Scene Archives

is there early–despite the tumult of the previous day, his body is well-used to being up at dawn. He breaks his fast on bread, some fruit–hunts about for some kind of meat, and looks rather grumpy if there isn’t any.

is up bright and early, and has no reservations about the provided banquet. An end of loaf with a wedge of a mildly orange cheese, three darkly-red fruit innards skewered on a pick, a steaming mug of slightly-off-black coffee… he’s eating well.

has been awake for quite some time, waiting, as to not disturb those in need of rest. They attempt to make as little noise as possible when entering the common room. They are interested by some of the food new to them, and try several vegetables and fruits. Stems and all.

is there before too long himself, looking more or less the same amount of alert and refreshed as the day before. He quickly drains one cup of coffee while looking over the spread of food, then pours a second before moving to plate a little bit of everything for himself.

is not bothered by almost-but-not-quite-like cheese.

restocks his plate with some more bread, some of that cheese–or rather, “cheese,” and he grimaces at his first taste. Doesn’t stop him from eating it, though. He nods to the Awoken, and then the Knight–watching bemusedly as the Knight…eats?

says, between mouthfuls of bread, “Anyone with interesting dreams? Last night or earlier?”

seems amused my the Awoken’s question, but shakes his head. “No, it was a fairly dreamless sleep on my end.”

shakes his head. “Slept. …you?”

shakes his head. “Deep and dreamless, too. I was just curious.”

comes in. Her hair has been re-braided much more neatly than before. She immediately aims for the food, loading her plate with small portions of everything. When she takes a bite of the cheese she frowns.

smiles, just barely, when he sees the Saint frown at the “cheese”. He salutes her with a piece of it, and then pops it in his mouth with a scrunch of his nose.

tries the coffee, any familiar light roast come to mind?

gives Wolf a small wave back with the hand not holding the plate close to her chest and then swallows the cheese that doesn’t taste quite right, though she can’t put her feeling on the wrongness. She finds a place to curl up and watch her companions greet the morning.

: “…Close enough.” The Hunter doesn’t really seem bothered by it when it gets to that part of his plate.

continues to eat the small reddish fruits. They almost forget they aren’t hungry.

eats steadily until he’s full–then quietly tucks a bit of bread into a pouch hidden in his sash, and sits on the edge of one of the chairs, hands cupped around a mug of tea that seems to be more for occupying his hands than drinking. “Mm.”

picks up a small, oval berry, larger than the raspberries on her plate and investigates it. She watches the Clockwork Knight eat one whole, and then presses her nail against the rough outside, splitting it open to reveal a small, white–something. She pops it in her mouth, rindless, and enjoys the strange flavor. After that, she moves on to every other item on her plate, privileging the unfamiliar ones first. Eventually, she’s finished everything and she goes back for a ready helping of familiar bread and goes to sit next to Wolf. “I have something for you,” she says.

blinks at her, tilts his head in a very wolf-like way. “…yes?”

She reaches into one of the small purses obscured by her cloak, and pulls out a strip of green fabric, precisely the same color as her cloak. It’s a small strip, maybe four inches wide and eight inches long, and on it is a complex, leafy pattern embroidered in white and lighter green thread. “I don’t remember much, but I remember. Whenever I went someplace new, or something like that, I’d embroider something to remember that place by on my cloak. I can’t remember … why this one was important, but it was important. I thought you. Might like to have it. As part of.” She pauses here, thinking, and then saying, “home. And a promise to … build what can of it again.”

If you look, there’s a strip missing at the edge of her cloak, the rough edge hemmed up in a bright blue thread that doesn’t match at all.

reaches out and brushes a fingertip against it, surprisingly delicately…his face expressionless, but someone studying him closely might see his jaw work, his nostrils flare, his eyes catch the light more than they should. “I…” His voice is gravel-rough. “Saint.”

looks up at her, searching her face, eyes intent and expression unreadable. “You are…sure?”

She doesn’t attempt to read his expression, but she meets his gaze intently. “Absolutely,” and then she smiles.

says, with a sing-song lilt. “The sterile slab dimmed not a single heart.” He flicks the last bit of cheese into the inside of his cheek.

studies her for one last long moment, then nods. He takes the strip and runs his thumb over it, face carved as if from stone. Then, he rolls it up carefully and tucks it into another pouch in his sash–on the opposite side from the one with the bread in it. “…thank you,” he says, sounding like the words are grindingly difficult to say. “I have…no…gift. But–” His eyes flick to the door as some bit of cloth rustling registers. “Hrr. Yes?”

grabs a piece of the bread, and holds it out to the stranger. “Please, eat.”

only looks in the direction of the newcomer when the Clockwork Knight speaks to them

: “The lack of sausage and bacon probably makes sense, but the lack of any egg and milk definitely stood out. Is land really so scarce here that there’s no room for livestock of any kind?*

waves his empty coffee mug. “Given the circumstances of all-destruction, it’s the best as it could be!” he proudly proclaims. “To whom do we owe the honor?”

: “I… see.”

looks rather nonplussed, perhaps directing a raised eyebrow at the Saint.

sits back into his chair, gesturing with the mug for emphasis. “There! Already making the world a better place.”

: “Maybe making a cow is below the Architect,” she murmurs quietly

lets out a small laugh despite himself.

mutters…“Fighting? And no…meat?” He looks very dubious.

shrugs

: “You’ll never know until you try.”

blinks at the figure, mouth working on words that just aren’t…quite coming together…and then he looks at Saint, rather chagrined, for help. “Not…eat…”

: “But anyway, who are you…?”

studies the ceiling. “As a spice, perhaps…?”

shakes her head at Wolf and gives him a helpless shrug. She also has trouble imagining not eating meat.

: “It was very good bread, thank you.”

staggers out of his room late, bleary-eyed and bloodshot. He stumbles a little as he drags himself to the table of food, eyes glued to the floor as if pleading not to be acknowledged, and arriving at the table he picks up the first thing he sees, gives it a half-hearted but curious sniff, and, seemingly satisfied that it is indeed food of some kind, begins to chow down with a surprising ferocity. Only when he finishes the last bite does he look up, apparently realize for the first time that he has even more unfamiliar company, and immediately re-glue his eyes to the floor, the tips of his ears going slightly pink.

: “But you don’t remember … anything? Nothing at all?”

pours a large mug of coffee and sit it down next to the Archivist.

leans forward, studying the robed person’s face.

helpfully, offers some of the red fruits to his new friend

gratefully accepts the coffee and finds the courage to get over his embarrassment and meet the eyes of the visitor. “If it’s not too personal to ask, what’s the first thing you do remember? And if you don’t remember anything before, how did you decide what to go by? I have to admit, for all the things I can see the shadow of, my name isn’t one of them.”

has no response to that, and so merely stuffs too much bread into her mouth.

: “Mmm. Speaking of names, that’s actually something I meant to bring up this morning. If we’re going to be working together for the foreseeable future, we really ought to know what to call one another. Show of hands from anyone that DOES remember their name…?” The Hunter glances around the room, his hand raised slightly.

grimaces, and gives a slight shake of his head.

: “Yes.”

waves a hand. “Oh, you can get by without names. At the edge of creation, weird’s only when you want it to be.”

looks somewhere between aggrieved and grieving, looking down at the floor for a long moment. No names? No names?

makes a face at the Awoken. “Names have IMMENSE power. And make coordination infinitely easier all other things aside.”

who is not particularly enthused at being called ‘The Sword-Saint’ for the rest of her life, nods emphatically

then turns to the Hunter. “Sure, sure, they have power. But so do a lot of other things! So it’s not, strictly, neccessary.”

folds his arms over his chest. “I take that to mean that you, like just about everyone else in here, has no clue what your name is either?”

: “I get the sense that names used to mean a lot to me. But that was then, and here…” He shrugs. “If you never had one, maybe they just aren’t a part of the culture here. Though doesn’t it make it harder to refer to one another when speaking with a third person? Though maybe you don’t interact with enough people here on a regular basis for that to much matter.”

looks sidelong at the Awoken, mouth working. “Not…” is all they manage before their words fail them, clearly frustrated by the failure.

holds up one finger and says- “I remember a song,” -a second finger, “-a feeling, and…”

claps his hands together. “Absolutely nothing else!”

: “I too, remember a song. And warmth.”

rubs at his face slightly, lets out a sigh, then takes a large drink from his coffee.

nods sagely. “It was as much a surprise to me as it was to you to find out where I came from once the Architect said it.”

grimaces. “A song. A god. And…” his voice trails off. “Home.”

: “We will probably have to give each other names, if we can’t remember ours. From a practical perspective, at the very least.”

: “Alright. So. We do need names, or at least titles. Now, I do happen to remember my name. However in light of…. all the rest of you, and some things that happened before I woke up… I will be going by a new name. We can think them up together, I suppose. And in the interest of getting this ball rolling: From now on, you may all call me ‘Aurelius’. Who wants to go next?”

shrugs slightly. “Wolf.”

: “Good enough!”

The white-robed figure stares in mild awe. You can just GIVE YOURSELF a name and they got to WATCH someone do it. Amazing.

holds a finger to his chin, his eyes slowly tracing something that isn’t there. “I figure I can find mine if I look hard enough. Let’s stick with… ‘Awoken,’ for now!”

: “Feels lazy but I’ll allow it!”

: “Daina,” she blurts out. “That isn’t. That isn’t my name, but that works well enough.”

nods. “I suppose The Archivist will have to work for now. It’s who I am to you all here, anyway.” He pauses a moment, then gives a small smile. “Maybe Archie for short.”

: “It’s much better than referring to you as ‘the lady with the swords’, and sounds nice to boot!” He then nods to Archie. “Giving you bonus points over Awoken for making it nick-name-y.”

: “Wokey can be his nickname. Wakey.”

puts his hands behind his head. “Egh, terrible! Throw it back.”

looks over at him. “Ken works? Maybe?”

: “Unua.”

stares at Daina, then covers his face with his hand…though…he might just be smiling under it.

: “Good job, we beat out the bell everyone.”

shoots a quick smile at Wolf, a bit conspiratorial.

: “I assume that’s a perimeter alarm?”

: “Then we should join. Your name, new baker friend, will have to wait for now.”

: “Given how long we’ve been here already, I doubted it was the dinner bell.” Archie straightens up and shakes his head a bit, wiggling himself to a heightened state of alertness. “Let’s go.”

kicks up from sitting in a chair to standing with a click of his heels. “Time to get back to work! Good work on the loaf, by the way!”

stands, dusting off his over-jacket, making sure his blades are seated safely in their sheaths. “Mm. To…work.”

: “So many first for you today! Think up a name as we investigate.” Aurelius quickly finishes the rest of his coffee, shoves another chunk of bread into his mouth, and then begins moving towards the bells first, then allows his danger instincts to take over to lead him where they need to go.

Stuffs the last bite of bread into her mouth before following

nods. “Lead the way.”

starts pushing the newer figure right back outside as quickly as they burst in- “Yes, yes, we heard! Quickly!! Go go go lead!!”

has his spear at the ready now as he takes in the scene. “Hmm.”

moves up to the fiend, shield up. “You did well. Now rest.”

dashes through the door, sweeping his gaze left and right to look out for any blindside attacks.

pulls his blades at the sight of the shattered fiend–head swiveling back and forth, seemingly utterly calm–ears pricked and alert, though, and pupils contracted.

spares a brief moment to look sympathetically towards the dying fiend, but does not let his gaze linger too long as his eyes dart across the scene before him, scanning for threats.

Hangs to the back, looking for the place where she can do most good. Her hand is on the hilt of her sword, but she hasn’t drawn it yet.

is standing behind you all, leaning rakishly against the door you just ran out of. He was definitely not there the last time you whirled around to look. He’s got a smile that could melt ice, the inside of his cloak is lined with stars and galaxies, and his claws are dripping with fiend-ichor. Pleasantly, he asks: “You all looking for something?”

shifts fluidly to face the new voice, blades rising into guard. “Yes.”

accusingly points a finger at the stranger. “The cause for alarm! Are you one and the same?”

: “You, presumably.”

jumps a little as he whirls himself around to see the source of the voice, scrutinizing him.

nods amiably. “I figured killing a fiend while the old man was distracted elsewhere was the best way to get to meet you all without him deciding it was his business. I’ll… send a fruit basket, I guess?”

tilts his head. “Met us. There. Leave.”

eyes him warily. “And to whom do we owe the honor?”

turns around, looking the Stranger over. “The Architect’s former partner, yes?”

: “Why have you come all this way?”

: “Breaker of worlds and hearts.”

says nothing, waiting for the stranger to respond.

puts a hand to his heart. “Former? You wound me. I imagine he does see it that way, though.”

rolls a shrug. “That was how he described it, yes.”

: “He believes himself lost to you. And you to him. You, clearly, believe otherwise.”

tilts his head the other way. “Also. You. Dead? Thought.”

: “Not dead. Presumably banished. Though, apparently, here the same.”

nods at Wolf’s words. “Yeah, you’re otherwise awfully responsive for a dissonance that travels throughout the cosmos!”

: “Ah, yes. The-” -he does huge, exaggerated danger quotes- “-‘Outer Darkness’. I’ve been being polite and playing along. But you six, you’re too interesting to ignore.”

: “Fair enough. What do you call yourself?”

: “Polite doesn’t necessarily seem the correct descriptor.”

: “There’s no sense in NOT calling myself ‘the Omniclast’. It’s a name he gave me, but I consider it a badge of honour.” He bows, dramatically.

: “I named him, so it’s only fair.”

blinks, as something sinks in belatedly…and then he smiles, serenely, and starts walking towards the Omniclast, blades lifting. “You. Destroyed. My home.”

: “Works for me. So. We’re interesting enough to break the deception. Why do you think that?”

: “You have caused a great deal of harm, Omniclast.”

: “If,” she says sharply, “what this man’s former partner has told us can be believed. I’m interested in how you’d tell this story,” eyes boring into the Omniclast.

nods at Daina. “If it’s a badge of honor to you, then do you admit it? Admit that you caused the destruction the Architect has accused you of?”

: “Anyways, what I want, very much, is to engage in a Rite of the Dragon with you. It feels like that’s what at least some of you would like as well. I would like to see what fish he pulled out of the sea with my own eyes.” He pushes off from the door, takes deliberate steps away from it, staying consciously -in- range of the Wolf-Priest, not moving away from /him/, but… clearing away from the door back to the Sanctuary. “But before that I want the answer to one question. Did he tell you that the worlds are in just the state they were in when he pulled you from them? Or did he claim that ‘your worlds are shattered’, and let you fill in the blanks?”

: “Because, I mean. Your worlds are fine. He kidnapped you and you should probably know that.”

: “Hmm.”

rolls his head around on his shoulders for a moment, then answers before anyone else can. “He did as you thought.”

freezes, nostrils flaring, knuckles white on his raised blades. “Why. Should I. Believe?”

gives a half-smile and perks up a little, as if his apparent late night of contemplation had been worth it. “Honestly, I kind of already figured as much. I suppose I owe you one bit of thanks before I smash your face in.”

looks at the Wolf-Priest and there’s something weirdly like pride in his eyes. “You shouldn’t believe anything you can’t see with your own eyes.”

Omniclast. You place words as if they were bait. You call us fish. You have a story to tell, and appear to delight in the pain of it. If you are as powerful as he, surely speaking before trading blows poses no threat to you.

Wolf, he wants your rage. Decide whether he deserves it.

tilts his head. “Hmm..? Do you deny strumming against the stillness and song?”

whirls, eyes flashing, to face the Knight–his usual composure shattered into a barely-restrained, seething rage, his words spitting out in guttural growls. “That life! All of it! GONE! And I, to hold my blades?”

: “He claims it isn’t gone, though with no more proof than the figure that claimed it is.”

: “A foe that asks to to strike them rarely allows the strike. Engage on your terms. Not his. You have my shield.”

: “Far me it from me to get in the way of a good brawl, but Unua does raise a good point. The Architect is highly likely to make his way here by Rite’s end, so if there’s anything else you want to get off your chest you might want to do it before Wolf loses what little restraint he has left.”

looks at the Awoken. SQUINTS at the Awoken. And then he laughs, delightedly. “How could you strum against a song? You’d just be contributing. Contributing well, or contributing poorly. As for the Stillness, I assume you met the poor bastards he’s keeping as pets.”

: “Or did he try to hide them from you?”

: “That’s more or less what he’s got planned for you. A fancy version of that. Is he still feeding them that… ridiculous fake cheese?”

: “The world can wait!” he says with a wave of his arm, brushing back his mantle. “You’re here right now, and being rather dodgy about the question.”

: “This silence! This wretched silence! Because…of it…” His rage falters, though, and he lowers his head–then looks sharply at the Omniclast, jaw clenching, soft growls leaking from him with every exhale.

: “For me to return and create my world, I command-” He points a finger at the Omniclast. “Cease your discordant vibe! We’ll take things from here.” He then crosses his arms and nods confidently.

: “It wasn’t that bad. But yes.”

: “You’re very good at deploying little details to avoid answering the question. Why believe you over him?”

: “The worlds he built were sterile and soulless. He didn’t LOVE life and the living. I DID. The worlds YOU knew and loved only exist because of what I did to his perfect clockwork. In his eyes, those worlds? YOUR worlds? Are a smoking ruin and always have been.”

glances back over his shoulder at the Sanctuary, then back at the Omniclast. He looks like he buys that line, at least.

That is the explanation she wanted to hear. That is what feels right. She doesn’t trust it. She looks to Unua, to see their reaction.

: “Yes, I broke his… perfect, symmetrical glass sculpture and made a mosaic of the shards. I’d do it again, over and over. Or would you -prefer- his Sanctuary to where he stole you from?”

looks down at his blades…up at the gleaming spire of Sanctuary…back at the Omniclast, his eyes hard. “Much words. Little proof.”

: “Fiend’s Advocate: the only proof we have either way is we heard from the other guy first.”

: “We loved our homes. This place is songless and worrisome to us. But the both of you and your insistence on your absolutes. That the other is wrong. That your way is the only? For what might be gods, you are more like children.”

dismissively waves a hand. “We’re already changing his Sanctuary. We’re going to have bacon soon!”

meets the Wolf-Priest’s gaze, and grins. “Stake proof of my truth on a Rite, ember-dancer?”

: “Your innate natures will change, the both of you!”

stands silently, listening. He tries to control it, but if you look closely, you think you see a self-satisfied look flicker across his face just before he wipes it back off again. He looks unhesitatingly at the Omniclast. “And I presume the reason you want a fight is because you’re taking a gamble that we’re strong enough to be worth convincing to join your side, and you want to make sure you were right. Is that the way of it?”

draws in breath with a sharp hiss, eyes going wide–then his lip curls…and then he smiles, coolly, shifting his shoulders, rocking his head from side to side to loosen his neck. “By the Fire, then.”

looks back over his shoulder at the rest–his voice, when he speaks, strangely light, even melodic, from the rough, rhythmless sound of his usual speech. “I will fight. For a hope of home. Join if you wish. Hold your blades if you must. But I will fight. It is my way.”

: “There are questions only a Rite can answer, truths only the Rite can speak. The Wolf understands this.” He nods, levelly, at him. “I don’t want to change your mind. I don’t want… ANY of you… to do a SINGLE thing which is not done of your own volition. And so. AND SO!” He claws at the air; bright purple fire consumes his hands. “I would take your measure! I’d like to know what weird bullshit he and I are both gonna be dealing with, here!”

: “On the off chance we may land a blow…by the twelve moons, he could use a punch to the gut.”

unsheathes the beautiful saber in her right hand, then pulls out a slimmer, more practical knife in her other. “I’ll fight with you. If the stakes are proof he speaks true.” She pauses, then shoots Unua a sly smile. “Also because he could use a punch to the gut.”

: “Regardless of who’s telling the truth, who’s lying, who’s bending details and who’s deliberately leaving details out… I think the one thing we can count on for certain is that the six of us are in this together, one way or another. And I’m not one to back down from the Hunt.” He shifts from his relaxes stance into a combat ready one.

suddenly seems light on his feet, and it takes you a moment to notice that it seems like he’s barely touching the ground at all, between a mild levitation effect and his own innate nimbleness. He starts to move erratically, zigzagging somewhat as the glow that starts to burn in his eyes is matched by the runes that start to appear around him.

kicks off the shining ground, and rockets forward with a shimmering azure blade in hand, carving through the space and time to reach the Omniclast!

laughs hard as the Rite kicks in. “Are you fucking serious?”

Wait, does the copy go to him or does the person who played the rite get a copy of the targeted card but he keeps it?

flicks an ear towards the Omniclast. “…This isn’t the Rite of the Dragon…”

: “Correct.”

: “Ha!” He snaps his fingers- a brilliant silver fiend rises from the ground, curvy with a pointed, wide-brimmed head, its innards glowing with a waiting energy. “Creation will begin! We will bring our life to our worlds!”

invokes [Lurk] - tracing tendrils of flourishing gnosis creep up his legs and around his arms, and he leans back into it, basking in that light. Sword-Saint, Wolf-Priest - there is something achingly familiar about it.

flashes forward as the Omniclast invokes energy–taking advantage of the brief split of focus to get right up beside him, with a goring strike to just below the ribs.

takes the hit hard, bleeding a gout of purple fire! He beams, coming alive in the fight! [5] He then invokes [Forbidden Pact] as a Quick, and scries the rite [Always Another Option] into his hand! He responds in kind, sparring with the Wolf-Priest! [Pierce Through] - Strike 2 +4 because the Wolf-Priest has defense, for 6! He then (Lurk) enchants himself with [Flux]!

keeps his eyes on the Omniclast as he starts to dart around ever faster and glow more intensely with magic, making strange vocalizations.

: “…yeah, that seems fair.”

briefly considers the utility of an enchantment that fires off only once every six chances he gets to do something, frowns distastefully in the direction of the lingering pellucid gnosis, and invokes [Sorrowful Memory] on the Awoken!

: “…you’re -all- fascinating, but I can’t figure you out at all.”

grins. “You gotta just take things one hit at a time.”

Frowns briefly at the battlefield, then flicks the blade around and makes a small nick on her wrist. She whispers something, and shimmering white gnosis curves over Aurelius

: “So in the interest of fairness…” Aurelius’ eyes seem to glow golden as stares intently at the gnosis swilling around and through The Omniclast. “I have three questions for you. One: What the Fuck is Libra? Two: Who are you intending to KO first?” The third question lingers on his lips, waiting on a response from the other two first.

grins at Aurelius, rears back and levels his claw in his direction, grandly. “Libra is my favourite of all the Rites I’ve ever crafted. I’m gunning for the Wolf-Priest to honor his ferocity. Third question?”

: “We’ll circle back to it in a second,” He makes an As You Were gesture, since it’s currently the Omniclast’s turn.

invokes [Always Another Option], reaching into the fire of one hand with the claws of the other, rummaging around for something, drawing [The Unthinkable] into his hand. He dismissively gestures at something and then drops back into a ready stance!

At the Omniclast’s admission of intent in targeting Wolf, she quietly whispers “shit” to herself.

looks to Daina, “Fear not.”

raises a hand above his head and snaps his fingers. A moment later white gnosis burst into existence around Wolf, slowly forming pulsating runes that come to rest on his robes.

Aurelius then leans his head back and lets out a long, slow breath, which is visible to everyone, like breath in the coldest of winter. Except the breath is golden, matching the glow in his eyes. “Third question: I figured out how you did that.” And a new song burst into existance, drowning out the one currently playing.

: “AHAHAHAHAH, FUCK YES. I LIKE YOU.”

laughs, and laughs, more and more madly. “Ahahahhaha, holy shit, this is going to be amazing. Okay. Okay, holy fuck, there’s so many options, here but I think….”

cheers! “Nice, nice! Aurelius, you’ve got a handle on it!”

takes a deep breath, violet light swirling around him, deeper and deeper and clearer. He points a finger at Aurelius.

: “Tell me the truth!” [Alethic Rite: Libra, targeting Aurelius]

: “Which one…? About what…?”

: “Player’s choice?”

: “It is your choice. It is, always, eternally, as long as my light shines into creation, your choice.” His voice crackles with power.

: “Time for some minor league soft ball shit here then: The Hunter’s name is actually Annarr, not Aurelius.”

rocks his head back and forth. “Hmm… you didn’t really strike me as an ‘Aurelius,’ no.”

Daina laughs with bright, wild abandon at that cleverness. “But which one do you want to be called?”

stares at him, though. Stares at him like he picked up something else other than just that, and his eyebrows go up into his hair very briefly, and he laughs, and laughs, and laughs, and he balls one claw up into a fist.

: “Awoken, do you not SEE all the golden I am bestowing upon the world…?”

: “But yes, do continue using Aurelius.”

: “Yeah! It’s pretty amazing!” He nods confidently. “You got it, Aurelius!”

slams their shield into the ground, as a strangely green tinted light shines forth, phasing into gold. Some of it lingers and floats over to Wolf, bolstering his teammates strength.

: “You six only just met, and you care about each other that much.” He beams. “I’m very, very glad.”

starts burning, brighter and brighter, building up his power. [Burn What Holds You Back] - discarding six cards and drawing three! He then whirlingly lashes out at the Wolf-Priest, testing the defenses his party’s given him! [Adrenaline Surge] for [3]!

taps his foot. “Even the gods have rules…” He discards an idea, forming into a ball of energy, and tosses it into the Lithos. “Let’s discover the rules of reality.”

‘s eyes glow as the fiend rushes forward, and the Awoken stands in a trance, seeing what it sees, feeling what it feels, and it is reaching for that very dark pit within the Omniclast.

extends his hand politely towards the Lithos as it approaches. “Of course. It might be a little hot for you to touch, though…?”

‘s Lithos does not even hesitate and reaches for the essence of The Unthinkable.

: “…that’s TWO fiends I’ve ruined today. I wasn’t even meaning to, that time.”

: “…Yeah, that checks out.”

: “Ah-!!” He staggers out of his trance, taking three steps back before finding his footing.

: “That said… eyes open. You’re only going to see this one once.”

tilts his head in the Awoken’s direction. “Wheels firmly on the ground all around, huh?” Then immediately snaps back to the Omniclast.

Offers the Awoken a hand for steadying himself, if he so desires, but doesn’t look away from the Omniclast

rears back, and then jumps -up- into the air, building speed, purple fire surrounding him. He SHINES, at the apex of his jump, a star in the auroral sky, and slams fist-first down into the rough glassy surface of the threshold space. [The Unthinkable]

leaps back several yards as it begins to form.

: “….it was a little like that. When I shattered everything.” He’s beaming.

scrambles back a step, blades crossed in guard…not that, by the look on his face, he thinks it’ll do any good…

stays where she is, using all of her very slight height to try to peek into the hole

: “…a propos of nothing, did you know that it’s possible to -escape- a Rite of the Dragon?”

: “Although, in this instance, it very much would count as victory, given the stakes of the Rite.”

: “I heard it was at one point, but shouldn’t be currently… although…” He glances at the hole, dubiously.

approaches, almost too transfixed to maintain his stance as he examines the hole and peers into it.

brushes his hair back with a hand. “At least… we got a truth out of you as well.”

struggles not to stare down into the hole–he’s trying to keep his head in the fight, but this is…irregular.

keeps a hand ready to help The Archivist

: “For free, even.”

looks at Wolf, waiting to see if they both hear what Unua expects they do

: “…the old man won’t give you the choice. When he gets here, and he will, he’ll make sure it’ll be… who knows how long until you set foot outside of the Sanctuary without him. And I will not- I CANNOT- force your hand.”

: “…but for whatever it’s worth, I have faith in you. I want you to see your homes again. I love you, and I want you to live.”

goes very still…visibly trembling at that sound. That Song. Looks up at the Omniclast. “Through there. Home…?”

: “Hmm, yup, that sure is a hole full of everything. … You going down, or pushing us in?”

: “If we go…you should probably learn how to talk with your counterpart without fracturing reality in our absence.”

: “I think he’s asking us if we’d like to jump. A leap of faith, if you will”

nods, to the Wolf-Priest. “It may not be easy to find your way back to it. You will have to find it within yourself to traverse the Strange Paths through the Void. But, having crossed blades with you? I know you’ll be able to manage it.”

doesn’t really need to see the Omniclast to know what face he’s making right now, and cranes his head back in the direction of the Sanctuary.“*

crosses his arms. “Like we need permission! He’s got a warm hearth and decent enough food, but that isn’t where we gotta be.”

looks back at everyone…and especially Daina. “I…I…” …and then his shoulders straighten, and he smiles, just a little. “I must. I cannot…live…in this silence.”

Finds herself next to Wolf. “I’ll go with you. Or stay with you. Whatever you decide.”

: “I concur. The Song is required. We should go together.”

takes a few steps back from the hole in reality, observing.

looks to the others. “I was going to go in whether any of you joined me or not. But I’ll admit, I’d prefer to have the company.”

asks the Omniclast. “We’re from different worlds. If we find our own worlds, will be lose the others?”

.

: “I can’t tell if you’re easy to influence or simply very adaptable…” Aurelius mumbles in the Awoken’s direction, still scanning the horizon.

grimaces at the question, as if in his eagerness he neglected to consider the possibility.

shakes his head. “If you choose to hold fast to one another, bind yourselves with hope? You will keep all that you hold dear.”

thinks for a second…then holds his hand out to Daina.

(after appropriately sheathing his blades shuddup I didn’t forget)

: “And… for what it’s worth, although I don’t have my hopes up, I’ll try to talk to the old man again. Maybe we’ll get somewhere. Mostly I think he’ll just be furious with me for giving you an out. But… I’ll give it a shot.”

laughs. “He who breaks all, tells us to bind ourselves! Perhaps there is hope for you yet!”

Takes Wolf’s hand, then offers her other hand to Unua

grins at Aurelius. “This is what it means to have complete confidence in the self.”

: “Hah.”

: “Thank you. There is more than destruction within you. He still loves you, and you him. May we meet again.”

: “But it’s true, isn’t it? We can’t be out creating worlds if we stay at the Santuary. And after the first Rite, where we reclaimed some of that land? We already know the basics. We just now have to do that on a much, much larger scale.”

: “Destruction can be a creative force. Smash every barrier that holds you back. Don’t ever stop.”

takes Daina’s ahand and reaches out to The Archivist

: “A home point never hurts, but to be completely honest I’m not opposed to the idea of a full on long running campaign or hunt train.”

takes the Clockwork Knight’s hand.

smiles, at the Omniclast’s…just a little, with fang…hums something under his breath, almost a pulsing drone.

grins right back.

: “Come then Aurelius. Another hunt. Just like before.”

: “Of course. Like I said, if nothing else the six of us are in this together and you have my spear. No matter where we end up.” A slightly pause, “I did want to see if I could catch a glimpse of the Architect’s face before we jump in, but no sense in waiting if he’s not already close.”

: “Ohhh- just-” He claps one hand into Unua’s, and his other into Aurelius’. “Take a flying leap!”

: “Lead with your heart and land on your feet!”

: “I’m doing my level best to hold him off, actually.” He laughs nervously.

: “Aurelius and Awoken needed to finish their ritual flirting first”

: “Coward.” He doesn’t sound like he **entirely means it, probably, as he’s laughing as it’s said. He lets himself get drug off into the hole with the Awoken et al.*

sees that everyone has joined hands….walks up to the edge of the hole. There’s a pause as he lifts his free hand and presses it to his heart…and gracefully falls backwards into the hole.

lets herself fall with Wolf

thinks to himself , “I probably should have gone first, in case we have far to fall. I am quite heavy.” and continues, dragging several of his friends with him

: “Don’t worry, gravity is just a suggestion along the Strange Paths.”

takes a leap as the momentum starts up, eagerly letting himself be pulled forward.

makes eye contact with the Omniclast as he falls, the gold dimming from his eyes as he does and being replaced instead by an intense dark purple.