we are not truly immortal

[dark_light]

After Glass's party is over with, Amariah and Kas go home.

Amariah fetches down their alethiometers.

"It's about time I took care of Alethia's afterlife, whatever it may be," she says quietly. "What can the alethiometer tell you about what I'll find?"

Comments

[dark_light]

Amariah spares a split-second link-check that he's torched and reset properly, and then she's fighting.

She was "not embarrassing" with this dagger (this blessed, witch's dagger) when she could barely walk down a sidewalk without going sprawling.

Now she's in flight, and the dagger is slightly more magical than it was then, and she is very, very annoyed.

[pythbox]

The strange angel is every bit as solid as a human, and he's fast, and strong, and angry.

Which makes it more or less an even fight.

[dark_light]

Amariah's invulnerable unless she chooses not to be and even a lethal hit would only delay her for a second while she torched; he can move her around, but not really damage her. That doesn't mean he couldn't pin her and make her life unpleasant, though; she pretends to need to dodge strikes, until a key moment when she doesn't, and she permits a blow to the back of her neck that pitches all her weight behind a dagger-thrust to his gut.

"Surrender," she suggests. This wound would kill a human, but not instantly.

[pythbox]

"Die," snarls the angel, and he starts glowing again.

[dark_light]

She jerks the dagger across, down, out, and across his throat.

[pythbox]

The angel... dissolves.

[truthwright]

Kas... watches.

[dark_light]

"There," says Amariah, and she whirls in midair, looking to see if any other angels are approaching.

[truthwright]

None.

But Kas is looking at her.

[dark_light]

She winks.

[lifes_sake]

Cam catches up.

"Shit," he says. "That didn't go well. Okay. Next stop, summit?"

[dark_light]

Amariah nods.

Bells fly up.

Aianon, if you'd like to tell them that I just killed the shouty glowy guy and see if that gets them to react, you may.

[truthwright]

Kas follows Bells!

[pythbox]

Soon they are totally enveloped in impenetrable fog.

[endragoned]

(Aianon would not like to tell the angels that thing.)

[dark_light]

Amariah flies with one hand held out in front of her, and slows down; she doesn't want to run facefirst into a rock or another angel.

[pythbox]

Eventually, she does encounter a rock.

[dark_light]

She pats the rock, attempting to figure out how to go around.

[pythbox]

It is part of the mountainside.

But it is part of the mountainside at the very top, so it does not take all that long to feel her way around to something like a doorway.

The fog thins once they are inside, allowing them to see and hear for a few feet around.

[dark_light]

Amariah goes in first, dagger clutched in her hand.

[pythbox]

The fog thins, and thins, and at the end of the tunnel there is a room, and in the middle of the room there is a - thing.

It is made of transparent crystal that catches the dim light and sparkles brilliantly, and it is absolutely without a gap or break of any kind, and there is an angel inside, small and old and wrinkled and faded almost to nothing.

[dark_light]

"...Hello," tries Amariah.

[pythbox]

No reaction.

[dark_light]

[Hello.]

[pythbox]

He shivers, startled.

[What? Who are you?]

His voice, even over brainphone, is as faint and old and faded as the rest of him.