Larksong Grotto babylon the great

Ryan and I have decided to spree out the remainder of the ritual. If any of this PP is not acceptable, please let me know and I will edit it. She will be telling non-believers to leave, and anyone loyal to Reek and the faith to take part in the beginning (which is just to walk around Reek until a small trough has been made in the dirt). Once we have finished the ritual we will open the meeting up for final posts. Sorry for the wait on this!

They appeared in time, not as quickly as she demanded, but it would do. And none seemed adamant enough to move against her. The crowd became quite populated, but she would not let any being enter the grotto, not yet, not until she had sanctified the space. While waiting for the beasts to appear, Hosannah began to recite a myriad of lowly spoken psalms; they were not in the common tongue, but rather seemed to be a muddying of many, to the point where anyone listening would hear nothing but intense jibberish.

She carried the snake skin with her to each corner of the grotto, placed it down, recited her words, and then plucked it up again. She did this repeatedly, spanning the circumfrence of the interior of the cave. Then,  once the hubub of the gathering overpowered her own focused diatribe, Hosannah stopped. Her teeth carefully grasped the snake skin once more and, placing it before Reek, she sank back upon her haunches. The woman's ruddy back faced the entrance—and the people gathered there—and her voice, directed towards Reek, addressed them all.

I am Kesheph, the Seer. I am equal to Reek, who has assumed his role as the esteemed, faithful, loyal, Cardinal, above me. There was great conviction in her voice as she spoke; yet also, if one were keen to listen to the undertow of finality, a great and stern sense of righteousness. Hosannah was doing her best to officiate, and mimicked the priests of her home. As her voice boomed within the cavern and out, to the waiting ears behind her, she lifted her head proudly.

Today marks the great Tammuz, the longest day of the year. The brightest. The day that Raas' power is at it pinnacle, as we have each felt on this most holy of days. The greatness of the Daystar can be felt by all—impossible to deny. He is here with us; He who warms us, He who feeds us, He who covets our souls. As her voice boomed, she rose up, and then turned to face the entrance to the grotto where their waiting, watching eyes sat perched together. But not all who bask in Him are made pure. Not all have accepted His light, and their hearts reap the darkness, bringing rise to the Heartless. Your leader is not fit to become the esteemed Cardinal as was fortold to me by the Daystar. His spirit harbors the darkness. We gather here, on this holiest of days, to rid Reek of his evil. To cleanse his very soul, and make it fit for a true being chosen by the Lord.

She breathed deeply at this point, her gaze shifting between each set of eyes, each watching face, and with the slow exhalation of her breath, Hosannah bowed her head. Pray with me. If you so love your leader, as he loves you, lend him your strength. His soul has been weakened by temptation, by pain, by grief, and by suffering—but you may help him. Come, join me. She waited a few moments, let the words sink in, and once they had ample time to react with the bowing of their heads (or not, as some would be resistant even now), Hosannah lifted her snout and stepped aside from the door.

Come to me. We will cleanse him. But if you do not believe—if your heart is closed to the Daystar as well as to your love of Reek—then go, and do not return. There will be no place for you among His flock. And to those that lingered, she welcomed them, and told them, You now must form a circle around him. One at the head, one at the tail, one on either side, and then walk. As you walk I will pray to Raas, that he will grant this space the sanctity and safety for the rest of this night, as Reek will need his protection from the darkness. She watched then as bodies turned and began to walk; there was some bumbling simply because Hosannah had forgotten to tell them in which direction they should go, but with a few motions of her snout and some repositioning, she had them moving counter-clockwise.

With each patrol we offer Reek our hearts, we offer him our light, as was given by Raas upon our creation. She would let them keep on walking until the last of the flock had been around him the seventh time, and then by inserting herself in to the line (but careful of the path they had been walking, for it had become a small path around Reek and she would not tarnish it), she had them remove themselves, and stand off to the side within the grotto. An audience.

Before Hosannah chose to continue the ritual, she inspected the path for its depth, and passed @Reek one final look, as if to say, are you prepared? Along the wall were her offerings. The frogs, the feathers, and before her sat the snake skin, carefully piled before her own paws.