baraquiel

The Forest of Helsend

~ NEITH ~

Tag: @Blizz@Eviledd1984@Jerkchicken

---

Neith shrugged at Micah. "At this point, I don't know what to expect anymore. It's best if we just get this over and done with. The more time I spend in this place, the more I feel unease for some weird reason..." The elf was a bit weirded out by Micah's excitement in going to that seemingly-yet-definitely cursed forest but she thought it was just one of the quirks of being into the mystical arts; they're more down into the dark and spooky stuff than normal people were. No judgment, even Neith was into some freaky deeky stuff too but she figured it was too inappropriate to let the others know for the time being.

She turned to Dion. "What exactly are we looking for in that forest again? I hope it would be something useful, like a treasure chest or a legendary sword or whatever. I'll just have you know, you will be liable for whatever's gonna happen to me in that god-forsaken forest. Men like you two need to protect the ladies, after all."

Avalia

---

Hōshasen: The Plaguemother

TIME: Many years ago
LOCATION: Somewhere in Roshmi City
INTERACTIONS: None

---

"When I was a little girl, I had a hatred of spiders."

Hōshasen grew up not knowing who her parents were. The House of Sunspring told her she was left as a baby at their doorstep one night and she had been in their service for as far as she could remember. They were all light elves with long flowing locks that were as gold as freshly grown wheat and eyes as green as the first sprout of leaves in the spring. They were elegant and refined in anything that they do as they were one of the upper-class families of Roshmi City back then.

As for her, the thing that made her different was Hōshasen being a demihuman. Her hair was white as the moon and her skin was a pale shade of blue. People would often look at her in awe because they saw how beautiful she looked from the waist up, but their look of admiration turned to that of horror when they turned their eyes to the thing below her waist. Where her legs should have been, there existed a large arachnid with grey hair all over its body along with two pairs of huge, black, glass-like eyes. Children would throw things and laugh at her while saying mean things. Even her own kin, the other demihumans, would look at her like she was unnatural. She thought they were her people, yet they were disgusted and appalled to even call her as one of their kind just because she looked different from them. It led her to hate herself, especially on her spider half for being the sole purpose of making her life a living hell.

It was a good thing that the Sunspring family took her in. They treated her with kindness and took care of her every need though their idea of kindness was making her one of their housemaids at such a young age, making her clean every crook and cranny of their humungous house every single day. Every supper, they were kind enough to let her eat even just a portion of their scrumptious food. Sometimes, the food they gave her smelled funny and was covered in a layer of grass-like green fuzz, but she thought they loved her so much that they gave her such unique foods. She often ended up suffering from diarrhea and vomiting but she thought it was just her body rejecting the food as she was not being used to such luxurious meals.

There will be times where Hōshasen made a mistake, did not wake up in time, or did not do her duties well enough to their standard. They would scream profanities at her or often harm her by whipping her back and her abdomen. As their vine made contact with her skin and leave a mark on her, she chided herself in her mind for being such an idiot. The House of Sunspring took her under their wing, who was she to be so incompetent in doing her duties as part of their family? At least, they said she was part of their family. They even included her in their social gatherings and they tasked her as their main entertainer where they ordered her to dance around on her eight legs. Hōshasen pushed through even if her whole body was in pain, just so she would not bring shame to her family.

When her duties were done for the day, she returned to her room late at night. They provided her with a pile of rugs to use as her bed and a small candle to serve as her light. Her favorite hobby was combing her silver hair; it used to be flowy and long just like theirs but the Sunsprings cut it because they said it would look better on her. She was heavily thin but they said it made her look prettier. She was conscious of the scars on her body but they said the scars suited her. She combed whatever's left of her hair every night while smiling at the mirror. Tears would start rolling down her cheeks before she knew it but I still did her best to lift her smile up. She was very thankful for everything they’ve done to her but as the years went by, their feeling of gratitude was beginning to get more and more tainted by sadness, anger, and hurt.

One day while accompanying the Sunspring matriarch to the market, Hōshasen collapsed to the ground due to exhaustion from carrying all the matriarch bought in addition to the chores she did before leaving. Luckily, a hooded figure was able to carry her. Hōshasen could barely see what the stranger's face looked like but she could tell it was a woman. Despite having no pupils, her amber-colored eyes showed her kindness and her smile was sweeter compared to those given to Hōshasen by her family. The stranger put her hand over Hōshasen's forehead and mumbled something incomprehensible. The stranger then helped her back to her feet and whispered to her ear. "Your home is poison." She said as she walked away.

Her words left a mark on Hōshasen. It was all she thought of while doing her chores and of course, the Sunspring family grew irritated by her aloofness. With every word, punch, kick, and scratch they threw at her, Hōshasen was starting to feel nothing but an impending hurt in her heart. After all these years, she thought everything they did to her was their way of showing how much they loved her. Now that she had grown up, the stranger's words made her realize that what she thought was her home was not it after all. Perhaps the stranger has put some sort of spell on Hōshasen to make her mind clear so she could finally see all the hurt she's been through under this family. Nevertheless, she was thankful for that person's words.

That night, while all of the Sunspring family was peacefully asleep, Hōshasen silently crept into their rooms and studied their slumbering faces. The public thought their hearts were as beautiful as their faces but their souls were rotten to the core. Like it was in her nature, Hōshasen began released bright blue spider webs from her mouth towards the sleeping elves. Her web had become poisonous and corrosive from all the painful years she endured under their wing, making the elves scream in agonizing pain as their flesh began to burn. Some more of the family members rushed towards the sounds of screams and they too were covered in blankets of Hōshasen's webs.

She felt no remorse as she proceeded to cover the entire house in her poisonous webs, basking everything in sickly bright blue. She didn't stop until all the screamings became silent, and the only sound she could hear was their skin being burned to a crisp by her webs. Hōshasen sat in the lounge area, tears streaming from her eyes not due to sadness but due to happiness. For the first time in her life, she laughed freely and out loud as it echoed throughout the webbed hallways. Suddenly in front of her, the stranger from earlier appeared. She reached out to Hōshasen with her hand while smiling sweetly at her, and without hesitation, Hōshasen took the stranger's hand with an evil smile on her face. When the authorities came the next day, they were greeted by the foul stench of the corroded corpses of the entire Sunspring family covered in spiderwebs.

"When I was a little girl, I had a hatred of spiders. I was told I was as ugly as a demon and I will always look like a monster, but I knew the truth. At the moment of being free from the hell I was in, I have never felt more beautiful."

Avatar: Order of the White Lotus

Hinra's face felt warm and she imagined herself blushing a bit. She was not used to being the center of attention at all and she was very much panicking on the inside. "Oh... Oh, okay. T-Thank you all... I-It's..." She quietly stammered. She then took a deep breath to calm her nerves before she continued. "I am not used to these reactions. Usually benders would go as far away from me and my people as possible so I thank you all for your kind and earnest reactions."

She turned to Bik, or Brother Bik as he was more popularly known as. "I am not sure that would be wise, Brother Bik. I humbly admit that I am skilled in blocking a person's chi but I am still struggling a bit in restoring it. Perhaps this mission would be a good chance for me to hone it more so until then, I do not want to twist and jerk your limbs in different directions when I try to restore your chi, Brother Bik." Hinra said with a respectful smile and nod towards him.

Tikaani's comment made Hinra giggle. "It is alright, Tikaani. I will not put you on my bad side if you do not splash me in the face with your waterbending. As for the food, I would like to say I appreciate all types of cuisines there is. I am simply willing to eat any type of food as long as it looks like it is edible."

Hinra then turned to Ayuka and Haoran. "I wonder how far we are from our destination. I would hate to imagine we are going to tire out Yuya for flying too long. I also wonder if we should proclaim ourselves as members of the White Lotus or we should hide who we really are and blend in with the crowd. I know that there are other people finding the Avatar as well so I suppose there will be times where we will have to fight them to protect the chosen one, no?"

𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 {A God RP}

---

BAKUNAWA

_{SCARLET DRAGON HQ 8:00 PM}

mood: downright evil

---

Screams of pain echoed throughout the hallways of the main hideout of the Scarlet Dragon, a crime organization situated in Seattle. The man being subjected to numerous hours of torture was chained inside one of the spacious rooms of the organization. Inside the room were various objects made specifically to instill pain on the quite unlucky subject. The man's clothes were in tatters, his body covered in red-violet bruises, whip marks covered his back, and his face was indistinguishable from all the punching it received. Large brutes continued pounding away at the poor man, with one even grabbing his arms up to force him to stand while another delivered a series of punches at his gut.

A woman was sitting on a red velveted chair while watching the man's torture. She raised her empty wine glass at her attendant beside her and that attendant poured the contents of a wine bottle to refill their boss's glass. The woman took a sip of her drink before sighing from boredom. She snapped her fingers and the brutes immediately stopped, instantly dropping the guy down to the floor. He coughed up blood and saliva while groaning from pain as his whole body was seemingly on fire. She snapped her fingers again and two of her brutes unceremoniously dragged the guy towards her. Using her foot, she placed it under the guy's chin and lift it up to make him look at her.

"Tsk, tsk. Oh, Domingo..." Bakunawa asked the guy. Lately, she received reports of theft from one of her warehouses where her organization keeps the drugs and other illegal objects. This guy got caught redhanded stealing one of the valuables yesterday and he's been subjected to non-stop torture ever since. Bakunawa didn't understand, every single one of her henchmen and women was fairly compensated for their service. "Why would you do such a thing, Domingo? Did someone set you up? Were you forced to steal by another syndicate? I demand to know the truth, Domingo. Say it." Bakunawa sternly said.

The henchmen and women present in the room were tense. Even though she was a classy, cool, and calculating woman, Bakunawa was like a completely different person in their eyes when she gets angry. They all looked at her and Domingo, the air thick with tension and suspense on what's going to happen next. Everyone was silent except for Domingo who breathed hard after receiving a full beating. He looked up at Bakunawa for a few seconds before spitting on her face. Everyone except for Bakunawa gasped when Domingo did that and he laughed evilly while his spit dripped down Bakunawa's chin.

"You think you're so high and mighty just because you showed us kindness and mercy, took us under your wing, and made us your fucking lackeys. Oh no, no, no. I'm not just gonna sit here and do everything you say like I'm your fucking servant. At the end of the day, you're just a worthless Asian woman in a suit and heels. Your kind will be better off in the kitchen, or maybe in my bedroom. I hear exotic bitches like you have a good mo-". Domingo didn't finish what he had to say when Bakunawa slipped her heel from under his chin, letting his face fall down on the floor. He just had to be both a sexist and a racist. She just sighed and stood up, giving her unfinished wine glass to her attendant. "I've seen that I only wasted my time. I'll be-"

When her back was turned on him, Domingo seized the chance. He quickly got up and was about to get his hands on Bakunawa but the goddess was quicker and stronger than him. She turned around swiftly and lowered her head before kicking him out straight in the gut. The strike took the wind out of Domingo and he immediately fell down on his back with a thud, groaning from pain. Bakunawa glared at him and then at the brutes. "Make him suffer." She ordered to them and they replied with evil laughs and knuckles cracking. As she left the room with her attendant, all Domingo could do was scream in pain once more.

Bakunawa's staff nodded and moved out of her way as she walked down the hall. Guards were situated in every few feet of the establishment to secure the safety and protection of everyone. She passed by a glass pane where she could see some of her workers wearing N-95 masks and rubber gloves as they were in the process of creating various illegal party drugs that were a huge hit in seedy clubs and bars.

"Ma'am, Mr. Yun and his constituents have agreed to your clause." Anne, Bakunawa's attendant and who's also her secretary said. "Would you like to arrange a meeting with them right away?". Bakunawa said nothing and she kept walking. Anne had to jog in place to keep up with their boss's strides. "Ma'am, a-are you alright? Would you like me to-" Bakunawa raised her hand and Anne immediately got the message. She stayed silent as she followed her boss right at the end of the hallway. "Cancel all my meetings for tonight and the whole month. I do not want to be disturbed. Message me only when it's necessary. Am I clear?" Bakunawa said with clear authority and Anne eagerly nodded. "Yes, ma'am. Understood." Bakunawa looked back at her and gently patted her head. "This world is so evil, don't you think?" She sadly said before she opened the double wooden doors of her office and locked it shut behind her.

As Anne walked away to do her duties with her cheeks blushing a bit, Bakunawa slowly walked towards the bookcase at the other end of her office. She ran her fingers against the books before settling on one. She craned it downwards and the bookcase automatically split itself in two to reveal a secret door behind it. Bakunawa placed her thumb and eye on the scanners to open the door towards her room of secrecy. Plastered against the wall was a huge wooden board, attached with all the pictures of all the gods from all the pantheons currently alive. Several red threads ran along their faces as a symbol that either one or two of them were connected with each other. Some of the faces had red cross marks on their eyes and Bakunawa used a red pen to put some on Hephaestus' eyes.

On the other wall of the room was a huge map of Seattle marked with various pins and threads too. Bakunawa had been finding the Colossus for years but it always seemed to be out of her grasp. She managed to wait this long for that forsaken artifact so Bakunawa concluded that she could wait a few years more and instead set her sights on the gods this time. She reached out to place her hand on Jormungandr's picture and smiled naughtily. "I can't wait to get my hands on you, big boy." She then walked over to the side of the board where the moon gods were. She licked her lips as she looked at the pictures of Artemis, Menuo, and Tsukuyomi. "Just wait a little longer, my loves. Mommy's going to come and get you." She said to them before giving each picture a kiss.

Bakunawa turned her focus back at Hephaestus, running her fingers against the red thread connecting him to Hera, the Queen of Olympus and his lovely mother. She was sure the poor woman was downright distraught by the death of one of her children but Bakunawa gave Hera some time to grieve and cope with the death of her son. The Moon-Eater still had no idea how the smith god was killed but the thought that someone out there was killing them did put a smile on her face.

"I believe have waited in the shadows long enough. I guess it's time for me to come out and join the party." Bakunawa said with an evil grin.

---

tag: @smarty0114 @Theyra @Gothelk

Avatar: Order of the White Lotus

Hinra looked at their leader. She imagined his age won't be that far off hers yet he spoke more maturely than her. Then again, Brother Bik spoke like a very mature and educated man too. She was sure her peers have accomplished more things than her at their age. She forgot about her fear of heights for a second when she thought more of the differences between them. Perhaps she should have heeded her parents' request to go out and explore the world when she was younger. Would she have turn out to be a different person than she was now if did that?

"Thank you for your kind words and for putting your trust in me. I promise that I won't let you all down." She said to him before nodding in respect to her peers, getting the towel back from Ayuka once she's done. Hinra gulped down her fear when she remembered they were still high up in the air as Ayuka blew hot air at Tikaani's face. "Hmmm... Now that I think about it, you all have shown what kind of bending you do. It's only natural for me to share what I can do too."

Hinra looked down at her open palm before closing it to form a fist. "My people were not born with the ability to control the elements like you all. Because of that, we needed to seek other ways of honing our skills to defend ourselves when danger came. We needed to be creative in order to survive." Hinra then looked up at her peers. "Simply put, I can do what is called 'chi blocking'. I can strike certain points to make a part of the body or the whole body paralyzed. I can also block certain chi paths in the bender's body to make them unable to bend for a time. I can make them move again and regain the flow of their chi too."

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "So yeah, that is what I can do. I also know how to cook too so there's that." Hinra said, realizing she had said more words to people other than her family more than what she intended to, making her blush a bit and look at the horizon. If her parents were here, they will be very proud of their daughter finally opening up to others nad making friends, one step at a time.

Avalia

---

TIME: Evening
LOCATION: Roshmi City
INTERACTIONS: Ahzmorath @Alivefalling

---

Sakura yelped as Ahzmorath broke her chains, the shockwave blowing her backward before she could regain her momentum in the air. Ahzmorath thrashed about, boasting of his superior strength as he made a large hole on the wall. He then started sucking everything into the dark hole in his chest. She heard the others scream in fright as they ran away from the ballroom. Instead of getting fearful of Ahzmorath, Sakura simply felt more irritated at him.

She snarled behind her mask. She didn't want to go full-out to her fellow kin but if he was going to be stubborn about it, Sakura had no choice but to give her all too. She took off her mask and threw it aside before floating upwards again. Her pink dress and the flowers adorning her clothes fluttered and waved about the dark hole on the demon's chest got stronger too. She drew a large pink star using her free hand and two large magical symbols appeared above and beneath Ahzmorath, growing bigger and glowing brighter the more she concentrated. She knew what the demon planned on doing and she knew she needed to get away as far as possible, but she needed to give Ahzmorath a taste of his own medicine first.

"How cute." Sakura said while having an evil smile on her face. "You wanna go back to the abyss that badly? Let me help you with that, ratface!" She shouted before she chanted while objects kept flying beside her towards the hole in Ahzmorath's chest.

"Blessed be those who seek the enrichment of the living,
Those who own a golden heart, those who are endlessly nurturing,
I curse thee damned who seeks to destroy everything and all,
Let pride be their downfall, be crushed by the weight of sky's fall!"

Sakura's magic activated and her magic seals glowed brighter than ever before. The seals concentrated all their magic forcefully towards Ahzmorath, making him suck all of them as per her intention. She wanted to fatten up the huge demon, make him absorb more than his body could handle so she could give him some kind of painful remembrance when he reformed.

Knowing that she must not waste anymore time, the demoness let her magic running and left the ballroom out towards the forest. She procured a talisman and activated it while running. "To my aid!" She threw her now-glowing talisman towards a nearby tree and she jumped as the tree speedily reformed itself as a horse. Sakura landed on her tree horse and used its vines as reins as she rode on into the night, never looking back.

The Forest of Helsend

~ NEITH ~

Tag: @Blizz

---

Neith stretched on her bed and groaned in annoyance from the rooster's crowing. She was having a nice dream that she was living in a luxurious castle while being served by handsome and ripped man-servants. She squished her pillows around her bed to try and sleep again but she just huffed and rubbed the sleepiness out of her eyes. She sat up straight on her bed and had a brief moment of confusion when she woke up in an unfamiliar room, then she remembered that she was in one of the rooms of the Dull Axe Inn in the village of Helsend. She looked at her longbow propped against the wall beside her other belongings, making her remember the purpose of her coming all the way here to this weird village. Neith just sighed. She really hoped she made the right choice.

She took time in freshening herself up before getting dressed and bringing all her stuff. She wouldn't just locked her door and return to her room once she had breakfast but it was all the belongings she had. She can't risk the possibility of some people coming into her room and stealing what's left of her property. She looked back one last time at the room, thinking that this will be the last time she will ever feel safe and comfortable somewhat before their journey to the cursed forest, and then locked the door behind her to make her way downstairs.

Avatar: Order of the White Lotus

waiting for others to put a post in before I put in mine :3

𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 {A God RP}

Bakunawa, The Moon-Eater

B A K U N A W A , T H E M O O N - E A T E R
B A K U N A W A , T H E M O O N - E A T E R

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx HUMAN 𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗔𝗦 Jessica Mondragon 𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗘 Mid-Forties 𝗖𝗔𝗥𝗘𝗘𝗥 Crime Boss of the Scarlet Dragon, a criminal syndicate based in Seattle	𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝑮𝑶𝑶𝑫 Goal-Oriented Hardworking Meticulous 𝑩𝑨𝑫 Cunning Mischievous Selfish 𝗔𝗠𝗕𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 Bakunawa wants to find the Colossus and claim it for herself. She believes that if she finds that artifact, she will reign supreme over all the gods and become the one and only supreme ruler of the world so she can finally punish the humans for what they did to her sister. 𝗙𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗦 That all her plans and hard work will be put to waste, and that she couldn't achieve the justice her deceased sister rightfully deserved all throughout the centuries. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx	xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx DEITY 𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗧𝗬 Bakunawa 𝗗𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗜𝗡 Harbringer of Eclipses, Earthquakes, and Darkness 𝗣𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗢𝗡 Filipino

𝗠𝗬𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗚𝗬

Long ago, Bathala created seven moons that lit up the sky during the night for his people to counter the terror that night-time brings with its darkness. The Ancient Filipinos and other gods alike were captivated by their beauty, but the serpent-dragon Bakunawa thought differently. She was so jealous of their beauty that every night, she would arise from the ocean and devour all the moons whole until there's only one left, causing Bathala and Bakunawa to be mortal enemies of each other from then on.

In an effort to keep Bakunawa at bay, people would go out of their homes with pans and pots to create a series of loud noises to scare the Bakunawa into spitting out the moon back in the sky. Other times, they would play music so soothing it will send Bakunawa into a peaceful slumber, letting the moon she swallowed to roll out of her mouth safely.

That was what the Filipinos had put in their ancient records. In reality, Bakunawa had a sister in the form of a sea turtle. The sea turtle would visit a certain island to lay her eggs in but the locals noticed that every time the turtle went ashore, the water seemed to follow her which reduced the island's size. In fear that their island would disappear, they resorted to killing the sea turtle.

Bakunawa learned of her sister's murder and as revenge, she ascended from the oceans to devour the precious moons of the people. They sought advice to Bathala on how to defeat Bakunawa and he said to create very loud noises to disturb the dragon. They succeeded, forcing Bakunawa to regurgitate the last moon and descend back into the oceans. She's still down there, waiting for the right time to devour the last moon and plunge humanity into total darkness.

𝗛𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗬

Bakunawa was one of the gods who were happy upon the creation of Colossus. This gave her the liberty of being free from the depths of the ocean. She had no knowledge of what happened to the other Filipino gods but it didn't concern her that much. She even liked the idea of being the only living god left in her pantheon but it did kind of made her feel lonely sometimes.

Driven with the desire for power and revenge, Bakunawa had lived in solidarity with the humans, as if she had any other choice, to begin with. Unlike the other evil gods who wanted to turn over a new leaf and become better beings, Bakunawa chose to stay in the path of darkness. She adopted the human name and form of Jessica Mondragon who rose through the ranks of the criminal underworld until she was powerful enough to rule over her own crime syndicate, the Scarlet Dragon.

Her syndicate specialized in trading illegal goods and even services in the black market, including counterfeit money and drugs among other things. As a cover-up for being a crime boss, Jessica was known as a philanthropist and entrepreneur who ran a charity to save species of turtles from being extinct. She did this to pay homage to her sister who was killed in the hands of mortals way back then.

Of course, Bakunawa's mission didn't stop there. She committed grievous crimes in order to help spread more chaos to the world which was her way of punishing humans in killing her sister. She's also one of the gods who were actively seeking out the Colossus. She believed that if she could get her hands on it, she will gain power beyond her wildest dreams, the power that she needed to bring all the gods down to their knees and finally plunge the world into eternal darkness.

𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 {A God RP}

---

APHRODITE

_{SEATTLE UNIVERSITY}

mood: sad as hecc

---

A lot has happened at once that Aphrodite needed a bit of time to fully understand everything. Morrigan explained the mystery regarding Hephaestus' death and Hermes and Loki made snide remarks about the whole situation with Aphrodite just rolling their eyes at them. It's a wonder why the irresponsible ones would even be here if they didn't want to be here or have no intention of helping them with the situation at all. Anubis expressed his condolences for the Greeks at which Aphrodite smiled sadly and nodded as a sign of her gratitude. Thank goodness there were still level-headed gods in this room.

Aphrodite sadly watched as Eros left the room followed closely by Apollo. It looked like her way of helping had the opposite effect on some gods. She looked around and saw the expressions on their faces, turning from dream-like bliss to heartbroken frowns. Aphrodite winced at herself, it seemed like she messed up big time. Whatever chance she had left on fixing things up with her son was now all thrown out the window because of what she did. Ares left the room too but it wasn't a big deal for the love goddess. She saw the solemn way Poseidon held Hera's hand and for once, the queen of the gods was silent. She wanted to express her sadness to Hephaestus' mother too but she didn't think that Hera would accept Aphrodite even at this time.

At least, it seemed like not all the gods didn't take Aphrodite's power negatively as Heracles seemed to be in high spirits after taking in the effect of her power. It's a wonder why she hadn't hooked up with him yet all these years. All the ladies were swooning over him and Aphrodite was one of those ladies who admired Heracles and his very godly physique. She may or may not vaguely remember those few times where she drunkenly spent several nights with Heracles in his chambers while Ares wasn't there to fulfill her needs. It may look like it was time for her to relive those nights together with him.

"Oh Heracles, still as hunky and suave as ever." Aphrodite said after giggling and smiling sweetly at him. Now would not be the right time to express her wanting to 'catch up' to him. Maybe she'll do it later when the Conclave has ended.

Aphrodite saw the way Tlazolteol give her a loathsome glance. She really just thought she was helping; if they were all in their godly forms, Aphrodite's powers might've given them a huge positive boost of emotions and such. Sadly, being mortals complicated things and no doubt the memory of their loved ones brought them more pain than pleasure instead. The love goddess could only wince, bringing her hands together and mouthing 'Sorry' at her before giving the filth goddess a small nod as her way of apologizing. Xolotl, a member of Tlaz' kin, spoke to the gods remaining and asked if anyone might've had a grudge on Hephaestus.

"Can I say something first?". Aphrodite held up her hand, deciding to speak her truth in front of everyone still present.

"When I first walked into Mount Olympus, it was Zeus' idea for me to be married to Hephaestus as a way of preventing an all-out war with all the male gods wanting to possess me. I mean, I couldn't blame them. At first, I was outraged knowing that I, a goddess of love and beauty, would become the wife of one of the ugliest gods in existence. Hephaestus didn't seem to mind my coldness towards him; every single day since we first became husband and wife, he would create the most beautiful jewelry and accessories for me, including the cestus, a girdle that can make its wearer even more irresistible to men. Despite being married to him, that didn't stop me from committing adultery. A woman has her needs and Hephaestus, bless his heart, was not even enough to satisfy me. I have been in bed with many male gods and mortals alike: Ares, Adonis, even Poseidon, to name a few.

When we got cursed by the Colossus to be trapped in the mortal world, I admit that I didn't even find Hephaestus. I was so happy that I'm finally free from him completely and I can sleep and be with whoever I want. I've never felt more alive. As time went by..." Aphrodite paused to take a breather first before continuing. "As time went by, I realized that I'm a complete idiot. Despite all the men I've slept with before, only Hephaestus was the one who truly loved me the way I am. No matter who I meet up with, no one could compare to him. He has endured so much pain and hardship in his life, yet he still found the beauty and goodness in the world. I-I took his love for granted because I thought I could find someone better than him but no. There was no one like Hephaestus, and I fully regret that I didn't give him even a fraction of the love he gave me."

Aphrodite wiped a tear rolling down her cheek while clearing her throat. "I want to help bring my ex-husband's death to justice but I understand that we have no solid evidence for now. Still, I want to help in any way I can. If there's anything you all might learn from me is to not take love for granted. With a god-killer on the loose, we do not know if we would even still be here tomorrow. My only advice is... When you have someone dear to your heart, you must express your love for that special person now more than ever. You might never have another chance." Aphrodite finally said, especially looking at Anubis knowingly as she saw the way the Egyptian god looked at Bastet.

---

tag: @Icy Hot, @fledermaus, @Legion02, @KZOMBI3, @beetlemoth, @metanoia, @smarty0114