World Tree MUSH

    The chaos caused by the breaking of the clockwork machinery is causing the chambers to shake, with the delicate gears and springs turning into annoying shrapnel. More concerning are the arcs of energy crackling like lightning and exploding like fireworks. There are strange ephemeral glass and steel threads barely visible snapping under the onslaught of freed magic.
    Syd looks around as he leans on Beatrix for support. "I think we all need to go."
    The clockmaker who was tuning everything before it all went pear-shaped is tearing out what remains of his white wispy hair out of despair. "Yes! Go! Flee! The Crimson King has noticed your meddling!" He casts a tear-filled gaze at the esoteric work tearing itself apart. "So much work gone, like tears in rain..."

The silver haired woman sighs at Syd "Yes. Let's get moving." she reassures to Syd. "We made a hell of a mess. I'd feel bad if they hadn't been holding you away from me." she mumbles. She gives a whistle at Rebecca. "We gotta go. Now." she calls out, sweeping Syd's feet out from under him to hold him princess style, beginning to retreat at a hurried walking speed so Rebecca does not fall behind. "Hold on, I may need to shift shapes, yes?" she mumbles out.

    Jessica gets distracted easily, so she sort of missed the big event. Except did she? Because if there's one thing she can rely on, one beacon of stability in this land of chaos, one certainty in the undulating and undefined realm of the fae...

    It's that Rebecca blows shit up.

    "I knew I'd find you!" Jessica calls out, suddenly at Rebecca's side.

    Oh yeah time to go. After Rebecca pulled that stunt? She does not think sticking around is the best of ideas. She's brazen, bold, rude, and crass but she's not DUMB.
    "Deffo time to go peeps." She says as the room shakes and--
    "Oh hey Jess, where you been all this time?" Pause. "Know what, fill me in later, we kinda gotta delta fast."
    That's right. It's time to delta.
    That's streetslang for bail, jet, mosey, book it, run like heck.
    With Syd now in tow thanks to Beatrix hefting him, Rebecca starts hustling.

    Syd grabs the clockmaker, who spends the escape yelling about how he's a creature of Prince Balor's creation, that he can't actually leave anymore than a disgusting mortal organ can survive being outside its host. He just gets dragged along by Syd and Beatrix, Syd's inner nature not allowing the clockmaker to simply be left behind to be shredded by the dying construct. "Well you deserve better!" Syd shouts at the clockmaker.
    The shrapnel leaves annoying nicks rather than anything telling, but the crew has exited... a sort of cathedral-bastion sitting upon a shallow shore framed by an inky midnight blue sky and watched by a blood red moon like an all-seeing eye. The bridge to shore seems interminably long, and contains a new danger besides. A giant, standing probably twelve feet tall and six feet wide at the shoulders, clothed in a raiment of silverglass and a billowing mantle of crimson gossamer strides purposefully towards the bastion.
    Behind them, the sound of the architecture failing and exploding emanates. The crack of stone giving way and rumble of falling masonry echoes across the water. A single mote flees into the night, zig-zagging across unseen threads.

The silvered woman looks over her shoulder at Rebecca and Jessica "Do not dally." she half orders, speeding up when she's caught up to. Despite being barefoot she seems to be keeping a healthy pace. Her webbed fingers grasp Syd's back a little tighter to keep him from sleeping. She's letting out soft whistly sounds as she runs, as if just a little alarmed by the situation "That would be a problem." She calls out, skidding to a stop at the start of the bridge. "Syd, can you stand on your own?" she asks, sniffing his hair and glancing at the clock maker.
     The woman's laugh explodes out "I apologize, he can be quite greedy about talent and those who can make beautiful things." She glances back at the problem, drawing a foot out to draw an invisible line on the ground with her toe. "I have returned to collect what is mine." she calls out "Would you cordially let us leave?" she asks, not actually intending to entertain a no. Her face looks fairly serious and icily unfriendly. Without any real effort, she gets taller, stretching to stand nearly a head above Syd in height however still wholly herself in looks, almost like a cat would when trying to look bigger and scarier than it actually is.

    "I ain't dallyin'! I ain't dallyin'!" Rebecca retorts as she hustles after Beatrix, slinging her duffel bag of guns over her shoulder.
    Rebecca moseys; and when the team makes it 'outside' the bastion, she looks back, glancing behind her to see the damage.
    Thankfully she doesn't have weird stuff happen to her like 'turning into a pillar of salt' or some shizz.
    Then there's a giant walking on them.
    "Ayyo. Who're you?" She demands while...
    Okay so Beatrix can get taller.
    Rebecca still remains firmly as the shortest person in the group at any given time.

    Cordially asking is all in the eye of the beholder. Jessica sees the signs, so she readies her pistol. At least Syd isn't keen on leaving some poor blubbering guy to dye, which is a nice touch.

    "It looks like I missed all the trouble!" She huffs. "Sorry, maybe if I'd been here we could have avoided contact with the enemy!"

    Sure Jess, sure.

    Well, she's only a little taller than Rebecca at least.

     The giant stands, blocking egress. The clockmaker hides his face in a futile attempt to not be seen with the interlopers. His voice is muffled. "Oh no..." One supposes this is the Crimson King he mentioned earlier.
    Syd does stand on his own, thanking his wife for the help. He puts himself between the crimson shrouded giant and the clockmaker, unshouldering the greathammer in readiness.
    The giant's turquoise eyes scan the four interlopers before him. "You Shaped are such meddlesome creatures. Especially the ones like the Breaker of Infinities." A finger encased in silverglass jabs toward Syd, then the arms fold in front of his chest. "If I allow you to leave, what do I get in return? More grief? More vassals corrupted by your stasis? Shall I even mention all the raksha trapped by his Creation? The ones now hidden by earth and white jade?"

The silver haired woman considers, setting Syd down, kissing his forhead. "They will eventually be freed, you realize. I can't do it by myself, but, I could talk to a Primordial to help them be born." She makes a quick hand gesture. The one she does when trying to appease spirits and reach an agreement. She gestures at Rebecca to hold for now. 
     "What could I possibly offer Balor of the Eye?" Beatrix offers, quietly, moving closes. "Corrupted by stasis? Could you elaborate?" she moves even closer to the figure. "My husband and I do not like harming others, and we do go to pains not to. Any pain and insult to your court was incidental and not intended." She gives a quick polite bow, never letting her eyes leave the giant shifting calmly back to her normal height of the same as Syd. She is standing still, observing, trying not to provoke.

    "Didn't the whole kidnapping thing cause this anyway?" Jessica scratches her head. "I'm just checking, but it looks like once everyone arrived, things started blowing up. I'm just wondering why you're so eager to keep the people blowing things up inside where they can blow more things up, instead of letting them go outside where they blow up stuff that isn't your stuff, or your boss's stuff."

    She looks around. "Did I misunderstand?"

    "Uhhhhhh. So like. Who are you?" Rebecca asks as--
    Oh Beatrix is motioning for her to NOT shoot the guy.
    "... So like what do I do if I can't start blasting?" She asks as she looks to Jessica.
    "YOU FEEL ME, RIGHT? RIGHT JESS?"

    The giant kneels, regarding Jessica and Rebecca carefully, eyes glowing intently. "And then there's these, whose patterns are foreign. We see them traversing a branch into the Creation. Fragile things protected by Autochthon's trinkets." A finger traces patterns invisible to the naked eye. 
    "No, he started it by bringing stasis to Rakshastan." The Crimson King glances at Syd, who seems unfazed. "With it he brought time and the Seemings of shape, corruptions brought by stasis."
    The giant stands and looks at Beatrix. "Your companions already violated hospitality, Silverhair. But my greater self sees no gain in stoking conflict at this time." He points to the bridge. "Go, and do not return. I swear you will have safe passage, but grant no other oaths."

     The tall light haired woman sighs "Syd making my dream calcify into reality started this. " she calls back to the two violent urchins, not looking at them. Her left hand runs over her tatoos, a look of relief crosses her face as she bows. "What if there is a crisis and I wish to send word to make sure no more harm is done to yours? Would you accept my crossing here?" she pauses. "I am Beatrix. The witch." she offers with a polite bow. 
     "I will do what I am able for your kin trapped in the new creation. For no reason other than I wish to." she calmly states. "Your hospitality will be remembered, and I had not planned on those two breaking the rules of hospitality so. Thank you for your wise judgement. Time is likely not having the impacts you fear, but I can't tell for certain in the moment, I'd need to do research and your permission to study it. If you desire it, it will be so." she offers, shifting her weight to take Syd's hand to squeeze, gesturing at Jessica and Rebecca "We should go while he is willing, and offend him no longer." she murmurs. 
     "Syd. We can't take his friend. It would be too big of an offense." she whispers softly.

    "Oh so we can just go then?" Rebecca says POINTEDLY IGNORING the fact that she violated hospitality. So when Beatrix says the best option is to take this guy on his willingness to let them go...
    Well, we're not gonna bring up that she shot the thing that caused all the chaos.
    "Aite, bet. Seeya!" 
    She tugs on Jess indicating 'it is time to go, yo.

    Despite her argument being something that some could construe as a threat, Jessica isn't one to bluster. When the offer of safe passage is given, Jess's ears perk up. "Oh! That's nice of you, sir! I'm so used to people fighting just because even when it doesn't make sense, this is a nice change of pace! I'll remember this and be nice if um... well, I probably won't be back through here but if I am, I'll try to be nice!"

    She's practically dragged along with her tail flicking wildly, waving behind her as Rebecca grabs her and pulls her out with the rest.

    The route back is certainly shorter than getting to Syd. The edge of Home seems to arrange itself out of the formless Wylds, the burning crimson of the Midnight Sun high in the sky and the ivory disc of Lethe just barely grazing the horizon.
    Syd smiles at the sight. "It's always a sight for sore eyes." His eyes glance over the landscapes, noting the differences. "Hmmm... I think it's been awhile. Hey, how about I treat you two- ", here he indicates Jessica and Rebecca, "To some homegrown homecooked food?" He's not entirely sure if fresh food is as big a deal in their worlds as it is for his people, who largely subsisted on a bland but nutritious slurry.

     The silvery lady chuckles "I have some fish meat in the ice pantry. I think I should still have root vegetables and herbs you are welcome to get into, dear. Unless you want me to cook. It will be easier when you actually build our home." she reminds. "I've a tent set up in my garden, if you are not alright with eatting under the sky." she offers, calmly "Balor may change his mind in being done with us. They all can be quite capricious." she murmumurs, rubbing a hand into her hair to scratch her scalp. "The sea coast is beautiful though. It makes me miss the place I was born." she admits, absently.

    Time to go! So Rebecca drags Jess and...
    "... Home grown? ... Home cooked? You mean like. ... As in. Real food?" She asks. "Not SCOP, not kibble, not synthmeat, but real food?"
    Oh man Rebecca is drooling at the thought.
    "Bet, yo. I'm in broseph."
    Yeah see the thing about food in Night City...?
    It's absolute garbage.

    Ears perk up. "Fish? Oh wow, I'd really like that! I've been eating rations a lot, other than a couple nice meals on the Star Rail." Jessica huffs, "I'm glad everything worked out though. Usually we just have to shoot even bigger things."