Welcome to Gaia! ::

As Chilia looked into the dark abyss of the pit, she would be greeted with a maddening, dizzying sight. It was as if the pit descended forever into a black spiral connected to countless dimensions beyond human understanding. The spiral seemed to twist and dissolve, reforming again and again in some kind of state between solid and liquid. Out of the darkness of the surrounding room, countless people stepped forwards, hooded in dark robes. They had to be the townspeople. Mayor Lightheart was first and foremost amongst them.



Although he looked the same, there was something darker about him; more menacing. "So...you came," he told the Blackwings in a scratchy, distorted voice. "And now you've uncovered our little secret. Our...new source of power." He pointed with his cane towards the pit of madness. "This was here eons before us and will be here eons afterwards. It connects us to power beyond your understanding. And the being that lives within is our new....god." The smell coming from the pit was growing worse, as if some creature were nearing the surface. Fleur looked over at the pit worriedly. "What..?" She muttered, trying to comprehend what the Mayor was saying. "A...new god?"

Mayor Lightheart laughed at Chilia's statement. "Then you've never truly seen one," he replied. He looked back towards the crowd of hooded figures. "Bring them!" He commanded. Several of the hooded figures left and moments later they came back with the heroes. Except the heroes were bound in chains.








Blake and Faye were both struggling, angrily pulling at their chains as they tried to break free. Lexi and Jacob both stood silently. Lexi seemed afraid though Jacob seemed more to be calmly looking for the right time to break free. "What IS this!?" Blake demanded angrily as he was pulled forward. "We're on the same side you idiots! Or did you sell us out to the Blackwings!?" Faye looked over at Mayor Lightheart. "Mayor! Tell me you didn't!" Faye cried as she looked at him. The Mayor shook his head slightly, clucking his tongue. "There, there children. The Blackwings are just as surprised as you are. In fact, they too have been deceived into coming here." The Mayor gestured towards the pit and some of the hooded figures slowly pulled the heroes forward to the edge of it. Faye looked down into it and paled, quickly looking away. "W-what's down there?" she asked, seeming almost sick. As if in response to her question, something deep in the pit rumbled. It was coming closer.

Mayor Lightheart shook his head. "Why? Well, it's simple. When the Blackwings first came here we were a "proud" people. Proud? More like arrogant! We believed in our "heroes" and the might of our brave army and trusted them to defend us against the "evil" Blackwings. Justice, honor, truth, goodness. These were supposed to protect us from the Blackwings and their destructive ways. But in the end they did not. Our arrogance led to our demise and slavery, because those things are all lies. BUT, we know better now. We know better than to trust in such foolish sentimentality. This time we will defeat the Blackwings because we understand that there is no such thing as good or evil, honor or dishonor, justice or injustice. There is only power and cunning. And now that we know that, we know that "heroes" and their values cannot protect us."

Fleur looked over at Chilia. "I think we must have really sent them off the deep end when we defeated them. Or maybe we just killed all the sane ones. I don't think this guy was in charge when the Blackwings took this city last time..." she muttered to her. All around them the hooded figures began chanting in a steady beat. The candles began to flicker and there was another rumbling from the pit. "Mayor Lightheart! You can't possibly believe what you're saying! What about everything you taught us about truth and honor and being heroes!? Was that all just a lie?" Mayor Lightheart looked back at her. "Yes." He replied simply. "Then why?" Asked Jacob, speaking up. "Why go through all the trouble of training us to be heroes? And why capture us and bring us all down here? How will this help you defeat the Blackwings?" Mayor Lightheart gave the heroes a thin smile. "Now that is the question, isn't it?" He told them. He looked back to the Blackwings. "How about you four? Are you in the dark as well or would you care to take a guess as to why we're all here?"

Mayor Lightheart clapped his hands. "Sacrifice! You are absolutely correct. Though you are wrong about one thing, Ms. Blackwing. YOU are not the sacrifice." He looked over at the bound heroes. "They are." "What!?" Cried Lexi, struggling against the chains. "You monster!" Yelled Blake. Mayor Lightheart ignored them. "You see, it's simple: We give our god the sacrifice and in return it aids us. Specifically, it protects us by killing you. What it demands in sacrifice are pure and noble souls, much like those that made up our city during your first invasion. Those that did survive your attack served a....new purpose. However, we eventually ran out. That is why we now train heroes. Not to uphold our own, outdated beliefs, but as lambs for the slaughter." He gave the Blackwings a cruel smile. "Why us?" Asked Jacob, anger in his voice. "Why heroes? What does it want with us?" Mayor Lightheart looked back at him. "Why it does what it does and wants what it wants is beyond our understanding. It is also not our concern. It seeks noble souls in return for protection. That is all that matters." Faye glared at the Mayor. "So you sold us out! Sold out everything our people used to stand for! Sold it to appease some...creature that lives at the bottom of that pit! You make me sick!" Mayor Lightheart shook his head. "It is far more than a "creature" child..." he assured her.

Fleur narrowed her eyes. "Well, how low of you," she sneered, which was a surprising statement coming from her. If she thought something was low, then it was truly despicable. Mayor Lightheart looked at Chilia as the rumbling came again. This time the entire room shook. Small trails of dust fell from the ceiling, and a keen, long wailing could be heard coming from inside the pit. The candles suddenly seemed to grow dimmer. "You have no authority to demand a god show itself," Mayor Lightheart told Chilia. "Though unfortunately for you, it will come. Indeed, it is coming as we speak. Though by the time it gets here it will be too late for you." Fleur looked at Chilia. "I don't know what's down there, but I'd rather not see it. The pit itself seems to be some kind of entryway. Perhaps if we can somehow close it before the creature gets here, we can put the brakes on their disturbing plan for good."