Thank you.

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 8]

[previous]

"Ohh, you should have stayed sitting," Liam breathed, anxiously skipping along the circumference of the tower to watch everything unfold.

The lightless hallway arced as it also followed the curved walls, echoing with Rhenco's screams and with a bone-chilling gallop, cracking like whips across the masonry. The darkness didn't last, though, as an ocean-green light exploded across Rhenco's vision, and his pursuer supernaturally caught up to him, charging him sideways into the next threshold and pinning him to it by the throat.

The next room held three wide floor-to-ceiling glass pillars of vibrant, strobing, magical blue light, mechanisms of the tower's core one floor below, revealing the stranger in grisly detail. It was a head and face that Rhenco knew more intimately than the back of his hand, every crack and crevice and patch of fur and ridge of horn. The severed, decomposed head of Yun Milae, strung onto a vertebrate neck with visible tendons and rotting muscles. The right half of his face was dried and peeled away to bare a ghastly skeletal grin, bloody teeth set eternally in bone, and his empty eye sockets appeared to track Rhenco's every movement. He was clothed in his standard blue cloak and homespun clothes, but they were similarly weathered and aged, stained with massive holes and hanging loose on a zombified frame. His withered arms were outstretched, scarred and pouring blood across the tile, with one gripped around Rhenco's neck, and the other holding a naginata at the ready, caked from blade to pommel in old, dried viscera. The head tilted at Rhenco and clacked its jaws, a dried tongue flopping between hollow cavities as it did so.

[moe-lazyeye]

"Ack-! Hmmph-!" Rhenco stifled his own cry as his widened gaze locked onto the ghastly remnant before him. The heartbeat that had thundered inside of him during the chase became oddly slow at the sight.

Maybe the chase had been worse than the reality. Maybe because, in a twisted way, this Milae was closer to life than he had been before. Either way, something snapped him out of it, and in the moment of clarity, his mind went to pushing itself against the workings of the tower.

The spear had not struck him yet. He wasn't a victim again...yet...

Rhenco draw a ragged gasp around the hoof. "You are poor figment of what I will actually create...what could you possibly do with his image alone?"

[central-is-growing]

The shrewdness of the undead corpse's gaze matched that of Milae's in life. Like it had a will of its own, it was calculating based on Rhenco's statements, in mirror to the many meetings they'd had, all those months ago. It looked behind itself, at the ground and beyond it, and then back at Rhenco, still in a chokehold. It pointed its weapon inquisitively downwards, indicating the next floor, nonverbally asking if what Rhenco sought was below them.

[moe-lazyeye]

With measured, squeezed breaths, Rhenco slowly lifted a finger to point at the being instead. "You." He said in answer to the non verbal question. "Below is just a path to get there. I know what awaits..."

[central-is-growing]

As Rhenco spoke, Liam squinted down at the pair. Something seemed off. The naginata glinted, as did something else--a brilliantly-colored teal, gold and amber ribbon, tied to an iron ring just below the blade. "The fuck...?" he muttered.

The decayed Milae rumbled and clicked ominously, and then gave a horrible screech, throwing Rhenco aside hard enough that he actually fell back up a handful of stairs. As he recovered, he heard a horrible crunch, and saw the skeletal goat stumbling back from the wall it had just pinned him against. Then it wound up again and rammed its face into the stone, sending tiny chips of bone flying. Then it backed up again.

"The fuck!?"

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco pressed himself back up, and then glanced about as if to look for Liam. "What's happening?" He spoke aloud, even as his mind raced in thought.

*did that thing take Milae from my side? Or is it Milae?*

*am I facing a false ghost? Or is he suffering because of me? Either way I can fix it...*

*why did it cease its attack? Why harm itself now? I feel as though I've passed one trial...but what if the others?*

[central-is-growing]

"Hey. Hi. So, don't panic, but...that's Milae's skull. Not an illusion. Like, his real skull."

Crack!

"I'm still figuring out how it got a body. But I think it knows you don't want anything bad to happen to it, 'cause of the fear trap..."

CRACK!

"...so it's doing...that. I would, um...probably try to get that back."

The skeleton screamed again, now sporting a good-sized crack from the top of its cranium down to the top of its nasal cavity.

"That's a real blade too, by the way. I know you won't die permanently but I think it would really slow us down. And it would probably hurt. A lot."

CRACK!!!

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 8]

[previous]

"Ohh, you should have stayed sitting," Liam breathed, anxiously skipping along the circumference of the tower to watch everything unfold.

The lightless hallway arced as it also followed the curved walls, echoing with Rhenco's screams and with a bone-chilling gallop, cracking like whips across the masonry. The darkness didn't last, though, as an ocean-green light exploded across Rhenco's vision, and his pursuer supernaturally caught up to him, charging him sideways into the next threshold and pinning him to it by the throat.

The next room held three wide floor-to-ceiling glass pillars of vibrant, strobing, magical blue light, mechanisms of the tower's core one floor below, revealing the stranger in grisly detail. It was a head and face that Rhenco knew more intimately than the back of his hand, every crack and crevice and patch of fur and ridge of horn. The severed, decomposed head of Yun Milae, strung onto a vertebrate neck with visible tendons and rotting muscles. The right half of his face was dried and peeled away to bare a ghastly skeletal grin, bloody teeth set eternally in bone, and his empty eye sockets appeared to track Rhenco's every movement. He was clothed in his standard blue cloak and homespun clothes, but they were similarly weathered and aged, stained with massive holes and hanging loose on a zombified frame. His withered arms were outstretched, scarred and pouring blood across the tile, with one gripped around Rhenco's neck, and the other holding a naginata at the ready, caked from blade to pommel in old, dried viscera. The head tilted at Rhenco and clacked its jaws, a dried tongue flopping between hollow cavities as it did so.

[moe-lazyeye]

"Ack-! Hmmph-!" Rhenco stifled his own cry as his widened gaze locked onto the ghastly remnant before him. The heartbeat that had thundered inside of him during the chase became oddly slow at the sight.

Maybe the chase had been worse than the reality. Maybe because, in a twisted way, this Milae was closer to life than he had been before. Either way, something snapped him out of it, and in the moment of clarity, his mind went to pushing itself against the workings of the tower.

The spear had not struck him yet. He wasn't a victim again...yet...

Rhenco draw a ragged gasp around the hoof. "You are poor figment of what I will actually create...what could you possibly do with his image alone?"

[central-is-growing]

The shrewdness of the undead corpse's gaze matched that of Milae's in life. Like it had a will of its own, it was calculating based on Rhenco's statements, in mirror to the many meetings they'd had, all those months ago. It looked behind itself, at the ground and beyond it, and then back at Rhenco, still in a chokehold. It pointed its weapon inquisitively downwards, indicating the next floor, nonverbally asking if what Rhenco sought was below them.

[moe-lazyeye]

With measured, squeezed breaths, Rhenco slowly lifted a finger to point at the being instead. "You." He said in answer to the non verbal question. "Below is just a path to get there. I know what awaits..."

[central-is-growing]

As Rhenco spoke, Liam squinted down at the pair. Something seemed off. The naginata glinted, as did something else--a brilliantly-colored teal, gold and amber ribbon, tied to an iron ring just below the blade. "The fuck...?" he muttered.

The decayed Milae rumbled and clicked ominously, and then gave a horrible screech, throwing Rhenco aside hard enough that he actually fell back up a handful of stairs. As he recovered, he heard a horrible crunch, and saw the skeletal goat stumbling back from the wall it had just pinned him against. Then it wound up again and rammed its face into the stone, sending tiny chips of bone flying. Then it backed up again.

"The fuck!?"

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 8]

[previous]

"Ohh, you should have stayed sitting," Liam breathed, anxiously skipping along the circumference of the tower to watch everything unfold.

The lightless hallway arced as it also followed the curved walls, echoing with Rhenco's screams and with a bone-chilling gallop, cracking like whips across the masonry. The darkness didn't last, though, as an ocean-green light exploded across Rhenco's vision, and his pursuer supernaturally caught up to him, charging him sideways into the next threshold and pinning him to it by the throat.

The next room held three wide floor-to-ceiling glass pillars of vibrant, strobing, magical blue light, mechanisms of the tower's core one floor below, revealing the stranger in grisly detail. It was a head and face that Rhenco knew more intimately than the back of his hand, every crack and crevice and patch of fur and ridge of horn. The severed, decomposed head of Yun Milae, strung onto a vertebrate neck with visible tendons and rotting muscles. The right half of his face was dried and peeled away to bare a ghastly skeletal grin, bloody teeth set eternally in bone, and his empty eye sockets appeared to track Rhenco's every movement. He was clothed in his standard blue cloak and homespun clothes, but they were similarly weathered and aged, stained with massive holes and hanging loose on a zombified frame. His withered arms were outstretched, scarred and pouring blood across the tile, with one gripped around Rhenco's neck, and the other holding a naginata at the ready, caked from blade to pommel in old, dried viscera. The head tilted at Rhenco and clacked its jaws, a dried tongue flopping between hollow cavities as it did so.

[moe-lazyeye]

"Ack-! Hmmph-!" Rhenco stifled his own cry as his widened gaze locked onto the ghastly remnant before him. The heartbeat that had thundered inside of him during the chase became oddly slow at the sight.

Maybe the chase had been worse than the reality. Maybe because, in a twisted way, this Milae was closer to life than he had been before. Either way, something snapped him out of it, and in the moment of clarity, his mind went to pushing itself against the workings of the tower.

The spear had not struck him yet. He wasn't a victim again...yet...

Rhenco draw a ragged gasp around the hoof. "You are poor figment of what I will actually create...what could you possibly do with his image alone?"

[central-is-growing]

The shrewdness of the undead corpse's gaze matched that of Milae's in life. Like it had a will of its own, it was calculating based on Rhenco's statements, in mirror to the many meetings they'd had, all those months ago. It looked behind itself, at the ground and beyond it, and then back at Rhenco, still in a chokehold. It pointed its weapon inquisitively downwards, indicating the next floor, nonverbally asking if what Rhenco sought was below them.

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 8]

[previous]

"Ohh, you should have stayed sitting," Liam breathed, anxiously skipping along the circumference of the tower to watch everything unfold.

The lightless hallway arced as it also followed the curved walls, echoing with Rhenco's screams and with a bone-chilling gallop, cracking like whips across the masonry. The darkness didn't last, though, as an ocean-green light exploded across Rhenco's vision, and his pursuer supernaturally caught up to him, charging him sideways into the next threshold and pinning him to it by the throat.

The next room held three wide floor-to-ceiling glass pillars of vibrant, strobing, magical blue light, mechanisms of the tower's core one floor below, revealing the stranger in grisly detail. It was a head and face that Rhenco knew more intimately than the back of his hand, every crack and crevice and patch of fur and ridge of horn. The severed, decomposed head of Yun Milae, strung onto a vertebrate neck with visible tendons and rotting muscles. The right half of his face was dried and peeled away to bare a ghastly skeletal grin, bloody teeth set eternally in bone, and his empty eye sockets appeared to track Rhenco's every movement. He was clothed in his standard blue cloak and homespun clothes, but they were similarly weathered and aged, stained with massive holes and hanging loose on a zombified frame. His withered arms were outstretched, scarred and pouring blood across the tile, with one gripped around Rhenco's neck, and the other holding a naginata at the ready, caked from blade to pommel in old, dried viscera. The head tilted at Rhenco and clacked its jaws, a dried tongue flopping between hollow cavities as it did so.

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 7]

[previous]

"Well, you've got Sapexa's soul, my blood...we're almost there. One last thing." Liam peered down through the soil as though it were pure transparent glass, like he could see what lay beneath it in the tower's foundations. "The core of Darien Whiteland's tower."

He then squinted slightly at Rhenco. The tidal wave of emotion that he sensed beyond the veil did not bode well. He once again looped through the idea of trying to bring Darien himself with them, but with him still being comatose, Liam didn't love his chances of trying to extract what they needed from the man's shredded mind. More so, he hated the thought of accidentally ripping the unconscious Darien apart, especially if they failed to find the key to the fear trap and were left with nothing, or worse than nothing.

He knew in his time-woven soul that Rhenco possessed the both the ability and the unremitting will to pass through the trap. But new doubts were creeping in--that with such a chaotic mind, stretched thin with inhuman traumas, the plan may backfire, and leave Rhenco contending with spectral nightmares that the ordinary rebel couldn't even dream of.

Or...maybe this guy had already felt the worst of the worst, and would pass through like it was nothing. It was hard to tell.

Of course, I had to embody omniscience instead of foresight...still, I think Skuld would be too cruel to handle this.

"Just wanted to make sure you were still up for it."

[moe-lazyeye]

The barrier slowly regained control, and the unfiltered thoughts once again ebbed back into obscurity. Upon realizing that Liam was not going to make comment on them, Rhenco reclaimed a sense of security. He stood, and stepped past him to get a closer look at the door. He was moving on. But when Rhenco risked a glance his way, Liam could see the yearning that had been reawakened, and the fear of himself and his own actions, as opposed to Liam's divinity.

"Yes of course...what must be done here?"

[central-is-growing]

"Walk through the door and into the basement's third level," he said, as though it were quite simple. And it was...mostly. The threshold was the hardest part of the whole plan. "I can open it and talk you through where to go, but I gotta stay here."

[moe-lazyeye]

"I don't want you there anyway." Rhenco answered, the words a convoluted mess of truth and lies just in themselves. "So just directions are fine." He stood ready. "I already have more than ebough to face her as is. So let's get this last thing so we can have an overkill."

[central-is-growing]

"Oh, there's signs. You'll find it. But if you get lost, just ask."

The being waved his paw, and the large circular door started clicking and whirring, certain sections rotating and swinging out of the way. In a kaleidoscopic display, the door to Darien's tower fully opened, displaying a round atrium with stony mosaic flooring, lit only from whatever light filtered in through the doorway. Only Rhenco cast a shadow across the ground as the pair peered inside. With practiced eyes, he could make out a gentle blue arcane ripple draped across the threshold behind the now-open door, like a fine spiderweb.

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco took a few steady paces inside. His movements lacked caution, since dying wasn't a concern. But the more he became aware of the place, the more he began to glance about. His long fingers trailed across the strange membrane, and then tangle in it experimentally. His expression fell a little from his former curiosity. "Whatever guards this...its meant to work on anyone...anything..."

He looked back to once against catch the beings silhouette against the pale light from the door, and then pushed forward to make his was further inside.

[central-is-growing]

"Yeah. 'S why I didn't want to test it." As Rhenco continued into the ground floor of the tower, Liam's voice remained clear, as though he were walking next to the alchemist. "Can you imagine what I might--sorry, you probably shouldn't try to imagine stuff like that right now." The atrium was dim, but the light from the door gleamed off of the mosaic in the floor, which depicted a limited but artistic circular map of Aidorin, High Central at its proud center, and gilded arcane writing on its edges. The room appeared adjacent to a lobby, with many polished and carved receiving desks and tables, walls covered in midnight blue and olive green velvet drapes. There were several visible stone archways around the room's edge, leading both upstairs and down, but there were no visible windows, and everything was in pristine condition, though there was a definitively stale smell in the air. Nothing living had been inside in years; there was no trace of vermin, and even the spiders had eventually ran out of food and died long before they were able to spin their final obvious signs of structural surrender.

"Are you okay, by the way? You haven't...I don't know, dropped to the floor screaming, or anything."

[moe-lazyeye]

Whatever it was within this tower...it was already taking hold.

Barely cognizant of his own words and actions, Rhenco's lips suddenly turned into a snarl, his eyes darkened, and he shot a look over his hunched shoulder as if to see if Liam had followed him.

"You could stand to have your distain be a little more apparent!" He bit out in a harsh voice. "Otherwise, what's the point of the likes of "okay" or "sorry?" You are fine to treat me as the means to an end that I am!"

...

The ghostly echo of his words faded into the depths of the chamber. Rhenco stood still for a moment, and then began to walk again to decend further.

[central-is-growing]

"I told you, I'm not doing that." The out-of-sight-Liam's words certainly held some form of admonishment, but all things considered, it was relatively neutral in tone, though it did echo strangely down the dark stone staircase Rhenco had entered. "Is that what you're scared of?"

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco walked in puzzled thought, and then growled in frustration, and slapped the sided of his head a few times as if to banish clouded thoughts. "An entire war around the greatest gods of the pantheon being full of shit, and now your the magical exception." He uttered bitterly. "I don't fear your lies, but I find them contemptible. I will kill the Tyrant. You will return Milae. And that will be all. Assuming you don't simply betray my weakness and immediately cast me to the mercy of the demon over what I've done."

[central-is-growing]

"Rhenco, I think you need to sit down."

[moe-lazyeye]

Faster than a cutting knife, Rhenco's hands came up an raked down the length of his own face. Crimson lines immediately dotted his features from scalp to chin. His hand then dug into his robe to curl over his heart as he began to breath deeply.

His feet kept walking further into the dark chambers.

"It's not like I'll drop dead if I don't.

[central-is-growing]

"No, but you'll get all fuckin' worked up and make this harder." Liam's ears flattened. "I find it hard to believe the only thing the fear trap did to you is convince you that I'm lying..."

The first basement floor was a records room, wall-to-wall shelves and trunks of parchment, books, and even bottled samples of rare substances. There was only a single piece of evidence from Kezia's earthshaking rampage: one of said samples had fallen off a shelf and smashed on the floor, and its reaction to the still air was causing it to glow intensely with slimy blue bioluminesence, the only light in the room. Across the room, through the shelves, a metal nameplate next to a doorway was just barely visible by its shine.

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco rubbed a fist over his brow, sweat and blood streaking his hairline. "I told you..." He said as his chest tightened to force in more air. "I do not...fear..." He trailed off, his hand setting at rest by the nameplate. "...lies..."

The closed his eyes again, and this time he had himself relax. Carefully, Rhenco lowered himself to the floor to sit. He looked down at his hands, and gently let the stained palm rest on the wrapped head at his hip. "I never realized I was so weak...but it can't stay that way can it? I'll never get the chance to steel my nerves to face you, if I can't even grow up enough to face myself." He bit the side of his finger hard for a moment as he mustered up the courage to force out words he wouldn't be able to take back.

"It's truth, Liam." He said to the being. "Just like last time. My secret was that I've done all that I've done with not a shred of pitiable reasons. But my fear is facing the truth that comes with all that." Rhenco looked up, and slowly let his thumb drag over the nameplate in order to read it. "I think...I think it's going to force me to face my guilt..."

[central-is-growing]

"Mmmmm. Okay, I see."

Truth? It cursed internally, behind the mask of Liam. It was made of truth. Physics was truth, seidr was truth, contract was truth. Someone like Rhenco, a person who had insisted with godlike stubbornness against the foundations of the world itself, attempting to come back around to reality--it seemed like a monumental task, even for It.

Liam's voice continued clearly as Rhenco made out the words Structural Power Units Alpha - Delta on the nameplate by the doorway that would lead downstairs. "I mean, just saying all of that out loud--you know that's huge, right? I could be wrong, but I earnestly believe the original Rhenco would have rather been ripped apart by another Norn than admit that to someone like me."

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco stepped down the stairs, one by one, further into the ink. "If not for Milae..." he shook his head, but then steadied. "Yes. It is huge. And the words are a comfort I don't know how to reconcile. "

His heart tore itself apart at the feeling.

"Yes. No other Rhenco outside of this exact circumstance would ever admit it to a being of truth...like Hel...like Norns...like you."

His mind was seared at the thought.

His steps began to increase. It was hasty, yet stiff, like a man eagerly marching to a fate worse than death. Words he dared not speak before began to froth at his mouth. "Killing myself gave my mind and body reprieve from the guilt, like I had absolved myself with death! I hurt myself until I liked it, because I could lie to myself that it was bearable when I hurt others! I created an entire persona and power structure that revolved around never having to lie, so that I could claim I didn't fear truth!"

Rhenco fell to his knees despite the angle of the stairs and vomited. His head swam as sweat broke out over his paling skin. "Go on...go on!" He ordered himself as he stumbled further. "Show it to me, force this vitriol against my eyes! I will face it, I will face it for me, he'll know what I did to bring him back!"

[central-is-growing]

[tw readers i'm gonna start getting more gory/nasty from this point forward]

Liam held his breath, waiting to see what the fear trap's reaction might be to the provocation. There was nothing but Rhenco's haggard, hot breathing in the middle of the nearly-black stairway.

"I think you're g--oh, fuck."

Something slammed into Rhenco's upper back with the force of a brawler's haymaker, and it threw him down the remaining stairs in a bruised and bloody tumble. Through ringing ears and the pitch and yaw of vertigo, Rhenco heard something he should not have been hearing: the clatter of hooves against stone steps, sprinting down towards him with manic, brutal intent.

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 7]

[previous]

"Well, you've got Sapexa's soul, my blood...we're almost there. One last thing." Liam peered down through the soil as though it were pure transparent glass, like he could see what lay beneath it in the tower's foundations. "The core of Darien Whiteland's tower."

He then squinted slightly at Rhenco. The tidal wave of emotion that he sensed beyond the veil did not bode well. He once again looped through the idea of trying to bring Darien himself with them, but with him still being comatose, Liam didn't love his chances of trying to extract what they needed from the man's shredded mind. More so, he hated the thought of accidentally ripping the unconscious Darien apart, especially if they failed to find the key to the fear trap and were left with nothing, or worse than nothing.

He knew in his time-woven soul that Rhenco possessed the both the ability and the unremitting will to pass through the trap. But new doubts were creeping in--that with such a chaotic mind, stretched thin with inhuman traumas, the plan may backfire, and leave Rhenco contending with spectral nightmares that the ordinary rebel couldn't even dream of.

Or...maybe this guy had already felt the worst of the worst, and would pass through like it was nothing. It was hard to tell.

Of course, I had to embody omniscience instead of foresight...still, I think Skuld would be too cruel to handle this.

"Just wanted to make sure you were still up for it."

[moe-lazyeye]

The barrier slowly regained control, and the unfiltered thoughts once again ebbed back into obscurity. Upon realizing that Liam was not going to make comment on them, Rhenco reclaimed a sense of security. He stood, and stepped past him to get a closer look at the door. He was moving on. But when Rhenco risked a glance his way, Liam could see the yearning that had been reawakened, and the fear of himself and his own actions, as opposed to Liam's divinity.

"Yes of course...what must be done here?"

[central-is-growing]

"Walk through the door and into the basement's third level," he said, as though it were quite simple. And it was...mostly. The threshold was the hardest part of the whole plan. "I can open it and talk you through where to go, but I gotta stay here."

[moe-lazyeye]

"I don't want you there anyway." Rhenco answered, the words a convoluted mess of truth and lies just in themselves. "So just directions are fine." He stood ready. "I already have more than ebough to face her as is. So let's get this last thing so we can have an overkill."

[central-is-growing]

"Oh, there's signs. You'll find it. But if you get lost, just ask."

The being waved his paw, and the large circular door started clicking and whirring, certain sections rotating and swinging out of the way. In a kaleidoscopic display, the door to Darien's tower fully opened, displaying a round atrium with stony mosaic flooring, lit only from whatever light filtered in through the doorway. Only Rhenco cast a shadow across the ground as the pair peered inside. With practiced eyes, he could make out a gentle blue arcane ripple draped across the threshold behind the now-open door, like a fine spiderweb.

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco took a few steady paces inside. His movements lacked caution, since dying wasn't a concern. But the more he became aware of the place, the more he began to glance about. His long fingers trailed across the strange membrane, and then tangle in it experimentally. His expression fell a little from his former curiosity. "Whatever guards this...its meant to work on anyone...anything..."

He looked back to once against catch the beings silhouette against the pale light from the door, and then pushed forward to make his was further inside.

[central-is-growing]

"Yeah. 'S why I didn't want to test it." As Rhenco continued into the ground floor of the tower, Liam's voice remained clear, as though he were walking next to the alchemist. "Can you imagine what I might--sorry, you probably shouldn't try to imagine stuff like that right now." The atrium was dim, but the light from the door gleamed off of the mosaic in the floor, which depicted a limited but artistic circular map of Aidorin, High Central at its proud center, and gilded arcane writing on its edges. The room appeared adjacent to a lobby, with many polished and carved receiving desks and tables, walls covered in midnight blue and olive green velvet drapes. There were several visible stone archways around the room's edge, leading both upstairs and down, but there were no visible windows, and everything was in pristine condition, though there was a definitively stale smell in the air. Nothing living had been inside in years; there was no trace of vermin, and even the spiders had eventually ran out of food and died long before they were able to spin their final obvious signs of structural surrender.

"Are you okay, by the way? You haven't...I don't know, dropped to the floor screaming, or anything."

[moe-lazyeye]

Whatever it was within this tower...it was already taking hold.

Barely cognizant of his own words and actions, Rhenco's lips suddenly turned into a snarl, his eyes darkened, and he shot a look over his hunched shoulder as if to see if Liam had followed him.

"You could stand to have your distain be a little more apparent!" He bit out in a harsh voice. "Otherwise, what's the point of the likes of "okay" or "sorry?" You are fine to treat me as the means to an end that I am!"

...

The ghostly echo of his words faded into the depths of the chamber. Rhenco stood still for a moment, and then began to walk again to decend further.

[central-is-growing]

"I told you, I'm not doing that." The out-of-sight-Liam's words certainly held some form of admonishment, but all things considered, it was relatively neutral in tone, though it did echo strangely down the dark stone staircase Rhenco had entered. "Is that what you're scared of?"

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco walked in puzzled thought, and then growled in frustration, and slapped the sided of his head a few times as if to banish clouded thoughts. "An entire war around the greatest gods of the pantheon being full of shit, and now your the magical exception." He uttered bitterly. "I don't fear your lies, but I find them contemptible. I will kill the Tyrant. You will return Milae. And that will be all. Assuming you don't simply betray my weakness and immediately cast me to the mercy of the demon over what I've done."

[central-is-growing]

"Rhenco, I think you need to sit down."

[moe-lazyeye]

Faster than a cutting knife, Rhenco's hands came up an raked down the length of his own face. Crimson lines immediately dotted his features from scalp to chin. His hand then dug into his robe to curl over his heart as he began to breath deeply.

His feet kept walking further into the dark chambers.

"It's not like I'll drop dead if I don't.

[central-is-growing]

"No, but you'll get all fuckin' worked up and make this harder." Liam's ears flattened. "I find it hard to believe the only thing the fear trap did to you is convince you that I'm lying..."

The first basement floor was a records room, wall-to-wall shelves and trunks of parchment, books, and even bottled samples of rare substances. There was only a single piece of evidence from Kezia's earthshaking rampage: one of said samples had fallen off a shelf and smashed on the floor, and its reaction to the still air was causing it to glow intensely with slimy blue bioluminesence, the only light in the room. Across the room, through the shelves, a metal nameplate next to a doorway was just barely visible by its shine.

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco rubbed a fist over his brow, sweat and blood streaking his hairline. "I told you..." He said as his chest tightened to force in more air. "I do not...fear..." He trailed off, his hand setting at rest by the nameplate. "...lies..."

The closed his eyes again, and this time he had himself relax. Carefully, Rhenco lowered himself to the floor to sit. He looked down at his hands, and gently let the stained palm rest on the wrapped head at his hip. "I never realized I was so weak...but it can't stay that way can it? I'll never get the chance to steel my nerves to face you, if I can't even grow up enough to face myself." He bit the side of his finger hard for a moment as he mustered up the courage to force out words he wouldn't be able to take back.

"It's truth, Liam." He said to the being. "Just like last time. My secret was that I've done all that I've done with not a shred of pitiable reasons. But my fear is facing the truth that comes with all that." Rhenco looked up, and slowly let his thumb drag over the nameplate in order to read it. "I think...I think it's going to force me to face my guilt..."

[central-is-growing]

"Mmmmm. Okay, I see."

Truth? It cursed internally, behind the mask of Liam. It was made of truth. Physics was truth, seidr was truth, contract was truth. Someone like Rhenco, a person who had insisted with godlike stubbornness against the foundations of the world itself, attempting to come back around to reality--it seemed like a monumental task, even for It.

Liam's voice continued clearly as Rhenco made out the words Structural Power Units Alpha - Delta on the nameplate by the doorway that would lead downstairs. "I mean, just saying all of that out loud--you know that's huge, right? I could be wrong, but I earnestly believe the original Rhenco would have rather been ripped apart by another Norn than admit that to someone like me."

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 7]

[previous]

"Well, you've got Sapexa's soul, my blood...we're almost there. One last thing." Liam peered down through the soil as though it were pure transparent glass, like he could see what lay beneath it in the tower's foundations. "The core of Darien Whiteland's tower."

He then squinted slightly at Rhenco. The tidal wave of emotion that he sensed beyond the veil did not bode well. He once again looped through the idea of trying to bring Darien himself with them, but with him still being comatose, Liam didn't love his chances of trying to extract what they needed from the man's shredded mind. More so, he hated the thought of accidentally ripping the unconscious Darien apart, especially if they failed to find the key to the fear trap and were left with nothing, or worse than nothing.

He knew in his time-woven soul that Rhenco possessed the both the ability and the unremitting will to pass through the trap. But new doubts were creeping in--that with such a chaotic mind, stretched thin with inhuman traumas, the plan may backfire, and leave Rhenco contending with spectral nightmares that the ordinary rebel couldn't even dream of.

Or...maybe this guy had already felt the worst of the worst, and would pass through like it was nothing. It was hard to tell.

Of course, I had to embody omniscience instead of foresight...still, I think Skuld would be too cruel to handle this.

"Just wanted to make sure you were still up for it."

[moe-lazyeye]

The barrier slowly regained control, and the unfiltered thoughts once again ebbed back into obscurity. Upon realizing that Liam was not going to make comment on them, Rhenco reclaimed a sense of security. He stood, and stepped past him to get a closer look at the door. He was moving on. But when Rhenco risked a glance his way, Liam could see the yearning that had been reawakened, and the fear of himself and his own actions, as opposed to Liam's divinity.

"Yes of course...what must be done here?"

[central-is-growing]

"Walk through the door and into the basement's third level," he said, as though it were quite simple. And it was...mostly. The threshold was the hardest part of the whole plan. "I can open it and talk you through where to go, but I gotta stay here."

[moe-lazyeye]

"I don't want you there anyway." Rhenco answered, the words a convoluted mess of truth and lies just in themselves. "So just directions are fine." He stood ready. "I already have more than ebough to face her as is. So let's get this last thing so we can have an overkill."

[central-is-growing]

"Oh, there's signs. You'll find it. But if you get lost, just ask."

The being waved his paw, and the large circular door started clicking and whirring, certain sections rotating and swinging out of the way. In a kaleidoscopic display, the door to Darien's tower fully opened, displaying a round atrium with stony mosaic flooring, lit only from whatever light filtered in through the doorway. Only Rhenco cast a shadow across the ground as the pair peered inside. With practiced eyes, he could make out a gentle blue arcane ripple draped across the threshold behind the now-open door, like a fine spiderweb.

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco took a few steady paces inside. His movements lacked caution, since dying wasn't a concern. But the more he became aware of the place, the more he began to glance about. His long fingers trailed across the strange membrane, and then tangle in it experimentally. His expression fell a little from his former curiosity. "Whatever guards this...its meant to work on anyone...anything..."

He looked back to once against catch the beings silhouette against the pale light from the door, and then pushed forward to make his was further inside.

[central-is-growing]

"Yeah. 'S why I didn't want to test it." As Rhenco continued into the ground floor of the tower, Liam's voice remained clear, as though he were walking next to the alchemist. "Can you imagine what I might--sorry, you probably shouldn't try to imagine stuff like that right now." The atrium was dim, but the light from the door gleamed off of the mosaic in the floor, which depicted a limited but artistic circular map of Aidorin, High Central at its proud center, and gilded arcane writing on its edges. The room appeared adjacent to a lobby, with many polished and carved receiving desks and tables, walls covered in midnight blue and olive green velvet drapes. There were several visible stone archways around the room's edge, leading both upstairs and down, but there were no visible windows, and everything was in pristine condition, though there was a definitively stale smell in the air. Nothing living had been inside in years; there was no trace of vermin, and even the spiders had eventually ran out of food and died long before they were able to spin their final obvious signs of structural surrender.

"Are you okay, by the way? You haven't...I don't know, dropped to the floor screaming, or anything."

[moe-lazyeye]

Whatever it was within this tower...it was already taking hold.

Barely cognizant of his own words and actions, Rhenco's lips suddenly turned into a snarl, his eyes darkened, and he shot a look over his hunched shoulder as if to see if Liam had followed him.

"You could stand to have your distain be a little more apparent!" He bit out in a harsh voice. "Otherwise, what's the point of the likes of "okay" or "sorry?" You are fine to treat me as the means to an end that I am!"

...

The ghostly echo of his words faded into the depths of the chamber. Rhenco stood still for a moment, and then began to walk again to decend further.

[central-is-growing]

"I told you, I'm not doing that." The out-of-sight-Liam's words certainly held some form of admonishment, but all things considered, it was relatively neutral in tone, though it did echo strangely down the dark stone staircase Rhenco had entered. "Is that what you're scared of?"

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco walked in puzzled thought, and then growled in frustration, and slapped the sided of his head a few times as if to banish clouded thoughts. "An entire war around the greatest gods of the pantheon being full of shit, and now your the magical exception." He uttered bitterly. "I don't fear your lies, but I find them contemptible. I will kill the Tyrant. You will return Milae. And that will be all. Assuming you don't simply betray my weakness and immediately cast me to the mercy of the demon over what I've done."

[central-is-growing]

"Rhenco, I think you need to sit down."

[moe-lazyeye]

Faster than a cutting knife, Rhenco's hands came up an raked down the length of his own face. Crimson lines immediately dotted his features from scalp to chin. His hand then dug into his robe to curl over his heart as he began to breath deeply.

His feet kept walking further into the dark chambers.

"It's not like I'll drop dead if I don't.

[central-is-growing]

"No, but you'll get all fuckin' worked up and make this harder." Liam's ears flattened. "I find it hard to believe the only thing the fear trap did to you is convince you that I'm lying..."

The first basement floor was a records room, wall-to-wall shelves and trunks of parchment, books, and even bottled samples of rare substances. There was only a single piece of evidence from Kezia's earthshaking rampage: one of said samples had fallen off a shelf and smashed on the floor, and its reaction to the still air was causing it to glow intensely with slimy blue bioluminesence, the only light in the room. Across the room, through the shelves, a metal nameplate next to a doorway was just barely visible by its shine.

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 7]

[previous]

"Well, you've got Sapexa's soul, my blood...we're almost there. One last thing." Liam peered down through the soil as though it were pure transparent glass, like he could see what lay beneath it in the tower's foundations. "The core of Darien Whiteland's tower."

He then squinted slightly at Rhenco. The tidal wave of emotion that he sensed beyond the veil did not bode well. He once again looped through the idea of trying to bring Darien himself with them, but with him still being comatose, Liam didn't love his chances of trying to extract what they needed from the man's shredded mind. More so, he hated the thought of accidentally ripping the unconscious Darien apart, especially if they failed to find the key to the fear trap and were left with nothing, or worse than nothing.

He knew in his time-woven soul that Rhenco possessed the both the ability and the unremitting will to pass through the trap. But new doubts were creeping in--that with such a chaotic mind, stretched thin with inhuman traumas, the plan may backfire, and leave Rhenco contending with spectral nightmares that the ordinary rebel couldn't even dream of.

Or...maybe this guy had already felt the worst of the worst, and would pass through like it was nothing. It was hard to tell.

Of course, I had to embody omniscience instead of foresight...still, I think Skuld would be too cruel to handle this.

"Just wanted to make sure you were still up for it."

[moe-lazyeye]

The barrier slowly regained control, and the unfiltered thoughts once again ebbed back into obscurity. Upon realizing that Liam was not going to make comment on them, Rhenco reclaimed a sense of security. He stood, and stepped past him to get a closer look at the door. He was moving on. But when Rhenco risked a glance his way, Liam could see the yearning that had been reawakened, and the fear of himself and his own actions, as opposed to Liam's divinity.

"Yes of course...what must be done here?"

[central-is-growing]

"Walk through the door and into the basement's third level," he said, as though it were quite simple. And it was...mostly. The threshold was the hardest part of the whole plan. "I can open it and talk you through where to go, but I gotta stay here."

[moe-lazyeye]

"I don't want you there anyway." Rhenco answered, the words a convoluted mess of truth and lies just in themselves. "So just directions are fine." He stood ready. "I already have more than ebough to face her as is. So let's get this last thing so we can have an overkill."

[central-is-growing]

"Oh, there's signs. You'll find it. But if you get lost, just ask."

The being waved his paw, and the large circular door started clicking and whirring, certain sections rotating and swinging out of the way. In a kaleidoscopic display, the door to Darien's tower fully opened, displaying a round atrium with stony mosaic flooring, lit only from whatever light filtered in through the doorway. Only Rhenco cast a shadow across the ground as the pair peered inside. With practiced eyes, he could make out a gentle blue arcane ripple draped across the threshold behind the now-open door, like a fine spiderweb.

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco took a few steady paces inside. His movements lacked caution, since dying wasn't a concern. But the more he became aware of the place, the more he began to glance about. His long fingers trailed across the strange membrane, and then tangle in it experimentally. His expression fell a little from his former curiosity. "Whatever guards this...its meant to work on anyone...anything..."

He looked back to once against catch the beings silhouette against the pale light from the door, and then pushed forward to make his was further inside.

[central-is-growing]

"Yeah. 'S why I didn't want to test it." As Rhenco continued into the ground floor of the tower, Liam's voice remained clear, as though he were walking next to the alchemist. "Can you imagine what I might--sorry, you probably shouldn't try to imagine stuff like that right now." The atrium was dim, but the light from the door gleamed off of the mosaic in the floor, which depicted a limited but artistic circular map of Aidorin, High Central at its proud center, and gilded arcane writing on its edges. The room appeared adjacent to a lobby, with many polished and carved receiving desks and tables, walls covered in midnight blue and olive green velvet drapes. There were several visible stone archways around the room's edge, leading both upstairs and down, but there were no visible windows, and everything was in pristine condition, though there was a definitively stale smell in the air. Nothing living had been inside in years; there was no trace of vermin, and even the spiders had eventually ran out of food and died long before they were able to spin their final obvious signs of structural surrender.

"Are you okay, by the way? You haven't...I don't know, dropped to the floor screaming, or anything."

[moe-lazyeye]

Whatever it was within this tower...it was already taking hold.

Barely cognizant of his own words and actions, Rhenco's lips suddenly turned into a snarl, his eyes darkened, and he shot a look over his hunched shoulder as if to see if Liam had followed him.

"You could stand to have your distain be a little more apparent!" He bit out in a harsh voice. "Otherwise, what's the point of the likes of "okay" or "sorry?" You are fine to treat me as the means to an end that I am!"

...

The ghostly echo of his words faded into the depths of the chamber. Rhenco stood still for a moment, and then began to walk again to decend further.

[central-is-growing]

"I told you, I'm not doing that." The out-of-sight-Liam's words certainly held some form of admonishment, but all things considered, it was relatively neutral in tone, though it did echo strangely down the dark stone staircase Rhenco had entered. "Is that what you're scared of?"

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco walked in puzzled thought, and then growled in frustration, and slapped the sided of his head a few times as if to banish clouded thoughts. "An entire war around the greatest gods of the pantheon being full of shit, and now your the magical exception." He uttered bitterly. "I don't fear your lies, but I find them contemptible. I will kill the Tyrant. You will return Milae. And that will be all. Assuming you don't simply betray my weakness and immediately cast me to the mercy of the demon over what I've done."

[central-is-growing]

"Rhenco, I think you need to sit down."

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 7]

[previous]

"Well, you've got Sapexa's soul, my blood...we're almost there. One last thing." Liam peered down through the soil as though it were pure transparent glass, like he could see what lay beneath it in the tower's foundations. "The core of Darien Whiteland's tower."

He then squinted slightly at Rhenco. The tidal wave of emotion that he sensed beyond the veil did not bode well. He once again looped through the idea of trying to bring Darien himself with them, but with him still being comatose, Liam didn't love his chances of trying to extract what they needed from the man's shredded mind. More so, he hated the thought of accidentally ripping the unconscious Darien apart, especially if they failed to find the key to the fear trap and were left with nothing, or worse than nothing.

He knew in his time-woven soul that Rhenco possessed the both the ability and the unremitting will to pass through the trap. But new doubts were creeping in--that with such a chaotic mind, stretched thin with inhuman traumas, the plan may backfire, and leave Rhenco contending with spectral nightmares that the ordinary rebel couldn't even dream of.

Or...maybe this guy had already felt the worst of the worst, and would pass through like it was nothing. It was hard to tell.

Of course, I had to embody omniscience instead of foresight...still, I think Skuld would be too cruel to handle this.

"Just wanted to make sure you were still up for it."

[moe-lazyeye]

The barrier slowly regained control, and the unfiltered thoughts once again ebbed back into obscurity. Upon realizing that Liam was not going to make comment on them, Rhenco reclaimed a sense of security. He stood, and stepped past him to get a closer look at the door. He was moving on. But when Rhenco risked a glance his way, Liam could see the yearning that had been reawakened, and the fear of himself and his own actions, as opposed to Liam's divinity.

"Yes of course...what must be done here?"

[central-is-growing]

"Walk through the door and into the basement's third level," he said, as though it were quite simple. And it was...mostly. The threshold was the hardest part of the whole plan. "I can open it and talk you through where to go, but I gotta stay here."

[moe-lazyeye]

"I don't want you there anyway." Rhenco answered, the words a convoluted mess of truth and lies just in themselves. "So just directions are fine." He stood ready. "I already have more than ebough to face her as is. So let's get this last thing so we can have an overkill."

[central-is-growing]

"Oh, there's signs. You'll find it. But if you get lost, just ask."

The being waved his paw, and the large circular door started clicking and whirring, certain sections rotating and swinging out of the way. In a kaleidoscopic display, the door to Darien's tower fully opened, displaying a round atrium with stony mosaic flooring, lit only from whatever light filtered in through the doorway. Only Rhenco cast a shadow across the ground as the pair peered inside. With practiced eyes, he could make out a gentle blue arcane ripple draped across the threshold behind the now-open door, like a fine spiderweb.

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco took a few steady paces inside. His movements lacked caution, since dying wasn't a concern. But the more he became aware of the place, the more he began to glance about. His long fingers trailed across the strange membrane, and then tangle in it experimentally. His expression fell a little from his former curiosity. "Whatever guards this...its meant to work on anyone...anything..."

He looked back to once against catch the beings silhouette against the pale light from the door, and then pushed forward to make his was further inside.

[central-is-growing]

"Yeah. 'S why I didn't want to test it." As Rhenco continued into the ground floor of the tower, Liam's voice remained clear, as though he were walking next to the alchemist. "Can you imagine what I might--sorry, you probably shouldn't try to imagine stuff like that right now." The atrium was dim, but the light from the door gleamed off of the mosaic in the floor, which depicted a limited but artistic circular map of Aidorin, High Central at its proud center, and gilded arcane writing on its edges. The room appeared adjacent to a lobby, with many polished and carved receiving desks and tables, walls covered in midnight blue and olive green velvet drapes. There were several visible stone archways around the room's edge, leading both upstairs and down, but there were no visible windows, and everything was in pristine condition, though there was a definitively stale smell in the air. Nothing living had been inside in years; there was no trace of vermin, and even the spiders had eventually ran out of food and died long before they were able to spin their final obvious signs of structural surrender.

"Are you okay, by the way? You haven't...I don't know, dropped to the floor screaming, or anything."

[moe-lazyeye]

Whatever it was within this tower...it was already taking hold.

Barely cognizant of his own words and actions, Rhenco's lips suddenly turned into a snarl, his eyes darkened, and he shot a look over his hunched shoulder as if to see if Liam had followed him.

"You could stand to have your distain be a little more apparent!" He bit out in a harsh voice. "Otherwise, what's the point of the likes of "okay" or "sorry?" You are fine to treat me as the means to an end that I am!"

...

The ghostly echo of his words faded into the depths of the chamber. Rhenco stood still for a moment, and then began to walk again to decend further.

[central-is-growing]

"I told you, I'm not doing that." The out-of-sight-Liam's words certainly held some form of admonishment, but all things considered, it was relatively neutral in tone, though it did echo strangely down the dark stone staircase Rhenco had entered. "Is that what you're scared of?"

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 7]

[previous]

"Well, you've got Sapexa's soul, my blood...we're almost there. One last thing." Liam peered down through the soil as though it were pure transparent glass, like he could see what lay beneath it in the tower's foundations. "The core of Darien Whiteland's tower."

He then squinted slightly at Rhenco. The tidal wave of emotion that he sensed beyond the veil did not bode well. He once again looped through the idea of trying to bring Darien himself with them, but with him still being comatose, Liam didn't love his chances of trying to extract what they needed from the man's shredded mind. More so, he hated the thought of accidentally ripping the unconscious Darien apart, especially if they failed to find the key to the fear trap and were left with nothing, or worse than nothing.

He knew in his time-woven soul that Rhenco possessed the both the ability and the unremitting will to pass through the trap. But new doubts were creeping in--that with such a chaotic mind, stretched thin with inhuman traumas, the plan may backfire, and leave Rhenco contending with spectral nightmares that the ordinary rebel couldn't even dream of.

Or...maybe this guy had already felt the worst of the worst, and would pass through like it was nothing. It was hard to tell.

Of course, I had to embody omniscience instead of foresight...still, I think Skuld would be too cruel to handle this.

"Just wanted to make sure you were still up for it."

[moe-lazyeye]

The barrier slowly regained control, and the unfiltered thoughts once again ebbed back into obscurity. Upon realizing that Liam was not going to make comment on them, Rhenco reclaimed a sense of security. He stood, and stepped past him to get a closer look at the door. He was moving on. But when Rhenco risked a glance his way, Liam could see the yearning that had been reawakened, and the fear of himself and his own actions, as opposed to Liam's divinity.

"Yes of course...what must be done here?"

[central-is-growing]

"Walk through the door and into the basement's third level," he said, as though it were quite simple. And it was...mostly. The threshold was the hardest part of the whole plan. "I can open it and talk you through where to go, but I gotta stay here."

[moe-lazyeye]

"I don't want you there anyway." Rhenco answered, the words a convoluted mess of truth and lies just in themselves. "So just directions are fine." He stood ready. "I already have more than ebough to face her as is. So let's get this last thing so we can have an overkill."

[central-is-growing]

"Oh, there's signs. You'll find it. But if you get lost, just ask."

The being waved his paw, and the large circular door started clicking and whirring, certain sections rotating and swinging out of the way. In a kaleidoscopic display, the door to Darien's tower fully opened, displaying a round atrium with stony mosaic flooring, lit only from whatever light filtered in through the doorway. Only Rhenco cast a shadow across the ground as the pair peered inside. With practiced eyes, he could make out a gentle blue arcane ripple draped across the threshold behind the now-open door, like a fine spiderweb.

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco took a few steady paces inside. His movements lacked caution, since dying wasn't a concern. But the more he became aware of the place, the more he began to glance about. His long fingers trailed across the strange membrane, and then tangle in it experimentally. His expression fell a little from his former curiosity. "Whatever guards this...its meant to work on anyone...anything..."

He looked back to once against catch the beings silhouette against the pale light from the door, and then pushed forward to make his was further inside.

[central-is-growing]

"Yeah. 'S why I didn't want to test it." As Rhenco continued into the ground floor of the tower, Liam's voice remained clear, as though he were walking next to the alchemist. "Can you imagine what I might--sorry, you probably shouldn't try to imagine stuff like that right now." The atrium was dim, but the light from the door gleamed off of the mosaic in the floor, which depicted a limited but artistic circular map of Aidorin, High Central at its proud center, and gilded arcane writing on its edges. The room appeared adjacent to a lobby, with many polished and carved receiving desks and tables, walls covered in midnight blue and olive green velvet drapes. There were several visible stone archways around the room's edge, leading both upstairs and down, but there were no visible windows, and everything was in pristine condition, though there was a definitively stale smell in the air. Nothing living had been inside in years; there was no trace of vermin, and even the spiders had eventually ran out of food and died long before they were able to spin their final obvious signs of structural surrender.

"Are you okay, by the way? You haven't...I don't know, dropped to the floor screaming, or anything."

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 7]

[previous]

"Well, you've got Sapexa's soul, my blood...we're almost there. One last thing." Liam peered down through the soil as though it were pure transparent glass, like he could see what lay beneath it in the tower's foundations. "The core of Darien Whiteland's tower."

He then squinted slightly at Rhenco. The tidal wave of emotion that he sensed beyond the veil did not bode well. He once again looped through the idea of trying to bring Darien himself with them, but with him still being comatose, Liam didn't love his chances of trying to extract what they needed from the man's shredded mind. More so, he hated the thought of accidentally ripping the unconscious Darien apart, especially if they failed to find the key to the fear trap and were left with nothing, or worse than nothing.

He knew in his time-woven soul that Rhenco possessed the both the ability and the unremitting will to pass through the trap. But new doubts were creeping in--that with such a chaotic mind, stretched thin with inhuman traumas, the plan may backfire, and leave Rhenco contending with spectral nightmares that the ordinary rebel couldn't even dream of.

Or...maybe this guy had already felt the worst of the worst, and would pass through like it was nothing. It was hard to tell.

Of course, I had to embody omniscience instead of foresight...still, I think Skuld would be too cruel to handle this.

"Just wanted to make sure you were still up for it."

[moe-lazyeye]

The barrier slowly regained control, and the unfiltered thoughts once again ebbed back into obscurity. Upon realizing that Liam was not going to make comment on them, Rhenco reclaimed a sense of security. He stood, and stepped past him to get a closer look at the door. He was moving on. But when Rhenco risked a glance his way, Liam could see the yearning that had been reawakened, and the fear of himself and his own actions, as opposed to Liam's divinity.

"Yes of course...what must be done here?"

[central-is-growing]

"Walk through the door and into the basement's third level," he said, as though it were quite simple. And it was...mostly. The threshold was the hardest part of the whole plan. "I can open it and talk you through where to go, but I gotta stay here."

[moe-lazyeye]

"I don't want you there anyway." Rhenco answered, the words a convoluted mess of truth and lies just in themselves. "So just directions are fine." He stood ready. "I already have more than ebough to face her as is. So let's get this last thing so we can have an overkill."

[central-is-growing]

"Oh, there's signs. You'll find it. But if you get lost, just ask."

The being waved his paw, and the large circular door started clicking and whirring, certain sections rotating and swinging out of the way. In a kaleidoscopic display, the door to Darien's tower fully opened, displaying a round atrium with stony mosaic flooring, lit only from whatever light filtered in through the doorway. Only Rhenco cast a shadow across the ground as the pair peered inside. With practiced eyes, he could make out a gentle blue arcane ripple draped across the threshold behind the now-open door, like a fine spiderweb.

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 7]

[previous]

"Well, you've got Sapexa's soul, my blood...we're almost there. One last thing." Liam peered down through the soil as though it were pure transparent glass, like he could see what lay beneath it in the tower's foundations. "The core of Darien Whiteland's tower."

He then squinted slightly at Rhenco. The tidal wave of emotion that he sensed beyond the veil did not bode well. He once again looped through the idea of trying to bring Darien himself with them, but with him still being comatose, Liam didn't love his chances of trying to extract what they needed from the man's shredded mind. More so, he hated the thought of accidentally ripping the unconscious Darien apart, especially if they failed to find the key to the fear trap and were left with nothing, or worse than nothing.

He knew in his time-woven soul that Rhenco possessed the both the ability and the unremitting will to pass through the trap. But new doubts were creeping in--that with such a chaotic mind, stretched thin with inhuman traumas, the plan may backfire, and leave Rhenco contending with spectral nightmares that the ordinary rebel couldn't even dream of.

Or...maybe this guy had already felt the worst of the worst, and would pass through like it was nothing. It was hard to tell.

Of course, I had to embody omniscience instead of foresight...still, I think Skuld would be too cruel to handle this.

"Just wanted to make sure you were still up for it."

[moe-lazyeye]

The barrier slowly regained control, and the unfiltered thoughts once again ebbed back into obscurity. Upon realizing that Liam was not going to make comment on them, Rhenco reclaimed a sense of security. He stood, and stepped past him to get a closer look at the door. He was moving on. But when Rhenco risked a glance his way, Liam could see the yearning that had been reawakened, and the fear of himself and his own actions, as opposed to Liam's divinity.

"Yes of course...what must be done here?"

[central-is-growing]

"Walk through the door and into the basement's third level," he said, as though it were quite simple. And it was...mostly. The threshold was the hardest part of the whole plan. "I can open it and talk you through where to go, but I gotta stay here."

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 7]

[previous]

"Well, you've got Sapexa's soul, my blood...we're almost there. One last thing." Liam peered down through the soil as though it were pure transparent glass, like he could see what lay beneath it in the tower's foundations. "The core of Darien Whiteland's tower."

He then squinted slightly at Rhenco. The tidal wave of emotion that he sensed beyond the veil did not bode well. He once again looped through the idea of trying to bring Darien himself with them, but with him still being comatose, Liam didn't love his chances of trying to extract what they needed from the man's shredded mind. More so, he hated the thought of accidentally ripping the unconscious Darien apart, especially if they failed to find the key to the fear trap and were left with nothing, or worse than nothing.

He knew in his time-woven soul that Rhenco possessed the both the ability and the unremitting will to pass through the trap. But new doubts were creeping in--that with such a chaotic mind, stretched thin with inhuman traumas, the plan may backfire, and leave Rhenco contending with spectral nightmares that the ordinary rebel couldn't even dream of.

Or...maybe this guy had already felt the worst of the worst, and would pass through like it was nothing. It was hard to tell.

Of course, I had to embody omniscience instead of foresight...still, I think Skuld would be too cruel to handle this.

"Just wanted to make sure you were still up for it."

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 6]

[previous]

"Hmmm."

Liam's leg gently bounced in thought. He was definitely intrigued. He wanted enough to blow the Tyrant Eternal to dust instantly, but there was a good chance this could be overkill. Would he miss it? Most likely not. Yun would be able to replace whatever he gave away with a few years of Loom hopping. But he met Rhenco eye-to-eye, upside-down--a man who had both the capability, the willpower and the track record to inflict terrible, widespread damage--and he allowed the clear distrust to show on his face.

"Maybe. But we'll have to configure a stronger agreement for that one," he noted. "Something more structured than 'pretty please don't use this on anything but Kezia,' y'know?"

[moe-lazyeye]

"If that involves lifting this barrier in any way, we're going to have a very difficult time communicating through it." Rhenco warned as he jaw gave a light tick. "But...what did you have in mind?"

[central-is-growing]

"No, I don't think that's necessary. We can work around it." He kicked his legs to bring him back upright, turning partially to face Rhenco, the firelight playing across one side of his face. "Demon contract on overdrive," he said, in answer to Rhenco's question. "I agree to bite off a piece for you, and you agree to use it only for its intended purpose."

[moe-lazyeye]

"Which is?" Rhenco pressed.

[central-is-growing]

Liam stretched out both hands before him, palms perpendicular to the ground and facing away from him. With thumbs touching, his claws traced a golden circle in the air from top to bottom, and then he paused, leaving the sigil empty, waiting for his next move. "Expending everything that we've gathered or intend to gather to create a weapon strong enough to permanently defeat the Tyrant Eternal," he stated clearly, without deception. "No hanging onto the dregs for later. Full send. And I'll give you enough of myself to get that done."

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco surveyed the shimmering lines, and then nodded in agreement. "I take it...I use it all...nothing left over...she dies...he lives..."

[central-is-growing]

"You know what, yeah. I like that phrasing. The Rnalaths are kinda wordy."

The sigil flooded with rings and archaic symbols, some of them mimicking Nornic runes, some of them reminiscent of Daemon words. They danced and dissolved into glittering dust as Liam reached through it and held out his paw, palm-up, offering for Rhenco to take it. "Don't be scared, okay? It'll only be a second."

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco stretch out his hand in turn and clasped it. "Can't be worse than what I live n-"

[central-is-growing]

"ᚢ̶̥̻̿͗ᛟ̷͉͊̈ͅᚢ̴͇̲͑ᛚ̵̛̪̫̉ᛚ̸͍̀ ̵͙̰͋̆ᚾ̶̝̍̋ᛖ̸͈̚ ̵̹͚́ᛊ̵̘̍͘ᚨ̶̹͐ᛏ̴̞̊ᚨ̴̡̭̓̚ ̷̩̽ᚢ̴̯̯̊ᛟ̷̧̃,̵̝̂̊ ̴̙͑ᛗ̴̨̳̄ᚨ̵̡̬̐̋ᚱ̶̧͓̒ᚨ̷̱͐ ̷͚̫̆̊ᛚ̶̖͍͊̉ᛟ̴̛̜̐ᚺ̶̳̜̎̃"

Seidr. Astral essence. Undying human will. Rhenco's first glimpse of the new eternity, a four-eyed being as large as an old oak, celestial wings circling both of them protectively. Ichor dribbled from the veins in its elbow, singing across the ground as the creature shifted on its half-breed toes and cocked Its head at Rhenco, keeping a hold of his hand. In between massive, ink-black fingers and smaller, worn ones, a small metallic phial materialized, with thin glass sides that showed a brilliant black and gold liquid sloshing inside.

Concerned that Rhenco would have another heart attack, the being closed Its fingers around the man's, keeping the phial in his grasp. It trilled curiously, with the sounds of beautiful church bells and mortal death cries. It was only a second, true to Its word, but how long could a second possibly be?

[moe-lazyeye]

The sensation was beyond words. His vision was altered, his hearing drained away, his body surrendered control. The world turned around him even as he stood in place. All became one and one became all.

Liam was indeed the status quo. The restructuring of Rhenco's senses had nothing to do with Liam's supremacy, and everything to do with his own imbalance. But under his gaze and in the grip of his hand, for a moment, the very fibers of Rhenco's being tried to restructure themselves to return to harmony. In that moment, he knew the horrible truth: the mark of an indomitable human will was achieving the inner peace through the submission to reality, as opposed to trying to force nature itself to ones own selfish will.

The hate he felt was unnatural. So it felt far away. The hand that gripped his was guidance. The wings a comforting protection. The mind that radiated through his wise and worthy of recognition.

His following stillness wasn't so much a testament of Liam's ability to place someone in a trance, but more of Rhenco's own spiritual immobility. The sensations he experienced laid so much of who he was bare that he detached from participating in thought and life completely. He sat still on the ground, eyes wide and intensely focused on nothing, and refused to move, speak, or think. He refused to engage or acknowledge what had just happened. Refused to even find excuses or warp it to his own way of thinking. He was the embodiment of disassociation. When his subconscious finally permitted him to reengage, he found himself seated outside of a dark tower, the phial in his palm, and Liam close at hand.

[central-is-growing]

"Thought I broke you." The half-breed turned around, silhouetted against the circular silver door of the Magistrate's tower. It was decorated with delicate, yet bold raised circular designs in the shape of stars, suns and other unrecognizable spheres, and had no visible handle or lock. The irony of such unearthly symbols appearing behind Liam's casual soldier form was not lost on Rhenco, not with what he had just seen. "Take a beat. You okay?"

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 6]

[previous]

"Hmmm."

Liam's leg gently bounced in thought. He was definitely intrigued. He wanted enough to blow the Tyrant Eternal to dust instantly, but there was a good chance this could be overkill. Would he miss it? Most likely not. Yun would be able to replace whatever he gave away with a few years of Loom hopping. But he met Rhenco eye-to-eye, upside-down--a man who had both the capability, the willpower and the track record to inflict terrible, widespread damage--and he allowed the clear distrust to show on his face.

"Maybe. But we'll have to configure a stronger agreement for that one," he noted. "Something more structured than 'pretty please don't use this on anything but Kezia,' y'know?"

[moe-lazyeye]

"If that involves lifting this barrier in any way, we're going to have a very difficult time communicating through it." Rhenco warned as he jaw gave a light tick. "But...what did you have in mind?"

[central-is-growing]

"No, I don't think that's necessary. We can work around it." He kicked his legs to bring him back upright, turning partially to face Rhenco, the firelight playing across one side of his face. "Demon contract on overdrive," he said, in answer to Rhenco's question. "I agree to bite off a piece for you, and you agree to use it only for its intended purpose."

[moe-lazyeye]

"Which is?" Rhenco pressed.

[central-is-growing]

Liam stretched out both hands before him, palms perpendicular to the ground and facing away from him. With thumbs touching, his claws traced a golden circle in the air from top to bottom, and then he paused, leaving the sigil empty, waiting for his next move. "Expending everything that we've gathered or intend to gather to create a weapon strong enough to permanently defeat the Tyrant Eternal," he stated clearly, without deception. "No hanging onto the dregs for later. Full send. And I'll give you enough of myself to get that done."

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco surveyed the shimmering lines, and then nodded in agreement. "I take it...I use it all...nothing left over...she dies...he lives..."

[central-is-growing]

"You know what, yeah. I like that phrasing. The Rnalaths are kinda wordy."

The sigil flooded with rings and archaic symbols, some of them mimicking Nornic runes, some of them reminiscent of Daemon words. They danced and dissolved into glittering dust as Liam reached through it and held out his paw, palm-up, offering for Rhenco to take it. "Don't be scared, okay? It'll only be a second."

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco stretch out his hand in turn and clasped it. "Can't be worse than what I live n-"

[central-is-growing]

"ᚢ̶̥̻̿͗ᛟ̷͉͊̈ͅᚢ̴͇̲͑ᛚ̵̛̪̫̉ᛚ̸͍̀ ̵͙̰͋̆ᚾ̶̝̍̋ᛖ̸͈̚ ̵̹͚́ᛊ̵̘̍͘ᚨ̶̹͐ᛏ̴̞̊ᚨ̴̡̭̓̚ ̷̩̽ᚢ̴̯̯̊ᛟ̷̧̃,̵̝̂̊ ̴̙͑ᛗ̴̨̳̄ᚨ̵̡̬̐̋ᚱ̶̧͓̒ᚨ̷̱͐ ̷͚̫̆̊ᛚ̶̖͍͊̉ᛟ̴̛̜̐ᚺ̶̳̜̎̃"

Seidr. Astral essence. Undying human will. Rhenco's first glimpse of the new eternity, a four-eyed being as large as an old oak, celestial wings circling both of them protectively. Ichor dribbled from the veins in its elbow, singing across the ground as the creature shifted on its half-breed toes and cocked Its head at Rhenco, keeping a hold of his hand. In between massive, ink-black fingers and smaller, worn ones, a small metallic phial materialized, with thin glass sides that showed a brilliant black and gold liquid sloshing inside.

Concerned that Rhenco would have another heart attack, the being closed Its fingers around the man's, keeping the phial in his grasp. It trilled curiously, with the sounds of beautiful church bells and mortal death cries. It was only a second, true to Its word, but how long could a second possibly be?

[central-is-growing]

Restore and Reboot [pt 8]

[previous]

"As smooth a time?" His face was wry while he awkwardly wadded the coat in his hands. "Without my 'help', this wouldn't have happened."

The orders were fairly straightforward and thoughtful--they instructed High Central's military on how to move forward putting the Grounded Dungeon into operation, its expected routines, how to staff it, and most interestingly, the specific restriction on the age of its prisoners, no older than 20 years of age. Lila knew the stories. It was the violation of this specific protocol, the attitude of "fuck it, close enough" that allowed King Haddock into the dungeon, and to rouse its inhabitants into a fervent Rebellion.

[hubwalker1]

"That might be true. But if it were not for the dungeons, none of us would be here now, and High Central might have been more successful in their aims." Lila replied as she set the papers down again. "It's not something for which you are owed thanks, but things could have been worse."

[central-is-growing]

"It's hard to see it like that." He looked distantly out at the Frostbitten Fields, breath visible in the strong, wintery sunlight. "Lila...why are you here? You've got what you need. You're alive, and so that must mean the war is over. You, Chief Grey, your sister...I don't understand why you all can't just...let me go. For all intents and purposes, a traitor. No one would blame you for such a thing."

[hubwalker1]

"For one, Jari would never forgive me if I didn't at least try. She's grown quite fond of you." She replied as she walked over and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, turning him away from the frozen, lifeless expanse before them, and towards the warmth of her soft smile. "For another, despite the misdeeds of your past, despite the mistakes you've made, and the people you have hurt, you recognize your errors. You've tried to change, to make amends. While it may not earn you your freedom, it has earned you your life. You deserve to see what we build from the ashes of Central's defeat."

[central-is-growing]

"Ugh..." Blinking rapidly, the older man took off his glasses and wiped at both his eyes with his sleeve, using the action to hide his face from her. "You kids," he said, clearly growing congested. "You've done triple with your lives what I could ever do with mine. And now the whole world can recognize and celebrate it, and build something good out of this gods-damned mess."

[hubwalker1]

Her hand slid down to his back and she chuckled and nodded. "We'll make a better future for everyone. But we can't rightly do it from in here. Are you ready?"

[central-is-growing]

After pushing his glasses back on his nose, he sighed in a white cloud and nodded, the overwhelming dread hanging over him seeming to loosen and fade. He stepped in front of the desk, flipping the pages to the very end, where he knew his signature was required to set things into motion.

"Huh." Darien paused, cocking his head at the paper, and then sliding it towards Lila. At the very end of the formal paperwork was an additional clause--an agreement between two parties, to separate their memories and consciousnesses for good, with space for two people to sign instead of one.

[hubwalker1]

She looked it over carefully just to be safe, but couldn't help but chuckle. "I wouldn't have thought your mind would be so... meticulous." She joked as she started signing her name.

[central-is-growing]

"How do you know this isn't you?" he laughed, taking the quill from her once she was done. "You're stricter than most generals that worked under me."

[hubwalker1]

Lila lets out a good laugh at that. "Well, hopefully I won't need to be as strict now that I'm queen. At least not with my friends."

[central-is-growing]

"Maybe not with your friends. But at least stay that strict with me."

He put the quill to the paper, but then paused, realizing something. "If I'm in as poor of a mental shape as I expect to be..." Darien looked up at her, giving another wobbly smile. "Goodbye for now, Lila. And hopefully I'll recover quickly."

[hubwalker1]

She nodded at his request. "I'll see you on the other side." She said simply.

[central-is-growing]

With a heavy breath, he leaned forward and signed the order to put the Grounded Dungeon into operation, his name extremely neat, cursive and looping.

It was like jolting out of a nightmare in slow motion. Lila felt the aggressive tug upwards, straining through the many layers they had both traveled, and suddenly snapped awake on the floor of the apartment in the Jaw, very sweaty and with one of the blankets twisted violently around her lower half.

"Ghh--hjk--"

Lila, thank Hel-- The Warden's presence flooded back in, making her absence throughout the ordeal that much more obvious. He's panicking--

Darien's hand was fumbling at his throat, and it seemed like he was trying to sit up, but his movements were extremely uncoordinated and clumsy. His prosthetic leg fell from where it was propped up, making an alarming clatter, and Lila felt the man's mind flail against hers with the same ungainly movements as his body, though she noticed it with far less precision than before the procedure. The sound of his attempts at breathing were distressing to hear, choked and garbled and rushed.

[hubwalker1]

Lila quickly rushed to his side. He must still be scrambled. She tried to reach out to calm his mind, help straighten him out. She tried to remember the incantations, the hand signs she needed. But as she reached for that information she found it was no longer there. Desperately she tried to remember, something, anything to help, but was as if the slate were wiped clean.

She grabbed Darien's hand and turned to Nala. "You have to help him!"

[central-is-growing]

I am, I am. Just--just try to keep him calm. He is in shock. I am attempting to stabilize him. The Warden had materialized next to Lila as her natural self, amorphous and feminine with only a pair of bright eyes visible on her face. She knelt over the ex-Magistrate, hands moving as she worked. His body does not like being awake again...

At the feeling of Lila's hand around his, Darien managed to lock eyes with her, and she could tell with both Nala's and Darien's efforts, his breathing was attempting to re-start and return to normal. "Lll--lll--" he gagged, fingers like steel traps around Lila's hand and wrist. "Li--a--"

[central-is-growing]

Entrenched [pt 6]

[previous]

"Hmmm."

Liam's leg gently bounced in thought. He was definitely intrigued. He wanted enough to blow the Tyrant Eternal to dust instantly, but there was a good chance this could be overkill. Would he miss it? Most likely not. Yun would be able to replace whatever he gave away with a few years of Loom hopping. But he met Rhenco eye-to-eye, upside-down--a man who had both the capability, the willpower and the track record to inflict terrible, widespread damage--and he allowed the clear distrust to show on his face.

"Maybe. But we'll have to configure a stronger agreement for that one," he noted. "Something more structured than 'pretty please don't use this on anything but Kezia,' y'know?"

[moe-lazyeye]

"If that involves lifting this barrier in any way, we're going to have a very difficult time communicating through it." Rhenco warned as he jaw gave a light tick. "But...what did you have in mind?"

[central-is-growing]

"No, I don't think that's necessary. We can work around it." He kicked his legs to bring him back upright, turning partially to face Rhenco, the firelight playing across one side of his face. "Demon contract on overdrive," he said, in answer to Rhenco's question. "I agree to bite off a piece for you, and you agree to use it only for its intended purpose."

[moe-lazyeye]

"Which is?" Rhenco pressed.

[central-is-growing]

Liam stretched out both hands before him, palms perpendicular to the ground and facing away from him. With thumbs touching, his claws traced a golden circle in the air from top to bottom, and then he paused, leaving the sigil empty, waiting for his next move. "Expending everything that we've gathered or intend to gather to create a weapon strong enough to permanently defeat the Tyrant Eternal," he stated clearly, without deception. "No hanging onto the dregs for later. Full send. And I'll give you enough of myself to get that done."

[moe-lazyeye]

Rhenco surveyed the shimmering lines, and then nodded in agreement. "I take it...I use it all...nothing left over...she dies...he lives..."

[central-is-growing]

"You know what, yeah. I like that phrasing. The Rnalaths are kinda wordy."

The sigil flooded with rings and archaic symbols, some of them mimicking Nornic runes, some of them reminiscent of Daemon words. They danced and dissolved into glittering dust as Liam reached through it and held out his paw, palm-up, offering for Rhenco to take it. "Don't be scared, okay? It'll only be a second."