Oh this was going to be fun!

It was just too bad that she wouldn’t be able to see his reaction once he found what she had done!

Upon hearing that Raith had become a God the dragoness had been in a rage for some time, now unable to kill Raith for murdering Hacesh and Kirin, Xy had to find other means. She could still go after Ria but they were gaining more allies by the moment and while Serafina was a great Goddess to have on Xy’s side, Xy wasn’t stupid enough to think that Raith still wouldn’t try something. So, Xyaban had to find another way to get back at him, at least in part, she would do more and more and just torment him in small ways. Make the Blind God paranoid.

However thanks to current events Xyaban had found a very fun way that she could harass Raith!

To that end it was why Xyaban was slinking through his maze trying to find a good spot to do her work. She really wanted to get into the main temple proper, but figured that the moment she was within it Raith would know who she was and block her from making any gate of getaway. She was pushing her luck being here as it was. She was hoping that with what was going on in the outside world he wouldn’t be here and wouldn’t be paying as much attention to his temple as her perhaps normally would.

Finding a good place Xyaban was about to start her plan when she heard a familiar noise and turned to see that she wasn’t alone. Heart in her throat for a moment she realized she didn’t know this female, but it seemed that she had the same idea Xy did. The dragoness smiled to Isleen. ”Shhh, I had the same idea as you did.” She giggled, keeping as much of herself hidden as she could within his robes, tail tucked up under them to. ”I can’t stay once I’m done, but can you give Raith something for me please? Can you give him and a hug and a kiss and tell him it’s from a certain dragoness, he’ll know what that’ll mean.” Xy smiled.

With that finished Xy raised her hands and focused and a large portal opened a few feet from her. Immediately the noise was loud and annoying as the dragoness slipped into the gate and started to herd about fifty turkeys of varying sizes from somewhere and into the maze area she had picked. She was using grain feed to get them to move forward, plus the odd kick in the butt for the more stubborn ones.

After she had them all into the maze, gobbling away, Xy started to throw out more seed but this was of a different kind. She spread it all around the room and the turkeys started to eat it before Xy dumped the rest of the bag on the ground. Smiling at her work she turned back to Isleen. ”I’m done so I’m leaving.” She thought a moment. ”I’d leave if I were you to, it could get, um, messy soon.” She giggled, opened another gate behind her to somewhere and stepped through and was gone.

The reason for the upcoming mess? The seeds she had been feeding the turkeys was laced with a herd that would give them rather nasty diarrhea.

[OOC: This thread was for the laughs, and permissions were given… mostly :P]

[ Thanks for the R because cursing is definitely happening.]

With a playful grin, the dark-haired girl left a note for Ethan on their bedside with a kiss imprint and inviting him to come play at the Horae festival. They deserved some light hearted fun. Plus, the wolf was curious to explore another land.
She opened the portal and walked through.
Immediately she could feel the magic coursing through the island and found herself among the flirtatious dryads. They giggled and wiggled in ways that surely enticed most. Isleen’s head tilted in confusion as her amber gaze took one in. “Um, excuse me, but which way to the festival,” the wolf asked with a perplexed but intrigued tone. “That-a-way, sweet darlin’ but why don’t you stay with us? We hear things are going a bit awry. You’ll have more fun here” the dryad responded with a shimming a sultry look. Isleen blushed and started walking so her gaze did not leave the tree nymph but she was still heading in the right direction. “Thank you for your help, but I must be on my way,” the seer replied hastily. She felt anxious about the situation, partly because she wasn’t attracted to women but mostly because she felt it was a trap.

She pivoted around quickly and focused on her wolf to get her to the right area. The dark haired girl was certain she had found the path given the beaten leaves and various scents. She could vaguely hear the music in the distance. Her steps slowed as she began to relax. There was even a little pep in her step at the thought of dancing poorly with her love and playing silly games. For just a moment, they could set aside their monster tendencies and just be a couple of idiots in love.

“What the -,” she exclaimed, coming to a sudden halt. Her eyes widened and her eyebrows furrowed in horror. She stepped back, her heel snapping a twig loudly. “What the shit is that,” Isleen thought out loud. The fowl tilted its head and made a loud gobble sound. It towered over her like a small house.The breath caught in her chest as her surprise turned into laughter. The over sized bird was ugly and ridiculous. And in that moment, the wolf had a wicked idea - a tribute for the new god. “Here birdie, birdie, birdie,” she cooed, leaning down a little but her eyes looking into its beady orbs. Evidently the turkey did not care for this as it immediately charged ahead.

Isleen quickly stepped back and tapped the nearest line of magic. Ancient magical symbols immediately shone on her skin whilst she opened a new gate. The turkey raced through as she pivoted out of the way. The wolf waited a moment and hopped through. The transfer disconnected her connection to the magical current and slowly the sigils disappeared from her fair skin. The pair ended up in the maze, the turkey taking off in a chaotic frenzy. The seer felt slightly disappointed that she didn’t make it directly to the door. However, she knew the maze fairly well given her relationship with Raith.

“He may disown me after this,” she giggled to herself as she rounded a corner and saw a cloaked dragoness. Her eyes narrowed cautiously. Crazy practically radiated off this other woman like warmth from the sun. However, Raith being a bit deranged and a dragon race himself, the seer actually thought perhaps this was a distant relative. “Sure,” Isleen replied with a dry tone. She slowly neared the portal with her head cocked to the side curiously. Her eyes widened at the sheer number of turkeys. Her jaw slackened, shocked that they were swayed by mere feed. Her not-so-little surprise was causing all sorts of destruction in the maze based on his ravenous sounds. The wolf backed away as they eased into the maze. “Somehow, I don’t think Raith is going to find this entertaining,” the wolf mused. Then her face distorted with shock as she was left alone with the army of turkeys.

A loud gobble tore through the still. The turkeys that were calmly eating all perked up and began making loud, rapid gurgling sounds. “Oh what the fuck,” she exclaimed with an exasperated tone. Immediately the wolf took off running, cursing herself for not being in her wolf form. She just had to get to the main temple. That had to be enough time to figure out what to do. Her little prank had just erupted into a full fledged stampede of crazed fowl. Uncle Grump is going to kill me.

The Observatory vibrated, almost violently, a harmonic sound reverberating in the walless room like a tuning fork that had been struck upon a surface. The God tilted his head slightly, as his Realm warned him of the arrival of not one, but several newcomers. The vibrations alone told him the number, but also carried the aura of those that entered, thanks to Adraejen he was able to discern who had come to visit… and he was displeased.

Lips curled back from his teeth, revealing the elongated canines inherited from both his parents. Of all the people to come to his home, she was the one he least expected. The Celestials under his command stirred nervously, most casting their gaze away from their Master, others shuffling from foot to foot, and a couple even vanished in a puff of stardust, returning to the safety of the Heavens to flee their Master's wrath. 
Xyaban had dared, dared set foot in his Realm? He doubted she was stupid enough to take him on, not now that he had ascended, but to even think that she could enter his domain without him realising? He would kill her, he would tear her apart, one scale at a time, cauterising the wounds with his fire to ensure she lived… If she thought what she had done was terrible, she would learn that Raith's wrath was far worse.

A loud HONK! broke through Raith's thoughts and the Blind God span on his toes, hissing angrily at the bird that had dared enter. "I swear I will roast you, bird. You hear me? It appears I have other fowl to deal with, without your input," he snarled, making another mental note to find a way to make Shiloh pay for her 'generous' 'gift'. 

The vibrations changed slightly and he felt Isleen's unique presence amongst the Maze. What in Heaven's name did she want? He had enough to deal with, what with Xyaban and, what he could discern as a crap ton of birds, to deal with… 
Large black wings spread wide and he launched himself from the Observatory, disappearing through the 'floor' and out, directly above the Maze. 
It was probably a good job the man was blind, for the image of so many, giant turkeys, letting their bowls unload, all at once, might have caused an explosive reaction of his own… That said, he could hear it, and he would smell it in a moment.

Swooping down, Raith grasped Isleen about the waist, and with a flick of his powerful wings he propelled them up and out of the Maze, and out of immediate danger, in terms of poo trajectory at least. 
"I believe that you and I require a word, niece," he snarled, raising an eyebrow as he flew directly upwards, entering the Observatory from below, and landing gracefully upon the 'floor', which was solid once more.

Gods help Isleen… She was unfortunate that he had been more bothered about saving her from getting covered, than his pursuit of his enemy, as it meant she had to face the God of Wrath alone… 

Isleen glanced back at the stampede of turkeys. When her amber gaze looked ahead once more, her feet slid to a stop. Her petite form toppled over from the momentum. The turkey she had personally transported stood before her. On her knees, she knew she could not get up in time to avoid the impending collision. The seer reached for a leyline and snapped it into her form while she braced her entire form for impact.

Cautiously, she opened her eyes. Her form remained tight with anticipation as her gaze darted from side to side. The wolf managed to gate travel to another part of the maze but she could hear chaos and confusion. They had to be just a couple of rows over. She mentally reached for more magic but the rush of energy tore into her form like tiny, jagged daggers. Her breath caught at the sensation. She immediately released the current but the pain lingered as if she had been blasted with shards of glass, still stuck in her skin. The girl rolled to her back with tears in her eyes. Isleen knew better than to pull raw magic into her form so quickly. Cold sweat gathered at the nape of her neck as her breathing slowly leveled out. The minutes passed like cold molasses but she knew she needed to get up soon.

Her nostrils flared at a disgusting scent. Confusion distorted her pained features. Suddenly, she rolled onto her hands and knees. The fowl sounds were getting closer but, more importantly, she needed to get away from the rank smell of fecal matter. The dark haired girl started running again but her movements were fraught with pain. Her ears perked at the sound of wings moving in the wind. Anxiety filled her belly. Isleen was not sure which she feared more: running into the turkeys and their explosive bowels or dealing with Raith. He wouldn’t have enjoyed her prank with one, sure, but this was a hundred times worse - and it wasn’t her fault. There would be no reasoning with him.

Unable to cast a bit of magic, she hoped her feet would not fail her. Isleen looked to the sky as the air around her shifted from the might of his wings. She stopped her sluggish movements and braced herself. Once Raith scooped her up she placed her arms around his neck. Her gaze looked towards the ground with a bob of her throat. “Is that so?” she replied. “Really, we don’t have to. You could just poof me back to Noose or Kurayo or even Mamlak. That would be fine.” Then she looked up to the Observatory. It was different than she remembered but this shouldn’t have been a surprise given the only other time she had been there was for his celebration. She flinched slightly when her feet hit the floor, her muscles still recovering. The wolf was thankful Raith could not see her pain. Isleen could push through this just long enough to get away. Baffle with bullshit, it's not that hard.

”Oh no niece, you’ve done the courtesy of attending my domain, you are a guest, and I must greet you accordingly,” Raith replied in a calm, dark tone that was far more ominous and telling of his mood than any amount of shouting would have been. Oh she was in the shit, which was ironic since he had just kept her out of the shit in the first place. It was a good job that he was strangely found of his adopted niece, it wasn’t an affection most people could boast to have, after all, the God of Wrath and the Heavens was not known for his love of others. 
It was odd. His little circle was growing, steadily, but it was growing and there was no denying that. First Alairia, then Luna’s son Zion, and Dae, his apprentice Lewis of course, oddly even Alairia’s apprentice Dala had found a place in his inner circle… and then of course there was Isleen. 

The blind God cast his sightless gaze at the wolf in his arms, ”Your transformation hurt, are you alright? The last thing we need is you falling back into that self made coma of yours like last time, I’m not sure I can survive another bout of Ethan’s hot headed floundering and fussing without devouring him.” He could not see, but he could feel, and that was different, not to mention the subtle fluctuations in her aura, she could fool others but not him, the blind were far harder to mislead than those with sight. 
Placing her gently on the floor he ‘looked’ at her sternly. ”I expected better of you Isleen. Such behavior is not becoming of an adult of your caliber, let alone a Champion to a God.”

As she looked at the chaos below, she couldn’t help but think she brought this on herself. It was supposed to be just a quick, little prank and then explore a festival with Ethan.

“Ethan,” she thought to herself with a pained expression. The put in her stomach grew heavier at the thought of her lover. He was going to get to the festival to find her missing. He was going to panic - which meant the people around him were at risk. Ethan likely wouldn’t feel any remorse and unlike the majority of the Balatro clan, the dark haired girl did not care much for others. However, she didn’t love the idea that innocents may be hurt because of her chaos. They used to be able to communicate without being near each other but the hybrid was certain it wouldn’t work between realms even if she were at full strength.

“So, am I family or a guest?” she replied with a strained tone. It was a poor attempt at a joke but she was feeling a bit desperate, all things considered. Isleen and Raith had spent some time together recently but she still hadn’t quite figured him out. His kindness was reserved for Alairia, but Isleen hoped to find a sense of humor in there somewhere.

“I’m alright,” she replied through gritted teeth. Her gaze darted down instinctually in submission at the mention of her little episode. Isleen didn’t know how to handle the topic. Seeing her father die in real time would’ve been hard regardless of how but the gruesome nature had been too much to bare. Isleen couldn’t verbally explain the amount of emotion, might, and magic that ran through her veins that fateful day. She questioned if even as a Blessed if she had lost such control - and felt so much power. “Just another reminder how much easier things would be if I had been born a diowolf, but certainly nothing I can’t handle,” she added with more strength, dismissing the dig at Ethan.

Her feet hit the beautiful floor softly but the motion inspired a bit of nausea. Still, the wolf inside needed to stand her ground so her stance was wide and she crossed her arms across her chest. The god towered over her. Any sane person would’ve been scared. Isleen, however, felt anxious more than anything. “You’re better off not expecting things from me, ask my father. It’ll save you some disappointment,” she answered with a hint of a smile. Then her brain registered the last few words he said. Her eyebrows knitted in confusion. “Champion to a God?” she questioned. “Since when does father’s role transition to me? I mean no offense to the goddess. I’m sure she’s great, but Life and Love? You’ve got the wrong Balatro daughter.”

"For the moment you are an annoyance; sadly you are related to Alairia, otherwise I would have sent you packing from my doors with Celestial Fire biting at your ankles… or maybe I would have left you to your rotten fate in Raiqi. Be grateful my love of Alairia extends such courtesies as saving you," he replied darkly. A blessing and a curse, his love for Ria, she had shown him his true path but in that same sense she had diverted his nature - he had come to 'care' for others, to a point, otherwise he truly would have left Isleen to her sticky fate… facing the rather unpleasant back end of those turkeys. 

Again he snorted at her as she gritted her teeth and replied. Not for one moment did he believe her words, but he was no healer and he had no intention of mollycoddling Isleen either. She had made this mess herself, she would suffer the consequences, including the pain and discomfort her transformation left her with. He'd intervene if she were in danger, but beyond that she was lucky he wasn't tearing her to shreds for the insult of her 'prank'. "Another thing you and I have in common then, the difficulties brought to us by the circumstances of our birth," he stated simply. 

Raith rolled his eyes, they might have been sightless but the amount of emotion he could express with them was quite something to admire. "The Heavens help me," he sighed with exasperation, raising a hand so that he could feel for Isleen's face. His fingers traced her cheek, upwards to her forehead… where he flicked her right between her eyes. "Dolt. It transitions to you when I make you my Champion, by the Heavens I thought you were intelligent, or has all sense escaped you? Right then, less subtle it is. Isleen, I want you as my Champion, and when I say I want you I mean you have to say yes, I was going to give you the option but given the farce outside I'm going to make it a punishment as much as a privilege," he stated, hands behind his back, leaning forward to grin wickedly at her. "Welcome to the fold dearest niece."

“Sadly, huh? If it helps, we share zero blood relation,” Isleen offered. She knew she should’ve kept the retort to herself but she couldn’t help it. If Teu had been there, the elf would’ve dug her elbow into the wolf’s side. The healer was always better at holding her tongue. However, the seer was not going to just dark his digs and dark remarks. Her pride absolutely outweighed her fear. Anyone who knew her birth parents could attest that this came naturally. Her father did decide to challenge and anger an entire patheon after all.If I’m an annoyance, I can certainly be on my way. We can talk another time, when you’re feeling a bit more social perhaps?” Again, she offered him an out to let her go. The pair got along fine but she was done with being around men who felt obligated to her in some way or another. She was not Alaria, or even Teu, he owed her nothing. Isleen could save herself - or at least she’d try her absolute hardest.

“Ha. I hear my kind has a name in these lands - vaewolves. I suppose I like that better than half-breed and hybrid. Someone made the mistake once of saying my blood was diluted - Ethan didn’t care for that comment at all,” Isleen responded with a dry laugh. A piece of her wondered if she would ever take on his diowolf traits now that they were sharing blood. The dark hair girl did not dare ask or even mention this thought aloud but she was curious. “Is there something wrong with your bloodline? I happen to recall a discussion concerning hating Kythe. There’s a story here, I can feel it.”

After a moment, she raised a hand while working through a thought.“You’ve mentioned your love for Ria extends to the family. It doesn’t have to. Like myself, there’s no blood shared between her and the rest of the clan. If you truly hate us and want to be a recluse, you could. That’s what Ethan chooses to do more often than not. Now, we’re not going to let her go but surely a God shouldn’t have to be around people he can’t stand,” the wolf mused. She could still remember yelling at Ethan that he had to stop pretending as if there weren't people who loved him beyond her. The hurt that was in Teu’s eyes as Isleen had to tell her the fickle man lived had been incredibly painful to witness.

The conversation shifted to the Champion topic. The girl raised her chin slightly as Raith reached for her face. Her shoulders fell back as she wrapped her arms back around her torso. Not that he could see her but body language was a clear mix of fear and submission yet defiance and strength. She shook her head with a shocked expression when he flicked the bridge between her eyebrows. “Hey!” she yelped, shaking her head with a scrunched up expression. “Now that was unnecessary,” she narrowed her eyes with a mock pout. The seer thought back to her first vision of him in the throne to where they were now. Her previous experience with Gods tainted this honor he was willing to bestow upon her. She wanted to object and ask questions but, like before, this wasn’t really optional despite him asking her for confirmation. “A blind, angry God of and an unsympathetic seer - what could go wrong?” Isleen answered with a grin. Our family is going to be thrilled,” she added with a chuckle.

Raith rolled his eyes at the woman, ”You are still her family, which means she values your existence or her mother does either way, and if her mother were to be upset then so too would Ria. And I can’t have that,” he stated simply. ”Anyway, I find your presence far more tolerable than most of the people in this world, you Ria and Dae. A short list to say the least.” 
”Most people are an annoyance, even Ria has her moments, it’s a cross I near and it fuels my rage. Nothing I haven’t dealt with time and time again, and since I’ve never been social we may as well use the time we have now. Especially since you Saw my Ascension, surely that deserves a little of a Deity’s time?”

he snorted, he knew what it was to be neither one nor another race. Part Dire Wolf and part Minadrias, he sat between two worlds with no real name to call himself beyond that which was his given name. ”Kythe’s pregnancy with myself and my sisters Kaya and Luna was difficult, as far as I have always been concerned she and I were meant to die in childbirth together, that was our destiny. Unfortunately my mother’s ties to Liara, Goddess of Death meant that infernal woman saved Kythe and I from our fate. I was born blind and unable to shape shift, unlike my sisters. I have fought for everything I have now, it’s only fueled my rage And my hatred toward Kythe, that and her outlook on life. I cannot abide her. Even finding my way to transforming into my Draconic form has been my doing, something I was denied for centuries, so I swore I would ruin her life and take her life. Sadly, again, Ria stays my hand on that account.” For now at least… he thought.

”Family isn’t just blood related, it is the one thing I do agree with Kythe on, irritating though that is. I can’t stand most of not all beings, Ria and Dae  I found to be an exception to this, and yourself oddly. But a God must be worshipped, and I deserve that more than most,” he grinned, there wasn’t an ounce of sarcasm to that statement, Raith genuinely meant what he said.

He snorted, he liked the thunder in her heart, it was electric in the still air. ”I am counting on it niece, I am counting on it. You may take a room here, tell me how you wish it to be and I’ll construct it, should you need a door direct to another place you frequent just tell me where and I can add it to those here in the Throne room already. Saves you traversing Raiqi upon every visit at least.”

“Well, in that case, if I may be so bold: what is like to have a small woman influence your daily life so significantly?” the girl questioned with a small smile. It wasn’t meant to be a pointed or demeaning question. She was truly curious. Isleen was slowly learning just how powerful love could be. Raith was not the first man whose beloved influenced his actions. In her experience, women typically swayed men one way or the other while oftentimes women stayed true to their moral compass. Though, if she were being honest with herself, if Ethan asked her to do something or tailor her approach, she would seriously consider it. As a girl, she enjoyed lingering about during important conversions and thus heard talk of power and what that meant. The seer would have suggested Death and Magic as the mightiest forces in the universe but now? Perhaps it was something much simpler than that - something that anyone could relate to. Everything begins and ends with Love she considered.

As the conversation shifted to being about Raith, she could tell that was a smart choice. Her posture relaxed and her heart beat began to steady. She did not fault him for enjoying speaking about himself, most people did, instead the vaewolf took it as a sign of trust. The story of his birth was interesting to the girl because it painted the Goddess of Death very differently than what she would expect from the matron of that domain. She also wondered if she should share Ethan’s story with Raith given the parallels the pair shared. “The amount of things you have in common with Ethan never ceases to amaze me,” she replied simply. It’s not my story to tell.

“Ethan has told me a few things about Dae so that does not surprise me. I understand the three of us are cut from similar cloths. It’s the union with Ria that is a bit unusual. Typically light stays with light and dark with dark. It’s why, while they’ve always been wonderful, I’ve always felt like the black sheep of the Balatro family. My sister heals the innocent and cares for the weak - I.. do not,” the dark haired girl explained. “I don’t know if it’s because I’m older so I see more clearly or if times have truly changed but never before have I seen so many shades of grey within the clan.”

Isleen felt surprisingly calm as the weight of being a Champion set in despite the fact that the wolf had been thoroughly enjoying her lack of responsibility in life. It would be nice to have a home to call her own, well as long as Raith reigned, brought her some comfort. “As much as I find the stars beautiful, I’ll need some earth to stay sane so I don’t know if that means a lot of plants in the room or at least a passage to a forest so I can run. I’m not the type that is fussy with a bunch of lavious things,” she paused for a moment. “Ethan’s affairs are tied directly with Nemesis, is that going to be a problem? We were actually set to move to Kurayo.” Her opinions of the God of Darkness and Fear were fairly neutral, but clearly Raith was her Lord now which meant he would need to be aware of any connections regardless of intent. “Is there anything I should know or consider as your Champion?” she added, deciding she needed more clarification on what exactly that meant.