Board 8 > The Notes of Cain, Topic 2 [CYOA]

(+) Yeah! (+)

I would prefer Jamison support Aaron.

I feel like he can do more supporting the guy with the best weapon rather than shooting in a way that probably won't do much.
---

OracleGunner posted...

crazygamer999 posted...

Well, since you're giving the choice...
Might as well charge head-first.

Torrin: Lead from Behind
Aaron: Aggressive Push/Defensive Stand
Enoch: Leading Attacker/Support Attacker
Jen Lowell: Rescue Leone
Leone: Struggle
Owen: Psychic Assault/Support Attacker
Zephyr: Rescue Leone/Support Attacker
Fakeru: Rescue Leone/Support Attacker
Jamison: Follow Aaron/Flanking Shots
Kidd: Leading Attacker/Rescue Leone

Yeah I think this could work. Still funny that the stealthiest guy got hit by a sneak attack.

I also wish to vote just as he did. Even though this may go very poorly for me.
---

Torrin: Lead from Behind
Aaron: Aggressive Push/Defensive Stand
Enoch: Leading Attacker/Support Attacker
Jen Lowell: Rescue Leone
Leone: Struggle
Owen: Psychic Assault/Support Attacker
Zephyr: Rescue Leone/Support Attacker
Fakeru: Rescue Leone/Support Attacker
Jamison: Follow Aaron/Flanking Shots
Kidd: Leading Attacker/Rescue Leone
---

I will switch my vote for Jamison to "Follow Aaron"

Torrin: Lead from Behind
Aaron: Aggressive Push/Defensive Stand
Enoch: Leading Attacker/Support Attacker
Jen Lowell: Rescue Leone
Leone: Struggle
Owen: Psychic Assault/Support Attacker
Zephyr: Rescue Leone/Support Attacker
Fakeru: Rescue Leone/Support Attacker
Jamison: Follow Aaron/Flanking Shots
Kidd: Leading Attacker/Rescue Leone
---

I'll switch to Follow Aaron then as well to support Maniac making his own choice.
---

Think we're at:

Aaron Aggressive: 2
Aaron Defensive: 7

Enoch Leading Attack: 9
Enoch Supporting: 0

Owen Psychic Assault: 9
Owen Supporting: 0

Zephyr Rescue: 1
Zephyr Supporting: 8

Fakeru Rescue: 9
Fakeru Supporting: 0

Jamison Following Aaron: 7
Jamison Flanking: 3

Kidd Leading Attack: 0
Kidd Rescue: 10
---

I'll go with this, then.

Aaron
Torrin
Jamison

Enoch
Owen
Zephyr

Leone
Jen
Fah
Kidd
---

tonight

17

into the darkness


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Oh no
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Welp, we're fucked
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Hope we stockpiled on torches!
---

Entry 17: Into the Darkness

After working for a solid ten minutes, Valter managed to partially pry open the bottom section of the stone door. His back was uncomfortably planted against the ground, now, and he was straining his legs in order to try and push the door straight up from below. Goetic, the scrawny little Abnormal, unfortunately hadn't been able to help very much.

"Get under there," Valter commanded. "You should be able to fit."

Goetic lowered his body and put his shoulder under the exposed stone door. Together they wedged themselves against the bottom of the door and continued to press it upward into the frame where it was made to disappear as part of the wall.

Valter, they had taken to calling him Abom, had a moment where he needed to adjust his posture and get to his feet. From that point, with his full strength at his disposal, he was able to employ enough power to force the door the rest of the way open without much trouble. He looked at the other man with a satisfied nod.

Goetic was now red faced and sweating. He was breathing heavily while staring down the exposed passage of darkness. "This doesn't look right," Goetic observed through strained breaths. "It shouldn't be -this- dark."

The door gave a satisfying click as Valter mashed it into place. From here it seemed as if the door wasn't going to fall straight down behind them or on top of them. That would be essential toward exploring onward. Though there was a nagging thought in the back of his mind. What would it mean if they needed to quickly close the door? How would they accomplish that?

Before they could gain an answer to that question, Goetic seemed to hear something from below.

"Fighting. I hear the sound of battle," Goetic observed. He looked down the passage and then back the other way. Then, biting his lip as if making a difficult decision, his brightened eyes shined in the dark as he made his resolution. "We must go and help the others."

Valter nodded in agreement. "You'll be faster than I," he said simply. "Go to them. I'll be right behind you." The big man knew in his current state of exhaustion he wouldn't be winning a marathon run to the bottom of the pit, and with his chains weighing him down it was hard to say if his sprinting speed would be faster than Goetic either. But if the blue-haired Abnormal could get there quick enough and make a difference there was no reason for him to wait on Valter.

Goetic took off wordlessly as instructed, leaving the big man alone in the corridor.

Valter stopped to take one last long look at the darkened passage that was laid out before him. There he saw a strange film of colors that moved and shifted, never completely forming, never settling, and not quite there. Yet somehow visible in a way that couldn't be seen. His mouth opened slightly in shock, but he knew he couldn't remain to study this odd display. There were others who needed his help.

"Ah, such a shame," his Mona told him. "You let that Devil escape from us. I would have liked to catch him before The End."

Valter turned his vision back down the other way and began to exit the stone passage and out onto the ledge. He was tired and felt as if he was dragging his entire weight and the weight of the chains more than ever before. He thought to catch a glimpse of Goetic, but the smaller guy had already taken off with such speed that he was no longer visible in the darkness below. That, at least, was a natural darkness.

Then, the hairs on Valter's neck stood up. What did she mean? "... The End?"

A hand shot out from the darkness behind him, the unnatural dark that he had left his back to, and wrapped around the side of his skull. There was a flash of light at the edge of Valter's vision. Then his temple was forcefully slammed into the stone wall.
---

"Geh!" Valter felt blood surge into his eye as he went face first to the ground. He tried to turn his weight and move the chains into a position where he could attack. Instead, those only weighed him down and restricted his movement.

Yes, all along, they had been put on himself for that very purpose. Valter had restricted his own movement and power for the very reason that he didn't want to hurt innocent people anymore. His mental weakness had allowed his Mona to goad him into doing things hastily, not the way they should have been done. The Church had given him this power to impact a positive change and yet in his memory he held visions of scenes that could have been avoided.

And, because of that weakness, he chose to chain himself down and stop himself from repeating the same mistakes. It was only ironic that this literal shackling of his own abilities was now leading to his downfall when he needed them the most.

"I fear you're not long for this world, Valter," Mona said. There was a hint of sadness in her voice. "Does this mean I'll be going home soon?"

Valter struggled to turn his body enough that he could at least nudge his neck in the right direction. Being able to see into the passage behind him, there were two figures he could easily spot. Mona in her regal beauty was tall enough that she almost touched the ceiling of the passage with her head. Her wings were spread out and folded against the walls.

And through that soft tunnel of light formed by her silhouette was the creeping darkness from beyond -- the unnatural darkness! The thing which emerged did not have a visible form. But, rather, the very fabric of reality clung to it tightly and rejected its presence. He could see a thin film of colors shifting and twisting like madness around it.

They were the antibodies of this world trying to destroy a virus which had appeared on the wrong side of the gate. He had found, at last, a true Devil. The entire purpose for which he had been given these powers. The pain he felt as he bit down on wood and cloth to stop himself from eating his own tongue. The pain that coursed through his entire body as they branded his arms with the white X of the high temple. His first time ever seeing his Mona as she descended to him from above.

That one hurt his heart more than his body, but it was a pain that he still remembered.

Was that monster looking at him now? No... It was...

"Mona," he muttered through a bloody haze.

"Worry yourself not for my expense," Mona told him. "Remember, Valter, nothing of this world can see m-" Her words were cut off as the creature grabbed her in a fierce and clawed grapple. Before she could even reason out what was going on, the monster shoved her face first into the ground.

The entire passage shook from the force of the half giant sized woman being smashed into the stone work by an unimaginable creature of extra human strength. Valter reactively twitched from the force of the blow and felt his body curl inward as he imagined the pain she must be feeling.

It was all he could do to turn on his side and raise the chain that was buried beneath his torso. The feeling of rocks and metal scraping into his underside was unpleasant. A dangling sound rung through the passage as the chain stretched out along the ground behind him.

Then, the force of the monster twisted and stretched. Like a rainbow flying over him, he saw its body distort and spread along the ceiling. Something like a hand shot straight down, grabbing the extended length of the chain on the ground. Valter's eyes slid in that direction. He was trying to follow the motion.
---

It pulled on the chain roughly, yanking Valter across the ground. He felt his chest ripped apart and covered in a bloody rash as he was pulled along a hard stone floor dotted with debris. "Aggghh!" He cried out in pain. Valter flailed and tried to rise, but this only caused the chain to restrict tightly around his arm and the side of his neck. It locked him in place as he turned over and tried to go back the other way.

The monster, still holding down the chain, had effortlessly pinned down even the big man.

Then, on the other side, the majority of its body was still on top of the fallen Angel. Her wings flickered, going straight up and then battering the walls. Was she flapping them, trying to knock the monster off of her? It didn't seem to be working.

Rather, instead, the creature seemed to grab her wing in its hands. They both knew what would come next but neither of them were able to stop it. There was a popping and a tearing sound as the creature broke her wing in half. Devils were powerful. Blood and feathers ran along the lengths of the exposed and broken bone. Devils were so strong that an Angel alone could not hope to defeat them. The knights of the church couldn't hope to drive them back from this world.

It was only together, through this concord, that they ever stood a chance.

And yet Valter, in his own weakness, had let himself grow apart from his Mona. He had lost his vigilance, let himself be separated. And, when they weren't standing together, they had no chance to stand up against such a monster. All he could see in that moment were the tears in her eyes as the foot of the monster came down on the back of her skull.

Then, with a forceful push, Mona's nose and cheeks were covered in bruises and lacerations. Angel's blood was splattered across the floor of the dark passage, the unnatural dark. Her form went limp for an instant. Then, as the creature stepped off of her, the unbroken wing continued to twitch. She was alive, still, at least.

Valter couldn't make out its form well enough but he felt the creature grab onto the chain and pull it tightly against his neck. Then, fading in and out of conscious, he was being dragged out into the passage and then down the slope. This thing wasn't trying to escape. It was going down into the depths below.

In a haze, being pulled through rocks, Valter could feel her behind him. His Mona, being bound to him, was also being dragged along the ground because of the ward that kept them together. Since she couldn't stand it meant that, while he was being carried like this, she was being carried behind him. His eyes came back into focus and he looked back at the broken Angel's form.

Her split wing was hanging on by mere strips of flesh. Then, in that moment, the fibers tore and a chunk of flesh and feathers was left in the passage behind them. The bloody stump that remained, clinging tightly to her back, wobbled back and forth as if she were trying to flap the wing that was now missing. Each time they hit a bump or a clod of dirt the remaining wing became more bloodied, the feathers more broken, her form more covered in dirt and bruises. Did Valter look as beaten as Mona did right now?

Why hadn't this monster killed him yet? Valter couldn't comprehend the way of thinking for such a Demon.

All he had the strength to do now was fall asleep.

--//--@@//--

"T-... Table!" Cata shouted from his spot against the far wall. "Use the table for cover, and get the hell out of here!" It was the first idea that came to his head and he wasn't sure if it would really work, but he would at least try to save Maria's life if there was no way for him to escape from this death trap.
---

Maria, thinking for just a moment, returned to her natural element. All that was needed was that one moment where she transitioned from panic mode to analysis mode. And, in that moment, her calm demeanor returned as she fell into her natural element.

At first her mind wanted to reject the idea. After all, those bone spurs had shot clean through the table and it hadn't seemed to provide enough cover to be worth it. However, when the monster spit acid directly at her, the table had blocked a good portion of that damage. At the least it would give her enough time to get away.

However, this created a few other fundamental issues. The parts of the table that were already destroyed would leave gaps where her body would be exposed. And if she made a run for it she'd not be able to fight defensively. Beyond that, it would mean leaving Cata here to almost certainly die.

Maria didn't know if it would be worth the risk at the end of the day but she had to imagine that turning her back to the enemy and running at full sprint was going to carry its own risk anyway. Instead of doing as Cata commanded, she picked up the table and held it over herself as best as she could. Then... she ran straight for Dismas.

"What are you-?!" Cata blurted out.

She didn't have time to answer him. All Maria could do now was focus on the enemy above her, and the item she was looking for below. There was a hissing sound as a puddle of acid hit the table from above. The burned section dripped through the wood and ran along the outer side. Thankfully, none of that goop hit her exposed skin or she might have turned into a corpse bomb as well.

Maria went to her knees, letting the table come to rest above her back and provide a momentary cover from the monster that was now clinging to the ceiling directly above her. The stench of death was strong, and the horrific sight of a human split into pieces was scattered all across the ground. She was kneeling in his remains. And yet, for someone who had studied corpses, she was probably one of the most suited to put herself into such a gruesome, disgusting place and not be phased by it.

Maria grabbed the crossbow.

There was a heavy THUD as the monster dropped straight down onto the table. Maria heard a cracking sound as the weight of the monster began to overpower the broken and brittle wood. Soon it would break and the enemy would fall right on top of her.

Which way was his mouth pointing when he fell? Go the other way!

Maria rolled out from under the table as the wood broke into pieces and the enemy fell. It was momentarily stunned as its heavy body slammed into the ground. Dismas had kept the crossbow loaded ahead of time in the case of an emergency -- a lesson they had quickly learned after the first encounter on the road while he was still chained up on the wagon.

If he wasn't dead, she would have needed to thank him for that.

Cata, who hadn't hesitated to act either, was now on the opposite flank of the enemy. Foolish or brave, he had no idea if his weapon would affect this monster, but he slashed and thrust at its thick and slimy hide with the sabre. For as much as he might have succeeded in damaging the enemy, his blade ended up breaking in the struggle.

The noble scion clung to the hilt tightly and pulled away the broken metal, now dripping with acid, as the shattered silver shards were buried in the hide of the slug. Even as its burning blood ran free from those wounds, Cata was backed up toward the wall again as the enemy turned its attention to him. Its mouth opened wide and a roaring, gargling hiss began to rise in its throat.

Then, taking a scholar's guess at where the brain might have been, Maria set the bolt against the back of its skull.

CLUNK!
---

As she pulled the trigger of the crossbow it punched right through the head of the enemy and skewered it. The enemy flailed left and then right, almost seeming as if it still might dive forward and cover Cata in that acidic slop. But, instead, it simply fell straight down and continued to twitch.

"Out of there," Maria quickly called to Cata.

But he didn't need to be told twice, or even once, as he was already scrambling away the moment he got the chance to move freely. Cata looked back at the enemy, making a wide path around it, as he skipped over to where Maria was and joined her side. "Is it... dead?"

Maria didn't answer him. There was something else on her mind. Along with the smell of death, she had smelled something else while she was on the floor. Maria examined the room and her attention was drawn to the barrels which had been smashed open, and the green elixir that was all along the floor now.

"Ethanol," Maria muttered. Then she retrieved a match from her alchemy kit. "Flammable," she concluded. Then with a small spark and a quick motion of her hand, the liquid on the floor caught fire and consumed what was left of the monster.

That thing didn't have the strength to fight back anymore. And, instead, simply collapsed into a burning wreckage. As horrifying as it had been... they had survived.

Maria took a few steps back and put the back of her hand across her forehead. She closed her eyes. It was all she could do to find peace. That was perhaps the most stressful situation she had ever been in, in her entire life. Yet, at the end of it all, she had succeeded and made it out of there alive.

Without a doubt, Maria was confirming for herself that she was a person with high ability.

"Hey, Goetic!" Cata called out, noticing the other man appear at once out on the ledge. He tried to get Maria's attention and drag her that way. "You're just a moment too late."

"And..." Goetic looked around the room, examining what had been left over from the battle. He didn't see any sign of Dismas. That man had, of course, been blown up, crushed under the collapsed table, and then likely set on fire in the raging blaze. "I'm assuming Dis didn't make it?"

"An unfortunate casualty," Maria concluded. She began to reload the crossbow as she moved out of the room and onto the ledge with the others. She glanced down and then back up. "Where's Abom?"

"He should be just a moment behind me," Goetic explained. "We thought you might be in danger."

They heard the dragging sound of chains coming from above. That must have signified the imminent arrival of the one called Abom. That clanging and dragging metal sound always alerted them whenever the big man was around. It was a welcome noise, even though it might have been somewhat scary or unnerving in a place like this if they didn't know what it was.

Cata leaned against the wall and examined his ruined blade. "Ack. A family heirloom ruined. And for what?" He thought about what they had found so far and what might wait below. "For all of this?"

"Did you find what was behind that door?" Maria inquired, growing curious. She looked back to Goetic, not sure how to truly comfort Cata over the loss of his precious sword. For Maria it was hard to say if she had ever owned anything precious, or any item of much value at all. It was difficult to empathize.

Goetic shook his head. "I was on the verge of seeing something, but that's when we heard the sound of fighting break out. It... seemed more important to come this way, first. Although it seems you two were able to handle yourselves."
---

"You know, I thought of you as a person with obsessive curiosity," Maria noted. "I'll have to be thankful that you thought of saving our lives before getting a glimpse of whatever was hiding behind that door."

"Mm." Goetic averted his eyes. "Well, I'll get the chance later on. There didn't seem like much of a rush."

Despite what he said, it still must have been a difficult decision for Goetic to make. And, having arrived too late to impact the battle, he surely must have regretted that decision on some level. Yes, in the end, he was likely wishing he had stayed back there with Abom and searched out the contents of the stone passage.

Well... there were many things in this life that a person couldn't decide on their own. And even when they made a decision they wouldn't always have access to all of the best information available. Sometimes you could make the wrong choice, or even make the right choice for the wrong reasons.

There was a rattling of chains as a large figure appeared in the space above them. Only, this thing definitely wasn't Abom. It was a formless Devil whose true visage couldn't even be comprehended by those here. All they saw were shimmering lights clinging to the outline of its body like bands in the darkness. Then, there, behind its heaving form, was their missing ally.

Beaten and driven to the ground, Abom was being dragged along behind the Devil's form by his chains.

Cata was so startled that he nearly tripped over his own feet in his attempts to get away. He ended up almost throwing himself to the ground, and ended up on his hands and one knee behind Maria. Maria watched quietly, looking up, knowing she probably didn't have the strength or the speed to act here.

This left Goetic directly in the line of fire. He was the nearest one to the enemy.

It reached out a hand, touching his face gently. Yet, at the same time, it was like the enemy was grabbing him. Goetic's bright eyes grew dull and he felt the world around him fade as the darkness and the colors all swirled about. Lights were rising as orbs from out of the pit below. Rain was falling from above. A heavy, foreboding rain. Each droplet containing souls of the departed or entire worlds.

In a mere molecule of water he could see an entire dream housed inside. Recorded memory of another being sleeping somewhere very far away. All of that was falling by the hundreds, by the thousands, filling the space around him. This dark and distant landscape to which his mind had been pulled.

His eyes found it hard to focus. They grew wide and then, like a drunken fool, kept trying to close on their own. The lids were moving in and out like some kind of rhythm he had lost control over. Just as he had lost control of his entire body.

"Gray?" Goetic called out. "Gray, are you there? You've got to... You've got to help me now. I'm not going to make it out of this if you d-... We're not going to make it out of here if you leave me to die like this. Gray?! Grayyy!!"

As much as he called out into the darkness, Goetic found no immediate response. It seemed he had been put into a place where Gray couldn't reach him anymore. Or maybe something else was going on here.

Then, from above and below, from beyond, the face of the Devil moved close to his. "Goetic, I'm already here," the voice in front of him spoke. "It's me."

"You...?" Goetic inquired. His mind was still trying to process what was happening around him, but it was all so fast that he never had time to figure it out. A pair of sharp claws curled upward and around his cheek.
---

"I already got out," Gray said. "And it's all thanks to your help."

Those twin claws shot forward, plunging into Goetic's eyes, and impaling them. At the same time the long nails bored through his face and into his skull. The Abnormal's brain was punctured and blood ran out through the holes as his body went limp and he was killed instantly.

It was a merciful death for the Vessel whom Gray owed so much to.

He definitely would have never escaped from the Stone Temple if Goetic hadn't been led down here.

"You're curious, aren't you? You were so curious." Gray stood there over the corpse of the fallen Abnormal. The Angel and its ward were still broken and chained behind him. He didn't plan to let them go anytime soon. "You probably would have wanted to know what happened to the others, if you had time to think about it."

Gray's eyes narrowed as he stared into the pit beneath him.

Maria and Cata, they didn't even have time to think about what might be waiting for them down there.

They had fled straight into the darkness.

[END]

17. Does this group have any hope of escaping?
A. It'd be a miracle if they did.
B. Logically speaking, no.
C. There's no way of knowing.
---

Yikes...

A?
---

Man, and I thought the Moth Party had it bad...

A

Yeah I dunno!
---

A.

Also finally a demon that betrays us. This is definitely bad.
---

A.

You know, even if Mona was unpleasant, she didn't deserve that.
---

I thought she was a figment of Valter's imagination so I'm pleasantly surprised by that twist. Regardless, we're all probably fucked at this point so that's cool.

Also that entire scene with Gray reminded me of this part of a book I read as a kid. I think it was one of those first true "Oh shit" moments for me.
---

haha glad to hear I still have the power to surprise readers
---

young Valter, as a church knight

https://imgur.com/PEs3y29
---

Going with A.
Poor Mona, though the scene where she got face smashed into the ground right after saying 'don't worry it can't see me' got a laugh out of me..but man that devil didn't hold back which is expected given she was an angel and well..he is a devil.
---

C

For humans are full of surprises when faced with overwhelming adversity
---

Man, that was brutal. Abom (Valter) got choked out, the Angel got beaten and her wing torn off, and the Devil got free and is on a rampage. This has turned into a situation that spells screwed in so many ways.

B, though this whole story is about defying logic, so who knows.
---

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heORiZ8l484" data-time="

Hmm C

Seems similar to before with each choice being related to each of them. A being Big A (Valter), B being Maria, and C being Cata.
---

A

Perhaps that's a clue that we still have a chance for divine assistance... which might actually have been better if we activated it earlier even if Goetic did get a divine smite. He might have been done for already and it would have avoided this mess. >_>
---

B
---

Lets go with a Miracle off the top of the deck. A
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c because of course
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FakeAccount3000 posted...

Perhaps that's a clue that we still have a chance for divine assistance... which might actually have been better if we activated it earlier even if Goetic did get a divine smite. He might have been done for already and it would have avoided this mess. >_>

may Mona bless you on August 7
---

A.
---

A
---

Haven't we figured out that miracles are always disasters in disguise
---

So we get secret disasters or open ones.. seems accurate. >_> Also that sounded like a threat.
---

hmmm.... so just a heads up, guys, I've decided to delay the next update by a little bit. it's somewhat likely we'll only get one update this week instead of the usual two. figured I'd mention this now when I've decided on it so people aren't wondering where the heck the next update is if I don't get it out right away.

the reason is because as we move into the last part of the story I really, really want to make sure all of my ducks are in order and that I can solidify the outline as much as possible to make sure that I stick the landing. additionally, in regards to the outline, I've been thinking about tweaking the order and flow of the next few chapters for various reasons. because of that it's likely that things might look a little bit different from how the normal chapter orders would look, but I think this will be important to me to convey the gravity and urgency of specific situations.

for those still reading, thanks for being patient!

this project has been really fun for me and even though I had about twice as many people sign up as I figured would join I still have had a lot of fun with it so far. my goal right now is to make sure I do the story justice and write an ending I can be proud of.
---

MariaTaylor posted...

last part of the story

D:

Understandable, though. B8 will keep this bumped, probably
---

You can use the bumpbot to be sure, Maria!
---

I'm not too worried about the purge. Just wanted to let you guys know what was up.

May Mona Bless You On August 10 Instead
---

A
---

tonight or tomorrow!
---

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZx8jVK4Nzw" data-time="
---

Entry 18: A Bottomless Pit (Of Despair)

It was madness, utter madness, to flee into the darkness like they were doing. The monster behind Cata Spade at that moment was scary. There was no denying that. Yet, at the same time, at least they knew what was waiting up above. At least he might see the sun again some day if he went in that direction. What was going to happen next? He was going into unfamiliar territory where greater threats awaited.

It was the open door, displaying darkness and mystery. Despite his natural fear, his natural aversion, everything his instincts were telling him, he charged ahead into it.

And what about Maria? Shouldn't she have known better than this? Honestly, logically speaking, she should have known the way out. Yet for some reason she had thrown logic aside and dropped it all. Maybe in the face of something like that, even Maria was no better than him.

He wanted to say something but his face was breathless, a pale ghost, and words wouldn't form. He hardly had the strength to keep running like this. Yet he forced his muscles to keep carrying his body forward. Because if he stopped, if he went backwards... The Gray Devil would be waiting for him.

Cata's sword had broken back there, leaving him mostly without a weapon. When the first enemy appeared, coming around a corner, it was a miracle that Maria was able to react quickly enough to save them. The crossbow pressed firmly against the face of the foe and, almost without stopping, she punched him right through the eye with the bolt.

The monster had a face wrapped in rags and didn't quite look like the others. It scaled hide crept up the back and shoulders, but fleshy skin was exposed on its torso. And, beneath those bandages, had been some kind of face that... no, there was no time to stop, no time to think about it.

Maria barely knew how to reload the crossbow, and she certainly couldn't do it while running. Few had that ability. When the second foe appeared, a lanky and hairy creature similarly wrapped in bandages, Cata hesitated for a moment. That hesitation might have gotten him killed in other circumstances.

Driven by the adrenaline of fear, the normally calm woman threw herself forward and swung the crossbow. Rather than using it to fire a bolt she was clubbing the enemy with the weapon. As a bludgeoning tool it would suffice. The enemy went to the ground. Its back twisted and coiled as it scrambled and tried to get into position to attack.

Cata drive a sick hiss back down its throat as he stomped on its chest hard. Then, without stopping, he dove forward and kept running. It was hard to say how close the enemy still was but--

FWOOSH

A wave of heat and shadow swept across the narrow ledge as Maria ducked into the space behind him.

The bandaged foe, which had just been pulling itself back to its feet, was cut in half by a thin razor blade made of some kind of dark miasma. Its scaly hide split into pieces and its arm twisted back as its fingers clutched in terror and pain. It must have been just as afraid as they were. Or, in its eyes just then, did Cata sense a hint of rapture?

Perhaps it felt honored to die in this kind of way...

The two in flight were only hastened by this alarming action. They quickly came across a bizarre wooden support structure. Set up so far below ground it was hard to imagine what purpose it has served or who had built it, though the likely answer was either Avel of Cainas. In any case, without knowing where it led, Cata threw himself onto the wooden platform and then began to scramble upward onto the stone ledge above.

Maria, seeming to have the same idea, wasn't too far behind him. She was grateful when Cata reached back for her and helped pull her to safety. The two were less grateful when the shadow aura beneath them burned with an intense heat and didn't pass.
---

No, whatever that thing was, it wouldn't be this easy to escape it.

The stone structure was split into pieces with a single swipe from the Gray Devil. Then they heard the rattling of chains from below as Valter's body was roughly tugged across the ground. The enemy must have been preparing to scale the stone face and was thinking of how to lug the heavy man. Cata looked to Maria, trying to give her a nod of assurance, but he couldn't even muster such a simple gesture. Wordlessly, the two slipped into a low hanging crevice and began to crawl away from the threat.

"Mona..." Valter was muttering something in the dark. "I'm sorry.... Mona..."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

If only he had never shut away that part of himself.

If only Valter had remained true to his faith, and never surrendered his power.

Would he have been able to stand in this situation?

"No, that's wrong, Valter," she said. There was no hint of regret, no hint of disdain in her voice. Those lighthouse eyes shined brilliant green, even here in the bottomless pit of despair. "You shouldn't be thinking about that. Shouldn't be thinking about regret."

"Would you have been able to stand...? If you're asking that, you're making it sound like you've already failed."

Valter clenched his hand into a fist as his knuckles were dragged across the rough stone and dirt. As hard as he pulled, as hard as he struggled, there was just no breaking free from these chains. He wanted to open his heart again -- even only in the pursuit of a Miracle. Yet, at the same time, this situation seemed hopeless.

"You should be asking a different question."

Can I still stand? Was that it, he wondered.

"How can I get back to my feet now?"

No, there was no question about it. She was right. He would definitely stand. It was only a matter of how he was going to do it. That's because... "You're right," Valter said. "It's a Miracle -because- things are so hopeless right now." To say it was too hopeless for a Miracle was an oxymoron.

All it took was for him to stop denying his power, to open his heart again, to-

CLANK!

The chains were roughly pulled upon and his face was smashed into the dirt. Then the enemy dug its feet into Valter's shoulder and moved his limp form across the ground. He was roughly shoved forward and lost consciousness for a few moments. The world went black, and in the dreaming world there was no lighthouse to guide him.

Maria led Cata forward through the low tunnels and into a wide and deep chamber beyond. When the two of them reached a sharp ledge, overhanging the platform below, they took a moment to absorb the sights beneath them.

It was a place without any comprehensible purpose. But, that wasn't to say it didn't have one.

Rather... it was a place where humans couldn't possibly hope to understand what that purpose was.

Piled rock formations marked several locations across the ground. Those, stacked on top of each other, were slathered in a gold and bronze colored liquid that reflected the dim light from below. Some kind of ritual fire was burning down in the dark, in the pit below the open chamber.
---

Instead of forming an artistic shape, a logical shape, a mathematical shape, there seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the placement of these high pillars. Stacked atop each one was some kind of odd totem fashioned out of what looked to be bone. And, between each of them, were trails of blood that streaked across the ground.

Curved lines, straight lines, there wasn't any sort of pattern to the music of those colors.

Even, examining it from above like this, the lines didn't seem to draw any static image that either of them would understand.

However, as the fear in her heart subsided, Maria realized the Devil was no longer right behind them. Her pupils, which had grown tiny, returned to their normal size. And she found herself able to breath again. She thought about reloading the crossbow here and now, but worried that the sound of the device would echo too loudly in this chamber.

Could she, perhaps, risk a whisper?

"I think this might be the end," Cata said quietly, breaking the silence before she could.

Maria kept quiet but altered her posture slightly. She moved her arms beneath her chin, leaning on those, and looking down at the display beneath her. Were there shapes moving in the darkness? Cast against the light, it was so hard to see. It was so hard to be truly certain.

It wasn't the kind of world that she knew how to acclimate to. Things had always been different for her, growing up. Some people complained that the world was an awful place, and she couldn't deny that. But if someone said 'this world is too complicated to understand,' she would have to disagree. No matter how confusing the world seemed, especially to other people, she had always been able to break things down and make sense of them.

Yet, here, in this bottomless pit of despair, there was no sense to be found. Nothing to break down into segment. It was just... an endless void without meaning. Quiet and somber madness broken up briefly by objects and shadows which held no purpose. They were shown all along the rock face as the flames from below burned upward. Moving and twisting, dark shapes, things that weren't easy to reason with.

A place that wasn't easy to reckon with.

"We'll double back. Perhaps," Maria replied. She had just about had her fill of this quest. "I've had my fill of this quest. It's high time I return home." Even if she said it, though, that part of her -- the part which could see the world for what it was, and understand the world -- knew that she wouldn't be returning home again after this. "Or maybe..." Could she live in denial? Or, rather, would she just die in denial like this...?

It all seemed so pathetic... this forever branching corridor filled with dead ends.

The shadows below now were watching them, just as they had been watching the shadows below. There was a glint of understanding, from a high-minded beast, as it made eye contact with Maria Taylor. And, in that moment, she knew. She understood. All it took was that moment for her to figure out how to make sense of this place.

Well, she had always been talented, but...

If only they had noticed the shadows creeping in from above.

Cata let out a quiet gasp, as Maria let out a "GEH!" while the enemies dropped down on them with plunging attack. Oh, no, it wasn't to kill them. The two weren't quite dead yet. But this was definitely the end of the line for these two. Shadows now, beasts moving in the darkness, came crashing down and knocked the sense out of the two adventurers before they could react.

When Cata Spade awoke he was in a place he could have never expected. It was in the farm seven miles south of the main estate on his father's lands. He was still inside of the barn and yet somewhere in his brain he could see the light shining in through the corners, and in through the cracks in the doors.
---

Ah, yes. It had all been a strange and distant dream. He was still at home, somewhere, living on his father's lands and content to wallow in that kind of simple life. Who needed adventure? Who needed risk? He had been born a fortunate lad, lived a fortunate life up until now.

And, as he lay there in the hay, dwelling on it, he couldn't help but smile.

Only a fool would have gone on such a foolish quest. Why throw all of this away and get himself killed? If he had to say it, Cata would admit... he didn't even have a reason for going to a place like Cain's lands. Maybe it was just to pass the time, and because he was bored. But was that really a good reason to do something so dangerous?

And, as he lay there in the hay, dwelling on it, he felt his eyes opening up once again.

There was something wet at the corner of his eyelid. Blood? Tears? Perhaps a mix of both? As Cata woke up, he found himself laying on his back in the darkness. A strange totem was hanging above him. His hair had gotten stuck in the golden sap. His lungs hurt.

"Uhu-.... Uck...." All he could do was make weak sounds, sounds without effort, the last whimpers of a dying creature. He was dying. Wasn't he was dying? He was dying... wasn't he? No, maybe this was something else. Maybe he had fallen asleep back there in the hay again, and this was all just a dream.

Cata tried to lift his body but he was too weak. The strength and the blood had been drained from him in such a short time. He tried to lift his head, managing only to nudge it. As his limp and heavy skull rolled to the side, he found himself looking out across the floor.

Maria was there. The shadows were cast against the wall and the flames were burning quietly below.

Her pupils, which had grown so tiny earlier, had become so large now. There was someone, or something, standing above her. A robed figure who seemed to be hiding some great and terrible secret beneath its hood. It looked as if she wanted to speak but if her mouth opened all that came out was blood. It was trickling down from the corner of her lip.

Some monster had moved into the light and grabbed her hair, holding her upright by it. Yet, it was hard to say if she felt pain or panic. It was more like... all Cata could see when he looked at her was a deep and intense understanding. Like she knew so much that it hurt.

Like it hurt to know that much.

"No," a voice spoke in the darkness. "We won't make it quiet like this."

"We won't meet the formless one."

A sliver of light appeared from below. The crescent moon in the palm of fate.

"I know him. I know him. I know him." The voice of the hooded figure became frantic now. "And yet, after all this, he still won't appear before me! As if the lives of these mortals were worth that of the gilded coin!" He leaned forward, peering intently at Maria.

Still, completely stunned into silence, her open mouth exposing the blood from within her body, all she could do was return a wide eyed stare. To understand what she was looking at now must have given her an intense shock.

"As if everything I had done so far could possibly be enough to make him appear, as much as I know him, I know that he is a fickle God," the hooded figure lamented. He took a knee before Maria and the crescent moon began to rise. "And I know he won't appear before me like this, not with such a pathetic gift."

"Still..."

Cata felt the air drain from his lungs.
---