You have your doubts about this endeavor from the start, but high risk and high rewards are undeniably linked.
Of all the races in the land, your spirit reaches out to the Kirin: Rare creatures that could be mistaken for a Unicorn subspecies, possessing both fur and scales with a certain potential for magic. Even more so, an ancient curse upon their kind became their own salvation, their anger turning them into fiery counterparts to their normal selves. And it is so easy to conjure rage for the cold, the windigos and for Death itself.
No, the Kirin were not where your doubts lied, but in your chosen location.
The Crystal Empire. Even with your innate, godly ability to simply know certain things, you couldn't even begin to comprehend the history of this place. It had changed from hoof to claw more times than can be reasonably counted. Sometimes peacefully, others not. It was and is a symbol of power and hope. A beacon in the unnatural storm of the Frozen North. The Windigos have been simply more of the same for those within the Crystal Empire, with the Crystal Heart holding them back as easily as it does the storm. Naturally, it became a rallying point for various creatures to gather to, trying to live in and around the crystalline city. But there is always opportunity in disaster.
As your essence becomes more and more tied with the Kirins, you come to understand the present crisis more clearly through them.
Sombra, self-proclaimed King of the Crystal Empire, had used this chance to seize power from Princess Amora, current Keeper of the Heart. Revealing his nature as an Umbra-Pony, the dark tyrant used his power to weaken the seal holding his kind beneath the city. Even with Princess Amora losing, the Crystal Heart instinctively fought against Sombra and the dark ponies, aiding the soldiers and civilians that managed to resist him.
Pony or otherwise, all those foreign to the Crystal Empire scrambled to decide what to do. Many tried to aid Amora, and a desperate few even allied themselves to Sombra. But most were rushing to find enough supplies to try and find somewhere else to seek shelter in the white tartartus that seemed to blanket the whole world- from a mortal's perspective. Survival was a priority that most couldn't afford to ignore. And you weren't excluded from that.
With yourself becoming spiritually tied to these Kirins, you realized that you could influence them subconsciously. Not control or manipulate, you were far too young for that. But they could feel a general sense of what you desired, especially those that already desired it. Hence, those not already at the Crystal Empire already felt the pull drawing them to there, to you.
Staying was not an option long term. Food and room was growing scarce, even with many fleeing from this war between Love and Darkness. And you felt as one with your chosen race, for they were as uncertain as you. You could wash your limbs of this situation, take what you could and lead the Kirin someplace safe. safer than this by any means.
Or you could get involved with this conflict. But aiding one would doubtless make an enemy of another. You are young and of very questionable potency. Throwing your weight this early could be the very end of you, you know. And with you, possibly the Kirins as well. Assuming victory, Amora would undoubtedly grant you whatever assistance the Empire could spare to help you on your travels. Sombra was obsessed with enslaving all that he could, but this conflict was taking a toll on him.
Rewards were a gamble with Sombra.
Survival was a gamble with Amora.
With indecision coursing through you, you gaze outwards, southwards. You can see them, some of the lights, the other gods. The Sun and the Moon, as Chaos called the sister lights, were obviously trying to aid their own creatures. You could even sense that other godling, even more of a speck than you. They couldn't help. And Chaos? He was somewhere down there, doing something, but you could never guess what.
None of them could help either side. The Crystal Empire, both Sombra and Amora, were on their own. As were you.
Looking down upon your Kirins, camped as far from the city as possible while still inside the protective bubble of the Crystal Heart, you could tell that no matter what, some would stay. But you could push a majority to follow you through an unknowing proxy.
And among them, you discovered three of significant potential in terms of charisma, among other things.
Shaded Gold, one of the greatest hunters among the migrating Kirin. While not exactly omnivores, their Nirik forms do allow the Kirin to safely consume meat. Disregarding that, they have always had the need for Hunters, brave and skilled Kirin to protect their home and kind from enemies. Be they wild beasts or rival creatures. Shaded is uniquely gifted in the use of his Nirik form as he has learned to suppress the flames and use the dark coloring to enhance his stealth.
However, he has become amongst the most jaded and cynical of the Kirin, his honesty far outweighing his kindness. The idea of siding with Sombra is not unappealing to him. Nor is the idea of just taking the city for themselves, if Sombra proves treacherous or ungrateful to their aid. His reputation as a great hunter and defender of other Kirin has earned him enough respect to attempt such a thing, with the right motivation.
He also symbolically represents the Kirin that have embraced their Curse and see it as a gift instead.
Frozen Meadow, a life long forager that knows all the secrets to finding edible plants even in these hard times. Normally foragers work to reap the spoils of nature while simultaneously nurturing it. While not as potent as Deer, Kirins are more directly connected to plants in general than Earth Ponies. Frozen is famous for not only her near peerless ability to track plant-based food, but also for milking a few fruits out of otherwise barren plants. However, long term use of this is not only fatal to the plants, but to herself. It is widely believed, even by herself, that this has led to her being infertile.
Frozen is often considered the Chieftess in all but name, and has made great efforts to keep peace between the traveling Kirins and survivors of other races. While she has a genuine appreciation for all Shaded Gold has done for all Kirins, she is truly saddened and disapproving of how heavy his heart has become. Sombra and his ilk are obviously evil and she believes it wise to help stop them here before they grow too powerful to be stopped without massive bloodshed.
Like the Kirin of old and many still today, Frozen believes that their Nirik forms are a curse.
Last but not least is Quick Blade, a young but observant young Kirin. He was of the generation that knew very little or nothing at all of the world before the Windigo Winter, leaving his views less influenced by better days but also without him being jaded or saddened by recent events or failure. He has simply took everything as a learning experience. While not possessing the skill of Shaded or talent of Frozen, he does possess a practical wisdom about him, and- practically by accident- formed a maverick group of Kirins that search for new and inventive uses of their abilities. From using their Nirik flames to melt snow and purify water, to using magic to make a rope out of grass.
The opinion of Quick is very mixed. While his ability to just emotionally shrug off most failures has left a sometimes-reluctant admiration in his fellow Kirins, it is underpinned by a clear inexperience that often renders him naive, sometimes even reckless in his ventures. Due to this, Quick is often oblivious to how much sway he has, but not in this: He doesn't consider himself heartless, but he believes they must do what is best for themselves. And, practically speaking, the Crystal Empire has never truly 'fallen'. It has always just shrunk, grown, and traded ownership. This is technically just another notch in its long history. Now would be the time to leave before getting caught up in the whirlwind of this clash.
Quick is of the small but growing number of fringe Kirin that see their Nirik forms as neither curse nor gift, merely a part of themselves they've been suppressing out of fear.
You can sense these three intently. They are all loyal to their own kind and even if their desired path isn't taken, they will follow the group rather than abandoning it. And while there will always be different opinions on the Nirik form, a leader's opinion will gain some traction no doubt. But in time, you have no doubt you can steer the majority away from that opinion. For now, it is best not to let that rule your judgement.
For now, you must choose a mortal. Not to lead the Kirins in any official or indefinite sense yet, but to sway them on the path you believe they need to take:
A. Shaded Gold
B. Frozen Meadow
C. Quick Blade
To shun a natural part of oneself is to walk through life with one hand tied behind your back. But the fire needs restraint, left unchecked it will burn itself out and be reduced to naught but sullen embers. Too much kindness will weaken a people just as surely as too much bitterness, let the middle path prevail.
I say Quick Blade.
9858419
Well reasoned. I second the vote for C. Quick Blade.
Quick Blade.
A. Shaded Gold
He's gotta take the city for the kirin. The other two choices are naive and infertile both of which can't be supported in the long term. Especially so this early in history.
B. Frozen Meadow
While I agree with Quick Blade that the Nirik are neither a blessing nor a curse, we can sway their opinion later.
Right now I don't want to abandon the Crystal Empire so easily, and the Kirin and or Nirik could help to sway the tide of battle, and the Kirin could even add their own to power the crystal heart.
Plus gaining allies early could be very advantageous in the long run, as well as show others that the Kirin are willing and able to fight for what is right instead of turning tail and running.
[B] Frozen Meadow
I agree, with Quick Blade, but as stated the decision here, can be rectified in the long term when Godling has more power to influence the masses
sure it will weaken the Kirin in the beginning
but making a friend with the Crystal Ponies isn't a bad idea, if they win, lore will be written of the Kirin's efforts, and if they return in the future they may be treated with respect, and praise, instead of Doubt and Fear
If they don't help at all, the story may play out like it did before; with Sombra winning and enslaving the Crystal Ponies
[Shaded Gold: Neutral, Evil Choice]
[Frozen Meadow: Neutral, Good Choice]
[Quick Blade: Neutral, Neutral Choice]
9858497
The first voice to speak is the loudest, Meadow's song ends abruptly in the Stream of Silence. The Kirin must learn not to hate the Fire, or they will surely hate themselves. And if even the Kirin do not trust the Kirin, how can any other creature do so?
So I want Kirins to stay in Crystal Empire but I don't know if the only option for thas is conquering it
Let's it be that
C. Quick Blade if he will have an option for Kirins to stay in Crystal Empire by conquering or other way
if not then
A. Shaded Gold because he will want Kirins to take control of Crystal Empire
Crystal Empire is a too good place to give up, especially that Kirins can warm themselves up
C
I chose Frozen Meadow
So that we can join with the crystal ponies and eventually show the Kirin the pros and cons of the curse
We must learn Fires of Friendship before the Fires of Wrath
Quick Blade.
Balance and knowledge is needed to properly assess the situation before actually commiting to a particular strategy. Flexibility is best for these crisis situations
We don't know how cordial are relations with other species within the Crystal Empire nor we know how strong Sombra's army is.
C. Quick Blade
Though I want the Kirin to embrace their Nirik side, Shaded Gold’s ideals will surely lead to darkness, death and run! instead the Kirin should flee to the mountains to establish a new empire hidden from sight
A. Shaded Gold
Use your anger, use your pain let it fill you, fuel you....ehm, sorry my inner Sith get through
But, yeah. Warrior leader who see blessing in strength that other short sighted Kirin see as nothing but curse.
And I really hope that this godling end up as God of War.
Quick Blade
Balance is important
I am not as good with my words as some of those here, so I will just give my vote.
C: Quick Blade
If you want a reason look here.
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(C) For Quick Blade.
C. One must balance themselves. Quick blade
C: Quick Blade
While Quick is young and naive, he is still practical. His neutral position will allow him to see value in both good and evil decisions. Furthermore, as the youngest of the three, he has the best chance to become a long term ruler. Most importantly however, he is moldable. Even with Our minuscule power, We could likely manipulate him to do as we require rather easily. I believe if We were to reveal Ourselves to Quick, he would see Us as the God We are and act out Our every whim.
Three questions though.
1: Are we powerful enough to reveal Ourselves to Our chosen in some way, physical or otherwise?
2: If QB wins, how much influence will We have over his plan?
3: is it, hypothetically speaking, possible for our people to wield both the power of Hatred and the power of Love?
“New growth cannot exist without first the destruction of the old.” - Guru Laghima, TLOK
The Kirin need a new way of life, and that cannot be started by one who still remembers and clings to the ideals of the old path. Fresh blood is required. Quick Blade may not be as experienced as the other two, but he’s the most practical of the three. The greatest leaders are adaptive, willing to change their strategies as necessity requires, which is what Quick Blade is capable of doing. The other two can act as advisors to offer advice to compensate for his lack of experience, but as he’s young, the other two would never be willing to listen to his ideas, deeming him to be a naive brat who’d know nothing of the world.
Yes, I know that the downside of being young is that he’s impressionable. It would be easy for anyone to poison the mind of their young leader against a perceived enemy. That’s where we’d come in. Only person who influences him is us.
Shaded Gold is too war-like, and Frozen Meadow is too peaceful. We need a balance between the two. We need HARMONY.
In short, I vote C.
C: Quick Blade
He embraces every part of them, so which would help in the future.
C. Quick Blade
Everything must be used to it's fullest. Nothing must be forsaken out of fear, but must be looked at with caution for strength.
So our choices can be summed up into:
A Sith,
A Jedi,
And a Grey Jedi?
My votes is:
C. Quick Blade
The fact he embraces both sides and has fellow Kirin that are trying to find new and innovative ways to use their skills sounds like the best long term idea.
C. Quick Blade. I can't wait to see what happens next!
(C) Quick Blade
9858937
Agree, but harmony and balance are different things
Balance, equal forces of equal importance that don't have to work together
Harmony, fragile collection/order/hierarchy of forces of random importance working together
By fragile I mean you can take out one or more and everything is falling apart
Balance is better because one force can't exist without the other one, so they won't want to destroy each other but will compete
9859434
Because of you, I want now gray Jedi order of Kirins wielding lightsabers and using the force
9859512
You are welcomed!
9859515
Maybe we can influence that
Gray order should be easy
Use of the force?
Create new magic by using what we know how the force works
Lightsabers?
That would be tricky to tell Godling to tell them to do
9859535
Maybe, maybe not.
It was established in the Kirin description that they do have long forgotten artifacts. And we are currently in the Crystal empire.
Depending on how things go, making some kind of magic energy sword that uses a crystal as a focus may not be beyond the realms of possibility.
9859558
How big are the chances that some of these artifacts are holocrons? XD
9859577
Now that would be something!
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Nerrrrrds~
but yes a funny thought~
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i.pinimg.com/originals/76/bc/25/76bc25db719ef08ea27ef7a550faa69d.jpg
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9859535
…...Well, its not impossible. And some options will have some Force-ish tones to them
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s2.quickmeme.com/img/16/164b7f86bb8dca99ac3ff45841b6bcb7dc61ad4fb5ec965eb91e4950c3dacb92.jpg
C: Quick Blade
Current Tally:
[A. Shaded Gold: 3]
[B. Frozen Meadow: 3]
[C. Quick Blade: 19]
9859641
Reviews are frozen for a bit on FF, but from what I've seen, Quick is winning. Maybe I should have tried to nerf his likability more than I already did.
9859650
hehe.
I just think everyone is hung up on the 'curse' or 'gift' part
apparently they are more afraid of the Stream of Silence, then they are of Sombra
also seems almost everyone has ignored the "not permanent leadership" and "opinions will be swayed in the future" part of the equation~
9859658
The way I see it, quick blade is the neutral option, the way it is easiest to go one way or the other and perhaps get more options later
9859658
Exactly, Quick is not being chosen for leadership, nor are we choosing to vacate the Empire. The choice here was the First Thought of our little civilization. The choices, roughly, were Dominance, Tradition, and Innovation. The first two would have led to social inflexibility, be it due to arrogance or fear.
Make no mistake, I think Frozen Meadow would make a wonderful first leader, and if reasonable, putting Kirin fire behind Amore's cause would make for a fine first overture to Sun and Moon. But we have to think long-term here, and Quick's curiosity will spark something truly wonderful if nurtured.
9860534
I agree with you
I just wanna wipe that smirk off Sombra's face early on
and 2. it says hes not going to help them
'leave' so restating,
C. Quick Blade, whom I hope will support Amora.
9861261
You did read his full description, right? Voting for Quick is a vote to not get involved and leave.
9861271
Right, sorry. I wasn't sure on that. I thought they were two separate parts of the vote, and that Quick was a guy who hadn't made up his mind on what to do yet. Still I prefer Quick Blade.
9861271
I'm just a bit salty, voted for the Crystal Empire immediately abandons it and Amore~
Current Tally:
[A. Shaded Gold: 3] Help Sombra
[B. Frozen Meadow: 3] Help Amore
[C. Quick Blade: 20] Leave The Crystal Empire
Show canon, Sombra wins Crystal ponies enslaved, later disappears for 1000 years
9861672
I'm vastly too amused that the remaining votes are dead even between Frozen and Shaded.
And don't worry, ripple effects are a thing.
9861715
It's alright, I'm being melodramatic for fun~
yay~ Fluttershy effect
I can hope that Sombra gets greedy and tries to stop them x3
anyway, for future chapters tldr at the bottom, cause it seems some need a summary of the choices~
9861759
Probably for the best. I did it this time because I wanted the vote results to show first, but I'm apparently not expressing what the options entail clear enough.
Does anyone have any ideas for our Godling’s name and avatar