RP:Turning to Religion
This is a Devout's Guild RP.
This is a Healer's Guild RP.
Synopsis: Penelope is reflecting on the chaos of life that surrounds her. She desperately wants to search for answers, so she turns to the people of worship. The herbalist runs into the paladin, Zahrani, and she feels the presence that has absorbed Linken's body.
Sanctum of the Divine
Zahrani’s back is turned to the main entrance, the feline paladin sitting cross-legged before the Altar to Cyris. She wears a combination of hood robe and platemail armor, each constructed with unassuming color and very little in the way of fine detail. Her hood is lowered, revealing a head of carefully braided afro hair. She wears her more elf-like form, her pointed ears accented with black tufts of fur, her black tail curled around her as she sits. The only jewelry she wears is a nose ring and an ear ring, along with a opalescent hair clasp to keep her braids out of her face. She silently reads a book of poetry, occasionally turning towards the occasional wanderer and offering a welcoming smile.
Penelope had been wrapped up within a whirl of chaos lately. From not being able to find Linken after his spirit returned to his body from the war to the image of Lionel’s lifeless body sprawled on the battlefield. Although the woman had settled on peace at the thought of death, she was still unaware of what would happen in the afterlife. Outside the cathedral, she paces back and forth to try to convince herself where to go to find a sense of release. After standing outside and arguing with herself for about twenty minutes, she finally makes her way through the entrance of the building. Altars and candles light the building. People meditating. Praying. Worshiping. Her facial expression is twisted with a sense of uncertainty. The herbalist appears almost lost as she trails slowly looking for a place to land. Where would she land? Perhaps this was a mistake.
Zahrani looks up from her book of poetry, her cyan gaze turning to the herbalist as she enters. Were one to come closer to the panther, one might notice an aura of warmth and affection coming from her athletic form, her divine energy making faint rivulets of amber light across her clothing and skin (to those who were magically discerning). She rises to her feet, closing her book and placing it in a satchel before approaching Penelope. With a polite bow, the paladin reads the woman's face, offering a warm smile and a kind, "Welcome." her androgynous voice a mid-tenor.
Penelope is observing each altar from the same standpoint. As the feline moves her way to greet the healer, the frizzy, chestnut haired girl feels a sense of comfort. Her anxiety eases a little and she finds her sense of calm again. “Thank you,” she sort of clears her throat. Her normally silken tone is hoarse. The human stares at the feline for a beat or two with that blank doe-eyed stare before word vomiting. “I have no idea how –this- works,” the sheepish girl points and does a circle as if indicating an altar. The woman meant the worshipping part. She never had worshipped anything. There was no Gods within the Halifax household growing up. She was trying not to be rude by any means, but she was one lost puppy.
Zahrani notices the hoarseness in the woman's voice, her smile reassuring as the paladin nods, "That's okay. You'll see no judgment from me." She gestures to an empty seat, beckoning the herbalist to join her before sitting down. She speaks softly so as not to disturb the others in the cathedral. "You seem lost, but here you are free to worship or not worship. Whether it's food, a warm place to rest, healing, or counsel, I am willing to provide what I can to you." A pause, before asking, "If I may ask, what is it that has drawn you to this place?"
A sense of relief washes over the woman. Automatically, the herbalist follows the feline and cautiously takes the seat that is offered to her. Idly the woman tucks loose strands behind her ear while she keeps a sharp-eye out to vision her surroundings. A place for rest. A place to feel safe. The girl nods her head in understanding. Moss eyes finally dance their way back to the elven feline before her. Her eyes seem distant for a moment as her unpainted lips part, “Death. Evil,” eyes rest back on the woman before her. “Life has not been right. My… friend there is almost darkness that invades his soul. Something not Holy,” her voice is quiet. “Death is waiting around the corner. Death has been falling into my hands—although I am meant to assist the sick. This is different,” pause. “I need to know if there is actual peace after death. A place we go. Roam in the afterlife.” A gentle sigh is released. “I’m not scared to die, but I am scared of the others around me. The unknown of what would become of them.”
Zahrani listens to the woman tell her of her troubles, her cyan eyes scanning over Penelope's face, searching her eyes before wandering down to her hands. She takes a moment to glance towards the altars, spotting the one dedicated to Vakmatharas, before looking back to the herbalist, "Could I see your hands?" She extends her own. Her hands are a warm dark brown like the rest of her skin, slightly calloused but deft at the same time. Her fingernails are kept short and well maintained so as not to get caught on anything.
Penelope nods warily, “Sure,” and she hesitates before giving the feline her hands. Her hands are small and are lightly dusted with a few freckles. The observant one notices Zahrani’s gaze is grazing Vakmatharas which Penelope would not know who or what that even meant.
Zahrani gently encloses Penelope's hands with her own, gently massaging them and looking over the herbalist's face, "That shrine over there is to Vakmatharas, the God of Death. Every deity, from lightest to darkest, has a place of worship here. Ultimately, it's what their followers do that determines whether or not they are welcome here." She offers another reassuring smile, before looking back down to their hands. While it might just seem like a simple hand-massage, the paladin is also searching for any signs of dark influence; any sensations like coldness of unpleasant auras. "Can you tell me more about this friend you mentioned?"
Penelope’s eyes would trace over the shrine as the paladin began to massage her hands. Zahrani may notice that the human’s pulse begins to heighten at the thought of her ‘friend’. More like ex-lover which was a whole complicated issue on its own. “Linken. His name is Linken,” she would confirm. The feline before her might feel a dark influential presence that is almost like something or someone was watching the herbalist. “I had not seen him in years. I found him in the forests of Sage. He was badly hurt, so of course I brought him back to Yerrel’s healing hut where I reside. When he awoke, he did not know anything that happened to him. The Linken I know is gone.” Her hands begin to tremble slightly. “He remembers only a younger version of himself and… me. He knows my name and my face, but not our history.” The herbalist would then begin to grip onto the paladin’s hands as if to stabilize herself. “But something dark happened. Something… unknown to me—to him,” her clutch began to become a little tight as the fear washed over her face. “His eyes went black… something demonic. Something out of this world. He wasn’t Linken anymore. Something rests within his body and has Linken trapped. Something that wants to hurt him. Or maybe take over completely? I’m not sure…” The woman then releases the feline before her as she reflects on the black ooze that ejected from the man’s mouth. “Either way, it threatened me to be the one to confess Linken’s past. I don’t know why I am the targeted one to do this, but… Linken could not handle it. He ran off. I can’t find him anywhere.” The herbalist seemed frazzled.
Zahrani feels like she's heard that name before. The paladin may have crossed paths with the man at some point. When the herbalist tells of her plight and tightens her grip around the feline's hands, she does not recoil or try to break free. Her face is neutral, listening to the fear and the confusion in the woman's voice, while her spirit attempts to ascertain what exactly this dark influence is, and why it is targeting her in particular. When Penelope breaks contact with the paladin, her divine aura goes no further. She respects the agency of those who come to her for help, "I sensed...something. Whether or not it is connected to Linken's fate, it feels like you're being watched by a wicked presence. Ever since that day, how has your work been affected?" The panther stands, beckoning the herbalist to follow her to a more private area downstairs in the undercroft. Rani leads them into the kitchen, grabbing a pot of herbal tea that had recently been made and pouring it into two cups. She pulls out another chair in the empty dining area, allowing her guest to sit and partake of the tea, if she wished.
Penelope blinks at the response from the feline. “It’s watching me…?” The woman feels uneasy. Her hands sort of wrap around her body in a hug to ease her nerves. She then relaxes and regains her composure. “I haven’t even had a moment to breathe. Since that day… I went into battle with Sir Lionel O’Connor. If anything, I feel uneasy that Linken is nowhere to be found right now. I don’t even know where to look.” The woman trails behind the feline and the herbalist gladly takes the cup of tea and sips on the glass to calm down. “I know of nothing what is inside him. I need someone to help me figure out what this entity is—for his sake.”
Zahrani takes a seat across from Penelope, sipping her tea and watching the herbalist's mannerisms as she recounts how she's been feeling. It is indeed difficult to find someone when you don't even know where to start looking. The paladin continues listening, before answering, "I've actually fought alongside Lionel as well. But it's been awhile since I've seen that one..." Looking down at the teapot, then back to Penelope, she asks, "Have you considered putting up Missing posters with the Linken's image and name? Maybe offer something as a reward for any information on where to find him?"
Penelope places her cup on the table before them. “Lionel is bedridden. He took a lot of damage to the heart. We managed to revive him. He relies safely at Yerrel’s hut in Kelay. He will be off his feet for a while,” she keeps the paladin updated on the warrior’s state. At the new idea of putting up posters, the girl stands up automatically. “You’re right. I don’t even know what I was thinking.” Pause. “I am so sorry to cut you off so short, but surely, you understand my emergency,” the girl looked apologetic. “I’m Penelope by the way. Penelope Halifax, the local Kelay Herbalist. So if you ever need aid, please feel free to find me in the forests of Sage.”
Zahrani's eyes widen at the news of Lionel being severly injured. She slowly stands up when Penelope rises to her feet, nodding in understanding at her desire to head out, "Of course. My name is Zahrani; I am a paladin of Cyris, God of Freedom. And please let me know if you need helpe with healing Lionel. I'm also a healer." The feline finishes her tea, picking up the cups and the teapot and preparing to wash them for proper storage.
Penelope places a hand up. “I assure you, he is okay. Yerrel was able to heal his chest, but his skin remains raw as the skin needs to grow back on his chest. He was poisoned, but I have him on certain herbs to strengthen his heart. Please, however, feel free to visit him. He could use the company,” she smiles reassuringly. Finally. A bright smile. Penelope takes mental note of the healing abilities the woman is capable of and that gives her a peek of more interest. “It was a pleasure, Zahrani. I hope to see you again—I’m sure we have plenty more to discuss.” The woman would nod respectfully before shuffling out of the kitchen and making her way to the outside world.