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ximilialog2022-04-19 08:05 am
CONCLUSION: upstairs, downstairs
The battlefield is chaos. Wings beat the air, swords clash, talismans flash to life and burn away again — on both sides, shouts and screams echo everywhere.
The effort of the Orbers is not wasted though — Majima has created a safe zone for those wounded, aided by the locals he’s befriended during his time in the city, while Rosinante, looking a little worse for wear after his time in Taeum’s dungeons, inspires others alongside him to protect the locals from those who bring the fight too close to the city. Meanwhile, some of Taeum's officials on Entr’i’s list fall victim to a determined Zhao.
On opposing sides of the battlefield, Entr’i and Angrial direct their troops; those who know Entr’i’s strategy will not be surprised to see her biding her time, but Angrial’s refusal to engage in the battle, leaving Entr’i alone… that may come as a surprise. (Perhaps it shouldn’t be, for those who remember the agreement that someone would speak to her if given the chance.)
For nearly an hour, the battle rages on — then, suddenly, there is a bright flash in the middle of the field. When the light dies down, it reveals the Highest One, standing in the middle of the carnage, turning to Entr’i with a serene smile.
Entr’i, eyes blazing, grits her teeth; behind the Highest One, Angrial’s mouth tightens as she squeezes her spear but does not move.
Before Entr’i can move, though, there is a trio pushing forward from different points in the crowd: Andy, Joe and Bucky, the two former circling him with practiced ease, while the latter tilts his head and says, with a nonchalant drawl,
“Shouldn’t have left your loyal priest behind. He didn’t put up much of a fight.”
The Highest One, after a brief pause, sighs, almost mockingly.
The twist to his words says he doesn’t really care.
As Andy and Joe take this moment to attack the Highest One, Bucky joining in once his attention is taken, Entr’i turns to Yzak who’s fought his way to her and asks,
“V’rizz! The team in the throne room ran into him! The Highest One and Him — they’re the same person!!”
Yzak, out of breath, still manages to yell this out loudly enough to carry — on the other side of the battlefield, Angrial stops, as if frozen in place.
Entr’i looks at Yzak for a moment that stretches on, and then growls,
In a similar flash of light to before, Entr’i’s entire form starts to glow as she moves so fast she’s barely visible — thanks to Alina’s efforts, there’s a clear path from her to where the Highest One — He — is. The clash of their swords is akin to the sound of a bell being rung, the ground shaking with the power of two orbs meeting.
She shouts this to Andy, Joe and Bucky, who have been keeping the Highest One busy for her — something she appreciates greatly. He did not have time to hurt anyone else.
From there, that part of the battlefield becomes nothing but a blur. Talisman magic and something else crackles in the air, while the twin lights of the orbs make the fight painful to look at. Only the sounds of clashing blades make it clear both participants are still alive.
Then, from the fight, a bolt of unfamiliar-looking magic flies towards Angrial, fast and sharp and deadly — but Entr’i’s sword blocks it mid-flight… leaving her vulnerable to a slash that cuts through her right shoulder. Her scream is echoed, not only by those loyal to her, but Angrial.
The Highest One, visible again, smiles.
His voice, when He answers, is no longer soft — it is the smooth voice of Him, familiar to all who’ve heard it before.
Entr’i’s words are cut off as she coughs up blood, wiping it off with the back of her hand, wincing as the movement jostles her wound.
But from the crowd, Peter pushes forward, pointing a finger right at the Highest One.
“Hey, Highest Asshole, what do you say to a dance-off? You and me!” And true to his word, he begins to dance, accompanying his moves with an off-key version of Whitney Houston’s I Wanna Dance With Somebody.
The silence that follows is truly impressive.
But as the Highest One stares at Peter, unsure whether to laugh at the pitiful display or to blast him away like an insect… behind him, Angrial starts to walk, steps quiet. Soon, she’s made it to where Entr’i kneels on the ground. She looks up, then, eyes widening — Angrial stands for a moment, her head tilted down towards Entr’i, before she reaches one hand to the back of her head and with one pull, her blindfold floats down, revealing a pair of golden eyes.
Entr’i stares. Stares for a moment longer, still.
And then, with a slowly blooming smile, she reaches to her waist with her good arm and holds out something small: a dagger.
Angrial’s fingers, before wrapping around the dagger, reach to Entr’i’s cheek, tracing the line of one of her tattoos — and when she turns, Soul-Cutter in hand, it is with glowing eyes and with her full power.
The Highest One starts to turn, eyes widening when he sees who is attacking him — but his sword is too late for the block. Angrial throws the dagger from one hand to another, her wings carrying her up and then down in a sharp angle, and the Soul-Cutter hits the Highest One straight in his chest.
It is only the widening of his eyes that betrays his realisation: that the dagger that nearly took his life once before is not safely confined in Taeum, after all.
His form, so solid before, starts to flicker — he sways, and when he falls, it is a form none but the highest-ranking Sedora have seen before: a pale man with dark, long hair still, but none of the wings that his disguise as the Highest One had.
He falls to the ground with a thud.
Kneeling next to his body, Angrial slowly pries the orb from his grip.
The realms are crumbling, the boundaries that once kept each realm in its place slowly falling away and into each other so that Entr’i’s vision might come true. But it isn’t the paradise that she’d promised — it’s confusion and fear and uncertainty that fills the air, screams and shouts and the cries of children and the weak and desperate calling for help. Blessedly, help does arrive. As much as it can, anyway.
In what remains of Taeum, Dr McCoy and H’yawal have quickly set up an efficient-enough system to move the newcomers and those in need of assistance along, a system that requires a calm mind and a sympathetic heart. The portals that Yennefer keeps up to herd people along are safe enough passageways, made better with the help of Shinji, L3-37 and Yelena who keep Sedorum’s souls moving and protect them from any Taea that might think to push back.
Any violent scuffles between angry and afraid souls from either Taeum or Sedorum are quickly intervened and mediated by the likes of Ximilia’s capable crew: Raleigh, Kovacs, Daisy, and Ed quickly step in to minimize the number of souls crossing from one realm or the other requiring healing because they’d been caught in a fight. Even those who don’t deem themselves soldiers or fighters, such as Deuce and Malleus, might still find their efforts useful. Many of the souls just need direction in this new realm.
But people are still getting hurt — as is the way of things when the ground beneath one’s feet feels fragile at best. The medical skills that the Ximilia crew offer are invaluable. Law, Clarke, and Moiraine will be found in various areas of Taeum’s architecture, offering their medical aid and healing abilities to give the local souls a chance at their survival. In Sedorum, Marta remains behind to make sure that the souls who stay here for whatever reasons they may have are still cared for if hurt.
Like falling dominoes, there is nothing now to stop the trajectory that the crumbling realms has started. The cavernous abyss opens darker and wider until it feels like there is almost no more ground left to find purchase on. There are remnants of webbing from Gwen’s abilities that keep some of the broken ground and half-destroyed walls together but even these begin to fail. And while he is Force-floating as many falling souls as he can, Finn is one of the first of the crew to see the Long Cloak itself, moving through that abyss, the remaining light in Taeum catching on the dark red fabric draped across its shoulders, and reflecting off of the metal of its helm. It seems, then, that the stories are real — to some extent, anyway.
Finn can only watch as the Long Cloak swims through darkness, moving closer towards him at the very moment that the ground under his feet falls away into fragments. Long Cloak doesn’t speak, but it does shift, making it clear that the cloak it so famously wears is more than an article of clothing. It envelops Finn entirely and the sensation feels almost comforting; he knows somehow that there is no reason to feel afraid. When he opens his eyes, he’ll find himself standing on solid ground again, still in the same state of dress and whatever cuts, bruises and scratches he might have incurred in Taeum still remain, but his surroundings are calm, quiet, steady — but also unfamiliar.
He isn’t the only one. One by one, more and more souls, those from Taeum, those from Sedorum, and other members of the Ximilia — Jim, Wei Wuxian, Shang-chi, Kakashi, Blue to name a few — will find themselves appearing on this wide expanse of grassland. Bright skies shine overhead and the grassy meadow stretches past what is clearly a horizon.
“Where are we?” someone asks. It sounds like Ziggy.
“Is this Purgatory?” someone else asks. A soul from Taeum. They sound unsure, but somehow not afraid.
“I don’t know,” someone from Sedorum responds.
“I think it is.”
Soon there are murmurings, but there are also reunions too. Long Cloak is nowhere to be found, but souls continue to appear, more familiar faces who are greeted and embraced by others who recognize them; some haven’t seen each other for years, separated by the realms. Another soul moves forward, grass crunching beneath his feet. He’s still dressed in full Taeum regalia, face concealed by his helmet. He tilts his head up towards the sky that isn’t falling apart and lifts his hands to remove his helmet.
His light hair like ash is shorn close to his scalp, a contrast to his dark eyes that study his surroundings with caution and something a little like wonder. He tosses his helmet aside as though he knows he won’t need it any longer, and starts to draw symbols into the space before him.
The orb in her hand, Angrial walks back to where Entr’i has pushed herself back to a standing position, wound bleeding heavily.
Entr’i sounds like the words are difficult to form, her gaze unfocused as she tries to look at Angrial with a small smile, despite the blood loss.
Entr’i’s shout brings focus back to her eyes, but it is too late — at the same time that her wound knits back together, as everyone fighting finds their weapons turning into dust, Angrial’s wings burn away, feather by feather, until there is nothing left but blackened stubs to match those on Entr’i’s back.
The two stare at each other for a long moment before Entr’i takes one halting step, then another, and they both stumble to embrace each other tightly, murmuring apologies on both sides so quietly they don't carry to those around them.
The moment is only broken when a talisman appears in the air next to Entr’i. She reaches for it before Ruvilor’s message from Purgatory can be heard all across the battlefield, revealing that side of the battle: the truth of it all; that Purgatory is where the souls truly belong.
Entr’i, remembering Yzak’s words about the team being transported away when receiving the orbs, uses a series of portaling talismans with Ruvilor’s help on the other side to move everyone from Giva to Purgatory — the dead can’t stay with the living, after all, and eventually under Entri’s and Angrial’s command, everyone agrees to move.
Once in Purgatory, the two speak for a long time, make arrangements for how Purgatory should be from then on — only after that do they part, Entr’i heading for Yzak, while Angrial makes her way towards Itachi.
Elsewhere, Angrial with her blindfold now gone, stands in front of Itachi. She looks more relaxed than he’s ever seen her.
With those words, both take out the two orbs and press them in Yzak’s and Itachi’s hands.
The tug that comes then, the one calling them all back to the station ... well, it's only to be expected.
All at once, the team will find themselves back on the station, the familiar hum of the engines suddenly feeling nostalgic, like years and years have passed when that really isn’t the case at all.
The two orbs, one glowing brightly and its cousin glowing just as brilliantly but in a shade of cream, begin to float away from Yzak and Itachi’s hands just as a deep voice speaks.
There’s a strict look at those wounded in the final battle that accompanies the statement — as though she’s prepared to drag everyone who needs it there herself.
The commander turns and follows the way the orbs had gone, disappearing into the North Wing. There’s a long-suffering sigh that comes through Viv’s speakers, but it sounds amused.
And perhaps this time, the team truly feel it — that they did something good.
N O T E S
This is the end of the fifth mission! If your character goes back to review the mission file, they will notice that next to its name, a little check-mark in green has appeared.
This is not an official log — however, for the next two weeks, your characters have downtime on the station and all its locations (aside from the north wing) are available. Players are encouraged to make their own logs for what they do during the downtime.
Please also note that the TDM happens during this downtime.
Should characters want to talk to Viveca, they can do so here.
And finally, your soundtrack for the conclusion: ♪