"Perhaps we should compare Exaltations while on the move." Dena suggests.  "If we heard the screaming I'm sure the monks did as well, which means they know where we are while we don't know where they are, and if we don't move they'll surely find some way to take advantage of that situation."

"Probably not the best of times, you know?" Danae agreed, checking out the door, and wincing as she clutched her chest after pulling a few of the cracked ribs.  "Between getting cracked with that goremaul, and spending most of my Essence tangling with Firmament and his disciples, I wouldn't be good for another pitched fight without few hours to recover.  If our contacts have useful information, that's fine, otherwise, we'll need to hole up somewhere to get our breath, and see about finding an alternate route up that doesn't plunge straight into their area of greatest strength.  Either a ventilation duct, an old abandoned shaft, or something else--proper battle tactics demand that small forces need to strike at their foes weakest areas..."

She frowned, and leaned up against a wall.  There had to be 'Something' that the Terrestrials didn't know about...  Her spotty memories from the First Age implied that the Celestials had many secrets, usually attuned to their animas and other codewords, and that they were sufficiently paranoid to lock things down--especially when the Usurpation hit...

So, what could they /Use/ to avoid a potentially futile confrontation.

Veldygar held up a small box, indicating the Wound Mending Needles contained within. "If somebody needs medical attention, I have this... Though perhaps we should wait until we are in a truly secure location."

It was strange to watch Third take such interest in Eternal, especially from Eternal's point of view.  It was rare to meet anyone that didn't run in terror of him, especially when his blades were unsheathed--but this was seemed intent to study him, which in itself was a completely foreign idea.

The pulse was no where to be found, though whether this was due to it being hard to find because of the armor he wore, or perhaps because it was so faint as to be undetectable, Third would have no real way of knowing.  His flesh was certainly cold to the touch, when proper skin was found, and though Eternal narrowed those red eyes again when he was touched, he did not move to strike at Third, nor pull away.  He had meant what he had said about not minding the study, or so it seemed anyway.  Third's actions were almost child-like, and his mannerisms only reinstated that image.  A monster though Eternal was, and certainly cruel to his enemies and those he hated, he was not, apparently, harmful to innocents.  At least not until he was directly provoked, at any case.

He turned his attention to Dashu, and quickly grasped they wanted him to reveal his anima.  The thought of entertaining him flashed across his mind, but Eternal shook his head.  "No.  She is right--time is something we do not have in infinite resources.  We should move quickly and find solace.  Then, perhaps, we can discuss our strengths."  He said, dark energy almost palatable from his voice alone.  Whatever he was, he certainly wasn't a son of the Unconquered Son.  His children rarely had such innate contempt and darkness in their voice alone--nor did they tend to wear such trappings of death on their armor and such.  The glowing, red eyes also suggested a much darker origin for his power.

Dashu shrugged and said,  "Agreed.  I'll resume my station as scout as soon as we pick a direction.  I could try to check out one of those stair cases to see how dangerous it is."

Third considers momentarily. 'There should be enough time to rest for an hour or two. Then our group will be more prepared to continue on. It's unlikely that the monks will want to investigate strange noises until they're much better prepared. Then Third can scan for a well-hidden way to continue. The sooner Third can rest, the sooner Third can begin using it's mind to full potential again.' It smiles pleasantly at Eternal once again.

Evamae, after giving directions to her Ruby Warriors to patrol and guard the area, emerges belatedly into the barracks room. Noticing Veldygar and Eternal, the four-armed silver insect-woman (more compact than Dena in warform) bows deeply to them, recalling the descriptions the Hive Queen received from the Gatekeeper of Water. "Greetings, representatives of the Water District. I am Princess Evamae of Hive Irix Chilomena. I travel with the Creators so I may establish a new Hive in the Fire District. Please rest easy, if you must; my army will be keeping watch."

Unfortunately, there can be no true solace while the Exalts rest within the Inner Temple. This is, after all, the Immaculates' turf. Another two hours is well within reason, though, with the Rubies setting up guard points in the corridors, Veldygar's summoned demons lurking close by, and the bulky Blue Stripes watching the barracks door. The Exalts may also elect to rest until Essence is fully replenished; if so, they may also regain some Willpower (roll Conviction, gain Willpower equal to successes). If even one Exalt decides to risk resting longer, it will be assumed the whole group follows suit.

Afterward, Third and anyone else can consult their memories of the Inner Temple area, whether studied or recalled from lives lived before. (Int+Lore) One may also do a more conventional search, moving through the corridors and searching with senses and, if applicable, Essence. (Perc+Awareness or Investigation, can roll every 15 minutes and results are cumulative.) Lastly, attempting to examine the barriers blocking the way into the center chamber may be an option. (Int+Lore or Craft(Magitech))

Other than that the most likely course of action is to prepare an attack to push up the next flight of stairs. The Exalts have the following at their disposal:

- 120 Ruby Warriors, led by Hive Princess Evamae (Magnitude 3, Might 2). Evamae herself is an accomplished fighter wielding twin shock pikes.
- 5 Hulking Armor Sentinels, designated "Blue Stripes" (Magnitude 1, Might 3). Slow, but high power and high soak, wielding goremauls.
- Dezephiel, a tomescu, or clamoring cloud arsenal. With its multiple limbs it can defend against multiple targets without onslaught penalties. Currently materialized and slightly wounded. (-1 Wound Penalty)
- Gugoona, a metody, or vitriol elemental. It can eat through any non-magical material substance (unfortunately, the walls in the Inner Temple are all adamantine) and is currently dematerialized.
- Harmony and Garnet Cog may also give support with spirit Charms related to their purviews. Harmony is more of a software goddess, dealing with programming of artificial intelligences, while Cog relates most to hardware.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:25, Wed 19 Aug 2009.

Third takes some time to fall into a smooth, restful meditative sleep, letting its mind wander, even as it goes to sleep only a few feet from Be, before its eyes eventually flicker open, as though an internal alarm has gone off. It slowly opens its eyes, and they look up, considering their current area, it's memories of the Temple's construction, its data on the temple's blueprints, and the emergency routines the Temple has in case of Anathema attacks- Where the most defenders will focus, etcetera. All the time, it occasionally lets its eyes glance towards Be when it thinks he's not looking, curiosity and interest filling those dark eyes.

OOC: You rolled 8 successes using 13d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 ((3,8,8,10,10,3,1,2,2,1,5,10,3)).

Third doesn't need to think very hard to remember the basic structure of the temple, as it had plenty of time to study the three dimensional map that the Hive Queen made. This greatly supplemented what knowledge it had from before escaping the collar.

Assume Third gives everyone the following information:

General layout

In general terms, Third knows the layout of each Temple level and its function: B25 / Level 1 is generally warrior monk training, training the body to learn the five Immaculate Martial Arts. B24 / Level 2 focuses on training the mind, studying the Immaculate texts and other accepted, non-heretical resources. B23 / Level 3 is the 'social' side of the Inner Temple, where monks who work best with the citizens receive the faithful and learn how to properly teach the Philosophy to others. B22 / Level 4 is where a monk learns what needs be learned to 'graduate' beyond the Third Coil: techniques and knowledge reserved for masters. B21 / Level 5 is the home of the Gatekeeper of Earth, which stores forbidden and classified information only Grandmasters and higher are privy to.

Alternate ways up

Assuming one avoids the central column (where the innermost shrine, central stairs and elevator are found) in the meantime, there are two major staircases in the east and west quadrants of the Temple, and these correspond with the stairs found by Gugoona and the builder bugs. Unfortunately, no staircase extends past B22 / Level 4, so regardless of which level the group decides to do this, they WILL eventually have to breach the central column one way or another.

There are some single staircases, mostly utilitarian, connecting classrooms with teachers' quarters, related training areas on different floors and so forth. Using these could be a safer way up, but it also means that one has to move upstairs one floor at a time, and between one minor staircase and the next, cross corridors and rooms, large areas of floor where they may be caught by (admittedly, likely lesser) monks along the way. It is time consuming, and harder to move larger groups like the Rubies through.

The nearest staircase of this type is an Inner Temple exercise hall leading up to a meditation chamber on B24 / Level 2.

Emergency procedures

The first thing that tends to happen when the Temple suffers an Anathema breach is that the central column seals off its doors, after taking into its fold any important officials whether secular or not that have earned the right of Immaculate protection. It is the first part of the Temple to be secured, and thus has some of the most difficult deterrences from invasion installed.

Afterward, the entire Inner Temple and auxiliary entrances are closed off from the rest of the district, and each temple 'ring' (i.e. the larger part of the five Temple levels that surround the central column in a ring shape) is searched and cleared starting from B21 / Level 5 downward. This would most definitely involve Immaculates with high Awareness and spirit sight, at the very least.

If by the time the bottom level of the Temple is searched, any Anathema believed to have invaded the temple have not been found and subdued, more drastic measures are taken. Third knows no exact details, but if the Purge is any example...

Danae spent much of the interlude resting, gathering her energies and will together to face the oncoming challenges ahead--the injuries were still sore--but hopefully, if Veldygar had time and leisure, she might be able to get a little bit of treatment for them.  More importantly though, as Third brought the information together for the usage of the rest of the group, Danae took a little time to consider what would be the best approach.

"Honestly, taking the major staircases is out--we have considerable numbers, but the Earth District has a lot of monks as well, ten or so Masters would probably wear us down through attrition alone."  She began with her own opinion.  "The minor staircases might be palatable...  But I don't like the idea of allowing another purge attempt--and the time it takes to proceed through there would give them a good shot at pulling that off...  That leaves the central shaft--but it's likely going to have very powerful automated defenses--and I doubt our virus is going to work here--they're probably not networked just to /Avoid/ that sort of affair."

She sat back an began tapping a table in thought.  "Plus, their VIPs would take shelter in there as well--and undoubtedly have the toughest defenders in the District...  On the other hand, their numbers would be lesser as well--and we'd be able to bring more of our own forces to bear--even moreso if we dispatch elements of the Hive to progress through the side entrances and distract the defenders, draw them out all across the Temple except where we actually intend to be, and then find some way of entering the central shaft, and heading straight for the Gatekeeper's chambers from there.  Of course, then we need to find some way of swaying it--and if the rumors are true, it's actually begun to believe the propaganda by this point--and I highly doubt we'll be able to trick it by pretending to be maintenence workers this time around either...  Anyone else have any ideas?"

Dashu had spent his break taking a leisurely stroll.  He looked around but didn't put too much effort into.  He knew he should be resting for the upcoming activities.  But then again, Dashu didn't need to put alot of effort into investigations.  He was, after all, one of the best criminal investigators in the Coils.  This was simply an exercise to occupy his thoughts while he rested.  When the group gathered together, he listened to the beautiful general as she spoke.  He admitted to himself that what she said made sense.  He also was forced to wonder if he thought this because it actually did make sense or because of his growing attachment to her.  She was one of the first escapees he met, even if it was only by less than half an hour.  He wasn't used to having these sorts of attachments anymore.  His life had been pretty kept void of them once he had been caught.  Even his family weren't allowed many visits to his cell... not that they had ever tried after he had first been detained.

Dashu shook his head and focused again.  "I supposed I could try to sneak around some of the defenses and find ways to sabotage them.  Danae, the Gatekeeper of Water tried to use mental probes on us before.  Will that be likely here as well?"

[Private to GM: Peleps Dashu rolled 4 successes using 9d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 6,8,6,1,9,9,1,1,7. Perc + Investigation. ]
This message was last edited by the player at 14:50, Fri 21 Aug 2009.

Third ponders. "Harmony may be able to aid us with any automated defenses within the central shaft. The threat of VIPs may be there, but those who are confident in their abilities to face anathema would most likely not be sheltering in the central shaft. The higher up we go, as well, the more outside defenses that we'll be forced to deal with to break through the shaft. If we can break through early, it may be enough for us to make it to the Gatekeeper... AndEye will take it from there." It speaks, confident of its ability to convince the computer.

OOC: Oh bugger. You rolled 2 successes using 13d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 ((4,3,6,5,4,8,6,6,6,1,8,5,4)).
This message was last edited by the player at 17:50, Fri 21 Aug 2009.

Dashu's stroll pretty much confirms for him Third's basic description of the Inner Temple. He encounters more barracks, training rooms, storage rooms with practice dummies and weapons (mundane; any artifacts are likely in locked compartments he finds). He finds the large exercise room with the minor staircase leading up. He notes good ambush spots in the area he strolls through, committing them to memory. [Private to Peleps Dashu: This means a bonus to Wits+Stealth if hiding in the area you just investigated. You may pass on this bonus to others just by pointing out these areas.]

Danae, thinking on Dashu's question, is quite certain the Gatekeeper of Earth would have similar capabilities within its immediate domain. She also knows that the Gatekeepers tend to reflect the element they are based on, though; this will mean that this Gatekeeper will likely be highly resilient both to physical and social attack, and may even choose to take physical form to lead automatons, Immaculate Masters... or whatever else may be guarding its central core.

Third doesn't glean any more unique information from its memory, just confirms its confidence that the defenses within the central column will not be as dangerous from the lowest level of the Temple. That does not mean of course that they will not encounter danger at the top of the column -- but if they are to make a breach in the first place it seems more appropriate to do it sooner than later.

Veldygar offers the use of his demons as guards while those with the proper expertise work at figuring out how to breach the barriers leading to the central column. Unfortunately he knows no area effect attack magic, and there is not enough time for him to summon further demons. [Private to Veldygar Arhandor: Feel free to add more if you have time. Otherwise I will temp. control your character until you have time to post again.]

Garnet Cog pledges that she can also give aid in any magitech related tasks, along with Harmony. The two spirits seem to get on quite well - and not unexpectedly, either.

As for Eternal, well, who knows? All he really seems to like doing is killing and intimidation.

Evamae nods at Danae's suggestion, eager to serve the Creators. She is also rested, and has reclaimed her twin shock pikes, clutching them in both pairs of hands. "I believe the Rubies and I can form some suitable distraction. However the monks may well be expecting that. They do know there are Celestials here, and I and my soldiers would only be considered your subordinates. Therefore it will likely delay them, but not forever. Hopefully it will be enough time."

"We will move as soon as you give the word, Clockwork General."

---

OOC: OK, so plan as I understand it is, go right to central chamber and try to breach it, while Hive Princess and Rubies form a distraction, and Dashu sneaks around in hiding while the monks are confused by this, looking for ways to sabotage their defenses and make it harder for them to retaliate. For now Veldy will stay with his demons and mentor, offer any occult based advice if necessary. If Eternal and Dena will do anything else besides stand guard, say so IC please :)
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:14, Fri 21 Aug 2009.

Eternal rested as the rest of them did, though he certainly had a strange way of doing it.  Instead of laying down, Eternal simply sat with his back against the wall, arms resting easily on his knees while he simply...sat there.  His eyes eventually closed, and there he sat for the duration of their rest, his body as still as the grave during the respite.  When it was time to discuss their future plans, he moved in one sudden burst of energy, from sitting to standing, and then from standing to walking toward the others.  His movements were inhumanly swift and graceful, though it was not beautiful to watch so much as it was terrifying, as his agility was that of a predator--not a dancer or acrobat.  Even though he was clearly an ally, it was not hard to imagine Eternal hiding in wait, preparing to strike.  Perhaps, then, for the tactically minded, it was very much a boon to have something like that on fighting on your side.

And though he had fought (and happily killed) for his freedom to act, to be the master of his own actions, Eternal's very existence was a betrayal of that effort.  No matter how hard he could try, the Neverborn would always work their will through him.  Even now the demented whispers of their cursed flesh flitted into his ears, whispering maddening nonsense that he could not understand, yet could not fully ignore.  Sometimes he could glean useful information from them, but it always seemed to come at a price, as subjecting himself to their will was never a pleasant experience.  To that same margin, Eternal was not a general.  He was no tactician of warfare--he knew how to dismantle an army piece by piece, yes.  He could disembowel hundreds without thought, but his was not the knowledge to decided whom to kill for the most efficient victory.  He was, in many ways, little more than a glorified attack dog.

"Any plan that spills their blood suits me.  What would you do with my blades?"  He asked Danae directly, as she seemed to be the leader of the group, at least in terms of the battle to come.  And given what he thought her Caste was, that seemed more than appropriate.  "I was trained to be an Assassin by the Dragonblood who rule this cursed place."  He added almost as an after thought, realizing that these new allies had no idea of what he was capable, unlike Veldy who had seen Eternal in action only (thank the gods) two times--and those had been blindingly quick, visceral, and bloody events that he would no doubt prefer to forget.

"I'm. . . not entirely comfortable with leaving the potential future of Hive Irix without Celestial protection." Dena protests after some thought.  "Perhaps I should accompany the Princess to provide extra power in case the Rubies are insufficient.  At the very least I'm confident I can move more quickly than anything they'll have in this temple, and in an emergency could carry the princess back to you."

Veldygar cleaned his wound mending needles and started applying them to Danae, working gently to restore her flesh. He was quiet and efficient, and considered that he even had the time to start healing another person before taking some rest to restore his Essence.

[OOC: I've healed Danae's 3L, and can heal another level of damage on somebody else.
[Private to GM: 00:14, Today: Veldygar Arhandor rolled 1 success using 4d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 8,5,4,4. Per+Medicine.
00:14, Today: Veldygar Arhandor rolled 2 successes using 4d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 5,2,8,9. Per+Medicine.
00:13, Today: Veldygar Arhandor rolled 5 successes using 4d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 1,8,10,10. Per+Medicine.
00:12, Today: Veldygar Arhandor rolled 1 success using 4d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 1,4,9,6. Per+Medicine.]]

Evamae looks to Dena appreciatively. "We would much appreciate your aid, Creator, should you wish to join us. Perhaps our distraction would be more convincing, as well, with one of your number among us."

Veldygar spends his precious Essence to heal Danae fully. Since Dena is purposefully keeping her wounds -- for whatever reason Veldy isn't sure, as he has yet to see her fight -- the only others among the group still damaged is either Dashu or Dezephiel. Healing Dashu takes the lesser time so for now it seems prudent to focus on his bruises. [Private to Veldygar Arhandor: You'll spend 9m on Danae, and either +1m on for +1B for Dashu or +3m on +1L for Dezephiel. If you heal Dashu it'll take a total 46 minutes, and I'll allow you to regain 10m back in the next hour and 14 minutes. If you heal Dezephiel it'll be 1 hour healing, and 8m Essence regain. I'll assume you heal Dashu unless I see otherwise.]

"Assassination training..."  Danae says, pausing for a minute, then nodding.  "It'll come in handy, I doubt we'll be able to take on their strongest defenders head on easily--if you're as good as you claim, I should be able to hold their attention, and leave you open to strike, if we're quick and efficient about it, between the Blue Stripes, my own fighting ability, and your surgical strikes, we should be able to chew through most of what they'll throw against us...  Though I should stress--we're not going to 'Seek' combat, and even when we do, we're not going to look to utterly destroy everything we come against--we're vastly outnumbered here.  Defeating their strongest fighters should demoralize and scatter the others, and we can't waste time or essence doing cleanup work--we need to push to the Gatekeeper, and remind him of his proper duties before further reinforcements can be called in."

She considers the layout of the area again, tapping her chin in thought.  "As for our movement... Attacking the western side with Dena and the Reds should be enough to get their attention, and if you're effective about it, you'll be able to force them to redirect their energies towards stopping you.  Just remember that neither of you are fully expendable--and that if the situation gets hot, you should retreat rather then risk being captured or killed, and try to link up with the rest of us.  The rest of us..." She examines the layout again, and points at the southern side of the pillar.  "We'll approach from here, and attempt to climb to the Gatekeeper's sanctum that way.  We'll need to move fast before they realize what we're doing--and we'll need to try and avoid the majority of their patrols as well.  Hopefully, we should be able to pull this off before we run out of time..."

"Agreed." Dena answers, folding her hands a moment.  "I believe I should assault the enemy for perhaps two or three minutes, then declare that they're too strong and begin a retreat.  Ideally the Dragonblooded will send out their army to pursue the routed enemy, leaving them under-protected against you.  The problem, of course, is making sure the enemy knows the plan and does their part.  They might simply shut the gates and block entry once I pull back, leaving us in a worse position.  I need a way to ensure, or at least make it very likely, that they will pursue me."

"Well, by way of being one of the 'Anathema' they so despise," Evamae says, frowning at the insulting implications of this particular word, "they may pursue you simply on principle. However the Immaculate monks also know there are several Celestials that have breached the bottom level of their temple. We'd have to do enough damage that they simply couldn't ignore us. Perhaps could be made to think there are more Celestials in our group than there really are. Especially if Peleps Dashu will also support us in hiding..." She eyes the darker one, the self-proclaimed assassin, as well. But it is not her place to ask anything of the Creators, even one so ...sinister.

---

OOC: As far as I understand it now, Dena will go off toward the west with the bugs. Danae, Third, Eternal, Veldy and his demons will breach the column from the south. Dashu.. goes with Dena? or acts independently? Will post more soon.

Third nods quietly. " They may be more willing to chase you with Dashu's help. A handful of Celestial Exalted may not threaten them as much as a Celestial Exalted backed by an army. They will have trouble resisting an open flank, as well- They will, at the least, draw off some of their forces. If they do not, you may be able to fall back and penetrate the shaft at a different area. If we can, we may open the defenses of the Shaft along the way, to make it easier for you to penetrate in a different area." the Solar says, considering quietly.

Dashu is quiet while the others are making the plans.  He's not much of a planner himself.  When the subject of him assisting the distraction group comes up, he gladly spoke up though.  "Sure, I'll go with Dena.  I found some good hiding places earlier.  I'll point them out when we get done here.  Even if the majority of the fighting is done elsewhere, they might make good fall back positions.  Dena and I might be able to set up an ambush there too.  Some of the rubies could lay in wait and attack whoever follows us."

"Perhaps an illusion spell, or a summoned creature capable of shapeshifting might give the impression that I am accompanied by more Celestials." Dena suggested."I don't have a great deal of knowledge about such things, in a larger size the Princess might be mistaken for another Lunar but her form, as is, is too slight to be a warform."

"We will have to make do, I believe, unless the sorcerer among you has a solution," Evamae says in response to Dena's idea. "But I do not believe we have the time to spare. I must suggest we go now, before it is too late. The interior of the Temple is nearly a mile in diameter, and we must cross near the entirety to the western stairs." [Private to Veldygar Arhandor: I should mention that the metody actually does have Shapechange... but, up to you if you'd spare Gugoona for that.]