2023.09.08: Abyssal Death Dagger Quest Pt 1a

Abyssal Death Dagger Quest Pt 1a
Iris must descend deep into the Abyss to make a deal with a death spirit, her friends rally to help her
IC Date	September
IC Time	Afternoon
Players	Branton Stephen
Location	The Abyss/Epiphamy of Death
Prp/Tp	Happening alongside Part 1, the front of the party
Theme Song	The Shallows - Adam Hurst

Cast: Branton: Mr. Red, Stephen: Mr. Blue, Meros: Mr. Green, ST/Mercy: Mr. Black

---

xxxxxMercy's Messenger put out the call for help on an adventure. No beating around the bush about it, we're heading into the Abyss. DEEP into the Abyss. Posers need not apply, this will be a rough trip. Obviously the Mist Seekers are on the case, ready to back up the Ever Changing! We meet up at some cool, predetermined spot, ready to rock and roll. We can probably just sum up the meeting handshakes and introductions since that'll take stupid long and just jump straight into moon bridging.
xxxxxFast forward to the good stuff!
xxxxxStepping out of the moon bridge, Mercy looks both ways before signaling the others to come on out. It's a wide open plain rent by a massive chasm. The ground near the chasm is desolate and barren, giving way to hearty weeds a after about thirty feet, then grasses thirty feet further on, and so on as life and nature takes over. At the very edges of the chasm, dust and dirt seems pulled, slowly yet inexorably, over the edge. the crack in the world is extremely steep, and extremely dark, without any end in sight.
xxxxxDirectly ahead of the group is a bridge that spans the entire chasm, a spindly thing of stone that's wide enough for two people side by side. The stone sides of the bridge only reach up to one's knees, registering as more of a hazard than a safety feature. It seems impossible for it to be sturdy, there's no supports under it at all, but there it hangs, still and quiet.
xxxxxThe others - MistSeekers and Ever Changing - are gathered around alongside Branton, Stephen, and Meros. As a quick descriptor, Meros looks like a 20-something Greek man with olive skin, black curly hair and a strong nose. He's dressed like a quintessential traveler, with layered clothing, a battered backpack covered in patches from the places he's been, and boots that are worn but comfortable. He only speaks Spirit Speech, however.

xxxxxBroken Fang is new to accompanying this group (and Irsa's!) anywhere, so the Theurge is happily following everyone else's lead. At the back with Branton, he gets a chance to see more to the sides and the rear, considering his lupus form isn't THAT tall. Of course, its hard to miss the sight of the chasm no matter how many huge garou are between you and it, causing the wolf to huff >> You read about it and is still not the same thing as seeing. <<

xxxxxBranton has spirit speech as a gift so that's fine for him, he has a backpack and a belt of many pouches with all sorts of bits and bobs and vials available, with a grin he adds "And as I recall from last time, cheating by flying over to skip the bridge is a bad plan yeah?"

xxxxxMeros leans to see past someone and gives a long, low whistle. "Wow, lookit *that*!" He nods to Branton and says, "I've never tried it, but I think it might be like getting too close to a black hole. Without something solid under you, it's probably a lot easier to give in to the call of the Abyss and just dive right in." The whole crossing thing makes Meros go a little pale, he's not immune to any of it either. Letting out a breath, he puts a hand on Stephen's back and even offers a hand to Branton, unless the kinfolk wants to take safety precautions another way. "I really like new experiences but... Wow."

xxxxxBroken Fang gives Branton a light shoulder check (Well, wolf shoulder to probably Branton knee) and offers in what is probably amusement >> Please no getting sucked into Abyss. << He seems to accept that hand on his back just fine, waiting for the group to take close touching spacing before following after, swiveling those ears back to start checking the rear as they move.

xxxxxUp ahead, Mercy's getting everyone to touch each other, look at the back of someone's head, anything but looking down. "If you need to, put your hand on the shoulder or the back of the person in front of you and stare at the back of their head, or rest your snout against their wrist or flank and keep your eyes up. Do not look down at your feet. Do NOT look down into the Abyss. It wants you to look. It wants you to jump. It is one of the mouths of the Wyrm and it wants to eat you. We're going to march together." She says as people get into position. She takes the lead, and here-but-not-here people such as Branton and Stephen bring up the rear. "Think about your loved ones. Think about what you want to do tomorrow. Think about what a *nice* day it is! Think about *not* yelling into the hole!"

xxxxxMeros sighs quietly. He kinda wanted to yell into the hole with Evan. The instincts to check for echos or slap hamburger chubs transcends species and reality barriers! "Everything's going to be just fine. It's just another trip, right? Just a bridge, nothing scary about it, right?" He's saying this as much for himself as for his companions.

xxxxxBranton nods at Meros and takes the offered hand in his left "Yeah that's fair." and he focuses himself for the coming crossing, sticking to his feet on the bridge.

xxxxxThe crossing takes so, so god damned long. This is a bigass crack, and there's *no* rushing things. One little oopsie and someone's gonna go over the side, those 'guard rails' are basically just there to help people trip over the edge. It's long enough that one *needs* to think those happy thoughts, because this place, even just hanging over it, it digs at one's center of doubt and loss. But soon enough... We're across. Solid ground! HOORAY! "We've passed the test of the realm, now we descend into it. This is the path of soil. Probably the safest path here, but still very dangerous. Mind your footing, the path will try to spill you down into the Abyss. Keep your voices low and your ears open. We're unlikely to see attacks here, not until we've out distanced the light. Still, this place is crawling with Wyrm spirits, lost spirits, and rumor has it there's a Hive somewhere deep in there. If *anyone* has any problems, say so immediately."

xxxxxThe Soil Path is a narrow path of, of course, soil that leads down into the Abyss. It's only wide enough for one person at a time, and at first it's not very steep. The treachery of the path is subtle, slowly increasing it's grade until it's uncomfortably steep, sometimes pocked with wide gaps to jump or narrowing so much that one is forced to press their back against the wall and scoot sideways. Always there is the deep, depth-less black calling silently, tugging at your center of doubt. If you just fell in, all your troubles would cease...

xxxxxMeros puts his hands on his knees and just collects himself after that. Sure, he's a totem spirit, yeah he's a little shard of a Celestine and everything, but he himself just is not all powerful, he's not massive and huge! "Wow..." he says again while having a nice, deep breath. He might not actually need to do that, but he's modeled after a human enough that he does it anyways.

xxxxxBranton is made of fire and passion but even he finds the atmosphere of the place dragging. When the possibility of a hive nearby gets mentioned he asks "Deploy Tranquility? Or the Rapier? Or just chill for now?"

xxxxxBroken Fang aroofs some sort of acknowledgement to the instruction, glancing up at Branton and Meros (as if he needed to really check on Meros, but still!). When they get up to the path, the wolf takes a moment to tentatively push his front paws into the soil to check just how loose and slippery this is going to be so he can keep his balance. When the group starts moving, wolf is decidedly NOT looking down, leaving one ear laid back to hear better behind them, while the other remains swiveled forward to stay caught up just in case someone yells alarm. Attempting to be helpful to Branton's answer, he offers >> Better to have something ready and not need, yes...? <<

xxxxxMercy gives Branton a point and says, "Keep it in reach and ready to use, but don't draw it yet so that you've got both hands free. Juuust in case." when asked about the weapons. And then she's off and leading the way down. And yes, that's loose soil. You'd think no one had ever walked this path before, with how fluffy and unmarked it is, but that's definitely not the case. The pace is slow and steady, but still, accidents happen...

xxxxxBranton nods as he moves carefully and adjusts his footing to be more careful as pats his pouches in reassurance for where everything is "Oh yeah, I just wasn't sure if I should go for my silver sword or the starmetal one. When the possibility of a Hive got mentioned I wondered if that meant to go extra hard."

xxxxxBroken Fang does his very best pack walking effort - you follow exactly in the narrow footsteps of the wolves ahead of you so no one else can really tell how many of you there are. In this case, he at least has Big Irsa Wolf to be following the foot pads of, with his nose to the soil and ears still trying to keep that sonic radar going front and behind.

xxxxxWhile the back end of the party manages to avoid the soft dirt sliding them off the edge, dances over parts of the path that randomly crumble under them or become horrifyingly narrow, the front end is also picking their way down the steep trail. And then, oh shit! Evan slips and begins to windmill his arms, trying to crouch, but the path isn't having it. Into the Abyss with you! At almost the same time, Kaz catches a soft patch and the ground drops out from under him. He's hanging on by a dagger as Ashkii leaps in to save him, and Irsa dives forward to catch Evan. The really shitty part is that the back end can not possibly help. Even as Rhapsody lunges forward to bite Irsa's tail as she too begins to slide, these back three are helpless. At the very least, Jackie is in the way and any attempt to get past her would result in her or the passer going over the edge. Even Meros is like oh shit! What can I do?! But the answer is not much. It's a whole tense Cliffhanger moment up there!

xxxxxBranton could reach past with Telekinesis but it all happens so fast he doesn't get to do more than focus his concentration before its all over. Taking a deep breath he sighs "For all these trips are worth doing I gotta say this realm is...not my favorite."

xxxxxBroken Fang sees the catastrophe developing and dances a little on four paws as he glances forward with a soft whine - newp, too many pairs of legs to try to get past and not on THIS path, so instead the wolf plants his feet and prepares to have to bite someone on the butt to keep them from getting pulled in like a chain of dominoes.

xxxxx"Yeah..." Meros whispers in agreement, taking a deep, relieved breath. Crisis averted though! Irsa gets her feet under her and half a second later Evan's own feet are on solid ground, Kaz is thanking Ashkii and there's sighs of relief all over the place. "I'm vaguely reconsidering my stance on limitless travel, but..." he trails off and then grins, "On the other hand, this is exciting! In a super nerve wracking, nervous making kind of way, but still. Maybe we can go to some place more relaxing after this. I hear Tambaiya's gardens are the best place in the solar system for a good lie down."

xxxxxThe first safe(ish) solid ground is the Stepped Garden, which some of the party has actually visited before. Level upon level of beautiful terraced gardens with the Soil Path switching back and fourth down through them. Dusty, dry stream beds and empty fountains haven't watered the garden in... ever. The elegant stone beds are dust covered and aged, and the plants are all long dead, standing fragile and lifeless in the silent garden. Curiously, each one of them is unique, from a scrap of dead moss to a towering dead tree, there's only one of each. The air feels dry, the darkness oppressive, at this level it's as if the world were caught at the very last remaining light before true nightfall. Fortunately, solid ground has widened out substantially, so there's no danger of falling off the edge unless you actually *try* to fall.
xxxxxMercy is up ahead handing out some lambent flame torches, but Branton would be the guy with the fire torches. It'd be nice if there was ONE more talen torch, but Mercy only rolled 4 successes. So there's time to look around for a minute while stuff's passed out and Rhapsody gets one tied around her.

xxxxxBranton grins as the light sources are passed out and he pulls out a hunk of quartz with one end wrapped in leather like a handle "I bartered for this ages ago, and it has never mattered before. Lunaris." and it glows gently, covering the needs of this end of the line for now "I'll escalate if we need it."

xxxxxBroken Fang chuffs softly at Meros >> Almost dying gets blood rushing! <<. He does, however, watch his own steps a little closer until they finally get to the Garden. Fang cant really hang onto a torch himself save for in his mouth, so instead he's slowing down with the group to stare with fascination at the array of Dead Things in the garden >> Is like a graveyard for green things <<.

xxxxxMeros grins and points at Branton's fancy light, "Like Gandalf's!" he says. He's probably had to watch a few adventuring movies, given who he associates with. "Hey, what *is* a Golden Corral, anyway? I'm imagining a horse pen with a dining table in it. But made of gold. Which seems like a bad idea when it gets sunny out."

xxxxxMercy will assist with the torch roping, make sure it's tucked and tied in such a way that it wont blind Rhapsody or go swinging around wildly. She passes torches to Jackie, Kaz, and Ashkii. "The Abyss is where things that are lost and forgotten go. Each plant in these gardens was the very last remaining of its species when it died, they're extinct things. Don't touch, they're super fragile. Now, we're going to pass down through the terraces. At the end, that's where the real danger starts. There wont be any light except what we have with us. Keep an eye on the trail and most, MOST important, do NOT separate. Not for any reason. Even if you have a super bad urge to poop, you do *not* leave the group. ... I didn't mean for that to rhyme. There are no friendly spirits here, remember that." she says, and starts them down into the true Abyss and its inky blackness.

xxxxxBranton grins at Meros and explains as the group continues on "Its an all you can eat sort of buffet restaurant but because it has to be appealing to the most people to bring in customers it winds up being bland and depressing as hell. But if all you need is calories its a good place to pile them on. Though come to think of it there might be a thing with gluttony banes around it." As the darkness grows "I can step up the crystal's output as the darkness presses in, give a call out if you think I should and I haven't yet."

xxxxxBroken Fang glances up and shakes his head at Meros when he asks about things, Ashkii's enthusiasm for it notwithstanding >> Not heard of before. They have food? <<. There's a bit of blinking then a soft look of confusion at Branton, more like 'but then why do homids GO there', but then his attention is back on Mercy and her instructions, chuffing a soft acknowledgement to her before they start moving again, ducking his head a little under the new light sources.

xxxxx"Huh." Meros says, thinking about that while walking and looking around them at the twilight shrouded dead garden, "That sounds about right, yeah. The Eater of Souls does like to aim at all forms of consumption to get people on its path, I bet it would have that very sort of minion around those sorts of places. He can only shrug at the confused look from the Wendigo, "I don't eat food, I have no idea."

xxxxxThe path is pretty safe at the gardens, you'd need to go out of your way to fall off, but it is of course still a possibility. But as they're left behind, it returns to its old tricks for just a little ways until curiously firming up under foot. Which is great because the darkness has become thick and oppressive. From here, the path itself seems to decide it no longer needs to try and throw you into the Abyss. You're already here. You're doomed. Your torches wont save you.

xxxxxThe crystal's light only reach so far, it gives off a powerful brightness that lights up a large area once Branton kicks it up a notch, but the darkness, it seems to eat the light itself. Each step down into the Abyss results in that pool of light getting just a tiny bit smaller, and smaller, and smaller. It's not too far until the group reaches the next macabre stop along the Soil Path, first noticed as OH FUCK A MONSTER! until one realizes it's just a very large, very dead skull on a bare bones neck and body. If the terraces above were a graveyard for the fallen plant species, this is the graveyard of lost animals. Now, ghostly bones of dead creatures from ages past loom in the shadows to either side of the path, their empty eyes seeming to stare at the group, resenting their life and mobility while they are lifeless and lost forever in the darkness. Again, there is only one of each animal, presumably the very last of its kind that died.
xxxxxThe whispers that Irsa mentioned, they can be heard now. What might have been considered moments of doubt or intrusive thoughts before make themselves known as true whispers. They're so soft they can barely be heard, mere snatches of words and sounds that might bring with them terrible, nihilistic thoughts, but the soft strum of music is, for now, enough to drown them out. "Almost there, we just have to reach the forgotten gods... I think that's next."

xxxxxBranton frowns as he passes by the bones, shifting the light crystal to his left hand and drawing his silver short sword, Tranquility as he says calmly "We are not alone and I don't think they want to be friends."

xxxxxOf course, the garden of BONES is a helluvalot more fascinating to the wolf - skeletons of creatures he's never seen before send the lupus into wondering what they looked like when they were still alive. Of course, letting his mind focus on that sorta thing takes his perception off of keeping an eye for danger. Whoopsy. Maybe at least its Branton's comment that snaps him out of it with the lupus equivalent of 'huh?'

xxxxxMeros seems to agree, pushing layered sleeves up away from his hands but drawing no weapons. Of course, he's a spirit, so, you know. Probably doesn't need an actual axe or anything.

xxxxxUp ahead, some of the others have also noticed, and are looking around warily, some with a keener eye than others. "It's a trap!" Ashkii can he heard saying just as a little bone wearing creature launches itself out of the darkness to stab at him with sharp bone blades where its hands should be. Or well, covering its hands, they're wearing the bones as weapons and armor. The Shadow Lord takes the hit and stabs it, electricity coursing through the little monster. "Grandfather Thunder sends his regards!" he says like a movie badass before a flood of the little fuckers rush out from all directions. Their bony forms conveniently separate the front group from the back, just a little bit, enough that they're engaged in their own battles and cant really converge as a group yet.

xxxxxBranton grins and brings up his blade as the swarm rushes in and one of the bone creatures just...shatters. A silver sword blade and its sternum not meant to occupy the same space.

xxxxxBroken Fang growls loudly when it becomes apparent they are indeed, under attack, snarling and showing off that snapped-off canine of his. There's little time to spend helping anyone else since there are so many of the little fuckers, so instead the wolf lunges at the first one to get close, intending on biting the little blighter in half. He doesn't QUITE manage to chomp all the way through, but that's gotta hurt, bones crunching under jaws.

xxxxxMeros yelps with surprise when bony dude is coming right for him with gleeful murder in its eyes, and he whips his hands up. Black sand flies from his fingers and palms in a whirlwind of sand blasting doom. The bone armor of the creature withstands the assault okay-ish, though it's sand blasted to nubbins and broken bits in many spots, but the exposed spirit flesh that's not armored is severely damaged.

xxxxxAnd the little bastards just keep coming! The other group is fighting right near this group, separated by a couple spirits in the way. Jackie's stabbing with her spear, Kaz is lighting dudes up with his dagger, Irsa and Rhapsody are tearing mo fo's open with their teeth, and Evan is rocking the fuck out, even as one of the spirits comes up and rakes him smartly with its jabby bony bits.

xxxxxBranton grins as he dances through the enemies, their claws scoring through his poofy swashbuckler shirt but skittering off the armor underneath. Bringing the blade down he brute force chops through the collar bone and opens the rib cage like a ziptop bag, bones and bits going everywhere.

xxxxxClearly frustrated from not being able to kill the little bugger the first time, Broken Fang almost instantly growls bulkier and growls loudly, his jaws snapping down and THIS TIME, crunching bones hard enough to snap the thing in half before it gets another attempt to hurt anyone.

xxxxxMeros tries to finish the beast off with another blast of black sand but um... It doesn't work. Only a trickle of sand pours forth this time, and while it unerringly hits its target, it does basically nothing. Except maybe irritate some wounds that are already there, at best.

xxxxxThey don't scream in pain when they're wounded, and not like anyone can stand there studying their facial expressions or anything, but to be honest they don't look really bothered by it at all. It's damaging, but they're fine with it even as it weakens them. The fight is silent on their end, and neither the mad strumming of Evan nor the grunts, yelps, or calls from the others echo in the darkness. Like the light, the darkness eats the sound as well.
xxxxxThe violent little bastards aren't overwhelming by any means, but they just don't seem to stop coming. Every time one falls, another one zips out of the shadows as if to take its place. It's like there's a spawn point nearby or something.
xxxxxMercy, who has not been helping at all during this fight, has been sort of hiding in a bone shadow and furiously looking at a map, trying to get light on it without getting spotted, which is super tricky! "This way! This way!" she shouts at her embattled friends, waving them towards a path leading off of the bone yard and heading deeper into the Abyss.
xxxxxCurrently those beasts separating you from the rest of the group are dead or dying, and slightly sandy or exploded.

xxxxxBranton growls as he realizes they're just going to keep coming and when his mate calls out he /explodes/ into motion. Heading to follow her lead and knock aside foes to cover the allies coming after him.

xxxxxAt least the call came out right as Fang had finished dispatching the critter he was attacking. Just a quick glance to verify the others near him are moving as well (never leave someone behind!), and the huge wolf is turning tail to follow Mercy's lead, taking on his smaller, sleeker lupus form when it becomes apparent they are going to be back on the path again.

xxxxxMeros sticks with Branton and Stephen as they make a run for it, following the rest along a dirt track deeper into the Abyss.

xxxxxKaz touches each one as they fly past, keen on covering their escape while Mercy leads the way into the unknown. The bone monsters chase after them, but they're not the sort of creatures to work as one and employ team work. While the gang runs, they're shoving each other out of the way, leaping over each other, and thus far more susceptible to the perils of the Soil Path than the shifters are, thanks to the Gaians giving a crap about each other and running single file.
xxxxxSoon enough though, they've lost enough of their own that the survivors start thinking about their own self preservation. Not only is the trail dangerous, but how deep do THEY want to go into the Abyss? Not very, thank you. It's not safe for them either.
xxxxxThe path becomes steady under foot, but soon some ducking and scooching is required to get under a rock sticking out of the wall. Or rather, toes. Really big, carved toes belonging to some strange, carving of an eel headed man. After that, a huge carving of a tree, and then a tall bull man with a stone dagger in hand.

xxxxxBranton catches his breath but doesn't put his sword or his light away. He looks at the carvings and gives a low whistle "The Garden of Forgotten Gods. We're almost there I think."

xxxxxBroken Fang lays his ears back when they start ducking protrusions in the wall, looking up to get an eyeful of the stone reliefs of gods gone by. The lupus refrains from making any observations (you never know when a god isn't GONE, just diminished in power, right), and instead focuses on sticking to the group without tripping Meros or Branton up.

xxxxxMeros has a strange look on his face as they reach this part of the Abyss. Something mournful yet also fearful and introspective. "You know... As a god myself, sort of, this is..." He doesn't really have a word for what it is though. There probably isn't a god alive that doesn't have some dread deep in them knowing they'll end up as nothing more than a carving on a dark wall at the edge of nothing one day.

xxxxxThe group draws to a stop and clusters a bit around a crack in the wall under some other statue. Mercy regards her map and there's some tension in the air. Jackie's asking if they'll even fit, and a few people are studying a rune carved into the wall. It's half ruined, half forgotten itself, and isn't in good condition at all.

xxxxxBranton fills in as Meros trails off "A bit morbid? But yeah, with a door to the concept realm of death being here that seems rather on brand. You're not forgotten though, so you're fine."

xxxxxBroken Fang slows down when there's something to read at the crack, shuffling in place for a moment before chuffing softly, >> Suppose Death SHOULD be respectful and announce itself, yes? <<

xxxxx"Your mate likes to quote a comic book when she talks about me." Meros tells Branton, "Or well, about my larger self, that is. At the end of everything I'll be here to put the chairs on the tables, turn the lights off and lock up the solar system behind me. But then? I don't know. Maybe my combined self knows if we move on to other worlds than these, or if we continue without interruption, or fade away or... Who knows." He manages a grin for Stephen and says, "Hi, I'm Death." But he chuckles quietly and says, "Well, no, just a representation, really. I'm glad whoever discovered this place first was nice enough to put a sign post up though." And then, still single file, the group descends into the walls of the Abyss to trek a claustrophobia inducing, maze like tunnel system.

xxxxxBranton chuckles and nods at Meros "I mean fair enough. All we can do is the best we can with what's in front of us. Even speaking as someone who is a precog, the future can take care of itself."

xxxxxBroken Fang considers that and offers to the back of the group, >>If someone came back out and left that, then maybe it not quite so instantly deadly. This is, what does Daci say, 'fake news' <<. That tail lightly sways, waiting for the inevitable push forward.

xxxxx"And there is a long, long stretch of time left yet." Meros says with an agreeing nod to Branton. He follows into the tunnel fine enough, but the farther and farther the group goes, Meros starts losing his shit a little bit. He mumbles under his breath and sort of glues his hand to Broken Fang, occasionally whispering, "Sorry..." when his grip on fur gets too firm and pulls a bit. If he was a mortal being he'd be sweating and starting to have a mild anxiety attack, but as a spirit instead, he's just getting overwhelmed by the Abyss, the sheer weight of the world all around them and the darkness that infects every nook and cranny of it. The torches help, but the pools of light are wobbly and weak. For fuck's sake, why did I decide to be a traveler god!

xxxxxEventually during this maze-like trek, Mercy's walking along at the front, the lambent torches steadily shoving darkness out of the way ahead of her, until it suddenly isn't and she steps through a sheet of blackness. There's no sound, no yell, and she doesn't step back through. She was looking down at her map when it happened, she might not have even noticed.

xxxxxThe group begins to follow after Mercy into the immovable darkness.

xxxxxBranton grins at Meros as he follows behind and he says, in an attempt to be reassuring "Looks like she found the portal. Lets go, watch that first step though...its a bit of a doozy."

xxxxxBroken Fang does hesitate a bit at the sudden Mercy Not There Anymore, tilting his head to look at the others. But since Branton and Meros are closest, they get the question >> Is THIS what homid parents are talking about when they say 'if your friend lept off a bridge, would you'? << He does seem determined to follow, just with a bit of 'wtf' on that furry face of his.

---

<OOC> Mercy's Messenger says, "I wanna take a second here before I paste the next bit to tell you all that, while I enjoy making up surrealistic shit and everything, I didn't make any of this up. All of the scenery is what is actually described in Axis Mundi, in the Habitat section of the Maidens of the Styx. The drugs were seriously kicking in when they got to that part of the book."

---

xxxxx"They always are, aren't they?" Meros comments about first steps through doorways. "Someone should look into the distinct lack of stable foyers in realms." He sucks in another deep breath to steady his nerves while following this gang of suicidal weirdos into the darkness. "Parents say that? Huh, I suppose they'd be wise enough to say that... But everybody's doing it, if we didn't, we'd be left behind. And we might not be cool any more!"

xxxxxStepping into the darkness after Mercy, you realize to your horror that you've fallen into a pit or something. Falling, doooooooom! No, wait, that's weightlessness. As you look around you in the darkness, you realize there's pin points of light. Stars? And, turning your head, you spot a... a large... D4. Well it's not actually a dice, it's a planetoid. Just, rolling slowly through the darkness of space. There's a couple others waaaaaaaay out in the distance, differently shaped but planetoids none the less. Each side of the thing (that you can see) has a fucknormously huge city of some kind in the middle, though half of each is obscured by mists.
xxxxxFor anyone that's ever been to Mercy's boat in space, you probably have an idea how flight works in the Aetherial realm. Somehow, it works exactly the same way here, as if you were in umbral space. Are you in space? What the actual fuck is going on? If you HAVEN'T done this before, well shit, time for a crazy new experience.
xxxxx"WE MADE IT!" comes Mercy's shout from close by as people just fall out of nowhere and into... somewhere.

xxxxxMeros, for his part, does scream just a little bit on his way in to the realm.

xxxxxBranton is an old hand at flying in space, and with a little twinkle of power in the wing shape pressed into the ankles of his boots he takes up formation flying behind the group, making sure no one falls off or gets lost.

xxxxxBroken Fang scrambles a little once the floor sorta vanishes out from under him, leaving the wolf wildly doggy paddling for a bit with a single whine of surprise, tail flying out in all directions until he gets the hang of it. Once he stops, all four legs splayed out in space as if he was splooting on a cold floor, his eyes are wide as he listens to Mercy and tries a few tentative paddles to see about moving.

xxxxxOff to one side, Kaz is NOT having a good time at this party. His flight controls are all fucked up, he's scooting too and fro, trying REALLY hard not to throw up and making sure everyone knows he does NOT like this place! Irsa's trying to help, Mercy and Ashkii are producing pairs of gorgeous wings, and Jackie and Rhapsody are doing their best to follow the 'just think where you want to go' instructions with moderate success. This is not normal locomotion and they cant be blamed for not being immediately great at it. Meros is okay, and is at home in this Aetherial-lite environment. Weird as it is, it causes his fear and anxiety levels to drop drastically, which is *awesome*.
xxxxxAnd then there goes Kaz, puking and scooting backwards, with Irsa coming to the rescue and Ashkii giving him sound advice about being a vomit propelled Ahroun rocket. Never know, that advice could come in super handy one day!

xxxxxBranton is trying real hard to not take too much amusement from the discomfort of others but its hard, because this is no longer really dangerous and really just that funny.

xxxxxBroken Fang winces a little in sympathy as Kaz projectile vomits. He SEEMS to have this motion thing worked out, though his instinct is to keep doggy paddling as he moves even if it isn't precisely necessary. Its an instinct thing, maybe.

xxxxxIt turns out, in space, everyone can hear you puke! Meros offers out a hand to Broken Fang to help with his flight down towards the planetoid. "I'm sure my collective self has been to some Epiphamies before, but I myself haven't. This is pretty interesting, I'm curious what those Reaches Iris mentioned are liked. We need to put that down in the books as a future travel destination."

xxxxx"Assuming I haven't lead us completely astray," Mercy says while flapping along with the group, "This is a city of the dead, a huge necropolis at the center of an even huger desert. We're going to be met by the Maidens of the Styx when we get there, and you've got to be on your very best behavior. Keep your head down, don't look them in the eyes, give them absolute respect. They're... practically god tier spirits and they're very, very formal."

xxxxxThe city, as they get closer to it, is something beautiful and mad. Layers and layers of Escher worthy structures made of the civilizations of old. There's ancient Greek and Mayan, Egyptian and Babylonian parts all layered on top of each other. The physics here is, quite simply, impossible, and the angled edges of things have black and white squiggles coming off them like fractal mold. And there are people, lots and lots of people, quite a lot of them human looking, but very pale. It's not silent here, this is a city after all. It bustles with your usual city type stuff. Mercy aims the pack towards a nice wide square to land in.

xxxxxBranton nods as his mate explains what comes next and he follows along to land expertly at the back of the group, looking around a bit but not making eye contact with any of the strange city's residents.

xxxxxBroken Fang yips softly >> Admire one's feet. Got it. << His landing style isn't really the most graceful, all four legs splayed out like emergency shock absorbers for a lander, finally stopping to unnecessarily shake his coat out once they actually touch the surface.

xxxxx"The ferryman takes the dead from the land of the living, the Maidens plant a firm boot in the ass of those that wont step up to the dock when it's their time." Mercy tells the others. The square they draw up in is part of some ancient civilization with unknown pictograph script running around a simple square basin-ed fountain (dry, of course) made of clay. Those dead nearby, regardless of whether they're right side up, upside down, or on any strangely laid surface in between, all stop to look at these odd, living creatures in their midst. There is no hostility, only cautious curiosity. They're dressed as if from all walks of life, and some show some of the damage that had claimed their lives. From all directions, their hostesses come to meet the shifters, gathering around them in a thick group.

xxxxxThey're... gothically amazing. All are women, of course, all adults, all deathly pale. Some wear simple, elegant gowns with a hood, while others are dressed as though for a masquerade ball with sparkles and feathers and puffy dresses. All of them are armed with a blade at their hip, though there's a preference for sickles (rather than scythes). All of them wear masks, dark things that are wrought by a master artisan's hands. With these there is a preference towards birds, but they're all unique.

xxxxxWhile Mercy is taking a knee and bowing with deference and utmost respect, Meros behaves a smidgen differently. He spots one of the Maidens, a deathly pale woman in a simple pale smock, and steps towards her, bowing deeply in match to her own deep curtsy, and they begin to speak to each other very quietly while Mercy's doing her thing. They might know each other, or are just catching up as spirits with a very similar resonance. Meros is respected by other spirits, so he seems able to converse with them more easily than the shifters.

xxxxxBranton is not looking around for Hecate, though as a psychopomp she probably has an office here somewhere, if his Totem wants his attention she'll let him know. Branton's attention is on his mate and how things are going with the Spirits that she came for.

xxxxxFang might be giving some side-eye here to get a better look at said maidens without lifting his head and perhaps being seen as disrespectful. I mean, c'mon, even a lupus has to check out Bondage Goth Death Babes from the Abyss.

xxxxx"What is it you seek?" A maiden in a dress of black and deep blue asks, and Mercy lays things out simply. "I seek permission to bind a Maiden into a weapon of war and death." She produces a dagger with a blade made of dark metal, and a handle of blackened bone. "I seek the ability to bring death to specters that serve Oblivion, and to strike true through the shround of death those Wraiths tht would do Gaia's warriors wrong." There's a few follow up questions, of course, the negotiation phase of things, though a main sticking point is, "I will not accept a partner whose hand heals wounds rightfully earned. If you would wield me, you will not aid in the cheating death while I am in your hand." There's honest hesitation at that, Mercy is a healer and she's being asked not to heal while wielding this fetish. "I agree."
xxxxxAnd then the catch. "I will rest in your blade, but I will not obey until you have gone to this place, and released the wrongfully imprisoned. Their captors deny death's course. Kill them." Mercy bows, and then sorta checks over her shoulder in case anyone's not keen on this. Assuming no one freaks out, the spirit touches Mercy's dagger and is sort of sucked inside of it. For now.
xxxxxA Maiden in a pale pink dress asks, "Shall we send you home?"
xxxxxAt the mention of 'This Place', an image of a spooky looking manor house pops up where people can see it.

~To Be Continued~