ROSE

[crittersheep]

[You're in your barn! That doesn't seem so bad--oh, oh wait, you're in the air.

Your barn, and honestly some of your stuff, is just floating on clouds. You can walk on the clouds too if you want, no one's stopping you. You will not, however, be able to return to the ground, far, far below you, no matter what you do.

At least not til the Ritual is complete.

Floating among everything else is your priest, who seems to have fallen into a deep sleep, and the barn's crystal flower.

After a moment, you hear voices resonating from the crystal flower--the holy beasts, their voices and minds melded as one, call out to you.

It asks your Flock 3 simple questions.]

Comments

Gen

[crittersheep]

[talk amongst yourselves here!!]

Re: Gen

[finalbows]

[ still has blood on his (ungloved) hands ]

Well.

Better him than me.

Re: Gen

[wants_the_phd]

[Looking down over the edge of the cloud]

Some people really just don't care about themselves, do they.

Works out great for me!

[Miss her with the self-sacrifice]

Re: Gen

[finalbows]

The scavenger's creed?

Re: Gen

[wants_the_phd]

Or that of the survivalist, anyway. I'd wonder if this kind of self-sacrifice is the kind of behavior one cultivates growing up in a place where death is just a temporary inconvenience, if I hadn't had the displeasure of being around so many humans.

[debug_mode]

Angie... What did you do?

[finalbows]

[ he pulls out a fancy kerchief to start methodically wringing the blood off of his fingers ]

An art project. That would hopefully have stalled the battle of titans over our heads.

And then Stormy waddled into the middle of it.

[debug_mode]

Oh... so that part wasn't intentional...

Re: Gen

[strateelgic]

[Leviathan is sitting very, very still on a cloud with his eyes closed and his face frozen in a smile.]

Re: Gen

[wants_the_phd]

Oh wow, we're sooooooo far up in the sky. Hope we don't fall! It's a long way down.

Re: Gen

[strateelgic]

You are going to need my help for this, you realize.

Re: Gen

[finalbows]

Exposure hasn't really been lessening that one any, huh.

Re: Gen

[strateelgic]

Not at all!

[debug_mode]

Thus ritual feels different... a lot different.

[finalbows]

I don't disagree, seeing as I WAS aiming for "grand invocation that can hopefully supercede the most nasty of all demons."

[debug_mode]

So, what defines family and flock to you, Angie?

[wants_the_phd]

It's really hard to tell what the outcome of this is gonna be, for one.

Are our answers gonna determine whether or not we plunge to the ground or what?

[debug_mode]

Maybe it'll add our own power to the dragon fighting the demon?

Question One

[crittersheep]

[You instinctively know you should give one collective answer after discussing this]

What defines family? What defines flock? Is blood truly thicker than water, is that the most important factor?

Re: Question One

[wants_the_phd]

A family is a group of people, typically related by blood, that work together in pursuit of raising young. A flock is a group of people who share a collar color and live in the same barn. In both cases, the groups may depend on each other for their wellbeing, but they won't necessarily like each other just for those reasons.

What 'matters' has nothing to do with the circumstances that brought you together, whether it was decided for you by supernatural forces or biological ones. What matters is who you care about and want to be around. While you may care about those in your flock or family, you care about them due to the quality of their character and the experiences you've shared, not because of how fate stuck you together through no choice of your own.

Question Two

[crittersheep]

[You instinctively know you should give one collective answer after discussing this]

Would you prefer to have the beauty and brevity of a rose in your life, or live long, unnoticed among others, watching their lives wilt away as you tower over them alone as a mighty oak? Why?

Re: Question Two

[wants_the_phd]

There is no value in a life you're not enjoying. Whether it's brief and flashy, or long and peaceful, what makes a life worth living is if you find it personally fulfilling, not what other people think about it. Who cares if they notice you? Who cares if they find you beautiful? It's not about them. Your life is for chasing your own bliss.

Question Three

[crittersheep]

[You instinctively know only the Shepherd should give an answer for this]

With the blessing of Time on your side, would you change anything or any decision of your flock?

Re: Question Three

[strateelgic]

No. Not a one.

Re: Question Three

[wooliefrand]

[once he gives his answer, their crystal flower glows and their priest opens their eyes]

[and then. . .]