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Post by Dionisia on Oct 14, 2022 2:06:52 GMT
Sesing tears well up for Cody she smiles soft and touches his hand.
"So sorry for your loss. Losing guiding figures you loved and looked up to in life can be very hard. And causes to lose ways. But you are smart you'll find your own way again."
She sits back and looks down at her hands which return to her lap.
"No i am not orphaned. Or that is what mother superior says. She says my parents brought me there when i was very young. Just a baby and they would come get me when i'm ready. Whatever that means.. untill then i study and work."
She gives a light shrug, as to show she just accepts that as it is.
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Post by Cody D'Avalon on Oct 14, 2022 2:52:05 GMT
The touch of her hand is warm and reassuring.
"I can't imagine what that's like."
He completes the thought silently - to be abandoned... Passed off as a chore for someone else to compete.
~Build me and adult. Call me when it's ready for pick-up. ~
"Well, maybe... I mean, I've always had M-unit, but no Father. And being raised in a creche means being part of an extended family."
He smiles at the memory of his creche-mates.
One way or another he will return to Station and his creshe-mates once he finds his Mother. One way or another.
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Post by Dionisia on Oct 14, 2022 3:03:08 GMT
Agaon she shrugs at his first words. . "You do not need to imagine.. we all have our own lives that play out their way."
Cody telling of his M-unit and creche mates makes her smile. Mostly because he smiles with talking about it.
"So Cody, both respectively on our own... though i am watched from here. Let me teach you what i know. I cannot do so in ome day though. It takes time and practice. "
Looking back quickly to the house she sighs.
"I have to go back soon. But please if you are here tomorrow so will i, with food drinks and lessons." She smiles a broad happy smile at the prospect of seeing him again.
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Post by Cody D'Avalon on Oct 15, 2022 3:16:00 GMT
"I will most definitely return good lady. Certainly something so profound as instantly healing isn't taught or learned in a single lesson."
With a bit of a grimace he continues.
"Leaving, at the moment, presents a bit of a problem though."
"That is to say that I'm a bit lost at the moment. This is such a strange land where everything keeps shifting and moving. The path by which I came is no longer there."
"This is the first time that I have ventured so far from the Temple. I suppose that if I could fly, I could go directly where I wanted to. But by foot I need the bridges that come and go of their own volition. Or, is there a way to call on them? I saw someone else gestulate and a bridge did appear to swing his way."
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Post by Dionisia on Oct 15, 2022 3:28:29 GMT
Dio smiles in excitement with the prospect of having someone to talk to here. Other then follow lessons and instructions herself.
She nods "It takes a bit to learn yes. But once the basics are down you can experiment alot. Just a warning a different state of solidity of viscosity is dangerous and requires more strong will and power and still high risk of not being able to keep yourself together."
She watches Cody with a serious face.
With the question of going over the bridges and ways Dio shrugs and shakes her head.
"I am so sorrry, i cannot help you there. I am not allowed to leave the grounds and i am fairly certain the staff or even Lord Suhuy would know if i did. And i never left the convent on my own.
So i do not know how to summon roads or bridges. If i could leave i could have flown you."
She looks apologetic "If leaving now is an issue. You could hide. There is an abandoned shed a bit further along this hedge."
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Post by Cody D'Avalon on Oct 15, 2022 17:14:07 GMT
Cody was silent for a while as he considered the things his new benefactriss told him. Amazing things.
He knows something about the different states of matter but survival usually requires that they stay constant within one's self.
Back at Station he had seen many different creatures and beings. All evolved to suit their environments.
People with fins and gills adapted to their watery world are just as likely to be found as are those with wings.
But here in Chaos he had seen for the first time people who can suddenly sprout wings. He'd never seen anyone capable of transforming like that before. But he accepted the fact that they could and he can't.
When Dionisia suggested that she could fly, he was a bit startled.
"You can sprout wings and fly too?! Amazing! Is this also a part of Shifting? Another part that that you could teach me? I mean, if it's not too much bother. I mean healing will help me survive, but flying would make everything so much easier and a whole lot more fun!"
He thinks for a moment and continues, "No, I don't think I should stay. I may get you in trouble. Plus, I need to get back to the Temple with the alms I've collected and earn my keep there."
He appears to become somewhat meditative as he remembers what he had seen some others do.
"You know... The gestulations I saw the other fellow do to sommon a bridge, they remind me a lot of the signals that the crewmen on Station Flightdeck use to guide Pilots."
"If I can't find a bridge going my way soon enough, I'll try some flightdeck signals and see if they work."
"Otherwise, it may take longer, but that may also be a blessing: I may find another friend like you along the way as I wander. With your aid and kindness I am more that refreshed and energized to continue on."
He gathers up the remaining food that Dionisia has give him and stands up at the ready to continue his walk. Directly or indirectly as the fates allow.
"I thank you again for your generosity and hospitality. I very much look forward meeting with you again... Until anon, I bid you well and give silent blessings to your Lord Suhuy as well for his indirect giving of these riches."
"Would it be inappropriate to give you a hug, in friendship before we part ways? Maybe a handshake?"
After parting, Cody moves out to the edge of the Ways to seek a bridge back towards the Pit.
Seeing one off in the distance hovering and disconnected he tries various flightdeck signals.
It takes a while but he eventually works out a series of gestures that are successful in attracting one end of the bridge.
Walking out to the far end of the bridge he resumes signaling and eventually succeeds in connecting the bridge to another nearby Ways.
Much to the amusement of other observers.
He's much too proud of his accomplishment to be embarrassed and simply smiles and bows to the onlookers.
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Post by Dionisia on Oct 15, 2022 19:20:48 GMT
Dio nods understanding and appriciative that he takes her safety in mind.
"Please return soon though i could teach you things to help. Next time i'll make sure there is food again. I do not know what you mean by the flightdecks but perhaps it will work if it looks similar. "
She smiles a warm smile hearing he is asking ever so politly for a hug.
She scoots over to him and wraps her thin arms around him. She talks soft.
"I do not know how long still my lessons take here or how long i am to stay, try and return soon. i would love seeing you again. "
SHe keeps the embrace going as long as Cody allows it.
When parting she places a surprising soft hands on his cheek. Looking into his eyes. Saying nothing.
She then gathers up the things she had brought for him and the temple. "Oh i am sorry i got the cloth dirty with me showing off. hope that is okey else just throw it away."
AFter they have parted Dio stands for a bit until she is called inside. By the sly smile of the servant it seems they might know something.
The next day and the day after and so on Dio is sitting at the same spot with a little sack with food and drink until she sees Cody again.
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Post by Cody D'Avalon on Oct 16, 2022 3:37:11 GMT
Cody would stay and maintain the embrace indefinitely if it were not for the fear of compromising Dionisia's virtue. Judging what he thinks is an appropriate amount of time he waits a second longer before gently breaking the bond.
The warmth and gentleness is elating. The touch. The eye contact.
They'd only just met but have discovered a kinship. A pair obviously starved for affection.
"Yes, love to see you again. Same time in the next turning."
The concern about the cloth getting a little soiled is amusing to him and he gives a little chuckle.
"I am born and raised in a relatively sterile environment on board Station. But have gone Green-side often enough. M-unit encouraged me to explore and often said, 'Don't worry, a little dirt won't kill you.' I can clean this up and return it to you as good as new."
As promised, Cody eagerly returns each turning for ShapeShifting lessons.
His Pit-Diving prowess improves and he shares some of his found things with her.
Just shiny little bits and pieces that he fashions into jewelry or curios.
Pretty things...
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Post by Dionisia on Oct 16, 2022 4:09:09 GMT
Dio takes great pride and joy in teaching. She copies the lessons she has had herself.
Every time Cody is there her face lights up.
And as promised every time she is there with food and drink. Amd gratefully she accepts the little trinkets praising Cody for his growing skills.
One day though Dio is not there. No food or drink awaits. Cody is just in time to see Dio being escorted away surrounded by a couple nuns they are walking away from the estate.
Dio tries to look back but is often corrected.
Until they wait for a moment by a bridge.
Dio looks back. Sees Cody and a sad smile appears.
One of the nuns taps Dio with a thin rod on the cheek. Letting her head hang she walks with the group as they start moving again.
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Post by Cody D'Avalon on Oct 16, 2022 17:10:03 GMT
Cody's previous life on Station had somehow prepared him for the madness of Pit-Diving. The maelstrom of the Interstellar Flux prepared him mentally for the things he faced in the Abyss.
As Dionisia's lessons take hold, Cody is able to make longer and deeper dives into the Abyss. Especially after going beyond simple healing of wounds to Shifting his actual form.
He learned to thicken and toughen his skin for protection. Grow fur and add fat to stay warm or slim down and wear scales if it got warm.
Things, just as often get lost as get found in the Abyss. Drop a pick or hammer and it will disappear in an instant. So it's best to have them attached to yourself. Your bare appendages must become your tools.
A wirey whisker becomes a lock pick. Hands are hammers and pliers. Your foot an anvil or sledge.
Not the only tools of the trade.
Claws, spurs, horns, tusks, and other armaments are crucial for survival inside the Abyss.
Lesser Demons would rather attack you and take your treasures that seek out their own. Or the other creatures that would have you for their dinner.
Sometimes singly but more often in packs.
So there is a constant struggle to survive.
But it goes beyond that. It's not just the floura and fauna that you need to beware of. The churning environment itself attacks your mind and can drive a person mad. Lights and sounds. Patches of darkness so black that it feels like colours and light are being painfully sucked out of your skull. Silences that stab at your ear drums.
A myriad of other environmental extremes that can stretch or crush you.
The Courts of Chaos are rock solid and dependable compared to the constant maelstrom below.
Cody is eternally grateful to Dionisia for her tutaledge in ShapeShifting. Allowing Cody to survive and even thrive as a Pit-Diver.
From the first day Cody met Dionisia, they knew they would be split apart which made their time together even more special.
The greatest gift, aside from friendship, is the gift of flight. Learning to grow wings and fly means that Cody has been promoted off the flightdeck and into the Pilot Seat once again. He no longer has to awkwardly gesture for bridges and filmys to navigate through the Courts. He can take to his wings and fly.
When that fateful day arrives Cody sees the cadre of Habit Bound Sisters surrounding Dionisia.
The scene tears at Cody's heart and soul. It is like seeing your beloved being marched to the gallows...
Cody knows better (Does he?) than to interfere. Although the scene appears grim, he knows that soon Dionisia will be reunited with her parents.
Cody will not interfere with that reunion.
He maybe feels a slight paing of envy for her to be having the reunion while he continues to seek his own M-unit.
Cody circles the scene below.
Cody's service is the Temple has led him around to connecting with other Temples and Convents. He's dropped Dionisia's name on occasion to the friendlier Sisters that he's met and has determined which one she came from. But there is no guarantee that that is the one she will be returned to...
He'll check in on the next turning to find out how she fares.
He screeches like a bird of prey one long and sorrowful, "Dio.........!
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Post by Dionisia on Oct 16, 2022 17:58:51 GMT
Dio had hoped after the training at Lord Suhuy and fullfilling all requirments she would surely be summoned by her parents.
Sadly though it had not happen.
And her workload in the convent got only more and heavier.
Barely allowed to sleep or eat.
It was then that she was dragging sacks of steaming refuse of some sorts through the backyard that she could swear she heard a voice.
Looking around seeing none.
Looking up seeing the young man she got so close with over the time away from the convent.
She stops dragging the sacks and waves a smalll gesture to her dear friend.
The moment would not have lasted long. Though it was noticed by a sister. With great strides she walks over to Dio and starts beating her back relentlessly with a knotted rope.
To protect Cody she yells that she just took a break she wss tired.
The nun stops turns and with the same great strides walks off. Dio does not dare to look up again.
Perhaps to protect Cody. Or out of shame.
She stands again and starts dragging the sacks to the refuse pits.
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Post by Cody D'Avalon on Oct 16, 2022 20:23:46 GMT
Cody is absolutely horrified with the abuse metted out on Dionisia.
She had said that the other Sisters were cruel.
BUT in typical fashion, Cody had thought it was the exaggeration of a young girl.
What he had just witnessed convinced him otherwise.
He felt a wave of helplessness wash over him.
What was he to do? Assault a Nun?!
Kidnap Dionisia?
The reprocussions of any hasty action could destroy both of them.
As before. Cody screeched like a bird of prey, "Dio.......!"
He turned then and flew as fast as a lightning bolt back to his Temple to consult with the kind Priest who had rescued and resuscitated Cody.
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Post by Dionisia on Oct 16, 2022 20:28:35 GMT
Dio had continued her work again. It was nothing new for her to work hard or to get beaten.
When she hears the screech of her name a small smile appears on her lips. She watches Cody fly off by the reflection of the pond in the yard.
"Fly free my friend."
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Post by Cody D'Avalon on Oct 17, 2022 18:08:08 GMT
Cody flew directly to The Sheltering Coils Temple and Mission House. Landing at the mouth of the cave that houses the Temple he hastily sanctifies himself and dons his tattered second-hand-habit. At this point in the turning, the Abyssal Priest will likely be meditating and this forces Cody to slow down and that takes all of his effort of will. He locates the Priest and sees that he is in a deep trance. Cody takes up a place beside the Priest and settles in to wait. With effort, he calms his own mind and attempts to meditate as well. He slows his breathing and counts his heartbeats to measure time.
After a seeming eternity the Priest stirs from his silent reverie to be startled by Cody throwing himself in supplication before him.
"Abyssal Father to whom I owe so much and have given so little in return and I am unworthy, let me beseech you on another's behalf. I have befriended and received much friendship in return from a young girl, Dionisia. I have witnessed that she is abused and requires aid of your interceding on her behalf."
The Abyssal Father stands and stretches. Groaning as he does so. He reaches down and touches Cody on the shoulder. "Rise up child and walk with me. Tell me of your friend and her predicament."
Rising to his feet and following a respectful pace behind the Abyssal Father, Cody begins. "When first I set out from the Temple. When I was just barely healed by your blessed hands. I set out to collect alms. I didn't yet know how to navigate the Ways. I wandered the Path as it presented itself."
"At last, I found myself lost on the edge of Lord Suhuy's Way. I didn't know where that was or what it meant at the time. I paused to rest and a young girl came to my aid. She befriended me."
"Over several turnings, I learned that she is, more or less, an orphan herself. That is... She was surrendered to a Convent as an infant and the Sisters there are tasked with rearing her. At some point, her parents are to reclaim her when she has been reared."
Cody's story is a bit disjointed as he tells it, but he doesn't want to miss any detail that may be relevant.
"She has been a great benefactress to myself and I have shared what I have received through her to this Temple. I suppose, from Lord Suhuy's coffers."
"But, to her plight: She was given over to Lord Suhuy for a time to be tutored in ShapeShifting and other arcane arts. It was also she that taught me to ShapeShift and for her kindness, generosity and friendship I am eternally grateful."
"While together, she told me of the cruelty she suffered at the hands of the other Sisters. At the time, I had only thought that it was petty meanness meted out by the other young girls in the habit. Perhaps an exaggeration. She was resolved to return to the Convent when Suhuy's tutoring was complete."
"She has such sadness."
"I first witnessed her situation on the day that she was collected by the Sisters to be taken back to the Convent. She was surrounded on all sides and marched away as though to the gallows. They flicked Dionisia with switches to ensure her obeisance."
Abyssal Father continued to stroll along and listened patiently and intently.
"It has been a while since I have seen my friend."
"Today, I come direct from seeing Dionisia. Forgive me, I am outraged! I saw Dionisia again and what I saw is appalling. Although she was very slight when I knew her, she has become emaciated. The Mothers and Sisters of the Convent work her to exhaustion. They beat her without provocation."
"It took all of my will not to intercede in the moment. Only knowing that I may have made her situation. And my own. Worse... If I did."
"So I refrained."
"They treat her worse that I have ever witnessed. Masters are kinder to slaves than the Mothers are to Dionisia."
"They beat upon her!"
Tears are streaming from Cody's eyes and his voice is becoming hoarse with the telling.
"I can not live with this knowledge. I am compelled to do something to ease her suffering."
At the end of the telling, the Abyssal Father stopped and turned. He took Cody into an embrace, "Son. I can not enact any miracles. But I will investigate and enquire at the Diocese on her behalf and yours. Discretely, as is appropriate. I can not act directly upon the Convent. But I can observe."
"Let's go see your friend. And whether she's the only one being abused."
Together they fly to the convent as Cody describes Dionisia to the Abyssal Father. When they get near, the Abyssal Father cautions discretion and waves Cody away. The Abyssal Father ShapeShifts into a cat form and settles near the refuse as if to clear away any vermin.
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Post by Dionisia on Oct 17, 2022 18:49:49 GMT
Dio has picked up her work again, it was not that she was allowed alot of free time. Her appearance near ghostly and her white hair and fair skin not helping. It does make her eyes only more radiant blue.
At the time the Father and Cody are near the convent Dio is sitting in a courtyard working her way through a bucket of what could be best described as fatty tissues that had solidified. With skilled and diligent hands she is forming candles what are often known in temples and places of worship as soulcandles.
They tissues are drained from willing demons.
She is sitting by herself and seems pretty content.
There are other young girls not in a nun habit like hers they are doing other manual tasks.
Some do glare at Dio and whisper, though Dio ignores those.
The Abyssal father might know the convent like this for wayward girls who have gone mad with the powers of Chaos. Though they are usually brought to the convent at a later age and not as Dio mentioned her being a mere baby.
Seeing the cat near the pile of refuge doing its work to chase away the vermin Dio smiles. Her sunken eyes light up. From her pouch she pulls out a little dried meat and tosses it to the cat.
She whispers. "There you go little guy, must taste much better then the mangy rats here. Payment for your hard work."
She quickly continues to work and keeps her head even lower and arms deeper in the fatty goo when a couple of sisters pass by.
They inspect the work of Dio and then of the other girls. One of the girls has a wicked grin on her lips and starts to spit and curse at one of the nuns. Both nuns turn grab the girl who tries to kick and scream but with a few words of power the girl is restrained.
Dio doesn't dare look up. SHe keeps working, making candle after candle.
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