//------------------------------// // Trial Four: Towerfall // Story: Born In Light, Forged In Darkness // by Jest //------------------------------// So are we going to talk about the fact that you know he's sending us in the wrong direction? Rainbow Dash remarked dryly as the demon tucked in her wings in and dove through a hole in the makeshift defences erected by their enemies. Behind her, Kanathara leaped into the air and extended her legs forwards and back, slipping through the same hole. Pythias mentioned that we would have to follow his command even when he couldn't look me in the eye, and he did just that. Rainbow Dash grunted as she catapulted off the face of a succubus and launched a torrent of hellfire into the face of an unsuspecting hatred demon, causing the towering pile of muscle and metal to collapse to the ground, its body twitching as its skull dripped onto the floor. Still, you have to admit, this doesn't feel right, and I’m not just talking about the fact that we are getting summoned to Equestria somehow. Kanathara frowned as well, idly bating aside a fireball tossed her way before launching a lance of hardened magic directly through her attacker’s face. I don't like it either, but she's always tried to help us for some reason, and I have a feeling she is finally going to tell us about her past, the keeper thought back as she erected a wall of magic, shielding her familiar from a sloth demon who had been about to plunge a serrated dagger through the vengant’s back. Thanks, Rainbow Dash replied before spinning around and kicking the weapon from the demon’s hand and following up the spin with kick so powerful the demon’s head rotated completely backwards. Still, I just wish we could fight without having to worry about traps and other bullshit for once. Just a straight up fight with no hidden clauses and no stupid surprises. Careful, Rainbow Dash, Kanathara began, before pausing to conjure a box of glowing purple magic which she used to squish a cowardly gluttony demon into a fine green paste. You just might get what you wish for. “Yeah yeah, even you have to admit it would be a nice change of pace,” Rainbow Dash remarked as she trotted up to the succubus who had been trying to crawl away. “Wait, I give up! I can give you-” the succubus screeched, before Rainbow Dash’s hooves caved in her skull and ceased her desperate cries of mercy. “Just shut up and die already,” Rainbow Dash muttered, the vengant taking a step back to wipe the brain matter from her hooves. “We have to keep moving,” Kanathara reminded, the keeper giving her own body a brief shake before sprinting down the hall. “Every second we waste is more enemies in our way.” Rainbow Dash sighed and rolled her eyes. “Yeah yeah, I’m on my way. I just got a bit of bone stuck in my hoof and-” Whatever the vengant had been about to say was cut off by an earth-shaking roar, which reverberated in the demons’ very bones, making both stop and stare in the direction it had come from. “Wow, they must be giving even Balam a run for his money,” Kanathara murmured, the keeper remembering well the voice of the massive demon. “Sheesh, I don't even wanna know what's able to keep up with him,” Rainbow Dash remarked. Kanathara nodded dumbly before turning and proceeding deeper into the floor, both demons sprinting down the surprisingly empty hallways. The sounds of fighting which had been nearly omnipresent up until this point suddenly fell away, leaving behind only an eerie silence that made both demons glance nervously to their sides every few seconds. Though the halls were littered with the dead from both sides, most corpses were fresh, indicating that something had come through recently but hadn't stopped long enough to loot the fallen. The fact that a demon hadn't looted an unguarded corpse made the hairs on Kanathara’s neck stick up and the keeper wasn't sure if it was a good sign, or a terrible one. “Wait, you hear that?” muttered Rainbow Dash, the vengant stopping in the middle of an intersection and rising to the tips of her hooves. “I don't… wait, I do,” Kanathara muttered, her sharper senses picking up the distant sounds of battle from somewhere ahead. “Come on, it's in the same direction as the array, we might be able to get some backup,” Rainbow Dash announced before breaking into a sprint and leaping into the air. Kanathara nodded, her hooves keeping pace with the short, rapid flaps of her winged companion. Though normally the keeper of secrets would take the time to silently marvel at the vengant’s amazing talent of flying in such cramped space, Kanathara had far too much on her mind to stare at her familiar’s butt this time. “Up ahead, to the right,” Rainbow Dash pointed out. “I hear it, lead the way, Rainbow Dash,” Kanathara replied. Both demons poured on the speed, each one pumping their limbs as hard as possible as they neared the source of the cacophony of steel on steel. “Must be a lot of them fighting, that's a ton of parrying going on,” Rainbow Dash remarked idly as they turned one final turn. Kanathara’s response died in her throat the second she saw a great mass of demons all arrayed before her, each one armed and armored and seemingly waiting in line, their back to her. Though some did so patiently, there were others who were attempting to tear their way through friend and foe alike in order to ensure they were able to reach the fray as soon as possible. Little was viewable through the thick mass of demon flesh, though what they were able to see gave both quadrupeds hope, and a sliver of fear. The corpses of their enemies littered the floor, in addition to many, many bodies who bore the horned seal that marked them as her father’s soldiers. That fear didn't last long though, as there were enemies just ahead, and they had the element of surprise. Close burst spear, I’ll follow with a fireball, Kanathara commanded. Rainbow Dash nodded, summoned forth a black spear which had a far thicker head than normal and pulled it back, waiting for the signal. When that signal came, both spear and spell alike flew towards their enemies, with the spear being the first to reach the enemy demons’ line, showering the closest of them with numerous shards of obsidian. The perforated demons had little chance to react before the fireball detonated in their midst, severing limbs and ending lives in a twenty foot area around its epicentre. The result was immediate, with the remaining demons not engaged in melee already spinning around and immediately charging over the corpses of their fellows. For a moment Kanathara silently wished she was fighting something that gave a shit about their friends, as it would have made the fight she knew was coming far easier. The keeper lit her horn and began casting another spell while Rainbow Dash plunged forward, another spear appearing in her grip a second before it was plunged straight through the belly of a rotund mancubus. A wound which would normally be little more than a minor injury had the spear not severed its spine and left the massive demon unable to use its arms or legs. Though the fat creature temporarily blocked the hall with its inert girth, the reprieve granted by the impromptu wall didn't last long as a towering revenant tore its way through the mancubus’ body and sprinted directly at the pair. The blood and viscera of the mancubus hung from the revenant’s skeletal body, not slowing the demonic creature in the slightest as it raised an enormous greatsword and leaped directly at the airborne vengant. The attack which would have been blindly fast to most was nothing to the vengant though. She pulled her body out of the way of the blade by flying backwards and launching herself off the wall. With all this newfound momentum Rainbow Dash surged forward, behind the revenant’s guard and directly into the creature’s neck, using her forelimbs to tear through the creature’s exposed throat. As the skeletal corpse fell to the floor a trio of imps of various elemental association ran screaming past their dying comrade, each one making a beeline for the keeper at the back of the fight. Though Rainbow Dash had the speed to deal with the trio, a mental command held her back and turned the vengant’s ire towards a towering hate demon covered head to toe in intricately branded red plate mail. With a smirk on her face, the winged demon lurched towards her next target, trusting fully in her partner’s ability to fend for herself. Kanathara was instantly able to recognize that the imps were bright blue, teal and blood red, indicating that they were likely ice, lightning and blood imps respectfully. A mental nudge was all it took to change the ball of lighting she had been ready to cast into a spray of deadly acid, ensuring that she was able to remove all three threats in a single foul swoop. Something that was easily done after she released the spell and conjured a small wave of acid that swept over the screaming imps and turned the tiny demons to soup. The keeper smirked inwardly, silently amazed their fights had been as easy as they were so far. Apparently this was enough of a temptation for fate to intervene however, and from behind the grinning keeper slunk a long and unnatural shadow. The shadow creature paused just long enough to berate its own poor luck, for it didn't have the time to dominate and kill the keeper itself. With a sigh, Stygian stretched his perfectly flat body over a nearby wall, and silently wished the demon he brought forth from the dark of its own body the best of luck before slipping away. Leaving a very tall, and confident pride demon standing behind the unwitting keeper, undetected and with the element of surprise firmly in his hands. Thankfully for Kanathara, the pride demon wasn't as quiet as it thought it was, as its foot kicked a spare sword it hadn't noticed, alerting the keeper to its presence a second before it cursed and launched a simple firebolt at her. Ducking out of the way, Kanathara erected a hasty wall of force that diverted the next two firebolts before shattering when a trio of lightning bolts exploded across its glowing exterior. Grunting in pain, the keeper of secrets backpedalled rapidly, putting distance between herself and the approaching pride demon. Who was more than happy to toy with the surprised keeper by raising some of the dead that littered the floor and conjuring a wave of static electricity that made the other demon’s hair stand on end. With her muscles twitching randomly and no longer obeying her call, Kanathara focused all her magic on creating as strong a barrier as possible, holding back the trio of half melted imps that slammed into it. As well as an explosion of heat that vaporized the dead imps and made Kanathara’s wall crack. “I need some help over here!” she yelled. “Kinda busy right now,” Rainbow Dash replied, ducking under the swipe from a sickle before pulling her hooves out of the way of a mace. “I can't wait to bring your head back to the boss,” the pride demon taunted, his long flowing black robes now tainted with singed viscera and the blood of his allies. “I wonder if I can keep you alive while you are only a head? I can't wait to find out.’ Kanathara tossed a weak trio of mana bolts at the pride demon while doing her best to reinforce her shield spell. The mana bolts she had hoped would give her time to react were utterly ignored by the other demon, who simply stepped through them, an amulet around his neck glowing brightly as the spells dissipated the second they touched him. With a sneer, the pride demon lurched forward, fingers spread and palm glowing brightly with a sickly green light. Though Kanathara’s knowledge was great enough to be able to tell what attack was coming, it was not so great that she was able to come up with a counterspell in what little time she had. Relying solely on her own vastly larger well of power, the keeper poured everything she had into her shield a second before a ray of acid impacted it and sent a shudder down the keeper’s spine. The effect was immediate, and the shield began to crack and splinter under the force of the spell, pieces of hardened magic flying off and dissipating into nothing. “Help!” Kanathar screamed, forced to put everything she had into merely keeping the ray at bay. “Your ally is occupied, you are alone, and you will die alone,” the pride demon taunted, stalking slowly forward as he conjured forth another duo of undead demons. Though her own defence was desperate and untenable, the keeper had a larger reserve of power than most, and though the blow had initially crippled her defences, she was able to keep her shield from being damaged further by brute forcing more mana into it. With a desperate plan forming in her mind, Kanathara glanced back at Rainbow Dash just in time to notice the vengant being knocked back by a mace strike to the torso. The keeper winced in shared pain, but knew better than to despair, as her familiar’s scales were more than enough to damper the majority of the blow. More interesting than even Rainbow Dash’s desperate fight was what was happening beyond her, where Kanathara saw a trio of enemy demons desperately fighting a whirling mass of shining metal and only barely keeping it at bay. Spinning back to her own opponent, Kanathara noticed that he had raised his other hand and was about to conjure a second ray of acid. With panic fueling her spell casting, Kanathara quickly erected a secondary barrier, only for a sudden tug to make it shatter as her concentration wavered. No, not know! cried the demon. Despite her cry, the summoning continued unabated, making the demon’s head pound and the pinching sensation to return with a vengeance. Unable to deal with everything that was going on, Kanathara’s shield fell and she tumbled to the floor, only dodging the beam of acid by pure chance. Behind her, Rainbow Dash’s eyes went wide. “Kanathara, no!” With desperation fueling her attacks, the vengant thrust forward over and over, attempting to overpower her attacker or at least drive him back enough to allow her to aid the fallen keeper. The multi-limbed demon she fought against did not relent however, accepting the shallow blows with ease, the creature trusting in its armor which was more than enough to take the strikes. The pride demon smirked triumphantly and dismissed the ray of acid before conjuring forth a glowing orb of the stuff which he hovered over the fallen keeper’s body. “Now then. Let the experiment commence,” he announced. At the very moment the demon’s twisted desires were about to be fulfilled, they were dashed as a dagger flew between the vengant and her opponent and directly into the shoulder of the grinning pride demon. With a cry of rage the demon’s spell went wide and landed a few feet away from the writhing keeper of secrets. The pride demon hardly had the time to turn towards his opponent before two more daggers forced him to dismiss his offensive spells in favor of defensive ones. The metal weapons clattered against the quickly conjured shield and saved the pride demon from having his eyes replaced with blades. With a wave of his hand he commanded both revenant and mancubus alike to shamble before him, erecting a wall of undead demon flesh between him and his unseen opponent. Kanathara was barely able to look up at her savior before a blurred, vaguely metallic form leapt over her and engaged her former opponent, leaving a limping Rainbow Dash and a very dead hatebound in its wake. Both vengant and keeper alike could do little but watch in shock when the blurred form of a familiar armor demon rocketed past them both, his sole remaining arm raised high and clutching a long katana in his iron grip. With two short slashes the undead demons were bisected and out of his way, opening up the pride demon to Cervantes’ wrath. Though the cruel pride demon was able to raise a shield of his own and launch a counterattack, both actions did little to help it, as the flat of Cervantes’ blade turned aside the bolt of fire before coming down with enough force to shatter the shield. Stumbling backwards, the pride demon threw up both his hands and attempted to cast a wave of force, only to find that his hands were suddenly no longer connected to his body. The demon didn't even have the chance to beg for his life before his head was removed from his body, and Cervantes stood over his twitching form. “Woah,” Rainbow Dash muttered. “Woah is right,” Kanathara agreed, one hoof pressed against the side of her head. “Thanks for the assistance, Cervantes.” The armor demon wiped what little blood was on his blade using the dead demon’s black robes before kicking over the body and turning around. Giving the two demons a good look at his damaged form and making them both wince in shared sympathy. Dents, missing pieces and holes littered the demon’s form, exposing the glowing soul energy within. Though nothing seemed life threatening, the demon was also not only missing his left arm but a good chunk of the grill from his helmet as well, leaving him in a pitiable state. “You good, boss?” Rainbow Dash asked, offering the still slumped keeper a hoof. “Yeah I’m fine, the summoning spiked again but it's not as bad now,” Kanathara remarked with a grimace. “Good, ‘cause I think Cervantes wants us to move,” Rainbow Dash replied, gesturing to said demon. The armor demon grabbed a spare sword from the ground and tucked it into an extra sheath before pointing down a side hall. The keeper sighed, and used her familiar in order to get into a standing position once more. “Alright, let's get moving before more of them show up.” Cervantes took point, with Kanathara close behind him, and Rainbow Dash behind her, the vengant keeping an eye on their rear while her own minor injuries slowly healed. Though Kanathara noticed that most of Cervantes’ injuries were healing quickly, some weren’t able to, making the keeper of secrets begin to wonder if his body was beyond the point of repair. Stowing away that bit of worrying for now, she kept close on the bipedal demon’s heels, glancing nervously around the empty halls. The sounds of battle were still present, but had receded into the distance, allowing the three demons to relax, albeit only slightly. Still, the reprieve was a welcome one, giving them the time they needed to heal almost completely from the minor injuries they had sustained by the time they reached their destination. Which was a large ornate steel door with a small circular window at Cervantes’ head height. The armor demon jogged up to it and waved his one remaining hand over it, prompting the metal door to glow faintly before becoming inert once more. Cervantes turned and gave his charges a confident nod before taking a step back, and out of the way. “I think it's secure,” Kanathara translated. “Can you get it open Rainbow Dash?” The vengant scoffed. “Of course, just stand back and let me handle this.” The winged demon reached up and yanked hard on the handle, only for the metal door to groan but otherwise remain in the same exact spot. “Gimme a sec,” Rainbow Dash muttered before rubbing her forelimbs together and tugging once more. This time her efforts were rewarded with a grinding sound followed by a shrill screech and the opening of the metal door. “Ow,” Kanathara muttered, the demon rubbing her damaged ears. Rainbow Dash popped her head inside and looked around only to take a step back and shrug. “Looks secure, boss.” “Well that's something at least,” muttered the keeper. The grinding sound of metal on metal made both younger demons turn to Cervantes who was now crouched between them, his sword away and his hand extended. He leaned forward and pulled Rainbow Dash into a short hug, before doing the same to Kanathara, both other demons offering a weak squeeze in return before taking an awkward step back. “What was that for?” Rainbow Dash asked. “It doesn't matter what it's for,” Kanathara replied with a faint smile. “Thank you, Cervantes, for everything you've done for us over the years.” The armor demon rose back to his full height and pretended to wipe a nonexistent tear from his eye before pointing to the open door and turning away. Kanathara smiled and nodded one last time, turning to the door and stepping into the next room. Rainbow Dash followed close behind her mistress, the vengant giving the armor demon one last salute before the steel door slammed shut behind them. “Well, what do we do now?” Rainbow Dash asked as she looked around the room. The center of the room was dominated by a large magical array that vaguely resembled a tree due to its many branches. Long skinny arms extended from a central mass at random angles, long wires emerging from the base and extending to the tips of the arms where they connected to glowing circular objects. Though Kanathara had a good idea how the entire structure worked, the finer minute details of how the object functioned was beyond even her understanding. All she knew was that if this thing was destroyed, they would be able to be summoned away from the tower and to any other plane of existence, binding the summoned demon’s soul to that plane temporarily. “Wait, this thing doesn't look busted,” Rainbow Dash remarked angrily, giving the base of the array an angry kick. “I know. Father sent us here as a last resort,” Kanathara began with a sad sigh. “He will no doubt ask us to destroy it the second the tower is lost, enabling us all to escape to another plane.” The vengant grumbled silently and plunked down on the floor, her forelimbs crossed over her chest. “Well, I don't like it. This whole stupid thing is stupid.” Kanathara rolled her eyes and sat down beside her familiar, the keeper of secrets resting her head on her friend’s side. “I know, Rainbow Dash, I know. Hopefully soon you’ll get the honorable fight you’ve been looking for.” “I better,” grumbled the vengeant, before perking up suddenly. “Wait, Cervantes!” The winged demon surged back to her hooves and leapt over to the door, the vengant’s face instantly plastered against the small window. Though the armor demon was alone for now, Rainbow Dash could see the familiar black shape of a certain shadow demon flitting down the hall, no doubt readying to summon forth another wave of enemies for him to face. Cervantes himself seemed to note this, but didn't ultimately seem to care, the armor demon turning back to the window and giving Rainbow Dash a salute before falling into his one handed stance and awaiting the arrival of his enemies. “I gotta help him!” Rainbow Dash declared before she began to tug at the door, only to find that all of her vaunted strength did nothing against the object. “He probably sealed us in here,” Kanathara remarked with a sad sigh. “Father no doubt gave him orders to defend the door until he either loses the tower, or figures out a way to best Starswirl.” “I will not sit here and watch him fight alone dammit!” Rainbow Dash growled, before her form dissipated into a smokey cloud which pressed against the edges of the steel door. Kanathara sighed and watched as her familiar tried in vain to slip through the non-existent cracks in the door. After watching the smoke cloud struggle for a minute, Kanathara rolled her eyes and stood up. “You are not going to get out that way,” she stated. The angry cloud reformed into the familiar shape of the vengant. “Augh!” she yelled before leaping back up and staring through the window. “I hate everything about today.” “Me too,” Kanathara replied sadly. The keeper turned away from her friend and towards the array, and more specifically the base of it, wherein she focused her magic and conjured forth a large explosive rune which was primed and ready, should they have need of it. With that done, she settled down against the far wall, sitting on the cold stone floor and letting her mind wander. “He's fighting more of them you know,” Rainbow Dash replied morosely. “There are only a few but I can see that stupid shadow prick coming back.” “I’m sure father will figure things out before Cervantes falls. Besides, he's the best fighter around save for maybe Balam, he’ll probably bring him back to Equestria with us,” Kanathara remarked with as much hope as she could muster. “I guess,” Rainbow Dash muttered. The silence of the room quickly settled in once more, the sealed door obscuring the tense battle happening only a few feet away. After giving her head a shake, Kanathara remembered her father’s last words and began to cast her scrying spell once more, silently hoping she wasn't too late. It took only a moment for the keeper to conjure the magical eye, and a second longer to push it through the wall, enabling her to observe the whirling mass of metal death that was Cervantes. Even with an arm missing the armor demon was more than a match for his opponents as he spun, kicked, slashed and otherwise dodged nearly everything while still managing to strike back at his numerous enemies. Though Kanathara wanted to watch the armor demon work, she knew it was a wasted effort, as there was little she could do to help, and remaining here would only hurt her heart in the end. Pushing the scrying spell upward, Kanathara urged the magical eye onwards, until the spell pierced the correct floor and showed her the large double doors of the main command room. Doors which were now lying inwards, having been blown off their hinges by some unseen force. Outside the room were numerous dead and dying demons of both sides, while enormous glowing hoofprints could be seen wading straight through the middle of the bodies. With worry weighing heavily in her heart, Kanathara pushed onwards, willing her scrying spell to enter the room and quickly look around. What she found did not give her the hope she so craved, as she beheld the scene of a bloody and devastating battle. The command table was utterly destroyed, as were most of the chairs, which littered the floor in the same way to the many corpses that were scattered everywhere. Though most bodies were of enemy demons, a good chunk of Tirek’s command staff lay all across the room, their bodies having been torn limb from bloody limb. Though the keeper was able to tell that Pear Butter, Tirek and Pythias were not among the slaughtered, the room’s destroyed state did much to stifle the hope she held. Through it all were the glowing hoof prints that lead from the entrance to the room and through the back of the room, where a wall had been destroyed. Opening the command room to a second space, a space where Kanathara could hear the sounds of battle rage within. Rushing after the glowing hoof prints, Kanathara hardly even noticed the fact that the ceiling was also partially melted from the same great heat which had left behind the prints. Slipping through the hole in the wall, Kanathara instantly noticed the new area as a minor training room for the officers of Tirek’s army, the tall ceilings and wide open space large enough to fit a towering Pear Butter who had grown significantly since last Kanathara had seen. Though enormous, and clearly enraged, the demon hadn't lost herself in the haze of anger like she had nearly twenty years ago, and continually put herself between a slightly taller Tirek, an unconscious Pythias, and an enormous and strange-looking demon which stood across from them. The creature had hooved feet and had the vague shape of a minotaur, with the bottom half of its body hair replaced by flames. From its knees upward natural armored plates grew from its flesh and covered nearly every inch of it save for its enormous clawed hands and eyes. Even its mouth was obscured behind a pair of plates that slid closed over the rest of its facial features, save for the massive horns which grew from either side of its head and pointed forward. Between these plates erupted a steady stream of fire hot enough to make even Pear Butter keep her distance. “A baron…” Kanathara whispered in fear. The massive creature was clearly injured, missing several fingers, a horn, and one of its eyes had been gouged out but that was nothing compared to the numerous injuries that both Pear Butter and Tirek sported. Injuries that Kanathara didn't have time to inspect as the baron let loose a primal cry of rage and leapt forward, grappling with Pear Butter who despite her superior size seemed to genuinely struggle with the smaller creature. While the two fought, Tirek remained off to the side, the centaur casting some sort of spell that required a long time to complete. While he did this the baron scrambled and scraped to get past Pear Butter, knowing full well that the completion of Tirek’s spell would mark his doom. Yet even with desperation fueling his attacks the baron of tartarus was unable to brush past the wrath demon who kept him locked firmly in place. In the end Pear Butter suffered numerous small injuries but was successful in her attempt to keep the baron pinned until Tirek finally let loose his spell. With a crack boom a bolt of black lightning erupted from the centaur’s fingers a second after Pear Butter lurched back, barely avoiding the strange bolt of lightning streaking towards their enemy. Where Kanathara assumed the bolt would harmlessly dissipate across the creature’s plated exterior, the bolt blew apart the baron’s body, sending viscera flying in all directions. Pear Butter limped over to Tirek and seemed to whisper something to the centaur, who was clutching a deep wound in his right arm. With a sigh, the centaur seemed to agree with her before waving a glowing hand and casting a short spell. “The tower is being abandoned, destroy the array and rendezvous with us in Ghastly Gorge,” Tirek commanded. “Quickly, before we are overrun and the tower implodes on itself.” The voice of her father emanated directly from the array itself, meaning he had cast the spell on the structure well in advance, the centaur having apparently seen this eventuality coming. Kanathara sighed and shook her head slowly, the demon crawling back into a stand and trotting over to her familiar. “He's about to be killed, you know,” Rainbow Dash murmured. “I know,” Kanathara replied. “I’m sorry about being so angry today.” “Don't worry, Rainbow, I understand.” The vengant sighed and fell from her perch. “I guess you want me back, eh?” Kanathara nodded, prompting the vengant to dissolve into a mist and slip under the keeper’s flesh. The second that was done, the demon considered checking on Cervantes and perhaps watch him get executed, only to think better of it, as at least this way, she could pretend like the demon would be saved by what she was about to do next. “This better make sense, Pythias,” Kanathara murmured, before activating the rune. The very second the rune detonated, the keeper of secrets was pulled away from this plane, along with several other demons in the tower. A second after that happened the entire tower imploded inwards on itself, unmaking the entirety of the structure and killing everyone still inside it an instant after detonation. Far from the scene of devastation, two beings landed on a plane unlike the one they had known for almost two decades, unaware of the fact that they would never again return to Tartarus.