i’ve got some recent art that i forget if i posted or not so here it is
concept anatomy of the benefactors based on the karma murals; i like to think they do have tails but choose to crop them for practical or fashionable reasons
Dora receives a summons from Vorgoth, noting that the Nevarran nobility have caught wind of the skeleton talking about how she came to the Necropolis as an infant. She had spoken to several politicians and other fame seekers over the years about her time as a child in the Mourn Watch, but she noted that this was immediately different. Instead of the usual glory hunters, she found researchers and scholars interested in her story with the skeleton. Then she spoke with a man who knew more than she expected, revealing a truth that Vorgoth had tried to keep secret for a while longer.
AO3
Dora helped Lucanis get through the eluvian after watching Illario kill Zara, and the Crow retreated into the pantry as quickly as he could. Dora didn’t dissuade him from his solitude as she watched him vanish before she walked toward her own room. That was when she saw a letter attached to her door. She paused a moment before taking it off the door to read the note.
NOBLES HAVE HEARD ABOUT THE SKELETON’S WORDS ABOUT THE GIRL WITH THE GRAVE. YOU MUST RETURN TO THE NECROPOLIS. THE POLITICS HAVE GROWN DELICATE, AND THE OUTCOME CANNOT BE PREDICTED.
Dora swallowed at the memory of the skeleton that Spite found a few weeks ago. Vorgoth had told her that the skeleton had been buried with the proper ceremonies to bring the person peace that they had been denied. That had been enough for then, but it seemed that gossip had spread faster than they expected. Spirits tend to speak more than mortals sometimes.
However, if the nobles had learned there was a new puzzle piece to her heritage, then she would be examined and prodded at again like she had been as a child. However, while Vorgoth would be able to reason with them, there wasn’t the excuse that she was a child to stop them from going too far this time. She would need to be her own advocate.
With a grimace, she walked over to Rook’s room and explained the situation that would cause her to be gone for a few days. She would return when she could, but Emmrich was the one that was truly the asset to the team. She was the bonus person in the end. Rook grimaced at that, but he told her that she was welcome back to join the team again whenever she wanted. Dora found herself smiling at that comment.
After packing a few of her essentials, she opened the door to her room to see a rather familiar Crow standing nearby with his arms crossed, looking across the Fade. Lucanis turned to her as the door opened, and she paused, surprised to see him there.
“Lucanis. I didn’t expect you to be here,” she remarked with surprise in her voice. He stared at her for a moment before glancing at her bag.
“Where are you going?” he asked, gesturing towards her. She hummed.
“I have to return to the Necropolis for a few days. It seems that the nobles have taken an interest in my past again, and I have to be present for their questions. Otherwise, they might think that I’ve become something I’m not,” Dora answered, doing her best not to roll her eyes.
The nobles always thought that she was becoming something akin to a lich. She never knew that was what they thought until Emmrich had given her the knowledge of what a lich was. She had mentioned that connection to Lucanis a few days ago, and he had a feeling that this would take more than a few days if she went by herself. Nobility was stiff and stubborn without outside influence. He might have a little, given that he was a Crow.
“I’ll go with you,” he informed before she shook her head. Dora wasn’t sure that would be the best idea.
“It’s fine. I know you hate that place, and we just got back from Treviso. You should stay and rest.”
“You should as well. You act like you weren’t fighting a blood witch by my side.”
“Blood magic wasn’t used against me,” Dora countered gently. Lucanis glowered before breathing through his nose.
“You shouldn’t go alone,” he argued. She furrowed her brow in confusion. “You’ll need someone to support you in this.”
“I’ll have Vorgoth,” she reminded before the Crow shook his head.
“Your former guardian is helpful, but they can’t give the same testimony I can,” he challenged. She frowned, unsure what he meant. “You and I have the same view on death and mortality, do we not?”
“...We do.”
“Then I will be able to show them that you are not what they think, yes?”
“...I suppose having you there would be a boon,” Dora replied, finding that she wanted him there. She would be able to stand a little taller with him by her side. Maybe they could convince the nobles for good that she wasn’t anything special. However, she did have a few concerns. “But you don’t know the first thing about Nevarran or Mourn Watch politics.”
“No, but I know a thing or two about Antivan and Tevinter nobles. They can’t be very dissimilar. Besides, I was raised to handle political irritations as grandson to the First Talon,” Lucanis continued, making it difficult for her to find a reason to keep him at the lighthouse. It seemed that he was certain a distraction would suit him better than rest anyway.
“I guess you would have some training in this,” she muttered before thinning her lips in thought.
“I don’t like the idea of doing this on your own,” he admitted with a sigh. Dora nodded slowly, wondering if Spite was muttering something in his head, out of her sight. “I could be your advocate, or possibly a benefactor.”
“Benefactor?” she chuckled as he shrugged. He wouldn’t be providing any money or anything like that, but he would be giving support where she needed it. That was more valuable than money.
“It’s good to have someone in your corner, right?” Lucanis reminded before she exhaled. She couldn’t argue with him on that topic at least. She nodded, relenting.
“Yes, I think it would be good to have someone else with me in this. Are you sure you want to go with me?” Dora asked, still not convinced that he wanted to go to the Necropolis with her. While they were able to find the positives in their time together the last few times, it was clear that he was uncomfortable there.
Lucanis walked to her and took her hands in his before squeezing them. She stared at them before looking into his eyes. He nodded firmly once her gaze met his.
“I will help you see this through. Then I will make sure you come back here, if that is what you want,” Lucanis answered as she smirked. She sometimes couldn’t believe how she found this strange assassin in the bowels of the Necropolis in the first place.
“Yes, I would like to come back here. I might not have been hired for this job, but I think I’ve stuck around too long to not to see it through,” Dora replied with a chuckle. Lucanis sighed with relief before gesturing for her to take the lead, showing that he would follow behind.
Dora went through the Necropolis eluvian and headed towards where Vorgoth and Myrna often worked. Lucanis kept to her side as Spite flanked her other side. It seemed that they were worried that someone would try to take her away when they weren’t looking, even thought she was pretty sure that they were overreacting.
Vorgoth seemed to have sensed her presence as they greeted her and the Crow in an adjacent hallway before they reached the main hall with the Sunken Star. Dora dipped her head in greeting as her former guardian mirrored the action. Lucanis bowed when the entity turned to him, and Dora formally reintroduced the two.
“A GUEST WAS UNEXPECTED, AS WELL AS UNNECESSARY,” Vorgoth informed before Dora lifted her shoulders.
“It doesn’t matter if you find his presence necessary or not. He insisted in offering his support, and I would be remiss in refusing it. I am also glad to have Lucanis by my side when facing our nobility,” Dora replied firmly with a stern gaze. The entity said nothing for a moment before they dipped their hood once more.
“UNDERSTOOD. I WILL MAKE IT CLEAR TO THE NOBLES THAT THE CROW’S PRESENCE IS NONNEGOTIABLE. THEY WILL NOT BE PLEASANT ABOUT THIS DEVELOPMENT,” Vorgoth warned. Dora exhaled, understanding their concern. The nobles would likely see this as a show of force at best.
“They can see it however they want. Lucanis will be there in the room while I answer their questions,” Dora reiterated as Lucanis placed his hands behind his back.
“I am not looking to harm anyone. I am only looking out for Señorita Ingellvar,” Lucanis explained honestly. Vorgoth said nothing, but the Crow could tell that the entity understood that he wasn’t there as an assassin at least.
“Either they will talk to me with him in the room, or they will leave the matter be,” Dora stated. Vorgoth pressed their hands together in front of themself before gesturing for both of them to follow.
“THEY ARE WAITING IN AN ADJACENT CHAMBER,” Vorgoth remarked. Dora nodded, quickly following her former guardian down the corridor.
The room was much larger than she had expected as there were at least three times the number of people there usually were for the usual discussions that occurred. Dora took a seat towards the front of the room, earning several whispers as Lucanis stood about a foot behind her chair while Vorgoth went around both of them.
Dora did her best to relax, but something about this gathering felt different. While the previous gatherings usually had political figures, she didn’t recognize any faces or names that floated around the room. These people also didn’t look like glory or fame hunters. They looked more like scholars or researchers, like she was. They were still well off and clearly of the Nevarran noble class, but they were of a different sect within the nobility.
She took a deep breath, glancing at her former guardian. They seemed undecided still, as if they were almost anxious or nervous. In all her years knowing Vorgoth, she had never seen them in that state. They were always sure of the next step or what needed to be done. What they were doing now was hesitating while the researchers around them gossiped like old biddies.
After a few moments, Vorgoth commanded the room again, and they prepared the room for questions and concerns. Dora sat politely as she waited, seeing the first person raise their hand. She was a qunari woman in her mid-fifties, and she held up a notebook before adjusting her large glasses. Dora swallowed, realizing that this was more put together than the random questions that the others would usually throw at her.
“What do you remember from your time as an orphan in the Necropolis?” the woman asked with a nasally voice. Dora cleared her throat before relaying that she didn’t remember much from such a young age. She was adopted by the Mourn Watchers by the time she was two, so she didn’t remember what her life was like beforehand.
Many of the questions continued like that. None of them were the usually accusatory statements or damning questions. These people came prepped with intriguing questions that fascinated her, and Dora did her best to answer truthfully and honestly.
She was finding a good rhythm with the questions before a human man stood tall with a curious look in his eye. She met his gaze, surprised by his eagerness in his posture. Lucanis sized this man up, finding that this researcher had a certain charisma to him that would have been rather useful to the Crows.
“I heard a rumor that a skeleton recognized you while you were helping a senior necromancer among the Mourn Watch. What can you share about that?” the man asked. Dora dipped her head, reminded of the letter that Vorgoth had sent mentioning that this topic might come up.
“The rumor is true, but the only thing it revealed was that I didn’t randomly appear in the Necropolis. It seems that someone placed me in a grave before succumbing to death themselves,” Dora replied gently, essentially putting to rest the idea that the Necropolis had started to produce babies out of thin air. It was a ridiculous theory, and one that had been posited by one noble several times over the years. She was glad to end that silly line of theorizing.
“But why would the wisps care to bring you to the skeleton?” the man asked before she shook her head.
“They didn’t say why,” Dora answered, shaking her head. She didn’t understand why he was turning his attention to the wisps that Spite had spoken to.
Lucanis stiffened as Spite seemed to panic and sneer at the man. In his peripherals, he could see that Vorgoth seemed more focused on this man than they had been on any other person in the room. The Crow wondered what those wisps had told Spite before he showed Dora the skeleton that was connected to her.
The Crow nearly thought about stepping in before the man in the audience barreled forward before anyone else really had a chance to step in. Even Dora was surprised that the man was content to push forward rather than accepting her answer.
“There are whispers in the Fade that there is a reason why the wisps sought you out. They sought a spirit close to you to relay a message to find the skeleton. It was important that you find that skeleton, right?” the man explained as Dora narrowed her eyes.
This man was talking like he had been there, even though she was positive that he had not been. She had never seen this man before in her life. The man placed his hands behind his back, dipping his chin for a moment before deciding to continue as silence answered his rhetorical question.
“The spirits in the Fade talk and gossip more than people sometimes, as you are aware. The spirits say that the wisps asked you to return, but you assumed that they were asking you to return to the skeleton who knew you. That was incorrect, just as you thought the skeleton meant that they saved the girl by placing her in a grave,” the man repeated before chuckling under his breath at her naivety. “Corpse whispering is rarely so straight forward, as you well know. You were not saved by being placed in a grave. You were saved with the grave. By the grave.”
Dora glared at the man, silently daring him to reveal his opinions and his theories. She was tired of his attitude towards her, and she could feel her former guardian grow irritable as well. Even Lucanis glowered at the man from behind her.
“The reason why we are all here today is to figure out how you were able to bind yourself to a dying body for this long,” the man answered as Dora gave an affronted expression. “The wisps wanted you to return to them as you were once a wisp, but you bound yourself to the body of a dying babe in the middle of the Grand Necropolis.”
“That is quite incredulous, and I would appreciate it if you didn’t bring science fiction into this discussion,” Dora hissed angrily before the man hummed, glancing at his shoes for a moment.
“I will gladly leave if your former guardian can truthfully refute my accusations,” the man answered. Dora glowered at him, waiting for Vorgoth’s angry words only to be met with complete silence.
Carefully, Dora turned to Vorgoth to find them remaining still where they floated a few feet from her. Anger left her features to give room to confusion and concern. Fear flashed in her eyes as well as she wondered what that meant for her as well. She turned to stare at the floor before the man continued.
“Which leads me to my question: what keeps you in that body, and how do you keep that body alive like it was never dying?” the man asked eagerly.
Dora blinked before turning to him in shock. Carefully, she stood, shaking her head gently.
“I am a person. I eat. I sleep. I do everything just as you do,” Dora insisted as her voice started to wobble. The man hummed, not buying it.
“Would we consider a former wisp possessing a body a person?” the man posited as she flinched. Lucanis wrapped an arm around her shoulders before leading her out of the room as Vorgoth dismissed the room, summoning the man who had asked the final question for a moment alone. The man faltered, realizing that his last question was much harsher than it should have been.
Lucanis had half a mind to guide her to either Myrna or to the Memorial Gardens, but he thought better of it. If that stranger knew a secret about her that she didn’t even know that impacted her personal life so drastically, the Crow wasn’t confident that she was safe in the Necropolis at the moment. He instead brought her back through the eluvian and back to her room.
Rook was startled to see both of them in such a state, and Lucanis promised that he would come back and explain everything as they crossed the courtyard. He just needed to get her settled somewhere familiar and safe before he could relay what had happened. Spite had been circling both of them the entire way back, making sure that no one else came near them until they reached safety again.
Lucanis helped Dora onto her bed as she had a thousand-yard stare, sitting with her back against the wall.. He brought a hand to her cheek before she glanced at him, almost startled to feel a soft touch from a real person. Tears gathered in her eyes, but she made no move to remove his touch from her skin.
“What am I going to do?” Dora whispered in a low voice before covering his hand with hers. He grimaced, knowing that this was a difficult time for her.
“We are going to make sure that you are safe here, and we are going to wait until we hear back from Vorgoth before we go back to the Necropolis,” Lucanis answered firmly before she nodded gently, careful not to dislodge their hands. “I’ll give Rook the bare bone explanation, alright? That you are going through a witch hunt because of a rumor going around about your heritage.”
“Alright, alright,” she murmured, closing her eyes for a moment, melting into his hand. Dora had other things to focus on anyway, and she could let Vorgoth deal with what was happening in Nevarra. For now, she could focus on the gods and helping Lucanis getting his cousin to be reasonable again.
Dora swallowed as she looked at him again, and he could see the uncertainty in her eyes again. He brushed her hair out of her eyes, and he gave a small smile to help put her at ease. She furrowed her brow for a moment before bolstering her nerves.
“Are you okay with the knowledge that I was once a wisp?” she asked in a nearly silent voice. Lucanis had to strain his hearing to understand her question, but he nearly laughed when she stared at him earnestly.
“I think between you being a former wisp and my body housing an extra Spite demon, I think we can figure it out,” he reassured with an exhale. He still needed to get a handle on his demon, so he didn’t attack her like he attacked Illario, but he wasn’t going to make her feel lesser because she had learned that she was different from everyone else she knew. Not after everything. “How about I make some dinner while you have a rest, hm?”
“Oh, as if you even understand the meaning of the word,” she scoffed gently, pulling his hand to her lap so she could hold it for another moment. “But dinner does sound good. I’ll come keep you company at least.”
“Are you sure?” he wondered as she rolled her eyes with a weak smile.
“I think I’ll take a page out of your book for today and opt for a distraction right now. Let me talk and joke with you like we didn’t learn everything we did,” Dora asked, glancing at him before staring at his hand in hers.
“Of course, mi cielo. Whatever you need,” he reassured with a smirk. Slowly, he helped her to stand before leading her towards the dining hall.
(There already are GIFs of this scene by @alwaysrickman but I just wanted this part to be depicted in one GIF so I had to create a new one. I did it in a similar style so I think that I should mention the “source”/inspiration. 😀)
At the start of last week I was invited to join the priors and bursars of our Province in Oxford for a meeting on fundraising. At the end of the week, someone came from Detroit to view our church and to speak to me, again, about fundraising. With the current spike in the cost of living in London, and as the living wage has gone up, and as we reviewed our budgets this week, much of my time in the past few days, then, has been spent thinking about raising funds for the maintenance and also for the extension and improvement of the work that we do here at St Dominic’s. Visitors from outside the UK, when they see the size of this historic church, its many beautiful features and details, and when they consider the range of services and works we do from this church and priory, always wonder about how we manage to keep this church open and in relatively good condition.
My answer is always the same: by the providence of God, because this is Our Lady’s house and Shrine, and it is her work and mission to preach the Rosary, and her Son’s Gospel of salvation. And so, my basic outlook is that if we do our part and are faithful to the ministry and work given to us, to the best of our ability given the time and energy we have, then God will give us what we need through the donations and contributions made by the community who worship here regularly, through the donations that come from visitors around the world, and through the gifts that are occasionally left to us in legacies. Last year I had expected a shortfall of over £30,000 but thanks to a legacy and some increased work on our part, and thanks to increased giving and Gift Aid, we were able to close that budget deficit. Bit by bit, God provides for our needs, and I continue to trust in God’s providence and the generosity of so many people, of your good selves.
Now, you might wonder, why am I telling you all this and what has this to do with the Scripture readings we’ve heard?
In the letter to the Hebrews, a reference is made to an incident recounted in Genesis 14: Abraham, who is our “father in faith”, had just been victorious in battle and, as was the custom, he had “brought back all the goods” he had won in battle. On his way home, Abraham encounters Melchizedek, the mysterious ‘king of peace’, and this priest-king offers a sacrifice of bread and wine to God, a sacrifice of thanksgiving for the victory. He declares: “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, maker of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!” Melchizedek has been seen as a forerunner of Christ, an image of the priesthood of Christ and of the sacrifice of the Mass, wherein we now offer bread and wine to God, in a great act of thanksgiving for Christ’s victory over sin. Hence, Abraham and Melchizedek are both mentioned in the ancient Roman Canon (Eucharistic Prayer) of the Mass.
Immediately after Melchizedek offers the sacrifice of thanks to God, we’re told that “Abram gave him a tenth of everything.” So, from the goods that he had won in battle, from his surplus, then, Abram gave a tenth to God, entrusting a tenth of his goods to Melchizedek the “priest of the Most High God”. This is the first instance in the Bible of what came to be called tithing, which means, giving a tenth to God. In many Catholic parishes in the USA, tithing – giving ten percent of one’s income after all essentials and needs have been accounted for – is not at all uncommon, and it is expected in Bible-based Protestant churches. This is why my visitor from Detroit told me that a parish of our size and demographic in the USA would have a weekly collection of around $40,000. So, my friends in the USA and S.E. Asia are often quite bewildered when I tell them that our weekly collection is 4% of that on a good week! How, they wonder, can we possibly keep things going?
Most of our parishes in the UK can only dream of receiving tithes, but tithing is a Biblical practice, mentioned in both Old and New Testaments. The letter to the Hebrews just states: “it was to him that Abraham gave a tenth of all that he had.” This point, therefore, might give us pause for thought and reflection. I may not be able nor even want to give a tenth of all my goods, but what proportion do I give of my surplus income, or my time, or my service? Do I consciously set something aside to offer to God? How can I help my parish and Church community? For it’s not just money that we can offer to God and his Church, but also, our time and our talents. Each of these - time, treasure, and talents - after all are given us by God. As the Gospel says, the Sabbath itself was given us by God to be used to do something good, beautiful, and life-giving. So, as an act of thanksgiving to God for his blessings, we’re being invited by the example of Abraham, our “father in faith” to offer our goods to God.
Personally, I am grateful for whatever comes to us by God’s providence and by your generosity especially in these frightening and difficult times. Thank you for trusting us to use your gifts and donations to do something good, beautiful, and life-giving here at Our Lady’s Rosary Shrine, at St Dominic’s.
NFL Alumni Partners with PriceMDs PriceMDs offers high quality health services at a reduced rate to NFL Alumni members. #MountLaurel, NJ, July 03, 2018 ( #GLOBENEWSWIRE ; @prnewswire ) -- @nflalumni i announced today its #partnership with #PriceMDs . PriceMDs’ platform enables workers compensation #benefactors and #thirdparty administrators to significantly reduce the cost of elective @surgical procedures. The platform gives #NFLAlumni members unlimited access to high-quality #healthcare providers, ambulatory #surgerycenters, and #imaging facilities at a lower #cost through exact bundled pricing. “We are thankful to have #SuperBowl Champions Billy Davis and Kyle Richardson with us,” said NFL Alumni CEO Elvis Gooden. “They are both @nfl Alumni members and #healthcare industry experts. Their efforts in #spearheading the PriceMDs partnership with us will be immediately beneficial to our Alumni members and #families.” PriceMDs is now a proud partner and provider of surgical care and imaging for NFL Alumni members and their families. NFL Alumni is pleased to have PriceMDs as an exclusive licensor for #AmbulatorySurgery Centers within its #network. “As a former NFL player, NFLA partnering with PriceMDs’ directory of quality, cost-effective healthcare services is a win for the NFL Alumni members and their families,” said Bart Oates, NFL Alumni President, and three-time Super Bowl Champion. “We’re extremely proud to partner with the NFL Alumni given their proactive socially conscience approach to Healthcare” said Dr. Marc Grossman, Price MDs CEO & Founder. #instahealth #lifestyle #yardline #noexcues #active #profootball #legends 🏈🏉
