Summon a lamp directly above my circular bit and go wander around spying on whoever else is here.
After some wiggling around, you manage to remove yourself from under the couch.
Only for you to be crushed and pinned to the ground like a nail by the
giant desk lamp you just summoned. Anyone watching would probably be reminded of the PIXAR intro.
...
This is getting ridiculous.
"My name is Nikolai Slevinskyevskiovich. You broke my mug. Prepare to die.
Stab the Gene in the vitals with the jagged handle.
If he tries to use a shard as a weapon, then shrink it back down.
"Bring it, man."
Grab the handle, and pull it toward me. Grab the Haz, and pick him up by his collar. Slam him in the ground, then bring his gut down on my knee. Last, find a place in the distance that catches my eye, and throw him there. Begin walking to wherever he land
Nikolai just sort of pokes with his broken handle in his opponent's general direction. The other man looks at him for a second before he starts half-heartedly swinging his fists, hitting the air.
<What are they doing?><I think it might be some sort of dance battle.>"Well, at least it's not violent."((All 1s, all rolls. I briefly considered treating failed DEX rolls like piecewise did in a certain incident.))
John glanced at the two fighting. Whatever. "Don't break the city!"
Inspect the big house. Did my doors appear in it? Is it mine now?
Also check the tavern. If bartender is present, have a drink.
The two fighters are doing... Well, you aren't sure what they are doing. They're doing...
something? They're not fighting, that's for sure.
You shrug and start walking.
You walk on the small stone path, making your way to the central square, looking around you as you move. There's nothing special about the houses that can be seen from up close. They're simple wooden things, enough to keep the cold winds out. Most of them have stacks of firewood outside, sometimes a small table or workbench. A small garden filled with turnips, cabbage or other vegetables can be found besides some houses in the outskirts of the town. Through the windows that are open or made of glass (although not the clear non-distorting glass you are used to), you can see that the interior is very spartan. Wooden floors and walls, sometimes covered by the pelt of a ruminant. Simple cooking implements near the fireplace. Wooden beds with a simple mattress on them. Tables and chairs or boxes acting as one.
Very few feature more sophisticated decorations, like knitted rugs hanging from the walls, thin drapes or furniture with varnish or decorative carvings.
The town is eerily empty. There are obvious signs of habitation, you get a feeling you'll see someone else any second now. But there's nobody. There's not a sound besides the waterfall in the distance, the wind and the occasional magpie emitting its call. The only living thing (if they can be called living) you encounter is the entity you were talking with before, laying with its back on the base of the fountain and throwing a ball of dim lightning from one wing to the other in a relaxed manner.
The manor is in stark contrast with the simplicity of the rest of the houses. A
two storey building made out of stone blocks, wider on the side facing the fountain. Probably has a basement too, judging from its height. It has large glass windows on both floors, however the inside of the manor is obscured by thick drapes. There's also a balcony visible above the entrance that looks more like a room of the second floor has had its wall replaced with a stone railing. And finally, there is a large area behind it, partially enclosed by a wooden picket fence.
Stone stairs lead to the manor's entrance, which features wooden double doors with intricate carvings of flowers on them. Not yours then. At least not entirely, maybe your door is somewhere in there.
Although there is probably nothing preventing you from making it yours.
Zechariah was starting to get anxious. His host had stayed there for too long. Well, not much that Zechariah could do about it on his own, but time is still against the two of them.
He then felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. There was a realization. There was a truth that Zechariah had long since avoided, from the beginning of his journey.
One than he never, ever wanted to believe was true. Because, if it was true, then he accepted that he was the source of all of the problems that had poisoned the Medium and his friends.
No.. it can't be right. I haven't gotten this goddamn far just to.. realize that he was..
He was always in control.
>Peek out of the door carefully and observe the newcomer to the room. Wait for a moment where they are not looking and attempt to sneak past them.
Your host decides that peeking out of the door is probably not the best thing to do right now.
He feels weak. He leans against the wall. Just needs a moment to rest.
"Just wait a second, I've got to fix this-"
"No, this is way more important man! You've got to come see this!"
"Allright. This better be worth it because Dr Topper was about-"
"It is! Now come on."
You can hear the two men running away and the door closing behind them. You are left with the sound of static coming from the TV.
Looks like that problem solved itself. Now he just needs to get out of here.
<For my near-success at this, I owe three things a great deal. Firstly, explosives. Secondly, guns. Thirdly, the efforts of one Ike Wayne, without whose badassery and access to said explosives and guns I would have had a much harder time of this.>
See if I can get into whatever chatspace these chucklefucks are using. Especially that guy who came out of nowhere. See if I can speak to the dark spirits infesting these two girls, mayhap. If this works, cool! Detach from Ike Wayne a moment if that helps. Maybe check if I can perceive anything intriguing their mind-riders are doing while in this state.
I'd also say "try to resist whatever this is", but I harbor no illusions of this nature. Try to see if it's possible, at any rate. Also, see if I can perceive the consciousness of Ike Wayne here. Has assuming direct control dulled his pain in any way is what I'm wondering?
You could talk to them and they could talk to you, if they chose to. Maybe even share senses or emotions with some mutual effort. But no more. Think of them as psychic radios. You can't force them to broadcast, you can only receive what they broadcast and they can do the same.
Assuming control is like switching from the passenger seat to the driver seat. What he was feeling was what you were feeling. And still is, even when you're not in control. It's easier for you, because this is a merging of sorts, but whereas you are attached to this body and mind for a limited amount of time, this is his actual body and his mind. He must be given the correct feelings (including pain) at all times, even when not in control, so that his mind can form more cohesive thoughts and stories and so that there is less need for rewriting it later. You on the other hand can get away with feeling less and getting just the important info without feeling pain.
I don't know if that makes sense/is correct, it's just what feels natural to me.
You strain, both physically and mentally. You're still feeling numb, but you think you manage to move your right hand a bit.
Irine
and now the final battle begins
Prepare to wrest control of the mental space Victor and I are about to share from him in segments, focusing on the key points that matter in this in sequence:
1) my previous host, the one who's will i stole, must be revived. her being forced out of this world and into the Staging Area is an acceptable version of this. Her suddenly appearing alive and well next to Zoe is acceptable. Her reviving at the site of her death, or the site of her birth, as long as it isn't going to kill her back again, is acceptable. what matters is that she is alive again, and in her OWN body, not mine, her life and memories intact (at least mostly).
2) Zoe must be protected from further harm.
3) Awena should be protected if possible (objective may need to be abandoned if implausible)
4) finally, as long as the first two conditions are met, and after the third has been assessed and attempted if plausible, then trying to change which entity gains control of this place to Stellar instead of the intended recipient is my task.
5) If I can't complete 4, then I need to make sure that the place doesn't become inhospitable to human life and objectives 1 and 2 are not undone.
Odds on my best bet is going to be to start off with an aggressive act, cutting off or restricting Victor's access to the mindspace we're going to be dualing for. Though if Theri can force him back and give me space to work...
To Theri: <Victor set us up to die fighting, and to be weakened for this final phase. be ready for his betrayal, and I expect he is ready for mine. Please help keep him from stopping me from bringing back my previous host, and fulfilling my obligation to her.>
I hope Zoe remembers what I told her, and will put me in a position to try...
Win or lose, I want to speak to her directly and thank her before I'm forced back.
Zoe
No Influence
Zoe lays back down, sets her pistol aside and starts removing her belt. Whatever is going on here, she can't deal with it if she's dead.
She winces when she takes a more careful look down at her body. Her leg has been badly hurt from the knee down. She knows she's going to loose it, there's no helping that now. Too much damage. Probably infected too. It'd be like it was already cut off if it wasn't for the pain and that dead weight.
She puts the belt around her leg, gets a good grip and prepares to tighten it. She has to slow the bleeding. It's been less than a minute, but she's already lost too much blood. She can feel it. She can see it.
She pulls, as hard as she can. Despite her waning strength and the fact that she's not using the best tools for the job, she manages to do pretty well. She bought herself some time at least. Enough to ensure Amelia will get out of here alive, hopefully.
She's left panting, trying to regain her strength. All the things she's been through this night have left her tired. The pain and the bleeding isn't helping.
Come on, I need to move. I need to see what's going on. I need to get close to her.<If you still wish to do this, then you have to reach that crystal now.>((The bump was unneeded at this point, I was making the post a while ago and wondered what to do given the circumstances...and edited this in because of the bump 
))
To Theri: <Victor set us up to die fighting, and to be weakened for this final phase. be ready for his betrayal, and I expect he is ready for mine. Please help keep him from stopping me from bringing back my previous host, and fulfilling my obligation to her.>
Theri relayed the hearing of the thought to Awena and River.
"Deadline, you already used the machines on her. What are you planning to do?" Theri said through her host's voice. She was deeply glad, as a thought aside, that Awena was very willing for this circumstance. Her own thoughts were shifting between the now, and then. She felt disappointed and sad--Awena was being thrust into this like a pawn in a game of chess. She hated forcing and being forced. Awena, I'm sorry for everything--unsure as to what everything is but just in case...everything. I'm doing bad with words now though. I hope you can feel what I do. I am unsure what Irine meant by stopping...about something on her...'previous' host?
Regardless, I am about to relinquish control to you, Awena. I am sent here to protect you--act as your shield, and I will it only that you choose instead of me, here.
It is your choice to act, and I feel bad right now--I will feel worse if I've forced you into greater pains because of my choice, and not yours, though.
Relinquish control, yet do not relinquish mutual support. Exhaust energies to keep Awena healthy and able to act through the pain of being shot. Let her decide.
((Oh, sorry, feeling a bit restless lately.))
<The ones we were supposed to protect will survive. That's what we were brought here to do. To help. And we did that.
If you really want to do this to help your teammate, then I will support you. But I want you to consider whether or not the risk is worth it.>"Deadline, you already used the machines on her. What are you planning to do?"The man takes a slow step forward.
"Nothing really, just..."He brings his hands to his head and stops walking.
"Touch the crystal, use the power of the gods..."She never really trusted the man. She felt there was something wrong about him. And now the spirits, the ones who had helped them and saved their life, said that he had betrayed them.
"And get my reward. We've earned it. Both me and Boris."Her nature is that of someone who doesn't intervene, doesn't take the initiative. One who lets the world push her where it wants.
And yet now she feels the urge to do something. Like something inside her is urging her to act.
All this fighting, all this death, it has been done in the name of power. All it has brought is misery and pain. Perhaps then, the world would be a better place if nobody got this power.
"I'm sorry, but I don't trust you enough."Awena takes a step to block his path.
"So you will try to take it for yourself then?"He looks like he is ready to fall to his knees.
"No. Nobody should have that kind of power."She raises her knife defensively.
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Topic: Special People: Mechanical Syndrome (Read 1148174 times)