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  1. - Top - End - #571
    Halfling in the Playground
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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Island Assault 2 - Dragon Don'ts]

    Damon floats irritatedly in front of the mirror-Calastra. This was pretty much exactly what he expected - big magic barrier that he can't get around.

    Or, well, not exactly. More like weird small barrier that follows him? Well, we can maybe try something there. Damon goes up. Straight up. But at the same time a small mote of black fire slips out the bottom of his form, and starts to sizzle and spread across the ground. Can the barrier block him going up and his fire spreading across the ground? Well, let's find out.
    Before you criticise someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticise them, you'll be a mile away and you'll have their shoes.

  2. - Top - End - #572
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Shadowcaller's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Island Assault 2 - Dragon Don'ts]

    All the dragons, including Calastra's mirror doppleganger as Ilpholin was apparently addressing it too, suddenly stop mid-air (though their wings are still moving obviously) as something in her words seemed to be deemed worthy of consideration.

    "Sargon can destroy me at any point he likes and if he dies, so will I." Calastra explains through her dragon form while all the dragons, real and illusionary alike, start to fly upwards while still keeping their heads down to maintain at least something resembling eye contact with Ilpholin. "How exactly would you keep me alive if you won't undo the hold he has over me first?"

    It does seem like the barrier isn't terrestrially bound as once he moves upwards rather than extending in that direction it leaves the ground and floats upwards in order to block his passage.

  3. - Top - End - #573
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    5a Violista's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Cult Tree Hotel]

    June tries to keep quiet and keep on moving forward, even after it becomes obvious someone realized where she went.
    Because if she doesn't make it obvious, hopefully they'll start doubting whether or not she'd actually go into the vents and would instead think she opened the vents and pretended to go in, but hid and escaped while they were busy looking at the vents? or something? This whole thing at the moment is just one huge improv game, so she'll need more time to justify it in her mind.

    To be honest, though, she doesn't really like the cold. AC-cold is pretty cold. But she can withstand it, hopefully.
    So instead, she doesn't retreat, but instead tries to go farther down the vent to a vent that's not immediately nearby, since those are the first ones they'd check.

    June gets to a vent that's farther down in another room, but...it's locked. She wants to complain about what kind of building pays their maintenance enough to ensure every vent is secure, but...oh well. Complaining would draw attention to where she is.

    She gets to a shaft.
    Considers climbing up...shouldn't be that hard, right?
    If she could just unscrew a single vent from inside, that would go a long ways towards making them think she already escaped.
    Before climbing up, she once again looks back, thinking about trying out unscrewing one of the ones on this floor.

    There is one mushroom power she's done before and was pretty decent at, actually! Making little root-like things. Before climbing, she tries out making some and seeing if she can hold the coin outside the vent with it...she leans she can hold the coin out there but without an actual screwdriver or a knife or something it'd be hard to get it to actually open the screw.

    June comes to a decision. At the moment, she has three options which could possibly work:
    (1) wait in here uncomfortably until they think she's no longer in here and go back
    (2) look for a vent that's close enough to a screwdriver or knife or just happens to be unscrewed (this all seems unlikely, she thinks)
    or (3) go to a room that's naturally noisy and likely unoccupied where they won't be looking for her, like a laundry room or something, and see if she can break open the vent cover or the vent duct, or something like that.

    Deciding her third option is the most proactive, that's what she tries to do: she climbs up the shaft, and tries to come up with a mental map of the hotel to think which floor and what area of the hotel they're likely to have a laundry or unoccupied maintenance room or the like.
    Last edited by 5a Violista; 2022-05-07 at 05:27 PM.
    Favorite sports:
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  4. - Top - End - #574
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Reinholdt's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Island Assault 2 - Dragon Don'ts]

    "You're not getting a Lolth-damned guarantee," Ilpholin growls at the dragon, just waiting for Calastra to make the wrong move. "That's what means to risk your life for your freedom."

    The nymph shifts her feet ever so slightly. "But think it through anyways. You're Sargon and you have the ability to control a dragon or destroy a dragon. A nymph and her troops are tearing through your defenses and coming for you. What, you're just going to leave the dragon in the back until the nymph snatches your control device out from you? Hell no."

    "Now imagine the Pith was destroyed and you didn't die instantly. You're trying to salvage the demon empire you built as best you can. Again are you going to destroy the dragon's phylactery? Sargon's a lot of things but he isn't stupid. You'll be recalled to his side for whatever last ditch things he'll try. Either way, you're going to end up in the way. Which circumstances do you want it to be under? While Sargon's at full strength, healthy and perfectly capable of crushing your phylactery in an instant or when he's weakened, uncertain, afraid, and dying? Unwilling to destroy the phylactery just to hold onto the last vestiges of power as he curses me and my children and my children's children. Because in the latter instance I can see going around you. In the former, through you."

    [Cult Tree Hotel]

    The kind of building that can afford built in spas and embarrassingly rich vip rooms and underground medical facilities?

    Fortunately a laundry room is pretty easy to find! It's run at all hours of the day being a hotel and all and is quite loud so it's actually somewhat easy to track down. It's still early morning so a lot of the big loads that are coming from all the people who are checking out are still being gathered. Which means that as far as June can tell the room is (momentarily at least) empty. Can't really listen for footsteps or anything honestly. But from what she can see.

    Kicking a vent loose is best done on this side of the vent as well just because of the direction of the screws. So with a noisy clatter the grate comes loose and June is free! If substantially dirtier and in need of a good wash. There are a lot of washers to choose from.

    Or she could leave in a hurry. Given the clandestine nature of the facilities below it's probable that not every staff member is aware the escape. Yet. It's a real gamble at this point as to who knows and who doesn't, but if she scurries, June can be out of the building before it even matters. There's no one in the immediate area at this exact time so she can get out one of the side doors that leads to parking without issue.
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
    And you find yourself dead
    Reinholdt was the Beast
    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  5. - Top - End - #575
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    5a Violista's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Cult Tree Hotel]

    You know what's unfortunate?
    Leaving all her clothes and stuff down in the secret basement. Especially, like, those two other dresses she got from Adam's Estate that she hasn't really got the chance to wear yet.
    June briefly and wistfully thinks back on those and wonders what's going to happen with them. As well as her other stuff. Luckily, she did grab her most important stuff before going into the vents.

    Seeing the washing machines gives June an idea.

    Not washing her clothes.
    That would be a silly idea.
    Instead, she looks for some dry uniforms to change into. Would be a lot cleaner (dirty clothes would get people to look at her more) and hopefully she'll blend in just enough for people to not pay attention to her. She changes her most visible clothes into whichever uniform would seem most like 'definitely a background employee, no need to pay that much attention' outfit.

    And then leave. Not, like, at a speed that looks like she's trying to get away but instead at the speed that looks like she's got somewhere to be. Fitting for a uniform, she thinks.
    And, yeah, heading to a side door, trying to get to parking so that she can go into the street and everything.
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  6. - Top - End - #576
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Reinholdt's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Cult Tree Hotel]

    That is exceptionally unfortunate as those were very nice dresses. She could always go to Adam's Estate and explain to Adam what's happened and try to get replacement dresses. Maybe get a cult arrested in the process.

    Getting into uniform is a smart improvisation and it isn't hard to find something to practically screams 'don't look at me I'm boring, yet professionally dressed.'

    At the moment, it's definitely enough to get her out of the building and then onto the street without turning any heads. She's free! If free means just outside the Cat Tree Hotel. She's a day behind her schedule though and not out of the city yet.
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
    Spoiler
    Show
    -Nyahahaha~
    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
    And you find yourself dead
    Reinholdt was the Beast
    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  7. - Top - End - #577
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    5a Violista's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Catside, just outside the Cult Tree Hotel]

    June may be a day behind, but she'd have to look at a calendar for it to really click in her mind.

    She walks in an 'away' direction from the hotel.

    The big thing is to put some distance between her and the building. And while she's getting some distance, she can think about what she needs to do.

    She does need to leave the city but wonders if that's the first place they'll start looking if she goes there.
    She figures that she's kinda thirsty and is really hungry.
    She wonders if she ought to change her clothes: like, if there's any logos or anything she needs to cover up?
    She figures it would probably be good to report that hotel, but...to be honest, she has no idea how much of the city is involved, or if police are being bribed, or what. So she'll probably have to drop off some anonymous tips. If she...if she finds a payphone then she could call the police and tell them the Cat Tree Hotel has been stealing things from their patrons, and then there's a chance they might find June's stuff there which could prompt more investigations. And just in case there's corrupt local cops, she could also maybe send a letter to Adam's Estate too mentioning how she (June) and several other people staying at that hotel have mysteriously gone missing. Maybe possibly because of what happened while she was at the estate, they'd take that very seriously.

    So,
    Her plan, it seems, is just to keep on making some distance, find some sort of market and buy clothes just enough so it looks less like a nondescript uniformlike outfit and more like just normal clothes. Then, she can buy food and stuff and maybe stationary and pens, and find a phonebooth and a city map to find a post office and the location of other train stations or alternative transportation methods to Inside...and also cancel her credit card and dispute any charges done by the cult hotel but that should definitely wait until after she's left Catside.
    ...
    Also, while she'd still like to have an actual doctor look at her biology and answer questions, she's kinda completely lost trust in them.

    Wow, she has a lot to do.
    Luckily! She doesn't have to worry about actually doing anything fun, because her day has already been kinda ruined.
    Fortunately, all the things she has to do seem pretty simple when it's mentally broken down into steps like this, and could mostly be taken care of offscreen, at least until something interesting or contrary to plan happens.
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  8. - Top - End - #578
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Reinholdt's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Catside]

    The clothing store owner asks if June's on break, seemingly having recognized the outfit and making small talk, but doesn't particularly pry past that so long as June doesn't implode and just says yes.

    There really isn't a phone booth to be found. The city is quite new and phone booths are considered antiquated and nobody bothered building them in this cell phone era. June may be able to borrow a phone from someone or ask to use one inside one of the stores she's visiting.

    Fortunately she doesn't need a phone booth to find a city map as those seem to be sold in a number of places. More so closer to the Cat Tree Hotel and Train Station, but she can find maps in other places too, like one of the book stores. Looking one over shows that there isn't another train station to use as an escape. Not even an airport (catgirls don't like the loud engines). There are a few roads leading out marked as 'under construction', but the map is probably a little old, close to a year. If June could rent a car or hijack one, she may just be able to drive out. Or she could walk out and try to hitchhike. Presuming the roads are finished. They have to be right? A city this size couldn't survive without imports.

    The realization comes that they aren't too far from a river and while it's definitely not part of the city itself, it's adjacent enough and large enough, they probably use barges to ferry in and out goods. Just have to follow some dirt roads to get to the docks and warehouses, though there's probably a ban on stowaways. The train station is still closer but might be watched.
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
    Spoiler
    Show
    -Nyahahaha~
    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
    And you find yourself dead
    Reinholdt was the Beast
    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  9. - Top - End - #579
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    5a Violista's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Catside]

    June confirms that yes, she's on break and just using that opportunity to get some shopping done. Small talk is pretty easy, to be honest, so it's not really that implosion-causing. However, that does confirm that the outfit is quite a bit more recognizable than she had hoped, and is glad that she's getting this part out of the way so soon.

    Thankfully, her personal phone is one of the , so it's not really something that can be tracked. However, she still needs to find out what the 'emergency services' number would be. Sure, she could just pull out her own phone and turn it on and then look it up, but...she didn't exactly leave it on airplane mode. And it has a bunch of settings that would automatically try to connect to nearby towers or signals or other things. Not to mention how easy it is to draw from her contacts and spoof a message asking if she's alright, or something.

    Ugh.
    Cell phones are the worst when you're worried about cultists who are possibly in league with some corrupt policemen or government officials tracking you. They've completely supplanted even phone booths, which is the worst-case scenario!

    Luckily, if her memory serves right, there are some types of phones that have an 'emergency number button' directly on the home screen, so...if she can just find someone who happens to have that type of phone (and she can't exactly remember which type it is...or is that all smartphones that have that feature?)...

    Well, she decides to just keep it in mind, if by some miracle she finds someone with that type of phone. Of course, compared to other priorities, this one isn't the most important. Sure, delaying it will mean the Cult Tree Hotel has a higher chance of hiding the evidence, but it also means she wouldn't risk being tracked...

    After serious thought and finishing all the other errands (including sending the letter), and deciding the river might be her best bet out, she comes to a decision: ask someone with a smartphone if she can "just send a quick text message to someone to tell them i'm going to be a little late". Check if they have a 'text emergency services' button and make sure to send a text and not a phonecall telling them about the 'string of thefts' happening at Cat Tree Hotel's address, and then after that quickly ditch and head straight to the docks using shortcuts and back alleys found from the map.

    At that point, June figures her options are...stowaway (if there's a boat leaving immediately or soon) or walk downriver in hopes of finding some smaller town or something. Much rather prefer stowing away, though. Even if they do have a ban on it.
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  10. - Top - End - #580
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Reinholdt's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Catside]

    Only cultists could have possibly pushed for the agenda of removing phone booths. Stationary phones are just too easy to... bug and... watch and... hmm. Did these cultists make a dire mistake? Would it not be better for them to have the phone booths?

    Certainly something to bring up at the next cultist commission meeting.

    June's phone plan isn't bad, but it's too luck dependent to be reliable and the phone she gets ahold of has no such simple service available. The catboy takes his phone back when she's done to get back to apping and walking. A talent born to those special few. Or perhaps being a catperson just gives him that extra dexterity and senses to avoid getting run over on his attempt to get a high score on MagCave Story Run 3.

    The trek to the dock is done slowly, but carefully. The last stretch outside of the city is probably the worst, cover ironically lighter but also more clingy and difficult to move through. June gets there in time to see a ship loading the last cargo set to be shipped to Riverside. The crew is small and heavily preoccupied. If the cultists are looking for her, they don't seem to have come this far out. Probably still at the train station if anything, or patrolling the roads of catside. June is able to slip aboard actually quite easily, or if she prefer, she could stuff herself into one of the crates. It appears to be real fur coats made from recycled shed cat hair. Super soft and at least nothing terribly uncomfortable like a fish crate would be.

    Through careful planning and smart decisions, June has successfully evaded the cultists!
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
    Spoiler
    Show
    -Nyahahaha~
    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
    And you find yourself dead
    Reinholdt was the Beast
    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  11. - Top - End - #581
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    5a Violista's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Catside]

    If the cultists asked June, she would say that stationary phones are way too risky because then you'd have to waste resources watching phonebooths in addition to all the cell phones, which nobody's going to use a phonebooth anyway so you might as well not watch them and just watch the cell phones instead.
    Or something like that.
    She's sure she could come up with a better argument to not watch the phones eventually.

    Clingy cover is definitely the worst, though.
    Especially with tails.
    Which is now something that June's learning.

    Feeling that climbing into a crate would be simultaneously too cliché and too easy to spot, with no way to escape when caught, June figures she'll just sneak aboard and hide somewhere out of the way and shadowy. Maybe behind a crate, or something.
    Favorite sports:
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  12. - Top - End - #582
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Morty's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Into a World that Was]

    Four days after Ilpholin's visit to the Court of the King in Rags, the King and Amalungak will be waiting for her in an arid valley between hills, far from large cities or towns. The closest civilization is a small community or herders, none of which will venture here today - indeed they go here rarely, because there's little of value found here. The only signs of life are the snakes and the birds, but even they are subdued and frightened, because of the King's presence. The King is wearing his typical guise of the rat-headed scarecrow, whereas Amalungak is clearly uncomfortable in this warm and dry climate.
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  13. - Top - End - #583
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Reinholdt's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Outside Catside]

    June is... spotted! Eventually. Too late to turn around and turn the stowaway back in, but it hasn't been so long that June's actually had other opportunities to reposition or swap clothes again. The crew is only half catpeople, the rest a more varied races that one would come to expect from the Nexus. It's hard to say if any one of them is in the cult.

    June can try something wild to escape from the cargo bay and then the boat. She can attempt to silence or bribe the one lizardman who has stumbled upon her as for the moment they're simply staring at her in surprise. Or she may suck it up and try to face the captain, hoping whomever controls this vessel is kindhearted.

    [Into a World that Was]

    The whirring metal joints of a mecha tank stomping along the ground is actually the second indication of Ilpholin's arrival. The first is the large cloud of dust being kicked up behind Mister Squiggles as he skitters across the arid landscape, doing a good job of displacing any critter that hasn't fled already. The nymph atop her mechanical mount swayed with the rough bucking and jumping that the transportation provided. Mecha-squiggles lost a lot on That Day, but the smooth ride with Ilpholin pressed against his carapace is probably the one thing they both agree is the most missed.

    As they get closer, Ilpholin leaps down and continues on foot slightly ahead of her cybernetic friend until they reach the King and Amalungak. She's only met the latter in passing and knows little about him. Mister Squiggles is about as uncomfortable as he is, but for an entirely different reason. He's not a fan of the King in Rags.
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
    Spoiler
    Show
    -Nyahahaha~
    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
    And you find yourself dead
    Reinholdt was the Beast
    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  14. - Top - End - #584
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Morty's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Into a World that Was]

    The King nods slightly when Ilpholin and Mister Squiggles arrive. If he's aware of the spider's distrust towards him, he is not displaying it.

    "Ilpholin. Mister Squiggles. Welcome. Amalungak here is ready to begin the rite."

    Amalungak steps forward and bows deeply to Ilpholin.

    "Lady Ilpholin. Simply step between the three poles and I will begin. Your... companion can wait nearby to observe and ensure the ritual does only what we promised it would."

    Ilpholin will see the three poles driven into the sandy terrain in one of the few places around here where it's actually flat. A complicated pattern of symbols and erratic lines was drawn around it in what looks like white paint or ink. It hums with strange, uncanny power and potential.
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  15. - Top - End - #585
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    Reinholdt's Avatar

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    [Into a World that Was]

    It's ok King. Almost no one can tell what Mister Squiggles is thinking through that cold metallic exterior covering his face.

    "Lady Xar'cha," Ilpholin corrects Amalungak. She doesn't appear to have taken much offense to it though and pats Mecha Squiggles on the side before stepping forward. She tries to avoid the iconography wherever she can, but where she cannot, she steps lightly.

    Upon reaching the middle, Ilpholin turns and watches, a slight head nod the only real indication she is ready.
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
    Spoiler
    Show
    -Nyahahaha~
    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
    And you find yourself dead
    Reinholdt was the Beast
    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  16. - Top - End - #586
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    Morty's Avatar

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    Default Re: Reinholdt's Repository

    [Into a World that Was]

    "Lady Xar'Cha. Of course." Amalungak bows again. It seems he's well and truly intimidated by Ilpholin. Is it because of her unique relationship with his lord? Or maybe she just has that effect on people. Amalungak certainly looks like Ilpholin could fold him in two without breaking a sweat.

    When Ilpholin is ready, Amalugnak produces a branch of white wood and rubs it with his fingers. It begins to give off smoke. Then, he chants. It begins in a language Ilpholin won't recognize, but there are understandable words as well.

    "River of time, take us back. Take us to the world that was. See my lord, the King in Rags, and show us the world he might have seen. The world that could have been..." then he switches to some other language again.

    The smoke from the ember in his hand dances through the air, swirling around the King in Rags. Amalungak is performing the rite, but it's clearly the King in Rags' will, and connection to the old world, that is doing a lot of heavy lifting here. Once the smoke has danced a circle around the King, it floats over to fill the symbols around Ilpholin, which begin to blacken and blur, as if rising into the air. The hum intensifies and the fabric of reality seems to peel away around the warrior-nymph. Eventually, the smoke and otherworldly blur obscure the assembled from her.

    When the smoke clears, she will find herself elsewhere. An empty stone road weaving between two hills, covered in sparse grass and a few twisted trees. Mountains rise in the distance. She is alone, but at the end of the road before her she will see something like a fortress on a hill. An octagonal construction with several tiers and clearly inhabited. Flags flap in the wind above it, but it's too far to tell what symbol they might display. The fort is located between two stone crags and it appears a river is flowing down from one of them, disappearing somewhere between the fort's walls. It's only sensible to use a ready source of fresh water.

    Less obviously, this place has a strange color to it. It's... brighter? Everything seems more intense, somehow. The colors are deeper, the sounds (the singing of birds and the buzzing of insects in the vegetation around her) more vigorous. Even the air smells different. Is this what the Queen said, about the world being brighter in those days?
    Last edited by Morty; 2022-05-25 at 03:57 AM.
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  17. - Top - End - #587
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    [Into a World that Was]

    Well Ilpholin can't say Amalgunak's fear isn't slightly intoxicating. Not something she'll dwell on, but certainly something she can appreciate. The raw feeling of power reflected in another's trembling eyes.

    Ilpholin's ability to relish is tainted somewhat by her uncomfortableness with the ritual. She doesn't let it show of course, but the whole thing creeps her out on a level she doesn't know how to describe. Maybe it's what remains of the fey in her telling her this was all unnatural. Maybe it was her instincts on knowing better than to play with time. Or maybe she just didn't get her coffee this morning.

    Regardless the deed is done and the results are worse than she had hoped. Everything was... harshly alive. If it weren't for the terror of the sun, it would probably be breathtaking, but instead she takes time to adjust, dampening the noise a little, the light. For a surface dweller, maybe this was wonderous. The King in Rags certainly thought so. She wasn't so sure yet. Just moving in this world felt a little surreal.

    Instead of going straight to the fortress, she proceeds to perform a series of small exercises right there on the lonely stone road. They hardly count as strenuous, for her at any rate, and the warm up is necessary to acclimate to the strange environs. But eventually she feels satisfied with her own movements and begins the trek towards the fortress.
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    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  18. - Top - End - #588
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    Quote Originally Posted by Shadowcaller View Post
    [Island Assault 2 - Dragon Don'ts]

    All the dragons, including Calastra's mirror doppleganger as Ilpholin was apparently addressing it too, suddenly stop mid-air (though their wings are still moving obviously) as something in her words seemed to be deemed worthy of consideration.

    "Sargon can destroy me at any point he likes and if he dies, so will I." Calastra explains through her dragon form while all the dragons, real and illusionary alike, start to fly upwards while still keeping their heads down to maintain at least something resembling eye contact with Ilpholin. "How exactly would you keep me alive if you won't undo the hold he has over me first?"

    It does seem like the barrier isn't terrestrially bound as once he moves upwards rather than extending in that direction it leaves the ground and floats upwards in order to block his passage.
    Quote Originally Posted by Reinholdt View Post
    [Island Assault 2 - Dragon Don'ts]

    "You're not getting a Lolth-damned guarantee," Ilpholin growls at the dragon, just waiting for Calastra to make the wrong move. "That's what means to risk your life for your freedom."

    The nymph shifts her feet ever so slightly. "But think it through anyways. You're Sargon and you have the ability to control a dragon or destroy a dragon. A nymph and her troops are tearing through your defenses and coming for you. What, you're just going to leave the dragon in the back until the nymph snatches your control device out from you? Hell no."

    "Now imagine the Pith was destroyed and you didn't die instantly. You're trying to salvage the demon empire you built as best you can. Again are you going to destroy the dragon's phylactery? Sargon's a lot of things but he isn't stupid. You'll be recalled to his side for whatever last ditch things he'll try. Either way, you're going to end up in the way. Which circumstances do you want it to be under? While Sargon's at full strength, healthy and perfectly capable of crushing your phylactery in an instant or when he's weakened, uncertain, afraid, and dying? Unwilling to destroy the phylactery just to hold onto the last vestiges of power as he curses me and my children and my children's children. Because in the latter instance I can see going around you. In the former, through you."
    [Island Assault 2 - Dragon Don'ts]

    Well well, maybe we do have an out here?

    Damon keeps on rising, and the fire keeps on spreading below. The ongoing debate between Ilpholin and Calastra is largely ignored as he focuses on his sole objective of getting away with the prize. Is Ilpholin just stalling? Does she have some kind of plan? It's really hard to tell at this point.

    ...does she actually have troops to mount some sort of offensive? Intriguing.

    Calastra's claim that Sargon could destroy her in an instant also merits some brief consideration, at least. For her to be so afraid of him, well, that bodes ill.

    Well, anyway, Damon has a job to do. Time to see if this does the trick. A moment later and the near-formless ball that he is collapses into a spark of fire that zips to the ground and along that spreading fire he set. Maybe this will get him around it? Or maybe he'll just go bonk into it.
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  19. - Top - End - #589
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    [Into a World that Was]

    Though alone on the road, Ilpholin will see that it's a well-used one. The stones have been worn smooth by feet, wheels, hooves and, it seems, other limbs. Bird-feet, but very large. No one will bother her as she ascends an elevation towards the fortress. When she climbs over the top of the hill, she will get a closer look at the building and its environs.

    The fortress is no less large up close and the only visible means of entry is a large bronze gate. It appears guarded by two warriors. A man and a woman, both large and brown-skinned, wearing armor of hardened leather plates and bronze helmets. Each of them also wears a black sash with the emblem of a spear, wreathed in lightning. Each of them is leaning on an odd, curved weapon. Gaining entrance into the fortress will require speaking with them, it seems.

    However, there is also some mundane activity around the fort. An exalted gathering of warrior as this may be, they still require supplies and contact with the outside world. A number of humans wearing simple belted tunics and cloaks appear busy with loading and unloading various goods from carts driven by large goats... or goat-like animals, at any rate. One of them, judging by a more opulent cloak their leader, is speaking to a dark-skinned man with a braided beard, wearing the same sash as the guards but over a gleaming iron breastplate.

    Something else that may draw Ilpholin's attention is the presence of non-humans. There are two groups of them. One is composed of people she might associate with dwarves or halflings, but different than she'd see in the Nexus. They seem rough-hewn, with strangely angular faces and limbs. Their eyes are solid black. Some of them wear beards, which appear almost like stone, rather than hair. Accompanying them is a hulking figure with three legs (oddly enough) and a lizard-like head with three eyes, its skin resembling stone scales and covered in bristle. The small-folk and their companion are allowed to be here but it's evidently not an enthusiastic welcome; they keep to themselves. Their wagons are pulled by massive blue flightless birds.

    Off to the side is a number of goat-like humanoids, chained up thoroughly and standing or kneeling with the unmistakable look of defiance broken by the yoke of slavery. Some of them are human-sized, others far larger.
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  20. - Top - End - #590
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    [Into a World that Was]

    Ilpholin has chosen the role of a raven haired beauty with fair skin and fairer curves. Though she has the formations of a tan from travel.

    There are certainly a lot of sights to take in. Questions to be had. She forgot to ask the King in Rags if this was after the collapse of the Fairest of Lands, but she suspects it is recent history. Who was enslaving whom and what alliances existed. Perhaps it didn't make much of a difference. There was always someone using someone else. The only way they would matter is if she could use them to find the spear she sought.

    But talking to them now would certainly arouse suspicion given her immediate purpose. So Ilpholin walks past the displays and distractions to present herself to the two guards, bowing low and getting to the point as to why she is here. "I have traveled far in search of Jarowit. I seek to study his teachings so that I might become more like him."
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
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    Tale as old as thread
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    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  21. - Top - End - #591
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    [Into a World that Was]

    The two guards give Ilpholin a scrutinizing look. While her beauty is unlikely to be overlooked, this isn't what they're paying attention to. Their goal is to discern if it's truly a warrior who stands before them.

    "Who are you and where do you hail from?" the woman asks.

    "The teachings of Jarowit are practiced here, but should you pass through this gate, you must prove yourself worthy," the man adds.
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  22. - Top - End - #592
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    [Outside Catside]

    Gasp!

    Who could have known that hiding somewhat out in the open would have led to her being caught so easily?

    Once June realizes she's seen, she gets up into a more visible spot and holds her hands out to show she's not attacking. "Please don't throw me out," she says. "I'll do whatever you want."


    Guess she's trying to go with the sympathy route.
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  23. - Top - End - #593
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    [Outside Catside]

    The lizardman stares for a moment longer, largely trying to decide what this means for him and what to do with June. Finally he comes to the obvious conclusion. "Y'arrr, ye'll have to speak to the captain forthwit, landlubber."

    A shout comes from further in the cargo hold. "Jenkins! Are you talking like a pirate again?"

    "What 'f it ye scurvy dog?! Speak poorly and I'll make he walk the plank!"

    "We're not pirates Jenkins. YOU'RE not a pirate."

    Jenkins grumbles something about a terrible pirate curse he'll inflict on his coworker's ghost, before looking back at June and speaking more quietly so he can't be overheard again. "But seriously though, ye'll have to follow me." If June agrees, he will lead her to the captain's cabin (more cramped than expected) to make her plea to her directly.

    [Into a World that Was]

    "I am Lyn Cha, and I come from Iravvi," Ilpholin replies as she tries to guess whether this is one of those situations where no one is actually 'worthy', or if they're playing it straight.

    Better than declaring herself worthy or unworthy, she'll go with a less scrutinizable answer. "I am prepared to take on any challenge deemed necessary."
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
    And you find yourself dead
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    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  24. - Top - End - #594
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    [Into a World that Was]

    The two guards nod.

    "You may go in. Pass through the gate and through the outer ring of the fort," the male guard says. "The gate to the middle ring will be open for you. When you've reach the cadets' training grounds, stand and proclaim yourself. The... high priest..." He stumbles awkwardly.

    "Spear-Lady Barenza will be there and hear your intent. She will then judge you," the woman cuts in, as she reaches for a nearby rope, attached to a bell, and pulls it thrice. The bell rings and the gate slowly swings open.

    Ilpholin will be impeded no longer and free to go through the gate. The area behind the wall appears to be residential and domestic. There's a straight cobbled path up the hill to another gate, which is also opening. On both sides of the path she will see servants hurrying about, and some people who appear to be warriors, but also engaged in some everyday matters. Some heads turn when they see a newcomer pass through, since they heard the bell and saw the gates open.

    The gate to the middle ring is guarded by two more warriors, like the ones below, but they stand by and let her pass. Beyond the gate, she will see a large, level area, covered in sand, which seems to serve as a training ground, like the guard said. Men and women, mostly young, all of them fit and athletic, dressed in loincloths and (for women) chest-wraps, are engaged in combat and training. Some practice on training dummies and targets, some wrestle and battle each other, some (seemingly the strongest and most experienced) engage chained goat-people. Most of the warriors have the same brown hue to their skin as those she saw below, but there are others as well.

    The training grounds end with low walls on both sides, separating it from other sections of the middle ring. The road cuts through them and continues upwards, but there's also a plaza of sorts in the middle of it. On it is a wooden tower, on which stands a severe-looking, dark-skinned woman with dark red hair tied in a thick braid. It appears she's the one to whom Ilpholin must announce herself.
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  25. - Top - End - #595
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    [Into a World that Was]

    Huh. Ilpholin thought she would be announced. Guess she's more used to formal courts than what is probably an impromptu monk order that sprung up around Jarowit filled with those lower born seeking strength and ascension.

    But there's still a high priest. Priestess? Spear-lady? There appears to be some conflicting reports there. Hmm...

    Well all the same, Ilpholin travels inward into the training grounds. There's only one lady with an imposing presence enough to be Spear-Lady Barenza... Ilpholin hopes. She'll approach the tower all the same and bow respectfully. Before shouting her attentions so that she can hear from up there. "I am Lyn Cha, and I come from Iravvi to study the great Lord Jarowit's ways and teachings."
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
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    -Nyahahaha~
    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
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    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  26. - Top - End - #596
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    [Into a World that Was]

    Some of the cadets, those closest, stop their training and turn to look at Ilpholin when she announces herself. The woman on the wooden tower also regards her. Up close, she looks every part a warrior. Her dark-skinned face is rough and bears several scars. There's an eyepatch covering her left eye and her red hair is streaked with grey in places.

    "A newcomer! It has been some time!" she shouts in a booming voice, before leaping off the tower and landing with a great thud, but no harm to herself. Up close, she's quite tall - at least six feet. "Lyn Cha. I am Spear-Lady Barenza and I speak for our leader while he is attending to other matters." A frown passes her face, but she dismisses it quickly. "We have little use for ceremony or protocol. Those who wish to learn Jarowit's teachings must simply prove their mettle. Is there anyone here who wishes to challenge this newcomer?"

    Almost before she's done speaking, three warriors pass through the growing crowd of cadets. They don't seem to be cadets themselves. They're three men, subtly similar but ultimately different. They do share an altogether large size, but two of them are lanky and wiry, while the third is barrel-chested and his arms are thick, corded with muscles.

    One of the lanky warriors has a similar complexion to Barenza, dark skin and red hair, a thin mustache above his lips. He's wearing armor of stiff, boiled leather scales, much like the guards. The one beside him has much darker shin and curly hair, cut short. He seems younger and he's clean-shaven, his armor consisting of a bronze breastplate and a helmet. The third man is of fairer complexion, with blonde hair, sporting a short beard and wearing a shirt of mail.

    "I will fight the newcomer."

    "So will I."

    "I stand ready."

    Barenza is... visibly irritated at this, but tries to keep cool for the sake of the candidate.

    "Very well. These are Oragon, Pashti and Ardnod, sons of our illustrious leader," she says, motioning to the two lanky warriors and the stout one in order. "They have the right to challenge new candidates. You may choose to take up any of their challenges and fight any of them or be pitted against our goat-kin slaves."
    Last edited by Morty; 2022-05-30 at 01:44 PM.
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  27. - Top - End - #597
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    [Into a World that Was]

    The woman didn't even tuck and roll! Just landed and absorbed the shock. Is this what the King meant by being more brilliant warriors? Despite her claims against protocol, some red tape already seems to be seeping into the system they employ here. For some reason Barenza doesn't appear to like the sons of their leader. So is there nepotism at work? Or does she just find their personalities distasteful? Either way there seems to be trouble in this paradise.

    They certainly seemed eager for a fight. Just appreciating fresh blood or looking to bully it? Ilpholin walks in front of each as she appraises her options. Oragon likely trained with the guards, and probably had the most human on human experience, but may also be the most regimented and least flexible of the three, sticking to the best strategy because 'it works'. Pashti a more adventurous sort, likely going on any number of escapades against monsters, but possessing less experience fighting people. Ardnod... a protector of some sort? A bodyguard perhaps. Well trained but also standing still for long periods.

    All mere suppositions and presumptions. It would be dangerous to underestimate any one of them.

    "No need for goats, I'll fight them. These three will do," Lyn Cha states, waving to all of them at the same time. Perhaps an overconfident rookie is exactly the sort of person she needs to be to fit into this world. If this was a brilliant, unfaded place, than Ilpholin would fight and kick and claw her way to shining brighter and bolder than any of them.
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
    Spoiler
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    -Nyahahaha~
    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
    And you find yourself dead
    Reinholdt was the Beast
    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  28. - Top - End - #598
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    [Outside Catside]

    As it happens, June isn't a pirate either.
    So she can relate.

    "Um, okay," she says with no attempt at speaking like a pirate, before thinking better of it and adding, "I'll be following you," and follows Jenkins.

    She follows to the cramped captain's cabin, and decides which approach would work best. "Hi." She decides on: "Don't throw me overboard....Please."
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  29. - Top - End - #599
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    [Outside Catside]

    "We're not throwing you overboard. Who gave you that idea? Jenkins? Was it Jenkins? [Excessive Sailor Slang] Jenkins, we're not pirates!"

    Jenkins just holds up his hands in defeat. "Wasn't me Cap'n, I swear it on Davy Jones' locker."

    The captain rubs her head and sighs. "Look, I don't want to deal with the paperwork of turning you in. Take hours just to process and let us do our jobs. Just... pay a fee or something and be a 'passenger'." But if June tells anyone the Captain let this happen, she'll hunt June down, drag her back on board and then toss her overboard.
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Magtok View Post
    Gods, Reinholdt was right, a hundred percent right.
    Spoiler
    Show
    -Nyahahaha~
    Quote Originally Posted by Supagoof View Post
    Tale as old as thread
    And you find yourself dead
    Reinholdt was the Beast
    Quote Originally Posted by Philistine View Post
    Reinholdt had already told the truth once in that post, and therefore was over his annual quota.

  30. - Top - End - #600
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    [Into a World that Was]

    A brief consternation follows Ilpholin's challenge. The three brothers look at her with the expressions of people unsure if she's serious or not. Then their confusion turns to anger.

    "What?"

    "Is this some sort of joke?"

    "To make us look like cowards attacking three to one?"

    Barenza, however, laughs uproariously.

    "I like her already! She has issued a challenge, lads. Are you taking it or not?"

    The three look at each other but seem to realize how backing down would look now, so they nod grimly.

    "Alright. Clear a space over there." She waves her hands towards a cluster of cadets who spread out and leave behind one of the arenas. "The customary weapon for challenges is a simple quarterstaff for both... or all in this case... fighters. Is this acceptable?" she asks Ilpholin.
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