#of the elements

[pamgkrthart]

I am finally done with these monkeys. For my series "Of The Elements".

[whitherliliesbloom]

{Of the Elements} ♦ Goddess of Sea  ♦ @windup-dragoon

“Ye’ve got some nerve to challenge me in my domain.”

The sea is ruthless as it is unpredictable. 

As the ship rocks violently from side to side, tossing his men on board about as if they were nothing more than soggy rag dolls, the prince himself stood firm. 

He blinked away the droplets of rain that had trickled down his forehead, knees bent to keep his balance atop the the deck as his grip on the hilt of his katana tightens. While most of his men had worn expressions of utter concern and terror, the curve of his lips could not have curled further upwards than they did then.

“What’s so funny, pretty boy?” 

A voice mockingly greets him coming from a tanned woman clad in blue as she leisurely saunters down a flight of wooden stairs to stand on equal ground as him. 

Her posture is relaxed, even as the howling gusts of winds made her damp hair flutter messily in the air. It was as if she’d been standing on solid ground, and not on some rickety ship in the midst of a thunderstorm. 

And he knows well why her gait was so graceful, yet so intimidating in her stance all at the same time. 

Truly, such ease was befitting of the goddess of the violent seas.

“I’ve finally found you!” The raven haired man’s smirk widens.

“Oh-?”

“I’ve come to challenge you! If I win, you shall swear to lend me your power.”

The woman pauses before a wide grin threatens to split her face in two. 

“Have need for my powers, eh? Whatever for?”

“I never expected you to be the kind to talk much. How about we dance first?”

He has a noble cause, a kind reason for wanting to go as far as to sail all the way out in the middle of nowhere simply to look for what most people thought was nothing more than a myth. If he could gain the help of one who controls the seas, the very thing that set his loyal servants adrift on that failed expedition so many months ago.. then perhaps they could be found, no matter how far lost they out at sea.

“Ye’ve got some nerve to challenge me in my domain.”

She reaches back to grab her trident and points the tip of the spear towards the prince, who more than eagerly raises his katana up in return.

“I like that about you, though.”

[whitherliliesbloom]

{Of the Elements} ♦ Goddess of Sun ♦ @ofthesilverlining

“They always run away.”

He could do without the sun bearing down upon him, but such was the price he paid for the final destination he had in mind. The walk itself wasn’t bad – it was simply a matter of whether he had taken enough water with him. 

It would be nice to have someone to talk to, but mayhap that was simply wishful thinking, and he’d tire of it once he actually – 

“Hello!” 

It was sudden enough to kick his heart into overdrive, and the man took a sidestep to turn and stare at the effervescent, ostentatiously-dressed woman now staring up at him. He was certain there hadn’t been anyone else with him for quite some time now, and he definitely hadn’t seen anyone approach... 

“I do hope I’m not bothering you!” Mismatched hues veiled in curiosity quickly turned to delight as it appeared this man would neither run from her nor give her a rude remark. 

“Ah – no, I daresay you aren’t.” Haurchefant regained his composure as his hands slowly relaxed. 

Whoever – whatever this woman was, it was clear she had neither intent nor desire to wish him harm. 

 “Really?” When she beamed it was as if the full force of the sun were shining up at him. 

“Then would you mind if I joined you? It’s just no one ever seems to want to talk to me, they always run away, and – you’re the first person to actually talk to me!”  

The smile never left her as she spoke – and he was so caught in admiring the happiness in her expression that perhaps she took his silence for disgust. 

“I’m sorry – ” She turned away from him, catlike ears flattening. “I guess I do talk too much – ” 

“No – heavens, no,” the man replied, quickly shaking a hand. “I’m merely surprised – of course I would like it if you were to accompany me.” The woman’s hands clasped together in delight as the smile returned to her face, and he continued, “But are you all right with walking? I’m afraid I don’t have a cart or anything of the sort…”  

“Oh, that’s quite all right! I like walking!” 

“Splendid!” He grinned, and she seemed to glow all the brighter. 

Perhaps he truthfully didn’t mind the sun all that much — not when its radiance and warmth took his breath away so, and yet left him yearning for more.

[whitherliliesbloom]

{Of the Elements} ♦ Goddess of Nature ♦ @whitherliliesbloom

“What good is my life other than to be leeched upon?”

He never knew nature could be so melancholic. 

He’d always associated nature with joyous spring flowers, tall imperturbable trees that would pierce the blue skyline. Happiness, the very wonders of life itself.

And yet here she was, the goddess that he’d traveled days and nights through the forest searching for.. the mother of all that was this earth, sitting upon a fallen tree with her hands clasped to her chest. Glossy eyes that he imagined would be like a beautiful budded flower, clouded with sadness more akin to a withering violet. 

And when the girl finally noticed his approach, she greeted him not with welcome, but a shake of her trembling hand to block his view of her face.

“W-what are you doing here?? S-stay back!”

“I come not to hurt you, my lady!” the young man answers back in return, though he is cautious enough to not take another step forward until she had gained enough confidence to lower her hand a tad. “I’ve only come to beg your aid in a matter of utmost importance.”

“T-that’s what they all say..”

Silence passes between the pair, and perhaps sensing that the intruder to her home had no intentions of leaving until he’d gotten a firmer response, the goddess lowers her head to blink back the pooling of tears

“Mortals come and go; they beg my aid, they claim to want the best for my home.. and yet the only constant at the end is death. What good is my life other than to be leeched upon? What do I do when the forest is slowly burned away by the ones I once thought my family?”

This was nature’s cruel irony - that the mother of life would doubt the very purpose of her own. Such feelings were utter poison to nature, and he laments being the first to hear the earth’s cries when it’s already too late. 

“Certainly, I cannot understand how many have hurt you. Perhaps they were like me, and wanted your hand during their time of need. They may have even uttered these very same lines. But I swear, from the heavens to the very depth of the soil itself that I will not abuse your kindness.”

With a sharp inhale, he takes several steps forward to approach her, and he’s finally close enough to notice the widening of her eyes.

“I seek your healing touch to save that which you gave life, my lady. Because all life is precious, including yours.”

He raises a hand up, smiling gently. And though it was with great hesitation, his heart skips a beat when she finally stretches her hand out to hold his.

[whitherliliesbloom]

{Of the Elements} ♦ Goddess of Moon ♦ @windupnamazu

“You would call me down, just to be friends?”

It smells of moss and salt water. The echoes of cricket chirps echoed into the night. There was nothing but the light from the moon to guide his path through the crumbled ruins of a civilization long forgotten by society. 

And with the fall of that civilization, came the fall of their deity, whose name has been left unspoken for the past many millennia. 

Her memory only lives on within what remains of a tome, which the man had tucked away under his arm as he ascended the steps of the abandoned altar. 

The ritual to call the goddess was simple enough, so simple that when she’d appeared before him in a glowing burst of life, he’d wondered for a moment if he had simply been hallucinating the sight of her. 

“Who are you?” Her voice, like a melodic wind chime asks of him. 

“Pray forgive my impudence. Surely a lady of your title has far more important business to do. Like watching meteors collide or whatever it is that you gods do.” 

“It’s been so long since I’ve been called forth by a mortal.. and the first in forever would be someone to banter with me?” She almost sounds offended, tucking her hands under her armpits.

Too long has it been since she’d spoken to one with a lifespan so short, she’d almost forgotten what it was like to be an object of worship. This man would come all the way here, where naught but insects and fungus would grow upon the concrete that had once been the homes of her people. Surely he’d have a paramount reason as to why.

“Well, I only have a singular wish. If I may, perhaps you could indulge this lowly mortal and be his friend?”

Friend?  Is that truly it? The answer is so absurd her eye twitches.

“You would call me down, just to be friends?”

“If that isn’t too much to ask of you, of course. After all, I figured that the goddess of a long lost society would be lonely up there.”

The man kneels down before the woman, bowing his head and bringing his hand to his chest.

“I too know what it is like to be left behind, after all.”

[whitherliliesbloom]

Secrets of the goddesses - @windup-dragoon​ , @windupnamazu​, @whitherliliesbloom​, @maiden-born-in-snow​, @yumeaino​, @ofthesilverlining​

so fine and how beautiful you are  i only did what i ought to  at last, i see all goddesses 

[whitherliliesbloom]

{Of the Elements} ♦ Goddess of Winter  ♦ @maiden-born-in-snow

"Are you lost?”

“Curses...” 

No matter how he tried else to rationalize the situation to himself, only one thing was clear — he was utterly and damnably lost. 

He felt as if he’d been wandering in circles for ages. The bright sun reflecting against the snow did little to assuage his vexation, and his frustration grew further still to see what he was sure were his own footsteps in the pale powder covering the mountains. 

A mark was what he’d been after, earlier — and the damn thing had done well to evade him here, where he couldn’t even track himself. It was as if the very rocks were against him, mocking his every move. It was enough to — 

“Excuse me?” 

A soft voice, like bells, interrupts his trail of thought, though his first thought is to how utterly out of place it was. What would a woman be doing here? Was she — 

“Are you lost?” she asked as he stumbled to face her, eyes narrowing as he took in her pale form, bluish against the snow that surrounded them both. For a moment, he was at a loss of words — 

Because of that ridiculous question. 

 “I’m not lost,” he ground out, almost disbelievingly — how could a waif of a girl ask him such a thing in the middle of nowhere? 

 And as she stared at him in wonder, she held similar feelings of astonishment. Rare it was that she ever saw humans here — and most with the intent to hunt. And yet he even said he wasn’t lost, so far from the borders humans kept to. 

“I could help — “ 

“I’m telling you, woman, I am not lost and I do not need your help,” he snapped, turning away to trudge onward. Perhaps pride, perhaps something else — 

“What are you even doing here?” The demand slipped past his lips before he could even think to stop it, pale brows furrowing. The urge to turn back to look at the strange woman suddenly nagged at him. 

“I live here.” 

The quaint, honest, candid answer came not even a heartbeat later — 

“ — What?”