Owner	Pose
Chas Chandler	The scene is set. Preparations are made and all that's left is for the players to arrive. Chas' plan is rather slapdash, given short notice and the need for the interloper to be purged from their ranks but it would have to do. Hopefully it would be enouhg.     Chas has called Rien to the Velvet Room's training room for some sparring practice. He 'needed to let off some steam' and she was one he trusted enough to be able to hold back as well as to sustain anything he might dish out.     Or at least that's the official story.     Unofficially, Chas has Robbie and Cael lying in wait in the Hall. Upon Rien's arrival they are to move from their positions and enter behind her whereas Chas has instructed Elizabeth to lock all entry and exits (including portals) from the Training Room. That is -all- he wants the VR to do. He only hopes that this creature's portals can be shut down that way. From there... it's just a matter of bruising and bleeding.     Or so he hopes.     He's standing casually in the room, focusing on his mental shields. The tattoo at his shoulder and throat warps and shifts vividly as it heps the cloud what is going on in his mind. He doesn't know if the knowledge of the creature is enough to set it off... or really anything about it other than it can alter reality. He -hates- going in blind to a fight but, this is necessary and that's what leaders do right? What is necessary. His attire is the usual: dark jeans, a button shirt with a paisley pattern in blues and greens, and his combat boots.     He scrubs a hand through his short and mussed hair. Was it a bad idea to get it cut? He's still on the fense about the matter. Maybe testing it out in combat will help how he feels about it.
Rien D'Arqueness	Rien-Not-Rien was all too happy to agree to come help Chas with their sparring! It's what FRIENDS do, right? Right! She steps into the sitting room from the door, having used the key that belongs to Rien (she IS still Rien, for now at least). THat long black hair has been tucked up neatly into a Rosie the Riveter style kerchief, with a few rockabilly style curls left at the temples. She's in high waisted white capri pants with red spike heels, and one of those off-the-shoulder blouses in white, dotted with cherries. Looking nothing at all like she's going to be fighting, but since when has she EVER worn ANYTHING else? Making her way down the hall, she calls out, "Hey Chas! Sorry I'm running late, Robbie and I had this HUGE fight and it's been Hell trying to keep focused on anything." Not that she sounds displeased at all. She's even smiling brightly, that too-wide, too-bright smile that is far larger than it should be able to be. Stepping into the Training Room, she turns that rictus grin towards Chas, "Hi! Okay, so you want to set like.. a limit to which powers or...?"
Cael Becker	Cael waits in room just off the hallway as instructed, a ball of quietly anxious energy. She's glad this is all finally coming to a head - the relief is //immense// - but walking into a fight you don't understand is never an easy thing.     She's dressed for the occassion - in her unbranded combat fatigues, and wearing both of her pistols at her hips, with her AR-15 slung on a strap over her shoulders. She's brough an excess of ammunition as well - she looks ready to go to war. Is it ridiculous? Maybe. But what other option does she really have?     There's also the hilt of a bladeless sword. Whatever that's for.     She paces with barely contained energy - her gaze jerking immediately towards the door at the sound of the chime. "Well. That's us, then," she remarks.     Opening the door, she gestures Robbie through. "After you."
Robbie Reyes	Robbie's been in a foul mood since everything began to unravel with Rien. On the bright side, he's cleaned up since his meeting with Cael. Gone are the blood spattered clothes and restless, hungry look in his eyes; now, only rage. He's opted for a pair of clean, dark jeans, his usual combat boots, and a dark hoodie whose sleeves are ruched up to his elbows. He still looks like he wants to hit something until it stops moving, then hit it some more. When the call comes to move, he's already striding for the door, and shoulders his way through brusquely without a word to Cael. No weapons on him; he doesn't need any for what he has in mind.
Chas Chandler	The Velvet Room thrums with power as Cael and Robbie enter and the door slides shut leaving them all together with a monster masquerading as their friend. "You see..." Chas says, the tattoo at his neck snapping still in its odd arcane geometic shape. "Cael was always onto your game. You fooled me, you fooled Jon, you fooled Robbie... everyone but her. And you see, Cael... she's not one to just let an afront to reality sit idle if she can help it. She's a sniffer dog when it comes to this shite. Human--mostly--but a damn tenacious one at that."     Blue flame shoots out to surround his body in its protective casing. "So she digged and digged and digged and found some information from back during World War II. Old photos that show a very different woman doing things that I know -you've- done. It was a surprise and then after a moment I felt a click. And I remembered." The flames suffuse his eyes filling them with the same blue angel fire that surrounds him and a blade of that flame coalesces in one his hands.     "I've dealt with imposters before in my life," he says raising the blade in an offensive stance. "Lived a good 10 years with one... I'm not keen to repeat the process. Especially not with a piece of trash like you."
Rien D'Arqueness	The Not-Rien looks about quickly as the other two enter the training room and the door seals. There's a few beats where she holds to her subterfuge, eyes wide and a hurt expression splashed across her face even as that rictus grin grows. But it quickly becomes apparent that it has been found out. Heaving a very forced sigh, the Not-Rien murmurs, "I had wanted this to go on longer, I was having fun with it, truly. But then, I've never had to hold the illusion against so many different beings of differing, even staggering, power levels. Ah well." Shoulders slump as if she's giving up then and there. But then those shoulders seem to keep slumping further, and further. Only its not the shoulders that are moving down, it's the neck that's elongating. That face they've been presented with it still very much present. though the eyes have gone dark, dead grey. The neck longates out as if it were made of taffy. That body soon starting to follow suit, spine stretching, arms and legs gaining more and more joints with each spurt of growth. What's left is some nightmare fuel creature that's somewhere between insectile and amorphous, holding shape just enough to still give the impression of the woman it once pretended to be. Letting out a screeching hiss, one many-jointed leg lashes out towards Robbie as a bolt of pure crackling, magical energy is shot off towards Chas. That face. That grinning, dead-eyed, horrible face, swings around towards Cael, "Too bad I have to kill you now.. your fear was /delicious/."
Cael Becker	"Where's Rien." It's the first thing Cael demands when she steps into the training room, letting the door click shut behind her. She doesn't get between Robbie and the creature, not for a moment. She expects him to go straight for the thing. Instead, she begins flanking around to the side, bringing the AR-15 around to bear.     As the snakes around towards her,  she squeezes the trigger, aiming for center-mass. She doubts they'll get a straight answer. But she also doubts her bullets can actually stop this thing. "Fuck you," she says flatly, and matter-of-factly.
Robbie Reyes	The trouble is, that part of him still loves her. The woman he shares a life and a bed and a home with. The woman he'd trusted with his brother, trusted with *everything*. The betrayal is catastrophic-- and for all he wants to torment this *thing* within an inch of its life, that part of him puts Robbie in a brief quandary. So he's entirely unprepared for the attack that sends him crashing into a wall of the training room, and breaking several bones in the process. Robbie hits the floor with a solid *crack* and is slow -- sluggish, even -- to stagger back to his feet.
Chas Chandler	"Robbie!" Chas calls as he brings the sword up to intercept the bolt of energy, even braced for the attack the pain of it sends a jolt through his fingers and he grits his teeth against the discomfort. He wasn't about to give this things a chance to talk, he was past that point. They needed it gone.     "Pleasantries aside it is then" he mutters. With a fluid motion, he gathers a flurry of the energy that sustains him and levels the sword at the creature before he lets off a stream of pure angelic fire in a lance for its center mass. He can already feel his memories of Rien returning the hold that creature had over reality was faltering with the discovery of its true motivations laid bare.
Rien D'Arqueness	Letting out a rusty hacksaw of a laugh, Not-Rien shakes it's head at Cael, "Now why would I tell you a thing like that? This is /infinitely/ more /fun/." One multi-jointed arm rears up and back in a clear attack aimed towards Cael, but the lance of holy fire hitting it center mass is enough to make ti screech and scuttle aside before lashing an arm out towards Chas, meaning to grab the angel by the throat. That clownish, doll-like face with the dead eyes swings towards Robbie now, that grin growing even wider, "But she has seen /everything/. Seen, heard... all of it. Every day. Every /night/." The vocal jab aimed directly at the Ghost Rider while it aims a wind blast of wind towards Cael, trying to knock her down and away. The other hand is building a charge of Null Energy, likely meant for Chas.
Cael Becker	She has seen - she has heard? She? //Rien//? Is Rien... actually still alive? The thought floors Cael for a moment, distracting her enough that the wind buffets her back towards the wall. It's a struggle to get clear, and she drops the AR-15 which is doing her little good, anyways. It falls to hang from her shoulders by the strap, and instead she draws the bladeless hilt and ignites- her lightsaber?     Why does Cael have a lightsaber?     "Fuck you in particular!" she asserts. "Give me some cover!" she shouts to the room. Walls simply appear between her and the NotRien - allowing Cael cover from the galeforce winds as she dodges from wall to wall - leaping out finally with a massive swing of the blade, aimed at the arm it aims towards Chas.
Robbie Reyes	Robbie coughs up blood as he regains his feet slowly, and grimaces as the damage to his body begins to repair itself. Fast, faster than he's accustomed to; the Rider has a use for him still, after all. But when the truth comes rushing back like a dam breaking, he nearly goes down to his knees once more. There's a sound in his throat like pain, and a hazy few seconds where he's no good for anything, and the others are on their own. When the creature speaks to him, taunts him, he lifts his eyes and swipes the back of his hand slowly across his mouth; it comes away with a smear of bright blood. "Te enviare al infierno." His words drip with fury, and he begins to close in again on his prey, even as his body ignites and burns.
Chas Chandler	Chas can't manage to dodge the grasping hand and his throat is encased by a vice a seond later. Good thing he doesn't need to breathe. He can feel his bones straining against the thing's grip as he's lifted from the ground. "You... screwed... up..." he manages to choke out. "You should've... let us think she... was gone." He says, as he reaches up with a free hand to grasp the thing's wrist. He knows he has to avoid that strike that she's gathering in her other hand (hopefully Cael can take care of it) but he has to give them time.     The fire surrounding him intensifies and instead of blue it goes purest white. This has a couple of effects: one, it ratches the heat up to pulsar levels that fill the room with its ambience, two, it makes him almost impossible to truly target as all that is in his place is a ball of malleable white plasma.     He conentrates that heat around the wrist he has hold of. "I'm with Robbie here..." he says the white fire lending his voice a strange warbling quality. "Time to burn."
Rien D'Arqueness	The Creature Formerly Called Rien has them right where it wants them... right? It holds the angel by the throat, prepared to unmake it from the feet up with that charge of Null Energy it's been building. But it never expected the training room itself to be able to offer them assistance in fighting. So when Cael leaps out towards it with lightsaber in hand, the spindly, insectile hand charging up the energy is lopped off entirely! Not-Rien lets out an ear-piercing and unholy shriek or pain and rage at having been so accosted. The creature lashes out with one spindly, multi-jointed leg to kick at Cael with a fierce swiftness. But then there's fire in it's hand and fire approaching from behind. Flinging Chas' mutable plasma form away, Not-Rien lashes out one last time at Robbie, attempting to get them all away. And it starts to /tear/ at the fabric of the Astral Plane itself, trying to open a hole through which it can escape!
Cael Becker	Cael crow of triumph - mixed with laughter at the creatures pain - turns into grunt of pain of her own as she's kicked, and knocked back into one of the walls she'd summoned. Her head smacking back into it leaves her stunned momentarily, the lightsaber thankfully falling to her side, still gripped in her hand, without slicing any part of her own body. She spends a moment crumpled there until she gathers enough thought to realize simply staying still was not a healthy idea, so instead the pain her head she scrambles up, and around the wall to take cover behind it.     "I'm okay! I'm good!" she calls to the other two.
Robbie Reyes	This thing they're fighting is a force to be reckoned with-- but so is the Ghost Rider. Unburdened this time by such ridiculous notions as love for a traitorous, inhuman imposter, he sees the attack arcing toward him and his lean form blurs away. Like a bullwhip's flight, faster than the eye can follow. Then he lunges forward and flings a flaming chain at the creature's left leg, attempting to tangle it up and hold it in place to prevent escape. Then the right, teeth gritted with the effort.
Chas Chandler	Chas crashes against the wall of the room before landing solidly. That hurt. God above that hurt. He has to keep going though. They might have this thing right here. He scans the room, catching sight of the hand lying on the ground. He doesn't know if he can do what he needs to but he has to try.     He casts a measure of himself toward the hand. It's a strange sensation, like feeling in two places at once... part of him in with his body but his hand is over there... with the removed appendage. He concentrates even more, blue tinged sweat breaking out on his brow, and blue flame surrounds the hand holding it fast in place. "Got you..." he says.     He tries to rise but can only manage himself to one knee. That pulsar trick did a number on him. He's not likely to try that again. "Take her out Robbie, Cael... tear her apart!" he offers in moral support, as physical has all but left him.
Rien D'Arqueness	Shrieking in outrage, Not-Rien is unhappy to find that something is keeping her from tearing the fabric of the Astral to allow easy escape. Instead, she whirls, the amputated arm tucked in close even as she tangles herself further in the burning chains. "You'll pay for this! All of you! I'll return with an /army/ and you'll all wish you were dead long before death comes for you!!!" Gathering it's energy, Not-Rien sends out a sickly green pulse of miasmic energy that will slice and bite and batter at anyone it touches. She turns again and claws harder, one can almost SEE the Astral Plane's very existence warping and wavering under her efforts, then a tiny tear starts. Letting out a howl of triumph, it redoubles it's efforts to rend open that portal and escape the Velvet Room and the JLD.
Cael Becker	Isn't it just her luck? Cael struggles back to her feet in time to be caught in that wave of putrid green energy, and she cries out in pain, feeling as if parts of her were simply unraveling. It was not a sensation she'd ever expected to be possible.     Still, she pushes forward once more, the glowing sword clutched in both hands as she swings it towards the NotRien's back, trying to cut it down. "Fucking die. You messed with the wrong fucking people!" she shouts furiously. "Bring Rien back!"
Robbie Reyes	There's an inhuman roar of undiluted rage from the Ghost Rider as he's buffeted by the energy wave. One side of his armoured face is seared right off; the metal melts and bubbles and drips off him, exposing a skeletal cheekbone and fang-like teeth. But it only causes him to redouble his efforts, and pit his unstoppable strength against the creature's immovable bulk. Spotting the portal inching open, ripping and peeling like paper, he makes what he may later realise is a dire mistake-- and releases the chain on NotRien's left leg, so he can focus his power into summoning a portal of his own. Runefire slices through the one the creature tore open, and the ring he created wobbles like a broken wheel for a second, two, before collapsing. Canceled out, one presumes, by the null energy.
Chas Chandler	Chas gives a jerk to the hand he has confiscated. They'll need it in the coming days he imagines. "Let it go..." he says, to Cael and Robbie, pushing to his feet and releasing the hold on his wings to lift him from the ground. A pair of buffets, pushes back the cloud enough to allow his comarades to survive. "Just... let it go..." We're not ready. "It's going to take more than we have on hand to get rid of it."     He's content to let the creature know that it's beat by three of their number and sure, it might have taken one or all three of them down but it wouldn't have survived long after. Now, it'll be on the run and on guard. But they have a way to track it down and he knows just who is fit for the job. "There will be another day and another fight and we'll have all the tools we need to defeat it then."
Rien D'Arqueness	There's a moment of pure rage where Robbie's portal intersects with the tear in the Astral Plane that she's trying to open, that head whipping around tp in the Ghost Rider with a piercing stare. But in the end, Null Energy trumps the Hellfire and her portal is torn open into a vast expanse of nothing. Hissing at the angel, Not-Rien screeches, "You'll never get back your Queen of Nothing! You couldn't reach the Ivory Tower even if you tried!" Then the creature lets out one last buffeting pulse of force before leaping through the tear. That sickly green energy fills in the seam, closing the tear behind the creature and finally disappearing in a flash of blinding green light.
Cael Becker	"God damnit let's kill the fucking thing!" Cael shouts at Chas.     Despite the fact that her jaw, and cheek bone are exposed, not that she's really aware of that.. And her left arm is- not in great shape. "You'll fucking die, monster!" Cael shouts after the thing, as the hole is scurries through is sealing up. She stands there a moment, then sinks to the floor, leaning back on one of the walls she'd requested. The same one she'd been thrown into earlier, actually. Her head is tilted back into it, her eyes closed, as she spends a moment just breathing.     Honestly, if the fight had continued much longer - Cael might very well have gotten herself killed against the thing. And Chas probably doesn't want to deal with //that// once Jon comes back.
Robbie Reyes	"NO," bellows the demonic entity currently wearing Robbie's clothes, its voice twisted and torn like metal shavings shoved through the kid's voice box. Chas's order is ignored, and he tries to tangle the creature up again, haul it back-- but it's too late. He's lost precious leverage, and with the portal yawning open into nothingness, his efforts are for naught. The NotRien bounds away and disappears through, and he's dragged, tumbling a few times until he comes to a standstill. Smoke and flames course from his body, and the left side of his 'face' and neck and shoulder ooze black blood-smoke from where he was hit with the creature's attack. After a few moments, the flames go out, and Robbie's left to endure the agony of his body healing over again-- and that of the *thing* that pretended to be his girlfriend, getting away.
Chas Chandler	Chas shakes his head. "Eli, Robbie, whoever is driving... there is something more important at hand here" Chas says flatly. "Retrieval is going to take the reigns for a time" he says, revealing his prize, the severed hand. "I can get this to Gabby and have her keep tabs on the thing while we go and rescue Rien. Then the both of you can have all the vengeance you want."     He purses his lips. "Rather stupid of it to tell us exactly where she is... I'd almost expect a trap but..." He shrugs. "Even so, it changes nothing. We have to go and get her back." He fixes his blue eyes on the Ghost Rider, "So do you think you can get enough of a handle on yourself to help us prepare to save your girlfriend?" He knows the words are scathing, but he also knows that treating the Ghost Rider with anything short of directness is asking for it to disregard you as prey.
Cael Becker	"She's still alive," Cael says quietly. "Unless the thing was lying to us- false hope? Setting a trap?" Would it do that? ... they wouldn't really know, would they? "We have to assume she's alive - and get her back." It's the only option.     But she's afraid to hope too much. The grief that comes up disappointment can be too bitter, especially when your support has been gutted. ...when is Jon coming back?     "I'm going to rest here for a few more minutes. Then... let's head to the bar for a drink, so we can plan."
Robbie Reyes	Robbie's already scrambling to his feet, even as the remnants of smoke and ruin waft off him. He touches his face, and ash crumbles between his fingers. There's a firm nod to Cael's words, his gaze resting on her for a few moments before shifting to Chas. "She is." Alive. "I *know* it." The words are almost a snarl; as if for him, all emotion boils down to anger. All of his grief, all of his devotion to her, stuffed down under the street tough facade, despite the glossiness in his eyes. "It's the Rider that wants revenge," he explains, lean frame restless, like he wants to be doing something -- anything -- but standing around. "I just want her back. How do we get there?"
Chas Chandler	Chas smiles. "That's a good question... but one I think I know the answer to..." he looks up into the abyss towards the unseen ceiling of the room. "Elizabeth, is your younger sister here?" he asks. "I think we might need a word with her."     There is a moment of nothing and then Elizabeth's stilted voice comes as if over a communication system. "She is, Francis" the name cause Chas to wince a bit. "Should I tell her to meet you in the sitting room so she can explain how to get to the Ivory Tower?"     Chas nods. "Please do. And thank you." He starts for the door, gesturing for the others to follow him out. "Come on. Let's go find out where we're going and how we should prepare."