When the food and drink came, 7, 19 and the man were joined by a woman. She was a woman so different from those around her as to be noted as being something special. He watched 7 and 19 bow their heads to her and 7 welcomed her with the utmost courtesy, even rising and pulling out her chair for her himself. "It is my honor to serve you, Lady. Wine?" She nodded. "This is Phosfera 24," he said, introducing her to the man as he filled her goblet. Even the man, as callous and cold to such things as made other men stand in awe of others, felt something radiating from her - something powerful and...mysterious. Something he couldn't name. "Honored, Lady Phosfera. I am Ka." She was also the most beautiful woman he'd seen in a very long time - although that didn't always immediately sell him on what was underneath. Beauitful women could be just as treacherous as ugly ones, or men. "She is the best suited to explain the Order of Twilight," 7 explained, "the Phosferans." "This world has been in constant turmoil for hundreds of years," she began. "This last however, has been the worst. I'm sure you've seen it before - the more a race advances in knowledge, the more perverse becomes their use of that knowledge." She spoke slowly and carefully, as if always searching for the right words. "There are three factions here that vie for control of Aman'tala. Truthfully, only two do so with any seriousness - they are the Order of Night and the Order of Twilight. For the Order of Day it is something akin to beating their heads on a wall. They have all but given up. The Phosferans, of which most of those you see here are a part, have been in existence for four and twenty generations." She paused here to take a drink of wine. "I am the hereditary Oracle and Head of the Order. Before me was my mother, my grandmother and so on. We are all named Phosfera, after She who founded the Order - and we all look nearly identical. Additionally, our genetics are such that we are walking repositories of the knowledge gathered by those who came before us." "I was a young girl when the Black Sorcerers came to our sanctuary. There were those who escaped with me, to protect me...to carry on the lineage of Phosfera. More of that will be told later, by 7." "Phosfera One was originally of the Order of Day - the Eosa. The Eosa speak of high ideals: moral rectitude, salvation, lofty ideals and concepts. They condemn that within us that is a 'creature' - all instincts that are natural to us, thus making it impossible for anyone - even themselves - to live up to those ideals. They are the right hand, over here by itself, thinking only of what is beyond and some ludicrous pipe-dream of peace and happiness in a universe full of chaos. She watched even the most high of them become corrupted and fail to live up to their own philosophies. Of course, she had no desire to join the Order of Noctis - the Night, who are the left hand. She thought to herself, 'There must be some middle path, where the right hand and left hand work together. Neither has control, but they coexist peacefully with one another. We will train them to coexist.' "She understood that the 'creature' part of us - the instinctual part, played just as important a role as the thinking, reasoning part of us with the dreams and goals to become better than how we began. She also understood that those who fought against the Noctians from such lofty ideals were nearly always fated to fall victim to the 'creature', whom the Noctians venerate and promote." "The beast within," Ka elaborated, smiling slightly. "I'm well familiar with him, and you're right, Lady Phosfera...he is essential to call upon when one's survival is in the balance. I let him take over when it's necessary, but he does not rule me." Lady Phosfera 24 regarded him with her startling green eyes. She pursed her lips and smiled to herself. "I thought you might understand. You would most likely be dead if he did, because you would be be oblivious to everything else around you save the clear and present danger. Your lower mind would be working but not necessarily the higher one that plans ahead, and calculates odds and strategies. This is how Phosfera One saw things. She found others who were of the same mind amongst the Eosa. To make a long story short, they left and she founded the Order of Phosfera - the Middle Order, where nothing of the 'creature' is condemned save excess, and the failure to gain wisdom from our experiences and knowledge...foolishness...that is, we do not allow the 'beast within' to have utter power and control. That way, we may still do as we will do as person-creatures without the burden of guilt and shame to rob us of our love for that which we are; and we are encouraged to analyze and make practical our mistakes to correct them." She put her elbows on the table and clasped her hands together, staring at...or through him. "Would it surprise you to know that we are the least popular Order on Aman'tala?" Ka shook his head slowly. "Not at all. It would mean that you'd have to take responsibility for your self. Rule your self. No one else will save you but your self. No one is going to save you from your mistakes but your self. I get that. I understand that very well." Phosfera half closed her eyes and bowed her head for a brief moment, then smiled. "Then I have chosen wisely." tbc ***** Thank you for stopping by dear friends. Your comments and views are always appreciated. And yes 'Ka' IS someone and yes that is a character that this someone plays, and no I couldn't tint the goggles because then you wouldn't see his eyes ;) Trailer: http://youtu.be/jz0-H19nB-8 Have a great Tuesday, wherever you find yourself! Ray Background is from SRG_Midnight Silence @ YURDigital Skin eyes and makeup from SRG_Alba Expansion Pack @ YURDigital Wolf is from Jane Eden's 'Wolf Pack' @ YURDigital Model is from a work in progress -- a collection of V4 morphs called SRG_Cali&Co. Hair textured by me.