World Tree MUSH

    Pandemonium Fortress stands before today's intrepid heroes, at the center of the chaotic war-torn realm known as Pandemonium. Nestled within a series of sharp, towering rock formations, the landscape around it trembles constantly as new terrain pushes out from the Worldstone within and forces old terrain to crack and fall. But between here and there is a massive battlefield wrought with a war that has been raging since the beginning of time--the Eternal Conflict. And it's not as if either side is going to much care if a few mortals who decided to get in the way end up as collateral damage.

    As Emily Nyx proposes attempting to teleport across to the archangel Tyrael, he considers the situation for a moment then turns to her. "Your proposal may be worthy of an attempt; however, the ever-shifting terrain of this realm will prove a difficulty in avoiding imminent danger." He looks toward Lian. "Your guidance to a path of least resistance may decrease the likelihood of landing in a dangerous position."

    Insofar as it's possible for a hovercar to show emotion, Emily looks thoughtful, but then she brightens at Tyrael's suggestion to use Lian's skills. "Hm, excellent point!" she says. A 3D holographic map appears, depicting the visible terrain up to and including the fortress, with a note that says 'Gesture-based selection - Master Cybernetic not found' in the corner.

    She rotates her entire form to face the Jedi Battlemaster, and in an I've-always-wanted-to-say-that sort of tone, she says, "Any good guesses, Seer?"

    "I will offer what direction I can," Lian replies to Tyrael, nodding softly. "A battlefield is always in flux, but at the very least, I can give us better odds." She turns to look at Emily's holographic map, almost seeming to zone out for a moment - there's a slow, deep breath, and a few seconds of intent silence, her eyes almost unfocused. Then, she murmurs, "I can feel several spots that will be clear, or at least mostly clear, for a handful of seconds yet. What's your maximum range for a quick hop?"

    Teleporting across? Li-Ming scans the chaos below before taking a seat. "Wonderful. I suppose I'm the only one willing to take in the scenic route?" Her tone is light, so she might be joking! However, someone like her could just be a little too eager for the opportunity to take potshots at the belligerents arrayed before us.

    "Anyhow, while you work on that." She turns her back and partially pulls aside the top of her robe to reveal the nice, big gash she earned from the giant serpent-worm-thing. She produces a small flask of amber liquid and swallows from it twice. The flask disappears into a pocket on her person. Wizards.

    "No need to guess. A path should be clear for your attempt if we look. Though perhaps avoid any infernal siege weaponry that may be deployed. Or ancient traps. Old lore from the libraries where I grew up suggests that there are also places here where time has been stopped. To halt particularly vicious combatants or trap anyone foolish enough to claim a seemingly easy route to the fortress at the heart of this place." She sighs, then pinches her fingers around the gash and releases an electrical arc that does the job of stopping her from bleeding at least.

Misaki is in her seat in the Hovernyx, "You should project a holographic face so we can better to read you." She suggests, trusting others with the job of deciding how to get to their destination.

    Dante's been flexing his arm for a while now, as he gets over the poison that'd been recently cured. He's still in the hovercar, his fingers tense. "Yeah, Lian's our best bet for leading us forward." He nods in agreement.

    Tyrael nods at Lian as she offers her insight. "Very well then. Lead the way, Lian Kamoya." Then at Li-Ming's mention of traps and siege weaponry. "And let us hope your capabilities will steer us clear of any traps."

    Lian would indeed be able to detect a couple different paths that at least appear to be clear of artillery bombardments or heated battles. Or violent earthquakes or other effects of the shifting terrain, at least enough to give them time to pass through with the help of Emily's portals. If they get the timing just right, anyway. 

    For one, she can see that there will be a series floating plateaus of sorts high above the battlefield, having spun off from the center and slowed down enough to stand on--and it'll be out of range of any artillery. If they can 'skip' across these pieces of terrain, they can likely avoid the warzone, although at that altitude physics are not quite the same and could send them flying into the abyss beyond if not timed correctly. Secondly, there are also tunnels underneath the battlefield, many of which could lead into the Fortress. Despite the shifting terrain, Lian's seer abilities have allowed her to see that there will be a pretty straight shot opening rather soon and would last long enough to allow the group a quick passage through. While these would be far more stable than the 'high road', the tunnels are created and inhabited by the burrowing ancient beasts that Li had gotten slashed by earlier.

    Emily giggles at Misaki's comment, and shapeshifts herself an entire torso ... which inexplicably resembles a female version of Dante but wearing a black bandeau bikini-top and a green longcoat which drapes over the dashboard.

    She shoots her amused and faintly smug smile at Lian. "This close?" she says. "I could take us right to their doorstep."

    Though she frowns at Li-Ming's warning. "Excellent point," she says. "I've never actually teleported through a warzone before. Uh, if the doorstep isn't safe, Lian, don't take us there," she adds dryly as she starts precomputing possible destinations ...

    Lian looks thoughtful for a few seconds, then lifts up a finger and points at the map. "Rather than taking us to the doorstep, perhaps drop us down so that we can come up underneath. There's a tunnel that will give us a straight course, and last long enough for us to arrive. I do sense battle along the way, but far less than we might encounter otherwise."

    Her finger shifts, indicating the floating plateaus, and she adds, "Coming in from above might also be an option, I think, but it feels as if the path itself is the hazard, there. Something... 'untrustworthy' about the route, is the best way I can put it. I would recommend the danger we know we can overcome, rather than the one that might catch us entirely off-guard."

    Unapologetic for the unsightly display of essentially welding a nasty gash shut, Li-Ming still clearly doesn't enjoy the experience. She's quiet for a short while, simply re-arranging her robe while the plan takes shape for how to approach one of the most problematic locales of her universe.

    "... Just bear in mind. The various approaches we might employ are all methods that both demons and angels make use of. Anything we try will be accompanied by risk."

    She tips her head to Lian, listening, then she nods. "The tunnels should suffice." She stands, rolling her shoulder to ensure she's going to have range of motion.

    Everyone else gets a quick look, even Tyrael. "Tell us of the fortress while we move? I don't wish to be caught mid-tale at the walls of the place with no way in and an army at our backs."

    Dante flexes his arm as they get close. Normally he'd be all for the front door, but Lian's probably not someone to be bickered with. Besides, a dramatic entrance is best done unexpectedly. He thumbs the hammer back on his pistol. "Hey, we're in Hell aren't we? I think that ship's sailed, taken fire, and sunk to the bottom of the frickin' ocean." He says to Li-Ming.

    Right, Emily could teleport everyone to the doorstep. Unfortunately, if there is a trap or something else terrible waiting for them at said doorstep, or anywhere she might decide to port them to, that is not a scenario that's bound to end well, as she does seem to realize after Li-Ming makes her point. That's where Lian comes in.

    Tyrael nods to Lian's recommendation. "A reasonable assessment." Better the devil you know than the devil you don't know, right? "Very well, lead us to the opening when it comes." he tells her.

    As if on cue, there is a rumble and a crash, and not far from the group the terrain parts, revealing the way into the passage Lian had in mind. However, it won't stay open for long--just enough for them to get through if they hurry.

    At Li-Ming's question, Tyrael turns back toward Lian again. "A fair concern. Lian, will the passage lead inside the Fortress?" 

    As far as the seer can tell, it should. Though not much for knowing what exactly they will find inside.

    "Righto!" Only a single second later, Emily opens a staticky portal, wide enough for several of them to go through at once. She charges right in, still carrying Dante and Misaki. "C'mon c'mon c'mon, move move move, meow meow meow!"

Misaki provides additional light as they go through the passage, just in case it gets real dark. She manifests Joyous, and leans forward, resting her arms on the body of the Hovernyx to steady her aim so she can fire at something as soon as it pops into vision.

    Dante pops out of the hovercar with his guns out, keeping them trained on whatever's inside to cover Emily. "Must go faster must go faster-!"

    "Hell? Goodness no, this is nothing like Hell." Li-Ming nods, "It appears our path is revealed. Anyhow, no. This is a realm of chaos. The Heavens and Hells vie for control of this place because this is where worlds are forged. We stand upon the carcass of one of their countless failures to create perfection."

    "Hell is warmer, as you might expect." With that, she's moving. May as well see what lies beneath this travesty of a landscape, though she'll keep her feet on the ground. It's not that she doesn't trust getting a lift from Emily but honestly.

    They're an awful big target.

    "It will," Lian confirms, nodding once. "I believe it will be our overall best bet. Just keep your weapons at the ready."

    Taking her own advice, the Jedi keeps her lightsaber in hand as she dives through the portal, though she doesn't ignite it just yet.

    Inside the underground passage, it's actually quite roomy. Plenty of space for Emily's hovercar form and more. Though it is dark, Misaki's magic and Tyrael's natural glow help light the way. The ground is treacherous and rugged--it's a good thing Emily's hovering because any wheeled vehicle would have a hard time getting through. The walls are constantly rumbling as the terrain around the place is in a state of perpetual motion. Other than that, nothing happens just yet. Though Lian is probably getting some premonitions right about now involving those tunnelers appearing quite soon.

    "Pandemonium Fortress has been entrenched in battle since the beginning of time. It is likely we will encounter it once inside, so we had best be wary." Tyrael tells Li-Ming, per her request.

    Emily smirks, adds her own headlights to the provided light, and drives forward at a brisk pace -- fast enough to make good time, not so fast that people on foot can't keep up. It's just as well that Li-Ming doesn't take the lift, since she's less encumbered now.

    "Hey, you're in a rail shooter, now, Misaki," she says cheerfully. She ponders a moment, then materializes a pair of falchion swords, and conjures up five golden bolts of light which hover fixedly directly above her head, pointing in five directions like a star.

    As they run, Lian stays near the front, keeping up a steady pace with ease. As they go, she keeps her eyes ahead, focused on the path before them - both literally, and metaphorically. Thus, there comes a moment after a while where the Jedi finally ignites her lightsaber, the sky-blue glow and the hum of energy serving as a warning to the group even before the Battlemaster speaks. "We'll have company soon. Something large, straight through the walls! Emily, on your guard!"

"Left or right?" Misaki asks the Jedi, summoning Marvelous as she summons a set of lines in front of herself to divide her field of view into sixteen squares, and another such set for each cardinal direction and up, "Now it's a rail shooter."

    Li-Ming adds her own light, a crystalline shape leaping from her hand and taking on a glow not unlike a carbide lantern as it hovers about near the walls. Jogging isn't a problem per se, though the footing here is enough to slow her pace somewhat.

    "Yes, well. There'll be more excitement there I'm sure. Is it held or contested?" The ignition of Lian's lightsaber brings her up short. The warning is well heard and heeded, so she backs up a step and tries to sense the direction.

    "Left or right? Fool child, we're underground. It can come from anywhere!" She doesn't stop trying to get a fix, of course, since she's confident she can preemptively attack /through/ walls if needed.

    Dante doesn't really have light, so he just eyes Lian's lightsaber jealously. "I really need me one of those." he says as he hops out of Emily's hovercar form and begins to join the front of the patrol. "Let's get to it then." He checks his corners, sweeping his pistols every which way. That said, he does keep an eye out to avoid accidentally flagging one of his friends. Dante might have a blase attitude towards being shot on accident, but his friends might not be so cavalier.

    "By the last account I heard, Imperius had gained the upper hand...however, it was a precarious position." Tyrael answers Li-Ming.

    Indeed, being underground with tunnelers means they could come from -any- direction. Lian's capabilities give her the feeling that they will not be alone for long. Something big--bigger than the ones they'd seen before is headed their way. As Li-Ming probes about, attempting to determine which direction the threat is coming from, she'd get a sense that it's coming below. At least, the big one is. 

    Everyone else just gets to feel the ground shaking a bit more violently than it normally does about fraction of a second before a -massive- tunneler like the one they'd seen previously--only much larger--erupts out of the ground -right- under Emily. Large enough that it opens its jaws and attempts to -devour- Hovernyx and whoever may be riding her whole!

    Emily peers at Li-Ming as she snaps at Misaki. "You're sounding kinda like Double-A there, Li," she says dryly.

    She grins at Dante, conjuring up her timestop-ring and twirling it around her ring-finger. "Tell me about it," she says. "I mean, swords are cool. Lasers are also cool. Swords which are also lasers? Hella --" Burrower! "-- WHOA!" she exclaims as she charges forward at breakneck speed, possibly fast enough to shake her riders up quite a bit! She simply ... reorients her golden bolts to point downward, and simply launches them back behind her at the burrower.

"The question I was asking was perfectly clear miss pedant." Misaki responds tp Li. The Burrower appears, and given the direction from which it's coming, Misaki unbuckles her seatbelt and uses Emily's sudden acceleration to oomph up her own leaping, flipping herself upside down to shoot a few bursts of magic light at it before her feet find purchase on the roof and she jumps back into the Hovernyx, not waiting one moment to get her seatbelt back in place.

>> SUMMARY[Misaki Sakai] >> Safety first

    "I'm afraid I can't tell," Lian replies to Misaki as they run. "I haven't any sort of clarity beyond a few seconds." In reply to Dante, she adds, "They're rather a lot of work, I fear," a touch of amusement in her tone. "We build them oursel-"

    With no warning, she suddenly stops mid-stride and turns on her heel. Her arm extends, outright throwing her lightsaber, sending the weapon into a deadly horizontal spin; and it's just as the projectile is leaving her hand that the tunneler suddenly emerges. As it reaches the gargantuan creature, the lightsaber turns in an arc that could do a fair bit of damage along the creature's side before it comes back around and returns to her hand.

    "Crap, wormsign." Dante sees the tunnelers coming as the massive worm, diving to evade its jaws as he opens fire on the creature, running along the walls of the tunnel before he begins to scale the massive worm beast. He jumps gracefully, parkouring his way to the creature's top before he stows his guns and draws Rebellion, burying it into the beast's top, and he runs along the giant worm creature's back to cut DEEP.

    "Double-A?" Li-Ming pulls an uncertain face at that. "Fine, but be ready for..." She trails off, sensing something against the almost nauseatingly magical background. Or is it more than one something?

    "It's below-" No time. She simply tries to intercept by letting fly with her favored disintegrate spell, the hissing red beam stabbing through stone just as easily as it cuts through the air. Of course, it doesn't appear to be enough to stop the absolute behemoth of a creature that punches out of the earth to try and take Emily and her passenger! "There may be more! On your guards," she shouts as she rakes that ray against the beast not unlike a VERY large lightsaber beam. The trouble being she's more or less immobile while she's doing this, only slowly stepping to be just a bit offset from the center of the tunnel or any walls. Totally ready to stop her channeling and start another spell for any new targets that emerge.

    Having forewarning about things can certainly do wonders, as it does in this case. As soon as it comes out, the creature is assailed with multiple ranged and melee blows from the group. It -almost- had Emily in its jaws, but the bolts she fires sends it rearing back even as Lian, Li-Ming, and Misaki let loose, searing its flesh with their energy attacks. And it also has a Dante riding on its head with a blade jabbed in! It howls and swings sideways, attempting to smash Dante against the tunnel wall while unleashing a fireball at the rest of the group. With these cramped quarters, dodging this is even harder than the last time, but Tyrael manages to bring up a shield just in time!

    Li-Ming was right about there being more, though. Almost immediately after the group cuts loose on the big one, more tunnelers appear, bursting out of the the walls and ceiling all around. These are smaller and more like the one they saw earlier. Some of them start shooting more fireballs while others just charge. Tyrael's shield soaks the big fireball but it won't be enough to hold up against all of them! At least not for long.

    There is also the sound of more crashing coming from behind them--time is running short, the passage is collapsing. As the the shield falls, Tyrael swings at one of the smaller beasts, decapitating it. "Go, I will hold them back." he tells them.

    Dante is embedded into the cavern wall, but his sword was still stuck in the tunneler's back. He pulls himself free from the rocks after a moment to regain his consciousness. Then the Son of Sparda rushes after the tunneler, sprinting along the tunneler's back to regain his sword. Grabbing it, he then begins to pull BACKWARDS to cut deep to try and open the shell.

    "You sure?" He asks Tyrael, before he thinks better of trying to argue. "C'mon, we still got a kid to save!"

    As soon as her fingers close around her lightsaber, Lian is getting ready to move. She pauses just a moment to watch Tyrael bring up his barrier, and then whirls around to start heading onward again. It's here that the woman finally makes use of that second lightsaber at her waist; as the smaller tunnelers begin to appear, the weapon leaps into her hand and ignites, and she flourishes the pair of them quickly.

    To the angel's declaration, she says only, "Don't linger more than you need to. The way forward won't last very long." Past that, she'll trust Tyrael's judgement, and start moving forward.

    And what a sight her advance is. It's as if she sees every fireball, every charge coming a half-second in advance, and her evasions and counterattacks are graceful and precise. Against large and numerous enemies like the tunnelers, the pair of sabers is a perfect choice, letting her make strike after strike against large creatures with relatively little agility. She's like a windmill of light blue radiance.

    Emily automatically straps Misaki's seatbelt back on as she does her little stunt. "Nice trick, kid!" she says, grinning. But she furrows her brow at the oncoming swarm! "Yeah, okay, I miiight have to release Capacitor ..."

    Her voice trails off as Tyrael makes his pronouncement. "Uh, up to you I guess!" she says flatly. "Yeah, no, c'mon, Dante, we've gotta move, and I don't know this place well enough to --" The tunnel starts to collapse. "... makemyownportalsohgod LET'S MOVE! HANG ON, MISAKI!" She starts driving forward, accelerating carefully in an attempt to outrun the collapse.

    She has a good direction, too, in the form of Lian, and she follows the Jedi's movements and fires golden bolts this way and that as the tunnellers attack. "... Maybe I should get shields at some point," she mutters, swinging her swords whenever a tunneller gets too close.

    Of course everything goes to absolute shit in a cramped tunnel. Though really, things can always be worse. Li-Ming hisses and backs off her beam as the big serpent-thing blasts a fireball that's intercepted by Tyrael. She just offers a grateful nod in the angel's direction.

    That's all the time she has before the tunnel is swarming with more of the tunneling beasts. With a frustrated groan, she conjures four copies of herself that immediately begin to scatter. Rather ruthlessly, she grabs one from behind and shoves it into the path of one of the fireballs. The dying scream of the illusion may be disturbing to some viewers, though the remaining three go on the attack, peppering the ones hanging back with bolts of light and forks of lightning.

    While her copies recklessly attack, the real wizard dashes for relative safety past the flailing, hopefully dying behemoth. Rather than attack any other targets, she points up and blasts the ceiling above Tyrael with a cold blue ray of frost, trying to freeze and perhaps even bolster the structure of the tunnel to prevent collapse and hamper any attempts from the creatures to outflank!

    "Don't die then. Much as I don't wish to leave you to face this alone, I'm confident you'll come through. I've seen you pull through far worse."

    She twists her hands, hauling at the earth with raw magical force to pinch a tunnel closed around one of the burrowers before she dashes past in the wake of Lian's carnage and Emily and Misaki's light. "Dante! We're going! Stop playing with that wretched thing!"

To help cover their daring advance while Tyrael nobly protects them, Misaki sends a big flash, before considering something, "Wait... these things burrow, do they even have eyes?" She asks, bending down to avoid any potential debris.

    With the group's combined efforts and Tyrael's focus redirected, they are able to keep the creatures occupied while they turn tail and rush ahead toward the objective. What became of the archangel and the monsters isn't clear yet, only that soon enough the distant rumbling becomes a thunderous roar and the collapsing tunnel is right on their tails. 

    Well, it's a good thing the Fortress isn't far, and they can soon see the light at the end of the tunnel--literally. The opening into Pandemonium Fortress is dead ahead, the unnatural red gleam of the Worldstone glinting through. Once they get closer, they can even see it--a massive red crystal floating in the center of a circular chamber.

    "FINE!" Dante calls out, sounding rather petulant as he sighs. Tyrael ought to be fine, right?

    Right?

    They reach the fortress, and Dante begins to approach the crystal. "Heads on a swivel, guys. There's gotta be some traps here."

    Once they've gotten through the worst of the tunnelers, Lian shuts off her second lightsaber and returns it to her belt in one movement. She keeps the other in hand and ready for a few seconds more, but when the Worldstone looms ahead of them within Pandemonium Fortress, she switches her primary off as well, though it stays in hand.

    "It's likely," she replies to Dante. "Let me try something." Her 'something' turns out to be extraordinarily simple; she reaches out with the Force, grabs a decent-sized rock, and pitches it ahead of them, letting it be what sets off traps rather than any of them."

    Emily flies out of the hole, eyes darting this way and that. Oh, Dante has a great idea. Her neck transforms into a swivel, and she starts looking around by rotating her entire head. She projects a hologram of a simple map of the room they can see, with markers for the party and any unexpected movements.

    ... Such as Lian throwing a rock ahead.

    Emily's head immediately swivels back around to watch the rock's trajectory; Misaki's probably the only one close enough to see the nervousness in her eyes.

"So we break it and take a shard, right?" Misaki asks, before pointing both her guns at the worldstone and concentrating as she begins to gather energy, the tips of her guns glowing as she is charging them up with energy. Anyone attuned to such things can tell she's pumping everything she has into this.

>> SUMMARY[Misaki Sakai] >> Imma charging my laz0rs

    A brisk jog or headlong spring doesn't seem to be too much trouble for Li-Ming! Once we arrive, she takes in the sight of that glow and swallows, her skin crawling with the intense magic of that ancient artifact so near.

    "If you recall, Tyrael mentioned that Imperius now holds the fortress. Whatever dangers may lurk beyond, he is perhaps the most threatening thing that could be present. He will not take kindly to our presence I'm certain."

    That said, the rock seems a good first probe into the space beyond and though Emily takes up some space in her current form, the wizard is eager to slip past and have a look for herself. A quick scan with her eyes is all she has; this close to such a powerful source of magic she's unlikely to sense anything else. "Here's hoping typical geometry holds true here," she sighs, then steps through into the fortress proper.

    Almost as soon as the last member of the party gets through, the passage through which they came caves in completely, and the section of terrain that held it trembles and suddenly breaks away from the fortress, opening up into the abyss beyond.

    The interior of the fortress is dimly lit with an eerie turquoise glow, and looks like it has been in a state of disrepair for a long, long time. Cracked stone columns line partially crumbling walkways and platforms. Perhaps at one point, the floor had been complete. But now, gaping chasms cut through to the void below, the same one that seems to surround the entire realm. It appears that Lian had been right on the money because the tunnel they came out of had put them onto a large piece of the floor that is still intact, and it's the one above which the Worldstone hovers slightly. 

    As Lian throws the rock, it flies a distance and hits the floor, rolling noisily until it falls into a chasm and disappears. No traps appear to have been sprung, however, a golden-armored being with light tendril wings not unlike Tyarel's abruptly descends from somewhere above, landing in front of them. 

    Yup, Li-Ming definitely recognizes this one--it's Imperius. And she accurately predicted his reaction to their presence. "Mortals! What is the meaning of this intrusion?!" he demands, pointing his spear at the group accusingly. This was about the last place he expected to see people like -them-.

"Another angel?" Misaki asks, "We've come with the blessing of your peers, Lord Tyrael is holding off those who were chasing us. We require a shard of the world stone to deal with a demon." Misaki answers Imperius, she makes no effort to stop charging her attack, just pumping in more power. "We'll be out of your hair as soon as we've got what we need."

    Dante is almost disappointed at Lian's approach to triggering any traps. Then again, Occam's Razor tends to be a useful thing to run with. It's never as complicated as it seems, though it's usually more complicated than first glance too.

    "Oh hell." Dante sighs as Imperius makes his entrance. "Yeah, we...that. We need a piece of the stone. Can we just have that and we'll be on our way?"

    "To be clear," Lian says, "We require a shard of the worldstone to purify a demon - a human that has been turned into one. We are here to save a soul, and no more." She clips her lightsaber to her belt, in a bid to demonstrate their intentions. "You have my word on that."

    Emily ... doesn't answer Imperius at first. She glances at Misaki and says, "Uh, you might want to ... put those away ...?"

    But then she turns back to Imperius, nodding along with Lian. "A shard of the Worldstone was Tyrael's best plan," she says in her most helpful-servile-Eudaemon voice.

    Just like that, she's right. Li-Ming usually likes being right too but today is not really the time and place. Imperius crashing down on them like an angry meteor was what she expected. He's certainly outraged but at least it's not /already/ a fight.

    Nevertheless, she tips her head ever so slightly upwards. She has no need to skulk or slouch; her purpose is just. Still, she indicates the tunnel behind. "Tyrael got caught up in battle with those burrowing worm creatures that I suspect were in the process of breaching your peremeter. It's likely a contingent of demons were setting up to make an attempt for the Worldstone. I have no interest other than the life the others mentioned."

    She can't be certain what Imperius will do here and now if he realizes what she is so she makes no effort to flex on the archangel, intimidate him or even draw her face into the sneer she gave Malthael before.

    This must be serious. Even she's behaving!

    Imperius doesn't seem to let up, despite the general polite attitude. Especially since Misaki doesn't put down her weapons. "What?! Fools! You come here, compromising our hard-fought hold over this fortress, to steal a shard of the Worldstone--the root of all that is, was, and is to be...for the sake of a -single- mortal who has -already- been consumed? And you suppose I should simply -trust- you, as well?" he hurls back, sounding as if this is all just completely outrageous. Well he certainly doesn't seem to be as civilized as his compatriots.
    However, it seems he is so caught up in his tirade against them that he doesn't seem to notice the hideous shadow looming up behind him. As it grows nearer, they can see a horned head with a set of four eyes and gaping, toothy maw blazing with the fires of Hell. A massive torso that somehow else seems to be lined with teeth sits on top of eight sharpened legs like some kind of bulky spider, and two enormous, sharpened horns also curve out of its back. Li-Ming would likely also recognize this one--Azmodan, Lord of Sin. Before anyone can react, the demon thrusts a blade into Imperius' back. Some kind of brightly glowing liquid spills out of him as he slumps forward, and Azmodan tosses him aside. But he doesn't attack the group. Yet.
    "Hahahah! Always so arrogant, the lot of them, aren't they? Staring down at you as if you ought to be -groveling-. But this battle isn't over yet. Aid me in seizing this place, and I will give you the shard. And perhaps even more--anything you want!"
    Wounded but not dead yet, Imperius struggles to his feet. "Hgnnn...lies...he'll destroy you!"

Misaki listens to his tirade but has nothing to say until Azmodan shows up, "I have a counter proposal. How about no." And then she unleashes all that magic she's been charging up with a pair of blindingly bright lazers, each of them wide and full of magic, then splits these beams into three beams each, trying to hit Azmodan in multiple places.

>> GAME >> Misaki Sakai spends an Edge for: Bright multihit lazers

    "We have as yet compromised nothing," Lian replies. "Our only kills have been those you count as enemies, and our path was a temporary one, only possible through both my abilities and Emily's. It has already closed."

    Unfortunately, before she can continue her reply, the situation takes a turn for the worse. "Imperius, look out-" But it's too late. The Jedi grimaces faintly, but her expression calms again quickly. Her eyes first track to Imperius, looking at the angel directly. "You who would cast aside a human life, brushing it off as insignificant... I don't know that I like you terribly much. There is no such thing as an 'insignificent' sapient life."

    But then she turns to look up at Asmodeus, and rests a hand on the lightsaber at her right hip. "But I don't need the Force to see who here is the greater danger. We will have words after this, angel." The lightsaber ignites, and Lian flourishes it once, dropping back into a guarded stance...

    ...only to flick her hand, and attempt to drop a large chunk of rubble on Asmodeus' head.

>> SUMMARY[Lian Kamoya] >> Who says a Jedi can't use distraction and surprise attacks?

    Emily stares at Azmodian for several seconds.

    "Yeah, Misaki," she says without breaking eye contact with the demon, "I was about to say 'never mind'." She conjures up five bolts of light, and simply fires them directly at Azmodian.

    She looks like she's also about to charge into melee range, then pauses, looking around as Lian pulls her own trick. "Should probably hop off, Misaki," she says. "Uh ... anyone mind if I, uh ... just ... release the, the final Capacitor Seal?" It is a 'greater threat' sort of thing, a demon just dunked on an angel right next to the Worldstone ...

    "If you really gave a damn about your job, you would be fighting tooth and nail even to protect the life of ONE mortal!" Dante snarls out in anger. He's only known Imperius for like a minute and he already loathes this sanctimonious prick.

    But he also doesn't like demons, so Azmodan's arrival gets Dante's attention. He's tempted to let the angel and demon kill one another, but he sighs. "Ugh. Alright, fine. Fuck it."

    Suddenly, Dante's body is enveloped in flame and rock as he begins to morph. Devil trigger is activated, the time has called for some serious firepower, and Dante's not gonna do this by halves.

    Wings fluttering, the Half-Devil rushes towards Azmodan with a roar as he draws Rebellion, the greatsword blazing hot with hellfire as Dante streaks toward the demon, slashing deep with his greatsword.

>> GAME >> Dante spends an Edge for: Boss Fight

    The emergence of a new threat is startling. Even though she could have easily imagined this happening, everything suddenly going so awfully wrong is enough to set even Li-Ming back a step. Just for a moment, though, then all pretense is cast aside.

    As her form darkens and her feet leave the floor, both Imperius and Azmodan both will know her true nature. When stars begin to shine in place of her eyes and her form glows with the radiance of the Void, they may see her Nephalem power. Azmodan, on the other hand, is probably to arrogant to recognize doom as it takes shape.

    With a clap of air collapsing to fill the space she'd previously occupied she's upon Azmodan. Without even moving her limbs, she pulls at another chunk of stone to compliment Lian's attack, though hers sets afire and accelerates, showering the area with projectiles not unlike meteors.


    When she speaks her voice booms, trembling with outrage, "Die!" Of course, despite her fury, she's careful not to bombard her allies or /too/ thoroughly tear down our precarious terrain.

    Of course, she's presenting right alongside Dante as a prime target should the Lord of Sin survive everyone's more than adequate rejoinders to the obscene offer on the table.

>> GAME >> Li-Ming spends an Edge for: Archon.

Misaki unbuckles her seatbelt and hops out of the hovernyx after making that attack, and throws one of her guns into the air real quick to offer Emily a thumbs up, "Go for it, miss Emily. I believe in you."

    Another hellish laugh emits from the creature as they charge in. And no, he doesn't recognize what Li-Ming is. Whether Imperius does or not isn't clear, since like the other angels he doesn't have a face, either. "Very well then! If it is destruction you choose, then it is destruction you shall have!" He raises a clawed hand and half a dozen portals open in front of him, swarms of lesser demons pouring out of them to intercept the first assault!

    And with that, we fade to black, because you'll have to tune in next time to find out what happens to Westview's heroes!