---

Rey'deyono lands a little harder than she had expected, grunting just a little and driven to a knee, but unhurt. It wasn't that long a drop, but physical obstacles aren't something that she's accustomed to. Her eyes widen just a little. Starting from her feet and bursting outward, whatever had made this place appear as solid white vanishes. It's a strange, strange landscape...simply surreal. Paths that float where they should not, forests of alien trees rooted in the sky. Soft grass that rustles ununiformly and shifts color occasionally. It's really...too strange to be beautiful.

Meir'cillus hits right afterwards, landing drunken-cat-like not too far from the priestess. 

A quick look around draws a typical Meir'cillus observation.

"This might just be hell. They ought to slap their decorator."

Rey'deyono has to laugh, largely from nervous tension being broken, with that very soft little chuckle that seems so appropriate to her. She stands up, brushing...nothing, but dust in theory...from Meir'cillus's cloak. "It is...strange. To be sure." She looks over the landscape slowly.

"Nothing seems threatening at all. It's like... killing someone with kindness." Meir'cillus seems particularly intrigued by the floating paths, but of course, doesn't want to try them for fear of the whole 'plummeting' thing. "Are you all right, Rey'deyono? Feel up to exploring?"

"Certainly." She smiles a little, albeit with a shadow of worry. "I can't imagine that either of us can know what is here otherwise."

The drow lord nods. "Don't be afraid. I... didn't come this far only to have harm come to you again." He gives her his best smile, which in his case is a short one with closed lips.

Rey'deyono starts to smile but ends up looking towards the paths to at least mostly hide a light blush. "I'm undecided as to whether to brave those floating paths or explore the area beneath that forest."

"I doubt that plunging a few dozen feet to the ground will be good for your health, priestess." Meir'cillus yawns slightly, stretching his arms out as he does. "I like trees anyway."

The forest it is, then. "Rey'deyono glances up at the trees, closes her eyes a moment in prayer, and then starts off in that direction, trusting that Meir'cillus will follow.

Much like a starstruck puppy, in fact. It's so very hard for him to be worried or feel threatened right now. In such a place, so surreal, so impossible, he feels very little outside of Rey'deyono's presence. Although, he's perfectly aware that such is less than safe.

Before long at all, only a few minutes, a wonderful smell and a faint, almost though not quite musical thrumming waft through the air. They're simply, utterly bewitching, completely engrossing.

Meir'cillus is completely distracted now, and finds himself uncontrollably humming along with the thrumming. "Rey'deyono, do you hear that?" Meir's ear is practically twitching. "I cannot decide if I love it or despise it, that sound."

"Hm?" She listens a moment, then looks over to Meir'cillus. "No, I'm afraid not. What is it?"

The music, meanwhile, gains just a little more strength.

"It's a strange thing... it's like a whole horde of crickets chirping to a tune." His eyes glaze just slightly. "I'm inspired to dance."

"You loathe dancing," she reminds him, becoming slightly concerned.

As they crest a hill, the music suddenly becomes clearer though doggedly holding to its subliminal levels, as a small pond of glimmering, rainbow-coloured water glitters into view. Rey'deyono has to catch her breath at it...it's lovely. And, though this is only clear to the drow, it's undeniably the source of the song.

Meir'cillus doesn't even answer. He steps towards the pool, gazing rather stupidly into its surface. Just... stands and stares.

"Lord Yerosyn...?" The priestess's eyes narrow just a little. "Meir'cillus...step back from that."

The pool, though, at the same time, just beckons him forward. To touch its surface, to test the shifting water, even wade it. The music intensifies, taking a welcoming, longing quality.

Rey'deyono's deeply worried by now, and it's beginning to show. She tries to step towards him, but a clipped cry announces the grass beneath her feet hardens into tiny spikes, jabbing into her feet here and there and also holding them in place by the soles of her shoes. "Meir'cillus!" the overwhelming sense of danger brings a stricken tone to her voice.

The drow lord doesn't even turn his head. "Rey'deyono, I can hear you. But I cannot... obey you. Don't come near." He reaches out, teeth grinding together as he struggles against the force of the music. His fingertips graze the surface of the pool.

The effect is immediate and dramatic. To say that the water burns is a vast understatement. The music doesn't stop--in fact, takes a near fever pitch--but its glimmering visual facade is stripped away for what it really is. Just a thousand, a hundred thousand worms of some sort. Leeches is closer...they eat away at Meir'cillus's hand with incredible, horrifying voraciousness. Glints of bone can be seen occasionally within the writhing mass that's their pit.

"Meir'cillus!" Rey'deyono grits her teeth and glances down. She jerks her feet from her pinned slippers and, despite small chunks of skin being lost to the process, sprints towards the drow lord and grabs for his other hand, not a thought glancing to the fact that she's no match at all for his strength.

Meir'cillus doesn't feel the pain of the monsters. But... when Rey'deyono's hand touches his own, his mind snaps almost painfully back into reality. A furious curse escapes his lips as the hand being devoured erupts with antimatter, the rage of the spell matched only by the humiliated hatred that shines in his eyes.

The worms aren't as affected by the magic as might have been expected back home...but they are singed quite badly and fall away, mute but writhing. The "pool" wavers, and begins lapping towards their feet, rising slowly somehow and drawing another insistent tug from a very worried, wide-eyed cleric. She feels the grass changing somehow, her bare feet allow it...it's going to try to trap them here, she knows it!

Meir'cillus answers the tug this time, and scrambles away from the water. He's grumbling as the little spikes stick in his boots, but not so much that he cannot get away from them.

"Rey'deyono, what... what happened?"

The priestess collects her shoes, though having to pull so hard that she nearly falls backwards when they come loose, and is quiet a moment. It would hurt his pride, she knows it would. "Nevermind. But if I randomly slap you sometime in our stay here, know that I probably have a reason." She smiles wanly and, once they're far enough above the pond for comfort, takes a moment to slide her slippers back on.

Meir'cillus tilts his head, but doesn't say anything further about the matter. He does take a moment to glance at his hand... it's mutilated pretty badly. 

"Wonderful... half an ear and a ruined hand. I'm fast becoming a walking piece of scar tissue."

Rey'deyono's eyes widen a little. "I...hadn't noticed your ear." She glances at it, and, sure enough.... She blinks. "But...I can tend your hand just as soon as we get to slightly higher ground."

Meir'cillus smiles, despite the fact that his hand hurts like all hell. "Then let's get to higher ground. What of your feet, though? You ran through that grass that pierced my boots. Can you walk?"

"I'm okay. It was sharp, but...the really severe spiking seemed to only occur where it wanted to." Her feet are cut up. Badly. But it's nothing crippling, and she's resolved not to be the worthless face in need of rescuing.

That it's still the same sort of grass gives the priestess, pause, but...she certainly wouldn't trust somewhere that that "grass" had died. "We can stop here, I think." She glances over her shoulder in the direction from which they'd come, but the pond is out of sight. She looks back to Meir'cillus. "May I use your sword?"

The drow lord blinks. "Certainly. It's sort of heavy, just to warn you." He draws the weapon and holds it out to her, with the blade pointing towards himself of course. "Anything for you, my lady."

Rey'deyono smiles, and kneels to cut a strip of cloth from the bottom hem of her robe, then a second. She handles the sword clumsily--he's right, it's heavy--but manages all right. "An interesting bit of trivia...all clergy robes of my order--of every rank--are made of the same basic material, a flexible one excellent for bandages in case the need arises." She mutters something quietly and passes the strips through one exposed hand, which has a pale rune glowing just beneath it. After they've passed her fingertips, the bandages are glimmeringly clean, and quite sterile. She holds out her pale palm. "May I have your hand?"

The drow lord is absolutely amazed, but he isn't sure why. In a way, he still sees her as a very delicate flower, venerable and intelligent, but... fragile. It's still hard for him to accept that she is so versatile and, yes, powerful.

Silently he holds his hand out her.

She smiles just a little, but it's fleeting. "Forgive me. This will probably hurt." She wipes the injury clean as gently as I can, never letting the spell she'd used to clean the bandages die until she's done. She's not sure what any residue from those worms might do, and doesn't intend to leave any behind. Before long, she bandages the wound tightly. Quite expertly, actually. Any cleric of the order has a good deal of training in healing. "There you are. That should help, at least." She kneels to pick up his sword, and holds it up for him.

His good hand wraps around the handle, claiming the weapon again. Once its sheathed, he reaches out for her hand. 

"What of your feet, my Priestess? I'll admit to being somewhat unskilled in the healing arts..."

"Mm...I suppose I should see to them, huh?" She glances down. They do hurt, but she'd been concerned for Meir'cillus and forgot. She accepts the hand to help her sit down. The bottoms of her feet are...a mess, but it looks worse than it is. There are a couple deep gouges, but mostly just small ones that hurt when she stands or walks...and isn't concentrating on immediate danger. Two more strips, sterilized a little more quickly, bind her feet before long, and she slips them back into her shoes, standing up carefully. "That will do." She glances back towards the pond involuntarily before looking back to Meir'cillus. He'd almost died. Already. "Where do you think that we go?"

The Drow lord gives a slow sigh, eyes closed, and doesn't answer for a moment. He'd almost gotten himself killed back there, after all... he may not have a great deal of time to do this.

"Nowhere, until I've done this..." his voice is quiet, largely uncharacteristic in its softness, as he steps forward and wraps his arms around her shoulders. Whether she pushes him away or not... he'll have said what he needed to say.

Rey stiffens. Stays that way for several seconds, actually, as a thousand thoughts and emotions and beliefs crash and strain against one another. She closes her eyes after a few moments and all that simply...drops all that. She starts to return the embrace, hesitates, then wraps her arms around him, leaning her head on his shoulder.

Meir'cillus is perfectly thrilled by that, so thrilled in fact that all he can do for a long moment is hold onto her, let her touch fuel a catharsis that has been brewing for far too long.

"I have so much to make up to you, Rey'deyono... so much to answer for. Even though you changed my life simply," he holds her a little more tightly, "simply by being in it, I abandoned you. I have regretted that more than anything I have ever done..."

She's quiet at first. She's content to simply...be here. To feel protected, after fighting so long, protecting so many. "You came back," she observes softly. He'd come back. He'd freed her from that horrid state of dreaming. He could have stayed away. But he didn't.

Meir'cillus's eyes clear slightly. He pulls back just slightly from her, not letting go of her shoulders just yet. "I was an idiot to ever leave you. You... who accepted my misgivings as a Drow king, when no one else would." He looks at her, still... far too uncertain to say much.

Rey'deyono's cheeks have colored lightly. She's not sure what to say...she's really not. That had been her job, in part, but in another part...not. She finally just closes her eyes and looks down, blush deepening. "Please...don't let go of me yet."

Meir'cillus darkens slightly with his own blush. 

"I'll... hold you until doomsday, if you wish it." He steps back up to her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders once again, gently nuzzling her.

The nuzzle, however well-intended, is a bit much. Before the priestess can do more than stiffen, though, the ground beneath them shudders and then bursts upwards, quite fast enough to fling them both into the air.

He noticed. He'd been about to pull himself back when whatever had happened, happened, and his apology only barely precedes a stream of curses in both Common and Drow, which are thankfully lost in the air. The Drow lord lands unceremoniously some distance away, more pissed than pained, and sits up to see just what the hell had happened.

Rey'deyono lands badly, and sucks in most of a cry at a sharp pain in her wrist. Her head jerks to where they'd been standing, teeth gritted and tears in her eyes.

"New arrivals," the earthen creature protruding from the soil observes in a startlingly soft voice. It folds arms that only materialize form the column of soil in time to accomodate the gesture. "Now I wonder...which to play with first?"

"Hey!" Meir'cillus gets to his feet, his anger more than evident in the snarling glare upon his face. "I was trying to have a tender moment. So you go play with yourself."

"'Tender?' New indeed. How sweet. How naive." The dust that had been the creature simply crumbles to the ground, disintigrating as earth should. At the same moment, the ground beneath Rey'deyono bursts upward just as she's made it to her feet. This time it doesn't simply throw her, but wraps around, burying her in mid air and leaving the one free arm to tear at the instantly-healing prison in a desperate fight for air. "The holy mage it is then. You can play with the infernomancer. I'd look behind you."

Even as the earth creature finishes speaking, the business end of a kusari-gama flies toward's Meir'cillus's back. 

Something like instinct forces Meir'cillus to kick off with his right foot and tumble to the side, missing the pointy by far enough that he need not have a flashback of his life. His good hand finds the hilt of his sword, but until he finds what he's supposed to be fighting, he can't very well do much. 

"Come out, so I can kill you and get on with my day."

The truly damned sorcerer makes no show of hiding. Elven...has a wicked, toothy grin across his face from his crouched position, and it provides wicked accent to the light of truly evil insanity in his eyes. The blade archs back to him, and is caught easily. Insane, maybe, but those will hellish power are never to be taken lightly.

"I don't have time for this," the drow growls as he holds out his hand, leaving the sword. "Just die." Antimatters swirls outwards in a trail of smallish orbs, bursting all at once in the direction of the elf.

"Oh, I have. It's not so bad with the right deals." A shrill laugh offsets the wicked speed and unnatural strength with which this creature moves. A well-placed leap atop something conjoured that disintigrates immediately lets him land on the root of a low-floating tree, peering at Meir'cillus. "I don't want to kill you yet. But what shall we do with you?"

"We?" The drow lord aims again, building a greater quantity of energy within his hand, but not releasing it. "What, have you got another person hiding in your ass? Or are you expecting?"

The elf's smile flips to a snarl very quickly. "I dont' like you. You should die." That said, a wide chasm snakes through the ground towards Meir'cillus, reeking of terror and brimstone. The infernomancer, maniacal laughter accenting his again-smiling face, leaps towards the drow lord, scythe in hand.

The drow lord grins. Not exactly what he'd been hoping for but... either way, he sprints to the edge of the chasm and leaps, his antimatter spilling out to enfold his body in a field as he approaches the incoming elven bastard.

The elf's eyes snap open, then narrow to a grin again. He makes no move to avoid the antimatter at all, and suffers its full effect...though parts of him certainly slam into Meir'cillus quite hard, providing a nice shove in the direction of the suddenly closing rift.

Down and down, tumbling end over end, that's where Meir'cillus goes. He's a talented fellow, but gravity remains beyond his ability to mess with, and so he finds himself plummeting into that rift.

There's stone below. Not too far below, but a fair fall. regardless. It's very hot, enough to be dangerous before long...the stench of sulphur is everywhere, nearly overpowering. The ground is hot.

The drow lord drags himself to his feet, breathing slowly. He looks around for some way to climb back up or out, but doesn't see anything in the immediate vicinity. 

"Hello?" he calls out, "is anyone else down here?"

It's quiet for a bit. Or...somewhat. There is a sort of deep, growling groan from within the earth. And then, where the skin of rock is thin, a hand quite suddenly appears, dragging a grinning, wild-eyed elf behind it, rivulets of thin lava hardening and then shattering as he moves. "It's not as good as hellfire. Nothing's as good as hellfire. But oh, it does feel so good." His head is hanging loosely to the side. "His grin broadens, staring at Meir'cillus. "I think I'd like you to try it."

Meir'cillus shrugs, a thought coming to mind. "Okay."

The elf blinks, grins fading just a little. The little hamster wheels in his mind are running overtime. "Okay?"

Meir smiles and nods excitedly. "Yeah! Let's do this, it looks like fun. You seem to like it."

"Oh, I do. It's lovely. It will incinerate you. Shall we go?" The elf laughs, and springs for Meir'cillus.

"I always knew there would be a lot of elves in hell." Meir'cillus's sword leaves its sheath, his knees bending slightly as his weight shifts to the rear in defense. When he thrusts the sword it is a pure phalanx move... all or nothing.

"Grk..." a simple little noise, and wide-eyes. The elf's grin vanishes, then returns despite quickly-fading eyes. "I'll come back for you, don't worry. I always do." And then he falls.

Meir tilts his head as he frees his sword. He gives the elf a kick. "It can't be the same idiot. What kind of moron would leap to his death..." the kind with nothing to lose, dunderhead. 

With nothing left to do but try and find a way out, Meir'cillus begins traversing the various stones and such go along with underground caverns. The stench and heat are nearly overpowering, but for the moment, he's fine.

Near the end of a grueling climb to the top, a pale hand reaches down to him. "An overdue hand up, Lord Yerosyn?"

Meir'cillus looks up through red, stinging eyes that have been nicely blurred by the smoke and heat. It's hard to see, and he's far too tired to question anything.  He reaches up and takes the hand.

Rey'deyono is far from strong enough to completely pull him up, but she does help as much as she can. Meir'cillus doesn't weigh as much as he might, after all. She steadies the warlord once he's up. "Are you all right?"

Meir'cillus gives a slow nod. "A few shades darker, I think," he says, blinking so that his eyes can finally tear up some. "But what about you? How in the world did you get away from that... thing?"

The priestess glances across the clearing to the elemental...now mostly glass, and completely immobile. "He...exceeded my order's requirements for cessation of passivism." She looks back to Meir'cillus. "But he won't remain like that forever. Nor will your infernomancer stay down long. Do you think that returning to Vayen's piece of a hallway would be wise?"

"Considering our running record of successes here, I can't see how it would do any harm." Meir glances back that way, hiding how inwardly thrilled he is that she's okay. It's kind of silly really, when she's probably much more powerful than he is. "Do you think we can get back?"

"I hope so." She bites her lip. "First, though..are you unhurt?" Her eyes are concerned.

"I'm just a little choked up from the heat," the drow lord answers, beaming that she cares at all. "Let's get back, and see if we can get out of here in a hurry."

Rey'deyono nods, smiling, however wanly, at his expression. The sheer weight of this situation is beginning to wear on her. One of her arms is tied in a very simple sling--it's just a sprain, but there's no need to tempt fate when she may very well need it in the near future.

There doesn't seem to be any sort of labyrinth effect, something the cleric doesn't fail to breath a quiet prayer of thanks for. The solid stone walls stand before them, and she looks up at the hole perhaps seven feet above them. "Any suggestions on getting back in, Lord Yerosyn?"

"We're both gimped. With your arm in that sling and my hand all but a stump, there won't be any climbing in our futures." The drow lord looks up, growls lightly. "Maybe you could stand on my shoulder?"

Rey'deyono's quiet a moment, thinking it over, and then nods. "That may work."

Meir has nothing but to kneel. "Your chariot, my Priestess," he grins. Few people know better than he, just how much easier a little lightheartedness can make a horrendous situation.

A light chuckle, from well-placed breaking of nervous tension, precedes her gingerly stepping on Meir'cillus's shoulders as gently as possible...for a woman who just about equals his weight. She chooses to give him the benefit of the doubt and not say anything about not looking up her dress. "I think I have my balance." Mostly because she's leaning against the wall. "Are you all right?"

"Peachy." Meir isn't used to this but then... women are different from kingdoms, in that the weight of kingdoms usually gets tossed off on a lower officer. "You didn't say anything about not looking up. If you did, then I probably would have, so... I suppose it could be better."

He's a male, of course that's what he was thinking.

She laughs lightly. "I trust you. Try lifting me, we'll see whether this works. But please don't strain yourself too much. There are probably other ways."

Meir lifts as high as he can manage... considering their respective heights, Rey ought to be able to scramble up, but to do so would certainly require some pulling on her part. 

"Can you get in, my Priestess?"

It certainly isn't easy for someone unaccustomed to this sort of thing...but she does manage to shift most of her weight into the hole and scramble in after a few more moments. "That's a yes." She catches her breath a second or two, then pulls off Meir'cillus's cloak. "I have a good hold on this...do you think that you'll be able to climb up? I can devise some spell if you can't or shouldn't, I'm sure." She looks down at him, concerned.

"Thank you, but..." I'm not about to be outdone today! "Here, I come, my dear," Meir'cillus steps back a few paces, sprints, and springs, clambering up the cloak with only minimal swearing. He flops over at her side, winded.

"Yes. This is why I don't care to do things myself."

Rey'deyono smiles, and, after fitting the cloak back around her shoulders, kneels to take his arm. "Come on. We're still not safe. Let's test that theory about unopened rooms being secure or not...and whether it's true or not, we can both take some rest."

He nods. He's far too weary to put up any protest, anyway, and rises to follow her instruction. "Alright. Let's go before something new shows up to eat us." He glances into the hallway, looking for any particular threat.

Though there's been some scratching on the walls and the threat a glass worm shattered all over the floor presents, the purple fungus from earlier--now coating nearly every bit of stone--is the only thing out of the ordinary. Rey'deyono eyes it warily and sidesteps the stuff carefully, using up much of her remaining power trying to keep any spores from she and Meir'cillus, though none of this is visible. One of the unlocked doors gives easy entrance and...empty. Just, utterly, empty.

Rey'deyono closes the door behind them and leans against it, breathing a sigh of relief and closing her eyes at the simple luxury of utter barreness. "Thank the Two. I do hope that this stays untouched for now..." she sinks down against a wall, eyes sliding shut. "I'm not sure that I can recall a longer day." Her voice shakes just a little.

The drow almost echoes the sentiment. But he can recall a longer day, even though to state it openly would probably strike her as sap or a line of some sort. 

"At least now we can rest for a while." Meir sits across from her, happy to have a chance to sit down without being hounded. "Are you all right?"

"I think so. It's just a sprain."

Meir tilts his head. "That isn't quite what I meant, my Priestess." He makes a fist, settling it over his heart. "I meant, are you all right, here."

Rey'deyono looks up long enough to see what he means, then aside. "I'm...not sure, Lord Yerosyn." She sighs. "The struggle at the temple...straining so hard, for so very long, capped finally by the recoil of a brutally shattered spell...it seems literally yesterday to me, though at the same time I'm aware somehow of a seeming infinity spent in dreams of a horrendous sort. I didn't know that the temple fell. I did not know that all of those people died. I can summon only the barest memory of the stones falling...my mind was stunned too badly by my spell's being crushed to have even noticed then. So to know that the temple, that my home, that all of those people...it is a lot to consider. Staying with Vayen, meanwhile, waiting for your return...it was frighteningly like the time I spent beneath the house in Xenidia, though harsher in a good many ways. And now, to be here, this...infamous place, where you've already been in such danger, so many times...." She squeezes her eyes shut against tears, looking down. "Forgive me. I'm being a silly child, to launch into such a rant. By another token...I am very, very glad to see you. I thought of you often when you were gone..wondered as to your welfare. And...thank you." She bites her lip."I haven't said it...thank you. For rescuing me from that..." her voice trails off.

The drow lord blinks. There are two thoughts that assail his mind in perfect tandem about this moment.

Certainly opened up the floodgate there.

I don't think I've ever heard her say so much about how she feels, in the entire time I've known her.

Both of these thoughts lead to the same conclusion for Meir'cillus, though. 

"Rey'deyono, I abandoned you. Not intentionally, but even you know that I am a selfish person not prone wild flights of romantic fancy. At least..." he looks away, "... I wasn't prone to them. I've seen your face more often than my own, in my mind's eye, but every time I saw it... it was with that look it had upon it as I rode away from that interloper's ship. I have..." he looks up, his face sincere if not as emotional as it could be, "... a great deal to do before I can even consider myself on equal terms with you again. I owe you a debt that, were you anyone else, I wouldn't even think of repaying. But you are you." He smiles. "Thank you for not hating me."

"I could not. There is...much to be rebuilt, Meir'cillus." She looks up after moment, her eyes too sincere for her mouth to lie with a smile. "Perhaps we can rebuild ourselves at the same time." The priestess looks down and, after a moment, simply pulls the cloak tighter against the stones' distinct chill. She tries to settle where she, exhausted.

Meir blinks. Tilts his head. Blinks again.

"Rey'deyono, are you cold?" He knows what he's getting at, and as smart as the priestess is, she probably does too.

It's hardly obvious that she'd heard for a moment, but...she's certainly aware of the significance of any potential answer. "Somewhat, yes."

"Would you... like to sit by me?" It seems a strange thing to Meir'cillus that, though he harbors only the slightest physical interest in Rey'deyono, even he feels like he's being too open.

Her face doesn't need it. The suggestion alone brings a warm blush to her cheeks. Certainly a phenomenon she's displayed more today than in the past quarter century combined. "I...don't know," she admits. It's undeniably practical. She's not even adverse to the idea personally but...there is the little fact that she has serious problems with the concept of acting on personal feeling.

Meir'cillus stands, steps closer to her. "I know." He sinks down to sit beside her, stilling the hammering of his own heart... after all, she is the one whose gone through a horrendous ordeal recently. It wouldn't do for him to seem... fearful. He holds his arm up, looking at her. "Come on. You're cold, and... I would enjoy the company."

The tiniest hint of a smile, very much hers, touches her lips after a moment. "...thank you." It's not without hesitation but, after a false start, she leans against Meir'cillus, leaning her head against his shoulder. And immediately feels warmer. The returned smile, however slight, takes far longer than normal to pass by. She closes her eyes again.

Meir'cillus drapes his arm carefully across her shoulder. He closes his eyes as well, a thousand thoughts running through his mind, but none making as much noise as the one that says:

"See. It was all worth it. Now go to sleep.

---

The next morning--what's presumably morning in this dark room--dawns very cold, and is slow to warm itself. The stone does provide some insulation, but the two Ionnyans are quite fortunate to have one another for warmth.

The exhausted cleric is quite slow to awaken, and hasn't yet graced the waking world with her presence, still huddled against Meir'cillus.

Meir'cillus takes his time awakening as well... he's had a very long day. When he does wake up, though, he finds himself in no rush to move. Only admire, and let her presence comfort him.

When Rey'deyono awakens, the first thing she does is cough. She glances up to Meir'cillus and sees him awake, then closes her eyes again. "Er...excuse me. I hope I didn't awaken you," she notes with soft sleepiness.

"Not at all. I've just been..." how to put this... "reflecting on how good even the worst the places can seem." He smiles at her.

She smiles a little and looks down, blushing, but quickly reverts to coughing, careful to turn her face away from Meir'cillus. "Ugh...I dont' suppose that you have a water flask on you?" She pulls his cloak closer about her shoulders, shivering lightly.

Meir'cillus blinks. Hadn't Derenith given him some things? 

"Most of them are with my horse." The drow pulls his travelling bag from around his waist, glancing inside of it. "Looks like... a few days worth of supplies." He'd conveniently left out the words 'meager' and 'for one person'. "Here's a flask. Are you all right?"

She gives him a grateful smile and, not failing to note how precious resources probably are, just takes enough to wet her throat, which helps a little. Coughs once, but feels a little better. "I'll be fine. I'm sure it's just the cold. How do you feel this morning? How's your hand?" She sits up with a bit of effort and a lot of stiffness, since the romantic and practical perks of sleeping against someone don't quite impart the whole picture.

"Of little importance until I know that you are all right." Meir'cillus sits up and stretched, his hand sore as all hell, but obviously better than it was. "What of your arm?"

"It feels a bit better." It's swollen. It hurts. But she's quite aware that Meir'cillus's injury is more serious and more dangerous. She starts to stand and finds it harder than expected, until she finally closes her eyes a few moments and sits back. "Well. it may be too early for this. But I don't suppose you have any dream-inspired notions of what to do about all of this?" There's a wry smile in her eyes.

"My dreams were..." Meir'cilus grins at her, "... otherwise occupied. Although.. I keep thinking that the purple ooze is somehow connected to all this."

"Hm...I suppose it's possible." She's silent a few minutes, thinking. "Some small piece of this world may very well have been used as a primary spell constituent in transporting something here. It's difficult to banish creatures here, so an entire set of rooms is...quite impressive. But you're right. If that fungus is native, it may very well have made it easier...or made it possible."

"My usual solution when something gives me a problem is to kill it. Rey'deyono, I can't imagine how my knowledge would be of any use here."

"It may be very useful, pending my sister's cooperation as well."

Rey'deyono's far more startled at the voice than Meir'cillus has probably ever seen her, head jerking to the suddenly-appeared, wavering image of a person in the middle of the room. "Chian! But...how did you...?"

The form shakes his head, raising a palm a little for silence. "Only on the astral plane, and I don't dare tarry for more than a few minutes. Though I'm very relieved to see you intact, Deyono'rey." He smiles a little. His appearance mirrors hers very closely, including the eyes, except that his are a deep orange.

Meir'cillus is hardly prepared for that. The voice and the reaction together... quite enough to get his sword out of its sheath. "Who the hell are you?"

The astral figure folds his arms. For all they look alike, he's of a very different temperment than the priestess in certain respects, that much is obvious. "You can't hurt me with that. My physical body isn't even here. My name is Tiono'chian. I'm Deyono'rey's brother and I'd very much like to set up your getting back to the proper dimension's before we bicker so long that I run out of time."

"If you're who you say you are, then you should understand my desire to protect her from strange people." Meir'cillus sheaths his sword, glancing to Rey'deyono for confirmation of all this.

She nods a little, then looks back to the astral projection. "What do we need to do, Tiono'chian?"

"Aunt and uncle are prepared to transport you back to this world if you'll make the connection with them and work the spells from your side too. The timing will have to be precise. I'll come to warn you. Then assume thirty seconds after I leave. But the structure you're in is still too strongly connected to this dimension to be easily moved. It has to be purged of everything that connects it."

Rey'deyono pauses. "Meir'cillus's antimatter."

The other foreign-faced human nods. "On a large scale."

The cleric's quiet, then looks to Meir'cillus. She doesn't know whether it's possible or not.

"Rey'deyono would be in danger if I were to try something like that. My magic doesn't make exceptions." The drow's eyes soften, almost to the point of looking more elven than drow. "How am I supposed to protect her from it?"

"Control it. Direct better than you've ever done before, make an exception. It's the only chance, and you'll both die before long if you stay here." If nothing else, it will be a more humane than remaining here. Actually dying in Cocytus isn't as quick as it would seem.

Meir'cillus looks at her. A long, ponderous look. If he doesn't, she might die here. If he does, she might die here. 

"I'll do it. Just tell me what to do." If ever there has been real fear upon Meir'cillus's face, now is that time.

Rey'deyono makes no effort to say anything. Some things just...can't be said. She just stands up, albeit with effort, and walks to Meir'cillus's side, putting a hand on his shoulder.

The other Ono smiles a little, though very serious beneath it. "It's simple. Not easy, but simple. Everything from this world must be wiped from this structure. Everything that needs to be cleared is at least somewhat susceptible to your magic, I've been careful to check. Speed will help. That way nothing else will have a chance to take root. Expanding a field over the entire area would do it most effectively. Don't think of me in the least, I won't be harmed. As soon as that's done, I'll have things readied so that my sister can make the proper connections with two others who can help, and if all goes well, you'll be transported back to the proper world."

"But where on it?" Rey'deyono inquires.

"Lian-shi. But at least then you'll be able to travel where you need."

She nods.

"Fine. Rey'deyono, get into my pack and get some food and drink for yourself. I have an idea that we'll need our strength for this..." Meir's eyes close. "Take as much as you need."

The priestess nods, and looks to her ethereal brother. "Try returning in twenty minutes." By then, everything will be ready...or not.

The phasm nods. His eyes soften. "Take care, sister, be careful...one person is no longer a twin." She smiles a little and nods, and he's gone.

The priestess takes a slow breath, feeling relieved in a very strong sense but unable to ignore the fact that she may well have just said her final goodbye to him, and, after a moment, walks over to Meir'cillus's pack as directed, portioning out enough for both of them. She leaves some--if this fails, Meir'cillus will still need to eat--but does take enough for two small but sane meals. It's all or nothing right now.

The drow lord eats silently, his mind working far more intensely upon the problem than upon the food. In all of his time as a user of antimatter, he's never encountered a situation where he would need to spare someone. Although, he is quite confident that he can do this... after all, uncertainty is a dangerous thing to a damned person.

"Rey'deyono, don't be afraid." His eyes wep, though his face certainly doesn't. His next words are carefully chosen to keep from fightening or worrying her, but are really more for his own sake than hers. "I won't harm someone I love."

She looks up from her food quickly, then aside, heart in her throat and thrumming quickly. He'd said... she bites her lip, closes her eyes. "...I know." A pause. "I'm not frightened. You've never let me come to harm in your presence," she observes softly. Quite on the contrary...he tends to make a habit of delivering her from danger, hardly the other way around.

In a way, Meir'cillus wishes that he had something else to say, something better. But he doesn't. He just eats, quietly, mechanically, eyes dull. Maybe she isn't afraid, but he certainly is.

Rey'deyono looks up again. "It will be all right," she assures quietly.

"Yes, I know." He gets to his feet, stretching his arms and legs in turn, thikning, but not too hard. "I'll need a bit to prepare. Just... let me know."

She nods. "Let me know when you're ready, and I'll see if I can't get my twin carrying all the proper messages."

A while later, not long of course, Meir'cillus returns. While his expression hasn't changed a great deal, he does seem a bit more sure of himself, rather like a resolute inmate headed to the gallows. "I'm ready, Rey'deyono."


She nods. "Tiono'chian, are you around?" A pause. Then the priestess nods. "All right. What do you need me to do?" She tilts her head a little, looking at Meir'cillus, eyes unafraid. She really can't bring herself to believe that he might actually cause her physical harm, despite all logic.

Meir'cillus listens quietly. He can't do much more than acknowledge right now, as his concentration is rather occupied with containing what may well be the single most powerful antimatter spell he's ever cast.

Rey'deyono just closes her eyes, face calm, and waits quietly, staying still.

When Meir'cillus lets loose with his spell, the first thing that's apparent is a clean, ironesque scent that's quite nearly overpowering. In waves of violet the killing matter washes over everything, running through the door, through the hole, in a sphere that lacks the qualities to properly describe. 

All with the exception of an ogre-sized bubble surrounding one Rey'deyono.

It couldn't go more perfectly. The cleric opens her eyes again, smiling quietly, when the spell nears its conclusion. "I knew that you could do it." She feels her brother leave. Thirty seconds.

Meir'cillus just smiles at her. Then, quite unceremnoniously, thunks over onto the floor with a smile upon his face. "Oh, good," he mumbles, "then I can have a nap."

Rey'deyono would very much like to try to make him more comfortable...but there isn't time for that right now. She closes her eyes, readying her own her spells and prepared to back them with every bit of her power...and waits. And waits. And then things happen quickly.

A pinpoint of light that quickly becomes a thread, bound here by the High Priestess's power and anchored by another in their own world. It expands, bursts and snakes outward in thick ropes that pass through everything solid without disturbing it. Everything takes a gradually intensifying glow that's soon a pure, blinding white. And when it reaches that point, the structure vanishes for Lian-shi, leaving only a dent in the hostile earth as evidence of its passing.