Rinn's Funeral

[23:15] Dun would solemnly wait for the attendees of Rinn's funeral to gather in the Pyrelight Citadel, the somber clown having already in private had his own session of mourning with the fallen Rinn. It was not an easy thing to say goodbye to one they loved, even after having done it countless times before.

But this was the way of the world. Why would the fool ever be surprised.

"I thank you for gathering here to say goodbye to Rinn. It isn't some crowded, illustrious celebration, but I think she would have found those tacky. It's better that she be remembered here for who she was by those that knew her."

The elder of the Fireblooded would nod lightly, ruffling the purple haired drakan's head with a light sigh, his prismarine gauntlet gentle not harming even a hair on the cadaver's head.

"I met Rinn when she was thirteen years old. A bundle of energy and spastic nonsense who waddled about doing whatever she pleased wherever she pleased. She asked about my history, and I told her what it meant to be a warlord. To lead the whole city by action and words alike."

Dun would click his teeth softly together, mulling over the matter at hand.

"After Bastiel and Alya's feud, many Therians died and many more left. Lynette attacked various stragglers, Bastiel zealously pursued the opposite party, and Theria became a ghost town but for an old man and a young girl terrified of the war Bastiel had wrought upon us in our time of weakness."

The timeless jester would smile lightly, proudly even, as he patted Rinn's head one more with delicacy.

"Rinn didn't want to see the city die. She confronted Bastiel, and told him give this kid a shot to fix things so Theria doesn't die."

Dun would sigh deeply.

"And we did everything we could for peace. No matter how hard the warmongers pushed. And when they came to our doorsteps, we were resolved knowing we fought imperialists, and had no fear. That was the day Theria, despite all odds against it, won the day."

The elder would sit down once more next to the lain out body, taking a long, thoughtful drag from his corncob pipe.

"Rinn and I brought this city back from nothing to what it is today. No matter what strife the others caused, she never disappointed me. She was my daughter, I taught her everything I knew how to rule the city. And she died without fear or retreat, Joruheim awaits her."

Dun would gesture to the gather.

"You may all say your own goodbyes, whether you knew her well or not."
(Dun Task)
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[23:25] Ulyssa didn't know Rinn. It'd be wrong for her to be here acting as if the deceased Dragonlord was a great friend- it wouldn't be genuine. What little she saw of the woman, though...?

She was certainly worthy of the title, unlike that coward Sythaeryn fought. Certainly worthy of calling herself dragon.

It's sad, then, that she's dead- yet she died well, on her feet.

Isn't that what any Therian could ever ask for?

She lowers her head, just slightly- eyes closing for a brief moment in silence.

Then it passes, and she allows herself to remain silent.
(Ulyssa)
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[23:25] As Dun speaks, Thane finds it hard to keep himself composed. To keep himself from tearing up as he may have before he had met the Task family. Or to keep himself from escaping from the harsher reality of it all by turning away.

He fidgets with his hands, slitted pupils backed by a sea of jade bouncing from Dun to Rinn's long abandoned vessel. The amount of legitimate love and care that came from the eldest Task seemed to only make it harder for him to watch, or to listen.

But he still tries, intently, as if it were one of the most important duties he had been given.

And as silence moves to reclaim The Temple, his head is bowed in the wake of Dun's final words. A father's send off.

There wasn't anything Thane could have said.
(Thane)
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[23:27] Throughout Task's eulogy, Spencer's slender fingers dance near her pocket, tapping repeatedly against a cigarette sticking out of the pack as if she's debating on whether or not it'd be appropriate to pull it out, given the circumstances. Sure, the Fireblooded Temple isn't exactly an ordinary church, but... She ultimately decides against it, as is clearly appropriate.

She didn't know Rinn - she had barely even seen Rinn, given the Spencerian tendency to go on long trips and remain away from Theria for months at a time. In all likelihood she was the last among those gathered to learn of what happened here today; all the same, she came to the temple within minutes, doing her best not to stand out - if such a thing were possible for Spencer, flashy as she was. It wasn't her scene. It wasn't her moment.

She remained respectfully silent throughout, approaching the body when her turn came up. Pale hands clasped together at her waist, turquoise eyes singularly focusing on Rinn's face. They didn't know each other - but damn if her accomplishments could be ignored.

She opened her mouth at the end, but nothing quite came out. No - she just kept the thought to herself. There was only one answer to the question of how to prevent this from happening time and time again - but those were words to be said after that silent promise Spencer just made was kept.
(Spencer)
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[23:27] Alastor didn't know Rinn that well. They two had never spoken that much, only speaking in passing when they had the time. Yet he understood the pain of death and the loss the comes with it.

He wouldn't speak no words, it wasn't his place. He had nothing to say about her to honor her memory like the old jester did and maybe anyone else. Yet he still respected her, respect was something the dead always should be given.

His eyes would close as he sent a silent prayer to the heavens above. May she find peace in her next life.
(Alastor Hirsch)
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[23:27] Bea stood to pay her respects.

She hadn't known Rinn for very long, and wasn't too shocked or upset over the death and the duel that had caused it, but the Kitsune recognized a moment of respect an quiet when it was needed and appropriate.

Some of the others were allowed to say their piece first, and when Bea approached the body and Dun, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a very shiny, very smooth piece of fool's arcanium.

Bea reached forward, offering it to Dun to place on the body or something.

"..it's my best piece. But I think I want her to have it." Even if it was a trick stone meant to fool people, Bea's demeanor signified there was some reverence in handing it off.

She turned to Rinn next and said, "We'll make something big and name it after her. Something that'll make all of Esshar remember who she was." Bea turned to sit down after that, her small little promise made.

A weapon, a ship, a giant cannon that would shoot things from the mountainside-

she didn't know what the Rinn MK II would be, but it woul be something legendary.
(Bea Zhichuan)
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[23:31] Making his way into the temple and temporarily lifting the blackened feline up into his arms, Hades listens to the duration of his father's speech without saying a word. Silence had likely fallen over the religious space like a blanket while the elder spoke. Partially because of his status and the respect they had for him, and partially because it would be the first burial any of the youngsters ever really attended.

Except for Spencer, probably. Spencer was the outlier.

The otherwise outspoken and solemn scholar is noticeably introverted and recluse as he lays eyes on the corpse, a frame that had been alive and well just a few hours prior.

Whole just earlier in the day. Knowing the threat that was coming for her and deciding to meet it head on, despite Mihalis' power.

"She really was brave. Unflinching. It's the main reason why I looked up to her."

He eventually speaks up once the floor is given to him, placing Samantha down in favor of approaching Rinn's frame and looking down at the fallen Dragonlord.

A soul that would be welcomed into Joruheim without question. It was something Hades could agree on, despite not knowing even a fraction as much about the other realms as his father did.

"Even in her final moments, she showed us a path forward for Theria. Straight up and through, without a shred of fear in our hearts." And then he stands there mute for some time, thinking over the words that her killer had shared with him.

Her only mistake had been following a path that all beings wanted - to share love. But to love was to lose, as they saw with Yani. A rollercoaster that, when one rider fell off, the other was locked into eternally mourn and lament their loss. To be driven to kill and eventually die just for a chance to get that piece of them back.

Mihalis' point was the reason why Hades couldn't say the phrase to the others. Not to his father for being their guiding light, nor Bea for making him a pistol that would indubitably go on to pierce holes in many. Only his brothers got such an honor, and it even stung when he uttered it to them.

A hand reaches up to rub at his left eye, aggressively pressing into the darkened patch of smooth skin over it as he attempts to fight back a tear - but the reality was much worse. When he pulls his digits away from the eye, traces of the occult were attached to it. Violet-red flames that were keen to melt away his very skin if he did not put it out fast enough.

A few flickers of his hand are given before the teen steps away, giving the others room to finish their final thoughts and prayers.

Even if he would not outwardly hold a grudge against his mentor in the Occult for this transgression, the Lovain would have to eventually die by his hand.

There was no other way.
(Hades Task)
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[23:31] Sometimes, it's the very last moments of someone's life that defines who they truly were. For Rinn? She was a warrior, who fought for her own pride, and honor.

Something worthy of respect, and emulation.

Tired green hues slowly drifted away from his father's features, and down towards the lifeless body of his adopted older sister. Whether he had wanted to admit it, or not. He had always been jealous of Rinn. His father was... Always so proud of her. Not a small feeling of pride he'd give Valero for assaulting someone for their glasses.

Genuine pride.

She was an example of what his brothers, and him should be, and by Garljing did she set the bar high.

He simply sat in silence, as his father recounted Rinn, and his story. From their glorious meeting, to the rather tragic end of this tale. While Rinn, and Valero had spoken on occasion, only brief conversations, but he had always had nothing but respect for the Dragon Lord.

She had by all rights, earned it.

Though something... Had been bothering him. His eyes drifted over towards his father, silently studying him for a moment. This... This was the first time he had ever seen the man feeling any sort of real emotion. It was... Strange.

Something to dwell upon later, and not right now. Not while he had a few brief words to share about his departed sibling.

"You fought until the bitter end, and died a warriors death. Something any Therian would be proud of. Rest easy, sister... You've more than earned it."

A nod would follow, before the Task fell silent.
(Valero Task)
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[23:31] His mind had became bedridden, so much to take in, so much to come to terms with. Yet he had little time, and his thoughts would continue to be stuck within itself. Looping over and over.

Their arrival, the fight.

The Bisection, the magics involved.

The truth of the world sang to him yet there was no hope of him listening.

Only a deep churning within his very being.


He hadn't spoken to Rinn, in reality Pascal hasn't spoken to anyone. But the communal pain that was shared throughout their community hit him, possibly too hard. His grim expression would turn down further into pure loathing.


Many different parties to hate. But they were all gone - lost to the miasma which constantly clouded his being. Left to the dreameaters, as was their place. Eventually forgotten to time as in a few years, none of this would matter anymore.

He viewed the world as an illusion, something he could never grasp for himself. Left watching its taunting movements remind him, over, and over, and over. The same incidents continuously repeating. Rinn's death would just propagate this fatal belief.





(Pascal)
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[23:35] Hades Task whispers something.
[23:35] Revan didn't know how to handle himself after hearing of what happened to his sister. He ran to the jungles to immerse himself in training, distract himself with gathering reagents. Beating every bloated crellus until they were nothing more than a green pulp. It wasn't until another magi came by and defeated him that he stopped.

How does one handle such a loss, someone who had been such an inspiration all throughout your childhood? She was their father's first daughter, perhaps not by blood, but she was a Task through and through, and a model one at that.

Hearing his father share just a fraction of their time together, everything they accomplished together, raising Theria back from the brink of self-destruction and creating the place he would call home.. It was heart wrenching.

Fists and teeth clenched together, there would be no stopping the tears that would soak his bandage wrapped face. Looking over her body, what had been done to her,it was unforgiveable.

"We.. Will not squander what you have gifted us.. Sister.. We will only make Theria better from here on.. And everyone will know it was only possible.. because of you."

Every word was a struggle to udder, but it came from his heart, and everything he was raised to believe and do. Another name on the short list of people he would honor.
(Revan Task)
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[23:43] Dun would hear out all of the wordless acceptances and emotional assents. In truth, most of Rinn's friends had long since perished. She didn't grow close to many, and yet Task and her had shared a tight knit bond in spite of it all.

Turning to the body as he lifted Rinn once more, he'd place her delicately upon the altar with a light sigh. He'd offer Rinn one last, tight one armed hug as he took a deep, lightly choked breathe, accepting once and for all that his daughter was gone.

It was time to let her go.

"You were the light of my life kid. Seeing you take on the world never failed to make me smile. Theria's gonna be just fine...we'll make sure of it. I'm....I'm gonna miss you by my side at the table...."

Dun would lay his head briefly upon the corpse, taking a deep breathe before lifting his hand once more and igniting it with etheric, searing blue flame.

"I love you Rinn. I always will. Don't worry, you won't have to wait that long for me."

With a burst forth of burning mana, Rinn's body would steadily become enveloped in its searing expanse. Her body would find itself turning steadily to ash in a gentle embrace of a father's mournful mana, slowly disappearing from this world to symbolize her journey to the next.

"...From the ash we rise.....to the ash we return. Goodbye Rinn. You made me proud to be a father."
(Dun Task)
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[23:46] "Funerals are terrible."

Hades blurts it out once Rinn's frame is fully enveloped, no longer able to simply sit and mourn.

"She's going to do big things in the next life, too. I can feel it."

A deep inhale as he makes his way towards the stairs to stand, lifting the feline into his arms once more.

He too takes notice of Dun's emotional state - despite the mask. But it is something to be explored another time.
(Hades Task)
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[23:49] Watching as his sister went alight in their Father's mana, so too did something ignite within Revan. A burning hatred, and need for revenge, it wasn't really something he had felt the need for until this moment.

What a coincidence he had made just a friend to help him with such a thing. Nodding, he would agree with Hades. What else was there to say for the Woman who had already done so much?

He would stay and wait for the body to fully become ashes, he felt it necessary to see her pass fully through to the other side. Though sharing his brothers sentiment, he would stick around much longer, briskly walking out of the cathedral.
(Revan Task)
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[23:49] Alastor would only watch her body be enveloped in the flames, her body slowly turning to ash. A single tear would run down the teens cheek as if remembering something from a distant memory but it would be quickly wiped away.

Again he would just remain silent as he watched the funeral continue, and once it was over he would turn towards Hades and respond.

"Yeah, in her next life she's going to do something great."

"Bigger than what she did for Theria."
(Alastor Hirsch)
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[23:49] Task's emotions were strange to see, if only because the old man had been nothing less than a zany enigma to the children thus far. But Bea recognized the importance he held in having gathered this small group to mourn with him, and even if the children were often deviant or mischievous in their mannerisms, if most of them were destined to grow into some half-malevolent forces even, today they were going to show their collective father/grandfather/weird uncle/granduncle that they cared for him in his time of need.

The Kitsune's head bowed and she offered her own, "Goodbye Rinn."

Hades was soon to depart, which likely meant the rest of the Tasklings were finished here too.

As Bea passed Dun, she reached up to pat his back sympathetically, and even offered him an appreciative smile.

He may mourn for his eldest daughter, but he was at least surrounded by a new family to call his own.
(Bea Zhichuan)
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[23:52] Thane lingers, the process viewed in its entirety.

The words of all seemed to be so optimistic in light of this tragic event, the sentiment was shared. Yet there wasn't anything for him to say in particular.

His perpetual frown deepens, "Bye."

Perhaps that was enough.
(Thane)
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[23:52] After hearing his father's words, was there anything he could say that could, or would mean as much as what the elder had said?

No.

With a solemn nod, Val would move towards Hades, placing a hand on his shoulder, before giving it a gentle squeeze. It was an attempt to offer Rinn's biggest fan a small form of comfort.

His hand would slowly be retraced back towards his side, as he got one last look of his sister before the flames truly consumed her. Yet, despite his earlier feeling, he still had once last thing to say .

"Good bye, sister. You will be sorely missed."
(Valero Task)
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[23:52] Taking a careful step back, both of Spencer's hands went into her pockets - one in there for the sake of it, the other to clutch that box of cigarettes she kept going for. Her head tilted back, chin upward as she observed the final farewell. She still said nothing; Task and his children, it seemed, had the whole thing covered. Speeches were for people who actually knew the deceased.

So she watched respectfully - and when there was nothing more to watch, she stepped away.
(Spencer)
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[23:52] Dun Task says, "You need not remain further if you've places to be."
[23:52] Dun Task says, "I am content to mourn in silence, thank you for attending."