His Arrival... [Tomo; Open]

[Sanada Tomo]

[I'm replying to Ilreg, Chikara, Jiishita, Yomi and Migoto all in this post, so I hope that it doesn't get too confusing, since four of you are all in the same room...]

In the dark dungeon, where the only lights were that of the magical flames burning on lantern stands, Symphony heard the prisoner speak.

"Who is your master, golem? Can you talk, or is your mouth better suited for other purposes?"

He had seated himself directly in Symphony's view. Her first instinct was to alert her Mistress that he had spoken to her, but it was not a matter that she deemed worthy enough for another signal.

"I speak when my Mistress commands me to speak. There is no other reason to converse," she said staring directly into his eyes with her own blank ones. "My Mistress is my Mistress, and she commands me well," she added, answering his first question. Her violet eyes did not falter in their stare, and she did not move even an inch. She knew that her Mistress would visit him when the time was right.

---

Tomoyo flashed a small smile at Migoto as he left with her child. She was a tad disappointed that he showed no remorse for his King being injured, even if he was not particularly fond of her, but that was his decision and she would not think lowly of him for it. Her smile grew wider when she saw that Rakeru was taking a liking to him, and she had to admit taht he was very good at subduing children. She would have to think about recruiting him as a babysitter, perhaps. He was not the type for paperwork, she knew from an earlier conversation between him and her daughter, Cielle.

Her smile began to fade as she said to Migoto's retreating back, "Thank you."

Turning to the audience of Kings and Elders before her, she began her report.

"Not too long ago, perhaps by a few hours, I was given a report from Uesugi Yomi that there was a Dragon in the sixth layer and that he had wrought destruction on most of the capital and it's citizens. Most of the population is safe, if I'm not mistaken, and I have sent a group of soldiers from both my personal reserve and Rei's own to help rebuild the city, along with an Elf. This should enable them to finish repairs in about a day or so, if not sooner. All of that magical power should be able to speed along the process. Before you say anything, Yomi, there is no need for thanks. I am your King and I had already made sure that my Layer was amply protected before sending out forces."

She looked at Jiishita and Chikara. "The Dragon that fought Yomi and put her in this awful condition, I believe, is the same Dragon that injured you, Chikara, and caused Jiishita to surrender. I sent Symphony out to search the entire city and she came back with someone who had a Dragon's aura. He is dirty and had blood stains all over his clothing. This is what I think points to his being the culprit, honestly."

She held up a hand. "Before you all rush to the dungeon to see him, I am only allowing Jiishita to travel down there. Yomi, you are hurt, and though I have him under lock and key and barrier, I know that your rage gets the better of you. I am asking you to either stay here to see what comes of my speaking with him, or Jiishita, or you can go back to your layer and speak with your people. Chikara, I know that you and Jiishita rarely travel alone, and so I called you here with him. You will stay up here as well."

Turning to Jiishita, she said, "Are you ready?"

[Ilreg, if you want to RPG him hearing us coming down into the dungeon, he can, but don't RP him as seeing us yet. I told Jiishita and Chikara to reply first.]

[Ongaku Migoto]

Walking along the corridors of Tomoyo's castles, Migoto strolled on holding Rakeru in one hand, and Elizabeth's in the other. Heading toward the baby's room, Migoto couldn't help but to wonder what happened to Yomi. Although he did not particularly care for Yomi's brash and sullen attitude, she was his king and it mildly concerned him as to who could leave her in shambles.

"Tony, who was that lady, she looked very badly hurt? Will she be okay." Elizabeth asked, beginning to grow scarred as more and more soldiers moved around the castle, seeing some hurt that badly outside of a medical facility.

"Don't quite know kiddo. Yomi is as old as dirt, but she just a powerful as Tomo, I don't have a clue as to who could bust her up." Migoto said to Elizabeth, gently caressing her hand ion his own to alleviate her fears. The truth was , Migoto was concerned now over whether it was a good idea to bring Elizabeth along with him. He didn't expect thing to escalate with Heaven and began to wonder if this was the beginning of another conflict between the two Realms.

Opening the door, Migoto set the baby in his crib, whistling a tune that set the nearly fussing baby at peace, causing him to fall into a relaxing slumber. Sitting down on one of the chairs, Migoto pulled one of the smaller ones closer, allowing Elizabeth to sit next to him. Taking a seat next to him, Migoto placed his hand on Elizabeth's shoulder, and conjured a bewitching smile. "Hey, don't you worry about the stuff going on around here. Let the kings and old farts run around like crazy people, it you me and Tomo's bundle of joy, so relax okay." Migoto said to Elizabeth.

Fretful at first, once the girl caught sight of the Djinni's smile, she flung herself onto him, hugging him tightly. "Ok, I believe you Tony." Elizabeth said, holding onto Migoto.

[Ilreg Douisis Ofu'ul]

Ilreg was less than pleased with his would-be warden's lack of enthusiasm, as well as her reluctance to divulge any important information. His stare still intently focused on Symphony, Ilreg's eyes tried to attempt to peel away the various magics that shrouded Symphony's true form, but the magic of the cage made his vision blurry and distorted. Blinking his eyes once to readjust them, he continued to look on at her face.

"There is much reason to converse you daft cunt, or does your 'supposed' mistress restrict you intellect as well as your speech. Answer me, who is she and where am I?" Ilreg said, his breath visible as he had plunged the inside of his cage to well below subzero temperatures. "Do you think this pathetic excuse for a cage can hold me!? Well, do you!?" Ilreg said, standing as he walked to the very edge of the cage, his face a, micron away from the pulsating energies of the magics that bound him.

"Who the hell do you think I am, a peon, some mere cur to be made spectacle of. I am Ilreg Douisis Ofu'ul, the prince of all Dragons living or dead, and you have but a short time time give me the answers I seek, or I shall break free, and take them as well as your v..." Ilreg stopped in his rant as he began to hear the shuffle of feet in the distance of the completely silent dungeon. Not moving Ilreg remained in his seat to see who or what is was that was coming, and eager to see why he had been imprisoned.

[Takaishi Jiishita]

Jiishita's fist clenched as Tomoyo began speaking, explaining the jist of what had happened. Jiishita's eyes kept themselves fixed on Tomo, because he didn't want to be insensitive in glancing at Yomi. He had seen the extent ot her injuries when she came in; no need to rub that in her face. Not to mention that she could probably bite his own face off if he stared at her long enough.

Then she moved on to the Dragon. Tomo had found him?

A million things spiraled in his head, and he didn't know what he was going to do. Chikara was fine now, but even thinking about how her body had look, mangled and broken and...

It was enough to make him shiver.

His jaw set, and it was at that moment that Tomo asked him if he was ready to go and face the man who had threatened his wife. Honestly, he wasn't sure, but as he was the only one being allowed down there, he might as well take the opportunity.

[Uesugi Yomi]

Yomi frowned distinctively, and she almost raised her voice in protest; how dare Sanada call her here while she was injured to inform her that she held an enemy in her castle who had destroyed her capital city, and then tell her that she wasn't able to go down there, and give that little bloody fuck what he deserved. Considering how badly the fight had gone for the both of them, the chance to finish him off would be welcome. One less traitorous Dragon for her to deal with. As she recalled from her last life, Dragons were supposed to be neutral figures--or something like that.

Gritting her teeth, knowing that she wouldn't get the satisfaction that she wanted, she turned to look at Chikara. She had been injured by this fucker as well; why wasn't she saying anything?

Seeing that Tomoyo was now ignoring her in exchange for going to see the prisoner herself with Jiishita, Yomi turned on her heel and walked out of the castle, biting her lip in pain, and refusing to allow herself to be carried out by her guards directly after being insulted by her King.

[Sanada Tomo]

Tomoyo could hear Yomi's steps behind her as she descended the staircase with Jiishita. She really wasn't sure what she was going to find waiting for her there. For all of the stories that she had heard about this Dragon, she didn't know what his objective was. He wanted to know about her. Now he would have his chance. Would he be attempting to steal her throne? To attack her city? What was his goal?

She knew that Jiishita being there would be a challenge. From what Jiishita had told her, this Dragon, Ilreg, was quite a smart-ass when it came to insults and jests. Tomoyo wasn't quite yet sure how she was going to react. Honestly, she had been called everything from here to the Path of Gates, and she didn't think that this prisoner would be able to say anything insulting that she hadn't already heard from the uprights, her parents, her friends, and her other, much more skilled enemies.

Her steps echoing behind her as she entered the dungeon, the walls were illuminated by free floating flames. With a snap of her fingers, the flames turned blue, reflective of the element that had assaulted her city in the sixth, a color that she was sure that the prisoner, this Ilreg, would feel more comfortable with.

"Symphony," she whispered, and the tall figure of her servant approached her, turning away from the cage before her without hesitation or another glance. "Fetch some new clothing for him, would you?"

She was sure that Jiishita would object to this, but Tomoy0 refused to sink to the level of prisoner that were held in Heaven, and she wouldn't allow his opinion to change that. She'd had criminals who committed far more worse actions against Hell subjected to the same treatment that he was getting now.

Taking a moment to adjust her clothes, she made sure that she was ready to appear like the ruler of this Realm. Her usual white gown covered her, matching her free-flowing hair as it contrasted against the dark setting of the dungeon. For a fraction of a second, Tomoyo's mind shifted gears to think of her son, Rakeru, and how he was enjoying Migoto's tender company before she cleared her throat, stepping forward into the blue light, her ice blue eyes staring unblinkingly at her captive.

[Ilreg Douisis Ofu'ul]

As the footsteps grew closer, Ilreg could hear the faintest inkling of a voice, a whisper that beckoned the lanky figure that bound him to fetch him new dress, in a manner of appropriate courtesy to prisoner. "A woman... my captor is a woman..." Ilreg said to himself, watching as she turned to answer the meek voice. Suddenly the lighting in the room changed, as the torches changed their hue. The room now filled a dim blue light, reminiscent of his attack on the 6th prior to his capture.

Emerging from the darkness was a figure, a figure whose physical apperance and magical resonance struck Ilreg to his very core. Her hair was as a long and white as her dress, her face and it gorgeous features seemingly carved out of the most pristine porcelain, her stare from the sapphires that formed her eyes as cold as their target. Who she was Ilreg would have asked himself, if the answer wasn't evident before him, the golem called Symphony turning to address her. From her aura, and Symphony's sudden switch from lifeless to attentive Ilreg began to assume the nature of her identity, watching as she came closer, her face becoming more visible.

"Sanada..., Sanada Tomo I presume?" Ilreg said, folding his arms across his chest, his eyes beaming at her through his filthy hair, his dirt caked fingers under his arms atop his dry blood stained upper torso. Their eyes met, and in their ocular embrace Ilreg couldn't help but to be reminded of a face he had all but hoped to have forgotten. His anger began to swell the more he stared at Sanada, her white hair and beautiful face striking him with fierce pangs of nostalgia. Although her gaze was as threatening as his own, she could not hide the twinges of pity and sympathy, her look now betraying what seemed to be a loving nature from a kind individual, his ability to still draw breath being the most evident of this deduction, something that further infuriated Ilreg.

It was not her pity that tore at Ilreg's core, nor her silence as she stood before him matching his gaze. It was her resemblance to his mother that tore at the Dragon, for she was the one thing he so desired to forget, yet he could never escape her gaze. While his eyes starred, his mind raced back to the last day he saw his mother, the day that would change his fate, along with that of all those the frigid hearted Dragon would come to know henceforth.

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Waking from his the painful ordeal of his attempted murder by his father, a young Ilreg awoke to find his tunic torn to ribbons, covered in his wet blood. The boy checked himself to find his wounds were healed completly, as if he hadn't suffered an attack at all, looking around to find his mother lying protrate on the ground. Io'nr had done a terrible deed, and his attack had gravely injured Kyoma, who now lay on the ground, her chest filled with gaping holes, her celestial blood pouring from her wounds and her mouth as Ilreg ran to her, his eyes filling with tears at the sight of his mortally wounded mother.

"MOTHER!" Ilreg cried as he ran to her side, crouching down to check her wounds. He soon found his hands covered in her blood, as her feathers from her wings lie strewn about, her armour reduced to ribbons. Reaching her head, a steady stream of tears flowed down Ilreg's face, falling onto his mother's cheek, mixing with her own. "Mother... mother... please don't leave me alone. I have no one except for you, I am hated by everyone at home for what I am. Mother... please... please don't die." the boy cried, placing his head on top of his mother's forhead.

Kyoma gently rubbed Ilreg's soaking wet face with her bloody hand and the boy lifted his head to meet her gaze, his tears still running. Kyoma looked into her son's eyes, and as her blood and fading magic seeped into the fertile expanse of the Umbra, a meadow of flowers began to appear around the mother and child. Continuing to rub Ilreg's face, Kyoma saw her son, and smiled at the uncanny resemblance he bore to his father, despite his youth and tear filled eyes. "My... my... little... Io'nr..." she said, swallowing a mixture of blood and bile as she struggled to breath.

And it was here, in that moment when Ilreg heard the name of the man who had taken so much from him, his heart changed. Instantly the boy's tears began to freeze on his face, his countenance now filled with much loathing and hatred. "You... you still care for him... after all his done... YOU STILL CARE!!!" Ilreg roared, shoving away his mother's head in repulsion. Standing to his feet, Ilreg turned from Kyoma who desperately reached for him to no avial, as Ilreg turned from her. Carelessly trampling over the flowers that sprung from his mother's dying love, Ilreg walked away from her body, leaving a path of frozen plants in his wake as he departed from his mother.

"I....Il... Ilr..." Kyoma struggled to say as she choked on her own blood, desperately trying to call out to her son, her efforts in vain as she finally succumbed to her injuries, expiring in a field of beautiful flowers, her son and his heart now cold and far from her grasp. Her motionless body now lie in the middle of the feild were she was slain, and Ilreg began his journey into the expanse of the Umbra, alone and afraid, yet uncaring as to his mother's final thoughts, as he barely heard her voice as he walked further away.

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Ilreg stared into the darkness, awaiting a response from the woman that stood before him, a familiar presence accompanying her in the background. His magics began to stir erratically inside him as he was unsure as to how to feel, the prospect of finally seeing Sanada Tomo for himself, and what lie for him after this, if he survived this encounter.

[Yamazaki Chikara]

Chikara had no choice but to wait as her husband and friend descended into the basement of the castle to visit Tomo's prisoner. Her hand clenched as she stood there, and she wished that there had been anything she could have said that would have made the Ha-ou's statement untrue. Even though she had only directly spoken to Yomi she knew that her rage tended to get the better of her, too, despite her efforts to keep her emotions under wraps.

Yomi stormed off, in spite of her injuries. The blood was becoming visible on her bandages, and Chikara wondered Does she even care? Knowing Yomi, she probably didn't. But Chikara knew better than to say something to her--she liked her head on her shoulders, thank you.

However, as Jiishita and Tomo left, and Yomi soon after, Chikara found herself alone in the throne room, the sound of her steps bouncing off of the walls of the massive building as she began to pace.

Looking around and finding absolutely no one, Chikara had no idea what she should do. Just wait for them to come back. Stopping to glance down the hallways to the right and the left, Chikara said to herself, "fuck it," and skipped her way up the small menagerie of steps to Tomoyo's throne, sinking down into it and looking at the rest of the castle.

"Yep," she said, "This is the good life..."

Perhaps she would take a nap. Anything that would keep her mind off of what her husband could possibly be doing, saying...

[Sanada Tomo]

"Sanada..., Sanada Tomo I presume?"

The prisoner seemed to be surprised that Tomoyo was a woman after all. The Ha-ou was not surprised. There were many even to this day who believed that her male guise was her true form, and she would not bother telling them that they were wrong; she was the Ha-ou either way.

"Sometimes," she said, to both her own thoughts and the prisoner's comment. Without looking to Jiishita for comment or input, she continued to stare, saying nothing until Symphony returned moments later, her boots echoing down the stairs. The servant's eyes blank, as they always were, pierced Ilreg's in a way that Tomoyo's never would. Lifeless orbs filled with no emotion, no expression crossed her face, even as Symphony obediently slid her hand through the shield and through the bars, the magic entrapping Ilreg's power conforming around the contours of her as it reached inside, protecting her.

When she had finished, she stepped backward until her back reached the wall, leaning there.

Sanada had not taken her eyes off of her prisoner, the whole time, however. She bowed to him in respect before speaking, silver strands from her hair covering her hair as she stood up straight again. In the blue light, her icy eyes almost glowed. "You managed to defeat the King in the layer before me," she said. It was a statement. Nothing more.

[Ilreg Douisis Ofu'ul]

Ilreg listened to Sanada's response, her impartial acknowledment to her identity summed up in one word, "Sometimes..." she said to her captive. Symphony returned with fresh dress fro Ilreg, reaching through the cage as Ilreg prepared to channel his magic until he noticed that the energy that made the barrier coated her hands, making any attempt to strike at her futile. After the cage was closed again, Ilreg glanced at the clothing and turned his back to Tomo, and the person behind her.

Starring at Tomo, his mind back in the moment Ilreg remained with his arms crossed. "Will you kill now or after I refuse your offer for new dress and the other paltry pleasantries being your prisoner. Do you honestly think I shall remain here to be a spectacle for you and this host of winged dolts that parade around you? I'd rather die, but it seems that you 'fallen' have had a very inconvenient time in your attempts to dispatch me. You speaak of that atrocious looking bitch as if she posed some challenge for me, I assure you this was not the case. The severity of my injuries were sustained after I pillaged her and desecrated her realm, but I suspect you doubt my words, you celestial cretins often do, which results in your defeat to me." Ilreg said, chuckling to himself.

"I'll tell you what... lower this pathetic excuse for a cage and I will allow you the first strike, maybe then you may come close to actually injuring me. Ilreg boasted arrogantly, now barely noticing Jiishita in the darkness behind Tomo, his breath visible with every word as the temperature in his cell now near absolute zero, its affects showing as small amounts of condensation outside the cell on the ground.

"Allow that failure behind you to do it, or do I have to be at the point of desecrating your wife for you to take any action Jiishita. There are no allies of mine to bargain with here you simpering filth. Tell me Jiishita, why is it whenever we met, you are behind a woman?" Ilreg further goaded, his magics swelling around his hands in the form of a fine mist.

"Tiamat, what is that thing Sanada has control of. It's power is unimaginable, yet it seems weakened by that facsimile flesh prison. Should I escape, it may pose a threat." Ilreg said to himself, knowing only one being could hear his every thought.

"If true this is my love, your true power will be invoked, if to survive you are." Taimat said condescendingly, implying that Ilreg will have to find his own way out of this mess, content with watching Sanada from Ilreg's perspective.

[Sanada Tomo]

A smirk appear on Tomoyo's lips. This Dragon had to have been familiar with the treatment typically given to those who were captured. However, he was dealing with a different sort of being. She had no intention of killing him. She would never go so far as to kill a Dragon without finding out who it was that they were. This "Prince of Dragons" didn't ring a bell to her at all, and she'd had some interaction with Dragons. He would be punished severely for injuring Yomi; she was one of Tomoyo's best Kings, despite what she had done in the past, and she could not let aggressive actions like this go on without taking action.

"I'm not going to kill you at all," she said. "I don't kill Dragons, unlike my haughty counterparts. I'm afraid that I can't let you go right now, though; not without knowing why you are here and why it is that you attacked my sixth layer."

Ilreg began to bait Jiishita now, confirming what she had just called him and Yomi into her throne room to determine. He was the same Dragon who had attacked her allies. "What is your reason for attacking my allies? My Elders and my Kings? You won't be leaving until I know something more about you, one way or another. I control the goings on in all seven of these layers, and it will take more than a petty Dragon to dethrone me."

Tomoyo wasn't sure what the point of his mission was yet, but she was going to keep him here until she found out something. Yomi wouldn't be allowed to do anything to the prisoner, but he would pay for costing the Ha-ou the protection and effort from any King, let alone Yomi, the most powerful. There were vacancies in Hell, and she couldn't afford to lose a single one of those remaining.

[Ilreg Douisis Ofu'ul]

A glint flashed in Ilreg's eyes as he heard Tomo's announcement that he would not be killed, as his mouth formed a smirk similar to that of Sanada's. Ilreg continued to listen as Tomo demanded information from him. Soon, the Yami-ou's voice and tone grew more harsh as she did not take well to Ilreg baiting Jishita, responding with sharp words that cut into Ilreg, his smirk disappearing as quickly as it formed.

"Your Elders, and your kings were all but fodder for me, something to help me pass the time until I graced your rank and foul smelling realm. You tell me that you will not kill me, and yet you demand answers from me. Tell me please, what exactly is my motivation to divulge anything thing to you. If lackluster and incompetent fighters and discord are all you supposedly control, then I would never seek to dethrone you from the commode upon which you sit, Yami-ou Sanada Tomo." Ilreg laughed.

Extending his hand to an open palm at his side, Ilreg formed the image of an angel, out a ice, complete with wings, intricately detailed down to the feather. Instantly a rapier formed in his hand, and in no less than a second, the statue's head rolled on the floor after a flick of his risk. Hitting the floor of his cage, the head shattered to thousands of pieces at Ilreg's feet. Never having turned his gaze from Tomo, Ilreg pointed the blade toward Tomo's rear.

"Petty, you have the unmitigated gall to call me and my petty, as if I were one of you winged cretins. Ask Yomi, or my precious Chikara how petty we Dragons are, or the weak curr Jishita at your side. Or better yet, ask that pile of excrement in the outskirts of the 6th that used to be a subject of yours how petty I am."

"Do not begin to brag to me as if your idiotic cohorts could slaughter my people as if we were nothing. I assure you, you are one of the few who has been in the presence of a true Dragon, and not some golem or slave beast. If I am as petty as you say, lower this cage, and then we shall see how easily my sword slices through the meat of your figure." Ilreg said, spiting at the cage in front of him, his frigid siliva dissipating as it touched the surface magic of his cage.

"If you want any answers from me, then come to me and retrieve them yourself, bitch." Ilreg said, defiant despite his current imprisonment. Faced with the possibility of being deserted by Tiamat, Ilreg decided if he were to be sprung from captivity, he would be sprung on his own accord.

[Sanada Tomo]

This prisoner made it clear that he wasn't going to divulge any information about his purpose or duties. She would have to take this into her own hands. She had a few Draconic contacts--she would have to search for information on this Ilreg herself.

"I will not kill you," she said to him, "but you will be punished for your transgressions against Hell. I have respect for your Draconic brethren and I will not allow your demure representation of your race to affect the way that I think of them. I have seen far more valiant of your kind.

Turning behind her, she said, "Symphony, engulf."

Tomoyo's eyes appeared to glow brighter than the blue flames around her, and the forcefield of darkness surrounding Ilreg began to drip black liquid onto the ground. Before each drop hit the ground, it turned to a thick, dark gas that began to slowly fill the magically enclosed area around Ilreg.

"Don't bother freezing anything; this gas maintains the protective qualities of this forcefield for a while. For all of your taunts, you are the one who is in the cage," Tomoyo said, looking at her nails. "I need you to not cause any trouble while I surmise an appropriate punishment for you."

[Ilreg Douisis Ofu'ul]

"You, punish me?" Ilreg laughed aloud as Tomo gave the verdict on her course of action involving his fate. His laughter was cut short as she gave the command to Symphony and in mere seconds, the construct that served as Ilreg's confinement now began to melt, slosh onto the ground and going from thick liquid to a thick, noxious black gas. Ilreg saw Tomo's eyes flash momentarily, and the gas began to surround him. Realizing that his sword would be useless to him at the moment he crushed the icy object in his hand, sublimating it into a frigid cloud that surrounded him before the gas could. Focusing on the liquid that steadily formed the black gases, Ilreg tried to freeze it to no avail.

The liquid and gas both felt alive, and the energy coursing through both of them repelled his magic. "Enough of your cheap tricks you wretched bitch, do away with this miasma and fight me now!" Ilreg said trying to force spikes of ice from the ground. The ice was covered by the black sludge and reduced to nothingness, further frustrating Ilreg, as the gas penetrated his wall of Ice. Glowing blue, Ilreg attempted to reach out and fling several shards in the direction of both Tomo and Jiishita, but the thick black gas caused them to dissipate. The noxious gas began to fill his lungs, and his eyes began to water from the fumes, the tears freezing on his face as he struggled to remain standing. "TOMO YOU WHORE, ENOUGH OF THIS, FREE ME NOW OR..." Ilreg said, coughing from the fumes. "I SHALL DEVOUR YOU AND EVERYTHING IN THIS CASTLE!" Ilreg said, slowly gagging on the gas, finally falling to his knees, his glow growing dimmer. Desperate Ilreg sought to invoke Tiamat's aid, speaking in a tongue foreign to celestial ears in a low growl.

"Tiamat... help... me...she must be... argh!" Ilreg pleaded, choking on both fumes and his frustration.

"Help yourself, these bonds you bound and now shall break." Tiamat said, her presence disappearing from Ilreg's mind, completely. Fallen and humiliated, Ilreg looked up through the gas, trying to see Sanada through the thick black fog.

His fingers sunk into the ground ans well as the black liquid, becoming more talon-like by the second. His eyes which were already serpent like became more bestial, as the white hairline began to recede, and his pale skin became more coarse and scale-like. His size began to increase tearing his already tattered clothing, but with his current predicament, all Ilreg could do is reach for Sanada Tomo in vain, his shaking hand accompanying his vision of Tomo, who at the moment Ilreg hallucinated and believed to be seeing his mother.

"I.... WILL... DESTROY... YOOOU...." Ilreg said as his hand hi the ground, losing his consciousness completely, and his size reverting to normal, all but naked apart from the tattered fabric that preserved what little dignity he had left.

[Takaishi Jiishita]

Jiishita was almost horrified with the persistence of Ilreg, even when he was captured by the King of hell. He had refused to tell Tomo any information about himself, and he had even made a comment toward him, something that Jiishita had seen coming from the beginning but had no response for.

But Tomoyo had taken control of the entire exchange, replying promptly and not allowing Ilreg's words to bother her. The look on Tomoyo's face was hard, an expression that he had never seen on her face before; it was at that moment that he understood how Heaven could think her so cruel. She played the part well.

And before he could even think of something to say to Ilreg--something heroic, something that made up for the fact that he had been unable to kill or injure the man who had hurt his wife--it was all over. Tomoyo had given him clean clothes, said her piece and asked if he would give her any information. And when he said no, she took care of him.

Jiishita didn't know what to say. Tomoyo had been able to do with ease the one thing with Ilreg that he hadn't.