Thou shalt be free As mountain winds: but then exactly do All points of my command.
Ariel has finally been freed from Prospera's command, able to do as she wishes. This shall be an RP contest to gain her favor. Will you soar with the winds or drown with the fishes?
Start: At Event Opening End: June 27th at Midnight CST
Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2015 10:31 pm
Rules
Follow all shop rules and the ToS, along with the event rules. This contest is FREE. You don't need to pay anything for her, honest! If you edit your post, please make a note in red with the date you edited it on at the top. Anyone is allowed to enter, regardless of whether or not they have a god/goddess. Please remove your sigs. Failure to do so will result in your entry being ignored. Ariel is The Goddess of Obedience. This is not to be changed. Discouraging anyone from entering will result in being disqualified from the event. Any more rules to be added will be in red.
Alas, after so many years of servitude, Ariel is finally free. But freedom does indeed come with a price...It seems at last she might have the island to herself, but what is a goddess to do? Is she going to accompany her former mistress? Travel the world? Take a nice long sleep? Her fate is in your hands.
[i]I hereby promise to adhere to the rules if I win this contest.[/i]
Entries jinxgirl5 ChibiWrites Yushika Depawsit
Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2015 12:46 am
Edit: June 23rd Changing the coding from the entry form only
June 25th - I believe my entry is now void as I won the Drinking Buddies game
Freedom! Username: tefla Prompt: How long had it been since Ariel had felt such lassitude flow through her body? The knowledge that she had been freed from servitude sat heavily upon her mind. She had literally longed for this moment but now that it was here the goddess felt a sense of loss. For as long as she could remember there had been commands to follow and rules to obey. Now there was no voice talking in her ears about what needed to be done. The sudden change in her status was causing the female to experience an extreme case of anxiety. What was she to do? Her wings ruffled in the evening breeze that flowed off the sea beyond. Turning her back on the sight of the ocean Ariel gave a soft sigh. There were choices to make and they had to be made soon. Her internal voice scoffed at the idea of staying on the island but it was so very peaceful and she would be able to live out her life in solitude.
There was a hesitance to this idea that Ariel found undesirable. All her life she had been in the presence of at least one individual. Although that person had been the one commanding her to do various tasks Ariel had always felt comforted knowing that there was someone out there who cared, in a roundabout way, enough to see to her well being. She had lived in relative comfort with Prospera overseeing everything in her life. Could she really give up that feeling of safety willingly? What if there was someone out in the world that would want to take the same sort of liberties that Prospera had taken from her? What would she do then?
Now Ariel bit her lip and chewed on it worriedly. She had to make a decision. Was giving up her freedom and leaving the island worth more to her than living in silence and isolation by staying here? Closing her eyes Ariel felt the tears come and flow freely down from her eyes. Torn up inside about what seemed to be her only options left to her the goddess wept silently. Cursing aloud the name of her former mistress Ariel turned around and opened her wings wide. There was one way that she could end the feelings of uncertainty and that was to track down where Prospera had gone. Out of the choices that she felt were available to her Ariel felt that this one held the most desirable outcome. Ariel would have to decide what to do then. All she knew was that staying on the island, alone, would lead to days of loneliness and the risk that common reason would leave her. Freedom seemed grand but she would still be shackled by continuous self doubts. Ariel let her wings beat the air around her giving her lift. Her eyes scanned the water and the land that she had always known as it shrank below her. Her heart clenched in fear as she faced the unknown. She spoke a quiet phrase as she turned into the sunset, feeling the words resonate deep within her core. It was a promise to never forget this place.
"Perhaps one day ... I shall return."
I hereby promise to adhere to the rules if I win this contest. I do so promise.
Freedom! Username: jinxgirl5 Prompt: Ariel stood at the end of a rock outcropping that reached into the ocean, her translucent wings fluttering in the salty breeze as though she contemplated flight. The waves beat at her perch and misted her with their spray, adding the tang of ocean to her scent. A storm was brewing over the vast sea, riding the wind currents which had birthed it and racing off to parts unknown. The restless waves and sky felt like reflections of Ariel's own heart and soul.
How long had it been since she was last free? She had served Prospera for over a decade. She held no animosity towards the other though, no, quite the opposite. If it hadn't been for Prospera there was no telling how long would she have been trapped in that cursed pine, but she could not deny how it had chafed her to be under the rule of another, how many times in all those years she had yearned for freedom. But it had been defiance that had earned her imprisonment from which she could not escape unaided, and it was obedience that had eventually won her freedom. Well, that and a little meddling. Prospera had been quite pleased to see her daughter so joyfully in love, and Ferdinand was a good soul.
A sharp bite of cold in the wind slapped Ariel, pulling her from her musings as she reflexively drew her wings close to her body. The storm was getting closer. She glanced behind her at the island that had been her home and in that moment realized it held no temptation for her, no lulling promises of safety or pleasure; those promises had proved to be as hollow as reeds with the arrival of Sycorax. She faced forward and saw a whole world, one which she knew nothing about except that it held both good people and despicable people. So which did she want, a hollow promise or a vast unknown?
Just as the storm was nearly upon her did she make her choice. She could tell herself no pretty lies to fill that hollow promise, but she could venture forth into the world and turn the unknown into discovery.
Ariel unfurled her wings in a mighty clap of thunder and launched herself into the air, riding the winds of the storm and letting them carry her along as she rose higher and higher above the ocean, her island home dwindling swiftly beneath her.
(Not sure where Ariel is going from here. I would like to poke at the owner of Prospera and chat with them, figure out if Ariel might or might not follow Prospera. I know she would like to see more of the world and will travel quite a bit, so even if she does stay with Prospera she probably won't be around for a good part of the time. What she does after that depends on how her personality develops and what she experiences in her time away from the island. She'll probably go back to the island on occasion, but I can't imagine her staying away from the world once she's been out in it.)
I hereby promise to adhere to the rules if I win this contest. Signed, jinxgirl5 wink
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 5:10 pm
Freedom! Username: ChibiWrites Prompt:(I took some liberties with Ariel and Prospera's relationship - one-sided, of course! Musical inspiration: [x] [x]) Waves crashed along the shoreline, a dull roar of white noise that only served to make her reflections more somber. The ship she had been watching had sailed beyond the horizon several hours prior, yet the Goddess had remained unmoving from her perch on a sharp outcropping of rocks. Her mistress's - former mistress's words continued to bounce around in her head in the most irritating way. One last command - to calm the seas and create auspicious winds for her and her reunited kinsmen's return voyage - and then Ariel was free. "My Ariel, that job’s for you." she had cooed so that the Goddess was the only one to hear, a smile on her lips while her blue eyes had glittered in satisfaction, "After that you’ll be free as the air."
The Goddess's chest ached in remembrance.
"Farewell!"
Shaking herself, Ariel stood and flared her wings, gliding down to the sandy beach below. 'Free as the air', was she? Strange, that Prospera would often wish to associate her with that element. For the Goddess herself felt she was far more like the sea, pushing and pulling at the whim of the winds and celestial bodies.
So, no, she was not free, not now. Not when she could look at the little cove to her left and recall young Miranda shrieking and laughing as her mother showed her the creatures that lived in the shallow pools. Not when she could recall with crystal clarity the small, fond smile Prospera had shown only when her beloved daughter slept, seen from the shadows and never mentioned in the daylight. Mortal lives were much too short, so they burned brilliantly in the years they had, entrancing all the world with their glimmering emotions and actions that played at being designed.
The Goddess recalled suddenly her other mistress, the crueler one that had also been sent to the island with a child. Sycorax, the terrible and wondrous, and her b*****d son Caliban. Ariel shuddered to remember the dark horrors the witch had shown her son before her death, before she had trapped the Goddess so cruelly in a tree for disobedience. (She, the Goddess of Obedience, had disobeyed? Yet another monument to her former mistress's insanity.) She had been powerful, strong enough the charm the moon if she so wished, but her power had corrupted and twisted her long before her exile.
Prospera was just as powerful as Sycorax, if not moreso. Yet her power had not touched her heart nor addled her mind, and if Ariel felt a bit of pride in that fact, it was not unwarranted. But, ah, there was the ache again. Freedom as most mortals understood it was to be unbound and self-sufficient. Ariel had, upon her release from the accursed tree, wished for only the freedom to spread her wings and no longer allow the dark, cramped space haunt her existence.
Her new mistress had misunderstood, and over the course of their relationship had constantly sought to appease the Goddess in her charge with promises the 'freedom' Prospera thought Ariel sought. But Ariel did not wish for mortal 'freedom' and the cursed autonomy it brought, but no explanation on her part could have made the sorceress understand.
Young Miranda had understood, in a way. She was bound by the decisions of others, first her mother and then her new husband, and had reconciled with her powerlessness by being as free as she could be within the security of her position. Obedience was a testament of order, just as anarchy was a part of chaos. Ariel supposed it could've been her hand in Miranda's upbringing that had shaped her thus, but it was not cause for worry. Ferdinand seemed a worthy man to trust with Miranda's future happiness.
But what of her own happiness? Ariel felt herself scowl unpleasantly, fighting the urge to turn her gaze back toward the horizon. Prospera and Miranda's fates were those of mortals, and even on the incredibly slim chance that she could be with them, their lives were far too short to lead to anything else but pain.
And yet...
Ariel shook her head, wings flaring as she took off from the ground, sand crunching and swirling from the abruptness of her departure. Upward, ever upward she spiraled in lazy circles, until her island home was little more than a blob beneath her. The Goddess breathed a heavy sigh, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment to ward off a phantom pain. The island was beautiful, serene even. Yet the memories of not one but two mistresses cling to every rock and tree, suffocating her with their presence.
She itched, every inch of her crying out to find a new mistress or master. To obey or be obeyed. Ariel shied away from the second part, the duality of her domain that caused her to be in a constant state of unease. Long ago, she had let herself indulge the darker, more powerful state of her godhood. And the mortals in those afflicted areas still called it 'The Reckoning'. It was better, far better, to find a master or mistress and answer the safer option of her nature. Ariel could only 'obey' her baser instincts and needs for so long, and the island at this point was unfavorable.
The Goddess spiraled out in ever-widening circles, indecisive. Evening crumbled into night before she made her decision. Tilting her wings and body just enough, she set a hesitant course in the same direction the boat had sailed. If only because she knew others lived in that direction, or so she told herself. In truth, she might have to travel the world over to find a better match of a mistress or master - and the thought alone was daunting. But staying alone and isolated, shoved into a symbolic tree once again - that was a far worse fate than facing the unknown.
I hereby promise to adhere to the rules if I win this contest. Of course!
It seemed she had finally be gifted what she wanted; freedom. How long had she ached and moaned for a chance to be free from the chains of her mistress? To finally take back to the skies and water and be her own creature, without a need to serve or obey? Yet, it felt hollow. Her island was indeed beautiful, and the permanent silence was welcoming, but her bones creaked tiredly as she became stationary. Ariel rarely moved, each day leaving a heavier sinking feeling within her heart. She was missing something, something she never thought she needed before the events that had ultimately changed her life.
No, maybe.... maybe she hadn't even wanted freedom. A part of her wondered if, perhaps, she believed it deep down because most creatures desired to be the masters of their own body. She had just assumed that's what she wanted this entire time, and yet had she been unhappy? When did she ever truly assess her own emotions, until now? She had simply played the part of wishing to be freed, and yet, had she truly felt so restricted?
No, she had wanted the chance to step out and take to the sky, but only for a minute. It wasn't a freedom she wanted to be permanent, but instead the privilege to, occasionally, roam the nearby skies. That was the extension of her need, and she had realized it far too late. The sand under her was welcoming, yet she was not happy with the gift she had been given. It denied her of what she truly had realized she wanted; to obey.
Ariel had yet to come to terms with this thought, often flaring her wings in denial each time she gave herself permission to dwell. Surely that wasn't right. People weren't like that – it was wrong. People were independent, and fought for their freedom tooth and nail. Yet, here she was, sinking into the sand and burrowing her face between her paws as she considered the idea that perhaps her entire existence up until now was a lie. Why did she have to be the odd one out? She surely couldn't deny the nature of, well, anything sentient, could she?
Yes, she could.
Her eyes had been locked on the horizon for the longest time, wings folded against her weary body as a frown formed across her muzzle. No. This island was not what she had wanted, and this false assumption she wanted freedom had only served to make her miserable. Deep down inside she recognized that she could never be happy being in control. Whether or not it was "wrong" or against the nature of her kind, she needed to lose control to feel truly at bliss. She was a servant, and lived to obey. It was in her nature.
Without even glancing back, the stiff goddess rose, taking to the skies like a caged bird finally released. She was grateful for what her mistress had done for her, but it wasn't enough, and now it was time to find someone new to obey without question.
I hereby promise to adhere to the rules if I win this contest. Mhmm.
Posted: Sat Jun 27, 2015 9:39 pm
Freedom! Username: Depawsit Prompt: Ariel's delicate paws dug into the sand as the gentle waves rolled in once more to the shore. She felt the cool water upon her toes and wriggled a bit at the sensation.
'This is what freedom is like?'
She thought to herself as the sensation continued down her lower back and shivered down her translucent wings. It had been ages since she'd known the meaning of freedom. Ages since the last time she'd gone without being at the beck and call of another. No longer having to do the bidding of one such as Prospera.
But no matter how she sliced it, she felt ... empty. Or perhaps lost would be another way to put it. Years of having your life laid down before you happened to make one a very scheduled individual. Then to have one's life thrown right back into their hands and given the reigns? Well! It was quite the heart attack she'd tell you that much.
Raising her rushed mind from her glowing paws and the creeping waters below, she noticed the fading horizon before her. She remembered looking at this same sunset so many times before and thinking of her own life as doing just the same ... slowly fading into non existence. But just as the sun each morning, she rose to do the bidding required of her. Just as the sun was required to do his. But tonight, her life was doing the opposite for the first time. Her heart sunk in her chest as she tried to deliberate her next move. Was leaving her island really a suitable option? Would she be fit to survive on the outside?
'Slow deep breaths Ariel'
The words echoed in her ears as she tried to relieve herself of the immense turmoil within.
For today she would take baby steps. Her island was big enough, and without someone to demand her every second she could take her time to explore it. Perhaps tomorrow she would take a small flight out past the cloudy fog that always choked the island.
But for now?
For now she was OK.
I hereby promise to adhere to the rules if I win this contest. - Depawsit <3
I was completely blown away by the quality of all the entries, and it wasn't easy for me to pick! I wasn't expecting the undertones of sadness in any of these, and it hit me right in the feels. I really wish I could give each of you something, but alas, there must be only one winner...
ChibiWrites
Congratulations! You kind of managed to make me cry, and have a moment of existentialism. While I'm not sure if this is a good or bad thing, I'm sure of one thing. Ariel is yours!
Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2015 10:46 am
Oh my gosh thank you so much!!! I'm sorry I'm just reacting now - we were in Dresden all day and just got to our hotel in Berlin!! I'm just so overwhelmed right now wow this is the best thing!! Everyone did so well and I'm so happy asdfjkl; ;w; ~ <33333
