HALO IV: The Fourth Episode of the Trilogy

[The Bushranger]

HALO
Heroic
Anti-Evil and
Lawbreaking
Organization


((Banner thanks to Almighty_Salmon!))

HALO, a new organization dedicated to the cause of good! To protect the playground and The Town! We have selected those who we think to have the ability to help us in our cause!
Joining is simple, you keep your soul, and your blood... And someone else keeps their blood as well.
All you have to do is...

1. Must be non-evil
2. PM Masato or Haruki-kun
3. Ask to join
4. They might ask questions... So answer them!
5. Your in if you are found worthy!

Just that!

We also have a wikispace for more information, such as member lists!

Member awards as well (since we rox!)

Spoiler

Show

Well in the first three threads we've had massed chaos, anarchy and destruction. But our work here is not yet done...

((This thread is subject to change. This thread has also been given the MOD-nod.))



((My apologies if the same person restarting a thread twice is frowned upon, but since nobody else is here to do it...))

[Emperor Ing]

Someone told me about that new thread smell... OMIGOD THATS TERRIBLE!!!

[banjo1985]

"You got that right....I'm going to wait till page 2!"

Banjo hides in his circus tent until teh new thread smell goes away.

[The Bushranger]

Meanwhile, in pursuit of Plot, Bushranger ghosts through the ventiliation system, invisible, attempting to reach the Room with the Flashing Buttons and Levers.

[Miraqariftsky]

((Bleeding blazes, what the heck?! My back shivers as I write this--- damn, that ain't right!))

As Bushranger's ethereal form slices through te twilight of the ventilations, as he penetrates deeper and deeper into enemy territory, the air gets colder and colder. It is not merely the absence of warmth, rather, it is a thick, darksome mist much akin to the shortcut through the abyssal demiplane that Neshi had used during their ill-fated rescue attempt of Nomlas and Inigo.

Deeper he flies into the darkness. Only faintly does he feel his own heart's beating, ever fainter comes the light from the fan-grilles that he passes by. His ectoplasmic movements grow more sluggish though he barely notices it. It is like traveling through a bog at midnight--- the mud sucks down your feet and the unwavering darkness saps the strength of sinews and soul. Slowly, ever so slowly, the twilight of this realm sucks Bushranger's essence out of his very substance as he passes through...

It is not merely the absence of warmth... but also the absence of liberty, of life and of love...

Suddenly, winter-keen icicles of unhallowed pain stab through his floating-flying form from all directions, skewering him and holding him in place. Guttural voices growl in both delight and dismay at the capture... only to be silenced by a much-dreaded yipping...

He who against us turned, it is, yesss!

Ghostblooded traitor, aye, feel you now, our vengeance true?

SILENCE, CRETINS! YOU. BUSHRANGER., the dominant voice addresses him with businesslike tones and seemingly familiar knowledge while the unseen icicles still both burning and freezing within him.

A crystal orb appears right in front of the Bushranger's face, its surface clouding then clearing. Within, he sees Sorcy walking along one of the less damaged corridors seemingly unaware of the swarm of sinners' spirits clustered around her, swimming in and out of her fleshly form. Every time that happens, her hair stands on end and her eyes flick around the space about her, not seeing the grinning ghosts whose desire for... not flesh but life-essence veritably drools from their fanged maws...

BRING HALO TO THE CHAMBER OF THE PIT OR SHE WILL SUFFER A FATE WORSE THAN DAMNATION ITSELF. COME FACE LAWFUL JUDGEMENT AND... SOME OF YOU WILL LEAVE WITH YOUR LIVES. GO, FOOL.

The vision fades just as the incorporeal icicles rrip themselves from Bushranger's ethereal form, leaving him standing right in front of a grille leading right to the Room of Flashy Lights and Levers. In the middle of the room stands the oh-so-mighty Status Quo Button... on the nigh-pristine floor is written in broad swaths of black blood, Come and try your luck, mortal. Doom here awaits.

--------------

GRZZZZK... The doors to Inigo's cell creak open ponderously. A stooped daemon with a wickedly curved sword in one hand and a cat o'nine tails in the other shambles in and dispels the wards around the old swashbuckler. "Follow, fool. Mooove iiiit, mooortal. Looord Qaraqaroook awaits yoooour preeesence aaat the Sooorceress' eeexecution"

With no further ado, it turns around and waddles off, fully expecting the prisoner to follow him. Amongst the folds of its fat, there suddenly glints in the fait flourescence of the dying lightbulbs some bright sheen of metal...

-------------

[Copacetic]

*inhales new thread smell*



*dissapears*

[Almighty Salmon]

((Nomlas is still with the demon, right?))

While the demon thing is distracted by Mina, Nomlas quickly tugs off his Blindfold and Gag. He runs forward - away from the demon as far as he possibly can. Looking around at his surroundings while he sprints.

[Nightwing]

*Nightwing comes back from another night of crime fighting*

[Miraqariftsky]

Plot Continuation, Part 2:

------------

"NOOOOO! Re-re-return, o-or m-milord Stuar...GAAAARRRRRGGGHHH!", starts the daemonic guard, commanding Nomlas to return and go with him to his lord's "breakfast meeting" when suddenly, upon merely stating the demonlord's former name, the daemon clutches at its throat, gagging and choking. Its eyes bug out then pop out as a swarm of fleas explodes from the beast's skull. A cloud of crawling maggots then emerge from every orifice of the daemon's ghastly body, devouring it from the inside out as punishment for speaking the Qaraqarok's old name.

---------

((Did I miss anybody who is actively plot-involved?))

[The Bushranger]

((Nexus, have you ever considered writing for The Twilight Zone? ))

As the vision fades, Bushranger's eyes flicker between green and red as his ghostly healing repairs the damage from the icicles.

In the immortal words of Admiral Ackbar, he mutters under his breath, it's a trap. But which one is the trap?

The Reset Button beckons, seemingly unguarded except by the ominous warning.

His friend walks unknowingly though the most malovent of forces, who await only a single command to destroy her.

It seems that the entire mess can be fixed with one quick move...

...but at what price?

***FLASHBACK***

"Make one move against me, and she dies."

The Necromancer holds a young lady against the floor in a magical grasp. In the darkness, illuminated only by the eerie green glow from the open ghost portal, few features can be seen, except that the Necromancer is garbed in crimson robes, while the girl has dark skin and pointed ears.

A younger Bushranger lies crumpled in a corner, glaring angrily at the Necromancer's smiling face. If looks could kill, the sorcerer would be stone dead.

"Yes, my young servant. You can stop me. I'm afraid I miscalculated the extent to which I could extend my control over you, to which you would be loyal to me, grateful to me for giving you powers beyond your wildest imagination. But it matters not. Soon I shall have the powers of all the ghosts ever formed at my command. You could have been my trusted lieutenant, commanding my ethereal legions across the planet and across the Universe. But no. You had to throw it all away...all the power...the glory...for what? Love? How can one of your kind love one of hers? Or was it just that you're such a good person?" The Necromancer laughs crully.

"It matters not. You dare not stop me, for I will kill her. You dare not attempt to rescue her, for I will kill you both. Ah! And now, my legions approach."

A faint shape can be seen in the portal, slowly growing more distinct. Bushranger's eyes lock with those of the girl on the floor, and a look of sorrow, and understanding passes between them -

- he lunges for the portal, tearing away the cord for its power source -

- the portal flickers, undulating, then explodes -

- the Necromancer, screaming in anger, vents his wrath upon the girl, her smoking body being flung into a corner...

Bushranger turns away from the portal and faces the Necromancer. His eyes are like glowing rubies, green energy crackling around his fists, his skin turning blue, ears pointed, fangs growing...

"What have you done you FOOL!" the Necromancer roars. Then he catches a glimpse of Bushranger's face - and cringes. "No..."

"What I should have done a long time ago." The voice is deep, echoing, and dripping with malice, as the ghost's now-flaming hair crackles. "You killed my friend. Death is too good for you..."

The screaming begins, and doesn't end for a long, long time. After it does, Bushranger can be found sitting in a corner, the girl's body cradled in his arms, sobbing, for hours.

"Never again..."

***END FLASHBACK***

Never again. Anyone seeing Bushranger's face now would discover an interesting fact: ghosts can cry. Never again. No matter the cost... He shakes his fist at the grating. You've messed with the wrong ghost today, Dogface! I will find you, and I will tear you LIMB FROM LIMB!

He turns, and hurries back the way he came...to find his friend.

[Miraqariftsky]

((Muy excellente, mi amigo... muy muy bien...

The Endgame nears
The King marches forth to death and glory,
A Pawn and a Knight his sole aides
There rises black, the tide of fears
White the field, White the Queen, not yet gory,
She the mighty yet beleaguered most, on this last of raids
Yet where lurks the Black King,
Behind Pawns unbraving? ))

[The Bushranger]

((Many thanks.

Alas! I must deadtime for a few hours))

[Miraqariftsky]

((Nomlas is still with the demon, right?))

While the demon thing is distracted by Mina, Nomlas quickly tugs off his Blindfold and Gag. He runs forward - away from the demon as far as he possibly can. Looking around at his surroundings while he sprints.

ssschlurksht!

As he runs in the barely-lit passageways, stumbling over contorted corpses, Nomlas suddenly stops, a four-foot spike protruding from his right shoulder. The wound barely bleeds, so clean was the cut.

Four insectile fiends phase through the walls, their grey wings buzzing. One of them descends and yanks out the spike it had shot through the demiplane of shadow.

Before Nomlas could fall from the shock of his injuries, another one of the fiends spits upon the bard's wound. The spittle smokes and sizzles upon the man's flesh and yet the edges of the wound close together in as the spit's magic sets in.

"Yekka, yekka! Feeed us your paain, mortal..." jeers his healer and tormentor.

"KA-KA-KA-KA!" Laughs another as it whirls and trips Nomlas with its spindly clawed arm.

"Kruly, derk ve tooo vittle of yoour kind hereabouts, a-aye?", sighs yet another fiend as it rakes a clawed foot down Nomlas' gut.

"Sssssing us of your ssssuufffering, ah, sumptuous SUPPER, this shall be..." commands the tallest of the lot.

[Almighty Salmon]

Nomlas shocked by the presence of the fiends stays silent for a minute, staring into their demonic eyes. Once the bard hears the tallest insectile speak of him singing a song for them. He pulls himself to his feet and opens his mouth to release a tune.

The vast universal suffering feel as thine:
Thou must bear the sorrow that thou claimst to heal;
The day-bringer must walk in darkest night.
He who would save the world must share its pain.
If he knows not grief, how shall he find grief's cure?

After he has sung for his survival Nomlas looks straight at the fiends with a look of determination.

H-How can I get out of this place..?

[Miraqariftsky]

Nomlas shocked by the presence of the fiends stays silent for a minute, staring into their demonic eyes. Once the bard hears the tallest insectile speak of him singing a song for them. He pulls himself to his feet and opens his mouth to release a tune.

The vast universal suffering feel as thine:
Thou must bear the sorrow that thou claimst to heal;
The day-bringer must walk in darkest night.
He who would save the world must share its pain.
If he knows not grief, how shall he find grief's cure?

After he has sung for his survival Nomlas looks straight at the fiends with a look of determination.

H-How can I get out of this place..?

As Nomlas utters the first notes of song, A storm brews above him, dark and deadly. Lightnings dance in the rafters, thunderbolts crashig upo wall panels.

By the second verse, the fiends have stopped up their ears and yet they are still writhing in unapreciative agony, their faces screwed up so badly they shame the direst of bulldogs. By the third, smoke is pouring from their ears, eyes and mouths, all the while they are chanting, begging the bard to stop, "NOOOO! NO-NO-NAAAARRRGGHH!"

By the fifth verse, their limbs have fallen out of their sockets and still-breathing eyes stare blindly ahead in agonized insanity. Only the largest one has survived, but barely. It tries to crawl away, away out of earshot but fails miserably. The beast's chitinuous head crackles and splits into a dozen shards as the brain within is melted by the hallowed--- yet still horrendously horrible singing.

Then in counterpoint to his song, there suddenly rises a shrill yipping. The lights in the corridor suddenly brighten, becoming as cheerful as noontide on the surface. Bounding toward Nomlas is a cute little puppy with bubbly eyes and... strands of long silver-grey hair in its paws...


((GOODNIGHT, Y'ALL. *DEADTIME*))

[Haruki-kun]

Haruki walks into the new Thread and curls up again.

((Yes, I'm being sort of inactive at the moment. But I'm still keeping up with the plot, don't worry!.............. I think.))

[Inigo Montoya]

((I'm assuming that glint of metal is a weapon.))

Inigo moved forward, trying to contain his delight. A weapon! The fact that it was still on his captor's body mattered very little right now. What mattered was that there was a chance. Inigo looked around his cell quickly and saw what he was looking for. A copper pipe.

Inigo tripped, making sure that his body covered the pipe. If the pipe was to heavy to lift in one hand, or if the demon was more observant then it looked, he would be dead.

Yoou fool! I'll teeach you!

The demon raises the cat o' nine tails to hit Inigo, but he rolls out of the way aiming a kick for the demon's legs. This did very little damage besides confusing the demon. But it was enough. Inigo leaps to his feet, the pipe flashing dimly in the light. He brings the pipe down on the demon's head, and is surprised when the pipe did not penetrate the demon's skull. It did however, wound it, and that was enough. While the demon howled in pain and anger. Inigo reached for the weapon and was not surprised to see it was his rapier. He reached for it, and grabbed the hilt. He wasted no time in dispatching the demon.

With the monster dead, Inigo looked around the hallway. There was no one else coming. Good. Inigo walked out of the cell and made his way up the hall, looking for where Sorcy is being held.

[Volug]

((Still deadtimed, though I would like to point out I will be doing something small in a little more then an hour. If I ever get back to being a Red mage, since "Mashto" can't really handle the stuff I will be using for it ))

[Almighty Salmon]

((Looks like my singing is a deus ex machina against the demons ))

Nomlas stares in horror at the deformed, dead demons.

Wow.. I had no idea my singing was that bad..

He sighs and turn around to see a puppy bound towards him.

Hello, What's you name? Nomlas crouches down and strokes the puppy You look like a Jasper, I'll call you that. What's that in your paws? He crouches down and inspects the strands of hair in it's paws.

Weird.. Do you want to help me find this Qaraqarok? I think I need to get some answers from him..

Nomlas keeps on walking forwards on his quest to find Qaraqarok. Jasper by his side.

[Haruki-kun]

((Can somone please set me up smewhere in the plot? I'm completely lost.....))

[BunnyBoo564403]

the Dragon nudges the werewolf slightly

can you use telpathy?

[Haruki-kun]

The Werewolf looks at the Dragon curiously.

[Volug]

((Alright, I'm back for about 35 minutes, I'll go as fast as I can!))

"Mashto" undeadtimes.

Mashto comes out of his room after a long sleep, he is also carrying a strange rod that glows with a strange pale light.

Heheheh, pretty glowy stick! Mashto li- PUPPY!!!!!

Mashto runs over to the wolf and starts to pet it gently, with the rod still in one hand.

((Masato was transformed into a Barbarian Hobgoblin for those who don't know.))

((If no one posts I'll just go on... He is carrying a strange "glowy stick" you know ))

[Volug]

((Guess I'll just post then.))

Puppy like Mashto? Puppy play fetch?

Mashto hold up the glowing rod and shows it to Haruki, expecting it to chase after it and give it back to him when thrown.

((Nevermind he just deadtimed apparently))

Mashto looks at the glowing rod with un-intelligent interest.

[Inigo Montoya]

Inigo walked down the dark, dank hallway, hiding from groups of demons, trying to find out where Sorcy was being held. He had no idea where he was. The demons had ripped up the base so much that he was surprised that the base was still standing.

Inigo had reached a more open space, when he heard a familiar voice. He smiled and walked towards the voice. Inigo walks and holds up his hand to signal that he is a friend. He walks up to Masato.

Boy, I am glad to see you. Do you know where Sorcy is?

[Volug]

((Funny how I suddenly undeadtime...))

When Masato turns around he looks quite different, he looks exactly like a hob-goblin with a huge war axe on his back. Also looks... Stupid... It's apparent by the way he looks at Inigo.

Who Sorcy? Mashto happy to see you talky-man.

One can only guess is that there was a problem involving him with Nomlas's Machine.

((Anyone else on??))

[The Bushranger]

((I am, but the plot is hard to progress without Nexus around.

Which of course causes all kinds of havoc because of the time-zone conflict.))

[Almighty Salmon]

((I'm here, But Nomlas is currently being held captive by demons..

I can always use the Warforged who guards the machine though))

[A Rainy Knight]

((Okay. I finally managed to get on. Was anyone else not able to get the page to load today?))

Sorcy whistles and walks through the corridors, wary, but still unable to see the spirits surrounding her.

((Err, I think she's still in the corridors, at least. Not quite sure what NRCM has planned right now. Ominous references to "milord Stuart" and the silver-grey hair in the dog's paws, though.))

[Inigo Montoya]

Oh dear...Masato what happened? Nevermind, it's not important.

Inigo looks around at his surroundings. He appeares to be thinking and suddenly looks like he has an idea.

Umm... Masato, have you seen a pretty magic-lady? She's going to be...hurt, and we need to find her.