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- Holmes: Kerem comes careening around the corner deftly and sees Chimrea standing in a hall before an approaching avatar of the red moon, blood, death, serpents, and birth.
- Kerem: "Chim?"
- Chimrea: "Kerem," Chimrea in a small, steady voice, "I think we are in a lot of trouble."
- Kerem: "Would running make there be less trouble?"
- Chimrea: "I think we will find out soon. Could you go and tell Egani and Tez that Akalatan is coming, please?"
- Kerem: "Yes. Sure. I could do that."
- Kerem: "Uh. Don't...love you." Kerem waves feebly and heads back around the corner.
- Holmes: The being stops before Chimrea and lifts a hand as if to oblitterate her soul from the union of essence with all time.
- Holmes: But then his hand is stayed.
- Holmes: "You are one of the Spider's," it says, directly into her mind, skipping the ponderousness of speech.
- Chimrea stares solemnly up at the giant figure. In answer, she opens her mouth and the spider-fetch's eyes glitter from inside.
- Holmes: "It was foretold that one of your kind would be with the mother at the birth of my son," says the impossibly snow-colored man.
- Chimrea: Chimrea has no idea what to say to a god, so she hears herself asking the Spider's question: "What do you want?"
- Holmes: "I want my son," he says. "What does your master require in exchange?"
- Chimrea: ~~Agnes, is there the slightest chance you could find out for me RIGHT NOW if Tez wants her baby?~~
- Egani: ~~Please hold.~~
- Egani: ~~She's in a kind of sycophantic mode. I'm trying to reach her.~~
- Chimrea: "First, I must know the road ahead of the son and the mother."
- Egani: ~~She appears to want to yield the baby to Akalatan.~~
- Egani: ~~If we want to get him back later, we can do that.~~
- Chimrea: ~~Could you have Kerem bring the baby here?~~
- Chimrea: ~~Or anyone really, but Tez and Egani scare me and I am already plenty scared.~~
- Egani: ~~Maybe you can just bring him in...Tez is trying to bring the baby but she's not closed up yet.~~
- Chimrea: ~~Oh hell. I could do that.~~
- Chimrea: "Your son is this way," Chimrea says to Akalatan, and begins to back up the way she came.
- Holmes: Egani stands above Chimrea and her newborn, having been warded off by her moments before, with Kerem having taken the child from the hold in her womb. How she manages to stay conscious through the pain is amazing.
- Egani looks Tez over, noting the sword on the floor and wondering if approaching is safe. "Uh, Tez, should I come closer or take off?"
- Kerem walks back in. "Hey, guys, daddy's here."
- Egani: "Daddy?"
- Holmes: The swooping thing that had passed overhead a while ago, swoops overhead again, casting a dim red shadow on everybody.
- Kerem: "Not MY daddy. Actually I don't know who that is."
- Tez somehow pushes herself up without any attached stomach muscles to speak of, and with one arm, the other cradling her newborn godling. A rippling red glow moves over her, and covers the paleness of her skin. "He is coming." she echoes oddly.
- Kerem: "Tez's baby's daddy."
- Kerem: "Oh, good, you knew already."
- Kerem: "Egani, does that stomach wound look...uh...stitched up to you?"
- Kerem: "I don't know a lot about medicine."
- Egani: "Tez, should I be sewing you up?"
- Tez turns to regard them slowly, "What for?"
- Kerem: "That's a yes. She means yes."
- Egani: "Well, blood is spilling out of you and you might need it for something else -- you know, rather than wasting it on the floor. Right?"
- Tez: "It is such a shame to waste good blood."
- Egani takes a hesitant step toward her, surgical kit in hand.
- Tez watches him glassily, the sword lying on the floor. she makes no move towards it.
- Egani: "OK, so I'll need you to lay back down." Egani speaks soothingly as he approaches and starts analyzing the wound. "It's torn some."
- Tez: "But he is coming. I must present his son."
- Kerem: "It's cool, Chim's talking to him or being killed."
- Kerem: "We have some time either way."
- Egani starts to clamp and suture, ready to dodge if needed. "Just keep feeding him. It wouldn't be proper for you to look like this when he comes in."
- Tez: "Oh, alright." She smiles, and lays back down.
- Egani: ~~Tez, honey, do you want to keep the baby or give it to Akalatan?~~
- Tez: ~~He belongs to Akalatan~~
- Egani: ~~He also belongs to you, right? We killed Akalatan for that right. Now you decide what's best for you and the baby.~~
- Tez: ~~We killed him so that he would be reborn. Now he is reborn.~
- Egani: ~~So you want to give him up?~~
- Tez: ~~Give him up? We are always together.~~ The question does not seem to parse for her.
- Kerem kneels down and awkwardly takes Tez's hand.
- Tez looks over at him. "Hello."
- Kerem: "Hey. How're you...doing?"
- Egani: ~~Kerem, Chimrea has asked that you bring the baby. I'm not sure Tez will go for that, but that's what the lady has asked for.~~
- Tez: "My child is born."
- Egani smiles at having gotten the bleeding stopped.
- Kerem: ~~...oh.~~
- Kerem: "Yeah, speaking of that."
- Kerem: "Akalatan is asking for us to bring it to him."
- Kerem: ~~I'll see what I can do.~~
- Tez: "I will bring him at once."
- Egani: "Uh, you're not quite ready here." Egani keep sewing.
- Tez: "I must go." She starts pushing herself off the ground again.
- Egani pushes back. "Kerem can take the baby for a minute. You need to rest. Listen to your doctor!"
- Kerem: "I can take the baby to him, Tez...if that's okay."
- Tez breaks out of the glassy haze she's in long enough to look upset. "No, I must be the one to present him."
- Kerem sighs.
- Kerem: "Okay. We need a stretcher then."
- Kerem: "Goblins! Stretcher! Now!"
- Egani: ~~Kerem, Akalatan and Chimrea are inbound.~~
- Holmes: The various goblins manage to make something out of some blankets and spears in short order (well, for goblins), and bring it over.
- Egani: ~~Tez, they're almost here.~~
- Egani: ~~Father, hurry up.~~
- Kerem: "Oh."
- Kerem: "Goblins! Never mind! Sorry!"
- Egani finishes up the rough sutures and starts looking Tez over for other injuries. "I wish we had a blood supply to give you a transfusion."
- Kerem: "Maybe we will."
- Tez pulls herself to her feet again, swaying slightly. "I would like some blood, yes."
- Chimrea reappears from the smoke, backing toward the group.
- Kerem stands up, fingering his key.
- Chimrea: As her path takes her by Kerem, she whispers, "I'll try to do it right this time."
- Kerem looks confused, then supportive, then alarmed.
- Holmes: Unexpected, certainly by the goblins, if not others, the towering man rounds the corner into the chamber. The goblins look like they may well bolt. His head is almost out of sight in the ashy air, so high up from the others it is.
- Chimrea: She kneels by Tez, spreading her hands gently above the baby and bowing her head in a presenting gesture. A fine black webbing hangs between her fingers.
- Kerem walks nonchalantly over to the goblins, smiling reassuringly.
- Holmes: Kerem feels the coin in his pocket move of it's own accord.
- Holmes: Just slightly
- Kerem blinks, and immediately grabs it with his other hand, glaring at Akalatan speculatively.
- Tez looks down at Chimrea, first with pleasure then concern. "What are you doing?"
- Chimrea looks up at Tez sadly. "There are no good deals with the Serpent," she whispers.
- Kerem is only watching Tez and Chim out of the corner of his eye, but something's making him uncomfortable...
- Tez steps back a pace, moving towards her sword. "You will not harm him."
- Egani is standing on Tez' sword from before.
- Kerem starts walking calmly towards Tez, hands up. "Tez, hold on. Chim isn't going to do anything crazy, okay? Just be calm. Trust me."
- Chimrea: "I won't," Chimrea says, moving forward as Tez moves back. She thrusts her hands forward.
- Chimrea: Under her breath she murmurs names that mean nothing to the others, ancestors of the tribe that she hopes will not condemn her. She's breathing fast, giddy with the smoke and heat.
- Tez trusts the words of Chimrea, and Kerem, and so she does not act as fast as she could, or should. When she finally realizes what is happening to him, she attains a fierce sort of look and suddenly drops to the floor, cradling the baby in one arm, her shoulder hitting Egani in the knee and her hand closing on the hilt of the sword. When she rises again with a scream, to drive her blade into the woman who would perform her foreign m
- Holmes: The Coin in Kerem's pocket starts to spin.
- Tez: her foreign magics on her baby, she staggers, blood flowing afresh from her womb and her blow goes awry.
- Kerem pulls it out as he tries to stop Tez from striking Chim, then glances at it wildly as stuff happens.
- Chimrea: Black threads drift down across the baby's body. Chimrea's hand lashes out, clenching around the rock holding the ash spirits as they throw up a sulfurous wall between the group and Akalatan. "I'll protect you," she whispers, voice all but lost in the confusion.
- Chimrea: The spider runs from her mouth, down her arm to her hand as her fingers pull at the threads, drawing them back from the baby. Something intangible comes with them.
- Chimrea: She spins away from Tez and shouts to Akalatan, knowing she might feel the sword at any moment, "Spider's child refuses the poisoned bargain!"
- Holmes: It is impressive that, though nigh imperceptible, the avatar of Akalatan actually responds to this - taken aback. Perhaps a slight widening of the white on white on white eyes.
- Tez: "What have you done?!" She screams, caressing the tiny scaled face with a moan, trying to make him open his eyes.
- Holmes: The avatar speaks into everyone's mind §§Who here stands with the representative of the Old Spider against the might of Akalatan!!!§§
- Kerem: "What the hell was that?"
- Holmes: A spectral wolf and imperial man appear formed dimly of ash swirling into forms not far from Kerem.
- Kerem glances at them, then looks around for Chim, although the walls of ash probably make it hard.
- Holmes: The Avatar, apparently not liking the lack of response, raises it's hand, into which a huge snake appears. The snake then stiffens, near straight, and the Akalatan Avatar holds it threateningly above all.
- Holmes: It mentally repeats it's query, wanting to know who is with Chimrea.
- Kerem growls and grips his key hard, calling on A'taal to announce himself.
- Tez: "Traitors! Murders!"
- Holmes: The avatar looks to Kerem. §§I know of A'taal, and his key... some say we are brothers, A'taal and I. Do you stand with the servant of the Spider? §§
- Holmes: The smokey beings look on, also waiting for Kerem's answer.
- Kerem breathes heavily, his eyes flickering, and takes the corner of a cloud of smoke, wrapping it around himself as a cloak.
- Kerem: "A'taal is not a warrior, nor a saint. He bargains."
- Kerem: "Let us bargain, O brother of my lord."
- Holmes: §§Why? And for what?§§ asks the being.
- Holmes: The two smokey figures meld into Kerem again, back home. Secure in the knowledge tht he, once again, has not taken a side other than his own in fate.
- Kerem breathes, stumbles, reaches out and catches Chimrea's hand, which he holds on to desperately. As he touches her, the key's golden metal dims for a moment, silver, then lead, then black...and a horribly familiar, slithery voice issues from Kerem's throat, saying: "*What do you want?*"
- Chimrea: Chimrea's fingers latch onto Kerem's with painful tightness, then she jerks her head sideways to stare at him when he speaks.
- Kerem 's eyes meet hers as well, all fear and confusion.,
- Chimrea: "I trust you."
- Holmes: The pair become aware that a diety is trying to ask questions of them, and probably won't wait much longer.
- Tez sinks to her knees, then sort of tips over on her side, curled around her dead baby. The red glow surrounding her flickers and dies down.
- Holmes: §§You are keeping the child, then?§§
- Kerem: The voice comes again. "My shaman has Taken it. What I take, I keep."
- Holmes: Now the eyes of the avatar really do widen.
- Chimrea has the look of someone who isn't sure she likes where all this is going, but realizes she has no good reason to complain.
- Kerem: Then another voice -- a more human but no less icy one -- says: "He is Free from your clutches henceforth, O my brother."
- Holmes: It straightens up, this white mountain of a man, and turns to leave inexplicably. But, as it does so, it waves the snake-spear about behind it, and the air turns electric.
- Holmes: The smoke begins to gather about them, and Tez can see that it is connected somehow to that passage to the Red Moon. Soon all of them are surrounded by a glowing red haze of ash.
- Holmes: The rending sound from before can be heard, and he walks through this reft and through the rock wall at the same time.
- Holmes: Now disappeared from sight, the entire of the ash lairs begins to tremble.
- Holmes: As if the lattice that creates it has supported something too heavy, and is now adjusting to the strain.
- Holmes: Rocks begin to fall...
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