Welcome to Gaia! ::

Naga shook his head. "The herbs she was gathering tells me she will. The spade-like one? That was nightshade," he murmured, "Not one of the few she'd be chewing on, especially as a human. More likely she'll drug the child beforehand to be merciful."

Which was exactly what Morrigan was doing then. She fed the child no more than two and a half of the nightshade berries, three enough to kill; before long, he would be asleep. She picked him up in her arms, kissing his forehead.
"May the Goddess take your soul before he does," she whispered, "May you be incarnated somewhere beautiful and bright."
Part of her hoped she overdosed the boy; he was quite young, and it was a possibility. If he died while he was feeding she would be content. He could at least escape then.

"HEY! EVERYONE!" Vincent was shouting, waving his arms. The group of youths paused and looked back, and started to approach them. "We have a new priest!"
The young girl who had previously divined the priest stared at him with the look of sudden realization. "You were standing behind the demon, weren't you??" she asked quietly, moving forward. "You're the one she chose."
"He is." Vincent confirmed, "He needs to be taught, but he is a fast learner, perhaps faster than anyone here. Aisne, will you teach him?"
"We all will." Aisne replied, her fiery hair flowing over her shoulders, turning around to wave the others over. They began to hurry, but soon, the white and black-clothed figures were there.
"We must begin with taking in energy in general," Vincent instructed, and the young priestess nodded.
"We'll teach like Morrigan taught us." she smiled secretly.
A circle had formed around the three, though Vincent carefully stepped out. Aisne lifted her hands, looking at Po-ar closely. "A good way to gather energy, is to focus on the life that everything has within it. The spirit. The divine. The magickal. Every living being, every object, the winds, the flames, the waters, the earth; all of this contains magick, spirit. Lift your hands above your head, or fold them in the prayer-pose of the East. This is very similar to meditating---with every breath you take in, envision bright, shining energy entering your crown, and filling your body. With every exhale, push out the negative energy that clouds you. Rid yourself of stress, worry; what you must focus on now is the connection. Feel the connection, the want of the connection, in your heart; all magick is motivated by desire, and intent. If you want something bad enough, it will come."
The circle was starting to build up energy already; Aisne was starting to fall into a mild trance. "For actual spellcraft, you much focus that desire before you."
It was actually very similar to using ki.

Morrigan returned with the child, her eyes stoic and removed from them save her hatred. He was still awake, yes; drowsy, yes, a bit.
He wouldn't fully comprehend what was happening to him, and to ease his passing was the only thing she could do. Morrigan's priestesses were known for singing the dying to sleep; before she returned, she sang to him of beautiful things. Part of her wanted to steal the boy's soul herself somehow; without her magick....
It didn't help she was still too tired to support another visit from her goddess.
She handed the boy over, crossing her arms as she looked away. Her chest throbbed with her emotions, which, without her spirit, were only more intense; however, she understood the concept of sacrifice.
If there was anything she could have offered in the child's place, she would have, even if it meant herself. "I have an offer to make." she spoke quietly, "My life for the child's."

"You merge with it," Aisne explained, eyes wide as she gazed at the sphere, "Here, let me show you. Pay attention."
The young girl raised her hands and began to draw the energy inward. "It's as if it connects to your soul---you empty yourself and become a vessel for holding and gathering it, much like your ki, before expelling it." In her case, she was drawing in the energy to further his understanding, and it was no coincidence.

Naga frowned. "Opium poppies, but that's just curing one drug with another."
Morrigan looked almost smugly pleased after such a remark, glaring at them with her arms crossed.
"b***h," Naga shook his head, "You are seriously testing my patience."
"Well technically I am a Goddess, you're correct," Morrigan retorted, "If you forget, our age used that as a compliment. I used those herbs for a reason. You can't expect me to do anything less; I'm a priestess, and to sacrifice life so mercilessly is not in my ability save on the battlefield."
Naga was seriously irritated, and glanced to Konton. He wanted to throttle her, but she was his equal in battle, and no less fervent about it now that she was human. Save for her lack of energy, neither had an advantage over the other; however, it was this that gave Morrigan so much confidence.
"Not even vinegar or fennel will work," she replied, "but then again, Naga was never very wise in the ways of herbs."
"Except poisons," Naga reminded her, "which I am sorely tempted to feed you now."
"Do it, I dare you." Morrigan spat, tossing her head. "Try me, better yet, try her."
All three knew exactly who 'she' was.

"You don't use the life energy so much as the divine energy," Aisne explained further. "Am I exploding now? No. But if I knew of the energy you used, perhaps. You know better than I. It's like the difference between....well, the difference between... well, humans and the gods. You don't want literal life energy, just the spark that ignites it. Does that make sense?"

Naga's eyes sparkled. "I could think of a few," he remarked, stepping forward. Morrigan took a step backwards, but clearly looked ready to fight. "We could always break her ribs, or shove spikes through her joints."

"I won't accept this!" Morrigan growled, taking another step backwards. If there was only some way she could have saved the child, or any of the people he had!
"But what choice do you have?" Naga asked, "Konton, you may supervise and-or participate, whatever you wish, I have little care. So long as she learns to obey."
The fire in the woman's eyes was livid, and if she would have had her powers, it was certain Naga would be dead. "You stay away from me," she growled, "I swear, she'll come!"

Morrigan didn't say anything; instead, she opted for a different approach.
She bolted, taking to the woods not too far behind them. She was gone in a flash; if she was going to be punished, damnit, she'd do something truly worth being punished for.
And who knew; perhaps, perhaps there was some way to be freed.

Aisne smiled. "Yes. That is exactly what you should be doing," she approved softly. "Vincent wasn't kidding. You're a fast learner."
"Now for holy attacks," Vincent cut it with a small smile. "He'll need to learn that."
"Now, like your ki, push the energy through your arms and beyond the center of your palms." Aisne instructed, "and you'll manifest the spell. Spells are truly simply desires manifested... If you have enough desire, you can manifest anything."

Aisne smiled, grinning. "Yes, you're on key. Now instead of doing that with the Earth element, try doing the same thing on yourself, save with Morrigan."

Speaking of her, the woman was dashing through the forests when a familiar sound reached her ears.
"A stampede..?" she asked herself breathlessly, though something told her the sound was not made by a herd of deer.
She was terrified and furious, not pausing to look behind her, her feet the drumbeat for the demons' cacaphony. She knew this area. There was a grove nearby, a raised mound of oak, ash, and hawthorne; if she could only make it..
The noise was growing louder by the second; she didn't have much longer. The mound came into sight, but before she could take another step, she was shoved to the ground. Clawed hands wrapped around her arms, hands far stronger than she could hope to escape from.
"CRAP!!!" she cried, still struggling fiercely, "LET ME GO!!!"
They dragged her back uphill with little problem, the small, curvy woman barely a burden to them. It wasn't hard for that to happen to her; being petite had its disadvantages after all. They threw her to the ground before her captors, having completed their task.
"That wasn't very smart." Naga chided, crossing his arms.