The deep city of the Desert Lamia people: Travellers Inn

To Ed's eyes the pages began to form words, and complex sentences.

The Tenik Reactor in Asrond has been in disrepair for 18 years, due to a fatal operation failure suffered in a battle between Barduwulf Garamond, Shane Highsworth and the supreme commander of the Crimson Knight Brigade, Fifth Degree General Richard Lionheart. It is unable to be shut down, resulting in 'Lifestream Flow', where energy of the contained lifestream 'drifts' into the open air, making it unsuitable for prolonged habitation of the surrounding area. Similar to Galideno City, if a complete meltdown were to occur, a time dispersal event will result once again. The Spire has not entwined itself around the Tenik Reactor, making it possible to destroy safely however, if total brute force is avoided. Another method that could work, would to disperse the bottle necked energy with the reactor.


The pages seemed to hesitate on Ed's second question. After some time, the previous words removed themselves and rearranged to form:

The Empress of Hell is preparing for war. Her time is coming close to an end, and she fears that a creature from beyond the abyss, from the pits of the void itself will destroy everything, even existence itself.

Random Mobs wrote:To Ed's eyes the pages began to form words, and complex sentences.

The Tenik Reactor in Asrond has been in disrepair for 18 years, due to a fatal operation failure suffered in a battle between Barduwulf Garamond, Shane Highsworth and the supreme commander of the Crimson Knight Brigade, Fifth Degree General Richard Lionheart. It is unable to be shut down, resulting in 'Lifestream Flow', where energy of the contained lifestream 'drifts' into the open air, making it unsuitable for prolonged habitation of the surrounding area. Similar to Galideno City, if a complete meltdown were to occur, a time dispersal event will result once again. The Spire has not entwined itself around the Tenik Reactor, making it possible to destroy safely however, if total brute force is avoided. Another method that could work, would to disperse the bottle necked energy with the reactor.


The pages seemed to hesitate on Ed's second question. After some time, the previous words removed themselves and rearranged to form:

The Empress of Hell is preparing for war. Her time is coming close to an end, and she fears that a creature from beyond the abyss, from the pits of the void itself will destroy everything, even existence itself.

As Edgar read the words, his eyes began to illuminate the room in red light.



'So we can use the reactor like a directional bomb... I guess that's an option. But...'

He fell silent as he considered Esdar's second answer. A monster, something even the demonspawn feared to tread... and judging from the emphasis Esdar used, it planned to bring about the end of all things.

'What should we do? It sounds like my mother is trying to rally support against the monster. I don't trust her as far as I could throw her but... is it possible she is telling the truth?!' Ed could not believe it after all the lies, deceptions, and all the innocent lives lost... but if this new threat was real...

Anastasia watched Ed with a twinge of fear in her heart, watching his eyes glow with such a red intensity. He was reading something that she could not see, and whatever it was, it made her feel dread by extension. She reached for the man, grabbing his shoulder. "Edgar... what are you reading?" She asked.

Once the words faded, Ed took a moment to digest the information, before his eyes dimmed, and he slowly closed and locked the book, setting it on a sidetable beside the chair, then he leaned forward, both hands over his eyes as he leaned his elbows on his knees, and let out a deep, shuddering sigh. He was left with more questions than answers.

"Damn it all....." he uttered out.

Anastasia removed her hand from the bigger man's shoulder as he held his face. She bowed her head, her face cool and neutral like it normally was. I take it its nothing good. Damn it all... She thought to herself, before walking over to her things. She pulled out her worn, Type-45 from her holster:



A standard issue variant, but she began to remove the barrel, reaching into her bag she pulls out a longer, artillery model barrel and screwed it in place. She checked the sights of the artillery model Type-45 and the feel of its longer barrel:



"We stick to our plans. Move cautiously, and observe. We won't act rashly unless necessary." the Major states, not turning to face Ed as she slides the weapon into her holster. She then drew her short sword, its blade gleaming even in the darkness of the room thanks to the covered windows:



She inspected it, and with exception of needing a proper coat of polish it was good to go. She had found the weapon in the pile of a dragon's horde not too long after she joined the SFL. The blade was shorter than she had trained with at the White Tower, but its dagger like weightlessness made it a very useful tool, especially in close quarters like the interior of a tank:



She began to polish and clean the hollowed silver blade, turning to face Ed finally while doing so. She observed him quietly as she polished with an old rag. "So, you have friends in Kilwood, eh?" She asked.

Ed didn't react immediately. The implications of Esdar's words sinking into him started cracking alarm bells.

"It's all meaningless" Ed stated quietly. "Everything I did, everything I planned to do. It's all been rendered worthless again." He didn't know why, for for a moment, he felt a tear roll down his cheek. "I thought... For a moment... if I could fight her to a standstill - If I could just talk to her, have her hear my words... I could..." Ed's mind raced through the thoughts in a whirlwind of mixed emotions.

He closed his eyes tight, feeling his throat clench. "TSK!"

"But now... she's gone and sacrificed herself.... to give everyone a chance. How can I possibly believe that?!" he voiced suddenly.

"We can't attack Asrond. The generator there is so badly unstable, but I could use that as a weapon - by breaking it's seal like popping a cork. However... the dark beast you all mentioned. That has changed everything. When she dies, The throne of Hell will be empty. She's the last of the fallen, and without one the lesser Demon lords will fall to infighting in the ensuing power vaccuum. And they will never again have the power of a Fallen Arch Seraphim to lead them. She was willing to risk that, in order for everyone to have a chance to survive against this creature from beyond the abyss."

Ed looked up at Ana. "Yes, I have a trio of friends in Kilwood who were willing to come with me to the Asrond Spire... I made a promise to one of them that i would rescue her sister from that tower. So I am obligated to go.... but I cannot go in there killing everything and destroying the tower as I had originally intended - not if what Esdar just imparted to me was even remotely true..."

Edgar Holden wrote:Ed didn't react immediately. The implications of Esdar's words sinking into him started cracking alarm bells.

"It's all meaningless" Ed stated quietly. "Everything I did, everything I planned to do. It's all been rendered worthless again." He didn't know why, for for a moment, he felt a tear roll down his cheek. "I thought... For a moment... if I could fight her to a standstill - If I could just talk to her, have her hear my words... I could..." Ed's mind raced through the thoughts in a whirlwind of mixed emotions.

He closed his eyes tight, feeling his throat clench. "TSK!"

"But now... she's gone and sacrificed herself.... to give everyone a chance. How can I possibly believe that?!" he voiced suddenly.

"We can't attack Asrond. The generator there is so badly unstable, but I could use that as a weapon - by breaking it's seal like popping a cork. However... the dark beast you all mentioned. That has changed everything. When she dies, The throne of Hell will be empty. She's the last of the fallen, and without one the lesser Demon lords will fall to infighting in the ensuing power vaccuum. And they will never again have the power of a Fallen Arch Seraphim to lead them. She was willing to risk that, in order for everyone to have a chance to survive against this creature from beyond the abyss."

Ed looked up at Ana. "Yes, I have a trio of friends in Kilwood who were willing to come with me to the Asrond Spire... I made a promise to one of them that i would rescue her sister from that tower. So I am obligated to go.... but I cannot go in there killing everything and destroying the tower as I had originally intended - not if what Esdar just imparted to me was even remotely true..."

She looked at him, sliding her blade tightly back into its scabbard before approaching him. "Nothing is meaningless. Plans change all the time, you have to adapt and rethink your options." She says, knowing such things well. "Perhaps you could draw her out." She says, picking up slight telepathic wavelengths from the human hybrid. "Sounds like it became a rescue mission. As it is, our mission... Leland and mine, hasn't changed. We'll scout Asrond, and perhaps gather details from the Demon's side of things, with as little engagement with them as we mortally can~" She says, cupping her right hand in a fist and lightly tapping his shoulder with it.

Anastasia Faizland wrote:She looked at him, sliding her blade tightly back into its scabbard before approaching him. "Nothing is meaningless. Plans change all the time, you have to adapt and rethink your options." She says, knowing such things well. "Perhaps you could draw her out." She says, picking up slight telepathic wavelengths from the human hybrid. "Sounds like it became a rescue mission. As it is, our mission... Leland and mine, hasn't changed. We'll scout Asrond, and perhaps gather details from the Demon's side of things, with as little engagement with them as we mortally can~" She says, cupping her right hand in a fist and lightly tapping his shoulder with it.

"It's not about the plan. It's a complete reversal of everything I had ever believed about her and the Hellspawn..." Ed shook his head. "It doesn't matter... I still have a job to do, but perhaps the target has changed."

With that he reached into his backpack, and took out the weapon and two 50 round boxes of ammunition he acquired from Phil back in the Kilwood Village barnhouse.



"Here, you and Leland would have better use of this than I. My powers mean that firearms are of limited usefulness to me, and this gun should be effective against all but the most powerful of Hellspawn."

"Still, I don't trust that she'll just leave when the business is done with. We're still vulnerable regardless if we live or die to the greater threat. She's not an ally to us." The Major explained, feeling that the woman would not stop her plans once she succeeded. She blinked at the revolver like weapon in curiosity as it was presented to her. "What... is it? Looks like a revolver, but... different." She says, taking the weapon in hand, observing it. She had the .45 SMG on the saddle bag of her horse yet, and Leland had his menagerie of firearms he had shown off here and there. What harm could another weapon provide? However, her only concern was what the hell it fired, and why it looked so odd in design. It looked pistol like, but she realized it was more like a rifle, given the forward grip, and high cylinder so that the user wouldn't get hurt from the fumes between the cylinder gap.

"To be honest, I'm not entirely certain myself. It's a Helltech Handcannon that I took from an assassin who tried to kill me in Kilwood. part of a criminal underground railroad group that was shipping slaves and stolen hardware. It fires what appear to be .500 Hellbore rounds. Valor coated, brimstone core, Bavarium Warhead in a high grain round. A round like that could turn the entire torso of a 600lb muscular sumo wrestler into vapor" Ed explained.

"And getting hit by it was not fun..." he added. "But, it is very effective against supernatural creatures as much as it is against mortal ones, so for your current mission, I assume it will come in handy."

Edgar Holden wrote:"To be honest, I'm not entirely certain myself. It's a Helltech Handcannon that I took from an assassin who tried to kill me in Kilwood. part of a criminal underground railroad group that was shipping slaves and stolen hardware. It fires what appear to be .500 Hellbore rounds. Valor coated, brimstone core bullets in a high grain round. A round like that could turn the entire torso of a 600lb muscular sumo wrestler into vapor" Ed explained.

"And getting hit by it was not fun..." he added. "But, it is very effective against supernatural creatures as much as it is against mortal ones, so for your current mission, I assume it will come in handy."

"I would assume it will, that sounds like a lot of stopping power." She said, before she mentally tallied the overall use of the weapon. About 100 rounds, six shell cylinder, I'll be able to fully reload it roughly 16, 17 times before it becomes useless. 100 rounds is not a lot, so I'll use it sparingly or when we need the power of a tank's cannon... She thought, before she blinked and looked at Ed's face again. "Wait... you survived such a wound?" She wasn't sure if she heard that right.

Anastasia Faizland wrote:"I would assume it will, that sounds like a lot of stopping power." She said, before she mentally tallied the overall use of the weapon. About 100 rounds, six shell cylinder, I'll be able to fully reload it roughly 16, 17 times before it becomes useless. 100 rounds is not a lot, so I'll use it sparingly or when we need the power of a tank's cannon... She thought, before she blinked and looked at Ed's face again. "Wait... you survived such a wound?" She wasn't sure if she heard that right.

Ed 's eyes widened just a little as he realized what he had said. "Oh dear -  How do I explain that one?" he said a little wearily. "My powers afford me a... degree of regenerative capability" he said carefully. "yeah, because regenerating your entire head being reduced to tomato paste is Normal compared to regenerating from ashes after a nuclear bomb detonation, or a pile of naga poop after being digested by your best friend's giant psychotic demon snake ex-girlfriend." he thought, and decided NOT to reveal that particular piece of lovely information.

She blinked at his response. "Oh... ow." She hissed. "Useful to have such regenerative capabilities, but the healing bit must have stung a lot." She says, before slipping the large weapon into her bag. She then looked to the door, then turned to the windows, sliding the curtains. "I hate this underground setting... hard to tell if its night or day. Feels like its been hours since we seen Leland..." she says, sounding worried, before her tone turned sour, her fingers gripping the curtain tightly. "...if he ran off, I'll be having a brand new pair of lamia skin boots and Leland won't be feeling much below the waist for the next few weeks..." she grumbled with lidded, annoyed eyes.

Anastasia Faizland wrote:She blinked at his response. "Oh... ow." She hissed. "Useful to have such regenerative capabilities, but the healing bit must have stung a lot." She says, before slipping the large weapon into her bag. She then looked to the door, then turned to the windows, sliding the curtains. "I hate this underground setting... hard to tell if its night or day. Feels like its been hours since we seen Leland..." she says, sounding worried, before her tone turned sour, her fingers gripping the curtain tightly. "...if he ran off, I'll be having a brand new pair of lamia skin boots and Leland won't be feeling much below the waist for the next few weeks..." she grumbled with lidded, annoyed eyes.

Ed merely smiled at that. "Oh you have no idea... My ears are still ringing." he said as he slid the book back into his satchel. "it's getting towards mid afternoon." he answered, then he caught onto what she was hinting at. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about Leland right now. He's been keeping himself occupied in the blacksmith shop making himself a new gun, one better suited to his mission. And, making himself a new friend." Ed explained, as he felt Leland's presence in the Forge of the Ancients the whole time.

Edgar Holden wrote:

Anastasia Faizland wrote:She blinked at his response. "Oh... ow." She hissed. "Useful to have such regenerative capabilities, but the healing bit must have stung a lot." She says, before slipping the large weapon into her bag. She then looked to the door, then turned to the windows, sliding the curtains. "I hate this underground setting... hard to tell if its night or day. Feels like its been hours since we seen Leland..." she says, sounding worried, before her tone turned sour, her fingers gripping the curtain tightly. "...if he ran off, I'll be having a brand new pair of lamia skin boots and Leland won't be feeling much below the waist for the next few weeks..." she grumbled with lidded, annoyed eyes.

Ed merely smiled at that. "Oh you have no idea... My ears are still ringing." he said as he slid the book back into his satchel. "it's getting towards mid afternoon." he answered, then he caught onto what she was hinting at. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about Leland right now. He's been keeping himself occupied in the blacksmith shop making himself a new gun, one better suited to his mission. And, making himself a new friend." Ed explained, as he felt Leland's presence in the Forge of the Ancients the whole time.

"I have a little idea." She says, holding out her left arm. "Abdel Adham cut my left arm off when I was a Squire. I was a young, fifty something year old runt who challenged the Black Emperor who killed my mentor. I was lucky he didn't take my head." She says, before adding: "A man with white hair took me to his master, a Scardian Lord named Valundar Blade-breaker. I was suffering from fever and gangrene thanks to Abdel's vicious blade. I was ready to accept having to live with one arm, or use one of the prosthetic arms Val and a Steven Chesluk developed... but a young man my aunt was tutoring, a druid and former knight of the White Tower like myself did some odd, primordial magic. They regrew my arm. That was painful, and only a week or so of recovery after over a month of nothing being there...I was back to my former glory." She says, recounting stories from her youth. "A new friend and gun huh?" She changed the subject.

Anastasia Faizland wrote:"I have a little idea." She says, holding out her left arm. "Abdel Adham cut my left arm off when I was a Squire. I was a young, fifty something year old runt who challenged the Black Emperor who killed my mentor. I was lucky he didn't take my head." She says, before adding: "A man with white hair took me to his master, a Scardian Lord named Valundar Blade-breaker. I was suffering from fever and gangrene thanks to Abdel's vicious blade. I was ready to accept having to live with one arm, or use one of the prosthetic arms Val and a Steven Chesluk developed... but a young man my aunt was tutoring, a druid and former knight of the White Tower like myself did some odd, primordial magic. They regrew my arm. That was painful, and only a week or so of recovery after over a month of nothing being there...I was back to my former glory." She says, recounting stories from her youth. "A new friend and gun huh?" She changed the subject.

Edgar stewed on the story Ana had told him, but when she changed the subject, he did not want to pry, so instead answered her query unintrusively. "Indeed, he's going around the market clothes shopping at the moment to replace his tattered clothes."

Ed then had the sense of shame to look at the remnants of his own tattered chest armor, and had the decency to sigh. "They are going to kill me..."

Edgar Holden wrote:

Anastasia Faizland wrote:"I have a little idea." She says, holding out her left arm. "Abdel Adham cut my left arm off when I was a Squire. I was a young, fifty something year old runt who challenged the Black Emperor who killed my mentor. I was lucky he didn't take my head." She says, before adding: "A man with white hair took me to his master, a Scardian Lord named Valundar Blade-breaker. I was suffering from fever and gangrene thanks to Abdel's vicious blade. I was ready to accept having to live with one arm, or use one of the prosthetic arms Val and a Steven Chesluk developed... but a young man my aunt was tutoring, a druid and former knight of the White Tower like myself did some odd, primordial magic. They regrew my arm. That was painful, and only a week or so of recovery after over a month of nothing being there...I was back to my former glory." She says, recounting stories from her youth. "A new friend and gun huh?" She changed the subject.

Edgar stewed on the story Ana had told him, but when she changed the subject, he did not want to pry, so instead answered her query unintrusively. "Indeed, he's going around the market clothes shopping at the moment to replace his tattered clothes."

Ed then had the sense of shame to look at the remnants of his own tattered chest armor, and had the decency to sigh. "They are going to kill me..."

She thought about Leland's clothes, and realized he was a tad on the shabby side. She was curious what kind of clothes the Lamia could provide a human since they didn't wear pant....pant...

A very lewd thought came in her mind, before Ed's sigh broke such steamy thoughts to fully fester. She turned around to face him, raising a brow. "Excuse me?" She blinked. "Who's going to kill you and why? If you don't mind my prying." She asked, leaning against the windowsill, arms folded across her chest.

Anastasia Faizland wrote:She thought about Leland's clothes, and realized he was a tad on the shabby side. She was curious what kind of clothes the Lamia could provide a human since they didn't wear pant....pant...

A very lewd thought came in her mind, before Ed's sigh broke such steamy thoughts to fully fester. She turned around to face him, raising a brow. "Excuse me?" She blinked. "Who's going to kill you and why? If you don't mind my prying." She asked, leaning against the windowsill, arms folded across her chest.

Ed let out another sigh. "I left Kilwood in a bit of a rush during a lunch banquet. my teammates were there, and so was the seamstress who was to repair my armor, or fashion me a new one. Kinda hard to find decent combat gear for a person my size. But on top of that, this armor was borrowed from a Sorceress in Ithteca when I first arrived, as I was completely naked when i arrived... Dimensional portals leaving you starkers, who bloody knew? Anyways, so, I've probably got a Demigodess handmaiden of Hazoria, two half demon women, pissed off at me for standing them up in Kilwood, along with another refugee from my homeland, a woman I definitely don't want angry with me... And if Morgana ever found out what happened to her robed armor she loaned me, i'm pretty sure what happened in that mine when i first met her will be the least of my worries..." Ed deliberately chose to omit the fact that she thought he was her summoned slave, and had pretty much had him by the balls while asking him to turn his head and cough. That was perhaps the single most embarrassing and outrageous experience he had ever had - and that included his time in the 1700s where superstition was considered factual proof.

Ana blinked. "They sound like hellcat bitches straight from the pits of oblivion, your... friends. If you don't mind me saying so." She says, rather bluntly.

Anastasia Faizland wrote:Ana blinked. "They sound like hellcat bitches straight from the pits of oblivion, your... friends. If you don't mind me saying so." She says, rather bluntly.

Ed grunted with a sudden smile. "They are normally very good people, but they become a bit reactionary when mad, that's all."

"Well, I guess since I've already been there, I can teleport the three of us to Kilwood to plan everything out. get some food and supplies, and then get going."

She smiled. "They sound well enough. But you know that won't sit well with Leland. Again, the plan hasn't changed for us. We'll head to Asrond while you get things set up in Scardia with your team."

Ed smiled and shook his head. "I'd need the two of you to be my beacon to bring the others in via teleportation anyway... I can get supplies and provisions from Kilwood if you guys need any."

Ed stood up from his spot on the chair. "I'll need to get going very soon."

Edgar Holden wrote:Ed smiled and shook his head. "I'd need the two of you to be my beacon to bring the others in via teleportation anyway... I can get supplies and provisions from Kilwood if you guys need any."

Ed stood up from his spot on the chair. "I'll need to get going very soon."

She raised a brow at that, before she stepped forward. "Well if you're heading to Scardia, may I ask a favor of you Ed?" She asked, pulling a sealed letter from her inner coat pocket, and handed it to him. "Could you deliver this to my second, he's a Captain in my Artillery Division within the Scardian Foreign Legion. He was from Kilwood, so he may be in the village or he may be in Cretu at the SFL base." She asked, and to avoid spying demonic eyes, gripped Ed's hand and showed Ed a mental image of the man instead of saying his full name:



"You should know its him, as he is carrying a gift I gave him, which originally was mine." She says, and projected an image of weapon which he sometimes pulled out and sat on counters when he was sitting down:



She lets go of his hand, and then hands him the note again. "Could you do that for me, Edgar?" She asked again.

The door to the room rattled for a moment, before Leland, with a bunch of supplies under his arms, reappeared. He had many items under each of his arms, and he had a slight coat of sweat rolling across his forehead as he stands there, and looks between Ed and Anastasia. "Yo." He says, before looking at Ana, his eyes somewhat lidded. "I'm back. Told ya I wasn't planning on running Major..." He then entered, closing the door behind him with his leg. "So, how is the Queen fairing?" He asked, setting the items down, while he opens the gun case he received from Kessler.