Coming out of the Fog

[Rhade]

Rhade was somewhat bothered by the thick fog surrounding her.  Whenever her sight was restricted thus, she found herself feeling a strange disconnect to the surroundings.  Noises seemed amplified yet ambiguously distant, echoing almost.  It wasn't surprising to her: the entire citadel was a foreign environment that had her on edge.

Suddenly the fog parted and Rhade once again found the Empress.  The priestess of death, takes a few steps forward, eyeing the Empress carefully to note her reaction to Rhade's appearance.  Quickly, her mind estimates the distance between the two women, though Rhade is quite sure that the staff which the beautiful woman before her holds is more than powerful enough to send her to her goddess.  

"Mmm, I did not quite finish," she says in Sythian.  Rhade pauses for a moment to allow the Empress to understand she is picking up where she left off.

"I have dreamed of vengeance, of your destruction.  But, perhaps my service to the soul, and to death, has betrayed my hate.  I know nothing short of death will allow me to be reunited with them.  I believe that something between life and death might allow you a similar reunion."

"So I offer you a choice.  You may kill me, thus rendering me a service and reunite me with my beloved brother.  Or you can stay your hand, and perhaps I can render you a service, reuniting you with your beloved."

Rhade stops speaking and waits for the Empress' reaction.  In the very corners of her mind she hopes that she did not presume too much from the information contained in those papers she had found.

[Liriel]

Liriel flinches as the fog begins to thin, sliding closer to Gibreel and pulling the struggling elf closer to her, her sword still held steady in her right hand and her shield arm holding the smaller elf firmly in place, the shield buckled to her arm protecting both of them somewhat as he is held in front of her.

Remembering Gibreel's warning, she does not look directly at the woman in the clearing fog, though her glance catches the staff in her hand before slipping hurridly away with a shudder.

[Gibreel]

Gibreel watches as the fog clears and adds one last spell to those active around, a simple spell that will allow him to understand languages. Remembering Liriel's thought in his head concerning that we are 'supposed to show her the lie' he talks to Gul-shad and Krystal.

"Alright Gul-shad, let's go forward. Krystal, if you can defend him." Gibreel adds and with that he moves forward with Liriel.

They move as Liriel's voice rings out through the fog "You've been told a lie. Your emperor isn't with Diadra, she can't give him back to you, but we can. I've seen him and the arch can show you too." Dredging through her memories of what she was told, she adds "I think it will take you to him if you use it. Look at it, at least."

"Lasa said you attack us because Diadra told you she'd give him back to you if you defeat us, but she doesn't have him to give. Look at it and see."


As the group moves through the fog Gibreel adds yet again "Careful, do not make eye contact at all."

[Xxian]

The eerie silence that filled the room, the fog dissapating slowly, and the resinance of voices, bouncing from the cold hard walls, had chills running up Xxians back.  He has not raised his eyes from the floor since they stepped into the room, instead, using his periphial vison and accute hearing to tell him what was and where.

Gibreels word to move came as no surprise, he did however, take just a moment for what was about to happen to sink in, before adjusting his grip and preparing to move in unison with the orc.

[Scionist]

*Hearing Gibreels voice he follows it out of the fog.  Trudging along with the arch he looks to see if Krystal is still with him, guarding his exposed back.*

[Dalan]

(You can be as close or as far from the Pedestal the Empress is standing on as you want to be.  As the fog clears, she )

There is long moments of silence as the Empress considers Rhade's and Liriel's words.   She ignores most of what they say with a bemused smile, but focuses on one word.

"Lasa?  My subjects, you dare to bring Lasalia to me?  She is a traitor and deserves a long and painful death."

She takes a few steps forward, out of the shimmering globe surrounding her and aims outward with her staff towards Lasa.  

"Lasalia Zorrander, you deserve far worse than this for your treason.  Yet the my love has taken a liking to you, and you revealed much to my servants.  So I grant you an easy death.  Die."

As Lasa crumples to the floor she addresses Liriel.

"I don't know who you are, but you sound like one of those Thardferrian whores.  If you don't keep your trap shut, I will silence it permanently."

She turns to Rhade.  "As I recognize you as a priestess of Diadra, I will ignore your insolence and your ignorance.  Perhaps you should pray to our Goddess again, as you have no idea of what you speak."

She then addresses all of the room.

"I know there are traitors among you, but I also know there are loyal subjects here.  Loyal subjects, please prostrate yourself before your Empress so that I may dispatch those disloyal to me."

[Robillard]

Robillard throws his staff onto the ground and takes a few steps forward from the arch.  "Bah.  Why bother?  You don't know the damn difference between one and the other anyway."  Almost completely out of spells, perhaps the young mage can still be useful as a distraction though that's not what he's thinking now.

"I barely know Rhade but you're in no position to call her ignorant."  Robillard continues in Sythian.  "You killed my parents and they were completely loyal to you!  You've tried to kill both my sisters and they were completely loyal before you killed my mother and father!  I never would have even considered attacking you if you hadn't done all that!"

"You brought this all on yourself and now it ends.  When you're on the floor begging for mercy with your last breath, remember that you caused this when you hurt my family!  You're going to die today, and even if you win you'll just be a paranoid fool who's thrown away all of her most useful servants. A withered husk crying cause no one loves her anymore."

[Nyrhtlyk the Dark]

As the fog clears, Damian takes himself closer to Liriel, remaining carefully outside of any combat range she may find. Still knowing the odds are greatly against him, he's content to wait and bide his time, using his staff to absorb any arcane spell energy directed towards him and knowing that he still has a few tricks up his sleeve, but now is not yet the time to use them.

[Dalan]

The Empress slowly steps back into the shimmering Sphere, and smiling haughtily she explains to Robillard.

"Don't worry my love, soon you will not care at all for what happened to her.  Soon we shall be reunited together..."

She looks around at the others, looking to see if she recognizes any of the faces, and to see how they are reacting to her command.

[Dalan]

She eyes Zee, Jan'Doire, and any other Elf in the party (Sorry I can't remember which of the NPCs were Elves or not).  She looks at them confusedly and turns to Rhade again.  "Hermila?  Why did you bring the enemy here to my private audience chamber?  Did you wish to torture them before my eyes again?  I don't like surprises, so explain yourself."

She gazes at Rhade in suspicion and disapproval.

[Dalan]

As Gul, Xxian, and Krystal set down the Arch in front of the Empress she commands loudly.  "What is this?  Is this a present for your Empress?  I didn't ask for any present."

She smiles mildly.  As it sits there, facing the Emperss, there is a sudden loud crackle of energy, and white light pours forth from it.  It bathes the Empress in a golden light that she closes her eyes and flinches away from.  

Squinting towards those who brought it in front of her, she screams out in anger, "How dare you bring that before me!"

[Zee]

*Looks down feinting a blush and rubbing his toe in the dirt as the empress adresses rhade about he and his brethren. . o O (Yea... the empress smart one she is - the two of us except rithas... meh i dont really like him anymore he punched me... where was i, right the two of us are standing here armed to the teeth entirely un-restrained and she think's we're here for her to play with. I might enjoy dangling her over a cliff by her little toe and using her for target practice... Ahh celenia i wouldnt actually do it - they wouldn't let me especially turg - we both know he'd kill her before i got the opportunity - again not that i'd take it.) O o . *He chuckles to himself slightly.*

[Swaniff]

Tolin also steps upto and near to Gul and the others nearby to the orc, inorder that the hopebringer's protections can be hopefully useful to them also.  He holds his manchatcher in one hand, the other holds a small, metal forked rod.  He closes his eyes momentarily, his lips moving in silent prayer and he reopens them, almost uncannily calmed and says with a compassionate smile.

"Behold, the peace arch..."

[Dalan]

(I would just like to point out, while the Empress can be understood by everyone, she is not speaking in common.)

[Liriel]

Liriel's eyes grow wide as the Empress speaks, her mouth falling open in some shock as she tries to process everything being said.  She quickly translates from Sythian as the Empress continues, projecting her thoughts to all in the link.

She adds a final thought as the woman falls silent .oO(I think she's mixed people up with others for some reason.  I'm going to try something, but don't worry, I'm still me.)Oo.

Still holding the struggling elf, she speaks again using borrowed words, this time in Sythian, her accent as perfect as that of the Empress herself "Your beloved -- the one who was taken from you by the great flood after the fire from the sky -- he's waiting for you.  You were tricked before.  That thing you hold controls you, but you can beat it."

Shuddering slightly as the woman's attention turns to her again, she continues "All you need is the will to join him in the light in the arch.  Look at it closer, you'll see him there.  He's waiting for you.  You just need to believe it."