The Ritual

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## Divine Gathering

The sun was hanging low over the horizon as two grand beings flew high in the skies, one of them substantially larger than the other. The titanic Divine Dragon Carwen soared, constantly repressing her desire to let out a roar of excitement. It wouldn't do well for the populace in the countryside to be scared shitless from a animalistic sound more powerful than thunder. But she couldn't be blamed. Unlike her daughter, she was a born dragon and to keep herself restrained in a human shape always left her feeling free when she got to spread her actual wings. Silver scales and golden hair flowing behind her helmet-like crest.

The Azure Menace was in the air again, though now on the side of humanity and good rather than her own self interest. That Carwen was dead and buried. Now she was a proud mother of four with her human husband. Funny how life can change. One of these daughters, whom had taken to her draconic arts and bloodline greater than her sisters, was flying beside her. Small when compared to Carwen herself, to a human she would be counted as nothing less than a giant. She had only recently begun being able to assume a true dragon's form, and thus her flying skills could still use some honing. She was a grown woman by now, but she flew like a youngling who had been wing clipped for years. Still trying to learn how to catch the wind beneath her wings. Carwen chuckled a bit when a powerful gust shook her daughter's body.

They had been flying for days on end, so it might as well be about her not having the strength to fly as efficiently anymore. "Do you want to catch a ride, Gwendolin"? Carwen asked, using her daughter's full name. She was struggling speaking the common language when in her draconic form. Especially so when flying. And with how the dragon language didn't have a translation for the short version, it became her full name. "If you need a rest, that is."

The smaller dragon, differentiating itself not only in its smaller size but in the gold and white rather than her mother's silver that made up the hue of her scales though they were no less thick and armored. Her glowing red eyes caught her mothers and she shook her head, "No thank you. I will never learn if I let you continue to baby me, Mother. We've not too long left to go anyhow, to give up so close to the finish line would wound my pride." She kindly rejected her mother's offer and before Carwen could respond the clouds beneath them gave way to clear skys, the floating nation of Tian coming into sight below them.

Gwen was taken aback into silence by the beauty of the place, autumn colors litered the island, waterfalls fell directly off the edges of the floating islands to create columns of water that fed into the ocean thousands of feet below. Winged humans could be seen like ants compared to them flying all about the small villages that dotted the lands within their sight.

"I've never seen a place like this before. Have you and father ever been to Tian?" She asked as they began to descend.

"Not us, but I... might have wreaked some terror in this place in my younger and immature years." replied. "Keep a keen eye out. Lady Lumi decreed that we keep a low profile and not draw too much attention onto ourselves. To meet somewhere inconspicuous. So look for the slightest of-" Carwen said as there was suddenly a burst of ice that flew into the air beneath them, forming a snowflake that slowly melted and descended into nothing. "Inconspicuous... Yeah right." Carwen muttered with a bit of annoyance as they began to fly lower and lower until they could land. In that time, Carwen began to slowly shrink down and constrict her form so that she became smaller and smaller until she was half-dragon and landed with a heavy thud before walking towards the people gathered.

As expected there was Midai Lumi, the one who had called them to duty. Next to her stood one who had once been her enemy on the battlefield. Queen Guan-yin was over her fifties now, but she didn't look a day over thirty. Carwen wasn't picky about it, since she herself might as well be twenty for all her appearance mattered, looking as young as Gwen herself. Still, that made it seem like there was something going on with her. Next to her was Prince Izar. Carwen held no love for the Queen, but she had respect of her, and Izar most particularly.

And between them all was a young man whom Carwen had seen interacting with Lynn on many an occasion. He was a pupil under Hotoke and a talented sorcerer for all she knew, but his true talent was in the theoretical aspect of magic and its history. He had uncovered several ancient mysteries and buried secrets in his short time on this earth. A gifted young man. Turning around he bowed his head to Carwen, muttering "My lady." Before returning to whatever work he was up to.

Carwen chuckled a bit as her daughter landed shortly after her. "You know, when you mentioned discreet, I honestly thought it was me who was going to be the problem child with that task." She joked rather crassly. Any other regent might have taken immediate offense to that, but Lumi only seemed to smile. "Young Ushorou is nearly done with getting us in, and I figured it was best to get you down here for that. Sorry to giving one order only to rewrite it on the fly." she giggled.

Gwen rolled her shoulders as she landed, flying for so long had left her back muscles sore as she had not yet learned to allow the wind to do most of the work just yet and thus tended to waste energy flapping her wings far more often than her mother needed to. Though where her mother beat her in nearly all aspects draconic, Gwen's skills far surpassed her mother's in etiquette. Despite her aching body she bowed her head to Lumi before doing the same for Izar and Guan-Yin. "Ladies, Sir." She offered her greetings before lifting her head and straightening up her tie as her clothes always seemed to shift upon her transformations though she supposed it was far from the worst that could happen to them.

"Carwen, Gwendolin. It's a pleasure to see the both of you again, I hope the journey wasn't hard on you or your little one." Izar spoke, several heads smaller than his queen at his side.

"The pleasure is all mine. Whatever this is must be quite important to have brought all of us here. Though I'm afraid I've been left in dark regarding the details of what exactly we expect to find here." She explained as she stared at the odd looking trapdoor before them that Ushorou seemed to be working on.

Lumi turned to Guan-yin. "Your majesty, would you care to explain it?" She asked with a bow to show respect to the regent of Vroldafn. Nodding, the queen spoke up. "Some weeks ago an expedition of Dwarfs approached us in the western border when Hotoke, Ushorou, and my trusted servants attempted to unlock the secrets of an ancient vault. The dwarfs told us of a hidden sanctuary here. It is supposed to be a resting place for a Loa. Naturally, I couldn't just stand by after learning this. The excitement to find a god of mine was all too overwhelming." She said, her eyes looking like that of a young girl about to enter a candy store, but her face remained the model of composure.

Lumi then spoke up. "In light of this revelation, neither could I. And I summoned the two of you here because you will be invaluable to our survival, I'd presume."

"Why is that so, your grace?" Carwen asked.

"Loa do not keep traps and scare tactics in their tombs to ward off the unwanted. They fill it with monstrosities and intangible entities of darkness and evil to make away of them. Possibly even add to their numbers. Your divine magic should do the trick to beat them."

Carwen looked away from Lumi and up to her taller daughter. The one who she had been mistaken for as her younger sister more than once. Connecting their emotions for a moment, a certain technique for dragons who share blood and magic. There are no words, but the wants and sensations are conveyed with utmost accuracy to their intent. Carwen was not happy with bringing her beloved daughter to such a dangerous zone. But she also relented that she was old enough to make these decisions herself, even if she was worried sick about the risks.

Gwen could feel her mother's worries, her desire not to see her enter such a dangerous place. She returned her own feelings to her beloved mothers, her desire to continue, to serve as she did, and protect the people she cared about, as well as the unintentional feeling of needing to prove herself that Gwen caught all too late. She felt embarrassed, a slight red burning at her pale skinned ears.

"I have been trained well, I will accompany you into the tomb." Gwen spoke up, both to her rest of the group and to her mother.

Izar placed a hand on Guan-Yin's shoulder, "You may get to see one of your Gods yet, Ghidi." The man spoke enthusiastically, finding the whole idea of this expedition rather exciting. Whether he did not understand the scope of the danger or simply believed they could handle anything thrown there way was not yet determined.

"Be ready, all of you." Lumi warned. "Gwen, Guan, and Ushorou will take the front as guides and initial protectors. I will stand at the centre to protect and heal from whatever may come from above, and Carwen and Izar will hold the rear. Your divine and cosmically brilliant magics will be good at warding off the foes within, along with lighting up our path where torches will not."

"Sorry, your majesty, but what do you mean that torches won't work?" Ushorou asked as he was getting close to the final touches.

Lumi sighed. Not in condescension, but rather because she didn't like to be reminded of her own defense mechanism. "When deep in their tombs, non-magical sources of light won't work nor keep us warm. It will be a strain, but I ask all of you to keep true to the task. Once inside the sanctum, we won't get out any other way than getting through. And who knows what or who we might find there. And be conservative with how much magic you use. The deeper we get, the slower we will recover, until we can't recover at all in there."

As she said this, the trapdoor began to click and slide open. Holding his book in one hand and a quill in the other, Ushorou looked to the others with a look of nervous excitement. "Well, when all the ladies and gentlemen are ready."

Gwen felt a bit nervous now with Lumi's warning. But she would not back out, nor would she share her worries with the other. She was next to head the Vroman family after all, the daughter of some of Hylion's mightiest defenders, it would shame them all to back out now. She nodded her head and stepped forward to take up her vanguard position. "You'd best keep up, It would be difficult to explain to my sister if something were to happen to you." She teased Ushorou to calm her own nerves.

Izar stood to the side, smiling warmly to Carwen as waved for her to step in before him. "Ladies first, Lady Vroman. With both of us taking up the rear our party will have nothing to fear."

"I will have a hard time explaining to myself and those in the afterlife how I could let something bad happen to me with so many powerful people around me." He chuckled as he tried to calm himself, much like the seemingly confident Gwen. Looking back to see everyone in the established order, Ushorou nodded to everyone as they descended the steps. Lighting their torches, they ventured deeper and deeper. The depths of the construction seemed unreasonable in size. It baffled Ushorou's senses how something this big could have gone unnoticed for so long.

That feeling would only amplify as they eventually came upon a large open space, only illuminated by bioluminescent moss and critters. Buildings all around them, and between each network of bridges and houses hollowed out of the earth and stone were huge chasms. "Mines?" Ushorou whispered. "Guan-yin? Your people worship the Loa, don't you? Are the Calco much for mining?"

Guan looked down into the seemingly endless depths, shuddering from the humid chill and at the thought of anyone having lived in here. This wasn't a home or even a city. It wasn't even so simple as to assume that it was just a mine. Further inside, looming over the excuse for buildings stood huge machines of manufactoring. "For the sake of materials, and us Gloomponds have mined the hardened blood of our patron dragon for centuries. But... No, this would be way beyond our skills at whatever time this was made." Guan replied, the front moving forward to allow those in the rear to catch up and be allowed to see it as well. "Where do we go from here, scholar?"

"Right ahead, I'd say. We need to find our first clues towards this origin. Stick close." he said, not so much for their safety as for his. He was strong, but his greatest strength was not present right now, and Lumi had advised him to not change inside this place. The bridge they were crossing was broad, but thin in its design. The terror was everlasting that it might break beneath their feet as they stepped on it. Luckily it never did, yet every creak and kicked stone sent shivers up their spines.

"Any idea what else we might encounter, m'lady Lumi? Since you seem to have an inkling of knowledge about these places, after all." Ushorou posed his question.

"Dark beings, twisted monsters, abominations. Just keep your eyes open." Lumi advised as they pushed forward through the buildings and seams of some strange material beneath their feet. "Let's pause here. Ushorou, begin your work. Gwen, follow him. Keep in touch over the shells and report any finds."

Gwen looked about the massive cavern, her enchanced senses picked up many sounds and smells from the dripping of water off the stalactites high above their heads, the smell of guano telling of a large bat population that either used to or still lived in the cave. She followed Ushorou, seemingly having been volunteered to look after the man as they searched.

Looking to the buildings build of stone they looked similar in design to the ones she'd seen in Tian above ground, however little she got to see of them. Similar but different, despite recognizing the design there was clearly something different about them, something beyond age or technological difference alone. The entire place seemed almost alien to her. Bright and glowing gemstones along the walls of the cavern beyond their reach illuminated hundreds if not thousands of tunnels, ancient equipment left unsued for centuries if not longer still looking as though they could come to life again at any moment and continue extracting whatever it was they mined down here.

As the moved through the ruins their tourch seemed to light less and less of their surroundings, and so Gwen created six balls of light to surround the both of them, illuminating their path and a bit beyond. The bright lights seemed to have distrubed something, the fluttering of wings passing over head answered her curiosity about the bats as well as telling her that there was another way out of her beyond the entrance they had entered from though even if that were proven now there was no way of finding it nor knowing if it was large enough for them to exit from should the need arise.

The awkward silence was killing her and so she spoke up, "How did you get wrapped up in this?" Gwen asked, her tone perhaps a bit colder than she intended. "I mean why you over Uncle Hotoke that is. Digging around in a place like this? Hard to believe he would pass it up unless he has something more pressing to attend to. Or has he passed on his research to you and taken up the role of house husband? Marrying the Nurarihyon has surely shifted some of his responsibilities."

"I can agree that Hotoke with all his experience should be the one to have taken my place." He chuckled with an empty tone as he inspected some of the scripture on a wall. "But I have a specialty in the occult and old religions. I can only hope that that was the reason he entrusted this to me and not simply because he was busy being married... You feeling ready for this, ms Gwen? Last time I was in one of these places with your uncle, it turned nasty really quick. I don't know what to expect here, but..." He trailed off, sighing in uncertainty.

Gwen shook her head whether he could see her do so or not there was purpose in the action. For all her composure and the mask of maturity she wore she was more like her mother than she or even her own mother realized. Gwen thought quite highly of herself and her abilities, perhaps even believing herself superior to many if not most others through fact of lineage alone.

"Of course, perhaps had myself or mother been there things would have turned out more in your favor. Besides, we have Izar and Guan-Yin with us as well. If we ignore age as a factor, the two struck fear into the heart of even the strongest foe during the war. They had run on sight orders placed on them after all." She spoke highly of the two, having been filled to the brim with history and stories by her aunt Alice growing up.

"So to answer your question, I've little doubt we can handle anything we find in some dusty old mines." She placed her hands on her hips and let out a prideful "hmph" sound.

"I meant you, Gwen." He muttered softly, shamefully. "Last tomb were filled with demented creatures and traps that even Hotoke struggled against for all his spiritual strength and wisdom. We are going to be challenged just as much from our minds as our bodies. Smallest crack will be exploited... Your strength is without compare for most. I don't ask out of doubt but rather concern: Are we ready to face those horrors?"

Gwen was silent for a moment, but she did not let concern show on her face. "You almost sound scared, Ushorou. I don't know about you but I thi-" Gwen was shushed suddenly by the man, something she scoffed at, offended by it.

"You asked m-" She was hushed again, this time with a finger pointed toward her, one she slapped away. "Seriously! Quiet!" He hissed as he took her hand and drew her away towards a corner, throwing the torch to one of the alleys away from them. "Act dumb." He said before looking to Gwen. "Underbrains. They are drawn to intelligence and magical power. Suppress your mind and magic to the best of your ability. Otherwise we might be in for a fight." he told her as the two of them looked around their corner.

The abominable sight was disgustingg to behold. Ten tendrils that functioned like spider legs which carried a miscolored and snuffling brain. No nose or teeth as it would seem, but it expelled strange noises and clicking sounds as it sniffed around. It twitched to their direction, to which they didn't flinch, but rather cease all thoughts in their heads and remained still as stone. Ignoring them after that, they shuffled away towards the different orbs of light that hovered about. As they came close, their brains would open up into an array of teeth and tendrils within the maw that reached out and took the orbs into their mouths and made an audible gulp as they consumed the magic, after which they simply walked away again.

Gwen could surpress her magical power, that wasn't difficult at all but she had never been asked nor taught to surpress her mind. How she would even begin to do so escaped her and in her attempts only made her think more which was no doubt counter productive to the whole thing. She could not do it, or at least she did not think she could do it and so she decided it might be better to try something else. Using the last of the uneaten orbs of light she sent them off hoping they might act as a lure to lead the creatures away somewhere further away and hopefully not directly into one of their other companions.

Most of them began to move away and follow the lights, but one of them shuffled in a different direction. Their direction. Ushorou did not need much time to realize what the problem was. "Gwen, move deeper inside. Think all you want, but move further in. Don't attack. Leave that to me." He spoke before nullifying his thought process, ushering Gwen to go further inside as his fingernails began to shift into long claws that grew and grew until they were almost as long as his arms.

She didn't know what he was planning at first, but as he began to transform she understood what he was getting at. So she followed his direction, moving back further inside as he had told her to do. Though she had faith in the man something still felt odd about the situation, as though they were doing something they should not.

The horrific entity scuttled towards their little corner. It shuffled past and away from Ushorou and skulked towards Gwen. Gwen would soon realize that the place did not have an exit. She was now cornered by this thing. The underbrain moved faster, but just before it passed away from the young man, he snuck up behind it and dug his talons deep into the creature from above. He made sure to pin it and force it to the ground so it could not scream for aid. The tentacles began to clobber and hammer him with a intense strength seldom seen in such a moderately sized being.

One tentacle drew spikes out of the tip and flung around his neck, piercing into his throat. But he did not relent or shirk. Soon, the creature fell limp and dead, to which Ushorou pulled the spiky limb out of his neck and coughed up the blood that had built up. Placing his hand against the spot, he began to heal it up. "Son of a bitch... Feisty bugger." He groaned as he got up, his claws returning to normal fingers before looking to Gwen. "It is safe now. I have what I need from this area. Let's go back to the rest and warn them about these things."

Gwen's face twisted into disgust as she looked down at the brain-shaped creature's corpse, how such things existed was unknown to her but she would not complain for a moment to have heard then and everything like them had suddenly vanished from this plain of existence one day. Stepping over its body she allowed Ushorou to lead the way as they began to walk back toward where they had come from.

She was, ironically, absentminded as they walked back to the rest. Being able to do so earlier would likely have avoided the issues that they had encountered but alas, it wasn't as though it was something she could do on command. That was when she remembered that the Brain-beast had wounded Ushorou's throat, looking at his back she opened her mouth to speak when suddenly she heared a familiar voice speaking out to her. A song, a lullaby, one that her mother had sung to her often when she and her sisters were but babes still in their cribs.

"Where art thou hiding? My sweet child, my sweet child. Why dost thou tremble in the night? My sweet child. Sleep free and deep, mother is watching you. Listen and follow me to the hallowed grounds." The voice in any other context would have been soothing, calming, it might even have seen her drift off to sleep but after having been warned of how this place would play with her mind it was hard to describe it as anything other then horrifying.

She took a deep breath and held a hand to her forehead, unable to tell where the voice was coming from and frankly not knowing if she should try to discern it's location at all.

"Do you hear that?" She asked Ushorou, needing to confirm whether or not it was all in her head.

Ushorou breathed a sigh of relief when he heard her ask that. "Yes, I hear it. Started to wonder if I was going crazy or hearing things." he muttered, shrugging his shoulders as if shaking off whatever sensation he was feeling. "It is... haunting. Come along, we'd better report." He said as they kept walking, never turning around. "Such a grim voice... What is he saying to you?" he asked to confirm what she had heard and see if it aligned. Monsters that infest the mind can speak different words to one and the other.

Gwen's ears twitched at his question, "He?" She asked, unsure how he could mistake the voice for a males. "It's my mother's. A lullaby she used to sing to us." She corrected him but shook her head as the voice grew more intense. They didn't have to be hearing the same thing. Not if it was in their heads.

"What do you hear?"

"Carwen? I won't ask if you are certain. You are no imbecile, but... He is whispering. Names... Titles... Warnings... A... We need to get back. Maybe the others have an idea of what is happening." He said firmly as he picked up the pace towards where the others were waiting for them. Gwen would know that they were about three quarters of the way there by now, but despite that, Ushorou stopped in his tracks. His breathing became unsteady. "G-Gwen? Are you there?"

Gwen was taken aback by the question, answering in the only way she could to that. "Yes, right behind you. What's the matter?"

"I-I need you to escort me back. I-I can't see. The voice... It is so loud. My vision is clouded. I-! D-Dear heavens... what is that?" he said in a terrified tone as he stepped back. "Gwen! Get me back! Yank me over the ground if you must."

"Ushorou! Get ahold of yourself!" She snapped at him, grabbing his arm to spin him to face her. His freaking out was only making her all the more anxious. He was supposed to be the one who knew about all of these things after all.

When he was spun around to face her she saw that his eyes were not his own but something different entirely. Slit pupils, glowing eyes, colors like flames wept from the corners of his eyes she was taken aback by the sight and even a bit mesmerized by them. Her own eyes were wide as she stared into the eyes that were not Ushorou's, and her mother's voice was soothing in her head. Her eyelids felt heavy, like she was about to fall asleep. Her limbs felt weak, like her body was ready to crumble and rest where they stood.

Her eyes drooped, and she thought that a moment to rest them would do no harm. The world started to fade when suddenly it shot back to life with a fury, her own eyes burned a golden hue but whatever was happening to Ushorou was not happening to her. No, the magic that burned in her eyes were her own. "Snap out of it!" She yelled, slapping the boy across his face and taking him by the collar to drag him back toward camp. She hated this feeling, her body felt weak, the man felt heavy, her body begged her to rest, the lullaby lulled her to just close her eyes and sleep.

"I am the heir to the Vroman family, inheriter of the dragon heritage, daughter of the Divine Bitch. Nothing in this dank, dark cavern will fell me!" She growled like a dragon as she pulled the man along like sack of potatoes toward the place she hoped the others were waiting.

The task of getting Ushorou towards the camp site of the party. Lumi had struck up conversations to pass the time until the young ones returned. It seemed to go well enough, even though there was some tension between Carwen and Guan-yin, it was still a case of them showing respect for the sake of the mission. When they heard the sound of shuffling over the ground. Standing at the ready in case it was some form of creature headed their way, soon enough they saw a tired Gwen drag Ushorou over the ground, barely able to keep herself up.

In Gwen's ear she would hear the song of the disembodied voice calling all the louder, calling her to come closer to where it desired her to be. To come and slumber next to mother. "Gwen!" She would hear the voice of her true mother calling out to her over the sound of the song as Carwen and everyone else came running up to them. Lumi and Guan took care of Ushorou once they saw the state of him, carrying him with them to the campfire they had set up. Picking up Gwen, Carwen took her to the fire as well, holding onto her dear daughter. "Lumi! What is wrong with her?" she asked as she sat down with Gwen's head in her lap.

Lumi went over to the two Vromans, giving Gwen a look over. "She's under some sort of spell... I can't identify what. Some sort of creature perhaps. Until we know more, just keep talking to her. Anchor her to reality. Just keep talking to her and make her connect to this waking world rather than what she is being lulled into." She instructed before moving back over to Ushorou and began conversing with Guan and Izar. Carwen was scared to talk soothingly in the instance that she might fall asleep, but if Lumi told her to be soothing and talk to Gwen, then she would. "Hey, Gwen. All is well... Don't fall asleep on me now, you hear? My big, strong girl can make it through anything. I know that. Because you are mom's strong and wonderful girl."

Gwen's vision was fading in and out, two voices spoke to her now with one being much louder than the others. She could only catch small bits and pieces of the softer voice but she recognized it as her mother's as well. Both of them sounded like her mother but how could either of them be? The weight of draging Ushorou had fallen off and she began to worry that he had slipped from her grasp. She needed to find the boy and get back to camp, to the others so that they could do something. Lynn would not forgive her if she abandoned Ushorou and she would never forgive herself if she was unable to fight through this mental haze and make it back to the others.

Her brow furrowed, her hands reached out at nothing, the voice would not silence itself, neither of them would, all she wanted to do was get back to camp and sleep. If she could get Ushorou back then surely she would have earned herself a nap at least.

"Shut up..." Her tired and weary voice spoke out, she had meant to yell but it had come out so weak that she could not even hear it over either voice that called out to her. "That stupid lullaby... Shut up..." She hardly got out again, the face of her mother appearing in her vision for a moment before everything began to fade again.

"Mom... Make it stop." Gwen tried to beg on the off chance the vision she had seen was real, if her mother could hear her.

Carwen began to infuse her own supreme power into Gwen to bolster her abilities. "I don't know how. But you want to know what I do know? I know that you are the most powerful woman I know. You are strong. Worthy of all that you have earned and will inherit. You are going to be the most powerful in the family, and I'll prove that to you right now." She told her more firmly. "You have all it takes to break free from this. Use this power. Use *your* power. Nothing in this fucking cave can keep you back! Why? Because you are the divine bitch's daughter. You are the Divine Dragon Gwen Vroman!"

Gwen, who had been feeling all her strength quickly draining from her body, suddenly felt a massive surge of power flooding into her body. It came as a shock, like her heart being restarted and with that power her eyes shot open, the loud voice was growing fainter, more hostile it spoke these final words, "Wretched Whelp" It hissed with venom in every syllable before it was gone completely and she was looking up at the face of her mother as she rested her head in the woman's lap.

Gwen's breathing was shaky and a chill ran up her spine as she forced herself to sit up right. "W-What happened? Where is Ushorou? I didn't leave him behind, I wouldn't!" Her composure seemed to shatter, unwilling to believe she might have left the man behind even under the circumstances. Seeing him on the ground with Lumi, Izar, and Guan-Yin kneeling over him she let out what sounded like a sigh of relief before she looked back to her mother.

The younger woman's lip quivered, almost as though she were about to shed tears but she had regained her composure by then and she would allow no such thing. "Mom..." Her voice cracked before she let out another shaky breath. "I don't know what came over me. Over us, I don't even know if what's happening to Ushorou is the same thing that happened to me. Will he be alright?" She asked, despite how she talked to and about him it was clear in her concern that she cared about the boy for some reason even if it were only that she knew her sister cared for him.

Carwen raised a hand to Gwen's cheek, a gesture to tell her that everything is alright. "You didn't leave him. You are too good to leave someone behind. He is here. You brought him to safety." She said with a comforting tone before lowering her hand again. "I can't say what it is that has happened to either of you, but I know it is gonna be alright. We have a master of spiritual magic here, and a supreme healer to boot. And as soon as we have a few answers, we got a master strategist and thinker to figure out what to do. All is going to be okay... Come. Let's see to the boy." She said, getting up on her feet and walking towards the other three members hovering over Ushorou.

"Ushorou, can you hear us?" Lumi called to Ushorou who seemed almost comatose, whispering to himself words that were barely able to be comprehended. "Guan-sama, any idea what has befallen the poor boy?"

Guan held her reliquary in one hand and the other pressed against Ushorou's forehead as her eyes radiated with magic. "He is affected by some sort of spiritual influence. Something with a stronger spiritual energy than his. Something with greater authority than his."

"I mean no offense, Lady Guan-Yin but that's impossible. Ushorou is immune to magic that effects the mind and soul, Uncle Hotoke claimed so himself, undoubtedly they tested it extensively before making such a claim." She spoke, wearly but confident in her belief in what she had said. It made no sense to her.

Izar shook his head, "That may be so, and I would not doubt Hotoke to have tested it extensively but what was true then and what is true now are two different things, Guan isn't wrong." He defended his beloved's assessment, even without the knowledge that they held it was clear that something powerful had taken hold of the boy's mind.

"The more important question is why the both of you over any of us? Surely the Lady Kuromiya or myself would have made easier targets for mental attack then the indomitable Ushorou and the stalwart Gwen. Perhaps it meant to send a message?" Izar suggested, trying to think to the motives of their attacker as he could do little to help Ushorou himself. That needed to be left to the ones most capable.

"Possibly, but-" Guan began before cutting herself off, looking down at Ushorou. "Something is coming."

"Coming? What do you mean?" Carwen inquired, worried about the implications considering the current events.

"Ushorou's soul is receding. Giving place for something else... Something else is taking control. But... It is not forceful. Everyone! Get back!" Guan ordered, but even as everyone else stepped back, Guan stayed put, clearly doing her best to withstand whatever was emerging, attempting for dear life to ensure that Ushorou could be in control of his own body, emboldening his spirit so he could resist better. But it was for naught.

The mist from Ushorou's eyes became clearer, brighter in color. His hair turned from ghostly off-white to a pitch black coloration. His ragged breaths turned steady. His twitching came to an end. And he was relaxed. With a few moments of silence, one could tell that Guan's eyes glistened. Carwen was petrified at the sight. "Your grace? Are you crying...? Is... Is he..." Carwen muttered, unwilling to finish her sentence in case her fears were realized.

"N-No. I can still feel him. But... yes, I am... This... This is beautiful." She whispered, looking down at the confused boy who slowly rose up from laying down, looking around. "It isn't a demon or a monster... It is a Loa." She said before backing up, looking upon him in reverence as he looked around. "Your majesty." She spoke, catching his attention.

"Wh-Where... Where am I?" He muttered, his voice quite distinct from Ushorou's own.

Gwen's brow furrowed in anger to see Guan-Yin speak to whatever had taken over Ushorou with reverence regardless of what it was it was an intruder and it had almost taken her too. "Somewhere you shouldn't be! Give Ushorou his body back." She demanded of the Loa.

Izar held an arm out in front of the girl to try and calm her restless anger at the situation. "Gwen, I know you're worried about him but you should have faith in the boy, he'll return when this passes, I'm sure of it." He told her, choosing to have faith in Ushorou and see what this Loa wanted.

"You're in an ancient mine under Tian. What are you doing here of all places?" He asked the Loa, hoping it might be able to give them some answers about all of this.

"There... Was a war. A world sundering conflict. Hell on earth. I fled. I hid beneath this mountain. My disciples watched over me. They looked after and protected me. But... Their voices grew silent. It turned from songs to praise to whispers and then... nothing." He spoke as he looked around himself to the last remnants of what he called his people.

Guan looked upon the possessed Ushorou with intrigue and admiration. "A war? I have not heard of a war with Loa getting involved. What happened to cause you to run?"

"Death. Madness and death. The screams were unfathomable. You cannot hope to imagine what the sounds were like... And then... And then everyone began to die. Not just landscapes or mortals like you. Our very kin. Loa... murdered by their own flesh and blood en masse. Their souls ruptured, caught, and imprisoned. I could not stay. I... I feared for my life."

"Better that than to lose all Loa. Your children will understand." Guan spoke in an attempt to comfort.

"I won't." Carwen spoke up, catching the attention of all being present. "The world was burning, your servants being slaughtered and your family murdered. And your decision was to flee? So rather than standing your ground as a hero, you fled, and became forgotten and lost as a coward. I would rather have ceased existing than abandon my family." She hissed, causing Guan to give her a cruel look and the Loa to look down to the ground.

"Family... Children... I never had the chance to comprehend such ideas before the war began. And the conflict did not allow for sentimentality, hesitancy, or mercy. Nor for compassion, despite what ones inner wishes might be."

"All this way for a coward..." Gwen spoke under her breath, her mother having said all that needed to be said, her words would be spoken out of turn were she to voice them loudly.

Izar let out a sigh, "Please understand the slight hostility, you've taken over the body of a good friend. Such an act is never to be taken lightly but especially in this case. This man was believed to be immune to the interference of magic within his mind and soul, this situation is unprecedented in more ways that I can count. I can only imagine that you have a reason for showing yourself, what is it?" Izar spoke with a polite but stern tone. He, like his wife, worshipped the Loa though his reverence for the beings did not even begin to border her own especially given the circumstances. Ushorou was a friend and an asset to Hylion, were he lost it would be quite the blow to many.

The loa looked to Izar when he spoke up. "I understand. I don't know what to say that can excuse what I've done. I was trapped. Stuck in a limbo in the air. The darkness in this boy drew me to him, regardless of what I wished." He muttered as he got up on his feet. All the while Lumi analyzed every move while wearing a face of confusion and curiosity.

"You were drawn to the darkness within him? What does that mean then? That you are a being of darkness? What sort of unspeakable things might you do to get your will through?" Carwen hissed, causing Guan to jerk her head towards the woman.

"Show some respect, Carwen Vroman. Antagonizing the divine will avail us nothing. Better to understand than accuse." She said before turning back to him. "What is your name, your excellence? What are you the Loa of?" She asked.

He seemed to hesitate at that. Not so much for the sake of hiding his identity as him seeming truly confused to his own nature. He looked around the area before he proceeded. "Hammers... Fire... I remember the endless sounds of contruction. The wheel of fire and machinery to embolden my subjects. The smashing of metal against metal in the endless pursuit of liberation... Industry. Yes... That seems familiar. Metal and Industry are my domain. And my name... Yes!" Standing tall he bowed humbly before everyone. "My name is Ka'taai, Loa of industry and crafts."

Izar did not note the seeming confusion, figuring he too would be quite confused if he woke up some untold years in the future to a dusty old mine. Izar turned his attention to Carwen, "Lady Carwen, I understand your hesitance with all that has happened. I am on your side, our side. We will figure this out together, all of us, including Ushorou." He tried to calm Carwen's temper, almost wishing that Alistair had come as of all the people of the world he was one of only two who could reign the woman in when things began to boil over.

"Gwen, are you alright?" He asked, knowing that she had just experienced a rather unpleasureable time likely at the same hand as Ushorou now did.

The younger Vroman, the nigh spitting image of her mother, nodded her head. "Yes, just exhuasted, and frustrated."

"You did good." He nodded to the girl before turning his attention back to the Loa.

"Ka'taai, Loa of Industry and Crafts. It has been an unimaginable amount of time since you have seen another living being I've little doubt. But the war you speak of is over, time has seen hundreds of thousands of civilizations rise and fall in your absence. Is there a reason you remain here? Anything you would have us do?"

Gwen scoffed at that, seeming displeased at the idea of being sent on some quest by this thing holding Ushorou hostage.

Ka'taai looked down at his hands before giving his reply. "I had a feeling that it was. There was a tranquility that was entirely foreign. I could feel the evil of the world receding, so I suppose I knew in some way." He explained. "I am stuck here. Deep within these chambers is my entombment. I built it to keep my essence from being tracked. I made it a bit too well. I cannot open it on my own... I humbly ask all of your help to open the vault, so that I may roam the world again and spread my blessings anew."

Lumi stepped up at that, her uncertainty slowly fading. "Seems suicidal for a Loa to cut himself off from all surroundings. If worship is what keeps them alive and grants them strength, with your follower's dead, shouldn't you be but a memory by now?" She asked, catching the intrigued attention of Guan.

"Wild Kings and even some Ascended Loa can sustain themselves simply based on if their attributes given to the world is living on. The people... The Dwarfs, they practice a level of industry that makes me proud somewhere in this world. I believe that is why I am standing."

"So you are a wild king?" Guan asked, feeling amazed. She had drawn on the power of a Wild King during the times of the war, but to be interacting and speaking to one directly was a marvel in and of its own to her.

"Yes. I rose to such prominence within this cavern as the ideas of my essence fostered and grew. But... Now I am in more of a limbo, I suppose."

"That war was hundreds of thousands of years ago, though. Your history has fallen to myth and legend. How does one survive on so little for so long and still keep the status?" Lumi asked, feeling suspicious but also intrigued. The creature shook his head in a bit of confusion.

"Determined to just live, perhaps?"

An amused exhale escaped Izar's nose at that. "I've known people to survive on less than that. If this is turly a Loa, I think we should help it." He nodded his head, "Ka'taai, you've no reason to trust us so to see to it that we both get what we want out of this I purpose a pact. You return our friend to us alive and unharmed now and in turn, I will do everything within my power to help you escape from this place." The man offered, not dragging anyone else into this as he knew Guan would follow him and assumed Lumi would as well, but he would not attempt to drag Carwen, Gwen, or Ushorou into this more than they were willing.

"What do you say? Give us some ideas on where to look and how to go about it and we might be able to help you." He held out his hand to the Loa inhabiting Ushorou, knowing full well the power of a pact made by a Loa. Neither side would be able to back out once the deal was struck.

Gwen wanted to speak up, but fell silent, not knowing what the Loa might do to Ushorou if she voiced her own negative opinion on helping the being out. While Izar might have thought he was helping them by not adding them into his promise, fact of the matter is they were still being dragged into it by no fault of his.

"I... It will be difficult to communicate with you if I am but a wisp of magic in the air. But if you are confident in your abilities, then... yes. Let's consider that a bargain." He said as he took his hand, but just before finishing the pact, he spoke his final words. "A warning. Down the steps there is a potent monster trying to bar your way. Consider it the guard dog to my cage."

"What is it?" Guan asked with dreaded anticipation.

"A false hydra. A wicked and innately evil creature. It is resilient to any and all kinds of magic. Only use physical prowess against it. Otherwise you will just empower its next spell of its own. And... Try and deafen yourselves. Its song will try to either hypnotize you or just make you forget it exists. And don't die. If you are devoured by this thing, all of reality will forget that you ever was part of it."

Carwen's eyes widened at that, never having heard of such a terrible creature before. It sounded like a children's cautionary tale monster. "So if I were to-"

"Your children, your husband, your family, your friends, all of them would forget. Some say even the afterlives forget you ever existed and will thus not take you in."

Carwen stood stunned for a few seconds, simply coping. Then she put on a cocky smile anew. "Better not get eaten then."

Ka'taai nodded as he squeezed Izar's hand before speaking the words that would bind their pact until the end: "I solemnly swear that my word is true."

Izar winced slightly as the pact was formed, like a branding on his soul. He'd never met a Loa before but he knew of their pacts and in a way he sort of thought it might feel something like this. He let out an exhale as the feeling wained but did not vanish entirely, the way the weight of a ring or necklace might fade but you still feel it there on your person.

He let go of Ushorou's hand, the presence seeming to lift from him and Izar caught him in case he might topple over from suddenly regaining control of himself. "There, There, one step at a time." He teased Ushorou a bit, wanting to lighten the mood after what they had just been told. Though deep in his heart he worried for the fate of his companions.

Gwen shivered at what the Loa had told him, the idea scared her greatly, so much so she could not even find it in herself to be happy that Ushorou had been returned to them. She turned her attention to her mother, looking for guidance on what they would do now. She rubbed her elbow against Carwen's to get her attention. "What will we do now? Do you really intened to follow him to that thing?"

"You don't have to, none of you do if you do not want to. I made the pact, I am the only one bound by it." He spoke, turning his attention to Guan. "Ghidi, I have my doubts you intend to back out of this, helping one of the Loa, I could think of no one better suited for the task." He smiled warmly at his wife before he turned to Lumi.

The man shook his head, "Things are about to get more dangerous than any of us could have imagined, if you wish to turn back now you will not have lost my respect, Lady Kuromiya. I'm sure the Shogun is eagerly awaiting your return." He gave Lumi the option to leave, not wanting to endanger the woman any further than he already had.

"As for the rest of you, I won't ask you to continue on with me, but I would certainly appreciate a man who knows a thing or two about these sorts of places and two dragons to watch our backs never hurt either. What do all of you say?"

"Well, you've got one." Spoke Ushorou determined as he came steady on his feet. "There is a debt to be paid to this whole damn cave for doing this to me. I don't know about any Loa, but these freaks brought me low and tormented Gwen. I won't stand for it. The hydra will be killed like all the creatures that comes before it."

Carwen looked at Ushorou with a peculiar look before moving on to Gwen. "Gwen, you know this 'bitch' is proud of you. And I know that you are strong enough to kill anything in here. But this contains greater risk than anything we've faced until now. I don't know how lethal it is, but the risk of losing you so thoroughly... I can't comprehend it." Carwen spoke as she took her daughter's hand and brought it up so she could kiss the back of the palm, wanting to show her love in case she left. "My opinion is that you leave. Just in case. But if you stay... Know that your mother will look after you through anything at any cost."

"If so many will stay, then so will I. I sense that you might be in need of supplementary and healing magic through this. I am not leaving anyone behind. We need to solve this mystery, and above all, I need to keep you all alive regardless of the cost."

Gwen shook her head, "I've no intention of leaving if you are going to stay. I could not face Father or my siblings should you or Ushorou not return." Gwen stood her ground, unwilling to leave without Carwen and, begrudgingly, Ushorou.

"I see we're all in agreement to continue on then, some more willingly than others. Your bravery is commendable and your company is appreciated. The Loa warned us that we should find a way to deafen ourselves before we face the creature, an easy enough spell but we should figure out how we intend to communicate. Link ourselves telepathically perhaps? I'm open to suggestions," He tried to come up with a strategy to face their first hurdle, possibly their most difficult one at that. There was a great deal of danger in fighting the hydra, to lose any of the people here would be a great loss to many.

"Sounds like a plan... Anyone know how to do that though? Because... I can't." Carwen muttered.

"I can." Ushorou spoke up. "I have controlled a ghoul host for all my life with my mental connections and superior influence. I can connect us all." he said before conjuring something in his hands. Looked like earplugs of some sort. He walked up to each and every one of them and placed the bone constructs in their ears, shaping them to fully plug and cover their ears. With a tap to each and every one of their foreheads, he spoke to their minds: "Like this we will communicate. But be cautios. Without sound we won't be able to tell from sound when someone is hit or when a sneak attack is coming. Keep in constant contact, keep a field perception at all costs, feel for aura's and vibrations in the air and the ground. Anticipate the attacks. Or... At least as much as we can. We might have information, but we are still going in blind with how it looks or how it fights." He thought, sending the message to everyone standing around him.

"Gonna take some getting used to it." Carwen chuckled. "Do we proceed now then? I don't know about you, but I'd rather not sit by and wait for that bastard to start singing to me. I vote on finding it and killing it as quickly as possible."

"I concur. Better to see it dead and relieve us of the pest." Lumi replied.

"But be conservative with your powers. The hydra may be dangerous, but there is a chance that in the lower levels there are more monsters. Possibly worse ones. Let's not be too hasty with our output. If we tire our reservoirs and strengths too quickly, we may be vulnerable to what comes next. Be tactical, be clever abour it." Guan followed up.

Izar silently nodded his head, "We need to go lower. I'm sure the Loa is down there deep within the mine, this hydra must be deep within as well." He spoke to them all through the connection Ushorou had kindly set up for them. "I'm afraid that with this thing's resistence to magic I won't be much help in fighting it, I can offer distractiona and support but my physical prowess is nigh compareable to any of yours." The man admitted humbly, knowing he was asking alot of them he would do his best to keep them alive.

## In The Den of Evil

With that they grabbed their belongings and continued their journey deeper into the mines. As they walked through the labyrinthine mine passing through abandoned villages, long forgotten work sights, conserving their strength and power by using Ushorou's knowledge to sneak past the unsavory creatures that had come to call this place home. Had the monster started to sing, were they even close enough to have heard it, they did not know and perhaps that was for the best. As the darkness grew darker and darker until their non-magical lights could not longer pierce it, Gwen cast balls of light to show them the way forward and as they walked through a narrow shaft it could seen that a light was shining up ahead where the shaft opened up into a wider area.

As they spread the lights around the room, they soon realized just how large the area was. Enough space to fit even Carwen's draconic form. A troublesome thought to imagine the size of the creature that required as much space as she would have. As Gwen spread the lights wider and wider, they soon came upon seeing a bulbous pound of flesh in the distance. Closer than imagined, unable to grant any sort of comfort of distance. Gwen kept spreading the orbs, for if a fight broke out, they wanted the whole area lit.

Pink, wrinkled skin upon a bloated frame. Clawed limbs protruding out of the fat flesh, along with spindly hands without discernable features. No nails, no prints, nothing. More like a blob of flesh in the shape of a hand. A towering figure that once the the light illuminated, turned in its place and revealed one of the many heads to the party.

Hollow eyes filled with a darkness to them that could hardly be described as anything else than pure evil. Carwen, Guan, and Lumi generally did not believe in such things, but if ever there was a creature that could be described as such, it was this thing. A tongue the size of two human beings, dripping with its own blood as it hung outside of it's mouth. Excessively long teeth that all looked more like chompers than fangs or even regular human front teeth in an eternal wicked grin. Its mouth began to move to speak, but no one could hear anything. A mercy in and of itself, as hearing the sound of this twisted creature speak in its natural voice was a nightmare. Before Ushorou could say his next thoughts, they all heard a soothing voice in their minds.

"So bold and brave to come so deep. I admire your creativity and resolve. But I am afraid that it cannot be allowed that you delve deeper. And I can't let you leave either." It hissed.

"That's fine. We weren't going anywhere either way." Ushorou said as he took position and prepared to attack.

"Is that so? What will your friends think of that, I wonder?" Spoke the hydra as it revealed more of its many heads, soon counting up to ten of them. And the sight of them struck fear into the heart of Carwen. "D-Delilah?" Carwen muttered in her head, composed enough to not speak, but her tone of dread was palpable. A woman Carwen had since long forgotten, now stared at her in a twisted and monstrous, yet still recognizable face. Dark blonde hair, matted with blood and gore, tangled and humid, sagging off the top of its head. All the memories of the woman came back to Carwen. She didn't know if these memories would last any more. And that only made her more terrified, but all the more furious.

"Carwen, no!" Ushorou shouted mentally at her, but it was too late. Carwen had already burst forward, running towards the false hydra with murderous intent. In her mind, it was no longer about getting to the core. Now it was a matter of giving her old friend peace. One of the heads came down to face her. Going for a bite, she sidestepped the creature before delivering a powerful punch to its temple, knocking it to the side as she felt the bones in the skull cave in. Feeling proud, it wasn't long before she noticed that that head was recovering and building itself back together. "We are in for a hell of a fight! Give it your all!" Carwen told everyone as she continued her assault, not so much on the head in particular, but against the body and serpentine necks with a fury she hadn't known since the Hylion and Vroldafn war. A war in which she had been made into the Toranku's pet for the battle against Gandr. That indignation... Was nothing compared to what she felt now.

Gwen did not understand what had sent her mother into a blind rage, no tactician at heart of course, but she knew her mother was smarter than that. Whatever had set her off must have been horrible and so she joined in, focusing her attacks on the necks of the best like her mother, unsure if they shared the same idea, Gwen thought if the thing were a 'false' hydra then perhaps cutting off the heads would in turn be its weakness. Perhaps a childish thought but it wasn't as though she had any better ideas at the moment, being limited to her physical strength was frustrating.

Izar used his his cosmic magic to decrease the gravity around his allies, seeing their speed increase as a result. "Let me know if you plan on going for a big attack, I can boost it. I'm sorry I can't join in the fray but I have all of your backs, trust me." Izar spoke to them all mentally, wishing he could do more but knowing he served a better purpose in the back as a supporter.

Gwen readied a her claws, long and sharp when suddenly a face appeared before her. Memories of someone she didn't know suddenly invaded her mind like a knife driven directly into her brain. A friend, young, back when she was but a little girl in school. "Mouse" Gwen remembered the girl's nickname, given to her for her shy demeanor and mousy blonde hair. Had the beast invaded her mind again? Was it reaching through her long lost thoughts to scare her? Why not her sisters? An ex-boyfriend? Even her own Mother? Why someone she hadn't seen in years? Someone she'd completely forgotten.

"Forgotten..." Gwen accidently spoke mentally to others, "Everything this things eats is forgotten" She continued to think so that everyone could hear her.

"No, that can't be. No one has been here in hundreds of thousands of years, right?" The woman kept talking.

Izar spoke up to snap her out of it, "Gwen! Get ahold of yourself and watch out!" He shouted loudly through their minds, his gravity magic snapping the girl out of it as it pulled her away froma claw swipe that barely tore a hole in the fabric of her top and exposing a small part of her stomach.

But the creature did not let up, pursuing her and now Izar for having interfered. The familair face of the creature began to chase Gwen who in turn fled.

Even through the earbuds were they able to hear the cackling of the monster as the heads chased after the mages before its voice resonated in their heads again. "You really think I am restricted to this paltry domain? I am Oulrook, blessed by the Loa of Mourning! Where there is sorrow, I will find you!" The beast shouted. Guan fought for dear life, drawing her sabres and cutting the beast across the face and normally vital points along the neck, hoping to slice it to pieces. She thrust her blade into the socket that would have been its eye, only to find it laughing in her face before going for a bite. "I'll show you exactly how!" he shouted joyously before it's central head seemed to disappear into nothing ness bit by bit.

"IZAR!" Guan shouted mentally, catching his attention. The head had manifested behind him, maw agape with the intent of devouring him. Guan dashed to his side, forcing her left sabre through his skull and down to the ground. But that wasn't enough. It was still wriggling and flailing like mad. The head that had chased Guan prior came up from behind, and as Guan attempted to draw back her sword to continue the attack against the rear fiend, she realized that her sword was stuck inside. The beast had recuperated and hardened the spot to make it as if the sword was stuck in stone.

The pursuing head of Gwen cackled mockingly as its voice came into her head. "You should be grateful to me. The conflict that you two had sundered both your hearts. You wept for weeks. I liberated you both!" It shouted before going for another bite. Gwen, being swift as she was, managed to avoid it with relative ease, but it did not relent all the same. "But now you seem sad again. Don't worry. I can reunite you both. Just come to mama." it whispered as the head moved quicker to Gwen.

Before the jaws could close around Gwen, Carwen slammed it into the ground, keeping it away from Gwen. "Gwen! Help me kill them! Remember what I tought you! If your only way of surviving is to charge a monster with a broken chair leg, then you charge the monster. No different now!" The use of the divine propulsion had expelled magic. Magic which now seemed to bolster the creature, making all its attacks faster and stronger. It continued to chase after Gwen, Carwen moving to protect her daughter. Carwen picked up Gwen in her arms before igniting her Divine Blaze Engine beneath her feet, flying them through the air and way. But by expelling so much magic, it gained more and more speed to catch up to them with."

Then a different head came in front of them from nowhere, mouth open as it went for a bite. There was no time to avoid with the speed she was traveling at. All that remained was one thing. Giving Gwen a kiss to the cheek, she thought to her. "Make mama proud." Before tossing her to the side as the two heads crashed into eachother and took Carwen in their maws. Falling down, Gwen would see Carwen being caught by the arm in one mouth, and the rest of her body in the other. With a sickening crack and tearing sound did the two heads tear the arm off of Carwen's body, a spray of blood as the two creatures gulped loudly, the one that had swallowed Carwen showing a bulge in the throat that was slowly trailing down its neck.

"Mother!" Gwen's voice carried in it a wretching pain that none, not even her own mother would have ever heard from the woman. The memory of Carwen already starting to fade in the mind of the young dragon starting with her appearance, feeling her mother's face slowly disappear. The feeling of all her memories being wiped away was sickening, like watching family photos slowly decay and rot with time.

Izar hadn't even the time to process what had happened to Carwen, his and Guan's life were on the line as the two heads struck out at them both. Though he knew that it would strengthen them for a moment there was no time to think of another solution, raising his hand he fired off several bolts of energy into the air seemingly at nothing, grabbing hold of Guan and telling her to get down as from the darkness above them came several long pointed stalactites came falling down toward the heads of the creatures in hopes of pinning them down if not taking the heads out entirely.

With Izar's genius move, the rock came crashing down over both the heads of the hydra just as she managed to withdraw her sword and Izar pulling her away to the side. Covering, the stalactites pierced and crushed the two heads. Feeling content for just a moment, the rocks soon rumbled. Rising out of the rubble, the heads had caved in spots all over, and with pierced body parts which were slowly regenerating. "Just die already!" Guan shouted at them as she prepared her sabres anew, ready to strike at it yet again.

Lumi and Ushorou stood back to back fighting off the heads that came their way. Ushorou's strength was invaluable to Lumi, keeping the heads away from them as she provided him support and supplementary abilities and healing his injuries every once in a while. When four heads came their way at once and seeing how Gwen was in trouble, Lumi notified Ushorou of that. With a clack of the heel, a burst of frost came and froze the heads in place. "Help her!" she mentally shouted before running away from the scene, trying to keep them frozen.

Ushorou flapped his manifested wings and lept into the air and caught Gwen. "Gwendolin! Focus. Don't forget Carwen. So long as there is a memory, there might be hope. Keep fighting! And even if there isn't... we can still avenge her! For mot-For Carwen! Let's kill this fucker!" he said before the two of them landed and Ushorou proceeded to manifest claws and rend the fiend across its body. "Cut off its heads. It may keep on regenerating, but I wonder if it can still recover heads that are no longer connected to the body. I'll distract it here, you go rip it apart! Your half-dragon claws should do plenty if mine does this! Remember who we do this for!" he called to her.

Gwen was half-shaken from the state she had been in, still shaken to her core the heartache in her chest began to burn with fury, perhaps even hatred, with Ushorou's reminder of who they were fighting for now. Still, as much as she felt hate for the beast some of it was felt toward Izar and Guan-Yin. Should she lose her mother to this place and this monster she would never forgive them for dragging them down here. Even if all memory of her mother was lost she was sure that hate would remain for so long as she lived.

Transforming into her half dragon state her body became scaled in gold and white, larger and winged now she went on the offensive, following Ushorou's advice and sticking to her original plan to slice through their heads. Her claws were sharp and even if she were to miss her swings, the air would continue forward to slice the first thing it came in contract with, extending her reach beyond just the razor-like claws on her hands. Her claws buried themselves in one of the necks of the creatures, her bladed nails slicing through their flesh like a hot knife gliding through butter. "Spit her out you disgusting mound of flesh and misery!" She demanded of the thing the way a king would demand the head of a traitor, her voice boomed but none but herself and the monster would be able to tell what she'd said through the silence cast upon them.

Izar had heard Ushorou's idea and made note of it, Guan's sabers were not large enough to cut their heads clean off despite her strength so he cast an enlarging spell on them, focusing his Cosmic magic's gravity ability upon them now that the other's had boosted their speed through other means, the sabers grew larger and longer, but their weight remained the same. "Ghidi, cut them down with ease. Rend their heads from their necks." He told her as casually as asking her to hand him the remote, knowing the woman was more than capable now that she had the means.

Guan grinned wickedly at the sight of her weapon elongating and hardening in kind, yet with the same weight in her hand. Pulling back, she made a slice that cut the monster's head clean off, robbing it of yet another means to cause harm. Noticing that the neck didn't regenerate anything save for closing the wound so it wouldn't bleed out, she continued the assault. "Seems like you were onto something, Ushorou!" She thought to the man, giving praise to his strategy.

The Hydra screamed in agony from Gwen's radiant claws digging its way through its neck and slicing through sinew, muscle and flesh as she cut her way to and through its throat. The bulge that had formed down its long neck came to the ripped open spot, revealing the slowly devoured Carwen. At the sight of her face, Gwen would begin to have her memories come back to her.

Slowly coming back to, Carwen's eyes fluttered open as she realized her position. Dashing out of the creature's neck, she was already back in action. Jumping past Gwen, her magical claw sliced open the necks of two heads that were coming back to strike at Gwen, causing them to recoil and screech with a gurgling noice as their thorats filled up with its thick blood, Carwen herself drenched in it and with blood gushing from her ripped off arm. Looking back to Gwen, she wore a proud look on her face. "That's my girl." She spoke before cutting the two heads clean off with another strike.

Ushorou meanwhile was gutting up the head that had ripped off her arm, hoping to find it and give it back to the dragon-woman when this was all over. "Keep it up, everyone! We've got it right where we want it!"

"Scum! Rabble! No puny mortals can kill Oulrook!" It screeched as they progressively cut off more and more of its heads. Soon enough there was just one left, one that had taken shelter behind each and every other. "ENOUGH!" It roared as with a unsettling screech it screamed its malcontent at all of them freezing them in place. No one had the strength to keep on walking towards it.

"Everyone! Funnel your power to Gwendolyn! She is the closest and with the most vigour left! Gwen, once you feel our magic in you, cut off the last head. Finish this misery!" Guan ordered, pouring her magical power to embolden Gwen's physical prowess. Just from her alone would Gwen begin to feel greater power, enough so to start to be rivaling that of her mother. But that would not be the end of it. Lumi, Ushorou, and Carwen too would infuse their power into her, giving her enough strength to surpass any being in physical prowess. And when Izar provided a piece of his power too, Gwen would feel it, even if just for a few short moments: Absolute Power.

It was a eurphoric feeling, as though for a brief moment she could rend the world itself in two. An intoxicating feeling of power, she knew immediately that none should be allowed to wield it and yet she was. Her claws glew a bright golden color, near blinding in the dark cavern. Everything else felt like an echo, Guan's words sounded some distance away and as she tried to take her first step forward it was like a dash and immediately she was behind the beast.

Her golden claws stained with it's blood, she had moved faster than even she could precieve and in a moment after that it had all drained as the monster's head hit the floor with a thud. Gwen stumbled on her feet, swaying to and fro as compared to the power she'd just felt she now felt weak.

She let out a shuttering breath before looking back to her mother, though the girl was not known for her expressive features she smiled widely at the sight of idol and birthgiver. "We did it!" She spoke out loud, feeling as though it had been ages since she'd last done so.