GoldenCat/HeavenHouseEscape
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Escape from the Heaven House
Long, tense moments passed ever since Selina went through the door. Moon, ready for war, Selina, not thinking she could stop him. Long, tense moments, all the girls of the heaven hosue not quite knowing what to say there on the hall... until Red Sparrow Song looks up the window, wondering if Moon won't come back, and goes pale, "...oh lord... the Black Cloaks, they are coming here!"
Fiona: "Oh, lord.. they are after us, right?" She looks over her shoulder then, looking down at the basement, "And Moon's gang... "
And even if they aren't, they know who we all are..
Kanti: Kanti tenses as she hears the accouncement, thinking about the undead policemen
Are they from Her?
Come to take me home?
Come to take me away?!
No, She would send Maera ... She would send the sisterhood ...
but ... the General knows you ...
No ... She said She would come ...
Wait for Her, fight all the others
"... Yes, they've come for us." she says calmly, though her heart pounds in her chest "... We're not going to let them take us."
Rain of Unspoken Words: "Hey now!" Rain said light-heartedly, having absolutely no clue what kind of soldiers these black cloaks would be, but radiating an aura of confidence all the same. "Why would you let them take you when you could die in viscerally bloodily defiance?". She shook her head, not understanding these people. "Can't you two put up a pique resistance? I'll handle my share, that's what I'm there for. Sorta."
Fiona: "We are not dying!" Fiona moves frantically to the window, turning. They would not take her again. She had to keep Kanti safe. "They are coming closer! The pack... we have to warn the pack! But if we go, we would still be in there when they came in.."
"Sparrow, can you girls delay them...? In any way...?" She looks at Rain and Kanti, "Do you have any ability that could... you know... do something?"
Kanti: Kanti smiles at Fiona after she looks away from the fae creature.
"I can fight." she says simply "I will fight, to protect you, to protect here. They are men and ghosts and if they try to harm you they will go on to Lethe."
Kanti doesn't speak loudly, but with surity.
This I can do.
I can help them.
I can help Fiona.
I can help Moon.
I .. want to help Moon?
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain makes a show of thinking for a moment, tapping a finger on her chin... "Do something? I have two kinds of something to choose from, lil'one. There's the illusion kind where I turn this place into a temple..." she pauses, then smiles wickedly. "...and then there's the wholesale slaughter kind, where I turn this place into a graveyard."
Vivian: "I will delay them, dear. No one hauls girls from within my house, oh they don't.", Comes the Madam's voice up the stairs. "But even the old garrison was smart enough to surround a building, dear. It will be hard for you girls to get all of you out even through the back."
Fiona: "... you want to fight, right? You think we can hold this? Or just make them escape...?"
She breathes hard, walking up the stairs, "Every moment you can give us, Vivian... tell me of this temple thing, Rain!"
She looks to Kanti, "And if all else fails... then we fight, Kanti? You protect me? I could teleport us out, but that would leave Moon's... and I don't know where I could take us! So, we'd have to..."
Kanti: "Then I can go out to the front, and keep them very busy there," Kanti says. "You can take the girls out the back when they're distracted. Someone will need to hold them off."
Kanti nods to herself, her face calm though her heart beating in her chest.
"Then we can run, once the girls are safe."
Rain of Unspoken Words: "Oh, well, you know how it is. They come looking for a brothel, and find an immaculate temple? Oldest raksha trick in the book! Get everyone down in the basement and I can seal it off completely!"
She pondered then for a moment how completely... But figured the Dark Angel would get angry if she left them all to suffocate. Probably.
Fiona: "They are already at our doorstep, though, they will see the change... we will need to knock them out, bring them in here, and then Rain puts it up to covers us from more!"
She looks at Kanti, "How fast you think you can do it? Want me to try to hypnotize them first? I can do that, but... if it doesn't work..."
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain shakes her head, changing it right in front of their eyes was the best part
Kanti: "I don't know how many there are ... I won't take long ..." She says, glad that Fiona seems to be taking charge.
As it should be.
Fiona: The half-symbol of the sun blazes on her forehead, and suddenly, her body becomes more supple, her reflexes honed to an unnatural level. "Well then, Rain. Seems like we will have an Immaculate Graveyard."
Below, they hear Vivian berating the Black Cloaks.... "They are already dead anyway. Just make them stop walking." This time. This time, she would protect them. She had failed with royalty, but she would suceedwith those prostitutes.
And they would have her dead before having her in chains again.
Kanti: Kanti assumes the beautific pose of the Viridian Radiance Form for the second time this day, wrapped in a soft green glow as the trailers of light dance about her.
Beautiful.
Innocent.
Saintly.
Her skin starts to glow, then to burn, the flames softly roling off her, not intense enought to burn the brothel yet, but they would burn brighter before the ghosts were gone. The Fragrant Incense Spear starts to shed more smoke, a gentle, calming smell filling the air.
As she starts to walk along the hallway, iris blossoms bloom beneath her feet.
Glamour: And then, all around them... the brothel changes. It changes into brass, into green and red. Emeralds dangle from the ceiling, and statues, and murals... of Lady Erembour in orgies. Of the Prince of Rapine and his marked concubines. Statues of Alveua forging men into obscenities. Each place where one would see a represensation of a Immaculate Dragon, there was that. Same shape as a Immaculate Temple, but in every detail, different. And outside, a great image of the Ebon Dragon greets the Black Cloaks...
Rain of Unspoken Words: Moments after the brothel becomes a tribute to one of the most known and feared of the Yozis, essence and gossamer weave together to form a great black grimcleaver in Rain's hand, lettered in gold and lined with silver. Swinging the great weapon up on her shoulder, she waits in readiness for the Black Cloaks, completely oblivious to the fact that the temple hadn't come out quite right
Kanti: ... What is this place?!
...What had happened here?
...This was no immaculate temple!
"What have you done?" she softly asks of the fey creature.
Rain of Unspoken Words: "Suddenly, Rain seems to notice her handiwork. She taps her chin with her free hand and ponders. "We seem to be having some... Technical difficulties..."
Fiona: Fiona runs towards the door... and sees the change. And grits her teeth.
Shouldn't have trusted Rain! Idiot, Idiot, IDIOT!
She will be the death of us all!
She goes to the door, flowing like blood as she pushes Vivian and Red Sparrow Song, the two at the door berating the Black Cloaks not to enter, in.
"Sparrow, Vivian, out of the way!!" The Black Cloak notices it is her, and knives go her way, passing through her cloak and utterly missing her form... as she closes the door behind her. "Hide somewhere here!" She would ask for Rain to open the basement, if she trusted the fey right now. A nagging feeling in the back of her mind told her they might not even be alive...
She should have tried to hypnotize them. Too late now.
"Kanti, they will come burting thrtough the door any minute now! Go out _first_, I'll protect them...!"
Any way I can
Kanti: Kanti bows. This was easy. Fiona took the doubt away. She knew what to do. And so Kanti did too.
She rises from her bow and starts to run for the doors, long black hair training out behind her, letting the cloak about her shoulders fall away revealing an expanse of scarred black skin, fire burning inside her, caged by the markings crisscrossing her skin. Each of her footsteps is a brilliant white iris blossom with a shadow of flame.
When she reaches the door, she leaps over the first two Black Coats, landing behind them, the spear a smoke-wreathed blur as it sends the five nearest Black Coats onto their next lives.
These she could kill without guilt.
These she could send on to their next lives, and swiftly.
"Come! Dance with me!"
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain shrugs off the weight of her mistake like a heavy coat and looks around for a moment.
It really was a nice temple, despite what the girls had to say about it...
Taking off down the green-carpeted aisle of the temple, Rain sweeps up behind the giril named Kanti, dragging misfortune against the ground, leaving a trail of black mist in her wake as she brings the weapon up in a gaint arc, striking three at once before turning the blade on its side, quickly switching to defense against these unknown enemies.
Nemessary: There's one on the back, taller, stronger.
"Kanti, aren't you? The Vestal's little whore?"
From within the cloak, four weapon-arms come out, soulsteel at the tips of each. On his hand, a daiklave. Within the cloak, his eyes burn a metallic hue "She makes whores. This was made by the Celebrant, Kanti. She makes warriors. Prepare to die."
Too many on the way, though. Soon... she will either die by them, or him.
Kanti: Kanti raises the spear in an easy arc as she weaves amongst the incense dulled blows of the Black Cloaks, deflecting the one strike that might injure her.
The flames roll off her, lapping around the men surrounding her, the air heavy with incense and heavenly scents, then she leaps with a blast of flame, spinning in the air, immaculate robes flowing behind her.
She lands with twin iris bursts before him, and then she blurs and changes, living though all the lives of her soul.
First she is a young girl, barely out of her 10th summer and she hits him.
Then she is an old man, a sailor from the West, and he hits him.
Next, a farmer from the realm can be seen, and he hits him.
An air aspected girl, wreathed in ice, and she hits him.
An earth aspected woman, elderly, toughened, and she hits him.
A merchant from Halta, clad in fine silks, and he hits him.
And then standing in their place, Kanti hits him too.
"I am Her's, yes, but I was not made by Her."
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain stands in wonder as the girl's spear pierces five more enemies, destroying the strange one as easily as the rest.
She was jealous
Not wanting to be outdone, she brings misfortune to four more Black Cloaks in two economic swings.
Kanti: The last Black Coat sent on to lethe, Kanti drops out of her fighting pose, slinging the spear on her back, still a creature of flame, the fires within her still dancing in a cage of black scars.
What now? .. hide them!
She walks over to the leading nemissary, carefully picking up his daikliave, then his body, starting to drag it towards the ... temple.
"We need to hide them now, Rain." she says to the bizzare fey lady.
Rain of Unspoken Words: As they finish off the last of the black cloaks, Rain follows Kanti's lead in picking up bodies to hide... somewhere. "Well.." she says. "I purposefully hid the basement entrance. I should think that would do."
Fiona: "Yes, if you hadn't turned the building on a bloody homing beacon..." Fiona says, walking out. "We have to keep them safe. It is my mission, for Moon, for Selina." For the Holyswords, whom I couldn't protect... "It is our duty to keep them safe. And that temple telling everyone 'burn me' isn't... very good at it."
Rain of Unspoken Words: "Oh come on. It's not that bad. Look on the bright side-- they burn it. Stone doesn't burn. When they're gone, the whole thing goes away and the whorehouse'll be right back as it started!"
Moon rushes through the occupied streets of the Boil... and to the House of Heavenly Pleasures. Or to where said brothel should be. Because when he gets there... it is anything but. A grim temple of obsidian and brass stands where the Heaven House once stood, the great carved figure of the Ebon Dragon looming above it, depictions of his souls on murals along the walls.
In front of this obscene site, he sees Kanti, Rain, and many of the Black Cloaks... more heavily armed and armored than he had seen them before. Kanti, going through multiple incarnations, each a strike on a Black Cloak... greater, larger, soulsteel daiklave in hand, four striker arms coming from his back to kill her... looking menacing, powerful.
Kanti’s strikes go through him like light through darkness, her spear destroying the darkness of his mantle and dead form with sacred prowess, mere pieces of the once-proud war-body falling to the ground, his ghost screaming in revelation as it is sent to Lethe.
Rain, on the other hand... wields Misfortune, an axe almost greater than her, covering the Nemessaries in shards of glass before cutting them – even four in a single strike.
Moon witness it from the distance... the black cloaks all on the ground, and Fiona steps out of the house, yelling at Rain... and then, he gets there.
Seventh Moon: What the fuck?!
He watches it all with wide eyes, taking in the battle and the black shrine that stood where home should have been. Black Cloaks fall, littering the streets and his hurried pace slows as he draws closer. Staring at the dead men. Staring at the temple. Then finally looking at the girls with an expression wiped clean of all belief. Then, the words pour forth.
"... what the fuck just happened? Where is everyone? Where the hell'd my gang go?!" he thrust a finger towards the dark temple looming behind them. "AND WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?! What did you people do?"
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain turns around to meet Grey, hauling two bodies on her shoulders. "We're having a... theme weekend... you see. The girls all have their own (nicely decorated) 'confession' box where they 'punish' the sick fetishist customers!" She gestures widely with one hand, fumbling and dropping the corpse.
Fiona: Eeep! Moon's back...
Fiona stumbles on the words, taking a step back, slightly afraid of Moon's reaction... not wanting to fail once again. "I... it was Rain's fault! They were coming too fast, we couldn't hide in the basement, we couldn't run away with the surrendering the building, so so so..."
"T-they are all still safe inside, Moon! The Pack, Vivian, Sparrow, they are all still safe!"
For how long? They were coming for all sides, so there will be more here soon...
Kraken: Moon!
And so angry...
Kanti takes a step back from the raging lunar, then another.
"It was to hide the ... Heaven House, Moon ..." she swallows "They're all still inside." she speaks at the same time as Fiona.
Selina de Windia: Selina walks up, much less hurridly then Moon. She hadn't needed to say goodbye to his mentor...or his assistant. She didn't think the assistant was even cognizant of anything besides what she'd just done to him.
And she was going to have to attune to Moon's collar to fix the side effects of that.
Letting her greatcoat swing open as she comes to a stop, diving into the Trance and then examining the structure as it is now, the Windian raises her eyebrows and looks to this Rain.
"Bad faerie!" The sleeve of her greatcoat flaps a bit as she whips her black-gloved right hand up, index finger on that hand pointing toward the fae. "Bad!"
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain gives a n indignant "Hrmph!" and picks the corpse back up. "Well I think it's pretty."
Seventh Moon: Moon wheels on the fae-girl, his eyes flashing as he takes a step towards her. "You did that?! Then un-do it! Get 'um the fuck outta there!"
Kanti: "Welcome back, my lady." kanti says softly, then starts to siddle around to be close to Fiona, away from Moon.
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain shakes her head. "So they can burn down your precious whorehouse and kill everyone in there?" she shrugs "I've no need to listen to you. Please submit a petition to m'lady or the Dark Angel.". She then turns to carry the two corpses back to the Temple to hide them somewhere.
Selina de Windia: "Pretty like a...temple to demons?" Selina says off-handedly, then walks up, stepping between Moon and Rain. "Can you turn it into something else?"
Glamour: The murals on the temple depict the Ebon Dragon, and his souls. And one of them, an old acquaintance of Selina. A form burned into her mind by pain and humilliation. The Prince of Rapine, the Onyx Defiler.
There is a mural for him outside of the temple, and a proof that Selina's legend was far-reaching indeed, for whatever backlash of possibility, whatever whim of the Shinma that changed what it was supposed to be, to this Malfean temple, felt fit to add an image of her amidst those of his prizes...
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain turns birefly to Selina, a childlike thoughtful look on her face. "We~ll... I could. It's an awful chore though.
- Fiona tries to carry one of the Nemessaries, but it is too heavy to her... she does not know wether Rain could undo it or not, but the plan was to hide them, even if now they had to get everyone off the building... or unto the basement... soon. "More will come soon...."
Selina de Windia: Selina...finally notices her own place in the mural. Her eyes narrow. "Wh-wha-what?" She sputters, going cold enough to actually frost the stones and brick around her. The air crackles with cold as little droplets of water vapor condense, freeze, and shatter. "That is not something everyone should know, damn it! "
Kanti: Kanti recoils from Sel, backing further away from the cold and the terror, until eventually she bbumps into the wall of the temple behind her.
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain blinks, and looks up to where Selina is looking, and sees her. She grins and shrugs, resuming her walk back to the temple. "Can I help it if you're famous?"
Fiona: Fiona follows Selina's gaze... and grows cold as well.
She... she was at the mercy of that?!?
She feels like going to Selina, comforting her... but there was more at stake right now. "Rain, you can open the basement, at least? Could we hide everyone there? If you said they can burn everything and they will be safe there..."
Or at least taking everyone away, if they cannot be safe there...
Selina de Windia: Selina's eyes flash a bit as well, then begin shining coldly. Her right hand clenches and unclenches, a small ball of void-energy collecting just below her downturned palm. And it gets bigger, ripping a few shards from the street below, and bigger, till it nearly touches the ground. The Windian brings her hand up slowly, air around her alive with the crackling of small ice-drops bursting as her anima begins to form about her. And yet the energy hovering before her palm grows. Till it's bigger then any she's ever made before, and she doesn't notice it.
Selina points the hand at her part of the mural, the void-power hissing and swirling, dark bolts playing on and off of it as it continues to enlarge. A deep growl comes from her throat, through tightly clenched teeth. Ignoring everything around her, continuing to feed power into her attack -- to wipe that horrible reminder off the face of the world!
They'd seen her oblivion bolts before. But the largest had never promised to be even close to what this would when she unleashed it.
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain nods to... Fiona, was it? "I should be able to open it for us... Probably... Here, follow me."
She enters the temple and walks up to the Mural on the far wall, before dropping the corpses atop the bronze and obsidian alter as if ready for sacrifice. She then reaches under the alter and pulls a heavy bolt open, allowing her to push the solid stone alter back into the statue behind it, revealing a staircase, coughing a bit as a gust of rather stale air and dust greets her.
She is completely oblivious to the Dark Angel's display outside. "There, see?"
Fiona: Fiona has only a passing attention on Rain's display too worried about Selina... and her current display of power. She had been taken down by the Vestal with a far, far weaker blow... she walks to the Dark Angel, getting between her and the wall... "Hey! There are people there! Vivian, Sparrow... you will HURT them!"
My duty is to protect them. My duty to you, to Moon, to Vivian...
Kanti: "Fiona!" Kanti manages to say, terrified, moving over to stand by her, to protect her from the dark angel, her whole body trembling.
Seventh Moon: A hand fell over Selina's shoulder. An arm slipped around her waist. Moon tugged the Windian back against him. He stood in the frozen nexus of her anima, face reddening and worn raw, breath pouring like fog from his bluing lips. His arm began tightening around her slowly and his fingers dug in through the cloth of her coat.
"You break them, I break you darlin'" he whispered in her ear. He watched the two girls who had moved in front of the maddened assassin. "I ain't lettin' you hurt them or anyone in there cause of a fuckin' picture onna brick, a'ite? There's other ways ta take care of it. Let it go."
Selina de Windia: "Get out of my way." Selina growls at the two exalts in front of her, pupils slitting for a moment, like a cat's. Or a devil's. The black orb of energy before her thrums as it slowly sucks air and loose shards of rock into itself, humming like the herald of oblivion, wrath distilled.
And then Moon acts. It only makes her more furious. "How dare you--" She doesn't take her gaze off the hated image before her, nor the two exalts standing between it and her. "Then change it."
Fiona: Fiona trembles, too scared to think much, turning to Kanti... "Can you just... burn the wall? Make it so it's not there anymore without hurting anyone inside?" The question is as much to Selina as it is to Kanti.
Kanti: Kanti looks at Fiona, tearing her eyes from the terrifying version before her, looking at her in incomprehension, then looking towards the wall ... seeing the image ...
That ... that ... that happened to her?
To the Dark Angel?
She looks at it, then forces her legs to move despite their fear, raising the fragrant incense spear and striking the mural again and again and again until the image of pain is wiped away ...
Rain of Unspoken Words: Noticing the person she is talking to isn't around, Rain heads back to the entrance of the temple and sees Selina's mood. "Aim high!" she yells over the furor of her anima, "A little structural damage will keep them from searching too hard!"
Selina de Windia: Kanti destroys one offending image...and another presents itself. Selina swings her arm toward the fae-girl, till the orb of Void is trained on her. And begins chuckling. "You created this..."
Fiona: Fiona rushes in, then, looking at the open altar... "Well, Vivian, Sparrow, everyone is gone inside already! Dark Angel! If you harm her, who's going to close the altar behind us? Or turn the Heaven House back in what it was after they torch it?" She takes a step back, then... looking down then, fearing if Selina won't just change her attack to her... "We should be going, too.... I have some ideas, but, but..."
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain's face moves quickly from playful to an expression of 'slight' worry. "Eeee... Well, not exactly. You really should take your complaint to Nirvishesha, I certainly don't know anything about your ex-secrets, nothing at all!"
Seventh Moon: "No!" Moon snapped at Selina. Widening his stance, he shifted the position of his arm and lifted upwards, swinging the Windian away from Rain and the temple and dropping her back on the ground. Slapping frost off his coat and his hair as he steps back, Moon shakes his head. "No darlin'. Kid's right. Wait till we get everyone outta there first. Then kill the crazy bitch."
Kanti: Kanti looks around from the now smashed mural, towards Fiona ... then she swallows, and starts to walk towards the Dark Angel between her and Fiona, each step a trial for her, terror building in her as she moves closer ...
When Moon flicks the dark angel over ... she stops .. suddenly.
Fiona: "Oh... too late..." She shakes her head, as, at the Heaven House's gate, a few other black cloaks appear, coming from both sides of the street, a few of those who had the district surrounded.... Fiona shakes her head. "And when we are done with those, maybe they will all be around..." She grits her teeth, "Damn it!"
Black Cloaks: They stand at the door, bringing weapons out as they talk. The front one narrows his eyes, grinning. "Right on the description!! Nowhere to hide now, scum..." He moves his head a little to the side, saying loud enough for you all to hear, "Run back, lieutenant... tell the General we found Seventh Moon and the Lover's winged whore."
"We will take you down now. Or an army will. Game over."
Selina de Windia: "Eh--" Selina grunts, finding herself turned away from the whole lot of them, and almost turns back with a snarl on her lips. Almost.
Then the black cloaks appear. Again -- except she's here this time. Facing the largest group, Selina laughs recklessly and finally lets the huge thrumming orb of energy loose, blasting out in a wide beam, small bolts of lightning and void arcing off the main stroke to score buildings along the street on either side, shattering windows. It envelops the leader, and most of his men, continuing around them.
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain whistles appreciatively as the bolt of necrotic essence arcs safely away from her-- appreciative, that is, that it is not pointed in her direction.
She salutes the soldiers inwardly for their noble sacrifice.
Fiona: ... And Fiona sigh in relief. The big ball of darkness was gone at last.... "Sooo...."
She turns to Selina, "You are like me, right? Do you know Sorcery, Dark Angel? Do you know how to Summon?"
Seventh Moon: Moon turned at the sound of the voice, scanning over the ranks of black cloaks filling the narrow streets.
"Aw, shit..." he sighs, rolling his eyes in irritation as he begins to reach into his coat for his smashfists. Selina saved him the trouble.
The entire company was dead before he even looked back down. Moon stared blankly over the swath of devastation that had been cut down the center of the street. " fuck..."
That could have been the girls and everyone in the Heaven House. He'd really gotta have a talk with Selina about where she pointed those fuckers in his city
Kanti: Kanti relaxes too, as the ball vanishes and the Black Coats are swept away, though looking towards the Dark Angel, the slightly haunted look of fear has returned, as she stands to wait for ... whatever happens now.
Selina de Windia: "Yes." Turning to look at them all once more, feeling alot better after having been able to kill something, anything. "I can summon. Why?"
Fiona: "Perfect! Could you summon something that builds a tunnel out for the Pack and the girls on the basement? Or anyone else can?"
"If it is a summon, we don't even have to wait, I can transport us from the basement to anywhere else you want... so, come on, what did you guys do while you were away?" She asks, walking into the Heaven House, wanting others to follow soon...
Selina de Windia: "It takes time to summon something, unfortunately." She looks toward the direction the nemissaries and others had come down. "They'll have heard that. And they'll send more."
The Windian follows her into the Heaven House, face blankly neutral now. "You'll have to give me the time I need to do this."
Fiona: "They won't find us on the basement! And according to Rain, if they brun the temple, the Heaven House will be intact when it is brought back... right, Rain?" Fiona asks, pointedly, wanting to seem menacing, but only enough presence to seem petulant.
"Now, if we do still feel fire down there if they burn... then it might be a good idea to at least stall that, yes!"
Seventh Moon: Shaking off his momentary awe, Moon began pulling on his gauntlets as he followed Fiona and Selina inside. If they were gonna have the whole damn garrison on them now, he at least wanted to break a few before the assassin turned them all to butter again.
"Eh," he shrugged. "We made this old nut-case cry, then Selina molested his toadie. I gotta feather outta it though, so it was cool."
Kanti: Kanti closes her eyes, and does her best to banish the fear within them, then turns and follows Moon into the building.
Selina de Windia: "I didn't molest him, I just showed him something." Selina demures, then looks around the interior of the temple. Still not a place she liked, but at least she wasn't on the walls anymore. Bad enough all of Malfeas probably knew.
"Something he apparently never saw before."
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain nods absently at Fiona, responding mostly to herself... "Right... Probably..."
Seventh Moon: "I don't think Tessies even ever seen a live woman at all... not even sure he's seen a whole dead one..." he answers off-hand, craning his neck as he examined the dark shrine with a growing look of disgust. This was the Heaven House? Shit Vivian would probably find a way to blame him for this, too. He turned his glare on Rain. "You better fuckin' hope it does..."
Fiona: "Oh, right.... so, you made Moon's boss cry, and Selina..."
"You touched that thing? Yuck. Yuck. Hey, wait... it's not his that dirty on your bosom, is it?" She says, appalled a woman would even touch Tess...
Basement: As they come within the basement, Red Sparrow Song glomps Moon, tight as she can, the Pack, all awake now, cheering for them. "Moon! You are back... you guys got them to go away?
"Even if the brat and his friends did, deaerie... even at the expense of destroying everything I have built..." Vivian says, not in the least happy, narrowing her eyes to Moon, fanning herself due to the heat of such a crowded basement - all the girls, a few customers and all the Pack closed there, after all, "How will we get out, now, if they are waiting for us outside?"
Selina de Windia: "I feel kinda sorry for his 'boss' now, but that's a matter for another time." Selina mentions with a shrug, then sticks her tongue out at Fiona. "I've been with worse. So much worse. If I recounted some of my little bed-room tales to the oh so mighty Pale Angel, she would probably curl up into a ball and begin rocking in a corner." Her voice is dryly cutting with the last few sentences.
Seventh Moon: Catching the leggy prostitute and squeezing her tight for a moment, Moon drops her to the side and pushes through to the Pack, relief hidden in a toothy grin as he traded slaps and hugs with the gang.
"Ease up, ya old bag..." he growled at Vivian... then nodded his head at Rain. "She did it. I wasn't even here and the ladies are gettin' us outta here somehow."
He wasn't sure what to expect, looking back and forth from Selina to Fiona, hoping one of them would volunteer to explain.
Fiona: "Well, and I was with the Vestal, I think I can understand some of that..."
But not that monster... to be at the mercy of that... Mistress...
"Oh, we have a plan, Miss Vivian! You will see, you will see... see, Moon? They are all safe, all right, we protected them!"
"And see, Vivian... the Dark Angel will summon something to open a cave out of here! I saw all kinds of things summoned creatures could do, I am sure that is doable!"
Vivian: "Well, at least the lady stopped you before you made so much a fool out of yourself you'd doom us all!" Vivian says, looking at Rain... beautiful as a faerie, yes, she had seen a few before to know. It was hard to keep the wonder on this situation, but it was still hard to be angry with one so lovely. "Hmmm. You are not welcome around here again, then, fair one!"
Selina de Windia: "Just hope there's enough room in the basement that everyone doesn't get seared by my anima banner." Selina interjects dryly, then looks around. She figures she can recall which spirit would be most useful in this situation. Eventually, though, they'd find them. Thanks to...ghosts.
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain looks at Vivian, slightly puzzled why she imagined Rain would be returning to the brothel any time in the future... and that she could stop her if she did. "Mm..." she says thoughtfully, "I suppose I'll just have to live with that miss."
Seventh Moon: Having felt the cold of the assassin's anima once already today, Moon immediately begins to usher the Pack and the rest of the mortals in the basement away from Selina and against the wall. His face still stung from the cold, fuck knows what it would do to them.
"We gotta get ta Rusty soon as we're outta here..." he says suddenly, looking back at the others. "He'll at least take all the ladies in, if nothin' else. Get enough eyes batted at 'im and might just let us all hide out a lil."
Fiona: "Rusty?" Fiona turns around, "Who's that, Moon?"
"What do you have in mind?" She asks, with just curiosity, naturally following him, but... curious.
Selina de Windia: Looking to Rain, Selina makes a 'come hither' gesture with one hand. "You. I assume you can create things out of glamour, yes?"
She looks into one of the rooms she'll use for summoning. "I need you to create some summoning braziers with incense. I already have a bit of chalk to draw the circle with."
Kanti: "Iron tears. The god of the Boil" Kanti whispers, the first you;ve heard her speak since she cried Fiona's name earlier, still looking a little ... not all there.
Fiona: turns around, walking to Kanti, worried... finally noticing that things are so bad. Hrer dutiful, driven mind had not noticed... "Thanks, Kanti... are... are you ok? You don't sound very... well. We did it, we protected them, things are alright..."
Seventh Moon: "Yeah," Moon nods in agreement with Kanti, looking back at the Dragon-Blooded girl. He was surprised to hear her voice only when he realizes how long it's been since she'd spoken last. "That's him. Rusty's what we call him down here."
Something was up again. Moon looked at the two girls, listening to Fiona trying to comfort Kanti. Was she scared? Hurt? A worried frown creased his face.
Roughly stuffing a protesting Kinny into a corner, he leans in beside Fiona and rests a hand on Kanti's shoulder. "Things a'ite, kid?"
Kanti: Kanti looks up as Fiona approaches her and Moon puts a hand on her shoulder, fighting down the flinch, letting him, remembering the morning, when he held her and nothing mattered for a time.
How to tell Moon ...
How to explain it ...
"... Her rage ..." she whispers.
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain sighs, covering her face with one hand. "Oh the indignities, to be used as a common craftsman... woman... whatever.". She reaches both her hands forward and closes her eyes, chanting utter nonsese as wisps of gossamer begin to flow from her body, coalescing in an aura reminiscent of an anima banner made of dream. As the flow of gossamer slows and finally stops, her hands dart downward and the threads of fantasy explode outwards, covering the room in a flash of light.
When the dust settles, the room bears a new set of arcane braziers... No... To call them braziers is an insult. The braziers spaced evenly around the room are assumed to be glass at first glance... in reality, they are solid diamond, arcane symbols etched in excruciating detail and lined with hair-thin strands of gold and silver. The seat for the fires are obsidian laced impossibly with ruby designs and the fires which burn in them are the impossible orange of an autumn sunset. To call them merely gaudy would be blasphemy, for any artist in creation would sell their soul to the Malfeans to behold such incredible... braziers...
Rain looks at Selina smugly in a 'I'm-not-a-fool' sort of way and grins.
Selina de Windia: Finishing with the circle, Selina slips the bit of odd chalk back into the inner pockets of her greatcoat and arranges the braziers, lighting the incense in each with a small spark from one fingertip.
Then she looks at Rain. "You may want to leave the room. I don't imagine my anima banner is beneficial for fae."
And then she begins the ritual, banner beginning to glow about her once again, a soft corona, but increasing steadily. The Jokun should be no hard task to control, when it comes.
Seventh Moon: Her rage... ?
Shit... of course that was it. He could see her now, wincing and flinching and humbling at every eye-brow quiver Selina had ever made. And just minutes ago, Kanti had stood up in front of Selina while the Dark Angel was letting out with a fury.
"Hey, hey" he soothed, smiling and ruffling Kanti's hair. "Don't let her get to ya, a'ite? Wasn't really you she was mad at. Took alotta ba uh, guts ta do what you did, too."
Moon peeked about discreetly, giving a meaningful look towards the room Selina occupied, then leaned closer, his arms drawing Fiona and Kanti into a circle. "Tell ya the truth," he whispered to them. "She kinda spooks me out sometimes too. But she's sweeter than she wants people ta think and a lot more scared, too. She's just one of them that likes ta show off so everyone thinks otherwise, y'know?"
Fiona: Fiona comes closer, holding Kanti's hand with hers'... "She... yes, she was terrifying... but... she did not hurt us... she did not."
And she wouldn't, right? Even if Moon hadn't interfered... right?
Kanti: Kanti presses up to Moon as he ruffles her hair, trying to banish the images of the enraged Dark Angel from her mind, the memories of the voice from the rainy forest.
she ... she wouldn't hurt me .. no
she ... she said she wouldn't this morning ...
she hasn't lied to me .... has she?
Kanti makes herself calm down, makes herself stop feeling the fear, lets the pair help her deal with the lingering terror, eventually smiling at the pair of them, her face brighter.
?: The air begins to run out. During a long time, Selina chants, calling for the spirits of Earth... burning her essence and calling the great fair-skinned, Obsidian-eyed creature, clad in mineral armor. Tendons of granite tense as it reaches for the earth, parting it for them..
During the wait, they can hear the footsteps above the hidden basement.... twice, ghosts come in, and twice, they are destroyed. The Pack is unsettled by the rampant magic going on, and Moon notices a few who had gone out before are missing - Wes among them. They probably just saw too many people on the streets and hid where they could - or not.
While moving on the earth, they hear... things. A little cave, and strange, hungry insects go towards them... and are easily destroyed. But they see the strange things lurking within the Boil...
And then, they come out. Amidst the Industrial District.
Anyone's first thought is that within the earth they were suffocating less.
You can see the air. It's dirty, the smoke from all forges pouring out, the air full of all sorts of cinders and pieces of metal and powders.... they come out amidst a factory's mostly-vacant grounds....
Factory: Although the clearing they come out in is mostly vacant, the factory isn't - they can hear the pounding, clanging, ringing, shouting, hissing. It is like being amidst great metal beasts. Not only of this factory, but of all the district, until it is simply indistinct. Just a completely indistinct noise...
Selina de Windia: "Ah, Nighthammer district. Erm, I mean, well, it's not as bad." Selina pronounces, walking out into the filthy air without much fanfare. "I wanna go back home. The North sucks -- too much undead." She mutters under her breath. "To my other home, I mean."
Seventh Moon: Stepping out of the tunnel and moving off to the side to help guide the rest through, Moon tucks his head into his sleeve and keeps his mouth covered as he waits for everyone to exit. It bothered him when he noticed Wes and the others missing. Had to hope they'd found another hole to crawl into...
Fiona: Fiona comes out of the hole, and helps the girls out. The Jokun kneels at Selina's feet, waiting for her command to close the hole....
Kanti: Kanti smiles as she steps out into the smoke and the heat, feeling it beating on her skin, warming her, carressing her. The noise was a little loud but ...
Rain of Unspoken Words: Rain steps out of the hole into... anoher hole... but this one is much noisier and smellier. She wrinkles her nose in disgus.
Selina de Windia: Turning to the Jokun, Selina nods. "Close it up then." Then she looks back to the rest of them. "Well...what do we do now?"
Seventh Moon: "Like I said, we go see Iron Tears." Waving at the gaggle of prosistutes, he smiles. "Less you think we can get around better with them followin' us everywhere."
Jokun: "Yes, my lady." The elemental answers, a wave of his heavy, granite-boned hand making the earth swirl like water whirlpools and close behind them... closing his eyes as he heals all the earth he has made to part for them.
Rain of Unspoken Words: "Aww" Rain says in mock sadness. "--but they're cute! Like little lost puppies, but sexier!"
Selina de Windia: "Nope, we'll go." Selina shrugs, then dusts herself off, looking at the entire lot. "Hopefully those idiots back there don't have the wit to actually figure out where we are yet."
Seventh Moon: "Feh..." he snorts, pushing through the narrow street to the front of the crowd. "They're military fucks. They're lost without somethin' ta stab..."
"A'ite," he says, looking back at the cluster of harlots and punks. "Don't stop and don't wander off and for fucks sake don't make a lot of noise. Less trouble we bring ta Rusty's porch, the more he'll like us..."
Moon paused for a moment, then shrugged. He started off, motioning for everyone to follow as he moved through the smoke. This wasn't gonna be a fun trip.
Yes, Rain's player botched the conjuration roll. So, some Shinma decided to have some fun!
- - Back to Third Movement
- - Back to A Dance of Angels
