Aquila
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Aquila
Character Overview
Aquila is the King of Miiltaan.
Physical Appearance
Bio
Down the hill from where he sat, Oliver looked upon the uproar of the festival below. The Festival of Spirits was in full array, with the merchants, and the different lands' banners lining the streets of Van Kalmar. Sitting around the fire, Oliver looked at his Grandfather and asked "Morfar Aquila, Why do the Wynndars call this a Balefire instead of a bonfire?"
The old King lowered his cup and looked at his Grandson, his promised future heir and smiled "Because a long time ago, it was forbidden to participate in the rituals of our forebears. The word you just used, 'bonfire' is actually a mutated version of the true word." He paused for a moment, then continued. "Oliver, what do you know of the Festival of Spirits?"
Oliver sat straighter and replied "It's a gathering of family and friends. A time to remember our history and plan for our future."
Aquila smiled, and said "Ah, my good lad, you're right." He could see that Oliver was proud of himself. Before too much time passed, Aquila began speaking again "And you are so very, very wrong."
Oliver didn't know what to make of this new knowledge. Aquila looked across the circle at his wife, Lunia who was cautiously quiet about it all.
"The Festival of Spirits was, to our ancestors not only a time of remembrance, but also of penitence, of sacrifice, and of protection. I know that you've learned some of the rituals from our history - particularly those related to magic and the worship of Asgård. Among those, how many are rituals of blood?"
Oliver thought for a moment and responded "There's the first battle ritual, the coming of age ritual..." Oliver continued listing rituals, needing to pause for longer between each as he recollected them to his Grandfather. Aquila listened and nodded, waiting for the 12 year old Prince to finish.
When Oliver at last finished, Aquila smiled and said "You've done well to remember so many, furste. Do you recall why they are rituals of blood?" This question caught Oliver off-guard a bit. Aquila noticed his hesitance to reply and so began again "They are blodingen because to properly commemorate the Festival of Spirits requires pure, unmarred bones of prey and foe to be soaked in a mixture of sprit and herbs, including rosemary. To ensure the bones were not harmed, our ancestors took great care to use sacrificial beasts for the bones... and they did not wish to waste any part of something they considered sanctified." Aquila motioned towards the great blaze below them and said "Fire is a sacred object, Oliver. It burns, it consumes, it harms and destroys anything in its path. Fire also is a tool of creation and an element of life itself. Without fire, a forest grows weak due to the deadfall around the bases of the trees, which creates homes and dens for animals which eat the tree. There are also seeds which will not produce saplings until they have been heated enough to crack the hard outer shell, exposing the true seed of a great fir."
Aquila paused to take a drink from his cup, and continued explaining "So was the Festival of Spirits created around this tremendous fire which burns hot enough to turn the soaking bones into ash and smoke, warding off spirits which would come to do harm to our families. So you see, this is truly a BoneFire. Our ancestors retained as much as possible of their heritage during the Occlusion of Troy. Now that We have been released from the religious oppression that period brought to us, we can once again see our progenitors in ourselves, and we celebrate it." Aquila smiles "Consider the idea that even in Wynnd, there were occasions where large fires were made during the summer. What does that tell you about the people who made those fires from bales of hay?
Oliver smiled as the realization came upon him "Those people were still worshiping Asgård right under the noses of the priests of Troy!"
Aquila chuckled "Those dirty heretics!"
Both Oliver and Aquila laughed at the thought. Aquila took another drink and watched his grandson's mind revel in the new knowledge he had discovered.
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