epidemiology | [ closed ] someone say a hail mary for this house

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[ closed ] someone say a hail mary for this house

CHARACTERS: Elias Ainsworth, Suyumkhe, Sieglinde Sullivan.
DATE: Around 11/20ish.
WARNINGS: None, presently.
SUMMARY: Armed with one living captured Deemer and a truth spell, the trio set out to an abandoned corner of Perdition's Rest to try to wrest some more answers from their charge.

[The captured Deemer didn't do very much. He had been in their custody for a few days now, and besides eat and drink what was offered, the rest of his time seemed to be spent consumed in sullen silence. He was passed between hands as the Audentes agents went about their personal prerogatives—Elias himself spent a few hours one day searching out a space that would match the requirements posed to him by Sieglinde.

Out of the way, with a large, unobstructed floor to use for the runic circle. With the town in a state of unease, and feeling as though he had very little to barter with for use of an occupied building, he eventually ranged out towards the outskirts. Most of what he found was unfit—either for the spell itself or just in general—but he eventually comes across a barn with most of the floor clear, its uses for storage apparently let slide some time ago.

From there, it was just a few short messages to both Shuyi and Sieglinde to establish place and time before he went back to fetch the prisoner, leading him out to the given location at the given hour.

Elias guides the Deemer silently—not as though the infested qorral would have much to say to him, given his taciturn nature since his capture and the death of his companion and the escape of his leader. He might need to be prompted to speak to make this spell work at all. The idea is distasteful to Elias, but so is much that they were forced to do here.

The day was progressing to late afternoon, and the heat was thick and heavy in the air, settling over him like another particularly stifling layer of clothing. The relative cool of the shaded interior of the barn was appreciated, then; bright red eyes moved in the dark eye sockets, scanning the area for those he had summoned. Empty, as of yet. This was fine. He had left a little early.]

Forward. [The lowly-intoned word was laced as a command, and the glance that the Deemer shot him was only partially indignant before he shambled forward onto the rough-hewn planks of the barn's floor, only partially broken with weeds and rot.

The magus stepped inside the barn to wait, unblinking red gaze keeping the prisoner as restrained as the rope binding his arms behind his back.]

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[Sieglinde had unbound her feet months ago, but though it enabled her to walk far better than she had been able on feet mere three inches long, the deadened nerve endings and calcification meant she still wasn't the best at transportation. Thankfully, she had her familiar, a skull-faced canine large enough to bear her weight, or that of her satchel at the very least. This spell called for several ingredients, mixed fresh, not to mention her wand, her potions, and equipment she never traveled without. Though she had researched the spell extensively, this was her first field test, and on the way to the site Elias had contacted her about, she reviews the procedure in her head multiple times.

It takes her time, but she reaches the barn eventually, taking a moment to compose herself before she entered. This was a rare chance. It wasn't so often she had test subjects to try her spells on that people wouldn't get up in moral arms about, for one- and of course, for the sake of their mission. Though she wasn't the most team-oriented person in Audentes, she still had debts to repay to certain members, and with her handicap, limited ways to do so.

Sieglinde took what she could get.]

Sieglinde Sullivan, the Green Witch, at your service.

[Announcing herself as she enters, Sieglinde's gaze is drawn first to the Deemer, her unwilling guinea pig for the sake of others, before it aligns on who she must assume is Elias.

Unfortunately, her efforts at a dignified and proper entrance are likely ruined by the double take she does just then, looking rapidly between the man? and her familiar, once, then once more for good measure.]

[ Shuyi can't help but feel out of her depth.

Magic is something parents tell their children in stories but it is by definition a fantasy, certainly not something one can wield to one's purpose. It is colors in the wind and a delicate tinkling and puffs of harmless smoke, not pungent herbs and sweltering barns reeking of must and rot, and a bound prisoner with a worm in his head about to have the truth wrung out of him. This is nothing like the magic in her childhood storybooks. It all leaves a bad taste in her mouth. But needs, must. The means can justify the end no matter the knots in her stomach.

She musters a stern nod at the girl with the skull-faced dog. ]

Suyumkhe.

[ Her titles, former of otherwise, don't matter here. ]

Please, tell me how I may help.

[Elias seems unfazed when the young witch enters the shaded space, the red pinpricks of light in the cavernous eye sockets of his skull following her with studious precision. The only hint of reaction was the slight tilt of his head at the bestial familiar, who... well, there were reasons why Elias thought it looked quite familiar, and not just because of the skeletal structure to the face. It is just another curiosity to be stored in the stack of all the others he had seen since he arrived here; he merely files it away.]

A pleasure to meet you, Ms. Sieglinde. [He takes notice of the double-take between himself and the strange beast, but he doesn't react. The resemblance is uncanny (and could be uncannier), but it's neither here nor there.]

Greetings, Shuyi. [He intones with his typical even, low tone as the young woman enters. How she might actually help would be an interesting consideration. Elias takes a step forward, towards the center of the barn, making a low, "hmm," of nonverbal consideration.] If the young witch does not need your aid, I would personally ask you to take careful note of what he says. I do not think we will have the opportunity to record properly.

[He turns his head to the qorral now, red gaze intense, and there is an odd shift about the captive Deemer. The shadows clinging around him, all of the areas occluded by body or clothing seemed to grow denser, darker, and the figure suddenly locks into a neutral pose. He struggles a bit, effort sounding under his breath. He wouldn't be able to move unless Elias either allowed it, the shadows suddenly gaining the strength of clasped iron.]

You are welcome to prepare the spell now, Ms. Sieglinde. This man will not interfere.

[A keen eye might notice how, in the dusky corners of the abandoned barn, the shadows behaved strangely as well—thin tendrils of blackness spreading like a plague of cobwebs, bristling with sharp thorns. In truth, this was another reason why he had chosen a place like this—he grew stronger in shadow.]

[It was probably not polite to compare a "man" you had just met to what amounted to a dog- even if he was her familiar and a valued companion. Sieglinde decided to leave that for another day... and instead gives a formal nod to both Shuyi and once more to Elias.

He seemed a demon, if she had to guess only by sight. Looking down, she plucked the ring hanging from the chatelaine about her waist, fingers singling out the compass, watching the arrow spin until it pointed straight at Elias. Ah.

No matter now. Whatever method he was using, she could accept it. After all... she was using magic now herself that might not necessarily be... right. She was in no position to speak.]

I will prepare the spell myself- but you are free to do as he says, Miss Suyumkhe.

[She lay a hand on Isengrim's flank, using him as balance as she pulled a wand-like object from her coat, the tip made of chalk that she lay against the floorboards... and began to drag.]

- Thank you, my lord.

[Since the man wouldn't be moving anytime soon... she began to walk a careful circle, the white tip of her wand leaving a chalk line in her wake.]

Give me a few minutes to set up the circle.

[Elias didn't mentally conform to much of what humans might find offensive—truth be told, the shape that he took was one that he purposefully crafted in order to appear as human as possible without casting a glamour. It was not the form that seemed to come most naturally to him; truth be told, this human form and the quadruped form that he could assume felt similar in how calculated they were in composure. This one just blended in more with a human society (which was a lot to say, considering how much he stood out regardless).

The magus nods, and Shuyi seems to understand as well, standing a short distance away and watching as Sieglinde, aided by the odd creature, began to trace the circle on the slightly uneven ground of the abandoned barn.

He doesn't really reply as much as he gives a nonverbal grumble—not necessarily negative or positive. He's not really used to such addresses, and he's trying to decide if it's humorous or not. Elias wasn't necessarily held in high regard by anyone in his own world. He was an anomaly neither humans nor fae could account for, and he dealt regularly with fear and disdain. It was odd—some were certainly offput by him here, but he was treated with far more understanding than those in his own world, who had their own ingrained preconceptions.

The captured Deemer watches Sieglinde carefully; his eyes are pretty much the only thing Elias has not restricted.]

Just give me the word if you need any assistance.

[Otherwise Elias is perfectly content to watch, very interested in what spell Sieglinde was going to cast.]

[It is a rare chance for Sieglinde to actually have a stage to try out spells on... people. She had spent her life with her nose buried in a book, has had access to spell books and teachings from all across worlds since her recruitment... Gilgamesh had granted her access to a grimoire from his Gate, she had learned from Merlin himself, studied under Loki and more, but she lacked... volunteers.

For some reason, most people she knew weren't too keen on allowing untested spells to be used on them.

But even though she's never done it in practice, she's studied it well, and once she sets to it, tracing the Theban letters and runes into the floor is not the difficult part. Her penchant for memorization was sharper than most, and soon enough she has the base down, taking a step back to examine her work before she nods, turning back to Elias and their... guest.]

If you could bring him to the center of the circle... ?

[She reached for the chatelaine around her waist, pulling from the ring on the end a small blade, drawing it from her sheathe and using it to point to the smaller circle within the larger one.]

I need him to touch that center rune there. Through clothing is acceptable.

[Elias was purposeful in making sure that his own spells didn't have human components—his magically naturally tended towards destruction, so it was always a fiendish temptation, though usually easy to turn down. But typically they affected objects and the space around them, not living humans themselves, and that was the safest thing. It was best that it was Sieglinde undergoing the spell and not himself—there was much less inherent risk, he would think.

He eyes the circle that she had inscribed.] Of course.

[He doesn't do it physically. The shadows that were clinging to him, keeping him still and restrained, simultaneously pushed, pulled, and manipulated him in a shambling walk towards the center of the circle written down onto the floor. Hearing the specifications, Elias guides him to kneel onto the floor, knees resting against the rune in question. Once there he went still again, but not without the slight tremors as he struggled against the umbral restraints.]

What is next? [He's keeping careful tabs on all that she's doing for this spell, interested in comparisons and contrasts.]

[What a terrible power. Something about it screams of unnaturalness, makes the hairs on the back of her neck stand on in, but Sieglinde still cannot tear her eyes from the thickening darkness that takes hold of the Deemer and forces his body to do as they willed, until he kneels and it is time for her to do her part.]

I shall begin-

[Clearing her mind as best as she could, Sieglinde takes a deep breath, then swiftly draws the edge of the knife over her finger, a clean slice that welled with blood quickly and threatened to overflow... which she allows, holding her hand out above the outer circle, where drops of blood began to fall, soaking strangely into the chalk outline, sizzling slightly as the crimson color spread outward, beginning to dye the entire symbol.]

I call upon Veritas, the maiden of truth, to come forth from her well. In return for my truth, let truth be all that is spoken. In return for my blood, let truth to save blood be known. In the name of truth, that which is the purest of sounds, let pollution be cleansed, and all words made sacred. May truth be that which grants you freedom.

[Latin, like any language, became universal thanks to ALASTAIR's translators, intoned with eyes closed as the drops of blood that soaked the runes gradually picked up speed, somehow managing to dye the entire outer circle and inwards, the inner ring soon red... and that same red traveling up the man's knee, a thin line much like a sudden infection of the blood, bulging in the vein until it reaches the throat... and vanishes.

A bead of sweat appears on Sieglinde's brow, but she does not move, merely pauses. Breathes out unsteadily.]

... it ought be done.

[Now... to test it.]

[It's only out of politeness and a lack of true necessity that he doesn't do this to comrades. The same was true of a lot of the powers that he could call upon and exert over others—it was just intrinsic to him, as he was a creature of shadow and thorns, despite how much he actively tried to emulate very different ideals.

He stands to the side as she begins the ritual, his attention becoming sharply focused to the drawn blood after she opens the wound on her hand. The shadows seem to churn and roil slightly more feverishly as the red color seeps into the chalk symbol, the scent of blood blooming in the musty air of the abandoned barn.

Elias remains completely still.

He takes note of the incantation with the sort of interest that any professional would take in another accomplished artisan's work—though there were many marked places where their particular techniques diverged. His eyes follow the red path of the seeping blood as the spell seems to take over the man's body, converging on the vertex of his throat before disappearing entirely.

It ought be done. Elias nods, taking a long stride forward, into the circle and towards the man.]

Allow me.

[She had unlocked the door, and now it was his turn to open it.

Elias twists his hand into a beckoning motion and the man looks up to him with a jagged alacrity that seemed entirely unnatural, the shadows once more manipulating his muscles. He kneels before the mage, face upturned towards the looming skeletal face, the glaring red eyes. If there's one thing he knows how to do, it is to appear intimidating—he was well-equipped for such things.

Around the circle, thin strings bristling with thorns of inky blackness begin to rise from the darkness gathering in the gaps between boards of wood. They twist around the circle slowly, avoiding the others gathered in the room.]

Now, [his deep tone seems overlaid with another odd sound, vaguely discordant.] We have some questions for you, and we would be very grateful for your cooperation. [The man struggles but can't answer yet—the unnatural shadow clinging to the underside of his jaw was to blame for that.]

So tell me. What, exactly, are your—the Taxara's—relationship with Zymandis?

[The shadow gathered along the line of the man's jaw seeped away, allowing him to gasp and then... spew a rather impressive string of curses at the both of them, which Elias cuts off by causing the constricting shadows to twist, driving thorns into flesh. He winces, choked for a moment, before resuming.] We were just contracted out for this. We don't know anything about what they're doing.

[It was a lie, based on what they already knew.]

[There was a tightness in her chest that couldn't be explained simply by the instinctual fear a person ought know at the dark shadows Elias seemed to either wield or be made of, that couldn't be explained by the tenseness of the situation itself. It was a far more personal nervousness, never having tried this spell before in actual practice, thrumming with a dull excitement and over-analyzing every aspect of it, waiting for proof it actually worked.

Proof that came, when after the words finished leaving the man's mouth, a spasm seemed to wrack his throat, and the cut in her finger gave a sudden stab of pain, connected yet by the blood of the spell.]

That is a lie.

[Announced, (a bit proudly), to Elias, before her eyes turned to the possessed man, voice dipping down in warning.]

... I do not advise you continue to make efforts towards untruth. It will grow far more unpleasant for you...

[And for a girl who seemed as young as she was... she seemed oddly alright with that.]

[Perhaps it was ill-advised to let anyone in their group see him in this way. It could undermine the blind trust that they placed in such a strange creature, regardless of what had put them all here or what they were all bound to do. But, truth be told, this wasn't even as monstrous as Elias could be, and because of that he didn't consider any sorts of negative ramifications. Now he just wanted answers, which was what he had wanted most of all since arriving into this entangling scenario in the first place.

He didn't really feel anger as humans did. When things didn't go as he wanted them to, as they did when the Taraxa-controlled qorral replied with a bald-faced lie, he just felt a powerful inclination to violence, not necessarily motivated by hatred or frustration. He withstood the impulse, as he had long since learned to, though his gaze became more intent. From how close the qorral was, he could see slits, now, in those glowing red eyes—reptilian, cold.]

Indeed. [The reply is made without movement, keeping his eyes unblinking on the subject of the spell.] I agree with the young witch. It is in your best interest to be truthful.

[The shadows clinging to the man's body began to sprout thorns.]

Again, [said with utmost patience,] what are the Taraxa's relationship to Zymandis?

[He tries to lie. He really does. Elias watches as the mouth moves, struggling, as if something were caught in his throat without going through the eventuality of choking him. What he does manage to get out at first is,] "I - I told you, hhg," [he flinches, as if in pain, before the next words come from his mouth more like a stream than a trickle.] "Our hive - works as infiltrators for them. For - this planet we were sent to work our way into the qorral settlement without suspicion. We - hgh, used the guise of a religious group to start, then we began to plant more agents through the patrons of the saloon."

[The man stops, taking a few labored breaths, and Elias glances for a moment towards Sieglinde.] I believe that rings more true. [He observes the circle upon the floor for a moment.] ...Well done.

[Her gaze is locked on the man- the Qorral, the Taxara- watching this throat, specifically, the pulsing veins, the way skin shrunk away from the prick of thorns, the way he tries to force the lie past the spell.

But he can't, and the truth comes out. She watches the runes for signs of response, hints that he's lying, but no twinge of pain hits her bloodied finger, and no color bleeds into the wards.

She sighs softly in relief, glad to hear something that isn't an untruth, nodding to Elias give her assent, that she'd received no sign to prove a lie.]

- thank you.

[She tried to save her actual pride in her success for later, lips thinning.]

I cannot guarantee the strength of the spell will stay constant over time, however. We should ask what needs to be asked as quickly as possible.

[Especially considering that she'd heard of another interrogation being cut off by an external source... and a suicide. Maybe that couldn't happen when the man was bound, but...]

[It was an efficient spell. Elias isn't sure he would've been able to do anything of the like without the use of force—he could control a creature's body and their words, but their thoughts were locked from him, and while he could destroy memories, he couldn't search through them like an open book.

Too bad.]

Agreed. [He turns the attention of those red, reptilian eyes back to the captive.]

So, [his voice takes on that odd intonation once again,] what is next for you, now that you have infested so many in town?

[Now that the words had been pried and loosened from him, the staggered trickle of information widened to a stream, flowing much more normally. The qorral gives a choking laugh.] If we hadn't been discovered you mean. [He tries to spit, but it doesn't go well, mostly just getting on his face.] We were supposed to join up with more Zymandis agents and drill to the - temporal crystal in the core of the planet, so we could ... destroy it and this Timeline both.

[He falls silent as Elias tilts his head to one side. It's what he had suspected, but...]

Why?

[Expression resolves itself into something steely on the qorral's face, and he looks Elias dead in the eyes. He seems to hesitate for a second, but in the end he simply clears his throat, continuing,] Zymandis wants to find those abnormalities in the timeline, just - like ALASTAIR. But they - we want to topple it piece by piece by piece until - the whole thing shatters.

Why? [He repeats it a little louder.

The captive just gives a defeated-looking half-smile.] I've - told you all I know. That might be a question... for the Queen.

[The circle doesn't react to his words. ...Disappointing.

Elias takes a step away, turning his back on the qorral. The shadows relax ever so slightly as the thorns disappear, letting him slump to the ground. The shadows clustering in the poorly-lit corners of the barn begin to behave a little closer to normal.

He glances towards Sieglinde.] What do you think?

[Destroying the timeline.

It is a hard thing to comprehend, only being told it in words- even if she knows for a fact that the taraxa was speaking the truth. Even ALASTAIR's mission was obscure and hard to truly wrap one's head around, what with the lack of real viewable influence on a timeline, let alone addressing the morality, the sheer arrogance of saying that you alone knew the way a world ought to be...

But to topple it...

Sieglinde is silent for a long moment, until she finally moves a half step forward and scuffs the magic circle she'd drawn upon the ground, the red retreating and seeping out as the lines lost their sharp and neat edges, power draining from it and from the man himself as she looks up at Elias.]

... we must tell the others.

[Although he would be plagued with curiosity either way, sometimes it was wasted effort to try to understand the motivations of some individuals and some groups. Trappings of logic and reason were, after all, merely agreed-upon constructs that did not apply to all, and the same could be said for morality. The fae operated on different rules, and Elias did not question them. And then there were creatures like that dreadful Cartaphilus, who even if he managed to have a reason for his actions was still not exonerated from them because of that.

So even though Elias couldn't help but be interested in the endless pursuit of understanding and knowledge, he's aware that it's of a limited use. In the end there is merely the words and the deeds, action and reaction, cause and effect.

That of what occurred here today was that they had acquired information, regardless of their methods. He eyes the exhausted qorral where he slumps onto the floor, deep in consideration.

Sieglinde steps forward to break the circle, and the magic steadily drains from it. For the best.]

Indeed. [His voice is a deep intonation as he steps up to the prisoner one final time. The shadows have, at this point, returned to normal, as has Elias' appearance. The man is still bound, however, and the mage gets the feeling he would not try to make a break for it at this point, not with what he had just done and divulged laying thick upon his conscience.]

Rise, and follow us.

[It takes a stumble and a moment, but the creature rises to his feet to comply.

Elias turns to face Sieglinde, catching Shuyi's eye as well.] Let us go, then.

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[ closed ] someone say a hail mary for this house

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LATE WITH STARBUCKS . . .

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