"Damn, am I ever glad you never did that," Layla told her mother as they observed Jasmine's harangue at a safe distance.
Faye smiled neutrally. She wasn't about to reveal that her great fear, as Layla was reaching womanhood, had been that she would find a man, settle down and raise a family -- a fear born of two concerns. First, many men in the Gewehr (and marrying outside the organization was a non-starter) treated their womenfolk abominably, and Faye didn't want her daughter exposed to that. At least that concern had been unfounded; as far as she could tell, Arty had always been as good and decent and caring -- loving -- a husband as could be asked for. (He'd also had a better than average relationship with a mother-in-law, Faye thought, and took some credit of her own for that.) Second, she was afraid that Layla would set herself up to be widowed at a young age -- and that was exactly what had happened. Still, Layla seemed to be coping -- better than I would have under the circumstances, she conceded. I'm incredibly proud of this young woman I raised.
The two women, and Zachary, headed for one last, safe, child-friendly, comfortable ride, before calling it quits for the day.
Mountain(s) of Madness
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Graybeard
- The Heretical Admin
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Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
Because old is wise, does good, and above all, kicks ass.
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Graybeard
- The Heretical Admin
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Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
[OOC: Sorry for the twofer, but it's time to change characters for a while...]
Meanwhile, Grope was having a most unexpected, and unwelcome, encounter along the fence.
He never intended to cross over into whatever lay beyond the barrier. Clearly, it hadn't been erected by a band of trolls, and that was what he was looking for. However, the line of the fence provided a useful route for navigating through some cliff bands and deadfall as he headed north, so he paralleled the fence at close range, and an observer might have thought he was looking for a place to cross. At least, that was what he told himself later...
... But an "observer" had been out along the fence and had seen him -- an observer wearing priest's robes and carrying a staff. Grope had to hand it to him; the man was quiet. Trolls weren't easy to surprise. But surprised he was, as he rounded a bend in the fence, to see the man pointing at him with the staff, and starting to chant.
Grope did a sudden tuck and roll, throwing Chippy to the ground, as a Force Bolt roared overhead.
Meanwhile, Grope was having a most unexpected, and unwelcome, encounter along the fence.
He never intended to cross over into whatever lay beyond the barrier. Clearly, it hadn't been erected by a band of trolls, and that was what he was looking for. However, the line of the fence provided a useful route for navigating through some cliff bands and deadfall as he headed north, so he paralleled the fence at close range, and an observer might have thought he was looking for a place to cross. At least, that was what he told himself later...
... But an "observer" had been out along the fence and had seen him -- an observer wearing priest's robes and carrying a staff. Grope had to hand it to him; the man was quiet. Trolls weren't easy to surprise. But surprised he was, as he rounded a bend in the fence, to see the man pointing at him with the staff, and starting to chant.
Grope did a sudden tuck and roll, throwing Chippy to the ground, as a Force Bolt roared overhead.
Because old is wise, does good, and above all, kicks ass.
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AdamZero
- Mage/Priest War Veteran
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- Location: Behind the guy on the left of the thing over there
Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
Jamie only gave me a smirk as her mother's tirade peaked. I couldn't quite keep up with her words, but it amounted to her choices and me and my sad state and sad choice of apparel. Ah right, I was still wearing the basic fatigues.
"I'l be back in just a moment." I broke off the path for a moment, soon hidden by heavy trees that made it near impossible to travel the woods around the path. I swiftly changed into one of my better outfits, nice fit, trims of silver threads, but travel worn, so the black clothe had a bit of fade to it. I actually looked quiet proper once I drew out a walking length mage staff and popped a nice looking hat on my head.
Jamie's mom hadn't let her pause and I ended up leaping out of the woods a bit behind them, I leapt because that's the only way to get over roots that high. I caught up with them, brushing off a little dust on my side. "That's better." I smiled, looking to Jamie, who'd had a chance to change into her regular clothes before we'd left.
"I'l be back in just a moment." I broke off the path for a moment, soon hidden by heavy trees that made it near impossible to travel the woods around the path. I swiftly changed into one of my better outfits, nice fit, trims of silver threads, but travel worn, so the black clothe had a bit of fade to it. I actually looked quiet proper once I drew out a walking length mage staff and popped a nice looking hat on my head.
Jamie's mom hadn't let her pause and I ended up leaping out of the woods a bit behind them, I leapt because that's the only way to get over roots that high. I caught up with them, brushing off a little dust on my side. "That's better." I smiled, looking to Jamie, who'd had a chance to change into her regular clothes before we'd left.
"Now he's gone too far. NOONE ATTACKS AMERICA'S FOOD COURTS!" -Deadpool.
"Don't be so naive. I've got ulterior motives. MANY. Two, maybe three. Probably Four. I am one BIG ulterior motive." The Great Teacher, Onizuka Eikichi.
"Don't be so naive. I've got ulterior motives. MANY. Two, maybe three. Probably Four. I am one BIG ulterior motive." The Great Teacher, Onizuka Eikichi.
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Sareth
- RPG All-Star
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Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
"Don't encouragte her," I whispered to Marcus as he rejoined us. "Or she might start in on you, wondering when you'll make an honest woman out of me."
[OOC]Yeah... really short, but I had no idea how Marcus would respond to that suggestion.[/OOC]
[OOC]Yeah... really short, but I had no idea how Marcus would respond to that suggestion.[/OOC]
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AdamZero
- Mage/Priest War Veteran
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- Location: Behind the guy on the left of the thing over there
Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
ooc: you could have had Jasmine respond to him coming out of the woods suddenly dressed in smooth looking clothing))
"Meh, You'd end up worse with me. I can only imagine the sorta death you'd deal out wielding bullets that can kill even just hitting the foot." I laughed, but saw a devilish sparkle in her eyes. "no." I said quietly, but sternly, and she pouted. "I am not giving you death bullets... I not even allowed to have them.... not that I have any..." I said, looking back and forth. I could feel Jamie's mom glare into the back of my head, and risking a glance, met her eyes, which weren't happy.
"I'm a mage, we're all a little.... loony."
I could almost feel Boris wanting to make a comment, but his mandible was surprisingly still.
------
"Meh, You'd end up worse with me. I can only imagine the sorta death you'd deal out wielding bullets that can kill even just hitting the foot." I laughed, but saw a devilish sparkle in her eyes. "no." I said quietly, but sternly, and she pouted. "I am not giving you death bullets... I not even allowed to have them.... not that I have any..." I said, looking back and forth. I could feel Jamie's mom glare into the back of my head, and risking a glance, met her eyes, which weren't happy.
"I'm a mage, we're all a little.... loony."
I could almost feel Boris wanting to make a comment, but his mandible was surprisingly still.
------
"Now he's gone too far. NOONE ATTACKS AMERICA'S FOOD COURTS!" -Deadpool.
"Don't be so naive. I've got ulterior motives. MANY. Two, maybe three. Probably Four. I am one BIG ulterior motive." The Great Teacher, Onizuka Eikichi.
"Don't be so naive. I've got ulterior motives. MANY. Two, maybe three. Probably Four. I am one BIG ulterior motive." The Great Teacher, Onizuka Eikichi.
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Graybeard
- The Heretical Admin
- Posts: 7183
- Joined: August 20th, 2007, 8:26 am
- Location: Nuevo Mexico y Colorado, Estados Unidos
Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
This is bad, very bad, Grope thought as the man on the other side of the fence resumed chanting.
Only now did the troll realize that he'd wandered into what the Small Ones called a "kill zone." The region along the fence was suspiciously open; he'd realized that, but as long as he stayed on his own side, what was the difference? Well, it seemed to matter a great deal to the humans, and by being in the open, he'd left himself exposed to magical attack. Nothing to it but to do the thing most repellent to a troll in combat: run for the woods.
He hadn't gone ten strides, dodging and weaving as best he could, before the next Force Bolt came. It wasn't a direct hit, but it was forceful enough to stun him and knock him off his feet. And most horrifying of all, the magic user on the other side of the fence was starting to chant again. His cadence was different, and Grope had the distinct impression that something considerably more lethal than a Force Bolt was about to head his way.
He had no way of knowing -- yet -- how right he was, even as the spellcasting was interrupted prematurely by a scream from a cave entrance on the other side of the fence that he hadn't seen before.
"GAAAAA! A MESUINU! She's HERE!"
What's a "Mesuinu"? Grope wondered. He had no idea, but the spellcaster stopped the spell, looked over his shoulder in fright, and took off in the opposite direction at a dead run.
Mesuinu, whatever you are, I give you my thanks and the Blessings of Growf, Grope thought as he stood up and sprinted for the woods on his own side of the fence.
[OOC: Before responding to this little interaction, please make sure to examine this entry in the parallel "Centoriel" thread...]
Only now did the troll realize that he'd wandered into what the Small Ones called a "kill zone." The region along the fence was suspiciously open; he'd realized that, but as long as he stayed on his own side, what was the difference? Well, it seemed to matter a great deal to the humans, and by being in the open, he'd left himself exposed to magical attack. Nothing to it but to do the thing most repellent to a troll in combat: run for the woods.
He hadn't gone ten strides, dodging and weaving as best he could, before the next Force Bolt came. It wasn't a direct hit, but it was forceful enough to stun him and knock him off his feet. And most horrifying of all, the magic user on the other side of the fence was starting to chant again. His cadence was different, and Grope had the distinct impression that something considerably more lethal than a Force Bolt was about to head his way.
He had no way of knowing -- yet -- how right he was, even as the spellcasting was interrupted prematurely by a scream from a cave entrance on the other side of the fence that he hadn't seen before.
"GAAAAA! A MESUINU! She's HERE!"
What's a "Mesuinu"? Grope wondered. He had no idea, but the spellcaster stopped the spell, looked over his shoulder in fright, and took off in the opposite direction at a dead run.
Mesuinu, whatever you are, I give you my thanks and the Blessings of Growf, Grope thought as he stood up and sprinted for the woods on his own side of the fence.
[OOC: Before responding to this little interaction, please make sure to examine this entry in the parallel "Centoriel" thread...]
Because old is wise, does good, and above all, kicks ass.
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Sareth
- RPG All-Star
- Posts: 2604
- Joined: August 23rd, 2007, 8:54 pm
Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
Damn. I could really use some killer bullets... Brushing aside the refusal, I smiled sweetly at mother, and leaned around Marcus to comment to her in the sudden gap of her reviling my very existence "Mother, can I have just a moment with Marcus here?" Without waiting for an answer, I tangled a hand in the front of Marcus shirt and dragged him off to the side. As soon as I felt like I was out of earshot, I rounded on Marcus.
"What do you think you're doing?" I hissed. "When I said 'Make an honest woman out of me', I didn't mean improving my shot to kill ratio. You *do* realize what she thinks, right? She thinks you and I spend our nights making babies, and the more you encourage her, the more she's going to want a ring on our fingers and me pushing out Marcus-lets." I put a hand on my face. "Believe you me, the fact you're a mage, and odd, does NOT slow down her desire to get me fat bellied and domestic one bit."
"Jamie?" I could hear mom calling and approaching. Desperately, I knotted both hands in his shirt and pulled his head down a bit closer to mine. "So unless you WANT to end up changing diapers under her highly critical eye..."
"Jamie?" Mother rounded the bush we were behind. Wincing internally, I popped up on my toes and against my better judgment, mashed my lips to his.
I suspect they could hear my mother's indrawn breath miles away.
"What do you think you're doing?" I hissed. "When I said 'Make an honest woman out of me', I didn't mean improving my shot to kill ratio. You *do* realize what she thinks, right? She thinks you and I spend our nights making babies, and the more you encourage her, the more she's going to want a ring on our fingers and me pushing out Marcus-lets." I put a hand on my face. "Believe you me, the fact you're a mage, and odd, does NOT slow down her desire to get me fat bellied and domestic one bit."
"Jamie?" I could hear mom calling and approaching. Desperately, I knotted both hands in his shirt and pulled his head down a bit closer to mine. "So unless you WANT to end up changing diapers under her highly critical eye..."
"Jamie?" Mother rounded the bush we were behind. Wincing internally, I popped up on my toes and against my better judgment, mashed my lips to his.
I suspect they could hear my mother's indrawn breath miles away.
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AdamZero
- Mage/Priest War Veteran
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Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
Damn.... ...wow.... um.... okay brain, put a thought together or two..... oh come on!...........
Her lips taste like raspberries.
okay what brain cell thought that up? cause when I find out, you're fired.
Mental link?
Good idea. Which brian cell are you?
Same one as last time... it's not that crowded in here.
One of harder spells in necromancy involves reaching into dead brains and figuring out what happened to people, from their point of view. Not only did you have to reactive a brain, to a degree, you had to 'relive' the last moments of the person's memory, and all the emotional baggage that came with it.
A smaller version of the spell was a commonly used mental link spell, the closer you were teh easier it was. I've heard elves can do it across cities, but most humans are limited to close range.
I'd have to be in Jamie's pants to be any closer.
Jamie? can you hear me? um... I probably should have told you I can talk through thoughts.... but ... ah hell you're gonna hit me later aren't you, don't try and say anything, think,.... and don't think about that.... okay now that's just rude. I broke the kiss, blushing honestly under the gaze of Jamie's mother. I didn't know if she looked more shocked, happy, or angry.......... yeah she was really friggin happy.
"Um......" I blushed some more. Okay, she's your mom, how the hell do we get away from her? I mean, ...wait.. WHY THE FUCK DID YOU JUST KISS ME IF YOU DON'T WANT HER THINKING YOUR IN A MOTHERING MOOD!? I smiled at Jamie with my eyes closed, well, the eye facing Jasmine. My other, which Jamie could see easily enough, was glaring at the girl.
Her lips taste like raspberries.
okay what brain cell thought that up? cause when I find out, you're fired.
Mental link?
Good idea. Which brian cell are you?
Same one as last time... it's not that crowded in here.
One of harder spells in necromancy involves reaching into dead brains and figuring out what happened to people, from their point of view. Not only did you have to reactive a brain, to a degree, you had to 'relive' the last moments of the person's memory, and all the emotional baggage that came with it.
A smaller version of the spell was a commonly used mental link spell, the closer you were teh easier it was. I've heard elves can do it across cities, but most humans are limited to close range.
I'd have to be in Jamie's pants to be any closer.
Jamie? can you hear me? um... I probably should have told you I can talk through thoughts.... but ... ah hell you're gonna hit me later aren't you, don't try and say anything, think,.... and don't think about that.... okay now that's just rude. I broke the kiss, blushing honestly under the gaze of Jamie's mother. I didn't know if she looked more shocked, happy, or angry.......... yeah she was really friggin happy.
"Um......" I blushed some more. Okay, she's your mom, how the hell do we get away from her? I mean, ...wait.. WHY THE FUCK DID YOU JUST KISS ME IF YOU DON'T WANT HER THINKING YOUR IN A MOTHERING MOOD!? I smiled at Jamie with my eyes closed, well, the eye facing Jasmine. My other, which Jamie could see easily enough, was glaring at the girl.
"Now he's gone too far. NOONE ATTACKS AMERICA'S FOOD COURTS!" -Deadpool.
"Don't be so naive. I've got ulterior motives. MANY. Two, maybe three. Probably Four. I am one BIG ulterior motive." The Great Teacher, Onizuka Eikichi.
"Don't be so naive. I've got ulterior motives. MANY. Two, maybe three. Probably Four. I am one BIG ulterior motive." The Great Teacher, Onizuka Eikichi.
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Viking-Sensei
- Evil Admin Overlord
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Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
(OOC, gotta borrow everybody for a second)
"I cast... sleep." A voice said behind Jamie's incredibly distracted mother, then brought a large tree branch down on her head. She stumbled for a moment, then fell limply over. From the bushes, Lucas stepped forward, still brandishing the branch. "Don't worry, I didn't kill her... she'll have a nasty headache, but that's about it. I see you two have been... (raised eyebrow) busy. Sorry for the rough methods, but I'm sort of magicless right now."
Jamie and Marcus both fired off a simultanious "Where the hell have you been?!?", then broke into individual simultaneous rants detailing their various indignities they'd encountered throughout that day.
"Well, I was following you up until I got one of these..." Lucas held up a suspiciously familiar black piece of paper. "It said..."
Hello again, Lucas Ravenel. Sorry for crashing in your room last night, I figured that the way Marcus and Jamie were carrying on that it was going to get embarrassingly close in there, and as tempting as it was I figured that those two need to work some things out before adding further complications.
Back to business - Marcus' employers, The Nine, have contracted Marcus and Jamie to sabotage the magical reactor that's powering the park. Considering some of the complications surrounding this task, I have my suspicions that they're going to be able to complete it, so I've asked to bring you in as a 'backup plan'. Hang back, lose the group you're with now, and when things go crazy, take that chance to slip in and at least sabotage (if not completely destroy) the device. Below is a list of components that can't be easily reproduced.
This is highly dangerous, however the magic field neutralizer you're currently wearing should protect you from the effects. That, and the fact that you're a half-
Lucas stopped, wadded up the paper, and tossed it into the air... where it vaporized. "Well, the rest doesn't matter that much. Anyway, I took two of the core components required for the start-up, so the next time they power it down, it'll be the last it runs for at least a month. So... anybody want to get the hell out of here before all the various forces that will inevitably be hunting us down come looking for us?"
"I cast... sleep." A voice said behind Jamie's incredibly distracted mother, then brought a large tree branch down on her head. She stumbled for a moment, then fell limply over. From the bushes, Lucas stepped forward, still brandishing the branch. "Don't worry, I didn't kill her... she'll have a nasty headache, but that's about it. I see you two have been... (raised eyebrow) busy. Sorry for the rough methods, but I'm sort of magicless right now."
Jamie and Marcus both fired off a simultanious "Where the hell have you been?!?", then broke into individual simultaneous rants detailing their various indignities they'd encountered throughout that day.
"Well, I was following you up until I got one of these..." Lucas held up a suspiciously familiar black piece of paper. "It said..."
Hello again, Lucas Ravenel. Sorry for crashing in your room last night, I figured that the way Marcus and Jamie were carrying on that it was going to get embarrassingly close in there, and as tempting as it was I figured that those two need to work some things out before adding further complications.
Back to business - Marcus' employers, The Nine, have contracted Marcus and Jamie to sabotage the magical reactor that's powering the park. Considering some of the complications surrounding this task, I have my suspicions that they're going to be able to complete it, so I've asked to bring you in as a 'backup plan'. Hang back, lose the group you're with now, and when things go crazy, take that chance to slip in and at least sabotage (if not completely destroy) the device. Below is a list of components that can't be easily reproduced.
This is highly dangerous, however the magic field neutralizer you're currently wearing should protect you from the effects. That, and the fact that you're a half-
Lucas stopped, wadded up the paper, and tossed it into the air... where it vaporized. "Well, the rest doesn't matter that much. Anyway, I took two of the core components required for the start-up, so the next time they power it down, it'll be the last it runs for at least a month. So... anybody want to get the hell out of here before all the various forces that will inevitably be hunting us down come looking for us?"
How could a plan this awesome possibly fail?
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Sareth
- RPG All-Star
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- Joined: August 23rd, 2007, 8:54 pm
Re: Mountain(s) of Madness
"Half... What? Half wit? Half baked? Half- assed?" I shouted. While Lucas had saved me the effort of trying to explain that I was trying to give my mother an example of what she was wanting to see so that I could lull her off guard then strangle her in her sleep his appearance had been rather unnerving. "Are you trying to tell me that you managed to break up that crap we were sent after, then let us go through all that crap with the guards, then let us endure my mothers crap, and now you're pulling this crap? What a load of crap!"
I started to wave that off, only to realize that I was still in Marcus' arms, and my limbs were pinned to his side.
"Marcus, off," I growled, giving a good footstomp on his toe for emphasis.
While he was busy bouncing on one foot swearing and making Boris dizzy, I went over and checked mom out to be sure. Lucas, it seemed, knew his stuff. Mother was going to be out for some time, but she would, indeed, be fine aside from the headache.
"She's going to be PISSED when she wakes up." I shook my head, then turned to Lucas. "Between her and the security guards, we seem to be making enemies left and right today. Like you say, we really do need to get out of here. I'm thinking we may want to get lost for a while." I turned and looked up at the overhead mountains. "Not a whole lot of people to spot us up that-a-way..."
I started to wave that off, only to realize that I was still in Marcus' arms, and my limbs were pinned to his side.
"Marcus, off," I growled, giving a good footstomp on his toe for emphasis.
While he was busy bouncing on one foot swearing and making Boris dizzy, I went over and checked mom out to be sure. Lucas, it seemed, knew his stuff. Mother was going to be out for some time, but she would, indeed, be fine aside from the headache.
"She's going to be PISSED when she wakes up." I shook my head, then turned to Lucas. "Between her and the security guards, we seem to be making enemies left and right today. Like you say, we really do need to get out of here. I'm thinking we may want to get lost for a while." I turned and looked up at the overhead mountains. "Not a whole lot of people to spot us up that-a-way..."