Moonlight shimmers through the trees in this sparse forest, diffusing through the translucent, glacial crags surrounding the valley and coaxing them into glowing faintly blue, casting the entire scene into pale variants of the hue. Inexplicable silver cables wrap around trunks and drape between some of the trees, high above the ground, The brightest points of the forest when moonlight catches them.

Pockets of mist dot the area here and there, flowing along lazily, and a thick blanket of soft snow coats everything. Despite this, the place isn't frigid, though quite cool. The snow should have melted. A cabin lit from within waits quietly in a clearing.

Yin's Dream Archive I

---

Yin doesn't experience the same sort of uneasy vertigo she has in the past...the gate vanishes behind her--or had perhaps never really been open on this side--and she scans quietly with her eyes.

Spears of snow spiral earthward, but burst on contact with warm, green grass. No matter how mightily the clouds spew frost, the sounds and scents of springtime dominate the forest with a fresh, green energy. Air whistles sweetly between the trees as though it has been basted with aphrodisia, and everything simply trickles lust.

A shrine stands next to the old, snowy cabin. Inside, Lenociant and his lovers stand around a flawless effigy of Yin, casting their most seductive spells of physical passion, round after round after round. The young ones dance and sing, even Rhoul simply eating the experience up.

Lenocinant himself wears a troubled mask, but casts, and casts.

Yin approaches the shrine quietly. Although she doesn't have solid memories of her dreams outside of her guardian, she does somehow feel that this doesn't belong. Pauses outside the entrance. Closes her eyes a moment, and folds her arms. "Are you quite finished?"

"Never--"

"--ever--"

"--ever." 

The younger ones continue casting. Lenocinant's eyes fall on Yin's.

"Dude. You're a demon lord. I'm a vampire perched on the lowest rung of the Dragon military. At this point I'm very curious as to why you're even worried about me." Yin sets a hand on a hip to lose the stance's aggression.

"Does it matter?" Purple rays color Lenocinant's cheek as the effigy begins to burn with castings. Rhoul and Trilene move in a simple circlular pattern, but every step concentrates the spells. Lenocinant steps around them to stand before Yin, however.

"Until you are out of the way, Alouette will not be ours. We know this for a fact."

Yin glances towards the others. Damnit...at least she's damned strong in cardio. Looks back to the devil. "And why not? I've mostly spent the last couple of days getting chased around."

Lenocinant smiles at her then, a genuine, respectful smile.

"You mean to tell me that you would willingly leave Alouette in my hands. This," he folds his arms, "I cannot believe."

"Oh, no, quite right." Yin smile-smirks in return. She doesn't dislike Lenocinant. Just everything he's fighting for. "Alou is a mental fuck right now. If he'd decided in the state of mind he was in a year and a half ago that he wanted to go with you, I'd be worried, but it's his choice. He would be so easy to manipulate at the moment that I'd taze him if he considered it."

"So you see my dilemma," Lenocinant smiles back. He likes Yin, too. But for now, he has to keep her talking.

In the back, Rhoul and trilene finally begin to touch the effigy, brimming over with pink light. Caressing it, stroking it... it would be comical if it weren't for their purpose.

Yin glances that way. Damnit...looks back to the devil. "You were wrong before. Fear of death isn't the only thing that makes mortals like living. You need to leave now."

"Forgive my impertinence. I thought for certain I warned you of the consequences of breaking our agreement." Lenocinant steps back a bit, still standing casually. "We both know you and I will never agree on this."

"I've broken nothing." Her fangs bare the slightest bit. "I was never told to give Alouette to you. I was told to bring her back to Grimoire...with no timeframe. And considering that I probably need to do that to get her out of that damned throne, that's just a given, now isn't it? Aren't demons supposed to be the ones big on semantics?"

"Demons? Sure. Devils? When we feel like it." By now, the effigy should begin to affect Yin's state by degrees, as the demons continue to stimulate its surfaces.

She closes her eyes a few moments. Although her cheeks do carry a slight flush, she's doing a damned good job of keeping it together. "I'm going to ask you one more time to leave. The resident dragon would be thrilled to escort you out."

"Sphyxian does not have the fortitude to face me again," the devil spits blackly. "It cannot help you here. Please, Yin, reconsider."

Her expression darkens at this, leaning markedly towards concern. "Reconsider putting myself before my friend? Done. Leave."

"Trilene. Rhoul." Lenocinant glances over his shoulders, static eyes sparkling. "Continue your work, no matter what happens." In his outstretched hands there grows an enormous mace, crackling and popping as the metal grows like vines around muscle. The head of the weapon splits into the shape of a boar's head, golden in tusk and snout.

Lenocinant's aura flares around him, blackening sky and earth for about six feet in every direction.

"Remove me yourself."

Yin's intimidated. But she doesn't look it. A sizeable ice sword--finally, ice--crystallizes over forearm and falls back into a ready stance. This is her mind, damnit. And she's going to defend it.

But Lenocinant doesn't budge. He doesn't have to, not with Trilene and Rhoul casting and groping the effigy. He stands still as unrequited sin, waiting.

Fine then. She's all about speed in a fight. Springs, sword flashing up, and down towards the devil.

Lenocinant draws back to swing the mace in reaction, but at its crest the base of the weapon blinks open, spraying gobs of thick, black fluid her way-- rather like an oily spiderweb.

Damnit. It's a split second before her feet touch the ground so that she can change direction. She's nimble, but probably didn't manage enough speed.

The fluid springs to shape, exactly like an enormous web snapping its strands all around Yin's body. Minute organisms can be seen moving around within the just-translucent goo, insects that try to leave the fluid and burrow into Yin's skin, searching for nerve centers to attack-- pain and pleasure alike.

She starts to land impressivly well, safely out of Lenocinant's reach. This doesn't fully hold when a pain-causing worm manages to burrow its way into her skin high on her back, between the shoulder and her neck. Cringes, doesn't quite manage to withhold the cry, and it puts her on her knees, which of course fuse together through the web. "That is so gross," she manages to murmur after a moment, trying to shove off the webs through shuddering.

The stuff comes apart pretty easily under pressure without the organisms inside. Lenocinant waits, knowing that such is all he has to do. The casting is still going on, powerfully so; it's much more difficult to do this to someone without consent.

The vampiress is hurting, but mostly pissed as hell. She outsmarts people, and doesn't do well with being outmaneuvered, herself. Shudders at the worms and a completely off-putting combination of pleasure and intense pain even though she's got her arms free. Fangs bare, and an icy chill, actual ice in several cases, races through her skin, trying to freeze out each of the worms that way.

The worms freeze quite easily, as it turns out, an in that instant the bizarre poking and prodding ends within Yin's system.

Lenocinant hefts his mace, none too pleased. The old fashioned way it is. Two skipping steps send him barreling toward Yin, eyes set, mace lifted to smash horizontally against her shoulders.

Bright flashy colors result. Mostly red. Also, a tremendous amout of pain, as the vampire is hurtled like a tee-ball straight off of the webbing for a solid twelve feet. For once she doesn't manage to land in any sort of useful way, rolling over backwards before ending up facedown on the ground.

It takes her a few seconds to realize that she's there. Those same seconds represent the first time in a long time she's been straight-up frightened in a fight...he's not giving her a chance to get up. Damnit, but he means business.

Coughs, and blood stains the snow beneath. Damnit, damnit. She's sure her collarbone is broken. She's having trouble breathing. Can barely do so. A hand and an elbow finally, doggedly plant, and she tries to push herself up through the haze.

A trickle of blood pours from the effigy's mouth.

"OOh... now I'm turned on," Trilene giggles, smearing the liquid about.

Lenocinant chases Yin at a cautious clip, keeping his eyes open for ice shards or spears. He thinks she might be disabled, maybe. Still. 

When the devil charges, all light burns away within Yin's mind-- except for an orb around him, and one around Yin, connected by a tunnel of cool white glow. With a growl he heaves the mace into the tunnel, watching as it sprouts a dozen vine-like spider legs, belching and pouring oil until it can walk on its own. An infernal monstrosity, only six feet high but whipping end over end with smooth black legs connected to a fat, static-glowing eye, the construct streams towards Yin. 

"Make her airtight," Lenocinant calls to his monster.

"Well, shit. I still don't want to find out what you freaks mean by that," the dragoon murmurs airily, eyes barely there. Steps back...cringes. It's a small miracle of will that she's on her feet.

Her breathing clears over the course of a few seconds, though the bone is only partially mended. She blinks once, gaze clearing. Almost smiles at an impossibly faint golden glow reflected in the snow. Sucks in a breath, and her feet plant.

All right. Now her dragon side is pissed.

A large, razor-edged boomerang of ice crystallizes in her free hand and goes careening towards the thing's eyeball.

Black blood boils through a fifteen inch aperture left in the monster's cartilaginous skull, though the wound seals almost as quickly. The monster halts, whistling its pain in a half-rasping wheeze before the bulk of its body crashes to the ground. Its legs whip and lash, some swinging ineffectually for Yin, some reaching for her, but none genuinely threatening her.

Lenocinant himself covers his face with one hand, swiping blood from his own eyes. He's vulnerable now, if only for a second.

Yin springs, more quickly than she should naturally be able to, over the dying apparition, ice sword lengthening and thickening just before swinging at the demon lord.

Lenocinant uncovers his eyes just in time to see a blade of ice coming to claim him, wrapped in a flash of hellfire and angel dust. He doesn't even try to move. She has him.

Flee, he warns his lovers just as Yin's sword cleaves into him, striking cleanly into and out of his chest and neck. He chokes, but only once before his entire body flashes gray and shadows into dust, blowing this way and that.

Trilene and Rhoul can only stare.

Yin stands stunned for a moment, leery of a trick. That's it? It's over? No, he'd only been banished from the dream, but...still. So quick.

Gets herself together. Looks over to Rhoul and Trilene, and her fangs bare slightly, sword hefting back up from the snow. "I asked you to get the hell away from that."

The demons fail to react. Just stare, in absolute disbelief, before fading from Yin's dreamscape entirely.

The icy spears tame as springtime wilts into winter. The monster burns away, leaving only a few drops of oil as its evidence.

The effigy freezes solid.

Yin lets out her breath. Scans for threats, examines the effigy...finds nothing that looks dangerous to her. Thus, despite continued pain, she goes running off in search of Sphyxian. Starts to. She has to pause, leaning on a tree, breath ragged. Damnit.

After a few moments, the snow glows golden. Whatever barrier had held Sphyxian at bay drops away completely.

"Wake up, Yin," Revilier's voice echoes over the landscape. "Please, wake up..."

Revilier...