The Ritual

"The Ritual" is a song in Act II of the game Stray Gods. It features Merle Dandridge as Aphrodite, Laura Bailey as Grace, Abubakar Salim as Eros, and Troy Baker as Apollo, and Lauren 'Lolo' Spencer as Venus.
== Lyrics == 
*Pantheon Edition
*Green Edition
*Red Edition
*Blue Edition
== Verses ==
=== Breakdown ===
"The Ritual" consists of either four or five verse choices (depending on Grace's first three decisions), and a total of 34 different verses. Additionally, Grace's available red choice in verse 4 will change depending on whether Grace accepted, doubted, or denied Eros' request to inspire Aphrodite during a conversation with him earlier in the scene.
*Green verse choices from Grace show sympathy towards Aphrodite's suffering and express agreement towards proceeding with the ritual.
*Red verse choices from Grace express disagreement with the ritual, either by encouraging Aphrodite to be strong, or by showing sympathy towards who will be affected by it should it happen.
*Blue verse choices from Grace show ambivalence and uncertainty about the ritual, inclining towards leaving the decision up to Aphrodite herself.
The song is split into two different sections: The first two verses consist of Aphrodite expressing her feelings regarding the context of the ritual, and the remaining two or three verses are where Grace and the others formulate their responses. Additionally, each option for verse 3 leads to a different song direction and change in scenery.
==== Verse 1 ====
The first decision has 3 possible verses and affects how Aphrodite proceeds with explaining her grief.
*Green: Aphrodite elaborates on the tragedy of those who were lost, expressing sorrow and misery.
*Red: Aphrodite concentrates on Ares's betrayal, detailing how he contributed to the tragedy.
*Blue: Aphrodite recalls what personally happened to her after the devastation, detailing how she was hurt.
==== Verse 2 ====
The second decision also has just 3 possible verses, similarly determining how Aphrodite continues to tell her story.
*Green: Aphrodite mourns her loss, focusing on her sadness regarding her husband's sacrifice.
*Red: Aphrodite expresses her anger regarding what happened to her, and recollects how her husband saved her.
*Blue: Aphrodite reminisces on what changed for her before and after the loss, reminding herself of how her husband made the greatest sacrifice.
==== Verse 3 ====
The third choice, which begins Grace's response, has 7 possible verses. In addition, Grace's decision here determines what musical direction the song moves to, and how the scenery changes.
*Green (2 variations): Grace reciprocates Aphrodite's sadness, changing to a sorrowful ballad on a beach ("Lost in a Moment").
*Red (2 variations): Grace directly questions the ritual by expressing the futility of it and reminding Aphrodite that people care about her, switching to a defiant rock number at a juxtaposed funeral/wedding ("Everybody").
*Blue (3 variations): Grace shows mixed feelings about Aphrodite's plan, transitioning into an inquisitive swing jazz piece surrounded by paparazzi ("The Only Way to Go").
Also determined in verse 3 is the length of the song. Should Grace's response here match in color to at least one of Aphrodite's earlier verse choices, the song will have 4 total verse decisions, skipping over verse 4. Otherwise, it will have 5. The blue option here is an exception, as that always leads to a 5-choice song.
==== Verse 4 ====
Decision four has 12 possible verses, 4 for each song direction chosen in verse 3. The color choice here determines who will sing. Additionally, either Grace or Eros will sing as a result of the red option, depending on whether Grace accepts or doubts/refuses Eros' request to inspire Aphrodite during an earlier conversation.
*Green (3 variations): Apollo expresses support towards Aphrodite's decision, showing an understanding of the pain she has endured.
*Red - Eros (3 variations): Eros laments for the continuous pain that has been caused by previous instances of this ritual, exclaiming that doing it once more will result in the cycle of pain repeating.
*Red - Grace (3 variations): Grace expresses her concern for what will happen to Venus after the ritual takes place, wondering if she will disappear over time.
*Blue (3 variations): Aphrodite encourages Venus to be strong and go through with the ritual but hesitates regarding a lingering feeling of uncertainty.
Should Grace's choice in verse 3 result in a song consisting of only 4 decisions, Eros will automatically sing a verse here by default, skipping over this decision and moving to verse 5.
==== Verse 5 ====
The final decision of this song has 9 possible verses, 3 for each song direction chosen in verse 3. The verse chosen here determines whether or not Aphrodite goes through with the ritual. In a 4-decision song, the decision for verse 4 is skipped over, jumping from verse 3 directly to here.
*Green (3 variations): Grace either expresses support towards Aphrodite deserving mercy or acknowledges that she cannot sway Aphrodite from her decision. Aphrodite ends the song by performing the ritual.
*Red (3 variations): Grace either tells Aphrodite she has the courage and strength to overcome the pain or stresses that there are those who will be there to support Aphrodite in her time of need. Aphrodite decides not to perform the ritual.
*Blue (3 variations): Either Grace tells Aphrodite that she has no authority to decide for her whether or not to perform the ritual, leaving the decision in her hands, or Aphrodite shuts out Grace's counsel and makes the decision for herself. Aphrodite ends the song by performing the ritual.
Category:Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical songs