Sir,

Most of us have indeed heard the news surrounding the "Quest to Divinity", it is hard not to really, R.I.S.E has become the kind of topic one has to actively avoid, to not hear about it constantly.

Now, while I appreciate that you are apparently wanting to set the record straight on the entire ordeal, I must point out that you have laid bare preciously little information in your writing, namely, the limitation on how many links within the chain Essence is able to travel upward. The rest, sadly, amounts to words that feel good to think about for a moment, an appeal to our emotions, to just believe that you are a good, dependable person, that we should all trust and believe in, for the good of everybody!


We still do not know what R.I.S.E is supposed to stand for.

Pandora has chosen You because she believes you to do a good job in whatever she might plan, and because you've dedicated time to Her.

What does She stand to gain from this?
- I wish that I could answer that question myself, but this is evidently not something that She wants us to openly raise debates about, considering that I've been twisted into a measly maggot for it, an act that I cannot attribute to a benevolent being, but surely I am just stupid, an utterly foolish, idiotic person.

Perhaps She could grace us with Her voice once again, and shine a light upon all the details that we are yet to know, to cast aside our doubts and convince us of Her apparent benevolence. It would be great too, to have some assurance of truth, while we are at it.


Now, to get into the rest of what you've actually said, oh Distinguished First, why is it that instead of genuinely answering some of those proposed questions, past just the Essence-Flow, you instead make sure to remind us that we MUST participate, so we can match the gains in power of our enemies, our grudges, as you put it? See, to Me, that makes it feel like you've purposefully set things up in such a way, as to make not contributing a thing of impossibillity, if you don't wish to be crushed under the boons of power that others will receive, or the shame that You will receive for foregoing them. It makes me think that it is meant to be a self perpetuating sort of thing, that by doing a little bit of work, and possibly dedicating smidgens of power to those that participate, you eventually reach such a point, that you have to do nothing anymore to keep it going, people will buckle under the pressure of feeling threatened, or weak, in comparison to those that surround them, and finally too become contributors to level the playing fields.

Surely this is only accidentally so, yeah, and not meant to be?

Then, we are all just comrades in this, all part of the crew, all equal, and we need to do it TOGETHER, because this will be a perfect, communal future that we are forging with this, it will be beautiful, grand, exciting and, I hope I don't have to go on to point out to you, and any who read this, that all those pretty words could very well be taken as ... You know, let's call it propaganda, or a dressing up of the truth, to make the entire thing look as good and exciting as it could possibly be, who doesn't want an adventure after all, or better the world, or friends that are all trying to accomplish the same thing? Just thinking about it has me giddy in my boots, or rather, it would have, if I was not only as naive as you all wish to paint me, and more importantly, still a person.

Now, it makes me want to throw up, because questioning the same, grand cause that we are trying to advertise here, has lead to my body being twisted and bent out of shape. My bones have been broken, my flesh has been torn away at, until all that was left after the members of this Order, and Her, were done with me, is my tortured mind, within the body of a maggot, an insect.

I don't need to tell you that this is a pretty awful thing to do to a person, and I CERTAINLY can't say that it has strengthened my belief in R.I.S.E, personally.


Now, I am lucky to have taken this transformative shape, perhaps I will be able to pupate, or whatever insects like me end up doing, and come away reborn, as something better than before, but until that day comes, months from now, I will have to excuse myself.

This carcass isn't going to eat itself, you know, and the competition here is pretty daunting, the real-deal maggots I share it with. I recommend trying eyes, sometimes, Sapience, you get used to the rot, it's like a spice, really!


Until my Rebirth,

Maggot Meloi.


Penned by my hand on the 6th of Chronos, in the year 897 AF.