Riverside 19

[Halae]

[Westside Warren]

Upon hearing about multiple worlds, Amity's eyes go wide, and she begins muttering to herself quietly. It seems that she's getting lost in thought, and when she slows, Tank prods her from behind to keep her moving, which she does without even stopping her train of thought. It's not even clear if she's paying attention when Perssil is explaining about Zariah, though Tank herds her along, keeping her moving, and is apparently paying attention himself.

If Perssil's ears are strong enough to hear Amity's wild muttering, she'll likely hear a few broken sentences, talking about some figure called "Adam", and a thing called "Division".

[Slii Arhem]

Westside Warren

"Yarright?" Perrsil asks as something quick and tiny dives through the open door and slams it shut behind the trio, "Zah's gotten quick. Never much for bein seen him. What's a two tonne terror like Tank eat, anyhow? Meat, prolls. Can find some stuff in the deep freeze if he don't mind eating it cold, otherwise you'll have to help me crack some cans." Feeding people is something Perrsil's on much more stable ground with, instead of talking about the existential inconsistencies of her home plane. She read a pamphlet for new arrivals to the plane at a bus station once, and that's about the extent of her tutelage.

[Halae]

[Westside Warren]

"Hmm? Oh, yes, I'm fine. Just... thinking about something my mother told me. Tank's fine with eating uncooked meat, as long as it's not completely frozen." Amity says, forcing herself to relax her arms back down to her side. Tank lets out an amused warble, and Amity turns her head away from him and huffs, suggesting there was a little joke there just between the two of them, "I can eat basically anything I can chew that's nutritious, so don't worry too much about my tastes."

[Shadowcaller]

[Outside the Drill Tank]

"It's more dangerous than it sounds, as it were explained to me, the storm is, well, sentient, and malevolent to all it sees. It will actively try to kill anyone outside." Then as Zefir explains Felandria's powers, Itholos frowns and even the other demons seem to be looking in his direction as he mentions 'gods'. "Djavuls avkommah." He swears. "Hopefully it will kill the giant then. Or we will done it ourselves. Hamdh for pith."

[Eastside City Hall]

Cessie shakes her head at Jezebel's suggestion and gestures at the stag instead. "I'm inclined to agree with Adir, even if we did leave now I doubt we'd be able to make it in time. The alarm goes off as soon as something disturbs the wards of the safe house, so whatever is happening is going on right now. The safe houses contain parts of that demon summoning staff, which I assume they wanted. I imagine it will take some time for them to force through our security measures but the house is in a very remote location. I have no idea how they found it out where it even was in the first place. None of the other safe houses have been attacked yet, thankfully." She looks over the city as Jezebel gestures at it. "But I find it hard to believe they did all this just go get one of the pieces. Couldn't they have done something simpler than a city invasion? It sounded like they didn't even want this to be found out about due to that field they put over the city."

North Northside, Temple of Bane

The gorgon looks around, but her gaze does not linger long on anything but Ambrose himself. "I am told that we require healing, there are a lot of wounded soldiers and civilians at the impact crater. Not to mention the one wounded in the war going on in the streets. They seem to put a lot more pressure here than in the other sections of the city, and there seem to be something going on in the castle as well, we're not getting any orders from it. Everything is in chaos right now." Ambrose can hear the snakes that makes up her hair hiss dangerously.

[Xavouir]

There is no reply.
Xaviour is still alone at the battlefield, somehow in Wenomir's body.
He might want to do something though as those marbles probably aren't going to stay dazed forever.
In the distance, thunder rumbles, looks like the storm is building.

[Northside Skies]

The angels and Ilpholin will suddenly feel a intense presence surrounding them, as if the clouds themselves had suddenly come to life. As if they suddenly had been deep underwater, they can feel the clouds pressing down on them like thousands kilos of sea water.

Yet suddenly the pressure is relieved and the even the wind eases a bit as the clouds suddenly parts for them, revealing a enormous black ship hoovering in the air above them. It's arrow-shaped but extends like a forward facing pyramid with what looks like a small metal city on the top-side with little yellow dots that appear like windows in the distance. There are a number of floating obelisk-like objects that hover above the highest tower of the city-ship that glow with ominous purple energy.

[Westside] - Kal, Wenika, Anivouir

'Xaviour' seems equally confused and horrified. "Wha-" He turns to 'Anika' "You- who are you? Why do you have my body?" He accuses, Kal's changes even going unnoticed in 'Xaviour's' panicked state.

Just Eric

It seems like the spell does eventually as the burning creature chasing him eventually seem to simply burn out in sudden explosion of fiery wrath. "Ezkul sekul din djavul!" It screams before just going out in a whiff.

Then Eric is left alone.

He can feel the wind increasing around him though and see a lighting bolt in the distance. It appears that the storm that recently just begun is quickly getting worse.

There are no sights of demons besides the legions above however, did they chase them off?

[Entering Riverside - Team Felandria]

The infernal is in for quite a surprise as first the giant it was supposed to tackle suddenly isn't there, but that it isn't even able to reach her before it is punched right in the knee. The knee cracks and the giant golem falls over to the ground, which to be fair it probably would have done anyway as Felandria teleported away. But its knee wouldn't have been messed up beyond repair however, the sparks of the fizzling runes even as the infernal lands flat on the ground.

The runes does appear to offer it resistance to transformative effects however, golems are usually protected against that form of magic and the infernal does not appear to be an exception. Felandra can see the runes of the infernal lit up as she casts her spell, glowing angrily at the intrusion. Not that it actually helps the infernal as her simply teleporting away seems to have done enough damage.

The infernal is still moving, but appears to have trouble getting up, probably due to its damaged knee. It really took a Alice to the knee.

[Gary and the mysterious woman]

The creature roars in pain and attempts to cover its face with its arm as it is being shot at, only to be hit by an arrow of water. However, suddenly those glowing eyes grow even brighter as the creature appears to combust in flames. These of course seem to melt the ice the arrow encased it in but strangely enough also seem to heal the eyes that Gary had just shot at.
"Seregious email! I am on your side, worm-feeders!" It roars. "Your enemy is mine, I am Tarim of the burning light! We have died for you!" The creature grits its teeth together which doesn't actually make it look any more peaceful than before.

[Westside Power Plant]

A small force of pit soldiers arrive here, they had no clue what was going on but a power plant was bound to be well-protected so they weren't sure if they could even do much here beyond having a look around.
Their leader, a big horn-less pit soldier, is attempting to detect whatever magical energies that was being emitted from the plant with the help of a spell.

[Lotus Gardens Border - Omiko]

"Not our magic, spiderpaw magic." The demon seem to consider a moment. "Human magic."

As Omiko attempts to detect the 'spell' that is creating the weather, it is not a spell in your traditional sense. Compare it to the runes of the infernal, they are static, they are created for one specific effect. In this case, defense. This however, was not something static, it was animated.

The moment she uses her eye to gaze upon the storm, it also gazes back at her. She can feel as if the clouds themselves grew eyes and looked down upon her, and didn't like what they saw.

A sudden gust of wind suddenly rips off the roof tiles of a nearby building and they come crashing right in Omiko's direction.

[Kitty]

Huh? That's my question! Why is there a voice in my head?! The reply is confused to say at least. ****, what just happened? What did you do?!

[8BitNinja]

[Gary and the mysterious woman]

The creature roars in pain and attempts to cover its face with its arm as it is being shot at, only to be hit by an arrow of water. However, suddenly those glowing eyes grow even brighter as the creature appears to combust in flames. These of course seem to melt the ice the arrow encased it in but strangely enough also seem to heal the eyes that Gary had just shot at.
"Seregious email! I am on your side, worm-feeders!" It roars. "Your enemy is mine, I am Tarim of the burning light! We have died for you!" The creature grits its teeth together which doesn't actually make it look any more peaceful than before.

Gary walks out of cover slowly after reloading his rifle. "I'm sorry. I wasn't expecting reinforcements. I'm Gary, who might you two be? I was sent here with VIGIL to fight the invaders. Is is alright if I tag along with you two until I find my squad?"

[Morty]

[Westside] - Kal, Wenika, Anivouir

"Who am I? Who are you?" Wenomir roars, or would roar if he didn't have a woman's voice now, that he's not used to. "Wait- Anika? What are you doing in Xavouir's body? And what am I doing in yours?" He finally gets up, his discipline taking over. "Someone is going to pay for this, but there's still a battle going on, so let's get a grip!"

[Gullara]

[Gary and the mysterious woman]

The archer hesitates and stands up straight. "You're not one of them?" He sure looks like it. Then again, none she's seen so far were trying to reason with anyone... The archer leaps from the building and lands gracefully with a spray of water around her on the street below. She starts to walk toward the other two. She keeps her bow ready, though, not quickly trusting.

[Reinholdt]

[Northside Skies]

For a moment, Ilpholin's vision goes hazy as the intense pressure forces her to wonder if it was even possible to be crushed by clouds. It sure felt possible in that moment. But the moment passes and she breathes a small sigh of relief, her heart jumping a little when she sees the city ship. She knew she was close to the demons, but most of her didn't expect to live to see them. It was a small victory but an important one. Now there was a chance.

Ilpholin points to the base of the high tower, indicating to the angels that they should try to land near there. She's reluctant to go straight for the top of the tower. Those obelisks will probably react if they get too close.

[Lotus Gardens Observation Deck -> Jezebel's Manor]

Hmm. Mister Squiggles could definitely go help set up defenses in the chapel, but he is particularly large and cumbersome. He wouldn't want to take up too much space if it's as crowded as it looks. Claustrophobic conditions can make a stressful situation worse. So he'll go to the next most reasonable building. If for some reason anyone wouldn't go to the chapel they'd probably go for the manor. He'll be able to offer some extra protection without taking up as much room ratio. Manor it is.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - Felandria, Alice, Cass, Electra

Electra nods and stands as Cass does, releasing the sorceress' shoulder, and resting her shotgun in the crook between her armor's breastplate and pauldron, keeping a one-handed grip on it. She gestures at Felandria, who she's assuming is still visible, falling into step with with the sorceress in a picture of grace.

"Should we help them? You have an idea of the magic at work, how much time do you think we have before things get really dangerous?"

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - Felandria, Alice, Cass, Electra

Cass eyes the ongoing brawl going on between the infernal, the giant, and the not-so-giant. Looks like kind of a mess.

"I don't have anything that'll end that quickly," she says. "Not unless those demon swarms come back."

[Westside] - Kal, Wenika, Anivouir

Kal watches the entire exchange awkwardly, not really having anything to add to the display of utter confusion that's occurring before him.

"Uh... right. Get a grip. Grip gotten. I'm good."

[Earl of Purple]

North Northside- Temple of Bane

"Healing we can do, some of us. We have four clerics, which is enough for our congregation's usual needs. One is leading those that do not wish to fight out of the city, the other three are here. It might not be enough for everyone, so we shall focus on those that will die without our help first, then those who will fight when they are healed, then everyone else. I must stay with the church; we cannot abandon our place of worship without a fight. Bane wants us to fight for Him, and so long as this Temple stands, He wants me here. I will send you the other clerics, though you may need to wait awhile."

I forgot about the half-elf with the mismatched eyes; he's the second-in-command, and he's just been dragged into the church, where the Reguard lady de-summons her spectral blade and kneels over him to patch him back up again with healing magic with a harsh green glow.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - Felandria, Alice, Cass, Electra

Electra watches as the Infernal suddenly topples from taking an Alice to the knee, and shrugs.

"I guess they don't really need our help, then. Let's find some cover, before this storm really picks up."

She starts looking for sturdy buildings that should provide adequate defenses from both the weather and any more passing demons. Normally, this sort of thing would be a cue to get out of dodge, but it sounds to her like spending any significant amount of time out in the weather is going to be a no-no, and it's easier to fortify a position if you don't have to worry about what's coming from overhead, whether that be ordnance or water and wind.

[Slii Arhem]

[Westside Warren]

"Hmm? Oh, yes, I'm fine. Just... thinking about something my mother told me. Tank's fine with eating uncooked meat, as long as it's not completely frozen." Amity says, forcing herself to relax her arms back down to her side. Tank lets out an amused warble, and Amity turns her head away from him and huffs, suggesting there was a little joke there just between the two of them, "I can eat basically anything I can chew that's nutritious, so don't worry too much about my tastes."

Westside Warren

"I'll have to toss something in our big microwave on defrost for him, then. We keep most of our meat preserved because we buy it all in bulk. The pantry's that big cupboard over there, and there's an industrial can opener on the counter against the back wall, but it takes two of us to operate it usually, since you have to press down hard to get it going. It's pretty shoddy, but we can't afford a better one yet." There is a little kitchenette down here, despite it being a storage area. Might be due to the storage guard practically living down here on their shift, as Amity might notice the small cot folded up against one wall. Either that, or this used to be the start of more sectioned off basement apartments before the interior walls came down and it was converted to a big, open storage area. The pantry has tons of dry and canned goods, and there's a sink and a stovetop, but no oven. Perssil busies herself clambering into the deep freeze and coming out with a shank of lamb nearly as big as she is, shivering under its bulk, "I'll haul this up and get it to warming up. Might have to just throw it into a bathtub full of hot water, but your Tank looks like he can handle all of it if he doesn't mind waiting a short while."

[Felandria]

Entering Riverside - Team FACE

Felandria’s disappointment in her spell not working is muted by the fact that Alice punched the infernal sooper hard in the knee area and now it has fallen down.

As it tries to get back up, she will leap into the air with the aim of landing hard, feet first, on the infernal’s back, knocking it back down flat on the ground, at which point she will pull out her Greatclub, because she was once told that all giants should have a club, and while she’s not too big into stereotypes and also she has only been a giant for a few years, it still seemed like good advice.

After all, sometimes your fancy weapons and spells may not be effective on a certain foe, but a good walloping may just do the trick.

Her Greatclub, not unlike the Infernal, also has runes on it, Giant runes to be exact, plus it is surrounded by three bands of metal, to make it more solid, so it doesn’t just fall apart on one swing.

Speaking of swing, that is exactly what she will do, for Felandria is about to go full Tonya Harding on this jerk, swinging forcefully at the damaged knee, aiming for the cracks in hopes of just breaking the damned thing’s leg off entirely, thus ensuring that it will be far less likely to win this particular butt kicking contest.

[Zefir]

[Outside the Drill Tank]

Zefir looks a bit confused at the demon befor it turns into an amused smile. Who in the world thought those creatures fear godlike people so much? The only thing that bothers him about Felandria is her size. Only with sience he can be on par and that would mean they fight 1on1.
"Let's hope so." he says. then he starts concentrating. He tries to sense any other magic near the camp. It's a bit strange non of the good guys have attacked here.
"How do you see the current situation?" he asks the demon. "Are things like expected or worse?"

[Recaiden]

[Northside Skies]

Spoiler: Previously

Show

No. This storm was too convenient for the demons. Too perfect. The demons were raising a gale to stop her from reaching them. To stop her from being there. It won't work. It can't. "Keep going! Faster! They're trying to keep us from getting to them! We're almost there!" Ilpholin shouts at the angels, her fanatical gaze boring into them, emphasized by the flash of lightning dancing across her eyes.

Ilpholin switches from a spinning whip to holding out shields in the direction of whichever gusts threaten their progress the most, primarily focusing on up since that's the way she wants to go head.

The angels and Ilpholin will suddenly feel a intense presence surrounding them, as if the clouds themselves had suddenly come to life. As if they suddenly had been deep underwater, they can feel the clouds pressing down on them like thousands kilos of sea water.

Yet suddenly the pressure is relieved and the even the wind eases a bit as the clouds suddenly parts for them, revealing a enormous black ship hoovering in the air above them. It's arrow-shaped but extends like a forward facing pyramid with what looks like a small metal city on the top-side with little yellow dots that appear like windows in the distance. There are a number of floating obelisk-like objects that hover above the highest tower of the city-ship that glow with ominous purple energy.

For a moment, Ilpholin's vision goes hazy as the intense pressure forces her to wonder if it was even possible to be crushed by clouds. It sure felt possible in that moment. But the moment passes and she breathes a small sigh of relief, her heart jumping a little when she sees the city ship. She knew she was close to the demons, but most of her didn't expect to live to see them. It was a small victory but an important one. Now there was a chance.

Ilpholin points to the base of the high tower, indicating to the angels that they should try to land near there. She's reluctant to go straight for the top of the tower. Those obelisks will probably react if they get too close.

The interpreter would like to tell Ilpholin that she's crazy and going to get them all killed and there's no way through this storm. But she's busy holding tight to the flyer with all her hands. No signalling. When the sky crushes down upon them, the interpreter loses hold of her powers and vanishes (who? Hasn't it always been just Ilpholin and this one strange silent angel?), and the flyer's wings go limp for a moment as it's tossed about by the winds. They realize it's over. The demons have won. But somehow, it passes. All their eyes agree that the demon mothership is right there, with only (relatively) calm air separating them, and Ilpholin is pointing, that's simple enough to understand.

The worker angel puts on a burst of speed, wings straining, to send them up over the ship and into the city atop it. They'll probably collapse as soon as there's level ground, before reaching the bottom of the tower, much less the top. Fighting the storm like that has been exhausting.

The interpreter angel, who is still along for the ride (simply invisible, inaudible, out of sight and edited out of mind) takes a deep breath and tries to project her magic in a different way. Rather than make herself visible again, she presses her bubble of non-detection out to cover the flying worker and Ilpholin. There are no angels here. No demon-hunting nymph with shields for arms. Nothing but the clouds.

[Entering Riverside - Team Felandria]

Spoiler: Previously

Show

The infernal is in for quite a surprise as first the giant it was supposed to tackle suddenly isn't there, but that it isn't even able to reach her before it is punched right in the knee. The knee cracks and the giant golem falls over to the ground, which to be fair it probably would have done anyway as Felandria teleported away. But its knee wouldn't have been messed up beyond repair however, the sparks of the fizzling runes even as the infernal lands flat on the ground.

The runes does appear to offer it resistance to transformative effects however, golems are usually protected against that form of magic and the infernal does not appear to be an exception. Felandra can see the runes of the infernal lit up as she casts her spell, glowing angrily at the intrusion. Not that it actually helps the infernal as her simply teleporting away seems to have done enough damage.

The infernal is still moving, but appears to have trouble getting up, probably due to its damaged knee. It really took a Alice to the knee.

Cass eyes the ongoing brawl going on between the infernal, the giant, and the not-so-giant. Looks like kind of a mess.

"I don't have anything that'll end that quickly," she says. "Not unless those demon swarms come back."

Electra watches as the Infernal suddenly topples from taking an Alice to the knee, and shrugs.

"I guess they don't really need our help, then. Let's find some cover, before this storm really picks up."

She starts looking for sturdy buildings that should provide adequate defenses from both the weather and any more passing demons. Normally, this sort of thing would be a cue to get out of dodge, but it sounds to her like spending any significant amount of time out in the weather is going to be a no-no, and it's easier to fortify a position if you don't have to worry about what's coming from overhead, whether that be ordnance or water and wind.

Felandria’s disappointment in her spell not working is muted by the fact that Alice punched the infernal sooper hard in the knee area and now it has fallen down.

As it tries to get back up, she will leap into the air with the aim of landing hard, feet first, on the infernal’s back, knocking it back down flat on the ground, at which point she will pull out her Greatclub, because she was once told that all giants should have a club, and while she’s not too big into stereotypes and also she has only been a giant for a few years, it still seemed like good advice.

After all, sometimes your fancy weapons and spells may not be effective on a certain foe, but a good walloping may just do the trick.

Her Greatclub, not unlike the Infernal, also has runes on it, Giant runes to be exact, plus it is surrounded by three bands of metal, to make it more solid, so it doesn’t just fall apart on one swing.

Speaking of swing, that is exactly what she will do, for Felandria is about to go full Tonya Harding on this jerk, swinging forcefully at the damaged knee, aiming for the cracks in hopes of just breaking the damned thing’s leg off entirely, thus ensuring that it will be far less likely to lose this particular butt kicking contest.

Guess the Infernal's adventuring days are over.

Alice lands gracelessly behind the fallen Infernal, thankful that her attack worked. She winces to see the sparking wreck of her hand. Maybe that was a little hasty. She silently gives thanks that the pain from it has been turned off. Let's see. A truly gigantic Felandria is beating the golem while it's down and should hopefully finish it off. The storm is getting rapidly, unnaturally worse. Maybe they should take cover somewhere.

[Lotus Gardens Border - Omiko]

"Not our magic, spiderpaw magic." The demon seem to consider a moment. "Human magic."

As Omiko attempts to detect the 'spell' that is creating the weather, it is not a spell in your traditional sense. Compare it to the runes of the infernal, they are static, they are created for one specific effect. In this case, defense. This however, was not something static, it was animated.

The moment she uses her eye to gaze upon the storm, it also gazes back at her. She can feel as if the clouds themselves grew eyes and looked down upon her, and didn't like what they saw.

A sudden gust of wind suddenly rips off the roof tiles of a nearby building and they come crashing right in Omiko's direction.

Oh, it's alive. That's much more impressive. And-
Omiko waves a hand and bolts of black crystals spring from her fingertips to smash the roof tiles out of the way.
"Not really a precise weapon, is it?"

But it has illustrated pretty well why she shouldn't hang around. Omiko runs after the demons, fleeing the Lotus Garden.

[Shadowcaller]

((Red location tags are things seen by everyone.))

[Northside Skies]

As they approach, that feeling of being observed grows stronger, yet isn't as intense as before. It is simply as if they are being watched from afar.
They fly towards the upper tower, yet when they try to land at its bottom, something strange happens. They go right through what is supposed to be a solid stone floor as if had been made of mist.

Then the laughter starts.

Well, not laughter precisely, but the wind makes a eerily similar sound when it suddenly picks up again at a with a powerful squall blowing straight into their faces. The storm suddenly surging to full strength, likely threatening to literary blow them away.

If they try to grab a hold of anything in the flying ship, they will find it to be as if it was made of mist, just like the floor they just attempted to land on.

A successful arcane check will tell them that this is a illusion.

[Gary and the mysterious woman]

As to answer, the demon gestures to the east where smoke can be seen raising in the distance. "That was lights hearth, my home, a place dedicated to protect against them." He empathizes the words with a low growl, as if he was about to start shouting at them. Even throwing the archers word back at her. "It was first hit, since the burning light actually knows what this city is up against. And now they're all dead, the first line against the darkness that now envelops this city." His burning gaze turns to Gary. "So if you are with VIGIL, then I need to talk to their leaders, or Jezebel, whoever is organizing the defenses. Otherwise, this city is as good as gone." He gestures at the nearby town hall behind them.

Just as he does however, the rain really starts pouring and a bright flash of light is immediately followed up by deafening thunder as lighting strikes the roof top the archer had just been positioned at.
This is followed up by a flurry powerful enough to rip off dozens of roof tiles that comes crashing down against them which also carry with it a sudden dust cloud that might leave them blinded if they get it in their eyes.

[Westside] - Kal, Wenika, Anivouir

"Get a-" Xaviour starts when a sudden gale forces him to cower as it violently down against the trio, carrying with it trash and dust that must have come from a nearby trashcan. But more dangerously, a large tree branch that must have simply been ripped off a tree by the wind.

Nearby a building catches on fire as it is suddenly repeatedly hit by lighting.

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - FACE

The infernal roars in defiance as the burning energy that ignites its stone body only seems to intensify. So when Felandria lands on it, while she does knock it down, slamming it firmly against the ground with her feet, she might actually suffer burns as the intense heat can even be felt through the sturdiest of boots.

Regardless of what happens to Felandria's feet, the infernals own feet are not doing too well as the giant causes the golems knee to crack and sunder in one powerful slam.
In response, being unable to feel pain, the infernal attempts to roll over and pull Felandria with it to press her against the ground with its powerful burning fist and sheer weight. Being this close to a infernal will likely hurt depending on how vulnerable the demigod is to demonic flame.

Alice, Electra and Cassandra that aren't too busy fighting the infernal can see lighting strikes happening all over the city, causing several buildings to catch fire even in the intense rain. There is definitely something odd with this storm.

North Northside- Temple of Bane

"Whatever you have to spare will do. It will be difficult to transport the wounded here due to the demons walking around on the streets though, not to mention this sudden storm." She gestures at whatever they have for windows inside the temple. "Could any of your healers not busy defending the church come to them? We can escort them there."

[Lotus Gardens Border - Omiko==> Drill Tanks]

"It will do more damage to them than to us." The demon replies as they hurry down the streets.
They will soon seek shelter back at the drill tanks where the demon command station has been established. Omiko could get new orders from Zefir now that Ilpholin has escaped somewhere.

[Outside the Drill Tank]

"After the storm, we'll use our last tricks to take out whatever threat that might be remaining. From the sound of it, at least one of the lords of Malechenar is willing to negotiate a agreement, so we already have ally inside the city. VIGIL's leadership has already been weakened thanks to our human allies, so all we need to do is to take out the other one." Itholos turns to the ethereal.
"Show us Jezebel's position."

"Of course." They turn and hits a few buttons on their holographic wrist keyboard.

Then three screens display Jezebel from three different angles, also revealing Cessie and Adir standing near her.

"Cessie Mithar, the other VIGIL leader, is with her. If we take them both out, VIGIL's and the garden's forces will break apart and right now this 'goddess' is outside her own realm. That will mark our victory. We expect them to go into cover now that the storm picks up, just like the other defenders."

[Mr. Squiggles and the Lotus Gardens]

As the giant spider moves towards the mansion the storm suddenly descends upon the gardens in full force. Powerful winds will catch up all loose debris such as trash, dust, stones, branches, etc. and even roof tiles and whole trees and causing them to fly at deadly speed through the streets of the normally so peaceful gardens.

Lighting strikes will then strike buildings, and sometimes even people, causing fires and causalities wherever they strike.

Not to mention the intense downpour of rain that will soon put the entire city's drains to a test.

[Above the City]

Speaking of the demonic swarms Cassandra mentioned, the defenders of the city can see the swarms suddenly gathering up into one gigantic swarm in skies in the middle of the city like a gigantic locust swarm threatening to descend upon them.

Whatever they are doing, its unlikely to be good.

[UncleWolf]

The Lotus Gardens - Mr. Squiggles

Thankfully, the manor will likely prove to be more than stalwart protection from the maddeningly powerful storm. It is fresh sturdy construction, so not even a shingle is lifted by the powerful winds. The way things look however, it would probably be a good idea to shelter away from the doors and windows though, should the storm prove to grow more powerful.

The Lotus Gardens - In General

The enchantments over the Gardens are powerful, and help dampen the severity of the storm enough to keep the bystanders from being hit by lightning or having trees uprooted, but even so there are strange eldritch cracks and flashes in the air as the enchantments struggle and bend in their attempt not to shatter under the sudden and unexpected deluge.

Eastside - City Hall

Jezebel closes her eyes as the storm suddenly worsens and the wind picks up, but after a bit she reopens them and looks up at the swarm of flyers. From her armor a soft glow of silver light shines and the wind for several meters around her dies off and the ground around her feet begins to turn to Marble as she taps into the power of the Gardens ever so slightly. "...regardless of my feelings or the objective, it seems that I will have to concede this battle." She says grimly and with clear emotional exhaustion. "My psykers are out, my Gardens are now under siege by the storm to the point where the enchantments are struggling, and I have just a handful of Hunters and a single Black Mask left under my command outside of it to try and combat the single largest swarm of demons I've ever seen. Not only that but none of mine have heard anything of the other factions, and at this point I am not sure there is much that Vigil can do at this point if the invaders are capable of bringing this much to bear. If I had my psykers, it'd be different, but as it is..." She explains before reaching up to tap her jaw lightly.

"All Masks, pull back and evacuate. Forcibly evacuate any Civilians from the Gardens if they are within reach. This is the Last Call. Eric, this includes you too." She adds before pausing. "...I see. Very well. Good luck and Warp Bless. I will see you at the rendezvous. You owe me a Regicide match after all."

After that she taps her jaw again and lets out a long breath before pulling her Eviscerator from out of the air and giving it an experimental rev. "Five minutes. That's how long we've got before Last Call is done. At the very least I'd like to rip apart a couple more demons before having to leave so I can convince myself I've done my best. Five minutes, then we all leave and depart this city to come and fight another day. I've already started having the enchantments of the Garden shrink to strengthen itself so I may remove it when we leave. I would ask if that is acceptable, but it is my home that is being lost, not yours." She admits, sounding particularly bitter before taking a deep breath and letting it out.

"But very well, if that is what lays in store for me and my people again, then so be it. I'd be more willing to stay and fight to the death, but unlike before, I suppose I have something more to live for than just this." She admits before reaching out with her senses to try and see if there are other demons near.

Just Eric

"Sorry, Ma'am. Ain't gonna make it back in time. Things got a bit complicated. Just...gonna try my best forcing myself through Northside now. I don't have the firepower to make it back through the demons I went through." Eric says, looking back at the spot where the demon's fire burned out. The demons had ripped apart Aluskal, beat back Sarah, and killed Alexis from what he could figure out. One quarter-dragon with a heavy bolter wasn't going to be able to cut it anymore.

The man takes a few moments to readjust his heavy bolter, fix his ammo belts, remove a couple kinks, and then reshoulder it all before trekking onward to Northside. This time, he wears his black half-mask openly, signifying who he is in full.

The Lotus Gardens - Zenon

"I deal with demons and djinn on a daily basis, I am not one to fall for such paltry tricks such as asking for clarification." Topaz retorts with a small smile before the smile fades as the storm appears and begins to wrack the Gardens. "But perhaps we shall continue this discussion another day. Next monday at Trog's?" She asks as a chunk of the Chapel roof flies up and barely passes by her shoulder.

[Nova_Eclipse]

The Lotus Gardens - Zenon

"It is no trick," Zenon says, gesturing plaintively, "Merely an attempt to understand you better. But if you'd prefer, I am a patient creature. Next Monday it is." He bows effusively, unperturbed by the chunk of cathedral that just went flying. A moment later, he disappears as a shadowy something that she can see and yet not see seems to swallow him whole. Watching him disappear might give Topaz a headache, like staring too long at a magic eye puzzle, but to her credit, she's managed to get rid of him without getting hurt. Heaven help her if she doesn't show up at Trog's on the appointed day, though...

Outside the Drill Tank

The map manifestation that showed up earlier suddenly ceases projecting the map, pivots 90 degrees, and opens its mouth. Zenon flows out of it like water over a waterfall, before it disappears into nothingness once more.

"Well, that was interesting."

[Felandria]

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - FACE

The infernal roars in defiance as the burning energy that ignites its stone body only seems to intensify. So when Felandria lands on it, while she does knock it down, slamming it firmly against the ground with her feet, she might actually suffer burns as the intense heat can even be felt through the sturdiest of boots.

Regardless of what happens to Felandria's feet, the infernals own feet are not doing too well as the giant causes the golems knee to crack and sunder in one powerful slam.
In response, being unable to feel pain, the infernal attempts to roll over and pull Felandria with it to press her against the ground with its powerful burning fist and sheer weight. Being this close to a infernal will likely hurt depending on how vulnerable the demigod is to demonic flame.

Alice, Electra and Cassandra that aren't too busy fighting the infernal can see lighting strikes happening all over the city, causing several buildings to catch fire even in the intense rain. There is definitely something odd with this storm.

The fire of the infernal does, in fact, hurt quite a bit, and Felandria jumps away after the swing, she lands hard and quickly kicks off her flaming boots.

She looks around to make sure she didn’t land on anyone, then she casts a minor healing spell to soothe the burns on her feet.

With the infernal down on the ground, it should be easier to fight, but right now she tries to make sure her partner is okay.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Westside]

Kal growls, stubbornly standing his ground, his soul-power gauntlets puffing with hellfire as he uppercuts the tree branch, flipping it upwards and away from the group in a spray of splinters.

"I really hate demons." He says, glaring at the storm and the general chaos around them.

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - FACE

"A-alright." Says Cass, looking numbly at the chaos being caused by the lightning, as well as the swarm gathering overhead.

[Darkcomet]

[Westside Power Plant]

The old power plant emits nearly nothing, but the same thing may prove capable of detecting that the reverse is in effect. As is typical of EI's technology, it draws the same energy from the area around it in order to function, converting it into usable power.

That function is not happening, and instead, the power is building up inside, akin to what an overload attempt would look like. However, the buildup is far too slow to be intended as a bomb, based on other overloads of the same kind. If whatever's going on in there takes too long, it might happen, but it's much too sluggish in progress for it to seem deliberate.

If the spell can detect such things, the chaotic energies do seem to be converging on a mass of some specific kind in there, but with as much interference as that puts out, it's very difficult to tell what.

[Morty]

[Westside] - Kal, Wenika, Anivouir

Wenomir is all but bowled over by the sudden wind, his control over this body rather unsteady.

"Let's get to some cover! Don't those demons have some limit of what they can throw at us?" If they do, he hasn't seen it.

Without further ado, he makes a rather awkward dash for the nearest wall or building.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - FACE

Electra also notes the gathering swarm with mounting concern. Her shotgun, even loaded as it is with silver game shot meant for taking birds (and in her mind, imps), is not going to do much against that. Instead, she looks towards the nearest sturdy building, and decides indoors is better than out. She'll lead Cass towards whatever entrance is available, and hopefully get them both inside before anything decides they'd look better dead than alive.

[8BitNinja]

[Gary and the Mysterious Woman]

Gary ducks down says "We need to get back to the main force. That's where the VIGIL leaders." Gary tries to move away from any breaking structures and tries to keep any dust out of his eyes.

[Gullara]

[Gary and the mysterious woman]

As to answer, the demon gestures to the east where smoke can be seen raising in the distance. "That was lights hearth, my home, a place dedicated to protect against them." He empathizes the words with a low growl, as if he was about to start shouting at them. Even throwing the archers word back at her. "It was first hit, since the burning light actually knows what this city is up against. And now they're all dead, the first line against the darkness that now envelops this city." His burning gaze turns to Gary. "So if you are with VIGIL, then I need to talk to their leaders, or Jezebel, whoever is organizing the defenses. Otherwise, this city is as good as gone." He gestures at the nearby town hall behind them.

Just as he does however, the rain really starts pouring and a bright flash of light is immediately followed up by deafening thunder as lighting strikes the roof top the archer had just been positioned at.
This is followed up by a flurry powerful enough to rip off dozens of roof tiles that comes crashing down against them which also carry with it a sudden dust cloud that might leave them blinded if they get it in their eyes.

[Gary and the Mysterious Woman]

Gary ducks down says "We need to get back to the main force. That's where the VIGIL leaders." Gary tries to move away from any breaking structures and tries to keep any dust out of his eyes.

[Gary and the mysterious woman]

She's heard of Light's Hearth, so that's something. The archer is fairly uncertain still, but the sudden gusting wind and the swarm above their heads apply some pressure.

While she can't do anything about the wind, the rain quickly falls around them rather than on them. "Can you help stop this?" She demands of the demon, looking at him with intensity. She's been... directionless so far. Just trying to help people. But if there's a chance they can stop this...

[Halae]

Westside Warren

"I'll have to toss something in our big microwave on defrost for him, then. We keep most of our meat preserved because we buy it all in bulk. The pantry's that big cupboard over there, and there's an industrial can opener on the counter against the back wall, but it takes two of us to operate it usually, since you have to press down hard to get it going. It's pretty shoddy, but we can't afford a better one yet." There is a little kitchenette down here, despite it being a storage area. Might be due to the storage guard practically living down here on their shift, as Amity might notice the small cot folded up against one wall. Either that, or this used to be the start of more sectioned off basement apartments before the interior walls came down and it was converted to a big, open storage area. The pantry has tons of dry and canned goods, and there's a sink and a stovetop, but no oven. Perssil busies herself clambering into the deep freeze and coming out with a shank of lamb nearly as big as she is, shivering under its bulk, "I'll haul this up and get it to warming up. Might have to just throw it into a bathtub full of hot water, but your Tank looks like he can handle all of it if he doesn't mind waiting a short while."

[Westside Warren]

"He can handle waiting a bit, he'll just be grumpy while he does," Tank lets out a grumbling sound, confirming Amity's words. She scratches his chin, "See? He's just a big suck," which of course gets the giant reptile to glare at her. Unperturbed, Amity laughs in his face. One might assume insulting and then laughing at a lizard that weighs over a ton when it can understand you would be a bad idea, but this has the same air of long companionship and friendly ribbing. In retaliation, Tank sticks his tongue out and licks Amity across the face, causing her to sputter and wipe at the saliva left on her. Tank lets out a wheezy chuffing sound that might be his own version of a laugh, then finds a place to curl up - out of the way of most things, and Amity will join him after a moment.

[Reinholdt]

[Northside Skies]

The interpreter angel's nothing but clouds ability is turning out far too strong. Why? Why put such a detailed illusion in the clouds like this? Normally the point of illusions used in this fashion is to disguise where the real one is and lead searchers astray. But there's no reason for that. The clouds already conceal the real ship. If this spot was left as empty space, it'd have been just as effective as they fumbled about blindly in the clouds, their goal obscured by the cold moisture. It was meaningless.

Except to spit in her face as life had done so many times before. It wasn't practical. It was malicious. Fury swelled through Ilpholin, finding no escape except for through a primal, guttural scream of rage. Intimidating, certainly, but it can only get lost against the emotionless winds that now control her course.

Forgoing the shields, Ilpholin's arms become more whip like and wrap around the waist of the winged angel. When the worst comes to bear, she'll use him as a lifeline. Until then, she can't afford an accidental separation.

[The Lotus Gardens - Mr. Squiggles]

Mister Squiggles had intended to go make sure shutters were closed, as a method of helping the benefactors kind enough to let him stay but the storm has picked up too quickly to justify messing with any of the windows. Instead, he simply sheds his heavy outer armor layer at the entrance so he won't cause damage walking through the house and heads for the most interior room he can find to wait it out.

[Recaiden]

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - FACE

Felandria finds her partner having just dodged a lightning strike, holding a hand up to ward off the bits of concrete the electricity blasted up. Since her shields are off, that isn't terribly effective, but she managed to get to a safe distance anyway.
"I-I don't have anything left to fight with. I need to get out of the storm and recharge. But don't worry about me - finish it off!"
Alice stops to catch her breath for a moment and, seeing another pair taking cover in a building not too far away (especially with the swarms gathering over the city instead of chasing them) canters back around the Infernal to join Cass and Electra.

[Outside the Drill Tank]

"Drove them away from the Infernal, boss."
Omiko gives Zefir a jaunty salute with her gun-arm.
"But the magic they've unleashed is as happy to kill us as the defenders."

She looks at the projection of Jzebel & Co. "Tell me we're going after them? To finish it?"

[Northside Skies]

First, the interpreter's eyes shut as she braces herself for crashing into the city. A moment later, they open wide as she finds them still flying through the air, and the wind growing stronger and stronger. What is this? Had the wind only been playing with them? It's hopeless. The demons could be anywhere in this storm, and given the obvious mastery of illusion on display here, they could search through the whole battle without finding them.

"It's a trap!" She signs to Ilpholin, and to the winged angel, she indicates that they need to get out of here ASAP.

The worker angel folds its wings in and dives, putting them into a barely controlled fall back towards Northside.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - FACE

"If that swarm descends, there's nothing anyone else here can do to deal with it," Cassandra says blandly, letting herself be led into the building. "Their numbers make them an elusive target, yet they act with a single mind."

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Attempting to enter Riverside] - FACE

"There's probably someone somewhere pulling the strings, then, but who knows where they might be," Electra posits as they move. "Still, if we could figure out where they were, we might be able to take the whole thing down at once. Of course, that probably won't solve the weather problem, but hey, one thing at a time, right?"