GLoG 92: Generosity, Love, Opportunity, Growth

[Gullara]

The Good League of Good is a Nexus organization devoted to the care and support of those in need, a sanctuary for those that need it, and the redemption of evildoers. The organization strives to make the campsite a safe and welcoming environment for everyone.

If you are brand new to FFRP, please come to the Nexus OoC thread and introduce yourself. We all want to meet you!

GLoG's Programs

Charitable Activities
GLoG's primary purpose as an organization is to perform good works such as caring for distressed individuals in need, housing and feeding evacuees from the cities during disasters, and healing sick and injured people in GLoG's infirmary–renowned as the most advanced place of healing in the Nexus. All full members are expected to take part in some portion of these activities (though whether or not this is on screen is up to each individual).

Child Care
Branching out from Sapling cabin, a child care and babysitting facility is run at GLoG. First and foremost, priority and free care is provided to children in need, whether they be from from downtrodden families or visitors from orphanages in the cities. No less fortunate child will be turned away. Beyond that there is room for other children, at a typical daycare cost of which all profits go right back into GLoG's programs. The facility is run by a combination of volunteers and employees.

Our Redemption Program
No soul is too far gone to do some good in the world, and this program is for those that want to make up for their past misdeeds and do just that. It's a voluntary program initiated by the redeemee themself. Individuals who come in search of redemption should be interviewed by a senior member to see how their needs can be best met, and then assigned to a mentor who will assist them. Graduation from the redemption program will occur when both the redeemee and his/her mentor agree that they have made sufficient progress.

Attention Villains

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Conflict is great! It's the heart of any story. However, as a player to player courtesy, please check in with the players who are active at any given time before launching an attack. Not everyone wants to roleplay combat scenes, and sometimes there are other things going on that players don't want to interrupt for a random fight. Either a PM/IM to players, a short post in thread to say, "Mind if I introduce a villain here?" or a longer post in the OOC thread if it's a larger plot is appreciated.

Also, please don't plan any villainy that will result in destroying the base or having the same effect (poisoning the lake, burning down the forest, etc.) without the consent of the majority of the players who would be affected.

Base Defences

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The GLoG campsite is now under the effects of the spell Plaza of Downcast Eyes. Almost all teleportation and scrying spells are blocked.

A Spirit Charm has been placed on the GLoG grounds. A number of willing spirits serve to protect the grounds. See the NPCs section for more information.

If any of your characters add more defences, please PM them to Gulaghar so they can be added.

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If you're a newbie, and you've read this far, you should know enough to join in the fun.
Everything beyond this point is Bonus Material.

After the original GLoG building was destroyed by an army of catpeople, the survivors took out a mortgage and purchased the Phoenix Lake Campground. Entering the campground by the main road leads to a small plaza ringed by the lodge, infirmary, and nursary, along with a parking area and stable. Past that, the camp gives way to nature a bit more with scattered cablins in a rough crescent around the lake. At the lake, there is a small dock with a little shed nearby where a few canoes and paddleboats are stored. The swimming area has a GIANT slide and a rope swing. Because GIANT slides and rope swings are awesome. There is a sandy volleyball court not far from the slide, a large playground under the trees, set back from the lake somewhat, and a set of horseshoe pits.

It's all set in the foothills of the Acro mountains, and mainly surrounded by woods. There are many hiking trails nearby leading to mountaintop vistas, waterfalls, seacoves, and various other locations, both within this thread, and in the Outside thread. The campground is also within easy walking distance of the city of Inside, though there is also a Riftline station just outside the campground for those who prefer to take the train or who have farther to go.

Buildings

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Main Lodge: The large stone structure of the main lodge is one of the first visitors will see when entering the camp. The entrance area is heated by a large fireplace and has an array of comfortable seating. Through a wide entrance is the communal industrial kitchen and the cafeteria style dining hall. A number of smaller rooms can be found toward the back of the structure, as well as an entrance tot he cellar.

Infirmary: From the outside the Infirmary looks like a large version of the cozy cabins scattered throughout the campground. On the inside, it's a very clean environment, all white and silver. Even so, the place has a warm feeling. Natural light filters in from above and soft, soothing music filters through the whole building. Voices can barely be heard saying words of healing and comfort. There are no enclosed rooms, but each bed is separated by walls at a severe enough angle to give a semblance of privacy.

Quinn ^{The Bushranger} runs the Infirmary. If no PC is present in the Infirmary, patients are tended to by Nurse Piper, a ghost NPC who haunts the infirmary. She has a tyrannical bedside manner, but will always put the welfare of her patients first. She is able to generally stabilize patients and do general nursing care, but cannot provide magical healing or any type of advanced medicine. A few Drones can serve a similar, if lesser, purpose.

Daycare Facility: Having started with just Sapling cabin, the nursery has been expanded to meet the needs of the camp's child care facility, which is run by Sakura ^Gulaghar and Reelshka ^Morty. Among the buildings there are play areas for all different ages, sleeping spaces both communal and private, and a dining area. Nearby there are a few outdoor play areas. A huge jungle gym stands next to a cement pad for sports, and behind both of those a grassy area is kept clear for other activities.

Cabins: Individuals can have their own room within a cabin, but they are unlikely to have a full cabin to themselves unless they come equipped with a family. Some of the cabins have been rebuilt, and may have more space than the four room cabins the campground came with, and a few cabins have had private bathrooms installed. All cabins are named after trees, and players are free to invent further details about their own cabins.

Spoiler: Cabin List

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The following cabins are defined and occupied by at least one person. Feel free to move into one of these or define a new one (with a tree name). Just be aware that anyone moving into these will have cabinmates. PM Gulaghar to add a new cabin to the list.

• Oak
• Ash
• Redwood
• Cherry
• Elm
• Birch
• Ironoak
• Maple
• Balsa
• Evergreen
• Rowan
• Poplar

The bolded cabins are at full occupancy.

Apple, the Visitor's Cabin, is reserved for visitors. They are requested to check in at the main lodge, where any member can give them permission to stay for a few days. Longer than that, unless they are in need, they will be requested to either join or find a living space elsewhere.

Bathhouse: This building is divided into the men's and women's bathhouses, with entrances at either end. It has shower stalls, a line of sinks, and toilet stalls in each.

Workshop: A well built cabin designed by Reelshka ^Morty, containing nothing at present but the Mainframe installation. It always remains locked. Drones fly in and out of a small entrance that opens for them when they send an encrypted signal.

Notable Inhabitants
Our leadership council

• Reelshka ^Morty
• Quinn ^{The Bushranger}
• Pathfinder ^UncleWolf
• Andreas Emeral ^Zefir

The leadership council exists so that any one member can make important decisions affecting all of GLoG. Basically, when someone shows up and says 'I need to speak to the person in charge', any one of the leadership council can handle it.

NPCs:

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The Drones Mk 2

The drones are back at GLoG. Drones are NPCs who can be played by anyone, within the guidelines below:

• Their Primary Function is member safety.
• They do have stun beams, little arms, and the ability to record what's going on around them.
• They follow orders from GLoG members, unless those orders conflict with their Primary Function.
• There are only four to five in operation at any one time.
• They can be destroyed, but if so they'll be restored from backup at the Workshop.
• A few have been supplied with medical programming, and thus can perform infirmary duties.
• They often have weird personality quirks and are prone to malfunctioning.
• Statement: They speak in DarkOrange FixedSys

The Spirits
Recently in the history of GLoG, a protective charm has been placed over the GLoG grounds. The shaman Pathfinder ^UncleWolf bid all the willing spirits that perished in and around GLoG to protect the grounds from those that would wish to do it and its inhabitants harm.

The Ghosts
Having been built on a generic-ancient-burial-ground, Phoenix Lake Campground is haunted by various ghosts. They are generally harmless and for the most part glad to have some company, though pranks and hijinks may occur. Ghosts can be made up on the spot and NPC'd by anyone. They tend to speak in Gray and mostly appear for comic purposes, but this is by no means a requirement.

Archive

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GLoG 91
GLoG 90
GLoG 89
GLoG 88
GLoG 87
GLoG 86
GLoG 85
GLoG 84: Goblins and catgirls and dryads, oh my!
GLoG 83
GLoG 82: So Many Babies!
GLoG 81: Ghostbusters!
GLoG LXXX: Continuation of a New Era!
GLoG 79: So Lonely.
Good League of Good 78: Druids of Mass Destruction and other bioweapons
Good League of Good LXXVII: Earth Vampires DON'T Sparkle!
GLoG 76: Now with a Decipherable OP!
GLoG 75: Gazebos Gone Wild
GLoG LXXIV: Back to the Numerals!
GloG 73
GLoG 72
GLoG 71: Redemption Equals Free Housing!
GLoG 70
GLoG 69
GLoG 68
GLoG 67
GloG 66: Coupon Redemption
GloG 65
GLoG 64: Campsites, not Chessboards!
GLoG LXIII: Roman Numerals are back!
GLoG 62: Come for the paddleboats. Stay for the hawt shirtless catboy!
GLoG 61: Now with 100% More goblins
GLoG 60
GLoG LIX: Now with Trees!
GLoG LVIII: Shaken, but not baked
GLoG LVII: Princess Power Trio Plus Protective Parents
GLoG LVI: I had a joke but I forgot it
GLoG LV: Witty Title And/Or Song Reference
GLoG LIV: Sleeping with the Lights On
GLoG LIII: These are the Days of our Lives.
GLoG LII: Home of the Next Generation
GLoG 51
GLoG 50: Rife with new Life.
GLoG 49: Who Ya Gonna Call?
GLoG 48: From the Ashes

♫♪♫♪♪♫♫♪♫♪♪♫♫

GLoG XLVII: Nothing can stop us. Well, except that.
GLoG XLVI: With a Maraschino Cherry On Top.
GLoG XLV: The winds of change be darned!
GLoG 44: Continuity has no place here!
GLoG 43: Behave yourself, Dani!
GLoG XLII: Yes, curtains still get dropped here
GLoG XLI: When you're smiling, the world plots against you.
GLoG 40: Now one year old!
GLoG 39: And there was much rejoicing. (Yay!)
GLoG 38: Pay No Attention to the Computer's Paranoid Ramblings
GLoG 37: Dysfunction Junction
GLoG XXXVI: Curse You, Dramatic Irony!
GLoG XXXV: There shall be happiness!!!
GLoG XXXIV: It gets worse!
GLoG XXXIII: Do you think you can handle it?
GLoG XXXII: The Loved and the Lost
GLoG 31: To live defeated and inglorious is to die daily
GLoG 30: Defying Biology Since 2008!
GLoG 29: Under New Management
GLoG 28: The People's Republic of Magtok
GLoG 27: Pay No Attention to the Thead Behind the Curtain!
GLoG 26: Now With 100% More Things Trying to Nom You!
GLoG XXV (that's 25!): Mapped out and everythin'!
GLoG XXIV: This Ain't No House of Cards
GLoG XXIII: With malice towards none.
GLoG XXII: Ahhhhhh!!!! They're after us!!
GLoG 21/XX1: Half of Life, the Universe, and Everything.
GLoG 20/XX: Twenty Times the Awesome
GLoG 19: For those who can't make it over the rainbow
GLoG 18: It's A Brand New Day
GLoG XVII: SMITE CONTINUITY!
GLoG XVI: Built out of 100% recycled babies. That's why we're good.
GLoG XV: Beware the Ides of GLoG.
GLoG XIV: Where Bad Puns Go To Die.
GLoG XIII: Bring It On, Omnipotent Beings!
GLoG 12: [Insert Unique and Witty Title Here]
GLoG XI: We Failed Our "Witty Title Check" (DC 3).
GLoG X: More Like Good League Of... Of... Crazy
GLoG IX: Death is no longer cheap
GLoG VIII: Thread of Exalted Deeds
GLoG VII: Now Vampire Free!
GLoG VI: Thread of One Thousand Plots
GLoG V: Where Everyone's a Hero (In Their Own Way)
GLoG IV: Please refrain from kidnapping our members
GLoG III: Albeit, we ate the cake with our sporks
GLoG II: Now with 30% More Sporks
The Good League of Good

This thread is managed by Gulaghar. He will create the new thread when this one reached 50 pages. Please contact him for updates to the OP.

[Purple Eagle]

[Asher and Tuskfang]

Tuskfang bounces in place, but retains enough presence of mind to turn and ask his mother.

"Moooom! Can I ride Asher's bear?"

Reelshka shakes her head as she chuckles.

"You just keep on dragging Tuskfang to ride the weirdest things. First clouds, now bears. But if he's a tame bear, fine."

[Asher and Tuskfang]

"Yaaay!" Asher seems to find Reelshka's words a compliment, and quickly helps his friend up the bear. Once they're both seated, Scout start to slowly lumber around the environs of GLoG while Asher giggles with his friend. He lets the boy sit in front so his wings don't get in his face. "Isn't this f-f-fun? Where should we g-go, Tuskfang?"

[Elsewhere]

"Oh, hello, Ruth." Sophie doesn't know the woman very well, but she does recognize her. "I appreciate it. There's going to be a lot of work cleaning up that laboratory. I just hope my plan works well and I can kill the owner quickly." She pauses. "I know how this sounds, but believe me when I say I tried to reason with him."

[Elsewhere]

Ruth's brow furrows in thought when Sophie reveals her desire to kill the scientist, but even though she doesn't know Sophie well, she knows the woman wouldn't just resort to such violent means. The divine woman nods in understanding. "I assume he's evil? That means the laboratory must be used to further his evil cause. In that case, let's rid the world of his influence, hm?" She smiles easily at the other woman. "And perhaps get to know one another better, as friends and co-workers."

[Morty]

[Asher and Tuskfang]

"Can we go around the lake? Does Scout like fish?" Tuskfang prattles. "Dad told me bears like fish."

[Elsewhere]

"He experiments on unwilling subjects, creates tortured abominations and tried to kill me," Sophie lists. "So 'evil' is probably a good descriptor. He seems devoted to his science beyond anything else. His research caused his daughter to be fused with a hive mind from another world, though this at least was unintentional. But he refuses to acknowledge it as her daughter, saying that it's just the monster puppeteering her body. And he tortured her. She's with us now, since he wanted her out of his sight. I'm happy to oblige."

[On a Boat ==> Island]

As the three chatter away, the boat reaches the island and Iknika jumps onto the beach eagerly.

"Alright then! Let's go exploring! If we run into danger, don't worry, I'll protect you."

[Chaotic Bob]

The Memory Woods

"Come in peace, but bring a sword," Needs whispers, which is probably as close to speaking coherently as he gets when he's like this. He tries to scout ahead of his brother, his body thinning to about the width and thickness of a winter scarf caught in a strong breeze as he flutters erratically towards the hut. Needs figures that if one of them has to get shot in the chest before they can see who's here and what the situation is, it ought to be him, the hardier, more magical of the duo. Magtok can still run off with the cube if we've bitten off more than we can chew today.

"Bleh," Magtok answers to the sorceror who's already hurried off ahead of him, rolling his eye even as he attempts to remove his left hand from the cube, to pat the firearm tucked inside his robe. Good, it's still right here. We've got nothing to worry about, so long as this doesn't escalate into a stage three confrontation just yet. Anything less than that and we'll do fine, probably. Still, if Needs is that anxious about whatever's ahead, I guess we should pick up the pace a little. Anyone in that hut already knows we're here and has had more than enough time to plot something devilish in response.

Actually attempting to disengage with the cube leads to only the faintest of resistance, just enough to signal his intent before the golden lines release him and return to their mystical dwelling.
With it, the illusory overlays on the trees and ground promptly vanishes as expected.

Meanwhile, Needs flutters over to the hut and presumably it's one useful window. There's another window, but for some reason someone seems to have put some piece of furniture in front of it. Bookcase? Wardrobe? Hard to tell from here.
The other window sports a curtain, but it doesn't seem to be entirely drawn.

There is enough of a gap in it to get a pretty good view of the left side of the cottage and two of the building's occupants.
He'll recognize one immediately, as that woman he accosted Inside not too long ago, the courier woman. She doesn't seem to have changed much, still dressed for her part and holding a general hostile look, but that necklace around her necklace seems to be leaking a certain individual's divine signature out of a crack in its gem. This is presumably the source of the contamination on her aura.

Currently, she has a firm grip on the second individual's wrist, pinning a sword to the wall, while her other hand holds his pointy maw shut and she stares towards the door.

That other individual seems to be a half-dragon with otherwise very familiar features. Backwards spiraling horns, purple tinted black scales, spikes covering wings and tail, and a generally lean if still athletic build. A simple purple robe is draped over him, but with some bulges and rumples suggesting armor underneath.
He's alternating between scowling at the woman holding him against the wall, staring at the door, and glancing across the room to whoever else is in there.

They appear to be waiting.

[Purple Eagle]

[Asher and Tuskfang]

"Can we go around the lake? Does Scout like fish?" Tuskfang prattles. "Dad told me bears like fish."

[Elsewhere]

"He experiments on unwilling subjects, creates tortured abominations and tried to kill me," Sophie lists. "So 'evil' is probably a good descriptor. He seems devoted to his science beyond anything else. His research caused his daughter to be fused with a hive mind from another world, though this at least was unintentional. But he refuses to acknowledge it as her daughter, saying that it's just the monster puppeteering her body. And he tortured her. She's with us now, since he wanted her out of his sight. I'm happy to oblige."

[Kids and Bear]

Scout can not only understand Asher, but what Asher can hear. When he picks up the word 'fish', he grunts happily, nodding his head up and down. "S-See? He does l-like f-f-fish!" He replies, and that's that! Scout starts to trot towards the lake, and soon the boys and bear are at the edge of the lake, ready to deposit the boys down and look for fish. "W-Where's the fish?" The winged boy asks his friend, scratching his green hair.

[Elsewhere]

Ruth's look is firm by the time Sophie's done talking. "Say no more, dear Sophie. He's, as they say, 'going down'. Afterwards, his dastardly tools can be repurposed for use in helping others." The woman stands straight, chest out a bit. "I'm at your disposal in this matter. If there's anything I can do to help with the daughter, ask and I shall deliver." She smiles.

[Morty]

[Kids and Bear]

"Um." Tuskfang sounds uncertain. "The fish are in the water. But I can't go into the water without grownups and it's cold anyway."

[Elsewhere]

Sophie sighs and runs her hand through her hair.

"His daughter, Sasha... is another matter altogether. The hive-mind fused with her and it looks permanent. She has power over shadows and even being near her can cause discomfort. She's also very withdrawn and hardly says anything. It's hard to say how much of it is due to the fusion and how much of it is due to her father's abuse afterwards."

[Lord Magtok]

Memory Woods Hut

Needs takes five steps back, inhales, and traces a rune onto his chest, matching the pattern he'd carved into a number of oaks on the way here. Gnarled roots burst from the ground in response, tossing up a cloud of dirt as they stab into the sorceror and inject him with enough raw forest magic to pop an ordinary mortal's head like a wet, meaty balloon. It occurs to him that it's very possible they're being baited, that everyone involved inside the hut seems remarkably okay with just waiting around for him and his brother to break in and try to save the supposed damsel in distress.

How could anyone possibly have known to set up a trap here, though? Magtok didn't tell anyone they'd be coming out here. Magtok hardly even knew himself, up until the moment he decided to drag Needs along on this little misadventure. No, it's not terribly likely to be a trap, upon further reflection. Though even if it is one, saving that necklace pendant radiating Libby's divine signature is too important for such things to matter. There's no time for figuring out a way to outsmart the schemers and scoundrels; it's time to just charge in and attack the Feiadyne spawn while there's still time. Needs Food Badly rips the roots out of his mottled pale flesh, narrows his eyes, and charges the window.

---

"Needs?" Magtok calls out, eyebrow raised in uncertainty as the spellcaster stabs himself in the arms and legs, oozes black, tar-like blood from his wounds, and then shifts into an enormous, discolored lamprey monster barely capable of fitting through the window it he just shattered by headbutting his way through it with his unsettling toothy parasite face. I suppose whatever he saw peeking through the window convinced him diplomacy wasn't an option? I mean, okay, I guess we'll do things your way, Needs. I mean, we could still try to talk our way through this, but most people are done talking when they see a giant bloodsucking fish thing burst through their window. Magtok pockets the cube, drawing a pulp sci-fi ray gun from his robe. A Thanksmas present, and maybe a little too silly-looking for whatever lies on the other side of this door, but we weren't really planning to fight anyone when we came all the way out here, so you'll have to please excuse the insufficient gravitas just this once.

---

"Hands in the air, nobody m-" Magtok starts to shout, pushing his way through the door just as Needs lunges mouthfirst at the half-dragon's throat, bounding from the bloody shards of glass on the floor, to a nearby wall, and then his intended prey. Jeez, that's more than a little unsettling. Does Needs really need to dial up the creepiness all the way to eleven every single time?

[Deathkeeper]

[Island]

Isaac hops out of the boat and drags it to shore so it doesn’t get washed away while they’re there.
He also shoots Lucas a look to make sure his friend knows not to question the Goblin about protecting them despite their own capabilities.
”Awesome. Are we looking for anything in particular?” he asks Iknika.

[In Search of a Fortress]

Khannie is dropped off, picked up, hugged against a round dragon middle, and put back down with a pat on the head.
[Have fun Khannie. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do] instructs Zebes before heading out at a very improbable speed.

[Rebonack]

[Island]

"I don't think so?" Lucas replies, giving Isaac a subtle nod. He gets the idea. "I mean, not that I know of anyway. I've never been here before."

That said, he stoops down and picks up a smooth stone, turns it over in his hand a few times, then tosses it toward the lake.

One skip.

Two.

Three!

And then under it goes.

"I heard there are lots of ghosts around the camp site?" he ventures. "Maybe there's some kind of spooky ruin buried here. A reason why there are so many ghosts?"

Seems like the sort of thing there would be a cause behind.

[Chaotic Bob]

[Memory Woods Hut]

Pretty much everything that just happened could be construed as wildly unpredictable by most sane people in the world.

Which explains why the woman just looks on with a dumbfounded expression while Needs flies towards her and the half-dragon.
Said half-dragon is also a bit on the perplexed side, but seems to have enough training on hand to at least act instead of just standing there looking like an idiot.

Neither of them are really paying attention to Magtok at all. Understandably.

As Needs heaves himself through the window and towards that other wall, the "Feia spawn" pushes the woman out of the way off to the side with his free hand, while wrenching his sword arm free and upwards. Instead of a throat, that lamprey maw is going to be finding the flat end of a wide blade waiting for it. This is still uncomfortably close to his head, but it's the best he could do on near-instant notice.
Maybe he'll kick Needs in a second or two, depending.
"This thing is an acquaintance?"

From where she's stumbled over on the ground, the woman still doesn't seem entirely sure what to make of this little mini-nightmare. Other than being generally disturbed, that is.
"No! It...what? It is?"
At least, until that Libby-energy crawling through her aura pulses something halfway through her denial, and her expression becomes more definitely disturbed.

It seems highly unlikely this was all a trap.

Across the room, sitting on a little cushioned stool by a fireplace, is that old woman from that memory Magtok was watching.
She appears to be eating a cracker from a plate of them in her lap, watching the fracas in her home with a slightly disappointed look.

[Morty]

[Island]

"There is a lot of ghosts around the camp, yeah," Iknika says. "I don't know why, really. It was like that when people showed up, apparently. But maybe we could discover why." For Isaac, she adds: "So I guess we're not looking for anything in particular, just any mysteries buried around here."

[Purple Eagle]

[Kids and Bear]

"Um." Tuskfang sounds uncertain. "The fish are in the water. But I can't go into the water without grownups and it's cold anyway."

[Elsewhere]

Sophie sighs and runs her hand through her hair.

"His daughter, Sasha... is another matter altogether. The hive-mind fused with her and it looks permanent. She has power over shadows and even being near her can cause discomfort. She's also very withdrawn and hardly says anything. It's hard to say how much of it is due to the fusion and how much of it is due to her father's abuse afterwards."

[Kids and Bear]

Asher's smile doesn't falter one bit as he replies. "It's okay, S-Scout can get the fish himself. Let us down, S-Scout!" The bear is happy to oblige and gets on his belly so both boys can come off, then crawls to the river edge and starts looking for fish. "L-Let's make sand castles!" He declares, as an idea of what they could do next.

[Elsewhere]

"Oh! Sounds like she and Natalie's girlfriend shall get along swimmingly, then. What's her newest codename... Karasu, was it? Means the same as her old one, 'Raven'. Her power is over void, of which shadows is but one manifestation, and she has field medic training. A withdrawn sort around strangers, as well. Perhaps she's just the sort to get through to Sasha." Ruth suggests.

[Morty]

[Elsewhere]

"I remember speaking with her, yes," Sophie says. "I don't know how she'd get along with Sasha, really. She spent a long time living in that laboratory with her 'father' and only went out on missions. But that's why she has to at least try to interact with people. Maybe... Karasu's abilities will make it more comfortable for her to be around Sasha."

[Lord Magtok]

Memory Woods Hut

"Needs, heel! That-" Magtok takes a moment to take in the scene, his ruby red eye processing the scene in front of him at superhuman speeds. Okay, so there's Old Lady Feia over there in the corner, distancing herself from everything going on around her. Someone to be wary of, but not an immediate threat, at least for now. Maybe in a few moments she'll stand up, lightning crackling in her palms, and decided these unwelcome intruders smashing through her window and barging through her front door merit violent and explosive deaths for their impudence, but for right now she seems content to just sit there and eat her crackers. We lose nothing by allowing her to continue doing that, so we should probably encourage that sort of passive neutrality for now.

The half-dragon and human woman are a very different story, however. Lizardface clearly had that sword drawn before Needs came through the window. Nobody just carries a sword in their hand in a tiny little hut like that unless they mean to use it; scabbards and holsters exist precisely so people like him can carry such things around without threatening everybody in the room. That means we can safely there was some kind of tussle going on in here before he and Needs showed up, and it was undoubtedly between the warrior and the lady with the magical necklace with the weird black aura.

A magical necklace with a weird black aura...and she looks sorta like that courier Needs mentioned that one time, doesn't she? Hm. Put two and two together and...yikes. Feia's son fighting a servant of Libitina. Why here, though? What would bring the courier lady all the way out here? This is a very unusual setting for such a fight, unless that deal Libby proposed has something to do with all of this. Maybe she was investigating a similar lead, looking into whatever secret deal the psychopomp made here? None of this brings us any closer to understanding why Backup Feia is content to just sit there and watch, unfortunately. We should probably start asking some questions once things settle down a little.

"-Nevermind. Have fun, and pass me my sword when you've got a moment. Oh, and hi everyone, I'm Magtok, and that's my brother Needs. I see we're barging in on a sort of ideological dispute at the moment, apologies for that," Magtok says with a sigh. As loathe as the cyborg might be to admit it, Needs seems to have had the right idea. Unfortunate, he really had no intention of getting into a fight here, but if Needs can't handle this alone, if he absolutely has to intervene to keep Living Proof That Feiadyne Has Curtained from advancing her megalomaniacal agenda, well, I guess we'll just have to get our hands dirty.

---

Needs is vaguely aware that his sibling is saying words at him, distracted as he is with the conflict in front of him. SWORD comes up, the blade imbued with negative energy and fire that Magtok entrusted to the spell-caster. Yes, parrying the half-dragon's blade with our own would be a good idea, wouldn't it? Unfortunately this particular combat form doesn't have the right configuration of limbs for that kind of thing. It was meant for lightning-fast ambush strikes, for biting out a foe's neck before they even realize what's going on. We came pretty close there a moment ago, but the swordsman's reaction time was faster than anticipated, and that's how Needs wound up getting kicked a few feet away, but rapidly shifting in mass to compensate for the new realities of this combat scenario.

"Though I hunger, I am never sated," Needs begins to chant, even though his current mouth is woefully unsuited for any sort of verbal expression at all. About half of the lamprey-beast's mass is shed in moments, the thing's muscles compressing in a way that very clearly shouldn't be, like a bedspring forced down by a weight above and beyond anything it was ever meant to endure.

"Through grass and ground I crawl, devouring all I behold. My tongue stretches across untold eons, my jaws encircling the death of all that shall live," he continues, getting a bit big for his britches with the ritual. Of course, Needs hardly expects Half-Breed to just stand there and let him do all this chanting. The time for evasive maneuvers is at hand. The weight on that figurative bedspring is suddenly released, and Lamprey-Needs rockets towards the man, intent on passing right through his legs and forcing him to turn his back to the courier. "Nameless eidolons, thieves of Heaven’s grace, grant me _����^����_�� ^���� _���� T̸̶̸̡͞R̶̷̢͜͝I̵̸̡U͟͢M̸҉͞ṔH̴̛́͢!̵̶͘͜" Uh oh. You know it's going to be ugly when the arcane ritual involves zalgotext and that little question mark inside a square, because the gibberish is just that far beyond ordinary mortal comprehension. Something as vast as it is clumsy and stupid attempts to rewrite minute details of the Half-Dragon's entire day today, editing in events that would not prevent him from being here now. His favorite boots finally fell apart this morning, and his replacements had something wet and greasy stuck to the undersides. His breakfast beverage tasted inexplicably foul and tainted, even if it was just ordinary water. There was a piercing migraine just an hour ago, and some of the scales on his chest flaked off when he was putting his armor on today, exposing soft, vulnerable flesh just above his heart. That's not even supposed to be possible, is it?

[Deathkeeper]

[Island]

Isaac nods, taking out his mallet and flipping it by the head in his hand.
”Alright then. Lead the way, Iknika. We’ll go following you today.”

[Chaotic Bob]

[Memory Woods Hut]

Magtok speaks! Which is enough for the woman to finally acknowledge him, though mostly in an exasperated sort of way.
"Magtok, you ass, get your brother under control!"
That sounds an awful lot like she really doesn't want his intervention.

"This is supposed to be a peaceful-"
Needs starts messing with time, however subtly, and her necklace gives another tiny pulses of energy.
And then she just looks more tired than annoyed, before getting up and just walking to the other side of the hut.
"Nevermind. Whatever. She doesn't care, I don't care."

Speaking of! Venmaunt suddenly seems a bit more rumpled. Literally, in the case of his robe (hey look, there's a huge syrup stain on his back), and metaphorically in the case of the weird soot stain splattered across half his head.
There's probably other things, but he's pretty well covered by that robe so it's hard to tell.

Also some brand new anger popping up on that scaly face of his, where before was mostly just confusion.
"I was supposed to kill you a long time ago, starting to think maybe I should have."
Which signals the end of defense.

Needs zipping under his legs puts him back against the wall the half-dragon had just stepped away from, something which is immediately taken advantage of as he whirls around while taking just enough of a step back that swiping his sword diagonally won't actually carve Needs into two pieces.
Instead, a series of blue runes ignite along its blade and frost mist glides along its hilt, while the air around Needs promptly freezes in an arc mirroring the sword strike.
Executed according to plan, it wants to freeze him to the wall.

The old woman eats another cracker and consults a clock on a nearby end table.

[Earl of Purple]

Island

Just out of sight from the shores of the lake there's a small mound. It's shaped vaguely like a ship, and there's a doorway made of three standing stones, two upright and one over the top, set into the side of the mound, about halfway down the long side, facing directly north.

There's a stone sundial just outside the mound's entrance, though the shadow of the pointer is pointing towards the sun. Resting on said pointer is a ring, made of two loops of copper twisted around each other and set with a small quartz.

[Rebonack]

[Island]

Lucas is, in fact, following.

That's what Isaac said they're doing so why not?

The weird rock does catch his eye, though.

And the sundial

Which strikes him as deeply suspicious.

"Did your cousin say anything about standing stones and sundials?" he asks.

He's betting she didn't.

[Morty]

[Island]

Iknika stops when the trio sees the sundial. Her ears twitch.

"...no. And it looks like it'd be hard to miss. Maybe she was never here? Or it appeared recently."

[Kids and Bear]

"Okay!" Tuskfang says, as the two head towards the sand. But it's clear his thought are elsewhere. "How do you get a bear as a pet? My dad says bears are dangerous!"

[Lord Magtok]

Memory Woods Hut

Magtok rolls his eye, before dialing his ray gun to 'stun' and pointing it at the half-dragon, waiting for a clear, easy shot at center-mass. "Peaceful. Needs, did Wenomir's long-lost cousin have his sword out before you smashed through the window? Was there already a scuffle going down? One chime for yes, two for no."

Lamprey Needs barks exactly once as he gets frozen to the wall, prompting Magtok to smirk. See? Exactly as he thought.

"I'll apologize on my brother's behalf for escalating things, miss, but peaceful is a strong word, and I-" Magtok must've seen some kind of opening, or perhaps figured that the half-dragon would think him too self-absorbed to interrupt his own arrogant prattling with gunfire. A fair assessment, that, even if it's not altogether accurate. He fires thrice, launching a volley of energy beams towards Venmaunt, each roughly equal to a police taser in strength. The cyborg's pretty sure a single shot won't be nearly enough to take this guy down, and he'll probably twist out of the way just enough to dodge at least one blast, right? So three is a good starting point, a civil and measured response to the talk of his brother's execution.

"-can pay for the window after. Hold on, did he just say what I think he did?" Yeah, mentioning plans to kill Needs seems like kind of a big deal, doesn't it? How long ago was Needs identified as a potential problem, and how much of Magtok's wildcard is already known to Feia? Shoot, this changes a lot. We're going to have to lean a little heavier on the other cards in our hand, then. Maybe it's not too late to renegotiate our deal with Faction, or lean a little harder on Affidavit's presence in our skull. He's got to be good for something besides lecturing people to death, right?

[Purple Eagle]

[Kids and Bear]

Asher notices but doesn't have the chance to speak up before his friend bares his heart. "M-M-Momma says S-Scout's my spirit animal..." He trails off into giggles. "We used t-t-to say 'pirit! D-Do you still s-s-stay that?"

Focus, Asher! "W-Why don't you ask y-your m-momma?"

[Elsewhere]

"Well, it is worth a try, Sophie." Ruth says with a smile. "So, which comes first: dealing with the scientist or getting Sasha and Karasu linked up? Either way, lead and I shall follow."

[Morty]

[Kids and Bear]

"No, I say 'spirit' properly now," Tuskfang. Then, however, he pouts mightily. His fur bristles in a way that might look serious and indignant if he was bigger, but as it is just looks adorable. "I diiid. She said we don't have time for a pet. Even when Cern and Gwydion's parents said they'd get them a molerat."

[Elsewhere]

"Dealing with the mad scientist is our priority," Sophie says. "I convinced him I want to use his services, and he gave me three days to acquire a pair of wings he can graft onto me. I'll buy some in the Hunting Grounds. Hopefully I'll fool him long enough. Helping Sasha is a much more long-term and time-consuming task."

[Deathkeeper]

[Island]

Isaac goes over to the sundial, picking up the ring.
"Well, things DO pop up in the Nexus all the time. For now, a mound, a ring, and a...backwards sun-dial?" Shadows aren't supposed to point towards light sources. Isaac tries to feel the magic in the area, but not every kind of magic can be easily detected by his brand of sorcery.

[Earl of Purple]

Island

There is magic here. There's really potent magic in Isaac's hand, now he's picked up the ring. It's... Hard to tell what kind of magic it is, it seems to change from one moment to the next. Chaotic magic, or possibly just random magic, seems most likely.

There's also slight magic on the sundial, linked to the mound's entrance. The mound's entrance only opens at a certain time, which happens to be now. It'll stay open for an hour, if they fancy exploring it.

[Chaotic Bob]

[Memory Woods Hut]

The woman leans on the wall vaguely near the old woman, after accepting a proffered cracker in the process.
She nibbles on it and they both watch the goings-ons across from them in vaguely annoyed silence for a moment.

Once Needs is plastered to the wall by the ice, Venmaunt appeared to be preparing some other sort of spell, glowering and soundlessly mouthing out the words to something over the glow of his sword's runes.
But at some point during this, while he was arrogantly(?) ignoring Magtok, he gets shot in the back. Three times!
Sure, they're just stunner rays, and sure his robe seems to absorb them like some sort of weird energy sponge...but apparently he ran out of time to correct the weary enchantment on the thing this morning and that absorption doesn't work quite right.

Which leads to him twitching his way into bumbling whatever spell he was working on, and then jerking his sword out to the wall next to Needs to support the rest of his body while he twitches some more.
Oh, there is such murder in his eyes!
Murder, but no action behind it.

Which is around when the woman speaks again.
"Okay, with that interruption, this seems like a good stopping point.
Your brother is an idiot, there was no real scuffle. Venmaunt was being paranoid and going to...I don't know. Shoot a laser through the door? I was just making him lay off until we saw who it was, on the off chance it wasn't a bunch of violent losers.
Which apparently it was.
If you stop trying to kill him, I'm sure even the scaly idiot will cool it for a bit."

[billtodamax]

[In Search of a Fortress]

And lo, Khannie is dropped off to play with her friends. She's dressed warmly, of course, with her favorite hoodie. And a nice little backpack, of course. Full of dreadfully important things.

"Bye Zebes!" she calls out to the dragonite that delivered her to Glog. "I'll see you tomorrow after the sleepover!"

Oh no.

A sleepover.

Who knows what sorts of dreadful things these children will get up to.

Khannie will find a welcoming party ready for her - Olon and Endok are accompanied by a dwarven woman in full plate mail, a crossbow lazily slung over her shoulder as she looks at Zebes with a curious expression. Small birds only then. Hi Khannie! Olon calls out happily as she approaches. This is our mum. She adds, by way of introduction. Rath is brought back to her senses, smiling at Khannie. Hello there. I heard you went trick or treating with my kids?

[Lord Magtok]

Memory Woods Hut

"For a bit," Magtok repeats skeptically, before begrudgingly putting his ray gun away. His hand is never far from the weapon, however, and his eyes are still watching Venmaunt for an excuse to dial his gun back up to murder. Hopefully that little scuffle was enough to dissuade Venmaunt from acting on those orders he mentioned, though. I mean, between the two cyborg brothers, the half-dragon would be easily carved to pieces in a hypothetical round two, and if he's got any sense at all, he should know that now, right? Swallowing his pride and conceding defeat here is the only way for him to get out of this alive.

"Needs, could you uh...stop being a weird leech eel thing? A lamprey or whatever that is?" Magtok isn't well-versed on weird jawless fish with mouths full of razors, apparently. When Needs shifts into a catfish instead, still frozen to the wall as his lamprey form was, Magtok just shrugs and moves on. That technically fulfills his request, I suppose. Good enough for now.

[Rebonack]

[Island]

Chaotic magic?

Cool beans.

Lucas really doesn't have any magical detection powers.

"I don't think it's a faerie mound," he comments as he eyes the trio of stones forming a doorway. "Not my sort of faerie, anyway? That could be good or bad. Either way, though, I think we should explore it. It would be a shame to ignore this cool place and just let it disappear again. If that's, uh, if that's okay with you guys, I mean."

At least he's assuming that it'll be cool.

It might be five feet deep and end in a muddle puddle and some packed dirt walls.

Usually mounds don't contain elaborate dungeons like they do in video games.

Which is a shame.

[In Search of a Fortress]

And lo, as Khannie is dropped off and starts to try to escape, she's snatched up again and hugged!

She makes an adorable little wheezing sound.

Once released, she waves goodbye to the dragon. "Okay Zebes, I won't."

Much waving! And much pondering. What kinds of things wouldn't Zebes do?

Oh hey, there are some dorfs here.

"Hi Olon, hi Endok!" Khannie calls out as she skips over, on hand on the strap of her backpack and the other clutching her sleeping bag. She's totally prepared for whatever adventures might follow. Probably. "Hi Olon and Endok's mom!"

That's the normal means of formal address when it comes to the parents of other children.

"We did, it was really fun. We got lots of cool candy and neat trinkets from this guy with one giant foot!"

No doubt Rath is aware of the trinkets.

And the humming.

[Morty]

[Island]

Iknika peers at the mound and the weird items. She's about as attuned to magic as your average duck, so she can't tell anything about them beyond what's visible.

"I also think we should. What good would it be if we saw an adventure in front of us and turned back?"

[Deathkeeper]

Island

Isaac nods.
”Yeah, sure. Definitely. But first, do you think I should try on this ring? It’s definitely magic but I can’t figure out what it does. Unless someone else wants to volunteer.” Isaac thinks he or Lucas should try it though, as they’re resistant to being enchanted.