Private &nbsp; Heart of Electrum

Ishani Dinn · Mar 19, 2023

Arcturus Dinn said:
"It's time."

Huh?

Rhi glanced up at Arc. With the kids in bed, the two of them were reclining in one of the leisure rooms of the Sky Temple. Dressed in Zaathrian finery, she lay beside him on a comfortable couch, warmed by a roaring fire.

Though she was confused, she said nothing, instead waiting for him to elaborate. He explained that they needed Anhur, the God of War. Rhi’s cheeks flushed at the implications—then she looked mildly disappointed as he clarified they needed an adult child, not another baby. Someone who could fight. “Another one like Chernsemie, then?” she murmured, her brow creasing in thought.

“We shouldn’t make him out of dirt. Some other material. Maybe you could make his body in the Forge…” Watching the flickering light of the flames play across his features, she brushed a lock of red hair from his face. “The High Priest told me that Anhur was born during a storm—some of the more superstitious Shaal believe thunder and lightning are you and I having an argument.” She snorted softly. “Anhur’s birth was a sign of reconciliation between the gods, but he carries that rage with him. It’s the source of his power, but it’s also easy to manipulate… and hard to control.”

Arcturus Dinn · Mar 19, 2023

He caught her expression, and sheepishly grinned. "Oh, does my Goddess wish for another babe so soon?" he whispered, leaning down to press his lips to her forehead, breathing in the sweet scent of strawberries which drifted up from her golden hair. She proceeded to give him further insight into the God of War, specifically the mythology surrounding his creation, and Arcturus hummed.

"I suppose we ought to ignite a storm then, when the time comes" he remarked, grinning, "You can call upon the rain, and the wind, why not a storm my sweet? I'll forge the body, something good and noble..." His eyes narrowed in thought. "Electrum." What better than that to make a statement? "And you can call upon the storm. Sky meets ground, lightning and metal. Though... I do not wish to argue with you, my love, perhaps instead we can channel the fury we feel toward the likes of Brunas, those who would harm us and ours."

Other slavers, too, though Arcturus did not state as much, did not tie this back to his own childhood anywhere save in his mind. Oh, there was plenty of rage there.

"I worry not about his temper, or our ability to control him, love. We will be his parents, just as we are Semie's parents, part of us will lay within him... That is enough for me to trust that he will work with us, not against us."

Another kiss, then he shifted slightly.

"So... Will you do it? With me?"

Ishani Dinn · Mar 19, 2023

Rhi’s face grew redder at his teasing. “Well, I am a fertility goddess…” she muttered. Then she smiled and shook her head. “It’s just that I prefer the traditional method of having children. It’s more fun, in my opinion.”

She leaned in to kiss his mouth, then draped herself across him. “Well, he is the God of Storms, Metal, and War,” she said, getting comfortable. Only to raise her head and look up at him. “Electrum? Solid electrum?” It wasn’t beyond the Forge’s capabilities, but sheesh, that was a lot of electrum.

“Oh, I’m flattered. You really have nothing to argue with me about?” She grinned. “That’s the whole point of the story, isn’t it? The nice thing about arguments is the making up afterwards.” But if he wanted to channel his anger toward his enemies into the making of this wrathful deity, she supposed it would work just as well.

His deflection left her quiet and contemplative. What exactly was she so worried about? Perhaps it was the same paranoia that had motivated her to imprison Theryn Hearthfire. She felt like her grasp over this paradise was tenuous enough as it is; bringing more people into it threatened to upset the careful balance. A baby couldn’t throw the empire she had built into turmoil… at least not overnight. But a child who was born already an adult? They would be an independent entity. A wild card.

Arcturus Dinn said:
"So... Will you do it? With me?"

At last, she nodded. “Yes. Tomorrow we will go to the Forge.” It was what Arc wanted, and she couldn’t deny that they had a real need for a warrior. “You’ll have a third son before the sun sets.”

Arcturus Dinn · Mar 19, 2023

"I will give you that" he cooed, unable to keep a small chuckle from rising up, "I will have as many children with you as you desire, my love, enough even to rival the likes of Carnifex." That was a bold statement, that man had more kids and more wives than anyone he'd ever heard of, so many it was dizzying. Arcturus would only ever have one wife, one lover, but if she wanted more children then he would happily give them to her.

Solid Electrum? He pondered that for a moment. "At the very least a heart of electrum" he mused, "Perhaps something a little more durable for the outside. Has my Goddess any preferences?"

As far as arguing went... "Oh, my sweet, would you like to argue? I'm sure there are a great many things you can lambast me with from my past. By all means, have at it. I have nothing to air where you are concerned, though, so I shall stick to hating those who harmed me and mine."

He could tell that this wasn't an easy thing for Rhiannon to do, he understood well her concerns, but in truth this was precisely why he wanted Anhur made, so that they could face off against anything they needed to. Together. As a family.

Arcturus stroked her cheek softly, and then nodded as she laid out the plan. Her final statement though left him frowning just a touch. "Fifth, by my count" he whispered. They may not have formally adopted Pharus Dystra or

Zachariah Conway yet but he would see it done. As soon as the boys felt comfortable enough for it.

"Tomorrow it is, my love. I will ensure we have everything we need." Electrum, crystals, whatever metal they opted for, ritual items, some sort of weapon... Chernsemie had been a soft creation, already filled with vitality even before they had woken her from her slumber, but Anhur? Oh... He'd need more than the wind and their union to summon forth.

Ishani Dinn · Mar 20, 2023

Rhi paled at the mention of Carnifex. “That nasty old man has a harem of wives and concubines,” she said. “I don’t think we could outdo him unless we were to clone ourselves… or live forever.” The latter might well be a possibility, now that they were gods.

Not really gods, a voice at the back of her mind whispered. But like Arcturus, she too was beginning to believe the lie.

“Hmm… I think some type of steel would be best,” she murmured. Did she have anything to argue with him about? There were some grievances, maybe, but she had no desire to hurt him by dredging up the past. “We could pretend to argue,” she suggested, kissing down the length of his torso. “Or we could just skip to the making up part…”

Arcturus Dinn said:
"Fifth, by my count."

That stopped her. “Oh, damn,” she muttered, leaning her head against his knee. “I forgot again. Pharus acts like he doesn’t want to be here, and I keep thinking of Zach as your apprentice…” Not as a son. She felt bad about it, but she meant well. “We should draw up some papers, have a ceremony, and make the adoption official.” That might help it to sink in.

“Tomorrow we’ll have a fifth son,” she corrected, smiling up at him. “We’d better get some sleep tonight.”

The next day at dawn, a storm began to brew over the desert. Rhi stood on the edge of the volcano, the wind tearing at her hair and clothes, both arms outstretched as she whipped the aether into a frothing maelstrom.

Hearing the rolling thunder and seeing the flash of lightning, the natives were aghast. They had no scientific explanation for the clouds darkening the sky, only the supernatural cause provided by the priests and shamans. The gods were fighting each other, and the atmosphere was to be their battleground.

Satisfied with the minor hurricane she had created, Rhi flew back down to the Forge within the fires of Mount Pele.

Of course, the Forge wouldn’t work without blood to oil its gears. From the looks of it, Arcturus had already begun consuming the supply of sacrifices they had brought with them—no pun intended. Only one remained: a terrified female Zaathri cowering in the corner. This one had been accused of smothering her own children to death. A quick probing of her thoughts and feelings with the Force had proven she was indeed guilty. Rhi had requested that she be saved for last.

Now she seized the Zaathri with telekinesis and dragged her to the basin. The baby killer wailed, of course, begging and pleading for mercy. Rhi ignored her sob story, uninterested in whatever tale of desperate woe had driven her to such a heinous act. As far as the Patron of Mothers was concerned, there was no excuse.

“I gave you a sacred gift,” Rhi said, though it was not Rhiannon speaking so much as the goddess Adamanthea. “And you destroyed that gift. How could I show you mercy after such dishonor and insult?”

“I didn’t want your gift!” the Zaathri shrieked. “I-I was only returning them to you!”

Rhi’s lip curled in disgust. “If you wanted to return them to me, you should have brought them to my Temple. My doors are always open to orphans and the unwanted,” she said, unsheathing her dagger. “Now there is only one way you can earn my forgiveness. Your life for that of my child.”

With a swift motion she cut the Zaathri’s throat. As blood flowed into the machine, she devoured what remained of her essence, then stepped away from the basin. It was full of corpses, all slain to fuel the making of the God of War.

Leaving the Heart Chamber, she walked to the Throne Room, where Arcturus had set up the ritual…

Arcturus Dinn · Mar 20, 2023

Quite frankly, he didn't want to be compared to Carnifex in any capacity. He was glad when Rhiannon echoed his thoughts, and gladder still to see that she was more than willing to simply skip to the making-up part of things. He grinned, reclining slightly as she kissed down his chest. Oh, he could get used to this...

Then she stopped, as he corrected her about the number of sons they'd soon have. He ran a hand through her hair, and smiled softly. "It's okay" he whispered, "We'll make it official as soon as they're ready, my love."

Some sleep? Arcturus wasn't sure he would sleep at all. "Come, I'll carry you to bed and stay with you til you drift," he promised, "But if we're to bring forth Anhur tomorrow, there's much I need to do to prepare. He cannot come into existence with a blank mind." No, that simply would not do.

Semie had the privilege of being borne of nature, which itself had memories, but steel, electrum? No... He'd have to work hard to impress upon their upcoming son some sort of personality in his existence. An ability to actually stand in defense.

So he shared a bed with Rhiannon, cherishing her until she was tired enough to rest and for some time after that. He just watched her in her softly resting state, then rose up, dressed, and approached the adjoining nursery. Plucking up Starlin's bassinet from its stand, he brought the babe with him to ensure that should he awaken he would not rouse Rhiannon. If he was already awake, why should he not keep watch over his son?

The night passed in a mixture of meditation and reading. He pulled down as many books as he could find that pertained to the realms they sought to have Anhur claim dominion over, combat, defense, war, language, honour, on and on and on. He didn't necessarily read to learn, instead he was transferring the knowledge from the books into a synthetic crystal, one he himself had formed as he always did when dealing with golems. An understanding of Djem So and its common stances, forms, attacks, etc, was conferred. Force Lightning and Atmokinesis to conjure up storms, Metalleokinesis to gain dominance over steel and other such metals, as well as all the basics a student would have been taught.

Telekinesis, Telepathy, Force Body, Speed, Jump... He could not cram it all in, not in any real detail, but some were things he himself knew intimately, which made it easier to confer. On and on he went, deep in thought, deep in his meditations, and the crystal thrummed with energy.

By the time that morning came he had a stack of books surrounding himself and a crystal that pulsed with echoes of false memories. Of training regimes, and classes, of a childhood by Arcturus and Rhiannon's side. Anything he could do to help bridge the gaps left behind by the act of creating life in a Forge.

He tended to and fussed over Starlin in the process, parts of his meditations done with the babe cradled against his chest. Then day came, and Rhiannon with it, she took the babe while he finished up, and when all was said and done and he had the relevant things gathered he made his way to the Forge.

The Electrum heart was the first thing he cast, as the first of the sacrifices were brought through to the basin. At its core the crystal lay, enveloped in the precious metal. The rest he'd decided would be strengthened, alchemized brass, formed of zinc and Ruusan Copper. Arcturus was familiar with the latter, it was one of the key materials he'd used in the creation of the Misery Device.

With the Forge primed, and the sacrifices slowly drifting in, he retired back to his adjacent throne room and set into motion the basics of the ritual. Much like that which he'd done to see Rhiannon fully restored, it consisted of a whole lot of candles, incense, reagents... and blood. He'd avoided the latter when working with Pharus, but here it would be just he and Rhiannon... Neither were afraid of blood.

Lots of blood. More even than the Forge itself demanded.

It was after all the ichor of life.

He heard the storm brewing, and soon found his wife entering the throne room... It was time.

Ishani Dinn · Mar 20, 2023

As she walked into the Throne Room and laid eyes upon Arcturus, a change seemed to come over her. The goddess Adamanthea fell away, and she was just Rhi again.

“How are things going in here?” she asked as she approached him. Before leaving the Heart Chamber, she had used the Force to purge the effects of the Zaathri’s blood from her body—a necessary precaution that she had learned the hard way during her early days as a goddess. Now she was clean and free of stain, as if the violence of the sacrifice had never even occurred.

Thunder roared overhead. The Forge pulsed a low and steady rhythm. Through clear windows, she could watch the machinery working, gears turning, molten metal flowing, hammers pounding it into new shapes. The body of Anhur, the God of War, was already assembled, but it was little more than a statue of copper and electrum at this stage. They would have to give it life via the ritual.

Despite her urging, Arc hadn’t slept, too caught up in the project. She hoped he would at least keep up his strength, perhaps by devouring one or two of the sacrifices, before shedding any of his own blood. If not… well, she’d take good care of him. She always did.

“I’m ready,” Rhi said, standing at his side. She smiled. “Five children in a single year. That's pretty impressive, if I do say so myself.”

Arcturus Dinn · Mar 20, 2023

Rhiannon entered, and a stillness settled over Arcturus in response to her presence.

The two of them were far more in tune these days, far more deeply connected, ever since he and Pharus had stepped through the veil into the Nether to bring her back home. And again since forming

Chernsemie a similar strengthening of their bond had occurred. And how could it not? They were so deeply entwined by now, they had children borne of their union, borne of their blood, of their efforts, and even two they had shepherded into their lives. Lost lambs he sought to care for.

They sought to care for.

It was as though he could readily breathe again now that she was here.

"Well" he said in response to Rhiannon's question. The dodecagram had been laid, formed of numerous runes, the candles and cones of incense set into place, and Arcturus' own sacrifices were set off to one side. Unlike the infanticidal mother, his were not fretful, his did not try to flee, nor were they bound at all. They stood like the proud, strong warriors they were, ready and willing to give their lives for Anhur. They were old fighters, way past their prime, men who had hoped to fall in battle but were too good at the game to suffer mortal wounds. Now their fighting days were at an end, and they longed for a more honorable death.

Arcturus would see them given fine seats in the Underworld. He'd forge them there himself.

He glanced to those warriors, a mixture of Shaal and Zaathri both, and then gestured toward the Forge where the bronze body awaited pick up. They moved silently, having already been debriefed on what they were to do, and together they carried the heavy form back through into the throne room where they set it down in the center of the dodecagram.

"Stand across from me, my love," he requested, "Just as Pharus did, you should light the candle adjacent from mine. Then the incense with the candle to its left, and the reagents with the candle to its right. Understood?"

It was a simple start to any ritual Arcturus was performing, his mark so to speak. The first step in many which would bring forth Anhur and see metal turned flesh.

Ishani Dinn · Mar 20, 2023

Instructions received, Rhi nodded in acknowledgment and went to light the candles and incense. The flames came from her fingers, ignited by the Force. She was quiet as she worked, reverent and sober.

Arc’s chosen sacrifices were much more cooperative. There was pride on their faces, and awe. Some wept silently, but not from sorrow. They were honored to be here and moved by their faith.

When the twelve-pointed star was fully lit, Rhi glanced up at Arc. She remained silent, eagerly waiting to hear what the next step was.

Arcturus Dinn · Mar 20, 2023

Had she not taken the time to count them out before, once the candles and incense were lit, and the reagents burned, she'd soon come to realize that there were twelve of them. Twelve sacrifices. Six each Zaathri and Shaal. They each took their place, Zaathri then Shaal and so on, at the head of each point of the star. Still stood tall. Those who wept still weeping. Pride bristled between the lot of them, and they linked hands. Brothers in the end though many had been enemies on the battlefields of their past.

None of that mattered now, this was for something higher than their mortal selves.

Arcturus stepped through before the last hands held, and approached the figure he'd formed of bronze. Then he outstretched a hand toward Rhiannon, bidding her to join him there on the other side of Anhur.

"Each should be cut above their heart. Not deep, it is not to be fatal." He handed her the ritual dagger, then gestured to the first of the sacrifices, the one who stood at Anhur's head. "Begin, and do not stop until all have been bled."

As for Arcturus? He closed his eyes and began to draw upon the Force...

Ishani Dinn · Mar 20, 2023

Rhi took the knife in her hand, then laid it above the first Shaal’s heart, away from the vital organ. With a careful, precise motion, she stabbed through the skin. Blood welled up, dripping from the wound. “You will take your place among the heroes today,” she said, kissing his cheek.

She moved on to the next warrior, and the next, doing the same with each until all were bleeding crimson and silver. Then she stepped forward, hand outstretched to return the bloody dagger to Arcturus—though he seemed to be in another world entirely…

Arcturus Dinn · Mar 20, 2023

Arcturus did not take the dagger.

Not right away at least.

Instead, he called upon the silvery-and-crimson blood which was flowing down the chests of the warriors and manipulated it toward the center of the star. It swirled around Anhur, becoming more like mist than its previously thickened-liquid state, entering any porous area it possibly could, however tiny those pores might have been.

As he worked he muttered under his breath, ancient words that manipulated the blood, that called upon the very foundations of life and the Force itself. With it, the smoke from the incense began to billow inward too, and that which seeped from the burning reagents. The candles flames flickered then blew up in size, turning hues of red, orange, yellow, while the runes themselves glowed blue and green depending on whether they lay at the feet of Shaal or Zaathri.

Then he reached for the dagger, but more than that he reached for Rhiannon. He pulled her close, bodies pressed together though their feet remained on opposite sides of the bronze body, and made it so the both of them had their hands around the hilt of the dagger. At this point he wasn't even wholly conscious of what he was doing, he was moving and acting on instinct, still muttering his little chants.

Finally he kissed her, drawing forth all of his passion in the process, a deep kiss that spoke of sheer desire, need, lusty and intimate all in one. He drew them both down quite quickly to their knees, and together they plunged the ritual blade deep into the heart of the bronze golem, through bronze and electrum and into the crystal itself which splintered in response.

All around them the sacrifices began to drop, first to their knees and then onto their fronts, until all were pointed straight at Anhur. Perfectly placed...

The air thrummed with energy, wild and unharnessable, winds whipped up around the pair of them, and the ground at the very edge of the room cracked, causing a small trickle of lava to flow into the crevice. It did not rise any further than that though, but it was enough to bring a little extra heat into the room.

Arcturus did not pull back from the kiss, not even when his lungs burned for air. Slowly but surely the statuesque form before them cracked melted under the heat, the crystal inside the electrum heart became molten and as that heart began to beat it pulsed the memories and skills imbued within it through his newly forming skin, forming blood the colour of electrum itself.

Metal became flesh, organs, bones, hair... The skin which settled shone brilliantly for a while as the blood flowed fiercely and tried to settle into its new rhythm, giving him a golden hue.

Finally Arcturus pulled back, as he heard the first breath taken beneath them, and without hesitation he tore the cloak from his shoulders and wrapped it around the boy's form.

"Anhur" he said breathlessly, before looking to Rhiannon. It wasn't his turn to name a child, and yet the Force sent him a message all the same. Almost as if it had come from the newly created son before them. "Forrest." That was to be his name.

Forrest Dinn · Mar 20, 2023

Memories.

Flashes of a world he wasn't even sure he belonged in.

Abilities and techniques swirling into his being as if they had been there his whole life. And they had. Every three seconds of it.

He gasped in his first gulp of air as he was formed from nothing and everything all at the same time. His body convulsed back arching, stomach lifting hard into the air as his hands slammed down onto the hot ground beneath him. The air was hot and heavy and hard to breath, but his body lowered gently and his breathing began to regulate.

He laid for a moment as consciousness found him for the first time, he tried to make sense of all the things slamming into his mind all at once. When the torrent faded he opened his eyes slowly. He blinked a few times getting used to the feeling of it but also remembering having done it a million times before. His mind was in chaos from all the things coursing through him at once.

The confusion and the fear didn't show on his face however. He looking around the arid place he landed on a face he knew, yet didn't. "Mother?" he questioned as he locked eyes with her. They started to the other side meeting the man who had taught him everything, yet he had just met. "Father?" he slowly began to sit up testing his body and the movement it made. Thunder crashed around them so loud it shook the very earth he sat upon. Forrest, that's what he had been called right? Threw his hands upward to protect from the crash as lightning of his own shit skyward to meet the storm. When he it ceased Forrest lowered his hands and looked at them curiously. "Where am I"

Ishani Dinn · Mar 21, 2023

Time seemed to slow for Rhi as Arc pulled her closer. She could tell by his intense gaze that he was fully into the ritual, his mind entering that strange hypnotic state brought on by repetition and the flow of the Force. His eyes seemed to pull her into it with him. Her lips began to move, mouthing the chants, and her arm moved of its own accord, guided by his hand.

Her lips parted against his, willing and eager. Together they knelt over the body of Anhur, plunging the blade into his electrum heart.

The crystal fractured. Bloodless bodies collapsed around them. Wild images flew through her mind like arrows, visions of moving gears, the machinery of the Forge in motion, cold steel becoming warm flesh under her fingers.

There was a sound like crackling shards of glass as the floor split open, revealing a bubbling vein of lava. The rising temperature of the Throne Room was nothing compared to the white heat searing her nerves. Raw power pumped from Arc, through her and into the inert statue, filling her with an ecstasy like nothing she had ever felt before. It felt so good it was almost painful. And then it did start to hurt, like birth pangs.

Arc pulled away from her. Rhi was left swaying as he laid his cloak over Anhur, her head slumping forward.

Forrest Dinn said:
"Mother?"

She stirred, staring down at him. This son had been born a man, with a warrior’s physique. As was to be expected, she saw nothing of Arcturus in his features, nor anything of hers… but oddly enough, he did resemble her father, Toloth Threepwood, with his dark brown hair and eyes and the shape of his mouth.

Arcturus Dinn said:
"Forrest."

Rhi turned to Arc and blinked. “Forrest? What are we going to name the next one, Meadow?”

She jumped when Forrest shot lightning forth into the sky, quenching the storm she had created earlier. But then her face split in a grin. "That's my boy!" She wrapped one arm around Arcturus and the other around Anhur, pulling them both into a hug.

Forrest Dinn said:
"Where am I?"

“You’re in the Forge of Mount Pele,” she replied. “Your birthplace. You are the God of Storms, Steel, and War.” She said nothing of the purpose for which they had created him. Better to take things slow and give him a chance to adapt.

Arcturus Dinn · Mar 21, 2023

"He named himself" Arcturus stated, "Or at least, it's what the Force willed..." One way or another that was his name, and who was Arcturus to claim otherwise? Even with everything now done, with the heat and tension in the room beginning to cool off, Arcturus could not shake the static coursing through his veins. It was her, Rhiannon, she charged him in a way nothing else could or ever would.

Her warm embrace did not help matters, but he allowed himself to be consumed by it all the same. He also wrapped an arm around their son, though he let Rhiannon handle his questions to begin with.

The where, the what, the who...

The lightning shooting from his fingers.

Arcturus beamed brightly. "How are you feeling, son?" he inquired softly. Then he reached for one of the pebbles in his pouch, and gently set it within Forrest's hand. "Focus on this for me, draw upon it... Upon the Force. You know what that is, how it works, at least you should."

If he did as he'd been bid, he'd soon find himself enveloped in mist which, when parted, revealed him to be freshly dressed, and no longer hidden beneath Arcturus' cloak. Arcturus took back the pebble, replacing it to his pouch. Should Forrest not yet be ready to make use of the Force however, or not understand how, then he'd begin to explain and show how it was done.

Either way in the end he'd be dressed.

Forrest Dinn · Mar 22, 2023

Mount Pele? Birthplace? Forrest closed his eyes trying to focus on the swirling thoughts running through his head. "Enough" he thought with an authority founded through the will imposed in him through the ritual. The swirling thoughts and powers coursing through him began to settle like the ending minutes of a hurricane.

"God?" Forrest questioned raising one eyebrow to the air. Flashes of memory implanted by the crystal came to him as he tasted the word on his lips. "Yes, the people of this planet worship us as Gods because of the power we weild yes?" He asked looking questioningly at his mother.

He looked to his father as he began to speak to him. A cruel and intention filled smile broke the neutrality of his face. "Powerful" was his only answer to the asked question. Forrest took the stone from his father have and looked at it his head cocking like a curious puppy. The force? Yes. That was the name of the power he felt coursing through him, felt all around him. One that connection was be Forrest closed his eyes focusing on the power at the very core of his being. Channeling it into the the crystal in his hand he began to glow and when it stopped he was fully clothed. "Hmmmm restrictive." He observed as the feeling of the clothes cane over him.

He looked to his parents as he stood for the first time taking in his surroundings. "What now? Do I have a purpose here?"

Ishani Dinn · Mar 22, 2023

Forrest Dinn said:
"The people of this planet worship us as gods because of the power we wield, yes?"

“That’s true,” Rhi murmured in answer. Sometimes she forgot it wasn’t real, that the Pantheon was merely a mythology which they were using to their advantage.

She wasn’t sure what to make of Forrest. He was so different from the other children, so stark and cool. When he smiled, there was a glint of cruelty in his eyes. Well, he is the God of War, she reminded herself. You can’t have a shrinking violet for a martial deity…

They were getting what they’d asked for.

Rhi glanced over at Arc as he clothed their newest child. She was reminded of him swaddling the newborn Star. The tension of the ritual lingered for her too; a warm ache had settled in her core, Arc’s energy still humming beneath her skin, molten in her veins. “Restrictive?” she echoed, finally tearing her eyes away. “Would you prefer something else?”

Forrest Dinn said:
"What now? Do I have a purpose here?"

“We made you to protect this planet. Zaathru has become our home. We want to keep our family safe from any threat, both outside and within.”

Arcturus Dinn · Mar 24, 2023

When Forrest stated that he was feeling restricted by the clothes, Arcturus began to free him from the outer coat. It probably was a little much given the heat in the room, he hadn't considered that really he'd been more focused on getting him clothed.

Rhiannon was quick to provide him with the answers he sought, and as tempting as it was to leave her to do all the explaining he knew that it would be wrong of him to not pull his own weight in this.

"You are the forger of steel, the bringer of storms, and the right hand of death." Lifting a hand he settled it upon his own chest to indicate who that was exactly. "Your primary purpose is the protection of this family, above all else. But what your mother says is true also, the protection of the planet and its people is also important."

He was the God of War, however, not the God of Protection, and Arcturus knew that he would not be satisfied simply playing peacekeeper and occasional guardian. No, he could see in Forrest's eyes that he hungered for battle, for blood. Perhaps they could raise a colosseum soon, blood sports seemed in the nature of the Shaal and it might help bridge gaps between the Zaathri and the Shaal in its own weird way.

He blinked, realizing that his thoughts had gotten off track, and then gave his son a level look.

"Beyond that, you can do as you see fit so long as you do not direct your warmongering at the Pantheon... Or cause the total collapse of the natives." War was a natural part of life, especially on a rudimentary, tribal world like this. He didn't need either of the races wiped from existence, however, nor the plans of the other Gods meddled with.

"You will come to me each morning, before dawn, and we will train."