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As unbelievable as it might seem, this was not Vladimir's first time being thrown halfway across a church. Time seemed to slow down as he hurtled back through the air, courtesy of the telling, sternum-staving blow that propelled him. It gave him time to think. Oh sure, the landing was going to be the least fun part of this while experience, but who gets to see stained glass from the inside hurtle by at 47 miles per hour? Really, it was an experience. Sure, he might die; but today, he was really living. Just before he made epic landfall, the last thing to cross his mind was a question: If he really did die, which of his people would be bestowed the mantle of The Great Bazhooli? It had to be embraced by an Alexandrov, and there were certain requirements besides. His eldest boy had the skills, but honestly (as this was a moment for honesty, if nothing else), did he possess the depth of character? Of intensity? Did he have enough panache to become Vladmir's successor?

The entire line of thought was rendered moot in one shattering nanosecond, as his body impacted with the heavy, wooden church pew. It broke into several pieces, partially burying the valiant Russian underneath its debris as it continued collapsing on top of him. A thin cloud of dust rose, and for too many heartbeats, the destruction lay still.

Suddenly, a great clattering of wooden shrapnel could be heard as pieces exploded up and away from the site of impact. Vladimir kicked himself into a standing position with a great bellow of, "HAAA!" His hands still contained balanced, sharpened steel, and he appeared absolutely uninjured by the crash, as if an invisible shield made of pure intestinal fortitude and refined, weapons-grade histrionics surrounded him, protecting him from harms both supernatural and mundane. Vladimir leaned his head to either side, resulting in audible popping sounds from the bones of his neck, and then reiterated the concept of who he was and what he did with a raspy, accented roar of, "Fal'shbort, bitches! RAAHHH!" Seemingly, absolutely zero the worse for wear, Vladimir strode purposefully toward the inversely soulled creature, kicking the scraps of church pew from his boots in the process.

He paused, reaching a hand up to his forehead. There indeed had been a casualty of the attack upon his person, as a single lock of dark chestnut had pulled free from the rest of his marvellously groomed, oiled pate of thick, luxurious hair. It hung forward, swaying back and forth as he walked just at the top of his vision, until he lifted a finger from the handle of his knife and pushed it back. But it looked like it might fall free again. "You!" he yelled accusingly to the beast, "You disturb follicles (is right, follicles? Da? Da, okay) follicles, of The Great Bazhooli!" He nodded, a building of drama and rage noteworthy in his eyes. "Vill not go unanswered," he promised. Having made his way to the tapestry left unattended and unstrung by the acquisition of the cord as a weapon component, Vladimir tossed one end of it over a wall candelabra and pierced the other end with one of his knives. If all else fails, try burning.

"NOW," he boomed, "let us try the same trick ...ON FIRE!"

Gretna Green (Church): Millicent gave a curt nod towards Colette. She was glad the idea held merit and could be of use. Turning her attention back towards the beat before them she didn't have an answer for the woman. She was as much in the dark as Colette or anyone else was it seemed about this thing. She had never seen nor heard of such a thing before. It was like walking shadows and flames and it smelled only what she could think of what hell would smell like. Brimstone. Slowly she moved away from the other others. Making her way right from where stood and through the rows of pews to try to get to the outside of them and nearer to the wall. One hand on the hilt of her sword she drew it, as the other slipped between the folds of her dress to grip one of the two remaining daggers she had. Ny had attacked it with a dagger. Sure it didn't kill it but it did seem to injure it. So it could be harmed.

William would be prepared this round but to protect who? It seemed the women standing near him were more than up for the job and the last thing they needed was a man to protect them. (Yes, I went there LOL) Virginia threw her ax and it hit it's mark, tearing through one shoulder of the beast. The axe embedding in the stairs behind it. There was a gap there now where the smoke was lighter and one could see where it used to be solid. Maeve is able to tap into ancient site this church was built on. Many times Christian Church's would be built on the holy sites of old, a way to get people to convert, and it seemed that this was done here. Celtic runes glowing slightly on the ground beneath the creature, stopping it in its tracks and causing it to scream out. Ny takes the chance to throw his dagger again, again it hits, this time through a knee before it returns, hitting on the way back as well. Colette is ready, armed, and free to attack, as the creature stumbles forward through another row of pews.

Constantin is doing well keeping things from getting to or in Veta's way during this. Vlad, trying the same trick, this time on fire, manages to get things going but the tapestry doesn't look like it will hold. The knife hits in the beasts side. The stain glass window at the back of the church breaks in as a murder of crows caw and beat, flying in. Veta's hand move, directing the flock, their talons grabbing the tapestry and twisting and turning it, wrapping it around the beast. catching it up in the fire. The fire from the tapestry starts to burn black on the beast. Is the fire helping the creature? It seems to be getting bigger and its scream now rattles the rafters of the church. Constantin's Tretiy Glaz goes off, it is like he catches glimpses of the future in his mind, Foggy and through crystal, the flames shouldn't be black, they should be white. Another flash, something to do with prayer, purity. And when the flames are white, the beast is over the alter, not in the pews.

Well Vlad was back in black... well not in black, but he seemed on FIRE! Well not really on fire either, he was on fire metaphorically, but he was apparently in the process of playing with fire as he was throwing stuff with fire at the soulless. Constantin was very pleased at the fact that the Bazhooli tanked that hit and stood up like a complete boss. There was nothing better than seeing a person you trusted and respected not get squashed by the power of evil creatures!

Everyone seemed to be doing something grand and attacking. Things were flying about and at the monster, runes were appearing on the ground inside the church. Constantin briefly wondered what the opinion of the local priests would be if they saw that last one, but ehh wasn't really a problem for him. Also he did get his wish, the window got blasted as birds entered and started to help wrap the flaming tapestry thing across the creature to make sure the fire doesn't fall off. He himself was doing mighty fine job of protecting the Duchess from anything, everything and all in between.

Suddenly just as he was pondering his next step, at the sight of the creature growing bigger, a fact that really surprised him, his vision blurred for a moment. He knew what was happening and damn it was both the best and the worst moment for it to happen. Depended on the thing he'd see and what he saw confused him. He wasn't the best with Riddles... why couldn't it have been more straight forward at this crucial moment? Just as fast as the vision arrived it left and the firewalker steeled himself, still holding his protective vigil for Veta, nothing was getting past him!" Had a vision!" He said, taking a deep breath, keeping himself in the direct direction between the Grand Duchess and the monster." It vas Foggy and through some kind of Crystal. The fires shouldn't be black, but vhite." He said loudly, so everyone could have the same degree of knowledge on this thing. No point in keeping secrets here thus he continued." The second part of the vision was about Prayers, purity and that vhen the flames are vhite, the beast is over the alter." He was getting concerned with the fact that the best had indeed grown in size." Ve need to remove or weaken the black fire!" This was the most direct idea he had right away direclty drawn from the vision without digging into symbolism. But the creature did grow and had black flames so it was probably a good idea to attempt any way to weaken it.

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William had braced himself for the coming storm, prepared to put his body between those who needed protection, and the foul creature before him. The problem was, the storm faltered before it reached him, and there didn't seem to be anyone who really needed his protection. The pale 'Virginia' had already passed him, hurling one of her axes and tearing through the creature's shoulder. The flamboyant Russian almost seemed more invigorated after being thrown across the church, leaping to his feet with no small dose of theatricality, his thrown dagger cutting into the shifting smoke that formed the creature. The other Russian stood over the Duchess, but whatever effect performing the ritual had had on the Duchess, she was clearly recovering, and as William watched, a flock of crows burst through one of the stained glass windows and fell upon the creature, wrapping it in what looked to be a flaming tapestry. William recognized the flock from the road earlier, and as he glanced across to the Duchess, he saw her hand moving, almost as if she was conducting a black feathered orchestra.

He caught sight of movement out of the corner of his eyes, and saw that even Millicent was no longer behind him, her newly-acquired sword drawn now, the horror of seeing her fiance's ungodly transformation seemingly shaken. As the creature roared and screamed, the flames from the tapestry all around it, William risked a glance over his shoulder. The barb from the Irishwoman didn't go un-noticed, but he wasn't surprised. He had crossed the woman when they had first met, and there had hardly been time for him to try and seek forgiveness. Regardless, he could take barbed remarks, as long as they remained on the same side, or as close to it as they could manage. And she was clearly a valuable asset, the Celtic runes that had emerged from the ground at their feet were still glowing, and judging by the cries from the creature, they were hurting it. Even the blonde woman had armed herself, although the weapon she held appeared to be an improvised one.

Something in the creature's hellish cries changed, and William's attention snapped back to it. It was still wrapped in the flaming tapestry, but as William watched, the flames began to burn black, and he could have sworn the creature seemed to grow. When it roared again, the force of it almost knocked William a step back. The axe and daggers had seemed to cut the creature, or at least part the black smoke, even if only for a moment, but it was still standing. William cursed the fact that he didn't have any throwing weapons, and that he'd left his rifle with Azrael back at Port Annan. It might have done nothing to the creature, but as it stood, William couldn't do anything unless he got close to it, and until he knew it could even be hurt, he could just be charging to his death.

For now, William's greatest use, at least in his opinion, was to protect those that did have ranged weapons, to give them the freedom to use them, and to protect against any retaliation from the creature. He tried to get a read on the creature, to try and predict it's next move, but even without the haze that still clung to the world around William, the creature was a writhing mass of shadow and flame. He had no clue what it was, let alone what it was going to do, so all he could do was deal with what he did know. Millicent was moving off to his right, the blonde woman and the Irishwoman were still behind him, and the others were scattered around the church in front of him. In terms of someone for William to move to defend, there was a clear choice. Part of him was drawing him to follow Millicent, another part of him wanted to move towards the Duchess, but for now, logic was winning out.

The stranger, although William hardly knew any of the figures in the church, was surprisingly agile for a man of his apparently advanced years, and he clearly had some power, as his dagger flashed back to his hand for a second time. But as far as William could see, he wasn't heavily armed, and he was one of the closest to the creature. His dagger seemed to be doing some damage at least, and William doubted the creature would tolerate it for a third time if it didn't have to. With that in mind, William moved forwards, moving closer to the bearded stranger. As he moved, he heard the Russian that was still standing over the Duchess begin to talk, claiming to have had a vision, although his words were like a riddle to William. William didn't doubt that the man had the power to have visions, after all, he was trained in Hadd himself, and was all too familiar with the fleeting glimpses of truth. But for now, William didn't have time to try and decipher the riddle. He did what he could to commit it to memory, and then he placed himself between the creature and the stranger.

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She did not know what this thing was and she pitied the beast slightly, yet it clearly intended to do them harm. She would have liked to learn what it was and what forces drove it to act as it did, but now was not the time. She threw one of her precious ebony axes at the creature, hitting her mark as the blade tore through the shoulder and embedded itself in the steps behind it. Depending on the force of the throw, it would take a fair bit of effort in order to free the blade and since she did not intend on leaving herself entirely defenseless, this next axe wouldn't be thrown - unless, of course, Vlad had brought with him several spare throwing axes for her but she doubted it. Given that she had never really thrown an axe at a shadow monster before, she was a bit intrigued to see the result. The smoke seemed to be lighter where the limb had been, a little bit clearer, and it must have been solid before. "How sublime," Virginia whispered, making a pun that would most likely be lost on those present.

The auburn haired woman behind her had used her trained skills, as glowing runes formed on the ground beneath the creature and it lashed out. Her new friend, Ny, managed to harm the beast and Virginia was hoping that they might be able to drive the creature in a different direction, that way she could retrieve her axe and gain another weapon in this fight. The windows had shattered as crows entered the Church and the entire experience was wondrous and lively to her - it was so sinister and macabre! Alarmingly and beautifully, the monster was increasing in size as well, despite the flames. The monster had so much smoke and such to it... she had to wonder if it somehow was incorporating the flames?

One of the Russians then started to shout information and Virginia's mind instantly went to Mosi - with the pure flames that had come when she was burned. "Oh dear Mosi, if only I had brought some of you here to cremate..." Virginia mused. Part of her thought about suggesting that they take the purest person here and burn a portion of them - nothing too great as to likely kill them - and see if that would suffice, but she doubted the others would take kindly to that idea. There was likely an alternative pathway that they could try first. "Do you know what sort of prayer - Christian prayer or any sort?" Virginia called back to the Russian, standing her guard should the monster try something else.

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Maeve used her trained skill of Lorcain, unearthing an ancient Celtic site and causing the runic symbols to softly appear. It seemed to cause distress to the creature and for that she was grateful, especially with the combined efforts of the others. She was stunned as a flock of birds flew in through the windows and seemed to be directed in combat, having never seen anything like it before. She heard the information on how to fight this from one of the men towards the front - they needed prayer and purity, as well as positioning this vile thing over the altar. The explanation suited her - only the power of god could vanquish this foe. While she had used a Celtic site in defense, that didn't change that she was a Catholic at her heart and would be a proud Catholic until the day she died.

The pagan girl irritated her - of course it would be Christian prayer. The other belief systems were simply nonsense. Why would anyone expect anything else to work in this situation? They needed purity and prayer, they were in a Church, the vision specified the altar - so logically, it had to be Christian! "Ladies, let's 'erd de beast over ter de altar, shall we? An' yer, lad, yer stay 'ere where 'tis safe," Maeve said, singling out William with the last part. The women with her were competent from what she could tell - Colette and Millicent both had their heads on right, at least so it seemed. She figured she could use the trained skill of Deasmhumhnach to attempt to fight the beast and push it towards the altar. However, she then got a better idea. Riada could stun the Soulless - why not try it on this monster?

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Yes, the blade of The Great Bazhooli most certainly found its mark, as was expected. It was not the telling blow that Vladimir might have hoped, as it might have been were he facing a human opponent, though it was a rarer event in his life that he engage the skills of his ancestors against another living person. He has to stop the current thought in his head as immaterial, that being the urge to mentally speak the word 'бездушный' (pronounced: bezdushnyy), or Soulless in the tongue of the land. He looked into the thing's soul. It existed. It was an inversion, a twisted thing that might have been a living being's soul before it was pulled inside-out, but it was there. Maybe it needed to be cleansed. Maybe it needed to be destroyed. Both? Who knew. Battle had been joined. The truth of the matter would more than likely be resolved with blood.

He heard the snatches of conversation that came after the vision of his associate, Constantin. A vision in battle? Uncommon, dangerous things in a fight, but this served a purpose. Well, as they all do. This one vision, or what he described of it, had something to do with the altar in the front of the room and... prayer? Vladimir wore a gold crucifix around his neck, a gift from one special to him which was in turn a gift from someone special to them. He was, technically, a member of his Empire's Orthodox Church, though he'd bet a shiny kopek or two that the different variants all prayed to the same God anyway. But a holy man he was not. Cultural observances and Rusyn Gypsy traditions often meant that the straight and narrow got pretty damned crooked and wide as the occasion called for it. This was a time that he lamented the loss of the Страшная Католическая Девушка, Sister Mary. This was further proof that the all had to stand together or be ripped to pieces. The loss of the representative from the Church weakened them all against this thing.

The Great Bazhooli was no priest. Dear and shiny Lord, he was no priest. But he might be able to get the creature to the altar. It had a soul, which meant it had feelings. It understood him when he addressed it directly, or it seemed to based upon the reaction. He had a plan. Or part of a plan. Like, maybe 12% of a plan, which Vladimir reasoned was at least better than 11% of a plan. Yes, The Great Bazhooli was going to piss it off. Nothing bad could come of that, right? And if he goes down in flames? So be it!

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Colette swung the rope dart around a bit, getting a feel for an old favorite weapon as she stared down the creature. The others were all putting in work to fell it, but it wasn’t going down easily. However, she noticed that it still reacted to attacks. If it could be wounded, it could also be killed. Grateful she had a swarm of competent ladies with her, Colette braced herself and charged forward.

Though the rope dart was a formidable weapon in capable hands, she doubted it could do much than damage the creature, but if she could hurt it enough, one of the others could fell it or seal it or something. She whipped her dart back before bringing it forward, ”Avoir à vous, démon.”

The dagger part of her weapon struck true, embedding itself in what could arguably be called the center of the creature. She had hoped to do with Maeve’s plan of pushing the creature back towards the alter, but that was not the case. After a large cry, the creature remained motionless, with her weapon still inside of it. ”I am unsure if it is down or not, but perhaps one could use this as an opportunity. It seems my weapon will not dislodge itself from it, but I believe I have hurt it, so that is something.” She was unsure how to proceed from here, but she hoped one of the other ladies could aid her.

Gretna Green (Church): Oh a battle, in the middle of a fight. Let us address the rolls for now. Constantin is able and ready to defend Veta should the need arise. We will see if there is a need for it in a few. William is kind of ready, isn't exactly in a position to defend Ny but hey, he's kind of there. Unfortunately for Virginia, she had no idea on how to take the information that Constantin has provided and as a very awesome captain once said, "make it so." Now, over with Maeve, she is showing that Gingers really are useful people as when she uses her Riada she stuns the fuck out of the creature and it stays in place still! Hot damn, maybe it is a break for the group. Poor Vlad, his Mamaushka isn't as on point this round and he will just make it to the alter by the end of the round, sorry, no throwing this time.

Now on to the rest. Thank god, Veta nat 20ed. "Drive back onto alter!" she yells as her arms make a sweeping motion down and pull back as if she is grabbing and tugging something. The birds turn and start pulling the burning tapestry towards the altar. The creature starts being pulled back, too stunned to be able to fight back from the sudden change in direction. Ny goes to throw his dagger again but the smoke is getting thicker and he has to move out of the way some and back off to the left to try to put some distance between him and the smoke. Millicent, takes a leap of faith, and drops her weapon. Gathering the folds of her skirt and listens to what Veta yelled. Utilizing Fu Mei (17), she charges the creature, planting a foot on a pew as she does and using her speed to drive herself forward. "Let go Colette!" she yells, grabbing a hold of the rope that is attached to the dagger Colette got wedged into the beast and spinning around behind the creature as she lands and pulls back.(20) Colette will be unable to hold on if she tries, which is good. Not stopping, Millicent pulls back. The creature stumbles back, unable to fight against the attack (1) and flies back, crashing onto the alter. Millicent dives out of the way and Constantin will be able to grab Veta and pull her out of the way in time.

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While William had been relatively hanging back, the members of the party that had seized the initiative seemed to be succeeding to an almost astonishing degree. A flash came over William's shoulder, and he only realised that it was the improvised weapon the blonde woman had fashioned after it buried itself in the creature's chest. Or at least where it's chest should be. The creature let out a deafening cry, before seeming to slump, motionless. Before William could even form the idea of seizing upon this window of opportunity, someone beat him to it. As deafening as the creature's cry was, the noise that came next was ear-splitting. William winced at the scream, and the creature seemed to slump even further, despite the sound seeming to strike it like a physical blow and the flock of dark birds still swarming around it.

He turned, trying to find the source of the piercing sound, and saw the Irishwoman standing there. It was clear that underestimating the young woman would be a mistake that most wouldn't get the chance to make twice. Not only had she summoned the glowing runes that had clearly pained the creature, now she had looked to stun it. A formidable warrior, and although she was clearly still disapproving of William, William was very glad that they still seemed to be standing on the same side. He heard the Duchess cry out behind him, and he turned back towards the alter in time to see her orchestrate the flock of dark birds once again. The mass of flapping wings seemed to catch the still burning tapestry and drag both the tapestry, and the creature still entangled within it, towards the alter.

Above the sounds already echoing around the church, William heard the sound of metal clattering against stone, but by the time he turned to look towards Millicent, she was already moving, her sword left behind. He was almost dumbfounded as he watched her move quickly, very quickly. Feet pounding across the church floor, she propelled herself off one of the pews and practically flew through the air. She caught hold of the rope, still hanging tight between the dagger embedded in the creature's chest and the blonde woman's hands, and swing herself around till she was behind the creature. The momentum pulled the rope out of the blonde woman's hands, and with another swift movement, Millicent dragged the creature back towards the alter, the force bringing the shifting shadows down onto the alter itself with a resounding crash, Millicent, the Duchess and the other Russian scattering in it's wake.

There seemed to be a moment of stunned silence, but William finally managed to shake himself out of the shock that had gripped him since the battle had started to swing so heavily in their favour. If they needed that creature on the alter, then the best place William could be was by the alter, making sure it stayed there. With that in mind, he started forwards. Step by step, he made his way across the church and towards where the creature lay. For all he knew, this stunned state was a ploy, and it could rear up at any moment. William refused to let himself be caught off guard. So as he came ever closer to the alter, he wasn't relying on merely divine protection, he was relying on the sharpened blades that he held in each hand.

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The situation was rapidly unfolding before their eyes as everyone had kinda sprung into action like a MOSTLY well oiled machine. Some people used their well trained skills, others simply acted out of logic and deduction, utilizing regular actions, but in the end everyone tried something to help out with the situation. Honestly part of the vision he saw wasn't too hard. Getting the beast to the alter was probably going to be the easy part and somehow or another, maybe God was on their side, or maybe it was some other kind of fickle entity that controlled their fate, but indeed getting the beast to the alter proved to be easy! It happened fast and with rather utmost precision! it was almost a miracle.

With the joint efforts of everyone, the beast was more or less dragged and hurled with force to the alter! The firewalker reacted like lightning as he reached over, pulling the Grand Duchess out of the way the beast traveled, keeping her behind himself, while he faced the creature. He didn't dare to imagine what would happen if this smoky bastard hit someone with it's seemingly big torso. Especially so if it was Veta, her protection was of utmost importance to him here!" Vell part one completed... now how to do holy prayer to get flames to vhite..." He mumbled, proving to his mind that indeed this was the greater mystery here. No one quite seemed to be attempting to do anything about that right now. Well they were busy getting the beast to alter so that's a nice reason to not having attempted to get the flames white.

He had nothing on that front. Hell his entire head was blanking out as he was trying to think of the prayer and white flames and the like. He knew flames, but it was dancing on flames and embers. This was way out of his domain here. He had no idea what it meant or how to proceed with it... Nada. Still blankness on the vision aside, he had a thing that was at least focusing enough and he could always rely on! Protecting Veta. Now that the beast was pushed to the alter, they were the closest to it along with that other woman that Veta was searching for. Thus he focused on protecting Veta still! Leave the thinking on the weird theological stuff on the people who could do it.

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Flipping and tumbling, tumbling and flipping, thus began the acrobatic bounding of The Great Bazhooli committing to motion that which sung out from the noble breast of all Rusyn Trained warriors of light. Yes, the Mamushka was strong with Vladimir. Not too strong right that second, as if he had truly been affected by the powerful blow of the fell and fetid creature, be it only a temporary instance of timing. The grace and balance of Vlad was enough to have him retain the ability to traverse the distance from his landing spot to the side of the altar, though without opportunity to hurl pointed fragments of (possibly) sanctified wood at the creature, nor the dramatic pauses for proper levies of insult.

Perhaps that last part was for the best, considering the formidable job already being pounded into the creature by the women of varying Trained sources. Vladimir was happy enough to have the Circus represented among this number. And he had done his part, identifying something potentially useful or exploitable in the future, though it gave him a shudder to consider having to deal with something like this in the future. Were he a very lucky man, this thing was unique and it was being handled. Nevertheless, fortune favors the prepared. The gallant and artistic steps, flips, and cavorts of the strange Russian man finally found him at the the side of the church's altar, one hand bearing a blade and one hovering over a second, awaiting chance to plunge it into his foe or, in the event of Constantin's vision manifesting in the proper direction, giving the evil thing a semi-proper blessing. How he did wish the redheaded lady-knight was still around for this piece of the puzzle.

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Colette had struggled to hold on to her weapon, unsure if the creature would continue to be stunned, but the others had gone to work quickly to aid in the endeavor of putting whatever this thing was down. Their combined efforts seemed to do the trick as each woman with them attacked the beast. Driving it back, she heard Millicent’s words. She let go mainly because she could no longer hold on, but the creature fell, falling against the altar. They had succeeded thus far, now they needed to continue.

Colette glanced around her quickly. She began to formulate a plan. What she had seen thus far, the man from the circus and what he said, she knew what they had to do. She looked for the Russian woman, the one who had cast some spell on the creature. ”I do beg your pardon, mademoiselle, and I hope you understand English well enough, but whatever magic you cast, you should cast it on the dead body underneath the creature again. That will hurt it considerably, I feel. The rest of us can do what we can to ensure it doesn’t move from that spot, but it needs to remain on that altar.”

Colette could do little without a weapon, but she would do what she could to aid and figuring this out was a good step in helping kill the beast.

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Unfortunately, Virginia had little clue as to how to deal with this entire situation and make the Russian man's suggestion a reality. Nothing she could think of in terms of chemistry or biology aided her and her deductive prowess similarly fell short. This was definitely Mary's area of expertise, religious experiences in a Christian Church. Though she had not received an answer as to whether or not any sort of prayer would do, she imagined that the prayer would likely match their surroundings. A prayer to the Dark Mother would perhaps not have the desired effect. The Irish woman unleashed a powerful scream, stunning the creature more.

Elizaveta repeated what the Irish woman had already said to do - to drive the being back onto the altar. The birds were doing that efficiently from what Virginia could tell. Millicent got the creature on the altar before anyone else could really do anything and from what the French woman said, they needed Elizaveta to perform the prayer. There was nothing really here for Virginia to do specifically, but at least it seemed the battle was waning as she moved towards the altar as well. At the very least if the creature tried to escape, she could use her remaining axe to attempt to keep it from escaping. There was not much else that could be done. Hopefully Elizaveta would be able to deal with it and then they could attempt to figure out what exactly it was.

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Maeve unleashed a banshee's scream, stunning the creature and allowing the rest of those there to get the creature over to the altar. Millicent, despite striking her as a rather weak and sad looking woman earlier, managed to accomplish that task almost entirely on her own. She had to wonder just how Millicent was able to be both people at once - perhaps this was just pure adrenaline, allowing her to find a spine and act as she had been unable to do with Rutherford. Colette similarly was doing rather well, coming up with a plan on how to deal with this thing. The Russian woman just needed to do the same sort of ritual as from before.

She had no idea what this thing was as she moved forward with the others to the altar. Hopefully it would be dispatched soon enough and then they could start asking questions, as asking questions in the middle of a fight wasn't really the way to go about things. The monster didn't really seem to be able to do much in the way of attacking on its own now, since so many people had combined their abilities in order to get at it - and once more, she was a bit shocked at Millicent's newfound strength. She just had to wait and see if the prayer ritual would do what needed to be done here, as she was essentially on the job of just having to wait, hopefully prevent the creature from escaping if it got free, maybe stun it again, and see if the Russian woman could deal with things.

Gretna Green (Church): Oh my, shit has hit the fan hasn't it. Let's address the rolls real fast. William is going to be fleet of foot this round and good to go, hitting a great roll if anything starts flying towards him or anyone for that matter. Constantin is remaining ever protective of Veta, he won't be a super hero this round but he is ready. Virginia is going to see that the creature is trying to right itself. While she might not have a prayer (I mean actual prayer) she does have an idea and will able to to implement it. Her Axes are from her skill set, in a way they are blessed, even in Native American ways. Sometimes what someone has faith in isn't what is important but just having faith. Virginia has proven many times she has faith, even if that is only in her skills, her training, and her family. Driving an Axe into the beast to keep it pinned to the alter will be very effective this round and she will be able to pull it off. This is aided by the fact that Maeve keeps the creature stunned with another scream from hell, geez that woman has a set of pipes on her.

Now, while the girls seem to have this thing down for now, Ny is staying in the game but holding back. The dagger flying back to his hand. he comes closer just in case but is giving distance where it is needed. Elizaveta looks over towards Colette and her brow goes up. Nodding she looks around, as she needs relics to perform. It takes her a moment to rush around the alter to find the two she used earlier and get them in place before beginning. She barely is able to start the prayer by the end of the round though. Millicent pulls back and tries to keep the creature pinned but one of its arms manages to get ahold of the bluestocking by the throat and lifts her up into the air above. Millicents hands are trying to wrap into the creatures hand but it isn't looking good.

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William didn't slow his pace as he approached the alter. He heard the words of those around him, but they only reinforced his intent. Whatever the creature was, it would not rise from the alter, not while William stood. He had hesitated for too long, hanging back while others had whetted their blades, wary of committing himself too soon. But now, the whispers of the two blades he held had grown into a roar, and he could feel fire burning through his veins. Maybe he had been too long gone from the halls of the frozen north, but he was remembering it now, and he could have sworn the handles of his swords were becoming hotter and hotter in his hands as he approached the alter.

He had seen the two blades brought forth from the forge, and although he had been little more than a boy, the image of the glowing steel had been burned into his memory. Playing the fiddle, the notes and music becoming his voice and his passion, that had been William's nature. But the way in which the swords became an extension of his arms, that had been born from countless hours of difficult training. He still remembered the bitter cold, the inky darkness of the night, they were as much a part of him now as the music was. But it wasn't just the training that had shaped William as a boy, it was the song of the land itself. He had heard the legends of the frozen north, and in the seemingly never-ending darkness only held back by the defiant flickering of firelight, and the howls of wolves carrying on the air, they had not seemed so far-fetched.

Another scream tore past William, and again the creature recoiled. He was vaguely aware of the Duchess moving around the alter, before she began to chant in a foreign language for a second time. Almost as if it was roused by this, the creature lashed out, but it wasn't towards the Duchess. As William neared the alter, one shadowy hand caught Millicent around the throat, lifting her from the floor with seemingly little effort. Millicent struggled, but the wispy form of the creature barely seemed to notice. But it was material, William was sure of it. Despite the thickness of the haze, and the shifting form of the creature itself, it had felt some of the blows leveled against it. Whether it could be killed with mere steel, William didn't know, but for now, all he needed to do was hurt it.

Teeth gritted, William finally reached the alter. Barely slowing his pace, William swiveled on his heel slightly and brought the blade of his kopis down towards the creature's arm. Maybe he was simply off balance, or maybe the creature had moved at the last second, but William could only snarl as he watched the blade hiss through nothing but air. The creature still held Millicent, but William's momentum carried him forwards. Taking another step towards the alter, and the creature upon it, William's grip on the hilt of his dirk shifted. The bitter smell of burning was almost overpowering now, his eyes stinging, but he didn't slow. With all of his momentum, William drove the point of his dirk down towards the creature, meaning to pin it to the alter. As he did, a half-forgotten warcry escaped his lips.

"Tyr!"

At the last moment, William felt his footing slip, just an inch, but as he drove downwards, he could already see the creature writhing, it's form seeming to shift even as he tried to focus on it. The sharpened point of the dirk bit into the surface of the alter, but it did not strike the creature. Cursing, William wrenched the blade free, stepping quickly backwards to try and distance himself from the inevitable retaliation. He had failed to hurt the creature, but his blades were singing, and now that he had thrown himself forwards, he was not the type to retreat.

As clueless about the resolution of the situation as he was, there was indeed a need to act. People continued to do their thing and all of them were more or less good and useful actions or ideas to different degrees until one of the women he didn't know spoke out. God bless her pretty blond hair, but her sudden powerful proclamation about the meaning of what had to happen seemed to put it to focus to all of them and give a pretty good goal for everyone in the church to complete! Constantin was impressed and while he was not really a fan of people outside the circus, but should what the woman said really be the solution, he was honestly up for giving her a not bad for an outsider evaluation!

Axes were at play and screaming was heard, creature to be affected. Knifes at work and so many other wonderful actions were taking in attempts to keep the thing attached to the alter so Veta can deal with it once and for all. Since they all were doing their best, there wasn't room for doubt. It appeared to his eyes that the entire group in the church were pitting their eggs in the basket that was this specific plan. He was not going to be left behind! As Veta moved to start the ritual, a rather unpleasant situation arose. One of the creature's hands grasped the British woman that they all had chased all the way here for some unknown to them reason! A man called out something about 'Tir, Tyre', or something like that and charged only to fall somewhat short of executing his attack well.

There was a goal to be had here. Keep Veta protected, keep thing to altar and if possible help that woman before she actually dies from being suffocated or have her neck crushed by this smokey bastard. Taking a look of the field of battle, he stood by the alter roughly between Veta and the beast still, but this time the most effective use was to make the beast not able to escape! Damage him or stab him and pin him down. With a sword in hand, enthusiastic expression on his face and a song at heart he swung at the beast in attempt to damage and weaken it as to keep it locked at the altar! Who knows it might just drop the woman!

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Perhaps in the darkest hours of our lives, the most desperate of times, nay, the very pinnacle of all things horror-inspiring, suitable to dampen one's pantaloons with the fury and force of a breaching Dutch levee; yes, just these times might be the occasion when a thing which appears to be a failure in fact becomes the situational setup necessary to perform acts of greatness. Greatness! Such acts are not out of place for the wondrous abilities of The Great Bazhooli! Indeed, this lack of his usual foot-fleetness has given him a vantage that, while not directly within the spotlight (a place he naturally preferred to be), it did allow him to assist those who were. Vladimir was a performer, after all.

Likewise, he was not always The Great Bazhooli. Nobody could properly "Bazhooli" from birth, no. It was a thing which had to be both earned and inherited. One must be worthy. And while an immense amount of pride was helpful in this endeavor, humility has its place as well. Now, Vlad did not possess an overabundance of the virtue, Humility. Contrary to belief that spread across Europe, there actually was a word for Humility in the Russian language. Admittedly, Vlad didn't use it very often. But I digress. He was fully capable of providing support to the performer who had the most important role on the stage. Right now, regrettably, that was not him. But the fight, like the show, must go on.

As Vlad went to make his move, still dancing his steps of mortal combat, he heard above the usual din and clatter of battle (oh, but he did so enjoy hearing the din and clatter of battle) yet another scream that he could have sworn started with the accent of one of those Islanders he'd heard stories about. Islanders? Irelanders. Irelanders? Whatever. Immaterial to his present issue. Vladimir gave a tiny moment of pause as the scream started to subside to smile at the Irelander woman in a manner that dashingly mischievous, tipping his head slightly as if to effect a bow. Rather it would have been a bow were they not in the situation of fighting with the most demonic thing that Vlad had seen in is life. Quietly, as his dance continued and blades caught elements of firelight in their polished, reflective surfaces, he mused to himself, "Life is nothing vithout passion. Nothing." He did appreciate a fiery haired woman with lungpower. Though his interests were differently related. He would have to leave a card later. But first! Yes, first: The killing.

Vladimir's dance hopefully served to set him in alignment and provide inertia for a decent hurl of something sharp. Luck being with him, he did in fact happen to have something sharp with him. Whoever would have thought it? He knew where to put it, too: The demonic, inky thing had an appendage clutching the lady of their search by the throat, lifted high above the ability of her legs to reach all the way to the floor. Such a position was perilous to anyone who had need of respiration, as Vladimir assumed Millicent did. Now was the time to play a supportive role. His knives seemed to agree, eagerly twinkling in the church's candlelight.

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The monster was attempting to get itself back into an upright position, most likely in order to make an attempt to escape. This couldn't be allowed - they needed to keep it on the altar in order to properly slay the poor creature. She wished she knew what it was called and where it had come from, but asking those questions right now would come with a high cost: her life. There was a time to ask questions and there was a time to fight and it would not do to mix up the two. Thankfully, she was able to come up with an idea in order to further wound and incapacitate the creature. Her beautiful ebony axes were a part of her trained skills - the skill Pavati to be specific. While they had not been blessed by anyone following her specific faith, they had been blessed essentially from her training. She did not need to have Christian faith in order to deal holy and pure damage - the faith she already had was sufficient.

"Dark Mother, guide my hand," Virginia said softly, as she took her one remaining axe and she drove it into the beast, pinning the creature to the altar. There was the downside that she was now currently without a weapon, yet her idea was proving to work excellently so far - aided by the fact that the Irishwoman let out another Banshee's screech, further paralyzing the creature. Their work had paid off, as Elizaveta was able to begin the ritual though Virginia had no idea how long it would take before they would have slain the creature. Yet there was something even more troubling - the monster had Millicent by the throat. Biting her lip, her eyes darted around rapidly as Virginia attempted to spot something that she could use to help free Millicent - if there wasn't anything around, then she was considering just tackling the limb and seeing if that would be effective.

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Maeve unleashed yet another powerful scream, just as the pale woman drove her axe into the monster, pinning it to the altar. The Russian woman had grabbed some objects and seemed to be beginning whatever process they needed in order to end this monster, but the creature had also grabbed Millicent by the throat. On some level, it was fitting - Millicent had struggled to speak up for herself before (as far as Maeve was aware) and now, she couldn't speak or breathe. Yet the Irishwoman wasn't about to leave Millicent to die. It was in her own best interest to take care of this new threat, after all. If it hadn't been, then that would have easily been another story. Maeve had no illusions of being a hero.

She wasn't the only one who was turning her attention to helping Millicent, but no one seemed to have been successful so far. The annoying man - William, she recalled - was currently failing at that endeavor. That was hardly surprising. She judged him to essentially be one of the least competent members of this gathering and she wouldn't have been shocked if the creature let go of Millicent, only to grab William and attempt to kill him instead. She wasn't sure why things only seemed to hurt the monster some of the time - she hadn't heard of a Soulless that could only sometimes be wounded. Of course, she doubted anyone had ever seen anything quite like this before. "'Old on, Miss," she beckoned to Millicent.

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Colette hoped the woman knew what to do and it appeared as if she did as she ran towards the creature. She would have to act quickly. Millicent, attempting to hold the creature on the altar, was soon lifted up. Colette did not nearly drown only to see her newfound friend killed. She quickly scanned her surroundings for any sort of weapon that could be used. At this point, she didn’t care if it was a sword or spear. She would not allow this creature to live much longer.

Her eyes fell on the candle stand. It was large and hefty, and since it was in the church it was blessed. She picked it up. It would do in this makeshift scenario. The others had all gone to battle as well, in their own unique way. Had this situation not been dire, she would have applauded seeing so many women team up to fell a beast. She pressed onward. ”Unhand her vile beast!”

Colette charged, using the pointiest side of the candle stand and launched herself on the creature, attempting to stab it through and having it unhand Millicent. She hoped the damage from both the point as well as the blessings from the church, would cause this thing intense pain. After all the trouble it had caused thus far, this was the least it was owed.

Gretna Green (Church): Okay, we got a lot going on with this so let's see if we can cover everything. William tried to attack the beast the last round but had to take a step back to avoid the tendril/arms of the beast. Constantin is able to move in and take a strike at the creature, he manages to catch one of the arms that tries to go for William. It does some damage, or at least what the group is assuming is damage when he darkness of the creature fades some.Yet, he is thrown back some as the creature strikes Constantin. Where it hits Constantin on his forearm burns.

Vlad's Mamushka isn't helping much but he is skilled in the art of throwing knifes. He has to be with his act. And he is able to get a knife thrown into the creature and it embedding through the beast and into the alter below. The creature is beginning to lose its grip on Millicents throat. Virginia remembers that Millicent dropped her sword to attack the creature earlier. She won't be able to attack by the end of the last round but she is able to retrieve the dropped sword and get close once again. She will be able to take an attack this round.

Maeve is moving like the wind and gets up to the creature, able to pin one of it's tendrils/legs down on the edge of the alter and strike it with her shillelagh. She isn't sure if it is helping. The tendril is pinned in the shadow of the alter but the creatures grip is loosening more and it seems Millicent is able to finally take a loud gasp of air into her lungs. Millicent is struggling to get free. Colette has gone from sassy French Lady to Aww hell naw Bitch it seems as she grabs a large candle stick and rushes to the altar. Striking the beast dead center. The beasts grasp finally releases from Millicent.

Millicent manages to land on her feet. Her throat looks like it has been burned or that she was hung. She is gasping for breath but reaching into the folds of her clothing for one of her remaining throwing daggers. She needs something to fight with. Ny moves closer during all the chaos but doesn't try to throw his knife again, afraid if he misses that he might strike one of the others. No, he feels it is best to hold for now until an opening presents itself. During all this a tendril manages to strike Veta and sends her flailing back against the wall. Yet she recovers quickly and begins the prayer again, with far more aggression and fierceness to her voice than before. The artifacts are starting to glow now and she is ushering the white lights from them up. She still needs more time though.