Induction

[Demeter]

Dream was utterly disgusted with herself and how she looked. It was yet another day of trolling around the city looking for dead things. She slipped into an alley between to buildings and leaned against the wall. She glanced down at herself and groaned. Despite the opinions of others, being a grim reaper was not a glamorous job.

She was absolutely covered in scum and filth. There had been no old people dying in their sleep today. It had been a day of murder. Escorting the souls of the murdered dead was the hardest thing to do because they weren't ready to go. She often had to follow the souls around as they tried to come to grips with what had happened to them. If needed, Dream would point the soul in the direction of someone who could help out with that whole crossing over thing.

Dream glanced at her watch and sighed. She really should be heading home soon to try and get some sleep. She doubted she'd get any after today. There had been some sick freak with a fetish for little girls today. He'd maimed one. She hadn't survived. The vacant eyes of the soul of a murder child was the worse thing to see. Was it any wonder why she was cold?

Dream pushed away from the wall and twitched as she sensed something a few blocks away. It wasn't dead, per say, but it was fallen. Dream grinned to herself and headed in that direction. Some little angel had gotten uppity and had been thrown from heaven.

Dream rounded the corner into another alley and grinned. There, still suffering from being thrown, was the angel. The fact that the angel had fallen was showed in all her ethereal glory. Torn hair that stank of blood, tattered clothing stained with blood. And the crowning mark of a fallen; the girls wings were broken and stripped.

Dream snickered quietly and seamlessly shifted to her own ethereal form. Both her physical appearance and clothing changed to something more like a cross. Black hair with the odd stripe of white here and there and a shining pair of emerald green eyes. She now appeared to be clean while wearing the tight, black ankle length skirt with a high slit on the side. Her shirt was now a short sleeved mock turtleneck type thing made out of stretchy material. The knives strapped her arms glinting in the spillover from the streetlights but her wings shadowed her face.

Fallens were known for being ill-tempered after the fall. It was better to deal with one when in full arraingment. Her wings, though they were as black as a midnight sky, save for the tips of each feather, showed her in a position of power over any fallen.

Dream leaned forward, bracing her weight against the scythe that appeared with this version of herself and chuckled at the fallen. "Well, well, well, what did you do to deserve this?"

[nyoka]

Bacia opened her eyes slowly, every muscle and nerve burned. Her face flattened against pavement it seemed. Blinking a few more times, attempting to focus her eyes on what looked like Earth. When did this happen? The last thing she knew was she was in the presence of Bes.

Rolling on her side with great effort, she brought her hands to her face. They reeked of blood. Reaching back she felt her wings, the instant she brushed them, she screamed in agony. Tears began rolling out of her eyes. Half from pain, half from anger. Her robes were torn to pieces, and her long lovely hair chopped off.

Looking around her, she was in an alley, or as it appeared. The smell of scum and and dirt was everywhere, enough to make her gag. She brought her hands up to her face, but that wasn't any better because of the stench of blood, now quickly drying on her skin.

Panic now gripped her, where exactly was she. Bacia's eyes rolled over from wall to wall, straining to hear every sound around her. Being barely able to move, she felt completely defenseless. Her heart now pumping at a furious rate, footsteps rang from around the corner. Making not a sound, she focused all her attention on them, they were most defiantly getting closer. Anger was now replacing the fear that was in her, if anyone was coming after her, she would be ready no matter how much it pained her.

Staring into the sound of footsteps, a figure emerged fully in black with massive wings. She had heard stories of Custoss, now she was going to meet one. Straining, she maneuvered off toward a wall as far as she could manage. The figure now was mere feet from her, breathing now very rapid and face pursed staring into, what appeared to be a woman, her emerald eyes.

She froze for a moment when asked this question, unsure of what to respond or even to respond at all. Being flooded with rage once more she yelled back, "Who the hell are you and why should I tell you?"

[Demeter]

Dream chuckled as the fallen made for the wall. The girl was still a young angel and obviously confused and in pain but Dream showed no sympathy for her. She had done something very bad indeed to deserve this treatment. She rustled her wings and her eyes tracked the girl. Besides being pissy after falling, angels were known to do the unexpected after expercing such a loss as this.

Dream shifted her weight and turned the sycthe around in her hands. The blade, curved wickedly and previously turned towards her body, now flashed in the streetlight. The light boucing off the steel flashed at the girl and Dream used it to illuminate the fallen angel. "My, you are in quite a state. You must have been a very naughty angel. As for who I am? All you need to know is that I am a grim reaper. As for why you should tell me what you did? Other Custoss or creatures bound to this earth won't be as sympathic towards you as I am, and that is saying something. Would you prefer to let me leave you be, all alone on earth, without any abilties what so ever, and in pain?"

[nyoka]

Straining, Bacia sat up slowly fighting through the burn. Her eyes fixated on her hands now propping her up, resting in a small puddle of blood now beneath her. Glaring from under her brow at this Grim Reaper, she couldn't help but scoff. ::Sympathetic my ass:: she thought. Pissed as she may be, the grim reaper had a point about other Custoss and such.

Lifting her hands to block the shine from her scythe, to get a better look at who was talking to her. Why should she be so trusting of someone like this, even if the only thing they were doing at the moment was talking. Garbed fully in black, several weapons on her person, and in a much better physical state than herself.

"Fine, you wanna know?"

Slowly, leaning against the wall for support, she stood up wincing with every move. Her bare wings scraping the wall leaving small bloody trails against the brick. At a full and upright stance, she threw her eyes back on the woman.

"My sister became a problem, and got in my way. I took care of her and now I'm here!"

Her outburst rang in the alley, but as much as she got out, she had to throw her hand back on the wall. Glaring at the woman, she felt the urge to hurt her for smirking and laughing at her. Her eyes falling upon metal bins a few feet in front of her, she managed to get her hands on one of the lids and with much effort chuck it at her. Although it may have only gone two feet, Bacia felt smug at her attempt to hurt this woman. Her stance returning upright, and her breathing calmed, she fixated her eyes upon her unblinking and full of rage.

[Demeter]

Dream looked down as the metal lid skidded to a stop a few inches from the staff to her sycthe. She looked back at the angel. Poor thing, she thought as she used a foot to move the lid out of her way. She moved forward, sycthe carried at her side. "Took care of your sister, did you? Did you enjoy killing your flesh and blood?" Dream knew she was neddling the fallen but she needed to get the truth out. Either way, this one was for the pit. Dream stopped in front of the angel and pointed the sycthe at her. "Did you enjoy it that feeling of being superior over your own kin?"

Dream watched the girl, still smirking. Falling wasn't something she had to worry about doing much. It was hard to fall when half of her was already Custos. Though the angel was dominate in her, anything bad she did could be excused as the Custos acting up; after all she had been raised in hell. And she was a servant of Charon. She could still fall but she wouldn't be powerless afterwards.

Dream turned the sycthe around and braced her weight against it as she leaned forward, into the fallen's face. She grinned and knowing she was setting herself up for an attack, asked the question that might break the fallen. "Was killing your sister worth it? Did you get what you wanted? What was it? A trinket? A man? Was it worth it?"

[nyoka]

Bacia eyed this woman as she kicked the lid out of the way and got closer. The closer she got, the more she felt like striking, but in her state there wasn't much she could manage.

"Yes, I did it. And it felt good, I'd do it again if I got the the chance. Why should she, prancing about in her goo-die freaking fashion, be able to achieve more in her life than I should! I deserved to be first, not her! What she had was rightfully mine anyway!"

She had gotten closer to Bacia during her explanation, straight in her face. Glaring back into the woman's face, she asked if it was all worth it, did she get what she wanted. Her thoughts returned back to the thing she lost, Calix. There he sat in her mind in all his glory, everything she wanted yet nothing she could achieve. Not completely understanding why he didn't accept her. Isolde was after all out of the picture, and he had said as long as she lived....

Bacia's eyes glazed over and she propped herself against the wall again, thinking much over of what had happened in the past hour or so. But as fast as she fell into her daze she came right back out conscious of her doings and what was happening in this alley. Finding herself in the right, regardless if she had what she really wanted, her attention fell back upon this grim reaper.

"No I didn't get what I wanted, is that what you wanted to know? Since you seem so determined to figure it out, it was a man. One that rightfully belonged to me!"

She fell to her knees and screamed, her eyes welling up she began yelling at people that weren't there at the moment. "Calix! You told me! You said...!" she trailed off and focused back on the woman. "You finally know, you fucking know now, are you happy?" Try as she might, Bacia couldn't find enough energy to strike out more at her than yelling. So there she sat staring up this black figure in front of her, her face damp from tears, broken and hurting, she wrapped her arms around herself determinedly staring at her.

[Demeter]

Dream shook her head and sauntered over to the wall opposite the fallen. She supposed that she ought to ask the girl her name but after she deposted the angel with the correct lord and be on her way. Dream tilted her head up and stared at the night sky. Had the man really been the girl's? Dream narrowed her eyes and stared down at the suffering Angel. "Once you manage to collect yourself, we'll be on our way. Lord Marrus will be wanting to see you."

After a few minutes of watching the girl, Dream decided that she was no real threat to her well being and seamlessly switch forms once again. Torn jeans and a dirty sweatshirt replaced her clothing, wings apparently vanished and her hair once again was silvery blonde. The scythe was gone as well. Dream propped a foot against the wall and sighed. "Whenever you feel like you can move, we can go. Just no touching me, I'm dirty enough as it is."

[nyoka]

Bacia watched her go to the opposite wall as she went, she watched her with great intent. Apparently this woman thought she was no threat as she reverted to a non threating state.

"I am collected, there isn't much more I can do to get more collected other than stand up!"

Staring at her, she couldn't be thought of much more than a mortal, a rather filthy one at that. And even if you suspected her being more than a mortal, you wouldn't think of a Custos/ grim reaper thing.

Bacia pulled herself up with help from the bins in front of her, wincing a few times, holding more back than she did before. Standing once more she turned her attention back on the woman.

"Just who is Marrus anyway? I've never heard of him, more than likely he is some lowly Custos."

[Demeter]

Dream smirked at the fallen's comment about Lord Marrus. Lowly Custos was he? Dream shook her head, grumbleing when a curtian of hair fell over her face. She pushed the hair back and stared at the fallen. She really was quite sure of herself, wasn't she? Dream shrugged and supposed that surviving the fall from heaven would make any angel sure of themselves.

Dream pushed away from the wall, crossed over and motioned for the fallen to walk. "I'd love to see you say that to Lord Marrus face. And it's no wonder you've never heard of one of the strongest Custoss in hell. He rules the pit and that is where you are headed for."

Dream walked out of the alley, not even waiting to see if the girl followed, and turned left. It was late enough at night that the few mortals wandering around the streets were either drunk or drugged. She didn't need to place any sort of glamour on the angel. "Move it, Fallen. I don't have all night to wait around for you," she called over her shoulder while glaring at a couple of males sprawled out on a cement stoop. She'd love to tell them that if they didn't stop staring at her she'd feed their manly bits to Cerberus but she didn't have time for that luxery just now.

[nyoka]

Bacia made smug imitations of her as she walked away, and unsure of her footing, she began making her way after this woman. It was either follow her or be left in her state, and she chose the first.

Walking around the corner she was already quite a bit ahead of her, glaring at men ahead of her. She eyed them from her position and back to the grim reaper, apparently she wasn't happy with them because of the look she gave them. Looks aside she continued to follow her.

[Demeter]

Dream rolled her eyes as one of the men came onto her with some comment about how after she had him she'd know what bliss was. Having being willingly coerced into the beds of an incubus or two, Dream highly doubted that. Dream glanced over her shoulder at the Fallen, and seeing that she was making progess in catching up to her, she waited and glared at the men in front of her.

They were the dredges of humanity, these fellows. Greasy haired, overly tattooed and overly bulked up. As the fallen caught up to her, Dream cast a subtle glamour over the girl. the marks the showed the girl as a fallen angel were gone now. "Sorry, gentlemen, but I wouldn't sleep with any of you. I prefer my men to clean and to smell decently. A rat probably would even find the four of appealing. Now, if you will excuse me, I have to be on my way."

Dream reached back and grabbed the fallen's arm, dragging her forward. She pulled the girl along as she marched away from the men, groaning when they caught up to her, obvously angry that she didn't except their proposal and making all sorts of lewd comments. "This really isn't my day," she muttered to herself, "First the murders, then a fallen, and now this. Really, can't I just go bury my head somewhere?"

[nyoka]

Bacia had made her way up to the woman and caught her in some snide remarks to these mortals. The tingle of the glamor helped take away some of the ache she had.

The men were obviously trying to talk her into coming with them apparently for their own pleasures. A scowl returning upon Bacia's face she glared back at the men as she was dragged away. She had known about some mortals being oafish and repulsive, but non like these were.

Still in her glamor the woman placed on her, she was dragged at a rather fast pace, one faster than she would have picked herself. She didn't want to stay around those useless beings, nor did she wish to be pulled like this either.

"Damn it will you slow down!"

She wiggled her arm free from her yet kept her pace a few feet behind. She rubbed her arm over but not in a comforting way, but in a way to get the feeling from being touched off. She glowered down at the ground thinking far more than just what had transpired.

The issue with the those men were merely a speck in her thoughts now, she focused more on The house of Bes. Demitrius and Knoton. Isolde. Damn it Isolde, there was no right for her reaction. And why hadn't Bes made that decision first, there was the tradition after all. It made perfect sense to Bacia. They were to be married off in order... not skipped just to have the next of kin step up. The mere thought of Isolde laying stone cold brought a smug sense of satisfaction to her face, the only problem was that the thing she wanted most turned against her.

Calix. She spat an angry "ha" to no one in particular. Okay, so from birth he was promised to Isolde but according to what Bes had declared if you loved another the promise was broken, and he never did deny her. "As long as she lives my ass" again to herself. Now what did that get her? An empty promise, one that she would not soon forget. Everything she had ever trusted, had now abandoned her.

She had taken her sister's life, though she might not have achieved what she desired. But she had taken it still much like she would take her own life, or destiny, that's what others called it.

Annoyed again with this whole mess, she came back to herself. Back to her physical state, to her guide, to her emotions, and to Earth. Now she was heading off to meet some Custos lord as the woman put it, ::Great this is getting better by the moment::. So now on top of getting stripped, meeting this bitchy guide of a grim reaper, she now had to go plead her case to some moldy old Custos. ::Just how much more great can this day get?::

[Demeter]

Dream reached back again and clapped her hand around Bacia's wrist, yanking her forward as she pushed past the group of men. She hissed something about raining down pestulance on them and turned the corner.

A few yards down the sidewalk, Dream stopped, released the fallen angel and looked over her shoulder. None of the men were following her. "Well, now that that is over with, shall we on out way.

Dream walked along until she found an easy entrance to hell. She opened the door to the seeminly condemned office building. Once again, she grabbed ahold of Bacia's wrist and yanked her through, slamming the door behind her. "Welcome to hell. Time to go to the pit."

[nyoka]

Being pulled around was not one of Bacia's favorite things and this woman wasn't letting up. Straight to this building that looks like it might fall at any moment, and yanked forward once again inside.

Welcome to hell she said, well this didn't seem like any hell she had heard about. Bacia had heard stories of tortured souls being strung up by their eyelids and weighted down by the skin between their toes. But this was something she was not expecting, it all seemed like an old creepy building. But she knew looks could be deceiving so she continued with cautious curiosity.

[Demeter]

Dream pulled the angel through the building, knowing that soon enough the illusion of officespace would fall away and a broken landscape would appear. The illusion was only to keep mischevious humans away from the space. Dream yanked her companion through once last doorway and grinned at the sight before her.

It could be classified as a sort of desert, the first realm of hell. Dream shed the appearnce she used for the human world but kept her wings hidden. There were just times that they were bulky and in the way." She turned to the fallen and watched the girl as she took in her new surrounds. "Welcome to hell. This is the first layer but you don't get to stay. We go the ninth layer. Follow me, please."

Dream turned on her heels and started to walk. It would be a long hike but the girl would hopefully have simmered down by the end of their trip. Oh, there were easier ways, but Dream never believed that a Fallen Angel deserved the easy. As she walked, Dream glanced around. Walking through the realms of hell had always reminded her of Dante. Perhaps she'd read the Comedy after this little excursion.

[nyoka]

Making her way through and into the building there was nothing left but a ruined desert, smoldering pits and crumbled buildings, no they weren't buildings what were they. As she scowled at the illusion falling away and the rest coming into view, she snapped her gaze back on this reaper of sorts. So this was level one and she was destined for level nine, whatever level nine was. Relization took her okay so she'd been following his reaper of sorts just for her own safety but wasn't this unknown reaper just as unsafe... "Wait just a minute, I'm not taking another step until I know just a little bit more about you. You know my story and I do have a name you know its not fallen, its Bacia." She glowered with her arms folded to the reaper, determined not to move until a bit more information was reveled to her.

[Demeter]

Dream stopped and glanced over her shoulder at the now named Fallen Angel. "Thats the first time I haven't had to drag information out of you. Very impressive." Dream turned and gave Bacia a little bow. "I'm named Dream and I'm a bit of an anamoly for a grim reaper."

Dream sat herself down on a handy rock and sighed. "That is all you need to know about me because I doubt that I'll see you after I hand you over to Marrus. What you do need to know is what is expected of you. You will need to pick seveal of the darker deities to offer you 'protection' if you will because I doubt that any of the warm and cuddly ones will like you. You will need to have Marrus act as a go between for you and deity of your choice. The ninth layer will be your home realm; you will need to return to it every few months or so. It's like how a plant cannot survive without water. Just as a dehydrated plants wilts, you will wilt from a draining of your natural powers."

Dream ticked each item off on her fingers and then looked at Bacia. "Is that enough information for you or do you need more?"

[nyoka]

Bacia stared down at this Grim Reaper now named Dream, she lowered her arms and began to stare around her surroundings. Yes this place was hell, no doubt about that, if the looks weren't enough to see, the feeling certainly was. Still rather pissy she turned her attention back to Dream, "I got it alright,"

Now coming to her own a little she relaxed, looking down at her stained legs and hands. Chuckling a little she rubbed them together, yes there was no denying that she was destined for the pit. To be raised in a house of love and the sanctity of marriage only to murder, no slaughter one of her own, the pit was for her.

Staring past her hands and feet to a few insects skittering around her she squashed one with her big toe feeling about as much remorse as with her own family.

Family. She thought of her brothers left with the wrath of Bes, he could be very vengeful, holding a grudge even. Demetrius was probably talking his way out of things as normal and if it didn't work for him he would run to his wife's deity, that was what he did. Now Knoton on the other hand, who really wasn't "of age" yet his future was still up in the air. If Bes really did want to boot him what was to become of him?

Coming out of her thoughts she again touched her wings, they still stung but not as bad as before. Running her fingers gently oven the bald areas she felt the coagulated blood balled up into scab like mounds. Smiling and letting loose a scoff she couldn't help but laugh. So much had happened in the past hour that she was overwhelmed. The death of her sister, abandoned by her love, presented to Bes with her tattered robes, he destroyed her wings, chopped and stained her hair, thrown to Earth, confronted with "death", and now on her way to the pit of hell.

Shaking her head, "damn..." was the only word she said. Looking back at Dream, who had been staring at her this whole time, her cares and thoughts all disappeared. Regaining her attitude "Okay, I do have one question though, will I just be thrown to a deity or will I actually get to choose one for my own personal protection as you so put it?"

[Demeter]

Dream skirtted around a rock and looked back at Bacia. "You get to pick and choose which deity you would like but that doesn't mean that they'll go for it. They way it works is that you pick a few deities, then you approach Marrus, and then he will act as a go between."

Dream stopped at the edge of the cliff and pointed downwards. "All the way down. It really looks different once you get down there. This plain is like a illusion. The ninth layer will manifest itself as something fit to serve you with enternal torment."

Dream glanced over her shoulder and smiled at the girl. "Shall we?" and she started down a slight inclined ramp.

[nyoka]

Bacia had more or less gotten her answer and had enough of all this waiting. If she was going to the 9th layer, she wanted to get there already.

Following Dream down the ramp things slowly faded into another surrounding, one that looked of nothing. She didn't see much, but of what she did see it looked to be people of sorts just standing about... doing nothing. They all had tormented vacant expressions, Bacia raised her eyebrow at this.

"What's going on here, they all look... kinda... um...gone."