Lexoris's greeting seems to cause consternation in itself, but by the time they pass through the door the captains are bellowing the others back to their tasks. Loki only has to stoop a little passing through the curved doorway, but inside the hall has a couple feet of clearance over his head. Inside...
It doesn't look so much like a barrow, from this angle. The walls are smooth dark metal, the floor one of hard deckplates, and dim lights glow above. Their path ramps upward, then twists left, then up and right and left and up again. The air isn't fetid, but there's an alien scent to it, and beneath it lies the same chemical scent that comes with Fallen blood. They cross side-passages and places where the walls have been opened, filled with containers bound in by heavy netting. They force aside vandals and dregs as they go, who duck into long alcoves and stare out from among the stacked crates with glowing eyes. There's a lot of walking. Perhaps it's a defensive style of architecture, or perhaps they're being very circumspect about what their guest sees.
They do pass through a wide open room then, and have to descend some steps into the lowered central section that takes up most of this space of brown and red-painted metal. There are working terminals here with holographic displays watched and tended to by caped vandals. A couple of the little shank robots fly above the Fallen themselves... and lower down float two darker presences- machines like eyeballs of black metal, with glowing purple irises that twitch and turn to process the new arrivals.
Loki's guards lead him past them all, the flickering holos, the tap of many hands on controls, the slurred electronic mutterings of the machines, the hiss of breath behind masks. They wear those in here, too, though otherwise the Fallen aren't so heavily bundled up, and it's possible to see a couple of stubby appendages jutting out from the dregs' lower torsos- where their second pair of arms would be.
But up more steps they go, and down another hall, never stopping to ask or answer questions. And at last a door slides open before them, and on the other side is a long, high room. It stands high enough to be airy even at Loki's new stature, and the walls are draped with battle banners. Directly in front is a step up to the main part of the room- one Loki can navigate with ease, but the elite captain and the others have to jump or scramble up around him. Smaller folk presumably have to use the steps to either side.
To either side of the main room are low wells housing more Fallen workstations, more screens dancing with images and glyphs. And at the end of the room, on yet another raised section, beneath a low spotlight and framed by a wide sail of cloth in Winter blue... is unmistakably a throne.
The Fallen commander sits upon it, apparently at ease, lower hands resting on the arms. There's a long spear resting idly in one upper hand now, the tip sparking a little as the Fallen lord watches Loki. To either side are a couple of the elite guard. Lexoris turns and halts Loki when they're close enough, at the bottom of the steps up to the throne.
"Pelsor, Baroness of Winter," he announces, "I bring Lo-ki of Askar and... Yo-tuhn-hiim."
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It doesn't look so much like a barrow, from this angle. The walls are smooth dark metal, the floor one of hard deckplates, and dim lights glow above. Their path ramps upward, then twists left, then up and right and left and up again. The air isn't fetid, but there's an alien scent to it, and beneath it lies the same chemical scent that comes with Fallen blood. They cross side-passages and places where the walls have been opened, filled with containers bound in by heavy netting. They force aside vandals and dregs as they go, who duck into long alcoves and stare out from among the stacked crates with glowing eyes. There's a lot of walking. Perhaps it's a defensive style of architecture, or perhaps they're being very circumspect about what their guest sees.
They do pass through a wide open room then, and have to descend some steps into the lowered central section that takes up most of this space of brown and red-painted metal. There are working terminals here with holographic displays watched and tended to by caped vandals. A couple of the little shank robots fly above the Fallen themselves... and lower down float two darker presences- machines like eyeballs of black metal, with glowing purple irises that twitch and turn to process the new arrivals.
Loki's guards lead him past them all, the flickering holos, the tap of many hands on controls, the slurred electronic mutterings of the machines, the hiss of breath behind masks. They wear those in here, too, though otherwise the Fallen aren't so heavily bundled up, and it's possible to see a couple of stubby appendages jutting out from the dregs' lower torsos- where their second pair of arms would be.
But up more steps they go, and down another hall, never stopping to ask or answer questions. And at last a door slides open before them, and on the other side is a long, high room. It stands high enough to be airy even at Loki's new stature, and the walls are draped with battle banners. Directly in front is a step up to the main part of the room- one Loki can navigate with ease, but the elite captain and the others have to jump or scramble up around him. Smaller folk presumably have to use the steps to either side.
To either side of the main room are low wells housing more Fallen workstations, more screens dancing with images and glyphs. And at the end of the room, on yet another raised section, beneath a low spotlight and framed by a wide sail of cloth in Winter blue... is unmistakably a throne.
The Fallen commander sits upon it, apparently at ease, lower hands resting on the arms. There's a long spear resting idly in one upper hand now, the tip sparking a little as the Fallen lord watches Loki. To either side are a couple of the elite guard. Lexoris turns and halts Loki when they're close enough, at the bottom of the steps up to the throne.
"Pelsor, Baroness of Winter," he announces, "I bring Lo-ki of Askar and... Yo-tuhn-hiim."