[network] @curiouschloride | I was soaring ever higher | day 348 [open] [cw religion-driven murder]

[motherserpent]

cw: religious extremism; suicide and murder linked to religious cause; sexual harassment

[Tess looks much the same as she did when she was last seen alive. Red lines in the shape of fractals cover her body, her eyes completely red as well. There's a large feathered serpent coiled around her shoulders and an unimpressed look on her face. Anyone familiar with the columbarium might recognize the rows of plaques behind her.]

Alright, so I've had enough of playing mortal -- walking around on foot, making people breakfast, dying. I'm done, moving on, next plan. For those of you who actually fell for that whole line cook thing -- I'm Tess, Goddess of the Search, Mother Serpent, Child of Ragnarok, and Lifeblood of the Wayward -- and life blood's what we're here to talk about right now. See, my essences have been all kinds of unbalanced since I got dragged into this Hel-hole -- too much human, not enough divine. And we all know humans are basically useless, am I right?

But that's where you come in, because believe it or not, you little bastards do have the occasional use. Whoever brings me back into my power I will remember -- they will have my blessing and my protection and I will take them with me when I destroy this place.

It's nothing hard, nothing complicated, nothing one or another of you hasn't done before. There are ten or twelve liters of blood in the human body. Spill it in my name. Because hey -- even if it doesn't work, at least we'll have learned something, right?

[When she smiles, it's the same easy smile as always, the same face that makes dumb puns and offers of breakfast. Whatever has changed, Tess is still Tess...but sees nothing wrong with anything she's just said.]

Comments

@whatisthis; video

[godsspeed]

[ Castiel is... furious. That's the only word for it. The message, the threat, the presumption all fill him with a wrath he hasn't felt in hundreds of years if not thousands. His wings twitch and kick up air ineffectually in an attempt to lunge through space and confront this pretender, but he's still as grounded as ever.

It takes him some time to compose himself well enough to respond. ]

Is this some kind of joke, or have you finally decided to show your true colors, serpent?

[motherserpent]

[Oh, it's this asshole. Tess tries to maintain the look of cool disdain, but fails utterly to hide the way her lip curls in stronger reaction to the sight of him.]

It's that second one. Got rid of some pesky impurities and here we are, effective at last. I'd suggest you stay out of the way; maybe I'll forget to kill you on the way out.

[godsspeed]

Assuming any of this worked in the first place, everyone left in this town could bleed themselves dry in your name five times over and you still wouldn't have power enough to kill even an angel of my rank.

But it won't. And I'm not about to let any of these people die for the sake of your curiosity and ego. These people are under my protection.

[motherserpent]

Yeah, see, but I'm going to have divine power, and you're still going to be as you are now.

[They're still big words. She's helped kill titanspawn, but she's never had the strength by herself even when she had the determination.]

Go on, then. Show me how well you protect them. How well you people have always protected them.

cw: being a dick about imperialism and non-Abrahamic religions

[godsspeed]

You would have divine power in this hypothetical scenario that will not come to pass, because no amount of human sacrifice will restore you.

[ The jab at Heaven's less than stellar history of being able to preserve mankind stings somewhat, but less than it would coming form just about anyone else. ]

I'm not the one whose fathers called for blood until there was no more left to spill and still faded away into obscurity. And I'm not the one standing here and repeating their mistake.

[motherserpent]

Spoken like someone who doesn't understand the first thing about what it means to be a god. I don't need rivers of blood, just a couple nice pools for now. I won't make their same mistakes. I won't squander my resources the way they did.

[godsspeed]

I have no delusions of being more than I am. [ Unlike some celestials. ]

Is that what they are to you? Resources? Lambs who will come willingly to the slaughter?

[motherserpent]

Oh, an angel without delusions. That is a fucking first in the history of the universe.

And yeah. Duh. I said that. I look after them, they look after me; we make use of each other. Simple as that.

[godsspeed]

They are my Father's final and greatest creation, not your hunting dogs or your cattle.

[motherserpent]

I don't even know where to begin listing everything that's wrong with what you just said.

[godsspeed]

... There is nothing wrong with what I just said. [ He's genuinely confused, here. ]

[motherserpent]

Okay, sure, I guess I can if you're going to be thick.

One: they're not your father's creation.

Two: they can totally be my hunting dogs if they want to.

Three: they're absolutely my cattle.

[godsspeed]

You may be right on the second count, but I was there to witness the arrival of man those millions of years ago. Where were you, "new god"?

[motherserpent]

Not fucking things up from day one, unlike you apparently. You think I give a shit that you're old? I know a lot of really stupid old people.

[godsspeed]

You think you know everything, just because you have a sliver of divine power and a few skirmishes to your name. You understand nothing of what turns the world, and you will drag every mortal fool enough to follow down with you until you realize exactly how wrong you are.

[motherserpent]

[He's not entirely wrong, but fuck him for saying it.]

Says the guy spawned by the megalomaniac who kicked off the end of human civilization.

[godsspeed]

[ That cuts deep. The rebuttal springs to mind instantly: It's not the end, but the completion. The final metamorphosis wherein God's masterpiece sheds its imperfections and becomes whole, unified, perfect.

But that's not what Castiel believes. Not anymore. And as much as he wants this pretender to know how wrong she is - about Heaven, about everything - he can't bring himself to say it, and he can't think of anything else.

For lack of a better option, he signs off. ]