Something something mission something
The girl in the booth appears perplexed for a second but them smiles.
"Certainly, sir."
She searches under a counter and produces a multicolored brochure happily declaring that 'In Queen's Tower Casino, everyone deserves to be treated like Royalty.' It displays some images of people gambling or swimming in a giant pool or receiving a message, all with a smile on their face. It goes on to list the types of rooms and services offered, which is pretty much what you'd expect from this sort of place.
"Here at Queen's Tower Casino we are happy to provide you with anything your heart desires."
There's also a low-detail map of the casino. The main floor (which from what you understand is closed off to the uninvited for tonight's event) is arranged in concentric circles containing everything from slot machines to blackjack to roulette. At the center there is some sort of stage-bar combination. The West leads to the hotel part of the casino as well as some restaurants. The North contains the cashiers as well as various unmarked rooms, presumably meant for the staff. The East has some VIP and high-roller rooms. The final parts of the brochure offer prices for the most common types of service and accommodation as well as some combination offers. As expected, the prices are exorbitant.
"If you have any questions then please don't hesitate to ask me or any other member of the staff. We will be happy to help in any way we can."
That done, you enter the casino proper. It's somewhat darker than you expected, many of the lights are closed, making the sea of multicolored slot-machine screens appear all the more prominent. There's people moving about, most of them are well dressed. There's a lot of people in here but the place is far from packed. If anything the giant hall looks somewhat empty.
The South section, where you currently are, has some ATMs and cashier booths as well as a bar. Said bar has been converted to include a buffet which has attracted a good number of people to it.
"Oh, food! Good. Haven't had any since she brought me here. I think I'll go grab a bite and then hit the tables to restock." Jack states as he begins walking towards the bar.
♚The Doll Prince: Searching for Treasure.♚
"Wait, before you go, take this with you," Napoleon said before tossing Jack a two inch doll he summoned. The gown the porcelain doll wore matched the colors of the King of Card Games' outfit. "Keep that with you so that I can find you and come to your aid if needed."
After Jack left, Napoleon turned to peer around the casino, noting the positions of everyone, including the security personnel. He then walked north toward the areas that possibly belonged to the staff. After all, keeping any of the casino's valuables out of reach of the customers is to be expected in order to keep them safe. If anything, he could find clues as to the safe's location and its combination. Grabbing a chair nearby, Napoleon sat down at an empty table and watched the other patrons chat among themselves. Assuming a bored expression, Napoleon will:
Discreetly summon several two inch dolls. After modifying them into becoming transparent, Napoleon will use them to scout out the main floor of the casino. He will use them to locate any guards and security cameras, as well as any exits that he and Jack can use. He will also use them to scout out the staff rooms for clues about the safe. As a final note, he will use the doll he gave to Jack to listen in on any conversation, just to check up on him of course.
It's a bit hard to concentrate with all this excitement. You try to summon your dolls for a long while but only a lifeless piece of cloth appears. ((Seriously, Random.org doesn't want you to summon this doll. I rolled multiple times and the results were [2], [2], [2], [3].))
Jack eventually gets tired of waiting and just heads towards the bar. Some time after he leaves, you finally manage to summon a single doll. You try to modify it to make it transparent, which works perfectly. Hm. Now that Jack is gone your ability is starting to cooperate again. You keep working and manage to summon 3 more transparent dolls. You walk around while inspecting the area, leaving a doll wherever looks important. (You'd make them walk there but with their tiny legs it would take forever to get them anywhere.)
The southern booths don't look that important. There's some lockboxes for keeping valuables, but that's pretty much it. The receptionist booth has a lot of clothes and also some handguns, all secured in behind locked containers. The restaurants are linked to a common service area with fridges and other storage areas. There's a service door and a garage door there, probably used to dispose trash and receive goods. The northern booths are connected to a much larger service area. There are lockers, a garage door, a small cafeteria and... that's as far as your dolls can go on foot. The rest of the northern section is behind a security door with no gap for the dolls to fit under. There's a man sitting on a desk besides the door, distracting himself with his cell phone. He's got a gun and a radio and wearing a bulletproof vest with the words "Bishop Security" on it.
Stephano Falcone
Huh? Am I remembering information that Iris told me while I was unconscious? I...don't think so. But then where did these thoughts...no, it doesn't matter. I'll figure it out later. Time to go!
Move the box in the corner out of the way and enter the tunnel. If there is a light source present in the tunnel, move the box back to its original position, covering the tunnel. Proceed down the tunnel as quickly as I can.
You move the box out of the way and crawl through the small tunnel beyond. There's little light in it. It's quite cramped, making it very difficult for you to move, your body blocking what little light enters from behind you. Thankfully the tunnel doesn't go on for long.
You reach a shaft, some dried-out well maybe, it's hard to tell. Through the dim light streaming through the leaves covering the top you can see a rope ladder clinging against the wall. You climb it as quickly as you can, breaking through the bushes and leaves covering the hidden exit. In front of you, just a few metres away, you can see the house you were in, its insides illuminated by the light of flashlights. You can see great armoured SUVs coming from the road. This is not good.
You're about to turn around when-
"Gotcha!"You feel an arm wrap around your neck, putting you into a chokehold. You try to resist. Something stings you on the side of your neck. You strength leaves you. You lose consciousness.
...
"I misjudged you."You wake up.
"You didn't strike me as the type that fights back. Not without getting pushed to your breaking point first."It takes a moment for the blurriness to clear from your eyes. You try to wipe them but you can't move your arms, they're tied behind your back. You hear the chink of metal against wood as the handcuffs impact the wooden chair. There's no other sound beyond the crackling of a fire, the faint buzzing in your ears, your breathing and your heartbeat. And that voice.
"When you first woke up I thought you had two options. Try to stay in your cell or aid in your rescue."It sounds normal, a male voice coming from somewhere in front of you, one any random person could have. And yet there's something about it...
"Imagine my surprise when I saw you take a third option. It really messed up my plan."You blink and shake your head a bit until you can see better. You're inside an old bedroom, sitting in front of a table.
"But I adjusted my plan. 'Plans must be solid and reactions flexible', as they say."It's quite dark, there's no light coming through the blinds. Probably still night time. From the shadows, the heat and the sound you can tell there's a fireplace behind you, the only source of illumination in this room. It's not enough to reveal the features of the man sitting on the other side of the table.
"And you know what? I liked it. It struck a chord, I would say."Your handcufs are not tied to the chair, nor are your legs restrained in any way. You could try to get up and walk if you wanted to, though you wouldn't be in the best of states. Your head hurts and you feel a bit dizzy,
"You see, my first memory is me trying to strangle my rescuer."Though you can't see him, you can tell he's smiling.
"What a coincidence, huh? Makes me wonder just how alike we are."
Maximus: Central Fore Way Station
<Svajoklis, Maximus>
Way station path it is. Go to the medbay.
<Svajoklis, Maximus>
Way station path it is. Go to the medbay.
John, aboard the Maximus
Let's go!
Kosak Durar:
Kosak helps get Svajoklis to the medbay, and is promptly amazed at how amazing the medical technology is.
Brian Hoss, Maximus: Sarboard Hangar Section
Stay with the group.
You go back the way John and the rest came, back towards the remains of the Way Station. You walk past the crashed remains of the vehichle they used to get here, through the hole it came through and into the debris field. There are little signs of their passing left. Some of the more massive pieces of debris are still slowly spinning but most have stabilized since their passing. Still, they do present an obstacle, making the area slow to navigate. The ground is littered with loose clumps of metal and plastic that make for poor footing in this gravity-less environment. The team eventually settles into a rythm of pausing to identifying safe patches before jumping to them, their progress occasionally hampered by awkward fumbles that send them spinning.
You're about halfway through when you hear a distant rumbling. It's almost imperceptible at first but it gets louder overtime. It sounds like it's coming from the direction of the Front of the ship. John jumps on a massive piece of debris to try to get a better vantage point. Through the wreckage he notices a distant point of light, getting closer. He uses his sensors to project an enhanced view of the object. The projection on his helmet looks humanoid and about twice as large as him, some sort of exoskeleton by the looks of it, pushing with its back against a great container. There's thrusters on its legs and it's pointing them towards John, using them to slow down.
John's sensors detect a burst of radiation from the exoskeleton's helmet, some sort of active scanning pulse he guesses. The exoskeleton raises a long oversized rifle-like weapon and points it towards him. Radiation spikes as the tip of the weapon begins to faintly glow, preparing to fire.
Campaign: The Hills of Midnight, on road
Campaign, Ike!
Continue returning to the others!
You make it back. Yay!
Check with the water mages, are there side-effects from being within my influence? Also specifically check in with the potion master on this, their unique perspective might provide unexpected insight. Also there's no way she didn't take advantage of what I'm doing to run SOME kind of experiment.
You can't see anything wrong with them. A while ago they were a bit shaken from having been attacked by the Dark spell but now that they have something to work on they seem more driven, focused on getting everyone ready. Even if there was some mild discomfort you think they wouldn't be feeling it in their current state.
The Master Alchemist is mostly frustrated because her experiment was ruined. She was planning on capturing the energy released by the destruction of the Darkness to purify some ingredients but the potions she was preparing were ruined by Chaos energy before they could stabilize. Now she's stuck trying to salvage whatever she can out of them before disposing of them. You ask her if she's feeling any different but she dismisses your concerns, too focused on her work to really care. Hm. Looks like you don't have anything that interests her at the moment. You ask her if she has any idea what happened. She responds that she does not, though with more angry and less polite words. You don't think she's mad at you, it's probably just a general frustration. A recruit comes to ask her to get ready to move to safety, just in case the camp comes under attack, and she threatens to turn him into a pigeon.
"I've been waiting for a good chance to use my new toys."
Load a chaos bolt into the crossbow.
You say your line and load one of your 3 Bolts of Lesser Warcrime. You somehow manage to make loading the bolt sound like pumping a shotgun. You also make sure you have a waterskin handy, in case you need to quickly form your ice blade and mentally recite the spell that activates your water armour a few times to make sure you remember it. Lune stands besides you, spear and shield ready, warily looking towards the direction of the enemy camp.
"We need a solid plan though."
Begin planning the attack. Draw a crude map with arrows in the dirt.
Theri should take a small team and flank around behind the targets.
Nikolai and Lune will set up the crossbow somewhere with a good vantage point.
The water mage should lead most of the recruits.
Give some competent seeming recruit a signaler and have them separate from the main group. When enough time has passed for everyone to be ready they light up the sky.
Nikolai will tsar the crossbow and use it to take out any artillery or the largest grouping of beastmen if there is no artillery. Then find a new position, reload and prepare for a second shot.
Then everyone else should charge in and mop up.
Theri's group should assassinate any particularly troublesome targets from behind while they are distracted by the explosion and main force.
Nikolai will use his spare signaller like a rocket launcher for counter-artillery if that's necessary and the crossbow is being reloaded.
He will also tsar his water armour as a last ditch reaction against being shot at.
"How does this plan look?" Nik asks, mainly to Theri and the water mage (whos name he should also find out).
The water mage, the one they call Ahos, looks up from your drawings and nods.
"It is a good plan." he states simply.
During the time you've spent traveling together he didn't do much. He didn't talk much, he mostly interacted with the other mages. He rarely even left his tent, except for when he had to meditate and perform his rituals. Whenever he becomes engaged in conversation, he is usually calm and to the point. It's a good thing that he manages to maintain that same composure here. He calmly explains his battle plan to the men you assign to him, opting for a logical and straightforward course of action.
"Archers, focus on the fliers. Stay in cover, stay mobile, don't get isolated. And don't stop firing. The moment you down one, focus on the next, no need to confirm the kill unless it lands next to you."
"Spearmen, protect the Archers and Swordsmen from any swooping opponents. Plant your feet, make them impale themselves, use their momentum against them. Those are magical opponents, so remember that one good strike might not be enough to kill them."
"Swordsmen, help the Archers and Spearmen. Watch their flanks, finish off any fliers they down. If we are about to be engaged on melee by the beastmen, you need to reform into a line. Whatever you do, keep the enemy from engaging the Archers."
"I'm going to lead our group and carry the Signaller. The moment I use the Signaller, you attack. But make sure to keep your distance from me. I am bound to become their target the moment I fire it.""Isn't that all the more reason to be with you and defend you?" one of the Swordsmen asks.
The water mage shakes his head.
"I can use my magics to hide and protect myself from their initial attack. After that is done, I will join you and continue fighting alongside you."His assurances leave the recruits unconvinced.
"But what if they have mages of their own or they fire a Lightning Cannon at us?"
"Like I said, I will return to you as soon as I can. In the meantime, Nikolai and Theri should be able to provide you with the protection you need."The men still look unconvinced but Ahos goes on, calmly giving the men more grim instructions. Not the best guy for morale.
"Should I fall, I need one of you to take the Signaller and continue providing illumination. If you can't get it to cast the spell, break the glass on the tip while pointing it in the sky, it will release all the energy contained within."With the preparations complete, you move on to the execution. Theri and her small group begin climbing the hills, hoping to approach undetected from an unexpected direction. You and Lune climb the hills on the opposite side of the road, hoping to get to a good vantage point while still being out of the magic detection range of those monsterbirds. Ahos and the rest of the recruits wait for a few minutes to give you a head start, using that time to prepare themselves.
You and Lune move carefully, laying low and trying to stay behind the largest rocks. You stay covered with your cloaks and hug the ground whenever you hear the flapping of wings come closer to you. Your destination is a point close to the top of the hill that should give you a good angle on most of the road and its surroundings. You're not yet there when you hear a monsterbird scream somewhere overhead, soon echoed by many others. The two of you brace yourself as you scan your surroundings, looking for your attacker. A few seconds later a magical fireball is launched by a figure standing somewhere near the road, flying high into the sky, through the swarm of monsterbirds descending upon it.
Damn it. Already? It's too soon. You're not in position. The recruits are too close.
There's nothing you can do. You hate to do this but you force yourself to look away. You must focus on your part of the plan.
"Move!" you shout to Lune, grabbing his shoulder and shaking him out of his shock before running.
No longer as concerned with hiding and with the flare providing meager illumination you are able to run and scramble the rest of the way to the top.
Just as you reach the top there is burst of light flashes, each accompanied by a loud boom; thunder strikes, each of them aimed at the source of the flare. Each strike causes a small explosion on whatever it hits, the barrage resulting in a cloud of dust obscuring the bottom of the hills. Each boom overlaps with the next, creating a constant noise that echoes long after the strikes are done, preventing you from hearing much else.
You ignore the birds charging through the dust, raising more of it with each flap of their wings. Instead you focus on the origin of the lightning strikes. Lune hands you the crossbow and you set it up on a rock. You take a deep breath and try to focus, trying to ignore the noise of battle, the shouting of men and screams of monsters, trying not to think about what is going on and what might happen if you fail and instead focus on your task. You place one hand on the Chaos bolt, feeling the barely-contained alchemical mixture inside it tingling against your fingers. Your other hand remains on the trigger. You don't have enough time to prepare. The next barrage could come at any time.
You let your power flow from both hands, one directed at the crossbow, the other at the bolt, making sure your ability will affect them both. The surge of power causes an immediate transformation, both crossbow and bolt growing to immense size, becoming more like a ballista. It's hard to handle. It grows in quick an unexpected bursts, pushing you around. It doesn't faze you. You've grown to expect that. You keep your aim steady even as the crossbow pins you against the rocks, because you know how hard it would be to reposition it when it's at its full size.
Your power mixes with the magic in the bolt, making it highly unstable, crackling with energy. And yet your power also makes the casing stronger, repairing cracks as they appear. Almost immediately a group of monsterbirds rises out of the melee and maniacally flaps towards you whole screaming, drawn by the spike in magical energy. You push the trigger. It's stuck. You can't get it to move all the way. The cracks in the bolt are spreading, no longer being repaired by your power. Lune lets go of his spear and shield and helps you push. There is a noise mechanical *thunk* and the bolt is flying. The bolt manages to maintain its integrity despite the rapid acceleration. Your shoulder is nearly crushed by the equal and opposite reaction but your armour helps soften the blow.
"Come on! Let's go!" Lune urges you to move as he tries to get you out from under the Tsared weapon but you don't want to risk untsaring it, not until the bolt impacts. You know it's dangerous with the birds coming towards you, you push as hard as you can against the crossbow but you don't untsar it. With the way you're positioned, you can't help but watch the bolt sail above the battlefield, flying up in an arc, its crumbling shell already leaking, leaving a trail behind it. The adrenaline makes it feel like ages but it's only a couple of seconds. Lune manages to pull you out from under the crossbow and then goes for his weapon. You're not looking when the bolt impacts. Maybe it's for the best.
For a moment you feel weightless. Then you fall. You look around, trying to get your bearings. You find your crossbow and grab it. Lune helps you stand up. Looks like he recovered more quickly than you. You glance towards where your bolt went. Even now it's an unpleasant experience. Just looking at it makes your head hurt. You can't understand what's going on there, you can't put it to words, all you are certain about is how disturbing it is, how uneasy it makes you feel. You think there might have been some sort of explosion, you can see rocks falling from the sky, rolling downhill.
"Next location! Let's go!"You can't see the birds but you can still hear them. You're pretty sure the cannon can't have survived... whatever
that was, but there might be more lightning cannons. You haven't moved more than a couple dozen meters before you are proven right.
Your hair stand on end. There's a flash of light and then you are deaf and your head hurts. You can't hear them but you feel the heat and vibrations from the next few bolts crossing the sky above you (or maybe you are merely feeling the ground explode upon their impact). Though your eyes are closed you can see the flashes through your eyelids. You turn on your back and start cranking the crossbow. They're at the second location Theri indicated, as expected. They shot at you, better than firing at the recruits. And they missed. Now all you need is another bolt and your can get them.
You open your eyes. Another fireball has joined the dying light of the first. That's good. They're still alive. You saw the archers shoot down a few birds but you have no idea how the battle is going. Once again you remind yourself that all you can do is keep going with your part of the plan and hoping for the best. Then you notice the stench. The same stench you remember from when the monsterbirds attacked Chizra. The monsterbird swoops down towards you, a disfigured shadow framed by red light. Lune blocks the strike with the shield you gave him, putting himself between you and it, but he is still staggered, barely manages to maintain his balance as the monster claws at him and tries to get its deformed double-beak to his face. Lune raises his spear for a counterattack. A second monsterbird slams into him, finally overpowering him, throwing him on his back. One of the birds falls on its back as well, using its disfigured claws to futilely grasp at the burning hole expanding at the centre of its chest. The other strikes Lune's chest, digging its claws deep into it but in its frantic attempts to kill him it leaves itself open to Lune's strike, getting stabbed by his spear and falling on it as it loses its strength.
You untsar and put away the Signaller before helping Lune up, shoving the monsterbird from on top of him. He has deep scratches all over his face and chest and looks like he has trouble maintaining his balance. You take a couple of sips from a healing potion and give him the rest, making sure he drinks it. Almost immediately your hearing begins to return, allowing you to hear the sounds of battle and the approaching monsterbirds. Something must have stalled them, they aren't upon you yet.
"Are you all right?" you ask Lune, shouting, still unsure if he can hear or understand you.
He looks at you and after a few seconds he nods but he is clearly shaken, trembling, crying from the pain and adrenaline.
"Stay with me! We almost got them!" you say, trying to reinforce his morale.
You continue reloading your crossbow until it's ready to fire while Lune finishes off the monsterbird pathetically flapping its three wings. While he retrievers his spear you load a bolt, rise from behind your cover and set up your crossbow, aiming for the location where you think you saw the cannon firing from. You are about to Tsar it when you see a blue light in the distance. The cannon is getting ready to fire. You can't shoot it in time.
You hide behind the rock and shout the spell that activates your water armour, waiting for the inevitable barrage. You hear the blasts but they don't impact around you. Did they target the recruits? You get out of cover just in time to watch a lightning bolt striking a monsterbird, causing it to explode in blood and gore. It takes you a few seconds to realize Theri's group must have captured it. You breathe a sigh of relief as you realize you're safe... and that you almost blasted her group into oblivion.
<We captured an enemy mage and a Lightning Cannon. We had some trouble but all is OK now.> the commwire message confirming this arrives a while later.
You decide to reposition, just in case there is more trouble coming for you. A third Signaller flare flies out of the dust covering the battlefield. As it moves through the dust, you realize that it's not dust. It's a reddish cloud floating close to the ground, like fog. With no other targets in sight you focus on shooting the few remaining monsterbirds out of the sky. Soon they are all dead and the fog clears. You can see men standing and men and monsters lying on the ground, it's hard to tell the details from here.
As the fog clears you notice 4 beastmen making a run for it. They probably realized they have no chance of winning and are running away. You could try to do something about them or simply let them go.Regardless of that, when you rejoin the troops you find them taking care of the wounded. Ahos has been burnt badly but its mostly his looks that are damaged, he is able to talk to you just fine (or maybe he just used a healing potion). From him and the other recruits you learn what happened from their perspective.
They were spotted before they were ready so Ahos was forced to use the Signaller early to give them a fighting chance. Most casualties were caused by this early assault by the monsterbirds and the barrage of Lightning Cannon fire that followed, though luckily both focused at Ahos instead of the main body of the recruits. He used his magic to defend himself but as you can see he didn't get out of it unscathed. He then used any water he could find to create a magical fog that would hopefully confuse the monsterbirds and prevent the enemy cannon from targeting them accurately.
For a moment it looked like the battle could go either way and the men were beginning to panic but then there was an explosion (which you confirm was your doing). Whatever happened greatly disoriented the birds, making them much easier to kill. By the time the beastmen arrived there was little they could do to influence the battle. They were clearly equipped to deal with small unprepared groups. They used nets and Air grenades with some sort of paralytic effect before charging in with clubs and swords but the Swordsmen outnumbered them. With the birds busy with the Archers and Spearmen, the Swordsmen were able to surround them. The Lightning Cannon firing on their own forces was the last straw. The beastmen panicked and started routing, at which point it was easy for the men to run them down.
"How does this plan look?" Nik asks, mainly to Theri and the water mage (whos name he should also find out).
"Perfect!" Theri said, glad to see everyone else okay, and people were worried about her.
She gave River a few pats and hefted him back on his comfy place on her back, in her inventory and noted additional information--we'll be facing beastmen, and flocks of crows, all of whom were not invulnerable to cannon failures.
"I wish we could use one of those; some air magic to move one of us into position and turn that cannon on the enemy..."
Add to the planning! Help out while giving ideas!
As per Nikolai's instructions, you take a small group and attempt to flank the enemy position. You lead the group to a hard climb up the hill, hiding close to the hilltop and navigating the treacherous terrain as quickly as you can. The monsterbirds are not monitoring this side of the hill as closely, their efforts are focused more on the road, which means you can move a bit more freely.
Before you know it the battle has began and you're in no position to help. You see flares lighting up the night sky and monsterbirds swooping down on the road. You hear the sounds of battle, cracks of thunder accompanied by flashes of light. You keep climbing, doubling your efforts, moving as fast as you can. And then suddenly the entire hill shakes, loose rocks rolling downhill. When the hill finally stops shaking and you manage to regain your balance, you keep climbing, heading for the enemy location.
You manage to reach the site of one of the lightning cannons just as it unleashes another barrage, lightning bolts flying towards a position on the opposite hill. Through the illumination provided by the flashes of light, you clearly see the enemy. It's just three humans, two of which are operating the Lightning Cannon. The third is casting some sort of spell directed towards the battle below though you can't really tell what it does.
Your group jumps down on their position, catching them completely by surprise. You force them to throw down their weapons and surrender. With the enemy here dealt with, your men take over the Lightning Cannon and use it to shoot at the monsterbirds. Though it's not very accurate, it manages to get a few of them.
With yours and Nikolai's efforts the battle is won, though that still leaves the prisoners to deal with. You make sure they are tied up and under constant watch before having your men slowly transport them downhill. You also have them remove the power source from the cannon to prevent others from using it, you can decide how to deal with the cannon itself later. You go rejoin the other recruits, doing your best to help the wounded.
Campaign: Nether Pass, the Final Fortress of the Necromancer-Emperor
Alan, Adorable Spider Daughter
"Aww, that's nice of you Ammie! Just wait a biiiit longer, I have the perfect thing to thank you with!"
Continue charging the Mega Milkshake Monstrosity! That's ... 3 consecutive turns of charging, I think. How am I feeling, does it seem like I'm about to explode or can I take some more?
There's really only so much you can charge before you start leaking energy like a balloon full of holes. You'd say you already reached that point a while ago. The light inside your gut is glowing brightly, begging to be released.
OOCHave some music:
Dan Terminus - Heavy Artillery
Poll
15 (42.9%)
Author
Topic: Special People: Mechanical Syndrome (Read 1148888 times)