[honestly Lavi wishes Hope had a more concrete answer than that -- some confirmation, beyond 'I can help', but maybe he'd trust it less if she did. Though it's not like he trusts it now.
He only knows that they've all been spun here, and the only way out is to do something. Something they've all reached a consensus on apparently, so he gestures for the others to stay back, and for Ashlyn to cover her ears against the noise --
and hefts up the hammer in a overhead swing, smashing the weapon down across the chains.]
[ it's almost funny how easily the chains break under the weight of this hammer - shattering into a thousand red crystal pieces and scatter. Hope is released and falls to the floor on her hands and knees. she seems shocked, and then, elated. looking at her own hands, her feet, and then up at you. Free. She waves her hands and magic twists between them - a sign of things to come. ]
I'VE GOT GOOD NEWS. AND BAD NEWS. AND WORST NEWS.
The good news is you've gotten what you came for - wonderful visit, great success. Fantastic work.
Bad news - so many things will be on fire when you step outside of this room. YOU INCLUDED. That's okay, though, right? It's Hell! You expected it to be hot.
WORST NEWS RAPHAEL IS ON HIS WAY HOME AND OH BOY OH BOY HE IS SPITTING MAD. He'll have your guts for starters, and your soul for dessert. SOULS TASTE LIKE HONEYED TARTS. But you planned for this, I know you did. You have everything under control.
Don't panic. IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT YOU DON'T PANIC EVEN WHEN YOUR EYES EVAPORATE FROM THE HEAT. It's time to fly this coop. He makes mistakes when he's angry! We should make a RUN FOR THAT PORTAL AS QUICK AS WE CAN.
[ the magic is - heartening. he smiles at hope when she smiles, too - heart warmed, courage bolstered. and as she talks and. yells... ]
Oh! I've been on fire before. It'll be fine.
[ eventually this will get through to rondo that this is probably not the case but it still hasn't
in the meantime, he joins lavi at the front of the pack - his ribs hurt, and they hurt badly, but he shifts to a more ready position, axe in front of him. ready. rondo'll take the lead if they need it. fearlessly, boldly - there are people that need protecting. ]
May the Sacred Flame guide our path. [ as opposed to the hellfire. bring it on, raphael. bring it on.
only way out is through, though, it seems like. mathis glances at the others with his now-singular eye, realizing he's... the only one who isn't hurt.
uh oh.
OKAY. WELL. they will probably need the axe and hammer at the ready for sure, so he gestures for ashlyn to climb on again. hopefully it will go better this time. you surely will not regret being carried by a guy freshly lacking in depth perception. (maybe help him there please.)
if she does, then he'll just kind of struggle to find a way to hold the staff but probably this means they're both holding it.]
okay. she knows she's kind of a liability here with how injured she is, but she is also thinking. probably don't make a guy who is freshly missing an eye carry you and trip over his own feet when it sounds like they need to be fast. she's not taking two of them down with her. ]
Not this time.
[ besides, if they don't make it through that portal in time and this raphael character shows up, she thinks she'll be more helpful on her feet with a knife in her hand to slow him down than as deadweight on mathis' back. maybe. ]
[first the mirror-self and now FIRE, AGAIN. Lavi has also been on fire before, but the idea of being lit on fire a second time isn't that comforting, actually. he just swears under his breath, because it's either that or wait here for ka-ren peeler to turn them all into furniture, and everything else Hope said Raphael will also do,]
okay, well, anyone who is injured - Hope is actually a cleric, so she is going to cast MASS HEAL before we all head out. You are free to take as much healing or not healing as you want for this final portion. Maybe you were stuck just a foot out of range or something when she cast it if you don't want it.
but okay lets fucking go lesbians lets go. as they open the doors back to the hallway, true to Hope's word everything is on fucking fire. It's scorching hot, hot enough to make you waver - like the blast of heat from opening a stove but with no relief once it begins. You can see as you look the way you came from, the debtors, the ones in the shapes of your friends, that were once idling about listless and mad are now in a panic, clawing at their own skin as it begins to split and turn into broiling flames just beneath, screaming in agony as their features turn to unrecognizable ash.
if you can each roll a d20 to determine how well you manage to make your break for it ... ! ]
and then apparently trip and fall flat on your faces. well, rondo, as a matter of fact fire DOES burn. as you're all running, the debtors begin to ... transform. bursting from their skin and muscles and sinew into shrieking hellbeasts, all fire and brimstone and rage. they swipe with terrible claws and one catches rondo right as he runs in first - the thing that used to be aerith grabs him in her jaws and shakes, fire licking his skin and hair and-- everything goes black. You hear a voice in your head - echoing laughter. And then you feel as if your body is yanked away.
ashlyn as you run (which is not very well because of your injuries), you're suddenly caught on the arm by a hand. the debtor version of karlach, grabs her and pulls yanking her off her feet and close to her chest. the roaring fire behind her heart is louder than ever, and she seems about to open her mouth to speak when in an instant, everything rages into fire. consuming her, consuming you, nothing but ash. Everything goes black. You hear a voice in your head - echoing laughter. And then you feel as if your body is yanked away. ]
no no no no no I TOLD THEM NOT TO PANIC!
[ Mathis and Lavi, you watch as both Rondo and Ashlyn immediately die upon starting your run for freedom. it's not as if Mathis rolled very well - the blasts of fire and heat sending him nearby stumbling to the ground, but he's able to stay up.
you survive - barely - but it's just you, lavi and hope, running for the room of the portal, scrambling to stay on your feet and stay alive in spite of the heat. every breath is hard to draw and you feel it crackling the inside of your lungs. You burst into the portal room and see ... nothing, between you and it.
You can make a break for it if you want.
rondo, ashlyn. you're dead. please hold until we know if lavi and mathis are gonna leave you to your fate. ]
[he's only standing with the help of his staff, probably-- it's hot enough that he doesn't know if he's even crying, seeing this happen, the tears would dry before they even fell.
just them, and hope, and the portal room, and safety ahead of them. but.
none of them would think about leaving him behind. not one of them. they all refused; so does he, unless lavi picks him up and hauls him there because he really probably could.]
Lavi-- Lavi, we can't, th-they...
[they'll... they'll be back, right? they've come back when they died in here.]
[Lavi is doing pretty great! It feels like he's being baked alive by the heat and flame, and he's pretty sure his clothes are catching on fire, like his boots definitely feel like they're melting --
but he's still alive, so he shouts back at Hope, even as he watches both Rondo and Ashlyn light up into flames,]
Get Rondo! Mathis -- help her!
[or don't? i do not control the hope or mathis.
Lavi turns back to where Karlach and Ashlyn are on fire, burning, burning, racing towards them with his hammer aloft, and hoping to god that ashlyn's body will somehow emerge from the flames, even though everyone is on FIRE and CRISPIFIED]
[ too late to save them, Lavi. The window of opportunity - the time for hope has closed. there's a sound of a great bell, and the portal rushes closed and heat in the air somehow feels hotter still.
from a tear in space, a man steps through, and with a wave of his hand, slams the door shut in front of lavi. he'll feel himself be pulled across the floor and then rooted to the spot. he can move, just not his feet. Mathis will feel the same, suddenly ground to the spot where he stands, choking on air. Hope has not been bound in such a way, but she seems stuck to her spot all the same. too afraid to move. ]
I'm afraid I don't know where you all think you are heading so quickly. Hope, I certainly hope you aren't doing what I think you are doing.
[ the hand moves to snap his fingers, and beside him now hang two figures in the air. rondo and ashlyn, you feel yourself wake up again, as injured as before but alive so very alive or at least-- part of you. your soul remains intact. but you are stuck in this hold, only able to move your eyes and your mouth for the moment. Raphael looks over at all of you, pitiful, sad things. ]
Now, I rather think we should negotiate like adults.
[ the temperature in the air turns down, actually. hot, but breathable again. the worst of it fades away. ]
[ oh. well. this is unfortunate. this is really just too familiar. unable to move, unable do anything. bound by a devil in the depths of hell. rondo comes back to himself with a choked off gasp for air. were it not for the fire from a hellfiend (and how shameful that is, to be so easily defeated by something he's fought a thousand time), he'd still be in relatively good condition. he's trying to struggle, at first, trying to do anything and everything to break free, and when that doesn't work, well...
... the second, the second, his mouth is working again, rondo's - ] Don't - just leave them alone!!
[ as if he has any ground to stand on. he does not. literally! ] Lavi, Mathis, just go!
[you stopped him from doing this exact thing! shut up rondo! also hey did all that fire like crisp us up and stuff. just wondering.
he's trembling a little where he stands, shaky with the adrenaline of all this and also just-- fear, just regular fear, faced with someone clearly stronger than they are. this isn't a case where they can fight.
mathis was a recluse, but he was still supposed to be a family heir. given the memories of one. so he's clutching on to the staff like a lifeline to try to steady himself, and taking in a breath.]
I-if you'd prefer to negotiate like adults, then... I'd like to request that you at least let them stand, please.
[can we hold this conversation without two of our friends dangling in the air? thank you.]
[ pain is getting old. and that was her first time dying here so she's sort of reeling at first, dizzy and unable to focus clearly. she blinks it off as best she can and the disorientation fades a little, but the pain doesn't.
she doesn't say anything because she doesn't think there's anything she can say that will change things but. she had those folded spell scrolls tucked in her belt. did those get burned up? can she read them from how she's being held?
probably not but that's what she's trying to do, desperate for some way to make herself useful. ]
[Lavi grits his teeth as he's dragged, at the realization that he can't move his legs at all. his hand holds onto the hammer, at least he still has this -- however little it is,
god, everywhere hurts, but he manages a smile anyway,]
So you're the big guy, huh? We've heard a lot about you.
That’s right, I’m Raphael. Welcome to my House of Hope … or I suppose you are intent on leaving soon, aren’t you?
[ Raphael watches you all yell at each about self-sacrifice quietly, waiting until calmness has returned. And then gestures with a hand. Rondo and Ashlyn lower until their feet are on the floor - still held, but as requested, not hanging in the air. see? politeness gets you everywhere. Ashlyn does still have her spell scrolls but she can’t turn her head to read off of them from this angle. she is facing forward. ]
Now now. I’ve no interest in keeping you. As it stands, it seems your souls are already committed to another cause, are they not? You cannot trade something you do not have ownership of. Be reasonable.
You’ve seen this all before, haven’t you? Just last week, four of your number stumbled into a little traipse through imagination, torn to shreds both physically and mentally. I can see it already - you falling through some portal and splashing down hands and knees into some muddy waters while every onlooker rushes to see what all the fuss is about. `Where did you go?` `What happened? `Are you alright?`
We’ve all done this before. At least, some of us.
You know that whatever that is - [ he gestures at Hope, who takes a step backwards.] Is nothing more than a figment that won’t live on any longer than this foray will. As soon as it ends, so does she. You aren’t rescuing anything, anyone. You are soothing yourselves, assuring yourselves of your morality. Acting out a play on the stage for our benefit. You won’t be helping her.
What will be a benefit is what you can receive from this. Items, power, information. Things that can used. A prize. Everyone gets one.
My trade off is this: if you try to leave with her, I will ensure you receive nothing should you exit this place. No items. No little notes or tidbits or clues. But you will have … Hope. Whatever that means to you.
Or you can return her to me, and I will make sure you see your reward. And I’m perfectly content to keep your secret. You can tell everyone back home whatever you like about your choices here - they will remain between you and me. It makes no difference, does it? A lie can run around the world before the truth has managed to tie its shoelaces.
You are going to return shortly to whence you came, to your stinking little cult games in the middle of a filthy swamp.
So you have a choice.
You can have Hope - that intangible, untouchable thing that will whittle you down to the core and leave you hollow inside - and return empty handed with nothing but the oh-so-touching feeling of the moral superiority.
Or a prize. Something you can hold on to. Something you can use to help yourselves, your friends - your real friends - escape fates worse than these so called nightmares you’ve laid witness to here.
But you won’t be leaving with both.
[ a contract hangs in the air beside him, being magically penned as this continues. bound in blood. it’s one or the other.
temptation. desire. it's the same as that stupid room in the swamp. a cabinet full of people's widest dreams - all at what cost? back in the village, the cost is a human life. just one, one little human life, to grant your wildest dreams.
and then there's the cult itself. serving some dark god, hoping to bring it to life at the cost of everyone in the village for it. for what? there's ceraphina, desperate for a chance to wreak vengeance upon the world for what they did to her grandfather, twisted into darkness by the ring of dohter the charitable, so desperate for its power that she threw her hands into the darkness of the gods. and... sazantos. who wanted to burn it all down, who wants the entire world torn asunder because of all of the cruelties and wickedness he's seen. the person rondo loves more than anything in the world, ready to sacrifice the entire world to try and remake it in the way he thinks is right.
(You should join us, Rondo. The dark flame awaits you.)
and now this. this man offers information. prizes. every little temptation. you can use this to help your friends. but nothing - nothing in this world comes without a cost. nothing is that easy.
the duty of the flameguard is to walk the path of the sacred flame. to follow the guiding beat of your heart. fire-burnt and still alive, rondo regards the temptation of choice. the easy road. it was sazantos, after all, who taught him that the blue flame would light the way.
and for him, the choice is no choice at all. with every conviction in his heart, he looks at the contract, and he looks at raphael, instead. ]
I promised that I'd not forsake Hope. [ and what kind of flameguard would? rondo turned down sazantos when he turned to the accursed flame. and he'll turn down raphael, too. ] I do not turn back upon my promises.
If it is the thing that kills me, then it's the thing that will keep me alive, too.
[ the cost of one little life is far too much in the village. and the cost of hope is priceless. ]
[well he does know what answer he leans towards but also]
Um, if she ends when this does, then... why does it matter to you whether we try to leave with her...? Don't you end, too?
[they did say they would help and he would not like to just give her back to a demon, lucas would be so fucking disappointed in him forever--
but if what happened last week was real enough to know about, and this is real enough for them to be offered something out of it, real enough to harm and help, then it's... probably real enough for what they decide on to matter, right? at least a little?]
I don't know what you would actually be... rewarding us for, in that case...
If this place is all illusions then what's the point in helping her?
[ illusions maybe isn't the right word because she doesn't doubt they're going to be all fucked up when they get back. but... yeah. she doesn't doubt that this ends and they go back to the village.
and maybe if they hadn't gotten all fucked up the whole time she was here should try and reign in her frustration and anger and try to do the altruistic thing. but why? if she doesn't see this as real, why? if this has hurt everyone so much, then why? ]
We shouldn't turn down anything that could tangibly help us.
[He knows which choice would sound best on paper. What choice so many others would make. He'd made it earlier, breaking the chains binding Hope, instead of running off with the rest -- and what did that get them? Captured at the last second, Ashlyn and Rondo turning into ash, and now this -- an opportunity that's not an opportunity at all. There's no proof that Raphael will hold up his end of the bargain, no matter what they choose. What's stopping him from simply plucking Hope back? From giving them false information? This is the Millennium Earl extending a hand, a contract bound in magic and something else Lavi can't hope to understand.
He listens to Rondo's choice, Mathis's question, Ashlyn's decision. He considers waiting for Raphael to answer Mathis, to dither a little as "Lavi" before choosing to save Hope, because he's a good guy who wants to do the right thing. a little foolish, but well-meaning at least.
but his heart -- the part he tries not to listen to but always, always prevails anyway -- his heart wants something else.]
We stole the hammer and broke the chains. [sorry] We've helped enough already.
[ two to one so far. the names are inscribed on the contract as their answer is uttered: rondo on one side, lavi and ashlyn on the other. ]
Does it matter, Mathis? You are dithering instead of considering the paths laid out in front of you. I think you will simply have to decide for yourself what you believe or choose not to believe about the offer.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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He only knows that they've all been spun here, and the only way out is to do something. Something they've all reached a consensus on apparently, so he gestures for the others to stay back, and for Ashlyn to cover her ears against the noise --
and hefts up the hammer in a overhead swing, smashing the weapon down across the chains.]
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I'VE GOT GOOD NEWS. AND BAD NEWS. AND WORST NEWS.
The good news is you've gotten what you came for - wonderful visit, great success. Fantastic work.
Bad news - so many things will be on fire when you step outside of this room. YOU INCLUDED. That's okay, though, right? It's Hell! You expected it to be hot.
WORST NEWS RAPHAEL IS ON HIS WAY HOME AND OH BOY OH BOY HE IS SPITTING MAD. He'll have your guts for starters, and your soul for dessert. SOULS TASTE LIKE HONEYED TARTS. But you planned for this, I know you did. You have everything under control.
Don't panic. IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT YOU DON'T PANIC EVEN WHEN YOUR EYES EVAPORATE FROM THE HEAT. It's time to fly this coop. He makes mistakes when he's angry! We should make a RUN FOR THAT PORTAL AS QUICK AS WE CAN.
[ are you ready kids. ]
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Oh! I've been on fire before. It'll be fine.
[ eventually this will get through to rondo that this is probably not the case but it still hasn't
in the meantime, he joins lavi at the front of the pack - his ribs hurt, and they hurt badly, but he shifts to a more ready position, axe in front of him. ready. rondo'll take the lead if they need it. fearlessly, boldly - there are people that need protecting. ]
May the Sacred Flame guide our path. [ as opposed to the hellfire. bring it on, raphael. bring it on.
he's ready to take off! ]
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[no, hope, they did not prepare for that!!
only way out is through, though, it seems like. mathis glances at the others with his now-singular eye, realizing he's... the only one who isn't hurt.
uh oh.
OKAY. WELL. they will probably need the axe and hammer at the ready for sure, so he gestures for ashlyn to climb on again. hopefully it will go better this time. you surely will not regret being carried by a guy freshly lacking in depth perception. (maybe help him there please.)
if she does, then he'll just kind of struggle to find a way to hold the staff but probably this means they're both holding it.]
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okay. she knows she's kind of a liability here with how injured she is, but she is also thinking. probably don't make a guy who is freshly missing an eye carry you and trip over his own feet when it sounds like they need to be fast. she's not taking two of them down with her. ]
Not this time.
[ besides, if they don't make it through that portal in time and this raphael character shows up, she thinks she'll be more helpful on her feet with a knife in her hand to slow him down than as deadweight on mathis' back. maybe. ]
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Let's go!
[THEY'RE OUTTIE!!!]
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okay, well, anyone who is injured - Hope is actually a cleric, so she is going to cast MASS HEAL before we all head out. You are free to take as much healing or not healing as you want for this final portion. Maybe you were stuck just a foot out of range or something when she cast it if you don't want it.
but okay lets fucking go lesbians lets go. as they open the doors back to the hallway, true to Hope's word everything is on fucking fire. It's scorching hot, hot enough to make you waver - like the blast of heat from opening a stove but with no relief once it begins. You can see as you look the way you came from, the debtors, the ones in the shapes of your friends, that were once idling about listless and mad are now in a panic, clawing at their own skin as it begins to split and turn into broiling flames just beneath, screaming in agony as their features turn to unrecognizable ash.
if you can each roll a d20 to determine how well you manage to make your break for it ... ! ]
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THIS FIRE HURTS ME
(i rolled a 1) ]
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but i've done so badly in splatoon today beautiful girls will never look at me]
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so ash gets healed up and she's ready to run, then is iMMEDIATELY completely frozen in place by how loud all these on-fire people are screaming. ]
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and then apparently trip and fall flat on your faces. well, rondo, as a matter of fact fire DOES burn. as you're all running, the debtors begin to ... transform. bursting from their skin and muscles and sinew into shrieking hellbeasts, all fire and brimstone and rage. they swipe with terrible claws and one catches rondo right as he runs in first - the thing that used to be aerith grabs him in her jaws and shakes, fire licking his skin and hair and-- everything goes black. You hear a voice in your head - echoing laughter. And then you feel as if your body is yanked away.
ashlyn as you run (which is not very well because of your injuries), you're suddenly caught on the arm by a hand. the debtor version of karlach, grabs her and pulls yanking her off her feet and close to her chest. the roaring fire behind her heart is louder than ever, and she seems about to open her mouth to speak when in an instant, everything rages into fire. consuming her, consuming you, nothing but ash. Everything goes black. You hear a voice in your head - echoing laughter. And then you feel as if your body is yanked away. ]
no no no no no I TOLD THEM NOT TO PANIC!
[ Mathis and Lavi, you watch as both Rondo and Ashlyn immediately die upon starting your run for freedom. it's not as if Mathis rolled very well - the blasts of fire and heat sending him nearby stumbling to the ground, but he's able to stay up.
you survive - barely - but it's just you, lavi and hope, running for the room of the portal, scrambling to stay on your feet and stay alive in spite of the heat. every breath is hard to draw and you feel it crackling the inside of your lungs. You burst into the portal room and see ... nothing, between you and it.
You can make a break for it if you want.
rondo, ashlyn. you're dead. please hold until we know if lavi and mathis are gonna leave you to your fate. ]
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[he's only standing with the help of his staff, probably-- it's hot enough that he doesn't know if he's even crying, seeing this happen, the tears would dry before they even fell.
just them, and hope, and the portal room, and safety ahead of them. but.
none of them would think about leaving him behind. not one of them. they all refused; so does he, unless lavi picks him up and hauls him there because he really probably could.]
Lavi-- Lavi, we can't, th-they...
[they'll... they'll be back, right? they've come back when they died in here.]
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but he's still alive, so he shouts back at Hope, even as he watches both Rondo and Ashlyn light up into flames,]
Get Rondo! Mathis -- help her!
[or don't? i do not control the hope or mathis.
Lavi turns back to where Karlach and Ashlyn are on fire, burning, burning, racing towards them with his hammer aloft, and hoping to god that ashlyn's body will somehow emerge from the flames, even though everyone is on FIRE and CRISPIFIED]
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from a tear in space, a man steps through, and with a wave of his hand, slams the door shut in front of lavi. he'll feel himself be pulled across the floor and then rooted to the spot. he can move, just not his feet. Mathis will feel the same, suddenly ground to the spot where he stands, choking on air. Hope has not been bound in such a way, but she seems stuck to her spot all the same. too afraid to move. ]
I'm afraid I don't know where you all think you are heading so quickly. Hope, I certainly hope you aren't doing what I think you are doing.
[ the hand moves to snap his fingers, and beside him now hang two figures in the air. rondo and ashlyn, you feel yourself wake up again, as injured as before but alive so very alive or at least-- part of you. your soul remains intact. but you are stuck in this hold, only able to move your eyes and your mouth for the moment. Raphael looks over at all of you, pitiful, sad things. ]
Now, I rather think we should negotiate like adults.
[ the temperature in the air turns down, actually. hot, but breathable again. the worst of it fades away. ]
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... the second, the second, his mouth is working again, rondo's - ] Don't - just leave them alone!!
[ as if he has any ground to stand on. he does not. literally! ] Lavi, Mathis, just go!
[ the portal has already closed, ]
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he's trembling a little where he stands, shaky with the adrenaline of all this and also just-- fear, just regular fear, faced with someone clearly stronger than they are. this isn't a case where they can fight.
mathis was a recluse, but he was still supposed to be a family heir. given the memories of one. so he's clutching on to the staff like a lifeline to try to steady himself, and taking in a breath.]
I-if you'd prefer to negotiate like adults, then... I'd like to request that you at least let them stand, please.
[can we hold this conversation without two of our friends dangling in the air? thank you.]
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she doesn't say anything because she doesn't think there's anything she can say that will change things but. she had those folded spell scrolls tucked in her belt. did those get burned up? can she read them from how she's being held?
probably not but that's what she's trying to do, desperate for some way to make herself useful. ]
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god, everywhere hurts, but he manages a smile anyway,]
So you're the big guy, huh? We've heard a lot about you.
[three things, in fact.]
Nice to finally put a face to the name.
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[ Raphael watches you all yell at each about self-sacrifice quietly, waiting until calmness has returned. And then gestures with a hand. Rondo and Ashlyn lower until their feet are on the floor - still held, but as requested, not hanging in the air. see? politeness gets you everywhere. Ashlyn does still have her spell scrolls but she can’t turn her head to read off of them from this angle. she is facing forward. ]
Now now. I’ve no interest in keeping you. As it stands, it seems your souls are already committed to another cause, are they not? You cannot trade something you do not have ownership of. Be reasonable.
You’ve seen this all before, haven’t you? Just last week, four of your number stumbled into a little traipse through imagination, torn to shreds both physically and mentally. I can see it already - you falling through some portal and splashing down hands and knees into some muddy waters while every onlooker rushes to see what all the fuss is about. `Where did you go?` `What happened? `Are you alright?`
We’ve all done this before. At least, some of us.
You know that whatever that is - [ he gestures at Hope, who takes a step backwards.] Is nothing more than a figment that won’t live on any longer than this foray will. As soon as it ends, so does she. You aren’t rescuing anything, anyone. You are soothing yourselves, assuring yourselves of your morality. Acting out a play on the stage for our benefit. You won’t be helping her.
What will be a benefit is what you can receive from this. Items, power, information. Things that can used. A prize. Everyone gets one.
My trade off is this: if you try to leave with her, I will ensure you receive nothing should you exit this place. No items. No little notes or tidbits or clues. But you will have … Hope. Whatever that means to you.
Or you can return her to me, and I will make sure you see your reward. And I’m perfectly content to keep your secret. You can tell everyone back home whatever you like about your choices here - they will remain between you and me. It makes no difference, does it? A lie can run around the world before the truth has managed to tie its shoelaces.
You are going to return shortly to whence you came, to your stinking little cult games in the middle of a filthy swamp.
So you have a choice.
You can have Hope - that intangible, untouchable thing that will whittle you down to the core and leave you hollow inside - and return empty handed with nothing but the oh-so-touching feeling of the moral superiority.
Or a prize. Something you can hold on to. Something you can use to help yourselves, your friends - your real friends - escape fates worse than these so called nightmares you’ve laid witness to here.
But you won’t be leaving with both.
[ a contract hangs in the air beside him, being magically penned as this continues. bound in blood. it’s one or the other.
choose. ]
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temptation. desire. it's the same as that stupid room in the swamp. a cabinet full of people's widest dreams - all at what cost? back in the village, the cost is a human life. just one, one little human life, to grant your wildest dreams.
and then there's the cult itself. serving some dark god, hoping to bring it to life at the cost of everyone in the village for it. for what? there's ceraphina, desperate for a chance to wreak vengeance upon the world for what they did to her grandfather, twisted into darkness by the ring of dohter the charitable, so desperate for its power that she threw her hands into the darkness of the gods. and... sazantos. who wanted to burn it all down, who wants the entire world torn asunder because of all of the cruelties and wickedness he's seen. the person rondo loves more than anything in the world, ready to sacrifice the entire world to try and remake it in the way he thinks is right.
(You should join us, Rondo. The dark flame awaits you.)
and now this. this man offers information. prizes. every little temptation. you can use this to help your friends. but nothing - nothing in this world comes without a cost. nothing is that easy.
the duty of the flameguard is to walk the path of the sacred flame. to follow the guiding beat of your heart. fire-burnt and still alive, rondo regards the temptation of choice. the easy road. it was sazantos, after all, who taught him that the blue flame would light the way.
and for him, the choice is no choice at all. with every conviction in his heart, he looks at the contract, and he looks at raphael, instead. ]
I promised that I'd not forsake Hope. [ and what kind of flameguard would? rondo turned down sazantos when he turned to the accursed flame. and he'll turn down raphael, too. ] I do not turn back upon my promises.
If it is the thing that kills me, then it's the thing that will keep me alive, too.
[ the cost of one little life is far too much in the village. and the cost of hope is priceless. ]
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Um, if she ends when this does, then... why does it matter to you whether we try to leave with her...? Don't you end, too?
[they did say they would help and he would not like to just give her back to a demon, lucas would be so fucking disappointed in him forever--
but if what happened last week was real enough to know about, and this is real enough for them to be offered something out of it, real enough to harm and help, then it's... probably real enough for what they decide on to matter, right? at least a little?]
I don't know what you would actually be... rewarding us for, in that case...
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[ illusions maybe isn't the right word because she doesn't doubt they're going to be all fucked up when they get back. but... yeah. she doesn't doubt that this ends and they go back to the village.
and maybe if they hadn't gotten all fucked up the whole time she was here should try and reign in her frustration and anger and try to do the altruistic thing. but why? if she doesn't see this as real, why? if this has hurt everyone so much, then why? ]
We shouldn't turn down anything that could tangibly help us.
[ sorry rondo. she's team forsake hope. ]
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He listens to Rondo's choice, Mathis's question, Ashlyn's decision. He considers waiting for Raphael to answer Mathis, to dither a little as "Lavi" before choosing to save Hope, because he's a good guy who wants to do the right thing. a little foolish, but well-meaning at least.
but his heart -- the part he tries not to listen to but always, always prevails anyway -- his heart wants something else.]
We stole the hammer and broke the chains. [sorry] We've helped enough already.
I choose the prize.
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Does it matter, Mathis? You are dithering instead of considering the paths laid out in front of you. I think you will simply have to decide for yourself what you believe or choose not to believe about the offer.
[ mathis: your choice? ]
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FINAL BOSS: RAPHAEL
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