EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (GODSBLOOD)

[aionmods]

Sovereign Citizens

GODSBLOOD

At the height of the Sovereign's moon, Vaeka Lovenskol's execution is announced. Outside of the City Hall, a dignitary of Achamoth is flanked by an entourage of Kenoma, reading the words of Regent from an unfurled letter: Vaeka stands accused to conspiring against the Regent and abetting the fugitive menace known as the Pleroma. Though the details are not made public, rumors spread quickly, some far more wild than the actual truth. The full truth, after all, is something only the Regent's agents and the Pleroma themselves know, and even to them the manner of her exposure is unclear.

Though losing a proud daughter of an influential family, there seems to be little that the people of Godsblood can do besides accept it. After all, they are still a city of the Regent's empire, and for all the freedom they've enjoyed, there are limits. If she was truly aiding the Pleroma, the sworn enemies of the Regent - and in an organized manner, if the rumors are to be believed - can they truly object? Or would challenging the Regent's claim simply invite more death?

As with many things, the families of Godsblood are torn. Tensions are thick for the five days leading up to Vaeka's appointed execution by hanging, with everyone having an opinion and few wanting to go on record talking about it too loudly. As such, the people's frustrations come out in other ways. Bloodites are uncharacteristically unfriendly to strangers in this time, keeping to their own and treating everyone else with overt skepticism.

Those that have arrived as part of the Regent's official envoy, or seen guarding Vaeka, will receive a particularly icy reception. No longer are the Kenoma curious wanderers on personal business. Now, they are here as the hands of the Regent; few of the Godsblood citizens are foolish enough to challenge them outright, but they are ever an honest people.

Early on, the Kenoma and the rest of the Achamite contingent sent with them will be able to take over a jail in downtown Godsblood to hold Vaeka until her execution, clearing out all other Bloodite prisoners and employees in the meantime. This means they have a relatively secure position to guard their prisoner from, which is a good thing; after all, the Regent did outright invite the Pleroma to stop them, and Pleroma are nothing if not stubborn.

EXECUTION DAY

After five agonizing days of waiting and several high visible conflicts between the Pleroma and Kenoma, finally the hour of Vaeka's execution arrives. A gallows is set outside of City Hall, ready to welcome its newest victim, and a massive crowd has gathered in an spirit of anxious anticipation. Some worry that violence may break out in the streets, even without the Pleroma's agitation, but gradually the minutes tick by and the gallows remain empty.

First one minutes passes. Then five. Then fifteen. Slowly, it becomes clear to the people of Godsblood that Vaeka will not be arriving. Are the rumors true? Has she been saved? Have the Pleroma been successful, despite all odds?

As the hours pass and the crowds disperse, Vaeka Lovenskol is not officially reported as either living or dead. Fortunately, Godsblood is a place where information has a way of getting around, whether those in charge like it or not. Some are saying that she was seen being whisked away as if by powerful magic, following a bloody fight at the jail in which she was being held. Where did she go? Maybe her supposed connections to the forest people did her good, some surmise.

The days following Vaeka's failed execution carry a strange and uncertain energy. Where before there was tension and distrust, Godsblood now finds itself in a surreal reality where the Regent's word is apparently not absolute. Then again, do they really want a repeat performance?

QUESTIONS

What is the best way for Aions to travel to Godsblood?
For Pleroma, this is very easy, as they are likely to either already live there or be able to easy take Greentruth's portal. For Kenoma, they may come directly from Achamoth by boat as part of the Regent's envoy or arrive via Eustace's portal which is set up in a shed a fairly long jaunt outside of town. Once there has been some time to get established, Misa will be setting up another portal leading straight to the prison where Vaeka is being stored.

Are the Kenoma permitted by the Regent to kill other Godsblood citizens?
Though the Kenoma are authorized to kill any Bloodites that try to physically fight them, they are expected to keep things clean. The Regent prefers to only punish the guilty, and having the lines be clear will create less of a hassle in the future. Generally, Godsblood is not in a state where physical resistance is likely to happen unprovoked.

Comments

[baltimores]

[ Amos hasn't exactly been sleeping that great. There's something to be said for suffering a grievous injury, knowing there's no immediate — if any — fix for it, going back out there regardless, and getting hit with a dose of hallucinogens for your trouble all within twenty-four hours or so.

So, he's up earlier than expected. Might as well do some of the rounds, take his mind off of things. Shift his focus from things he can't control to things he still can.

It's when he's entering the cellblock that has Rand — it'd been something of a pain to have to spread their resources out a bit farther, their guarding load now doubled, but still better than chancing a Pleroma being anywhere near Vaeka — that he can hear what sounds like a door swinging open. And he... can't think of any reason why that would be happening. Who else would be around here who's supposed to be here that would be coming in from...

... ]

Hey! [ Amos' voice is loud enough to echo down the halls, its aim to get the attention of anyone who might so happen to be nearby. He looks at his hands and, well, shit. He's got nothing on him. If this is going to end up being something, the only weapon he has is himself — which he can at least make do with if that's really all he's got. ] Anyone down there?

[ There's an underlying aggression to his tone as he moves at a brisk walk to get to where Rand's cell is. Who knows what he'll find along the way, though. ]

[lifespanned]

[ Misa, too, has found it hard to rest. Surprisingly enough, her powers have found need in multiple parts around the prison - perhaps most relevantly, keeping their I need my arms to use magic prisoner under wraps. Every time she tries to rest, she gets anxious about what might happen while she's asleep, or if she'll miss detecting someone on the roof that no one else might have seen. Likewise to Amos, she rises early and plans to just tough it out for the next few days - resting whenever she can, but not planning on sleeping for any large bout of time. It'll be fine. She's gone much, much longer without peaceful rest.

At present, though, she's meant to be restraining the previously mentioned prisoner again, but... it's not exactly something she can do alone. In the case of his (nearly guaranteed) retaliation, she'd need someone there to hold him off until she could neutralize him again - hearing a sound from downstairs puts a wrench in things for this side of the prison's schedule. Obviously, the higher priority would be to investigate the threat that's coming in, before they get further in.

So Misa follows along, trusting that the others stationed around the prison will be able to handle Rand should he get out from under Ciel's nose - of course, assuming that she must still be on guard. In the case she isn't... well, she'll just try not to think about that. She doesn't have a choice— the alternative would be to turn around right now and try to face off against Rand herself, a battle she knows she'll lose. Amos calls out to what must be intruders, and Misa trails a few steps behind him, her brow tensing with focus. ]

Amos... be careful. There could be more than one...

[ She whispers, voice tight with concern. She's not blind to the damage he's taken over the last few days— while she can recognize that he's a strong person, has weathered much worse, and is the more likely of the two of them to be able to take more hits should another altercation arise, she can't help but feel a little worried. And pressured to do something to help. If she can't provide him direct protection, she'll at least have to give him a (perhaps literal) leg up— when the pair get close enough to be in view of the source of the sound, a very suspiciously now open door, Misa pins her petrifying gaze to the opening, eyes darting to whoever comes through first. If caught in her gaze, her restrictive spell will start from the left leg and up. ]

[goldendeceiver]

[ It's not a bad spell given their purposes, relatively subtle without the risk of a loud explosion, and even the groan of the door is fairly quiet all things considered.

The problem is that is isn't quiet enough. As subtle as Akua managed to be with her spell, apparently there was still enough noise from it to alert the guards, and Ernesto recognizes the voice that calls down the hallway towards them. He lets out a sharp exhale, before unholstering his sword, and straightening his back. Akua had been in front of him to make this spell work, but he jerks his head to the side indicating she should move back.

His voice is whisper as the footsteps move towards them. ]

I'll do what I can to distract them, to give you time to find Rand.

[ She's already proven she's better with locks than he is, though he hopes that if there are any shackles directly on Rand beyond the cell he's kept in, that she's got a few more spells she can use that are less potentially devastating.

He doesn't really have time to wait for much of an answer though as he hears how close the two Kenoma are, and with a sharp inhale he pushes his shoulder into the door to open it the rest of the way, and charges in.

If the spell Misa pins him with gets him, he certainly doesn't seem to react to it as he keeps running forward, sword out and swinging in a wide arc at whichever of them happens to be closer without any warning. He's intentionally not in close quarters enough that the sword is going to do any serious damage even if the blow lands, but he figures the need to dodge will take up enough of the Kenoma's focus for Akua to slip in without being immediately jumped on. ]

oh my god I'm a dumbass and deleted my last response... sorry y'all :x it still happened!

[wolof]

[ Akua silently nodded at Ernesto, willing to take the order as it was. He was willing to take the hit, and dodge through, and Akua could look for Rand. She has enough spells that she can defend herself if they come through, and she followed behind Erenesto's steps, and wove a shield in front of her -- just in case.

Once he was through the door and rushing, she modified her speed, and peeked her head in through the door, trying to determine when he would provide the best chance for her to slip in unnoticed. When he leapt in, drawing their attention, Akua wove a spell behind him, a large bright flash of light, something to keep her from being seen, when she slipped in, and stuck to the shadows, hitting the dark corners, and sneaking along the edges of the room, before she was able to slip in, her feet silent and she snuck, her body kept low, and She occasionally left bursts of light behind Ernest, small workings that were mostly for show -- although if anyone was close... they did sting.

She needed to get to Rand, and fast.

She moved deeper in, trying to make sure she could get past them, but she was prepared for the worst, if the Kenoma were too wily to let her get into the back of the jail, and locate her target. ]

[baltimores]

[ He does take a second to look back at Misa, at her warning, with warmth in his gaze. ]

Ah, I'll be alright.

[ After all, he's got her, right? This is what they'd talked about all those months ago, back when the Citadel had been somewhere new and not distinctly home. She has powers that complement his ability to fight on the front lines. Maybe he shouldn't be willing to jump back into it so soon, but it's not like he's got a choice, so fuck it, right?

And then he's all business again as he turns back to the door, advances towards it — and directly towards a charging Ernesto and his sword.

Amos gives a yell of surprise as he dodges back, avoids its wide swing. (He is not going to reach out and grab it this time. What the fuck had he been thinking when he'd done it with Rand's.) The flash of light coming from behind Ernesto, from by the door, is barely an afterthought with the promise of an attacking adversary directly in front of him, and Amos grits his teeth as he immediately finds himself at a disadvantage.

Fuck it. If he could handle one Pleroma with a sword he can handle another. The fact that it's a Pleroma he knows — has known for some time, dating right back to a miserable cavern and telling him he should just come out with him — hardly even registers. All Amos knows is he has an enemy right in front of him on his territory, and after that initial dodge he regroups and charges at Ernesto, throwing his right shoulder at him, aiming to throw him back and pin him to the wall — and hopefully make him drop that fucking thing. ]

[lifespanned]

Ack!!

[ Having not expected to be leapt at so soon - and momentarily blinded by that flash of light - Misa makes a surprised (and nearly comical) squawking sound, throwing up her hand to shield her eyes for a brief moment. She definitely caught an eyeful from staring so hard, which prevents her from actually witnessing Akua slipping by into the shadows.

Though, she's not kept blind for long. When she's able to manage opening her eyes again, Misa is quick to try to identify the assailant - which proves to be slightly harder than originally thought, due to the ongoing brawl. Cautiously, she creeps closer, staying a good few paces behind Amos himself - and draws her dagger from the holster at her thigh. It's only then that she's able to make out the face of the person causing all this.

Ernesto? What the hell is he doing here? There's no way he thought he could storm the castle on his own, did he? Internally, she thinks this must be some kind of trap, though with no obvious evidence to back it up... what choice does she have? She has to help Amos. Maybe they'll catch Ernesto, too. She focuses her gaze on him, growing what petrification has already latched onto him up his leg, wanting to make it harder for him to escape from Amos first— she's sure Amos will take care of the rest from there. Probably. ]

You're crazy for coming in here, you know that?!

[ It's half said to show her exasperation over the situation, and half honestly to try to distract him. Either way, she begins backing up, knowing that 1) she should stay out of Amos's way, and 2) there still could very well be more to this. ]

[goldendeceiver]

[ This is not the first time that Ernesto has acted like a decoy to draw someone else's attention to him, potentially with deadly consequences for himself. This is also not the first time that his plan to scapegoat himself has been successful, and he could almost breathe a sigh of relief as the two Kenoma who were approaching the door turn their attention squarely towards him and miss Akua making her way into the jail.

Almost, but it's hard to feel too much relief when a large man is tossing his not inconsiderable mass at you. Misa is probably right to yell at him that he was crazy for coming here, but if Akua can manage to nab Rand during this tussle, then it'll all be worth it.

There's a dim awareness on his part that his foot is not bending the way it should, but he doesn't have time to properly access it as he plants it on the ground and pivots on it, twisting himself to the side and away from Amos' body before he can be fully slammed against that wall. The big guy still managed to knock him back quite a way, and he's forced to stumble back several steps, awkward on his newly inflexible foot.

Still, he's sustained injuries in the middle of a fight that have hindered mobility before this fight, and he does a remarkable job staying upright, and even quickly changing his stance so he can take another swing at Amos to make him back up, trying to keep Misa in his periphery in case she decides to move closer.

He's not sure he can pull off a proper banter in the middle of this two on one, but he will offer a breathy laugh as he regains his composure. ]

Probably.

[ He doesn't sound remotely offended, and in fact zeroes in no one the shoulder that tried to wall smash him a second ago, going for a third swipe now, this time intending to hit a target. ]

[wolof]

[ Ernesto is doing admirably, keeping the attention of the two attackers on him, and it allows Akua to sneak, oh so carefully closer to the back, and into the jail. She's on quiet feet, still in a dress, but her boots are supple leather. It means she can slip oh-so-silently through the jail.

The sounds of battle behind her make her look over her shoulder, but only briefly. No, the target is Rand, who needs to be rescued, before the Kenoma take him. She doesn't know what they'd do, but she has the imagination of a Praesi, and she knows what she would do with an enemy, so she can imagine that they will quickly reduce him to a shadow of who he is. Someone like the Regent is powerful, and impressive, and old. There was a great deal of imagination that could fit in one so ancient. Neshamah had been similar, in his creative cruelty.

The first cell that caught her attention was an empty one, with bent and twisted bars, and she paused, but Rand wasn't there. She moved further in, her spell at the ready, before she found him, and she didn't gasp, but there was a sharp inhale of breath, when she noticed him, and noticed how he looked. ]

Rand --

[ She looked around, dropped one spell, and in its place, she reached out, to start forcing the bars to disintegrate under her touch with an application of magic, to eat away at the metal. ]

slides in with the damsel

[dragonmount]

[ the commotion had woken him up.

not that his time imprisoned here, least of all the recent hours with ciel, had been anywhere near restful. but he hasn't slept at all since the night before the evening reconnaissance that had gone so wrong, and that had to catch up with him sooner or later. hard to say how many hours it's been since then besides many; but long enough that he finally started to drowse towards the end of ciel's shift.

so he's surprised when he wakes and he's alone, her black key gone, no misa at the door to re-petrify him. and he's more surprised to hear raised voices, and the clear sounds of a fight. mostly, this cellblock has been empty — the only people here besides him have been his guards. vaeka's elsewhere, and that only makes sense. and that's why it's only for half a second that he wonders if pleroma has come for her at last, because if they have...they're in the wrong place.

moving is painful (thanks, ciel) (and thanks, amos) but he groggily pulls himself to his feet, almost makes it up to the door, and —

sees a very familiar pair of golden eyes. ]

Akua? [ is breathed out, disbelieving. he takes half a step back as the bars start to crumble, looking at her with his eyes huge. ] What in the name of the Light are you doing here?

[ he's seen better days. the refusal to accept anything from the kenoma, even a way to clean up, means there's dried blood in his hair, on his face, on his clothes; and there's no hiding the older purpled bruise across his cheekbone, or the fresher one on his jaw. the ugliest one is safely hidden under his shirt, at least, but the way he gingerly holds himself probably makes that obvious anyway.

as the bars start to break, he moves in closer. he's only about 65% sure this is really happening, but if it is, he's ready to get out. ]

[baltimores]

[ If Misa and Ernesto want to banter, that's their business. Good for Misa, really, if it helps throw Ernesto off his game — but Amos is here to either incapacitate or kill, so he's got no time for talking.

He stumbles a bit forward as he doesn't connect with Ernesto as properly as he'd have liked; has to dodge back again when he swings at him. Maybe he should've learned how to wield a sword, but he can't really see what good it would have done him at this point other than to give him a defence against others'.

Which, in fairness, would also be nice to have.

Because when Amos counters, tries to hit Ernesto again — and who cares if it's with a fist that's down a few fingers; even with that handicap it's the one he's used to, so he can put more power into it — the Perro scores a hit.

He gives a yell of pain as the blade bites into his skin, blood starting to freely flow from his arm, a bit below the shoulder. The wound is debilitating, but isn't so much as to be incapacitating; Amos resists the instinct to grab at it with his left hand, instead balls it into a fist and throws it at any opening Ernesto left him with as much force as he can put behind it.

He can tell that his shard isn't within range at all; he's just going to have to do his best to beat the body into submission. Go from there. ]

[lifespanned]

[ It's impulse, more than logical thought that pushes her to act. As soon as she sees Amos's arm start gushing blood, she switches her gaze to him, instead, cold stone creeping up from the tips of his fingers until they're closed over the wound, freezing the blood and flesh there in time. It doesn't even occur to her that doing this may throw Amos off his game, or surprise him— the wound just looks... too serious, for her not to do something about it. And maybe it'll give Amos something good to hit Ernesto with.

Misa doesn't end up coming any closer - no, instead, she parks herself right in the middle of the stairway that led to this very entrance, feeling as though she should keep the pathway blocked - in the case Ernesto gets any funny ideas. Or, in the case there's more to this than meets the eye. At present, she doesn't tear her eyes away from the two, only able to continue her assault on Ernesto when she's finished patching up Amos's arm. ]

[goldendeceiver]

[ The wound was designed to hurt and hinder, but Ernesto wasn't going for any killing shots with this one. He doesn't want either of the Kenoma easily following them out when Akua comes rushing out of of the cell block with Rand in tow, so a little injury here and there to keep them occupied isn't a bad thing.

It'll heal, even if it'll also leave a scar if Amos doesn't get to a healer quickly.

As good as he gives though, between Amos increased aggression and Misa's unusual assault on his leg, Ernesto's getting just as painfully. That fist slams into him with a dull, painful sound that has Ernesto grunting in pain as he stumbles back again.

Staying on his feet is going to get increasingly difficult the more his foot fails to work. It feels like trying to walk with a bulky cast on now, but he pushes ahead, ignoring the pain blooming through his side where Amos socked him, and goes for another swing, putting more aggression in it this time, even if he's still not trying for a killing blow. At the moment he does want all of them to get out of this in one piece. ]

[wolof]

[ The fight sounds like it's getting worse, and Ernesto can't stay out there for long against the two of them. She needs to hurry, and Rand needs to get moving, for all the disbelief across his face, he needs to get with the program -- vague though it was -- and move. The bars finish dissolving, and she smirked at him, as if that would help him understand what was going on. ]

Come now, you didn't expect us to leave you, did you?

[ She asked, her tone almost mocking. She noted the way he moved, the way he gingerly held his chest like if he was going to twist, it would hurt, and she breathed in a deep breath. She couldn't do anything about that, not without surgery, or deeper workings, and that required privacy and time. They didn't have it. ]

Come, we need to get you out, before Ernesto gets hurt. You follow behind, and I'll distract them.

[ It's an order, this time, and she doesn't wait longer than to confirm Rand is following, before she crept toward the door. Hold on, she willed, hoping that this would last a little longer, so she could offer the full might of her magic. ]

[dragonmount]

[ maybe he did??

but for all of his surprise, he can hear the fight as well as she can, and he can draw a few conclusions about that. no time to waste then, not that akua brooks any argument. not that he's inclined to argue, following her as swiftly as he's able, though he asks a perplexed, ]

Ernesto?

[ it can't...possibly just be the two of them here, right? akua clearly here to find rand, and ernesto to, what, fight off the guards? that could just as easily be a return of ciel as amos as — no good options. that can't be the plan, because that would be ridiculous. bad enough to distract from the necessity of saving vaeka than to pursue a risky, woolheaded idea as this. ]

[baltimores]

[ If he'd had time for it, he would have glanced back to shoot Misa a look as his right hand — arm — started freezing in place. He doesn't, though, so all he has is to continue with the followthrough of his non-petrified arm; it's around then that Misa's gaze effectively puts a halt to the blood flow, and he gets what she's doing.

He didn't intend on this fight lasting so long as for the blood loss to be that much of a hinderance, and now he's got a dead arm, but whatever. As long as she thinks she's helping.

Even though a tendril of annoyance starts unfurling itself inside him.

But it has its uses — or rather, should — as Amos pivots his body when he sees Ernesto taking another swing at him, aiming to block it with his now-petrified arm; if he's going to be partially immobile, might as well try to use it as a shield.

Except it misses on his end; succeeds on Ernesto's, dealing him a deeper wound higher up on his arm, cutting just below the bony part of his shoulder — where his arm is still flesh and blood once again coming to the surface flowing down stone tracks and something inside him snaps.

This time, Amos' yell of pain is more one of anger as he aims to grab at Ernesto's left wrist with his right hand, which is still down a few fingers and now made of stone — helpful in meaning he's less likely to lose more; less helpful in that he can't get a proper grip, can't get a feel for it, can only apply a base level of pressure. His eyes dart from his new cut to the sword to Ernesto's eyes to his arm as he makes a split-second decision, grabs at Ernesto's upper arm with his left hand, and wrenches the whole thing back as far as he possibly can.

Something snapped in him; let something snap inside of Ernesto, too. ]

[lifespanned]

[ She does in fact think she's doing a good job at helping, at least until she feels that trickle of annoyance from Amos himself. Her kneejerk reaction is wow, how ungrateful?, though she belatedly thinks that sure, maybe he just wants to do things his way. Fine, message taken. That doesn't mean she's happy about it. She's stubbornly sure she did the right thing in the end.

That's why she only flinches when she sees Ernesto's arm snap like that, little more than a wrinkle of her nose, before she turns away, casting her gaze down the corridor instead. Not out of disgust, but— Amos doesn't need her help, does he? So be it then. She looks right on time, too, because her enhanced sight catches a subtle movement of the door - Rand's cell - and a realization washes over. ]

— um...

[ Hurry and finish him, goes unsaid, as she (mercifully) decides not to continue being a distraction. Should she go pursue them on her own? Or wait here...? She's almost certain another person and Rand will emerge from the room, so she takes a few steps back up the stairs, thinking her best bet at being useful in a way that won't piss anyone off is to intercept their path as early on as she can. It'll be fine, she can still see Ernesto from here, if it comes down to it - though she doubts it'll come to that, as Amos currently looks to be the likely winner of this little scuffle from her perspective. What's the worst that could happen?? ]

[goldendeceiver]

[ Their little internal conflict is all well and good, but Ernesto doesn't really have time to get distracted by whatever is happening between Misa and Amos right now. Regardless of the fact that Misa put Amos down one arm in this fight, the guy is tough and seems to have very little concern for his own well being. Usually being on the business end of the sword means people give Ernesto a slightly wider breadth, so this isn't exactly going how Ernesto hoped it would when he saw that Amos was unarmed.

You sneak attack a guy when you have the advantage, and what does that get you?

A broken arm apparently...

The shock of it and the sound hits him before the pain shoots through his body. This hasn't been a soundless fight, but it's still all Ernesto can do to bite back a muffled cry, teeth clacking together as he tries not to make so much noise he'd for sure draw the attention of more Kenoma.

This is not the first time he's ever broken a bone. This is also not the worst pain he's ever been dealt in a fight. Neither of these things make the experience more pleasant though, and as his eyes water even as his sword drops out of his hand. With a shuddering breath he wrenches his body sideways, sucking in another sharp inhale as another burst of pain blooms from his arm as he breaks free of Amos grasp, and drops low to try and retrieve his fallen sword with his right hand.

Everything happens in a matter of seconds, and the adrenaline is pumping through him and narrowing his focus.

But not so much so that he doesn't see Misa's attention shift to something else as she starts to move up the stairs. His heart is already pounding away in his chest, but the realization that he needs to stop her hits him.

As clear minded as Ernesto can be outside of a fight, it's hard as hell to keep yourself level when you're in the middle of combat, and especially when you're not doing well. If he was thinking straight he might think of any number of ways to try and incapacitate Amos that might hurt like hell, but wouldn't be overly deadly to him.

He can't afford to stop and consider those right now though, so in the heartbeat it takes for him to drop to the floor, grab his sword, and notice Misa, he makes up his mind. Standing up again he wheels around to face Amos once more, sword movement less precise now that he's using his right hand instead, and he slashes out while he still has the chance, before Amos has another shot at him.

He goes for the throat, jaw clenched as he realizes what this might mean for Amos. ]

[wolof]

Yes, now come on.

[ It's a demand now, her voice still low, but it's sharp with the pierce of her order. Akua was imperious when she needed to be, and this seemed to be the right time to be entirely imperious.

She continued down the hall, retraced her steps, but she stopped him with a hand, when she approached. She didn't dare just blow through, but she looked around a corner, to try and take stock of it all.

Ernesto was bent down, trying to pick up his sword, the man -- large, and clearly a fighter -- was looming, and the girl... Misa up the stairs. She was watching, waiting. She was going to have to do something creative, but that was where Akua excelled.

There were no demons or devils to summon on this plane. She could not drop a lake on these people, but she didn't need to. Akua was the Doom of Liesse, after all. She could do anything, if she pleased. She stepped forward, and offered Misa a smile, and a wink, before she sent a torrent of sparks in her direction, bright lights -- they were clearly the same lights from before, but she held back, before she looked at Rand. ]

Going back through there is dangerous. We'll need to blow a hole in the wall, if we want you to get out. Do you think you're capable? [ Because she, very clearly, was stepping out, although she didn't go far, until she knew Rand was safe. She had plenty of magic, she could do it, but if she could focus on the others... ]

[dragonmount]

[ akua he's had like three head injuries in the last thirty hours, he's trying,

which is to say: he follows her, because of course he does. he knows that tone of hers well enough, and truthfully he isn't inclined to be difficult here. akua always knows what she's doing. and, more importantly, he trusts her. if she says they're getting him out, then that's what's happening. so he follows, and he pauses when directed to, and he

flinches, hearing that snap and the accompanying cry. he isn't near enough to see what akua can, but he has his guesses of who just got hurt. and if he's right — light, if he's right — because he is, of course to blame —

but the beautiful thing about being here with akua is that she doesn't even have to know he's about to spiral before snapping him out of it. he focuses back on her, on the question, and

nods. it feels so easy to seize the Power now, with adrenaline surging through his veins. and it's a satisfying ask, isn't it? he'd tried to raze this prison when he first woke here, would have if amos hadn't stopped him, so a hole in the wall is nothing. ]

Show me where.

[ and when, goes unspoken, the most opportune moment. ]

cw throat trauma, a lot of blood

[baltimores]

[ He doesn't have time for Misa's emotional retort, so he buries it, ignores anything else he might pick up from her. Ernesto's pain feels like a small victory, something in him rising up at the feeling demanding more, like a man dying of thirst in the desert and this is all that could possibly sate him. He's already going after Ernesto again as soon as he breaks free, the fact that he's down an arm relegated to the back of his mind. It's irrelevant. He feels like he's strong enough to tear Ernesto apart with a single hand, finds that's all he wants to do—

He's bleeding, is a distant thought in his mind, more aware of the sensation of it than anything that could be put into language.

Not from his arm. Well, yes from his arm, above where his skin had been turned to stone, but that's also irrelevant. It isn't—

His blood has already hit the ground between him and Ernesto, draining from a cut to his carotid artery, its path to his brain severed, his heart trying to pump more up and therefore out of him, and he's caught between two states of mind as he looks down at it spilling from him in what feels like slow motion.

He wants to grab at his neck and pinch it off.

He wants to grab at Ernesto's neck and tear his throat out.

He's still bleeding.

Barely even a second passes before he looks across at Ernesto, eyes wild, what's left of his mind made up. This is more important than anything else. He wants to do this more than anything else. He takes a step towards him, takes his blood with him. Takes another step towards him, hand outstretched to grasp at Ernesto, tear him apart—

Whatever had been powering him through this exhausts itself, his head going so light from both that whiplash and the blood loss — it hasn't stopped, it's over his shirt, there's a far too thick trail following him, he's been stepping in it, he's still adding to it — and Amos' gaze leaves Ernesto's, eyes fluttering as he collapses. ]

cw: throat trauma, blood

[lifespanned]

[ Akua's sparks do what they're meant to— Misa's forced to lower her gaze to shield her eyes from staring directly at them - though not before she can tell just who is the one who sent them. It's that woman from before, the one who had been so curious about the Regent's ideal world. With her blade drawn, she fully means to make a break for them, not particularly afraid of facing off against two well-known magic users, or at least, much less as she should be as an ex-relatively normal girl. She takes one, two quick paces towards them before—

A thud.

Instantaneously, she whips her head back around, as the sound had reverberated much too heavily to have come from Ernesto. Her eyes go directly to the blood already spilt on the ground, traveling up shakily to the source, and... her mind just goes blank. Time seems to come to a screaming halt, an incessantly loud ringing in her ears drowning out any further communications between Rand, Akua, and Ernesto, and all color drains from her rosy face. Perhaps her horror is made more evident by the distinct lack of an immediate sound that comes from her, or by her obvious stumble in her rush to dart back down the stairs, uncaring if she misses steps or trips over herself in the process. In an instant, she completely abandons her pursuit for Rand. The first word she can choke out, in a voice cracking with dry terror: ]

Amos!

[ Her eyes are already on him as she comes down, the stone enchantment creeping steadily up and over his shoulder and blooming over into his chest in all directions. She's in such a rush, she doesn't bother to think I told you so, nor does she think of the potential danger of getting so close to Ernesto himself. As things are, she can't even lift her eyes to look at what he's doing, or where he's going to begin with, if she has any hope of saving Amos's life.

As soon as she's close enough, she skids onto her knees with a painful desperation, delicate hands closing over the wound as tightly as she's able, blood running hot and thick through her fingers despite all her efforts. She's trembling, cold sweat dripping down wetly from her chin. ]

...No! No, this can't be happening....

[ Not again. Her words are quiet, said hastily to herself and for herself, almost like a mantra. She never wanted to lose anyone again like this. She thinks of her mother, pale and twitching, bleeding out from the neck in their family home - of how she could do nothing but watch, cowering away in the corner and hoping to every and any deity out there that she wasn't next. Back then, there was nothing she could've done— but now, she can do something. She has to do something. Misa chokes on a sob, still unable to lift her head or look anywhere else - all she's focused on is holding his neck closed, waiting for her enchantment to reach where her hands lay. Only when it's beginning to get there does she have the mental capacity to call for help, her voice thoroughly panicked and raw, and undoubtedly audible to all of the Pleroma present. ]

Ciel! Emet! Somebody, please...

cw: more throat trauma and blood!

[goldendeceiver]

[ If pressed, Ernesto could probably list out the number of truly grisly things he's seen in his life. They're numerous enough that he'd need a moment to collect his thoughts and mention them all, but not so numerous that they've numbed him too much to remember. Horrific sights tend to stick in a person's mind and plague them for a long time after, and you don't get to live through a war without having seen things you wish to every god imaginable that you could forget.

Amos ambling towards him, blood spilling out of his neck, a few hot specks flinging far enough out to dapple Ernesto's shirt, doesn't even register in Ernesto's list of top ten. Still, it's not one he's going to soon forget, and fear seizes him as Amos reaches out a hand towards him with eyes wide and wild. His own stone leg makes his stumbled step backwards awkward and short, and his heart leaps into his throat as Amos moves forward only to fall to the floor.

The Perro lets out a shaking breath, moving back another couple of quick steps and incidentally making room for Misa as she throws herself down by Amos' side. He hesitates for just a second at the sight of her desperation, before putting his mind to escape, and turning on his heel towards Akua and Rand. His one stone foot falls heavily against the floor as he runs towards them as his broken arm hangs limply at his side. ]

Whatever you're going to do! Do it now!

[ All of this was way too loud for the other Kenoma to not come investigate soon. ]

cw: more of the same!

[wolof]

[ The display is... truly bloody and if she'd been younger, or more naive, she may have been more stunned by it. As it is, Akua looked at all of it -- the bruiser with those severe cuts to his neck, blood bubbling and spilling, and Ernesto with the stoned foot, and his arm hanging limp at his side, clearly broken, maybe difficult to repair without a true healer. They couldn't do anything about it now, not without getting them free. As soon as Ernesto gets close, her hands spread wide, she sent another array of sparks, creating a wall -- trying to make it difficult to see. They're fire, not Light, but they're still bright, and it's better than an impenetrable wall of darkness that could only be dwarfed by night.

She looked between the two of them, and nodded. ]

Right there --

[ She pointed at the wall, where her steps and layout matched up with the outside, her other hand taut at her side -- the one that still held desiccated scars on her dark skin, practically necrotized. ]

We'll get your arm sent once we're free.

[ She nodded at Ernesto, and then down to his foot. ] Will you be able to move okay?

cw: blood, throat trauma, mental trauma....we're doing great fam

[dragonmount]

[ he's taken a few steps that afford him a clearer view of what's happening in the fight, and that means he does see that gruesome turn of events. the blood, those steps amos takes before collapsing, the tenor of misa's scream: he won't ever forget any of that. a thought that flashes through his mind, here and gone, is that he's not worth this. he's just — not.

but he almost isn't aware of having thought that. because the bigger part of him is having a hard time looking away from the spill of red pouring out of amos, flecking ernesto's front. there's visceral horror, of course, that swells in his throat like it might choke him. but the bigger part of him is standing in a darkened alley, a man falling at his feet, and oh light, there'd been so much blood

misa screams for help, and ernesto shouts, and akua directs him, and the only thing worse than anything that's happened already would be if this was for nothing.

he breathes, sharply, unaware that he'd stopped for a long moment. and then he flings the Power at the wall.

it's unbelievably tempting to blow up the entire wall, the entire prison, especially with the power to do it burning through every fiber of his body. but, he has friends here. but, they still have to protect vaeka. but, they can't afford to make the kenoma want to move her to light knows where. so instead,

he grits his teeth, and a careful section of the wall shakes loose. all that blazing light and reeking darkness swirl around him as he pushes enough stones loose to make a man-sized hole, the rectangular piece of wall suspended in the air as he pulls it inside. ]

I'm right behind you. Go!

[ ernesto's bound to be the slowest with the stone foot, so he shouldn't be covering their escape. akua's a better option, but with amos hurt and misa distracted and rand's intimate understanding of how her petrification works — they're not going to be followed. the jail's large enough that it's possible no one heard her. and he is, after all, holding the wall; and he is, after all, going to put it back once they're all out, all the better to prevent them being followed. if there's any incredible irony in the martyr insisting on being the last outside in his own rescue, well. it doesn't occur to him. ]