Session 38: The Pale

NPC's
Amalesca, Oliver Sr., Dorothy, Jessabelle, Marble Ruler

Location
Secret Villa, Lighthouse 1

Summary
The hill monster starts plodding away in the direction of Lighthouse 1, the largest city on the continent. Nonamé runs up to its leg to observe it; it feels like a rock, but it hums like a gong, and the cracks make a faint red light. Cryllos thinks about bringing Beloch to deal with the souls. However, Amalesca is heavily against it, as she wants to and can fight it herself. Nonamé, Alastor, and Annora follow it using their powers. Nonamé stabs its foot, creating a red flash before it crumbles.

Cryllos looks to the Tigales, who are fighting over domestic issues. He asks for a form of transportation, to which Oliver Sr. brings out an alchemic carriage. He can't drive it because he previously used the aid of a chauffeur. Cryllos eventually teaches himself how to drive it and finds an enchanted shell on the dashboard. Shade finds a minifridge, where he finds fancy bottles of wine and champagne, and behind all of that, cheap beer. Shade gleefully chugs a can. Shade, Cryllos, and Oliver go to Lighthouse 1 on the "Funmobile." Along the way, Shade passes Amalesca to Nonamé, per her request.

Annora tosses needles at another leg, which then falls apart. Nonamé looks through the ring, revealing veins of energy, which cluster on a few legs, the chest, and an eye socket, two of which are already destroyed. Nonamé climbs on the monster's back, thoroughly shaking Amalesca. She shares her strategy with her, only to find that she has the natural ability to see auras.

Alastor flies toward the eye. He stabs into the wall, creating some hisses. Stone slowly seals the tunnel's opening, leaving him with the only choice of walking through a curtain of flowers.

Annora attacks the other eye socket while entering it and immediately decides to form a contract with the cursed sword. She stabs her hand, returning her to the blank void, where she finds Aster. She accepts the deal but on the condition that the sword eats her soul. He considers this weird, as he should. She returns with a scar in the shape of a flower on a vine in her hand. Feeling the power, she stabs the wall.

Back in the Funmobile, the trio sees Lighthouse 1, and they land in front of the obelisk. There is a long line, which Shade immediately wants to commit some crime to get in front of. Cryllos yells about the monster to the guards, people in suits with masks of marble. One holds out their hand, asking him to follow, which they all do. They climb the tower, also full of waiting people. At the top is a pile of white pillows, which, at the center, is a person in a flowing, white robe, a fox mask, and bushy, white tails. He tells them about the monster, which they are aware of. He is about to leave when they ask, "are you the god candidate?" He pleads the 5th, but they snap their fingers, commanding the guards to block the doors. "Weren't you dead?" They knew about him because Lighthouse 1 is aligned with the Court of Dreams. Shade insults them, who then asks the guards to grab him. Shade leaps off the platform and pops into his pocket dimension. It misfires, causing him to fall endlessly in the shadow dimension. Oliver plays a song to make the Vani sad and annoyed, and out of frustration, they lunge at him. He dodges, and they fall down the tower.

At the monster, Nonamé continues to fight, and Alastor opens the curtain of flowers. Beyond, the air is warm and has a sweet scent. Inside, the veins of red light converge, where Jessabelle resides in walls. She is unconscious, but when he pokes the stone with his sword, her head jerks up, revealing red eyes. "Oh, it's you," she says, opening too many mouths. "I am not in control. This is the bowels of hell and you have come to join me. They have swallowed me. They are anger. They are me, the children, and the flowers. Immortality is the flowers. It is all the mountain. The flowers are long dead, but the stone is alive." She cackles as stone shoots out of the wall towards Alastor, and flowers turn into stone. He slices at her, but she laughs, "I will never die!" before the world goes fuzzy. He immediately wakes up, his sword is stuck in stone, vines creeping up his leg, and the room crumbling. He swiftly escapes.

Amalesca suddenly jumps away from Nonamé. Nonamé tries to grab her when she turns back and lands on a golden horse. Nonamé is interested in Amalesca's summoned animals and touches it. She finds that Amalesca and her summons are physically connected. Weird. They continue fighting.

Cryllos runs down after the marble ruler but can't seem to be able to heal them. The other guests panic about what the court will do.

Misc.

 * Annora transformed into a horse at some point.
 * Oliver saw a gift shop from the top of Lighthouse 1 while looking for a place to buy a child leash.
 * The child leash is for Shade, due to his belligerence.
 * Oliver played Cotton Eye Joe in a minor key.