New OOTS products from CafePress
New OOTS t-shirts, ornaments, mugs, bags, and more
Page 10 of 18 FirstFirst 123456789101112131415161718 LastLast
Results 271 to 300 of 519
  1. - Top - End - #271
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    Geopol4r's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2020
    Location
    Interdimensional iceberg.
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Vault 44
    Yet, as unexpected as it is for such death to attract any entity, from amongst the dead, a creature rises. Pale, gaunt, yet imposing. A chain bound by rings along his arm hangs down, fused to the spine of a large book.
    Ah, a plague. Perfect fuel. Now, where am I?
    As the red day is dawning,
    And the lightning cracks the sky
    They'll raise their hands to the heavens above
    With resentment in their eyes

    Note: if I ghost you on FFRP, you have my explicit permission to godmod me.

  2. - Top - End - #272
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Rebonack's Avatar

    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    The King's Grave

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Vault 44]

    The corpses around the gaunt figure do not answer since, unlike him, they aren't very chatty cadavers.

    This is the default state of dead bodies and probably shouldn't be too much of a surprise.

    Sprawled out in front of the open Vault entrance, the four guards are garbed in blue and yellow uniforms with '44' emblazoned on them. The univorm includes light body armor, though if examined it appears as though the armor didn't offer much protection against the bone-spikes covered in encrusting green fungal growth they were impaled with. Based on the spread of projectiles they were hit with a shotgun blast of bone shards at close range. The ground is ALSO littered with brass casings, the air still acrid with the smell of gunsmoke.

    Whatever they were shooting at doesn't appear to be here, aside from a few smears of sludgy green 'blood' splattered around.

    Which is, of course, growing into more fungal fruiting bodies spreading spores to contribute to the muddy green haze.

    Beyond the door is a control room for operating the massive, absurdly thick vault door via a computer console on a table. Beyond THAT are is an elevator that leads deeper into the Vault and two more dead guards in similar states of fungal dissolution.

    Really not a very cheerful place.


    [WUDJAT]

    Okay!

    Time to get the heck out of the creepy room and go back into the OTHER creepy room that's creepy for slightly different reasons!

    Definitely an improvement.

    The path of Dust and the path of Violence are open to them. In the middle of the chamber stands the idea of a human child, a precious thing to be protected.

    "Nope."

    Would be Gene's assessment of that object. The other two pilots, behind humans, may find resisting the instinct to protect the child more difficult to ignore.
    Warning! Random Encounter™ detected!
    The Eternal Game Nightmære Stuff
    It doesn't matter whether you win or lose, just how awesome you look doing it.

  3. - Top - End - #273
    Troll in the Playground
     
    bc56's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2018
    Location
    Sector ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    WUDJAT
    "The hell is a kid doing here?" Cynic's not sure that's a real child. This place is too weird. "Scram, kid, get out of here!" The Dragon makes shooing gestures with its arm. "You can't just send them off into danger!" Herringbone chides, "What would the boss think?" "You know damn well what he'd think. Our lives first, then paycheck, then civilians. I don't trust anything in this madhouse, especially a kid I can't see well enough to tell if it's real or a hologram hiding a bomb." That seems much cruder than any deception this place would create, but the point stands.
    Awesome avatar (Kothar, paladin of Tlacua) by Linkele!

    Quote Originally Posted by William Shakespeare, King Lear, IV.i.46
    'Tis the time's plague, when madmen lead the blind.
    My Nexus characters

  4. - Top - End - #274
    Ghost in the Playground
     
    Meowmai's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2019
    Location
    New Zealand
    Gender
    Female

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Quote Originally Posted by Rebonack View Post
    [The Ossuary]

    Aaaaand stealth music go!

    Our highly paid professionals skirt their way around the melee, moving carefully toward the pyramid and ducking between smaller tombs and headstones to keep out of sight of the recovery teams. It would appear as though their infiltration is successful! All the skeletons are busy attacking living foes they CAN see (how DO they see, anyway? They haven't got any eyes) which is a good thing for the mercs. The last thing they need is getting mobbed by a bunch of bony bois and drawing attention to them.

    There only appears to be once immediately obvious entrance to the ziggurat, a huge arched doorway in the front of the structure out of which blocks of sixteen skeletons garbed in ancient arms and armor are steadily marching out of. There must be another entrance somewhere though, right? These stepped temples always have more than one way in. It's just a matter of figuring out where it is, right? They could search around the base, or on one of the middle levels, or maybe sneak up to the top and see if there's a stairway or something?

    What are they going to do?
    Quote Originally Posted by Arkhosia View Post
    [The Ossuary]

    Cantata raises her eyebrows if they get close. This place is outputting a lot of constructs, which can't be very good for either of them. May give them a hint as to what's so important about this place for these necromancers as well, however. She moves towards one of the walls, ready to search it for another means of ingress... but looks towards Dena first. Leadership aside, it's important for them to know if this place is similarly warded. As such, she uses two fingers to mime a person walking before abruptly crushing them into a fist, gesturing back to the ziggurat and giving Dena a questioning look.
    Quote Originally Posted by Shadowcaller View Post
    [The Ossuary]

    Cantata can probably not see Dena but her voice is still present thanks to their earpieces. "Hate to say it but let's split up and search around. You two go to the base of the ziggurat, I take the middle and Violet takes the top. If you spot an alternative entrance then report and we'll meet there. Don't engage with anything." She orders.

    Oh no, splitting the party. This can't end well.
    [The Ossuary]

    Pania is relieved as they made it to their destination unspotted. Normally she'd be itching for a fight, but her psychic shenanigans back there had tired her somewhat, on top of giving her a headache, and by this point she had thoroughly decided that fighting skeletons just felt weird. It all felt horribly unnatural to her. Which was admittedly a bit rich for someone with strange mind powers, but the human brain works in illogical ways sometimes.

    She gave a nod of confirmation at Dena's orders, before turning to Cantata too to make sure they were on the same page. "You lead, I'll follow." She felt like deferring to Cantata's superior scouting/sneaking capabilities would probably be a wise idea here.

  5. - Top - End - #275
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    Geopol4r's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2020
    Location
    Interdimensional iceberg.
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Vault 44
    The figure bends down to a patch of spore-stuff, and picks up a patch of it. He wiggles his fingers, then digs a piece from his arm and slides the patch in. He wiggles his fingers, and flesh grows over the new cavity.
    One magic word later, and waves of fatigue fill the room with the soldiers.
    As the red day is dawning,
    And the lightning cracks the sky
    They'll raise their hands to the heavens above
    With resentment in their eyes

    Note: if I ghost you on FFRP, you have my explicit permission to godmod me.

  6. - Top - End - #276
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Rebonack's Avatar

    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    The King's Grave

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Vault 44]

    The lich(?) now has some fungal growth in his arm!

    The fungal growth, being fungal growth will do what weird fungal growth does best. Namely, trying to dissolve undead flesh to make more fungal growth. As one might imagine this probably isn't healthy (unhealthy?) for mister undead guy. Unless he wants weird fungal growth sprouting from his arm? Maybe he just thinks that would be cool.

    Then waves of fatigue are washed across the room!

    The effect is...

    Not immediately obvious.

    But the rate at which the flesh is being devoured on the pair of corpses in the room does slow down.

    Success?

    The computer screen and elevator are still nearby and oh hey the two soldiers laying on the floor just stood up! Their flesh is pockmarked with bone-colored encrusting fungal growth that has been busily eating away said flesh and they really don't look very healthy. They both point a handgun at the lich(?) and open fire, each shot causing their aim to veer off wildly. The magic might have alerted the zombies to the fact that there's something that isn't another mushroom zombie nearby.


    [WUDJAT]

    "It's probably another friggin' metaphor," Phoenix says, sounding absolutely exasperated. "Hopefully if we ignore it then it'll just go away."

    That may or may not be true.

    Honestly it's hard to guess with a crazy place.

    The metaphor(?) begins crying. That loud, wailing sort of cry that demands attention and immediate care.

    Ignoring the idea of a human child grows increasingly difficult.

    "Okay folks violence or dust. We've gotta do both it sounds like so which is first?"


    [The Ossuary]

    You fools! Never split the party!

    Actually it turns out that this isn't a terrible idea in this case. Especially since they're going to be hooking up again immediately.

    The base turns out to be pretty straight forward. There's a large entrance pointing toward each compass direction, large squarish doorways each with a block of sixteen armed skeletons milling around aimlessly. Just how many of those things are in there, anyway? Was this guy some kind of king who had his whole army buried with him? If so then he was kind of a jerk.

    The middle section, perhaps surprisingly, doesn't have any entrances to speak of. There are, however, spires of bone at each corner with a glowing necrotic orb at the top. The magic orbs pulse in time with the footsteps of the skeletons below. A control mechanism, maybe?

    As for the top, there are two things of note. First? Some kind of sacrificial altar. Second? A stone slab that can be removed to reveal a set of stairs leading down into the upper levels of the pyramid.
    Warning! Random Encounter™ detected!
    The Eternal Game Nightmære Stuff
    It doesn't matter whether you win or lose, just how awesome you look doing it.

  7. - Top - End - #277
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    Geopol4r's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2020
    Location
    Interdimensional iceberg.
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Vault 44
    Linth Southfold will place a hand on each zombies shoulder, and send ripples of power through them, dealing damage and shredding the systems of the zombies. He will then use the fungus buried in his arm as a material component, opening a telepathic link with the fungus.Well, do you truly believe I am subject to your ungraceful corpses?
    As the red day is dawning,
    And the lightning cracks the sky
    They'll raise their hands to the heavens above
    With resentment in their eyes

    Note: if I ghost you on FFRP, you have my explicit permission to godmod me.

  8. - Top - End - #278
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Rebonack's Avatar

    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    The King's Grave

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Vault 44]

    This is a terrible way to make friends, Linth.

    This is probably why no one likes you.

    So!

    Lots of touching comes next. Of course, that requires running up to the pair of zombies in the control room and touching them. They don't really try to avoid this at all given that they're pretty lethargic to begin with and the waves of fatigue just made that all worse. But this DOES mean that Linth is probably eating at least two bullets before he can caress the pair of corpses.

    They get fried pretty unceremoniously, the fungal growth igniting in aetherial flames

    Touching the other three is a little harder since they're outside the control room and angling their higher powered rifles at Linth with the intent of making him holey (as opposed to holy). Getting them them is going to require running through a hail of gunfire, though he could take cover behind the vault entrance to break their line of sight.

    Also?

    He tries to talk with a mushroom.

    Linth receives from this the psychic equivalent of looking into the sun. It is not in the least bit pleasant and whatever he just tried talking to doesn't notice him at all. It is something incomprehensibly vast, ancient, and dead in a way that's difficult to parse.
    Warning! Random Encounter™ detected!
    The Eternal Game Nightmære Stuff
    It doesn't matter whether you win or lose, just how awesome you look doing it.

  9. - Top - End - #279
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    Geopol4r's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2020
    Location
    Interdimensional iceberg.
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Vault 44
    Linth eats two bullets, but gets to the two zombies. After psychically staring into the neural net of a fungus colony, he blinks.Well, that's unfortunate.

    Linth will brace himself as the room is filled with a fireball.
    As the red day is dawning,
    And the lightning cracks the sky
    They'll raise their hands to the heavens above
    With resentment in their eyes

    Note: if I ghost you on FFRP, you have my explicit permission to godmod me.

  10. - Top - End - #280
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Rebonack's Avatar

    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    The King's Grave

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Vault 44]

    A fireball?

    Yeah, that'll do it.

    The other three zombies are rather unceremoniously blown to bits. Now the room smells like a cross between burning meat and cooking mushrooms.

    Oh!

    Also?

    That ignites all the spores floating in the air.

    Ever seen a coal dust explosion before? Or maybe a grain silo explosion?

    There is plenty of explosion and the zombies are all well and dead. Linth might not be enjoying this very much, either. But hey! At least there aren't any more spores floating around, right? That's an upside?

    The computer console manages to survive the blast (somehow) and that elevator which leads deeper into the facility is still functional. It would be possible to search the bodies of the once living once undead but now just regular dead guards, too.
    Warning! Random Encounter™ detected!
    The Eternal Game Nightmære Stuff
    It doesn't matter whether you win or lose, just how awesome you look doing it.

  11. - Top - End - #281
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    Geopol4r's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2020
    Location
    Interdimensional iceberg.
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Vault 44
    The crispy chicken-fried Linth will lie on the floor for a couple hours, regenerating through his connection to his necropolis.
    At the end of his siesta, Linth will examine the control panel, despite being 4k years behind the times.
    As the red day is dawning,
    And the lightning cracks the sky
    They'll raise their hands to the heavens above
    With resentment in their eyes

    Note: if I ghost you on FFRP, you have my explicit permission to godmod me.

  12. - Top - End - #282
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Shadowcaller's Avatar

    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    Avatar by Gullara

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Quote Originally Posted by Chaotic Bob View Post
    [Cloud Castle]

    Karaglen, regrettably, is going to need another minute.
    It seems that whatever reddened her a minute ago, decided to make things a bit worse before it stopped.

    She's curling up more on herself and making an effort to conceal bleeding hands from public view.

    Hopefully now that said Other Problems are resolved, she can start putting herself back together...but not right away.
    Quote Originally Posted by Rebonack View Post
    [Cloud Castle]

    Probably going to be staying in place this time around since Zee basically made a large block of aerogel to trap them in.

    She doesn't need to destroy these things (maybe she should?) so until her hand is forced she's going to try to keep them otherwise incapacitated.

    After all, they're apparently cows for the dragon that owns this castle?

    Said dragon would probably be upset if her sharp cows were all destroyed.

    And speaking of cows!

    "Woah there!" Zee says, quickly darting to the side when the wall of beef comes pouring out of the barn. As soon as the way is clear she takes a quick gander at the situation and-! "G'Nichi save Bessy One over there from her stabby death. I'm going to patch up Bessy Two."

    She doesn't wait for G'Nichi to reply before getting to work.

    Zee kneels down next to the injured cow, puts a hand on her, and imposes her intent on reality.

    Information. The blueprint of the life before her unfurling in her mind's eye.
    Shape. Knitting back together the wounds inflicted on this creature in accord with her plans.

    "Be Healed."
    Quote Originally Posted by Deathkeeper View Post
    Cloud Castle

    G’nichi barely manages to step out of the path of the Cloud Castle Cows as they stampede out the door. He could probably survive trampling but it wouldn’t be pleasant.
    Once the path is clear he can step into the barn proper. Polearms? Good and bad. They have reach on him but their wooden handles are a weak point he can theoretically target.
    G’nichi steps forward, gripping the broadsword in both hands for a diagonal chop at the polearms. They might be magic but maybe he can still send them splintering.
    [Cloud Castle]

    As soon as G'nichi and Zee enters the barn the polearms turn their attention to them as if immediately recognizing the two as a greater threat than the lone cow in the corner.
    They all shift around and charge G'nichi, who happens to be closer than Zee, he manages to catch one of them with his chop. Cutting through the wooden handle.
    But at that moment he's sized by a vision of blood and guts pouring out of the polearm as the weapon seems to let out a gut retching scream.

    But at the same moment the two other weapons are attempting to run right through him and they are magical for the purpose of overcoming basic magical resistance, so especially thick armor (however mundane) will probably be more valuable in this case.

    Regardless if G'nichi is wounded or not he has at least managed to buy Zee time to heal the cattle whose injuries mend themselves according to her wishes. They will be fine.

    Up on the roof the lizard-like person does their best to stay away from Kara, seemingly rather concerned about her spontaneously appearing wounds.
    "You have a disease? Eldritch?" They inquire, the second word being only an approximation of the word they're really using which is more of a umbrella term for "strange affliction".

  13. - Top - End - #283
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    Beholder

    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    The Windy City
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Cloud Castle]

    It passes quickly.
    The source of the problem tidied up and resources acquired.

    Karaglen takes a deep breath as the worst of the wounds on her hands, and the deeper levels of rawness to her skin being to piece themselves back together.
    Not fully, but enough to be functional again.
    A moment or two later and she cautiously stands back up, giving her limbs a couple experimental movements to make sure that's all working fine.
    "Dandy. Really need to not make this sort of setup again."

    And then she remembers that she was just asked a question and proceeds to look highly embarrassed.
    "Oh! Um, no no. No disease. I just got...hurt by someone far away from here. It's okay though, see? Healing already."
    Well, healing a bit. She's a little reluctant to blow all of her acquired resources on fixing (mostly) cosmetic damage for herself.

    She glances off the roof at where cows have decided to flee the barn.
    "Um, is there a safe place for those to go where the weapons can't get them?"
    "Fear and creativity are conjoined twins."
    Absentee Spirit

  14. - Top - End - #284
    Troll in the Playground
     
    bc56's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2018
    Location
    Sector ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    WUDJAT
    "Shut up, kid!" "Stop that! Maybe it needs help?" "We're taking the violence path. At least we can understand what's down that way more easily." "We can't leave the kid behind!" "Didn't you hear Gene? That's not a real kid, it's a stupid trap this place is trying to get us with." One mech moves into the passage towards violence. The other hesitates, reluctant to follow.
    Awesome avatar (Kothar, paladin of Tlacua) by Linkele!

    Quote Originally Posted by William Shakespeare, King Lear, IV.i.46
    'Tis the time's plague, when madmen lead the blind.
    My Nexus characters

  15. - Top - End - #285
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Deathkeeper's Avatar

    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Definitely lost
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Cloud Castle

    G'nichi isn't squeamish but the vision does give him pause, stumbling back. He doesn't have any armor (much to the chagrin of the paladins at Trog's) so the polearms do collide with his shoulder at enough speed to leave a nasty bruise and a shallow cut. His skin is incredibly tough thanks to the influence of the Broadsword.
    With a shout, G'nichi attempts to reach out with his free hand and grab one of the other two polearms with his free hand. Perhaps he can get control of it. Or maybe not! Who knows.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  16. - Top - End - #286
    Firbolg in the Playground
     
    Recaiden's Avatar

    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Location
    Fever dreams
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Bone Hills- Maw of Arkhentkhats]
    Quote Originally Posted by Earl of Purple View Post
    The skeleton carrying the spear has its hands obliterated by the beam of Honeysuckle's gaze, and after glancing at the stumps of its wrists, runs towards the group waving its arms in the air and clacking its jaw. When it reaches the doorway, or anyone touches it, there's a surge of necromancy and it detonates, sending splinters of bone in every direction. The pugilist skeleton ducks down and grabs a broken pavise, pushing it up and hiding behind it. The large shield is cracked, and the supporting spike at the bottom has snapped.
    As planned, Honeysuckle steps back and closes her eyes, even as the manticore steps up into the doorway, rearing up to smash the dis-hand-ed skeleton with it claws...
    Just in time for the undead to explode right there, riddling them with bone splinters.
    Luckily, a manticore's hide is pretty tough, but this still elicits a pained yowl and sets her stumbling back into the hallway.

    "I think you're up here." Honeysuckle calls, glad that whatever that was didn't reach her. It can be convenient to have someone else in the way at times.

    Nodding, the elemental hops past one, then the other, of its fellow adventurers, and marches straight towards the other skeleton's hiding place.
    ~Inner Circle~
    Quote Originally Posted by Raz_Fox View Post
    He takes normality and reason and turns them UP TO 11!
    Quote Originally Posted by Anarion View Post
    Recaiden, stop using your mastery of the English language to confuse the issue.
    Echidna by Serpentine

  17. - Top - End - #287
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Rebonack's Avatar

    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    The King's Grave

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Vault 44]

    A couple hours?

    Well!

    That's enough time for some interesting things to happen.

    For one?

    That chunk of fungus Linth stuck is his arm is going to absolutely be doing its best to devour his flesh to make more fungus. That might be bad.

    For two?

    Well...

    No one is going to come up out of the elevator, actually. Whatever went down into the vault is apparently content to stay down there. For now, at least. Something DOES come in from the outside, though. Several hyenas attracted by the smell of burnt meat. They begin the grisly task of cleaning up, starting with the corpses outside. Hopefully Linth wakes up before he's lunch.


    [Cloud Castle]


    Sure is a good thing that G'Nichi is so heroic, isn't it?

    Gives Zee some time to save a cow!

    That was definitely why they came up here to this floating castle, right?

    To rescue cows?

    Well, that part is done, right? Zee scoots out of the way to allow the cow to escape and then does something really weird. She draws one of the tonfa at her hip, holds it by its longer section, and ignites a searing blade of flame and light from the weapon! She raises it high as if to SMITE these weapons and-!

    Sticks it straight into the ground, creating a perfect two meter cubed pit.

    "Try wrestling them into the hole!" she suggests, already moving to help.


    [WUDJAT]

    "Didn't say it's a trap," Gene supplies as she maneuvers toward the Path of Violence. "Said it's a metaphor."

    Which is weird.

    Because this place is weird.

    And what is a metaphor?

    A symbol that speaks something deeper about something else.

    Until Herringbone makes her choice the way forward down the Path of Violence is strangely ill-defined.
    Warning! Random Encounter™ detected!
    The Eternal Game Nightmære Stuff
    It doesn't matter whether you win or lose, just how awesome you look doing it.

  18. - Top - End - #288
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    Purple Eagle's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2019
    Location
    West Africa

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Quote Originally Posted by Ironsmith View Post
    [Slavic Engineers - Near Mishnehel's House]

    "...All right, I'll admit, I may need to fine-tune the stabilizers a bit." Vlad crosses his arms, staring up at the ground beneath them. "In my defense, this plane was never really meant to house that sort of technology. There are a number of design features here that make it difficult to retrofit. But, on the plus side, all the safeties seem to be working fine."
    [Slavic Engineers - Near Mishnehel's House]

    Svetlana does not look amused one bit, as she stares straight out the window, which is currently providing some upside-down version of a view. "Now he tells me." She responds crossly, crossing her arms. "Had I known, I would have suggested this not be our test flight. I might miss my deceased husband, but I am in no hurry to join him!"

    She rubs her temples in exasperation. "So... I would like to believe you prepared for this eventuality, and have some sort of plan to get this plane out of here?"
    Last edited by Purple Eagle; 2022-06-08 at 09:07 AM.
    Purple Eagle's character list
    Love is the message.

  19. - Top - End - #289
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Shadowcaller's Avatar

    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    Avatar by Gullara

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Quote Originally Posted by Chaotic Bob View Post
    [Cloud Castle]

    It passes quickly.
    The source of the problem tidied up and resources acquired.

    Karaglen takes a deep breath as the worst of the wounds on her hands, and the deeper levels of rawness to her skin being to piece themselves back together.
    Not fully, but enough to be functional again.
    A moment or two later and she cautiously stands back up, giving her limbs a couple experimental movements to make sure that's all working fine.
    "Dandy. Really need to not make this sort of setup again."

    And then she remembers that she was just asked a question and proceeds to look highly embarrassed.
    "Oh! Um, no no. No disease. I just got...hurt by someone far away from here. It's okay though, see? Healing already."
    Well, healing a bit. She's a little reluctant to blow all of her acquired resources on fixing (mostly) cosmetic damage for herself.

    She glances off the roof at where cows have decided to flee the barn.
    "Um, is there a safe place for those to go where the weapons can't get them?"
    Quote Originally Posted by Deathkeeper View Post
    Cloud Castle

    G'nichi isn't squeamish but the vision does give him pause, stumbling back. He doesn't have any armor (much to the chagrin of the paladins at Trog's) so the polearms do collide with his shoulder at enough speed to leave a nasty bruise and a shallow cut. His skin is incredibly tough thanks to the influence of the Broadsword.
    With a shout, G'nichi attempts to reach out with his free hand and grab one of the other two polearms with his free hand. Perhaps he can get control of it. Or maybe not! Who knows.
    Quote Originally Posted by Rebonack View Post
    [Cloud Castle]

    Sure is a good thing that G'Nichi is so heroic, isn't it?

    Gives Zee some time to save a cow!

    That was definitely why they came up here to this floating castle, right?

    To rescue cows?

    Well, that part is done, right? Zee scoots out of the way to allow the cow to escape and then does something really weird. She draws one of the tonfa at her hip, holds it by its longer section, and ignites a searing blade of flame and light from the weapon! She raises it high as if to SMITE these weapons and-!

    Sticks it straight into the ground, creating a perfect two meter cubed pit.

    "Try wrestling them into the hole!" she suggests, already moving to help.
    [Cloud Castle]

    Again it's difficult to read this persons expression or mannerism but they don't seem to have any comments on Kara's claim that she was hurt due to someone far away.
    Instead, they focus on her question. "Yes, old barn." They point towards one of the larger buildings nearby. "But it was closed it off since its crumbling. Too old to save." It does look as old and ill-maintained as all the buildings here, with the exception of this barn of course since it looks brand new.
    While this persons voice or tone can't be called mechanical their way of speaking seems to be. Rarely using any 'excessive' words.

    "New barn was to be branded today. Bad chance."

    Meanwhile, inside the barn G'nichi grabs one of the polearms and it doesn't seem to appreciate this as it starts to move up and down violently while deciding that if attacking his chest doesn't work its going to go for the softer spots, namely his eyes and his mouth.

    The other polearm seems to have the same idea and it pulls back for a moment while the other polearm is trying to shake itself loose from G'nichi's grip and starts to stab towards his face. The other one is mainly just waggling itself in the direction of his face so there's probably less chance of it actually hitting anything vital.

    Zee, well, she's there. One of the cows looks too exhausted to even move while the other is trying to climb back on its feet with little luck. The third cow is still standing in the corner it was forced into, seemingly frozen in fear.

  20. - Top - End - #290
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    Geopol4r's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2020
    Location
    Interdimensional iceberg.
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Vault 44
    A) The fungus in his arm is no more, it was used as a material component when trying to communicate with the larger entity.
    B) If hyenas attack Linth, he will wake up and summon a Fiendish Ape. That should be able to start pelting them against the wall while Linth finishes healing.
    Then, our favorite necropolitan drow will examine the panel, attempting to decipher it.
    As the red day is dawning,
    And the lightning cracks the sky
    They'll raise their hands to the heavens above
    With resentment in their eyes

    Note: if I ghost you on FFRP, you have my explicit permission to godmod me.

  21. - Top - End - #291
    Troll in the Playground
     
    bc56's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2018
    Location
    Sector ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    WUDJAT
    "Screw you guys. A child is a good thing, so a metaphorical child must be a metaphor for a good thing," Herringbone argues
    "Val..." "I'm getting the kid." She maneuvers her mech towards the crying "child."
    Hopefully she's right.
    Awesome avatar (Kothar, paladin of Tlacua) by Linkele!

    Quote Originally Posted by William Shakespeare, King Lear, IV.i.46
    'Tis the time's plague, when madmen lead the blind.
    My Nexus characters

  22. - Top - End - #292
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    Beholder

    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    The Windy City
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Cloud Castle]

    Oh! Well this is a problem that Kara can definitely fix!
    She did something similar with that terrible clocktower in the Pit.

    Although...hrm. That would require unfolding here, wouldn't it? Is that a good idea?
    Maybe if she just does the whole thing in the old barn, so that no one else can see.

    "Umm, okay. I think I can maybe get your old barn to be usable again. It might not be perfect, but it can be a good backup location?"
    So, while her Mom and G'nichi are over there fighting the weapons, Karaglen is going to make her way off the roof so she can get into the other barn.
    She'll probably try to go around behind it, before she does any of her unfolding/[outways] moving shenanigans. Doesn't want to unnerve the person they're trying to rescue, or anyone else who may be watching.

    There are some thoughts about how there are probably more mundane solutions to be had here, recalling lessons from previous incidents. Buuuut, this serves multiple purposes this way, and faster, than those other options.
    A safe place to usher the cows, a safer alternate building for them to use without using up whatever (possibly?) limited resources they have, and more general assurance that they're just here to help.
    "Fear and creativity are conjoined twins."
    Absentee Spirit

  23. - Top - End - #293
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Rebonack's Avatar

    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    The King's Grave

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Vault 44]

    That poor fungus, being destroyed by poorly defined arcane forces.

    Anyway!

    Ape on hyena battle!

    Or...

    Well, battle might not be the best way to describe it.

    More like the ape appears out of nowhere and begins mauling a hyena and the other animals flee. Predators by and large will avoid confrontations if there's a good chance of getting injured. And throwing down with a gorilla, fiendish or otherwise, is a pretty solid way to get injured.

    Anyway!

    Screen.

    It isn't terribly complicated. Just a key board and one of those old black and green text monitors. On the screen are several prompts.

    >Close Vault Door
    >Security Logs
    >Diagnostic
    Seems pretty straight forward, right? Obviously this is some kind of magical interface for controlling the artifice in this room.


    [WUDJAT]

    It turns out that the Idea of a Human Child is not a hologram hiding a bomb.

    Herringbone now has it, a ghost in her mech's computer systems. The Idea of a Human Child desires to have its innocence protected, but how will she protect it from the violence that awaits her?

    And how is she to protect its innocence and at the same time allow it to grow into something that is not a child?

    This is a great mystery.

    The path forward is clear now, a long hallway that twists upon itself like a corkscrew. As our heroes move forward their mechs will be assailed by ewar attacks that seek to seize control of their machines and turn these weapons of violence against each other. Herringbone's catapult will, however, have no difficulty in shrugging off the electronic attacks since it has been wrapped in innocence as armor.
    Warning! Random Encounter™ detected!
    The Eternal Game Nightmære Stuff
    It doesn't matter whether you win or lose, just how awesome you look doing it.

  24. - Top - End - #294
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    Geopol4r's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2020
    Location
    Interdimensional iceberg.
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Vault 44
    Linth will tap the magic button that says "Close Vault Doors".
    Linth proceeds to scavenge the hyena corpse for organs to store in body cavities, then looks at the weapons of the 4 men.
    As the red day is dawning,
    And the lightning cracks the sky
    They'll raise their hands to the heavens above
    With resentment in their eyes

    Note: if I ghost you on FFRP, you have my explicit permission to godmod me.

  25. - Top - End - #295
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Deathkeeper's Avatar

    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Definitely lost
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Cloud Castle

    G'nichi angrily parries the polearm flying at him. His reaction times are quite fast which he assumes comes from the sword. A shield would probably be better at this but when they're just coming at him dead on slapping them aside with his sword is...well it's not easy but it's not impossible.
    The one in his hand struggles in his grasp fruitlessly. He can't really keep a good grip on it with it flailing around and scraping his arm and wrist so he settles for hurling it into the nearby hole Zee pointed out. Hopefully that actually works.
    Last edited by Deathkeeper; 2022-06-08 at 04:54 PM.
    Spako Highclaws by Ceika.

    [Sorry Boss, but as always, I get the last word.]

  26. - Top - End - #296
    Troll in the Playground
     
    bc56's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2018
    Location
    Sector ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    WUDJAT
    "Sensors going haywire. Switching to full manual control." Cynic switches off the sensors and targeting computer, but not soon enough. "What the hell!?" Green and red lasers blast from the Dragon's shoulder and forearm and rake across Sol's flank, followed by a shot from the autocannon on the other arm.
    Awesome avatar (Kothar, paladin of Tlacua) by Linkele!

    Quote Originally Posted by William Shakespeare, King Lear, IV.i.46
    'Tis the time's plague, when madmen lead the blind.
    My Nexus characters

  27. - Top - End - #297
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    Beholder

    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    The Windy City
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Quote Originally Posted by Earl of Purple View Post
    Rovering

    The officer doesn't have an opportunity to react before he's teleported to the top of the zeppelin's airbag. He stumbles on the smooth rubbery surface. "This won't spark, will it? If I cut into the bag and hit a metal support or something? Because a spark'd make the luftgaz under our feet go boom, maybe." It's not a guarantee, but many airships trading with the traction-towns stay aloft using hydrogen or methane, rather than helium or other, safer gases. Making airships very flammable in the limited experience of this officer. Of course, the cybermen are using very different technology to that used by the people of Rovering far below; it could be anything in there.

    He'll cut into it if Page says it'll be fine, and nothing will explode; the cybermen are using helium, at least on this occasion. Probably a good idea given that they're all made of metal; it'd be far harder for them to prevent a spark when everything they do is metal-on-metal. Given that they've cut a hole in the top of the zeppelin, it's going to slowly lose lift as helium escapes, and below their feet is a large compartment with a walkway along the bottom, a pair of airlocks leading into other compartments in the zeppelin's airbag. Scuttling around are robotic spidery things, though ones with only five legs. Several start climbing up the side of the compartment to get to where the officer has cut his way inside, but there's not really an easy way to descend the five metre depth of the balloon.
    Page genuinely hadn't considered the risk of gas explosion.
    Thankfully for the officer's morale (probably), she keeps the "huh, oops" strictly to her own thoughts.

    "Apologies for the brusqueness, dear, but we really must keep moving. Hop down and I will catch you."
    The 5 meter gap doesn't really seem much an impediment for a unicorn that can just...teleport the distance. She does spare the officer another teleportation though, instead electing to have him jump into a gentle telekinetic grip before he hits the walkway.

    Undoubtedly there will be plenty of those robo-spiders nearby, for which she begins exhaling more of that pink gas, which promptly begins solidifying into the approximate shape of a saber in the air before her.
    "I hope your sword arm still has plenty of vigor."
    It looks like they're going to be doing a lot of chopping soon.
    "Fear and creativity are conjoined twins."
    Absentee Spirit

  28. - Top - End - #298
    Orc in the Playground
     
    Earl of Purple's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    With folk in the North
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    Cloud Castle- Skeleton Carriage

    "Ah, it's... not a problem. We only discovered this place when it flew near my property and one of my gardeners reported seeing it and thought I'd be interested." A slight lie, there; the 'gardener' is a magically animated skeleton, serving as a guard and not a gardener, and with instructions to alert Benedict of any airborne scenery that goes past. "I was not truly expecting this location to be inhabited, as I believed it to be propelled by wind rather than any deliberate efforts at relocation." And flying castles that are getting pushed by the wind, in Benedict's experience, are usually abandoned and at risk of crashing into mountains, skyscrapers and cliffs.

    Bone Hills- Maw of Arkhentkhats

    The pavise has some chunks of bone lodged in the old wood, but it's managed to protect the skeleton behind. It steps out as the elemental approaches and swings a fist at the firey being. Black magic surrounds the fist as it approaches; should it hit, the punch will drain life-energy- or something equivalent- out of the elemental and into the skeleton. Were the elemental a fleshy creature, each contact would regenerate some of the missing tissue; as things stand, however, instead the skeleton will probably start to smoulder, as human bones aren't an ideal container for elemental fire.

    Cyberdyne Industries Airship Above Rovering

    The officer didn't much like being hoisted down via telekinesis; it felt really weird to not be held by anything. When they land, he bends to slash at the scuttling hand-spiders, but even the one he bisected ignore the pair; they're not interested in intruders, but wish to repair the damage inflicted by the officer's super-sword. They'll extrude artificial silk from apertures hidden on their underside to stitch the hole shut, before using more silk to provide a more efficient seal.

    "Yes, I think so. We can cut more holes in the balloon, make it crash, or try finding the control room. Take those out, get it to land, Rovering can eat it and rescue everyone and recover some of the materials and technology." A bit hopeful there, at 'rescuing everyone'. The people the cybermen are abducting are needed for something, and it's not exactly 'as slave labour', which is his current thought process.
    Terrowin Avatar by HappyTurtle. Much thanks!

  29. - Top - End - #299
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Rebonack's Avatar

    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    The King's Grave

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    [Cloud Castle]

    These animated weapons are just actively unhelpful, aren't they?

    Totally unwilling to be nice.

    Only interested in stabbing things.

    Cows!

    They stabbed COWS!

    What's the point of stabbing cows, aside from being pointy?

    Nothing, that's what.

    Zee is going to aim to grab one of those spears and likewise shove it into that nice big hole she just dug in the floor!

    Why?

    Because as soon as there are two spears down there she's going to fill said hole back in again. There's a soft crystalline chime, followed by the pit being the proud owner of a great big cube of celestial glass. Which she's aiming to manifest just above the spears. Which means they'll now be stuck in the pit with the glass cube above them like a great big shiny cork in a bottle. Which means the barn just got a really interesting looking workbench?

    Maybe?

    That should still leave one spear remaining. It's probably still going to be a jerk, isn't it?

    "You doing okay, G'Nichi?" Zee asks as she vaults up on top of the glass table she just created so she can point at the remaining spear. "Give up, Stabbakin, I've got the high ground now!"


    [Vault 44]

    There comes a sound of clanking gears and whining motors as the vault door slowly swings shut on the end of its hydrolic arm and seals with a clang. Followed by the sound of huge metal bolts sliding into the cavities surrounding it. That thing is extremely heavy duty.

    But!

    At least closing it means nothing else from the outside is going to be getting in, right?

    Also Linth is now the proud owner of some hyena organs! Who knows what fun activities he can think of to use them! The weapons of the guards are probably a little less exciting compared to hyena livers. There are two hundguns and three semi-automatic rifles. Each is also equipped with an extendable baton for bopping people with.


    [WUDJAT]

    "Yeah I'm getting some weird feedback on my end- what the hell!?" Phoenix yells over the comes as not only does her mech get shot several times, but it whirls around and fires a salvo of spikes back at the Dragon. The displacer is just beginning to spool up when Phoenix trots her mech away from the others and hits the EMP button. The manticore crackles with a short range burst of energy and then its weapons go dark. As do the coms. Inside her mech Phoenix is busying herself trying to figure out what the hell is going on. Some kind of hostile AI control? Thankfully the EMP seems to have purged the infectious code but it's hard to guess if this thing will happen again.

    Herringbone is getting a pretty weird show to watch, it would appear.
    Warning! Random Encounter™ detected!
    The Eternal Game Nightmære Stuff
    It doesn't matter whether you win or lose, just how awesome you look doing it.

  30. - Top - End - #300
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Arkhosia's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jun 2013
    Gender
    Female

    Default Re: Outside 52: Touch grass

    The Ossuary

    Cantata couldn't entirely disagree. Skeletons didn't unnerve her terribly at this point - after all, its just like robots but magic really. Once there's more meat on their bones is where it starts getting disconcerting. Still, it didn't make them any less pleasant to deal with. Skeletons were just bone with some vague arcane ties to puppet them. No brains to trick, no code to exploit, not even any arteries or poorly-shielded joints and cords to sever. They were far enough from her usual adversaries to be particularly annoying, and magic was a bit of a complicated thing to pick up as a means of counter.

    "Of course," Cantata responds by way of a nod, slipping down and beginning to lead Pania through scouting the area. She makes a point of feeling the stones of the wall at various points, making sure that any hidden passages don't go unnoticed. Noting the orbs above, she glances back towards Pania and gestures towards one, raising an eyebrow.
    "Are we living a life that is safe from harm? Of course not, we never are. But that's not the right question. The question is: are we living a life that is worth the harm?"
    ~Welcome to Night Vale

    Spoiler: Quotes from Friends <3
    Show
    Quote Originally Posted by SliiArhem
    Arkh I may be slightly delirious but I don't think that would make sense even if I was coherent.

    Interested in the Nexus FFRP setting? Try joining our Discord server!

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •