Isobel Brandt \\ Persephone (praxidike) wrote in thegalaxy, @ 2016-05-03 10:03:00 |
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Entry tags: | !locale: lok, dee, issan ren, madelena |
seems that I have been held, in some dreaming state
Who: Issan, Dee & Maddie.
What: Issan takes her students to a barren wasteland to enact a revised version of the Nightsister initiation ritual.
When: Following this thread.
Where: Lok, and inside the intiates' minds.
Rating: PG-13 for descriptions of violence and death.
The small ship Issan chartered from Nar Chunna set down in a vast expanse of nothing. Two moons winked in the low light of the evening as the passengers disembarked from their vessel to the sandy wastes below; all three were dressed in dark cloaks, and made their way toward a stony outcropping that cut through the horizon without a backward glance. It powered off, its pilot told to wait in order to receive the second portion of his payment.
Issan led her students to a training ground familiar to her; Glasya had brought her here; they had sparred, though their competition had remained even. She'd also managed to mentally capture a kimogila, expanding her control over animals; her mental abilities had never spread to humanoids, but her abilities managed to impress her master all the same. The thought made her feel warm inside, and she walked with her head high as the magnitude of the event fell on her.
She was here. Though here was not Dathomir, but it was still the first step toward returning there, with her coven in tow. The two behind her were promising students, and she was about to make them something more.
Coming to a stop just inside the outcropping's curve, covered in shadow, Issan pushed back her hood and turned; a smile played about her mouth as she took in Dee and Maddie's serious expressions. She was glad that they understood the meaning of this moment. She had briefed them on the ship, her voice kept low as she explained the ritual; they would clear their minds and allow Issan entrance; they were to expect anything and everything, though Issan preferred to keep her cards close when it came to a deeper explanation.
"Are you ready?"
Madalena nodded. “As ready as I can be, I suppose,” she said. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, pushing aside the nagging thoughts of worry and perhaps even fear that had nipped at her heels as they walked.
Dee swallowed around the lump in her throat. She nodded, but she felt her body already tensed. The last time her mind had been opened to anything, it was Kylo Ren's violent intrusion; before that, it had been the flooding of her mind with those of the Haruspex Requiem's previous wearers. Nothing about this was comfortable, but neither could it be avoided.
"Ready," she said.
Issan's gaze flicked between them. "Close your eyes. Empty your minds." She waited until they had at least followed the first command, then probing gently to see if the second had been accomplished. Clearly their instruction with her aunt had gained traction, for she found entrance into their headspace easily enough; moving gently and carefully, she pushed through and began to sift.
The fears were all too easy to find; what else did people linger over, day in and day out? Issan pulled them to the forefront, shoving her students' awareness down into the cold waters of terror. Each would have to find their own way out as she began to spin an illusion for each, a spider's web so tight it would look, smell, feel and even taste real.
Issan's own gaze closed, her mind settling in over Dee and Maddie's, ready to begin.