Fantasy Hunter's Moon: The Sin & Sentence [IC] [CLOSED]

[Emperor Sagan]

Inari glanced towards Senya, her eyes going wide. "Yes! That very true, you speak most well!" Mark that off as another that sees the rationale in war, Inari thought. They needed to secure their own supply or face more struggle than they needed. Aside from the issues of maintaining a supply line, there was the fact that they could easily be betrayed by their benefactors. Who is to say that, at some point, their supply might not be carefully limited or outright denied by convenient reasoning? And even without intrigue, Inari didn't know the connections of these demons and what manner of goods they could procure for them, or if they could always keep up with them. A conspirator against the king likely couldn't show their face in public, but what did she know about Abyssal politics?

Gwen still seemed a little out of it, and the kitsune gave the elf a hearty, friendly, pat on the back. She had to arrest the force of her hand half-way through as she realized the elf might be a little more fragile than the others, but that didn't stop her from giving Gwen a few modest pats. When she finished that, she kept her arm wrapped around her shoulder.

"You have big gun, but no sword? I can teach, yes?" She said, sad not to get an answer from the elf from her earlier questions, but content to pass the time otherwise.

 

[ANIMAL MOTHER]

Loque pulls out the packet of cigarettes again, eager to share her smokes. She also casts fire from her fingers once more to serve as a lighter incase Anya needed it. "Don't hesitate to ask for another. I've got a feeling we're going to need every smoke break we can get."

 

[K0mori]

"Blagodaryu vas," Anya says as she takes the cigarette and places it in her mouth, taking a slow drag before gently releasing the smoke. She had a peculiar method of holding the cigarette; instead of keeping it between her fingers, she cradled it between her second knuckles and held her hand sideways to let the ashes fall free. Seeing that others were preoccupied in conversation, Anya decided to make conversation with the demon, as it was clear from the context of earlier conversations that Loque was from the modern age, and so there would be at least something the two could find to talk about that wouldn't involve an argument. "You are Escarian, no?" Anya began. "Many vampires, lycans flee from there recently, looking for refuge. Velin does not scare you, does she? How do you live there?"

She had trouble expressing herself, but she meant well. She was curious how Loque was able to live in the mortal realm without arousing suspicions, especially in an era of violent, church-led purges.

 

[Damian0358]

Takato observed as Senya briefly joined him and Venextos, the former asking the latter about his exact nature, using the term 'mage'. He carefully listened to pick up what his proper title was: 'Grand Magus'. Even if he wasn't of the Raven Court anymore, based on his wording, the former half of the title would be one to remember. After she responded, she ended up shifting from them to the ongoing conversation, which had moved towards discussing the elves at that point, with Inari seemed to take point. As he noted Anya joining Loque in her smoking, he looked at Venextos once more as he listened in on the current conversation. Though he didn't know what Venextos might ask of him next, the oni seemed visibly interested in continuing their own conversation.

 

[SniperComZero]

An elf is a rather frail thing. A high elf who has up until now never seen much open combat beyond those sparring in the barracks and courtyard, and the odd, uncoordinated drunken fistfight, even moreso. The hearty pats against Gwen's back near made her stumble over onto her face, an embarrassed flush to her cheeks as she nearly went ass-over-end. As much as she didn't want to make herself seem weak, the arm around her... comforted her, somewhat. Her mind had wandered into dark places after her shock of revelation. Whilst she didn't lean into Inari, she didn't push her away, either.

"A... sword?" Gwenaelle slowly shook her head. "Non, non. I'd... rather not get my hands dirty. Plus, this is a far more... efficient tool."

 

[ANIMAL MOTHER]

"Many vampires, lycans flee from there recently, looking for refuge. Velin does not scare you, does she? How do you live there?"

"Comfortably in a luxurious manor I built with my own money, of course!" She lets out a giggle and turns to Anya, hoping to see if there's any reaction. After the awkward silence, she comes out with the truth.

"Alright, alright. The real answer this time. It's true, I do live comfortably while surrounded by Velin's gang of suitors and demon or vampire or werewolf or whatver, they know better than to disturb me." She tosses an arm around Anya's shoulder and reels her in a little closer and lowers her voice, intent on keeping this between eachother. "My personal magic trick to have the church bugger off from my affairs is this." From her coat she produces several golden coins. "I send some to the right people, at the right time, at the right place. I send a few hundred at a church here, I send a few dozen plus some handymen at a church over there. I make it look like I care really really deeply about them when in all honesty I couldn't give an orc's toss. Trust me when I say the church is not as incorruptible as they parade themselves to be." Finally after revealing her bribery and corruption, she removes her arm from Anya.

"And as for Velin, I am not scared of that armored I'm uncultured one. Single. Bit. But, I hate her. I do hate her, and not just because she enjoys murdering my kind without impunity. She's no god. She's a fucking child. She throws a baby's tantrum whenever something even slightly offends her, and always it ends in hundreds or even thousands dead. You know, for a god of judgement or whatever it is she's been misattributed to, she's really forgotten the other part of judgement: mercy... But alas, I'm a demon, and everyone is supposed to hate me. So what care would anyone have about my observation of this spoiled brat-turned-god?"

 

[Emperor Sagan]

"Don't be silly! Sword very efficient, no bullet to reload. Just blade. Can keep killing much longer than gun," Inari said happily. She drew out her wakizashi - a pearl-handeled short sword smaller than her katana - in her other hand and held it up for Gwen to see. It was no common soldier's blade. The metal was immaculately clean, nearly pristine, though it had a particular dull luster that kept it from shining in the dim misty light. Curious black ink lined the pearl grip in a web, almost like painted on scales, and at the right angle it shimmered a deep, dark blue. There was little flourish to the handguard, which was relatively bare, save for a few small foreign words printed on it. The blade seemed to fit a ground between elegant and frighteningly efficient. This was far from an ornamental piece.

"Often dirty, yes, but that part of fun! Sword make fighting intimate. Show passion easier than gun, where trigger pull and finished. Easier, yes. Efficient, sometimes. But not like art. Art very good," she explained, glancing at the elf. Had Gwen been a soldier from her banner, she might have given her a punch to the gut to test their muscle and reaction, on top of the camaraderie it already displayed. This woman was... more like a cherry blossom leaf rather than the bark. Still, she had gotten more than a few ninja under her hands. They were often strong, but not always, and some were fragile little things that drifted like water through the air. They squirmed quite well under a strong grip. Assassins were a nuisance, but there was a type of poetry in the sound of snapping their bones with your bare hands. That didn't mean they couldn't be deadly.

"But... small-sword on end of gun make gun like yari - like spear. Very artful, too, very respectful. I can teach more than point spear and stab, too."

 

[EdwardDewey98]

As the group continued walking, Jakob was slowly reflecting on his attitude so far. Even though it has been a few hours, he realized that he was allowing some of these people's wickedness affect him. He was judging them way too quickly. He let out a slightly audible sigh, as he realized that he should keep a cool head and continue to give these people the benefit of the doubt.

He looked over his shoulder to Riberta, as she continued to hold Aliana's hand. The barbarian was clearly a better person than she showed. Perhaps she was a mother before? He should try and find a common ground between her. There was also Venextos and the Red Warden. Both of them seemed like good, decent people. And there was obviously Wesley, but the boy continued to be quiet. Even now. Ever since he became a 'ninja', the highlander artist rarely spoke. Jakob then looked to his side. Hudson was walking just a few steps behind Vincent. He and the man seemed to share a lot, and he was glad to have the man in the group despite their clear differences.

"So..." Jakob said, getting closer to Hudson as they continued marching. "What are your children's names? My daughter's name is Lucy, while my son...his name was Abraham." He looked at Hudson and gave him a smile. "Did you or Camille name them?"

 

[joshuadim]

"An interesting assortment of characters we have on our quest it seems." Venextos remarked to the Oni monk as he looked at Senya walking away. "Most people would never see such a strange group walking together under any other circumstances. But when the stakes are so high, it brings people together. I'm sure over time some of them will get over their differences... hopefully."

He then turned to Takato again to continue speaking directly. "I am not well versed in Redonian politics... or anything as a matter of fact. In all my years I have neglected to travel there at least once. Could you tell me more of the lands there?"

 

[K0mori]

Anya was startled when Loque grabbed her, but quickly felt an unusual sense of camaraderie with the demon. The gold in her hand glittered in a way that made her gasp- being a poor woman from the frontier, she had never actually seen so much gold at one time, even just a few coins like those in Loque's possession. Then, as she talked, that feeling of friendliness waned. Despite being a werewolf, despite being nearly killed by Velin's pawns in Tsavania, Anya had great respect for Velin, and even counted her as her patron god, at least until Adona intervened via Rosanna to save her. Werewolves were mindless killing machines, and vampires were a blight upon the world. To hear someone blaspheme the Goddess of Judgement, humanity's last true guardian, and especially when that someone is a demon, should have horrified her. Instead, as of now it only mildly disgusted her. As soon as Anya was released from Loque's grip she took a step away and, looking rather sickly, took another long drag of her cigarette.

The church turned a blind eye to this fiend over money?

It was hard to stomach. The church was killing so many people... Anya had excused it as a necessary evil because she trusted their moral guardianship. She still did. The Gods willed her to come to this accursed place. They trusted her to march with this demon and not fall victim to any deception. But still... the very fact that Loque was there in the first place proved that her story was true. Anya wasn't sure how to reconcile it with her existing belief, and merely shook her head.

"Even so," Anya said, "humans are alone against demons without her. If Taranoch is so great and powerful, we must tolerate her." Her words rang hollow, and Loque could immediately sense the reluctance behind them. Worshiping Velin was as much an act of reverence as it was of obligation. Something dark and enticing lurked in the Tsavanian's heart, it seemed.

 

[Dmaster]

The hunter had muted all of the conversations taking place behind him, not caring for whatever details or inane nonsense they could be spouting at the moment. Last he listened they were talking about long dead history that didn't pertain to him personally, or much of anyone at this point. The effects of time malfunctioning were of little concern to him at this point, less so about how it was hurting these awful individuals he had been forced to come along with.

Jakob being so close to him was able to bring him back out of his purposeful ignorance, and he turned his head just in time for him to pose his question. Though the way he posed it got him to tilt his head confusedly, but he withheld using his usual scathing sarcasm on the lycan. "Yeah. Can't have them be a little over a year old now and not have names." he answered, that had been all he said for a few seconds as he looked away to the horizon. After some staring he spoke again. "They're twins. A boy named Casseus and a girl named Marie. I named the boy, and she named the girl."

 

[Damian0358]

Takato nodded in response to Venextos' statement, agreeing with him. But then the mage asked him about Redonian politics, which we hadn't anticipated. Whenever someone asked him about the region, it was typically more in terms of culture.

"Northern Redonia is where I hail, and ashamed am I to say that neglected have I the southern half of the continent, so the north is what is most familiar to me," he began.

"Going from the east, past a set of islands, lay an alliance of many cities and the lands they control, referred to many as the Kairaku Maritime League, for the majority religion is that of the Kairaku variant of Vouteanism. With their economic power, managed have they to remain independent from its neighbors. Away from the sea, surrounded are they by the folkish-believing and urbanite-philosophizing Shoheiran lands, largely devolved into warring states after the Kowareta event, hence the Kowareta Warring States, though one state in its most eastern part would regain unity and grow stronger - Shioya. And west of the Shoheiran lands lay my home... Upper Redonia," Takato seemed saddened slightly as he thought about home.

"Before the Age of Darkness, there laid a great Empire, one which ruled with the Mandate of Heaven, now only known as the Heavenly Empire. But the Age had brought damnation within and without those lands, as the demons invaded and ran loose... to shorten things, it had caused the land to lose the Mandate eternally, and thusly, had been cursed with division. But one thing unites Upper Redonia, and that is the power of the Dou," he said, as he spread out his arms, showing his robe.

"Not even the demons could wipe away the Dou from those lands, and it would be the Dou, not any other faith or philosophy, which would push away the demons from Redonia. And today, the peace is kept by the Head Priest of Shouki Shrine, a filial lineage born from the wielder of the Umagiri, the Demonslayer, a line so strong that even the northern oni may quiver upon the thought of confronting them," he concluded, putting his arms down.

"It is with honor and distinction that I stand here today as no mere Douean monk, but as a siennyin, a hermit by Atracan terms."

 

[SniperComZero]

Whilst Gwenaelle listened to the fox woman, she seemed less than convinced. Her lips were still pasted into that small frown, though it had certainly dulled since it had first been seen. The blade she was shown was certainly an impressive work. The kind she would have once oft mantled up as a talking piece in one of her rooms, before it got replaced after a couple months with the princess's latest spoils of raiding and conflict. Such was the noble life. How she longed for those comparatively innocent days at the moment. Inari struck her like a boulder of fine marble upon the mountain side. Strong and beautiful in equal measure, and could be shaped into a breathtaking work. But, one wrong move with its extraction, and the one taking it down the cliffside would end up facing a very gruesome... pasty, demise.

"Art?" The elf seemed equal parts disgusted and appalled, before shaking her head. "...There is no art in killing. The summer fields of flowers blooming in clear daylight, as gentle clouds pass over the Monrouxelles? That, is art." Her mind briefly shifted back to the scene that the group had first seen whenever they passed through the gate. Her eyes looked straight ahead. "A... a body, festering, blood soaking into the ground, over the cries of their anguish. That--." Gwen paused for a moment, taking a breath. "...It is not, art."

 

[Doomevil]

"Non, non. I'd... rather not get my hands dirty. Plus, this is a far more... efficient tool."

Senya nodded, "It's good you're sticking to something you're more used to. But you should know as we venture onward, we may have to learn other things." She turned to the side, witnessing the others who can handle a gun, utilize magic or wield a blade. It was important to prepare for the worst, and to always bring a backup weapon if your primary is unavailable. It's those that make all the difference between keeping you alive and death. Senya didn't want to describe the details for the sake of bragging, but wanted to give a small piece of advice the High Elve can use in here, and out there should they survive.

"Either way, it's never too late to take up another skill." Senya said while Inari drew her wakizashi out. The woman knew her details alright, a bit too much. So far some of the group didn't really like her for her passion of war. And not just that, she's a bit too gleeful for her own good as Gwenaelle noted her art in killing. Senya had a feeling this was going to influence some of their decisions later on. She switched the topic for a moment, getting to know the High Elve.

"We haven't met before other than giving out a full name. Where are you from, Gwenaelle?" Senya asked calmly.

 

[ANIMAL MOTHER]

"Even so," Anya said, "humans are alone against demons without her. If Taranoch is so great and powerful, we must tolerate her."

"Are they really? What about the other gods you people have? You lot shouldn't ought to worship someone who's this irresponsible." Loque shakes her head. She knows Anya has a point, but this is an awful trade-off from her perspective. "No offense, but it seems to me people only revere her out of primal fear than actual, genuine respect and adoration. I don't believe I need to tell you how wrong that is, especially when we're about to strike against the operations of another tyrant who prefers ruling the same way."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

Inari imagined those summer fields of blooming flowers under a blue sky, with soft clouds meandering past to provide welcome shade from a warm sun. Gwen called that Monrouxelles, whatever that was. An artful and pretty scene, undoubtedly, though....

"Flowers very pretty, yes, but also there art in body among flowers. Pale face among pale flower field, with red splash on flowers, looking up at blue sky. That art, too." She didn't think her new friend would appreciate a more vivid description of a battlefield. There was certainly some ugliness among those images, of charred fields and skeletal homes, of malnourished faces drinking from muddy water which the dead were bathing in upstream. Some could certainly accuse her of barbarity, but there were times when misery after a battle was not necessary. Peasants kept the world working, after all. There would be nothing left if they were all dead.

Her mind drifted to marbled halls, stone keeps, temple gardens, rice fields - other places among many that were little more than canvases for the brush that was her sword. Ash could look as beautiful as snow, just as blood complemented it well. Red, white, black... all beautiful colors found in abundance in war. Those were the colors of her banner, after all.

She nodded as Senya spoke up. "Yes, I can teach many new skill," she grinned, looking back to Gwen. "Maybe you teach me new skill, too? We all teach each other. Very fun!"

 

[Infab]

Vincent took a moment to glance back down to the map, after hearing Senya's comments about there being only a few more miles to go. According to the map itself, they had far more than a few. Almost close to three hundred. That'd be a lot of walking if they didn't find some form of transportation somewhere. He glanced back as the others bickered a little more, before returning his attention forwards. The mist had cleared up a bit, so they could see quite a distance now. The landscape resembled the grassy pastures or wetlands back home, with puddles here and there full of rain water.

​

Occasionally they'd walk through one of the puddles, feeling the sludge stick to their boots or feet. How the hell anything could swim in that, Vincent would never know. But they continued on, passing by a boulder or two as well as a bare tree standing out in the open.

-------
​

Elsewhere in the Abyss...

"Well, its Sazak's two cutest servants! Cleaning the floors once again, I see...I really wish Sazak would trade me you two. I could use you for so much more..." said a voice, approaching as Mariette Desrosiers and Cassandra Bainbridge sat on their knees, cleaning the extravagant floors of Sazak's stone palace. They were in the foyer, attempting to clean a large blood smear left behind on the hard wood by a demon that Astraal, Sazak's son, had slain. Demon blood was notorious for being hard to clean off.

They knew who the voice belonged to. Only one creature in all of the Abyss would speak with such a sweet and seductive voice like that. "Greetings, Lady Sekath." said Cassandra, in the most deadpan way she could muster. Another voice soon spoke up, her voice a bit rougher and more irritated. "You always get the good ones, sister." said the second voice. They knew that one as well. Far better than Sekath, as this one belonged to a frequent visitor. "Now Sagath, you get good ones as well. You know this. Stop being so jealous." responded Sekath, as they stepped through the front door. Cassandra glanced up, pausing her work briefly to gaze upon them. The two demons resembled the elves of old, really, with beautiful looks and long pointy ears that poked off the sides of their heads. Still, they were obviously demons, as they both hard large hornss that jutted off the tops of their heads as well as black and gold eyes.

Sekath, being the Icon of Lust, dressed in an outfit suited to her position. The first thought that came to Cassandra's mind was she looked like an Escarian prostitute. Fancy, but slutty. Her sister, Sagath, was dressed a little more conservatively. Her armor, still, was form fitting. Hugging the curves of her body just so, as to draw attention. Perfect for someone who embodied Envy. The difference between her and her sister facial wise, besides their makeup, was that Sagath bore a large scar across the left side of her face over her eye. Likely adding to the jealousy that Sagath had of her sister's looks.

Both of the sister Icons paused, looking down at the pair cleaning the floor for a moment before Sekath squatted down in front of them. "Tell me, you lovely little thing...where's your master?" she asked. Oh look, she's even throwing in the bedroom eyes. Cassandra sighed, and pointed further into the building. "Study. He and Lord Ralvas are having a chat." she then said. Sekath grinned, before standing. "Good girl." she said, before motioning for Sagath to follow as she walked past them. Sagath shook her head quietly, as she followed after her.

Cassandra watched them leave, before glancing back to Mariette. "...Why me? You're the prettier one. Every time she comes here, she singles me out." she said, before returning to scrubbing the floor in front of her.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

Jakob looked at Hudson for a good while, before speaking again. "Marie, huh?" Jakob looked away for a moment, smiling a bit. "Ain't that something." Jakob looked back at Hudson, still smiling. "So...you were going to say something before Anya interrupted us an hour ago. About our situation as parents. What makes your situation different than mine?" Jakob gave him a respectful nod. "Just wondering, more than anything." He then looked at the wetlands that surrounded them for a moment, the home of the hollow. It certainly looked like it.

 

[SniperComZero]

"Where are you from, Gwenaelle?"

Finally, a question that didn't seem to creep out the elf even a little bit. Her outer arm went out with a bit of a flourish. "Princes--..." She paused a moment. She'd never quite gotten used to the title. "...Queen, Gwenaelle the First, Matriarch of the Chamoroux family." As much as she could, she tried to make her introduction seem upbeat and bombastic. "...for what it's worth, anyway." And now she's right back to being crestfallen once more. "...The queen of a dead race. That's me, alright. The, ah. I'm sure you've heard me going on about the Monrouxelles. It's a... mountain range. Rather beautiful valleys that our ancestors and us made our home in. It's in the north of what you humans would call, ah... Escaria, is that it? Near the border with that more northern kingdom of yours."

 

[Dmaster]

Hudson grunted as his boots trudged through the sludge - each heavy step taking a moment of effort to dislodge from the viscous mess before continuing on. He kept following behind Vincent while he kept his hand on his sword still. The bleak atmosphere was palpable, and the longer he spent in this awful place he came to realize just why so many of its denizens were out for mayhem and blood. Anything was better than squabbling in this miserable place.

"Yeah. She felt it right to name her that." was what he said in regards to repeating Marie's name, just to shake his head when Jakob asked another question. "It is different. I can't live with them until I take care of this first. If I take care of this first... Camille's a strong woman, she can take care of herself and I'm probably the last person she needs to rely on." the hunter admitted as he kept on stomping through the marsh. "The kids? Well they're still very young. If I were to walk out out of their lives and die before coming back they won't remember me. Nothing of value lost."

"You? You're here to save a woman who was willing to sacrifice herself for the good of the world. A choice she made so you could live with your family in peace. You don't have much to atone for, or something that eats at you at every waking moment of your life. At least, you don't seem it." Hudson spoke before he rolled his shoulders, somewhat dismissively. "Yet you're here, and if you die your family would have lost a good man."

 

[Emperor Sagan]

As they kept walking, Inari soon took her arm away from Gwen's shoulder's, not wanting to hang onto the elf as they walked or crowd her. Not to mention the ground was rather rough terrain and it took some conscious footing to avoid a spill in the soft soil and sludge-water puddles. She didn't have much of a chance to try out Adonian footwear back home, but she was happy she decided to go with the large Atracan shoes known as boots. They covered her feet completely in hard leather nearly up to her knees. The puttee wraps were comforting and kept the boots tight, a necessity for fighting. Loose footwear could cost you your life.

She listened in to Gwen's chat with Senya, and Inari eyed the Red Warden over a bit. Well armored and a rather silent one. Good qualities in a retainer, though silence demonstrated loyalty as easily as it concealed traitorous thoughts.

The elf was evidently a queen, which Inari suspected, and that put her more or less equal with the status of a Daimyo such as herself. She did find her own spirits slightly... mournful when Gwen mentioned herself being part of a dead race. The kitsune certainly weren't an extremely populous race, either, but they had always managed well enough. Unfortunately, she couldn't quite explain that given she was keeping that aspect of herself under concealment.

"You say dead race, but maybe not so anymore? You are here now. Other elf are here now. This second chance, no? You can be queen of new race now."

 

[Fubuki]

Aliana looks out into the distance, seeing nothing but miles of flat, ever-expanding wetland. It was...noticeably grey. She kept thumbing over the crack on her amulet, feeling the slight texture change as she runs her finger over it. "It's never cracked before," She thought "Maybe it will get worse.."

Riberta didn't seem to mind the puddles as they walked, but Aliana couldn't not mind the sludge seeping into her shoes. They were terribly made, ruined from a years worth of running and falling apart, much like her life at the current moment. She made sure to avoid the puddles as she walked with Riberta, holding her hand as she goes about. Eventually she tires of the 'water' flooding her shoes, and slides the ruined footwear off, leaving them behind. She groans, wondering if its even worth it to wear those things if she turns later on down the line.

She trudged through the puddles, feeling like a soldier trying to march through mud. Aliana didn't understand how the others tolerated this, figuring out that she just doesn't have the experience. She looks down at her rifle, somehow she kept it in pristine condition this entire trip. Gently, she runs a finger down the furniture of the rifle, then to the metal 'rings' on the underside. The other elf, Gwen, could help her use it, but when could she ask? She's terrified of Gwen, but she has no other choices.

In that moment she see's herself as the others see her, a weak child who has no place in the group. Terrified of speaking, fighting or defending herself. She can't keep feeling sorry for herself forever. If she can't be stronger for the others, she can be strong for herself. She looked back at the group, finding Gwen and seeing her conversing with the cheery indecipherable woman. She'll ask when the time is appropriate.

 

[joshuadim]

As the group continued to trudge through the Hollowlands, whenever Venextos would find himself coming across one of the sludge puddles he would simply walk over it as if he was walking on something invisible. A bit of magic helped here so that he would not step into the foul liquid and ruin his robes. This did not distract him from the conversation he was having with Takato however, which was quite civil and interesting when compared to the others that were occurring among the others. He was keen to hear about Redonia, and listened as the monk described to him what it was like there.

"I see... this is all quite fascinating. Perhaps one day I should pay a visit to the Redonian Sanctum and learn more there... if I'm still allowed in by then." he said jokingly. "I did tend to notice a bit of an aura around you as well. " he continued, changing the subject somewhat. "Do monks practice magic in Redonia?"

 

[K0mori]

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder," replied Mariette without looking up from her work. "The Icons seem more active than usual, don't they?" There was a ghostly emptiness to her words, as if they were spoken not out of genuine curiosity, but instead, like almost everything the Escarian said as of late, out of unabated boredom and lack of purpose. Mariette had been much quieter lately, and Cassandra had to work harder to get any serious conversation out of her. When a response came, often it barely escaped her lips, as if she were indifferent to the answer and felt as if her thoughts were as worth speaking as they were of not being spoken at all. Maybe it was because Mariette was younger than Cassandra, or more willing to accept her fate than the pureblood had ever been, but she was losing herself to the Abyss far more quickly.

"They must be planning something," she remarked.

---

Anya shook her head. "Not same thing. Velin is not collecting artifact for Abyss invasion, but to prevent Taranoch from invading mortal realm. And we are here to fight Demon King as duty to Tariun, not because he is tyrant. Other gods have not shown faces, while Velin rules church like iron lady. I think time has not been kind to them, but Velin is different..." Anya paused a moment as she stumbled in the sludge-like puddles, falling over and getting the muck all over her clothing. "Raah!" she spat in frustration, striking a puddle's surface with a clawed hand as she realized that her cigarette had been put out by the fall. Then, in the midst of her anger, she revealed a more personal opinion. "Why did gods choose me? Can Velin not have done this? Why not join us, either? Stupid..." she trailed off as she climbed to her feet again.

 

[EdwardDewey98]

"Nothing of value would be lost, huh?" Jakob shook his head, as the hunter continued to explain himself. "No offense, man. You can believe whatever you wish to believe, obviously, but that's just a load of bullshit." He looked back at the hunter. "You are their father. You could be up there teaching them. Spending time with them when they need you. Besides, if you die now...are you sure Camille will be strong enough?" Jakob looked down for a moment. "That woman, she is strong and incredibly independent. And her heart...being completely honest, I never thought a woman like her could fall in love with someone. But she did. She loves you. You are the father of her children." He gave Hudson a more sympathetic smile, as he thought of Camille. "Even the strongest can cry. I'm sure she'd be destroyed if she lost you."

"As for me, well...sure. I'm not here to repent." Jakob shrugged. He was a religious person. Not only did he believe in the five divine, but he also believed in the folk gods of the Swampfolk. He prayed for the five and the swampfolk gods before bed, but he wasn't a zealous man. "But...I...do have regrets. Don't think you wanna hear those though." He let out a small chuckle. "Don't worry about me, Hudson. Or my family. If the worst were to happen, they...will be fine. I know my daughter and sister well."