5 word challenge #33

October Knight

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LURKER MEMBER
FOLKLORE MEMBER
Preferred Character Gender
  1. Male
Genres
Fantasy, Horror and Sci-fi. I'll try basically anything though. I also love strange and unusual RP genre concepts. Different is good!
5 Word Challenge
Brought to you by: October Knight





[bg=#006633]This challenge is to help strengthen your vocabulary. You'll learn new words and how to use them in roleplay posts, stories, poems, etc!

Instructions:
1. Aim for a minimum of 1-3 paragraphs. If you'd like to write more than that, then go for it!
2. Make sure you use each word in your post. Be as creative as you'd like.
3. Style the writing like you would for a story. It can be describing a setting, or written from the perspective of a character. Whatever you feel would work the best.
4. Have fun with this, of course!


The Words:

  • Ablution (n.) - A washing or cleansing, especially of the body.
  • Aliment (n.) - That which nourishes.
  • Altruism (n.) - Benevolence to others on subordination to self-interest.
  • Antechamber (n.) - A waiting room for those who seek audience.
  • Antipodes (n.) A place or region on the opposite side of the earth.
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Today was the day that he had been waiting for. He had carried himself far, finding himself in the antipodes of the harsh and unforgiving world, Eris. His body ached with a bittersweet pain. A pain that told him that things soon would be over with. Pain that told him he had lost in such a sweet and lonely way. That he had become an aliment to something that lived inside of him, without any permission given.

You could almost say he was cursed the minute he was born. Initially, he wasn't ill, he held no alien life inside of his body that sapped his life and relationships away. His curiosity, unfortunately, had exposed him to this bittersweet burden he now carried. Though he knew it would result in his own death, he smiled.

Before he was allowed to visit the man that would finally end it all, he was forced to ceremonial ablution, which apparently would clean his 'cursed soul' and body. Blood, dirt and all sorts of things he really didn't want to know left his body, leaving it clean yet covered with scars that crawled up from his extremities. He felt new, but also lonely as he lost the burden of his filth. The burden of his journey, gone in an instant. Just like him. They even dressed him in white, an almost insulting gesture as he felt less than holy.

The cloth laid heavy on his shoulders. Now clean, his skin practically that of a babe. Slowly and impersonally he was lead down a cold stone laden hall. His feet were bare. It was then that he realized how he had abused his feet, the only loyal thing he had. The one thing that kept moving despite it all. The one thing that was bringing him closer and closer to his long deserved death.

He never was an evil man, quite far from it really. It's true he grew bitter and sad as time went, but when you know your death would be a slow and painful one, can you truly blame him? With time, this world had grown barren and brown. It lacked plant life, for some unknown reason to him. In replacement, religion sprang up with it's grasp quickly growing into something of a government, apparently entirely motivated by altruism. He doubted it. Time had transformed him into a broken and cynical man.

His reaper, truly a figurehead for the organization, waited in his own throne. He could see through a window as he stood in the antechamber, waiting for the moment to fit the man's fancy. His heart ached, wanting it to be done with, Everything he had gone through up until now was quick. He wanted to curse the man for his idiotic traditions, but once he was about to charge in despite the guards, he was summoned.

The room was beautiful, but he couldn't help but lie to himself and find it ugly and disgusting. He found blood filling his mouth, a cough leaking some out of his lip. He wiped it away with the apparently holy cloth, his own revenge for the wait. His body was slowly yet surely losing control. The final step in his losing battle. This parasite that acted like a cancer, cruely making his body betray him. Even his feet began to move slower. The man on the throne, the one he wanted to despise so much, quickly rushed over to the slowly becoming crippled man. He was rushed out to the holy garden, his place of rest.

He knew his fate, and so did this holy man. His feet, his legs. His only friends began to change shape. Pain wrung through the body as darkness began to shoot up from his legs, as if it was a rash slowly spreading throughout his body. He wanted to have some dignity, but a scream escaped from his mouth as he fell to his knees. He was slowly yet surely losing his body. He nearly begged someone to just kill him, but they knew that couldn't be done. The holy man began to tear, he actually reached forward and kissed the cynical suffering man on the mouth. He muttered 'thank you, thank you so much. I'm so sorry.' He wanted to react to this kind affection, his last gift, but the pain rendered him unable to properly speak.

As the pain continued to rise, he found the cynicism melting away within him. This pain that rendered him entirely helpless slowly transformed him into that of a child. The holy man reached forward, his arms wrapping around the man's shoulders. He looked so helpless and sad. His lungs began to solidify, he began to choke as no oxygen spread throughout his body anymore. Blood surely had gotten onto the holy man's robes, but he seemed to take that as something to be proud of. Not ashamed. Tears began to pour out of both of their eyes.

It was done. The man had died and his body was now taken by a puppeteer, an alien creature that had won everything. And everyone actually was going to benefit from this man's suffering, that year of pain and slow betrayal.

Tears fell heavily from the holy man's face. "It's done. It's done!" He shouted, now on his knees as well. In death, life was given to the planet all the same as it was given to the alien species. The previously doomed planet now had been saved from a cruel fate, all began of the seed planted within the mans body. His body had been transformed into practically a plot of soil, giving birth to life and hope. The planet wouldn't die out. It would survive.
 
She sat amid the maids in waiting who performed the marriage ablution of her body anointing her with oils and sweetly scented perfumes. Serenity was etched on her face in spite of her soon coming fate. Ushering her out of the gilded marble bath, the maids oiled her skin and dressed her in regal tapestries of purple and amber. They adorned her wrists with thick bands of gold and pierced her ears with rings or woven silver and gold. Carrying an ancient wooden box the matron of the maids in waiting approached and presented the ceremonial headdress and collar that all the princesses of Exeda donned upon being given in marriage.

She was ushered to the marriage feast which would last for the remainder of the day, giving aliment for the night to come and the great journey to antipodes on the morrow. the giving of the brides, was a gift of altruism from her kingdom to the world beyond, since the daughters of the king were blessed with talents, powers some would call them. Her gift was healing, but her sister before her had the gift of seeing and the sister before her the gift of bounty in harvests. They were always given at the age of twenty, when their powers were fully mature, and all of them knew this was their duty.

The feast finally ended with the setting of the sun and she was led to the antechamber of the dining hall where her father gave her in marriage to a stranger she had not ever seen before that moment. her eyes lifted to behold him and to her surprise the man was young, and pleasant to look upon, but he did not seem happy. The exchange was made and the man presented her father with the required dowry and they two left the chamber and entered the marriage hall. It was a large ornately decorated room with several couches and a large bed and a bathing pool.

"How can you look so very calm?" he asked in an angry tone.

"I have been raise my entire life to know my duty, and what my gifts will mean to the world. Are you not pleased with me?" she asked watching him warily.

"How can I know such a thing?" he asked striding away from her only to turn and rail at her, "I do not even know you."

"I cannot change that in a few moments," she answered discretely, "What do you wish of me then?"

He felt the weight of his anger burning on him in the face of her quiet acceptance. "I am sorry. You are not to blame for this. but I am not part of this of my own volition. I love another...but there is much sickness in our kingdom and this was my father's means of saving many."

Her eyes lowered and she folded her hands before her, "I will heal your people," she said softly, "And then I will release you from this duty."

He frowned, "How?"

She lifted her eyes and smiled, "You will see when the time is right."

They never consummated their marriage, as his heart was firmly affixed to another, but she kept her promise, and they played the role of a happily married royal couple for a full year. Once all the sickness was healed from the land, she came to him with a single request. "May I request the honor of dining with you this night?"

He could not refuse after all she had done for the kingdom and for him. He arrived and she had prepared a lavish dinner and the air was filled with spices and every savory and sensual aroma. He had come to care for her during their time together, though his heart still yearned for his first love.

Sitting in the place of honor she had prepared for him he watched as she served him the finest meal of his life. She danced for him and gave of herself until the end of the meal when she sat with him and touched his hand lightly. "Tonight is the one year anniversary of our meeting and marriage." she said in a sweet soft voice. He frowned having not remembered, and not realizing so much time and passed. "I have kept my promises, your people are well. Now I release you to your desired life and your love. Be happy my husband." And having said this, she plunged a dagger into her heart and released her spirit.

The prince gasped in shock as he watched helpless to stop her, or save her. Tears filled his eyes as he watched those kind eyes glaze over in death, and his heart screamed at his own selfishness. What had he done? He scooped her up and held her tight to his chest, "No..do not go...heal yourself...please." He sobbed into her hair speaking the same words over and over.

He heard a soft whisper, "Is release not your desire?"

He lifted his head and looked into those eyes and shook his head, "No...do not leave me..." He kissed her then for the first time and felt something blossom within him that he had not expected. "Stay with me...love me as I love you."

Her eyes softened and she smiled, "I will."