Once a grand cathedral dedicated to the Holy Triumvirate, all that remains now are ruins ever since the religion was rejected strongly in 1823. While the religion is back in favor, the cathedral was never restored. (+3 Defense, +2 Offense)

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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/05/2017 6:28 AM

There was already enough strangeness to contend with. More than enough. Even the palanquin glowed, though now that he could see better, it didn't glow quite so strongly as its rider.

It occurred to him now that Neo had said 'friends'. A glance over at Jackdaw confirmed that the demon had been similarly afflicted. His stoic demeanor hadn't cracked, but he was down on one knee, as if prostrating himself. More likely he had not been given a choice. Aram was barely standing himself, even with Neo's support.

"I see you have sunk lower than I had thought," said Aunt Liang, fixing Neo with a cold withering glare. "Tell me, do the Sentinels know that you are consorting with demons?"
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/05/2017 6:31 AM

"A demon, dear aunt, as in singular," Neo quipped brightly. "And surely you know of Jocasta's work in turning our prisoners? She's made some truly interesting field agents, and we've had some interesting breakthroughs with them. In fact, today---"

"Get to the point, Neo. Why have you called me here? Night is almost upon us, and I've no time for your dithering." The woman tossed her head imperiously.

Neo smiled. "Yes, yes... Well, we're in a bit of a pickle, you see. This was supposed to be a training exercise--- Jackdaw here is new, you know--- yes, alright, I'll get to the point. We ran into some hiccups, and we're a little bit... stuck." His smile grew brighter. He might have glowed, come to that, if his aunt hadn't been glowing bright enough for the both of them already.
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/05/2017 6:36 AM

He didn't quite say it, but he didn't need to. His aunt sighed, wearily. "You have called me here, knowing full well that I will be out on official duty, with Inias's boon to you, so you could ask for a ride home. Am I understanding you correctly?"

"Yes indeed, Aunt Liang! My, but you're quick on the uptake. Nothing like dear ol' dad." Neo was, perhaps, laying it on a bit thick. Aram wasn't even sure that it was working. He thought he saw something like a twitch to one of the woman's eyes as Neo spoke, but he must have imagined it.

"Stop calling me that," she said sharply. "Your father is no kin of ours, and by extension, neither are you." The bitterness in her voice sent a chill down Aram's spine. Really, had this backfired after all?
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/05/2017 10:03 PM

"Noted. But, well, since you're here and all..." One had to give Neo credit for being as thick-skinned as he was. Even in the face of Liang's obvious scorn, he didn't back down. Liang seemed to realize this too, and sighed deeply, a frown pinching her brows together.

"... Very well. I will transport you and your... friends..." The look she gave Aram and Jackdaw could have turned flesh to stone. "But in exchange, you are not to call on me for any such favor again."

"Deal," said Neo quickly, as if she had just complimented him on his work, rather than informed him that she didn't want to see his face. "Alright, hop on, everyone!" With that, Neo wasted no time in boarding the palanquin. Each step he took only deepened the frown on its owner's face.
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/05/2017 10:07 PM

Aram hesitated, but at Neo's expectant look, he dragged himself over and clambered in. It was a graceless movement, but he was hardly in a state to acquit himself otherwise. Neo very nearly had to drag him in. Curiously, inside the confines of the palanquin, the pressure eased. He felt no worse than if he had been sitting at his bed, or in the mess hall.

Jackdaw followed after, wordlessly. Aram noted with some displeasure that he didn't seem to need any assistance, not that it was offered. A backward glance was all Liang afforded them to make sure they were settled, before the palanquin began to move. At first Aram couldn't see what was doing the moving, especially seated in the middle as he was.
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/07/2017 5:27 AM

But a moment later, a billow of silvery mist was visible from the open sides, and he watched with fascination as spectral figures rose from it, taking up their positions at each post. He braced himself for the lurch as they rose, but to his surprise, their movements were easy and smooth. Inhumanly so, in fact.

Neo, seated beside him, turned to Aram. "It's a little unusual, meeting under circumstances like these, but I'd like to introduce you to A--- er, to Liang, Godess of the Moon."

"Spirit," corrected the same cold voice from atop the palanquin. "I don't see why you're bothering with the introductions now, when the proper time to make them is already past."
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/07/2017 5:40 AM

"Moreover, you've forgotten my brother. Simply because An is not here... Despicable." The contempt in her voice was obvious, though there was a note of more pointed annoyance there.

Neo slapped a hand to his forehead. "Of course! Uncle An! How could I forget? Well, it's true he never had much presence..." The temperature in the palanquin abruptly dropped about ten degrees. The shiver that passed along Aram's spine wasn't just because of the chill. "... But of course, he was always my favorite," Neo amended.

"Hmm," said Liang, sounding not at all as if she believed him. Still, the cold abated to a more tolerable temperature. Aram let out a breath that he hadn't known he was holding.
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/07/2017 5:45 AM

However, as the words sunk in, Aram couldn't help but regard Neo incredulously. "The--- The moon spirit? You summoned the moon spirit to get us back to the Keep?" He kept his voice to a low hiss, though it took some effort. He wanted to shout, but given the amount of offense she had already put up with from Neo, he didn't dare.

Neo shrugged, still smiling. "Father said it was my boon to call on," he said. "Now just seemed like a good time. I'll see if he can't give me a divine steed or something, since Aunt Liang doesn't like me much anymore."

"I am not your aunt," said Liang. "And for that matter I have never liked you. An was, perhaps, given to some misguided fondness for you when you were a child, but given that you've forgotten him, I dare say that will do you little good now."
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/09/2017 12:05 AM

Aram shot Neo a querying look, but Neo shook his head ever so slightly. Now was not the time to ask about his family politics. Still, it sounded like there was a great deal of politics at hand, more than Aram had previously thought. From the way Neo carried on, Aram had always assumed that everything was well--- that Inias was a fond if somewhat distant father, and this by the necessity of his position. His son's role as a Sentinel was something he heartily approved of, and aside from the very occasional visit, there was little more to it.

He had not even bothered to think about the spirits of the moon. The legends did name them as Inias's younger siblings, but beyond one rather childish myth, there was little enough mention of them. Until now, he had only known that they fell under the Court of the Garden, rather than the Sentinels or Ebele's Sworn.
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/09/2017 12:08 AM

That they should have any relationship with Neo whatsoever hadn't really crossed his mind. Considering her attitude towards him, however, he wondered if that might be the point.

Whatever the case, the rest of the journey passed in stiff silence. Aram was too exhausted for conversation even without the frosty atmosphere; Liang was clearly in no mood for it; and Jackdaw was his usual taciturn self. Even Neo, despite the smile he still wore, seemed to be sufficiently worn out by his own efforts to make any more. The journey did not last a full ten minutes. Aram was incredulous when, seemingly a moment later, he saw them pulling up towards the lit-up outer walls of the Keep. From the cries that went up from the posted sentries, he wasn't the only one surprised by their arrival.
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 02/09/2017 12:15 AM

Liang didn't land there, however, or give them much of a chance to gape. The palanquin shot past them and into the central courtyard, where it slowed abruptly to touch down with surprising grace considering the speed it had been going at mere moments ago. Aram would have stumbled out straight away if he hadn't been wedged in the middle. As it was, he lurched out as soon as Neo gave him room enough to do so. Neo, either by some boon of his god-blood or because he was used to such methods of travel, looked no worse for wear. Damn him.

As soon as Jackdaw had vacated the palanquin, Liang shot them a last dismissive look before wordlessly taking off again. Aram watched the silver streak of the palanquin dumbly as it shot through the sky.
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby .:Random Event:. » 02/22/2017 8:59 PM

The cathedral was a spooky place, to be sure. Echoes of laughter could be heard in the distance, and there was just something about the air there that raised the hairs on the back of one's neck. Then again, maybe it was the bloodstains on the ground. They looked awfully fresh...

Suddenly, there was a soft, guttural growl. It echoed all around the room, making it seemingly impossible for anyone to pinpoint where it came from. There were stories about the monsters that lurked here; insane Mekkayena, bloodthirsty Chaos worshipers and Barghests to name a few. So whatever was lurking definitely wasn't going to be friendly.

Then suddenly, a thin black Celestial Mist, filled with glittering stars snaked along the filthy floor. It moved with a strange purpose, but it filled the thoughts of those nearby with soft, reassuring thoughts and shortly after, the growling stopped and the monster moved on.
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 03/26/2017 8:36 PM

“Well,” Neo declared, “that was... certainly something, wasn’t it? Not at all what we expected.”

“We didn’t even accomplish the objective,” said Aram dully. “We just got jerked around in that damn wasteland all day for nothing.” It might have been the nausea, but he was feeling pretty awful right then. Everything had gone wrong. The test bait had gone missing, and they hadn’t been able to find who was responsible. And the implications of it, in a place like the Saints... It hurt his head to think about.
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 03/26/2017 8:36 PM

He felt exhausted, if not altogether pulverized, and wanted nothing more than to sink down right then and there. Possibly crawl into a hole and die.

“Now now, it wasn’t that bad,” said Neo. Aram shot him a withering look, as if daring him to find the silver lining in this mess. “We’ve seen that Jack here can track like a charm! Can’t you, boy?” Neo beckoned to Jackdaw with a hand, as one might a family dog. Jackdaw eyed his hand and remained right where he was. Privately Aram agreed with him; Neo clearly had no sense of propriety regarding demons, even turned ones like Jackdaw. “In a way, that was a better test than what we could have arranged.”
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Re: Test Run [self; E] [Hunt]

Postby crow » 03/26/2017 8:37 PM

“Yeah, if he’d actually been tracking something. He could have been yanking our chain,” said Aram. It was true that being able to track anything in that mess would have been commendable, for anyone. Even Neo’s magic had trouble working there, and that was something you could do without being attuned to your surroundings. As a general rule, in places with corrupted energies, it was always easier to tune things out. In fact, one of the standard coping measures was to keep yourself grounded in your own energy, to stave off being unbalanced. Tracking necessarily forced them to abandon that, if they wanted to be successful, and there were few ways to track a demon that were purely physical. If they didn't want to be traced, nothing short of magic was going to do anything to help.
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