1519/Core of Stone

Core of Stone
Date of Scene:	07 February 2015
Location:	The Deeper Regions
Synopsis:	Deep below the Earth, a huge Confederate force is on the move. The Union responds, while the Confederates engage a beast of legend in a battle for its magical heart.
Cast of Characters:	11, 181, 560, 626, 662, 701

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Caster (701) has posed:
There are Warp Gates, even underground. These have been utilized by the Confederacy to get down into a certain part of the Deeper Regions, where a network have caverns have been identified by a certain red-haired Caster as the residence of one who holds a reagent she requires. As a Servant, she has certain abilities unique to her that are part of her Legend, known as Noble Phantasms. One of these can not be employed without the appropriate physical materials. Being that the Caster class is not really great as direct combat, enlisting the aid of others seems prudent. And of course, Caster's Master not being one of those who must hide and skulk in the shadows, it is possible that Magatha Songsteel is here as well. But what is certain is that Confederate troops have been spotted moving into the area en masse, and native denizens in the form of earthen golems or rock monsters are becoming quite agitated by this fact.

Even if observers hadn't detected the Confederate forces, the rampaging elementals would have been a tip-off to something going on too! Here's the kicker. All those troops aren't staying behind to act as cannon fodder for any people coming to interrupt things, or to gradually slow them down to keep them from getting closer. No, no. The angered elementals might serve that purpose, but ultimately the people acting as road blocks while all those standard soldiers venture deeper and deeper into the mine shafts, barely (or not at all) lit tunnels, and vast ancient caverns, are the Elites. The Confederate Elites who have come to make sure this succeeds. That means stopping any opposition before it gets the chance to get close.

Where is the flame-haired Servant in all this? Dematerialized, but appearing now and then to lead the way by marking the paths with balls of glowing, flame-like prana, or setting up Bounded Fields to keep as many tunnel critters as possible from ambushing the troops.

Why are normal soldiers being entrusted to handle the target instead of Elites, if it's so important? More cannon fodder? Throw them into the meat grinder to wear the enemy down? No. Not quite. But the reason why probably won't become evident for awhile yet, as the cat-irised, glowing-red eyes of Caster look over those conscripted for this task, appraising, examining... All while reaching out her senses for some indication of the inevitable interruption.

Metal Man (11) has posed:
Metal Man is not alone as he steps out of the warp gate the red, blacka nd yellow armored robot maste ris joined by one clad in white an orange who has a slight 70s feel to his armour deisgn ther'es abig blast visor up over Metal's Companion's face.

"So this is it, Metal Man?"

"Looks like it Crash Man." Metal Man falls in, he's not sure about this op but here he is.

"I'm direxting some Sniper Joes to help th regular forces."

Several yers ago Metal used to command a fed regulat unit so he's got a certain fondess for helping the regular forces out when he can.

The joes exit the gateway and fan out moving to join up with the regular forces on the hunt, they also give both Wily robots direct feeds of everything they are doing so Metal and Crash man are basically everywhere the drones are.

Psalm (181) has posed:
    "DO NOT FALTER YOU SCURRILOUS PEASANTS. FIRST ONE TO THE TREASURE BELOW AND TO ENGAGE THE BEAST GETS ALL THE GOLD THEY CAN CARRY BACK. WE ARE HERE WITH YOU. ONWARD!"

    If you're looking for Magatha Songsteel, she is right smack in the front goddamn row charging in with her men, her troops, her guard. Along with the confederate soldiers comes a cadre of Warforged, the no-quite-robots smoothly moving as a unit, a formidable band of hoplites backed by several spellcasting ones in the back.

    She is here, she is loud, she is not backing down and she is glorious, her Charisma on full display tonight, making the Bard look Resplendent as hell.

Kyra Hyral (626) has posed:
    Union entry into the Deeper Regions is fortunately staged elsewhere in the tunnels. This does not, however, mean the sudden increase in Confederate activity has gone unnoticed. Obviously, recon was ongoing and the sudden dramatic increase in feet in the mine was cause for a lot of concern. Enough concern, in fact, that some Elites had been sent in.

    The original idea may have been to do further surviellance and, if needed, outmanuver the questing intruders and cut them off. It would be a mission requiring a delicate touch and a good deal of subtlety. Unfortunately, those involved decided to take an entirely different approach-an approach that will be noticed immediately.

    "WHEEEEEEEEEEE!!!" The cry echoes throughout the tunnels from the rear, an old set of rail tracks set into the floor of the tunnel vibrating slightly at the sound of an approaching cart of medium size. Usually they are meant to transport ore. Today they are transporting Elites, though only two.

    Kyra Hyral leans against the back of the cart, one hand hanging over the side. Occasionally she casts Aeroaga behind, keeping the cart propelled forward at its considerable speed.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    "Whoooooaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!" In front of Kyra, EMIYA SHIROU's doing his darnedest to not get clobbered by a stalactite.

    Subtlety isn't really his thing either, but he's worried - just who are they going to run into down here?

    Particularly without a lot of light to work with. He's brought a flashlight and has some miniaturized infrared goggles in a pocket that haven't been needed yet, but this is not his favorite place to be.

    Of course the only reason the cart's holding together at this speed is because Shirou's running Prana through the wheels and frame, reinforcing its durability so it doesn't shake itself apart at every turn!

    ...yeah, the Union's not being very subtle today.

Fake Avenger (662) has posed:
     Silence.

     Absolute silence is a rare thing. It is, perhaps, impossible under the rules of the worlds - never are there moments of absolute stillness, of nothing at all. Such an oblivion of sound is an unnatural thing, something that cannot ordinarily exist. The subtle shiftings, creakings, crackings, and tappings of the world, as a billion billion rules interact to keep the atoms of reality moving, are a part of life. It cannot be helped that there is no silence.

     But it makes the moments of that unnatural void all the more bizarre. It makes them stand out all the more.

     Such a moment of absolute silence descends upon the underground now. It is a moment that lasts no time at all, a fragile slice of nothingness that stands out all the more for its beauty. It exists for less than a fraction of a second, between the drills of the digging solders, Metal Man's clanking robots, Psalm's furious singing and Warforged soldiers, the madness of the mine cart, and the natural creaks and splashes of any tunnel and cavern. A void between them all, a single, perfect moment where nothing at all happens. An absence of noise.

     It sings out its glorious, silent song in that instant.

     Then it vanishes. The creaking, clanking, clanging - it resumes in full glory and full force.

     With it emerges Avenger.

     He simply appears as the moment of absolute and perfect crystalline silence disappears. Where the samurai clad in purple came from is impossible to tell; why he's here, only he can possibly know. The twitching black scars/tattoos along his body seem to shift and writhe into new configurations as he emerges from the moment of perfect stillness. He walks with that same apathetic peace he seems to regard all things with, moving carelessly through the mine, a distant, meaningless smile etched upon his face. The minecart, the soldiers, Caster, Psalm - if he even notices it at all, it's impossible to say.

     Kojirou stops by one of the rocks and brushes his fingers across it. It's as if, for him, at that moment, there isn't anything but himself and the rock - the madness of the soon-to-be-battlefield is subsumed by the simplicity of nature. Long after the battle is over, the rocks will still be here. Long after the conflict ends...

     Hah. He'd gotten philosophical in his old age.

     Kojirou turns away from the rocks, his purple eyes sweeping out over the soon-to-be-battlefield.

     What would hold his attention today, if, indeed, anything...?

Caster (701) has posed:
Caster smiles with pride and joy at seeing her Master prepared to lead the troops. No wishy-washy sit-on-her-hands Master is Psalm! She continues to float through the air whenever she's materialized, the act apparently requiring so little prana that it's preferable to walking. As some weird caveman-like creatures with clubs come pouring out of a side-tunnel, and start trying to attack the troops, they find themselves bashing their weapons against a barrier that doubles the force applied to it and then reflects it back on the attackers. Nothing is going to get in the way. Whether armed with swords, guns, laser cannon arms, or whatever Warforged wield (possibly multiple types of things), it seems the one making the path that Psalm leads them down safe and easy to navigate is intent on ensuring that not a single soldier is lost before they reach their destination. Tunnels twist and turn, walls and sharp rocks surge forward, only to fall away as the massed troops follow the guidance of Magatha and the glowing orbs set to mark the way. If anyone falls, they are picked up by those around them.

Caster may not be used to directing troops or massed combat formations, but that is a deficiency more than made up for by her Master's expertise and leadership ability. Metal Man and Crash Man are ones whom Caster has not worked alongside yet, but she may have spoken to the former on the radio. Metal Man was generous enough to not only come to help, but to bring along another ally, AND send some of his robotic allies to join the mix of assorted Confederate regular forces. He is a worthy enough ally in her book, at least for now. She will have to see how effective he is. But the willingness to help without asking for anything in return is a positive mark. Much better than all those people who kept coming around her home in her own time, begging for things. Geez, what a pleasant comparison this lot is! Except for Avenger who is here but not really, it seems. But surely he will do something!

...Eventually!

Caster (701) has posed:
Caster is still not quite sure what kind of class 'Avenger' is anyway. She has had difficulty 'reading' Kojirou Sasaki. But she isn't necessarily some kind of super-manipulator who can brain-read people at a glance, let alone over the radio, so that isn't a surprise. But as she and the troops head deeper and deeper, and a rickety mine car comes tearing down the tracks in the distance, right towards the two Robot Masters guarding the more open, cavernous area before the passage the soldiers took, even if Caster were watching what was happening behind, she wouldn't be able to gauge what exactly the other Servant's intentions are. He is a mystery, to be sure.

But hiding something from Caster only makes her want to discover it even more.

Some day, Kojirou. Some day.

For now, anyone with senses for magic would probably be able to pick up the pulse of significant prana from deeper within the tunnels - though Caster is out of sight, so its source may not be evident to the Union. But whether Avenger can be sensed or not... Who knows?

Maybe he just seems like some guy who likes touching rocks in dark caverns.

MAYBE HE JUST SEEMS LIKE A WEIRDO.

Or maybe people are like, 'damn son i'm not going to eff with that. I'm going after the guy with a lethal-looking sawblade on his head and the one who looks like he is probably going to punch explosions into my face if he gets the chance.'

Psalm (181) has posed:
    Despite Caster's help, the Warforged get stuck in several times, stabbing and curtting and beating down anything foolish enough to get in the way of House Deneith and their goal here tonight. Deeper and deeper they delve, pressing onward with the regular Feds, and each time one of the grunts falls, there is a Warforged there to either scream at them to get up and KEEP FIGHTING, or Maggie's there doing it herself.

    And it's not long at all before the group reaches the goal deep below, a massive cavern that yawns open widely. Something deep within the dark cavern rumbles a warning, that stops most of the advancing Fed troopers in their tracks... up until the point that Maggie and her Guard get there. "DIDN'T YOU PEOPLE HEAR ME? GET IN THERE AND FIGHT. WE ARE HERE TO DOWN THE BEAST." She lets out a glorious, contralto clarion call of battle, and like some fearsom valkyr, draws her greatsword, and CHARGES into the rocky, ruined cavern.

Metal Man (11) has posed:
AS there are others sneaking about it's uncertain if they are aware or not there are things however oign on Avenger shows up and that gets a bit of an eyebrow raise as he looks at the feed from one of his drones. Ah it takes him a moment to put the data togehter it seems they got some company on their side of things at least.

The joes do all right given the shields which are dam touch and only two go down out of the whooe lot moving to cover the liviung personel. They are hunting a beast but metal doesn't uite like this he's not sure what' up however Metal Man and Crash man are here to make sure no one crashes the party. They are moveing to make sure the Union doesn't get in, they very likely to run into the dark green humanoid Sniper Joes who are acting as the outermost edges and hte two robot master hower he does spot them.

"Contacts spotted move!"

the joes move to intercepot Kyra nad the other union however. There might be some plasma blasts and oh look whirling saw blades from metal!

Crash Man is so far silent with his weapons, but why?

Kyra Hyral (626) has posed:
    As she propelled the cart along, Kyra couldn't help but sense a distant source of what felt like, to her, was magical particles. A LOT of magical particles, in fact. Naturally, her first assumption is that it's a powerful person since giant non-people magical resevoirs are not quite things on her world.

    "I think I sense them up ahead, Shirou!" Kyra declares, straightening to get a good look, ahead. Though with Shirou's lighting, it's more likely that he'd get a good look at the Robot Masters and Sniper Joes in their path before she does. It doesn't go unnoticed that they're under attack, however, and Kyra seems inclined to stay the course. That is-"Shirou, duck down and reinforce the cart! We're breaking through!" Reinforced enough, the cart should ward off the blasts and the blades aimed their way. Kyra herself casts another aeroga off the back of the cart and then ducks down for some cover.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    Some odd things happen that set Shirou's mood off. A nagging, strange moment of silence as they round a bend that his brain doesn't properly register is the first of those. Next is...
R
    "Analyze... composition materials... strengthen structure....!"

    Responding to Kyra's declaration, Shirou takes proactive measures. With a hand against the minecart's base, he floods it with prana. it weaves through the wood and metal in circuit-liek patterns, filling in gaps and 'hardening' it.

    Well, that won't be very good against energy blasts and Metal Blades. But the mine cart that would've been shredded instantly instead tanks several shots, might very well knock over a Sniper Joe if they aren't quick enough to dodge, and soaks a few of the Metal Blades. Those are the worst - Shirou's reinforcements barely hold, and the end result is that one of the blades manages to slam into the minecart's side and halfway dig in. It's lodged in hard enough that when it rounds a bend...

    *SCHKREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESHHH!*

    "Uooooahhhh! Not good!"

    Well, there's the world's worst lightshow from spraying sparks of rock and grinding metal and rupturing sides...

    It'll hold, but not for much longer...

    Shirou peeks over the edge through, spotting the Robot Masters.... "...Robots?!"

Caster (701) has posed:
Caster frowns now when the soldiers are ordered to attack, when they haven't even seen the target yet. That's fine for the Warforged, because they are badass and have a badass leader! But the regulars aren't ready yet. They have a different role to play here. The Warforged are Psalm's to command, and the Joes are Metal Man's, if he has some sort of remote link to them. So it's up to Caster to handle her end while te brave ones move forward to draw out the target. She floats down and gestures for the regular troops to halt (which they do), while at the same time turning her attention on the vast empty space around them. Stone outcroppings lie snapped or smashed as though something massive struck them. There are towering stone columns throughout, many of them heavily damaged, though some still bear imagery carved into them untold ages ago. Images of humanoid figures... And less humanoid figures...

Doors, gates, and chains.

There's something big in here with them. Something lurking in the shadows. A golden staff forms in the floating woman's hand. It - much like the rest of her body - is basically pure prana. Not that she doesn't have blood and flesh, but that blood and flesh is highly-concentrated magical energy. The staff? Even more so. There is no enemy to attack yet. But it's clear that it's coming, thanks to all the racket made as soon as everyone got here.

The vast shadow that could have been taken for just another part of the darkness that fills this place moves, and the ground trembles under the mere shifting of weight. The sound of something once-sharp grating on solid stone is painful to the ears.

Then a breath that sounds like a geyser spewing dust and gravel instead of water and steam is released. And a dense cloud of dust, and huge chunks of gravel actually DO spill across the cavern floor. Two eyes open in the darkness, but they are absent of sight. Two more eyes open, and then another two. None of them can see anything anymore. But the monster can still breathe, and thus can still smell. It can still hear with its whole body, sensing the vibrations through the ground.

And it doesn't like what it smells and hears.

Caster (701) has posed:
A gigantic beast suddenly smashes through one of the vaguely Greek-looking columns that still had some of its artistry. A beast with three canine heads, and a body made of pure stone, with gem deposits hardened on all over it.

Cerberus. Or a very old version of such. Possibly even a member of a monster race named after such instead of the genuine article. But the vision of a gigantic three-headed dog is still a startling one, particularly for those who know their mythology.

Caster, as a Servant, possesses the strength of ten strong men in her lithe frame. She grabs one of the Confederate soldiers (not the Warborn or Joes, but those who she received permission to utilize), having prepped them all for this mission in advance, and hurls him at the Ancient Cerberus (aka Kerberos, if you're proper). The beast seems to think it's being fed a snack as it opens one of its sets of jaws, dust pouring from its maw in place of saliva. It's articulated stone snake-tail lashes back and forth, taking out another two columns with a deafening cacophonious shattering of stone.

And then suddenly there isn't a soldier flying at the giant dog, but the largest whale species on a typical version of Earth. A Blue Whale. The 100 ft.-long whale smashes into the Cerberus's face. The titanic beast is quite startled, especially since it can't see what hit it. The whale-soldier falls quickly, but the monster is stunned and confused.

And for those who can sense prana, there was just a HUGE surge right when soldier became whale.

"Now you may smite it, Master~!" Caster lilts impishly. The Warforged, knowing the plan and their leader's will, might even already be in a position to strike at their target - the gem-encrusted belly of the beast...

Right at the heart they need to carve out of it.

But the monster still has two other heads. And that is why Caster, the Sniper Joes, and the other regulars, are supposed to hang back and pelt the eff out of the tri-dog with everything they have to keep its attention.

Metal Man (11) has posed:
Metal Man is moving in now and his balance is inhuman he bounding off the walls as he close and it he keeos going for then again metal blades were made to be stupidy shapr the alloyt in them would be alien to Shirtou's warol so who knows one Joe does go down. Another however make use to leap out of the way, firing at the apex of it's leap.

Crash Man mean while is moving in and his shoulder opens as fire with a pair of mini missiles.

The battle goes on but he gets a feed. Okay holy shit he had known the plan before hand but damn to see something like that.

"That's going to be a whale of a tale to tell later."

He says over the comm to Crash Man.

Psalm (181) has posed:
    WHALE. IT'S A WHALE. THAT'S AWESOME. Though she can sense the pull on her own prana to pull that little trick off. A little mental nudge at her Servant. <Careful, dear, not too hard at first.>
    But that is indeed the signal for her 'Forged to move in, an inhumannly perfect massed battle cry from the constructs as they move in to set up a perimeter for the mages to do their work. The skinner Forged step up and start hurling balls of sound at the creature, sonic blasts aimed to cripple or stun the old stone monster.
    That's being backed up by Maggie herself, who simply stands at the front of he guard, plants the tip of her great sword into the ground, rolls her neck...

    And /sings/. It's a roiling, twisting noise, the words untranslatable even to the Multiverse, pure arcane music coming forth in a glorious noise from Magatha, shuddering the entire chamber as one huge concert hall... and directing the music right at the Cerberus.

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    Kyra and Shirou are in luck! The minecart leads down deep to where they need to be and into the main chamber. But to get there... they have to pass by Metal Man's Wilycorps. A not too simple endeavor! because the Minecart's already rattling almost off the tracks from the one scraping blade. Shirou decides enough is enough as the main chamber's in sight. He jams on the brakes with everything he's got, and manages to close them enought that the cart starts slowing. But...

    Then he sees the incoming missiles and blades and other shots from a really bad angle.

    "TRACE ON!! MONTAUBAN!"

    Prana sizzles and flares to mark the arising and activation of a Noble Phantasm Shirou is VERY bad at Tracing. "Gaaawghkk--" Seen well enough as he drops to his knees clutching his arm through the effort, energy flaring everywhere.

    Still... A filmy white wall of solid marble with a very obvious battlement erupts from the ground in a storm of energy! The wall's translucent and fleeting, but it's also thick and enduring in its own way.

    The blades and bombs slam hard into it,shattering it - demolitions work is one of Crash's specialties after all, isn't it?

    But they bring down a wall that was merely an illusion made real, instead of utterly eviscerating Shirou and Kyra.

    At this point, with the cart coming to a halt overlooking the great chamber and Caster's strange ceremony... Shirou faces the distant Metal Man and his robot partners.... glances at Kyra...

    Already he's breathing hard. But the young man grunts, groans... and summons up a pair of weapons. KANSHOU AND BAKUYA appear in his hands and he readies them defensively. "What are all of you here to do?!"

Kyra Hyral (626) has posed:
    Kyra doesn't pop her head over the side of the cart, trusting in Shirou's abilities as he shields their chariot against the frequent attacks of the Robot Master and his Sniper Joes. She watches Shirou carefully, seeing that he's struggling through the effort and reaches forward, placing a hand on his shoulder to-to heal? No, it just seems to be for comfort or support. There's really nothing she can do to stabilize in-use magic circuits.

    "Nice." she says quietly when the cart makes it down in tact. She peeks up over the side of the mine cart, pulling free one of her firearms as she does so. "Yeah! What the hell are all you guys doing down here?!"

Fake Avenger (662) has posed:
     The arrival of Kyra and Shirou is evidently enough to draw Kojirou out of whatever bizarre reverie he's found himself in. The swordsman looks up as their minecart passes through the illusion, smashing against the ground. He considers them for a long moment, as if he's not sure what he wants to do.

     Then he turns away and heads down the corridor.

     He passes downwards, away from Shirou and Kyra, only the barest trail of his existence present as he heads down towards Cerberus. His strange and passive smile remains as he enters the chamber of the great beast. It's like he doesn't even care about the danger he's in. He stops, taking the vast thing in with a curious sort of apathy.

     He hasn't drawn his sword yet. His hands disappear into his kimono, watching the thing.

     Kojirou had no interest in Caster's Holy Grail War. Kojirou did not particularly care about great deeds and great weapons, about legendary battles and legendary monsters. He's here because he wants to be here.

     Kojirou's left hand emerges from his sleeve. Caster, and Shirou, get a glimpse of the bizarre etchings carved into it - etchings that stand out even against his normal tattoos. Red and strange, the carvings are clear to both of them with only a glance. It's something no Servant should have, and no Servant should be able to sustain...but there it is.

     A Magic Crest.

     Kojirou holds up his left hand and curls it into a single finger. His eyes flash, though his smile doesn't waver, as he points his finger at one of Cerberus's extra heads.

     Perhaps it was nostalgia. Maybe it was just a way of showing dominance over one who was so closely related to his one and only former Master. Maybe it was just a whim. Kojirou himself likely couldn't say.

     Caster, Shirou, and Kyra suddenly get a sense of deep and impending power - a source of prana so vast and so limitless as to be like the ocean itself being forced through a tiny little space.

     The Magic Crest explodes with light.

     Then a single Gandr shot explodes out of Kojirou's finger. Shirou has probably seen Gandr before; Caster most certainly has seen some variant or another. The weak ones hurt the spirit. The strong ones are like bullets.

     Kojirou fires his Gandr like a missile. It's all power, no finesse, no technique - but who needs finesse and technique when you have *that* much prana available? Besides, Shirou at the least knows Kojirou's technique doesn't lie in magic.

     Kojirou lowers his finger after the first shot. He wasn't here to do Caster's job for her. His reasons were his own.

     Well...usually.

Caster (701) has posed:
Of course, Caster would never endanger her Master by using too much prana! Which is why she totally wants to make sure this petrified guardian of the entrance to the Underworld is defeated before she has to throw another soldier and turn them into a tyrannosaurus rex! Even if she REALLY WANTS TO TURN SOMEONE INTO A T-REX at some point. She isn't sure if she can, technically, since she mostly turns people into mundane beasts. Even that whale was stretching the limits of her power. But ever since she found out they existed, she has been itching to try them out. Still: priorities. "Of course, my Master~!" Caster responds out loud to the telepathic message. Useful for a Master giving orders, that ability. Not so much for the Servant responding.

The soldiers staying back near the entrance are shooting up a storm, keeping those heads distracted, while the sound balls from the skinner Warforged mess with one of the Cerberus's only two remaining senses something terrible. Vibrating throughout its entire body, petrified flesh cracking and crumbling, it can't even tell where to bite. It's... Actually kind of pitiful and sad. Such a fierce and ferocious guardian, reduced to this state. Caster feels bad. It's like they're tormenting an old dog. And she is quite the animal lover. Best to put it out of its misery.

Which is exactly what Psalm does. Her song is powerful. Beautiful. Everywhere. Reflecting and building, assaulting the great beast from every direction. Crystal formations crack. Blasts of sonic waves shatter its chest, bit by bit, and the monster staggers, bleeds dust and bits of its own fossilized skeleton... And then Kojirou blows off one of its heads. The monster collapses. Its two remaining jaws striking the ground thunderously.

Thankfully, Soldier Whale got turned back to a human, and Caster swooped into to snatch him up before that happened, but even the shockwaves throw her mystical flight into momentary chaos. She manages to land at set the soldier down... But what is this about exactly? Caster has been intentionally trying to keep any of their troops from dying - even a single one - this entire time. She's a Confederate. Why does she care about regular infantry? Psalm probably knows.

For all this Servant's flaws, being callous about the deaths of others was never part of her legend. But when it comes to legends, she is truly at a loss regarding this Avenger. As someone deeply invested in magical knowledge and study, she definitely takes notice of all that is displayed by Kojirou - intentionally or not. But what to make of it? She doesn't know yet. For now, she is grateful for the assistance, even if greatly intrigued by the huge power she just witnessed.

Caster (701) has posed:
When some guy and girl arrive in a mine cart, Caster pauses, taking her attention off Avenger and the Cerberus alike. Then she offers simply, "I apologize, but I am under no obligation to answer that." There's a giant three-headed-correction: two-headed, dog with a snake tail, all made of stone, with its chest cavity split wide-open and a throbbing mass of semi-organic rock struggling to pump the last vestiges of life through its calcified arteries on display. "If we retrieve that, we can depart," Caster calls out over her shoulder. Then she focuses back on Shirou and Kyra. "Which leaves preventing your interference to me." She raises her gold staff, and for the two Unionites, everything goes dark, except for the intense blazing flames that suddenly spring up all around them.

Nothing is visible, only fire. Fire, and MONSTERS. 18 ft. centipedes of black steel, crawling their way towards the two intruders. Clattering, clinking. Squiggling, squeaking. Making those disgusting chitinous noises that bugs do. One arches up off the ground, raising to its full height, and its belly is covered in a series of faces. Shirou's and Kyra's, repeated one after the other, all along its length. The faces open their eyes and begin to scream, just as the centipede lunges with its steel-plated mandibles.

It's an illusion. But not any illusion these two have likely encountered before. Because most illusions aren't SOLID. Most illusions don't come with PHYSICAL SENSATION. And most illusions can't HURT YOU.

These ones are, do, and can.

For Caster, it's a distraction for these do-gooders. Something to keep them busy while they get out of here. Fire and giant monster centipedes are kind of a big deal after all. But she can't really do much about the Cerberus's remains. The Union - she is assuming they are Union anyway, but you never know - will be able to examine what's left and start asking questions and drawing conclusions. Unfortunate, but priority #1 right now is get the Core and get out.

Assuming they can!

Psalm (181) has posed:
    Magatha is more than happy with this outcome, though she looks over her shoulder at the carnage going on around the place... mostly caused by her music and her Servant.

    Lovely.

    She nearly skips her way over towards the fallen creature, and bodily jams herself into the crevasse that was that massive crystal in the beast's chest. "It's in here somewhe-AH! Here we go."
    She comes back out covered in monster-dust-miasma, carrying a dully glowing hunk of compressed energy, matter and prana. "Solanda, dearie, we have it~"

Kyra Hyral (626) has posed:
    "...huh, looks like a pretty high level kill there." Kyra remarks as she gets a glimpse of the big ol' cerberus corpse. Since killing monsters and stealing their stuff for alchemy is actually a pretty daily ritual of Kyra's life, she starts to wonder about the remains herlf, if only briefly out of habit. She lifts her gun-turns out it's her needlegun-and prepares to fire just when the strange illusion hits.

    She doesn't realize it's an illusion at first. There was something about being in the dark surrounded by hideous bug monsters that evoked some sort of primal fear within Kyra. She lets out a girly little scream and ducks back down into the mine cart to shield herself.

    It's only a temporary action. A moment later she pops back up, arms filled with flasks sporting liquid napalm, which she furiously hurls at the illusionary insects. "KILL IT WITH FIRE!!! KILL IT ALL WITH FIIIIIIRE!!!"

Emiya Shirou (560) has posed:
    Just as SHirou thinks he's about to take action, he spots That Swordsman once more, doing something he wouldn't 've guessed a swordsman can do. "Magecraft?!" He doesn't recognize the Magic Crest. He's never seen one before. But he can guess, and that's NOT something he'd expect from a swordsman at all.

    But for that matter, hnor would he expect any of the other fantastic things that're to be found in this great chamber when he scans about it. Is running down in there fll throttle a good idea? No, definitely not.

    He's just about to do that though, when suddenly... "Not yet--" he gets stuck in an illusion and halts his begun charge when these horrific flames erupt all over the place. he leaps back, tumbles to his feet... and just like that? His breathing quickens considerably.

    Fire. Incredibly, unbelievable, unreal fires. Fires that burn without a source, fires with an incalculable heat. Choking, awful, impossible fires.

    Shirou has a REALLY bad history around strange, magical fires.

    The boy enters a full-out trance-panic, hurling Kanshou and Bakuya at the giant insect and tracing another pair with a loud, freaked-out yell.

    He does the first thing he can POSSIBLY think to do.

    Throw himself in front of Kyra and take up a defensive position with another copy of the twin weapons! "What kind of crazy magic did she use?!"

Metal Man (11) has posed:
While thing are getting nuts on the other hedn of Things Metal Man has to deal with Shirou.

"Emiya the forgery!"

Metal notes to Crash Man and he nods a bit but things seem to be meeting thier end here he issues a recall orders to the Joes but they will be the last ones out even after the Regulars are out. He and Crash Man are now starting to depart as well they got htier objective it's time to get the heck out of here.

Fake Avenger (662) has posed:
     Kojirou watches Cerberus die with the same dispassionate gaze a man might give a photograph of some distant place. He doesn't really care about its fall. He doesn't particularly care about its destruction. Kojirou disappears his hand into his sleeve once more, his gaze sliding over at Shirou. The young man was everywhere, apparently. The faker. The forgery.

     Kojirou casts his eyes back at Caster. The woman was too much like old Caster, he decides finally. He looks up at the rock-strewn ceiling.

     Then again, had he ever known any humble Heroic Spirits, besides himself? Heroes tended to be the kind of people who were larger-than-life, full of arrogance and swagger. He, who wasn't even a hero, merely a man who wore another's name...well, it made sense that he was unusual, he supposed.

     Kojirou turns away from Kyra and Shirou. He turns his back to them. He acknowledges nothing in the world around him as he fades out of existence, vanishing from the world. For a brief moment, the only thing left of him are his scars, hanging in the air in the shape of his body - and then they, too, vanish into nothingness.

Caster (701) has posed:
Core of Stone retrieved. Troops fleeing up the tunnel. Metal Man and Crash Man securing the Warp Gate out of here, and making sure everyone gets through (themselves included)! Kojirou vanishing all awesome and creepy and totally not making friends with Caster probably! Kyra is flinging flasks everywhere, Shirou is attacking and slicing and dizzicing, and the giant centipedes are torn apart - by magic potion or blade - only to vanish into streams of flame when destroyed. That flame itself eventually vanishes. And when it does, the cavern is empty. Empty except for Shirou, Kyra, and the 1/3rd decapitated corpse of a mythological beast so old that his flesh began to mimic his earthen environment. With its heart carved out. There's probably more evidence to be gathered here, information to examine, things to consider (like magecraft-using swordsmen, and Servant-level presences from flying redheads, and Psalm, and Sniper Joes, and Warforged, and Confederate regulars who aren't appreciably injured or killed, and TWO Robot Masters guarding the way here)...

But at least those flames and bugs were just an extremely convincing and extremely real and even painful illusion, right? At least all those bounded fields put up in the tunnel by Caster on the way here are still intact, so the Unionites don't get attacked by cave trolls or whatever on the way out, right? And their hearts will stop beating so fast at SOME point, right?

...Right?