[ Once again, there are plenty to take in. It was...reassuring that Pure Vanilla said he saw them as well, a sort of pleasant feeling of not being alone in his so-called peculiarity combined with a childlike sort of wonder, but at the same time...he felt horrified.
Absolutely so. Not only because his dear friend could see those trapped insect souls as well, but because of, well, those souls. Unlike the Cookie, he couldn't hear the whispers of the Forest (whether it was due to the fact that he wasn't corrupted in his current incarnation, the red stone amulet that he had on his person - his arrival gift - or some combination of both), but it was still enough to put him under a sufficient amount of mental and emotional distress, a trace of which was visible on his otherwise stoic visage.
For a moment, he envies his colleague - Gnosis - for lacking this sort of gift, and for his lucid acuity as well as ruthless logical determination. One could only hope to be that sort of person, that sort of man — someone who remains calm and unmoving in the face of suffering. ]
...Yes. They linger, trapped — unable to go anywhere. Is this...the true extent of the entity's power...? [ A familiar sight, isn't it? A voice in the back of his mind whispered, although not the VOICE, which was currently mocking him for his ineptitude to remain calm in the face of this 'trivial matter'. With that realisation, a cold chill touched his heart. ] It reminds me of...the Troupe's machinations. Trapping a soul is but a mere child's play to them. But...this is my first time seeing a soul caged to its withered husk.
[ Not that it was any less terrifying than seeing one caged into a stage prop, for example, or a particular place. Phantom shuddered. ]
...Similar? Yes, perhaps. I could not claim much knowledge about Ursus's demons and Sami's corruption, but I have accidentally overheard some of my peers' conversations about it — at least about the Troupe's plans to go there at some point. Even so...I would not trust my memories. [ He fell quiet for a moment, gloom settles on him like a heavy fog. ] And what Gnosis said...is true. I understand that we should not talk about those demons, or their corruption. Besides...I could not claim that I know any more than he does, either.
[ He nods towards Gnosis, before he settled on his seat, listening quietly to that long infodump. Admittedly, his fingers itched just a little bit, and he wished that he had a warm drink. It would be nice if he could send his clone to make some tea, at least for himself, but he feels that it would be impolite. Thus, the Feline stayed quiet, arching an eyebrow slightly when the name 'Aldric' suddenly became garbled. ]
...He is the founder. Heimr. [ Quietly, he spoke, now wishing that he had a pen and paper to jot this down as well as some of the additional information that his coworker was currently presenting. He arched an eyebrow again when Gnosis mentioned that Zahliya, the gargoyle, is fond of singing, since yes, this was certainly a point of contention for him, but he said nothing about it. Instead, Phantom asked: ] By 'minor deities', do you mean that they are weaker than Feranmuts, or are stronger than, Gnosis? Or...are they roughly equivalent with Feranmuts? At least generally speaking, and...considering what we know about Feranmuts, of course. ...What else do you know about the entity? Any idea about what manner of creature it was, behind the curtain?
[ After he delivered his question, he sent Pure Vanilla an apologetic glance, since he realised that his friend wasn't from Terra. The talk about Sami and Ursus must have been confusing for him, in addition to Feranmuts just now. ]
My apologies, Pure Vanilla, I hope you are not lost — Feranmuts are our gods back in Terra, although their numbers have diminished and they have practically vanished in our current, modern era. While Ursus and Sami are two countries or mobile nations, specifically, although not the ones Gnosis and I are from. He hailed from Kjerag, while I hailed from Victoria.
[ That being said, he is back to listening mode once again, making mental notes in his head. Even if the VOICE is currently booing him for being boring. ]
...Are we not also 'humans'? Perhaps what you mean is that we do not have...bestial traits back then. It is to my understanding that some humans, well, lack these qualities, and they do not possess other distinctive traits either, such as a halo and wings of light like the Sankta possess, or horns and a tail, as in the case with most Sarkaz. [ A gentle correction. Even so, he is no less surprised by this revelation, since imagining himself without his ears and tail felt just as alien as...well, imagining himself as an Ægir or a Sankta, for example. They were simply part of him. Regardless of that, the Feline nodded, once more letting Gnosis continue. ] I have another question. Tell me, how did the false god, this faceless entity currently residing in and taking control of the forest, our unholy malefactor, got released in the first place? Has any of us meddled in affairs that we should not have stuck our noses into in that past life - our original life here, so to speak - or was it...an external party? Do you happen to possess this information, Gnosis?
[ It sounds like a major fuck-up either way. Easy to pinpoint that it was the cause of this entire disaster. Even so, Phantom was relatively calm as he accepted and processed all of this, until...
...Well, the corpses bit. As always, his colleague delivered it without any emotional sensitivity whatsoever, and Phantom's thoughts regarding this matter was clear on his face. Regarding Gnosis's delivery, and concerning this entire thing. ]
Bloody hell. [ Normally, he isn't one to utter profanities, especially not in front of Cookie Jesus like this, but what the fuck. What the fuck! His ears twitches, kind of more aggressively than it was when he was distressed by the sight of those corrupted and half-corrupted insects' souls. There is a subtle amount of sarcasm when he speaks again in his otherwise flat tone. ] Next you're telling me that we could see our own spirits from that life— no, wait, that is impossible since our souls are already housed by our current bodies, but I would not be surprised if the entity could mess with us in that manner.
[ Nothing surprises him anymore at this point. If Gnosis suddenly grew two heads or some amount of emotional sensitivity, he wouldn't be surprised. Preferably, it's the latter. ]
no subject
Absolutely so. Not only because his dear friend could see those trapped insect souls as well, but because of, well, those souls. Unlike the Cookie, he couldn't hear the whispers of the Forest (whether it was due to the fact that he wasn't corrupted in his current incarnation, the red stone amulet that he had on his person - his arrival gift - or some combination of both), but it was still enough to put him under a sufficient amount of mental and emotional distress, a trace of which was visible on his otherwise stoic visage.
For a moment, he envies his colleague - Gnosis - for lacking this sort of gift, and for his lucid acuity as well as ruthless logical determination. One could only hope to be that sort of person, that sort of man — someone who remains calm and unmoving in the face of suffering. ]
...Yes. They linger, trapped — unable to go anywhere. Is this...the true extent of the entity's power...? [ A familiar sight, isn't it? A voice in the back of his mind whispered, although not the VOICE, which was currently mocking him for his ineptitude to remain calm in the face of this 'trivial matter'. With that realisation, a cold chill touched his heart. ] It reminds me of...the Troupe's machinations. Trapping a soul is but a mere child's play to them. But...this is my first time seeing a soul caged to its withered husk.
[ Not that it was any less terrifying than seeing one caged into a stage prop, for example, or a particular place. Phantom shuddered. ]
...Similar? Yes, perhaps. I could not claim much knowledge about Ursus's demons and Sami's corruption, but I have accidentally overheard some of my peers' conversations about it — at least about the Troupe's plans to go there at some point. Even so...I would not trust my memories. [ He fell quiet for a moment, gloom settles on him like a heavy fog. ] And what Gnosis said...is true. I understand that we should not talk about those demons, or their corruption. Besides...I could not claim that I know any more than he does, either.
[ He nods towards Gnosis, before he settled on his seat, listening quietly to that long infodump. Admittedly, his fingers itched just a little bit, and he wished that he had a warm drink. It would be nice if he could send his clone to make some tea, at least for himself, but he feels that it would be impolite. Thus, the Feline stayed quiet, arching an eyebrow slightly when the name 'Aldric' suddenly became garbled. ]
...He is the founder. Heimr. [ Quietly, he spoke, now wishing that he had a pen and paper to jot this down as well as some of the additional information that his coworker was currently presenting. He arched an eyebrow again when Gnosis mentioned that Zahliya, the gargoyle, is fond of singing, since yes, this was certainly a point of contention for him, but he said nothing about it. Instead, Phantom asked: ] By 'minor deities', do you mean that they are weaker than Feranmuts, or are stronger than, Gnosis? Or...are they roughly equivalent with Feranmuts? At least generally speaking, and...considering what we know about Feranmuts, of course. ...What else do you know about the entity? Any idea about what manner of creature it was, behind the curtain?
[ After he delivered his question, he sent Pure Vanilla an apologetic glance, since he realised that his friend wasn't from Terra. The talk about Sami and Ursus must have been confusing for him, in addition to Feranmuts just now. ]
My apologies, Pure Vanilla, I hope you are not lost — Feranmuts are our gods back in Terra, although their numbers have diminished and they have practically vanished in our current, modern era. While Ursus and Sami are two countries or mobile nations, specifically, although not the ones Gnosis and I are from. He hailed from Kjerag, while I hailed from Victoria.
[ That being said, he is back to listening mode once again, making mental notes in his head. Even if the VOICE is currently booing him for being boring. ]
...Are we not also 'humans'? Perhaps what you mean is that we do not have...bestial traits back then. It is to my understanding that some humans, well, lack these qualities, and they do not possess other distinctive traits either, such as a halo and wings of light like the Sankta possess, or horns and a tail, as in the case with most Sarkaz. [ A gentle correction. Even so, he is no less surprised by this revelation, since imagining himself without his ears and tail felt just as alien as...well, imagining himself as an Ægir or a Sankta, for example. They were simply part of him. Regardless of that, the Feline nodded, once more letting Gnosis continue. ] I have another question. Tell me, how did the false god, this faceless entity currently residing in and taking control of the forest, our unholy malefactor, got released in the first place? Has any of us meddled in affairs that we should not have stuck our noses into in that past life - our original life here, so to speak - or was it...an external party? Do you happen to possess this information, Gnosis?
[ It sounds like a major fuck-up either way. Easy to pinpoint that it was the cause of this entire disaster. Even so, Phantom was relatively calm as he accepted and processed all of this, until...
...Well, the corpses bit. As always, his colleague delivered it without any emotional sensitivity whatsoever, and Phantom's thoughts regarding this matter was clear on his face. Regarding Gnosis's delivery, and concerning this entire thing. ]
Bloody hell. [ Normally, he isn't one to utter profanities, especially not in front of Cookie Jesus like this, but what the fuck. What the fuck! His ears twitches, kind of more aggressively than it was when he was distressed by the sight of those corrupted and half-corrupted insects' souls. There is a subtle amount of sarcasm when he speaks again in his otherwise flat tone. ] Next you're telling me that we could see our own spirits from that life— no, wait, that is impossible since our souls are already housed by our current bodies, but I would not be surprised if the entity could mess with us in that manner.
[ Nothing surprises him anymore at this point. If Gnosis suddenly grew two heads or some amount of emotional sensitivity, he wouldn't be surprised. Preferably, it's the latter. ]