Fantasy Hunter's Moon [IC] [CLOSED]

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister carefully pocketed the quill Camille provided, somewhat uneasy about having to wield something like this. The silver bullets already stung his fingers like little embers when he had to reload his gun, but an accidental slice from the quill would be painful.

Once the horses arrived, he found his small leather traveling bag and changed his shirt, which was dirtied and tattered from the fight. He replaced it with a similar shirt of slightly finer quality, as he only carried with him the finest attire. Which was somewhat regretful now. He pulled on a black velvet vest as well, in case he needed more space to carry things, like a spare knife or quill.

"No objections from me, I suppose," he remarked in regards to Francis' plan. "They're probably ready to respond to any attack from us and I doubt we can catch them too much by surprise, but a multi-direction attack should put some stress on them, I'd imagine. The key is to not let ourselves get trapped and overwhelmed. If we have enough explosives to pass around to the groups, we can cause quite the round of mayhem. My concern is the duke joining the fight. Two people won't be able to match him alone."

 

[Infab]

Valeria was quiet for a moment, as the group discussed a plan of action. She gazed up at the large castle, scanning the walls and battlements for any signs of hostiles. There weren't any, just like Francis had pointed out. As Francis spoke of Rosanna, however, Sazak was the one to speak. Valeria looked out, glancing among them as her eyes shifted to Sazak's demonic ones. "If there is hope that the Dullahan is going to assist in this endeavor, then I should probably inform those less gifted that she's dead. Her aura faded along with that of the knight, Sir Tristyn. If you don't believe me, ask dear old Ethraeil here." she said. She then placed a hand on her hip, and casually pointed her revolver barrel towards the gate. "The nosferatu is through there. Waiting for all of us. And if I know Ashwood...he's in his study. Up there." She then pointed the revolver to the three tallest towers, motioning primarily to the right one.

"He won't stay there for long. Experiments require more room, you see. He might venture over to one of the other towers, or down to the roof of the keep. Large open area, there. Also...I should mention something you all seem to be forgetting about!" she then said, looking back to the group. "A certain individual by the name of Romanov! He's inside the castle, locked up. Aren't you going to rescue him? Otherwise, one of the vampires inside might decide to have a last snack before battle." She placed a finger to her chin, thinking. "Hmm...I recall them moving him to the bell tower under Cassandra's direct order. She seemed to find it easier to keep him alive there than in a dark, decrepit dungeon." she finally said, pointing the revolver at a smaller tower across towards the rear of the castle.

She then looked back to the group. "Ah well, I'm sure you all will work things out. Do be careful! I'd hate to see you all die before the big finale. Especially you, Ethraeil. Oh, and you too, Camille!~" she finally said, her voice bearing a playful tone as she spoke of Camille. Then, Sazak influence was gone as suddenly as it appeared. Valeria physically shook, as she exhaled a cold breath. "F-F-Fuck." she spat, rubbing her arms. Its far worse than before, likely because we're so close to the end of things.

She finally straightened up, looking to the others. "...Lets go with Francis' plans, then. Gather up what you need from around the village for your bombs and other items. Watch out for traps."

 

[joshuadim]

Ethraeil stayed silent as Sazak used Valeria to speak, and did not say a word until he was 'gone'. Well, that cat's out of the bag. he thought to himself before shaking his head.

"It's true. Rosanna is gone." he said with a solemn tone before turning to the castle. "Let us make sure her death was not in vain."

 

[K0mori]

Francis could barely look at Valeria during Sazak's brief possession, but once she reverted to normal he seemed to regain his nerve. Ethraeil's tone only amused him. "Let's not get too sentimental," he said as he walked towards the nearest crumbling edifice of the old village in search of scrap weapon material. "I can appreciate our luck in having her while she was useful, but she was still a dullahan. In the long run, they all turn out the same."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister listened in stunned silence to the reveal that Rose was, in fact, dead. She had apparently killed her rival dullahan in the fight, but loosing her after all this time was.... He didn't have the words to describe it to himself. It should have been her standing here with them at the end, for she had done much to deserve it.

His expression changed quickly from one of solemn astonishment to pure outraged disgust when Francis spoke, and his face curled into such a vicious snarl that he had to bring one shaking hand up to cover his face for a moment in shock.

"Useful?" He spat back. "You... you are the most despicable... worthless... utterly abhorrent excuse for a person I-I have ever known."

He had done so well to keep his increasingly fragile emotions in check, and Francis had so easily broken that facade in a few words as if he had simply brought a sledgehammer to an already shattered pane of glass. He even had to grip the back of his own shirt with his left hand as it continued to shake, trying to steady it, but more importantly conceal that he his claws had extended without permission. Camille was the only one to his back, so at least the others wouldn't have to see.

 

[K0mori]

Francis merely raised his eyebrows at Aleister's outburst and brandished his shotgun, but otherwise seemed calm. It was clear that he had expected a strong reaction on some level of his conscience.

"Yes, useful," he repeated, enunciating the syllables clearly. "Have you forgotten why you're here? I trust the Inquisition didn't request your presence out of an affinity for undead travelling companions. You've a right to think me a - what was it? - an abhorrent excuse for a person... it doesn't bother me that you think that. Really it doesn't. At least I am a 'person,' and not a creature. I could give a rat's ass what you and the rest of your monstrous lot think about the quality of my personage while yours slips a little further away from you every day."

 

[Dmaster]

Camille had turned her head once Sazak spoke through Valeria yet again, given pause by the unsettling sight yet keeping her nerve just fine as Sazak gave them several details. And he even granted them the knowledge of Rosanna's demise. The huntress simply twisted her mouth, not even bothering to take the playful threat he finished with a word of retaliation or a second thought. She wagered that he was so insufferable that he must be a pain for even other demons to deal with. Still Camille was unsure on how to feel about Rosanna's death - the two never really fully got along, and it was likely she died thinking that Camille was still a terrible person. The madness that befell her was something that she had to deal with in time, and the huntress felt a premature and noble death as yourself was always better than the alternative in these cases.

There was little time to mourn even if she held such emotions toward their ally in her heart, they would certainly not be as strong without her. Francis piped up with a stance that made even her eyes roll, though that viewpoint precisely matched her own at the start of the journey. The events of the inquiry had reminded her that those she thought as monsters were still people once, and not every afflicted being is willing to see themselves become something horrible. Even if they would inevitably become the monsters they fear, they should be respected when they pass.

Aleister reacted quite predictably, her gaze falling on his extended claws. Murderous intent wasn't a good look for a priest, and even though he was rightfully angry she still felt her hands moving to her weaponry slowly, just as a precaution. She had noted how unstable he had been lately but she wasn't expecting too big of an altercation to take place here. As Francis egged him on further she walked between the two of them in an effort to break things up. One hand was casually resting on the grip of her rapier, and she looked at the two of them with a scowl. "Need I remind you all that we are mere moments away from confronting someone who plans to ruin the world? Get a hold of yourselves!" she calls out, suddenly drawing her blade to point at Aleister. "You of all vampires should know by now that some people cannot be changed, and they will live their lives spouting drivel without the slightest regret on their conscience."

With a quick pivot and slash of the weapon through the air she then points at Francis. "While you and I may agree on certain aspects of the afflicted I will ask that you hold yourself to a higher standard. We work together because of the gravity of the situation. I have gone much of this inquiry not speaking my mind and I am appalled that Witlock allows you to spout such scathing jabs at those we work with, when she was all too happy to shut me up when I did so when we first began." she scolds, glaring at the Senior Inquisitor who was no doubt still recovering from Sazak's influence. "Also, of all the enemies to make in this inquiry, perhaps it is a bit unwise to get the priest to hate you. If I were in his place, I would lack the patience and maturity to stitch up your gaping wounds."

She turns her eyes on Aleister, yet keeps her blade pointed at Francis. "He's saved my life more than once at this point, even if we disagree or perhaps despise one another. If you fail to so much as acknowledge the character in that, perhaps you are as awful as they see you as."

 

[Breadman]

"No, Ethreail, I mean-" Theodore was interrupted by Sazak's hellish intrusion. Unfortunately for the scholar the demon answered the question and the lich confirmed it. He was shocked to say the least. The mask must have hidden his reaction well if nobody took notice. Or maybe all the attention was drawn to someone else. Francis probably has no idea of how lucky he is that Camille is trying to calm the situation. The inquisitor stood next to him, arms crossed and scanning the town. A trading post was nearby. Maybe there was something of use.

"Trouduc sans pitié" escaped Theodore's lips quickly before he said anything else to the man. "We need to organize our supply to make sure this plan works." The short man looked up to him "Unless you wish to anger someone else?"

 

[K0mori]

Having long since lowered the barrels of his gun to signify his complacency with the situation, Francis gave a bit of a smirk as Camille not-so-subtly complained about the Senior Inquisitor's selective enforcement of civility. "Well, you don't sound bitter at all," he quipped before she had finished speaking. Once she had further explained that Aleister had repeatedly saved her life, Francis's sarcastic tone turned more serious. "He is what he is. He could save my life a hundred times over, but if we mistake the charade for 'character' or even humanity, then we're truly doomed as a species. Today here stands a most cultured priest, tomorrow..." Francis pointed darkly at the castle towers. "Mark my words."

He turned to Theodore as the man proposed a quick exit. With a nod, he replied, "I've said enough. Let's go."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister didn't listen to, or perhaps didn't hear, much of what Camille had to say. Francis was an utter anathema. That a person who could speak such vile words was fighting for the benefit of the world made one wonder if there was much worth saving anymore. Perhaps what made matters worse was that there were plenty more like Francis out there. To be repeatedly spoken to as if he were cattle - less than cattle - in such an arrogant manner stroked the flames of hate to such a degree that for the briefest moment he considered simply walking away from this. Let them all die, if that was to be fate.

Instead he made a simple vow to himself that he would sooner slit his own throat than provide any healing for Francis. It was hard to say if that was his own idea, or his subconscious mind picking up on Camille's muted words. In fact, he could very likely kill him under the guise of trying to save his life with magic, if he so desired. And make it painful. Very painful.

Unable to say anything, he turned away, waiting for the inquiry to advance.

 

[Dmaster]

Camille shook her head, starting to sheathe her rapier as Aleister turned away from the scene. She was a bit put off by his uncharacteristic silence in this situation, frowning slightly as she resumed her search for an inconspicuous entrance. As she kept on telling herself they simply didn't have the time for these kinds of discussions. The sooner Ashwood was dead and Valeria was taken care of, they could rest easier.

 

[Infab]

Valeria continued to recover slowly from Sazak's influence over her, glancing over and taking note of Camille's glare as the group reacted to Francis and Aleister. Francis had joined them at his own volition, even after she had informed him of the supernatural members of the group. She knew that they wouldn't be working together for very long, since they were so close to killing the Duke and ending this inquiry. They'd never have to see Francis again after this ordeal. If the group could tolerate Camille's complaints and comments, she figured that they could tolerate Francis and his own. Apparently they could not, and Camille took the chance to take a jab at Valeria because of it. Of course she would. The woman never liked her, and quite frankly the feeling was mutual. Still, they wouldn't have much longer to tolerate each other's company. Soon, Valeria would be dead, and Camille could go back to Escaria where she belonged.

I could have killed her on the spot after Ashwood was dead, if you hadn't made that little stipulation of yours. Valeria's eyes narrowed, as she finally straightened up. My personal feelings matter not when it comes to her life. You do not harm her or any of the others. She began to look around the village, looking for anything that could prove potentially useful to the group. Minutes later, the group gathered back together. A pair of alternative entrances had been found inside the village itself. One, behind a collapsed guard house on the left side of the castle, lead down under the dried moat. Likely emerging somewhere inside the castle's lower levels. The other, in a false wall behind old barrels inside a goods shop near the fountain, seemed to lead under the moat as well towards the right side of the castle.

These were simple escape tunnels used by royalty to escape in the event of an invasion. Potential ways to enter the castle as well, but as Francis said, the enemy was likely prepared in the event that they used the tunnels. The group would have to divide up and take multiple routes. Including going across the central bridge and up the walls, and breaching through various locations with explosives. As Francis and Theodore prepared more explosives and tools to use, Valeria spoke again. "We go with Francis' plan. Aleister and Camille can take one of the tunnels, while Theodore, Francis, and Wesley head through the roof somewhere. Myself, Ethraeil, and Galina will head through the front. We attack at multiple angles and throw them off." she stated. She then stepped over to her horse, and drew Velin's executioner blade off. Wrapped in leather straps, she used a few of them to secure the sword to her back. She checked her revolver ammunition, then her own personal sword. She was ready to go.

Soon, Francis and Theodore had finished preparing their gear. Francis, having looked thoroughly through the village, had constructed various firebombs and incendiary shells to use as well as nifty little shrapnel bombs using bits of steel and silver. He also had fashioned a grappling hook to use, using some bent pieces of metal and rope. It would help once they blew through the ceiling of the castle. Theodore had found more ingredients to use for acids and sticky substances. Useful in slowing the enemy down. Once they were ready, Valeria motioned for everyone to move out. Aleister and Camille moved towards the tunnel they chose, while the rest moved through the gate and across the bridge to the main wall.

Once they arrived, Wesley moved up the wall with the rope, before pulling Francis and Theodore up. Leaving only Valeria, Ethraeil, and Galina at the wall's gate. "If you would, Ethraeil." said Valeria simply, motioning to the gate. A moment later, Ethraeil stepped over and froze a large section of the gate with his ice powers. He then gave it a solid punch, shattering the frozen portion of the gate and stepping through.

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END OF CHAPTER THREE

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[Infab]

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THE FINALE

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​

The area surrounding the keep and other parts of the castle between the outer wall was relatively abandoned. There were old trees catered about, having lost their leaves due to the autumn weather. The grass had grown up as well, some of it almost knee high. The cobblestone path to the large main door of the keep was worn and broken in places, covered in large splotches of grass and moss. The castle itself bore several cracks, and bits of stone were missing in places on its walls and towers. Still, it stood tall, towering over them and over the mountains surrounding it.

Valeria glanced to the others, before walking towards the main door of the keep. It seemed to be slightly ajar, as if someone had accidentally left the door open. There was a blood stain on the door as well. Someone had been gravely wounded here. Valeria looked back to Ethraeil for a moment, before stepping over and cautiously pushing the door open. Just inside the door was a dead knight. "...What the hell?" she muttered, studying the dead vampiric knight on the ground. His head was missing, and he had several slices through his armor and flesh. Further in were a few more knight corpses. Did the others already get inside? Valeria glanced up. No holes in the ceiling yet. As they continued into the main hall, she did see a shadow on the wall on an upper balcony. It was tall, and resembled that of Edmond, but disappeared rather quickly before she could be sure it was him.

The main hall looked like what one would expect for such a large castle. Large stone staircases, old carpet on the stone floors. Faded and torn paintings on the walls here and there along with old torches. A few large pillars stretching up to the high ceiling, where several large chandeliers hung. There were a few wooden double doors nearby, leading to other parts of the castle, as well as a set of stairs descending down between the two grand staircases. A few large banners hung down from the second floor balcony, bearing the colors of Atraca from long ago. They were faded now, with parts missing and several large tears.

Valeria glanced back down to the bodies on the floor in the center of the hall. "Did Edmond kill his own men?" she said, glancing back to Ethraeil and Galina. "It appears so." replied Galina.

---
​

Camille and Aleister descended through the hidden door behind the guard house outside, climbing down an old ladder into a dark stone tunnel. Aleister quickly cast a small floating light, and the two began their trek through the tunnel towards the innards of the castle. There were several traps inside the tunnel, mostly bear traps set quickly to impede progress. Simple, but effective. Thankfully, Camille's rapier and quills were useful in disarming the traps. Soon enough, they came to a flat stone wall. The end of the tunnel. There was a switch to open it somewhere, but the problem was finding it. There were a pair of torches on the walls next to them, as well as a few loose bricks in the wall itself. The question was which actually opened the door?

---
​

Meanwhile, Wesley, Theodore, and Francis moved along the wall as it wound around to the left side of the castle. The wall itself was in the same state as the castle itself: covered in cracked or crumbling stone and old wood. One wrong step, and you could be sent down inside the wall due to rotten wood. There were stairs that descended down into the walls and towers, but they weren't going down into those. Eventually, they found that it connected to the side of the keep's upper levels. There was a door that they could pass through, but where was the fun in that? They were going up. Wesley took the rope that Francis offered, walking up the wall and lowering it down to them once he had reached the top. One at a time, he pulled Francis and Theodore up to the roof with him. Now was the moment to find a nice spot atop the keep to blast through.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Blending into the shadows, the nosferatu looked upon Valeria, Galina, and Ethraeil. His aura hidden by ancient magics. "...I must congratulate you. You...are truly determined in...your honorable cause." The nosferatu walked through the shadows, his eyes studying the three inquisitors standing in the main hall. "I have...indeed killed these men....Mindless...brainwashed drones. Creatures...no longer thinking, independent beings. It was...mercy, in a twisted...and sad way."

The nosferatu's shadow was sometimes visible on the walls and floor, due to the light of the dim torches in the hall. "I must ask...Inquisitors..." He suddenly stepped out from behind a pillar near them, becoming visible for a moment and looking down at the inquisitors. "What...moves you onwards? What makes you...want to finish all of this? Is it...sense of duty? Responsibility? Money?....Hate?"

 

[Dmaster]

Camille kept her eyes peeled for the numerous traps that lined their route into the castle. She made certain to trigger every bear trap into a state of uselessness, sliding her rapier in horizontally to simply press the pressure pad down beneath the snapping jaws. It took them longer to traverse because of this, but she felt it was a necessary precaution if they needed to make an escape the way they came.

Once they came to the flat wall before them she frowned, feeling up the loose stones and identifying them before turning her attention to the torches. "Well I suppose that we just have to try everything until this opens." she states, looking back to Aleister as she tried to throw the right torch as if it were a switch. "... How are you feeling?"

 

[joshuadim]

Ethraeil stayed quiet as the trio moved through the keep. This was strange indeed, did the Nosferatu turn on his master? Or was this a ploy to let their guard down? Ethraeil though about this, keeping himself alert as they moved forward.

Then Edmond appeared. Ethraeil looked straight at the being with a look that could only be described as disgust. "Why do you care all so sudden?" he spat. "Only now do you question the Duke? After all the atrocities he has committed?"

He then shook his head. "Tell me then. What drives you? Was it power he promised you? A world where the weak are nothing more than cattle to be slaughtered at his whim?"

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Edmond walked back into the shadows as Ethraeil spoke to him. "What drives...me onwards?" Edmond made a sad chuckle as he used the darkness as his shelter. "No, my friend....There was no...promise of power. There was no...genocidal quest...When I met Joseph, the real Joseph Ashwood...I met a visionary....A kind...gentle soul. He gave me purpose...a motive to move onwards." He stopped for a moment, gently stroking the elven charm on his neck. "But that Joseph is... Gone... Now? I have nothing, and I...I will die without a purpose...without a cause. A knight...without a reason to fight for...Isn't that sad?" Now, standing on another balcony, Edmond made himself visible again. "...You still...have not answered...Ethraeil."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Aleister maintained his silence as he and Camille carried on through the tunnel, safely setting off traps and carrying past them until they reached the end of the tunnel. He nodded at her assessment on needing to try multiple bricks, and he helped examine the wall for any bricks would would allow them to gain entry, as well as for any pressure plates on the ground. He also tried to keep an eye out for anymore hidden traps nearby.

"How am I feeling?" He echoed with a pout, not pausing in his work. "Tired. Upset. Fed up with this nonsense. I want to be done and away."

 

[Dmaster]

She nodded at the wall as she continued to pull and twist on the torch she slelected, thorough in testing for any mechanism to throw or trigger. Aleister's response gave her pause, quite honestly surprised at how much of their journey has beaten all the positivity out of him. "Strange. I remember saying far worse things about you earlier and you didn't seem nearly so depressed. You made every effort to tease me for the longest. What's changed?" she asks him, back still turned as she messes with the torch still.

"There will always be people like him. People like me. No reason to let them detract from what you wish to achieve. The world is only as bleak and miserable as we make it, I think." Camille reasons, pausing for a bit. "Mariette was a hollow shell of her old, true self before she passed. Rosanna died hating me although she did so to protect all of us, including me. Valeria may well die in less than a few small hours. Death comes for everyone, and it hardly cares for unfinished business or closure. One callous man's outlook doesn't make a friend's death less meaningful, oui?"

 

[joshuadim]

Ethraeil stayed silent for a moment, taken aback by the question posed earlier. I could've left at any time... I have my phylactery... I have everything I need for my freedom... why did I stay? he thought to himself.

He then spoke up: "Because I'm a monster. But I choose not to be."

 

[KRIY]

Wesley pulled up the rope up, tied it into a bundle and placed it behind him. He faced forward to the two other inquiry members behind him. "Alright, here's the plan. We'll have to find a soft spot on top of this roof and blow a hole on it. We don't know who or what's waiting for us once we actually get in there, so lets hope we don't wander into any trouble."

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Edmond just stood there in complete silence. Ethraeil's answer had completely taken him by surprise, and his words stabbed right through him. He, just like the Frost Lich on the floor below, was a monster. A creature that was considered undesirable in the eyes of mankind. Edmond tried to fight back against that stigma. He fought hard when the Age of Darkness came, to prove he was more than a monster. But in the end, he just gave up. But Ethraeil's fight was just starting. Maybe it'll end the same as Edmond's, or maybe it won't. Maybe the lich was stronger than the knight could have ever wished to be. Edmond exchanged a look with Ethraeil, before looking to Valeria and Galina. He could see the determination in their eyes. The ambition of the Tsavanian, and the sense of duty and responsibility of the senior inquisitor. Even if she was bound to a terrible, disgusting being like Sazak. Edmond looked down, before walking back into the shadows. They were ready to face their fate.

 

[Emperor Sagan]

"I... don't know," Aleister said softly. "I've lost so much of myself over these past days. With it has gone some of my patience. My mood has been soured so much that I wonder how much of myself will remain by the end of all of this."

"I resent death as thoroughly as it resents us. Mariette, she... well, that was her own accord, at the very least. Even with Rose she did it to help us keep moving forward. And rather than a period of peace to understand their passing, I must tolerate that wretched excuse for a man." Aleister's fingers dug into the brickwork as he said this before he moved on to examining another brick. "I can handle the venom he directs at me. Yet the complete disrespect he offers to others displeases me to no small extent, and to speak in such a callous manner of Rose was... was atrocious. That ungrateful bastard. He is nothing, quite literally, nothing, compared to every single person in this inquiry. Valeria stands miles above him on the peak of duty, as misguided as some of her actions, than that roach which thinks so highly of himself."

"The world has always been, and will always be, miserable and bleak. I've sailed so far away from such dark waters to ignore it that now I feel poisoned when I am forced to witness it again. And for that, now I resent myself. And that isn't all that I resent, dear Camille, oh no. I resent the gods. That we have to stand here to do their work is an insult to the faith of every man, woman, and child of this world. This world is on the brink of a terrible new age, and there are no angels to the rescue, no great magic to bolster us, nothing. Simply us."

 

[Infab]

Valeria and Galina listened as Edmond and Ethraeil exchanged words, before Edmond vanished into the shadows. It seemed that they wouldn't be fighting the nosferatu just yet. For now, they would have to explore the castle. And keep a lookout for any traps or hostiles that Edmond might not have killed. "Lets go. We should meet up with the others as soon as we can." said Valeria, looking to Ethraeil and Galina before moving in the direction of one of the grand staircases.

---
​

Soon enough, Camille's fiddling with the torch pays off. It twists, although taking a bit of effort, and the wall begins to shift and move out of the way. On the other side, a large and dark empty room. There were rusty cages dotting the room, most empty. Some had apparently fallen from the ceiling above, overturned and laying sideways on the floor with their doors wide open. Others contained parts of skeletons like ribs and skulls. Aleister's floating orb of light assisted in lighting the way for them, as they traversed the room through the cages. There was signs of one of the cages having been used, door hanging open with fresh blood staining the floor beneath. Very likely the one that Cassandra had used to store the Romanov in. Whom they still needed to rescue from the bell tower.

 

[Dmaster]

The huntress pivoted to see the heavy stone wall move from her efforts, redrawing her rapier as it locks into place and Aleister finishes speaking. As she steps inside, she is cautious as ever, looking among the cages and even stopping to see the trail of blood left from the Romanov. Still, the vampire's words were on her mind, and as they stepped ahead she thought on what to say.

"There is no changing some people. In most cases they do it themselves or die the same flawed fool they always were. A time will surely come for him, like with everyone else." Camille asserted. "From reverence to resentment is quite a leap, hm... Frankly I am not all that religious, and I've always felt that the gods are just as flawed as we humans are. That is easy to see now, the situation their hubris has put us in - leaving us to fix their mess with little in the way of aid..." She paused, creeping through the dungeon before speaking again.

"And I welcome the opportunity. Were it not for a true crisis such as this I would have walked away from the inquiry far sooner. I've come to realise that the gods being so esoteric, so useless in times such as this is more of a boon than damnation through inaction. Is your work as a priest now invalid simply because the gods are not who you thought they were? No, in spreading your message you and those who dedicate themselves to faith grant countless people hope, misplaced or no. Sometimes that is all a person needs to keep clinging to life, to work through hardship."

"If they were to intervene in every misfortune, coddle us and protect us - we would be too weak to stand on our own two feet. There is no 'simply us', Aleister, we are stronger than what lies ahead of us. Not because we simply are, but because we need to be."