[Jean] Chapter 5: Jean's Second Death

[pringerbeam]

     Jean's eyes grew wide as well when he saw the tentacle girl's restoration.  He turned to look at the new girl.  "Okay, that's a good start.  So what do you want from me?"  Jean motioned with his head, beckoning the tentacle girl to get his bag and bring it to him.  "He wants to become a god but it looks like you have that covered."  Jean asked as he returned his gaze to the new girl.  "I doubt it's because of my sterling personality and in case you haven't noticed..."[/color]  Jean pointed his head at his mangled lower body.  "I have this bad habit of dying."

[Throndir]

The tentacle girl quickly grabbed your bag when she finally made her way to you. However, the large creature behind her spoke again.

D͌ͧ͒̉ͤ͌ͮͤ̅͡ͅǪ̲͕̟͙̲̦̹̙̱̊.̲͕̺̓ͯ̇̆̽͛ͩͭ́͜ ̛̭̭̳͖̟̓̓̈ͤ́́N̪̦͈̤ͮ̏̒̔͊̀̾̚͜ͅȌ̞̤̤̖̜̱̑̾̋̂̅ͯT̡̖̟̺͙͔̒.̛̼̖̞̮̤̥̼̟̉̍͂͋ͤ́ͦ͟ ̰̃̎ͥ̈́̄̔ͭ͝I̢͇͈̰̜̦̰̊͂G̶̰̪̳̅͊ͤ̅̀Ņ̣̥̉͋̀O̹̜͖͙̣̘̅̀͑̊ͩ͞ͅR̷̠̻ͦ̊̃E̸͚͚͉̘̗̜͕ͮ̆̅͋̑ͤ̚.̧̟̝̅ͤ̚ ͇ͯ͗ͮͤ̚͜ͅṂ̶͉̪̤̫̮̼̹̗͆͡E̷͈̺̝̝̬͓̎.̵̵̣̗̘͇̼́ͨ͑̆͑̓ͤ̚
̴̨̭̙͚͖͖͈̒̈́̑̏ͦͬ͜
͋̾̊ͦ̉̿̉ͭ̈҉͖̘̞̻̜̹̺́͠W̷̤͖̩͓̒̈̓ͮ̐ͥH̶̼̦̗̫̘̟̻̋ͭ̈̀Y̛͖̣̺͎̘͕͗̏̍͋ͩ̚̕ͅ.̷̛̟̺͓͉̾̽ͩ́̚ ̡͉͉̤͉͌̈́ͪ̉ͣ͐̾D̯̹̩̙͎̬̖͒̀̚O̢̤̪̯̤̤͓̤͙̐̑̈́̏͝.͖͖̤̞ͣͦ̏ ̫͖̭̏ͩ̊̎̂̕͜Y̳̞͐ͯ̾̀̑̋͘O̜̲͐ͨ͋̂̈́Ṳ͓̜͖̯͖̂̋.͕͖̫̭̝̺̭̔ͣ̃͑͘͜ ̢̞̘̟̌͗̇ͣͤ͢͞S̫̗ͫ͜͞ͅT̥̩̦͍̜̯̩̒ͧͥͭ̓ͩͬ͝I̦̝ͤ̋ͩͦ̈́̆L̷͈̖̘͛̽ͦ̉̐̚L̪̫̮͈̄̄͋̌̾ͩ̓͂.̡̛͍̬͔̖͇̣̥̦̊ͨͩ̔ ̡̳̖ͫ̅̅ͧͪ͋ͯ̍̂ͅS̙̻̠̾̇Ṭ͕̞̬͎̋̾͗ͣ͘͟Ḁ͕̑ͮ͝Ń͛̈́̀ͮ̋̄̓̚҉̸͕͕͖̠̟̫̙̳D̳̯͕͇͖̦͓͋̍̀.̠̝̩̖̟͒̾͟͡

W͍͖̤̩ͧ̽͆ͪ̕͞H̓͆҉̞̙͟O̯̓͐̐̒ͩ̚.̶̨̥͔̯̋̿̇͜ ̭̳̖ͣͬ̊̈́͛̀Ā̷̱̙̼̑ͫ̐͋̑ͩ͌ͩ͞͠R̴͉̞̣͔̄̊͒͐̇̏ͦ̌ͬ͝Ḛ̵̬͈͚̮͌̿̇ͩͪ̽̕.̷͈̖̲̪̰̟̖̩̀ͭͨ̉͊ͤ́̃ ͎̘ͥ̏̓͛̀̚Y̛̙̮̫̱̹̫ͯ̋̊̆͡O̶̠̾ͯ͆̾͂͘Ṷ̒͊͑͗ͪ͟͡.̸̧̹͚̩̻̦̖̬ͬͥͪ̄̆͑ͨ ̊ͯͯͧ̇̚҉҉̦͖̩̞̼͔ͅS̴̷͉̥͎̤͎̰̐̾ͣ̅̅͊͌̾ͅͅP̘͖̹̞̘͗̎ͨͪͩͯ̆Ë̲͔̞̼̤͆͌ͯ̓͜A͇̝̫̲͉̣͕ͥ̾̏̃̐ͣ̕ͅK͙̫̬̝̼̹͖̯ͯ̍͌̽̅ͬ͗I̸̡͛̍ͧ͋ͩͫ̆҉̰̤̹̙͎̩͓N̫̜̩͎̫͈̭͙̖ͦ̿͐ͯ̋̔̎̀̀G̳̲̮̏̏̏ͫͤ́.̺̱̬ͬ͊ͣͣ ̱̖̦͐ͩ̈͗̽ͧ̚̚͠T̊͏̵͚̜̗Ỏ̞̳͓̣̰̻̪̰̪͌̐̂͒̂̉͂͘͟.͙͑ͨ͑ͪͫ̚̕ ͎͚͖͓̟͖ͦ̿͗ͧ̏̑̓ͅM̶͕̘̗͔̗̠̟̙ͣ̄̚O̵̬̭̣͕͓̩̲ͨͮ̿̆ͤͤͩͮ̐R̳̼̺͕̺̻͎̜̱̃͢Ť̴̼̺̣̘ͭ̍Ǎ̵̩̘͎̱͇̞̙̐͐͆ͨ̄̊ͅͅL͚̠̟̮̭ͬ̇̾̈!̵͙̲̳̘̊̐̽ͭ̽̾͟

The tentacle girl huddled away, but the girl in front of you continued speaking, purposefully ignoring the giant behind her.

"If you think I'm going to be helping him, I'm not. Nor am I going to oppose him either, as much as that would be fun. And why... the only thing I want from you is to put on a good show! Believe it or not, your bad habit of dying is part of it." She started laughing then as her eyes glinted.

"You... Jean Valois, just happen to fit under my domain. For someone with my specific choices, it's not something that happens too often. It's much the same reason why I'm here right now, in that guy's psuedo-domain. It wouldn't be far to say that he also falls under my domain."

She paused as her eyes moved to the tentacle girl.

"And her? As powerful as I am, I can only interact my divinity with things under my domain. It's why I can put her back together. That guys behind me is pretty close to being a god too, though, not quite, so the rules are a bit more lax."

"Anyways, you should speak up, that guy behind me looks pretty pissed. He can't actually hear or see me right now too!"

D̶̥̖̻͐O͉̙̖̜͚͖͕͝.̟̦̩̈̋ͥ̒ͤ̂ ̸̞͖̥̯͚̋̽̆ͧ̚N̄O̵̱̼͎͕͕̼̒̓̈́ͦ̽̋̆T̰͙̃̓̂ͦͫͩ̏͟.̣͔͚͛ ͕̌̑̊ͫ̀͡Ì̯͒̽̆͋́͊G̝ͫ̽N͎̠̦̄ͬ̾͊̾ͣͩ̕O̿̊͒ͧͬR͕̥͑̿̀E̥̓͛̇̔ͨ͐ͥ.͙̪ ̦̻M̵̞̮̹̳͎̈̈ͅE̥̬͔͖̭͎!̖̑ ̢͉ͮͮ̇ͧͮ̔W͖̼̼̺̘̟̖͒̓͛͐̋ͥ͂H͚̠̣͇͒͒͌ͦ̄̅Y̙̜̖̼̰̞ͭ͗̅ͩ̂̇̓.͍̪̠̮̺̠̖ͯ̋̓̽͛͟ ̛̐ͫ͗̒ͧ́͗I͗͋̐̾ͩ̂͞S͕̺͂ͦͣͥͮ̿̏.̨̰̜ ̞̗ͣ̾̿̈́̔̋͘Ţ̼̰̣̱̩̺̗̓H͋̈̾͂҉̹͉͎̗͈̙̩E̳̯͚̥͙̥̬ͫ.̵̬̪̙͖ͩͧ ̤̓͡S̞͎̗̱̬Ḝͬ̈ͭ̑R̼̈̎̈́́́V͚̖͎ͬͬA̴̲̗N̲͔͚͕̤͎͞T̟͉̯.͔̯̌͊͒ ͖͙̩̤̭̃ͧ̌̒ͯ̆S̙̫͔̐̒ͩ̅̆ͯT͓̼͎̤̰ͤ͠I̲̜̱ͣ̅ͣ͊̉̽L̖̆̂̇͢Ĺ̡̘͇̻ͯͅ.̢͓̜̯̺͉̾͆̒ͣ̇̉͂ ̠̝̝ͦ̿̾͒͆̃A̟͙̤̮͕̭̔͂̽ͯ̍̚͟L̮͎̳ͯ̎̋̉͂I̦͉̙͖̜͕ͬ͐͗̍̎̿ͭV̡̥̘͎̿̊̀̈E͕̗̫̮͓̹͂̑ͭ͜ͅ?̦̪̪̰͛̄͒̆̾́ͅ ̾͋̓I̫͑̒͋̀̀̊̊ͅ.̑ͩ̉͋ͥͪ̂ ̙̫͋͌ͪD̳̫͆̈́ͨ̆ͯͨĪ̜͍̗Ḓ̽͡.̬̣̼̞̉ ̮̙̮͂͌N̵̗̣̔̆ͬ́̀̚̚O̴̾̋̋T͇͕̥̠͖.̸͎ͭ ̳̫̞̻̐͒ͯͫ̿̃Ẅ͍̦̳́̾ͥ̒ͪ͡Iͯ̚L̰͒ͯͬͥ̑͂̓͢L̯͙̉͐̐͌ͧ̇̀.̈̾͏̟ ̞͈͕̟̼̉́̃̂Iͩ̈́҉̰͉̙̘͖̦̻T͚͚̙͍̫͙̼ͨ͂͗̄͑͑̾.͍̬̭̼̝̮͕̋͌ͦ̑̈́ͬ͗

[pringerbeam]

     Jean kept looking at the girl.  "So, he doesn't know you're here...  Useful ability...  I'm very jealous, especially right now.  I guess that also means you probably weren't the one that got him all riled up last time if you could just stay concealed..."  Jean turned his attention back to the Old One in the distance.  "I said I would make you a god.  I need her to accomplish that so I made a deal for her life.  It would seem that like when you last summoned me, we are not alone here."  Jean leaned his head back against the stone and closed his eyes.  "I'm ready to die again and again if that is what you desire.  I have failed you after all.  Let me know when you are ready to put this pawn back on the board.  The other pieces will just get to move freely in the meantime I guess..."

[Throndir]

The goddess laughed.

"I wasn't the who riled him up last time? Maybe I was? Who knows! He should have sensed something, given the fact I just put your friend back together." The girl shrugged. "Beings like me just do whatever it is they fancy, and visit whomever they please."

"It seems like it's starting..." The goddess said simply as her eyes took on a keen and almost hungry stare at you.

All of a sudden you felt immense pain come from your limbs. Before you passed out from the pain, you saw your limbs torn out from their sockets, and you felt the warmth of your blood cloud your vision.

If you plan to say or do any other action other than accepting the punishment, feel free to mention it, otherwise the scene will proceed as is.

For the next few hours, or days, or weeks, or however long it was, as time was starting to get hazy, you were killed, then brought back, and killed over and over again through a myriad of different ways. There were quick deaths. There were long deaths. There were deaths involving strangulation. Ones involving as much pain as a human body could physically endure. Deaths that were humiliating. Deaths that involved conjured items that were mo often than not, sharp and deadly.

For whatever reason, you don't remember the tentacle girl being torn again. Instead of the mental anguish that you had received, instead, your mind was full of handling physical pain.

The goddess too continued to sit by, staring at you with a strange hunger in her eyes, as if relishing each of your deaths. While the tentacle girl had actually begun to cry at one point. Or at the very least, she had begun crying, then stopped crying many times during the entire ordeal. There were times too that you couldn't see her around, and also times when the goddess herself wasn't around. But for the most part other than the being that tortured you, those two were present.

"Well... Jean... I'm not sure when he'll stop. It's been awhile..." The goddess said moments before you head was torn off.

"I'm sure that big man has had his fill too..." You felt your insides burn and literally melt away.

"And frankly, I'm more excited about the things you can do once you're... 'back'." Suddenly your arms, torso, legs, and body was crushed.

The goddess lifted the thick book in your bag that was still strewn on the floor.

"I'll help you, Jean. Magic from your own world... You were taught simple basics of magic from that human girl, Eloise. But theirs is a magic assisted by the gods themselves. The elemental goddesses in fact... Not like magic from your world where the mysteries was discovered by man through thousands of years of research and experimentation."

Various spikes impaled your body.

"I can approximate enough what those goddesses did, at least, just this once. Normally a magician would need to learn to manifest the magic themselves, but with me acting like a psuedo elemental goddess... Speak these words, and imagine a shield around you: Tagn alyy mpeni atkapot shrotim lpgema bi. Olgo, Lucuila, Ragua, Secunto, Labielalu, Baybaron."

She seemed to have an unnaturally wide smile, similar to that of when you first met her.

[pringerbeam]

     Jean accepted his seemingly endless punishment.  Yet, despite growing accustomed to the pain, he still found his body involuntarily making the screams of anguish it was meant to, always managing to find yet still more breath with which to announce his newest torture except in the case of punishments where his lungs were scarred and traumatized themselves.  The spikes withdrew and in their stead serpentine horrors infiltrated through the wounds to burrow underneath Jean's skin.  He yelped and tried to claw at his flesh but his body was too weak to respond, instead merely flopping face down onto the cold and unforgiving stone.  Unforgiving, that is, only to one who had not met the wroth of Jean's most ancient master.  He mustered his will to silence his cries for just a moment to answer the goddess.  "If...  Hnnng...  You...  Say...  SooooooaaaaAAAAH."  The not-serpents burst forth from his skin, screeching with a joy that pierced Jean's wailing and terrified the mind as they clawed out of him. 
     Jean took the opportunity between tortures to try and quiet his mind, envision the shield, and speak the incantation. "Tagn alyy mpeni atkapot shrotim lpgema bi. Olgo, Lucuila, Ragua, Secunto, Labielalu, Baybaron."  He mumbled into the cool stone.

[Throndir]

The moment you spoke the words, no actual visible 'shield' had appeared. Though, all of a sudden, your next death didn't arrive. In fact, the serpents that had burst forth from your body suddenly evaporated right after squirming and seemingly melting away.

W͇H̰̖̹̘̺͜A͙̥T.͖ ̦͉Ị̴̜̲̻̱S̙̀.̫ ̺̞͖̫͔̥T̤̝͉̜H͉͎̮͎̀I̛S̳̖̦͖̯͕̗͟?̲̕ͅ
̝͎̙͓̣̩
͡Y̸̭O̙̰̖U̫̗̻̱̞̫̕R̵̻̘͔̯̣.͖̻͖͎͟ ̯̗̯͙WI̧̯̙̤L̦L.̢ ̺͇̼͝H̜͎͜A̛̮̳S͓.̫̖͎͝ ͏̖̹̣̳̝̲̣N̲̖̲̜̥͠O̖͓T̹̼.̪̹̯͇ ̼̰̻͝Y͘E̪̭̦T̝͞.͍̪ ̼͔̀B̺̼͎̦͕̭̯R͇̘̯̺̺̙O͘K̟E͖͕̥̞͞N̻̹̩̭͓ͅ?͎̮̹̻͚͜

Y̵̬̲͈͕̯̘̬͇͑̇͒ͫ͊̅ͧ͆ͩ̈̚͟Ơ̶̈̆̽̇̓ͮ̌̃ͣͫ̐̅ͯ̓̑̓҉̜̟͈͈͇͔͔̞̙͙̯Ȕ̢̟̭̤͓͗͊̎ͯͯ͊ͭ͗.̸̝̝̰͖̤̳̘͔̞̳̲͍̖̩̱̤̌̿̈̽̔̈̄͑͆̃̌̓́̚͜͢͝ͅ ̡̛̘̩̣̲̤̦͔͕̝̺͑̅̋̃͐͗̂̉̎ͨ͌ͮͫF̛̱̤̻̮̩̳͙̪̲̹̳̯̻̺̠͌̈ͤͦ̕͘O̷̶̖͚̠͈̦̦͌ͦͬ́̍̍̋ͧͩ͗ͮͬ̿͑ͩ͒͜͢ͅO̻̰͚͔̝̪̬̹̜ͭͩͮ̎ͦͩͩ͒ͯ̽ͬ́͒̊ͦͧ̊̚͞ͅĽ̺̙̮̤͚̲̼̳̩͂ͣ̒ͯ̓̈͑̍͘͢͢͜͞.̌ͬ͋ͭ̑̾̉̈́̊̌́͋̓̐͂ͫ̐͘͏̤̮̤͇̬̙͍̯̲̰̫͘ͅ

All of a sudden, numerous more shards and spikes appeared in the distance. They were much much larger. There were hundreds, if not thousands of them, and, like torpedos, they all came heading straight towards you. The shield had blocked a few of them, as the projectiles came, they had started to simply whither and vanish. But it could not stop the onslaught, and one of them pierced your chest.

A moment later the projectile exploded, along with your body. And a moment after that you found yourself recreated again.

The goddess laughed again.

"I'm sorry! The big guy is a literal demi-god!" She wiped a tear from her eye but continued laughing, "I just had to see that one more time. Believe me though, normally that would have been fine! Now... let me really help you."

As the next set of torture started to occur, this time in the form of acid literally oozing from your pores and melting your skin, the goddess waved her hand, and the effects stopped. Not only that, the wounds they had inflicted disappeared as well.

R̡̟͉̺̞̭̻͍E̡S̸̯͇̗I̹̥̥̗̙S̗T͓̼̯͎I͇̻̖͖̬̬͚͝NG̡̦͍.̶̣͉̻ ̛̩̣̹̤ͅS̟͝TḬ̠̥̜̫Ḽ͍͍̲̦L?̵̦̹̘̬͉̞̲

With that, the being started to unleash his power as the very earth started to tremor and shake. However, nothing came. The goddess before you simply smiled.

H͚̖̣̠͔̫͖͠ͅO̺͖͘͜W̯̰̕.̸̛͎̪̘̳͇͠ͅ ̶̶͇͈̖͍̦̫͙̭̯́A̝̳̺̠̦̭̕͝R̕҉̲̳̯͚̦̞̬̲E̢̬̙̞̬̫̟͇̘.̸̞̱͉̟̺̠̙͜ ̝͕͓͙Y͇͟͝O̷̡̪͕̦̰̙̼̪ͅṴ͖̹͔̼̪ͅ.̴̶͍͇ ̷̯̦̙̼̹͈̼͝ͅD̻̺̻͍̮̼̪̳͡ͅO҉͚̦̖̤͟ͅI҉̴̙̭̮̻͍͍̳̟͍N̰̠̝̫̻͎͞G̵̮̘̝̙̥̠̣͓̘.̛̟̼̘͓̘̦͘ ̵̭̻͈̘̫͇̤̀́T̷̘̲̰H̨̭̖̲͓͖́ͅỊ̺͖͚͔̩Ş̘̝̱͚̳̝̜̩̘̕͝.̼̦͉̝͎͔̜̠̯ ̴̢̜̪͇͟ͅM̶̞̦̱O̷͇̟̩̟͟R̹̩̯̠Ţ͎͝A͢͏͓̟̝̰̣͎̝̞L̺̠̩͔?̨̡͙͇̲ ̙̦̮̭̪́͜T͏͇̱̩̙̹͔̠H̟̝̥͜E͉̮̠̭̖̟͈͕.̧͎̼͉͘ ̶̮̩̝͍̰̘̞H̸̢̘̰̳̟̀U̶̧͓̹̪̦M̶̢͈̺͉̟̭͙̻͘Á̸̻̣̫̗̯̭̼̺N̙̲͎̭̜͉͡ͅ.͉̣͙̩̫̟̠͍̺͟ ̶̲͖̺̩̤G̜̘̼͈̖̖O̧̨̯̮̹͔̺̤̱Ḏ̵̗͟͜S̪̣͓.̭̜́ͅ ̵̣͍̭͖͚̲̼̩P̕҉̥͉͙͇̤̼̠̜R͚̦̭͡O̡̭̳̬̗͍͟T̸̢͕̯͉̘̠͚̱È̩̳̤͟C̶̨̻̺̝̫͍̻̲̪̮T̻̖͠.͉͖̣̟̬̥̲͝ ̡̛̯͈͚̜̝̭̕Y̷͝͏̱̮̯͙͕̠̟͖O̡̲̞̪̠̦Ṳ̭̳̞̟̼̠͘?̴̲̰̘͔̦͓̤̪͜

The next few moments were all sorts of horrors and explosions occurring all around you. However, for whatever reason, nothing was actually harming you, or the tentacle girl who was huddled behind you. The very landscape started to morph and change, explosions had blown in front of your face, and projectiles were thrown both straight at you and the tentacle girl. The ground beneath your feet started to be blown away and flattened. The space around you started to warp as well, but you seemed to be perfectly fine. It was as if you were in the middle of a turbulent storm, without anything actually harming you.

The onslaught eventually stopped, then the titanic being finally asked.

M̵̲̖̭̲Ǫ̢̫̬̹̫̳͟R͉̹͎̬̯̥̳̥T̲̭͔̱̫̕A͏̴̼͓͔͓̦̜̤́L̶̸̨͕̪̝̤̪̠.̡҉̻͙͍͕͓͉͉͢ ̡͓͚͍͝W̦͉͚̥̠͟͠H̭̪͜A͈͔͕̹̗͓̮͍͡T̴̛̹̮̻͈̖͔̣.̷̶͕̩̕ ̼͓̭̖I̡̱̹S̭̬͉͓̙̟̹.̴̜͟ ͙̳̥̻͔̥́Ý̰̲̤̰̫̗̕͟O̠͚̠̖͉͕̹̠̠͢U̖̞̖̯̼͍̦͍R̺͍̗̝͈͕̳̠͎͟͠.̸̧̦̜͍̜̗ ̻N̷̰͇͕̰͚A̝̜̪̬̪̲̥M͉͍̞̬̼̘̞̜̣͠E̸̝̱̝̺̯͎̜͇̩?͚̱͎͇̥

[pringerbeam]

     "I...  I'm..."  Jean paused, breathless, but also unsure of his answer.  It had been so long, ten thousand lives had been lived and died and he had to think.  The girl had called him something.  What was it?  What did she call me?  It was but a few moments ago and yet seemed so long.  The pause in the torments, while brief, was a welcome respite that felt to be aeons longer than the minuscule moments he had become accustomed to.  "I...  I don't know...  Who am I?  Who are you?"  He asked honestly.  But then it happened.  A voice, a memory, someone said his name.  It wasn't the goddess,  It was a girl though.  A memory that seemed ancient.  "No...  I am mere flesh...  But my name is Jean, Jean Valois.  Immortal one, what is your name?"

[Throndir]

I͉̪̩͓̰̼. ̪̤̜̱̞̭̞A̺̳M̫͓̖.̞̤͍͈͍̰͞ ̲͓͝T̴͇͈͉͈̖ͅH̵̰̦͇̰E̮͕̖͡.͉͔͇̤̻͚ ͕̳̰̦H̳̫̱̘͔I҉̬̤͖̭͍G̼̭̖̩̣͙̪H͍͎͇̺͚.̟̰̤͍̞͓̤ ̱̱̫̞͇͚̠P̠̬̬̟̘̹̦R͖͖͘I̖̳̖̼̠͎̱͡E̤͖͇ͅS̨̪̞̝̻ͅͅT̢̻̲͔̖.̸̟ ̶͓O͜F͓.̻̬̦̘̕ ̢͓̱͇̦̣͓͈Ṭ͈̠̠ͅH͇͢E̮̟͙͇͓.͙̞̬ ̠̪̪̝͖̰͈G̞͓̫͓̰͢R҉͍͖̥̺͔̙ͅE̛̦A̗T̟͡. ̠̠̜̳O̹͖̟L͖̺̞̟D̯͔̫͈̱.̨̘̘̘̥̥ O̼͈͓̥̬N̪E͙̞̞̳S͏̙̫.̧̜
̪̭͍̤̹͔
̺̰̻T̲͕͕̦̰̀Ḫ̖͈ͅÉ̫̠̭.̬͟ ̪̩G͏͖̯R͉̤E̱̭̪̳A̺T͉.̶ ̢̪̝͎Ḑ̥͍R͕̻̹̬͖̻E̹̮̞̲̟͔ͅA̢̪͖͉M̨̻̞̝͇͚͎ͅE̹̭̠̝̰̹͕R̶.̗̜͚̠̲̼͜
̰̪͖͈
̳̝̖T̟͙̥H̻͜ͅE̱̩̕.҉̹̭̲̣͙͓̣ ͖̘̩̖̺ͅS̟̘̖͇̤̞L̀E̺͎̯̗̝̝̩E̮̟P̭͓̖̦͈͙Ẹ̬̞̺R.̬͍͡ ̪͉͎̣ͅO̤F͔̺̤.̼̟ ̢̹͓̥̫̦͎R̛̼̪̣͕̬̝'̬͉̻̼͟L̻̟̩͙̩YḚ̵̝͈͔̻̪̤H̗.̬
͏͚̹̗̣
̻̺T̺H̵E͔͎̹̪̜.̣̪̲ H̜̫U̻͉̱͇͈M͏̠͎̘͚̗ͅA̻N̵.̰̰̙͇̖̩͝ ̢͔͔̺͕̲G͍͕O̘̫̱̺ͅD̡̘͎̥̞S̗͉͇͚͝.͝ ͍͓̀A̳R͕͞E͕.̡͔͈̟̹͖͉ ̶̳̞W̦̯͔̼͈̥A̹͔̘̜̭̮͇Ț̛͉͚̯̺̣C̴̗H̡I̺̪̦Ǹ̫̤̖͓̦̖̥G̼̬͓. ̪̻A͏̙͙̗ͅṈ̤̻͍̱͠D̠̳̳̪. ̬̟̖T̴̖̮̘̭ͅH̢̥E̙͈̝̞͕̠Y̤̯'̦͔̤̫̖̙̼V̹̼E͓. ͔̰͓̼̣͕̻S͟H̥̩̀O҉̠͉W̬̬͕̖N̞̰̙̤̖̠.͉͘ ̻̮̣̟̖I̡͉̫N͎̞̱̟͕̬T͇̝͙̟͎̀E̟͔͠ͅR̸E̷̟ͅS̜̺͎̻̬̻ͅṮ̨̤͉̭̜͇ͅ.̨̘̥ ̤̹̞̱̦͍ͅI̡̗̦̣͙N̤̭͙͟.̝̝ ̟̘͡Y͍͍͔̞̱͠O͍̟͔U̟̼͉̕.͇͈̻̮̣
̞͙̜̼
̫̀Y̗̙̦̼͕͞ͅO̤̝̻̼̘̰U̮̰̝͎.͓̦̗̠ ͙̘͟MI͔̺̱͍̘G̜̦͕͢HṰ͍͉͎̭́ͅ.̘̫͙ ̢̲̠͙N̖̜̜͎͇͢O͍̻̬͔Ṭ͙̰̯̘́.̧̣͎̻ ̱͝B̬̺̭̣̻͚͝E̼̩.̸̳͎͖͇̮ ̻̱͍̭̩̬͇S̞͘O̯͉̩.͈̻̟̲͖̬ ̞͔̖̙̦U̗S̬͞E͎L̥̝̫̤̼͢E͉͓̩̩̣̼̹S҉̫̞͙S̛͉͕͕̣̖.̙̤̫̞̭͟ ̭̘͓̞͍̫A̞̩͢F̫̫̘͉̣͝T̗̠̺̹̥Ẹ̭̮̟͉R̼̦̰͘A͇̱̦̱͍̜̼Ḷ̻L̷̘̠̥.̴̦͉̭̠̖.̷̯̼̱̣͍̮͓.͖̫̕
̠̼̪̼
̹̬͉͞Y̹̝͍̗̱͇O͍͟U͏.̠̯̼̝̬̠͍ ̸̩͖̠̦W̩͠I̪̝̲̱L̖̼̼̪L̳͖.̨͎̰̙̞̪̲̙ ̦̩̮B̳͕̯̱̞͢ͅE͈̥̤͙ ̘̯G̘͍͚I҉̭̮͉͚͙VE͔͖̖N̼̦̖̱͉͎͟.̫̫ ̤̻͍͙̖̣͕Ḁ̞͔̬̭̻̭N̬͓̘̰͙̜O̖T̲̪͔̹̖̤H̶̯̝͔ͅḚ̞̫̠͠R͏̱.̡ ̯̭̭͈̫̺̮C̺̝̟̖H̳̥͢A͙̖N̟C̻̗̺̲̪̱͍E̟̳̤̝͢.͔̮̘͈͓
̷̠̲̘͓̻
͕̞͖͖T̼̯̱̰̤͖ͅH̸͎ͅI̗̱͉̥̞͎̫S͙͍̠͕̻.̵̻͈ ͔̖͓̝T̡I̗͓̺̘͟M̪̪̦E͏͙͇̲̯̭.̵ ̺͎̼͇̥̞Y̩̹͍̞̘͞Ǫ̫̝̖̰U͚͇͇̭̞̥̙.̡ ̨W̠̭͟Ì͙͔̪L̴̼͓̹L̝̞̩͉̀.̢͎͕ N͈͓̖͢O͓̦̰͓͠T͖̭̻ͅ.̭͇̺̼͟ ̝͕̭̻F̫͙̟A̼̩̱I͖̻̞̭̮ͅL̘̲̹͇̬̱̗͘.̶

͔̻

̴̜͔̘̤D̷͈̹̼̞͉̰̝O̤̪̪̟͢.̛͉̖͙ ҉̰͖Ý̻̲͔̘OU҉.̬̰ ̦̰̜̫̣U͉̩͕̦̟͘N̯̫͕̼͙͖̲͝D͎̲͓̤͜Ḙ͝R̨͎S̬͇T̤͉͚͚A̧͓̻͇̱̥N͞D?̘̞̣̰̠̹

[pringerbeam]

     "No...  But then, will I ever?"  Jean replied.  He summoned up the last dregs of strength he had and stood up.  "I think I've died enough for my own taste."  He looked over to the goddess.  "Anything you want me to tell him, or are you just going to remain mysterious?"  He asked as he walked over to take the book from her,  picking up the saddle bag on his way.  The effort of bending down felt to be a monumental task but he managed it.

[Throndir]

"To be perfectly honest, the big guy doesn't interest me at all." The goddess shrugged.

The giant creature then spoke in response.

J̮̥̰̞̪̠ͅE͉̦̲̻͔̜̝AN̴̳͚̮̫.̺̼͉̯̯ V͇̩̖̱͘A̖͘L̻O̜̥̣̣͉ͅIS̲͇̭͚͙͡.̝͖̘͔̼ͅ ̙̞͔̹̯Y̪̜̬͔O҉̻̖̟̥Ṳ̮̬̗.̷̰̥ ̝͔͉͞W͝I͖͕̱͡L̖̣̼̼̬̬͝L͓͉̜͚͠ͅ.̯ ̹̘͎̻̬F͇̞̤͕͎̯I̦̮̫̣͖̣ͅṆ͉͉̱̞D.̬ ̥̟̠̗̼͚M͡E͎.̜̺̮̻̝ ̮̦͢T̩͕̘̝̬̙H̴͓̹͓̥͇̳ͅÈ͕̳̗̼̬̮͈.͏̺̭͖̗̥͎ͅ ͔̟̳̭̙̦̟͘P̡̯̮̟̖̯͖͖A̠̬̠̟̜ͅT̘̘͇͘H̩̦̟̬̭̝.̫̠̭͕ ̻̱͈̼̤̙͘T҉̙̟̪͚͔̥ͅO̠̹.̻̞̳͞ A̶̦Ś͙̼͙̪Ć͓̖̯͉E͎̠̼̯N͢S̢̮̳̼͍̙̰̦I̛̼͈͖ͅO͓̖N̵̬͚̠͉̪.̵̻̦̗ ̳͓̫͍̮͟A̼͇͓̝̠̗̘N͜D.̳͇͖ ͙͖̤̳̼Y͖̗̝̟O̪̺͍̝U͖̗̖͕̬̬͉.͇͖̰̣̰̣̲ ̶̮͙͈W͉̻̲̝͙̞͚I̻̗̮̝̲͔̩L̦͠L͙̯͉.̦̯͈͈̟ ̺͓̮̬̘͚̦Ǹ̹͍̜͕ͅO̠̯̹͔̟͟T̝̺̠̼ͅ.̤͖̗̰̮ ̞̠̙̬ͅF̥̮͖͕̲̟A͏I̦̝̙ͅL͍̞͖̰.̖̫̻̩͔̲̳

Your vision started to fill with a bright white light, ad you felt the tentacle girl's tentacles wrap around you tighter in anticipation.

"There is one thing I'm curious about Jean." The goddess said, her features already disappearing within the white light that started to engulf everything else. "Among the 35,632 ways... What was your favorite death?"

[pringerbeam]

http://www.youtube.com/v/9ao08A3XI5s

     Jean looked at the goddess as he began to disappear.  The deaths that he could remember played through his mind.  Life...  Death...  Life...  Death...  An endless cycle that seemed to go on forever...  Jean shrugged his shoulders.  "Probably the one where molten metal was poured down my spine.  I don't know, I'm not big on picking.  Why?  Which one was yours?" 

[Throndir]

The goddess laughed as her voice started to fade away. You couldn't see her anymore, as the white light was the only thing you could make out. You did hear her final parting words.

"All of it!"[/glow] She started laughing then, the sound getting quieter and quieter by the moment, as if she was getting farther and farther away.

Continue to Chapter 6: The Wind Temples of Velothia