The Castle [03] (Remba, but don't let it stop you)

[Aisha deCabre]

Aisha couldn't help but flinch as she heard the bat's suddenly honest reply, covering her involuntary repulsion with a blank expression.  Worse?  Even than those...things?  With a quirked eyebrow, she looked around the group and could see much of the same reactions, either surprised or disturbed.  Her gaze dropped to the floor in thought.  They had probably seen worse than the spiders already, but not in the very same day.

"How is it worse?" She started to ask.  "Could it...?"

Her sentence wasn't finished, however, for she had seen her answer.  The spiders controlled their hosts and left them much the same, just as effective parasites, without killing anyone.  This condition looked, at least from the outside, to be able to degrade Keaton's mind and alter her perception.  It could only possibly be worse than that if it could be passed to everyone else.

She turned back to Jeremiah, hearing his suggestion.  "Questions haven't worked yet.  And I doubt that interrogation is the best way to go."  Then Aisha shook her head at Bambi, at the spell she was about to cast.  "Nor is THAT necessary again.  I think we wait."  Her head snapped up, glancing over to Mel as she started her work on the jackal, and she watched her for a reaction, an expression of concern and pity on her features.  She's had some bad luck with this place.

[Sunblink]

Once more Keaton had failed to answer Mel, the jackal barely comprehending anything the dragon had said. It was as though a great, swarming cloud had filled her head, drowning out any and all noise and sensation save for her own suffering, leaving Keaton inescapably captured in her personal Hell. Barely anything Mel had said registered, save for one word: help. Help? Keaton's ears lifted a marginal fraction, but she made no other positive movements. Some sort of a weird buzzing sound started shrilly whistling within Keaton's ears, making her quickly forget that hopeful second under the sibilant pain which followed that horrendous noise.

She didn't even feel Mel pierce through her mind and wade through the onslaught of memories and images flashing about her head. Things like distant childhood events; particularly memorable moments in her life, as insignificant as they may've seemed to others; and other apparitional memories bobbed to the surface once or twice as Mel glided past them. Maybe on purpose out of respect for her privacy, or maybe to help her hunt down the cause of her insanity quicker.

Either way, Keaton certainly was of no help. She was too busy curled up, eyes rolled in the back of her head--one of which seemed almost artificially glassier than the other in its sclera and lacking any bloodshot, proof that it was indeed false besides its off-coloration--and whimpering every so often.

~Keaton the Black Jackal

[Prof B Hunnydew]

Bambi looks shocked at the Bat's "distaste" of the Truth..But then she could see that the Bat has suffered pain by the truth and twisted truths. "Truth hurts when denied, my friend to us or by us" says Bam as she smiles kindly to the bat.   From the bat's comments, Bambi figured that Mel and the Keaton would need help to see what is true. 

PBH added her truth spell into the mix of Keaton's mind by touching the spell to the jackal forehead, "Learn the Truth and Know yourself, Keaton. and to yourself be true." says Bambi as she sends her spell into the sucubus 

PBH

[Stygian]

Slowly, Keaton's condition seemed to be worsening as Mel went, an effect of that much of her mind being rummaged through and so much information being processed and power shunted through her brain. She trembled visibly, her drooping ears flickering at the edges, and her mouth gaping as she began leaning back, as if she were having a seizure. Gargling, rasping sounds rose out of her throat. It sounded as if she were swallowing her tongue.
   "T-the-rrre iss no Kea-tonnn, onnnhhhly...!" she choked out. Then, Bam suddenly walked up and decided to add her opinion to it all. And then, she put her hand down.
   "No! Do...!" Stygian exclaimed, all too late.
   Everything went much too fast, all of a sudden. Both Mel and Keaton visibly tensed for a moment, and then everyone in the room felt as if that headache had exploded out and affected them too. Just in more ways than one. Bam was flung back as a wild surge of magic hit her in the face. Mel felt whatever was inside Keaton's mind turn and lash out at her in desperation, before she too was knocked back somehow. Stygian swore loudly and was then smacked in the face by the now spastically flailing and foaming Keaton, and knocked back to the other side of the sofa.
   Something akin to a shape without substance, like an outline of contoures with nothing in between, began forming behind and over Keaton, writhing like a myriad-appendaged snake. A sort of roar, only mental, cut through the room, making everyone present want to clap their hands over their ears, even though it would probably not help in the least. Towering, the shape toppled the sofa over back and caused the jackal cubi to roll onto the floor, still twitching and jerking wildly.

[Gareeku]

Looking on as the others tried to help Keaton, Gareeku feel a little uneasy that he couldn't be of any help. It was then, however, that Bam decided to use a spell, only for it to horribly backfire. Before the wolf knew what was happening, a colossal force suddenly slammed into him, sending him flying back and landing hard against a wall, before dropping to the floor, where he landed on his hands and knees, coughing slightly from the impact to his body.

Looking up, Gareeku's eyes went wide as he saw the scene before him, wincing as his eyes folded back behind him at the horrible sound the creature emitted.
"Keaton!" the wolf cried out, getting to his feet, not taking his eyes off of the scene before him. Thanks to Bam's spell, the situation had worsened considerably, and Gareeku grimaced as he thought of this fact, staring straight at the sinister creature forming behind and above Keaton.

[Sunblink]

As Keaton shook and trembled where she was curled up, unresisting and unreticent to Mel's probing, she had been too engrossed in her own insanity to notice the brilliant, verdant light which suddenly flared up in Professor Hunnydew's palm. Bright, emerald light flashed before her eyes, blinding her with lustrous shamrock. Without realizing it, Keaton's eyes swiveled back into view, her pupils pinpricking and the outlines of her eyes widening in pure, unadulterated shock. Information and memories rushed, unobstructed, through the passages of her mind, flowing at first in a steady, trickling stream, but then bursting in a relentless torrent as she felt what remained of her stability crumble to ashes.

Keaton's breath was robbed from her. Immediately breaking down into harsh gasps and desperate efforts to regain what oxygen had been stolen from her, Keaton clawed away at her head, incapable of controlling herself. Her mouth moved on its own, words coming unbidden, unbarred. Choking, rasping, wheezing, crawling its way past the tightening muscles of her throat until it came into being. "T-the-rrre iss no Kea-tonnn, onnnhhhly...!"

Can't breathe can't breathe can't breathe my throat is going to collapse and they're laughing the demons are laughing--

Laughing, terrible lauging, shrilly echoing over the inferno that had engulfed Keaton's mind. It was a reflection, a message, a shadow of how far she had fallen from her former egotistical, proud self and how those she hated so adamantly were probably laughing at her from their grave.

Oh my God the LAUGHING the fucking BUZZING--

The infernal buzzing was back, shrieking and raging through Keaton's mind like a wailing whirlwind, ripping and tearing at the walls of her brain like thousands of tiny jaws. Her frantic screaming only added to that pandemonium, ringing and ringing and ringing like a banshee's siren. Fingernails embedded themselves into her scalp from under her askew hair, head-wings flailing and ears lying as flat as they could go, as though in a desperate attempt to exorcise the dreadful, riotous noise.

GOD HELP ME I CAN'T--

Then it all exploded. Keaton flailed and screamed, smashing and tearing without any regard toward who or what she hit. Her claw came in contact with something which cursed loudly, but she couldn't reach anybody else in her frenzied swiping. Everyone else had been flung away like ragdolls by the tempestuous force which flooded outward from her body. Even if she were aware of it, she wouldn't have cared--she was too far gone, even too distant to hear the ferocious roar which shredded the atmosphere or to see the serpentine shape rear up from her shadow. The sofa upended itself, sending Keaton tumbling over the floor until she lay in a crumpled, shivering heap, still releasing strangled breaths and miniscule mutterings every so often.

~Keaton the Black Jackal

[Aisha deCabre]

Aisha's eyes narrowed as she watched Keaton's display of discomfort.  It looked as if Mel's treatment wasn't doing much, and only making it worse.  She couldn't imagine the mental anguish going on inside the succubus's head at that moment...the panther grimaced, leaning forward a little from the column that she had her back to, just to get a clearer look at what was going on.

It was then, suddenly, that her eyes shifted over to Bambi, who still hadn't dispelled despite suggestions given to her.  The response was immediate...all Aisha had time to do before the intense shockwave took everyone was to dig the claws from her feet into the floor.

The felid was slammed back against the column and pried painfully out from her anchor, coughing a snarl as she gained her breath back and toppled to the ground.

"Wha..." she coughed again, "What the hell?!"  She cast a slight glare at the fae, wondering what could have prompted such a hasty response, before her eyes widened and she clasped her hands over her ears, the horrid roar piercing the minds of the room's inhabitants like a knife.

Then she looked up again, expression of frustration turning into one of awe and fear at the serpentine creature forming above the sprawled and convulsing jackal.  And suddenly it felt almost as if Keaton's pain was very understandable.

"Sangre de Dios... (God's blood...)" the huntress cursed and started to reach for her sword, albeit slowly and out of instinct.

[Angel]

Ketefe had just settled in for a minute, her sword finally off of her shoulders and the lemonade cooling her throat, when she heard the varied but familiar sounds of all hell breaking loose in the room where Keaton and the others were.

"Oh shit!" she said in a hushed, panicked tone, grabbing her sword and pushing her chair away from the table. "Never a dull moment in this place," she muttered before running out the door of the kitchen and down the hallway.

Dammitgottahelpoutholyshitwhatthehellaretheydoingtoherwhatsshedoingtothemshitshitshit-

She opened the door and imediately wished she hadn't.

Keaton was trembling and jerking around uncontrollably on the floor, and everyone else was watching, panicked, as a snakelike beast formed behind the terrified jackal.

Ketefe lowered her head, keeping her deadly serious gaze on the reptilian monster, and slowly unwrapped her sword. She crouched a little in an attack position and waited for the right moment to strike.

[Boog]

Jeremiah swore loudly and creatively as he sank to the floor, clutching his head as if to squeeze out this malevolent assault against his skull. Some of them were at the snake thing. Some were at Keaton. Some were at Stygian and his bloody goddamn family castle. A good number where at Bambi. Mostly, though, it was generic swearing.
The ache started to dull fairly quickly though. The spiders needed him useful, needed to suppress the pain so that their only host wouldn't be disabled. Soon he was dragging himself back to his feet, his curse still screaming and ranting. They heard that scream too.

[Prof B Hunnydew]

"BAM Be NO PLUSHIE" shouts Bambi from the floor.... PBH is sick and tried of being thrown around by everything in this castle.  With all her angry and pain added, she casts a new more powerful true spell. One that will entangling and holds the Snake spirit....a line of green spellfire wraps the Snake-like spector, it holding it fast

BY HOOK BY CROOK!
I KNOW YOUR BOOK!
Give back what you took!
Call Jack on you , I will, you crook!
Far too long, you have die!
KNOW NOW YOU CAN NOT LIE!
For THIS SPELL
HOLDS AND COMPELLS!
So that to my friend you NO Harm!
Tell us, now,  WHERE IS YOUR CHARM!?"
shouts Bambi fully into the spell.

PBH will hold the snake for as long as she can, but snake must tell her and all the truth at last. 

(OOC):The effects of this true spell is more an entangle and "suggest" spell, it holds and prevents the victim from any further actions expect the victim of the spell must answer any question asked of them truefully...(/OOC)

PBH

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Mel was making pretty good progress finding the intruder in Keaton's head. While she had been trained to leave no trace of her incursions behind this other was smashing about like a bad movie monster and consequently easy to track by following the mess. Just as she was getting close she felt a wave of magical energy coming at her. Instinctively she attempted to shield herself from the spell. It was in the moment of distraction that the creature rushed her. For a second it tried to overwhelm her, then as if realizing it couldn't hold cubi and dragon at once Mel found herself forcibly ejected from Keaton's mind, with a magical clout to the head sending her to the floor as a bonus. She was still awkwardly sprawled on the carpet and seeing stars when the howl began. The only luck she had so far was that her defenses were untouched and she was somewhat shielded from the attack that would have been devastating to anyone mentally open. Clawing herself to her knees and glaring up at the mythos she growled, "Let go of Keaton." Any effect this might have had was spoiled when she had to duck Bam's spell flying past.

[Stygian]

The creature, whatever it was, shrugged off Bambi's spell without being affected by it in any way. It seemed to be immune, or at least very resilient, to any attempts at psychic control. But then, that should have been expected. The spell was effectively neutralized, and the raging creature merely bent over Keaton against the cat to glare at her. Then, as its form became more clear and began taking on a sort of ghastly semi-transluscent coloration, it became easier to see that it was sneering at her somehow.
   Uncustomarily though, it didn't do much more than that. Not in terms of gloating or putting them off with smug comments. It just swept out a huge arm against her, aiming to throw her aside and hopefully into something very hard. If the initial impact didn't kill her, that was.
   
   Stygian was getting back to his feet after being thrown about a bit, and held his head, groaning and cursing foully in a variety of languages. How could that damn kitten think that throwing spells around like that would help?! What she had done just then was like throwing dangerous chemicals into the same beaker at random. In fact, they may have been lucky that the result didn't turn out worse than it had! Then again, when he looked up at the towering monster, he wasn't so sure of that thought anymore.
   Still, it was not that horrible a situation. They might have lost Keaton, whether temporarily or permanently, but at least there was one less monster to take care of, once this one was dealt with. It was huge, yes, and nothing like what he had seen before, but it was hardly worse than many things that he had seen before. He just wished that they could have cleared it up without such a bloody incident...
   "Mel... back up and start preparing. We'll keep it busy..." he growled, scowling up at the thing.

[Angel]

Immune to magic. The stupid thing was immune to magic. Bam had thrown a spell at the serpent-monster, and it had dusted off the spell like lint off of an expensive jacket, if they ever made a jacket big enough.

Oh well, Ketefe thought, almost smirking. At least that rules out a few ways to kill it. Then she realized that killing the monster might not be the solution. After all, this thing might know what was wrong with Keaton - or, Ketefe guessed bitterly, might have caused it in the first place. If she could stun it somehow, then she and the others could gather the rest from it - whether it spoke or not, what it could do, and how it had gotten there in the first place.

She moved slightly forward, then slowly moved until she was at a leftish angle from the door. She jumped back when the lizard swished its arm at Keaton, then glanced around the room to see what action the others would take. She really hoped she could help this time.

[Gareeku]

As he stared at the creature before them, Gareeku watched the others attack and tried to think through the situation. When he had been hit, the wolf had not taken on any bodily damage from the creature's initial attack, but it felt like his mind, his spirit, had been attacked.

"Hmmm..." the wolf mused audibly, though considering the situation, it wasn't a calm musing, but more of "shit...what are our options?" that was running through the warrior's mind. Concentrating, the wolf attempted to summon up energy, white flames bursting into life in the warrior's hands. "Here goes nothing..."

With a roar, Gareeku unleashed a wave of soul energy at the creature, the bolt of white flame screaming towards the thing at an intense speed. From thinking the situation through, Gareeku had concluded that psychical attacks obviously would have no effect on something that wasn' physical itself, and this attack didn't work, then it would be safe to say that Gareeku was out of ideas...

[Prof B Hunnydew]

The entangle part of Bambi spell had encircled the Creature which it popped like an bubble, the truth finding part spell connected Bambi, Keaton and the Creature for that split second, before the snake-mythos swatted the fae cat away like a fly.  An image of the creature's book and the bedroom which it lay in, flashed into Bambi's mind from Keaton's memory, as Bambi's spell fainted away.  The Creature's attack sent PBH sailing across the ballroom and landing by Aisha.

"The monster's bottle be a BOOK!" says Bambi as she laying hurting on the floor by Aisha "BY the foot of a Big bed" Bambi says in a whisper. "...know where" PBH faints

PBH

[Mel Dragonkitty]

As Mel backed out of immediate range of the mytho's swiping arms she reviewed what she knew about them. Nothing physical would touch it, only energy. She winced as it sent Bam flying when she tried to bind it, the feline certainly didn't land like a plushie. Fully unfurled it was a large mythos, old and powerful. Gareeku send a ball of white energy at the creature. As she waited to see the effect Mel pulled up an assault of her own, a mind disruption spell to make the monster too confused to attack.

[Angel]

Ketefe watched and flinched as Bam sailed through the air and hit the floor, next to Aisha. She couldn't hear well enough amid the chaos to tell whether Bam had broken anything or not, but that was a matter for later. She watched as Gareeku shot a flare of white energy at the ... "Mythos?" she muttered. Ketefe had heard about Mythos, but never actually seen one. Call yourself a warrior, she thought half-amusedly. But how else did you expain the appearing out of the shadows, the uncertain species, the resistance to magic? She wondered, briefly, if Gareeku's attack would work. Then she scanned the room again and noticed Mel preparing a spell of her own. It would have to be a really strong spell to work, if it even did.

Ketefe looked at the Mythos for a few moments, sizing it up. She decided to strike either its eyes or the back of its head, once she knew if the spells had worked or not. If she struck the back of the head, though, it would have to be with her hilt. "Trying not to kill it yet," she reminded herself, as she tensed her muscles and got ready to jump onto the monster's neck at any second.

[Stygian]

The creature moved quite quickly for being so large, snaking to the side and sweeping its long tail behind it to surround the jackal on the floor. But it was still not so fast that it could avoid Gareeku's swift assault. The soul energy took, and bit into its side with a seething, sizzling and crackling sound. Its body was burned and peeled by the surge, and it roared out in pain, whipping and striking out with its many arms, one of which came right for the wolf, claws out and headed for his chest. The wolf, still in his movement, saw the gleaming tips coming for him...
   It didn't manage to reach him. The next moment, something dark stabbed through its arm quickly as a bullet, tearing through it and pushing it aside. Stygian leapt up at the thing, slashing out with claws extended and lashes and scything blades of darkness ripping out from him, taking form only momentarily to strike at it before they dissolved as he flipped through the air over its back. More snarls and howls of pain from the creature. Yet, the bat's attacks didn't seem to have nearly the effect that Gareeku's had shown. He managed to hit it, and narrowly escape its retaliation strikes, leaping and weaving as the creature struck out all around it, but somehow even the darkness that he formed could not truly hurt the beast no matter what. He was occupying it, but nearly not wounding it at all.
   Then the thing reared back, and lightning sparked and crackled. With a scream, Stygian was thrown halfway across the room and landed hard on the floor as a temporary shield struck him, and very nearly reached Aisha and Bam as well. He growled deeply between clenched teeth, slowly getting up, his fur sizzling and trailing smoke.
   "Better... help here..." he hissed between deep breaths, his eyes narrowing. There was a bit of blood at the corner of his mouth, but he ignored it. In his mind, he tried going over possible ways to subdue or kill the thing quickly, only for his mind to blur and his thoughts to come in unclear. There was one thing that he knew though; that he would not want to have to go all out against the damned thing...
   For a moment, the creature seemed to grin evilly at the bat. Then, it was hit by Mel's spell, and visibly shuddered, its spirit-like form trembling somehow. But rather than be confused, it turned, and snarled at her, its face turning more furious than before. For a second, it rose as it reared back. And then it launched itself against the dragoness, fangs wide open and arms reaching for her.

[Gareeku]

Smirking with satisfaction as the bolt of soul energy struck its intended target, the smirk then vanished from Gareeku's face as his eyes widened upon seeing the gleaming tips of the creature's claws. Thankfully, however, Sebastian had intervened, distracting the creature away from the wolf. Reminding himself to thank him for that later, Gareeku concentrated as his hands were again engulfed ina shining white flame. His eyes closed as he continued to concentrate as much as he could, the flames engulfing the wolf's hands grew in size and intensity as Gareeku summoned more and more soul energy.

Opening his eyes once more, the wolf looked on as he saw the creature seem to shudder thanks to magic stemming from Mel. Seeing the creature turn towards Mel, Gareeku took the opportunity and, with a yell, fired off a bolt of soul energy with as much strength as he could muster.

[Boog]

Jeremiah watched what he'd already named Jabberwocky make a lunge toward Mel. Now, the spiders made him distrust the rest of the group, that was true. He wasn't too big on the self sacrifice thing himself normally anyway.
She's been healing people and making herself useful since she got here...
He didn't trust her, but he rather liked her.
"God dammit," he muttered, charging to position himself between the beast and Mel. If he was lucky, his curse would want to do something about this. If he wasn't, it would go through him like an acetyline torch and in total give Mel an extra twelve seconds, tops. Assuming Gareeku's blast did anything.
Bal could tell when the Greasy Idiot was going to do something particularly stupid. Black flames were already flickering at the ends of the frog's hair.

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Seeing the creature heading for her Mel jumped upwards, her wings opening and with a strong beat driving her towards the ceiling. Luckily the ballroom was three stories tall giving her room to maneuver. She was trying to pull the monster's attention up and away from the others, particularly Gareeku and his attack. And Jeremiah and his attack she belatedly noticed. If the mind disruption spell for confusion made it stop for a moment she'd go all the way to the way to mind wipe and see if that would get it's attention. Putting all the power she could into it she released the spell a moment after Gareeku fired his.

[Angel]

Couple more seconds...

Ketefe observed calculatingly as Stygian went berserk on the Mythos, to little avail, and as the white wolf's energy bolt apparently worked. In fact, it worked very well. So the monster wasn't immune to magic after all. As Stygian landed near Bam and the panthress, Mel flew into the air to distract the Mythos, and prepared a spell of her own while she was at it. As far as Ketefe could tell, it was concentrating on only the dragoness. Which was exactly what she and everyone below wanted.

Now!

Ketefe sprinted foward and then leaped toward the Mythos, slashing at the monster's neck with her lightning-shaped blade.

[Aisha deCabre]

As the others started to take care of the giant serpent, a Mythos probably more strange than any the huntress had ever seen, Aisha made a wise choice to stay to the side, instead watching as magic was worked upon the beast.  Her hand however still lay on her dragonblade's pommel.  She had left the holy sword in the kitchen, perhaps the only thing that would have allowed her to help in this skirmish.  Though, the last time she wielded it was against her friends.

But the fact that she had pretty much nothing at the moment to help contest it frustrated her.  A few of the others had been thrown around like rag dolls, and the masked newcomer had just leaped at the beast in--what she thought after observing everything--a slightly suicidal move.

In the chaos, Aisha hadn't even heard Bam's muttering.  She made sure the felid was safe where she had fainted, and then dashed across the room where Keaton still lay, drawing the blade anyway in case the serpent was to notice her.  The panther could probably get the jackal out of the way as well, if she was freed of it.

[Stygian]

Jeremiah did not make it. After all, the creature was huge, and at about twenty feet with only its upper body raised, it had the reach neccessary to strike both him and Mel. It tumbled into the frog, enormous fangs snapping for the dragon as she beat her wings to fly upward. The frog was thrown aside roughly, receiving a deep gash across his left arm and part of his chest. However, compared to Mel he got off lucky. For all her dragon skin was hard, she could hardly resist the ghastly creature's attacks as they rent her very soul. Teeth like knives cut into her thigh and a fang lodged itself in her pelvis, stabbing deeply and pulling her down. The horrid thing seemed not even distracted as Ketefe's blade passed through its neck almost without resistance.
   However, as it closed its fangs around the dragoness, threatening to crush her and slamming down on the floor after its leap, it was hit in the back by Gareeku's surge of soul energy. And it howled. That crackling sensation filled the whole room, and the ghostlike form of the thing flamed and tore. Simultaneously, Mel's spell hit it in full force, and it shuddered and shrieked, dropping heavily to the ground as its limbs gave way. Weakly, it shivered and moved just a bit, its form crawling as it seemed too weak to mend itself, or even get up. Mel felt dripping wetness around her thigh where its heavy fangs still held her.
   There was a roar.
   "DIE!" Stygian cried, his face twisted beyond recognition with rage. Two steps, and then a leap, halfway through which shadows tore out of him like a storm. Bestial shapes with gleaming eyes, clawed hands, tentacles, schything blades, all made of darkness and all with the same wicked, sharp look, ripped into the howling creature, tearing it apart inch by inch in a ripping tide. For a second, Stygian's form paled and flared, almost glowing while darkness crackled and swirled across and out for it. Then, only a second or so later, the darkness dissipated or drew back into and around him, leaving nothing but a bleeding Mel on the floor.
   The bat panted for a moment, and then looked up. He froze, and then ran over to Mel, getting down on his knees.
   "Aw shit... Can anyone...? Does anyone know...?!" he began, looking back around at the others.

[Angel]

"Huh?"

That was all Ketefe had time to think as her blade went through the Mythos as if it were a ghost. Then she realized how close the ground was getting. She quickly rolled when she hit the floor, so as not to break anything, stopping about ten feet from the Mythos. She looked up, and screamed when she saw Mel lodged in between the monster's teeth.

Everything else happened very quickly, almost too quickly for her to follow. The white wolf's second blast worked, and Ketefe felt her skin prickle from the surge of energy in the room. Then the beast dropped on the ground, making the whole room shake, as Stygian screamed and shadows flew out of him, monstrous evil creatures everywhere... Ketefe buried her face in her hands and gasped shakily. When the chaos died down, she heard only Stygian breathing heavily, and smelled Mel's blood. Blood! She jumped up, her fear only a quarter forgotten, and ran over to Mel and Stygian, kneeling down beside the bleeding dragon.

"Oh my God...Blood everywhere..." She didn't care if anyone knew healing magic, Mel needed to stop bleeding. Ketefe examined her own clothes, and realized that they were too dirty to use on an open cut without infecting Mel. She sighed almost angrily, and reached up, reluctantly untying her mask. Underneath it was a broken, old, but deep scar. It ran across the middle-left side of her right eye. At this point, Ketefe didn't care who saw it. The new injuries on other people were what everyone cared about.

She dabbed at the blood using the tie-end of the mask, then wrapped it around Mel's thigh, underside down, making sure that the holes were out of the way of the gash. At least she had done one thing to help today. She glanced over at Bam and Keaton, knowing they needed help too, and looked back at Mel. "Can you hear me?" she said softly. "Are any of your bones broken?"

[Sunblink]

Ow.

Nearby the chaos, lying in a crumpled, disheveled heap of yellow-black fur and entangled leathery wings, Keaton groaned and shuddered as she felt her subconscious return to normal. As bolts of energy illuminated the air and the shrieking roars and pounding pandemonium of the Mythos shook the chamber, Keaton felt part of her mind start to piece itself back together, reclaiming all the shards which had been lost.

What just happened?

Wasn't entirely sure. She wasn't expecting an answer anyway, so it didn't come as a disappointment to her.

I don't think I can move.

Slight stirring. Keaton shifted where she lay, groaning unconsciously in the back of her throat. That confirmed it. She could move. A hand reached up to clutch at her scalp, binding its lithe fingers in the tangled mess of her dirty blonde hair. Her head-wings twitched spasmodically, one of them crushed beneath the side of her head. Not broken, thankfully, as it readjusted itself once she lifted her head slightly. The first thing she saw as her eyes fluttered open was that that the darkness was gone. Nothing but light spilling through the towering, arched windows of the ballroom, and the smell of blood.

Blood?

Keaton first checked herself. No signs of injuries. Her eyes soon led her over to the pool of crimson gathered nearby. Reaching down, she lifted her glasses up with a tremulous hand and reperched them on the bridge of her nose. Mismatched brown eyes traced the path of spreading blood from behind the glass, steadily leading her to what she recognized as a white, scaly figure, crumpled on the ground. Bleeding. It took a moment for her to identify it, but once she did, Keaton didn't feel any shock that she could no longer see the phantoms and monsters which plagued her vision. Instead she felt something entirely new.

Shock. Concern.

"M-Mel?" Keaton asked, lifting her body slightly. She gambled that it would be safe enough to do so. "What... oh fuck..."

~Keaton the Black Jackal

[Boog]

Jeremiah hit the wall and passed out. Well, that went about as well as could be expected, thought someone. We may never know if it was Bal or the frog.

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Wings beating franticly to gain height Mel didn't even have time to curse when the jaws snapped together around her lower body. Pain spiked through her, dazzling her vision and scattering thought. Reacting on instinct she raked at the monster's snout with her claws and spit ice at it. The jolt when the mythos heavily landed followed by the fringe effects of Gareeku's attack shocked her mind back to racing speed. She was critically hurt. Mel threw her energy into healing, willing herself to stay conscious. A healing spell without thought to guide it was like diverting a stream into a field without digging irrigation canals, most of the spell would be wasted going places it wasn't needed and she was going to need all the healing she could muster. Then she felt the results of her own attack, the mythos hitting the floor hard, and it's victim along with it. Her wings still spread she didn't even have them to cushion her as she crashed into the marble hard followed immediately by the increased pain as the mythos fangs drove deeper upon impact. As her thoughts dimmed Mel did have time to curse, just once.

[Aisha deCabre]

As Aisha reached Keaton, she wouldn't have time to check on the jackal as attacks persisted on the Mythos.  She could see its form painfully burning from Gareeku's and Mel's shots, its painful cries wrenching the minds and souls of everyone in the ballroom more than it did their ears.  The panther stopped and held her hands against the sides of her head.  Safe to say, the huntress wasn't prepared for such a thing to have been unleashed.

Then came Sebastian, and needless to say it was a fierce ending to the battle, brilliant and chaotic.  At least that's how it felt.  Aisha closed her eyes as the beast struggled and caused the room to shake with its bulk, and opened them again to see things calm again, with just the party members in the room...a few of them injured, and one of them critically.

"You're alright, Keaton?" she asked cautiously, making sure she was before walking over to check on Mel.  Her eyes widened as she saw the condition the dragon was in.  Blood coated the hardwood floor around her body.  The newcomer had already started to use her mask as a tourniquet, it seems...but there was a little more to be done.  The panther sighed.  We need more than one healer around.  Especially when one needs it.

"Lemme through," the panther said, pushing through the gathering crowd a little.  She reached to her belt and brought out her silvery light-magic bracer, snapping it around the dragon's wrist.  Hopefully, there was enough healing energy within it to curb her pain and slowly seal the gash.  The artifact had been used quite a bit lately...however there looked to still be work to do.

"Okay, someone help to carry Mel somewhere safe," she said, standing up.  "The wound needs to be wrapped.  If nobody wants to spare staining their cloak with blood then I'll get mine."  She glanced over to where Jeremiah was fainted, and Bam as well.  "They might need to be carried out too," she said with a sigh, looking around at the group.

Okay Rynkura, you're right, healing IS a useful skill.

[Stygian]

"Great. Just bloody great. Als ob wir hatten nicht genug probleme..." Stygian swore, while still kneeling, not certain what to do. The dragon was still bleeding through, and Aisha's suggestion seemed good, but...
   Gently, he slipped his hands under the dragon, and lifted her up, gingerly so as not to disturb her wound. The sensation was quite odd, compared to what he was used to, considering that she was as cold as the floor, and that he couldn't stop imagining her in her twenty-foot form, which made her seem all the lighter. It felt like carrying a fragile porcelain doll. Slowly, he turned with her in his arms and looked back at the others, his face still befitting of his name.
   "I'm hoping that you people have a clue. Me, I won't be able to do anything for her until after she dies..." he said, ominously if anything, and began walking against an exit. They would need a bed to lay her down on, so that meant finding a room. He glanced a bit at Keaton with an unreadable look, his mind really still thinking the concept of him in this situation odd. In other circumstances...
   Seemingly of its own accord, one of the double doors before him opened, and he walked out.