12263/15 Fears: Infestation

15 Fears: Infestation
Date of Scene:	26 August 2022
Location:	The Velvet Room - Sitting Room
Synopsis:	The JLD suffers an invasion force in the form of an avatar of The Crawling Rot. The defense is successful but the Sitting Room is going to need a deep clean before anyone is willing to use it again.
Cast of Characters:	Chas Chandler, Cael Becker, Jonathan Sims, Lydia Dietrich, Michael Hannigan, Detective Chimp, Megan Gwynn, Rien D'Arqueness

---

Chas Chandler has posed:
    The Velvet Room's sitting room is usually a place or comfort and relaxation. But today, the atmosphere within is vastly different. The air is heavy with a somber, almost courtroom quality to it--an air of waiting. Naturally, it didn't help matters that three of those meant to be in attendance are not even there.

    It's been a rough few weeks for the members of the JLD. Lydia's fall and subsequent return to the fold--albeit on rough ground;the discovery of Megan's possible downfall; the reveal of a vast underground prison for the worst of the worst of the universe; and the interpersonal back and forth between the various members has left the team on very turbulent waters indeed.

    The meeting today was meant to help fix one of those issues: Megan.

    There is only problem with that plan. Pixie is no where in sight. Then again, neither is Rien or Chas either. Nameless' usual light piano lilts are very subdued indeed... perhaps a mirror to the oppressive atmosphere of the room and team's current state.

Cael Becker has posed:
    Cael is currently settled at the bar while she waits, Bear nestled near her feet, and in front of her - a coffee, liberally dosed with whiskey, from which she sips. Her features are a neutral mask - though for just a moment, the corner of her lips twitch as Nameless switches songs. The tune is obviously wordless, but unmistakeable.

We're no strangers to love
You know the rules and so do I (do I)
A full commitment's what I'm thinking of
You wouldn't get this from any other guy

I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling
Gotta make you understand

Never gonna give you up
Never gonna let you down...

    I mean. Nameless has some pretty good timing, there.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    The longest-serving leader of the JLD's been having confidence issues--largely stemming from what happened with Lydia, not that Jon's entirely aware of or admitting that. Still, today should in many ways be a test of his strengths, given that he's supposed to be the "people" person of the three leaders. Talking to Megan, figuring out how to help her--that /should/ be right in his wheelhouse. "Should" being the operative word there.

    Jon sighs and sends another text to the group chat he has with Chas and Rien. <<If you two don't respond soon I will actually send out search parties. You're worrying me.>>

    A pause, to glance at the piano. <<...good lord someone taught nameless how to rickroll pls get down here so one of you can stab me in the heart and put me out of my misery>>

    He sighs and shakes his head, eyeing the bottles behind the bar for a moment. It's tempting, but he really ought to focus. So he just rubs at his face and mutters, "Nameless, /please/ change the bloody song? It's not appropriate to the situation. At all."

Lydia Dietrich has posed:
    Lydia comes in through the main door from her apartment, and stops short when she hears Nameless Rickrolling the sitting room. "I swear to God," she mutters and comes in fully to the room.

    She stops short again when she sees Cael and Jon. Her instinct is to just turn around and leave, but no. She said she was going to do better, so do better she will. She turns and walks to one of the comfortable looking chairs and sits herself down. Despite how comfortable the chairs are, she looks rather uncomfortable in it and has a nervous kind of energy to her.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
A few moments after Lydia enters into the rooom, the door upon the balcony opens, giving the briefest of glances to the interior of a mansion. The musician's eyes seem fixed on something going on the other side for a few moments before he steps through all the way. The door shuts behind Mike.

There's a shake of Mike's head as he heads down the stairs. Glancing around the room, he pauses for a moment as he sees Lydia before he continues looking, finding one of the heads present. He walks over to Jon, giving an awkward smile. "Hey, Pix is running a bit late."

Detective Chimp has posed:
Detective Chimp walks into the room, he has a book in hand from the library. He has been in there quite a bit doing research on the place itself, in any books he can find. He looks about to the others in the room, and nods to them. He heads over to the bar, and as he sees Bear. He will add "Hello to you as well." He does not reach to the pet the dog or anything but he does greet him as he does the others. He heads looking over the bottles as he sets his book on the bartop.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Jon's words hold weight as the ranking member of the team and Nameless returns to a somber and subdued, and frankly a bit overplayed, piece: Beethoven's Pianon Sonata No. 14, First Movement.

    Chas replies to the text. <<I'm going to be a bit. Geraldine.>> The name is one that needs little more to explain the man's absence. Chas' involvement in his daughter's life is limited but he will do anything short of returning to Liverpool to increase that level including shirking duties of maintaining reality.

    He's not the best father, he's barely even a good one, but he is doing his best to be what he can for her. Chas' first text is followed by, <<Nameless should recognize your leadership. It will listen to you over anyone else, save Rien or myself>> as Jon has already demonstrated by Nameless' change of tune.

    Chimp's study has discovered only one thing of note that wasn't already apparent and known. A single reference to the name of the castle's supposed architect. It's at least given him a name, another lead to track down and follow to its end: Philemon.

Cael Becker has posed:
    As the song changes, Cael smirks again for a brief moment, and reaches out to slide one arm around Jon's waist. Her attention turns to Lydia's entrance - and her eyes following the woman as she comes down the stairs, and takes a seat no doubt only adds to her discomfort. Once Lydia is settled into place, Cael's gaze turns away once more.
    Bear, meanwhile, lets out a cheerful bark - wagging his tail as Detective Chimp acknowledges him - but with his brightly colored vest on today, he doesn't move from his position at Cael's feet.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon sighs in relief as the piano changes. "Thank the gods," he mutters, and shakes his head. Glowers at Cael. "This is /serious/, you know."

    He nods in greeting to the various members of the JLD as they arrive. He looks around at the number of people and says to Mike, "I think when Megan gets here we'll head to the library. We don't want to crowd her with too many people. You and me and her, and... Rien, maybe, if she ever answers my texts. Chas is running late, too. Late enough he might not make it. Family."

Lydia Dietrich has posed:
    "/Thank/ you, Jon," Lydia says once Nameless starts playing something other than Rick Astley. She looks rather relieved when Cael notices her and... doesn't do anything. She was afraid that trouble would come of it, and is glad that nothing so far has happened.

    Turning to Jon she asks, "Can you give me a breakdown of the situation? I, uh, had been preoccupied with something else the past couple of months, and I haven't really kept up with current events."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike looks to the gathering of people and gives a nod. "Good idea." He agrees, "I've been working with her but I think she's still a little uncomfortable with the situation as is. No need for an audience."

As Lydia addresses Jon, Mike goes back to being quiet. Glancing over to the vampire. He's been a bit out of the loop but being no one's really seeming upset with her being here, perhaps that thing she was going through was resolved?

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Megan Gwynn is terribly late to her own meeting..Maybe some of that is due to nervousness. Or something else. It did take Thomas a while to calm her down and bring her back to earth after a recent outburst afterall.

All the same, she steps in, a bit out of breath, glancing around nervously, biting her lip. "Umm..," glancing around, she seems anxious, she clearly didn't expect so many people here.

Detective Chimp has posed:
Detective Chimp will pour himself a drink and looks over to Lydia, and says "Detective Chimp." as an introduction to the woman. Then as the fairy girl comes in he will nod to her as well, he has not been properly introduced to her, but they have fought lizard demons together rather recently. He looks around to the group and says "Anyone else want anything while I am back here?" The chimp looks rather at home on either side of a bar it seems.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
Rien appears in a puff of sulfur-scented smoke, lip curling at the lingering scent... and then her phone chimes with all the missed text messages and missed calls. All at once. She clears her throat and send an apologetic glance to the group, "Sorry. I literally ran into a demon grocery shopping. Nasty bit of work, hard to find. I wanted to make sure that they were sent back properly. And then of course Lucifer showed up." She lets out a sigh, "Anyways, I'm very sorry for being late."

She makes her way deeper into the room and sits down, settling in and glancing towards Lydia, then towards Jon.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    There isn't much to the arrival of Megan to signal anything is readily different to the room. As she heads down, everything is still the same, but then the regular progression of notes of the piano piece change. From the standard progression of 1, 3, 5 on the C# minor scale to something else.

    Discordant notes and miskeys start to be sprinkled in before the piano is simply hitting the same repeating sound over and over and over. The sound is not a pleasant one at all. For the musically inclined, it's a tritone. The devil's interval does the trick of getting one's attention very quickly. It may be clear that the repeating tone might just be Nameless' voiceless way of soudning an alarm.

    The lights in the sitting room change, from the gently blue-white to golden-yellow and green and the castle -shifts-. It doesn't physically move--though such a thing would be disastrous--but something about the nature of it seems to be suddenly, horribly wrong.

Cael Becker has posed:
    "How is Luci?" Cael asks casually, picking up her coffee for a sip. She seems determined to ignore Lydia for the moment - having already stared her down for a while.
    Towards Jon she adds, "I know it's serious. What makes you think I feel otherwi- what the fuck?"
    She turns to frown at the piano - and then things just go... a bit strange. "Jon?" She says in a tense voice. "You think you can send Bear home real quick?" Whatever's going on- she's not sure she wants her dog here for it.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon frowns at the discordant notes, pulling away from Cael even before she's turning to frown at the piano. "Rien? Can you portal Bear home?" She'd be better able to target that kind of thing. He looks around the room, frowning, reaching to his belt for a staff that isn't there.

    Well, fuck.

    "Lavenza," he says, glancing to the ceiling, "what's going on?" He pauses, waiting for an answer, which /also/ doesn't come. Lets out a slow breath.

    "Alright," he says. "Anyone who isn't ready for possible danger, you should go. Now." He points toward the door to the Velvet Room with his right arm, while summoning up a glowing magical khopesh in his left. Just in case.

Lydia Dietrich has posed:
    Lydia lets out a little "Oh!" surprise as Detective Chimp introduces himself. "I... uh..." she blink rapidly as she processes that she's talking to a talking chimpanzee. "Hi! I'm Lydia. A pleasure to meet you." To be honest, as a mutant, an ex-member of the Brotherhood, and a member of the JLD, this isn't the strangest thing she's ever seen.

    Despite the tension in the room between Lydia and Cael, Lydia seems to be content to just kind of keep a peaceful silence between herself, Jon and Cael. She gives Rien a polite nod when she enters and turns back to Jon.

    Then the weirdness starts with the piano. "This isn't right," she says, frowning as she stands. When Jon asks if they're ready, Lydia nods, golden armor snapping to conform to her body. "Yeah. I'm ready."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
As Megan makes her way into the Velvet room, the musician makes a small smile of reassurance to the nervous looking fairy. He takes a step towards her but when the discordant tones fill the room, Mike pauses. Turning to look over to Nameless.

If the change in the music wasn't enough to cue the musician to weird shit being ahead, the very words about possible danger coming from Jon cements the deal. Pale eyes drift between Lydia, to Megan, and then to Rien, who had come immediately after Megan.

Well.

Which one is it?

Or is there a fourth they're not considering?

Detective Chimp has posed:
Detective Chimp will frown a bit to this. He will down the drink he was pouring for himself, and moves to grab the highest octane stuff they have and holds the bottle in one hand, and looks around a moment, looking for the knife that is used to cut lemons and such, but what he finds, well that's not a knife. It's a sword, and he pulls a broadsword from under the bar. swinging it once or twice testing the weight "That will do." He says Sword in one hand, bottle in the other.

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Megan Gwynn notes Chimp's presence and does recognize him from the other day, Lydia too, who is given a curious glance.

However a glance around the room at the others causes Megan to shiver, taking a step towards Mike with whom she feels the most comfortable and actually *knows*. "Um, why are there so many people here? I thought...?!"

And then the piano starts slamming all sorts of discordant notes and she keeps, glancing around nervously, taking a step back. "Huh?! What's going on? Is it..Did I..?!"

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
Rien groans softly and pushes back up to her feet, snapping her fingers to send Bear home. The next move is to wave a hand towards Cael, enchanting her pistols. Then a glance to Chimp, "Want a little extra behind the swing of that sword?" Whatever is coming, whatever has arrived, she's not going to make it easy for them.

Megan gets a long look before offering, "We're not sure yet, but you should probably join the group. I don't think the rest of us are going anywhere." She looks to Jon, "Looks like we're down an angel. You going to be okay?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    There is no sign or response from the VR except the constant discordant ring of the tritone from Nameless. Then, the door at the top of the stairs goes dark; the phantom light usually ringing it simply shutting off as if powered down. Nameless' tritone goes for another ten hits before it too stops; the keys going silent.

    Everything is still except for the breathing of those inhabiting the Sitting Room.

    Suddenly, a new sound bubbles down from the hallway beyond the door. "Dark Justice, Justice Dark..." It's a voice, feminine, with a light breathy quality. But something is wrong with it. The words, echoing through the hall to the room are threaded through with something wet and squishy, like soggy noodles in a bowl.

    "I have come... we have come... to bring you the Song..." it coos softly. A scream, like thousands of nails on a chalkboard, rips through the room.

    Those with magical senses can feel that the scream was filled with Power and the only guardian against that power was the solid oak of the door at the top of the stairs. The soggy wet sound lingers at the door barring one room from the next and something on the other side tries the handle, it shakes but nothing happens. A few small silvery worm-like creatures wiggle under the frame and a thud of impact, hammers on the door. It doesn't give though. Another hammering thuds against the door. "Let us in... Dark Justice... join in... with the song..." More of the silvery worms squeeze through from the lower crack of the door. "You too... will feel... the love that comes... from being a part... of us all..."

Cael Becker has posed:
    At the sound of the voice, Cael reaches under her jacket to pull out one of her pistols - though it's unclear if she's aware they've just been enchanted or not. "Thank you," she says simply to Rien as her dog vanishes - but she says it without removing her gaze from the stairs, though she does flinch in pain at the scream.
    "I don't know about you all, but I think I can do without that kind of love. Umm... Who's got a game plan? Because my plan is basically 'shoot it a bunch of times.' Not sure... that plans works on bugs."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "/This/ I'm actually good at," Jon replies to Rien, turning to regard the balcony as the door goes dark and Nameless stops playing. It might be odd that there's /relief/ on his features, as if a battle is better than the prospect of the meeting they were about to have. His clothing changes even while he's turning to look at the balcony, jeans and t-shirt replaced by teal and gold armor.

    He closes his eyes for a moment, breathing through his nose. "Fuck," he says. "I can /hear/ that... 'song' she's talking about. I highly suggest nobody let any of those worms touch them. I think we're about to meet Mercy's red-dressed woman."

    He raises his right hand and twirls it in the air, making a sort of 'pulling up' motion. Shimmering blue light appears in a pool on the floor, then flows up and over each of the people in the room, a feeling like stepping through a cool sprinkler on a hot day. Barriers up around the group, Jon raises the sword and points it at the door, making a motion in the air with the tip. Another barrier appears over the door, trying to keep the bugs from coming in.

    "That's not going to hold very long," he says. And then, after a beat, "And we don't want her to give up and go downstairs anyway. Get ready, fast."

Lydia Dietrich has posed:
    Lydia's head whips around to the sound of that decaying voice. When it screams, she clutches her sensitive years and yells, "Aaaaugh! To loud!" If that wasn't bad enough, the smell hits her too. The pungent stench of rot and maggots, like a corpse that's been out in the sun too long nearly causes her to gag. "Oh God, the smell!"

    When she gets all her senses under control she calls out to the creature, "I've felt your 'love.' It's pure madness. Never again. I swear that nobody will go through what I went through."

    To Cael she nods. "I'll put up a shield to reinforce Jon's... try to contain it until we figure out how to deal with it." She raises a hand and a sparkly golden wall appears right behind Jon's, pressing right up against it. "Hopefully with the two of us, that holds."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
While Mike stopped approaching, Megan finishes up closing the gap between the pair. "It was going to be elsewhere." Mike answers, at the very least he can get rid of that doubt going on in her mind, a glance up to the darkening door causes for the musician to sigh, "But I think that's going to be rescheduled."

But at least the piano playing stopped.

The quiet that follows- concerning.

When the voice comes from the direction of the door, there's a momentary sense of relief. Of the possibilities, the fourth, while concerning in its own right at least didn't involve fighting a friend. Right?

As the one behind the door does their entrance speech, Mike uses the pause to shift. Those in the room may already know the drill by now. Features mirroring. Scars included. Good thing he has a preference for solid colored clothing or it'd be even weirder to watch.

If people were watching that is. Chances are people were more concerned with the bugs wiggling their way in through the gaps.

"So which one is this?"

Worms? Maybe the soil one?

Detective Chimp has posed:
Detective Chimp will nod to Rien "Hey any help is a good thing." the chimp tells her. As the barrier covers him he nods more.
     He then bounds over the bar, and a bit up the stairs towards the door. Once there he shows some of that simian dexterity as he stands on one leg, passing the sword to his foot for a moment , while one hand brings the bottle to his lips and takes a big mouthful. His left foot reaches up and pulls a zippo from his pocket, and strikes it and then with a forced exhale the alcohol is turned to mist and hits the flame. The Chimp plays fire breather on the worms that have made it through a few mouthfuls of booze are used this way.
     He then jumps back away from the door looking to the others "Don't smell any better on fire, but hopefully that slows them down. "

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Megan Gwynn frowns and nods to Rien, dark maroon eyes narrowed as she focuses on the four. "Right!" and while Rien is enchanting peoples' weapons, she simply draws her soul dagger which is happily just pink for now.

"So then, let's get this over with..!" her hand clenches the mystical weapon tightly as she waits for whatever is up there to deep through, hoping against hope that the door will hold, but fearing it will not. She gives a grateful nod to Jon as he summons a barrier to protect them all as she is minimally protected, wearing her black mini dress with the gold gloves and gauntlets and belt..Armour would just slow her down. And then..

And then, she hears an all too familiar voice that causes her to hesitate, shivering a bit as her wings turn pale grey. "What the..? It can't be...!" she frowns, "I know that voice, I've heard it before.." but she's afraid to say who, exactly.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
Rien gags as the stench filters through to her, one hand lifting, pressing under her nose as she works to get it under control. She waves the other hand towards Chimp, lining the sword in a blue-white light, "There you go. That is... light. I didn't go full sun, but I can do Light." She coughs and blows a breath out through her mouth.

Looking back to Jon, she offers, "We could bathe this place in light, keep them from getting downstairs." But then there's that song. She winces, a touch of blood trickling from her ears before the damage is healed and she's left shaking her head. "Ugh. Could have done without that."

"Plan. Step One... none of the worms can get downstairs. We can't let a single one escape. Step Two. We kick this bitch's ass and send her packing." Rien lets out a breath, "We need sunlight, fire, no water. Water runs. We have to keep the fight focused here, if they start getting through other doors, we'll never find them all." She looks to Jon, "We need to try and close off any possible opening to the rest of the castle. Drains, doorways, anything we can find."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    At Chimp's fireball a hissing screech without any mystic undercurrent to it comes from the other side of the door and the hammering stops. The flames die down and silence reigns once more.

    It doesn't last though as something much bigger and weightier slams against the door, buckling the hinges. Both Jon and Lydia's barriers shatter like panes of glass against the force of it. A dark yellow slime oozes through the splintered cracks and more of the silvery worm like creatures tumble to the balcony's floor. Another surge comes and the door falls, sending a small tidal wave of fetid ooze spilling over the ground.

    Atop the ooze stands a single figure. It was a woman, but whatever is was is no longer applicable to it now. The tattered remnants of a red dress lay about it's ragged, emaciated and barefooted frame. Small pocks, asymetrical holes, marr porcelain skin from which more of the silver worm things slither out of, discharging the yellow puss before tumbling to the ground beneath her. Her hair, a matted and greasy curtain of black atop her head is slick with more of the slime as more of the worms crawl out of her scalp before crawling over her face.

    The most striking feature about her are the emerald green eyes that linger in the pocked and gaunt face. They're absolutely beatiful; a jarring contrast to the rest of her. "The stronghold... we... have come..." she says and a wave of odor simply pours off of her.

    "We can deliver, The Song... and all our friends... will join in... just as you will!" She screams again, and this time without the protection of the door the members of the JLD are faced with the sheer force of an Old One's malice.

    It washes over Jon's barriers... casuing the protection of the Archivist to ripple and shudder against the onslaught of weaponized corruption. But the barriers hold. Which is good as masses of the slithering larvae start to join together, creating vaguely humanoid figures that lurge forward with ungainly gaits and toothy maws at the end of each finger-like appeandage on their makeshift hands.

Cael Becker has posed:
    "Holy fucking- Is that a- was she a //person// once?!" Cael asks in shock, staring at the shambling, fetid thing in front of them, and wincing at the repeat of the scream. "I don't exactly //have// fire or light - unless someone can magic me up a flame thrower. All I have is my fucking guns."
    Still. The fact that she's unsure how useful her weapons will be against a mass of loosely cohesive doesn't stop her from opening fire, however, on the nearest mass of worms that shamble towards them.
    "So. Fucking. Gross."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "Rien, it's /already/ in the castle. I mentioned this the other day." Jon shakes his head. "It's too late to try to keep her out. We need to--dammit, I /know/ there's a way to deal with--!"

    Then the barrier shatters and Jon reels a little at the force just crashing through what his will's holding up. "Fine! /Fuck/! Get out of my /head/!"

    He takes the part of his concentration that was going to the barrier over the door, and diverts it to creating a flamethrower for Cael. "As you wish. Try not to burn the place down. Everyone, I--I need a moment. I have to... I can /hear/ the 'Song.' Gods, it's..."

    A pause. He manages not to say /beautiful/ out loud. Eugh. Instead, he focuses on strengthening his mental barriers.

Lydia Dietrich has posed:
    "I'll be helpless in sunlight," Lydia tells Rien. "But if that's what's needed I'll stay behind Jon's shield." She looks worriedly over at the door, "If our barriers get breached, I'll try to squish them with an ectoplasmic hammer."

    The barriers break, but before she can summon a hammer, the maggot woman screams again. Lydia stumbles backwards, clutching her ears as blood runs down from them, and all her constructs disappear.

    When the screech ends she shakes her head as if trying to clear her head, but all she hears is a high pitched ringing. "I can't hear anything!" she shouts. "I should heal soon but..." she shakes her head.

    Righting herself she growls, "Bitch!" and stretches out a hand. A giant hammer forms, enough to cover the hallway and she slams it down with enough force that would crumple a car. She slams it down again, and again, squishing as may maggots as she possibly can. She'll continue to smash things this way, until the hallway is clear.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike glances to Megan. Ok that's three that seem to know about whatever song the woman is speaking of. Two of which that w-

Well come to think of it Mercy did say something about Jon in the basement.

Three of which-

Well, the sword dagger's pink. That's a good sign at least.

What's not as great is the list of things they can attack with. Fire? Nope. Sunlight? Well. Holy Light. Not quite the same.

But the only thing that was said to be a no go was water so...

Feeling a bit inspired and having enough time due to Jon and Lydia's contribution of the shielding, Mike shifts his hand over to his pocket.

"Oh you want SINGING do you?" The phantasmed musician asks of the sort of red dressed woman. Reaching in, he tugs hard, pulling out a comedically large mallet.

With a raised voice, Mike starts belting out a familiar tune loud and proud with some minor modififications in the hopes of drowning out whatever the hell the others are hearing. All while smashing away at the creepy crawly humanoids with the mallet.

'We've been playing now for much too long
And never gonna dance to a different song
I'm gonna scream and shout till my dying breath
I'm gonna smash them up till there's nothing left
Oh smash them up
Smash them up smash them up
Oh smash them up
Smash them up smash them up-!!!!!!'

Detective Chimp has posed:
Detective Chimp will continue to step back, and as he does, he holds the sword under his arm pulling a hanky out and stuffing it in the bottle. He lights it and tosses it towards the mass, to use the last of the booze there to it's best benefit. He then pulls the sword back up, and faces off, slashing at the mass of ewww. He does backhand slashes trying to make sure if the creature "bleeds" is splashes away from him

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Megan Gwynn doesn't wield fire or holy magic really but she does have a lot of light, and a special kind of soul magic. Is that a real thing? Well, it seems to work all the same. As long as she can keep from going red she should be fine..Right? Maroon eyes narrow on the creepy rotting woman thing, crying in pain as she screams, pausing briefly to cover her ears at her scream before she points her soul dagger at her.

"You..I know who you are..You plagued my dreams, and now you're trying to take over my life! Well I won't let you!" uttering a battle cry, she rushes towards her, spreading her wings as she charges at blinding speed..And nearly crashes headlong in to a wall of worm...People..?

Screeching to a halt, she snarls, uttering a curse and starts hacking and slashing at the disgusting things with her dagger, taking practiced swings, practically dancing as she slices into rotting flesh in her eagerness to reach the rotting woman..

Chas Chandler has posed:
    The larvae monsters are numerous but dispatching them doesn't require much energy, just time. Time seems to be what the creature that created them needs as more and more of the door and wall and floor of the balcony is swelling with a puss-like slime made from the creatures as they feast on each other and are regurgitated by their bretheren.

    "Yes... the Song... the Song will be heard throughout!" she cries before a retching sound bubbles in her depths and a wash of bile, ooze, and more larvae pour from her open mouth in a steady stream of vomit.

    As the liquid and organic matter drips down the stairs she too starts down them, each step squishing in the substance expelled from her and her offspring. "Useless..." she says, "You're all useless usurpers of Power that belongs not to you... join with me and return that which you have stolen!"

    Her emerald eyes fall on Megan, Rien, and Jon. All three of them can feel the presence of her trying to worm through the barrier of the Archivist and pry into their minds for a direct psychic assault.

Cael Becker has posed:
    "Jon - you. are. the. //best//!" Cael crows with delight. And if they weren't all so busy - she would kiss her boyfriend right here and now.
    But alas - there are worms to squash. And burn.
    Her pistol is put away, and she instead turns on the flamethrower - seeming to pay little heed to Jon's warning about not burning the place down. With this group? They can put out a little fire. The most important and most immediate need was to cleanse away any and all remaining trace of this thing - so not even the smallest amount of taint remains. With that in mind, she advances on the crawling masses, setting them and the putrid, contaminated floor beneath them ablaze.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon glances aside to Megan with a frown. Hadn't Chas said something about the Mother of Puppets--? Well, no time for a trip down memory lane right now. People are squashing bugs, and setting fire to bugs, and--

    "Carbon dioxide!" they shout. "That's--they're wasp larvae, right? That's what Chimp said. You can use fire extinguishers to destroy wasp's nests. Carbon dioxide would kill them all, I'm sure of it." A pause. "Which... means suffocating everyone in the room, /fuck/ that's useless."

    He shakes his head, narrowing his eyes at the woman and drawing on Ma'at's power to focus all of his efforts into the barriers, both psychic and physical. He steps forward, toward her, as if trying to draw her attention. "Keep attacking," he says. "We can do this, I know we can." A glance to Megan. "You don't have to let her have power over you. You can stop her."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
With the chosen battle song queued up, the phantasm appears oddly gleeful despite having to basically bludgeon wormy creatures with each utterance of the word 'smash'. But perhaps the bits and pieces flying about not accumulating on his person is a factor in that. It definitely beats having demon brains splattering on you from someone with an anti-angel/demon glove sucker punching them. But with the small smattering of burning going on in the background it makes for a slightly disconcerting image.

If it wasn't for Red Dress being in the picture.

'People call me weird, oh it's such a shame
Maybe it's my clothes, must be to blame
I don't even care if I look a mess
Don't want to be a sucker like all the rest
Oh Smash them up
Smash them up Smash them up
Oh Smash them up
Smash them up Smash them up
Smash them up
Smash them up
Smash them up
Smash them up
Smash them up'

Seeing Pixie fly at the designated big bad, he twists the non-chorus lyrics a bit more, seemingly addressing the woman in red in part of it. Carrying on with the song.

'And you can keep your ugly red dress
Smash them up
And you can see your plans meet an end
Smash them up
And you can stick it where it don't shine
Smash them up
Up the fuck with your recruiting time
We've been playing now for much too long
And never gonna dance to a different song
I'm gonna scream and shout till my dying breath
I'm gonna Smash them up till there's nothing left'

There's another splat of the mallet.

'Oh Smash them up
Smash them up Smash them up
Oh Smash them up
Smash them up Smash them up
Smash them up
And everybody's smashing them down
I said everybody's smashing them doooOOooowwwnnn...'

Let's be honest. It may not be the fanciest of battle moves But with all his strength focused to the surface area that's coming in contact with the targets he picks, he's VERY effective at smashing stuff.

Hmm. Maybe Hellboy was right with the nickname he picked for Mike after all.

With the song done and there are still more to go he chuckles, "Got the Chorus down?" He asks, not giving time to say to the contrary, "Great. EVERYBODY NOW!"

And the song starts again.

Detective Chimp has posed:
Detective Chimp looks around him a moment, and then he takes off running towards a wall, and as he gets near it, he jumps towards it, and then jumps away as he hits it to reach up and grab the chandelier. He swings from the chandelier getting momentum to propel himself towards the mother things. He calls out "Smash them up." Either knowing the song or just singing with the chorus. Once he has the swing he needs, he will dive towards the mother with his sword glowing from Rien's magic and the runes in the blade blazing as he tries to drive the blade into the woman while she seems to be concentrating on the others. Right now he is really thankful for Jon's barriers protecting them, and the face most people seem to underestimate the "monkey".

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Megan Gwynn blinks at Jon's words, glancing around, "Ummm carbon Dioxide..Fire extinguisher?" there's gotta be one around here somewhere, but with all the fire being flung around, it'll be tricky focusing it on just the worms and their leader..And right now, she's a bit busy smashing and slashing into worm creatures, her blade flaring a deeper pink..

The battle song raises her spirits, lending her strength perhaps and she utters another war cry, maybe getting a bit too blood thirsty as she darts around the room like a giant murderous dragonfly on a mission.

"I am not useless..I am not weak, and I won't join with you again..!" she snarls, her dagger flashing red albeit briefly before she starts to sing the other song Mike had taught her..Well the chorus anyway..

~One thing to ask
a tone demure
Raphael's flask
give me a cure...!~ the murderous rampage in her eyes and her briefly flickering red dagger return to normal and she seems to calm down, pausing briefly in her bloodlust, breathing heavily as she works to control herself, to not let the ancient god take over..

Chas Chandler has posed:
    The hordes are puverized or burned into their remenant masses as mallets, soul daggers, and energy attacks beat them back or down into a paste that coats almost every surface save a shrinking circle in the center. The fire doesn't catch as easily on the fixtures of the room, but it does leave it's sooty mark on surfaces that destroy the larvae.

    Maybe their master is too focused on trying to seep into the minds of her focused attacks, maybe she did overlook the Detective's skills. Whatever the reason she is helpless as the blade drives itself into her body at the collarbone and out the middle of her back.

    She screams without power and more of the yellow puss gushes from the wounds as well as from the myriad holes over her body. She swipes at the superior ape and Detective Chimp finds out that her frail frame hides a strength that could likely powder cement blocks as he's sent flying. Luckily a couch breaks his fall, but even with that the furniture is overturned from the momentum

    But his attack has done one very important thing. The creature, is pinned as the first 6 sinches of the blade is imbedded in the rugged stone floor of the room; self preservation and agony refuses to allow her to pull herself free. "I must give the Song..." she cries as more ooze gushes out of her. "I must..." she croaks clearly loosing some ground.

Cael Becker has posed:
    "We have our own fucking song!" Cael shouts back. "Shove yours up your fucking ass!" Is it creative? No. Does Cael care? Not in the least. She treads over the sooty remains of the larvae, still brandishing her flame thrower as she co-opts Michael's song to sing instead, "Oh, burnt hem up! Burn them up! Burn them up!"
    Cael was never much of a 'Hulk smash' and more of a 'kill it with fire' sort, anyways.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon takes a breath as the pressure on the barriers lets up. "Alright," he says. "Finish her off. Then I want all of you out in the garden, /fast/. Once she's down, I'm going to make sure she /stays/ down. Fumigate the whole bloody castle. I don't need a fire extinguisher to conjure carbon dioxide."

    He hums some of the song along with Mike, to put more power into what he's doing and help them coordinate their actions.

Detective Chimp has posed:
Detective Chimp will roll over with the couch and is not moving for a moment, he was just hit by something a kin to a freight train. He stands up pushing the couch off of him, one arm hanging limply at his side, and says to the others "I pinned her for you, aint got a big enough jar or board to display her on, so fry her up." He says. He is moving a bit slower, shaking his head a bit.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    The fire from Caek'l flamethrower catches on the woman's leg and she goes up as if she was doused in kerosene. The hissing whine that comes from her form sounds like it's made of multiple voices all crying out as one and she thrashes in place. The larvae, those visible, have similar and more violent reactions. Some explode, releasing a small gout of slime, puss, and bug guts. Others twitch and go limp. Other's still curl in on themselves before going still.

    When it's over the room is mess and the creature that invaded them, or charred remains, lies motionless like some macabre art piece.

    A choking rasp of words comes from the charred husk of a person. "The....Song..." it croaks, reaching with one good arm that crumbles to ash and dust as she raises it. Her head drops forward. Those with exceptional perception are certain that the creature is amazingly still not dead.

Cael Becker has posed:
    "...okay. Nothing that burned should be able to-" Cael frowns, shaking her head, as she continues to pour on the flame for a short time longer - before looking to Jon. "You want us to go to the garden?"
    It doesn't look like she much cares for the idea - but she moves towards Jon, kissing them briefly on the cheek. "Be careful," she murmurs, before heading their order to head out of the room.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon nods absently to Cael. "Everyone out," he says. "I'll contain this and then fumigate. It'll be fine." This is what the prison's for, right? Jon takes a breath and visualizes a crystal like the ones down in the prison, around the charred husk on the ground. He draws on the ambient energy of the Velvet Room, and then--and this, he knows, is the secret to making it actually work--puts in a little of his own power, the portion connected to the Velvet Room key. A piece of his soul, to create the crystal prison.

    A huge blue crystal appears around the remnants of the woman in the red dress, and Jon grins. "Alright. Now... go down to the prison. Sixth level, I think."

    And the crystal disappears.

    Jon lets out a relieved breath and then takes a moment to let the barriers go, gathers himself, summoning Ma'at with wings and circlet. Pumping the entire castle full of carbon dioxide won't be easy.

Detective Chimp has posed:
Detective Chimp will lead the others out making sure everyone is accounted for and that they have no hitchhikers on them as well. The chimp will fasten his arm in a make shift sling, and calls out "You heard the man, everyone out."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    As the castle is filled with the gas a great cry, not just thousands, but millions of tiny voices give a final strangled sound to accent their death. It lingers in the air for a moment longer before all is silent once more.

    It seems that defense of the castle is possible, should anything else attempt to come at them from this angle. One can only hope that the next attempt won't be so messy.