Shiloh was regretting many things at this moment. First, she was regretting coming into this god-forsaken valley. Second, she regretted not leaving immediately after entering. And third, she was regretting letting this stranger up on the tower. At this point whether or not he was a human-shaped mimic was beyond the scope of the situation, as his hacking up of the lungs was getting the attention of the horrid emaciated things with four limbs. Since attempting to kill the human torch wasn't possible, they would turn their attention to something else. The bell tower, for example. The ladder was damaged but it was now a double-edged sword as these gangly horrid things could climb just fine!

"OHGOODLORDALMIGHTY–" She hissed as she threw boomerangs down at the creatures. The razor-sharp edges slashed through flesh and bone before coming back on the rebound. The tower's base was now completely surrounded, and Shiloh was frantically trying to do crowd control. 

"Hey bud, when you're done coughing mind hitting the creatures before they get in??" On one hand she didn't want to be rude, but this was kind of a life or death situation at the moment. If only she had spent more time setting up traps and less time asking in a roundabout fashion if the man next to her was a human mimic. She really couldn't use fire, as this whole tower was dry tinder. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the human torch–the instigator of this mess–come towards them. This was all his fault, Shiloh decided. Yes, it was Mithras' fault. Why'd he have to be such a good monster magnet, huh?! 

When the boomerangs were too slow, she took her Equilibrium's Edge and started stabbing anything that tried to climb too high. As the blade of the sword pierced the ghouls, there were blood-curdling cries as they fell back down. Her mind was in a blur, with no time to think she just stabbed and stabbed and stabbed… She could only hope that this would stop soon. 

She had lost track of time, only keeping track of how many stabs she made on each side when at last the blood-red moonlight faded. With the coming of the eclipsed sun, the valley fell into a hush as the swarming monsters fled to who-knows-where. There was a pile of dead creatures around the base of the tower, which looked even more worse for wear. The day-night cycles of this realm were too abnormal. With arms feeling like lead, Shiloh flopped onto the ground with a wheeze. She survived! She didn't know how, but somehow she–and this man in a weird skull helmet–survived! Straining to look at Hans, she raised an eyebrow wondering if he was still alive under that metal. "Note to self…nighttime is worse."

As Hans prayed on, something began to happen that might have gone unnoticed by Shiloh during the combat with the Ghouls. First of all his coughing, slowly but steadily began to subside, as the parchment bindings on his right arm began to faintly glow. And as they did something materialised in Hans’ hands. A humble rosary like necklace or amulet, made from a string of rope and decorated with wooden beads, crowned with a small wood-carved raven skull.

Hans would make subtle movements with his hand, passing from one bead to another as he recited prayers to his god from memory. And as he did he felt…better. More clear headed, the burning in his lungs that was the cause of his incessant coughs lessened and then disappeared completely. Soon the air, which just a few moments ago was heavy and thick with something, grew lighter and more refreshing. He felt the soreness of his muscles leaving him, thus allowing him to once again control his body.

And as the blood moon faded from the sky and the monsters left them alone, Hans no longer felt ill. He felt significantly better. Hans “awoke” from his trance like state of mind, to sounds of near total silence and the stench of burning corpses. He looked around from his position on the floor of the tower towards a brown haired woman who warned him of the advancing monsters and was clearly the one that saved him from them, now with the strength of her combat abilities.

Hans slowly rose unto his feet, Morrite Rosary in the left hand and turned towards Shiloh.
- Thank you. - He said, his voice now normal albeit still quiet - Thank you for saving me from those monsters. I have no idea how I can repay you for that.
The tone of his voice was genuine and sincere but he also sounded tad young too. Or at least younger than his metallic exterior would suggest.

Instead of taking the opportunity to attack while she was occupied, the stranger instead had spent time recovering. Despite her ingrained habits telling her otherwise, Shiloh concluded that he was very likely not a Void mimic. Letting an excellent chance to take on one's prey while they were weak slip by was not the mindset of a beast. And as intelligent as the Void mimics were, they were still beasts–just slightly smarter than the average carnivore. The man was thankful, his body language and tone of voice indicating he was a quiet, yet sincere individual. He seemed less shaken than she expected, which made her wonder if it was due to the result of training or personal experience. Feeling the burning in her limbs subside, she gave him a nod. "Stay alive and keep your wits about you–that's the best way you can repay me. Living is your number one priority now."

Pushing herself up, she began to probe for more information. "So where are you from?" Somebody armored from head to toe like him should've come with company, but when they met he had been on his own. Shiloh was hoping he was someone from the various adventuring parties that had gone missing in this distorted dimension. Many people came here without fully understanding the danger they were putting themselves in, and they were paying for it now. The more survivors she could bring back, the better. Maybe it was the fatigue, or the fact she knew Mithras was nearby–but Shiloh lowered her voice so it wouldn't carry far outside of the bell tower. "If you came with somebody, do you know where they were headed? It'll be much safer and easier to find them while there's daylight. Apparently day-night cycles are unpredictable in here too."

- Where am I from? That is a tricky question to answer right about now…or well tricky question to answer in a concise manner. - Hans begun - So I will get to other question who are no less tricky but I can answer them in a quick manner at least. I didn't arrive here with anyone, at least to my knowledge and to pre-empt any further questions I am not sure how I got here…or where here even is. Which is something I was meaning to ask. What is this place? That the night and day are unpredictable and night brings with itself ill omen of a blood moon which seems to want to strangle life out of my lungs? And…who are you stranger? I know it is somewhat improper to ask someone who just saved you such questions in such a tone but those are rather important questions, I think so at least.

As he finished his sentence Hans begun to look around, now that the vile moon was out of the sky and his life returned to him once more, he felt his senses returning to being as keen and sharp as they were before he got here. Distorted dimension the lady said, was he still within the perilious depths of the warp? That would explain somethings like the fact that he felt the oppresive atmosphere literaly pressing down on him with something that felt like a truly physical force. But if that was true, then he should be able to sense his god more clearly, to see his visions not through a deep fog but without any obstructions, just the way one sees things on a clear spring morning. There were things here which were not adding up and Hans was growing fearful of this peculiar situation.

So either he was trying to hide his origins, or he wasn't too different from herself–a person who came in through the tears in the fabric of reality. This man wasn't a native of this place, to her relief. He seemed to have his sanity and humanity intact. "This place is a realm that used to be part of the rest of this world, until something cut it off–encapsulated it into an isolated bubble of space-time. There's an abnormally high amount of magical energy radiating from this place, but I don't know what this location's name is. Whatever phenomenon started this is probably responsible for the distorted day-night cycles. It wasn't until recently that people from out there–" Shiloh motioned with her hand to imply the normal world, "–Could end up in here." 

"Reports of disappearances have spread worldwide, mostly through reflective surfaces like mirrors. They act as one-way entries through which the victims were dragged through into this realm. There's another way to enter without the use of a mirror, and that's where I came in. It's a space-time rift created in the shadow of the eclipse." By now she had started to ramble on and go on a side tangent, only to realize she might confuse the armored man. "If you want to leave, I can escort you out. It's much safer out there than in here. No blood moon frenzy at least." Her body stiffened as she heard someone call from behind. Mithras was still here, but if she pretended to not know him she might be able to use this void-transported stranger as an excuse to leave before her cover was blown. Maybe the voice she was hearing was just another of those 'mirror doubles' trying to lure her in. Yes, absolutely. Most definitely not because she was trying to avoid him. Nope. Not at all…

Shiloh hoped Hans would see reason and choose to leave. It would be a benefit to both of them, but mostly her.

Huh that was interesting a place cut off from the rest of the reality, lots of magical energy. That would explain the suffocating feeling he felt when he first woke up and why it might have subsided with prayer. His lord was with him yet…or at least he hoped so. The unnatural amount of magical power would also explain the preplexing distoration of the day-night cycle, as the woman with whom he was speaking with mentioned. Also the fact that reflective surfaces were able to transport you here and that it was an worldwide event meant that whatever caused all of this was realy powerful which made Hans considerably uncomfortable. There were at least some good news as he learned that there was indeed a way out of here and that she could lead him out of here. Sounded like a reasonable course of action, he couldn't deny that. Hans looked around once more, dusted himself some more and looked back at Shiloh.

- Well that sounds like a plan, lady…? Uhm…huh I didn't catch your name. I know it's not exactly time for pleasentries but I find myself at the loss of words how to refer to you…- he trailed off at the end and kind of looked like he lost some of his composure - Oh, sorry I might have gotten too ahead of myself. Let's just go. I uhhh who of us should get down the ladder first? I fear that I might break something If I go down now and I might strand you up on here but I will refer to you on this decision.

"Salem–just 'Salem' is fine." It was a name common enough, and with no surname it worked well as an alias. Remembering what happened the night before, Shiloh determined that it would be safer if she climbed down the ladder first then let Hans descend. "Right…I'll go down first then." Besides, if there were any enemies hidden about she would be able to fend them off better than Hans would if caught halfway. She cautiously scaled the damaged ladder, pausing to extend her foot further downward when she encountered the broken rung. Once she had both feet safely on solid ground, her eyes scanned the immediate area while Equilibrium's Edge was still in hand. Craning her neck she called up to the armored man. "Alright, looks like the coast is clear. It's a clear path back out once we leave this area." Except for Mithras, who she was dearly hoping had forgotten about her or had gotten distracted by something more interesting. 

After waiting for Hans to come down, she beckoned him to follow after her, while not so subtly trying to keep out of someone's direct view. The road to the rift was deathly silent, several stretches of stairs carved from the mountain canyon leading down to the abandoned valley. There was a solar eclipse in the sky, and the sky itself was tinged red. It was a very, very long walk–with the unnerving silence making it seem even longer. There were no ambient sounds aside from their own footsteps: no sounds of birds, insects, or even wind. Soon a large crack in the fabric of reality loomed before them, showing different scenery on the other side. The sky was gray and overcast, but at least it seemed less suffocating than this place. A slight breeze could be felt come through the rift, carrying a hint of salt and dust. Stopping before the portal she motioned for Hans to go through. "Here we are. That's Tyr on the other side. It's a dead place, but in a different way than in here. Either way it's much more 'alive' than being forever frozen in time. Keep going towards the coast and you'll see ships. They should take you to the mainland." 

Despite her clear eagerness to leave this bizarre place, Shiloh hung back and didn't intend on following him out. She still had some unfinished business to handle.