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Author Topic: Life Begins At Death - Epilogue: We Live And Live Again  (Read 562005 times)

miauw62

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9855 on: June 30, 2014, 04:11:54 am »

What happened to our old (demonically enhanced) bodies? Is there a chance to get them back?
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Quote from: NW_Kohaku
they wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the raving confessions of a mass murdering cannibal from a recipe to bake a pie.
Knowing Belgium, everyone will vote for themselves out of mistrust for anyone else, and some kind of weird direct democracy coalition will need to be formed from 11 million or so individuals.

Yoink

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9856 on: July 06, 2014, 12:16:02 pm »

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

"Oh, oh, 'course I try!" Timothy insisted, bobbing up and down around his new friend excitedly. He was going to be helpful at last!
"I real-big helpfuls. You's real nice to me afta alls. Dunno what a 'kill-kit' thingy is, but. He say something with 'map', right? Maps is fun!"
A small complication occurred to the ghost, and he cocked his head thoughtfully. "Ummm... what's you want I to do, 'zackly?"
All his previous worries were forgotten for now, so happy he was to have found some purpose in un-life.

>Happily agree to help out my new friends!
...And then request clarification as to just what they want me to do.

Timothy had just one question on his mind.
"Where is dis an-molly thing?" He stared at Lenny with wide, eager eyes, not overly worried by his grim words. He was pretty good at getting out of trouble, after all! Especially real-bad trouble. These living types tended to make a big fuss over things that didn't worry you too much once you'd got over, well, being alive. Really changed one's outlook on life, that.

>Ask just where the "anomaly" is!

Spoiler: OOC (click to show/hide)
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Booze is Life for Yoink

To deprive him of Drink is to steal divinity from God.
you need to reconsider your life
If there's any cause worth dying for, it's memes.

Harry Baldman

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9857 on: July 12, 2014, 08:47:02 am »

In the underground depths filled with gnomish darkness...

Kevin decides to try and find a hard place to complement this beautiful rock he seems to have blundered into through no fault of his own, and finds, much to his pleasure, that there is one readily available - a wall, quite slimy, yet also somewhat crunchy to the touch, smelling very metallic and leaving some sort of unseen residue on his fingers as they run over its uneven surface. Kevin wonders if this is really the best wall to prop oneself up against, but the lack of any visible, audible or otherwise perceptible alternatives persuades him that he should indeed count his blessings. He throws his full weight against the wall, hoping that it will guard him from any insidious back attacks.

Regrettably, it does not! Instead, it merely crumples inward, and Kevin begins to slowly roll through its internals, his body weight evidently doing a number on the structural integrity of whatever the hell this thing really is. Just how low it extends, Kevin does not really know! He merely rolls with it, so to speak. He notices that the sound of the clicking and clacking seems to be slowly fading away! And then returning! And then fading away!


In the hands of what are presumably gnomes...

Sigmund may be captured by mysterious creatures, but he is not bothered! He knows what a proper spelunker does when in the belly of the beast (not literally this time, though) - goes limp and tries to ascertain more information about his surroundings, most notably these gnomes!

The next few minutes pass as he quickly looks over the knots of the gnomes, idly reading the serial numbers of their souls and the 'no fun permitted' clauses attached. Shockingly, he finds them to be thoroughly unenchanted, and the knot not particularly unlike that of a random schmuck you'd see on the street, although their limbs certainly are much better armored and sharper, as evidenced when Sigmund tries to move, inadvertently or not. In addition, these gnomes appear to be quite naked, wearing absolutely no clothing or other items that he can observe on their persons. He notices, rather oddly, that their touch feels a little familiar, though he can't quite place it at the moment.

After a good twenty minutes or so of being carried both in a vaguely curved and occasionally downward fashion, Sigmund is deposited on an oddly comfortable little pedestal - it feels almost upholstered, as a matter of fact. And then the sounds of the area go completely silent as the gnomes carrying him quickly retreat, leaving him quite alone in what feels like a fairly small room. Sigmund still can't see anything, and the knots, while giving him a general sense of where things may be, are hardly helpful in identifying things to any degree more than whether they are enchanted and whether they are living.

Almost as an afterthought, one gnome quickly shuffles up to Sigmund, placing what feels like a heavy stone bowl filled with some kind of very aromatic liquid on his stomach, where it causes a bit of discomfort in addition to stirring his senses a tad.


In the inbound teleporters' room...

Niklas, knowing that first impressions are very important, tries to be as professional as possible.

"Ambassadors from the Red Tower of Power, known more formally as..." he says, nudging Lifeboy to complete the sentence like a proper assistant should.

"... the Third Tower of the Black Circle, Dominion of the Mistress of Shapers!" Lifeboy says evenly and with an air of practice.

"Ah. Of course," the man says, putting his hands behind his back. "I better show you to the king, then."

A hole opens in the glass wall around the two arrivals, and the man motions them to follow along. Once they exit, they notice that this whole place seems to be very nicely ordered - boxes with barely legible labels line virtually every wall outside the enclosure, each glowing with a peculiar light. One such box seems to have been unfolded in a corner, revealing some kind of strange, obviously magical measuring instrument, though what purpose it serves is not immediately evident. Nor do they have a whole lot of time to examine the contents of the area, as the baby-faced fellow leads them out without much ceremony, through a very unadorned, though fastidiously clean hallway, past a set of rather large doors and into what looks like a fairly lush little parlor, where a rough man sits in his nightshirt and nightcap, reading a book far more rapidly than should theoretically be possible. Next to him appears to be a concerned, nearly skeletal man, currently standing up and tweaking his nose while simultaneously biting his lip. It seems to all be part of a concentrated effort not to nod off, judging from the way he seems to be slouching despite himself.

"My lord, the ambassadors of the Black Circle have arrived," the rather obvious wizard that led the two here says. The concerned man perks up immediately, regarding the arrivals mutely, his eyes wide. The man in the nightshirt, evidently the king, looks up after putting the book, which on closer inspection may in fact be a ledger, off to the side. His face is a bit odd, though Niklas doesn't exactly know why. His eyes are a radiant, piercing green, both of which are epithets one normally wouldn't associate with green eyes.

"Finally," the king says. "It's so difficult to get recognition these days, isn't it?"

He gets up and shakes his head, crossing his arms as he examines the two. The baby-faced wizard bows, and Lifeboy nudges Niklas to do the same. Ever the mannerly one, Niklas obliges the king.

"They're from the Third Tower, sir, and they came via teleport."

"Third Tower? Was hoping for the Seventh myself, but what can you do. So, ambassador people, before you stands His Majesty Fintel, Lord Protector of the Fifty Fiefs of Farning-Fenton. Or something of that sort, anyway. What have you two to say for yourselves, then?" he asks. "Or should I just have Numbers here show you to your quarters?"

"Your Majesty, why-" the concerned man begins to ask, but the king cuts him off.

"Because I get the feeling you'd make a better chambermaid than an accountant, Numbers, judging from these ledgers," the king says, giving Numbers a very displeased glare. Numbers takes a step back, looking rather crushed by this criticism and possibly on the verge of tears.

"Such a mean man he is! I'm sure Numbers did his best!"

"Shush, Torkel. Don't question the jarl."

"Least of all when the jarl is irritable. Irritable jarls give quests when pleased, and order executions when not."


On the road to nowhere...

Figuring there is no way around it and meeting no protest on that front, the ragtag group of misfits conform to Morton's suggestion to head through the wilderness, though they found Morton's estimate of a few hours of walking at best overly optimistic and at worst critically delusional. But no better options are available, and so they shuffle off in a southward direction without much fuss.

The wilderness, fortunately, isn't much trouble, given how none of the travelers are properly physically human and three of them can float freely while Tailor Craig seems to be able to do a sort of gliding walk. The forest definitely notices their passing, though, given how even the most courageous of animals seem to be rapidly vacating the area the four move through. The place is almost eerily silent as they move through, and before long darkness begins to fall on the woods.

"Well, I guess it was a bit more than a few hours after all. Not that it matters," Tailor Craig remarks.

"It's still the best way," Justine says with certainty, having gone through the alternatives with her power, no doubt.

After dark, they keep moving, having no reason to rest, and eventually come into a clearing, where the group spies a man, a handsome youth garbed in black livery, hair carefully braided, with a mandolin clutched in one hand, a black rose in the other. The youth immediately notes their approach, staring at them wildly.

"You have come!" he says, grinning widely, stepping toward the arrivals and offering the black rose to them as he bows.

"It's one of those people," Justine remarks under her breath.


In the company of Lenny the concerned Circle representative...

Timothy, close friend of mortal peril and the first man to vouch that it's really not so bad once you get to know it, though that may be because he really has no problem being dead to begin with, unlike some of these uptight living people. Guess he's just a blithe spirit like that.

"Where is dis an-molly thing?" he asks bravely, not looking overly bothered by all of these dire warnings.

"It's... well, it's the nearest pillar of pink light you can reach from the city. But seriously, you want to think twice, no, three times before you even consider going that way. Physics stop working there. More so than usual. I'm not sure it's even possible to map those things. At least not accurately," Lenny replies. "I can... take you there, I guess, or at least to the nearby observation tower, but... I'm telling you, it's not something people expect you to come back from. People send you there so that they never hear from you again, in fact."

He looks pretty bothered, Timothy notices.

Spoiler: GM Note and Q&A (click to show/hide)
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Tomcost

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9858 on: July 12, 2014, 09:10:29 am »

((Woo! This is back!))

Well, time to move out. Do not spill the bowl, just leave it where is it, but on the floor, not over me. Look for an alternative exit which is definitely not the maw of a cave monster, of course.

Also, if nothing reacts around me, more echolocation! Why? because there is nohing else to do with my main sense impaired due to lack of light.


miauw62

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9859 on: July 12, 2014, 09:11:06 am »

((It seems logical to assume that Lizzie's Mistress is also one of the towers of the Black Circle. Could even be the Third one.
That said, it seems logical that each Wizard of the Black Circle of Magic has his/her own tower, so maybe not.))
"HAHAHAHA, YOU CANNOT IMPRISON KEVIN, ROYAL JESTER!"
Keep running through walls. There is no way this can go wrong.
« Last Edit: July 12, 2014, 09:14:49 am by miauw62 »
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Quote from: NW_Kohaku
they wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the raving confessions of a mass murdering cannibal from a recipe to bake a pie.
Knowing Belgium, everyone will vote for themselves out of mistrust for anyone else, and some kind of weird direct democracy coalition will need to be formed from 11 million or so individuals.

Tomcost

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9860 on: July 12, 2014, 09:13:05 am »

((Wait, is the gnome still in the room? I may change my action if affirmative))

Harry Baldman

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9861 on: July 12, 2014, 09:28:42 am »

((It seems logical to assume that Lizzie's Mistress is also one of the towers of the Black Circle. Could even be the Third one.
That said, it seems logical that each Wizard of the Black Circle of Magic has his/her own tower, so maybe not.))

She is one. The Seventh, slightly pertinently.

((Wait, is the gnome still in the room? I may change my action if affirmative))

It isn't. It scurried away immediately, which, while not stated, did indeed happen.
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Tomcost

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9862 on: July 12, 2014, 09:32:57 am »

((I wanted to spill that liquid into the gnome! Maybe it would get scared if it gets all his monster food spilled over him. Or something like that. I think that I'm going to be sacrificed to something.

Speaking about that, I just remembered about the underworld crabs or similar things that appeared in the first chapter. All the weird stuff happens underground))

Innsmothe

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9863 on: July 12, 2014, 09:36:19 am »

Try to find the quickest least obscured route on the map that isn't the road.
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"That which does not kill me, can only make me stranger." -Dana, Creator of Ozzy & Millie.

Harry Baldman

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9864 on: July 12, 2014, 09:39:03 am »

Try to find the quickest least obscured route on the map that isn't the road.

The map is currently put away, since your group checked it about an hour ago to make sure you're still going in the right direction. And Justine maintained that you're going straight toward Eckledun already. So navigation efforts on your part, while very much possible, are of evidently dubious use. So you might not even merely appear useful if you do that presently.
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Innsmothe

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9865 on: July 12, 2014, 03:59:20 pm »

Then act as a rotary recon unit upon Morton's exquisite frame! Looking for hidden bandits! Prepare to unleash hell and brimstone if hostility arises!

Edited.
« Last Edit: July 13, 2014, 05:28:53 am by Innsmothe »
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"That which does not kill me, can only make me stranger." -Dana, Creator of Ozzy & Millie.

Nunzillor

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9866 on: July 12, 2014, 11:02:23 pm »

((I wanted to spill that liquid into the gnome! Maybe it would get scared if it gets all his monster food spilled over him. Or something like that. I think that I'm going to be sacrificed to something.

Speaking about that, I just remembered about the underworld crabs or similar things that appeared in the first chapter. All the weird stuff happens underground))

((You know, all this clicking and clacking reminds me of another character's experience with similar seeming beings.  He ended up getting a new, arguably better body!  Maybe you'll come out of this improved?))
« Last Edit: July 12, 2014, 11:50:42 pm by Nunzillor »
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Xanmyral

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9867 on: July 13, 2014, 03:22:17 am »

[I know well enough to never accept strange flowers from stranger people in the woods at night. Sadly, Morton lacks such reasonable paranoia.

Although I think we may be the weirder group here to be honest.]

Morton had underestimated the time to reach Eckledun, quite severely, the desk admitted to himself. The tea apostle can't say he's particularly surprised, he never was good at judging distances, but it was the fastest and the best according to good mage Justine. He wasn't wrong on the peaceful trip however, much to his delight. At least, until they chanced upon this strange fellow.

Morton couldn't make heads nor tails of Justine's remark, not sure if such was a warning of danger or perhaps just minor annoyance. Still, always best to be polite and courteous! Such is the proper way of civilized folk, after all, and he's in far too good of a mood from the peaceful jaunt.

"Ah, greetings and salutations! A true pleasure to meet another traveler on the road, specially when so far off the road itself. I hope the night has been finding you well, as it has us."

The desk returned the bow, tilting forward (slightly, so as not to disturb the oddly rotating ghost resting on his surface), brown arms extending from his body to complete and provide proper context for the gesture. A third extended forward to accept the rose, holding it gently and ready for the man to take it back if he wished so.

"A most exquisite rose, I must say. Wherever did you find such a wonderful specimen?" The desk examined the rose as best he could from the distance, wondering if it was native. He admits to knowing little of such natural things, having a green thumb that only really pertained to a rather specific niche.

Greet the fellow traveler happily! Bow and extend three arms, two to aid with the bow and one to accept the rose. Comment on the rose and question where it came from.
« Last Edit: July 13, 2014, 03:25:03 am by Xanmyral »
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Tomcost

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9868 on: July 13, 2014, 07:40:09 am »

((I wanted to spill that liquid into the gnome! Maybe it would get scared if it gets all his monster food spilled over him. Or something like that. I think that I'm going to be sacrificed to something.

Speaking about that, I just remembered about the underworld crabs or similar things that appeared in the first chapter. All the weird stuff happens underground))

((You know, all this clicking and clacking reminds me of another character's experience with similar seeming beings.  He ended up getting a new, arguably better body!  Maybe you'll come out of this improved?))
((You mean one of the first characters? Well, I think that it was different. Also, Harry doesn't tend to make previous characters appear again))

Harry Baldman

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Re: Life Begins At Death - Chapter 6: Enjoying the Gub Life?
« Reply #9869 on: July 13, 2014, 10:49:50 am »

In a dark, though comfortable room...

Sigmund slowly takes the bowl off himself, placing it carefully on the ground. Probably best not to touch the stuff. The fumes are making him a little dizzy. He gets off the upholstered area, and begins to look for an exit. He bumps into a wall first and foremost - an oddly soft wall, though. Not damp or wet, or otherwise similar to a mucous membrane, which he supposes is a good sign. Not in the maw yet, it seems! But it does feel close!

Feeling his way along the wall, Sigmund eventually comes upon a door, rather metallic and solid. It seems to be heavy, and it is only through its different texture that Sigmund can discern that it's probably a door at all. It's a little odd, because he doesn't remember a door closing when he got put in here, and this does seem like a very noisy door to open or close. Confused, Sigmund figures he had best try echolocation again.

Immediately he discovers that he doesn't really have keen enough hearing to properly echolocate in a room like this - only thing he hears is his own tongue clicks. Even the surrounding noises seem to have subsided largely. Maybe because he's sealed in a room or something.


In a crunchy-tumbly wall-thing...

Kevin is elated at this latest development in his escape strategy, which is still a ploy very much in the making.

"HAHAHAHA, YOU CANNOT IMPRISON KEVIN, ROYAL JESTER!" he shouts as he tumbles ever downward, and the clicking intensifies, along with a whistling rising in pitch and urgency. He increases his speed, digging downward continually, finding the material he's in very much pliable up until a point, that point being when it just ends beneath him, the material parting with an audible rip, Kevin's body proving too heavy for the remaining stuff to hold.

He plunges downward, falling for a short distance before hitting something that feels a lot like water! Water flowing down an incline, to be exact! The floor the water seems to be running down gently is most definitely worked metal judging from the slippery smoothness and the sound Kevin made when he impacted. There's a way downstream and a way upstream, and he seems equally capable of traversing either at the moment.


In a nightly clearing...

Scott, as dutiful a servant as ever, decides to aid Morton by rotating atop his surface and making subtle bleeping noises as he examines the surroundings. Much to his chagrin, he detects no bandits. Just a pasty man with a musical instrument and flowers. Reminds him of his first date, in a way.

Morton, doing his best to ignore Scott's non-stop shenanigans, tries to be polite.

"Ah, greetings and salutations! A true pleasure to meet another traveler on the road, specially when so far off the road itself. I hope the night has been finding you well, as it has us," he says, bowing properly to the man while accepting the offered rose at the same time.

"A most exquisite rose, I must say. Wherever did you find such a wonderful specimen?" he asks, examining the black petals of the thing. This seems to lift the man's spirits, already high at this point, a considerable amount.

"Plucked from the garden of a widow in its prime and dyed with the blood of a vampire, as tradition dictates. I am glad you find it pleasing, milord," the man says, looking up at Morton once more. "Accept it as my gift to you and yours, to facilitate communication and to broach a certain subject."

He takes his mandolin in his hands, setting it up for immediate play.

"Oh, hosts of Death and Unhallowed Sorcery, I solemnly and truly ask of thee, will you bring my lost love back to me? The one who died before she lived, the peerless, perfect Emily?" he asks in an odd, lyrical cadence, strumming a few pleasing chords on his instrument to accompany the request. Justine groans in response.
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