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Author Topic: Demongate: Wrapping up the Loose Ends.  (Read 698453 times)

4maskwolf

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2310 on: November 03, 2014, 06:41:16 pm »

I'm beginning work on the final scene for my turn, sorry for the delay everyone, I ran into a wall with college apps.

Deus Asmoth

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2311 on: November 05, 2014, 04:29:57 am »

Wall o'text inbound. The rest is up to Mask, I think.

Beef frowned, confused. "I thought I was meant to be looking for this Fallen thingie person?" he said.
"That was my initial plan, but there have been... complications," Tarmid told him as he ran his hands over a strange machine filled with some kind of green gemstone. Red veins running through the stone shifted unpredictably, though Beef got the feeling there was a rhythm to it that he just couldn't see. "I do not expect you to have any in depth knowledge on this subject," Tarmid continued, "but this is a bloodstone array, used to detect, among other things, vampires. One approaching our fortress should have been detected miles away, but the one here-" he pointed to a place where several red veins were converging "-appears to have come into existence right in the middle of Demongate! I would not have believed it possible had I not seen it myself, but it leaves me with two theories; that a vampire has been shielding itself from detection through unknown methods that have recently failed it, or that someone intentionally infected themselves for some mad reason. Your new task is to track down the abomination and ensure it does not escape. Taking them alive would be slightly more preferable, but not so much so that you should risk any lives to do so. You may use your squad; consider it Guardian business."
"And then I get to go back to looking for our friend, right?" Beef asked sourly.
"Of course. If you are so eager for a rest, you may be encouraged that I have a feeling that our fugitive is linked to this sudden appearance in some way. Fallen Angel often seems to be a the centre of the more unpredictable aspects of life here," Tarmid said, handing Beef a small box. Beneath a glass window glittered the same green gemstone as in the strange machine. "This may lack some of the finesse of its larger counterpart, but it is useful for locating the cursed at close quarters," Tarmid explained. "Your target should be in the direction with the most red, simply put."
Beef considered arguing for a moment, then sighed and nodded instead. The sooner he could get this over with, the sooner he'd be able to confiscate some more contraband for very close inspection later on.

*

Beef wasn't sure how nine people could make as much noise as his recruits were. The clanging of the steel chains Tarmid had given him didn't even seem like the loudest part, he was certain that Sibrek could drown out a stampede of elephants with the noise of his breathing. Beef sighed as they climbed the stairs, hoping that their enemy was deaf, or had buried their head under a pile of rocks. It would have been so much easier a few short years ago. The baron would have been leading the charge, and everyone involved would have had enough experience to hold their weapons the right way up. Now, though... Beef looked at his squad of 'warriors' and saw nine barely trained recruits. Sibrek was trying -and failing- to look calm, Rith had the grin of someone stupid enough to be looking forward to their first real battle, and Bomrek seemed to be looking for a way to flee. They would have to do, though.

A chill of panic rushed through Beef as the bloodstone compass levelled off as they were climbing past the sleeping area, before he realised it was pointing not towards the living quarters, but at the graves. Beef shook the compass, wondering what a vampire would want with lifeless bodies, but the red blob didn't change direction. He silently beckoned his squad to follow him.

The tombs were as cold as ever. Here and there dried out flowers rested on the nameplates of dwarves with still living families, but for the most part they were bare; relics of those who lived and died alone, or whose relatives had died with them. Beef shook his head sadly. How long had it been since he'd visited Besmar and Vucar? There was worse waiting around the corner than those who had simply been forgotten, though. Some of the coffins had been broken into. A few had had their shattered lids replaced and repaired, but most lay empty, shards of stone all that was left of their name and history. Beef looked around, seeing the rage on the faces of his squad and holding up a hand to remind them the stay quiet. He glanced again at the box. The red dot was pointing back the way they had come. No one could have passed them, so it had to mean they needed to go deeper into the spiralling catacombs. They rounded the final corner, every step as loud as a thunderstorm in the musty gloom of the oldest graves. The glow from Tarmid's box was brighter than ever, pointing at the very end of the hallway, towards a pile of bones heaped against the wall. Beef crept towards them, wincing as the recruits followed him with their impression of silence. They bones didn't seem to be anything special. Some of them were broken, and they weren't in any order, as though someone had just thrown them out to make room for something... Beef glanced at the tomb beside him. Its lid had been clumsily replaced, as though someone had tried to pull it back up while lying inside the coffin. He pointed and thanked the gods when his squad seemed to understand.

Beef handed one of the chains to Rith, taking positions at the head and feet of the tomb. Sibrek and Bomrek crept to the sides, and Beef held up three fingers. Two fingers... One... Sibrek and Bomek heaved, slowly raising the lid. Beneath, propped on his elbows, the vampire was reading a book. It glanced up curiously.
"Drop it!" Beef shouted, and the lid crashed back down. The chains clanged disappointingly quietly as they bound the tomb shut, trapping the creature inside.
"Hey," it shouted indignantly, banging on the walls of the coffin. "This isn't funny, guys!"
"Get Tarmid. Now," Beef told Rith, taking out his spear. If the bloodsucker managed to break the stone from the inside somehow, it wouldn't be getting away without a few new holes.

*

Rith had never been the most athletic of dwarves. She hated running and had only joined the militia because it seemed marginally better than spending her days harvesting crops. But she ran now. The world had contracted to the sound of her breath, gasping in and out, and Tarmid's office. Everything else had become nothing more than obstacles to be avoided. In the back of her mind, she registered an indignant shout as she dashed in front of someone carrying a sock, but she had already rounded the corner. Tarmid's door was closed, with someone from the other Hellguard standing in front of hit. He looked at Rith with some concern as she doubled over in front of him, trying to get her breath back.
"...Tarmid?" she gasped.
"He's visiting the prisoner at the minute," the guard said. "I don't think he'll be too long, you can wait here if you want!" he called after her as she dashed away again.

*

"I take it you have finished the book by now?" Tarmid said as he walked into the cell.
"That's what you wanted to ask? No, I've been much to busy counting the cracks in the ceiling to read," Thane answered, sitting up on the bed. She'd gone through it twice and still had the time to try get her second sight under control... and discover that there were forty two cracks in the ceiling.
Tarmid gave her his Unamused Teacher Stare for a moment, then continued, "Did anything in it strike you as important?"
Thane thought for a moment. "Nothing in particular," she eventually decided. "I'd like to find out more about whoever the first loremaster was, though. There's something... off about them."
"There is not that much known about the first loremaster, to be honest," Tarmid told her. "As far as we can tell, they were nearly single handedly responsible for compiling our original archives, so anything that they did not feel worthy of note is very difficult to find. Ironically, most of the information on the first loremaster seems to fall into that category. She certainly seems to have been zealous about keeping our minds untainted by darkness, though."
Thane snorted. "That's one way of putting it. You didn't come here for a book review, though. What's so important that you have to interrupt my busy schedule?"
"It is about the trial," he answered. "A few discrepancies have been appearing, so I thought I should ask you if you know anything about the location of Fallen Angel's body?"
"It was outside my cell chanting at me a few days ago," Thane shrugged. Tarmid nodded as though he'd expected as much. He reached into a pocket, pulling out something that Thane vaguely recognised.
"You my remember that this is a thaumometer, used to measure magical energy," he said as he fiddled with some dials on the side of the device. "To be honest, most of the crimes you are being accused of seem to be falling apart in front of us, but Brenzen will still feel bound to see you dead if you are found to be practising sorcery. I would like to verify that you are not before I waste my time trying to keep you alive, so may I?"
Thane sighed, standing up. Tarmid passed the thaumometer through the air in front of her, then frowned. He adjusted the device again, the swiped it in front of Thane again.
"Zero?" he muttered. "That does not make sense..."
"Why not?" Thane asked.
Tarmid glanced up at her, apparently shocked to remember that there was someone else in the room to distract him from his mystery. "Well, er... As long as something is alive, it will give off trace amounts of magical energy, somewhere in the region of point two up to point seven thaums. The undead give off significantly more energy, as they are sustained only by sorcery rather than anything physical. A reading of zero in something capable of moving around is unheard of to the best of my knowledge."
"Wasn't one of your Saints meant to be able to kill magic or something?" Thane asked.
Tarmid rubbed his chin, thinking. "Saint Emdief, yes," he agreed. "I suppose I could argue that this counts as precedent, though I would hope that you will agree to further study of your abilities at a later point."
Thane opened her mouth to agree, then the door burst open. One of the recruits Brenzen had added to the militia tumbled inside, gasping for air.
"Beef said..." she choked out. "Tarmid... Tombs!"
"I am sorry, I must have misunderstood you," Tarmid said politely.
"In the old tombs," Rith tried again. "Beef said you had to go there."
"Ah," Tarmid nodded, turning back to Thane. "I am afraid you will have to excuse me, something urgent has come up."
The door swept shut as Tarmid strode quickly towards the stairs. Thane sat back down on her bed, idly watching the threads of magic that ran through the fortress. She still couldn't understand what any of them actually did, although she had decided that the red and black ones should probably be left alone.
"Um," said a voice behind her. Thane looked over, slipping back into the physical world. It felt strange, like crossing your eyes and being turned upside down. The recruit was back on her feet, staring sadly at the door.
"The guards will be patrolling in an hour or so," Thane told her.
The girl nodded, sitting on the floor. Thane sighed. They were going to have to talk now, she supposed.

*

"Thane Levi, you have been accused of sorcery, murder, attempted murder and assault," Brenzen intoned. "How do you plead?"
Five dwarves were seated at a table in front of her, Brenzen and Tarmid among them. She recognised the doctor who had given her a crutch one as well. The others were just faces from the crowd. Was this the new Evening Prayer Group, or something else entirely? Thane supposed it didn't really matter.
"Innocent, if we're not counting goblins and criminals," she answered. Tarmid's quill scratched as he wrote the response down.
"And was Fallen Angel a criminal?" Brenzen asked pointedly.
"If you don't think he's a criminal, you should. But I didn't kill him."
"Can you prove that?" the doctor cut in.
"Of course not," Thane exclaimed. "I've been locked up for the past week! I bet that you can't even prove he's dead, though."
"Because you hid the body!" one of the unknown dwarves shouted triumphantly. Tarmid coughed quietly.
"In fact, myself and Brenzen took Thane into custody immediately after her alleged display of sorcery," he said. "When we went back to entomb the body, it had vanished. I sent one of the Hellguard squads out to search for it, and can testify that Fallen Angel is not dead, even if he is not quite alive either."
Brenzen stared at the scribe for a moment, then nodded sharply. "Very well. What of the displays of magic we both witnessed on that day?"
"Well, according to your testimony, the last person you remember speaking to you was Fallen Angel himself, not Thane. It also seems odd that she would ask you to accompany her to a place, only to bewitch you into leaving it. In any case, I took the liberty of reading her with my thaumometer and I am certain that Thane is incapable of using magic. Whatever it was that threw you across the room will have to be investigated, but she could not have done it on her own."
"Very well," Brenzen said. "Unless there are any objections, you're free to go," he told Thane. "Anything that was confiscated from you is under guard in Tarmid's office. He will be there to give them back as soon as we finish our next order of business."
Thane glanced around, then walked towards the door. Someone had certainly been pulling strings, or the trial would have been a lot messier, she knew. Did the scribe want something from her, or did he trust her? She'd find out soon enough. She looked over her shoulder as the door swung shut.
"Yesterday, a reading appeared on my bloodstone array in the centre of Demongate, which should be impossible," Tarmid was saying. She caught a glimpse of Beef and one of his recruits carrying what looked like a coffin into the room before the crack closed with a click.
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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2312 on: November 05, 2014, 06:39:30 pm »

>Demongate
>Updating

Good joke.
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4maskwolf

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2313 on: November 05, 2014, 08:03:51 pm »

The Battle of the Arena, Part One

"And you're quite sure that you were right about Thane?"  Sir Brenzen asked, pacing back and forth in the cramped space of Tarmid's office.
"Obviously I am, Brenzen," the scribe said with a tired sigh, "or else I would have been forced to convict her of a crime of which she was innocent."
Brenzen's characteristic scowl deepened, "You have been wrong before."
"Your case is different," Tarmid said, rubbing his temples, "I have never read of a similar anomaly in any of my literature.  You know as well as I do the reasons I rigged the trial, and you played your part as the accusor admirably."
After a long minute of silence, Tarmid finally asked, "You are obviously here for another reason, Brenzen, or else you would have departed.  What is on your mind?"
Brenzen resumed pacing the room, and silence hung in the air for another minute before he finally spoke, "Did you read the contents of Olin's diary after we recovered the magical tome?"
Tarmid glanced sharply up at Brenzen, "I skimmed the first part of it, but I did not see a need to read further.  Was there something in there that is important?"
Brenzen opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out.  The room warped and twisted, and the two dwarves found themselves standing in the center of the arena.  Shadows writhed along the walls, lashing out at the two dwarves, yet they could not move a muscle.  A voice reverberated around them.
"Welcome, little dwarves, to the last day of your lives."
The shadows parted in front of the two, and a female human in a golden mask stepped out.  She reached into the shadows, and massive plates of black steel slid across her body, forming an immense suit of armor around her.  Her hand withdrew a sword of the same material from the shadows, and she placed it against Brenzen's neck.  Still neither of the dwarves could move a muscle, paralyzed by the power of this being.
"Your fortress is doomed, little creatures.  The ritual is almost complete, and even now your dwarves are oblivious to the doom that approaches them.  Soon, the spawn of the True Gods while break free from the prison created by the False Ones, and at long last they can regain the world that is rightfully theirs."
The figure turned to face Tarmid, "But I am not without honor.  I will drop the wards concealing my activities from you pitiful creatures, so that you may assemble a group of champions to challenge me.  Four you may choose, no more, no less.  Remember that the ritual can be completed at any time, and should you attempt to betray me I will unleash your doom early.  Win, and I will withdraw; lose, and I will bring justice to this depraved world."
The figure withdrew the sword from Brenzen's neck, stepping back into the shadows.  As she faded from view, her voice rang out one last time, "You have one hour, dwarves.  Choose wisely."
The shadows writhed and twisted, and suddenly the two dwarves found themselves back in Tarmid's office.  Brenzen and Tarmid looked at each other, and Tarmid said, "Assemble your champions.  There is something I need to attend to."
A startled cry came from deeper in the fortress, and Brenzen sprinted out the door, racing for the barracks.




The doors to the barracks burst open as Brenzen raced through them, and the new recruits snapped to attention.  They had heard about the strangeness in the arena, but had not received orders.
"Thane, Thanatos, come with me.  The rest of you, stay put and prepare to defend yourselves,"  Brenzen barked, gesturing at the two squad leaders, "I'll explain on the way."
The three departed the barracks at a run racing down into the fortress.
"Wasn't that the arena level?"  Thanatos asked as they raced down the stairs.
"Yes," Brenzen replied, "but I still need one more."
"Who?"
Brenzen glanced over at Thane, "Someone you won't want to see again."




Tarmid walked quickly down the stairs, ignoring the cowering civilians around him.  His path took him to the depths of the fortress, following the path to the Hellguard's barracks.  He burst in to see the Hellguard still training, oblivious to the panic that had enveloped the rest of the fortress.
"Hellguard Commanders Arbanas and Vanderhuge!"
There was some commotion at his unexpected entry, but quickly Melbil Arbanas and Beef Vanderhuge were standing at attention next to him while their sqauds resumed training.
"We have an emergency.  I need the two of you to follow me."
Commander Arbanas maintained his stony countenance, "Authorization?"
Tarmid leaned in and whispered to them, "Scribe, Tarmid, Guardian Two".
Melbil Arbanas smiled wryly and said "Protocols are protocols, sir.  Lead the way."




Sir Brenzen walked into the room, followed by Thane and Thanatos.  Striding across to a coffin sitting in the middle of the room, he rapped his hand on the top of the coffin, "FallenAngel!"
There came a sigh from within the coffin, "Yes, knight?  What is it this time."
Brenzen quickly untangled the chains on top of the coffin, then pushed the lid off of it.  FallenAngel peered up at him from inside of the coffin, closing the tome he was reading, "Well, thank you, it was quite stuffy to be locked up in there all of this time."
"Can it.  You could have gotten out anytime you wanted.  Right now we need your help fighting."
Fallen, who had been standing up, sat right back down in the coffin, "Oh no.  I'm not going to play your game, knight.  I heard what that human challenged you to, and while you all can go get yourself killed, I have no intention of dying now.  If you'll excuse me, I have someone to find."
He stood up and tried to walk past the warriors, but Brenzen reached out and grabbed his arm.  With an iron grip, he turned FallenAngel to face him.
"You have two options, Fallen.  Agree to fight with us, and I'm sure I can get Tarmid to delay your trial for use of magic.  Refuse," Brenzen got a grim smile on his face, "and you'll find out exactly how we keep magic users confined."
FallenAngel paled, watching the knight's face.  Brenzen wasn't kidding, he concluded.
"I suppose I have no choice in the matter."
"No," Brenzen said, turning and gesturing the others to follow him, "no you don't."

jrrocks05

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2314 on: November 05, 2014, 08:21:42 pm »

Really excited to see how this ends😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃
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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2315 on: November 05, 2014, 08:40:20 pm »

Apparently I can summon updates with sarcasm.
Huh.
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FallenAngel

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2316 on: November 05, 2014, 09:03:18 pm »

And apparently FallenAngel forgets he can make people forget things.
"hey brenzen remember that thing we're doing"
"yes"
"no you don't"
"ok"
"I'm leaving"
"why were you here"
"I wanted to say hi"
"oh ok"

Still, FallenAngel has the power of the slade ring, which was important in still having a skull...
I honestly wonder what would happen.

4maskwolf

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2317 on: November 05, 2014, 09:05:37 pm »

And apparently FallenAngel forgets he can make people forget things.
"hey brenzen remember that thing we're doing"
"yes"
"no you don't"
"ok"
"I'm leaving"
"why were you here"
"I wanted to say hi"
"oh ok"

Still, FallenAngel has the power of the slade ring, which was important in still having a skull...
I honestly wonder what would happen.
There are fairly significant story reasons he can't actually do that that I'll explain in a later update.  Next update will probably come tomorrow, with the battle itself, though given how long it will probably be it may end up being posted Friday.  Idk.

Deus Asmoth

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2318 on: November 06, 2014, 08:04:59 am »

And apparently FallenAngel forgets he can make people forget things.
"hey brenzen remember that thing we're doing"
"yes"
"no you don't"
"ok"
"I'm leaving"
"why were you here"
"I wanted to say hi"
"oh ok"

Still, FallenAngel has the power of the slade ring, which was important in still having a skull...
I honestly wonder what would happen.
Good thing Thane is immune to magic and can negate Fallen's ring's power, then bash his head in with a hammer.
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FallenAngel

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2319 on: November 06, 2014, 10:50:34 am »

And apparently FallenAngel forgets he can make people forget things.
"hey brenzen remember that thing we're doing"
"yes"
"no you don't"
"ok"
"I'm leaving"
"why were you here"
"I wanted to say hi"
"oh ok"

Still, FallenAngel has the power of the slade ring, which was important in still having a skull...
I honestly wonder what would happen.
Good thing Thane is immune to magic and can negate Fallen's ring's power, then bash his head in with a hammer.
The ring thing was in relation to the battle.
I'm also fairly sure body occupation is the only thing that can be nullified, not body surfing overall.

TheFlame52

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2320 on: November 06, 2014, 05:16:24 pm »

I reeeeeeeealy hope Flame has a part in the finale, or at least her traps.

4maskwolf

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2321 on: November 06, 2014, 05:26:27 pm »

I reeeeeeeealy hope Flame has a part in the finale, or at least her traps.
Not of my turn, no. Of the end of the fortress, yes.

TheFlame52

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2322 on: November 06, 2014, 07:51:19 pm »

I reeeeeeeealy hope Flame has a part in the finale, or at least her traps.
Not of my turn, no. Of the end of the fortress, yes.
The end of the fort is what I meant. And sweet.

4maskwolf

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2323 on: November 06, 2014, 09:16:55 pm »

I reeeeeeeealy hope Flame has a part in the finale, or at least her traps.
Not of my turn, no. Of the end of the fortress, yes.
The end of the fort is what I meant. And sweet.
Yes, you will have a part in the end of the fortress.  Oh yes...

*cackles maniachally*

danmanthedog

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Re: Demongate, home of the first and best Pimpstack.
« Reply #2324 on: November 06, 2014, 09:37:24 pm »

Release the demons my friends!!!!
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