Planeside 3

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

Braon stops her on the way out the door. "Hold on. You forgot one other thing." She pokes and prods Sekhmet's limbs and chin into what would look to be a more confident pose. "A disguise isn't just something you wear. You go out there like this, you're playing a part. That part being, 'your average succubus'." She explains as she works. "You can draw just as much attention for not acting your part as you can for not looking your part. If not more, because then it's obvious it's a part." She stands back and puts her hands on her hips. "Repeat after me. 'I am a damn sexy demon and everyone in the room knows it.'"

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
"I am a damn sexy demon and everyone in the room knows it?" Sekhmet repeats. She throws up her hands in frustration. "What do you want? I can't do this!" She probably can. She's just angry about this nonsense. "That's not who I am!"

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

Braon puts her hands on Sekhmet's shoulders. "Look at me." She demands. "You are the gods-damned queen. More people answer to you than any mortal ruler, past and present. You are easily the most powerful person in the room, no matter whether you've let anybody else in on it or not." She gives Sekhmet her best attempt at an encouraging smile, which comes out as an annoyed grimace. "Are you really going to tell me you can't take an hour or so of embarrassment?"

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
Braon needs to stop being right. It's getting on Sekhmet's nerves. "I, uh, am the queen, uh, right. Sometimes the queen needs to, uh, do things she doesn't like for the, uh, good of the kingdom." She still seems very tense and uncomfortable though. "I'm the queen of succubi. I'm the queen of succubi!" She gives Braon an obviously forced smile. "Even if I don't bring that side of me out, I'm still, uh, that person, at least partly. I can, uh, be a succubus for a bit, right?" Can she? Can she really?
At least she's not desperately trying to cover herself now.

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

Braon gives Sekhmet a friendly punch in the shoulder. "That's the spirit!" She grins. "All right, I think you're ready." As much so as I can make you in five minutes, I'm not a miracle worker, geez. She clasps her hands together and gestures to the door. "Ladies first." Referring to rank more than sex, obviously.

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
The pair walk out the door.
Sekhmet is not warming up to her new clothes at all yet. "While you were getting changed, I found where the, uh, boundary of Sheol is. I'll, uh, take us there, but first, uh..." Sekhmet gently sets a hand on Braon's shoulder and channels magic. Braon should feel a warmth settle into her blood and bones. To a scientific observer, her body temperature spiked significantly, but she won't feel feverish. "That enchantment should give you, uh, immunity to the heat of this place, but, uh, I wouldn't test it by swimming in lava." And then, just like that, they're elsewhere, overlooking a rocky canyon at the bottom of which is a river of lava. The heat would be unbearable, but Sekhmet's magic should make it seem pleasantly warm instead. "It should be, uh, somewhere around here."

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

"You mean like there?" Braon points up at a congregation of about a half-dozen demons of a fair variety; there's two who look to be succubi, attractive young women with wings unfurled and even less clothing than Sekhmet; one demon of an unknown type, standing a good head over them and taking the form of a muscly man with two sets of batlike wings and absolutely no skin on his face; two men in matching suits whos only clear indication of demonhood is where they are and who they're with, seemingly willingly; and an old, haglike woman who limps along behind them, carrying a collection of bottles and vials filled with various colors of liquid.

The faceless man is the first to notice Sekhmet and Braon. He stops to watch them, but the rest of the group proceed on ahead, as though nothing is wrong.

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
Sekhmet has to restrain herself from covering herself when she sees the other fiends. She mutters something to herself under her breath, "I'm a damn sexy demon and everyone in the room knows it," and it seems to help a little. She motions Braon forward towards the group. "Let's pay them a visit, uh, shall we?"

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

Braon smirks, gratified to know Sekhmet was hanging onto her impromptu mantra. "Well, that is what we're here for." She shrugs, approaching them with Sekhmet in tow.

As they approach, they'll be able to hear snippets of conversation among the group:

"...passed this place a few hours ago. See? Isn't that the exact bend in the canyon where we came in?"
"We've been traveling in a straight line. How could we have doubled back?"
"You two haven't been down here very long. The geometry never makes sense."
"Quiet, you lot, we've got locals."

The group of fiends turns to face Sekhmet and Braon, with the succubi in particular taking an interest in Sekhmet. "Oh my gods, she's gorgeous." One whispers to the other.

The faceless man steps forward, one set of his wings folding around him, contorting into shape as they press against his body, seeming to melt into his flesh, pouring over him and altering his features. When it stops, he's sporting a ruggedly handsome face, a chiseled physique, and an impressive eight-foot height. He also doesn't seem to know what a shirt is.

"Can I help you ladies?" He asks politely.

[Recaiden]

[Brefaisil]

Marcie will be able to tell immediately that this is no ordinary illness. Putting aside that it had somehow kept him bedridden for well over a decade, there were a few other tells.

For one, most diseases don't leer back at her with a set of vacant, ranine eyes when she examines them. They also don't open their gaping maws and throatily trill at her, forelegs crossed over her patient's heart. They certainly don't aggressively dig into their victim's chest when said victim tries to greet her.

"Well met, miss At-" Arnbaith starts, before his words are drowned out by a series of hacking, wheezing coughs.

The apparition personifying the disease stops its attack, and Arnbaith settles back down, gasping for air. It raises a webby finger to its mouth and hushes her. From this, she'll intrinsically know three things:

It could kill the king. It simply hasn't chosen to yet.

It could tell if Marcie mentioned it, here or elsewhere.

And if she revealed its true nature, it would kill him.

Well, that's unusual. Some sort of frog disease spirit, or just some sort of demonic frog. Can't ask about it, but there's nothing stopping them from looking through stories and records back home for anything similar.

"Ah, save your strength, good king. I wouldn't want you hurting yourself." Marcie says, stepping a bit closer with a curious look.

The disease must want its secrecy, but that can't be all there is to it, since it also wants to keep the king alive for now.
Would it mean anything to take action against it? Or is its very appearance as a creature merely a symptom?

"Perhaps having fewer visitors would be less stressful?" She suggests, mostly for the benefit of the disease.

Prison Realm

The lead hand-dog gives Kiun a thumbs up. Then it clicks its fingers and the hand-dogs with the flails head off towards the Weevil's cell, whilst the other two move past and wait. If Kiun leaves, they'll follow, but they aren't going to go anywhere if she doesn't. They're supposed to escort the visitors, and that's what these two want to do with Kiun. Whilst also making sure she's not the Weevil in disguise, hence why two have left.

Thumbs-up! That means it approves! Or agrees? It's definitely a good sign, one way or the other.
Kiun will continue along, without objecting to the hand-dogs, until they find another inhabited cell.
Or at least a cell with something in it, if not a full-on inhabitant.

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
Sekhmet realizes suddenly that she has no idea what she was supposed to say. "Hey, are you handing out Liquid Love?" No, that's way too direct. She's also slightly distracted by the eight foot slab of muscle talking to her and oh my he can see practically all of her. She's trying not to blush and barely managing to produce coherent sentences. "We're, uh, looking for something. I see, uh, one of your companions has a, uh, lot of potions. Do you know if they're for sale?" She's trying her best to not look terrified; succubi aren't terrified of being seen in revealing clothes. She's mentally repeating Braon's mantra over and over, but feels inadequate anyway."

[Ironsmith]

[Brefaisil]

Well, that's unusual. Some sort of frog disease spirit, or just some sort of demonic frog. Can't ask about it, but there's nothing stopping them from looking through stories and records back home for anything similar.

"Ah, save your strength, good king. I wouldn't want you hurting yourself." Marcie says, stepping a bit closer with a curious look.

The disease must want its secrecy, but that can't be all there is to it, since it also wants to keep the king alive for now.
Would it mean anything to take action against it? Or is its very appearance as a creature merely a symptom?

"Perhaps having fewer visitors would be less stressful?" She suggests, mostly for the benefit of the disease.

[Brefaisil]

Whatever it is, the frog-thing isn't... exactly present. It's an avatar of some kind. A way of visually demonstrating what it is, for Marcie's benefit. The real spirit is in the ailing king's bones, his blood, his heart. Doing anything to frog on his chest would be pointless.

Breoite rests her hands on Arnbaith's shoulders, encouraging him to lie back and save his strength. "We already keep visitors to a minimum. It's mostly been just me and a few attendants. Is there any way you can help him, the way you helped us?" She asks hopefully.

Scorching Depths
Sekhmet realizes suddenly that she has no idea what she was supposed to say. "Hey, are you handing out Liquid Love?" No, that's way too direct. She's also slightly distracted by the eight foot slab of muscle talking to her and oh my he can see practically all of her. She's trying not to blush and barely managing to produce coherent sentences. "We're, uh, looking for something. I see, uh, one of your companions has a, uh, lot of potions. Do you know if they're for sale?" She's trying her best to not look terrified; succubi aren't terrified of being seen in revealing clothes. She's mentally repeating Braon's mantra over and over, but feels inadequate anyway."

[Scorching Depths]

"That depends on what you mean by 'sale'." The hunk replies, arms folded. "We have no use for money-"

"Obviously." "A-duh." The succubi chip in.

"...No use for money, but we may be able to arrange a trade." The muscle demon resumes, shooting his companions an annoyed glare.

The besuitted men circle around Sekhmet, looking her up and down with intensely scrutinous intent. "Perhaps flesh for the potion?" One hisses, his voice crackling like a campfire. "Yes, but as a service, or a good?" The other one cackles.

Both of them are cut off by the demon clamping a massive hand over their head, silencing them. "Nothing so crass." He drawls irritably. "We've heard of a portal to the mortal realm not far from here. Tell us how to get there, and you can have some of our stock."

The hag steps forward and lets Sekhmet inspect her wares. No Liquid Love (if asked, she'll say she's run out), but there are bottles labeled things like "Afterglow", "Impotent Rage", "A Good Cry", and "Courage".

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
Sekhmet frowns. "Why would I have money?" Not only why, but where? Her costume has too little cloth to include pockets.
The question about the portal is slightly more worrying. The location of that portal is a state secret, so naturally she knows where, but she won't reveal it to these demons. "I I knew where the portal was, uh, I wouldn't be here." She shrugs. "I heard it was at the bottom of the river somewhere. Is there, uh, something else I can, uh, help you with instead?"

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

"Not especially so, except maybe good company." The slab of beef replies, casting an annoyed look at his succubi companions who took the opportunity to let out a pair of salacious giggles. "...Not like that. Necessarily."

"Actually, we could still use a guide out of this canyon." One of the succubi points out.

"Oh hush, we're doing fine." The other replies, shaking her head.

Braon raises an eyebrow and looks over at Sekhmet. If they're stuck here, maybe we should just go. They can't do any harm if they can't leave this place.

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
Sekhmet nods. "Uh, I think I can show you the way out. While we travel, uh, could you, uh, tell me more about your wares? If I understand, they're, uh, like liquid emotions? Would they, uh, work on anyone? And, uh, I don't quite understand what the one is supposed to cause." She indicates the one labeled "Afterglow." "I, uh, haven't yet decided which I want in exchange for my help."

[Fenric]

"Murder or slavery?" Sekhmet doesn't like either of those options. Really, she's probably too morally upstanding to make a good demon queen. "There has to be a better way. I'm not going to treat people like that."

Orochi gives Sekhmet a flat look

"I did not suggest handing out death or slavery as something to do on a whim but you are the QUEEN. If your words mean nothing then what exactly do you think is going to happen next?"

Then he shakes his head

"Toothless power is no power at all, and exections are not murder when someone has trespassed sufficiently to deserve it. I suppose you can throw her in a dungeon forever if you would prefer that route: some do... personally I find that a cowardly way to execute someone without actually doing it: you take their life, but you can console yourself that they aren't dead."

He shrugs

"Otherwise, if you won't kill her, won't ensure that her banishment is permanent, and won't lock her up? There's nothing I am aware of that will keep your respect from dwindling until someone finally replaces you - why should they respect your authority if you never use it? I hope you have an escape plan ready, for I cannot see but you will be needing one."

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

Braon gives Sekhmet a little warning hiss, but luckily, her unfamiliarity with the term didn't really clash with her disguise as much as the fiendling seemed to think it would.

"Ah, yes. A lot of us have that problem." The bodybuilder explains as they walk. "After a few decades on the job, most experience a sort of... fading, of the mortal senses. It becomes harder to find joy in things that used to excite us, like that sense of achievement when you get when you finally fill out your baseball card collection or the thrill of skydiving for the first time-"

"Or that lingering good mood after a nice [night behind the curtains]." One of the succubi offers.

"...So that one is very much sought after." The oversized incubus concludes, deciding not to dignify that with a response. "It's a manifestation of all those good feelings we don't normally get anymore."

[Earl of Purple]

Prison Realm

The guard beasts and Kiun advance along the footpath. There's two more cells before the next inhabited one; they're both empty. The next cell to be closed and locked contains a black basalt pedestal. Resting on the pedestal is a humanoid skull, larger than a human's with a single large eyesocket and sharp teeth, including a pair of serrated tusks. One of the tusks has been replaced with a tooth of polished green jade, and a silver mirror has been carefully set into the eyesocket. The skull has been polished smooth. Several other bones rest in the cell, though they don't belong to the same entity- and not all are from the same source. There's a human femur, covered in etched words- Shakespearean quotes, all relating to death, carved into the bones. A rattle of phalanges, marked with runes, on a twist of leather. The black iron pelvis of a semi-humanoid creature with digitigrade legs and a tail (though if Kiun doesn't know a lot about bones, she likely can't tell all that; the rest of the skeleton is missing.

The skull doesn't react to Kiun, though the guards react to the skull; one tries to interpose itself between her and the cell, holding its hand up palm out and fingers together towards the skull. Kiun might get the impression her reflection in the mirror is watching her. The reflection is a true image; it's not reversed like most mirror images, most notable in the reflection of the guards' hands.

[bc56]

Palace of Orochi
"No." Sekhmet is even more sure now than she was earlier, "I won't be another tyrant out to bolster her own power. If I am ousted, so be it, but I will do good in the meantime!" A power suffuses her, a hint of her true self, beautiful and terrible, a queen among demons. One might almost expect her to shout, "all shall love me, and despair!" but she doesn't. But she does clearly feel quite strongly about this.

Scorching Depths
"That does sound valuable." Not so much to Sekhmet now, she's still young, but in a thousand years, who knows? If all goes well, she'll still be alive then, and a thousand years after that and so on to eternity. That's hard for her to imagine. "We need to go down the cliff here to that ledge." As she clambers down, she asks, "The six of you aren't from around here, are you?"

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

"Well, of course." The incubus chuckles. "We're from a place called the Lethean Abyss. It's on the far side of Sheol, near Oblivion." He shrugs. "But if we're going to talk about where we're from, it's time we introduced ourselves, isn't it? They call me Aggravate." He extends an oversized hand toward Sekhmet, once they reach the ledge.

"Perfidy." "Mendacity." The succubi offer.

"These two gentlemen are Spicer and Slicer." Aggravate adds, nodding toward the suitted men. "Word to the wise; if they offer you food, turn it down. Especially if it's meat-based."

"And that's the Crone. Just the Crone. Older than all of us, I bet."

The hag nods, but says nothing. She doesn't feel the need.

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
Sekhmet reaches out and grips the incubus's hand with hers. "I'm..." What's a good fake name? "...Crimson." Hopefully that pause wasn't too notable. "So why did you come here? Why not stay in your Abyss, or, uh, in Sheol, or any other Hell?" She makes it down to the ledge and beckons the others to follow.

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

Aggravate opens his mouth to respond, but the succubi beat him to it.

"Well that's a little self-evident, isn't it?" Perfidy taunts, wrinkling her nose and putting on a mocking, nasally voice. "'Why not just stay in a hell? You know, place of eternal torment? I don't see why you'd ever want to get out!'"

Gosh, what an interesting and wholly unique sentiment. Braon mentally snarks.

"We heard there was a way out over here, somewhere, and we're making the run to it." Aggravate finally says, dropping down the ledge with the Crone under one arm and Braon resting on the other. Unlike Perfidy, he seems to have caught onto the implicit question of "Why this hell, if you have to choose one?".

"If nothing else, the queen here's meant to be... accomodating." Mendacity adds. "The kind of lady who lets things slide. Nothing at all like the Abyss, where you can get mulched for not making quota."

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
"Uh, yeah. Queen Sekhmet is, uh, something else," "Crimson" replies, "She's, uh, not much of a succubus." Now that the group is down on the ledge, they can see that they're not actually on a ledge at all. They're at the same height above the river that they were before, but the environment has changed. Here, thorny rose bushes grow along the cliff's edge and down by the river, their burgundy blossoms glowing like embers. "Some fiend set a, uh, trap back there for wanderers. We, uh, should be free of it now."

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

Spicer(Slicer?) grins and leans over to Mendacity. "Told you s-"

"Oh, stuff it." The succubus grumbles, shoving a vial into his hands.

Aggravate shrugs. "That's more or less what we heard, yes. Good for her, she should be so lucky."

Braon, meanwhile, stops to smell the roses. Well, not smell, exactly, more just examine closely. She's never really seen them before. Thankfully, neither have the other succubi, so it doesn't compromise her disguise.

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
The rose looks like any other plant, except for its fiery glow. No doubt fiendish magic is at work here. "You think so? I like being a succubus." Sekhmet lies. "Sometimes I wish the queen would loosen up a little."

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

Perfidy raises an eyebrow. "...Were you born yesterday, or what?" She snarks.

"Well, you know. Died yesterday. However that works around here." Mendacity chips in.

"Yeah, I don't know how it is for you guys here in the Depths, but in the Abyss, being a succubus is literally hell."

"Appropriate use of the word."

"Thank you." Perfidy leans in to Sekhmet. "Putting aside what probably amounts to an anatomical difference... of sorts... and assuming you can still feel full when you aren't eating or satisfied when you're not actively boinking someone... remember for a minute what our job is."

"Luring mortals to hell, swindling them every time. It doesn't matter what we offer them; money, power, the best night in they've ever had, whatever, it's not worth surrendering your soul."

"And nobody knows that better than us."

"Quite. Of course, if we don't actively screw them over, we end up suffering for it. So it comes down to us or them, really."

"We were already kind of not-great people, but having to deal with being a demon for any length of time... it's not good for your psyche. You start to wonder if mulching yourself is the only good thing you can really do anymore."

"So, yeah. Have fun dealing with that for however long you last."

"That's enough." Aggravate growls, stepping between Sekhmet and the succubi. "We wanted to get away from that kind of bitterness, remember?"

The succubi cross their arms and stare at him angrily, but go quiet.

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
"Sheesh, you sound like the queen!" "Crimson" says, "You don't even find it a little fun? Don't enjoy being young and sexy forever?" You can tell her heart isn't in it though, because at heart, she really agrees with the other two. Existing only to tempt others into a torturous afterlife hardly seems like an existence at all to Sekhmet.

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

"Like that isn't also a damn lie." Perfidy scoffs, gesturing to the Crone. "'Longer than usual' and 'forever' aren't exactly synonyms."

"Besides, even if it were so... what exactly would be the point?" Mendacity sighs. "Most mortals can't survive a full round with us, and even if they did, we'd just want another."

"Maybe you're new to this, but when you were alive, I'm sure you remember seeing succubi flirt constantly?" Perfidy adds. "Yeah. You basically heard their stomach growl twenty-four-seven. You get to be young and sexy for a much longer while, but you don't actually get much in the way of benefits from it."

"Oh, and just wait until your age does start showing and you need to start shape-shifting to retain your looks. Can you say, 'image issues'?"

"Oh, preach it! I haven't felt right about my body since I turned fifty."

"Which was a few hundred years ago, clearly."

"Oh, hush." Perfidy throws an arm around Mendacity. "The only, and I do mean only, benefit to this whole setup is that, if you're up on your quotas, you're surrounded by nubile demons who also both can and want to go for months at a time."

"Which is great in the moment, but the second it's over..." Mendacity gives Sekhmet a thumbs-down and blows a raspberry.

"...And would you believe that, even with thousands of years of practice, most of us aren't even that good at it?"

"Speak for yourself."

"I am, yeah."

[bc56]

Scorching Depths
"I don't think it works like that here," It doesn't, not exactly, but it's similar. "It definitely, uh, doesn't work like that for the queen. She doesn't seem to want to do it at all. She even married a human and he's still alive, can you believe that?" Now Sekhmet is curious how her own succubi deal with constant lust, because she knows at least a few of them who don't act like that.

[Ironsmith]

[Scorching Depths]

"Well, good on you lot for winning the cosmic lottery." Mendacity grumbles.

Aggravate gently pushes them aside and holds out the bottled potions. "In all seriousness, give my congratulations to the queen, if you see her." He smiles. "It must be quite the undertaking, putting a marriage on top of managing this place. Admirably ambitious, I would say." He gives the vials a little shake, nonverbally encouraging her to take one.