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+---- Thread: [DROP] cleverly and quietly (/showthread.php?tid=3725)
RE: cleverly and quietly - Random Event - 06-29-2020
Indeed they are human, or seem to be. A man—a boy more likely—all legs and arms. He gasps for breath, hardly moving at all as Amalia comes to him. His hands are shackled above his head and there is another around his waist. [say]"I..ple..a.s..e..."[/say] His voice is grower weaker now. Perhaps he's in shock or merely has lost too much blood, hard to say, but he offers no advice on how to get him free. His stomach rumbles unhappily, and as he shifts, blood oozes from a long gash down the side of his stomach.
As Wessex's finger touches the light of the orb, it seems to leap towards her. Power rolls into her being, soaking her circuitry and drowning her in a bright haze of potential. But all is not well...her knees buckle as the orb seems to suck her towards it, her entire palm fixed upon it now, as it simultaneously draws and gives power...
Wessex HP: 199/259
RE: cleverly and quietly - Amalia - 06-29-2020
[say]"It's okay. I've got you."[/say]
The man (boy, a child) is scarcely something Amalia might consider alive, and her heart catches like iron in her throat. Falling to her knees beside him Amalia reaches into her pockets, scrambling for the prize she has kept safe through LongNight: a crystal filled with mastered healing, given on her last outing with Jigano. Thrusting it forward toward the boy, she wills the magic to do its work upon him, to get him as close to strong and capable as it possibly can.
At the same time she reaches for the chains that bind him. The ones from which he hangs may indeed be breakable by the Star, and she indicates them as best she can, both with qilin fire and sound. [say]Ronin, can you break these? I'll shield him.[/say] And indeed she does, using both her body and the star shield that Deimos made to protect against the bolt. At the same time her hands search the chain around his waist, searching for a weakness, for a way to break it free.
Amalia uses her abandoned crystal to heal the boy. It currently has Jigano's healing magic. She then asks Ronin to try and break the chains, shielding the boy with her body and her charm.
Magical Crystal | When (abandoned) magic is cast at this device, it can store the power and reuse it as controlled by the wielder. (Made by Remi)
Star Charm | A silver charm in the shape of a star. When activated, it projects a 1ft barrier of starlight all the way across the user. (Made by Deimos)
RE: cleverly and quietly - Wessex - 06-29-2020
What can she do but endure? There’s an odd sort of push and pull in her, leaving her circuitry confused at the simultaneous influx and the output. It leaves her weak, bringing her to her knees, palm still on the orb. Ah, but there’s still strength in her yet and Wessex growls aloud, willing herself to hold on, to maintain the contact with the glowing little fucker. Courage, courage, courage. She’s not done yet.
Ronin all but fades into the background, all her mental and physical energy focused on accepting the power without letting it drain her. Maybe in the end it’ll have been worth it.
---------------
Wessex maintains contact with the orb.
RE: cleverly and quietly - Ronin - 06-29-2020
Oh damn, it was all happening now. Above, Ronin flinched back from the sudden activity from the orb, the way it dragged Wessex to her knees. [say]”Fuck!”[/say] he hissed, reaching into the room to try and grasp her by the arm, to pull her back and away. [say]”Just let it go!”[/say] he called to her, wondering whether or not she would be able to, let alone anything else.
And fun times downstairs, too. Taking a deep breath, the other Ronin had to listen very carefully for the clink of the chains; given the impenetrable darkness, he’d be flying blind. [say]”Gods, okay. Stay back,”[/say] he warned, aiming as best he could before unleashing a starbolt at where he thought the chains were.
One Ronin tries to pull Wessex out of the room, while the other makes a very stupid decision to fire a starbolt at the chains. In the dark. Blind.
RE: cleverly and quietly - Random Event - 06-30-2020
Well Amalia can't quite stay back now can she? Not with the boy chained to the wall, Amalia using her shield to protect them, and Ronin shooting directly into the heart of it all. Blind, as he has pointed out. The sound of shrieking metal fills the room and in Amalia's grip she'll find the boy's arms are free and suddenly wrapping around her. Filled with magic, enough to regain his consciousness and his wits, he suddenly tried to shove her away. [say]"No..no...trap! It's ...a...you can't be here! It's a trap!"[/say] He screams, voice full of worry. [say]"I'm the trap!"[/say]
His stomach rumbles again.
Above, the play of power and life is underfoot. For every ounce of strength taken from Wessex, power floods through her. Her circuitry is cleaned out, as if she is having the ascended version of an oil change. At the same time there is pressure building inside of her mind, as a new mechanic begins to take place...
...as soon as Ronin touches Wessex, the power is diverted. It hums through him now with that same deadly allure. He grows stronger in both mind and body. Cosmic blushes tinge his cheeks as the whisper of starlight and moonshed sing into his thoughts. The moon and everything below can be his, if only he holds on...
But who will last? Who will be the last to hold the orb?
Ronin HP: 176/203
Wessex HP: 176/259
RE: cleverly and quietly - Amalia - 06-30-2020
A trap.
Amalia's stomach clenches, fear pressing cold fingers behind her eyes, down her spine. Of course it's a trap, of course it's a trap-! But what is she supposed to do. The boy is chained, captured and tormented, and she promised, promised that she would do whatever it took to get him free.
[say]"I won't leave you to die."[/say] There's panic in her voice and strength as well, an iron forged in the face of terror and fear. [say]"I'm going to get you out."[/say] This time she draws from the shield for magic, remembering that Jigano placed earth within. She doesn't know how to wield it, not really, but it must be something she can use to break the chains that bind him, or at least to free him from the wall.
There's tears in her voice and desperation as well as she calls back to her other companions. [say]"There's a boy trapped down here! The monsters- they did something to him. We have to get him free. Wessex! Can you teleport him?"[/say] The odds that the Wraith can hear feel slim, but it's the only plan she can think of.
Ama uses Jigano's earth magic to try and break the remaining chain or pull it from the wall. She calls to the others for help, especially to Wessex to teleport the boy out
RE: cleverly and quietly - Ronin - 06-30-2020
It was a difficult thing, to keep his concentration, when something was leeching his strength suddenly - and when there was a boy who was actually a trap downstairs. Still holding on to Wessex, Ronin grit his teeth and tried to deliver the message. [say]”Someone’s trapped,”[/say] he grated out. [say]”Amalia asked... if you could teleport them.”[/say] Whether the Wraith could hear him, or whether she would care, was entirely another matter.
Below, Ronin’s other self began to pull at the scarf, hissing a curse through his teeth. [say]”I’ve relayed everything,”[/say] he said. [say]”Ama, you need to step away from there.”[/say] Whatever was going to happen, he guaranteed that it wouldn’t be anything but horrific.
Ronin keeps hold of Wessex and relays Amalia’s message. He also tries to persuade her out of the room.
RE: cleverly and quietly - Wessex - 06-30-2020
There’s a lot going on. To say the least.
The pressure builds in her head, blocking a lot out. Trap - Amalia - is most of what she hears, and there’s enough comprehension about what’s going on inside her to know she has to stay with the orb. But Amalia needs help, right? So why shouldn’t Ronin go help her? She’ll be fine on her own, she has to let it do it to her and her alone.
[say] “Get… her… out -”[/say] Wessex says to Ronin through gritted teeth, desperately hanging onto the orb with one hand, as she pulls him into her for leverage and then tries to use her speed to surprise him and her strength to push him back towards the door, out to the platform. She pushes again with her shadow if need be, and then uses her shadow again to shut the door behind him if he falls through it. He wouldn’t be able to get back in. He’d have to save Ama. And she’d be able to finish this - whatever this is.
RE: cleverly and quietly - Random Event - 06-30-2020
[say]"Noono, you don't understand! I am the trap!"[/say] He screams, delirious with pain and nearly unintelligible in his panic. As the earth magic extends outwards, indeed the chains break. They are not what was really holding him there, after all. He slumps down, shoving at
The magic has no concern for who it is tethered to, so long as it is still tethered. As
Ronin HP: 170/203
Wessex HP: 146/259
RE: cleverly and quietly - Wessex - 06-30-2020
With Ronin out the door, there’s little to do but wait and hope that she isn’t sacrificing her energy for nothing. Her eyes focus on the light, dilating to pinpoints as she feels the effort of getting the Dark Star out of the room added to what it saps. She sinks to the floor, suddenly far more tired than she’s been in weeks - months, even. Since right after she Ascended again. Ah, and wouldn’t that be the icing on the cake? If this is all a trick and they’re just going to kill her for her upgrades? The Monsters play on her greed and suck them all out, equip themselves and then use them to kill her kin.
Goddess, that would fucking suck.[say] “Now... what?”[/say] she says aloud, asking the Monster, presumably, hoping there’s an answer and she doesn’t have to wait till she’s at her dregs of energy to try and figure out what’s really happening.
RE: cleverly and quietly - Ronin - 06-30-2020
[say]”Gods fucking damn i—“[/say] Cut off by the door slamming in his face, Ronin shook out his hand and growled a few other choice curses, though he was already moving to vault down from the platform to run towards where Amalia and his projection were waiting. The Shield would likely hear his footsteps, growing closer until he skidded into the doorway.
His projection shot forward into the dark like this was some strange relay where all the participants were Ronin, the Star simultaneously holding the door and trying to get an arm around Amalia. [say]”You can’t save everyone,”[/say] he grated, his voice rough around the words. If he was successful he’d pull her around so the projection could take the brunt of whatever might happen.
Meatshield Ronin to the rescue!
RE: cleverly and quietly - Amalia - 06-30-2020
[say]"Why? What's going to happen?"[/say] Amalia does her best to keep her grip on the boy, tugging him toward the waiting door and summoning her starlight shield just in case. She doesn't know what will happen if she leaves him, but she knows that she cannot. She's stubborn, and she's stalwart, and she knows that with the help of the Wraith she will be able to get him free.
But Wessex doesn't come.
She isn't sure why it hurts, but it does. Instead it is Ronin who vaults down to help the Shield, and frustration grips her at his declaration, anger flaring hot in her chest. He ought to have known how keenly those words would hurt her, how much more stubbornly they would make her hold on. She fights the arm around her waist, trying to run back to the child. [say]"I fucking know that,"[/say] the girl snaps, tears now on her cheeks. Images of Adam and Peter dance in the burning blur, of failure after failure. [say]"But I have to try."[/say]
Ama tries to get the boy out the door until Ronin grabs her, then she tries to get free. She is projecting her starlight barrier.
RE: cleverly and quietly - Random Event - 07-01-2020
Another woman is able to shake free from Ronin. Even though it is only his astral form, it is no doubt going to grate against his nerves. The boy is still trying to back away from
Above with
Wessex HP: 116/259
RE: cleverly and quietly - Wessex - 07-01-2020
Of course there isn’t a reply. It seems like for better or for worse, the Wraith will see this thing through. Splayed fingers seem unable to move, and though it’s not like the orb is melting into her skin, its more like… she is linked and there is no way to reverse this. Or stop it. So she steadies herself for the grave possibilities ahead, and the irony of dying yet again within the Spire’s reach. Only this time, the Voice won’t be there to bring her back. Well, it’s a good thing she has a spare demigod now.
And if she dies in here, she hopes Ronin will remember her last words. She hopes Hotaru and Jata and Nate won’t wait at the portal for too long. She hopes Amun won’t be too mad at her, that someone will train the twins. She's sad - at the thought - visibly so.
At the very least, she’ll see Clem and Rex soon. Walk with her Goddess in their paradise. That’ll be nice.