Orpheus had only a moment to consider Nera’s words before moved on and eventually was dancing stunningly in front of the group. Of one thing he was certain. He didn't want to watch the ones he cared about die anymore. He didn't want to lose anything else close to him again. He glanced around the room looking at his new companions, realizing some of them may grow into an issue. He didn't care. As far as he could see he was fairly likely to be the peacekeeper of this group, whether he liked to or not. He didn't mind the task.

He watched as his essence surrounded him. A crisp white except for the stain of a blood red coating it's center. Yet just as quickly as it had appeared it was gone.

Suddenly something pierced his chest and he was filled with an undeniable sense of peace. Orpheus could feel the strings that held together the universe humming in a beautiful song as if being plucked like a harp. He felt a strong connection to everything, the strongest being to the ones in this very room. He'd never felt such awesome harmony in all his existence. At least he didn't think he had.

He slowly opened his eyes and felt a terrifying presence behind him turning quickly he found a huge blade laying there. It was of a uniform width and quite large and he struggled as he picked it up, just missing being beheaded as the petite girl nearly took his head off. That had to be some astonishing luck. As he brought the sword forward it's seemingly white surface seemed to morph into black flames, casting a blue aura around it. Looking down at the hilt he saw it was coated in leopard skin and at the end was a silver leopard head. It's eyes moved surveying it's surroundings as it yawned looking unamused.

As he glanced over he watched the girl fall into the abyss that lay in front of her and walked towards it. He turned quickly to address the rest of them. “Into the unknown we go, eh?” He said bowing low towards them and smiling, then turning to Nera. ”I imagine I shall see you very soon. You will let me know if I'm needed in between then?” He gave her a wink and a bow and turned around and dived into the darkness.

Into the unknown indeed. He thought to himself as he plummeted.

As always Solomon listened intently to the Goddess's words, trying to understand more about her. Her personality seemed to jump about like a demented rabbit and he simply couldn't understand her. She explained how she'd marked them with this stigma and a flash of energy surfaced within, revealing the same white that his wisp form had been made of, but now there was just a dash of an ugly purple, the color of a bruise. Somehow Solomon knew it had been brought by accepting his past. An ugly color for an ugly past. Did he even deserve a second chance at life like this?

Well it didn't matter what he deserved. Solomon was alive again and this time his life wouldn't have such inconsequential results. Nera took out her blade again and Solomon was afraid she'd reveal her terrifying self again and perhaps go even further, but no such thing happened. A sword-dance of sorts, until the blade suddenly raced towards one of them. Solomon almost moved to help before he realized a blade was pointed at his own chest as well. A single gesture from Nera and it raced through his body. Though Solomon had prepared himself for piercing pain, instead the blade seemed to suck everything away, leaving him in an empty void. No feelings, like he was floating in an empty world. It scared him.

It left him only to be replaced with the intense feeling of condemnation from behind him. Solomon turned to see a recurve bow laying on the ground. It was nearly as big as he was, oozing with some black substance that obscured most of it's appearance. It was alive. He could feel it staring at him, condemning him for the same actions that caused the guilt that he felt. Out of some strange sort of instinct Solomon raised his hand and the bow flew towards him, landing in his hand and latching onto it at the middle. He felt a mouth close over his hand, teeth gripping his wrist threateningly. It was heavy, the massive bow pulled down at his arm, though not as much as it perhaps should

Nera explained they were their sins, nightmares, and forgotten pain. "Explains why it's so big." The goddess also explained that this was all she could help them with, though they may always return here. Solomon was examining his weapon when his arm jerked upwards, causing the blade the had been coming for his neck to be deflected by his bow; drawing his attention to the fact that the limbs were bladed beneath the seething darkness. The teeth tightened briefly on his wrist, drawing a bit of blood as though reprimanding him before retreating to their normal firmness. Solomon watched the girl with the blade that had nearly decapitated him spiral off the edge before returning his attention to his weapon. "So you do care." He pinned down the feeling he got from the weapon. A predator. A wolf. Watching and waiting patiently. Condemning him for weakness. Solomon tightened his hand on the grip, as though it would help him firm his resolve.

"A cowards weapon. Fitting enough in it's own way." He said softly. The weapon didn't deign to respond. With a bow you could kill someone without even seeing their face. It made it easy. Of course Solomon hadn't had that luxury, those he'd killed and had seen killed were people he'd known. Yet the killing had been all too easy. Three over the edge already. Solomon walked forward. "Thank you for your help Goddess, I'll be sure to return." With that last statement he stepped over the edge and closed his eyes.

As he stepped off it occurred to him he was rather afraid of heights.

Its descent finally stopped as it landed on something solid, albeit slightly disgusting. Something began to soak through its robes and it felt some sort of sludge as it reached out and dragged a finger across the surface. Still… Ihosha didn’t dare look up even as its third eye swiveled and moved around, apparently curious to look at its new surroundings. It was a pretty big mistake to live with so quickly after leaving the Goddess’ protection, but Ihosha tried to focus on the budding curiosity and excitement it felt instead. Push past the disgust at being forced to take on a portion of that eldritch being and the bubbling fear of what might happen from now own.

If it wanted to give even a fraction of its power, then Ihosha would find a way to make that its own. Or wind up mutated and twisted, controlled, dead, or any number of other possibilities it supposed. Maybe Nera would even kill one of her beloved for bringing a fraction of a nightmare into her realm? Giggling softly as its thoughts ran wild for a moment, Ihosha finally slowly looked up and noted that it saw remarkably clear for how dimly lit the area should be. The fading lights might as well have been bright sunlight for all they mattered to it. The pair of red glows looked around in sync while the purple above flicked about on its own accord, making for a rather strange sight.

If there was another good point about its little look into the Nightmare Realm, it'd be that the sense of terror was that much harder to feel now. It might have felt a bit uneasy looking around at this dilapidated ruin before, but now it was just dreary instead. Ihosha stood slowly, leaning on the staff called to its hands, before it looked down at its robes and sighed. Stained by the general waste and refuse that littered the place, and they hadn't even begun to explore! Well, hopefully the others were quick to arrive.

She slammed into the real world, hitting the floor of the old shrine with a dull thud, but no worse for wear despite having just traveled through the realm of nightmares. Her sword clattered to the ground next to her as they hit the muck and grime of the real world. For a few seconds she simply laid there, processing all the delicious little tidbits of information she had gleaned from that trip. She had learned so much from that one little venture, hadn't she? Oh it was just so delicious she wanted more! It was only an appetizer, and it wasn't enough. She wanted an entire feast, not just this tiny portion.

Next time...she'd tell them there was nothing to be afraid of. She'd need to find a way to communicate clearly.

Ah...

"Heh..." Oh, had she laughed? That was a laugh, wasn't it? She ran a hand through the muck, pushing herself up as she continued to laugh lowly to herself. Oh that was grand. So grand, so delicious, so exciting. She couldn't help but to laugh a little louder. From anyone looking at her it might look as if she had lost it completely. She pushed herself up, glancing over to where her sword was laying.

And in the recess of the shadows in the far corner of the room...something moved. Her eyes widened, scrambling to a sitting position and watching the shadows intently for a few seconds.

...heh, it was just her imagination, obviously. Or was it? She couldn't decide. Pushing herself to her feet with a final laugh, Isabella wiped some muck off of her face and straightened out her robes.

"Well...that was...fun~" She giggled again. "I should probably work on not tripping and falling into a pit of horrors." She reached down, picking up her sword, studying the blade intently again...did the eyes move again? Hm, no matter. With a small hum, Isabella looked around the dilapidated room more clearly. It was definitely old and large...and she could see fairly well within it, couldn't she? Odd, for the amount of light present.

"Ah...my beautiful robes. Well, that is the price of learning...one has to get a little dirty, in the process." She smiled, falling silent as she became aware of someone else in the room. Ihosha was their name, yes? She couldn't really recall. She hadn't filed it under important information. Well, whatever the case Isabella turned her eyes back to the room instead of their cloaked companion.

Nothing interesting to learn from them.

...Huh, familiar. It looked almost identical to the one they had been in previously.

Well, she'd just assume various magical shenanigans she couldn't explain for now. She tried to listen for anything, but for the most part heard nothing. It was silent...which was creepier than the Nightmare Realm to Isabella. Hmm...so what should they do here? Isabella turned her head towards Ihosha, giving her a passive, neutral almost cold seeming expression before turning her head back towards one of the many diverging hallways.

Since the others had yet to arrive for the moment, might as well take a cursory examination of one of them. She walked, her boots making odd noises upon the floor as she walked through the muck and came to a halt at the entrance to one of the many hallways seeing if she could see anything at the end of it.

@kagethekiller@Eklispe ... and to all those who are posting after this.

Whether you stepped down the pristine steps and entered the abyss laying at the bottom normally, or dived from the top into the center in a showmanship of bravery or foolishness...

You were swallowed.

Not figuratively either, as it felt like they were being squeezed through a slimy esophagus. You would sink and drown as the darkness consumed you, yanked into the very depths of an ocean incomprehensible in size. Those with 'sin' would find the weapons latched to them acting like anchors, dragging them even more violently through the blackness. You would be unable to properly move as you fell further and further from the glimmering light above, left with only a flimsy 'charm' to spare you from the absolute horrors. The Nightmare felt vast and empty, yet teeming and congested at the same. Voices can be heard calling to those passing through, screaming profanities, sobbing confessions, and utterances of dark secrets in a loop that played in perennial. As though the nightmare they had come from never ceased. But the presences, the eyes that lurked beyond gazed upon you with hatred, with utter disgust. But also of fear. They would not dare touch you, though they swam and stalked from the black nether, circling and bobbing like a frenzy of sharks around a fresh cage. Among the voices were garbles and bizarre gurgling utterances, the void shuddering like gigantic pulsing waves. These were the most maddened thoughts pertaining this asylum of monsters, reaching you from the far-flung, but unable to grasp upon your little soul. If you listened to the Goddess, you would be spared this horrifying experience, bearing the nightmare and waking up thinking just that.

"It was only a nightmare..."

But those who chose to look out, lured by fear or curiosity, were met with something far darker. These muted experiences belong only to them, and to those unfortunate enough to hear their stories.

...


You awaken, among those already recovered and those who have not, feeling an aching pain and the terrible 'nightmare' you had been left with. Your quickly find your weaponized 'sin' still connected to you. The grotesque forms were stood upright in the murky cobblestone beside their sleeping owners, almost as though they had been waiting.

A familiar sight welcomes you, though it was rather difficult to pertain for sure. The grand Atrium that you had just departed, or rather, what remains of it, surrounds you once again on all sides. The stark and foreboding red glow from the dying star was gone, but it was up for debate whether this brooding atmosphere was any better. The interior has long aged and become worn over what appears to be whole ages, many of the etchings and artsmanship completely lost now to overgrown moss and grime. Numerous stones in the walls have fallen out, and even more pillars have cracked and fallen, leaving you a cautious feeling of the integrity of it all. Waste litters the floor, swamping the once-cozy furnishings. A thin layer of murky slime runs among it all, filled with debris of old books and tombs, the pages and covers long deteriorated and rotten. The ends of the massive chamber spreads far out into the dimness, leading to a great many passages, as they also did in the 'Dream'. Though many of them are now crumbled and lost, closed away forever. There appears to be only about four that were currently accessible, out of the dozen, each pointing to a cardinal direction. There was actually a fifth, in fact, but slipping though the crack at the bottom of the rubble would require some effort. There were a few faint lights at the ends of the North and South ends, probably providing you with the dim vision to make all of these observations in the first place.

About the only major difference than this place from what it appeared in the 'Dream' was the stairway you find yourselves scattered around, eerily dissimilar to the one you descended. This time, the ornate frame wound upwards, not down. Though much like the ruins, it too has fallen into disarray. The steps, from those that remained, and guided railings pierce into the ceiling, which slopes into a point many times above you, leading into an unknown lost to the dim lights.

If what the Goddess said was true, this was what the 'Dream' was derived from, but so much has changed that what now lay beyond was a mystery. Not that you had much chance to see much of the previous version anyway.

You are left in the darkness now, the only sounds being the voices of your companions hushed muttering, and the quiet stirring of those yet to wake. What do you do?

...

“An outfit…” Aiv’s bared teeth transitioned more fully into a smile. “Not everyone has a set of clothes that becomes part of their soul, Goddess.”

After all, though there was the sense that his nudity was something that should be swiftly rectified, there was also a sense that told the white-haired youth that there was nothing in particular to be embarrassed about. Humans were born naked, after all, and clothing served more for comfort and protection than anything else. Strange, the thoughts that boiled in his mind now, as the goddess placed her claws against his neck. Once again, Aiv forced his gaze to remain level, burning in every detail of her eyes into his mind, trying to see through her pupils into the divine mind-vessel. His heartbeat, something so alien and nostalgic, drummed into his ears, but…that was all.

She pulled her arm away, dust spilling between her hands, before a white robe settled over his body. White. A bad color for individuals who would be stained in blood sooner or later. Black would have been preferable. A black, coarse material, as opposed to this almost weightless garment.

Nevertheless, Aiv nodded. “You have my gratitude, Nera. I find it a shame as well, that you would find it necessary to hide your own beautiful body. We wisps may be more inclined towards exhibitionism if our patron were to lead by example.”

Whatever response such an audacious statement may have garnered though was torn away by the aggression of one wisp that had stayed quiet the entire time. Aiv blinked at the exchange, for once bearing witness to the cold anger that Nera held within. Not the façade of a foul monster, but a more…human anger. Dark emotions and vicious words, instead of merely obliteration. Green eyes slid over to the blot of blood on the floor.

“So that’s the threshold,” he muttered, before vaguely listening to the cumbersome explanations of what had just occurred. A Stigma that served as an anchor to this dreamland, a conduit for their souls. Timed to those words, Aiv saw it within himself once more, a scar forming over the purity, a creamy yellow. Was that his soul then? A speck of color on a blank canvas? What sort of painting would be made as he recalled more of himself? The white haired youth shook his head, casting aside such philosophical thoughts. Their mission, his mission, had to be prioritized now, and his emerald eyes widened as Nera performed her sword dance, all grace and music, a gentle cadence that picked up. Others were captivated, engrossed by the display, but his own eyes burned the basic motions into his brain. For all the fragments of memories in his mind, nothing told him how to fight, so a dance would have to be the foundation.

Her feet slid against the ground, silent despite how they should have rasped against the stone floor. The edge of the blade remained aligned to the direction of her swing, even as the silver sword curved. Her shoulders remained lax despite her swift movements, and a noticeable amount of control was evident with every movement.

Even when the sword flew out of her grasp, flying right towards him, Aiv felt no danger at all. If he died, the Goddess had wasted her eternity. If he lived, it was obviously just another part of the performance. And so, it was.

The silvered shard pierced into his body, into the lump of black that resided within him.

And, for an instant, Aiv became a wisp once more, even the imprints of his past life stripped away as a transient eternity passed, the shard pushing out of his core as it took a taste of his sins.

He placed a calloused hand against his chest, before taking a long, deep breath. Steeling the resolve. Ascertaining the contents’ wholeness. The names still escaped him, and no new images came up. Status quo was maintained, even after the essence of the Goddess did its survey of his sins. Even without seeing it, Aiv felt tendrils lick his back, his neck, black slime pulling itself towards him. His green eyes darted around to the others. A massive claymore. A great bow. All archaic weapons. Recognizable.

It wouldn’t be that bad.

So he turned, and was greeted with a squirming, black mass that stood taller than himself. Too short for a polearm, too thick for a staff. Too dull for a blade, too evenly-balanced for a mace. Just a…cylinder. Dark vapours coiled around his right arm, sinking into his skin, anchoring itself to the blood in his veins. A lifelong companion now, this cumbersome pillar of corruption.

“What a shitty partner,” Aiv smiled, right as the segmented blades of Isabelle’s weapon flew into the side of the black pillar.

He blinked. Narrowed his eyes. And then couldn’t help but laugh as the ditzy red-haired psychobitch fell into the abyss, soon followed by the scarred one with the strange eye. Horrifying screams followed both as the Dreamreaper finished her explanation on the dimensions they’d be traversing through. A nightmare realm, filling with horrible figments of a dead world’s imagination, serving both as guardians and as monsters to the realm of the Goddess of Dreams.

“Well,” he said, with a nod, “Next time I visit, let’s play, Nera.”

More plunged into the abyss, and Aiv soon strode down the staircase as well. The maw of the abyss, the possibility of death, the knowledge of plunging into nightmare-tar, none of those thoughts held him back as he walked in. No, ultimately, there was only one.

Yup. Definitely felt like human sacrifice.

---

God, what a horrible sensation.

Aiv’s eyes snapped open, seething with a hatred and disgust that dissipated as they took in the new surroundings around him. He clenched his fists, worked his jaw, and jumped up on his feet, white robes stained by the slime. The once comfortable fabric now clung to his skin, but he was happy enough just to be able to move once more. A fear so great that it suppressed his movements was acceptable, but being unable to move due to some strange law upon the reality that he had been shoved into? Now that was absolutely irredeemable. Others around him were coming to, but what stood out to him the most was the man-sized cylinder that continued to follow him like a shadow. One step to the side caused it to soundlessly shift. So it would move in accordance to his own even if he didn’t carry it, huh?

Convenient. Much more so than what he had in the…

Another half-thought formed and disappeared. Another irritated click of his tongue.

Turning his attention to the dilapidated mirror of Nera’s own realm, Aiv found no old bones in the dimly lit room. Her worshippers, it appeared, were either eaten whole or fully converted into monsters by the world’s sickness. Fair enough. Eyes closed, his ears failed to pick anything up in the distance as well, no whimpers of agony or hisses of hatred trailing from the broken down passageways that were before them. And the stench of mold and decay masked any blood that could have guided in by a stagnant wind.

So it’d be walking after all. Two lights from two passageways, while the others remained unilluminated. And yet, there was a shadow there, obscuring one with her slim frame.

Walking up behind the fanged woman, Aiv peeked past her from the side, before saying, “For someone so eager to explore, you’re strangely cautious.”

A pause, and then a grin.

“Got second thoughts after diving down the hellhole, kid?”

---

Dwyn opened her eyes, trying to put the nightmarish visions behind her. After all, they were little more than dreams. Allowing them to trouble her was unnecessary, considering how much she had on her mind already. Though the dull ache that seemed to run over every inch of her skin certainly felt like more than a simple trick of the imagination. Outright unpleasant, in fact.

For a second, she wondered if it had been more than just a nightmare. But such creeping doubts were again only a hindrance to their mission. The frustration she felt with herself was certainly familiar, though it remained unconnected to any particular memories for the moment.

She stood, caring little about the grime and dirt on her clothes as she took hold of the black halberd once more. It seemed unlikely that she would be able to leave it behind, and there was every chance that this world would be hostile and unforgiving. Creatures of chaos, lawbreakers, monsters... They could lurk around every corner. Perhaps finding those who trained her would help, but she didn't know where to start.

Right now, she took in her surroundings, glancing around the room with slight shock crossing her expression. Yes, it was the same one that they had been lead to before, though obviously not quite the same. It seemed that some of her companions were here too, which Dwyn had mixed feelings about. They hadn't exactly come off as the most competent sorts so far, at least in her opinion.

In particular, the two who'd already began wandering off were concerning. Both in terms of attitude, and the fact that they were wandering off before all of their companions were even present. And the one with the extra eye was odd, but at least not doing anything that worried her. For now, she decided it would be best to wait until they were all present, though it was obvious that she was keeping an eye on the pair by the doorway in case they decided to go any further. Not hostile, just concerned for the quest's sake. It wouldn't do for their group to be split up so early.

It seemed that his words and actions managed to really get under her skin judging from the reaction. He refrained from making anymore barbed remarks. Although he said the result of failing in the quest or being smote on the ground he stood was the same, he wasn’t in a hurry to be killed off. His curiosity was piqued with the desire to know what’s going on with the world and himself. Standing quiet, he listened to Nera explain more things and then grant weaponry to them. There was a certain morbid curious to see how his own burdens would manifest itself, since these blackened weapons were said to their sins.

He approached it tentatively and saw that its form was that of an anchor with a cable of some length attached to it. A wry smile formed on his face followed by a simple “heh”. “How very apt.” He thought to himself as he grabbed the anchor. It was was cumbersome, but then again as an object made manifest of his own burden dragging and weighing him down it was to be expected, seems like was this some sort purgatory after all. He just hoped that it would get easier to handle as they journeyed on.

After hearing a the sound of the pillar being broken he turn his head to see a tiny redheaded woman carelessly swing her weapon around, before she stepping off the ledge by accident. He made a mental note to not stand too close to her unless he wanted to get clobbered by her weapon. One by one the others began to make their descent to enter this new area. Some woman was talking to Nera so he waited while coiling the rope around the anchor creating a grip of sorts. He then approached Nera and said, "My choice has been made, I'm going with them. I hope our next encounter will be much more pleasant."

He jumped down with his eyes closed as per Nera's advice. The ride down was seemingly interminable yet also wasn't as long as expected. All sorts of invasive thoughts, voices, sensations, and images swirled into his head in such a chaotic manner that it was overwhelming. There was also the fact that he felt like hurtling down that abyss fast enough to cause a crater once he landed. He found himself wincing in preparation of impact, but it never happened. The sensation of falling merely stopped along with the all the "noise" coming from the drop.

Opening his eyes he saw he was in what appeared to be the same area they were in earlier, but with various differences. It seemed like the dream world was a mirror image of this one. He quickly inspected himself for any injury and saw that there was none and then checked the room again to see the other people. Two seemed to be ready to wander off further, which to him wasn't a smart move. There was another lose clustering of people closer to him whom he approached and said, "Hey how many more people are we waiting on to arrive? "

@Rune_Alchemist

You peer down the narrow passage to the North, trying to discern anything of value. There isn't much to see, save for the pale light itself, shimmering weakly from the long distance. There are glances of shadows moving about, but they were largely eclipsed by the glow. It isn't stable or calm, suggesting that it might be some sort of fire or living form of illumination. From how it looks, there seems to be a collection of such faint objects at the end of the hallway, fading into focus while others fade out. A faint scent comes from this way, one different from the rot and gritty dust. It seems to overwhelm the muskiness of the temple with a faint yet stark aggression. The bitter yet mature fragrance is reminiscent of some sort of herb or medicinal plant, though you are not entirely sure, it certainly reminds of something familiar to rituals in a church or holy place. Perhaps the smell was a result of the light itself? Or it could be another sort entirely. Either way, there doesn't seem to be a direct threat to your or anyone else's life at the moment from doing the casual observation. For now.

@Everyone

Meanwhile, in the diverging chamber itself, a slight rumbling then stirs ripples into the murky black water. But it fades as quickly as it appears. Whatever it was, it felt like it came from far below. From what you can tell, it doesn't feel like any natural quake. What kind of horrors remained here in this dying world, was a wonder in itself.

You are all left with a few options still, to go down this path further, discuss with your teammates for a bit, or to try and observe the other paths and see what beholds.

...

Ezain was the last to emerge from the stairs, trailing after the rest, who were already awakening and exploring the new atrium. He'd heeded Nera's warning to keep his eyes shut during the trip between realms. Though he'd been unable to see the horrors that swam about him, he could certainly hear, feel and smell them. Gods, he swore he could even taste them. They had pressed around him like wolves to a carcass, yet unable to take a bite. Although Nera assured he was quite safe, Ezain was sure they'd reach out and defile every fiber of his being, if they could.

But the next moment, the throat between the stairs finished swallowing him, ejecting him into a place very similar, but clearly not the same room from which he'd come. The terrible sensations of the passing lingered, but grew weaker with each moment. It was like waking up from a nightmare and realizing it had not been real. Or had it? Ezain quickly emptied his overactive mind of lingering visions, then gathered his bearings and moved to rejoin the more headstrong members of the group.

"Hey, how many more people are we waiting on to arrive?" one of his companions asked, to no one in particular.
"I'm it," Ezain spoke, stepping to join the group. Then, "It looks like the last room."

Turning his horned head about, Ezain could make out the four tunnels, roughly adjacent to another. They formed a 't,' like a compass rose, and two opposite each other both gave off a faint light from further how their lengths.

"I say we try one of those," he offered, pointing to the pair of lit halls. "At least we can see where they go."

@Everyone Present

---

A few more people made their presence known, finally having decided to get a move on. Isabella herself, despite wanting to go on ahead did, realize, that it would be an incredibly stupid thing for now. While she wasn't keen on relying on the others...for now it'd probably be better than ending up jumped by something ten times her size that wanted to nibble on her in not the fun way. Still didn't mean she was going to make an attempt to socialize, though. They were here for a reason and she wanted to get that done sooner rather than later.

“For someone so eager to explore, you’re strangely cautious.”

Isabella frowned slightly, casting a sideways glance towards Aiv.

“Got second thoughts after diving down the hellhole, kid?”

"No," Her expression for the most part remained unchanged and emotionless. "Going somewhere on my own would simply be stupid." She scoffed lightly, her gaze turning back to the hallway. "I am not that reckless." The passage before her was narrow to say the least. Room enough for them to walk comfortably through at least, but it would make fighting somewhat difficult if they were jumped by something, and judging from the atmosphere...that was almost a given.

Aside from the pale light though, there wasn't much to see. The first thing she noticed however, was a faint scent different from the rot of this chamber. An unpleasant, medicinal smell. Some sort of plant like herbs? It felt oddly familiar to her. Perhaps she could use them in some sort of ritual or holy ceremony? She hadn't a clue where the thought came from, but it seemed appropriate. She'd have to see for herself the source of the smell.

The light that illuminated the passage itself shimmered weakly in the distance, shadows skimming across its surface temporarily but otherwise obscured. The interesting thing however, was how the light was neither stable. As if it was shifting slightly. Perhaps some sort of living illumination? Peering further down the hallway, there seemed to be a number of faint objects at the end of the hallway, barely staying in focus long enough to make them out before fading out.

For now, it seemed safe enough. The only thing to note was a slight rumble, that caused small ripples to form in the murky black water. It lasted only a moment, but whatever it was came from deep, deep, beneath the earth.

"Hey how many more people are we waiting on to arrive?"

"I say we try one of those, At least we can see where they go."

"Unlike some of our...comrades." She grumbled to herself, turning from the passage and heading back to the small grouping of misfits.

"While you all were still conveniently sleeping, I took the liberty of taking a look at one of the passages." Isabella said finally spoke up, tone indicating mild annoyance and disdain. "It looks safe enough. I can't see anything down the northern passage, at least." She glanced back towards the second illuminated passage. "A large group would draw too much attention, and we could probably cover more ground if we weren't all together. I suggest splitting into two groups that could reasonably compliment one another for best effect."

Speaking in this capacity seemed somewhat familiar to her. Perhaps she had done it before? Hmm...having so many vague feelings of Deja Vu and no inkling of answers was annoying.

"I would like to take the northern Passage. There is a vaguely medicinal scent that lingers in the air that I am curious to the origin of." She continued, tone somewhat indicating she expected the others to follow her instructions and what she thought seemed to be perfect reasoning and planning.

The third eye finally closed, albeit with some reluctance, and Ihosha glanced at the clumsy one. She had her own experience in the Nightmare Realm? Apparently enjoyed it as well… More reason to be careful of that one. Using their staff as a walking stick, Ihosha started to pace around as the others arrived in an effort to return some feeling of warmth to its body. Bracing against the staff as the chamber rumbled ominously, it turned to look down at into the murky water, wondering what laid within its murky depths. The third eye flicked open at that hint of curiosity Ihosha felt, but even its newfound “blessing” couldn’t pierce the clouded waters.

Tuning clumsy girl out except for the barest of attentions, Ihosha wandered over to the closest passage to take a look. Turned out that it couldn’t actually see very far into the unilluminated Eastern passage though, the sight granted limited in range. Still, it was enough to verify that combat within the passage would be difficult, if not almost impossible with the over-sized weapons those chasing “wholeness” had been given. Giving an experimental swing of its staff horizontally, Ihosha frowned at just how little room there was for a mistake. Getting caught by the wall would be an easy, and possibly fatal, mistake to make.

Nevertheless, there was an interesting point to draw. At the very edge of their limited dark vision, there were vague silhouettes of objects as the hallway opened up. Things that hung from the walls, along with bulky shapes that suggested furniture and decoration. It appeared to the pathway opened far quicker into another chamber than the others.

There seemed to be a waning gust this way too. Did this path perhaps lead to some opening to the outside somewhere?

Ignoring that though, it didn't think that the Eastern passage was very viable. It didn't seem like many of the others had been touched by the Nightmare Realm, so they'd need a light source before heading east or west. Well, ideally they'd explore all the areas sooner or later, so it wandered over to take a look down the Southern passage for now.

Peering into the lights in this entry, though faint as they were, seemed piercing for the hooded woman like they were being shone directly into her eyes. But with a moment of recovery, they were able to look again, though still quite discomforted. It seemed their 'gift' of superior dark vision did not come with its own detriments. How much this illumination sensitivity would affect their ability going forth is yet to be discerned.

This way seemed similar to the northern passage, narrow and unassuming. However, as they looked longer, it became apparant that the light did not come from the end, instead, bleeding up from an opening in the floor. Again, the same herbal, almost pyric scent bellowed fleetingly from this direction. It was clear now that the lights had a direct correlation with the smell itself, but what that meant exactly remained a mystery.

Ihosha pulled their hood down as low as they could with a wince and hoped they'd merely be dazzled rather than blind in brighter lighting. Being stuck in the darkness and shadows was not the most appealing of fates. For now it took a deep breath and noted the scent that the clumsy one had mentioned, though it seemed there would be a climb to reach the light source. Telling the exact height was a bit difficult, but Ihosha figured they would need to give one another a lift to reach the opening in the ceiling.

Turning back to the others, Ihosha coughed to clear her throat before gesturing with its staff at the Southern passage. "Scent's also here, but it's coming from an opening above. There's a breeze coming from the eastern way, but unless more of you can see in the dark..." Trailing off, it rubbed at the third eye for a moment before taking another deep breath of the scent. It seemed like the result of something being burnt, but then what or who was doing the burning? Ideally, it wouldn't be the one sticking its head up to find that out.

There were already a handful of choices to be done with regards to which direction to take in this ruins. Already he was thinking of the next move to take while the little redhead girl shared her observations in a haughty manner. There was the path of where smell of burnt plant matter was coming from, the path with the light, and the other place with the dark water that just bubbled. He had made up his mind on what would be his preferred path, but he'd need to convince the others to go along with it.

"I disagree, splitting up would be unwise. Sure, these weapons are big and need space to use, but they're also cumbersome and I really doubt any of us can use these things well. At this point the only 'tactic' I can suggest is we make use of whoever can attack from range and take things down as efficiently as possible. Anyway, I noticed there's a bunch of slime and while it could be just part of the moldering environment, there's also that area with the gross looking water that just bubble and maybe, somethings lurking there." He said partially responding to Isabella but also addressing the others.

He pointed at the vicinity of where water while he continued, "I think it warrants poking around in that area for the sake of preventing whatever may be there from getting the drop on us while we're exploring some other place. Any I was thinking that you, the redhead with the whipsword can flail at the water and see if anything happens." With that being said he awaited their responses to his suggestion.

Curious to see what lay down the passage, Dwyn made her way over to the lit hallway. It seemed relatively benign to her as these things went, even if she wouldn't call anywhere around here inviting. The thing that caught her attention was the smell - something stirring at the back of her mind. It was familiar, as though she had smelt it many times before. The word 'holy' came to mind, the briefest flash of rites and rituals. Just as she was about to start racking her brain for answers, the others began to debate their options.

With a sigh, Dwyn turned back to her companions. It honestly seemed to her that these people would rather argue all day than come to a decision. Still, there was no reason not to say her piece, especially since she had no wish to stand quietly whilst the others got themselves killed. And some of what they were coming out with was concerning, to say the least. She looked at the disrespectful one with a reluctant nod. "Loath as I am to agree with you, I think you're right that splitting up is a bad idea. We don't know where any of these passages lead - should anything happen, there's no guarantee that we'd be able to find each other again. That being said..."

She gave the abrasive man a look of irritation, though remaining somewhat prim and proper. "I question the logic of deliberately angering whatever lurks in the depths. Better that we just move on. If we insist on splitting up, though," Dwyn glanced at Isabella, exasperated, before looking back to the lit passageway. "I plan on heading down that hall regardless. Better that we at least see what we face." At the very least, Dwyn would be able to stab with her weapon, even if swinging the tall polearm would be impossible.

Was that really it? Did she really think it was a good idea to go that way? After all, the nature of the passage would no doubt be inconvenient to them, and any fast-moving foe would tear them in two. No, she wasn't looking after the group, was she? Just chasing a forgotten memory, a selfish action that she was supposed to have cast off. Of course, this was why she'd never been more than a squire. Some knight, to place her own whims over the lives of othe--

Dwyn shook her head, appearing distressed for a brief second before regaining her composure. Of course that wasn't her motivation. She had no interest in worldly desires, in acting for her own benefit. Luxuries such as company and conversation merely provided a distraction from achieving her holy mission. That her chosen direction would comfort her with familiarity was a coincidence, nothing more.

---

Isabella simply stared at the other two as they made their replies. When they finished, her eyes shifted towards the ground, narrowing her eyes ever so slightly in a dejected seeming glare.

"If you all want to be all bunched up when we're attacked by something and can't swing our weapons without hitting another person, by all means..." The redhead shook her head. It was always like this wasn't it? That's how she felt at least. She had suggested doing so because it would have been easier on them...and well, herself. She couldn't reliably use her sword at full ability in such a narrow passage with all of them present. She'd practically be defenseless since she couldn't defend herself without fear of hurting her 'comrades' which she was being convinced of less and less that she should care about. Well, she supposed she could always take point so to speak, but...wouldn't that be better suited towards someone else? Bah, didn't matter at the moment.

She turned to Ihosha, fixing her with a neutral expression.

"You...can see the source of it?" Isabella moved slightly towards the cloaked woman, giving her a small smile. "Curious, a useful ability you have there." Perhaps she'd need to keep an eye on this girl after all. Might learn something useful. Or at least, be able to think on how to use their ability in the most efficient manner, but for now though since it seemed there was nothing else to discuss...."Hm, not that it matters at the moment," She looked towards Dwyn and the nameless one. "I'll bring up the rear...whenever you all decide which death trap you want to travel down."

With that, she returned to silence, retreating a few steps away from the group for a bit of breathing room. She had nothing more to say on the matter, and trying to dissuade them would only bring about needless discussion and discord among the group. Plus, with this many people she was feeling somewhat uncomfortable. Well, whenever they decided to finally get moving, she'd follow.

"The logic is pretty simple, this world has be corrupted by a malevolent influence so, it should be safe assume most things are going to be hostile. If there's something lurking in the water I'd rather we draw it out to this area which is pretty spacious than having it creep up while we're in a cramped area." He said plainly. He hoped he was dead wrong about it though, as the less fighting the better. Getting hurt and tired would wear them down and hinder them against whatever lays deeper in the ruins.

He then moved around the room a particular pile of books and debris grabbing one of the larger looking books. It was probably pointless, but it wouldn't harm to see just if there was anything of use within the pages as his hand was skimming through the pages. Sadly it was not as even the cover was crumbling in his hands and pages were utterly ruined. He had to stifle the urge to cough as the moist, musty, and mildewy smell emanating from the book was quite strong.

The book would still have some use as he rose and moved himself to a clearer view of where the water is. "Let's see what happens next, hopefully nothing." He said as he chucked the book hard enough to cross the great distance and plunge into the murky water with a satisfying plunking sound. A slight bit of tentative nervousness ran through him as he eyeballed the water looking for a response while he held the anchor readied for combat.

Solomon felt his body tremble as he sunk into the darkness. Sunk was a rather pleasant word for the experience. As soon as he entered the black bow attached to his hand raced downward with alarming force, practically knocking his arm out of its socket. The sense of hurtling towards some eventual crash with the ground combined with the complete darkness gave him nothing to orient himself other than the driving force from the bow. At this point he'd accepted that he would die and passed out.

Solomon's eyes shot up and he pulled himself from the slime that coated the ground to look around. It seemed most of those above had already gotten here and woken up, ready to start exploring. This place was a painful contrast to what lay above. Covered in this strange slime, the whole place looked old beyond belief, unmaintained, and somehow tragic. It seemed the other spirits, or humans at this point, were discussing how to proceed. Solomon shrugged. They had no information about anything here except that it was dangerous, so really one way was as good as the other.

Taking advantage of this brief time he was not being paid any attention he tried to use his bow, putting his hand where the string was and holding it loosely. Despite having never held a bow before his fingers found them selves draw to a position and an arrow of the same make as the rest of the bow appeared. Solomon drew the bow, astonished at how much strength it took. Weren't bows supposed to be weapons of finesse? He carefully eased his grip without firing the arrow and when he had fully relaxed it turned back into wisps of shadow. Well that was that.

He stepped forward to join the rest of the group. He was most inclined to take the advice of the girl with the 3rd eye, Solomon however was no leader, nor had he ever been. "I don't care much where we're going, but I get the feeling we should do it sooner rather than later." He said in a calm voice that still carried easily. While there was no evidence they couldn't simply stay here, it certainly wouldn't accomplish anything. If nothing else he felt leery of where they had landed, like it was a graveyard and anything that stayed too long would quickly become one of its residents.

...

As the members of the rag-tag party carefully deliberated their actions, unsure of the dangers that await them in this depressing old world, one of them decided to test out the 'tremors' felt earlier in the pools of thick oily water. As the scrap of booklet landed into the shallow end, slapping and making a wet plop, before sinking slowly into place. The sound echoed with surprising density in the chamber, seeming to reverberate in the enclosed space and pulsed outward. For a moment it seemed nothing happened, the ruins continuing to remain silent as the ripples caused by the landing rapidly abated into nothingness. Whatever the unnamed soul thought was hiding the depths seemed only a figment of their hasty imagination, their test seeming to prove this much, and that much alone. A precaution is much better than doing nothing at all, in theory, however it seemed their experiment did not account for all the outlying factors. What resulted was an unforeseen consequence. A low moan in the distant north then broke the silence, disturbed by the stray noise. Something had been woken by the careless action, and the tired shuffling of stone could only mean it was beginning to move. Metals soon scrapped against the floor, or walls, it was difficult to tell at this range. It wasn't just one 'thing' either, but many, indicated by a rising chorus of groaning fragmented sentences in the wicked scuffed melody.

"The sign... I-I see it! We've found it...! Our call must have worked! How long has it been...? No matter... The precious mark... Oh, blessed Goddess, we knew you wouldn't abandon us...!"

Suddenly the lights in the northern passage began to shift. One by one, the collective glow seemed to separate and then push forward, driven by a wave of shadows. Whatever it was, they were slow, but there was no telling how many there were.

With all the cautiousness around the hallways themselves, perhaps this accident might prove an advantage for the defenders who would be meeting their adversaries from the open end. But would the conflict itself cause more of what lay dormant in these ruins to awaken? Who knows how many other ways they could be swarmed from, if they took too long. The other passages seemed to have remained placid, as far as any of them could tell. There was still a chance to avoid all this if they moved now. Whatever the choice, it needed to be quick. There was a clear timer ticking down now, and who knows what happens when it runs astop.

And then there is the problem of those among the party who haven't stirred from their 'dream'...

...

Lots of talking. Lots of caution. Lots of discussion. He should be glad for communication, all things considered, but instead, Aiv just found it all tiresome. They barely had anything to go off of, and here they were, talking as if their amassed knowledge would help them at all. They knew not of the monsters they were going to face. Knew not of the truths that made up this twisted world. All they had were the words of a Goddess that was much too small and much too weak, as well as no real guarantee that what they were tasked to do was correct.

And thus, in a world so full of unknowns, what was necessary wasn’t muscle-crippling, mind-immobilizing, time-wasting caution, but instead, the bravery to take steps into the darkness and crawl out of this tomb of a shrine.

The paths were too narrow in consideration to the weapons that they were gifted with, and among the group, it appeared that only Ihosha, the three-eyed individual, bore an ability that allowed them to see into the darkness of the western and eastern passageways. Others bore weapons too cumbersome to use properly, though the bow and halberd showed promise, if they knew how to use those at all. Green eyes flickered back to the slab that shadowed him, before going to those that still meandered meaninglessly.

Well, no.

At least one person amongst them had the audacity to do something outside of flap their mouths off passive-aggressively. As the ripple echoed on, however, it was clear that such gentle provocation did not warrant a response from the tremor within.

“Perhaps your anchor would bring in a better response, sailor boy,” Aiv said, “Or maybe you could trip and fall into this abyss as well, Isabelle? Would s-”

The rest of his jest was cut off though, by a moan, a cry, a groan. The coming of a horde, of the believers that Nera had spoken of as corrupted beyond repair, blighted wraiths of a broken world. The screech of metal against stone was enough to show how dangerous they were, and the lunacy, the desperation in their tones caused his expression to twist in disgust. Holding onto their weakness and clinging onto a goddess of the ephemeral, these ghouls truly had nothing in their fates left but death.

Endless tranquility and eternal peace.

Aiv grasped the writhing mass that refused to have a proper form, and dragged it closer towards him. Beneath his fingers, it was cold to the touch, stone-hard despite its organic aspirations. A low breath exited from him, rasping out like a deathrattle, before he brought the weapon upwards, slamming it down once more.

“WE!” A grand proclamation of unity resounded through the chamber and into the passageways, dust lifted and slime pulvernized. “Are the emissaries of the Goddess Nera, She Who Resides Over and Within the World of Dreams, here to liberate you from your mortal shells and deliver you to the paradise that awaits!”

The pillar of sin rose and fell once more, another echoing crack sounding.

“The Tribulations have ended, and Salvation is at hand for the devout! Come forth, faithful lambs, and prostrate before the deliverers of Rapture!”

Ah, he felt sick.

Dwyn's eyes widened with shock, shock that quickly turned to self-righteous fury as the book made contact with the water. Adjusting her grip on the halberd in preparation for something to lunge out of the waters, the woman spent a good few seconds staring at the water before sighing in relief. Of course there wasn't a threat - the nameless teammate had simply been indulging some childish fantasy. Ignoring that she'd wholeheartedly believed in the creature's presence, she looked at him disdainfully. "Now that we've established your overactive imagination, can we--"

Cutting herself off as the light shifted. It seemed that she was going to stay silent, until Aiv's shameful and frankly outright blasphemous display. Never mind, she'd forgotten. She was surrounded by unholy, unrighteous, ignoble--

"Imbeciles." She muttered, loudly enough for every one of them to hear her. With that out of her system, Dwyn turned her back on Aiv, towards the source of the shifting light, the broken sentences. Should it have been a roar or otherwise monstrous sound, she'd have charged into battle happily, knowing as she did that righteousness would prevail in such a situation. But as it was, the brunette had little interest in slaughtering the ruins' residents. She glanced around the room, her eyes settling on the passages ahead.

"I'll have no part in this farce. We're leaving." The time for discussion was over, as far as she was concerned. She'd given them time for discussion, and that had revealed that at least one of them was a gibbering idiot. "Two of you pick up Orpheus. If nothing else, one of the dark passageways should hide us until we have an idea of what we face." Perhaps, if they hadn't spent their entire brief existence getting on her nerves, Dwyn would have been nicer about this.

As it was, the knight had no intention of letting any more discussion continue after witnessing her teammates' reckless idiocy. Besides, the scent of the herbs and the words being spoken worried her. A point of principle that was probably foolish, but she was deeply uncomfortable with the idea of killing holy men. So instead of waiting for anyone to dissuade her, Dwyn turned and began walking down towards the passages. It seemed that, without direction, her plan was to pick one entirely at random from those that didn't appear to contain any approaching foes.

Perhaps a more forgiving sort would have waited by Aiv's side, seeing as he clearly had no intentions of avoiding the confrontation. But frankly, she had no interest in hanging around an arrogant, unpleasant collection of gibbering morons.

And even less interest in associating herself with what frankly appeared to be a heretic.