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RedCedar The Mighty Pen from Elsewhere Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Buried in snow, waiting for spring
The Mighty Pen
#14126: Jul 9th 2015 at 5:54:55 PM

This time, Jack was unable to avoid letting out a agonized shout as his knee bent sideways, shattering under the devastating blow. In the last second before he began to fall, he tensed every muscle in his upper body, his cracked ribs screaming at him, and swung himself forward into a headbutt, forehead aimed for his opponent's nose. As a last strike, it was pathetic, but it was all he had before the end.

A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent upon arriving. -Lao Tzu
UdtheImp from Stamford, CT (Series 2) Relationship Status: The Skitty to my Wailord
#14127: Jul 10th 2015 at 7:38:14 AM

Fluttershy was going to carry Kyoko again when Saren did so instead. The pony watched as Saren forcibly carried off Kyoko, accuse everyone of being bleeding hearts, and walked off away from the group to speak with the magical girl privately.

A beat.

"I think that went rather well!" the pegasus happily stated, expecting things to go a lot worse. She then prepared to leave the Chamber, rolling the pink bubble filled with the dragon's remains to the exit. But then she paused, looking back at the pool, looking much clearer but still very much tainted.

Another beat.

Fluttershy then fired a beam of healing light into the pool, the energies purifying the water instantly, spreading across the entire pool and a small distance out the exiting stream. It would still take some time for the river to become truly clean again, but the pegasus smiled knowing she managed to cut that time by a couple of days. Every little bit helps.

DAMMIT MARK, STOP HITTING HELPY!!
SullenFrog (Elder Troper) Relationship Status: I wanna know about these strangers like me
#14128: Jul 11th 2015 at 2:59:45 PM

Scaled Nations—Moot Hall, Chieftain’s Office

The Shield Boomerang struck ‘Death’s’ sword, deflecting the blade just enough so that its point stabbed into the floor an inch to the left of Tethrasur’s neck.

A growl of deep frustration tore itself from the skeleton’s nonexistent lungs, and he made to pull his sword free; but then Link was on him, hooking the blade and trying to grapple with him, heedless of the rime and hoarfrost spreading across his clothes and flesh like wildfire from contact with those freezing green flames. At the same time Buster Shots slammed into his back by the dozen, burning smoking holes in the fiend’s heavy black cloak and leaving scorch marks on the back of his tarnished breastplate; and as Minako’s Crescent Beam struck him in the head, he staggered ever so slightly.

And with every hit he took, that crack on his skull left by Lune’s enchanted boxcutter widened ever so slightly until, with a soft sound like someone stepping on an eggshell, a roughly square piece of his temple broke off and fell to the floor, leaving a rectangular hole in his head an inch long on the short side.

As he grappled with Link, the skeleton let out a grunt.    “Brave of you, boy,”    he said, the red lights of his eyes seeming to narrow in focus.    “But you’ve made two mistakes.”    He pivoted, turning the both of them so that Link was between him and Minako and Zero.    “By getting this close to me, you’ve ensured your allies can’t bring their more powerful attacks to bear without fear of hitting you as well.   

   “That was your first mistake.”   

‘Death’ abruptly let go of his sword, and before Link could react the undead knight wrapped his arms around the boy’s waist.

   “Your second was assuming I need swords or spells to kill you,”    Death snarled.    “I’m going to break you in two!”   

And with those words the death knight lifted Link a foot off the ground, despite the weight of his Iron Boots, and began to squeeze him in a crushing bear hug. His intent was all too clear; he meant to snap Link’s spine with his inhuman strength.

By now the fire was raging out of control, spreading across the shelves and cabinets along the back wall and filling the air with smoke. Scrolls and documents that held decades’ worth of important information concerning the tribe’s culture, history, policies and laws began to burn, along with the shelves on which they stood, and the wall against which those shelves rested. The evidence Sabrina, Junko and Lune had gathered would have to suffice, because any chance of gathering more was now reduced to ashes.

***

Corridor

The fiendish deinonychus let out a surprised squawk as the telekinetic thrust knocked it out of the air, though it did not fly as far back as Alakazam intended; it crashed to the ground a mere ten feet away from the girls, landing awkwardly on its side. The unholy dinosaur quickly righted itself however, its pupils narrowing furiously as its prey dared turn her back on it as Sabrina handed the documents over to Junko.

The sickle claws on its feet began to glow with a volcanic red aura as the beast tapped them on the floor, and it gathered itself to spring once more—

Only for Lune’s boxcutter to loop around its neck like a coil of razor wire and pull taut.

The beast gave an angry screech as the segmented blade started biting into its neck, doing more so the more it struggled. But the deinonychus quickly seemed to grasp this fact, however, and it stopped jerking around, instead lowering its head to the ground so that it could bring one of its feet to bear; it hooked a smoking sickled claw around the coil near its neck and began sawing back and forth, trying to cut through the boxcutter’s impossibly elongated blade and free itself.

The sight of Junko taking off with all the evidence in hand made the demon beast’s eyes narrow in fury, and it redoubled its efforts.

After only a few more seconds, a sharp twang! split the air as it succeeded.

Shaking free of the now-broken coil, the deinonychus rose to its feet and took off. It ignored Lune and Alakazam, and tried to duck around Sabrina; in its devious mind, she no longer mattered. The only one who mattered now was Junko, and it would run her down or die trying.

***

Scaled Nations—Moot Hall, Main Chamber

A brief flash of satisfaction flitted across Shinuaq’tan’s face as he snapped Jack’s leg like a twig, but it was quickly replaced by surprise and alarm as the samurai lunged forward to headbutt him. The Grand Master drew his own head back to try and roll with the blow, knowing that he could not avoid it altogether; even so, Jack’s forehead collided with the chieftain’s snout, and the old lizardman let out a grunt as something cracked under the impact.

Annoyance flared in those milky white eyes. “Enough.”

And with those words, Shinuaq’tan turned himself sideways, released Jack’s leg from his grip and threw him to the floor.

Surprised murmurs rose up from the watching chieftains, some wincing at Jack’s sorry state, others chuckling to see the human brought low. Still others looked upon Shinuaq’tan, some with approval, some with uncertainty. And a few cast puzzled glances around, cocking their heads and cupping hands around their ears as if trying to hear something far off…

Shinuaq’tan himself smiled, only for the expression to fade as he felt something warm and wet trickle onto his upper lip. He brought a hand up to his snout to investigate, and saw blood on his fingertip; Jack’s headbutt must have done something to him, because now the Grand Master was bleeding from one nostril.

Scowling, Shinuaq’tan flicked the blood aside and looked down at Jack. “You are beaten,” he declared. “You fought well, I admit, but this could not have ended any other way. Now, I will show you mercy.” Slowly, dramatically, he raised his left arm, keeping it bent at the elbow, his hand open, fingers curled slightly but not clenched. His expression became stoic, emotionless, and his palm began to glow softly as ki gathered within it.

“The Quivering Palm,” he said, “the most dangerous technique of the Bo-ran Dau. When a monk of our order delivers this touch, his enemy is already dead; for the vibrations it induces will stop their heart at a moment of the monk’s choosing. I shall use it now to end your life, as a show of respect; it is quick and painless.”

The Grand Master stood poised over Jack, ready to bring his hand down and strike him in the chest. “Goodbye, Jack.”

And the chieftain’s hand fell…


Riverrock—Military District, City Watch Headquarters

Hearing Chun-Li and Leo’s words, Stalgrim allowed himself a sigh of relief. “Good. That’s one less thing to worry about, at least…”

By now several robed adepts had arrived, and at Johnny’s words they were kneeling around Stalgrim in a cluster, holding sacred implements and whispering words of healing and faith; in response a soft white glow enveloped the captain, and the trickle of blood began to slow. He grimaced in annoyance.

“That’s enough,” he said, some strength returning to his voice. “It was a rapier, people; I didn’t get mauled by a gods-forsaken dragon, for Vyraiah’s sake!”

He struggled free from Lieutenant Farron’s grasp and waved off the healers, rising shakily to his feet. He swayed for a few seconds, teetering uncertainly, but eventually he found his balance. His face was still drawn and pale, and there was still some sweat on his brow, but it seemed clear that the magic had done some good already.

“My injuries can wait until later. Farron?”

Lieutenant Farron stood. “Sir?”

“The vampire’s honeycombed our city with tunnels,” he said. “The entrance is hidden within a column in that abandoned old church in the Vagabond District, the one that closed down a few decades back. Put a team together and sweep the place; the vampire himself might be dead, but goddess knows what else might be lurking down there. And find me someone who can read draconic; there’s some weird arch down in the vampire’s lair covered with the stuff. I want to know what the writing says and what this thing’s meant to do yesterday.”

She saluted crisply. “I’ll get right on it sir.” She smiled faintly then. “And sir, it’s good to have you back.”

He grunted. “Noted. As you were Farron.” Stalgrim turned his attention to the other clerks, and he scowled. “Are we off the clock, ladies and gentlemen?”

There were a few tentative heads shaken.

“Then get back to work!” he barked, making a few of them jump in fright. In seconds the room had become a hive of frantic activity once more.

The captain sighed in annoyance, and as he did so the strength seemed to go out of him. He slumped, only for two of the medics to catch him and support him.

“Alright, now you can have a look at my injuries,” he rasped.

Nodding, they started to lead him toward a stairway at the back of the room; as they passed Edward’s desk, however, he noticed the glass bottle Envy was in and frowned. “Now what in the nine hells is that thing?”


Marshes of Ia-Kong—River Ziggurat, Dragon’s Lair

Even though Kyoko’s eyes had gone blank and she was staring right through him, Sazh dared to hope that for once they were finally getting through to her. Even when she shrugged out of his grasp and stumbled backward, he dared to hope that his words and the Doctor’s would do something to help her deal with the miserable stuff she’d been through. No one deserved to go through all that, especially not for trying to help their family survive.

Then she started to fall over.

Eyes wide, Sazh lunged to try and grab her before she hit the ground; but Saren beat him to the punch, grabbing her by the arm and darting away before anyone could stop him.

For a moment Sazh just stood there, half-frozen in incomprehension. Then anger welled up in his breast, and he snarled and punched the floor. “Son of a…! I swear, if that alien bastard ends up makin’ her worse after all that…”

Trailing off into an unintelligible growl of frustration, the l’cie got to his feet and moved to go after them. He barely even noticed as Fluttershy tried to purify the waters with a beam of light, a beam that only partially cleansed the pool; a magical plague of this calibre was not so easily undone, even by magic. To say that he was tired of this room, this pyramid, and hell, even this whole miserable swamp of a jungle by now would be a serious understatement. After everything they’d been through in the past two days, the past few hours, he was completely drained.

“God, I wish we were back in the city,” he muttered under his breath.

***

Soon enough they were outside the ziggurat. Night had fallen, and the air was filled with the sounds of croaking frogs, the soft flap of bats’ wings, and the deep, low rumble of towering dinosaurs settling down in the distance. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and the moon shone brilliantly amidst a field of twinkling stars, lighting up the darkness with the strange iridescent lines criss-crossing its geometric surface.

By this point Sazh had simmered down somewhat, and as he looked to Kyoko a worried frown crossed his face. The kid didn’t look good, and whatever was up with that crystal of hers, it definitely wasn’t something that anyone in the group could cure. If only Arael were still here, maybe she could give a repeat performance of that healing spell she cast earlier…

His eyes widened for a second.

Healing. Healers. Of course!

There were healers in the town, a whole bunch of clerics like her. If she could cast that spell, maybe they could too.

His mind made up, Sazh stepped forward. “Ordinarily I might suggest we stop an’ camp out for the night, but I think I speak for everybody when I say I’m sick of this place,” he said. “Plus we just got done killin’ the biggest, baddest thing around; I don’t think whatever else is crawlin’ around out there’ll give us too much trouble.” He glanced at Kyoko. “An’ you need to get back to town fast. Fortunately, I think I might have somethin’ that’ll do the trick…”

He drew his crossbows, crossed his arms over his chest and bowed his head; and as he did so, the l’cie brand on his chest lit up with a sudden fiery light. It shone through the fabric of his shirt and even his arms, and as he closed his eyes the shape of the light changed and materialized, become a crystalline feather hovering in the air in front of him. It blazed like a torch, casting back the darkness of the night, surrounded by a faint aura of flame.

“I summon...”

He uncrossed his arms and lifted his head, even as the feather darted away and rose high into the air.

“…Brunhildaaaa!

And with that shout he opened fire with both guns, shooting at the airborne crystal. The first three shots went wide, vanishing into the night sky.

But the fourth connected—and when it did, the crystal exploded into a huge globe of magical energy, a sun ringed by chunks of burning garnet and covered with complex glyphs and runes of magical power. The orb was transparent, its interior filled with smoke and shadow… but after a moment, the shadows coalesced into a silhouette, an enormous, armoured figure curled up in a ball.

A figure which promptly lit up like a bonfire surging to life as it unfurled, standing to its full height.

Then the sphere dissipated into countless motes of faint orange light, and the being was revealed—a mechanical thing, slender and feminine, with segmented rubber horns curling from its shoulders and hips and strange garment that was half cape, half skirt trailing behind it. In one hand it held a strange weapon almost as tall as itself, something highly complex that seemed equal parts hammer, axe and ballista. Flames spewed from jets on its shoulders, hissing softly in the crisp night air.

Its descent was measured and controlled, alighting gracefully on the jungle floor as lightly as a feather. In the light of the moon, the golden highlights of its crimson-armoured frame gleamed softly. Resting the head of its weapon on the ground, it towered over the Champions at fifteen feet tall, staring down at them with an impassive face wrought from smoky grey metal. Its cyan gaze sweapt across the Champions, taking them in at a glance before coming to rest on Kyoko.

“This is my eidolon, Brynhildr,” Sazh explained. “I would’ve summoned her when we were fightin’ the dragon, but the opportunity never really came up.” He looked up at the towering robot, his expression serious. “We need to get back to the city fast. The kid needs help, so we’ve gotta burn rubber. You up fer that?”

Brynhildr nodded, silent as stone. Then she swung her cumbersome weapon up over her shoulder, and with a snap it locked into place on her back; no sooner was it in place than she broke into a sprint, taking three quick and agile steps before leaping into the air. And as she did so, the eidolon began to transform.

Her head folded into her chest. The “horns” on her hips and shoulders curled up on themselves, becoming segmented tires. Her legs folded at the knee, bending in a way that would have been impossible for a human being, while the frontal part of her torso swung out and upward, forming the tapered snout and fender of a race car, even as the legs tucked themselves into the empty space her torso had just vacated. The skirt curled up and over her back, forming a ribbed, cage-like top that wouldn’t have looked out of place on a convertible, and the unmistakable roar of an engine revving up tore from her as she landed on the ground.

In mere seconds, Brynhildr had transformed from a humanoid robot to a sleek red sports car. Her canopy popped open with a hiss, revealing a driver compartment with room for one passenger.

Sazh walked over to Saren and held out his arms. “I’ll get her back to town as quick as I can,” he said. “Then I’ll come back for anyone else who needs a lift.”


Path to Threshold

The last entry of the tome began with an image depicting something particularly strange. It was a cylinder, split into five distinct sections like the petals of a flower or the arms of a star; they radiated from a large ring, and their surfaces were coloured with a complex network of lights and striations. A legend just beneath the image indicated that this structure was of a mind-boggling scale, with the ring alone being more than twelve kilometres in diameter and the arms measuring almost fifty in length. The opposite page showed a field of stars, dominated by a vivid purple nebula whose shape vaguely seemed to suggest a cuttlefish; a legend near the top of the star chart identified it as the “Serpent Nebula”, and the location of something called “Widow”, or “Citadel”, near the heart of this celestial cloud.

This structure is the heart of a great community spread out across many hundreds if not thousands of planets within a single galaxy, an alliance of races and nations named for the Citadel in which their leaders and elected representatives convene to discuss matters of state. Leadership falls to the so-called Citadel Council, an executive committee made up of a single representative from each of the major powers who make up this alliance; other races and governments maintain embassies on the structure, though due to various factors—lack of military power, etc.—they hold no seats on the Council.

This vast civilization is made possible through the existence of a substance, called “element zero”, which releases a form of cosmic energy when exposed to electricity; said energy can then be manipulated in such a way as to alter the mass of a given object. Known as “mass effect fields,” this phenomenon is the basis for a variety of remarkable concepts, such as the creation of metal ships that can traverse the stars at the speed of light, altering gravity, creating materials that could not be manufactured in normal circumstances, and even the simulation of telekinesis. Despite its remarkable applications, element zero and mass effect fields are purely mundane and not magical in the slightest; magic does not seem to truly exist, though some races seem to exhibit limited psionic abilities. Religion exists, though the deities of this realm do not respond to mortal prayers and do not grant blessings or divine magic; whether they truly exist at all is difficult to say.

Most remarkable are the existence of large constructs, called mass relays, that can instantaneously transport vessels from one relay to the next, thus enabling travellers to make voyages that should take years, decades, or even centuries in a matter of minutes or hours. And just as all roads led to Iskandria in ancient times, so too do all mass relays lead to the Citadel. The beings of this galaxy ascribe the creation of both the Citadel and the mass relay network to a race known as the protheans, who appear to have vanished many thousands of years before the present timeframe.

Humans, to my irritated resignation, are found in this reality as well. Originating from a planet with the ever-so-imaginative name of “Earth” (a trait that I am beginning to notice is disconcertingly common amongst a number of these other realms), humans are latecomers to this great community, having only discovered mass effect technology within the last forty years. Despite that, and vexingly enough, they have enjoyed a meteoric rise to prominence, to the point where they have claimed a seat on the Citadel Council, putting themselves on equal footing with races that have been part of the galactic community for thousands of years, and snubbing those which have spent centuries lobbying for such a seat.

Apart from humans, the various races of this galaxy, though predominantly anthropomorphic, bear little to no resemblance to the beings of our own world. It is curious that, despite evolving on entirely different worlds, many of these races share the trait of having two toes on each foot, and two fingers and a thumb on each hand. Humans, it would seem, are in the minority with their five toes and five fingers. Additionally, these races are largely of a height with one another. Could this be the principle of convergent evolution at work, or something else?

Here the text gave way to several sketches of various alien beings, one of which might seem vaguely familiar to Pride. Each had little notations scrawled in the corners, listing race, homeworld, and distinguishing features.

Turian

Homeworld: Palaven

Classification: Humanoid (avian)

Distinguishing characteristics: metallic carapace for protection from intense sunlight, carnivorous, agile, good eyesight [needs verification], natural weapons [claws, beak], blue-coloured blood, unable to consume human foods and vice versa. Lifespan and life cycle are comparable to those of humans.

Social & Cultural characteristics: disciplined, militaristic, all citizens required to fill terms of military/public service. Animistic belief in spirits forms predominant religious belief. Facial tattoos mark clan affiliation; barefaced individuals considered untrustworthy, dishonourable. When provoked, military resorts to total war; goal is to devastate enemy with overwhelming force so as to never again present a threat. As a whole, race tends toward lawful alignements.

Assessment: Direct attack unfeasible. Military strength too great, soldiers too disciplined to break ranks; likewise ships would bombard ground forces. Recommended action: internal subversion.

Finally, there was a picture of a hideous creature, a walking corpse with strange tubes and circuitry running beneath its pallid grey flesh.

Despite a lack of true magic or divinities, the undead exist within this reality. Seemingly of technological origin, these wights have sprung up on a number of worlds, often in the presence of strange prehistoric artefacts. Who created these artefacts, and why they did so, remains a mystery.

Final assessment: Avoid for the time being. The technology of this world would pose a considerable threat, even for our colossi. Additionally the lack of true magic may pose problems in the long term.

By this point Pride was close enough to the outskirts of Threshold that he could hear the crackling flames, and make out panicked voices calling for water. People were frantically running back and forth, forming a chain to carry buckets of water from a well to the moot hall, where they were frantically trying to douse the flames.

So far they were having little success, for they were on the outside and the fire had started within.

“That’sss Shinuaq’tan’sss office!” one voice cried.

“Why do the fatesss torment usss ssso?” wailed another. “Firssst the beassst, and now thisss…!”

The Danse Macabre Codex
GeekCodeRed Since: Sep, 2010
#14129: Jul 12th 2015 at 4:30:17 PM

Johnny - Holy Shit, P Cs

Johnny was also staring at the jar, an eyebrow raised.

"Same question, eight less hells."

He thought he could remember these guy's names. The Chinese Woman was Chunley, the blonde kid was Edward, and they went off with a guy named Envy...

Or, at least that's what he'd thought. He hadn't exactly gotten everyone's name, and he hadn't seen them in three days.

Stratofarius huzzaaaaaaaah Since: Aug, 2011
huzzaaaaaaaah
#14130: Jul 13th 2015 at 7:25:45 AM

Path to Treshold

Voices! People! Pride felt his hands tremble, holding back the urge to instinctively attack those creatures and devour the souls. He was hungry, but not hungry enough to commit such a foolish mistake. Still, with every step he could feel the pain from his leg, and the anger that came from having to hold back his regeneration...

Still, he had to stick to the shadows. His patience would be rewarded. Using his own shadows to make himself harder to see, Pride sneaked through the city, trying to find his 'teammates'. If all went well, he could enact one of his other plans...


City Watch Headquarters

"Your worst nightmare, human." Envy grumbled from his jar, hissing at Stalgrim.

"He was once a high and mighty homunculus who could put up a decent fight." Edward told the good Captain, before bringing the jar up to his eye level, grinning. "But this is the bastard's true form- nothing more than an insect!"

"Who you're calling an insect, pipsqueak?!"

A vein in Edward's head almost popped as he started to savagely shake the jar. "WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SMALL HE HAS TO HOLD ONTO SOMETHING STURDY WHENEVER A STRONG WIND BLOWS?!" He bellowed at the top of his lungs, even as Envy started begging for him to stop.

GeekCodeRed Since: Sep, 2010
#14131: Jul 13th 2015 at 7:35:25 AM

Johnny - Oh for the love of...

"Woahwoahwoah!" Johnny exclaimed, grabbing hold of Edwards arms and trying to stop them.

"He's fucking with you. Don't let him get to you like that. You're still young, and people who start short end up the fuckin' tallest of them all."

Johnny leaned in towards the jar, looking at Envy.

"And you're a dumb shit. Stalgrim isn't human, that's pretty fucking obvious."

Stratofarius huzzaaaaaaaah Since: Aug, 2011
huzzaaaaaaaah
#14132: Jul 13th 2015 at 7:42:45 AM

City Watch Headquarters

"Hah! All you people look the same to me—" Envy began, before suddenly being put down on the desk so Edward could grab Johnny by his shirt and shake him.

"AND WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SHORT HE DRIVES A TOY CAAAAAAR?!"

GeekCodeRed Since: Sep, 2010
#14133: Jul 13th 2015 at 7:55:45 AM

Johnny - Headquarters

Johnny had experienced a stressful day. He'd gotten into a fight with a con-man and his monstrous assistant, fought a vampire spawn, fought a vampire, and along the way had been electrocuted. The way the day was going, he was expecting another attack before he went to sleep.

To say that he was on edge would be quite accurate.

So, when Edward had grabbed him, started shaking him, and started shouting, instinct had kicked in.

Johnny kneed him in the gut. He'd been unconsciously aiming for his nuts, but Edward was too short for that.

GameGuruGG Vampire Hunter from Castlevania (Before Recorded History)
Vampire Hunter
#14134: Jul 13th 2015 at 2:26:05 PM

Chun-Li, Riverrock—Military District, City Watch Headquarters

When the fight between Edward and Johnny started, Chun-Li bolted towards them and then lifted the two away from each other and up into the air, both grabbed by their shirt with one in each hand. Chun-Li seemed to be angry.

"Break it up, you two!" Chun-Li told the two of them, and then put Johnny down and let him go... Chun-Li then used both hands to grab Edward's shirt and lifted him even higher into the air. Apparently, she was angry at him, specifically.

"No one here cares about your height, Edward," Chun-Li told off the alchemist, shaking him instead. "You insult your own height more than anyone else here when you get angry about being called a name."

"Now stop getting angry about it or you'll be spending the rest of the day with Ziffnit Zounds in the stocks," Chun-Li told Edward and then put him down, looking at the rest of the City Watch. "I am truly sorry about that."


Sabrina, Scaled Nations—Moot Hall, Corridor

"Alakazam, again!" Sabrina said as Alakazam attempted to blast the Fiendish Deinonychus away from the door again with Psychic. Meanwhile, Sabrina stood in front of the door to the Main Chamber.

"I won't let you pass," Sabrina told the fiendish deinonychus. "Alakazam, help me block the doorway!"

No matter if Alakazam hit the Fiendish Deinonychus or not, Alakazam began moving towards Sabrina, but will he make it in time to defend his trainer?

Wizard Needs Food Badly
Cybersbe Jedi of the Old Republic from Somewhere over the rainbow Since: Aug, 2014 Relationship Status: Wishfully thinking
Jedi of the Old Republic
#14135: Jul 13th 2015 at 3:19:19 PM

After knocking Death's sword aside, the Shield Boomerang returned to Zero. Unfortunately, Link was now in a rough predicament after trying to attack Death in close combat.

This was a tough situation. Attacking him up close was risky due to the ice, a Burst Shot would probably blow up Link too, and Zero didn't know if Death had vulnerabilites other than fire.

However, he couldn't just do nothing. He decided on a rather risky attack.

He pulled out the Recoil Rod. He charged it up and dashed to Death's side before unleashing the charged attack. His intention was to hopefully push Death away, sending him further out of reach of his sword, getting him to let go of Link and minimizing the damage the ice would do to him.

What is this "signature" of which people speak?
Katarsus Annoyed Mode: ON Since: Sep, 2014 Relationship Status: One True Dodecahedron
Annoyed Mode: ON
#14136: Jul 13th 2015 at 7:14:27 PM

Lune - Whack-a-Raptor

Lune had to admit that the deinonychus was a clever little bastard. It managed to snap free from her cutter's grasp, an it seemed to choose its target carefully, going after whoever was holding the papers, rather than one specific target or whoever was closer.

The papers, huh?

Without stopping her pursuit, she rummaged into her bag with the left hand and took out one of the scrolls she had taken from the shelves. In only a few moments, she found herself right above the deinonychus, and began to test her theory... by smacking the animal in the head with the parchment, just like someone would smack a bad dog with a rolled newspaper.

Whether or not that tactic managed to get its attention, she'd still drop on it and try to stab it repeatedly with the two blade pieces in her right hand. It wasn't like she could let the thing keep living and being a threat to their mission either way.

troydenite Since: Mar, 2011
#14137: Jul 14th 2015 at 6:45:27 AM

Sakura Kyouko; Help Help I'm Being Depressed

Walking pigeon sure acts tough, doesn't he? Puffed all up with growls and steel and bone. But he isn't talking down. He knows what it's like. Not to be me, but to be something worse than me.

This bird burnt planets. I'm just a girl who got her family killed.

(You think I don't know how small my problems are? Where I'll end up? Trust me, I know exactly where I'm going. I ignore bowtie as best as I can.)

I can't respect him. One glance at his ugly mug and my kidneys ache. And like hell I'm grovelling to anyone - my knees aren't working, for one. I can't just listen to him. But, still -

"Hah. You're not wrong, walking pigeon."

I can agree with him.

"You're not like the rest. You're tough. Jaded. If I threw a potato at you I swear I'd get fries. Remind me to try it when we're back in that common place."

Look, turns out I can still move my head. Just a little, enough to hang my sagging face in something like a wry smirk.

"Don't get me wrong. If I ever get as stuck-up as you I think I'll just go ahead and snap myself in half. But if your best friend wasn't there, if you didn't have people behind you who wanted all those other people dead, if you weren't around any of them... would anything've happened?"

The ceiling blurs. Before I can stop, my head clonks straight into his shoulder. I try to squirm, shift, spit, anything - but no dice. All I can do is cough weakly, my hair falling limp across his back.

"You let it happen, y'know? Not because you wanted to kill them, but because they were there. You could've washed yourself up on some backwater planet, but you didn't. If you were alone nothing would've happened."

I sigh. His armor sticks in my limpid cheek like needles. When I can breathe enough to speak my voice is soft and sweat-stained.

"Maybe that's exactly what I want to do. Be a little ruby caterpillar in her little shrunken shell. Drop off the branch and roll out of sight. Where no-one can get to me any more."

It's a pathetic smirk, really.

"You're right. Sounds terribly lonely, doesn't it?"

Darkness comes to take me. I close my eyes, fall like a babe from her cradle.


Link; Chieftain's Office

I struggle. His arms are around my back, squeezing. Tighter and tighter. My shield is cutting me. I can't move. I try to hit him, shouting, but my arm cramps and I scream as my lungs twist and knot and my back -

I don't know. My legs. Can't feel my legs. Can't -

My mouth tears and I think I'm crying but I don't know because I can't feel anything except the pain my back I -

I

Selim

GeekCodeRed Since: Sep, 2010
#14138: Jul 14th 2015 at 7:00:37 AM

Johnny - Headquarters

Wow, that woman was strong. Johnny was pretty sure he was decently heavy, and she managed him in one hand and the kid in the other.

Either way, something she had said struck him. He left through the main doors of the Watch's HQ, saying nothing. After a few moments, a loud yelp was heard from the courtyard outside, before Johnny returned, grinning.

"Missed the bastard on the way in." he said, half-laughing.

lightdarkhero250 Quad Optometrist from Somewhere Since: Oct, 2009 Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
#14139: Jul 14th 2015 at 10:14:54 AM

Junko; Corridor

Continuing her way along the hall, Junko kept an ear out for sounds of battle, whether they be for a samurai attacking a giant lizard or her allies attacking a...giant lizard.

In any case, for a moment, she could hear the the all-too distinct pitter-patter of claws on a wooden floor, and realized the deinonychus had given chase again, but, looking back for just a moment, she saw that Lune and Sabrina were at least reliable enough to continue their assault on the beast, allowing her to keep going.

Seeing an end to the hallway in site, the girl focused all her attention on getting there as fast as possible and entering.

Finally, she reached the door, leading to what she assumed would be the Main Chamber. With the documents safely(more or less) under her shoulder, and taking just a moment to catch her breath, she slid the door open and entered.


Junko; Moot Hall, Main Chamber

Finally inside the chamber they worked so hard to get to, she was surprised to see how pathetic of a scene it was inside. The samurai seemed to be on his last breath, with the lizardman—who she could easily surmise was the Chieftain— standing over him, about to end their duel for certain.

She scanned the crowd, seeing their reactions ranging from zealous cheers to mixed concern at worst. Seems like it might not be too hard to convince them of his doings....

Regardless, as the Chieftain's poised hand was about to fall, Junko figured it would probably be best to save the samurai from his almost-certain death.

"HOLD IT!"

The pink-blond haired girl in a kimono called out, loud enough to span the entire room.

edited 14th Jul '15 10:18:34 AM by lightdarkhero250

I'm a ghost, you didn't see me.
LatverianBadger Calamity is a housewife from gacha hell Since: Jan, 2012 Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
Calamity is a housewife
#14140: Jul 15th 2015 at 7:39:30 AM

Leo - City Watch Headquarters

Leo just sort of...watched as Edward, Envy and Johnny went at it.

Chunners was there to diffuse the situation, thank God, but...were these guys really gonna be his teammates for as long as that Yee fellow needs him on these inter-dimensional adventures?

He turned to nod to Stalgrim to get his mind off of that unfortunate handful of a situation.

"Don't worry about it. That creature's already a hassle...not unlike the boy handling its jar. No need to get yourself involved with it."

"Shake the dust." - Anis Mojgani
RedCedar The Mighty Pen from Elsewhere Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Buried in snow, waiting for spring
The Mighty Pen
#14141: Jul 16th 2015 at 9:50:23 PM

As the chieftain's hand drew back for the killing blow that Jack had no chance of avoiding, the samurai drew in a deep breath, closing his eyes and bringing his working hand up to his chest, pointing up. His ki was in turmoil, flowing erratically from the pain and failure of the fight. With that breath, he calmed it. When he opened his eyes again and met those of the lizardman, there was only calm resolve there once again, as there was at the beginning. Let the blow fall. He was ready.

A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent upon arriving. -Lao Tzu
Stratofarius huzzaaaaaaaah Since: Aug, 2011
huzzaaaaaaaah
#14142: Jul 17th 2015 at 5:19:50 AM

Although Edward's expression was one of pure anger- especially after being hit in the gut by Johnny- Chun-Li's though warning was enough to calm him down. Well, 'calm' him down. He still looked angry, but at least he was doing his best to not yell something really bad.

Envy, however, was laughing his ass off.

SullenFrog (Elder Troper) Relationship Status: I wanna know about these strangers like me
#14143: Jul 18th 2015 at 11:33:01 AM

Scaled Nations—Moot Hall, Main Chamber

Shinuaq’tan froze, his palm stopping a hair’s breadth from Jack’s chest and hand. So sudden was the motion that a brief whipcrack rang out, cutting through the sudden silence which fell upon the chamber like a knife. Slowly, the Grand Master raised his scaly head to look directly at Junko; and though his eyes were clouded with age and cataracts, the intensity of his gaze was not diminished in the slightest.

If looks could kill, she would have been nailed to the wall and crucified. But the chieftain, it seemed, did not have that power.

Nor was he alone in his scrutiny; every eye in the chamber, from the chieftains to their retainers to the stocky, Mohawk-haired dwarf standing nervously near the far end of the room, was upon her.

For a moment, everything was silent.

Then suddenly everyone started shouting at once.

”Who arrre you—!” “Where did you come from—!” “What isss the meaning of thisss—?!” “How did you get in here—?”

All these questions and more filled the air, the chieftains yelling over and at each other as each of them tried to be heard.

Shinuaq’tan’s face twisted into a scowl. “What treachery is this, Jack?” Glaring down at the battered samurai, he stooped suddenly, grabbed him by the throat and lifted him into the air with one hand. “You said the rest of your companions all left!”

Overlooked in all of this, the dwarf—sweating bullets—let out a heavy sigh of relief as his legs gave out from under him. Clutching at his head with one hand, he muttered, “I’m saved.” A smile slowly spread across his bearded lips, his expression becoming manic. “I don’t have to fight him,” he all but laughed, tears welling up in his eyes. “I’m saved!”

***

Corridor

The fiendish deinonychus, hearing Sabrina’s command, came to a sudden halt and leapt backwards just as Alakazam launched another telekinetic attack. The vicious beast had learned, recognizing the cues Pokémon and Trainer had used just moments ago.

Even though Alakazam’s Psychic did not connect, however, it stalled the monster just long enough for Lune to catch up and land on its back. The deinonychus squawked as she whacked its snout with a scroll and jerked its head away, then began to thrash violently, leaping about, spinning around in circles and trying to twist its arms back as far as they could go in an effort to claw at her, a bronco trying to buck its rider. Every time she stabbed it, the monster yowled in pain, its wounds bleeding with foul ichors that seethed like magma and stank of brimstone.

Soon, though, its struggles became feebler, its shrill cries growing weaker as its strength bled away. Tenacious though it was, this monster’s durability was clearly nowhere near that of its master.

Sensing that its defeat was near, the deinonychus threw itself at the nearest wall with all its might, trying to slam Lune against it or make her fall off.

***

Scaled Nations—Moot Hall, Chieftain’s Office

Link’s scream of pain could not quite drown out the sharp, distinctive creaking of a spine under extreme pressure—or the sudden crack! that followed, even as the tonfa-like blades of the Recoil Rod struck ‘Death’ at full power. The undead swordsman let out a yell of surprise as the sheer amount of force generated by this attack sent him flying back, his arms flying open to release Link even as he went flying into the burning bookshelves. He slammed into them with great force, and with a deafening crash they collapsed, burying the monster under a pile of flaming debris and timbres.

But the damage was done. Link lay on the floor, tunic heavily encrusted with ice, his back broken.

And not far from him lay Tethrasur, who was still haemorrhaging from his ruined chest, his breath growing shallower with every passing second.

And between them, sucking all the light from the blaze like a black hole, rested that oily black greatsword, its steel filling the air with susurrating whispers.

Then the back wall gave an ominous groan, a groan which spread into the ceiling as well. The façade fell away with a booming crash as the joists and crossbeams underneath fell away, their supports weakened and eaten away by the rapacious flames. And at the same time, parts of the ceiling nearest the back wall began to sag, the ceiling discolouring and deforming as the fire spread through the roof as well.

This place was teetering on the brink of collapse. If the Champions did not leave soon, they would be buried along with ‘Death’.

***

Threshold, outside the Moot Hall

Panicked and preoccupied as they were, the people took no notice of Pride as he crept stealthily through the city streets toward the blaze. Closer now, he could see that one of the walls of the moot hall was beginning to collapse as the fire spread across it… though curiously, no one was actually coming out of the building.

As he arrived, part of the burning wall gave way, opening a small hole some distance from the flames. If he were to try and look through this hole with his shadows, he would be able to see the inside of Shinuaq’tan’s burning office, and see Link lying prone on the floor, badly injured.

The villagers’ attention was still focused on putting out the larger blaze with their chain of buckets. If he was careful, he might be able to worm his way inside without anyone noticing.


Riverrock—Military District, City Watch Headquarters

All activity in the room came to an immediate halt as Edward and Johnny got into their scuffle, and a few members of the City Watch actually picked up truncheons and handcuffs and started to approach. They paused as Chun-Li picked the two up and berated them, however, and when Stalgrim gave a shake of his head they stood down.

“Thank you for intervening,” the captain said to her. “This is one more headache I really don’t need…”

Then the half-orc’s eyes narrowed, and he looked at the two culprits. “I appreciate everything you’ve done for this city, and for the nomad tribes,” he began sternly. “But like it or not, I’m still captain of the City Watch and this is still my headquarters—and I won’t tolerate this kind of behaviour. Not here. Start a fight in here again, and I [i]will[/i] have the both of you thrown in the basement cells. Vimes!” he barked suddenly.

“Y-yes, sir?” that mousy little clerk piped up.

“Go find the wizards and tell them to take a look at this… thing,” he said, gesturing at Envy. “See if they can’t put together something more secure than that glass jar to hold it in.”

“Yes, sir!” Vimes said, and ran off to do the captain’s bidding.

With that done, Stalgrim slumped once more and let the healers lead him out of the room. With his departure, the place returned to its usual activity level.

Soon after Lieutenant Farron returned, kitted out for battle; fifteen men followed in her wake, similarly attired. “We’re going to check out that arch the captain mentioned,” she said to the Champions. Then, turning to Johnny, she gripped his shoulder firmly and gave a faint smile. “Good job with the vampire, kid.”

The Danse Macabre Codex
RedCedar The Mighty Pen from Elsewhere Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: Buried in snow, waiting for spring
The Mighty Pen
#14144: Jul 18th 2015 at 11:46:27 PM

Blood trickled down from a corner of Jack's mouth and breathing was getting harder still. But through the broken ruin his body had become, the samurai still looked back at Shinuq'tan with the same calm resolve.

"It seems," he gasped in a hoarse rasp, "They chose to return!"

He had no idea what, if anything, the others had accomplished, but he trusted them. Taking as deep a breath as he dared, he managed another few words before a wracking cough took hold of him.

"Listen to her!"

A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent upon arriving. -Lao Tzu
joergenjetsam from The city of constant rain Since: Dec, 2012 Relationship Status: Shipping fictional characters
#14145: Jul 18th 2015 at 11:51:07 PM

Mutran

Audibly expressing my frustrations in a sigh... perhaps not the most subtle of actions. Still, it got the point across.

That greatsword was revolting, and a part of me instinctively stirred in response, delighting in its corruption. Still, taking it seemed out of the question. I had my shadow spear and sword, and I would shortly be grabbing one more thing.

With my heat vision, I started on melting the ice around ... Link? That was his name, yes. Little light blessed runt, but good to have between you and something else, as I had just witnessed.

Materializing a shadow hand, I first punched a hole in the wall with it, then used it to grab Link, taking him with me as I flew out the brand new hole in the wall.

Conception is sin Birth is pain Life is toil Death is inevitable
GeekCodeRed Since: Sep, 2010
#14146: Jul 20th 2015 at 3:39:16 AM

Johnny - Riverrock, Watch HQ

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" Johnny asked Farron, paying no heed to Stalgrim's admonishment.

"There's a shitton of tunnels down there, and I think I can remember the right way."

lightdarkhero250 Quad Optometrist from Somewhere Since: Oct, 2009 Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
#14147: Jul 20th 2015 at 2:45:38 PM

Junko; Moot Hall, Main Chamber

Well, she got her 1st step down.

All eyes were on her, and she temporarily saved the samurai from death, at least for that instance. Of course, making an entrance was the easy part of all this. The rest of her plan would be much harder.

Having absorbed a few cursory details of the supposed culture of the Scaled Nations, Junko surmised it almost relational to her own world's Eastern culture. As such, she figured the best way to conduct herself towards the scaled people would be to adopt a more formal personality fitting with days past. She took on a stiff, yet stern posture, a maturing transformation from her usual laxness.

The chieftain's fierce, piercing glare did nothing to intimidate the girl or even spark so much as a reaction from her. No, Junko did not even bother to focus on the leader, instead keeping her neutral gaze to the entirety of the room. After all, her audience would not be the Grand Master, but rather the people who seemingly followed him.

She began with a slight bow, in an attempt to show respect.

"My name is Enoshima Junko. I have interrupted this duel and came here for one, express purpose: To warn you all of something that currently threatens the entirety of these lands from within."

"This threat is a dark force that has involved itself with a leader of your tribes. I just arrived here from the office of this very leader, to present physical evidence of his endangerment of the nation's people and the abuse of it's finances."

Although Junko knew that the chieftain in question was currently within the room, holding the battered samurai by his neck, she decided not to say his name or specify him in any way, attempting to increase the chances of them considering her claims.

"To prove my words, I humbly request that I may show these documents to those in charge of the nation's treasury and defenses." She brought the folder and binder up from underneath her shoulders, instead holding them firmly to her chest.

edited 22nd Jul '15 8:13:17 AM by lightdarkhero250

I'm a ghost, you didn't see me.
Katarsus Annoyed Mode: ON Since: Sep, 2014 Relationship Status: One True Dodecahedron
Annoyed Mode: ON
#14148: Jul 20th 2015 at 7:12:42 PM

Lune - Surgeon Butcher Simulator

Lune couldn't quite tell when she started laughing. Maybe after the third stab, or was it the fifth? Definitely before the seventh, though. But even as her maniacal laughter echoed through the hallways, and as the deinonychus's arms reached up to claw at her, she did not stop stabbing. Every scratch, every leap, every sharp turn, it all seemed to fuel her malice, making her assault all the more vicious as time passed.

She could tell that the creature was starting to lower its resistance, growing weaker as it suffered more and more wounds. Maybe it was already time to put the thing to sleep already. She'd had her fun, but any more of that would be a waste of time, and nowhere as amusing as the rest had been.

She started her plan the second both of them hit the wall. Both ends of her celestial robe shot forward, with one of them wrapping around the creature's ankles, and the other targeting its head. One of her arms got trapped under it when both fell to the side, but she didn't really need it, as all she had to do was keep the head and feet apart with the robe, and use her other arm to make a deep cut all the way from the dinosaur's throat to its abdomen.

Cybersbe Jedi of the Old Republic from Somewhere over the rainbow Since: Aug, 2014 Relationship Status: Wishfully thinking
Jedi of the Old Republic
#14149: Jul 20th 2015 at 7:39:13 PM

Hopefully, Death wouldn't be coming back from that attack. However, this place was coming down fast. Thankfully, Mutran provided an escape route. Zero dashed over to Tethrasur and picked him up.

"Hold on tight."

He then took Tethrasur with him as he jumped through the hole Mutran created.

edited 20th Jul '15 7:39:50 PM by Cybersbe

What is this "signature" of which people speak?
Stratofarius huzzaaaaaaaah Since: Aug, 2011
huzzaaaaaaaah
#14150: Jul 20th 2015 at 9:03:55 PM

Riverrock

"I'm going to stay here." Edward said, glaring at the jar. "Envy can be a tricky bastard. If he tries anything funny, I'll stop him before he can claim a single victim." He stood there, besides the jar, waiting for Vimes to return. "You can count on that— I've punched this bastard enough times his face has a mark the size of my fist."


Threshold

Pride didn't believe in luck or coincidences until that exact moment, that moment when a sickly smile appeared on his face. Still, some... metallic creature decided to step in. Pride stuck to the shadows, unmoving, practically dead. He even held back his unnecessary heartbeat. By all accounts and purposes, there was no one there. He had to wait until the right moment.

edited 20th Jul '15 9:15:27 PM by Stratofarius


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