Tremble Foolish Mortals: The Gods and You, Class Eleven [Period 5, Thursday]
When everyone had been sitting in the classroom a good ten minutes without Ares showing up, Krycek and Sam took matters into their own hands. A rushed and impatiently whispered conference later, they were standing in front of the class, neither of them looking as though they were entirely sure where to start.
"So," Krycek began, after an awkward pause. "We normally cover legitimate gods in class, but there are also those who play at being gods. False gods."
Sam took a seat on top of Ares's desk, "And it's very important to be able to spot a false god, because they can wreak just as much, if not more, havoc than a real god. Yes, I know that sounds impossible, but trust me that it could happen. People who believe in a false god can follow just as unquestioningly as those who believe in a real god, but a false god usually feels less of a responsibility to his worshippers. First thing to look at is the eyes. For instance, flashing, glowing eyes are not a good sign."
"Or completely black eyes," Krycek added. "Gods also shouldn't have to, say, possess the body of a human in order to interact. Real gods should have the ability to either need no physical body, or have one of their own."
Sam glanced at Krycek quizzically over the black eyes part, but then nodded, "No, they definitely shouldn't have to enter a human body, particularly through either the mouth or the base of the neck, leaving a small scar or irritation in their wake." She very carefully didn't look at Kawalsky assuming he was there.
Krycek gave her a quick look of his own, frowning slightly. "They might have powers that are more than human, or, at least, abilities that may make them seem godlike, but that could very well be advanced technology instead. It may be impressive, but that doesn't make them gods for weilding it, especially if they have less than generous intentions towards people in general."
"One of the easiest, if not most covert, ways for an alien to conquer a society," Sam continued, wondering exactly what Krycek knew and how he knew it, "is for the alien life form to infiltrate a human being and tailor their actions to fit an existing religious belief structure. As Krycek said, they will use their technological advantages to achieve their own ends. Also, in many cases this technology has also been adapted so that only the alien in question can use it, further supporting their claims to godhood. Let me repeat, however, because this is important--technology and glowing, or black, eyes, do not make someone a god. For that matter, neither does bad fashion sense."
All set to pick up the thread of the speech, the sudden turn to questionable clothing choices made Krycek give Sam a suddenly baffled glance, pausing a moment. "Right. So, really, the burden of proof lies on the so-called 'gods', but even in the face of a very convincing example, it's better to doubt first, beg forgiveness - or say 'I told you so' - later."
Sam wasn't sure what the baffled glance was about. "Anyway, there are two parts to today's assignment. The first part is to come up with at least two reasons--based on your own observations and today's class--as to why Ares isn't a god. Any theories about what he could be instead are also welcomed. The second part is to figure out how to contain Ares's 'godlike' powers, or how to get him to leave Fandom. Um, you might not want to take any notes on that part of the discussion."
[ooc: Class today is cowritten with carter_i_am, who also came up with the activity, because she is awesome. WAIT FOR OCD IS UP.]
[ Class Roster|Syllabus|Previous Classes]
"So," Krycek began, after an awkward pause. "We normally cover legitimate gods in class, but there are also those who play at being gods. False gods."
Sam took a seat on top of Ares's desk, "And it's very important to be able to spot a false god, because they can wreak just as much, if not more, havoc than a real god. Yes, I know that sounds impossible, but trust me that it could happen. People who believe in a false god can follow just as unquestioningly as those who believe in a real god, but a false god usually feels less of a responsibility to his worshippers. First thing to look at is the eyes. For instance, flashing, glowing eyes are not a good sign."
"Or completely black eyes," Krycek added. "Gods also shouldn't have to, say, possess the body of a human in order to interact. Real gods should have the ability to either need no physical body, or have one of their own."
Sam glanced at Krycek quizzically over the black eyes part, but then nodded, "No, they definitely shouldn't have to enter a human body, particularly through either the mouth or the base of the neck, leaving a small scar or irritation in their wake." She very carefully didn't look at Kawalsky assuming he was there.
Krycek gave her a quick look of his own, frowning slightly. "They might have powers that are more than human, or, at least, abilities that may make them seem godlike, but that could very well be advanced technology instead. It may be impressive, but that doesn't make them gods for weilding it, especially if they have less than generous intentions towards people in general."
"One of the easiest, if not most covert, ways for an alien to conquer a society," Sam continued, wondering exactly what Krycek knew and how he knew it, "is for the alien life form to infiltrate a human being and tailor their actions to fit an existing religious belief structure. As Krycek said, they will use their technological advantages to achieve their own ends. Also, in many cases this technology has also been adapted so that only the alien in question can use it, further supporting their claims to godhood. Let me repeat, however, because this is important--technology and glowing, or black, eyes, do not make someone a god. For that matter, neither does bad fashion sense."
All set to pick up the thread of the speech, the sudden turn to questionable clothing choices made Krycek give Sam a suddenly baffled glance, pausing a moment. "Right. So, really, the burden of proof lies on the so-called 'gods', but even in the face of a very convincing example, it's better to doubt first, beg forgiveness - or say 'I told you so' - later."
Sam wasn't sure what the baffled glance was about. "Anyway, there are two parts to today's assignment. The first part is to come up with at least two reasons--based on your own observations and today's class--as to why Ares isn't a god. Any theories about what he could be instead are also welcomed. The second part is to figure out how to contain Ares's 'godlike' powers, or how to get him to leave Fandom. Um, you might not want to take any notes on that part of the discussion."
[ooc: Class today is cowritten with carter_i_am, who also came up with the activity, because she is awesome. WAIT FOR OCD IS UP.]
[ Class Roster|Syllabus|Previous Classes]