Anna
Abstral nodded at Kuouo's reply before following Ochre out of the respite, putting the hood of his cloak up the protect against the cold.

Abstral listened in as Ochre filled them in on one of the vital end goals of this plan, to get this Cherei to go into this sacred pond no matter how so that she could take royal status.



They had only the Knight, Taash, to guide them now and as she ushered them on towards the wall, Abstral spoke.

```"Ahem, forgive me for stopping us so soon, madam, but I could not help but hear that in speaking about making this Cherei go into this sacred pond, that if worse comes to worse, we'd have to forcefully take her there. If this is to become necessary I believe I can be of service."```

Abstral stopped, holding his hands apart and focusing as a white chain began materializing from the space between his hands.

```"One of my many abilities is to create magical, but still tangible, chains, and I have indeed had to use them for means of subduing foes in the past. If needed, I can use them to bind and capture this Cherei so we can take her to this holy pond without knocking her out, which is what I'm sure was originally meant by "Incapacitating her". " ```

To demonstrate, Abstral flicked his right hand towards his left arm, the chain expanding and flying to wrap around his left arm as he drew his right hand in a circle.

```"I can only keep the chains summoned for a few minutes however, that is but the only drawback."``` 

He said, unsummoning them of his own volition.
Kathryn
Despite the bitter winds that rushed in through the open doorway, a flaming determination burned within all inside the respite. And although doubtfulness and the prospect of failure seemed to also share the horizon of a free Second Floor, the door was already open with their plans set in motion. There was absolutely no turning back now.

. . .

Ochre, ready to act on his half of the mission, quickly answered the bandit's question before bidding farewell, designating Taash to fill in the finer details of their mission. The heir took a few steps outside of the respite, exposing the bandit to a familiar, yet equally-as-strange arcane darkness — a peculiarity shared with **V**Aazva during their last few moments on the First Floor. Taash, in a similar fashion, would cast a shroud of darkness around herself as well, allowing enough space for the two to follow and share the cloak as they began their voyage towards the wall. Due to Ochre's haste, Abstral was unable to demonstrate his own plans if their initial plan failed but still took care in explaining it to the other two he shared company with.

```fix
"That's actually kinda neat an' all, but I gotta say, y'shouldn't rely on that plan all too much. It's good t' have, don't get me wrong, but the Vektet has some of the strangest magic I've seen inna good while. Everyone 'ere from bar owners t' alchemists t' the actual knights are far above normal human strength an' what not. This Cherei bein' the first heir is more than likely indicative of a long fight if it comes t' it..."```

Kuouo rises his brow, almost if reminded about something.

```fix
"Speakin' of, o' course, I ain't gonna try t' fight against these guys if I don't have to, buuut, Ochre was talkin' about a couple possible roadblocks 'r rather three heirs in the Lunar Harem."```

He said, referring to Tokko, Eo, and Reuk.

```fix
"And so ya know, granted the possibility of not rationalizin' with them, if worse comes t' worst, what could we be expectin' Taash?"```
Kenneth
Taash's pace through the snowfield was fast, but not too fast so to be impossible to keep up with. The knight was — despite her lack of display toward such prowess — indeed superhuman, as many in the *Ark* Were. It would be no surprise if she were capable of going even twice as fast as her current pace, yet the knight was apparently burdened by something. It wasn't the snow, and neither was it her armor; it seemed that manifesting the tenebrous of the Waning Crescent, itself, harbored some sort of inhibition on her physical capacity.

Nonetheless, the pearl-clad knight continued to tread through the snowfield without hesitation. The darkness which clung to her figure extended outward, and engulfed even Abstral and Kuouo, enshrouding them both in the nigh-invisibility that Ochre had earlier demonstrated. What the heir spoke was true: his ability was likely the greatest amongst the Harem's to evade Cherei's greatarrows of silver.

They could proceed through the snowfield, uncontested by anything except the natural elements.

*`"Wouldn't hurt to have around."`*

Taash responded rather briefly to Abstral's demonstration, only briefly peeking her shoulder to see what sort of magic he was performing.

*`"But I wouldn't rely on it."`*

*`"Cherei..."`*

_ _

The knight's glare shifted upward, toward the vast wall which they approached. Atop it, at its apex, and positioned directly over the gate, there was a glint of silver light. A light that could be seen even beyond the blizzard and even beyond the darkness which shrouded them — a light of that insurmountable guardian, whose cold nature was like that of the Full Moon's...



*`"...Is a monster."`*




The statement was blunt, yet honest, and held suppressed, subtle traces of nervousness within its articulation. Taash's voice rang with such a sentiment that it felt as though she spoke from experience. Her hand clutched tight the sheath of her blade, and a lingering moment of silence contrastingly proceeded her swift answer of Abstral's demonstration. A moment was allowed for naught but the sound of wind and snow beneath their feet as a response to Kuouo's question; she did not speak a word for moments on end.
_ _

Cherei's mentioning roused a faint, and purposefully concealed tendencies of discomfort within the knight's demeanor.
Still, Kuouo's question was valid, and it could not be left answered, if she sought for him to be a worthwhile co-conspirator in their plan of insurrection. As the three grew imminent in their approach toward the great wall, Taash finally gave an answer to his question after an awkward interval.

*`"Tokko shouldn't be an issue."`*
*`"She's not an enemy to our ideology. She's obstinate and distastes the nobility, but she's a fair judge."`*
*`"She probably spites Tvoktei as much as he does. That Ochre."`*

*`"Reuk is less forgiving."`*
*`"I don't know anything about her besides what Ochre has said in passing remark, but she's unpleasant."`*
*`"'Driven by vengefulness'. That's what he said."`*
*`"But that vengefulness is directed toward Tvoktei."`*
*`"I would prefer for Ochre to talk to her, instead. But we don't have a choice."`*
*`"Try to be reverential. She's a volatile person."`*
*`"If she becomes a problem, we won't be fighting her. Her blessing of Luna manipulates death. It won't end well."`*
*`"She won't be easy to persuade. Still, she won't side with the Sovereign."`*

*`"Eo may be the biggest issue."`*
*`"She's very odd, and she's said to have an obsession with Tvoktei."`*
*`"Not many people directly interact with her, so she's an enigma."`*
*`"I don't think persuading her will go very smoothly, but she should at least understand that we're not trying to kill Tvoktei."`*
*`"I don't know what her blessing entails. The Waning Gibbous' ability is ill-recorded. I don't doubt that I could best her in combat, though."`*
_ _

The knight's descriptions were neither grand nor exceptionally detailed, and yet they were serviceable. Since Taash was going to be operating alongside them, whatever further information they needed, she could provide — she simply didn't find it necessary to go beyond rudimentary descriptions. Talking was indeed not in her nature, and especially not talking about other people, specifically.



— 



**The three arrived at the great wall.** Offset quite some distance east from its central gate, it seemed an impossibility to travel beyond it — there were no cracks, no holes, no secret entries, and no tools for them to use. To go over, it was a precarious, thirty-meter climb on a mostly-smooth surface, in the midst of a blizzard, with one of their members being clad in full plate armor. *An impossibility.* There was, here, no physical means to travel beyond the wall.

*Magically,* However...

The blessing of tenebrous that enshrouded Taash's, Kuouo's, and Abstral's bodies dissipated, before honing itself around the knight's left hand. She released the grip of her sheathed blade, and pressed her palm firmly against the wall, seemingly preparing a sort of spell that employed the strange, miraculous, and dark energies of the shadowy blessing. Peering over her shoulder, she stared from beyond her visor toward Kuouo and Abstral, and curtly spoke:

*`"Stand against the wall."`*
***`"This will hurt."`***

...She spoke, rather forebodingly, as she clenched and unclenched her left hand, before pacing around and behind the two, with them inbetween her and the wall. She awaited their preparation, staring intently in her brief pause before proceeding with the plan.