What is he even doing!?
Amanises silently watched from afar, as Klein repeatedly hammered the piece of metal on the anvil. From his expression, it was apparent he was completely engrossed in his task to the point of seemingly not even noticing her frustrated piercing gaze.
Amanises ears repeatedly twitched as the hammering sound grew louder and sharper. Eventually, the annoying sharp noise reached a point of no return, and thus, she got up from her comfy pillow she had dragged to the garden from her room.
She hastily approached Klein, the ends of her lips constantly twitching, her fangs fully bared. Standing just behind him, Amanises waited for a moment, confirming that this Sequence 1 had somehow not taken notice of her presence.
Klein lifted his hammer back up, ready to strike the hunk of metal on the anvil again, but just as he was about to, Amanises swiftly lifted one of her arms, and smacked Klein across the face, causing him to lose his balance and tumble down on the ground. However, the hammer also flew out of his grip due to this, and dropped on one of Amanises's many paws, causing the demonic wolf to let out a scream of pain, and lose her balance as well, falling to the ground while writhing in pain.
"Ow!!! Ow!!!"
The duo hissed in tune, as the demonic wolf held her throbbing paw up in the air, while the man held the side of his face which still ached from the direct smack it had received..
After recovering somewhat, Klein supported himself with one of his arms and sat up, gazing over at the pained Amanises. "What the hell?! What did I do to get hit??!" He shouted at her in an angry tone, while rubbing the side of his face. "Oow eee~" Amanises supported herself with the rest of her seven limbs, and looked at him with annoyance and anger, "Your useless hammering not only ruined my inner peace but also served as a reason for my current headache!" Shouting at him, Amanises held her dear paw, gritting her fangs in pain.
"And you seriously hit me for that much?!" Klein instantly retaliated, causing Amanises's wail to suddenly halt. Her entire body turned stiff, with a confused expression slowly settling. "Actually, you are right. Why did I hit you for that much? That wasn't even my intention when I was approaching you…" Amanises calmly stated, as she plunged herself in deep thoughts.
Klein, upon hearing that, let out a deep sigh, as he too had a change in demeanour, with his pained expression settling. "Flegrea…" He softly uttered, removing his hand from the side of his face, which had now turned red.
He extended his hand and brought out Life's cane from the historical void, and bopped Amanises's nose with its tip, earning slight retaliation. Instantly, her pain vanished as her paw was fully rejuvenated. Amazed, she saw the cane disappear, with Klein leaning back, his two hands supporting his body.
"It seems you were subtly influenced by Flegrea's madness, causing you to lash out at me instead of settling it like a civilized pe— I mean, Demonic Wolf. A Civilized Demonic Wolf." Klein elaborated, rubbing his face.
Amanises, upon hearing his explanation, shook her head, sighing. "Forgive me. It wasn't my intention to hit you." She sincerely apologised, lowering her head. Klein chuckled at this, and slowly got up. "It's fine… Just, maybe try to keep some distance when you feel annoyed…" Klein awkwardly said, ruffling his hair, receiving a light laugh from Amanises.
"Got it. Now, if I may ask, what are you doing?" Amanises curiously glanced at the anvil and normal hunk of metal that was resting on it. She then turned her gaze at the comically large hammer on the ground, inwardly noting that the damage it had caused to her dear paw was much more than it should have.
"Well… to be honest, nothing really." Klein replied with a smile He fully utilised his clown prowess to hide his embarrassment and awkwardness. Amanises raised a brow at this and narrowly stared at him. For the longest of time, neither spoke, as Klein tried to avoid her gaze while Amanises's eyes remained fixed on him.
"Okay, I was bored and had nothing to do." Klein finally admitted, dropping his facade. "And so you started beating a piece of metal on an even bigger piece of metal?" Hearing this, Klein presented Amanises, a beautiful soft smile.
Men truly are weird. Who tries to fix their boredom by smashing some random metal, leading to noise pollution? Amanises shook her head in disappointment.
As if reading her thoughts, Klein continued, "I mean, it wasn't just that. Earlier on, one of my avatars found this hammer…" Klein stepped towards the anvil and reached out with his hands, grabbing the giant hammer beside it. "It was found in a washed up battlefield between giants and some other race, which I speculate to be Phoenixes. It's a mystical artifact corresponding to a Sequence 5: Guardian.
"From divination, I was able to determine that this artifact, when smashed into the ground, can create a defence barrier around the wielder. This defensive barrier can reflect most attacks and effects lacking godhood, and it's only downside being the barrier can only last for 30 seconds before shattering. It then enters a cooldown period of 5 Minutes."
Klein thoroughly explained the abilities and side effects of the artifact he had named 'Guardian's Hammer'. "In addition to the barrier ability, merely holding the hammer buffs one's physical capabilities, including a strong resistance to most mystical effects. The only real side effect to this artifact is the constant spiritual drain. Of course, for beings like us, this side effect is irrelevant."
Klein smiled as he lifted the hammer up in the air, aiming it towards the metal piece sitting on the anvil. Amanises, who was keenly listening to him, saw this and took several steps back, instinctively covering her ears. Klein took a step back, bringing the hammer down with incredible speed. For a second, nothing happened, but then a sharp noise resounded in the air, as Amansies noticed cracks appearing on the metal piece before extending to the anvil, before it crumbled down, completely broken.
"And, it can hit really hard." Klein commented, resting the hammer back to the ground, and moving his gaze from the crumbled anvil to Amanises's paw, on which the hammer had previously hammered.
Amanises continued to stare at the crumbled anvil, then back at her paw. Scary stuff… She returned her gaze to the smiling Klein with an interesting expression. "I see… what stuff have you broken with it so far?" Klein scoffed at this question, realising his friend knew him quite well.
"Maybe… I tried to make a cave…"
"Did that cave collapse on you? Is that why you came home yesterday in a sour mood?" Klein's lips twitched, as he sent the hammer into his junk pile, while gazing upon her, his expression loudly speaking for himself.
Amanises met his gaze with a grin, silently laughing to herself. "It's fine. Take me with you next time. I'll cover you while you can dig your cave..." She got up on her hindlegs and lifted her hand, patting Klein's head as if he was a moody child.
… My mysterious image… I think it's no more now. She is treating me like a kid… Klein lampooned while his expression increasingly twisted. Ignoring this, Amanises continued to pat his head, letting out a snicker or two in between.
…
"Shrine is ready."
Today was a great day for Tingen.
The entire town had gathered in the middle of the city, looking at a small building made out of furnished stone and concrete. It had arching pillars supporting a dome, from which a small miniature door hung. At the middle of the dome, down at the ground was a sacred emblem, resembling a resplendent star.
It was pitch black in color, with streaks of crimson across the building. A beautiful building, appearing serene, and dreamlike. Merely looking at it gave the people a deep sense of warmth.
There were talks of joy, shout of excitement, cheers of fulfilment. The crowd was full of pride at their handiwork.
"Now-Now, there is still a lot to prepare for. Let us all first pray to our Goddess." A man draped in a pitch black robe, standing in front of the shrine spoke out loudly, grabbing each and every person's attention. The crowd settled down with silent agreements, as they all clasped their hands and prayed in a single chorus.
"An Existence from a Bygone time;
"The Lady of Concealment;
"Herald of Misfortune;
"Mistress of Repose and Silence."
Following this, the people remained still at their spot for some moments, before parting ways, some going for work, or to prepare for the upcoming Winter Gift Festival.
Winter Gift Festival. A few days ago, the Goddess's Envoy, Wandering Magician Merlin Hermes, had gathered the entire town at its main square, and had made an announcement revealing the special occasion of the Goddess's Birthday, exactly 61 days away.
This announcement had naturally sent the town in a creative frenzy, as the most recognisable individuals in the town gathered together and began to formulate a plan to please their goddess on her birthday. One of the first suggestions made in that meeting and almost immediately implemented, was the construction of a shrine dedicated to the Goddess of Misfortune.
"A praying shrine?" Said, the wandering magician. "Yes, a praying shrine. I feel like there should be some form of altar, a medium through which we could pray to the goddess aside from merely reciting her Honorific name." Elaborated a man with a thick brown beard, named John Wickham.
"Hmm, I see your vision. Sure, go for it." The Wandering Magician tipped his feathered hat, a pigeon immediately making an escape as the hat was lifted from the man's head, startling this pious believer.
"That's not... All Merlin. I humbly request your inputs on the design, a theme of sorts. You are more acquainted with the Goddess than any of us. And thus, I assumed you would be aware of what pleases and displeases her. Th-This is our first time doing something for The Lady—MY first time doing something for "Her". I want to get this right! Please" John gave a deep bow following this.
Merlin's eyes contracted, as he let out a light chuckle. He waved his white gloved hand before John's face, who slightly peeked at him from his bowed position.. "Hehe, you are doing a lot for her. Look at yourself for a moment, a man once treated as a slave, now getting to work on buildings and architecture. You as well as many others had an understandable hatred for the gods of this world. And now, you piously serve one. The Goddess does not hold value for material things, but it is your faith, your piousness that truly matters to her. So long as what any of you do or offer is done out of the goodness of your hearts, then the goddess will welcome it with open arms."
This momentarily stunned the pious, brown beard John, as his facial features softened, his hands curling into a tight fist. "I-I Understand." He spoke, while straightening his back.
Seeing John's resolved look, Merlin smiled brightly, before saying, "Though, I must admit, the Goddess has a fondness or likes darker colours, a bit of grey to black tone. You can do whatever you wish to do with this info."
"Huh!" John immediately let out a gasp upon hearing that, while Merlin began to blow soap bubbles with a fascinated smile. "I think, I-Um. I-ah, damn it. Thank you Merlin!" John instantly turned around and left for the town square, the agreed place to build the praying shrine.
It didn't take him too long to reach the designated location. Seeing various basic construction materials already gathered, John quickly made his way into a nearby building, familiarly navigating its doors and corridors before reaching a certain room. He knocked on the door twice, as a distinguished sound rang from inside.
"Come in, John!"
Stepping inside, John came face to face with a man of a relatively tall stature, sitting on a chair, in front of him were various papers that had the drafted design of the Praying Shrine for the Goddess. "Got any ideas from the envoy, my friend?" The man, named Null Wick, said without turning to face the brown bearded man.
"Actually, Yes. Throw all those designs and rough work, gather everyone, and give me a new blank Papyrus sheet!" Null finally turned to peer at his friend, and noted the latter's determined expression Due to this, he did not follow-up with any question, but instead stood up from his chair, walked up to a nearby shelf and took out a Papyrus fiber, handing it over to the other John, before leaving the room.
John soon heard some ruckus outside, as he let out a sigh, walked up to the table and made a big ball out of the goatskin and other sheets they had used for their previous drafts. He took aim, and threw the ball in a nearby trash bin.
Smiling, he laid down the canvas on the table, as Null stepped back into the room with a number of people. In a few short moments, the room was filled, with people surrounding the table, surrounding John and Null.
The former took a deep breath, and said, "From what envoy describes, the Goddess has a preference for darker shades of colours. Hence, let me first propose the main colour scheme for our project to be black and grey." The Crowd keenly listened to John before nodding in agreement.
Among them, one, a female named Rosetta, raised her hand attracting John's attention, "How about some streaks of Crimson too! That would acunate the shrine's look with the crimson moon." John reacted by nodding excitedly at her, while wearing a deep smile. "Excellent suggestion."
A wave of excited chuckles filled the room, including Rosetta and John, before the latter looked down at the canvas and picked a Reed pen. "As for its design, behold people, for I am about to fashion a masterpiece."
He brought the pen down on the fiber, sighing heavily, before moving, drawing a streak of line on the canvas.
The hours that went by afterwards saw numerous suggestions thrown around, with some accepted while others rejected. John did not halt his moving hand, remaining incredibly focused, and occasionally opening his mouth to utter "Accepted" or "Denied".
Time flew by, before he finally put down his pen, taking a step back, deeply gazing at the design of the praying shrine he had drawn. The Shrine they had designed resembled a small archdome, propped up by stone pillars. From the dome up above, hung a miniature door, directly beneath it was a resplendent star.
For a long time, none of the people uttered so much a sound, before a loud clap resounded through the room. Some droplets of tears escaped John's eyeball, as he let out a light laughter which soon turned into a guffaw, while his friend, Null placed a hand on the man's shoulder .
And thus, the design was finalised. With the dictation of Null Wick, a fortunate or unfortunate beyonder of the White Tower pathway, the towns people quickly began to work on this design, putting their all to bring it to life.
And that, they did.
Standing in front of the praying shrine, John smiled widely, looking over at his friend Null from a distance. He then looked around, watching the various people, some of which he knew, while others he didn't.
Sighing, John was about to pray himself, when suddenly, the figure of a certain magician entered his vision. Merlin Hermes, dawning his usual attire, flashed a smile at John, before turning around to examine the shrine. "Perfect. I am sure the Goddess will be pleased."
"I hope so too. Actually, if I may ask, does she occasionally watch over Tingen? Has she seen the shrine, Envoy?" John asked with curiosity, to which Merlin nonchalantly replied, "The Gods aren't Omniscient. While the Goddess may watch over this town, that doesn't necessarily mean at all times."
John's eyes widened as he gave a nod. He saw Merlin's smiling expression, as the wandering magician gestured at a street. "Care to join me for a walk?" John instantly gave a nod, as he and the Goddess Envoy began to stroll through the town in silence.
While walking around, John took note of the cheerful environment, the smiling faces of the people, some jolting around, prepping and planning for the upcoming Winter Gift Festive, others enjoying the blissful moment of calm and the happiness of their lives.
It was Euphoria all around.
Seeing all this, John felt many emotions rise in him. Happiness, joy, sorrow, anger, piousness, too many for him to name. His life prior to being rescued by the Goddess continuously flashed past his mind. "Can I ask you something, Merlin?"
"Sure, Go on." John hesitated for a moment, looking straight ahead. No, he was looking back at his past, remembering every moment from his birth to now, "Why… Why does the Goddess help us? What reason is there for her to do so?"
Merlin, as if having expected this question, chuckled. He turned his head to gaze at John's softened expression, and spoke softly. "Believers are just as important for a Deity, as the Deity is to the Believer." John looked in confusion trying to grasp the meaning of the response.
"Do… Do you mean… we were saved because the Goddess needed us? Does that mean when her needs are fulfilled we will be discarded?" John's voice turned distant towards the end, as his "wounds" which he had thought were now healed seemed to resurface.
"Is that your conclusion?" Merlin responded, still maintaining his smile, while noting John's features, displaying relief, but also uncertainty and wariness. Letting out a sigh, Merlin elaborated further. "A god can only exist if there are people that believe in them. Their views, faith, ideas and the mental image is what shapes a deity." Pausing for a moment, Merlin continued with a question.
"When you think of the Goddess of Misfortune, what image appears in your mind?" John's eyes flickered. "A… A beautiful lady dawning a dress of dark colours, her face hidden behind a veil, while her dark resplendent eyes watches over Tingen, her people."
Merlin maintained his smile, as he posed another question, "What do you reckon her true nature is?" John's gaze slowly turned towards the wandering magician. "Enigmatic, unreachable, a deity beyond the scopes of mortals Her every words and actions carrying a deep sense of serenity and repose. Any being witnessing and experiencing these divine actions would be instantly filled with peace."
Merlin let out a chuckle, as he asked one last question, "And why do you think she saved you all?" John felt his throat arching, as he tried to find words, yet none made it out. Merlin, seeing this, put a fingertip at his own lips. "You don't have to answer that.
"Whatever you believe the case may be, tuck it deep within your heart. Let it resonate with your prayers, and sing out a beautiful hymn bearing your experience." Saying that, Merlin pointed upfront towards the newly built shrine of the Goddess of Misfortune. They had walked in a circle back to this inspiring structure.
John looked down at the pointed finger, following it to the people's masterpiece. He deeply gazed at it, as some tears began to flow down his cheeks. He noticed Merlin having disappeared from the corner of his eye, yet John could no longer focus on that. He took a deep breath, and moved forward, soon stopping just before the stairs of the shrine.
He dropped down to his knees, clasped his hands together, and closed his eyes. Remembering the words of Goddess's envoy, John felt his body begin to shake, as multiple words began to take form in his mind, before finally, he let out a soft cry and chanted in between.
"An Existence from a Bygone time;
"The Lady of Concealment;
"Herald of Misfortune;
"Mistress of Repose and Silence."
He chanted the same words over and over and over.
Standing not too far away from John, Merlin gazed at a short demonic wolf, whom had been staring at her believer for quite a while now. Amanises felt deep emotions fluttering about in her heart, as she heard illusory prayers, one carrying with them, a deep sense of sorrow, happiness and thankfulness.
"A deity being the embodiment of common people's hope, and the reasons for their happiness." The Wandering Magician commented, causing the demonic wolf to narrow her gaze, before shifting it on to him. Amanises locked gazes with Merlin, staring deeply at his dark eyes, before uttering softly.
"I wish to feel Human."
It was a simple statement that carried with it many meanings, interpretations, and assumptions. Merlin began to laugh softly, as he lifted his hat from his head and rested it on Amanises. He turned around, maintaining his smile, as he waved his hand and spoke.
"You are already quite human; the very fact that you wish to feel as such, is proof enough…"
He then slightly turned his head around, his eyes reflecting her figure.
"Remember one thing. You are a she, not a "She"."
Merlin began to walk away, as the sun set down on the horizon. Many began to gather around the praying shrine, chanting a Honorific name in a single beautiful chorus. Amanises remained rooted to her spot, for the longest of times.