Please note that this is an entirely separate thread, the private funeral.
There are fewer here so that this can be done quickly
since there is a time crunch to get this done!

note: using talisa's level 4 perk:
Level 4: Can ferry a newly-dead character into being an Idol once per IC year

With everyone clearing off after saying their final goodbyes, Talisa had done the best she could to communicate and feel Maua in the process. Reaching out with her paws and grasping onto whatever insight she could feel. Desperately clinging to the way the wind blew and how it moved around them, the way the trees billowed and the brook babbled. Every sound and sight that she saw, she felt the world come alive. That was all the instruction that she had needed before her eyes were brought open large and confidence surged within her. She knew what she had to do.

It is time, she murmured quietly as she turned around and greeting those that were elected to stay behind. @Nymeria, @Avaneira and @Morrigan present and accounted for. This had to be a private ceremony otherwise she wasn't sure if it would work out -- this had to be done now or she might miss Maua's window. Talisa was going to do everything in her power to make sure that he had a place in the Grotto alongside her father. @Valhalla deserved that and more.

Talisa began to take a few steps towards their fallen soldier as he lay still beneath the Tree. Nymeria had laid out the flowers that she had asked to be collected so that they might be placed around his body. If everyone could please take a seat to either side of me. With there being only four present, she supposed Nym and Morrigan was sit at her sides and Ava next. Or Ava in Morrigan's place so that she could be a little closer to him as she attempted to do this.

So when everyone was situated she looked deep into the lifeforce of the tree's large trunk and began. We are gathered here today to celebrate the life of one Valhalla Brynmawr. Her first train of thought, letting it settle. A deeply passionate warrior who was never shy to speak his mind or do what was right. A lion who truly set his sights and had more honor than most in this life. He is treasured and he is valued, in both life and death. He was friend, a brother and a soon-to-be father, taken too soon. Talisa felt her heart clench and her body twitch, sadness poking its way into her core but with Maua's strength she pushed on.

Talisa did not have time to dwell into the horrible for they needed to focus on what Valhalla was and who he would be, now. By my paw, and Maua's guidance, I serve to lift you up. To bring your spirit into our sanctuary so that there may be a place for you in our world yet. Talisa placed her right paw foreward, pressing lightly upon the thick of his chest. Closing her eyes tightly. If I could ask each one of you to put your right paw upon his body, please. And focus on him. Not that she expected their focus to be elsewhere in this moment but she meant to really focus in on him as an individual and the life that he had lived and the change of life that he would have now if everything went according to plan. Talisa had never done this before but if she put enough focus and prayer in this then by Maua's will, she could do it.

+10 Hold a wedding, funeral or other rite
+5 Hold a ritual

manip & table code by k'sariya

her chest grew tighter as the faces of their kin filtered out, paying their respects to valhalla and the loss of life that they had suffered today. even when gareth left her side, nymeria could poignantly feel the cold rush of air that greeted her in his stead, lips parting in protest, though they quickly sealed themselves shut again -- for she knew that if talisa's intentions were pure and possible, they would need to be focused on the task at hand. if anything, nymeria wanted the brynmawr viking to be safe and sound in the afterlife, to exist and perhaps live in the way that her own father did, regardless of death and tragedy. she hated the prospect of getting her hopes up -- or even worse, those of @Avaneira and @Morrigan -- but the druid could not help but at least consider the idea, as it floated around within the wide confines of her mind, eyes watching carefully as @Talisa began to shift and ready herself for prayer and divine intervention.

by this point in time, nymeria's erratic panic had subsided, replaced instead by a heavy blanket of sorrow that drowned her where she stood. but she forced herself forward, still, moving towards the viking's body with those flowers still clutched tightly to her chest, almost hesitant to let them go. and while the woman's lips trembled as she drew nearer, it was purposefully and with great, tender care that she would begin to place the flowers around valhalla's body, her movements slow and meticulous, careful not to disturb his resting form in the process. they were a combination of baby blues, sweet violets, and pastel peaches -- but the most striking of all were the bundles of yellow amongst the bouquet, shining bright and beautiful beneath the rays of the sun, not so much unlike valhalla's eyes. intentionally, nymeria would place one of those beside the man's cheek, allowing the soft brush of her toes against his fur in the process, though she shuttered sadly at the feeling of cold skin and lifeless stiffness.

once the druid was content in the small offering of love, she would move back into the line of other women, head dipping down against her chest as she gave her sister the space and time needed to recite her words. she did not know if morrigan or avaneira would have prayer or memories of their own to share but the valour would wait patiently in case they did, not wanting to overstep her boundaries or prevent them from grieving, in whatever way that was needed. it would only be when a small, growing bubble of silence consumed the group that nymeria would attempt to take a moment to murmur soft phrases towards their deity, doing as instructed as she reached a paw forwards, and placed it gently upon @Valhalla's shoulder. "maua, i never asked you for much other than safety and protection for my family. if you have insisted on taking his life so soon, i would have but one wish for you -- to please take valhalla into your arms now, and to keep him as your own. to give him the chance to be with his family, even in death, and to live on not only in memory, but in the power of your holy spirit." the words were low, barely even a whisper, but they sounded loud and blaring against the eerie, unyielding silence of the burial. nothing would ease their pain, lest they were capable of rising him from the dead, here and now -- but oh, surely, maua was still kind enough to give his people a place in the great beyond, irrespective of the fact that he never should have been taken from them in the first place.

Morrigan had stood her guard next to Valhalla's body in mostly silence since arriving at his burial spot, still finding no words to voice her feelings about her fallen comrade. She'd spent the time thinking of the few memories she did share with him, most of them happening in public as he shared his beliefs without shame. Really her true part in all this was just as his comrade but also to support the other women who held him so dear... especially @Avaneira. She assisted where she could in the preparations and when @Talisa said it was time she left Ava the place nearest his body. No matter how much she wished to press herself into Talisa and release all of these feelings like @Nymeria had with Gareth and she couldn't even be certain such a thing would be welcome later.

This was no place for such thoughts though and Morrigan would follow her wife's instructions, trying not to linger on how amazed she still was that this was a possibility at all. She moved her paw as she was instructed, as much as she did not want to feel the coldness of his body. Instead, she focused on the vibrancy and warmth with which he had lived. She had no words to offer that anyone but perhaps Valhalla would understand. That she understood why he couldn't back down and why'd he'd gone to support Aquila in the first place. She still feared being overwhelmed with emotion if she said too much anyway, so instead she would tell them, "I would like to sit vigil with him tonight, if you would allow it." If Ava wished to say anything Morrigan would allow this to be mostly about her and supporting her through this.

She remembered back on her meetings with him as she bowed her head with the others, but she struggled to speak after the ethereal and confident way the native women spoke of Maua and embracing the warrior. "We ask this of you for the man who served, honored, and defended this land and yourself until his last breath, Great Creator." If Maua had anything close to a holy knight... it had been the both of Valhalla and Aquila. For reasons that could not be known, Maua had called one of them home. Morrigan could only pray that They might be willing to share the pink soldier... just a little. So that at least in some form his children might know him and Ava might not have to lose him completely.

table by ferus, art by mono

Perhaps it were some strange form of retribution that she was the last among them to find the strength to speak. The world had been a blur since she'd emerged from the battle at @Nymeria's shoulder, unable to bear the weight as the fights continued all around them, the sound of their gnashing fangs an overwhelming cacophony that she could simply not bear. Her eyes trained to the ground, pawsteps heavy with both the weight of her cubs and the weight of her grief, shouldered upon her so desperately that it threatened to drag her to the ground, to fell her in a heap of wallowing and wailing. The crowd diminished as they continued to the funeral, and as the scores of lions fell away to only those who'd been closest to Valhalla and the cubs he'd left behind, Ava could finally feel that, however small, she could finally breathe.

Avaneira lingered near @Morrigan, allowing the Brook Queen and her sister to take up the free sides of @Talisa. Her rosy gaze stared down at her paws, unable to bear the sight of the tree that towered above them, painted in a blissful golden light and embraced by the lingering warmth of the encroaching summer that enveloped the Brook in a temperate glow. Her tears had longed dried, an almost steeled expression on her face tempered by such a brutal and raw grief. He'd broken his promises to her in the most glorious of ways; he was truly unreachable now, lost to some distant oblivion where Avaneira would never be allowed. She wanted to hate him, to curse his name and will him to whatever fire such a lion could be cast, but she could not help but feel as if he weren't the one who attacked first. That he was, well and truly, fighting for his life and slipped only once. Once was all it took.

And Avaneira paid the price.

A cold silence fell between them after Morrigan's words, as if all those present anticipated what the Cove Queen had to say; at first, she wanted to say nothing at all, to abandon the responsibility of paying her respects if only to feel some strange retribution for the way he'd left her. But as the quiet drawled on, Avaneira relented, and allowed her weary voice to break the aching silence. “I don't know as well as you this being of which you speak,” she whispered, feeling her voice break against the hoarse weight of her words, “but I hope they bring you comfort, and for us the strength to continue without you.” She now carried the weight of his line, the continuation of his legacy that relied completely on her, and her alone. And oh, how alone she felt; despite the reassurances of her sisters and sisters-in-law, she couldn't help but feel as if the other piece of her was gone entirely. Their cubs would grow up fatherless. Even Avaneira had never bore such a profound loss. “I...” love you? The words didn't feel right. Avaneira had been robbed of the chance of ever learning to love Valhalla as he'd deserved.

table by ferus, art by starry--knight

the deity was stricken with grief, watching from afar as one of their children was slain, thrown out upon the earth in an unfortunate and undesired waste of life. this had never been what they had intended, had never been what they had wanted to happen -- and yet, here they all were, not even with just one body, but two that stained the sacred soil of the land with their blood. undoubtedly, it brought a great sadness to the specter, who could not help but hold some semblance of responsibility for what had occurred -- but it was @Talisa's prayer that stirred something within them abruptly, evoking their power with the sheer might of her devout fealty to maua and their ways.

and it was then that the deity found the others -- @Nymeria, @Morrigan, and @Avaneira --, pausing where they stood unseen, before looking to transcend within the folds of the group, materializing upon the water's edge in a slow and tempered fashion. eyes went instinctively to the fallen native as a soft breeze stirred within vermeda, chest constricting at the sight of death and despair -- but maua would waste no time in swallowing the space between them, surged forward by instincts and the strong, parental drive that sung within their core. "my son, you will rise again -- different from before, but strong nonetheless." they murmured softly to no one but the brynmawr warrior, knowing that there were no words or forms of comfort that could soothe his family's bleeding hearts. but there was something that maua could still do, by the grace and loyalty of the valour priestess herself. and it was then that maua would finally shift, one paw looking to cup carefully beneath @Valhalla's chin and raise his mighty skull from the earth. soft, murmured words fell from the deity's lips as he pointed the viking's maw up towards the sky, energy and light radiating from the contact of their flesh in an enthralling display of power and mourning. after a few moments more of prayer, maua would slowly rise from the earth, body lifting from the grass as they slowly disappeared back into the cool tendrils of the wind. in the process, however, valhalla's soul would also rise, forever welcomed within the spiritual realm of maua's paradise, eternal, even in the chains of death. it would only be when the strong, white light of the deity subsided that the rest would understand what such a thing entailed, hoping that such a blessing would bring some semblance of closure to their lives. exit maua.

OOC: with the use of @Talisa's level 4 cleric perk, @Valhalla has been upgraded to an idol in the afterlife. please post in general maintenance to officiate this, decide what territory he will watch over, and to submit your afterlife form. valhalla may post here becoming an idol, but after the conclusion of this thread, valhalla can only post in your chosen forum.

pixel credit to stormful

Black. 

That was what surrounded him, like a cloak suffocating out any light that would never reach him. It was thick, a dense fog where you couldn’t see inches before your face. An eerie feeling, an uneasy sensation. It was everything and nothing all at once and it was where he felt himself spinning endlessly. And how he felt? Numb. He felt no pain, no sadness, no joy or love. It was as if he were simply there but also not at the same time. Was this it? Was the how he would spend the rest of his eternity, floating in darkness? Was this how Maua saw that his life should be spent? Did he show that he was unworthy with how much he rebutted against their Deity? 

’Rise again...’

Those two words would echo in his mind in a whisper, causing for him to stir. It was a quick image at first; if you blinked it would be gone. But it would happen again, then again, and it continued for several moments until finally he could feel himself being pulled back from the otherworld.

A fit of coughs would rack his body, causing for the colossal to gasp in a breath. “Ava!” The name would be yelled out, golden eyes flinging open and wide. They searched wildly, Valhalla still gasping for air. What was going on? It would take several moments before he could move his body, his head slowly lifting from the ground. It felt like a boulder had hit him, causing for his whole body to be sluggish. “Wha… What’s going on?” His voice would be shaky, holding the tone of shock and wonder. He was oblivious to what had happened to him. Until…

The Viking would force himself up upon all fours, limbs shaky and his claws gripping into the ground to help stabilize himself. But it wouldn’t be until yellow eyes glanced down below him that he truly figured out what was going on. “What?!” The word would be pushed out as he jumped to the side, his brain seeming to be at a loss while wide eyes stared at his own lifeless body. A hard swallow to clear the lump from his throat before his pried his eyes away from his body, looking over at Talisa in disbelief. “Am I…” his voice would cut out as he didn’t want to ask the question that were obvious. ‘You’re dead, Valhalla.’ 

If only he could see the luminescent glow that outlined him in a soft pink light or had seen Maua before they dissipated just as quickly as they had appeared.


@Talisa @Avaneira @Morrigan @Nymeria



from the midnight sun where the hot springs flow

DEE / NOVI

With her strength and belief in Maua as strong as it was, she could never doubt their abilities but she doubted her own. Constantly. Worry continuously flew around her as she struggled to come to terms with if she could do this or not. If she were asking too much of the Creator or too little. Talisa could feel the surge of energy that ran through the Brook and how much life was truly around them but all she could think about was if Maua was present and watching. If they were going to make an appearance and tell her that while her prayers were a nice thought, that that was not something she could do. Talisa would have believed it.

To hear @Nymeria's gentle words that were always so soothing to hear, even when they were sprinkled with mourning, allowed Talisa to feel the same centered peace. A gentle ushering for Valhalla's soul and spirit to be coaxed from its deep slumber. You are not done yet, Valhalla. For there were lions waiting for him and they would not give up so quickly. @Morrigan would have been welcome, in this moment, but she was grateful to have @Avaneira come and be the center piece to Valhalla's rise. In this very moment and likely afterwards, she would likely come to terms with the separation between prides but it would be unknown as to whether or not it would forever cause a rift between them that might not be fixable. Talisa would still love her as much as she had the first day, but it would cause a hole to form and a hole to linger. A space that she wanted to be occupied that had her name on it.

Avaneira offered simple words to carry him through and that was fine; the two greyflood sisters had not grown up surrounded by Maua's lore, legacy and love. Morrigan had met their Creator once and therefore was a little more forthcoming to understand their grace. So as the silence dawned over them Talisa could feel Their presence. Maua, she thought eagerly as the wind picked up its pace and with her eyes closed tight, could swear that the darkening upon her eyelids had gotten so much brighter. They were here, they had to be. Yet when she opened her eyes -- there was nothing, just a very bright atmosphere as the wind above them forced the branches and leaves into a frenzy above them.

Until it all stopped at once. A flat and eerily silent environment led Talisa to look down to their fallen soldier and while his body was no more, his spirit would be contained elsewhere. It took a moment of somber silence of fearing that she hadn't done anything at all until she saw it. A large ghostly figure much like her father's but clearer, more divine, rise from @Valhalla's body and Talisa's whole self felt like it was vibrating with great purpose.

A look all too common to be shock and surprise was clear on her face as she had done something to garner the attention of Maua and give him the only life that she could. I'm afraid that you did pass on, Valhalla. But we were not quite through with you. She tries to tease but really, she wished to give the floor most importantly to Avaneira who would likely have a lot more to say and think and share with the rosy male than she did. Talisa had been here to do her part and to make sure he had a place in this world still. It was to the silver woman and her unborn children that he had the most to lose and gain.

+10 Hold a wedding, funeral or other rite
+5 Hold a ritual

manip & table code by k'sariya

nymeria did the only thing that she could do, which was to be present. tears remained stained upon pale cheeks, eyes red from her sorrow and from her pain, and her bones trembling at the heavy mixture of mental and physical exhaustion that had spurred from such a travesty. there were very few words to describe how she was feeling, and very few people that would be able to understand the depths of her emotions, either. for this went beyond @Valhalla's death, also cracking at the edges of her personal ideologies and staining the perfect vision she had held for the future of amaryllis, the future that she had clung to so desperately over the last year and a half. it was earth-shattering in more ways than one, and she felt the gravity of it grow stronger with each passing moment of silence and each soft murmur of the women huddled around the viking's body. her head dipped towards the earth, reciting prayer silently as everyone was given a turn to say their piece, albeit the fact that it was raw and difficult and cruel to have to bury the man that they all cared for so deeply. but they would do it -- they would do it for him, because that was what he deserved. that, and so much more.

what happened next was so abrupt and unexpected that nymeria nearly missed it completely, squinting as there was an abrupt shift to the air, and then the emergence of a warm and bright light before their apws. her eyes shifted quickly, lids fluttering to watch as maua cupped the brynmawr within their hold, all of which nearly caused the woman's jaw to hit the floor. after all this time, this was nymeria's first time seeing their deity since the opening of the gates -- and it was so overwhelming that it prompted new tears into her eyes, finding it unbelievable that maua was here now, and yet so thankful for it as well. the moment quickly dissipated, however, almost as quickly as it had started, leaving nothing but -- wait -- "valhalla?" she whispered in near disbelief as she starred towards the very much present phantom of her friend, just as talisa's words slipped softly forward in explanation. she was not sure if @Morrigan or @Avaneira would understand the true depths of what had just occurred -- but how could they deny that floating, ethereal shape standing before the four of them now? and while there was so much that nymeria wanted to say, so much that she could say, she reminded herself that it was not about her, especially not in this moment. much like @Talisa, she wanted to give avaneira the chance to speak freely and, hopefully, without reservation amongst the small group of supporters and friends -- for not only was her grief heavy and profound, but now, surely, there would be many other emotions stacked on top of such sorrow. it was a complicated and heavy situation to process, and so the valour would opt to remain silent, eyes set tenderly (though still regrettably mournful) upon the guardian, as she gave room for further discussion and wonder.

It was difficult to not allow herself to wallow in her grief when the women she held most dear were all so close to her, so comforting in their calm and faithful presence. Valhalla and Avaneira needed her to focus if their children ever wished to know their father, though Morrigan had begun to feel so unworthy of Maua lately she couldn't imagine what help her own input would even have. That was until her mismatched gaze noticed the stirring in the air around them, felt the electrical hum in her bones like she'd felt from meeting the Diety before.

She felt a soft glow of warmth but kept her head bowed and focused on Valhalla, praying that this meant their pleas were heard. Without any more fanfare, all was quiet for another long moment. And then, as the women watched, the ghostly shadow @Valhalla would rise from his body anew, a soft glow cloaking his form and looking almost real and alive. "Welcome back," she said softly before stepping back to allow @Avaneira free access. Whatever shakiness had begun to exist before today had burned up in Maua's soft light.

Not even death could stop the great Creator and Morrigan was in awe of @Talisa even more. That somehow her own children should be so blessed by such a divine being was still too much, and now to see proof that death was not the end. There was still some concern for how Ava would take all this though, as she didn't have the same upbringing or experience @Nymeria and Talisa had.

table by ferus, art by mono

Talisa continued to be just as surprised as everyone else that her prayers and blessings and speeches to Maua had somehow given her this opportunity. A small thing to give to a close friend and the family that @Valhalla had yet to bond with; his connection to Avaneira was fruitful and she was pleased to know that he would be receiving this joy even if it was not a new life. Talisa wasn't sure she had that kind of power to ask Maua something so large. In this moment she bowed her head and gave the softest murmur of I wish I could give you more before she turned and rubbed against @Morrigan's side. She wished to give @Avaneira the time to adjust and understand what was present, while also hoping that she might snag her wife's attention. In this moment all she wanted to do was treasure a loved one and to know that she wouldn't go anywhere permanently. To take what she still had shared with the woman she had fallen in love with and to never be forced to let go. fade talisa

+10 Hold a wedding, funeral or other rite
+5 Hold a ritual

manip & table code by k'sariya