2021-03-26: Liberation

• Log: Liberation
• Cast: Ghaleon, Talise Gianfair, Tidus, Mariel, Marivel Armitage, Yuna, Lulu, Hiro, Ivan, Paine
• Where: Kilika - Jungles
• Date: March 26, 2021
• Summary: Mariel leads a group to unseal Kilika Temple from the dark power summoned by Althena's Guard, that has held its fayth in abeyance for so long. Ghaleon turns up, but wants to talk, not fight.

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=============================<* Kilika - Jungles *>=============================

The island of Kilika is filled with a massive jungle, which is no stranger to Fiends. The recent attack by Sin has made the jungle a dangerous place indeed; powerful Fiends patrol, and a few Sinspawn are rumored to be sighted. Much of Althena's Guard, having arrived, is devoted to making headway into the jungle and protecting the route to the Temple, which is nestled up in the mountains beyond the jungle.

BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ai841xucDPE&t=65s&ab_channel=NewBrawlgamemusic

<Pose Tracker> Ghaleon has posed.

In a way, Kilika is a confused place.

It is not confusing, mind -- while reconstructed, the town is still relatively simply laid out. Much of it is on piers, over the water; some streets inland have larger buildings. Moreover, even when the Guard rebuilt the town and added some buildings to house its people, the town did not grow too large. It was easy to navigate...

...and opposition was nonexistent. The Guard has split into three camps: those reporting to Pentagulia directly or one of the Four Heroes, the Hyland soldiers, and the Rolance soldiers. Security has become lax, especially with a full-scale retreat in the works. As it happens, one can just walk into Kilika.

The Temple, conversely, is completely unguarded.

But the seal remains. It is a faintly glowing, blue-purple light that glows around the sealed stone door leading into the Temple. It is, of course, a deeper sealing than that; a metaphysical one, that makes the ability to sense Ifrit harder for Summoners...

...and there has been no new Summoner of Ifrit in many, many months.

But there are no guards -- no soldiers -- no one here to stop the mixed group of Drifters, Guardians, and Fiends approaching the Temple today.

Someone is watching down the way. As they start to advance, Talia raises two fingers in salute -- then she winks -- and a heart of ice-mist wafts away. One might question the sneakiness of the red-eyed ex-assassin after that stunt, but then she leaps and vanishes neatly into the trees.

The stone steps and the now abandoned Temple await.

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

    LAST TIME IN AFFAIRS LUNARIAN

Talise FELT Zophar's attention. She really, really didn't like it.


    THIS TIME IN AFFAIRS LUNARIAN

The divisions among the Guard have created opportunities Talise absolutely has to join the rest of the gang into taking advantage of - and something that Mariel needs her for, of all people. It is not something she can do in full plate; even with the divisions among the Guard, it's too conspicuous. But so is the light outfit she's been wearing around Spira. She went with her mail-lined longcoat and underlying turtleneck and slacks, Rastaban strapped over her shoulder.

As Talia salutes them, Talise - who is not confused by a sudden proliferation of 'Tal' - kisses two fingertips and blows an invisible heart back to the assassin.

Talise does not know Talia very well. It doesn't matter. Ice hearts warrant return flirting.

There are stairs ahead, but those are pretty effortless for someone as fit as she is. She hoofs it up the steps to the temple without so much as breaking a sweat, though the mail underlayer of her coat does jingle with each step she vaults. She leaves the urge to flirt behind somewhere on the middle rung. By the time she reaches the topmost step, her smile has ceded ground to a look of focused sobriety underlaid by a tinge of worry, and she's reaching back to draw the blade she won years ago from the crypt of Dragonmaster Lou's knight companion, blue-bedecked now, just as her eyes are.

"So I suppose that gives us a chance to deal with this." Talise looks up at the sealed door grimly, resting Rastaban's point against the turf in front of her as she gives the seal a considering look. Her Oracle status hasn't been her *most* practiced skill, but it's not one she *can't* do.

She looks back towards the others, fully anticipating she was one of the first ones to the top. C'est la vie when you're Talise Gianfair, for whom every day is leg day twice.

<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.

    On the plus side, Tidus has been here at least a couple times before! On the further plus side, since the Guard is on their way out, there's basically no one to stop him and his friends from just walking right in, through the jungle, and up to the temple. Talia has gone on ahead and signals to the rest that the way is clear--at least, that's Tidus's assumption of what she's doing--and he smiles and gives her a wave, which is only a little awkward once she sents out that heart of ice-mist.
    
    "...Uhh, does she do that a lot?" he wonders to her brother, who happens to be right here. "It's a neat trick, but..." Does it really have to be a HEART? ...At least Talise seems to enjoy it.
    
    Regardless, up the stairs they all go. There are a lot of stairs to the Kilika Temple. Tidus remembers the climb well. Hopefully they won't have to fight another Sinspawn on the way up. For now, he nods over to Talise as the group considers the seal ahead of them.
    
    "Yeah. At least we're prepared for how it's gonna go." Probably, anyway. After two broken Sealing Rods, this group should have a preeeeetty good idea of what the unsealing process is going to be like. He looks out at the others--especially Yuna, who has to be the most affected by this as a Summoner--to get a read of how the group's mood is, then gives everyone a broad, hopefully mood-lifting smile. "This is it, guys! We finally got a chance to take care of business here! Let's take care of it real good, all right?"

<Pose Tracker> Mariel has posed.

Mariel remembers what it was like to purify the Sealing Rod and so she came prepared with much of the same equipment. The biggest one is an oval basin about two and a half feet by one and a half feet at its widest point, which she has strapped over her back with rope like a shield. She also has her usual satchel, which has had some of its contents replaced with different ceremonial herbs and roots and a few other odds and ends that aren't terribly relevant except for her.

She was not expecting to be able to just... walk in, though.

And walk. And walk. There are a lot of stairs. Mariel doesn't take them quickly, both because she's kind of burdened by the basin and pile of gear and because she has short legs and ran out of steam about halfway up. (She has an excuse. She's not even five feet tall.)

By the time she actually gets to the top, she is puffing a little bit, but she'll have a minute to sit while everything gets set up. Off comes the basin, which she sets up in front of the sealed door; she takes a step away, considering it, then steps forward to slide it less than an inch. She seems happier with the position afterwards.

"I am glad we are able to do it. But even with Talia watching," so she *did* see that even if she hadn't responded at the time, "I didn't think walking here would be so simple." Mariel reaches into her bag, finding the ingredients she needs - a root, which she begins to grate into the basin, and several powdered and dried herbs. "This is where the water needs to go," she adds.

She doesn't have the water. Mariel drew the line at trying to carry a barrel of it up the stairs.

"Also... we aren't on Filgaia this time. I hope it doesn't make it harder..." Mariel trails off while she sets things up. She's not afraid to try, certainly. And it shouldn't make it harder for Talise's part; she's only not sure of her own.

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Some never had too much trouble getting into Kilika in the first place. Marivel maintained numerous contacts within the village who would keep her out of the Guard's eyes except for all the times she explicitely showed herself to the Guard and riled them up only to vanish before a proper force to capture her could be marshalled.

Nevertheless, Marivel is keen on uncovering more of this Althenanomoly and has a concern that the Guardians of this realm might be turned into horrible perversions of their true selves if these dark rituals are allowed to continue.

The undead have always been well affiliated with Darkness.

Marivel has elected to make Talise carry her by sitting on her shoulder in her batform--but then something makes her change her mind as she rolls off it and poufs back into her humanoid form, twirling her microphone in her hand.

"There shouldn't be too much getting in the way of us fixing this problem but considering we're going right to the source here, he probably should consider the possibility that we're releasing a much deadlier monster this time compared to last time."

"I'm sure going to enjoy seeing yet another perversion. If we hurry, maybe Seymour won't have time to eat it."

She grins at Tidus and gives him a thumbsup but she does aside to Mariel, "Oh who knows? I'm sure this will definitely be harder than last time in some way."

<Pose Tracker> Yuna has posed.

It's a good thing opposition is nonexistent because short of wearing a paper bag over her head -- or a mascot suit -- there was zero chance that Yuna's party would make it through Kilika without drawing attention. A lot of attention. The crowds only really let up when they hit the jungle, and were split between loudly sanctimonious scorn for a heretic fleeing her death sentence, and a quieter but fiercer disbelief in the possibility that that news was even true in the first place. This being Kilika and not Besaid, there's a lot more of the former than the latter.

"Even if you could break the seal, the Temple is still forbidden to you!" cried the papery voice of an old granny, and the last thing Yuna heard before they were fully embraced by the hot, humid air of the oddly dangerous gap between two bastions of civilization, town and temple. But some places, no matter how surrounded by people, can apparently never be tamed. Esuna spam commences.

But back in town, Yuna said nothing to any of them, in her own defense or otherwise; she endured it in silence that would make Kimahri proud. Full marks for stoicism. There's an unhappy slant to her shoulders, though, as they ascend the stairs. What a different world this is, than the one where she, Tidus and the Aurochs cheerfully raced to the top.

She bows gratefully to the departing Talia, gently returns Tidus' smile, and then looks to the Vile Fiends, setting up for their ritual, with a similar expression. "We will support you in every way we can," she promises. Then she pauses, listening to something silent; or, perhaps more accurately, something deep inside.

"The fayth are with us," she adds, her shoulders straightening. "With you," she tells Mariel, reassuringly. "And they... are ready. Kilika's fayth, is ready. Please, help him."

He has endured this supernatural solitude for more than long enough.

<Pose Tracker> Lulu has posed.

Lulu was prepared for trouble getting into Kilika--the Guard may have expressed their intent to leave, but intentions only go so far, and discipline could easily break down. She warned as much. Her dismal predictions did not prove true, however. So here they are... And--

Lulu can appreciate a good ice heart now and then. She does not return it, save to nod Talia's way and then continue towards the stairs. To Tidus she remarks, "Why not?"

Hopefully indeed there's not more Sinspawn up here on top of everything else--Sinspawn alone would be more than bad enough. But Tidus moves to lift spirits...

"Yes," Lulu agrees, and keeps walking. She walks smoothly, evenly, her long skirt never tripping her up on the broad steps. She is less quiet now, which is to say not 'nearly silent', than while they walked through the town. In town she simply walked with Yuna, and did not break her stoicism by offering something she doesn't need to get through. ...But once they were alone, Lulu had placed a hand on her arm, briefly. And then continued.

Here and now, Lulu looks about the others until Mariel speaks up, and then inclines her head to her. "I'll handle the water," she says, as they discussed. "As soon as we make it up."

<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.

 
"We're really grateful all of you are here to lead the way through this jungle. Most of us haven't been to this temple before."
 
Hiro's statement is straightforward enough, but the reality is that he missed his opportunity to come to Kilika early on... then Althena's Guard attacked.
 
A feminine voice chimes in, "And for getting the poison out of our systems. Without the Lady Summoner and Mariel, this expedition would be over before it began."
 
Ruby is flapping lazily besides. To those who don't know her, she looks like a pink cat with white fur at the chest, a yellow bow on her head.
 
Oh and she has wings of course, because she introduced herself with the claim that she's a Red Dragon. Whether you believe her or not is up to you!
 
"... T-That's for sure." Hiro looks momentarily embarrassed, as if maybe he needed a lot of those.
 
Stairs are what awaits, and Hiro lifts a hand, as if saluting Talia. "That's a good sign, if she hasn't spotted any resistance." Hiro says with a certain optimism at the thought of not fighting Althena's Guard, but there might be an... undertone of tension.
 
The last time they messed with something touched by Zophar, the results were... well, it proved he existed alright, to a number of people.
 
Now it's no longer about that. Now it's about undoing the damage that the Guard has unknowingly done to the people of Spira. It has to be unknowingly.
 
Stairs. And more stairs. He doesn't seem winded from the experience, though he doesn't take the forefront, instead falling back to try and lend a hand to anyone who might be struggling.
 
The door, and the faint shimmer of the seal. Hiro gives Yuna a solemn look as she says she'll support them. "We appreciate your support Lady Summoner." He says, gently, knowing that in the end... this means more to the people of Spira than it ever could to him, before he then tries to smile her way, "Let's see if we can't give the people of Spira something else to celebrate by the time this is over."
 
Mariel though indicates it might be hard... and Hiro gives her a serious look, "We've managed so much, in such a short time thanks to you." He says with a tone of gratitude to the Elw woman. "We'd still be fumbling around trying to get people to believe us... about anything." He then smiles her way, "So even if it's hard, there's no doubt in my mind, that if anyone can pull it off, it's you. We'll do everything in our power to make certain you pull it off."
 

<Pose Tracker> Ivan has posed.

Much of Ivan's previous time in and around Kilika was spent as part of the Guard, so it's a strange shift in perspective to be here again in a mission to unseal the temple. It's another attempt to undo some of the damage he helped cause, and he is eager to be of use, but they've met with pretty much no resistance so far. Probably he shouldn't be dissappointed about that, especially as they don't know what they'll have to face when they actually break the seal.

Ivan gives his sister a slightly embarrassed wave of aknowledgement as they pass her and she salutes and greets them with an ice heart.

...Uhh, does she do that a lot?

Ivan gives a grave nod. "Constantly. But there is nothing to be done for it. It makes her happy."

The familiar gauntlet of stairs greets them, and Ivan proceeds upward without complaint. For the most part, he hangs back during the preparation for the unsealing, as it deals with matters larely beyond his understanding, but he's keeping an ear out in case he's needed.

<Pose Tracker> Paine has posed.

All saints are martyrs, in the end, but not all martyrs are saints.

"So annoying," Paine observed to Tidus as they passed through town. "Will Yuna get mad if I hit someone? Well, two people, obviously." She talks as though Tidus of course understands and empathizes with the mundane dynamics of punching peasants. "There's always that second one you need to make an example of."

A stately old farmer of bent back and straight teeth may have overheard. "Is that the blade of a hero?" he declaims, his tone portentious with advanced years as he indicates the skull-emblazoned hilt at Paine's side.

"It's called Gravestone," Paine tells him. "You should buy one yourself soon."

Now, at the base of the stairs, Paine lets the ice-heart go by without comment, glancing back at Yuna to check on her. She's distracted by Tidus's team-spirit moment, however, and looks over at him blankly.

"Yes," Lulu says.
"Mm hm," Paine adds flatly.

She's companionable enough to stand beside, at any rate.

Hiro's gesture of respect for Yuna goes over with Paine--perhaps well, it is difficult to say. She certainly watches, and returns her red-eyed gaze over her shoulder afterwards, to the Summoner.

<Pose Tracker> Ghaleon has posed.

It is hard to say whether it being on Lunar will make it harder.

But the fact of the sealed Temple will. The door is sealed -- but Mariel will not have to look long, and Yuna and Lulu, with their magical experience, will soon realize, too -- that the seal has set in. It has the same dark power, if Mariel pries; but it is also the sort of ward that deepens and grows stronger with time, as if it hardened with age.

The ritual will take a little time -- and extra preparation -- and likely a contribution of power from everyone, to undo the seal.

But besides the stairs they just climbed, there is no obstacle waiting for them. There is only the door, pulsing with power -- aglow with a purple-blue, that fuzzes black at its edges.

<Pose Tracker> Lulu has posed.

Lulu doesn't mind Paine's laconic nature. Under other circumstances she might've appreciated the remark about her sword's name. Under these, she has passed in quiet, poison or not. For Ivan's sister, well--"There's that, then."

Pause. She looks over Hiro and inclines her head again. Then, the black mage waits for the water basin to be set down, and once it is--

She focuses, then lifts a hand--with a pulse of magic, the water in the air becomes water in the basin, gently raining down unlike her usual attacks with aquatic pressure.

"This should do."

<Pose Tracker> Mariel has posed.

On the way to the Temple, Mariel frowns when she hears Paine - she has good ears - but she didn't say anything about her words then and doesn't seen about to later.

Mariel reddens slightly, though she tries not to be especially embarrassed. "It isn't that. I'm not saying that I am useless or something like that. It's just - we are a long way from Filgaia, and Lunar - Spira - it doesn't feel the same to me. The energy is different. And the Fayth were not there last time, either. But I'll do what I can, and I'm sure everyone else will too."

Mariel lets Lulu do the magic of 'create water' once they're otherwise set up, though she is very fussy about *exactly* where the basin goes. Finishing grating the Holy Root, Mariel mixes it in with the other herbs and at least one dried flower, stirring with a wooden stick. Eventually it begins to tint, a faint shade like weak green tea, with energizing fumes.

"This may take me a few minutes," she warns, as she kneels next to the basin. "It did last time." And last time, they weren't dealing with a Seal quite like this. It feels different. 'Rooted' isn't quite the right word, but she can't think of any other word that does much better. They can see it, too, the deep colours.

Mariel closes her eyes and draws in energy - less holding it and more shifting it through her, just slightly, to the basin before her, then toward the door. It 'grows' up the seal like twisting vines, invisible to normal vision yet but wrapping around it, infiltrating it like grass creeps its roots into cobblestones.

"It's... there," she says, realizing that not all the others may be able to feel it. "It's - bound in tight, but if we purify it through the gaps..."

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

Talise somehow doesn't so much as shift her weight even when Marivel goes human again. Hoisting a vampire is a trivial weight when you are Talise Gianfair, Lifter of Heavy Stuff.

With a cant of her head back towards Yuna and Lulu, she flashes her a quiet smile. "Thank you. What the Guard's been doing to Spira has been ridiculous and I'm sorry I haven't been able to do more to help stop them. If I can at least help you make some progress this way, I'll feel a bit better about it, at least."

The smile eases, once more giving way to a look of greater focus and seriousness as she looks up at the door before them. What happened last time weighs on her mind.

...Zophar...

Bringing her sword forward, Talise holds the blade towards the door, waiting for Mariel and Lulu to act. The water appears, and she moves into place with a low jingle of padded mail.

"Any help you can give us, it's appreciated," she says as Mariel begins to draw energy in. Then she, too, begins to draw what power she can into focus.

Lowering her blade, Talise touches the very tip to the surface of the water. Rivulets of it begin to trace up the blade, effortlessly trickling against the pull of gravity and taking on a gentle blue-white shimmer. Sparks of light dance around the ancient sword as Talise holds it to the water for a moment before raising the weapon, wreathed in a nimbus of energy. Guardian power flows freely through a weapon borne of the deepest history of another world altogether.

"Alright," Talise says, her voice quiet but intent with focus. "Get ready."

She remembers what happened last time. As she steps forward, holding out her glowing blade, her shoulders are tense. The purifying water drips endlessly along Rastaban's shimmering edges as she moves to touch the point to the sealed door, ready to let the blessed water flow forth.

<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.

    Ivan tells Tidus there's no stopping Talia from the ice-hearts. Tidus shakes his head, somewhere between amused and bemused. "Whatever makes her happy, then," he says.
    
    The mention of Seymour--as any mention of Seymour will--brings a grimace to Tidus's face. "Let's not talk about Seymour and perversions," he cracks to Marivel.
    
    For all that Tidus offers everyone a bright smile, and for all Yuna offers a smile back, he did notice the way she merely bore up under the derision of the people of Kilika. His gaze lingers on her for a moment; then, when he turns, his hand brushes up against hers, then--if she allows it--clasps it with a gentle, hopefully reassuring squeeze. As much as he wanted to tell off that old lady, Tidus suspected doing so wouldn't make Yuna happy, so he'd let it slide. Hopefully the physical reminder of his enduring support *will* make her happy.
    
    "Definitely annoying, but I don't think she'd be a fan, no," he thus agrees wryly to Paine. Though he did fail to hold back a snort when she went and told off an old man. If she and Lulu aren't exactly team-spirity, well, that's fine. Yuna's smile is plenty for him.
    
    He crooks a smile at Hiro and says, "Hey, we're all helping each other out, right? It's only right." To Ruby, he'd accepted her claim of being a Red Dragon at face value, because... who knows what a (presumably) baby dragon looks like? Not him, that's who.
    
    "Yeah, hopefully not," he says to Mariel. "Don't worry--we'll all do our part. That's why we're here!" They'd all be in a real bind if this doesn't work. Still, there's no point in thinking negative before bad things even happen. He stands by as Lulu calls down that water into the basin and as Mariel works her... magic? Potion-mastery? No one ever gave him a tutorial on how Mariel's abilities work so he's not sure how they... work. All the same, there's no denying it's effective, and his gaze rises with the growing energy. His occasional magic training can be thanked for that.
    
    "So we just gotta follow Talise's lead, right?" he says. He nods firmly to the Seer. "After you, then." He watches as she holds her blade to the water, which drips *up* the blade, and then takes it to the sealed door. He'll hold up a hand, calling up his own water magic, but he holds off on actually unleashing it until the opportune moment.

<Pose Tracker> Yuna has posed.

Lulu's touch lingers comfortingly on Yuna's arm long after her hand has been retrieved, and she, too, received a grateful look at the time. Hiro she bows to, and in the few moments after, before the ritual proper begins, she falls in near Tidus, Lulu and Paine.

If she overheard any of the discussion about telling off the populace, she's feigning deafness.

"The magic of this Seal," she tells some of them and reminds others, "Is powered by an evil they call Zophar. He is not of Spira... his presence is like nothing I've ever felt before. It is very terrible," she explains solemnly, though her clumsy phrasing undermines things a bit, as she struggles to describe something she has no teachings to turn to. "So, please do your best, if you feel it. We will have to withstand it together."

It seems that this time Talise and Mariel may not be enough on their own. Her magic is not their magic, and she is wholly unsure how to contribute hers to theirs. In the end she goes with her heart -- as is so often the case, with Yuna and magic, period -- and simply rests a supportive hand on Mariel's shoulder.

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

"That's why we're hurrying." Marivel points out to Tidus, giving him a light punch on the arm--not forcefully--in a sign of comradery before extending a hand of her own, lending a bit of her own eldricht ancient and frankly borderline extinct sorceries to the pot, so to speak. She doesn't seem to be too tense just yet. She's saving that for when some kind of horrible monster jumps out. Or something else. Something worse.

"Mm... It was thanks to that visitation that I realized he was real. His presence mystifies my judgement. Greater understanding is required."

She looks ot Yuna. "You must be grateful the war is over. Your quest is surely nearly over."

She doesn't quite look down because she's focused on supplying her sorcerous energies to the task at hand, but she seems concerned and worried plenty for her friend--and for what is to come. One way or another.

She glances to Talise and elects to not disturb her. The lion share's of the work ought to be on her.

<Pose Tracker> Ivan has posed.

Ivan has very little in his repertoire that seems likely to resonate with water (he wonders for a moment if he and Talia should have traded jobs) -- but on reflection, he does have something holy.

And so, from the sheath at his side, he withdraws... his umbrella, its white canvas overlaid with gold scrollwork that begins to glow faintly as he holds it up before him like a sword, still furled shut.

He taps it lightly to his forehead and closes his eyes for a moment, seeking to resonate its will with his own and channel it into the unsealing.

<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.

 
"Feels more than right even." Hiro says with a reply to Tidus... though maybe he's not even talking about the Poison anymore. It wouldn't feel right to do this without them.
 
Hiro double takes as Yuna bows, then puts a hand over his stomach and tries to awkwardly bow back. His Grandpa tried to teach him how once, but it looks like a kid trying to recall those lessons on a dime.
 
Whereas he seems to at least pick up on his slight gaffe in misunderstanding what Mariel was saying, and looks away scratching his neck, "Oh... so that's how it is!" He seems mildly flustered, "W-Well... if anyone can navigate different kinds of energy it's you." He sounds like he maybe just doesn't quite get it, just having faith in Mariel's ability to do it.
 
A fluttering of pink wings indicates the arrival of help. "Then help you shall have!" Ruby puts her precious pink pawsies on Talise's shoulder. "Take my dragon power!"
 
She declares and... well, she does not infuse Talise with Dragon Power. She can't actually do that. For reasons which she is completely unaware of. What she does do is start massaging Talise's shoulders with those pawsies as if she were a prize fighter about to fight.
 
Hiro on the other hand, looks down at the basin of water. Then takes off a necklace that he's wearing. It's a strangely twisted and tangled medallion of gnarled white. "Mind if I make a strange addition?"
 
He unlatches it, and adds that Medallion around Mariel's neck. The White Dragon Wings immediately it begins to offer that strange, subtle glow.
 
"Someone gave us this once for good luck. And it's never failed me once. So I bet it won't fail you either for this."
 
And then he stands back, keeping his hand upon his sword. Hiro can do magic, but he would never call himself a magic expert. Contributing to a ritual feels very much outside of his scope. So instead he stands back and leaves that to the experts.
 
A thought enters his mind, and a rueful smile creases across his face...
 
... he's always been better at swatting things with his sword. A lot has changed since back when he first met Lucia, but not that.
 
Though Yuna's words instantly remind him of that time. A time when admiration turned to horror. That... is how he remembers Zophar, as a being that can do that.
 
"He won't get his way this time."
 
Hiro vows, quietly, after Yuna speaks.
 
"We won't let him."
 

<Pose Tracker> Lulu has posed.

Lulu has little to say at the moment; her focus is on, at first the basin and the water, and then as always Yuna herself. ...And as well, on Talise, beginning to work with the water. The way she focuses, move a point to a door...

She stays near Yuna. Her own contribution is clear; she has contributed the water, and with it a certain amount of magical force. She doesn't... comment, on whether Yuna's quest is nearly over. She instead listens--help. Good luck...

Lulu closes her eyes, and focuses on the elements here. "I'll be ready," she says, and makes sure that it's true.

<Pose Tracker> Paine has posed.

Paine's eyes flick away from Hiro, and her thin lips press, as he attempts a bow in return. It's easier not to smile if she doesn't look. Her eyes return when her funny bone has had enough of a break, and afterward she cocks an eyebrow silently at Tidus, as if holding him responsible for Yuna's effect on people.

She watches Lulu summon water, her eyes large, her blink heavy. Afterwards she looks up at the black mage, then down at what she wrought. It is not quite the wonder of a child, but perhaps the attentiveness of youth. Paine looks at things a little longer than most.

The words spoken around her have grown heavy, and none more than those of Yuna herself. The edge of Gravestone is heavy as well, and grinds quietly as Paine draws it from its hook on her belt, and her arm bobs under its weight when she extends it, discreetly low, at her side. If there be a contribution she can make today, it will not be water.

"M'here," Paine replies softly to Yuna. There is a waver to that swallowed syllable; Paine was equally uncomfortable saying 'we' or 'I' and didn't quite end up doing either.

Looking to her side and back somewhat, Paine intends to exchange a glance with Lulu, and check to see if the eldest of their group had anything to say with her expression. She finds Lulu's eyes closed, however, and does not attempt to draw her attention. That is her message, then; an unusual concern for readying herself. Paine watches the black mage's face in a moment's voyeurism, wondering what Zophar might be, to make a woman like that steel herself. Then, audibly clicking the corner of her mouth, she faces front again, rippling her fingers on the hilt of her blade, seeking just the tiniest improvement in balance.

<Pose Tracker> Ghaleon has posed.

Energy creeps up through the seal. Lulu provides water and Mariel directs it -- energy creeping into it like roots. Together, they all pour themselves into it; from simple support of a hand on a shoulder, holy umbrellas, precious pink pawsies, and people with hands on weapons and standing by. Talise then directs it -- power into the energy network that Mariel created.

It hits the seal. There is a moment where it is visible only to Mariel; light 'cracks' in the seal. Then it flashes, glowing brighter, and the seal's energy begins to have cracks shoot up and down it. Talise feels every muscle tense; feels veins bulge; feels her body locking up. She feels a sweat breaking out.

There is a pressure on all of them, whatever they do. A sense of something growing, the sensation of being deep underwater and rising -- and the water resisting.

And then breaking through.

The seal shatters. Flecks of black and purple and blue light fly, like broken glass shards -- then wink into nothingness. After that, there is a flood for Yuna; a sensation of something lifted, of Ifrit's presence stronger than she has felt in months.

There is a moment to celebrate and cheer. A moment to reflect, perhaps.

And then, there is another sound. A slow, sardonic clapping. One, two, three.

BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTTobOm16Ro

From behind a large tree, he steps out: Ghaleon, the Dragonmaster. With long white hair over smooth skin; elven features, with perfect lips curled into a smile; dark eyes that regard them thoughtfully, and that shattering beauty. It is marred only by the violet scales around on eye. He wears heavy black armor, with a grey cloak around him.

"Well, well, well," he says. "Truly. It seems that I am late... how tragic. I should congratulate you on a job well-done -- breaking and entering!"

He lowers his head. "Such... audacity. How should it be rewarded?"

DC: Ghaleon switches forms to Dragonmaster Ghaleon!

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

There is no power on Lunar greater than precious pink pawsie power. Talise closes her eyes and breathes out slowly at the feel of little pink dragon forefeet touching her shoulder. There's something right about it - for just a second, she can touch the irrational dream of being the Dragonmaster one day and pretend that there is no thousand-year-old ghost currently filling the job.

The collision of purifying force and negative energy leaves Talise's body tensed, muscles coiled like compressed springs as she braces herself against the sickening sensation of the two forces meeting one another. But more than anything, she can feel it beginning to give.

The seal gives way, and Talise lets her breath out in a deep, hard rush, sagging visibly after the moment of intense effort. This time, at least, nothing jumps out at them from the door.

When she lifts her head, Talise manages a tired smile, lopsided and a little flushed. She opens her mouth to say something, but --

    Clap. Clap. Clap.

Her lower lip drops another half an inch as she realizes who it is, in fact, who has just stepped out from behind a tree. A thought briefly occurs to her:

    That son of a bitch is supposed to be dead. AGAIN.

Snapping her teeth together with a sharp click, the big swordswoman moves forward instinctively. Her weapon comes up into a ready position. The urge to say something sassy tugs at her emphatically.

She can't find words that don't feel painfully empty. As much as the threat of Zophar still looms, what's more painful, all of a sudden, is how the moment Ruby gave her has been torn away by this twice-dead reminder that her dreams can never come to pass, and that every time she's tried to hold herself up to the bar Ghaleon has set, she's come away humiliated.

No... it's not that she can't find words. It's that she can find too many, and they all feel like a plea, and none of them say what she truly wants to say. All she can do is draw a breath and meet Ghaleon's sly words with a flat, defiant glare, eye to eye.

Eyes that suddenly bloom with a surge of fiery vermillion energy that races up Rastaban, the gems set into the hilt shifting from blue to red. For a brief, intense second, power pulses around her as she draws herself up and into a ready position. Ruby more than anyone can feel it - an uplifting, bolstering wave of energy more than anything else.

Talise jerks her chin at the Dragonmaster meaningfully. She lets the gesture take the place of words. Bring the reward.

GS: Talise Gianfair has attacked Talise Gianfair with Vermilion Defiance!
GS: Talise Gianfair has gained 1 Combo!
GS: Talise Gianfair has completed her action.
GS: Talise Gianfair accepts Talise Gianfair's Vermilion Defiance for 0 hit points!
GS: Burst, Hyper, and Lock State applied to Talise Gianfair!

<Pose Tracker> Mariel has posed.

Zophar...

Mariel isn't looking forward to that encounter, but if she focuses on him she *won't* be able to focus on the purification. She grips the little wooden stirring stick she had been using a little more tightly as Yuna rests one hand on her shoulder, and Hiro gives her -

She actually opens her eyes to see what it is. She doesn't recognize it, but she understands that it means something: "Thank you," she says, though she is too distracted to manage an authentic smile. Still, she can feel *something* in it...

...though it's drowned out by the focus on the barrier. Mariel can feel it more than see it, in ways she can't easily put into words; a pressure, a resistance as the twining energy presses into the seal, shimmering...

It shatters. Mariel reflexively ducks even though there is nothing that can actually hit her physically, and rises up after the energy has started to disperse. She can feel it breaking up. "The Temple - and the Fayth - is open. ...Thank you, everybody!" She starts to stand up from where she had knelt next to the basin.

But there is clapping.

Mariel turns to look at Ghaleon. It's the first time she has seen him in person, though she has been told who he is before and can recognize him by description - he's distinctive enough. Her ears flatten down slightly, either in unhappiness or irritation - it's hard to tell which. Her eyes linger on the patchy scaling around his eye for a few moments too long. She does not comment on it, but she sees it, all right.

"..." She's not sure what to *say* to him, though. Of all the people she expected to be here, he was not one of them. "That barrier was ... wrong," Mariel says. "If you want me to feel bad for helping remove it, I won't. I think you know that it was wrong, too. About its energy - "

Talise steps forward, though, which catches Mariel by surprise, too. She takes a step back, hastily picking up her bag and holding it in front of her, almost shield-like.

<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.

 
The power grows, the pressure rises. The seal cracks. And then the seal just... shatters. "Did... that really do it?"
 
Hiro waits for the other shoe to drop. To see whether another wrong-feeling horror is going to come out of the seal's absence. It was imbued with Zophar's power after all. So he warily grips his sword.
 
Just as the clapping starts. At first he mistakes it for celebration. "I don't feel anything like Zophar... but... stay on guard for a-"
 
Hiro looks, and his jaw drops. He'd heard he lived... but seeing is believing, as they say. A rumor of life, in a land of death is such a dangerous thing to a boy who so desperately always tries to clutch for optimism.
 
"G-Ghaleon!"
 
At first, it's a surge of surprise and perhaps... joy? Relief? It's hard to say how he feels upon knowing Althena's Dragonmaster is back. However, it's his words that start to sink in, and it occurs to him...
 
... Ghaleon absolutely did say he was coming after them, once he'd taken care of things. However, Hiro doesn't take up an aggressive stance, because... Ghaleon hadn't ever been their aggressor. And he risked everything to try to free the people of Spira from Sin. "You say that like Althena's Guard owned the place."
 
Hiro says, and it's not quite a rebuke, save in perhaps the mildest form of it
 
It's not trespassing, because it isn't.
 
Mariel though starts to explain, and Hiro tries to back her up. "Mariel speaks the truth. Ghaleon... Leo must have told you right?"
 
He says with a sort of urgency, as if he's trying to prevent conflict, "There's something wrong with the Sealing Rods the Guard has been using here in Spira. They've been tainted by the hand of Zophar."
 
That's not to say Hiro wouldn't think it was wrong what they were doing if the rods weren't tainted by him, but he thinks them knowing this might make them pause and rethink matters that he was unable to reach the Four Heroes on before.
 
Ultimately, he believes that Ghaleon, he believes that the Four Heroes - even the unstable Red Priestess, are Althena's representatives That they're good people deep down..
 
"Althena has to know."
 
Ruby meanwhile is currently hiding behind Talise a bit because... it's Ghaleon. She saw what he did to Id.
 

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

"That was too easy," Marivel murmurs. "I was expecting some kind of... Shadow Guardian to pop out." She shrugs both shoulders and says, "Well far be it for me to complain about a free lunch! Let's use the rest of the time we've found for ourselves to laze about on the beach. We're hardly likely to get many more opportunities for that!"

But then... dramatic clapping!

Marivel turns to look to Ghaleon. He's just... late? Well, it's the sort of thing Marivel would say when she arrived precisely when she meant to so she isn't going to push the matter.

Marivel is quiet for a moment. "...Don't suppose you'd be happy giving each of us a nice shoulder massage? There were so many stairs, Ghaleon, you don't even know." She doesn't seem surprised to see him alive but, well, she did run into him alive already once before so that's not too strange. "I don't really like to exercise or work hard, much better ot let the humans do all the heavy lifting don't you...think?"

There is a small bit of hesitation there as Talise suddenly powers up. Marivel turns around and holds up her hands, genuinely startled.

"Talise, are you possessed? If you got possessed by negative energy you have to tell us or show some kind of physical transformation. That's the rule." Pause. "Well your sword is glowing red but--"

With her present understanding, she seems more ready to defend Ghaleon than fight with Talise, but she might be missing some vital context here.

Or, like, all the context actually. She does say, "I don't know what your beef is, but what exactly are we getting out of fighting Ghaleon here? He's got old fashioned sorcery in him, you know? If he banishes me outside of this plane of reality, it's gonna be a real hassle."

Ghaleon can probably see her fists tightening faintly when Hiro insists on telling Althena.

"How could she not know...?" Marivel points out. "If Mariel could detect it, Althena certainly did--"

<Pose Tracker> Ivan has posed.

The group's triumph over the barrier is interrupted, not by a monster but by... the Dragonmaster.

Ivan had... a strange encounter with Ghaleon recently, which changed his perceptions of the Dragonmaster somewhat. But where once he was a source of aggravation, seemingly bent on humiliating Ivan, now he is... something of a question mark. And their last interaction did come with the explicit warning that their next encounter might not be a peaceful one.

Hiro attempts to explain the true stakes of the situation to Ghaleon; perhaps it will work. He seemed... independent enough in his thoughts to be carrying a musical instrument with him, so maybe he won't just bat the idea of Zophar somehow infiltrating the Guard aside as empty blasphemy.

Ivan nods along with Hiro.

"Someone in the Guard is trying to spread evil power around under everyone's noses. Did you have any idea it was happening?"

<Pose Tracker> Yuna has posed.

Yuna's connection to the fayth is not literal -- she's not attached to them by strings. It's so much more fundamental and profound, the way that they both dwell within her and, increasingly, define her. But a string isn't a terrible analogy for some of what they've all gone through together in her adventures.

How they narrowed, finer and finer, threads no wider than a single hair, when she was thrust out of Spira to the Otherworld of Filgaia. Upon her return, most of them recovered.

One didn't.

And to go from that -- to standing on the very doorstep of Kilika's fayth, as that door opens again at last --

FREE

Well, to mix metaphors a bit, it is somewhat like going from holding a candle to being submerged in a sunflare. Drowning in plasma.

Yuna burns, but not visibly; not except for the not-at-all-figurative heat rising off of her, which warps her into a mirage from every direction; she is suddenly intangible, both powerful and fragile at once; no risk of melting, but she might leave the world entirely and become one with that inner flame.

She is, accordingly, not the first to reply to Ghaleon. This is really just as well; the Vile Fiends have a longer and more personal history with him, and she will follow their lead as regards what to do next. Their readiness for battle saddens but does not surprise her. Look closely enough when Marivel asks for a massage, though, and see Yuna hopeful.

After all, it may be a shorter one, but she has a past with the Dragonmaster too.

"Honor," she croaks, eventually. Her voice is smoked glass. Her expression is accepting of the word, as it describes him, and all that that means. If he must fight them, she will fight. But that is up to him.

Taking a step forward, a burning footprint flickers in her wake, indifferent to the flagstone's lack of kindling.

<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.

    There is a pressure, like diving deeper and deeper into the ocean. Tidus can practically feel it pressing on his inner ear. When it suddenly *breaks*, and with it, the seal, it's like bursting out of the surface of the sea and sucking in a lungful of air. "We did it!" he exclaims joyously, grinning around at the others.
    
    But then Ghaleon appears, putting a damper on those feelings. The others ask if Althena knew or if he knew. Tidus... frowns. He's got a bad feeling now, and those bad feelings of his are usually spot on.
    
    You... knew, didn't you? he thinks. He doesn't say it. But it's on his face, as he turns and takes up his sword to fight if he must.

<Pose Tracker> Lulu has posed.

Lulu feels out for the seal as it wars with the attempt at purification; it is an unpleasant thing to feel, that pressure. She feels more than sees the light at first, and there is a moment to open her eyes. She does not smile, but she wouldn't be expected to. She heard Paine's syllable, before, and now she glances back at her. The look in her eyes is serious, as always. She saw the way Paine looked at her when her eyes were open--did she when they were closed?

Regardless, it is not this Zophar that greets them, but--

Lulu didn't feel him coming, despite her elemental awareness in the moment--and she's certain that he didn't intend for her to, just as much. Looking him over, she narrows her eyes, as if she could judge his intentions by an intent enough look. At the same time, though, she notices the fiery energy that blooms about Talise's sword and herself, and her eyes track to the taller woman for a moment. None of the explanations, the talk of what Althena must know sway the black mage for the moment. She is impassive at Marivel's reactions. But she has something of the same thought--

The same thought that she does not immediately voice, because she looks to Yuna at the sheer heat from her, the burning footstep. Honor, she says--and Lulu looks her over, and then turns back to Ghaleon again. She remembers well their interactions before.

And she remembers his strength...

"Talise," Lulu says, calmly. "Everyone."

She steps forward, too, and another. "We did what was necessary for us to do," Lulu says to Ghaleon. "...No more, and no less."

"We aren't here to fight."

...If it comes to it, she will--as hard as she can. She'll have to. But if it doesn't...

"...Or I should say, we're not here to fight more than this seal and whatever tries to hold it closed."

<Pose Tracker> Paine has posed.

Paine's silver brows draw together at the sound of slow clapping. She glances around at her companions--new and even newer alike--in an effort to gauge what her reaction should be. It seems that everyone knows this man on sight except her.

"Hey," she whispers at Tidus. "Who--"

Wincing as others call out to... G-ghaleon (per Hiro), Paine is unwilling to either raise her voice or sidle closer to Tidus, so she lets it go. He strikes Paine as an unusually beautiful man, though praising pale warriors with pale hair might be a little narcissistic. He does not lack for confidence, given how outnumbered he is. He even abandons the advantage of surprise.

Paine's knees bend slightly, though she remains still. There is a glint to her expression despite how flat it remains, a game readiness that vibrates in her posture. She won't force combat, for Yuna's sake, but if anyone here can avert it with words, it is not Paine.

For Yuna... Paine glances back. It's intended to be brief, as though checking everyone is here on the field trip. But Yuna's present state catches Paine's eyes hard, and she feels her stance drift a little looser from distraction. The Summoner has brought the fayth closer to the people, it seems.

It's disconcerting. Paine never seen the Summoner look so hot before, in a disappointingly literal sense of the word. Does it hurt?

"Yuna..." Paine murmurs to herself. Then, teeth bared, she turns her face to Ghaleon again.

"Lulu." This name is spoken as diamond-hard as the previous one was spoken soft. It doesn't rise at the end, but it is a question, or perhaps an offer. If the Summoner cannot wait in the state she is in, it will take but the slightest affirmative syllable for Lulu to set Paine, fearless in ignorance, upon Ghaleon.

<Pose Tracker> Ghaleon has posed.

"My! How... fierce," Ghaleon says, with a smirk towards Talise. He looks at her -- and it's like he can see every thought on her face, then. He considers for a second, before he looks back at Hiro.

"Well. Lots of people own lots of places, Hiro. You'll find that the concept of ownership... is often convoluted." Ghaleon shrugs his shoulders, once. Then, he tilts his head. "Do you plan to tell the Goddess?"

And then he cracks a smile, as he looks at Marivel. "I'm afraid that my fingers don't have that magic touch. That... particular magic touch."

He turns his head, back to Hiro. "I'd very much like to see what the Goddess says. Perhaps you'll have the chance to tell her, someday."

He looks back at Ivan -- at his question (accusation?) -- and his eyes narrow. "Perhaps. Perhaps not. The Guard has a lot of different people in it--and a lot of different goals. And I'm oh so busy and can't keep track of it all. I trust you understand, Ivan."

His head turns back at Yuna. Ghaleon tilts his head once at her; he blinks his eyes -- then he cracks a smile. "Ah, Lady Yuna," he says. "I fear that I will be a disappointment to you. Whatever honor I had... it slipped away through my fingers a millennium ago."

He glances at Tidus -- and the look in his dark eyes is knowing. Like he knows what Tidus is thinking; in turn, like he is affirming it. He knew perfectly well what was happening here. He either can't or won't say so aloud.

He glances at Paine, too. His head tilts to the side -- he didn't meet her before. He lifts one eyebrow, at how tensed she is. He can recognize protectiveness; respect it, even. "It seems your Guardian is eager to guard, Lady Yuna."

When Lulu speaks, though, his eyes turn towards her. He nods his head, once once. "Well. The seal has fallen apart. Well done!" He tilts his head. "Though, I don't think the Godess will be pleased that you undid this work."

Then, he rolls his shoulders. He looks at all of them. "The truth is, matters here have... forced her hand. She intends to seal off Pentagulia--to create a barrier to repel Sin from one city utterly, for now." He smiles, and it's... cold. "And leave others outside her protection to Sin's mercies, given... recent political events."

Then, he glances at Hiro. "...hm, hm, hm. And the Goddess's barrier... well, it will keep certain other pests from Pentagulia, too. How troubling!"

<Pose Tracker> Ghaleon has posed.

After that's said, he looks back at Mariel.

Ghaleon hesitates for a second. Then, he inclines his head once. It's almost mocking -- and yet there is a sincerity to it, underlying that. "Far be it from me to tell you how to feel--but rest assured. The Goddess may disagree. And I'm her servant."

He looks up at Mariel, and he smiles. "And I'm not one to go against the orders or the will of my goddess. Hm, hm. I think you would understand that..."

<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.

"He's not going to care," Talise predicts with a glance at Hiro. "He didn't give a damn when we told him Malevolence had gotten past the Boundary, either. The Dragonmaster of all people."

It's not just anger in her voice. There's a certainty there, and she expresses it with a glance at Marivel. "And no, I'm not possessed. I'm annoyed. You're right. Althena should know about this. If Mariel can feel it - if it's obvious to me, with all the magic of a stump - then the Goddess can't possibly miss what's happening! It's just--"

Talise cuts herself off as something occurs to her. This all seems cut and dry to her. Althena can't possibly not know. Ghaleon can't possibly be ignorant of the situation. This can't possibly be a mistake. But she grew up with a background in Althenian lore. Most of those around her didn't.

She breathes out slowly through her nose, steadying her thoughts. If nothing else, she doesn't jump to make it a fight, and she lowers her weapon into a defensive position as she meets the Dragonmaster's eyes again.

That Goddess-be-damned tone. The way he talks to them like they're cute Carros waiting for a nut. It takes all the self-discipline she can muster to keep from revisiting her decision to take Lulu's cautionary tone seriously.

Talise works her jaw from side to side for a second before letting out a rumble of irritation in the back of her throat. "Has it occurred to you that you're probably the only Dragonmaster in history *not* to protect the rest of the world from darkness, Ghaleon?" she bites, her tone dripping with the acid bite of accusation.

She sweeps a hand out, gesturing at the pale, smirking man as outrage surges into her tone. "Of all the people to just accept that!" she shouts. "Is-- is this what you wanted a thousand years ago, Ghaleon?! When you and Dyne took the Trials way back when?! Did you really go in thinking you'd one day be happy about defending things that are obviously wrong? Not asking one single question?" Her voice peaks; there's a hurt to it that feels strangely personal, somehow.

"What the fuck, Ghaleon?! What the fuck would Dyne say to you if he saw you like this?!"

<Pose Tracker> Ivan has posed.

And I'm oh so busy and can't keep track of it all. I trust you understand, Ivan.

"I do not understand," Ivan answers plainly, again making it a bit of an accusation. This is very different from dismissing it as blasphemy, but instead sounds very much like he simply doesn't... care? Which Ivan was not expecting. It's strange that he feels betrayed, when he so recently thought he hated the Dragonmaster for not living up to his idealized visions. Now he's... well, he's not living up to his ideals all over again. But is this the real Ghaleon or some other layer of artifice?

"Is that really how you feel about it, or are you trying to teach another lesson?" he asks. It seems like kind of a useless question, though. If Ghaleon is putting on a front, he isn't going to drop it just because he's asked to, is he?

He speaks of the Goddess sealing Pentagulia off from the world, as if to abandon everyone but her closest followers. "But that's..." he finds himself unable to finish. "Is she really going to do that?"

Why does the world seem to work nothing like the way he thought it did?

<Pose Tracker> Yuna has posed.

Yuna shares a glance with Tidus; she, too, suspects what he does. But like Ghaleon, she does not speak of it. Even her own single word of assertion in that direction was brushed off...

One fingerling of invisible flame at a time, Yuna masters the power of Kilika Temple. Last time it took hours. This time it takes seconds. Maybe a minute. Experience? Or another kind of growth? She's such a larger vessel now than she was back then, the first time they encountered one another, the former Crusader and the barely-grown priestess.

When the last of it has been drawn beneath her skin, she takes another step forward, and this one does not burn...

Tilting her head quizzically to one side at Ghaleon's reaction, and distinctly different behavior, she remembers something of their time together. In prison, where, in comparison to the present, he seemed oddly free.

Lulu doubles down on de-escalation and if Paine is fearless in ignorance, then Yuna is fearless in outright denial. She knows that one day they must fight; he promised her that; but perhaps this is not that day.

Perhaps they can put it off... just a little longer.

"Yes," she agrees simply, as to the quality of her newest Guardian. As for his big announcement, she sways SIDEWAYS -- backwards in a different direction, away from Talise's rage -- but is otherwise unflustered. And even then she is unmoved. No more steps. She stands her ground.

"There's no need for all that," the summoner suggests to Talise with the serenity of one who does not fear the guillotine. "We have done without your Goddess for a thousand years."

Given that the sum total of Yuna's experience of the Goddess Althena are the atrocities perpetrated in her name by the Guard, maybe it isn't so surprising that she greets the news that she is sealing herself up in a city, 'abandoning' them to Sin, with -- well, enthusiasm might be a little strong. But she's definitely not sad.

"And Dragonmaster Ghaleon has already done more to stand with us against Sin than anyone else of that faith. Don't talk to him like that... okay?"

Yuna smiles.

<Pose Tracker> Mariel has posed.

Automatically, Mariel takes one step out of Yuna's way to avoid getting in her firey path. She can feel that nexus of fire moving behind her and she knows better than to try to stop it, even accidentally, until Yuna masters it for a second time.

Mariel privately agrees with Marivel. If she could detect it, there's no way someone as powerful as Althena is said to be could not. Which means it was either done entirely without her knowledge - the whole Sealing process, hidden from her - or that she approved of it, or at least didn't disapprove enough to stop it.

Mariel wasn't sure which of the two she liked less. She's spent time thinking about which is more likely and never come up with any answer she was happy with. Ghaleon's statements have made it clear: she knows, and didn't stop it. This doesn't make her feel better, but it does clarify some things.

"Even a servant has opinions," Mariel says. She forces herself to not look away from Ghaleon, which is hard for her - her instinct is to look down or away, but a combination of determination and emotion is keeping her focused. "And... I don't understand that, or if I do, I don't agree with it either. If I did, I wouldn't still be on Filgaia. Or Spira. I felt Zophar, when we unbound the Purification Rod."

She trails off for a long moment. "Using something like Zophar to try to protect herself from a Clysmian, and one city, but nobody else... I don't understand that, either! How could - why would - " Mariel runs out of words and stumbles to a stop. She understands doing something dangerous to try to save the world. It led to her oath. But - something like that? Talise knows more about Ghaleon's history than her; all *she* knows is that something feels wrong. She needs to meet Althena now, more than ever. To understand. To see what's true. To...

...

"...Doesn't that hurt?" Mariel asks, somewhat incongruously perhaps. She raises her hand, touching her cheek just under her eyes with two fingers (through her glove), a mirror of where Ghaleon's violet scaling is.

Even at a time like this, with someone she is inclined to dislike, it hurts her to see people in distress.

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel rests a hand on Mariel's arm gently when Ghaleon says what she'd understand. She doesn't say anything. Another lie of omission perhaps.

But aside from that soft gesture, she focuses on Talise. She listens carefully to Talise. Maybe she should have paid more attention, but there's a limit to her perception even when she's at the edge of the event horizon, to say nothing when she's walking on the dirt. She seems relieved when Talise lowers her weapon though. If there's going to be someone who causes a lot of problems for the Vile Fiends, it should be Marivel after all.

But Talise instead uses words to cut with and sometimes that can be far more brutal.

"Talise," Marivel says softly. "Don't you think it's likely... that it's likely because of Dyne, that Ghaleon is doing what he is doing? Take it from an old corpse like me."

"You never forget your first companions."

"We didn't know Dyne. We only know him as a hero. We don't know the person like Ghaleon did, not really."

Marivel shakes her head. "It's important to remember that Dyne wasn't just a hero. He was also just a man. He had his own hopes and dreams outside of protecting the world from darkness." She glances to Ghaleon for a moment.

"True heroes like Ana, like I suspect Dyne to be. They don't live their lives in the hopes of being that great hero, of defeating darkness... Rather, it is because of the care for those in their lives that they, by neccessity, become that hero."

"Maybe he is a true villain," Marivel says. "Or maybe he just doesn't give a damn. But if one thing being on Spira has taught me is that appearances can be deceiving...and that there is always time yet to murder each other with words and blades." She shrugs both shoulders. "We can't demand of him to play that role."

<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.

    'Hey, who--' Paine starts to ask. Tidus double-takes at her; right, there's no way she could know. She wasn't there at Mi'ihen *or* in the Via Purifico. "He's Ghaleon the Dragonmaster. Althena's biggest head honcho," he thus whispers back. "We kind of met him in passing." Well, it was in passing for him, anyway.
    
    Kinda weird to be the one telling people stuff, he briefly reflects.
    
    His frown only deepens when Ghaleon gives him that knowing look, like he knows what he thinks and is confirming every suspicion of his. Tidus doesn't know why he wouldn't just come out and say it, but, as he catches that glance of Yuna's and meets it in turn, it's not like Ghaleon would confirm anything if they guessed. There's too much they don't know, even if they can guess this much. "*All* of us Guardians are eager to guard," he says aloud, clipped. Although he's not about to jump into the fray if he doesn't absolutely have to, either. He knows Yuna likes Ghaleon--had (has?) a high opinion of him, even.
    
    He still frowns, but in a different way, when Ghaleon acts near indifferent to the unsealing, then informs them that the Goddess will make a similar seal around the capital to keep Sin and other 'pests' away. He looks over at Hiro, then back at Ghaleon.
    
    "Why're you telling us this?" he asks bluntly. Like Ivan, he isn't really expecting an answer, but he can't help but ask. "It can't be just to gloat, right?"
    
    Or heck, maybe it *is* just to gloat. He doesn't have the understanding of Ghaleon's history that Talise has, or the understanding of people who go on world-changing journeys that Marivel has. He's only got his gut, and that can really only take one so far.

<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.

 
Immediately Hiro feels somewhat on the back foot, given Talise and Marivel's responses. He knows about Marivel's hatred about Althena, and Marivel knows his answer to why he believes in Althena anyway. Hiro feels a certain amount of gratitude towards Lulu stepping in to try and deescalate, because he's worried about the aggressive posture that Talise is taking.
 
Thankfully, Yuna too, works at deescalation, So as Tal curses, and Yuna steps in... Ruby does too, "Tal... Ghaleon could have killed us all before, but he focused on stopping Id. On stemming the tide of destruction he was causing."
 
Ruby tries to get on Talise's shoulder to just focus on trying to talk her down. "I get that you're mad because he's not focusing on something you think is his responsibility... but noone in the Guard has had the same priorities as us."
 
It's not that Ruby doesn't think that Ghaleon is a nice guy or something, in fact she thinks he's a complete jerk. Just... she does remember that. She's grateful that he stopped Id, before Id did something that couldn't be taken back.
 
Hiro gives Ghaleon a strange look as he speaks on ownership, not knowing if he's being condescended or if Ghaleon simply knows something more than he's saying. It might be both, but right now he's not even trying to assume one or the other.
 
"I plan to get Lucia to her... so the two can speak. That's what I'm planning." Hiro says slowly, like he's trying to be more careful than usual with his words. After all, Ghaleon is powerful, and if he decided to be executioner right now, so many people would get caught up in it that shouldn't be. "I'll worry about what I tell her after Lucia has her say."
 
There is a lot he wants to say, about the state of Filgaia, the state of Lunar, the corruption of the Chosen and the Red Priestess but he has to set his priorities. And right now his priority is that Lucia can only stop Zophar if she is able to meet with Althena.
 
While he doesn't feel unconfident about what he might say, he has more faith in whatever Lucia might say.
 
"There's no perhaps about it." Hiro says, with confidence, "I know she'll get to have her say, one day."
 
Hiro's gaze floats over to Ivan, before coming back to Ghaleon, wondering at his answer which seems almost flippant. "I don't understand either." Hiro echoes Ivan's answer, "This kind of thing is important." Is what Ivan says true, IS Ghaleon trying to teach them something? Hiro doesn't know, he barely knows the guy enough to consider the possibility, so he trusts Ivan who obviously does better, having been in the Guard.
 
'I don't think the Goddess will be pleased that you undid this work.'
 
"That's because she doesn't know!" Hiro insists, despite Marivel's earlier idea that she does.
 
But then Ghaleon drops a bomb. "To seal off... Pentagulia?" Hiro seems flabbergasted at both the implication of protecting just one city, at the cost of all those outside of her protection.
 
"..." Hiro seems to blank out for a moment at Ghaleon's glance, his words. The idea that Tidus implants, that he's here to gloat. And for a moment he seems angry, but then... "Say whatever you want. It won't stop her."
 
Hiro says with this sense of absolute certainty. It's not that he doesn't believe that Ghaleon is powerful, than the Goddess is powerful. That all of them combined are more powerful than any number of them. If Ghaleon wanted he could crush him on the spot...
 
"Even when Zophar's curse had her on death's door, she was still trying to crawl out of bed. Still trying to reach Althena. Because there are things that were just more important to her than how much she was suffering. So no matter how vast the ocean is, or how high those walls are, or how thick that barrier is. She'll get there. Just you wait and see."
 
... but he couldn't crush Lucia's spirit, in his eyes. That's a mountain too high for anyone to climb. His expression looks like one of absolute faith, as he utters one subsequent phrase, which seems to summarize all that he just said.
 
"I believe in Lucia."
 

<Pose Tracker> Lulu has posed.

Lulu understands Paine's question implicitly, recognizes the offer for what it is. She does not take her eyes off of Ghaleon for the moment--that would be altogether unwise in her view--but she does briefly shake her head very slightly, just a small turning right and left. That's all, at first.

And when Ghaleon replies to her she nods. "Probably not," she agrees. "But the Goddess's feelings aren't my priority."

She is impassive on the reacions to this news for the most part; accusation, talk of what Althena must know, none of it is ultimately the main focus of Lulu's intentions for the moment, monofocused as she is upon her task, and the end which awaits. What Ghaleon wants is ultimately immaterial to her if it doesn't interfere with Yuna's Pilgrimage.

...But that's not to say she doesn't recognize the problems that could come of Althena being closed off from others who are not so focused upon Spira.

But she does glance to Marivel, as she talks about what heroes do, and thinks of what stories they will tell of her Yuna.

 She thinks of Tidus's question--why, indeed? But at the same time, Lulu listens to Hiro's impassioned defense of Lucia, and understands. She doesn't need to know the woman herself to understand what it is to believe in someone.

"You said you were 'late'," Lulu comments to Ghaleon. "Was that just wit, or were you intending to stop us?"

<Pose Tracker> Paine has posed.

"Foul play, Tidus," Paine tisks reproval when he asserts to Ghaleon that he, too, is guard-ready. She doesn't take her eyes off Ghaleon, nor do they get any less cool and dangerous, despite her words. "I don't blitzblock you when a dark lord thinks you're his type."

It serves as her only reply to Ghaleon as well. It's thanks to Tidus that Paine knows who the Dragonmaster is at all, of course. Her chin is tilted down, which may seem another manifestation of her protective demeanor, a defensive hunch sturdying her body in front of Yuna. But its true purpose is to permit her to look back at Lulu without turning her head much. She has entrusted the black mage for now with her violence, and in doing so Paine has attained the calm of a bolt resting in a crossbow. She will not ask Yuna to put her finger to its trigger in her present state. But if she's being honest, she also appreciates that Lulu might pull it more readily than her ward, heat-rippling air or no.

When the black mage barely shakes her head, Paine barely nods.

Yuna, however, seems to have regained her simple eloquence. Paine is startled to hear her speak more clearly, having expected her condition to get worse before it got better. She is more startled at what Yuna says, glancing back at her. Her red eyes flick between Talise and Ghaleon, but it would be an exaggeration to say that Paine is weighing the issue for herself. She's realigning, that's all.

She'll fight who she has to fight.

<Pose Tracker> Ghaleon has posed.

Ghaleon's head turns towards Talise. His eyes narrow, for a moment, at that question -- there is an anger in his eyes, then. Ghaleon is good at keeping his emotions hidden; at showing exactly the face he wants to. But as always, the name 'Dyne' prompts Ghaleon to forget himself. For a flash of real anger to enter his eyes, only to be mastered again a moment later. He glances at Yuna, when she defends him -- surprised, and more surprised when Marivel does -- and then his eyes look back to Talise.

He pointedly keeps his silence through Marivel's words. His expression is locked into a neutral expression, as if he refuses to give another inch. He is absolutely in control. He feels less in control; even with centuries' time, Ghaleon can't quite master the feeling that name invokes.

"Dyne... I don't think you understand who Dyne was. The past is always more than a legend. Hm, hm."

He turns his head, back to Ivan. "So you don't!" he says, almost as if he finds it funny. He keeps his expression level -- but he smirks after a second. "Why, would I ever lie, Ivan? I'm wounded!"

He chuckles. Then, he folds his arms.

"Of course she is," Ghaleon says, with a glance back at Ivan. "She has a duty to protect her faithful -- as many as she can. And she has seen that Spira has no need of her... and she must do it correctly. So she begins with Pentagulia. And then she will save the rest... if she can."

His eyes turn to Yuna. He considers her remark, for a moment: that Spira did not need the Goddess. "Alas, poor Spira... perhaps there won't be a miracle. Unless, somehow, you've gone into the business of making them."

He glances, after that, at Tidus. His head tilts to the side -- one eyebrow lifts -- and he shrugs his shoulders.

"The Goddess does as she will. I don't claim to know her heart." He looks back at Mariel. His head tilts upward -- and he stares at her for a moment. She seems angry, he thinks; his expression is calm, for a moment -- and then his eyes narrow. A smile crosses his face, and then he shakes his head. "I've grown used to such things. Old wounds are... useful reminders, I find."

Then, he looks to Tidus. "I communicate the Goddess's will. She is, you may have observed, a Goddess. Doing Goddess things in her Goddess Tower. Very important, very... cosmological. Sometimes, she needs someone like myself to make sure her... intentions are known. Consider it a favor, from me!"

He glances at Lulu, then. Ghaleon shrugs, once. "I am always terribly witty," he says. "But no. I was busy. I do, as our esteemed colleague--" A flickering glance at Talise. "--indicated, have... duties."

Then, Ghaleon looks at Paine. He considers, for a second. Then: "I'm afraid I'm too old for both of you. But... well-struck."

He cranes his neck, once. One can almost hear it 'pop.' Ghaleon's eyes narrow at Hiro, for a moment. His expression changes -- from the smirking, knowing look that he often wears to a more neutral, more inquisitive expression. "And does belief bring down barriers? Does belief cross seas? Tell me, Hiro -- what is belief, if you don't have action?"

And then the knowing smile comes back. The uneven smirk across his lips; the tug of mottled purple scarring, that Mariel noted looks so painful. "Well! I've imparted enough wisdom today. Ta-ta, vile fiends and heretics!"

He steps back -- and then vanishes in a puff.

<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.

    "What?" Tidus utters at Paine, and then, "*What*??" at her quip. His jaw drops momentarily; when he recovers, all he can do is shake his head. "Hey, if you want him, he's all yours, Paine," he murmurs in a tone of voice that makes it clear he's astounded they're having this conversation in the first place.
    
    He gets that it's a joke. (He *hopes* it's a joke.) He just didn't expect a joke like that from Paine, of all people!!
    
    Ghaleon meanwhile claims this visit is a favor, from him. Tidus just makes a face. When the Dragonmaster vanishes in a puff, he looks around at the others. "Well," he says, "at least we got what needed to get done, done."

<Pose Tracker> Yuna has posed.

"Yes," Yuna agrees.

Flames flicker behind her eyes.

"Thank you, truly. You have done Spira a great service. And the fayth. And me."

In her palms, the sphere-shaped prayer is no longer Yevonite. But it is reverent, and glad. Truly glad.

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel makes a gesture as if to indicate that, well, yeah Marivel thinks Ghaleon's a pretty pretty man but that's not really her type, so to speak.

But Marivel is quiet for a moment. It...troubles her, of course, that Althena is focused on protecting one city. But she's already voiced her concerns on Althena. Repeating them over and over at slightly increasing volumes isn't going to help matters. She takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly.

"Even Goddesses are a bit more than the legend," She murmurs.

She looks to Yuna and cracks a small smile at her--grateful, perhaps, she spoke up on Ghaleon's behalf. There are some lines Marivel is sensitive too. Perhaps in one respect she's very much like Ghaleon himself, even if in many other matters they're very different people.

She could easily see a path for herself where she stuck all this time in this sort of semi-antagonistic role, though. Were it not for Kamui...

"Well, we finished our mission. Enduring a bit of sass and mystery is a small price to pay for saving Spira."

She looks to Yuna. "If only every victory came this easy, no?"

<Pose Tracker> Hiro has posed.

 
Ghaleon's reaction to his speech puts him on the back foot, and he wonders if there's something to what Ivan says about Ghaleon.
 
He still hasn't responded by the time he vanishes.
 
He's taking action just by being there. Being here.
 
Isn't he?
 
After a moment, he composes himself, and smiles at Yuna. "It's the least we could do. Feels like our side of the world has brought Spira nothing but problems."
 
Before glancing Marivel's way, "If what he said is any indication... may be our last for a while, so I'm glad this one goes to Spira."
 
He may not be Spira, but Spira could use so many more easy victories in his opinion.