Welcome to Gaia! :: View User's Journal | Gaia Journals

BELIEFS
❈ Understanding the world is the key to true wisdom. I will find a worthy quest and commit to it.
❈ Traveling is safer in a group, I'll join an adventurer's band and help them out.
❈ My supplies are maybe not the most practical. When there's a chance, I'll stock up on more appropriate clothing and gear.

INSTINCTS
❈ Always pursue knowledge
❈ Always treat those that are suffering
❈ If my mark of service is uncovered, draw attention elsewhere

TRAITS (6)

tonsured; a tattoo binds her to her service
early riser
faithful
graceful (physical speed & social grace/presence)


SKILLS (3/13)
doctrine
ritual
temple-wise
oratory
suasion
herbalism
soothing platitudes

𝔢𝔪𝔬𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔞𝔩 𝔪𝔞𝔤𝔦𝔠
|| boon ༓ blessing ༓ aid ༓ hinderance ༓ guidance ༓ minor miracle ༓ purification ༓ consecration ༓ inspiration ༓ intercession ༓ miracle ||


Ria has finally left her healer's apprenticeship. The secluded forest never felt right - maybe it was the unchangeable daily routine? Or the bitterly cold winters when news of the outside world dropped off entirely. As a child she loved the stories of adventurers as they sold amazing treasures and embellished stories of daring. It was a difficult decision to leave behind the safety of her cozy home, but she could come back later with her own adventures to share.

Garden of Providence: hot spring / wild growth / icy waters / stable and stubborn / darn secretive spaces

show spoilerhide spoiler

Steam rises from the hot spring into the cool air. The air is uncannily still and it lingers, twisting into shapes that seem to mimic the soft conversation across the water.

"...seem like enough people are taking the trek required unless they're nearly dead already." The voice sounds a bit sad, but this is nothing new. It was a long journey and the lands outside the sanctuary were dangerous. Ria would never leave, the stories were much too scary.

"And that's always worked in the past. If anything, the mindset it requires has brought in so many dedicated members!"

"But so few."

Ria lifts a hand out of the water ever so slowly. Droplets trace her arm downward but don't splash, reforming with the pool. Any sound would echo. Any sharp movement would tell the senior healers on the other side of the steam that she was still there. The air was chilly, and Ria was so tired from the daily cleaning chores that were still incomplete from this morning. She weaves her fingers between two foggy shapes like women dancing. The hushed voices drop even more and it catches her attention.

"If there aren't enough faces for the equinox celebration, we have other methods. Old trees, deep roots," the more confident voice assures, quoting a common saying around the sanctuary. "The magic in this place has a will to survive that is greater than any of us."

"And that means we cannot fail," the first voice pleads quietly.

Ria frowns. It was just a seasonal offering, one she had participated in ever since she was old enough to sing along. And not even her favorite ritual. This one was boring, lots waiting around for the older members to perform their first public healing. One day that would be her, but until then it meant sitting on the bench with the other children.

The first voice continues, their whispering growing more emotional. "I know that above all else we must continue the good work of the Providence, but offering up children before they understand what they're giving away? Binding them to a life of service against their will?"

"For a greater good," bossy-voice cuts in. "We agreed to this. You agreed. In exchange for this power, yes. We will do what we need to in order to protect this spring and the great power that watches over it." The other voice tries to cut in, but bossy continues, "and you'll do best remembering your own promise to serve. I need as many voices as possible next week, it would be a shame if one of our members retired to the grieving ward." A silence follows, Ria tries to not breathe, sure any sound at all would cut through the tense feeling. She bites her lip. The healers of the grieving ward were never seen. They took meals after the general groups finished, and rarely left the building full of terminally ill and dying patients. They were treated to a respectful silence, so that their energies would stay focused on easing the pain of passing on. It was reserved for older healers that would pass on soon anyway. To offer the respected position as a threat? But maybe Ria had misread bossy-voice's tone. Goosebumps rise on her exposed arm, but she doesn't dare move until she hears the two bodies slip out of the water. Their footsteps slap against the stone floor, muffled by the steam, and eventually fade away.

RELATIONSHIPS




...
insp; Sabrina, Madoka