Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

Yes

4 (14.3%)

No

1 (3.6%)

It was fun for a long time but towards the end it just started to drag

6 (21.4%)

I wish I could have joined in.

17 (60.7%)

Total Members Voted: 28

[Gizogin]

[I think Corai's still at his kobold camp or whatever.]

X was sitting in the back of the tank, the doors sealed.  Half of his face was sitting in front of him, disassembled.  He'd stripped out the mechanical parts to be replaced, and hammered out the dent in the framework.  Right now, he was cannibalizing some of his old, obsolete equipment for tubes and valves.  Soon he'd have his face back to normal, but if anyone saw him with half his face missing, there'd be a riot.  Possibly a witch-burning too. 

Ten minutes later, X's face was as good as new.  He'd reattached it, and now there was no sign it had ever been damaged.  He opened the back door of the tank and went to find Gizogin.

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

[On the subject of Gizogin tests, I'd probably want to go see him or Wierd about the "how I shoot fire" problem soon.]

There is the dragon general, but that may seem like a cop-out.

[WillowLuman]

[@Z I've just had an amusing scene in mind]

[@Gizogin Again, it doesn't mess directly with our thought processes; it affects the input, not the output.]

[Reudh]

Reudh quietly cursed once Wierd was out of earshot.

He's on to us, already. Should I tell him? You must know how dangerous wierd can be if he's worried or suspicious.

That's smart of you, Reudh. I cannot offer an opinion; only that I do not know what Wierd's reaction would be. I shall attempt to feed on you, but as I mentioned before, float the idea of me feeding upon the livestock, if/when the fort gets any. In the meantime, start eating that hen-of-the-woods.

And so he did. He took the generous slice Wierd had given him, and started biting into it. It was rather chewy, as all polypore mushrooms tend to be; but not foul. Definitely different from the plump helmets back home, but equally as delicious in its own right.


There was something about the hen-of-the-woods that was different to most of the standard dwarven mushrooms- a lovely clean and happy feeling, presumably because of the deluge of protein and other nutrients.

Dinnertime.

And Reudh felt another curious sensation; the world dimmed ever so slightly for about a half-second, while he felt his mood and general well being diminish to its normal level. Archie must be feeding.


Back in the fort, Kenozi was having a strange time.

An odd feeling kept coming and going. He could not feel much, only that every now and again he got a feeling of pressure, that lasted for a few seconds at a time and left again.

It probably was nothing. Maybe his body was having trouble with the shape of the eyes; in humans, he had heard, that was called a "migraine".

He left to find Reudh, who was outside with his harvest, consuming what appeared to be at a distance, half of a sheep's head.

"Hello Reudh. Are you alright?"

Kenozi would probably feel this, Reudh. It is safe to tell him.

"I... ah. I... yes. I'm fine."

Should we though? I don't want to make him fear us.

It is your choice. I am content for the moment.

"Reudh, may I?" said Kenozi, as he motioned to take a small slice of the hen-of-the-woods.

"I... Yes. Take some... You have to be healthy."

Kenozi was a little taken aback. Reudh didn't usually behave so oddly. In between bites of the chewy mushroom, he asked Reudh a question.

"Are you alright? You can tell me. I am your friend."

Reudh seemed to totter and waver between telling and not telling; but then it all came out.

"Kenozi... You of course know my amazing skill with stone and masonry, do you not?"

Kenozi nodded quietly.

"When I was a little younger, perhaps twenty years ago, I found an ancient book. I had been looking around for ways to improve my frankly-quite-poor stoneworking skills, and in my mountainhome it was a profession in desperate need of new workers. I found it stored deep in our King's library, deep in the restricted section, bound with leather ropes. It was labeled the 'Architectinomicron' and I had found my prize. I had carried around a stone I had crudely sharpened myself; and with a lot of sawing I freed the grimoire from its leather shackles."

"Go on."

"I took it to my room. I read it. And suddenly I could shape stone into anything I wanted with naught but a thought and a bit of elbow grease. And it would function exactly like what it looked like."

"Ah, so that's how my eyes work. You made them look like eyes, and so they are eyes. Interesting. But why was it sealed away?"

Why was I sealed away? Archie said inside Reudh's mind. I don't know. The first memory I have is crafting a little statue for you, hours after you discovered my grimoire.

"I assume, Kenozi, that it was sealed away because it was dangerous in some way. It's never affected me. But anyway, getting back on track- slowly, there has been another entity in my mind growing. It is a manifestation of the Architectinomicron; or Archie for short. It powers my stoneworking with its own force; the payment it requires is life force."

Kenozi shuddered.
"So, every time you use this power, you shorten your lifespan? I urge you, my friend, do not overuse this power."

Reudh shook his head. "Not so, Kenozi. Archie feeds by consuming life force. He (though I am not sure Archie has a gender, in my head it sounds like a he) has bound himself in an agreement; he will limit himself to feeding on 'only that which overflows'. He will never consume all of the life of anyone close to me; but he warns that he may grow desperate if left unfed for too long."

"How long is too long?"

Archie, how long is too long?

An interesting nickname. I shall keep it. As for too long, somewhere within the realm of six to eight months without a feed, I would grow desperate.

"He says about six to eight months. The way he feeds is if I'm feeling very healthy, for whatever reason- that is, my life force is thrumming at 110% strength, he will siphon off a bit to sate himself. This hen-of-the-woods is enough to sate him for a few weeks alone."

Oddly, Kenozi was not taken aback. Most people would dismiss Reudh as having gone mad, but Kenozi refused to believe it.

"Can Archie touch other minds?"

"I do not know."

Yes, Reudh. I can touch other minds, but only with their express permission.

Reudh shifted a little bit. "Kenozi, he says he can touch other minds but only with their express permission. All he can do is speak to you."

Hesitating, Kenozi looked a bit sheepish before saying "I give Archie the ability to touch my mind and speak to me so long as I give this permission. I may take it away at any time."

Interesting, I have never seen the inside of an elven mind before.

Kenozi went rigid as he felt the alien touch of Archie on his mind.
You had best not harm my friend, demon.

Do not worry, Kenoziathe-Zikelid. I will not harm any member of this fortress so long as I am well fed; and to keep me well fed all one needs to do is be happy and healthy. I will not feed off you until you function at above one-hundred percent health; at the moment, I can see your life force is sitting steady at about 95% strength. To show you my good will, I will do this for you.

And Kenozi felt his stone eyes spark slightly, not painfully, but enough that he knew they sparked; and they very slightly expanded to fill his eye sockets correctly.

There. Your eyes will not ever cause a migraine.

I thank you. Kenozi thought rather stiffly. Do not think this changes anything. I will protect Reudh from you however I can.

Kenoziathe, I will never harm Reudh. I will NEVER HARM REUDH. He is my host. If Reudh is harmed, so am I.

mind-Kenozi shifted uneasily in the enormous forest of his mind.

Very well, Archie. Out you go; I retract my permission until I say I give it back. Goodbye.

And with a whoosh, or so it sounded to mind-Kenozi, Archie's presence completely disappeared and the world in his mind brightened a bit again.

"Reudh, I do not like Archie. I am sure he is up to something."

Reudh nodded. "Kenozi, I understand your feelings. I think, however, that I owe Archie at least something for his years of service, and while he feels neither evil nor good, I think Archie is not going to try anything so long as I keep him fed, which involves us all being in robust healthy. He bound himself to be unable to sup at any less than normal life force levels, except against animals. He seems to care."

Kenozi looked away.

"There was something there in his touch, I swear it. Not unlike when Thari touched my mind. Different, but the same. I feel it is dark magic."

Darkness is not evil, Kenozi. I know that now.

And with that, Reudh finished off the last of his slice of hen-of-the-woods, then began packing the good berries into his basket. Kenozi left, back to his room, still feeling not-so-pleased. He would find someone who he could trust with this information.

"Perhaps," he thought, "perhaps Wierd, Hugo or Gizogin, or even X may be able to shed light on this strange entity."

[Gizogin]

[@Gizogin Again, it doesn't mess directly with our thought processes; it affects the input, not the output.]

[Okay, I fixed it.  X needs to see Gizogin anyway.  Also, since X is wholly of the DF world, it's possible that he's more susceptible to influence, or whatever.]

[Reudh]

Kenozi walked through the fort. He had to find any of the forumites who would know who or what Archie was, and whether he warranted being kept. The idea of slaying beasts by instantly draining their life force; however repulsive eating meat was, at least the animal did not suffer for more than a second or so.

But that aside, Kenozi continued walk with a purpose. He had to find Wierd, or Gizogin, or X, or any of the forumites who had any knowledge of magic and darkness, even if they had no magic of their own.

[I've decided against Kenozi becoming a thrall to Reudh. Too boring. Additionally, who else besides Wierd would be likely to detect the presence of Archie? I know X would, but Reudh and X don't tend to cross paths very much.]

[As for the female problem, that being only Indilwen, Lana and the female dwarf peasant are female in the entire fort, besides perhaps some of the other peasants... I suppose I could introduce the female peasant, and we've established that interbreeding is possible (Indilwen + Saurinae, old Pervert King + kobold x 50, koboldwelf egg) - however repulsive the human would find the dwarf it would be possible. Lana is too dangerous to be trusted by anyone at the moment though, let alone romanced... Wierd would make a good match for her. ]

[Gizogin would not be able to detect the presence of Archie unless Archie directly contacted him, I know this; but X as a robot-human simulacra with magic, would feel it near instantly, especially when Archie attempted to feed. I look forward to Archie trying to contact or feed upon X and finding nothing available... though this probably won't occur for a few weeks at least.]

[Oliolli]

"A caster. Are you certain?"
"Was scorched. Or was that question rhetoric?"
"If they have a caster, our job may be... difficult."
Horrigan buried his face in his hands and mumbled for a moment, gathering his thoughts, brainstorming. Once he looked up again, he was silent for a moment before speaking again.
"Spell immunity. There are too many ways an imaginitive caster can kill a person, some only stoppable by complete immunity."
"Possible?"
"In theory, I think."
Horrigan let out a long sigh.
"I'll have to ask the... caster about it."
As he said the word, he almost seemed to shiver, and based on his facial expression, he hated that word, or person, with every bit of his being. An expression of sheer disgust.
"Or, if I'm lucky, the people at the fort will have already invented it, and once our infiltrators reach the place, they can report about it. Now... I have... people... to see."
With that, Horrigan raised the trap door in the floor and disappeared into the dark staircase.

[Eric Blank]

[Went to get blackberries. So many delicious berries! But the thorns! But there will be delicious pie... So I feel better!

There were no wasps visible. We could hear lots of buzzing on the other side of the bramble, though, so maybe they're getting so fat over there that they haven't bothered with the side nearer the road. The entire bramble was about 20 meters/yards long and could easily be 5-6 wide at most, and about 8 feet tall. There were ants. I stood right on a sugar ant mound, but luckily they didn't crawl up my legs because I sprayed my ankles with insect repellent and wore thick boots and jeans. So many freaking berries, though. I doubt there'd ever be a berry famine without a serious water shortage. This valley is full of them to the point a lot of people make an effort to get rid of them.]

[Now why would we be experiencing a shortage of women? There's clearly some dwarven women around. Although they're a bit hairy.]

[wierd]

[That was my point exactly. They act exactly the same as the men, because dwarf culture does not foster sexual inequality, nor does it have noteworthy sexual dimorphism. That means female dwarves are every bit as............robust...........as male ones, and will work any job that takes their fancy, including martial and blacksmithing. Likewise, male nurses are comonplace.  Determining gender may prove difficult without sounding perverted in conversation though. The lack of dimorphism means you can't count on body shape as a clue. It may explain the dwarven fettishism for big beards though. If the females don't grow them, then having one clearly identifies your gender. As such, "shaving" would be considered about on par as being a female impersonator is in our cultures. Might explain why X, with his permasmooth babyface is "disliked" as a nurse. Given that we have been in their world for several months cumulative time (both forts), it is fair to say we are sporting more than just a little stubble by now ourselves.]

[I have been contemplating how to incorporate such themes, since one of my characters (Rikod, the ceramicist) is both a champion competition beer drinker, and a total rake. (Essentially, a male whore). He really likes women, and is coarse enough to celebrate baving booze again in imaginative, colorful, and boistrous ways. The potential for hilarity is large.]

[WillowLuman]

[Raws indicate that females do not, in fact, have beards.]
[Wait, didn't Kenozi have stone eyes in the first place, and Reudh just made them functional?]

HugoLuman approached Eric. "We need to talk," he said.

"This about that tower again? I thought you told me about it yesterday."

"Sort of... but we need to talk. All of us, I mean. Private meeting, as soon as possible."

[Eric Blank]

"Alright. Where? I can get out of here soon." Eric paused for a second, and realized there was a dragon in the stockpiles with him. Behind a barricade nearly impossible for his chubby companions and him to get through, let alone a dragon. "How did you get your fat ass through the rubble!?"

The pile of trash covering the entrance was now spread out haphazardly across the floor in the stockpiles. Apparently, he'd walked through it without giving a single fuck, or making any obscene level of noise. Even the rubble that had occupied the floor above and threatened to fall on them was now strewn out amongst the other rubble on the ground inside the room.

"Ok... Well, we'll have access to the food stockpiles in short order. I hope."

[Gizogin]

[Sorry I haven't been as active today.  I just got LoZ:OoT 3D yesterday, and it's been sucking up all my free time.  That water temple...]

[What's this private meeting about?  Who's invited?]

[WillowLuman]

[All forumites. And Reudh (being a dwarf from within this universe). Anyone unusual except Jerry.]

[Eric Blank]

[What did Jerry do to get left out? ]

[wierd]

[Oot water temple speedrun still takes a half hour. I know, I've done it. Play ocarina.. water drops. Beat shit up. Bang switches. Play ocarina. Water rises. Beat more shit up. Open treasureboxes. Play ocarina again. Water rises..... ..... ...... get to the gian hyrda boss thing. Beat it up. Done. Half hour. Minimum. Its more iritating than the desert temple. Fire arrows and dins fire are handy. You can get both long before the water temple. I suggest getting them for great justice. You need bombs, and the bow. Bomb the wall in child-link's version of hyrule castle grounds just passed the gate. Dins fire is inside. You need it for the shadow temple anyway. Go to lake hylia as an adult, walk over the bridge behind the hermit's house, stand in front of the stone plinth, shoot the sun. Fire arrows from heaven! Yay! Swim over and get them. They kill kektites and other water creatures in a snap.  Suggest getting the real biggoron sword too. Dark link is a whore in water temple. Biggoron sword or hammer him to death.]

[You don't want to know how long it took me to beat the water temple the first time.]

[Back on topic, weird is busy demonstrating the beer making potential of his haul to the brewers. Basically, you skin the roots, smash em up in a quern, agitate in water, and all the starch falls right out. Scoop out the cellulose fiber, and you have carbs for making beer. For the locust bean pods, fillet them down the middle, lay the open, pick out the seeds, and scoop out the pulp with a spoon. Whip it in some water and strain through a cloth, then allow to crystallize. You can get raw suagr out of them that way. Suitable for making rum. Combine the two for a fortified alcohol content sweet tasting gut rot.]