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Under the Hill - First Circle: Judgement


Notus

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"Yeah... " Ethic began "He was the youngest of us... But I don't know what happened in his head..."

at that Ethic began thinking back to the way Ixidor had been acting before the Glass prison incident, about how it had slowly made him more and more suspicious that something was going on with the boy. he looked down at his feet, grasping the point of his chin in his hand as he tried to put it all together.

"now that I think back on it, he was acting kinda strange for a while before... what happened went down. like he... I don't know... maybe had some dark side or anger or something he was trying to let loose... I mean, his drawings were creepy as hell for a little while... A skeletal horse...a diseased looking rat..."

He looked back up at Rose.

"maybe your right... maybe the Hill has gotten to him... but I'm guessing he's the only one so far..."

he stuck his hands into his pockets.

"Kenny didn't seem to have any issues when we were travelling, never did anything to make me rethink going with him... and I'm guessing it hasn't gotten to you all either..."

He took the object he presumed to be a miniature pocket knife and sack of gold-minted coins out of his pockets and placed them on the ground, pulling the pockets out wards into little flags and turning around slowly before facing them again, his intention to show that he had no real weapons.

"I've lost all my things except what you see on the ground and the clothes on my back. Ergo, I've no weapon or object to defend myself with. my power to Invoke is meaningless without the Arcana, which I've also lost...forever..." He reached down and picked up the small knife and pouch and put them back in his pocket.

"But even without something to defend myself with, it seems I don't need it right now; it's been a few minutes already, and not one of you has tried to blow my brains out, slit my throat, impale me with a barrage of glass, or otherwise kill me... so maybe Ix was just always like that and just acting... oh and as for the Shadow Version of Shotgun McGee..."

He turned his attention to a nearby shelf full of books, the golden inlay of the words on their spines shining in the light.

"there may be... more of him... I came across another one not long ago..."

Edited by Stratos
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((Ethic, the parts about Rose not trusting anyone around her were her thoughts))

Seeing that Ethic had no weapons, Rose relaxed slightly. "I don't believe any of us have any weapons either." Setting Enya down for a moment, she grasped her waist bag, and plopped down on the ground. "I know for a fact I don't," she said ruefully as she emptied her bag onto the floor, revealing a contacts case with solution, various medicines, a small umbrella, a cell phone, and a wallet. "This is all I took with me from home, barring the cash I used to get here. Then again, I also didn't expect for there to be others here," she commented. As she began to put her things away, she added, "Not that I mind the company. Enya, Ellaria, and Damian have been great company so far. It's nice to have people to rely on." As she said this, Rose kept her inner doubt to herself, choosing to trust in her instincts over her doubt.

Having finished putting her things away, she held Enya's hand loosely as she got back to her feet. "And if what you say about McGee is true... Let's be careful of these shelves."

Edited by Rosesong
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Mr. Taylor was far too lost in his own thoughts to notice Ethic's arrival. The little girl had told him a lot and it seemed as though this Minos character was his way out, but Mr. Taylor knew it couldn't be that easy. He tore through his mind trying to formulate a plan. "No, no that simply won't do," his thoughts raced.

Then Mr. Taylor bucked his head up and proclaimed "That's it, I believe I may have figured a way out!" He looked over, but the rest of the group had moved some distance to meet with a newcomer. He quickly grabbed his cane and moved over to join them, when he noticed that the newcomer looked familiar, "Ah, how are you lad?" he said to the newcomer, "It was Ethic, if I'm not mistaken?"

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((sorry, rose, saw the qoute marks and thought she had said it))

"Ah, how are you lad? It was Ethic, if I'm not mistaken?"

Shocked, Ethic took a few steps back when he heard this new, yet familiar voice... it had come from the elderly man with the group. Ethic immediately scanned his face, to make up for not being able to see it earlier.... the memory of what the Hermit had sown him popped into his mind, and the memory before that of the lion encounter...

He recognized this man instantly.

"M...Mr.Taylor? But... How?" He said, recovering a little from the shock "I...no... this can't be... I saw you die.... The Hermit Showed me... You were stabbed or something... you bled out... I found a puddle of your blood on the floor earlier..."

He looked the older gentleman in the eyes, calming himself down. getting flustered would get him nowhere... besides... there was probably some rational explanation for this, right? maybe Mr.Taylor hadn't lost as much blood as the puddle he found would suggest... maybe some of it was from the attacker... maybe Mr.Taylor had managed to crawl away and treat his wounds...

Ethic shot down that train of thought immediately, because it was all BS. Mr.Taylor, as he stood before Ethic now, looked completely fine. not a sign of any injury on him... which wouldn't be so if any of the logic Ethic had gone through was viable...

he asked the only question he really could

"Not that I'm not glad to see you, Mr.Taylor... but, Mind telling me just how the Hell you're still alive? I mean, what, is this like the TV show 'Lost' and we're stranded in some mystical place that brings older gentlemen back to life miraculously or something...?"

Edited by Stratos
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"Not that I'm not glad to see you, Mr.Taylor... but, Mind telling me just how the Hell you're still alive? I mean, what, is this like the TV show 'Lost' and we're stranded in some mystical place that brings older gentlemen back to life miraculously or something...?"

Mr. Taylor let a hardy chuckle, the boy was obviously confused and Mr. Taylor could hardly blame him. "You know, I hadn't thought of that show when I was trying to figure out where we were lad, but I suppose it's pretty damn close." Mr. Taylor paused it was time for him to share his theories with the rest of the group, he just didn't know how to go about it. "Although in that show the island was purgatory all along wasn't it? Well I believe the place we're in is far worse."

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"You know, I hadn't thought of that show when I was trying to figure out where we were lad, but I suppose it's pretty damn close. Although in that show the island was purgatory all along wasn't it? Well I believe the place we're in is far worse."

Ethic forced himself to completely calm down from the shock of seeing someone he thought dead alive and well.

He began thinking to himself, comparing where they were and the Island from the TV show

Actually... hell, it seems to be pretty much the same in terms of severity... We've got a mysterious creature of darkness that trys to kill us when ever it finds us, and those Shadows that come out of the books could be like the 'others'... though... Then there's the whole thing about everyone in here seeming to have an ability...

"Far worse?" Ethic asked "How, Mr.Taylor?"

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"Far worse?" Ethic asked "How, Mr.Taylor?"

Mr. Taylor sighed, he knew it was now or never, he turned to the little girl, "Please my dear if you wouldn't mind covering your ears, this matter is just too dark for you to hear," he then turned to the rest of the group, his eyes grew darker and harder a very serious expression grew on his face.

"When I first arrived here, there was a passage in ancient writing, I'm not sure if any of the rest of you saw it, but it read 'Abandon all Faith, ye who Enter,' that was my first clue. Then of course we were introduced to a horde of shadow monsters appearing from the books, and likewise we were given powers of our own, this admittedly made me question my own sanity, but now I see it for what it really is, with each of these gifts we were given huge drawbacks, so our gifts are really more of a test of our own resolve. Then let's not forget the judge of this place, or as this charming young girl explained to me is actually some character named Minos, who sounds more like a demon than a judge. Also, there's the repercussions of death, or the seemingly lack of repercussions. All of these things combined leads to one fairly obvious conclusion. I am afraid we have all stumbled into the depths of hell."

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Rose shut her eyes and shook her head slowly. "Mr. Taylor, while I understand the conclusions you've drawn, I can't agree with you." Blinking her eyes open once more, she focused on each member of the group. "We each came for a reason. This place, whatever it may be, isn't going to just give us the answers we desire, we have to earn them. It's the same way in life. This place is challenging us to see if we're worthy of gaining what we seek." As she finished, she hoped her voice carried the conviction she felt, but couldn't suppress a flicker of doubt in her words.

Edited by Rosesong
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Ethic started Chuckling... then burst into laughter. A deep, bitter and sarcastic laugh

"Oh yeah, That's just Great, just frickin GREAT!" he said, his anger rising despite the words coming out of his mouth suggesting he was in a good mood about this.

He turned to Mr.Taylor

"You know, Mr.Taylor, I saw that inscription as well, and you know what I said to myself when I saw it over the entry way?" He asked retorically.

"I said to myself, "I hope I'm not heading though the gates of hell now""

he turned his back to them, looking up into the air as white energy began to surge within his body and flare off, evaporating into the air, just like after the Glass Prison incident.

"I said it jokingly... Thought I'd get in a last quick laugh before I entered this literal Hell hole. from what I heard, there was a chance I wouldn't have one for a long while if I entered and came back out alive..."

He turned around and addressed the group

"Hey, you know something? If this is hell, then maybe Satan is hanging around here somewhere..."

He again began chuckling

"Or hey, maybe he's been screwing with our heads. Maybe he's disguised himself as a seemingly helpless young boy carrying an art satchel."

He laughed at this bit of dark humor, his anger rising higher as he thought of what Ixidor had done

"It would make sense, after all, Ixidor McTracy, the one I used to travel down here with, is able to summon all manner of creations by drawing them into his satchel! Who knew that Satan was an Artist!? disguising himself as a helpless child... he's done it before to trick people..."

These thoughts were all making sense in Ethic's hate filled mind. Why Ix had been acting so dark when he drew certain things... why he had set off the Glass prison... why he had drawn the lion that attacked when he and Ethic had first met.

A voice echoed in his mind at this point... he recognized it from earlier as he felt a presence in his mind

"That's right, Ethic, keep on thinking like that... this little skill of mine is coming in handy..."

It was followed by another voice that was also familiar there were now to presences

"YOU'RE GONE!"

"Wait, what....? Damn You, mage!"

He felt as one presence was forcefully ejected from his mind and back to where ever it came from. the voice sounded again

"Ethic, you need to snap out of this hatred. It's not who you are; Your emotions were being amplified and manipulated to cause you to say those things just now."

It was Lucian, no doubt about it now. With every word he spoke, Ethic found his rage retreating a bit more, till it was completely gone... though the white energy keep radiating off of him.

Realizing the gist of what had come out of his mouth moments prior, he turned to the group, deep regret in his eyes.

"I'm sorry. I really wasn't myself just now... I didn't really mean any of that... It's just... Whenever I think of Ixidor..."

He looked down at his palms soul searchingly

"I get this anger... this raw hate for him..."

at that moment, he felt Lucian leave his mind, rather reluctantly.

Ethic changed the subject back to what it was, hoping not to speak any further about the issue he had started just now

"Anyway... Mr. Taylor, just out of curiosity, would there be any way out of here if this place really is hell?"

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Ixidor was dumbfounded as he heard a familiar voice answering him, he paused for a while and loosen his grip on the shelf.

Welp don't look at me Im just as surprise as you are, I guess its time for round 2, Eliminate this scum now! the likes of him should not live!

wait! Ixidor cease his vile thoughts as he gave Marcus a chance to speak up.

"Is it really you mister? show yourself! What do you want?" said with an uneasy tone, as he withdrew his sketchpad preparing for the unseen treat.

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The little child hadn't bothered to try tuning out what the nice old man had just said-- she already knew that they were in a bad, bad place. It just hadn't occurred to the lass to feel afraid or doubtful as she watched Mister Ethic laugh like a crazy person.

Enya observed the entire exchange, feeling quite bored the whole time. Letting go of Miss Rose's hand, she sank down to the ground and sat, playing with her little bear.

"The only way out is to get to the end, or we just keep dying and dying and suffering and suffering," said the child, nonchalantly, waving the stuffed animal's arms to amuse herself.

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The young artist was quite surprise after Marcus reveal himself. "Ok, thats far enough.." he said with a frighten tone.

"I guess you should mister...but how can i trust you? after all you try to kill me, which you did.. are you going to do that same stunt now?" Ixidor said out of suspicion.

Edited by typhlosionrulez
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"The only way out is to get to the end, or we just keep dying and dying and suffering and suffering,"

"well" said Ethic, a bit weirded out by the young girls sudden input.

Just how does she know that? he thought to himself.

"That answers... that... I guess..." He looked to Mr.Taylor

"Mr.Taylor... real quick, I've got another question to ask you... The guy who stabbed you..." he paused

"Would you be able to identify him if you saw him again?"

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Mr. Taylor sat back and let the news settle in. The others had mixed reactions, Ethic seemed to lose it taking the news rather harshly, while Rose's conviction seemed unshaken. Then the little girl chimed in, telling Ethic that the only way out was to get to the bottom, a slightly different answer than what she had already told him. As Mr. Taylor pondered on this thinking of what to ask the girl, Ethic asked him about his killer.

"Could I identify him?" Mr. Taylor chuckled, "My boy I traveled with the lad for a while. His name was Marcus, quite the average looking fellow. We had an agreement, he wouldn't kill me as long as I did my best to lead him to the bottom. But, then we were attacked by a group of those shadow monsters, my body began to glow and I apparently reversed time, sending the beasts back into there books. However, after I had done that I suffered from short term memory loss, this upset Marcus and so he decided to kill me." Mr. Taylor's voice which usually kept a calm tone, was now beginning to grow angrier and grittier, "That bastard, if I see him again I'll..." he stopped and looking at the little girl, then back at the group, he knew this wasn't appropriate so he refrained from getting too upset. "But, that's not important right now," he turned back to the younger girl, "My dear, I thought you said that, that Minos man knew the way out?"

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The white energy had started to recede back into Ethic's body as he began thinking

Marcus, huh? well... now I've got a name... all I need is a face to go with it...

Ethic watched as Mr.Taylor began questioning the little girl about whether Minos knew of a way out of the hill.

I don't really know what's worse... the fact that this 'Marcus' fellow killed him because of a bit of memory loss, or the fact that he pretty much was forcing Mr.Taylor's co-operation under the threat of death in the first place...

He turned around, looking out into the aisle behind the group, not really at anything in particular.

"All right..." He mumbled under his breath "Looks like Mr.Taylor wouldn't mind getting his hands on this Marcus guy either for what he did... well, it wouldn't hurt anything if I helped him when the time came..."

that's when something caught his attention, something red in the corner of his vision... He turned to look at it... walking over towards him was Lucian, his robes torn and stained with some sort of dark substance. his staff and body glowed red with energy. as he got closer to Ethic, He could feel his presence entering his mind.

"Ethic..." He said mentally

Ethic called back in his mind

"Lucian... What happened to you?"

"That bastard Scott is what happened to me... that little goth tried to fight me after I ejected him from your mind... but that's not important right now..."

"Wait... who is Scott?"

"Not important, Listen up... The Arcane Council... they decided that you aren't fit to continue as an invoker... and that outburst was pretty much the nail in the coffin for them..."

"So what, does that mean that I'm fired?"

"Yes... in a sense... but it's much more than that Ethic..."

Lucian finally reached Ethic, and he could see the solemnity on his face.

"Ethic... when an Invoker is determined to be unfit to posses their powers... that means that they are also deemed unfit to carry on their existance..."

"So wait... You mean, the Keepers are going to kill me?"

"No... no Ethic. Not in this place. in this place, death is only a temporary inconvenience... one can return from it, as I believe your elderly acquaintance over there has. No Ethic... If you were outside this place, then yes, they'd be satisfied with simply killing you and being done with it... but you aren't... and so they're going to try to completely wipe you out of existence... don't ask me how... but their gonna try to do it..."

Ethic turned and looked back at the group as they continued to converse, a bit worried now... Lucian continued

"You're worried what'll happen to them if you accompany them. Well... Leave them, Ethic... leave them and head out with me through this place... it's for their own safety that you don't go with them."

Ethic looked at Lucian now

"No... Lucian... I can't leave them..." he said

"Why not? Ethic, it's really for their own good... I know you think of them as friends... so do them a favor and leave..."

"I don't have anything on me... no weapons... no supplies... and I can't use my powers apparently... Lucian, I can't leave these guys because if I do, then I probably won't make it through this place... They're the only ones that I know I can trust down here... they're the only life line i have left here..."

Lucian looked at him, then sighed in defeat...

"fine, Ethic... guess that just means... that I'll be tagging along too"

to be honest, Ethic was glad to have someone on his side in this conflict he'd somehow started... but that begged the question...

"Lucian... why are doing this? why tell me all this? You're a Keeper, Right? one of the Arcane Council members... so shouldn't you be trying to kill me right now?"

Lucian chucked

"Because, Ethic... technically speaking, I'm no longer the keeper of the Magician Arcana... though I still hold all the power of it. I cast aside my title and left the council when I heard their verdict... Ethic... over time... I've taken a liking to you... You're different from those who came before you... You're better at it... You aren't afraid of what you're power could potentially do... you actually try to learn how to use it instead of brushing it off and pretending it doesn't exist. that and the fact that it sickens me to continue calling myself a keeper after seeing just how much the others have changed since then..."

Ethic really didn't know what to say...

"So you... left? For me...?"

"Yes. In a sense... we're both in open rebellion against the Arcane Council now... you just for existing still... and me for leaving and deciding to join you"

Ethic looked back at the group

"Just out of curiosity..." He began, this time verbally "Can they see you right now?"

"No..." Lucian replied, also verbally "they can't see me unless I want them to... which I don't really want at this moment... well...guess we're going with them... I'll let them see me if necessary... but not now. You'd better be up to protecting them when the Keepers start coming after us..."

With that, Lucian dissapeared, and his presence in Ethic's mind grew even stronger.

"and we'll need to discuss the issue with you not being able to invoke anymore... but it can wait for now..."

Ethic walked back over to the group, with Lucian accompanying him in his mind, and waited there, hoping they'd finish talking and could get moving soon

Edited by Stratos
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Damian

"My dear, I thought you said that, that Minos man knew the way out?"

"Ha, the child knows what she's talking about" the judge's voice boomed inside Damian's head.

The boy looked around startled. The others seemed to have heard it as well, judging by their puzzled looks .

"Now that I have your attention gentleman, I'd like to call the next indcteees, Mr.Taylor and Mr. Damian. Don't worry, you'll be back soon, and I'll let your friends in good company."

Damian heard a deep growl, and the sound of a gravel hitting wood. The whole library started to blur around him, and the next he knew he was standing near Mr. Taylor in the court room.

=======================================================

Ellaria

Ellaria heard too when the voice of the judge called them out. She was a little lost because she could not identify where it was coming from, but before she could worry anymore she heard yet another alarming sound.

The growl was easy to identify. On one end of the corridor they were on, the She-Wolf was preparing to attack them again.

When she turned to the other side however, she heard the noise of something landing on the marble floor. Something big. She grasped Rose's hand again to show her the new threat, wathever it was. "Guys, I think we have company." she said.

If she had her eyes intact, she would see nothing but two green dots in the air - almost as high from the floor as the wolf's eyes - as a huge black panther blocked their way, covered in shadow.

Edited by Notus
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Ethic heard the judges voice as he called out for Damian's and Mr.Taylor's trial to begin... followed by a familiar growl... Lucian spoke up in his mind and Ellaria did out load and Ethic knew what it was before he even turned to look

"Ethic... I'd say get ready for round two with this thing... but right now, we don't stand a chance..."

He turned and saw exactly what he was expecting... the She-Wolf.

We're all screwed.... He thought to himself

he turned and looked to the others

"this just got bad..."

with that he turned back to the wolf, Lucian protesting in his mind

"Wait, Ethic what are you doing!? you don't have the Arcana, you can't evoke... you can't fight this thing now!"

"Yeah..." Ethic said "Well... doesn't mean I still can't buy time for everyone else to get away, does it?"

"I'm not letting you do this." Lucian said, appearing beside Ethic, his form shimmering... which probably meant that he was allowing himself to be visible to all present.

Lucian cast out his arm and a wall of flames erupted from the ground, creating a blazing barrier between the Wolf and the group. Lucian turned to face the group, yelling out without waiting for a response from anyone

"All of you, I know from experience that this won't hold that thing back for long, If you don't want to become dinner, I suggest you start running s fast as you can!"

with that, he dissapeared again, yelling out in Ethic's mind

"GO!"

Ethic took his advice and started running in the opposite direction of the flaming wall, calling out to the other's as he passed

"Guys, no time to talk, we all need to get out of here, right now!"

Edited by Stratos
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Rose gasped as the mysterious voice that she had heard from earlier boomed out around them. Frantically glancing around, she asked " Is everyone- Damian, Mr. Taylor, where are you?!" The two had appeared to vanish into thin air. Swearing under her breath, she muttered that whatever this hill held had better be worth it.

As Ellaria grasped her hands and spoke, "Guys, I think we have company," Rose heard a growl that she thought was gone for good. Looking behind her, she saw the she-wolf from earlier. If animals had faces, this one would be furious and looking for revenge. Turning, and preparing everyone to run, she saw two green eyes peering from the shadows, filled with menace. "Guys," she whispered, "when I say run, we need to go."

Quickly picking up Enya and linking her hand with Ellaria, she explained to Ethic that they held hands in order to stay together. Asking him to take Ellaria's other hand, she was astonished to see a shimmering figure come from Ethic and create a wall of fire. Taking the chance, she turned and shouted "Freeze!" to the mystery creature in the shadows. "Now, let's go!" she told the others, running through the bookshelves without waiting to see if her "spell" had worked.

Edited by Rosesong
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Ethic stopped running as rose explained how the group had held hands before to keep from getting split up, asking him to take Ellaria's hand.

"Allright..." He said, grasping the young woman's hand as Rose fired off a few spells... Ethic looked off the the side... and saw a pair of emerald colored, menacing pupils staring right at them.

He heard Rose shout

"Now, let's go!"

"No protest here..." he said as they began running away, glad to not have to face whatever the other thing was or the she-wolf

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The She-Wolf leapt through the fire, landing unscathed on the other side. It's companion seemed to be frozen not moving a muscle to give chase to their prey. Angry, the Wolf let go a short growl in the creature's face, which seemed to free it from the spell. They stood there for a moment planning what to do next, and than the dark figure went away, letting the Wolf pursue the small group.

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A sly grin grew on Mr. Taylor's face. It appeared that he and the quiet boy, Damian he thought his name was, had been brought to Minos's court. Finally Mr. Taylor would have his chance to try and leave. He looked around the courtroom and the grin quickly turned into a look of horror. Shadow creatures lined the courtroom with a prominent figure at the center. He gulped back his fears and decided to confront the creature.

"So, you must be this Minos I've heard all about, if it wouldn't be too much to ask perhaps you can point me to the exit of this place?"

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Damian

Damian saw Minos smile at Mr.Taylor. "It would be a pleasure good sir, but I'm afraid I cannot. Orders from below. Anyway, you should not be worried about leaving. You'd just end up here again eventually."

"Now, to start this trial, I'd like to ask you both what are you doing here and what you wanted from this place."

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