Faction Shatterpoint Tython: House Io

[Percival Io]

Already on his way out, Percival responded to the Battalion’s final words by throwing his hands in the air contemptuously. He didn’t know what she was talking about, and he was in no mood to try and understand.

Percival boarded the Holy Grail, his personal vessel. Once the course to Khemost was charted and the stars had stretched into white lines, he had time alone to think.

His mind was a machine, and he ultimately thought about things as a computer does. Logic always had the final say. With stiff-lipped stoicism, he put away his emotional need to save Rebecca, no matter the cost, and contemplated what was best for House Io.

By the time he touched down in Khemost, weapons stashed away under his robes, and walked into the town square where the Deluge was preaching, he had concluded three things:

One, that Rebecca Hahn was a valuable asset to House Io.

Two, that converting her into a Witch had actually made her more valuable, for it had increased her combat skill and fighting prowess tenfold compared to when she was a mere human.

And three—the most difficult to swallow—that he could not prioritize her individually over the good of House Io. Even if the Battalion’s plan worked, and Rebecca was able to manifest, and she looked Percival in the eyes and begged him to end her suffering, he couldn’t do it. She was worth too much to them alive.

The Deluge still bore Rebecca’s appearance, but little details had been changed. Instead of braids, her red hair hung loose and wild. The white catsuit all Witches wore highlighted the contours of her body, leaving no room for human imperfection. She simmered and steamed, stalking the square with panther-like grace.

A crowd had gathered around her, a mixture of cultists, curious onlookers, and gawkers. Percival made his way through the throng. Spotting the Battalion near the edge, he gave her a brief nod of acknowledgment.

“... So you see, the Dark Side is not the enemy, it is freedom!” the Deluge was saying. Turning around, she saw Percival and paused her sermon. “Percy! Oh, I was just looking for you! Have you seen Thel?”

Percival showed no outward emotion, but it took him a moment or two to speak. While the Amalgam may have seen to it that Rebecca’s love for her son was carefully preserved, whatever she had felt for Percival had not survived the absorption process. For a moment, he believed all hope was lost—there was no trace of her to be found in this facsimile, only an echo of maternal love.

“Thel is safe,” he finally replied. “If you follow me, I can take you to him.”

The Battalion​

 

[The Battalion]

The Deluge felt only elation as Percival Io gave his answer.

"I would so love that..." The Deluge said in a whisper, her crazy blue murder-eyes staring into his green ones. Thel was the second thing on her mind beyond venerating and calling others to The Unholy Spirit. "Because I can't seem to get in touch with his caretaker. It's almost like...like some enterprising soul called them."

She grinned, a cheshire cat grin that once would have been completely out of place on her. "Ironic, isn't it, Percy..." she trailed quietly, without blinking even once, blue eyes full of crazy narrowed into pinpoints, reflecting Percival's face.

"We're both preachers now. And I have been selected for a most glorious purpose! I am to serve as the direct contact for any member of the House who wishes to make a deal with the Unholy Spirit! My name is now The Deluge by the way." The Deluge whispered excitedly. "I at last understand the joy you experienced, spreading faith. Cultivating it..."

The Deluge then grasped Percival in a hug.

"I'm curious, my old friend..." she said the word friend with a silken edge into his ear, smelling him.

"Just how did you plan to keep me away from my son permanently? I've broken no laws, and Cultists have the same rights the rest of the Citizens do, Tiger. We can even hold office. And since I am Thel's only relative, you really didn't have a leg to stand on...any more than I did at Boz Pity." The Deluge noted, never raising her voice when speaking to Percival. She didn't even seem angry. Whether Percival had expected a manic cackler or cold sadist was something The Battalion could not guess at. "But it's okay. You did so much to help me get to this point. It can totally be water under the bridge! Just take me to him."

That crack in her voice as she requested to be taken to Thel was one of the only indications there was anything still human in her body. But what she said in the seconds previous gave away the extent of Phyre's cunning and cruelty.

"You remember going there with him?" The Battalion called out from the crowd.

"Why of course! How could I forget that tourniquet he tied! Or how he inspired me to stay in this wonderful faction after Danithel got called to his maker?" The Deluge replied playfully before turning to the crowd.

"Percival Io, folks!" The Deluge called out loudly to the crowd standing behind him and placing her hands on his shoulder. "Salt of The Earth! A being that every citizen ought to aspire to! A great killer. The source of much pride in his Mother!"

The Deluge then dropped into that playful, but deadly quiet voice she had been using seconds prior.

"It's a pity you can't feel the Force..." she said with seeming sincerity. "You'd be the perfect Cultist. But that doesn't mean we can't preach on the same square. We can even make a game of it, how many souls we save..."

She leaned even closer into his ear.

"Time to talk, Tiger... where's Thel?" she asked in a hiss...

 

[Akemi Io]

Communication "verbal" <<technopathy>>

Objective: try to justify the loss of life
Tag: Laertia Io Draco Miles Percival Io Esmeralda Io


Loadout:
Loralora interceptor swoop
Gei Borugu Electro Spear
Light Saber (peony colour blade)
Laser Lance

"Did the Avatar of War need to be destroyed?" Akemi asked Laertia Io bluntly. "The first iteration of this weapon was destroyed only a few years ago at csilla and yet here we are. I would also suggest that the Avatar's presence on the battlefield was a net loss to the Mawites. It contributed only a small proportion of the total damage done to the defenders and despite it not targeting Tython, the planet has still been rendered mostly uninhabitable. Adding to the cost is the likelihood that it's presence galvanised more defenders to rush to the planet's defence. This is not intended as a critique of the mawite tactics, but i feel they would have had more success if they had not brought their large vanity project." she could not just hand wave away the fact that it had to be destroyed, just because, and why by the forces of House Io? The planet was deep in hostile space protected by a number of factions that were so hostile to the House.

"Our purposes would have been better served allowing our foes to all weaken each other while we continue to work to establish our own powerbase.

I will of course serve as instructed, but someone deliberately designed us with the ability to question orders, didn't they?" she smiled, she loved her mother and dearly wished that this horrendous loss would at least teach her.

"As to the question of the future, I have recovered as many lost personality matrices as I am able to given current technology. We need to consolidate and to rebuild. Tython has convinced me that having territory is a folly and I would suggest we begin to withdraw from Khemost and return to our space borne origins. There is nothing on the planet that cannot be simulated effectively."

The words just came to her, she was upset and struggling to deal with the change to her usually very care free personality. She had the urge to strike something, someone? Maybe her mother? That was a very strange urge for the little fixer to have and she ensured she was recording every aspect of her neural pathways to analyse it later. The feeling passed in a short amount of time, 0.68 seconds, for an android, that is nearly an eternity.

 

[Percival Io]

Percival felt his gorge rising as the Deluge coiled around him. It took everything in him to keep from recoiling at her touch. He felt simultaneously repulsed by and drawn to her, and the combination made him very uncomfortable.

He knew that Rebecca was in there somewhere, a shredded and downtrodden ghost of who she had once been. That knowledge made it easier for him to raise his arms and return her embrace, holding her close in hopes that it might bring what was left of his beloved some small comfort.

“Not permanently,” he assured her. “I heard that you had been made into a Witch, and I couldn’t help but be concerned for Thel’s safety. I acted preemptively to protect him. You can’t blame me for being cautious, can you?”

Lifting a hand to her face, he stroked her cheek. It wasn’t all an act, his gestures of affection—and that made it all the more convincing.

“But if the Brain Demon was… kind enough to let you keep your love for Thel, that means he’ll be safe with you.”

The softness in his voice surprised even him. It wasn’t quite seductive, but it was persuasive. He hoped to smooth over the Deluge’s suspicions, get her to lower her guard and trust him. It would be difficult, seeing as Rebecca had been well-acquainted with his hatred of the Cult. So his only option was to prove that his love for her was overpowering his hate.

In a way, it was true—but Percival would never admit it, not even to himself.

She broke their embrace to show him off to the crowds, and his resolve wavered. Rebecca had never called him Percy, the shortening of his name favored by the Amalgam and others. The nickname Tiger was new as well. But these were smaller details compared to what she was doing, holding him up as an example of a great killer. Rebecca, whose family and friends had been brutally slain by the Bryn’adul, did not exalt killers. She exalted defenders, protectors, knights. Deep down she may have known he was a machine built for slaughter, but she had stoked his passion for justice to compensate, just as he had instilled in her a greater faith in House Io.

As she hissed in his ear, he took her hand in his. “Not far,” he answered, starting to guide her away from the crowds. “I’ll take you to him now. If you’re afraid I’ll betray you, the Battalion can go with us.”

Having a high-ranking member of her own Cult accompany them should do much to make the Deluge feel secure. She had no idea that they were working together, after all.

The Battalion​

 

[Arianna Belasko]

"It is not a casual act to kill a God, Draco..." Vivian said carefully. "Even one that so obviously deserves it. To kill a God may have far reaching consequences none can predict."

Vivian sighed and sat down.

"But you are not wrong. The Brain Demon is a scheming, maniacal schutta. If this goes any further, I fear inevitably the cost of the Brain Demon providing us aid will eventually become greater than what the House can pay."

"No chit..." said the voice of the insane Maple Harte in the back of her quarters.

"How the feth you get in here?" Vivian questioned.

"It's what I do..." Maple said before looking at Draco Miles

"I grow tired of the schemes of others, and wish my own plans where the Demon is concerned. I want to help you two kill it, regardless of any protest of others." Maple said. "I'm tired of waiting for the right time to kill it. We will make it the right time."

Vivian looked at Draco "I will give whatever support I can as Arianna. But we must be absolutely careful. If the answers on how to kill that monster exist, they surely don't exist on this plain of reality any longer..."

 

[The Deluge]

Wearing: Mother's Flesh (Brain Demon Catsuit)

Armed With: Parental Rights (Red Saberstaff)

Child Support (Sith Assassin Pistol)


Objective: Go with / Toy with Percival Io


"I suppose I can't..." she said quietly, Blue eyes still pinpoints as she stared into Percival's.

"I keep forgetting how freaked out the old me would have been..."

At his words of The Brain Demon's kindness, the cheshire cat grin spread across her face again.

"Oh, yes..." she purred at the Chaplain. "And they say a Dark God cannot be reasonable..."

She could recall his features, distantly view his old conversations with her...

...but her sense of who he was felt separated from her conscious thought.

That being said, she couldn't help but note his heart throb looks and smooth as hell responses.

"Oh, I'm not afraid of your betrayal, Percival..." she said quietly. "I'm afraid your definition of what constitutes betrayal will shift... let's face it...you are hardly excited at my great transformation..."

She drew closer to him, whispering.

"Even though I'm wearing a catsuit so thin it might as well be body paint..."

The Battalion followed, getting an idea of what had been done to her...and being uncomfortably reminded of herself...

"Deluge, I'm told your human self had a husband. Do you remember him? What about your parents?" she asked.

The Deluge paused as she followed Percival through the snowy streets.

"Not really..." The Deluge answered. "Little tidbits. The rest was scoured beyond Tiger here and Thel."

"Tiger?" The Battalion asked.

"Yes, he's my little Tiger, and he is just desperately trying to pretend he didn't hit the jackpot..." The Deluge snorted jokingly. (First appearance of MJ: 777 XP)

"Was Thel okay while I was being exalted?" The Deluge asked...

 

[Draco Miles]

AYO WHAT THE F— Draco stared at Maple Harte with the hilt of her saber in her hand, thinking already just talk of it was enough to garner her assassination before she said she’s friendly… that was a relief, though a good reminder that such conversations shouldn’t even be aloud, but telepathically.

She listened to Maple talk then turned to Arianna Belasko to address her on her ‘consequences’ to killing a god… whatever you say, Kratos. There would indeed be a power vacuum created with its death, and may result in the force balancing more towards the light, yet she did not care. Yes, it may be shooting herself in the foot, but she’d rather be rid of that diseased limb than hold onto it any longer.

If the answers on how to kill that monster exist, they surely don't exist on this plain of reality any longer...

She listened close to this, a slight look of confusion on her face as she responded

“What do you mean by that, master? Is it possible to reach the land of the dead while one is living?”

 

[Percival Io]

She had seen through him. He couldn’t deny that he was, in her words, less than thrilled. So he didn’t even try.

“There is a beauty beyond the senses, Deluge,” he said. “Beauty like the quiet of green valleys and still waters, beauty of the spirit that you cannot understand.”

Despite his words, the newly-minted Witch seemed quite assured of her victory over him, insisting that he was only pretending. Percival took this as a good thing. If he appeared to be weakening under her wiles, she might let her guard down.

He was dismayed to hear that she apparently didn't remember much of her past life. Her husband, her parents, her siblings, her friends, a whole world gone? That couldn't be true.

He wouldn't allow it to be true.

“Thel is fine. You’ll see him soon.”

He led the way to a secure building guarded by Neutralizers. After recognizing him, they let him pass, hand in hand with the Deluge and the Battalion following close behind.

Once they were inside, Percival summoned Chloe with a technopathic command. The blonde General Purpose Neutralizer appeared from around a corner, cradling Thel in her arms. She regarded the Deluge with a cautious glance, hesitating briefly before holding the toddler out to her.

Percival’s gaze darted toward the Battalion, as if to ask Now?

The Deluge​

 

[The Deluge]

The Deluge chuckled darkly at Percival Io 's high minded response.

"True, but none of those things wear micro-bikinis." she replied playfully as she followed.

"I second this..." The Battalion mused as she followed.

The Deluge took note of the highly secured building she had been led to.

"Why Percy! You shouldn't have!" she exclaimed in a low key manner, feeling her anticipation build.

She at last felt him, and every mind inside her along with whatever remained of Rebecca went crazy with the agony of the wait. Keeping her love for her son wasn't just a method of control, but torture.

She had to see him. She had to...

The Citizens and Nuetralizers gave her a wide berth as she headed in. Some recognized her and went slack jawed with horror. The Deluge ignored them, and even ignored Percy to an extent. Where was Thel? Where was he?

Finally, Chloe, who she barely recognized came out with her son and her evil heart swelled.

She gently scooped him up, and her crazy murder eyes glittered as she stared at the only physical remnant of her humanity.

"Oh, Thel...I thought I was going to die in The Avatar. But The Unholy Spirit brought me back to you...

She gently hugged the toddler, cradling him, that manic expression of joy never leaving her face. No one else existed as she stared into her son's eyes, and kissed his forehead.

The Battalion gave a discreet hand gesture to say Not Yet.

Doing it right now would be too cruel to The Deluge...

 

[Nancy Io]

For a few minutes, there was peace and quiet—aside from an excited Thel babbling enthusiastically to his mother. The Deluge was too preoccupied with Thel to focus on anything else, including the fragmented personality of Rebecca herself.

Torn to shreds, Rebecca’s spirit hung suspended among many minds, unable to do much more than observe. But she took what she could get, watching everything the Deluge ignored.

Percival stood by, witnessing their reunion. Rebecca knew who he was, but… he felt so distant. It was too difficult to reach out, too tiresome, and her strength was limited as it was.

Chloe stepped toward Percival, and the two Neutralizers bowed their heads toward one another in private technopathic conversation. Whatever they talked about, the connection was broken as Percival suddenly shook his head.

“He was good while you were gone,” Chloe said, speaking in the monotone of a soldier delivering a report. “I think he is close to saying his first word.”

Percival, normally stoic, looked like he was barely keeping it together. There was murder in his eyes, and sorrow in the curve of his mouth. He is Thel’s godfather, Rebecca recalled, slowly making sense out of it all. Appointed to protect and guide him…

She would forget it again soon, but for now the thought brought her a strange comfort that she didn’t fully understand.

When? Percival longed to demand of the Battalion. When can we perform the ritual? When will this madness end?

The Deluge​

 

[Arianna Belasko]

"It is. But the route is never easy, and the doorways themselves may be dangerous..." Vivian answered.

"Laertia went to the Netherworld with her daughter once. If she can get in and out, so can we. My muscles are cotton candy..." Maple said to Draco Miles .

"I may know of one route...but we need to go to Atrisia in strictest secrecy...the Cult once had a treasure there, during the Gulag Era, a pit of Black Flames that nearly destroyed the planet, but I believe could be used to open a door to the nether."

Maple's widened. "I know of this pit. The Vampire Nine Lives came from a family that built their ancestral home over it..."

Vivian narrowed her eyes at Maple.

"Why do I get the terrible feeling it is no coincidence you know of this horror?"

Maple shrugged. "I have a long history. And like I said, I been waiting for the sane people to do something long enough..."

She turned to Draco Miles .

"You're about to embark on a journey that may well end in your death, even if you're successful. Are you ready for that?"

 

[The Deluge]

(Character Theme Song Power Up)

(Theme: "You Only Live Twice" by Nancy Sinatra )

The Deluge held Thel close to her. The Cult had her souls but Thel had the hearts of those souls. Those vile, wicked souls, doing all they could to restrain themselves.

The Deluge had enough of Rebecca's memories on how best to hold him, the starry eyed expression still on her face. She only distantly mumbled at Chloe's report. Chloe had been one of her other friends, due to the fact she had played caretaker.

Not a single shred of feeling left for her. The Deluge merely shrugged.

"Of course he was a good boy..." The Deluge whispered. "And I can sense he is on the verge too..."

The Deluge leaned against a wall, holding him.

"The Church of The Force could never have gotten me off the Avatar. If The Brain Demon had not taken pity on me, you would be an orphan, little Thel..."

"Deluge..." The Battalion called out softly. "I have need of your talent, and so does Percival."

The Deluge handed him back over to Chloe. "Remember, he likes the Number 007 Baby Formula the most. And there is no hiding him from us now, not after we've held him..." she said in a low tone, her voice never raising, never conveying irritation.

The Battalion was beside her in an instant, hand against The Deluge's temple before she could react, hissing out the spell. She felt a twist of emotional discomfort at showing mercy in any amount. She had waited until Thel was safely out of her arms and she was watching him.

The Battalion winced as The Deluge froze, Expression blank, but eyes focused in pinpoints on Thel still. One of the Mechanical Nuetralizers requested everyone else immediately leave the passage they were in.

"I'll have to work on the spot..." The Battalion hissed. "She's new but Amy put some very nasty types in her."

She looked at Percival.

"Just so we're clear, this will not fully restore her..." The Battalion advised him. "But whatever is left of Rebecca will find it slightly easier to Surface if she builds up enough strength...or if she's around you or her son for an extended period. But it will not last for long. There will still be gaps. She won't be whole. This is all I am allowed to do to ease her burden...any further risks the wrath of my Goddess...I...I am sorry, Percival."

The Battalion was more troubled than he would likely be at her admitting that as she began chanting, the Ritual a band-aid over the gunshot wound that was Rebecca's soul. She caught herself thinking of Galahad again, and felt something twist in her uncomfortably as she altered Rebecca's burden as much as she dared. Amy/Phyre, whoever the feth she was, would probably get pissed but The Battalion had to live with the Kids, and that schutta didn't...

As she chanted, her own vile, Corrupt presence searched for Rebecca in the Deluge's body.

Rebecca? Can you hear me? The Battalion called out. You need to struggle right now. Struggle harder than you ever have. Follow me to the surface... follow me to Thel and Percival...


Percival Io

 

[Draco Miles]

“Good thing I’ve got some muscles to open those doors then.”
She said with a dry chuckle to Arianna Belasko , trying to crack jokes to make some light on the mood, because why not?! Jokes to her are always appreciated.

Hearing tails of the mother embarking through the netherworld emboldened her flame and strengthened her ambition. Such a task was achievable, even more so with her master mentioning a portal guarded by vampires!
“Perhaps you may venture with me then, Maple Harte , to enter that portal and even act as my guide if need be.”

Then came those dreadful words from her master

You're about to embark on a journey that may well end in your death, even if you're successful. Are you ready for that?

Would she sacrifice her life for the freedom of others? To perish and pray that the fruits of her labor feed those that come after her? To truly pay the largest price one could ask for so that someone else may experience true freedom, without oppression or fear of being enslaved like what she had witnessed happen to Rebecca Io ?

… yes. Yes she was

“I will, so that those who come after me may live free from such a tyrannical rule and not fear for what a cultist or some demon may do with their soul. So that the children of the house will not live in fear.”

Pray no one extinguishes thy flame and tells her to put these foolish ambitions to rest, especially anyone named Margit

 

[Nancy Io]

Rebecca felt her body freeze, suddenly unable to move. There were voices all around her, above all the tinny tones of a Mechanical Neutralizer warning the others to leave. Chloe started to whisk Thel away to safety—only to be stopped by a hand on her arm.

Percival pulled Chloe back toward the Deluge. His face came into focus inches away from hers, his green eyes peering at the Battalion beside her. “I’ll take what I can get,” he replied. “I can’t leave her like this.”

Rebecca felt a stab of pain as he reached out to caress her cheek. She strained toward his touch, spurred on by the Battalion’s words in her mind. Struggle harder than you ever have before…

“Come back to us, Rebecca,” Percival whispered, cupping her face in his hands. He moved close enough to be able to feel her breath against his throat. “Come back to me…”

He kissed her. His lips were oddly cool, while hers were feverishly hot. Still struggling mightily against the Deluge, Rebecca tried to wrap her arms around him, with limited success. On the contrary, her body was beginning to warp and melt, losing its pleasing shape as the battle for control began. Yet Percival clung to her for as long as he could, undeterred by the horror that was unfolding within his grasp.

Chloe at least had the foresight to shield Thel’s eyes from the sight…

The Deluge​