A cloaked figure strides alone to the temple of the Gods. Standing alone in the hall the small woman pulls back her hood revealing a mane of red flowing head that cascades down her back like a waterfall. Slowly spinning like a wheel, she faces each statue and bows in turn giving the utmost respect to the greater beings of the world she now calls home. Kneeling, eyes cast to the floor, she begins to speak, her words coming slowly and confidently.

“I was not born of your land, but it is my home, and as much a part of me as the heart that beats in my chest. I do not understand the will of the Gods, and can not begin to fathom how much time you must devote to making sure the world works properly. Without you, the fields would not bloom, the trees would not grow for our lumber, and when our loved ones vacate their bodies, they would have no place to go.

The people of this world are still in pain, and still suffering. Perhaps it isn't everyone, only a percentage, but be it one percent or ninety, it is still a portion of the people who's voice should be heard. I fear their prayers fall upon deaf ears, for the Gods do not often speak to us. I am here today as your loyal subject to plead with you. Please hear the words of the people, and respond to them with care, for we are your children, and without your words to guide us we are lost.

As a leader among my people, and so I come here alone before you to humbly ask myself for your wisdom and guidance. There are many things I wish to plead of you today, and I know the life of a God must be busy and filled with twenty hour days and very little sleep. So I will try and wast as little of your time as I can and go straight to the words that have fallen upon my ears.

The first thing my people plead for is some stability in their world. We seam to loose time frequently. We are there one minute and then gone for awhile. When we return it is as though whatever we were working on has progresses, but we have no memory of this time, and it is as if the world has disappeared. While we understand that a short time of this must happen every night, so that we may sleep, it worries the people when it happens at random.

Next is the total disappearance of our armies. They go to lands that have long been vacent of the presence of other people, and suddenly they are gone! Slain by unknown forces. Just last night my close ally sent his entire army to a nearby village with no one there, and none of them returned. Another lost seven hundred archers to fifty warriors that arose from the dead, as they had been killed just minutes earlier. These are troublesome tot he people, and there is no way to mourn the passing of those who served us faithfully in the field, and then were simply taken from us.

Next is the hatred in our lands. The Gods can silence some words from being spoken from our mouths, but fail to keep hate filled references out of our world. While I am in favor of freedom to speak ones mind, we need a set of rules to follow from you. You don't allow pro fain language to escape our lips, but you will allow groups to name themselves after hate groups. I deeply with these two things did not clash for rules with us, but I am compelled to ask for a single standard to follow. You keep offensive language from coming out, but not offensive names. I ask that you put a system in place where the people can pry to you and tell you of an offensive name. Once you have received so many prayers you can then put forth your time and effort to have the name changed. In this way you only hear the loudest prayers, and the time is not spent checking every single name.

Our people come and give to you tithes in exchange for coins from the Gods. They work hard for their tithes as you have worked hard to give us the free land we enjoy so much. However the coins from the Gods sometimes do not arrive, and other times it is though the God of Pranks has given them over, for they disappear while we sleep, leaving behind only a memory of the hard earned tithes we handed over so freely and ended up with nothing in return. Please reign the God of Pranks, for the people suffer without reason.

You have risen some of the people to demigod status, but you do not give them a clear set of rules as to how to act in your stead. These demigods, or 'moderators' as you call them, are great people, who sometimes get confused. They ban some people for what seams like no reason at all, and stalk them through the world seeing where they go waiting for any excuse to banish them. When no reason is found, they banish them while they are not even in our world. They wait until these people leave for other places and place magical blocks so that they may not return. I know there are two sides to each story, but it gives me great concern that there appears to be very few guidelines to follow. I ask only that you provide any who you raise to a higher status, that you limit their powers to only be used under specific circumstances.

The people take great pride in our honor, but that honor you give us, you take away for nothing but defending ourselves. I know not all is going to be fair in the world, but we ask that you rethink taking back that honor we fought so diligently for. I know not how to fix this other than making the gifts of honor not fade when defending ourselves, perhaps only when we attack those who are smaller than us. We have no choice in who sees fit to attack us, and must fight to defend ourselves. In this we have no choice, but our honor is stripped from us regardless.

Last is the contest the Gods have put forth for a Queen of the land. I am grateful for the opportunity to be here among so many great candidates, but I see that you have already banished some of our numbers. I know not what rules were broken, and no explanation was given. Please, if you are going to banish us, at least give cause. I am proud to stand next to so many worthy women of the land, and that includes Vulgarwolf and Tenakaa. They both showed great inner and outer beauty in their entries, but were taken from the contest. I ask that you return them to our sides to see this through. One of us will be Queen and serve you to the best of the abilities within us. I ask only that you let those who wish to enter make it to the final entry date. I understand you will be choosing a few to be voted upon after another two or three days. There is no harm in letting everyone stat until that time, so again I beg of you to return our people to us unless they have violated some rule I am not aware of.”

With that, Phoenixe rises to her feet and replaces the hood that hides her features. She turns to the door and makes her way back to the street from which she came disappearing into the crowd, another face among the sea. . .

~Phoenixe
Servant of the People