[b][h1][center]Act Two, Scene Two: A meeting of like minds[/center][/h1][/b] Yamat stared at all the other gods, gathering in their groups, talking and conversing, happy to see one another after however long they have been stuck in their prisons. Some took others to their prisons, seemingly happy to show off their decorations. Yamat just stared at all his new actors, each one was sure to add more to his play, and there were more than enough to keep his plans going. Oh what a joyous day! He scanned the crowd of gods, there was that naked furious one who just seemed to be angry constantly, there was Qael who had been speaking to some weird white haired god, oh! And Iternis, Yamat made sure he would talk to him again, there was that one god just lazing about, which he could respect, huh, there was Oraelia with what appeared to be a small child, he hoped she hadn’t figured out his actions in the prairie, he was sure it was fine by now. That's when he saw her. She stumbled into Oraelia and the child, suddenly, a new goddess, someone he hadn’t seen before, Yamat was, drawn to her. Of all the gods he had seen, she was, almost different in a way, Yamat couldn’t quite point it out there was just, something about her that drew him to her. He watched the trio have their conversation, they seemed to investigate the new goddess’ prison, they talked and talked, until, the new one moved on, she drifted off the ground. Yamat had to meet her. He walked up to her, softly, to make sure he didn’t startle her suddenly, as soon as he drew close, he finally spoke out to her. [color=DAA520]“Why hello there, a pleasure to see a new face here.”[/color] The pale goddess, who had barely had time to float back towards the tear in reality leading towards her personal prison, managed to look briefly startled all the same. She twisted around in the air, laying azure eyes on Yamat. Initial shock turning to dispassionate suspicion, and the goddess pursed her lips into a soft frown. Still, she didn’t shy away from replying to his greeting. [color=8493ca]”Oh, ...hello… Did you just arrive as well?”[/color] [color=DAA520]“Well, i’ve been here for a slight bit, watching around and talking to all these new faces,”[/color] Yamat turned around to look at all the other gods, gesturing with his arms, before turning back towards the goddess. [color=DAA520]“Figured I might introduce myself to someone as captivating as you,”[/color] The god bowed deeply, [color=DAA520]”Yamat, at your service.”[/color] The pale goddess lifted her chin considerably, trailing his gaze as he turned to gesture at the others. She seemed apprehensive at the thought, and quickly focused back on Yamat. His words seemed to deepen her frown at first, although she did her best to maintain neutrality. A hand extended up to run along her hair as he bowed, fingers briefly touching at her horn. [color=8493ca]“...Neiya. I am the Goddess of Love. What service are you to me, Yamat?”[/color] Yamat straightened himself up, gazing upon Neiya, she was proving to be incredibly interesting, a goddess of love, is that why he was so drawn to her? [color=DAA520]“Well, I suppose that depends on the love, and, which one you are.”[/color] Yamat was growing more and more curious about her. [color=8493ca]”-Which one-?”[/color] Neiya replied, huffing a sharp breath and closing her eyes briefly. She parted her lips as if to speak, then instead moved fingers to press against her right temple just in front of the obsidian horn. She opened her eyes to watch the god once more, a building frustration clear on her features as she drifted soundlessly towards him in the air. Her hand lifted slowly from her own face, extending towards Yamat in turn. Sedate fingers stretched towards his face, undaunted - unlike her earlier apprehension with the other gods. [color=8493ca]”Let me show you.”[/color] Yamat was, for the first time since his creation, slightly worried, but he could not lie that his curiosity had hit its peak, what did she mean by show him? He accepted the hand drawing towards him, ever curious. Neiya placed her pale hand where his cheek would be beneath the mask, her fingers cradling the mask gently. With a baited breath, her eyes focused on his face. As her fingers settled, a flood of emotion, memories and experiences rushed across the tenuous physical connection, assaulting Yamat’s mind with a torrent of new emotion. Joy, happiness, kinship, all fleeting and brief in the warm, longing feel they imparted. The maelstrom shifted, twisting into mortals crying, intense grief, the hollow despair of loss and heartbreak. Brief glimpses of Neiya’s own experiences on Galbar, interspersed with two millennia’s worth of mortal emotional pain, thoroughly drowning out the brief moments of pleasant emotion. The horned goddess watched him with deep, sorrowful fascination, her own eyes welling up with tears as Yamat’s halo began to tinge the same shade of blue as her icy stare. Yamat’s arm slowly drew upwards, shaking softly, he gripped Neiya’s arm, slowly pushing it off his mask, his face and outward appearance never changing, the halo turning once more to its golden yellow. [color=DAA520]“So...that’s why I was drawn to you…”[/color] Yamat let Neiya’s arm fall, [color=DAA520]“I apologize, some proper introductions are in order.”[/color] He took a slight step back, once more performing a bow, this time far more extravagant, his lanky body doubling over, and his left hand extended outward. [color=DAA520]“Yamat, God of Tragedy, something,”[/color] He straightened up once more, [color=DAA520]“I believe you are familiar with, Neiya.”[/color] The horned goddess flexed her fingers slowly, lowering it to her side as she regarded Yamat’s redoubled efforts to introduce himself. [color=8493ca]”Tragedy,”[/color] she repeated with a dissonant sigh. [color=8493ca]”...So you understand. The pain of the mortal world.”[/color] Neiya slowly touched down on the ground before him, greying the dirt to slowly match the bleak landscape in the portal behind her. [color=8493ca]”I see now, another to carry the burden.”[/color] Yamat watched as Neiya drifted down, the greying dirt reminded him of his own prison [color=DAA520]“Yes, the, dark side of the mortal world is not unknown to me, but, as the god I am, I have come to accept my position in this great play.”[/color] He extended his hand outward to Neiya [color=DAA520]“But, it is great to know there is another who has seen what I have seen, a like mind in this world.”[/color] She extended her hand in turn, a graceful grasp of his hand to mimic the motion she’d learnt two millennia ago - and shook it with the same cold tranquility as she seemed to do her best to exude at other times. [color=8493ca]”What is a play, Yamat?”[/color] she queried after a few moments, allowing her gaze to study the god in full. [color=8493ca]”And how do I know my position in it?”[/color] [color=DAA520]“Well…”[/color] Yamat paused, never having had to actually answer that question before [color=DAA520]“A play is, in the best way I can describe it, a performance, the mortal world, and ours, to me at least, are a magnificent play, performing our duties as actors would upon a stage, as for your role.”[/color] Yamat gestured all around them once more [color=DAA520]“You only need to remind yourself of where and who you are, a god is a fitting lead role if i do say so myself.”[/color] [color=8493ca]”A lead role...”[/color] The goddess murmured in distant thought, before zoning back to reality. [color=8493ca]”I rather like that, Yamat. Perhaps I have been too passive for a goddess of my station,”[/color] she pondered aloud. [color=8493ca]”The mortals pine for me, but only intermittently.”[/color] Yamat’s eye seemed to brighten at the goddess’ comment. [color=DAA520]“Of course Neiya, a lead role should be active within their play, making their presence known.”[/color] He pondered for a second, his curiosity for Neiya having dwindled now replaced with utter fascination. [color=DAA520]“Perhaps then Neiya, that, is the service I can provide? A lead role always needs its support.”[/color] The horned goddess lifted her chin once more, usurping a certain regal air to her composure as Yamat continued to fuel the fire of her ego. Following his words, she lifted up off the ground, glancing out over what she could behold of Antiquity. [color=8493ca]”...Yes. You’re right,”[/color] she began, convincing herself more than agreeing with Yamat. She turned in the air to glance at her prison behind her, frowning briefly. [color=8493ca]”Maybe you have some ideas, on how I could improve my-... role, as you said.”[/color] [color=DAA520]“Well, it's obvious you have some presence upon the mortal world, but perhaps it’d be best to expand upon it? Gather some of your faithful, give them a cause? Ensure your name spreads in some way,”[/color] Yamat too gazed towards Neiya’s prison, finding comfort in its likeness to his own [color=DAA520]“A beautiful realm by the way.”[/color] That seemed to catch the Love Goddess off-guard, and she looked back to Yamat with surprise. [color=8493ca] “Rea-... Thank you,”[/color] she managed, changing her composure mid-sentence. A few awkward seconds later, she gestured towards it. [color=8493ca]”Would you like to see the rest of it? You can tell me more about your ideas.”[/color] Yamat nodded, a soft smile creeping behind his mask, hidden to the goddess, it felt, genuine somehow. [color=DAA520]“I’d be happy to,”[/color] He gestured an arm towards the portal [color=DAA520]“Lead the way.”[/color] Following behind the goddess as she led him into the realm. [hider=hey, yo, its a summary] Yamat finds himself merely spectating the other gods after his convo with Qael, some of them interest him, like Iternis, but most do not. That is, until he spots Neiya, for some reason drawn to her, he watches her convo with Orealia and the Tree child before going to talk to her himself. The two start off rather awkwardly, that is until Neiya, prompted by Yamat, shows him the sorrow and painful emotions she feels. Seeing this Yamat comes to realize why he was drawn to her originally, he reintroduces himself as the god of tragedy and Neiya grows interested in him due to their shared connection. The two talk further, discussing Yamat’s interpretation of the world as a play, which stokes Neiya’s ego upon learning she’s a lead role. Neiya ends up inviting Yamat to her realm, to talk about the ideas Yamat has to expand her role upon the world. [/hider] [hider=MP Summary] Ah-hah! You looked upon this tab expecting MP spending, but there was in fact no such spending to record! Your shame knows no bounds. [/hider]