[Endgame: rise or DROWN]

[warpweft]

[How long have you been exploring Nessa's palace now? You've met her family, viewed her memories, learned how to fight as a witch and tried to find the source of her power and the Treasure of her palace: the Voidheart. And along the way, you've tired your best, with mixed success, to avoid the incarnation of her eldest cousin and the representation of her trauma and fear, the Nightmare of Esmau.]

[Wherever you are in the Palace right now, you feel the ground briefly shake under your feet. Little shakes here and there haven't been out of the ordinary - Esmau is trying to blow the place down to the studs, after all. But that felt different. That felt....worse.]

[Your phone beeps as you receive a message.]

Comments

[velluminous]

Fine! Miss Zarya hit harder with little stick of hers.

[ this is barked out, perhaps a touch sharply ]

[messianic]

[ hhhh it's really hard to watch someone else he cares about take a hit for him, but what can he do but nod? ]

O... okay. Got it. Um--thank you...!

[velluminous]

[ turnabout is fair play! >:[

she rolls her shoulder a touch painfully, but she really doesn't seem very badly off. like if you hit your elbow against a piece of furniture. ]

I am "tank", apparently.

[messianic]

I... see.

[ huh. Sprezzatura the tank... ]

Okay then. I'll keep you healed up.

[velluminous]

[ this is the ONE AND ONLY time she's got equal HP to everyone else and any chance at all to survive it ]

Keep yourself healed up!

[messianic]

[ looks at his spells... sweats...

it's fine. ]

I will! We're all going to get out of this, together.

[velluminous]

[ you LIAR ]

That's right!

[ and she's off, piling Ironheart onto Tsumugi ]