Post by alysen on Aug 15, 2007 0:39:28 GMT -5
Those who remained behind to watch the desperate madness of Kiernan's magic spent hopeful hours waiting. Suddenly, they stiffened as they all individually sensed his connection to the mists. The scent of burned clove hung in the air and the taste of hot cinnamon stung the tongue as a large, ebony-looking door appeared to mold itself out of the wall itself.
The doorway was carved ornately with large black stars and suns across the top and equally ornate screaming faces with what was apparently dried leaves down the sides. As they opened the door, the leaves broke off and rustled beneath their feet. There was the sickening sound of a knife cutting through the thickness of meat as they stepped through the doorway.
There was some brief panic as they looked around and realized that the exiled Centaur among them had been painlessly cut in half at the waist and she looked up at them from the floor with confusion in her eyes. Moving through a short tunnel of a thick reddish gel-like substance, they came upon what appeared to be another door, this one, imbedded in grey static.
As this second door is reached for, it was suddenly opened from within in a rush by Queene Una's Darling Mercy. This spider-like beast was dripping blood from elbows to fingertips on all four arms and his eyes bulged for a moment before smiling wickedly at them.
The exiles caught glimpses of writhing, bleeding bodies hanging in the background and Mercy said, "Not anymore, little outcasts - - Piercing the veil takes your human magic now." He cackled and was about to slam the door when Queen Una said, "Wait."
The door opened wider with a creak and Queene Una stood as they'd never seen her before. Her hair and clothes were matted with blood, her face a mask of spattered gore. Five beaten and bloody fae hung crying from the walls and one or two of the exiles recognized them as court oracles.
Una stepped toward the doorway with a glistening smile, teeth shining white through the mess of red. She appeared to have the leftover bloodied stump of some unrecognizable fae on a leash of some sort. Dragging the legless lump toward the door, the exiles realized with horror that it was not a leash, but the tortured fae's entrails grasped slick in her hands.
It moaned gutterally and the exiles grimaced as they became aware that somehow, unmercifully, this thing was still alive.
Queene Una made piercing eye contact with Kiernan and said, "Your timing is...convenient, Kiernan. Why have you come?"
Darling Mercy echoed Una's words and they watched the hair, sticky with blood stand along Una's arms.
Conversation between the exiles and Una continued carefully, but it became obvious that with Darling Mercy echoing Una's emotions back to her, amplifying them with every word, that she would only grow more angry and paranoid until her bloodlust had been fully quenched in the flesh of her followers.
The blood-covered fleshy lump attempted to writhe closer to the door and in an effort to help, the exiles found there was some sort of force field, much like a glass pane which prevented them from crossing into Queene Una's private chambers.
Accusing the exiles (or perhaps the tortured fae) of being liars, Una reached to slam the door when the bloodied lump at her feet lifted a sticky red arm, passed it easily through the "force field" and grasped the exiled fae healer standing near the front of the group.
Reaching for it, a wave of fae magic was felt by all and the healer was knocked unconscious, hair turned white as the arm was magically healed up to the threshold of the door.
Seeing this, Una screamed in rage, yanked back on the entrails of her victim and forced the door closed. The muffled moans behind the door increases and the exiles backed out through the portal Kiernan made.
Again there was the sound of meat being cut and the Centaur found herself back in her fully human-like body, legs and all.
The exiles rushed to assist their healer Sidhe and she awoke saying that the bloodied oracle at Una's feet passed her a message.
The oracle said, "The Prince. Find the Prince and save us all."
Much discussion emerged about who this prince may be when one of the exiles looked outside at the hot summer night and found that approximately six months had passed since they were last in Kiernan's apartment.
Further searching revealed a layer of dust coating all the surfaces and rotted food throughout Kiernan's larder.
In addition, and most perplexing of all, the exiles found that their memories of their past had, momentarily...doubled.
For instance, they had equally strong memories that Queene Una had *always* been in charge of the Unseelie court paired with a *certainty* that things had *not* always been this way.
Straining to make sense of this mind-bending confusion, many even began to make out memories of a prior life...of weddings, children, or occupations.
This maddening "double-mindedness" continued for approximately fifteen minutes after passing back through Kiernan's doorway, then in a rush of vertigo, it was gone.
At the same moment the exile's memories re-sorted themselves correctly, another doorway opened into this room through which jumped a Trow, an unknown stringy female, a quiet Goblin-like woman, and Muan De'Earnesto, the last dressed head to toe in Goblin armor.
(Session Three will begin from the moment this final doorway opens and the other exiles recover from their swoon of vertigo...)
The doorway was carved ornately with large black stars and suns across the top and equally ornate screaming faces with what was apparently dried leaves down the sides. As they opened the door, the leaves broke off and rustled beneath their feet. There was the sickening sound of a knife cutting through the thickness of meat as they stepped through the doorway.
There was some brief panic as they looked around and realized that the exiled Centaur among them had been painlessly cut in half at the waist and she looked up at them from the floor with confusion in her eyes. Moving through a short tunnel of a thick reddish gel-like substance, they came upon what appeared to be another door, this one, imbedded in grey static.
As this second door is reached for, it was suddenly opened from within in a rush by Queene Una's Darling Mercy. This spider-like beast was dripping blood from elbows to fingertips on all four arms and his eyes bulged for a moment before smiling wickedly at them.
The exiles caught glimpses of writhing, bleeding bodies hanging in the background and Mercy said, "Not anymore, little outcasts - - Piercing the veil takes your human magic now." He cackled and was about to slam the door when Queen Una said, "Wait."
The door opened wider with a creak and Queene Una stood as they'd never seen her before. Her hair and clothes were matted with blood, her face a mask of spattered gore. Five beaten and bloody fae hung crying from the walls and one or two of the exiles recognized them as court oracles.
Una stepped toward the doorway with a glistening smile, teeth shining white through the mess of red. She appeared to have the leftover bloodied stump of some unrecognizable fae on a leash of some sort. Dragging the legless lump toward the door, the exiles realized with horror that it was not a leash, but the tortured fae's entrails grasped slick in her hands.
It moaned gutterally and the exiles grimaced as they became aware that somehow, unmercifully, this thing was still alive.
Queene Una made piercing eye contact with Kiernan and said, "Your timing is...convenient, Kiernan. Why have you come?"
Darling Mercy echoed Una's words and they watched the hair, sticky with blood stand along Una's arms.
Conversation between the exiles and Una continued carefully, but it became obvious that with Darling Mercy echoing Una's emotions back to her, amplifying them with every word, that she would only grow more angry and paranoid until her bloodlust had been fully quenched in the flesh of her followers.
The blood-covered fleshy lump attempted to writhe closer to the door and in an effort to help, the exiles found there was some sort of force field, much like a glass pane which prevented them from crossing into Queene Una's private chambers.
Accusing the exiles (or perhaps the tortured fae) of being liars, Una reached to slam the door when the bloodied lump at her feet lifted a sticky red arm, passed it easily through the "force field" and grasped the exiled fae healer standing near the front of the group.
Reaching for it, a wave of fae magic was felt by all and the healer was knocked unconscious, hair turned white as the arm was magically healed up to the threshold of the door.
Seeing this, Una screamed in rage, yanked back on the entrails of her victim and forced the door closed. The muffled moans behind the door increases and the exiles backed out through the portal Kiernan made.
Again there was the sound of meat being cut and the Centaur found herself back in her fully human-like body, legs and all.
The exiles rushed to assist their healer Sidhe and she awoke saying that the bloodied oracle at Una's feet passed her a message.
The oracle said, "The Prince. Find the Prince and save us all."
Much discussion emerged about who this prince may be when one of the exiles looked outside at the hot summer night and found that approximately six months had passed since they were last in Kiernan's apartment.
Further searching revealed a layer of dust coating all the surfaces and rotted food throughout Kiernan's larder.
In addition, and most perplexing of all, the exiles found that their memories of their past had, momentarily...doubled.
For instance, they had equally strong memories that Queene Una had *always* been in charge of the Unseelie court paired with a *certainty* that things had *not* always been this way.
Straining to make sense of this mind-bending confusion, many even began to make out memories of a prior life...of weddings, children, or occupations.
This maddening "double-mindedness" continued for approximately fifteen minutes after passing back through Kiernan's doorway, then in a rush of vertigo, it was gone.
At the same moment the exile's memories re-sorted themselves correctly, another doorway opened into this room through which jumped a Trow, an unknown stringy female, a quiet Goblin-like woman, and Muan De'Earnesto, the last dressed head to toe in Goblin armor.
(Session Three will begin from the moment this final doorway opens and the other exiles recover from their swoon of vertigo...)