It&#39;s the same damn things you&#39;re so quick to believe

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Huh.

[This is weird. Xanth is already checking out the pool, so Riku makes his way to the fire side of the room, running a hand over the robes and the towels. They don't interest him that much, though, so he comes back toward the pool, looking towards the stained glass windows.]

More of those windows.

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W-Weird. Can-- can you see a-anything through th-them?

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[There is a disembodied voice that floats in from the hallway; it sounds calm, serene, but a bit out of it. The voice is obviously male.]

Hello there, my children. Could I help you with something?

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[WHOA VOICE FROM THE HALL. Riku is a little bit surprised, but he isn't too bothered by it. After all, there's a chance that someone else had the same idea as he did and is exploring the temple too, right?

Or maybe someone actually -lives- in this place.

Riku glances at Xanth, quirking an eyebrow, then glances back to the door.]

Who's there?

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[The sound of the voice moves into the room; maybe there's also a sound of shuffling feet, but still there isn't any physical evidence of a person.]

Be at peace. I'm the priest of the Red Church.

Are you looking for something?

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[The fact that the voice is now -in the room with him- and he still can't see anything? Now, -that's- a bit offsetting. But Riku's still determined to play it off, especially considering there doesn't seem to be anything threatening as of yet.]

The Red Church? Is that what this place is called?

[They'd entered through a -temple-, though.]

We were just looking around. After all, nobody's ever come here before, right?

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[There's the soft scrape of shoes on the tile near the pool, and the water ripples from the edge.]

Yes, the Red Church. Perhaps you'll find what you've been looking for, within these walls.

[The voice is detached, very serene but not quite together.]

Though I'd advise you to be careful. There are things behind these doors you wouldn't want running loose.

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[A church and a temple are dissimilar -enough-, though.

Riku notes the ripples in the pool, watching them to see if the voice's source is actually stepping into the water or merely touching it.]

Like what? We haven't seen anything so far.

[He raises both eyebrows meaningfully towards the ripples in the pool; yeah, you might be here, mysterious voice, but he can't -see- you.]

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Wh-why-- wh-- why c-can't we s--see you?

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Because you aren't using your eyes.

[Whether or not he intended to, the voice ignores Riku's question. The shuffling sounds move over toward the door.]

If you have any sins to which you would like to admit, please visit me in the confessional. I can heal wounds of the heart, but that pool can heal wounds of the body.

I hope you boys make it safely back to your rooms.

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[-Really?- Riku can't help but glance at the pool as the voice describes its properties; it can heal wounds? -Awesome-. That's a great find.

See, Xanth, this was -totally- worth it! That smirk has been restored full-force.]

We'll be fine.

[He pauses. And then...]

Thanks. For the advice.

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...y-yeah. Th--thanks.

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You are quite welcome.

[The door creaks slightly, as if pushed by a breeze, and for all intents and purposes the priest appears to have left.]

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[Riku's grinning as the priest leaves. He looks to Xanth once it's clear that he's left, giving a half-shrug.]

What do you think? We've about looked at everything in here, by this point. Wanna move on? Or...

[Riku trails off, giving the pool a glance. By this point he's mostly all healed up from his run-in with the tiger, but he can't help but wonder if it would have helped. Or to what extent it -would- help.

Something to come back here and check out, if he had anything to say about it.]

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[Any aches or pains Xanth may have will immediately vanish with a cool soothing wave of feeling, like a breeze inside of his body. If he's perfectly healthy and in tip-top shape, he'll just feel somewhat energized.

The scars, however, remain.]

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[Well, way to take the initiative, Xanth! Riku's actually a tiny bit surprised when he goes straight for it, but after a moment passes and nothing bad seems to be happening, Riku steps to the edge of the pool as well. He tugs up his sleeve (he'd taken to wearing long-sleeved shirts while his wounds healed; the last thing he wanted to do was let Kairi see them), then kneels to dip his forearm into the pool, where the scabbed-over gashes are almost healed.

It's all about trusting, right?]

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...th-that...

...w-what happened t--to you?

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[For a moment, Riku almost doesn't even hear Xanth's question. Instead, he's checking over his arm in faint surprise--not only is his arm healed now, but the faint stiffness and dull ache in his torso is gone too. The only sign of something that might have been is the faint scarring that remains. He feels--whoa. He feels -fantastic-! Riku's used potions before this, sure, accepted the favor of a healing spell once or twice, but this is entirely different.

Riku glances up just in time to hear Xanth's question. He smiles slightly, shrugging as he stands back up.]

It's like you said before. There are some dangerous things on this ship.

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...r-ready to go, th--then?

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[So close! But it's okay, he'll get you to speak up eventually, Xanth.]

Sure, let's move on.

[As they make their way over to the door, Riku is silent. But as they step out into the hallway, he'll volunteer some more information.]

A couple weeks ago there was a tiger up on deck six. From what I understand, I wasn't the only one to run into it.

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