Seaside

[Hraithre]

[Empty Beach]

Hoshiki looks confused. "I did warn you", he says, "or do you mean about the sound? It is just thunder. The sound was never going to hurt you. At least by my reckoning..." It's clear the swordsman didn't except someone as indestructible as Aaron to be this rattled.

[[brackets lover]]

[Empty Beach]

Aaron looks up at TASBot. While he didn't quite get what the different colors meant, he figured that was something TASBot would say anyways."Not that i've noticed," he replies.

He then shoots a disappointed look at Hoshiki, continuing, "I think you underestimate how loud thunder is when its right up on you. Just try hitting yourself with it." He snorts lightheartedly, sighing. "Anyways, there's like a loud buzzing sound in my ears now."

[Gold]

[Empty Beach]

TASBot waits for Aaron to finish speaking before turning to Hoshiki and asking "On a half-related note, how did you do that? The lightning attack?"

The robot continues, "I heard you chanting, so I guess it must be some kind of divine... paladin power? Are you a paladin?"

[Hraithre]

[Empty Beach]

"I have been hit by lightning", Hoshiki says defensively. He's been hit by a lot of awful things, and narrowly dodged even more, from fangs and claws of a dragon to diamond bullets to grenades thrown by hostile angels.

But, TASbot asks a question before he can dwell too much on that! "It is... a complex phenomenon. I can try explaining it to you once we've gone over some more basic things", he answers, "the chant is... divine is a bit... well you could call it a prayer. Of sorts. It is an invocation of an outside power. As for paladin, I'm afraid I'm not sure what you refer to by that."

[[brackets lover]]

Aaron looks dumbfounded, raising an eyebrow at Hoshiki, "Is all that normal for you or something? What kind of person are you?" He had the look of someone who's never seen a ghost before.

[Gold]

[Empty Beach]

"Oh, well, a paladin is basically someone who promises to be loyal to some god in exchange for cool powers... smiting, for example," TASBot explains, drawing from his own limited understanding of what a paladin is.

After considering for a moment, he continues, "I guess whether you're a paladin or not would depend on your rapport with who you're praying to."

[Hraithre]

[Empty Beach]

Hoshiki takes a deep breath, opening and closing his mouth several times, as if he's decided to explain but just can't find the words. He frowns and rubs the bridge of his nose. "... using TASbot-kun's words, you could say I'm a... paladin. Have been for a very long time", he finally says with a sigh, "I have fought many threats both human and not. Mostly not, as of late. Being hit by lightning is... is not normal, but it's also not the weirdest thing that has happened to me." He taps the hilts of his swords. "I can tell you more over a drink this evening, once we're done training for today. Is that enough of an answer for now? Can we proceed with the next test?"

[[brackets lover]]

[Empty Beach]

"I can't even begin to imagine that..." Aaron is now responding plainly, as if his hearing has subtly returned, or is in the process of returning. He stands about awkwardly, shaking his head. Knowing this guy was some sort of fight stuff guy, Aaron became a bit more vigilant, preparing to flee at the first sign of danger. He cleared his throat, nervously responding, "Yeah, i'm ready."

[Gold]

[Empty Beach]

"That's cool. Awesome work upholding the law, I suppose," TASBot says, giving a small salute after having just remembered that that's another thing paladins are supposed to do.

"Alright then," TASBot says, nodding and standing back to give Hoshiki some space, "let's get back to it."

[Hraithre]

[Empty Beach]

A terrible smile spreads on the swordsman's face again. He draws his longer sword in a slow, careful motion. "TASbot-kun, I suggest you take your distance", he says, grasping the sword with both hands, "I will aim my strike so that the force will be directed downward. I expect the results to be... quite dramatic."

The handle of the katana is purest white and the blade shining steel. Light glimmers on the blade as if it's splitting rays of the sun in halves. "Brace yourself", Hoshiki says again, circling Aaron as he looks for a good spot to strike. He waits for TASbot to get out of the way, then drops low and slashes Aaron horizontally in a slight upwards angle.

The blade never cuts Aaron, of course. It is forcibly halted before it touches his skin by his repulsion hex. Neither is the strike turned into blunt force, as when striking an armored target. The shock is instead reflected back on the blade. A normal man might have their weapon knocked off their hand. A normal sword might snap under the strain. But neither Hoshiki nor his blade are normal. His grip is firm and his sword refuses to break, so the entire shock travels through his body, down to the ground. His feet are driven into the ground like two iron rods struck by a sledgehammer. The rough earth below him cracks and sand and gravel is sent flying in every direction. The sound is just as loud and horrifying as the thunderstrike.

[[brackets lover]]

[Empty Beach]

When Hoshiki tells Aaron to brace himself, the skittish man places his hands on his ears in anticipation.

Of course, the attack works as expected, causing Aaron to mutter in surprise, "Guh..." He seemed distressed by the sound still, though evidently not as hurt by it this time.

[Rebonack]

[Oh Hey Cool the Oceans Aren't Made of Blood]

For someone who was born, raised, and grew up during a rather protracted Apocalypse going near the ocean was generally just a bad idea.

Because it was blood.

All of it.

Just one giant congealed rotting mess.

Even getting anywhere near it could leave someone sick from just the smell alone.

So.

This experience is, for Dizzy, a pretty novel one, flying above the ocean parallel to the shore. Just soaring waaaay up high and enjoying everything. The sight of the waves stretching off over the horizon. The distant sound of the crash against sand and cliff and rocks. The raucous calls of birds squabbling with each other on boulders bleached white further out to sea. The occasional person (or people!) strolling along the beaches. Boats bobbing in the waves.

And the invigorating scent of salt spray in the air.

It's all pretty great!

From any reasonable distance someone might mistake Dizzy for a dragon. Or a demon? Maybe a succubus? There's those big draconic wings and the tail appended to an androgynous humanoid form that's somehow at once unnaturally attractive AND unsettling. But Dizzy isn't any of those things. Dizzy is Nephilim and thankfully the fallen part isn't literal at the moment because nosediving into the sand from this height would probably hurt.

[bc56]

Ruins
A village stands on an inhospitable spit of coastline, nestled in a secluded bay surrounded by cliffs of basalt and sandstone pocked with the gaping maws of shadowy sea caves.
To be honest, it would be more accurate to say the village stood. The present tense implies things like a living population that are notably not present. Instead the decaying buildings, damp from the sea spray and the frequent storms in this rugged terrain, stand silent and empty. The scent of rotting fish hangs faintly in the air. It is a dreary, quiet place, that once, maybe not that long ago, was full of bustling life.

[Rebonack]

[Ruins]

If Dizzy is being honest, and by and large Dizzy tries to be honest, ruins aren't the best place for lunch. After all, Dizzy's home was a mess of apocalyptic doom that just never ended and frankly non-ruins are more novel.

But!

Dizzy is hungry and it's time for lunch.

Spotting a building that's recognizable as the remains of a church atop a hill from on high Dizzy descends, landing near the crown of the hill so it'll be easier to watch the waves lashing against the rocks far below. Dizzy shrugs off a backpack, digs out the lunch kindly packed by the rescued villagers, and digs in.

Food made by random villagers is usually pretty great.

"So what's your deal?" Dizzy asks the decrepit church. "Ocean run out of fish and everyone left?"

[bc56]

Ruins
"Hello? Is someone there?"
That voice came from inside the church. "You, uh, really shouldn't be here. It's, uh, kinda dangerous."
It doesn't look dangerous. Pretty quiet. Kinda peaceful actually. While the church isn't in great shape, it's a stone building, it's not going to be falling apart anytime soon.

[Rebonack]

[Ruins]

Dizzy has a problem now.

Having JUST taken a bite out of one of the lamb pies that were given as a reward for saving the villagers of course NOW someone begins talking inside the church. Because of COURSE someone is talking inside the church now.

Dizzy makes an affirmative 'my mouth is full of food' sound in reply and quickly finishes eating the mouthful before responding in a notably more coherent sort of way.

"Okay, cool, good to know," Dizzy calls back. "Are we talking I need to scram asap or can I finish my lunch before I find a less kinda dangerous place to eat and watch the ocean?"

This is a very important question to have answered, in Dizzy's opinion.

Dizzy is really hoping it is the second one rather than the first one because the lamb pie will get unacceptably cold now that there's a bite out of it.

[bc56]

Ruins
"Uh... You can finish your lunch. Just don't go poking around. There are a lot of things buried in this town, and some of them need to stay buried." Whoever or whatever is in the church seems content to stay inside and not let Dizzy see it.

[Rebonack]

[Ruins]

"Alright, fair enough, I've got the picture," Dizzy replies before QUICKLY eating the rest of the pie.

Which is a shame.

This really seems like the sort of thing that should be savored but sometimes you apparently stumbled upon a horrible cursed town and you have to just chow down on your lunch as quickly as possible so you can get outta there that much faster.

It makes for a less enjoyable lunch than Dizzy was hoping for. Originally the plan was to do some peaceful reading and enjoy the relative quiet but hey this is a huge stretch of coastline no doubt there's somewhere else that isn't full of ominously foreboding buried things to do it.

Or...

Hopefully, anyway.

Can you imagine a stretch of coastline that is nothing BUT ominous buried evil in a can?

Sounds like back home and one hundred percent not what Dizzy would like to be stumbling into, thanks.

"Soo, lunch is over," Dizzy calls out whilst standing and up and stretching before putting the backpack on again. "Thanks for the warning. Hope your creepy buried town stuff stays buried, I guess?"

What else are you supposed to say, anyway? It's kind of an awkward situation.

[bc56]

Ruins
"Okay."
There's a pause, long enough for Dizzy to get a chance to start walking away but not long enough to get out of earshot.
"Wait, uh, you're an adventurer, right? I, uh, don't suppose you could help me with something?"
Uh oh.
That sounds like a call to adventure.

[Rebonack]

[Ruins]

Long enough to be juuuust about to take a running leap off the cliff.

Sort of take two and a half stumbling steps when that 'wait' comes. That's a great way to feel like an idiot, right? Dizzy comes to a staggering stop a few paces from the edge of the precipice, glancing back at the church.

"I... guess? Probably? If you mean someone who goes on adventures rather than doing the same thing every day, sure."

Unless you count 'going on adventures' as a thing you do every day. When you're living in a world gripped by the Apocalypse every day is a day of surviving and helping others survive if you happen to be the sort of person who likes that kind of thing. And Dizzy happens to be the sort of person that likes helping others survive. If that wasn't the case then all those villagers would probably be getting sacrificed by giants here pretty soon.

"What am I helping with? Church renovations? I'll warn you now carpentry isn't exactly my strongest skill."

It's true. Dizzy has only limited experience carpentrying.

[Gold]

[Empty Beach]

"Got it!" TASBot moves a safe distance away from Hoshiki and crouches low, getting ready to watch the impact.

"Whoa!" he says, instinctively raising his arm to deflect a piece of gravel flying in his direction. After that, he stands up and begins to move towards Hoshiki and Aaron.

"That one peaked my microphone," TASBot quips, following it up with "Anyways, how'd you get the forcefield to push back against the ground instead of against you?"

[bc56]

Ruins
"Uh... No. Actually I'm planning to destroy this place. But I could use an extra pair of hands. Or, uh, especially an extra weapon. Just in case." There's a slight pause. "You can come in if you want. It will be easier to explain face to face."

[Rebonack]

[Ruins]

Several seconds of awkward silence follows while Dizzy is busy getting those darn wings folded right again. Getting them in just the right place while wearing the backpack is always something of an adventure.

"Between you and me, this place is looking pretty destroyed already," Dizzy helpfully points out.

But!

None the less.

This is intriguing.

It sounds like this place is a regular sealed evil in a can scenario and you aren't just going to walk right past one of those, are you? Hell nah. If help is needed to stop something from oozing out of here and giving people trouble then why not? This place is MOSTLY better than back home so may as well help keep it that way, right?

"Extra weapon, right. Just to mention ahead of time I am not, in fact, a demon," Dizzy announces whilst peeking inside.

Depending on what Selekhael? expects a demon to look like Dizzy might fit the bill. What with the eight foot tall and the draconic wings and the scary looking quill covered tail and a leonine mouth one a human face that doesn't look like it should even be able to FIT. The 'crown' of gold is probably the oddest part. A golden horn-ridge across Dizzy's brow that looks like a five-pointed diadem.

Draped over everything is a blue tunic that looks like it might be worn over armor?

"Since demons are bodiless creeps."

[bc56]

Ruins
The mysterious voice has two mental images of demons and Dizzy matches neither of them. One of those images could easily be described as "bodiless creep," and those are the ones she specializes in hunting, so they're her first thought.
"I didn't think you were. They're, uh, not good conversationalists." The source of the mysterious voice is now visible. Maybe 18, 19 years old, with blue-grey skin, pointed ears, yellow leonine eyes, and black hair with a white streak through it, wearing blue robes adorned with a spiralling pattern in coral red. She has a small pile of artifacts next to her, ancient-looking golden treasures also etched with spirals. She has a weapon too, a double-barrelled shotgun made from what appear to be clock hands twisted and melted together. "I'm Sele." She doesn't start the explanations just yet. Introductions come first.

[Rebonack]

[Ruins]

Huh.

Well.

Skin color is a little odd. Is she supposed to be an elf or something? It isn't coming right away but there must be something going on here, right? So far your experiences have been pretty consistent. Crazy fantasy stuff. Well, giants are real. But those guys were, like, cloud giants. Right? So how odd is an actual elf?

Not THAT odd.

"Okay this has GOT to be at least strike... what now, eight? In favor of the Wood Between the Worlds being a lot more than just a wood," Dizzy notes, which may be kind of confusing since the books being referenced didn't exist yet where Sele was from originally. "Call me Dizzy. It's a close enough translation of my name."

Oh hey shotgun. So this place ISN'T just ye olde? Not shocking though, right? If this really IS the Wood Between the Worlds. Or, at least, something like it.

But hey look at that weird gold treasures! That are making you feel... uneasy? Like something is-

"Are those eyes?" Dizzy asks, pointing at the golden trinkets. "I feel like I'm getting ogled by something."

[bc56]

Ruins
"Uh, sort of, yes. They belong to the, uh, dark god that was worshipped here. She was banished. Hopefully she still is." It would be very awkward for Sele to find Neshiyahel again. "I, uh, guess I should explain what happened here. This used to be a town called Marlick Bay. About, uh, three years ago, there was a powerful being here that was calling visitors out into the ocean and drowning them. The locals worshipped her as a god and were trying to wake her all the way up. A few other people and I, uh, arrived here and managed to banish her, and the town died out after that. Without her blessings there wasn't enough food, and traders wouldn't come here once they knew about all this. I, uh, came back here to destroy the remaining relics and make sure no one restarts the cult."

[Rebonack]

[Ruins]

Now that it's clear nothing is going to be murdering your face it might be a good idea to relax? Maybe just a little? Yeah. Good plan.

Dizzy's posture loosens up a bit and that tail that looked like it was ready to snap going slack, the black quills bristling from the end crumbling into fine soot that darkens the floor.

"Sounds like a real asshole," Dizzy summarizes. "I'll go out on a limb and guess we're talking about a god little g. Elohim, folks that live in heaven and are full of themselves. Something like that?"

Dizzy reaches down and picks up one of the trinkets, the metal suddenly sizzling and bubbling and blackening until it crumbles into soot.

"Welp destruction still works on this junk so that's something."

[bc56]

Ruins
"I don't know the word, but, uh, yes. That's about right." Sele will not mention that she's another one of said 'gods.'
"They're only a small part of what remains here," she explains as Dizzy destroys one of the artifacts. "There're two secret temples in this mountain. One can only be reached at low tide, and is where Neshiyahel's lair was. The other, where the cultists did their rituals, can be reached from here." Sele lifts the pew with the concealed trapdoor to reveal a spiralling flight of soapstone stairs.
Technically Sele can reach the tidal cave anytime. But if she wants to bring Dizzy along, she has to wait for low tide.

[Rebonack]

[Ruins]

"It's Hebrew. I guess it mostly gets translated as gods but that isn't TOTALLY right. Mighty or lofty ones, I guess? The people from the heavenly court, if we're talking gods that aren't made up," Dizzy muses whilst watching Sele lift the pew.

Oh cool.

Secret stairs.

This is some classic evil cult stuff.

"My dad is one. A jerk called Abaddon. But I guess that was probably obvious."

It wasn't. Someone would actually have to know about the cosmology of Dizzy's home world for that to be obvious.

"So are we just wrecking statues and torching evil books or something? What's the plan?"

[bc56]

Ruins
Hebrew? Wait a minute. If this was Sekhmet, she'd get excited about meeting someone from yet another Earth, but unfortunately Sele hasn't had the same experiences.
"If there's anything alive down there, it's probably one of Neshiyahel's thralls and needs to be eradicated. Then we destroy any more relics we can find and collapse the cave." Makes sense, right?
Sele descends the stairs to where the seal was. It should still be open, right? It has been 3 years. If it has reclosed, she can probably use her time powers to force it back open.