Hello and welcome reader, to the 28th instalment of the Character Development Threads
! These shared story exercises help budding writers develop their characters alongside the characters of other budding writers. No sign-up is needed; just jump right in with your characters. It is recommended that you read the thread page and the last couple of pages before starting.
Discussion Thread Thread Page Town Map
This is a "Main Series" thread and, as such, an element of risk is expected. Rules and participation guidelines may be found on this page.
The thread page groups active characters under the areas in which they are active, enabling you to see who is at a given location in which you might be interested or to find out where to go to encounter characters with whom you wish to interact.
Kindly add your own characters to the thread page, with a link to their initial post, under the area in which they are located and update the page if they change location.
Bear in mind that if your characters are arriving at a location, they are likely to know little more than what they see and hear as they arrive - what the location looks like, what other characters are there (both of which can be read on the thread page) and the last few lines uttered and actions taken as they are arriving (which can be found in the last few posts for that location in the story thread itself), so inserting characters need not be a terrifying process.
If you need help, have any questions, or want a quick recap (if the page count is daunting), head over to the discussion page, and someone is sure to help you out!
To help guide character interaction, having your character come in with a at least one short-term and one long-term goal or motivation is strongly recommended. It is not required, but it does make it easier to drive the plot forward. Feel free to come up with rumours about what treasures, adventure, locations, and dangers may be found in the setting - they need not be true or accurate, just some hook on which to hang an adventure.
The setting is specifically designed to be a vast sandbox into which details can be inserted by participants (for example, you are free to decide that there is a particular temple in the midst of the forest in which something may be found or that there is a particular shop/hotel/restaurant in a section of the town), if you come up with a location that you desire/expect other characters to visit, please add it to the thread page as a sub-location of the relevant area.
Things change as the story progresses. If, for example, a massive battle occurs at a location and the area is now strewn with bodies and buildings are damaged, kindly update the thread page to reflect those changes, in order that other participants have an up-to-date description of the location prior to sending their characters there.
Special thanks to all those who helped in getting the thread launched or provided ideas and feedback. In alphabetic order, they include:
Blackfire667, Collen, Corvidae, daird, DarkbloodCarnagefang, EternaMemoria, Gault, Kkutwar, KillerClowns, ladytanuki, Masterofchaos, nrjxll, Pyxo, Slysheen, TroPartner, WillDeRegio and yours truly
Apologies if I missed anyone - just let me know and I'll update the post.
Between dimensions, and linked to the rest of the multiverse, lies a strange post-apocalyptic environment made up of various regions strewn with the remnants of past glory - ruins, lost technologies and magic. Here and there, nature has found its way back amongst the ruined temples and towns.
In the midst of the blighted landscape, a fresh new town has emerged - a synergy of technology, nature and magic; clean and eco-friendly; a beacon of hope for a brighter future - where travellers can rest, recharge their batteries both literally and metaphorically and get whatever they may need - technological, magical or otherwise - to aid them on their adventures.
New arrivals can turn up by diverse means in the transportation area in the north-western part of the town or by whatever other means they deem appropriate. Here they may also find for rent, lease or hire, any transport they desire from riding animals to vehicles.
The wilderness areas have not been fully explored since the mysterious apocalyptic events that ravaged the area some time ago and no one is really sure what's out there - but rumours abound.
All that is known for sure is that both magic and technology have existed here for a long time, so anything is possible...
Currently in Day 1.
Current Time: 10:00 PM
Current Weather:
General Setting: Fine, a few light clouds Rainforest: Moderately misty, the fog is slowly thickening
See the thread page for updates.
Edited by Wolf1066 on Feb 11th 2021 at 12:12:29 AM
Web of Friendship Scouter, Sick Bay (Explorer of Unknowns; Maequoql, Moquoql)
The Mayatan sisters blinked in astonishment at the feathery catlike creature with its brand-new life for a few seconds, then glanced at each other and shrugged. Moquoql began, "Okay, well, in that case..."
They unceremoniously ripped off the false zippers and dropped them.
"These are slightly uncomfortable anyway," Maequoql finished.
Responding to the "aren't you surprised" speech, Moquoql explained, "We come from a galaxy rich in supernatural happenings, you can surprise and impress us, but we usually won't stay flabbergasted for long. So far, the abilities you've displayed we've seen performed before, usually by a different and weaker method. Your mental shields, and gathering information from behind them? Very impressive, I suspect you're outperforming the Sleutrienns. You're definitely outperforming our species."
Maequoql interjected, "I wouldn't say we're over-reliant on our psychic radar, not being able to read your mind is about as mildly inconvenient as..." she thought for a few seconds for a good analogy, "...having our eyesight limited by fog. We can still read your body language just fine, our brains have extra mirror neurons compared to humans for that, it's just convenient for telepathy to confirm or debunk our inferences."
Moquoql resumed, "And as for your showing up out of nowhere, Void Maiden Viporises teleport all over the place all the time, and we have mechanical teleporter rooms that were designed in an attempt to reverse-engineer that. Your feather-cat with its brand-new life, though, that's beyond our capabilities but not beyond our understanding. Closest we can come to spontaneous creation is genetic vats, which take a while to build a genetically-engineered critter." She smiled, "That is quite cute..." and held out her arms in an invitation for the critter to come perch on her.
It was then that Maequoql remembered her duty. "Well, I don't know about you, but we've done what we came to Sick Bay to do, and there are more comfortable places to sit and chat on the ship than here. Moquoql can show you the way to the rec room. I'd love to stay and chat some more, but I'm supposed to be keeping an eye on things and watching my Web friends' backs from afar. There are wyverns that might go towards town, and, well, you already know about Justin and..." Maequoql briefly probed Arilay's mind before speaking again "...Vindex."
Neither Mayatan made any moves just yet.
Sun-Dry Sea (Pilot 0037, Unit 09; Nyorla)
Nyorla started telekinetically wrapping the young pilot's hands. "I'm not a mage, I'm a 'Nao Ranay Nokt' child. Maybe similar abilities, but otherwise kind of a big difference." Before she elaborated on what that meant, she wanted to complete the introduction. "Yeah, the computer said part of that already.Author's note Nice to meet you... but you didn't tell me your name. You do have one, don't you? Or is it classified?"
She swept her surroundings with her psychic radar again, checking for approaching hazards. She'd been warned that there were wyverns in the area, and she'd been keeping her voice at a near-whisper to avoid being noticed.
If not for this anchor I'd be dancing between the stars. At least I can try to write better vampire stories than Twilight.
Friendly Neighborhood Lich
Grasslands, Edge of the Forest (Rosalind's Mustangs, Inquisitor's Stray Horse, Skvader, Amaranth, Pewter, Felicio)
Amaranth watched in amusement as the horses danced around with the same sort of running walk. Pewter just pranced a little in place; she was used enough to this specific song that she could more or less control her movements. The same was true of Amaranth, though she couldn't help but sway back and forth a little as she sat idly by with scythe in hand, ready to strike at any d'voreem that still had the nerve to attack.
Instead, they screeched, and ran. Away from the presumably horrid song, back into the woods from whence they came. Leaving Felicio frozen mid-strum, jaw hanging agar. Finally he hook his head, gazing disapprovingly at the fleeing d'voreem.
"Hey what the hell, guys? No applause? Is my singing that bad? Or are you so mean that your predatory evil has altered your sense of hearing? Yeah, run, run you ungrateful baboons!"
Dismayed, he walked over toward the herd, when his ears perked up and his eyes widened. "Amaranth!"
Seeing no more d'voreem present, Amaranth dismounted and ran over to the singing lion. "Felicio, how did you find me? Last I saw you were roaming the Warpfields, no?"
He pushed his lute back to its spot over his little backpack. "Well, I was, but then as I was heading back toward the city, I suddenly became hungry, and when I saw the forest nearby I thought, oh, there must be something I could hunt in here! Well I searched and searched and all I found were birds. Birds! The most promising thing was this flying rabbit of sorts, which I chased and chased but—"
Suddenly he stopped. And sniffed. "...Huh, I can smell it... wait, there it is!" It was that little speck atop the saddle on one of the horses: the skvader.
Amaranth gestured back to the d'voreem she had decapitated. "I just killed that one; help yourself."
Felicio looked, and breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh thank goodness; still looks and smells fresh." Upon which he walked over to the d'voreem's body and ripped its torso open, digging around for the best part: its heart.
Meanwhile, Pewter trotted back over to the herd, glancing in Rook's direction, signaling him as if to say, Don't worry; the Toothmane is our friend. He prefers not to kill unless he absolutely has to.
She led him over toward Flashfoot, hoping to catch the lead mare's attention. You guys seem more organized than a wild herd. Do you belong to somebody? She guessed yes, judging by the presence of a "human seat" on one of them... who she didn't even realize was not part of the herd.
Shopping District - Outside Frontier Sporting Goods (Cormack, Bonnie, Carol, Not-Chaos-Hunters, Zarokh)
Apparently the Not-Chaos-Hunters were intrigued by the presence of large reptiles in Crownen. But before Cormack could comment, another large reptile approached them. A crocodile, several times larger than normal. And it talked. Not that that was too unusual to Cormack—his adventuring party included a talking lion—but he still flinched a slight and instinctively reached for his rifle before he proved himself cordial.
Well, aside from having not heard of talking mammals before, which caused the full elf to scratch his head. "Never heard of talking mammals? Where are you from, a secluded marsh or something? Well anyway, as for the Coast of Chills, you're in luck. One of my friends ran into someone who was looking to travel there at the hotel. In fact, we're about to head to the hotel ourselves, so we can show you."
He looked over at Carol. "I don't know what a truck is, but if it's anything like a cart or a wagon and will fit all of us sans Croc here, I'm game. Well then I guess it's back where we just were then."
Beckoning everyone to follow, he led everyone out of the shopping district, perhaps headed for the hotel. "By the way," he said to the inquiring teens, "dinosaurs right? Only the plant-eating ones can be tamed, leaving only the triceratopses and stegosauri available for riding. Stegosauri are used more as pack animals though, as their spines make it impossible to hang a saddle anywhere. Horses are faster and more easily tamed, so they're most people's choice of mount. But triceratopses are sturdier and do not spook so easily, and even can be trained to fight. So fragile little elves like me prefer them for adventuring in places where there is danger. And the Warpfields look mighty dangerous."
He looked over at Adam and Nick specifically. "What happened to your dinosaurs? Did they all die off? How?"
Come, my child of the devil. Your mother is calling you. Hear my call in Hell's grand hall, where all our dreams come true.
Forest - Two Travelers and a Stranger*
A rapid tap on the shoulder paired with an urgently whispered, "Huhmuh! Hemruh!" stirred Henry back to the rest of his senses. He looked down at the second traveler, who had moved to stand in front of him, and who was frantically pointing at a very loud rustling mere feet away from where they stood. Henry, clicking into gear, whirled around just in time to point his flashlight at the source of the sound... which was as surprising a sight as it was an anticipated one.
It was a man, but no man Henry would have ever expected to find in the middle of the woods at night— certainly not so far off any trail. He had several reservations about the man, but for the moment he refocused his thoughts on more immediate matters, namely shining his flashlight's beam directly in the man's face and saying,
"Oh, wow, you surprised me, you... you- you nicely... dressed... gentleman."
He noisily kicked up leaves as he spoke, listening for any sign of the second traveler's own departing footsteps. They were quiet, but still somewhat audible, no thanks to the shifting, chafing fabrics of the two insulated jackets he was wearing. Once Henry ran out of sentence to drag out, he risked a last bit of flair to give his little smokescreen some credence. With a "Whoa," and a "whuh-uh!" he toppled onto his rear, stirring up even more noisy underbrush in the process. Through the whole thing, he kept his light trained near perfectly on the stranger's face.
"Agh," he groaned, rising back to his feet, and finally lowering his flashlight. If the second traveller hadn't found a tree to hide behind by that point, he'd soon find out. "You know, you really have to be more careful, sneaking up like that. Scared me half to life."
Taking another moment to regard the man left Henry feeling just as off-put as before, if not moreso. It wasn't just the suit—the near pristine white suit—in the middle of the woods, there was something else about him. His dark hair was exceptionally long, longer than any Indian man Henry had known. His voice was one that could read a phonebook or a marathon of radio commercials without drawing any complaints. And his eyes...
About twenty feet away from Henry and even more from the new arrival, the second traveler hugged a tree, standing as still as he possibly could, trying not to breathe. He wasn't sure if he'd been seen or not. The light should have blinded the stranger at least a bit, but whoever it was, he still seemed to think that there were two of them out there. All there was left for the second traveler to do was hide behind his tree, wait, and be ready.
He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to listen, but all he could hear was the pounding of his own heart.
Trying on a casual air, Henry glanced around and said, "Oh, it's only me out here, man. Well, plus my girlfriend, but she's back at the car waiting for me. And yeah," he laughed like he was a little bit high, "I stayed behind for a bit to check out this wicked cool bird, but, tch... got a little lost. If you could point me back towards the Bullitt fireplace trail, I'll be on my way," he hesitated for a moment before adding, "and- and, I've really got to hurry, because, my girlfriend she... she'll freak if she thinks I've gotten seriously lost. Probably call the park rangers or the cops or something silly like that, you know."
The forest suddenly felt quite claustrophobic, and after all was said, Henry couldn't help but swallow hard. He didn't know where the second traveler was. He didn't know who this guy was. He didn't even know where they were, not exactly. He was armed with a flashlight and a story he wasn't sure he could sell for a nickel.
He smiled, trying not to bite his tongue in two. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it.
this place needs me hereGrasslands, Edge of the Forest (Rosalind's Mustangs, Inquisitor's Stray Horse, Skvader, Amaranth, Pewter, Felicio)
As soon as the music stopped, the mustangs dropped their artificial gait and skittered a bit towards Angel, but didn't run just yet. Angel limped over to rejoin the herd. The Tame One put most of the herd between himself and the Toothmane, torn between his need to flee and his need to stay with the herd, as the skvader flattened himself against the saddle, trying not to be noticed. Most of the mustangs had their ears pinned back, glaring at the Toothmane, but they didn't make any other moves to pick a fight.
Anyone telepathically eavesdropping on the mustangs would see them imagining a hellish firey landscape, with themselves and each other as nightmarish denizens. Gradually the psychic static faded as they scanned the horizons, paying extra attention to the forest, and didn't see the one predator the images were designed to give pause to.
When Amaranth dismounted and ran over to the Toothmane, at first the mustangs thought she was going in for the kill like Our Watcher would do to predators that stalked the herd. But then they remembered that Amaranth was human and didn't have saberteeth like Our Watcher. Confused, they watched Amaranth and the Toothmane exchanged sounds. The Toothmane glanced at the skvader, who cringed. Then the Toothmane started digging around in the headless carcass.
The horses didn't quite believe Pewter's assertions that the Toothmane could be friendly, a Toothmane among them was a much different scenario than a human or a Sabertooth humanoid. The mustangs kept their ears pinned for combat just in case. Meanwhile, the terrified Tame One was still skittering and sweating and flashing the whites of his eyes.
Lead Mare Flashfoot briefly flicked an ear at Pewter, then at the Tame One. She answered Pewter, I don't know who the Tame One belongs to, he joined our herd today with an empty saddle. As for us, I thought I already told you we lost Our Watcher to Sabertooth Lightning this morning. Now, if you'll excuse me... She marched over to Amaranth. She knew that humans usually didn't understand when equines expressed contempt, so she adapted a gesture she'd seen humans use on each other. She swung her muzzle sideways and whapped it sharply on the back of Amaranth's head.
Idiot! Loudmouth! All those predators heard you!
edited 29th May '18 9:01:09 AM by Miss_Desperado
If not for this anchor I'd be dancing between the stars. At least I can try to write better vampire stories than Twilight.
[Sporting Goods i dont freaking know lmao]
Well, a talking crocodile was a bit unexpected, but considering the things the six seen before, it wasn't too surprisng.
"Hi!" Amy said, "I'm Amy!" Before she could go over and touch his cheeks, she was quickly stopped by Maya and Marie.
"No, sweetie." Marie said, "Be respectful."
Amy puffed up her cheeks, but otherwise, didn't put up a fight.
When Cormack said they were gonna head back to the hotel, everyone looked horrorfied.
Are you fucking joking?! Maya signed, though Amy did not say fucking, Did you forget we just met some crazy ass demon there?! Are you trying to get us killed?!
"Yeah!" Amy agreed, "I don't think Val will be happy to see us! Or Justin!"
"Well...he did just say he likes danger." Jackson said, "And we are going to the Warpfields soon...oh boy I'm not looking forward to this. I really hope they aren't there anymore."
To distract themselves from that anxiety inducing talk, Nick and Adam decided to answer Cormack's question about the dinosaurs.
"Yeah, they died like....a trillion years ago." Nick said, "Ice age. We have their bones and fossils in museums and stuff."
Adam nodded. "Sad. I wonder how they survived in your world! That's so cool!"
[Forest]
Obviously, the traveler was full of shit. On top of hearing the two voices, he saw the other traveler hide from him. Still, in order for his plan to work, he didn't want to make this man even more scared than he already was.
The best thing to do was to play along. Gain his trust. Lower his guard.
"I see." he said, "This is why you always bring a map or a compass with you. It helps avoid situations like this. Didn't you learn that in school?"
He chuckled.
"No matter. I shall assist you." He gave a bow, "I think it would be best if we were to introduce each other, no? I am Mael. May I know your name?"
edited 29th May '18 11:43:18 AM by Masterofchaos
Strepsirrhine of DOOM!
Shopping District - Outside Frontier Sporting Goods (Cormack, Bonnie, Carol, Not-Chaos-Hunters, Zarokh)
"Well, we're certainly more isolated than the other civilizations on my island. Where I come from, mammals are tiny, insect-eating creatures. Nothing like you."
He grinned as one approached him and was repremanded by her peers. "Pleased to meet you, Amy. My name is Zarokh."
He turned to the one with the large ears. "That sounds great. Thank you." He didn't know what a "hotel" was, but it sounded like a better idea than wandering aimlessly, so he decided to follow the group.
It appeared one of the mammals only spoke using her hands, with Amy providing a translation. It was fascinating, until the word "demon" was mentioned. Zarokh stopped dead in his tracks. "There's a demon in this place we're going? As in, an actual, literal demon?" He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and began to recite the Suchian Prayer of Protection. "Oh great and mighty Sobek, He Who Is In The Water, protect us as we face unknown dangers. Deliver us not into the hands of the Enemy, but guide us down the safe and righteous path." And if you would provide a guide for these mammals, please send someone more concerned for their well being than Krakka'a. He didn't say that part out loud, as it wasn't part of the official prayer, and it wasn't really his place to question the Great Sobek's decisions. He closed the prayer with a low rumble, before dashing to catch up with the rest of the group.
He got there just in time to hear one of the mammals mention dinosaurs having long since gone extinct in his world. That, to Zarokh, was almost as troubling as the idea of demons. "Sorry," he said, "did you say your dinosaurs are extinct? And you keep their remains in...what exactly is a museum?"
Tidesson Son of the staves of time
It's a bird.
Purple Fez Tavern (Ozurr; Jann, Varg; Rosalind)
Varg briefly flashed Rosalind a subtle, amused smile.
"You've got guts..." she said, grabbing some more food from the table behind her. "Shivering like that, and with that story you told us before and all... Just don't drink my blood or anything, and we're all good."
Jann let out a very noticeable sigh of relief.
"So uh, solid food is clearly one problem..." he said, glancing over at Rosalind's abandoned plate. "Are there other things like that we should we keep in mind?"
"Back home," Varg added, "most undead are scared of fire and alchemical salts, but I guess things are probably different where you're from."
She scratched her head, her tail gently swinging from side to side behind her.
"Just gotta ask... All that blood you were covered in when we met you? What happened? You said something about it being dangerous to humans, I think."
Still a great "screw depression" song even after seven years.The Purple Fez Tavern, Outdoor Tables (Ozurr; Varg, Jann; Rosalind)
Ozurr buried his face in his hands. "Gods, I am such an idiot."
"Uh, what?" As far as Rosalind could tell, that could refer to any number of things. She was about to ask for clarification when Varg spoke up.
"You've got guts..." she said, grabbing some more food from the table behind her. "Shivering like that, and with that story you told us before and all... Just don't drink my blood or anything, and we're all good."
Rosalind affirmed, "As long as I'm lucid, you have nothing to worry about."
Jann let out a very noticeable sigh of relief.
"So uh, solid food is clearly one problem..." he said, glancing over at Rosalind's abandoned plate. "Are there other things like that we should we keep in mind?"
Rosalind took that as her cue to stop clinging to Jann and sit down already. She cast a regretful glance at the half-eaten bloody meat as she pushed the plate away from herself. "Like what?" she asked. Old paranoid habits whispered that telling them what could kill her was a bad idea.
"Back home," Varg added, "most undead are scared of fire and alchemical salts, but I guess things are probably different where you're from." She scratched her head, her tail gently swinging from side to side behind her. "Just gotta ask... All that blood you were covered in when we met you? What happened? You said something about it being dangerous to humans, I think."
Rosalind listed, "I've handled fire both before and after becoming a vampire. I'm neither immune nor exceptionally weak to it, I just need to take the same safety precautions anyone else would take. I have no idea what you mean by alchemical salts. I'm bothered by running water, I get dizzy and stumble. Every time my herd of horses has had to ford even a dinky little stream, I've had to hop on board one of their backs and hold on tight so I wouldn't get left behind. Um... I'm sure there's a weakness that's slipped my mind or I haven't discovered yet." That last sentence was to cover her rear in case she somehow needed to tell them what was lethal to her in the future.
"As for all that gore I was covered in, that was from a failed attempt to rescue someone..." Rosalind faltered to swipe a tear from her eye, "...from a horde of zombies, after I underestimated how many there were. In my world, zombies are caused by another kind of supernatural germ, one that's much more contagious than the kind that cause vampires, but thankfully restricted to infecting only humans. But afterwards, their minds are gone beyond recovery. So there I was, soaked with enough zombie gore from all that punchin' and kickin' and stompin' I was doin' to cause a new outbreak all by myself like the next Typhoid Mary. That's why I was so concerned about getting decontaminated as soon as possible."
"Now..." Rosalind asked a question of her own, "Ozurr, whatcha call yourself an idiot for? If you're referrin' to the topic of betrayal upsettin' me, first off, that was a knee-jerk reaction on my part, and second, I need more context for why you betrayed your father. If you're callin' yourself an idiot over somethin' else... what was it?"
If not for this anchor I'd be dancing between the stars. At least I can try to write better vampire stories than Twilight.
Strepsirrhine of DOOM!
Purple Fez Tavern (Ozurr; Jann, Varg; Rosalind)
"I'm an idiot for assuming the worst when you said you were a vampire. I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around this whole 'different worlds' thing." He shifted around to look at Rosalind directly. "Where I come from, a vampire is...not at all like what you described, except for the drinking blood part. A vampire is created when a person does something so far beyond the pale that their soul gets corrupted into a malevolent spirit. The spirit gives them various powers and keeps them from aging, in exchange for being fed a steady diet of blood. In my world..." he shook his head. That still felt weird to say. "In my world, vampirism is the ultimate sign that a person is completely irredeemable, because souls don't get corrupted like that by accident. They aren't undead, and they aren't contagious. For that matter, neither are zombies. Zombies are magically animated corpses that do the bidding of the one who animated them."
"As for my father...well, I guess as long as we're confessing things to the group..." He looked briefly at Varg before continuing. "My father is Einarr Silverteeth, the King of Hromstgard. He is a short-tempered, xenophobic, genocidal tyrant. When I betrayed him, I had just found out that he was planning to conquer the human lands simply because they weren't under his control. A week ago, we hadn't even known humans existed. I got to talking with the human he was keeping prisoner, and I realized I couldn't sit by and let this happen. So, I smuggled her out of Hromstgard so she could make her way back to her people and warn them about my father. After that, I knew I could never go home again."
Tidesson Son of the staves of time
Forest - Two Travelers and a Stranger*
Henry laughed a slow, nasally laugh, brushing off the stranger's scolding. "Hneheheheh, yeah, well, you know."
He briefly shined his light back in the man's face, taking the opportunity to glance back at the trees behind him, but the sudden shift away from brightness made it difficult to make out very much. Either way, he could see neither hide nor hair of the second traveler, which he supposed was a good thing as long as his eyes weren't simply tricking him. Just stay hidden. Stay hidden while I take care of this.
"Whoops," he shined the light away again, "sorry about that, man. I thought I saw a squirrel on your head or something. Oh, my name? He...Harry... Hensen." He tried to keep up a smile, but he felt the weight of his ruse straining on its feeble supports.
This guy, this 'Mael' was seriously strange, and seriously strange wasn't the kind of thing one could take in lightly in the very late evening, in the middle of a very dark forest, very well off the beaten path. Granted, finding that sort of thing was the whole reason that he and the second traveler were out there in the first place, but it was a specific strange that did not look or act like the man before him.
"Listen, Mael?" he tried not to let too much caution slip into his voice, "If you could just point me in the right direction, that should be enough. You... you look like you've, uh, you've probably got things to do yourself, so I don't want to take up so much of your time, you know?"
edited 30th May '18 3:36:20 AM by Ryuhza
this place needs me here
[Forest]
Hmm. It seemed that this stranger was getting more and more unnerved with him. It looked like it would be next to impossible to get him to relax naturally. On top of that, that light being shined in his damn face was seriously starting to get annoying.
Looks like the time to act...was now.
"Harry." he said, walking closer to him, "You're nervous. It's written all over your face. And it's understandable! You're lost. Natrually, you want to be on gaurd, right?"
He then put a hand on his shoulder.
"But you don't need to be afraid around me, Harry. I'm someone you can trust."
It was then that Henry's suspicions about him would be proven correct...if he even had any time to react. Mael's eyes suddenly glowed. On his gloved hand—the hand on Henry's shoulder—was a purple gem that was also shining.
"You don't need to be afraid around me." He continued, "I'm your friend. Believe me. All you need to do is relax and listen. I'm sure your friend or your so called girlfriend wouldn't mind if I...borrowed you for a while, right? Because I need you to do something for me."
If Henry were to feel it, he would feel himself suddenly not be able to move, and unable to turn away from Mael. And if the second traveler was still nearby, he would see the purple glow.
Most importantly, if this were to work...Henry's eyes would now be silver, just like Mael's.
"I'm in need of a scout." Mael then said, "I'm looking for six people somewhere in the city, hopefully not too far from here, and I'm going to need you to help me find them. You would do that for your friend, right?"
If you don't want this, let me know and I'll change the post ASAP!
edited 1st Jun '18 11:18:51 PM by Masterofchaos
Notice Board – Mark and Farah; Murquoql
"Sure thing," says Mark and starts undoing the knots on the hitch.
"Now, not so hasty, Fingers," says Farah. "You know, Murkle, no offense, but I won't feel safe travelin' through the forest with a stranger who says he can read minds. I need to know how far can your telepathy thingie go."
"She told you she can control it, is it not enough?" Mark and handles Farah the reins of her horse. "Also how do you know what telepathy even means?"
"You don't get it, Fingers. I doubt that she has it." She yanks the reins off his hands. "Here's the deal: when I give the signal, you read what I'm thinkin' 'bout and tell us. If it's correct, then we go to the Hotel together. And if we don't come down to the lobby in an hour, leave without us."
"Make that two hours."
"What, goin' to manicure yourself again, Fingers? We're goin' to wilderness, fo'fuckssake."
"That was for your benefit," says Mark.
"Ha. Ha." Farah signs. "Okay, Murkle. On the signal. Keep in mind that it's one of my deepest secrets."
"I don't think it works the way you think it works."
"Shut up, Fingers, I'm tryin' to concentrate." Farah makes a deep breath, her face turning into a mask of composure.
Urgh, I hate embracing the drunk people's minds.
…
Huh. Didn't expect Farah to like red wine.
Oh.
If you'll even try to probe me without my permission, Murkle, I'll be wearing you as a hand puppet. And those skin flaps make you look fat.
In the middle of Nowhere, Interrogation Room #(10 ↑)2 8.6 – John Smith, Security Service; Alice
Smith raises an eyebrow in amusement. At least I think it's an amusement.
Let me have a look… OW!
What?
Let's stick to educated guesses when it comes to what's going on in head. All I got is 'I am John Smith, Security Service' and a headache. And I don't even have a head.
Smith, meanwhile, calmly shuts the document case and puts it aside.
"Consider the situation." He leans forward, steepling his fingers. "A butler possessed by a demon starts trouble near the hotel. A woman dressed in black and white, around your age, defuses the conflict. Peacefully. Using the same anti-magic field you tried on me when we met.
"At the same time, a squad of mercenaries armed to the teeth, dressed in orange uniform engages a lightning mage that could level a city block if she'd feel like it. Reports of an open comm link between the mercenaries and the woman near the hotel.
"Then the mage is released without incident. She identifies the mercenary leader as Dominic Chaudhari, and the woman near the Hotel as his accomplice. You, Alice Winters. What should I do about you?
"I ask again: why was there a need to impersonate the authorities? Why endanger the city I'm bound to protect after you made efforts to do the opposite? I am grateful for how you handled the mess near the Hotel, but something tells me you don't have its best interests in heart. At least the safety of the civilians is not your top priority. And why release the Inquisitor after all this fuss?"
edited 30th May '18 10:43:30 AM by Millership
Spiral out, keep going.
The Prince of Foolish Relevations
Sick Bay- Not very fitting for me anyways...
Just looking mildly amused at how unceremoniously the false zippers were discarded, Explorer's golden eyes flick over to Moquoql. Listening calmly and casually to the alien girl, the self-described deity... Her expression is something between recognizance and pity, though neither prominent enough to distract from her casually calm appearance.
The "praises" she receives, however, does cause Explorer to blush faintly in embarrassment. Shifting her attention briefly to her creation in response to Moquoql's desire, the rainbow haired woman doesn't look directly at Maequoql as she speaks- And a few moments after Mae finished, a look of confusion naturally though quickly sprouts on Explorer's face.
Turning her head to look in the direction of where the relevant hotel below is, Explorer quietly goes "Huh" before addressing both Maequoql & Moquoql in a... Fashion more like she's openly musing to herself and simply acknowledged the two of them standing there.
"I thought that was strange for a Black Dog... This is the first time I've ever encountered a Vindex, though I'm not surprised he's attached to the Justin Parker below. I think this is the first instance his "superpowered evil side" isn't genuinely a feral beast..."
Moving her gaze back over her feathered cat-thing, the creature in question looks up at her with a puzzled expression. Scratching the creature behind an ear with her free arm, Explorer points to Moquoql and coos "The nice little lady wants to play with you Felian, so why not give her some bragging rights?"
The so-dubbed Felian's puzzled expression doesn't really change, but after glancing at Moquoql for a few moments the feathery feline leaps from Explorer- And lands on the thin air before Moquoql. Whilst the nascent creature examines Moquoql and even sniffing her, Explorer stretches her arms above her before speaking casually.
"I don't know anything about your Viporises and Sleutrienns, but is it safe to assume their abilities are innate? Cause I'll admit, I'm using a lot of magitek to pull being me off. Really, my species as a whole make liberal use of it- Faster than light travel, transuniversal movement, creating our afterlives..."
Casually stepping off the ground and sort of semi-aimlessly floating about, Explorer deftly avoids hitting anything as she speaks again. "So not a whole lot can surprise us either. I, specifically, do what I do to keep myself entertained. Thus, I just want to personally examine some of the interesting things here, so I've no real preference on what to do. I'm just a goddess for fun, so lead the way..."
"The Omniverse is the collection of all possibilities, and all possibilities must eventually come to pass."Notice Board – Mark and Farah; Murquoql
Murquoql thought to herself, "Poor humans with their thick and clumsy tongues." She spoke aloud, "What do you mean, how far can my telepathy go? If you're asking about my range, it covers the entire square and the ring of buildings around us. If you're asking how deep I can push into someone's mind, I limit myself to the most obvious surface thoughts only. Only my evil brother forcibly pushes further."
She listened to the deal. "Proceed, then." She pulled her telepathic range in on itself, ignoring everything beyond the bulletin board, in favor of getting a clearer impression of Farah's thoughts. Murquoql raked her claws down the log column of the bulletin board. "Save that threat for my brother. And is that supposed to be an insult?" She tried a trick of her sister's and cast her telepathy a tiny distance towards a direction that didn't correspond to three-dimensional space. "Oh, and there's someone else poking around in your mind. Who goes there?" An overextension headache abruptly terminated Murquoql's connection.
Author's note: Moquoql has taught Murquoql about the Fourth Wall, but they usually ignore it. This time, Murquoql has disregarded Moquoql's advice about ignoring it in favor of performing some Rage Judo. Oh, and Murquoql didn't see this note.
Sick Bay -> Corridors (Maequoql, Moquoql, Explorer of Unknowns)
Maequoql changed her mind about moving off. Two heads peeking at the planet below were better than one. "I was wondering about those two. And Valerie. They seem... they seem... Gosh, it's hard to summarize them."
Maequoql chuckled at her younger sister and explained, "Yes, the abilities of the Viporises and Sleutrienns are innate. In fact, a lot of our magitek was invented in a long game of catch-up, trying to give each other access to the same talents or at least something close enough to those abilities... although our tech is nowhere near as advanced as yours. We've only achieved one out of those three — faster-than-light travel."
Moquoql snapped out of her fawning and eagerly asked, "Did you say 'transuniversal movement'?"
Maequoql observed Explorer of Unknowns start floating and murmured, "Ooh, that looks like fun!" Aloud, she said, "I've changed my mind, I'm coming with you." With two, scratch that, one of her sisters spreading her psychic radar over a large portion of town, including the hotel, her surveillance was temporarily redundant there. She walked over to a wall panel and rapidly typed a request in.
At first nothing happened. Then after three sequential tones, the artificial gravity switched off in large sections all over the ship. Specific niches containing potted plants retained their artificial gravity, as floating clumps of soil everywhere would not have been fun.
The Mayatan sisters instinctively deployed their gliding membranes before readjusting their reflexes to the different movement skill. The group maneuvred through the nearest quarantine airlock, and into the corridors.
The twisting, turning spaceship corridors were wide with high ceilings. In the middle of the floor was a smooth gray lane wide enough for two humans to walk comfortably side by side. On either side of the gray stripe ran two narrow yellow lanes with small circular bumps, wide enough for a raccoon to run on.
Where the floor met the walls, large transparent water pipes ran, curving through protruding wall corners. At regular intervals along the pipes were airlock-like escape hatches. The joints where the pipe sections attached to each other were decorated with short, evenly spaced rods lying parallel to the pipes.
Dangling from the high ceiling were evenly spaced mixtures of criss-crossing tree-branch mockups, interrupted by the occasional trapeze or swinging ring. Such structures were limited to directly above the pipes. The space above pedestrians' heads was not part of the ceiling jungle gym, for that was where the lights were installed.
The tall walls were rough with lots of inert knobs for handholds and footholds, with communications or maintenance panels positioned on strategically placed wall bulges. At regular intervals were hollows in the wall, each with a peculiar potted plant that looked like an African Violet except the leaves were black and the flowers glowed. These were the niches where small pockets of artificial gravity were still active.
edited 30th May '18 2:11:46 PM by Miss_Desperado
If not for this anchor I'd be dancing between the stars. At least I can try to write better vampire stories than Twilight.
[In the middle of Nowhere, Interrogation Room #(10 ↑)2 8.6 – John Smith, Security Service; Alice]
Where intimidation had made Alice cautious, Smith's gentle flattery, by way of his overly-generous reading of events with the demon, succeeded. Starting to see him as a fellow professional, instead of a cop demonstrating authority over her, she eased slightly. Well, more than slightly; the unexpected "good cop" routine from a being she'd expected only arrogance from had made her less cautious than she ought have been, even though she'd later smack herself in the forehead when she realized what was going on.
She wasn't entirely without caution, but offered this: "All I told Chaudhari to do was 'investigate and take appropriate actions' to deal with someone we thought might be a slaver. If Chaudhari acted out of line investigating the situation, I will discuss the matter with him and, on behalf of Western Amalgamated, make proper reperations to the City for any inconvenience we caused."
Then she took a moment to consider what she knew about Chaudhari. If he had been paying attentions to Alice's lesson on this sort of bullshitting, and he usually did, he'd implied he was an agent of the city, but never actually, outright, said it. This might offer them some defense... but then, it might not. Was it still impersonating an officer if he simply walked around in a corporate security uniform and, while never claiming it was official, never admitting it was a corporate security uniform either? Dammit, where was an expensive lawyer or two dozen when she needed them?
edited 30th May '18 6:25:42 PM by KillerClowns
Sun-Dry Sea (Pilot 0037, Unit 09; Nyorla)
0037 stared at Nyorla for a moment. His name... he had been referred to by some variant of his designation, the same as all the other pilots of the 3rd Division, for as long as he could remember. "I don't remember my name; everyone usually calls me Zero-Zero-Three-Seven," he told her, shaking his head sadly.
Glancing down at his hands, he smiled slightly, "Thank you, though, for what you did."
He then stared off into the distance, "I suppose I should get going; I need to get Unit Zero-Nine back to HQ, or my CO will have my head," he told her, slowly getting up to his feet.
This is my good side.
Town Square
Both Chitara and Naiolo looked curiously at the strange object Finn had pulled out. Effectively, what he had was a map of the zone.
"Well, that's interesting." Chitara couldn't help but say. Naiolo just stared speechless while the old harpid checked the map and memorized what she was told. Hopefully the wagon could take the road. "Very well then, South Gate it is. You better be there or we leave without you." She added to Pearl with a dry laugh.
When Jamie entered the wagon and started to set up a working station, Chitara warned her. "Hey. Be careful with that, would you? We're gonna have some bumps in the road, and I don't want a hole in the wagon's floor."
Naiolo came back to his senses and listened to what Nyceme said about Sindar. "So, he's like a fallen king or something?"
Chitara turned to face Sindar as he made his question. "'Turn undead?' Whatever do you mean? If you are asking me if I could control one, well, I could if I wanted. But I am not fond of that or raising them, and I'm not into that anymore, thank you very much." She ended sharply, not interested in talking about the matter anymore. "Look, I have dealt with undead before, I know how to deal with them, alright?"
Now everyone seemed to have settled inside the wagon, Chitara announced. "Alright, then. We're leaving." She climbed through the trap door on the wall to the driver's seat, took the reins , and gave them a good tug. "Come on! Let's get moving!"
On command, the beetles started pulling the wagon, moving at a steady rhythm towards the South Gate. The wagon creaked on the outside and the inside, but the rattling inside was bearable. Anyone around the Department Store could see the wagon moving, and hopefully would jump out of the way.
Inside, Naiolo took seat by the table. "You may want to grab onto something." he advised.
Forest - Two Travelers and a Stranger*
Behind his tree, the second traveler was slowly starting to relax. Henry was feeding the park ranger a bunch of baloney, and it sounded as though the guy was eating it up. Now it was just a matter of getting him off of their case completely so they could group back up.
Feeling a sudden surge of confidence, the second traveler lowered himself very slowly towards the ground, so that he was barely above the thick underbrush. Then he peeked around the side of the tree, hiding everything below his eyes behind a particularly large root.
The sight of the supposed 'park ranger' set his thoughts stirring again. Obviously, the guy was no woodsman. He looked more like a crime lord with an eccentric sense of fashion, the kind you might see in an action movie. On that line of thought, the second traveler could only imagine the guy was out in the woods at night for some nefarious purpose, like conducting some kind of illegal weapons purchase or disappearing some inconvenient dead bodies, and now he and Henry had stumbled too close to it and were in danger of becoming inconvenient witnesses.
Crap crap crap. Putting aside his own sense of self preservation for a moment, he tried thinking of a way to help Henry. A distraction. But what? Giving away his own position didn't seem like a good call in the long run, especially as he didn't know how many mafioso goons might've been lurking nearby, ready to surround and destroy any new inconveniences. Instead, he ducked below the root and rummaged around in the undergrowth, feeling the forest floor for a big stick, or a rock— anything that would make a decent bit of noise when thrown.
But there was nothing. Nothing but dirt and loose, lightweight weeds. The one rock he found was about as big as his chest and halfway buried in the ground. He began to panic, patting the ground like a madman. What kind of forest doesn't have sticks, or rocks, or pinecones littered every five steps? It had to be some kind of freak of nature.
"Whoa, let's keep the hands to oursel-"
As if on cue, the sound of Henry's voice marked the very moment that the second traveler's hand grasped a hefty little stick. It was big enough to fill his hand, and weighty enough to travel.
"...I'm someone you can trust."
He popped the top of his head back out of his tree-root cover just in time to see the white suited park ranger mob boss's glove glowing a bright purple. It rested on Henry's shoulder, and Henry just stood there, not moving. Not speaking. In his hand was his flashlight, readied as if he was about to club the man with it... but again, it was stationary.
The second traveler couldn't see Henry's face from his position, but it was clear as day that something was wrong, even without the creepy request from glove-man.
Swallowing his fear, he leaned back, stick in hand, then lurched forward, flinging the stick across the clearing. As soon as it was airborne, he ducked back down behind the large tree root, covering his head as if he had just thrown a hand grenade.
The stick sailed through the air, whizzing quietly as it crossed the clearing, before finally breaking against a tree about six feet behind Henry's assailant with a loud,
crckplnckll
[Forest]
It seemed to be working. Henry was now completely and utterly still, obedient. Like he predicted, lost travelers were the easiest people to recruit. Now there was the matter of finding a way to a city, away from a place like this. It shouldn't be hard; perhaps he could find some other travelers, or he could use his gems again and—
crckplnckll
"Who—?"
Mael turned away and released his grip on Henry. Soon, his eyes stopped shining and his glove stopped glowing. Which meant that Henry would now be back to normal.
In annoyance, Mael looked around. He knew that there was a second traveler—he could hear them and Henry talk earlier—but where they were was a mystery. They were nearby, but without a flashlight, there was no way he could see them from where he was standing. Shit. I underestimated this..
"Show yourself!" he demanded. "It is unwise of you to hide in a place like this! Do you not realize the mistake you must made?"
OK UH its 2am here and I need to sleep...so yeah goodnight lol
edited 30th May '18 11:38:19 PM by Masterofchaos
Forest - Two Travelers and a Stranger*
"-ves." Henry finished, about half a minute late. He blinked, then shook his head, slapping the top of his cap with his free hand as if to stabilize himself. Mael was still standing before him, though now the man was looking around and shouting. Shouting at- ...Uh oh.
"Hey, man, calm down! What'd I tell you?" he said, taking a step back and holding his arms out, "I'm the only one here. And- you know, if you aren't going to show me the way back to the trail, then I'm just gonna go find it myself. Peace."
He began stepping away further, hoping the move would draw Mael's attention away from the second traveler, if only for the time being. His hand gripped the flashlight tighter. Time enough to think of something.
edited 31st May '18 6:20:15 AM by Ryuhza
this place needs me hereSun-Dry Sea (Pilot 0037, Unit 09; Nyorla)
Nyorla gave a dismayed look upon being told why the boy had forgotten his own name. She was about to speak up, but then she was thanked for the first aid.
"Oh... You're welcome."
When the boy declared his intention of going back to HQ, Nyorla packed up the first aid kit and hissed in a stage whisper, "But there are wyverns here! If they see you, you're..."
She stopped herself from saying "pinched with your face in a puddle" as that idiom would only make sense to a fellow Mayatan.Author's note
Nyorla continued, "...you're toast! I can't let that happen, I'm coming with you!" She smeared some extra mud into her fur for more camouflage, then jumped to her feet, eyeing the skies warily.
Nyorla had received the update from her sisters that this young pilot was not the missing kid from the town poster, she was slightly at a loss as to what to do now. Might as well let the young pilot take initiative. She empathized with the nameless boy.
Catching up to him, she revealed, "I didn't have a name for ten years, either." At least she'd been called "daughter", "sister", and "friend" during that time. Had no one shown this poor boy any affection?
If not for this anchor I'd be dancing between the stars. At least I can try to write better vampire stories than Twilight.
They/Them
[The Sun-Dry Sea - Vrask, Koyel, Layi]
Noticing that the beast had fallen, Vrask dropped their rifle and swung their maul so that they were holding it with both hands.
Positioning themself so they were standing on the rock that they were leaning against, their legs moved to push themself into the air. Bringing the maul over their head as Vrask went through the air, they swung down onto the wyvern's head.
A loud crunch could be heard as Vrask landed on the ground. The wyvern's body trashed in its final death throes before going limp.
[The Necroplis - Unnamed, Wanderer, It Came From The Sea]
Watching the creature charge, she considered whether she could cut off more meat if she got grabbed by it. Raising her arms up into the air, her scimitar turned downward so she could thrust downward when she was grabbed by the creature. She smiled a toothy smile as she waited.
edited 7th Jun '18 6:14:22 PM by DarkbloodCarnagefang
Note to self: Pick less edgy username next time.
[Forest]
Mael gave a heavy sigh. His plan...thrown out of wack because of another traveler. Perhaps the true fool was him; he should've dealt with the other traveler first before doing this. Wherever they were hiding, they made it very clear that they weren't going to let him take Henry. He had to admit, they were braver than he expected them to be.
He was smart enough to not try the same trick twice, so instead, he cleared his throat.
"Very well." he said, "I'm looking for people, and I do not have time to help you. But just so you know...the trail is to your right. If you're looking for a town, I would suggest you hitch a ride soon; it's a four hour walk from here."
He then turned around and started to walk past Henry, before stopping in his tracks. He still didn't face him, but a small smile grew on his face.
"Word of advice." he then said, "'I lost sight of my girlfriend' is the oldest lie in the book. Think of something more original next time. Farewell, Harry. Until we meet again."
Despite this setback, Mael wasn't going to give up. He was going to find who he was looking for, one way or another. He walked into the bushes, where another bright light appeared. If either Henry or the second traveler looked for him, they would notice that he was gone without a trace.
Oh don't you worry...he'll be back. He always comes back.
edited 31st May '18 3:25:26 PM by Masterofchaos
It's a bird.
Purple Fez Tavern (Ozurr; Jann, Varg; Rosalind)
Jann's gaze wandered between Rosalind and Ozurr as he listened to their stories, occasionally drifting down towards his arms for a few moments. He wanted to offer a word of sympathy for Rosalind's loss and the giant's exile, but as time moved on he found himself unable to think of anything. The memories of his own past were suddenly more vivid than ever.
Oh, what the Depths...
"I suppose I ought to share something as well..." he finally said, and began to roll up his sleeves while throwing a quick glance at Varg, who gave him an understanding nod in return.
"It would take time to explain all the details, but where I'm from, some mages are... born a bit unstable." He paused and somewhat nervously cleared his throat before continuing. "We're prone to dangerous spontaneous magic, negative uh, mental influences, and possession... During my youth, I did a pretty bad number on Grimmsford. Both the um, family name and the town itself..."
He held up his arms, giving Ozurr a clear view of the same faded surgical scars running along his bones that he'd shown Rosalind earlier.
"The warding runes that were etched into my bones keep the worst of it at bay."
Meanwhile, Varg finished her meal and stood up from her chair.
"I used to beat people up for money," she said, shrugging. "I guess I still sort of do, in some ways. Not as exciting, I know."
She made sure that her weapons were securely strapped in place, and walked over to Jann, briefly placing a hand on his shoulder before addressing the group again.
"If we're done here, we should find some supplies for the trip." She pointed a finger at Rosalind. "And you might need a weapon."
Still a great "screw depression" song even after seven years.
[Forest]
Figured. The gems seem to have taken him to another area; it wasn't anywhere near his office, that was for sure.
It didn't matter. He was going to find what he was looking for, one way or another. He always did. He wasn't worried about it at all. Now all he needed was some sort of scout...but where?
As he pondered this, walking through the place, he heard not one but two people talking. Huh, he honestly didn't expect this. For a minute he thought he was going to have to travel far. Regardless, it seemed that luck was on his side: two lost travelers in the forest. Easy.
"How unfortunate." he said, loud enough to get their attention, "Lost, are you?" His voice was deep yet silky smooth.
If Henry and the other traveler where to turn around, they would see a man dressed in an all white suit. He was black, and had long black hair and stopped at his tailbone. However, the most striking thing about him were his eyes.They were a piercing silver, which would be intimating to most people. But he didn't seem like a scary guy. At least, not on the outside.
"Unless, of course," he continued, smiling, "You two are simply campers looking for a place to set up, correct?"
edited 29th May '18 11:07:52 PM by Masterofchaos