driftfleet | interfaith dinner mingle!!

Who: Interfaith Center regulars & the not-so-regulars (party crashers are welcome too!!)
Broadcast: Nope
Action: Interfaith Center on the Iskaulit
When: Forward-dated to November 4th

[The Interfaith Center sounds far more bustling and busy than usual - and anyone peering inside would quickly figure out that a communal dinner is underway! Take off your shoes and walk in: the lounge has extra tablecloths on the floor as well as buffet tables with non-alcoholic beverages and all sorts of food, including Jordanian cuisine (or the outer space equivalent of Jordanian food).

The board games are out of their hiding nooks; the furniture's arranged for the maximum seating possible; and even the teddy bears donated by Kitty & Winn are out for cuddling, should anyone want them.

The kitchen's bustling with helpers - Stefan's running around at vamp-speed to make sure everything's a) done on time and b) cooked to perfection - but he sure wouldn't mind an extra hand. And if you're still not up for some food? Well, the prayer rooms are open as usual. There's always a quiet moment to be found, even if the laughter's louder and the scent of freshly-baked mansaf's wafting through the long corridors.

Anyone and everyone who's ever been inside the Interfaith Center has been invited (via text message - and Stefan even used the fancy emoji). If you're not particularly faithful or devout? Well, drop by anyways. There's more than enough food to spare.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[... poor Mikleo is going to be so disappointed.]

Yes? Is that so surprising?

Yes! Where we come from, there hasn't been a Shepherd for two hundred years! I'm love to hear anything you know about them.

[He doesn't know about this "wandering eye" or whatever - maybe it's a symbolic thing? - but his nerd hat is officially on.]

... No shepherds? What do you do with sheep, then?

[rip mikleo]

[....

....

....

f u c k]

...ah... n-no... not a literal shepherd...

[dammit GODDAMMIT HIS DREAMS]

... No? Then what?

It's... unclear why they're called Shepherds, but it's a title, not a job description. Spiritual Shepherds form pacts with seraphim in order to purify corrupted monsters on our world.

[He sounds so defeated now.]

[... fucking rip]

I see. You were called a 'seraph' yourself, were you not?

That's right. I have a pact with Sorey via another seraph, who acts as his Prime Lord- the primary seraph.

The Seraphim... In Christian mythology, the highest rank of angels. "Six-winged, many-eyed, they soar aloft", the angels who fly above God's throne to sing His praises. The Christian messiah, Jesus, was also compared to a shepherd, the 'good shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep'...

How frustrating. With shrines and vessels, your basis seems quite similar to the religion that worshiped me, but your terminology seems to come from the Western religions... Ahh, what a pain.

[Ugh, the angel thing again...]

I wouldn't dwell on it too much. There are a lot of coincidences and similarities that cross over different worlds. It might just be whatever the augment is doing to automatically translate our native tongue- that's what it's doing, right? Maybe "Shepherd" is just the word that works for both languages despite not meaning the same thing, symbolically.

[He's seen enough of this in the ancient texts - not to mention the conversations had here - to recognize a pattern.]

That's true... You certainly don't match the seraphim of Christian lore. Unless that fluffy hair is hiding some more eyes?

Will you tell me more of the Seraphim of your world?

Definitely not.

[Mikleo reaches up with one hand to brush his bangs up briefly, revealing the circlet, but no hidden eyes. What strange lore.]

I don't mind, anyway. What else do you want to know?

[And is this going to turn into another argument because what a scene they could make together.]

[... i promise nothing.]

Hm... Well, the Seraphim of Earth's lore, as I said, exist to sing the praises of their God. Do you have any similar roles?

Not at all. A seraph worshipping another seraph offers no benefit to either- that's something that exists between humans and seraphim, only. One can choose to serve another, but it's out of respect or to share power, not due to any kind of obligation.

I see.

And where do you seraph come from? Are you created or born?

A bit of both, I guess, but not through any kind of sentient will. I was taught that when the elements are out of balance, another seraph is born somewhere in the world. There's no god or spirit summoning us into existence, just nature.

I see... And what do you do?

That depends on the seraph. Some just live freely and explore the world, doing as they please. Others settle in a shrine or church and bless the land in exchange for the worship and offerings of humans. Some, like me, form a pact with a human or another seraph and travel around, purifying hellions.