Audience - Neverah

[holyspirits]

Comments

week 0, monday

[holyspirits]

[ good day, neverah! today, zuriel is browsing some of the souvenir shops on the boardwalk. currently, they seem to be picking through some postcards with generic bikini bottom scenery. they get the sense they're being looked for though, and they look up to catch her eyes before they tilt their head. ]

Hey. I don't think we've met yet. [ the way they say this sounds a little polite and... sort of a customer service type of voice, like they aren't sure if neverah is actually looking for them specifically or not. ]

[darkholder]

Yes. Your information said "sensible", so I was hoping you're more competent than the other one I spoke with.

[rip gamaliel]

[holyspirits]

[ oh, rip gamaliel. that makes them laugh a little incredulously, but they don't seem to mind. ]

I try to be competent, yes. Something I can help you with?

[darkholder]

They mentioned that returning home was one of our options should we succeed - I'd like to know about the other options.

[holyspirits]

Depends on God's judgment. If you prove yourself redeemable, or at least a sense of what could be "good", you always have the option of staying here. But if your behavior slips further and you're deemed less safe for heaven... that'll be up to God and where you go from there. But it won't be somewhere you know, or somewhere you like.

[darkholder]

And if we do go back, will we be in the same state we were when we died?

[holyspirits]

I very much doubt you'd go back to being dying, if that's what you mean. What would be the point otherwise? You'd have to discuss the finer details with God, but they wouldn't give you a second chance just to send you straight into failure.

[darkholder]

Ah. No, I meant, more...

[gestures to her weird black eyes.]

[holyspirits]

Ah... [ give them a moment to peer at her. ] That's another thing you may need to ask God about. Can I ask...?

[ ma'am, what happened here. are you alone in there. ]

[darkholder]

I assume you'll keep it secret at my request?

[holyspirits]

You don't even have to ask. [ of course they will. ]

[darkholder]

I had to eliminate a few problems shortly before coming here, and doing that essentially meant taking on their power. It came with... certain changes. I'm wondering if those changes can be ceded.

[holyspirits]

You mean absorbing them. [ hm. for whatever reason they don't seem to find this that weird. ] I think that's something you would need to ask God. Is it just the physical changes, or are you looking to get rid of the power, too?

[darkholder]

Yes.

[thinking about that for a moment]

I think what's most important is making sure that the problems I mentioned aren't released again. I think I'd prefer to get rid of the power to make certain that's the case.

[holyspirits]

It'd be a surefire way to confirm they wouldn't be released again. [ they tilt their head then. ] What exactly were these problems?

[darkholder]

Ah... That's a fairly long story.

[pausing for a moment]

I had a few more questions instead, if that's alright.

[holyspirits]

Oh. [ right. they are the "authority" here, don't be nosy, zuriel. ] Sure, yeah. I'll try to answer what I can. What else?

[darkholder]

When can I speak to them? Your god, I mean.

[holyspirits]

That might be a while. They're pretty busy with the rest of heaven, too.

[darkholder]

Are they the sole one in charge?

[holyspirits]

Yes. The rest of us work with them or for them, but they have the final word of what happens here.

[darkholder]

And the gods everyone else is familiar with? How do they factor into this?

[holyspirits]

They don't. Think of it this way. Your own home where you're from is one pond of water. And this version of heaven is a separate pond. Our god is an axolotl, and the gods of your worlds are fish. They can't join each other's ponds in order to sway or influence what happens even if they're existing alongside each other.

[darkholder]

Then - why weren't we put in our own pond, so to speak? Why a god none of us recognize?

[holyspirits]

I imagine because a god none of you recognize would be a less biased judge of your character. If it was a particular god from your world, their benchmarks could be different from the god of another world, screwing somebody else over. Here, you all kind of start on the same level.