...
Nera, seeing the red-head barrel forward, quietly side-stepped the body as they flew right past her. A visceral scream then erupted behind her as the Isabella's body was swallowed by the abyss at the bottom of the giant white steps. It might not have been her own, as it sounded like a combination of many different voices, though all in manner of pain and anguish.
That whole time, her bright smile did not change at all.
"My, my, eager as always, that one~" she says, turning at the others, "So, who is next?"
The Goddess glanced back, a little more serious now. "I don't think she'll be in any real danger, being as she is protected by my magic. However, it certainly won't be pleasant for the poor thing. Though I love all of you dearly, I have to let you experience the sting of your mistakes once in a while~" she says, with an out-of-place giggle, "I was going to explain, now, to one less of you-" Another loud screech cuts the Goddess off as it was Orpheus who suddenly plummets into the abyss.
"Er, make that two less of you... In any case, the layer between your known reality and this one is... to put it lightly, made up of nightmares. Quite nasty little things. All the nightmares that have ever existed dwell on this middling layer, lured since the beginning of time. I can't get rid of them, you see. But I have properly contained them. And I have made some use of the twisted, rotten things too, as they serve to protect this realm from any unwanted trespassers. If not for the charm, your stigma, you would be tortured by horrible a thing for millennia until your body is consumed by the utter darkness below. Still, though safe as you may be, it will feel... unsettling. I deeply suggest keeping your eyes closed for the duration of the fall."
Her eyes then narrow, "And don't accept any 'candy' anything offers you..."
...
Daemos