Dalanesca had to admit - she always liked when she had a reason to come to Angela's realm.  It was so different from her own, yet not at all over the top, at least in her opinion.  She grinned as she stood in her own bedchambers, changing her clothes - she had another reason to visit the Awakening Gardens.  Angela Rose had named a new champion, and Dalanesca would be damned if she wasn't going to go meet him.  Though she knew her opinion would not sway Angela on whether or not the champion - or rather, the Divine Artificer, as was the title bestowed upon this Serci that she had chosen - was adequate, she had to at least make her own assessment - after all, perhaps she could use some of Angela's parameters when it came time to name a champion of her own.  

It was an occasion, at least in Dalanesca's opinion, that called for a bit of elegance, at least in her opinion.  She fussed with her hair for a bit until she was happy with the way the waves fell around her shoulders.  She dressed herself in a black leather corset with red satin lacing up the back, with black leather belted buckles on her arms just below her shoulders as a bit of decoration.  Black and red boots came to just above her knee, with lace peeking out above them, a black skirt of lace and satin covering it all, split on each side.  Lips were painted with rouge and eyes lined with coal, and just like that, she was gone from her bedchamber and standing in the herb garden of Angela's throne room.

Lucky for her, she could sense that the Mother was at her throne, that beautiful tree that lay in the middle of the Garden.  Dalanesca approached her and gave her a bit of a bow of her head.  "Lady Angela," she said, as cordially as possible. "I have come to pay my humble respects to your new… cham…pion…" Her words began to break up as she could no longer keep a straight face, laughter busting through.  "Oh, hell, I can't!  I tried but I just can't do it," she said with a laugh, throwing her arms up.

"Even though I'm sure your all-knowing mind hidden beneath that fiery mane of hair knows why I'm here, I really did come to meet this 'Divine Artificer' you've appointed," she said, smirking as was a trademark look for her face.  "I mean… you need the Reaper stamp of approval, don't you?" she said, chuckling.  "Besides… I'm guessing, if you picked him, he's got to be easy on the eyes… and my eyes could use some ease if you catch my drift," she said, winking at Angela rather unceremoniously. "And I brought him a present," she said, smirking.  

"Don't worry, I brought you a present too… sort of.  Brought you this," she said, presenting Angela with a small vial filled with the strange liquid that bubbled in the fountain in her poison garden.  "You know what it is," she said, as she tossed the vial to her.  "Thought maybe we could add it to that whiskey you've been making me… Might get us just a little more fucked up," she said, laughing.  

Always looking her best even after dealing with the two little ones who kept her up at night Ang lounged in her throne. The twins were happily in a little gated area minding their own business for once. Lark was not pulling on his sister’s vibrant red hair and Poppy was not yelling for her father with her rather large and loud mouth. Her green eyes were closed and she brought a wine glass up to her lips enjoying the soft sounds of her children at play.

“Oh for fuck's sake,” Angela popped her eyes open just to see it was Dalanesca. She pushed herself up and she put her hand to Dal’s forehead. “Are you feeling alright?” She continued on until she busted out laughing. She put her finger to her lips. “Please, the children… They know.” Poppy was up against the gate making loud obnoxious noises at Dalanesca now. “Ugh…” She sighed a bit before laughing in defeat. “She noticed you. She is our loud one.”

After a moment she started to laugh too. “I actually didn’t notice you come in because I was enjoying my peace and quiet for a moment. I sorta figured out why you were here when I saw you though.” She smiled at him. “Serci? He’s cute. Has an eye on one of my daughters though but I can’t say that’s not normal.” There was a grin now as Angela hugged Dalanesca. “It is always good to see you.” She caught the vial and swished it around so she could see the contents. “I can add it in. Might add in some other flavors to offset it.”

Pocketing it she winked back at her deity sister. “Drae might be floating about if we’re lucky he will join us. You know he is just as easy on the eyes. But I can bring in Serci for your approval. Might as well get him associated with the gods before you lot mess with him.” After a few moments, her voice echoed into Serci’s room. “Can you come to the throne room? There’s someone here who I want you to meet.”

A table sprung up with chairs, a bottle of whiskey (safe for Serci of course), and Angela once again fell down into a seat rather exhausted. “These twins are something else. The divinity running in their blood is nothing I’ve ever felt before. Not that it helps anything but… Their energy is much more… Out there. You can go hold them. I’m sure Ro will want to see you too. He has been doing so much better since his little issue with your blood.” Angela gave a soft smile to Dalanesca. “You know the children love you dearly when you stop in.”

A few days passed after the trouble in the desert. Serci's battle with Rudjek  left him gravely wounded. The flesh eating scarabs had eaten too far into his muscle and he was strongly advised by Angela's clergy to rest. He lay in his bedroom in Angela's domain, covered in bandages. A good portion of his left chest was wrapped up with fresh new bandages while his arms were wrapped up in slightly more grey, dingy, bandages. The bedside table next to him had an empty bottle of wine and an unfinished letter to Rosemary-Raine. Unfortunately  he hadn't spoken to Angela since he left to take on Rudjek by his self. In the desert, he passed out shortly as the clergy rushed to heal Serci. When he awoke, he was in the temple and was addressed by the clergy rather than Angela her self. It seems the news of his awakening of Divine Artificer spread quick and all that awaited was Angela to acknowledge it.

He spent most of his days in bed resting, sleeping off the injuries. When he couldn't sleep he would sneak out to the winery and ask for a bottle of wine and try to write a letter to Rosemary who was still on his mind after all this time. One of those times were now while Serci lay on his back in bed, with an arm over his eyes, trying to force sleep. Most of the pain was gone, but every now and then when it was too quite he could feel the stinging bites of the scarabs. The wine helped, sometimes. But it was his writing to Rosemary that calmed him most. He almost jumped out of bed when Angela's voice suddenly rung though out Serci's chambers. He rolled his self out of bed and went to the dresser where an ornate decent size mirror hung. The dresser contained Serci's staple white and grey robes however his white cape was different. After his awakening, he had asked a tailor to stitch Angela's emblem into the back of Serci's capes. He slowly pulled the robes of his bandaged body and tied a newly embroidered cape loosely around his neck, freeing his long blonde hair before tightening the knot.

He limped slightly down the corridor and eventually reached the foyer. He continued down the beautiful temple walking along the cold marble until he reached Angela's throne room. He heard laughter on the other side of the door and gave a polite knock. Opening the doors with a grunt, he walked into the beautiful garden where Angela and a dark hair women dressed rather… tight, sat. Larkspur and Poppy stood in a play pen making noises at the two women. Serci gave a big smile and waved at the two kids. As he approached the women he spoke.

"Forgive my lateness. My injuries keep my from moving to fast. Angela, it is good to see you again." He said warmly. "I'm sure you heard what happened in the desert. I had an epiphany and awoke to my role as Divine Artificer. I hope you don't mind, but I went ahead and took the liberty of adding your emblem to my attire." Giving a spin, showing off the backside of his cape. He turned around and addressed Angela once more before turning to the dark haired woman. "I hope you are doing well, your clergy are insistent about keeping me in bed I haven't had a chance to come see you." He turned to the dark hair woman and the bottle of whiskey wondering what exactly was in store for him. "You must be the someone I should meet then. Greetings, fair beauty. I am Serci, Divine Artificer." He bowed his head in respect and offered his hand out to the woman. "It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Careful there, Kid," Drae said addressing Angela's new champion as he appeared in a blink of arcane light. "Give the Goddess of Death an inch and she might take you a mile," he said flashing a playful smile at Angela and Dalanesca, whose hand he took and placed a kiss to the back of before he kissed his wife in greeting. 

"Always a pleasure to see you, Dalanesca," he said before the demanding "Da Da da!" caught his attention from the play pen a short distance away as Poppy began squealing at his arrival. He blew a quick kiss to his infant daughter before he turned back to Serci and looked him over. 
"Nice cape. The emblem is a nice touch," he commented. "Better to see you up and around. I heard you had a close shave with Rudjek and his scarabs. You holding up okay then?"

"Too late…" Dalanesca said to Angela as she motioned for her to quiet, a grin spreading over her lips as Poppy began to squawk at her.  She crouched down and gave the child a little wave.  "Of course she'd notice me, I am also the loud one," she said, her voice taking on a bit of a cutesy tone as she looked at Poppy.  She straightened herself up and looked back at Angela.  "I'm sorry to interrupt your peace and quiet," she said.

When Angela mentioned that Serci was interested in one of her daughters, she wiggled her eyebrows at her fellow goddess rather suggestively.  "He has yet to meet me, though, hasn't he?" she said, giving Angela her signature wink.  She returned Angela's hug, beaming as she did so.  "I'll be interested to try the finished product," she added as Angela mentioned concocting something new for her by mixing some new flavors.  "You are not wrong… Drae is easy on the eyes…" she said, and then chuckled.  "What do you mean, before we mess with him?" she asked, feigning innocence as much as she possibly could.

She joined Angela at the table that popped up, though she did not help herself to the whiskey.  Instead, she pulled a flask out that had been strapped to her thigh and took a pull off of it before placing it back in its holder.  "I'll have to pay Rohan a visit before I leave then, check up on him," she said, frowning.  "That incident was never supposed to get so out of hand," she said, with a sigh.  "Those mortals and their greed can cause even a god to go out of control," she said, frowning. "I am just so grateful that I was able to heal him," she said.

The serious conversation the two goddesses had been having subsided as Serci came into view.  Dalanesca's gaze immediately locked onto him as he approached.  Even with his limp and wounds - which she assumed were from the battles in Harena - he was a sight to see, Angela had not been wrong about that.  She waited patiently as he addressed Angela, showing her the emblem stitched into the back of his cloak.  When he finally addressed Dalanesca, she raised her eyebrows rather inquisitively at him, placing her hand in his as he offered it to her while bowing his head.  

After a moment, she glanced at Angela, her hand still resting in Serci's, and let out a fairly hearty laugh.  "He… he really doesn't know who I am, does he?" she asked, between chuckles.  After a moment, she dropped her hand from Serci's and stood up, facing him.  He had well over half a foot on her in height, but that made no difference to her as she gazed up at him, her bright, ice blue eyes analyzing his features before she spoke again.  Rather than introducing herself immediately, she circled him, keeping an incredibly short distance between the pair.  "Not bad, Angela," she said, dragging her hand across the emblem on the back of his cloak as she circled him.  "Makes me wonder what kind of Champion of my own I could find," she continued, her voice low.  She stopped as she stood behind him and reached up, placing a hand on either of his shoulders.  She began to guide him towards one of the chairs, which she pulled out and then pushed him to sit down in.

"I am the Reaper.  Well, Dalanesca.  I'm not a fan of all that fancy honorific bullshit," she said, as she sat him down, still standing behind him with her hands on his shoulders.  She leaned close to his ear and continued speaking, smirking across the table at Angela as she did so. "And you are the Divine Artificer," she said, giving an unnecessary flourish to the words.  "The Champion of Angela Rose," she said.  "I came to give you my approval… or disapproval," she said, her grip on his shoulders tightening somewhat.  "Visually… you have my approval," she nearly whispered, though she winked at Angela across the table.  It was rather clear that she was making a game out of this.

At that moment, Drae appeared, and Dalanesca glanced at him with the same smirk, chuckling at his comment to Serci.  "You know me too well, Drae," she said, walking to Drae and grinning as he kissed the back of her hand.  She then retired to the seat nearest to Serci, pushing her skirt aside to retrieve her flask once more, and taking a long draw from it once more.  It remained on the table this time, and her gaze remained fixed on Angela's new champion as the group conversed.

As Serci made his entrance she smirked just a bit at him. This would be a good lesson for him to expect the unexpected. Especially when it came to living in the realm of a god. “You are fine Serci,” she waved her hand at him as she spoke. She wasn’t concerned with a few moments gone wasted not when she had seen so many more. “You really should let me heal them Serci. It would be no trouble at all to make you as good as new. Though I do understand the need to feel human when you are living in a place like this.” She waved her hand around as she looked around her throne room. She chuckled towards Dalanesca’s words. “Believe it or not, not all Mortals are so well versed in who we are. You are still relatively young as a god… The only thing making legends is that pit you call a stomach and the amount of whiskey you can drink down… Oh and the trouble you tend to bring with you.” She tilted her head in playful banter with her sister goddess.

A chuckle left her lips as Drae came in with a bit of arcane magic. “Oh yes, this is my very best friend Dalanesca. You might know of her better as the Reaper.” She returned the kiss to her husband and chuckled softly. “Just where have you been hiding Adraejen?” The question was sly and sultry as she teased her husband with her words. “I also like the cape. It is a good emblem that will show the path you are on Serci. Just be careful of those who wish to upset the balance. Dalanesca and I cannot always take care of them all.”

Angela winked back towards her sister goddess and chuckled a bit more. “You can say she is a lover of all of the male species.” Once again she was teasing Dalanesca. Her green eyes watched the scene unfold and she chuckled. “Be easy on him dearest Dal. He is only human.”

Once they were all sitting down a table sprung seemingly from nowhere as Angela began to pop open a bottle of wine. “I do hope that your stomach can settle for something less powerful. Since we’re all here we might as well celebrate. With the coming of Serci, there will very well be more and that means champions for all the gods. It is a good thing… for the most part.” She waved her hand a bit and chuckled.

Crystal chalices appeared and she filled them delicately. Looking at Dalanesca with a bit of humor she filled Dal’s all the way to the brim. “Can’t very well let you go without enough alcohol.” There was a smirk as she relaxed in her chair and listened to the twins babbling away now that Poppy was calmed down.

“Serci, this is my husband Adraejen but he prefers Drae. He is the god of magic and knowledge. His temple is on the other continent near Jasumin Lake. Adraejen and I have been together since before his ascension… I suppose you could say he was a champion of sorts back then. It’s been just about a decade or more since I found him in Iria. You’ve already met Dalanesca. She is the goddess of darkness and death. She sorta fell in my temple one day and got harassed by my daughter Iva. I’ve known her since before she was a goddess as well.”

Serci stood tall as he let the reaper examine her way around him. He kept his posture strait when she ran a warm hand across his back and watched patiently as she circled him like a hungry predator. She took him by the shoulders and led him to the table that Angela had sprung up for the occasion. She sat him down and breathed into his ear as she spoke to him. He eyed Angela who had an amused smirk on her and simply smiled warmly at her. He looked up to Dalanesca with a confident look and spoke. "I'm sure I will be entering bed with your approval by the end of the night. Though. You will have a chance to test me properly. I plan to visit the temples of the gods and take on  their trails. Yours included, Reaper."  She took a seat next to him and kept an uncomfortable stare at him. He smiled through it, his attention getting distracted by a flash of light from across the room.

The most intimidating man stepped through the light. He was easily Serci's height or larger. The man was definitely larger than Serci in muscle mass. Combined with his menacing face and bear like posture the man was almost terrifying. He spoke gentle to Serci, which caught him off guard the smallest of seconds. "… No. Rudjek wasn't a problem at all, actually. I was actually handling my self very well against him. However, he played dirty and I dropped my guard. It is a mistake I wont make again, I assure you." His voice was laced with confidence and pride as he tried to get up from where he was seated. Angela introduced him as her husband, the God of Magic and Knowledge. Serci moved to shake Adreajen's hand. However, Dalanesca had other plans. Her hand shot out and grabbed the hem of his pants and pulled him down back into his seat. He let out a chuckle as Adreajen and Angela talked amongst them selves. He took the diversion to lean slightly towards Dalanesca, his head still strait as he talked softly from the corner of his mouth. "Forgive my rudeness, Dalanesca. If I was well in body and mind, I would've not mistook your presence. I look forward to what we have to offer each other. In truth, I hope to learn much from you. I'm sure by befriending death, I can learn more about life. Angela taught me that." He said with a smile.

He resumed his strait posture in the chair as Angela proposed a toast for everybody. She walked by each patron and filled up their glass. Serci felt envious as he glanced at Dalanesca's nearly full glass as he looked to his half full glass. He watched as she gave a small speech about the champions and he raised his glass and spoke to the gods. "Then let this drink be to prosperity. Prosperity to the gods and their temples. And may their champions learn from them fully." He eyed each of the gods as he spoke. He raised his glass one final time, "To Prosperity." He drank his full and walked towards the wine bottle, offering to refill any glasses that were empty.

He listened to Angela talk about how she met the two gods in their mortal lives and a certain words caught Serci's attention. "Speaking of daughters, have you, uh, heard from Rosemary at all?" He asked with genuine interest, feeling his cheeks grow warm with color. He broke his calm and controlled etiquette as he raised his arm over his head and rubbed the back of his neck. "If I got to meet her again, I would apologize for my rude behavior." He placed his arm down and smoothed at the bandages, retreating to his drink as the gods talked amongst them selves. Every now and then he would fill up his glass and drink from it, but kept quiet for the most part. He didn't interrupt anyone or forced his way into any conversations. He spoke when he was spoke to and was a well behaved champion. When there was a break in conversation he would chime in. For the most part, he went around and made sure everyone had enough to drink. After a few glasses, he grabbed two small shot glasses and placed them quite forcefully onto the table in front of him and Dalanesca with a grin.

He shot her a grin and spoke. "Whenever you feel ready for me to drink you under the table, Reaper." He moved the whiskey bottle closer to the two and and called out to Angela. "I have to speak my mind on the gods getting champions. I feel as though a few of you, not naming names, would feel the need to one up each other when bragging about their champions." He let the words hang in the air as he shot a quick wink at her and continued. "In that case, It's a good thing you found me first, Angela." He said with a slight chuckle. He sat back in his chair, his posture slacking slightly from the small buzz. He smiled as he watched the laughter and drinking unfold as he played the dutiful champion.

Drae regarded Serci with interest. He might have had a bit more bulk than the… well, there was no other way to describe the man who appeared his opposite than "pretty", but he hadn't expected him to be surprised when he spoke with an amicable softness. The bear in him had made a visible mark on his appearance, but it had hardly changed his well-spoken nature. He chuckled as Dalanesca thwarted the new champion's attempt to shake hands, and he merely waved it off, with a chuckle as he scooped up Poppy from her pen and tickled her as he listened to the 'pretty' man explain what had happened. He chuckled heartily. 

"Pride. It destroys the best of us. Glad to see you survived to learn from it in that case. Invaluable knowledge gained I would say, and that makes me proud," he grinned before he put Poppy back down in the pen and walked back over to the table and sat down beside Angela as the toast was proposed and he raised his glass in concurrence. 

As the conversation fell to how he and Dalanesca had met Angela, he thought back to their first encounter with a fond smile. When Serci mentioned Rosemary, he began laughing heartily. "You too huh? Smitten by a Rose," he chuckled. "It seems to happen to everyone in some capacity. They have courted and married a Rose, or courted and survived the separation," he mused. "Weigh your options carefully, there may not be an escape for you later on. Not that I wish my own freedom. I am far happier than I ever was during my unattachment," he said with cheerful smile his silvery eyes gleaming. 

He sipped his own wine with a grin. "One upping over champions and Avatars is what we do to amuse ourselves I suppose," he laughed. "I myself do not have a champion as of yet, though I have thought about filling that position. And unless I am mistaken, Dalanesca, you have neither at this current moment, though I understand that De'Zhelis is serving dutifully as your Hellhound in between his duties of being Iva's protector, correct?"