Ritual of the Rose

Part One

When the first rose blooms, a ceremony is held to decide the Rose Priestess. This happens every ten years. The maiden must be eight years old and must be the purest of all of them.

Part Two

An animal is placed at the bottom of the well. The girls, not understanding what is going on, all crowd around the well. The women and men tell them that they're trying to get it out. The girl who stays at the well the longest is the next Maiden.

Part Three

The maiden is taken to the shrine, where she is raised by the priests. She is trained for her job as the Rose maiden. While she trains, she is pampered and better off than she would have been if she hadn't been chosen. The priest believe this would keep the maiden's purity.

Part Four

On the tenth year of her training, when the last rose dies, she purifies herself in the sacred river. Then she will walk through the village to the Rose Temple and lay on the slab in the center of the village. Once there, the high priest is to carve her heart out upon this slab when the moon is at it's highest. Life returns to the village.

If the ritual should fail, darkness will cover the entire village and death will come to all.