Scene #8463: Below the Pillars

Owner	Pose
Raziel	Deep into the earth, the passageway goes. There is one thing that is true about this path... it had not been touched for a /very/ long time. This may be the first time human eyes had ever seen these passageways. Which itself may seem odd if the Pillars served the humans. It seemed the Pillars had more secrets than even their human masters knew. Eventually, it leads to another door. On the door was engraved a sword. Serpent-tongue like. "Clearly this is meant to signify the reaver.." Raziel muses to himself, running a hand over the door itself, seemingly checking it. Despite the age of the ruin, it remains in immaculate shape. There were many human buildings and ruins along the road here... and they hardly seemed to be able to stand this long, even the Sarafan Keep they had come out of was already starting to show its age. But this stonework looks as if it had barely aged at all. Raziel drew the reaver, the sword materializing on his arm and forming into a serpent-shaped blade. The blade seems to be softly drawn towards the keyhole for the door. Once inside, there is a slow rumbling, as dust is kicked free and the door opens. The chamber it opens to is a large one, and from the top of the room, the Pillars seem to come down from and continue down. Across a platform, with water filling the sides around the platform itself. Down here are murals, depicting a winged race. It seems there was something down here to find, but right now the pictures themselves would need to be examined.
Angela	The Information Team takes its time moving after Raziel, Sal taking scans and pictures of what they see. To Sal, this is all very interesting shit it's like a treasure trove of an undiscovered country but so far the Team is quiet as they work. And patient.
Timespace Riders	I would encourage you to find him in this era and learn something about him. Specifically, what knowledge does he not have here compared to the future? It will be good to know just how dangerous this unseen enemy truly is. High above the tunnels, there is another Sougo Tokiwa, engaged in an argument with the prophet Moebius in the keep. The details aren't necessary--the argument itself, even if that Sougo genuinely believes what he's saying, is an excuse. Under the pretext of trying to sway Moebius from manipulating Kain and Raziel, Sougo took an opportunity. A single sliver of time played host to a temporal jaunt. In it, that Sougo peered into the prophet's past, to search through his interactions with the Elder God, and see how the entity's knowledge differed in this time period, compared to the future, rotting Nosgoth. When the 'argument' is done with, Sougo storms out of the keep--and when he exits to the balcony, disappears in a flash of pink light, with a small smile on his face. Here in the present, in the caverns beneath the Pillars, Sougo follows down, eyes wide as he takes in the pristine ruins housed there. He lags behind most of the group during this descent, clearly taken with the untarnished signs of past human life. Reaching the giant door, Sougo disappears in a flash of pink light, briefly traveling to the past to complete the time loop he'd started at Kain's behest, reappearing an instant later. "That's them," says Sougo, after Raziel opens the door. Nodding towards the mural, and stepping through the doorway to stand on the platform. "Those people are the Ancients--the people who'd become 'vampires' later on. I wonder if this mural is... contemporary, with those ruins outside?"
Hellwarming Trio	"Does he have to put the sword up on it?" "He will in time. No need to rush." "There's still stuff to figure out and look at, right?" Following shortly behind Raziel is the trio of yokai that, for better or worse, have attached themselves to seeing everything that's going on with Nosgoth's fate. They're actually walking today as they head down that passageway, looking more comfortable than they have in a while, and they only stop when the door bars their path forward. While the door opens, Rin's gawking right at the weapon itself, and Utsuho and Satori watch the door. All three of them cough at that dust getting kicked up, but Utsuho's on top of things and flaps her wings a few times to keep it off them. They start heading further in with more wide-eyed curiosity, Utsuho peering at those murals of the winged race closely while Rin and Satori look further ahead to see if there's some kind of tale being spun through these pictures. Satori's also got her hands a little more full trying to keep Rin from drnking the mystery water. "Heh. Told you vampires have wings in this world." "Nn. One of these worlds won't sooner or later!" "Girls... Ah. If it is, Mister Sougo, then those chronicling all of this and what we saw before must still have some... Lessons? No. Something they wanted remembered deeper in."
Trudy Grimm	Something made not by human or vampire hands, but of something entirely different. Something older. More pure. Presented with carved doors, already pushed open, Trudy reaches out to place her hand against the stone, looking up across the engravings for a quiet moment. It isn't long before she moves past, the Book swaying with each step. "The Reaver blade," she thinks out loud, "The flame-tongued sword that Kain carries, clearly came from these people. Even pre-dating vampires as we know them." A wry, shark-toothed smile crosses her face, "To think such a thing could be this sort of ancient legendary weapon. But..." Eyes closing, she shrugs, "I suppose nothing less would do for all the impact it's had." She steps across the waterway onto the platform itself, eyes drawn upward again. A portion of her shadow extends outward, protruding a black rod. When she takes this up, a green lantern is revealed on the other end. She'd used this tool before, and now holds it up to shed light on these latest carvings. "More prophecies, I wager..." Her voice lilts a bit in that way it does when curiosity piques, "The way Kain spoke about destiny before, one can only wonder just how much fortune-telling was going on even way back then. Such scrying is far from my specialty, so I find it quite interesting, myself."
Raziel	Sougo: Much like before, you see the beginning of Moebius' history. Taken from his home by the Ancient Vampire race, because he was selected by the Pillar of Time to be its new guardian. To hear the voice of the great old one. Fatefully, one day in the Vampire's great citadel. The building is granted and slightly older than the ruins you sit in now, but crawling deep below the citadel was a part of the Elder God. The problem is... Moebius could not see him. He could hear his voice, he could answer commands... but not /see/. Sougo can follow him throughout time, though the plans only ever seem to be in pieces. Overthrowing the Vampires with Mortanius, then manipulating a younger Kain, and eventually turning to manipulate Raziel. Two important things were important to the Elder god. Two important events /had/ to happen. Raziel had to kill Kain, which he would when they returned to the Sarafan Keep to try and go back into the past to meet Janos Aurdrin. The second... Raziel's hand holds the physical reaver's blade, it swings wildly in his hands, before forcing him to stab himself. Impaled, and unable to free himself from the Reaver, he is slowly and painfully drawn inside. Raziel's sword isn't just a random blade. It is and has always been... Him.
Raziel	The chamber under the Pillars: Rin and Satori can see something stir deep underneath the water. It's... large whatever it is, but doesn't seem keen on coming out or attempting to attack, or communicating. Raziel pauses, looking at the murals themselves. One mural has what looks like two groups of people fighting. One angelic winged race, and another race that looks more demonic than angelic. Sougo's words can be seen looking at Raziel. Their feet and hands match up, and the wings (while Raziel's were smaller and weaker) lined up too. Though their wings were large, beautiful, and covered in black feathers. Raziel's were leather, and shrunken. On the other hand, the Demonic race had smaller bat-like wings as well. They also had glowing eyes, similar to Raziel. "These two... were fighting a war. Here, you can see how there are many figures behind each of the central figures. These figures also aren't embellished either, so they're not generals or important leaders..." The image next to the first one is that of the Pillars. A single vampire, hands being raised stands before the Pillars as a bolt of lightning seems to strike from above. Below them, the demonic race seems to be falling into the earth, perhaps representing their being sealed in the demonic realm... which often is depicted as being below. "Mmmm... no these do not seem to be predicting the future, Ms. Grimm. These seem to be here to tell the story of the vampire's past. Odd that they would do so here of all places... behind a door that only one with the Reaver could open..." The image after this was an image of the Winged Race. This time, however, they were writhing in agony, holding their heads in pain as depictions of the demonic race could be seen from deep in the earth, laughing at the pain of the Vampires. One of the Vampires was covered in bright red blood, but it wasn't itself bleeding, but rather it had come from perhaps something it'd just eaten. Other vampires seem to share this imagery. While others seem to try and impale themselves on large stakes. "A... this is odd. This is a representation of the blood curse, I think. Something every vampire is affected by... but... it's like this wasn't something natural in their bodies... that it was a curse inflicted by their fallen enemies..." A final mural, with two of the ancients on the ground, the ground covered with blood and forced to wipe the blood from their hands and mouth is a singular ancient. In its hand is a picture of the Reaver, held aloft like a religious artifact. As if its very existence is meaningful to them... "What could this all mean..?" "LIES! Raziel.." booms a voice from below. A very familiar voice. The voice of the Elder God.
Timespace Riders	"Yeah. It's like I said before," Sougo says, regarding the 'blood curse.' "That's why the Elder God abandoned the Ancients. Or at least, it's the excuse that he gave. As for the door, and why all this would be locked to anyone without the Reaver..." The Demon King shifts uncomfortably, one hand grasping at the opposite sleeve of his shirt, squeezing his arm. "That's, um... because of what the Reaver is," says Sougo to Raziel. "It isn't just a sword that's both physical and immaterial. It's--" The Elder God calls out from below. "As respectfully as I can," says Sougo, hand falling from his arm, as he frowns, stepping closer to the edge of the platform to look down. "You're the last person that should be accusing anyone of lying. Everyone who ever believes in you suffers for it, and you don't care at all. Even your chosen prophet has never seen what you really look like." Sougo looks over his shoulder. "He wants you to kill Kain, in the keep," Sougo says. "As part of his plan for the future he wants."
Trudy Grimm	"Mm," Trudy swings her lantern-on-a-stick slowly along the murals as Raziel interprets them, "Yes, I see that now. Ever common is it for the ancient races to carve their history in stone like this." She pauses over the crimson-stained figures, then swings back over the previous panels, a little frown on her face. "Fighting a war with a rival race," she repeats the ghoul's conclusion, "Defeated them... through the power of the Pillars, perhaps?" She pauses over the panel of the vampires in agony, "But at a cost. Or perhaps, with retribution as you say." She lets out a single, short laugh. Whatever thought she has is derailed when the Elder God intrudes, tilting her eyes upward out of habit, then correcting to downward where the voice seemed to originate, "And you're an ultimate source of truth, I suppose?" She closes her eyes, lifting a hand to rest alongside her cheek. In her other hand, she's produced a green gemstone, idly twirling it about her fingers, "Mister Hub, my experiences in Nosgoth have really cast quite a degree of mistrust on you. If you want to prove to me that you are on the level, than offer up to me your most precious pawn." Her eyes open slightly, faint green sifting through her eyelashes, "Give me Moebius. Surrendering him to my mercy would certainly prove that you aren't relying on him to manipulate this timeline. The perfect way to exonerate yourself of these crimes, at least in my eyes." She knows Moebius is supposed to die at Kain's hand, presumably at the Hub's direction. That came up way back at the Timestreamer's cave home. As far as she can discern, the Hub knows that she knows this, too.
Hellwarming Trio	Before Rin can start asking Satori about the weird thing further below, Satori's already holding a hand up to stop her from approaching the thing in the water. Instead, she reaches out herself, to try and get a read of whatever the something might be thinking, to find out what it might intend for everyone up here, or if it even cares about their presence at all. While Satori's busy with that, Rin's looking at the murals, and she soon gets confused by what she's seeing. "Hey, Raziel! These look... Closer to yours now, right? But did you and your people really have wings this big before you got all..." Realizing there's no way to finish that sentence without it maybe sounding terrible, Rin goes quiet for about three seconds before blurting it out anyway. "... Changed and shrively?" Eventually, Satori gives Rin a light scolding while Utsuho starts piecing more of the story together from the later imagery. She's genuinely trying, too, from the look of intense focus evident on her face. "So you're saying the... Uh. Those shriveled guys before. They took you guys and made you more like them? That's weird. Why not just... I dunno. Try and turn themselves more into you guys?" Utsuho flaps her wings for emphasis, letting her sick galaxy cape flare out as well. "Maybe they wouldn't be as cool as these, but they'd be cooler than what they had and what you got now." Hearing the voice of the Elder God and what Sougo says of the Elder God's desires, it's Satori's turn to start doing some digging. "Tell us. What are you looking to do by having Raziel kill Kain?" She asks while trying to get a read on the Elder God instead, advisable or not. "Is it for your own ambition, revenge, or..." Shot in the dark. Why not? "Do you still remember why?"
Hamada Haru	It isn't Dynamic Era who turns up, but 'merely' Hamada Haru. A cloud of fog descends upon the vicinity and re-forms into the young man, who angles his transteam gun towards the floor in a safe-but-ready angle. He's watching Sougo pretty much exclusively, and it's for the very simple reason that he really just kind of doesn't like Zi-O at the moment. The reason for it is probably self-evident to Sougo himself, but he's not going out of his way to air it out. He's here to observe. His observation is simply more bleakly-tinted than it originally was. "It's not possible for it to exonerate itself of its crimes in this context. Since it can influence time the way that it does, the only thing that it demonstrates is that the pawn it is handing over is 'finished' from whatever perspective you currently occupy. You'd have to approach the known origin point of its interaction with its pawn in order to have a credible exchange of good faith like that," he asides to Trudy, gloomily. This is, perhaps surprisingly, NOT a deliberate parallel with his perspective on Sougo. It's just topical.
Angela	Sal looks at the murals for a long moment. She frowns. She's starting to make some associations that she's not sure is that great or not. It's a little weird when making your way around with coworker to see murals of them after all, particularly at this point. It might be some time for the Lobotomy Corp team to really come to grips with what this all means when put together, along with the unstated implications all this art represents. LIES, something shouts. A fmailiar voice. A voice of an Elder God! "HAhaha!" M.O.M says. "That's not great!" Chewie swings Meat Lantern up in preparation. "Don't know if that's gonna help much." M.O.M admits because, you know, Elder God and all.
Raziel	Raziel turns to Sougo, listening to what he gleamed through the past. His observations brought upon the story written in stone also helps connect the pieces for him in his mind. Though he cuts himself off right as the Elder God speaks, he looks like he's about to ask more... but then decides that he stopped for a reason. Raziel shakes his head at Rin, "I was human before I was turned into a vampire. The reason for Kain's betrayal was that I entered the state of change... and evolved farther and closer to the ancients than he did. Over time humans turned into vampires and evolve closer to the ancient species." Trudy gets the Elder God's attention first, though it chuckles at the response of Chewie's response to it. The tentacles underneath the water turn, and the eyes diolate, as he focuses on her request first. "You truly have a grudge against my devoted servant. Why I wonder..? Is it because he has done something to wrong you? Or because he showed you a truth that is inconvenient?" "I wonder if the rage you feel at my good servant really for him, but directed at yourself instead... but... let it not be said that I am not both merciful and magnanimous. No, I will not give you my good servant, his fate has been decided long ago. Kain will kill him, and his soul will be devoured by the Soul Reaver. Thus, sent to me to be rewoven into the wheel." "The man with you speaks the truth. Why would you ask me for his soul after he has traced his path along the wheel? Not that I would abandon one of my own to such an abominable fate."
Raziel	To Sougo, it turns, staring him down as he seems to... relax? Sigh? It's hard to say. "I could not speak to them anymore. When the curse took them from my light, they were trapped in the flesh. My voice could no longer reach them." "Many killed themselves to be respun into the wheel, but... those that remained chose to selfishly continue their bloodline. Do anything to stave off death. It was their selfish decision that started the first cracks of corruption in the pillars." "Yes, I do what you, my servant, to kill Kain. He is an abomination, his soul trapped in the flesh and can not be rewoven. Worse, every breath he takes continues to weaken and degrade the pillars. And you let him slip through your fingers." For Satori... reading his mind is like hearing several voices at once. Worse, they overlap horribly. It's like his thoughts seem to overlap, not quite hidden, but like hearing a person talk but another talk over them and another and another... they are all saying the same thing, but because there is so much noise it overlaps. "I have answered this question before, young Satori. Kain's life continues to damn the world, to drag it lower and lower among a rotting corpse of a planet. You claim to be an ally of Raziel, but you sit here throwing suspicion on me. While my servant Moebius is a good one, his love of games and tricksterish nature does make him hard to work with... but my goals are as straightforward as they ever were." "Funny... you all talk about your free will, but you let that degenerate deter your resolve." "I harbor no illusions of his integrity. Nor of anyone else's in this world... the only integrity I believe in are those who surround me now, as for everything else in this world besets me with manipulation. I simply wish to know the truth."
Raziel	"These are the fathomless truths, Raziel. The Agony of birth and death and rebirth; THIS is the wheel of fate. The purifying cycle that sustains all life. Vampires are an abomination, a plague that leeches this land of its spiritual strength. They obstruct the flow of life and death! Their souls stagnate in their wretched corpses, but the wheel must turn. Death is inexorable and can not be denied." "Your destiny is irresistible, Raziel. You are my soul reaver! The scourage of the vampires! Reapers of their apostate souls! Remain steadfast, both you and your allies need to end the Vampire's parasitic curse, and restore Nosgoth." "Kain's blood belongs on your hands." "Kain indeed deserves to die," Raziel says, "For banishing me to death... but if and when I kill him it will be for me alone to decide." "Kain destroyed you without a flicker of remorse! He tore the soul from your noble corpse and after you served him faithfully for a thousand years. He discarded you into the abyss on a jealous whim. Remember your rage Raziel... let it guide your hand..."
Trudy Grimm	One eye opens fully, regarding Hamada Haru as he addresses her comments to the Elder God. Giving his words some clear thought, Trudy eventually closes both eyes fully and raises her arms at the elbows, shoulders lifting in a shrug, "I don't expect the Hub to do it anyway. Moebius is too valuable to him, especially now." Arms lowering, she lifts her gaze upward, "He already knows when he'll discard Moebius; when Kain kills him, because he has at that point ceased to be useful." The God speaks, prompting the witch to open one eye upward as if looking at him as he rejects her request. One hand lifts, as if to say 'See?' "The Hub wouldn't risk his most precious puppet on a gamble." She pointedly doesn't even acknowledge the God calling out her grudge or what incited it. There's no point. Trudy is entirely aware she was shown something she didn't want to see, and the Hub probably knows that too. If not the vision itself, her response to it was more than clear for anyone watching. She remains quiet for the remainder of the Hub's address, resting a hand on her hip, the other-- absent the gemstone, at some point-- now rests upon the spine of the Grimoire. After a moment, she glances down in thought. "There he goes, picking open the scabs..." Eyes narrowing slightly, "Weren't we informed not terribly long ago about that sketchy wizard's grudge against vampires?" As if she'd just connected the dots. She glances aside towards the L-Corp agents as they arm themselves, lifting a hand, "I don't think the Hub is actually here, so you can relax. He usually just likes the sound of his voice." She bobs her head from side to side for a moment, "Which is admittedly a very pleasing and rich baritone worth listening to. The words themselves, less so."
Timespace Riders	You'd have to approach the known origin point of its interaction with its pawn in order to have a credible exchange of good faith like that. Sougo smiles weakly at Haru. Deliberate or not, addressed to Trudy or not, he can't help feeling the truth of that. Those that remained chose to selfishly continue their bloodline. Do anything to stave off death. It was their selfish decision that started the first cracks of corruption in the pillars. "Choosing to live is selfish, in a way," says Sougo, turning his attention back to the watery abyss. "It's an act of will. Maybe the simplest and most understandable there is. But you say that--selfish--like it's wrong. It isn't. It isn't wrong, to fight for things to be better, especially not after something horrible happens." "Kain didn't have any choice but to 'damn the world.' You and Moebius set things up," says Sougo, his hands closing slowly into fists. "Specifically, so that just his existing at all corrupted the Pillars. He isn't off the hook for what he's done, but neither are you. You're not trying to save this world--just trying to be done with it, so you can find another one to latch onto." The Demon King takes a steadying breath. "This is the part where you say that this," he says, looking up and gesturing with a sweep of his hand towards the mural, "Was all pre-arranged for Raziel. And it was. But that's only part of why only the Soul Reaver can open the door here. The other part is that Raziel is the sword, isn't it? When were you going to tell him that?"
Hamada Haru	"If the world can only live on the blood-slicked backs of its dead, it's not hard to see the argument to let it decay," Haru says, stowing his transteam gun and folding his arms over his chest. "Death isn't a good thing. People don't like leaving fate up to chance. A lot of people would say that a world without death renders life meaningless, but that's just coping from a species that has to die." "And I don't know all of these figures that well, so you can't accuse me of having my resolve shaken by any degenerate," he adds. The fact that he happens to be saying the same thing as Sougo, for all practical purposes, doesn't really seem to bother him-- if he notices it at all.
Hellwarming Trio	"Oh! So he was jealous of you." Rin concludes with a brief snicker, apparently satisfied with the answer Raziel gives about his past life. After a few moments, though, she does get another questioning look on her face, and she's even about to ask something before getting stopped by Utsuho nudging her to stick close to Satori while the Elder God starts answering her. The timing is good, too, as Satori looks visibly uncomfortable with the sheer amount of stuff she's actively trying to listen to between those overlapping thoughts and what is actually being said. "Forgive us if what we've seen and heard has made it hard to trust your word on its face." She apologizes without sounding even the slightest bit apologetic, just replying in a thoroughly disaffected tone. "Between the machinations of yourself and Moebius, it only raises more questions about what you truly sought to achieve in the first place." She starts pacing around slowly, with Utsuho and Rin following her movements just in case they need to jump at... Something. "If this world was left to its own devices, perhaps it could have come to ruin in a similar way. Many people have grudges against vampires, demons, yokai, et cetera. That wizard isn't special in that regard." She nods at Trudy on that point, then... Satori raises her hand, and deflates slightly a moment later. There's nobody to actually point at dramatically, accusingly. Coughing lightly instead, she looks over at Sougo with a brief nod. "What you've done is ensure it's doom if Kain doesn't die by Kain's hand, but you still haven't answered why we should trust your word over anyone else's. If what Mister Sougo said about you wanting to be finished with this world is true, then leaving this world to its wretched fate-" She nods at Haru next. "-would be even worse for you. We don't live here, so what happens to this world ultimately doesn't mean as much to anyone but you and Sir Raziel. If you don't want this world left to rot with you holding the bag-" She glances over at Utsuho and Rin briefly. They give her a thumbs up. "-then answer us properly, and explain yourself."
Angela	M.O.M places a hand on Chewie's shoulder to discourage him form trying to eat the Elder God. Chewie is kind of an idiot and is consistently voted by character polls to be the Agent most likely to not survive past Gebura. Chewie, as ever, seems oblivious to how the world sees him. "There's a Warpgate," Sal murmurs. "Or is the land literally fueled by souls and this isn't a metaphor for..." "It might just be the rules of the place, yeah." M.O.M adds. "Though I dunno if this is the kind of guy we can just accept the full truth from." Sal frowns at the accusation regarding their resolve. "Well... we're just here for Raziel. We...really could give two shits about what happens here otherwise." She rubs at her neck and look sto Raziel. "Sorry uh. But yeah. Just here to help you. So whatever you want to do is fine with us. We don't erally care about the morals of it." Chewie says, "Yup."
Raziel	Raziel turns towards Sougo, eyes wide at the revelation. "What do you mean /I/ am the swo-..." It takes him a moment, but only a moment to realize something. He holds his hand out, the hand possessed by the Spirit Reaver. There is a horrified look in his eyes as if suddenly he's realized something. 'At that moment I realized... the mad spirit trapped in the Soul Reaver was... and always had been me...' Raziel was caught up in the sudden realization, that he can not respond to the other accusations. However, the Elder God is patient. He lets the various accusations fall on him, listening to each one. Each question, each recrimination. Finally, when everyone had become quiet, he does not speak. He chuckles, low and rumbly. It seems that the mask was no longer needed and that nothing he could say could obfuscate something. So why bother? "Everything I have said is true, but if there is something you do not think has been said... then go out and continue to search for answers. I can not stop /you/. But..." he says, and Raziel is fading, slowly. "However, I can withdraw blessings I have given. A wraith you are, and a wraith you shall remain! I have no need for you to remain in the material world," he says with a low rumbling chuckle. "Without Raziel, you can no longer advance. Stuck will you be in trying to search for the truth without the blade to guide you? How long until your individual fates come calling? Mmm?" "How long until our little King becomes the Tyrant in the future? How long until he kills you, Haru? How long before Grimm kills all of her friends, raising them as undead servants... or they kill her? How long will your bonds of friendship last? The three of you will abandon each other. And you..." it turns to Sal, M.O.M., and Chewie... "Don't matter in the slightest. You will wither and die, and nobody will remember you even existed." "Go... play out your pitiful rebellion, and take your place among the used, the discarded, and the damned..." he laughs again, and the cavern starts to shake violently. Raziel is completely gone from sight. Satori can hear him think, and Trudy's ability to see ghosts does not fail her. Unfortunately, the path you cane crumbles, rocks falling onto the exit. There is only one other way out of this room, and it /does/ seem to head up. However, the tentacles of the Elder God have not reached it yet, being farther away than the way you came into the water he resides.
Hamada Haru	Hamada Haru unholsters his transteam gun without missing a beat and strides forward through the room, sweeping it in a broad pattern that permeates the whole of the surroundings with steam. The humidity is more than a little obnoxious for anybody not used to being subjected to the effects of a transteam gun, but for a good few moments absolutely nobody is actually physically solid enough to be crushed by the collapsing cave-- or to be contained by the obstruction along the exit. "I can't be killed by a Kamen Rider who doesn't know when to take his belt off. And I certainly can't be killed by some up-jumped kaijin whose weapon is falling rocks," He replies, coolly. The mist that 'contains' Haru in particular immediately passes through the not-actually-sealed-to-him passage and ascends incredibly quickly.
Trudy Grimm	The Hub of the Wheel just says everyone's traumatic visions out loud. Trudy's lazy ever-present smile disappears immediately, significantly more severe. Her shadow expands, consuming the entirety of the platform. Without knowing exactly when she did it, the Grimoire is in her hand, unbuckled and open. Shadows roil-- --the Transsteam Gun goes off. The shock of getting humidified so suddenly distracts Trudy just enough to pull her out of a white-hot rage. Her shadow calms down, eyes snapping to the book in her upraised hand, then across the platform directly on the spiritual form of Raziel's now-bodiless ghost. The witch straightens her posture, taking in a deep, steam-laden breath. The shadow's expansion reverts back to the space she usually occupies. The Grimoire is dropped, snapping shut and swinging on its strap when she breaks into a run, "We'll solve the body problem when we're outside. Come on, Raziel." Hamada goes-- straight up. Trudy probably could too with a bone pillar, but not with a guest and not without knowing how long this will last or how far underground they actually are. She's also not sure what limitations Raziel has like this, and so she opts for a hasty retreat through the open exit, beckoning the wraith to follow. Hopefully she can find a more stable area down that tunnel before whatever Hamada did wears off and all the bricks and rocks start to matter.
Hellwarming Trio	"Huh. Mask's off, eh?" "I knew you were fishy right from the start!" "... You talk too much." Satori lets out a weary sigh as she rubs the side of her head, feeling more of that fatigue setting in and leaning against Rin gently. The three of them look around in different directions, first to try and see where Raziel's, and again to to see where they could head next with the room filling with stone. "I could blast us out." "Ain't he still down there, though?" "Wait. He's got something." At Satori's indication, both Utsuho and Rin look over at Haru, and they notice that familiar-but-unfamiliar gun! It's a new enough experience that they're more than willing to follow along with him instead of just flying on their own, and it gives them a bit more time to think about their next move on the way. "Does this mean we can blow this place up?" "It'd look cool, but... Master?" "I... Not yet. We'll wait until Raziel gives us the okay for that. But losing his... Body, I suppose? Could be quite the obstacle for us going forward. We'll need to find Kain again, won't we?"
Timespace Riders	Sougo feels his fists clench again, tighter, when the Elder God launches into his fatalistic screed, anger building up inside him. "Say whatever you want about me, but don't you dare--" The rumbling cuts him off, and he wheels around in surprise, looking rapidly around the chamber as cracks spread up the walls. Sougo finds the Transteam Gun's effects passing over him to be unusual, drawing a confused "Eh?!" as he waves his hands through himself. "...Thanks, Haru! Trudy's right, Raziel--we'll figure something out, I promise!!" Sougo makes sure, in particular, that Sal and M.O.M. have a handle on Chewie--provided they do, he breaks into a sprint to shoulder intangibly through the door, pushing himself past crumbling human dwellings and cracked murals as fast as he can. As he runs, feeling the mist wearing off in the final stretch, he reaches for his Timespace Driver, slotting in the DECADE and EX-AID Ridewatches. ARMOR TIME! wwwwOW! Decade, Decade! o/` DE-KE-I-DOOO! o/` The pink, blocky DecadeArmor materializes over his body, the barcode-baldric over his chest quickly scrolling: MIGHTY BROTHERS XX --before the armor splits into two mirrored duplicates, a Player 1 Zi-O and a Player 2 Zi-O. Player 1 Zi-O gives M.O.M. and Sal a lift, easily carrying both agents thanks to his superhuman strength. Player 2 Zi-O meanwhile, picks up Chewie. All agents, in the final stretch, are 'treated' to a high octane platforming segment, where each Zi-O bounces off of walls, the lips of collapsing human structures, and falling boulders alike, heralded by archetypical handheld video game bleeps and bloops, until they're all safe on the other side.
Angela	Sal seems more bemused than troubled at the idea of having villainous traits--perhaps she is a villain, perhaps this is the first time someone has kind of shown interest in her beliefs and attitudes both from Satori AND Haru. A mix of both. Either way, her job here isn't to save this world it's to support Raziel. Anything else, Sal firmly believes, is above her pay grade. Chewie, on the other hand, cooked human flesh for a living. M.O.M might be the most prosocial of the three even if he stops laughing as Raziel starts fading. "Ah. That is not good yes, Ha ha ha?" ''Don't matter in the slightest. You will wither and die, and nobody will remember you even existed.'' M.O.M is quiet for a moment and then, without laughing at all, admits, "Yeah, probably. That's normal isn't it?" But even this is absolutely true for where he's from and what he expects, that doesn't mean he's exactly happy to hear about it. The path starts to crumble. Chewie, Sal, and M.O.M are a little slow to react (perhaps they should have listened to at least this part of paying attention to their surroundings) thuogh some of this is that they're just carrying more gear. And even though htey don't really ''matter'' exactly, Player 1 Zi-O and Player 2 Zi-O heft up the Agents before they can be crushed by walks and speed them through before they're trapped or slaughtered. They pant for breath on the other side. "Thanks, man." M.O.M manages. "Haha..."
Raziel	Raziel, as unable to deal with the physical realm as he is can at least hear Trudy. He nods and will follow her toward the exit. Haru goes up, eventually, he'll reach the surface if that is his goal, and pop out to where the Pillars stand. The structures do reach all of the way down to the bottom and seem to go indefinitely into the sky itself. People escaping causes a slow-acting Elder god to scream a single word at them as they break through before he can trap them. "NO!" The other exit collapses, and from the sound of things the room itself seems to be having a cave-in. This direction will eventually take people to the surface again, leading them into an old cave that deposits them in a swamp. The swamp itself is dark, with creatures both natural and unnatural hanging out in its darkened sky. Raziel himself stands there, still phased out with reality and only visible to Trudy, though he still remains readable to Satori. Despite everything, he's appreciative of the support shown by everyone... even if his current state is not the best.
Hellwarming Trio	Even after making their escape, the three yokai continue floating around while looking down at the collapsed structure. Utsuho and Satori wobble about in midair unsteadily as they regain their balance after the fact, but Rin seems to have adjusted well enough already. Satori's a little less keen on loitering near Haru, though, as she appears to be somewhat distracted after what was said earlier regarding villainy. "Everyone alright after that? Nobody missin'?" "Raziel's missing. Kind of? Uh. We didn't bring him." "Not to worry. He's still with us, if a little less solid." "Oh. That could make it harder to talk with him, yeah?" "No." "No." It takes Utsuho a while to figure out, but figure it out she does, and she leaves that matter to her smarter companions while joining Sougo and checking out the mirrored armor. "Just how many of these suits do you have in there...?" Rin and Satori, meanwhile, loiter near Trudy. Being used to talking with spirits and animals certainly has its perks, after all, even if they can't necessarily see Raziel at this point. "So... Does this mean we'll need to get ya a new body?" "I think... Assume he'd rather have his own back." "Well, what if it's a cooler one? A transforming one like Mister Sougo's suit or something?" "We'll trust in your judgment, Sir Raziel. Do we have any other leads we can pursue now?"
Timespace Riders	"No problem, M.O.M.," both Zi-Os say in unison, before they each remove their Ridewatches. One disappears in a flash of pink light, while the other goes back to being Sougo. "But I had some help, you know." Sougo glances towards Haru. "Now... do me a favor, for the one I did you, huh? Don't believe what the Elder God said about you. And, more importantly, don't die. I'll be upset with you," he jokes, with an impish smile. The Demon King will remember him, even if no one else will. Even if he can't make the future where he's a good king, Sougo Tokiwa makes a promise to himself that he'll remember--that Mind Over Matter lived at such a time, in such a way, and that they were fortunate enough to cross paths, a few times. Taking a look around, Sougo wipes the sweat from his brow and utters a 'phew...' "A lot," Sougo grins, in response to Utsuho."'All of them,' one day. I'm glad you guys can see Raziel... that was a pretty awful thing the Elder God did." "He was hoping we'd head back to the Keep--that Raziel would kill Kain. I don't really feel like doing that, because I don't think it actually helps Raziel at all. Plus..." He frowns, and gestures behind him at the collapsed tunnel. Haru could probably help everyone navigate that, maybe--but somehow, Sougo doubts the not-a-rider would want to. "So... if Raziel doesn't have any ideas, I think we should press on, and see if we can reach maybe a... town, or settlement or something? Someplace we can take a breather, and work out how to get that guy out of here."
Hamada Haru	Outside, Hamada Haru has settled back into a fairly neutral, if guarded posture. He doesn't put his transteam gun away this time. When he's glanced towards, he says, "I can break down the obstructions if you want. I doubt that place will ever be quite structurally sound again without deliberate reinforcement." Which he could also do, as he's demonstrated previously by simply instantly fabricating structures, but unless he's prompted in specific he probably won't.
Trudy Grimm	Emerging out into the swamp, Trudy brings up her hands and wafts air into her face with a deep inhale, "Fresh air..!" For a given value of fresh. Then again, she's said a few times that she lives on 'the moors', so swamps are not terribly alien. Under the sunlight, and with the rumbling and thrashing of the Hub of the Wheel behind them, she takes stock. It looks like, with Zi-O and Dynamic Era's help, everyone has made it outside more-or-less intact. She nods once to the Demon King, his Double, and the L-Corp agents accompanying them, "Everyone alright?" Her eyes shift towards the three youkai next, "Nothing broken? Just one that got a little..." Her gaze next settles on Raziel, though she's the only one who can see him, "Evaporated." She produces the Grimoire, her shadow expanding around her feet. From the tome she pulls forth Mannaz, the rune of Man clutched in her fingertips. Pressing this down, her shadow fills in with interlaced circles of pale blue runic rings. As she draws her hand back up, something begins to construct itself. First with bleached white bone, then filling in 'flesh' with a matte-colored black material. The ultimate result is a humanoid figure, mostly faceless, clad similarly to what Raziel was wearing moments ago. It's not quite the same. The lack of a face is-- arguably why Trudy's so-called Cute Friends are always wearing headgear, helmets, masks, and the like. It is however unmistakably the same process. When construction completes, the figure slouches like a puppet with the strings cut. The witch gestures, "You can occupy that until you can make your own again. I don't use command runes, so you won't have to worry about any control being exerted on you-- check for yourself if you're nervous." The Grimoire is closed. As she re-fastens the buckle, Trudy adds, "Everyone who serves me does so willingly. I don't force the dead to do my bidding. I ask them for help. That's the difference between myself and my father." Zi-O suggests finding a town and Trudy immediately shifts to that subject, "Oh, yes. A tavern with a nice warm bed or six would do all of us a world of good. I think we'll be able to plan our next moves far better after a good rest."
Angela	''He's still with us, if a little less solid.'' "That's awful. How can he enjoy life's pleasures like that?" Chewie says, in a rare moment of genuine empathy that isn't just about eating-- "He can't even eat what he usually eats that way." Nevermind. ''Don't believe what the Elder God said about you'' "Ah, well--" M.O.M's cheeks redden a bit in embarrassment. "--I don't know..if I feel 'not mattering' is really a bad thing? I mean, I guess it sounds pretty 'woof!' but... Ah, nevermind, I mean--I'm sure we matter to some people, but the folks who matter in the grand scheme of things, that kinda mattering? I don't know, they don't always seem so happy, yeah? You want me to laugh for real after all." Sal frowns but has no ideas of her own. "Mm. Yeah, we keep going until the job's done. If 'making rocks fall' is the worst of it, we might yet get through this without any corpses to bring home."
Raziel	Trudy produces the faceless ghoul, constructed from nothing. Raziel walks around the creature, taking a moment to take stock of it. He considers her words, but the idea she could 'control' him wasn't on his mind to begin with. It'd be a very silly thing to mistrust someone who's gone all this time without betraying you. He pauses, though thinking of Satori's comment. He would rather his own body be returned, but he's been a ghost for far too long so that bridge had sailed. What the Elder god had done was prevent him from being able to project his own ectoplasmic force into the world. 'Etherial gasses..? I could detect them from the corpse created by Trudy. As I neared, I could feel a distinct spiritual pull, and the closer I approached the stronger that pulled intensified. In the end, it was not difficult, I projected myself into the body she had created and found myself reborn into the material world.' The body jerks, as something changes about it. The body itself seems to be morphed into the image of Raziel he had been before, the same handsome vampire he once was in life. 'It was a loathsome vessel, but with an effort of will that too could change.' "Thank you... though it seems I'm going to need to be more careful... should I lose a body it might not be as easy to regain it should we be separated..." They would have to do something about that... sooner than later. Sougo makes a suggestion, and Raziel takes a moment to look at their surroundings. After a few moments, he made a small noise and then nodded. "Yes, to the north from here, there is a small hamlet named Uschtenheim. At this time it should still be inhabited, so it is very likely they still have an inn or someplace for us to rest and plan. Though we still have to make it through this place.." Also... Raziel pauses, looking up towards some overlooking hills. On these hills ancient structure sits, falling to ruin and decay. However, on it, a figure stands. Dark green skin, with large ears. Claw-like arms, and a noble's outfit. "It appears we are being watched..." he says, but also looks to the crows around him. The moment the vampire realizes they are being watched, he crosses his arms over his chest and disappears. "Vorador. It appears we are being watched... while we should probably head to the hamlet, we might want to also speak to our stalker. Though it does not look like he is making it easy for us... so we should go to him. If anyone would know anything about my predicament, it should be the creator of the Reaver itself."