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 Atmospheric Music Your footsteps echo across the stone floors. Brilliant silver light suffuses everything, seemingly coming from walls and floors themselves, further enhanced by sconces burning with silver flames lining the walls. Tapestries and banners hang from the walls, all resplendent with moon symbolism. A shame you cannot stop to admire them, for the heavy footfalls and the click of heavy staves upon the floors herald the pursuit of the wardens behind you.  Not that you could stay here for long even without being pursued - for this is... The Lunar University:  Thankfully the Union of Natural Philosophers did some research before this incursion, and supplied you accordingly... still could be more detailed though... especially now that you suddenly find yourself at a t-junction amidst the endless corridors that turn this place into a maze. Thinking back to what got you into this situation in the first place... Calliope Dispatch: Why the UN sent you here is fresh in your mind, moreover nestled in your pack is something key to this. Why are you here and what is it that you have? Also the academy have a different mission for you while you're here... what is it? Srmz: You feel your Conduit shift uneasily as you wander these halls, something aspected by your element is marring this place... what is it? Regardless of what the UN asked, Mungo's Home for the Cursed and Magically Afflicted seemed interested in you visiting this place... why? And did they want you to do something while you were here? Vix: Ever since you got in here you've been practically harassed by swarming spirits, babbling incessantly, and no-one else seems to have noticed them. It might be time to pay them some measure of attention... what are they saying? Ignoring whatever those punks at the UN wanted the group here for, the Court of Belphagor has fingers in pies, including here - but something isn't right... what influence does the Court have here and what do they want you to do while you're here? Sah-Tah-Ish: Sacrifice is second nature to you. You recognise its signs even here... what sacrifice was made here, and how long ago was it made? One of the your other 'Sisters' has been here before. What did they leave or take or do that is so important, and did your 'Sisters' want you to rectify it somehow? Janine Marie D'argent: Getting here was risky. Moreover, you met something in the way in that the group had to escape from to progress, but it still chases you. What is it and what makes it so dangerous? The Justiciars have been pulling strings and it's not chance that you've got this mission... you have business on their behalf here... what is it? Your thoughts are brought back to reality as you scan your senses around this t-junction, the sounds of the approaching wardens grow louder from behind as you notice that each direction seemingly has its own perils. Bestial sounds and musky scents emanate from the rightmost corridor, while the leftmost corridor has a strange... almost dreamlike fluting come from that direction - followed by a palpable sense of unease... Everyone: What do you do? OOC Thread
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Oct 17, 2017 18:43
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Srmz As I walk along the corridor my many feet chilled by the cold stone floor I remark in a voice that comes out of one of my newly grown larynxes, this time, like the shrill dying scream of a rabbit "Nice place." My conduit rumbles in my abdomen? chest? the bulbous belimbed mass that makes the midpart of my body. This could mean anything. My conduit's could be reacting to a shard of pure chaos which is good for a lot powering a lot of crazy magics. Chaos shards are also wonderful for inducing madness, corruption, mutations, and tears in time and space and a whole lot of other nastiness. Or it could be that Vix has been passing gas at me and my conduit's getting tetchy about it. My blasted conduit isn't exactly reliable about anything. MHCMA is always looking to help out the magically cursed if I can convince any of the residents of this place to come back with me to be treated that would be great. If they have been driven mad I am perfectly willing to use non-lethal force to bring them back for treatment. I would rather not have to kill anyone but I will protect myself and my teamates. MHCMA is also interested in any magic relics or knowledge that can be used in the service of healing afflictions so I will be on the lookout for such. OOC I added the good alignment to my character sheet MinutePirateBug fucked around with this message at 21:17 on Oct 17, 2017 |
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Oct 17, 2017 20:31
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 HP 20/20 | Armor 0 | Load 2/10 | XP 1/8 As the party had infiltrated the university, Sah finally understood what Mir-Het-Ash had asked of her. The silver flames that illuminated the hallways had a strange allure. She found her eyes drawn to it again and again, and it took an effort of will to keep her hands away from it. It beckoned like the great bonfires built during the war. Back then, the call had promised warmth and companionship. This silvery fire promised secrets, and a coldness that would burn no less than the hottest forge-flame. Somewhere in this place Mir had left a flame of her own, encased in a crystal sphere. The sphere was meant to focus moonlight into the flame in the hopes that the secret of this silver fire could be gleaned from it. It had been left behind in an orrery somewhere in the university and it was Sah's purpose to find it. Mir had been unable to be specific as to its location; only that the orrery resided in a tall tower. The difficult part would be finding such a tower. The university's defenders were onto them and darker things lurked deeper within. She could smell blood on the air, and it brought back old memories. That charnel house reek spoke of sacrifices in vast quantity, and the runes they had seen etched into the stonework suggested binding rituals of some sort. Something had been called to this place. Something terrible and vast, to demand so much blood. As the group considered its options at the intersection, Sah turned to watch their backs and clasped her hands together. "Flip a coin if you must. We cannot remain here. There is worse here then what chases us, and new-born horrors are hungry." Conjuring up the fire within, she pulled her hands apart attempting to pull a whip of flame into existence. Burning Brand: 2d6+2 4 Shardix fucked around with this message at 20:41 on Oct 17, 2017 |
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Oct 17, 2017 20:34
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 HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 6/15 | XP 0/8 | 0 Boon "Well this old horror is pretty hungry himself," Vix complains, thumbing to himself. His tone hadn't strayed from jaded facetiousness the moment the team had set foot on the university grounds. "Listen, let's just call this one a bust, show ourselves out, and go get something to eat. Like Sah said, there's worse things about and it's starting to get a little busy. This way, to the party music. A little birdy told me this guy's cool." The imp nonchalantly proceeds to the left as if he were navigating an old haunt. Some might mistake it for unfounded confidence, but it was always hard to tell with him. He contemplates raising a hand to shoo away a few obnoxious fairies, but stops when he realizes that the others couldn't see them. It was probably for the best that he didn't relay just how much of a disturbance their presence had caused already. "Tee-hee! The old one walks without glamour. So hideous!" "Hoo-hoo! It ignores us, it does! Can't let them know, it knows. Awful thing! Hardly convincing!" "Boo-hoo! Please stop them from destroying our home! Taking our lives! Try harder!" "Hey hey! Its court promised to save us!" Taking point, while risky, did have its advantages; for example, the rest of the group can't see him mean-mugging unseen spirits and subtly signaling for them to get lost. Vix lets out a deep, frustrated sigh. "Not to escalate the sense of urgency here, but I'm hearing a lot of whispers about the stuff gaining on us, and I get the feeling that getting to a high point and floating down might be our best option. Let's stay conservative and keep our weight low." He stops and spins in place. "That means don't pick anything up. And remember, the best fight's the one you're not in!" He wags a patronizing finger before scampering off around a shadowy corner. The illusion of silence was certainly a useful one, though any idiot in sight could tell that something was up when someone spoke with no sound. "I need each and every one of you to shut the gently caress up right now," Vix addresses the spirits firmly. "I'm trying, okay? You're giving me nothing. Help me help you. Quit talking poo poo and give me a way out, or something to watch out for. Or even better: tell me who went rogue and broke the peace deal The Court brokered, 'cause that's the one thing I'm actually here for. Sooner I know, sooner I can get us out of your hair. Nobody's gotta die today, got it?" "I mean, besides the dirty rat gently caress who thinks they know better than the rest of this institution." Discern Realities: 2d6+1 9 Who's really in control here?
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Oct 18, 2017 10:47
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 HP 21/21 | Armor 1 | Load 4/15 | XP 0/8 A cursed place, this. More cursed by far due to the unwanted attention of the Moon Calf. A gluttonous mistake called from some other place by the excesses of the Wars, it drinks magics like water. A walking mystical deadzone that was built like a demented dream of a hippopotamus and was still pursuing the team. It was starving before and after we took out it's eye it was starving and enraged. Thankfully the radiating magic of the Lunar University would wreck havoc with its senses. The Mooncalf was currently a problem For Later. The Amber Princess that escaped judgement by enrolling to this dark college was a problem For Now. They will disclose their method of embedding themselves into the scholars before judgement is to be administered. Judgement must be administered. "Left it is then." Janine follows the imp at a measured pace. Her weapon is unusually still in her hand, coiled and waiting to strike at a moment's notice.
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Oct 18, 2017 17:08
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HP 26/26 | Armor 0 | Load 3/10 | XP 0/8 In a deep baritone emanating from his stomach "Sounds like I have business to the right. Sorry to split us up like this. I promised I would try help cursed folks out in this place, and besides exploring as much of this place as fast as possible seems like what we were sent here to do." Srmz pauses "I'll try and give us some breathing room with our pursuers." and with a BAMF of atmosphere suddenly rushing to fill the Srmz shaped void and then rapidly expanding outward he is gone leaving behind a chaotic vortex of muppets, flame, angular bits of sharp metal, cupcakes, and crackling electricity filling and blocking the corridor behind them Teleporting as far down the right corridor as possible Teleport (Teleport, Hazardous) 2d6+2=11 MinutePirateBug fucked around with this message at 03:25 on Oct 19, 2017 |
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Oct 19, 2017 03:05
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 HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 7/9 | XP 1/8 | Bag of Books 4/5 Calliope flips through a book rapidly, frowning at it, then looking around them, then going back to the book and muttering to herself. She holds the over-sized, grey bound folio in both hands, her witch's stave tucked in the crook of her elbow. "No, it's not that sections... who thought it was a good idea to organize the diagrams this way?" She flips back to a previous page, and shakes her head. "Left is as good as any! If we can just get a window or courtyard, we could use the bell tower to navigate. I think we need to go up a floor further on, though. I think..." The folio Calliope has been struggling contains every map of the Lunar Academy the witches of New Sol Plerion had been able to get their hands on, collated and indexed, with best-guess attempts to show how the fragmentary sections connect to each other. It's been less than useful since they've arrive, in fact downright misleading at times. It's not yet clear to Calliope if that has more to do with overly cross-referenced organization of the map folio, or if the Academy itself has rearranged between visits, or just has a non-Euclidean layout. "I'm a historian, not practical geometer," she grumbles to herself, then stows the folio back in her pack. Calliope checks to make sure the crystal bell clapper is still intact when she does. It's the reason they're here, after all. All around the world, other UN teams have been setting up sensitive instruments and planar observatories. When the Academy next transitions to... wherever it goes... the bell will ring. And this time, with the new clapper installed, those chimes will be heard across dimensions. Ideally the echoes and reflections will allow the teams to map the planar space around the damaged world left to them, but just getting a fix on where the Lunar Academy ends up will be useful. A few ambitious mages are even talking about using it as a lighthouse or beacon for further exploration. "We still have time. And the UN did want us to explore a bit as well." The New Sol Plerion Academy wanted something else as well. One of the archivists had found an ancient, dusty course catalog from back when the Lunar Academy had been a competitor worth keeping tabs on. In it, there was a listing for a lecture series entitled A Practical Examination of Speculative Histories, presented Zafyra ibe Zafyra. New Sol Plerion had one of Zafyra's treatises on temporal magic, and it touched on several matters of interest, and especially ones in Calliope's area of expertise. Calliope had arrived with a fresh, blank journal and several excellent charcoals and pens in order to take notes on the lecture. Spout Lore + Bag of Books [+INT]: 2d6+3 6
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Oct 19, 2017 03:14
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 6/15 | XP 0/8 | 0 Boon Vix peeks back around the corner. "We can explore as a side effect of getting lost, which coincidentally is what we're doing right now." He pauses to give Srmz's wall a critical look and motions dismissively to it. "Where'd...? Forget it. Let's go."
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Oct 19, 2017 05:15
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As the consensus is roughly decided to head left, it becomes apparent that your chaos mage has... chaotic ideas... and promptly shunts themselves off down the right corridor, leaving a wall of bizarre half-dreams and echoes of things that never were blocking the path. So left it is then! Srmz: The transmission is instantaneous as you find yourself down the rightmost corridor, alone, your allies abandoned to wherever it is they were going. But perhaps it's better this way. Here the sound of bestial noises grow much louder as you advance across the cold stone floors, the musky scent being given off by these creatures is much stronger now. Coming to one last turn in these seemingly endless corridors, you peak around it to see a group of tall, somewhat hulking, bestial creatures covered in long black fur - streaked with red in places, their muscular frames hunched over, their limbs ended in vicious claws. They haven't noticed you yet, but you realise that their attention is currently focused upon some hapless victim that they are hunched over, their scythe-like teeth tearing into the bloodied remains of some unfortunate, noisily consuming their latest kill - the crimson stain of blood scattered around the centre of this large chamber. Your eyes scan around and realise that the corridors have opened out to become a sizeable hall, lined with pillars - each of them holding a sconce blazing with silver fire, with a large chandelier hanging from above bedecked in many radiant crystals, all emitting an intense silvery glow - and with some kind of lens apparatus atop it, leading to somewhere above this room. Benches are found periodically around this room, and from here you think you can see a balcony upon an upper level, two archways lead immediately out of the room to the left and right, respectively, and there are a pair of stairs leading up that lie on the opposite end of this chamber. But sightseeing isn't why you came here. Bestial creatures have yet to notice you, but their misshapen forms seem to indicate physical power, only rags give any note that they were once not in this form, but they would be dangerous to fight. What do you do? Calliope Dispatch: It's a funny thing trying to read books, compare maps, and walk briskly through winding corridors... with that in mind by the time you pack away your things and announce that there is still sufficient time you find yourself alone. Furthermore you find yourself away from the maze of corridors that your compatriots were walking through, instead looking about to find yourself standing upon a balcony overlooking a large hall of some kind, heavy stone and wood benches line the walls and sit as islands forming gridded aisles that make up most of this room, asides from a large open area at the centre - within which stands a grandiose device of silver and glass and stone, dominating the chamber with pipes running here and there - so tall is this strange device that it reaches the ceiling, moreover a large silvery shaft penetrates the ceiling to somewhere out of sight, above this chamber - although the pipe in question possesses a shining ethereal glow - brighter than anything else in this room. Acrid alchemical odours dominate the air here, seemingly emitted by the series of convoluted alchemical equipment that is found on most of the benches below, not to mention whatever arcane process is being performed the centrepiece of this laboratory. Sizeable blackboards covered in silver scribblings that gleam in this light are visible on the far side of the chamber - but you're far too far away to be able to read any of it. Suddenly your gaze is drawn to signs of movement down below, as you realise that you are not alone. Figures clad in pale robes move between the benches, performing arcane tasks, and one much larger and ornate figure clad in silvery robes is seemingly tinkering with the big device in the centre. Drawing your gaze back up to your level, you notice twin stairs spiralling down from the balcony to the laboratory floor, and behind you stands a hefty set of double doors, made of stone and etched with silvery runes - presumably the way you came into this room. More sconces filled with silver fire dot the walls, but largely dominate the upper level, the strange illumination caused by the central device seems to provide sufficient light for anything and everything in this chamber. What do you do? Vix: Left it is! As you lead (most of) the group rather bravely down the passageway, the spirits begin to regale you more coherently, the stone corridors still lined with silver-burning sconces, and the occasional tapestry, banner, and sometimes even a bust or two - all with lunar symbolism heavily involved. "The moon spirits want more and more and more! They Lunari! They push us out! They won't stop until all is silver and we are gone or enslaved! They're the ones pulling the strings... them and their mistress... she's always watching! You hear it too right?" is what they say as you carefully observe your surroundings, turning out the fluting that is growing ever louder. Then you notice it, for one there are stranger spirits just on the edge of vision, following you around silently - observing, but there is also a quiet din of strange sussuration that suffuses this place, something you hadn't noticed at first, it's hard to tell where it's coming from but it seems to be all around you, it's very quiet but everpresent, and it's hard to understand precisely what the whispers are, but.... hmm. It's all a bit disquieting, in fact as you tune into the whispers a sliver of disquiet enters your heart - and then the spirits speak once more "She wants puppets, she wants slaves." Then you snap back to present, more material concerns. The fluting is quite loud and persistent now, and as you round the next corner you find the source. A large hall lined with pillars, at the centre of which stands a giant statue of a scholar in flowing robes holding aloft a miniature crescent moon in one hand. Sitting on the statue's shoulders is a figure clad in pale, hooded robes, playing... something like a flute, although it's hard to pick out precisely what it is it's grey and stony-coloured and irregularly shaped and they're playing it like a flute - the source of the (by now quite loud) fluting. Around the statue currently gathers a large crowd of robed/gowned figures all wearing white masks who are dancing about in a large circle around the statue, seemingly along to the tune. A strange scene indeed. You do notice however that the... disquieting whispers that haunt this place seem... different here, you're not sure exactly how but in this close proximity the whispers seem to be stronger but also different, as though they were moving along to the tune of the 'flute'.... somehow. The chamber has two archways leading away to the left and to the right, and at the far end there's a balcony coming from a higher floor, with a pair of stairs leading presumably up to it. A series of benches line the walls in this room, although no-one is sitting down. Above the statue is some kind of 'skylight' like glassy contrivance, emitting an intense silver glow over the area but as far as you can tell not actually leading outside. Oh also now that you look around to make sure everyone has followed you you realise that another member of the team has gone AWOL, Calliope. This is a problem especially because she's carrying the device the UN wanted planted here. What do you do? Janine Marie D'argent: Leftward, ho! It's interesting you know, the architecture of this place is somewhat paradoxical, a lot of it harkens back to the most ancient of universities, but there are significant aspects here and there that effortlessly blend more modern aspects in a strange fashion, the implications this has could be interesting if you were so inclined. The Mooncalf so far is kept at bay, but given its nature it also makes it difficult to detect - at least magically - since it will eat the detection magic if given the opportunity. It's funny though, since given your past you became generally more acquainted with such beasts - even if their appearance is rather rare - after all being able to corral a magic-eating monstrosity is useful if you are intending on fighting mages, there must have been some more reliable technique to be able to detect or otherwise track them after all... What is the preferred method of tracking or otherwise detecting a Mooncalf? But enough about Mooncalves! That is a problem for later. This fluting is becoming fairly annoying, loud and shrill, hitting the senses in just the wrong way - but definitely not tuneless. The group turns one more corner of these twisting passageways and lo and behold you find the source. A huge hall, lined with pillars, at the centre of which you spot upon the shoulders of a grandiose giant statue of some robed scholar or another (in this case one arm is outstretched holding a tiny crescent moon aloft) sits a figure clad in pale, hooded robes playing the instrument - doesn't quite look like a flute but something close to it, seemingly made of some kind of pale stone. A large group of robed/gowned figures all wearing white featureless masks dance about in a wide circle around the statue, seemingly to the tune of the 'flautist'. Beyond that this hall has two archways leading away to the left and to the right, a balcony on the far end rising out of a higher floor, and two sets of stairs nearby presumably leading up to it. A series of benches line the walls in this room, although no-one is sitting down. Above the statue is some kind of 'skylight' like glassy contrivance, emitting an intense silver glow over the area but as far as you can tell not actually leading outside. Oh and now that you look around to take stock (and to make sure the Mooncalf didn't make an unexpected entrance) you notice that Calliope has gone missing too... not ideal, especially since she has the crystal bell clapper that the Union of Natural Philosophers wanted to be installed here. What do you do? Sah-Tah-Ish: You focus your will and power in an attempt to coax forth the primal flame that you have done so often. But there's something wrong about this place, perhaps it's the chaotic powers of Srmz that are throwing you off, perhaps you're just having a bad day. However just as you feel like you are going to issue forth the initial spark that starts the flame.... something else happens. Time sleeps to slow for you as instead you spot a mote of silver light come into existence for the briefest of moments. Then you hear it.  A voice like thunder, striking your consciousness like a hammer, driving out all other thoughts and commandeering your senses. And yet there's a strange hollowness to the voice, although great and powerful it seems distant and... strange. Regardless this contact is nothing approaching gentle, and while it continues doing anything but walking around will probably require a great deal of effort. Distracted by the invasive voice inside your skull, its tones sapping all colour from your vision and turning everything silvery, you don't notice when Calliope vanished... and now the group have found some great hall with pillars and a big statue and dancers and someone sat atop the statue playing an instrument but you can't hear anything because THE VOICE commands all attention and you can barely register anything heard with the reverberating echoes that strike you as it waits for a response, the void created by its silence sucking away at your senses just as bad as when it was talking - reminiscent of some kind of uncanny or impossible void, a gulf between minds that is not mere geography. What do you do?
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Oct 21, 2017 04:17
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HP 20/20 | Armor 0 | Load 2/10 | XP 1/8 Sah shut her eyes against the crushing weight of the voice in her head, stumbling a bit as she struggled to keep her balance. Was it the thing the fools at this university had summoned? She wanted to say no...it sounded much too sane. Impossible to be certain, however. This was not her area of expertise. Even if it were, the presence in her mind was too demanding to think clearly. Sah-Tah-Ish, Sister of Ardor, and wielder of primordial flame. Now name yourself and ask forgiveness. I brook no trespass in my mind, and my fury burns hotter than you can imagine.
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Oct 21, 2017 20:32
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Sah-Tah-Ish As you speak you feel the presence grow stronger, you feel your knees begin to buckle and sweat begin to form as you use sheer willpower to stay standing. There is a thunderous dirge before it 'speaks' again this time, but you get the distinct feeling that it has now become agitated, or at the very least annoyed.  Is what it says, although the individual power of each word it forces upon you is not as strong as last time, overall it hits you like a hammer, harder than last - a relentless assault, all inside your head. Whatever this is, it seems to know of folk tales, whether that is better or worse is really up to you. It didn't answer your question, but you get a vague feeling that it gave something akin to a half-answer... maybe? It's still quite hard to think! Its presence has intensified now, and you can no longer freely move, and can barely stand as its will hammers down upon you - frighteningly enough you get the feeling that it isn't focusing particularly upon you, so much as just being callous (although given that you may have irked it somewhat that might change). Your other senses are being heavily hammered as it 'speaks' to you, and behind your clenched eyelids you spot a blinding silver light from without, and when your mind allows you to hear all you can hear is a harsh, shrill sound that almost sounds like the ringing of bells, lots and lots of bells - a very metallic sound. What do you do?
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Oct 21, 2017 22:05
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HP 20/20 | Armor 0 | Load 2/10 | XP 2/8 Sah went to a knee, gripping her head as the entity hammered its will into her mind. She struggled to collect herself. To seize control and reassert her will. She tried to spark a mental conflagration, an inferno of ego to force the interloper from her thoughts. She could dimly feel her legs trying to find purchase beneath her as her fists clenched. Something snapped and her senses went completely haywire, and the only thought that she could manage was, Why do I smell burnt toast? Defy Danger...through mental fortitude: 2d6+1 4
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Oct 22, 2017 01:33
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Sah-Tah-Ish You feel a blindingly strong pain burst through your head. Then you feel the voice again... this time calmer, perhaps more calculating or... mocking?  You feel one final push of their will against yours as you try to force your way through, and then they're gone. The agony has left you thankfully, but something doesn't feel quite right, as you open the eyes, colour has returned to the world but... something's not quite right. You sometimes blink and you're not sure if you saw an afterimage of something or was that you imagining it... Gain the Confused debility. As you begin to take stock of your surroundings, the strange piper sat atop a statue of some scholar, seemingly leading a group of mysterious white-masked dancers in dance in this grand, pillared hall, with two archways to the left and to the right leading off elsewhere, a balcony up behind leading off somewhere upon an upper floor, flanked by two sets of stairs that presumably lead up to it. The ceiling in this room is dominated by some kind of glassy 'skylight'-looking contrivance, but it doesn't seem to show outside as far as you can tell, it currently emits an intense silver glow. However the peace of the scene is broken suddenly, as the flute the hooded, robed figure is playing suddenly begins to glow intensely - the figure stops, and says "What? This isn't supposed to happen!" to himself, the 'flute' made of stone begins shaking in his hands and he tosses it into the air and clings to the statue, the 'flute' exploding in midair with a loud bang and in a burst of silvery light. "Uh... watch out for these things! I'm gonna leave!" he shouts as he rapidly begins climbing up the outstretched arm of the statue. As the music stops the dancers suddenly all stop in unison, then as a group they all turn... and face you. They hiss behind their masks and all rush forward en masse straight for you, drawing myriad silvery weapons from somewhere within their robes. For the moment they are all ignoring the rest of your group and the hooded figure, only going for you. Noticing this the figure shouts "This is probably your fault!" rather helpfully as he continues his climb. What do you do? Vix and Janine D'argent The placid scene is suddenly interrupted dramatically as Sah-Tah-Ish clutches her head and falls to a knee. The instrument the figure is playing suddenly begins to glow intensely - he stops playing, and says "What? This isn't supposed to happen!" to himself, the 'flute' made of stone begins shaking in his hands and he tosses it into the air and clings to the statue, the 'flute' exploding in midair with a loud bang and in a burst of silvery light. "Uh... watch out for these things! I'm gonna leave!" shouts the figure as he rapidly begins climbing up the outstretched arm of the statue. As the music stops the dancers suddenly all stop in unison, then as a group they all turn... and face Sah-Tah-Ish. Hissing behind their masks, they rush forward en masse going straight for Sah, drawing myriad silvery weapons from somewhere in within their robes. For the moment they are ignoring you and focusing entirely on Sah-Tah-Ish, weird. Noticing this, the figure shouts "This is probably your fault!" rather helpfully as he continues his climb. What do you do? Vix You notice that the sussuration that seemingly engulfs this place briefly intensifies as Sah-Tah-Ish drops in pain, and also when the flute starts to behave what is presumably aberrantly
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Oct 22, 2017 02:46
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 6/15 | XP 0/8 | 0 Boon Cool. Great. Dance party. Unimpressed, Vix wanders over to one of the seats and hops up into it. He does little more than shrug at Calliope's disappearance. "Like herding cats," he mumbles, slouching forwards and propping his head up with a hand. Observation was always the best thing to do before coming to a decision. But sometimes people didn't give you enough time to observe. "loving moonies." Vix jumps to his feat, and makes a quick arcane gesture. Sah-Tah-Ish goes invisible and a mirrored image appears a few yards away. It was something that the imp had rehearsed so frequently that it was as reflexive as opening a door. Unfortunately, one tends to become complacent when acting so quickly. He realizes his mistake immediately and tries his best to tunnel an auditory message to her. "Sah, my displacement illusion can't cover your flames, you need to project the flames from the illusion or set it on fire or something quick!" Glamour to Trick the Dancers: 2d6+2 9 They need proof!
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Oct 22, 2017 10:29
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 7/9 | XP 1/8 | Bag of Books 4/5 Calliope pauses, her staff in hand, more than a bit surprised. After taking in her surroundings she clicks her tongue in annoyance. "Great, now I have to go find the others too." But her eye is drawn to the device. Alchemy is something Calliope is quite familiar with, but this device is strange even to her. She glances back at the door, then down below. "I should have time for a quick look..." Rather than take the stairs, though, she hops onto her staff and takes flight, circling the strange device as she descends. She studies it, and the figures working below, trying to make sense of the purpose of it all. Discern Realities: What here is useful or valuable to me? Discern Realities [+WIS]: 2d6+1 8
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Oct 22, 2017 23:52
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"Poor sod." Srmz thinks to himself as he spies the victim of the beast men. Srmz is not one to judge by looks however, the probability of successfully parleying with the cursed once-men into coming to MHCMA as they devour someone seems remote. Perhaps if the all pervasive moonlight is somehow disabled there might be a way to talk these cursed souls into treatment. Maybe wherever that lens atop the chandelier leads will provide solutions. Looking at the position of the balcony he remembers the words of the UN parchment, up is the way to go. He focuses on his conduit channeling the power once more to teleport to the balcony partially to get a better view of the room - in particular to see where chandelier's lens leads and partially to continue making progress vertically. Srmz's conduit hums and for a brief moment the world seems to wibble awhile and comes apart in rippling ribbons , an aeon seems to pass as Srmz goes briefly mad before the universe decides to patch itself back together exactly as it was. Slightly exhausted from the attempt to use his conduit, Srmz takes a moment to catch his breath and blank out what just happened before attempting to channel his conduit to teleport once again. Teleport (Teleport, Hazardous) 2d6+2=6
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Oct 23, 2017 00:50
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HP 20/20 | Armor 0 | Load 2/10 | XP 3/8 | Confused So fragile... It was like a knife slicing cleanly through her mind. She could feel tears threatening to spill at the sound of it, and she was determined not to give this being the satisfaction. Still holding her head, Sah struggled back to her feet. The voice had receded, thankfully, but now the problem had become much more physical. At the sound of Vix's voice, she whipped her gaze around and spotted the illusionary copy. A crude ruse, but old old tricks were the best tricks. She clenched her fist and raised it up, calling forth her fury. Burning Brand: 2d6+2 5  If this had worked I planned on taking the options of near range and removing the dangerous tag and conjure a pillar of flame around the illusion, as if it were throwing up a shield of fire.
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Oct 23, 2017 08:19
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Since Mr. Maltose is currently ill, I'll just relegate Janine to the background until they are feeling better. Get well soon Mr. Maltose! Srmz You focus and try again, trying to undermine the laws of reality that prevent you from instantaneously being somewhere else. Someone once told you, although perhaps that was in the dream... or maybe it was reality? Anyway, someone once told you "space is a delusion"... or was it "illusion"? You come to realise some aspect of this truth that you were once told... as you push too hard. Then there is an almost deafening bang, and you feel a sensation of falling before you find yourself elsewhere. What was once stony halls lit by silvery light has now been replaced by something much darker and harsher. You feel a fell miasma fill your lungs as an ashen wind brushes across you, beneath you lie gleaming plains of obsidian - a green sun sits balefully in the crimson skies as your vision pivots about, there are other things far below you on the ground but right now you don't have much time to examine them - even at a distance - as you are falling, faster and faster - plummeting towards the hard obsidian that lies beneath you. Beginning to spin you notice a silvery hole in the sky, shaped like your silhouette, revealing stony halls lit by silver light - which is rapidly getting farther and farther away from you. Do you recognise where you are? Also what do you do? Calliope Dispatch Hmm. You spend a little time trying to give yourself a good view of the device, circling about upon your broom. Hmm. Moonlight seems to flow in from somewhere above, presumably some sort of light-gathering apparatus or enchantment lies elsewhere, the light is heavily filtered and treated and condensed, causing it to become pure Lunar Energy - this happens in the upper to mid sections of the device. But then the pure Lunar Energy is having some kind of much stranger process applied to it seemingly, using strange materials, weird mirrors, and flows of alchemical reagents being pumped in from different sources scattered about this room, the pipes for them rise up and are attached to the ceiling before they come down again - although you notice that there doesn't appear to be an outlet for these reagents - which presumably must be consumed by this process. But more excitingly all of this leads ever downwards until narrow mouthed end leads down into an ornate flask - crystalline, with precious metals and gems coating it, but with the bulk of the sides transparent to reveal its contents. Then you see it, drip, drip, drip, some form of silvery metal liquid dripping slowly into the flask... and then it clicks in your head, this isn't quicksilver or the like... this is moonsilver. Now that's something you don't see every day... What have you heard about the legendary material known as moonsilver? Your ponderings about such a strange material are drawn to a close quickly as you snap back to reality, noticing that below you the various white-clad figures have stopped, and are all looking up at you... you think, looking down at them you realise they are all wearing white masks of various designs. The much larger, silver-clad figure turns to you immediately after - they are wearing a perfectly smooth mirrored mask - and points at you with a silver-gauntleted hand (two of its other arms grip a silver clipboard, and one lies at its side. "Who are you to sneak into my laboratory? Here to steal secrets, hmm? Here to forge your own pacts? Hmm!?" they demand, their voice having a strange lilt to it. What do you do? Vix Sah-Tah-Ish fades from sight as a duplicate appears nearby at your command, the dancers charge, hissing, at the duplicate - wielding silvery weapons, and the real Sah-Tah-Ish tries to wield her magic... when you feel something. Something strange. There's a burst of flames about the duplicate, yes, an intense pillar of fire surroundings it growing hotter and hotter - going from red hot to white hot quickly... but then you feel something touch your illusion. You realise that it might be some kind of cross-interaction due to the proximity of your magic and hers, but by the time you realise it, it's too late. Sah-Tah-Ish You are graced by invisibility, thanks to the pernicious whims of that imp. Gesturing, you conjure the primordial flames that burn within you. As your throw out your power, forcing into existence pillars of flame surrounding your illusory duplicate, a strange thought crosses your mind. The primordial flames of these are traditionally assumed to be flames of destruction, but their primordial nature also implies that they are flames of creation... although such creations are usually short-lived and burn fiercely... magic has a funny way of acting sometimes, especially when... interacting with other magic... which you suddenly feel. Somehow the flames and the illusion are starting to affect one another, before you can try to cease the flames you realise it's too late - the flame has already severed itself from this instance of your will. Janine D'argent It all happened so fast that you barely got a chance to react at all, the imp lay down some of his illusions, and Sah-Tah-Ish's flames made an appearance, while those masked dancers advanced upon the illusion... but something's happening that doesn't feel right... Vix, Sah-Tah-ish, & Janine Illusions... by their nature they are powered by imagination and perception. The primordial flames are inherently very visceral, whether creative or destructive their reality cannot be denied. But... if one were bleed into the other... or worse, if they were to become fused then who knows what might result. The rising pillar of flames suddenly goes out of control as the flames spiral around in strange patterns before wrapping tightly around and threading heavily through Vix's illusion. The flames.... merge, then there is a strange force thrown out by the former illusion that forms a breeze that ruffles your hair and clothes, and a slightly nauseating feeling with seemingly no immediate cause.. when suddenly the 'illusion' blinks and... turns to you all. The fake-Sah-Tah-Ish grins. "I... live..." it says before conjuring more flames around it, holding the dancers at bay for the moment. "It looks like I have you to thank." it remarks, however your skin crawls at every word it utters, something is profoundly disturbing about this creature, even if visually it looks identical to Sah-Tah-Ish, excluding its demeanour that so far seems rather unlike her. The dancers are being kept at bay by a wall of flame for the moment, but they could become a concern at any moment. For the moment this... simulacrum (how permanent or temporary it is has yet to be seen) is regarding you all coolly, and although it is not certain if it can see through Vix's invisibility glamour that was cast upon the real Sah-Tah-Ish, the way the fake one looks towards the real one implies that it knows that she is there somehow (maybe there is a connection of some sort?). What do you do?
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Oct 27, 2017 22:12
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 7/9 | XP 1/8 | Bag of Books 4/5 Moonsilver! Where quicksilver is an elemental substance of its own and not related to the other material, moonsilver is in fact derived directly from silver. Infused with lunar light via an extremely tedious alchemical process, it becomes a luminous liquid with unusual properties. It is a phenomenal storage medium for thaumaturgic energy, and when excited, becomes cooler rather than hotter. Looking at the device, Calliope isn't sure which purpose it's being put to here - or perhaps both, somehow. Either way, there's far more of it than she's ever seen in one place before. The best silver-to-moonsilver conversion she knows of is less than one part in ten. Calliope stops a bit above her interlocutor - out of reach, but at a height where they won't have to strain their neck to look at her. "Oh, sorry, I'm Sor Calliope Dispatch, of the Invictus Order. I was separated from my, uh, companions and took a wrong turn. That's when I saw your device and I just had to take a closer look. Please forgive the intrusion." She meant to stop there, but curiosity overwhelms here and she continues, "Where did you get so much moonsilver?"
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Oct 30, 2017 03:59
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 6/15 | XP 0->1/8 | 0 Boon "Don't thank me, thank yourself. You did all the hard work there, hotshot." The pun is wholly unapologetic and delivered via finger guns to the simulacrum. "You wanna live longer, you should probably get moving though. Actually, let's all move this a-way. Along the wall." Vix scampers off across the chairs lining the champer. "Just pull them so the tail of the group stays over there. Easy!" Defy Danger with Quick Thinking (INT): 2d6+1 4 pfffttttt or not
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Oct 30, 2017 13:01
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HP 20/20 | Armor 0 | Load 2/10 | XP 3/8 | Confused There was so much wrong with this entire situation. Sah strangled the worrisome thoughts that battered at the edge of her mind and focused on the matter at hand. This was absolutely not the time to wonder at the existential ramifications of her duplicate. Since her flame refused to bend to her will, she'd handle this with muscle power. A glance around proved her companions were faring well enough, all things considered. Spotting Janine, Sah darted to her side and dropped into a defensive stance. "I apologize in advance if things get out of control. The flame heeds me only when it wishes." She cast a darting glance at her doppleganger. She dearly hoped it...she would prove less fickle than the imp. Such magics were not her forte but she knew enough to be wary. Stories held that enchanted beings like this had a propensity to draw upon the uglier aspects of their progenitor. And though she could say little of Vix, Sah certainly had no desire for her darker impulses to be made manifest. <InfiniteSpookiness> You can keep the roll if you're still making one Defending Janine: 2d6+1 11 Hold 3 Shardix fucked around with this message at 03:13 on Oct 31, 2017 |
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Oct 30, 2017 22:04
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Calliope Dispatch "An interloper? Hmph!" remarks the silver-clad figure before it moves the gauntleted hand to within its robes and pulls out a very ornate-looking silver bell. "Not that it should matter to you, but we are refining our own moonsilver, right here, right now." it continues, before it rings the bell. The sound is strange, a weird resonance echoes seems to echo before the bell is rung, and also echoes after it in an almost dreamlike fashion, and then the lighting in the room changes slightly - becoming darker. "I am Giran Tollufael Armanaii. Please leave. This is a secure laboratory and I will not tolerate trespassers here to steal our hard-fought secrets. The wardens have been summoned, so I think it's best that you leave." says the silver-clad figure as they stash the bell away once more into their robes. Just after this happens you start to hear the clicking and heavy footfalls that you heard earlier, echoing alarmingly from behind the door you entered this room, getting louder. Meanwhile, you get a better look at the lower levels of the room and notice that there are two other doors down there, past benches covered in lab equipment and the white-robed (and so far mute) denizens of this chamber, bar the verbose silver-clad one of course. It might be nice to get a good look at this place, 'tis a shame that the wardens are closing in... What do you do? Vix, Sah-tah-Ish, & Janine "I have a better idea." says the simulacrum "I have... somewhere else to be." it continues as it gestures, pulling streams of silvery flame from the sconces on the walls in the chamber, focusing the intense silver flames into a growing aura of impassable flame encircling the faux-Sah-Tah-Ish. "I'd take cover if I were you." it remarks one last time as it suddenly gestures once more, muttering arcane syllables under its breath, the heat in the room growing hotter and hotter and hotter, and the light growing brighter and brighter and brighter. You can't even see the dancers anymore, but they are presumably still somewhere behind the wall of flame that still stands behind the simulacrum, however more troubling now is the growing intensity of whatever spell it is that the fake is casting... but given its warning and how this is building up... you probably don't want to be anywhere near it pretty soon... What do you do? Srmz OOC: Are you there, MinutePirateBug? As you swivel around to get as much of a view of your new surrounds, your heart(s?) beats fast and for you time seems to slow down as you feel that whatever decision you make will have significant ramifications as of your immediate (and long-term) future. What do you do?
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Nov 2, 2017 21:58
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HP 26/26 | Armor 0 | Load 3/10 | XP 1/8 As the air whistles past me, I feel a warm wave of nostalgia wash over me. Something about this reminds me of home, it is strange because nothing here resembles what my home looked like. I let my skeletal and malformed hands play in the wind as the resistance of the air pushes them upwards. I close my many eyes and enjoy the adrenaline coursing through my veins, the tinge of fear and heightened sense of reality that goes along with it. None of this feels particularly real, perhaps this is an illusion or a delusion? Maybe I have removed myself from the tower and traveled elsewhere, because of my strange magics? I don't know. I have traveled far enough away from the tower, that I am just as likely to make back to it from the surface as I would attempting to conjure my magics here in midair. I extend my arms and legs on one side of my body to increase the drag there and swivel my body around so I have a good view of the surface, then begin focusing on my conduit once more. The teleportation magic I use seems to take into the account the relative accelerations of my body as well as the planet otherwise I would have likely found myself suffocating in space a long time ago, hopefully I can direct my magic so I do not slam into the surface with great force. I will myself to move through space to the surface of the obsidian plain. Teleport (Teleport, Hazardous) 2d6+2=7 Complication(s) GM choose one or more The magic flows out from a different part of the body or is a different element The magic has an unintended effect on the enviroment The magic blasts the player backwards
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Nov 2, 2017 22:37
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HP 20/20 | Armor 0 | Load 2/10 | XP 3/8 | Confused Sah watched wide-eyed as her copy effortlessly manipulated the silver flame, molding it to her will. "Wait!" She took a step towards the illusion, unable to help herself. She wanted the secrets this being possessed. Needed them. The fire in her heart was never sated and demanded it be fed. This, however, was not a great time for it. Sah's attention snapped back to the reality of what was happening as the blistering heat washed over her. To her it was like a warm embrace, but soon enough it would boil even her skin and char her bones, and her companions would fare even less well. Throwing her hands forward, Sah-Tah-Ish lent her own voice to the chanting as she willed the flame to bend to her own desires. Zuko Style: 2d6+1 8 As her copy's spell takes form, Sah will bend the flame so it flows away from her and her companions, sparing them a very painful death. The effect will be short-lived, lasting only a moment but hopefully that's all she needs.
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Nov 3, 2017 05:13
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HP 21/21 | Armor 1 | Load 4/15 | XP 0/8 "Not wait. Stop." Janine moves in a short fluid motion, drifting past Sah-Tah-Ish and stretching out her arm. Her firebolt follows through into the motion. It weaves towards the false firemage like a snake and then stops just short. "Bind." At the Justiciar's command the living lightning encircles the silverfire Sah. She makes the third Fulmen gesture and lets loose her gift. The speed of lightning is not speed as such. The stars predict the future because they are the future as much as they are the present. Life became aware of time in the rising and the setting of the sun. The heavens hold dominion over the passing of the hours and as the Sky Justiciar D'Argent holds the authority to revoke that privilege. So long as her blade held the false illusion it would be in Stasis. "I've sealed the falsehood with my Blade, comrades, but it will be occupied entirely in doing so!" Defy Danger (Dex): 2d6+2 10 Janine is Channel Power to Seal the Sah clone, which means it cannot be harmed or take any action so long as her blade is wrapped around it.
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Nov 3, 2017 14:25
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 6/15 | XP 0->1/8 | 0 Boon Vix's already inefficient escape route is narrowed by a wall of flame. "Hey, watch it!" He puts a hand up and dives forwards, stumbling along the chairs as he fails to regain his balance. Though he manages not to get burned thanks to the help of his allies, he faceplants hard. He looks back as he struggles back to his feet in a daze. Vix tries not to think about the fact that he's the only one outside the barrier with the rest of the masked maniacs. Defy Danger (Dex): 2d6+0 8
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Nov 4, 2017 02:15
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 7/9 | XP 1/8 | Bag of Books 4/5 Calliope is sorely tempted to press her luck - all this moonsilver! But she has two missions to resolve already, and being caught by these wardens sounds like a bad idea. Calliope glances at the two doors, then back at the one above her. "Well! To be honest the reason I ended up here is that I can't seem to locate Zafyra ibe Zafyra's lecture. I'd be happy to get out of your way if you could point me in the right direction."
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Nov 6, 2017 00:04
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Srmz You focus your will, and try to muster forth the burst of energies from your Conduit just necessary to overcome the boundaries of space that otherwise would restrain you and get to where you want to go. Unlike the last time... it works, and you find yourself down upon the plain of obsidian your strange form causing the glassy substance to clink as you land gently. However before you get a chance to properly gain your bearings in this new place you there is a sudden discharge of chaotic energy from you into your surroundings. You must have built up an excess of chaotic charge! You suddenly become aware of the ramifications of such a discharge as a crystalline cracking noise echoes about in all directions as the ground shifts beneath you suddenly, and out of the obsidian forms several large tentacles made of obsidian. This isn't ideal at all. Getting the briefest glance about past the rising tendrils you notice some kind of bright white structure a fair distance away to your right, and some kind of reddish series of spires (or maybe trees?) or something along those lines about a similar distance away to your left, and yet above you still remains hanging in the sky is a you-shaped hole leading hopefully back the way you came... or at least somewhere stony, silvery, and brightly lit... Any notions of trying to build up a proper string of thoughts are so rudely interrupted as the tentacles lunge at you. What do you do? Justine, Sah-Tah-Ish, & Vix Sah-Tah-Ish channels her will upon the flames as the room grows hotter and brighter, redirecting them away from the assembled group. Simultaneously Janine whips out her weapon and wraps it around the simulacrum, enforcing stasis upon it, as this happens the copy freezes in place... as do the fiery magics that it was weaving, creating the appearance of a strange, glowing sculpture dominating the hall - a powerful release of fiery energy frozen in time and space. However Vix lies somewhere beyond the field of frozen flame... Vix As you steady yourself up you get a proper opportunity to survey your new surroundings. The fiery nexus (or whatever it is) is peculiar to behold now that is frozen alongside its summoner. Unfortunately your opportunity to examine such a strange contrivance is so rudely interrupted by strange lilting singing. Those things have returned. The six of them advance in unison before suddenly splitting off into two groups that move independent of one-another, one group of three advance upon you step-by-step, one of the masked 'dancers' is wielding some kind of silvery weighted chain implement, whirling it above its head, another is wielding a pair of silvery club-like weapons, and the other of the three is wielding a silvery quarterstaff. While the other three 'dancers', now seek another way around the wall of frozen flame, they make strange gestures in unison and a silvery aura surrounds them, then something strange happens, they... shrink or no wait, they are getting farther away and perspective makes them get smaller and smaller as they disappear into their silvery aura which remains full size for a few seconds after they 'shrink' away before winking out... spatial magic is weird to look at.... But witnessing their escape is a mere distraction from your erstwhile assailants, who wordlessly advance, weapons in hand - willing to do you harm. On the other hand there are several other exits on this side of the wall of frozen flame, the two archways leading to corridors elsewhere in the facility and the two sets of stairs leading up somewhere, going the same direction that that flautist escaped... What do you do? Justine & Sah-Tah-Ish In all the ensuing dramatic moment of your combined efforts... you realise that Vix is missing. That's not a great sign. However before you can really get much of a chance to further evaluate what to do next before there's a sudden silvery shimmering towards the right side of this part of the chamber forming into what might be a portal of silvery energy, and might well be the case because you both see shapes somewhere deep within this portal that suddenly zip in super close and appear in the room, the silvery 'portals' (assuming that's what they were) then wink out and you are now in the presence of... three of those dancers. They pull silvery weapons from the depths of their robes and promptly rush at Sah-Tah-Ish, hissing. Of the three, one is wielding a silvery net, another a silvery barbed whip, and the other a pair of silvery spiked gauntlets. What do you do? Calliope Dispatch Armanall shrugs "The lecture theatres are found in the north wing. Head out that door and follow the Winding Course until you come to the Hall of Reflection, from there either climb the Luminous Steps or go through the Obscured Path, until you get to the Waxing Lobby, then you'll be in the right place. Now leave." is what he says, his tone turning icy, but seemingly more willing to just get rid of you than anything else. Leaving swiftly through the appointed door before the wardens burst in and become a problem, you find yourself in another stretch of silver-lit corridors, looking left and right you notice that... to the left the corridor after a fair distance starts to twist about in a way that looks most unnatural, like a weird trick of perspective... except the corridor to your right doesn't have such a weird look to it. However the corridor to your right does have some kind of a scintillating silvery field of energy humming away blocking it off after a short distance. Otherwise either corridors have numerous silver-fire-lit sconces and doors of stone (inlaid with silver) that line them, but none particularly stand out at a glance, not even the door you just exited. However what you do know is the wardens most likely entered that laboratory that you exited, and are more than likely in hot pursuit, Armanall doesn't seem like that type to want to defend you in any way, so time is somewhat of the essence. What do you do? Infinite Oregano fucked around with this message at 18:00 on Nov 14, 2017 |
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Nov 7, 2017 23:58
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 6/15 | XP 1/8 | 0 Boon "That motherfucker..." The flautist wasn't about to get away with this. Vix looks to the stairs, then to the dancers, then to the archways. The last look was to set up his illusion, of course; the first look was a nothing but a sloppy telegraph of his actual intentions. The imp's mirror image was stacked over his kneeling form before his actual body went invisible. He tries to gain his footing, but stumbles along the smooth marble floor. The dancers close in. He sprints away, shouting as the swinging chain brushes over the hair on his ears. Vix sprints for the archways. Well, his double at least. The actual imp was peeking around the corner of the staircase, micromanaging his illusory self until the pre-programmed run away directive kicked in. Those sort of close calls were only for show, as it was the little things that made it convincing. Such touches separated the scrubs from the old dogs. Vix nods smugly as the dancers make chase down the hallway. Idiots. He proceeds up the staircase rapidly, careful not to produce any audible footsteps. Glamour to Mislead the Dancers: 2d6+2 12 Illusory double leads the enemies away while Vix runs up the staircase to chase after the flautist!
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Nov 9, 2017 11:26
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HP 21/21 | Armor 1 | Load 4/15 | XP 0/8 Janine adjusts her grip, turning to face the new foes. "Sah, I've no weapon while I keep your reflection in repose. Can you handle the enemy alone?" The Amberine takes a calculated look at the silvery forms. She could kill one barehanded, definitely. "I could kill one barehanded, definitely. I doubt I could deal with more than that." Mr. Maltose fucked around with this message at 11:44 on Nov 9, 2017 |
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Nov 9, 2017 11:39
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HP 20/20 | Armor 0 | Load 2/10 | XP 4/8 | Confused Sah glanced at Janine, a look of surprise in her eyes. She didn't know the woman very well and the fact that she was trusting her to handle this was...unexpected. Sah nodded quickly and turned to face their foes before the blush on her face could be noticed. At home, she had been endlessly babied by her superiors, and in this world it had continued with her sisters. Nobody ever expected things of her, dismissing her protests as the words of a petulant child. Nym was the only one who had ever pushed her to excel and voiced disappointment when she fell short of what she was actually capable of. "...Yes ma'am. I've got your back." Sah brought her fists to bear and studied the three dancers carefully. Their movements were difficult to predict, but she saw her chance when the one wearing gauntlets charged in with a vicious uppercut. Sidestepping the blow, Sah spun past her and gave a shove to throw her off balance. Her feet carried her in a dance of their own and brought her face to face with the whip wielder. Lashing out, Sah seized her by the arms and pulled her into a clinch. Shifting her weight, they careened off to the side and Sah took advantage of her enemy being off balance to bodily pick her up and hurl her into the man with the net. Defy Danger...by powering through (+STR): 2d6+1 3 At least, that is what Sah-Tah-Ish was trying to do.
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Nov 9, 2017 15:22
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 7/9 | XP 1/8 | Bag of Books 4/5 Calliope looks back and forth between the corridors. "Winding Course... left it is then!" Calliope decides speed is useful here so stays on her staff, pivoting midair and taking off down the corridor at about the speed of a brisk walk. No sense in going so fast as to crash into something but putting some distance between herself and the wardens seems wise.
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Nov 9, 2017 16:33
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HP 26/26 | Armor 0 | Load 3/10 | XP 1/8 "Sorry about that!" Srmz blurts out before refocusing to teleport away from the obsidian tentacles towards the reddish spires. As Srmz does so great fatty mounds of flesh sloughs off from Srmz's body, leaving behind goblets of tooth and hair encrusted lipid rich flesh on the ground which rapidly fester and erupt into a stinging biting mass of wasps and flies. Teleport (Teleport, Hazardous) 2d6+2=10 MinutePirateBug fucked around with this message at 16:17 on Nov 13, 2017 |
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Nov 13, 2017 16:10
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Vix The dancers make chase for your illusory double, and you make chase for the mysterious flautist, whoever they are. So up the stairs you go. As you might have expected the stairs do indeed lead up to a mezzanine with the balcony overlooking the chamber before, with its frozen-fire-statue where the rest of your remaining allies are behind currently (at least that's where they were last you had seen them), and another series of steps leading up to the next floor proper. Nowhere else to go but up then. You follow the corridors, still lit by sconces holding silvery fire, the corridor twists and turns and you notice several doors as you pass but they all seem locked (for now) but none seem right either.... then you step through the next archway and find yourself on a large mezzanine overlooking a huge hall or chamber, much bigger than the one you had just left. This hall is very very tall, although it is still significantly lit by the burning sconces as before, it needs it less because there is a huge, strangely shaped and pocked rock dominating the centre of the room. It stands up at least up to three-quarters of the height of this chamber, seemingly reaching towards a large skylight that is the source of an ethereal glow shining down upon the room, lighting up the rock. Although it seems the rock itself is glowing, strange. There is a mezzanine (that you are standing upon) encircling this chamber, and from here you can see several doors leading off elsewhere, but the rock and the mezzanine itself obscures if there are any exits down on the floor below - but there are several sets of steps leading down from the mezzaine to the floor below. However your gazing around this large chamber is interrupted as you notice that you're not alone, there is a significant number of bestial-looking humanoids milling around down there, seemingly not doing much beyond that, however one larger one with silver fur is standing nearest the huge rock, although it is standing outside of direct exposure to the moonlight cascading from above for some reason. At a glance you can't see your mark but they're presumably around here somewhere, but you'd probably notice if they'd been torn apart by the bestial creatures down there, at least. At least they seemingly haven't noticed you yet. As you entered the chamber you noticed that the ethereal whispers of the spirits has suddenly grown much stronger, for whatever reason. What do you do? Sah-Tah-Ish Just as you are ready to pounce and show these weirdos what-for, you feel a sudden twinge in your leg muscles (possibly brought about by lingering effects of that contact earlier) and your coordination goes off entirely, then the silvery barbed whip lashes out and wraps around your leg, stopping you from being able to dodging a heavy punch launched by the one wielding the spiked gauntlets, slamming into the side of your face and knocking you off your feet, then the one with the net throws it atop you wrapping you up as you are trying to recover from the blow. Damage (1 Piercing): 1d8+2 6 Take 6 damage (1 piercing). As you are trying to recover, all three of them thereabouts pounce on you, all three grabbing you (the one with the net chiefly holding onto the net but trying to secure the weights to make it easier to manage), and begin trying to drag you off, although they do not seem to be overwhelmingly strong they seem to move with an eerie grace and moreover do so in unison, not hesitating for a moment before they start to try to move you... somewhere. Together however their grasp is firm and tough to resist. What do you do? Janine Marie D'argent Sah-Tah-Ish looked like she had it together but one misstep has ended with her being knocked to the ground, netted, and has been grabbed by the three dancers. They seem to be trying to drag her off somewhere, and they are (for the moment) ignoring you entirely, for some reason. What do you do? Calliope Dispatch You rapidly head away down the Winding Course, which is quite interesting to fly down because you feel the gravity rapidly shift and twist around as you do so, seemingly following the 'floor' of the corridors, creating quite the interesting visual. Occasionally there are doors and other corridors visible off to your left and right, but following the directions is probably the better idea for now. After a few minutes of spiralling through this strange corridor your path stabilises and dramatically opens up, revealing another section of this place. This chamber is even brighter than the silver intensity that otherwise bathes this place, as although this hall is much grander than the corridors you've been moving through - it is dominated by a weird silvery... thing? It's hard to describe, but what appears to be a silvery liquid metal is floating about in the air, flowing about in discrete complex patterns forming spirals and other various shapes as a part of one singular current. An array of sorts, perhaps? Beyond this the walls are lined heavily by brilliant shining mirrors that all appear to be larger than you, although not remotely as big as the weird silvery array dominating the chamber. At a glance you cannot see any other exits from this chamber. You do note as the scintillating lights play across the chamber that there are several figures standing below the array near the centre of the room, clad in white robes and masks, and seemingly staring transfixed at the strange thing, they have yet to notice you. What do you do? Srmz You slough away from the assembled appendages - seemingly created by your judicious use of chaos magic - towards the reddish spires. With a moment to catch your breath you get a more significant look about your surroundings, the twitching obsidian tendrils still waving about near the chaotic mess you left behind. But beyond this the spires themselves appear to in fact be towers... of a sort. Lurid looking things, deep spiral patterns move up the sides of the towers, at the bottom of each of them appear to be heavily ornamented doors, and atop each of them appears a crown of spikes, and just below which each of them possess a large open window - with a large coloured flame burning in each of them - though each tower has a different coloured flame burning within. Green, orange, blue, red, purple, gold, silver, and black, are each of the colours in turn. Beyond this you notice that the white structure appears to be an eerie-looking castle or fortress of some kind, vaguely resembling the sort of thing you'd seen more classically during the war (rather than warped horrifically) but its towers, walls, and parapets all seem off in someway, as though sculpted by a madman, and a pale white - like bone or alabaster. Beyond this the strange landscape you find yourself upon, lit from above by a baleful green sun, is otherwise marked out by the rise of oddly angular mountains (or mountain-like protuberances) the seem to surround this obsidian plain. Of course lest we forget, the ugly you-shaped silvery scar sits stuck in the sky, purplish clouds drifting about behind it in a reddish sky. What do you do?
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Nov 15, 2017 21:08
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HP 21/21 | Armor 1 | Load 4/15 | XP 0/8 "Stay put." Janine released her grip on her lightning, leaving it in place while she confronted the current issue. Sah had erred? Or was there some malus these silver dancers inflicted that was obscured from her senses? The matter was philosophical. Sah-Tah-Ish had been assaulted and captured. Sah, her teammate. This was a matter to be rectified swiftly and with maximal prejudice. They were ignoring the justiciar entirely. Perhaps this was in relation to Sah's doppelganger and the general silver fire aesthetic that was going on here? Another question philosophic opposed to practical. The practical question was which Dancer to end first. The one with the net was most sensible. Release Sah, who was better equipped to handle these things, as quickly as possible. D'argent had never regretted the path of her life, but it would have been very handy now to have been an initiate of the sea instead of the sky. The Abzu Legion had no blades or pacts but made their own bodies into living weapons. The Fulmen were lessened without the Living Lightning. The element of surprise would hopefully be a sufficient equalizer. She let out no warcry, made no expression of intent. Janine just broke into a mad sprint. This mad sprint became a wild leap. The wild leap became a double booted kick into the dancer. There was no defense here, only a hopefully overwhelming offense. Hack and Slash: 2d6-1 10 Damage: 1d8+1d6 7
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Nov 16, 2017 08:56
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 6/15 | XP 1/8 | 0 Boon The imp looks back, frowning. "Fantastic, already lost everyone. Hope they can take care of themselves for a bit." He grumbles. With nobody around, there was no need to try and hide his concern for the others. "And now I'm lost." Well, there's only one thing to do when you're lost: ask for directions. Vix sheds his invisibility and leans over the railing. Illusory sound projection did well to transmit his voice without forcing him to yell rudely in a big, echo prone chamber. "Hey, how's it doin'? Up here." He gives them a friendly wave as he gets their attention. Numerous eyes shine back in the reflected moonlight. "Name's Vix. Baron of Belphagor. Sorry to bother ya, but I got something to ask: can someone give me directions out of here? Just trying to herd a bunch of self-righteous nerds out of here and stop 'em from tearing the place up. And also, if any of you seen a guy who looks like this:" He projects a best-remembered image of the flutist to them. The massive hologram rotates slowly above the crowd. "Mind letting me know which way he went? Thanks." Using Fae Tongue to talk to the beasties and try to listen to the whispers while I'm at it.
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Nov 16, 2017 11:20
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HP 14/20 | Armor 0 | Load 2/10 | XP 4/8 | Confused Sah could taste blood after the blow to the face, but that was nothing compared to the injuries her pride had suffered. Like hell she would be carted off like a trophy. She had not survived the War just to endure this kind of indignity at the hands of these execrable worms. As the dancers began dragging her off, she whipped her body about and planted the heel of her boots into the floor for leverage and yanked backwards with all her might. As she did so, she saw Janine come in from above with a crushing drop kick and Sah could not help but grin in a mix of delight and savage bloodlust. Her mother had endeavored to teach her child refinement, but her father's blood roared in glee at the sight of her foes being run down like dogs. Now, if only she could escape and join the fray. Defy Danger...by powering through (+STR): 2d6+1 12
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Nov 17, 2017 02:50
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HP 16/16 | Armor 1 | Load 7/9 | XP 1/8 | Bag of Books 4/5 Calliope looks up at the strange thing, frowns, then looks at the figures. She floats over to them. "Excuse me, but I'm looking for Zafyra ibe Zafyra's lecture, and I was told to take the Winding Course to the Hall of Reflection. I assume this is the place, but how do I get to the the Luminous Steps or the Obscured Path. And is that an array of some kind up there?"
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Nov 17, 2017 16:02
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Janine Your overwhelming aggression has met with some success! Perhaps against a hardier opponent or one who was better armoured this might not have worked, but against this target it certainly did. Your double-booted kick lands heavily upon them and you hear a loud snap come from them before they crumple into a heap, relinquishing their hold upon their net. You land on the floor (and upon their fallen body) heavily, however you've lost your balance entirely and the sheer exertion from that has winded a little. This is more pressing because one of the two remaining dancers (the one with the whip) turns, and pulls back their whip and lashes out at your supine form. Take -1 Forward from being all winded and unbalanced. What do you do? Vix As you gain the attention of the assembled bestial creatures the group mostly turns to face you, and a significant number begin to slowly advance closer - to get a better look at you (or to better catch your scent), the mass turns around again to face your hologram for a few moments before they turn back to you, again slowly creeping closer - unsure as to how to treat you - when they begin to speak, in a way that only you can understand. It is within hushed tones and although they do not speak in unison, you get a rough chorus of growled voices out of them "Do not know this... prey. Looks like others... would have chased..." is roughly what you get out of them. As you are talking to the group (which is creeping ever closer), you notice that the silver-furred one at the back has by now slumped down to its haunches and is gazing towards the ground, unlike the rest of the horde who by now are either looking at you or your hologram. Meanwhile, the spirits around you speak once more their whispers entering into the realm of discernible to you. "You found it! The Lunari! The rock is theirs and theirs is the rock! It comes from their home! Send it back and they go with it, back to being only in the moonlight!" As you hear this the huge moon-rock seems to twinkle in an almost imperceptible fashion, and then you hear more voices... different voices. "Who steps upon our domain? Do you seek contact with our mistress? What might you desire to venture this far?" they say, their voices... strange, like a chorus of chimes, but never quite in focus. All the while the beastly horde creeps ever closer, occasionally stopping to look attentively towards you to see what else you might have to say... What do you do? Sah-Tah-Ish You force the net off of you and manage to force the one of the dancers that were still holding into you off of you, causing them to stumble back a fair distance before they can reorient themselves and regain their balance, allowing you to rise to your feet and achieve an appropriate fighting stance. In response the assailant you just threw off rushes at you with silvery spiked gauntlets! What do you do? Calliope Dispatch The group all turn to you... in unison. They are each wearing white masks, somewhat akin to the ones you saw in the laboratory, but something seems... off about these ones. For one there are no eye-holes in their masks and there's a very slight glow emanating from somewhere beneath their robes, almost imperceptible amidst this intense silver-lit place. "Do you seek wisdom?" inquires one "Perhaps enlightenment?" asks another "Climb the Luminous Steps if that is what you seek... the light will embrace you and show you the way.." a third one pips in. Each of their voices are... oddly similar, and also eerie, striking a high pitch with a soft almost-musical tone to it. After they finish the entire group in unison gesture towards a particular mirror, or possibly given their direction a portal of some kind "Step through the mirror and the Luminous Steps will be upon you." is what a fourth one says... not mentioning the array at all, assuming that's what it is. What do you do?
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Nov 19, 2017 21:57
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HP 14/20 | Armor 0 | Load 2/10 | XP 4/8 | Confused  Sah sized her opponent up, sparing a side glance to Janine. They could handle this. They were not going to fall here. As the gauntlet wielding dancer lunged forward, her training took over. Ducking under the punch, she grabbed the arm and shifted her weight, hurling the man over her shoulder and knocking the wind from him. As he scrambled to rise to his feet, she brought her leg up and brought it down on his head in a brutal axe kick. Hack and Slash: 2d6+1 9 Damage: 1d8 5
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Nov 20, 2017 09:00
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