[A walk through the woods is all good for reconnecting with nature...until a river runs red. The vibrant coloring looks like the result of an active murder scene, especially with handfuls of hair and strips of skin floating through it all. Without the any accompanying screams in the distance, maybe someone's trying to dispose of a body.
Dara is all for ritual cleansing with water. In fact, the nearby waterfall is one of her favorite places to meditate and process things. However...the situation is much more extreme than her usual behavior.
With several pumice stones occupying four of her hands, she seems to be scrubbing viciously at her bare skin and scales. Her tail hardly takes a beating, but that can't be said about her upper body. Thick rivulets of blood stream from the self-inflicted wounds from her persistent exfoliation; the god seems to purposely work at sloughing off skin despite it immediately healing back to normal in a few seconds. Practically pristine once she wipes over the spot. The last two hands pull at her long black hair, gathering it up and slicing through with a knife. Fistfuls of it float down the river, yet every time she seems to chop the majority of it off, it grows back as if nothing happened.
Dissatisfied, Dara's unhappy expression persists while continuing the thorough "cleansing" of her entire exposed body. It's going to take awhile considering the length of her tail still submerged underwater.]
[There were only two situations in which he spent any times in the woods: Richard made him or he was making the trek from town to the cave system. The best policy for both activities were to find the river and follow it, and today was uniquely special because it did look like there had been a murder scene further upriver. Silco would know all about what that looked like given the number of people killed in water or bodies disposed in water in his city; the water was polluted anyway so why not use it.
Still, the blood was fresh enough and constant enough that any kind of murder couldn't have been that long ago, and he was curious - and cautious - enough to want to know the source and assess the level of danger for anyone else in the woods. It might also require him to abort his travels and head back to town.
So he approached slowly and as silently as he could to the location, which was facilitated by the waterfall, and he came upon the interesting scene of Dara performing an aggressive skin routine in the river. That would explain the blood given her regenerative abilities, all the more reason to be cautious with her with this uniquely new show of her powers. He knew her well enough to think that she wouldn't wear his skin as a jacket if she knew he was observing her.
He stepped out from behind a tree and made his obvious way towards her, hands folded behind his back.]
Dara. Is this your normal health care routine, or has something occurred?
[It's not normal for people to be able to sneak up on her. Especially when the woods are her type of terrain. But with her incessant scrapping and cutting, Dara fails to notice her onlooker until he speaks.
The god's upperhalf surges upwards and twists immediately towards the voice, eyes wide with fury rather than embarrassment for being caught in her current state. The newly sprouted hair rises into the air as well, too similar to that of a defensive display by a hooded cobra. If he was a certain zoologist, it would've taken a second to have eviscerated him on the spot with her nails becoming spiked like daggers. But since Silco isn't him and hopefully not carrying clown stds, the murderous aura dissipates.
Dara lowers back down to settle along the shore with a grumpy huff. She may have been trying to appear more human in recent months, but right now she could care less about being in her normal form and completely undressed. Thank her hair + scales for being perfect sensor bars.]
It's not. I just discovered that I touched something particularly revolting.
[Another grumpy huff as she crosses a set of arms across her chest.]
[Her reaction was deserved of course, and Silco held up his hands in a show of peace and a lack of weapon. He was not well known for fighting, so the chances that he could or would consider attacking her were slim at best. After all, Dara seemed to be the closest being to Janna in terms of scope and ability, so he would admit a certain curiosity towards her. He also wasn't so stupid as to mess with someone claiming to be a cursed god when they owed him a favour in his very near future.
He approached the water further, unaffected by the state of her bathing either. This was all very common and the less people were ashamed of their own physicality, the better for everyone involved. When he was close enough, he eased himself to sit on a large bolder and folded his hands together in front of him as he looked around her little sanctuary.]
Did you? So a fierce and complete body exfoliation is necessary? What is this revolting 'thing' and should we be concerned?
[He shook his head. The curse would wait for much later.]
Hardly. I was passing by and saw blood and hair in the water and expected to find quite the murder scene. Imagine my surprise when you are very much alive and well, so I came to check in on you.
[Her lip curls up with profound disgust. She's not even kidding. Sure, she may have Gogol's soul under her thumb and ready to torment him whenever she deems necessary, but the idea that she unknowingly "interacted" with someone close to him-- gross. Barf. Gogol can suffer the nausea for her, thanks.]
If I don't do this, I won't be able to calm down. Not that I would mind ripping both their arms off or breaking every bone in their hands or smashing their jaws-- [An irritated sound rumbles in the back of her throat before one set of arms goes back to scrubbing her neck and stomach.]
It's my problem to deal with, and I have plenty of methods to make their lives hell without actually killing them.
[Does she care that she's bitching to silco when they're not even close? Nope. He doesn't seem like the kind of person to actively stop her anyways. At least she's getting out some steam, and the scrubbing does, in fact, seem to help calm her down a tad. A different hand scratches her cheek almost sheepishly while glancing off to the side.]
...Thanks, I guess? For checking in on me. I can't really feel pain, but seeing all that would be pretty concerning...
Ah, you mean the lover declaration post on the network. I can see how it would be bothersome that someone who spread your organs around town has any good will.
[He had played his part where he could in returning her organs; he might not believe in gods themselves for the most part, but he had seen Dara perform acts that were beyond even simple 'magic' from where he was from. He knew better than to purposefully piss of someone claiming to be a god, and he wasn't above putting himself in their favour to investigate them further.]
It does surprise me you don't have him locked in a cellar somewhere and peeling his skin off on the daily for that incident. I suppose this place makes such actions boring after a time.
[He was perfectly fine with her venting in his direction. He cared very little to be invested in this spat, though he was currently trying to decide how beneficial it would be the nudge one or the other down the path of mutual if temporary destruction. He supposed it would be best if he had that curse granted first. All in good time.
He eased back on his hard seat, resting his hands on the bolder as he continued to observe her without judgment.]
If you have methods to calm down, it's reasonable to assume that you feel emotional pain and trauma. However you deal with that is for you to decide and I will not judge.
[She has no commentary to give on the whole emotional pain part. It's obvious enough for him to comment on it, so is there really anything more to say? Granted, she would definitely blame it all on Chiyo, but she'd rather not potentially jinx the shrine's caretaker to appear by uttering her name.
Aside from the sounds of the exfoliation process, Dara remains quiet for a moment. She had been treating Gogol too well, hadn't she? Going so far as to not immediately giving away the existence of their contract. The network post of them "making up" certainly left out a lot of information...]
Oh, I already imprisoned and tortured him. Physical harm didn't feel like enough, so I did something equivalent to what he put me through. Now I have control of his soul.
[Her voice is dead serious while looking straight at Silco.]
Still don't like him, but at least I made it quite clear that I'm not playing around.
Do you? Apparently he is still making connections, but I suppose that's good for you in the long run.
[He wondered if she intended on letting that little fling cultivate, though likely the pair of them couldn't muster an emotional connection deep enough to fill a cigarette filter. Still, one had to have connection to appreciate them being taken away or threatened. Fear was part of any good revenge tale, and why not? Dara was probably in no hurry as long as this place persisted.
He reached up and stroked his fingers down the scarred side of his face, considering as he watched her ongoing routine as if it were a perfectly normal activity.]
What is it that you are capable of with a soul? [Colour him very interested. He wondered what it would cost him for her to snatch another pesky one...]
[Gogol & Sha-Ming having a blossoming relationship so that she could set fire to it all later? Honestly, not something Dara would think of, but heck, she'll let him run with that notion without correcting him!
...Well, technically she did verbalize a plan to order Gogol to murder Sha-Ming repeatedly for months on end. So Silco isn't that far off.]
Complete control.
[The god's six arms continue to stay active in their cleaning, but controlling them all at once doesn't seem to distract her from the conversation or tracking the motion of his fingers against his face. It reminds her of her own scars beyond the slashes in her cheeks, simply hidden by divine regeneration.]
There are a few limitations as to what I can do, but hardly enough to get in my way. It has its advantages and disadvantages compared to straight up eating the soul.
[Wasn't that just a wonderful notion? Still, he would be paying closer attention to those two idiots now aside from keeping track of some of their conversations. It would be an interesting show when they eventually self-destructed with or without Dara's assistance, and it was about time someone else in this place received that kind of drama beyond those from his world.]
So he's your puppet. That's nothing to be scoffed at.
[As a normal human with nothing extraordinary about him, he could imagine what such control would be like but it wasn't in the cards for him. He didn't care; he had his own down-to-earth methods. Still, it was a fun momentary fantasy.]
It's a wonder you haven't simply taken over now that the Council is absent and their control on us is so limited.
[That last bit has Dara halting all movement. To her, it feels out of nowhere until she considers who is talking. Is this how businessmen think? Just aim for the top? The notion of becoming actively involved in many people's lives makes her squeamish. Too much of a hassle! Although she probably shouldn't judge given that gods don't necessarily have material needs.
...But she sure is judging behind that slightly perplexed look thrown at Silco.]
Sounds like a giant waste of time. What do you think I'd gain from something like that?
[Okay, maybe the god is a little curious about how he views her. The whole "complete control" bit may have skewed things.]
[He made note of her pause, tilting his head a little as he tried to read her body language to understand the change. Perhaps as a being of extraordinary abilities - and suffering - didn't trifle quite so much with the struggle of power and control. He had spent far too long of his life struggling for existence that his world view was that power was to be used for control, for a life-goal. Of course, he was in the twilight of his life as well, so that changed some of the urgency of his own goals.
He had also spent years of his life being judged for his opinions and drive forward, and he had long ago learned to ignore it.]
Control. We're play things here, pushed around and nudged in this direction and that. If this place fails, we either go home or cease to be or perhaps transition to something worse.
[Dara gives a hum in return as she takes a moment to contemplate the picture he's trying to paint. It feels........very human. She can understand the desire for control, has obviously practiced it herself by ensnaring Gogol's soul, but she also fails to empathize.]
What difference does it make if I control the Chosen? I'd become another force that does the pushing and pulling while still suffering it myself. It sounds like a way to put a target on my back for people to take their frustration out on.
[As if to emphasize her point, the water surges when the serpentine tail shoots up from the depths to coil around the base of Silco's boulder. Just enough of a distraction for Dara to suddenly be looming just a few inches from his face. A single finger traces along the scar there while her expression remains neutral.]
A curse is retaliatory. I put Gogol in his place because I sought retribution. I am a curse god, and he needed to learn that actions have consequences. But towards other Chosen like yourself, there's no need for me to act unless provoked.
[Dara retracts as quickly as she intruded upon his personal space as her tail slips quietly into the water again. She then shrugs:] I'd prefer being alone in the woods anyways...Although I can't say I'm completely immune to desiring interactions with others.
I don't care for you to control us but this place and bring those who are destroying it in line. Some people require carrot and others require all stick to see the path ahead of them.
[However, it didn't seem that Dara had the interest or the will to do the necessary action to bring the few wayward Chosen to face the same direction. That was expected; there were very few that seemed to have a vested interest in seeing this to the end that was beneficial to most - or maybe more him as he was one of the few that would stay. That was fine.
Gods, cursed or not, were never the answer. With all of their powers and meddling, they hardly seemed to be driven enough by worldly goals to do much of anything but brief displays of power for retribution or kindness or to stroke their own egos. It was why he didn't care much for the idea of gods; it was a fact that humanity would simply be left disappointed.
He regarded Dara evenly, unfazed by her moving into her personal space, unafraid of her despite knowing that she was capable of doing terrible things to him. Even as she touched him, he didn't withdraw nor did his expression change. Weakness was how poor men died scared and humiliated.
His mismatched gaze followed her once she withdrew back to the pool of water.]
A curse is retaliatory. [In that, they agreed. It's why he would ask her someday soon to employ one against someone he thought deserved retaliation.] No one is immune to the desire for socialization and acceptance it seems. Loneliness eats away at integrity.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
branchandroot
cw: self-harm
Date: 2024-09-01 07:20 pm (UTC)Dara is all for ritual cleansing with water. In fact, the nearby waterfall is one of her favorite places to meditate and process things. However...the situation is much more extreme than her usual behavior.
With several pumice stones occupying four of her hands, she seems to be scrubbing viciously at her bare skin and scales. Her tail hardly takes a beating, but that can't be said about her upper body. Thick rivulets of blood stream from the self-inflicted wounds from her persistent exfoliation; the god seems to purposely work at sloughing off skin despite it immediately healing back to normal in a few seconds. Practically pristine once she wipes over the spot. The last two hands pull at her long black hair, gathering it up and slicing through with a knife. Fistfuls of it float down the river, yet every time she seems to chop the majority of it off, it grows back as if nothing happened.
Dissatisfied, Dara's unhappy expression persists while continuing the thorough "cleansing" of her entire exposed body. It's going to take awhile considering the length of her tail still submerged underwater.]
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-01 08:11 pm (UTC)Still, the blood was fresh enough and constant enough that any kind of murder couldn't have been that long ago, and he was curious - and cautious - enough to want to know the source and assess the level of danger for anyone else in the woods. It might also require him to abort his travels and head back to town.
So he approached slowly and as silently as he could to the location, which was facilitated by the waterfall, and he came upon the interesting scene of Dara performing an aggressive skin routine in the river. That would explain the blood given her regenerative abilities, all the more reason to be cautious with her with this uniquely new show of her powers. He knew her well enough to think that she wouldn't wear his skin as a jacket if she knew he was observing her.
He stepped out from behind a tree and made his obvious way towards her, hands folded behind his back.]
Dara. Is this your normal health care routine, or has something occurred?
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-01 08:49 pm (UTC)The god's upperhalf surges upwards and twists immediately towards the voice, eyes wide with fury rather than embarrassment for being caught in her current state. The newly sprouted hair rises into the air as well, too similar to that of a defensive display by a hooded cobra. If he was a certain zoologist, it would've taken a second to have eviscerated him on the spot with her nails becoming spiked like daggers. But since Silco isn't him
and hopefully not carrying clown stds, the murderous aura dissipates.Dara lowers back down to settle along the shore with a grumpy huff. She may have been trying to appear more human in recent months, but right now she could care less about being in her normal form and completely undressed. Thank her hair + scales for being perfect sensor bars.]
It's not. I just discovered that I touched something particularly revolting.
[Another grumpy huff as she crosses a set of arms across her chest.]
You here about a curse?
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-02 02:46 pm (UTC)He approached the water further, unaffected by the state of her bathing either. This was all very common and the less people were ashamed of their own physicality, the better for everyone involved. When he was close enough, he eased himself to sit on a large bolder and folded his hands together in front of him as he looked around her little sanctuary.]
Did you? So a fierce and complete body exfoliation is necessary? What is this revolting 'thing' and should we be concerned?
[He shook his head. The curse would wait for much later.]
Hardly. I was passing by and saw blood and hair in the water and expected to find quite the murder scene. Imagine my surprise when you are very much alive and well, so I came to check in on you.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-02 06:08 pm (UTC)[Her lip curls up with profound disgust. She's not even kidding. Sure, she may have Gogol's soul under her thumb and ready to torment him whenever she deems necessary, but the idea that she unknowingly "interacted" with someone close to him-- gross. Barf. Gogol can suffer the nausea for her, thanks.]
If I don't do this, I won't be able to calm down. Not that I would mind ripping both their arms off or breaking every bone in their hands or smashing their jaws-- [An irritated sound rumbles in the back of her throat before one set of arms goes back to scrubbing her neck and stomach.]
It's my problem to deal with, and I have plenty of methods to make their lives hell without actually killing them.
[Does she care that she's bitching to silco when they're not even close? Nope. He doesn't seem like the kind of person to actively stop her anyways. At least she's getting out some steam, and the scrubbing does, in fact, seem to help calm her down a tad. A different hand scratches her cheek almost sheepishly while glancing off to the side.]
...Thanks, I guess? For checking in on me. I can't really feel pain, but seeing all that would be pretty concerning...
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-02 06:25 pm (UTC)[He had played his part where he could in returning her organs; he might not believe in gods themselves for the most part, but he had seen Dara perform acts that were beyond even simple 'magic' from where he was from. He knew better than to purposefully piss of someone claiming to be a god, and he wasn't above putting himself in their favour to investigate them further.]
It does surprise me you don't have him locked in a cellar somewhere and peeling his skin off on the daily for that incident. I suppose this place makes such actions boring after a time.
[He was perfectly fine with her venting in his direction. He cared very little to be invested in this spat, though he was currently trying to decide how beneficial it would be the nudge one or the other down the path of mutual if temporary destruction. He supposed it would be best if he had that curse granted first. All in good time.
He eased back on his hard seat, resting his hands on the bolder as he continued to observe her without judgment.]
If you have methods to calm down, it's reasonable to assume that you feel emotional pain and trauma. However you deal with that is for you to decide and I will not judge.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-02 07:52 pm (UTC)Aside from the sounds of the exfoliation process, Dara remains quiet for a moment. She had been treating Gogol too well, hadn't she? Going so far as to not immediately giving away the existence of their contract. The network post of them "making up" certainly left out a lot of information...]
Oh, I already imprisoned and tortured him. Physical harm didn't feel like enough, so I did something equivalent to what he put me through. Now I have control of his soul.
[Her voice is dead serious while looking straight at Silco.]
Still don't like him, but at least I made it quite clear that I'm not playing around.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-02 07:59 pm (UTC)[He wondered if she intended on letting that little fling cultivate, though likely the pair of them couldn't muster an emotional connection deep enough to fill a cigarette filter. Still, one had to have connection to appreciate them being taken away or threatened. Fear was part of any good revenge tale, and why not? Dara was probably in no hurry as long as this place persisted.
He reached up and stroked his fingers down the scarred side of his face, considering as he watched her ongoing routine as if it were a perfectly normal activity.]
What is it that you are capable of with a soul? [Colour him very interested. He wondered what it would cost him for her to snatch another pesky one...]
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-02 08:26 pm (UTC)...Well, technically she did verbalize a plan to order Gogol to murder Sha-Ming repeatedly for months on end. So Silco isn't that far off.]
Complete control.
[The god's six arms continue to stay active in their cleaning, but controlling them all at once doesn't seem to distract her from the conversation or tracking the motion of his fingers against his face. It reminds her of her own scars beyond the slashes in her cheeks, simply hidden by divine regeneration.]
There are a few limitations as to what I can do, but hardly enough to get in my way. It has its advantages and disadvantages compared to straight up eating the soul.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-02 08:32 pm (UTC)So he's your puppet. That's nothing to be scoffed at.
[As a normal human with nothing extraordinary about him, he could imagine what such control would be like but it wasn't in the cards for him. He didn't care; he had his own down-to-earth methods. Still, it was a fun momentary fantasy.]
It's a wonder you haven't simply taken over now that the Council is absent and their control on us is so limited.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-03 04:22 am (UTC)...But she sure is judging behind that slightly perplexed look thrown at Silco.]
Sounds like a giant waste of time. What do you think I'd gain from something like that?
[Okay, maybe the god is a little curious about how he views her. The whole "complete control" bit may have skewed things.]
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-03 03:16 pm (UTC)He had also spent years of his life being judged for his opinions and drive forward, and he had long ago learned to ignore it.]
Control. We're play things here, pushed around and nudged in this direction and that. If this place fails, we either go home or cease to be or perhaps transition to something worse.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-09 03:09 am (UTC)What difference does it make if I control the Chosen? I'd become another force that does the pushing and pulling while still suffering it myself. It sounds like a way to put a target on my back for people to take their frustration out on.
[As if to emphasize her point, the water surges when the serpentine tail shoots up from the depths to coil around the base of Silco's boulder. Just enough of a distraction for Dara to suddenly be looming just a few inches from his face. A single finger traces along the scar there while her expression remains neutral.]
A curse is retaliatory. I put Gogol in his place because I sought retribution. I am a curse god, and he needed to learn that actions have consequences. But towards other Chosen like yourself, there's no need for me to act unless provoked.
[Dara retracts as quickly as she intruded upon his personal space as her tail slips quietly into the water again. She then shrugs:] I'd prefer being alone in the woods anyways...Although I can't say I'm completely immune to desiring interactions with others.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-09-09 04:34 pm (UTC)[However, it didn't seem that Dara had the interest or the will to do the necessary action to bring the few wayward Chosen to face the same direction. That was expected; there were very few that seemed to have a vested interest in seeing this to the end that was beneficial to most - or maybe more him as he was one of the few that would stay. That was fine.
Gods, cursed or not, were never the answer. With all of their powers and meddling, they hardly seemed to be driven enough by worldly goals to do much of anything but brief displays of power for retribution or kindness or to stroke their own egos. It was why he didn't care much for the idea of gods; it was a fact that humanity would simply be left disappointed.
He regarded Dara evenly, unfazed by her moving into her personal space, unafraid of her despite knowing that she was capable of doing terrible things to him. Even as she touched him, he didn't withdraw nor did his expression change. Weakness was how poor men died scared and humiliated.
His mismatched gaze followed her once she withdrew back to the pool of water.]
A curse is retaliatory. [In that, they agreed. It's why he would ask her someday soon to employ one against someone he thought deserved retaliation.] No one is immune to the desire for socialization and acceptance it seems. Loneliness eats away at integrity.