World Tree MUSH

     After meeting Raven and having some lunch to make up for almost killing each other, Damian talked her into going to visit his parents. She's got some bad experience with her own demonic heritage, but Dame's gonna show her there's nothing to fear with his folks!

So, as they poof into Hell, he starts skipping up the brimstone path toward the ornate black onyx palace, surrounded by a moat of lava with cliffs blocking off either side of the path. At the end of the path is a gigantic iron gate, leading into the palace courtyard where several demon guards roam the grounds amid jagged onyx sculptures.

"Come on, come on! They're gonna love you, I just know it!" Damian calls to Raven behind him as he bounces through the gates, opened by the guards upon seeing who's approaching. He's so excited, he's not even bothering to fly.

Raven stopped the moment they arrived, ehr eyes wide. She stopped and looked around. She.... had been wary of this. Scared, even. A trap? Perhaps. But, inevitably... she couldn't sense any deceit from him. And her curiousity had over whelmed her. Finally, grudgingly, she'd made her way to hell with him.

And stopped when they arrived and just... Looked stunned. "I've... felt into... the realm of... Trigon. There was nothing but pain and suffering there. Nothing but... but this..." she whispered.

"It's... miserable. But no one feels tortured or hurt or..." she mumbled, following after him. It felt bad, but she also felt glimpses of joy, excitement, so many other things. Just... everyone she felt? They felt TERRIBLE. Not... like. Tortured. Just as if they were selfish and... She pulled her cloak around her.

And then her eyes widened as she felt *it*. Felt *him*. Her mind likely protected her from it at first, but.... once she focused on it, there was no denying it. There was... trigon. No. Not trigon. NOT trigon. It was.... Damian's father. If only they didn't feel so similiar... "I'm coming..." she mumbled, lifting the hood over her head, hiding her features.

This was such a terrible idea... She glanced at the demons as she passed. So, so, so terrible....

     Once the cliffs give way to open air, Raven might also see one or two cities in the distance, blinking with neon lights and bustling with unseen activity. If she can feel it, there is selfishness and greed and all manner of perverse pleasures permeating every inch, every single light, all the sounds... but they're miles away. A nice, safe distance. Mostly.

More immediately, as Damian and Raven pass through the courtyard, red lighting providing a harsh atmosphere amid the shiny black architecture, the demon guards momentarily regard Raven with some suspicion, but let her pass without trouble. If anything, they're... just disinterested. After all, she has the scent of evil upon her, someone who clearly /belongs/ here.

The double doors leading into the palace are, just like the courtyard gates, enormous and made of fire-blacked iron, unbelievably heavy yet swinging open without the slightest sound. Beyond them lies the throne room, passages all along the sides leading to other parts of the palace, with two floors connected by flights of stairs to the left and right just a bit beyond the entrance. The decor is much what one might expect: More of those onyx sculptures, girthy brimstone pillars holding the ceiling up, an iron grate in the center of the room that gives a great view of the lava several meters below.

And sitting on the two thrones, one much larger than the other, both wrought from iron and sculpted with skulls and jagged spikes, are Damian's parents. One, a beautiful red female jackal, black crown atop her head as she lays across her throne, cheek resting in one paw as she regards Damian and his friend with an expression that's difficult to read. As for what Raven can feel from her... nothing. Guarded, like a wall of reinforced concrete surrounding her mind, preventing any stray feelings or thoughts from escaping. Cold, hard concrete...

But Raven is likely more focused on HIM. The massive, hulking form of Satan Himself, the Fallen One, Lucifer the Lightbringer. His body is shrouded in a black cloak, but his goat-like head with its scruffy fur and pointed beard is facing directly toward Raven, his burning red eyes seeming to stare straight through her. They're framed by a pair of horns which curl down toward his chin, and those horns are paired with two much longer ones which sweep out to the sides. A third pair of short, nubby horns poke straight up from the bases of the others.

"Welcome back, Damian. I see you've brought a... friend." Satan speaks up, his eyes slowly scanning Raven's form until they get to her eyes. Even with her hood up, it seems he's still able to match her gaze perfectly. "She looks human, but has the aura of a demon. Not one of ours, however. An outsider, from another world?"

Raven eyed the guards as she passed. She... was obviously a little afraid. Who wouldn't be? And then, possibly to his surprise, she reached out and... Grabbed damian's hand. As an empath, that... likely seemed odd. But the truth was, she wanted to focus on HIS feelings. His excitement. His joy. Yes, it was stronger with him there, touching her. But it managed to drown out all the OTHER stuff she felt. Like turning up a radio to drown out the sound of the chainsaw in the distance.

They came closer, and her hand tightened on his. She was scared. She could feel it. Feel HIM! Feel Trigon. He was here. It was all a trap, it had to be! It had to be...

And then, for possibly the first time anyone had ever done that to him, she looked RELIEVED when she saw his father on the throne. Actual relief.

She did stop, though, letting his hand go. And then... "Y-yes. My name is... Raven. And you... you are not Trigon..." she whispered. "Well. You are. But you're not the Trigon for my world. You're..." She then blinked and blanched. "Nope. You are evil. One hundred percent evil. Oh, wow. Uhhhh... yeah." Then glanced to Damian. "Wow. I mean. Your lack of evil is actually quite impressive. I mean... he's at least as evil as my father. If... less cruel. I don't know. It just... feels weird." And then urked as she realized SHE WAS KIND OF IGNORING THE FIFTY FOOT TALL DEMON IN THE ROOM!

"Err. H-hello. I am... Raven. Your... err... Evilness. And yes. I am... uhhhh..." How to put it? "... In another world, there's another you. And I am, err, his daughter. You. err. Feel a LOT like him, sir. I mean... not as bad but... ummmm... Yeah. Definitely..." Raven REALLY wished she could make herself smaller.

"N-nice... nice to meet you... s-sir..."

     Damian is just /full/ of excitement and joy and when Raven grabs his hand, maybe a little bit of mischievousness. Still, he gives it a squeeze to reassure her that he's there, he won't let anything bad happen to her, because she's his friend now. She might also pick up on a bit of attraction, but I mean, teenagers and hormones and all that.

But now, it's time for Raven to face her fears directly, sort of, as she comes eye-to-eye with Satan, someone who may as well be the father she fears so much, yet ever so slightly /isn't/. As she stammers out her explanation, the gigantic demon king narrows his eyes and simply STARES at her, otherwise unmoving. The only motion comes from his wife, whose fluffy red tail lifts, and then drops, beating against the side of her throne ever so slowly as she glances between the two teens.

"I see. It is a pleasure to meet you as well, alternate daughter. This 'World Tree' has many strange things we must grow accustomed to." says the Lord of Darkness, finally standing from his thrown to loom overwhelmingly over the much smaller girl. "I can feel that you, as well, possess great capacity for evil. However, you restrain it, do you not? Just like my son. How disappointing."

"Dear." the jackal queen finally speaks up, her voice low yet carrying throughout the hall as clearly as if she had shouted. As Satan turns to her, she gestures with a paw toward the obviously terrified Raven, raising a brow at her husband as she does so.

"Narissa, I have a reputation to- oh... /fine/, I don't want to make Damian's friends feel uncomfortable, I suppose." the massive goat responds with a deep sigh, his body shrinking rapidly in size until he's barely taller than Raven. Stepping closer to the girl, he offers a hand for her to shake, attempting a reassuring smile. "Raven, was it? I apologize for the fright. I do not often get visitors who aren't here on... business."

The strangest part is... from what Raven can feel, it seems entirely genuine.

And Damian is just grinning ear to ear, tail wagging behind him as he gently nudges Raven forward. No words need to be said to express /his/ feelings on the matter.

Raven ignored the attraction. She still REFUSED to acknowledge that, maybe, by some measurements, and some desires, she might, possibly... be... hot. Just the thought made her shudder. Teenagers were hormone driven as it was, she didn't need them WANTING her.

Anddddd then he was looming over her and calling her... well... "Calling me a disappointment already? Maybe you are my father," she said sarcastically.

And then he did the unthinkable. He shrunk down to smaller size. So SHE would be more comfortable. And NOT frighten her. And he was APOLOGIZING!

"You... jsut... you're sorry?" she asked, looking stupified. She then shook her head. "I would shake your hand, but empath. And I have a feeling shaking your hand would... Well. Not end well for me. Err. No offense," she said softly. "I had a recent run in with someone... doing that. And..." She just stared.

"I'm sorry but are you SURE this is... Like..." she stared at him. "I mean, you're completely and utterly evil. It radiates off you like the heat from the sun. And yet... You're NICE. How are you... NICE? That's not... That doesn't even... HOW?" She then turned to Damian. And then him. And then... For a second, there was just a hint of... sadness, though she masked it.

And was very, very silent. Just staring at him. Was this what... Merlin had meant? Or... She had to bring damian to him. Finally... She glanced to the mother. And then back to Damian. "... You people... Actually... Love him. Don't you?" she asked, motioning to Damian. Then glanced back to Damian. Opened her mouth to speak. Then just stopped. Finally... "I think... I'm going to need to sit down for a minute. This is all... very... overwhelming. Is... err... may I be excused, sir?" she asked softly. "I just, err... need... To sit down. Damian? Can... you show me around... please?" She felt like her world was spinning around.

     Satan simply nods and withdraws his furry red hand. "Empath, yes, I see now. You are still young, too. You haven't learned how to block out the unwanted feelings yet, have you?" he asks, a moment of pity flashing through his mind. However, it's quickly replaced by pride as she describes him as 'completely and utterly evil', and suchlike. "Hahaha, well, I do try, you know. I have spent thousands of years building up my empire of evil, with blood, sweat, and tears... of the sinners who wind up here, that is."

He doesn't seem to have been expecting her surprised reaction to his willingness to show some kindness, however. Raising an eyebrow, he strokes his beard and says, "Child, there are many who deserve what they get here in Hell, but I do not rush things. I am professional, I am patient, and more than anything, I do not punish those for whom it is not their time. I may be evil, but I am not a monster."

Damian then jumps up into his father's arms, giving the big goat a hug with a joyful smile. Holding his son gently and petting his ears, Satan gives him a fond glance before turning his attention to Raven once more. "And yes, I do. /We/ do. Damian is our son, we could never love anything more."

Narissa, having silently slid down from her throne and padded up to her husband's side, reaches up with a paw to stroke Damian's face. The young prince, in turn, floats down from his father's arms and gives his mother a hug as well, which is met with a kiss to his forehead before she adds, "Our marriage, too, was one of love, difficult as it may be for you to grasp. Take one of the spare rooms to rest, dear; this is not the first time we have been through this."

Overjoyed, Damian hops back down to the floor and starts skipping off up one of the staircases, beckoning for Raven to follow him. "Come on, I'll show you where they are! We've got the best beds you'll find anywhere, and we can get my nanny to bring you snacks and drinks and I can show you my Muppet collection..."

Yep, looks like someone's excited.

Raven just stared in pure shock at the... AFFECTION! there was ACTUAL GENUINE AFFECTION! Love, caring, all these things and just... She followed after him, her head hanging. "... What... is a muppet?" she finally asked. "Wait... nanny? You have a nanny?" she asked softly. "This is... incredibly surreal."

She sighed and shook her head. "This is an alternate world, however. It opens up different possibilities. If Trigon is like that here, that means it is, possible, somewhere there is a Trigon who is... good. Perhaps one who is kind. But would that make me evil-er in that world?" She seems to think she's evil.

She then shook her head. "Your... parents. They are... special. Even... not counting what they are," she said softly. "They care deeply for you. It is... nice." she mumbled softly. "Your... your mother and father... love..." she mumbled softly.

"... Yes. Please. I would... like to see. That. Your... collections. And... stuff. I'd like to see as much of this as I can. Perhaps I'll find inspiration..." she mumbled. "Perhaps this is what Merlin meant. PErhaps all of this is the key. So please, Damian." And she took his hand and looked into his eyes. As rare as it was. Her voice came out serious and firm. "Please show me everything you can here."