EVENT #6: BY HEAVEN OR HELL

[aionmods]

By Heaven or Hell

THE BURNING

Achamoth, as it turns out, is no stranger to public killings... the burning of two Pleroma, however? That's special. Abel and Himeka's upcoming execution date seems to be regarded by the city's populace as something akin to a holiday, with the upper crust of the social stratum fighting for positions of prominence in the festivities, including the best possible seats. It's been decades since any Pleroma have been brought to heel in Achamoth, and it would only be prudent to place yourself at the forefront of this exciting new trend. There's a sense of pageantry to it: ritualized ceremonies, public sermons, and strange religious 'décor' are all part of the process.

The city is in the throes of these preparations when the two Pleroma captives are finally brought to a central square not far from the Citadel's front gates. Two burning pyres have been set up for them, about ten feet apart. While Abel and Himeka's bodies are chained to their stakes, their shards will be handed off to Silco, Ciel, and Makoto to be brought along separately. The set up of the execution is thus: while their bodies are ravaged by flames, their shards will be bound to an altar in advance of the pyre. Via a kind of alchemical 'fuse', the pyre being lit will trigger a reaction that will gradually result in a explosion on the altar just large enough to destroy the shard in turn. The shards will be bound in position with a series of jewelry-like metal prongs that could be pried away, but would take some time to do carefully.

As the Pleroma make it to the city, the sun will be setting on the 17th of Firaseri, with the execution about to be underway. The pyres will not yet have been lit, but are fully prepared. All Kenoma will be called upon to guard the city, with the warning that the Pleroma are mounting a raid to rescue their imprisoned comrades. For Kenoma both new and old, it's a time to test your mettle. Those that defend Achamoth valiantly can expect to be rewarded.

INNOCENCE ON FIRE

The city of Achamoth looms ahead, a seat of power in Horos in every fashion. It sprawls outwards, claiming the lands around it in a lazy confidence. The spires of the city grow up and up like a mountain, dragging the eye towards the Citadel. The walls that surround it are modest in height as if offering a challenge to any foolish enough to attempt to climb them. Who would? The Regent's eye is ever-present and the guard towers that line it like beaded pearls on a string are reminders that nothing goes in or out of the city without notice. Openings in the towers and the walls threaten the use of projectiles while dark, shimmering crystals float above with the quiet hum of protective magics. Only a fool would breach these borders.

Initially, getting into the city unmolested will be a considerable struggle for the Pleroma. It's military is robust, its fortifications solid, and even without the Kenoma's added resistance, the sheer numbers could be considered insurmountable. Stealth could get them some of the way, but its sentries are watchful, and immigration is strictly controlled. With faith alone driving the Pleroma towards their goal it's fortunate, then, that something is there to answer their call.

Estinien will feel the presence of the Innocence Entity rise up in him again, and this time it is offering him a choice. He may utilize its power to save the ones he loves, while risking both the brutality of the Regent's defenses and the threat to his own soul by channeling such power. It will stand with him against the darkness, it says, if it is truly his will. Emboldened by the power of the Firebrand and his love for his comrades, it is no surprise that he accepts.

Light will flood the sky above Achamoth, an ethereal aura combatting the encroach of the night. From a great miasma of wings and flame, a colossal dragon emerges, coiling above the city skyline. Its luminescence rains down upon the city, and all Achamites exposed to it will be enchanted into finding the idea of committing acts of violence unthinkable, at least so long as no violence is brought against them in turn. With much of Achamoth's defenses having lost the will to fight, only the Kenoma will stand in the Pleroma's way as they penetrate the city, making their way to Abel and Himeka's pyres.

As the Pleroma forge ahead, this draconic being that was once Estinien Wyrmblood will guard from the skies, drawing the attention of the Kenoma towards it and it threatens to bear its might against the Citadel itself. Fortunately for the Kenoma guarding the city, they will know that the Regent has a plan. All they must do is hold off the beast long enough for the Regent to wield their own strength in turn. The battle against this creature will take place here, with combat rules being explain in this OOC post.

As the power of the Innocent washes over Achamoth, those of its Legacy, or those marked by its Promise or Touch, will hear it speak on the winds in a chorus of voices:

Aions of this new dawn... I have honored your choice... fight... if you will... and I will follow...

FIREBRAND RISING

Beneath the moon of Firaseri, however, the Innocent isn't the only force at play. Firebrands of both sects will find themselves spurred on by a rush of Legacy-based power, as if inspired by the tumultuous environment of an anti-authoritarian raid. How precisely this manifests will depend on which side they are fighting for.

❖ PLEROMA
The Firebrands among the Pleroma raiders will feel a sense of vindication and rightness come over them, set as they are to challenge the Regent's rule. Their powers will be amplified during the battle, and those that witness them and are inspired may find their performance boosted. The nature of these enhancements is fairly flexible. For the Firebrands, the use of their regular skills and abilities may be amplified beyond normal boundaries, whereas those following in their wake may find themselves with usual endurance that allows them to push their their usual limits.

❖ KENOMA
The Firebrands of the Kenoma's inspiration is more complicated in nature, given their roll in defending Achamoth's status quo. However, they will find themselves bolstered while facing the pacifying might of the Innocence Entity. Firebrands will experience a natural resistance against any Innocence based attacks that would stop them from fighting, and will be able to use this blessing to rally NPCs that would otherwise be rendered useless to their cause, in defiance of the entity's command for peace. In general, they will see a boost in strength while fighting the raid boss in particular, unable to be deterred from their goals.

In general, all Firebrands will feel untethered by their regular inhibitions, fighting for their desires at all costs. Abilities intended to bind them or control their will, will be largely ineffective, and they will find shields both physical and magical particularly easy to break through.

QUESTIONS

Q: What is the best way for Pleroma to travel to Achamoth?
A: Akua and Estinien are both setting up portals from Godsblood to the outskirts of Achamoth from which to begin mounting the assault. Caitlyn will be providing a back-up in the case either of those portals go down.

Q: Can my character make use of the chaos and try to raid the Citadel?
A: They can try but there will be mod rolls involved for any attempts. NPCs inside the Citadel will not be affected the same way the NPCs outside in main area will be. We do not want it to seem like the Citadel is defenseless otherwise.

Q: If Kenoma cause damage to the city during the raid, how will the Regent feel? Will there be consequences?
A: It should try to be avoided, but the Regent will understand if there is collateral damage in battle as long as they aren't being careless about it.

Q: Is the "no-combat aura" completely incapacitating NPCs?
A: No, it is only stopping them from aggressing the Pleroma. If they or their property are attacked they will defend themselves, and are otherwise operating with a normal level of cognizance. Kenoma Aions can order them out of the area to avoid being hurt if necessary.

BOSS BATTLE:
Q: I would like my character to take part in the battle but want to limit the outcomes in a way that isn't too devastating. Is that possible?
A: We think in that case we would basically only be acknowledging the possibilities between the "The attack either misses, is ineffective, or it triggers a counter attack from the boss." and "The attack hits with moderate effectiveness, as determined by the nature of their action." range. So, you can't get taken out, but you also can only deal moderate hits at best. You could still trigger a counter attack from the boss, but the damage taken from that is more flexible and free form than the 1-5% zone. If you make an attack with this restriction just add a little OOC note to your initial attack tag.

Q: How can a support character engage in the combat?
A: If your character is providing support, you may team up with an attacker to submit a "group attack". This means that your character is putting their effort towards supporting that attacker character that round, and will not be able to submit their own separate action. In exchange, that attack will receive two mod rolls instead of one, and the attack itself will be based on the more favorable of the two rolls. (Sort of like rolling with an advantage in modern D&D.) We will make as many rolls as there there are character combining their effort and select the best of them.

If any character rolls in the 1-5% zone they will still be taken out, however. Click the link above for more information.

Q: Can my character take a hit for another character after a mod roll?
A: We would be willing to accept this in the case of the defender taking the hit for the attacker, which would mean that if it's a 1-5%, they would be taken out in the attacker's stead.

Comments

THE SANCTIFIER (NON-COMBAT)

[aionmods]

If you want to interact with the Sanctifier in a way that isn't specifically combat orientated, you may do that here! Either the mods or Estinien's player will respond depending on the nature of the interaction.

[locumstudentesquire]

Soon after Estinien 'ascends', so to speak, Ryunosuke will mentally reach out to the Sanctifier, though he still attempts to speak to both components as individuals. A simple heartfelt "thank you" to the entity comes first.

And then to Estinien:

"I don't suppose there's much sense in my telling you to be careful, is there?"

The words sound harried, presuming that he's running along with the rest of the Pleroma to get to the execution in time, but he wants to make sure he gets this sentiment of concern out to his friend.

[coerthantorment]

There is a low rumble from the dragon flying above the city, almost like a bestial laugh. It seems able to reach out to him in return, no matter where Estinien's shard may be.

Nay. We will remind this city that the Regent's reign is far from assured...

It feels like Estinien, but also not. The Innocence is there as well, made resolute by its host. Peace must be fought for: a sentiment as contradictory as the Sanctifier itself.

Be well, my friend...

[locumstudentesquire]

Something in Ryunosuke's gut twists, bittersweet and contradictory in much the same way. Warm sentiment at having earned the distinction of 'friend', gnawing fear for what's yet to come... Estinien is making himself a very big target, to say nothing of the condition he was left in the last time the Innocence took control of his body...

Forgive me for my bluntness, but... Don't you DARE make this a goodbye, he thinks fiercely. And... And give them hell. I WILL see you again soon, my friend.

With Miss Himeka and Father Abel... We'll all be waiting for you, after the fight.

[chronosynthesis]

That does... make their push into the city much easier, and on the way in Syrlya shares some confused glances with the Achamites they just... pass by. Okay.

He looks up at the draconic form hanging close to the roofs, and since stealth isn't an immediate problem for them anymore... he cups a hand by his mouth and yells up.

"Estinien!" The use of his name is pointed "Can you hear me?!"

[coerthantorment]

The dragon keeps flying, though it tilts its head slightly in Syrlya's direction.

I can.

Syrlya will feel his answer as if it were a communion, from a spirit that feels both like Estinien and not.

Speak, child.

[chronosynthesis]

... Child??

The communion response doesn't throw him off, at least. The Sanctifier is certainly bigger than Aurene but seems to communicate in the same way.

But child?

Syrlya looks up in bewilderment. "Are you still yourself, Estinien?"

That had been among people's concerns. The sensation he gets is both... reassuring and not. So he might as well ask.

[leicesters]

Claude has no idea why white dragons keep showing up at the major battles he's been participating in lately, between the Immaculate One and now the Sanctifier, but it's certainly a trend he doesn't mind, provided they're on his side. He'd been running through the streets, bow in hand, when he noticed other Pleroma apparently talking to it, and while he's less aware of what exactly is going on or who (what?) the being is, he decides to call up to it to get its attention too.

"Hey! Down here!" He waves an arm to try and get its attention, before the fighting begins in earnest.

[coerthantorment]

The Sanctifier seems focused on other things, but hears Claude's call regardless. Its though communion that he will hear its voice, whether or not his shard is exposed.

Speak, whilst you may.

[leicesters]

Claude's surprised by the communion, but quickly catches on. It's easier than trying to yell as loud as he can. "Oh, gimme a sec...!"

He stops running to reach for the nape of his neck, pulling his golden shard from behind his collar, and focuses on communion.

What's the plan? How about you leave securing the prisoners to us, and you go on ahead and flatten the Citadel? If you could snack on the Regent while you're at it, that would be great.

[bingos]

New as she is, Miyako doesn't have the full weight of everything going on. She doesn't know Estinein or the weight he's called upon him - Only that by nature she can't sit idly back knowing someone will die if she doesn't try to help. Even if fighting, and all it entails, is not something she wants by that nature. She's not fully ready for what they'll face in the coming hours, but at the start when the Innocence envelops the city in the light she can't help but be struck dumb.

She doesn't know Estinein but in the passing of coming here, but she does know the feeling of another Innocent. And no matter how majestic the sight is to see, she can't help but think it(they?) don't sound like a voice that wanted to fight at all... If so, it was something she could understand and she can't help but pass her own message through the communion:

But what will that mean for all of you?

It's a quiet, heartfelt question - surprisingly lacking her usual enthusiastic, passion. Concern for what it means for the ones speaking.

[aionpcs]

The being hears her, and she will be able to feel its presence from the other side of the connection. Though it is blended with Estinien's Firebrand nature, there is the warm comfort of Innocence gracing Miyako's mind as well. It speaks.

Our time has gone... our role lost with memory... if I can carry this flame, one last time... my will has been done... all I can give, gifted to this new era...

She will feel something like a spiritual embrace from a being she cannot see.

Dear sister... do not mourn me... instead... please... save this reality... when I could not...

[bingos]

Miyako half doesn't expect an answer, but she wanted to ask and lend her support - in her own way. When the being does answer, mixing with the fiery heart of Estinein's nature - warm and comforting - she and Aquilamon stop in their flight. She sombers, feels shaky in nature. Perhaps she's not naive enough to believe that someone won't die in fights like these any more, but it's hard to feel from such a gentle presence. Something comforting when it should be the reverse.

She blinks back bleary eyes, listens and shakes her head. She's not that strong, she says to herself shares in the communion rather she means to; Not like this warm light, but she'd try anyway. She finds herself quieting.

But we've only just met... There's something equivocal to a hitch in her mental voice, shakiness as she considers, you can't just say that and leave! Die. There's a beat, no real hesitation, but she wants to say it properly:

What was your role? I'll make sure everyone knows!

Despite her words the feelings she gives along the communion are more, I'll try to help carry it on.

between round 3 and 4

[galdorleod]

The battle against the Sanctifier has been going on for half an hour now. As he lands on the roof of one of the Citadel's wings, blood splatters the stone shingles. Between his bouts ferrying his allies closer to the dragon, Howl has endured attacks and distractions from other Pleroma. An arrow sticks out of his back like a toothpick skewering his flesh, but many more arrowheads are embedded in his flesh elsewhere, their shafts having been broken off in the fighting. Howl has been able to endure stabs and slashes that would have taken out regular sized combatants, the wounds being proportionally smaller on his enlarged form.

But at this point, his wounds not are not merely physical. He landed, but it isn't to rest, despite being in such dire need. It's to try to collect himself. To calm his increasingly frazzled nerves. Howl can't stop ruminating about the reality of what is happening — that all of this, all this destruction and violence, is over two people. That Estinien would turn himself into that — that abomination, obviously born from some twisted agreement with the selfish entity that had cursed him — all for two people. And for the other Pleroma to follow him, into the stronghold of their enemy, risking their lives and their Shards.

Why? He doesn't understand. This isn't right, it can't be right. Frustration swarms in his mind as he hunches his back, curls his wings, and contracts inwards, shrinking. Immediately, as his flesh constricts around the embedded arrowheads and the rest of his wounds, a horrible, disabling pain shoots through his body. A moment of respite is not possible anymore, then. Too late for him to take a break for even one minute.

His frustration spikes into anger. Why. Why are any of them doing this.

A single black arm emerges from Howl's breast, manifesting for the sole purpose of reaching back into the thick carpet of feathers covering his body to remove his Shard. Howl grits his teeth and turns his skull-like visage upwards to stare at Estinien through the curtain of feathers covering his eyes.

Estinien!! Why — why are you doing this?! You must know how foolish this is! You've damned yourself, haven't you?!

It's stupid to try to talk to that thing. He knows. He hardly expects an answer, with so many of his comrades still assaulting the Sanctifier. But the wizard isn't known for acting according to cold logic.

[coerthantorment]

The Sanctifier is screeching in victory and fury. Its tail has just crushed an enemy, another bashed across its horns in the same surge. It will not be stopped. It will not surrender.

Yet, the sounds of a familiar voice pierce through its frenzy. A man who has come for him, again and again...

I would give this and more to see my comrades to safety.

Though the words are mingled with something else, Estinien is in there. He's resolute, despite everything.

[galdorleod]

The voice rings true. Howl hears it, shocking as it is. For a few seconds, the wizard stands on the rooftop in stunned silence, chunks of blood and feathers dropping from his damaged body.

It's all the confirmation one needed. That thing hasn't simply taken control of Estinien — it is Estinien. He's still in there, well aware of everything unfolding around and underneath him.

Deep inside, something in Howl wobbles. Maybe it's his soul, or the Kenoma wound around his soul, or something else entirely. A phantom pain from the heart he lost in his childhood. Whatever it is, it spurs him forward like nothing in Horos has.

No. No, that's insane, Howl starts, his mental voice injected with disquiet. If you keep at this, you're going to die. No — you'll be captured. It is only a matter of time until the Regent intervenes!

Is Howl pleading with him? Even the wizard seems to realize that he's doing exactly that. But why? Why is he compelled to talk to him at all? He doesn't understand. He doesn't understand this man — anything he does, it seems. Why hadn't someone so acquainted with tragedy fallen to the Kenoma from the start? Why is someone so battle weary, so familiar with the necessity of casualties in war, willing to go so far for these two people? Why?

Howl does not put this rush of confusion into concrete words, but they flood his mind so quickly that they flow into the communion space, like water naturally rushing from a high point to a low point.

[stellium]

Lumine understands very little about the rules of this place, the beings and the gods that inhabit it, but that feeling isn't new. She knows what she has to do to get answers; yet the Sanctifier is the closest thing to a god she's seen here. And Lumine has always strove to talk to the divine, knowing full well that they're no better nor no worse than the mortals that they watch over.

So she tries to reach out, to both the man and what isn't man. What happens after? A pause, and Lumine tries to put more of her thoughts in order. For you and for us, long term. Not short term, just this fight. No, Lumine is aware that there is more than just two lives at stake, even if she doesn't particularly want to be involved in another conflict just because she's available, unique, or whatever she is to the people here.

[aionpcs]

We dare not consider beyond this moment... for the future...

The first voice trails off, only to come back bolstered by the man within, the flames of the Firebrand burning in the Sanctifier's heart.

Nay... this will not be the end. We will save our stars, and safeguard the ones we love... The darkness cannot be allowed to prevail!

[youngprodigy]

There's plenty that has happened to the Scions that Cid has only heard of secondhand. He's read reports, been told the tragic tale of what lead to the creation of Hydaelyn and Zodiark both. On some level, he's aware that the man whose soul he inherited must have been present for the events, for him to be alive now. But that doesn't mean much to him, because he has no memories of this past, no dreams of the world that once was.

Being Garlean, he has never believed in divinity, not like the other races. With Hydaelyn, it had been different— no Garlean would have denied Her existence, but the Primals had been easy to dismiss, creations of people instead of the other way around.

Maybe because he's only heard of the true divine, and never encountered them, that he approaches the Sanctifier mentally, trying to speak to the Innocence directly. That you would protect us, after how we mistrusted you...

[aionpcs]

The touch of the Innocence is soothing, even as its presence burns hot with a fire's light. Cid will sense no ill will.

My actions upon this world... I only ever sough to ensure the preservation of the cosmos... yet the Aions of today... they could not bear to live in the world I envisioned...

There is something like remorse in there. Resolve.

I will not be their jailers any longer.

[warmare]

[Utilizing the experience of a turn-coat Kenoma who knew this city... Hayame has made her way onto the roofs, despite her size and the risk of it, the way it exposes her to potential enemy gaze without alleyways and buildings to hide behind, and the way her hooves are unequipped for anything but the wider and flatter buildings. Eustace has succeeded in finding her some, however, and she'd grudgingly thank him...

If she didn't struggle to force her abused body into a trot, then a canter out onto the long roof the moment she arrives and catches sight of the draconic being in the sky writhing with pain, it's roar reverberating around the city. On the streets below, she had been using the six foot long bow in her arm to harry the Kenoma that were harrying the creature she prayed was still mostly the man she had known, but now-

She doesn't fire a single arrow. She doesn't raise her bow. Instead, she raises her head, struggling to focus on the wings and white and scales in above her, finding her voice and summoning up the strained, half-cracked cry of,]

ESTINIEN- !

[Even though it had felt as if she hasn't succeeded even once in saving a single person she cared about, though she had come from Venera wracked with failure... She had managed to call this man back once, in that eerily quiet crystal cave in the Shrine of the Innocent. He'd heard her, he'd come back from the hold of the Innocence entity, and even though she fears she knows nothing at all if it isn't attacking, hunting, capturing, serving-]

It is done, Estinien- !

[The two he had come here so determined to save, odds be damned, are not charred corpses on stakes. They haven't dissipated, she'd caught a glimpse of them in the arms of the more rescue-minded of their "team" on the way up the stairs, and yes that meant that there was still a fortress to flee. A hand presses desperately up against her chest, seeking out the obsidian shard hidden there in the ignorant hope that it might amplify her voice, her legacy, anything at all-

A hoof catches, and she almost goes down in a stumble of long limbs and bloody armor, the Innocence's own strangely glowing blood splashed along the leather from where it has rained down on the city (too much of it, there's bee too much-). The simple tie in her hair, which has been strained by the abuse she has put herself through during this raid, finally slips loose, and as she picks herself back up Hayame's long mane whips out behind her in a wild river of black ink in the wind kicked up by the many fiery wings of the entity above. But even though she forces herself to keep going, frantically searching to get closer, somewhere she could be heard better, seen better... She runs out of roof without risking a jump in her weakened condition, and so how-

The wind whips up again, her mane briefly obscuring the left side of her vision, but it didn't matter. As the gust passes, as the hair falls back away from her face... there is no eye left remaining in that socket anymore, only a slit sight of raw flesh and crimson "tears" slowly leaking from where it once had been. Pushing past the intense pain, the gentle whisper of something dark and tempting in the city of Kenoma all around her (or maybe in her hearts), her fingers clutch at her shard. She calls out again, both with her voice and the Firebrand they both shared,]

Come back to yourself!

[Back to his senses, back to the man she had offered her bow to, who had said that he trusted her. Back to the Pleroma, back to the group that now needed to flee this city with their hard-won victory that wouldn't stay a victory if in the process they just lost someone else, back to-

Just back.]

[coerthantorment]

[The dragon's howl is touched with desperation, as holy blood gushes down its front. On sputtering wings, it struggles, wavering and unready for the onslaught to come. It knows only one thing: it ferries its comrades to safety. It must escape, to survive to see another day, no matter how much the Innocence within it squalls with indecision, no matter how much harder it is to see through the blaze of the Pleroma as it attempts to save his soul-

As if embodying that will, Hayame cries out for him.

Some part of him that was getting lost in the throes of battle and suffering awakens at her shouts. It's the reason he's here, the reason he must survive. Struggling to wrench control of himself, he turns his attention towards her...

And his heart aches at what he sees.]

Hayame... You...

[She's wounded and badly. The sight pains him almost as badly as the hole through its chest.]

Aye... we must away... we must...

[He's losing focus.]

FOR ABEL AND HIMEKA

[coerthantorment]

The Sanctifier is wavering. It's made it this far on a united purpose, a united belief in the righteousness of its cause, but the wave of Kenoma it was just washed away in has changed things. The foundations of everything it is are wearing away, and deep inside, Estinien can only cling to the memory of what brought him so far. That, if it were accomplished, it would all be worth it.

Himeka... Abel... had they been saved?

He realizes then, that he may be able to reach them. If they had been retrieved, their shards returned... could they finally hear him? He'd tried so many times to call out to them, since they were stolen away. So many desperate pleas, so many wandering messages born of grief. As he reels from the fresh wound of Kenoma lancing through him, he reaches out in desperate hope.

Himeka... Abel... my friends... if you are well...

Though the Innocence speaks with him, its chorus of voices familiar, Estinien is strong at its center. It was his will that brought the Sanctifier here, after all.

Pray, come... I will shield you... We will quit this place...! Together!

[inutilis]

It's a steady, comforting pace - Rand's gait where Abel is leaned over the other Martyr's back, carried away from the smoldering remainders of the pyres that would've - perhaps should've - seen his and Himeka's undoing. Their lives are intact, even if their bodies bear the wounds of a near month of captivity and daily tortures. Gruesome and grueling though it had been... both are reveling in their first taste of freedom.

Free. Literally carried upon the backs of their allies and friends, they are going home.

Estinien's words - the words of many alongside him, but Estinien all the same - almost feel like a fever dream. It takes Abel a moment to realize he hears his friend among the cacophonous spiritual probing, but once he does--

He reaches out in return, whole-heartedly; relief wars with a near manic-edged fear for the other man's well-being.

--Estinien?

Is it him? Is it really him? Abel cannot pretend to understand what is happening in the skies above, but he can only imagine that whatever that Being's involvement is... it comes at a price. A hefty price, and one that will come due sooner than later.

Estinien, thank God. --Are you safe? Whatever you've done, I...

...

--We'll get you out of this. Just-- please get yourself out of here in one piece, get to safety. Himeka-- she's here as well, and we'll... all of us, we have to...

Go. ...Leave.

Together. All of this... all the blood, all the sacrifice, all the violence and death, it... can't be for nothing. As long as they make it home together-- they can fix whatever pieces are broken among them, make them whole. All of them.

[aquaveiled]

She'd almost forgotten what it was like to be without a shard, though mayhaps it was for the best--the visceral memories of all that transpired during their stay in Achamoth are going to haunt her enough even without the clarity of her senses that her shard provides. But it does allow her to take in the battlefield in a new way as she clings to Dokja's back, casting glances about them, to the dissipating crowds of Achamite faces, to the numerous Pleroma putting themselves at risk to save them, to Abel and Rand to their side.

It almost feels like a dream--a dream they'd been picturing not long since they arrived. But it's finally coming true. The Nightmare is at an end...

The sound of voices is then overwhelming. It's been a while, remembering what communion feels like. Though it is seemingly a myriad of people speaking all at once, there is never a moment Himeka would mistake Estinien.

Estinien!

She looks around, half expecting a Stardiver to bring him forth to the ground in front of them.

Estinien, we're safe! We're okay. Dokja and Rand and--so many people came for us. Where are you?

Why...do you sound like this? She's excited, of course she is, but it's mixed with apprehension that he will read clear as day.

Are you...safe?