Jan 01 23:44:17 <[GM]Tarupanic>	The Antiphase struck, two hundred fingers, taking up the same space - two hundred possibilities, united as one, converging, impossibly, to end you. And yet, through this: Phoenix's embrace, catching you, for the first time in quite some time, taking you away, someplace safer, for a time.
Jan 01 23:44:38 <[GM]Tarupanic>	The Mist surrounds, red like the womb.
Jan 01 23:45:41 *	Poel hasn't felt this sentation in a while...the numerous battles they've faced in their long journey from the Pharos have always been matters of life and death, but Poel has perservered, and has not fallen to fang or Mist during the journey. All good things come to and end, and the familiar warmth of the memorial crystal quickly floods his senses. He joined with her power just earlier
Jan 01 23:45:41 *	Poel in the fight, and she must not be far...
Jan 01 23:47:29 <Poel>	* He calls to her, almost instinctively, before he begins to consider the words of his teammates, spoken all not too long ago...
Jan 01 23:48:37 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She's there, Poel. Always. Just close enough to be called, when you need her, and she steps out of the golden spiral with tears coursing down her face, brilliant tears, sparkling tears, and a face composed like a classical statue. She rushes to you.
Jan 01 23:49:41 *	Poel was floating over quickly until the sparkle of the tears catches his eyes, and he slows, quizzically studying them, having forgotten his manners.
Jan 01 23:50:07 <Poel>	"Shemhazai...you cry openly today.  It...hasn't been due to my absense, has it?"
Jan 01 23:51:02 <Poel>	"If my calling earlier harmed you...I apologize deeply."
Jan 01 23:52:26 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She looks up to him, her eyes lined, tired-looking, pained. She's doing her best to hide it, but you know her, you've seen her face too many times, and she shakes her head, and smiles. "Oh, no. Please do not- no. Neither of these things- do not worry- are -you- harmed, Poel?" She checks over you, glancing at you, worriedly.
Jan 01 23:54:54 <Poel>	"...perished, outside of Phoenix's embrace, against creatures of very alien origin."
Jan 01 23:55:39 <Poel>	"But I- I trust them, that they will not fail.  Even if my death came at one motion."
Jan 01 23:56:34 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"I- I felt it, Poel. The Abyss. It- frightened me, a little. And then when you fell, I- It is hard for me to see. You're safe here, though."
Jan 01 23:57:47 *	Poel 's face drooped ever so slightly at the end of his last sentence, though he's back at attention, soon. "Is that what we fight, the Abyss? It is a being...or beings, of excitely changing states."
Jan 02 00:00:23 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"You fight that which arises from the Abyss. It is- a crack. Poel, when- when you mix oil with water, what happens?"
Jan 02 00:01:24 <Poel>	"You can't, it doesn't mix."
Jan 02 00:01:44 <Poel>	"Separates."
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Jan 02 00:03:04 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"Precisely. And at the boundary between the oil and the water, there's- a wall. A place where things change. The Abyss is- it's like that. Your world, on one side, and- something else, on the other. A bubble. I'm not sure why it's there, or who made it, or what its purpose is, but- there's a bubble, and-"
Jan 02 00:03:30 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"-at the place where the two meet, there's- everything's gone wrong. It's an Abyss and I could feel it."
Jan 02 00:06:02 <Poel>	"...is there a way to stop it?"
Jan 02 00:11:26 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"Poel, I do not know. The bubble was- it exists for a reason. Someone- or something- built it, and when they did... they did so with no care as to its effect on the world outside. And so the Abyss, and from the Abyss... light that should not exist, should not have ever existed. You are strong, you and your companions, to face it so..."
Jan 02 00:12:29 *	Poel is silent, his eyes studying downward in concentration for a moment.
Jan 02 00:14:14 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She glances towards you.  She's still crying. She hasn't stopped.
Jan 02 00:15:21 *	Poel 's eyes catch the crying again. His jaw hardens, eyes focus, putting on a brave face. "...then we shall use our power, and the power of the world outside, to smother it."
Jan 02 00:16:11 *	Poel can't hold it for long, and fidgets, the corner of a cheek softening. "But...Shemhazai, you still cry, for why do you..." He drifts closer to her and bows his head slightly.
Jan 02 00:17:58 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She looks at Poel, with her infinite sadness there, in her eyes, and she bows her head, and a teardrop falls. "...because the world is screaming, Poel. You must be strong. All of you, must be strong."
Jan 02 00:19:37 *	Poel snaps to realization, his face instantly dropping its guard, flinching back at his impudence before suddenly leaning forward, hugging her tightly.
Jan 02 00:19:52 <Poel>	"...I...I had heard, of your protection."
Jan 02 00:20:26 <Poel>	"From fire and darkness, the Interloper's cruel gaze above."
Jan 02 00:21:12 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She hugs him, and tears fall, and she smiles through the tears. "It is the least... that I can do."
Jan 02 00:22:20 <Poel>	"No...no, it is far more than enough."
Jan 02 00:23:12 <Poel>	"I- I'm strong too, you need not protect me wholly, I can--"  And he hesitates, belying his words: "-I can bear it on my own back."
Jan 02 00:26:21 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She looks at him, and she smiles - she smiles at strong, beautiful, foolhardy Poel, the child of fate, and she shakes her head. "None can bear this alone, Poel. Not you, not I. Not any one person. Remember this."
Jan 02 00:26:40 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"Together. Not alone."
Jan 02 00:29:15 *	Poel relaxes a bit at the smile. She's smiling, again, though the tears have not stopped. "Together, we will weather this, know the truth to memory, protect our world."
Jan 02 00:31:23 *	Poel sinks into the hug, blinking back his own.
Jan 02 00:31:57 *	Julian is now known as Sleeping_With_The_Js
Jan 02 00:32:50 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She nods, and it's the sort of nod that segues into a motherly little hair-nuzzle. (Except, the tears are still falling.) After a few moments... she opens her mouth, like she's about to say something, but doesn't.
Jan 02 00:34:01 *	Poel whispers, quietly. "...please, speak. The Interloper troubles you enough, and I would not want you to be conflicted by your own worries, if you held them back."
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Jan 02 00:36:00 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"...you've changed, that's all. It's-" -she pauses, and when she speaks this next bit, her voice cracks, noticeably: "-I'm proud of you."
Jan 02 00:38:17 *	Poel frowns. "...I haven't changed that much."
Jan 02 00:38:37 <Poel>	"I still hide, I still lie, I still obfuscate, to 'protect' myself and others."
Jan 02 00:39:02 <Poel>	"Even though I know...I know they will be fine."
Jan 02 00:39:12 <Poel>	"Because I said...I promised they would be."
Jan 02 00:42:49 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She smiles, again - it looks strained, even forced - glancing down at him. "Sometimes, in order to protect someone... they have to trust you. Just- simply, trust, above and beyond all else. To run, when you shout that there's danger. You -understand- this, Poel. I know you do, and it is a gift."
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Jan 02 00:45:56 *	Poel tightens his embrace in response. "(I'll be careful. You...you be careful, too.)"
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Jan 02 00:47:34 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She... actually does smile again, at that. "(I'll try my best. And, Poel- I'll -always- be here for you.)"
Jan 02 00:48:34 <Poel>	"(...I'll always be there, no matter what the future will bring.)"
Jan 02 00:50:04 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"(...thank you.)"
Jan 02 00:52:40 <Poel>	"(...you...)" And there's the faintest of laughter.
Jan 02 00:53:36 <Poel>	"(There's...ahaha...aha...)"
Jan 02 00:54:18 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She tilts her head to one side, glancing down at Poel, a bit confused.
Jan 02 00:56:21 <Poel>	"(Sorry, I-- I was just thinking about 'what the future will bring.')"
Jan 02 00:56:34 <Poel>	"(Anything and everything it has brought has been...unbelievable, incredible.)"
Jan 02 00:57:16 <Poel>	"(A new people, a new enemy, a strange sword.)"
Jan 02 00:57:20 <Poel>	"(Now this Abyss, and beyond it, lies what?)"
Jan 02 00:58:15 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"(Where are you, Poel? What brought you to this Abyss?)"
Jan 02 01:00:10 *	Poel 's voice begins picking up from his whisper. "It's south of the Pharos, in a mountain range, beyond an enmormous iron gate that has faded with the ravages of time and the world."
Jan 02 01:02:27 <Poel>	"A...something named 'black waltz number three hundred thirty two' oversaw the long passage we progressed through, and past it lied a range of chaos and change."
Jan 02 01:03:42 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"...Sophia's grace. The Lowroad, then. A great tunnel, under the Spine. It once connected Pandaemonium's halls to the Forest. Which means... if the Abyss has touched the Lowroad, then its source must be..." She goes quiet, and- she sobs, suddenly, looking away, smiling radiantly through the tears.
Jan 02 01:04:57 <Poel>	"--Shemhazai, please..." And he looks to her with a pained face, leaning up from the embrace, his face draining with color.
Jan 02 01:05:11 <Poel>	"We are likely to head further inside, if possible."
Jan 02 01:05:23 <Poel>	"Please, you must tell me, what does the future hold?"
Jan 02 01:07:23 <[GM]Tarupanic>	Actually, it seems almost like it was a sob of joy, and she nods, turning her head back. The tears fall freely, still. Her smile reaches her eyes. She is radiant, and beautiful. "The bubble. The bubble that birthed the Abyss, it guards the Forest. I do not know how, I do not know by whose hand this was done, but-"
Jan 02 01:07:44 <[GM]Tarupanic>	"A third bastion must have survived, Poel. And you, and yours, you will find it once more."
Jan 02 01:10:05 <Poel>	"I...I see...though it still threatens, and..." He mumbles about, warily, trusting her words, but still riding the high of confusion.
Jan 02 01:11:36 <[GM]Tarupanic>	She glances to him, wildly, suddenly. "I trust your strength, Poel. You can-" -the look in her eyes. She's crying, but she seems... happy, as, with a blink, the Mist of Phoenix's embrace begins to shiver and change, as golden light melts the darkness, melts away the net, and calls you home, to life once more.