The old temple lied in ruins, after so long without being maintained. The great spires leaned dangerously and the cobbles of the sandy courtyard were cracked, overrun with plants as nature had slowly taken back its due.

From a broken wall, one could see the ocean that neighbored at the cliff where the building stood... A reminder that no matter the glory, no matter the opulence, given long enough, anything would fall to ruin.

Not that Maggie cared one bit, as her shoes trampled some of the grass as she walked through the broken gate, determined. She'd seen temples like these before, dime a dozen, really, when you went through enough seasons and arcs.

As far as she was concerned, the important part of this place was that Emils' notes showed that there was *something* here of great importance, an artifact of a bygone time that would, in some way, either doom or help the Project that the green villain had in mind.

Maggie was here to make sure he didn't get his "efficient" little hands all over it, the last thing she needed was for his robots to be powered by some... mcguffinium or whatever was hidden here was called. All she had to go off of was that the ancients called it "The Seasong" and that it was stored in caves beneath the ruined priory.

She figured she'd stumble upon it at some point or other, she did tend to get to interesting places, whether she liked it or not.

Still, as she entered the broken down husk of the former hall of worship, she couldn't help but feel uneasy. Being literally chosen by the divine embodiement of Love did make it hard for one not to be at least a *bit* religious, but she still remained unused to congregations, to the awe some could pour towards those they worshipped...

The entrance, where the main altar laid, was built like an amphitheater, rows of seats circularly centered towards the place where the religious leader would have spoken, near the great decorated stone where rituals would have taken place...

Just standing, even with the place having long fallen to disrepair, Maggie couldn't help but fel a for of pressure. Of what had been before...

But at the same time, she had something to do. Weird cave systems under temples tended to be under the altar, she figured as she sauntered down the steps, lifting the stone and dismissively shoving it aside.

Jackpot.

Just as expected, a hatch under it. Stairs.

Wasting no time, the heroine hurried down the stone steps, though wary, the rough hewn rock slick with a layer of algea.

As she went deeper, away from the sunlight, the lovely mage was surprised to find herself not in the dark as she expected, but instead bathed in the soft, blue glow of bioluminescence coming from the walls, the stairs, giving the whole of the stairway an oceanic, magical aura.

It was getting worrisome, though, as the steps seemed to go further and further, that light pressure she'd felt before growing worse by the second, but she strode on. The world or something was relying on her to make sure whatever was here was untouched by evil...

Down and down she went, slowing somewhat, which she reasoned was to avoid slipping on the algea. At semi regular intervals, she swore she could hear a noise coming from lower, so much lower... Was Emils already here? She couldn't turn back now, she shouldn't...

THe dim light made her feel just a bit sleepy, with how low she went, it was a wonder there was more, but she didn't think about that.

She only thought about going down. Going further. Finding what she had looked for...

The sound rang again. The toll of a bell...?

She was getting closer...

Her mind, lulled by the monotony, almost seemed to shut down, just waiting for something to happen, her thoughts silencing as the sound of the bell paced the time she felt pass by...

Down.

Down.

Down.

Until the stairs gave way to a hall, and the hall to a great room. Lit by the same algea, a cave pool, above which a bell hung, made of green metal, corroded, carved with strange symbols...

The sudden change brought Maggie out of her stupor somewhat, long enough for her to put a few thoughts together.

"That place- a secret place of worship? Surely Emils couldn't be looking for-"

A great tendril came out of the water, extending out, up towards the ceiling, Maggie quickly preparing herself to fight. But the tendril did not reach for her, it reached higher, higher, to the bell, pulling it back-

Maggie didn't move for a moment, not understanding the implication of the action. It only struck her after a moment what the sound of its tolling had done to her before, when she'd been so far from it. By the time she reacted, it was too late, as she fired a beam of magic, trying to stop the great metal chime...

Only for it to collide with the corroded surface, a great -GONG- ringing out and echoing through the room.

It took Maggie's breath away, her eyes rolling as her body twitched. So close to the noise, trapped in this echo chamber, there was very little an already worn down person could do, no matter their power.

The bell kept ringing now.

-GONG-

Maggie fell to her knees, her mind scattered by the sound, crushed under oceanic depths.

-GONG-

She distantly knew she had to do something, but as she fell limp onto the comfortable bed of algea on the ground she failed to put that thought into action.

-GONG-

Maggie's mind shut off. Tendrils extended out of the pool, grabbing onto her limp body. A woman's giggle was heard as the Lovely Mage was pulled into the glowing baptismal pool.

The Bell stopped ringing.

The tendrils got to work.

...

Maggie woke up, on the beach outside the temple, groggily rubbing the side of her head. What was she doing, again? She couldn't quite recall... She'd investigated the altar, but there'd been nothing of note, there... Had it been a false lead?

Disappointed, the girl sighed as she walked away, her mind never once wondering about the strange new outfit she wore, teal and black, the strange words whispered in the back of her head or the peculiar abyssal symbols written upon her stomach.

Why would it be weird to bear her Mistress' brand, after all?

She couldn't wait to show her friends how pretty her song sounded!