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
Strepsirrhine of DOOM!
Town - Purple Fez Tavern (Ozurr; Jann, Varg; Rosalind)
Ozurr shoved an entire steak in his mouth. He didn't recognize the meat, but it didn't matter. Frost Giants could digest just about anything organic, and about 98% of their diet was meat. It was a necessity, when the only large plant capable of growing in permafrost sprayed anyone who tried to pick it with bone-dissolving acid.
(They still grew it, of course. Iceroot leaves were packed with essential nutrients, if you could harvest them without losing a body part.)
While he chewed, he glanced around the table at the others. Rosalind seemed to be eating her meat...raw? An odd choice, and one that reminded him uncomfortably of his father. But hey, for all he knew, she wasn't actually a human. Maybe her species preferred raw meat.
He nodded slightly at Rosalind's inquiry about Jann and Varg. He had to admit, he was curious to learn more about his new companions, especially after he had divulged his backstory to Varg earlier. But before anyone could answer, a great roar issued from the other side of the town square. Despite himself, Ozurr leaned over to get a better look.
There were hardly words for what he saw. Someone had summoned seven massive pillars of shadow and fire, with a writhing mass of limbs growing out of them. Another man, with a sword, hacked his way through various shadow people towards this strange person, who was now climbing down the pillars.
Ozurr didn't realize his mouth was open until he heard the half-chewed steak land on the table with a wet plop.
"Havard dre fjaveten?"
edited 19th Apr '18 7:56:44 PM by apocalemur
Tidesson Son of the staves of time
Crazy Kiwi
Hotel —> Outside
[Damn-near everyone, Wolfe]Wolfe listened to Justin's burbling ego wank in amazement. He had hoped to shock or shame Justin into calming down, but instead the self-aggrandizing twit started blaming the Not-Chaos-Hunters for running in fear and claiming he hadn't threatened them in any way - like that would hold water in any jurisdiction! Try telling the cops that you hadn't threatened anyone and that they wanted to be scared when you wigged out and started screaming and brandishing a weapon!
Then Justin carried on his strange burble about the innocuous woman snuffing out people's souls - and him wanting to redeem them. Great, he's a fuckin' religious nut, to boot.
There was more of the same and, from the hotel, Valerie wittering on about Justin not being a monster and wanting people to stop 'hurting her' - as if someone had. Then some crap about her not being 'mom'. The two of them were bug-fuck crazy and one seemed intent on tearing up the town in the interests of freeing people from their fettered lives.
Granted, he was possessed - like the school kids in Frontier - and Justin himself was probably not in control, but that didn't in any way make him less of a danger. Amanda had posed a genuine threat through the medium of her host and there was no reason to believe that whatever controlled Justin was in any way hindered. This was like all the crappy demonic-possession movies rolled into one.
The red uniformed man launched into the fight armed with only his sword and seemed to come off second best - well his uniform did, anyway... once it was stripped away, the man seemed unscathed.
Justin's response seemed to be to go all out on the intimidating theatrics, raising pillars and imagery out of H.R. Giger's wettest dreams.
Unfazed, the half-naked swordsman faced Justin down and called him a coward, which rather nicely echoed Wolfe's thoughts on the matter.
Town ~ Hotel Lobby Entrance (Cynthia, Moobly; Sindar; Valerie; Wolfe; etc.)
Cynthia balked slightly at the scene unfolding outside, before clearing her mind with a shake of her head. "Right, so he isn't a monster," she said calmly, "but someone is acting very much like a rebellious teenager."
Turning around, she placed a calming hand on Valerie's shoulder, "We don't mean to hurt you in any way, and I'm pretty sure this is all a big misunderstanding," she said, before turning to glance out the hotel doors, "I’m afraid if events keep going the way they are, someone is bound to get seriously hurt, and I don't think any of us want that. You're his master, right? Then you should be able to get him to stand down and then we can get this all straightened out over some tea and biscuits. Does that sound good to you?"
Moobly stayed silent as to avoid further provoking the tense situation.
Town Square ~ Solstice Cafe (Carol, Lily; Cas; Karl, Peggy; Not-Chaos-Hunters; Cormack)
"What in Odessa's name is that?!" At the sudden appearance of the giant flaming tower of flailing things galore, Lily practically leaped out of her chair, knocking it over. She pulled the pair of rings from her belt, and deployed them in front of her. The hexagonal rings glowed blue and hovered in front of her hands, following their every move.
"I'd recommend not getting too close; things are about to get a bit chilly," she warned, gesturing with her elbow for the others to stay back.
Turning her attention back to the monument of terror, she began prepping her spell. "Deploy aether array:" glowing arcane geometry, using the rings as a focus, started forming in midair in front of her.
Whatever that thing was, it looked dangerous, and as such, Lily was bound and determined to bury it under a small mountain of hail the moment it started doing anything other than looking creepy.
Town Square ~ Outside the Hotel (Jean; Alice; Nui; Henry; etc.)
All things considered, Jean didn't have to respond to Henry about what he had missed. Instead, she gazed upon the chaotic glory of Justin's horrifically magnificent pillar with awe and mild glee. "Wow, overcompensating much," she rather loudly quipped.
edited 19th Apr '18 6:38:57 PM by WillDeRegio
Town - Purple Fez Tavern (Ozurr; Jann, Varg; Rosalind)
Rosalind's imminent bloodshed instinct flagged the fight again. She abruptly stood up and snapped her head to stare at the fight, barely remembering to keep her fangs retracted. Her nostrils flared and her mouth was open, both drawing the scent in. Vampiric Flehmen responses were comparatively subtler than equine and feline Flehmen responses, vampires kept their tongues behind their teeth and their upper lips lifted only the slightest bit. Her instincts were disappointed — the dark-skinned duelist had somehow not scraped his skin on the ground despite mundane physics having their way with his fancy shirt.
In the next instant, she felt first the dark energy then the protective amulet pulse through her mind. She realized just how primordial and predatory her posture had become. Forcing herself to relax her poised and quivering muscles, she sat back down and instead turned her gaze to the hammy duelist who had just finished summoning both a large amount of flesh composed of random bits of beasts and, apparently, multiple copies of himself.
Speaking of a large amount of flesh composed of random bits of beasts, Ozurr had just accidentally dropped half-chewed meat from his mouth. It bounced off the empty plate he'd grabbed the bread from and splatted on the floor. Rosalind pinched the bridge of her nose and adjusted her seat and her plate to be a few inches further away from the giant's end of the table. Coincidentally, this slightly improved her view of the fight.
Corner of the Restaurant (Ace of Spades, Camouflaged Arilay)
Arilay got a report from Maequoql, "Just as I predicted, at least one person besides you has mistaken the meat puppet for an eldritch abomination, and is starting to take countermeasures. I can't telepathically correct the mistaken assumption because the truth is arguably just as bad."
Grimly, Arilay ordered, "Change of plans, Maequoql, get Shale to the transporter room ASAP. Shale, I'm beaming you down right behind Valerie, make her bring her familiar back under control. Maequoql, I want you to assist Justin's human half in restraining his other half. I also want you in the brig just in case he's more skilled in the psychic arts than you can handle. Move!" Meanwhile, Arilay fired up her internal factory, scooping up handfuls of dirt from beneath herself to digest and form into more useful mass, namely projectile sedative needles — this would take a while to prepare. Then she double-checked for fire hydrants, as a last resort, she could attempt to open one and sanctify its water.
Maequoql warned, "That last resort idea will catch an innocent vampire in the collateral."
Arilay retorted, "And that's why it's a last resort. Besides, I could build a short length of fire hose to aim properly."
Spaceship, Geosynchronous Orbit
Shale's gastropod could only move her as fast as a human's brisk walk, even with Maequoql's assistance, she couldn't get to the transporter room immediately.
Author's note: I'm waiting for things to happen before my Web of Friendship characters get a chance to deploy.
edited 19th Apr '18 8:23:49 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.
[Corner of the Restaurant (Camouflaged Arilay)]
And there was neither trace nor track of that Graveyarder... though to be fair, Arilay had far more pressing concerns than figuring out how a post-FTL Magitek civilization could lose track of a nosy warrior in a suit.
The Prince of Foolish Relevations
Hotel
Her body stiffening, Valerie's eyes glance about wildly as if trying to locate someone. In truth, whilst Justin's dark persona hadn't noticed the psychic intrusion, Valerie did. To those who could tell, the dark haired witch was finally beginning to fear for Justin's safety. Well, more specifically that people were planning on deliberately killing him or his demon- With Miron, her worry was more of "Justin" going overboard.
Still, with Cynthia's attempts to calm her, Valerie looks out at her familiar Justin. Focused on his central pillar, Valerie generally looks uncomfortable- Aware of his dark persona's intention to "save" everyone nearby. Briefly looking at Miron and looking concerned that he is unscratched physically, Valerie finally answers Cynthia- A bit more composed than before.
"I, I'll have to time it right though. He might want me alive, but my Justin's dark persona is everything he believes demons to be. He, he will try to render me unconscious and he has the speed to do it. They're not nearly this unwieldy when I initiate their transformation..."
Pulling herself up to her feet, Valerie finds herself hiding half-behind Cynthia- Looking at Miron, waiting and knowing "Justin" will eventually strike. Speaking of that devil... The imitation sliding before Nui turned to look at the goddess slave, and he looks... Disappointed might not be entirely accurate, but he hardly seems pleased.
The imitation sinking into the column, new projections of Justin's "unchained devil" emerge from all seven of the columns. The ones within sight of Miron turn to focus on him, each frowning as they speak in a exasperated tone. "I have sang for you, allowed you to bask in my presence, witness some of my favorite tricks and you still insist on fighting me? I have one last song for you, my future brother..."
With that statement, each of the projections raise their heads and arms religiously. From their "mouths" a chorus devoid of words, it would almost be beautiful if it wasn't for the fact they're constructs of negativity and hatred. "Justin" himself emerges from the central column, and points at Miron accusingly as he sings alternately between calm and passion.
"You look at me like the bad guy, like I'm the monster here. The truth, dear brother, is that you're no saint! You let yourself be enslaved, by one who calls herself a goddess. Don't you understand that, they are the greatest monsters!? I'm no villain, I'm no fool, I'm no doll! I'm the one who understands, the world for what it is..."
Clenching his fists tightly, dark fire envelop his hands- And this time something is deeply wrong about them, something fundamentally dangerous and perverse. Holding his arms out to the side, "Justin" looks down at Miron- With a sneer, any trace of his "charming" expression replaced completely with anger and disgust as he broad line screams his passionate song.
"I'm the hero, I'm the savior, I'm the saint! Call me a monster all you want, it doesn't change a thing! I didn't make evil, I don't ignore all the cries of pain! They call themselves almighty, all-loving and righteous! Yet they, are the ones who do nothing at all! They could strike me down, yet I still stand here! So how, can you, say I'm the bad guy!?"
Crouching from his position, like a predator poised to strike, "Justin" sings only two more lines. "I'm done playing around, time to show you my power! I will carve out her light, and save your soul!" The moment he finishes his line, he has already burst through the air- Spinning like a drill with inhuman speed, his hands covered in those perverse flames extended so they'd be the first thing to touch Miron.
Yet, before he could close the distance, Justin's eyes widen in anger as his dark persona senses it- Valerie's magic already eating away at him. Changing direction mid-flight, he comes within a mere three yards of Valerie. Yet, as he spun through the air first to Miron and then herself, the dark haired witch had been singing her own song.
"The crossing of light and darkness has passed, so let this twilit night end now!" The spell completed, "Justin" lets out a brief scream of hate and pain- Before Justin's body returns to normal, hitting the ground and tumbling before stopping in front of his young master. Laying flat on his back, the young man looks completely unharmed.
The demon, however, isn't quite as peaceful... Screeching in mindless rage, perhaps the most surprising thing is that he's visible to all. His form, though, is extremely bestial- Resembling some feral dog or wolf like thing, made out of the same fiery darkness as all the things created by Justin's dark persona.
Still, despite screeching mindlessly and flailing about wildly in the air, the demon doesn't get close to hurting anyone. Valerie looking down at Justin with a pained expression, she puts on a strong face as she looks at Justin's demon and speaks with a rather commanding tone. "Stop that right now and calm down!"
The demonic canine turning to Valerie with a wild snarl, it takes less than a second for him to immediately calm upon seeing her. Drifting in the air rather purposelessly, slowly but surely more & more of the fiery canine body fades. In fact, everything that Justin's dark persona had constructed, begins crumbling & fading away- Notably much faster than his demon's canine body.
The demon slowly floating to Valerie and bowing his head submissively, the young(?) witch scratches him behind a fiery ear without consequence. The girl herself, however, doesn't look very happy... Sighing and looking out of the hotel, Valerie doesn't look down at Justin's demon as he looks up at her quizzically.
Holding the demon closely to her, protectively so, Valerie has a look of steely determination on her face- Even if it is still clear she feels some pain. "Don't blame either of them for this, I'm their master. So if you're going to punish anyone, it will be me and not them!"
Justin's demon, still in that visible canine form, looks startled by her declaration. Looking over everyone rather wildly, the demon canine speaks hastily "S-she lies, I'm responsible! I've deceived her, and-" Finding himself literally speechless, the demon looks up at Valerie with terrified eyes.
The young witch, for her part, smiles at him and lets out another sigh. Pressing her forehead against his, she faces everyone once again- Her tone this time losing a bit of strength, but nowhere like she was before.
"I forced Justin to become my familiar, and his de- No, Vindex faithfully obeys as a result. Please, don't hurt either of them for my mistakes..." Justin's de- Hmm, Vindex for his part seems utterly confused at being given a name. In fact, it is almost the same as his reaction to Nui's offer- "Vindex" doesn't seem to believe he deserves having this name.
edited 19th Apr '18 8:40:31 PM by Kkutwar
"The Omniverse is the collection of all possibilities, and all possibilities must eventually come to pass."
Crazy Kiwi
Town: Restaurant - outside seating area
[Leone, Diantha, Nora, Gwion, James]At Diantha's comment about the continued display of posturing and posing near the hotel, Gwion looked over at the mess. Nora suggested sitting on him - in light of her earlier demonstration, Gwion had to wonder as to what form she would take when doing the sitting - and Diantha warned against collateral damage.
Leone was clearly of the opinion that collateral damage was sometimes unavailable when dealing with such matters and Gwion was wondering how much collateral damage was likely to occur due to the actions of the deranged dark-haired man. It could very well get to the point that any collateral damage they might cause in subduing him would be less than the damage he was likely to cause. He grinned at Diantha. "You're right, a bit-a 'percussive attitude recalibration' does seem t'be required."
James, no stranger to warfare and damage assessment, was in no hurry to provoke a fight but it was certainly looking like they might have to. "It looks like he's got half the town up in arms - though how to combat something like that, I have no idea." Yet it seemed, from what Leone said, she had experience in such matters. He chuckled at Gwion's terminology. "Quaint. In my day, we Serjeants just called it 'a good swift kick up the arse'."
And then suddenly it became clear that the spectacle was over; the shadowy figures were gone and there was no sign of any hostility outside the hotel.
James pressed the button on his radio. "Wolfe, Kris, what happened?" His brow furrowed as he listened to what Wolfe had to say then he turned to the others. "Well, apparently, someone called Valerie just stopped the fight and is calming the— aggressors down." There had been something about a weird wolf-like shadowy demon but that just sounded too strange to repeat.
Purple Fez Tavern, Outdoor Tables (Ozurr; Varg, Jann; Rosalind)
Rosalind finally relaxed as the fight drew to a close. At this point she could safely approach the bulletin board and draft a "missing" poster for her horses. Instead, she resumed taking tiny bites of her mutton, ready to repeat her question in case Jann and Varg had been too distracted by the fight to answer.
Corner of the Restaurant (Camouflaged Arilay)
Before Arilay had a chance to beam Shale down behind Valerie, the little girl finally began reining in her familiar. "Cancel the intervention!" Arilay signaled her crew members, "We're back on track for a peaceful introduction!"
Spaceship Transporter Room (Maequoql, Shale)
Maequoql breathed a sigh of relief as she felt the tension in both herself and on the planet's town below dissipate. She had not been looking forward to using a variation on her brother's telepathic tactics or watching Shale do the same.
Waiting on the teleport pad, Shale signed to Maequoql, "Where does pilot want me now?" Maequoql relayed the query to Arilay.
Arilay pondered the question, her spaceship's telescoped cameras surveying the layout of the town, and Maequoql overlaying the image with color-coded representation of where everyone was paying attention to. "Aha."
Teleport Pad -> Road Between Restaurant and Hotel -> Edge of Town Square (Shale)
Shale was beamed down, the strong mental shields that all Sleutrienns had already firmly in place. She'd even temporarily disconnected her secondary emotional brain. Behind her was the eastern gate to the city. In front of her was a pile of dirt that Shale wouldn't have recognized as Arilay if she hadn't been forewarned. As discussed beforehand, Shale slithered up the road leaving a quickly evaporating trail behind. She cautiously approached the town square, acting the part of a lost and timid youthful girl shaking slightly in her chain mail dress. She swiveled her head and antennae, scanning the town square, wondering who would notice her first, and if she would have to invent some excuse to avoid them in favor of meeting Valerie.
Author's note: Just a reminder that Shale is exactly five feet tall. Anyone, with the possible exception of Justin, who tries to telepathically eavesdrop on Shale is going to get a big fat nothing unless Shale touches them skin-to-skin.
edited 19th Apr '18 9:48:30 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.
It's a bird.
Purple Fez Tavern, Outdoor Tables (Ozurr; Varg, Jann; Rosalind)
"Found him hiding on..." Varg began to say, before suddenly tensing up and falling silent, feeling the hairs on her neck rise. After throwing a brief glance at Jann, to which the mage responded with a fearful but determined expression and a quick nod, they both rose from their chairs and spun around to face the chaos at the hotel.
For a moment, all they could do was stare at the pillars of darkness and the twisted forms emerging from them.
Feeling the malevolent forces wash over him, Jann placed a hand on his forehead with a pained groan, silently cursing to himself for a few seconds before recovering. He channeled his own magic, twisting around him like hazy tendrils, cracking the very air in front of his outstretched arms like glass before finally forming into glowing runic patterns, ready to be unleashed.
What the Depths where those things? Jann's mind immediately drifted towards the legends of the Eighth God and it's minions. It was said to have arrived from a world beyond the Storm after all...
Varg, meanwhile, unsheathed the massive quad-barreled weapon she carried on her back. Whatever these shadowy beings where, they looked shootable enough to her.
Before either of them had time to do much more however, it was already over, the eldritch manifestations fading from reality as quickly as they'd appeared.
Jann and Varg gave each other a look of disbelief, unsure of what to do next. Suddenly they heard the sound of clanging metal, and spun around again, only to come face-to-face with the waitress from earlier, carrying another set of plates in her arms. She looked over at the hotel in the distance, frowning and letting out a sigh.
"Third time this week," she said, unloading the plates onto the table. "Some people just have no manners..."
Jann sat down without responding, focusing all his efforts on quickly emptying a glass of... something. He wasn't quite sure what it was and didn't much care at the moment.
Varg sat back down as well, letting her weapon rest against the chair.
"Right..." she said, with a strain in her voice that was unusual for her. "Where was I?"
"Me and my brother Bjarn," she continued, "run this ship called the Fat Goose with our friend Gwen. One day, we get back from some business in Brightcliff, and this guy..." She gestured towards Jann. "...is hiding among our cargo. Turns out he's pissed off a local crime gang."
"Normally," Jann added, still with a somewhat shaky voice, "a few thugs wouldn't have been a problem. But earlier, during what I thought was going to be a business meeting between gentlemen, these fellows slipped some witchbane potion into my tea. Very unsportsmanlike. Barely got away."
"And as it turns out," he continued, "the gang already had some kind of disagreement with captain Gwenafer from before, so hiding on the Goose didn't work out so well."
Varg grabbed a chicken leg from the table, taking a large bite before speaking.
"It's a long story," she said. "There was an airship battle, a bit of a treasure hunt, Gwen lost an eye..."
She gave Jann a pat on the shoulder. "And now we've got a mage in our crew."
Still a great "screw depression" song even after seven years.
Crazy Kiwi
Outside Hotel —> Lobby
[Damn-near everyone, Wolfe]As Justin lunged towards the swordsman, Wolfe braced himself to leap into the fray and render whatever aid he could - he'd punch the fucker in the face if he had to - without hindering the swordsman.
To his surprise, the attack went south quickly and spectacularly with Justin trying to change direction in mid flight in response to Valerie's singing from within the hotel. The Gigeresque/Lovecraftian pillars vanished and Justin tumbled unceremoniously into the lobby, where he sprawled on the floor.
Wolfe turned and followed him in - just in time to see Valerie telling a dark wolf-like thing to calm the fuck down in no uncertain terms.
As Valerie spoke, Wolfe quickly responded to James' alarmed query, describing the scene as quickly and accurately as he could.
When Valerie had finished talking, Wolfe looked at her. He didn't pretend to understand half of what she had said about herself, Justin and Vindex. "Thank you." There was nothing but absolute sincerity in his voice. "Sooner would'a' b'n favourite, but thank you nonetheless. No one's plannin' on punishing you. No one's threatened you at all, despite what y'may think." He then looked down at Justin. "You orright?" The young man looked fine, but Wolfe could see what had clearly been hauled out of him and had seen its screeching and flailing before Valerie had got it under control. It can't have been pleasant to have been under its control.
Wolfe dug out his vape pen and took a bracing hit of nicotine to steady his nerves. He could already feel the post-crisis shakes starting as his body started to process the unused adrenaline that was coursing through his veins. The price of a clear head during emergencies had always seemed to be a serious attack of the shakes and a "hyper" mental state afterwards; it was annoying, but better after than before or during the crisis.
Pillar between Restaurant and Hotel
[Kris]Kris watched in horror as the columns sprouted up and the nightmarish shapes writhed. It was hard to see Justin amongst the multitude of projections and her view of the front of the hotel was totally obscured.
She wondered what action, if any, she could take and then suddenly it was over; the projections vanished and Justin tumbled into the hotel lobby through the open door, leaving the area outside the hotel undamaged with a group of people including Wolfe and the soldier, his red uniform mostly destroyed, milling around outside.
As she watched, Wolfe went inside the lobby and she heard his 'sitrep' through her earpiece. It seemed that the drama, and any attendant danger, was over.
She briefly considered going to the hotel but figured there were enough people there already and her presence was not going to help, so she turned and made her way back to the restaurant and her, very probably cold, coffee.
The Purple Fez Tavern, Outdoor Tables (Ozurr; Varg, Jann; Rosalind)
Rosalind listened politely to the story, wincing in sympathy at the witchbane part. "Ooh, if witchbane is anything like what wolfsbane does to werewolves, that can't have been pleasant!" She leaned in with greater interest upon the mention of the common enemy.
At the end of the story, Rosalind tilted her head in confusion. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait. Hold on. I'm aware there's a long story, but Let Me Get This Straight... — you forged an alliance just like that? No freaking out over each others' abilities? No Mexican standoffs? No screaming and running and Torches and Pitchforks?"
edited 20th Apr '18 2:58:16 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.
[The Sun-Dry Sea - Vrask, Layi, Koyel]
"It won't," Layi said, looking around. "Whaddya reckon the wyvern eats?" She motioned towards the docile floating jellyfish things. "Those don't look like much of a meal. But those striped things," she indicated the zebreer, "I think that'd... eyes and teeth!" The last was uttered as a curse.
A shadow covered them, and then in a flash, there was one less zebreer, and a swiftly moving winged shape flying off in the distance.
Layi and Koyel reacted immediately, taking shots at the beast as it flew off, aiming for the wings.
"Ancestors preserve us," Koyel said, "but that fellas' bigger than I thought it'd be." He was trying to maintain a stoic air, but his heart was suddenly pounding. "Guess we're in for a copper now."
The fire clipped one of its wings, but not enough to knock it out of the sky. The wings were surprisingly tough, like hardened leather, and would take some effort to be rid of. And worse, the wyvern now knew it was in for a fight.
[City Hall Plaza - Parthenia and Sa'ad, Dominic Chaudhari and four Wardens, Ace of Spades]
Chaudhari considered this warily. He looked over at Sa'ad. "Not like you've got anything to lose," he said. Then to Parthenia, "So maybe he is no 'mere pirate'." He groaned. Still didn't feel safe escalating this conflict. Chaudhari was a curious sort of coward; forced to fight, he possessed a certain desperate courage that transcended both sense and morality, but Parthenia had not forced him to fight. "I see you threatening the prisoner, and..."
Parenthia felt the barrel of a gun at her neck, and Chaudhari and his agents were as genuinely surprised as she was to find the Ace of Spades holding it there. The Ace of Spades said a single word: "freeze." No more to say now; the Ace of Spades needed to be certain Parenthia would cooperate before he started talking. Only at the precise moment the gun was placed did he focus his mind into an anti-magical barrier in case she had a spell ready for this. Anti-magic was a hindrance to the truly stealthy; a presence an enemy could perceive in its absence.
Chaudhari didn't have the slightest idea what the Ace of Spades was up to. Surely Alice didn't order this? Was that damn psycho going on his own initiative? Frankly, it pissed him off, but the Ace of Spades pissed most everyone in Western Amalgamated off. Carpenter Squad reflected this, one of them even briefly considering trying to just shoot Alice's pesky pet and playing it off as an accident. Then again, he was a Graveyarder. Did bullets even work on those freaks? (Yes, in fact, they did, but the Graveyarders loved it when rumors far beyond even their actual prowess spread and encouraged such as best they could.)
So it was, for reasons thus far known only to the Ace of Spades, that things suddenly got quite tense again.
edited 20th Apr '18 4:53:43 PM by KillerClowns
To dream is my right
Solstice Café
Cas was stunned by Peggy's story. People couldn't just be taken from one planet to another without noticing, not without some sort of magic. It was like one of the ghost stories the old-timers told her, or like histories about the vanishings before the Fall.
Before she could make more questions however, noise from the nearby table caught her attention. Apparently one of the children grabbed another by the ears, and was being admonished by her behavior. This led Cas to rub one of her own ears, imagining how it would be like to have long ears like that. She heard that some bloodlines on other citadels prized them as an nativity identifier.
When the adult pointy eared woman approached, Cas' camera eye wirred, adjusting itself to inspect further a small difference of temperature that she noticed in her eyes. Looking closer it was clear to see that they were synthetic in nature, and probably designed to give more detailed vision and perhaps additional electromagnetic range. Without having a part of her face removed. Cas thought with a bit of envy. Few of those models were still in circulation in her part of the system, and were generally subpar for guild duty, but they looked much easier to get used to.
"Oh! Sorry. My name is Cas. Your friends helped me when they found me, so I plan to help you back on one of your expeditions.", she told her with a shy smile. A smile that quickly shifted into shock as she saw many centipede-limbed things as tall as buildings rise outside. standing up so quickly that her chair was flipped and fell, she pointed and shouted "Monsters!".
And there, further behind, where their targets. The warrior she saw before, brandishing his sword defiantly despite the damage he seemed to have taken, and a gray skinned person wearing a blue vest. She hoped they would be fine, but *something* shot off from one of the towering creatures, moving towards them... and then turning to another path, towards a building, while the monsters disintegrated.
"Wha... what. Was that some kind of illusion?", she said confused.
"The dried flowers are so beautiful, and it applies to all things living and dead."
Strepsirrhine of DOOM!
Town - Purple Fez Tavern (Ozurr; Jann, Varg; Rosalind)
"...Huh."
That was all Ozurr was able to say after the insanity at the hotel suddenly vanished without a trace. But really, what else could be said? Whatever had transpired was so far outside of anything he had ever experienced, excluding that one time that he ate red-striped Amanitas before bed, that his brain simply didn't know how to process it. So it simply filed it away as "a weird thing that happened."
Instead, he turned his attention back to the table. Varg had begun telling the story of how she and Jann had met. It sounded like an interesting story, one he'd like to know more about. Especially this "airship" she had mentioned. From what he knew about ships, they traveled across the surface of the water. Was an airship what it sounded like: a ship that traveled in the air?
I hope for Thassilae's sake that my father never learns about such a thing, he mused as he helped himself to another cut of unidentified meat.
Rosalind commented on the story, mentioning something about "werewolves." Another word Ozurr didn't recognize. In fact, it took him a second to realize that she hadn't said "ferulves." This whole "other worlds" thing was confusing.
Ozurr shrugged at Rosalind's surprised questions at the end of the story. "'Shnot that shtrange." He swallowed the meat he was eating. "Sometimes, you know who your allies and enemies are. Hell, I betrayed my own father for someone I had only known a few hours."
Tidesson Son of the staves of time
City hall Plaza – Parthenia and Sa'ad, Dominic Chaudhari and four Wardens, Ace of Spades
Cold metal of the barrel sends shivers down Parthenia's spine. She reflectively raises her arms in a capitulation gesture. Felines have a spot on the base of their neck, roughly in the same area where Ace's gun pressed against. If you grab them by this spot, they'll think you're their mother carrying them away from a dangerous place and stop all their attempts to resist. Our Thunderbolt Virgin is quite the kitten, isn't she?
I don't feel Sophia's presence in me. I'm unarmed. Chaudhari's surprised, but doesn't act. He knows the man standing behind me. They are not the local authorities. Scenario?
Here she goes again…
- Start a fight. My brains are all over the plaza. Definitely. Unacceptable.
- Stand still and try to talk my way out. Scenario?
- …
- …
- …
Her hands start to shake. She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath in. Takes a moment to let her body relax a bit.
"You've closed the access to my source of power. How did you do that?" Her voice is calm, and as firm as ever. She looks at Chaudhari. "You're not the local police, are you? But you've got quite the resources for common thugs. What is this all really about? Don't tell me all of this effort is just to get into my pants. 'We're hunting for slavers' is a sad excuse for that."
"Don't flatter yourself, Quizzie," says Sa'ad.
The Mess in front of the Hotel – Alice, The Voice over the Intercom
Alice's earpiece springs into life with uncharacteristically melodic noise. Even more unusual that the channel was undoubtedly encrypted, and all the noises coming from the communication device should have been familiar.
"Why, good morning, Alice," The female voice greeting her over the intercom reeks of snobbish superiority so strong it would make a Nobel Prize laureate think they've grown an extra chromosome in their 21st pair. Despite, or maybe because of, the tone of refined politeness. "I regret to interrupt your little song-and-dance here, but, you see, your boys are bothering my stepdaughter near the City Hall. Would you care to call them off? She's a nice, sensitive girl, I'd hate to see her hurt."
KC, correct me if it's not an earpiece.
edited 20th Apr '18 11:48:28 PM by Millership
Spiral out, keep going.
Friendly Neighborhood Lich
Hotel (Justin, Vindex, Valerie, Miron, Wolfe, Kris, Aubrey, Pearl, Cynthia, Moobly, Jean, Henry, Alice, Nui, Nyceme, Sindar, Saen)... yikes, that's seventeen characters
Inside the hotel lobby, Sindar listened to Valerie's words with confusion. Why would she claim that Justin was never a monster? Perhaps with the bond itself he was not, but their unchained form at least seemed wild and dangerous. His words—lyrics in fact—confirmed it. This time he was focused on the gray elf who had conjured a wall of darkness, though since Sindar did not hear the part where they offered help with Justin's souls, he could not fathom why them and not Miron.
Those pillars of hellfire though... Their sheer power, especially with the Justin copies planning some complex and dangerous spell, caused Sindar to widen his eyes and dart further back into the hotel near the reception desk, hiding inside a house plant in the corner. As soon as he touched the plant though, it began to wither away, rather quickly due to Sindar's state of heightened alertness. In just a second or two, the entire plant was dead.
But whereas the fiery pillars scared Sindar half to death, Nyceme couldn't even die at all (well, provided her scepter remained intact), so if anything, she watched everything unfold with much interest. In fact, she began thinking of ways she might conjure such a pillar herself, contemplating the interplay between elements. She even took out her spellbook and the magic pen she had let Saen borrow, and scribbled a few notes while taking occasional glances at the pillars and the fake Justins. Because she was contemplating the hellfire while writing, the words and the quick sketch of the columns looked like they had been burned into the page by a tendril of fire.
And then there was Nui, who listened to Justin's words with much skepticism. Justin's claim to be his true self was a blatant lie, though blatant to everyone except himself. Clearly this false visage of hatred he was projecting was deluded into thinking himself free. And though he sang about the truth the others couldn't comprehend, it seemed to Nui that he was the one who couldn't comprehend the situation. Those last few lyrics couldn't have sounded more hypocritical if he claimed the others were too arrogant.
Still, as Nui watched the pillars of fire, they could feel the power they contained, rising as Justin's illusory doubles prepared some sort of complex spell. This was it; if Justin would not listen to reason, then he would have to deal with force. Miron seemed to think so as well, though this time he seemed overwhelmed by the number of shadowy creatures. That gave Nui even more incentive to act. Sighing, they motioned the fingers of their left hand around the gadget on their right, turning some sort of dial on the front underneath the beak-like opening (clearly the shooty part).
That was when Miron jumped in front of them and gave a warning to Justin. Here Nui dispelled their wall with a quick wave of their left hand and stepped to the side to get a good view of the pillars. "I can handle this," they said to Miron. "But, I must ask you to watch over me after I shoot." Looking up at the Justins, they continued, "I am Sarenuika. The name means 'death needle'. You are wrong in thinking I was from the light; I was born in the dark, and I shall show you."
With that they sat against a pillar (similar to the one Kris hid behind), pointed the gadget forward, and closed their eyes, attuning to Justin's peculiar aura. It was very easy to spot, given the sheer passion of his misguided salvation (and the distinct soul arrangement). Focusing on those two souls, they began to speak, during which little spectral wisps drifted out of their body and into the gadget.
"Nue surea la fletna-ha medi-to, kusa numika sare-to nya dom—"translation note
Before they could finish the incantation, they heard a sharp scream and sensed a disturbance in their target. Dismissing the spell and lowering their weapon, Nui stood up and watched as Justin returned to a more stable form, the false visage fading away into nothingness, and the soul trying to escape finally doing so, manifesting as a dog thing. The little witch who went to pet him, evidently the one who had stopped him, was apparently his master. The older man whom Justin had chastised earlier now approached the demon—Vindexnote —who seemed just as confused as when he heard Nui's offer of fixing their souls.
Nui decided to approach alongside Wolfe, who had begun to use some sort of vaporizer. They glanced between Wolfe and Valerie. "Actually, this young lady is a bit more correct. It seems that Vindex and that young man there" they indicated Justin "were quite dangerous before she 'tamed' them... that correct? It is a little of both—her for thinking she could keep them in check, but also them for breaking that control and intending to harm people. Still though, mishaps happen, just like in any experiment, and anyone can learn from them. You were playing with fire—quite literally—when you bound them, but you were trying to do the right thing... I imagine if I were in your position I would've done the same."
By this time, Nyceme approached with her scepter in one hand and Sindar clutched in the other, though she released the latter when he saw no further danger. In fact, he was the one who spoke, after perching on Nyceme's shoulder. "Well... huh, glad that's over. So... Vindex? Is that the name of the demon? Interesting on-the-spot name."
Nui took a step back when they saw the lich approach them. Even that tiny sumirinote on her shoulder seemed to have an air of death around him. The former slithered right up to them with a smile on her face. "Well here'sss a new faccce. And did I hear you sssay you had sssome ssskill with necromancccy?"
Without any hesitation, Nui shook their head. "That was just an act. In opposition to someone with such profound power yet such little control and such a peculiar interaction between their souls, I saw it fit to size him up so as to not seem helpless. ...Not that I did not still want to help you of course," they added to Vindex. Now, to most (Nyceme included) that statement would have come across as sincere, but anyone who could read minds or had exceptional insight (or was even just paying attention to the spell they were about to cast) could tell it was false. Except for the bit about helping Vindex out.
Sindar flew over to Normal Justin, finally, landing next to his face with an expression almost as confused as Vindex's. "What was that all about? Why did you fuse with that demon, even though you hated him? It seems strange that you acted a lot like he did even though you were the one in control and his nature was suppressed."
Nyceme's question, meanwhile, was for Valerie. "Vindexxx deccceived you? How?"
Smaller River, edge of the forest (Rosalind's Mustangs, Inquisitor's Stray Horse, Skvader, Amaranth, Pewter)
Amaranth had no "Sabertooth Boomsticks" on her person; the only weapon she carried was that scythe, which could probably qualify as a Sabertooth Clawstick. There were a few different herbs in some of the pouches on her belt, though none of them would have been particularly delicious to a horse (or to a human for that matter). Still, Amaranth was glad that the horses did not seem to take offense to her; even that mare merely made a gesture of authority, and ended up sniffing her as well.
When Rook approached Pewter, the only thing she did in response to his butt-sniffing was vigorously swish her tail back and forth, as if shooing away a fly. Otherwise she did not seem fazed. When Thunder chased the pervert away, Pewter took a step backward and made a gentler gesture with her tail. What are you guys doing here out of curiosity? You going somewhere?
While Amaranth was patting the two horses just above their noses, she caught the winged rabbit landing on Pewter's saddle and another horse moving over to check out the saddlebags. Knowing there was food in there (bread, nuts, apples, various dried meats, and a collection of freshly-picked grains and grasses), she moved over next to Fiddler, though not so abruptly as to startle her; more to get her hand in between her mouth and whichever bag she was checking out (though it was likely that Fiddler might have nabbed something first).
"No, this food is for Pewter and me, not for you," said Amaranth as she gently pushed Fiddler's nose away. Then she grabbed the bottle the skvader was trying to open and pulled the cork out, pouring just a little onto her hand, and then recorking the bottle. "This is mead," she explained to the skvader, holding out her hand for both it and Fiddler to sniff (and/or lick). "Got this one as a reward for rescuing a family from some Sakh soldiers."
Then she looked over at the leaders of the herd, whispering something while pressing her fingers to her lips for a brief moment, and made a nod and a sounded that impeccably resembled a whinny. Though it was a gesture of harmlessness, she intended it more as a message of understanding.
edited 22nd Apr '18 1:30:41 AM by ladytanuki
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.
To dream is my right
Town Square -> Hotel Lobby
Míron nodded as Sarenuika prepared their weapon, and kept his sword pointed firmly at Justin, yet prepared to swing against any other minions he spawned. At that point the duel had been all but completely invalidate, d and there would be no point in refusing aid, specially from someone who may have some power unknown to him.
As the shadows rose and chanted he stayed firm, focused, despite the growing headache warning of an attempt to intrude in his being. He was whole, and words were not enough to change that. But as Justin flew towards him in a spiral of fire, defying even more laws of nature, fear broke through Míron's mask and revealed itself in his face for the first time in many years. Yet he stayed still, ready to meet Justin with his blade. No longer just to wound him to fulfill the terms of the now null pact, but to stop him once and for all.
Yet he changed paths mid air, returning to the hotel and collapsing harmlessly into the ground, before the child he served, who gave the demon within him a hound's form and pacified him. Was she the lynchpin all along? How did the universe conspire to put so much in her little hands?
With a shaky grip, he lowered his blade and fell to his knees, repeating "We are alive. We are alive.", as if to assure himself of the fact, then stood up again and sheated his sword. The fight was over, but there was still more to be done. He had to ensure that that madness wouldn't repeat itself, lest the expedition be ruined.
Walking with wide steps towards the hotel, his hand ready to draw sword or gun if needed, Míron followed after Sarenuika, to stand before the aggressors and the one who had bond them.
"Curious. So here lie our would-be murderers, humbled but unharmed. I wonder what would happen if you let them slip out of your grasp again.", he said to Valerie, "To keep them under control is too great a burden for one as young as you. I don't care about punishment, but measures should be taken to prevent incidents like this one. The question is what measures those should be."
Truth to be told, he was unsure of the answer himself. Manipulating the bond between the boy and the tulpa was beyond his power, and simply killing him, while something Míron would be willing to do, was bound to have vastly undesirable consequences for all involved. Perhaps a member of the gathered group would have a clean solution.
edited 21st Apr '18 9:03:03 AM by EternaMemoria
"The dried flowers are so beautiful, and it applies to all things living and dead."Town, Hotel Lobby Entrance (Shale, Justin, Vindex, Valerie, Miron, Wolfe, Kris, Aubrey, Pearl, Cynthia, Moobly, Jean, Henry, Alice, Nui, Nyceme, Sindar, Saen)
Shale scooted over to the hotel and hesitated on the threshold, giving a shy wave of greeting with her hand. Even though her gastropod was capable of making a path that could evaporate without a trace, she didn't dare do so on the hotel floor in case she upset the janitors. Wow, there were a lot of people in here. Would any of them understand sign language? Hopefully someone without gloves would recognize or initiate a handshake so she could switch to telepathy.
(Horse post still being drafted) If not for this anchor I'd be dancing between the stars. At least I can try to write better vampire stories than Twilight.
[Lobby]
For her part, Alice still wanted to kill Justin and Valerie on principle. Unfortunately, she suspected she was alone in this desire, and so decided that, for now, she would keep her mouth shut on that little detail. Maybe she'd send the Ace of Spades or a kill squad to eliminate them later, ideally when they weren't somewhere public? After a moment of reflection, she shelved the idea. As much as Alice enjoyed killing people, she only had so many resources, and Valerie and Justin were not, at present, a direct threat to the operations of Western Amalgamated Industries. If anything, they'd accidentally done her a small favor. They could be permitted to live.
First, Alice turned to Nui and Jean. She said, "I'm sure you've got a lot of questions — only some of them involving my field of fuck-off — and I'm happy to answer them. I hope you don't mind if I multitask, though. I just saw a chance to make my boss very happy, and I'm gonna be taking it. You should come and hear me out; you might be interested as well."
Alice was not a saleswoman, and she suspected it would show, but she couldn't just let an opportunity like this go down. Suppressing her field to only cover the space her body physically took up, she took up a spot near Wolfe — he seemed the perfect sort of mundie customer for what she planned to offer — and said, as if making conversation about the weather, "that went well, all things considered. I don't often see a magical duel end with everyone walking away alive." And now the fun part. "Pretty ballsy of you to step in like you did, though. I don't feel a magic suppressor on you; an Uelane warlock would have given you a brain aneurysm and been done with you. You really need to have to have something to protect yourself if you're going on any sorts of adventures with magic about." She offered a business card. "Alice Winters, Western Amalgamated Industries, and in partnership with Labatoria Pereria-Merquior, we've designed a number of such devices a mundie can use to stay alive in an unfair world."
To Nui and Jean (if they followed), she added, "the principles of our devices are different than those of my personal shield, and the exact formulas are proprietary, but I'm happy to share the general principles of all of these; it's a mixture, you see, different tools for different scenarios. Some, like my personal shield, are based on the power of my soul." Well, sort of; she didn't actually believe in souls, but she knew everyone around her probably did, and she was ready to go with one particular explanation that would be most easily digested. "By the by, you might have heard that demon calling me a 'soul destroyer'. Common misconception, the soul of a living being is not purely magical as often thought... though I'll confess the Shirazi Revelation sort of went over my head, so don't ask me to try and explain it in detail. Couldn't wrap my head around the crazy mathematics." Alice was only telling the truth in the strictest sense. In addition to some very strange and esoteric mathematics she didn't understand, the Shirazi Revelation relied upon certain assumptions of the author's Muslim faith. While these assumptions were true for the other Abrahamic faiths, Alice had no reason to assume anyone else here shared such assumptions. Hell, she didn't share those assumptions, but they'd do for now. So she'd quietly dodge the question.
That was when the message arrived, and Alice sensed a touch of magic behind it. "Hold on," she said. "Got someone on the line." She spoke into the communicator. "I've got questions for your 'stepdaughter' and her prisoner, and my reports say she was the one who started it. Putting a spell-mark on a person is same as pointing a gun at their head. Magic's a lethal weapon, and I'm obligated to keep my people alive. Your stepdaughter stands down, we interview the prisoner, nobody gets hurt. All there is to it." She ended the communication there by expanding her field a bit, putting any technology on her person out of Sophia's direct reach. (Sophia could still use other Western Amalgamated communicators as a relay, though this would take Alice by surprise.) She nodded and said, "sorry, got agents dealing with that suspicious woman, and I guess she's got friends."
[City hall Plaza – Parthenia and Sa'ad, Dominic Chaudhari and four Wardens, Ace of Spades]
My source of power? Oh, yes, that made sense. What he'd felt... puppet strings, of course. "I," the Ace of Spades, "have seen the true destiny of the divine with my own eyes. I have seen... the Graveyard of the Gods. So do not call to your master for aid, lest another grave be filled."
Chaudhari cringed and gave Parenthia an oddly sympathetic look as he thought to himself, fucking Graveyarders. Now you've gone and pissed her off worse than before. And maybe a god as well. But you would want to fight a god, you damn lunatic.
This braggadocio was not entirely accurate. The "Graveyard of the Gods" was a misnomer given by ancient peoples to what was more accurately a spaceship junkyard; no gods as Parthenia would recognize such were interred there. (Even if the actual "Dead Gods" had been quite impressive in their own right.) The Ace of Spades knew this, but couldn't resist the opportunity for a Blasphemous Boast. He truly did not fear any god, save his own dread master.
Chaudhari said, "so. Same request as before. We talk to the prisoner. Alone. My bosses have their reasons, but suffice it to say, nations that give out the title of 'inquisitor' tend not to care about human rights." Not that Chaudhari did either, but it was obviously the excuse he was supposed to stick with. Then he said to the Ace of Spades, sincerely, "and you can put that fucking gun down. The field would have done it."
The Ace of Spades ignored him. He assumed Parthenia was like the warlocks of his own world, and that the loss of magic would be only a partial hindrance. So he was going to treat her like a threat, even now.
edited 21st Apr '18 3:25:30 PM by KillerClowns
Crazy Kiwi
Town square —> Solstice Café
[Not-Chaos-Hunters, Lily, Carol, Cormack, Cas, Peggy, Kaitlyn, Karl]To Peggy's immense relief, the short elf with all the weapons took the violation of his personal space quite well and the one called Jackson - who looked and sounded like he grew up in Teri's neighbourhood - at least seemed to have a sensible head on his shoulders.
One of Jackson's group showed off some sort of 'magical' bow and there was a brief discussion of weapons, then the elf asked who was going to the Warpfields. He seemed to think she was still waiting on the arrival of more people. "Ah," Peggy smiled and indicated Jackson's group. "These are the ones I was waiting for - Kaitlyn, here, heard they were looking for the person interested in the musket and I told her you were probably the one. I'm glad I was right." It would have been horrible, if not bloody embarrassing, if she hadn't been and had directed them to interrupt the wrong person. "None'v us are going to the Warpfields
Kaitlyn gave Cas a smile. "Great to hear you'll be joining us, Cas. Which—" she cut off as two chairs crashed to the ground almost simultaneously and both Cas and the one with the strange eye both leapt to their feet.
Kaitlyn turned her attention to the window and could see that whatever insanity it was that the Not-Chaos-Hunters had fled had just escalated into a terrifying display of force. Unsurprisingly, the one with the strange eye deployed something that was obviously a weapon and warned everyone to stand back.
Peggy and Karl both turned their attention to the fracas outside and Karl snarled a horrified obscenity in German.
Then, as suddenly as it escalated, it abruptly stopped and the area around the hotel was as quiet and undamaged as if nothing had happened. With the area cleared, it was possible to spot Wolfe - distinctive in his attire and hat - enter the hotel, followed by a half-naked man holding a sword.
Cas' question was an audible echo of Peggy's own thoughts. "Fooked if I know, love." She looked out at the square. "It doesn't look as if they really had a bunch of scary pillars and fire out there, now."
Kaitlyn shook her head. "I can't see any heat signatures that'd suggest that it was real." She drew a chaiir towards her and sat down, fishing her vape pen from her pocket as she did so. "Dunno 'bout anyone else, but I c'd go some caffeine 'n' nicotine after that."
Peggy nodded. She would have loved a cigarette to calm her nerves after the horrifying spectacle but she was mindful that she was inside a building. Back on Terra Nova, she was accustomed to being allowed to smoke wherever she liked; here, she took out a vapouriser of Terra Novan manufacture, with a wooden battery box and brass fittings around the blown-glass tank, and switched it on. The cherry-flavoured vapour should dissipate quickly without residual odour and at least be less-offensive to sensitive noses and tastes than the smell of burning leaves.
Karl settled back in his seat but kept glancing out the window towards the hotel in case whatever had happened flared up again. Seeing Peggy and Kaitlyn both taking out 'vapes', he took out one very similar to Peggy's, his hands trembling slightly as he did so.
Kaitlyn took a satisfying draught of strawberries-and-cream vapour and turned her attention back to Cas. "What century are y'from? I'm from the late 21st - 2076."
[Cafe]
Before Jackson could say anything, it looked like something outside was attacking, giving Cas's reaction.
"Oh for fuck's-" Nick said, turning around...and noticing whatever threat was outside was now gone. "...sake?"
"Looks like the demon decided to calm down." Marie said, sighing, "God, I hope we don't run into them again."
"Me too..." Adam said, hugging himself.
"If we're leaving, now would be a damn good time." Nick said, turning back to group, "By the way, I'm Nick."
"Marie." Marie said, doing a curtsy.
"I'm Amy!" Amy said excitedly, before pointing to Maya, "That's my friend, Maya! She's deaf and mute so she uses sign language. I'll translate almost everything she says!"
Maya gave a two fingered salute. Sup.
"I'm...Adam..." Adam said, looking down shyly.
"And I already introduced myself. Jackson Ruth, at your service." Jackson said, "Now that we all know each other, it looks like all of us are pretty set." He turned his attention to Lily, "You're an inventor too? And you made that? That's so cool! That'll help so much!"
Nick pulled out some gems, showing them to Cormack. "Those arrows are made out of these babies. Gems. Don't know where Jacky got them, but they sure as hell helped us."
edited 21st Apr '18 6:46:56 PM by Masterofchaos
Town ~ Hotel Lobby (Cynthia, Moobly; Sindar; Justin, Valerie, Vindex; Mirion; Wolfe; etc.)
It seemed, for the moment anyway, that crisis had been averted. Valerie was able to get the unchained Justin under control and separate man from demon. The end result is a downed Justin and a dog, which Valerie referred to as "Vindex", that seemed to be more bark than bite. As a consequence, both Cynthia and Moobly saw the canine as less of a hellish dog and more of an adorable hellish puppy.
Taking a moment to catch her breath, Cynthia raised a hand in response to little Valerie's insistence on taking the blame, "Nope, as I said, tea and biscuits. We can get this all straightened out in a civilized before anymore misunderstandings and the like occur, m'kay? Matter-of-fact," she added, glancing around at the various states of those present, "Everyone looks like they could use some tea and biscuits."
The young knight turned to Moobly, "Moobly, could you get those biscuits you made, and this time use the— stairs..." The cynthonic had nodded her head at the command and had already left to scale the walls once more before Cynthia had a chance to finish, taking the unused bandages and first aid kit with her.
Cynthia sighed and staggered over to a chair, which she promptly collapsed into, still recovering from the sudden onset of pain that she had experienced earlier.
Town Square ~ Restaurant (Diantha, Nora; Leone; Gwion, James)
Noting that the subsequent tower of horrors had dissipated almost as soon as it had appeared, both Diantha and Nora reluctantly returning to their hastily vacated seats, with the former remaining standing.
"Well, that was a thing" quipped the purple haired girl, while the shapeshifter, looking a bit more... chitinous than usual, made sounds akin to bubble wrap being popped as she sat down, stating, "I reallywas going to sit on him, but that was bit outside my size range... I could have taken it, though. Pretty sure I saw some dangly bits I could have pinched."
Diantha nodded at James' comment, "Aye, that's definitely something the Captain would say; rather practical means of dealing with things," she said, gingerly rubbing her rear.
Soon, the two girl's attentions drifted over towards the scene with men in orange, the woman, the chained guy, and— sudden tuxedo man?! "Where did that guy come from?" Nora worriedly exclaimed, "should we get involved?" she asked of Diantha.
The other girl hesitated, before shaking her head, "I don’t think either of us could do anything to help from this distance, and getting involved might make things worse," she told Nora.
Aye, especially since I'm detectin' a similar anomaly akin to that small lady from the notice board in that general direction; none of us noble spirits would be able to lend you any aide, Oz stated to Diantha over their mental link, causing the girl to nervously nibble on her lip as she finally took her seat again. Two people people who could nullify magic was two people too many in her book; things like that just weren't natural.
edited 21st Apr '18 6:13:17 PM by WillDeRegio
Smaller River, edge of the forest (Rosalind's Mustangs, Inquisitor's Stray Horse, Skvader, Amaranth, Pewter)
Satisfied with her inspection of the human, Flashfoot answered Pewter. We lost Our Watcher to Sabertooth Lightning this morning. We've been exploring this strange new world ever since.
Fiddler had deftly opened the saddlebag and nabbed a single apple just a split-second before the human pushed her nose away. She triumphantly pranced sideways a few steps with her stolen tidbit. Her lips and teeth held the apple in a way that prominently displayed how her upper lip was unnaturally split and muscled like a manatee, before she crunched into the fruit. Drool and apple juice deluged from her mouth.
The skvader was delighted that the human was sharing the mead, and commenced sucking up the shallow puddle in the human's palm. Yummy!
Fiddler finished eating the apple, shoved the indignant skvader aside, and licked the trace amounts of mead left.
Flashfoot stared befuddled at the whinny-like noise the human just made, swiveling her ears to scan for any more arrivals. Who are you signaling? We're right here!
Useful note on horse vocalizations: a whinny is a loud noise for long-distance signaling to missing herd members. A whicker is the quieter short-range counterpart vocalization. Hence Flashfoot's confusion.
I'm ready for the D'voreem ambush.
edited 21st Apr '18 6:19:07 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.
Restaurant (Leone, Gwion, James, Diantha, Nora)
Until now, Leone had been content to simply focus on eating while keeping a close eye upon the proceedings. However, the second the eldritch column of various body parts appeared, she jumped right out of her seat and started to floor it towards the confrontation, her hair forming into tentacles once more and wrapping itself around her waist and shoulders.
For better or worse, the situation ended just as quickly as it began before she even got close. She blinked a couple times, taking a look at everyone involved with a slightly confused look on her face. Then she shook her head and returned to her seat just as quickly as she'd left it, her hair returning to normal in the process.
"That struck a little too close to home for comfort," she said, with a somewhat relieved tone of voice, "But at least it resolved itself quickly." After helping herself to another couple bites of food, her attention turned to the other confrontation in the plaza, which seemed to have escalated a little, to say the least. "...Unless anyone wants to try getting involved in that mess."
At that point, she turned to James. "...So, any ideas as to when we'll get to heading out? If this town's going to be this chaotic all the time, the wilderness might actually be somewhat of an improvement."
Icon by Civvi the Civilian!
Town Square
While Míron still composed himself, he saw the beast rip out its own heart and return it to its place, before it ran off to create more phantasms to blocks its path. Gritting his teeth at the coward's evasiveness, Míron straightened his posture and said to the woman who tried to direct the battle to outside the walls:
"Regrettably, I have a bloody idiot to keep busy."
And so he gave chase to it, running towards the uncontrolled youth even as the beasts bared its claws and moves to strike. He swiftly dodged the first strike, and slashed the beast's arm with one swift motion, and as another approached from behind Míron turned to slash against it. But it pulled back and the one behind him, still alive despite the blow, tackled Míron with its body, burning his skin and clothes with its combusting imitation of flesh. The other beasts pounced at the opportunity, its cries filling the air as they exploited the opportunity to flay Míron's flesh.
Yet they would hit nothing but the stone of the ground.
With a pained cry, Míron slipped beneath the beast that pinned him, bending unnaturally and then pushing himself against it with inhuman force, flipping it and launching himself many meters, scraping against the ground all the way. Coughing, he stood back up. His clothes were frayed by the stone and kissed by flame, his vials and syringes were broken, his bandages and strings shredded, and his knives and needles bent into uselessness. But his dark skin and platinum sword were seemingly undamaged, and his balance unbroken. Facing the monsters, who already moves to surround him, he felt his will to fight them waver. They were many, and he was a duelist.
But that was a duel, not a war, and he only needed to fight one foe. One foe who didn't know how to stay together. Smiling, he grabbed into that thought, and let the beasts attack him uselessly, dancing away from each attack and slipping past each attempt to surround him, as if reality itself conspired to keep them away from a battle that was not theirs. And so Míron reached the wall of flames and jumped through it unfazed, its light illuminating his sword and sculptured, undamaged physique.
"This duel is a fight between two, creature. Are you having too much trouble staying in one piece to remember?", he said, and extended his hand open, "Let me..."
But the demon regained its focus and shifted away before Míron was over, creating pillars of flame and shadow and chimeric limbs. Yet it seemed focused on something else, perhaps something terrible. Jumping in front of the gray skinned person who seemed the new target of the demon's creatures, Míron pointed at Justin in a defensive stance and said "If you touch anyone, the pain will return a thousandfold you coward!"
edited 19th Apr '18 5:11:20 PM by EternaMemoria
"The dried flowers are so beautiful, and it applies to all things living and dead."