grove of remembrance

The grove in the center of what once was the city of Seattle is quiet. Urban centers have rebuilt not far from here, but it isn’t the city that used to be here. Pieces of walls long torn away and pavement long shattered still juts out of the earth, covered in moss and soil and tangled vines. And in the center of one of those torn apart city blocks, there survives a patch of out of place flowers whose origins lay with one of its former residents, ages ago. They haven’t been cultivated for three hundred years, but for every year since the Apocalypse, a bed of lilies springs to life in the summer. A sunset sea of oranges and pinks has spread slowly here for centuries, creating new and strange crossbreeds as it’s been allowed to grow uninhibited. A bronzed sign, worn away by its age, lays in front of it, marking it as the former site of an apartment building, and carved bricks and stones lay stacked together, each one etched with the names of the dead.

All around the area, spirits of sadness and loss drift, an imprint left by the lost souls of a dying city. The effect is off-putting enough that few dare to tread here. Entering this sacred solemn grove washes the intruder with a powerful sense that something has been lost here, a feeling of intense sorrow and melancholy. To most, that effect is crushing enough to force them away, but to those with somebody to bury and memorialize, it’s welcoming and inviting. To them, that sense is one of commiseration. An urge to lay to rest that which haunts them, to remember the fallen as they were and to know that they are safe in the Mother’s arms.

The earth here is soft and abiding no matter the weather, giving way easily to hands or claws that wish to bury the dead. The wind here never blows harder than a gentle, leaf-rustling breeze, and even when a thunderstorm passes the area by, the grove never feels more than a quiet rainfall. Here, the birds sing in the minor key, and even the animals are calm and patient toward those here to pay respects. The Grove of Remembrance takes the burden of grieving off of the shoulders of its visitors and allows them time to heal, and uses that grief to ward off any who would try to ruin it. Anything buried here is taken swiftly by the plant overgrowth, being consumed completely by the roots within a week and returning the dead to the cycle just as their souls have returned to the Mother.

Many who find the Grove of Remembrance don’t leave it for days, given shelter underneath the trees, time to mourn and enough food to forage to keep them healthy. And what’s more, anyone who spends enough time mourning in one of these ephemeral places will begin to have dreams of the dead. They will hold entire conversations with the loved ones they lost, at least at first. The longer they stay within the area of the Grove, the further back they will see the souls of the dead, until they remember the ones who were lost in the Apocalypse so many years ago. They will speak to, feast with, and make revel with the lost, and when they return, they always carry on their lips the stories of those lost people that they met.

The Grove of Remembrance knows that, unlike many Kami that have come before it, that it is not alone. After the Apocalypse razed the Earth and many cities fell away into ruin, others like it began to awaken to Gaia’s call as places where the dead are buried and remembered. Its work is as somber as the grave, but in this new and strange world, it is just as important as any other duty that Gaia has given any being. It understands that even Her enemies need to grieve, and it is just as patient and abiding to them as it is to anyone pure of soul and mind.

Roleplaying Notes: To walk into a Grove of Remembrance as anyone who wishes to do it harm is to walk into soul-crushing despair. It uses the grief of its visitors to defend itself against agents of the Destroyer, though raw emotion doesn’t always work. However, those who have recently experienced a death close to them hear its spiritual whispers unconsciously and are drawn to them. The Grove itself is just that, a landmark or remarkable spot of former civilization overtaken by Gaia. It doesn’t necessarily speak to its visitors, but it provides them with joyous dreams to ease their hurt. It loves everyone who finds shade beneath its trees and solace in its beauty, no matter their banner.

Physical: Strength 2/Dexterity 1/Stamina 5
Social: Charisma 5/Manipulation 1/Appearance 4
Mental: Perception 3/Intelligence 2/Wits 2

Talents: Alertness 4, Empathy 5
Skills: Survival 4
Knowledges: Enigmas 4, Occult 4

Powers: Aura of Tranquility, Heart Sense, Lord of the Land

Geas: The Grove of Remembrance must offer its blessing to anyone who needs to mourn the dead, whether they be pure or agents of the Destroyer.