Help From Above

[Calliban]

*With a troubled expression Ian Duskwalker slowly kneels in front of the alter. Raising his face to the skies Ian
folds his hands together and begins to speak in an anguished voice to the Gods.*

My heart is heavy as I kneel here and speak to you this day. For days I have been struggling with this and I know not what to do. I am lost and need help. During a conversation with Cleric Doyle I heard something that weighs heavily upon me. Cleric Doyle made mention that there are clerics in the lands that believe battle is a necessary evil. Such words have my heart twisted in knots and torture my mind.

*As a single tear slips down his cheek Ian Duskwalker continues.*

How can any of your servants believe such a thing? How can you allow them to believe such a thing? Necessary evil? There is no such thing as necessary evil. There is simply evil and if there are clerics walking the lands that believe they do evil...then evil is what they shall do.

You know I strive to become one your chosen. I wish to be nothing else. It is my life and my life will be given in return...and yet...I am shaken.

I want to serve but I can not serve the good of the people by performing evil for that is evil in its own right. I want to be your instrument but I can not give myself over to Gods that would allow their servants to perform evil in the name of holiness. I know the lands are torn asunder and the people are in pain and need help but I can not believe that the ends justify the means and I can not believe you do either.

In battle we are your holy grace. We are your light in the darkness and when we must be...we are your judgment. We stain our hands with other's lifeblood to spare your flock the pain and suffering of doing so themselves. We walk hand in hand with death so that others will not have to. It is not a necessary evil. It is a divine duty and priveledge. To see the look in a child's eyes when they see their father return home at the end of a day's work, to see a babe suckling at his mother's breast, to see two young people with love in their eyes...they are the reason we go to battle and there is no necessary evil in that. There is love in our sacrifice and with love we shall prevail.

With necessary evil we shall fall.

*With tears running down his cheeks Ian weeps openly as he implores the Gods above him with hands raised.*

Help me understand but above all never let me do evil and help those who believe they do. Help us all...

[Lavender]

Training in this land is indeed necessary, but for good or evil is in the eye of the beholder. I have been accused of being blinded by my faith in the gods, but yet that accusation does not keep me from my belief or from my training. I train so that I may better serve the people around me. Fighting to keep this world safe, yes necessary, is it evil to do so, I think not. It simply is what it is. I hope this helps.

Rosaline

[Isoyami]

I think the cause of your troubled mind may be a misunderstanding. Doyle is a Cleric of Ben, and as such he focuses his efforts on battle. Indeed, he was given the title of "Holy Warrior" by the Gods for his unceasing crusade against the demons, and it is well deserved.

In my experience, Clerics come in several stripes. There are those Clerics who focus their efforts on fighting the demon hoards, like Doyle. There are Clerics who focus on healing and praying, and are more peaceful in demeanor. Then, there are those Clerics who try to be adept in both fighting and healing, as I do. I seek to use my gifts from the Gods in their fullest: to heal all those that are injured, to bless and restore those who are faltering, and to fight those demons that threaten our lands.

Balthazar and his demon armies are the true Evil in the lands, and we should never forget this. Some peaceful, healing Clerics may regard training as a "necessary evil", in the sense that Clerics need to gain in experience and strength to use blessings, and some of the demons that attack us are powerful and need concentrated defenses to defeat. Some Clerics enjoy the fight, and some clerics think training is a chore. Everyone is entitled to their own thoughts and own opinions, and indeed these differences of opinions can stimulate our minds through debates and discourses.

Perhaps, in a more peaceful world without the threat of constant demon attacks, some Clerics and some adventurers would lay down their swords, and focus on civilian pursuits. I would not think that these Clerics think that they do "evil", as you call it. Clerics indeed perform good works and holy works, and they are not alone. All the adventurers and all professions do good works and fight off the encroaching demons with sword, axe, hammer and staff.

All adventures who fight and train stain their hands with the lifeblood of enemies, and we all walk hand in hand with death, and the Gods. I, for myself, do so gladly and proudly.

The Gods, in their wisdom, do not tell us what to believe, they let each and every one of us follow our own paths.

You are still an initiate, yet you speak with such clarity and conviction, I am happy to hear it. I am sure that in time you can find your answers.

-AIY