Nultial Invictus

General Summary

The long awaited battle with Nultial has come at last. Against Nultial, Tamamo no Mae , and the dracolich Scream, the group was outmatched from the very start. However, with the arrival of Laxius and the betrayal of Tamamo no Mae, they were able to come from behind and corner the leader of the The Twelve Apostles. Alone and on his last legs, Nultial seemed to be on the verge of defeat. However, he underwent a gruesome transformation that manifested an Aspect of Hiruko the Leech Child.    Laxius pleaded with the group to take Nultial alive, but Prifddinas ignored his pleas and disintegrated the Aspect along with Nultial's body into nothingness. While recovering from the battle, Genji was able to eavesdrop on a conversation between Tamamo and Laxius. It seemed that neither Laxius nor Tamamo had any idea what had just happened with Nultial. Tamamo questioned Laxius about "his end of the bargain" and Laxius responded by telling her "not to worry" and that "everything should be prepared for her".  Incensed that the group did not follow his orders, Laxius called for Vendetta, his own dragon mount that he'd been infusing with spatial magics before both he and Tamamo teleported away. Under attack from Vendetta, the group somehow managed to flee, teleporting back to Tengoku and leaving the secret of the Isle of Lost Things behind. Safely back in the capital, the group made plans to meet with Tao-Ren and debrief her on the current situation. While waiting, they paid an overdue visit to Abe no Seimei and met with Mifune to discuss the meaning of the Oracle he'd sent them. They hypothesized that Laxius was the avenger, and that his goal to free Lolth from the Abyss would inadvertently free Izanami instead. Mifune warned the group to be wary of Tamamo no Mae and the group returned to the capital.   That afternoon, they ran into Rei, who had returned from her vacation and was no busy putting up flyers around the palace and market district to entice foreigners to visit Tsukihanami. The group gave her a hand putting the flyers up and rendezvoused in front of the store to meet her. Before they could, the market district and palace were engulfed in a series of chain explosions. Panic set in and chaos spread. Worse still, the samurai and civilians began fighting among each other in the streets as if possessed. Rushing to the palace, the group found Tao-Ren locked in brutal combat with the members of the Queensguard. After dispatching of Suzume, Tao-Ren confronted the group, seemingly under the impression that they too were under the influence of whatever had gripped the people of the city.