1660/Eulogy of the Abysswalker

Eulogy of the Abysswalker
Date of Scene:	24 February 2015
Location:	Great Painting of Ariamis <PoA>
Synopsis:	The sojourners to Priscilla's world encounter Sif in their hunt for a method of traversing the Abyss.
Cast of Characters:	Tomoe, Staren, Priscilla, 168, 183, 415, 560, Lezard Valeth

---

Priscilla has posed:
    The change of pace today is almost bizarre. Rather than coming into existence in some kind of fantastical or horrific vista of inhuman civilization, or in the abandoned ruins of a once great city, each phantom appears in the depths of what, for all intents and purposes, appears to be a forest. Not that there are no ruins here, attested to by the crumbled old building the circle is drawn on the front steps of, but judging by the way nature has reclaimed it, moss and ivy creeping over every stone, it must be hundreds of years old at the bare minimum. Far too long for any recent disaster or calamity to have taken it.

    Whatever it was a part of has long vanished from view, as the grounde outside is thick soil that is completely invisible through the underbrush, grown through an omnipresent layer of even thicker, springy green moss. The stuff seems to crawl over every surface; over stones, up trees, and hanging over the edges of the many small cliffs that rise up and down everywhere one looks. The sky is likewise invisible, covered completely in an impenetrable screen of verduous green that casts the ground into perpetual twilight. Most of the plants look much like any normal vegetation, but a handful of them are incongruous with the rest, such as thick jungle vines that rest from the branches of some of the trees. It takes a few seconds for the odd part to sink in; that the surroundings are almost completely silent. There is the incredibly distant churn of a river somewhere far below, and the faint chirping of insects, but no sound of birds or beasts.

    "I beg thine forgiveness for such a diversion of course." Priscilla says. "This place is very much out of the way of our course of duties, but I feel it necessary. For those of thee who doth remember, this place was mentioned by the pilgrims of Firelink Shrine; a way that Sir Artorias and Lady Ciaran didst intendeth to visit themselves. Supposedly, the grave of mine own world's Artorias lies within here, which I intendeth to seek for the fact that our own is no longer here for us to question of his method of braving the Abyss. I doubteth this shalt be as dangerous of a place as many we hath been, but additional eyes and perspectives wouldst be appreciated for if and when we find it."

Kazusa Ujikane (415) has posed:
    There's at least one person here who would not notice the change of pace. Kazusa Ujikane has, after all, never been here before! A recent addition to the Union, she's all too eager to see what kind of HEROIC ADVENTURES the brave Elites get up to.

    It's almost certain that Amalthea directed her to this one as some sort of lesson.

    And so she is here, looking around the forest with wide eyes behind glasses tinted with THISISAPHANTOMCOLOR, her hands shoved in the pockets of her sweater. "Whoa... n-no, no, don't worry about it!" she replies to Priscilla. If you think it's a good idea to be here, then it's fine! Besides, it's kind of pretty here, in a... desolate, creepy sort of way. -oh!"

    Something seems to occur to the girl, who pulls one hand out of her pocket, carrying a spread of 5 cards; each about as wide as a standard poker card but perhaps half again as long, and each with an ornate design on the back. The fronts each contain some sort of image: a dagger with a drop of blood at the tip, a gnarled sorceror's staff, a pair of bestial bared teeth, a bow and quiver, and a gleaming longsword; the longsword, however, appears faded.

    And having pulled them out, Kazusa makes a beckoning gesture towards Priscilla. "Could you come over here a sec? I'm trying these on everyone to see who they react to."

Tomoe has posed:
So here Tomoe was once again in this has the Salamander a bt on edge as well thats how things tend ot go but here she is with Priscilla nd keeping up with her as she speaks upon Sir Artorias and she does wonder. At the mention of the grrave and the iteration from Priscilla's world? She frowns a bit as she lkooks to the new arrival for a moment trying to get a good size up of Kazusa. Who woudl find Tomoe is over six feet of fairy woman given the inch heels on her armour.

"I'd be happy to help."

So as asked she does come over to Kazusa to see if anything /does happen/ she knows the girl's new at this and if she needs help? Well she'd be happy to give her a hand.

Lezard Valeth has posed:
Lezard has been /extremely busy/ lately, what with setting up plans to overthrow at least 2 pantheons, plumb the depths of the nature of Darkness and those who walk within it, as well as working on new and creative ways to store and manipulate souls.

But when the call goes out, Lezard responds, appearing in the forest with the usual black and crimson shading of the sinner. It is obvious that Lezard has some... moral and ethical incompatabilities with the Union, but he seems to have the best interests of Lordran in mind.

At least for now.

He glances around the forest as he appears, boots treading near silently over the grass as he looks to Priscilla for her explanation.

He nods, giving a slight bow. "I see. Your foresight is appreciated, Lady Priscilla." He straightens, and nods. "Gathering what information we can should allow us to accelerate our own preparations. The events of our last outing are... still being reckoned with."

Just ask Lezard's new Darkwraith captive guest. Or don't, we're not sure if he's capable of speech anymore.

The arrival of the new assistant causes Lezard to adjust his glasses, simply watching her with an arched brow. It's hard to tell what he's really thinking at the moment. Yet.

Kazusa Ujikane (415) has posed:
    WHITE! That is the color that Kazusa's phantom exhibits. She looks rather bookish, after all.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    Emiya Shirou manifests from the summoning sigil in burning gold, though as always the aura slightly dims and quiets as his phantom avatar solidifies. The youth's wearing the same outfit he always does - some modern fiberweave armor vest worn over his otherwise ordinary shirt and blue jeans attire. Both hands are in his pockets and he quickly hops a few feet away to clear room for others.

    A glance around reveals at least one face he doesn't recognize, leading to some eye-widening, but step one is to check himself over and the surroundings. "A forest?"

    But of course, Priscilla explains. "The guardian did say we'll need protection... so you think the grave might have whatever method we need?" He's doubtful of this, but it's worth checking out. What other leads to they have right now?

    Just Lezard figuring out what manner of protection they'd need...

    So instead he just starts checking out Kazusa from afar...

Nathan Hall (168) has posed:
    Nathan Hall is, once again, here, and once again as a White Phantom, with soft white glows on the edges of his body. As per the norm, he's come in his adventurer's outfit despite the clear lack of adventures that will happen today. "Our priority in locating the grave is any analysis we can perform of his body or his artifacts. Abyss-purging wavelengths or similar spiritual properties are what we seek, and I will test using samples of Abyss-corrupted blood. Please try not to excessively desecrate, if we can locate the grave, but the living are priority over the dead."

    Nathan refuses to waste time. "Do you have any leads on where to begin, Priscilla?" He asks quickly, and will immediately set off hiking in that direction if given the go-ahead. Otherwise he'll be setting off whatever direction seems to follow the lay of the land most conveniently.

Staren has posed:
    Forest! "Oh, huh, that's new. No ruined city today?" Staren comments as he appears, and then he notices the stones. "Ah, I see. Let me guess, this society's magic scorched the earth so that no plants would go, and their last, desperate attempt to grow plants with some new kind of magic went horribly right, the trees and grass destroying all sign of their civilization."

    Priscilla explains. "Oh... okay. So... wait, grave? I thought people couldn't die here, so how did he? And... do you have some kind of speak with dead spell? Or are we hoping that he left something here we can use? ...Wait, that doesn't make sense, people don't leave stuff at their own graves, they're dead. /Other/ people pick where their grave is. Wouldn't he have hidden it somewhere else...? Oh, Nathan's got a good point though..."

    Someone else's presence seems particularly noteworthy to Staren. He waves to Kazusa, "Hey, how's being an elite going? Go on any heroic missions yet?" He approaches to look at the cards. "So your wish made those...?"

Mizuki (183) has posed:
    Mizuki would arrive, likely still clad in the austere black robe she had worn once before in this world, and then again recently when venturing into a certain someone's dreams. Something about this forest evokes a certain sense of mystery and wonder, even if the flow of those sensations might be bottlenecked by something more cautious fretful, ominous. This area carries with it an odd sort of beauty, and with every corpse she would come across her mind would not help but fall victim to a certain miasma of dreaminess that seems to grasp them in her mind -- a desire to see them as stalwart knights of yore, clad in capes, their noble steeds bristling as their reigns are teased and their riders' forms are obscured by the shades of the canopy overhead and then spotlighted but the soft light of a midday sun.

    She might steal a quick breath, and an exhalation. Was that ever the sort of place this was? Was Lordran the type of world that might've accommodated such solitary, rapturous, and calming adventures once upon a time? The sorts that might've been made by stoic warriors, or samurai seeking to hone themselves?

    ... she smiles at her own naivet� a moment. No. No, likely not. And yet, she still might feel something like that here. As they meander about the area, leaves rustling with the ever more stagnant, chilled breezes of this dying world, she would feel something profoundly like that hanging loosely on the temporal stitches holding together the world about her. Something like a knight and their noble steed, but not quite. Something loyal, melancholic, determined, and brave...

    ... she sighs. It's likely just her imagination, but nevertheless, the vividness of feeling is something she had once not thought herself possible of realizing in a world like this one. It makes her feel, just a bit, that it could live again. That it could -deserve- to live again, if only to honor the spirits of those who once dwelled here.

    Ah, but all that aside, forests. Forests are always such nice places to find oneself in a narrative. So mysterious, yet with a certain penchant for revelation even so. Mizuki would keep silent for now, but she might steal the tiniest of smiles at Priscilla as her phantom wavers into existence and she follows along with the rest of them.

Priscilla has posed:
    Priscilla stares a little flatly at Staren. "No, this is the last site of the city of Oolacile. The overgrowth is entirely ordinary, as it is almost a thousand years passed." it'd be disappointing if she weren't telling a half truth. The city didn't just decline all on its own after all. "Sir Artorias is not a human. He is, or was, a knight of Gwyn, the same as Lady Ciaran. Asides, the Darksign didst not exist more than a few decades ago. It is also unlikely that this is a true grave, so much as a monument. Had there been a body, it wouldst hath been interred within the halls of Anor Londo, not within some ancient wood. It is not uncommon to leave personal effects at such a shrine." She stares more cautiously at Kazusa. "Lady Ujikane was it?" humouring her for a moment, she steps close enough to get a good look at the cards, a little curious of their function. A glance goes to Lezard, and then to Nathan. "I had thought as much. Far be it that I wouldst keep thee from thine research, but I felt that this wouldst aid thee in some way with completing it. As for leads, this is not entirely a random forest. The grounds that lay beneath it were once fashioned by human hands. Following what remains of it shouldst lead to some manner of nexus." And then to Shirou: "I believeth there is some chance it may, though I am far from certain. I simply feel as if it is worth trying."

    Rather than letting Nathan walk off on his own, Priscilla picks a direction first, leading the party onwards in lieu of Oscar. The group must be already fairly deep into the woods, because it doesn't seem to plunge precipitously into darkness as most typical evil forests do once one crosses a certain threshold. An extreme divide in the ground marks the passage of the river hundreds of meters below, the sound of which barely carries out of the cliffside ravine, which makes for a defining feature to follow. Though the trees are thick in most parts, the soil isn't yet deep enough over where old stone roads and buildings must be that their roots can grow deep enough, and so there are conspicuously clear causeways to maneuver around. Every so often, the sight of a bridge drowning in hanging creepers or a tower surrounded by the remains of its roof passes by, though they are relatively infrequent sights.

    More importantly is the forest itself. It seems it would be wise not to stray from the path. Once deeper into the woods, rather than an ominous thickening of vegetation and drop in ambient lighting, things can finally be seen moving. Only ever out of the corner of one's eye, shrubs and bushes shiver, trees have moved from place to place, and the moss pulses as something swims underneath it. Deeper in still, the faint outlines of massive figures can be seen wandering in the distance, shrouded by mist. Occasionally, glittering green powder falls from one of the trees, accompanied by the swooping of great wings. There are no messages to be seen anywhere, though as to why that is can only be guessed.

Priscilla has posed:
    Only after roughly an hour of walking does something incredibly blatant present itself. While crossing the only bridge across a divide in the chasm, something abruptly appears on the windowsill of the crumbling gatehouse. At first glance it appears to be an enormous white cat, but its body shape is all wrong, and its mouth runs from ear to ear like that of a shark, bristling with pointed teeth. Both Mizuki's and Lezard's phantom senses trip at its appearance, the former instinctively knowing that this one creature is somehow greatly important to this place, and the latter instinctively sensing the presence of power. When the creature opens its mouth, a low, vaguely feline rumble sounds out, but is immediately overlayed by the voice of a suspicious old woman, both noises sounding simultaneously. "Is it not so that thou art new?" the language she speaks is immediately recognizeable as a faint deviation of the one Priscilla does, rather than the more modern tongues spoken in Lordran. "I can tell true, thou hast come here on a fool's errand. What purpose dost thou think this will serve?"

Kazusa Ujikane (415) has posed:
    Kazusa spreads her cards out as if holding a hand in a poker game, and holds them out. First towards Tomoe, whom she looks at as if with an expression of concentration. "...None of the regular cards are responding," she decides. "...You might be a Knight, though. Have to check again some time when it's working again."

    The cards come around next to Priscilla as the group begins to walk, and the girl seems satisfied much more quickly; to those who look carefully, the dagger on the face of one card seems to shimmer, briefly, in a faint image of Priscilla's scythe. "Ohhh! Got one, got one~." She plucks the card out and holds it up with a wide smile. "It looks like you fit under the Cutthroat card! Would you, uh... do you mind if I borrow your powers to use at some point? Just in case? You won't lose them or anything!"

    Though Kazusa speaks out loud, the card itself also does so, after a fashion. It is a request without words; an impression, a formless 'feeling' passed along to Priscilla in the space of a heartbeat. There is no voice to it, no language, merely a simple idea. But if words could be put to that idea, it would be somewhere along the lines of...

    O shadowed avenger, will you lend your silence to this brave soul?

    Aside from her request and the card's wordless echo, the girl is more or less quiet as they walk, largely because she's afraid she'll miss some IMPORTANT EXPOSITION. ...And at least in part because they're walking through a place that looks amazing in its own desolate way, and she's not missing the sights for anything.

    ...Maybe she's a little creeped out. Maybe.

    Which probably explains why she steps in behind Priscilla the moment the strange cat-beast shows itself. "W-whoa-!"

Lezard Valeth has posed:
Lezard seems to be in complete agreement with Priscilla's expectations for this outing, as he simply nods to her response and says nothing, contenting himself with travel.

He is unusually silent as they move, his senses apparently dedicated towards examining the area intently. Something about this forest seems to demand his attention instead of his usual commentary track, except on the radio, of course. There's always time to snark on the radio.

It's when they reach the rubbled gatehouse and the bridge near it that Lezard pauses to look up with a grimace of irritation at the interrupting feline. That grimace immediately fades when he considers what he is looking at, an edge of concern entering his suddenly measuring gaze. "It is true that we are new here, madam." Lezard gives a polite bow. Politeness costs nothing, after all, and it leave open doors that would otherwise be closed if one was immediately belligerant.

Until he knows more, he cannot make a final decision after all. "You appear to know us well. What purpose do you believe we are here to accomplish, and why is it a fool's errand?"

Mizuki (183) has posed:
    Mizuki would regard the cat for a moment, inclining her head faintly as a demonstration of something akin to respect. "I do not claim to know or assume 'purpose'," She would quietly intone, "beyond the mere assumption our stint here may bring us to some greater understanding of this world. Outside of that, my goals are likely somewhat distinct from those carried by the others -- I would seek to remember this place in word so that its presence may endure forever in that humble reflection amid the many halls of my library, and that is something I cannot do if I am not present here, specifically." She can't be succinct to save her life when she's like this, unfortunately; whimsy is ever the enemy of brevity when it comes to infect her. Rather painfully, it seems to do so quite often.

    "Though," She would continue, "I believe it might be more relevant to mention that we've come seeking a certain grave. If we are to progress on our chosen path, we must pay our respects to a certain figure from the past. We thought to locate said person's resting place here." With a smile, she would add, "So yes, a fool's errand. Though not one I believe we will be easily dissuaded from." She will leave it at that, believing her meager explanation should explain everything. Considering her feeling about this creature, it very well might.

Nathan Hall (168) has posed:
    Nathan is cool with hiking. He may look like a nerd, but he's been hiking around various worlds for years, so the semi-natural environment is something he can work with, carefully, and patiently. So he follows Priscilla dutifully, and comes to a halt when she does as well. The lack of messages for him to find has been troubling, something that has set him something on edge, worrying him. And now, he encounters the strange cat creature.

    "Salutations." He says, simply. "We are new arrivals to the area, that is correct. As several of us are fools, including myself, you assess our purpose accurately from the start, but we remain hopeful of the possibility of success. We believe that it will serve the purpose of permitting us to solve the challenges presented to an ally by Gwyn." He keeps respectful. This is someone who seems to know much and they seem like someone who would appreciate respect for the fact that they know much. He's not sure of their opinions onf Gwyn, so he makes sure to word it in as neutral a way as possible. Lots of social optimization here.

    "My ally, Mizuki, speaks the truth. We are here to locate an important grave. I am Nathan Hall, a librarian. What is your name?" He tilts his head. "You sound knowledgable of the world. Do you have wisdom appropriate to share? We would rather act with insight than with haste." That looks like some kind of monster, Nathan is making sure to not piss it off. Lots of teeth that he doesn't want to make angry.

Tomoe has posed:
Tomoe :nods to Kazusa for a moment.

"Even with magic, that's about what I am yes."

She admits as she pauses to see that Priscilla is working She smiles a bit and well she's happy it is doing something for Kazusa. She now turns her attention to the other matters at hand now that the new elites got some cards reayd to play as it were.

She looks to Priscilla and listens to what she has to say.

"I see so it's more a memoral than a proper grave is it Priscilla?"

Ojay now she's gettin somewhere she thinks for a moment as she looks things over and debates her next path of action as everyone arrives she falls in along side Nathan hall ready to protect him if needed.

"I am simply Tomoe the Iron Lily and Nathan's body guard."

Staren has posed:
    Cat monster thing! Staren starts to raise his weapon, then lowers when it speaks.

    Well, his instinct is to just tell it what they're here for and fight it if it's a problem, but it seems this creature may be important to their goals here, somehow.

    So for now, he looks on, while the more diplomatically-talented party members handle it.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    That was a LOT of walking with very little to worry about. Apparently very litle wants to screw with such a huge party? Maybe?

    But then there's a cat, and it's speaking to them. Shirou's dealt with some strange things in the Multiverse, but this is still enough to get him staring stupidly for a few seconds. What is that thing? A youkai?

    Shirou tries some politeness when he speaks. "Ultimately, or in the short term? Without some protection from the Abyss our quest hits a roadblock. I'm Emiya Shirou. What about you, miss cat?"

Priscilla has posed:
    Well now, cutthroat isn't a very nice name is it? Priscilla most definitely thinks of herself as a lot more principled than that. When had she ever killed someone purely out of spite? "Perhaps." she states simply. "But doing so wouldst be obscenely dangerous to thine own person. I recommend it not unless thou canst absolutely not find a replacement." as far as she knows, it's true. Shirou had managed to tear himself up using an echo of her weapon. She feels uneasy loaning out that kind of ability to such a young, inexperienced person. She considers it most of the walk, occupying roughly half of her thoughts until the first new contact. Such considerations go to the back of her mind once she senses the presence of the cat. If it had just snuck up on them from outside, she would have felt it. It /appeared/ there.

    The cat itself laughs, interlaying feline yowling with the almost scornful mirth of a cynical old crone. "I am Alvina, of the Darkroot wood. It is as I suspected, thou cometh for the grave of Artorias. I know not for which you hath need to enter the Abyss, but abandon the thought here and now. Think not that I am any ally of Gwyn, nor his Kingseeker. If thou still desireth my wisdom, here these words true: The legend of Artorias art none but a fabrication. Traversing the Dark? 'Tis but a fairy tale. Have thine own respect and go not yonder knocking for nothing I say!" Priscilla immediately tenses as she senses the movements of others, whispering into her radio. "I cannot tell whether this is a ruse or whether she simply means to dissuade us with force shouldst we proceedeth, but there art others with her. Seven in total."

Kazusa Ujikane (415) has posed:
    "Ah, for what it's worth, I'm... I don't think I'm any more at risk than you would be, anyway," Kazusa murmurs from behind Priscilla's back. "It changes me to be just like who I'm copying. I knew how to fight like Amalthea, and it turned me into a robot unicorn." Pause. "...leaving a rainbow trail behind was weird."

    She's not coming out from behind Priscilla while the cat thing is talking. It's kind of scary. Especially if there really are seven of them.

Staren has posed:
    When Priscilla warns Kazusa off copying her, it suddenly clicks in Staren's mind, "...Oh wait, shit, would that card copy the Lifehunt?" and he turns to hold out a hand in a 'stop!' gesture. "Don't do it!"

    But now there's more to consider. Staren turns to face the cat. "Even legends may contain a kernel of truth. Whether or not Artorias did it, we must. So, are those your friends sneaking up on us, or are you getting ambushed too?"

Mizuki (183) has posed:
    Mizuki's arms would fold behind her back, and her expression would shift into something of a conversational - if somewhat duplicitous - sort of grin. "While we appreciate your counsel, Miss Alvina, I'm afraid we must make our own conclusions with regards to this whole thing before we will be able to retreat from the confines of this wood. For even if the story of Artorias is a fairy tale," She would widen her grid ever-so-slightly, "it is something of the occupation of authors such as myself to bring those folkloric hymns to life. Likewise, it is the obligation of heroes -- and, perhaps, villains -- of consequence like those that accompany me to do the same, if in a slightly different way." She leaves for a pregnant pause. "... ergo, we will persist in what we set out to do. After this we will leave your domain with all due haste, but I am afraid we cannot do so before."

    Maintaing her poise and her expression, Mizuki would contemplate her next words carefully. "Even so, we are not so arrogant as to proclaim our right to trample across these grounds when I suspect you," She's gonna make a wild guess here, considering the cat-thing's defensiveness, "have so long guarded it from interlopers of our ilk. I will promise you this: though our thoughts may differ, we seek to commit no violence that we are not forced to. I like to believe that my compatriots and I have the ability to tread softly, and to leave only the most gentle impression upon the places they visit. If you would but lay your faith in this proposal, then I would like to request the chance to prove our trustworthiness to you. If we may do so in any form, or if in any other way we may avoid conflict as we proceed, please speak. If not, however, know that we will still make our way through this forest." After straightening her expression somewhat, "And we will do so without fail."

    She would stand still and statuesque as she awaits some reply. Truth be told, she hates having to intrude in this way -- it's rather antithetical to the usual stance she adheres to, but necessity calls. Looking to Nathan, she hopes she was able to properly emulate his well-balanced conversational method; one that communicates a desire for cooperation, but still insists upon the perceived necessity that propels their group forward. She doubts very much anything she could say would move anyone - least of all a guardian dedicated to this location's solitude if indeed that is what Alvina is - but that is no reason to forgo the attempt.

    So she watches, waits. Perhaps more importantly, she also remains on her guard.

Tomoe has posed:
Tomoe gets quiet now she knows her jobs and intends to do it. So whe keeps track of everyone and the being they have enountered at this point. She looks at the cat who turns out to be the name of Alvina. She listens to what they have to say at this point, She looks at them for a moment she makes note there's a possible eight hostiles okay this could be getting messy at the mention of life hunt she doesn't respond she dos think if it does make a copy tht would be quite the usefuul thin to have. Mizuki has always been a bit odd to Tomoe, yet having her around on a crawl like this is a heck of a boone really given her word play skills compliment Nathan's giving them quite the edge o so she thinks. She for her part keeps quiet in person and brings up a few things on the comm.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    The warning from Priscilla gets Shirou edgy. He opens his Magic Circuits with a mumbled 'trace, on' and begins forming a mental image just in case...

    "IF it's just a fabrication, is there anything wrong with visiting the grave?" He's not at ALL sure about this cat, but he's hoping nothing crazy comes of this.

    Did anyone expect him to make a big speech? Nah, not Shirou's style.

Lezard Valeth has posed:
The cat is a powerful distraction, but Lezard lives in a world where spirits can walk in and attempt to murder you at any time. These kinds of shenanigans are not unexpected. His expression becomes a faint grimace as the cat berates them. He casually removes a ruby-tipped sceptre from his cloak as the feline speaks.

He lets Mizuki and Nathan make their case. There isn't a whole lot to be gained from a brawl here, he feels, so he's not going to flex immediately.

He is not, however, going to let them ambush the group. He watches the trees, waiting for a sign of attack.

Nathan Hall (168) has posed:
    "A moment." Nathan says, putting a hand up to ask for the conversation to not progress too quickly. "Alvina. The Abyss has taken something great. Something that is crucial to the world, irreplacable, and which must be recovered if the First Flame is to be restored and Lordran is to be brought out of its blight. If we are unable to find what we seek here, then the world pays the price." He makes a plaintive, respectful open-palmed gesture. "I can certainly understand that perhaps we may be entirely wrong. Perhaps you are correct, traversing the Abyss is something that absolutely cannot be done, and our true objective is lost to us completely. Is there more to be lost in making an attempt?"

    "Are there terms by which you might offer guidance and assistance, or otherwise not obstruct? We wish to disrupt and harm as little as possible. Are we required to turn back and leave, or is there some way that we might seek our goal while still keeping respect?" A few details, not too many. "Or are there other objectives that we should seek, that you believe would help the world more?" He's trying to clearly prompt her for some path that might still accomplish their objective without pissing off their ambush group...

Priscilla has posed:
    Alvina laughs once more, but this time entirely derisively. "Let me say again. I am Alvina of the Darkroot wood, and I command a clan of hunters who track down defilers of the forest graves. I hath no care for the world outside, but what lies within my domain is sacred, and I hath no guarantee of either thine truthfulness or thine ability to be respectful of such places even if thou were to try. I hath no desire to even begin to entertain thine pointless wishes, and every reason to refuse. However, I wouldst not punish thee if thou were to turn back immediately." The sound of footsteps can just barely be heard, and human shapes just barely perceived at opposite ends of the gatehouse. Only if one focuses very intently can they grasp the incredibly faded forms of men; a ragtag group of mismatched warriors and possibly mages, barring the bridge and the front door simultaneously. All of them have weapons ready, which prompts Priscilla to summon her own. If both Mizuki and Nathan can't negotiate with this thing, then there is nothing to be done for it.

    "Thou thinkest far too little of me, creature. I am far old enough to see through such frail discouragement. I knoweth of a time whence Sir Artorias most certainly didst-" she abruptly cuts off as one of the figures properly enters the room and, by removing something from his finger, fade into full view. A handful of people will immediately recognize the lacquered mask and oriental sword as belonging to Oscar's least seen companion, having been missing in action ever since Sen's Fortress. Unfortunately, Priscilla knows next to nothing of Indra, having only spoken to him at the undead burg, and so she has no ability to even guess why he would be here.

    "Wait." he speaks in his even, slightly accented tone. "Master Alvina. I know of these people." He looks towards Nathan, Mizuki, Priscilla and Staren, though he obviously doesn't recognize Tomoe, Lezard, Shirou or Kazusa. He seems to be keeping that fact quiet however. "They travel with someone I know in times. They obeyed both Sen's Fortress and the Battle of Stoicism, and the sanctity of the Bells and Anor Londo. There is nothing to fear from them." Alvina turns towards him with a faintly sour look, growling most definitely like a cat. "You realize that if thou hast misdudged them, it will be judged with thine own blood, surely? What dost thou gain from abetting them." Indra remains firm. "A repayment to a man I owe, who's goal I once shared. I will watch them, and if they dishonour me, I will slay them or die in the attempt. Does this please you?" It sounds like he's asking Alvina, but his gaze is firmly on the party. He's really serious about offering this. It's extremely unlikely that he could take them on in a fight and he clearly knows it, and so it comes down to this: start a brawl that kills everyone but Oscar's companion, or take his offer upon risk of him being potentially killed should they do something to displease Alvina.

Staren has posed:
    Staren's trying to pinpoint the ambushers and prepare firing solutions, so that the fight can open with missiles! He doesn't do subtlety.

    Fortunately, Indra shows up and, apparently, is someone with enough pull with the cat lady to get her to let them pass. He relaxes slightly, no longer expecting an immediate attack. "Well." He starts to speak, then thinks better of it. No reason to risk mucking this up with the wrong comment.

Kazusa Ujikane (415) has posed:
    For several moments, it looks as if things are going to get difficult - and dangerous - quickly. As a result, Kazusa has the Cutthroat card in hand and is about to make another, more frantic request of Priscilla when a man she doesn't recognize takes a step forward and vouches for them. She pauses, blinking, and takes a quick look around, before finally relaxing just a bit. "Eheheh..." It's a nervous laugh, one that says she realizes how close it just came to a very lethal situation.

    The fact that they seem to have been saved by knightly honor in a rather dramatic fasion has her internally squealing a little, though.

    However, that near brush does prompt the girl to lean over (and, to some extent, up) to murmur to Priscilla again. "Please? Just in case? I don't want to drag everyone down by needing to be protected..." And she cannot, after all, simply take Priscilla's powers for herself. There has to be permission.

Tomoe has posed:
Tomoe sees they see to ahve someone else comming toward them she pauses for a moment and wonders About this she doe snot move she doe snot mak any hostile noves however. She watche the new arrival and holds her stnac she is not hostile. She's very thankful for this persson spekaing up for them. She looks to Alvina and simpley nods. With the oath he has mad eshe intends her damnest to not make him do anything to have to carry it out. She gets the message from this with how serious it is. She also respects him for /doing/ this on their behalf.

Mizuki (183) has posed:
Mizuki's eyes would only waver from Alvina once Indra steps into full view, at which point she would give him a somewhat quizzical look. If she has seen him before, she doesn't recall when she has, but he quickly earns his place as one of her most well-liked residents of this curious realm. As Alvina asks what he stands to gain from aiding them, her brow would raise to inquire likewise, but when his answer is given she would be satisfied with it, if not outright pleased. The members of Oscar's band have time and time again proven themselves noble and trustworthy sorts. Perhaps because they are so defined by these traits, however, she has also seen many of them succumb to the damnation of the darksign. For all these reasons she has something of a vested emotional interest in ensuring his safety, so if they take his offer she will do everything in her power to see his kindness returned in full.

    For now, all she's able to do is give him a rather blank look and a bow, after which her arms would return to more neutral positions at her sides. "... thank you. You'll forgive me if we have met before and I have forgotten you, but regardless of prior acquaintance I am extremely glad that you came along when you did. Though it may seem rather hard to believe, it would have pained me far beyond the physical to have been forced into confrontation." Words are cheap, but they tend to be worth a bit more when there aren't so many obvious goals and insinuations to back them, so with another glance to Alvina she hopes that they are taken well. All that aside, though, they have a task to resume. "But, very well. Lead on. As you have trusted us, we shall trust you to deliver us to our goal. Once we've done what we must, you'll not be made to suffer our presence a moment longer."

    Briefly, though, Mizuki would turn to regard her companions. She's smiling, but as her look straightens out it becomes rather... stern. She lingers a bit closer to their fold and quietly adds, "... it is exceedingly rare that I'll breach human decency so as to make demands of others, and I am certain that I've no reason in saying this to begin with, but even so. This knight has done us a great kindness. Please, do nothing to provoke suspicion until we depart." She doesn't seem to be addressing anyone in particular, and it seems to have been something said more for her own comfort than any practical purpose, but even so. The statement arrives with an unusual degree of frankness, too, so she hopes the contrast will inspire others to take heed of it.

    After she finishes speaking, she would nod to Indra. She's ready when everyone else is.

Nathan Hall (168) has posed:
    Nathan remains completely stoic throughout the building confrontation, almost robotically forcing himself to maintain calmness even while the enemy masses in front of him, and continuing to make a diplomatic effort to gain passage. But then, thankfully, a longer term bit of diplomacy pays off. With relief, Nathan nods, deeply enough to be a half-bow. "If it is permitted, Alvina. Your honored hunter granted us his help before. We will do all we can to see his faith rewarded just as much as it was the last time." There's a similar nod to Indra, the familiar eastern man. "You may not speak often. But when you do, those words carry such incredible weight. I respect that. Thank you." It's distinctly not meant as flattery, simply as respectful acknowledgement. "We will not betray your faith. The rest of you," He calls back, gesturing to the rest of the group. "Please confirm any actions or tests you perform with Indra /before/ executing them. I am certain that the rules of this area are as such for good reason, and we will do well to respect them."

    He will seek now, to lead the group onward! "Alvina. I understand you would like for us to be gone as soon as we possibly can. We will respect this wish, and ensure this is our only visit, and a swift one, if that is within our power. Thank you, as well." He figures this cat, she doesn't want them there, so this is the best social posture he can take to minimize stress. Then back to Indra. "If you would guide us, please. We will keep only to the path you deem best for us to walk." Aside to Mizuki, "He is the man who assisted us so greatly at Anor Londo, as well as the path to the Parish. He is quiet, pay what words he does speak great heed."

Lezard Valeth has posed:
Lezard continues to listen to the cat, his expression growing darker by the moment. When the form of the oppositon becomes apparent, however, he hisses, "Concealment magics!" And throws his cloak aside, preparing for battle...

When they are vouched for by someone he doesn't know. When that occurs, Lezard's stance relaxes, and he straightens, looking over to the man with a measuring gaze. Does he trust the man?

Well, it's not like /his/ life is on the line if they're going to get betrayed.

The power dissipates, released from Lezard harmlessly as he puts his sceptre away for the moment. "Indeed. I will be guided by you, Sir Hall." Lezard speaks with pleasant aplomb and a smile. He seems to be gaining some measure of good cheer again!

Or maybe this is just how he gets sometimes just before he starts blowing things up. Who knows? Still, it looks like he's playing by the rules, so much the better.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    It does take Shirou a moment to get his bearings regarding the one who's just walking up. he's seen that build before... and gear... "Wait a moment, you're-" The beginning of a hot-blooded blurt is choked off just from how STRANGE the location is and these goings on...

    What IS going on here?

    Shirou rubs his forehead momentarily, but then relaxes slightly.

    Instead of speaking just yet, he's instead giving the deserter the weirdest look while the group starts moving...

Priscilla has posed:
    Priscilla is much less vocal in her approval of Indra than anyone else, but she certainly feels it in equal measure, managing the barest ghost of a smile. Indra's own expression is, of course, concealed behind that mask, but just from the vague inclination of his head one can get the faint impression that he might be stoically relieved. ". . . very well." growls Alvina, her tail thrashing side to side in obvious agitation. The ghostly figures look amongst themselves as if unsure quite what to make of the situation, before finally parting to allow access across the bridge, keeping their weapons at the ready. From the small number of them with visible faces, they seem to dislike the party more for endangering Indra than for any kind of transgression on sacred territory. They may work under Alvina, but it seems clear that they don't especially share her fae disposition.

    As soon as they're clear of the gatehouse, Priscilla motions over to Kazusa for the card, silently accepting her insistence over the radio that her copying ability will suffice to protect her, or perhaps simply deciding that the girl is aware of the risks and thus should be allowed to make her own choice, no matter how potentially dangerous it may be. Once she is done with the Cutthroat card, she breaks the awkward silence by verbally prodding at Indra, scarcely audible over the crunch of moss and leaves underfoot. "Forgiveth mine asking, but-"

    For an absolute first, Indra responds at the first prompting given, rather than waiting for the right question. "Once I came in search of a Lordsoul, but when I realized the dead end, I would never escape this forest without going mad. I swore service to prolong my humanity, so that I could be of help to Oscar should he ever come this way, rather than becoming Hollow and losing that small chance entirely. The others are much the same. They care little for these woods, but for the hunt. A Covenant with Alvina provides Humanity so long as we uphold its terms, but it is not easily broken. We are oathbound to kill traitors." After that, he immediately returns to taciturn silence, outright refusing to answer any further questions levied at him. He doesn't so much as ask how Oscar and the others are doing. Perhaps he has complete faith in them, perhaps he simply doesn't wish to know, or perhaps he realizes there is no point in dwelling on it now that he has made his choice.

    The routes Indra takes are much more direct, and go through risky parts of the forest. The distant figures become more central that mere peripheral vision, but always just facing the wrong way or barely out of range of hostility, as though he is very much used to all their habits. Now people can outright see the trees crawling around the ground, the bushes walking on tendriled feet, the mushrooms swarming like ants, the fins of strange creatures cutting through the sea of moss, the wandering forms of stone figures, the shifting hulks of great, dark beasts, and briefly, the brilliant, moonlit wings of some enormous creature clinging to the wall of a broken tower. Eventually, the trail abruptly cuts off at an enormous set of gates, completely out of place for the lack of vegetation anywhere around them, and for their silvery construction rather than conventional stone, the borders of which has been wrought into intricate, if unintelligible designs. Producing some manner of crest, Indra presses it into something in lieu of a keyhole between the double doors, causing a seam of white light to run down between them, and then for them to slowly open, grinding on ancient hinges.

Priscilla has posed:
    Despite being at the heart of the wood, the sky here is clear and bright. Nothing grows for a hundred meters around, leaving a perfectly circular clearing, in a faint depression with a noisy stream running through it, lit by the full moon looming overhead, much larger than it should be. A steadily rising mound near the center is littered in haphazard gravestones, each and every one of them affixed with a sword or spear of some kind planted in the earth by each one, to mark a warrior's resting place. Which one the group has come for is obvious however, because one marker towers above all the rest, looming like a granite monolith at the clearing's exact center, before which stands a massive sword of glossy black and silver metal polished like a mirror and utterly untouched by age. Indra stops by the door, saying "Past this point, I may no longer help you. This place is the one part of Darkroot that is not Alvina's. Its guardian will judge you separately.

    What he means becomes immediately obvious as soon as the group proceeds far enough for the doors to shut behind them. The loud clank is met with a guttural, beastial snarl from the opposite side of the clearing, and then a shape from behind the memorial suddenly leaps to its head, balancing atop the darkened stone so that its massive silhouette momentarily blots out the moon. A grey wolf larger than an elephant bounds down to earth, snatching the colossal sword free of the earth and taking it up in its jaws, glowering at those gathered with baleful yellow eyes. Anyone who knew Artorias in the Union can easily tell who this is, despite how the passage of time may have changed him.

Staren has posed:
    The way is open. Indra explains. Staren's not sure what to say to that, and begins walking in silence, mulling over the implications. These people had to swear service to avoid going crazy, that's kinda messed up, but it's one thing on the long list of what's messed up in Lordran.

    Finally, he says: "Thank you."

    When they reach the graves, Staren can only stare at the number of graves. "How many people...?"

    And then, wolf! "Woah. Who is this guy?" Staren, on guard, looks between the wolf and Priscilla.

Kazusa Ujikane (415) has posed:
    There is little to it, on Priscilla's part; when the crossbreed gives her assent, the card in Kazusa's hand simply shimmers briefly, and the dagger is replaced by an image of Priscilla's scythe. The look on Kazusa's face is intensely grateful. How often does Priscilla have a girl beaming at her like that? 'Thank you!' she mouths happily, before falling into step behind and slightly to Priscilla's side.

    And no matter how unsettling an aura Priscilla might give off, in some ways it's a comfort to the schoolgirl. Because the longer they travel, the more she decides that the woods are infinitely more creepy and foreboding than a woman with an aura of death. It's the knowledge that said woman is on their side - that aura would be turned towards her protection in a fight - that makes it comforting.

    Only once they arrive at the graveyard that does not belong to Alvina does she veer away from the half-dragon... and that proves just in time for her to leap back (forward?) in surprise as the door slams shut behind. The next thing she knows, she's staring up at a massive wolf preparing to brandish a thoroughly titanic sword. "A-ah... nice... doggie..." she murmurs, taking a few steps back. This results in her bumping into Shirou.

    And letting out another small, startled yelp.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    Walking into a really dangerous place with a giant wolf is not high on Shirou's list of priorities. He swallows upon laying eyes on Sif, having remained mostly quiet through the journey - oh he DEFINITELY wants to say something, but the words keep choking when he tries to shape them.

    Indra's made a choice and explained themself, after all...

    It just ends up with him scowling by the time he enters the grey wolf's territory.

    And that look's quickly replaced with a flash of fright. "Wh-whoah?!?"

    He's so distracted by the wolf's majestic and terrifying presence that it's a complete double-whammy when the doors slam shut. He's totally distracted and blurts out some nonsense when Kazusa thumps into him.

    With a clumsy noise he tries to steady her. Shirou's shivering a little himself, but he steels himself up soon enough.

    "Watch out!" In fact, he shuffles himself around until he's taken up a guarding position in front of Kazusa. "...Trace... ON."

    Prana flickers, then surges from his palms! Within a few seconds KANSHOU AND BAKUYA are drawn forth from his forge-soul, glimmering in the moonlight...

    He's tense, ut not making the first move.

    "Judge us?! ... Does that mean we have to fight this guy?!"

Mizuki (183) has posed:
    As they enter the clearing, Mizuki would likely feel right at home. It is by all appearances an impromptu graveyard in the clearing of a mystical forest which bears the light cast upon it by the full moon on the ground. The beauty of the scene tugs at her heart more than is likely healthy considering the danger inherent to being present in Lordran, but nevertheless she indulges no small amount of gawking. Eventually those gazes of appreciation would bring her eyes to rest upon the grave that must belong to Artorias, however, so she has an extremely clear view as a gigantic wolf creature sets upon it, eyes filled flickering with a sort of determination she has not often seen even in humans. Not only this, but the 'beast' gives the lot of them time to prepare -- as though it fights by some warrior's code.

    For all these reasons, she can't manage to be afraid of the animal; rather, she takes a liking to him extremely quickly. It's a little known fact, sure, but Mizuki has a special place in her heart for non-sapient mammalian creatures... though in this case she really can't be certain if this one is non-sapient at all. If its instinct had been to attack them on sight, it had not acted upon it, and behaves instead as though it were poised to test them. So, reluctantly, she would respond accordingly. Aelinos slowly materializes in her hand, the imagined metal of its blade streaking with the light it refracts from the stars in the sky. Once it has been fully created, she would stake the point of the blade into the ground and rest each of her hands on its pommel.

    Then she would just exchange stares with the creature for as long as she is allowed. She resents the idea of having to harm them, but... if she must to prove herself 'worthy', or otherwise in self-defense, she will. Before anything happens, though, she would turn to Nathan.

    "Mister Hall." Her tone is soft, even serene. "... if you do not wish to fight, something makes me doubt this being before us would assault you. If you would prefer instead to stand by and give us orders from a distance, I am... fairly certain they would not intervene."

Tomoe has posed:
Tomoe is still on the quyiet side today as Idra confesses she seem to frown a little bit but htere's nothing else at this point. She listens to what else they ahve to say, she lients about their tale to hunt the Lordsoul. So she istens about the oath to kill traiutors and the deal to keep from becoming empthy husks. she shudders a bit she can not fault him for his deal. With that she moves along after them keeping in formation she makes note to be ready for trouble as this place is thick with it.

So she keeps to the group and clearly is rtready to deal with trouble thankfully they get to the point that is the end of where their guide can show them the way. She looks at what's before them and she stare with more than a little look of horror upon her face. Tomoe backs up and makes ready to get her shield and her sword.

"Oh hell, still thank you for leading us this far."

She gets she can't force him to go farther he's got a deal to keep his mind so she can't really ahem knock him for it. She makes ready now at this point pulling her shield now and pulling Dawn Breaker from it's sheath.

Nathan Hall (168) has posed:
    "I understand." Nathan says, firmly. "I will inform Oscar of your actions. When it is time, we will return." He remains completely stoic, but there's a bit of strain to his posture, a little narrowing to the eyes, almost imperceptible. He doesn't like the sound of this, not one bit, and he wants to solve it. But, all things in due time.

    And then, the huge wolf and its show of power, and its huge sword. Uh oh. "Worrying." He says, with a monotone. "The only fauna that survives in this world are the hardiest and most lethal. Be prepared. But perhaps it will be peaceful." Hethen nods to Mizuki. "That is a very good idea." He turns back to the massive canine and speaks up with a calm, tranquil tone, "Yes. Your territory is well-guarded. I have decided I will not touch it." He takes several steps back, trying to look as though the wolf intimidates him out of there, which is technically accurate and therefore an easy image to project. As he does, he speaks up. "If it attacks, we need cover for Lezard and Staren as our ranged attackers. I recommend Tomoe take this role. Shirou, utilize your short-range abilities to their greatest effect in tandem with Tomoe. Mizuki, we are critically lacking non-offensive support, please provide. Priscilla, Kazusa, please work in tandem to strike at opportunity, as I understand the latter may have recently acquired the capacity to do so, and the rest of you keep attention off of them while you work. Follow this plan at your ddiscretion."

    He's handled the Talking Stuff, now it's time to get the hell out of the kitchen because it's getting too hot for him and the rest of the people here are much better qualified.

Priscilla has posed:
    Priscilla, more than anything, looks a little sad to see Sif this way. She'd known of Artorias long before ever meeting him in the Union, and both of them from her memory were always accompanied by the unwaveringly loyal grey wolf, supposedly even into the depths of the Abyss itself. She hadn't really considered this possibility. She'd assumed that after Artorias died, Sif would have gone on to find new purpose, or perhaps simply died himself, but now hundreds and hundreds of years later, the poor creature still watches tirelessly over the grave of its one and only master. She doesn't really know if anyone else sees the significance of this, but now isn't exactly the time to explain. She looks to Kazusa and states simply "Do as I do." and then immediately vanishes from the spot.

    Sif takes the offered challenge immediately, flipping the sword between his teeth so that it extends past his left side rather than his right, which is a remarkable show of dexterity for something wielding a weapon clearly not meant for it. The wolf takes a short step forward, and then leaps through the air unnatural speed considering its massive size, crashing down before tha assembled group, and alternating steps of his paws as he sweeps the gargantuan sword in a wide, cleaving circle. As the blade is swung, the spaces just before its edges suddenly blaze with pure blue light, cutting a dazzling trail through the air; a indicator of just how powerful the enchantment is on the blade when such things are normally invisible in this world.

Kazusa Ujikane (415) has posed:
    Kazusa looks at Shirou, then at Priscilla, and gives a little nod.

    Then she looks at Shirou again. Holy crap, he just conjured swords, that was /cool/-

    No, focus, FOCUS, Kazusa. Pulling the Cutthroat card back out of her pocket, the blonde girl flicks her hand in front of herself, holding her 'weapon' between two fingers. "By the card I choose, I stand as a hero! THE CUTTHROAT!"

    The card bursts with a white light, and then flashes around in a quick circle before slamming itself into her chest like a bolt of magic. The white light flares and slowly passes over her form in a flood of sparks, taking shape and reshaping Kazusa as it goes. Tracing scales upon her brow, bleaching her hair from blond to a snowy silver. Wrapping her in robes of the finest fur, weaving a tail behind her... and then, whirling around her in a flurry until she has grown to such a size that she towers over ordinary people... although she still falls short of Priscilla's full height.

    Abruptly, her hand snaps out, grabbing a familiar scythe at the instant it appears in mid-air... and then she disappears from sight as well.

Mizuki (183) has posed:
    Mizuki's probably going to be taking a backseat in this fight as she usually does, preferring to boost others' speed and lower Sif's over contributing hits of her own. Still, when the wolf brings that wide edge to bear against the rest of the group, she's ready and waiting. She would use a small temporal jump to appear a bit beyond the range of the swing, her sword now drawn and held aloft by her left hand. The other hand would quickly get to work, attempting to lock tiny stasis spheres -- temporal shackles -- around each of Sif's paws. She saw how high that jump was, so she doesn't expect this to immobilize him, but she hopes that it will hinder his agility just enough to give the others present a significant edge.

    Beyond this, Mizuki would set up the usual devices. Lezard and Staren are, assuming receptiveness, enveloped in speeding fields that should help any magic they cast and any movements they make complete more quickly. A slowing field is established around Mizuki herself to give her more time to react if Sif realizes her contributions and attempts to remove her from the equation. Otherwise, though, the girl remains mostly stationary to dedicate all the energy and concentration she has to the temporal chess pieces she's set upon this metaphorical board.

    All the while, she continues to study Sif. She uses any of her focus that remains uncommitted to think of the sort of life he must have lived. She may not be as aware of his past as Priscilla, but with what time she has in his presence, she will try to learn.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    The transformation happening behind him is so distracting that Shirou almost fails to account for the incoming wolf! Only when Kazusa pulls a vanishing act does he realize in a heartbeat that he's in terrible, mortal danger again and Nathan's words sink in.

    "I've gotta hold that beast off?!"

    Is Nathan crazy?

    Well there's no time now. As though simply following the will of his weapons Shirou leaps forwards and clashes his suddenly-crossed weapons against the greatsword.

    This doesn't look too smart, but there was no time to do much else. Failure would've meant losing his... well, torso.

    The flickering blue light eats away at Kanshou and Bakuya, but the twin weapons are strong against magics and hold firm long enough. Shirou's swung around like the business end of a flail and goes tumbling along the ground with a sickening thud-crunch though!

    "AUGH!"

    But as expected, Shirou doesn't STAY down.

    He's up in a hurry, hurling his twin swords in a wide arc to either side of Sif... and conjuring up a replacement pair! Then he goes diving for Sif again. "This plan better work or someone's gonna die!"

Tomoe has posed:
Tomoe gets the go from Nathan, she really seems to have become his Body Guard as of late here perhaps she should see into doing it full time over all. nShe pulls her sword at this point she gets the mourning wall with it's ever shifting list of names on it out an faces this thing down. She doesn't move to strike no she's ready to intercept however. She had some idea of Sif's connection and get it's bene guarding it's master grave. The loyalty is heart breatking but what can they so? She sees as Sif comes for them and she now moves to step in to do her job she attemps to get in their favce and stats calling to them.

"COME AND FACE ME SIF! SHOW ME WHAT YOU CAN DO!"

No insults today, no Sif deserves better than that and she will not sink to breateding them with how loyal they have been to their fallen master. She can only pray and hope she can keep Sif off her comrades.

Staren has posed:
    A giant wolf wielding a giant sword in its teeth isn't even /weird/ anymore. Staren's been in the Multiverse too long.

    It leaps forward and slashes with some kind of magic sword. Reflexively, as the wolf leaps forward, Staren manifests his wings and flies back out of the way. "Oh F*** I bet THAT goes through armor TOO. Is this a challenge, or a fight to the death?!" He watches Sif defensively... and then Priscilla confirms that it's Yet Another fight to the death. He frowns... it's too late to use the missiles now -- he can't see where Priscilla and Kazusa are and might hit them. Likewise, the raiser rifle tends to make a lot of collateral damage. Hmm...

    Following Nathan's plan, Staren tries to fly back out of reach and fires his arm-mounted beam cannons. As Shirou and whoever else takes the front, the sight of Tomoe stirs the MMO part of his brain. If this was ALO and he was hanging back, he could at least buff the tanks! So that's exactly what he'll do! He reaches into his bag and pulls out his magitech staff, but as he's about to cast a barrier spell, he realizes that damn sword probably would go right through it. They need to not get hit! So that's exactly what he'll help them do: He casts a Speed-Up spell on his allies instead!

Lezard Valeth has posed:
Lezard follows through the forest, watching as they get a closer look at the local wildlife. The gate is something of note. He approaches it, looking over the intricate designs. Despite the care, he seems to gain nothing from his cursiry inspection of the design. The crest opens the gate, and Lezard stands back, looking within the area.

The massive gravemarker causes Lezard to 'ah' silently for a moment. "Fascinating."

The arrival of the massive wolf is moreso. The huge greatsword cleaves through Lezard's position, sending him sprawling with a large gash in his side. "To have such power..." He hisses, and withdraws his scepter. The other hand is pressed against the huge gash in his side, the Sorceror of Midgard forcing himself to stand and stumble away, getting some distance. "DARK SAVIOR!" He calls, three blades of shadow materializing over the beast and slashing down towards Sif. Not the best, but he's off his game. Giant swords tend to do that.

Priscilla has posed:
    It's going to take most of Mizuki's focus to try and hold Sif down, because he's certainly no ordinary giant wolf. Even in Lordran, a mundane creature doesn't get to that size simply by living a long time. He must have slain countless generations of powerful warriors to gain so much power, with strength easily surpassing what even his size would suggest. Sif makes a prancing sidestep the moment Shirou is knocked away, bounding back inwards to close the distance, before he notices the increased resistance on the movement of his legs, flipping his sword again in a lashing sweep of its own aimed to take Mizuki out with the trailing point. In the same motion, he swats one of the magus' swords straight out of the air, though the other whirls around and plants itself in his side, causing red to stain his grey-white coat. The first two of Lezard's shadow blades manage to lacerate his flanks, but he manages to hop backwards out of range of the third, growling as he pauses to reassess his options.

    Knowing that he can't dance between his enemies like this, he suddenly makes a break for the sloped stones walls of the clearing running a short length along the rim and vaulting off of it to sail high into the air wher he aims to simply cut through staren by jumping past him on his left side. Landing still at a full sprint, he winds around the back of the party and resumes the same sprint along the edge of the arena, the point of his sword dragging across the earth as he angles the blade down on them as he runs.

    Kazusa's card impresses Priscilla more than she would care to admit, even if it is a little disconcerting to see a transformation so visually close to her. The unfortunate side is that, even if it is a somewhat lesser version, she has a difficult time sensing where the girl is while using similar invisibility to her own, and so the best she can do is to simply try and advise her of the basic tenets of fighting whilst invisible, murmuring urgently into the radio. "Do not remaineth still at any time. When thine location is revealed, do not flee onward, but double back in the other direction. Keep thine enemy's back to thee, but do not attack from the same direction twice. Await the moment after they strike and before they hath recovered their balance." She immediately demonstrates by anticipating Sif's course, being directly behind him as he leaps back off the wall, and carving through his flank with the edge of her full sized scythe as he flies past, then moving back out of reach.

Kazusa Ujikane (415) has posed:
    Not long after Kazusa's transformation and disappearance, a pair of normal-sized glasses drops lightly to the ground next to Nathan.

    After that, the transformed girl is following Priscilla's advice to the letter. She moves cautiously, circling her way around the graveyard under the cloak of invisibility and attempting to keep as behind Sif as she can manage. It's a patience game, waiting and watching how the others move and how the great wolf reacts. She waits, watches, until Sif makes any sort of attack that results in his overextending - and then darts in with a sudden lunge and whips her scythe around in a run-by slash.

Nathan Hall (168) has posed:
    Nathan receives the glasses and accepts them, slipping them into one pocket as he sits by the sidelines, calling out tactical information and doing very little else. His own glasses light up with glare as he attempts a quick [SCAN] to try to discern magical or anatomical weaknesses. Maybe the jaw joints have become weak from holding such a huge sword, maybe age has affected the dog poorly, or something, anything like that! Nathan intends to examine thoroughly but from very far away, because he's completely backed off.

Mizuki (183) has posed:
    The bad news first: Mizuki's energy is already spent on maintaining those paw-shackles, so she can't use a time jump to avoid the sword.

    Now the less bad news: The stasis field she had established before will probably be able to slow the sword enough for her not to be decapitated by the swing.

    As soon as it's caught in the slowing field, Mizuki would leap into the air, sprout her wings, and use the momentum gathered by their appearance to land her beyond the sword's swipe. Still, even this extra employment of energy would have consequences, and one of the leg shackles, in addition to the stasis field she had put up previously, would fail as soon as those feathers scatter. As a result, Mizuki's left leg receives a horrible, wide wound, and her foot receives a complementary gash. It's a good thing she has those wings to rely on because, in all likelihood, so won't be walking on that foot for the rest of the night.

    In the sky above Sif, Mizuki winces. She's still maintaining three of those stasis bubbles, but as it stands, she won't last another two minutes. So, unfortunately, she would have to drop one of the speeding fields. Staren's field is dropped without much in the way of advance warning, meaning his travel would likely slow considerably no matter what his situation is. However, to compensate, Mizuki would finally start making her own effort to fight back. Pointing her sword at her foe she would fold her wings and dash forward. She aims exactly for Sif's head, but as soon as he would attempt to parry her with that sword, she would attempt to use another time jump to escape. If this succeeds, she would appear at his left side in a position to cut a large swath across his ribs.

    Assuming she's successful, she would land with a deep, laborious breath and relieve another of the temporal shackles. Now his right foreleg and left hind leg are the only ones still paused. Still, she hopes their positioning will maximize Sif's disorientation.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    This beast is awe-inspiring and terrifying. He'll have tales to tell Bedivere and Saber later! ... if he survives. Gulp.

    This must be how knights feel when faced with a dragon, if not WORSE.

    At least he's got allies here!

    "How does a wolf grow this big anyways?!" He blurts out to vent his frustration... and simultaneously swallows his fear to charge straight for Sif. With the twin swords out in front of him he seems to aim straight for a clash with Sif's dragged sword - but!

    Instead, Shirou rolls under it and attempts to slash the beast's nearest rear leg!

Lezard Valeth has posed:
Lezard at the moment is just happy he hasn't been cut in half. Even as a phantom, pain remains something of note, and the mage is not interested in suffering more than he has to for the cause. That's the /heroes'/ job.

He remains at extreme range, not needing to be close to Sif to attack with his magic. At least Mizuki's enhancements will allow him to keep distance more easily even with the wound. The power of the Dark Savior dissipates, cycling back through his staff as he mentally closes the loop, creating the necessary feedback.

"My patience is wearing thin, guardian! Face my wrath!"

There is an explosion of power around Lezard, the energy surging around him and rolling around him in waves as a magical circle draws itself beneath him. The ground erupts, a massive spear of black steel and blowing, terrible runes sailing high into the air.

"If ye trust that thy eternal bonds may be broken, then let my words be as a vengeful blade upon thee!"

The huge spear spind in the air, before orienting upon Sif. Rockets of crackling energy fire, giving the dark blade a twisting, spiraling spin as it drives down towards the huge wolf.

"COSMIC SPEAR!"

When the spear hits, a wave of energy blasts upwards from the cracked ground, surging until the ruby shatters on the scepter with a louf CRACK, the power dissipating.

Lezard looks down at the scepter and throws the smoking, now useless catalyst to one side. "I really need to find a more durable design." He mutters.

Staren has posed:
    Sif runs up the wall and leaps through the air! Giant sword wolf NINJA, apparently! Staren might simply cleaved in half, if he and Mizuki hadn't cast speed-boosting spells. Staren twists back in the air and drops down, the sword WHOOSHING right in front of his face! Sif attacked on the opposite side of the beam cannons, so Staren's reflexive counterattack instead is a salvo of four micromissiles that try to ram into Sif and explode, or just airburst if they miss (They're not the really powerful missiles -- their main strength is homing, but Staren didn't have time to think). Staren might be caught in the explosion, but his armor can take it.

    Staren whirls as Sif lands. The missile racks on his back raise into position. Next time Sif jumps, he's getting exploded on landing if Staren has anything to say about it. For now, though, Staren's staff collapses, is stuffed into his bag, and out comes the laser sniper rifle he used in last year's WMAT. Staren doesn't need to hold it up to his face and aim -- he just lines up the smartlink reticle on his HUD and starts firing bursts. There's no sound from the gun and no visible beam, but each burst concentrates an immense amount of energy in three pinprick-sized pieces of target to superheat them into expanding plasma, hopefully resulting in violent explosions against Sif's flesh!

Tomoe has posed:
So Tomoe has this horrible nightmare creature after her that was once a noble night's companion and there's clealry something left of it givne it's guarded it's master's grave right but Tomoe is forced to dodge a hell of a lot. She shifts her body around and is very light on her feet really for osmeone of her size she's force to block a strike and the force of it is almost more than she can take.

She grunts hard and then starts chanting, runes swirl about her, she's also speaking Norse. Inga would sob at how mangled some of it is, however it seems to work as she now launches a power blast of life at Sif, that should hopefully get it's attention /off/ of eveyrone else.

Priscilla has posed:
    Sif reels from the pair of scythe slashes to his sides, the double application of the Lifehunt compounding in on itself and making each alternate wound bleed a veritable fountain of blood, staining the stream running beneath him a deep crimson as he sways on his feet, before his body manages to recover from the influence, having no real idea where either combatant is, he swings blindly for Kazusa, cleaving through her general area with a twenty foot reach as the sword swivels between his teeth at the apex of its arc. He wheels on Mizuki just in time to catch her right at the crucial moment of her dash, only for her to vanish and reappear in an attack against his already injured side, eliciting another agitated snarly as he simply aims to stomp on her with one of his clawed feet. He does much the same as Shirou's blade cuts across the inside of his leg, but practically somersaults through the air as the boy comes back out the other side, angling his head and simply slamming the sword into the earth on top of him in an attempt to outright skewer him before he can get up.

    Twisting on that thrust, Sif leaps behind the breadth of Artorias' sword as Staren fires his laser rifle, allowing the divine blade to absorb the energy discharge rather than taking it straight to the body, picking it up just in time to smash three of the micromissiles out of the air with a vertical swing, with the fourth impacting directly between his shoulderblades, sending him skidding across the ground. He rolls over just in time to escape Tomoe's blast, but comes at her all the same, bulldozing over her with the trailing edge of his sword, and then sweeping it into an uppercut, launching it, and possibly her, into the air. As the sword hangs at the top of its skyward motion, Sift rockets off the ground, leaping straight over the party, grabs it in mid air, and comes crashing down on Lezard, clashing with the cosmic spear at point blank range. The nature of the blade reacts violently with dark magic, kicking up and devastating explosion of magical energy as Lezard's spell draws out some of the sword's latent power, likely consuming him in it. The wave of energy that shoots up from underneath Sif however, still catches him dead on, hurling him back through the air, where he slams into the mossy ground and slides until he is just short of the river. The sword drops from his jaws, clattering to the ground with a weighty thump. Judging by the rise and fall of the beast's chest, he's still breathing, but is clearly in no further condition to fight.

Mizuki (183) has posed:
    At the very end of her run by Sif, Mizuki... is clamped to the ground. She has enough time to dematerialize her wings so they'll not sustain damage, but the rest of her body -- her back, her arms, even her head -- are all crushed under the weight of the paw. If her body weren't constructed of something non-physical as it is, it's likely that all the ones of her body would have been broken, but mercifully? She isn't killed or paralyzed; only momentarily incapacitated. Still, she would only regain her faculties when the sword has dropped from Sif's mouth, at which time she would limp to her feet. She would resummon her wings with the last of her strength to allow her to move over to where Sif has fallen. She looks on fretfully. Able to do naught but watch as he bleeds, she would gently reach out a hand and lay it softly against his head whilst bowing her own.

    She read a tale once of a dog named Hachi who sat upon the same street corner for years and years after his master had passed on, faithfully awaiting his return until the day he, too, lost his life. People who passed by grew to love the dog and, after his passing, erected a statue to commemorate his faithfulness and dedication. Even though that story was such a simple thing, it still managed to stir her. Though she does not know Sif's story with the detail and certainty that Priscilla must, a combination of raw feeling and guesswork could reveal to her that this wolf's story was not so different from Hachi's own.

    So if his day of dying is come, then at the very least she would like to offer him the comfort of a soft touch. She could think of no monument for him, but would ask the others before departing whether it would be too difficult a thing to carry him to the foot of Artorias' headstone. That way, she supposes, he could be closest to his loved one, and find him more quickly if indeed this world has the sort of afterlife that would accommodate their journey together through the aether. For now, though, she just remains near as she can, pushing the limits of her power to create slowing fields around his wounds, and to continually stroke the fur atop his head.

    Whatever happens, he's finally found someone worthy. She hopes that, in his own way, he can find solace in that.

Lezard Valeth has posed:
Lezard was /not/ expecting that.

He needs to account for those possibilities in the future, says a logical part of his mind.

The rest of him is screaming in incoherent pain and rage as the partial spell backlash cascades back through him. Mercifully, the result is brutally short, as he erupts into an ectoplasmic vapor that would likely be quite another material were he here in person.

Kazusa Ujikane (415) has posed:
    Though Kazusa has the advantage of invisibility, Sif's reactions are most certainly quite a bit better even if she's transformed. She leaps back in an attempt to avoid the blade, and with her invisibility and the fact she'd made her previous attack by surprise, she /almost/ makes it. Almost.

    The smallest splatter of red hits the snow, and the transformed girl reappears with a hiss of pain, immediately backtracking several steps to take herself out of range long enough to disappear again. And she finally manages to do so, but before she can maneuver into position, Sif goes down for the count.

    So Kazusa finally reappears, her left side marred by a small line of dark red. There are a couple of quick looks between Sif and her allies, before the girl carefully circles her way around to Nathan... and begins looking around for Priscilla herself. If sensing her was difficult for the halfbreed, the other way around is nigh impossible for Kazusa.

Staren has posed:
    "He BLOCKED a LASER?! HAX!" cries Staren, half-seriously. Still, he's wondering what weapon he can reliably /use/ on this foe.... Fortunately, for the moment, its focus is off him, as it deals with his allies. Then Sif leaps, and Staren prepares to bombard it with rockets... but it lands on Lezard, so that's a bad idea.

    Lezard is gone, and some of his allies are bloodied, but it seems the dog is defeated. Staren watches Sif warily for a long moment, half expecting the wolf to suddenly attack again.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    By luck or some inkling of the skill Sir Bedivere's been beating into him, Shirou somehow doesn't get decapicated from rolling under Sif's guard and delivers a blow! But his luck runs out there--

    Up and DOWN goes the guardian wolf... "Crap!"

    All Shirou can manage to do is block with all of his might. KAnshou and Bakuya crack and bend as they catch the greatsword. He's slammed down into the ground on his back hard enough to crack the ground and force blood from his mouth.

    And for about ten seconds he's DOWN.

    Down, but not out. The boy coughs and rises shakily with a hand on one knee. His only good hand, because the other arm's dangling limply - dislocated? Broken? Hard to say at a glance... but his right hand still works!

    "I really don't want to kill anything that isn't a mere beast... but you're definitely not holding back at all!"

    His hot-blooded defiance echoes through the grove for only a second before it's overtaken by a solemn statement...

    "My body is made of swords."

    Wincing, he staggers a step forward and stretches out the remaining good hand--

    The air around him warps and sizzles as bolts of prana flare every which way from that hand and solidify in the air by the dozens! As chaos spreads across the battlefield, more and more weapons appear...

    "Just try dodging all-"

    A single glance around him reveals what sorcery Shirou has wrought. A treasure trove of colorful, gleaming, ornate and masterfully-crafted weaponry - much of it simply oozing with legend and magic - floats around him...

    But why did he stop shouting?

    Simple. Just as he began to aim... the smoke clears, and Sif's down...

    The boy's expression shifts quickly from fierce determination to fretful worry. Did they overdo it?

    "... it's over?"

Nathan Hall (168) has posed:
    Sif. Nooooo, Sif! Lezard may be in more pain -- a LOT more pain -- but that is a dog. He cannot bring himself to order it to be killed. He's probably going to try to get it healed a bit on their way out. He's going to head forward now, seeking out the grave of Artorias himself. What's his intent? Looting? Desecration? Well, maybe, but that's gonna need to be someone else's business, Nathan's not very good with corpses. He's still got a leftover vial of that Abyss-corrupted blood, a [SCAN] ability on his eyes. It's all contained, but unshielded; he's going to be going to that grave and performing a wide assortment of SCHOLARLY MAGIC TESTS to determine what magical frequencies or similar sorcerous elements might possibly affect it.

    He figures, if this guy was legit, he had some magical element of him that purged Abyss out of the body or something like that, inherently, so unshielded blood may suffer some effect he can scan for...

Tomoe has posed:
Tomoe hs got her self into quite the pickle here she can't dodge forever and he blst was able to get it's attention but she's not sure what else more. Howerver it seems something else is going on here. She watches the blade go and she's forced to move as Lezard unleashes his spell but it seem they finally dropped SIf and a small miracle has happened. Sif is still with them so to speak. She lowers her weapon at this point. Kotone thinks of the same tale that Mizuki does but on her world less than ten years ago something happened there the people recalling that dog and his master sought to build a new stature of the dog having their master finally come home. Perhaps it's that time in a way, she looks to help Mizuki should she need it she does however seaths her weapon and pauses for a moment as she looks to pull out a healing potion, maybe it will help ease the pain at the very least? She will go to do this unless someone stops her.

Priscilla has posed:
    It seems even Priscilla can't bring herself to finish off Sif, though for reasons of previous knowledge rather than simple animal empathy. She pops back into view shortly after the animal stops moving, looking with a hint of worry towards Kazusa simply due to the fact that she already knows everyone else is used to combat and battle injuries. It seems as if the group might have overdone it just a little bit, but anything short of that likely wouldn't have stopped the great grey wolf regardless. It takes a certain kind of dedication for an animal, even as old and powerful as he is, to try and fight to the death over something so immaterial as its master's memory.

    Nathan's examination quickly finds that the graveyard is utterly bereft of magical profiles aside from the corona of Artorias' sword. There is no special blessing on this place, nor is it any kind of magical nexus or specially warded location. It is simply a quiet place guarded under the moonlight, as it has been for centuries. It becomes retroactively obvious that Alvina must have some kind of attachment to this as well. Though backhandedly stated, trespassing in the forest wasn't the crime, so much as attempting to access this graveyard. Why does an ancient cat spirit care about a memorial to a long dead knight if she cares about nothing outside the forest?

    Regardless, he does find one thing. Around the backside of the giant tombstone, hidden from view, is a single human skeleton curled up into a ball, clutching a ring in its hand. The ring lets off a very similar kind of signature to the Abyss tainted blood, though rather than corrupted, it appears to be in its original state. An exceedingly simple and thin band of iron with a single, tiny jewel, there is nothing cast upon it or woven into its substance, but all the same, it feels as if it would react with the blood.