THOUGHTS ON what it would be like for Blade Which Strikes Twice and xanthe to discuss their cults religious beliefs together? what they might agree on, what they might disagree on, maybe surprisingly able to help each other with own personal realizations etc? (i also just like hearing about twice's religion so this is also a way to allow u to share more of that too. thinking about twice rn because Artfight :3)
OOOOOH HELLO HELLO YESSS THIS IS AN INTERESTING THOUGHT!!! also this reminds me i never finished writing and posting that other infodump i started about twice's religion and how it works, oop-
BUT ANYWAY!!! oh that's a fun thought. so twice's religion, mazzakarranism (god what a mouthful) (i love it though), is at its heart about self improvement.
the base principle of mazzakarranism is that you have an obligation to always be improving, in one way or another, whatever that means for you. never be satisfied with what you have, always want more, always TAKE more at any cost.
and another side of that is that it's also a HIGHLY individualistic faith. mazzakarr is the apex predator and he hunts alone, and his followers must aspire to eventually become as strong as he is (if not stronger) (not that he'd ever let anyone live long enough to ACTUALLY get stronger than him <3 but maybe he'll give them his blessing, or just eat them. tasty treats for him.)
(also yes mazzakarr being a hyena is an intentional bit of irony there/a nod to him being a fucking hypocrite in many ways, bc hyenas are pack hunters and notably NOT individualistic creatures)
BUT ANYWAY!!!! ough i might need to let this cook more in my brain, but one thing i'm immediately thinking about is xanthism's whole thing with disease and intentionally contracting diseases. tbh, twice might fuck with that.
bc mazzakarranism is about self improvement, yadda yadda, but TWICE was raised in a sect of it that's based in extreme social darwinism, survival of the fittest, etc etc. they would see that as a FASCINATING way to test your strength and commitment to your god. pushing your body to its limits and fighting to survive a disease you intentionally gave yourself? that fucks, to twice. they're all in! they may not be interested in any other reasoning behind it, but they're very into that.
i think the big thing that twice would not be able to get over or wrap their mind around is the idea of worshipping a specific *person* after death, or showing that much reverence to a corpse. 'cause, like. yeah, twice is a murder cultist, and their religion is based heavily in death, but it's more in what death can *get you*, specifically the deaths of others. the idea of attaching any significance to a corpse beyond eating it (therefore taking the body's strength into yourself, meaning their death was *for you* to improve) just would not compute to them.