Fantasy Silent Rapture

[KhazTheGiraffe]

The wound had almost fully healed through the use of Kiyomi's abilities, but it was still going to leave a formidable scar. He didn't mind, scars were very sacred and important to him and his family. There were not viewed as imperfections, instead, they were seen as new stories to tell and a sign that he had defeated the death spirits again. Although truthfully he wouldn't mind if they had been victorious. The Kitsune who had healed him now stood before him smiling and laughing after Hino rejected her offer to help him up. He puffed out of his nose, visibly annoyed. Her positivity was both suffocating and distracting. What bothered him even more is that now he was indebted to her and would have to find a way to repay the favour.

As soon as she turned her back to him, he found a tree to lean on and let out a deep breath. Kiyomi had healed the wound, but it didn't make up for the fact that he had still lost a significant amount of blood. He continued to nurse his side and catch his breath as he watched some of the others finish off the rest of the enemies. Although it took much longer than he thought it would. There were some truly shocking failed attacks and near misses with the gargoyles and it was a miracle they had all survived.

From within the melted corpse of the automaton, Hino came face to face with the creature that almost ended his life. It was a Djinn, and a very wounded one at that. It would have been fairly easy to wish pain and suffering on something that tried to cut him in half, but instead, he felt a crushing sense of sadness for the djinn. He knew all too well about the chains of oppression, and couldn't help but empathize with him. As Harian's bullet put him out of his misery for the time being, he nodded his head and said a silent prayer for the guardians to carry his being peaceful to the next dimension. The cryptic message the djinn said as his final words hung over the group in a dead silence. It was clear that the end of the world was very much underway, and they were only going to have a few opportunities to stop it.

As the group approached the house, Hino couldn't help but notice the stark contrast between the mayhem outside and the eerie stillness of the house. The house itself had an odd feeling, not one he expected from the home of the anti-christ. As for the lack of enemy presence within the house, that too struck him as odd. The group was rather quiet as they ventured further into the house and into the supposed room of the anti-christ. It was clear on everyone's face that they were trying to put the pieces together. A dull cry broke the silence as it emerged from a crib in the corner of the room. Hino didn't even have to look at the stone he carried in his hands for him to know that the anti-christ lay before him. It was then that the debates started.

As the people in the room began to debate its fate, the baby began to cry louder. Hino wasted no time in crossing the room to the crib while the others shared their own opinions and morals. He looked into the crib at the fresh face that stared up at him now. Yes, it was crying and clearly uncomfortable with the chaotic situation, but who wouldn't be after a warzone broke out just outside your window and now a group of terrifying strangers stood looking down at you. Maybe it was the anti-christ, but it was also a baby in need of some comfort. The Thunder God looked around for evidence of a mother, but from what he could see there was none. He began shushing the child reassuringly and reached his hands into the crib. He rocked the baby in his arms for a few moments, comforting it as it's crying turned into a dull whimper. After settling him down, he placed him back into the crib with one of the stuffed animals that was mounted on a nearby shelf before turning back to the others.

"There won't be a vote," He said firmly yet quietly so as not to disturb the baby, "The child will not be harmed."

andujarprime SilverFlight The Velveteen Rabbit Lioness075 Naberius Feywild MrBossMan GamerCarrot Crazy Trey-n

 

[Naberius]

Gabriel watched and listened to the reactions of the others. Some were as conflicted as he was, or at least it looked that way. He had never been confronted with such a situation before. Every enemy he had ever come into contact with was ancient. Evil. They had all committed countless atrocities and slaughtered dozens or hundreds of innocents. What lay before them was not a monster. The child was not even old enough to walk. There had to be a mistake. After all, it would not be the first time that a mandate handed down from heaven got something wrong. As he stood contemplating the situation quietly, something happened. His ears began to ring, and it felt as though a white hot spike had been driven into his brain. He collapsed to his knees, holding his head between his hands. His vision swam and grew dark before fading away entirely.
Damn you...not now. Not here!
As quickly as it had begun, it was over and Gabriel stood. But something was off. Wrong. When next he opened his eyes, they were a disturbing solid, bloody crimson. And when he spoke, it was the voice of a legion of souls speaking in unison. Much like had occurred back in that dark, dank basement full of demon taint, the man that had been Gabriel had shifted. Changed.
"You are correct. There will be no discussion. The gods have handed down their judgement. Child or no, it dies. Do not stand in the way. Balance must be restored at any cost."

andujarprime SilverFlight The Velveteen Rabbit Lioness075 Feywild MrBossMan GamerCarrot Crazy Trey-n KhazTheGiraffe

 

[Lioness075]

Falarion could overhear the discussion underway in the bedroom behind him and he grimaced again. This was not going to end well either way and he knew most of the group would be traumatized on some level if the baby was killed or if they opted to not end its life. He could give his opinion on the matter, after all he strongly believed in the many over the few. But he also knew that his opinion would only cause more strife in the room.

Looking back out into the hallway, Falarion instead focused on the odd fact that despite the guards out front and back, nobody was inside the house to guard this baby. The parents were no where to be seen and the entire building was eerily quiet. There had to be more to this than just those guards.

Just as he took a step forward to start exploring the house a bit, Falarion paused to look down at himself and grimaced. He had not noticed up until now that his shirt was practically entirely crimson with drying blood and even his jacket had splatters all over it. There was an elongated gash through his shirt's fabric, where the djinn's sword had slashed him. He pulled at the shirt furtively, but only grimaced again when he saw the healing scab underneath that was already mostly a scar.

Opting to kill a bird with two stones, Falarion wandered away from the baby's room and opened the next door he found in the hallway. He peeked in cautiously, but had to flick on the lights before he could really get a good look at anything. The lights flickered on and Falarion furrowed his brows as he looked around at the luxurious bedroom. There was a king bed with lavish curtains hanging over its sides and all of the furniture was a dark oak that had been polished to gleam. Falarion immediately went for the dresser and began opening the drawers, relief flooding him when he found male apparel neatly folded inside. It seemed button-downs were popular even for rich folk and he quickly discarded his bloodied jacket and button-down for a fresh button-down of a similar color scheme. He was disheartened to not find another jacket, but his new button-down was long-sleeved and he happily fixed the buttons along his sleeves while leaving the top two buttons undone around his collar.
It was only when Falarion finally turned around and really looked at the room that he felt goosebumps. Despite it looking so perfect when he had first entered, he now realized that there was actually a small pile of clothes near one side of the bed and an empty glass on one of the nightstands. The small trash can beside it did in fact have some trash collected inside. They were not alone.

Worried, Falarion left the bedroom in a slight rush and returned to the baby's bedroom to see Hino cradling the baby briefly to calm it down. Falarion immediately made a face at this and gave the man a wide berth while he began poking around the baby's bedroom.
Sure enough, Falarion's suspicions were confirmed as he could not find any clothing for the baby or even any toy box. It was as if someone had simply slapped a baby wallpaper onto the wall and then left the baby in its crib here to be forgotten.
Uneasy now, Falarion turned to face the group while still mindfully trying to keep his distance from the disturbing baby.
"Guys, hey...guys!"
Falarion waved his hands a bit, trying his best to get everyone's attention.
"Something is very wrong here, like, even wronger than the baby itself. I've seen signs of people living here in another bedroom, but there's nothing for the baby in this house that I could see. I don't have any experience with babies, but shouldn't there at least be clothes for it in here and, like, toys? The room has just been hastily decorated for the baby."
SilverFlight andujarprime Crazy Trey-n Feywild The Velveteen Rabbit MrBossMan Naberius KhazTheGiraffe GamerCarrot

 

[SilverFlight]

Harian seemed to flinch as Kyomi placed a hand on her shoulder, but she relaxed a moment later and gave the kitsune a look of gratitude, forced through the pain she felt. It was ot the first mercy kill she had had to do...likely, it would not be the last.

The cry of the baby snapped her back into reality. Jophiel just stood there, jaw dropped. She could see the conflict tearing at him.
Harian pushed past him and walked right up to the crib, peering over with both hands on the railing.
The baby was not more than 11 months, dark hair with a fine curl, blue eyes that stared up at the others as they peered down at him.
Kyomi made her thoughts known. Jophiel looked absolutely distraught.
"It...it's the antichrist..."
"It's a baby!" Harian barked, and whether it was what she would normally have done, or the fact that she had just had to put a bullet in a friend, her tone was angry and protective.
"I didn't sign up to kill a baby."
Jophiel almost didn't hear Ayramis' question. "No..I...we didn't know."
"It absolutely does not have to be done! The kid can't even stand, how the hell is an infant supposed to bring about the apocalypse?"
Nero made a really good point and Harian pointed at him for emphasis "Thank you!"

The baby's crying had reached a new pitch, but he suddenly quieted as Hino picked him up. He reached out with pudgy fingers to try and touch Hino's face, giving up half way and shoving most of his hand in his mouth with a happy gurgle.
"We are not killing a frickin' baby." Harian confirmed after Hino spoke.

When Gabriel collapsed Harian started in alarm, going to kneel beside him. "Hey! Justicar, Gabriel! What's wrong with you?"
He went still suddenly, and stood. Harian backed away, her jaw tightening when she saw the crimson in his eyes.
Adrestia delivered her decree.
"Fuck you." Harian shot back, and before she could give the goddess more of her mind, there was a noise outside. A car had come to a screeching halt outside the mansion, several men with very large, very expensive automatic weapons game bursting in, more gargoyles, pulling on chains. It was definitely trouble, and likely more than they could handle at the moment. They had to make a choice.
Harian moved first. "We're taking the kid." She ran for the table, the only thing it contained was a chest baby carrier. Harian tossed it at the nearest person (Which happened to be Hino) and went about looking for the rest of the supplies. She didn't find any.
"Jeez what sort of parents are these?!"
It was then Falarion burst into the room with his rather strange news.
Jophiel frowned. "Falarion I believe you're right. There are things here that do not add up..."
"Get in!" Harian dragged Falarion fully into the room and slammed the door shut, then she went to the crib and lifted the baby carefully out of it. Placing him into the carrier she had previously thrown at the thunder god.
Jophiel took out a card and pressed it to the door. The way was then open straight back to the house.
They could hear footsteps thundering up the staircase.
"Quickly please!"
Once everyone was through Jophiel shut the door, and the way closed behind them.
It only took a moment of calmed breathing for Jophiel to realize what they had just done.
"Oooh we have the antichrist in my house!" He began pacing. "How am I going to explain this one to HQ?! We didn't complete the mission...but...we can't.."
Harian rolled her eyes.
"First off, you're going to stop panicking. Then, you're going to the store to buy baby stuff. Maybe take someone with you. I dunno if you could even use a credit card in this state."
She glanced around at the others. "I'm protecting the kid. If any of you want him, you go through me."

The baby began to whine again, looking around for a comforting face. Someone would need to cradle him or he would start crying again.

Lioness075 MrBossMan andujarprime The Velveteen Rabbit Naberius Crazy Trey-n KhazTheGiraffe GamerCarrot Feywild

 

[Lioness075]

Just a Harian cussed out Gabriel, Falarion blinked in confusion, but could not get a word in when he heard a screeching car outside. Before he could even react to this, Harian yanked him into the bedroom and he yelped in surprise. Stumbling away from her, he nearly fell against the crib and quickly backed up against a wall instead. He made a face at the creepy baby crib, but did not say anything. He had a feeling he was one of the oddballs in the group for not caring deeply for this baby of doom.
Seeing Harian prepping the baby to take it with them, Falarion opened his mouth to protest, but everything was simply happening too fast. He sighed as the doorway was opened to their personal house and he merely followed the group through.

Watching Jophiel panic inside the house was rather amusing, but Falarion also had to admit he shared the angel's concerns. As messed up as this whole situation was, the baby was definitely not supposed to be alive.
While Harian was making plans for how to care for the baby now, Falarion said quietly, "It won't take long for Gabriel, the other Gabriel, to figure out that we haven't killed the baby. What happens then?"

As the baby began crying again, Falarion flinched and then stared past it, as if seeing something that was not really there. In his head, he could hear the wailing screams echoing and the fire beginning to rage once more.
"Shit."
Falarion clutched at his head briefly and then turned on his heels, abruptly leaving the team and heading for the pool.
Once away from everyone, Falarion sighed and promptly changed into his swim trunks before stepping into the pool. He slowly sank to his neck and then rested against the side of the pool with his arms resting outside of it. He closed his eyes and focused on the healing waters, as they healed the rest of his scab and graced him with a new scar. It was interesting that over all the years of fighting and everything he had gone through, this was actually his first scar that remained on his body. He supposed it could be one of many, given how things were going with this group.
SilverFlight andujarprime Crazy Trey-n KhazTheGiraffe Feywild The Velveteen Rabbit GamerCarrot Naberius

 

[Naberius]

The Justicar calmly followed the other assembled parties, seemin to have not noticed or cared about the incoming enemies. The blood red orbs scanning the interior of their home base as though seeing it for the first time. The others settled in, and as the angel began to pace, it spoke.

"What will happen is you will stand aside. Do not interfere with the will of the gods. In case you have forgotten, we are at war. We do not have time for your emotions to stand in the way of balancing the scales. Angel. Hand the seed of darkness to us. Lady Athena would not be pleased with your failure."

Gabriel's body walked to stand before Jophiel, it's unblinking red eyes staring him down. It was unnerving. It was Gabriel yet not. It did not breath. It did not blink. The minute movements that living creatures make as a result of being alive were not present. It was as though a possessed corpse stood before them, demanding they relinquish the child to the will of Olympus.


SilverFlight andujarprime Crazy Trey-n KhazTheGiraffe Feywild The Velveteen Rabbit GamerCarrot Lioness075

 

[KhazTheGiraffe]

Hino stood behind Harian in support as child's safety became more at risk. Gabriel had become the embodiment of his Adrestia and was rambling on about restoring the balance. He strategically placed himself between Gabe and the child and glared down at the much smaller man. Suddenly Falarion barged in to announce that they weren't alone, and within seconds the sound of cars pulling up to the house and footsteps running around the house filled the air. As Jophiel began opening a door back to the base, Hino instinctively turned around to grab the baby but was instead slapped across the face with what he believed to be a baby carrier. Harian had already reached the child and was prepping him for transport. He was a little surprised but was well aware of the time pressures they were facing, and instead decided to improvise. Harian placed the antichrist into the carrier as he buckled it up on his chest, though he did have to loosen a few of the straps first. Hino quickly made sure the baby fit snuggly in the carrier before following the rest of the group into the house.

As they entered the house away from the unknown threat, Adrestia made yet another demand. She was insisting that this was the only way and that it was the will of the gods.

"'The will of the gods'" He scoffed, "I must have missed that meeting, then, as I am a God, and it is not my will that an innocent child be murdered in its crib. Not to mention, this committee that discovered the supposed antichrist is comprised of notoriously terrible guessers. And a word of advice, Adrestia, Olympians do not have the credibility to lecture others on acting on emotion." He held Gabriel's red-eyed gaze as he protectively held the baby's ears closed. Despite how badly he wished to raise his voice at the man and his goddess, he also did not want to hurt the child. It also came to Hino's attention that this was the most he had talked in front of these people since he had met them, and even he was surprised, but this was not a situation that he would remain silent for. He then turned his head towards the Djinn who had begun long term planning for the baby's stay. She was clearly as passionate about this as he was, and deep within his heart, he felt a flicker of trust. He nodded at Harian in silent solidarity as if to say that he had her back.

"I agree with Harian. If you feel inclined to harm the baby, you will be met with force." His tone was dark and menacing, even more than usual. Though it was slightly undercut due to the fact that he was bobbing and swaying from side-to-side in an attempt to comfort the baby.

andujarprime SilverFlight The Velveteen Rabbit Lioness075 Naberius Feywild MrBossMan GamerCarrot Crazy Trey-n

 

[Naberius]

"You are misinformed or else woefully ignorant. We are the Justicar. And Lady Adrestia governs the balance of light and dark. Her will is law. Olympus has spoken. You have not the power to stop us. Strike if you will, but know that you will only harm this vessel. The one you call Gabriel is no longer here. If this vessel is destroyed, we will seek another. And another. Would you slaughter droves of innocent mortals to protect one monster?"

The retort was delivered in the same matter-of-fact tone one might use when discussing things of absolute certainty. The sky is blue. The grass is green. The multitude of voices speaking at once filled the air with a declaration of absolution. It would brook no refusal in this matter. The glowing red eyes, like perfectly smooth spheres of fresh blood, slid over the assembled mass. The expression it wore upon the face that was not its own was a blank mask. It turned to face them, one by one. Lifting a finger, it pointed at the baby.

"You stand in this room, assembled for war. You may not have asked to be its soldiers, but you are. That thing is no mortal child. Not any longer. If you have not the necessary strength of spirit to carry out this task, as the one called Gabriel so did, then we shall do this. This vessel could not or would not carry out it's duty. And so we shall."

andujarprime SilverFlight The Velveteen Rabbit Lioness075 Feywild MrBossMan GamerCarrot Crazy Trey-n KhazTheGiraffe

 

[Feywild]

Watching the scene play out before her with her lips in a thinned line, Zoya kept her mouth shut, refusing to let herself slip into a loophole of judgment over a baby anti-christ. They couldn’t seriously be considering taking it back with them, it was the anti-christ. But she was proved wrong when sudden reappearance of Falarion caught her off guard, telling the group there was something off and in a flash she was whisked away to the home. At least they’d avoided the predicament of having to fight again, but now they had to deal with this mess since that baby had been brought with them too. She hadn’t had the chance to protest, biting back her comments to slip through to the home. Zoya wasn’t happy, her face stormy as they entered the home and she apprehended the supposed bundle of joy, or in this case potential doom.

Flicking her eyes to not Gabriel, she frowned, “do us all a favour and come deal with this baby yourself instead of making us.” She commented dryly, brows knitted together as she glared at him, or whoever this Adrestria and her posse was. “And don’t use his body, that’s creepy.” She shuddered, looking away with a huff as she picked at her nails seemingly bored. That babies crying was rather irritating, why would anyone willingly want one? Whatever, she didn’t have to care so she wasn’t going to. “I don’t want to be here right now.” Zoya announced, cringing as blood was matted in her hair when she felt the back of her head, only wincing a little. “Good luck with the baby.” She sang pettily as she left, face bitter as she refused to lock eyes with anyone as she found herself wandering towards that healing pool. Maybe her injury was just making her think everything and everyone was dumb. Then again, who was she to speak about intelligence?

Changing into her swimsuit in a quiet huff, Zoya quickly got ready, throwing her dirtied clothes into a ruined heap as she strutted into the pool room and lowered herself into the soothing waters. Sighing as she let the water envelop her and wash away her anger. Submerging herself was easy, she didn’t resurface for at least a few minutes and only did it then when she noticed the presence of another in the pool. She hadn’t noticed anyone get in, they must’ve been in already. How embarrassing for her to not notice them in her anger. Swimming up their side, Zo peeked her head out the water, a small smile crinkling on her face when she realised it was the blond she’d healed earlier. “Hey monkey boy, you okay?” She asked curiously, pulling her hair out of her face as she did so. “You don’t seem too happy, it’s not about that scar right? I’m sorry it stayed.” She turned her head away embarrassed when she saw him inspecting it, usually there was nothing remaining after she healed, a mistake must’ve been made and she was cursing herself out for it mentally.

SilverFlight Naberius Lioness075

 

[Lioness075]

Falarion felt rather amused when he watched Zoya joining him in the pool, as she was so bristled and upset by something that she simply slipped into the water and vanished without a word. When she reappeared at his side, Falarion flinched in surprise and then relaxed again with a grin.
“You know, I think I actually rather like the scar. I believe a good scar can help a lad get the ladies, so I appreciate having it now.”
He figured a little deflection could not hurt and so he followed up with a question of his own, “I noticed you looked a bit flustered when you first joined me. Are the others still fretting over the spawn of evil?”
He could not help himself, as he still did not feel onboard with the idea of protecting the child. The setting of the home and the guards around it had been more than enough to convince him that something was very wrong with this baby. He really wanted nothing to do with it.
Feywild

 

[Feywild]

Zoya blinked slowly at him, a lazy smirk shifting onto her face as she heard him praise the scar, “I’m sure you’ll get all the ladies now,” she snorted, rolling her eyes at his comment even if it did make her feel better about it. “I wonder if there’s more scars to come...” she trailed her thought out absently, frowning as she murmured before clicking onto what she’d just said quite startled, “that came out weird,” she pouted, shaking her head, “I just don’t know what to expect anymore.” Zoya sighed, letting her arms rest on the poolside as she looked away from Falarion.

“A bit flustered is a nice way of putting it.” She replied, a new smile gracing her glistening face, twisting into a more solemn expression as she took into account what he asked. “Of course they’re fretting, it’s the reason I left, that and children and I aren’t exactly a good match.” She admitted with a cloudy gaze resting on her hands. “Child or not it has a destiny, we can’t reshape what’s already been forged, I think they made a mistake bringing the baby here.” It was a relief to her that off of her chest, even if she wasn’t the fondest of children the idea of taking the literal anti-christ home and pretending everything would be okay seemed idiotic.

“Why’d you come here? I thought you’d like kids?”

Lioness075

 

[SilverFlight]

Harian glanced back at Hino with a smile. She was glad he was willing to defend their decision, mostly because Harian by herself would not have put up much of a fight. Direct conflict was not her thing.
"Ooooo!" The baby cooed and then gurgled and laughed and waved his hands about, apparently taking a liking to his new surroundings.
Harian however, was more concerned about the witch that was holding her only friend captive.
"You're the justicar." Harian confirmed slowly. "Your purpose it to uphold justice and right and bring low the unfair and the evil. So tell me this: where is the justice in killing a baby, whose only crime so far, was drooling on himself?"
The baby blew another spit bubble and it trickled slowly down his chin.
"While we're at it, where is the justice in forcing your presence into the mind of someone who very probably does not want you to be in there?"
Harian was more than done with this asshole and her skewed sense of balance. She decided to try and speak to someone else.
"Gabriel? Can you hear me? Listen, you have more power than Adrestia wants you to believe. I think you can fight this. That's what you do right? You fight for what you believe in. So fight. Kick that asshole out of your head!"
KhazTheGiraffe Naberius

 

[andujarprime]

Ayramis turned his attention to the rest of the group sighing in slight relief at Hino's declaration. His relief didn't last long as whatever being's powered Gabe took over. He felt himself bristling as the voices threatened harm. Why exactly was he feeling this towards the child. He told himself he wouldn't get attached to more humans, let alone children. It was around this time Falarion ran into the room. The guardian outside the house snarled at the incoming swarm of cars and guns. The suits that swarmed around the house looked to the disturbing, sinewy guardian with focused faces. Ayramis, inside the house noted the arrival as he heard the cars pull up. "Yeah, we've got company it seems." He turned to the others as Harian got the carrier and tossed it to Hino. He sent a mental note to the guardian to position itself directly in front of the front door as the portal back to HQ opened up. With a silent goodbye, he stepped through the portal after everyone else.

Ayramis stood amongst Hino and Harian, both looking to Gabe and questioning him. He scoffed at the presence, Adrestia’s use of the claim of gods. “It’s funny, you Olympians have no issues meddling with mortals and interjecting yourselves into their lives. But the thought of the other pantheon’s divines makes you blister in feigned justice and pure arrogance. You ‘gods’ like to claim your lofty titles when it suits you. Yet in the balance of life and death, or mortal souls maybe a literal handful of you have any real say. Tell me, how many souls do you have swirling in that vessel? You want to speak of gods? How long do you think it will take a god who truly deals with life, death, and the mortal soul to pry you from your vessel and stuff you into individual, furry, big toothed, floppy eared, pink nosed, cotton tailed, carrot munching little rabbits? Do not overextend yourself. Especially not in an area you don’t belong. If you wanted to smite first and ask questions later you should have come yourself.” By the end of his rant Ayramis was bristling. His Jackal had slipped out of its home and stood at his feet, canines bared and a low growl escaping its throat. Ayramis hadn’t been this protective over a mortal child in hundreds of years. Not since his own, and maybe it was that memory that had him so on edge. His eyes glowing and his staff had appeared in his hands. He was ready for soul snatching, consequences be damned. “I would advise you leave the vessel, we can adjourn this meeting for a later time. Right now, you will not win.” He suggested in an icy tone. He would not back down, but he didn’t want to hurt Gabe. This was a teammate, but he wasn’t himself.

SilverFlight KhazTheGiraffe Naberius GamerCarrot Crazy Trey-n

 

[Crazy Trey-n]

Perhaps it was just the fatigue of the battle they'd just endured settling in, but Nero couldn't bring himself to directly choose a side in this battle. Half of his mind knew that the child wasn't what it seemed in one way or another, but the other half was shocked at the connection he felt to it. Falarion's words had only strengthened the conflict and confusion both within him and with some of the others. A dire expression was on his face as he stepped down into the Jophiel's summoned portal.

The sudden transition of locations did nothing to ease the tensions. Falarion and Zoya left the group after voicing their own concerns and the rest seemed hell-bent on protecting the child, yet Gabriel had certainly changed. Nero had been so focused on the child that he hadn't noticed. Now, however, that same booming voice that had made an appearance in the pit of the bar was back, and it clearly wasn't happy with them or the situation. Hino, Harian and Ayramis all made their own stand against the being that possessed Gabe, which made it quite easy for the boy to step back and allow the far superior beings in the group talk the other down. Though he did peer out from behind the three and chime in with a quiet voice, "What sort of goddess of balance would let droves of innocents be sent to die over a baby?" He didn't need to point out just how little of a threat the baby was - or at least how little of a threat it appeared to be. Never initially trust what you see to be as it seems, as someone, somewhere had once told him. "Just give us our friend back."
His concern for the baby was still there, now accompanied by suspicion as to why it was 'required' to die by a very powerful being, but like Kiyomi had mentioned earlier, the morality of the situation was questionable at the least.

Naberius andujarprime SilverFlight KhazTheGiraffe The Velveteen Rabbit GamerCarrot

 

[Lioness075]

Hearing Zoya's comment about scars, Falarion shrugged and said, "I don't think that's weird, so much as a fact. We do have a tendency to come out of these fights looking worse for wear."
He sighed and then added, "I don't entirely know what to expect either, but I didn't exactly show up to this affair with specific expectations in mind. I'm just rolling with the punches."
He held up a hand just above the water and gestured randomly in the air to emphasize his comment, but he just ended up splashing the water a bit. Snorting, he said, "Sorry. I should probably tone down my hand gestures when I'm in a pool."

Falarion chuckled when Zoya responded to his comments about her initial appearance the creepy baby. He was very curious when she mentioned her and children not being a good match, but he held his tongue. He did not know her beyond her own name and a bit about her capabilities, so he had a feeling he could be prying too soon. He knew side comments like those had a tendency to lead to secrets best left to rest in some cases.
Sighing again, Falarion leaned back in the pool once more, resting his head against the side.
"It's a bit of a conundrum, I suppose. I haven't the faintest idea why Harian, of all people, is so adamant about defending the 'thing'. I've no real experience with angels in general, but the setting and the excessive guards were hint enough to me that we're meddling with something that is likely beyond our capabilities."
Frowning, he added, "We all but barely survived that attack, well, some of us fared worse than others."
Then he suddenly brightened and looked to Zoya now. He smiled as he said, "I believe I owe you one for your help in that fight. I'm pretty sure I was well on my way to bleeding out until you healed me."
Pausing, he looked her straight in the eyes as he said softly, "Thank you, Zoya."
Feywild

 

[GamerCarrot]

Seeing Harian's somewhat of an outburst about this baby she sort of stood back and watched Harian grab everything they could need and open up a entrance to their HQ, glancing at the baby it seemed happy in Hino's arms. She couldn't help but think it was cute, seeing it stop whining and smile at the man holding them. It was strange to think of the anti-christ as some cute baby that couldn't even hurt a fly this early in it's life. Hayle followed through the gateway to their home and stood in the back watching over the baby but her attention was quickly drawn to Zoya and Falarion leaving the room as everyone else started to threaten what ever was possessing Gabe.

Looking down at the baby she noticed it had spat up a little and since everyone was busy with Gabe they hadn't really noticed, smiling Hayle walked off to grab a small towel to wipe it up. Returning to Ayramis and Hino basically telling Adrestia off about possessing Gabriel, wrapping her hand in the towel so that she could avoid touching the baby at all costs she wiped the baby's chin and smiled at him. She knew it was probably bad that she was almost becoming attached to the small thing laying in the crib but she couldn't exactly help it, the baby was adorable despite being a creature that could bring about the end of the world. Placing the towel down on the crib out of reach of the baby so that it didn't grab it and choke on it she smiled and left the room to deal with the wound on her side, hoping that in the time she was dealing with it the baby wasn't killed and hoped that what ever was possessing Gabriel would get the hint and leave.

Wandering off and changing into her swimsuit Hayle headed towards the pool and found Zoya and Falarion talking about the baby in the main house, it seemed like neither of them wanted the baby there and Hayle immediately felt like she shouldn't be there. She wanted the baby to be in the house, it was just an infant what harm could it do? Maybe they could raise it to go against its destiny not everything was written in stone or so she believed. Slowly hopping into the pool she let out a small hiss in pain as the water hit her wound, sure it made her feel a lot better but it still hurt with a small touch. "You two don't like the idea of the baby being here?" she asked overhearing their earlier conversation.

Lioness075 Feywild SilverFlight andujarprime Naberius KhazTheGiraffe

 

[Feywild]

“I feel like I’m so much more unprepared than everyone else for this,” Zoya admitted, hating the way her voice was too quiet for its own good, “it feels bad not knowing what to expect,” She paused to shake her head. Maybe she’d been a fool to leave somewhere she thought she’d been happy, she wondered how those two losers were doing, a small smile on her face as she thought about them before snapping out of it when Falarion splashed her accidentally. “If you want to have a splash battle that’s all you had to say.” Zoya grinned at him, mischievous glint in her violet eyes.

Frowning at word conundrum, Zoya had no idea what it meant but nodded along with what he said anyway, she agreed with the rest of it anyway. “I thought she hated humanity, why does she want to protect a baby so much? I don’t understand her.” Zoya commented frustratedly, it wasn’t even like the baby was an innocent it was the anti-christ! “We have no idea what will come of this, it’s already dividing the team up clearly.” She gestured to the two of them, only splashing them a little. Even if it was only a baby, who knew what to expect anymore? She’d half expected it to become a rabid baby as soon as it’d been picked up and start murdering everyone. Luckily that never happened but the kid should at least give her a valid reason to want it gone.

“Little tip for you, don’t say you owe a Fae something, a lot of us like to twist people’s words.” She rolled her eyes, not at Falarion’s obliviousness but at her own peoples cruelness. “It wasn’t just me that helped you and I’m sure you would’ve been fine.” She brushed him off, turning her head to glance at him when he paused. Feeling rather put on the spot when he decided to thank her by staring directly into her eyes. “You’re welcome.” She murmured in reply, a soft smile gracing her lips.

Hearing someone else hop into the pool, Zoya whipped around defensively, brows knitted at the girls question. “Not particularly, is that a problem?” Zoya stiffened, her gaze hostile as it landed on the other lady. “I can’t speak for him, but the idea of it being here makes me uncomfortable.” Zoya continued, as what she supposed was one of the child’s defenders was probably about to get on her case about how she was blatantly wrong.

Lioness075 GamerCarrot

 

[Lioness075]

Falarion scoffed when Zoya mentioned how unprepared she was for all of this.
“And here I thought I’d just be beating up the bad guys and then we’d all celebrate afterwards. This has certainly become far more complicated than I had originally anticipated.”
He gave Zoya a halfhearted smirk when she mentioned a splash battle, but he really was not in the mood for it. He merely glanced away briefly as she continued on to the next topic.
Hearing Zoya’s tip, Falarion merely gave her a blank stare.
“Excuse me for my ignorance, but uh, what’s a Fay?”
He also did not understand why her kind would twist his words, but he did not want to show off his ignorance to the world.

Zoya’s deflection made him smirk, as Falarion immediately thought of Harian, who was quite the master at such an art of words.
He shrugged and said, “Kiyomi was exhausted and I’m fairly certain you were the only other one skilled at magical healing on our side. Actually, I believe you and Kiyomi are the only two capable of magical healing, unless I’ve overlooked someone.”

Falarion winced in sympathy when Hail joined the mini pool party. Though, given the current topic, it was definitely a far cry from a party.
Sighing, Falarion simply nodded while Zoya responded in kind.
Sensing her hostility though, Falarion quickly spoke up with his hands out in a calming gesture, “Woah now. Easy there, tiger.”
He looked at Hail and said, “We’re both just uneasy after everything that led up to that...thing coming back with us. I saw a lot of concerning evidence of others living in that home and yet nobody was home except for the baby. It had little to no supplis with it, so I can only assume that meant it was perhaps living there temporarily.”
Sighing, he leaned back against the side of the pool and muttered, “All I know is something is off about the whole ordeal. I don’t know how, but we’ve been bamboozled here. I don’t like it.”
Feywild GamerCarrot

 

[Naberius]

"What Gabriel wants is of no concern. Though he can see and hear everything that transpires in the outside world, he is fully dormant within. It is for his own good. We have stood at the front-lines of the war against the tide of darkness for millennia. Since the Titans first threatened this world, we have stood at the side of Olympus and her pantheon. We eliminate darkness in all its forms, no matter what cost may be demanded. That is the duty of the Justicar. To ensure there is a tomorrow."
The Justicar turned from Harian, fixing its gaze upon Ayramis when he spot. The cold, unfeeling eyes never blinking or showing any sign of life.
"We would advise against such an action. The consequences would be dire. We do not wish harm upon you or your compatriots. We fight upon the same side of the battlefield. We understand that this may be a hard thing to ask of individuals whom find themselves attached to mortals, especially the young. But do not let your emotions cloud your judgement.The darkness can be given no quarter."
Finally, it fixed Nero with a cold, withering gaze.
"If the sacrifice of a legion of mortal lives is what it takes to stem the tide of evil flowing from the corners of the earth, then so be it. You would be wise to not consider this vessel to be a 'friend'. Such things are not for a Justicar."
It's voice(s), when speaking its last words, seemed..different. Almost sad. In pain.
It turned to face away from them, back at Jophiel, and then to the infant, and back to Jophiel once more. It was obvious that the being was done speaking on the subject, fully convinced that it was in the right and that this was the only way forward.

SilverFlight KhazTheGiraffe GamerCarrot Crazy Trey-n andujarprime

 

[SilverFlight]

Harian's anger had been rising steadily every time the entity used Gabriel as a puppet, the many voices trickling through him. He was being used, and she hated it.
"Shut up!" She yelled. "He's not a vessel you arrogant, Olympic-grade asshat! And he is a friend., no matter what you say. So give him back!"

Jophiel had been quiet all the while, contemplating every statement carefully. It was when whatever was controlling Gabriel turned it's eyes on the baby that he stepped very slowly into its path.
"I respect your mission, and your need for balance. I share the end, even if the means we use...differ." His tone, which had always been gentle and polite suddenly took on a hard edge.
"However, you have, in fact, come straight into my house and begun making demands as if you have every authority. In truth, you have no power here. No power to cast judgement, and no power to carry out a sentence."
Jophiel held his hand out, his beautiful blue eyes set with anger. "In the name of the one I serve, I cast you out!" A blinding flash of light balled in his palm and raced outward, covering every inch of the room.
Harian looked around after the light had subsided. Jophiel still stood, but Gabriel seemed slightly different.
The angel's voice cut through her thoughts just as she drew nearer to see if Gabriel was all right.
"Until I understand everything, the baby will stay here with us. He is not to be harmed." His voice echoed throughout the entire house, letting everyone inside it know that he had made a decision.
Once that was done Jophiel took a breath, his tone going back to it's normal, delicate state.
"Now that that's over with. I'm going shopping." He left them then, going to the front door, turning the handle and slipping through without another word.
The baby seemed delighted by the light trick and squealed with delight, reaching out for the members of the team that were still gathered in the corridor.
Harian tentatively approached. The baby wiggled, as if trying to loose himself from the carrier, and when it failed, his little face began to wrinkle with displeasure.
To stop the baby from cascading into a full-on crying fit Harian quickly undid the straps and lifted the baby with both hands. She held him at arm's length and he was smiling again, reaching for her.
"Now what?" She asked, looking to any of them for instruction.
Lioness075 andujarprime The Velveteen Rabbit Naberius Crazy Trey-n KhazTheGiraffe GamerCarrot Feywild

 

[Naberius]

"Well, you probably shouldn't be holding him straight out like he has the plague, you need to cradle him. Support the head. And...probably don't let him get too close to me. I don't know when Chuckles The Assclown is going to be back. Man this is so messed up. The kid isn't even old enough to walk, he's probably still teething."
Gabriel's normal, jovial tone had returned. The blood red gone, replaced by the usual glacial blue. He leaned against the wall, watching the rest of the others. He was glad to be out and about again, instead of being a prisoner in his own head, but he felt just as helpless as before. He had no idea how to care for a kid, and to top it off he had a murderous psychopath sharing a body with him who wanted nothing more than to get rid of it.
"Well, everyone got to meet my roommate. Real piece of work right? He...they?...Are a real tool. Tools? It's been 12 years and I'm still confused about how to refer to them. It. Whatever. So, any ideas on our next move? I guarantee Gabriel and his posse of divine toadies will get word of this sooner rather than later. I have no idea what their take on this will be, but Jophiel seems like the nice one so we should expect the worst. At least then if we're wrong, we'll be pleasantly surprised."

Lioness075 MrBossMan andujarprime The Velveteen Rabbit Crazy Trey-n KhazTheGiraffe GamerCarrot Feywild SilverFlight

 

[Feywild]

Zoya head snapped round as she stared at him with narrowed eyes for not knowing what Faerie’s were before shrugging, it was probably better he didn’t know of them they were all too petty for their own good. “The Fae are basically a bunch of immortals that act like children and have nothing better to do with their time than find fun in dramatic politics.” Zoya snorted, delighting in complaining about the fair folk or more specifically the courts most resided in. “That’s what I’ve gathered from my many years as one anyway,” she mused, an unimpressed look flashing across her face, “I’d stay away from them, they’re bad news. All except me of course.” She grinned wickedly, hoping her crinkled eyes distracted from the emptiness they encompassed, that even now her heart still ached from betrayal and trusting too easy. The Fae were definitely bitches.

About to retort that her participation in Falarion’s healing hadn’t been too significant, she pouted and folded her arms when she realised it kinda was, “it’s whatever, no biggie I swear.” She brushed him off casually, a small smile painted on her lips as she spoke, knowing she’d heal him all over again if she needed to.

Listening to what Falarion said with a face of cold harshness, Zoya flared her nostrils and glanced away to set her eyes on the pool water, “Uneasy is a simple way of putting it.” She huffed as her eyes wandered to rest on Hayle. “Look snowflake, I’m sorry for being prickly but I’m allowed to have my concerns.” Nodding at Falarion when she heard what he said, it all seemed suspicious, too much of a coincidence the child had been left alone. She didn’t like it. When Jophiel’s voice echoed throughout the house, Zoya groaned at news of the baby staying with them for whoever knows how long, sinking down in the water until only the top half of her head wasn’t submerged. She muttered something in the water, only to have it wholly muffled and come out as bubbles.

Lioness075 GamerCarrot

 

[GamerCarrot]

Hearing the woman's outburst Hayle kinda of flinched in fear, she hadn't meant anything by her question she was just genuinely curious about how they felt about the matter. Hayle immediately felt as if she should've waited till they were both gone before dealing with her wound and if it wasn't still healing as she sat in the water she probably would've left by now. "No... I'm sorry... I didn't mean it in a bad way just wanted to get your opinions." she started looking down at the water as she felt sort of uncomfortable in her current position, really feeling like she should've stayed quiet and not said anything. "It's understandable that you feel uncomfortable about it I'm not going to say you are wrong or anything you have a right to feel a certain way." she looked up at the woman, awkwardly smiled a little and immediately looked back down at the water.

As Falarion spoke up she looked back up at the two of them, she understood what bringing that child here would do but Harian had already decided for the group that the baby would come with them. It was strange that the house was abandoned all except for the baby but surely there was something going on that they just couldn't figure out "I get that... it was strange to see a house so protected yet to have no guards on the inside it was strange." When Zoya spoke up Hayle turned her heard and gave them a small smile even though it wouldn't do much "It's fine really... I understand your concerns it is the anti-christ after all I would be surprised if you aren't just a little bit conflicted about the whole thing. I know as much as I'm one of the people saying it should stay there is a part of me that is concerned about what it is." Even back in the house she was conflicted about what to do with the baby, so she left the choice to the others knowing full well some wouldn't like the outcome.

Lioness075 Feywild

 

[Lioness075]

Falarion blinked at Zoya's explanation of the Fay, as it really did not explain to him what the Fay were so much as make them sound like terrible people. He felt like it was clear to him that Zoya had experienced some kind of fallout with her own people, but he knew that this would probably be a bad time to ask considering they had company.
He merely sighed and then gave her a grin when she spoke highly of herself. He could at least support that kind of thinking.
"Yes, well, it's good to have high self-esteem in all cases. Makes it easier to deal with not-so-pleasant scenarios."

Though, Zoya did not seem to be handling the difference of opinion too well.
"Maybe not then," he muttered to himself while he watched Zoya try to hide herself in the pool after saying her peace.

He paused a moment when he listened to Hail trying to defend herself and then frowned slightly before leaning in towards Zoya.
He whispered, "Is it just me or did she say, 'it was strange' twice in one sentence?"
He chuckled to himself, finding this rather amusing and then belatedly realized that Hail could easily see him laughing and take it the wrong way.
Clearing his throat, Falarion said, "Anyways-" but he was cut off when Jophiel's voice boomed through the house.
Falarion muttered a curse underneath his breath and then said, "Well, I suppose that's settled then. I suppose we can only hope this does not bring doom upon us all."
Feywild GamerCarrot

 

[Feywild]

Raising her head out of the water to listen to what Falarion was whispering with her expression innocent, Zoya snickered when she realised Hayle had said it was strange twice in one sentence. “She definitely did.” She whispered back, her smile fading on her face as she stopped laughing and began to feel guilty, it’d occurred to her that it was rude to whisper and then laugh. Glancing back over at Hayle, she flashed her an apologetic smile. Perhaps she had been a little over dramatic with this whole baby situation. It didn’t seem like Hayle was going to be angry with her for having what Zoya deemed as a controversial opinion in the household, she was too nice and Zoya too quick to assume.

“It better not bring doom upon us all,” Zoya rolled her eyes after listening to Falarion react to Jophiel’s announcement, not bothering to hide the small smile growing on her face, “I don’t really like the idea of dying because of some edgy baby.” Still feeling somewhat peeved off at the whole situation even with a smile quirked on her lips, she decided it would be best to brush it off, knowing that all the people who stood up for the child could take care of it, getting involved wasn’t necessary. At least it wouldn’t be if everyone proved to be proficient in taking care of it. She really hoped they were. If they weren’t, well, she guessed she could help. “You two seem like you’d be good with kids, I’m surprised you both left.” A frown flitted onto her pretty features, her head cocked slightly to the side before her mouth fell open in understanding of the injuries and healing water they were lazing in. Turning to Falarion with a pout, she poked his new scar, “I know I didn’t heal you fully, but I feel wounded that you came straight here because of that.” Zoya assumed, planting a dramatic hand on her chest and miming being heartbroken.

Lioness075 GamerCarrot