[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

Re: PLAYER ACTION

[velluminous]

[ Nessa is reaching out to her? then she reaches back, tenfold, thinking of her joy when Sprezzatura offered to mentor her. thinking of her bravery standing toe to toe with Svetka, not just recently, but when everyone was being cannibalized, too. thinking of her every time she's seen the girl around Reverie, helping others, guiding them. thinking of whatever sacrifice she made to become the young girl she knows, and not the witch she's met in here. thinking of her reaching for her, bleeding, just moments ago.

now she looks at Esmau. ]

Idiot.

[ and shoves ALL OF THAT in ]

Re: PLAYER ACTION

[voidhearts]

[The crystal absorbs your memory and is...overwhelmed.

Nessa was overjoyed when Sprezzatura agreed to mentor her, to the point it made her forget her despair over her brother being trapped in solitary confinement, for just a while. She was terrified every time she stood apart from Svetka, but she tried to think of Sprezzatura telling her "I will outmatch her, lapochka."

Through the crystal, Sprezzatura can feel the little flutter Nessa felt in her chest every time she heard that work, 'lapochka'. She likes that word. She...really likes it.

The excess of memories makes the orb burn white hot in Sprezzatur's hand. Once they're pressed into the crystal, they overload it to the point that it's overwhelmed and EXPLODES in a flash of white and purple light. Esmau squawks as her shield flickers, the explosion almost rocking her off of her feet.]