"Alloy, how exactly did you escape Levistus' service? Every detail if you please, and don't forget to speak up." Lucifer grabs some popcorn, interested to hear this one
Alloy goes quiet for a moment. "As you... as you wish."
*Content Warnings: Violence, torture, child cruelty, themes of suicide, slavery*
Alloy pulls out their deep brown, leather-bound, weathered journal and flicks through to around the mid-point. "It started on salt day. The day once-per-month the Erinyes stopped us from working at chiselling away at Levistus' ice cage and forced us to take what they always referred to as "a hot bath". The water was colder than the ice we slept on, and it was filled with salt, for the express purpose of stinging our wounds from their whip lashes, and our cuts, and splinters from mining the block of ice.
"After the salt bath, they'd take glee in showering us with cold water, so icicles would form and rip at our skin. The Erinyes were cruel and loved to see pain. They then chained us all up again to our beds for the evening... well, everyone except me. They forgot to chain me down. And so, while they weren't looking, I ran. I left everyone else behind me. I didn't even know who they were - their personalities had been lost long before I ever arrived there.
"I managed to make it to the edge of Evihome, the devil settlement run by the Erinyes slavers, and steal much of their food and drink under cover of darkness. I also managed to steal from Levistus' personal library, taking some books as petty revenge for my suffering. I was weak, and so I was forced to sleep in a tiny shelter of snow I dug on the side of a building for the night."
Alloy's eyes seem to start crystalizing, as snowflake tears start to fall. "I ran the next morning. I could hear the Erinyes hollering behind me. They could have caught me, if they wanted. They could have bet me to death. But they didn't - they enjoyed the game too much. I knew though that they would get bored by the end of the weak, and I would be brought back to Levistus.
"Every night I spent on those Styx-forsaken ice plains, I dreamed. And Levistus was in all my dreams, mocking me for my identity, my escape that would fail, for how I failed everyone I loved. It almost drove me mad. I couldn't sleep anymore. So I spent nights reading the books I had stolen from Levistus.
"My food soon ran out, and I was forced to feed on bugs, small animals, and remorhaz eggs. Disgusting things. But the Erinyes never caught up with me - I had begun using the ice magics my very masters had forced me to learn to save myself from them. To hide. To run faster and faster, further and further. I spent nights in the hollowed-out carcasses of carrion I had found slain. After almost a year, however, with the Erinyes still behind me, I was so weak I could barely manage to walk, and I could hear my slavers jeering behind me. Levistus still came in my dreams...
"And then I made a mistake. Searching for food, I stole a remorhaz egg from its nest. The mother... it found me. It almost killed me, until... a large tentacle of darkness reached up out of the earth and snapped it in two. Someone had saved me - a deity known as Eris White-Eyes. They gifted to me a sickle they had found in the remorhaz' armour plating, this very sickle here." Alloy pulls out the Levistus' Promise, a nasty blue-bladed sickle with a cool glint. They hold it as if it's some sort of holy weapon. "I promised myself I would kill my parents with this weapon if I got the chance. Kill them for enslaving me and my siblings. For abandoning us.
"Eris protected me and travelled with me for a week, and part of their keen insight of the cosmos rubbed off on me. I learnt how to summon dread tentacles from the Far Planes. Between her and the Styx, I had more support than I had ever had before. But it still wasn't enough. I began to lose hope.
"And then I remembered... when a non-fiendish being dies in the Hells, it is transformed into a soul coin. Most soul coins go immediately to their owners - in my case, Levistus - but sometimes, they get lost on the Styx. So I prayed to Eris and the River of Planes, and I slit my own throat with the very same weapon Eris had given me." Alloy points to a blotchy red scar on the side of their neck.
"I didn't die, that day. I didn't survive, but I didn't die. I awoke in a cave of shimmering ice, where all the walls acted as mirrors, reflecting myself. I was weak and frail, and my soul had been partially severed from my body. Not entirely severed, but partially. Behind me, I could hear the cackle of Erinyes slavers, calling my name. I crawled as fast as I could, smashing the walls with Levistus' Promise, the sickle, as I went. They couldn't find me. Levistus' hold on my soul had been broken, somehow. Eventually I came to a set of stairs, leading higher and higher until it reached the surface world. As I crawled up those stairs, my soul mutated me into forms I both recognised and did not recognise - gators and caiman metres long, tiny four-legged green creatures with the ability to jump very high, wingless birds with beaks like axes, even hounds with coarse grey fur.
"When I reached the top, I found myself in an Icy Swamp realm. I spent days travelling it, avoiding my Erinyes pursuers. Eventually, I felt the souls of my siblings nearby, somewhere deep in my heart...
"That was when the final Erinyes struck. They had managed to find me, weak and feeble as I was, and stab me in my back. Luckily, the blade didn't go too deep, but I was sent flailing into an icy river. I pulled the Erinyes in after me, and even as their blade tore at my throat, I entrapped them in vines and drowned them... in the bottom of the river."
Alloy shivers even harder this time, the tips of their fingers and ears turning a pale orange, like the colour of their scars and the palms of their hands. "I managed to crawl between a magical barrier between that world and the Death Dells, sending a message through the river Styx to my siblings in the only ink I had left - my own blood - asking for help. My sister Zaza found me and took me back to the Adventurer's Legacy, as it is called, and nursed me back from the brink of death."
Alloy finally wipes their eyes. "I still hear Levistus sometimes, in my sleep, taunting me. In truth, Mister Lucifer, I never escaped the frozen corpse realm of Stygia. I am a prisoner of fate even now, and a prisoner of my own mind."
He gives a slow golf clap. "Good show! Well, as promised, you may leave and I'll give you a nice little parting gift."
*What do you want Alloy to get?*
*Can Alloy gain a level up - as 6th level druid, they only get a single feature and a spell but I think those are quaint and really are thematic to Alloy*
*Aris is shameless, has nothing to hide, and is too overwhelmed to take anything seriously so this ought to be interesting 👀*
After wiping away their tears, they turn their head sideways till their neck cracks. "I love truth or dare! I'm kind of tempted to say both, just for the fun of it, so you get to choose..." They pause for a second before adding, "...broski."
*Yup!*
"Aris.... You're always chatting up the next new person, aren't you? I dare you to never flirt again."
*Can Alloy gain a level up - as 6th level druid, they only get a single feature and a spell but I think those are quaint and really are thematic to Alloy*
*For sure!*
Lucifer throws them the horns and they fall to their knees. He picks up his guitar and begins riffing on 'Paradise City' by Guns N' Roses. Something blooms in them listening to that song. When they stand up, the power of rock music has deepened their understanding of themselves and their power
*Aris is shameless, has nothing to hide, and is too overwhelmed to take anything seriously so this ought to be interesting 👀*
After wiping away their tears, they turn their head sideways till their neck cracks. "I love truth or dare! I'm kind of tempted to say both, just for the fun of it, so you get to choose..." They pause for a second before adding, "...broski."
*Yup!*
"Aris.... You're always chatting up the next new person, aren't you? I dare you to never flirt again."
*Flirting includes dating, general romancing etc*
*OH MY GOD*
"Oh, I thought you were gonna tell me to rip my wings off or something worse. What happens if I don't follow through with the dare, again?"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Darold the Mud Dauber says: _ _ it's still spooky season | )/ ) \\ |//,' it's always spooky season (")(_)---"()=--(\\ \)
*Like I said, truth is the wussy option. Dares are where it's at*
*Cruel. They had a character arc going! Steph, you need to ask Calo's consent before giving a character-changing dare like that. Otherwise you're being as bad as others I might name! Your choice affects Cyno's and Alaric's characters, LET ALONE Calo's. You need to talk with all three of them for that to be okay in the slightest.*
*Cruel. They had a character arc going! Steph, you need to ask Calo's consent before giving a character-changing dare like that. Otherwise you're being as bad as others I might name! Your choice affects Cyno's and Alaric's characters, LET ALONE Calo's. You need to talk with all three of them for that to be okay in the slightest.*
*That's why I made sure to be clear you can turn down these dares. They can choose to pass on the dare and get locked up, in which case we'll work through an escape sequence and they won't get the boon. It's up to Calo*
*Cruel. They had a character arc going! Steph, you need to ask Calo's consent before giving a character-changing dare like that. Otherwise you're being as bad as others I might name! Your choice affects Cyno's and Alaric's characters, LET ALONE Calo's. You need to talk with all three of them for that to be okay in the slightest.*
*That's why I made sure to be clear you can turn down these dares. They can choose to pass on the dare and get locked up, in which case we'll work through an escape sequence and they won't get the boon. It's up to Calo*
*You weren't very clear that you'd make an escape attempt possible. In fact, to me at least, you made it sound impossible. I'm sorry for leaping down your throat but hells I am emotionally uptight for personal reasons rn so eep*
*Cruel. They had a character arc going! Steph, you need to ask Calo's consent before giving a character-changing dare like that. Otherwise you're being as bad as others I might name! Your choice affects Cyno's and Alaric's characters, LET ALONE Calo's. You need to talk with all three of them for that to be okay in the slightest.*
*That's why I made sure to be clear you can turn down these dares. They can choose to pass on the dare and get locked up, in which case we'll work through an escape sequence and they won't get the boon. It's up to Calo*
*Tbh, I have a plan lmao and I wanna see if it works* *If it doesn't work then I'm totally fine with the dungeon thing, it sounds fun! And I 100% willingly chose to give that kind of option to Steph, and my man did you deliver that dare is hilarious omg*
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Darold the Mud Dauber says: _ _ it's still spooky season | )/ ) \\ |//,' it's always spooky season (")(_)---"()=--(\\ \)
"Oh, I thought you were gonna tell me to rip my wings off or something worse. What happens if I don't follow through with the dare, again?"
"You get locked up in the dungeons."
"And where are these dungeons, exactly? How long do I have to do this in order to get out of here? I'm just kind of confused on what the conditions are and how you'll be monitoring them."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Darold the Mud Dauber says: _ _ it's still spooky season | )/ ) \\ |//,' it's always spooky season (")(_)---"()=--(\\ \)
*You weren't very clear that you'd make an escape attempt possible. In fact, to me at least, you made it sound impossible. I'm sorry for leaping down your throat but hells I am emotionally uptight for personal reasons rn so eep*
*Well, they can. It'll take a good chunk of gaming to work through and there's no reward at the end, but it's a valid option*
"And where are these dungeons, exactly? How long do I have to do this in order to get out of here? I'm just kind of confused on what the conditions are and how you'll be monitoring them."
"It's permanent, I'm afraid. As for telling you where the dungeons are, I think I'll pass. May as well give you the keys to the cell next."
*Tbh, I have a plan lmao and I wanna see if it works* *If it doesn't work then I'm totally fine with the dungeon thing, it sounds fun! And I 100% willingly chose to give that kind of option to Steph, and my man did you deliver that dare is hilarious omg*
*😁 Glad you liked it. Their truth was hella boring ngl, I struggled to think of anything*
"And where are these dungeons, exactly? How long do I have to do this in order to get out of here? I'm just kind of confused on what the conditions are and how you'll be monitoring them."
"It's permanent, I'm afraid. As for telling you where the dungeons are, I think I'll pass. May as well give you the keys to the cell next."
Aris shrugs again. "Fair enough. Let's see how long I last." Their face drops into a frown. "Wait, that means I have to talk to Vio and Tanyre, right? Oh no..."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Darold the Mud Dauber says: _ _ it's still spooky season | )/ ) \\ |//,' it's always spooky season (")(_)---"()=--(\\ \)
*Tbh, I have a plan lmao and I wanna see if it works* *If it doesn't work then I'm totally fine with the dungeon thing, it sounds fun! And I 100% willingly chose to give that kind of option to Steph, and my man did you deliver that dare is hilarious omg*
*😁 Glad you liked it. Their truth was hella boring ngl, I struggled to think of anything*
*WAIT WHAT WAS THE TRUTH?? Now I wanna know*
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Darold the Mud Dauber says: _ _ it's still spooky season | )/ ) \\ |//,' it's always spooky season (")(_)---"()=--(\\ \)
*Tbh, I have a plan lmao and I wanna see if it works* *If it doesn't work then I'm totally fine with the dungeon thing, it sounds fun! And I 100% willingly chose to give that kind of option to Steph, and my man did you deliver that dare is hilarious omg*
*😁 Glad you liked it. Their truth was hella boring ngl, I struggled to think of anything*
Aris shrugs again. "Fair enough. Let's see how long I last." Their face drops into a frown. "Wait, that means I have to talk to Vio and Tanyre, right? Oh no..."
*Just to make things clear, breaking the terms of the dare once you've left Hell will work as follows:
- some unspecified bad thing I haven't determined yet starts happening, you'll probably have to travel back here in order to negotiate smth with Lucifer to stop it from happening and appease him. Ofc Aris knows none of this IC
And it won't kick in on Aris' clones until Aris gets back because they have no way of knowing about the dare*
Lucifer gives him a nod and says, "And for your parting gift, dude?"
Aris shrugs again. "Fair enough. Let's see how long I last." Their face drops into a frown. "Wait, that means I have to talk to Vio and Tanyre, right? Oh no..."
*Just to make things clear, breaking the terms of the dare once you've left Hell will work as follows:
- some unspecified bad thing I haven't determined yet starts happening, you'll probably have to travel back here in order to negotiate smth with Lucifer to stop it from happening and appease him. Ofc Aris knows none of this IC
And it won't kick in on Aris' clones until Aris gets back because they have no way of knowing about the dare*
Lucifer gives him a nod and says, "And for your parting gift, dude?"
*What if Aris never tells their clones? Or never returns to the tavern?*
"Parting gift?"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Darold the Mud Dauber says: _ _ it's still spooky season | )/ ) \\ |//,' it's always spooky season (")(_)---"()=--(\\ \)
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*Can Alloy gain a level up - as 6th level druid, they only get a single feature and a spell but I think those are quaint and really are thematic to Alloy*
Frequent Eladrin || They/Them, but accept all pronouns
Luz Noceda would like to remind you that you're worth loving!
*Oh. My. Gods.*
Frequent Eladrin || They/Them, but accept all pronouns
Luz Noceda would like to remind you that you're worth loving!
*For sure!*
Lucifer throws them the horns and they fall to their knees. He picks up his guitar and begins riffing on 'Paradise City' by Guns N' Roses. Something blooms in them listening to that song. When they stand up, the power of rock music has deepened their understanding of themselves and their power
Chilling kinda vibe.
*Like I said, truth is the wussy option. Dares are where it's at*
Chilling kinda vibe.
*OH MY GOD*
"Oh, I thought you were gonna tell me to rip my wings off or something worse. What happens if I don't follow through with the dare, again?"
*Cruel. They had a character arc going! Steph, you need to ask Calo's consent before giving a character-changing dare like that. Otherwise you're being as bad as others I might name! Your choice affects Cyno's and Alaric's characters, LET ALONE Calo's. You need to talk with all three of them for that to be okay in the slightest.*
Frequent Eladrin || They/Them, but accept all pronouns
Luz Noceda would like to remind you that you're worth loving!
*That's why I made sure to be clear you can turn down these dares. They can choose to pass on the dare and get locked up, in which case we'll work through an escape sequence and they won't get the boon. It's up to Calo*
Chilling kinda vibe.
"You get locked up in the dungeons."
Chilling kinda vibe.
*You weren't very clear that you'd make an escape attempt possible. In fact, to me at least, you made it sound impossible. I'm sorry for leaping down your throat but hells I am emotionally uptight for personal reasons rn so eep*
Frequent Eladrin || They/Them, but accept all pronouns
Luz Noceda would like to remind you that you're worth loving!
*Tbh, I have a plan lmao and I wanna see if it works*
*If it doesn't work then I'm totally fine with the dungeon thing, it sounds fun! And I 100% willingly chose to give that kind of option to Steph, and my man did you deliver that dare is hilarious omg*
"And where are these dungeons, exactly? How long do I have to do this in order to get out of here? I'm just kind of confused on what the conditions are and how you'll be monitoring them."
*Well, they can. It'll take a good chunk of gaming to work through and there's no reward at the end, but it's a valid option*
Chilling kinda vibe.
"It's permanent, I'm afraid. As for telling you where the dungeons are, I think I'll pass. May as well give you the keys to the cell next."
Chilling kinda vibe.
*😁 Glad you liked it. Their truth was hella boring ngl, I struggled to think of anything*
Chilling kinda vibe.
Aris shrugs again. "Fair enough. Let's see how long I last." Their face drops into a frown. "Wait, that means I have to talk to Vio and Tanyre, right? Oh no..."
*WAIT WHAT WAS THE TRUTH?? Now I wanna know*
*I wanna know Alloy's dare!*
Frequent Eladrin || They/Them, but accept all pronouns
Luz Noceda would like to remind you that you're worth loving!
*Just to make things clear, breaking the terms of the dare once you've left Hell will work as follows:
- some unspecified bad thing I haven't determined yet starts happening, you'll probably have to travel back here in order to negotiate smth with Lucifer to stop it from happening and appease him. Ofc Aris knows none of this IC
And it won't kick in on Aris' clones until Aris gets back because they have no way of knowing about the dare*
Lucifer gives him a nod and says, "And for your parting gift, dude?"
Chilling kinda vibe.
*When the encounter is over, I'll share them, I promise 👍
Edit: but alloy had a really cool dare that I don't they could've gone through with*
Chilling kinda vibe.
*What if Aris never tells their clones? Or never returns to the tavern?*
"Parting gift?"