Lo-Nine

Soltana

She rode atop the shoulders of a giant.

Or an average sized human if one were not so tiny. Soltana gripped two ropes that were attached with a caribiner to a ring on Gideon's shoulder.

“So Baxter, your small furry creature defeated this demon, named Saddifer, who is now his pet?” she asked.

Gideon materialized a strange canister, clicking two buttons on it and dropping it down into the main cavern. It detonated with white hot phosphorus flames, engulfing the clamoring demons beneath them. She could barely hear anything else over the din below her. They had climbed up high the hexagonal pillars in a mad rush as demons burst forth from every direction. A black claw whizzed past her head. She spotted the conical robed demon staring back up at them, arm pointed with four long claws left. She scanned it, getting a good readout, combined with the Seal, she knew and understood it.

Race: Demon

Class: imp

Type: Rake

A long range support demon.

Dangerous in large numbers.

Strength: weak

She gathered all she needed. She channeled her solar energy through her right eye, sending forth a threaded beam of red, striking the demon in the face. It burst and charred open like microwaved fruit, and then fell into the mob.

“Yeah! He just ate the bastard’s contract and forced it to sign his own!”

He fired a rapid spray from his pulse pistol, clearing out a group of crawlers that were scrambling up the walls in front of them. She spotted a group of green robed goblins, fighting for their life on a lower hex pillar. The brawlers had made a body-ladder, just feet away from reaching them.

“Gideon, they need help!”

“Them? They tried to kill me earlier!” he retorted.

“Gideon- please!” she implored.

“Dammit- fine!”

His remaining shoulder mount let out a screech-crack, peppering the demonic ladder with hypersonic steel sabots. It collapsed as the slain demons broke down into gore and ash. The goblins paused, looking back at them with curious looks. She looked at a lone man in black clad armor on an isolated pillar, sporting a flat golden visor. He had long lost his comrades and rifle, resorting to deftly swinging a metal baton across any demon that got close.

Lucifer’s Chosen.

Soltana didn’t want to help him, even if he was in trouble. But still, her programming to help was a strong factor. Two more red beams from her eyes cut down a pair of stalking Crawlers. The Chosen glanced up at them, pausing for a brief moment.

“Why are you helping him?” Gideon barked as he dropped another volley of grenades beneath them.

“It is in my programming- it feels wrong not to assist!” she replied as she hung on for dear life just as Gideon lept to a slightly higher pillar. The one they were just standing upon detonated at the base and collapsed into the demonic mob. It also cut the rest off from going higher into the cavern.

“There’s no helping them, we have to keep moving forward!” he replied.

He lept atop another hex pillar, straining to gain his balance.

“So what about you? How did you get repaired?” he asked as he fired another volley into a gang of Crawlers.

“But I was still listening to your story- You implied you knew who summoned these demons?” she countered.

She would not get distracted from hearing his story. She had waited too long for answers. Gideon ducked down, his armor taking glancing blows from a volley of long bladed claws. He returned fire, riddling the Rake to mulched pieces.

“Fine- yeah it was some fallen angel named Amy! Craziest person I ever met! Tried to capture Shindow and then wanted to feed us cheese before fighting and then becoming best friends with that demon god Slate.”

She processed what she heard. Dozens of questions opened up for each detail he spoke of.

“And that was then Slate shot you in the head?”

She remembered seeing the star shaped scar along his scalp.

He let out a grunt at that. Gideon jumped to the next pillar over. They were just a hop away from the entrance. His footing gave way as the rock pillar below began to crumble. The demons were tearing down the stones. She gripped tightly as he swore, jumping and catching his hand on the ledge of the cavern out.

“Don’t let go!” she cried.

“Not… Intending to…” he strained.

Soltana activated the Seal, her forehead glowing as she hedged their backs with a barrier of red energy. Long blades ricochet and shattered upon her shield. She knew full well the target was Gideon, otherwise she couldn’t use it. With a single pull, he launched himself into the cavern. The hex pillar finally collapsed, crumbling into the horde below. She unlocked herself from the carabiner, hopping off his shoulder. She refused to look back into the mobbed subterranea. Gideon glanced back, waiting for any contact. There was none. He stalked the halls, pistol ready and a stun rod in his other hand.

Soltana ambled beside him, taking four steps to his one. It was quiet in the halls of glinting quartz

“So those were your adventures? Karmmrak and the Skylon?” she asked.

“The big one sanyways. Granted- Spending twelve hours to find a lost Baxter on the Decima is nowhere near as exciting in comparison!”

“The Decima. That is a pretty name. I can not wait to see- a vessel made from the same type of metal as I.”

“You look nicer- believe me.”

“Thank you. I suspect I will grow in size as we collect more admanatite or other compatible alloys.”

“And don’t forget our unlimited supply of aqueous steel. Maybe you could reach your final form using that and your current adamantite to protect vitals,” Gideon replied.

Her eyes scanned the hall, dazzling back at her.

“Are the Watchers not fascinating? I have never seen anything like this. Although I have never seen much at all.”

“Tell me about yourself, Soltana- what adventures did you go on?”

She knew by his change of subject he was not as curious by the Watchers as she was.

“Well, when we dreamed, I met L’yophin, the Dugrum spider. He helped to repair me- not as you see me now, but it worked for that moment of my life. It feels eons ago…”

“So I was right! The Dugrum was good,” he retorted.

“Yes, your instincts were correct. L’yophin is who I would consider my best friend.”

“You mean he’s not a bestie?”

“I am unaware of what milestones one would need to cross for that classification.”

“You can laugh a little,” he snidely shot back.

“Only when there is a joke- Oh! Basil explained that to me.”

Gideon grunted a reply.

“As I was repaired, we collected a group of Gobs, which are infant Goblins- similar to amphibians. L’yophin considered them pests, but seeing them so cold and hungry- I could not help but implore him for aid. So the mansion housed us plus ten Gobs. At least we thought there were ten.”

“What happened?”

“One was an imposter. A shapeshifter. We had no idea how much danger we were in. If she had a mind to, she would have destroyed us both.”

She looked up at him, catching his concerned look through the visor.

“We eventually discovered Basil who was also looking for this imposter. Her name was Maw. And Ruth.”

“Ruth? The one from our dreams? That was Ruth..?”

“Yes. I can only imagine what happened to her to reduce her to such a state. Or ascend her to such a state- she is by far one of the strongest of our group, barring Diniel.”

Gideon held up his hand, quieting her as he aimed his pistol. She heard it, too.

Walk-walk, tick

Walk-walk, tick

Walk-walk, tick

Something was coming down the hall. She sensed it ahead, surprised by what she felt. It was strong, with a mixture of divine and demonic, similar to Ruth.

She spotted it.

A black lizard standing on its hind legs, sporting a scaly sack over his shoulder in one hand and a stick in the other. The one singular reason why either she or Gideon didn’t open fire instantly was the sight of a red fez atop his head. His enormous eyes snapped independently around the hall, as if perpetually looking for a way out. She surmised there was a barely flickering lamp of intelligence behind those irises. It appeared to be a creature of instinct created around one emotion:

Fear.

It stopped, cocking its head back and forth.

She moved forward, waving her hand up at Gideon, halting him from shooting on principle.

“Wait! Who are you?” she asked.

The demon looked taken aback. It opened its mouth and then paused.

“Um. Yes. I am Gup!”

It squeaked its words, as if unfamiliar with the idea of speech. Or cognitive thought.

“Do you know the master-mistress Amy?” the demon asked in kind.

She touched Gideon’s ankle before he shot him dead. Gideon grunted at her, but relinquished.

“Yeah- I know Amy. We go way back, She is… the best,” he snidely replied.

“Oh yes!... Really?” The demon named Gup cocked his head, eyes twitching.

“In fact- you could say we’re besties.”

The demon’s eyes bugged out as it gasped, stammering and sputtering for words.

“Then you are mistress- uh- yes, master Amy’s friends! Amy’s friends are my friends too or else I get head bonks!” the demon felt at its hat, wincing in some phantom pain.

“Do you know where Amy is?” Giden asked.

The demon vacantly shook his head. Back and neck bowing and scraping.

“Don’t be mad at Gup! Gup find Amy with you- please! Besties! Wait! Peace!”

“Okay- yeah- shut up. We’re not going to shoot you. Unless you give us reason to,” Gideon threatened.

“No! Gup behaves and get no head bonks! Master Amy kind- Save Gup from scary glowing ones!”

Another story to hear. This is Terrific!

“Another story- just terrific...” Gideon muttered, as if reading her thoughts.

"So? Where’s Amy?”

Gup glanced to and fro. He placed his scale sack down, looking inside. He then checked under a pebble. He shrugged, eyes darting nervously.

“Don’t know.”

“Well- I guess you’re our prisoner then-”

Soltana tapped Gideon’s ankle and whispered a word to him.

“You’re our friend then. Come on- let’s find Amy the bestie. A friend of Amy’s… Is a friend of ours.”

The demon perked up.

“Oh this is good! Amy will be happy and Gup get praise!”

They stood there, awkwardly looking at one another. They waited for something- anything. Gup blinked his eyes out of timing with one another, staring at them vacantly.

“Well?” Gideon barked, “Lead the way!”

Gup squeaked before turning and stumbling down the hall. Soltana nodded up at him, flashing her eyes with approval. This Gup character may help lead them to the others- or whoever this Amy was. This fallen angel sounded easily distracted. If anything, they may be able to revert the summoned demons that attacked them- if it was Amy who summoned the mob.

They continued their journey through the quartz halls, following their new absent-minded guide, urging him along every time he got distracted by a shiny. Which was often. Soltana curiously peered at Gup as he bent over, grabbing a loose crystal and stuffing it in his sack, nodding with satisfaction.

“Gup, what are you doing?” she asked.

“Oh. Uh- um… Shinies?” he replied, eyes darting nervously.

Curious. Based on the habits of demons, he may be one of greed.

She scanned him, trying to gain some insight into what it was.

Race: Demon

Name: Gup

Class: Imp

Type: Lizard Thief

A barely sentient demon. One wonders how it survived for so long. A detriment to whichever side it's on. Loyalty is its only strength and perhaps its limited potential to grow.

Strength: pathetic

Spells: Pilfer Roulette, Blinding Sand, Navigator’s Mind, Strength of Greed

She almost felt sorry for it. A thing of evil, but so poorly made that it should have been snuffed out long ago; which would have been a mercy to the universe. She wondered if this Amy also felt sorry for it.

“Gup, how did Amy find you?”

He perked up, a crooked toothy grinning forming on his face.

“Master Amy is the best- she saved me from not-Lucifer and then we joined real-Lucifer who is a she and not a he!”

“Wait,” Gideon replied, stopping them with a gesture.

“You were with Lucifer when she got free?”

The demon nodded profusely.

“Scary glowing ones- not-Lucifer said they were demons! Very confusing!”

“So the fake Lucifer didn’t know who he was freeing… Makes sense if history and myth get lost- even for a supposed superior being like a demon,” Gideon replied.

“I dreamed of Lucifer as well. She has captured one Seal holder because of my mistakes… The Fallen angels attacked Underrealm. I am unsure why it was a target, but apparently a great war was fought. To finish my story, we all barely survived an attack by several fallen angels. We only lived because of…”

Soltana looked away, glancing around the caverns to see if he was listening. Everyone halted, staring at her.

“The one who hurt Ruth. He did things to her. Changed her. Scarred her. Forced her to carry his child. His pseudonym is Neon and he is quite possibly the most terrifying thing I have ever encountered. I cannot say his name as I theorize it is cursed. He is a demon god of great power, like this Slate you spoke of. He defeated several fallen angels, Ruth, Diniel, and myself all too easily.”

“Jesus Christ…” Gideon muttered, “that’s what happened to her? She fought a god and lost? And he… to her?”

“Yes.”

She flashed her eyes as Gup blinked vacantly at the two.

“The child was born. Maw is her name. He is forcing us to be caretakers. He tested us through brutality- weighing our mettle to see if we would be good caretakers of this new god he created. I still do not understand why he did this apart from causing suffering to everyone around him.”

“Find the reason and you find his motivation,” Gideon surmised.

Gup rasped back at them, suddenly haughty.

“That is odd. Gods have to grow- can’t just make gods- pft, every demon knows that!”

Soltana exchanged glances with Gideon.

“Oh dear.”

Gideon folded his arms, tapping his wrist.

“If that’s the case, then if you could mass produce god-level demons- What’s to stop this Neon from conquering the universe?”

“Us,” Soltana said confidently.

“Soltana, there isn’t a whole lot of ‘us’. He just needs to make like, what, a dozen? We couldn’t even fight even one!”

“Not yet. We are still on the infancy of gathering allies to our side. There are other Seal holders.”

“Like that dragon Shindow dreamed of…” he replied.

“Berghain?” Soltana asked.

“You too?”

“Actually, it was Ruth who did. I dreamed of a skeleton named Kheros. Undead is what they were called. He was involved with Azrael, angel of Death.”

“It’s never just normal, isn’t it?”

“Gup remembers boy who had Seal- fought all of us- and Amy and-and-and beat her!”

He glanced around with worry, waiting for some sort of punishment.

“There may be more than first estimated. Adonai is raising up more champions.”

Gideon gestured for the small imp to move as they continued on.

They passed through into a cube shaped room with a glowing raised square platform dominating the center. Gup waddled in, eyes darting as he clicked his stick along the ground.

“Shiny!” he squeaked.

Gup rushed to the center as Gideon beat him to it, grabbing the demon by the scruff.

“Don’t. Press it,” he hissed.

Soltana ambled to the demon’s side.

“We do not know if this is a trap of sorts.”

Gup nodded his head hurriedly, eyes bugging out.

“No pressy?” Gup asked.

“No,” Gideon affirmed.

She began scanning the room, seeing a blocked entrance on the other side. She turned to see the entryway they had just come from was the same patterned design. The grey-violet mineral appeared to be carved in an unending series of vines and floral designs. She scanned the stone, finding nothing conclusive. She still felt that warm heartbeat of a pulse.

“I am unsure what other action we can take apart from pressing the projection. The hall appeared to have a singular path and it is only a matter of time before the demons converge here,” Soltana advised.

“I’ll press it,” Gideon replied solemnly, “I can at least resurrect if it kills me. I’m not sure about you all. And Gup-” he turned to look at her.

“I don’t think Soltana would appreciate me using you as bait.”

The lizard demon blinked back vacantly.

“We go together,” Soltana affirmed.

He nodded at her with a grunt.

They both tentatively stepped onto the platform, feeling it give out. Once in the center the square descended into a depression in the floor. She sensed gravity suddenly change in the surrounding area, as if centrifugal force was at work. Gup began to slide to the wall, eyes darting maddly.

“Eh?” he squeaked before slamming into the wall. He slid along it, up to the ceiling before tumbling down the far relief.

“The room is spinning,” Soltana surmised.

“It’s the Watchers!” Gideon barked a laugh, as if that was the explanation in and of itself.

The entrance on the far wall opened and the one behind them closed. The glowing square went dark.

“Some sort of puzzle, but for toddlers,” Gideon remarked as he stepped off the platform.

Soltana glanced to Gup, seeing a tangle of objects and limbs.

“Ouchies…” the demon muttered.

He was surprisingly durable, as if he had grown resistent to blunt trauma.

“Come on, Gup. We can go now,” she gestured to the lizard thief.

They marched out of the room and into another, similar to the last. In the corner was a raised platform of violet relief stone, well over eight feet high. In the opposite corner was another glowing pressure square. She spotted glowing light from the tall nook.

“Ah, looks like the previous room was a tutorial of sorts- press the button, move to the next room. All that’s needed is a treasure chest.”

“I understand, we need to press both buttons at once,” she deduced.

“Due to obvious reasons, you get the one on the floor- I’ve got the platform,” Gideon clarified.

He is correct. I am rather small and I would have many tribulations climbing to the top.

She marched to the square, looking back at Gideon. The armor he wore was complex and well crafted, aiding him with built in joints, servos, muscle fibers, and antigrav nodes. He lept easily to the top in a single bound, as if on strings. He surveyed from the top, shrugging as he called out.

“Alright, on three!”

Gup spoke up from the side.

“Uh. Yes. Gup wondering. Can Gup press shiny?”

She nodded. It wouldn’t hurt for him to press it.

“Yes, Gup, you may.”

The demon bounced excitedly, wedding over to the projection. He stepped and then proceeded to trip on the edge, slamming face first onto the button. It clicked down as Gideon swore, rushing to step on his own. She felt the room beginning its gravity anomaly again and lept to the button, lest she tumble about like Gup did previously. The entrance sealed itself as the exit opened.

Gideon hopped off the platform, gesturing them over.

“We’re off!” he announced. They all marched to the next room, spotting three raised squares. One on the floor, one jutting from the wall, and one hanging from the ceiling. Soltana sensed something else in the room as she entered. She spotted movement in the corner. It was veiled just like Gideon was.

“Gideon, do you see that?”

“Yeah! Steak! At least we get to see a familiar face in this shit show…”

The form unveiled, clinging to the wall with four metallic arms and two legs. One limb had a laser rifle pointed directly at Gup. It dropped to the ground, the gun still aimed at the lizard demon.

“Good Gideon, it is fortunate you are well. I calculated this was the most logical position to regroup. Why is there a demon amongst you? Shall I terminate it?”

Gup gulped.

Gideon raised up his palm, storing away his stun rod.

“Don’t shoot him, he’s with us. Not yet anyways. He’s Amy’s demon. We’re using him to get to her,” Gideon explained.

Steak’s arms folded up into one as he clicked his pistol to his side. He marched to her, kneeling down to inspect her. She realized this was her first Anform she had ever met since being unburied.

“Hello, I am Soltana. What is your name?”

“Good Soltana, I am STK-01, Excertius, or otherwise known as Steak. You are the Anform from Gideon’s dreams, are you not?”

“I am, except I am a Lambent, not an Anform.”

“A Lambent? What’s that? Because you look like an Anform to me,” Gideon commented.

“I was created to create. Built to build. Artifized to artifice. My existence is to explore, to fabricate, and to help. The more I am repaired, the more I remember. I am a triplicate design, created by Barman the Angel of Knowledge, Mikial McDonough of Primetech, and Tangence who I do not know. I am part Angel, part Anform, part Human.”

Everyone halted. The room went silent. Gideon stored his helmet away, revealing his shocked expression.

“Eh?” Gup was the first to break the silence.

“Father made you? Tangence??”

“Yes, although I am more of a creation than a daughter. Diniel explained that to me.”

“Father wouldn’t think of it that way- that’s too impersonal for him. You’re my half sister?” He paused again, eyes darting as he thought.

“And Tangence- the Machine Mother!” Gideon added.

“Oh. So that is Tangence. Would that make me a McDonough?” she asked.

“Would it? That’s good enough for me! Welcome to the family,” Gideon knelt down, giving her a gentle pat on the shoulder. Gup mimicked that gesture.

“Good Soltana, that would make Lambent’s a cousin of Anforms- a new evolution of quantum life.”

Feelings of elation and excitement raced through her processes deep into her Theonware. She now belonged.

“I know I am only in an infant state, it is suggested I grow much larger.”

“We’ll talk about that later- a McDonough!” Gideon commented.

“Shall we vacate the room?” Steak suggested.

“Yes,”

“Let’s get the hell out of here. Once we find everyone, we’ll make our way back to the Decima.”

“I have a vessel as well, we’ll need to collect Maw and Phela who were left behind,” Soltana replied.

“We’ll get them too. We’ll have a fleet, too!” Gideon reacted, unfazed by her news.

Steak skittered up the wall and onto the ceiling, gripping the relief and pulling himself into the compressing button. Gideon lept to the wall, grasping the edges as he leaned against his own switch. Soltana tapped Gup on the flank and marched with him to their own button on the floor.

She expected the room to spin like before. Instead it opened up, the walls and ceilings folding out and flat, revealing a massive plane of existence above them. She couldn’t immediately comprehend what she was looking at. Unimaginable objects and structures reigned and towered over them from all angles. Flashes of light and streams of tracer fire erupted all around her in the sky. A war was happening all around them. Amy’s Demons, Genius Loci’s cultists, Lucifer’s Chosen and many others fought in furious bedlam on impossible structures. She spotted a dozen emerald cultists charge up a flight of upside down stairs, cutting down Brawlers and sending them tumbling into space.

Gideon materialized his helmet and pulse rifle. Steak was enveloped in blue light, changing forms completely. It was elegant and powerful, sporting a strange tunic. The flexible tensile muscles fibers flexed tight. He appeared lighter than air, dancing on the balls of his feet.

Gup’s eye bulged as he curled up, hiding in a ball.

“This is bad! So very bad!” he cried.

“Well that’s an understatement. Looks like they took us out of the kiddy pool and dumped us into the fire,” Gideon surmised.

Soltana glanced to a set of twisting stairs connecting to their platform. A horde of brawlers were shambling towards them, letting out a cacophony of death-rattle gasps.

“Contact- contact!” Gideon cried, leveling his rifle.

She readied herself for the immediate conflict, eyes glowing red.