At the shrieking ship of Shriekpot...
Niklas, hearing that the creatures are indeed made of meat, if possessing a thick outer shell, is utterly undaunted, as is his prerogative.
"Well, then. You guys," he says, pointing at the minions. "Come with me and you can kill stuff and I can get exotic meat for my next dish!"
Morton, on the contrary, is quite daunted indeed.
"B-but I'm not good at fighting, you saw with the bear," Morton says, pointing at the superficial bear claw marks on his chest. "A-and these things eat metal, w-what are we going to use to fight them?"
"We get the mages to enchant our weapons, of course! What else are they there for, beyond flooding villages with crabs?"
"W-well, if you think its possible. I-I'll aid you how I can then."
"Excellent! Nothing like hunting a new type of meat to brighten up a day."
"Not to burst yer bubble, but we aren't enchanters. Though I can turn yer weapons into some other material if ya want to."
Hm. Why are mages of such dubious usefulness? Oh well. Guess Niklas needs reinforcements for this to work. With this in mind, he tries to wake up the cat.
He comes to the conclusion that it's likely to be out for quite some time. Damn it! How is he going to defeat the things below now?
At the enchanted ship of Shriekpot...
Scott, seeing the captain, takes the initiative!
"Hello, I'm sure you remember me, right? You gave me a promissory note."
The captain smiles and nods.
"Indeed I did, good sir. These are the passengers, I take it?"
"Yes - this is my master, the Artiste."
"Pleased to meet you."
"Likewise, friend."
"And the rest are Bernie, Art and... um..."
"Mark and-"
Suddenly, Sigmund steps forward and takes a bow.
"Sigmund GrimDrake at your service, captain."
The captain bows in return, still smiling amiably.
"Pleased to meet you all. I am Captain Roderick Fredericksen."
"So, captain, what can you tell us of this ship?"
"Oh, it's an amazing vessel to be sure. Fast beyond belief. I've got space for 12 more people on it, and spaces go fast at my rates."
"Remind me, what were the rates?"
"30 copper coins per person, 15 if the destination you suggest is sufficiently exciting."
"That's a very good price. How can you afford it?"
"Oh, I have magical food replicators on the ship. They turn water into food, pretty amazing."
"Would the Sea of Death count as an exciting destination?"
"Well, I sail it regularly. Not sure how exciting it would be, to be honest. With my ship, it's rather simple to cross the deadliest of seas. Particularly when you adjust the altitude a bit."
"Horizon Isle?"
"I've been there, to be honest. It's not as amazing as you'd think. So I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask for the full price."
"What about the City of Dreams?"
"Eh. Underwhelming. I've crossed dimensions far more perilous with this thing. So, 30 copper coins per person?"
"There's 11 of us. I've got 6 gold coins and 7 copper coins on me. What about you guys?"
"I've got zilch."
"I've got only a few coppers, to be honest. Maybe Erin and Evelyn have got money? Somebody should go back and ask them."
"Yeah, they kinda shared treasurer duties for our little band."
As the talky people do their talky business, Mark looks for some kind of halberd around here.
Fortunately for him, there's a weapon shop right here. Sweet! It even seems to be having a sale at the moment, presumably on account of the high-shipping season beginning.
In the streets of Emlocke...
Darren tries to continue to provide support for the man!
[Darren telekinesis roll: 3]
The woman is still slowed a little bit! Success!
[Touch Attack: Whip Man vs. Armored Lady: 1+1 vs. 3-1]
The man runs in a circle around the lady as the dog sets itself up for another bark!
[Master magic roll: 5+1]
And barking is exactly what it does, creating a massive blast that hits the woman head-on!
[Armored Lady endurance roll: 3+1-1]
[Whip Man endurance roll: 4+1]
The man shrugs off the effects of the blast while the lady becomes slightly unsteady on her feet!
[Darren telekinesis roll: 6]
It is at this moment that Darren takes the opportunity to lift her off her feet, locking her joints in place and beginning to crush her with her own half-melted armor! The man takes this opportunity to walk up to the woman and put something up to her head.
[Armored Lady endurance roll: 3+1]
Her helmet begins to change and alter itself, its structure changing until it resembles a strange mesh of tiny cubes, just like the man's arm. She yells out as something bad evidently begins to happen. The dog opts to stand and watch rather than bark at this juncture.
[Armored Lady endurance roll: 4+1]
The cubes spread along her armor, but she seems mostly unaffected otherwise. The man draws back the cube and takes a few steps back.
[Master magic roll: 5+1]
As he does this, the dog resumes its barking, blasting the woman yet again!
[Armored Lady endurance roll: 4+1-1]
Hm. She doesn't seem to have particularly been affected. Dang. Though her melted and twisted armor does look to have become rather uncomfortable to wear.
Author
Topic: Life Begins At Death - Epilogue: We Live And Live Again (Read 561870 times)