at least for Giovanni. eventually he stops, at the foot of the stairs. ]

Through here, you may leave.

[ofobedience]

[he's pretty happy to get going honestly. he feels much better than before, but it's still with him, creeping about inside his head, the utter desolation that came from those ghouls.]

All right.

[one foot on the steps, and he glances up at Uriel]

At least you're doing something. For those things.

[decomposed]

...

Take care of yourself, as well.

[ofobedience]

I'll try.

[he lingers for just a moment, eyes on Uriel as though he has something else to say, before heading on up the staircase and out through the door]