[center][h3][color=a187be]Neeza[/color][/h3]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/gMPba7Z.png[/img][/center][hr]
Neeza finished dinner and looked around at the tables. Most of the children were able to distract themselves from their hunger through fun and horseplay, whereas others were visibly still unsatisfied. Some of them still mourned and worried for the two who had gone down into the Abyss, but for Neeza, it was a thing to celebrate. Perhaps the Abyss will accept them and transform them, elevate them above mortality. Looking around again, Neeza wondered if the same blessed fate awaited all these children. Of course, the divinity of the Abyss was not a sure thing for Neeza, it wasn't that she was trying to spread an existing religion to these orphans here in Orth, she was actually trying to found her own religion. Inspired by the faiths of her homeland, when she heard about the Abyss for the first time, she was struck with an epiphany, and she had to see the deepest darkness for herself. It had been a long and arduous journey getting to Orth, but her mind and body were disciplined for the simple rigors of travel. Upon arrival, she heard about an orphanage that trained delvers; fitting that she had been an orphan once; apt that those that the world abandoned were being trained to enter the emptiness. Donating the remainder of her travel funds to the orphanage, she asked to be enrolled, and volunteered to serve in whatever capacity was required. Tomorrow, they would re-enter the Abyss and seek the two lost children, but for Neeza, it was just another opportunity to experience the Abyss for herself in her path to find the Truth.

[hr]
Come nightfall, Neeza found herself laying sleepless in her meager bed. She had only recently earned her red whistle, so it was truly a privilege to be allowed on these recent rescue dives. But she yearned to go deeper, she was so close to hearing the Voice of the Void, to establish her Doctrine of the Depths, but she was held back by rules that had been put in place for her 'well-being' and the well-being of the other young delvers. But perhaps this safe, sterile approach blinded them to the truth of the abyss. After all, If the Abyss required them to discard their weak, mortal, earthly selves, then clinging to life was counter-intuitive. Still, it wasn't like she could convince Leader to let her go deeper, others have tried and he had remained adamant. And she didn't feel that it was right to just go off on her own in secret during the next delve. It wouldn't feel sincere, and was perhaps a little arrogant to believe that the Abyss could accept her the way she was. No, perhaps this ritual was part of the revelation, perhaps the first lesson was one of humility and patience.

Still, unable to sleep, Neeza got up and headed to Leader's office, noticing that he was not yet asleep either. She also noticed Rags heading off somewhere, but it wasn't her business to know what the other orphans got up to in the dark of the night. Approaching the worrying Chris, Neeza declared, [color=a187be]"Leader, I would like to suggest that the orphans, myself included, be flogged regularly."[/color] In response to the surprise and questioning alarm that he would undoubtedly express, Neeza explained, [color=a187be]"No, they've done nothing wrong. Pain is not merely a means of punishment, but you recognize it's ability to teach. It can be used to teach us, to remind us of our weakness, as a motivator to improve. Pain can also be cathartic, in moments of extreme pain, the inner eye is opened."[/color] She was of course, referring to moments when one experiences so much pain that they attain a form of mental clarity, sometimes known as 'ones life flashing before ones eyes'. She looked inquisitively at Leader, unblinkingly, wondering if he would accept her suggestion and implement the first step of her desired regime of physical discipline.