Auriel - Portalopolis
"Well, the Twinkleroot has already went ahead for his allies, we can do no less. I believe you humans say that someone must be the one to take the first step," Auriel said, hovering in front of the portal. Deciding to take the first step for the heroes - figuratively, at least, since she was hovering over the floor with her wings stretched out - she went into the portal.
Rachel
-Elves? Like, actual elves? Marco would have loved this, although he would probably have made more than a few Keebler's jokes. I never did read that ring-lord book he talked about. I went through the portal, wondering what they would look like.-
Wulfrik
-Elves? Wulfrik grins savagely at the thought. Though brittle and prone to deceit, elves are still capable foes, and quite amusing to see when their haughty attitude breaks before a well-placed comment on their race's failings. Perhaps this journey will provide more than missed opportunities and regret. Making sure the elongated skulls in his collection are clearly visible, including one with most of its ears still attached, he steps confidently through the portal.-
Vampire Hunter
Team Hero
When they came out of the other side, the heroes would find themselves in a throne room of a castle. It and the castle itself had an ephemeral fairy tale quality with the walls being the light grey of bricks that constitute it. There was a red carpet leading up to a golden throne, one that was currently occupied by a woman and flanked by a knight.
The woman occupying the throne was quite enchanting. Her long pointed ears marked her as not being human. Her skin was as white as snow, her long flowing hair was as golden as her throne and her eyes were a calming blue. While the pink ornate dress covered up her entire body, the dress was tight enough to show off her heavenly hips and bountiful breasts. Much like the woman, the knight had long pointed ears, skin as white as snow, and hair as golden as the throne. He was dressed in shining silver armor save for his face which had a stern look to it. The woman, however, had a hopeful and slightly surprised look on her face.
"Welcome, noble heroes, to my castle," the elvish woman said to the group she had apparently summoned, turning to her left to face them. "I am Seldanna, Queen of Carcan."
It was then that the group of heroes noticed that they were actually not on the carpet, but instead on the right side of the throne room, standing upon a glowing silver pentagram inside a glowing silver circle. This must be a sign of one of the designated safe zones.
Team Villain
When the villains came out the other side, they would find themselves in a throne room of a completely different castle. The throne room and the castle itself was dark, menacing and Gothic. Although this throne room had a red carpet as well, it led up to a foreboding spiked throne more fitting for a vampire lord than who was currently sitting in it. Again, the throne was occupied by a woman and flanked by a knight, but they were completely different from the two the heroes met.
The woman lounging in this throne was enchanting. Her long pointed ears and skin as dark as charcoal marked her as inhuman. Her long hair was as white as the ghosts one might expect to haunt this place and her eyes were a blood red. The ornate purple dress she wore was not only tight enough on her body to show off her luscious hips, but low-cut enough to show off the ample cleavage of her breasts. Much like the woman, the knight had long pointed ears, skin as dark as charcoal, and hair as white as a ghost. He was dressed in black and spiky armor save for his face which had a distrustful look to it. Save for an initial look of surprise, the woman looked satisfied with what has happened.
"I am Tacna, Queen of Tarasan," the elvish woman said to the group she had apparently summoned, leaning over to her right to face them. "You will be working for me for the foreseeable future, but I will give you anything you desire in exchange for that."
It was then that this gang of villains noticed that they were actually not on the carpet, but instead on the left side of the throne room, standing upon a glowing silver pentagram inside a glowing silver circle. This must be a sign of one of the designated safe zones.
Wizard Needs Food Badly
Stop Killing My Titles
Pink Good Elf, Soma
So we're on an elf queen's payroll now. Neat. My usual experiences with elves and elf-like creatures tended to be more on a hostile side, but then again said elves usually were closer to their original Nordic roots than the Tolkien template.
Seldanna of Carcan looked like a very, very stereotypical Tolkien Elf; at least in terms of the figure. The snow-white skin was a nice, foreign touch. Also, she filled that dress about as nicely as I expected a "stereotypical" elf to. There was also an elf knight there, but something told me the queen would be attracting much more attention. "Well, hello. My name is Soma. Can we leave the pentagram safely?" I ask with a nod.
Purple Evil Elf, Four and Destroymen
"Lookit the size of those tits." Talk about a good first impression. Rudeman was already taking notice of important matters, a wolf whistle and all.
"Greetings, Queen Tacna. Your terms are fair." The Politeman added soon after, bowing as he spoke. "We are Destroymen, and we are at your disposal."
Meanwhile, someone else didn't quite seem to believe where she was, even despite the earlier announcement. Though the woman's skin was charcoal black, there was no mistaking the falsely dignified air, the rotten mystique, the pointed ears. If you saw an elf once, you would not mistake it with anything else. As such, Four was seething silently, and not just because it was an elf; it was a lascivious elf. That cleavage was just shy of her licentious younger sister's own excuse for a "shirt".
"Will we be killing those light elves in your... service, dark elf?" Gone was the uptight, but well-meaning tone; she was barely holding her rage together. That "elf" came out like Four just spat it out of her mouth.
grah
The Mighty Pen
Kage - I Hate This Planet
I took the out that our jailers offered and made my escape from the conversation with the halfmen, heading back to the bunkroom. It could be worse. It could be chained to the wall in solitary. Stuck in this hellhole with no one to trust was a joke compared to that. After bedding down, I spent a long while awake, just waiting and listening to the others breathe. Maybe some of them didn't need to. I had my doubts some needed to sleep either. Maybe they could see in the dark too. But maybe some couldn't do any of that, so I waited for another hour and then quietly got up and rolled under my bunk. Nothing like imaginary safety. But I'd learned how to sleep just about anywhere.
No warp-dreams, still. And still, I don't know if that's good or bad.
The prison's 'morning,' when they turned the lights back up, was there before I knew it. I took the time to grab some food and ate while I packed up my kit again and made sure nothing was missing. This new fight sounded even stupider than the last one. So they want us to fight the Eldar's battles for them, huh? And I sure didn't believe that any of these long-eared bastards were good or heroic enough for the other team. They were probably good at pretending. I took a place in the line heading for the gates near the back, trying to angle for having the least dangerous person behind me, and then after passing through, stepped off to the side, staying on the right of our group.
The place looked like a goddamned Chaos temple and I kept looking around for the mind-melting runes that those places usually had scribbled over every surface. Nothing. The Eldar bitch on the throne and her attack dog, though, those were plenty to make me want to be somewhere else. When she offeres us anything we wanted, I just snorted to myself. Yeah, like I'd trust anything they offer, even if they let us keep it back in prison. I'd let Smiley or Groxhead handle that shit. Still...
"What've you got in the way of weapons?" I threw out there. "And I don't mean pointy sticks, I mean bombs, or flamers, or something else that kills quick and easy. And some other gear, maybe, stuff that protects against whatever warp-shit you xenos fling around. Start with that, then we'll talk tactics."
Or rather, someone who knew them would do that. But I knew weapons and armor, at least.
A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent upon arriving. -Lao Tzu
Auriel - Team Hero
"Hail Seldanna, Queen of Carcan. I am Auriel, Archangel of Hope, and we have come here to lend you our aid," Auriel said, her wings spread out to their maximum width as she spoke to enhance her presence. As she took in the queen, she noticed that aside from the dagger-like ears, the woman could otherwise be easily taken to be human. Just as shameless as a human queen, too. So these must be the elves they were told about. Curious creatures.
"How are ya doin'," Suika said with a lazy wave. She heard Soma mention his own worries about the pentagram, but Suika cared not. Made of iron, blah blah, she was gonna test it out before the Queen could reply by walking forward like she usually did. That is, almost falling forward.
Paranormal Activity VII
Scissor Lady - Team Hero
With nothing much else to say or do for the time being, Ryuko headed over to the Heroes Bedroom to rest. Apparently the challenge was to start tomorrow anyway so it was best to rest up for what came next.
The next day, Ryuko wordlessly walked through the portal on the heroes side, ignoring what Liberty had to say. She resigned herself to getting whatever info she needed directly from the horse's mouth on the other side. What awaited on the other side was a throne room, currently occupied by a set of elves, looking both sternly and hopeful at the assembled team. The woman in the room introduced herself as Seldanna and the queen of Carcan. Ryuko set her scissor blade down and leaned forward.
"Hey there. You need some help with something?" she said half jokingly with a nod.
Fire Princess - Villain Team
Azula had a witty reply ready for Juri's question, but it was quickly cut off by the announcement from Liberty. With everyone else heading in to get ready for the next challenge, Azula growled lightly and followed suit.
Azula wordlessly walked through the portal with the rest of the villain team, all the while sporting a very intense look on her face. She did NOT want to lose a second challenge in a row. She made it her mission to do whatever it took for their team to win. First off, it would have to listen up to their current orders, being served by the elfish looking lady in black. She introduced herself as a Queen, and her name was Tacna. Azula crossed her arms when she authoritatively said that they worked for her now. Already, she did not like where this was going...
Your works are one trope short.
Jedi of the Old Republic
Gemini
After being awakened by the announcement, Gemini followed behind the others as they went through the portal.
She picked up the details of how the challenge was a war between Elves, with the heroes of course being on the side of the good elves.
She waited for the Elf queen's directions.
What is this "signature" of which people speak?
Vampire Hunter
Team Hero
"Of course, Soma," Queen Seldanna said when Soma asked about the pentagram as Suika proved the safety of leaving the pentagram by stumbling out of it. "That is merely one of my summoning circles."
"So long as your mission is unfulfilled, you will be summoned to my most recently drawn summoning circle," Queen Seldanna explained. "Making one takes time and it needs to be in a spot safe from adversaries, but I can make as many as I want."
"You are here to help me capture Queen Tacna of Tarasan," Queen Seldanna turned to Ryuko. "I seek to purify her soul of the evil that clouds it and the souls of every other dark elf."
It was at this point that Chun-Li had appeared in the summoning circle.
Team Villain
Queen Tacna smirked and laughed at Rudeman's comment. Apparently, she did not give a damn that he was blatant about her looks. However, Queen Tacna adopted a more adversarial look at Four, having also caught the venom in her voice.
"Why yes we will," Queen Tacna answered Four's question. "But there is one particular light elf I wish to be capture, though I won't mind if you kill her... She is Queen Seldanna of Carcan."
"I seek to corrupt her soul and make her my personal slave," Queen Tacna cackled before Kage asked about things like bombs and protection which left her mostly confused though she could tell the irritation in his voice as well. "If you are worried about Queen Seldanna purifying your souls of evil, don't be... That sort of magic only affects elves."
It was at this point that Juri had appeared in the summoning circle.
Wizard Needs Food Badly
Did you know this section has a character limit?
Neo - Kill/Capture; Queen Tacna's Throne Room
As Neo arrived in the new world, she hopped out of the silver circle, performed a curtsy, and resisted the urge to stab the man who had wolf-whistled their new boss. That was something you just didn't do.
Mainly because her last boss incinerated the last guy who did that.
But yes, a kill or capture mission. And although killing her would be fun, what Tacna described for Seldana held a sort of merit. After all, the only thing more fun than killing someone was breaking them.
Auriel - Team Hero
"If that is what you seek, then you have been granted aid unparalleled," Auriel said, hovering up closer to the throne to address the queen. "My eternal light illuminates the darkest of souls, laying them bare in the purity of Hope. Our forces gathered here before you serve the causes of good and righteousness, which will grant new strength to your magic and your people."
Rachel
-Capturing the bad guy to remove the evil from her? Yeah, that was going to work.-
So any idea what kind of troops she has defending her? Can we get her quietly or do we need to go in guns blazing?
-Either suits me.-
Wulfrik
-Kill or capture? The day starts with being dropped somewhere in cold Naggaroth and gets better and better. Strange that the druchii's king would tolerate any of his people usurping his title, but then arrogance always was central to the character of the elves. Wulfrik eyes the dark elf next to her, wondering what role he serves, be it bodyguard, general, or consort.-
And what manner of troops does this queen have protecting her? Does she rely solely on her magics and wizards, or are there true warriors along her guards?
Stop Killing My Titles
Bad Elf's Place
"If you do not mind, then it will be easier for us to cut the other elf down." Four replied, the barely hidden rage giving away to silent contempt. "Break an elf? Ha. Your ilk is rapists, murderers, pirates and vermin. Breaking an elf involves cracking its head wide open at most." There definitely was a stark contrast compared to how the green-wearing Intoner referred to others. It seemed her experiences with the elfkind were poor, to say the least.
"Your light gun will be enough, soldier." She said to Kage, smiling in a most unnerving manner. "Why, I think you could kill those two as easily as our target."
"Someone's on edge." The Politeman hummed as he listened to Wulfrik's question. "But the big man here's got the right question. Anything we should watch out for?"
Good Elf's Place
Convert a bad guy to good? I can see about four ways in which this can blow up in everybody's faces. "So all dark elves are evil due to some bad energy corrupting them?" I can't help but wonder.
"I expect she may not appreciate a capture attempt." Auriel's unending optimism is something else, but we need to approach the situation carefully and realistically, even if we can just respawn back here not worse for wear. "In case we cannot capture her, do you expect us to kill her?"
grah
Flowey - The Dark Elf's Palace
Well, well, well. It seems Miss Perfect was finally showing a bit of her true self. Flowey couldn't help but wonder how the angel would have reacted if she had seen her "ward" showing such hate. Still, it wouldn't be wise to earn the ire of the queen for now. He bowed his stalk a bit.
"Don't hold her for her rudeness, your majesty. We all know intolerance stem from stupidity. I don't see why she would hate you, from my perspective, the only difference between humans and elfs is that the first have way less lovely ears."
"Moving on, I can't help but wonder: what do you mean exactly by "breaking" the enemy queen? Little racist here got a point after all, in that it would be easier to just kill her. And what is our rewards, exactly?"
"That seems easy. The only question is, Miss Queen," Suika said to the only person that could possibly be Miss Queen in the room, "just how powerful is your enemy, here?"
Raiden spent the first few second through the portal staring, jaw hanging slightly open. Yes, he was staring at actual, real elves. Large brested elves, at that.
".....Are we sure this isen't some VR simulation they dropped us into?" Raiden asked. "Seems a little....convenent that these guys somehow managed to find a world that conforms to every stereotype out there about elves. I'd bet good money this evil elf queen is all decked out in black, in some gothic castle, and probably has larger....assets then she does."
While others asked their questions, Tira choose to remain silent, quietly evaluating this dark queen and her bodyguard. As she did so, however, she took special note of Four's sudden hostility. For someone claiming to be better then the rest of them, she sure wasen't showing it as she all but spat at the queen's feet with rage. Tira quietly filed this interesting peice of information away for later use as her raven landed on her shoulder.
edited 11th Oct '17 7:32:01 PM by Meanken
Vampire Hunter
Team Hero
The light elf knight that was guarding Queen Seldanna became more defensive as Auriel approached her throne, although he did nothing as of yet.
"Uh-huh," Queen Seldanna nodded to Auriel, being somewhat skeptical of Auriel's flowery language. However, she began addressing the others, specifically looking at Soma, "Kill her if you must but know that I am not a fan of that option."
"In reality, the dark elves' corruption is because their queen has made a pact with the Unseeled," Queen Seldanna began explaining to them. "Once we were but one people who worshiped the Seeled, but the elves who would become dark made a pact with their enemies, the Unseeled."
"By doing so, they had destroyed the unity this world has," Queen Seldanna continued her story. "Thankfully, I have been blessed by Maesis of the Seeled with the divine power to purify the dark elves."
"As for military strength, her forces match mine," Queen Seldanna told them. "They are experts in both magical and non-magical forms of combat."
"If you are talking about how I look, young knight," Queen Seldanna looked at Raiden. "I am the most beautiful in my kingdom."
Team Villain
"I sincerely doubt that," Queen Tacna glared at both Four and Kage, clutching her fist which burned with dark flames. "If you try to do so, you will feel the full might of my power."
"If you must know of Seldanna's forces, hers are equal to mine," the dark elf queen said to them. "Her warriors are skilled in combat, both magical and non-magical."
"But I have made a pact with Volroch of the Unseeled which has given me the power to corrupt light elves with but a bit of magic," Queen Tacna laughed after explaining it.
Wizard Needs Food Badly
Stop Killing My Titles
Four and Destroymen, Dark Place
"Nobody asked for your opinion, you sniveling sycophant." It seemed that Flowey was quickly becoming a No. 2 Most Hated Thing in Four's view. Not at all daunted by Queen Tacna's threat, the Intoner turned to face her. "Spare me your threats and consider yourself lucky we have other elves to kill instead of you." Apparently she also made a pact with some creature to inflict torment upon the light kind? How wretched could one elf get?
"That is all well and good, Your Highness, but we would appreciate some concrete numbers." Politeman interrupted this session of unabated hatred, smiling at the queen. "For that matter, the quickest and presumably least suspicious way of getting to her castle would be nice to have as well."
"You immune to anything in particular? Or can we pop those light elves open how we see fit?" Rudeman threw in his own question as well.
Soma, Light Place
"That is agreeable. We'll try to apprehend her rather than kill her then." I figured she would say that. Perhaps it's a good thing. Raiden expressed his hesitation at the realness of the place we were thrown into, but honestly, it made sense they would put us in such a stereotypically pidgeonholed place. It's all background for the viewers anyway. "It's probably best we don't think too much on this, Mr. Raiden."
When questioned about the general force of Queen Tacna's forces, the most beautiful elf in the kingdom - no doubt the humblest one too - replied with a similarly general question. "Some numbers would be nice, and the quickest way to get over there."
grah
The Mighty Pen
Kage - Dark Eldar Palace - To Give In To Alien Domination
The more the queen bitch talked, the more I found myself wanting to go for my knife and see how fragging superior she was with a foot of mono-edge in her guts. The regular Eldar raiders were bad enough, but these ones had thrown in with Chaos if I was any judge with their corruption and shit like that. This wasn't my fight. This wasn't me! It was my time in solitary that saved me. I learned how to wait there, how to think. So I kept quiet a bit while the others jawed about what to expect. Then I turned to the one who was talking shit about these Eldar.
"We don't have time for you to be stupid and frag things up for the rest of us, so listen up!" I snapped. "This isn't where you're from and for all you know every last one of these bastards could torch you with witchfire from fifty paces! Until you know otherwise, you damned well keep your head down and fight smart!"
Then I glanced back to the throne.
"And yeah, I'm with those guys. We need a back door in or a way to blow down the front door if there isn't. Also, we've got to figure the other team is coming for this place too, so either she goes with us or we leave a fireteam as rearguard."
A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent upon arriving. -Lao Tzu
Good Guys
"Perhaps we could start with learning more about your peoples," Auriel said to Queen Seldanna. "Would you be able to introduce us to the workings of the elf body?"She held up a hand, pointing at the Queen and her apparently skittish guard. "You appear as though you are flesh and blood, is that simply a matter of appearance or are you mortal? Or are your people made of other forms of magic or energy? When an elf perishes, are their souls destroyed with their bodies? Are they preserved, reborn from where you are all born? Or are their souls reforged into new bodies? And where I am from, we know not of the Seeled and Unseeled, but from your words it seems as though they are powers locked in a struggle not unlike the Eternal Conflict."
"What I'm wondering about is how strong she herself is! I want this to be entertaining, you know?"
Vampire Hunter
Team Hero
"Elves, both light and dark are mortal," Queen Seldanna addressed Auriel first. "And I suppose 'eternal conflict' could be used to describe the Seeled's and Unseeled's battle."
"Elves can channel magic, but they are not made of magic," she continued to explain their world. "Feel free to touch me if you do not believe I am made of flesh and blood."
"But Queen Seldanna—" The skittish guard protested before Queen Seldanna turned to him.
"Zuphlas, I can defend myself if they try to harm me, and killing me would only allow Queen Tacna to win," Queen Seldanna dismissed the guard's worries. "If we are to trust them on this mission, we need to trust them with my life as I will need to go with them."
The skittish guard stepped back a bit allowing the heroes to approach the queen, who in fact turned to Suika.
"Queen Tacna is as powerful a mage as I am, and I am a very powerful mage," Queen Seldanna answered Suika's question. "Do not underestimate her in a one-on-one battle."
"Our mission shall be to head to the light elf town of Sarenlune where a minor battle between my forces and those of the dark elves are being raged," Queen Seldanna frowned at the thought of battle. "At last contact, my army there numbers at 10,000 and the dark elves appear to have equivalent numbers."
"From here, we will end up at the town by nightfall when both armies will have stopped fighting for the night," the light elf queen stated the mission. "Our goal is to supply at the light elves' encampment there before crossing the border into Tarasan."
Team Villain
"Actually, the plan was for me to go with you," Queen Tacna replied to Kage. "Unfortunately, the journey to find Queen Seldanna is going to be long and treacherous."
"If I do not go with you to make the needed summoning circles, you would just be spawned back here if you fall in battle even if you reached her palace," she continued her explanation. "However, I suppose it is time to give you your mission."
"We shall be going to the light elf town of Sarenlune where a minor battle between my forces and those of the light elves are being raged," Queen Tacna stood up. "At last contact, my army there is 10,000 strong and the light elves look to have the same number."
"From here, we will be able to reach the town by night when the fighting has died down," the dark elf queen explained. "We are to supply at the dark elves' encampment there and cross the border into Carcan."
Wizard Needs Food Badly
Flowey - The Lounge
"My name's Flowey, not Twinkleroot. And you're on. Let's see how good you really are. And Four? Sleep tight, you'll need it."
Flowey, as a flower, needed no sleep. He thus spent most of the night just visiting the house, familliarizing itself with it. When he heard the announcement, he went toward the main hall. He listened to Liberty's instructions, and he didn't like them much.
"Seriously? The evil dark elves and the good light elves? How cliche can you get? Oh well, at least a war sound fun." He then burrowed to the portal.