That Neptune Factor (Gods)

[LIAT ROSEN IONA]

Never buy right away, at least not when it came to a ship. Liat knew that lesson well, not that she had learned it personally. There had been enough stories of great ships sunk on their maiden journeys. They were not so seaworthy as was claimed for them. This was why she had leased this new ship for a journey before actually buying it. It would be a good addition to the growing fleet. She was not sure if she wanted it though. So far it had carried through well but she could not ignore the groaning and creaking of the boards of the ship. She put it down to the boards simply settling.

The maker claimed that the ship was built in such a way that it could cut half a day off of their travel. She could not resist seeing if it was true. Thus they were one day what was supposed to be a three day trip for this ship. It seemed to be going as quickly as the maker had claimed. She was impressed so far, and little enough impressed her when it came to ships. She felt as if she had seen them all by now, but clearly she was wrong.

Liat wished that she had brought more cargo on this expedition then she had. In case something happened she did not want it sunk. She could escape a sinking ship on a life boat but the cargo on the deck would not. It was so slight that she didn’t even bother having it put down in the hold.

Liat scribbled down in her own personal log about how the journey was progressing. She had a reliable crew with her at least. She knew that they could handle whatever was thrown at them.

Traveling like this was never thrilling, and it was all she could do to pass the time. She knew that she was going a bit stir crazy, and once they reached the port it would be no different. She had been there too often by now. Liat went back to her quarters until the ship began to rock a little more than she had liked. It sounded like a storm.

She stepped out into what could only be described at driving rain. Less than an hour ago there had been clear blue sky, what had happened? Now the clouds were low and dark, and the sea choppy. Men yelled as they worked to secure the cargo, which should have been the least of their worries. Liat sprinted as best she could to help bind down the cargo on the bas floor. She shouted for the crew to go secure the cargo on the forecastle deck while she finished the load that was on the main deck.

Just as she had it all pinned down something loomed upon the port side of the ship. Liat stared up at the looming wave that then crashed down on the stern side of the boat. The crew shouted from the bow and managed to grip the rails and each other. The grunt of the wave crashed down on Liat’s side of the ship. She reached out, holding onto the ropes on the cargo for dear life.

It was not enough. The freezing water stunned her. She was ripped away by the wave and hit her head against the rail as she went over the side, and action that immediately knocked her out cold. Liat sunk into the water like a water logged bolt of fabric, sinking slowly but sinking none the less. There was a thick silence under that water which Liat could not hear. Was she the only one washed away by the storm? By all means no. Around her floated bits of cargo and other bodies about to be claimed by the grave of the sea.

[ELEJEN]

- - - - - - - - - - - -

If there was anything Elejen loved more than mischief, it was causing it. Oh, she couldn't resist a good battle or war. She always had to be right there with them, egging on the hate. If the mortals were unintelligent enough to kill themselves, then why spare them anymore trouble? They often asked for it, in Elejen's perspective.

More often than not, the goddess of life preferred to manifest onto Esune as an animal or something of the sort, just to watch a mess unfold, but today, she was feeling omnipotent, like a god should feel. She wanted - no, needed - to cause some destruction, to make the mortals believe that there was a god, and that she wasn't too happy.

But it had to be unsuspected. Somewhere that Elejen never usually preyed.

She was always with the humans or with the narro, but now was a time to deal with the nautical side of life. The sea was an instrument of beauty and of death. It created life, housed life, but it also destroyed it, leaving it in Desino's hands. Elejen knew that the ocean was a plaything to some, a way of living to others, but there were very few who knew how hazardous it could be.

Of the few, there was Liat. She seemed to have experience on the waters. She was a captain, forsooth, so she certainly knew how to handle herself, her crew, and the murky ocean. What she didn't know was that Elejen had been watching her; mind you, watching her, not watching over her. The goddess felt that that human was far too cocky on the sea, as if she were confident in her ability to ride the waves.

In frustration, Elejen decided to poke her nose into things. From that imaginary kingdom in the sky, she perched, conjuring up a wild storm specially for Liat. The birth of a cloud began with the smokiness of its color, the darkening of the sky. As it mixed with the atmosphere, it collected the water vapor, and began to rain in waves upon the ship. There was the occasional bout of lightning and the roar of thunder, but that wasn't all. Elejen caused a small quake beneath the surface of the sea floor, which, in turn, caused a navy, almost black, wave to rise and beat down upon Liat's ship.

When Elejen saw Liat fly off of the ship, limp and lifeless, she rejoiced. Along with her went many others. Her darling ocean had done such a wonderful job that she had to be there in person.

Elejen teleported out of her kingdom, simply to become a seafaring serpent in the gust and rain around Liat's boat. She was immense, but slender, with frills running along her spine and around her head. Two long, curved fangs jutted from her mouth, easily seen even with her maw closed. Light blue in color, she was not difficult to spot amongst the darkness of the water and the looming clouds. Her golden yellow eyes locked onto Liat as she dove after her. With her cranium, Elejen pushed Liat further into the fathoms of the ocean's grip. Her side-winding tail billowed ferociously to propel herself and Liat into the hazy water.

The only thing stopping Elejen from snapping Liat in half was the fact that she couldn't. By direct means, she could not kill, just as Desino could not give life to anything. Usually, Elejen didn't even physically harm anything herself. It pained her too much, with that mortal emotion guilt and whatnot.

However, there was also an underlying factor in Elejen's reluctance: her brother. Somehow his voice crept into the back of her head, making her mind weak along with her body. At that moment, she shook her serpent body, turned toward the surface, and darted through the water. As she emerged, Elejen headbutted the side of Liat's ship, causing a few more men to fall off, but once that was done, she put herself on the crow's nest of the boat, in her normal form. She looked down upon the havoc below, watching, waiting on her brother. Again, he was going to have to pick up the pieces she had left behind. Wasn't that a pity? But it was his job. Esune destroyed itself, along with the people on it, and there wasn't a thing Elejen could do to stop it.



STATUS. complete TAGGED. liat/desino WORDS. 752 OUTFIT. click! LYRICS. nicest thing, kate nash. CREDIT. template by shazi ?! at caution 2.0.

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[DESINO]

The caverns of the underground were not calm on this day. The secret halls shook and humanlike snarls could be caught in your ears if you dared to listen. Most of the sound seemed dead under here save for the dull thumps of the world so far above or small pebbles rolling down the walls. This was not where the souls went after they died. Desino was no ruler of such as place as this. This was still where life dwelled and we very much his sister’s territory. Save for one hole at the core of their planet. That was the one place that he was allowed to control, but not on favorable terms with himself. It was where the moans and growls emitted from. It was what was down there… that was his responsibility. It was the one thing he truly loathed doing. But he had to keep doing it for the sake of Esune and the sake of his sister, even if it meant putting himself at risk. Though he wasn’t completely sure what a world would do without someone to balance out life with death. He chose to take that risk, pulling in all the confidence he had to help keep the world he and his sister had worked so hard on at balance. He usually got yelled at for it too…

The death god took his time in walking the steep hall to the core. The soil around him grew cool by the second but he couldn’t take his hand away from the side of the wall. He kept it pressed hard against it. His limbs felt weak and his head was dizzy. There had been a time that he had never felt any of these pains and aches. There had been a time when he had no idea what physical pain really was. Which may have seemed strange since he was the god of death and all. But just because he ruled it, controlled it, and helped with it didn’t mean he felt death like the rest did. No god was supposed to be weak like this. He was more than sure his sister would not allow it, especially upon him, a key component to her world and her mischief. But, alas, she could do nothing to aid him. It was too late to go back on a sacrifice such as this. He had already given his word and his blood.

As the darkness grew his pain only seemed to swell. It felt like his breath was ready to stop whenever he tried standing straight. He could hear the noises growing louder and more pained. What lied below was feeling the same pangs as he was, he supposed. The only difference was that it was not fading the way that he was.

A rather large movement above him pulled his concentration in another direction. A few heavy breaths and he managed to clear his mind a little bit. But it was immediately bombarded with the cries of the dead or dying up on the surface. He couldn’t help but grow frustrated now. In between the pain and his weariness he found himself cursing his sister’s name, saying it in vain. “Damn it, Elejen.” His breath was not smooth, but rather pained. It held a heavy dose of venom in it for the time being. She could not have picked a better time to be doing this, could she? To her it was all fun and games when it came to causing mayhem on their world up above. To him it was nothing but anguish. At least it was at the moment.

He didn’t hesitate. As soon as he felt the mass of fear and pain at the surface he used what strength he could to teleport out of there. He was not surprised when he found himself at the sea. No, he had not had a clue where he was going at first (and usually he was not so careless). He had simply decided to channel in on his sister’s energy as hers was much greater and much more powerful than that of the dying sailors.

Unlike Elejen, Desino did not break the surface of the ocean once. It was already clear to him that there was nothing but chaos spinning above him and he was truly too weak to withstand her violence. The god instead turned his attention toward the weakest human life that he could find. She was drifting far below the sea, it was really a miracle that she was still alive in such dark waters. But he knew it would not be for long. She was slipping into his world, her body probably had already swallowed more than enough sea water to kill her. Desino mimicked his sister’s choice of creature, merely to get to the human faster. His body elongated and millions of slick, ebony scales spread over his body. Soon it was not the mortal looking man but rather a darker twin to the sea serpent that had drug Liat down to these depths in the first place.

Upon reaching the drifting body, Desino’s form began to get choppy until finally it seemed a simple man was somehow standing in the water before the dying woman. He reached out his arms, embracing her figure in his arms. As he held her close to him like a child he stared down into her face, dark eyes scanning it as he felt her life leaving her. His fingers curled into her arm and he spoke to her as smoothly as he could for the time being. But his voice still came out sounding weak and crackled. “Wake, you are needed, human.” He pressed a finger against her lips, poking the bottom one, encouraging her to open her mouth. “Nod your head if you wish to see the surface again.”

TAGS: ELEJEN, LIAT
WORDS: 978
OUTFIT: CLOAKED FIGURES FTW.

[LIAT ROSEN IONA]

Liat floated for a few moments just under the surface of the water, unaware of the screams around her. They were for many a reason, naturally. Some were terrified of the storm, and rightfully so. Above them thunder cracked and waves rolled through, washing up the deep from its usually calm depths. Others looked to the still thundering skies in terror, as if they expected to be struck by a bolt of lightening at any second. Those loud cracks did resonate as wood splintered and burned on the ship. Some men tried in desperation to free the life boats and get away. Perhaps their thoughts said that those smaller vessels might help them in the wake of the storm. They had no one to tell them what to do, now that their captain was washed away, presumably drowned. They were almost right when it came to Liat, and almost turned out to be the main word.

Liat was not dead yet, but with each passing second that statement became more of a falsehood. Then more cries of anguish and fear echoed. The men had spotted the sea serpant who was the Goddess in disguise slithering beneath the waves. What cruelness would send such a storm followed by such a beast on them? That was when Liat almost got lucky. One of the lifeboats was released. Liat’s first mate, who had been her father’s first mate before, set out in it to rescue those in the water. Naturally Liat was easy enough to spot. Even in the dark grey water those bright and shimmering blonde locks were a marker for her.

He rowed towards her and then he spotted the serpent winding nearer. Liat was not a few feet from him but so was the beast. He drew back and then saw the serpent push the captain under the water. Liat was fortunately unconscious while she was being pushed under. Had she been awake to witness the chaos and the form Elejen had taken on then her heart might have stopped then and there out of pure fear. As it was she was simply pushed further into the deep and cold water. Once the goddess retreated Liat did not move, simply floated there in the depths. She had no idea that Elejen herself had condemned her.

There was a constant battle between people of the sea. Some said that drowning was a peaceful death while others claimed it was a wretched and struggling one. For Liat it was peaceful. She was unaware, unable to fight or to struggle. She was simply suspended as her life drained out. She was unaware of the arrival of the second great God. She was unaware of the second great beast, secretive is as it was under the stormy waters. Her skin and lips had paled in the cold ocean. Liat was pulled into the man’s arms. Despite it all, the chaos and death, her face was peaceful. There was some part of Liat who was aware, a bit who felt and was comforted by being held, who enjoyed it.

At the bidding of the God Liat did start to react a little. Her eyes started to open, just a little, and the expression was dreamy and unfocused. Her eyes focused on the man holding her in the water. Her lips parted at his bidding and she nodded at him. Her arms slid out and circled around his shoulders, securing herself. Still there was no air down there and her eyes started to flutter closed again, her head starting to fall back.

Liat’s hands loosened again, once again starting to fall away from her savior. She struggled to stay conscious for the handsome God but she was weak.

[SCIENCE OF HAY]

The waves tossing above made him sway in the water and it was disappointing to him to know that he couldn’t even keep himself still in his sister’s storm. His body was growing weary and he could feel his energy draining by the second. He knew that if he stayed in here much longer than he may have to call on Elejen for some help. And he knew that would not end up well for more than one reason. He was sure the first reason to infuriate her was cradled in his arms at this very moment. When Elejen intended someone dead she expected Desino to take care of it. That was how she was. She was, after all, his superior as well. He knew that he could bend the rules a little though when needed. She still had sisterly feelings toward him.

Despite his quickening worry, Desino still stayed below the surface with the girl, hoping that she would come to at his call. It was usually the dead that he awoke not the living. So there really was no promise that he would reach her in her living moments. But his hope was answered when her lids raised and he could see a pair of blue eyes in the darkness. He could tell that her body was freezing cold and was suddenly not sure if she would have the strength to even not. But hey, if the god willed it then maybe he would get it. And he did only a few moments later. One very simple gesture was the only sign that he needed to get not only himself but the girl out of the freezing waters as well. Another one would be escaping the wrath of the goddess of life because the lord of the afterlife needed her life. How strange was that?

The nod had been his cue and right when he got it Desino muster up more of his saved strength to take on the task of transformation again. Once again his skin blackened into thousands of scales and he traded hanging onto her with his teeth rather than his arms (considering they too were vanishing for the sake of speed). As soon as he had taken the form of the serpent his body burst forward and his mind was set on getting to land where this mortal could breathe again. He tried to not let his mind stray to his sister who had surely noticed his presence and his meddling. If he was lucky she would simply stay back where she was and wreak havoc elsewhere. So far she was not trailing him but the pit of his stomach was insisting that she would be after him as soon as he wasn’t paying any mind to her. He would have to make this as fast as he possibly could so that she may not catch onto what he was about to do with this human girl and he would not have to explain why he had picked her from all the sailors. There was more to it than her simply being the closest to death.

The coast of the freezing continent that the girl had beckoned from was before him now and the serpent slid quickly from the water. Once he had the girl on the snowy shore he changed back to his mortal form. For a moment he sat on his knees, trying to regain himself with deep breaths and convincing thoughts that this was going to work and that he would be okay again. He finally gathered enough to stand and then crouch over the form of the girl. He was no longer soaked from the sea, his clothing seemed to dry within seconds while the girl remained drenched. He supposed he couldn’t help her if she didn’t agree with the bargain that he would be offering. He patted her cheek lightly now and raised his brows wondering if he was too late or if the girl would wake. It would be a damn miracle if she had made it through that ride after being tossed overboard and ten pulled under the sea. And now she was lying on a snowy coast. What could get worse for her? He wasn’t’ sure. Death would be welcomed in a situation like that. Except for the strong willed… which he had a hunch that she was.

“Wake up, girl,” he told her lightly. “Wake up and I may offer you a second chance at life.” He placed his hand over her forehead, moving the wet strands of blond from her face. “Wake up.”

TAGS: ELEJEN, LIAT
WORDS: 769
OUTFIT: CLOAKED FIGURES FTW.

[LIAT ROSEN IONA]

Liat’s eye were closed again in a matter of minutes. It was pure luck for her. She was more than half way dead in the water before the God even transformed again. She was fading fast, the water sucking out all the warmth in her body, chilling her to the bone. The tips of her fingers had already started to tint purple from the lack of oxygen. At least her body was numb from the cold that pressed around it, save for perhaps a hint of warmth from the man holding her there in the ocean. Once she had faded out again the beast form appeared again.

The second ticked as she was pushed towards the shore. She was still unable to breath so far beneath the surface. She put up no resistance, limp and water logged almost corpse that she was now. The bright blue eyes were closed now as she succumbed to body’s shut down. It was moments away when she broke the surface. There she was, left there in the snow on the shore. Inside of her head there had been blackness, but this was followed by a light. At first it was just a pinpoint but then it grew to a beam, then a tunnel. Liat paused in the face of it, unsure whether to look into it or stay where she was. She had heard some stories of what that light might be. Was it death? Was she so far gone that it was time for her to flee her mortal body? According to this light it was, but Liat was not ready to die. Still she just stood there in her mind as it grew closer.

Then physically cold wind swept over her face. An even sharper coldness pressed on the back of her neck and drenched through the back of her shirt, the coldness of snow. She was motionless, skin tinted blue from lack of air and cold. There was absolutely no color to her cheeks. She looked like a corpse at the moment. Her head had rolled to the side and the violet tinted lips were slightly parted and unmoving. She had no idea that the God of death himself crouched over her prone for now. She had no idea that he needed her to wake up, that he needed her to live as bad as she wanted to herself. It was his bidding that started to draw her away from that light again.

The warmth of a hand on her cheek shocked some part of her into the right mindset. Her body started to realize that she wasn’t dead yet, close, but not yet. Then those fingers brushed over her forehead as well. His words resonated deeply within her. She started to stir internally, her organs working to keep herself alive. Problem was, she wasn’t breathing. Liat’s stomach contracted to push her diaphragm up. This resulted in a sudden movement from her as water was expelled from her lungs. She coughed a couple times to rid herself of it all, allowing herself to breathe.

After a few moments Liat’s eyes opened. She looked up at the hooded figure who was, assumedly, looking down at her. The girl was undeniably weak and water logged. She would not drown, not today, but the cold could easily kill her now, and soon if she didn’t find warmth. She was not even strong enough to shiver consistently, just one shudder would shake her every few minutes. Liat looked up at her savior. Still unsure if she would survive she strived to at least see the man who had tried to save her life. She gathered her strength enough to lift a shaking arm and push back his hood. She did not recognize his face, though her hand caressed his cheek. Her thumb found the scar there, tracing along it.

“Thank you.” She said hoarsely. It was too cold for her, soaked as she was. Without warmth soon, she would die.

***

Eh why not: outfit

[DESINO]

The god could feel his insides tightening with growing concern as he stared down at her limp body. It really wasn’t concern for the girl herself but mostly for the sake of him being able to continue on and keep things in balance. He was in special need of help in this particular hour as he was sure that his body would soon be in a similar shape to this limp woman’s if she didn’t awaken and stay aware enough to cut a deal with him. Her life, at the moment, was crucial to her own though he would do his best not to let that be completely obvious to anyone or anything around him. It was also a great concern that his sister may have very well been on her way to find out what it was that he was doing behind her back especially after she had just tried to kill this girl. Desino continued to try and ignore all of those things though in order to try and be selfish for the sake of his sister.

When the woman started to cough up the water that she had swallowed from the sea, he felt a great wave of relief rush through his system. The momentary hope for her survival also sent a few shocks of energy through him, encouraging him to put more effort into this since it was working. Of course, there really was little that Desino could do when it came the living. So even now all he could do was arch his brows and watch quietly as she struggled for her life. The only thing that he could do was take away life, not give it. But he could spare it. The question would be though was whether she wanted her life to continue or not after this ordeal or through this sort of suffering. She was no longer drowning in an endless sea but she was now on snowy shores with a stranger, her body already freezing cold.

As he watched her he did feel some pity toward her. It was sad seeing things suffer and usually he could be kind enough to take them away from the pain and to a place where their souls could be at ease. He knew that putting this one out of her misery may have been in his best interest but so far she was somewhat faring and that was enough for him to keep her alive for the time being. If her body grew too weak and her blood ran cold then she would hardly be of any use to him. She would be another soul to lead to the next voyage after this life and that was all. His body would still be falling apart and he would have to pray that he could find another before his time was up.

Desino furrowed his brow as she lifted her hand and pushed the hood of his cloak away from his face. He felt his insides stir uncomfortably as she reached up and traced the scar beneath his eye. Part of him was very much tempted to push her hand away from him while he carefully informed that touching him would not be in her best interest, but he did no such thing. Human trust could be a fragile thing and he did not want to make her feel uneasy. Though in her state she probably hardly felt anything but the cold. But when she thanked him it seemed to shove aside those thoughts and he very quickly moved her hand away from his skin, a stern frown now outlined his lips.

He undid the clasp around his neck that held his cloak onto him and then took the entire thing off. He swooped it over his shoulder and let it drop on top of her. Then, with very little emotion breaking through his features and voice, he leaned over her and spoke again. “Listen to me,” he told her. “You want to live and feel the warmth of a fire and good food in your stomach? I can grant you all of that for a very small price…” He trailed off, removing his eyes from her. He reached for a small leather bag fastened to his belt and produced from it a small blade no longer than his thumb. Then he presented it to her, offering it. It was a dark, ebony color along the small sliver to grasp it on. Tiny designs representing the dead were portrayed on it. He turned his eyes back on her and held the blade out. “Every night you must give me an offering,” his voice was barely over a whisper. “A small prick of your finger could even do. Leave the blade out at an open window with the blood still on it. And that is all I ask of you in return for letting you keep your life.”

TAGS: ELEJEN, LIAT
WORDS: 822
OUTFIT: CLOAKED FIGURES FTW.

[LIAT ROSEN IONA]

Liat felt like she was being pulled between two sides. One side kept her body shivering once in a while, that side fought for her to live. It was the strong part of Liat, that will that was made of iron. It made her react to what was going on around her. It was also that part that kept the adrenaline running through her veins. At this point, after all of that cold and trauma, that adrenaline was truly the only think keeping her alive. Her heart pounded with it, causing small tremors through her body now and then, easily mistake for the shivers. The other side of Liat was much harder to resist at current. That part of Liat wanted her to give up. It was tired of being cold and being scared. It didn’t want to be a victim anymore, it just wanted to be well and healthy. That did not seem to be possible and so that part yearned for death, to release her bodily pain. She was suffering, there was no doubt about it. A headache and the chills racked her, and that was the least of her issues. Her chest felt tight, and it was growing increasingly difficult for her to breathe.

All of this was made all the more terrifying when she figured out who the man crouching next to her was. While she was glad for the added warmth of his cloak she was still face to face with the god of death. That did manage to make her tremble more. She saw him in a new light. She could only partly see him as a savior now. She didn’t want to die but the fact of the matter was that he was probably here to take her. Liat did not want to die, but what choice did she have? The fact of the matter was that she didn’t have one. If she was dying then her life was forfeit to him. Still, that didn’t make all of it any less terrifying for her. She wanted to find the words to plead for her life, but she just couldn’t make them leave her mouth. Maybe she didn’t want them to, maybe she should just die. She was struggling now, terrified as she was by her current situation. Those blue eyes looked up an him now, frightened and wide. She strove for air through those lips that were pale from the cold.

Still he had her full attention when he started to speak. He offered something that honestly shocked her. He was offering her a second chance, he was offering her life. She was both confused and thankful. It was true then, he had fished her out of the sea itself. Was this the purpose? Why would the god of death save a life. She looked up at his face, he did look worn. A violent shiver ran through Liat then. She was loosing it, she was starting to loose her grip on consciousness. She just wanted to sleep, she didn’t feel cold anymore. A bit of her forced her to finish hearing what he was saying. She pulled vaguely at the cloak that was the only thing between her and death, both embodied and figurative. Still in this condition how could she answer. She tried to speak, but her words were mumbled and slurred.

Instead Liat raised a hand and sliced her finger on the knife. Then she turned her hand over, showing him the blood on her hand. Liat made eye contact with him, trying to keep her eyes open long enough to see if he understood her. She swallowed once, twice, and then she did manage to speak. “Please… please, don’t let me die…”

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