Topic: Our Salvation: It Is Written (Read 262403 times)

penguinofhonor · « **Reply #1245 on:** June 30, 2016, 05:20:03 pm »

You know what? I can leave this crappy, gravelly place now. I continue my quest for soft ground outside the walls.

Toaster · « **Reply #1246 on:** June 30, 2016, 05:20:52 pm »

Did he say... right, right, part of the show. They must have worked hard on rehearsing that.

"Yes, tricky things, eyes. My cousin got that laser surgery, and he hasn't needed glasses in years! Amazing! Anyway, shall we be off?"

Shall we be off?

Xantalos · « **Reply #1247 on:** June 30, 2016, 06:03:54 pm »

"Ah shit. Blacksmith! Blacksmith you better not have died I don't have my armor yet!"

Go to said tunnel and holler into it. Say I've found the perfect thing in an attempt to bribe him off.

AoshimaMichio · « **Reply #1248 on:** July 01, 2016, 11:07:50 am »

I'm seeing the pattern here. I use magic to cause distraction but it backfires ending up with me in trouble. Then I become distraction and Lee saves my ass.

"I hate wizards." Leif coughs the words out. "Bastards cursed me with misfortune. It spreads like rabies, with death and rats."

Magic of confusing words. Babble about curses, wizards, plague and jazz to confuse hell out of them. Sing a song of my people. Focus their attention on me so strictly they cannot perceive anything else, assuming I can figure out that trick.

TopHat · « **Reply #1249 on:** July 01, 2016, 01:11:00 pm »

"Thanks. Is there anything I need to do to get out or do I just push the boards up again?"

Ask a quick question and then have a nap.

Harry Baldman · « **Reply #1250 on:** July 01, 2016, 02:20:21 pm »

Quote from: penguinofhonor on June 30, 2016, 05:20:03 pm

You know what? I can leave this crappy, gravelly place now. I continue my quest for soft ground outside the walls.

[Serendipitous Opening: 2]

You briefly come out of cover just in time to catch the evening train right the hell out of this castle as Mr. Minstep as well as two other companions are permitted to go through the gate, only to have your hopes dashed as the guards tell you to stop right there. Nobody goes out just yet, they say. Wouldn't want civilians running out and getting killed, no sir. And no, ma'am, banging on the gate like that will not improve your chances of getting out, so you can stop doing that. The guards will get first pick of the stoatmen's supplies anyway, so there's no rush.

You try to explain that you were really only interested in all the soft dirt and gently wafting, inviting grass out there, but the guards remain obstinate in their desire to keep you in for the time being. You're not sure they believe you.

Quote from: Toaster on June 30, 2016, 05:20:52 pm

Did he say... right, right, part of the show. They must have worked hard on rehearsing that.

"Yes, tricky things, eyes. My cousin got that laser surgery, and he hasn't needed glasses in years! Amazing! Anyway, shall we be off?"

Shall we be off?

You shall be off indeed, the Worm-knight says, and the merry party of three including you is led unceremoniously through the castle gate, which is opened just a crack to let you all through, then promptly closed, and even the drawbridge isn't lowered all the way, forcing the lot of you to brave a small yet mildly knee-shaking jump down.

After this, however, the only thing standing between you and Anglefork Town seems to be the set of two raging mountain rivers surrounding you on all sides. The edges of the artificial castle island are marked by the remnants of the stout war camp, presently empty of life as far as you can tell (and thus very likely to be absolutely teeming with assassins, your companion mutters in a grave tone). Tents are strewn about, and you see quite a lot of equipment lying around on the ground, seemingly abandoned by insufficiently motivated larpists in the middle of their performance, the resulting graveyard of assembled props lying around in manners highly suggestive of twisted death poses sufficiently ominous to make you nervously chuckle at the accidental artistry.

Hm, says the Worm-knight, the bridge is out. As is the replacement bridge. Perhaps a raft can be found in the camp someplace. They should have had one to bring in supplies, at least, unless it is currently in town. Or, suggests the other guy, they floated them in. Balloons at dusk, to keep you guessing. If they had balloons, the knight notes with irritation, why didn't they just float over the walls? To which the other guy says, why, to keep everyone guessing. It wouldn't have worked either, he then adds after a moment's thought, because he was fully prepared for balloons the entire time.

Quote from: Xantalos on June 30, 2016, 06:03:54 pm

"Ah shit. Blacksmith! Blacksmith you better not have died I don't have my armor yet!"

Go to said tunnel and holler into it. Say I've found the perfect thing in an attempt to bribe him off.

You go over to the tunnel and yell down it, hoping to reach a familiar voice. Blacksmith!

[Persuasive Holler: 2]

You think you hear something echo back after your own holler subsides. High-pitched, vaguely irritated, and you think a particular word was enunciated judging from a certain stilted noise it makes. Shit, he's really down there, you think. Or maybe, just maybe a monster ate him and is now imitating his voice to lure you in.

Either way you suspect you need to get down there to get to the bottom of things. Down that dark and foreboding shaft that leads into pitch darkness and through which you may very well not be able to get back up.

Quote from: AoshimaMichio on July 01, 2016, 11:07:50 am

I'm seeing the pattern here. I use magic to cause distraction but it backfires ending up with me in trouble. Then I become distraction and Lee saves my ass.

"I hate wizards." Leif coughs the words out. "Bastards cursed me with misfortune. It spreads like rabies, with death and rats."

Magic of confusing words. Babble about curses, wizards, plague and jazz to confuse hell out of them. Sing a song of my people. Focus their attention on me so strictly they cannot perceive anything else, assuming I can figure out that trick.

[Unnatural Displays: 4]

This doesn't look like any damn kind of misfortune he's ever seen, one of the soldier says. The hell you doing, talky man, not bleeding to death like a regular trespasser would in your position? And what's this about wizards?

You smile. Only one of them spoke the words, but all of them are listening, their grip faltering slightly. An opening.

[Speak To The Mob: 5]

The curse of immortality is bestowed through the liminal boundary at the conjunction of the spheres, brought into being by the gods of fire and dark alike. Strike one down, over and over again, and they come back stronger, seizing souls without sovereign to power the great cycle of death and rebirth, now and forever, until the stars themselves go out and the fabric of the world grows frayed and useless and old, the flame burning without end, consuming all, eating the gods themselves as immortal heroes bring the passing of ages, coming again and again to cull the misshapen remnants of the old world, powering themselves with old glory, bringing themselves in touch with the Godhead... but is the next age one of light or dark? Or something else entirely?

You dare say this bloody nonsense is doing the job, the proletarian stoats listening with slack jaws and loosened grips as you spin a vast yarn spanning thousands of imagined eras. It soon begins to run on autopilot, repeating in their minds with the names and shapes slightly changing. In a final personal touch, you pepper your tales with sinister, hollow chuckles when a point is made or implied, and then the tale begins to tell itself, set in each mind and capturing their attention completely. As their gray eyes glaze over you take a look around.

[Moth's Flight: 4]

You notice Lee's not around at all anymore. Huh. You were kind of hoping she would help you out of this mess.

Quote from: TopHat on July 01, 2016, 01:11:00 pm

"Thanks. Is there anything I need to do to get out or do I just push the boards up again?"

Ask a quick question and then have a nap.

A solid kick should get the boards right out. And if not, she'll hear the kick and let you out if you can't get out on your own. She'll go and talk to this one guy for a bit and be right back while you nap. Anyway, have a good rest, she says and, after you slip in, sets the boards back into place firmly. You hear her footsteps for a little bit as she walks away.

[Restful Quarters: 3]

Hm. This is pretty surprisingly cozy, though maybe the arrangement of stuff isn't exactly for your body shape. A little wiggling fixes that right up, though, and you soon drift into a carefree nap, feeling relatively secure in this little hidey-tomb.

Spoiler: Status (click to show/hide)

penguinofhonor · « **Reply #1251 on:** July 01, 2016, 03:02:55 pm »

Well, I've seen this gate open to a Word before. I think that could be arranged again.

"Hey now, I've been up on the castle walls. The army's not there. I saw it myself! Or didn't see it, whatever. I can't believe you guys are sitting around waiting for orders when you could be outside eating something that isn't a rat. Come on, it's been so long. You must HUNGER for freedom."

Xantalos · « **Reply #1252 on:** July 01, 2016, 03:07:58 pm »

"God dammit. Let me think before I act, what's down there?
...
Ladder and then endless pit, with that one handprint I made still there."

Daniels looks at his mangled left hand.

"This murderthought is perhaps the best thing I've ever gotten, but I kinda wish it hadn't come at the price of my hand. If I had a functional one I could easily go down there and see if he's there.
...
Well, there's always threatening people for an option. Let's try that, enforced scouting. Otherwise going down there would just be a waste."

Go find someone (not one of my kind) and 'convince' them to go down the ladder and report back to me if the blacksmith is there.

Convincing being without maiming them, of course.

Toaster · « **Reply #1253 on:** July 01, 2016, 08:20:53 pm »

Hm. This wasn't really his area of expertise.

"A long board, then? A tree? Make our own bridge, as it were? Shame there isn't time to bring it up to code; we can't let the common folk use it until it is properly secured, of course. Too much liability."

Can we build it?

AoshimaMichio · « **Reply #1254 on:** July 02, 2016, 12:41:08 am »

Poke the weapons lodged into me a bit to see just how much they are in their own little world. If they do not react, then I work myself free of weapons and sneak back towards the house with captive. Otherwise the tale must pull them deeper into the fantasy realms spanning in their minds.
Hope Lee won't cause mess this time. And hopefully I can break the pattern.

TopHat · « **Reply #1255 on:** July 02, 2016, 06:44:25 am »

Sleep off that damage.

Harry Baldman · « **Reply #1256 on:** July 02, 2016, 11:22:53 am »

Quote from: penguinofhonor on July 01, 2016, 03:02:55 pm

Well, I've seen this gate open to a Word before. I think that could be arranged again.

"Hey now, I've been up on the castle walls. The army's not there. I saw it myself! Or didn't see it, whatever. I can't believe you guys are sitting around waiting for orders when you could be outside eating something that isn't a rat. Come on, it's been so long. You must HUNGER for freedom."

There is one thing that all residents of this castle feel, a pervasive feeling behind every eye and passing glance. And you have just the word for it.

HUNGER

[Word: 6]

The mood abruptly changes among the guards. They look toward the gate as one, and nearly break into a brawl over who will get to open the gate first, starting to yell at one another to move faster. One starts cranking the gate open, the others begin to lower the drawbridge. The ones whose hands aren't busy decide to make a break for it, pushing past you as they clamber beneath the rising portcullis of the gates and jump down from the lowering drawbridge, rolling downhill as they make a run for the stoatman camp to find something, anything to sate themselves. One red-nosed guardswoman collapses in the grass as she starts eating that, others sprinting past the exploratory party as they give them a bewildered look.

You follow along at a leisurely pace, the last of the gate guards moving past you as the drawbridge falls entirely into place and you can proceed downhill. The siege camp seems to be in a bit of a bad state, and there's water on all sides, but you have to say that being out of that damn castle already makes you feel a lot better by itself.

Quote from: Xantalos on July 01, 2016, 03:07:58 pm

"God dammit. Let me think before I act, what's down there?
...
Ladder and then endless pit, with that one handprint I made still there."

Daniels looks at his mangled left hand.

"This murderthought is perhaps the best thing I've ever gotten, but I kinda wish it hadn't come at the price of my hand. If I had a functional one I could easily go down there and see if he's there.
...
Well, there's always threatening people for an option. Let's try that, enforced scouting. Otherwise going down there would just be a waste."

Go find someone (not one of my kind) and 'convince' them to go down the ladder and report back to me if the blacksmith is there.

Convincing being without maiming them, of course.

[An Assortment of Schmucks: 5]

You notice an angry-looking large guy coming your way. He asks you where the blacksmith is in a tone you do not appreciate. You take a moment to seize him by the throat and lift him off the ground, murder-thought scratching at his spine, itching to tear into his brain. You proceed to speak for a moment about his attitude problem, which makes him change his tune in quite a hurry.

Now then, you say, you're looking for the blacksmith as well. You presume he is down there, you point at the hole in the wall. But you'd really like to send in someone to check first. The guy goes quiet for a moment. You want him to go down there... and check for you? Yes, you say, and it's going to be a pretty good deal overall, since you assume either he'll come back out the same way or through another one after a good deal of exploration, and either way he'll have some good info for you. So there's really only one thing left to do, you say, and unceremoniously toss the guy down the shaft, listening to him tumble down screaming. Fortunately, he doesn't seem to hurt himself to the point of uselessness as he impacts the ground below. You shout for him to have a happy hunt and step away from the shaft.

You suspect this may take a bit, so maybe you should find something else to do in the meantime.

Quote from: Toaster on July 01, 2016, 08:20:53 pm

Hm. This wasn't really his area of expertise.

"A long board, then? A tree? Make our own bridge, as it were? Shame there isn't time to bring it up to code; we can't let the common folk use it until it is properly secured, of course. Too much liability."

Can we build it?

[We Have The Technology: 4]

Grappling hook, suggests your guy. When in doubt, grappling hook. Just need rope and a grappling hook for that, and also something to hook it onto. Should be stuff in the camp to make all that possible. He leads the way, and you and the Worm-knight follow.

[Solid Hooks: 5]

You are led in circles, then zigzags, forced to crawl over tents and pause as the guy watches out for invisible ambushes and tests most everything with a 10-foot-pole he manages to recover from the ruins of one particular tent. The Worm-knight is in the middle of berating him for wasting your collective time when he stabs the pole into a collapsed tent and triumphantly fishes out a rather large hook - seemingly an unfinished grappling hook, but one that ought to serve well enough for hooking around a tree. Nearby there's also quite a bit of rope, which after some exhausting testing is proven to not be a snake.

When all is said and done, though, you have a good 20 meters of rope, another 10 meter segment, a couple of 5 meter ones and a grappling hook, not at all a bad haul from your cursory search, and even more impressive given that your search attempts are somewhat interfered with by a whole lot of castle guards running out to partake in the looting, each and every one slavering with overwhelming hunger for things both edible and not, judging from their efforts to dig into most everything lying around the siege camp. Fools, says your guy, don't they know that everything is poisoned?

Quote from: AoshimaMichio on July 02, 2016, 12:41:08 am

Poke the weapons lodged into me a bit to see just how much they are in their own little world. If they do not react, then I work myself free of weapons and sneak back towards the house with captive. Otherwise the tale must pull them deeper into the fantasy realms spanning in their minds.
Hope Lee won't cause mess this time. And hopefully I can break the pattern.

[Captive Audience: 5]

There is an idea of you, Leif Erikson, an abstraction, lodged into their brains. You cultivate this abstraction as you remove the myriad weapons lodged into your body, bringing the minds of your audience in overlap, letting their own deluded thoughts sustain the illusion as you weave out from between them. The circle of listeners remains standing there for the time being, still captivated. You think you're free for the moment.

[Sharp Eyes And Keen Ears: 6]

And if you're not mistaken, that was the beginning of a shriek followed by the unmistakable gurgle of somebody drowning in their own blood coming from within. You cast an eye toward the people outside. Still captivated! Excellent. Maybe you can join the party inside in that case.

Quote from: TopHat on July 02, 2016, 06:44:25 am

Sleep off that damage.

[Beauty Sleep: 5]

The dark and comfort does a soul good, you find as you drift off into a dreamless sleep, feeling magnificently refreshed as you awaken subjectively moments afterward, your quarters warm and welcoming now that you've been in them for a bit and let them adjust to your shape. Even the rat at the foot of the compartment seems to be asleep at the moment, leaving you mostly in silence and calm.

Spoiler: Status (click to show/hide)

AoshimaMichio · « **Reply #1257 on:** July 02, 2016, 02:36:29 pm »

Pattern broken nicely. Leif nods approvingly. Perhaps my luck is changing. For a moment anyway.

Speaking about HUNGER, I got these berries I should eat before they spoil. And while I do that I stroll into that winery to find our collaborator. Not loudly or carelessly, but like a man who knows exactly what he's doing and where he belongs. Literally walking in my own footsteps.

Xantalos · « **Reply #1258 on:** July 02, 2016, 04:05:17 pm »

"Perhaps I should meet whoever's in charge here. I think I heard about a queen or something? Maybe she can tell me where I can meet ... humans of El or whatever the well wanted. Or maybe just ask around about that first. There's probably a librarian or diplomat or something here, right?

I'm nearby the keep right now, right? Go to the entrance and ask if there's anyone that knows where humans of El can be found. More specifically, where El is in relation to here, in case anyone tries being a smartass.

Toaster · « **Reply #1259 on:** July 02, 2016, 08:44:02 pm »

"Ahhh... uh, rope. Maybe one of you can work on getting the length right? I'm not much for knots. I'll... fix the hook? Shouldn't be hard, right?

Right? Fix the hook itself.

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Author Topic: Our Salvation: It Is Written (Read 262403 times)

penguinofhonor

Re: Our Salvation: Knights of the Far Beyond

Toaster

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Xantalos

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AoshimaMichio

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TopHat

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Harry Baldman

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penguinofhonor

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Xantalos

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Toaster

Re: Our Salvation: Knights of the Far Beyond

AoshimaMichio

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TopHat

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Harry Baldman

Re: Our Salvation: Knights of the Far Beyond

AoshimaMichio

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Xantalos

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Toaster

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