Sneaking into Avernus

[Anastasia]

Just in time - you hear a woosh of flames above, as suddenly you're wretched, thrown. The Astral. The Silver Sea is before you, still and silent as a tomb. Zariel floats there a few moments, gasping out a single rattling, dry breath. "F-free..." she manages, "Ughwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" A great, deep throated cry as you feel divinity surge and flee out of her as...

> roll 1d20+1
<Serith> Kotono roll for Serith < 8 > [d20=7]
> roll 1d20+32
<Serith> Kotono roll for Serith < 37 > [d20=5]

A single arm regrows, half exposed bone and rippling muscle, but it reforms. Zariel manages a throaty gasp as the feeling of divinity from her lessens and lessens, barely a spark at all.

[Corwin]

"Fight it!" Seira urges, already at Zariel's side. She cradles her carefully, focusing all of her divine might on helping. Around them, one of the images summons a metal surface to fill in the blankness of Astral, while another consecrates it in Seira's name, empowering it. Two more channel a restorative and a healing spell, respectively, while the remaining four support Seira by each appropriating an elementary nature.

Balanced between the four primary elements, Seira draws harmony from them and into herself, and through her own divine spark into Zariel's. "You can do great things. Go back to your origins, think on how you first started. It's the same thing, Zariel. Reform yourself, draw in the power that is yours, the power that will let you do so much good for Creation once more! Follow my lead and make yourself whole!"

Seira will try to help Zariel regain her power and heal her body, mind and soul. The latter is more important than a power boost, however, if we would need to pick one.

[Corwin]

Also, if Zariel is going to be making saves, I'll use the paladin ACF Stand Fast for her.

[Anastasia]

You do what you can, healing her up and away. Yet whatever it is, it is utterly inexorable. Zariel collapses once done, divine power barely a spark at all. Her eyes close, going still, silent.

You can feel it like this - her soul, her spirit, everything is in horrible shape, frayed, ruined. She's alive only by will and the last gasps she got out of her divinity before it was tugged away entirely. To say she'll need specialized help now is an understatement.

No saves but a fair idea. Zariel's fucked up and has been fucked up for some time due to lots of things. The fact that she's alive is a small miracle as it is, as well as helping her survive her encounter with Lixer.

[Corwin]

"Don't worry, I've got you," Seira tells Zariel warmly, brushing a stray hair from her face. And then she plane shifts from Astral to Ilmater's domain in Celestia, committing a terrible faux pas that she nevertheless feels will be excused due to circumstances.

[Anastasia]

As you go to teleport, a gate opens, the rest of the party tumbling through.

Empress Sulia cleanses herself with a minute bit of will, "Success," she exhales, "Is everyone well?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Donald says, "Seira, you o-geez, she looks worse than I did after those bearded devils got me."

Latha flies to your side, "That's Zariel? There's barely anything of her left."

[Corwin]

"I did what I could!" Seira protests. "She looks a lot better now, let me tell you--" Shaking her head resolutely, she says, "Nevermind that now, I was going to head straight for Ilmater's realm. Let's all go, between you, Sulia, and Ilmater, we should save Zariel's soul and reknit her body."

[Ebiris]

Alicia heals herself with spellfire on that note, fixing up her leg from where it got shot by Glasya's stupid boat. At least the wound is proportionately pretty small now!

Seeing Zariel looks to be unconscious, she only nods and then smiles at Seira. "Good job. We did it, didn't we?"

At Seira's suggestion to visit Celestia she nods her agreement and opens a Gate to Ilmater's realm. "We do prevail on his hospitality a lot, but the cause is just."

[Corwin]

"Zariel's going home at last," Seira agrees with an answering smile to Alicia, stepping through.

[Anastasia]

A rolling field before a castle keep. Unremarkable enough, yet the feeling is enough. A feeling of warmth, a feeling of overwhelming peace. It hits all of you as you stand in the House of the Triad, a moment of recovery.

But only a moment.

Farther away great flocks of celestials appear, as your eyes are drawn up. Chronias.

Chronias shines bright and true, capturing your attention. Peace. Joy. Completion. You feel all three for a moment.

Latha looks up and stares, tears glistening in her eyes. "Oh!" she gasps, staring openly.

Donald looks up and shakes his head slowly, "Hey, you got the wrong guy, I'm play for the other team!"

Empress Sulia looks up, expression cool, neutral.

Jessica looks up as well, enraptured, "Why?" she murmurs.

Then another. He strides forward, a hale and hearty man in his late middle age, a long  white beard beard and hair flowing freely. He wears well made and kept armor. If not for a stump in place of a hand, he would be unmarred. Tyr approaches you, "Greetings and well met. Explain this," he says, gaze on Zariel. "Mangled as she is, I do not sense repentance in her soul."

[Ebiris]

Alicia draws herself up. "Tyr, well met," she greets him. "You know Seira and I were given the task of judging Daa-vid, a task that was denied to us after we ascended to join you as Gods. Be that as it may, we learned much of what transpired during the war of the God-King. Torm's fall, and Zariel's fall that precipitated it. Ever we considered it an injustice, for Zariel to be cast down into hell merely for losing herself to Daa-vid's control. Now," she gestures at the comatose figure in Seira's arms. "We have a chance to discover more. To perhaps render judgement on her if not Daa-vid. Where better to start than her old home?"

[Corwin]

"Well met," Seira echoes Alicia. "I agree with every word, and to Alicia's argument I would like to add another. It would have been too easy to break Zariel free of her chains and have her spontaneously recognize all her past mistakes. But we're not afraid of some hard work ahead, and I know you feel the same, or we wouldn't have come here. This is our chance, both to make up to Zariel for the injustices done to her, and to go above and beyond to save her soul. Nothing would make us happier than to see you be part of it, and we would all be the better for this."

[Anastasia]

Make a Diplo check there, Alicia, +7 bonus. Seira, feel free to aid Alicia's check or make your own check.

[Ebiris]

[20:32] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+60 diplo
[20:32] <Serith> Ebiris roll for Serith < 70 > [d20=10]

[Corwin]

[22:32] <@UnacceptableMustard> roll 1d20+49+4+10+15
[22:32] <Serith> UnacceptableMustard roll for Serith < 92 > [d20=14]