The van halted to a stop. Dust kicked up around the vehicle. Jake looked out the window to see nothing for miles. A desert of sorts. Rocks littered the ground, trees popped up here and there, but it was otherwise barren. In the distance if he really looked, he could see where the forest ended and the desert patch began. He then turned his head a bit to look at the mountain. It was huge. At least 3,000 feet tall. It almost looked artificial, even though that obviously couldn't be the case. The base was wide and there wasn't really much of a peak at the top. It was flat. He looked to Sabastian sitting shotgun to him. In the back, people were cramped. Some people standing, others filling up all of the seats. Obviously not safe, but that's not a need to worry.

"So, uh, we've made it." Jake said slightly optimistically. In his voice you could tell that he was tired. At 3:00 in the morning you wouldn't expect him to be active. He sighed and got out of the car, looking at the tower. It was freezing. There wasn't much snow even though it was the end of November. His hair was slightly messier than usual, which was quite surprising. He grabbed his coffee from the cupholder and took a sip, setting it back down. He wasn't much of a climber, but he saw the entrance to the cave above.

"Ready for some adventure?"

"Mistress Celestia, I'll save you!"

Isabel the Brave mounted her steed, Barnaby, and rode forth in her gleaming armor towards the cartoon tower. This time, she was sure she could save the Princess of the Puppies from the evil-doer, Rott W. Eiler! She lowered her visor and charged, lance thrust in front of her. Only a few more yards, and confrontation was at hand!

*THUMP*

The noise smacked Izzy awake, and she started blinking wildly.
God, what an awful dream, she thought to herself as she looked around, seeing her companions starting to exit the vehicle. She never thought she could get comfortable enough to sleep, being stuck next to Phil the whole ride. No offense to Phil - he was a great guy, and all - just not the best person to sit next to in a cramped van of seven, when he was the largest of them all and she was the smallest. Thankfully, she got the window seat so she could watch the sun set the whole ride, and the stars start to really shine as they got further and further from any kind of civilization. She had done a bit of reading online before they left, about just what they were going to deal with. Really? Thousands of people go in here and come out every year with nothing to show for it, yet there's still supposed to be this HUGE treasure inside? If anything, it'd probably end up a great bonding experience, and they had already sang Bohemian Rhapsody a few too many times along the way.
Jake, of course, led everyone away from the desolate "parking lot" (really just some dirt patch with what looked to be lines for multiple cars) to outside the nearby visitor's building. Maybe she could buy some silly T-shirt with the words "I survived Demon's Mountain" in Indiana Jones font across it and send it home to her little sister, or something. She did miss home a bit, being away for the whole school year.
But now was not the time to feel down! Izzy forced a smile on her face, ready for everyone to gather up and get ready for the hike ahead - she hoped she was, anyway, her hiking boots being the only thing of actual backpacker quality she had on her person. It was time for one hell of a night, either way!

Louise had spent the majority of the drive crammed tightly between the lean figure of Alexander, who honestly scared the bejeebus out of her 80% of the time, and the interior wall of the van. She'd mastered the art of reading in very little personal space - the only trouble was turning the pages when you couldn't move your arms.

Louise was silent for most of the trip, because honestly, she didn't even want to come in the first place; the only reason she did was because Jake had convinced her that it would be great inspiration for the new novel she's been trying to write. She knew better than to complain the whole way, because everybody already knew the Scaredy Cat's feelings: If it's terrifying, she's out. Louise was afraid of everything, save her own shadow; so obviously, if not for her friends, she'd just spend her entire life inside at her desk.

"So, uh, we've made it."

Jake's voice pulled her attention from her book. She glanced up, looking out through the van's windscreen: Rock, rock, and more rock, with a hint of sand. Louise silently sighed as she awkwardly placed her bookmark between the pages before she closed the novel's cover. Jake definitely owed her for dragging her out in the middle of nowhere. She could be reading in front of the fireplace, or better yet, sleeping.

Louise squeezed herself out of the van, knapsack in hand, and the ground crunching under her boots. She approached Jake, stopping just to the side of him. She glanced over to him half-heartedly as he spoke, "Ready for some adventure?". Louise huffed as she stuffed her novel into the main pocket of her bag. "This had better be worth it," she grumbled while she stood up, squirming through the armloops of her bag.

The conditions of their journey were not exactly what Alexander was used to, too man people stuffed into a tiny van. He would have paid for something more.. comfortable, but this rag tag group was the closest he had come to friends and he tried (usually unsuccessfully) to keep extravagant spending to a minimum to not cause trouble with the group. A beautifully leather bound field journal splayed out over his open hand, covered with the elegant script of carefully written notes and diagrams of the flora and fauna spotted along the journey despite the jolts and bumps along the way. When compared to Louise, who seemed to have to hold her breath to turn a page of her book, one could spend an unreasonable amount of time pondering on how such a feat was possible. Such was the way of Alexander however, the environment he found himself in rarely seemed to hinder or disturb his smooth, purposeful movements.

The van came to a jolting stop in the dirt patch someone had unjustly named a parking lot, the others rousing from sleep or other activities. Alexander took a moment to survey his friends, each in varying degrees of useful camping gear and attire. Some had obviously put more thought of funds into their gear than others. Smoothly closing the field journal before sliding it into his satchel, Alexander took a moment to smooth the few wrinkles in the Armani casual suit that had formed as Louise had jostled into him along the journey. He had opted for a vest and tie over a jacket due to the need to climb but even so, he looked out of place in the middle of the dekota wilderness.

"Ready for some adventure?"

Following in Louise's footsteps, he slid from the chair and straightened in the same fluid motion before making his way from the van. The mountain loomed over them, unchanging and unending."Depends on if you require a nap beforehand, Jake", the corner of his lips curled into a smile as he chided Jake.

His eyes were closed but he had been mouthing something.

"What do you see in the dark...When the demons come for you...ba dumdum da dum He was tapping the dashboard of the van to Godsmack's Release the Demons, an ironic thing to listen to all things considering. Of course, they were all in blissful ignorance of what was to come. Then the car lurched forward, shocking Sabastian out of his little zone.

Jesus Jake! Who taught you how to drive dude? He looked over with a grin. He glanced back to the rest with cerulean eyes, his white hair just tempting to fall over them. Anyone dead back there? Who votes for me to drive back, raise your hand. He asked, raising his own. The white haired boy looked out to their destination. It was quite the view, and a bit chilly to boot. But nonetheless he hoped out the car and went to the side, opening the door for everyone in the back, but specifically those two.

"M'ladies...after you!" He held out his hands, offering the two of them one of his own. Someone else had started to move but he spoke up. "Ladies first." Of course, he had been drinking a little bit. His coffee, which was still in the cup holder, had a bit of an Irish kick. Dark roast with 4 Splenda, Bailey's Irish Crème and a shot of Kaluha Coffee Liquor, complements of Wawa.

"So uhhhh...Who's going to race me to the top?

The van finally airing out smoke slowly loomed from the back corner where Milo was playing a old broken Gameboycolor. He yawned and stretched like an old cat watching the other slowly get out. Wearing nothing but jeans he rolled over the front seat and passed the two girls. Milo looked back at Sabastian with a grin speaking "dont mind if i do thank you". As he landed on the pavement with a gleeful smile, Milo looked up at the stars
"what a glorious night" he said cigarette still in his mouth "and this big beautiful thing!"

Milo turned around arms outstretch to the mountain. He then looked at everyone else who was already getting ready for the walk up the mountain.
"shit shit dont forget about me" he yelled as he scurried to the back of the van. Milo pulled a massive rucksack and threw it over his back, it reaked of weed.

He listened to Sabastian say something about a race and folded his arms in a playful pout.
"hell no im going to slowly take my time and eeeenjjoy nature" he said why simultaneously pulling out a joint and lighting it up
He walked past Alexander ruffling his hair as he walked by,
"no naps for you" he glared at alex in a semi serious ton before catching up to Jake.

removed and moved down accordingly

He parked kind of close to the mountain. Suddenly, Jake locked the car and began to walk. "Depends on if you require a nap beforehand, Jake" said Alexander. Jake chuckled and then marveled the mountain for a bit. "We're fairly close, I guess!" He said as he smiled. Listening to Sabastian, he responded "You gonna start visiting a comedy club?" His roasts were good, Jake had to admit. The coffee was definitely working. Digging in his pocket, he pulled out a hip flask of whiskey and drank of it. "I'm not much of a climber, but this looks easy enough.." His voice trailed off as he began walking towards the structure, "Are you guys coming?" he asked jokingly.

The trail was short and cut off at the mountain. It's base was easily 200 feet tall. The entrance to the cave was slightly above. The air was a bit chilly as Jake began to climb, calling out to the others. The jagged rock hit his hand a he climbed up the mountainside. After a while, everybody was at the mouth of the cave. It was about 6' tall and 3' wide. Pitch black, there was no light to lead the way. The cave went on for 20 or so feet until they met a dead end. A fake demon mask hung from the ceiling, staring at the group. "It must be nothing, guys." he said. "We could continue looking or-" his voice cut off. A noise began vibrating through the cave. The front started collapsing. He fell to the ground. It felt like an earthquake, but his entire body was vibrating. The walls. The floor. Everything. It came to a sudden stop. The ground began to crack open. The cave's bottom gave way and opened up, revealing darkness beneath. They fell. They fell at least 10 feet before hitting the ground with a thud. Jake slowly got up. Once he took a groggy, slow step lights filled the room. "Fuck" He quietly said, the wind knocked out of him. Candles were strewn across the walls. The room seemed to stretch on for 30 or so feet before coming to a stop. It stretched out to make a square room that went 30 feet each way. At the far end, there was the outline of a door. On the walls words read beginning on the right wall and continuing all the way onto the left. It read,





It seemed to be in latin, which Jake didn't know. "Does anybody, uh, know latin?" He asked, still groggy from the fall. He should've seemed terrified, but, in all honesty, he was excited. He was in it for the treasure and they may have made the discovery of the century.

He took another step forward. A grating sound rung through the air as 7 medium-sized cylinders popped up in front of the door. On them were 7 artifacts. He was simply stunned. He felt something off. A bad feeling. Nervousness. He still walked up and grabbed it.

The first one out of the few was a gauntlet made out of some sort of metal. He felt like it was his. It was lightweight and small, but it was still a real metal gauntlet. He felt compelled to put it on. He put it upon his arm, the inside being of a leather-like material. He then felt a rush of emotions. A strange feeling ran throughout his entire body. He stood there in silence for a moment, before waiting for the others.

@FallenTrinity@Emuxe@Doc Doctor@Arkaotic@DJRaVeS@Vashonn

"Hey, when can we go back? I'm raring to juke some nerds in Battlefield 1. Awww, I wish that at least once, I could teabag an enemy in real life!"

Without bothering to turn around, Louise instantly retorted, "Phil, please, no one wants you to teabag them."

"Besides anybody you teabag is gonna die of asphyxiation. Probably won't find the body for a week. or so!" Sabastian's remark made Louise have to stifle a snicker. It was mean as hell, but it was good. Though of course, they then proceeded to start bonding over a silly videogame.

She watched up at Milo and Jake already starting their long hike up the mountain. Louise's face fell into a pout - if she was unhappy before, she definitely was now; no-one told her she had to rock climb. "I'm not much of a climber, but this looks easy enough..." It really didn't. Grudgingly, Louise followed after Jake as he called back to them, urging them to hurry up.

Upon reaching the foot of the mountain and staring up at the giant structure, Louise only gave Jake a sideways glance as she grumbled, "I hate you." Of course Jake was the first up. Louise slowly started climbing the mountain, terrified out of her wits.
"Just... don't look down, she assured herself. She hugged close to the mountain as she climbed, rather, crawled up it, her whole body shaking with sheer terror.

Louise was the last to reach the top of the mountain, and had barely set foot on the ground before it started shaking violently. "What's going on?!" she wailed, falling to the ground. And then, before she knew it, she was falling even further. She landed on the second floor with a loud thud and a yelp. As she lifted herself from the ground, dusting herself off with her heavily scraped hands, she looked about the area as it slowly lit up.

"Does anybody, uh, know latin?" Jake asked, perking Louise's interest. She moved faster than she ever had since she first left her house to come on this trip - her thirst for knowledge trumped her fear. Louise followed the words as she read what she could pick up from the old writing;

"I do not want to come again..."
"...so they do not find life..." Louise's brows furrowed. Just where did Jake bring them? What happened here? Louise's mind just filled with questions. Surely the legend of Demon Mountain was false - of course it was. Demons didn't exist, they were just fables.
"I have lost my children, and I have lost. This is the true enemy. If any one is here to read this, Please turn. Please..."

Louise could just stare at the last part of the message. "Uhh, Jake..?" she squeaked, as she looked about the chamber for him; she spied him surrounded by artifacts, his hands just edging closer and closer to one. "Jake, don't-!" He did. He touched one. Of course he touched one. No-one ever listens to warnings.

@Emuxe@Spinosaurus@Doc Doctor@DJRaVeS@Arkaotic@FallenTrinity

Man, she was not ready for this climb. Of course she had to try and dress nice instead of appropriately, wearing her favorite skirt while climbing a mountain. Isabel just knew it'd be better to trail behind, knowing Milo or Phil would probably try something pervy! As she was waiting for everyone to go ahead of her, Alexander seemed to kind of just stand there in a trance. She looked at him, a bit puzzled, and then he turned his head to her, grinning a bit.

"After you, Isabel." The British man motioned for her to lead him, and she was a bit confused. Out of all of them, she had gotten to know him the least. He had this odd air about him, it was so distant and conflicted, like there was always something on his mind. She didn't want to seem rude, and really hoped that he wasn't a pervert, despite his sophisticated demeanor, and went ahead of him, making sure to turn back and look at him every now and again, to see what he was up to. But he always seemed entranced with whatever was going on around him, so she stopped paying him any mind after a while.

At the back, it was so much easier to admire what was around them. From out here, the sky was practically a dark blue bed sheet, littered with holes and a massive light shining through. All those constellations she had studied in astronomy finally showed up, and Isabel could finally figure out why people appreciated all that beauty.

"Hey, when can we go back? I'm raring to juke some nerds in Battlefield 1. Awww, I wish that at least once, I could teabag an enemy in real life!"

"Phil, please, no one wants you to teabag them."

"Besides anybody you teabag is gonna die of asphyxiation. Probably won't find the body for a week. or so!"

This brief interruption in the silence couldn't keep her from bursting out laughing. She really loved these guys, always making sure to listen in on anything they say, knowing that she could get a good laugh from them, especially with Phil involved.

It didn't take long before the climb really started getting messy and rocky - Louise even started to fall behind, struggling herself with the heights. Quietly, Isabel kept in close distance to the scared straggler, always waving for her to come forward, hoping that her silent motivation would help Louise overcome the fear of the situation. Granted, the fear was justified. Isabel kept looking down, as the car itself looked like a little beetle in the sand.

Finally, they all reached the top - but didn't rest long. A great rumbling pierced Isabel's ears, and her whole body started shaking. Suddenly, she dropped. It was a strange feeling - one moment, she was leaning over, gasping for breath, then the next, it was like she was in free fall, and the world turned black. Then, she felt a sort of grasp on the back of her shirt, pulling her further down.

Someone - something, pulling me into darkness!? Isabel panicked a bit, a shriek escaping her lips. But then, WUMP. She landed on something soft, something like a really comfortable mattress. Then she opened her eyes. Not even an inch in front of her was Alexander's face, staring right back at her in the same bit of surprise. Isabel felt a bit confused, then, realizing the situation... her face grew red, almost looking painted like a barn, and she quickly got off of him.

"Sorry about that," Alex mustered, looking a bit embarrassed, himself. Isabel just kept looking ahead, trying to calm down from what just happened. He got up and offered her a hand, which she cautiously took, raising to her feet.

Next time you're invited to go on an adventure, say no, Izzy, she thought to herself.

"Does anybody, uh, know Latin?" Jake's words pierced the air with a bit of worry, and Isabel looked right at the great text ahead of them. To her right, she felt a slight breeze and a figure moved past her with some of the greatest ferocity she had ever seen. In an instant, Louise was all over the text, studying it with an animosity in her eyes.

"I do not want to come again... so they do not find life... I have lost my children, and I have lost. This is the true enemy. If any one is here to read this, please turn. Please..."

Not too long after Louise finished, a scraping was heard. Isabel looked on as great pillars rose from the ground, and odd items - the treasure, maybe? - were revealed.

Jake was already at one of them. Then Phil next. This was all going so fast, so little thought was put into it.

"Uh... G-guys, shouldn't we, uh... Really look into what Louise just read before t-touching these things?"

But it didn't stop them. She looked at everyone, each person attracted to each pillar. Then, there was an urge. It started small, at the back of her head, like an itch, then it grew. And then she was at a pillar. How? She didn't even remember moving from her landing place. But there it was, right in front of her. A sort of golden barrette - it was so large, but beautiful. It's intricacies layered on top of each other, a golden string woven in and out of the actual pin itself, flamboyantly colorful jewels shone along the center of the hairpiece.

She lifted it - wait, why was she doing this? She didn't even think about it, and then, it was in her hair, holding her bangs back. But, for once in her life, it came to her - she felt beautiful. Almost, radiant.
Sexy? The word arose in her mind and she blushed wildly.
Isabel, you never think such things! But it was there. Still present in her mind. It was almost...

Comforting.

.:Alexander Corvus:.

With the gang pulling itself together for the hike up the mountain, Alexander lets his gaze sweep up to the cave mount which held their destination. More than likely they were going to find rocks and more rocks, maybe even some interesting enough to take note of but he had agreed to Jake's enthusiasm about the whole thing and so here he was. At least, he figured, he was far from the reach of his father who had hounded him endlessly to come home and take his place."Phil, please, no one wants you to teabag them", the verbal match about Phil's...colourful humour snapped him from his thoughts for a moment, allowing him to start his trek up to the rock face.

Pausing for a moment to watch the others start their trek up, Alex once again cast his eyes about, allowing them to land on Izzy who had yet to make the trip up. The faint etches of a smile touched his lips as he motioned with a hand for her to head up before him, "After you, Isabel". Alexander could be considered distant and perhaps even condescending at times but you certainly couldn't fault his manners.Lets hope noone falls or you'll be on the bottom, the voice commented needlessly in his head. Alexander considered biting back at it before resolving that talking to himself inside his head would be unproductive at best and lunacy at worst. After smoothing out a few crinkles in his shirt and straightening his tie, Alexander pushed himself up after Izzy and the others, one rock at a time. Whilst he was in no way unfit, Alex hadn't taken rock climbing as a hobby in his life and the strain could be seen uncharacteristically across his face.

After spending the journey upwards looking dead ahead to the rock, despite what he assumed would have been a lovely view above him, he finally clambered up into the mouth of the cave with the others. The demon mask caught his darting glance first, drawing him to retrieve his journal and sketch it out as best he could."We could continue looking or-", Everything rumbled, causing Alex to mess up part of the sketch, a line of ink scrawling off the paper. He managed to catch his balance long enough to stow the journal but was thrown by the shaking once more, falling through the crack forming in the ground.Not Good, The words barely had time to drift through his head as he fell, trying to catch the edge of the broken floor. Sharp pain shot down his arm as his fingers caught the jaggard edge and he knew in that split second he wasn't going to be able to hold on. Once again he fell with nothing else to grab onto..except. Out of nigh on instinctual protocol, Alex managed to get a hold of Izzy on the way down, the only one close enough to him. The hole wasn't deep enough down to seriously hurt anyone but he didn't know that before he hit the ground with the weight of another human being adding to the impact atop him. It was enough to drive the breath from his chest for a moment. Clap...Clap..Clap, the sarcasm of his thoughts rich enough to choke on. It took a few more blinks to regain some level of composure and let go of Isabel, righting himself into a standing position. "Sorry about that", surely given different circumstances he would have been able to come up with something slightly better but given the situation that's all he had as he offered his hand to help izzy up.

Already the others were checking out the carvern they found themselves in, Louise having already roughly translating some latin that jake had found. He spent only a moment looking over it "It's actually probably closer t-", the words died in his throught. Although usually latin would take his attention, but not this time. Before them Lay 7 stone podiums, each adorned with some sort of artifact. Eloise's warning fell on deaf ears as each of them seemed drawn to a pillar. Atop one, was a beatifully crafted noose, or was it a tie? A noose fashioned to be a tie? Before he knew it he was there, running his fingers along it's corded length. He knew not what could have possessed him but before he could think better he was lifting it over his head. "How..Strange", he couldn't tell if he had said it outloud before the the sensation raced over him, things seems sharper in an instant and within the workings of his mind, puzzles he had poured over were solved. He felt the immensity of clarity that washed over him as the noose tightened of it's own accord enough that it wouldn't slip off. Blinking in shock, alex looked around to the others. "...What have we done?", with a mix of awe, concern, bewilderment and other emotions, the words weaved into form a question with implications beyond their knowledge.

Milo, I'm going to start calling you Kelly for now on. Gonna dress you up in pink blouse with nice tan capri- never mind you probably already wear capris ya hot flame you. He laughed as he helped the two ladies out of the van. He began walking before turning back towards fill.

Cartman! Get your fat neckbearded ass up here!" He yelled down to Phil with a wide grin. He turned back to the group before glancing back at Phil.

"Besides anybody you teabag is gonna die of asphyxiation. Probably won't find the body for a week. or so! Sabastian did slow his walking speed to allow Phil to catch up to him before looking at him with a bit of Joy.

Yo I can't wait to play it. On the beta I mostly dealt in sniper or medic class. Shitty thing is, I was the only medic who actually revived anyone. Like, this asshole, ConnorJr101 or whatever was the other medic on the team and I was playing a sniper at the time. Taking out the enemy's snipers one after the other and this guy was next to me when a plane comes in and takes me out and this douchebag stands right next to me and doesn't bother reviving me. I'm practically screaming at him to get me up while he's crouched behind the rock I'm at. YOu know what he does...He stands up and gets hit dead center in the face. Hashtag RageQuit." He nodded to his own story before looking up at the rest of the group.

HEY! Why are we hear again? And did anyone bring anything to drink? Wait....MILO DID YOU GRAB THE WHISKEY OUT OF MY CABINET BEFORE WE LEFT!? He yelled up to the stoner if the smell of sweet Mary Jane coming from the duffle bag.

"So Phil, you a campaign guy or multiplayer?"

---

They had reached the top and Sabastian had flopped down onto the ground, tired and dizzy, thanks to the liquor. He really needed to learn to cut back.

Milo! Seriously though, did you grab the bottle or no-AHHHHHHHHHH!!!! He had been interrupted by the rumbling and caving in of the terra around them. He tumbled before falling onto his back, next to fill. After a moment or so, he stood up, holding his head and glanced over at Phil.

"Phil this is why we tell you to lose weight. Natural catastrophes can and will happen." After he stood up and brushed himself off, he looked over at Jake, who was eyeing up-

"Hey Jack don- Nevermind..." He simply shook his head and scanned around, making sure everyone was alright before looking upwards to see if there was a way out. Minutes went by and he shook his head, murmuring fuck. Then the pillars rose up from the ground, just after Louise finished reading the text on them? Confusion and caution etched its way onto his face as he eyed the artifacts, rods, bracelets, and other random assorted items were all on display. But a flicker of light out of the corner of his peripherals caught his attention. An elegant looking pendant made of onyx looking material with silver adding embellishment.

Child of Prrrroophecyyyyy...Filium Iraaaaaaaaaam

His eyes widened and he spun around, the voice echoed through the hole they were in. It was deep, guttural and...inhuman.

"Di-Did you guys hear that?" But nigh, they could not, only he could hear it. Then he felt it. The ever growing urge to face the necklace. His eyes glued to it. He stared at it as the twinkle in his eyes grew and the glaze continued to cross the field of vision. Curiosity, caution, fear and serenity all rolled into one unnamable emotion. He took a step forward, then another and another, his arms slowly reaching up and out to remove the glass that separated him from this object of unknown origin. He felt encouraged, no, obligated to wear it. It felt like a missing piece of him, a missing piece of the puzzle to his life. He did not know why he did, but he had to. He removed the necklace from the stand and unclipped its silver hinges. He noticed that he no longer had control. His hands went behind his neck, clipped the necklace together and with that...He collapsed to the ground.

---

---

He awoke at the end of a dimly lit hallway, an odd symbol on an old and torn banner hung there, Ira carved into the stone beneath it. He was confused, a slightly frightened. As he stood he heard a terrible, inhuman roar from behind the corner. His eyes shot wide. But despite that, he stood, slowly walking towards the corner, peering around it to see a long staircase that lead down to an opening. Once again, compelled to move forward. Each step echoed around him as he travelled down, down, down to the abyss below. The opening to the place was large and dimly lit around the circular room.

Step closer child... The voice he heard... He shook his head and turned to run when three, giant red eyes pierced the darkness, aimed at Sabastian. But the entrance he entered was gone, now solid stone. A low guttural growl was heard as intense heat hit his back and then it hit him like a freight train.



Before him, a massive fiery beast, six mighty arms connected to its body, flames poured from its mouth like the falls of Niagra, spilling and splashing onto the floor with no control. Its body seemed hollow as fire could be seen from within and all Sabastian could do is silently scream.

"Sabastian...Many a millennia I have waited. Many a millennia I have been here, chained and caged like an animal. Agonizing and praying for freedom that fell upon deaf ears and scornful eyes. But you my dear boy, have changed the tides a bit."

He went to speak.

"You, a mere mortal, one of the Father's glorious creations have granted me reprisal." He shook his head.

"Wha-Wha-Wha-What d-do you m-ean." he stumbled over his own words.

"Only a mortal who is opposite of me can set me free and my dear boy-" Chain links, the size of those that hold the biggest ships in place, that were placed around his arms and feet started to bend and scream with failing tension.

"I....Am.....Freeeeeeee" The white haired boy began to visably shake, not knowing what to do.

"What are yo-"

But I am not... He looked around before looking down at the boy with what could be vaguely made out to a grin as a massive hand grabbed him from the ground and lifted him into the air, just in front of the demon's face.

"I have awaited this moment for a long time human...and I will not wait another moment again..." And with that the great beast opened its flaming maw, casting Sebastian into its mouth and swallowed him whole.

Slowly your soul will become one with mine while you remain in the firey abyss of me. And when it does, I will truly become free... Sabastian's screams echoed through the isolated chamber as the remaining shackles bend and gave way. Now, it stood tall, and with purpose.

You shall reap what you have sewn, Lucifer. You feared what I was capable of. You feared true sin and now I will show you why you were justified in sealing me so...

---

---

Outside of his subconscious, he remained still and limp, his eyes half opened and glazed over, his pupils slowly working their ways to the ends of his eyes. It was free, it held anger, it was Wrath.

[hider=My Hider]
Milo's face started a sly grin as he listened to Sebastian go on. "Milo, I'm going to start calling you Kelly for now on. Gonna dress you up in pink blouse with nice tan capri- never mind you probably already wear capris ya hot flame you".
"oh you would like that wouldnt you, pretty boy like you has a deep seceret trap and tranny fetish. He let out a laugh and then took a long drag on his joint. "and there is nothing wrong with campris they are stylish and cute"
Milo turned around looking at the gaggle of people that fallowed. "wow look at this group of misfits, Phil has some weird friends" milo thought to himself as he fallowed the rest into the cave.

"HEY! Why are we hear again? And did anyone bring anything to drink? Wait....MILO DID YOU GRAB THE WHISKEY OUT OF MY CABINET BEFORE WE LEFT!?" Sabastian yelled at him from the pack of the pack. He waited for Sabastain to catch up before he grabbed the bottle. But before he could hand it to him he was already ahead of him yelling again.

"Milo! Seriously though, did you grab the bottle or no-AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"
He whipped his arm around and hit it firmly into his chest with bottle in hand, [color=1b1464]"ofcourse you casual..." he looked at the other who seemed distraught as the cavern rumbled and the floor gave wayy.

The wails of the falling group echoed through the cave. Milo landed square on his ass, with a great moan he rolled over and rived in pain for a bit.
"Jesus fucken christ my ass.... i think i broke it" he listened as everyone started talking once more. Jake already grabbing things from the room.
"Hey Jack don- Nevermind..."

"Hey, is that treasure!? Shit, man, where's my share? Whoah..."
Milo's ears perked up almost making his pain go away. "treasure!?" he exclaimed as he fumbled for a lighter./ As he sparked it the first thing he saw was Sabastains Drunk face who looked uneasy.

As Sabastain got up and helped everyone Milo slowly got up and started walking toward the podiums. The light front his lightr flickered on one item and reflected a gold tint. "holy shit gold!" he ran over and grabbed it quickly shouting "MINE!". He slowly looked back at the others hoarding his findings like a greedy child. Without thinking about it he cleaned it off and put it on.

@FallenTrinity

Louise watched in horror as she watched all her friends blatantly ignore her warning; except of course Izzy, who Louise knew would heed her warning. "Uh... G-guys, shouldn't we, uh... Really look into what Louise just read before t-touching these things?" she'd said, right before she herself got entranced by whatever was in the clearing; Louise herself couldn't see past everybody else to even know what they were looking at.

"Guys, don't touch anything, this is bad!" she tried to warn as she approached them, she again, was talking to a figurative brick wall. They didn't even flinch to her word, which made Louise's brow furrow in concern. Maybe the stories were true, she wondered, or maybe Milo just spiked everybody's breakfast. All of a sudden, Sebastian had collapsed to the ground. And no-one even flinched. "Jesus!" she shrieked as she rushed to his side, kneeling beside him. "Sebastian, wake up!" she pleaded as she gently slapped his cheeks to try to bring him back into consciousness.

And yet, no-one even noticed what was happening. "Guys, why won't you do anyth-?!" As soon as Louise lifted her head to shout at the group, her eye caught a glint on the final empty pillar. And all of a sudden, she didn't care about anything other than the shiny object. Completely forgetting about Sebastian, she rose to her feet, stepped over the unconscious body of her friend, and approached the pillar, all while not breaking eye contact with the glint.

Upon reaching the pillar, she finally discovered that the source of the shine that fixated her was a gold bracelet, adorned with diamond and opal. Louise couldn't even try to stop herself from reaching toward the bracelet. And before she could even touch a fingertip to it, something extraordinary happened: The bracelet had lifted itself off the pillar, duplicated itself, and latched around her wrists in such a quick instance, it was if it needed her.

The moment that the gold had touched her skin, Louise was overflown with an insatiable hunger. She felt weak, as if she hadn't eaten in weeks, although she knew that she ate this morning. Louise's legs shook, and she collapsed to the ground. Am I dying? Are these sucking my life out of me? she wondered, her head spinning. She needed nutrients, before she'd black out. In the corner of her eye, she noticed a hanging bat that seemed to just watch her and her friends.

Now normally, Louise, who was afraid of everything, would've screamed and tried to get as much distance between them as she could. However, Louise couldn't help but stare at it for a while, stomach howling and mouth drooling. All she needed was food, but she wasn't interested in any of the food she had in her bag, and she supposed that she was above eating her friends.

It was as if she was overcome by adrenaline, Louise leapt to her feet, reaching up for the bat like a starving cat. She didn't know if she either jumped very high or if her body stretched really far (it was the latter), but before she know it, there she was crouched on the ground, wriggling bat in hand. Her mouth drooled as she watched it for a minute, trying to escape her grip. All of a sudden, she threw it into her mouth which, disturbingly enough, stretched around the bat and she ate it whole.

And just like that, she felt instantly better. She rose to her feet, an astonished look on her face, unable to believe what just happened. "Did... Did I just eat a bat, or did I just imagine that?"

Jake eyed the gauntlet, barely noticing anything else. Anybody talking to him or events going on were completely tuned out. Looking at his left hand, another one appeared. On each hand he had one. He slowly took his eyes off of them to look at Phil and Louise. "Uh.. are there two of you?" he asked. Louise was crouched down on the ground and Phil was looking kind of confused. Then he turned his head to notice Sabastian lying down having a moment. "Dude! W-what happened!?" he yelled as he ran down to his side. "it's gettin' weird.." he mumbled to himself. The room shook slightly again and Jake lunged forward, with that movement a large crack opened up in the ground. Not wide enough for anyone or anything to fall in, but wide enough for there to be a noticeable gap.

The room shook again. And again. At random intervals it would just begin. Until something happened. Just then, the door at the front began to open. Mist filled the room. It was almost like water vapor but not quite. A bit like smoke, but it didn't seem like that either. Fog? No. There was no other substance to compare it to. with a large hissss the door opened. A slight whisper could be heard but that's it. It was open.

Looking into the door, it was a solid color. It obviously had depth, but it was a smoky reddish pink-sort of color. A few clouds floated by. There was no way to go but through the door. Jake was terrified. "G-g-guys... this isn't.. uh.. this isn't normal. First we're all doing weird things, and then this opens. F-fuck man. I just can't fuck- I just can't do- I just can't do this." He wasn't one to be scared easily, but this put him on edge. Until something kicked in to his brain. He was terrified, but his face looked more like anger. The room shook again. Then once more. With that, it began cracking open and crumbling, Rocks poured down from the ceiling. Sandstone. Whatever. He ran through the door with the group and they fell until hitting a sort of dirt.


Image from DOOM 2016. (Great game by the way, I recommend it to anyone).

Jake landed on his legs and fist with a thud. The ground cracked beneath him. He wasn't so terrified anymore. He felt powerful. Like he had so much potential that he couldn't reach. That fed the fire that was his anger. Suddenly, hordes of unintelligent, animalistic demon beings began charging at them. He ran into the horde killing several of them. Terrifying beasts. A shocking demon ran at him and charged. It almost knocked Jake over. Jake punched him. The demon fell back. Jake then ran into him and shot him over the edge like a bullet. Hundreds more were still left.

"Is.... this hell? He asked blankly. One word still ran through his mind which he was.

Terrified.

@FallenTrinity@Emuxe@Doc Doctor@Arkaotic@DJRaVeS@Vashonn

Isabel Velton

@Spinosaurus@FallenTrinity@DJRaVeS@Arkaotic@Doc Doctor@Emuxe

It took a moment and a wild shaking of her head before she actually paid any mind to what was happening around her. She heard yelling, she felt shaking, and then she was running. What was going on?

She thought hard, and the memories flooded her mind - it was like living two different things at the same time. She could vividly place herself where she was when she grabbed the barrette. Then, yelling? Wait, why was Sabastian on the floor? She started walking over to him and leaned over, but she didn't feel worry. She placed her hand on his shoulder, shook him a bit - she felt him start to gain consciousness - then he was upright.

Why are these feelings so... distant? Where did time go all of a sudden? She couldn't help but feel exhausted as all of a sudden, she was physically falling. There was a redness around her, and she saw everyone else falling along with her. When did she stop running?

Then, she went back to the past. It was such a surreal experience - she was hopping in and out of two different times, neither one seeming coherent. And she kept hearing this voice in the back of her mind - You're so perfect... You're so beautiful...

She remembered Jake saying something - what she heard was scattered, broken, scrambled.

"Guys--isn't--we're all--I just can't--" Everyone had this scared expression on their face. They all kept looking like a ghost to her. She looked back to Jake - she saw anger in his eyes. She glanced at Sabastian. She saw hatred. Then more shaking overtook her, and she was running.

Then, through a doorway. Free falling. Was this the present, now? She couldn't piece it together. Still, the voice persisted,

How lovely... How delicate...

Then they landed. But it wasn't like before, not like when they fell into the cave. She felt an ease, a grace beneath her feet. She felt the rock and sand, deep red in color, turn into jelly. She felt the earth soften and thicken, and harden again when she had placed both feet on the ground. It was like it knew to change and prepare for her impact, loosen for her landing.

Then there was a sea of black and red among the sand and rock - moving swiftly, closer and closer to them. Then she woke up.

"Oh - oh my God!!" She shrieked - were these demons?? She saw hundreds of the disgusting beasts surround them from all sides. She heard a destruction to her left and turned to see Jake pummel several into the ground. Fear struck her, turning her pale, and time seemed to slow around her. Then the voice was back.

Careful, precious - you're too important to freeze on us. She felt a shaking, and her left arm was lifted. She looked down at her hand, watching as her fingers bent and cracked around. Suddenly, the ground directly in front of her exploded and rained rubble, and the rubble turned into a rain. The demons who ran beneath it shrieked and screeched, their flesh practically falling from their skeletons. Isabel couldn't help but watch - no matter how hard she tried to turn her head, avert her gaze, she couldn't seem to get her muscles to work for her, like they were locked in place.

"Is this hell?" Jake asked aloud. The question was almost rhetorical in tone. Isabel kept pressing against her own muscles with her mind, trying so hard to move the way she wanted to. Finally, her body was released, and she fell backwards, all of her energy that she used to move, bursting out at once, forcing her to the ground.

You understand, don't you? I couldn't just let you die. So I took control. Then, she felt a pain well up in her gut. The kind that turns your body in on itself, forces your legs close to your chest.

"Who the hell are you!?" She screamed aloud, scared beyond her wits. She felt like she was possessed - she balled up and clasped her hands behind her head, tears starting to roll from her eyes. She didn't know if she could take it anymore, this small instance was just too much. She just wanted someone to come to her rescue, but she knew that this fight - the one in her head - made her feel more alone than she had ever been.

He was fighting. Ripping arms off of demons. He pulled the head off of one which had an exoskeleton. He bounded. Stepping on the ground, a small earthquake began, pulling some demons into their fiery death. A voice began to speak to him. Encouraging him.

"Do you even know who I am? What I'm capable of?"
Jake had too much adrenaline in his system to worry or care about the voice. Before he could answer, it's as if it could read his mind.

"Of course not. You're powerful. Too much to even comprehend. What you're doing right now would take an entire mortal army to even scare them off."

"Huh? FUCK-" He was cut off as a demon grabbed his gauntlet and attempted to pull it off, almost ripping his arm out of it's socket in the process. "I will speak with you again. We have much.. er.. business... to discuss." The voice growled.
Reality began to set in for Jake. He communicated with a random voice. He was fighting strange beings. He was in a strange land. And, worst of all, there was no way to go home. He began to slow down. His eyes watered quite a bit, but he managed to choke back tears. It began to reverse, though. This began to fuel his adrenaline. It made him feel stronger. Grabbing a demon, he ripped it's jaws apart. He twisted another's arm completely around, and, with a kick that could crush bone, it's pelvis nearly turned into dust. He knocked a large bone off of the ledge. Several more jumped at him. He pushed them off. He charged into one and completely smothered it.

There's hell to pay.