Test 4.

[azumods]

KNOWLEDGE Compared to the frigid chamber you've just left, the cavern you enter now is warm. It isn't difficult to see why; while there's still a fair amount of space in here, it's far smaller, and there's a source of heat and light in here - a small fire going near a corner of the room, tucked away behind the wall and difficult to see as you enter, but fairly obvious once you're inside, the light from the flames bouncing off the corner of the chamber and making it decidely easier to see. There thankfully aren't any more of Froslass' "sculptures" in here; there is, however, a person. Candice is in the corner near the fire, pressed back against the wall and watching you as you enter; it's likely obvious from the start that there's something wrong with her, though it's difficult to say what just from looking at her. Her eyes aren't fixed in the same sort of dull, blank stare that the people affected by Team Galactic tend to display, but at the same time, they look viscerally wrong - it's alert but it's empty and almost completely unfocused, as though she's taking in information and she's processing it, but she's not actually seeing any of it. It's unsettling, but she's still watching you, and she's holding something close to her chest as she does so; she's got the thick, blue sweater untied from around her waist, and she's holding it bundled in her arms like she's trying to protect it. Her eyes don't come into focus, even as she addresses you. "I told you that you aren't welcome here. You need to leave. Now." Her gaze darts as she speaks, like she's trying to take in as much as she can, even if she doesn't seem to be registering any of it properly; her expression is hard. Cold. What happens now is up to you.

Comments

[azumods]

Yes.

[greydients]

[-OKAY SO APPARENTLY YOU AREN'T CANDICE AND THIS IS NOW MAKING SO MUCH MORE SENSE]

...I...feel like I should apologise.

...Uxie.

[...still not gunna change her mind but she now understands why you're. being like this]

[azumods]

...It's all right.

[Just. Yeah.]

[greydients]

[WELL THIS IS NOW VERY AWKWARD AND IT'S ALL HER FAULT she knew she'd manage to put her foot in her mouth eventually, ugh-]

I...you have every right to want to protect yourself and not confront him - I don't know the extent of what he's done to you and the other guardians, but....

[...awk...ward...]

...

...what...would be the ideal outcome, for you? What would you wish of us?

[How about she just. lets you talk for a bit]

[azumods]

...The ideal outcome would see him defeated. But there's no way to ensure that at this point.

[greydients]

[SHE KNEW IT]

...and if there never is? I'm still willing to try.

[azumods]

I said "at this point."

[So it's not entirely eliminating the possibility? It's not a guarantee, but it's not a complete negation, either.]

[greydients]

[...OKAY REY IS. GOING TO TRY AND IGNORE ALL OF THE BODY HORROR GOING ON HERE, EVERYONE ELSE SEEMS TO HAVE THE HORRIFIED REACTIONS UNDER CONTROL-]

...so you do have hope.

[No take-backs!]

I don't suppose you have any advice? To help us get past this point.

[azumods]

...What do you want to know?

[greydients]

[How the bloody hell they can fix Candice, for one thing-]

...do you know anything about the god Cyrus is controlling?

[azumods]

[WE WOULD ALL LIKE TO KNOW HOW TO FIX POOR DAMN CANDICE HONESTLY- ]

...It isn't just one god. It's at least three of them.

[semistableman]

[Oh, fucking hell.]

[greydients]

[YEAH REY IS TRYING REALLY HARD NOT TO JUST LOSE HER SHIT-wait what]

At...at least three?!

[....okay she's. starting to understand why you were kind of against them fighting Cyrus, um]

You're sure?

[azumods]

...I am. One of them is the Supreme Creator; the other two are its earliest creations, those that created the universe itself.

[semistableman]

Holy hell.

[Yeah he's got nothing.]

[takestheblame]

...okay, even meeting him is going to be difficult.

[Suddenly stopping Cyrus seems much harder]

1/2

[greydients]

[.........]

2/2

[greydients]

...I'm starting to understand why you were discouraging us from fighting him.

[TO...PUT IT MILDLY...]

So he's...he's controlling the god of creation, and the two gods that created the universe. Is that right?

[......

we may need to increase that training regime guys]

[semistableman]

[See this is precisely why Bucky didn't want to rush into things, because holy shit the odds looked bleak before.]

[azumods]

Yes. He...may have a fourth with him, but we have no way to know for sure.

[...Yeah, he doesn't have "a" god, he has all the major players in the pantheon.]

[radiantflame]

...Well, now we know why he doesn't think of us as a threat.

[He could kill them all with a snap of his fingers.]

[enjoymyatelier]

Oh, good. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. I'm really looking forward to this.

[eudaimonikos]

[snrk]

Well, he beat them, and he was just some random human with a bunch of human followers and Pokemon at one point.

[niceoppai]

Beat 'em or tricked 'em. I mean, after all, everyone we've faced could wipe the floor with us so far, and we're still around.

[enjoymyatelier]

Exactly! There's something about that making me think we've got a chance of not dying.