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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

Wolf1066 Crazy Kiwi from New Zealand Since: Mar, 2011 Relationship Status: Dancing with myself
Crazy Kiwi
#376: May 6th 2018 at 11:10:23 PM

Lobby

[Damn-near everyone, Wolfe]

The snake-woman tried talking with the grey alien in the doorway who signalled that they were mute and did not welcome contact, for whatever reason. Then, to Wolfe's great surprise, the alien gave out something that was undoubtedly Morse code as he recognised E and O. Something, E, two identical something-elses and then O - it didn't take a genius to work out that the message was 'HELLO".

Wolfe had never had the need to properly learn Morse Code but his phone had a Morse-to-Text app. Unfortunately, it was bloody useless if there was any interference and it was far too noisy in here for it to be an effective tool, so Wolfe figured he could understand the alien only so long as they stuck to words made up of S, O, E, T and C, the only letters he could recognise - which would rather limit the conversation.

Again, Vindex seemed to delight in goading and insulting the swordsman. Wolfe had little love for organised religion, but the 'demon' appeared to be talking about gods and goddesses themselves as though they were real and responsible for the actions of their 'followers'. It was possible, Wolfe supposed, that there might be some aliens from other universes with the technology or physical characteristics that would allow them to pass themselves off as 'gods' or 'goddesses' - much in the way that this hideous creature could pass as a 'demon' - but there was no evidence at all that any had ever done so. At least not on his Earth nor on Terra Nova.

When the 'demon' tried to interject in his dealings with Alice, Wolfe turned to look at him. "Who th'fuck're you t'tell me what not t'do? Unless I miss my guess, you were the one who was invisible earlier and spooked Adam. You're a gutless little coward that hides behind invisibility then, when fused with that," he jerked a thumb at Justin, "little streak o'misery, there, hid behind projections of fire 'n' horrific creatures instead-a fightin' fair. As t'not being guilty'v any crimes, what fucked-up Crapsack World d'you come from that people c'n behave as you did in public and it not be a crime?" he started ticking off on his fingers, "creating a public disturbance, inciting an affray... the Not— the group of teens certainly left here as if they thought their lives were in danger and this man here," he indicated the swordsman, "clearly thought your intent was t'kill someone, as did I 'n' I doubt we're the only ones who thought so - which is enough t'merit you being charged with at least 'threatening to kill' - and you specifically stated that Alice should be killed."

Wolfe gave a nasty smile. "So, yeah, I'm gonna try t'find non-lethal means t'nullify gutless pricks that attack usin' 'magic', because it's better'n shootin' someone who might not be tryin' t'kill me. I chose not t'use me pistol or rifle against ya, but believe me, if I'd had a taser a few minutes ago... well, I'd say y'balls'd still be ringin' but it's clear y've got none."

With that shot delivered, Wolfe turned to the snake-woman and his smile softened to a pleasant one. "Thank you for y'consideration, but frankly I wouldn't trust anything recommended by any-a that trio. They've done nothin' but display animosity t'those around 'em 'n' two of 'em, unprovoked, initiated a brawl and advocated murderin' Alice. I'd no more trust their suggested 'defenses' against magic than I'd trust an antivirus program recommended by a pop-up advert."

Cynthia's question about Alice's devices nullifying defensive magic echoed Wolfe's own concern, which was why he wanted something directional, preferably as precise and accurate as possible, and - considering he had no idea of how to gauge if any 'magic', be it technology he couldn't recognise or understand or some sort of alternate-universe physics, was potentially lethal or not - non-lethal, or at least have a non-lethal default setting with the option to dial it up to eleven if the threat proved to warrant lethal force.

Alice's answers to the various questions posed to her raised more questions than answers in Wolfe's mind. The crystals she spoke of would probably last long enough unless they were here for longer than expected and the gas sounded suitably non-lethal.

About then, Sindar returned and advised all and sundry that the group heading to the necropolis was about to depart soon and the tall swordsman left in a rush. Wolfe recalled that he had been in the group talking to Aubrey and Pearl and doubtless was rushing to grab his gear - and presumably undamaged clothes - before departure.

After the flurry of activity, Wolfe turned back to Alice. "I was chiefly wanting something that could be used to screw up an invocation without killing or seriously harming the spell-caster or, failing that, some sort of shielding that stops magical attacks before they can hit the body - providin' that c'n be achieved without years'v mental training 'n' navel-gazing in the mountains of Tibet or the brainpower of a Mentat."

Miss_Desperado https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YD2i1FzUYA from somewhere getting rained on by Puget Sound Since: Sep, 2016 Relationship Status: Shipping fictional characters
#377: May 7th 2018 at 9:36:01 AM

Hotel Entrance (Arilay, Shale)

Arilay re-positioned herself between Shale and the crowd in the lobby, concerned that the unstable trio might take offense to the foul-mouthed man's questions. She prepped the spaceship transporter pad just in case.

Spaceship corridors -> Sick Bay (Maequoql)

Maequoql dashed through one of many entrances to Sick Bay. The entrances were all quarantine airlocks, but since there was no quarantine, all doors were open. It didn't take her long to locate a first aid kit and a child-calibrated AED. She wished she had time to put a false zipper on her front, but this was a medical emergency, so she didn't.

She was about to go through the quarantine-airlock separating Sick Bay from the transporter room when she was warned by Arilay, "Don't beam down just yet, I suspect we need a quick getaway."

Maequoql re-focused her Psychic Radar on the hotel lobby, trying not to probe too deeply into anyone's minds lest they notice her.

If not for this anchor I'd be dancing between the stars. At least I can try to write better vampire stories than Twilight.
Kkutwar The Prince of Foolish Relevations from A Place Beneath both Good & Evil Since: Feb, 2013 Relationship Status: What is this thing you call love?
The Prince of Foolish Relevations
#378: May 7th 2018 at 9:48:49 AM

Hotel

The demonic canine looking over at Nyceme, Vindex seems calmly approving at first- But gives more of a disapproving frown at her insistence there are good gods. That disapproving look becomes one more of annoyance as the snake lich referred to what happened as "excitement". Still, he at least seemed mollified by her desire to discuss with his mistress.

Valerie, on the other hand, glanced between Sindar and Nyceme with some confusion. "She really shouldn't treat her familiar like that. Though, I pretty much go everywhere with my Justin so..." The young(?) witch is pulled from her thoughts as the elfin man(?) speaks up about souls. Valerie... Mainly gives Nui a questioning look.

Though as Nui spoke/thought out loud to Alice, Vindex watches on and swishes his tail- As if looking on someone failing to gleam the obvious. Valerie for her part looked at Alice a bit frightened... And pityingly, when Nui brought up the possibility of Alice fusing herself with anti-magic.

Yet the moment Nyceme asked about her "folks'" magic shop, the dark haired witch stiffens as she looks away from everyone. Her hands tightening, it is clear Valerie is processing some difficult feelings- Most undeniably a sense of fear, for the one called her "mother" to those with the abilities to glean such.

When it came to the newcomer, Vindex twists up his face into a confused yet annoyed expression at suddenly being blocked out. Eyeing the woman suspiciously, the demon ultimately scoffs- As if dismissing her as insignificant, though clearly disturbed by her emotionlessness to those such as Nui.

Still, Vindex took note of her hand gestures, comparing them to that Maya girl from earlier. He... Saw no real similarity, which just made him more annoyed at how indecipherable she is to him. The fact she suddenly spoke with an artificial voice made him more confused than anything- With Valerie even looking at her and wondering.

"Why didn't she just speak to begin with?" Vindex, spending a few seconds focused on the willingly(?) mute woman, tilts his head and closes his eyes as he spreads his awareness. Searching for darkness near the "dog", Vindex was focused more on seeing than anything- Nonetheless, he heard some idiot threaten to hurt the woman rightfully terrified by a possible "homunculus".

His extended gaze tracking the creature, Vindex snarls lightly with his real "body" as the creature tricks the woman into self-harm. Cutting off his extended perception as the creature moves to the hotel, Vindex looks at the newcomer and her "dog" with even more suspicion than before.

To that end, the demon didn't even bother reacting to Cynthia's attempt at defending the gods. Still, hearing that Cynthia negatively reacted to Alice's perverse power, Vindex somewhat reluctantly shifts his attention from the "dog" owner to Alice instead. Cynthia's concern for Justin, unsurprisingly, causes Vindex to scoff dismissively.

Valerie, however, actually looks at Cynthia and lets out a little breath as she looks at Justin. Looking him over for a few moments, Valerie gently shakes her head and says softly enough that Cynthia would be the only one to hear her without difficulty "He's always okay, I made sure of that. He normally never gets tired, so I let him be since this is the closest he ever gets."

Looking over in Sindar's direction as he shouted, Valerie frowns slightly as it seems Nyceme is going to leave. Even Vindex seems disappointed, despite looking like he didn't care at all. The young witch, for her part, seemed conflicted about how to respond to Nyceme's offer. "There's really nothing I need there, though she does seem willing to visit Celly and Maggie's shop..."

Though as his mistress thinks, Vindex takes note of how the slug-like woman actually looks at Valerie specifically. Even the "dog" seems to be up to something, judging by the fact the creature seems to be reaching out with telepathy to somewhere else. His attention is soon on Miron however, as the slave dares belittles and misunderstand him.

Valerie for her part is further discomforted by Miron reaching out to her, and breaths a sigh of relief as the hateful man turns away from her. The fact he wanted to do business with Alice, though, just makes Valerie uncomfortable again regarding the man. The fact even Alice seems to want to do business with him makes Valerie outright relieved when he left.

When it came to Vindex however, the shadow demon was completely unimpressed by Alice's playacting at being something "special". Still, it became undeniably clear that the insane woman is a tourist to this universe given how hideously inaccurate her understanding of magic is to the local system.

Thus he didn't even bother trying to take her words seriously- He has no interest in the systems of other worlds. Valerie, however, was just straight up disturbed by the things Alice was saying. Yet before she could express any of that horror into words, Wolfe responded to Vindex- And Valerie looks outright sad that Wolfe's sudden kindness seemed to be fake after all.

Vindex himself flashes a light snarl at Wolfe as anger and annoyance bubbles up within himself. The entire time as Vindex "silently" listens to Wolfe, a primal scream echoes within his soul that only those like Nui would hear-    "That was not me, that was not me at all!!"    However, it would also be clear he isn't "properly" trying to communicate either.

Nonetheless, Valerie pants for a moment as she feels that primal scream- Before closing off the information incoming from her familiar bond with Justin. She looks distinctly unnerved by the fact she closed herself from receiving Justin's and Vindex's emotions, as if it wasn't something she did often.

Vindex's snarl grows as Wolfe gave him a nasty smile, yet it isn't until the man dares to insult his mistress' sisters that Vindex's expression grows into outright disgust. The fact the awful man still wanted to do business with Alice despite all the things she said resulted in Vindex's canine-like body to become much more hellish looking before snapping venomously.

   "You're a disgusting man, I hope you never have progeny. It would be unfair for them to be stuck with such a moronic and hateful person for a father. You know nothing about Lady Celine and Magdalene, nothing about how slothful my master is, nothing at all about magic! How dare you act so righteous?"   

Snarling in full force, Vindex nonetheless refuses to move more than his swishing tail- Because he can feel Valerie pleading to him over the familiar bond, for him to remain calm. Nonetheless though, the shadowy demon refuses to remain silent as he continues snapping at Wolfe.

   "Nothing that thing did was of my accord, I hated every moment of it. If I wanted to kill anyone, they would not still be alive. Even that anti-magic fool, I know what physics is after all. So shut the hell up, tourist trash, you understand nothing here. Honestly, you're not the first idiot to think they're hot shit for insulting a demon."   

Lowering himself somewhat, Vindex takes note of the slug woman and her "dog" for a moment, before flicking a glance at Alice. Surprisingly enough, Vindex's expression calms as he looks at her, his head not shifting even as his gaze flickers over to Wolfe.

   "At least she isn't going around and overreacting endlessly to some perceived slight like you. That Adam boy? All I did was offer to get revenge for their lot. I was hardly hiding, I even tried talking to your female demi-golem friend. Clearly, you lot are just that bad at magic you can't even hear someone shouting at you. But ultimately, human child?"   

Vindex's physical form calming down to the previous canine-like one, the demon focuses on Wolfe. His a fiercely glowing fire, the demon speaks with chilling calm.    "I don't care that you hate me, I don't care that you insult me, I don't care you think I deserve to die. However, there are three things you don't do."   

Grabbing Justin with his shadowy tail and placing him in a nearby chair, Vindex sits protectively before him & Valerie before speaking calmly again.    "Insult my master, someone who nearly died as a child. Insult miladies, powerful and kind sorceresses. Most of all though, you do not insult my mistress... Trash like you is exactly what her mother was, thinking you're so much better than everyone else."   

Hearing that upsets Valerie, yet she reluctantly brings herself to look at Wolfe- And asks with clear pain "You're, you're not my father right? You've been so mean to my Justin and Vindex, I-I know my mother would of been cruel to them too... Why won't you leave them alone?"


Inside the Space- Wait...

One moment, there was no one in front of Maequoql. The next, a woman looking like she came from a black & white comic appeared so abruptly & seamlessly that anyone who didn't notice would think she's been there the entire time. The woman looking side-to-side, she has yet to notice Maequoql behind her.

Suddenly clicking her right thumb and index finger, the woman gains proper color- With her rainbow tone hair being what immediately sticks out. With the presence of proper color, it also becomes clear she's wearing some sort of nice suit- Not a single bit of very light brown skin exposed below her neck.

To the more technologically inclined though, it seems the mysterious woman has an earpiece inside her right ear. Bringing a finger up to it and pressing on it, the woman finally speaks with a lightly curious tone & seemingly not a speck of unease at being in an unexpected location.

"Ashley, is this not the Space Liner nexus?" From the headset came a very natural sounding voice, albeit one so stoic you could almost think it was a robot. ~"Obviously, are you only saying that for the observers' sake?"~

The woman smiling a bit cheekily, this "Ashley" sighs before continuing. ~"It would seem this nexus is relatively close, I'm unsure as to why Discoverer or your Loki didn't see it."~ The rainbow haired woman running a hand through it, her hair lengthens & straightens into a more subdued "rapunzel" style.

Though as the woman silently examines the area before her once again, something about her becomes increasingly more apparent- She seems completely unfazed by the place, like she's either used to space ships or strange environments. Speaking of... Trying to glean anything pass her physical actions seems impossible.

Oh certainly, it is clear she's not some soulless mindless automaton, but... Nothing gets through, and trying to get pass that defense would do nothing. Whatever this woman is, she is most definitely not some ordinary human.

edited 7th May '18 11:18:42 AM by Kkutwar

"The Omniverse is the collection of all possibilities, and all possibilities must eventually come to pass."
DarkbloodCarnagefang They/Them from New Jersey Since: May, 2012
They/Them
#379: May 7th 2018 at 11:43:54 AM

[Necropolis - Unnamed, Wanderer, It Came From The Sea]

As the creature charged, arm outstretched in an attempt to grab her, a jagged gash opened up violent on her face and the crackling electricity on her scimitar began to intensify.

She barely managed to dodge the creature's hand, rolling between its legs. Turning her sword downward, she landed the hooked edge of her scimitar on the creature's leg, tearing off a piece of muscle with a pull.

Standing up from her roll, she held her scimitar up so she could take the creature's barely cooked muscle. She gave it a sniff and gave a sharp-toothed smiled, licking her lips before putting the whole thing in her mouth, chewing and then swallowing in one large gulp.

She looked at the creature and pointed her sword at it, "You are delicious," she called out with a sinister look on her face.

edited 7th May '18 11:44:05 AM by DarkbloodCarnagefang

Note to self: Pick less edgy username next time.
Miss_Desperado https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YD2i1FzUYA from somewhere getting rained on by Puget Sound Since: Sep, 2016 Relationship Status: Shipping fictional characters
#380: May 7th 2018 at 1:15:36 PM

Spaceship, Sick Bay (Maequoql)

Maequoql warned, "Stay away from shadows, Vindex seems to rely on them somehow!" She set the first aid kit and AED down at her feet, then put her hands over her eyes as she predicted Arilay's paranoid response.

Hotel Threshold (Arilay, Shale)

Arilay relayed the warning to Shale via microchip, turned on the floodlights inside the spaceship, then glanced around in concern. She couldn't initiate Vashta Nerada Protocols down here without blowing her cover!

Shale reached for the flashlight in her toolbelt, but didn't do anything further with it. Between the sunlight outside and the lights in the hotel lobby, she figured she and Arilay were sufficiently illuminated. Besides, she was listening intently to Vindex's outburst, piecing together what little she could of his story.

Now it was clear that Justin, Valerie and Vindex were broken by trauma, which almost completely explained their instability. Well, this would confirm Maequoql's suspicions.

Spaceship, Sick Bay (Maequoql, Explorer of Unknowns)

Upon hearing a voice, Maequoql slowly and carefully moved her fingers, adjusting her nocturnal eyes to the now very bright light. Yup, she had correctly predicted that Arilay would initiate Vashta Nerada Protocols up in the spaceship.

Unshielding her eyes, Maequoql stared befuddled at the rainbow-haired woman that had appeared in front of her. Her psychic radar was returning the same lack of results that Maequoql would expect from scanning a Sleutrienn, but her eyes and ears provided evidence that this woman was most definitely not a Sleutrienn. Maequoql's eyebrows tilted one way, her head tilted the other way and her jaw hung open.

Before Maequoql could inform Arilay, the Sick Bay intercom activated, "Excuse me, stranger who just teleported onto this spaceship. This is the pilot Arilay speaking. In case you didn't know, I am a cyborg and the WFS Hummingbird is an extension of my body. As such, it is bad manners to enter the body of a fair maiden with neither warning nor permission. I'll forgive you this time, but please try to avoid doing it again. Thank you."

Maequoql recognized Arilay's macabre sense of humor in the implied comparison to rape and gently scolded Arilay, "I saw what you did there. That's not funny."

Spaceship Dormitory (Meqoql, Moquoql, Murquoql, Nyorla)

The dormitory was compact, as the spaceship was intended to be one of many backup bases of operation, instead of the primary one. One room in the Mayatan section was occupied by four out of five sisters, sleeping upright and suspended in zero-gravity niches awash in a yellow glow. Maequoql's niche was empty, as she had gone to bed earlier than her sisters and already had enough sleep. The rest of the sisters' transparent eyelids gave the illusion that they were awake and waiting for something, a handy deception if one wasn't aware that Mayatans were nocturnal.

The yellow light streaming into the sisters' eyes and filtering through their spotted fur was doing its job of lulling the sisters into staying asleep. This semi-artificial sleep aid was necessary to override the inevitable circadian rhythm disruption that happened from gallivanting around the galaxies on heroic missions where enemies weren't considerate enough to not attack at bedtime.

A soft chime, the least worrisome of the intruder alerts, filled the small room along with the white Vashta Nerada Protocol floodlights. Nyorla, the youngest, was still physically a child despite being old enough to where she should have gone through puberty by now and her spots were blurred. Such was two of many consequences of being born "Nao Ranay Nokt," a complicated state of existence with a difficult-to-translate name. Nyorla was still half-asleep as she pushed off the back of her niche and somersaulted into the artificial-gravity-affected majority of the room. The semi-deliberate tumble woke her up the rest of the way and she started running around the room turning off the yellow lights. "Wake up! Wake up! Intruder alert! Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! Intruder alert! Woo-woo-woo-woo!"

If the sudden change in light composition wasn't enough to wake up the adolescent sisters, the enthusiastic whooping and hollering definitely made up the difference.

Meqoql, the second-oldest sister, stepped out of her niche and did a brief set of jumping jacks, coincidentally stretching her gliding membranes. Her fingertips were black, a very rare place for spots to appear on a Mayatan, and left glowing streaks of blue in their wake as she flexed her telekinetic specialty. She preferred using it for artistic displays, but couldn't deny that on the battlefield, a carefully-timed burst of light in just the right place could dazzle and confuse an enemy.

Murqoql, the second-youngest sister, pointed out "You do know that's the just-in-case-even-though-we-probably-don't-have-anything-to-worry-about setting, right?" She yawned, her metallic teeth reflecting Mequoql's light show. Her psychic talent was weapon analysis, which had a nearly infinite range of applications considering that with enough creativity, everything could be used as an improvised weapon.

Nyorla rolled her eyes, "Duuuh! Why do you think I'm so excited? How often do we hear this specific alert instead of the more urgent ones?"

Moquoql, the middle sister, shrugged, "You have a point there." She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, pressing the ache out of the pair of spots positioned between her eyebrows and eyes — the spots that indicated her psychic talent for making sense of geometries where three-dimensional space was bent or broken. Such a talent could, among other things, let her navigate into and out of the realms of Earth's Fair Folk. "But what's with the Vashta Nerada Protocol?"

Spaceship Dormitory -> Spaceship Corridors (Meqoql, Moquoql, Murquoql, Nyorla)

A nonverbal briefing from their oldest sister Maequoql had them donning false zippers and dashing into the corridors, splitting up as they volunteered to jump into the action at various points. Moquoql grabbed an extra false zipper for Maequoql and ran with Murquoql to Sick Bay. Mequoql and Nyorla took the fastest route to the Transporter Room. They were going to beam down into town — between the false zippers and the folds of skin concealing their naughty bits, their fur was set up to get mistaken for costume clothing, thus bypassing the local culture's nudity taboo.

edited 7th May '18 2:36:34 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.
WillDeRegio Since: Jan, 2015
#381: May 7th 2018 at 4:42:39 PM

Town Square ~ Restaurant (Diantha, Nora; Leone; Gwion, James, Kris)

Diantha gave Gwion a wide-eyed look of surprise, "Seventy-five?! You certainly don't look it," she told him, before clamping her hand on her mouth. "Sorry," she mumbled, before removing her hand, "I didn't mean to— That caught me by surprise," she explained, embarrassed.

At the mention of last minute preparations, Nora chimed in with "More food!", which earned her a light tap on the head from Diantha. "I'll need to fetch my gear, it shouldn't take me long," said the purple-and-white haired girl as she got up from the table, before setting off towards the hotel, leaving Nora behind with the others.


Town ~ Hotel Lobby (Cynthia, Jean, Moobly; etc.)

Entering the hotel lobby, Lily took notice of Cynthia sitting in a chair; recalling her de facto commander's involvement in the kerfuffle that occurred naught but moments earlier, she gave the seemingly one-eyed knight a look that pretty much said "brief me on what happened later."

The young knight gave the orange-haired flight mage a nod of acknowledgment as the latter passed the group by and headed on towards the hotel's elevators.

Crossing her arms, Cynthia relaxed a bit into the rather comfy armchair as she thought about what Alice had said. Magic is a living thing. In her mind, that concept immediately brought forth images of silver witches and automatons, beings of magic and transcended aether crystals respectively. She gave her hand a rather thorough stare; without the aid of that silver witch ten years ago, she wouldn't be here right now. There was a brief falter in her optimism as she briefly considered the implications of survival and spread.

She zoned out for a moment, only blinking in recognition at the concept of crystallized versions of an ability. Rummaging through her coat pockets, she retrieved a thumb sized piece of colorless first water quartz crystal, which, to the keen eyed, faintly glowed, and to the magically astute, resonated with magical power, especially once Cynthia touched it. "So, those crystals of yours... I suppose they're the opposite of an aether crystal?"

Outside, a startled bystander tumbled onto their rear as Moobly dropped down from above with a metal box firmly grasped by her tail, and made cat-style re-entrance, landing on all fours. She quickly jumped to her feet, and entered the lobby, once again announcing to anyone and no one in particular, "Moobly has returned," halting Cynthia at the "Oh no, not again," stage, as she was about to (most likely futily) prevent Wolfe and a wolf from going at each other.

Receiving the box of biscuits from the cynthonic, Cynthia left her chair and began distributing homemade biscuits that smelled distinctly of ginger and other spices. Upon offering a biscuit to Wolfe, she gave the man her two flan on magical defenses, "One of the best ways to keep a mage from using magic would be to disorient them. Stuff like pepper spray and tear gas would work against your run-of-the-mill magic user," she said, "as for defenses, barring arctic calibreum and possibly anything that she's offering, I'm not aware of anything that would universally block magic. Then there are the secondary aspects to take into consideration; take the magic out of a fireball, you still have a ball of fire to deal with."

She stared at Vindex for a moment, slightly dumbfounded, "I'm bad at magic?" she half-asked-half-stated, before shaking it off. She then approached Vindex, crouched down, and offered the demonic dog one of Moobly's Really Darn[sic] Good Homemade Biscuits™. "Have a biscuit; you're not you when you're hungry," she told him.

Cynthia crossed her arms, "It seems that we all got off on the wrong foot and hastily jumped to the wrong conclusions, and it seems that some of us are a bit... touchy," she said addressing everyone present, "so can we please not insult each other for five minutes? I will bubble people if I have to," she warned.

At this point, Cynthia glanced towards the hotel entrance, her eye lighting up with enthusiasm, "Oh! Is that Dr. Westinghouse?"

Jean had entered the lobby to satiate her curiosity surrounding Alice, as well as the now disappeared lunatic demon that had been out front; she lost track of him after the sudden end of the tower of fascinating horrors, and was completely unaware that he had split back into his more-or-less original components, Vindex and Justin.

"Actually, I have yet to recieve my doctorate, so its actually Miss Westinghouse," she said as she approached, "Jean Westinghouse, antiquarian," she said, before glancing around, "Now, before I head over to reception, by any chance, I don't suppose any of you might be able to tell me where I might find James Turner?" she asked the group.

"Right, I think now would be a good time for introductions; I'm Cynthia."

"I am Moobly."

The military recruits then shook their heads to the other woman's inquiry, with Cynthia responding, "No, I'm afraid not."


Town Square ~ Solstice Cafe —> headed towards the Frontier Sporting Goods (Bonnie, Carol; Not-Chaos-Hunters)

With everyone departing the cafe, Carol decided to follow the Not-Chaos-Hunters to the shopping district, with Bonnie quick to catch up, as to not be left behind without a clue as to where she was supposed to go.

"Hmm, could probably use some new rope," said Carol, checking her pockets for spare change, "wonder how much it costs..."

Bonnie gave an annoyed sigh, and rolled her eyes, "If you didn't spend so much on booze, you might have some money for supplies," she said, before scowling at her comrade, "Wait, you didn't burn through your allowance this quickly, now did you?" she demandingly asked of Carol.

The quarter-elf gave the other girl a blank look and simply shrugged.


The Necropolis (It Came From The Sea; Wanderer; Crazy Hungry Lady)

The beast stumbled as it tried to whirl around, its injured leg already knitting itself back into its proper shape. This deluded woman certainly carried an annoying toy, the beast briefly recalling the times the Fairy Queen had pitted it against her little lapdog. Stupid thorns... OK, maybe not that annoying, but annoying nonetheless.

Cocking its head to the side with incredulousness at the woman for a brief moment as it registered the fact that she ate its flesh, the beast gave an annoyed shriek before charging, reaching out faster this time so it could figure out just what the hell this woman was.


'''The Sun-Dry Sea ~ Lair of the Lanceros (Lanceros... duh)

A great, alabaster beast was returning from its territorial intruder elimination excursion to its nest, a small wooden mound in a barren salt flat, as it scented those ever present orange nuisances. Leaving them to their own devices was ill advised, all things considered.

The creature stood well over twenty feet tall, and almost one-hundred feet in length, with a matching wingspan. It's rugged theropod frame was covered in sturdy plates of scaled skin and bone, with its head looking very much like an ear-less, reptilian rhinoceros. It sported a formidable ten-foot-long nasal horn which, along with its cruciform blade tipped tail with which it used to fell trees, served as a deterrent to most any sound-minded challengers.

Ignoring the other wyvern off wherever for the time being, the rugged wyvern noted where the smell of moufreta was the strongest, broke into a dash, horn pointed forward and bucked its head at just the right moment, tossing one highly unobservant thieving omnivore airborne. Moments later, the doomed creature smacked into the ground before getting trampled by one-hundred-sixty tons of wyvern.

Two other moufretas turned around just in time to bear witness to the lanceros performing a deft spin, slamming the two raptorial wyverns into oblivion with its tail, impaling one on the "crossguard" of its tailblade.

With the would-be nest raiders dispatched, the giant wyvern circled its small wooden fortress, checking for damage, before taking taking a quick rest beside it.


Moufreta Kill Count: 5

Masterofchaos maria!!! by pyon!!! creator of mwdh! from In The Void Since: Dec, 2010 Relationship Status: In Lesbians with you
maria!!! by pyon!!! creator of mwdh!
#382: May 7th 2018 at 5:38:06 PM

[Outside-Route to Supply Store (ok, fine, I'll bite: Not Chaos Hunters, Bonnie, Carol)]

They didn't get too far when they saw that two others decided to follow them. Not that they minded, especially Amy; more people means more chances to make friends!

"I don't think ropes cost too much." she said, "Then again, I rarely by ropes at stores! I usually rely on Jackson for his stuff! But maybe you'll feel more comfortable buying a rope." She frowned suddenly, "But I like flying better than climbing. I already miss my plane."

Well, Maya signed, ''At least we'll still have adventure, right?"

Amy nodded excitedly, her smile returning, "Of course!"

"...I can't believe the first we're doing after popping up somewhere else is exploring." Jackson said, "We're a bloody weird bunch."

"Yeah, but it's never boring with us." Nick replied, smirking.

"Ok, but what else are we getting besides ropes?" Marie asked, "That's kind of important to know."

"W-well..." Adam said, "We can get....a flashlight...o-or maybe some snacks...." He rubbed his arm, "...Maybe."

gay
Miss_Desperado https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YD2i1FzUYA from somewhere getting rained on by Puget Sound Since: Sep, 2016 Relationship Status: Shipping fictional characters
#383: May 7th 2018 at 7:14:38 PM

Outside Hotel Door (Shale, Arilay) -> Lobby (Shale, Arilay; Wolfe; Justin, Valerie, Vindex; Alice Winters; Cynthia, Moobly, whoever else is in the crowd)

It would be just like a dog to be distracted by biscuits, so Arilay left her position at Shale's side to follow Moobly over to Cynthia. She followed Cynthia around (except for when she gave Alice a wide berth), casting a pleading stare at the biscuits being distributed.

Shale facepalmed, then whistled sharply, a harsh, scolding tone. Arilay glanced over and Shale beckoned to Arilay. Arilay didn't leave Cynthia's side. Shale facepalmed again.

"What are you waiting for?" Arilay asked via microchip communicator. "Come on inside!"

"I don't want to path all over the floor of this nice clean building! The janitors might get upset even if I use the evaporating blend!" Shale objected.

Arilay glanced at Justin, Valerie and Vindex. "I think the staff have bigger things to worry about." She resumed begging for a biscuit.

Shale sighed through her small nose and slithered up to Arilay. "If the staff object, I'm blaming you." She reached for Arilay's collar, but Arilay deftly dodged, leaving Shale face-to-face with Cynthia. Shale straightened up and spoke through Arilay's radio, "This dog's name is Arilay, she's carrying my voice. I'm Shale. I don't have vocal cords, but I have touch-dependent telepathy." Shale waved and held out her right hand for a handshake, gambling that Cynthia wasn't left-handed. The gauntlet would block communication.

Arilay was still begging for a biscuit, sitting and raising one front paw.


Shale needed a metaphorical kick in the pants to stop sitting on the sidelines. Arilay just delivered that metaphorical kick in the pants.

edited 7th May '18 7:15:51 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.
ladytanuki Friendly Neighborhood Lich from SF, CA, US Since: Apr, 2012 Relationship Status: With my statistically significant other
Friendly Neighborhood Lich
#384: May 8th 2018 at 1:43:34 AM

Hotel (Valerie, Justin, Vindex, Wolfe, Cynthia, Moobly, Shale, Arilay, Alice, Nui)

What Alice had to say was very interesting to Nui; though the woman did not seem to specialize in magical theory, she did touch on a few things. Particularly the implications of the mind being able to destroy magic. However, what she said about magic being a living thing didn't make sense. With the dark sunglasses Nui wore, Alice could not really catch the facial reactions they had to her words, but their excessive wordiness (perhaps) saved them.

"The magic you are describing seems wholly different than the sort I am used to, and the sorts many others here are used to it seems," and here they gestured at Cynthia and the demon-devil-witch trio. "In fact it sounds like in your world, there is some sort of sentient cosmic force that has helped people understand magic, thus their power technically comes from it. Or a great and terrible curse perhaps that has tainted all magic in existence." They shuddered at the thought. "I myself fear something like that happening on Orenya, whether by the hypnotic rays of the sun or the disturbances made by groups oriented toward evil. So I often say that it is a good idea to not rely on magic too much, and to have a failsafe in the event that magic should fail the people. It seems that you and I—or your scholars and I—are researching and experimenting with antimagic for roughly the same reason."

"Conditioning the mind itself to work against magic... that's it!" It was right at the tip of Nui's very short nose the whole time. "Where I am from, such conditioning is not that uncommon. Most often it is used to train someone for a specific type of magic, or in the case of the Oradamin, to help enhance it altogether. To get a result that powerful would indeed require particularly intense conditioning." Their tone grew somber toward the end of that. "As for why it works, when repeated it can involve a complete restructuring of the mind, so what you say about willpower is not that far off. In my world's case, particularly rigorous training can even alter the core psychic skills to reflect the type of magic—or antimagic in your case—that is being practiced. I have even heard of such a conditioning against attempts to probe into their mind or even detect their aura. Additionally, the process involves magic itself, a form of consecration to help stimulate the 'learning' process. I could see it being done without magic, theoretically, and it would have to involve the conditioning you spoke of, which, it seems, your world has more experience with due to magic being more wild, so to speak, than that in my world. Magic is a neutral force; its flavor is dependent only on the will of the magician... which brings me back to the possibility of some powerful entity in your world 'infecting' magic. And interestingly enough, on Orenya there is another sort of gas in the atmosphere that enhances one's awareness of magic. Naturally, it follows that the opposite should be possible."

Their mouth tired a lot more easily than their brain, so they took a moment to listen to what Wolfe had to say about Alice's wares—or those of Western Amalgamated rather—and was pleasantly surprised when he mentioned wanting a less violent option. "The crystals Alice mentioned might help, then," Nui finally pitched in. "Crystals are excellent at containing magic, including the type of 'void magic' that negates magic. As I understand they make excellent curse-breakers, and if held close to someone can weaken their ability to use magic. So perhaps what you might be looking for is a snare of sorts entwining such crystals. If we can find any such crystals in the shops in town I may be able to help make one; it will be good practice. Speaking of practice..."

Nui looked between Wolfe and Vindex, catching part of their argument while they ranted to Alice. Something Vindex said brought something to mind, so they addressed the dog first. "You know, now I am not saying that you and Justin's um, projection, are anything at all alike demeanor-wise; I saw you being the one suppressed there rather than the one in control. So yes, it wasn't him; I saw the souls at work," they added quickly to Wolfe. "Anyway, that projection was fueled by his despise of you," and here they gestured at Justin. "You are not exactly a projection, but right now you are seeming a lot like a manifestation of her own despise and his fears. An understandable despise; I knew someone like her mother myself, and cannot even count the number of times Child Me almost died. But still... let them have their space. Even she seems to want you to be calm now." They could tell by the emotion present in the part of her aura that had a bond to Vindex. "... That form you are taking is seeming accurate though, though I cannot fathom why fur instead of scales."note 

"Just leave them alone," they said to Wolfe. "They've had it rough, and reminding them of how immoral their actions were will only make things worse for them."

At that moment, Nui noticed the magic emanating from the crystal Cynthia had showed. "Is that what an aether crystal is? You know, I had heard of 'ether' referring to the substance souls are made of.note  But I do not see a trace of a soul in there, so clearly your definition is different, just as Alice's idea of magic is different."

They realized that introductions were underway; the knight and her dragon introduced themselves as Cynthia and Moobly. "My name is Nui and I am from the planet Orenya. I'm a professor and an inventor of sorts," and here they briefly tipped their odd paneled hat, "speclializing in magitek and electrical engineering. Oh, by the way, have any of you seen the notice that may or may not have been put up on the bulletin board on my behalf? I am seeking to travel out to the Ghost Town, Hellmouth, and perhaps the Cave of Secrets, as all three are close to one another. I could go by myself, but some of you have offered interesting perspectives on magic and the like that I think would warrant further discussion once we are on the road. I do not want to dawdle too long in town, after all. Anyone interested?"

Lastly, they turned to the gastropod with the pet dog—I mean, furry dragon. Who was apparently her voice. "Touch telepathy, interesting. A rather rare talent where I am from; I've always wondered how it works." They decided not to mention the mental shield Shale had up; in fact, they themself began to mentally prepare a different sort of shield. One that wouldn't block off their entire mind, but rather put up an "Authorized Personnel Only" sign cordoning off one part of it.

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.
KillerClowns Since: Jan, 2001
#385: May 8th 2018 at 5:45:44 AM

[The Lobby]

First, there was Sophia to deal with. A potential enemy. Clearly not stupid. Alice calculated, with reason, that Sophia would be powerless in Alice's native universe; her attempting to interfere with the nightmarish maelstrom that was her world's metaphysical plane would be like stick one's hand in molten lava. Theoretically, Thuexatiqome could also be paid to install a semantic override that would frustrate even the greatest god. However, the offer Sophia made was reasonable, Thuexatiqome's price would be high, and Alice wasn't entirely confident.

"Hold on a sec, business to deal with," Alice said to the others. Then, through the communicator: "I don't like being threatened. And you're vastly underestimating my capabilities. That said, your offer is..." she gritted her teeth, "reasonable. We don't have to waste our resources squabbling with one another, not when there are creatures out here incapable of even basic diplomacy." She glanced over at Vindex and Justin. "Tell us what we need to know, like you said, and Western Amalgamated won't trouble you again." Then, to her minions, "Parthenia's superiors made us an offer. Stand down."

[City Hall Plaza - Parthenia and Sa'ad, Dominic Chaudhari and four Wardens, Ace of Spades]

The Ace of Spades and Dominic both got the message. The Ace of Spades sneered in disappointment; he'd been hoping to kill someone today. Dominic was relieved. The Ace said, "your superiors have gotten you out of this mess. Be sure to thank them." He lowered the gun.

Dominic added, "you see, we're not unreasonable people. I don't know what understanding the boss came to, but sounds like our fight's over as long as you don't start it back up."

edited 8th May '18 5:45:59 AM by KillerClowns

Millership from Kazakhstan Since: Jan, 2014
#386: May 8th 2018 at 7:32:24 AM

City Hall Plaza – Parthenia and Sa'ad, Dominic Chaudhari and four Wardens, Ace of Spades

Bullshit.

Parthenia's eyes flicker – for a short moment – with surprise.

The State couldn't have reacted this quickly. They don't even know where I am. We have only one official in this place and she didn't show any sign of activity for ages.

She slowly turns towards the City Hall, registering the witnesses looking at them through the windows here and there.

Unless Chaudhari's group somehow managed to contact the State straight away, which makes them far more formidable than common thugs have any right to be. Or we're dealing with divine intervention. But why would Sophia take interest in my case?

She gives Sa'ad an intense look. He grins back.

What don't I know about you?

Nevertheless, Parthenia allows herself to relax.

"As far as I'm concerned, there was no fight."

I really hope my 'superiors', whoever they are, will find a way not to mention that we're a slave-owning society.

The Lobby – Alice, Sophia

A smug chuckle comes out of Alice's earpiece.

"You clearly don't believe in the free exchange of information, onna-bugeisha. That makes us having opposing agendas and you having a lot of common ground with the State Parthenia represents. You, too, recognize some of the value of knowledge but are too self-centered to celebrate it with the others. At least you don't commit atrocities hiding behind a deity's name, like my spoiled stepchildren do."

Sophia takes a deep breath.

"Back to the topic. Sa'ad's story starts in the Technocracy, despite him never been there. It starts with the invention of an energy source by a certain Herbert, though 'energy source' is too modest a moniker for such a device. It's more of a 'carrying a god in your pocket', since the device, if provided with a core object that would cover sufficiently wide array of conceptual domains, would allow its owner to do literally anything.

"The Technocrats are a smart, but cowardly lot, they wouldn't risk testing such a powerful device's prototype on their own territory. They also won't pass an opportunity to manipulate the neighboring states by dangling a piece of precious technology in front of their noses. So the State and the city of Aetellia came to an agreement to test the HeDGe on the latter's grounds. Those idiots. I really like when people's precious secrets get uncovered, so you can imagine my joy when literally everyone of importance knew of the agreement. Unfortunately for her, Parthenia is not that important.

"This is where Sa'ad enters the story. He is, indeed, a slave serving a house of Eckstein, and you couldn't find a more loyal and eager servant for the tasks he's bound to perform there. I think I've done my job a bit too well. When I took the State under my patronage the most popular pastime of Shattered World's people was stabbing each other with their little bronze sticks. In hundred years they were able to command the power of the nature but they are still measuring the worth of human life in pieces of copper.

"So, Sa'ad was tasked to intercept the airship carrying the HeDGe and bring the device to his owner. Unfortunately for him, the airship's captain arbitrarily entered the list of important people and sold the generator to black market before Sa'ad could get his hands on him. Right now the HeDGe is in the possession of some warlord currently occupying the Ghost Town. I want you to have it, Alice. At least keep it away from the hands of the Technocratic State. Fortunately for you, the warlord doesn't know of its true value.

"How does all of that sound? I've been called many things, Alice, and 'generous' is among them."

'Concise', apparently, is not.

edited 8th May '18 9:50:03 AM by Millership

Spiral out, keep going.
KillerClowns Since: Jan, 2001
#387: May 8th 2018 at 5:02:35 PM

[The Lobby]

As much as Alice did want to actually kill Vindex and company, she found something distasteful in Wolfe's rudeness. Western Amalgamated was more concerned with maintaining decorum and proper language than with human life, and Wolfe was not maintaining decorum. Aside from a slight raised eyebrow and disapproving body language, Alice expressed nothing of this. Vindex's rudeness bothered her less; Alice expected no better from mere animals and ignored it.

And then there was Sophia's offer. Omnipotence? Alice could certainly find a suitable "core", and then... such power. And yet a little voice in the back of Alice's head whispered "no". That something was wrong. Was this... was this her conscience?

Alice considered it for a moment and... no, no, it wasn't her conscience, it was her common sense. This was too good to be true. Sophia, from all available evidence, didn't lke Alice nearly enough to toss her the keys to godhood. For fuck's sake, she'd literally just said they had 'opposing agendas'. And why had this "Technocratic State" been so eager to test it somewhere else? This smelled like a trap. Perhaps she could just hand it over to the Technocratic State, let them deal with it fucking their shit up and get a petty vengeance on Sophia.

Except... wait. If it was for real, or even had the potential to be real, it was an unknown potential gamechanger. Alice and Western Amalgamated were quite satisfied with the status quo; elements able to rapidly disrupt it presented more risk than potential. The smart call, as Alice saw it, was to obliterate the damn thing apart and be done with it.

To Sophia, Alice simply said, "I will take your advice into consideration." She tapped her communicator and said, "Queen of Hearts to command. We need Abigail protocols on Ghost Town."

A simple message, with a lot of weight.

She nodded at Wolfe and said, "okay, that's done. You guys might want to stay out of the Ghost Town for a while. Anyways, the crystals, in raw form, thrown into a backpack or worked into a breastplate, will provide a shield. Won't stop a bullet — accelerated by magic or chemical propllent — and will attract attention, but it'll keep a clever mage from killing you before you know they want you dead. That sound useful?"

To Nui, she nodded in approval. "Yeah; always have a failsafe. Heck, I don't even depend purely on my anti-magic; if something comes up that breaks it, I'm ready to deal with that." Not gonna be a salty bitch, she thought to herself. "Extends past even magic; intelligent diversification is a good investment strategy."

Then she glanced outside. "Getting kinda crowded in here." She was clearly considering heading elsewhere, but had not yet decided where.

edited 19th May '18 3:10:39 PM by KillerClowns

apocalemur Strepsirrhine of DOOM! from Right here Since: Jan, 2001
Strepsirrhine of DOOM!
#388: May 8th 2018 at 9:38:39 PM

Wasteland (Krakka'a, Zarokh)

The Wasteland was an aptly named region, as it was populated by miles upon miles of nothing. Well, nothing living, anyway. There were enough scattered ruins that one could gather that there had once been something at one time, but that time was long past, and the Wasteland was now the proud home of nothing.

*ZOT!*

Which is why nothing noticed when the area was illuminated for a fraction of a second by a brilliant purple light, and in the wake of that flash, there was suddenly something. Two somethings, in fact. A titanic alligator, nearly forty feet from nose to tail, and a towering Quetzalcoatlus with blood red eyes and a mane of abnormally long pycnofibres down the back of his neck. The latter of this pair clutched a tiny pyramidal object between two wing claws.

"Huh." Krakka'a, the Quetzalcoatlus, was the first to break the silence that followed their arrival. "I was expecting something a little less...shitty."

Zarokh, the Deinosuchus, shrugged. "Maybe we're in the wrong place?"

Krakka'a rounded on Zarokh and planted his front leg firmly on his snout. "We are not in the wrong place."

"Well..."

"Say it."

"But I just..."

"SAY IT!"

Zarokh shrunk back as much as his massive frame and stubby limbs would allow. "We're not in the wrong place."

Krakka'a stepped off of Zarokh's snout, but continued to glare at the Deinosuchus. Clearly, nobody had ever put this obstinate crocodilian in his proper place. Krakka'a would have to be sure to remedy this when he had the time.

"We just need to figure out where we need to go next," Krakka'a said.

"You still haven't said why we're here," Zarokh said.

"I have sources that tell me that there is an artifact of particular interest to me in this..." he looked around the wretched hellscape before him, trying to find an appropriate word for it. "...this place," he settled on.

"And what does this artifact do?" Zarokh asked.

"Does it matter? It's here, and I want it. My reasons are my own. Don't forget who sent me to you in the first place."

Zarokh closed his eyes and bowed his head. "Of course not. I will follow where you lead and retrieve any object you send me to collect."

Krakka'a turned away so Zarokh couldn't see the look of relief on his beak. He could never remember the name of Zarokh's ridiculous crocodilian god, which was troublesome when Zarokh's loyatly depended entirely on his belief that Krakka'a had been sent by said god. All the more reason to break Zarokh sooner rather than later, so Krakka'a could control him in a way that was more his speed.

"I'm going to go get a better vantage point," Krakka'a said, as he bent his knees and threw himself into the air. He flew in several massive circles above the Wasteland to get his bearings. What he saw did not impress him. While there were some structures that reminded him of the Raptorian palace, it was clear that they had been abandoned a long time ago. Besides these ruins, there appeared to be nothing but dust and rocks as far as the eye could see, except to the south, where there was a dense forest. Krakka'a hated dense forests.

It was as he made his last circle and prepared to return to the ground that something caught his eye. The forest had obscured his view of it for the most part, but as his angle changed, he could see that, just beyond the massive concrete trench to the east, there was some sort of settlement, and this one did not look abandoned.

Krakka'a landed, kicking a small spray of dirt into Zarokh's face in the process. "I see a town to the east. Come, Zarokh. I think I know where to start looking."

edited 8th May '18 9:47:50 PM by apocalemur

Tidesson Son of the staves of time
ladytanuki Friendly Neighborhood Lich from SF, CA, US Since: Apr, 2012 Relationship Status: With my statistically significant other
Friendly Neighborhood Lich
#389: May 9th 2018 at 12:44:16 AM

Solstice Cafe (Cormack, Cas, Lily, Carol, Bonnie, Kaitlyn, Peggy, Karl)

After talking to Sindar and before heading out to the sporting goods store, Cormack decided to stop by the Solstice Cafe once more just for the heck of it. He arrived just in time for Cas to mention her willingness to help out with adventures and for Peggy to talk about groups she was planning to send out to various locations. One was the necropolis Sindar was headed to. Another was the ghost town near it.

"Oh," said Cormack as he approached the table, "speaking of the ghost town, I just stopped by the bulletin board, and there's this notice—some other elf named Nui wanted to explore it, in addition to the Hellmouth and the Coast of Chills nearby. That fairy I was talking to back there mentioned that shenote  was hanging out at the hotel where those hellfire pillars or whatever were. So if you guys are interested..." he shrugged, "might be worth checking out. I gotta catch up with the others now so..."

And with that he was off. But he did a double take when he saw a new arrival. "...Wait, who's the bunny girl?"

He didn't wait to receive an answer though. With that he was really off.

Shopping District - Frontier Sporting Goods (Cormack... and soon the Not-Chaos-Hunters)

Despite being called "sporting goods", the items here were suited more for exploring and adventuring than for playing actual sports, unless said sports involved an adventure (like skiing, for which they had gear). There were hiking boots, pickaxes, tents, binoculars, goggles, jackets, flint rocks, metal detectors... you name it. The first thing that caught Cormack's eye was a sign saying "Gunpowder packs, 50% off!" off in the corner. The place didn't sell any weapons besides whips and hunting rifles (like the one he himself had), though. Nonetheless, that was one thing he knew he needed to stock up on. And his first words upon reaching that corner?

"What? What do you mean you don't have any bullets?!"

The clerk shrugged. "If ya want ammunition, ya want Coat of Arms next door. Me brother owns the place. If yer interested in rope and grappling hooks though, we have a buy-one-get-one-free on those."

Smaller river, edge of the forest (Rosalind's Mustangs, Inquisitor's Stray Horse, Skvader, D'voreem, Amaranth, Pewter, Felicio)

At the ambush site, one of the d'voreem had noticed the lion's presence, and did not take friendly to him. It called over three others, who started shrieking at him. About half of the lion's mane stood on end as he backed up a bit. But instead of budging any more than that, he held up a paw and spoke.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Trying to scare off a lion like me? I, Felicio, Prince of the Pandrean Desert? And with lame-ass banshee voices no less? You guys need to like, chill."

Rearing up on his own hind legs, he swung his lute over into his front paws, quickly strumming across it with a claw. And he did that some more, even singing to the tune.

"I could eat you if I tried, but 'tis with song I have my pride; move your bodies gleefully, and dance dance... and dance dance..."

He continued playing, and no matter how angry or frustrated they may have been, it would be difficult for even the most basic of animals to resist the urge to move rhythmically to the tune. Even if they didn't know how to dance. With some luck, the ambush would be transformed into a party.


It was only after Amaranth successfully decapitated the d'voreem pursuing her and Pewter (and gotten splashed with some of its blood) that she turned around to see Rook looking disappointed. She shrugged. "Don't tell me you thought I was helpless. If you want to make yourself useful, why don't you help me look for more of those apes in case they're setting up an ambush?"

Pewter translated what Amaranth had just said in horse language. Once finished, she took off away from the herd, who seemed to have the situation under control. In the saddle, Amaranth held the scythe, still dripping with d'voreem blood, at the ready.

And then Pewter slowed down to a trot. No, not a trot... more like a prance.

"Pewter, what are you doing?" said Amaranth, trying to get the horse to move again. Clearly the mare had heard something she didn't... and that's when she picked out some strumming and a familiar-sounding voice.

"...Felicio?"

edited 9th May '18 1:24:35 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.
Millership from Kazakhstan Since: Jan, 2014
#390: May 9th 2018 at 8:38:34 AM

The Lobby – Alice, Sophia

"Good," says Sophia. "Don't screw it up, girl."

With those words, she exits the conversation for good.

The Notice Board – The Bravo and the Burglar

Two people on horseback, a man and a woman with a certain amount of wobbliness in her posture, approach the unsuitably named Town Square's bulletin board. The man is in his early thirties, was traveling for a week and looks the part: covered in road dust, sunburned, his blond hair and beard give the impression that he stopped caring about grooming himself about three days ago. And that he cared to the point of obsession before. His formerly beige coat in all probability hides numerous sharp objects like a dirty iceberg. There are no weapons sticking out of his saddlebags, anyway. The woman, on the other hand, gives the impression that she looks like she does all the time, if we don't mention her Central Asian features: her tanned skin is smudged with dirt wrapped around obscene tattoos over the afterthoughts of yesterday's fight. Her short-sleeved shirt and trousers scream they are covered in dirt and sweat and blood, not all of them her own. There is an ugly yataghan on the left side of her saddle. Most of her baggage is some sort of automatic weapon or its ammunition. It's like the woman is actively and rather successfully trying to live her life in the most unsubtle way.

They dismount, the woman ties the horses to the hitching post and, having crossed her arms, starts, with an increasingly transparent frustration, watching the man read the notices. There's an old joke about law enforcement officers: why do they always go in pairs? One of them can talk and the other one can read and write. The man was as far from being a policeman as possible, and you probably wouldn't want to joke about the woman's lack of education to her face. Finally, the woman with shaved temples and the rest of her black hair tied into a ponytail swaggers towards the man and the passersby now can clearly see that the difference in their respective heights is big enough for her to lean with her sinewy elbow on his head. Which she clearly has no reservations of doing.

"Somethin' interestin'?"

The man ducks.

"Whoa!"

Quickly grabbing the woman's ponytail, he throws her across his shoulder.

"Oof!" The thump of the woman's fall is loud enough to startle the horses. Once she regained her breathing, she bursts into a mirthful cackle and jumps on her legs with the unrestrained springiness of drug-addled Olympic gymnast. "Hehe, why so gloomy, no new dead moneybags for you to rob?"

"Very funny, Farah."

"Oh, did I hurt my lil' pickpocket's feelings?"

The man grits his teeth.

"Why don't you say it louder? I don't think everyone in the town heard you."

"Fuckin' happy to oblige!" The man watches in abject horror as Farah, putting two fingers in her mouth, lets out a head-splitting whistle. "Ladies and Gentlemen of the town we've entered to! Allow me to present Mark Tanzer, the robb'rrr of the dead! Purloiner of the livin'! And father to more children than he cared to count!"

The man hides his face in his palm.

"Or so he'd like you to believe." Farah gives him a dirty look. "Dear citizens, prepare your daughters! Hide your applause! And give us a round of stuff!"

She freezes for a second with her arms raised, waiting for her speech to make the appropriate effect. The effect is mostly nervous mumbling and going as far away from the Square as possible throwing concerned looks over your shoulder.

"See? Nobody gives a flyin' fuck about us." Farah gives out a laugh. "You saw it yourself, they had the fuckin' demonic invasion near the hotel and the guards still didn't appear. I'm starting to think they don't even have the live moneybags for me to sell my sword to."

"...Now where did you learn 'purloiner'?"

"Read it in a book." Farah shrugs. "Seriously, what's written in there? We didn't sore our asses for nothin', did we?"

"The usual." The man shrugs. "Stray cattle, lost children. Three things are intriguing, though: explore the ruins, beach resort and the wanted poster."

"...bandit, robber and murderer… my kind of guy." Smiling, Farah stares at the picture of thuggish looking man on the wanted poster. "...last seen near the Ghost Town. So, Ghost Town, Ghost Town and Ghost Town. How about we cover all three bases in one go? Need to find that Nui girl and the Turner guy."

"We drop our gear in the hotel, first," says Mark.

"If we don't go straight away I'll make a scene."

"And you need to sober up, quickly. Where did you find the booze in the wilderness, anyway?"

The circus came to town.

edited 9th May '18 7:51:59 PM by Millership

Spiral out, keep going.
Miss_Desperado https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YD2i1FzUYA from somewhere getting rained on by Puget Sound Since: Sep, 2016 Relationship Status: Shipping fictional characters
#391: May 9th 2018 at 9:47:09 AM

Grasslands (Rosalind's Mustangs, Inquisitor's Stray Horse, Skvader, D'voreem, Amaranth, Pewter, Felicio)

Rook followed Pewter and her human at first, but the instant he heard the first strums of music, something went SLAM in his mind and something else unlocked. His gait transitioned to a running walknote , his head bobbing in time with the music, and he tried to get in front of Pewter and turn her around towards the herd. He was no longer concerned with fighting or flirting. Artificial instincts originally intended for a much different predator than Sabertooth Undead or a singing lion were telling him that it was Very Important that he hide the human's mind among a storm of Psychic Static.

Meanwhile, Lead Mare Flashfoot whirled away from the D'voreem she'd just kicked at. Not bothering to survey how effective her kick was, she and Guardian Thunder seamlessly integrated themselves into the herd's defensive ring. That's when Lead Mare Flashfoot noticed Rook and Pewter's odd behavior. Something weird was going on, and Lead Mare Flashfoot intended to find out what. She mobilized the herd and chased after Rook at a brisk trot that had Angel flinching in pain.

Flashfoot's priorities changed as soon as she heard the music. Something went SLAM in her mind and something else unlocked. Artificial instincts, the same ones Rook was now acting on, had activated. Her trot transitioned into a running walk. It was Very Important that she hide the human's mind among a storm of Psychic Static. The same artificial instincts were activating in all the other mustangs as they, with the exception of Angel, transitioned to a running walk. Lead Mare Flashfoot signaled the herd to first surround Pewter and direct her away from the music, then go back for Angel, who had dropped behind again with his limping regular walk.

Guardian Thunder did not react at all to Angel lagging behind. Ordinarily he'd be nipping at stragglers like Angel, but this time, Thunder was too focused on Pewter's human, his mind in the grip of directives that were neither mundane horse instincts nor compulsions from the lion's music.

Angel couldn't keep up with the herd, not after spraining the joint above his left fore-hoof. Oh yes, the lion's music was pretty enough to dance to, all the other mustangs were dancing with their fancy running walk, but he couldn't. He hurt too badly. The mustangs were doing their part of the Plan, and since he couldn't keep up with that part of the Plan, he had a different part of the Plan to do. He stopped, idly swishing his tail to the beat, as visions of fire danced through his mind.

The Tame One and the skvader had no clue why the mustangs were acting so weird. The music was pretty, what was there to worry about? The skvader loosened his grip on the saddle and wiggled his ears and wings in time to the beat.


Hotel Lobby (Shale, Dog-Form Arilay, etc.)

Jean Westinghouse had introduced herself and was asking after James Turner. Shale shrugged her shoulders. She hadn't gotten any looks of recognition with Morse code, so she started signing while simultaneously speaking the same message through Arilay's radio, "Sorry, I have no idea who James Turner is." An idea occurred to her. "If you'll allow it, I can scan your mind for what he looks and sounds like..." Here Arilay interrupted with a bark, touched a paw to Shale and passed a wordless idea through the microchip. Shale continued, "...and quite possibly his scent... and I can find out if I or my dog retroactively recognize any of the strangers we remember passing by in the last few minutes."

Author's note: Belatedly adding Shale's response to a question.


Spaceship

Previously in our story: Maequoql was too flabbergasted and her sisters just woke up, so Arilay greeted the Explorer of Unknowns instead...

Arilay: Excuse me, stranger who just teleported onto this spaceship. This is the pilot Arilay speaking. In case you didn't know, I am a cyborg and the WFS Hummingbird is an extension of my body. As such, it is bad manners to enter the body of a fair maiden with neither warning nor permission. I'll forgive you this time, but please try to avoid doing it again. Thank you.

Spaceship, Sick Bay (Explorer of Unknowns, Maequoql)

Maequoql was distracted from her frozen flabbergasted staring at the stranger on the ship. A drunk woman on the planet below was hammily shouting an introduction. It was shamefully easy to eavesdrop on the drunk woman's mind. The drunk woman's traveling companion mentioned something about lost children while looking at the bulletin board. Maequoql relayed this information to her approaching sisters, along with an admonition to check the bulletin board and do some detective work for themselves. The assumption that the crashed mecha pilot was one of the missing children was too easy of an assumption to make and it would be an embarrassing blunder to deliver the wrong kid to the wrong set of parents.

Time is passing, and the Web of Friendship characters roll a lot of natural twenties on initiative (that's what they get for living on action-adventure genre rules). I'm trying to keep the slices of action up here as short as possible for Kkutwar's character's sake.

edited 10th May '18 1:01:07 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.
Slysheen Professional Recluse from My nerd cave Since: Sep, 2014 Relationship Status: Shipping fictional characters
Professional Recluse
#392: May 11th 2018 at 12:21:40 AM

Chitara's Wagon

Plague Doctor

Thought came slowly through the haze but she realized she was hyperventilating, clamminess gripped her nerves and the visions of the weald slowly became more ethereal. She controlled her breathing and shoved down each madness as they reached her, fear, cowardice, lunacy, paranoia, and sheer unhinged irrationality. They hurt.

The raven leapt off Pearl's shoulder and glided over to the Doctor's prone form, it cocked its head curiously and began pecking at the mask with a sound of porcelain and the occasional caw.

A clinking sound pervaded the weald, a noise too artificial to be believable, she took hold of it and used it to haul herself out of the sensory reverie. A splitting headache greeted her, standard for that reaction. Warm ran down her hand, the red glistening in the sun. She finally let go of the grenade clenched in her hand and observed the gash healing itself, not at astonishing speed, but enough to notice like the blooming of a flower. A more grinding pain indicated the clear sign of something in her back being broken.
"THRICE DAMNED BIRD, DON'T YOU REMEMBER HOW HARD THIS THING IS TO MAKE?!" she shouted. The bird merely cawed in defiant merriment and she groaned as the bones ground and slowly made her way to her feet. The fungal fairy was still present, but now further away she shuddered but didn't succumb. She hoped it would leave sooner rather than later, she didn't look forward to seeing the weald again, especially the one within.

She stowed the grenade after noting it was the wrong one, designed to to create a close ranged but disorienting blast that would have only confused her more.

Ulf

He relaxed as the woman put down the object. Hazel bestial eyes faded back to neutral blue, the smells of the world receded to the background again. The wolf left with a sense of disappointment. Soon he made the mental promise, the wolf accepted, for now.

He straightened up and tried to play off the stretching as he loosened up his muscles again.

"Well, if you are going to the forest I'm more than willing to join you. Assuming your traveling companions aren't as...volatile. I've had enough of lunatics for a decade, much less today."

edited 11th May '18 12:22:49 AM by Slysheen

Stoned hippie without the stoned. Or the hippie. My AO3 Page, grab a chair and relax.
Corvidae It's a bird. from Somewhere Else Since: Nov, 2014 Relationship Status: Non-Canon
It's a bird.
#393: May 11th 2018 at 12:35:11 AM

The Purple Fez Tavern, Men's Bathroom (Jann, Rosalind)

Jann rapidly blinked a few times in response to Rosalind's somewhat casual explanation of how she would drink from her horses, but this new information definitely made the situation seem a lot easier to solve. He walked up to her by the sink.

"Now, if I recall correctly, human hunters discard the blood from the critters they kill before cookin' 'em, right?"

"They do," Jann answered, thinking he had a pretty good idea of what Rosalind was planning. "My father took me with him to our butcher a few times." He shuddered slightly at the memories, and crossed his arms. "It shouldn't be too hard to find some left-over blood somewhere in town."

He scratched the back of his head, taking a deep breath.

"But... you know we'll eventually have to tell the others, right?"

Purple Fez Tavern, Outdoor Tables (Ozurr; Varg)

Varg put down her tankard and glanced up at Ozurr with a more stern expression than usual.

"Whatever you sensed about him, don't worry about it," she said, her piercing red eyes meeting his, her voice calm but serious. "It won't affect you, or our expedition."

She grabbed a chicken leg from one of the plates.

"And if he's figured out something about her, I'm sure he'll tell us."

Still a great "screw depression" song even after seven years.
Miss_Desperado https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YD2i1FzUYA from somewhere getting rained on by Puget Sound Since: Sep, 2016 Relationship Status: Shipping fictional characters
#394: May 11th 2018 at 9:05:02 AM

The Purple Fez Tavern, Men's Bathroom (Jann; Rosalind)

"Butcher?" Rosalind echoed. She wiped the soap and water off her hands with a towel. "You and I had two different ideas. I was thinkin' ahead to our expedition and the critters y'all are gonna hunt for food along the way." She cupped her hands back under the dripping faucet to catch some water so she could rinse out her mouth.

While she was waiting for the water to accumulate, she acknowledged, "I know, I know... can't use my idea without doin' that... I'd feel a lot less paranoid if I told them myself, so please don't spill the beans without me." With a shuddering breath, she admitted, "It's gonna take me a few minutes to gather up the courage... last time, that dark energy was messin' up my emotions and it didn't quite register that I was confessin' to the scariest member of the group. I don't have that crutch this time."

She reviewed what she just said and hastily apologized, "I, I'm sorry for callin' you scary just now, I have bad memories of magic but that was still uncalled for. I'm still learnin' how to feel safe around magic. It helps that to balance out my bad memories, I..." Rosalind faltered, the words fled before they could be spoken as she remembered where she was. Another blush colored her cheeks, the men's restroom was such a gauche place for her to stand, much less say what she had been about to say. Emily Post and Miss Manners would have agreed that it simply isn't done!

Instead, Rosalind substituted a less socially awkward truth, "I'm comforted by your gentlemanly ways. The way you treat me brings back happy memories from when I was still human." She felt a slight overflow in her cupped hands and brought them to her mouth so she could rinse out the last traces of vomit. There, much better. She turned off the sink.

"Okay, I'm ready to get outta here, but I don't want nosy nellies and gabby gossips seein' me exit the wrong restroom, so we gotta plan a stealthy exit."

If not for this anchor I'd be dancing between the stars. At least I can try to write better vampire stories than Twilight.
Yomegami Since: Jan, 2011
#395: May 11th 2018 at 2:03:32 PM

Restaurant (Leone, Gwion, Kris, James, Nora)

"As I spoke of previously, it would be nice to have some form of long-ranged weapon, be it a gun or something else," Leone commented on the matter of preparations, "And past that, it depends on what else is available. No sense in getting my hopes up for something that might not exist."

She gave Nora a brief glance when the other girl suggested more food. "Actually, Nora's suggestion wouldn't be such a bad idea either." She looked down at her own meal, which was at this point only a little over halfway finished. "Though I've been taking long enough with my current meal as it is. I suppose there's some situations where having good table manners is a downside."

Icon by Civvi the Civilian!
KillerClowns Since: Jan, 2001
#396: May 12th 2018 at 10:08:10 PM

[Notice Board]

WANTED: Academics and escorts against wild animals and other potential pitfalls of an uncharted island, for an expedition out to the Island to investigate highly unusual ruins. In addition to payment, food and other supplies will be provided. Speak to Mrs. Crystal Tree and Tovor Zaa at the Hofstadter, docked at the Harbor.

Note: due to the delicate magics of the ruins reported by scouts, anti-magic users and powerful mages need not apply. (Most magic will be fine; if in doubt, demonstrate and ask.)

[Island Ruins]

The ruins known to be on the island were an enigma. Scrying magics and long-range technological scanners alike had failed to determine anything consistent, and teleportation (as well as other forms of advanced conveyance that were effectively teleportation despite the insistence of mages and engineers otherwise) never quite seemed to work. As for approaching from above... nobody had ever managed to find the ruins, save for on foot, despite explorers scanning the island from the air many times over.

For those wondering "will [insert loophole and/or Deus ex Machina here] get through the troubles with teleportation and teleportation substitutes on the island?", the answer is "no".

[Harbor: Hofstadter — ana'Kasara Suela, Tovor Zaa]

The Hofstadter, a large, modern yacht, sat waiting at the docks. At the wheel was a crude, silvery, faceless android with a relatively simple AI — not one for conversation, to say the least — ready to get the ship moving at a command. On the deck, sitting on opposite sides of a large, oval table, were the two responsible for this expedition.

The contents of the table itself were almost as likely to attract attention as the notice they'd had pinned in the town square. The drink being served was a pot of High Yothic Tea — a dark violet tisane that tasted and smelled like taking a deep breath in a flower garden, but possessed a cocktail of stimulants that would make the most macho of energy drinks skulk away in terrified awe. More importantly, a Yothic dish of glazed ham and tropical fruits sat on the table, its scent drifting across the harbor. There was plenty to go around, as well, the ham having been taken from an Uel pig the size of a small horse.

ana'Kasara Suela — her name, oddly, translated out literally to "Mrs. Crystal Tree" on the notice — was a woman in her mid-twenties, beautiful in the stately Yothic way. She was tall, lean, and very dark, with sharp, imperial features, a smooth-shaven scalp, painted eyebrows, blue eyes, and a confident, practiced stride. Her main garment was a light floor-length skirt in varying shades of green forming an intricate geometric pattern with incredible precision. Aside from the skirt, she wore a belt around her hips with a number of pouches and satchels, numerous golden armlets, bracelets, and other bangles, and a strip of green cloth with the same pattern as her skirt, tied around her chest and pinned in back to avoid offending the locals and their customs. Like any self-respecting Yothic woman, she had spent well on perfume, in her case made from various tropical flowers.

Beside her was a simple staff, for both fashion and self-defense. The staff was just over four feet in length, of dark wood crowned by a steel disk etched with a calligraphic rune far too intricate in both meaning and design for easy translation — if one squinted, one would get an impression akin to "Order in All Things". The staff was a symbol of her status, but a skilled blow with it would easily break bone. Not that Suela was especially good at breaking bones, thus the notice.

On the other side of the table sat Tovor Zaa, occasionally jotting down notes in a leather-bound journal when some oddity on shore caught his eye. Tovor Zaa was a hulking, copper-skinned shaman from the distant land of Zavi. They — physically male, though like all shamans of their people, they regarded themselves as agender — were as shaven-headed as Suela. They wore a long kilt with jagged vertical lines of dark red and bruise purple, and their face and bare torso were covered in an impressive number of ritually applied scars. They bore themselves with their own calm dignity, studying the people around them with interest and curiosity, occasionally running a finger across one of their scars when their mind wandered somewhere especially interesting. For now, however, they turned their attention to Suela. "Make no mistake," they said, continuing a conversation, "I do not doubt your intellect, Suela, merely your theory. I am confident you will alter it in the face of evidence, as you say is so important."

Suela snorted and said, "so you're saying I will abandon rationality because it will be the rational thing to do?" With a smirk of triumph, perhaps a moment too early, she said, "that depends on rationality, doesn't it?"

Tovor had predicted this argument and dismissed it with a gesture, as if shooing a fly. "Not at all, I merely propose that your system cannot suffice," he raised a finger for emphasis, "on its own merits. Stories remain the cornerstone of all understanding, and your 'story' — that of a rational universe that operates on the same principles as your husband's loom — is, like all stories, interwoven with myriad subtle inconsistencies that those within the tale do not notice. For who outside a comedy notices the flaws in their own tale?"

Then what, Suela wanted to say, you are telling me your life is a comedy? She suspected the answer would be a blunt affirmation, however, and instead asked, "so do you have a better theory?" She leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand as she measured Tovor's reaction.

Tovor shrugged. "No. Attempting to fully understand the universe is futile, we cannot know truth beyond our flawed senses and their flawed interpretations. We can only catalogue the stories we tell one another, and ourselves, in the effort." Foreseeing Suela's response, they added, "yes, of course this includes my own story... which you could call a comedy, I suppose. It is knowledge that teaches me humility, and to avoid judging others with the sort of haste your own priests so readily display." Then they tapped their book. "So I do not seek the Truth, merely to note the truths of the people who tell their tales. I look forward to seeing how yours weathers a truth it was not meant to hold."

Suela suppressed another snort. Nihilistic camelshit, she thought to herself. She kept the thought to herself, though, and instead said, "We'll see. But do promise you won't bore our crew with your ramblings? Most of them will come for ruins, not chit-chat over tea about the nature of reality and the place of your beloved 'stories and symbols'." Before Tovor could say the obvious retort, she added, "and yes, I do make the same promise."

Tovor nodded affably and said, "I am happy to merely record."

Suela had to admit, she was curious what about these ruins Tovor thought could possibly convince her. And to know how the shaman had gotten another dimensional portal open. This was an uncanny one indeed.

Quick note on Suela's Yothic name and its translations to English. Her name (though not Tovor's, he's from a different culture) is given in Eastern order, with "Suela" being her personal name and "ana'Kasara" her husband's surname with a prefix — so it translates to "Suela". Or "Mrs. Kasara" if being formal, as "Mrs. ana'Kasara" would be redundant.

edited 16th May '18 9:17:51 PM by KillerClowns

daird Since: Jul, 2014
#397: May 13th 2018 at 3:52:11 PM

(Chitara's Wagon- Saen, et al.)

Now that the warding was done, Saen was ready to head off on the trek to the necropolis, but something worried her. "You sssaid you were coming with us, correct, Chitara? I do not mean to offend, but in my experienccce, merchantsss who venture in search of treasure tend to meet rather nasssty fates. Tell me, what can you contribute besssidesss your wares?"

Forward, boys! For God's sake, forward!
WillDeRegio Since: Jan, 2015
#398: May 13th 2018 at 7:47:53 PM

Town Square ~headed towards the Frontier Sporting Goods (Bonnie, Carol; Not-Chaos-Hunters)

Carol nodded, "Ah, good, I guess," she said, before frowning slightly, "though I wasn't plannin' on usin' them for climbing; I can do that fine on my own. I use ropes in trapping," she clarified.

"Wait," She stared at the bubbly pink-haired girl for a good long moment before continuing, "you have a plane? As in an aeroplane?" She shuddered and shook her head, "You must either be braver or crazier than Lily, then," she bluntly told her.

Carol returned Nick's smirk with a grin of her own as she hefted her halberd across her shoulders, "Oh good, I'm not particularly fond of boring."

At the mention of snacks, the quarter-elf retrieved a pouch from one of her coat pockets, "I've got plenty of jerky," she said, "I guess I'd be willin' t'share if you guys want; I can always make more."

Meanwhile, Bonnie had become rather cross at Cormack. "I. Am not. A bunny," she stated, shaking her staff in the elf's direction, "I'm a rabbit girl!"

Pouting, she rejoined the group, "I'm at least assuming you have the basics: compass, whistle, knives, fire starter of some variety, etc. If not, I highly suggest we start with those," she told the others.

Masterofchaos maria!!! by pyon!!! creator of mwdh! from In The Void Since: Dec, 2010 Relationship Status: In Lesbians with you
maria!!! by pyon!!! creator of mwdh!
#399: May 13th 2018 at 9:37:49 PM

[Town—Supply Store]

Amy nodded.

"Well...had a plane." she said, "When we transported here, it crashed. We were being chased by Chaos and they kept shooting at us! If it weren't for Nick, we would've crashed and died!"

Nick nodded. "And it was honestly just pure luck. Still don't know how the hell I did it, but I'll still take the title of 'everyone's savior.'" He smirked.

Jackson sighed. "In any case, yes, we have the basics. And like I said, I provide the weapons, so we're definitely good in that regard. If you want, I can show you more of what I have in store and hand you some."

You can't go handing out your shit to every stranger, dude. Maya signed.

Jackson shot her a glare, then sighed again. "Anyway, we can get more snacks."

gay
Corvidae It's a bird. from Somewhere Else Since: Nov, 2014 Relationship Status: Non-Canon
It's a bird.
#400: May 14th 2018 at 10:16:15 AM

The Purple Fez Tavern, Men's Bathroom (Jann; Rosalind)

Scary?

Jann quirked an eyebrow at the comment, but after Rosalind's hasty apology and very obvious blushing, his expression turned into a soft smile instead. There was a small bit of blushing on his end too - He had his suspicions about what Rosalind had just been about to say - and also hints of something more solemn, as his own memories made themselves known.

"It's alright," he said, "feeling safe around magic took it's fair time for me as well. And don't worry, I won't say anything until you do. I can't vouch for the giant, but Varg is..." He scratched his head, trying to find the right words. "...reasonable enough, I suppose."

He briefly considered putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder, but ended up somewhat awkwardly backing away to let her finish cleaning herself instead.

"Oh right..." Jann continued once Rosalind reminded him of the restroom predicament. "I'll go first, and signal you once it's clear outside."

Still a great "screw depression" song even after seven years.

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