Arcadia
Arcadia is, in short, the land of the afterlife before death. It is a place to resolve your regrets and grudges in life before fading away into nothing and having your soul remade. After all, it wouldn't do your rebirth any good if you were full of anguish. It's said that this lingering anguish is where the first instances of evil came from.
Adhaya is the god of life (Adhaya), and they'll do their best to erase your regrets. They will go to any and every length, even if it causes more harm than good. These lengths, however, do and will never include going outside of Arcadia. After all, you wouldn't want any vengeful spirits creeping up on you while you were asleep and then ripping your heart from your chest now, would you? Even the most docile of people can do crazy things if they're hurt enough.
To enter Arcadia, one either has to die with regrets or hold Adhaya's chosen item and pass the test of the Watchers. The chosen item changes each year, and the questions asked by the Watchers appear to vary randomly. Sometimes they can ask you to do impossible math questions in your head, sometimes they ask about history that never happened, and sometimes they simply ask you your name.
In reality, the Watchers aren't necesarily alive or seperate entities themselves. They're created out of the broken fragments of the deceased's regrets that could not be resolved. They're the guardians of Arcadia, and they're extremely strict with who they allow in. They appear to those they look fondly upon as red, glowing eyes peering out at them from the infinite darkness of the forest canopy. They appear to those they hate as dark, humanoid shadows who sulk around on the dark, unseeable ground.
While the entrance to Arcadia may appear emotionally scarring, the inside is a cozy paradise. Despite the crude stone furnature, every table and chair is more comfortable than a plush sofa. The tea is also quite nice. Adhaya will make some specifically to your tastes when you first arrive, and that blend will somehow last forever.
Once you've eased your regrets, your ghostly form will fade away, leaving your regrets to be eaten by the Watchers. After your afterlife, you will become a part of Shivani's castle (Place page for Shivani's castle here), a blank slate to be recreated, better this time.
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