Scene #927: Housecleaning

Owner	Pose
Ainsley	The Sunlight Crystal Manor Set in the middle of a valley where crystals jut up from the ground like a forest. This forest of crystals has a slight shine to it, as if infused with an eerie energy. It may just be the way the sunlight filters in through the mild cloud cover, though. It makes the whole area a lot more mystical. Any trees that can be seen are very large, but few and far between. Most of the foliage comes in the form of vines that creep over the crystals and other structures. A path leads up to the manor from a local warpgate. It is a two-story structure made of stone, and surrounded by magically-cultivated crystalline plant life. It seems to have all of the old holy symbols on it broken or whittled away by what seem like claw marks. It isn't a mansion, but it is a fairly large structure that could have housed a large number of people. The door is a large metal double door, with a big padlock keeping it shut. The door has claw marks on it, too. The windows seem to be obscured by an ever-present darkness. Looking into the manor from the outside is impossible, somehow, even though the windows are quite large. The manor drips with a feeling of menace. It is quite clear that it is haunted and that going inside will result in violence. If it weren't for the demons, though, it would be an extravagant place to live. Ainsley is here. She has her hands clasped behind her back, her eyes fixed on the front door. She looks to be ambivalent about the situation, which is quite normal for someone about to go into a house they really want to live in and start slaying demons in it. She seems to be almost as still as a statue. Faruja is standing nearby as well, equally as silent. The call was for people to come to the front of the manor if they wanted to help clear out the demons. There's a nice little area for them to gather, with finely-laid bricks on a well-maintained driveway.
Zephyr Windstar	Magical symbols begin inscribing themselves into the ground nearby, forming a Marchian Spell Diamond. Upon this magic seal, a flash of purple light forms, then the entire thing vanishes, leaving Zephyr stood in place. She's in her Barrier Jacket already, with Divine Wind in Mistral Form at the ready. "Heard you needed some help cleanin' house. I forgot my broom, but I did bring an axe." The young mage smirks over at Ainsley, stepping closer and giving the Quetzal a gentle nudge. "Relax, stay tense too long an' you /will/ turn into a statue."
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako cheerfully walks up the path leading to the manor with her hands resting on her maid's apron worn over her skirt. Why yes, she is dressed like a maid. What better outfit to choose when helping with cleaning out a house? Sure, the dust bunnies are likely a lot more demonic than usual, but she will try to help all the same! Once she makes it over to Ainsley and Faruja, she curtsies gracefully towards them both. "Good evening, Faruja and Ainsley. I hope I will be of assistance in cleaning your house." Ayako inclines her head to the side slightly and smiles brightly.
Riva Banari	"Oh man, this place is /so pretty/!" Riva says, but tilts her head. "But man, there's just something really off." She walks up next to the others, and pulls her guns. "Why would a bunch of demons set up shop in here, anyway? What's the story, Ains?"
Staren	Staren steps out of the warpgate already suited up for a fight. Just because he's not planning to go crazy with missiles today doesn't mean the armor's not useful. Along the path, he stops to chip off some crystal samples for later analysis. "Wow." Staren looks over the mansion, then to Ainsley. "All this for just the two of you, and we just gotta get rid of some demons? You got a sweet deal! ...I guess."
Inga Freyjasdottir	Being still fairly new to the multiverse, Inga is rather awed by the sight as she comes from the warp gate, her eyes going wide as tea sacuers, lips parting as she gasps slightly. She has never seen anything like this. So many crystals, a glittering, shining place...ad the lake in the distance! By the gods! No wonder Ainsley and Faruja wish to live here. It is easily one of the most beautiful landscapes she's even seen. Beautiful but alien. Inga is sure she will enjoy a visit--and wouldn't mind a dip in that lake--but she doesn't think she'd want to live here. Especially at the residence in question. The malevolent energy smacks her long before she even reaches the structure. "Tch, glad I brought you," she says, glancing behind her. She's leading a goat, a rope tied around it's neck as a leash. The goat just looks at her. "Meeeeeh," it bleats, licking a nearby crystal. Inga sighs softly, and leads the beast forward, spotting Ainsley. "Hail Ainsley!" she greets, moving to meet her. She nods a greeting to Zephyr, then greets Ayako as she arrives. "And hail to you Ayako," she adds. The wisewoman is dressed in a viking style gown of soft red wool over a cream colored underdress of linen. The sleeves have been shortened to elbow length, and anyone who knows Inga well would know why. She's likely come with Riva, who probably lost an arguement over the presence of the goat. "Tch...that is a potent haunt. I almost brought a chicken but...you are definitely worth a goat, Ainsley."
Riva Banari	"This is what they call 'a fixer-upper', Staren." Riva asides. "Demons are /terrible/ for the resale value of a house." She's just full of quips today, isn't she? Absently, Riva pets the goat.
Inga Freyjasdottir	Inga looks toward Riva and her goat petting. Purses her lips. "Don't get attached to him," she advises.
Riva Banari	Riva Banari says, "But he's so cute!" Riva pouts. "Aren't you so cute, Mr. Goat? You're the cutest! Yes you are!" She leans down next to the goat's head and smiles up at Inga. The goat probably continues chewing on whatever, not really caring what the silly humans are up to."
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako curtsies gracefully and cheerfully to everyone. "Ah. Hello Riva, Staren, Inga, and one person I don't know." She bows towards Zephyr. "I'm Ayako Hasekawa, a water spirit." She winks playfully, "And sometimes, a self-styled maid." A bright giggle escapes her lips before she raises her hand to cover her mouth. "Ah. Since it's demons, I should set this up right away." Ayako brandishes a plain, everyday straw broom and sweeps in in an arc towards everyone. Where did she get that? Does it really matter? If you really must know, she formed it out of water very quickly. "Water Bubble!" A bubble of water forms around each person for a moment-and then seems to fade away. The usual soft barrier that doesn't appear to do anything but negligibly slow attacks. She still needs it! Who knows what type of demons are in that house...? Ayako then places the broom's head on the ground and absentmindedly sweeps the bricks that make up the driveway. "All ready here!"
Staren	"Hey Inga." Staren waves. When he sees the goat, he looks confused... then realization hits and he just nods grimly.
Zephyr Windstar	"Windstar. Zephyr Windstar. Time Space Adminstration Bureau Ground Forces, Private Third Class." she offers back, with a half-assed salute.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako smiles back at Zephyr, "Nice to meet you, Zephyr. Let's blow these demons away." She winks softly and then giggles softly.
Ainsley	The nudge from Zephyr only gets a look of uncertainty from Ainsley, the look sprinkled with some fondness for the gruff windmage. She reaches over and pats Zephyr's back, smiling silently, giving no remark over the attempt to console her or whether or not she accept it. Judging by her positive reaction, it does seem like it was appreciated. As the rest of the group arrives, she turns to regard them, putting on a neutral face. She's pretty good at that, and it certainly accents that she is some sort of lizard person. She looks at Riva, first, acknowledging the question but not immediately answering it. She'll only begin speaking when everyone is present. Inga arrives, and she has a goat. Ainsley stares over at the creature whose fate she is keenly aware of, and then up at Inga. She smiles brightly, appreciating the preparation that the witch has gone through for this mission. "Hello," she replies, in her usual gentle tone. She speaks up, now, which brings her Spanish accent bubbling to the surface. "This manor was once the home of a local religious organization. They worship a minor diety that is called the Crystal Goddess. One of many, I imagine, that live in this region of the Multiverse." She pauses for effect. "They kept their worst criminals and heretics in a prison cave below the manor. This structure is built of stone because it is meant to hold against people trying to break in, and it is built here because of a significant presence of supernatural energies that support wards and other effects. Wards that have long since eroded." Her tone changes, "We're here because the house is under the possession of a hefty demonic influence. The crystal worshippers evidently brought in someone possessed by a rival demon to the goddess on accident, and that created a cascade that forced them out of it. The demons were sealed into the caverns below the manor, but the house itself is not habitable as long as those creatures dwell within it. We have been given a key to the front door, and to the cavernous cellar. I'm told the crystal demons are susceptible to blunt force, loud sounds or fire. Most standard weapons will work. These demons are not invincible, just ageless and a little tricky to fight for normal people. None of you should have /too/ much trouble fighting them." With that said, she steps up to the front door and unlocks it with a large crystal key. The door swings open on its own, creaking ominously as haunted doors are wont to do. The immediate foyer -- yes, this place has a foyer -- has a staircase on the right, and doors on the west, east and northern sides of the room, with the entrance being at the southern side of the house. The room is dusty, with most of the furniture cleared out. The floor is made of a polished stone, as if the house itself were chiseled out of a massive boulder. The stairway is wooden, though, as are most of the indoor structures, and any of the remaining furniture. The eastern door is under the stairway. It seems to have a lock on it. Ainsley immediately approaches it and unlocks it with another key, swinging the door open. The doorway is blocked off by a wall of crystal. She frowns at it.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako inclines her head to the side gently upon hearing of the Crystal Goddess. Her gaze turns downards when Ainsley mentions that there's a prison cave below the manor. She nods her head slowly. There's always a rival somewhere! Upon the end of Ainsley's explaination, she follows after her, although she stays towards the back of the group. She is a healer and not a fighter, after all! The wall of crystal behind the doorway makes her blink her eyes quickly. "I take it... that's not supposed to be there."
Faruja	Faruja grins at the good wind-mage. "Lady Windstar, methinks an axe is exactly what we shall need." There's more than a little feralness to that grin as he rubs his weapon, double checking the canister with Beli's seraphic flame within. Ayako gets a far less violent greeting. A deep bow, in fact! "Honored Lady Esper! Mine deepest thanks for accompanying us! May thine cleansing waters wash away the taint of Heresy in this place! In Faram's name! Amen!" Someone's fired up. Cough. At Staren? There's a smile. "Ainsley found it. Bloody best house-hunter in the Multiverse! Thank ye for coming, Ser Staren. Get a house for free, cleanse Fell Beasts from the fac eof the Multiverse? 'Tis a dream. Nay doubt the good Lord hath brought us all toge..." Then, Inga. Leading a goat. The scowl he gives could melt iron. "...Wi...He.." Pause. Deep, deep breath. In. Out. His weapon-hand twitches. "/Lady/ Inga. Mine...thanks for accompanying us. Ye art acquainted with mine love?" He's trying to be polite. It last for five seconds. "Bloody...alright. Why hath ye brought a goat?" Scowl! A glance to Riva. His look may as well scream 'save me from the heathen Witch, good Templar'. It's almost begging. Faruja doesn't add much, other than nodding to Ainsley's words. He does lean in to give her hand a squeeze before they head on in though! "We can do this. Our love, our friends, and the Lord is with us." He mutters to Ainsley. Then, they're in, and Faruja has his weapon pointed as they do so. He seems ready to fry just about anything that should move wrong. For now? He keeps at Ainsley's back. Suddenly, crystal wall. He taps on it, to see how solid it is, and tries to peer to see if there's anything beyond.
Zephyr Windstar	Zephyr grins at the weaknesses of the 'demons' "I can do two of those. This should be a piece of cake!" she crows hefting her axe above her head in excitement... someone likes fighting, it seems. "Y'ready for this Dee?" she asks, turning her attention to the gemstone set at the head of her 'hatchet'. A resonant chime sounds, and a soothing, motherly voice emits in flowing Marchian, much like Japanese, save for some inflection. <I was created ready. Master. All systems green! Mistral Squall, Striker Mode.> A flash of motion, and a pair of small turbine blade-like drones snap into place from their original lazy orbits around the mage. They lock in on the counter-balance side of the hatchet blade, and rotate lazily. She turns, looking at the wall of crystal. "Stand back, I'll handle this." she says, then sweeps her Device in a short 'chop' to the left. The mage's right arm then extends, and energy condenses in her palm. <IMPACT BULLET> The magic focuses down, then a near-solid wall of compressed Wind-mana surges forwards toward the barrier.
Staren	Staren nods at Ainsley's explanation, and then Faruja's words... make him smile. "Yeah." When he scowls at Inga, Staren just puts his hand on Faruja's shoulder and gives him a vague look. And then they're in! "Blunt weapons, sound, and fire, huh? I can work with that." But then their way is blocked by a crystal wall. Staren raises his right arm and points at it. "Okay, I'm guessing /that's/ not part of the structure, want me to blow it up?"
Staren	And then Zephyr decides to solve it without asking, and Staren jumps clear!
Inga Freyjasdottir	Inga eyes Riva, then just shakes her head slightly. There's always one that gets attached, and then its much harder to sacrifice the animal! Inga nods to Zephyr as she introduces herself. "A pleasure. I am Inga Freyasdottir, wisewoman of Uppsala," she replies. Ainsley gets Inga's full attention then, a smile shared, then a more business-like expression as the situation is explained. Demons translates more or less to malevolent spirits, powerful beings. Inga's lips thin thoughtfully. So they must go down and fight the demons? Well, that's isn't precisely Inga's style, but if that is what must be done...perhaps while the other weaken them, Inga can perform her ritual of exorcism. Hmmm... Then, a zealot speaks! Inga turns a look toward him, noting his scowl. Inga maintains a more neutral expression, though she chin rises slightly. "Yes, we are good friends," she replies. Apparently that was never mentioned...can't really blame Ainsley. That would...be hypocritical at this point. "The goat is for the cleansing of your future home," she informs him, straining to keep her tone polite after being scowled at as she follows the others in side, staff in one hand and the lead for the goat in the other. Unavoidably, she comes into closer contact with Faruja in the hallway. Her elbow touches his, and the woman gasps suddenly. The pupils of her eyes widen enormously as she reaches for Faruja, grabbing him by the sleeve. Her eyes roll back then, as she speaks; "From the mountain you will be pulled, into a maw of crimson crystal--lights like stars shining, a crab, a mirror of the night sky...two hands reach to save you--one pale as moonlight, the other scaled...." The woman falls silent then, lids closing as she takes a deep breath, trying to settle herself from the vision that just assailed her. A prophecy to be spoken. The gods care little for bad timing. Perhaps this would be the only chance she had to warn him. If there were even anything that could be done. Inga releases him though, settling herself while the others deal with the crystal-blocked doorway.
Riva Banari	Riva listens to Ainsley. As she does so, she totally also ponders how Mr. Goat would look with a top hat and monocle. Then he could be Mr. Goatington III, Esq. She nods. This is best plan. "So we go in and kill the demons, got it." Riva replies, catching the summary of the issue and thankfully paying attention. For now. She walks in the front door with the others, and looks over the environs. She whistles. "Classy!" she says, summing up her impression. Faruja causes Riva to laugh. "Sounds like a win-win for you, eh Faruja?" She asks. When she's beseeched to save her from having to deal with Inga leading a goat sacrifice in their house though, she shakes her head sadly. The crystal wall also gets her thinking for a moment, and she is about to offer her own help when Zephyr gets to work. "Ooooh, Abstractum." She comments from the side, and claps her hands over her ears as she prepares for shattering crystal noises. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" Riva calls, apropos of something. She doesn't seem to notice Inga going seer, probably because of the ears.
Ainsley	Ainsley becomes less concerned with the crystal wall and more with Faruja and Inga's interaction with each other. She frowns at them powerfully, giving the zealot rat a very strong stare of disapproval. Evidently Inga /is/ a friend, and probably a very good friend at that. The frown doesn't last much longer than that, but the look alone would've peeled paint off of the walls if she had the power to do that. The look fades because of Zephyr's plan. The crystal wall is utterly destroyed in a cacophonous spray of crystal shards, all of which head inwards into the doorway. Curiously, the crystal pieces vanish completely, leaving behind an eerie green glow. Those sensitive to such things would know it is clear that the crystal was meant as a minor demonic barrier of some kind. Ainsley looks at Inga, mouth agape for a moment as she speaks of a prophecy. The lizard girl doesn't frown this time, and instead her expression hardens in that way people do when they are hiding their reaction. She knows what that prophecy means and it seems to have disturbed her significantly. "Let's just..." she gestures down the stairway. Ainsley leads the way, drawing her longsword from it's scabbard. She holds it carefully. When they reach sufficient depth that it's too dark to see, she begins emitting a ball of lightning that floats near her head like a will o' wisp, which lights up the stairs. It's not too far down. The stairway opens up into a cavern that was clearly just a prison. It was not the medieval kind, but instead the finely-crafted, modernized variety. Metal bars, stone walls. The stairway is evidently built as a pillar, hiding the spiralling structure from the rest of the room. It is very dark, and it's impossible to see the ceiling, even with Ainsley's light. The cells are obscured, with the light not shining past their bars. The main room seems to be empty, with a few chairs and tables here and there and places where torches burned out. The shadows here are oppressive. It seems to seep from every crack in the walls, and it ripples out of the periphery of anyone's sight. The dark is alive. No sign of any demons yet.
Zephyr Windstar	<Miss Banari.> chimes the Device. <I am not an Abstractum, though I can understand your confusion. Galeforce is my Masters Abstractum, perhaps you will meet her one day.> that said, the Device switches back to Business Mode. <Master. Minor Barrier-type signature. Spell power overwhelmed the matrix. The Owner very likely knows we are here now.> Zephyr huffs. "Good, I don't like all this sneaking around. Gimme a straight-up fight." she grouses. As Ainsley does, so too does Zephyr. "Dee? Some light please." The Device chimes again. <ILLUMINATION!> the word scrawling across the gemstone, in some strange kanji, before the gem itself begins to glow brightly, casting an off-purple glow around it.
Staren	Boom! There goes the wall. And then, surprise prophecy! Staren just stares for a moment. "Well... scaly hand... that's good news, isn't it?" When Ainsley leads the way, Staren draws his beam saber, which glows red as he aligns it to fire element. "...The crystal demons sure do make a lot of darkness..." Staren reaches into his bag and draws out a high-powered flashlight, shining it on the darkness to see (ha!) what happens.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako blushes at Faruja's usual spiel over her being 'Honored' and an 'Esper' and slowly recovers from it. Her eyes widen as Zephyr just suddenly and recklessly moves and bashes at the crystal wall. "I... I guess that's one way to do it." Her gaze turns back to Inga when she suddenly gasps and enters another one of her prophecy visions. "I... umm... Hmm... another vision from Inga... huh..." Ayako blinks her eyes slowly. Once everyone starts going down the stairs, Ayako calmly glances around as they decend. Flaoting pale blue flames slowly wink into sight around Ayako to help illuminate the dark stairwell. Upon entering the shadowy prison the floating flames slowly spread out, attempting to help dispell the shadows. "Creepy..."
Faruja	Faruja grips his cross, squeezing it almost to the point of bending. He raises his eye upwards, as if imploring the lord to give him strength from Witches! When he looks again, he's managed something close to a polite look of neutrality. "...I /see/." A brow twitches. "Dear Lord I shall need so much holy water after this..." He mutters. Goats blood and heresy takes a lot to wash out! Then Inga is grabbing him, and speak words that chill his spine. His single eye goes wide. For a long, long moment, he's speechless. There's a look of fear, and then paranoia in his eye as it narrows. He leans in to the Witch, and whispers. "Ye and I art in for a long talk. Later. I shall contact thee." He fixes Inga with a softer gaze, zealous urge dashed away. There's something close to grudging hope in his eye mixed with pure terror. How could she possibly know about the Stone!? No Templar to the rescue! Faruja even gives Riva big mouse-eye! Zeph steps up to deal with the wall in a direct manner. The Inquisitor smiles suddenly, even if he can't quite banish that haunted look to him. Inga's clearly rocked the mage's sensibilities. His hand is shaking a little. It doesn't help when he's stared down by a certain lizardess. Eep. Ears fold back, his tail tucks between his legs, and he's generally looking pretty apologetic. Woops. The rat /chokes/ as he passes by the barrier neatly smashed by Zeph. "Bloody...demons..." He says with a gasp, looking a little green. Then, down they go into the depths! Faruja hmph's as he notes the cells. "...This is where they kept their Heretics?" No chains, no racks? What sort of Inquisition did these Crystal Heathens run? The Inquisitor is sorely dissappointed. At least he won't have to remove any torture devices. But Staren's words get his attention. There's a soft smile. "Hands I wouldst trust." He mutters. He doesn't like darkness that seems a little too alive, though. As Zeph and Staren provide illumination? Faruja points his weapon. Ayako's flames would be augmented by a pulled trigger, and holy flame lashes out.
Inga Freyjasdottir	Once she's back in the here and now, Inga looks up to meet Ainsley's eye. An apologetic look is given, though Ainsley knows Inga can rarely control these things. Sometimes, the visions simply take her over, the voice of the Bees or the gods or whatever happens to be speaking simply uses her for it's voice. With a sigh, Inga shakes her head. Faruja leans in, whispering to her. Her lips thin, but she nods. "Very well," she replies. The crystal that filled the doorway is gone. When had that happened? Well, it had happened, and they were moving on. Inga quickly draws her knife, pricking her finger with it before reaching up to draw a rune of blood upon the skin of her arm. A ward. She isn't as tough as the others here, she will surely need it. "Come along," she says to the goat, leading it onward and down. Oh good, Inga's favorite thing! Stairs! The woman heaves a heavy sigh. The goat is also being fussy. It feels terribly wrong in the darkness.
Ainsley	It's probably a good thing that no one wandered into the dark or anything silly like that. Because when more light is cast, something very scary is revealed above the party, something that is the stuff of nightmares. Stuck in the ceiling are many, many skeletons, covered in translucent crystals that throb and hum when exposed to light. The skeletons are completely coated in crystal, many of which have evidence that they were once people, with some having broken religious tokens on them, and others having shackles and prison gear on them. The demons on the ceiling begin to wake up with a crackling and rumbling... and then they start to drop down, landing messily and staggering to a stand. There must be a good two dozen of them, and they're still getting their bearings. But they are clearly hostile, as one of them is already trying to lurch toward the party. Particularly, it reaches for Ainsley. The lizard girl swiftly chops its arm off with a well-timed overhead swing of her longsword, ending up chipping her sword in the process. She grunts, and stabs the demon in the face just after that, which makes it dissolve. The party can see that there are twisted eye-like shapes all over the crystals, barely visible thanks to being transparent. The crystal demons only have humanoid form because they're covering humanoid shapes. The ceiling is coated in more crystal of this nature. The air around the demons dims when they become more active, as if they were trying to eat or destroy the light around them.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako slowly looks up... and eeps! "Um, um, um, um, um! Up!" She quickly falls to the back of the group and starts to cautiously watch the demons and the crystals. Her pale blue flames, now holy flames thanks to Faruja's help, move upwards towards the crystals so that Ayako can get a good look at them. "Huh? The crystals...there are eyes on the crystals! But... I don't really know what that means..."
Zephyr Windstar	<ALERT! DANGER!> chimes Divine Wind, bringing Zephyr up short. The mage grips the haft of her axe tighter as the demons fall and begin attacking. "Shambling monstrocities." she scoffs, kicking off the ground as four fluttering 'pixie wings' sprout from her back, glowing darkly purple. <MISTRAL CUTTER!> chimes Divine Wind once more, as the edge of the axe blade begins to glow purple as well. She dives right into the midst of the demons, swiping, hacking and dancing around them, using her speed and agility to dodge, only erecting shields when there's no other choice, which would only soften blows, not block them.
Staren	Suddenly, CRYSTAL SKELETONS! Why did it have to be skeletons?? Staren opens fire with the arm-mounted particle cannons reflexively -- as they cool down, though, he remembers he's supposed to be focusing on melee. He holds the flashlight in telekinesis, then transfers his beam saber to that hand and reaches into his bag with his right, pulling out a handful of bright LED lights and tossing them around the room in an attempt to offset the growing darkness -- and keep people from being surprised by attacks from complete darkness!
Inga Freyjasdottir	This isn't really how she'd wanted to do this. Alas, but plans are usually thrown to the wind lately. Inga is learning she'd better just try to roll with it. Light shines on the ceiling, and Inga looks up. Upon seeing the skeletons, she pales. Not just skeletons, that wouldn't freak her out. These were crusted with crystal--and coming to get them. "Odin's bones," she curses, tieing the goat off nearby as she then reaches for her knife. Without hesitation she slices into her arm, deep enough to cut the vein that that when she thrusts her arm forward, a spray of blood gushes toward one of the creatures that is moving toward her. This blood, enlivened by her anima, appears to hold extremely corrosive properties. It burns like acid. Inga can only hope that will stop it. Ayako points out that there are eyes on the crystals and Inga glances upward again, frowning. Its the crystal that is the enemy then. That is what is controlling the skeletons? "I had planned to perform a banishing spell! But I can't do so while being murdered!" she says, protecting herself and her goat. That goat can't die yet!
Riva Banari	"Oh! Oh. Ohhhhhhhhhhhh." Riva replies as the Device corrects her. "My bad!" Riva calls. She plops on a mining hat once people note the area beyond is dark and turns it on. May as well be prepared. But you don't really get prepared enough for something like that. "Okay, that's going to be a problem!" Riva calls, bringing up her guns and beginning to fire upon the demon-coated corpses. Blue-green bolts of Anima power rattle out at high speed, showering the demons. "I think it means they're evil and really creepy, Ayako! Crystals aren't supposed to have eyes! Be careful!" Riva makes sure to stay out of the way of Zephyr. Her fighting style seems to involve a lot of sweeping strikes and mobility. "Reminds me of Wuyin." Riva comments to herself, trying to keep her mind off of trying to process the horror of the demons. But when they go after Inga, Riva turns, throwing herself in the way to block the creatures. "HEY UGLY! COME PICK ON SOMEONE WHO DOESN'T HAVE A CUTE GOAT!" Riva yells, unloading on the nearest one.
Faruja	"DAEMONS! TREMBLE, OH YE FALLEN! FOR YE FACE THE MIGHT OF THE LORD IN THIS MOST RIGHTEOUS AND HOLY HOST! IN AJORA'S NAAAAAME!" Leave it to Faruja to try to destroy the demons through sheer force of faith and volume alone. Perhaps predictably, there's more fire. "They art /DEMONS/ Lady Esper! PURGE THEM! PURGE THE CORRUPTION!" Faruja's tail is lashing about as he tries to fill as many of those crystal eyes with cleansing seraphic flame. Luckily for his companions, any fire that touches them would feel warm and comfortable rather than burning. It seems to ignore the living and harm the unliving and demonic! A glance to Ainsley. Faruja's grinning. "The good Lady Paladin trained ye well!" There's pride in his voice. Then? He glances back. A swift teleport, and Faruja ends at Inga's side. Witch or not, she's helping them...in her own heathenous way. The blood-magic has him wincing, but otherwise he doesn't comment. Ainsley, too, knows that craft. He won't be so crass as to insult Inga's spellwork while Ainsley is around. Instead, he stands ready to defend the witch. He looks vaguely irritated the entire time, but acts as a guardian despite. He /does/ have plate mail under those robes, after all. "Fight well, 'Wisewoman'."
Ainsley	Ainsley has her hands full with the demons that come at her that don't have easily-stabbable heads, because many of them really don't. She just stabs the crystal demons over and over, carefully trying to avoid getting gouged by their awful humming claws. Which is very hard when one of them grabs her and tries to bite her with its torso, resulting in a blast of wind that sends the demonic creature flying backwards, shattering it to bits. The rest of the party finds they are not THAT hard to fight, but they are easily a threat against normal people. The blood melts down the demons into puddles of slowly-fading green light. Zephyr's wind blade slices the demons up, making them collapse like so many fine china dishes and fade away. The holy fire, though, does something quite effective. As soon as it becomes truly powerful, all of the demons squeal in terror and retreat, and any of the ones that get hit by it get vaporized instantly. The holy light even /touching/ them makes them crack and warp, and it's quite clear that it is their absolute antithesis, probably the only thing they truly fear. Riva's gunfire makes the demons shatter on impact, and squeal even louder. The few that dare to attack do so with vicious sword blade arms, swinging and howling in bestial fury. The commotion has attracted more of the crystalline creatures, which lurch toward the bars of their cages and peer out with their many glowing eyes. The effect is creepy glowing dots of light peering out of the dozen or so cells. Except for one. That one is a great deal more disturbing, a cell with bent bars that have been converted partially to crystals. One very large eye opens there, showing a warped and evil pupil that exudes a powerful malice, angered by the heroes and their demon cleansing. It turns to face the party... and then it shuts again, vanishing into the dark.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako moves to stand behind Riva and Inga. She blinks her eyes again and turns quickly to stare back at the very large eye. "Uhh... everyone? I think... there's a really, really big one in here..." She starts looking around quickly-and more pale blue flames suddenly appear around her and spread out to try to catch the-whatever it is before it can sneak up on everyone. "I don't even know what kind of barrier would be good for this... at all!"
Zephyr Windstar	"COWARDS!" Zepher shouts after the fleeing demons. "You won't escape!" The mage sweeps her blade once more, and dozens of light motes appear around her. <MISTRAL CASCADE!> chimes the Device. "SHOOT!" the motes instantly expand into apple-sized spheres of light, then blast out to chase down the ones that flee. Some even smash into the cells at the demons peering out from the bars. "Situation report! How're we doin'?" she asks, looking back at the others.
Staren	"Ainsley!" Staren shouts in alarm when she's grabbed, but then the demon is dealt with. And... holy fire works amazingly! "Wow!" He'd try 'holy water', but it requires knowing how to detect what you're blessing it against ahead of time -- such is the downside of drawing on the power of a rather unconventional god rather than being a priest like Faruja here. He can deal, though. "Loud sounds and bullets, huh?" Staren slashes any demons that try to engage him, then deactivates his saber and clips the hilt to his belt. He draws an oversized revolver with a triple-M monogram engraved on it... but not the usual one. This one has a brace to attach to his arm, and when he points it at a 'demon' and fires, it's more like a supercharged shotgun blast! Also, it was made by a god, so if he's lucky, that might count as holy too! If not, he'll have to settle for making the demons holey. "A big one?" Staren looks over at Ayako... "WOAH!" He fires the Rattler /and/ the particle cannons into the dark where the eye just was!
Inga Freyjasdottir	The quotes around 'wisewoman' as spoken by Faruja are audible. She represses a sigh. Despite his dislike of her, he appeared to protect her none the less. "Fight well, may your god guide your blade," she says to him. She then smiles to Riva as she too appears to protect her. That should give her enough reprieve to set up a circle and perform the ritual. "Cover me and I will see if I can banish these spirits," she informs them. "I'm going to cast a circle, if you can keep them off of me until I have done so, I should be alright." Best they know what she is planning. The goat is tugged forward until she finds some space. The goat is /not/ a fan of any of this and bleating pathetically. Its a strange thing to here layered with the ringing of battle raging. Inga needs to put the poor thing out of its misery. "Ayako, if you need to get in the circle with me!" she cries, gathering by now that Ayako is a healer, not a fighter. She can sympathize. Once she has enough room, Inga gestures to the blood dripping from her arm and the liquid rises, pooling in the air, defying gravity as Inga channels her anima. The blood shimmers crimson and gold, spreading around her in a circle as she gestures with her knife. The circle of blood hovers there, glowing with her anima as Inga prepares herself to invoke her gods. Faruja's righteous might seems most effective on the creatures, so surely, the wrath of her gods will be spectacular to see! A few items are removed from...mystery-space-place. A good sized bowl made of gold, a sprig from an evergreen tree, a few bone charms carved with runes. Inga's eyes close then, as she begins to chant, calling upon the names of her gods. "Odin, Allfather, Wise Wanderer...Frigga Far-seer, with distaff in hand...Thor, great thunderer, troll-bane and protector... Freya, queen of magic, lady of love and of fury...Ansuz, ansuz, ansuz...thurisaz, thurisaz..." Hopefully, that circles holds until she has finished!
Riva Banari	Guns are awesome, but they're kind of bad in melee. This is a problem Riva finds occasionally. This is where she would normally draw her sword, but that kind of was shattered into a million pieces back during Halloween. At least Addie's guns are still awesome! Riva ends up bleeding a bit herself for the cause, regardless, as one of them puts a deep gash into her arm. "AGH!" Riva yells, trying to get one of the MAC-10s spraying into the demon right on top of her. Ayako brings up that there's a big and nasty one, and Riva yells over her shoulder, "Just stay safe, Ayako! These things are nasty!" Even if they're not THAT bad, anything can kill if it hits you the right way. She then looks between Faruja and ainsley, and Riva gestures, "Go! I'll cover Inga, you back up Ainsley! She's your wife, after all!" Inga calls to her, and Riva nods, planting her feet and racking the slides on her guns. It looks very dramatic if one ignores she's not actually shooting bullets, but blasts of weaponized nature/life energy. "Right. They're not going to get through me!" Riva says, not really noticing that the goat is about to bite it.
Faruja	Ainsley is truly no damsel in distress, and she proves it! Faruja casts a broad grin her way. Bloody good show, my love! The Inquisitor casts a Haste spell on the lizardess, content to let her knight it up while he defends and burns. Seeing how the crystalline creatures shrink away, he concentrates upon ensuring the stream of fire continues! He doesn't catch sight of the larger demon just yet, focusing on some of the ones that get a touch too close to Inga and her goatly companion. "And may your own guide thine magery." Responds the rat in kind. There's not even a hint of disdain by now, the male forced to take out his blaze gun as well. Twin gouts of flame should hopefully help keep a good swathe of demons thinking twice of approaching Inga as she makes her circle. "FLEE, DAEMONS! FOR JUSTICE IS COME!" When in doubt? Taunt the demons to distract from blood mages. A glance to Riva, and he nods. "Of course!" Really, he'll likely feel more comfortable beside his love anyway. Teleport! Ainsley is soon getting the cover of copious amounts of fire. "Where is this greater Daemon!? COME OUT, VILE COWARD!"
Faruja	There's a slight pause. "WE ART NOT MARRIED MINE DEAR TEMPLAR!" Pause. He /blushes/. "Yet." Said very, very quietly. Ears wiggle, and there's this tiny little smile at the thought. Squeak!
Ainsley	The smaller demonic beings are easily replled and whittled down, until the only ones the party has to deal with are the ones lumbering out of their cells after the ponderous task of melding through the bars like light-eating gel monsters. The ones that are enshrouded in dark seem to move faster than the ones with light cast on them, but each volley of violence from Riva, Zephyr, Faruja, Staren and Ainsley keeps Inga and her ritual safe. Ayako herself seems to be clear of any immediate danger. The demon's eye snaps open again when it's shot. Staren just made it /mad/. The bars get blasted outward with horrific explosive force, embedding the bars into the stonework of a wall across the room. Horrific crystalline tentacles slip out of the dark, with darkness writhing within them. The core of the creature is a sphere, with a beating human heart pumping darkness out of it. It lunges straight for Staren and lets out a nails-on-a-chalkboard shriek, utterly ignoring the holy fire that isn't directly aimed at it, despite doing some minor visible damage to it. It tries to coil around the catboy and viciously strangle him, with crystalline spikes growing from the tentacles to rend and cut! And if that wasn't bad enough, the core cracks open and is filled with acid-drooling jagged crystal teeth, like some awful demonic octopus! Ainsley stares over at Riva, clinging a bit to Faruja and blushing beet red for a few seconds, both because that's horribly embarrassing to hear during a fight like this, and because it's not accurate... yet. She leans /away/ from a lashing tentacle as the huge crystal demon leaps for its intended target, and gasps in terror and surprise. It's hella spiky, she can't stab that!
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako steps into the circle before it forms and watches carefully... she smiles softly at Inga and Riva and then nods her head once. "Riva, I'm relying on you!" Ayako notes the guns that Riva's using with a happy smile. Oh, it's those again! She gathers her hands in front of her body and then thrusts her palms out towards Riva. "Because I have a barrier just for this! Mystic Ice Concave Barrier!" An odd outwards curving lens of ice forms out of thin air in front of Riva. The lens is completely smooth and thankfully doesn't appear to distort the light that shines through it. That would be bad for aiming! One of Riva's anima blasts would turn into a very large anima blast! "Eh? Eeehh? Wife?!" Ayako blinks her eyes quickly. "Ainsley and Faruja are... I didn't know!" And then all heck breaks loose when the demon's eye snaps open again when it's shot. Ayako winces at the sudden shriek. "Riva! Aim super carefully!"
Staren	Pieces of shattered bar ricochet off Staren's forcefield, pockmarking the translucent amber sphere as it flashes into visibility and then fades again. The monster is COMING FOR HIM. Staren empties the rest of the Rattler's cylinder at it, then too late realizes the tentacles are coming for HIM, SPECIFICALLY, and tries to run to the side only to get grabbed. "****ING TENTACLES! AGAIN?! SERIOUSLY?!" It seems grabbing attacks aren't stopped by the forcefield, and the tentacles wrap around him, the catboy struggling to try and push the tentacles off with his hands and feet. Strangling him still isn't /easy/, though. He's still in a super hightech battlesuit, even without the forcefield's protection. And then it opens its mouth, no, it's TERRIBLE MAW. "Oh COME ON, it's gonna EAT ME?!" He still sounds more... angry and disbelieving than actually afraid. Maybe he doesn't know when he /should/ be afraid, though. Then Staren gets an idea. "ATTACK THE WEAK POINT FOR MASSIVE DAMAGE!" And with that, he fires a dozen armor-piercing missiles (big ones and small ones), targeted to home in on the maw and explode inside in short-radius but still very deadly explosions of shock and shrapnel -- If any of the launchers are covered by tentacle, the missile tries to push into it with its thrusters and then explode point-blank, hopefully doing more damage to tentacles than it does to Staren's armor!
Faruja	"Oh bloody Abyss, we art taking things slow and steady, Lady Esper! Still dating! Growing our relationship, our hearts intertwining as roses amidst a bush! Were there a wedding, we wouldst hath made an announcement!" Promises the rat. A glance back. Squint! It may as well scream, 'I'm so getting you back for this, Riva!'. But he's not about to let Staren get tentacle'd-slash-devoured if he can help it! Faruja incants! A large red lizard appears, and opens its mouth, only to spew forth powerful flames at the grappling creature! Luckily, Salamander's flames seem to ignore Staren's very existance in favor of his opponent!
Faruja	The rat also squeezes Ainsley's hand. It's an act of will to not daydream about weddings right now.
Zephyr Windstar	"That's what I th--WHOA!" Zephyr leaps back as a mass of tentacles and hate bursts out of its cell, and leaps at Staren, bowling her over in the process. She skids, kicking up magical sparks as she grinds along the floor on her back. She comes to a stop near Riva and Inga, groaning as she struggles back to her feet. "Falka Nai Sam Pa'arath!" she snarls, the translation effect pointedly NOT translating what she just said. "STORM MODE!" Divine Wind chimes. <GEAR SECOND. MISTRAL STORM EMPOWERMENT MODE.> The wind in the cellar begins to pick up, as three little drones begin to rapidly orbit around the mage. "THIS IS MY WORLD, YOU AREN'T WELCOME HERE!" she snarls. <WIND CONTROL: TYPHOON SHIFT.> The wind around the monster begins to shift, becoming cutting blades and blugeoning clubs, smashing and slicing, shoving and attempting to disrupt the beast as much as possible. "If you can get outta there Staren, do it, I'll blast this thing right back to the damned hell it came from!"
Inga Freyjasdottir	Bad things are happening. Staren appears to have pissed off the big force in control here, and it has decided to take him out. On the plus side, revealing itself, Inga has a better of chance of making sure the thing is banished once her ritual is complete. Sadly, she is too busy chanting to catch on to Riva's little mistake (pff like she didn't say it on purpose). Now, now it is time for the goat to fulfil his purpose. All is ready, the gods have been called. Now it is time to make the sacrifice. Inga turns and looks to the goat, who had been bleating and shaking nervously--but as soon as Inga meets its eye and reaches toward it, the animal is quiet, calm...it moves toward her as she grips her knife, holding the beast still. "I make this sacrifice and hope it pleases the gods--a gift for a gift," she says, then pulls the goat's head back with her arm, moving with the casual efficiency of someone who has done this many, many times. Inga draws the knife across the creature's throat, cutting quick and deep. Blood pours from the wound, down into the bowl she'd set upon the floor. It was a good, clean kill. No useless suffering. She's a professional. Once the blood no longer flows from the wound, Inga lets the body down to floor. She's not done with it, but first things first. The bowl of blood, still hot, is raised. Inga dips her fingers into and anoints herself above the brow, her lips whispering a prayer. The sprig of evergreen in dipped into the blood, but Inga pauses...she has new ways of doing this. A more efficient way. Inga throws the blood toward the edge of the circle, gods-blessed blood of the sacrifice mixing with her own blood she'd used to cast her circle. Inga waves her knife to direct the flow, the motion reminiscent of stirring a giant cauldron. The blood swirls, the golden glow growing brighter as she charges it with her anima. She's ready. "By all the aesir and the vanir...by the land wights and by the ancestors I banish you from this place! May your body be broken by the hammer mjolnir! May your soul be laid to waste by the Allfather and given over to Hel!" she yells, her voice reverberating through the space as she throws her arms upward, directing the now considerable amount of blessed and anima charged blood toward the Big Eye.
Riva Banari	Riva grins as Faruja silently swears vengeance. "You two are /super adorable/. Just letting you know!" Clearly, Riva is going to be in /so/ much trouble if she ever starts crushing hard on someone. "Just keep it busy for a little longer, Staren!" She yells. She's not TOO worried about Staren. Supercatboy cannot die, his legend is too strong! Zephyr engages some amazing wind tricks, and Riva steps back, blinking in surprise. "Wow, you are /awesome/." Riva exclaims as Zephyr wind-murders things. She hears the thud behind her of the goat being set down, and she slumps a bit. "Poor Sir Goatington the Third, Esquire..." She sighs. But then Ayako comes up with another barrier! Riva doesn't have long to take advantage of this, and she pulls her guns back behind her head. Blue-green Anima focuses in the weapons, the Templar funnelling it into her guns as fast as she can, before she snaps them forward. "HELL YEAH, COMINATION ATTACK!" Riva yells. The two MAC-10s shoot a blast of Anima, radiating a hexagonal pattern in concentric rings around the guns as the blasts merge into one, then go through the barrier to go smashing towards the huge demon eye!
Ainsley	The Gemstone Eye learns very quickly that the party it has encountered is far out of its league. Staren meets it with point-blank missiles. Thankfully, most of the concussive force is soaked into the horrible monster that was just trying to eat him. It howls in agony as it is repelled off of him by the missiles, which don't seem to pierce its armor or kill it, only hurt it a whole lot. Zephyr slams into it with more wind, which knocks it backward violently, cracking its core and making its massive glowing green eye turn to look at her. Faruja's fire slams into it and forces it to try and crawl up the wall to evade Salamander's wrath, emitting a wave of green energy to shield itself, healing slowly. Riva's shots slam into its shield and shatters it. It's quite clear that the whole fight would last a lot longer if Inga wasn't here, when the creature starts bubbling, shifting, and hissing, threatening to begin changing form or do something awful and disgusting... if it has anything to do with the crystal skeletons, it may have been a painful experience. The blood lances through its body. It slams through it, piercing its heart and making its whole body freeze. The blood gets soaked up by that heart, and when all the blood has filled it, it shudders, and weakly tries to escape away from the party, blinded by the light that begins to pour from the heart and burn the dark in it away. It begins to crumble, until the last sign of its presence is a pathetic wind chime noise and a distorted whimpering. The light spreads from there, the rest of the corrupted crystal fading. All of the torches in the room light up, one at a time. The oppressive sense of evil fades away like dissipating fog. There's purified heart-like red gems all over the floor, having fallen out of the skeletons before. They weren't visible due to their light-eating property.
Faruja	Ears fold. Faruja huff's at Riva! He might be smiling despite. "Indigestion upon thine House, Dame Banari!" His tail waggles! Faruja pointedly ignores Inga's ritual! Except to cross himself, and say a prayer against heresy! At least now he knows just where to put the holy water! Poor goat. Their combined efforts prove victorious! As the creature fades away, the rat lets out a deep sigh of relief. "Faram be praised! Ajora was with us truly!" Then, he's kneeling, praying fervently as if trying to make up for dead goats and blood rituals. "Well done. All of ye." Even Inga's getting a look of respect. Grudgingly. Very, very grudgingly.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako stares as the (poor?) Gemstone Eye gets pummeled by a non-stop barrage of attacks. When it starts bubbling, shifting and hissing, Ayako almost expects it to start changing form like a normal RPG boss fight! Of course, when Inga's blood pierces through it and makes it look like it's panicking, Ayako does happen to feel a little sorry for it. Especially when it starts trying to escape and vanishes in a whimper. Just a little sorry. She then whews softly as the torches begin to light themselves back up, restoring light to the room. "Whew! I was worried for a moment when it started shifting, but... everyone did so well!" Ayako beams a happy smile!
Inga Freyjasdottir	Inga drops forward onto her knees, watching as the demon absorbs all the extremely impressive damage thrown it's way by the fighters here. Inga continues to be struck by the heroics of these people. The sheer power they possess. The creature absorbs the blood then begins to come apart. Inga looks relieved for a moment, before she replaces the look with one of dignified confidence. Of course she knew that would work. Naturally. "Well done everyone..." she says, smiling softly. "Thank you for keeping them off of me," she says to Riva and Faruja in particular. Faruja's grudging respect is met with a nod of acknowledgment. Oh, he doesn't like it one bit, but he did what needed to be done anyway. Inga can respect that, too. The wisewoman turns to the goat again, looking down on it. "Ainsley, Faruja, make the meat from this goat your first meal in this home--then you must bury the bones in the yard or in the foundations," she informs them. "That will ensure you don't have any more issues like this one. It will serve as a powerful protection for your home," she continues, a smile curving. A blessing and a hope for their happiness. Whatever issues she has with Faruja's zealotry, Ainsley is a good friend and only the best would do. "Frigga bless your hearth, Ainsley and Faruja." Hmph...wonder if she might have a dip in that lake before they go...
Staren	Staren blew off the tentacles grabbing him, yay! ...Staren blew off the tentacles grabbing him, SH**. When the smoke clears, Staren's armor is cracked and dented and scorched all over, parts of the outer plating buckled or shattered. If he'd been wearing normal body armor, even from his world, being caught in that much boom would have destroyed it! Fortunately, powered armor allows for heavier protection, which means that it isn't /destroyed/ as he stumbles away from the force of the blast, his ears still ringing. As he looks around, he sees the demons and darkness gone, and a bunch of red gems. "ARE THEY GONE? DID WE WIN?" he shouts, over the ringing.
Riva Banari	"Oh believe me, you won't have to worry about that. I had Taco Bell for lunch." Riva coughs for a moment, covering her mouth as the horrible demon dies. "You know, if it wasn't a horrible murderous crystal demon that was about to mulch Staren, I'd feel sorry for it." Riva nods to Ayako. "Good timing on that barrier, Ayako! Awesome work as always! Inga, I have no idea how you get so much mileage out of goats. Zephyr, you have totally introduced me to a whole new level of butt-whooping. I'm kind of scared if I enter the next WMAT now!" She then goes right down the list. "Faruja and Ainsley, you two were awesome. This is going to be a great house for you. Way more airy and pretty without the HIDEOUS EVIL in the basement." She watches as the red gems fall down. "Wow, those are pretty... Wait, are those..." She trails off, squinting at the crystals.
Riva Banari	"YEAH! WE TOTALLY WON!" Riva yells over to Staren, adding to the congrats all around. "WHOOOOO!"
Zephyr Windstar	Zephyr pants softly, falling to one knee as the spell fades and the beast is banished. <GEAR DOWN. MISTRAL STORM TO STANDBY. CAUTION. MANA ENERGY LEVEL DECLINED TO DANGEROUS LEVELS. USABLE MANA AT 20%.> The mage herself grumbles. "Thanks, /MOM/." she growls, but doesn't move from her position, kneeling on one knee with her Device in her left hand.
Faruja	Faruja just stares at Inga for a long moment. Then, he sighs, and looks to his love. Shrug! He'll leave /that/ up to her. He tries not to think of the amount of blessings he'll need to make up for /that/. Inga finally gets a full look. He bows deeply to the woman. There's honor to be served. "Ye hath mine thanks, Lady Inga. Ye fought honorably. This favor shall not go unpaid, on mine honor as an Inquisitor of the Holy Church." His stomach quivers at owing a favor to a /witch/. Oh, his pride. "Thank ye all. I shall not forget this." Then? He's bowing to everyone, and walking over to those crystals to examine. "Careful. These crystals may yet be corrupt!"
Faruja	The rat pulls out holy water, and starts sprinkling them. "BE GONE, UNHOLY CORRUPTION!"
Inga Freyjasdottir	Inga bows her head to Faruja as well in acknowledgement. They'll be talking again soon, she knows. There's the vision to speak of. Then he goes off to throw holy water at things. Inga nearly facepalms.