Leyline - Athena's Weavework 101

[CCC]

"I think... I think I want to help people. Life is, life should be joy, but I know that's not always the case. I want to help those who are suffering, for whatever reason, to find that joy."

The entity codenamed CCC pauses briefly, and then asks about the language filter again.

"What happens if there is not a concept in another language for what you wish to describe? I mean, if I were to talk to a race that consisted entirely of deaf people who did not know of the existence of sound, and I tried to talk about high-pitched versus low-pitched sound, then what would happen?"

[HimizujinEternia]

Codename:HimizujinEternia lies still as a of the others say their parts, then suddenly bursts out...

"I!!!!..."

Seeming then to take a deep breath, it begins again,

"I need to become a Demon Hunter. I'm sure you're aware of the Mystery Breaker's Division of the Demon Hunters?

"I need to find and destroy the Demon responsible for their dea-..."

Stopping again, as though a question has come to mind... regathering its thoughts, and with another deep breath, it starts one more time.

"Athena, please tell me. What happens to a God when they die?"

[Dom/SlimKop]

The ball of light spins for a bit while the other balls talk. It stops, and starts spinning a different direction before stopping once more and vibrating in place. The vibration starts small growing more violent until it stops again.

"Well, *&$%."

The ball curses softly to itself, before once again paying attention to what is going on. It retrieves the record of what Athena had said, as well as the other balls of light, this time paying attention to what was said. It ponders, idly beginning to spin in place once more. Once there is a gap in conversation, kindly provided by the Himi-light's outburst it speaks.

"Same thing I did with my non-godhood. Hang out, do cool stuff, help people out if they're interesting, mess with stuff I like. You know, live life, create memories so that if I do die then I get a REALLY cool movie to see."

[SSJJared]

The humor seems to have died from his motion. The voice that comes out is far calmer, and unreadable. "It's easy to be strong, you know. Power? Money? Skill? Magic, perhaps? All of those are strength. And when you are strong, the world is so much simpler, in so many ways. Maybe you would argue that you also have greater challenges and responsibilities. Perhaps, but the joy of that is just as great as the easier life. To do more, to be more. To live a life in which the smallest problems can be ignored. What a wonderful thing. It's easy, being strong."

The voice shifts to a colder tone. "So easy, in fact, that it's easiest of all to forget the weak. What it's like to be weak, how the weak live. A hard, despairing life, that. These threats of balance you tell us? I can almost guarantee you that each is caused by the strong. The strong don't remember the weak, and live their own life.

"I would remind them. I would remind the strong what it is like being weak. Show them that being strong doesn't mean being right, no matter how easy it was. Humility. Perspective. And if that doesn't take?" A dark sound, like a laugh.

"Not to mention, I imagine Arbiters are very strong, too? Everyone needs to remember."

" So I think I want to ask. What would happen to mortal souls that aren't saved by Arbiters? That stay in that frozen state?"

[Ruan]

The one known as Ruan pauses a moment for thought, then replies: "What exactly do the Elder Council do? How many are there, who are they, and how do they add to their number if someone wished to join the Elder Council?"

[balthazar]

C:\ Purpose = change + balance.

I will wander, doing what is necessary of me, learning, growing, changing, and maintaining the balance required for these things to flourish. This is my purpose until I find another. I suppose, as a god, that my domain would lie in the realms of technology, balance, and self-determined change.

C:\_

[Stan Cold]

"Stank Hold! No, that's not right. Um, Staaaa... OH! Stan Cold! Right, that's right. My name is Stan Cold, and I am here!" Stan the orb is finally caught up. "I'd totally forge a new race and rule them as their benevolent god-king! That'd be sweet! And the Elder Council doesn't sound like a bad deal either. Totally metal."

[ThyLordQ]

"Who chooses these stupid things? Thy Lord Q? Sounds like a pretentious little jerk with his nose too high and his britches too tight." Despite the sneer that seems to manifest by sound alone, the voice is chirping with enthusiasm. "I guess that showing up means I'm here now, in the present of the class? Ah, okay! Guess this thing is moving slow enough that I caught up. Or the recording was faster. That's gotta be some weird time dissonance." The ball of light bobs up and down in an erratic fashion then murmurs, "And body dissonance. I wonder if this is how photons feel."

The movement stops and the ball of light starts to rotate, as if examining the room. "I suppose I have a question or two. You told us that you're never going to have enough Arbiters for balance, so why exactly are you only going to take seven of us? If you aren't desperate for help I understand, but with all those worlds and souls out there, seems like the supply isn't meeting the demand. And secondly, who balances that elder council that sits around telling us what do? I think you've already demonstrated that power doesn't make for peace and harmony or whatever it is exactly that we're supposed to make."

The ball spins around a few times, alternating between vertical and horizontal, as if experimenting with the movements. "That's far more fun than it should be." It says quietly to itself. "And as for what I want to do as a God? Whatever pops into my head. So long as things aren't sticking in a rut, I'll be perfectly content. Until I'm not. Everything changes, after all."

[Ssj Bunbun]

"Travel, a career as an Arbiter forever, to help the suffering, to hunt those known as Demons, to have fun, to keep those in power from corrupting, to grow and maintain balance around you, to get through your required years as an Arbiter so that you can create and rule a race and a world, and just to be a part of the Universe... there are all wonderful reasons for you all to be here."

She turns to Salamander and nods, "You may attempt to become an Arbiter as many times as you please, but most who wish to do this will succeed. And to answer another question, mine is not the only class in progress. This is a seven year course... if we only put out new Arbiters once every 7 years, well the Universe wouldn't be a very balanced place at all now would it? There are thousands of classes going on simultaneously, groups graduating every day, and the reason I'm choosing 7? It is simply my choice. Every teacher gets to choose the size of the class he or she teaches, and thus, the size of the team at graduation."

"As for failure..." she thinks a moment, "If by failure, you mean that the Arbiter or Team of Arbiters cannot balance their assignment, or the factors involved are too difficult, then we send in another team to finish what they started and give them an easier assignment until they train themselves up further. If by failure, you mean death..."

"I will tell you now, I have an entire lesson planned out for this topic. For now," she glances at Himi, "know that when a God dies, it is only the destruction of their body. For a Mortal this is a rather big deal, they can't come back in the same body... however for a God? They regenerate, or resurrect if you will. As I said, I will be getting into this in greater detail shortly, but for the most part if a God dies on an assignment they are sent back to headquarters to regenerate and they try again. Permanent death for a God is both a very rare, and very terrible thing."

Pointing at CCC she smiles, "The filter is psychic. There are ways of communicating with body language as well. You'll never have an issue communicating with any race anywhere in the known Universe, even if you yourself speak differently than others."

She grins at SsjJared, "Oh you are quite right my friend. For it's not just mortals and natural disasters that you'll be facing... there are Gods out there that need to be reminded that they are NOT above any other creature, even the simplest of plant life. It's not just Arbiters that shepard Mortal souls, it's the Gods that rule that world. Every soul is anchored to the world it's created on, so for example, let us say a creature born on one world travels billions of light years away and dies on another... the God that ruled the world it died on would send it back to it's planet of origin for it's creator to handle. If, however, a God is not present for whatever reason? The do not stay in that state, they will eventually drop the shields around themselves and exist as a spirit until somebody comes to find them. I'm sure you've heard of ghosts or haunted houses? It's rare, but possible, for a Mortal Soul to avoid detection if they have a very deep connection to something in the living world. Sometimes they are indeed the cause of an imbalance."

She snaps her fingers, the floating demonstration image disappears and she walks back behind her podium, having begun to pace the room out of habit while speaking. "I see we have some questions about the Elder Gods, so I shall break for a moment to tell you about them. First and foremost know that the Elder Gods are elected, by a vote from millions of other Gods, to take a seat on the counsel. Only the most qualified Gods will even be considered for the position... and by qualified, I mean having shown extreme dedication to Balance and upholding Arbiter law. We don't just put someone with a lot of clout or money into the office, they have to go through years and years of tests to be put in a seat of that much power... after all, they are the Leaders of the Arbiters. And if, for some reason, one of them breaks hundreds of years worth of Balance and dedication? A call to remove them can be made at any time, by any God, and voted upon."

"There are 7 Elder Gods in total, and yes it's a major part of the reason I like to make teams of 7 in my class. However if you think that all they do is sit around a table and dictate what we all should do... heh, while that is a part of the job it is an extremely minor one." She inadvertently slides her fingers through the hair above her ear, making sure it's tucked back, "The Elder Counsel, in fact, are our most active members. They are given the most extreme assignments of Balance, they fight in the hardest battles with the highest stakes... they make the decisions that could wipe out entire Solar Systems if done wrong. In fact, quite recently, one of them decided to retire to spend some quality time with the remaining parts of his body. A very trusted, rather high class God filled in his seat for a few years as she had already completed all of the items Elder candidates have to go through in their 10 year long testing in her travels and work as an Arbiter. She didn't want to keep the position, however, as the demand it calls for is... extreme. In a few short weeks there will be a brand new member elected onto the Counsel, as she just completed her 10 year testing. She'll be making history when she's voted in... the youngest Elder God ever put onto the Counsel. In the meantime, the fill-in Elder will be doing something much less stressful for the remainder of her days." Again, she adjusts her hair.

"As for who they are... the 6 on the Counsel right now are:"

"The founder of the Arbiters, and quite possibly the oldest God in existence... the Head of the Elder Counsel, Elder Solarus. One thing you need to know... age and power as Gods go hand in hand. The older you are, the more memories, experience, and subsequently power you can obtain. So when I tell you that Elder Solarus is the oldest God in existence, know that is he also the strongest. He's a ridged old man, very set in his ways, but he is kind and polite. Know that, even for Gods, there are natural rules that cannot be broken... rules such as the Law of Conservation of Energy."

She raises her palm and a blue spinning light appears, "Your Souls spin and put off the Weave you battle with..." The blue light begins to shrink as it pours into her other hand where a white ball of light grows. "That energy then changes from Weave, to Ether, and from there into our powers. I will get into this lesson in a while. Know, however, that energy cannot be created from nothing, nor can it be destroyed... it can only change forms. It applies to every thing, everywhere in existence... except for Elder Solarus. He has the unique and impossible ability to create energy from nothing. Even I, as marvelous as my intellect may be, do not know how he does it... nor has he ever explained it. But it makes him incredibly powerful."

Lowering her hands the lights go out, "His second in command is Elder Aurora. She has the ability to absorb energy... and remember what I just told you about how it cannot normally be created or destroyed... so when I say she absorbs energy she must do something with it. She can keep it inside her body, process it into her own energy, channel it back out into attacks or if overloaded, she can vent it off behind her in brilliant blazing auras of light. She is, due to the nature of her power, the only Goddess that can go toe to toe with Elder Solarus... but as Elder Solarus never tires, any sparring between them will always end in a draw."

"She is the 3rd strongest God on the Counsel however, the title of second strongest goes to a man known as Elder Yasuhiro. His power... is the power of motion. He can move and stop whatever he wishes at any time, and think about that... he could touch you and stop your heart. He could kneel down and place his palm on the ground and stop the rotation of a planet. Elder Yasuhiro can stop the unstoppable force, he can move the immovable object. Imagine for a moment you get pulled into the gravity well of a sun... the moment the heat touches him, he can stop that energy cold and cease burning."

She smiles, "The next two are a couple, husband and wife, whose powers go hand in hand together. Elder Riordan and Elder Viata. Elder Riordan is a bard of sorts... he uses song and music to forge and reforge the body. He can create new races with ease, modify existing ones to become stronger and better. He can literally sing creatures into life. Elder Viata can do the same with souls, but instead of singing she can change Weave itself... wrap it different, sew it into new patterns to make the soul stronger and more powerful. Together they can create beings, armies if needed, of simple creatures who can house the powers of the Gods themselves."

"The current record holder for youngest member, whose record is about to be broken by the new Elder, is Elder Arkadius. He can take an object, be it stationary, machine, being or even something as complex as a planet and shrink it down or grow it to any size he wishes, and he can do so while maintaining the perfect balance of the subjects existence. If he shrinks a planet, than that planet's gravity will remain proportionally the same, it's oceans and mountains won't change... even it's populace wouldn't even notice the change it's so incredibly subtle. An amazing power to be sure."

"As for the newest member... well. She's not an Elder yet, but she will be. I will let that news occur when it does, I shan't spoil it for you."

"Now mind you..." the lights begin to lower again, "Not all of these Gods are humanoid... Elder Viata herself is a being of energy. Life comes in all sorts of forms, all sorts of species. People may assume that some fantastical races exist out there, and they really do, but an oddity in the Universe is that the majority of the races that exist are Humanoid in some form. Other races do exist, some who are more animal-like, anthropomorphic if you will. There are beings like Elder Viata made of energy, some who are gray men with large eyes and big heads, some that seem to be perfectly human but who may have two hearts and can regenerate like the Gods. You may be one of these races... you may be something entirely different. If you wish to know if a certain race exists, say, a race of pale gray humanoid creatures with shell in place of skin and candy-corn horns, simply ask me and I will tell you if they exist. You may be of any of these races... you may be of a race that we've never seen. Just know that, no matter what your race may be, you'll have some sort of benefit and some sort of cost in comparison to other races."

"These benefits and costs are called 'Perks' and 'Lodes'. I will delve into these in greater detail in a moment. But first and foremost, we shall now move our topic back to Souls. There are millions of different races out there... and as I said, if you want to know if it exists please ask... however there are only 4 types of Souls."

"We've been over 1... the Mortal Soul. There are three others... there are Spirits, souls that inhabit objects or creatures such as cats, trees, some dragons. There are Immortal Souls, the Souls that are those of Gods. And there is a hybrid soul... when a Mortal has a child with God, they create a Demi-God, or Semi-Mortal souls."

"I am about to go into some detail on this subject, because to know where you are going you need to know where you are from. The kind of soul you have will vary depending on what you were before you Ascended and became a God. As a God you have the a soul that is now stronger and more powerful than it may it been before, but it's makeup will differ greatly depending on what you once were."

"If you were an animal, a spirit of fire, an elemental creature, a great and old tree... you have a Spirit."

"If you were a Mortal, lived a life or three, had higher intelligence and existed on more than just instinct... you have a Mortal Soul."

"If you were born a God, if both your Parents are Gods regardless of their own origins... you have an Immortal Soul."

"If one of your Parents was a mortal and one was a God, though such a coupling is frowned upon by some older less tolerant Gods.... you have a Semi-Mortal Soul."

"Now before I get into what these all mean, how they tie into your race and how both cause Perks and Lodes... I will stop here for questions. Are there any, or shall I go on?"

[Salamander]

"The talk of origins seems incomplete. What results when an Immortal and a Spirit choose to couple themselves, or a Spirit and a Mortal? Are they also Hybrids?"

It then pauses, bobbing to itself, and says "Also, can anything change the nature of a soul? Can a Mortal ascend to Immortality, or transcend mortality and become a Spirit? Can a Demi-God burn away his mortal shell on a funeral pyre and live on as a full God? And, for curiosity's sake, what form do our leaders possess... or, for that matter, do you possess?"

[FreakyBoy]

"What can change the nature of a soul?" muses a thoughtful ball. "Belief, perhaps."

[Dom/SlimKop]

Spinning in place once more, the voice sounds giddy as it asks a question.

"If a god bred with a mortal, naughty, naughty god, and then that demi-god bred with a mortal, and that one bred with a mortal, and then that one . . ."

It slows and stops spinning, laughs and starts spinning the other way.

"What kind of soul do they have?"

[Kajin]

"Yes, how does this system work for beings who are coupled?" Kajin spins rapidly in place with excitement, the childish voice speaking as it does. "This system of Perks and Lodes. How would it apply to entities that share more than one type of soul?"

[Ruan]

The one called Ruan seems content to hum in place, for now.

[CCC]

The one known as CCC asks no questions at this moment, apparently content to await the next part of the lesson.