[Game Thread] Chapter Five: Everything Changes

[Blue]

Nevh frowned.
"Very hard indeed."
She sniffed.
"If by 'you' you also include Zera. I can imagine how much you'd like the amount of control he could get on any of you should he get things his way.
...Zera wasn't the only one wishing to have Kerberos' group find the drows. You did the same, helped them get there, apparently knowing Zera wanted them there too."

She stood, going in front of the table in front of her, sitting on it nonchalantly.
"Let's hope he didn't get you too, and is now using you to turn our eyes toward these drows. Right."
She sniffed again.
"You're too busy to have your people take care of this. Mostly by fiendish matters most of your followers in Aheka cannot really assist you with. You can't have them deal with it either, so what is so big out there that overwhelms you so. These stars that we should be expecting for the first and last war, maybe?"

[Makenshi]

Deimos rolls his eyes when she points out he helped them, this time seeming disappointed by her question and having to repeat himself. "Yes. I believe I already mentioned why I involved myself - I knew Zera had some sort of contact or at least interest in the Drow and I've known about them in general for a few decades now. I wouldn't have allowed Dea or Rygtha to go in the first place otherwise, no matter Kerberos' guarantees."

He smirks slightly when she suggests he might be being controlled. "If he can control Gods of my power then you're in even greater trouble than you thought. It also means you should be wary of his interest in the Drow, since they have a Goddess of their own, and one who has been unable to take any additional power due to her desire for secrecy."

At the mention of the stars Deimos' expression becomes serious. "No. That is news to me at least." He glances warily at Rising who, like all the Children, is watching Deimos with contempt and suspicion. After a moment his eyes slide back to Nevh. "Though I would hazzard a guess that it might have something to do with the Elders or the Zodiacs myself. I've never really been one to listen to prophecies though. Too vague and unpredictable."

~MTWC

[Blue]

To his initial retort, she made a very short shake of the head.
"Yes you have. I just found interesting it that of all those you could have used, you chose your daughter and threw her into the tiger's den while giving freedom to your enemy to snatch her to drain the better of your half of her out for himself. If all he wanted was for Kerberos' group to get there... well, now, Dea doesn't have to be there for the group itself to make it. They could pull it off without her. If it would have crippled the group too much, he could use his own people to lend a hand. He would get that group there for to accomplish whatever he wants them to do there and get some more divine essence on top. But he didn't do it, so either he specifically wanted Dea there, or he had reasons not to take her, such as a bargain's term. One has to wonder why, no? I didn't know you to be such a gambler."

He smirks slightly when she suggests he might be being controlled. "If he can control Gods of my power then you're in even greater trouble than you thought. It also means you should be wary of his interest in the Drow, since they have a Goddess of their own, and one who has been unable to take any additional power due to her desire for secrecy."

She squinted her eyes, bending forward.
"I am not thinking of actual mind control. There is more than one way to pressure, encourage or positively reinforce someone into doing one's bidding."

At the mention of the stars Deimos' expression becomes serious. "No. That is news to me at least." He glances warily at Rising who, like all the Children, is watching Deimos with contempt and suspicion. After a moment his eyes slide back to Nevh. "Though I would hazzard a guess that it might have something to do with the Elders or the Zodiacs myself. I've never really been one to listen to prophecies though. Too vague and unpredictable."

She nodded slowly.
"I was thinking the same, though in my case prophesies had a tendency to be a little too precise."
When that was all done, she laid back a little and rolled her shoulders.
"Thanks for the chat."
She then gave a glance sideways toward the others, silently inviting them to speak their mind as well.

[Makenshi]

Deimos shakes his head. "You misunderstand. I only came to suspect - and it is just a suspicion - why Zera was happy to help Kerberos' group after Dea was already among the spiders and leaving the Underdark quickly is impossible in part due to the Barrier. I wouldn't have sent Dea if I knew Zera might be targeting her."

He shrugs at her remark on influence. "Six of one, half a dozen of the other. My comment still stands: if he's capable of influencing me then you're in even deeper trouble. You arguably have an even stronger reason to deal with the Drow too as he could be pushing their Goddess into a war they can't win to sow chaos."

~MTWC

[SpatulaOdoom]

Morgan's countenance darkens and he opens his mouth, no doubt to give Deimos a good lambasting, but Nevh beats him to it. And then he immediately wants to yell at her for going into those things with someone they clearly can't trust further than she could throw the palace.

By the time Morgan has an actual chance to talk he looks more resigned than angry.
”You don't want the same thing I want. I want people to be free to make their own choices, their own mistakes, and in so doing bear responsibility for those choices and the consequences of them. Unfortunately for that to happen we need to kill a very sick, very damaged man. You've got no problem forcing your will on others and teaching your own people to do the same. You're just another flavor of Zera, trying to keep him from muscling in on what you see as your territory. I can't trust your words any more than I could his. Telling me to trust you because you say you're trustworthy is absolutely retarded.”
Deimos had stood before the archgate of Ruaci and lied to her face, and she hadn't caught it.
”And if you think there's any relation between what you do and what Eloise does you're even more deluded than I thought. Feel free to spew trite “we're not so different you and I” bullcrap elsewhere. I'm well aware of how the world works. But instead of accepting the status quo because “that's the way things are” I chose to try and make it better. I'm certainly not sitting in this chair painting a bullseye on my back because I'm bored with life.”
He waves his hand and says to the others.
”I don't know about you but I've no further interest in hearing him speak.”

[Blue]

Perhaps he was speaking true, perhaps not. Either way she had failed to make him admit things without realizing it.
Maybe it would have worked if she had pushed him a bit more, maybe by offending him or by humoring him. She could feel he still had his guard up. If her suspicions were true, he was still too vigilant to let himself slip.

She turned her head toward Nehrahk, figuring they might as well get back to where they left off. Maybe getting rid of the simulacrum first wouldn't be considered rude at this point.

[Makenshi]

Deimos doesn't see any point in responding to Morgan while no one else seems eager to speak to him. Everyone except for Aldamil at least. "Enjoy things as they are while they last Deimos."

He seems amused by her words. "Oh? Is that a threat little sparrow?"

Aldamil practically hisses in response, showing far more emotion than she ever had in front of any of them before. "No. That is a promise."

He smiles slightly but doesn't respond further. "Unless there is anything else you wish to ask I will take my leave." Clearly expecting no further comment he turns to leave, however he soon comes to a stop as Nehrahk speaks up.

"Would you pass on a message to your kin for me? The Fiendish ones that is." Deimos turns around warily.

"What kind of message?"

Nehrahk gives him a toothy smile, although there is no humour in it - it was the only polite way to bare one's teeth. "Tell them that their Shaper has been reborn and he is coming for them."

Deimos schools his features a little too well from the amused confidence he had before, but he manages a polite nod. "Very well, if that is all I'll-"

It was obviously that this time Deimos was expecting Nehrahk to move, but all it changed was that the hybrid grabbed him before plunging his arm into his chest again. Deimos didn't scream this time but he did grimace and try to grapple with Nehrahk to loosen his grip. Nehrahk didn't seem put off in the least. In fact, he hardly seemed to be paying attention to Deimos himself. "The problem with creating a vessel that won't register as divine is that you must settle for mortal abilities within it." It was spoken absent-mindedly, as if thinking aloud. After a few more moments his eyes settle back on Deimos with a look of satisfaction. "Found it."

Deimos' eyes widen. "No! Don't-"

Nehrahk twists his arm and yanks it out of Deimos' chest, though not before the distortion surrounding it begins to grow. As he casually inspects a deep red gem about the size of his fist, the body of Leal Venturo begins to unravel from the centre of the wound in its chest. It was like seeing the threads of an intricate tapestry being pulled apart into a pile of coloured threads. Deimos only has enough time to make a few half-formed yells of anger as he looks at Nehrahk before most of his chest has unravelled - taking away his ability to speak - and in only a few more moments there is nothing left. Not even a scrap of clothing or a single speck of dust as far as anyone could see.

While most eyes were on Nehrahk or where Deimos' 'vessel' had been, more than a few eyes were fixed on the gem in Nehrahk's hand. Including the Hybrid's own. "Curious. I have not seen something like this before. It is almost like-" He twists around, snatching out with his other hand to grab the arm of a Dawnish woman familiar in her unfamiliarity who had been reaching for it despite not seeming to be there a moment before. It was difficult to say whether the annoyed look from Nehrahk - almost like a parent scolding a child - or the look of plain shock on the face of Shade was the more surprising. The latter lasted for only a moment though, before Shade composed himself.

"My apologies. I didn't mean to startle you, it's just I think I recognise the gem but I need to take a closer look. May I?" Nehrahk gives 'him' a once over and a few moments of thought before handing over the gem. While not everyone was able to make the connection it was obvious that the better informed observers knew who this newcomer was. Shade took barely a few heartbeats to smile before speaking. "Well, well, well. Now I didn't think I'd see one of these again any time soon." He glances back towards Nehrahk, who chose that moment to hold out his hand, plaining expecting Shade to return the gem. There is a momentary frown on Shade's face as he glances at the outstretched hand and a slight pause before he hands it back. "It's a Divine Soul Gem. Powerful enough to contain - or channel - the soul of the most powerful of Demi-Gods. We used them a lot during the Demongate Wars. It's easier than trying to transport them in body. He-"

"Implanted a fraction of his soul into it and used it as a focus for whatever magic he used to create that vessel. It likely even functioned as a lesser copy of himself even when his attention wasn't directly focussed on it." Nehrahk supplies as he continues to examine the gem.

Shade's look of surprise is more muted this time. "Yes. That is my suspicion too."

The Hybrid looks up. "There are not many of these left then?"

Tiaan is the one who answers that question. "No. I thought I had managed to find the last one a few centuries ago. Deimos must have found that one first, or perhaps it was taken by the Fiends during the wars."

Nehrahk looks thoughtful and even Shade appears unsure of whether or not to disturb him as he appears lost in thought.

~MTWC

[Blue]

Nevh wasn't unsure of whether or not to disturb him. She knew well enough to just shut up and wait.

[SpatulaOdoom]

Morgan stands and wanders over to where Nehrahk stands.
"Can't say I know anything about the various Macguffins from your time Shade, but who knows, maybe having been a conduit to Deimos's soul it might be worth trying out the dowsing rod routine."
The mage extends his hand, holding it over the gem to see if it will trigger a vision.

[Makenshi]

OOC Just to clarify, is he checking if his necklace is reacting or just outright going to touch it? ~MTWC

[SpatulaOdoom]

ooc Checking first. That's why I said "holding over" rather than blithely grabbing. He learned that lesson with Nevhs' sword. Sides since things seem to be getting stronger vis a vis the visions he's gonna try and make sure he's sitting or lying down for them. Even if someone catches him and he doesn't concuss himself on a marble floor it's embarrassing to do the fainting routine.

[Makenshi]

The necklace warms as Morgan approaches the gem. Judging by its heat it would be far from the worst he had experienced recently, at least in terms of causing him physical discomfort/pain. Emotional discomfort or pain was another matter. As he is looking Shade clarifies. "A part of Deimos is still in there Morgan. It didn't disappear with the body."

~MTWC

[SpatulaOdoom]

Originally Posted by shade

"A part of Deimos is still in there Morgan. It didn't disappear with the body."

”So then Deimos basically crammed a little piece of his soul into a gem and tossed it into a room full of his enemies without having any way of retrieving it... Smart.” Admittedly it was very well hidden, but even still it was a hideous risk. One could only imagine what people like Tiaan or the Seven could do with such a thing. And Nehrahk? Well...

Morgan looks resignedly down at the gemstone as the pendant begins to warm.
”Great.”
He'd rather been hoping not to get anything off this one.
”Nehrahk, I'm getting something off of it and with your permission I'd like to go ahead and have a Seer what I did there?look seer. Would you be so kind as to place that on the table by my seat?”
The fainting violet routine had gotten old before he'd reached double digit age.
Time to see what this son of two bitches has to say.
Morgan really really doesn't want a look at a soul like Deimos's, he had enough bad memories already, but there was always the possibility that it would show him something he could use to help someone. Perhaps it might tell him where all those women he'd kidnapped over the years disappeared to, or some actually useful intelligence on the activities of the fiends.

[Makenshi]

Shade shrugs. "More likely Leal has always been that way. Deimos couldn't have him not show up without arousing suspicion and so he took a calculated risk, not knowing that Nehrahk existed, let alone that he would be coming. Think about all the people he's interacted with over the years without being found out. Doesn't sound stupid to me."

Nehrahk nods, placing the stone down in front of Morgan while Kala gives him a sidelong look. If Morgan doesn't notice her then she clicks her fingers at the edge of his vision - a habit of hers to get people's attention - before her hands flick and Mortimer translates. "Sure that's a good idea?"

~MTWC

[SpatulaOdoom]

Morgan gives Kala a quick smile and leans over to briefly put an arm around her shoulders. That moment of human contact always made Morgan feel a little bit better.
"No idea.
Thanks for the concern though."
He settles back and slaps his hand down on the gem.